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TRANSFER TALK: CRITICISM ADDS WEIGHT TO NICO SCHLOTTERBECK 'S LOOMING DORTMUND EXIT

Nico Schlotterbeck publicly blasted his Dortmund teammates for "playing carelessly" after their 2-2 draw, escalating concerns about the team's mentality and the defender's own uncertain future.

Transfer Talk: Criticism Adds Weight To Nico Schlotterbeck 's Looming Dortmund Exit
Schlotterbeck Slams BVB Teammates

Borussia Dortmund needs to calm things down after Nico Schlotterbeck publicly criticised his teammates before their Sunday game against Freiburg.

Schlotterbeck didn't hold back, blasting substitutes Serhou Guirassy and Karim Adeyemi for losing every ball and other teammates for playing carelessly in their disappointing 2-2 draw with Bodø/Glimt in the Champions League.

This performance raised questions about the team's mentality. Schlotterbeck mentioned that players were playing their own game and not finishing the match properly.

Finishing the match comes down to quality. It’s just not good enough when you don’t finish the match and then allow a throw-in that isn’t cleared, making it 2-2, Schlotterbeck said.

Sporting director Sebastian Kehl and coach Niko Kovac also spoke harshly to the team, but Schlotterbeck’s words carry extra weight because there are questions about his future with the club.

League leader Bayern Munich plays Mainz on Sunday. It doesn't look good for Mainz, who are currently last in the standings. They haven't won a Bundesliga game since September and lost again last weekend under interim coach Benjamin Hoffmann. Bayern has been on fire, winning all but one game.

Leipzig, Bayern’s closest competitor, plays Union Berlin on Friday. The home fans are likely to protest due to the visitors' connection to an energy drink company.

Bayer Leverkusen will host Cologne on Saturday for the Rhine derby.

Bayern star Harry Kane, who subbed in and scored a hat trick against Stuttgart last weekend, will want to add to his 17 goals in 13 league games.

Bayern’s new favourite, Lennart Karl, 17, scored a great goal in their 3-1 Champions League win against Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday.

Leipzig’s Yan Diomande scored a hat trick in their 6-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend, becoming the second youngest player ever to do this in the Bundesliga at 19 years old. Only Walter Bechtold, who was 18 when he scored a hat trick for Frankfurt in 1965, was younger.

Leverkusen forward Patrik Schick may miss the derby due to an ankle injury he got during the 2-2 draw against Newcastle in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Dortmund also has injury problems, with Waldemar Anton and Aaron Anselmino both injured in the draw against Bodø/Glimt.

Bayern, however, had good news. Alphonso Davies played against Sporting after being out for nine months with a serious knee injury.

CRISTIANO RONALDO PROTESTS AL-HILAL'S BENZEMA DEAL BY SKIPPING AL-NASSR LEAGUE MATCH

Cristiano Ronaldo is fuming. Discover why the Al-Nassr star skipped his last match and is now threatening to leave Saudi Arabia.

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Ronaldo "considering leaving Saudi Arabia" despite signing 2027 contract extension

Cristiano Ronaldo has been the main attraction in the Saudi Pro League ever since he landed in the Middle East three years ago. Now, for the first time, it looks like he’s actually thinking about leaving. He’s frustrated. He feels the playing field isn’t level, and it’s starting to get to him.

Here’s the deal: Four clubs in the league—Al-Ittihad, Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, and Al-Ahli—get their backing straight from the state. But Ronaldo sat out Al-Nassr’s match against Al-Riyadh on Monday night. Why? He was protesting. He found out Al-Hilal was about to sign Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad, and that was the last straw. From Ronaldo’s perspective, Al-Hilal keeps getting more freedom to splash cash than everyone else. They’re the current champions, and Ronaldo still hasn’t managed to win his first Saudi title.

Saudi officials tried to calm him down. According to Diario AS, they reached out and argued that most of Al-Hilal’s extra spending comes from Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, not the Public Investment Fund (PIF). Al-Hilal just brought in Kader Meite for €30 million, Saimon Bouabre for €23 million, and now Benzema. Al-Nassr, on the other hand, only managed two free transfers this winter. Sure, they spent a lot more in the summer, but that didn’t seem to matter to Ronaldo.

Reports from Portugal, cited by AS, say Ronaldo’s not ruling anything out—not even leaving Saudi Arabia this summer. That’s despite just signing an extension with Al-Nassr until 2027.

And honestly, he has a point. Since he arrived, Al-Hilal have spent €647 million, while Al-Nassr have shelled out €410 million and Al-Ittihad €365 million. These numbers probably don’t include salaries—and let’s face it, nobody’s making more than Ronaldo. He’s supposed to return on Friday when Al-Nassr face Al-Ittihad, but right now, no one really knows if he’ll play or if he’s planning his next move.

N’GOLO KANTE SKIPS TRAINING AS AL-ITTIHAD BLOCK HIS MOVE TO FENERBAHCE OFFICIALLY

N’Golo Kante has gone on strike at Al-Ittihad after a paperwork error blocked his move to Fenerbahce. Can he still sign by Friday?

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Paperwork error halts N’Golo Kante’s transfer to Turkey at final hour

N’Golo Kanté didn’t show up for Al-Ittihad training on Tuesday, and it’s not hard to see why. He was all set to head to Fenerbahçe, but the deal fell apart at the last minute—apparently because Al-Ittihad messed up some paperwork. Kante was supposed to fly to Istanbul and sign, but thanks to this administrative slip, he’s stuck in limbo. There’s still a shot at reviving the transfer sinceKanté Turkey’s transfer window stays open until Friday, February 6.

Kante was one of the first big European names to jump to the Saudi Pro League, joining Al-Ittihad in 2023 after seven years with Chelsea. He’s been a key player in Jeddah, helping Al-Ittihad win the 2024-25 league title and the King’s Cup.

Then, in the middle of the January window, word got out that Fenerbahce wanted him. The Turkish club were eager to add a World Cup winner to their squad. The plan was to swap Kante for Youssef En-Nesyri, who’d head to Saudi Arabia. Everything seemed set until deadline day, when news broke that an error by Al-Ittihad in the Transfer Matching System stopped the transfer cold.

Fenerbahce didn’t hold back. They blamed Al-Ittihad directly, saying they’d done everything right: agreements with the players, medicals, paperwork, all wrapped up on time. But Al-Ittihad entered something wrong in the system, and that was that. Fenerbahçe even asked for an extension and reached out to FIFA, but nothing moved. In the end, the deal died, and Fenerbahçe put out a statement saying they understood the frustration and would keep working to strengthen the squad.

Meanwhile, Kante’s making his feelings clear. According to Ben Jacobs, he skipped training on Tuesday, still hoping the move to Fenerbahce can happen. Santi Aouna says talks between the clubs aren’t dead yet. L’Equipe is reporting that Kanté doesn’t want to play for Al-Ittihad while he waits for FIFA’s decision. With the Turkish window open until Friday, there’s still a glimmer of hope for Kante, though En-Nesyri’s move is off the table for now.

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