Miranda welcomes Man Utd interest; Toulalan set for Monaco stay

Miranda welcomes Man Utd interest

Atletico Madrid defender Joao Miranda has all but confirmed that he is interested in joining Manchester United.

The Brazilian is reportedly high on the wish list of Red Devils manager Louis van Gaal, who is desperate to reinforce his back line in the summer.

Miranda has a contract until June 2016 at Vicente Calderon and with youngster Jose Maria Gimenez largely impressing this season, it is believed Atletico would consider selling the 30-year-old at the end of the season.

And while the centre-back insists he is happy in Madrid, he has welcomed the reported interest from Manchester United.

“Of course this news reaches me, and it makes me happy. It shows I am doing well,” the Brazilian told Estadao.

“It makes me proud, but my intention is to stay at Atletico because I still have a year and a half on my contract.”

Miranda has made a total of 112 La Liga appearances for los Colchoneros, scoring 8 goals in the process.

Toulalan set for Monaco stay

French daily newspaper L’Equipe has learned that experienced midfielder Jeremy Toulalan has decided to remain with Monaco.

The 31-year-old has a contract until the end of the season at Stade Louis II and he was heavily linked with a summer move to Inter Milan.

However, it appears that Toulalan ultimately opted to extend his stay with the Principality club.

L’Equipe understands that the highly rated footballer has agreed a new two-year deal with Monaco and is expected to sign the new contract by the end of the day.

Jeremy Toulalan has played a key role for the Principality club ever since he returned to France from Malaga, making 54 Ligue 1 appearances.

He also helped Monaco reach the Champions League quarter-finals, where they are 5/2 chance to get past Juventus.

Sporting eyeing Helder Lopes

Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon are hot on the trail of Pacos de Ferreira full-back Helder Lopes, according to O Jogo.

Seeing as starting left-back Jefferson has been linked with a move away from the club, the Lions appear to have already found him a replacement.

Namely, O Jogo has suggested that Sporting are considering a summer bid for Pacos de Ferreira’s Helder Lopes.

The 26-year-old has been in fine form this season and he also caught the eye of Celta Vigo, Wisla Krakow and Dinamo Zagreb.

Lopes started 25 league matches for Pacos de Ferreira this term, scoring one goal and producing three assists for his teammates.

Apart from a short spell with Parma, the defender has spent his entire career in Portugal and it remains to be seen whether he will be moving abroad in the summer.

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