Lazio’s main winter target, Keisuke Honda, admitted his disappointment in failing to join the Biancocelesti as the player revealed that Serie A has become his preference compared to other competitions.

Despite already failing to play in Italy this winter, Honda hasn’t close his dream yet in moving to the Pizza land especially when the transfer market opens again next summer, but at the moment his focus remains with CSKA Moskow.

Speaking to the Japanese media, Honda hinted that although there’s been linked with clubs such as Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the midfielder promises that he would still chose Serie A. The free kick specialist apparently also won’t limit his option on Lazio as should other Italian clubs are interested, the Japanese international would likely accept especially if other big teams also showed seriousness in approaching him.

I was waiting for a better future during this transfer session and hoped to the end that I’d arrive in Serie A. I now have only CSKA in my mind, but my contract is set to expire and I am honored that my name has been linked with the likes of PSG or Manchester City. My objectives have not changed and I have no intention of changing them,” Honda revealed.

Honda apparently is a keen admirer of the Italian league, which he claimed as one of the most difficult in the world mainly because the strong tactical battle that would improve any players’ quality. That’s why he was very excited after understanding Lazio’s serious interest on him, but unfortunately the deal collapsed after the Biancocelesti failed to reach an agreement with CSKA.

Honda has been attracting many interest from many clubs after performing excellently in the World Cup for his country and also at CSKA, mainly in the Japanese international earlier season. Apparently the interest has been dropping recently as the midfielder picked up a bad knee injury last summer, which forced him out for quite some time and probably become one of the reasons why the Russian team is willing to depart with the left footed midfielder.

photo credit: Vincent Teeuwen

Inter Milan were the busiest team on transfer deadline as they brought in three players and let two leave.

Inter signed both Fredy Guarin and Angelo Palombo to reinforce their midfield and also Juan to help out with their defence.

The additions of Guarin and Palombo allowed Inter to finally allow Thiago Motta to join Paris Saint-Germain for around €10m.

Inter coach Claudio Ranieri had said on Monday he had “no fear” that Motta would be departing the club he joined from Genoa in 2009.

However, Motta leaves Inter having made 83 appearances for the Nerazzurri, famously winning the treble in 2010.

A number of other deals were completed just as the transfer window shut in Italy.

Roma sent Chilean midfielder David Pizarro to Manchester City on loan until the end of the season. Pizarro shone on occasions for Roberto Mancini’s Inter Milan in 2005-06 but after three good seasons at Roma, injury and fallouts with managers started to cut his appearances.

“Pizarro, I know him very well, he is a good player and a good midfielder,” Mancini told Sky Sports after the 1-0 league defeat at Everton.

Serie A leaders Juventus moved to strengthen their midfield on transfer deadline day by signing Simone Padoin from Atalanta and also let Vincenzo Iaquinta and Ciro Immobile leave.

Toni signed for Dubai’s Al Nasr and now fellow World Cup winner Iaquinta moved to relegation-battling Cesena until the end of the campaign.

Elsewhere, Lazio loaned Antonio Candreva from Cesena and sent Simone Del Nero the other way. Cesena also signed Mario Santana from Napoli.

Meanwhile, Albania international Erjon Bogdani joined Siena on a four-and-a-half year deal, also from Cesena.

Not many surprises arrives on week 20 in Serie A beside Inter Milan’s seven winning streak end in the hands of Lecce after Guillermo Giacomazzi netted the only goal that clinched the victory.

The Nerazzurri did actually put the ball in the net twice in the second half but all of those goals were correctly disallowed by the referee because of offside.

Claudio Ranieri didn’t really commented much about the disallowed goals as he was more concerned with his team’s performance against Lecce, something that should’ve been seen earlier since Inter last couple of games were pretty poor despite getting the three point. The defeat brought the Nerazzurri back to fifth place as Lazio dethroned Ranieri’s team previous fourth spot, making things much more interesting in the coming weeks.

For the moment the Scudetto race leaves Juventus and Ac Milan getting toe to toe as the one point margin stands until this upcoming midweek where the league starts again. This weekend, the Turin giant successfully defeated Udinese 2-1 with goals from Alessandro Matri, while Milan destroyed their visitor, Cagliari 3-0 at San Siro, thanks to the contribution of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Antonio Nocerino and also Massimo Ambrosini.

Week 20 also seen Lazio and Genoa being successful as the Biancocelesti stormed Chievo 3-0 with goals coming from Hernanes and also Miroslav Klose’s double in the final minutes of the match. Meanwhile, the Marassi outfit managed to stun Napoli, beating Walter Mazzarri’s team 3-2 with Rodrigo Palacio’s brace and Alberto Gilardino’s strike. The Partenopei did made things interesting though after Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi scoring within just two minutes, giving the last 10 minutes a difficult time for Genoa.

Complete Serie A result for Week 20:
Catani a v Parma 1-1; Juventus v Udinese 2-1; Fiorentina v Siena 2-1; Cesena v Atalanta 0-1; Chievo v Lazio 0-3; Genoa v Napoli 3-2; Lecce v Inter 1-0; Palermo v Novara 2-0; Roma v Bologna 1-1; Ac Milan v Cagliari 3-0

photo credit: .a_dit.

Unwanted Juventus winger, Milos Krasic, has not hidden his intention in leaving the Turin giant since he is not being considered as part of the first team since pretty much the early part of this season.

Despite admitting his willingness to leave, Krasic apparently is being pretty picky in his decision as according to the player’s agent, the Serbian international will only consider another top club as his next destination, scrapping the recent strong interest from Lazio.

According to Football-Italia, Krasic’s agent revealed that his client most likely would be choosing top premier league clubs such as Manchester United or Chelsea instead of answering to Lazio’s call, who have been reportedly interested on the winger. Seeing the current situation, the Serbian might ends up staying with the Turin giant until the season ends considering there haven’t been any serious proposals coming from teams that the winger preferred.

“There is no news to report, Milos wants a change of team, but will only move to a top club, preferably in England. With all due respect for Lazio, they are not a side in Milos’ thoughts,” Krasic agent’s was quoted saying.

This answer would probably makes Lazio focus their transfer plan in bringing in Keisuke Honda from CSKA Moskow, since the Japanese was actually their main target this January but the negotiation with the Russian club is still ongoing. Krasic himself was actually being touted as an alternative target for the Biancocelesti as they think that getting the winger could be easier and cheaper, but apparently if what his agent said is true, the capital club would rather forget their idea.

Krasic himself has really been suffering this season as he fails to grab Conte’s trust despite being one of Juventus’ top performers in previous seasons. The Bianconeri’s new coach seems more interested in fielding work horse type of players instead of a technical speed runner such as the Serbian international.

Lazio’s approach on CSKA Moskow’s Japanese midfielder, Keisuke Honda, is really getting into serious level and could be completed just before the January transfer window ends.

This news arrives from Honda himself, who apparently is very keen about his chance of playing in the Italian Serie A, obviously with the light blue squad jersey on his back.

Despite being optimistic, Honda isn’t actually sure whether the deal can actually be concluded this winger knowing that both teams still haven’t managed to struck an agreement in concluding the deal. The Japanese midfielder does reveal that his desire to play in Serie A arrives simply because he felt challenged with the difficulty of the league despite the fact that it might not be the most prestigious anymore at the moment.

“I want to go to Lazio. The Italian championship intrigues me as a player. It may not be the most beautiful in the world, but it is the hardest. We are close to concluding the transfer,”

Reports from Italy previously suggested that Lazio are proposing a 2 million loan deal for six months with a buy out option at the end of season worth around 10 million, but apparently CSKA are asking 16 million in total. Considering the small amount of gap between left between that offer and demand, there’s a big possibility that it would eventually occurred especially if the Russian side are really keen on cashing out on their midfielder.

Lazio themselves are looking for an extra versatile attacking midfielder to cover up or even replace Hernanes, who has not been playing as good as previous season. However, with Honda’s ability to play many positions, the Biancocelesti might eventually be able to combine the Japanese with their Brazilian midfielder and formed a much more solid formation for the second part of the season.

photo credit: Vincent Teeuwen

Juventus managed to keep their place in the half way of the Serie A season after picking up a solid 2-0 victory over Atalanta with goals from Stephan Lichtsteiner and Emanuele Giaccherini.

This result puts the Turin giant one point above Ac Milan in the standing and maintain their excellent form in the halfway of the new season as the are still unbeaten so far, despite not leading by much points with the teams below them.

Meanwhile, Milan also kept their runners up place after bouncing back from the Derby defeat by beating Novara 3-0 with Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s brace and also Robinho’s tap in from Stephan El Shaarawy’s low shot. An important result for the Rossoneri as not only they keeps up their pace with league leader, Juventus, but also maintaining their points gap with third place, Udinese, who also won on the weekend.

Playing at Friuli, Udinese edged passed Catania with goals from Pablo Armero and also Antonio Di Natale, while their visitor only managed to pull a goal back from Lodi’s late minute penalty kick. Despite winning, Francesco Guidolin’s team must not let their guard down as Inter Milan are starting to cause danger after Claudio Ranieri’s team successfully dethroned Lazio in fourth place.

Inter’s success in leapfrogging the capital team arrived after they beaten Lazio last Sunday in a very hard fought match, which once again forced the Nerazzurri picking up a rather “lucky” win as just like in the Derby, they were forced to defend for the most part of the match. Despite going down first through Tomasso Rochi’s goal, Diego Milito and Giampaolo Pazzini managed to overturn the scoreline with a little bit help from the Biancocelesti’s defends’ poor defending.

Complete Result of Serie A week 19:

Atalanta v Juventus 0-2; Roma v Cesena 5-1; Bologna v Parma 0-0; Novara v Milan 0-3; Cagliari v Fiorentina 0-0; Lecce v Chievo 2-2; Palermo v Genoa 5-3; Siena v Napoli 1-1; Udinese v Catania 2-1; Inter v Lazio 2-1

photo credit: _bianconero

Lazio have emerged as favourites to secure the signature of CSKA Moscow midfielder Keisuke Honda according to the newspaper Corriere dello Sport.

Honda has been continually linked with a move out of Russia, with the likes of Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and even Manchester United among those reportedly interested. But it is Lazio that seems to be winning the race for the 25-year-old, as Lazio sporting director Igli Tare flew to Moscow this week to personally negotiate the deal.

“Lazio is a great option for Honda,” Stevens told Corriere dello Sport. “But we’re still unsure whether the transfer will take place now or in the summer.”

While the player is reportedly interested in moving to Lazio, there is still a significant gap between the offer of Lazio and the valuation of CSKA.

According to Russia’s Sport Express, Lazio have offered to take Honda on a six-month loan for €2 million before buying out his contract for €10million. CSKA are not interested in that type of deal and they want to sell Honda outright for at least €16 million.

Can Lazio close the gap in the next ten days? I don’t think that Tare would be in Moscow if the Lazio did not think the deal would happen.

Do you think that Honda would be a good signing for Lazio?

Despite being pretty helpful for Lazio in plenty matches, Giuseppe Sculli looks set for a return to Genoa this winter, as it was confirmed by the Biancocelesti’s director of Sport, Igli Tare.

Speaking to the press, Tare revealed that Sculli’s departure to the Marassi outfit is very close although there’s still some details that both parties must settle before making everything official.

Without getting into much details in reasoning why Lazio decided to offload Sculli this winter, Tare only explained that the capital club’s good relationship with Genoa’s patron, Enrico Preziosi, are the thing that smoothened the deal. Looking at the clear situation, it obviously won’t take long before both clubs announced the deal which see the striker moving back again from the club that pretty much made his name in Serie A.

“The good rapport between Presidents Claudio Lotito and Enrico Preziosi make everything easier, but it’s not finalised yet. We still need to sign the paperwork and check a few details, so we’ll see,” Tare stated.

Sculli’s return to Genoa was a bit of surprise especially since it kinda happened rather to fast as the striker was just sold in January 2011, which is halfway into last season. It seems that not being the main part of Lazio’s coach, Edy Reja, plan simply encouraged the ex-Juventus youth player to get back into his previous club and help them improving their current position in Serie A.

Meanwhile, beside talking about Sculli’s future, Tare also shared news about two other Lazio strikers, Libor Kozak and Emiliano Alfaro, who were also being heavily linked with a move away from the capital this January. According to the Sporting director, those two players will be staying with the Biancocelestin until this season ends as both are not being considered to be given away this January.

Kozak is a fantastic player and his departure has never even been considered. Cesena and other clubs requested him, but he is staying with us. The same goes for Alfaro, who is training well.” Tare added.

photo credit: ViolaChannel

The top three teams in Serie A, Ac Milan, Juventus and Udinese continue their excellent form in the new year as those three picked up victory against their opponents, keeping things tight at the top of Serie A table.

Just below the top three, the standings didn’t change a lot as well but Lazio’s fourth spot place in under huge pressure as Inter Milan, Napoli and Roma gaining points after picking another victories this weekend.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Kevin Prince Boateng were the actors who gave Milan their two goals win in Bergamo, a very difficult place to pick up three points but the Rossoneri did their job pretty well especially their new center back duo, Philippe Mexes-Thiago Silva, who kept on showing great stuffs. However, Massimiliano Allegri’s side still can’t take their breath as Juventus also got all three points against Lecce as Alessandro Matri scored the only goal in the match, which once again saw Fabio Quagliarella, went off for another injury problem.

At Friuli, Udinese continue their excellent home record this season by thumping 10 men Cesena 4-1, with the double from Antonio Di Natale and goals from Kwando Asamoah and Dusan Basta. Inter also achieved a pretty similar outcome on their home match against Parma as Diego Milito bagged a brace, while Giampaolo Pazzini, Thiago Motta and Davide Faraoni all donated a goal which gave the Nerazzurri a 5-0 victory.

Inter’s triumph obviously set the upcoming Milan Derby alive as they’re set to play the Scudetto holder in their best form of the season, raising the possibility for a wonderful spectacle next weekend. Meanwhile, Lazio must start to have a bit concern about their performances as Edy Reja team were demolished 4-0 in the weekend by Siena, who got their three points with Mattia Destro’s double and Calaio’s penalty brace.

Napoli once again proved that their recent dip of form in the league is mainly cause by their Champions League commitment as this weekend Walter Mazzarri’s side, who doesn’t have any European schedule, successfully thumped Palermo 3-1. Goals from Goran Pandev, Edinson Cavani and Marek Hamsik, only got one reply from Fabrizio Miccolli, allowing the Partenopei to pick up their first win at Renzo Barbera in after three seasons.

As Roma also continue their recent good form after getting another victory in the weekend by beating Chievo 2-0 with goals from their talismanic captain, Francesco Totti. The former Italian international superstar scored both goals from the spot kick, as the veteran seems eager to repay his failure in scoring from penalty in Roma’s match against Juventus, not long ago.

Complete Serie A Week 17 Result:

Siena v Lazio 4-0; Inter v Parma 5-0; Atalanta v Ac Milan 0-2; Lecce v Juventus 0-1; Bologna v Catania 2-0; Cagliari v Genoa 3-0; Novara v Fiorentina 0-3; As Roma v Chievo 2-0; Udinese v Cesena 4-1; Palermo v Napoli 1-3

photo credit: Yme Bosma

Football returned to Italy on Saturday and there were goals galore as Inter Milan hit five against Parma and Siena stunned ten-man Lazio with four unanswered goals.

Inter moved to within a point of Lazio as they continued their resurgence under Claudio Ranieri. First-half goals by Diego Milito either side of Thiago Motta’s strike helped the Nerazzurri on their way to a fifth successive league victory, which was settled beyond all doubt once Giampaolo Pazzini had made it 4-0 early in the second half. Marco Faraoni completed the scoring 12 minutes from time.

Earlier, fourth-placed Lazio unexpectedly lost 4-0 at Siena, who also raced into a three-goal half-time lead thanks to Mattia Destro’s 11th-minute opener and two penalties by Emanuele Calaiò.

The award of the second spot-kick resulted in stand-in goalkeeper Albano Bizzarri being dismissed and third-choice goalkeeper Juan Pablo Carrizo was powerless to prevent Lazio conceding Destro’s second goal of the evening.