Kick Off: Courtois pays tribute to Cech; Giroud 'emerges as Barca target'

Welcome to All Football's Kick Off, we bring you all important news in the past 24 hours. Make sure you do not miss out.

TOP HEADLINES

Petr Cech confirms he will retire at the end of the season after 20-year career

Petr Cech has announced that he will be retiring from professional football at the end of the season, with the goalkeeper set to hang up his gloves at the end of a 20-year career.

Courtois sends tribute message to Cech who announced his retirement this summer

Thibaut Courtois has sent a tribute message to Petr Cech after the Arsenal goalkeeper announced he will retire at the end of the season.

Tottenham confirm Kane sidelined for at least six weeks with ankle injury

The forward suffered an ankle injury near the end of Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Manchester United

OFFICIAL: Guangzhou Evergrande have activated their buy-out clause for Paulinho

Barcelona confirm Guangzhou Evergrande have activated Paulinho’s buy-back option early

TRANSFER RUMOURS

Giroud 'emerges as shock Barca target' as Chelsea contract ticks down

Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has emerged as a surprise target for Barcelona, according to Sport.

Hazard 'has rejected two Chelsea contracts' & is 'waiting' for Madrid transfer

Chelsea forward Eden Hazard is "waiting" for Real Madrid to make a move to sign him, according to Belgian football expert Kristof Terreur.

Arsenal eye up move for James as they look for Ozil replacement (Dailymail)

Arsenal have put James Rodriguez on their list of potential signings in the transfer window - and he could cost them just £3million.

Higuain 'could miss the Supercoppa against Juve' due to his Chelsea transfer

Milan striker Gonzalo Higuain could reportedly miss the Supercoppa against Juventus due to his impending move to Chelsea.

Arsenal outcast Ozil 'offered to Juventus and Inter' in huge transfer shock

Arsenal manager Unai Emery has reportedly offered misfit playmaker Mesut Ozil to both Juventus and Inter Milan in a bid to offload the German.

Fellaini closes in on Man Utd exit with Solskjaer open to January transfer

Marouane Fellaini is set to become the first casualty of Ole Gunnar Solskajer's reign – with Manchester United ready to listen to offers for the midfielder.

WHAT THEY SAY

Ince: Solskjaer is nothing special, I could have done that job at Man Utd

The Red Devils have collected six successive victories under the interim coach, but another ex-player claims anybody could have replaced Jose Mourinho.

Mata defends Isco: Talent always stands out and he has plenty of it

Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata has praised the skills of Real Madrid's midfielder Isco, who has yet to start a La Liga game under Santiago Solari.

Wilshere explains why EPL defences 'hate' Aubameyang

The Gabon international has continued to impress since joining the Gunners 12 months ago to the admiration of his former teammate.

THESE THINGS HAPPEN

Fake news? Ibrahimoivc's Ronaldo criticism clipped from unknown source

After some digging, multiple sources including Tuttojuve and Football-Italia have proved that Ibrahimovic's harsh criticism over Ronaldo could be a piece of fake news.

Huge blow for Liverpool as Alexander-Arnold ruled out for up to 4 weeks

Liverpool's defensive problems have sufferd a further blow with Trent Alexander-Arnold due to miss up to four weeks with a knee injury, according to Goal.

Messi's best partner: Who has given Messi the most assists?

Luis Suarez is Lionel Messi’s friend, sharing with him the South American drink mate before the game, living next to him and picking their kids up from school together.

How Real Madrid are airbrushing Cristiano Ronaldo out of their history

On the home page of their website Real Madrid proudly display  four of their players who were selected in UEFA's team of 2018. Not in the picture, however, is the talismanic figure who inspired them to make history last year, and who was also selected in that team of the year.

Man Utd post pictures of Pogba, Matic and Valencia for 10 Year Challenge

Manchester United stars Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Antonio Valencia were all given the #10YearChallenge treatment by their club.

IN-DEPTH & AF COLUMNS

All Football Power Rankings of the Week: Madrid dump Arsenal out as Utd climb up

Hello again! We organize clubs of Europe's top 5 leagues into an order that reflects the up-to-the-minute hierarchy every Tuesday. 

Man Utd's 'Great Wall' David de Gea wins All Football Player of the Week

Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has been named All Football Player of the Week for the FIRST time! Congratulations!

On This Day: Carragher's 500th appearance for Reds & Terry's 200th for Blues

Hi all, welcome to All Football's On This Day! Let's find out what happened today (January 15th) in football history. If you have more stories and news that happened on this day in history, please post them in the comment area and share them with AFers!

Ranking the top 10 Premier League goalkeepers in the competition’s history

Petr Cech has announced he will retire when the season concludes, bringing an end to the career of one of the greatest goalkeepers ever to grace these shores.

8 players that Premier League clubs could sign for FREE from Europe in January

The January transfer window is in full swing and we still have a couple of weeks to go.

VIDEO OF THE DAY

See it, Zlatan? Ronaldo single-handedly knocked Sweden out of 2014 World Cup

FIXTURES OF THE DAY (CET)

Supercoppa Italiana

18:30    Juventus vs Milan

Copa del Rey

19:30    Atletico vs Girona

21:30    Leganes vs Real Madrid