DAILY FOOTBALL INFO

Southampton have completed the signing of Charlie Austin from Queens Park Rangers after agreeing a fee of £4.5million for the striker. Saints confirmed on Saturday that Austin has signed a four-and-a-half-year deal after he agreed personal terms and passed a medical. The 26-year-old said: 'As soon as Southampton showed an interest that was the one club I wanted to go to.' 'I'm delighted to have got it over the line so soon into January. I can't wait to get started now. 'You see the progression from when I was playing against Southampton for Swindon. For me, it was important to come to a club that's on the up and that's what I've got here.' It is understood that the 26-year-old was going to wait until his contract at Loftus Road had expired in the summer but the lure of playing Premier League football before then was enough to convince him to join early. Austin had been in fine form for the Championship club this season. Despite suffering f...

Flores and Ighalo with their award Watford duo Quique Flores and  Odion Ighalo  have been rewarded for the Hornets' remarkable form in December by winning the Premier League manager and player of the month awards.

Real Madrid  and   Atlético Madrid  will not be able to register any new players during the next two transfer windows and this throws up several questions. 1. Can they recall loan players? Yes. Real Madrid and Atlético can call back players who are away on loan, as long as no money changes hands between the two clubs involved. 2. Despite not being able to register anyone, can they still sell players? Yes, the ban does not stop Real Madrid or Atlético from offloading players. 3. Does the ban affect club coaches? No, coaches are not included in the FIFA transfer ban. In other words, Real Madrid and Atlético can change coaches if they want to. 4. Can they bring players through from their respective B teams? Yes, the FIFA ban does not stop the two clubs from bringing players through the ranks to strengthen their first teams.

Roma have appointed former coach Luciano Spalletti as successor to Rudi Garcia, who was sacked  on Wednesday. Spalletti, 56, coached Roma from 2005 to 2009, twice winning the Coppa Italia, before he resigned and joined Russian club Zenit St Petersburg. The Italian won two league titles during his time in Russia but he was  sacked  by Zenit in 2014. Garica was dismissed by Roma after a poor run of results that saw the Italian side drop to fifth in Serie A. Roma have been drawn against Real Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League having qualified from the group stage with the lowest number of points.

FIFA have sanctioned the Madrid clubs over 'irregularities in the signing of minors' - the same offence for which Barcelona received their embargo . Real Madrid and  Atletico  have been banned from transfers after irregularities in signing of Under-18s. FIFA have sanctioned the Madrid clubs over 'irregularities in the signing of minors' - the same offence for which Barcelona received their embargo. The pair will be unable to sign players in the summer or the next winter window. However, they can still register players for the remainder of this month. Rules from the game's governing body state that international transfers are only permitted for players over the age of 18 - unless the individual players meets one of three qualifying criteria: "Under-18s can move to a club in a different country if their parents move there for non-footballing reasons, if they are from another nation within the European Union or European Economic Area and aged between 16 and ...

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed the signing of FC Basel midfielder Mohamed Elneny, who could be available to face Stoke on Sunday. Elneny, 23, has reportedly cost about £5m and is eligible to play in the Champions League. Speaking after the  3-3 draw at Liverpool, Wenger said: "He has joined us and we will see if he can qualify for Sunday."

It’s been a week now since Arsenal confirmed that they’d agreed a deal with Basel for midfielder Mohamed Elneny. The player has agreed terms and the deal is pretty much done. So why the hold up? Well, a work permit. As Elneny isn’t an EU citizen, he needs one, and with Egypt out of the FIFA top 50, despite his regular appearances for his country, it needs an appeal. Red tape is currently holding it up, as Arsenal have to explain that he’s an exceptional player, how good he is and all that - oh, and why he’ll play regularly and be an asset, rather than just a guy who’ll sit on the bench.