New English League Cup Champions

Chelsea lifted the League Cup after a 2-0 victory over Tottenham in an unexciting final at Wembley.

John Terry gave Jose Mourinho's men the lead just before half-time when Spurs' poor defence of a free kick gave him the time and space to fire home via a deflection.

And the Blues cushioned that advantage soon after half-time when Diego Costa's finish was diverted in by Kyle Walker for an own goal.

Tottenham struggled to create genuine chances to get back into the game and the final drifted towards its conclusion as the Premier League leaders secured their first trophy of the season.

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Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale happy with life in Spain

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale is keen to remain at the club, despite speculation he could join Manchester United in the summer.

Bale moved from Tottenham to Madrid in a world-record £85.3m deal in September 2013 and has been a key performer in their run of 22 straight victories in competitive matches.

Real president Florentino Perez warned on Tuesday Bale would not be allowed to leave the Bernabeu at any price and the player himself insists he is happy with life in the Spanish capital.

"Go to Manchester United? I am very happy in Madrid, a city, a climate and a club that I love," Bale said on the club’s mid-season tour to Dubai.

"My contract ends in 2019 and I could sign a renewal. I am very happy at Madrid and I hope to win many more titles in the future.

Fantastic Year

"It has been a fantastic year for me. I wanted to come to Real Madrid to win titles and work alongside the best players and that is exactly what I have done in a single year.

“I hope that we keep improving, winning more titles and that I can keep giving my all."

Bale also paid tribute to team-mates Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, who have scored 57 goals between them this season.

"He (Ronaldo) is an impressive player," added Bale.

"Everybody knows what he is like - it is great to be playing alongside him. What he does so that the team can keep winning and improving is fantastic.

"The forwards we have are extremely good. The three of us really like playing together. We work very well together, as we demonstrated last season with the titles we won.

"The potential we have up front is fantastic and we want to keep improving."

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Lukas Podolski is heading to Milan to discuss a possible move to Inter

Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski will travel to Milan on Friday night ahead of a possible loan move to Inter for the rest of the season.

Inter have made an improved offer for the Germany international after an initial bid was described as a “joke” and “not serious” by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.

Speaking after Arsenal’s New Year’s Day loss at Southampton, Wenger said: “The first proposal was farcical. They came back a bit more serious, we will see what happens now.

“Inevitable (that Podolski leaves)? Not in the transfer market, it's very difficult to say, but we'll see later."

Podolski joined Arsenal from Cologne for £11m in 2012 and has scored 31 goals in 82 appearances in all competitions.

He featured fairly regularly for the Gunners over the past two seasons but he has only started two games this term, although he did come off the bench to score an important late winner at Anderlecht in the Champions League.

The 29-year-old is the third-most capped player in German history and was a member of the squad who won the World Cup last summer.

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Bayern Munich sign midfielder Joshua Kimmich from Stuttgart

Bayern Munich have announced the signing of Joshua Kimmich from Stuttgart for an undisclosed fee.

The 19-year-old has signed a contract with the record German champions until 2020 and is reported to be the player wanted most by Bayern coach Pep Guardiola for next season.The Germany Under-21 international will move to Munich in the summer, when his current loan spell at Red Bull Leipzig ends.

The defensive midfielder has not played once for Stuttgart, but he has made 13 appearances for Leipzig in Germany's second division so far this season.

He has represented his country at all levels from Under-15 to Under-21 and was part of Germany's European Under-19 Championship winning side in Hungary last July

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