(Soccernews.com) AS Roma have moved to the front of the queue for Udinese defender Mehdi Benatia, according to L’Equipe.

The Moroccan has long ago established himself as one of the best central defenders in Serie A and this season has done nothing to hurt his reputation.

Napoli and AC Milan are believed to be keen on the 26-year-old, but L’Equipe has suggested AS Roma could hijack their bids.

The Giallorossi are reportedly in talks with Udinese and they are close to agreeing an €11 million fee for the highly rated defender.

Roma officials are eager to add more steel to the back line and believe Benatia would be a great addition to the squad at Stadio Olimpico.

Mehdi Benatia has spent last three years at Udinese having joined the club from French minnows Clermont.

He has since clocked up 80 Serie A appearances for the Zebrette and scored 6 goals in the process.

(TheAtlasLions.com) Morocco national football team U20 is warming up for the Mediterranean games that will take will take place in Turkey between 19 June and 27 June.

Morocco U20 will play two friendlies against Tunisia on May 23rd at Stade Al Marssa and on May 25th at Stade Zuiten.

The following players were called up for these friendlies:

1-MOUSSADA HAMZA - RCA

2-ZGHINOU MOHAMED - MAT

3-EN NEOUALY REDA - FUS

4-MOUFADDAL EL MEHDI

5-AMF AL MAKAHASI MOHAMED - MAT

6-CHEIKHI MOHAMED - AS FAR

7-EL HASSOUNI AYMANE - WAC

8-JERRARI OMAR - DHJ

9-BOUSSEDRA HAMZA - RCA

10-BOUTAYEB OMAR - RCA

11-HAJHOUJ REDA - WAC

12-HIBBANE MEHDI - WAC

13-DGHOUGHI ELMEHDI - WAC

14-EL KARTI WALID - OCK

15-BENACHOUR BADREDDINE - WAC

16-MAAYATI SAAD - WAC

17-MOUATAMID HAMZA - OCK

18-SAADANE SOUFIANE - RCA

19-BENLAMACHI ZAKARIA - RCA

20-SAIDI MOHAMED - MAT.

(eatsleepsport.com) Bordeaux president Jean-Louis Triaud is prepared to offer wantaway Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh a chance to return to France.

The Moroccan international has already enjoyed a stint with the Ligue 1 outfit and was part of a successful side which claimed the French league crown back in 2009.

A spell in the Premier League with the Gunners has not gone according to plan and he was shipped out on loan to fellow English top-flight outfit West Ham United this season.

Chamakh is expected to leave the Emirates this summer and Triaud is open to bringing the forward back to Bordeaux.

He told Sud-Ouest: "For me, we can talk about a return when the player or his agent picks up the phone and calls me."

(Mirror.co.uk) QPR midfielder Adel Taarabt has been hit with fines totalling over £60,000 in the last month, according to the Sun.

Manager Harry Redknapp recently launched a scathing attack on some of the players in in squad, claiming he would leave unless they are replaced.

The Rangers boss said: "If I can't change it around during the summer and get some good lads in, I wouldn't want to come back. There is a little group I need to get out and new blood in.

"I want to put a team together where I can look forward to coming into work. I don't want people coming in late and me fining players every day. One player got fined more this month than he did in wages - and believe me he earns plenty of money.

That player is believed to be the 23-year-old playmaker who has earned a reputation of being a troublemaker.

Taarabt is reported to have been fined for series of misdemeanours from repeatedly arriving late for training to refusing to have a routine weight check.

The former Tottenham player missed QPR's final game of the season as he travelled back home to Morocco following the death of his grandmother.

With Redknapp looking to offload several highly-paid stars in the summer, Taarabt's future at Loftus Road appears uncertain.

(Team Talk) Marouane Chamakh believes there is a chance that he will return to Bordeaux as he does not expect to stay at Arsenal.

Chamakh is due to go back to Emirates Stadium in the summer after joining West Ham United on loan in January, but it is likely that he would remain a long way down Arsene Wenger's pecking order.

He has struggled to make an impact in the Premier League since making the move to English football from Bordeaux in 2010, and he admits he misses life in France.

The Morocco international, 29, says that if he does ever go back to Ligue 1 he would only be interested in a return to Bordeaux.

"I am always nostalgic. I spent so many good times here," he told 10 Sport on a visit to the region for a charity event.

"Everyone knows that Bordeaux is a club that is in my heart. If I find an agreement with Bordeaux, why not."

Asked if it really might be possible, he continued: "Yes, this is possible because there is a good chance that I will not stay at Arsenal.

"If I come back to France, it will be in Bordeaux."

(tribalfootball.com) QPR don't want to lose midfielder Adel Taarabt.

The Sun says QPR have slapped a whopping £15million price-tag on Taarabt in a bid to keep their biggest star at the club.

Boss Harry Redknapp is refusing to allow the erratic Moroccan to walk out on a cheap deal after relegation to the Championship.

A club insider said: “Adel is one they want to keep. He got the club out of the Championship two years ago, why shouldn’t he do it again?

“The club turned down £12m for him in January so that shows how highly he is rated here.”

(Football Italia) Udinese’s Mehdi Benatia is getting tired of seeing his name in the transfer rumour mill.

The 26-year-old is one of Udinese’s most wanted players with clubs such as Milan, Napoli and Barcelona paired.

“Enough talk of the transfer market,” the Moroccan noted.

“I have not signed for anyone else and there is no agreement with any other club. What is being written is all false.”

The defender has been at the Stadio Friuli since his 2010 switch from French minnows Clermont.

Adel Taarabt claims that his future with QPR will be resolved soon following their relegation from the Premier League.

The Moroccan playmaker has previously attracted interest from other clubs, claiming in December that his agent had been in discussions with AC Milan.

Paris St-Germain were also thought to be circling when Taarabt signed a three-year contract extension with QPR in July 2012.

Taarabt is no stranger to English football's second tier, having helped QPR to the Championship title in 2011.

But with QPR's relegation back to the second tier, the possibility of Taarabt leaving the west London club looks stronger than before, although some reports in England claim the club have slapped a £15million price tag on the 23-year-old.

"I do not know if I will leave QPR," Taarabt told the Moroccan media.

"I will speak to the club if they still want to keep me. There was interest in January, in the next three weeks my future will be clear."

QPR have slapped a whopping £15million price-tag on Adel Taarabt in a bid to keep their biggest star at the club.

Boss Harry Redknapp is refusing to allow the erratic Moroccan to walk out on a cheap deal after relegation to the Championship.

Many of Rangers’ flops are set to leave Loftus Road as owner Tony Fernandes trims the massive £73.78m wage bill to cope with the drop in cash flow next season.

But a club insider said: “Adel is one they want to keep. He got the club out of the Championship two years ago, why shouldn’t he do it again?

“The club turned down £12m for him in January so that shows how highly he is rated here.”

Taarabt still has two years left on his £50,000-a-week contract and is popular with fans.

He has not played a full game since February 23, leading to questions about his fitness and commitment.

But his undoubted skill means he still has a place in Redknapp’s policy to play his way out of the Championship next season with passing football instead of a long-ball game.

Manchester United were interested in taking him during the last transfer window but no deal materialised.

Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/4909650/QPR-have-slapped-a-whopping-15million-price-tag-on-Adel-Taarabt.html#ixzz2S2va6UQU