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Chelsea could be very busy in these final few weeks of the transfer window.

Chelsea plan offer for "world-class" new target in bid to hijack AC Milan

The west Londoners are not done this summer.

By
Emilio Galantini

Aug 1, 2025

Earlier this week, Enzo Maresca was backed with the signing of Ajax left-back/centre-back Jorrel Hato, who will provide cover for Marc Cucurella whilst also bolstering the heart of Chelsea’s defence.

Chelsea’s best performers in the Premier League last season	Average match rating
Cole Palmer	7.33
Moises Caicedo	7.02
Enzo Fernández	6.95
Nicolas Jackson	6.88
Noni Madueke	6.82
via WhoScored

In traditional Chelsea fashion, the Netherlands international has agreed a long-term seven-year contract and is undergoing a medical today, before the club announce him as their next major signing of the summer.

Meanwhile, talks remain ongoing for RB Leipzig playmaker Xavi Simons, which is taking longer than initially thought.

A report from The Sun, via GOAL, claims that Chelsea have offered multiple players to Leipzig, including Carney Chukwuemeka and Armando Broja, in an attempt to sweeten negotiations, offload players and lower the Dutchman’s overall asking price.

Super agent Ali Barat is heavily involved in these discussions as he tries to facilitate Simons’ potential move to Stamford Bridge, and according to other reports, Chelsea could still move for Man United winger Alejandro Garnacho.

A swoop for the Argentine, who Ruben Amorim’s side are actively trying to sell, is believed to be independent of the Simons deal, with Chelsea in the market for another left-winger after Jamie Gittens (talkSPORT).

This is backed up by The Telegraph’s Matt Law, who’s shared a detailed update on Garnacho to Chelsea this week.

Chelsea expected to bid for Alejandro Garnacho

Accordong to Law, Chelsea have completed extensive background checks into the 21-year-old’s personality profile, and they have zero concerns over his attitude, despite Garnacho’s questionable conduct at Old Trafford.

Chelsea are expected to make a bid for Garnacho too, and Simons’ potential arrival won’t shut the door on him as BlueCo look to tempt the former Atlético Madrid academy ace with a move to London.

Personal terms shouldn’t be an issue either, with Chelsea believed to be Garnacho’s “first choice” destination should he leave Manchester.

United are under some pressure to sell the winger as we enter the final weeks of this transfer window, with reports suggesting that they’ve slashed his asking price from £70 million to £40 million.

Garnacho racked up 11 goals and 10 assists in 58 appearances for United last season, and won the 2024 Puskas award for a stunning overhead kick against Everton at Goodision Park the year prior.

“He has a lot of personality, he doesn’t give up, and he’s always on the ball. He never gives up in one-on-one situations,” said former Argentina international Javier Saviola at the end of 2024/2025.

“Now he’s adding goals to his game, something he was lacking a bit before, and he’s appearing closer to the box.”

MatériaMais Notícias

Prestes a enfrentar o Puerto Cabello, nesta terça-feira (18), o São Paulo segura um tabu de quase 68 anos contra times da Venezuela. A última vez que o Tricolor foi derrotado por uma equipe do país foi em julho de 1955.

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No caso, a partida aconteceu contra o La Salle, pela competição que era conhecida como ‘Pequena Taça do Mundo’. O duelo aconteceu na cidade de Caracas, e o clube do Morumbi perdeu após ser goleado por 4 a 1.

Com 21 brasileiros, levantamento aponta os jogadores sub-23 mais valiosos do mundo; veja lista

Veja tabela da Copa Sul-Americana

Contando com o jogo citado, foram oito partidas entre o São Paulo e times do país em toda a história. Ao todo, foram seis vitórias, um empate e uma derrota. O duelo mais recente aconteceu contra Trujillanos, pela fase de grupos da Copa Libertadores, em 2016.

O Tricolor venceu após a goleada por 6 a 0. Na época, Calleri foi responsável por quatro gols, sendo os outros dois carimbados por Kelvin e João Schimidt.

O confronto contra o Puerto Cabello acontecerá no estádio do Morumbi. Esta será a quarta vez que o São Paulo encontra uma equipe venezuelana em casa. Das três vezes anteriores, venceu todas, sendo a mais recente justamente esta contra o Trujillanos.

O Puerto Cabello é um clube bem jovem, fundada em 2011 e que só passou a ter uma equipe profissional em 2014. Este será o primeiro jogo do time fora da Venezuela. O Tricolor vem de uma derrota recente contra o Botafogo, por 2 a 1, pelo Campeonato Brasileiro, mas estreou contra o Tigre na Sul-Americana com uma vitória por 2 a 0.

continua após a publicidade

Veja o retrospecto do São Paulo contra equipes da Venezuela:

1955 – La Salle 4 x 1 São Paulo (Pequena Taça do Mundo)
1955 – La Salle 1 x 3 São Paulo (Pequena Taça do Mundo)
2004 – São Paulo 3 x 0 Deportívo Táchira (Copa Libertadores)
2004 – Deportívo Táchira 4 x 1 São Paulo (Copa Libertadores)
2006 – Caracas 2 x 1 São Paulo (Copa Libertadores)
​2006 – São Paulo 2 x 0 Caracas (Copa Libertadores)
2016 – Trujillanos 1 x 1 São Paulo (Copa Libertadores)
2016 – São Paulo 6 x 0 Trujillanos (Copa Libertadores

England captain says line has been drawn under “blackface” issue ahead of Bangladesh challenge

Andrew Miller04-Oct-2024

Heather Knight will lead England’s World Cup challenge in the UAE•Getty Images

Heather Knight, England’s captain, says that the challenge of leading her team into the Women’s T20 World Cup has her full focus, and insists that “the line has already been drawn” on the disciplinary measures taken against her for a historic “blackface” photograph that appeared on social media recently.Knight, 33, was last week reprimanded and given a suspended £1000 fine by the Cricket Discipline Commission, after a compromising fancy-dress photograph surfaced on Facebook, dating back to a party in 2012, when she was 21. While it was accepted by the Cricket Regulator that there was “no racist intent in her conduct”, Knight said in a statement that she was “truly sorry” and had “long regretted it”.Now, speaking on the eve of England’s T20 World Cup opener, against Bangladesh in Sharjah on Saturday, Knight turned the focus squarely to the task at hand for her team, as they seek to improve on their semi-final finish at the last event in South Africa two years ago, and land their first ICC global title since 2017.Related

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“It was obviously something that has been ongoing the last couple of months and it is something, as far as I am concerned, that has been addressed, and something that was a long time ago, so it hasn’t been in my mind at all,” Knight said.”The line has already been drawn, in my opinion, so I am really excited, obviously, for what is to come. We have got super supportive group, there is no doubt about that, so yeah, I’m pretty happy to get cracking with the cricket.”England came through an unbeaten home summer, winning 13 out of 14 matches against New Zealand and Pakistan, with only a washout at Taunton denying them a clean sweep. In addition to Bangladesh, they will play against Scotland, West Indies and South Africa in the World Cup group stage, with their two likeliest rivals for the title, Australia and India, awaiting them in the other half of the draw.”Australia are going to be favourites, for sure,” Knight said of the defending champions, who have won six of the last seven stagings of the T20 World Cup, dating back to 2010. “Obviously, their success in this event has been huge, but we feel in a really good place. We’ve been playing some brilliant cricket, and while the first goal is to get out of the group stages, we’re pretty confident in what we bring. We believe we can beat anyone on our best day.”Much of England’s summer was spent honing a side that could compete in spinning conditions, with Bangladesh having been the World Cup’s original host country. The event has since moved to the UAE for security reasons, but Knight is confident that England’s spin contingent – led by the ICC’s No.1-ranked bowler in white-ball cricket, Sophie Ecclestone – will thrive at a tournament that, to judge by the tournament’s opening fixtures, already appears to favour slow bowling.”We feel very prepared for what we’ve got to come, and now it’s just about executing it and being really smart about how we do things in-game,” Knight said. “We’ve obviously got the quality spin attack. It’s been our big strength, particularly through those middle overs, how we really squeeze teams and try and rush them in that middle period.”England opted to overlook the extra pace of Lauren Filer for this tournament, instead relying on Lauren Bell as a sole specialist seamer, backed up by a trio of seam-bowling allrounders in Nat Sciver-Brunt, Freya Kemp and Dani Gibson. Charlie Dean and Sarah Glenn also offer batting depth as spinning allrounders, meaning that England – on paper, at least – have an enviably versatile squad.”We’ve got really good options, which is the nice thing,” Knight said. “The depth that we’ve got allows us to play based on the conditions that we face, and the team that we’re playing against.”It’s not going to be easy picking the team, but we’re pretty set on the little tweaks that we might need to make to get the most out of the conditions and teams that we’re playing against.”There are going to be times where we are going to have to graft a little bit, the boundaries are big and there might be times when we get on slow wickets where we are going to have to adapt to what is in front of us and be really smart with how we go about things.”Both Kemp and Sciver-Brunt were managed back to bowling fitness during the summer, after coming through back and knee issues respectively. But Knight was adamant that each was in the right place to deliver a full all-round role for the cause.”The allrounders are the fittest in the team, because of the role they have to do,” she said. “Freya, in particular, she’s super impressive with how she’s come back from that [second] stress fracture, and the work that she’s put in to be in a place to perform, it’s been brilliant.”

Glasgow Rangers manager Russell Martin confirmed that there will be further changes to the playing squad after the 2-2 draw at Ibrox on Sunday.

The Scottish head coach has revealed that there will be more signings to be added to the group to bolster his team, and that means that there will be players who have to move on as well.

Martin has brought in Lyall Cameron, Max Aarons, Joe Rothwell, Thelo Aasgaard, and Emmanuel Fernandez, but is ‘expecting’ more recruits to arrive at Ibrox in the coming weeks.

It now remains to be seen who will remain at Rangers and who will be allowed to move on from the club, whether that be star players who may earn big moves or those on the fringes who are looking for more game time.

The Scottish Premiership giants have not always made the best decisions on player exits, as they have fumbled the chance to rake in huge profit on stars, such as Ryan Kent.

How Rangers fumbled millions with Ryan Kent

After an initial loan spell at Ibrox, Rangers swooped to sign the English winger from Liverpool for a reported fee of £7.5m in the summer of 2019 to bolster Steven Gerrard’s squad.

The electric left winger certainly proved his worth during his time in Glasgow, as he played a key role in the club’s Premiership title win in the 2020/21 campaign.

Kent ended that season with a return of 13 goals and 14 assists in 51 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants, which included ten goals and ten assists in the top-flight.

In the summer of 2020, Gerrard revealed that the club had “strongly rejected” an offer from a team for the winger, which was reported to be a £10m bid from Leeds United.

The Daily Mail then reported that Leeds were ‘unsuccessful’ in an attempt to sign the forward for a fee of £15m after his performances during the title-winning campaign for the Light Blues.

Summer 2020

£10m Leeds bid

January 2021

£6.8m

Summer 2021

£15m Leeds bid

December 2021

£14m

June 2022

£15m

March 2022

£9.4m

June 2022

£7.7m

July 2023

£0 (released)

As you can see in the table above, it may have been a mistake by the Gers to turn down that second offer from the English side, as he went on to be released for nothing just two years later.

His value continued to plummet before he left Ibrox on a free transfer in the summer of 2023, and they may wish that they had cashed in on him when they had the chance to.

Rangers reject offer for forward

The Light Blues must avoid any similar mistakes with their star players this summer, after Martin confirmed that the club have turned down a bid for one of their forwards

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Cyriel Dessers watched on from the stands as Rangers played against Club Brugge on Sunday, and the manager revealed after the match that the club have officially rejected a bid for the striker already.

Martin explained: “Cyriel, he’s just been injured his ankle. So, he’s here today. We turned down a bid a while ago for him that was nowhere near the valuation for the football club.

Martin added: “So, that [deal is] nowhere near happening. He’ll get on the training ground this week and start enjoying it.”

No price tag or club was mentioned by the manager, but Greek side AEK Athens have been heavily linked with the forward. Journalist Giannis Chorianopoulos claims that they are set to make contact with Rangers once again this week over a deal for the number nine.

Why Rangers should cash in on Cyriel Dessers this summer

Rangers reportedly paid a fee of £4.5m to sign the Nigeria international from Cremonense in the summer of 2023, and the club should cash in on him this summer if any team comes in with an offer of more than that – £5m or more.

They turned down two bids for Ryan Kent, of £10m and £15m, that would have seen the Gers make a significant profit on the initial £7.5m that they paid for him, and they lived to regret that as the forward went on to leave for nothing in 2023.

The Nigerian forward turns 31 in December and his current contract at Ibrox is due to expire in the summer of 2027. That suggests that this summer may be the peak of his value at the club, because he is now heading towards the latter stages of his career and the latter stages of his contract.

This is their last chance to cash in on Dessers at peak value, as he will only have 12 months left on his contract next summer, and that is why they should look to move him on amid interest from AEK Athens.

Appearances

35

35

Goals

16

18

Big chances missed

27

20

Assists

4

2

Ground duel success rate

29%

34%

Aerial duel success rate

40%

31%

As you can see in the table above, the 30-year-old striker has been an unreliable forward in front of goal for the Scottish giants in his two seasons in the Premiership.

Goal returns of 16 and 18 respectively are very solid hauls on paper, but 47 ‘big chances’ missed shows that the striker, who former Aberdeen chief Keith Wyness described as “marmite”, has not been dependable enough.

Dessers is an incredibly wasteful finisher and Martin could improve his Rangers team by cashing in on him this summer to then bring in a more efficient marksman to lead the club back to glory.

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Rangers are in talks to sign a star who would be an even better signing than Nasser Djiga.

ByDan Emery Jul 6, 2025

Therefore, the Light Blues must cash in on the forward in the coming weeks to avoid a Ryan Kent repeat and to potentially improve the squad.

Nottinghamshire 360 and 425 for 2 (Slater 168*, Hameed 91, Young 68*, Stone 63) drew with Somerset 470 (Abell 111, Pretorius 95*, Pennington 5-96) Nottinghamshire opener Ben Slater turned the 13th hundred of his career into an unbeaten 168 but a lifeless final-day pitch had consigned this Vitality County Championship match to a draw long before that conclusion was reached with an exchange of handshakes at ten minutes to five as the home side declared on 425 for two.Only one wicket fell in 72 overs on the day, Slater finishing on a score he has bettered only twice in his career, with overseas batter Will Young making 68 not out after Olly Stone had been out for 63 nine overs after lunch, the England fast bowler again showing off his batting skills with a half-century in each innings for the first time in his career.There was too little in the pitch to encourage much interest for the bowlers, however, and it was hardly surprising that Nottinghamshire showed no interest in setting Somerset a target, given that their prospects of taking 10 wickets were almost non-existent.The 13 points they take ensure they remain at a comfortable distance from the relegation places in the Division One table; Somerset’s 15 keep them third.After sharing an opening partnership of 172 with Haseeb Hameed that was broken shortly before Tuesday’s close, Slater found two more long-term companions in Stone and Young.Stone ostensibly joined him as nightwatchman with Hameed’s demise but is making a strong case to be recognised as a genuine all-rounder.The 30-year-old England fast bowler had made only one half-century in 47 first-class matches before surprising onlookers with a very good 90 against Lancashire on this ground in May but now has three in his last five innings.This time he chipped in with 63 to go with his first-innings 83 batting at nine. Not all of his nine boundaries came off the middle of the bat, yet his defence was solid and he had helped Slater add another 136 before Jake Ball, using a belatedly taken second new ball, thudded one into his front pad as he played across the line.Slater, meanwhile, whose stand with Hameed had been the highest for Nottinghamshire’s first wicket since two shared an unbroken 236 against Worcestershire in 2021, was by then into three figures for the first time this season, reaching the century mark with a six and 12 fours, a good proportion of which clunked into the advertising boards on the short Bridgford Road side as the left-hander cut and pulled to profitable effect.When Stone departed, Nottinghamshire’s lead was 198 and, with little in the pitch to excite bowlers of any variety, Somerset could only hope a declaration might keep them in the game.Yet the docile surface meant that realistically there could be only one winner in such a scenario and there was nothing in the way Slater and Young went about their business to suggest that such a course of action was even being considered.Meanwhile Slater – dropped on 21 – pushed on past 150 for the third time in his career, having ticked off that milestone from 317 balls with 19 fours to go with the one six. By tea, at 396 for two, the lead was 286 with 37 overs remaining.New Zealand Test opener Young, whose only noteworthy score in a disappointing season so far was his unbeaten 174 in the drawn match between these sides at Taunton, almost missed out on a half-century, dropped at short midwicket by James Rew, who had handed the wicketkeeper’s gloves to Tom Kohler-Cadmore and later became the ninth Somerset player to have a bowl.

Irrespective of whether or not Manchester United beat Tottenham Hotspur to win the Europa League this week, it has been a disastrous season for the Red Devils.

Ruben Amorim’s side are 16th in the Premier League table and have lost 18 of their 37 matches to date, which illustrates how poorly the campaign has gone.

The Portuguese head coach, who joined the club from Sporting earlier this season, will look to bolster his squad in the upcoming summer transfer window in order to bounce back in the 2025/26 campaign.

It was recently reported that Manchester United are closing in on a deal to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Matheus Cunha, for example, to improve their attacking options.

The Brazil international is seemingly set to join Amorim’s squad ahead of next season and he could provide them with the attacking quality that they have lacked at times this season, given that he has already proven his quality in the Premier League.

What Matheus Cunha could bring to Man Utd

Cunha would arrive as a proven quantity in the English top-flight because he has already showcased his ability at the top end of the pitch in the last two seasons at the Molineux.

The former Atletico Madrid magician racked up 12 goals and seven assists in the Premier League during the 2023/24 campaign in the Midlands, along with two goals in two FA Cup matches.

Cunha has kicked on in the current campaign under Vitor Pereira to deliver even more goals in the division, with 15 strikes in 31 appearances to date.

Crucially, the 25-year-old star has also been playing as one of two number 10s behind a central striker for Wolves, which is akin to the attacking system that Amorim regularly plays at Manchester United. This suggests that he could slot straight into the team without having to learn a new way of playing.

24/25 Premier League	Matheus Cunha
Appearances	31
xG	8.04
Goals	15
Big chances missed	2
Big chances created	13
Key passes per game	1.8
Assists	6
Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Cunha has delivered quality in the final third on a regular basis for the Old Gold in the Premier League this term, with 28 goals and ‘big chances’ created combined in 31 matches.

Meanwhile, no Manchester United player has scored more than eight goals in the top-flight this season, which suggests that the Wolves star would come in to add a much-needed goal threat for Amorim’s side in the 2025/26 campaign..

Cunha may not be the only proven Premier League star who joins the Red Devils in the coming months, however, as the club are reportedly lining up a move for another player who has already showcased their talents in the division.

Man Utd submit bid for Premier League star

According to a report from Spain, Manchester United have submitted a bid to sign Brentford winger Bryan Mbeumo in the upcoming summer transfer window.

The report claims that the Red Devils have officially made an offer worth around £55m to sign the Cameroon international ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

This means that INEOS are in talks with Brentford over a deal to bring the left-footed attacker to Old Trafford, although the report does not reveal whether or not the Bees are prepared to accept a fee of £55m for their star forward.

It does show, however, that Manchester United are serious about a deal for the 25-year-old attacker, as they want to bolster their attacking options, as they have gone as far as to submit an offer for him.

The club must, now, attempt to get a transfer over the line for the Brentford star in the coming weeks because he could be amazing alongside Cunha for Amorim, if United are able to snap both of them up.

Why Mbeumo could be amazing alongside Cunha

Whilst Mbeumo is more used to playing as a right-winger in a 4-3-3, rather than as a number ten as part of a two and a one up front, the forward could be an exciting partner for Cunha behind a starting striker next season.

The Brentford and Wolves stars could operate as the two number ten options behind a new centre-forward, which would provide Amorim with two proven goalscorers to deliver consistent quality at the top end of the pitch.

As aforementioned, Manchester United’s top scorer in the Premier League this season, Bruno Fernandes, has scored eight goals, which illustrates how much the Portuguese boss needs reinforcements who can find the back of the net on a regular basis.

In Mbeumo, who was once dubbed “unplayable” by Thomas Frank, the Red Devils would be signing another player who has proven that he can be a difference-maker at the top end of the pitch in the English top-flight.

The left-footed star delivered nine goals and six assists in the Premier League during the 2023/24 campaign, but he has taken his game to new heights in the current season.

As you can see in the graphic above, Mbeumo has been directly involved in 26 goals in 37 matches in the top-flight, and has scored more than twice as many goals as Manchester United’s top scorer.

This suggests that he would bring much-needed goals and assists to Amorim’s side, which is also the case with Cunha, because he has already proven his quality at the top end of the pitch at that level.

Therefore, Cunha and Mbeumo could be amazing together as Manchester United’s two number ten options in the 2025/26 campaign because they are both attacking midfielders or wide players who can find the back of the net at an exceptional rate in the Premier League.

Both aged 25, they are also heading into the prime years of their careers and could be key players for Amorim for many years to come, hopefully kickstarting a new era of glory for the Red Devils.

Man Utd lodge £113m bid to sign their new Bruno Fernandes

Manchester United will aim to snap up their next Bruno Fernandes with this stunning purchase.

By
Kelan Sarson

May 19, 2025

Arsenal are reportedly nearing a potential agreement for one marquee transfer target this summer, with all parties on the same page when it comes to personal terms.

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Mikel Arteta and the Gunners lost out on the Premier League title to Liverpool by some distance this season, and a few critics have blamed their failed challenge on Arsenal’s lack of a potent centre-forward.

Arsenal’s final Premier League games

Date

Liverpool (away)

May 11th

Newcastle United (home)

May 18th

Southampton (away)

May 25th

Gabriel Jesus enjoyed a real purple patch of form before his season-ending ACL injury, and Kai Havertz has put in some excellent displays in a makeshift striker role. However, neither man is seen as a guaranteed 20-plus goals-per-season style of forward for the long-term, with pundit Ally McCoist claiming Arteta is crying out for a prolific number nine up top.

“I think it’s a crying shame, actually,” McCoist said to talkSPORT earlier this year.

“The amount of games I’ve been at, particularly at the Emirates, and I see that ball flashing across the six-yard box. I think Havertz is an excellent footballer, I really do. But I think Havertz would score the same amount of goals whether he plays centre forward, number ten or comes off the side.

“I think he’ll get 10 goals, whereas a centre forward playing in that position gets you 20, 25 (goals).”

The signing of a striker is one of Arsenal’s top priorities for the summer, according to various reports, and a succession of high-profile names have already been linked with moves to the Emirates.

One of them is Sporting CP star Viktor Gyokeres, who is widely expected to depart the Primeira Liga after yet another exceptional campaign. The Sweden international has scored 52 goals across 49 appearances in all competitions this term, and regardless of what league you play in, numbers like that are guaranteed to turn many heads.

Arsenal "edging closer to finalising" deal for Viktor Gyokeres

Gyokeres is a top target for Arsenal heading into the summer, with some reports claiming Berta is personally driving a move for the ex-Coventry City star (GiveMeSport).

Now, Football Transfers claim good progress is being made on a potential swoop, and Arsenal have scheduled fresh talks with Sporting, which will take place after the Portuguese Cup final later this month.

What’s more, it is believed Arsenal are “edging closer to finalising an agreement” for Gyokeres, with the Gunners and his camp “already aligned” on personal terms and the contract package he would receive in north London.

However, they’re yet to reach any agreement with Sporting themselves, prompting the imminent negotiations in late May. Rui Borges’ side are expected to demand a large chunk of Gyokeres’ transfer fee up front, though, or even the full amount.

The 26-year-old’s contract includes an £85 million release clause, and Portuguese news outlet A Bola recently reported that the presence of Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, Bayern Munich and English rivals in the race for Gyokeres’ means Sporting could demand close to that figure.

Arsenal may have to make Gyokeres one of their most expensive ever signings as a result, but he could well be worth the investment.

“I have said this before, and I will continue to say it: he brings a lot to the team, and his teammates are aware of what he contributes, which is why they look for him during games,” said Borges about Gyokeres.

“The collective effort also plays a role, as no one can succeed alone. Viktor is a game-changer, and he will continue to be, whether with us or elsewhere. His quality is undeniable; it is phenomenal.”

During his first few months in charge of Manchester United, boss Ruben Amorim hasn’t been afraid of coming up with out-of-the-box ideas to push the side in the right direction.

His first major call was to unleash Amad Diallo in a wing-back role, seemingly getting the best out of the Ivorian – notching an assist within the first couple of minutes of the clash with Ipswich Town in the manager’s first game at the helm.

Before his injury setback, he notched 11 combined goals and assists under the 40-year-old, with the switch evidently taking his career to the next level at Old Trafford.

He also utilised midfielder Kobbie Mainoo as a false nine against Crystal Palace back in February, but such a move wasn’t as successful, with the youngster withdrawn in the 70th minute and unable to get on the scoresheet.

Amorim’s latest switch certainly caught the eye in midweek, nearly having the desired effect, with a future in such a role a possibility given his showing against Nottingham Forest.

Harry Maguire’s stats as a striker against Nottingham Forest

With United a goal down against Nuno Espírito Santo’s men with just two minutes remaining, the manager turned to Harry Maguire to try and get his side out of trouble.

The centre-back caused havoc within the final third after his introduction, registering three efforts on goal despite playing for less than 10 minutes, including stoppage time.

One of his shots was destined to trickle into the back of the net, but Murillo’s goal-line clearance prevented the 32-year-old from getting himself on the scoresheet.

He also managed to win 100% of aerial duels, with his xG of 0.60 higher than that of Rasmus Hojlund’s combined tally from his last nine outings as the Red Devils’s centre-forward.

Had Maguire found the back of the net, it would’ve been a masterstroke from the boss, but his display certainly made him a viable option going forward, with Amorim needing to make a similar bold call with another first-team member.

Amorim could now relocate Man Utd's "monster"

With just a couple of months until the summer transfer window, the boss doesn’t have long until he can make the additions he wants to help the side climb up the Premier League table in 2025/26.

However, the period between now and then will give him the opportunity to trial run numerous players in new positions to try and get a grasp on what’s needed when the window opens.

Noussair Mazraoui is one player who could swap roles in the next few games, with the Moroccan international previously operating in an unfamiliar role this season.

During the previous reign of Erik ten Hag, the Dutchman opted to feature the full-back in a number ten role in the Europa League clash with Fenerbahçe back in October.

Whilst it was seen as a strange move, the 27-year-old, who earns £135k-per-week, managed to produce an admirable display, opening the door to Amorim utilising the defender in a similar role in his 3-4-2-1 system.

Noussair Mazraoui’s stats against Fenerbahçe at CAM

Statistics

Tally

Minutes played

90

Touches

64

Passes completed

39/47 (83%)

Shots on target

1

Accurate long balls

3/4 (75%)

Tackles won

2/4 (50%)

Defensive actions

9

Stats via FotMob

Mazraoui, who’s previously been labelled a “monster” by journalist Dylan Penketh, managed to register a total of 64 touches and managed to win 50% of his tackles – having the skillset in both areas to impress.

On the face of it, such a call may seem like an outrageous decision, but given the lack of form from other players in the final third, it may be something which the 40-year-old could implement.

He’s shown he’s not been afraid to make a huge call with players in the past, with Mazraoui operating in a more attacking position, potentially his next role of the dice in the North West.

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Posts ByRobbie Walls Apr 3, 2025

Jitesh Sharma, Devdutt Padikkal and Rajat Patidar have all played crucial hands this year in putting the franchise on cloud nine

Alagappan Muthu07-Apr-20252:15

Is 2025 finally going to be RCB’s year?

Virat Kohli is a fan boy. He has spent a part of his time at Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) dancing with Chris Gayle, nerding out with AB de Villiers and being blown away by Glenn Maxwell. In all that time, the team has tasted a lot of success. Four play-off appearances in the last five years. But that was never enough. Not for this franchise. Not with their history.At the auction, they did a lot of good business. Once more, they were able to attract high-impact overseas players. Phil Salt was a dream buy. His aggression at the top compensates for the others. Tim David has the power to make anything happen. He once changed a game facing just 14 balls. Josh Hazlewood broke the game open at Chepauk and closed the game out at Wankhede.But there is another thing that RCB are doing right. Something that they rarely have. They’re getting more out of their Indian players.Related

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Devdutt Padikkal has faced 49 deliveries in IPL 2025. He’s hit 11 of them for boundaries. His strike rate right now is 159.18. That’s twice as much as it was last season. A lot of work has gone on behind the scenes to effect such a change.”I knew there were things that I needed to improve,” Padikkal said, “And there were lots of aspects of the game that I wasn’t up to the mark I felt in the last year. I had a good couple of months before the IPL started and I feel all that hard work is coming into effect now.”Padikkal had a good start to his IPL career, scoring three fifties in his first four innings and a hundred by the time he was 21. Usually, that might have meant he could settle into the team and grow into his role. But in the IPL, its different. Rajasthan Royals (RR) came calling and he had to prove himself all over again. Then he moved to Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) where he had that horror season, averaging 5.49 and striking at 71.69.”When I made that move to another franchise, it was a little uncomfortable obviously. I wasn’t very confident about myself, and it took me three-four years to really find what I am as a cricketer in IPL,” he said. “So it’s not that easy, you try your hardest but at times it just doesn’t work. So coming into this season, obviously I had to work really hard.”Coming in at No. 3, obviously that is a role that has been given to me. I feel in T20 cricket these days everybody pretty much has the same role, to go out and hit from ball one, so that doesn’t really make any difference in terms of what I have to do as well. So, yeah that’s how it’s been going and hopefully I can carry on in the same way.”3:43

Rayudu: Patidar’s use of Bhuvi at the death was a masterstroke

Jitesh Sharma is a livewire. Where other batters might have needed convincing about the tempo of T20 cricket, he came fully formed. Batting down the order requires some sacrifice. Specifically, you can never play for your own runs. Jitesh has on average found the boundary once every five deliveries in the IPL. This season, he’s been even more destructive. One in three deliveries he’s faced, including a near yorker from Jasprit Bumrah, has ended up in the fence.”Jitesh has been terrific,” Krunal Pandya said at the end of the game. “I mean, the way he has batted, if you see, he has improved his game. The game awareness what he’s having while batting has been top notch. Again he has worked really hard, and with gloves he has been terrific, always. Working hard and you know, seeing the result, it feels good.”It is early in the season, but Jitesh is the one of only nine players averaging over 40 and striking at over 180.Bridging the gap between the top order and the finishers is the captain. Rajat Patidar came in as an unknown quantity but seems to be happy with the responsibility. Crucially, it hasn’t affected his batting. He is RCB’s best player of spin and their primary source of impetus in the middle overs. He has performed that role to perfection against both IPL’s five-time champions.Overall, add Kohli’s 67 to Patidar’s 64, Jitesh’s 40 (not out) and Padikkal’s 37, and Indian batters scored 208 runs for RCB against Mumbai Indians (MI), the most for them in an IPL match – their previous best was 188, against LSG in 2022. That’s also the joint-fifth-highest by Indian batters for any team in an IPL innings.RCB are on cloud nine this season•BCCIA significant test of his captaincy arrived as MI clobbered 89 runs in 34 balls through the middle overs to bring themselves back into the game. At the end of 16 overs, they were 170 for 4, the first time in the game where their score had ticked over RCB’s at the same stage. They were looking favourites to chase down 222. But Patidar was able to rally his bowlers and it appears he had a hand in the defensive masterclass that Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Krunal pulled off.”At that time, I think the message was, the wide yorkers, I think that was not a good option,” Patidar said. “The way all the bowlers, especially the fast bowlers the way they have executed their plans, I think that was really amazing and the one bowler, I think the way he has bowled, KP, Krunal Pandya, the last over, I think that was not easy to be bowling any of the team, against any team, 20th over. The way he has bowled, that was really amazing. The way he has shown courage, that was really fantastic.”RCB conceded only 28 runs and took five wickets in those last three overs. They had to dig real deep. “That was a really amazing match and that was very hard, I think,” Patidar said.RCB look different now. They’re getting the best out of even their unheralded players. Maybe 18th time really is the charm.”I don’t want to jinx it,” Krunal said. “Or I don’t want to say. But we all know, right, when you get into this tournament, what we want at the end of the tournament.”

The allrounder has now lost his place in the ODI and Test teams in the space of a few months, but he could yet make an impact at the World Cup

Alex Malcolm12-Oct-2023It’s not easy being Cameron Green. Australia’s star allrounder has lost his place in the ODI side in just the second game of the World Cup, less than three months after losing his spot in the Test side for the final match of the Ashes series.It is far from doom and gloom for a player as young and gifted as Green. He could well play in Australia’s next World Cup match against Sri Lanka given the schedule and the tenuous fitness of Marcus Stoinis. Stoinis has been unavailable for Australia’s last five matches, including the two warm-up games, due to a hamstring problem and has not bowled in back-to-back internationals this year. If Green were to regain his place, he could still have an impact for Australia in the tournament.But it is worth noting how Green has gone from almost irreplaceable in all three of Australia’s sides at the start of the year, and a three-million dollar man in the IPL, to being left out of the team on form in a deciding Ashes Test and the second game of a World Cup.Related

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It is clear Green is physically and mentally exhausted. No player in Australia’s World Cup squad has spent more time away from home this year than Green. Since Australia’s Test group departed for India on January 31, Green has spent just a month in his own bed. That is the price of being a three-format international allrounder, and it’s something Green is going through for the first time over such a sustained period.But for a cricketer who has had his whole professional career carefully mapped out in terms of when he plays, when he trains and when he rests, the addition of the IPL to his schedule in a year where Australia had away Tests tours in India and England, a World Test Championship final, and an away World Cup looks like a workload too big for even his broad shoulders to carry.It was long forecast within the Australian camp that this would be a possible outcome. But it is also partly their own doing. Green is unlikely to have been on the IPL’s radar had he not played in a bizarrely scheduled three-match T20I series in India this time last year when David Warner and Mitchell Marsh were both rested.No one could begrudge him entering the auction that followed given his two blistering half-centuries in that series, and no one in their right mind could ask him to forego the life-changing AUD$3.15 million to rest during April and May and make the WTC final, the Ashes and the World Cup his priority.However, what has unfolded since has been a valuable lesson in workload management. Between February and May he spent four months straight in India without returning home, then he had just two nights at home in Perth between the end of the IPL and the start of the tour of England.Only three other Australian players went from the IPL on the Test tour of England. During the same four-month period, Warner had spent three weeks at home in late February and early March after fracturing his elbow in the second Test in Delhi. Josh Hazlewood did not play a match in India having gone home after the second Test in Delhi and did not return until halfway through the IPL. Marsh was not a part of the Test tour to India and went home to Western Australia for a week in mid-April during the IPL to get married.Cameron Green’s IPL was life-changing, but it brought new challenges•BCCIGreen, who has been a notoriously slow starter when it comes to switching between formats, then struggled on his first tour of England having never played there before at any level. His first match in England was a WTC final against India, where most of India’s IPL players also struggled.And Green never got himself into the Ashes with either bat or ball. A hamstring niggle kept him out of the third Test at Headingley where Marsh stepped in and starred. He returned for Old Trafford but was dropped for the first time in his Test career at The Oval.He then had four weeks at home, resting from the T20I series against South Africa, before returning for the ODIs. But after making the most of his break by barely picking up a bat, he was hit in the head by the second ball he faced in South Africa and missed the next three matches with concussion.Having been slated to bat No. 4 in the ODI side with a view to potentially playing a part higher up the order in the World Cup, Green returned to find himself without a defined role and was forced to act as a finisher and has battled for form and rhythm.Now he finds himself out of the ODI side, replaced by Stoinis who has not made an ODI half-century since March 2019 and has averaged 16.80 across 32 innings in that time, not to mention his injury issues.The challenge for Green is how he regains some form either on the sidelines or in high-pressure World Cup matches, and where he can get a rest given Australia’s schedule after the event.Australia have a five-match T20I series in India straight after the World Cup that he will likely be rested from. But if he wishes to regain his place in the Test side, he might want to play in the last Sheffield Shield game for Western Australia before the BBL break in late November or the Prime Minister’s XI match against Pakistan, both of which are not in his home state.Australia then play five Tests between mid-December and late January. Even if Marsh remains the incumbent Test allrounder, Green will likely travel with the team given Marsh’s injury worries. His ankle flared up during the Ashes and he has hardly bowled in the limited-overs matches since. Australia then tour New Zealand in February and March before the IPL starts again. The T20 World Cup follows in June next year.It is a never-ending treadmill that Green is on with nowhere to step off.