Tag Futebol

Crystal Palace reporter for The Athletic, Matt Woosnam, believes that the versatility of new signings Marc Guehi and Michael Olise is a plus for the Eagles.

Guehi signed a five-year deal at Selhurst Park and is comfortable playing as a centre-back, but has also featured as both a left and a right-back throughout his career. The defender was an important player for Swansea City last season as he featured in 45 games for the Swans in all competitions.

Olise also has a lot of first-team experience as he featured for Reading 46 times in all competitions, scoring seven goals and creating a further 12, and only didn’t feature in two of the Royals’ Championship fixtures last campaign against Luton and Preston where he was on the bench.

The 19-year-old is comfortable playing off either wing, as well as playing more centrally in an attacking midfield role, and also signed a five-year deal with Palace.

Woosnam believes that the versatility that both Guehi and Olise offer is a plus for the club, telling Football FanCast: “I think versatility is something that Palace would probably benefit from. I think to some extent Marc Guehi is a relatively first style defender he can play in a back five or three and also a back four.

“Michael Olise, again he wasn’t signed for that purpose but he can play on the right, I think he played there quite a lot for Reading sort of coming inside from the right or he can play centrally.”

Patrick Vieira has been busy in the summer window since taking charge of Crystal Palace, as alongside Guehi and Olise, Palace have also completed deals for Jacob Montes, Joachim Anderson and Conor Gallagher.

Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing exciting Sheffield United forward Daniel Jebbison in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Jebbison breaks record

The Blades may have had a season to forget last time around, suffering relegation from the Premier League, but Jebbison produced a moment to treasure.

The 18-year-old became the youngest-ever player to score on his full debut in the competition – he was 17 years and 309 days old at the time – bagging the only goal in a 1-0 win at Everton.

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The Latest: Leeds linked with move

According to TEAMtalk, Leeds are eyeing up a move for the forward this summer, with the report claiming they ‘have an interest’ in him.

Aston Villa and Brentford are also mentioned as potential suitors, with Jebbison making five appearances for the Blades to date.

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The Verdict: One for the future

The Canadian looks a hot prospect with a bright career ahead of him, so it would be exciting to see him trade Bramall Lane for Elland Road.

He has been hailed as ‘fantastic’ by Micah Richards in the past and could perhaps be viewed as a long-term replacement for Patrick Bamford.

Jebbison likely wouldn’t be considered an immediate first-team option if he did join Leeds, but it is important that Marcelo Bielsa looks towards the future, as well as the present, with the Whites having already made additions to their youth set-up this summer.

In other news, Phil Hay has claimed that one player will join Leeds this summer. Find out who it is here.

An update has emerged on Celtic target Kristijan Lovric, regarding how much Gorica want for his services.

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, Celtic have enquired about a potential deal to sign Kristijan Lovric this summer to bolster their wide options.

The report claims that Gorica have told Celtic they want £4.2m (€5m) for the forward, with Serie A side Hellas Verona also showing an interest in his services.

Elyounoussi replacement

Celtic must sanction a swoop for Lovric this summer as he could be the perfect replacement for Mo Elyounoussi, who has returned to Southampton following his loan spell with the club. The Norweigan enjoyed a solid season at Celtic Park and now needs to be replaced ahead of the 2021/22 campaign, with Lovric potentially ready to come in and take up that spot on the left side of the attack.

Elyounoussi provided 10 goals and four assists in 34 Scottish Premiership appearances last term. He averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.94, showing himself to be a reliable, consistent, part of Celtic’s attacking lineup.

This means that the club must bring in a suitable replacement who is capable of replicating his successes or bettering it, by coming in and scoring and assisting plenty of goals.

Lovric could have the quality to do that. In the Croatian league last season, the 25-year-old scored 15 goals and created a further five, averaging a phenomenal score of 7.33 over the course of 29 matches. This suggests that he has the ability to consistently provide brilliant end product and, therefore, could be the replacement for Elyounoussi that Ange Postecoglou needs this summer.

HNTV commentator Damir Petravic once compared him to Arjen Robben, Andrea Pirlo, Miralem Pjanic and said he sprints “like Mbappe”. He said: “He dribbles and scores in the style of Robben, shoots free kicks like Pirlo or Pjanic, and knows how to sprint like Mbappe.”

This is high praise indeed for the Croatian attacker and is another reason why the club must ensure that they get a £4.2m deal over the line for him.

His statistics are superb and he must be doing something right to be compared with some of the legends of the game mentioned above. Hopefully, Postecoglou can push for this deal to be done in the coming weeks and have the forward as part of his squad before the end of the window.

AND in other news, Celtic must seal deal for 6ft 2 gem who made one error last season, fans would love it…

دعا ديدييه ديشامب مدرب فرنسا علانية إلى منح جائزة الكرة الذهبية لكريم بنزيما، خاصة بعد فوز ريال مدريد على ليفربول في نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا السبت الماضي.

مع فوزه في نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا، يضيف كريم بنزيما لقبًا آخر إلى خزانته، ويضع نفسه في وضع مثالي للفوز بأول كرة ذهبية في مسيرته.

بنزيما هداف الدوري الإسباني برصيد 27 هدفًا، وهداف دوري أبطال أوروبا للموسم الجاري برصيد 15 هدفًا.

تكفي الأرقام لمدربه ديدييه ديشامب ليعتبره مستحقًا للجائزة، وقال الفرنسي في تصريحاته لـ “تيليفوت”: “هل يستحق الفوز بالكرة الذهبية؟ الجواب بسيط: نعم، هناك هذا اللقب الجديد والموسم الرياضي الذي حققه مع فريقه”.

اقرأ أيضًا | فيديو | فالفيردي: الاعتناء بابني أصعب من مراقبة روبرتسون

واضاف: “لقد كان حاسما جدا، لقد كان بالفعل أحد المرشحين، لكنه يستحق تمامًا جائزة الكرة الذهبية”.

إذا فاز بنزيما، فسيكون خامس لاعب كرة قدم فرنسي في التاريخ يفوز بجائزة الكرة الذهبية بعد ريموند كوبا (1958) وميشيل بلاتيني (1983 و 1984 و 1985) وجان بيير بابان (1991) وزين الدين زيدان ( 1998).

Former Premier League defender Steve Howey thinks Jerome Boateng could have a Thiago Silva-like impact at Tottenham if he joined the north London club this summer.

Boateng is currently a free agent after leaving Bayern Munich at the end of his contract and The Athletic recently suggested a move to Tottenham would make a lot of sense.

Last summer, it was Spurs’ London rivals Chelsea who decided to snap up a high-profile centre-back on a free transfer when they signed Silva and it paid dividends.

The 36-year-old, who joined from Paris Saint-Germain, went on to help Chelsea win the Champions League and secure a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League.

For Howey, if Tottenham brought in Boateng this transfer window, then they could be getting their own Silva.

“Look what Chelsea did with the lad at the back, Thiago Silva,” the ex-Newcastle central defender said in an exclusive interview with TT. “Very experienced and I thought he did quite well for Chelsea at the back end of the season.

“Boateng, we all know what he’s about and how good he is. So, of course, it could certainly be an option for Tottenham.”

German journalist Christian Falk reported back in April that Spurs were interested in signing Boateng going into this transfer window, so perhaps that is one they revisit if they cannot sign their other centre-back targets and the German is still available.

Celtic have made an offer for Benevento striker Gianluca Lapadula, according to reports in Peru, cited by Glasgow Live.

The Lowdown: Lapadula profiled

Lapadula is 31 years of age and has been with the Serie B side after joining last summer in a deal worth £3.6m.

The Peru international has scored 147 goals for club and country during his career, eight of which came last season.

He’s reportedly on £53,000-a-week with Benevento, and it seems as if the Hoops have now made their move for the experienced forward.

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The Latest: Offer made

According to Libero in Peru, cited by Glasgow Live, Celtic have made a ‘concrete offer’ for Lapadula.

The report doesn’t share how much it is worth, but they do suggest Lapadula is valued at £8.5m.

They also claim that Benevento need the cash in order to sign players themselves this summer following their relegation last season.

The Verdict: A short term fix?

With Odsonne Edouard still pushing to seal a Parkhead exit, Lapadula could be an ideal replacement for Ange Postecoglou, but possibly only for the short term due to his age.

He’s scored plenty of goals during his career, so you’d expect he’d have no trouble with finding the back of the net. However, with Lapadula’s big wage and large valuation, Celtic could be better off looking elsewhere at a younger target.

It appears as if the Hoops are keen, though, so this could be a deal to keep a close eye on, and perhaps with Benevento desperate for cash Postecoglou and Dominic McKay can work their magic and secure a more reasonable price tag.

In other news: Pundit drops verdict on left-back Celtic want to sign.

Alex Rae has revealed his fears over the future of Glasgow Rangers defender Connor Goldson, who has just one year left on his contract at the club.

The Lowdown: Goldson future up in the air

Goldson has just 12 months left on his contract (Transfermarkt), although the Ibrox outfit are eager to get him signed up to a new three-year deal (Football Insider).

West Ham United are said to be interested in his services.

The Latest: Rae worried

Speaking to The Times, Rae has expressed his fears in regards to centre-back Goldson. He said:

“My only concern right now would be Connor Goldson because he’s in the final year of his contract [and] this isn’t a business model where they let players run down their contracts. So I’d like to see Goldson signing because he has been outstanding and is a leader.”

The Verdict: Must get it done

Rae is bang on the money – tying down Goldson to a new deal has to be one of Steven Gerrard’s and Ross Wilson’s priorities this summer. He played every single minute of every single game last term as the Gers conceded just 13 times (thefishy.co.uk) on their way to the Premiership title.

He clearly has a huge impact on the side, and is a player Gerrard clearly relies on. Aged 28, he still has a good few years left in front of him – the Gers cannot afford to let him go, and if they do, it must be after he has signed a new deal in order to strengthen the club’s negotiating position.

Hopefully, the Gers will be able to come to an agreement with the £6.75m-valued (Transfermarkt) former Brighton man in the near future.

In other news, Rangers fans are livid with this Club 1872.

Even though Pakistan won the 1992 World Cup in Australia and a few years ago won the annual triangular there by beating West Indies 2-0 in the finals, Australia as a cricket venue has rarely delivered a happy end game for the Pakistanis in one-day

Sohaib Alvi10-Jun-2002Even though Pakistan won the 1992 World Cup in Australia and a few years ago won the annual triangular there by beating West Indies 2-0 in the finals, Australia as a cricket venue has rarely delivered a happy end game for the Pakistanis in one-day cricket. In the inaugural one-day tournament they played there in 1981-82 Pakistan were eliminated from the finals in the last match when Faoud Bacchus held firm to get the West Indies past a rain reduced target of just 100-plus; in 1983-84 they again failed to reach the finals and in 1985 in the mini-world cup there they lost to India pathetically in the final. Similar was the case in 1989-90 when Australia hammered the hides off them in both the finals after Pakistan managed to get there mainly due to a then inexperienced Sri Lanka being the third side. And last year Australia again edged through in the finals despite Pakistan doing well in the earlier matches against them and India.The reason for most of these last minute hiccups has, in my opinion, been lack of selfbelief and sticking to a planned strategy when there has been one. In fact all through the history of our cricket, especially the one-day chapter, we have fumbled within sight of victory. Whether it was the matches against Australia and West Indies in the first World Cup, the semi-final against the West Indies in the second, the quarter final of the sixth and the final of the seventh, Pakistan has been a case of nerves. In my view, even though Miandad was no doubt one of the game’s most astute thinkers and planners, Pakistan has always looked a side to win whenever it played the world’s best under Imran Khan. He has had his share of disasters, none more poignant than the Lahore defeat in the 1987 World Cup, but the team has always looked charged and visibly presented a positive mental attitude. Perhaps it was because the guys knew that worse comes to worse Imran himself will bail out the team. Or maybe he had that ability to instill pride and selfbelief in youngsters by showing them hope and a vision. No doubt it was because he never took a collapse lying down and hung in there with the typical determination that seemed to say "we are no less human than the other guys".After a long time I have seen this spirit in the current Pakistan side under Waqar Younis and the current team management. Again, there seems to be a charged atmosphere in the youngsters. In the last couple of years they have seen Waqar get them out of corners by coming out fighting. They bowled out England to win the Lord’s Test against expectations and came back in Sharjah against Sri Lanka a year back.The pessimist will say that Pakistan has been winning against opposition that has not truly tested them. Even though Bangladesh and West Indies have presented a fight stretching from the mediocre to the moderate, a cricket game still needs to be won on the field. All books on personnel management make it a point that there is no better a time for men to achieve beyond their abilities than when they are riding a crest. So even though some will say that Inzi got his triple hundred on a flat pitch against ordinary bowling and that Shoaib and Co. reaped the wickets against West Indies and NZ because of inexperienced and technically weak batsmen, it has nevertheless given our key players a high note on which to approach Australia.I also believe that Waqar, Mudassar and Yawar Saeed are all experienced campaigners who are aware of the aspects of the team they need to work on. They will know that on the bouncier track of Australia, the long absence of Saeed, Afridi’s penchant for driving on the up and the youthful enthusiasm of Nazir is more likely to be a risk than an asset. They also will be aware that Shoaib Malik, though immensely gifted in his off spin, is not the artful dodger that is Saqlain nor does Azhar bowl with the honed accuracy of Razzak, both of whom are plying their wares half way across the world.The optimism stems from the form and confidence of Pakistan’s pace attack. Man to man they are in another league when compared to the Aussie pace attack, even though the home side has McGrath and Lee. Lee has not really been up there in the one-dayers and did not start the seven match series in South Africa as first choice. He has the tendency to bowl short and wide on the off stump and seasoned batsmen like Saeed, Youhanna and Inzimam can pick his pace. Shoaib’s maturity, on the other hand, has been a revelation; a lesser man would have been reveling at the speed record. Shoaib continues to tell everyone he meets that he is happier that he has achieved the accuracy and swing he always strived for.And while McGrath offers the miserly runs per over rate in his one-day record the Pakistanis are aware that he primarily bowls offor outside off-stump and has not the variety that Wasim can juggle up. Many seasoned commentators of the game that have seen bowlers from Lindwall to Walsh believe that he is perhaps the only bowler who can bowl six wicket-taking deliveries in one over. Likewise, Waqar is a born-again swing bowler and his swinging in-dipper still makes him a study for missile trajectory scientists.Australia continues to place their faith in Shane Warne but is already realizing that he has been losing it in the last two years. At one time perhaps the most dangerous bowler in one-day cricket he has been picked easily for runs since his shoulder injury and has been seeing the ball dispatched mostly to the mid wicket fence. Youhana and Inzamam are perhaps two of the most gifted players of spin and Waqar and Mudassar will be banking on these two to build the innings for the team.Nevertheless Australia has advantage in the batting. They are stronger mentally and physically. In Ponting, Gilchrist and Maher they have attacking batsmen while Bevan remains the master of the end game. On top of that they are playing on home territory and all have experience of playing in the indoor arena, having played the inaugural one-day series there in August 2000 against South Africa. Only Bichel, Hayden, Lehmann, Maher and Watson among the 13 chosen for the three-match series have yet to play under the roof.For the entire Pakistan team however, playing indoors will be a new experience. When Australia first played there a little under two years ago even some Australian players took time to get used to the atmosphere, going by their own words. The Colonial Stadium is basically for Australian Rules rugby. It stretches 170 meters long by 140 meters wide and can seat a cricket audience of 48,000. It remains an awesome arena. In such places the echo factor accentuates the crowd’s noise.The outfield is not exactly as pristine as some of the cricket grounds in Australia as it is subjected to a grinding from the rough tackling that symbolize rugby. The pitch should not be a problem as it is going to be airlifted and placed at the centre. The enclosed conditions will resemble the overcast skies of England and as such Wasim and Waqar can expect the ball to swing and Azhar has a great chance to apply what he has recently learnt in England’s early summer, not too different from the conditions at the Colonial. At the same time Shoaib and Lee cannot expect the wind to be behind their thrusts. But they are such class acts that absence of this one factor should not inhibit their skill.I feel confident that Pakistan remain one of the top three one-day sides and have the never-say-die attitude to come out punching when thrown against the ropes. Their track record against Australia makes reasonable reading: They have won 24 of the 60 ODIs, losing 33 with one match tied.The strategy for Pakistan should be to attack Gilchrist and Ponting; they are stroke players who rush into a challenge. Since long they have not faced genuine pace and swing. They have four left-handers in the top six, so Shoaib Malik can look forward to some exciting times. Pakistan’s batsmen nevertheless need to deliver on their technique and maturity. McGrath needs to be seen off and Warne needs to be challenged more from down the wicket.With both Australia and Pakistan on a high, it promises to be a truly sensational affair. Australian writers, even former one-day captain Steve Waugh, have said that Pakistan remain a dangerous team anytime, a point not lost on the chairman of selectors, Trevor Hohns, who said: "In recent years Pakistan has proved to be a tough opponent in one-day international level, so we had to think long and hard about choosing the squad that will help us win this series."Coming in these tense times for the sub-continent, perhaps this sort of excitement is just what is needed for all the millions of people of this area and a study in how two varying styles can enjoy themselves under one roof.

Aston Villa have confirmed they have reached an agreement with Belgian side Royal Antwerp for the transfer of Bjorn Engels.

And a number of Villa supporters have been sharing their thoughts on the news on social media.

Engels with have a medical this weekend ahead of a proposed move back to his native country. He’s been with Villa since 2019 after joining in a move worth £7.2m from Stade Reims.

However, the 26-year-old failed to make a Premier League appearance under Dean Smith last season, with Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa ever-presents at Villa Park.

Engels looks set to leave Villa with just 19 appearances to his name, scoring his only goal for the club in a 3-2 defeat to Tottenham last year.

Villa fans react

The club shared the news on Engels on their official Twitter page on Friday evening.

The majority of Villa fans seemed fairly sad at the news, with one describing the defender as ‘brilliant’.

“We’re better than this statement, wish him well. Class costs us nothing.”

Credit: @KevinCorAvfc

“Gutted it didn’t work out for him at Villa, wishing you the best at Antwerp”

Credit: @YusufYasser1

“Brilliant defender, if only he had a yard or two more pace he would have been top drawer. A real shame it never worked out. All the best Bjorn “

Credit: @AvfcU
“Good luck lad. Really sad it didn’t work out.”
Credit: @everysongsung

“Will miss Bjorn a lot, he did very well in his short playing time, hope everything goes well for him.”

Credit: @CharlesHay19

“No best of luck? No thanks? No mention of even playing for the club? Something doesn’t fit right with me. Guess we’ll never know. Best of luck, Bjorn”

Credit: @wh0actuallykn0w

“He only made one mistake tbf. Clearly isn’t our type of player but still feel bad for him”

Credit: @ViIlaI_

In other news: Many AVFC fans react to club’s reported interest in Aaron Ramsey, find out more here. 

Lost with honour

John Ward22-Mar-2002Lost with honour. Perhaps that was the best we could realistically hope for in India, and by winning two of the one-day matches, twice taking the lead in the series, our team did better than anybody reasonably expected. Against a team representing over 1000 million people with home advantage, it was a superb effort.In the end it was the strength of the Indian middle order, and the lack of depth in our bowling, that decided the series. Without Sachin Tendulkar, resting a knee injury, the Indian batsmen had to take responsibility, and young players Dinesh Mongia, Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh all batted superbly. We did not have the bowling strength, especially in the spin department, to overcome them.Our batsmen did a fine job, Alistair Campbell leading the way with three fifties in the five matches. Although they do help spin, most Indian pitches are good for batting, but when India bat first and score over 300, we are in trouble. India’s scores of 319 for six and then 333 for six in the second and fifth matches are, with the exception of South Africa’s 363 in September, the highest totals against Zimbabwe in our history of 212 one-day matches. Therefore the three highest totals scored off our bowlers have all been scored in the last six months, which is a worry.In the final one-day international, as we were chasing 333 and the task became progressively more difficult, I could not help asking, "Where is Doug Marillier?" The odds were very much against his playing another blinding innings, but he was the one player who could, who might just have scored runs quickly enough at least to bring Zimbabwe close. The time to send him in is when the task is difficult, not when it is impossible. But he only came in at his usual number eight, when it really was impossible. There seemed to be a lack of flexibility here, when there was at least nothing to lose by sending him in earlier, and this was noted by the television commentators.In my opinion, the team gets nothing but a brickbat for their failure to bowl their overs within the required rate, resulting in their chasing 333 in 48 rather than 50 overs. In pre-Test days, Zimbabwe used to bowl their overs at a pretty good rate, well above the 15 generally required by regulations. Slowing the over rate is one of the bad habits picked up since we joined the big boys, and now we are so bad we get penalized two overs – and it wasn’t the first time it happened during the series. Conceding large numbers of extras is another bad habit, although it wasn’t at its worst in this series.*****Back home we had behaviour problems in the Logan Cup match between Midlands and Mashonaland A at Kwekwe. According to Mike Huggett, "This morning there was quite a lot of aggro shown on the field, particularly from Vermeulen to Price. Things reached boiling point when an Utseya delivery came off Price’s thigh pad and all behind the stumps appealed. The decision was not out and Vermeulen just rushed up to Price and shoved him out of his crease and started swearing at him and calling him a cheat and saying that he nicked the ball."Mark Vermeulen is making a name for himself as a player with behavioural problems, which attracted adverse comment in Mashonaland A’s previous match against the CFX Academy. As a schoolboy he was actually banned from cricket and expelled from his sports club when he blew a fuse on the field, and now those same tendencies seem to be reasserting themselves. Off the field he invariably appears to be calm, controlled and friendly, the last person one would expect to misbehave on it. Yet it is happening, and he is by no means the only one, especially in Mashonaland. Sadly, it looks as if the time is coming when match referees will be needed in domestic cricket.*****In this issue we bring you further biographies of Academy players, this time Vusi Sibanda and Arnold Rushambwa, as well as what will probably be (hopefully not) the final update of Everton Matambanadzo’s biography. We have also updated the records of all the 41 one-day internationals that have now been played between Zimbabwe and India.