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Wolverhampton Wanderers finished their 2024/25 season with a 1-1 draw against Brentford on Sunday.

This result meant the Old Gold finished 16th, 17 points clear of the relegation zone. Vitor Pereira’s opening few months have been largely promising, but there must be some improvements made to the squad during the summer transfer window.

Several players failed to shine against the Bees, however, which could impact their futures.

Wolves' best and worst performers against Brentford

Marshall Munetsi scored a screamer to rescue a point for the Molineux side, and it was an excellent overall display.

He lost possession just seven times and succeeded with 100% of his dribbles during the game.

Sadly, with a move to Manchester United on the horizon, Matheus Cunha looks to have played his final game for the club but he did put in a decent display, registering five total shots while delivering nine crosses into the box as he looked to make the difference.

Metric

Highest-Ranked

Accurate passes

Yehor Yarmolyuk (53)

Key passes

Goncalo Guedes and Rayan Ait-Nouri (3)

Tackles

Joao Gomes (8)

Shots on target

Matheus Cunha (3)

Ground duels won

Joao Gomes (14)

Elsewhere, Rayan Ait-Nouri, who also may have played his final game for Wolves, struggled throughout. Not only did he give the ball away for Brentford’s opener, the defender also lost the ball nine times before being subbed off in the 65th minute.

The worst performer, however, was Goncalo Guedes, and it is almost certain that the Portuguese forward will be on his way out of Molineux this summer.

Why Wolves must sell Goncalo Guedes this summer

Guedes was deployed as a lone centre-forward against Brentford, but failed to make an impression in the final third.

The former Valencia man lasted just 65 minutes. During his time on the pitch, he registered two shots off target, succeeded with three of his six dribble attempts and completed only 20 passes.

There was a moment that left the manager “furious” in the words of Old Gold reporter Liam Keen, when Munetsi cut the ball back but the Portuguese made a mess of the chance and sent it wide.

Across his 29 league matches this season, Guedes scored just twice while grabbing four assists and if Pereira is aiming to take the club into the top half of the Premier League table next season, he should not be the main attacking option, particularly when Cunha departs.

He’s lacked so much pizazz in the final third, notably recording a goal conversion percentage of just 7%, while he averaged 0.5 key passes per game, created two big chances and averaged just 0.3 shots on target per game in the top flight.

Those are hardly the statistics of a player who can make a difference for the club in the final third next season, and this must ensure his departure in the coming months.

Dubbed as “lightning quick” by European football expert Andy Brassell upon his arrival at Molineux, it’s fair to say that he failed to live up to his massive £27.5m transfer fee.

With two years left on his current contract at the club, now is the perfect time for Pereira to cash in on him when the transfer window opens.

It is unlikely he can recoup the near £30m that was spent on him, but any decent fee would bolster the club’s transfer kitty, no doubt about that.

With Cunha departing too, Pereira must bring in another attacker or two.

Wolves can sign their new Raul Jimenez with "extraordinary" £29m star

Wolves will need to replace Matheus Cunha this summer

ByRoss Kilvington May 25, 2025

It might not feel like it at the moment, but the future is bright for Tottenham Hotspur.

Ange Postecoglou may be overseeing a dreadful domestic campaign this season, which has seen them lose more games than they’ve won in the Premier League, but his squad is bursting with young talent.

For example, the sensational Mikey Moore and Wilson Odobert look primed to battle it out to be Son Heung-min’s successor; Dominic Solanke and Mathys Tel could be fighting to lead the line next season, and Micky van de Ven, Djed Spence and the tremendously exciting Luka Vušković could become defensive stalwarts in the coming years.

Finally, the North Londoners’ midfield could become truly special, with one of its future stars already having won comparisons to Jude Bellingham.

Spurs' future midfield

So, before getting to the player in question, it’s worth examining the two other Spurs players we reckon will be starting alongside him in midfield in the coming years.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Now, assuming the team will still be playing a three-man midfield, the most defensive of them will undoubtedly be Archie Gray.

The former Leeds United gem joined the North Londoners for around £30m last summer and, despite just turning 19, has played a surprisingly significant role this season, primarily in defence.

In all, he’s made 19 appearances at centre-back, seven at right-back, five at left-back, three in defensive midfield and another five so short as not to make it entirely clear where he was playing.

However, while most of his game time has come in a back four, he is a midfielder by trade and with how incredibly well he’s adapted to what has been needed of him this year, we wouldn’t be surprised to see him become the “future £100m cm” analyst Ben Mattinson has claimed he’ll be.

Just ahead of the Durham-born gem should be Dejan Kulusevski, as while he initially joined the club as a winger, he’s since spent much of this season as an attacking midfielder and thrived.

For example, eight of his 20 goal involvements have come from just 16 appearances across attacking and central midfield.

Moreover, as he’s still just 24 years old, the Stockholm-born monster has time to get even better before reaching the age that most attacking midfielders peak, which, according to The Athletic, is 26.

That leaves one more starting spot in the middle of the park, a place for someone who’s been touted for a lofty valuation and has been compared to Bellingham.

The Spurs star compared to Bellingham

There are a few other talented midfielders we have yet to mention, like James Maddison and Pape Matar Sarr, but in this instance, we are talking about Lucas Bergvall.

The young Swede has been seriously impressive since moving to Spurs in the summer, making 40 first-team appearances, and it’s he whom Mattinson described as “similar to Bellingham” in November 2023.

At the time, he claimed their similarity stemmed from the fact that the teenager “has the raw & technical ability to adapt to any role” in the middle of the park, something we have seen this season.

For example, of his 40 appearances, 24 have come in central areas, five in defensive midfield, four in attacking midfield and even one in left midfield, helping to prove he’s the “uber-complete” talent Mattinson claimed he was over a year ago.

Moreover, on top of his five-goal involvements, the Stockholm-born gem has some brilliant underlying numbers from the last year, demonstrating his ability to do it all, akin to the Real Madrid star.

According to FBref, he sits in the top 1% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues for successful take-ons, the top 2% for penalties won, the top 4% for tackles in the attacking third, the top 7% for tackles plus interceptions, the top 11% for carries into the final third and more, all per 90.

Ultimately, the Swedish phenomenon looks destined to develop into a world-class central midfielder and someone who could even blow past the future “£80m” price tag Mattinson predicted for him back in 2023.

Ange could soon unleash a "freak" Romero replacement at Spurs

The sensational teenager could be a game-changer for Spurs.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Apr 8, 2025

How he handles the pressure in an all-important game against RCB could well define his season

Ashish Pant18-May-20242:35

Aaron: Santner gives CSK a lot of options

Ruturaj Gaikwad’s first year as Chennai Super Kings captain has fetched mixed results so far. Not once have CSK won more than two games in a row this season, not once have they lost more than two on the bounce. Apart from the results, there have been issues that Gaikwad hasn’t had much control over. He has lost 11 out of 13 tosses and had had to deal with key bowlers missing out through injuries and national commitments.But the sternest test for Gaikwad’s captaincy will be when CSK take on a resurgent Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a game that decides who makes it to the IPL 2024 playoffs.This is somewhat of an uncharted territory for CSK. Not since 2012 have they been in a situation where their playoff hopes hinged on their final league game of the season. They have either aced the league stage to qualify with a few games to spare or have been knocked out well in advance, like in 2020 and 2022 when they finished second from the bottom.Related

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How Gaikwad goes about handling the pressure of such a crucial game could well define his season as captain.An RCB-CSK game at the best of times is an adrenaline-pumping affair, and this one comes with high stakes attached in front of a vociferous Bengaluru crowd. But Gaikwad has shown his wares when under the pump. When he was handed the captaincy before this season, probably the biggest question was whether it would affect his batting. After all, it is not easy taking over the reins from someone who has led the team to five IPL titles. Ask Ravindra Jadeja, who was appointed captain at the start of IPL 2022 but had to be replaced midway.It wasn’t the smoothest of starts for Gaikwad the batter, too. In the first four games of the season, he managed 88 runs at an average of 22.00. But probably the biggest issue was his strike rate: 118.91. In a season where the openers from other teams were going at full throttle, Gaikwad was still stuck in the past. He did score an unbeaten 67 against Kolkata Knight Riders but even that came at a strike rate of 115.51. In Gaikwad’s defence, though, CSK were chasing only 138.Gaikwad is currently the second-highest run-getter in the tournament•AFP/Getty ImagesIn his next game, he also moved down to No. 3. It was quite a selfless act on the captain’s part, which was done to accommodate Ajinkya Rahane at the top. It was as if a switch was flicked, with Gaikwad whacking 69 off just 40 balls. He batted in that position for one more game before going back to opening the innings. With his confidence back he smashed an unbeaten 108 off 60 balls against Lucknow Super Giants and followed it up with 98 off 54 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad. His 98, in particular, was a stellar knock as it came in fairly trying circumstances in the Chennai humidity with Gaikwad admitting after the game that it got a “little bit tough to breathe”.He even held the orange cap for a few games before Virat Kohli took over. As things stand, Gaikwad is second on the runs chart with 583 in 13 innings, at an average of 58.30 and a strike rate of 141.50.Another feature in Gaikwad’s scoring rate that has stood out this season is not slowing down a great deal after the powerplay. His strike rate in the first six overs is 141.84, while in the middle overs it goes down only to 133.51. And it’s not that Gaikwad hasn’t dropped anchor when needed. In CSK’s previous game against Rajasthan Royals, on a slow Chepauk surface and with his side in a bit of bother, he shepherded the chase with an unbeaten 41-ball 42.Gaikwad’s calmness on the field has impressed CSK batting coach Michael Hussey too.”It’s been challenging for him. He has taken over as captain which you have got to take your hat off,” Hussey said about Gaikwad after the SRH game. “He’s taken over from arguably the greatest captain of all time in this country in MS Dhoni and he has been able to come in and do that and keep his batting standards up very high as well.”Of course, you have to appreciate as captain there are a lot of things going on in his mind. Tactical things, preparation for games, he’s got to make sure everyone in the team is in a good place. For him, to be able to take care of the captaincy side of things but then be able to come out and bat the way he has been batting has been a real credit to him and he is showing the world just how good a player he is. I am biased because he is my favourite player.”Gaikwad is used to playing at venues where CSK have enjoyed huge support. While they are likely to get that at the Chinnaswamy as well, it might not be as vocal as some of the other grounds. It was visible on match eve, with hordes of RCB fans teeming outside the venue to welcome their favourite stars. The decibel level is expected to go through the roof on match day. Will Gaikwad the captain and the batter remain unflappable, especially if things go south?

From the way their spinners have outwitted opposition batters to the way they’ve backed their youngsters, this campaign has had the late great Australian’s DNA all over it

Karthik Krishnaswamy28-May-2022The shadow of Shane Warne, their captain, coach and talisman during their remarkable title run in the inaugural season of the IPL, has loomed over Rajasthan Royals’ campaign of 2022, and it almost feels like fate that they’ve reached the final for the first time since the heady days of 2008.After scoring his fourth hundred of the season to steer Royals into the final, Jos Buttler was inevitably asked about Warne. “He is such an influential figure for the Rajasthan Royals and having led the team to success in that first season, we will miss him dearly, but we know he is looking down on us with a lot of pride today,” Buttler said at the presentation ceremony. “He made us believe.”The 2022 Royals have an identity of their own, of course, forged by their coach Kumar Sangakkara, their captain Sanju Samson, and a core group of immense skill and experience that includes Buttler, Shimron Hetmyer, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal and Trent Boult. But if you look for it, you’ll find bits of Warne that remain in the team’s DNA.3:02

Manjrekar: Chahal and Hasaranga are courageous spinners with a big heart

Chahal bowls the pressure overs
Where most wristspinners in the IPL fire the ball into the pitch, attack the stumps relentlessly, and bowl the wrong’un almost as often as their stock ball, Chahal shows immense faith in his legbreak, and is unafraid to give the ball a bit of air and challenge batters to go after him. He’ll never be as good as Warne – who ever will? – but his style of bowling isn’t all that different.And like Warne, he puts his hand up and bowls the difficult overs. Australia’s captains loved using Warne in the high-pressure overs during his ODI career. Think of the Mohali World Cup semi-final of 1996, when Mark Taylor kept four overs of Warne in reserve until the 45th over, which began with West Indies needing 30 off 36 balls, with six wickets in hand. What happened next was three wickets in three overs of Warne magic, West Indian panic and an Australia win for the ages.Warne had retired from international cricket by the time the IPL happened, and his bowling was at a level below what it was at his peak, but that didn’t stop him from bowling the challenging overs. During IPL 2008, he was one of only three spinners – Muthiah Muralidaran and Pragyan Ojha were the others – to bowl 30 or more balls in the slog overs (17-20).At Royals this season, the team management has given Chahal a role very few spinners have ever performed in the IPL. He’s bowled 78 balls in the death overs already – Wanindu Hasaranga and Rashid Khan are a distant joint-second among spinners at 36 balls each – and only Sunil Narine has ever bettered that total in the IPL, doing so in three successive seasons from 2012 to 2014.2:28

Ashwin: ‘I’m extremely confident I can clear the ropes when required’

Ashwin tees off (not recklessly)
Warne sparked widespread merriment on Twitter when he prescribed a radical formula for England to counter India’s unstoppable spinners during the second innings of the pink-ball Ahmedabad Test of 2021. It involved, among other things, promoting Jofra Archer and Stuart Broad to bat in the top three, with the mandate to “tee off (not recklessly) but aggressive.”Warne, as he made clear a million times as a TV commentator, loved pinch-hitters, and he had often been used as one in white-ball cricket, most memorably during – once again – the 1996 World Cup, when he went in at No. 4 and clattered 24 off 14 balls to ease Australia’s progress in a chase of 287 in their quarter-final against New Zealand in Chennai.There’s a bit of Warne in Ashwin’s bowling – the drift, the variations, the intricate plotting of wickets, and above all the competitive edge he brings to contests – and this season, Royals have also looked to maximise Ashwin’s batting ability by pushing him up the order to make up for their lack of depth. They’ve used him in a variety of roles – as a pinch-blocker after a top-order collapse, as a pinch-hitter at No. 3, and even as a genuine finisher – and he’s responded with his best IPL season by far with the bat: 185 runs at an average of 30.83 and a strike rate of 146.82.Along the way, Ashwin also made history by becoming the first batter to retire out in the IPL. We don’t know what Warne would have made of the move, but we suspect he might have approved.Riyan Parag made a crucial half-century against RCB earlier in the season•BCCIRockstar 2.0
In 2008, Ravindra Jadeja was a 19-year-old with immense all-round potential, and Warne recognised that he could become a serious player one day, picking him in 14 out of Royals’ 16 games. Jadeja barely bowled back then, sending down just 2.1 overs through the entire season, but contributed a couple of cameos down the order – Warne called him a “future superstar” after he hit 33 off 19 against Kolkata Knight Riders – and caught everyone’s eye with his electric fielding.In 2021, Riyan Parag, a 19-year-old batting allrounder with immense potential, went through a horror season: 93 runs in 83 balls spread over 10 innings. Royals saw something in him, though, and re-signed him at the 2022 auction. They recognised that he performs a difficult role in the slog overs, and while his overall returns this season – 168 runs at an average of 16.80 and a strike rate of 143.58 – aren’t hugely impressive on the surface, they reflect the role he’s played, usually walking in with next to no time remaining in the innings. On one of the few occasions when he got to spend time in the middle, he scored a priceless, unbeaten 31-ball 56 on a tricky pitch against Royal Challengers Bangalore.And, like the Jadeja of 2008, Parag has been a standout fielder, making countless boundary saves in the hot zones at long-on and long-off, and taking more catches (16) than any other fielder in the competition. He’s celebrated each of them in a cheeky manner that’s rubbed traditionalists the wrong way, but you can bet that Warne would have loved his chutzpah.

After enduring perhaps the most disappointing 2025 season of any team in the league, the Orioles wasted little time this offseason trying to ensure the ’26 campaign is a different story.

A month ago, the team traded the super-talented but oft-injured Grayson Rodriguez for Taylor Ward, then signed two-time All-Star closer Ryan Helsley to a two-year deal over Thanksgiving weekend. Wednesday, though, saw the biggest move yet, as Baltimore has reportedly agreed to a five-year, $155 million deal with former Mets star Pete Alonso.

The move has huge ramifications, of course, for both the Orioles and Alonso’s now former team. For Baltimore, Alonso represents another massive addition to an offense that ranked 24th in runs scored a year ago. He and Ward hit a combined 74 home runs in 2025, and Alonso’s 195 blasts since ’21 rank fourth behind only Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani and Kyle Schwarber.

How Alonso’s presence impacts the roles of some of the Orioles’ younger bats remains to be seen. Before his signing, Baltimore projected to use Adley Rutschman, Samuel Basallo and Coby Mayo at catcher, first base and DH. Alonso makes that setup more crowded, and it stands to reason that one of those youngsters (most likely Mayo) could be used as a trade chip for a starting pitcher that the O’s still desperately need. And that’s not the only logjam that needs sorting out, as Baltimore has an abundance of corner outfielders but no obvious solution in center field (your mileage may vary on Colton Cowser’s viability as an everyday option there).

As for the terms of the deal, five years for a player entering his age-31 season who’s quickly approaching DH-only status has very little chance of aging well. For a team that will be making deferred payments to Chris Davis for another 12 years, it’s a bit of a surprise Baltimore jumped back in the saddle on a player with a similar bat-first profile. Then again, as Andrew Friedman once said, “If you’re always rational on every free agent, you will finish third on every free agent.” Consider that fifth year the price for being irrational.

And then, there are the Mets. One day after All-Star closer Edwin Díaz signed with the Dodgers, they now watch another longtime organizational stalwart and fan favorite opt to sign elsewhere. Those developments undoubtedly sting—especially considering the Mets were also a massively disappointing team last season—but it’s not as if those two players are irreplaceable. Under Steve Cohen’s ownership, New York has been linked to basically every big-ticket free agent, and the club will continue to be a possible landing spot for Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger and Munetaka Murakami, among others.

Any of those external options could very well end up working out better than Alonso and Diaz would have over the next handful of years. But the fact that two of the Mets’ most productive and popular players of the last half decade decided to leave town certainly adds to the bad vibe that has clung to the organization for the past six months, and cranks up the urgency to do something——to stop the perceived skid from spiraling into further disaster.

Captain Bavuma and head coach Conrad are happy for curators to prepare the pitches as they would like

Firdose Moonda25-Nov-2024It’s a stereotype as common as they come: go to the subcontinent and expect to be spun out, come to South Africa and watch your head (and all your other belongings – but that’s a different conversation). Except this time.South Africa will not prepare green tops for their four must-win Test matches against Sri Lanka and Pakistan this summer.Despite what gut instincts may say about the best way for them to maximise home advantage and even though they are playing Sri Lanka at venues where they lost five years ago, South Africa will leave it to individual ground staff to and hope for fair surfaces for their matches.Related

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“We’re not at liberty to instruct the groundsmen to prepare what we’d like. We just try to play on whatever has been prepared,” Temba Bavuma, South Africa’s captain said in Pretoria, where the team held their preparation camp before traveling to Durban for the first Test. “And there’s not a lot of concern from my side where we are playing Sri Lanka. Obviously Sri Lanka will be confident in those two venues because they were successful but we’re not going to ask for specific conditions”Sri Lanka beat South Africa in Durban and Gqeberha in 2019 but lost the next series in 2020-21, when they were beset by a spate of injuries. But that 2019 series was the first time a subcontinent side had beaten South Africa in a home series, which some say makes the decision to go back to those venues curious. Durban, in particular, has been a difficult place for South Africa in the last 15 years. Since March 2009, South Africa have played 10 Tests at Kingsmead and lost seven, including two each to Sri Lanka (their first Test win in the country came in 2011), Australia and England and one to India. Their last outing was in March 2022, when they beat Bangladesh by 220 runs, at the end of the Covid-19 restrictions, with a side that was depleted by the absence of IPL-bound players, which made up most of the first-choice attack.But Test coach Shukri Conrad is not buying into the talk that the coastal venues are more suited to subcontinent teams and wants to reclaim them as places South Africa consider their own. “You can’t play all your cricket at Centurion and the Wanderers,” he said earlier this month, referring to the Highveld venues which do give pace bowlers the edge. “We’ve got a fan base in Durban. We’ve got a fan base in Gqeberha and we’re looking forward to playing Test matches there.”Like Bavuma, he does not expect the groundstaff to prepare anything other than what is usually expected of them. “We just want good cricketing wickets,” he said. “That’s all I can ask for.”Keshav Maharaj is expected to play an important role in South Africa’s upcoming home Tests•AFP/Getty ImagesSo what might that be?First up, at Kingsmead, Durban’s long-serving groundsman Wilson Ngobese will retire at the end of this year and has been handing over the reins to his successor Wonderboy Khanyile. Along with former Newlands and Wanderers groundsman Evan Flint, a prodigy of Ngobese’s, who has been working in Kwa-Zulu Natal as a consultant, they have prepared the Test pitch together. It should be livelier than it is for domestic matches, where the local team, the Dolphins tend to prefer it slower and lower.”I was in conversation with Evan and it’ll be one of the new wickets and Evan guarantees me there’ll be some good pace,” Conrad said. “Domestically, they prepare it to spin because of the strength of their bowlers so I think the Dolphins go out deliberately preparing spinning wickets.”That is in stark contrast to the messaging of five years ago when, under Ottis Gibson, South Africa’s groundstaff were instructed to prepare green-tops, particularly for a 2017-18 series against India. The Wanderers got it so badly wrong that the pitch was rated poor and they were handed three demerit points, which have since expired. Gibson wanted to maximise the advantage an attack of Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, Morne Morkel, Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi could give South Africa, at the expense of their batters. South Africa’s ability to score big runs diminished to the point that between January 2018 and December 2021, only West Indies (among teams in the World Test Championship) had fewer centurions.The second Test at St George’s Park could see plenty of movement off the seam and perhaps even reverse swing come into play. “If you look at the records domestically, [Warriors allrounder] Beyers Swanepoel, for example, takes a host of wickets there,” Conrad said. Swanepoel has 52 first-class wickets from nine matches at the venue at an average of 14.44. “It can be very favourable for seamers as well.”It is also known to take turn later on, and South Africa back their first-choice left-arm spinner, Keshav Maharaj, to take centre stage. “You want spin later on in the game and why we play arguably one of the best spinners in the world in Keshav in our side,” Conrad said.South Africa have also included spin-bowling allrounder Senuran Muthusamy, who took a career-best 4 for 45 in Bangladesh last month, in the squad but have no room for offspinner Dane Piedt or wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi, which suggests that even if there is turn, they’re not expecting it to be that big.All the discussion over home advantage is pressing because of what is at stake for the hosts. South Africa need to win all four of their remaining matches to guarantee a place in the World Test Championship final. They could still get there with three wins but would be dependent on other results. Either way, their fate lies in their own hands and they don’t plan on putting it in conditions.

Things haven't been easy for Manchester United as of late. The Red Devils went into Sunday's clash with West Ham having lost three of their last four games in all competitions, a run that has seen them fall well behind the pace in the Women's Super League title race and weakened their incredibly strong position in the Champions League, ahead of two very tough final games in the league phase, starting with the hosting of eight-time winners Lyon on Wednesday. The return of Phallon Tullis-Joyce, then, could not have been better timed.

It is no coincidence that in three games without the United States international, since she suffered a fractured eye socket at the start of November, United conceded nine goals. Compare that to the team's first 14 games of the season, prior to her absence, when they conceded just seven times. That's no slight on Safia Middleton-Patel, the young academy product who took her place for those three games and impressed at times, particularly given her inexperience. But to expect her to perform to Tullis-Joyce's level at this stage of her career would've been unfair, especially considering she has played limited minutes with those in the defence in front of her, too.

Now, though, the 29-year-old is back, giving United a much-needed boost ahead of a huge end to 2025. Tullis-Joyce wasn't at her busiest as the Red Devils got a necessary win at home to West Ham on Sunday, against a side second-from-bottom in the WSL standings. But she may be over the next week or so as United bid to sign off for the winter break in a successful manner, with qualification for the Champions League knockout stages a huge part of that.

Getty ImagesWelcome return

While Tullis-Joyce didn't have a lot to do on Sunday, bar picking the ball out of the back of her net after Shekiera Martinez's remarkable overhead kick, her presence did feel impactful. The Hammers registered just 14 shot-creating actions in the game, the lowest by any of United's opponents since a 4-1 win over Everton back in mid-October, and had an expected goals statistic of 0.6, also the lowest United have allowed since victory over the Toffees. 

With Tullis-Joyce back between the sticks, it felt like there was more familiarity and, as such, assuredness in the United defence. Those in front of the goalkeeper did an excellent job of stifling the lively Martinez and limiting West Ham, and the shot-stopper herself did what was necessary when called upon. It wasn't a headline-grabbing return but that also felt important, as the American adapts to wearing a mask as she continues to recover from her injury.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesPromising young prospect

Again, none of that should reflect as criticism of Middleton-Patel, the 21-year-old who deputised for Tullis-Joyce during her three-game absence. It said a lot about the Wales international, in fact, that head coach Marc Skinner chose her over Kayla Rendell, who has the actual No.1 shirt on the United books, made 134 senior appearances during her six years with Southampton and has won England call-ups in recent times.

Middleton-Patel's performance against Paris Saint-Germain, just her second-ever appearance for the Red Devils, was particularly impressive, with her not daunted by the Old Trafford stage of the magnitude of playing in such an important Champions League fixture. Skinner called her "excellent" after that 2-1 win, noting how well she had "acquitted herself and come into the team" under the circumstances.

Getty ImagesLacking familiarity

But it's never easy when a team has to change goalkeepers, especially moving from one with quite a lot of experience to one with much less, and that would become apparent over the course of the next couple of games. Middleton-Patel endured some tough moments in the losses to Manchester City and Wolfsburg, games which will hopefully prove to be valuable learning curves as her career evolves rather than anything else.

United's defence as a unit was guilty of costly errors, too, something unlikely to have been helped by the absence of the reliability and familiarity of Tullis-Joyce. Combine that with the changes already needed at the back due to an injury to central defender Millie Turner, whose time on the sidelines has had a double impact on the spine of the team because it is holding midfielder Dominique Janssen that has filled her spot, and United have not looked like their usually solid selves in recent weeks.

Those struggles have only served to highlight the lack of depth in this squad, caused only by the club's own inactivity in the window, and the fatigue that small squad is feeling harder as it competes in the Champions League proper for the first time.

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Getty Images SportMatch-winner

Tullis-Joyce's return certainly can't resolve the latter issues, with Skinner again making sure to emphasise that he needs signings in the January window after Sunday's win, but she does have the match-winning qualities to bail out defenders when they make mistakes or produce the sort of world-class save that few shot-stoppers can, to earn her side points almost single-handedly in moments.

In the WSL and Champions League proper this term, the expected goals against statistic calculates that Tullis-Joyce should have conceded 11.9 goals, but she has only picked the ball out of the back of her net on seven occasions. That makes for an incredibly impressive positive differential of 4.9 goals prevented across her 11 appearances.

اعترف آشلي كول، أسطورة نادي آرسنال وتشيلسي، أنه كان قاب قوسين أو أدنى من التوقيع لصالح ريال مدريد، موضحًا أن هناك سببًا واحدًا منع إتمام الصفقة.

كول كان قد تألق وبشدة مع آرسنال في مسيرته وحقق معهم لقب الدوري الإنجليزي في مناسبتين، وذلك قبل الرحيل إلى تشيلسي مقابل 7 ملايين يورو.

وتعثرت مفاوضات تجديد عقد كول مع آرسنال، ليوقع الظهير الأيسر مع تشيلسي ويصنع التاريخ مع البلوز.

لكن كول اعترف في تصريحات نقلها ”triballfootball.com”، أن ظروف زواجه حالت دون انتقاله إلى ريال مدريد، موضحًا أن برشلونة رغب في ضمه.

اقرأ أيضًا.. “أصبحنا متحدين”.. رد قاطع من نجم ريال مدريد على شائعات الخلاف مع ألونسو

وقال كول: “شعرت بقليل من عدم الراحة بشأن تجديد عقدي مع آرسنال، لذلك كان هذا هو ما يشغل عقلي وقلبي، كنت أقول لنفسي لقد سلبتموني الأشياء التي أحبها ولم يكن الأمر يستحق ذلك”.

وأضاف: ”مما قيل لي وسمعته كنت سأنتقل إلى ريال مدريد، كنت أجري محادثات مع وكلاء أعمال لأنه في تلك المرحلة كان بإمكاني التوقيع مسبقًا لفريق خارج إنجلترا، لذا كان الخيار هو ريال مدريد وربما برشلونة، لا أعرف مدى عمق هذا الخيار لكن التطورات الشخصية غيرت أولوياتي”.

واختتم كول: “تغيرت الأمور، تزوجت وفي النهاية لم أرد مغادرة البلاد، ثم بعد حوالي عام ونصف، أتذكر أنني جلست في مكتبي مع وكيل أعمالي، ونادى علي قائلاً لن تصدق من هذا، إنه تشيلسي، فقلت حسنًا”.

تحدث أيمن مصطفى، محلل أداء الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي السابق، عن أسباب رحيله عن القلعة الحمراء خلال الأيام الماضية.

وقال أيمن مصطفى في تصريحات عبر قناة “أون سبورت”: “أنا سعيد جدًا بالفترة اللي قضيتها في الأهلي، تجربة كانت مثمرة، والأهم في التجربة أن تترك أثرًا جيدًا”.

وتابع: “الحقيقة أنا في تجربتي مع الأهلي تعلمت أمورًا مهمة كثيرة، الكثير تحدثوا عن شخصية الأهلي، لكن هناك أمر لم يذكر وهي الصلابة النفسية، التي تؤثر على الشخص في تجربته مع الأهلي”.

وواصل: “نتعرض لضغوط رهيبة جدًا، وكم تفاصيل في العمل لم أرها في أي نادٍ، وتستطيع التعامل مع الضغوط طوال الوقت، فالعمل يكون 12 ساعة في اليوم، وممكن تصل لـ14 ساعة في بعض الأحيان حال ضغط المباريات”.

طالع.. الأهلي يعلن سبب استبعاد عبد القادر وشكري من مباراة شبيبة القبائل

وأكمل: “هذا هو السر الذي يجعل الفريق يمتلك الإيمان حتى في أحلك وأصعب الظروف، ممكن تسجل في الدقيقة 90، أو إنك تفوز ببطولات رغم صعوبة الموقف”.

استطرد: “عملت في الأهلي لمدة 7 أشهر، جئت بعد رحيل مارسل كولر، وكنت في فريقي السابق حرس الحدود، وتلقيت مكالمة وأنا متجه للمحاضرة قبل مباراة بيراميدز وقتها، كابتن محمد يوسف اختارني لأنني عملت معه في وقت سابق وبدأت المشوار فورًا، مع عماد النحاس، ثم خوسيه ريبيرو، ثم عماد النحاس مرة أخرى، ثم ييس توروب”.

واسترسل: “هناك عوامل كثيرة في فشل تجربة ريبيرو لكني لأ أريد الدخول في تفاصيل كثيرة، لن أتحدث عن الشق البدني لأن هناك ناس متخصصين أكثر، لكن ممكن نقول أن الفريق أنهى الدوري ثم دخل في كأس العالم للأندية”.

وأضاف: “النتائج في كأس العالم للأندية والحلم الكبير بوصول الأهلي للدور الثاني لم يتحقق بسبب وجود مشاكل أخرى، لأن الرجل كان يحاول تطبيق نظام جديد، والأهلي لم يكن محظوظًا خاصة أمام إنتر ميامي”.

وقال: “من وجهة نظري، الأهلي لا يتحمل عددًا كبيرًا من التجارب التي قد تؤدي في النهاية إلى عدم الوصول للبطولات بالطريقة المعتاد عليها، الأهلي يحتاج إلى مدرب أكثر مباشرة، صحيح أنه كان مدربًا هجوميًا جدًا، لكن ريبيرو كان يعتمد أكثر على المساحات ومحاولة الاختراق من العمق حتى عندما كنا نتحدث معه في تلك الفترة، كنا نؤكد له أن هناك أمورًا معينة في الدوري المصري يمكن أن تساعده على تطوير أسلوبه بشكل أو بآخر، وتمنحه قدرة أكبر على خلق الفرص بشكل مريح وطريقته كانت تحتاج إلى تطوير بسيط لتناسب أسلوب الأهلي”.

وتابع عن الفرق بين ريبيرو وتوروب: “توروب مباشر أكثر على المرمى، ويهتم بتفاصيل خاصة بالتنظيم الدفاعي أثناء عملية الهجوم، لا يمتلك فكرة المجازفة بإلقاء كل الأوراق الهجومية دفعة واحدة، بل يسعى دائمًا إلى تحقيق التوازن وهو دائمًا يتحدث معنا عن أن العقلية الهجومية مهمة جدًا، لكن الحفاظ على الدفاع هو ما يسمح لك بالوصول إلى البطولات”.

وأكمل بشأن بداية الدوري: “الأهلي دائمًا يلعب على المركز الأول، ومع وجود مارسل كولر قبل أن يأتي كابتن عماد النحاس، كان الأهلي متأخرًا بفارق أربع نقاط عن بيراميدز ومع تبقي ست مباريات فقط، ورغم ذلك أنهى الأهلي المسابقة بطلًا للدوري بفارق نقطتين عن بيراميدز”.

واستمر: “وبالتالي، أنت دائمًا تلعب من أجل البطولة مشوارك يكون طويلًا، وهناك أخطاء من الطبيعي أن تحدث، ومن واجبك أن تصلحها، أنت لعبت بنظام مختلف مع ريبيرو، ثم مع كابتن عماد، والآن تلعب بنظام مختلف أيضًا”.

واسترسل: “أشرف بن شرقي مثلًا، حتى آخر مباراة في السوبر كان قد سجل هدفًا وقدم مباريات ممتازة جدًا، وقبلها سجل أمام الاتحاد السكندري الهدف الأول، ويلعب في الجناحين الأيمن والأيسر، وأنا أراه يقدم مستوى رائعًا”.

واستطرد: “تريزيجيه كذلك، في فترة من الفترات، سجل أربعة أهداف في خمس مباريات مع كابتن عماد، منها ركلتي جزاء أمام الزمالك وحرس الحدود، وهدف ممتاز أمام سيراميكا، وهدف أمام إنبي، اللاعب يسجل ويحاول صناعة الفرص”.

وأتم: “ورغم كل ذلك، هناك نقطة مهمة لا ينتبه إليها كثيرون، هؤلاء اللاعبون لم يلعبوا كثيرًا معًا، فمثلًا عدد المباريات التي لعبها جراديشار مع تريزيجيه ليس كبيرًا؛ لأن في البداية كان لديك محمد شريف، ثم جاء جراديشار بعده أي فريق في العالم يحتاج إلى وقت للوصول إلى الانسجام، وهذا يحدث في كل الفرق، وليس الأهلي فقط”.

Danny Rohl is close to being named as the new Rangers boss, and Sky Sports have shared a live update from outside Ibrox after an “11th hour and 59th minute” twist.

Rangers on brink of Rohl announcement after late breakdown in talks

“Let’s start with the huge developments in the last half hour,” said a Sky Sports presenter live on TV on Monday afternoon. “Danny Rohl looks set to be named as the new head coach at Rangers.”

The 36-year-old former Sheffield Wednesday head coach had ruled himself out of the race to become Russell Martin’s successor last week when Kevin Muscat appeared to be front runner.

However, it emerged on Sunday night that no agreement could be reached with Muscat, which threw the Ibrox club into managerial limbo ahead of the Thursday night’s Europa League clash with Brann in Norway.

Sky’s Adam Binnie has now reported live from outside Ibrox, shedding some light on just how close they were to appointing Muscat: “The club continued into advanced talks with Kevin Muscat which fell through at the 11th hour, or the 11th hour and 59th minute.

“After all that falling out, that meant that Rohl was back in contention… now he is the leading candidate and is expected to take over.”

Rohl, who Binnie confirms was third choice after Steven Gerrard and Muscat, led The Owls to a 12th-place league finish in his only full season as a manager before leaving the troubled Yorkshire club in July.

Rangers’ Under-19 boss Stevie Smith was in interim charge for the 2-2 draw with Dundee United at Ibrox on Saturday. Former Gers defender Smith took over first-team training along with B team coach Brian Gilmour, goalkeeping coach Sal Bibbo and head of performance Rhys Owen, on Martin’s departure.

The Ibrox club sit sixth in the William Hill Premiership with nine points from eight fixtures and are 13 points behind leaders Hearts.

Gers fans disgruntled by the failure of Martin, the start to the season where Rangers were also bounced out of the Champions League play-off on a 9-1 aggregate defeat by Belgian side Club Brugge, and latterly the new boss recruitment process, have turned against chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell.

A banner was held up at half-time during the Dundee United game which read: ‘Stewart, Thelwell pack your bags and go before we pack them for you’.