All posts by h716a5.icu

Manchester United enter the New Year with a renewed focus upon their minds.

Gone is Ole Gunnar Solskajer and it will also mark the end of Ed Woodward’s time at Old Trafford but that isn’t the only change afoot in the northwest.

Ralf Rangnick is the interim manager and he now has a hugely important transfer window on the horizon that he needs to get spot on if United are to seal Champions League football again.

On the chalkboard

There are several areas of the Red Devils team that could do with improving but it’s in defence where notable upgrades are required.

Solskjaer brought Raphael Varane to the club in the summer but he’s had an injury-hit spell in English football since penning terms from Real Madrid.

As for Harry Maguire, he continues to be enigmatic and divide opinion. An £80m acquisition, he certainly hasn’t played like the most expensive defender in world football this term.

Attracting vast critics, he cupped his ears to the fans after scoring for England during the last round of international fixtures in 2021.

It’s easy to see why he’s copped stick, too. So far this season, United’s defence has been abysmal and as of October 12th, they had failed to keep a clean sheet in 12 consecutive matches at Old Trafford which happened to be their longest run since February 1964 – a mere 57 years.

A big reason is due to Maguire’s shoddy displays with the skipper averaging a diabolical rating of 6.56 according to WhoScored, ranking him as the 14th best player in the squad. Therefore, he is evidently not captain material.

Rangnick could provide an instant fix to this problem by signing Jules Kounde.

A teammate of Varane at international level, United are in a battle with Chelsea to sign the Frenchman next summer but the club’s interim boss must ensure it’s his side who end up luring him to the Premier League.

Rated at £54m by Transfermarkt, the Red Devils may have to part ways with quite a sizeable sum of money but that shouldn’t deter them. After all, he’d be a superb capture by the United hierarchy.

Maguire and Kounde have won the same number of aerial duels (2.4) per game as each other this term, but the latter beats the Three Lions international for passing accuracy (88.8%) and interceptions a match (0.8). He also gives away fewer fouls an outing than the player he could replace by joining United.

The fact Kounde outperforms Maguire in a number of key defensive attributes, while also improving upon his pass success rate – an area the United defender usually thrives in – is particularly promising.

Described as “sensational” by European football analyst, Marcus Bring, there are plenty of positives to his game.

More praise was offered by Football Espana editor, Alan Feehely, who said of the Sevilla centre-half: “Jules Koundé could have joined Manchester City in 2020 and Chelsea in 2021. He didn’t get either move. Instead of sulking, he put his head down and took his game to new heights. Became a starter for France. Make no mistake; he’s a special person and player. An absolute baller.”

On that evidence, he’d certainly make for a very good signing this winter. Rangnick must bring him to Old Trafford.

AND in other news, Rangnick must seal Man Utd swoop for £81m-rated “weapon” with the “essence of Cruyff”…

The feud between Rafael Benitez and Lucas Digne has been a hot topic of conversation in the football world over the last few weeks, and it seems that the transfer window will confirm whether the Everton manager feels that there is room to repair the fractured relationship with the left-back, or whether he will let him go to another club in the coming days and weeks.

What’s the word?

Former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer has weighed in with his thoughts about rumours of a training ground rift and the future of Digne at Goodison Park, claiming in an interview with GIVEMESPORT that the Frenchman will probably depart for pastures new in the near future.

The 56-year-old declared: “Something has gone on with him and the manager, without a shadow, because he’s been an outstanding performer for Everton. publicly, Benitez has said nothing, apart from the fact that he’s not available. I think he will leave the club because there’s an issue between him and the manager.”

The 28-year-old has been linked with a number of clubs ahead of January, with a possible loan deal to Chelsea looking like one of the most likely scenarios after Ben Chilwell sustained a season-ending injury.

Whilst the Toffees manager has not commented on the rumoured clash between himself and the player, Digne has not featured in the team since the Merseyside derby almost a month ago.

Fans will be fuming

Some Everton fans have been vocal on social media reacting to the speculated fallout between the pair, and the subsequent reports linking the defender away from the club, all during a period of poor performances and form for the Toffees.

One Toffees fan tweeted in reaction to the alleged fallout: “Would much rather boot Rafa out than Digne. Rafa just boots anyone that challenges his awful management, or has an ounce of flair and skill. Digne has shown more commitment to the club over his time with us than Rafa ever will.”

It might not prove a popular decision with some Everton supporters, such as the one quoted above, but a loan deal could be the ideal situation for both Digne and Benitez to cool off their differences, allowing the £110k-p/w gem to come back and have a fresh start in pre-season with the Toffees in the summer.

That certainly seems preferable to the club simply getting rid of him now because of an apparent feud which could be smoothed over and then living to regret the haste with which they showed him the door.

If Palmer’s prediction of a permanent exit for Digne comes to light, that could leave many of the Goodison Park faithful fuming, particularly when he is one of the best tacklers in Benitez’s squad, winning 2.5 per game (second only to Allan with 2.9).

In other news: Signing this transfer target could solve one big issue for Benitez

Ben Wright recorded a career-best 172 and James Allenby scored his first century for Glamorgan as the Welsh county put themselves in a strong position

19-May-2010
Scorecard
Ben Wright recorded a career-best 172 and James Allenby scored his first century for Glamorgan as the Welsh county put themselves in a strong position against Gloucestershire going into the final day at Cardiff. Responding to the visitors’ 417 all out Glamorgan amassed 583 for 9 before declaring – giving them a first-innings lead of 166.And Gloucestershire then finished day three on 12 for 1 with Dean Coskergetting a vital breakthrough bowling Chris Dent with the final ball of theevening session.Glamorgan were indebted to Wright, who scored the second century of his career. He dominated the fourth-wicket partnership of 157 with Michael Powell, who was only able to contribute 37. After Wright went, Jim Allenby and veteran Robert Croft shared a record seventh-wicket stand for Glamorgan against Gloucestershire of 153 in 39 overs.After a 30-minute delay to the third day because of rain Wright built on his fine overnight platform of 77 not out, reaching his second century in 140 balls with 14 fours and a six before overtaking his career-best 108 against Leicestershire in 2007. That was after Glamorgan had resumed the day on 257 for 3 – 160 behind Gloucestershire.But he was not content with just a century as he hit Vikram Banerjee and Gemaal Hussain for sixes into the grandstand racing to 150 with the final ball before lunch – his third 50 coming up in only 49 balls.The Gloucestershire bowlers did not have much to smile about until JamesFranklin bowled Powell with a ball which kept a little low, and Wright was in sight of becoming Glamorgan’s first double-centurion since July 2006 when he edged a lifter from Jon Lewis. His impressive innings came to an end having faced 219 balls with 23 fours and three sixes.After Mark Wallace went for a duck caught at third slip off Anthony Ireland it was left to Allenby and Croft to take Glamorgan to maximum batting points and then take them past Gloucestershire. Croft produced a wonderful cover drive to take Glamorgan into the lead before Allenby secured his sixth 50 in six championship games this season. He reached the landmark from 78 balls, and his fifty included six boundaries.After going to tea at 478 for six, a lead of 61, Croft went to a 104-ball half-century, and after he was out, Allenby reached his first Glamorgan century from 157 balls with eight fours and a six. Allenby faced another 10 balls before he holed out to deep backward square off Ireland, who was the pick of the bowlers with 5 for 114, in the pursuit of quick runs.

Celtic have been dealt a big blow in their bid to bring Callum Styles to Parkhead in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by the Daily Record, who claimed that Barnsley look set to play hardball regarding the sale of the 21-year-old this month, as Poya Asbaghi recently revealed that he is not willing to let any of his first-team regulars leave the club midway through the season.

Speaking about his plans for the January market, the Barnsley boss said: “In the end, we want to make room in the squad and it’s better to let go of players who aren’t playing – not players who are playing. I will not go too deep into specifics on positions but I can say maybe left-back is not our biggest concern.”

The Daily Record went on to suggest that this update will come as a blow to Ange Postecoglou and his Celtic side, as the 56-year-old Bhoys boss is believed to have identified the versatile left-footer as one of his primary targets this month in a bid to solve the troublesome left-back spot in his Hoops side.

Postecoglou will be livid

Considering just how impressive Styles has been for Barnsley this season, in addition to how well suited he seems to Postecoglou’s particular brand of football, the news that the Yorkshire club look set to put up a fight for the 21-year-old this month is sure to have left the Celtic manager livid.

Indeed, over his 22 league outings in the current campaign, the £2.7m-rated man – who has often been deployed in a more advanced position on the left flank this season, as well as in central midfield – has scored one goal, registered one assist and created three big chances for his teammates.

The £3.4k-per-week 21-year-old has also averaged 1.3 interceptions, 2.3 tackles and one key pass and won 4.6 duels per game. These returns have seen the player who Cauley Woodrow dubbed a “massive talent” average a SofaScore match rating of 6.77, ranking him as Barnsley’s eighth-best performer in the Championship.

As such, due to his attacking inclination, positional versatility and extremely high potential, it is clear to see why Postecoglou would be interested in a move for Styles this month.

However, following the latest update concerning the youngster’s future, it would appear as if a move for the Barnsley starlet may be rather tricky to pull off for Celtic this month, something which will undoubtedly come as a big blow to the Hoops manager and his side.

In other news: Postecoglou heading for Celtic disaster with “superb” £1.35m-rated beast as Anthony Joseph confirms bid

Sreesanth, the Kerala fast bowler, has said he might switch teams in the next domestic season

Cricinfo staff09-Jun-2010Sreesanth, the Kerala fast bowler, has said he might switch teams in the next domestic season. He was included in Kerala’s 25-man preliminary squad but not named captain.”Though I have not taken a final decision,I might opt for playing for another state in the coming season,” he told . “Even if I play for some other state, it is because I want to play more cricket so that I could do well and get into team India.”Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) secretary TC Mathew said Sreesanth would need an NOC from the KCA if he wanted to represent another state side. “If Sreesanth has decided to play for another state, then he will have to obtain NOC (no objection certificate) from Kerala Cricket Association,” he said. “Once application is given for NOC, the KCA’s Central council will discuss and take a decision on that.”Sreesanth has been training at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore as he attempts to regain a place in the Indian team after being left out of the squad for the Asia Cup. He said his focus is on making a national comeback. “I am working very hard and I want to play for the country. I am really hoping to make a comeback into team India.”

Kieron Pollard has reiterated his commitment to West Indies despite becoming a Twenty20 cricketer for hire as he travels the world playing the shortest format

Andrew McGlashan08-Jul-2010Kieron Pollard has reiterated his commitment to West Indies despite becoming a Twenty20 cricketer for hire as he travels the world playing the shortest format. However, the allrounder added that drastic changes were needed to the way the game was run in the Caribbean.Pollard drew an angry response from the West Indies Cricket Board after he declined a place on the A-team tour of England in favour of his Friends Provident t20 deal with Somerset, but he believes he was completely within his rights to make that decision because we wasn’t on a retainer contract with the WICB.”I don’t want go into that too much, it’s a fairly unique situation I found myself in,” he told Cricinfo. “Things haven’t gone smoothly in West Indies in recent times and a lot of things need to be fixed. But it was about me being a professional sportsman and I will always be committed to the West Indies team whenever I am called up.”It’s my dream to play Test cricket and that will never change,” he added. “At the moment it is Twenty20 which has presented itself as my opportunity, but if the chance comes to put the whites on that will be a dream. I’m still young and would love to play for West Indies in all formats.”Pollard has been a great success at Somerset with 248 runs at a strike-rate of 177.14 and has claimed 20 wickets at 12.45, but he added the results of his county stint have no bearing on how he feels about shunning West Indies A. “I would have stood by my decision even if I hadn’t performed well for Somerset. At the end of the day the decision has been made and I will stick by it.”He has certainly left a mark around the county scene. On his debut against Middlesex, at Lord’s, he hit 89 off 45 balls which included a mighty six onto the roof of the pavilion. “It was big,” he said. “I don’t know how many metres, but it was a great start.”Pollard has taken his Twenty20 skills around the world over the last year. He was an overseas player for South Australia, has an IPL contract with Mumbai Indians and now can also add Somerset to that list. In a few weeks the West Indian domestic Twenty20 begins and, depending on his county commitments, Pollard is due to appear for Trinidad and Tobago.”It’s just the way it has happened for me,” he said. “I’m not contracted by West Indies and the Twenty20 format is something that suits my game. I don’t know how many more will follow, but some players might think of it as an option.”Trinidad and Tobago are the leading Twenty20 side in the region and will be early favourites to reach the Champions League which will be staged during September in South Africa. That would leave Pollard having to chose between his IPL team and his home team having already told South Australia he won’t play for them.”I’m looking forward to playing for Trinidad and qualifying for the Champions League,” he said, “and if that situation arises then I’ll make the decision who to play for. I’m going to give my all for Trinidad and Tobago.”Kieron Pollard is playing for Somerset in the Friends Provident t20. For more information on Friends Provident’s pensions, protections and investment products visit www.friendsprovident.com

Everton have now made three signings during the first two weeks of the January transfer window, securing deals for Nathan Patterson, Vitaliy Mykolenko and Anwar El Ghazi, but will the club bring in any further reinforcements in the remainder of the month?

What’s the word?

Journalist Alan Myers has taken to his Twitter replies to reveal his thoughts on the possibility of more signings at Goodison Park during January after an Everton fan asked him whether they will see more players coming into the club after the confirmation of El Ghazi’s loan move on Thursday evening.

Myers simply responded: “Don’t know but would guess one or two”

With a right-back, a left-back and a winger secured, Rafael Benitez still has plenty of time to add more players in key positions where the Toffees have been struggling over the first half of the season.

Fans will be buzzing

Everton fans have had to endure an abysmal first half of the season, with the Merseyside club only taking five wins from 18 games so far, and many fans have made no secret of their disgruntlement at what they have experienced so far under Benitez.

The owner Farhad Moshiri and his reckless spending habits have been causing consternation at the club too, which has left them in an delicate situation regarding Financial Fair Play that’s set to hinder their ability to spend money without selling players first.

With protests having been planned, some supporters booing the manager and players at Goodison Park, as well as some leaving after conceding early in the first half of games, many Toffees fans have made it clear that they’re not happy and want change at the club.

Therefore. adding new players with fresh legs and fresh perspective could help to put the club in good stead to get results, climb the table and win over an unhappy fan base.

Benitez will be hoping that his new signings can showcase some of the improvements they can make in their clash with Norwich City at Carrow Road on Saturday, with El Ghazi available to start and Patterson and Mykolenko possibly both being settled in, having each had the best part of two weeks as Everton players.

If they can make an early impact, Myers’ suggestion that the inbound January business may not be done yet could have the Goodison Park faithful buzzing with excitement.

In other news: Benitez is eyeing this ex-Premier League beast as a possible signing

Glasgow Rangers have been handed a huge boost in their bid to secure a deal to bring Andreas Skov Olsen to Ibrox in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (via Daily Record), who claimed that the 22-year-old winger has informed Bologna that he wants to leave the club this winter amid interest from both Rangers and Club Brugge.

The report added that Giovanni van Bronckhorst is keen to sign a right-sided forward this month, with the Denmark international believed to be high on the 46-year-old’s list of targets.

Van Bronckhorst will be buzzing

Since joining Bologna in a £5.4m deal back in 2019, Skov Olsen has not enjoyed the best form of his career, but the 22-year-old nevertheless proved during his time with Nordsjaelland that he would make a fantastic addition to Gers’ current options out wide.

Indeed, over his £5.85m-rated forward scored a whopping 22 goals and provided his teammates with five assists, contributing to a goal with every 114 minutes of league football played.

The £28k-per-week wizard also scored one goal over two appearances in the Sydbank Pokalen during that campaign, along with bagging three goals one assist in his six Europa League qualifying fixtures, taking his season’s haul to 26 goals and six assists in 44 appearances.

As such, should Van Bronckhorst be able to help Skov Olsen rediscover such form following his potential switch to Rangers, the 22-year-old could well prove to be something of a “groundbreaking” transfer for the Light Blues, as claimed by journalist Josh Bunting.

It’s a prospective move which would undoubtedly leave the 46-year-old Gers boss buzzing, particularly if the club can seal the Danish winger’s signing for as little as £5m, as has been widely reported. Their cause may well be helped considerably by the player’s reported desire to leave Serie A.

In other news: Van Bronckhorst drops worrying injury update which will have Rangers fans fuming

Australia have never been whitewashed 5-0 in any format, but Shane Watson insists there have been no crisis meetings as the prospect of being held winless by England looms.

Brydon Coverdale29-Jun-2010Australia have never been whitewashed 5-0 in any format, but Shane Watson insists there have been no crisis meetings as the prospect of being held winless by England looms. However, he does believe the visitors have been caught underprepared after taking a month off following their return home from the ICC World Twenty20.England took the series with their victory at Old Trafford and at The Oval on Wednesday they could bring the scoreline to 4-0, tantalisingly close to a clean sweep with one match to play at Lord’s. Adding to the psychological challenge for the Australians is the return to The Oval, where last year’s Ashes defeat was decided, but Watson said the captain Ricky Ponting had kept a cool head over the past few days.”It hasn’t been fire and brimstone,” Watson said of Ponting’s approach. “We’ve just talked about the things we can continue to develop and get exactly where we want to. We know as a group we’ve been slightly below par.”There’s no need to have big crisis meetings and that sort of thing. We are a continually developing group and we have had a bit of time off. The majority of us made the most of it, because we haven’t had three weeks off for quite a while. We’ve made the most of our time off but we’ve been caught a little bit short here, I think.”The key for Australia to regain some pride in the remaining two games is an improvement in their batting. Their totals have steadily dropped away as the series has progressed – 267 in Southampton, 239 in Cardiff and 212 at Old Trafford – and it has left their undermanned attack repeatedly fighting losing battles.Watson has been comfortably Australia’s best batsman, with two half-centuries and 150 runs, leaving him second only to Eoin Morgan in the series tally. However, he has struggled to push on after reaching fifty when a big hundred could set up an Australian win, and he said switching back to the 50-over version after the World Twenty20 had been a challenge.”I wouldn’t think it’s the pressure being built up, because so far I feel I’ve been able to release that pressure pretty well throughout an innings,” Watson said. “It’s more a concentration thing, to be able to make sure I give myself a little bit more time.”There is an adjustment going from Twenty20 cricket to one-day cricket, so I’ve got to continue to remind myself there’s a lot more time in the game. On the opposite side of that, Twenty20 is a thing where you keep going no matter what.”However, the England squad has been more adept at changing formats, having beaten Australia in the World Twenty20 final. It has been a stark turnaround from last year, when Australia thrashed England 6-1 in the ODI series that followed the Ashes and then knocked them out in the Champions Trophy semi-final, but Watson said the 3-0 scoreline was not a great shock to the Australians.”I’m not surprised, no,” Watson said. “I’ve seen it from afar and also from the Twenty20 World Cup, they’ve continued to improve as a group and got some guys into the team who are making a big difference. Kevin Pietersen was sorely missed for them during that one-day series we played here and during the Champions Trophy.”He adds a world-class batsman at the top of the order. That’s definitely something that has made a big difference. We knew we were going to be hit very hard by the English, because they’re continuing to develop as a very good international team in all forms of the game.”The Australians are likely to stick with their scratchy batting unit, with no room for Shaun Marsh to squeeze into the side. Josh Hazlewood might come into calculations if The Oval pitch provides some bounce, while all eyes will be on Shaun Tait to see how he backs up following his strong return to ODI cricket.

Leeds United have been struck a blow in their attempts to sign Brenden Aaronson this month…

What’s the word?

The Yorkshire outfit have already seen a £15m bid rejected for the RB Salzburg maestro and ahead of deadline day, The Athletic’s Phil Hay has claimed that a second bid is likely to be rebutted.

And now Eurosport transfer insider Dean Jones has delivered an alarming claim to GIVEMESPORT.

“Leeds are definitely struggling with this Brenden Aaronson deal as I understand it for this window,” he said. “They don’t have fortunes to throw around at the moment.”

The 21-year-old is also said to be a player that Marcelo Bielsa “really wants” to sign before January 31st but with the Austrian champions still in the Champions League, they are unlikely to offload a star player before the summer.

Worrying news

It’s been four years since the Yorkshire outfit signed a new midfielder, that being Adam Forshaw from Middlesbrough back in January 2018.

Over the last few transfer windows, they have indeed tried to bolster the area but to no avail.

Michael Cuisance came close back in the summer of 2020 until his proposed loan move from Bayern Munich fell through due to complications with his medical, whilst Conor Gallagher rejected a chance to join the club in favour of a stint at Crystal Palace instead.

[snack-amp-story url = “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-lufc-transfer-rumours-gossip-bielsa-orta-radrizzani-elland-road-updates” title=”Read the latest Leeds news, transfer updates and much, much more!”]

Since the summer, the need to find midfield reinforcements has increased substantially as Bielsa is currently missing his star man Kalvin Phillips due to injury. He isn’t expected to be back until March at the earliest and then he has to get back up to speed with match fitness and Bielsa’s intense training regime.

Aaronson certainly fits the bill as a typical Bielsa signing – bundles of energy, high work rate and plenty of technical ability.

Earning comparisons to American legend Clint Dempsey, the young USMNT international has provided ten goals and 12 assists across 51 appearances for Salzburg.

The midfielder, dubbed “highly talented”, would be a much needed and astute addition to Leeds’ playing squad this month but with time running out and seemingly a lack of finances, it seems as if Bielsa is going to be dealt a gutting blow.

He will be absolutely furious if the club cannot improve the team, especially after their defeat to Newcastle United this weekend.

AND in other news, Fewer touches than Meslier: “Headless” Leeds disaster who had 4 passes betrayed Bielsa vs Newcastle…