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Aston Villa head into the clash against West Ham United today full of confidence following their European heroics.

A 4-0 win over Ajax in midweek secured a quarter-final place for the Midlands side and Unai Emery will be desperate to lead his team to continental glory.

With the international break looming, taking all three points against the Irons will be his priority, although he will have to do it without his influential captain – John McGinn.

Who could replace the suspended John McGinn

During the 4-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, McGinn was shown a straight red card for a tackle he made on Destiny Udogie, and it was reckless, to say the least.

The sending off means the Scot will not only miss the clash against West Ham, but also ties against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City, leaving Emery short in the heart of the midfield.

The Spaniard will need to rejig his team slightly heading into the Premier League clash this afternoon, and it could see Youri Tielemans deployed in his favoured central midfield berth.

Youri Tielemans’ stats this season for Aston Villa

Since arriving at Villa Park last summer, Tielemans has been forced to play in a wide range of positions.

Indeed, the £150k-per-week dynamo has been deployed as an attacking midfielder, left-winger and even as a centre-forward on four occasions this season.

The Belgian has scored twice and grabbed five assists across all competitions for Villa, but today could see him return to a central role in place of McGinn.

Goals

1

Assists

4

Key passes per game

0.5

Big chances created

3

Successful dribbles per game

0.4

The 26-year-old was hailed as “incredible” by talent scout Jacek Kulig in 2019 and while he has yet to hit peak form in the Midlands, there is no doubting his quality.

Last season, Tielemans was in fine form for the Foxes despite their relegation. He primarily played in the heart of the midfield and, when compared to his peers, he ranked second for big chances created (ten), fifth for key passes per game (one) and fourth for successful dribbles per game (0.8) in the Championship.

Chalkboard

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

These statistics prove how effective he can be from a deeper role and this could work wonders against West Ham, especially with Douglas Luiz showing a penchant for getting forward as much as possible this term.

Tielemans may not be a long-term replacement for McGinn in this role, but for the next three league matches, the midfielder could fill in fairly well.

A win against the Hammers is all that matters this afternoon as Villa continue their chase for a Champions League spot for the 2024/25 campaign.

Losing McGinn is undoubtedly a massive blow for Emery, but having built a squad that is capable of challenging on numerous fronts, it is clear he has options who can fill in the void left by the Scot.

The Belgian gem is the one who will make the cut today and if he delivers a solid display in London, he could cement his place alongside Luiz for the following two matches after the international break.

Nielsen makes 79 and Ahmed conjures 9 runs in closing stages to steal the game

Alex Malcolm24-Oct-2019A sublime 79 from South Australia youngster Harry Nielsen and some last-over heroics from Fawad Ahmed allowed the Prime Minister’s XI to squeeze home by one wicket with a ball to spare against a rusty Sri Lankan side in the T20 tour match in Canberra.Kasun Rajitha looked as though he had stolen the game when he dismissed Nielsen off the second ball of the final over with nine still needed for victory. Nielsen had batted magnificently to hold the chase of 132 together while his team-mates collapsed against a very skilful Sri Lankan attack. Nielsen was Rajitha’s third wicket and it left Ahmed and young ACT player Djali Bloomfield to score nine runs off the final five balls. Ahmed pinched a two through cover before Rajitha missed with an attempted yorker and Ahmed swiped it over midwicket for four. He scrounged two more straight of long-on to tie the scores only for Rajitha to deliver a wide to hand the game back to the Prime Minister’s XI.The home side had done their best to lose it after an impressive bowling display from the Sri Lankans. Pace and late swing from Rajitha and Nuwan Pradeep reduced the home side to 3 for 26 inside the first five overs. Chris Lynn’s lack of recent cricket was exposed as he was clean bowled by a full outswinger from Rajitha that knocked out leg stump. Lynn showed all three stumps and closed the bat face trying to whip to leg.Rajitha’s extra pace and late swing also undid Jason Sangha. He was caught superbly at slip by Kusal Mendis stretching high above his head after Sangha flashed hard on the drive.Lakshan Sandakan then bowled beautifully to rip through the middle order taking 3 for 21 from four overs. He was helped by some outstanding wicketkeeping from Niroshan Dickwella. He held the outside edge of Dan Christian from a Sandakan slider and produced two excellent stumpings to remove Mackenzie Harvey and Chris Green.But Nielsen stood firm. He had some luck, dropped in the deep by Bhanuka Rajapaksa off Sandakan on 27, but he showed tremendous skill and composure striking nine fours and a six in his 50-ball 79. The highlight was back-to-back boundaries off Danushka Gunathilaka. He skipped down the track to loft inside out over long-off for six before reverse sweeping the next ball past short third man for four.Earlier, the Sri Lankans were disappointing with the bat in their first match since sweeping the T20 series in Pakistan. They faced 52 dot balls in their 20 overs against a Prime Minister’s XI attack that only had three internationals.Gunathilaka felt he was unfortunate to be dismissed in the second over given out caught behind to Bloomfield. He even asked the umpire if there was DRS available before walking off. Mendis really struggled before holing out to deep square off Christian’s first ball.Only Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Oshada Fernando found any fluency, continuing their fine form from the tour of Pakistan. They struck five boundaries and four sixes between them but neither were able to capitalise on their starts. Rajapaksa was undone by a clever piece of bowling from Ahmed. He had late cut the previous ball for four and his eyes lit up again when he saw a similar length, but it was slid through quicker and straighter to knock out middle stump.Fernando looked in ominous touch, producing classical on drives and reverse sweeps during his 38, but was deceived by a Christian slower ball.Co-captains Christian and Peter Siddle were so confident the Sri Lankan tail would not wag they bowled spin in two of the last three overs of the innings. The home side also had the Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison run out drinks at the fall of a wicket.

Savinho's transfer to Manchester City from Troyes has come under scrutiny following completion of the big-money deal.

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Man City's Savinho deal questionedBrazilian joined from Troyes without playing a gameMoved between several CFG clubsWHAT HAPPENED?

Collin Millar of suggested on the practice by which City were able to sign Savinho from a sister club he had never played for, having been on loan at another sister club, could be considered problematic within elite football. All three clubs are part of the City Football Group.

AdvertisementTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Savinho was a €12.5 million (£10.5m/$13.6m) record signing for Troyes in 2022. But rather than help the Ligue 1 club climb the table in France, he went straight out on loan to PSV Eindhoven. In his absence, Troyes were relegated in 2022-23. The Brazilian then joined Girona on loan for 2023-24, contributing 19 goals and assists to remarkably get them into the Champions League. Meanwhile, Troyes suffered back-to-back relegations. Now, he has been the subject of a £33.7m ($43.5m) transfer to CFG flagship club Manchester City.

DID YOU KNOW?

The City Football Group is the most prominent example of a multi-club model in the world. It was founded in 2013 and now has 11 members across four continents, as well as a handful of other "partner clubs" in which the CFG does not hold direct stakes. Savinho is not the first time a player has moved between CFG clubs without playing for the side he joins. Aaron Mooy signed for Manchester City from Melbourne City in 2016 but was immediately loaned out and then sold on the following year. Mix Diskerud was also on the books at Manchester City for three years after joining from New York City.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR MAN CITY?

Manchester City go into 2024-25 looking to extend their already unprecedented dominance of English football by winning a fifth consecutive Premier League title. But with Pep Guardiola out of contract next summer and a reported target for the England national team, the end of a a glorious chapter could be closer than many people might previously have thought.

Smith’s availability beyond May is not known but will be established by CSA in future

Firdose Moonda11-Dec-2019Graeme Smith has been announced as South Africa’s first director of cricket, albeit in a temporary role, after several months of negotiation. Smith has signed on for three months and will begin work immediately, with two weeks to go before South Africa play England in a four-Test series at home, starting on Boxing Day, followed by three ODIs and as many T20Is. The position was created in the aftermath of South Africa’s underwhelming 2019 World Cup campaign, and involves overseeing all cricket played under Cricket South Africa’s administration.The former captain could not take on the role for longer at this stage, because of his commitment to commentating in the IPL in 2020, a tournament which runs from March 23 to May 12. Smith’s availability beyond May is not known but will be established by CSA in future.The time frame means that Smith will only be able to work on the men’s national team for the England series and the limited-overs matches against Australia which conclude on March 7, and not take on all the responsibilities intended for the director of cricket. The position was intended to include the women’s, age-group and academy teams and to create an national strategy. However, given the limitations on Smith’s time, he will not be involved in the Under-19 World Cup (which starts in January 2020) or the Women’s T20 World Cup (which will be played in February-March 2020). Instead, Smith’s most urgent task will be to appoint a national selection panel and coaching staff for the men’s national side as they prepare to take on England.Speaking of his new role, Smith said: “I’ve publicly stated a number of times that I would love to assist CSA in this difficult time, particularly in developing this new role of director of cricket. I’m still as passionate about South African cricket as I ever was, and I’m looking forward to getting stuck into the role. There is a lot of work to be done in the next few weeks and months and my objective will always be to make a positive impact during my tenure.”ALSO READ: 2019 South African cricket’s annus horribilisSmith was initially approached for the job on August 28, at a meeting mediated by former United Cricket Board (now CSA) managing director Ali Bacher and involving suspended CEO Thabang Moroe. On November 9, ESPNcricinfo revealed that Smith had been interviewed alongside suspended interim director of cricket Corrie van Zyl and former national selector Hussein Manack.Five days later, Smith posted on social media confirming that he had withdrawn his interest in the role and cited lack of confidence in CSA’s administration as his main reason.Since then, CSA has been through turbulent times which have resulted in the CEO being suspended over allegations of misconduct. However, president Chris Nenzani continued discussions with Smith over the role. Acting CEO Jacques Faul finalised the deal with Smith.Faul said of Smith’s appointement: “I am delighted that Graeme has agreed to assist Cricket South Africa up until the IPL next year. Obviously, Graeme has had his concerns during the course of the last few months, but I am pleased to say that we have overcome those concerns and I look forward to working with him to urgently address pressing cricketing matters in particular.”Graeme is … a natural leader and his knowledge of the game is second to none. To have him on board to work with the professional cricket arm of CSA, as well as the cricketing pipeline, which is so vital for our game, is a massive shot in the arm for CSA during this period.”With Smith set to appoint the national coaching staff, it remains to be seen if Enoch Nkwe stays on as team director – he was appointed in the role in an interim capacity in August.

Tottenham Hotspur have enjoyed plenty of top talents over the years, but it's not been enough to glean silverware for quite some time, with the wait for a major honour stretching 16 interminable years.

Since triumphing against Chelsea in the 2008 League Cup final, Tottenham have gone through eight permanent managers, qualified for six Champions League campaigns and reached four cup competition finals, but alas…

Still, Spurs have had some scintillating players on the books and are at the beginning of what looks like an exciting resurgence under Ange Postecoglou, who has picked the club up after a dreadful 2022/23 campaign and charted a course for success in the Premier League, battling for top four.

Postecoglou boasts a team of myriad qualities, but we wondered what the perfect Tottenham player might actually look like, harnessing the finest attributes of the finest players of the 21st Century.

Interestingly, this superhuman Spurs sensation would not actually call upon skills from phenoms such as Dele Alli or current club captain Heung-min Son.

Here they are…

1 Brain: Mousa Dembele

Spurs have had some brainy boys in their ranks over the years, and there are a couple lower down this list that would be in with a shout for the most erudite Lilywhites over the years, but Mousa Dembele might just be the cream of the crop in this regard.

Described as a "genius" by Mauricio Pochettino, Dembele read the game like a scholar perusing a library, with his distribution, marking, pressing, counter-pressing, vision, command, understanding, spatial awareness… need I go on? Maybe not, the picture's clear.

The former Belgium international might not have been the most goal-efficient midfielder in the Premier League but he was the engine to charge a Tottenham team under Pochettino's wing that boasted flair, firepower and steel, but none wove the threads of the team together and held it in unity like Dembele. The very embodiment of the all-encompassing, all-seeing midfield machine.

2 Head: Michael Dawson

Something of a stalwart, Michael Dawson was an absolute rock for Tottenham throughout the 2010/11 season, handed opportunities following injuries to players such as Jonathan Woodgate and Ledley King, amassing 324 fixtures before joining Hull City in 2014.

Since WhoScored started recording statistics in 2009/10, Dawson won an average of 3.5 aerial duels per game throughout the duration of his professional career – for reference, Cristian Romero averages 2.5 per fixture throughout his career.

3 Pace: Kyle Walker

Last season, Kyle Walker clocked up the fastest speed in the Premier League at 37.31km/h, despite spending the lion's share of the campaign as a 32-year-old.

The Manchester City right-back departed Spurs back in 2017, joining Pep Guardiola's side in a world-record (for a defender) £53m deal.

He might have left the London club way back when but he chalked up 229 appearances for the Lilywhites and has some of the most blistering pace the Premier League has seen.

4 Vision: Luka Modric

Luka Modric could probably stake a claim for a number of facets to sculpt the finest footballer in the land, such is the complete brilliance of his skill set.

The 2018 Ballon d'Or winner is one of the finest midfielders of his generation and while he's now 38 years old, remains an important member of a hungry Real Madrid team.

He joined Los Blancos from Tottenham for £30m way back in 2012, but not before cementing himself as one of the finest passers in the Premier League, with his technical quality leading iconic Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson to claim that he "could play in any team."

5 Strength: Sandro

When Tottenham plucked Sandro away from his Brazilian homeland back in 2010, manager Harry Redknapp described him as a "strong and aggressive" player, and while he didn't live up to the hype – largely due to an unfortunate anterior cruciate ligament rupture when he was 23 – this was certainly an apt remark.

Lean, mean and a scythe-kicking martial artist, Sandro was a tough nut and you wouldn't mess with him when he was in his groove.

6 Right foot: Harry Kane

Obviously, it's Harry Kane for this one. The Three Lions captain is one of the best centre-forwards that England has ever seen, and he left Tottenham as the club's record scorer with 280 strikes from 435 appearances.

Goals

213

Goals per game

0.67

Goals with right foot

130

Goals with left foot

41

Headed goals

40

Penalties scored

33

Free-kicks scored

2

After a career of service down at N17, the 30-year-old completed an initial £82m transfer to the German giants following Spurs' dismal 2022/23 campaign, where he scored 30 Premier League goals.

He's a brilliant goalscorer, but he's an even better footballer.

7 Left foot: Gareth Bale

The perfect player to complete the perfect Tottenham footballer. Gareth Bale started his Lilywhites journey as a left-back after signing from Southampton as an 18-year-old in 2007, joining for a £7m fee, but he would go on to cement a legacy as one of the game's greatest ballers of modern times.

Deserved? Absolutely. And while Bale's got pace for days and underrated power to rival most strongmen in the Premier League, it's his left foot that has fired him into an iconic position, scoring from right wing during 2012/13 and thus earning a world record £85m transfer to Real Madrid.

Gary Neville said that that goal against Liverpool in the Champions League final "may be the best goal I've ever seen", and it really was that good.

Despite enjoying the entirety of his silver-laden success after leaving Tottenham, the now-retired Welshman is one of the greatest to pull on that white shirt.

The Catalans' homegrown starlets shone in New Jersey, but Carlo Ancelotti will need his stars at their best when the season kicks-off

For all their issues, both on and off the field, Barcelona can always rely on their youth products. Real Madrid may have the most talented squad in world football, but they have had to spend big to put it together. Barca, by contrast, head into the new campaign with a team that is reliant on academy graduates who are only getting better.

On Saturday, the two great rivals of Spanish football met in New Jersey, and it was Hansi Flick's side who ran out 2-1 winners in this pre-season Clasico, led by homegrown striker Pau Victor.

This wasn’t vintage Barcelona in tiki-taka pomp. Rather, Flick’s side pieced together a composed performance, attacking at the right times while taking their chances as they came and doing enough defensively to keep Madrid’s stars at bay.

Barca came closest early on as Thibaut Courtois made a smart stop to keep out Pau. The forward made no mistake shortly before half-time, however, as he corralled Robert Lewandowski's knockdown and headed into an empty net. The 22-year-old then added a second after the break, as his tidy tap-in rounded off a fluid counter-attack.

Madrid always carried a threat, though, and they got their deserved goal with 10 minutes remaining as their own academy graduate Nico Paz dove acrobatically to nod home at the far post, adding jeopardy to a game that badly needed it.

Despite that, Barca were comfortable in the end, seeing out some late pressure – brought about by the introduction of Vinicius Jr – to seal a win. Results don’t matter here, but a new version of Barca seems to be developing under Flick, and it might be a lot of fun to watch.

GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from MetLife Stadium…

GettyWINNER: La Masia

Barca may have somewhat recovered financially from their lever-pulling nadir of 2022, but they’re still a broken institution that is badly short of the cash needed to inject quality into the squad. It’s a good thing, then, that they still have the world’s best footballing academy.

Pau Victor was the headline-grabber here, but he was just one of six La Masia products who started on Saturday, with only Alejandro Balde what you would call a first-team regular. The youngsters held their own against one of the best sides in world football, and when you factor in the roles Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, Fermin Lopez, Gavi and Lamine Yamal will play for Flick this season, and there is likely to be a massive La Masia flavour to this Barca side in 2024-25.

AdvertisementWINNER: Pau Victor

Unlike many of the academy talents who have been promoted to the Barca first team in recent years, Pau Victor has had to wait until his early 20s before finally getting a chance to impress. The forward, who can play anywhere across the attacking line, will turn 23 in November, and perhaps should be looking to move on to further his career.

However, after scoring 20 goals for Barca Atletic in the Spanish third division last season, Pau was handed a five-year, first-team contract in July, and it has been reported that he has already usurped Brazilian teenager Vitor Roque in the pecking order behind Robert Lewandowski.

Having already scored against Manchester City during the Blaugrana's tour of the United States, Pau only furthered his case against Madrid. He was the best player on the pitch for long stretches, orchestrating from a No.10 role, and grabbed a much-deserved opening goal before half-time. He then bagged a second after the break, suggesting he is ready to make the step up in 2024-25.

Getty ImagesLOSER: Endrick

Endrick has endured a rough few months. He failed to impress for Brazil at Copa America, and didn't get off to a flying start for Madrid on his debut against AC Milan on Wednesday.

Against Barca, he endured similar struggles. The Brazilian managed 25 touches, with just one inside the opposition box. He didn't complete any of his three attempted dribbles and spent a lot of time making fruitless runs behind a rugged Barca defence.

Credit must go to Ancelotti for giving the youngster a chance to impress, but it might be better to shield him from the spotlight once the competitive games begin.

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GettyWINNER: Vinicius Jr

Talk about impact! There’s something visceral about Vinicius playing football; when he receives a pass, a stadium rises to its feet, the noise level increases and the anticipation grows. It was that exact energy that the Brazilian fed off in his 20 minutes on the pitch.

This wasn’t much of a game when he entered. Barca may not have had control, but Madrid didn’t look like doing much with the ball. Vini changed that. In a blur of legs and a flurry of step-overs, the winger stretched play, terrorised his opposite number, and brought the fixture to life.

He may not have impacted the result, but Vini looked sharp from the second he touched the ball. Full-backs beware…

‘Rahul really brings in a good balance if he can keep and bat that well,’ the captain says

Shashank Kishore in Bengaluru20-Jan-2020The “Dhoni, Dhoni” chants reverberated around the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday. No, the former India captain wasn’t around; this was the crowd showing its displeasure towards KL Rahul for a missed stumping to reprieve Steven Smith. Without the benefit of replays, it would have been hard to tell that the ball had ricocheted off Smith’s pads to evade Rahul.Virat Kohli didn’t like what he heard and prompted the crowd to go “KL, KL” as he was shown on the big screen. Soon enough, the crowd changed their chants to “Rahul, Rahul”. This wasn’t the most significant moment of the game, of course, but it told you how much the India captain values Rahul’s presence and he compared the “sacrifice” with the one the other Rahul – Dravid – had made at the 2003 World Cup for the team’s balance.”If you look at the 2003 World Cup where Rahul started keeping, the balance became different because you could play an extra batter and guys at the top could really play positive cricket,” Kohli said at the post-match briefing after India had bounced back to win the three-match series 2-1 against Australia.ALSO READ: Has KL Rahul solved India’s middle-order muddle?Even though Kohli finished as the Player of the Series, Rahul played a massive hand, too: from doubling up as a wicketkeeper to marshalling the lower order to opening the batting – performing every role with an air of nonchalance while providing the much-required balance the team was after. “So, look, he is very open to playing anywhere because he is a proper batsman who can do you good in any format and at any position in the game,” Kohli said on Rahul performing multiple roles.Rishabh Pant’s concussion in the Mumbai ODI might have prompted India to experiment with Rahul as the wicketkeeper for a game or two, but Kohli said the team management was keen to extend that to the upcoming New Zealand series, too. Kohli was emphatic in his view that Rahul deserved a longer run with the gloves before he was judged, and having endured his fair share of being moved up and down in the batting order, and being in and out of the team, it was only fair he be given the extra opportunities in his new role. At the same time, Kohli didn’t want to be drawn into commenting on whether that would mean Pant, Sanju Samson and possibly Dhoni fall back in the pecking order.”That was a spicy question,” Kohli said jokingly, when asked about the wicketkeeping race. “Rahul really brings in a good balance if he can keep and bat that well in that position (No. 5). He has come into the slot and he has done well so we will have to persist with that a little bit and see where that takes us and not necessarily be confused about the other options we have.”KL Rahul shows his quickness behind the stumps•BCCIThe one significant advantage India get from playing Rahul as wicketkeeper is they can field an additional batsman in Manish Pandey, who is one of the best fielders in the squad as he showed in Rajkot, taking a screamer to dismiss David Warner. “So I think lack of clarity in terms of positions has really hurt us in the past. Now that we understand that this feels right, we will go ahead with that for a while and figure out if this is the right thing to do or not,” Kohli said. “You can chop and change immediately and create confusion among the group. I don’t see any reason why we should change this balance. It has done well for the team and we will continue with the same for a while.”Rahul kept his side of the bargain by scoring fluently in three outings, including a match-winning 80 off 52 balls in India’s must-win game in Rajkot, notwithstanding his yo-yoing batting position. In Mumbai, he batted at No. 3, was pushed to No. 5 in Rajkot and finally opened the batting in Shikhar Dhawan’s absence in Bengaluru. In Rajkot, he was mostly tidy behind the stumps and even quipped, “I hope I’ve kept our bowlers happy.” His tall frame hasn’t been an obvious hindrance yet to his wicketkeeping, but it is one thing keeping as a back-up, and another to do it regularly. What does help Rahul is strong fundamentals that helped him become a state regular as a wicketkeeper in age-group cricket, before he made batting his primary responsibility.In the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Rahul’s wicketkeeping skills were much lauded, especially under pressure in a tense final, in which he calmly gathered a flat throw from the deep in the final over to effect a crucial run-out that proved to be the turning point. Having also kept regularly in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the 50-over competition, prior to that, while also opening the batting, Rahul has shown he has what it takes, and Kohli is happy to back him for the moment.”He won’t go slam bang from ball one but he can do what he did in Rajkot just by playing good cricketing shots,” Kohli said of Rahul’s batting. “So I think solid game plan and understanding of his game is helping. He has reflected on what he needs to do in the last five-six months and he has come a long way. These are good signs for us. It gives a boost to the team because he keeps as well. It definitely allows us to play an extra batsman, which strengthens our batting massively. That is a very important factor as far as the team balance is concerned.”

It's been an interesting few days for Arsenal. Despite surrendering top spot in the Premier League to Liverpool, there is a renewed belief that they can go all the way after taking a point away from the Etihad on Sunday afternoon.

Mikel Arteta's side didn't put in the most entertaining of performances, but they made up for what they lacked in attack with their steely and dogged defence.

That said, while a point is a brilliant result for the North Londoners, there were a few chances for them to take the lead, and while he wasn't terrible, Gabriel Jesus failed to make the most of his chances, which could harm his long-term prospects at the club, especially in the wake of recent transfer reports.

Latest Arsenal transfer news

Arsenal have been linked to numerous number nines in recent months, from Brentford's Ivan Toney to Napoli's Victor Osimhen, but according to a recent report from journalist Graeme Bailey, it's Porto's Brazilian forward Evanilson, who has courted the Gunners' interest most recently.

Bailey has revealed that, alongside Newcastle United, the North Londoners sent scouts to watch the Dragões' recent league clash against Estoril, with the 24-year-old striker being the main reason why.

Now, the report makes no mention of how much a deal might cost the Gunners in the summer, but a report from Football Transfers' Steve Kay in January revealed that it could cost as much as €75m, which is about £64m. It remains to be seen whether that was a price for the winter window or not.

Regardless, this deal would undoubtedly represent another sizable investment from the Kroenkes, one that could spell the end for Jesus in the first team, but it might just be worth it.

How Evanilson compares to Jesus

So, if Arsenal are in the market for a new striker this summer, the first thing to ensure is that whoever they sign is a better goalscorer than Jesus; otherwise, what's the point?

Luckily, Evanilson is proving to be a fantastic goalscorer for the Portuguese giants. He's found the back of the net 22 times in 35 appearances this year and provided six assists for good measure.

Players

Evanilson

Jesus

Appearances

146

60

Goals

57

19

Goals per Match

0.39

0.31

Assists

20

12

Goal Involvements per Match

0.52

0.51

In all, the "complete striker," as talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, has scored 57 goals and provided 20 assists in 146 games for Porto, meaning he averages a goal involvement every 1.8 games and a goal every 2.5 games.

Comparatively, the Gunners' number nine has scored eight goals and provided five assists in 27 appearances this season and has 19 goals and 12 assists in 60 appearances in all, giving him a slightly worse average of a goal involvement every 1.9 games and a goal every 3.1 games.

Okay, with the Porto man just edging it on pure output, who comes out on top when looking at their underlying numbers?

Unfortunately for the former City ace, while it is incredibly close, it is his potential rival that edges it here as well. According to FBref, the "clinical" number nice, as dubbed by Kulig, produces a higher expected goals and assists figure, scores more goals, scores more non-penalty goals, scores more goals from his shots, both on and off target, and wins more aerial duels, all per 90.

Stats per 90

Evanilson

Jesus

Expected Goals + Assists

0.74

0.73

Goals

0.64

0.45

Non-Penalty Goals

0.51

0.45

Progressive Passes

1.83

2.22

Progressive Carries

2.47

2.69

Shots

2.89

3.39

Goals from Shots on Target

0.52

0.32

Goal from Shots

0.18

0.13

Shot-Creating Actions

2.85

3.33

Aerial Duels Won

1.36

1.23

However, it's the Arsenal man who produces more progressive passes and carries, takes more shots overall, and produces more shot-creating actions.

Arsenal may have the perfect Nketiah replacement in "immense" Hale End gem

The incredible youngster has been on fire this season.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 1, 2024

Ultimately, while there isn't a massive difference in the pair's underlying numbers, the fact that Evanilson has scored considerably more goals than Jesus this season and produces better underlying numbers related to scoring is reason enough for the Gunners to go ahead and bring him to N5, and who knows, Arteta could start both Brazilians in some games.

The Porto star, who is being eyed up by Arsenal, could, therefore, come in as an exciting upgrade on his compatriot, which is why the club must push to sign him this summer.

Pakistan won 17 out of 18 T20Is that year, only to lose eight out of nine in 2019 and loosen their grip on the No. 1 ranking

Umar Farooq23-Jan-2020Pakistan are the world’s No. 1 T20I team, but they are just a defeat away from being dislodged from the top of the rankings. They presently have 270 points, just one more than Australia at No. 2.Anything other than a 3-0 win in the upcoming T20I series over Bangladesh – even a 2-1 win – will see Pakistan slip below Australia. Bangladesh, meanwhile, are at No. 9 with 227 rating points.”We are focused on continuing our world No. 1 ranking and that can happen only if we ultimately win the series,” Babar Azam, Pakistan’s T20I captain, said during a pre-series press conference. “When you think that you have to retain your position and it comes to a do-or-die match then we have to plan accordingly. Our aim is to win the series. No team can be taken lightly nowadays, but we are positive and will try to play good cricket. Overall we have made very good preparations – we played four [practice] matches and the team has gelled and we hope we will give you good results.”Pakistan have held on to the top spot since January 2018, but they haven’t won a T20I for nearly a year, with their last win coming in February 2019 against South Africa. They lost eight of their nine completed games in the format last year.They still hold the No. 1 ranking because of their remarkable record in the time before this recent string of poor results: between January and November 2018, they won 17 out of their 18 T20Is. Veterans Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik were both part of Pakistan’s team when they went on that winning run, and they are both back in the side now, on the insistence of Babar and Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan’s coach-cum-selector, even if there was no consensus among the six regional selectors on the issue.”If you look back to when we became number one, they were part of the squad throughout, so I am happy my opinion was considered,” Babar said. “As a captain it will be a great help with seniors around me and I get to learn a lot.”Babar hinted that the prospects of Hafeez and Malik beyond the Bangladesh series would depend solely on their performance. “We will give them a proper chance,” he said. “We expect them to perform. We will give them all three games and there will be the PSL after that, so with time the picture will be clear and then we will see. We made changes in the team because we had to, since players who were not in form had to be replaced.”All three matches of the T20I series will be day games. The previous nine T20Is at the Gaddafi Stadium were all night games, with Pakistan winning five and losing four. The highest total at the venue is 197, while the lowest is 101.”In my point of view it looks like a 180-190 wicket,” Babar said, when asked about conditions for the first T20I on Friday. “Batting is our strength and the depth goes until No. 9, with Imad [Wasim] and Shadab [Khan] capable of giving us power hitting later in the innings. But our bowling is equally good, with Shaheen [Shah Afridi] making a comeback, and Haris [Rauf], whom we have seen doing great in the Big Bash League. There’s no such pressure from what happened in the past. We can’t do anything about it. But yes, we won’t repeat the mistakes, and we will play according to our strengths.”

Glasgow Rangers head into this weekend's Old Firm clash with a chance to gain a psychological boost in the Premiership title chase.

The Gers are currently second in the league table, a point behind Celtic, although they have a game in hand against Dundee next week.

It has been a remarkable turnaround by the club since Philippe Clement took over in October, as prior to that, Michael Beale was on the verge of a crisis.

Three defeats in the opening seven Premiership matches threatened to derail a title challenge before Halloween, yet the Belgian has saved the day and has the Light Blues on the cusp of a stunning treble.

Beale did do some decent business in the transfer window. He signed Jack Butland, who has been in wonderful form throughout the season, registering 23 clean sheets across 48 matches, while Abdallah Sima and Dujon Sterling have also been impressive.

The Englishman also managed to secure a transfer fee of nearly £5m for Glen Kamara, who joined Leeds United, while striker Antonio Colak also departed the Gers after just one season in Glasgow.

Kamara has since shone for Leeds in the Championship this term, yet Colak has failed to replicate his form in front of goal that he displayed at Rangers during 2022/23, struggling for Parma this term.

How much Rangers sold Antonio Colak for

Despite being one of the Gers most consistent goal threats under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Colak found himself out of the team on a regular basis when Beale took over.

An injury suffered prior to the enforced hiatus due to the World Cup ruled the striker out for five games, and he struggled to assert himself in the starting XI upon his return.

Although the likes of Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent left the club following the expiration of their contracts at the end of last season, Colak clearly found himself frozen out of Beale’s future plans.

Metric

Premiership

Champions League

Goals

14

0

Assists

1

0

Shots on target per game

1.2

0.2

Big chances missed

10

2

Total duels won per game

1.6

1.5

Serie B side Parma came in for the Croatian striker during the summer transfer window and a bid of £2.5m was accepted by the Light Blues, as Beale needed some funds in order to complete a few transfer deals of his own before the start of the season.

Considering they had only paid £1.8m to secure his services a year prior, it was a solid piece of transfer business by the club, ensuring they made a profit on the player.

Antonio Colak’s statistics for Rangers

Colak had clearly made an impression on the Rangers' hierarchy as early as 2021, scoring twice against the Gers in a Champions League qualifier when playing for Malmö, which sent the Ibrox side packing.

Although not the nimblest of centre-forwards, Colak certainly knew where the goal was and enjoyed a decent start to life in Glasgow after being dubbed “experienced” by the Dutchman.

Not only did he score three goals in the Champions League qualifiers – including the winner against PSV Eindhoven – he also found his feet in the Premiership fairly quickly.

In his opening 14 league matches for the club, Colak scored 11 times while chipping in with two assists, proving to be a player Van Bronckhorst could rely on domestically.

In the Champions League, however, Colak struggled against the likes of Liverpool, Napoli and Ajax, scoring zero goals while completing just 4.5 passes per game, winning 26% of his total duels per game along with taking just 0.2 shots on target each match, indicating that performing against the elite proved to be a step too far.

Overall, the 30-year-old found the back of the net on 18 occasions during his sole season in Scotland – ranking him as their joint top scorer alongside James Tavernier – which, on the surface, sounds like a fairly respectable campaign.

With opportunities looking slim under Beale, he moved to Italy, yet has failed to hit the ground running for Parma.

Antonio Colak’s season in numbers for Parma

Although Colak scored three goals during his first eight Serie B games for the club, he has been goalless since the start of October, starting just twice since, as it looks like he has fallen down the pecking order.

Not only has he missed two big chances in the Italian second tier, but the former Malmö frontman has averaged just 11 touches, 4.3 passes, won 1.2 total duels and managed only 0.4 shots on target per game across his 18 appearances for Parma.

Hardly the form that was anticipated for a £2.5m signing, and it is clear the Gers have struck gold by selling him for this amount last year.

Even Rabbi Matondo, who was expected to also depart Ibrox in 2023, has scored more than Colak this season, taking full advantage of the chances he has been given in the starting XI, finally showcasing his full potential.

Rabbi Matondo's stats in 2023/24

While Colak shone for the Gers in his maiden season, Matondo struggled, failing to score in 28 matches in all competitions.

The Welsh winger enjoyed a solid pre-season as he looked to fight for his place in the side before his Ibrox career finally took off following a wonderful goal against PSV.

Since then, he has added another four goals while registering the same number of assists, despite missing 17 games through injury this term.

His impact, especially from the bench, has been solid during the 2023/24 season, and he certainly has a decent future at the club under Clement, which looked ominous during pre-season.

He may not be a regular starter for the Gers, but Matondo has proved that fighting for his place instead of leaving at the first sign of trouble can allow him to develop and showcase his talents.

Not many would have predicted the former Manchester City starlet would have scored more goals than Colak this season, indicating that the club hit the jackpot by selling the Croatian striker in 2023.

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