All posts by h716a5.icu

Joāo Cancelo produced a man of the match display as Manchester City destroyed Newcastle United 4-0 at St James’ Park on Sunday.

City secured the Christmas number one spot as two goals in each half pushed Pep Guardiola’s men three points clear at the top of the Premier League table. This was City’s 34th league victory in 2021, a new Premier League record, adding another achievement to the club’s impressive recent history.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/man-city-latest-updates-2/” title=”Man City latest updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Cancelo put on an incredible display on Tyneside, producing a goal and an assist, which saw him receive an 8.5 SofaScore rating. The Portuguese full-back has been in electric form this season, having averaged the highest rating (7.46) out of any City player in the Premier League during the current campaign.

However, it wasn’t just this emphatic performance which made the occasion special, as Cancelo was playing his 100th game for the club since arriving at the Etihad Stadium from Juventus for a fee of £58.5m in the summer of 2019.

These Man City fans praise Cancelo’s performance

Manchester City’s official Twitter channel posted a video of Cancelo scoring an incredible goal in the 4-0 romp against Newcastle. Captioning the clip: ‘marking his 100th City appearance in style’, plenty of fans flocked to the comments to sing the defender’s praises following his landmark appearance.

Here’s what these City fans said, with one even touting the “unstoppable” 27-year-old as a potential Ballon D’Or candidate on current form – he current has the fourth-highest rating in the 2021/22 Premier League as per WhoScored metrics:

“Juve scammed themselves for Danilo”

Credit: @RicciScott_

“Cancelo is a beast”

Credit: @Fordiinho

“He’s unstoppable”

Credit: @IbnHass92348908

“Cancelo is in his own league”Credit: @thriIseeker”Best full back in the world.”Credit: @This_Is_FPL”Ballon d’Or pending”Credit: @mcfcdon_In other news: ‘Wow’, ‘Finally’, ‘Please be true’ – These Man City fans buzzing over ‘wild’ claim coming out of Eastlands

Manchester United have not been active in the January transfer window in terms of new signings as of yet, but they have been linked with a number of players over the last few weeks, and the Red Devils seemingly lead the race in signing one Serie A star.

What’s the word?

According to Italian news outlet La Repubblica, United are in ‘pole position’ to sign Napoli midfielder Fabian Ruiz ahead of Liverpool and Arsenal, who are also rumoured to be interested in securing his signature.

The report suggests that the Serie A club would be interested in selling the 25-year-old, with his contract expiring in 2023 and doubts as to whether he will sign a new deal, giving Ralf Rangnick the opportunity to swoop in for him either this month or in the summer.

United have identified midfield as a key area to improve upon, with the likes of Declan Rice and Denis Zakaria already linked with a move to Old Trafford.

Imagine him & Bruno

Ruiz joined Napoli from Real Betis in 2018 and has scored 20 goals and bagged 13 assists over the last three-and-a-half years for the Azzurri.

This season alone, the 6 foot 2 beast has scored five goals and set up his Napoli teammates three times in 20 appearances, which is impressive for a central midfielder and will have definitely caught the eye of the German coach back at Old Trafford, who will be looking for players who can provide a diverse skillset in his midfield to work alongside Bruno Fernandes.

The £48k-p/w star clearly offers a lot in an attacking sense, while according to SofaScore he is also reliable defensively, with a 92% pass accuracy and losing possession just 8.2 times per game. Comparing that to some of the regular starting midfielders at United, Fred has lost possession 11.6 times on average with an 83% pass accuracy this season, while Fernandes has an embarrassing average loss of possession 18.1 times per game and a pass accuracy of 76%.

It’s clear that Ruiz, who was hailed as “agile” by Hoffenheim defender Diadie Samassekou, can provide an upgrade when it comes to delivering passes accurately to build play and holding the ball in his possession much better than those currently starting in Rangnick’s side.

As a result, he could work well with Fernandes, allowing the latter to be more free-flowing in his preferred attacking role as the Spaniard covers the more defensive aspects of midfield, forming a scary duo which could cause problems for the opposition.

With Liverpool and Arsenal both speculated to be interested in the 25-year-old and currently in a much better position in the Premier League right now, Rangnick will have to work fast to ensure that Ruiz becomes a United player in the summer, instead of losing out on him to a major domestic rival.

In other news: Rangnick could make his first huge Old Trafford mistake if he allows one thing to happen

Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, has been fine 10 percent of his match fee after his angry response to the umpiring during the third day of the second Test against England at Dhaka

Cricinfo staff23-Mar-2010Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, has been fine 10 percent of his match fee after his angry response to the umpiring during the third day of the second Test against England at Dhaka.On a day where a number of decisions went against Bangladesh, Siddons’ frustrations became apparent after Ian Bell had been given not out to an lbw appeal. He marched to the front of the dressing room and signalled onto the field that he thought it was out. He also went and spoke to the match referee, Jeff Crowe, but it’s the public show of his emotions that has caused the problem.”There were probably three or four decisions I was unhappy with,” Siddons told the BBC after the third day. “Hindsight makes it easy for me to be critical but that’s the game. Umpires do make mistakes, but it made it hard for us today but we’re still in the game, it’s still pretty even.”He has been charged with a Level 1 one offence of “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match” and immediately pleaded guilty during a hearing with Crowe on Tuesday.”Jamie became increasingly frustrated and let his emotions out during the second session of day three which was obvious for all to see,” said Crowe. “Clearly he behaved inappropriately and he agrees that such actions and gestures must be kept behind closed doors. He is disappointed with himself that he was so public and he did not hesitate in pleading guilty and accepting the proposed sanction.”The Umpire Decision Review System hasn’t been in place for the series due to the cost of implementing the system and Shakib Al Hasan felt the match would have gone differently if the reviews had been available.”We would have been in a very good position if [UDRS] was in use here,” he said. “I think we would have asked for a referral four times with full confidence, and three of them would have come to our way for sure. It’s really bad for us that we did not use the referral system, which we could have done.”

Everton have made two signings already during this transfer window, with Rafa Benitez not holding back on getting his business at the club done early, but the two incoming additions are not the biggest story at the Merseyside club, with a potential outgoing stealing the headlines.

What’s the word?

News Editor, Alan Myers, has taken to Twitter to claim that a number of Premier League clubs are interested in signing Everton’s Lucas Digne.

Tweeting last night he revealed:

“Chelsea, Newcastle, West Ham and an as yet unnamed fourth Premier League club, are interested in Everton left back Lucas Digne.”

“Napoli are also interested in the £30M rated defender, though the Italian club are only interested in a loan deal with an option to buy.”

It was reported by ESPN last week, that Everton are not interested in a loan deal for the left-back, which was initially rumoured to be the likeliest scenario for the player to join Chelsea to cover their injury issues in the position short term, but now the report suggests that the Toffees want at least £25m for him, with no option for a loan.

Fans will be fuming

Everton fans will surely be fuming at the prospect of the player going to another Premier League club, especially West Ham and Newcastle who are likely to rival the Merseyside club for positions in the league.

Digne had become a fan favourite at the club, with many supporters taking to social media to criticise the decision to sell the frozen out left-back to another Premier League team.

One Toffees fan tweeted;

“Be fuming if Digne goes to another prem team. Just another reason to hate Rafa #RAFAOUT.”

Indeed, it’s easy to see why they’re so livid. The £110k-per-week defender has made 127 appearances for the club, offering up six goals and 20 assists from his defensive position, becoming a senior member of the team.

Thus, losing his quality and experience at the club when they are in this vulnerable phase, struggling to pick up points with only five wins from 18 games, is a huge risk for Benitez.

The Spanish manager has signed a left-back already over the last few days, Vitaliy Mykolenko has joined from Dynamo Kyiv, but with the lack of Premier League experience and his lack of connection with the defensive line at the Toffees due to only joining the team this week, it shouldn’t be expected for the Ukrainian to make an instant impact.

Everton have no room for error at this point in the season, and disjointing the team by selling key players, puts the manager at potential risk of costing the side more points in the league, only further fuelling fans to turn against him.

In other news: Rafa Benitez interested in Omar Colley switch

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jan-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChittagong Kings registered first points in this season’s BPL after they pulled off an unlikely win over Barisal Burners by 21 runs. Defending a small total, the Chittagong bowlers, led by Enamul Haque jnr who took two crucial wickets in an economical spell, kept Barisal under pressure throughout .The left-arm spinner took the crucial wicket of Brad Hodge when theBarisal captain appeared set to take his side home. But theAustralian was stumped for 34, and it triggered a collapse that saw themrestricted to 108 for 9 in 20 overs. The other left-arm spinner,Arafat Sunny, and medium-pacer Kevon Cooper also took two wickets each.Chittagong’s total appeared not good enough on a wicket that offered little to the bowlers. Naeem Islam and Ravi Bopara added 52 for the first wicket but were separated in the eighth over. It opened the gate for other Chittagong big-hitters to come in but they too couldn’t do much to boost the run-rate. Ryan ten Doeschate made 23 while Jacob Oram managed 18.For Barisal, Kabir Ali, Azhar Mahmood and Shafiul Islam took two wickets each, and kept things tight as Chittagong didn’t manage a single hit for six during their 20 overs.

Brendon McCullum is likely to miss the first two Twenty20s against Pakistan due to back stiffness

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Dec-2010New Zealand have suffered a setback as Brendon McCullum is likely to miss the first two Twenty20s against Pakistan due to back stiffness. On Wednesday, he had been named in the squad for the three Twenty20s over the next week but his availability was in doubt after a fitness test. New Zealand are already missing regular captain Daniel Vettori, who has been rested for the Twenty20s.McCullum had injured his back during the second Test against India in November, in which he scored a double-century to secure a draw, but played in the third Test and three of the five ODIs that followed. The back problem had ruled McCullum out of much of the ongoing HRV Cup, New Zealand’s domestic Twenty20 tournament, as well. He plays as a specialist batsman in Tests but continues to keep in the shorter formats.”He has shown great determination and a great willingness to push through discomfort in order to help New Zealand during the recent tour of India,” said selector Glenn Turner, “but because Brendon is committed to being a wicketkeeper-batsman for New Zealand in limited-overs cricket, we are taking a longer-term view and will not risk further setbacks.”The first Test against Pakistan starts on January 7, for which McCullum is expected to be definitely available, though whether he plays the final Twenty20 on December 30 will depend on the result of another fitness test.”The medical staff are confident that intensive treatment and the right rehabilitation will stabilise his injury and get him back to full fitness,” Turner said. “He may be available for selection in the third Twenty20 as a batsman but only if the testing and assessment prove that his involvement will not have a detrimental affect on his overall recovery and his ability to wicket-keep in the one-day series.”The Pakistan series is rounded off by six one-dayers starting January 22 and will be the final international matches for both teams before the World Cup.

After rescuing a point in their previous Premier League outing and the first match in Eddie Howe’s reign at the club with a 3-3 draw against Brentford, Newcastle United are back in action this afternoon with an early kick-off against Arsenal.

In terms of injury news, as well as still having Paul Dummett out with a calf issue, Newcastle striker Dwight Gayle picked up a hamstring injury in training earlier in the week and will apparently be assessed before the match at the Emirates Stadium.

With Magpies manager Eddie Howe set to make his debut in the dugout for the club after being absent from the Brentford game due to a positive virus test, from which he has now recovered, it will be interesting to see which players he selects for his starting line-up today.

On the chalkboard

One Newcastle player who did not feature in the draw against Brentford but should be in the starting XI to take on Arsenal is Isaac Hayden.

In his 10 league games so far this season, he  has proven to be a useful defence-minded midfield option by averaging 2.4 tackles, 1.7 clearances and one interception per game.

Additionally, his overall performances have earned the 26-year-old, who is currently valued at £9m by Transfermarkt, a season rating of 6.53/10, making him Newcastle’s sixth-highest rated player at this point in the campaign according to WhoScored.

Given that Arsenal have only lost one of their nine previous league games, scoring 13 goals in the process, it could be the smart option if Howe were to restore Hayden today to add some defensive stability to the team and see if they can secure a positive result.

The 26-year-old also managed to show his predatory instincts in the opposition box by scoring in Newcastle’s 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion earlier this month.

Also, with former Arsenal midfielder Joe Willock failing to impress against Brentford, this could make it an easy decision for Howe to get Hayden back in the team at the other ex-Gunner’s expense.

Taking all this into account, Hayden definitely has what it takes to bully Arsenal’s players today, and he could well be the difference in Newcastle picking up a positive result or not.

In other news, PIF submit NUFC proposal to beast tipped to be “one of the best”, fans will be buzzing…

According to The Hull Daily Mail, a West Ham United transfer update has emerged involving Hull City forward Keane Lewis-Potter.

The Lowdown: Hammers eye Championship raid?

While there have been plenty of January targets linked from some of Europe’s top divisions, West Ham and manager David Moyes have also been tipped to raid some of the English second tier’s most standout players.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-latest-updates/” title=”West Ham latest updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Indeed, 90min even recently claimed that the Irons had sent scouts to watch Middlesbrough mainstay Dael Fry, Queen’s Park Rangers colossus Rob Dickie and Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly.

The Championship, as a result, could be a fruitful transfer pool for Moyes and co as yet more news emerges on another gem they could bid for from the division.

The Latest: West Ham ‘tempted’ by Lewis-Potter bid…

As per The Hull Daily Mail, sharing news in the last 48 hours, West Ham are now eyeing a bid for promising Hull forward Lewis-Potter and are ‘tempted’ to submit a January offer.

It is believed the club have been keeping close tabs recently with Moyes even a personal admirer of the 20-year-old.

As such, chief head of recruitment Rob Newman could test the water next month with an approach.

The Verdict: Priority?

Tipped to follow in the foot steps of West Ham star Jarrod Bowen as another talented attacker emerges from the MKM Stadium, while promising, we believe the club could have bigger fish to fry next month.

Describing himself as a ‘raw’ forward, Lewis-Potter has earned praise for some of his performances over 2021 and he is quite rightfully attracting attention, but the Hammers simply must be prioritising an emergency centre-half signing and support up front for Michail Antonio.

Their lack of options in both areas at this present moment could spell danger for Moyes and co as they continue to fight on all fronts, including the Carabao Cup, Europa League and a fight for the Premier League top four.

Injuries to both Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna make the signing of a new defender particularly crucial and that transfer mission should take centre stage above all others.

In other news: Approach already made: West Ham now willing to pay asking price for colossal 47-goal striker, find out more here.

Crystal Palace will be aiming to bounce back from just their third Premier League defeat of the season when they travel to Elland Road to take on Leeds United this evening.

A hugely disappointing 2-1 defeat on home territory against Aston Villa ended their seven-game unbeaten run last time out, and Patrick Vieira will be expecting a response from his wounded charges.

And although goals have been relatively easy to come by for the capital club in recent weeks, it’s across the front line where the Frenchman may wring the changes.

The in-form Christian Benteke has already notched up four goals and one assist in 13 top-flight fixtures this term, bettering his combined total for both 2018/19 and 2019/20.

However, the 6 foot 2 target man may be better off taking a place on the substitutes bench for this intriguing midweek encounter.

As per FBref.com, both Leeds and Palace are teams that love to press their opponents, placing in the top two for pressures in the Premier League this season.

But what makes the Whites particularly unique is their man-to-man marking when out of possession. The system forms a key part of manager Marcelo Bielsa’s philosophy and can be hugely successful, but like any tactic, it’s also there to be exploited.

Manchester United did so to great effect when they dismantled their west Yorkshire rivals at Old Trafford last term.

Bruno Fernandes was charged with dragging defensive midfielder Kalven Phillips out wide, opening up an ocean of space for Scott McTominay to burst into and score two goals inside the first three minutes on the way to a famous 6-2 victory.

But this way of combatting Bielsa’s well-drilled charges requires mobility and pace in order for each player to win their individual battles. And that is not something Benteke is blessed with.

Summer signing Odsonne Edouard, on the other hand, is and the 23-year-old’s physical attributes are an asset that Vieira must exploit as he goes in search of a precious three points.

The £79,000-per-week striker was described as a “special talent” by former manager Neil Lennon during their time together at Celtic, and he’s already shown why during his short time in south London.

Edouard perfectly combines his tactical intelligence with technical skill, excelling when dribbling with the ball at his feet, playing precise through balls and finishing past an opposition goalkeeper.

His record of three Premier League goals in just 534 minutes of top-flight action are evidence of how quickly he has transitioned to life in English football and Vieira now has to reinstate him in his starting XI, selecting him from the off for the first time since the beginning of the month.

And, in other news…Huge blow: Vieira confirms big injury setback pre-Leeds, Palace fans will be gutted

Many Manchester City fans ripped into Nathan Ake during their Champions League clash with RB Leipzig on Tuesday night. 

City were already assured of top spot in Group A as they headed to the Red Bull Arena given that they held a four-point advantage over second-place Paris Saint-Germain prior to kick-off.

Opponents Leipzig were looking to secure third and avoid crashing out of Europe altogether.

Pep Guardiola took the opportunity to make six changes from the side that beat Watford 3-1 on Saturday evening.

Zach Steffen took Ederson’s spot in goal, while John Stones, Ake and Oleksandr Zinchenko were brought into the back four in place of Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte and Joao Cancelo.

Rodri dropped out of the midfield for Fernandinho, Kevin de Bruyne came in for Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling gave way to Riyad Mahrez.

Recapping Ake’s tricky night vs Leipzig

It was Ake’s seventh start of the campaign in all competitions and his first in the UCL since the Matchday One meeting with the same opponent.

The game presented an opportunity for the Dutchman, then, but he missed a chance to equalise ten minutes before half time, heading off target from a set piece.

What’s more, only two of the six long balls he attempted were accurate (via SofaScore), while City gave up seven shots inside their own box and two ‘big chances’ in their 2-1 defeat.

These City fans lambast Ake

“Aké is God awful. He’s dragging the whole team down.”

Credit: @scottjerbi2

“Ake looks lost man”

Credit: @HeadieOne17

“Nathan Ake isn’t good enough for City”

Credit: @Antzharris10

“Ake – Head like a Sheriff’s badge “

Credit: @Mulvaney1Kevin

“Why is ake the one going for headers from corners? You’re useless at it”

Credit: @chapsisverycool

“Everything is bad when Ake plays”

Credit: @matthewmeyers21

In other news, there’s been an update on a key striker target.