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Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou is "likely" to go and sign a Champions League-winning forward on a permanent deal in the summer, according to a report this week.

Lange making Spurs transfer plans as he targets attackers

A lot of the rumours concerning Spurs' transfer activity have revolved around possible new attacking additions.

Tottenham player out injured until mid-April after sustaining foot fracture

He won’t be available for the foreseeable.

ByEmilio Galantini Mar 14, 2024

Reliable media sources claim that Tottenham want to make a winger their "major" signing of the summer window, leading to interest in both Wolves star Pedro Neto and Crystal Palace ace Eberechi Eze.

There are some suggestions that Spurs are keen on a new striker to replace Harry Kane, despite the fine form of Richarlison when the Brazilian is fit and available.

He's bagged an incredible nine goals in his last ten league appearances for the north Londoners, so Richarlison could perhaps feel hard done by there. However, with months remaining until the summer window opens, technical director Johan Lange's transfer plans could still change.

Son Heung-min

14

Richarlison

10

Dejan Kulusevski

6

Brennan Johnson

4

Cristian Romero

4

Whichever position Spurs end up reinforcing later in the year, reports suggest that supporters could expect at least one addition further forward – whether that be an outright number nine or wide player.

Interesting names are consistently emerging on Lange's radar, like Athletic Bilbao forward Nico Williams, who is also attracting interest from Arsenal and Chelsea amid claims his contract includes a £43 million release clause.

There is also the small matter of in-form January loan signing, Timo Werner, who has really impressed since arriving from RB Leipzig. Werner's bagged two goals and two assists in his last seven league appearances under Postecoglou, and appears almost tailor-made for the Australian's system.

The German's endured a few years to forget, ultimately failing to become the prolific goalscorer Chelsea wanted when he signed for them in 2020. After making a move back to Leipzig, Werner wasn't able to rediscover his very best goalscoring form, but we're now seeing real glimpses of his attacking potential in north London.

Spurs boss Ange "likely" to sign Werner permanently this summer

The 28-year-old's temporary Spurs contract includes a £15 million buy option, and a report by GiveMeSport indicates that Postecoglou is personally "likely" to trigger the £15m clause and sign Werner permanently.

Lange, speaking on Tottenham's official social media, suggested that the club are already that impressed with the Champions League-winning forward.

“I think Timo [Werner] is an offensive player who has a massive experience from top level football," said Lange. "The Bundesliga, the Premier League, the Champions League and of course with the German national team.

“He’s also a player who, for most of his career, has played in a style not too dissimilar to ours which means his level of adaptation period could be relatively short and it has been good to see him already effecting games quite early on.”

أوضح ميكيل أرتيتا، المدير الفني لفريق آرسنال، موقفه من فكرة التقدم باستئناف ضد البطاقة الحمراء التي تحصل عليها اللاعب ويليام ساليبا في مباراة السبت الماضي ضد بورنموث.

وتلاقى الفريقان في إطار منافسات الجولة الثامنة من الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، حيث خسر آرسنال بهدفين دون رد.

وشهدت المباراة حصول لاعب آرسنال ويليام ساليبا على بطاقة حمراء، بعد عرقلة لاعب الخصم إيفانيلسون، في الشوط الأول.

اقرأ أيضًا.. ترتيب الدوري الإنجليزي بعد فوز ليفربول على تشيلسي

في البداية، أشهر الحكم روب جونز بطاقة صفراء، قبل أن تتدخل تقنية الفيديو ومن ثم تُشهر البطاقة الحمراء.

هذا الأمر يعني غياب ويليام ساليبا عن المباريات الثلاثة المقبلة لـ آرسنال في الدوري الإنجليزي، وعلى رأسها لقاء ليفربول يوم الأحد المقبل.

ورفض أرتيتا منح رأيه فيما يخص التقدم باستئناف ضد طرد ساليبا.

وقال أرتيتا، في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “ميرور” الإنجليزية: “أترك الأمر للنادي لفهم الظروف، سيتعين عليهم اتخاذ القرار، الأمر يتعلق بالسياق”.

وأضاف: “نريد الفوز في أي سياق ولكن الواقع هو أننا جعلنا الأمر صعبًا للغاية على أنفسنا”.

وواصل: “من جهة أخرى، لقد خسرنا مباراة واحدة في غضون 6 أشهر، اللعب بعشرة لاعبين يمثل مشكلة واضحة، لا يمكننا الاستمرار في اللعب بعشرة لاعبين”.

وأردف: “تصبح المهمة شبه مستحيلة، نحتاج إلى القضاء على ذلك، نريد أن نكون تنافسيين، إنه أمر رائع”.

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– Estamos buscando manter um ritmo forte para que possamos conquistar nossos objetivos nos próximos jogos. O grupo tem trabalhado muito para evoluir e para vencer as partidas que tivermos nas próximas semanas – disse.

O atleta falou ainda sobre o desejo de terminar bem o primeiro semestre.

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Bowling coach lauds ‘fantastic team man’ Boult after he became the third New Zealand bowler to 250 Test wickets

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Colombo23-Aug-2019How does Trent Boult maintain a near-blinding standard over so many years, and across so many formats? Before rain washed out two further sessions of play in Colombo on Friday, Boult became the third New Zealand bowler to 250 Test wickets during a double-wicket maiden that perhaps swung the match in New Zealand’s favour. This milestone comes in a year in which he averages less than 22 in Tests, following two full calendar years in which he averaged 23.90 (2018) and 24.77 (2017).On English tracks, in a completely different format, Boult had also had a good World Cup, having taken 17 wickets to sit eighth on the tournament table. Bowling coach Shane Jurgensen thinks the key to Boult’s consistency has been his fitness and his “simple” action.”Today’s a special day for Trent – becoming the third New Zealand bowler to 250 wickets,” Jurgensen said. “I think he has a very efficient bowling action. Overall, it’s quite simple. I think that allows him to do what he does. Being accurate is really important in all parts of the world. He’s got an advantage being left-handed, and that creates variation for our bowling group.”He’s one of the best bowlers in the world and he’s proved that for a long time. He’s got that skill to expose any type of conditions that are available to him. I also think he can bowl across all different periods of the game. That’s really important. He’s one of the leaders of being able to do that – the ability to adjust to all periods.Trent Boult throws the ball to Tim Southee•Associated Press”He’s also got great passion and energy which he brings to our team. He’s our energiser bunny in the warm-ups. He loves his soccer. I think the skill and execution and the way he’s contributed to the team has been amazing. He’s a fantastic team man as well. And he does a lot of hard work off the field. He doesn’t stop working on his fitness or his resilience. Those factors have contributed to the success he’s had.”Also delivering a double-wicket maiden on Friday was Boult’s longtime partner-in-crime Tim Southee, who removed Dimuth Karunaratne and Niroshan Dickwella in quick succession. Southee is also only three wickets away from hitting the 250 mark. He is slightly slower to the milestone, however – Boult achieving it in his 63rd Test, while Southee is playing his 67th. On Friday, the pair combined to produce four wickets for just 32 runs.”Tim and Trent have been doing it for a while,” Jurgensen said. “Today there might have been a little bit of swing with the overhead conditions, and it just seemed to be doing a little bit. They both work really hard on their fitness, and that’s a big factor in their resilience.”They’re always giving each other a bit of a hard time [because they are so close to each other in terms of career wickets]. That’s what’s great for the team – they keep things lighthearted. They support each other a lot too – they back each other up on the field and off the field.”

The first half of the 2023/24 season has been mixed for Mikel Arteta's exciting young Arsenal side. They sailed through their Champions League group and spent Christmas day atop the Premier League tree but have since fallen back down to fourth following consecutive defeats before New Year's Day.

A team that had looked so good only a few weeks ago suddenly seem bereft of ideas, tired and in need of replenishment. However, injuries to the likes of Jurrien Timber, Fabio Viera and Thomas Partey have left Arteta with fewer options than he'd ideally want.

Arsenal can upgrade Havertz by signing one of "Europe's best young players"

The 21-year-old could unlock Arsenal’s midfield.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Jan 5, 2024

Partey's injury record, in particular, has become a genuine concern over the last couple of years, and for as good as he can be, the latest player touted for a move to N5 could be the perfect replacement: Everton's Amadou Onana.

Arsenal transfer news – Amadou Onana

According to TEAMtalk, Arsenal are on the lookout for midfield reinforcements this month and have now made an approach to sign Everton's impressive Belgian.

The report has revealed that while the Gunners are interested in several midfielders – including Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz – they have turned their attention to the Toffees star and could make an offer for him in 'the near future.'

Other Premier League sides have shown interest in the former LOSC Lille midfielder, including Chelsea and Manchester United, but the Gunners are keen to get ahead of them with a move this month.

While the other interested parties are sure to pose a challenge for the north Londoners, the most significant barrier to completing this deal could be the price that Everton are after, with TEAMtalk reporting that the Grand Old Team will not sell for anything less than £70m and are looking for offers closer to £90m.

Therefore, any move would require a massive investment from the Gunners, but for a player that talent scout Jacek Kulig described as the "complete package" and a "Swiss army knife in midfield", he might prove to be worth it.

Amadou Onana could replace Thomas Partey

Now, replacing a player as good as Partey is going to be a mammoth task for whoever is asked to do it, and at 22 years old, it could be argued that Onana is too young to do so. However, as the saying goes, availability is the best ability, and while it isn't his fault, Partey just never seems to be available anymore.

Since he arrived in North London in 2020, the former Atlético Madrid star has missed 63 games for club and country through injury, yet he missed just seven games in his entire career before joining the club. Unfortunately, it doesn't matter how good you are if you can't be relied upon throughout the season.

In comparison, Onana has missed just nine games since making his professional debut for Hamburg three years ago, and more importantly, he has not suffered the same injury twice.

So availability is clearly something that the Dakar-born dynamo has over his potential competition, but how do the duo's underlying numbers from last season stack up?

Well, it doesn't look good for the Arsenal man, as despite his clear superiority when it comes to progressive passes, it's Everton's "midfield powerhouse", as described by U23 scout Antonio Mango, who comes out on top in the majority of essential metrics.

He won more tackles, made more interceptions, made no errors that led to a goal and won significantly more aerial duels.

Amadou Onana vs Thomas Partey
Stats per 90	Onana	Partey
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists	0.20	0.14
Progressive Passes	2.86	8.37
Progressive Carries	0.98	1.23
Tackles Won	1.56	1.45
Interceptions	1.34	1.01
Errors Leading to Goals	0.00	0.04
Aerial Duels Won	2.17	1.34
All Stats via FBref for the 2022/23 Domestic Season

Ultimately, Partey is a player who will have to be moved on given his poor track record with injuries, and while it'll cost the club an awful lot of money, signing the "one-man army", as described by Jacek Kulig, that is Onana would be a fantastic idea.

The England allrounder says the two are “probably really good people” deep down

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2019Moeen Ali has called on fans who will attend the 2019 World Cup to refrain from heckling the duo of Steven Smith and David Warner with personal barbs. Both men will be turning out for Australia for the first time since they were banned for a year each in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal, but Moeen said he didn’t want fans to go after them too much because of that.”I really hope they don’t get too much stick. I want them to enjoy the series,” Moeen told the . “If you have to, keep it funny, not personal. We all make mistakes. We are human beings and we have feelings. I know deep down they are probably really good people. I just hope they get treated decently. I just want the cricket to be spoken about.”Moeen’s comments come two days after Australia coach Justin Langer had said both Smith and Warner would require sensitive monitoring and handling over the coming months.”There’s not too many I’ve met in my life who like being booed or heckled or disliked so… they’re human beings,” Langer had said. “We’re going to have to care for them, we’re going to have to put an arm around them and make sure they’re going okay. But what people say, whether it’s in the crowd or social media or wherever, there’s nothing they can do about that, they can’t control it, but what we can do is keep an eye on them and make sure they’re going okay as people as much as cricketers.”Smith and Warner were part of Australia’s pre-World Cup camp, which included three practice matches against a New Zealand XI. Smith made 22, 89* and 91* in those games, while Warner scored 39, 0 and 2. Both men played key parts in the recently concluded IPL 2019 for their respective franchises, though they had to leave the tournament early to join the Australia camp.Warner was the leading run-scorer in the competition, amassing 692 runs in 12 innings for Sunrisers Hyderabad at an average of 69.20 and a strike rate of 143.86. Smith started slowly for Rajasthan Royals but upped his run-scoring significantly once he was made captain, ending with 319 runs in ten innings at an average of 39.87 and a strike rate of 116.00.

Manchester United will only play three fixtures in January, which gives Erik ten Hag a chance to increase his work with his side at Carrington.

The Red Devils next game is away to Newport in the FA Cup, 14 days after their 2-2 draw against Spurs.

However, between now and then, United could have at least one new face in the building as they look to reinforce their squad.

Man Utd’s search for a centre-back

According to Sky Sports reporter Florian Plettenberg on X, Man Utd have recently been monitoring Leny Yoro of Lille, who is “one of the hottest transfer targets" around according to the journalist.

Therefore, United will face competition from numerous big clubs, with Bayern Munich being the main competitor.

The defender is contracted to the French club until 2025, yet a move to United this winter is extremely unlikely.

How Yoro compares to Raphael Varane

The common transfer talk regarding United has been mainly strikers or centre-backs, however, the profile of the latter has usually been a right-sided player.

This suggests that the individual to make way for a potential signing would be Raphael Varane, who operates as the right centre-back and has had an injury-hit time in Manchester.

Indeed, the World Cup winner has unfortunately suffered two setbacks already this campaign, meaning that the boss has been unable to field a consistent centre-back pairing with Lisandro Martinez also on the treatment table until that draw with Tottenham.

Yoro, therefore, is the player that could replace Varane in the starting XI, as the 18-year-old has made that right centre-back role his own in Ligue 1 this season.

The Lille youth star has played 17 matches this term in the league, helping his team keep nine clean sheets with him in the starting XI, which happens to be the second-best defence in the French top-flight. Nonetheless, the table below shows Yoro’s stats from the 2023/24 Ligue 1 campaign, and how he compares to his positional peers.

Yoro's 2023/24 Ligue 1 Stats

Stats (per 90)

Yoro

Ranking in Ligue 1

Passes completed

61.68

Top 13%

Touches

76.26

Top 18%

Pass completion %

91.3%

Top 9%

Carries

59.38

Top 15%

Goals

0.13

Top 9%

Stats via FBref

As you can see, Yoro is a player that would be an excellent partner for Martinez, while also elevating United’s ability to play out from the back via Andre Onana.

Despite being 18 years old, he displays bravery on the ball, as highlighted by the high volume of completed passes, touches, and carries. However, the defender also retains possession extremely well, and it is rare for him to give the ball away cheaply, as shown by the fact he ranks in the top 9% for pass completion % in the league. That differs greatly from Varane who ranks in the top 33% in the Premier League according to FBref.

The Lille prospect is also a threat in the opposition box, which would improve United’s output from set pieces. Yoro has netted twice already this season, the same number of goals as Rasmus Hojlund in the Premier League, and he ranks in the top 9% for goals among central defenders in Ligue 1.

Overall, the signing of Yoro would put question marks over Varane’s future at United. Ten Hag is desperate to create a formidable centre-half partnership that he can rely on, and Varane ultimately cannot provide the assurance of availability.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane were on song as Al-Nassr thrashed Al-Wehda 6-0 in the Saudi Pro League.

Article continues below

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• Ronaldo netted 66th career hat-trick
• Mane scored and provided an assist
• Al-Nassr kept title hopes alive

• getty images
  

  TELL ME MORE

  Ronaldo and Mane were on fire as Al-Nassr registered an important win to keep their Saudi Pro League title hopes alive on Saturday. It took the Portuguese just five minutes to break the deadlock as he intercepted a poor clearance by Wehda goalkeeper Munir Mohamedi and found the back of the net. Seven minutes later he doubled his tally after converting a simple header from Marcelo Brozovic's header.

  Otavio then scored a third goal after receiving a brilliant pass from Mane. The Portuguese took a touch inside the box as he found himself one-on-one with Munir before lobbing the ball over the custodian to find the back of the net.

  At the stroke of half-time, the former Liverpool star got his name into the scoresheet. The winger received the ball from Ronaldo and exchanged a quick one-two with Otavio before pushing the ball into the net.

  Al-Nassr were in no mood to stop after thoroughly dominating the first as they further increased their tally in the 50th minute as their striker completed his hat-trick. The Portugal captain made a brilliant run after getting a through ball from Mane and then netted his 31st league goal of the current campaign and 41st overall.

  Mohamed Al-Fatil then scored the sixth goal of the night after Meshari Al-Nemer's initial attempt was blocked by Mohamedi.

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• Getty Images
  

  THE MVP

  Ronaldo was once again the star performer for his side and was as clinical as ever in front of the goal. The 39-year-old was too hot to handle for the Al-Wehda players who completed the 66th hat-trick of his illustrious career.

• Getty Images
  

  THE BIG LOSER

  it was a night to forget for Morocco international Munir Mohamedi who conceded six times in 90 minutes and was at fault for the opening goal as his horrible clearance allowed Ronaldo to break the deadlock.

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• WHAT COMES NEXT?

  Luis Castro's side will be next seen in action on Thursday as they take on Al-Akhdoud in a vital Saudi Pro League clash.

Transfer expert Dean Jones has backed a "class" Southampton player to revive his St Mary's career despite currently being on loan.

Southampton transfer news

The Saints will have the opportunity to make new signings when the January transfer window rolls around should Russell Martin want to improve the options in his squad.

A number of players have emerged as potential targets for Southampton in the winter window, with West Brom youngster Tom Fellows seen as a possible option. Another player who is also believed to be in their thoughts is Maximilian Entrup, with the Hartberg striker seen as an option to replace Che Adams in the event that the Scot leaves in January.

Pundit claims Southampton have "replacement" for star man lined up

The Saints are believed to be “looking at” one specific player.

By
Henry Jackson

Nov 24, 2023

There are also loanees who are currently plying their trade away from St Mary's at the moment, with the south coast club having the option to bring them back further down the line. A significant claim has now emerged regarding one of those figures, with Paul Onuachu's Southampton future assessed.

Key update on Paul Onuachu's Southampton future

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones claimed that Onuachu could yet return from his loan spell and still have a successful Southampton career ahead of him.

He said: "I think it is a win-win. Onuachu obviously hasn't set the world on fire since landing at Saints, but I actually thought it was a good signing when they brought him in initially.

"I don't think he's really been given enough opportunity to show that he could crack it at Southampton. You could argue that that's not necessarily the club's fault. They've been in really bad times and they've been pretty desperate. They've had to try various things and they've had different managers. So he's kind of been a victim of that as well.

"But to see him go away now scoring goals, everyone's a winner from that point of view. I think that eventually he'll come back to Southampton and he will get another opportunity and just needs to hit the ground running when that happens."

This is perhaps an encouraging sign for Southampton, with Onuachu impressing greatly on loan at Trabzonspor at the moment, scoring six goals in eight Turkish Super Lig appearances so far this season.

The 29-year-old has averaged an eye-catching 4.5 aerial duel wins per game in the competition, highlighting his dominance leading the line, while he also has a tally of 3.1 shots per match, showing that he is often in the thick of the action.

Martin will surely be tempted to try again with Onuachu at the end of this season, assuming he continues his current impressive form. Former teammate Rasmus Carstensen has lauded him in the past, saying:

“He is on the top scorer list again, and a player who scores 30+ goals obviously has a level for more than the club he plays for. Paul has a great opportunity to take the next step. He is a class guy, I can’t say anything negative about him."

It will be fascinating to see how he fares in the coming months, and should the chance to bring him back in January even emerge, it is something they should consider.

India’s chief selector said the wicketkeeper-batsman, a ‘champion in the making’, wasn’t part of the Australia ODIs because he needed rest

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2019Rishabh Pant is “very much” part of India’s World Cup plans and his absence from the ODI squad currently taking on Australia is because he needed rest, according to MSK Prasad, the chairman of selectors.”Rishabh Pant played three T20Is and four Test matches in Australia and that had an impact on his body,” Prasad told PTI. “He needed complete rest for two weeks and then we will take a call on how many matches he will play against England Lions. Let me put it straight, he is very much in our World Cup plans. He is a champion player in the making and even he is not fully aware the kind of potential he has.”The England Lions team will tour India for five one-dayers and two unofficial Tests in January-February, and, as per Prasad, Pant is likely to feature in some of the one-dayers. Prasad also felt his selection committee was vindicated after picking Pant for the Test series in England in August, given his run with the bat and his glove work since then.”Ravi (Shastri) and Virat (Kohli) had advised him to put his head down and respect the match situation, and he did exactly that,” Prasad said, referring to the 21-year-old’s century in the fourth Test in Sydney. “He proved that he can switch gears seamlessly. When we picked him for Tests, experts were sceptical about his keeping but 11 catches in a Test, record dismissals in Australia series proves that selection committee is vindicated.”The latest young player Prasad’s panel has picked is Punjab’s Shubman Gill, who will join the team for their limited-overs tour of New Zealand. Prasad said that Gill had been picked as a reserve opener.”Shubman is comfortable both opening the innings as well as playing in the middle-order. For the New Zealand series, we are looking at him as the reserve opener behind Shikhar (Dhawan) and Rohit (Sharma),” Prasad said. “I won’t comment if he will make it to World Cup but he was phenomenal as an opener for India A in New Zealand.”We have discussed with Rahul (Dravid, the A-team coach) that Shubman is ready for international cricket. The best part is the clutch of A tours which has made all these players battle ready for the biggest challenge. Look at Hanuma Vihari and Mayank Agarwal… they don’t look intimidated when thrown into the deep end of the pool.”Prasad’s panel had rested Jasprit Bumrah from the home Test series against West Indies that preceded the Australia tour, and he held that if Bumrah had played that series, the bowler wouldn’t have managed to play all four Tests in Australia, where he played a leading role in securing a series win for India.”Trust me, had Jasprit played those two Tests against West Indies, he wouldn’t have played all four Tests against Australia,” Prasad said. “The support staff has really monitored him well. He is now fitter and stronger, and with [bowling coach] Bharat Arun continuously working with him, he has improved as a bowler.”But a lot of credit should go to Jasprit because Arun gave him a plan but it was up to him to make the effort to implement the plan. He has really worked hard. When we first picked him, so many were sceptical whether it was prudent to pick a white-ball specialist but at the end of the year, we can all see the results.”