كشفت صحيفة “ميرور” الإنجليزية المزيد من التفاصيل عن إصابة مدافع فريق ليفربول فيرجيل فان دايك، والتي تعرض لها في مباراة الأمس أمام إيفرتون في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وتلاقى الفريقان، في جوديسون بارك، في الجولة الخامسة من البطولة حيث تعادلا بهدفين لمثليهما.

وتدخل حارس إيفرتون جوردان بيكفورد بشكل عنيف على ركبة فان دايك، واضطر الأخير إلى الخروج في الدقيقة 11 من عمر الشوط الأول.

وأصدر ليفربول، بيانًا منذ قليل، أوضح من خلاله أن فان دايك يعاني من تمزق في أربطة الركبة وسيخضع لعملية جراحية (لمطالعة التفاصيل من هنا).

وحسب صحيفة “ميرور” الإنجليزية، فإن فان دايك قضى بعض الوقت مع أخصائي اليوم الأحد لمراجعة الفحوصات واتخاذ قرارا بشان خطة العلاج.

وأفادت إنه قد تبين إصابة الهولندي بتمزق من الدرجة الثالثة في الرباط الصليبي الأمامي، وهذا هو أسوأ مستوى، مع تمزق الرباط إلى النصف، والجراحة المقررة مصممة لإعادة هيكلة الرباط.

وأوضحت إن متوسط ​​الجدول الزمني للتعافي من مثل هذه الإصابة يتراوح من ستة إلى 12 شهرًا، لكن ليفربول متردد في وضع إطار زمني لعودته.

وذكرت أن أطباء النادي سيحددون موعد الجراحة الأسبوع المقبل، وبعد ذلك سيتمكن الأخصائيون من تحديد فترة ابتعاده عن الملاعب بشكل دقيق.

ووفقًا للصحيفة نفسها، فإن مصادر بالنادي أكدت أن موعد عودة فان دايك إلى الملاعب سيعتمد على نجاح إعادة تأهيله، حيث يشير الطاقم الطبي في آنفيلد إلى الموقف الاستثنائي للاعب، وسجله القوي في اللياقة البدنية وسلوكه، وكلها عوامل مهمة في تقليل وقت غيابه.

لكن من الواضح أن فان دايك لن يلعب مرة أخرى حتى العام المقبل، ولا يتسنى للنادي الشعور بثقة حول إمكانية مشاركته في وقت لاحق من الموسم الحالي.

Only a club like Arsenal could be favourites for two of the most exciting sporting directors in world football and end up with nothing.

In a double-punch blow for Unai Emery, neither Monchi and Marc Overmars will be making the move to north London this summer, with the former Roma sporting director heading back to his former club in Sevilla and the Dutch legend committing his future to Ajax by signing a new long-term contract with the Amsterdam giants.

Arsenal now must look elsewhere for the man that will be tasked with bringing in the players to propel the Gunners back into the Premier League elite. Although there are still a plethora of candidates that could fill out the role including former scout Francis Cagigao and current heady of youth recruitment Steve Morrow, it might be ideal for the north London hierarchy to look away from internal figures and search away from England.

Enter Ben Manga.

Currently the chief scout of Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt, Manga’s work has been credited as a reason for the German side’s recent meteoric rise from surviving the relegation play-offs in 2016 to now being underdogs for the Europa League.

Manga, who joined the club shortly after Frankfurt’s Bundesliga survival, has been responsible for bringing the likes of Ante Rebic, Sebastian Haller and Luka Jovic to the club, three players who have been revelations in Germany’s top flight.

As well as being able to identify exciting young talent, the 45-year-old former midfielder has been smart when it comes to adding experienced heads in the dressing room.

Kevin-Prince Boateng and Jonathan de Guzman were both brought in on free transfers and were essential clogs in Frankfurt’s DFB-Pokal win in 2017/18, their first major honour for nearly 30 years.

It’s understandable why Arsenal were keen to bring in Monchi or Overmars to fill out the role of technical director, but in Manga, the Gunners have a chance to appoint one of the most promising figures in the game, and someone who can take the north London club back to the level they want to return to.

Arsenal fans, would you take Manga as the technical director?

Whether West Ham United really want European football next season is truly mind-boggling at the moment. The Hammers are impressive in some fixtures, whilst in others, they can be rather anonymous at times and look like the side of recent memory.

Understandably, this season was always going to be a transitional year for Manuel Pellegrini and the London Stadium outfit. On the scale of things, they look to have impressed and have significantly improved as a seventh-place finish is well within their grasp, however, their inconsistent performances have truly let them down when it matters.

West Ham spent unheard amounts of money last summer rebuilding their squad and turning it into the team that it is today, however, there are still some improvements that need to be made, especially within the midfield area and the creative side of things.

One rumour that has been circulating recently is that the Premier League outfit are interested in Borussia Dortmund’s Shinji Kagawa. Turkish media outlet Takvim have stated that the Irons are just one of a couple of clubs thought to be keen on the player who is believed to be available for a figure of around €12.5million (£10.7m).

He might be excelling on loan at Besiktas at the moment, and whilst the £10.7m transfer could appear to be appealing, it is a deal West Ham should look to avoid doing in the summer.

Yes, £10.7m is a very attractive price for a player who has plenty of experience of playing at the highest level, however, the 30-year-old is a player who did not have the best of times during his previous stint in the Premier League.

During his two-year spell at Manchester United, Kagawa was extremely disappointing and failed to replicate any of the performances that made him a star during his first spell with Dortmund. He struggled to make a real positive impression at Old Trafford as he showed that he could not handle the physicality of the Premier League and just could not adapt his game to the fast-paced action that English football has.

Injuries have also been a problem for the experienced playmaker in the past as well, which is an issue West Ham really cannot afford to be dealing with considering how many men they have had on the sidelines this season.

Yes, Kagawa has looked excellent in Turkey, but as a number of players (and clubs) have found out over the years, replicating that form in England is extremely difficult to do and something that rarely appears to pay off.

There’s no doubt that the 30-year-old could bring something to the midfield in terms of his passing ability and the talent he does have going forward, however, whether he would be able to replace Samir Nasri, for example, in the middle of the park would remain to be seen.

West Ham have other areas of the squad that need improving, whilst they might be able to find players with a little more quality than Kagawa available for a little more than the price tag he is believed to have – so avoiding him might just be best for the Hammers this summer.

West Ham fans, do you agree and think Kagawa wouldn’t offer anything new to the club? Or do you think he is a signing that the Hammers should take a risk on? Join in with the discussion below by sharing your thoughts with us.

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Loads of Celtic fans have been reacting to a post from the club’s official Twitter account, and they’re bemused by the lack of playing time for Timothy Weah.

Celtic have restored order since Neil Lennon’s arrival, pulling even further away from Rangers at the top of the league and reaching the semi-final of the Scottish Cup.

Despite their imperious form though, there are still question marks over the manager’s decisions, especially after he opted to start Mikey Johnston over both Oliver Burke and Weah last week at Dundee.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

Johnston’s performance was crucified by fans, and the latest post from the club has once again raised questions over the lack of opportunities for Weah in particular.

“Congrats to Timo Weah who was listed in the top 20 of the world’s best teenagers in GOAL.com’s NxGn 2019 awards,” read a post on the club’s Twitter account.

The club was of course confirming what we already knew, that Weah has been selected in GOAL.com’s NxGn wonderkid list, making the cut at no. 17.

Of course, this was met with tons of fans asking why you would celebrate a player’s abilities only to leave him rotting on the bench.

Weah has scored three times and added one assist in 12 appearances for the Bhoys, and the Twitter reactions down below are all saying the same thing…

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Sheffield United haven’t been halted in their tracks too many times this season but on Wednesday night Birmingham found a way to nullify them almost in perfect fashion.

Had it not been for Dean Henderson then the Blues may have claimed victory, rather than settling for a 1-1 draw.

But their approach to the game meant that United struggled, particularly in midfield. Oliver Norwood still showed positive signs but his midfield partner in John Fleck was almost a passenger as Birmingham overran them in that area of the pitch.

Their willingness to sit deep meant that the vast majority of passing lanes and routes to goal was blocked off. As such, the Blades’ three top assisters in the middle of the park; Norwood, Mark Duffy and Fleck were stifled.

The latter in particular found himself coming deep to get the ball and therefore couldn’t get into the pockets of space Chris Wilder would have liked him too.

John Fleck (Birmingham vs Sheffield United)

59 touches

81% pass accuracy

0 key passes

1 dribble

1 dispossession

(Stats courtesy of WhoScored)

Evidence of how Birmingham prevented him from getting into the game can be seen with the stats he finished the match with.

The number of touches Fleck had was the fourth-worst amount of any United outfield player, emphasising just how little impact he had. The same goes for his pass success percentage. He wasn’t terrible by any means, but it will have been concerning how easily he was stopped.

A lack of key passes and dribbles for the player shows how compact the Birmingham system was too, as the 27-year-old failed to provide his side with the impetus they needed. In a game where the Blades could have regained their advantage in the race for automatic promotion, it was not timely.

Who would make a combined Sheffield XI? Ingood Nick makes his picks in the video below…

Uncharacteristically he also lost the ball once. If any further evidence was needed of his below average display, that was it.

Fleck is still vital to this Sheffield United side but with every game between now and the end of the season proving vital, Wilder will have to ensure one of his key men isn’t marked out of the game again as he was this week.

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Mohamed Salah scored his 50th goal for Liverpool as the Reds beat Southampton 3-1 to move back to the top of the Premier League.

The Egypt international ended a run of six games without a goal with his superb strike versus Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men but his goal masked one of his poorest performances in recent weeks.

On the chalkboard

Per WhoScored, Salah had just two shots on goal throughout the game and was dispossessed a total of six times.

One could suggest that the latter tally came about as a result of a number of dribbles but the opposite is true; Salah did not even attempt one.

In total, the forward touched the ball 47 times and attempted 30 passes but only 20 were accurate.

He did complete two key passes but he was outmuscled in the air, winning just one of three aerial duels, while he failed to complete a tackle or an interception.

Salah may well have contributed a vital goal after a superb solo run but statistically, this was a remarkably flat performance from the 26-year-old.

Proof of world-class credentials

It is often said that most world-class players can go 89 minutes without contributing anything of note, only to win the game in the other one.

That was particularly true of Salah on Friday.

All in all, he did not really affect the match until his game-changing intervention.

It could well have gone wrong. He collected the ball on the edge of his own box and sprinted almost the length of the pitch before smashing the ball past Angus Gunn.

In recent weeks, he has missed chances like that.

With Liverpool chasing the Premier League title, perhaps it was fate that this time it hit the back of the net.

It certainly bodes well as the run-in approaches.

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To buy or not to buy is the question on everyone’s lips at Goodison Park.

From Marcel Brands right through to the supporters, the question of whether Andre Gomes is worth the 40 million euro (£34.1m) fee Barcelona could receive, per Marca, for the popular midfielder is a conundrum which splits the mind in two.

And the international break has added a fresh dynamic to consider in the equation in the shape of Sheffield United loanee Kieran Dowell.

On the chalkboard

The 21-year-old midfielder festered in Everton’s reserves for the first half of the season before he was sent to Bramall Lane in January.

An attacking midfielder by trade, Dowell has made a steady impact in 10 appearances for Chris Wilder’s promotion-chasing side, but his call-up to the England Under-21 side provided a fresh challenge for the budding Premier League talent.

Aidy Boothroyd opted to start Dowell at the base of his midfield against Poland and Tuesday night’s defeat against Germany saw him lying deep once again alongside Tom Davies.

Defensively he was a tad suspect in unfamiliar territory, but that was to be expected given his lack of experience.

In possession, however, Everton’s academy product was technically accomplished and showcased glimpses of his potential to operate in a deeper-lying role at club level.

Take a gamble

Dowell is not ready to immediately step into the side to replace Gomes, but the fact the Toffees faithful are not unanimously convinced by the Portugal international’s credentials suggests it’s a gamble not worth taking.

Rather than spending the best part of £34 million on the Barcelona playmaker, Silva should mould Dowell into a number 8 or number 6 to fill the creative void in midfield.

It’s a huge gamble which is unlikely to garner impressive short-term results as Dowell hasn’t made a single Premier League appearance since 2016.

But glimpses from his performances with both the Blades and the Three Lions suggest there is an untapped talent in waiting if Silva utilises him properly, one who could save the club tens of millions in the transfer market.

The next big thing to emerge at Goodison could be right under Brands’ nose.

It seems almost too obvious to say that time is running out for Alexis Sanchez at Manchester United.

However, if his somewhat impressive cameo in a sombre return to Camp Nou proved anything, there still might be a bit of fuel remaining in his career at Old Trafford.

After recovering from another injury, the Chilean returned with a different look to himself. Now he sports a fancy moustache making him look like someone from the ’80s. However, what he aims to do is roll back the years to prove why United were right in throwing so much resource to him.

Granted that Sanchez hasn’t had the most prolific season with United. He’s scored two goals in all competitions, frustrating fans with his shocking inefficiency in the final third, considering his quite frankly obscene weekly wage. However, a different incarnation of Sanchez was on show after receiving big applause on his return to his former hunting ground.

The Chilean looked much more agile and much fitter than before, moving around the final third like a bee. Just a stupidly paid one. Indeed, he created one decent chance with a clever lobbed ball which was eventually determined offside and almost scored a consolation when Diogo Dalot’s cross was briskly headed onto goal, only for Marc Andre ter-Stegen to expertly save Barcelona’s clean-sheet.

However, his overall contribution was quite impressive, as he looked to have more urgency to score than multiple inefficient teammates on the day.

Baby steps, of course, but Sanchez needs to gain confidence from his bright showing and quickly get his scoring boots on to make a big impact in the remaining games and redeem his failures at United.

United fans, do you think Sanchez can redeem his failures now? Join the discussion by commenting below…

Harry Redknapp may have won the hearts of the nation thanks to his recent TV escapades, but he has done precious little to convince the fans of the clubs he has left in ruin.

The former Birmingham manager has recently defended himself for his role in plunging the club into a state of financial ruin that could see them deducted 12 points, enough to land them into a relegation dogfight.

“It’s surely down to the people who run the club, like the chief executive and the chairman, or whoever, to know if we’ve got any money to spend,†he toldÂThe Daily Telegraph.

“I didn’t know anything about Financial Fair Play. I was never warned by anyone at the football club that there was going to be a problem with that,†he continued.

Adding, “I don’t think any of the signings were mine. I was taking John Ruddy on a free transfer from Norwich and instead they brought in David Stockdale from Brighton. The director of football [Jeff Vetere] wasn’t brought in by me either.â€

Unfortunately for Redknapp, the man who once terminated an interview after being referred to as a ‘wheeler dealer’, his account is hard to believe.

Disgraced presented Richard Keys had this to say in response via his Twitter account: “Of course he didn’t. Same bloke f****d up QPR Pompey & West Ham & might have done at Spurs but for Daniel Levy. Let’s hope he’s out of the game now and can’t do anymore damage – whoever he was.â€

Indeed, Spurs fans can find solace in the fact that Daniel Levy, for all his frugality in the transfer market, has turned the club into what it is today; they can sit comfortably knowing that the man in charge is, despite common misconceptions, doing the best he can for the club, and they will soon reap the benefits of his guidance.

This, of course, follows unrest over the club’s failure to sign any players in the previous two windows.

Tottenham fans, has this changed your opinion of Daniel Levy – and, if not, why? Let us know in the comments below…

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Reiss Nelson is one of the most exciting academy products to have emerged at Arsenal in recent years. The 19-year-old is widely considered as a future first-team talent, but his time in Germany has not been as fruitful as fans expected at the start of the season.

Initially, Julian Nagelsmann slowly introduced Nelson into the first-team and his faith in the youngster paid dividends.

The loanee notched six goals and provided one assist in his first seven Bundesliga appearances, impressing fans of both his temporary and parent club in the process.

But the hype which surrounded the early phase of his loan spell diminished after he struggled to maintain his early season form.

First-team opportunities have been at a premium and he has now gone 11 games without providing a single goal contribution.

However, a change of scenery seemed to do the trick for the struggling youngster on Thursday evening, as Nelson provided an assist for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to give England’s Under-21s the lead against Poland.

It was a moment of relief for the goal and assist-shy attacker, and plenty of the Gunners faithful on Twitter took the opportunity to laud his contribution.

And fans of the England national side and the north London giants will surely be hoping he can use his international impact to transform his form at Hoffenheim during the final weeks of his season-long loan deal.

Here’s what the Arsenal fans had to say about Nelson’s Under-21 display: