Tag Futebol

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If Aston Villa are to sign Maxi Gomez this summer then they’d have to part company with £43.5m of their transfer budget.

It’s a deal that would surely put activity in other areas beyond the realms of possibility, but if the club want to make a statement going into the Premier League, this would be it.

The Villans have completed shrewd deals for Jota and Anwar El Ghazi already this summer, whilst Kortney Hause could also arrive for £3m.

Yet a deal for Gomez would blow this out of the water. Speaking on the radio show Tiempo de Futbol on Sport 890 on 6 June, Ney Castillo, the president of his former team, admitted that Villa had an interest.

This came amid one of the club’s scouts revealing his admiration for the player, per Marca.

It’s a deal that seems unlikely given the fee, but if they are to part ways with the necessary funds, the Uruguayan could bring an asset to their front line that wasn’t seen as frequently when Tammy Abraham was at the club.

Last term, the Chelsea loanee won on average 3.1 aerial duels per match. His potential successor won four per game.

Standing at 6 ft 1, the 22-year-old is a force to be reckoned with in the air, winning 140 aerial duels in La Liga over the course of the 2018/19 season.

Abraham, on the other hand, won 121 in five more matches, a statistic that proves Gomez has a better presence when the ball is in the air.

Abraham was a physical player, but when it comes to Villa’s reported target, he is a different animal, that’s despite only scoring 13 times. Though, given his steely nature he could be a real asset in the Premier League.

In a 1-1 draw with Getafe back in October, the Celta Vigo striker won a colossal ten headers.

Meanwhile, in a 2-0 win over Barcelona last month, a game he scored in, Gomez was victorious in six aerial duels.

Next term Villa aren’t likely to enjoy as much possession as they did in the Championship. Therefore, playing the ball into a striker with the sheer presence the Uruguay international possesses could be extremely beneficial.

كشف المدير الفني لفريق تشيلسي فرانك لامبارد طبيعة إصابة اللاعب حكيم زياش والتي تعرض لها في مباراة الأمس أمام ليدز يونايتد في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وفاز تشيلسي بثلاثة أهداف مقابل هدف في الجولة الحادية عشر على ملعب ستامفورد بريدج.

ولم يتمكن زياش من استكمال المباراة، حيث اضطر إلى الخروج في الدقيقة 30، وشارك بدلًا منه زميله كريستيان بوليسيتش. إصابة زياش في مباراة تشيلسي وليدز

وقال لامبارد في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “زياش يعاني من إصابة في عضلات الفخذ الخلفية”.

وأضاف: “سنكتشف في الأيام القليلة المقبلة حجم الإصابة”.

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Moussa Sissoko has been the “unexpected star” of the season, according to Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp, per the Daily Mail.

What’s he said?

Sissoko has enjoyed an exceptional campaign at Tottenham Hotspur, helping the club to the Champions League final and playing a key role in their top-four finish.

He has made 43 appearances in all competitions this term, laying on a total of four assists, and played in both legs of the astonishing European semi-final triumph over Ajax.

His form this season has been in sharp contrast to his displays after he joined the club from Newcastle United, with his first touch seeming to have deserted him and his passing ability all but non-existent.

In 2018-19, however, he has been relentless in central midfield, setting the tempo for Mauricio Pochettino’s team and becoming an invaluable asset, particularly after the January sale of Mousa Dembele.

And Redknapp has praised the Frenchman, writing in the Daily Mail, about the surprise of the season: “Moussa Sissoko’s emergence as Tottenham’s midfield powerhouse.

“I was not alone in thinking that Sissoko would be heading for the exit door last summer. Instead, injuries to Harry Winks and the sale of Mousa Dembele forced Mauricio Pochettino to move Sissoko into the middle.

“It proved a masterstroke — and only underlines just how much Pochettino improves players.”

Don’t question him ever again

Sissoko has proved a lot of doubters wrong and so too has Pochettino.

It seemed like he was flogging a dead horse by continuing to include the midfielder in his selections.

But, this season, he has been perhaps the best midfielder outside of the top two in the Premier League; certainly, he has had an untold influence on Spurs’ campaign.

It is remarkable, really, when one thinks about it and Pochettino has earned the right to never be questioned again by his supporters when it comes to his faith in certain players.

After all, ‘doing a Sissoko’ is sure to enter football parlance for those who go from zero to hero, all after his exceptional 2018-19.

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Sunderland were on course to take the fight for automatic promotion to the final day as they led Fleetwood Town for 44 minutes during their League One clash at Highbury on Tuesday night, but a late collapse ensured they were officially consigned to the play-offs.

Defeat for Portsmouth on the same night meant that the Black Cats had the perfect chance to jump above the south coast club in the table and still have something to play for this weekend, even if they needed a win and a goal difference swing.

However goals from Paddy Madden and Ashley Eastham in the final 17 minutes ensured that wasn’t going to happen.

Sunderland fans have suffered a lot of heartache over the years but one fan manages to pick his ultimate low in the video below…

The latter found the net in the 94th minute to rub salt into the visitors’ wounds, with Jack Ross’ men struggling for form and only taking only two points from the previous nine available ahead of their trip to Southend United on Saturday.

Midfielder Lee Cattermole is known for his committed performances – and yellow cards – on the pitch, and you may have expected that he in particular would have been furious after the late goal that ensured the Mackems would return to Wearside with no points.

However, the 31-year-old instead cut a forlorn figure as you can see from the photograph above, which indicates the lack of confidence he and his teammates have right now.

Sunderland need to pull themselves together in the coming days and weeks if they are to secure an instant return to the Championship, especially given they could face either Pompey or an in-form Charlton Athletic in the play-off semi-finals.

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Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool could play each other in the first all-English Champions League final since 2008, leaving Spurs fans in a state of shock.

The Reds produced a genuinely miraculous comeback on Tuesday evening, overturning a 3-0 deficit against Barcelona with an astonishing 4-0 victory at Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp’s men will find out their opponents in Madrid on Wednesday, with Spurs set to take on Ajax in Amsterdam.

Tottenham lost 1-0 to the Dutch giants in the first leg in north London but will perhaps take heart from the amazing feats of their Premier League counterparts; they know that a victory by two goals or more would see them through.

And Spurs fans have called on their players to take inspiration from the Reds as the club yet again try to upset the odds in Europe.

They had taken one point from their first three games of the group stages, but staged a fight-back to qualify for the latter stages, before thumping Borussia Dortmund and somehow scraping past Manchester City.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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Georginio Wijnaldum has been in good form for Liverpool this season, making 37 appearances in all competitions for Jurgen Klopp’s side.

The midfielder has not received too many plaudits, but certainly performs an important role for a Liverpool team chasing success in the Premier League and Champions League.

Wijnaldum has made 129 appearances for the Reds since a 2016 move from Newcastle United, but his current deal will expire at the end of the 2020-21 campaign.

There has not yet been any news on the 28-year-old’s contract situation.

The Liverpool fans, however, have been on social media calling for an announcement on the 5 ft 9 ace.

It seems likely that the Reds will look to sign a new attacking midfielder this summer, but Wijnaldum has again shown his class at Anfield this season and will surely want to stay with the Premier League title challengers.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Liverpool supporters can be seen below:

تعرض فريق نابولي الإيطالي للهزيمة أمام نظيره إي زد ألكمار الهولندي، بهدف دون رد في منافسات الدوري الأوروبي.

وحل ألكمار ضيفًا على نابولي بملعب “سان باولو”، ضمن مواجهات الجولة الأولى للمسابقة الأوروبية.

وسجل جاسبر كارلسون هدف الفوز لـ ألكمار في الدقيقة 57 من الشوط الثاني للمباراة.

في المجموعة ذاتها، فاز ريال سوسيداد على ريجيكا الكرواتي بهدف دون رد، سجله جون باوتسستا في الدقيقة الثالثة من الوقت المحتسب بدلاً من الضائع.

What a missed opportunity that was! Manchester United had the chance to reach an FA Cup semi-final where only Manchester City looked a threat, but they blew it and it proves how right United are not give Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the job just yet.

The attacking football has been exciting. It’s fast, it’s dynamic and it does what Jose Mourinho failed to do in his tenure, get the most out of their wealth of forward-facing talent. However, when they lose the ball, the whole United side looks at sea and that’s down to Solskjaer’s careless nature.

There’s a reason he didn’t succeed at Cardiff, and that’s because they weren’t organised enough to deal with playing against teams who had more of the ball and were better than them, which was probably every team in the Premier League at the time. This weakness is shown less at United because they’re on the front foot in most games, but it rears its head on occasions.

Wolves are confident on their home turf, and it showed in their ability to retain the ball and attack with intent. That will have been encouraged by their knowledge that Solskjaer’s side are there for the taking if you go at them. PSG at Old Trafford and Arsenal last week proved this.

It’s clear United need investment at the back in the summer. Jose Mourinho obviously knew it, and that seems to be the reason why he didn’t feel he could attack with the freedom the current manager is doing. If he did, then United would struggle to defend the large spaces they leave at the back, just as they did against Wolves.

Mourinho would most probably have won that game on Saturday, and it once again shows that United must be cautious not to make a romantic appointment and bide their time to see if the Norweigan wises up defensively between now and the end of the season.

Man United fans, do you think the Wolves defeat was Solskjaer’s fault or his players’? Join the discussion by commenting below…

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According to The Express and Star, West Brom’s Zhang Yuning, previously on loan at ADO Den Haag, has returned to The Hawthorns before a proposed move to an unnamed Chinese Super League.

The Chinese striker, signed in 2017, is expected to depart for the East next week with zero minutes in Baggies blue and white under his belt.

The 22-year-old will not be returning to England to train in B71, instead leaving straight for China to finalise his move. Fortunately for the Baggies, the player has cost them nothing in fees as owner Guochuan Lai financed the transfer himself and paid his wages.

Who do you want to see promoted this year? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have picked their 3 favoured teams in the video below…

Lai had surely been hoping that the hitman would significantly boost the Midlands club’s fanbase in Asia and perhaps develop into a useful player, but that hasn’t been the case as he has been unable to secure a work permit in England.

Here’s how the West Brom faithful reacted to the news on Twitter…

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Arsenal are interested in the prospect of signing Jean-Philippe Gbamin from Mainz this summer, per The Daily Express.

The Gunners, according to the report, tabled a bid for the 23-year-old last summer as they looked to bolster their defence.

And after failing to secure a defensive reinforcement in the January transfer window, it is reported that the club have reignited their interest in Gbamin.

Mainz, the Express report, value Gbamin at around £40million and it remains to be seen if Arsenal will be willing to match that asking price.

Football FanCast look at the potential consequences of the Gunners securing the defender’s services…

Mustafi sold

Shkodran Mustafi has been a walking disaster zone in recent seasons.

The defender has done nothing to mark himself out as a Premier League-level centre-back since his move from Valencia in 2016.

Arsenal paid £35m to take him away from the Spanish club and, after a half-decent start, his stay in north London has been characterised by hesitant defending and a number of high-profile gaffes.

Check out Neymar’s controversial new haircut for 2019 and Xherdan Shaqiri as you’ve never seen him before in the video below…

Bringing in Gbamin is something of a risk, as he has never played Premier League football, but it would allow Unai Emery to move Mustafi on.

Arsenal are not likely to turn a profit on the Germany international, but they can shift him off the books and ensure they do not have to suffer many more mistakes from the 26-year-old.

Arsenal turn to youth

Arsenal have a history of signing young players and embedding them into the first-team. Gbamin is just 23 and his signing could mark something of a change in recent transfer strategy.

The likes of Stephan Lichtsteiner, Sokratis, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are all over the age of 28 and have joined the club in recent seasons.

But securing Gbamin would be more akin to the signing of 19-year-old Matteo Guendouzi, offering fans hope of a potential switch to bringing in younger, more promising players.

It must be said, of course, that the defender already has an international pedigree – he has won five caps for the Ivory Coast and has also made over 80 appearances for Mainz, who are understandably keen to hold onto one of their prized assets.

Emery allowed control over transfers

After the departure of Sven Mislintat as the club’s Head of Recruitment, it appears that some of his responsibility may well fall to Emery.

And that would be good news for Arsenal fans.

Emery has been trying to implement a very specific style in recent months and has repeatedly had to place round pegs in square holes.

Allowing the manager the chance to have the final say on transfers offers up the prospect of Arsenal recruiting players who suit his style, and who can instantly adapt to life in the Premier League.

Gbamin may well be one such acquisition. He was pursued by the club in the summer and Emery now appears ready to go back with another bid.

That is a high recommendation for the young Ivorian, but it remains to be seen if the deal gets done. If it is, Emery deserves a lot of the credit.