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Saturday in the Premier League sees a crucial clash as two of the bottom three go head-to-head, with Wolverhampton Wanderers taking on Ipswich Town at Molineux.

Wolves are undefeated in seven league meetings with the Tractor Boys, beaten during only one of their 16 encounters in the Black County since 1991, but could really do with a victory in this one, considering both sides kick off four points from safety.

Following Monday night’s 2-1 defeat at West Ham, the Old Gold have won only three of their last 25 Premier League matches, dating back to early-March, pressure is really starting to mount on Gary O’Neil, desperately requiring a victory either here or at Leicester next Sunday, or potentially from both, if he’s to remain in charge this Christmas.

So, ahead of this huge relegation six-pointer, we assess the biggest selection dilemma O’Neil is facing.

João Gomes' suspension

Having collected his fifth yellow card of the campaign at the London Stadium on Monday, João Gomes will sit out Saturday’s crucial clash with Ipswich suspended.

Chalkboard

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

He had been carefully treading this tightrope for six matches beforehand, but was cautioned by referee John Brooks shortly after the hour mark during the defeat at West Ham.

This is a big blow considering Gomes has racked up 1,273 minutes in the Premier League this season, the second-most of any Wolves player, a mere ten minutes fewer than Rayan Aït-Nouri, starting all 15 fixtures and scoring two goals, finding the net against both Crystal Palace and Fulham.

So, could Wolves’ forgotten man fill Gomes’ void this weekend?

The perfect Wolves replacement for Gomes

When Hwang Hee-chan arrived from RB Leipzig in 2021, initially on loan with a £14m option to make the deal permanent, which was taken up, he did so to much excitement.

Nubaid Haroon described him as “exciting” and, given that the South Korean international had scored 45 times for RB Salzburg, 11 of these goals coming in UEFA competitions, it was easy to understand why.

The highlight of Hwang’s time in the Black County to date remains the winner he scored against Manchester City last season, coming days after Pep Guardiola, rather patronisingly and dismissively, named Wolves’ front three as “Neto, Cunha and the Korean Guy”.

Overall,the 28-year-old has scored 22 goals for Wolverhampton Wanderers to date, yet to get off the mark this season, following by some considerable margin his best campaign in an Old Gold shirt last time round.

As outlined in the table above, 2023/24 was by far Hwang’s most productive campaign at Wolves, ending the season as their joint-top scorer in the Premier League, alongside Cunha.

However, this season, he’s yet to score, register an assist or even take a shot in just 300 minutes on the field.

Since suffering an ankle ligament injury during Korea Republic’s World Cup qualifying victory over Jordan in Amman back in October, Hwang has made just three cameo appearances off the bench, the longest of which was a 33-minute appearance at Goodison earlier this month, remaining amongst the substitutes on Monday night, despite the urgent need for an equaliser.

This weekend though, in Gomes’ absence, now is surely the time for O’Neil to unleash Hwang, starting him alongside the aforementioned Cunha, as well as Jørgen Strand Larsen, both of whom have been impressive this season, when Ipswich visit on Saturday.

Imagine him & Cunha: Wolves can land perfect Mourinho signing in £16m star

Wolves are looking to add goals to their team

By
Joe Nuttall

Dec 12, 2024

Aston Villa and Tottenham are looking to battle Liverpool to the signing of Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes, a report claims.

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• Gomes signed new Wolves deal this week
• Premier League sides still want to sign him
• Liverpool, Spurs & Villa all eyeing midfielder

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The midfielder signed a new contract with Wolves on Tuesday, tying him to the Premier League team until 2030. Nevertheless, reports that a few Premier League teams are still determined to lure him away from Molineux Stadium in the summer.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The report says that Gomes has no release clause in his new contract, giving Wolves the power to demand a large fee for his services, with Spurs, Villa and Liverpool all said to be eager to snap him up.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  The 24-year-old joined Wolves from Brazilian side Flamengo in January 2023 and quickly established himself as a first-team regular. He is aiming for a starting spot in Brazil's starting XI at the World Cup in 2026. He has 10 caps to his name, last starting for the Selecao in July last year.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  With Wolves lingering near the bottom of the Premier League, Gomes could feel he would benefit from a step up in the near future, especially with the World Cup on the way.

Wolverhampton Wanderers have made a £5 million bid to appoint an “unbelievable” manager, according to a new report. Gary O’Neil’s position as Wolves manager has been under threat for a large part of the season, but the pressure has been intensifying in the last week or so, given they have just won two league games and are four points adrift of 17th place Crystal Palace.

10x ball lost: The next Wolves boss must ruthlessly ditch 5/10 Wolves dud

Gary O’Neil could be relieved of his Wolverhampton Wanderers duties very soon.

By
Kelan Sarson

Dec 10, 2024

Wolves manager latest

Wolves’ defeat to the Hammers is likely going to pile the pressure on O’Neil even more, with many probably expecting the Englishman to have been sacked by now. However, reports have stated that O’Neil is expected to be in the dugout for the game against Ipswich Town at Molineux on the weekend.

It is likely seen as the last chance for O’Neil, as defeat to the Tractor Boys will surely end his time in charge at the Midlands side. Talk regarding who could replace O’Neil has been ongoing for a while now, as Graham Potter, Rob Edwards and David Moyes have all been mentioned as options.

Potter and Moyes are currently unemployed, with their last jobs being at Chelsea and West Ham, respectively. Meanwhile, Edwards is in charge of Luton Town, but it has been a difficult time for the Hatters of late, and he may relish the chance to manage back in the Premier League.

It has also been reported that Wolves may have another option in mind, and that is West Brom’s Carlos Corberan. The Spaniard has been impressive in management so far and has done a good job at the Hawthorns. That has caught the attention of Wolves, but it would be unusual for Wolves to go after a manager who is in charge of their arch-rivals.

Wolves make £5m bid to appoint "unbelievable" José Mourinho

According to Turkish outlet AS Marca, Wolves have made a £5 million bid to appoint Jose Mourinho as their new manager. The Portuguese is currently in charge of Turkish giants Fenerbahçe and has been since the summer, and given the fee involved this may be one to take with a pinch of salt.

Mourinho, who was dubbed “unbelievable” by former Chelsea captain John Terry, was in charge of Serie A side AS Roma at the start of the year but left that role after being sacked by the Italian side. The 63-year-old had to wait six months but got back into management in July, as he was appointed Fenerbahçe boss on a two-year deal.

Overall, it has been a relatively successful spell so far, as he’s overseen 23 games in all competitions, winning 14, drawing five, and losing four. Fener are six points behind leaders Galatasaray, having played the same games, while the Turkish side sits 15th in the Europa League table.

This report claims that Wolves have made a £5 million bid to release Mourinho out of his Fenerbahçe contract. The Midlands side are apparently keen on bringing the Portuguese back to the Premier League as soon as possible. It remains unclear if Mourinho would be interested in a move back to England and especially a team second from bottom, as he stated to Sky Sports in October that he wouldn’t manage a team fighting relegation.

Mourinho said: “I’m never going to a team fighting relegation. I will never go. But I’m not going to fight relegation. It’s too hard! Honestly, I believe that has to be the hardest thing.

“It’s more difficult than playing for titles. It has to be very hard emotionally because it’s something that changes lives. I think it’s brave guys that do it.”

White, who has been in the role since February 2012, said it “feels like the right time to step aside”

ESPNcricinfo staff10-May-2023New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White has announced his decision to step down from the role in August.White, who took over the position in February 2012, is just the fourth chief executive after Chris Doig, Martin Snedden and Justin Vaughan to lead NZC since the adoption of the Hood Report recommendations in 1995.”NZC is in a secure financial position with a solid balance sheet and long-term commercial agreements in place,” he said in a statement. “The BLACKCAPS are strong; women’s cricket is healthy, our high performance programme is producing excellence, and the community game is stable. It feels like the right time to step aside.”During White’s tenure, the New Zealand men’s team won the inaugural World Test Championship and reached the final of the World Cup three times (one T20 and two 50-over World Cups). Under him, New Zealand also took a big step towards pay equality, announcing that their women cricketers will earn the same match fees as the men under a new five-year deal in 2022.”David’s legacy has been immense,” Snedden, now serving as NZC board chair, said. “Our high performance systems have never been stronger, our cricket network has a level of financial security and stability never before experienced, and the future for women and girls has never been brighter.”David’s commercial acumen has driven revenue, enabling increased investment across the organisation. His administrative skills have unearthed unique, bespoke solutions for our high-performance programmes and infrastructure – no better illustrated than in the all-weather, turf-based training facilities now located throughout the country.”White, a former Test cricketer, had also served as chief executive of Auckland Rugby and, before that chief executive of Wellington Rugby before taking up the NZC role.”Under David, cricket in New Zealand has become far more inclusive, especially in regard to women and girls, our tangata whenua, and our Pasifika communities,” Snedden added.”When you think of how he navigated the Covid-19 pandemic, preserving the integrity of the community, domestic and international game, and his strong influence at ICC level, it makes you realise just how lucky we’ve been to have him at the helm.”

Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney and Tom Brady may soon have added competition, with Leyton Orient's takeover plan including an American football team.

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• Hollywood co-owners in North Wales
• NFL legend involved with the Blues
• Orient drawing up ambitious project

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  The O’s are currently competing alongside Wrexham and Birmingham in League One. They have seen famous investors at SToK Racecourse and St Andrew’s enjoy considerable success, while attracting a global audience to EFL action.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Orient plan to jump aboard that bandwagon, with reporting that a US-based consortium are closing in on an £18 million ($23m) takeover. It has already been announced that exclusive negotiations have been opened regarding a potential change of ownership in east London.

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  It is claimed that said proposal includes the option for an American football franchise to be formed, which would operate in the European League of Football. That 16-team competition does not yet include a side from Great Britain.

• TELL ME MORE

  Ambitious blueprints are being drawn up by TV executive David Gandler, a former Warner Bros executive and founder of fuboTV. Tech and sports entrepreneur Kit Hawkins, who owns a stake in the TMRW Golf League formed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, is also involved. As is Neil Leibman, an executive at the Texas Rangers Major League Baseball franchise.

Manchester United and Arsenal, among other clubs, have reportedly been scouting two highly-rated Greek talents from Olympiacos over the last months.

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• Arsenal and Man Utd interested in Greek starlets
• Mouzakitis and Kostoulas highly-rated star
• Olympiacos chief sounds a warning to interested sides

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Olympiacos starlets Christos Mouzakitis and Charalampos Kostoulas are considered to be two shining stars of Greece's upcoming golden generation. The pair have been scouted by multiple clubs over the last few months, and The Daily Mail has reported that Premier League giants Arsenal and Manchester United are two of those sides.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Mouzakitis is a left-footed central midfielder and made his senior debut for Greece against Finland last November to become the youngest player ever to do so. Kostoulas, on the other hand, is a number nine or a second striker. Despite the interest, Olympiacos sporting director Darko Kovacevic has claimed that Kostoulas will stay at the club this summer.

• WHAT KOVACEVIC SAID

  Speaking to the media, Kovacevic said: "There is growing interest in him, but he is an Olympiacos player. He will stay at Olympiacos for sure this season, and I hope for longer."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR THE TWO STARLETS?

  Mouzakitis and Kostoulas are likely to stay at Olympiacos for at least another season, partially due to their long contracts with the Greek giants.

West Ham United have now been offered an ex-Chelsea manager as a potential replacement for Julen Lopetegui, with the Spaniard facing his last chance saloon against Wolves in the Premier League on Monday.

Julen Lopetegui could be fired if West Ham fail to beat Wolves

It has been reported by reliable media sources that Lopetegui has been given one last chance to save his job against Wolves (The Telegraph), with insiders viewing the all-important clash as a “cup final” in terms of the 58-year-old’s future.

West Ham approach Chelsea over signing "fast" £120k-per-week ace in January

The Hammers are looking for winter reinforcements to help save their season.

By
Emilio Galantini

Dec 7, 2024

A disastrous start to the season for Lopetegui was exacerbated by demoralising defeats to Arsenal and Leicester City last week, which piled even more pressure on the Spaniard, who’s led West Ham to just four league wins so far this season.

Lopetegui has been slammed on various occasions for his tactics, player selection and overall approach to games – with calls to relieve the ex-Spain boss of his duties prevalent long before the last few days.

There have been reports that “several” senior West Ham stars are not behind their manager, and other media sources believe that Lopetegui has frustrated key club figures with last-minute changes to game plans (GiveMeSport).

In response, the Hammers are drawing up contingency plans in case they’re forced to fire their current head coach, with reliable club source ExWHUemployee revealing earlier this week that they’ve held talks with multiple managers already.

Graham Potter, Sergio Conceicao, Kasper Hjulmand, Roger Schmidt, Thomas Frank, Edin Terzic, Massimiliano Allegri and Matthias Jaissle have all been linked with the potentially vacant post this week.

New candidates are emerging on a consistent basis, with former Chelsea, Juventus, Napoli and Lazio boss Maurizio Sarri also in the frame.

West Ham offered ex-Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri to replace Julen Lopetegui

Sources in Italy last month reported that West Ham have been considering Sarri as an option, and French news outlet Foot Mercato now backs this up with a new claim.

Indeed, it is believed West Ham have been “offered” Sarri, with David Sullivan and Tim Steidten apparently open to the possibility of handing him a job back in the Premier League.

Famed for his brand of “Sarri-ball”, which was successful at Napoli and drew admirers, the tactician boasts a Europa League triumph from his time at Chelsea and a Scudetto from his period in the dugout at Juve.

Called “extraordinary” on a tactical level by his former star midfielder Jorginho, the 65-year-old won Serie A’s Manager of the Year award in 2016/17 and guided Lazio to second place a year before he left the Stadio Olimpico.

Sarri does have major credentials, and if supporters want to see attacking football, he could be a good option considering that the Italian is known for being an offensive-minded coach (The Football Analyst).

Stats highlights from the first day of The Oval Test

S Rajesh20-Aug-201562.77 The average opening partnership for Australia in this series; England’s average opening stand in the first four Tests is 14.00. The top six opening stands in this series – each over 50 – have all come from Warner and Chris Rogers. England’s best opening stand in the series is 32.2053 Partnership runs between Rogers and Warner, the highest by any pair in Tests since the beginning of 2012. They’ve averaged 51.32 per completed stand, with nine century partnerships, which is also the highest among all pairs.94.42 Australia’s average opening partnership in Tests at The Oval since 2000, easily their highest among all venues in England during this period.87 Balls before Australia got their first boundary of the innings, when David Warner pulled Ben Stokes off the 88th delivery of the morning. Since 2002, there have been only four instances when the first boundary of a Test match has taken longer – by India against West Indies in Jamaica, 2006, (first boundary off the 114th ball), Bangladesh against Sri Lanka in Colombo, 2013, (107th ball), South Africa against England, in Durban, 2009, (95th ball), and India against West Indies, in Barbados, 2011 (89th ball). In the first hour this morning (14 overs), the Australian openers played 70 dots.2006 Rogers’ Test aggregate, with all his runs coming at the opening slot. Among openers who’ve debuted after the age of 30, Rogers’ aggregate is easily the highest – the next-best is 1231, by England’s Brian Luckhurst.6 Fifty-plus scores for Warner in 15 Test innings in England. However, the highest among them is today’s 85; his other 50-plus scores are 64, 77, 83, 52 (all in this series), and 71, in 2013. His previous five half-centuries had all been scored in the team’s second innings. Warner has also achieved the distinction of getting a half-century in each Test of this series.101 The unbroken fourth-wicket stand between Steven Smith and Adam Voges. In seven previous fourth-wicket stands in this series, Australia’s highest was 43, and their average 17.57. This is only Australia’s second century stand for any wicket other than the first in this series.

Right-hander shed his white-ball specialist tag with a brilliant career-best 128 to put WA on the cusp of back-to-back Sheffield Shield titles

Tristan Lavalette25-Mar-2023As his first-class career stalled, unable to break back into Western Australia’s powerful batting order, Ashton Turner made a conscious decision last year to focus on the shorter formats.It seemed to be a wise move with Turner enjoying a spectacular recent BBL season, where he had a bounce back with the bat to lead Perth Scorchers’ title defence.Even though his stock has been rising in the T20 format, underlined by being bandied around as a captaincy replacement for recently retired Aaron Finch, 30-year-old Turner never wavered over his desire to again play for WA in the Sheffield Shield.After some self-doubt during a long exile from red-ball cricket, Turner’s determination and temperament manifested superbly with a drought-breaking century to lead WA’s stranglehold of the Shield final over Victoria.Related

• Ashton Turner: 'As confident in my leadership as I've ever been'

“Overnight the game was evenly poised. We knew the first session was going to be really important, so to be able to play a role in getting us in front of the game at stumps is very satisfying,” said a typically measured Turner after day three.”There’s definitely stages where I thought that my red-ball career had passed me by. I sat and watched us win the Shield last year and couldn’t poke many holes in that side.”Having only returned to the line-up last week against Victoria, after last playing in the Shield in October 2020, Turner’s experience and composure was needed after WA slumped to 4 for 53 on day two in reply to 195.In a similar vein to his repeated BBL heroics, Turner decided to counterattack on a seaming green-tinged WACA surface and motored to 28 off 20 balls.He particularly took on short-pitched bowling from impressive young quick Mitchell Perry with muscular batting to quickly change the game’s momentum.”Often when wickets have fallen, emotions are running high,” Turner said. “[I] try to play on skill and I’ve got a game plan…try to stick to that as much as I could.”Obviously you need to be adaptable to the conditions, but I’m really clear how I want to bat. It’s the opposition’s job to try and drag me away from the game plan.”He started day three stuck on his overnight score of 49 for 40 minutes before his rhythm returned as Turner notched his fourth first-class century just before lunch.Ashton Turner made his 4th Sheffield Shield century•Getty Images

The milestone evoked thunderous applause from his teammates and recently retired WA great Shaun Marsh to underline Turner’s standing within the team’s inner sanctum”I’ve had periods where I haven’t been scoring runs and playing well and not being picked in teams,” Turner said. “In those moments, you try to go back to basics and go back to the process.”I feel like I’m playing well and things are going my way. I try to stay as level as I can because when things aren’t going well I try not to beat myself up.”After their quicks tore into Victoria’s batting order late on day three, WA are on the brink of a historic treble of domestic titles for the second straight season following a period largely in the wilderness.”As a kid growing up in Western Australia, I was probably the last generation that grew up putting red-ball cricket on a pedestal,” Turner said.”I watched many great West Australian teams but probably not produce the silverware they would have liked.”To be part of a shifting of the culture and fortunes of WA cricket…it’s a goal we’ve had and built towards.”

The former USMNT player stated that Mexico should not be overconfident in the match against the Canucks.

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• Mexico and Canada will face off this Thursday for a spot in the Nations League Final.

• El Tri is on a three-match winless streak against the Canucks.

• Mexico reached the Semifinals after defeating Honduras, while Canada did the same against Suriname.

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Marcelo Balboa, former USMNT star and Club León player, warned the Mexican National Team not to be overconfident in Thursday's match against Canada, calling them "the team in the region that is in the best form."

  In light of this, Balboa urged Mexico not to overlook Canada.

  "The key is that the Mexican National Team can play a great match, but Canada has a strong squad and individuals who can change the outcome in an instant," Balboa said in an interview with the Mexican newspaper El Universal.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Mexico had their final training session on Wednesday in the Sports Dignity Health Stadium ahead of the match against Canada on Thursday. Javier Aguirre was able to count on a full squad after goalkeeper Carlos Moreno reported late due to issues with his visa. The former USMNT player, who also played in Mexican football with León, stated that this match will be "the early final" and that neither team "should be overconfident."

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  WHAT MARCELO BALBOA SAID

  "It will be the early final of the Nations League, the best semifinal, but neither team can be overconfident -anything can happen on the field," Balboa said.

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  Mexico dominate the head-to-head matchup against Canada with 21 victories, while have won 5 times, with 10 draws recorded. Despite dominance, they have not been able to defeat the North Americans in their last three encounters.

  As of today, Javier Aguirre has coached 61 matches with the Tri, achieving 38 victories, 10 draws, and 13 losses. This represents a 61 percent win rate and a 66.6 percent points earned rate.