Newcastle accelerate pursuit of £60m striker who now wants move to Tyneside

Newcastle United are in the hunt for a striker this summer and Eddie Howe may be growing in confidence that he can land a proven Premier League marksman, according to a report.

Newcastle United's search for reinforcements

Eddie Howe has become something of a recruitment specialist at St James’ Park, producing an excellent track record that means more additions become hits than not when convinced to move to Tyneside.

Hoping to continue that feat, Keith Wyness reckons Newcastle may sacrifice some stars to expand their potential to spend even with the threat of PSR being a live consideration to ponder.

Newcastle United managerEddieHoweapplauds fans after the match

He stated: “It used to be that when you sold a big player, you had loads of money to spend. Newcastle are going to have to work hard in this window.

“I think there will be some disposals. Sean Longstaff may have to move on, and there will be others going too. Anything that will allow Newcastle to spend as big as they can, they will do.”

That much may be true, but where do Newcastle plan to strengthen their arsenal? According to reports, Manchester City star Jack Grealish could move to Tyneside, potentially adding a sprinkle of European pedigree as the Geordies prepare for a return to the Champions League.

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Brentford’s Mikkel Damsgaard is also wanted by Newcastle, demonstrating that they mean business in a summer that could produce a fair amount of incomings and exits in the North East.

Evaluating their forward line, the Geordies now have one of the Premier League’s hottest properties on their radar and confidence is growing over their chances of landing his services.

Newcastle United accelerate move for Joao Pedro

According to The Telegraph, Newcastle are confident they can strike a deal for Brighton & Hove Albion’s Joao Pedro as his future on the South Coast becomes increasingly uncertain.

The Brazilian forward is open to a move to the North East and is admired by Howe and his coaching staff due to a degree of versatility than can see him feature through the middle or on either flank.

Joao Pedro’s Premier League statistics in 2024/25 (Fotmob)

Shots

47

Shots on target

20

Chances created

30

Completed dribbles

29

Aerial duels won

42

Labelled “amazing” by Billy Gilmour, Pedro registered ten goals and seven assists in 30 appearances across all competitions this term as the Seagulls narrowly missed out on a place in Europe.

Internally, there is now a feeling that Newcastle can complete a deal to sign the former Watford striker, though there is still plenty of work to be done before that dream can become a reality.

Alexander Isak is the main man in attack for the Geordies. Nevertheless, Pedro is a force to be reckoned with at full flight and could be another dangerous asset against opposition domestically and on the continent.

Gardner makes early statement but wary of England fightback

The allrounder revealed she has been nursing an elbow problem after a matchwinning display to start the Ashes

Valkerie Baynes12-Jan-2025Confidence can go a long way, but it can be quickly over-run and Australia are well aware of both dimensions as they carry the first points of the Women’s Ashes into Tuesday’s second ODI in Melbourne.A four-wicket win led by Ash Gardner’s all-round effort and Alyssa Healy’s half-century in the series opener – worth two points – at North Sydney Oval gave the hosts an early upper hand.But, having gone 6-0 up in the 2023 Ashes in England only to draw eight-all, means this year’s hosts will be checking any natural instinct to feel like they’re properly on top. Adding to their caution will be the fact that England threatened – ever so fleetingly – to make what looked like a straightforward run chase for Australia more difficult than they would have liked.Related

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Alice Capsey’s spilled catch off Ellyse Perry on 7 didn’t prove overly costly after Lauren Bell bowled the dangerous Australian allrounder for 14. But what might have been if Sophie Ecclestone hadn’t dropped Garder, having controlled the ball for a time at mid-off before she tumbled to the ground and it popped out of her grasp, will never be known.At the least it would have provided an intriguing twist if Gardner was dismissed on 31 with Australia needing 22 more runs for victory and what would have been three wickets in hand. As it was, Gardner remained unbeaten on 42 as she and Alana King reeled in the deficit with with 11.1 overs to spare.Gardner and King had also combined with the ball, taking 3 for 19 and 2 for 35 respectively after seamers Kim Garth and Megan Schutt had kept a lid on a nervy England start.For Gardner, it was a continuation of her fine form against India and New Zealand last month after a lean run by her standards with the bat. Against India, she scored fifty and took five wickets in the third ODI, her first international half-century in white-ball cricket since July 2023, her 49 for the Sixers against crosstown rivals Thunder her only innings of note in the most recent WBBL season, where she was more damaging with the ball. She went on to score 74 in the third ODI against New Zealand immediately before this series.”I’ve taken a lot of confidence out of what I was able to do in the New Zealand series,” Gardner said. “To contribute with both bat and ball was something that I wanted to do to start the series off well and take some confidence into the back end of this series. We know that there’s a long way to go in this Ashes series.”We realised that pretty quickly in England last time we were six-nil up and then that got chased down pretty quickly. We could be playing amazing cricket, but England is such a good team and they always find a way.1:19

Gardner ‘super excited’ by Australia’s Ashes potential

“They certainly fought really hard in that series and we know that they’re going to look at this game today and look at the things that they didn’t do too well and the things that they did do well. We know that they’re going to come back firing next game.”Gardner revealed that she has been nursing an elbow problem for a couple of months but insisted it wasn’t an issue.Healy, meanwhile, completed her comeback from a knee injury, scoring 78-ball 70 after returning to wicketkeeping duties for the first time since mid-November in England’s innings.”She’s going to take a lot of confidence out of today,” Gardner said. “Even just watching the way that she was batting through that New Zealand series, she was striking the ball really well and got some starts, but then I think today scoring 70-odd in front of her home crowd as well probably spurs you on as captain, she’s leading from the front.”But I know just from a body point of view that she’s going to take a lot of confidence out of keeping for as long as she did and then being able to back that up at the top of the order, so really pleasing for her and hopefully it’s some signs to come that she can score heaps more runs.”Sometimes you can get caught in chasing a low total, just chasing the total rather than actually just trying to bat properly, and we always speak about if you’re chasing small total, sometimes they’re the hardest to actually chase. Today it will just give our team a lot of confidence. People stood up in different moments, whether that was with bat or the ball, and going forward we can take a lot out of today.”Alyssa Healy made a controlled half-century in the chase•Getty Images

Gardner claimed the important wickets of England’s top-scorer Heather Knight and regular match-winner Nat Sciver-Brunt, both sweeping to Perry at deep midwicket, which will give the tourists something to think about ahead of the next game at Melbourne’s Junction Oval.In fact, it was Australia’s bowling combined with a rash of soft dismissals that restricted England to a below-par score and left them with things to work on.A record crowd for a women’s international at North Sydney Oval of 6236 was a fine start to a series with lofty ambitions for attendance, particularly at the day-night Test at the MCG which closes the contest from January 30.”This is my home ground, I’m from Sydney, I’ve played a lot of cricket here and I’ve played a lot of successful games of cricket here for either the Sixers or Australia,” Gardner said. “So I guess to start the series off in front of what that crowd was, hopefully it leads to more crowds like that throughout the rest of the series.”We are playing at some really cool venues, so to hopefully play some entertaining cricket throughout the series will, fingers crossed, draw people in to come and watch us and hopefully lead to some more success.”

ليفربول يثير استياء رابطة الدوري الإنجليزي خلال مباراة مانشستر يونايتد

أثار فريق ليفربول استياء رابطة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز لكرة القدم بسبب تصرفه في مباراة يوم الأحد الماضي ضد نظيره فريق مانشستر يونايتد، في إطار منافسات البطولة المحلية.

واستضاف ملعب “الأنفيلد” مباراة فريقي ليفربول ومانشستر يونايتد في قمة منافسات الجولة الثامنة من الدوري الإنجليزي، 2025/26، حيث خسر الريدز بهدفين لهدف.

وذكرت صحيفة “ميرور” الإنجليزية أن ليفربول يواجه نقاشًا حادًا من رابطة الدوري الإنجليزي بشأن مزاعم انتهاكه بروتوكول الكرات المتعددة عدة مرات خلال هزيمة الأحد أمام مانشستر يونايتد.

وأوضحت أنه من المرجح أن تتخذ رابطة الدوري الإنجليزي إجراءً فوريًا للتذكير بالقواعد التي طُبقت لأول مرة في موسم 2022/23.

اقرأ أيضًا.. محمد صلاح يتلقى رسائل قاسية من جماهير ليفربول

وقام حاملو الكرة بإلقاء الكرة في أرض الملعب، بعدما سجل هاري ماجواير هدف الفوز في الدقيقة 84، في حين من المفترض أن تكون الكرات البديلة على أقماع حول الملعب، ولا يتعين على حامل الكرة إعادتها من جديد إلى الملعب بعد خروجها، وهو ما لم يحدث.

ودخل تغيير القاعدة حيز التنفيذ العام الماضي، حيث يُلزم اللاعبون إما باستلام الكرة بأنفسهم أو التوجه إلى أقرب مخروط، في حين أن حراس المرمى هم الاستثناء الوحيد عند استئناف اللعب بركلة مرمى.

وتنص إرشادات الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز أن أي إخفاق في اتباع بروتوكول الكرات المتعددة سيُحال إلى الرابطة لمزيد من التحقيق واتخاذ إجراءات تنظيمية محتملة بموجب قواعد البطولة.

وسبق أن حصل أستون فيلا على غرامة مالية قدرها 125 ألف جنيه إسترليني، في منتصف أغسطس، بعد إقراره بعدم اتباع البروتوكول في خمس مباريات الموسم الماضي.

سلوت: لن يفوز ليفربول بلقب الدوري الإنجليزي إذا فعل شيئًا ما

يرى المدير الفني لفريق ليفربول، آرني سلوت، أنهم لا يستطيعون التتويج بلقب الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز حال قيامهم بشيء محدد في المباريات التي يلعبونها.

ويستعد ليفربول لخوض مباراة مهمة مساء يوم الأحد ضد نظيره مانشستر يونايتد، في الجولة الثامنة من الدوري الإنجليزي على ملعب “الأنفيلد”.

وقال سلوت، في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “ليفربول إيكو” الإنجليزية: “أعتقد أن أسلوب اللعب القائم على الكرات الطويلة والتمريرات الثانية ليس أسلوب لعب أي فريق فاز بالدوري في السنوات العشر أو الخمس عشرة أو العشرين الماضية”.

وأضاف: “إذا كنت تريد الفوز بالدوري، فلن تتمكن من ذلك بهذا الأسلوب، من وجهة نظري، لكنه حل عادل جدًا للعب ضد مانشستر سيتي، أو ليفربول، أو آرسنال، أو تشيلسي، أو كل هذه الفرق الكبرى بهذا الأسلوب”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. فيديو | هازارد يختار لاعب تشيلسي كـ مراوغ أفضل من محمد صلاح

وواصل: “ولكنني لا أرى ذلك الأسلوب في أي فريق أوروبي يفوز بالدوري، ليس بايرن ميونخ، ولا برشلونة، ولا ريال مدريد، ولا ليفربول، ولا مانشستر سيتي، لكنه أسلوب لعب تراه يحدث كثيرًا ضد مانشستر سيتي”.

وأردف: “ترى كرات طويلة، تكتل دفاعي، كرات طويلة أخرى ثم تراجع بعد نجاحهم، هذا ما نراه كثيرًا في الوقت الحالي ضدنا”.

واستمر: “طريقة التفوق على تلك الخطة هي لحظة مميزة، كما حدث كثيرًا في النصف الأول من الموسم الماضي، أو من خلال ركلات ثابتة مثلما حدث في النصف الثاني، لم نحقق كلا الأمرين بالقدر الذي تمنيته، ولكن مع ذلك نحن لا زلنا الفريق الذي صنع أكبر عدد من الأهداف من اللعب المفتوح”.

وشدد: “اللعب المفتوح أمر إيجابي، ولكن ما هو غير إيجابي هو أننا استقبلنا تسعة أهداف، أربعة منها من الكرات الثابتة”.

Jamie Porter stars with five-for but Essex let dominance slip away

Worcestershire recover from 10 for 4 before capping day with last-ball wicket of Elgar

ECB Reporters Network29-Aug-2024

Jamie Porter claimed a five-for•Getty Images

Jamie Porter blitzed a hole in the Worcestershire upper-order to return his second Vitality County Championship five-wicket haul of the season before Essex let slip their early advantage on day one.Essex had Worcestershire 10 for 4 inside five overs – Porter and Sam Cook sharing the four wickets in a 13-ball spree – then 46 for 5 in 12 overs, before the tail wagged and the visitors reached a more respectable 266 all out shortly after a late tea.Porter, the joint leading wicket-taker in Division One, finished with 5 for 52 from 17 overs of controlled aggression on a flat Chelmsford pitch that later played to the strengths of Simon Harmer. The South Africa off-spinner marked his 100th red-ball appearance for Essex with a trio of lower-order victims for figures of 3 for 103.Captain Brett D’Oliveira sparked the Worcestershire recovery after electing to bat with a patient 136-ball 68, supported in important stands by Ethan Brooks (46) and Tom Taylor (62 not out), the later aided by Amar Virdi in keeping Essex in the field with a last-wicket stand of 64. Essex had knocked off 50 of the deficit for the loss of Dean Elgar in 19 evening overs.Porter struck with his ninth ball when he got one to jag in and take Jack Libby’s off stump. After opening-ball partner Cook removed Gareth Roderick in the next over, lbw to one that thudded into his back foot, Porter claimed two wickets in three deliveries.Both wickets fell to catches behind, Rob Jones playing down the wrong line and taken low down by Michael Pepper, and Adam Hose followed to a tentative push against one that swung away.Two partnerships involving D’Oliveira went some way to repairing the damage as the Kookaburra ball lost its initial hardness. He enjoyed a seven-over interlude between wickets while adding 36 with Kashif Ali. Ali had watched three colleagues depart, but then hit his stride with five boundaries in a run-a-ball 24 before he dragged on when Porter returned after a brief rest.D’Oliveira next found support in a 72-run sixth-wicket stand with Brookes. But the captain was fortunate to survive a sharp chance to Elgar at slip in the over before lunch when Matt Critchley got a second successive ball to jump almost vertically off the pitch.Brookes, meanwhile, was no respecter of reputation and went after Harmer, twice reverse-sweeping the off-spinner to the boundary. He accelerated after lunch, adding three more to his collection of nine fours in a 73-ball 46, before dangling his bat and becoming Porter’s 39th scalp of the season.Harmer finally joined the party in his 14th over when he induced Logan van Beek to drive lazily straight back to him. He followed up four overs later by ending D’Oliveira’s 59-run eighth-wicket stand with Taylor, trapping him lbw, and then accounting for Joe Leach by the same method shortly afterwards.However, from 202-9, the last-wicket pair collected a hitherto unlikely batting point. Virdi played particularly straight, hitting the majority of his 42 runs in the arc between long-on and long-off, including two towering sixes off Harmer. The innings came to an end five overs before the new-ball was due when the Surrey loanee clipped Shane Snater to square leg.Essex lost Elgar lbw to Taylor to the last ball before the close after he and Robin Das had been largely untroubled. They will have Jordan Cox available to bat later after he was released by England once the team had been confirmed following the toss at Lord’s, though Noah Thain had been named in the initial Essex XI in case Cox was retained.

Rohit: 'You want your best players to play all games, but that's not possible'

With 10 Tests to be played in 15 weeks, India have “laid out some plans” to manage the workload of fast bowlers

Alagappan Muthu17-Sep-20241:56

Are turning pitches a good idea for India against Bangladesh?

India are coming off a break of more than a month without any cricket – “We are starting after a long time actually”, the captain Rohit Sharma said – but they are also aware of the strain that their schedule over the next few months can place on their players, particularly their fast bowlers.India begin the first of 10 Tests in 15 weeks against Bangladesh on Thursday, and they already have plans in place to protect the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, who might be needed to take on heavy workloads when they travel to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in November through to January.”We have laid out some plans on how we are going to manage these bowlers,” Rohit said. “But again, it all depends on the workload that has been carried by them in these games. So yeah, we will monitor that. I think we have done that pretty well. Even when we played against England [at home, earlier this year], we managed to get Bumrah one Test match off. We managed to give Siraj one Test match off.Related

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“So it all depends on how the body feels at that particular time, what the [strength and conditioning] is, and what the physios feel about them, when is the right time to give them a break from the game, and then take the call.”India wrap up the two-Test series against Bangladesh on October 1 and have a couple of weeks off from red-ball cricket before they face New Zealand over three games that take them into early November. Then they will leave for Australia where they will play five Tests in eight weeks.”You want your best players to play all the games, but that’s not possible because there is so much cricket that happens,” Rohit said. “It is not only Test cricket, there is T20 cricket happening [against Bangladesh and South Africa] in the middle of the Test series as well. So you [have] got to understand everything, and then see what is best for the team and then manage your bowlers around it.”There has also been an effort made to expand the fast-bowling pool, with left-armer Yash Dayal joining the team for the Bangladesh series. There are several others pushing their case to make the national team with performances in domestic cricket. Harshit Rana, Navdeep Saini, Vidwath Kaverappa, Khaleel Ahmed and Anshul Kamboj were all involved in the season-opening Duleep Trophy earlier this month, and Rohit was pleased with what he saw from those matches.”We have got a lot of bowlers who are there for us,” he said. “We saw some exciting prospects in the Duleep Trophy as well. I am not too worried about the kind of bowlers that are waiting in the wings for us.”On head coach Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma said: “We have a good understanding”•PTI

Gautam Gambhir takes charge of the Test team for the first time since being appointed the new India head coach. He and his assistant Abhishek Nayar were with the limited-overs team in Sri Lanka in August, and they have been overseeing a training camp in Chennai, leading up to the Bangladesh series.”The staff is new, but I know both Gautam Gambhir and Abhishek Nayar,” Rohit said. “I have played quite a bit of cricket against [bowling coach] Morne Morkel; we’ve played some tough cricket against each other. I’ve also played, maybe a couple of games, against [assistant coach] Ryan [ten Doeschate], but the two of us haven’t spoken as much before. From what I experienced with him in Sri Lanka, I think he has a sensible and [an] understanding personality, given the way he quickly started to understand things about the team.”As for Gambhir and Nayar, like I said, I know them well. Sri Lanka was the first series [with them in charge], and now they are going to play their second series with the team. Everyone has their own style. Rahul [Dravid] , Vikram Rathour, [and] Paras Mhambrey – they had a different way of running the team, [while] these guys will have a different style.”So it’s important for you to adjust. So far, there have been no problems or issues as a player. Like I said, if there is understanding between both [coaches and players], that’s the most important thing. And we have a good understanding.”India arrived in Chennai a full week before the start of the first Test against Bangladesh•PTI

India are not seeing their home series as preparation for the challenges they will be facing abroad.”Look, at the end of the day, you are playing for your country,” Rohit said. “So there is no dress rehearsal kind of stuff happening here. Every game that we play is important, and every game becomes important because of what is at stake. [In the] World Test Championship, still the table is quite wide open, and you want to win every game. So it doesn’t matter where we play in two months’ time. We want to win here. We want to win this Test match.”That’s why they arrived in Chennai a full week before the start of the game, to have the best preparation possible.”We assembled here on the 12th, and we’ve had a good time spending hours on the field, [and] getting everything together. So yeah, it is tough. But see, now people are so experienced, they managed themselves pretty well. And guys who have not played a lot of Test cricket, obviously went on to play the Duleep Trophy, which was good.”So in terms of preparation, [and] in terms of readiness, I feel we are quite ready for this game and what lies ahead of us. So it was a good little prep that we had before this Test match. It was important to utilise that time, and I thought we utilised this little camp that we had in Chennai pretty well.”

Everton now lead race for "brilliant" £140k-p/w striker available for free

Everton are embarking on a new era under David Moyes and could now land themselves a summer transfer bargain once the window opens for business.

Everton look to make summer window mark

Survival has been achieved with flying colours by Everton and there is only one match now left at Goodison Park before supporters say goodbye to their home ahead of moving to Bramley Moore Dock.

Emotions are running high and there will be plenty of time for sentimental thoughts over the next few weeks, but fans will feel emboldened that the club are headed in the right direction under David Moyes.

Exciting times are on the horizon under The Friedkin Group and plenty of transfer movement is expected on Merseyside, with Inter Milan defender Yann Bisseck cited as an ambitious potential arrival.

Gustavo Hamer could also join the Toffees from Sheffield United if Moyes has his way, as the former Netherlands Under-20 international is viewed as an ideal creative midfield option by the man in charge.

Abdoulaye Doucoure heads up a lengthy list of players that could be set to leave Everton upon the expiry of their contract or loan deals, which could be the signal for a sea change to take place in the dressing room.

Everton make first contact in race to sign "talented" ex-Arsenal defender

He could complete a Premier League return.

ByTom Cunningham May 1, 2025

Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Seamus Coleman and Ashley Young are among other potential departures on free transfers, leaving Moyes with some tough choices to make when considering the future look of his group.

While money is set to be available this summer, PSR regulations will keep clubs in check, meaning Everton could be forced to look for inexpensive pick-ups in certain positions to boost squad depth.

Spying an opportunity to land a bargain, the Toffees are now said to be in pole position to land one of England’s most trustworthy strikers.

Everton looking to seal move for Jamie Vardy

According to reports, Everton are looking to sign Leicester City forward Jamie Vardy once he becomes a free agent at the end of the season and are believed to be at the front of the race. Evaluating his profile, Moyes and TFG are said to value the former Three Lions international’s work ethic and capacity to deliver in pressure moments, citing him as someone who could be a leader in the short-term.

Jamie Vardy’s Premier League statistics – 2024/25

Shots

52

Shots on target

23

Chances created

19

Touches in opposition box

106

Goals

7

Assists

3

Becoming a shining light in a grim season for Leicester, the 38-year-old has been labelled “brilliant” by Gary Lineker and still retains a desire to offer something at the highest level.

Financially, Everton would be able to land the veteran on a free transfer, allowing room for manouvre to spend on other areas in need of surgery. Nevertheless, plenty of other clubs will also be in the hunt for £140,000 per week earner Vardy’s signature due to his potent nature, creating an intriguing few months ahead to see who will eventually land his services once the window opens.

Better move than Gyokeres: Arsenal want "one of the best CFs in the world"

There might still be a chance for Arsenal to end the season with a bang in the Champions League, but that hasn’t stopped the onslaught of transfer rumours in recent weeks.

With the Gunners’ need for attacking reinforcements impossible to ignore, it would be fair to say that Viktor Gyokeres has emerged as one of the most significant links.

Sporting CP's ViktorGyokerescelebrates after the match

It’s not hard to see why the club would be interested in signing the Swedish international, as so far this season, he’s scored a simply sensational 52 goals and provided 12 assists in 48 appearances for Sporting CP.

However, if recent reports are to be believed, another striker from the continent has emerged as a target, a striker who may well be a better signing than Gyokeres.

Arsenal's search for a new striker

A number of strikers, such as Ollie Watkins, have been linked to Arsenal in recent weeks.

The Aston Villa ace was a surprise target for the club towards the end of the winter window and is supposedly available again this summer.

The former Brentford ace may be on the older side of players the club likes to target, but with 16 goals and 13 assists in 50 appearances this term, he’d undoubtedly make the team more dangerous.

Transfer Focus

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At the other end of the age range, the club continue to be linked with Benjamin Sesko.

The 21-year-old Slovenian international is reportedly available for close to £58m and has bagged 20 goals and provided six assists in 42 appearances this year.

RB Leipzig's BenjaminSeskobefore taking a penalty

That said, it could be argued that he still lacks enough experience to make it at a club like Arsenal, which couldn’t be said about Jonathan David.

According to a recent report from TEAMtalk, the Gunners are one of several teams interested in the Canadian international.

Alongside the North Londoners, the report has revealed that Liverpool, Newcastle United and West Ham United are all keen on the striker, who’ll be available for free at the end of the season.

However, Inter Milan appear to be leading the race for his signature as things stand.

Lille'sJonathanDavidcelebrates scoring their fourth goal

It’ll likely be a complicated deal to get done, but given his ability, it’d be more than worth fighting for, especially as he could be a better signing than Gyokeres.

Why David would be a better signing than Gyokeres

So, the first thing to say is that if you were to base this solely off their goal tally, then Gyokeres appears to be the better signing.

Sporting CP's ViktorGyokerescelebrates scoring their third goal to complete his hat-trick

However, what is incredibly important to remember here is that while his output is out of this world, the Swede is playing in the Portuguese league, which is ranked as the seventh best in Europe, while Ligue 1, where David plays, is in the top five.

Moreover, while the former Coventry City was in the Championship just a couple of years ago, the Canadian ace was still with LOSC Lille and still tearing it up.

Appearances

48

40

47

46

Goals

19

26

26

25

Assists

0

4

9

11

Goal Involvements*

0.39

0.75

0.74

0.78

For example, since the start of the 21/22 campaign, the 61-capped goal machine, whom journalist Tony Marinaro dubbed “one of the best strikers in the world,” has scored 96 goals and provided 24 assists in just 181 club appearances.

That means that across four seasons of top-flight football in a top-five league, the New York-born star has averaged a goal involvement every 1.50 games – talk about consistency.

Finally, on top of having a more extensive track record, the 25-year-old would make far more sense from a financial perspective, as a lack of transfer fee would free up so much money to be spent elsewhere, either on wingers, midfielders or even another defender.

Ultimately, either Gyokeres or David would be a good signing for Arsenal this summer, but from experience to cost, the Canadian international would be a better one.

He's like Saka & Salah: Arsenal plan talks to sign £55m Ballon d'Or nominee

The free-scoring international could be just what Arsenal need.

1 ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 28, 2025

England bring back Manchester City psychologist for T20 World Cup

Matthew Mott wants players to be “more vulnerable” after becoming “insular” during 50-over World Cup

Matt Roller23-May-2024Matthew Mott believes it is time his England team “get the mojo back” ahead of the T20 World Cup – and has hired Manchester City’s psychologist to help his players be more emotionally vulnerable if they come under pressure in the Caribbean.David Young, who was previously with England from 2016 to 2020, has worked with City during an unprecedented period of success, with the club recently becoming the first team to win four Premier League titles in a row. He has been brought back as a consultant on a short-term basis ahead of next month’s World Cup, with City’s approval.Jos Buttler was influential in the decision and has previously credited Young for helping him perform in the 2019 World Cup final. Young joined the England squad in Leeds ahead of their washed-out first T20I against Pakistan on Wednesday and will link up with them again in Cardiff on Monday, after helping City prepare for Saturday’s FA Cup final against Manchester United.”He’s previously been with the team and he’s already been a great ally in messages back to me, making sure my messages are clear,” Mott, England’s white-ball coach, said. “It’s always good to have someone who’s a little bit removed from the squad to make sure you’re landing your messages… He’s still doing other roles but we’ve got him for this series, and the start of the World Cup as well.”Related

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  • Jos Buttler backs England to learn lessons from 50-over World Cup debacle

England’s management are trying to learn from the mistakes they made at last year’s 50-over World Cup, when they were knocked out at the group stage and won three of their nine games – two of which came after their elimination. Mott described the tournament as “death by a thousand cuts” and said: “When you’ve had the kick in the pants like we’ve had, you can’t just go ‘business as usual’. You have to redefine how you go as a team.”As a group, we’ve made a commitment to be a bit more open in and around our training sessions, to help each other out a bit more. In India, all of us were guilty of being a bit insular, and trying to problem-solve ourselves. We’ve made a commitment to open up and be a bit more vulnerable as a group so that we’re helping each other.”Mott has been watching the IPL from afar and said that England could learn from Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s winning streak to qualify for the play-offs. “The way they had nothing to lose and came out and played a different brand of cricket – could we have done that earlier? Maybe, yes. On reflection, we didn’t react as we should have after the start.”Eoin Morgan, Buttler’s predecessor as captain, was sharply critical of England’s performance in India and hinted there was “something else going on” in their dressing-room beyond collective underperformance. Mott – whose first series as coach was Morgan’s last as captain – said the pair have not spoken since, but that he respects Morgan and his opinion.”Family and friends got more upset about it than I did,” he said. “Initially, of course you take it a bit personally but he’s there to have an opinion… All I’ll say is that only the people within the dressing-room can fully understand what’s going on. Once you leave the dressing-room, you might hear titbits of stuff, but you don’t really know how the team’s operating.””It’s time to get the mojo back and go out and really express ourselves”•Getty Images

Buttler suggested this week that he needs to give certain players more “clarity” than he did in India, and Mott said the squad would drive that change: “My style of coaching has always been more of a cooperative approach – keep asking questions on what does their game look like at its best, and if they’re veering away from that, to drag them back on track.”We feel like it’s time to get the mojo back and go out and really express ourselves as a team. I think T20, as opposed to ODI, is so much clearer in the way the players can approach it. We’ve seen in the IPL, you have to go out and really take the game on from the start. Most teams are going to go that way, so it’s going to be an exciting World Cup.”England will confirm their World Cup squad to the ICC before Saturday’s second T20I at Edgbaston and will name the same 15 players that formed the provisional squad, despite both Liam Livingstone and Mark Wood carrying niggles. “Probably not for the next game at this stage, but definitely later in the series, they’ll be up for selection,” Mott said.Jofra Archer’s return was delayed by the rain on Wednesday and he is likely to play at least two of the remaining three T20Is. Mott said that England are “pretty confident” that they know their best XI for the Caribbean, and said he would be comfortable taking Tom Hartley to the World Cup even if he does not win his first T20I cap in this series: “He’s played a lot of high-quality cricket in the last 12 months.”

New target: Man Utd eyeing move to sign "excellent" £15m Onana replacement

da brwin: Manchester United have now joined the race to sign an “excellent” goalkeeper, who could be brought in as a replacement for Andre Onana this summer, according to a report.

Major concern over Onana's Man Utd performances

da fazobetai: Onana was the subject of heavy criticism prior to Man United’s recent Europa League clash against Lyon, with Nemanja Matic launching a scathing attack on the goalkeeper.

Unfortunately, the 29-year-old didn’t exactly manage to silence the critics at the Groupama Stadium, making a late blunder to gift Rayan Cherki an equalising goal, which means there is everything still to play for at Old Trafford on Thursday night.

After the poor display against Lyon, Onana was dropped from the squad for the trip to St. James’ Park, but Altay Bayindir didn’t exactly stake a claim for a regular starting spot, with the Red Devils succumbing to a 4-1 defeat against Newcastle United.

Man Utd and INEOS now looking to hijack Newcastle deal for £25m wide player

Man Utd have now joined their Premier League rivals in the race to sign an exciting attacker.

ByBrett Worthington Apr 14, 2025

As such, Ruben Amorim is now looking to bring in a new goalkeeper this summer, and Man Utd have joined the race for Anders goalkeeper Yahia Fofana, according to a report from The Boot Room.

Fofana’s performances this season have attracted the attention of a number of Premier League clubs, with Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Newcastle, Brentford and Nottingham Forest also making checks in recent weeks.

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Previous reports have detailed that the Angers shot-stopper could be available for just £15m this summer, so Amorim may not have to break the bank if he chooses to pursue a deal.

"Excellent" Fofana could be Onana upgrade

It is clear Amorim is losing faith with Onana, and it is little wonder, given that the Cameroonian’s latest blunder could be costly in United’s Europa League campaign, while Bayindir also failed to impress against Newcastle.

Fofana’s performances this season indicate he could be an upgrade for United between the sticks, having been lauded as “excellent” by members of the media after putting in a solid display against Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month.

Freelance scout Ben Mattinson has also praised the Ivorian, and believes the £15m fee Angers are set to hold out for “could be a bargain”.

The 24-year-old is yet to prove himself at the highest level, but his performances this season indicate he could be capable of making the step-up to a top club, and his availability for a low fee is an added bonus for United.

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