كشفت تقارير صحفية إسبانية، أن انسحاب ريال مدريد من بطولة كأس العالم للأندية، سيفتح الباب أمام برشلونة للمشاركة والاستفادة المادية من وراء ذلك.
ومن المفترض أن تقام بطولة كأس العالم للأندية في النسخة القادمة خلال شهري يونيو ويوليو في الموسم المقبل بعد نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا، وسيشارك بها 32 فريقًا من جميع أنحاء العالم، بينهم 12 فريقًا من أوروبا.
كارلو أنشيلوتي، المدير الفني الإيطالي لفريق كرة القدم الأول بنادي ريال مدريد الإسباني، أكد أن الملكي لن يشارك في الحدث العالمي في 2025.
صحيفة “آس” الإسبانية، أكدت بدأنه في حال لم يشارك ريال مدريد، سيتم إشراك برشلونة بدلًا منه، والاستفادة من 50 مليون يورو، والنادي الكتالوني بحاجة لهذا المبلغ بالتأكيد.
وأشارت الصحيفة إلى أن ادعاءات أنشيلوتي ليست صحيحة بأن المسابقة تبلغ قيمتها 20 مليون يورو فقط، والنادي الكتالوني ليس في وضع يسمح له برفض هذا النوع من الأموال.
جدير بالذكر أن ريال مدريد لديه مصلحة في رؤية فشل المسابقة، حيث يسعى لبدء دوري السوبر الأوروبي، في عام 2025، رغم معارضة الاتحادين الدولي والأوروبي.
The Australia captain said that in high-pressure tournaments like the World Cup, England’s ultra-aggressive approach to ODI batting could backfire
Daniel Brettig30-Jan-2018Australia captain Steven Smith has questioned whether England’s bull-at-a-gate batting approach will stand up to the pressure of a World Cup. Smith also said he wanted the Australia squad that will play five ODIs in England this year to be as close as possible to their desired 2019 World Cup combination.England’s methods, rejuvenated since their 2015 World Cup failure, place emphasis on a hyper-aggressive start with the bat, and Smith said that while it was fine in bilateral series there would be a chance of it coming unstuck during the knockout phase of a high-pressure tournament.That much was true of New Zealand three years ago; they pushed all-out attack to get as far as the 2015 World Cup final, only to fall in a heap against Australia’s pace bowlers in front of 93,013 at the MCG. Smith said that while Australia were entering a period of introspection, driven by the team’s dipping ODI fortunes, they would try to find a way suited to their playing stocks and mental approach.”I think our one-day cricket has been disappointing for just over a year now. A lot of it comes down to poor decision making, and execution out in the middle,” Smith said. “We’ve seen when we’ve played well and won games it’s been about the top four, someone there going on and getting a really big score. Then others coming in and playing quite positively around the person getting that big score. That’s the blueprint that I think works for us.”England have played a different brand of cricket where they go really hard the whole time. That can be risky as well at times, particularly in big tournaments. You might get yourselves to the semi-finals or something but you can have those days where you get bowled out for 150. There are a few things to think about in regards to one-day cricket and the way we want to play. We just haven’t been good enough, to be honest, the last couple of weeks and the last year.”[England] are clear in the way they play. They’re all very aggressive and go out there and take the game on from ball one. I don’t think our players aren’t clear, we’re just not executing it and making the right decisions at key times. If we get those decisions right, and guys are smarter in the way they play in the middle, we’ll turn things around.”Smith’s team lost the No. 1 ODI ranking they had held since winning the 2015 World Cup in February last year, and have steadily slid down the ICC’s table ever since. They now sit at No. 5, behind South Africa, India, England and New Zealand, following their 4-1 series loss to Eoin Morgan’s team.Given that Cricket Australia’s strategic goal for the national team is to be No. 1 in all three formats, the current state of affairs is causing furrowed brows at the game’s Jolimont headquarters. Smith and chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns both admitted the team’s leaders needed to refresh in terms of approach and personnel before the June series in England, which will mark more or less a year until the next World Cup.”I think that makes sense. The World Cup being in England, any exposure to those conditions with the likely squad is important,” Smith said of taking a prospective World Cup group to England. “A lot can happen in a year as well with injuries and things like that. For us, it’ll be trying to get that squad as close as what we think the World Cup is going to be.”Our middle overs with the bat have been disappointing. We’re continually losing wickets and you can’t do that anymore against good teams,” he said. “You have to have those big partnerships in the middle and let our guys who are big and strong, give them the freedom of the last 10, 15 overs to try and clear the pickets. We’ve got guys there who do it really well, we just haven’t set the game up for them to do it.”Then the first 10 overs with the ball. At times it’s felt like we’re trying to get through the 10 overs and having a deep breath, then getting the four guys out and we’re behind the game when that 10 overs are finished. We’ve been really good at pulling it back after that for a while, but we’ll make things a lot easier for ourselves if we start well with the ball.”Also speaking on Tuesday, Hohns said the series in England was a key point at which the selectors and team management needed to stabilise both the personnel and the team tactics to be used over the year that followed.”In our winter here we go to play five one-dayers against England again, so we will be trying at that stage to get a unit together that hopefully can play together and stay together leading into the World Cup,” Hohns told . “Of course form will dictate what happens there, but we’ll certainly be looking at what type of player we want to take us through to that World Cup and get them playing together.”We need to sit down and have a look at everything. Not necessarily a review, we don’t need to have a national inquiry every time we lose a series, but we’re clearly not playing well at the moment, so yes we will be assessing how we play the game and secondly what players are required to play the way we want to play and the utilisation of our players, whether we’re utilising them the right way.”Like Smith, Hohns said Australia did not need to plagiarise England. “We don’t necessarily have to copy how other teams are playing, England are playing very well, they’re a red-hot side as we know, so we’ll have a look at how they’re playing but try to develop our own style.”
It appears referee David Coote may have made another huge mistake on top of harshly sending Takehiro Tomiyasu off in the most recent Arsenal game.
What's the latest on David Coote and Arsenal?
On Monday night, the Gunners travelled to Selhurst Park as they took on Crystal Palace in their first away match of the new Premier League season.
It was a closely contested fixture and this is reflected by the scoreline as a single penalty – won by Eddie Nketiah and scored by Martin Odegaard – was enough to see the Gunners win 1-0.
It could have perhaps been a more comfortable win for Mikel Arteta and co, however, had the refereeing been a little more favourable from an Arsenal point of view.
After all, left-back on the day Tomiyasu picked up two yellow cards in the second half which both seemed to be for pretty minimum offences as his dismissal looked to be quite unjust.
He was first booked for time-wasting. Although, statistician Scott Willis pointed out that before conceding, Crystal Palace had throw-ins that took 27, 25, 22, and 22 seconds. And yet it was the Japan international who was punished for being partially involved when Arsenal's throw-in took 24 seconds to be taken – according to Sky via afcstuff), Tomiyasu held onto the ball for just eight of those seconds before being booked.
As for his second yellow, it appeared as though next to no contact was made with Jordan Ayew and yet referee Coote deemed it sufficient enough to warrant the consequential red card.
This is questionable enough. But to make things worse, footage shared on the game on Twitter shows that the Palace winger – who was also already on a yellow card – made an even worse foul on Bukayo Saka and yet he wasn't sent off for a second bookable offence.
What was said about Jordan Ayew and Takehiro Tomiyasu?
This sort of inconsistency was noted by a number of journalists and football writers online. For instance, Charles Watts wrote: "That's so harsh [on Tomiyasu] for a second yellow. There is no shirt tug. Especially as Ayew just got away with a similar foul having already been booked."
He later added: "The more you watch the clips of Ayew's foul which didn't get a yellow and Tomiyasu's which did, the crazier the decision to send Tomi off becomes. The inconsistency is incredible."
Writer for football.london Aaron Catterson-Reid added: "My issue with that is Ayew had a yellow then held Saka’s shirt for the foul. But no second yellow was given. Consistency just doesn’t exist."
Read the latest Arsenal transfer news HERE…
After the game was finished, manager Arteta was understandably annoyed but managed to bite his tongue, telling the press: "I prefer not to make comments because for me it’s so obvious."
All in all, it's not hard to see why many have been left baffled by the level of officiating in this game and after Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana avoided punishment for his wild challenge against Wolves on the opening weekend, it hasn't exactly been the best start to the seasons from the PGMOL.
As for Arsenal, they managed to cling on for the three points away at Palace, and so they've made a perfect start to the season – even in the face of this adversity – with two wins from two.
Leeds United may be enduring a tough time of late, but there is one potential addition they could make that at the very least would give them the perfect balance in midfield…
Who are Leeds United signing this summer?
Having already welcomed Ethan Ampadu into that area, Daniel Farke kicked off his summer spending with a mammoth coup, bringing in the experienced 22-year-old for just £7m.
However, since then things have gone decidedly downhill, with numerous first-team stars jumping ship given the various relegation clauses put in well before they dropped out of the Premier League.
Read the latest Leeds transfer news HERE…
The new boss now has to contend with the already-started Championship season as well as managing a squad that seem to mostly be looking towards the exit door. He desperately needs another win to get his tenure back on track, and there marks no finer option than reigniting their interest in Rangers gem Glen Kamara.
FootballTransfers value the Finland international at just €2.6m (£2m), suggesting that another stellar piece of business could be conducted to bolster the engine room.
How good is Glen Kamara?
Despite only joining in 2019, the midfield general took little time to acclimatise to life at a club the size of the Gers, having become a mainstay.
He now boasts 193 appearances in a blue shirt, with his ability to dictate play arguably second to none.
However, he pairs that technical brilliance with a steeliness, which former boss Steven Gerrard lauded:
"He’s a terrific footballer in possession, always playing with his head up and looking to connect defence and attack.
"But what pleased me most is what I spoke about when we signed him in terms of how he’ll be out of possession. Will he hunt the ball back, be aggressive, work hard for the team and be a monster in the middle of the park? He showed signs of that against Kilmarnock and potentially he can become a top midfielder."
Such praise was warranted, as his performances throughout the 2021/22 Scottish Premiership season were outstanding. Maintaining a 7.01 average rating, the 27-year-old posted six goal contributions on top of his ever-economical 91% pass accuracy, with one tackle and 1.3 key passes per game too, via Sofascore.
glen-kamara
To compare this with the exploits of Leeds' squad last campaign, and his average rating and pass accuracy would have made him their best performer in those fields of those who featured in five or more league games, with only Jack Harrison and Brenden Aaronson posting more key passes per game, via Sofascore.
Pairing his creativity and defensive know-how with Ampadu could prove a frightening prospect for the rest of the division, especially given how the former Chelsea man has started this league term.
He too has recorded one key pass per game alongside his 86% pass accuracy, but his 3.5 tackles per game suggest that he would offer even more solidity and therefore a finer foundation to gain control over matches, via Sofascore.
Hard-working, brilliant in possession but tough in the tackle, both Kamara and Ampadu have enough quality to dominate most opposition engine rooms that they will come up against throughout the Championship season; this should come as no surprise given both boast experience at a level far beyond it.
Fast bowlers shine as West Indians build on a solid batting show in the first innings
ESPNcricinfo staff16-Oct-2017 ScorecardWICB
Devendra Bishoo, who had a minimal role to play with the ball during the Test series in England, warmed up for Zimbabwe with a three-wicket haul on day two of the tour-opener in Bulawayo, but the more noteworthy effort came from their fast bowling duo of Shannon Gabriel and Miguel Cummins.West Indians, who declared on 336 for 7, skittled Zimbabwe A for 143 in 44.1 overs. In their second innings, the West Indies went to stumps at 74 for the loss of Kraigg Brathwaite.Cummins and Gabriel, expected to share the new ball, picked two wickets a piece while Raymon Reifer, pushing for his first Test cap, also did his chances no harm. Reifer picked up the key wicket of the experienced Chamu Chibhabha on his way to figures of 2 for 29.Six Zimbabwe batsmen got into double digits, with just PJ Moor, the captain, topping with 32. The 39-run fifth-wicket stand between Richmond Mutumbami and Moor was the highest of the innings.Brathwaite was out for two in the second over, but Kieran Powell and Kyle Hope, who appeared to be seeking solid match practice after failing to score a half-century on the Test tour of England, were unbeaten on 34 and 35 respectively.
According to reports, Leeds United are targeting a move for Manchester United defender Brandon Williams this summer, as they look to bolster their squad ahead of a potential Championship promotion push.
Daniel Farke will be hoping to steer his new side back into England's top flight at the first time of asking.
Read the latest Leeds transfer news HERE…
Is Brandon Williams going to Leeds United?
Leeds United are looking to sign Williams this summer, according to Miguel Delany of The Independent, with Manchester United looking to raise funds to welcome summer signings of their own.
New Leeds manager Farke briefly worked with the United academy graduate in the past, with the full-back spending the 2021/22 campaign on loan at Norwich City, as the Canaries suffered relegation.
If Williams did drop down to the Championship, it would mark the first time that he has appeared in England's second tier. It may be a case of needs must, however, as his game-time decreases more and more at Old Trafford.
At 22-years-old, the left-back may choose to prioritise minutes on the pitch over playing among the very best that English football has to offer.
Is Brandon Williams a good signing?
Signing a player who already has plenty of experience despite being just 22 would represent good business from a Leeds point of view. It could be a difficult deal if they are looking to loan Williams instead of splashing out on a transfer fee, though, as United want to add funds to their summer budget.
According to Transfermarkt, the left-back is currently worth €7m (£6m), potentially making it a deal that those at Elland Road can fund this summer. The Yorkshire club have already splashed out to welcome a Premier League youngster this summer, of course, with Chelsea's Ethan Ampadu arriving for a reported £7m.
Leeds' current left-back options are Junior Firpo and Pascal Struijk – with those two players in place a move may not make sense, but Firpo has been linked with an exit.
And Williams has certainly impressed in the past, earning praise from a number of English football's best legends, with Gary Lineker saying back in 2020, via The Daily Star: “The more I watch Brandon Williams, the more I like what I see. Another exciting young English talent.”
Meanwhile, Paul Scholes also once backed the left-back to take Luke Shaw's place, saying, via The Daily Star: “You'd have to choose him [Williams] at the moment.
“At the minute Brandon Williams is doing that so he is in pole position. He's an excellent defender but he can also get forward as well. He's got quality, he's a talented lad and he'll get up and down the pitch.
“He's got two good feet, I think he's more of a right-footed left-back which is strange. He's got the quality to get forward and the quality to score goals.”
Teammate Lisandro Martinez also labelled Williams a "machine" after his recent pre-season performance in a 2-0 win over Arsenal, so he has found some good form ahead of potentially joining a new club.
Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly interested in Boca Juniors striker Mateo Retegui, as Julen Lopetegui prepares to bolster his squad ahead of the 2023/24 season.
The Spaniard will have a task in restoring the goals in his side, after the Old Gold ended last term as the Premier League’s lowest-scorers, however, the former Real Madrid boss could be onto a winner with reported interest in Retegui.
Could Wolves sign Mateo Retegui?
As reported by journalist Damian Iribarren, Wolves have made contact with an offer of $18m (£14m) for the striker, who is also being chased by Genoa.
The Italian side are reported to have offered a higher sell-on-fee, but the Midlands side could hold the power, with Iribarren claiming that the player ‘preferred’ a move to the Premier League.
Currently on loan at fellow Argentine side Club Atletico Tigre, it will be down to the clubs to decide what destiny would best suit the player.
How good is Mateo Retegui?
Born in San Fernando Argentina, the forward represents Italy at international level, gaining three caps so far for Gli Azzurri.
The 24-year-old has found his feet in South America, where this year he has netted 12 goals in 24 appearances in all competitions, as well as registering a single assist as Tigre’s favoured line leader.
Having once been hailed as a “complete forward” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, the Italian could be the perfect acquisition for Lopetegui, as he plots a pathway to change his side’s fortune in the final third.
raul-jimenez-wolves
The Italian striker is a name known to some in England already, having netted against the Three Lions in the European Championship qualifiers in March during Gareth Southgate’s side’s 2-1 away win.
Wolves know well the fundamentals of having a reliable source of goals is in relation to overall team performance, with the club finishing seventh in their first two seasons following their promotion from the Championship.
During those two years, the Old Gold experienced the highs of European football thanks to the help of Raul Jimenez’s presence, where the Mexican scored 17 goals in the 2018/19 campaign and 27 in 2019/20.
Since those glory years, the 32-year-old has netted just 13 times in three seasons, attributable to his devastating injury in 2020, where his playing career and life was threatened by a skull fracture.
The adored striker failed to net a single goal in the Premier League last term for Wolves, leaving Lopetegui with little option but to find an appropriate successor to the once-clinical Mexican.
In Retegui, the Spaniard could hire an assured presence in attack, in a player that is live wire in the final third as supported by his 0.5 goals and 3.9 shots per game in the league for Tigres, via Sofascore.
Also likened to former Napoli and Real Madrid talisman Gonzalo Higuain by Kulig, the striker could repeat the scoring feats set by Jimenez in the Premier League, in a streak that could get the club back up the table after the woes of last season's form.
It’s integral that the Spaniard recruits a goal scorer this summer, which he could achieve in a financially friendly deal for Retegui, who at 24-years-old, is showing great potential in Argentina.
Celtic may have had their hopes of landing Fabian Rieder this summer boosted significantly, with Blick, via the Daily Record reporting that the player's agent has quashed a move to one rival suitor.
Who is Fabian Rieder?
The 21-year-old currently plays his football for Young Boys in Switzerland, having come through the youth ranks there and worked his way up. He was handed his first taste of Swiss Super League action back in 2020 as an 18-year-old and went on to feature on 23 occasions for the club.
It also led to his first silverware too, with his team storming to the top of the table. His gametime has only escalated from there, with Rieder since managing a further 63 games and yet another league crown to go with it last season. With his confidence flowing, he also managed his best ever goal contribution haul in 2022/23, with seven goals and four assists from the centre of the field in the league.
The youngster predominantly features an attacking midfielder, but can slot in further back if needed. He's also been utilised on the right flank before too, showing that the Swiss star is flexible and can prove to be a useful option in a number of areas.
His showings for Young Boys have also caught the eye of his national team, with the 21-year-old finally given his first-team debut for Switzerland in 2022. He has since made four appearances at international level – and there will likely be more where that came from if he can keep up his form.
Are Celtic signing Fabian Rieder?
Having been so impressive, there are now plenty of teams from across Europe on his tail. Scottish Premiership side Celtic are one of the main teams who are believed to be considering a swoop for the midfielder, although no official bid has yet been tabled for the talent
A move to Germany could also be possible for Rieder according to different sources, with Wolfsburg chasing a deal. However, according to a report from Blick, via the Daily Record, the Hoops have been gifted a boost in their pursuit of the wonderkid.
That's despite talk that he could soon be on his way to either Wolfsburg or Borussia Monchengladbach, the midfielder's agent has revealed that no deal is close yet and that the Wolfsburg talk isn't even correct.
He said: "Not true. Gladbach is one of the interested parties, that's right. We are in contact with the club, that's true too. But not only with Gladbach. And first the path must be cleared financially for an immigration of this dimension. In other words: Gladbach has to sell first. Fabian is at the top of the list at Gladbach."
Switzerland midfielder Fabian Rieder.
Even though Rieder is still only 21-years-old, he's already emerged as a real talent who has a lot of potential in the future. Having seen him in action, football talent scout Jacek Kulig has labelled him as one of the "biggest jewels" in the top tier of Swiss football at the moment and also called him a "high-quality" midfielder.
It means that he is already standing out in the entire division despite his youth – and with the potential to get even better, Celtic could have a really exciting signing on their hands if they can beat Monchengladbach to his signature.
Two of Tottenham Hotspur's most talented young players are incredibly keen to impress new boss Ange Postecoglou ahead of the upcoming campaign.
Which youngsters want to impress Postecoglou?
The Australian has not yet had time to fully immerse himself into life at Spurs but that will soon be possible as players begin returning for pre-season in early July.
It will take Postecoglou time to decide which players he considers worthy of his new Spurs side and the upcoming pre-season could be pivotal in the careers of some of the club's young talents.
According to Spurs journalist Alasdair Gold, there are two players particularly keen to show the new coach their talents: "There will certainly be some young players he [Postecoglou] can have a real look at as well."
He continued: "Troy Parrott was on international duty with Ireland, so he would be part of that 12 July group [players who are returning for pre-season later due to international football]. But, again, if I'm Troy Parrott, and you're allowed to come back early, you would probably be looking to do so because I know he really wants to make an impression"
"Djed Spence is the same. I know he really wants to make an impression on Postecoglou and try to earn his place in the squad."
Whether Postecoglou will give youth a chance to flourish remains to be seen but Parrott and Spence will be hoping to pleasantly surprise the new boss in July.
How did Parrott and Spence do on loan?
Both Parrott and Spence spent last season on loan at Preston North End and Rennes respectively, but both struggled to make a significant impact at their clubs. The latter only spent six months in France having left Tottenham in the January transfer window.
Parrott found goalscoring difficult in the Championship, only netting three times in 32 appearances, although a significant knee injury did cause him to miss 13 games mid-season. Even so, the 20-cap Republic of Ireland international only managed a 6.66 average Sofascore rating.
For Spence it was more a lack of minutes that hindered his progress, featuring just 10 times for Rennes in all competitions. Nine of those were starts but the 22-year-old always faced difficulties displacing the impressive Hamari Traore from right-back.
Like Parrott, it was a knee injury that curtailed the end of his season in Ligue 1, also forcing the former Middlesbrough man to miss out on the U21 European Championship with England.
Landing back at Hotspur Way on the back of underwhelming 2022/23 campaigns, it will surely encourage Spurs fans that these two youngsters are looking to make an impression rather than looking for a permanent move.
Spurs had a season to forget last term, however, if the first team regulars return with the same hunger to impress as Spence and Parrott, perhaps there can be some optimism for quick improvement under Postecoglou.
Newcastle United's pursuit of Kieran Tierney has suffered a blow with the news from The Sun that Celtic now also want to try and snap up the defender this summer.
What's the latest Newcastle United transfer news?
The Toon have clearly set out to try and improve their backline this window, with the club seemingly having a number of defensive options on their transfer wishlist. The Premier League side have already got their eye on Joachim Andersen at fellow English side Crystal Palace. He isn't their only option at the back but with a deal potentially cheap – it might cost them less than £30m – he's believed to be on their radar, as well as his teammate Marc Guehi.
In addition, the Magpies have also moved to try and strengthen their full-back positions too. On one side of the field, they seem to be edging closer towards a deal to snap up Tino Livramento from Southampton. Talks are now at an "advanced" stage and it means that the signs are promising over a deal being completed.
On the other side of the field, the name that has been interesting them is Kieran Tierney. Things though may now not be as straightforward when it comes to bringing the player in. That's because according to a report from The Sun, Newcastle now face competition from Celtic for his signature.
The Scottish side may not be able to afford a transfer fee for the defender – and his wages of £120,000-a-week are also steep – but could try and snap him up on loan and it seems as if the player himself isn't averse to moving back to Scotland. For now, the Toon seem to still be the favourites to add the Arsenal man but it is no longer a simple one-horse race for the left-back.
Tierney still looks like he is capable of performing at the highest level too, he's just struggled to prove it as much for Arsenal with his lack of minutes this season. With just six starts to his name in the Premier League, it's obviously a lot harder for the defender to assert himself and show his abilities.
However, football journalist Josh Bunting called the Scotland international "magnificent" earlier this campaign and added during a game that he had pulled off some "stunning" defending. The player then still has the quality – and Newcastle will be hoping to add it to their own squad, rather than seeing him head to Celtic instead.