Already making up for a disappointing summer transfer window, Paul Mitchell’s Newcastle United recruitment team have now reportedly agreed to sign a new gem ahead of interest from Real Madrid.

Newcastle transfer news

It’s fair to say that sporting director Mitchell didn’t exactly have the best start to life at St James’ Park, with profit and sustainability concerns coupled by their inability to get a deal to sign Marc Guehi over the line making for a frustrating few months. All eyes have since been turned towards 2025 and a shot at redemption, however, with transfer rumours already beginning to arrive.

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Reports have been quick to link the likes of Luca Koleosho from Burnley in a move that would boost Eddie Howe’s attacking options. Meanwhile, the Magpies have also been linked with signing Dominic Calvert-Lewin, whose Everton contract comes to an end next summer, meaning that a cut-price deal may be lined up in the winter window.

The England international would likely replace Callum Wilson as Newcastle’s backup for star man Alexander Isak, whilst adding a more physical threat to Howe’s frontline. Before Koleosho and Calvert-Lewin though, the Magpies look set to sign a future star.

According to Graeme Bailey for HITC, Mitchell has now agreed a deal to sign Vakhtang Salia from Dinamo Tbilisi in the Erovnuli Liga. An obscure signing, the deal will see Newcastle win the race for a young forward that Florentino Perez reportedly wanted to sign for Real Madrid and one that both Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain had their eyes on as well.

Those at St James’ Park will have to wait until next season to see the 17-year-old in action, however, given that he’s set to head straight back on loan to Dinamo Tbilisi for the rest of the current campaign. One for the future, Mitchell has certainly got off to a good start ahead of the winter window.

Signing Salia is early statement from Newcastle

Whilst Salia is of course one for the future, the fact that Newcastle are seemingly set to beat some of Europe’s top sides to his signature represents a much-needed statement of intent from Mitchell and others around St James’ Park. The young forward will be one to watch when he does arrive next season, having already earned comparisons to countryman Kvicha Kvaratskhelia.

If the young Georgian, who can play up front or on either wing, is of the same calibre as the Napoli star, then the Magpies will be in for a treat for years to come. Given that Isak, himself, is still just 25 years old, there’s a high chance that Howe will be able to form a fresh strike partnership between the arriving Salia and his star man to refresh Newcastle’s frontline.

The way that Howe’s side have started the Premier League campaign suggests that they’re gunning for a return to European football once again in a move that would only attract further talents of Salia’s reputation. Meanwhile, off the pitch, Mitchell will be looking to continue matching the likes of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and PSG in the transfer market.

As the international break rumbles on, a fresh update has emerged on Newcastle United’s plan to move away from their iconic St James’ Park and into a new stadium in nearby Leazes Park.

Newcastle set to follow recent trend

Whether it’s Highbury, White Hart Lane or the Boleyn Ground, the Premier League has lost some iconic stadiums over the years. Clubs have instead opted to upgrade and step into the modernity of fresh and bigger grounds such as the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – arguably England’s most modern stadium – and the London Stadium, which played host to the 2012 London Olympics.

More clubs are now set to follow suit. Everton, one of England’s oldest clubs, are set to bid farewell to Goodison Park at the end of the current campaign. In its place, the Toffees will finally complete their move to the new Bramley-Moore Dock stadium which will almost mirror Spurs’ previous move away from White Hart Lane.

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Whilst tradition has been ditched, the new grounds are certainly eye-catching and stand out even more when reflecting on Manchester United’s stubborn resolve over a decaying Old Trafford before Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s arrival and plan to upgrade across the club in a plan that the Magpies now look set to follow.

Newcastle's stadium plans update

According to the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope, local Newcastle council officials were spotted as PIF’s guests to hold talks over the club’s plan to build a new stadium at Leazes Park, which is directly behind current stadium St James’ Park.

Hope explained the news on his YouTube channel, saying: “This is another question, do I think the uncertainty around PSR and APT has delayed the club’s announcement over plans for a new stadium?

“No, I don’t think there has, I think there has just been a delay because they’re getting their ducks in a row for what I’m increasingly believing will be an attempt to move into Leazes Park. That isn’t easy, that isn’t straightforward. But there is a recognition on the inside now that a new stadium is needed, but they want to stay on the site.

“St James’ is wonderful, it’s fantastic, I don’t have to go over that, but is it fit for purpose in terms of being that top class level of stadium we see now around the world? If Newcastle can maintain that city centre location and that iconic spot on the top of the hill but by building just behind in Leazes Park.

“The Freeman of the City of the council will be key to this, the Freemen have been guests at St James’ Park and I’m led to believe there have been positive talks in that regard. I think that is the way the club will look to explore.”

With talks reportedly positive over their move, Newcastle must now hope that the Freemen in the council will help progress things even further. Seemingly the key, according to Hope, a Freeman has the full rights and privileges of a City to play a role in elections and trade. Get their approval and Newcastle may just follow Everton and Spurs by swapping the old and historic for the new and modern.

England captain says they should have been more “ruthless” in first innings

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Sep-2021England captain Joe Root highlighted his side’s lack of “ruthlessness” with the bat in their first innings, as well as dropped catches and a pivotal spell of reverse-swing from Jasprit Bumrah on the final afternoon, after India wrapped up victory in the fourth Test at the Kia Oval for a 2-1 series lead.Having been set a record chase of 368 to win, England reached 100 without loss on the fifth morning, but suffered a dramatic slide after lunch, losing 4 for 6 inside six overs with Bumrah to the fore. Thoughts of a historic fourth-innings pursuit quickly evaporated, and the dismissal of Root for 36 shortly before tea all but extinguished England’s chances of seeing out the day for a draw.Root gave credit to India, calling Bumrah’s spell the “turning point”, but was quick to look elsewhere for reasons behind the 157-run defeat. Having bowled out India for 191 on the first day – which itself represented something of a recovery from 127 for 7 – England took a 99-run lead on first innings; but none of their middle order was able to fully capitalise on good positions, with Ollie Pope making 81, and Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali 37 and 35 respectively.”It’s frustrating not to be able to get something from the game today, we turned up this morning and really felt we had an opportunity to win the Test,” Root told Sky Sports. “The opening partnership was outstanding, but credit to India, they got the ball to reverse and made good use of that, it was a brilliant spell of bowling from Bumrah and that really was the turning point.Related

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“More from my side of things, we’d look at other areas in the Test where we may have missed opportunities, could have been a little bit better, could have made more of an advantage of that first-innings lead. And obviously in the field, as well, as difficult as some of those chances were, you’ve got to take them against world-class players.”Whenever you lose the game you can look at the toss. More than anything, you look at what lead we had and what we could have potentially had. That’s the thing, we’ve got to be a bit more ruthless there, we’ve got to make that a 200-run lead instead of a 100-run lead, especially the way the surface was playing. It’s about those big partnerships, we had a number of good starts, guys getting in and not managing to go on, that’s something we’ve got to be clinical at, not get complacent.”England’s head coach, Chris Silverwood, echoed the point, saying he would have liked to “go further past” India on first innings.”If we’re being truthful, I would like to have gone further past them at that point, that’s going to be the opportunity to really put pressure on the Indians,” he said. “We failed to do that so it’s something we’ll reflect on in the dressing room and talk about amongst ourselves. It would have been great to go maybe 190 past them and really pile the pressure on, but again credit to the Indians, they know how to fight back.”A second century opening stand in successive Tests between Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed had given England hope of pulling off something special on the fifth day. In contrast to the draw with New Zealand at Lord’s earlier in the summer, when they declined to chase 273 in 75 overs, Root said England were keen to take on the chase – but Burns was removed by Shardul Thakur for 50 and Dawid Malan was run out soon after as the home side stuttered.”We had to earn the right to get ourselves in a position to dictate terms,” Root said. “It was always going to have to be the case that we needed wickets in hand. We certainly set things up nicely. Going into lunch it would have been nice to be only one down. It was more if we got into a position near tea where we had wickets in hand then we could have definitely looked to put our foot on the gas and put India under pressure.”You know when there is wickets in hand you always feel like you can score quickly. India would have probably had to be a little more defensive with some of their fields and they would have had that in the back of their mind that we could chase them down. Unfortunately we couldn’t quite take it deep enough and that was a wonderful spell of bowling that really turned the game.”It was Bumrah’s spell of 2 for 6 from six overs just after lunch that knocked the stuffing out of England. With the old ball reversing, he bowled Pope for 2 and then yorked Bairstow with a vicious inswinging yorker for a duck. Either side of those dismissals, Ravindra Jadeja removed Hameed and Moeen as India took a grip.”I think you’ve always got to look at ways of getting better, and managing different periods of play, absolutely,” Root said. “But at the same time you’ve got to be realistic and understand that was world-class bowling. [Bumrah] saw an opportunity within the game and performed extremely well. Sometimes you’ve got to find a way of managing through that period. It’s something we’ll look at, there’s a chance there might be some reverse swing at Old Trafford, have to manage it better if we come across a similar situation.”Another aspect for concern was England’s catching, with six chances being spilled throughout the game – including India’s second-innings centurion, Rohit Sharma, being missed twice by Burns, albeit one was a tough diving effort that he did well to get a hand to.England missed costly chances in the field•Getty Images

“There were some very difficult chances, a lot of players might not even get to that one that Burnsy went to, the fact he covered so much ground’s a great effort. It is a difficult viewing ground at times here but we’ve got to keep looking to get better, looking to take those chances. It’s not for lack of effort, or work in practice or how we’re preparing for games, we’ve just got to keep putting yourself in those positions and be brave enough to take it on.”With the third of back-to-back-to-back Tests set to get underway at Old Trafford on Friday, and their new-ball pair of James Anderson and Ollie Robinson having bowled more than 160 overs in the series so far, England may have to look at making changes to the attack. Craig Overton also suffered a painful blow to his right elbow when being dismissed by Umesh Yadav, while Saqib Mahmood, who was part of the squad before being released to play for Lancashire, has reportedly suffered a side strain – although there was better news on the fitness of Mark Wood, after he hurt his shoulder in the field at Lord’s.”Woody’s coming good, that’s promising,” Root said. “It has been a frustrating summer in terms of the amount of injuries we’ve had to contend with, that’s not an excuse but something that’s been difficult to manage. But the guys that have had the opportunity to play and the way they’ve thrown themselves into the series, they’ve been excellent. It’ll be one big push for the guys that go out and play next week at Old Trafford.”On whether Anderson might be fit enough to make his seventh Test appearance of the summer – something he hasn’t managed since 2018 – Root added: “I think you have to weigh everything up – you have to take everything into account, make sure that physically he’s in the right place to be able to play a Test match. And also that he makes sure that he can get through it, because at the same time, even with his quality if he goes down injured, it leaves us in a very difficult place, not only for the rest of the game, but for the winter as well.”So we have to be smart about it we have to make sure we make the right calls. Ultimately, we’ve got to try and find a way of winning as well so it’s a delicate balancing act, one that we’ll try and make sure we get right.”England now face needing to win at Old Trafford to avoid losing both home series this summer. “You never want to lose any Test series so it’s going to be very important that we bounce back very quickly just as we did a week ago [at Headingley] and put in a similar sort of performance at Old Trafford,” Root said.

Tottenham Hotspur continued their good form with a win away to Hungarian champions Ferencvaros in the Europa League. It was a professional performance from Ange Postecolgou’s side, who ran out 2-1 winners in the Groupama Arena.

The Lilywhites, sporting an all green kit tonight, scored a goal in each half to ensure they won all three points. Young midfielder Pape Matar Sarr opened the scoring for the visitors, pouncing on a loose ball in the penalty box to fire home and give his side a 1-0 lead.

After some good pressure from the home side, and still only a goal up and far from comfortable, Postecoglou turned to his big guns on the bench.

They certainly had an impact the Australian had hoped for, with James Maddison finding Brennan Johnson just inside the penalty box, who finished well into the bottom left-hand corner for his fifth goal in as many games. The Hungarian side pulled one back in the 90th minute, but could not find an equaliser.

There were certainly some impressive individual performances from Spurs, not least from their substitutes. However, one of their standout players on the night was exciting young talent Mikey Moore.

Moore’s stats vs. Ferencvaros

There is lots of hype around Spurs youngster Moore, who has impressed at academy level. After making his debut last term, he has finally managed to break into Postecoglou’s squad this season and is making a real impact.

Before the game, Maddison described his potential as “scary”, and that was certainly on show in Hungary. The youngster is a quick and direct winger, who is not afraid to run at a defender and look to take him on in a one-vs-one situation.

He showed that against Ferencvaros on Thursday night, as his stats from Sofascore reflect. The 17-year-old had 67 touches of the ball, completing 80% of his passes, creating one big chance and winning an impressive four fouls. He also worked hard off the ball, winning six ground duels and one tackle.

His impressive performance in Hungary earned him an 8/10 rating from The Evening Standard journalist Dan Kilpatrick. The journalist praised the teenager for an ‘excellent showing’ against the Hungarian side, in which he ‘always looked to take on his man’.

Whilst Moore impressed against the Hungarian outfit, there was arguably one player who outshone the 17-year-old – Archie Gray.

Gray's stats vs. Ferencvaros

It was an impressive performance against the Hungarian outfit from young Gray. He has featured in all but three of Spurs’ games this season, with the trip to Ferencvaros his third start of the new campaign.

The trust that has been shown in the youngster demonstrates just how highly rated he is by Postecoglou, and the England youth international has certainly repaid his faith. He was superb against the Hungarian champions, retaining possession well and working hard off the ball in an unfamiliar position at centre-back, before moving to left-back in the second half.

His impressive contribution was reflected in his post-match stats. The 18-year-old had 82 touches of the ball in Hungary – more than even teammate Yves Bissouma (76), completing 87% of his passes and creating two chances. Off the ball, the youngster performed well, and won three from three tackles.

Stat

Number

Pass accuracy

87%

Touches

82

Passes completed

47/54

Ground duels won

4/10

Tackles won

3/3

Interceptions

3

Chances created

2

His performance was enough to earn him a 7/10 rating from Kilpatrick. He explained the summer signing from Leeds showed ‘flashes of real class’ against the Hungarian side, praising him for his versatility.

It is a performance that will bring real confidence to Postecoglou, who will be hoping Moore, Gray and their teammates can continue a good run of form away to Brighton at the weekend.

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MatériaMais Notícias

Corinthians e Spani Atacadista anunciaram na tarde de segunda-feira (24) uma expansão da parceria entre a rede de atacarejo e o clube. A patrocinadora máster do time feminino estará presente também no masculino, com seu logo estampado na barra traseira da camisa do uniforme de jogo. A mesma posição será ocupada pela marca na camisa da equipe feminina.O contrato para as duas modalidades é válido até dezembro de 2023, e a Spani estará no uniforme da equipe contra a Ferroviária, na estreia do clube peloPaulistão.

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> GALERIA: Timão ativo no mercado para “se livrar” de atletas fora dos planos

A parceria no futebol entre a Spani e o Time do Povo começou no ano passado, quando a atacadista tornou-se patrocinadora máster do time de futebol feminino e teve sua marca estampada nos uniformes de treino e da comissão técnica do time masculino, além de ocupar espaços publicitários na Neo Química Arena.

-Para o Corinthians, é uma enorme satisfação contar com a Spani como patrocinadora tanto do time feminino quanto do masculino. Esta é uma parceria de sucesso e, com a força do Vale do Paraíba, teremos um caminho cada vez mais vitorioso – destacou Duilio Monteiro Alves, presidente do Timão.

Cléber Gomez, diretor-presidente do Grupo Zaragoza (empresa detentora da bandeira Spani Atacadista), vê o patrocínio como fonte de um valor incalculável para a empresa.

– O Corinthians está entre os maiores clubes do mundo, e poder aliar a nossa marca para fazer parte da história de um time que extrapola fronteiras é uma oportunidade que toda empresa busca. Tenho certeza de que teremos um ótimo retorno de identidade para a nossa marca e que esta parceria será marcada com conquistas de ambos os lados – disse Cléber.

Com a chegada da Spani Atacadista e as saídas da Midea e Positivo, a equipe masculina inicia a temporada de 2022 com nove patrocinadores.

> TABELA: Confira a tabela do Paulistão e simule os próximos jogos

PATROCINADORES DO TIME MASCULINO DO CORINTHIANS

Vitaminas Neo Química – Máster – Dezembro de 2025
Banco BMG – Mangas – Dezembro de 2026
Ale – Parte superior frontal da camisa – Agosto de 2022
Taunsa – espaço ainda não revelado – Dezembro de 2023
Mercado Bitcoin – Barra frontal da camisa – Dezembro 2022
Guaraná Poty – Parte traseira do calção – Dezembro de 2022
Galera Bet – Ombros – Julho de 2025
Cartão de Todos – Parte da frente do calção – Abril 2022
Spani Atacadista -barra traseira da camisa – Dezembro 2023

Sobre o Grupo Zaragoza

Fundado em 2003, o Grupo Zaragoza optou em investir no Atacarejo, termo brasileiro que reúne as duas formas tradicionais de comércio – o atacado e o varejo, com os conceitos de self-service (autosserviço) e cash & carry (pague e leve). De acordo com o ranking da ABRAS (Associação Brasileira de Supermercados), a Spani Atacadista é a rede que mais cresce no Brasil e está entre as 15 maiores empresas do segmento de Atacarejo do país.

O grupo manteve seu ritmo acelerado de crescimento em 2021, mesmo com o impacto da pandemia. O resultado deste investimento fará com que encerre o ano com 37 unidades, um novo CD e registre um faturamento de R$ 4,2 bilhões.

يغادر منتخب مصر للشباب تحت 20 سنة، بقيادة المدرب أسامة نبيه إلى قطر يوم الأحد المقبل، للمشاركة في بطولة ودية ستقام خلال الفترة من 16 إلى 26 مارس الجاري.

البطولة ستجمع منتخبات قطر وكرواتيا والإمارات، في إطار التحضير لنهائيات بطولة أفريقيا تحت 20 سنة التي ستنظمها كوت ديفوار من 26 أبريل إلى 18 مايو المقبلين.

ومن المقرر أن يتأهل منها أربعة منتخبات إلى نهائيات كأس العالم التي ستُجرى في تشيلي من 27 سبتمبر إلى 19 أكتوبر بمشاركة 24 منتخبًا.

 طالع.. بالمواعيد.. منتخب مصر للناشئين يخوض مواجهتين وديتين استعدادًا لـ كأس أمم إفريقيا

تبدأ مباريات المنتخب في البطولة الودية بملاقاة المنتخب القطري يوم 19 مارس، ثم يواجه المنتخب الكرواتي في 22 من نفس الشهر، ويختتم لقاءاته بلعبه مع منتخب الإمارات في 26 مارس، قبل العودة إلى القاهرة في اليوم التالي.

وأكد أسامة نبيه أن البطولة الودية في قطر تمثل فرصة مهمة لمراقبة أداء اللاعبين تحت ضغط المباريات الرسمية، كما ستتيح له اختبار بعض الخطط الفنية وتحديد جاهزية اللاعبين بدنياً وفنياً.

أوضح أن المرحلة المقبلة ستشهد تركيزًا على اختيار اللاعبين الأنسب لتمثيل المنتخب في البطولة الأفريقية بناءً على مستواهم الفني والبدني وقدرتهم على تنفيذ أفكار الجهاز الفني، مشيرًا إلى أن الفريق يضم حاليًا 40 لاعبًا تم الاستقرار عليهم.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is believed to want a £58 million striker more than any other centre-forward, with a January bid to sign a new number nine looking increasingly more likely.

Arsenal's reported striker targets ahead of 2025

In the last week alone, a fair few names have been named by sections of the media as possible striker targets for Arsenal as we approach 2025.

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Arsenal have their eye on Sporting Lisbon sensation Viktor Gyokeres, according to some reports, with GiveMeSport writing that Gunners scouts are set to run the rule over him on November 5 when Sporting take on Man City in the Champions League.

The Sweden international apparently has an admirer in Arteta, amidst his exceptional start to 2024/2025, where he’s picked up right where he left off from last season. Gyokeres boasts 13 goals in 13 appearances this term, following his phenomenal return of 43 goals and 15 assists last season.

Liverpool (home)

October 27

Newcastle United (away)

November 2

Chelsea (away)

November 10

Nottingham Forest (home)

November 23

West Ham United (away)

November 30

Meanwhile, it is also believed Arsenal are ready to battle Barcelona for Jhon Duran. The Colombia international has enjoyed his own exceptional return so far this campaign, resulting in Aston Villa handing him a new contract, which has bumped his value up to around £75 million.

RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko remains a target for Arsenal as well, following their failed attempt to land him in the summer window. The north Londoners, according to some media sources, have already made contact over Sesko ahead of a possible swoop next year (CaughtOffside).

Lately, links have resurfaced in regard to Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic, who was once a rumoured top target for Arsenal. Juve are attempting to tie Vlahovic down with a new contract as Arsenal lurk in the background, as per a very recent bit of information from Italian news outlet Calciomercato.

Now, TEAMtalk and journalist Rudy Galetti have provided their own update on the situation.

Arteta wants Vlahovic at Arsenal more than any other striker

It is believed Vlahovic is the striker “most appreciated” by Arteta, meaning the Serbian is his personal top attacking target for Arsenal. This comes as Edu Gaspar and co become increasingly likely to bid for a new striker in January.

The Old Lady forward could cost around £58 million to prise away from Turin, but a winter deal for Vlahovic appears “complicated” right now. However, Arsenal believe the player is getable, as his contract talks have hit a brick wall.

Vlahovic’s deal expires in 2026, meaning Juve could be forced to cash in on the striker if they cannot agree a new contract.

“He is an extraordinary player,” said ex-Juve star Alessio Tacchinardi in 2022.

“He is a player who has one goal per game and therefore for Juve, having lost Ronaldo, he goes to tremendously increase the score of this team, which suffered a lot in front of him. This is a goal that is invented by itself.

“He’s very good at waiting for the defender, then puts his shoulder, moves him. He’s a bit lucky in the rebound, but many compliments to this player.”

To avoid a potential conflict-of-interest controversy, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has decided to step down as director of ATK Mohun Bagan, the football team owned by RPSG Ventures Ltd, the Indian business conglomerate that on Monday bid a record INR 7,090 crore (USD 940 million approximately) to buy the Lucknow IPL franchise.ESPNcricinfo understands Ganguly has initiated the process of standing down from his role at Mohun Bagan, one of two most venerable and popular clubs in Indian football, which is part of the Indian Super League. In addition to being one of the directors on the Mohun Bagan board, Ganguly is also a shareholder. It is learned that Ganguly will step aside from the role at Mohun Bagan for as long as he is the BCCI president, to avoid conflict.Related

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The issue of the conflict surfaced after RPSG vice-chairman Sanjiv Goenka, the owner of Mohun Bagan as well as the as-yet-unnamed Lucknow IPL franchise, told on Monday that Ganguly was on the verge of stepping down. “Well, I think he is going to step down from Mohun Bagan completely… I think today,” Goenka told the business television network. “It is for Sourav to make the announcement. I mean, sorry. I think I pre-empted it.”If Ganguly carried on occupying the positions both at the BCCI and Mohun Bagan, he would fall foul of the ‘direct or indirect interest’ conflict rule under the BCCI constitution. The rule states: “When the BCCI, a Member, the IPL or a Franchisee enter into contractual arrangements with entities in which the individual concerned or his/her relative, partner or close associate has an interest. This is to include cases where family members, partners or close associates are in position that may, or may be seen to compromise as individual’s participation, performance and discharge of roles.”This is not the first instance of Ganguly being involved in a conflict of interest issue concerning his BCCI position. In 2019, Ganguly and his former India team-mate VVS Laxman were found to be in positions of conflict for holding more than one post in Indian cricket. Ganguly at the time was president of the Cricket Association of Bengal, advisor with the Delhi Capitals in the IPL, and was also working as a TV commentator.

Liverpool have often been praised for their recruitment over the past decade, bringing in fewer “household names” and opting for those who are showing great signs in the data charts.

The likes of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané, Roberto Firmino, Georginio Wijnaldum, Diogo Jota, Andy Robertson, and Alexis Mac Allister are just some of the names that fit this recruitment model.

Jürgen Klopp did a great job in his time at the club, implementing these data-led signings, along with some high-profile, big-money acquisitions such as Allison Becker and Virgil van Dijk, and, of course, some youth talent, the biggest one being Trent Alexander-Arnold.

But there is another player who has come up through the academy ranks and is now a consistent feature in matchday squads for the Reds, someone who will be competing with the brilliance of Ryan Gravenberch – another data-led signing – for a spot in the starting XI.

Ryan Gravenberch's breakthrough season

Gravenberch joined Liverpool back in 2023, for a fee of around £34.2m from Bayern Munich. However, the 22-year-old midfielder is only now becoming a key figure in this Liverpool side, under new manager Arne Slot.

Slot tends to deploy a 4-2-3-1, with the double pivot consisting of Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister so far this campaign. The Dutch midfielder has started seven of eight games for Liverpool this season, the only one he missed being an EFL Cup game, where he was left out of the squad for rest purposes.

Gravenberch has provided Liverpool with a great balance in midfield, using his powerful frame to cover ground in the middle of the park, winning duels and protecting the defence, whilst also being able to drive forwards at times and help circulate possession with the defenders, using his excellent press resistance qualities.

That was on display against Wolves on Saturday afternoon where the Dutchman won 100% of his duels and also completed 92% of his passes.

Gravenberch stats vs Wolves
Stat	Gravenberch
Minutes	90
Touches	73
Accurate Passes	57/62
Pass Completion	92%
Long Balls	1/1
Ground Duels	7/7
Aerial Duels	1/1
Tackles	3
Stats taken from Sofascore

The 22-year-old is now valued at around £29m by Transfermarkt, but if he remains in this rich vein of form for Liverpool, his estimations are sure to increase. After all, he’s still an extremely young player who is yet to enter his prime years.

Gravenberch isn’t the only talented young midfielder in their ranks, as Liverpool also have a man that cost them £0, who is now also valued at that same £29m price tag as Gravenberch.

Market Movers

Football FanCast's Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club's star player or biggest flop worth today?

Curtis Jones' rise through the ranks

Curtis Jones joined Liverpool at just nine-years-old, spending eight years in the Liverpool youth system before signing his first professional contract in 2018. The academy graduate made a combined 81 appearances for various age groups ranging from U18-U21, scoring 41 goals, and providing 15 assists.

The 23-year-old made his debut in the 2018/19 season, playing in the FA Cup third round against Wolves. Since then, the midfielder has gone on to make 137 appearances for the senior team, scoring 16 goals, providing 15 assists, and totaling 7,469 minutes played.

The English midfielder has been held in high regard, Graeme Souness being one to praise him, saying “he’s got the ability, the athleticism, he looks to have the attitude” when speaking about Jones back in 2021.

Much like Gravenberch, the youngster possesses a powerful stride, helping him win duels in the middle of the park, go box to box, and stamp his authority in all phases of play. Now his task is to wriggle his way into Slot’s starting XI, as his competition has started the season so strong.

Jones (23/24) vs Gravenberch (24/25) comparison
Stats (per 90 mins)	Jones	Gravenberch
Goals	0.22	0.00
Assists	0.13	0.11
Progressive Carries	2.49	2.71
Progressive Passes	5.14	6.43
Shots Total	1.81	0.33
Passes Attempted	61.3	62.7
Pass Completion %	90.8%	89.1%
Key Passes	1.16	0.29
Passes into Final Third	5.14	6.00
Tackles	2.02	2.29
Blocks	1.62	1.57
Interceptions	0.62	2.33
Stats taken from FBref

Due to Jones only managing 127 minutes so far this season, we compared his metrics from last campaign, and how they differ from the successful start of Gravenberch so far this season.

From March 2023 to March 2024, Jones’ value increased by more than double, going from €17.00m (£14m player to a £29m player in the eyes of Transferamrkt, which is the same value as Gravenberch according to Transfermarkt, just to underline his impressive development.

The metrics compared between the two midfielders give us a good idea as to why the latter has been chosen ahead of the academy star under Slot. He adds more defensive stability in the middle of the park, to provide balance alongside other midfielders such as Mac Allister, and Dominik Szoboszlai.

Gravenberch has averaged 2.29 tackles and 2.33 interceptions per 90 this season, more than Jones who averaged 2.02 tackles, and only 0.62 interceptions per 90 last season. Slot’s desire to have a midfielder who can cover large distances, and win the ball back for his side, has seen Gravenberch picked every game but one this season.

But as previously mentioned, Jones is a player that can cover large distances, often playing as a box to box midfielder under Klopp. With time in this system, and an understanding that he has to protect the middle of the pitch, winning duels and being a primary ball winner for Liverpool, the 23-year-old could challenge his Dutch colleague for the mantle of this role.

He has similar attributes, the ability to carry forwards, progress play through the lines, and use his body to resist the press, allowing Liverpool to keep possession and play through teams under immense pressure.

The main goal would be converting the Liverpudlian into a more disciplined and stationary player in central areas, as opposed to his box to box role, joining the attack, arriving in the box, and looking to take shots/score goals.

This showed last season, taking 1.81 shots per 90 – compared to only 0.33 of Gravenberch – and the 0.22 goals per 90 last season.

These numbers show the transformation Jones would have to undergo to get ahead of his teammate in this starting XI, but it is definently possible, and if Slot can do this, they will have two excellent options for that role, negating the need to move for a number six next summer. Regardless of that, the fanbase certainly can’t complain at one of their own now being a prominent figure of the first team. Klopp and Co certainly struck gold when they cherry-picked him from the academy.

100% duels won: 8/10 Liverpool star is fast becoming as important as Salah

Liverpool man becoming as important as Salah

By
Connor Holden

Sep 29, 2024

Previous Chelsea manager, Thomas Tuchel is set to become the new England manager, following Gareth Southgate who managed the Three Lions between 2016-2024.

In his time at Stamford Bridge, Tuchel managed 100 games, winning 63 times, drawing 19 times, and losing 18 times. His points per match came to 2.08, scoring 197 goals and conceding 105 over this time frame.

The German has a variety of ways he could set up with England, having had great success in a back three for the Blues, but also opting for back four formations with the likes of PSG and Bayern Munich, where he won domestic league titles for both.

English Chelsea players Tuchel managed

During his time at Chelsea between 2021-2022, Tuchel managed multiple other English talents, including Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Trevoh Chalobah, Conor Gallagher, Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Ross Barkley, Mason Mount, and Raheem Sterling.

Gallagher is the only name of those above who has found himself frequently in the England squad in recent times, with Chilwell and James struggling from injury issues, and the likes of Sterling and Mount struggling for form.

Mount could be an interesting case for Tuchel if he gets back to full fitness, something he has struggled to do at Manchester United. The 25-year-old made 195 appearances for Chelsea, scoring 33 goals, providing 35 assists, and totalling 13,959 minutes played.

He was a favourite with the German, largely for his off-ball work rate, and ability to play in more of a hybrid role, playing as an inside forward who could operate in both the half spaces and out wide.

Of course, another player on that list who still plays for the Blues would be captain James, who would also be extremely likely to feature for the Three Lions under Tuchel if he could get back to full fitness. His ability to play as both a right-sided centre-back in a back three, as a right-wing back, or as a nominal right-back in a back four, would give Tuchel that tactical versatility he desires.

Loftus-Cheek was another example of a player used in that swiss-army knife fashion under the new England boss, as the central midfielder was often deployed as a right-wing back under the German, even making an appearance as one of the central defenders in a back three.

The main thing to takeaway from this is that Tuchel will want versatility from his players, and part of his squad selection will probably be determined by having multiple swiss-army knives at his disposal, allowing him to make those changes in-game to stay on top of things.

One player who played under Tuchel at Chelsea who could find a role for himself in this new-look Three Lions side, is Callum Hudson-Odoi, who played as a wingback and a forward for the former Bayern Munich coach in his time at Chelsea.

Hudson-Odoi under Tuchel at Chelsea

Hudson-Odoi came through the Chelsea academy, making his senior debut in January 2018. He went on to make 126 appearances for the Blues, scoring 16 goals and providing 21 assists while totalling 6,449 minutes played.

Under Tuchel, Hudson-Odoi was deployed in a variety of roles, playing both the left and right inside forward, as a left and right-wing back, and even as a centre-forward in one game.

This tactical variety that the youngster gave his side was part of the reason he was heavily utilised by the German, totalling 1,876 minutes that season, despite only starting 21 games.

Goals

0.24

0.15

Assists

0.24

0.20

xG

0.14

0.26

xAG

0.23

0.22

Progressive Carries

6.65

5.68

Progressive Passes

5.35

4.75

Shots Total

1.99

1.71

Key Passes

2.19

2.30

Shot-Creating Actions

4.65

5.47

Successful Take-Ons

1.35

1.65

You can see by the metrics the transformation of Hudson-Odoi under Tuchel, with his output going down, his progressive numbers falling, but his key passes, shot-creating actions, and successful take-ons going up. Much of this has to do with the role change, playing as more of a wing-back.

In this role, the current Nottingham Forest ace was expected to contribute to both phases of play, tracking back defensively, but also providing width when in possession, stretching the pitch high and wide, and providing the team with an outlet.

This would allow him to find 1v1 situations to take on his man, create shots for himself and others, and play more key passes, often playing clipped passes towards the back post.

The 23-year-old has now moved on to Forest, joining them in 2023 for just £3m. Since then, Hudson-Odoi has made 42 appearances for the club, scoring nine goals, providing two assists, and totalling 2,695 minutes.

How Tuchel could set up at England

There are two ways Tuchel is expected to set up with this England side, one of those being a more common 4-2-3-1 shape, something used by Southgate already for England, and the other being what many saw at Chelsea, with his 3-4-3 shape.

The Three Lions clearly have the personnel to play either of these formations, with someone like Saka being an option for right-wing in a back four, but also a left-wing back in a back five, which could see him highly favoured by the German if we are going of off previous examples.

The new manager will also have plenty of selection headaches, one of the main ones being Cole Palmer or Phil Foden as a number ten, and whether to play Jude Bellingham deeper in midfield to accommodate for one of these other talents.

But if Tuchel’s previous jobs are anything to go by, we can expect plenty of versatility, good usage of all the tools at his disposal, and maybe even some new roles for players we haven’t seen yet. Either way, it’s going to be exciting to find out.

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