All posts by h716a5.icu

Bangladesh haven’t been at their best in tournament finals, which is why they’ll need a fresh mindset against India in the Asia Cup title clash

Mohammad Isam27-Sep-2018Bangladesh’s senior cricketers will try to diffuse the expectations and pressure around their team in Friday’s Asia Cup final by telling each other that it is “just another game”. But in the last nine years, they haven’t successfully managed to stave off the weight of expectations when playing in a final. After going down in two tournament finals this year itself, Bangladesh must now play against India with a fresh mindset and better tactics.If their UAE campaign so far is any proof, they have done well playing out of their comfort zones – which is exactly what finals are like for most teams. Bangladesh have had to change the batting line-up to accommodate vacuums left by injuries to Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan, as well as an under-performing top three in every game. Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Mohammad Mithun and Imrul Kayes have played six vital knocks between them; both Imrul and Mithun are in the middle-order for the first time.Mashrafe Mortaza has led the side superbly, particularly against Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Pakistan, with Mehidy Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman being his most consistent bowlers. Against Pakistan, they played without a specialist left-arm spinner in the attack for the first time in four years, and had Mahmudullah and Mehidy conceding runs at 3.3 per over for 20 overs, while picking up three wickets too. Mustafizur and Rubel Hossain are also bowling more with the new ball as Mashrafe looks to plug vital overs in the middle period to make up for Shakib’s enforced absence.One thing Bangladesh will dearly want is for their top order to finally click. A fast start from Liton Das could give them an ideal launch pad. Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah are highly effective in the last 10 overs, especially if they are relatively fresh, which means Imrul and Mithun have to dig in for the middle overs.Mehidy and Mustafizur will be expected to do more of what they have done in the Asia Cup so far. They have been disciplined and attacking at the same time. They stepped up magnificently against Pakistan with Shakib absent, they’ll have to do that one more time.ESPNcricinfo LtdBangladesh will also have to do the one-percenters right – take their catches safely, effect run-outs, and, most importantly, not get involved in a run-out. The responsibility for that has to be spread around the entire playing XI.In their two finals appearances this year, Bangladesh have come in on the back of good performances in the tournament, but lost. In an ODI tri-series at home in January, they cruised past Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka in three out of four league matches, before imploding in the final. They first tinkered with the top order, not continuing with Anamul Haque (bringing in Mithun). Shakib then sustained the finger injury, which flared up again here leading him to quit the Asia Cup midway, and the batting crumbled on a turning Dhaka track.Only Sabbir Rahman made runs among the top seven batsmen in the Nidahas Trophy final, but Bangladesh still had India on the mat with two overs remaining and 34 runs left to win. Dinesh Karthik pasted Rubel Hossain for 22 in the 19th over before hammering a six off Soumya Sarkar on the last ball of the match.Using a part-timer like Soumya in the last over was a strategic error. As far back as in 2009, Bangladesh had batted poorly against Sri Lanka in the final of a tri-series at home, but then they took five Sri Lankan wickets with only six runs on the board. However, Sri Lanka ended up winning by two wickets. Kumar Sangakkara played a good hand, but the other star with the bat was, surprisingly, Muttiah Muralitharan.In the 2012 Asia Cup final, Bangladesh’s tactical mistake was in batting too slowly at the top and in the middle overs, leaving them needing too many towards the end. Emotions were at an all-time high too, which got the better of many Bangladesh players. As for the 2016 Asia Cup final, India crushed them.In the recent past too, Bangladesh have had issues with finishing off matches. This year alone, they have lost close matches in the Nidahas Trophy final, against Afghanistan in Dehradun, and against West Indies in Guyana.The good news for Bangladesh is that six of their current 17-member squad have never played in a tournament final, which means they don’t carry the memory of any heart-breaking losses. So Mominul Haque, Imrul Kayes, Ariful Haque, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain and Nazmul Islam have the opportunity to set things right in their first attempt in a tournament final.The Asia Cup final is an opportunity for Bangladesh to beat a top ODI side in a big game. More importantly, it is an opportunity to show the progress they have made as an ODI outfit in the last three years, with a trophy to show for it. Perhaps there is no point in telling each other then, that it is “just another game”. It would be better if Bangladesh’s players use this as an occasion to stand up.

One pushed out of his middle-order station only in his third Test, the other not adequately acclimatised, the pair can make a career out of this opportunity if they are able to deliver at the MCG

Sidharth Monga in Melbourne25-Dec-20184:05

Manjrekar: Hanuma Vihari should play up the order

These Boxing Day Tests are a strange time. In the lead-up to perhaps the biggest Test of the year, that needle and anticipation a day out from the Test is often missing. The intensity at the nets is low. Families are around. Everybody is in a hurry to lock up the stadium after finishing off the press conferences. There is nothing to suggest 80,000 people will walk in through the turnstiles for arguably their biggest sporting day of the year. People tend to turn contemplative.Justin Langer, the Australia coach, spoke the other day of how he invariably – as a coach – has to ruin somebody’s Christmas by telling him he is not playing, and make it for someone who is playing. Amid all the magic family and festival create, there are these difficult decisions to make. “It’s a bit sad,” Langer said. It would have been much more difficult for Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri this time around. They have made big calls.For the first time in long memory, they have announced an XI a day out from the Test. Only for the second time in their history, India are handing out a debut to an opener in Australia. For the first time in their history, they will have two openers in Australia with no experience of opening the innings.For one of them, this is a Christmas gift well-earned after scoring thousands and thousands of first-class runs. It is a gift that almost never arrived. Mayank Agarwal was part of the Test squad against West Indies, a sign that India were ready to move on from the ones that had failed in England, but then when it came to the big tour, Agarwal was left out of the squad. Just as the Grinch was making away with it, Prithvi Shaw has injured himself, the other openers have hit a rut, and it is almost like there is nothing to lose at the top.ALSO READ: The dismal story of India’s opening actThe man Agarwal replaces is a good friend of his, who made his debut at the same place in the same setting four years ago. It was a nervous debut for KL Rahul, who fell to two nervous shots. Perhaps Rahul will be able to tell Agarwal he needs to give himself more time. “I was playing to their pace,” Rahul told ESPNcricinfo of that debut. There is always more time than you think. Even if you have to walk out to face the first ball. It is actually better because your side wants to bat first.Hanuma Vihari plays on the leg side•Getty ImagesJust like Rahul four years ago, the other opener is now batting out of position. Rahul, an opener, batted in the middle order in India’s last Boxing Day Test, transitioned back into opening, has once been tried as No. 3, then back to opening, and now, as if to complete a cycle, he is dropped for this Boxing Day Test. To Hanuma Vihari, who will be opening with Agarwal, this is almost not a gift. He has done nothing to deserve to be pushed out of his middle-order station. Then again, if Rohit Sharma has to be accommodated, the only slot remaining is at the top. And having batted at No. 3 most often in domestic cricket, Vihari is the man most suited to make the sacrifice.And Vihari will have at least two men around him to tell him what a big opportunity it is if you stand up when the team is in desperate need. Shastri, Vihari’s coach, made the big turnaround in his career when he grabbed the chance with both hands when Sunil Gavaskar came knocking on his door with his other openers either not fit or not good enough. MSK Prasad, Vihari’s chief selector and also an important figure at his home state Andhra, was asked to open the innings on a tour of Australia in 1999-2000.That proved to be Prasad’s last Test. “I always believe it was an opportunity given to me, which I didn’t live up to,” Prasad says now. He believes Vihari has the goods to live up to his opportunity. “It’s fine,” he says if this is unfair on Vihari. “Technically we feel that he is well equipped, there were times where [Cheteshwar] Pujara also opened when the team required. The team demands it, and definitely I hope he will come out successful.”Unlike in his own career, Prasad is there to make sure Vihari is not judged adversely if he fails when answering this SOS call. “Definitely it is not a long-term solution, I can tell you that,” Prasad says. “Definitely. We are convinced with his technique, and definitely he is a long-term prospect for Indian Test cricket.”And so we have a tour where India came with three specialist openers and a wicketkeeper, who travelled as a reserve opener, but two Tests in, there are two new openers, who could have had better preparation. If Shaw’s injury had been diagnosed better, Agarwal could have acclimatised better. If Vihari was batting at his usual slot, he would be in his comfort zone. And yet it is out of these challenges that you can sometimes make yourself a career. It is not ideal, but if the team has nothing to lose, neither do these openers.

Jasprit Bumrah to David Warner was the fifth instance at this World Cup of a batsman surviving despite the ball hitting his stumps

Andrew McGlashan09-Jun-2019It has become one of the talking points of the World Cup: the story of the (sometimes) immovable bails. Five times now the ball has clipped, or even clunked, the stumps only for the zing bails to stay in their groove. It follows similar incidents at this year’s IPL and had been seen as far back as the 2015 World Cup.The ICC say that the weight of the zing bails, which have flashing lights built into them, is not an issue with them coming in at somewhere between the weight of traditional bails and the heavy versions umpires carry for windy days.Still, when the likes of Mitchell Starc are clipping the timber at more than 90mph, it is probably fair to ask whether it’s just an extraordinary turn of events or something that needs to be looked into.David Warner looks on as the ball hits the stumps but fails to dislodge the bails•AFP”I think you take the good with the bad in that situation. I suppose with the new – the light-up stumps, the bails seem to be a lot heavier – so it does take a bit of a force,” Australia’s captain Aaron Finch said after seeing Chris Gayle’s stump get flicked by Starc.”I’ve seen it a handful of times now in IPL and Big Bash and stuff where the ball rolls back onto the stumps, where the bails traditionally, one of them will pop off. But yeah, I think it’s just one of those things that you are aware when you’re on the right side of it, you are aware of it a bit easier than when you’re not.”None of the incidents at this World Cup have yet proved pivotal to the outcome, but here’s a reminder of the five lucky batsmen and unlucky bowlers.England v South AfricaRashid to de Kock, FOUR runs, got him, or has he?! What on earth has gone on here? England think they’ve bowled him! It’s flicked the bat on the reverse sweep from outside leg, thumped the outside of the stump and triggered the zing bails but the bails haven’t come off, and the ball has gone for four!New Zealand v Sri LankaBoult to Karunaratne, no run, nearly chopped on! Looking to run it down but had no width whatsoever. Guess what? The ball brushed the stumps, the bails shook but didn’t come off the groove.Irresistible force, meet immovable object•ESPNcricinfo LtdAustralia v West IndiesStarc to Gayle, no run, given out but Gayle reviews immediately! Fullish length on fourth stump angled in, Gayle is late driving as there was a definite noise when it passed the stumps… because the ball has in fact shaved off stump. A little peck! The baby smooch! Not a full pucker to dislodge the bails though. Incredible!England v BangladeshStokes to Mohammad Saifuddin, no run, bowled him … no, the bails have stayed on! Down the leg side, under-edged into the crease, hops up into the timbers and despite an audible clunk of wood, the wicket remains intact!Australia v IndiaBumrah to Warner, no run, Warner drags it back onto the stumps, but the bails refuse to budge. Clatters into the base of leg stump via a deflection off the boot, but the bails stay put. Banged in short and angling across off, Warner can’t get on top of it. He fiddles with it and inside-edges it back onto the stumps. How many times has this happened in this World Cup?

He’s a cricketer capable of extraordinary deeds, but Maxwell’s World Cup has been distinctly bit-part so far … if not in a bad way

Osman Samiuddin at Edgbaston10-Jul-2019Hardik Pandya had his moment. Jos Buttler had his moment. Ben Stokes has had a World Cup full of moments, unusual ones for him, but moments. Even Andre Russell had his early on, with the ball rather than the bat. But, also moments.In this esteemed club of freaks, Glenn Maxwell has not yet truly turned in a freak performance at this World Cup. This has not been Maxwell’s World Cup, but it’s equally fair to say that Maxwell has not set the tournament alight. Not yet anyway.Actually, it’s been a weird tournament for Maxwell, and not in a bad way. On several occasions he has threatened to create one of those moments. Like, for example, the India game in which, for 25 minutes, Maxwell threatened to go full Maxwell.Or against Pakistan when, on a tough pitch, for 20 minutes this time, it felt like we may get Maxwell doing a Maxwell. Against Sri Lanka, there was a moment-lite but it was overshadowed by what his captain was doing.There has been the usual frustration about it. Sometimes Maxwell himself has been the source of it – the three dismissals to short balls against West Indies, South Africa and England for instance. On these occasions, it’s been impossible to not go back to what he told ESPNcricinfo before the start of the World Cup: “I’ve always given people an excuse to probably leave my spot open for grabs, and that’s just down to me not performing at the right time or when I have been given those opportunities.”At other times, it’s been his team. Australia sent him in too late in the chase against India and then too early against Pakistan. He was always going to be floating in the batting order but, on that Taunton surface, with a great start already banked, they didn’t need to go so hard so soon – as Aaron Finch would later admit.Given that Australia have, several times in the past, not known what to do with Maxwell, there was little surprise that a report emerged in the run-up to the semi-final against England that Maxwell might be dropped to make way for Matthew Wade. He’s averaging only 22 (though striking at 163 is some consolation), the short ball has done him in (and batsmen are never made to feel more inferior when they’re being done by short balls). Plus Wade’s been in freak form himself for a while.On the surface, it would seem an unlikely route to take, if only because drafting in two new players to play their first World Cup matches at the semi-final stage is something that Pakistan or Sri Lanka might do, but not so much Australia.Glenn Maxwell almost throws himself off his feet•Getty ImagesIt would also be – no matter what the batting numbers say – harsh, because it would misjudge the value Maxwell has brought to this team, in this campaign. He’s been outstanding in the field, which is no surprise, but when needed he’s also filled a massive fifth-bowler-shaped hole in their attack.He doesn’t have a single wicket to show for 49 overs of bowling but, as in the game against Sri Lanka, what has mattered more is how many runs he has not conceded. Until March this year, he had not bowled a full quota of 10 overs in a game since 2015; in this tournament alone he’s done it twice, as well as other stints of 6, 7 and 7 overs. Only once has he really been taken apart, against Pakistan at Taunton in a game in which both sides didn’t play their specialist spinners and all non-specialist spinners went for runs.Finch wasn’t going to announce his XI the day before a semi-final – that too against England – but he did his best to douse down talk of a surprise axing. Maxwell not turning up for an optional training session was “reading a bit too much” into it. More runs would be nice, Finch said, but he was doing much more.READ MORE: Mark Nicholas: Why it is important for England to win this World Cup”Yes, I think runs are around the corner. I think he would have liked to have got a few more runs, but he’s been hitting the ball nicely. I think if you look at his contribution in the field, he’s up there with most runs saved in the field, his great run-out at Taunton to win that game for us against Pakistan in a really tight game, the overs that he’s bowled, he hasn’t got the wickets but he’s bowled really tight, he’s bowled some key overs for us that have allowed us to mix and match our bowlers through them middle overs.”As far as the runs, I’m not bothered about that at all because the way he’s batting, the way that he’s going about his innings, I think there’s some real positives there, so runs are just around the corner and we know how damaging he is. When he gets in, he can be as destructive as anyone in the world, so that is a huge positive.But I think the overall package, the three factors that he brings to the game, is still a very exciting package.”Does it sound a little too much like a freak-level talent is being turned into a – and this is both the best and worst time to dig this one up again – bits-and-pieces player? That he’s filling roles and holes in a team that has found itself as it has gone along in this tournament?Maybe, and maybe, given how Finch, David Warner and Mitchell Starc have gone, he hasn’t needed to be anything more.And maybe that is fine. Australia has not suffered for this switch. But if there ever was a moment for Maxwell to pull out that inner freak again, well, Edgbaston on Thursday won’t be a bad time for it.

England may have had the rub of the green in the World Cup finals, but they were unluckier than most other teams in the tournament.

ESPNcricinfo Stats team16-Jul-2019New Zealand were extremely unlucky not just in the final of the 2019 World Cup – they might have also been one of the unluckiest teams of the tournament, according to ESPNcricinfo’s Luck Index. The Luck Index algorithm attempts to attach a run impact to every action of play in a game that has an element of fortuitousness associated with it. The bigger the run impact of the action, the higher the likely influence of the event on the result of the game. Events involving dismissals, or the possibility of them occurring, usually have high run impacts.For instance, in the final, a few events could well have swung the result of the match in favour of New Zealand if their outcomes were different – the most obvious one was the overthrow boundary in the final over of the chase that ricocheted off Ben Stokes’ bat. Your perception of Stokes’ ability to get seven runs off the final two balls – for that would have been the ask had an extra four runs not been scored due to the ricochet – from Trent Boult depends on which team you were supporting, but the result of the match, had the event not happened, is anybody’s guess. There is a degree of uncertainty attached to it; this uncertainty is relatively small as the run impact of the luck event is relatively large.The events that make a bigger impact on the outcome of the match are usually those that involve a batsman getting out or surviving a chance. One such event occurred in the match between India and Bangladesh when Tamim Iqbal dropped Rohit Sharma when he was on 8 off 11 deliveries. Rohit went on to score 104 off 92 balls in the match. Luck Index estimates that drop cost Bangladesh 47 runs: India would have managed a total of 267 instead of the 314 they scored, had the catch been taken. This is estimated by simulating India’s innings assuming Rohit had got out.Bangladesh could have stood better chances of chasing down 268 instead of 315. Things might have panned out differently in the match: India would have been a lot more aggressive in defense of their total, but Bangladesh wouldn’t have been chasing a 300-plus total in a World Cup.And that is where New Zealand really suffered in comparison to other teams in the tournament. They were on the right side of such lucky breaks on fewer occasions than their opposition. If we consider only the events that created a wicket opportunity (whether they resulted in a wicket or should have), and thus were likely to have a clear-cut impact on the result of the game, then New Zealand had a net event count of minus nine in this World Cup. This means over the course of the tournament their opposition benefited from nine more reprieves to their batsmen than New Zealand did. West Indies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh each benefited by eight more events than their opposition.ESPNcricinfo LtdInterestingly England were the second-most unlucky team of the tournament by this measure. They had a net of seven events going against them. The fact that they made it to the final in spite of the rub of the green going against them through the league phase of the tournament shows that a place in the final at Lord’s on the 14th was well deserved.Not least also because England made use of whatever good fortune came their way. The table below shows the aggregate team-wise run impact of the reprieves to the batsmen in the tournament. England are second only to India in those terms, having capitalised on those events to score 199 runs more than they would have scored otherwise. South Africa, on the other hand, didn’t capitalise on whatever luck came their way: their batsmen made their reprieves count for only 28 additional runs.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe chanciest event of this World Cup in that sense was the drop of Eoin Morgan by Dawlat Zadran off Rashid Khan. Morgan could have been dismissed for 28 off 25 balls had that catch been taken. Instead, he went on to score 148 off 71 balls. He plundered 116 runs off the next 46 balls he faced in that match.While Morgan added 120 runs to his kitty because of the drop, England’s margin of benefit is not the full 120 runs, as they had batsmen to follow who could have made use of the balls faced by Morgan to make some runs themselves. This is estimated by Luck Index to be 44 runs. The algorithm considers the strength of the England line-up still to come, and the Afghanistan bowlers left to bowl in the match.But which batsman added the most runs to his own account after getting reprieves? It comes as no surprise for those who followed the tournament that Rohit is the answer to this question. He was reprieved on eight separate occasions by way of dropped catches and missed run-outs in this World Cup. However, he made his luck count by getting five hundreds in the series – the most any batsman has got in any World Cup. He managed to score as many as 474 runs out of his series aggregate of 648 after he got lucky breaks. That is not to say that his runs weren’t well earned. You can get lucky all you want but it will amount to nothing if you don’t make use of that luck. Rohit did, as apposed to someone like Chris Gayle, who got just one fewer reprieve but made his luck count for much less, scoring just 81 more than what he would have scored without those reprieves.ESPNcricinfo LtdWahab Riaz heads the list of bowlers to have been on the wrong side of net lucky breaks – by way of dropped catches and umpire’s calls going in favour of batsmen. Umpire’s calls and close catch calls going against batsmen are considered to be lucky events for the bowlers. Not surprisingly, that list features at the top some of the best bowlers on display in the tournament, including Jofra Archer, Chris Woakes and Kagiso Rabada.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Chelsea and chairman Todd Boehly will be looking to find a new club for one player who’s attracted criticism for his “horrendous” attitude behind-the-scenes, according to a new report this week.

Chelsea set for mass summer sale in transfer overhaul

Enzo Maresca will have many key decisions to make when the transfer window reopens for business, as a host of players are set to return spells out on loan and face uncertain futures at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea chiefs "adamant" they'll sign £60m star after Real Madrid decision

Los Blancos have had a real influence on BlueCo’s transfer plans.

ByEmilio Galantini Apr 2, 2025

Kepa Arrizabalaga, Alfie Gilchrist, Armando Broja, Raheem Sterling, David Datro Fofana, Renato Veiga, Carney Chukwuemeka, Ben Chilwell and Axel Disasi all appear very likely to leave Chelsea this summer, either on loan again or permanently, while Trevoh Chalobah is also expected to depart, regardless of the Blues activating their recall clause for him in January.

Tottenham (home)

Today

Brentford (away)

April 6th

Ipswich Town (home)

April 13th

Fulham (away)

April 20th

Everton (home)

April 26th

Mykhailo Mudryk has been linked with a move to Sevilla after his failed drugs test as well, and versatile forward Christopher Nkunku actually agreed personal terms with Bayern Munich in the winter, only for his Bundesliga move to fall through.

In-form goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic, amid Chelsea’s links with Liverpool shot-stopper Caoimhin Kelleher, has also refused to rule out remaining at sister club Strasbourg beyond this season.

“We’ll see after what could happen this summer. It could be a very good option to stay here if Strasbourg qualify for the UEFA Champions League,” said Petrovic on his Chelsea future.

“I always had confidence in my ability to improve. I have progressed more than I thought (at Strasbourg), but I can still improve more between now and the end of the season.”

It is set to be a big summer of transfers again at Chelsea, and they’ll be getting busy early. The Premier League confirmed that the window will be open from June 1st to June 10th, allowing BlueCo to conduct business before the Club World Cup, and there is every reason to believe that outgoings could occur in this period.

Joao Felix attitude slammed as Chelsea look to sell

AC Milan loanee Joao Felix is another who’s set to return to London after his temporary stint in Serie A, which really hasn’t gone according to plan.

Despite a promising start, the Portugal international’s form has seriously tailed off in recent months, and Fabrizio Romano confirms that Milan have no intention of signing Felix on a permanent deal.

Now, reliable journalist Simon Phillips has shared what sources have told him about Felix’s “horrendous” attitude behind-the-scenes – which could be the reason why his career has stunted since a mega-money move to Atlético from Benfica a few years ago.

He adds that Chelsea are looking to sell the attacking midfielder again this summer, with Felix even separately linked to a surprising Galatasaray transfer.

“An SPTC source has been speaking with some Atlético Madrid staff members as well as some current Portuguese internationals, and we have heard that Felix’s talent as a youngster was the best they’d seen at that level from a Portuguese player but according to the source, it is his attitude and arrogance that let’s him down and is ‘horrendous’,” wrote Phillips, via his Substack.

“I guess this could explain a lot and why he floats from club to club trying to find a new home.”

Questions will now really be asked of Boehly and why Chelsea elected to re-sign him on a permanent deal just last summer.

Arsenal are now leading the race to sign an “incredible” £30m forward this summer, having overtaken rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the race for his signature, according to a report.

Gunners set sights on new forwards

While the dream of winning the Premier League title may be over, it is an exciting time to be an Arsenal fan, with Mikel Arteta’s side potentially just two games away from reaching the Champions League final.

The Gunners blitzed past Real Madrid in the quarter-final, despite being without an out-and-out striker, but in order to push for the title next season, Arteta may need to bolster his attacking options this summer, and multiple forwards could be brought in.

A striker is of particular interest to the north Londoners, having recently held talks over Lille’s Jonathan David, with the Canadian joining the likes of Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres and Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak on the shortlist.

"I can tell you" – Fabrizio Romano says striker "will arrive" at Arsenal

The reliable journalist has shared an update on Andrea Berta’s plans this summer.

1 ByEmilio Galantini Apr 19, 2025

With Bukayo Saka’s absence this season exposing the lack of depth out wide, Arteta could also look to sign a new winger this summer, and it was recently revealed that Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman could be available for a fee of just £30m.

There has now been a new update on Arsenal’s pursuit of Coman, with a report from Football Insider revealing they are now leading the race to sign the forward, despite interest from rivals Tottenham.

The Frenchman could be allowed to leave Bayern this summer, given that he has fallen down the pecking order, and the Emirates Stadium is said to be his most likely destination, with Spurs unable to offer consistent Champions League football.

The Gunners may face competition for the winger’s signature from Saudi Pro League clubs, but they should stand a good chance of winning the race, given that Arteta will have a lot of money to spend this summer.

Arsenal’s upcoming fixtures

Date

Crystal Palace (h)

April 23rd

Paris Saint-Germain (h)

April 29th

AFC Bournemouth (h)

May 3rd

Paris Saint-Germain (a)

May 7th

Liverpool (a)

May 11th

Coman could be "incredible" signing for Arsenal

The Paris-born winger may not currently be receiving as much game time as he has previously, but he continues to impress when given the opportunity, most recently scoring in his side’s 4-0 victory against Heidenheim last time out.

Not only that, but the “incredible athlete”, as lauded by BBC journalist Raj Chohan, has proven himself at the highest level in the past, most famously scoring the winning goal for Bayern Munich in the 2020 Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain.

It is clear the Gunners could do with more depth in attack, having been left light on numbers for large parts of this season, and Coman’s top-level experience indicates he could be a fantastic signing, especially at just £30m.

With one eye on Champions League qualification and the other on the summer transfer window, Newcastle United have reportedly set their sights on signing a future star.

Where Newcastle stand in Champions League race

The second-half of the current campaign has so far been one to remember for Newcastle, who even managed to end their long wait for a trophy by picking up the Carabao Cup in March. Now vying to finish a successful season by qualifying for Champions League football for the second time in three seasons, Eddie Howe’s side have their fate firmly in their own grasp as they head into the final four games.

Liverpool (C)

82

34

Arsenal

67

34

Newcastle United

62

34

Manchester City

61

34

Chelsea

60

34

Nottingham Forest

60

33

Aston Villa

57

34

With the top five all qualifying for the Champions League, Newcastle currently have a two-point buffer on Nottingham Forest, who have a game in hand to break back into the all important places. Even if Nuno Espirito Santo’s side win that game in hand, however, it would be Chelsea who drop out of the top five and not Newcastle, who would move down to fourth.

The importance of a place amongst Europe’s elite cannot be overstated either, especially for Newcastle. Those at St James’ Park have been forced to sit back and watch in the last two transfer windows, but Champions League qualification should mean that their spending can commence under their rich PIF ownership.

Romano: Newcastle "keen on signing" £70m "tank" with same agent as Gordon

They’ve wanted him for ages.

ByBarney Lane Apr 27, 2025

Just who arrives if that is the case remains to be seen. Already, names such as Liam Delap and Ademola Lookman have been mentioned, but before the stars arrive it may well be a teenage sensation who emerges to commence Newcastle’s summer window.

Newcastle plotting move to sign James Wilson

According to The Chronicle, Newcastle now want to sign James Wilson from Hearts this summer after PIF stepped up their scouting mission in Scotland and the 18-year-old talent stood out. A player who already has a senior Scotland cap to his name, Wilson is certainly one to keep an eye on as Newcastle plot an impressive summer swoop.

At just 18 years old, the forward has already been making his mark in the Scottish Premiership too – scoring five goals in 20 games and even finding the back of the net once in the Europa Conference League. When given the chance, Wilson has simply enjoyed every moment of the spotlight.

Earning impressive praise as a result, former Hearts boss Neil Critchley told reporters when asked about Wilson’s Scotland debut: “It’s an unbelievable achievement. To be the youngest Scottish international player ever is an incredible achievement. It’s one him and his family should be extremely proud of.

“You could see the lift and the excitement it gave him. He’s come back here with a permanent smile on his face. We’ve actually allowed him into the senior dressing-room this week. Shanks [Lawrence Shankland] and Craigy [Craig Gordon] have let him in. I say that, it was more Goggsy the kit man who gave his blessing! So he’s in for the first time.”

Manchester City would have been watching the Premier League results coming in on Saturday with glee, especially when Arsenal shockingly collapsed to a 2-1 defeat at home to AFC Bournemouth.

That surprise loss at the Emirates means Pep Guardiola’s men – off the back of downing Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 on Friday night – are only three points off matching the Gunners in second spot, meaning the rest of May could be a fight now to see who is second best to Arne Slot’s runaway Liverpool.

With an FA Cup trophy also potentially in their hands, this season, once written off as a misfire, might well have some positives after all, with some big buys in the summer boosting City’s chances of becoming Premier League title challengers again.

Man City close in on big-money target

Guardiola and Co have been linked to a whole host of names as the 2024/25 campaign begins to wind down, with the main face dominating conversation being Bayer Leverkusen superstar Florian Wirtz.

According to reports, Bayern Munich are also interested, meaning City would have to pursue alternative targets in the midfield areas, with the likes of Gabriel Sara also reportedly on their radar.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

But, a different path could be explored by the serial winners shortly, with a new report by journalist Graeme Bailey revealing that long-standing City target Morgan Gibbs-White is contemplating his future at Nottingham Forest.

Both Liverpool and Newcastle United are also keen to add the 25-year-old attacking midfielder to their rosters, but it remains to be seen which club would be willing to splash out the mammoth £100m asking price to land the ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers man.

Whether or not City want to pay that price, according to Fabrizio Romano on Sunday, the Citizens are planning to advance their efforts to sign the Englishman soon.

After all, City have already seen what Gibbs-White is capable of when he assisted this sweet strike versus them back in March, with the potential here for the two-time England international to strike up a fierce relationship with Erling Haaland up top.

How Gibbs-White could get more out of Haaland

The Nordic goal machine does have his deficiencies when it comes to long spells out of the side with injury, but when he’s at the peak of his powers and purring in front of goal, there are few attackers better than the 24-year-old in world football.

Overall this season, Haaland finds himself on a blistering 30 strikes from 40 clashes, with 21 of those coming in the bread and butter of the Premier League, even when City have regularly found themselves off the boil.

Therefore, throwing in Gibbs-White to the mix could only work wonders for Haaland’s potency, with the 25-year-old actually bettering the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan in terms of assists this season in the Premier League.

In the words of by football statistician Statman Dave, he has been a “magician” for the Tricky Trees, amassing nine assists in the league, with his equally impressive goal count of five strikes from 30 league games no doubt enhancing Guardiola’s men in the forward areas even more if a signature was reached.

While De Bruyne makes more key passes per game with two, Gibbs-White isn’t far behind with 1.5 in the Premier League this season. That’s a number that would rank him fourth in the City squad, ahead of other midfielders in the shape of Gundogan, Mateo Kovacic, Matheus Nunes and Rodri.

1. Savinho

27

8

2. Kevin De Bruyne

25

7

3. Jeremy Doku

26

6

4. Matheus Nunes

24

5

5. Ilkay Gundogan

31

5

Evidently, City do need to freshen in the attacking midfield spots with De Bruyne heading for the exit door and Gundogan failing to find the back of the net in the league this season from 31 contests.

Therefore, Gibbs-White might be the transformative body City desire, with the £100m target also a potentially perfect teammate for Haaland to bounce off of to enable the goals to flow even more from their clinical number nine.

Man City sold arguably the "best forward in the world", now he's like Wirtz

Manchester City might have already sold their own Florian Wirtz when getting rid of this top attacker.

ByKelan Sarson May 3, 2025

Leeds United are currently enjoying their title party and could already be set to kick that up a notch after identifying two candidates to join them on their Premier League journey, according to a report.

Leeds crowned champions after stunning win at Plymouth

Daniel Farke has endured plenty of trials and tribulations this term, but his side have been a class above and deservedly find themselves top-flight bound after a successful campaign climaxed with a last-gasp title winner from Manor Solomon at Plymouth this weekend.

Many would argue that a club of Leeds’ stature belong in the Premier League, though there is plenty of work to be done to ensure his squad are equipped to take on the challenge of surviving after promotion from the Championship.

Dipping into the market, Farke has identified Celtic attacker Daizen Maeda as a primary target at Elland Road following his freescoring campaign north of the border. The Japan international is valued at £25 million, while Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are among a host of clubs ready to swoop for his services.

Confidence is high that Solomon will join Leeds on a permanent deal after a fine campaign on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, with the player said to have agreed to a return next term.

Leeds "well-placed" to sign £6m+ ace who's similar to Phillips and Tanaka

He is tempted by a move to the Premier League.

ByHenry Jackson May 3, 2025

Kalvin Phillips and Tomas Soucek have been mentioned in connection with the Whites. The former hardly comes a surprise due to his links with his boyhood club, but it remains to be seen if a fairytale return is on the cards.

Scaling up ahead of their Premier League return won’t be easy for Leeds, given the level of side they are likely to come up against on a weekly basis compared to the English second-tier. Nevertheless, they now have two talented players in their sights that could make all the difference, per recent developments.

Leeds want Nicolas Kuhn and Cameron Carter-Vickers from Celtic

According to TBR, Leeds are in the mix to sign Celtic duo Cameron Carter-Vickers and Nicolas Kuhn to strengthen their Premier League survival bid. The pair earn £50,000 per week between them at Parkhead and have lit up the domestic scene in Scotland, emerging as two of the best players in the top-flight, with Carter-Vickers playing a part in the Bhoys conceding only 22 goals in 34 league matches.

Cameron Carter-Vickers – key statistics in 2024/25 (Scottish Premiership)

Duels won

160

Aerial duels won

119

Recoveries

123

Dribbled past

3

Interceptions

32

Nicolas Kuhn – key statistics in 2024/25 (Scottish Premiership)

Chances created

47

Completed dribbles

55

Shots on target

24

Touches in opposition box

157

Duels won

107

On the other hand, Kuhn has notched 20 goals and 14 assists in 47 appearances across all competitions, earning plaudits for his consistent displays coming off the right flank.

Celtic’s involvement in Champions League football may be a sticking point for Leeds if negotiations were to occur, though the lure of Premier League football can be a tempting one for top performers in Scotland.