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West Bromwich Albion take to the field for the final time in the 2024/25 campaign when they host Luton Town at the Hawthorns in the Championship this afternoon.

It is a game that does not mean a great deal for the Baggies, who are without a permanent manager and cannot get promoted or relegated, but they will still want to end the season on a high in front of their home fans.

James Morrison will take the team for the final time before the board decide on a long-term replacement for Tony Mowbray, and one manager who has been linked with the job is Russell Martin.

The pros and cons of Russell Martin

The former Scotland international would come in as a manager with plenty of experience in the English leagues, having managed MK Dons, Swansea, and Southampton.

Martin has also proven that he can get a team promoted from the Championship, as he won the play-offs with the Saints in the 2023/24 campaign, and that makes him an ideal candidate on paper for a West Brom team that should be aiming for promotion next term.

However, the English-born coach won just one of his 16 Premier League games, picking up five points, in charge of Southampton before being sacked with his side sat at the bottom of the table.

Manager Focus

Who are the greatest coaches in the land? Football FanCast’s Manager Focus series aims to reveal all.

This suggests that it may be a risk to go with Martin as a long-term appointment as there are concerns, given his record, about his suitability for the Premier League.

West Brom, however, have also been linked with an interest in Steve Cooper, who is also out of work at the moment, and he could be an even more exciting appointment than the ex-Saints boss.

Why Steve Cooper would be more exciting than Russell Martin

The English boss, who typically deploys a 4-2-3-1 system, could be even more exciting than a move for Martin because he has proven that he can compete above the relegation zone in the Premier League.

Cooper was sacked by Leicester City earlier this season with his side in 16th place, and they have since been relegated from the top-flight, which suggests that they may have made a hasty decision with that call.

The 45-year-old tactician, once dubbed “tremendous” by Sam Allardyce, also kept Nottingham Forest in the Premier League after winning promotion from the second tier with the Tricky Trees.

Steve Cooper’s managerial career
Season	League	Matches	Points	League position
24/25	Premier League	12	10	16th
23/24	Premier League	17	14	17th
22/23	Premier League	38	38	16th
21/22	Championship	41	76	4th (play-off winners)
20/21	Championship	49	80	4th (play-off finalists)
19/20	Championship	48	70	6th (play-off semi-finalists)
Stats via Transfermarkt

As you can see in the table above, Cooper has either finished in the play-offs in the Championship or left a team above the relegation zone in the Premier League in every season in his senior managerial career to date.

This suggests that the former Swansea boss, who won the U17 World Cup with England in 2017, would be perfectly suited to where the Baggies are as a club at this moment in time.

West Brom need a manager who can guide them to the play-offs, firstly, and then to safety in the Premier League, secondly, and Cooper has proven that he can do both of those things as a manager.

Whereas, Martin is yet to prove that he can keep a team in the top-flight, and that is why the English head coach could be an even more exciting hire for the Baggies this summer.

Big Cifuentes upgrade: West Brom keen admirers of 3-5-2 manager

West Bromwich Albion could opt to appoint this Marti Cifuentes’ upgrade over landing the Spaniard.

By
Kelan Sarson

Apr 28, 2025

When Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk decided to extend their contracts at Liverpool and put months of speculation pertaining to their futures to bed, they wanted reassurances that FSG mean to invest.

The veteran superstars are arguably the finest players in their respective positions worldwide, and despite Jurgen Klopp’s decision to step down from his long-held manager’s role last year, have enjoyed staggering success under Arne Slot to move within an inch of the Premier League title.

Liverpool are Champions Elect, all but confirmed as this year’s English top-flight winners. It’s a remarkable feat, built upon the foundations laid by Klopp.

However, now is the time for Slot to put his own stamp on the Anfield side, with Federico Chiesa the sole arrival of his reign so far – goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili is expected to arrive this summer after a deal was agreed last year.

While Salah’s staying put and Liverpool are expected to prioritise the signing of a new centre-forward with Darwin Nunez expected to leave, there’s a good chance sporting director Richard Hughes will be tasked with signing a new wideman.

Liverpool need more quality on the wings

Make no mistake, Liverpool’s attacking force has been exactly that under Slot’s wing: a force to be reckoned with. However, with Nunez and Chiesa struggling and Jota enduring a disappointing season too, it’s understandable that the club wish to bolster.

Mohamed Salah

46

32

23

Cody Gakpo

43

16

6

Luis Diaz

45

15

8

Diogo Jota

32

9

4

Darwin Nunez

42

7

7

Federico Chiesa

12

2

2

The likes of Fabrizio Romano have confirmed that Nunez is set to leave this summer after Saudi side Al-Nassr failed with a series of bids in January, but Liverpool may also look out wide in spite of Salah’s contract renewal.

Indeed, Luis Diaz is in red-hot form at the moment but, aged 28 and entering the penultimate year of his contract, is also deemed expendable, should the right offer come in.

Of course, FSG aren’t going to want to let the Barcelona- and Saudi-linked star leave on the cheap, letting suitors know that they will field bids totalling €80m (£67m).

Salah will be 33 by the time the 2025/26 season kicks off, and though Liverpool’s data analysts, some of the best in the business, are confident that the Egyptian King will continue firing true over the next two years, some more firepower wouldn’t go amiss.

When Salah does enter his twilight, Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka looks ready to take his mantle and assume the star spot as the Premier League’s most dangerous winger. Liverpool won’t want to let that happen, of course, and have actually identified their own version of the Three Lions superstar.

Liverpool step up interest in rising star

Liverpool are planning for a big summer, alright. If Diaz should leave, plans are being drawn for the transfer of Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens, one of the most coveted young wingers in Europe right now.

Transfer Focus

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

According to Football Insider, FSG are actually accelerating their plans to sign the 20-year-old after sorting out Liverpool’s contractual obstacles, having been scouting him for a while. He is believed to be a “key target”, as per scout Mick Brown.

Dortmund recognise the value of their youngster, however, and have previously responded to links away by placing a whopping €100m (£85m) price tag on Gittens’ head. Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham have also registered interest.

Liverpool aren’t likely to engage in such exorbitant demands, but if a more agreeable figure can be agreed, there’s every chance the Reds could secure one of the most exciting English talents around after identifying him as a key target.

What Jamie Gittens would bring to Liverpool

Gittens might still be in the fledgling stage of his professional career, but he’s already made quite the impression in Dortmund’s senior squad, following Jadon Sancho’s footsteps in moving to the German club from Manchester City’s youth academy.

The Yellow Wall have long been a hothouse for developing exciting talent and Gittens will hardly regret his decision, having already featured 102 times for the club.

The step-by-step progress he has shown will have pleased Liverpool’s scouts to no end, always regarded as an athletic, pacy and powerful winger but starting to sharpen his attacking tools, enjoying success as a proper goal threat this term.

24/25

44 (32)

12

5

23/24

34 (18)

2

8

22/23

20 (5)

3

1

21/22

4 (1)

0

0

This incremental growth does suggest that Gittens could match his compatriot Saka down the line, albeit in Liverpool’s shade of red.

As per FBref, Gittens ranks among the top 16% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for non-penalty goals scored, the top 7% for progressive carries and the top 1% for successful take-ons per 90.

This perfectly illustrates his blend of physicality and potency, something that perhaps Saka, 23, performs without rival at the moment.

Arsenal dispatched Real Madrid over two legs to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions League, and Saka was the star forward at the Santiago Bernabeu, his chipped goal taking his haul to 11 strikes and 14 assists across 29 matches this term.

So dangerous. So dynamic. The right-sided forward’s completeness is part of what makes him such an incredible, highest-class footballer, but Gittens truly has the skills to match him.

The Dortmund man has also been impressive in the Champions League this year, hailed by Romano for one “special” performance against Club Brugge in the group stage, scoring two goals.

The rising star’s technical quality suggests he can go all the way, and under Slot’s wing at Liverpool, maybe he can take the next steps toward rivalling Saka for the position as England’s prized winger.

Liverpool have unearthed their new Wijnaldum & it's not Mac Allister

Liverpool have found their new version of Georginio Wijnaldum and it is not Alexis Mac Allister.

ByDan Emery Apr 16, 2025

Pick between two Tests where teams overcame great odds to snatch victories

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2025Update: This poll has ended. The AUS-SA 2008 Perth Test moves into the quarter-finals.South Africa bend Australia to their will – Perth, 2008Australia were in transition ahead of the home summer in 2008-09, but still beat New Zealand 2-0. They found heroes when they needed one, and were doing the usual Australia things, but then the script changed in the first Test against South Africa in Perth. It took its time coming, though.It took a lower-order rescue act to lift them to 375 in the first innings (from 166 for 5) and a macho fast-bowling show from Mitchell Johnson, who bagged a career-best 8 for 61, kept South Africa to 281 after that. Almost a 100-run lead there, which Brad Haddin’s 94 and 30s from Simon Katich, Ricky Ponting, Andrew Symonds and Jason Krejza extended to 413, setting South Africa what looked like far too many runs to win.Enter Graeme Smith, who lost opening partner Neil McKenzie early, but then took the total to 172 in collaboration with Hashim Amla before both fell in quick succession – Smith for 108 and Amla for 53. But there was more in the tank. Jacques Kallis (57) and AB de Villiers took them to 303 before Kallis fell with the target still over 100 away, and de Villiers, who remained not out on 106, finished the job with JP Duminy – apart from McKenzie, all the batters who walked out, walked back with at least 50 against their name.That was Australia’s second successive loss at the WACA after India beat them there in 2007-08. And who knew at the time that it would lay the foundation for the first of three back-to-back Test series wins by South Africa in the country?Australia stun England – Birmingham 2023″Boring, boring, Aussies” was the chant from the Hollies Stand at Edgbaston on the fourth afternoon when Usman Khawaja was digging in and slowly building for Australia in their pursuit of 281. By the fifth evening, the crowd had fallen into stunned silence as Australia aced the old-school long game to beat England’s new-age fast play.When Khawaja fell for 65, with Ben Stokes ending his near-five-and-a-half-hour vigil, Australia had slipped to 209 for 7. Then, when Alex Carey’s wicket left Australia at 227 for 8, it certainly felt like England’s Bazballers were on their way to another famous win. Australia captain Pat Cummins, though, flipped the mood and result with an unbeaten 44 off 73 balls, with No. 10 Nathan Lyon hanging on in an unbroken 55-run partnership for the ninth wicket.After having come under fire with his defensive fields on the opening day, Cummins played the decisive hand on the final day, absorbing good balls from Stokes and Ollie Robinson and lining up Joe Root’s part-time offspin for a brace of sixes. After sealing the deal, Cummins let out a big roar, threw his bat and punched his fist in a rare show of emotion that summed up how much this win meant to him and Australia.

The series against Afghanistan with good death bowling, set batters finishing the chase, and holding on to their catches are signs of things coming together for them

Mohammad Isam17-Jul-2023Bangladesh’s season of change in T20Is finished with a high in Sylhet. Their four-wicket win against Afghanistan gave them their first bilateral series win against a side who usually dominate them in this format. To go by their theme this year, Bangladesh dominated the powerplays with both bat and ball. They bowled well at the death and had set batters finishing the chase. They also caught almost everything that came their way.Bangladesh’s series wins against world champions England, Ireland and Afghanistan are proof of a visibly more open-minded approach in T20Is. They call it a bold approach in Bangladesh, but it is basically playing catch-up with the rest of the world. Batting powerfully in the powerplay. Having a strong pace attack. Having enough bowlers. Using big-hitters in the back-end who don’t just look blindly for sixes. A lot of things are coming together for this team.Bangladesh’s search for a powerful top three in the batting line-up also seems to be over. Litton Das, Rony Talukdar and Najmul Hossain Shanto are their top three scorers this year but the likes of Towhid Hridoy, Shakib Al Hasan and Shamim Hossain have also scored important runs.Taskin Ahmed has led the bowling attack with not just wickets, but by also being an enforcer. With his pace, bounce and movement around the corner, opponents have had to look for runs against the other bowlers. But those have also included Shakib who has combined well with Mustafizur Rahman and Hasan Mahmud.Their catch-to-drop ratio is 33 taken and six dropped since March this year, a huge improvement compared to how they have fielded in the last two years.This T20I form bump also comes at an interesting time for Bangladesh. They have lost two of their last three ODI series, also against England, Ireland and Afghanistan. It is rare for a side that prides itself on their home bilateral record in ODIs since 2014. The T20I side is no match but losing only against Pakistan at home since 2019 isn’t a bad record too.Shakib, who was adjudged the Player of the Series against Afghanistan, has led the side during this period. He is said to be one of the masterminds behind this revival since the T20 World Cup last year. Shakib said that the current bunch of T20I players, many of whom are in the ODI set-up too, can take this confidence of doing well in this format to the two big tournaments in a couple of months.Shakib Al Hasan: “The bowling group’s job is to make life easier for the batters. It is a good combination between our pacers and spinners”•BCB”Most of the T20I players are in the ODI squad so they can take this confidence along with them,” Shakib said. “We will face Afghanistan in the Asia Cup and in the first game of the World Cup, so taking this feeling along will help us. This will be a big confidence boost before those tournaments.”It is satisfying when our plans are reflected in the field. Players are executing it in the middle, and we are getting results. What better can there be? We hadn’t done well against Afghanistan in T20Is in the past so it is a good feeling to win this series. I feel it will give us a lot of confidence in the near future.”Shakib was impressed with the way the bowling attack complemented each other in this game against Afghanistan. Taskin took two early wickets before Shakib and Mustafizur took two each. Although Hasan Mahmud didn’t take wickets, he combined well with Taskin with the new ball to concede just 20 runs in his three overs.”I thought Hasan bowled better than Taskin,” Shakib said. “The bowling group’s job is to make life easier for the batters. It is a good combination between the pacers and spinners. It is also a healthy competition between the two types of bowlers. I think it is helping the team.”Shakib said that sticking to the same group of players since the T20 World Cup last year has paid off with these series wins. He added that within this group, the batters and bowlers have had to switch between different roles, which is only going to make them stronger as cricketers.”Towhid Hridoy is one of the few additions since the last Asia Cup or the World Cup. We have kept almost the same team. There have been two or four players who have come and gone, but that’s part of the process. We have a lot left in our quest to find the best combination. But the way we have done according to the conditions, it is going well. We have to adjust to new conditions in the future.”Flexibility is useful in T20s. An opener and a No. 7 may have to do the same thing in this format. If an opener bats for 15 overs, he would have to bat in the last five overs. If a batter can adjust to every situation, then they will take a difficult situation in their stride. The same with bowlers. If they bowl in a tough situation, then nothing will be new to him.”

So where does Russell’s exploits with the ball in the match rank in terms of Bowling Impact?

ESPNcricinfo stats team13-Apr-20211:44

Dasgupta: Krunal and Chahar brought MI back into the game

It’s not often that a five-for ends up being the subplot in a T20 game. Andre Russell’s record-equaling five-for in 12 balls was among the quickest five-wicket hauls taken in the IPL, but it was Mumbai Indians’ Rahul Chahar who was adjudged the Man-of-the-Match for throwing Knight Riders’ chase in disarray with a four-wicket haul.ESPNcricinfo LtdESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats endorses Chahar’s impact on the game. Chahar earned 117 impact points for his bowling efforts (he earned six points for his valuable 8 with the bat). His impact on the game was 31 points clear of the next most impactful performance in the match. Chahar came on to bowl in the ninth over with the Knight Riders firmly in control of the chase. Each of his four overs produced a wicket: the top four of the Knight Riders’ batting order, including the in-form Nitish Rana. According to Smart Stats, Chahar’s four wickets in the game were worth 6.34 smart wickets. Smart Stats gives each wicket an impact value based on the quality of the batsman and the stage of the innings at which he is dismissed.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn contrast, four of Russell’s five victims were lower-order batsmen. Three of those wickets came in the last over of the innings, when the damage the Mumbai tailenders could’ve done was limited. Kieron Pollard’s wicket was the most valuable wicket that Russell took considering the context of the game. There were 17 balls left in the innings when Pollard was dismissed potentially stopping him from playing a match-changing innings. Pollard’s wicket fetched Russell 1.57 smart wicket value. However, his other four wickets contributed just 1.83 smart wicket value. In all, Russell’s five wickets in the match considering the match situation (based on the impact the batsmen dismissed by could’ve had) was worth 3.4 Smart Wickets. In fact, Russell’s exploits with the ball in the match ranked fifth in terms of Bowling Impact. Pat Cummins’ 2 for 24, Krunal Pandya’s 1 for 13 and Trent Boult’s 2 from 27 were considered more impactful than Russell’s given the context of the game.ESPNcricinfo LtdOverall, Suryakumar Yadav’s 36-ball 56 had the second-highest impact on the match with 92.4 points, followed by Krunal Pandya’s efforts with the ball and the bat, which fetched him 79.9 impact points.

There were no bigger sellers at the MLB trade deadline than the Minnesota Twins. Identifying a seller’s market and with solid assets to offer to contenders, the Twins unloaded the roster in hopes of building the foundation for a better future.

One of their biggest deadline deals was trading away electric closer Jhoan Duran to the Philadelphia Phillies. Duran is a flamethrower, and his aura was all the greater thanks to the electric entrance that the Twins had put together for him when he took the mound.

It wasn’t clear how that entrance would carry over to Philadelphia, but when Duran stepped up for his first career save as a Phillie over the weekend, the lights went down, the phones came out, and the bell of the Undertaker tolled.

It was epic.

How were the Phillies able to recreate the magic of Duran’s entrance? Mostly thanks to the Twins. As Matt Gelb reported in a story for , the Twins had worked with the Phillies, providing digital assets and music, to ensure that his first moment on the mound with his new team was a memorable one.

Dustin Morse, the Twins vice president of communications, had asked Duran what he wanted to do regarding his entrance shortly after news of the trade broke, and the closer said it was simply too good to give up. Morse agreed, and took the idea to the rest of the team’s top officials. Not long after, they were trading emails with their counterparts on the Phillies to make sure they could put together a similar entrance at Citizens Bank Park.

“We collectively thought, ‘This is for the greater good of baseball fans,’” Morse told Gelb. “This is a fun atmosphere. All baseball fans should get to see it and experience it. We all know that the atmosphere at Citizens Bank is already nuts. This would go over well.”

It certainly did. A crowd of 43,241 Phillies fans roared for Duran in his debut, and he secured the save with just four pitches.

Morse texted Duran after the save congratulating him on his success, and noting that the entrance still looked great. “Thank you so much, Dustin,” Duran replied. “Thank you for being a part of that creation.”

Duran’s first few days in Philadelphia have already been memorable. On Sunday, he was able to secure another save for the Phillies, this time on the airwaves of ESPN, and threw a few of the fastest pitches in team history in the process. The entrance still looked stellar.

The Twins certainly didn’t have to do what they did to help the Phillies recreate Duran’s theatrics—the entrance represented hundreds of hours of work Minnesota’s team put into ideation, creation and execution. But as Morse said, it was a move that was made for the greater good of baseball fans, and that truth has already been proven plenty after just a few days in Philadelphia.

Celtic manager Wilfried Nancy has his work cut out for him at Parkhead after a frustrating first match in charge of the club against Hearts in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

A 2-1 defeat to the league leaders proved that the Frenchman has plenty of issues to solve and plenty still to learn about the squad of players that he has at his disposal.

The former Columbus Crew head coach has a big group of players to work with in Glasgow, and there are a number of stars who he should give an opportunity to in the coming weeks.

The rarely-seen Celtic stars Nancy should unleash

Kelechi Iheanacho, for example, was an unused substitute against Hearts after returning from injury, and he should be given a chance to lead the line after Daizen Maeda missed two ‘big chances’, per Sofascore, on Sunday.

The Nigerian centre-forward has scored three goals in eight appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants this season, per Sofascore, and could emerge as Nancy’s first-choice number nine.

Another rarely-seen star who could benefit from the change in shape to a 3-4-2-1 could be Dane Murray, who has started two league games this season, as he is a naturally right-sided centre-back who can provide balance when playing out from the back.

Auston Trusty played in that role on Sunday, as a left-footed player, and was slow to bring the ball forward and progress the play, as he was on his weaker side, which could open the door for Murray to come in and take that spot.

Colby Donovan was also snubbed in Nancy’s first game, playing zero minutes, but he could emerge as the manager’s own Kieran Tierney in the right wing-back position, having been set to leave in the summer window.

Wilfried Nancy is brewing the next Tierney

The 19-year-old academy graduate was “set to join Dundee on loan for the season”, per journalist Josh McCafferty, in the summer transfer window, before an injury to Alistair Johnston meant that he was needed as a first-team option at Parkhead.

First Impressions

What did pundits and fans alike think about their new star signing when they arrived? Football FanCast’s ‘First Impressions’ series has everything you need.

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Donovan has gone on to play 716 minutes across 12 appearances for the first-team, per Sofascore, since the decision was made to keep him at the club, instead of sending him out on loan, and he has shown real promise.

The Scotland U21 international is looking to follow in Kieran Tierney’s footsteps in Glasgow, as the left-back came through the academy to provide a big threat down the left flank as an attacking full-back.

In his first spell with the club, as shown in the graphic above, the Scotland international provided an eye-catching 37 assists in 170 matches for the club, and Donovan has the potential to provide a similar threat in this new system.

Hyun-jun Yang started at right wing-back against Hearts. However, Nancy could move him over to the left and unleash the academy graduate on the right to provide crosses on that side.

25/26 Premiership

Donovan per 90

Rank vs RBs

xA

0.14

Top 28%

Assists

0.28

Top 1%

Long pass accuracy

46.2%

Top 23%

Chances created

1.12

Top 39%

Successful crosses

1.12

Top 25%

Touches in opposition’s box

2.80

Top 14%

Stats via FotMob

Donovan, as shown in the statistics above, has stood out as one of the most impressive creative right-backs in the Premiership this season under Brendan Rodgers and Martin O’Neill, whilst playing as a right-back.

Playing as a wing-back under Nancy would give him even more opportunities to push forward and show off his creativity in the final third, which could improve his output as a creator and make him a Tierney-esque threat on the right-hand side.

Whilst Johnston is still to return from his injury eventually, unleashing Donovan in this new role could provide him with a chance to nail down a regular starting spot in the team to become the next academy graduate to become a star at Parkhead, like Tierney.

His emergence in the first-team this season, after being set to go out on loan in the summer, is perhaps a lesson that Celtic can learn from, as they could give more opportunities to their academy players to see if they have what it takes to play for the senior side before letting them move on, permanently or on loan.

Related Worse than Yang: Nancy must bin 3/10 Celtic dud who once had "the X factor"

This Celtic star who had “the X Factor” should be ruthlessly dropped from the starting line-up on Thursday.

Posts 1 ByDan Emery 6 days ago

Aston Villa are now considering a January move for a “fantastic” Champions League player, but they will have to shell out a huge fee to get a deal over the line.

Villa looking to boost push for Europe by strengthening in January

Villa have surged up the Premier League table in recent weeks, courtesy of winning seven of their last eight matches, although there have been some suggestions that their current run of form could end soon, given that they have been defying xG.

The Villans’ 16 goals this season have come from an xG of just 11.88 xG, and they have been relying on players scoring from outside the box, with Boubacar Kamara the most recent example, firing home from distance in the 1-0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Regardless of how they’ve managed to win games, Unai Emery’s side have placed themselves very much in contention to qualify for Europe yet again, and they are now looking to strengthen in January to bolster their chances.

That is according to a report from Leonino (via Sport Witness), which states Aston Villa are now considering a January bid for Sporting CP defender Ousmane Diomande, but they may have to break the bank, with the Portuguese club demanding his €80m (£70m) release clause is paid in full.

Sporting have been struggling to tie Diomande down to a new contract, with his current deal set to expire in 2027, which could open the door for a move to Villa Park. However, several Premier League clubs are in the race for his signature, including Crystal Palace.

With Sporting unwilling to listen to winter bids, Villa may have to wait until the summer to pursue the centre-back, unless they trigger the release clause, although it is unclear how feasible that would be, given their well-documented PSR issues.

"Fantastic" Diomande could be exciting long-term addition for Villa

The 21-year-old, who is represented by the same agency as Harvey Elliott, is at the right age to be a long-term success at Villa Park, and he impressed right across the 2024-25 campaign, as highlighted by scout Jacek Kulig.

A modern defender, the Ivorian, who has made three Champions League appearances this season, is very comfortable in possession of the ball, as showcased by his performance across some key statistics over the past year, while the youngster also has a keen eye for goal.

Ousmane Diomande’s key statistics

Average per 90 (past year)

Non-penalty goals

0.09 (88th percentile)

Passes attempted

67.57 (90th percentile)

Pass completion %

92.7% (98th percentile)

That said, Villa have one of the best defences in the Premier League, having conceded just 11 goals, so there is no pressing need to sign a centre-back, and it may be better to wait until next summer to sign Diomande, at which point Sporting’s asking price will hopefully drop.

Chelsea start a massive week with a win at Turf Moor, so is momentum starting to build?

On Saturday lunchtime, the Blues proved to be simply too strong for Burnley, prevailing 2-0, with Pedro Neto heading home Jamie Gittens’ cross on the cusp of half time, before Enzo Fernández lashed home the clinching second right at the end.

​​​​​The match was significantly more comfortable than the scoreline would suggest, with the Clarets creating only one big chance and accumulating a miserly 0.44 xG, rarely threatening Robert Sánchez’s goal.

This made it three successive Premier League victories for Enzo Maresca’s side, who’ve now won five of their last six in the league, ahead of a massive week, with both Barcelona and then Arsenal visiting Stamford Bridge over the next eight days.

Despite victory in Lancashire, a few Chelsea players came in for some criticism, one in particular compared to a player who departed for pastures new over the summer.

Why Chelsea sold Noni Madueke

In one of the surprise moves of last summer, albeit this is now a well-trodden path at this point, Noni Madueke departed Chelsea during the Club World Cup to sign for Arsenal for a reported fee of £52m.

Last season, the England international scored 11 goals across all competitions for the Blues, including seven in the Premier League, a tally only bettered by talisman Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson, another who was parachuted out.

Thus, it was certainly a surprise that Madueke was the one Chelsea decided to sell, but that has been the business model since Clearlake Capital’s takeover of the club and, having signed him from PSV Eindhoven for £28.5m in January 2023, Todd Boehly and the other owners simply view that as a quick profit.

Nevertheless, on the pitch, it could be argued that Maresca’s side have missed Madueke’s direct running and pace, even if he’s not featured for Arsenal since September due to a knee injury.

Having said all of that, a frequent criticism from Chelsea supporters of Madueke was that he was selfish, often going for goal when passing to a teammate would be the better option.

Well, to support this zeitgeist, Madueke attempted 80 shots in the Premier League last season, behind only Palmer, but had the lowest goals – xG figure of any player in the Blues’ squad, ending up with -2.6.

Meantime, he registered just three assists and created only six big chances, suggesting that perhaps the view of supporters – and Martin Keown – was not too inaccurate.

So now, which current member of the Chelsea forward line showed similar levels of selfishness at Turf Moor?

Chelsea's Madueke repeat at Turf Moor

Since the days of Didier Drogba, Chelsea feel as though they’ve found themselves in a never-ending search for a reliable centre-forward; they even twice signed Romelu Lukaku in an attempt to solve this issue.

This summer, after freezing out Jackson, as already mentioned, they put a lot of faith in Liam Delap, making it not ideal that he then missed six successive Premier League matches due to a hamstring injury, as well as another following a red card at Molineux in the EFL Cup on the day of his return.

Back now, Delap has started the last two Premier League matches either side of the international break, but is yet to score since netting against Espérance Sportive de Tunis during the Club World Cup, for what that is worth, and his display on Saturday did not earn rave reviews, with the numbers underlining why.

Delap stats vs Burnley

Stats

Delap

Match rank

Shots on target

Zero

7th

Shots off target

1

4th

Expected goals

0.04

10th

Attempted dribbles

Zero

14th

Accurate passes

8

23rd

Key passes

Zero

14th

Duels won

2

21st

Offsides

1

2nd

Touches

20

21st

SofaScore rating

6.2

30th

Stats via SofaScore

As the table documents, Delap did not have much impact on the afternoon’s proceedings at Turf Moor.

He attempted zero dribbles, completed just eight passes and won only two of the eight duels he contested, while, in 67 minutes on the pitch, he touched the ball only 20 times, which is 28 fewer than goalkeeper Robert Sánchez, while only one more than his replacement Malo Gusto.

Simon Johnson of The Athletic noted that it is obvious that “Delap is still not fully up to speed post hamstring injury” while, as noted by Taha Hashim of the Guardian, there were multiple occasions when Delap failed to play the ball to a teammate after an opening had presented itself.

Considering Chelsea’s array of attacking options, when Delap is the centre-forward, one of his key responsibilities has to be facilitating attacks and linking up with teammates, as well as score goals of course, neither of which he is doing at the moment.

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If he continues to be both ineffective and selfish, you can bet your bottom dollar that Delap won’t be in the team much longer, because Boehly will probably just buy three other players in his position in January.

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Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Nov 18, 2025

Roki Sasaki addressed the elephant in the room while getting officially introduced as the Los Angeles Dodgers' latest star free-agent signing on Wednesday.

Sasaki, a 23-year-old right-handed pitcher from Japan, arrived to MLB as an amateur international free agent, meaning his first contract will include six years of club control and a rookie salary in 2025. That allowed every MLB team to be in the mix to sign Sasaki, but like so many other star free agents the past few years, Sasaki chose to sign with the defending World Series champions.

Sasaki was asked Wednesday about his decision to pick the Dodgers over his offers from other teams—a move that disgruntled many in the MLB world as Los Angeles added another high-profile star while many teams continue to sit on the bench in free agency.

"I think the No. 1 thing that stood out was the stability of the front office," Sasaki said Wednesday through a translator. "I had the opportunity to speak with a lot of teams, and they had a lot of appealing features. But overall, when I looked at the general consensus, I thought that the Dodgers were at the top."

About 20 MLB teams reached out to Sasaki back in December in hopes of luring him to its city. He reportedly met with at least eight teams in person in Los Angeles—the Dodgers, San Diego Padres, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants.

Teams were eliminated by Sasaki until it was down to three finalists: the Dodgers, Padres and Blue Jays. Sasaki opted to follow in the footsteps of Blake Snell, Teoscar Hernandez, Michael Conforto and Hyeseong Kim this offseason and choose the Dodgers above other offers.

"As I transition to the major leagues, I am deeply honored that many teams reached out to me with such enthusiasm, especially considering I haven't achieved much in Japan," Sasaki said. "I'm truly grateful to all the team officials who took the time to meet with me through this process.

"Every organization helped me in its own way, and it was an incredibly difficult decision to choose just one. … I am fully aware that there are many different opinions out there, but now that I have decided to come [to Los Angeles], I want to move forward with the belief that the decision I made is the best one."

Sasaki now joins the Dodgers' loaded starting rotation featuring fellow Japanese stars in Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani, as well as Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May.

"It wasn't a priority to me if there was or was not a Japanese player on a team as I was looking at all the teams," Sasaki said. "Being able to play with Ohtani and Yamamoto—both exceptional players—I'm really looking forward to playing with them, and not just them, but the rest of the team that is incredible as well."