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Notts gain vital first-innings advantage before Matthew Fisher’s second five-for keeps Surrey in touch

Vithushan Ehantharajah16-Sep-2025Nottinghamshire 231 and 219 for 8 (Patterson-White 58, Fisher 5-57) lead Surrey 173 (Burns 47, James 3-35, Tongue 3-43) by 277 runsThe 2025 Division One season has been a scrappy affair. Sparse on real, top-tier quality, in part because of a wayward schedule. Even here at the Kia Oval, the home of the defending champions, it has been far from vintage. Nevertheless, 80,484 people have come through the gates this summer. Around 41,000 of them Surrey members wanting to vibe with a historic four-peat push.On Tuesday, however, for the first time this season, those of the brown cap persuasion had to confront the idea that, maybe, this might be a County Championship title too far. Worse still, the team that may take it from them were doing it on their patch.Nottinghamshire were trailing by a point coming into this penultimate round, and then four after being rolled for 231 in their first innings. But by stumps on day two, after 17 wickets had fallen, they were very much in front. They will start Wednesday on 219 for 8, 277 ahead, meaning Surrey will need the highest score of the match to win, on a pitch playing tricks off the straight. Nottinghamshire, having had the better of the first two days, are on the cusp of inflicting Surrey’s first home defeat since June 2023, and stealing a march on their title rivals into the final round.They have Lyndon James to thank for that. The allrounder, having the best season of his career, blew the match wide open in the morning session, taking 3 for 35 and then provided 47 vital runs. He was robbed of the honour of seeing out the day by Matthew Fisher, trimming him off for a for his second five-wicket haul in the match. Fisher’s 5 for 61 on day one – his first five-for for Surrey – gave his new county control. And when they relinquished it, dismissed for 173 in their own first innings, the 27-year-old dug deeper with five more and a maiden 10-wicket haul. He wrestled the game back Surrey’s way, at one point possessing figures of 4 for 11 from 3.3 overs, with Nottinghamshire reeling on 53 for 5, just 111 in front.But back came James to the fore, initially with a 36-run stand with Kyle Verreynne before finding an effective cruising speed with Liam Patterson-White for a collective 91 for the seventh wicket. Patterson-White, having brought up his third fifty-plus score of the season in 63 deliveries, looked on course to return on day three only to fall as Dan Worrall’s third victim shortly after 6pm with the close in sight.After a sedate start to day two, the match seemed to accelerate all of a sudden, almost as if it suddenly tipped over the peak of a roller coaster, which was when Surrey were cruising on a steady ascent. From 101 for 1, nine wickets were lost for 72 in 19.4 deliveries, a collapse triggered by a nine-over spell of unrelenting class from James.The 26-year-old’s 3 for 35 at the Vauxhall End began with the removal of nightwatcher Tom Lawes – chipping to cover to end a stand of 59 with skipper Rory Burns – before using a lacquer-less, 30-something-overs-old Dukes ball in tandem with Brett Hutton to send Nottinghamshire into lunch with the home top six accounted for.A lifter that left Ben Foakes was followed by something a little fuller, shaping away. Foakes, now sitting a little more on the back foot, reached and edged through to Verreyne. That ended up being the third dismissal for just 17 in 37 deliveries, sandwiching Hutton’s vital wicket of Burns on 47, moving one into his front shin.A leading edge gave Dan Lawrence a three-ball duck, and when Ollie Pope skewed a poorly judged drive to second slip, James had his third – the fifth dismissal in 48 deliveries. Emerging after lunch on 141 for 6, the heavies were brought on – Josh Tongue and Dillon Pennington – to feast on what remained.By now, batters were casting anxious glances at the pitch, particularly the off-stump channel that, as ever, was a productive area to plough. That ramped up when Worrall got one to scuttle into Ben Slater’s off stump. And it was in this area that Fisher got to work, angling a couple off the seam to dismiss visiting captain Haseeb Hameed and Joe Clarke leg before.Left-hander Freddie McCann was done similarly from around the wicket, and when Jack Haynes inside-edged onto his stumps, Fisher had seen off one of the top order in each of his first four overs.Perhaps Nottinghamshire were guilty of being a little too passive early on. But James and Patterson-White learned, and when the latter pulled Lawes to midwicket for six on the shorter side, there was a subtle shift in mood.Maybe even a template for Surrey to follow, who themselves were a little shy with the bat. Though they finished the day with renewed enthusiasm having seen off both James and Patterson-White in the space of 3.1 overs, the target that will eventually come there way will require the very best of them. Something that has not been seen thus far.

Superchargers’ prospects of qualifying increase substantially after inflicting Spirit’s second defeat of the season

ECB Media20-Aug-2025Northern Superchargers 93 for 2 (Litchfield 55*, Sutherland 29*) beat London Spirit 90 for 8 (Redmayne 29, Sutherland 3-20) by eight wicketsNorthern Superchargers earned a crucial win at Lord’s to leapfrog hosts London Spirit and take themselves to second in the table in the Hundred women’s competition.It wasn’t quite a must-win game for Hollie Armitage’s side but, having lost to Manchester Originals last time out, their prospects of qualifying have increased substantially after inflicting upon Spirit their second defeat of the season.Superchargers started well with the ball, with both Grace Ballinger and Kate Cross bowling their first 10 deliveries through to take a wicket apiece. When Nicola Carey dismissed Grace Harris and Dani Gibson in consecutive balls, all the wind was taken out of Spirit’s sails and they never threatened to post an overly imposing total.As it was the team in purple made light work of the chase, knocking it off two wickets down with 34 balls to spare.Spirit will want to prove that they’re not reliant on Grace Harris’s runs for success, while for Superchargers they’ll be heartened by the up-turn in form of Phoebe Litchfield – awarded Meerkat Match Hero here for her 38-ball 55 with her customary array of switch-hits dotted throughout.On a day that Southern Brave secured their qualification with their sixth successive win, the fight for the next two qualification spots – and a place in at least the Eliminator – looks set to go down to the wire between today’s two combatants and Manchester Originals (all tied on 16 points), who take on Trent Rockets tomorrow.Litchfield said: “I think losing to Manchester Originals stung for our group. I think we got ourselves in a winning position and it was heartbreaking to not come over the other side. We made a conscious effort to rectify that situation and come out here and win.”We weren’t far off in that last game. We were in a winning position. We’ve just got be ruthless in that moment, and I think we did that today with the ball. The way the girls set it up with the ball, pretty much won us the game in that first innings and then made it really easy for us batters to go out and play with freedom.”The switch hits are fully premeditated, and then I just have to adjust on the length and the line when I switch, but also I have to know how to bail out. So that’s probably the most important thing that I learnt is to bail out, but then if it’s in the area, swing.”

Middlesbrough aren’t just looking at a move for Steven Gerrard, with a Championship title-winning manager also on the Riverside radar.

Gerrard among top Middlesbrough targets to replace Edwards

Boro’s search for a new manager is now officially underway after Rob Edwards’ move to Wolves was confirmed on Wednesday. Taking to social media, Edwards released a statement, saying:

Adi Viveash remains in interim charge for the time being and oversaw the club’s 2-1 win at home to Birmingham City prior to the international break, a victory which saw Boro return to the Championship automatic promotion spots.

A top two finish in 2026 will be the ask of Edwards’ permanent successor and there have already been named linked with the Riverside vacancy.

Gerrard is one who has been heavily mooted with a move to Middlesbrough in what would be his first taste as a manager in the Championship.

Out of work since January when he left Saudi Arabia and Al-Ettifaq, Gerrard is rated by Steve Gibson and is thought to find the idea of a move to the Riverside appealing.

Journalist Graeme Bailey said: “Gerrard is well liked by Boro, he has an impressive CV and would be a significant coup to land him, but it is not certain if they could put together the package to persuade him to move to the North East.”

Middlesbrough also eyeing Tony Mowbray return

According to Bailey and The Rousing Kop, Middlesbrough are also eyeing up former manager Tony Mowbray as an alternative to Gerrard.

As well as Mowbray, Alex Neil, Paul Heckingbottom, Raphael Wicky, Gary O’Neil, Robbie Keane and Mark Robins are also named as potential candidates to come in on a permanent basis.

Mowbray, who has six wins against Middlesbrough as a manager, spent three years in charge of Boro between 2010-2013 but failed to guide the club back to the Premier League.

Games

153

Wins

61

Draws

37

Losses

55

Points per game

1.44

Players used

66

The 61-year-old is currently out of work, with his most recent spell in the dugout coming at West Brom, where he was labelled “exceptional” by Baggies’ sporting director Andrew Nestor.

He won the Championship title during his first stint as Baggies boss back in 2008 and has even been linked with a short-term role at Southampton in recent weeks, so Mowbray’s return to the Riverside could be one to keep an eye on.

TORONTO — More than an hour after his season ended in a heartbeat and winter took hold, Ernie Clement sprawled in his chair in the Blue Jays’ clubhouse, still in full uniform, nursing a Labatt Blue. His sliding shorts featured a hole in the right knee. His eyeblack stickers barely clung to his cheeks. His eyes brimmed with tears. 

He struggled to reckon with his loss. Not of Game 7, in which the Blue Jays fell, 5–4, in a shocking, back-and-forth, 11th-inning defeat to the Dodgers. Not of the World Series, which they at one point led three games to two, and on Saturday were two outs away from clinching. What hurt most, he realized, was that he wouldn’t get to come to work tomorrow. 

“Even if we’d won,” he mused, “I’d still be sad that it was over.”

That was the message the Blue Jays repeated over and over in their quiet clubhouse as Saturday night bled into Sunday morning. 

“Everybody loves each other in here,” said center fielder Daulton Varsho. “We enjoy being around this group, and that’s probably going to be the most hurtful thing.”

That they were so close only makes it worse. 

“It took them seven games to beat us,” said Kevin Gausman, who started Games 2 and 6. “I think if we play tomorrow, we beat ’em, but we’re not playing tomorrow.”

They had so many chances for a different ending. They loaded the bases with two outs in the second. They had runners on first and second with one out in the fourth, and a runner at third with no outs in the fifth. They loaded the bases with one out in the ninth, and they had runners at the corners with one out in the 11th. But they could not come through with a hit to put the Dodgers away, and the Dodgers clawed back with solo homers in the eighth, off Trey Yesavage, who started Games 1 and 5; in the ninth, off closer Jeff Hoffman; and in the 11th, off Game 4 starter Shane Bieber. 

“I feel for everybody in here,” said Clement. “We grinded so hard. I’d go to war with Jeff Hoffman every day of the week. I want him on the mound. I want Biebs on the mound. Those are guys who I would take a bullet for. And 99 times out of 100 those guys get the job done. Obviously, this wasn’t our night here. But I feel for those guys so much.”

The core has been here for a while, but it took them some time to grow into a team that understood its responsibility to its fan base and to one another. A year ago, nearly the same roster finished 74–88. That club did not lack talent, its members say, but it lacked accountability. 

“We had too many excuses built in,” pitcher Chris Bassitt said earlier this week. “We had too many issues internally. We had too many people complaining, including myself, about the way things were being run or handled and things like that.

“And as a group, it’s a maturing process. Everyone wrote us off, obviously, after last year, and rightfully so. I don’t discredit that. But the reality is that I think we’ve learned a lot from that. We learned that all those stupid things that we were doing or saying or whatever—it’s not gonna happen. So we [stopped] that this year.” They would spend the period after losses making excuses and then trying to do too much. They struggled to choose an identity or an approach. When things went wrong, they panicked. They didn’t know who they were.

This year they knew: They were an old-school team. They chased innings on the mound and contact at the plate. Their pitchers would take strikeouts when they could and their hitters were happy to homer, but they tried not to make those outcomes the focus of every plate appearance. They trusted one another. They won 94 games and the American League pennant. 

Even 366 days ago, when he was handing out candy in his neighbor’s driveway while the Dodgers celebrated their last title, manager John Schneider believed that team could grow into this team. In some ways, that’s what made this group so special, and what made the end so hard: It was basically the same group. 

They made additions, of course, but always with an eye not just toward talent but also toward temperament. They signed righty Max Scherzer and outfielder Anthony Santander in part because those players are adults who do things the right way. 

“It would be easy to kind of knee-jerk react to last year,” said Schneider. “I don’t think [general manager Ross Atkins] did, I don’t think I did, I don’t think we did. I’m thankful for that. You trust people and you trust that what you’re preparing for is right. Players have to go do it, and they have answered the bell.”

Even when their bodies didn’t want to allow them to. Second baseman Bo Bichette sprained his left knee in early September and spent the next seven weeks racing through rehab to get back in time. He knew a further injury could cost him in free agency, which he will reach on Sunday. “It’s the World Series,” he said before Game 6. “None of that stuff really matters.” DH George Springer, 36, took a similar approach when he hurt his right side on a swing during the 18-inning Game 3 loss; he could barely walk, and he was still recovering from knee and wrist injuries after being hit by pitches this month, but he went 5-for-10 in Games 6 and 7. 

After Game 7, Schneider held his first team meeting of the year. “I said thank you,” he said. “I said thank you probably about 10 times.” First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the face of the franchise, told each teammate individually that he was proud of him.

Bassitt, who will become a free agent on Sunday, was asked if he had learned anything from this team that he hoped to take wherever he ends up. 

“I think it’s hard to replicate true love,” he said. As for himself, he said, through tears, “You never know, but I would love to have another shot with this group.”

Of course, it won’t be this group. In addition to Bassitt, Bichette and Scherzer will be free agents, and Bieber carries a $16 million player option. 

None was sure after the game what the future held for them, although Bichette said, “I’ve said I wanted to be here from the beginning,” and Scherzer said, “There’s no way that was my last pitch.”

This was Scherzer’s seventh major league team, but he said it had meant as much to him as any of them. “Me being 41 years old, I never thought I could love baseball so much,” he said, choking back tears. “I’m just so proud of everybody. My love for the game is so strong because of their love for the game.”

Clement loves the game, and he loved this team. So as his friends hugged and said goodbye and gathered their belongings, there he sat at his locker. He wasn’t sure when he would shower and get dressed. He didn’t want to leave. 

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca and BlueCo are gearing up for what could be an intriguing January transfer window, as one player reportedly eyes the Stamford Bridge exit door.

The west Londoners could be genuine Premier League title contenders, and their 3-0 statement win over Barcelona in midweek absolutely supports that theory.

Chelsea’s triumphant Champions League victory against the La Liga champions was the perfect way to prepare for their blockbuster face-off at home to Arsenal, and victory would see them close the gap to just three points.

However, a few players may not be along for the ride this season.

Chelsea are reportedly preparing for potential departures in January, as several current squad members seek routes out of London.

Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi remain the most problematic situations. Both players have been completely frozen out by Maresca, training separately from the first team in what has been dubbed the club’s “bomb squad.”

Sterling, who earns £325,000-per-week, and Disasi have been denied access to standard first-team facilities this term and will be desperate for January moves to resurrect their careers.

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Sterling’s substantial wages and Disasi’s apparent lack of suitors complicate matters significantly, but Maresca has confirmed that the latter has actually been assisting young players and helping with the ‘second team’.

There is also the matter of second-string goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen.

Jorgensen has emerged as the highest-profile exit candidate among active squad members. The Danish goalkeeper is reportedly considering a January departure after finding himself firmly behind Robert Sanchez in the pecking order.

Jorgensen wants regular playing time to secure his spot in Denmark’s 2026 World Cup squad, with national team bosses making clear he needs consistent minutes.

However, Chelsea are reluctant to sanction a loan, and any departure would need to be permanent.

Filip Jorgensen wants to leave Chelsea as clubs make contact

That is according to journalist Simon Phillips, who reports via his Substack that Jorgensen wants to leave Chelsea and clubs are now starting to make contact.

The 23-year-old, who’s started just one Premier League game, one Champions League and two Carabao Cup matches, finds himself stuck behind Sanchez and a move could be the best solution for all parties.

Promising young shot-stopper Mike Penders is also due back from his loan at Strasbourg in 2026, acting as a ready-made replacement for Jorgensen, and there are reports that Chelsea have reopened talks with AC Milan’s Mike Maignan.

If the latter were to arrive, Jorgensen’s game time would be even more limited, so it is hard to envisage a future where the Dane is playing regularly enough in a Blues shirt.

An ego-free, hard-working opening batter will be playing his 100th Test match this week. And he might be one of the very last of his kind

Andrew Fidel Fernando04-Feb-2025Since the start of 2015, no Test opener has scored as many runs as Dimuth Karunaratne. He has 15 hundreds, which is the equal highest among openers. He has struck 34 fifties, easily the best – that tally in some senses making him the most consistent opener to be continuously active through the last ten years. Over the course of this, he has also made the ICC Test XI three times, which no other opener has managed.This week, as he plays his 100th Test, there is reason to give the man his flowers, because when else was cricket going to find the time? His is a career that has floated on the fringes of the sport’s consciousness. You can still make a serious name for yourself as a Test opener in this age, but you have to crash a lot of boundaries to get that kind of attention, and ideally your country belongs to one of cricket’s bigger economies. Grinding out half-centuries on dustbowls, hunkering down for the new-ball spells, manipulating spin so you’re tracking at roughly three runs an over without risks – these are all nice things to be good at. But as far as the modern cricket ecosystem goes, this is like saying you’re the world’s top air-conditioner repair mechanic. Other people are doing way more glamorous things.For much of Karunaratne’s career, opening has been especially difficult. Since the start of 2015, men’s openers around the world have averaged 33.71 – significantly lower than they did in the aughts (37.17), and less than in the nineties (35.50), and eighties (34.76). You were always at the greatest risk of falling to the swinging and seaming ball as an opening batter, but in the last 10 years of Test batting, fresh terrors have snuck into nightmares, with the wisdom that spinners gain more bite out of a hard new seam taking hold stronger than it ever has before. In the 2020s, a 140+kph quick and an experienced finger spinner sharing the new ball is a pretty standard challenge for an opener, especially in Sri Lanka, where new balls can swing through humid air almost as well as they can explode off dry surfaces. Take away Karunaratne’s runs, and openers have averaged 33.6 on the island since 2015.

Karunaratne was ever the jobbing opener, and rarely believed to be deserving of the care that batters marked out for stardom tend to receive from coaches and staff, though he has outlasted virtually all of them

There are also few who have lit so steady a fire for Sri Lanka’s place in the Test world. This is, after all, a country that has let its Test-match win-loss ratio slip from 1.31 between 2005 and end of 2014, to 0.81 since the start of 2015. Much of this has been about Sri Lanka’s failure to replace great players. There are no spinners to rival Muthiah Muralidaran and Rangana Herath, no seamers to match Chaminda Vaas or Lasith Malinga, no top-order batters that are on the level of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Aravinda de Silva. But when it comes to openers, there is a case to be heard. Sanath Jayasuriya and Tillakaratne Dilshan did it with more verve, and Marvan Atapattu was more technically correct. But none of them did it as prolifically as Karunaratne, or scored anywhere near his 7079 runs at the top of the order.Related

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How Dimuth Karunaratne uses other players to get ahead

With most other positions in the XI, you can look back to the Lankan men’s team of the late aughts and early 2010s – the golden generation – and mostly conclude that Sri Lanka do not produce cricketers of the same quality. Karunaratne gives you reason to pause.And at no point, by the way, was he ever Sri Lanka’s golden boy. Where it had been suggested of others that they were the next great Sri Lanka batter, Karunaratne was ever the jobbing opener, and rarely believed to be deserving of the care that batters marked out for stardom tend to receive from coaches and staff, though he has outlasted virtually all of them. Karunaratne’s has been a short leash, and he’s got the struggling thirties, and the dirty half-centuries to prove it. No one will call it a pretty career. But fifties didn’t need to be pretty – they just needed to be fifties. And Karunaratne was adept at providing them. Those prods outside off stump, those strong lbw shouts, and inside edges into pad were all in strong supply. But so were Karunaratne’s runs.There is an obvious skew to his record. He is exceptionally good against spin, which explains why 81% of his hundreds have come in Asia, though he’s also got hundreds in South Africa and New Zealand.ESPNcricinfo LtdIf Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin presented the greatest spin-challenging of this last era, then few batters have denied them as effectively, with Karunaratne hitting hundreds at the SSC in 2017, and Bengaluru in 2022. These were classic Karunaratne innings, in that he obviously scratched his way through portions of them, rarely struck the kinds of authoritative boundaries that suggested he was dominating the bowling, and yet he found ways to avoid getting out, while pinching another 10 runs. He has added a few new shots, and refined his defence, but this, essentially, has been his mode of operation for 12 years. There is also a strikingly ego-free quality here. For bowlers, beating a batter’s edge is a small victory; for Karunaratne, it is an opportunity to face the next ball.It is a career worth celebrating all the more, for it being in its last days. Karunaratne has just said he will retire after his 100th, but the signs were there. He averaged 29.66 across 2024, and was terrorised by Kagiso Rabada in South Africa, just as he is again being hounded by Mitchell Starc – a bowler who has now dismissed him nine times in Tests. But his own performance is almost irrelevant. Even if Karunaratne throws off a career’s worth of precedent and clubs 100-ball double-centuries in his next Test encounters, Sri Lanka will only still be playing four Tests in 2025. Their next World Test Championship schedule will still feel sparse.If a little navel-gazing is permitted, you do have to wonder how many more Sri Lanka cricketers will get to 100 Tests. Another Sri Lanka opening batter? This could be a last chance to see.Karunaratne is the seventh Sri Lanka cricketer to this milestone, to follow Jayasuriya, Muralidaran, Vaas, Sangakkara, Jayawardene, and Angelo Mathews. He is probably the least-celebrated of that crowd. But no one could say he does not deserve his place among them. Others have had the benefit of hype, legend, and aura. Karunaratne’s only medium has always been hard, pragmatic runs.

Gill had suffered a neck injury during the first Test against SA, while Hardik had injured his left quadriceps during the Asia Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2025Shubman Gill and Hardik Pandya “are looking healthy and fit” ahead of the first T20I against South Africa, India captain Suryakumar Yadav said ahead of the series opener in Cuttack on Tuesday.”Both [Gill and Pandya] are looking healthy and fit,” Suryakumar said. Gill had suffered neck spasms during the first Test against South Africa in Kolkata, while Hardik was out with a quadriceps injury he suffered during the Asia Cup in September.Gill is yet to play since his injury, but Hardik made a comeback in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Playing for Baroda, he picked up a wicket in each game, but more importantly, bowled four overs both times. With the bat, his 77 not out off 42 against Punjab helped his team chase down 223.”What you saw in the Asia Cup also, when he [Hardik] was bowling with the new ball, he opened up a lot of options, combinations for us with respect to the playing XI,” Suryakumar said. “That’s what he brings to the table. His experience, the way he has done well in all big games, all ICC events, ACC events. I think that experience will count a lot and his presence will definitely give a good balance to the side.”With Gill back in the side, Suryaumar made it clear that Sanju Samson would have to compete with Jitesh Sharma for a spot in the middle order. He also emphasised that all batters apart from the openers need to be flexible with respect to their position in the order.”Sanju, when he came into the circuit, he batted higher up the order,” he said. “Now the thing is, other than the openers, everyone has to be flexible. He did really well when he opened the innings but Shubman had played before him in the Sri Lanka series, so he deserves to take that spot.”But we gave Sanju opportunities. He was ready to bat at any number, which is actually good to see a player being flexible to bat anywhere from No. 3 to 6. That’s one thing I have told all the batters that other than openers, everyone has to be very flexible. Both [Samson and Jitesh] are in the scheme of things. It’s always good to have lovely players like both of them. One can open, one can bat lower down the order. In fact, both can do all the roles. It’s an asset to the team and a good headache to have.”

Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl will be looking to mastermind his first-ever win in European football against Ferencvaros in the Europa League on Thursday night.

After a 3-0 win against Kilmarnock away from Ibrox in the Scottish Premiership on Wednesday night, the German boss will be hoping that his players are full of confidence and ready to secure that first win of the league phase.

Several players will need to raise their levels, though, because too many members of the squad have failed to perform on the European stage this season.

The worst Rangers performers in the Europa League this season

When looking at the worst performers for the Gers in the Europa League, it is impossible to look past Mohamed Diomande as the standout player for the wrong reasons.

The Ivorian central midfielder has been sent off two times in three appearances in the competition, remarkably, and it is hard to get much worse than that.

Youssef Chermiti, who was signed for £8m from Everton, has challenged Diomande for that spot, though, with no goals and four ‘big chances’ missed in five starts, per Sofascore, in the league phase.

1

Mohamed Diomande

2

Youssef Chermiti

3

Thelo Aasgaard

4

Oliver Antman

5

Jayden Meghoma

Summer signings Thelo Aasgaard and Oliver Antman also rank in the worst five performers, as they have both failed to deliver a goal or an assist and both average under one key pass per game, per WhoScored.

The attacking duo have also struggled in the Premiership, with one goal and two assists combined, but they are not the only attacking players who have underperformed, as Djeidi Gassama must be dropped for Thursday’s game.

Why Djeidi Gassama should be dropped by Danny Rohl

The summer signing from Sheffield Wednesday made an electric start to his career at Ibrox with four goals in six games in the Champions League qualifiers.

Since then, though, the French forward has found it tough to make an impact on a regular basis, with one goal in 15 Premiership games and one goal in five outings in the Europa League, per Sofascore.

At the end of last month, Rangers fan and scout Kai Watson posted that Gassama “deserves just as much criticism as Antman & Aasgaard”, which is a fair comment when you look at their respective performances in the Premiership.

As aforementioned, the Frenchman has not delivered much in the way of quality in the league for the Gers, and he blanked again in the 3-0 win over Kilmarnock, with no goals, assists, or ‘big chances’ created, per Sofascore. He also lost the ball a whopping 23 times.

Games

15

22

Goals

1

1

Big chances missed

3

3

Big chances created

1

2

Assists

1

2

As you can see in the table above, Aasgaard and Antman’s combined output in the Premiership is better than Gassama’s, which shows that he has not been at a level above the pair this season in the league.

These statistics show that all three of those summer signings have failed to provide goals and assists on a regular basis for the Light Blues, and that is also reflected in their combined return of one goal and no assists in the Europa League.

With this in mind, Rohl should ruthlessly ditch Gassama from the starting line-up for Thursday evening’s clash with Ferencvaros because he has not offered enough quality in the final third of late.

Instead, the ex-Sheffield Wednesday manager should bring Mikey Moore back into the fold after he marked his return from injury with an impressive goal against Kilmarnock.

The Spurs loanee has scored two goals in his last two appearances for Rangers, and it would have been three if not for VAR ruling out his second goal against Killie for an innocuous foul in the build-up.

Moore is starting to show that he can be a difference-maker in the final third, with two goals and one assist in the league, and should be given an opportunity to shine from the start ahead of Gassama on Thursday.

Rangers dud was as "rotten" as Miovski, now he's Rohl's most improved player

This Glasgow Rangers flop who looked as bad as Bojan Miovski is now Danny Rohl’s most improved performer.

ByDan Emery 4 days ago

Manchester United have been known to splash the cash in the transfer market over the last couple of years, with INEOS backing various managers in their quest.

Since the summer of 2022, over £800m has been spent on new additions at Old Trafford, but their spending has failed to catapult them to Premier League glory in recent years.

The Red Devils kept up their spending spree under Ruben Amorim during the recent summer window, with over £200m being spent on new additions to help bolster the squad.

The vast majority of the funds were injected into the attacking department, handing the manager a new infamous trio to help him in his quest for silverware at the Theatre of Dreams.

However, the hierarchy look set to continue their mammoth backing in the months ahead, resulting in numerous big-money talents being touted with transfers for the January window.

United’s hunt for new additions in the January window

With the window rapidly appearing on the horizon, United have already been heavily linked with a move for Nottingham Forest sensation Elliot Anderson this winter.

The Red Devils have been reportedly targeting a move for the 23-year-old, but it could be an expensive one, with Sean Dyche’s men currently demanding £100m for his signature.

Whilst the window is currently closed, it’s not stopped Amorim’s men from making their move, with the club already making contact with his current employers over a potential deal.

However, he’s not the only player in their sights, with Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo another player that is reportedly they’re hunting for in January.

According to one Spanish outlet, Amorim’s men are set to make a €60m (£52m) bid for the Ghanaian international who’s already registered nine goal contributions in the Premier League this season.

Such a report also confirms that the Red Devils see the 25-year-old as a primary target to improve the front line, potentially linking with one talent as a result of his potential transfer.

Why United’s £52m target would be an Mbeumo repeat

During their recent summer spending spree, United forked out a staggering £71m for the services of Bryan Mbeumo, with the attacker joining from fellow Premier League side, Brentford.

Eyebrows were raised about the deal, undoubtedly because of the reported price tag, but a couple of months on, it’s safe to say it’s been a phenomenal piece of business.

The 26-year-old has already scored five times and registered one assist in his first 11 league outings, with such a tally the highest in the current first-team squad.

Within such efforts, numerous of which have been crucial, with the big-money addition scoring in the clash against Liverpool at Anfield – subsequently securing the club’s win at such a ground for the first time in nearly a decade.

However, despite his record, the hierarchy are still targeting attacking reinforcements, which could lead to their pursuit of Semenyo in the months ahead.

The similarities are there for all to see, with both players operating in wide roles, but often wanting to cut inside onto their favoured foot – Semenyo going so from the left, whilst Mbeumo features off the right.

Like the Cameroonian, the Ghanian has been the shining light for a less-established top-flight club, which could see the Cherries star make his own step to a “big six” outfit.

When comparing their respective stats from the ongoing season, Semenyo has managed to outperform him in numerous key areas, showcasing how much of a sensational addition he would be.

The 25-year-old, who’s been labelled “the best winger in the country” by Chris Waddle, has already racked up more combined goals and assists – arguably being a more threatening option in the final third.

Games played

11

11

Goals & assists

9

6

Shot on target accuracy

61%

54%

Successful dribbles

1.9

0.8

Dribble success rate

47%

42%

Duels won

6.6

2.8

Aerials won

2.4

0.2

Possession won in final third

0.9

0.7

His underlying figures also highlight his quality in 2025/26, with Semenyo even registering a higher shot on target accuracy rate – making him a more all-round option in attacking areas.

He’s also completed more dribbles per 90, along with a higher success rate – further highlighting his quality with the ball at his feet, but Semenyo’s talents don’t end there.

The winger has dominated out of possession, winning more duels and more aerial battles, which could make him the perfect option for Amorim at Old Trafford.

£52m would be another huge investment from the hierarchy, but it’s a transfer that would add further firepower to the club’s already potent attacking department.

Given the success of Mbeumo since his own transfer, the hierarchy should be all over a deal for Semenyo, with the forward one of the most in-demand players in the division at present.

The new Ronaldo: Man Utd preparing British-record bid for £200m superstar

Manchester United are looking to make further attacking investments after this summer’s spending.

2 ByAngus Sinclair Nov 17, 2025

Arsenal are currently waiting to discover the extent of Gabriel Magalhaes’ injury after the star centre-back sustained a thigh injury during Brazil’s 2-0 win over Senegal, and he’s now a doubt for this weekend’s crunch North London derby clash against Tottenham as a result.

The league leaders head into Sunday’s derby aiming to rediscover their winning touch after Brian Brobbey’s last-gasp equaliser saw Sunderland snatch a 2-2 draw in their last Premier League game, a result that halted their imperious eight-game winning run without even conceding a single goal.

Arsenal’s unbeaten run in all competitions since defeat to Liverpool

Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest

Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 1-1 Man City

Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal

Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

Fulham 0-1 Arsenal

Arsenal 4-0 Atlético Madrid

Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace

Arsenal 2-0 Brighton

Burnley 0-2 Arsenal

Slavia Prague 0-3 Arsenal

Sunderland 2-2 Arsenal

The Gunners’ head-to-head record against their arch rivals makes for pretty reading, and they haven’t lost a single league game against Tottenham at the Emirates for 14 years. However, that being said, Mikel Arteta faces a significant defensive concern with Gabriel’s likely absence.

No detailed prognosis has yet been made available, though it is expected that the centre-back could miss at least a short stretch of games, including Spurs, with Gabriel a major injury doubt.

The Brazilian has been instrumental for Arsenal this season, both defensively and as a set-piece threat going forward, so his absence is poised to be a considerable blow.

The injury concerns don’t end there. Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Noni Madueke (all knee) are out but pushing for a return to the side in time for Tottenham, while summer signing Viktor Gyokeres and winger Gabriel Martinelli also face potential late fitness tests.

Riccardo Calafiori was also nursing a hip problem on international duty with Italy, and it remains to be seen whether Arteta starts the left-back who’s been one of Arsenal’s players of the season so far, even keeping Hale End sensation Myles-Lewis-Skelly out of the side.

Now, as per The Independent, there’s been an update on Gyokeres’ condition.

Arsenal given Viktor Gyokeres injury update ahead of North London derby

According to the news outlet, the Sweden international could also miss this weekend’s vital clash.

Gyokeres is described as another Arsenal injury doubt to face Tottenham, with Gyokeres missing their last two matches against Slavia Prague and Sunderland after picking up a muscle injury in the 2-0 win away to Burnley at the very start of November.

After a barren goalless run, the 27-year-old was just beginning to find his feet with three goals in his last three appearances.

While Mikel Merino has performed impressively as a makeshift striker once again, having scored more league goals than any other Arsenal player this calendar year and bagging a brace against Slavia Prague, Arteta will be hoping that he can call upon Gyokeres once again to take on Thomas Frank’s side.

Gyokeres is their top scorer in the league with four thus far and six in all competitions, but his impact extends beyond goals.

According to WhoScored, only Eberechi Eze has averaged more shots per 90 than Gyokeres in Arsenal’s squad, with Arteta praising how he brings something unique to the side.

Tottenham are in the midst of an injury crisis of their own with a host of their players missing, and Arsenal know victory would tighten their grip on the title race.

However, derbies rarely follow the script, and Arteta will need his squad depth to compensate for any absences if they are to claim local bragging rights once again.