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For the fourth year in a row, he is among the top three scorers in the IPL but his strike rate has been dipping

Alagappan Muthu07-Oct-2021There has always been a clamour for KL Rahul to bat freely. He has all the shots in the book and, at a pinch, he is more than capable of inventing a few new ones. Those abilities were all on show in Punjab Kings’ final match of IPL 2021 when Rahul scored 98* off a mere 42 balls in his side’s six-wicket win. So why does he always insist on batting within himself?”I feel like I may end up letting the team down if I play the way I want to play.”Rahul has been a sedate presence at the top of the order ever since he was made captain of the Punjab franchise. This added responsibility may well be playing a part in his throttling down, and so too a middle order that doesn’t really have a mainstay.Related

KL Rahul smashes six-studded 98* to keep Punjab Kings' dreams alive (just about)

Runs continue to flow no matter what method he uses though.In 2018, when he broke the record for the fastest fifty in IPL history, he finished as the tournament’s third-highest run-getter with a strike rate of 158. In 2019, he was second with a strike rate of 135. In 2020, he finally claimed the orange cap but the strike rate came down to 129.This season Rahul seems to have found a better balance, his 626 runs – leading the charts right now – coming at a strike rate of 139. Aggression up top was the need of the hour on Thursday after Chennai Super Kings were restricted to 134 on a good batting pitch.”We wanted to score it before 14 overs [to try and stay in playoff contention],” Rahul said at the presentation. “Today was one of those days where I could hit every ball. [I] had complete clarity of what I wanted to do. No better feeling than hitting the ball from the middle of the bat.”Rahul’s innings featured so many stunning hits. Not least of which was the one he took on his own body. A Josh Hazlewood bouncer left a bruise to the batter’s forehead, but he shook it off very quickly and launched into the fast bowler, taking him for 4, 4, 0 and 6 and setting the tone for a near-flawless innings.The Kings captain cruised to fifty off 25 balls and was within sight of a hundred even in a small chase.”I don’t think these innings come too often in this world,” team-mate Aiden Markram said after the game. “He needs to enjoy that. He’s done something quite special tonight. Hopefully he appreciates it. This team, behind the scenes, has gone crazy after every shot as you can imagine. It’s been unbelievable to watch.”Proof of Markram’s words came later in the day at the post-match press conference when Chris Jordan gushed about Rahul’s batting prowess.”KL is a world class batsman. It’s such a joy to watch him play. I first played with him when I played for RCB back in 2016 and even then, some of the shots he played, I just knew he was a class player. It just seemed like, especially today, any time he felt like hitting a six, he just took it, no matter where the ball was. As I said he’s such a high quality player, can play in various situations and in various ways and he’s more or less a 360 degree player as well. It was just great to see him go out there today and lead from the front and get us over the line in timely fashion to give us an outside chance of qualifying.”Whether Kings make the playoffs or not – and it looks unlikely, they still need Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians to lose and lose big – Rahul’s form all through the IPL has been a huge plus for them, and for India as well as they prepare for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

West Ham United scored a much-needed statement win under Julen Lopetegui, reminding the Premier League that they boast one of the finest squads in the division and are capable of poking their way into European contention.

Lopetegui, indeed, inherited a talented squad from David Moyes, but is it so curious that his teachings would take more than a moment to sink into the system?

There’s no denying it was a poor start to the season, but West Ham now have a platform as we step into the October international break, and there will be hope that players such as Mohammed Kudus have hit a vein of form that could now be sustained.

Mohammed Kudus' performance vs Ipswich

Fleet-footed and electric-paced, Kudus showcased many of his usual traits over the opening weeks of the term, but there’s no denying his lack of potency in the final third was weighing him down and adding to the struggles.

He opened his account for the campaign against Ipswich Town at the London Stadium on Saturday, having blanked for goal contributions across the first six fixtures.

The Ghana winger leapt into the air to convert from a rebound and double the Hammers’ lead before the break, proving crucial in the grand scheme given that the Tractor Boys had missed a spate of chances themselves.

Minutes played

86′

Goals

1

Assists

0

Touches

55

Shots (on target)

5 (4)

Accurate passes

28/30 (93%)

Key passes

1

Dribbles (completed)

4 (1)

Total duels (won)

11 (3)

He wasn’t at his barnstorming best, but Kudus could now feel a weight lifted as he bags for the first time under Lopetegui’s wing. Claret & Hugh were certainly coloured impressed, awarding the 24-year-old with an 8/10 match rating and writing: ‘Great anticipation for his goal and generally looked considerably better as did most of the team. Forced a world-class save to deny him a second.’

Now, West Ham need to maintain that revived fluency from Kudus and to do so, Lopetegui might be wise to unleash Carlos Soler from the outset to charge the wide forward up.

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Football FanCast's Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

How Carlos Soler can help revive Kudus

West Ham signed Soler on a season-long loan move from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer after offloading James Ward-Prowse and Nayef Aguerd. The deal does not include a buy clause.

So far, he’s yet to receive a starting berth in the Premier League, though has entered the fray in the second half across each of the club’s past four fixtures, as well as starting against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup.

Described as an “incredible player” by former coach Raul Martinez, Soler is a talented midfielder with a complete skill set, but his natural-born playmaking does suggest that he could add the impetus and drive for Kudus to reap rewards from.

Kudus has still been a menacing figure, averaging 3.3 dribbles and winning 6.3 duels per game in the English top flight, as per Sofascore. He offers something unique, singular – after all, no Premier League rival even came close to his dribbling success in the Premier League last term.

1.

Mohammed Kudus

West Ham

124

2.

Jeremy Doku

Man City

87

3.

Bruno Guimaraes

Newcastle

72

4.

Ebere Eze

Crystal Palace

69

5.

Luis Diaz

Liverpool

67

The 27-year-old recruit completed 67% of his long balls in Ligue 1 last term – at a rate of 1.2 per game – and this could be something that enhances the overall progression and consequent success of the Ghanaian.

Soler’s ball-playing quality could truly be the key to harnessing the full flight of Kudus’ dribbling prowess – especially with Lucas Paqueta performing below his expected level, averaging only 1.1 key passes per game and losing 63% of his duels.

Therefore, Lopetegui might want to try something new and unleash Soler from the outset after the international break. The Spaniard hasn’t been called up and thus can work under his countryman to fine-tune his qualities ahead of the next phase of Premier League action.

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West Ham nearly signed an “efficient” partner for Bowen, but ended up with Kudus

ByConnor Holden Oct 6, 2024

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been handed some good news this week as an injury update comes out of London Colney, and it is much-needed as the Gunners prepare for a crucial run of games.

Arsenal earn 0-0 draw away to Atalanta in Champions League opener

The Gunners earned a hard-fought 0-0 draw away to Europa League champions Atalanta in their opening Champions League game of the new season on Thursday evening, with goalkeeper David Raya taking many of the plaudits.

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Indeed, it is safe to say Raya was the hero in Bergamo following his sensational double save to deny Mateo Retegui an opening goal for Atalanta. The Spaniard first denied Retegui from the penalty spot, diving expertly to his right before getting straight back up to acrobatically claw the Atalanta forward’s follow-up header off the line.

It was a moment of magnificence, and arguably one of the finest double-saves in recent memory. Due to their recent succession of injuries to key first team players, Arsenal had an array of academy players on the bench last night, so Arteta will be silently thrilled to come away from a difficult ground with a clean sheet and a point.

“I think we started the game really well in the first 20, 25 minutes,” said Arteta on Arsenal’s 0-0 draw with Atalanta.

Atalanta

Statistics

Arsenal

2

Shots on target

2

4

Shots off target

3

51

Possession (%)

49

1

Yellow cards

0

7

Fouls

11

4

Corners

2

“I think we played with the ball in the right areas, with a lot of intention and were effective, but without creating too many clear-cut chances. After that, we lost control of the game because we were very inconsistent with the ball, giving a lot of simple balls away – and against a team that are man-to-man [that] costs you moments to transition because the moment you lose your man, there is a space and you are in equal numbers in the backline or overloaded. Defensively we didn’t suffer – that’s the reality.”

Arsenal take on Premier League title rivals Man City at the Etihad Stadium next in one of their biggest tests of the season, but Arteta looks set to be without a few crucial stars for the trip to Manchester.

Club captain Martin Odegaard will be out for a while after injuring his ankle on international duty with Norway, whereas summer signing Mikel Merino is sidelined after fracturing his shoulder in training.

Arsenal given "massive boost" after Mikel Merino injury update

Merino was expected to be out till late October, following his collision with Gabriel Magalhaes in the Spaniard’s first ever London Colney training session.

However, Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge has relayed some positivity out of Arsenal, with Arteta handed a “massive boost” after injury news on Merino, who is progressing well and only a few weeks away.

“Mikel Merino, obviously a disappointment for him picking up that shoulder injury as soon as he’d signed for Arsenal,” said Bridge live on air this week.

“We understand that [he] is actually progressing quite well and a few weeks away now. So that will be a massive boost for Mikel Arteta when he comes back to really bolster that central midfield.”

Arsenal signed Merino in a £32 million deal from Real Sociedad in the summer window, following the 28-year-old’s brilliant 2023/2024 campaign at both club level and internationally.

The former Newcastle United ace scored eight goals and assisted five others in 45 appearances across all competitions for Sociedad last term, and played a key role during Spain’s triumph at the Euros.

Tottenham Hotspur centre-forward Dominic Solanke opened his goalscoring account for the club with a strike against Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday. The England international rebounded James Maddison’s miss to tap the ball into an empty net, after failing to score in his first three appearances for Spurs.

Daniel Levy agreed a club-record fee of up to £65m to sign the former Chelsea and Liverpool prospect from fellow top-flight side Bournemouth in the summer transfer window.

Spurs could now turn to another player from lower down in the Premier League table, as they are reportedly eyeing up a Southampton starlet to further boost the attacking depth at the manager’s disposal.

Latest Tottenham transfer news

According to HITC, Tottenham are showing an interest in Southampton midfielder Tyler Dibling ahead of the upcoming January transfer window. The report claims that Spurs were one of a number of Premier League sides to send scouts to watch the winger in action against Ipswich Town on Saturday, as they watched him open the scoring for Russell Martin’s side.

Newcastle United, Crystal Palace, Brighton, West Ham, and Manchester United were also keeping tabs on the 18-year-old whiz, which shows that he is attracting plenty of interest already this season.

The outlet does not, however, reveal how much Southampton would demand for his services, should any of those teams come in with a formal approach for him in January. It now remains to be seen whether or not Spurs are prepared to act upon their interest by swooping to secure his signature ahead of the second half of the season.

Why Tyler Dibling would be an exciting signing

During TalkSPORT’s commentary of Manchester United’s 3-0 win over the Saints earlier this month, Sam Matterface claimed the teenager has a “classic” winger style and “looks a little bit like Chris Waddle back in the day with his shirt untucked”.

If Dibling goes on to be anywhere near as good as Waddle, who scored 41 goals in 165 games for Spurs and earned 62 caps for England, then the Southampton starlet will have done well.

The teenage ace won a penalty in that defeat to the Red Devils, beating Diogo Dalot and forcing the defender into a foul, but it was subsequently missed by Cameron Archer.

Appearances

5

Starts

2

Goals

1

Big chances created

1

Key passes

5

Assists

0

Dribbles completed per game

1.8

Dibling has only started two league matches for the Saints but has already scored his first goal in the division, created five chances and completed nine dribbles. The England U19 international, who was described as an “elegant” talent by scout Jacek Kulig, earned his chance in the first-team after a return of eight goals and six assists in 27 games for Southampton B and already looks ready to contribute at the top end of the pitch at Premier League level.

Tottenham could, therefore, bring him in as an exciting prospect for Ange Postecoglou to coach and develop over the coming years, as Dibling still has plenty of time left to improve at the age of 18 and would not be expected to make an immediate huge impact for Spurs.

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1 ByDan Emery Sep 23, 2024

نجح فريق الريان القطري في تسجيل هدف التعادل أمام العين الإماراتي، وذلك بالمباراة التي تجمع بينهما حالياً ضمن منافسات بطولة دوري أبطال آسيا.

ويحل الريان ضيفًا على نظيره العين الإماراتي، على أرضية استاد هزاع بن زايد، في إطار مواجهات الجولة السابعة من مرحلة الدوري في بطولة دوري أبطال آسيا.

وسجل اللاعب المصري محمود حسن تريزيجيه هدف التعادل للريان في الدقيقة 50، مستغلاً تمريرة عرضية داخل منطقة الجزاء ليضعها داخل الشباك.

طالع أيضاً.. تشكيل الريان أمام العين في دوري أبطال آسيا.. موقف تريزيجيه

ويحتل الريان المركز السابع في جدول ترتيب دوري أبطال آسيا برصيد 5 نقاط، بينما يتواجد فريق العين بالمركز الحادي عشر برصيد نقطتين. هدف تريزيجيه أمام العين في دوري أبطال آسيا

Liverpool won at Anfield, but this time, there was no fusillade of fist pumps showered toward the Kop End, no larger-than-life German zapping around and infecting everyone with his energy.

Arne Slot is a cooler customer, businesslike, unflappable. A charismatic and disarming character at times, yes, but also a level head with his sights set on calmly tinkering away at his talented squad, inherited from Jurgen Klopp, and bringing it into contention at the top of the Premier League.

There's of course the return of the Champions League to look forward to too – the revamped group stage draw is on Thursday – which surely means that a new signing should be brought in to allow the Reds to fight across all fronts, with central defence a priority in this regard.

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Posts 1 ByAlex Caple Oct 2, 2024 Liverpool hold talks over centre-back signing

According to TEAMtalk, Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi is on a shortlist of options at Liverpool for the week ahead, with Richard Hughes and co not ruling out signing a centre-back.

Sepp van den Berg has been sold to Brentford for £25m while Joe Gomez is assessing his options in the market, and Guehi has the perfect skill set to succeed under Slot's leadership.

Internal talks have been held and Liverpool must now consider whether they wish to fork out the £75m fee that Palace demand. With Newcastle United having lodged four offers already this summer, FSG better act quickly at this late stage of the window.

Why Marc Guehi would start for Liverpool

Crystal Palace signed the defender in an £18m deal three years ago, bringing him in from Chelsea. He has since made 113 appearances and risen to a position as one of England's foremost centre-backs.

Hailed for his "monster" defending by Palace reporter Bobby Manzi, Guehi certainly has what it takes to succeed at a high-flying outfit such as Liverpool, potentially even surpassing expectations and becoming a leading member throughout an illustrious period under Slot's leadership.

Guehi has still only featured five times under Oliver Glasner due to injuries throughout the second half of last season, but he still managed to showcase his technique and ball-playing skills under Roy Hodgson.

Palace haven't started the 2024/25 term with the same aplomb that they finished last year with but the style of football is identifiable and Guehi has been a linchpin, averaging 78.5 touches per game so far, completing 88% of his passes and winning a whopping 75% of his duels (six per game).

Such defensive steel, mixed with an impressive and varied passing game, suggests that he would be perfect for Slot's system and that he might even be the perfect man to succeed Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk – who is out of contract at the end of the season…

The perfect Van Dijk successor

Slot's brand of football carries some slick and stylish – some would say liquid – elements, but two matches in, an extra layer of composure is discernible from what Klopp brought to the table.

Ipswich Town and Brentford have been defeated to start the season off with six points, and while neither display was perfect, Liverpool have yet to concede, leading the way in xGA, which is basically the expected goals conceded from the shots faced, two matchweeks in.

Premier League 2024/25: xGA (expected goals against)

Rank

Team

Clean Sheets

GA

xGA

1.

Liverpool (4th)

2

0

0.80

2.

Man City (1st)

1

1

1.54

3.

Tottenham (5th)

1

1

1.68

4.

Brighton (2nd)

1

1

1.69

5.

Arsenal (3rd)

2

0

1.89

Sourced via Understat

Of course, it's very early in the day, and tougher tests lie ahead, but Liverpool's xGA of 0.89, in simple terms, means that they have stood firm and limited their opponents to half-hearted chances. Having faced 15 shots over the two affairs, xG rules that Liverpool have been less than probable to concede a single goal.

Alisson plays a big part in that, of course, but none bigger than Van Dijk, who has been as imperious as ever across his opening fixtures, protecting his goal against the Bees to keep his 48th clean sheet in 100 Premier League matches at Anfield, losing only twice.

The 33-year-old is one of the greatest defenders in Premier League history, and he's carried his long-standing power into the fresh campaign, notably completing 95% of his passes and winning 65% of his duels thus far, as per Sofascore.

He who is tasked with succeeding the Netherlands and Liverpool captain will face a tough task indeed, though Guehi has the properties to ensure the Reds' defensive strength might continue long into Slot's future at the helm.

One of England's standout performers at Euro 2024, Guehi has been described as "one of those versatile CBs who can play both sides equally as comfortably" by analyst Ben Mattinson, adding further depth to the argument that he could replace Van Dijk, who has long dominated from the left side of Liverpool's backline.

The Reds titan issued a cryptic response by Sky Sports pundits when discussing Liverpool's victory over Brentford on Sunday evening, refusing to reveal his or the club's stance on his contract situation, but fans would rest a lot easier knowing that a plan, in one form or another, is in place.

Van Dijk has been described as "the best defender in the world" by Klopp in the past and it's true that he will pass the test of time when football's finest centre-backs are raised for debate.

But he's 34 at the end of the campaign, and may well opt against extending his £220k-per-week contract. Guehi would be a brilliant successor, and FSG must make their move before he falls into rival clutches.

Related Joe Gomez upgrade: Liverpool weighing up late move for £50m "beast"

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Posts ByAngus Sinclair Aug 25, 2024

Babar Azam to lead, Sarfaraz Ahmed included and Yasir Shah out for all three formats

Umar Farooq12-Mar-2021

Sharjeel Khan hasn’t played for Pakistan since January 2017, during which he served a ban for his part in the PSL spot-fixing scandal•AFP via Getty Images

Sharjeel Khan’s PSL form has been rewarded with a recall to the national side for the first time in over four years, as he was included in Pakistan’s T20I squad for the tours of South Africa and Zimbabwe next month.Sharjeel was the third-highest corer in this year’s curtailed PSL season, finishing only behind Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam, but at a fantastic strike rate of 170.94, well ahead of what the other two recorded. Sharjeel, playing for the Karachi Kings, was the only player to score a hundred in this edition, against the Islamabad United.The recall capped an eventful four years for the left-handed opener, who was out of the game altogether for two and a half of them, banned for his part in the 2017 PSL spot-fixing scandal.There have, however, been question marks about Sharjeel’s fitness. “Fitness isn’t the only criteria for selection – at the end of the day, a player has to play cricket. We are already working on reviewing the fitness testing levels and will introduce a new strategy [to gauge fitness],” Mohammad Wasim, Pakistan’s chief selector, said in a press conference. “I didn’t comment on Sharjeel’s fitness earlier as his performances [last year] were patchy, but now we have to look at anyone who performs, whatever the fitness they have.”Yes, I understand there is still a lot work that needs to be done on his fitness and he will improve with time, but at the moment he can win us big games with his bat.”The view on Sharjeel’s fitness marked something of a U-turn for the PCB. As recently as a year ago, PCB CEO Wasim Khan, not normally known for singling out players for criticism, had made an exception for Sharjeel, bemoaning his inability to remain fit while serving his ban, and said there was “a long way to go” before he could be considered for national selection.The other significant development was the absence of Yasir Shah from the Test side as he continued to nurse a left knee injury.The senior legspinner has been a regular in Pakistan’s Test squads for much of the past seven years, but has also experienced a form dip in recent times. The emergence of spinners like Sajid Khan, Zahid Mahmood and Nauman Ali – all included in the expanded Test squad – have also meant that Pakistan can afford to look beyond him. Shah’s performances in the southern hemisphere have been particularly underwhelming, with an average of 87 in that part of the world over the years.Shahnawaz Dhani, the Multan Sultans fast bowler who was something of a feel-good story during the PSL, was also called up for the Test series against Zimbabwe, with the chief selector saying that his performances during the tournament showed he could perform under pressure.Dhani took nine wickets in four PSL matches this season – the second-most among all bowlers, and while an economy rate of 10.33 needs work, there was enough for Mohammad Wasim to suggest he could be a white-ball prospect.”We basically saw him playing red-ball cricket in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and in the PSL he exhibited that he can handle the pressure,” the chief selector said. “He has the quality, the way he is bowling with control and pace… if we were playing Tests against South Africa, we would have reconsidered it, but we picked him because we are playing Zimbabwe.”Also, we are lacking fast bowlers in red-ball cricket. In white-ball cricket, we have more options than him. He is presently our future in red-ball cricket and we are trying make a pool and attract players in this format. He is definitely going to be considered for white-ball cricket in future.”Pakistan play three ODIs and four T20Is against South Africa before moving to Zimbabwe, where they are scheduled to play two Test matches and three T20Is.Test squad: Babar Azam (capt), Imran Butt, Abid Ali, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Fawad Alam, Saud Shakeel, Agha Salman, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Tabish Khan, Hasan Ali, Shahnawaz Dhani, Nauman Ali, Zahid Mahmood, Sajid Khan.ODI squad: Babar Azam (capt), Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Abdullah Shafique, Haider Ali, Danish Aziz, Saud Shakeel, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir, Hasan Ali.T20I squad: Babar Azam (capt), Shadab Khan, Sharjeel Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Haider Ali, Danish Aziz, Asif Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Usman Qadir, Hasan Ali, Arshad Iqbal.

Whilst the early passages of the summer window have seen Birmingham City make numerous new signings, it could soon be the Blues' turn to be the selling party as multiple clubs enquire about one of their star players.

Blues not afraid of spending big this summer

In spite of their recent relegation to League One, Birmingham have not shied away from opening their chequebook during the summer window. The first month of business has seen the Blues bring a number of fresh faces to St Andrew's with many of these players fetching seven-figure fees.

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1 ByKelan Sarson Jul 21, 2024

Christoph Klarer

Darmstadt 98

€4.15million (£3.5million)

Willum Thór Willumsson

Go Ahead Eagles

€4.0million (£3.4million)

Emil Hansson

Heracles Almelo

€1.75million (£1.5million)

Ryan Allsop

Hull City

€980,000 (£830,000)

Alex Cochrane

Hearts

€1.20million (£1.0million)

Alfie May

Charlton

€915,000 (£773,000)

Marc Leonard

Brighton

€590,000 (£500,000)

Bailey Peacock-Farrell

Burnley

€530,000 (£448,000)

Whilst Birmingham are still likely to make further additions before the season kicks off next week, it looks as if the headlines in the West Midlands are being dominated by potential departures from St Andrew's.

The most recent rumours have surrounded the future of Jordan James with the Blues' young talent attracting interest from both Ipswich Town and Leeds United. With recent reports suggesting that Birmingham would part ways with the Wales international for a fee in the region of £10million, the Blues may struggle to turn down an offer for the player this summer.

With clubs in higher divisions eager to go shopping for some of Birmingham's top talents, it appears as if Championship sides are now queueing up to sign another of the Blues' stars.

Multiple clubs make contact for Dembele

As first reported on the X account of Darren Witcoop, Birmingham winger Siriki Dembele has been the subject of enquiries from five Championship clubs. Witcoop goes on to name both Swansea City and Blackburn Rovers as two clubs who have made contact over a deal for the 27-year-old.

The post claims that Dembele is valued at around £1.5million, meaning that whichever side ends up signing the winger may have to fork out a handsome fee to do so.

The forward only arrived at St Andrew's last summer in a move from Premier League side Bournemouth. In his first campaign with the Blues, Dembele featured 37 times in all competitions, contributing six goals and one assist in the process.

Despite only making a handful of appearances during his time in the Premier League, Dembele still earned praise from the higher ups at Bournemouth with former Cherries boss Scott Parker branding the winger as "first class" back in 2022.

With the Blues spending big over the summer window, the departure of Dembele could be a necessary casualty in order to get even more new players through the door before the window shuts at the end of this month.

Ex-Netherlands star Rafael van der Vaart claimed that Viktor Gyokeres is a "better version of Erling Haaland" ahead of Sporting's clash with Man City.

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Article continues below

Article continues below

• Gyokeres hailed as 'real footballer'
• Told he is better than Haaland
• Sporting CP face Man City on Tuesday

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• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Sporting CP sensation has displayed terrific form since the start of the 2024-25 campaign, scoring 16 goals in 10 matches across all competitions. He has attracted interest from Premier League giants like Arsenal, Liverpool, and, of course, Manchester United, where his current manager Ruben Amorim is heading to replace Erik ten Hag later this month.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Gyokeres is fresh from scoring a hat-trick against Estrela in a Liga Portugal clash. He will now face reigning English champions Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday. Ahead of the exciting encounter in Europe, Dutch legends Van der Vaart and Van Basten have spoken highly of the Swedish forward, with the former even claiming that he is a 'better version' of City's goal machine Erling Haaland.

• WHAT RAFAEL VAN DER VAART SAID

  Speaking to , the former Tottenham star said: "It sounds a bit crazy, but I think he’s a bit of a better version of Haaland. Haaland is of course incredible, but Gyökeres has a bit more, or something."

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• WHAT MARCO VAN BASTEN SAID

  AC Milan and Ajax icon Van Basten added: "He’s a real footballer, I think. A real footballing striker. Strong, scores easily and is calm in front of goal. He is also able to pass the keeper, I think he’s a really good striker. I can enjoy him."

The Gunners' head coach resigned from his role after defeat to Chelsea at the Emirates continued a terrible start to the new season

For Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall, the writing was quite literally on the wall after his team fell to a 2-1 defeat at home to Chelsea on Saturday. On Hornsey Road, just a stone's throw from the Emirates Stadium, the words 'Jonas out' were there for all to see as night fell, boldly brushed onto dark brick in white paint. It took a couple of days for that disgruntled fan's wish to come to fruition but, on Tuesday, the Gunners announced that Eidevall's three-year stint as head coach had come to an end.

North London's new graffiti artist wasn't the only fan that wanted this outcome. Many have become frustrated in recent seasons as the most successful club in the history of English women's football has consistently fallen short in the Women's Super League, all-but-mathematically out of contention for the title when the run-in began last season, and the year before.

At times, critics of Eidevall have at least temporarily been swatted away by other achievements, such as back-to-back League Cup triumphs and a run to the Champions League semi-finals, but it was always going to be difficult for him to come back from the negativity brought on by Arsenal's start to the 2024-25 season.

It all began so well for the Swede, with a memorable 3-2 win over Chelsea at the Emirates and a title charge that fell just short on the final day. Where did it go wrong to lead to his time at the club ending in his resignation just four games into the new WSL season?

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  A difficult start

  Saturday already felt like a must-win game. That's because Arsenal had dropped points twice in their first three league outings and then, just to add to the pressure, put in an absolute shocker of a display away at Bayern Munich in the Champions League, losing 5-2.

  If a team wants to win the WSL, they have to be near-perfect because the top sides so rarely drop points. Last season, Chelsea became the first team to win the division with more than two defeats to their name and just the second to do so after dropping more than 10 points. Liverpool, back in 2014, are the only other side to have done that.

  So, when Arsenal kicked the season off with a 2-2 draw at home to Manchester City and then, after only just scraping past Leicester with a 1-0 win, slumped to a disappointing goalless draw with bottom side Everton, they were already significantly on the back foot. The loss to Chelsea made it seven points dropped already. To come back from that and win the WSL title is going to be extremely difficult.

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  Same old problems

  But while the Chelsea defeat was Eidevall's final game in charge, the draw with Everton feels like the most important result to dwell on after his resignation. That was the one that put much more pressure on Saturday's fixture and one that encapsulated the biggest issue he faced during his time at Arsenal.

  Under Eidevall, the Gunners have been terrible at breaking down low blocks. When they fell short by one point in the title race in 2021-22, they were actually undefeated in the league against eventual champions Chelsea – and Manchester City, and Manchester United. Instead, it was a draw with Tottenham and, more significantly, a defeat to eventually-relegated Birmingham that really cost them.

  Last year, despite finishing third and five points off the pace, Arsenal actually had the best record against the WSL’s 'big four', with four wins, one draw and one defeat. However, it was once again the teams below them in the table that proved difficult to put away, with defeats to West Ham, Tottenham and Liverpool all disappointing, as was a draw with Everton.

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  Not enough improvement

  Ahead of the new season, Eidevall was confident this would not be an issue again. "We were the team that spent the most time of any team playing against low blocks in the league," he said. "I think it came to us as a little bit of a hurdle and we didn’t solve that quickly enough, but we found more and more keys to play against low blocks and what is promising for this season is we’ve been encountering solving high pressure, we’ve been encountering solving low blocks, so as a team I feel we are mature.”

  He believed that his team had learned enough from past experiences to be more "prepared" for those situations, "which is important because team maturity for me equals the likelihood of winning". "I’m super confident that if we came up against a low block, then we have tools and qualities and processes on how to play against that and I have full belief in them,” he added.

  Yet, performances so far this season showed this issue was not a thing of the past. Yes, the 1-0 defeat to Hacken in Champions League qualifying was overcome by a 4-0 triumph in the second leg and yes, Arsenal did manage to scrape a 1-0 win against Leicester last month. But the problems of breaking down a low block were there for all to see, meaning that draw with Everton was certainly not a shock, but more a disappointment. It simply showed the lack of progress made.

  The Gunners came into this season with aspirations of winning the WSL title and it felt like the pressure was on Eidevall to do so, after coming up short in the past two seasons. It was never going to be possible if this remained a stumbling block – and it has.

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  Other issues on show

  Of course, that wasn't the only issue during Eidevall's time in charge. The Swede certainly didn't make himself more popular by being the man in charge when Vivianne Miedema left the club on a free transfer, even if the player herself has spoken about it being time to move on. Other departures did not go down well either, with the likes of Jordan Nobbs, Cloe Lacasse and Mana Iwabuchi viewed as under-used by Eidevall before he let them go.

  Furthermore, as well as failing to overcome the low block issue, somewhat tied into that has been a lack of ruthlessness. After being the WSL top-scorers in Eidevall's first year in charge, Arsenal have been well off the title contenders since. Last year, Chelsea scored 71 goals to win the league. The third-placed Gunners bagged 53.