All posts by h716a5.icu

Everton are still monitoring the situation of Manchester United winger Jesse Lingard and could be tempted to make a late swoop with Premier League clubs able to do business with each other until 3 February.

What’s the latest?

According to the Manchester Evening News, Everton are amongst the clubs still monitoring Lingard’s situation at Old Trafford with a potential move to Newcastle United facing numerous difficulties.

The £18m-rated Englishman has only made one appearance in the Premier League under United interim boss Ralf Rangnick who has already admitted to the 29-year-old that he isn’t in the German’s plans for the remainder of the campaign with the winger’s tenure at Old Trafford looking all but over.

The Toffees are set to appoint former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard as their new manager after sacking Rafa Benitez following a torrid run of one win in 13 league games and the 43-year-old could be tempted at the possibility of bringing Lingard to Merseyside.

Everton should sign Lingard

With their Premier League position still precarious, Everton would be wise to make more signings before the transfer window closes.

The Toffees are sat in 16th just four points clear of the relegation zone and Lampard will be keen to ensure that any fears of dropping down to the Championship are extinguished as soon as possible.

A swoop for Lingard, therefore, could appease both parties, with United getting an unwanted player off their books ahead of the expiration of the 29-year-old’s contract in June and Everton adding quality out wide, something they lack.

Summer signings Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray have exceeded expectations, scoring six goals each thus far whilst Richarlison refused to rule out a move away from Goodison Park back in September.

However, 25-year-old Alex Iwobi has only managed one Premier League goal this term whilst youngster Anthony Gordon is still developing.

Anwar El Ghazi has joined on loan from Aston Villa for the remainder of the campaign but is yet to make an appearance for the Merseyside club.

Labelled as an “intelligent footballer” by ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand, Lingard enjoyed a successful loan spell at West Ham United in the second half of last season in order to reignite his career.

The 29-year-old scored nine goals in 16 appearances for the Hammers and if he can replicate that form in Merseyside, he’d be an inspired signing by the incoming boss, one that drags them back up the table quickly.

The Englishman needs to depart Old Trafford as soon as possible and a move across the northwest could prove the perfect opportunity to revive his career.

A key Newcastle transfer claim has been made regarding their pursuit of Reims’ Hugo Ekitike…

What’s the talk?

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has revealed that the Magpies have failed with their first bid to sign the attacker from the Ligue 1 side this month.

He tweeted: “Reims are not intentioned to accept Newcastle opening proposal for talented striker Hugo Ekitike. Deal more than complicated – there’s interest also from West Ham but nothing advanced yet. #NUFC Reims want also a sell on clause included into potential Ekitike deal.”

This comes amid rumours of a move for Burnley attacker Chris Wood, who the Toon are believed to be on the verge of signing.

Infuriation for Hammond

This will surely infuriate Nick Hammond as he goes about looking to improve Eddie Howe’s Newcastle squad in the January transfer window.

The Magpies are in desperate need of reinforcements, and bringing in players as quickly as possible could be vital with big games coming up in the Premier League. They are currently 19th in the table and have only won one of their 19 matches in the division so far this term, whilst also conceding the joint-most goals along with bottom club Norwich.

This shows how desperate their situation is and why signing targets before the final few days of the window could be crucial as every point counts. Newcastle face Watford on Saturday with a chance to move out of the bottom three, and any signings before that clash could improve their chances of winning, which is why failing with this offer for Ekitike will frustrate Hammond.

Callum Wilson is currently out injured and this puts added pressure on those at the top end of the pitch. He is the club’s top scorer in the Premier League with six goals and is one of just two Magpies players to score more than once in the current top-flight campaign. This means that they will be missing his clinical touch in the final third, and the signing of Ekitike could have alleviated some concerns over his absence, although it remains to be seen if a deal for Wood will be completed in time for him to play.

The 19-year-old has eight goals and two assists in ten Ligue 1 starts this season, which suggests that he could have an immediate impact at St James’ Park if he adjusts to English football. Just imagine a talented young player linking up with the more experienced Wood, someone who has already bagged 50 times in the top-flight.

With that in mind, the duo may well have made a difference in the beat to drop.

Furthermore, they could have made the difference against Watford and, unless something dramatic happens in the next couple of days, the club’s failure to sign Ekitike this week could negate Howe’s chances of beating the Hornets in this weekend’s relegation six-pointer.

AND in other news, “Hearing”: Luke Edwards drops exciting Newcastle transfer claim which will delight fans…

A round-up of the first day of the ninth round of Division One of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Dec-2010Multan are in horrendous form in the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy and that showed in their miserable capitulation against Rawalpindi at the Bahawal Stadium in Bahawalpur. However, it had seemed that they would be able to bounce back from their eight consecutive defeats when they bowled out Rawalpindi for 153 earlier in the day. Seamer Abdur Rauf took five wickets, new-ball partner Tahir Maqsood took four and had it not been for a half-century from Adnan Mufti’s half-century and his 67-run stand with Muzammil Nizam for the seventh wicket, Rawalpindi would have faced an embarrassment. But they were able to inflict one on Multan, whose batting simply couldn’t measure up to the pace of Rizwan Akbar, who took 6 for 50. They had been reduced to 57 for 7 at one stage and had to rely on Rauf again, this time with the bat, to take them past 100 with an unbeaten 28. The innings folded for 112, with a lead of 41 for Rawalpindi.Bowlers dominated the opening day of the contest between Faisalabad and Sialkot at the Sports Stadium in Sargodha, claiming 16 wickets. Sialkot had the advantage at stumps after skittling out Faisalabad for 88, thanks to a maiden haul of six wickets by seamer Prince Abbas. Only four Faisalabad batsmen managed to reach double-figures. Sialkot gained a lead but lost six wickets in the process in their response, as left-arm spinner Hasan Mahmood took 4 for 36. Wicketkeeper Rizwan Sultan top scored with 30, while the others got starts, but was dismissed shortly before stumps, with Sialkot on 144 for 6, 56 ahead.Table-toppers Habib Bank Limited were on the back foot in their encounter against Pakistan International Airlines at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. Seamer Aizaz Cheema cut through the HBL top and middle orders to take 6 for 69 and bowl them out for 211 in just 58 overs. Tottering at 49 for 6, HBL recovered thanks to an attacking 82 from wicketkeeper Humayun Farhat, who fought hard with the tail to lend some respectability to the HBL score. PIA began well in their reply, with openers Khurram Manzoor and Agha Sabir adding an unbeaten 52 before stumps.Islamabad had the advantage at the end of the opening day against Karachi Blues at the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad. Seamers Nasrullah Khan, Rauf Akbar and Fakhar Hussain grabbed three wickets each to overcome starts by the Karachi top-order batsmen and a half-century from Atif Ali and bowl out the opposition for 237. Nasrullah took some stick, conceding 110 in 25 overs, but Karachi will rue the fact that they let it slip after being in a strong position at 118 for 2. In their reply, Islamabad lost opener Farrukh Hayat early and finished the day on 20 for 1.National Bank of Pakistan and Water and Power Development Authority ended on almost even terms at the Jinnah Stadium in Sialkot. Rafatullah Mohmand, unbeaten on 86, helped WAPDA, currently placed second in the table, fight through a middle-order wobble and finish the day on 256 for 8. Openers Ahmed Said and Jahangir Mirza had laid a solid foundation with a stand of 83 but a collapse ensued where seven wickets fell for 94. Seamer Mohammad Talha picked up four wickets but Mohmand found support in Umaid Asif, with whom he added 62 for the eighth wicket. The extras proved useful as well, contributing 28 to the score.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited held the edge against Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Opener Yasir Hameed starred with 95, including ten fours, and Shahid Yousuf contributed 80 to set up ZTBL’s score of 294 for 5 at stumps. There was another significant contribution, of an unbeaten 51 by Haris Sohail, which helped consolidate the strong start provided by Hameed.

The BCCI has sent show-cause notices to seven of the eight players involved in the pub brawl in St Lucia on May 11, the day India were knocked out of the World Twenty20

Cricinfo staff18-May-2010The BCCI has sent show-cause notices to seven of the eight players involved in the pub brawl in St Lucia on May 11, the day India were knocked out of the World Twenty20. According to a board source the seven players are Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Rohit Sharma, Piyush Chawla, Ravindra Jadeja and Murali Vijay. The players have been given a week to explain their role, if any, in the incident and why the board should not take disciplinary action against them. If the responses are found unsatisfactory, the matter will be taken up by the board’s disciplinary committee.Four of the seven players will be touring Zimbabwe for India’s next international assignment but the pull-up is expected to have no impact on their participation in the tour.The eight players had gone to the pub early evening when allegedly some of the fans present inside started heckling one of the players. Unable to stand the taunting, the others reportedly came to the rescue of the team-mate but it only resulted in an unruly brawl.The BCCI bosses, including its president Shashank Manohar, were said to be highly critical of the incident after hearing the report of team manager Ranjib Biswal in person on Monday in Mumbai. Biswal had submitted his report on Saturday to the board’s chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty but he stayed back to report to Manohar and N Srinivasan, the board secretary, who was also present at the briefing.This is the first instance of the board pulling up so many players in public. But Manohar, the BCCI president, has always had the reputation of being a strict administrator and on this occasion he possibly felt the board was left with little option but to give a warning to the players considering the World Cup is nine months away. And to tolerate such indiscipline, especially after India’s exit from the Super Eights in the World Twenty20 for the second year in a row, would have been inappropriate.Incidentally, Biswal denied reports of the brawl when he returned to India. “There is no truth at all about the brawl. It is all media creation that is doing the rounds,” he said last week.

Chairman of selectors, Clyde Butts, has said that Jamaica batsman Marlon Samuels will be considered for West Indies selection if he performs at the domestic level

Cricinfo staff30-May-2010Chairman of selectors, Clyde Butts, has said that Jamaica batsman Marlon Samuels, who has finished serving his two-year ban, will be considered for West Indies selection if he performs at the domestic level.”We all know Marlon Samuels can play cricket,’ Butts told . “Certainly, for a man who has been out of cricket for two years, youwould allow him to play some cricket, develop his game again and get back into form and, of course, he will be available to West Indies then.”Marlon needs to come out and start playing some cricket, [and] we will probably see that in the regional T20 and the one-day series and who knows. If Marlon certainly shows that he still has it, I think he will be considered.”Samuels returned to action recently for Jamaica, playing in a 50-overs match and two Twenty20 games against USA in Florida. He had missed two seasons after he was banned in 2008 for breaching rules, relating to “receiving money, benefit or otherreward which could bring him or the game of cricket into disrepute”. Samuels was punished by a West Indies Cricket Board disciplinary committee for discussing team information with Mukesh Kochar and later approaching him to pay a hotel bill.Samuels has played 29 Tests and 107 one-day internationals for West Indies since making his international debut against Sri Lanka in 2000.

It has been widely speculated that Rafael Benitez has fallen out with Lucas Digne, and news coming from the Everton camp on Friday afternoon appears to suggest that the pair can’t resolve their issues.

What’s the story?

Renowned journalist Fabrizio Romano gave an explosive transfer insight regarding the Toffeed, taking to his Twitter profile to drop this exclusive to his millions of followers:

“EXCL: Ukraine left back Vitaliy Mykolenko is currently undergoing his medical as new Everton player, here we go! 🔵🇺🇦 #EFC”

“He’s set to join Everton from Dynamo Kiev on a permanent move, final price around €21/23m. Personal terms agreed.”

The medical may further fuel rumours of an irreparable fall-out between the Everton manager and the French left-back, who has not been in the matchday squad since the Merseyside derby.

As recorded by WhoScored, since his arrival to the Premier League. no left-back has earned a higher rating than Digne, winning 28 aerial duels and 52 tackles in his 15 appearances for the Toffees this season. He also scored against Queens Park Rangers in their Carabao Cup tie.

According to The Athletic, Digne became frustrated in conversations with the Everton manager and continuously challenged Benitez, with the pair having reportedly ‘rarely seen eye to eye’ – specifically when it came to tactics – and tensions allegedly boiled over just ahead of the Arsenal match a couple of weeks ago.

Fans will be gutted

Digne has established himself as a fan favourite, with the left-back speaking out about the reaction that many fans have had to him since he joined the club, saying: “They have even written a song for me, and I want to say thank you to them for that. We have something special in this club.”

Quite a few Everton fans have taken to Twitter to express their feelings and thoughts on the news shared by Romano. One fan tweeted; “If we sell @LucasDigne we are stupid, @everton you need to sack that fraud @rafabenitezweb #rafaout”

Another wrote: “I’ll be so, so angry if Digne is forced out of Everton in January. Angry at Rafa, and at the club by default, as with most things these days.”

It’s clear that some fans aren’t happy about potentially axing the £119k-p/w left back from the side, and with squad depth already thin and injuries piling up, Benitez cannot afford to lose any more players. Freezing out Digne could come back to bite the manager unless Everton can complete the mooted signing of Mykolenko, and even then the Ukrainian may have a hard act to follow.

Either way, his impending arrival seems to suggest that Benitez intends to move on from Digne, who might have already played his last game for the club.

In other news: Benitez could solve big issue at Everton by signing this gem

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been left reacting to some manager news involving Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

As per The 4th Official, sources close to the Dutchman have now confirmed that talks over potentially becoming the new manager at Ibrox have gone ‘very well’, and that the expectation is that those talks will continue.

This comes after The 4th Official revealed that ‘really really positive’ initial talks were held on Saturday, and that an announcement could be made soon, suggesting that GvB is highly likely to become the next Light Blues coach – some fans praised the outlet’s coverage of the saga so far down below.

Van Bronckhorst is loved by many Teddy Bears supporters, and also has an impressive managerial CV, guiding Feyenoord to their first Eredivisie title in 18 years back in the 2016/17 season (BBC), in addition winning four other major trophies with the Rotterdam club.

Thus, it is no surprise to see so many Gers eager to get a deal done.

Rangers fans on van Bronckhorst manager news

These RFC fans gave their reactions to the manager news as it was shared on Twitter:

“Get it done.”

Credit: @VaticanRSC

“ANNOUNCE GIO”

Credit: @shanewatson95

“Very good source throughout the manager search and it looks like Gio is nearly here”

Credit: @EveryOtherSatu1

“Much as we all seem to want the same man, and it looks highly likely it will be him, I’m glad the club are still doing it all properly.”

Credit: @let55go

“56 with ease”

Credit: @IbroxLive

“Just hire the man already”

Credit: @38821090G

In other news, find out what international footage has Gers gushing here!

Somerset have confirmed that head groundsman Phil Frost has been made redundant after 22 years at the club

Cricinfo staff12-Feb-2010Somerset have confirmed that head groundsman Phil Frost has been made redundant after 22 years at the club.Frost, alongside another member of the ground staff, was relieved of the position in December in an attempt to “identify cost effectiveness and improve efficiency”, according to a statement issued by the club.While Hampshire sign lucrative link-ups with teams across the globe, other counties face the harsher climate of recession and, with news that the Champions League Twenty20 will encroach on the English season, an increasingly precarious domestic structure.Frost won many awards for his work at Taunton, but has also come under fire for the batsman-friendly nature of Championship pitches which have led to a high number of draws. The club are keen to produce more result-orientated wickets for the 2010 season and now Brian Rose, the director of cricket, will oversee the work.Somerset recently signed Kieron Pollard and Cameron White, two premium Twenty20 players, in an attempt to reach the lucrative Champions League tournament, which will have stretched their budgets and now cuts are having to be made elsewhere.

Steven Fletcher is enjoying his football again at 36, with the evergreen striker loving life alongside Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at Wrexham.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Veteran frontman joined as a free agentEndured testing 2022-23 campaign in ScotlandBack among the goals & targeting promotionWHAT HAPPENED?

There was a chance that the former Scotland international would call it quits and head into retirement following his release by Dundee United in June 2023 at the end of a campaign that delivered relegation out of the Scottish Premiership.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT FLETCHER SAID

Fletcher was, however, presented with an intriguing offer from Hollywood superstars in North Wales and has said of rediscovering a spark in the twilight of his career: “I am really enjoying it here, especially at my age. I had a disappointing season last season so to come here and be enjoying my football again is great. Being near the end of your career, it is nice to be in this sort of atmosphere challenging for promotion.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Fletcher, who will turn 37 in March, has registered seven goals for Wrexham this season – including a hat-trick against Barrow and a match-winning effort versus Notts County last time out – and added on his return through 20 appearances: “Seven goals, I can't complain with that. I just need to keep that going and stay in the team.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty/GOALWHAT NEXT FOR FLETCHER & WREXHAM?

Phil Parkinson has suggested that Fletcher and Paul Mullin form his favoured strike partnership, and they may get another opportunity to lead the line on Tuesday when the Red Dragons take in a trip to MK Dons. They head into that game sat third in the League Two table, but boasting games in hand on all of those around them.

Liverpool are still without midfielder Curtis Jones ahead of this weekend’s trip to Wolves. 

Neil Jones, the club’s correspondent for Goal, wrote on his Facebook page that the 20-year-old still needs to ‘be patient and wait for his eye issue to fully clear up’.

Jones hasn’t featured for the Reds since the 2-2 draw with Brighton on 30 October. He was on a run of four starts in five Premier League matches before he sustained the issue.

The midfielder joins Roberto Firmino on the team’s injury list in a period of the season which sees them play nine games in 31 days.

Better LFC injury news elsewhere

The journalist reported that the Brazil striker may return to the grass at the AXA Training Centre next week, but wasn’t so optimistic about the English midfielder.

Joe Gomez and Naby Keita are further down the line in their respective recoveries, having returned to training in recent days.

Twitter fan feed Anfield Edition relayed Jones’ fitness update, and here’s what some supporters made of it.

Liverpool fans bemoan Jones’ continued absence

“Still don’t understand how he did that to his eye. Definitely need more details…”

Credit: @seyjith

“That must’ve been one bad eye injury”

Credit: @Kieran_Reid99

“What happened to his eye?”

Credit: @Kiels695

“Unbelievable that is”

Credit: @Royston679

“How can Firmino play with a pirate patch and CJ can’t ?”

Credit: @thebigguy86

“Who sparked him? I need to know”

Credit: @_LFConnor_

In other news, a number of Reds fans erupted over this transfer update