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Manchester United are eyeing a January move for another Chelsea player, amid their interest in wantaway star Christopher Nkunku, with many other Premier League sides also on red alert over a possible Stamford Bridge exodus winter.

Nkunku unsettled and considering Chelsea exit

Nkunku has been prolific when given the opportunity by manager Enzo Maresca, scoring 10 goals in all competitions and making 17 appearances in total, but the Frenchman still isn’t a mainstay in the first team.

Chelsea star now "unhappy" under Maresca and tempted to join elite club

The Italian could lose a prolific player.

ByEmilio Galantini Nov 13, 2024

He’s only got one Premier League start under his belt so far this season, with the rest of his 10 top flight outings coming off the bench, which has resulted in him playing just 155 minutes in the competition.

The 26-year-old would’ve hardly envisaged this when making the £52 million move from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2023, resulting in Nkunku’s widely reported discontent at being a bit-part player for Maresca.

Leicester City (home)

November 23

Aston Villa (home)

December 1

Southampton (away)

December 4

Tottenham (home)

December 8

Brentford (home)

December 15

The £195,000-per-week forward has scored in every single Conference League match this campaign, including their qualifiers against Servette, and bagged a hat-trick in their 5-1 demolition of EFL minnows Barrow in the Carabao Cup.

Nkunku also bagged a dramatic late winner away to Bournemouth in the league, with Maresca praising his contribution when called upon.

“Christo, every time he plays, he scores, and he does well,” said Maresca on Nkunku.

“Also, he was probably our best player in pre-season, no doubt. He was playing then as an attacking midfielder, and now we are using him as a nine, which we all know isn’t his position – he’s more of a second striker or between the lines.”

Nkunku is apparently “unhappy” at Chelsea right now, due to his reduced playing time. This is backed by reliable media sources like The Telegraph, who state that Nkunku is considering his future at Stamford Bridge.

Man United are reportedly keen on signing Nkunku amid the uncertainty surrounding his status at Chelsea, with the international also attracted by this possibility of joining Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford.

Man United eyeing January move for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

Now, as per a report by CaughtOffside’s Mark Brus in Fabrizio Romano’s Dailybriefing, it is believed United are also considering a January move for Chelsea summer signing Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.

The £30 million arrival was a key player for Maresca at Leicester, but he’s been reduced to just 43 top flight minutes this season and wasn’t named in their last three matchday squads.

It is believed Man United could attempt to sign Dewsbury-Hall from Chelsea in January, with the most likely possibility being a loan. However, Amorim’s side are not his only suitors, with Tottenham, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Fulham, Brighton and Brentford all in the mix as well.

Called a “revelation” and “wonderful” at Leicester by Brendan Rodgers, the 26-year-old is in a difficult situation right now and contracted until 2029, so perhaps a move away for more game time could be what is needed for him.

The left hander only missed the SCG Test due to Covid and had been assured of returning

AAP10-Jan-2022Travis Head beat Covid-19 without showing any symptoms but admits Usman Khawaja’s weight of runs could be harder to overcome to regain his spot in Australia’s XI for Hobart.Head is feeling fine and ready to return to action for the fifth Ashes Test, treating his week in isolation while sidelined by the virus as a mid-season break.He returned to Australia’s group during the SCG Test and has spent time facing the pink ball in the nets without any after-effects of the virus.Related

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Cummins suggests Khawaja should retain his place for fifth Test

Khawaja’s twin tons at the SCG has put a squeeze on Australia’s top order, with captain Pat Cummins all but admitting on Sunday the in-form batter should be retained.Opener Marcus Harris is expected to be the man battling to keep his spot, after failing to turn a run of starts into his first career century this summer.While Head is expected to return at No. 5 after averaging 62 this summer before contracting the virus, he admitted he was uncertain on whether he’d get his spot back.”We’ll wait and see,” Head said. “I think he [Khawaja] played beautifully. We spoke about that going into the series when it was questioned who would be in that side.”We felt like both of us were in great touch. We know he is versatile and the way he can play. If there was a spot open in the side that he would take that opportunity.Travis Head made a thrilling 152 in the opening Test•CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images”He’s taken it with both hands, he’s been amazing. There’s going to be some tough decisions. Those conversations haven’t been had yet.”Head has been a vocal supporter of Harris this summer, constantly referring to the way his fellow left-hander is lining the ball up. Selectors have also been clear they want to put their faith in Harris and give him a long run, with David Warner having continually shuffled through partners during his career.Khawaja is, however, one of the 13 men to have opened with Warner, averaging 95.60 in his seven innings at the top of the order. Head said Harris was not showing signs of nerves since Khawaja piled on the runs at the SCG, remaining an upbeat member of the playing group.”He hasn’t changed and I think that’s the beauty of the whole squad. We celebrate each other’s success,” he said. “We’re currently 3-0 up. We played a great week again. He’s been amazing.”He’s playing for Australia, doing a job. He was a fantastic in Melbourne, played a huge role in us winning the game. He will be disappointed he didn’t get runs in this game and had a great opportunity. I felt like he batted and line the ball up beautifully well.”He batted beautifully at the start and set really the platform with him and Davey as a partnership.”

Celtic were incredibly active throughout the recent summer transfer window as a number of players moved on from Parkhead, which allowed the club to bring in fresh recruits.

One star who they may not have wanted to lose, however, was central midfielder Matt O’Riley, who completed a transfer to Brighton & Hove Albion, for a reported Scottish record transfer fee of more than £25m.

Sofascore rating

7.91

1st

Goals

18

1st

Assists

13

1st

Big chances created

14

1st

Key passes per game

2.5

1st

As you can see in the table above, the Danish magician was incredibly important to Brendan Rodgers’ team in the Scottish Premiership, as the main provider of goals and assists.

The Hoops were, however, able to move on some of their fringe players, with Mikey Johnston, Saed Haksabanovic, Tomoki Iwata, and Hyeon-gyu Oh all moving on permanently.

Celtic now have less than two months to prepare for the January transfer window and there are still players in the squad who Rodgers should be looking to cash in on, starting with left-back Alexandro Bernabei.

1 Alexandro Bernabei

The Scottish Sun recently reported that Brazilian side Internacional are interested in a deal to sign the Argentine defender on a permanent basis when his loan ends at the turn of the year.

It was claimed that the Serie A outfit are set to hold talks with Celtic over a potential swoop for the Hoops flop, who cost the club £3.75m from Lanus in 2022.

The outlet did not reveal how much the Hoops are looking to recoup from that fee but Rodgers should attempt to cash in on him amid this interest from Internacional, due to his poor form during his time in Glasgow.

Bernabei spent just under two seasons with the Scottish giants before his loan move to Brazil in March of this year, and failed to impress Ange Postecoglou or Rodgers.

Starts

9

3

Goals

1

0

Assists

3

0

Dribbled past

14x

5x

Duel success rate

40%

47%

As you can see in the table above, the Argentine flop offered a decent attacking threat but was too much of a defensive liability, being dribbled past 19 times in 12 league starts, whilst losing the majority of his duels.

Bernabei is not the only Celtic dud who should be cashed in on by Rodgers when the January transfer window opens for business, though, as there are at least two others who could be ditched.

2 Stephen Welsh

The second player who should finally be moved on by the Scottish giants is central defender Stephen Welsh, who has not made a single appearance in the Premiership this season.

He has played 85 minutes of football in all competitions, all of which came against Falkirk in the League Cup, and now should be the time to cash in on the Scottish centre-back.

At the age of 24, Welsh should be playing week-in-week-out to develop and improve as a player, and that is – to put it simply – not happening at Celtic.

Maik Nawrocki, Auston Trusty, Cameron Carter-Vickers, and Liam Scales are the manager’s other options in his position, which shows that there is a wealth of depth in that area of the pitch.

This suggests that cashing in on Welsh would not be a big blow to the squad, or a player who would need to be replaced, as Rodgers has plenty of other centre-backs to pick from.

Appearances

10

Starts

5

Tackles

0

Interceptions

3

Ground duel success rate

38%

Penalties committed

1

As you can see in the table above, the rarely-seen academy graduate was given opportunities to impress by the manager in the Premiership last season, and failed to take them.

Welsh lost 62% of his ground duels across ten league outings and, incredibly, failed to win a single tackle in those matches, giving away a penalty in that time, making him a lightweight centre-back, rather than a physically imposing one.

In the summer, it was reported that Belgian side KV Mechelen and English Championship clubs were interested in the defender, and Celtic must now ditch him in January if any of those teams reignite their interest in him.

3 Odin Thiago Holm

The third player who should be brutally ditched in the upcoming January transfer window is central midfielder Odin Thiago Holm, who has failed to break into the first-team at Parkhead.

Rodgers swooped to sign the young whiz from Valerenga for a reported fee of £2.6m in the summer of 2023, but he has yet to justify that transfer fee.

Whilst Holm, 21, is still young, the Norwegian flop turns 22 in January and is competing against players at a similar age, as Arne Engels (21) and Paulo Bernardo (22) have both been playing ahead of him.

The 21-year-old dud has only made 12 appearances and started two games in the Premiership since the start of last season, although he is currently out injured with a calf issue.

Holm was an unused substitute on 12 occasions in the 2023/24 campaign and missed out on the matchday squad 25 times in all competitions, with two of those games because of a red card against Feyenoord on his Champions League debut.

Appearances

9

Goals

0

Assists

1

Key passes per game

0.4

Duel success rate

46%

As you can see in the table above, the young lightweight made nine appearances in the Premiership last season and failed to offer much in and out of possession, losing the majority of his duels.

Rodgers has rarely used the midfielder since his move to Parkhead and his weakness in duels, along with his lack of consistent quality in possession, could be why the manager has not trusted him to play regularly.

With Engels, Bernardo, Luke McCowan, Reo Hatate, and Callum McGregor all ahead of him, Celtic should look to cut their losses and move on from him in January.

Celtic hit the jackpot with "cheat code" whose value has risen by 733%

The Celtic forward has enjoyed a phenomenal start to the season for the Hoops.

ByDan Emery Nov 14, 2024

Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has claimed that INEOS' latest set of redundancies have shown a "clear path" and "vision" towards success.

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Man Utd have made a number of redundanciesAmorim praises the cost-cutting effortsShow 'clear path' towards successFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?

INEOS have been overseeing a number of cost-cutting measures at Manchester United over the last few months, as a lack of performance on the field has caused the Red Devils to face major financial troubles. At Old Trafford, Sir Jim Ratcliffe's company has undertaken almost 200 job cuts, among other redundancies.

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Last month, Amorim seemed to blame Manchester United players for their part in the job cuts, much to the dismay of first-team stars. However, the Portuguese coach has now claimed that INEOS' redundancies has showcased the minority owners' vision as they look to lead the Red Devils back to the top.

Getty Images SportWHAT AMORIM SAID

Speaking to the media, Amorim said: "I see a clear path, I see that from the board also. They are doing difficult changes, they are not popular, but they are doing them because they have a vision. That is clear.

"But in the future we need to show some results – because you can make a lot of changes and if we don't have results, people won't feel confidence and happy. The good thing is we have a clear path, now it's hard but we are doing things to achieve success in the future."

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WHAT NEXT FOR AMORIM?

The Portuguese has not helped Manchester United turn around their form as of yet, as such, Amorim has claimed that he does not think he has improved as a coach.

He said: "Better? It's hard to say. I'm not winning games so sometimes I don't feel like I'm a better coach! I've lived here for three months, I've lived through certain things where I'm a more complete manager. Because sometimes you need to lose, to be in a poor situation, to grow. I felt that in these three months.

"I'm not going to die if I lose three games in a row. That's something I've learned here. I can cope to maintain the energy. I'm learning a lot about myself but I prefer to win games. That is clear. But we are surviving and doing everything. Today it's really hard but this is going to help us in the future."

ECB set to appoint interim coach for West Indies tour with squad to be picked by panel

Andrew Miller04-Feb-2022Graham Thorpe has joined Chris Silverwood in paying the price for England’s Ashes debacle, but Joe Root will continue as captain for the upcoming tour of West Indies, after receiving the endorsement of Andrew Strauss, England’s interim director of cricket.Speaking at Lord’s in the wake of Thursday’s sacking of Silverwood as head coach, Strauss – who was himself appointed on Wednesday in place of the outgoing director of men’s cricket, Ashley Giles – admitted that Root was feeling “bruised” after England’s 4-0 defeat in the Ashes, the second time he has led the team to such a scoreline down under.However, Strauss added, Root retains the “energy and motivation” to carry on, as well as the respect of the players – understandably so, after an incredible run of form in 2021, in which he scored 1708 Test runs at 61.00, more than three times more than any of his team-mates, as well as six of England’s seven Test centuries in the calendar year.Related

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“Having spoken to Joe, it is absolutely clear the extent of his commitment to taking this side forward,” Strauss said. “He has incredible motivation and energy to do that. He is bruised, and hugely disappointed by what went on in the Ashes but he sets a magnificent example, both on and off the field, so I will give him my full support and make sure he has right structure around him to take pressure off him and make sure he can do his job properly.”Thorpe, however, has become England’s third Ashes casualty in as many days. His position had become untenable in the fallout from a tour clouded not only by poor results on the field, but by reports of an off-field drinking culture and poor fitness levels.With Thorpe’s primary remit being the oversight of the squad’s batters, the fact that England failed to pass 300 in ten attempts during the Ashes told against him, while his fate was effectively sealed following a bizarre incident on the morning after the fifth Test in Hobart, when the police had to be called after he reportedly lit a cigar in an indoor space in the team hotel.However, with the Test squad due to depart for the Caribbean on February 24, in less than three weeks’ time, no interim coaching appointments have yet been announced. Silverwood’s remit was expanded last year to include squad selection, following the removal of national selector Ed Smith last summer – a workload that Strauss described as “an impossible strain” – and as a consequence, the West Indies tour party will be picked by panel, the make-up of which will be determined by the identity of the interim head coach.Potential names in the frame for that role include Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket who has expressed an interest in the post, as well as the Young Lions head coach Richard Dawson, who is currently in the Caribbean preparing for the Under-19 World Cup final, and the incumbent assistant coach, Paul Collingwood, who oversaw last week’s 3-2 defeat in the T20Is against West Indies.”There are some soundings-out to be done, both inside and outside the organisation, and there are some decisions to be made about the actual focus of this tour,” Strauss added. “You can look at it in a number of ways – we are in the business of winning, and it’s very, very important we go out there and win, but it is also about looking forwards, so we have to look at that, both with regards to the interim coach, but also with our approach to selection and everything else associated with that.”

“There is always scrutiny on your position [as England captain], especially when you lose Ashes series. I am sure Joe felt that. I think at this moment in time he is 100% the right person to take the team forward”Andrew Strauss

England have won just one series in the Caribbean since 1968, and were defeated 2-1 on their last visit, in the spring of 2019. Strauss – who captained England’s tour of the West Indies in similarly chaotic circumstances in 2009 – said the onus was on the players themselves to lift their standards.”I think the players are the ones that go on the pitch, and they are accountable for their performances,” he said. “You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see performances have been poor for the last 12 months. Anyone who thinks otherwise is deluding themselves. The players have to hold up their hands, accept they have to get better. They have the best possible example right there with them in the dressing room in Joe Root in terms of what world-class performance looks like. That has to be their ambition, to reach that level of performance.”The job of the coaching staff is to provide the right environment for them to do that. Make sure no stone is left unturned in helping them achieve that. International cricket is a tough old gig and you have to have resilience, toughness, you have to want it. That is the challenge for those players.”I know what it’s like as England captain. There is always scrutiny on your position, especially when you lose Ashes series. I am sure Joe felt that. I think at this moment in time he is 100% the right person to take the team forward. At some stage in the future we will have a new managing director, a new head coach, they will look at things with fresh eyes. For me he’s a great example to those young players and he needs our support right now.”Strauss confirmed that he would not be interested in returning to the England director job on a full-time basis, but said he was “always keen to help English cricket going forward and this role is manageable”.On the subject of who might take charge as Silverwood’s successor, Strauss said that while he wouldn’t rule out Justin Langer – Australia’s current men’s head coach but involved in ongoing internal wrangling about a contract extension – it would depend on the requirements for the role.”Now let’s take a step back. What are we looking for? Are we looking for split coaches or one coach? And what are the requirements in each of those formats, so to speak. Justin Langer, I know him well. On the surface, he’s done a very good job of that with the Australian team. So I wouldn’t rule him out, but I’m sure there are plenty of others as well.”

The South Africa head coach says the batters lacked intent and belief

Mohammad Isam24-Mar-2022South Africa’s head coach Mark Boucher has said that his side’s “fear of failure” played a role in their defeat in the ODI series against Bangladesh. Boucher repeated the phrase several times during the post-match press conference, adding that the team lacked belief in playing spin, something that he considered they did well in Sri Lanka last year.The home side were bowled out for 154 in 37 overs, with offspinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz getting Bangladesh the initial breakthrough of Quinton de Kock’s wicket, while Shakib Al Hasan kept things steady later in the innings. Taskin Ahmed took eight wickets in both of South Africa’s losses, but Boucher believed that if they handled Mehidy and Shakib better, they could have won this series.Related

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“We lacked the intent today,” Boucher said. “After we got off to a very good start today, we went to sleep. It is certainly not the way we want to play. We wanted to take the game forward after a good start. We just didn’t manage to do that. I think they bowled well but you have to take some risks to create scoring opportunities. It was almost like we went out with the fear of getting out, rather than going out to set a total. The way the wicket played, it was over 300.”I think (the ODI side needs) belief in the way we want to play. We played spin well in Sri Lanka, but when we came to South Africa where the conditions helped the spinners, we went back to the old way of playing. We are still having a lot of chats, to try to get the guys to believe that this is the way to play spin in turning conditions.”It was almost Indian-sort of conditions in our home country. We want the guys to be proactive, but they didn’t do it today. We have been working on our shot selection. The guys know they have the armory to do that, but it is one thing to understand that you got it, but it is another thing to execute it. There seem to be a little bit of a block and fear of getting out, rather than understanding that the game is about runs and try to put the fear of failure out of your mind.”Boucher said that that the lack of pace offered by Bangladesh’s spinners was the key difference between how they played spin in Sri Lanka, and against India at home, and how they handled Bangladesh.”If you look at where we have come from, we always had problem playing spin. We worked hard to score all around the wicket. We have to be nice and aggressive, but also smart when playing spin. Certain players like Rassie (van der Dussen) did it against India in Paarl.”He took the game on, and it changed the whole state of the game. Bangladesh’s spinners bowled really slowly against us, so it is always difficult to run down and hit the ball over the top. We have the skillset to do it. I just think that the belief was not there maybe against this type of bowling. We almost went into our shells in this series.”Boucher, however, conceded that South Africa were outplayed by Bangladesh, which has set off some alarm bells for their direct qualification to the 2023 World Cup. Currently, South Africa are in ninth position in the ICC ODI Super League points table.”The alarm bells are always there. We are putting ourselves under pressure but we have to come to the party. I certainly believe that if we rock up, we stick to our game plans, we arrive with confidence, we can beat anyone in the world. We have shown that in the T20 World Cup.”It is basically the same personnel in our one-day team as well. We have a lot of things to talk about. We have beaten those teams (India, England, Australia) before. We have to beat them again to qualify (to the World Cup).”

The Dane's confidence is at an all-time low after wasting two huge chances to end his long goal drought on a day to forget all round for forwards

Manchester United vs Arsenal used to mean Cristiano Ronaldo against Robin van Persie or Ruud van Nistelrooy taking on Thierry Henry. But in Sunday's showdown between two of the Premier League's great rivals over the years, top strikers were conspicuous by their absence in a 1-1 draw that was high on excitement but low on quality.

The Gunners were severely lacking firepower as Ethan Nwaneri and Leandro Trossard provided no support to makeshift centre-forward Mikel Merino, while United's main striker Joshua Zirkzee was rarely seen in the opposition's penalty box. But the striker who left the game feeling lowest of all was Rasmus Hojlund, who missed two big chances and stretched his goal drought to an unbelievable 20 matches.

The Danish striker just cannot catch a break and has faced criticism all season for his meagre goal threat. He is no longer experiencing a blip, however. This is a full-blown crisis of confidence and it is difficult to see how he can pick himself back again and begin to look like the exciting striker who terrorised European defences last season.

With neither team able to rely on their strikers, the midfielders took centre stage. Bruno Fernandes underlined his importance to United with a splendid free-kick to give his side an unexpected lead, while Declan Rice responded with a scorching strike of his own. Rice also made the difference in his own area with a decisive slide tackle on Hojlund, and Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya helped preserve the point for Mikel Arteta's side with three big saves in the second half.

GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from Old Trafford…

Getty Images SportWINNER: Bruno Fernandes

The captain will always rub certain people up the wrong way but here was the latest demonstration that he is United's most important player by a mile. It might not have been the all-action performance Fernandes is renowned for as he played a backseat role. But when the moment came for him to step up, he did, giving United a lead they barely deserved with his exquisite free-kick.

It was his third deadly set piece in three Premier League games to file alongside his goal against Everton and his match-winning corner delivery for Harry Maguire against Ipswich, earning United four points along the way. And the strike took Fernandes into an exclusive club: he is the only player in the Premier League along with Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland to have been directly involved in 25 or more goals in all competitions in each of the last three seasons.

So it was little wonder that Amorim declared after the game: "We need more Brunos." The coach added of his captain: "He steps up all the time. Sometimes he can show some frustration in some moments that can hurt him more than everyone but he is always available, h can always play in different positions and when we need a goal and an assist he is always there."

AdvertisementGetty LOSER: Rasmus Hojlund

The Danish striker was given a reality check when he was taken out of the starting line-up for the game after a hugely disappointing showing against Real Sociedad, when his team-mates seemed unwilling to pass to him. But if the aim of the coach was to jolt his £72m ($92m) striker back to life, then it did not work.

Hojlund had two glorious chances to break his long goal drought and restore United's lead but he failed to take them: he was too slow to get his shot away after Casemiro's tackle on Merino had given him the perfect shooting chance. And moments later Toby Collyer squared the ball to him inside the six-yard box but Gabriel put him off and he sent the ball wide.

The criticism of Hojlund has often been that he does not sniff out chances or work hard enough to get in the right positions, with the one caveat being that his team-mates are not helping him by failing to find him. But here he showed that even when given glorious opportunities, he is incapable of taking them. His confidence is on the floor and Amorim seems to be at a loss over how to pull him back up.

Getty WINNER: Rice and Raya

Despite Arsenal's dominance, the Gunners owed the fact they were able to leave Old Trafford with a point to two men: David Raya and Declan Rice. Rice obviously scored the equaliser with an emphatic finish from the edge of the area but his goal-saving tackle on Hojlund was worth two points.

The goal and tackle endeared the club's record signing to fans even more and when the full-time whistle went the visiting supporters were bellowing out 'Declan Rice, we got him half price'. There is an air of mischief to that chant but an element of truth to it too – £105 million ($135m) feels like a bargain given the impact the England international has had on the Gunners since switching from Arsenal.

Raya could be faulted for the manner in which he let Fernandes' free-kick sneak into the net, although the Portuguese had played his part by cheekily moving the ball backwards to allow himself more room, a move Arteta described as "street smart". But the Spaniard made amends with three top-class saves in the second half. The best of the lot was when he stopped Noussair Mazraoui's volley with his leg, but he also reacted quickly to prevent Joshua Zirkzee scoring with a backheel and threw himself at Fernandes' last-minute strike.

On a day when Arsenal's front line faltered, they were thankful for these decisive interventions at the back.

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Getty LOSER: Arsenal's forwards

After smashing a record-breaking seven goals past PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Tuesday, the Gunners must have been looking forward to sinking their teeth into this vulnerable United side. But their forward men did not turn up and should have done far more with the team's 67 percent possession and 17 shots. Mikel Merino huffed and puffed up front but he got little support from the wide forwards, with Arsenal's greatest threat coming from midfielders Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice.

Ethan Nwaneri never got into the game and should have exposed the shaky Victor Lindelof more, while Leandro Trossard – who had scored in Eindhoven along with Nwaneri – was even less effective. The Belgian also gave away the free-kick leading to United's goal.

A bad day all round for Arsenal's forwards was completed when Raheem Sterling was overlooked on the bench and Kieran Tierney got the nod instead as Arteta searched for a late winner. The only positive note was the return of Gabriel Martinelli, ahead of schedule from the hamstring injury he sustained one month ago.

Leeds United have made a habit out of developing and selling exciting talents in recent years, under Marcelo Bielsa, Jesse Marsch, and, now, Daniel Farke.

The likes of Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips were developed by Bielsa before being sold during Marsch’s tenure, whilst Farke had to watch on as a number of his stars were sold in the summer.

Archie Gray, Glen Kamara, Georgino Rutter, and Crysencio Summerville all left in search of top-flight football, as they joined Tottenham, Rennes, Brighton, and West Ham respectively.

The club may have once thought they had another major sale on the cards when French stopper Illan Meslier first rose to prominence in the first-team.

Illan Meslier's first impressions

After keeping an eye-catching seven clean sheets in ten Championship matches during the 2019/20 campaign whilst on loan from Lorient, Leeds swooped to sign the goalkeeper on a permanent deal.

The Whites reportedly splashed out a fee of £5m and Meslier enjoyed a solid season as the number one for Bielsa in the Premier League, saving 73% of the shots on his goal across 35 appearances to help the team to finish inside the top half.

On the Leeds podcast Don’t Go To Bed Just Yet in 2022, Jonny Buchan, journalist Adam Pope, and Kaiser Chief’s Simon Rix agreed that Meslier was the best signing of Victor Orta’s tenure as the sporting director.

Buchan even made a very bold prediction about the goalkeeper’s future. He said: “I think he will go on to be one of the great goalkeepers, I think he will be France’s number one and I think when he is in his mid-thirties we will look back and go ‘wow, remember when he was at Elland Road.'”

Unfortunately, Meslier, as of yet, has not kicked on and lived up to the hype that was generated by his emergence as a star for Bielsa at Elland Road.

First Impressions

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

Where Illan Meslier stands now

In the present day, the 49ers must finally sell the 24-year-old goalkeeper, who has not kicked on as expected and has become a liability at the back for the West Yorkshire outfit.

Two years on from the prediction that Meslier would go down as one of the greats and be a France international, he is currently playing in the second tier of English football and is yet to earn a senior call-up for his country.

Journalist Barry Collins described him as a “liability” in the 2022/23 campaign and that seems fair when you consider that the shot-stopper let in a whopping 12.4 more goals than expected based on the post-shot xG faced in the Premier League.

Appearances

44

18

Save percentage

68%

67%

Goals prevented

-4.49

-0.31

Error directly led to goal

1

1

As you can see in the table above, Meslier has underperformed as a shot-stopper in the Championship, which means that he has not been able to thrive with a step down in quality from the top flight.

Errors like the one he made for the late Sunderland equaliser, shown below, have done little to help the perception that he can be a liability to this Leeds team.

At this moment in time, based on his performances and the statistics behind them, it looks like the 49ers need to ruthlessly cash in on the French dud when the January transfer window opens for business, or next summer.

Meslier has consistently let the team down as a shot-stopper, at Premier League and Championship level, and they – on current evidence – will need a more reliable goalkeeper if they gain promotion back to the top tier.

Leeds must sell Elland Road flop who was "really exciting" under Bielsa

The Leeds United centre-forward should be moved on in the January transfer window.

1 ByDan Emery Nov 27, 2024

Table-toppers Titans struggled with the bat as Rabada’s four-for kept them to just 143

Vishal Dikshit03-May-20222:54

Aakash Chopra: ‘Gill and Hardik failing together a concern for Titans’

A choke by the bowlers, led by Kagiso Rabada’s four-for and returns of 4-0-17-0 from Sandeep Sharma, restricted table-toppers Gujarat Titans to a below-par 143 and revived Punjab Kings’ campaign for the playoffs race.Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Liam Livingstone made short work of the chase, which they sealed with as many as four overs to spare, and lifted Kings from eighth to fifth on the table. More importantly, their net run-rate was boosted from -0.470 to -0.229.Titans experimented with the decision of opting to bat first, but could not stitch any substantial partnerships together, with a regular fall of wickets hurting them. It was Sai Sudharsan’s maiden fifty that steered them from 67 for 4 in the 12th over towards 150, but like captain Hardik Pandya said later, “obviously we were not even close to par”.The early strangle
Shubman Gill’s poor recent form and the lack of a stable batter at No. 3 had been troubling Titans, and their issues were compounded on Tuesday. Wridhhiman Saha swung for the hills down the ground for a stroke-filled 21 off 17 but he and Gill fell in consecutive overs. Gill was the first to go when he tried to steal a single that didn’t exist and fell well short after almost colliding into the bowler Sandeep, and Rishi Dhawan got a direct hit from the covers. Saha hit the next ball for a one-bounce four and hit a six next over, but he charged after one too many when he miscued Rabada to mid-off in the fourth over.Eight overs without a boundary
The Kings bowlers not only struck regularly, but they also dried up the boundaries. Sandeep stuck to the length and short-of-good length areas just outside off with a hint of swing and the others, too, bowled to their fields so well that the Titans batters couldn’t score a boundary for 48 balls. Hardik crawled to one off six balls before edging one behind after the powerplay ended when he tried to drive Rishi, and Titans were 44 for 3.Rahul Chahar then hurt his bowling hand in his first over while collecting a throw from the deep and he walked off immediately. Livingstone completed the over and then got one more, also because he could bowl offbreaks to two left-hand batters with the longer boundary on the leg side. He barely offered any room, and when David Miller tried to end the boundary-less streak, he found long-off for 11 and Titans were 67 for 4.Sudharsan’s maiden fifty lifts Titans
It was almost as if 20-year-old Sudharsan had flicked a switch on for boundaries once Miller fell. He pounced on the short balls and collected fours in consecutive overs off Rishi, Livingstone and the returning Chahar, and then one down the ground off Arshdeep Singh to race to 45.Even though Rabada choked the lower order with back-to-back wickets of Rahul Tewatia and Rashid Khan in the 17th over, Sudharsan pulled Arshdeep for six to bring up his fifty and lead Titans to a respectable 143 for 8.2:54

Aakash Chopra: ‘Gill and Hardik failing together a concern for Titans’

Dhawan, Rajapaksa go bang-bang
Chasing a below-par total on a pitch that was two-paced and had good bounce for the quicks, Kings promoted Jonny Bairstow to open to pull him out of his rut, but the move didn’t work. After swinging and pulling four times in his six-ball stay, Bairstow miscued Mohammed Shami’s short ball to deep backward square leg for 1.Mayank Agarwal chose to drop himself down further and sent left-hand batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa at No. 3. Shikhar had already dispatched two wide balls for back-to-back fours against his Delhi team-mate Pradeep Sangwan and he found able support in Rajapaksa, who struck Shami for two fours when the fast bowler pitched it just slightly short in the third over.Alzarri Joseph came on for Sangwan and got the same treatment. Shikhar ramped him for six and followed it with a tickle down the leg side for four more. He continued to target the off-side boundary and the big over came when Sangwan returned as soon as the powerplay ended. Rajapaksa heaved him for two fours in two balls before Shikhar unleashed another upper cut to make it a 15-run over and reduce the equation to a comfortable 86 off 78.Dhawan, Livingstone give NRR boost
The situation was such that Kings could have cautiously seen through Rashid’s spell and still won. Shikhar was happy to rotate the strike until Lockie Ferguson returned for an eventful over. Shikhar brought up his 47th IPL fifty, and Rajapaksa was trapped lbw a ball after he tried to flick one, but the top edge went very fine for a six.With 47 needed off 48, Kings sent in Livingstone, who was in his element. Kings needed 27 off 30 balls, and he needed just six balls for those runs; three sixes in a row included the biggest of this IPL and a top edge nearly over the keeper’s head, followed by a pull for four, a double to the leg side off a yorker, and a one-bounce four to third man which meant he was unbeaten on 30 off just ten balls.

Cody Gakpo is leaning on past experiences to be Liverpool's goalscoring hero in their Carabao Cup final against Newcastle at Wembley on Sunday.

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Gakpo netted as PSV claimed Dutch cup final in 2022Scoring in final is 'the best feeling ever' claims GakpoDutchman is Carabao Cup's leading scorer this seasonFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Gakpo scored a second-half winner for PSV in their 2022 KNVB Beker final success over rivals Ajax and the 25-year-old admitted he is hoping to repeat his previous heroics and net Liverpool a second successive Carabao Cup trophy, having scored in the semi-final against Tottenham.

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Liverpool won last season's Carabao Cup by overcoming Chelsea with a youthful side thanks to captain Virgil van Dijk's winner. Gakpo also admitted that "everybody wants to relive" that moment with another victory, knowing full well that lifting silverware on Sunday would be "the beginning of the end to a very beautiful season".

WHAT GAKPO SAID

"I did it once at PSV, so hopefully I can do it again at Liverpool," Gakpo told Liverpool's website when asked about envisioning scoring in a final. "You can ask the players who are here longer and who played more finals and decided the finals how it feels. It's an amazing feeling and maybe the best feeling you can have as an attacking player, to score at that moment in a final.

"Playing a final, winning a trophy is always something special. Last season we won it there in a very beautiful way, in the last minute Virgil [van Dijk] scored a great header and won us that game. That was a beautiful moment and I think everybody wants to relive that again.

"I think when we won it and we celebrated in front of the fans and they sang their songs, that was a very beautiful moment for us. I think those moments will always stick with you for the rest of your career.

"It could be our first trophy of the season, so I think we are very eager to win. Hopefully that would be the beginning of the end to a very beautiful season."

AFPWHAT NEXT FOR GAKPO AND LIVERPOOL?

Liverpool are hoping to bounce back from their Champions League exit against Paris Saint-Germain this week with a win over Newcastle at Wembley knowing victory could provide the perfect catalyst for the rest of their season. The Reds sit 15 points clear at the top of the Premier League with nine games remaining aiming to seal a domestic double in Arne Slot's first season, starting with the Carabao Cup on Sunday.