That Sana Mir hasn’t been at her best of late is clear, but is there more to her omission than that?

Umar Farooq21-Jan-2020You’d expect Sana Mir to be an automatic choice in most Pakistan women’s squads. But when the 15-member squad for the women’s T20 World Cup was announced on Monday, there was no place in it for the former captain, and chief selector Urooj Mumtaz justified the decision by pointing to the 34-year-old’s loss of form.The numbers: Mir has averaged 27.81 with 22 wickets in 27 T20Is over the last two years. As a straight comparison, fellow spinner Anam Amin has had a much more productive time in this period, averaging 18.04 in 20 T20Is. In the recent domestic T20 Women’s Championship, Anam was the leading wicket-taker with seven strikes at 13.71, while Mir managed four wickets at 30.25. Anam also picked up five wickets at 9.40 against Bangladesh late last year.”Unfortunately, Sana’s present form in T20 cricket hasn’t been great and we have taken into consideration two internationals series and domestic tournaments,” Mumtaz said. “There can be no doubt about her achievements, and the fact that she has been an inspiration in the sport. Her experience is unmatched but now we have an expanding pool of players and we have to pick players who are performing consistently.”We’ve never had such a rich pool, so we have to look towards younger players. The average age of this side is 24, and that’s very exciting. The team has been selected keeping in mind current form and performances along with the conditions in Australia. Women cricketers have limited opportunities as compared to men to exhibit their form and Sana in the last series against Bangladesh hasn’t done a great deal, and later missed the England series. All we had was the domestic tournament in which she almost had an economy of ten in the first two games.”Last year, Mir skipped a chunk of the home series against Bangladesh, instead going to America on a personal visit. She returned to play the second T20I, and conceded 35 runs in four overs, before being left out of the last game. She played two ODIs against Bangladesh in Lahore and then took a surprise break from the all-important series against England in Malaysia, saying that she wanted to “reset her future objectives and targets”.Shortly before the squad was announced on Monday, Mir posted a cryptic tweet: “Don’t blame a clown for acting like a clown. Ask yourself why you keep going to the circus.” Make of that what you will.It’s true that while Mir’s exclusion might have been a surprise to casual followers of the game, relations between her and the Pakistan management haven’t been especially cordial of late.She was removed from the captaincy in 2017 and the then women’s general manger Shamsa Hashmi had said that she had been trying to control Mir’s “manoeuvring and hegemony by counselling”. Her captaincy was severely criticised by Shamsa, who accused her of taking “shocking on-field decisions”.Then, later, Pakistan’s winless 2017 World Cup campaign ended with head coach Sabih Azhar accusing Mir of adopting a “negative approach” and being “completely self-obsessed”.After this latest development, one wonders whether Mir, now 34, will be able to add to her 106 T20I and 120 ODI appearances.

He knows his game, exactly what he can do, Phil Simmons says of his premier white-ball pace weapon

Deivarayan Muthu17-Dec-2019Sheldon Cottrell is one of the smartest short-format bowlers going around at the moment, but when he started out, he was a mean left-arm tearaway, who harried batsmen with pace and bounce. Cottrell had bolted into West Indies’ T20 World Cup squad in 2014 because of those skills. Playing for the now-defunct Antigua Hawksbills against Barbados Tridents in the 2013 CPL, Cottrell had bounced out Dwayne Smith, Jonathan Carter and Shakib Al Hasan, making the Caribbean cricket community sit up and take notice.Injuries then interrupted his career and drained his pace, but Cottrell has now learned to make up for it with his guiles. It was on bright display in the ODI series opener against India at Chepauk on Sunday.ALSO READ: Is the IPL ready for Cottrell’s salute?The pitch had been relaid in Chennai, but it was still very sluggish. When Keemo Paul dug in a bouncer in the 16th over, Rohit Sharma was sitting on the back foot, waiting to switch on his pull playlist. However, the bouncer simply dawdled into Rohit’s body off the pitch and he could only flap it away to the leg side.Rohit – and India’s top order – was caught by surprise, but Cottrell wasn’t. He sussed out the conditions and the pitch so early that he bowled offcutters, legcutters and slower bouncers with the new ball.In the T20I series opener in Hyderabad, Cottrell showed he could still crank up his speeds to the higher 135kph range. But it just wasn’t needed on this Chepauk track.After starting off with two successive maidens, Cottrell shortened his length and got one to cut away from KL Rahul. The in-form opener was cramped for room and beaten by the lack of pace, splicing a leading-edge to midwicket. Boom! Out came the trademark salute.

I think he’s been brilliant for the West Indies in both formats of white-ball cricket. He was brilliant with St Kitts [and Nevis Patriots], whom I was with three years ago. He knows his game, exactly what he can doPhil Simmons on Sheldon Cottrell

Virat Kohli then got cracking with a drilled drive down the ground for four. Kieron Pollard moved his slip to short mid-off, daring Kohli to run the ball down to third man. However, Kohli didn’t have enough room or pace to do that. Cottrell floated a 124.9kph cutter and had the India captain chopping on for 4 in the same over. The salute again.After completing the double-wicket over, Cottrell was whisked away to the long-off boundary. And out came the salute again, this time from the Chennai crowd, along with chants of “Shellll-don Cottrell! Shellll-don Cottrell!” His first spell read: 5-3-12-2.Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer lifted India, but Cottrell came back and pinned the hosts down, again, with his cutters as well as yorkers. With the cutters, Cottrell has also created the illusion of swing and has made incisions with the ball going straight on, something that Zaheer Khan had mastered after injuries had cut down his pace.The straight ball has accounted for three of his five wickets in the limited-overs series in India. And in the 2019 World Cup earlier this year in England and Wales, it had accounted for seven of his 12 wickets, with the other tricks in his bag setting up the breakthroughs.Sheldon Cottrell is a livewire, with ball in hand or prowling the field•BCCI”I think he’s been brilliant for the West Indies in both formats of white-ball cricket,” West Indies coach Phil Simmons said on the eve of the T20I series decider in Mumbai. “He was brilliant with St Kitts [and Nevis Patriots], whom I was with three years ago. He knows his game, exactly what he can do.”Eoin Morgan had said pretty much the same thing when England toured the Caribbean at the start of 2019. “[He poses] a different challenge – swinging the ball both ways, and he comes back with variations with the older ball.” Cottrell even posted on his blog that he “really enjoyed” the praise from Morgan.Mind you, Cottrell wasn’t even supposed to be part of that ODI series against England. Paul was injured, as was Rovman Powell, so the West Indies selectors recalled the left-arm seamer.Cottrell marked his return with 5 for 46 in Bridgetown, helping West Indies defend 289 against a power-packed England line-up. After that, Cottrell made a splash in the World Cup, emerging as West Indies’ highest wicket-taker, with 12 wickets in nine games at an economy rate of 5.85.Cottrell’s international future was uncertain at the start of 2019, but he has turned it around, becoming the leader of the West Indies’ white-ball pace pack. How about securing the ODI series against India and bagging a maiden IPL contract to close out a bumper year now?

Shoaib Malik has been in and out of Pakistan’s side ever since he made his international debut in 1999. Have you kept track?

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jan-2020An international career that began in 1999 is still going on. Shoaib Malik has been in and out of Pakistan’s side numerous times over that period. Have you kept track? Take our quiz and find out.

A 148kph yorker, a 106kph offcutter, a 144kph lifter – there was a variety on display while Saini showed he could be more than just back-up

Deivarayan Muthu in Indore08-Jan-20205:53

Star Sports Match Point: Time running out for Dhawan in T20Is?

The Sarafa Bazar night market in Indore serves up delightful varieties of street food, ranging from the , the signature breakfast dish of the city, to . About four kilometres away from Sarafa Bazar is the Holkar Stadium, where tearaway Navdeep Saini offered the cricketing equivalent of those delightful varieties on Tuesday evening.There was a 148kph yorker, which torpedoed into the middle-and-leg stumps of opener Danushka Gunathilaka. Then, there was a 106kph offcutter that floated into the edge of Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s bat and streaked away to extra-cover. Then, there was a 144kph lifter that took off like a rocket and had Rajapaksa gloving it behind to the keeper. Having also breached the 150-kph barrier, Saini capped his spell with an excellent inswinging yorker that was just about dug out by Dhananjaya de Silva.Even as a fit-again Jasprit Bumrah had a low-key return, the 27-year old Saini led India’s revamped attack and had figures of 2 for 18 in his four overs, including 13 dots.Sheer pace has always been Saini’s calling card. When he left his hometown Karnal in Haryana to Delhi in October 2012, all he wanted to do was to bowl fast. After rattling batsmen in local tournaments, Saini then rushed Gautam Gambhir for pace at the Delhi nets.It was that pace that helped Delhi into the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy final. It was that pace that subsequently helped Saini break into India’s Test squad for the one-off Test against Afghanistan in Bengaluru in 2018. It was for that pace that Royal Challengers Bangalore had shelled out INR 3 crore in the IPL 2018 auction.Navdeep Saini is pumped after another wicket•BCCIDuring his international debut in 2019 in the Lauderhill T20I against West Indies, the gold standard in T20 hitting, Saini flaunted his pace and even bounced out Nicholas Pooran. Saini’s firecracker pace was also on display during his ODI debut against West Indies in Cuttack last December.ALSO READ: Saini’s firecracker pace lights up CuttackSaini is barely 10 internationals old, but he’s learning on the job and has added variations to his repertoire, lending more depth to the already well-stocked pace attack.”Saini is a different case [in T20 cricket] because he has come from the domestic set-up into the IPL and into the Indian team,” Kohli had said of the quick’s evolution in Guwahati. “So, he has bowled quite a bit and has good understanding of lines and lengths and he’s obviously got pace.”After Bumrah had given up seven runs in his first over on return, Saini entered as first-change in Indore and initially struggled with his lengths. Avishka Fernando laced a half-volley on the up through extra-cover before swatting a hip-high short ball to the midwicket boundary. Offspin-bowling allrounder Washington Sundar then gave India an opening by having Avishka holing out. In his following spells, Saini barged through that opening with a batting ram.After Washington had delivered two thrifty overs, Kusal Perera and Gunathilaka were aiming to line up Saini to ramp up the scoring rate. Saini, however, ran in hard, hit the pitch harder, and kept Kusal to one run off two short balls. Gunathilaka then left his crease only to swish and miss another short ball. Having pushed Gunathilaka back, Saini sucker-punched the batsman with a ripping yorker. By the time, Gunathilaka had jabbed his bat down, the middle and leg stumps had been tilted back. Saini took flight and celebrated, Sri Lanka’s batting went on a tailspin.Then, in his third over, Saini cramped Oshada Fernando for room before unleashing the yorker, but Oshada jammed his bat down in the nick of time to survive. The old two-card trick had also reaped reward for Saini in his most-recent ODI in Cuttack.By the time Saini returned to the attack for his last over, the 15th of the innings, Rajapaksa had got going with a whipped four off Shardul Thakur and Sri Lanka were 102 for 4. However, Saini cut down his pace and then cranked it up to bounce him out. Saini’s burst set the scene for Thakur’s triple-strike in the penultimate over of the innings. Game over for Sri Lanka.”The first thing is to be confident, and only then can you bring in variations,” Saini told , the host broadcaster, after winning the Man-of-the-Match award. “I liked the yorker [to Gunathilaka] more because I nailed it better than expectations. I play both red-ball and white-ball cricket, and hence the more I play, the better I will get at them. When I made my T20 debut, all I thought of was pace. But as I have played more, I have realised that variations are important too.”Saini’s range adds a new dimension to India’s bowling attack, particularly on flat tracks, and in the absence of Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami, he showed that he could be more than just a back-up.

In most cases, the Premier League title race feels like it’s done and dusted with weeks left of the campaign, with one team taking on what looks to be an unassailable advantage at the summit.

However, with every big lead at the top comes the prospect of a team completely losing their composure at the crucial moments.

Over the years, even the best sides have suffered from stage fright when the going got tough, found guilty of fluffing their lines with the title in reach.

Here, we’ve looked back at some examples of teams who have squandered huge chances to win the Premier League…

The 10 fastest title wins in Premier League history

Liverpool have looked like champions for a while, but whose footsteps are they following in?

ByStephan Georgiou Mar 31, 2025 1 Man Utd 1994/95 Failure to beat West Ham hands title to Blackburn

In truth, this could very easily have been a section about Blackburn Rovers bottling the title. Indeed, the Lancashire side had only won one of their previous five matches heading into the season finale, which gave Manchester United the opportunity to seal a third straight title should they slip up again.

Despite Rovers’ poor late-season form, they still led the Premier League ahead of their final-day clash against Liverpool, but knew that even a draw could let United in due to the Red Devils’ superior goal difference.

Blackburn’s worst nightmares then appeared to be coming true as they succumbed to a 2-1 loss at Anfield, meaning a win for United would earn Sir Alex Ferguson’s men another league championship.

But United uncharacteristically fluffed their lines, running into an inspired Ludek Miklosko in the Hammers net as they were continuously denied a winner that would have secured the title, settling for a 1-1 draw at the Boleyn Ground.

2 Newcastle 1995/96 Toon squander huge lead as Keegan's Entertainers implode

If today’s Arsenal squad needed a reminder that 12-point leads can vanish, they’d be wise to look at Newcastle United’s collapse in 1995/96 for inspiration.

The Magpies, led by Kevin Keegan, installed a 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League by mid-January.

But within two months, Newcastle had lost three and drawn once to allow Manchester United to close the gap.

To make matters worse, the Toon then lost to Liverpool and Blackburn in the space of a week to fully hand the initiative to the Red Devils.

Newcastle even had the chance to head into the final day level on points before two successive draws saw Man Utd wrestle the title back at the first time of asking.

3 Man Utd 1997/98 Awful run-in lets Arsenal snatch title glory

In fairness to Manchester United, Arsenal were on a hot streak in the latter months of the 1997/98 campaign, but for seasoned winners, their sudden fall from title certainties to also-rans will have been a bitter pill to swallow.

With 10 games remaining, Fergie’s men led the table by 11 points – 12 clear of Arsenal, who did have three games in hand.

March 1998 saw Arsenal reel off 10 straight victories, but United’s position still meant that all they needed to do to retain the title was see off either Liverpool or Newcastle at home – or even take a point from Arsenal at Old Trafford.

Those draws and Arsenal’s winning run (including a 1-0 success in Manchester) meant the Gunners could afford two defeats at the end of their campaign.

It was an opportunity missed for the Red Devils, though they did make up for it with a treble a year later.

4 Arsenal 1998/99 Defeat in penultimate match gift-wraps title for United

Arsenal were aiming to secure back-to-back titles in 1999, but despite getting themselves in a marvellous position to get the job done, they let themselves down just before the final hurdle.

The Gunners had won just 6 of their first 17 matches, but a competitive field that season meant there was still time for a title charge in the new year.

They won 15 of the next 19 matches to go level on points with two games to play, but a dramatic late defeat at Leeds meant United could afford to drop points at Blackburn Rovers and win the title by a point.

This one is more in hindsight, but one more win would surely have been enough to deny United the title – and their historic treble.

5 Arsenal 2002/03 Champions in control until Bolton comeback derails season

Arsenal were in a similar position in 2002/03 as they looked to successfully defend the title.

And despite having the title in their hands after a crunch clash with Manchester United, a late draw at Bolton Wanderers – in which Martin Keown scored an own goal – handed United the advantage.

The Gunners were then shocked at home by relegation-threatened Leeds United to go from title favourites to confirmed runners-up in a matter of weeks.

6 Arsenal 2007/08 Gunners let commanding lead slip after horror March

Arsene Wenger’s Gunners were not expected to challenge in the 2007/08 season, especially with club legend Thierry Henry leaving in the summer.

But the north Londoners produced an exciting start to the campaign, not losing until December and leading by five points with 12 games left.

The turning point came in a dramatic 2-2 draw at Birmingham City, which saw Eduardo da Silva suffer a double leg break and Gael Clichy concede a contentious last-minute penalty.

Arsenal struggled to restore their momentum, and four straight draws and a defeat to title rivals Chelsea saw their lead wiped out.

Despite winning their last four games, they had to settle for third place, having fallen just short in the big games at the business end of the campaign.

7 Man Utd 2011/12 Red Devils lose 8-point lead in final six games

With six matches remaining in the 2011/12 season, it looked for all the world that Manchester United would defend their title thanks to an eight-point lead at the summit.

Manchester City had threatened to knock them off their perch but defeats to the likes of Swansea City and Arsenal seemed to have killed off their challenge.

City then won five on the spin – including in the Manchester derby – to set up the historic final day that saw them win the title on goal difference.

But United could have avoided all the drama by avoiding defeat to Wigan Athletic or holding onto their lead at home to Everton, in games that will still be leaving a scar today.

8 Liverpool 2013/14 Suarez cries as Reds waste huge chance to win PL title

When Liverpool beat Manchester City in April 2014, it looked as if the Reds would finally end their decades-long wait for a league title.

When title rivals Chelsea lost prior to another Liverpool victory over Norwich City, the Reds had extended their lead to five points with three matches to play, albeit with Man City having games in hand.

Then it all went wrong. Defeat to Chelsea in their following match meant the door was open for City, who only had a slender advantage on goal difference.

But an ignominious draw to Crystal Palace when the Reds had led 3-0 destroyed their realistic chances of winning the league.

Man City then got their job done on the final day with a victory over West Ham, leaving Liverpool’s success over Newcastle academic.

The closest title races in Premier League history

Manchester City and Arsenal have delivered a Premier League title race for the ages – here are some of the tightest from years gone by…

ByStephan Georgiou May 20, 2024 9 Tottenham 2015/16 Pochettino's Spurs come third in two-horse race

In Spurs’ defence, they were never meant to even challenge for the title in 2015/16. But then again, neither were eventual winners Leicester City.

It seems a little unfair to call Tottenham Hotspur out on their failure to take a once-in-a-generation chance of winning the title when so many others underperformed, but when you get to the last 11 games and you’re just two points off Leicester in second, anyone would kick themselves.

Unfortunately for Spurs, they won just four of their remaining matches, and collapsed so dramatically that losing their final two games allowed rivals Arsenal to pip them to second place.

Ironically, the following season was more successful from a points perspective, though they were accused of being ‘bottlejobs’ despite barely even getting to within touching distance of a relentless Chelsea. 2015/16 surely hurts more.

10 Arsenal 2015/16 Underwhelming Gunners lose out to fairytale Leicester side

As was the case with Spurs, Arsenal may have performed far better than their expected title rivals this year – Chelsea finished 10th and Liverpool finished outside the European places – but they also failed to convert a fairly unique position into title glory.

Points-wise, the Gunners didn’t dip too drastically (scoring just four fewer than the previous campaign), but in a season where they only needed 10 more to win the title, it was a huge opportunity wasted.

It was a season of false dawns for the Gunners, who had beaten both Manchester sides and eventual champions Leicester to lead the table at the turn of the year.

But a series of needless draws and a failure to build momentum after their last-gasp win over the Foxes – which had left them two points off the summit – meant the Gunners were the nearly men once more.

Chelsea ran out comfortable 3-0 winners in their UEFA Conference League quarter-final first leg away to Legia Warsaw on Thursday night.

Enzo Maresca’s side were dominant throughout and will now take a lead back to Stamford Bridge that puts them in a very comfortable position.

It actually took Chelsea until the 49th minute before they took the lead, and what a moment it was for their young attacker Tyrique George, who scored his first goal for the Blues.

He showed good instinct, too, following in a strike from Reece James, whose strike was pushed by Kacper Tobiasz into the path of the Chelsea youngster.

From there, the floodgates somewhat opened for Chelsea, who scored twice, in the 57th and 74th minutes, with the same combination linking up both times. Jadon Sancho set fellow England international Noni Madueke up twice to help Maresca’s men to the 3-0 scoreline by which they won.

It was two sharp pieces of play by Sancho, who first played Madueke in on the right-hand corner of the box, driving into space ahead of him. For the second, he went on the outside of the full-back and played a perfectly weighted ball across the face of the goal.

It was an eye-catching showing for Sancho, just as it was for Madueke, who was one of the Blues’ standout players.

Madueke’s performance in numbers vs. Legia Warsaw

What an exceptional performance Chelsea fans were treated to by their number 11. The former PSV Eindhoven winger, who replaced star man Cole Palmer at half-time, ran the show for the Blues.

His two goals were brilliant finishes; the first strike was composed, latching onto Sancho’s pass, taking a touch and firing his effort into the near corner. His second showed great poacher’s instinct, gambling in the penalty box to get on the end of a ball into the area.

One of the onlookers who rated Madueke’s performance highly was GOAL reporter Richie Mills. He gave the England international a stunning 9/10 for his performance, explaining he had an “instant impact” when he was brought onto the pitch by Maresca.

The winger’s stats from the game, courtesy of Sofascore, show just how well he played in his 45-minute cameo. He amassed an impressive 100% pass completion rate, won three of his five attempted duels and created one chance.

As well as Madueke played in Warsaw, there was a Chelsea player who was far worse, and you could argue had his blushes saved by their number 11.

Chelsea's worst player vs. Legia Warsaw

It has not been an easy season for Christopher Nkunku, with journalist Nizaar Kinsella explaining the Frenchman “can’t catch a break at the moment”. Indeed, those struggles continued away to Legia Warsaw.

Performance in Numbers

Want data and stats? Football FanCast’s Performance in Numbers series provides you with the latest match analysis from across Europe.

The former Paris Saint-Germain academy star missed a penalty, although Sancho did pick the ball up in the run of play that followed and created Madueke’s second goal. He didn’t really offer much leading the line outside of that.

The stats from Nkunku’s performance in Poland show just how much he struggled. He had just 48 touches of the ball, completing 29 out of 32 passes, losing the ball six times and missing one big chance.

Touches

48

Passes completed

29/32

Duels won

5/8

Shots

4

Key passes

1

Big chances missed

1

Expected goals

1.16 xG

Mills’ review of Nkunku’s performance was damning. He gave him a 4/10 rating, explaining that he “didn’t provide the forward presence Chelsea needed” before suggesting that his “confidence seems quite low right now”.

The next few weeks are huge for the Blues. They have a battle on their hands to qualify for the Champions League via a top-five finish in the Premier League and are also looking to keep up the momentum in Europe.

With his confidence quite low at the moment and plenty of options for Maresca to pick from, including Madueke, it remains to be seen if Nkunku will manage to keep his place in the side.

It is a big end to the season for Chelsea, and competition for places is strong. There is no doubt Maresca needs his side at his best, and perhaps time out of the spotlight will help Nkunku in the long run.

He's like Estevao & Vini Jr: Chelsea plot £103m bid to sign Madrid star

Chelsea are looking for another new winger

ByJoe Nuttall Apr 10, 2025

Arsenal were finally back in action on Tuesday night, and after months off with a hamstring injury, so was Bukayo Saka.

The Hale End icon didn’t start the Premier League game against Fulham, but he did come off the bench midway through the second half and then, just seven minutes later, scored what ended up being the winning goal.

It was a cameo that reminded everyone of just what the Gunners have been missing since December, and if they are to get past Real Madrid in the Champions League, it’ll no doubt be in part down to him.

In even more exciting news, Andrea Berta seems intent on supporting Saka next season by signing an international star who’d be his dream teammate next season.

Arsenal's transfer targets

Following what is likely to be another season without any silverware, it’s no surprise that the transfer rumours around Arsenal are already coming thick and fast, with one of the most significant in recent days concerning Matheus Cunha.

The Brazilian is supposedly another one of Berta’s targets, as not only has he seriously impressed for Wolverhampton Wanderers this season, producing 19 goal involvements in 29 games, but he worked with the Italian during his time with Atlético Madrid and has a release clause of around £62.5m in his contract.

Someone who could join for free in the summer is Bayern Munich ace Leroy Sané, as his contract is set to expire at the end of the season and has reportedly held “concrete” talks with the North Londoners.

However, with the German set to turn 30 midway through next season, fans might want the club to sign a younger winger for the long term, which is what appears to be happening with Nico Williams.

Transfer Focus

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

According to the Guardian’s Ed Aarons, Arsenal are currently “exploring a summer move” for the Athletic Bilbao gem, who has a release clause worth about £48m in his current contract.

In fact, he goes a step further, revealing that, as one of “his first acts as the club’s sporting director”, Berta has already “held talks” with the player’s representatives.

It could still be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given Williams’ incredible ability and potential, it’s one worth fighting for, especially as he’d be unreal alongside Saka.

Why Williams would be a dream for Saka

When it comes down to it, there are a couple of intertwined reasons why Williams would be such a good signing for Arsenal and, specifically, Saka, with the first being his raw output.

For example, in just 37 appearances last season, the “world-class” talent, as dubbed by journalist Zach Lowy, scored eight goals and provided 16 assists, which comes out to a sensational average of a goal involvement every 1.54 games.

Appearances

37

38

Goals

8

9

Assists

16

7

Goal Involvements per Match

0.64

0.42

Then, this season, he’s scored nine goals and provided seven assists in 38 appearances, which comes out to a slightly reduced but nonetheless impressive average of a goal involvement every 2.37 games.

Having a player who is this productive on the left wing will not only reduce the burden on the Gunners’ mercurial number seven, but with how frequently the Spaniard scores or assists, he will likely see his own tally increase.

Moreover, the fact that he’s so dangerous will force opposition defenders to focus on both wings instead of doubling up on the Englishman as they do today, which should open up space for the 23-year-old, which is the second reason he’d be a dream teammate.

Finally, according to FBref, the Bilbao dynamo sits in the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, for successful take-ons per 90, which again, should see him pull defenders away far more than the North Londoners current left-wing options do.

Ultimately, Arsenal should be doing all they can to sign Williams this summer, as his output is spectacular, and even when he’s not scoring or assisting, he has the ability to make things happen, which will make him a dream to play with for Saka.

Their best CF since Aubameyang: Arsenal in talks to sign £58m "powerhouse"

The unreal goalscorer would be a game-changer for Arsenal.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 3, 2025

Arsenal might be second in the Premier League and in a Champions League quarter-final, but their biggest weakness, aside from injuries, is evident: scoring goals.

Mikel Arteta’s side produced the best defence in the league last season and look set to do the same this year, but as things stand, they have scored 15 goals fewer than Liverpool and as many as Tottenham Hotspur, which is not good enough for a team who want to win it all.

So, it’s no surprise then, that since Andrea Berta was announced as the club’s new Sporting Director last week, the rumours coming out of the Emirates have all been around signing a new striker, with Viktor Gyokeres the most prominent link of the lot.

The Swedish international would be an incredible addition to the side, but one that might not have been necessary had Arteta and Co not sold their own promising forward in the past.

The strikers sold by Arteta

So, before we get to the striker in question, it’s worth going over a few of the others sold or let go during Arteta’s tenure, starting with Eddie Nketiah and Folarin Balogun.

Now, to give the manager credit, the sale of both Hale Enders now looks like excellent business, as since his £30m departure last summer, Nketiah has only scored five goals and provided two assists in 28 appearances for Crystal Palace, which is not what they would have been hoping for considering his price tag.

Likewise, while Balogun started life with AS Monaco well enough, scoring eight goals and providing five assists in 32 appearances last season, he has since added just three goals in 12 games this year, which, again, is not the sort of output the club would have wanted from a £34m purchase.

Now, a striker who has thrived since his departure from the Emirates in the summer of 2022 is Alexandre Lacazette.

In his first season back at Lyon, the Frenchman racked up a sensational haul of 37 goal involvements in 39 games, then managed 26 in 35 last season and has so far amassed 16 goal involvements in 35 games this year.

However, while having the Lyon-born poacher in the squad over the last few seasons would have been useful, he came to the end of his contract when he left, and it was clear he wanted to return to his former club.

Unfortunately, it’s hard to see any logical reason why the striker, who could have been the Gunners’ own Gyokeres, was sold last summer.

The striker who could have been Arsenal's Gyokeres

While the most notable sale of a forward from Arsenal last summer was that of Nketiah, Arteta and Co also sanctioned the sale of Mika Biereth to Austrian outfit Sturm Graz for just £4m plus a 25% sell-on clause.

Now, there is an argument to be made that considering the Dane had never even made a competitive appearance for the club, getting a fee like that for him was good business.

However, the counter to that was the fact that he had just come off a season in which he scored 15 goals and provided nine assists across loan spells with Motherwell and Sturm Graz, suggesting he was a promising goalscoring talent.

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Unfortunately for the Gunners, it appears as if the fee they got wasn’t great as in the first half of this season, the “crazy” talent, as dubbed by former GOAL reporter Robin Bairner, reached another level and scored 14 goals and provided five assists in just 25 appearances.

This incredible run of form was enough to turn heads in Ligue 1, and AS Monaco decided to sign him for just £10.8m plus £1.75m in add-ons in the winter window.

Biereth’s 24/25

Team

Sturm Graz

AS Monaco

Appearances

25

14

Minutes

1971′

1026′

Goals

14

12

Assists

5

3

Goal Involvements per Match

0.76

1.07

Minutes per Goal Involvements

103.73′

68.4′

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Since moving to a top-five league, the Danish marksman has gotten better and has so far scored 12 goals and provided three assists in just 14 appearances.

That means the 22-year-old phenomenon has managed to rack up a sensational haul of 26 goals and eight assists in 39 appearances, totalling 2997 minutes.

In other words, he is averaging a goal involvement every 1.14 games, or even more impressively, every 88.14 minutes.

It’s this obscene rate of return, plus the fact they are both 6 foot 2 and Scandinavian, that makes the former Arsenal ace so similar to the Sporting CP star.

Ultimately, hindsight is a wonderful thing, and Gyokeres may well be just what Arsenal need in the summer.

However, had they not sold Biereth for such a small fee last year, signing a new striker might not even be a necessity.

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The “complete” striker would be incredible for Arsenal.

Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 7, 2025

Regardless of what division Leeds United find themselves in next season, this summer is a huge window for boss Daniel Farke to provide the added quality to the first-team squad.

The German has already made some shrewd additions in the transfer market, landing the likes of Ao Tanaka and Jayden Bogle, who have both been two of the Championship signings of the season.

However, he will have to replicate such dealings this summer – especially if they secure promotion to the Premier League, needing to invest if they are to secure survival in 2025/26.

The Whites already have serious quality within the current squad, helping them sit second in the division with just a handful of games remaining this campaign.

If they are to reach the next level, Farke will want to build on the progress made, with one player seemingly already on their radar ahead of the summer transfer window.

Leeds set to make offer for defensive star

According to Africa Foot, Leeds are set to make a €2m (£1.7m) bid for Porto left-back Zaidu Sanusi regardless of what division they find themselves in next season.

The Nigerian has only made six first-team appearances for the Liga Portugal outfit this season as he continues his recovery from the ACL injury he suffered last season.

However, Sanusi has already stated that no deal has been agreed after other rumours suggested a deal was already agreed for him to move to Elland Road.

This report claims no bid has yet been made, but the Sanusi could be open to a move to Yorkshire in the near future to gain more first-team minutes given his lack of action since his return from injury.

It would be a superb addition for the Whites, potentially being the next version of a former fan favourite who captured the hearts of many during his time at the club.

Why Sanusi could be Leeds’ next Ben White

Defender Ben White thrived during the 2019/20 season at Leeds, spending the season on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion, making 49 appearances across the promotion-winning campaign.

He featured for every minute of the league campaign that season, highlighting the importance he held under Marcelo Bielsa in their return to the Premier League.

However, after promotion, the club tried to sign him on a permanent basis, but were unable to strike a deal with the Seagulls despite offering a £30m deal for his signature.

He’s since moved to Arsenal in recent years, featuring for the Gunners in the Champions League and thriving at right-back, taking his career to the next level.

The Whites could land their next version of White with a move for Sanusi, with the full-back being ranked as a similar player to the Arsenal star by FBref for his displays in Europe last campaign.

When delving into their respective figures, the Nigerian has matched or bettered the 27-year-old in various key areas, showcasing what a phenomenal addition he would be to Farke’s side.

Sanusi, who’s been labelled a “superstar” by one analyst, managed to win more tackles per 90 along with more interceptions made, highlighting the defensive quality he possesses – aiding Farke should he sign this summer.

Games played

4

10

Minutes played

307

754

Tackles won

1.2

0.6

Interceptions made

1.2

1

Clearances

1.8

1.2

Take-ons completed

1.5

0.5

Aerials won

2.7

1.1

He’s also managed to complete more take-ons per 90, whilst also winning more aerial battles, offering that all-round presence that may be needed should they achieve promotion this summer.

With Junior Firpo’s contract set to expire this summer, the club will need added reinforcements in the left-back area, with the Porto star certainly providing just that.

Should he get anywhere near the level produced by White during his time at Elland Road, he would be a superb addition – especially for the bargain fee touted for his signature.

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Leeds United have a huge summer window ahead of them regardless of what division they find themselves in.

1 ByEthan Lamb Apr 2, 2025

Arsenal have endured some bad luck this campaign that has derailed their title challenge, leaving supporters frustrated due to their unusually high volume of muscle injuries.

Arsenal's hard luck story this season under Mikel Arteta

At the start of the campaign, Mikel Arteta would’ve been optimistic that his side could finally claim the Premier League title under his reign after steadily building a squad capable of fighting on all fronts.

Stylistically, an aggressive focus on set-pieces alongside signings such as Mikel Merino and Riccardo Calafiori appeared to have added extra steel to the flair present in the Gunners’ attack. However, their season hasn’t gone the way many envisaged.

Crashing out of the EFL Cup and FA Cup to Newcastle United and Manchester United put an end to dreams of domestic cup silverware, while their inconsistent run of form in the Premier League compared to Liverpool has become a bitter pill to swallow for an expectant support.

Nevertheless, Arsenal have been subject to an injury crisis that has left them with a major shortage of bodies in forward areas throughout the second half of 2024/25. Unfortunately, recognised strikers Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus are still ruled out, leaving square pegs in round holes through the middle.

Bukayo Saka has been the main absentee of a long list for the Gunners, taking their tally of players who have spent time on the sidelines to 18 across this term. Returning during the week, the England international fired his side to a 2-1 victory over Fulham at the Emirates Stadium.

Other incidents such as Declan Rice’s harsh red card at home to Brighton & Hove Albion set an unwanted tone early on, culminating in a series of unfortunate events that have left the North Londoners feeling short-changed despite still being on course for a respectable second-place finish.

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The Gunners are now favourites.

ByEmilio Galantini Apr 3, 2025

In a seemingly never-ending cycle of setbacks, Arsenal have fallen victim to yet another body blow ahead of their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid.

Arsenal's Grade 3 hamstring tear statistical anomaly

Arsenal have now suffered three Grade 3 hamstring tears in one season, following confirmation that Gabriel Magalhães has been ruled out until next term with an injury of that description. Saka and Havertz comprise the other two who fit the criteria.

According to a study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, in a 20 year-period of Premier League football (from 2001/02 to 2021/22) only 3 per cent of hamstring injuries were Grade 3, making suffering three such problems in the space of six months a truly rare phenomenon that has barely been witnessed in football history.

Arsenal’s hamstring injuries this season

Gabriel Magalhães

Out until next season

Bukayo Saka

Finally back after long setback

Kai Havertz

Return unknown

Ultimately, many contributing factors play their part in a club falling short of their objectives. In this case, Arsenal have a right to feel that injuries have definitely altered the course of a season that was destined to deliver so much promise.