Manchester United are reportedly stepping up their pursuit of former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane as the pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continues to mount.
What’s the story?
The Red Devils have lost six games in all competitions already this season after a string of hugely underwhelming performances, dropping them down to sixth in the Premier League table and seeing them exit the Carabao Cup in the third round.
United’s poor showing in the opening weeks of 2021/22 has led to the likes of Ralf Rangnick, Mauricio Pochettino and Erik ten Hag linked with the Old Trafford hot seat, but it seems as though a leading candidate has now been selected.
According to Italian journalist Rudy Galetti, United chiefs were hopeful in the final hours of Sunday that they could now ‘convince’ Zidane to accept their offer of succeeding Solskjaer in Manchester and carrying on the good work that the Scandinavian has put in place.
He tweeted: “#Zidane-#ManUtd is more than a simple suggestion: in the last few hours there has been a sudden acceleration and #RedDevils now really hope to convince the manager to accept the #MUFC bench. The next 48 hours will be decisive.”
Man Utd fans surely buzzing
The 49-year-old tactician has rarely been considered for a job in England as it was believed he was holding out for the role of France’s national team manager or Paris Saint-Germain as he looked to return to his homeland.
However, El Espanol (as relayed by The Express), recently reported that Zidane turned down the role of Newcastle United manager as he was holding out for either the Manchester United role or the two aforementioned jobs.
The former Ballon d’Or winner is one of the most acclaimed figures in football after replicating the success of his playing days after stepping into the dugout.
Over his two spells with Los Blancos, Zidane won an astonishing three Champions League crowns, two La Liga titles, two Copa del Reys, two FIFA Club World Cups and two UEFA Super Cups.
His proven track record of winning multiple trophies at one of the biggest clubs in the world while handling a host of big-name players will have the United fans buzzing over his potential appointment.
While Solskjaer has achieved great things during his two-and-a-half-year stay, he has arguably taken the club as far as he can, and Zidane could be the ideal candidate to restore the 20-time English champions back to their former glory.
And, in other news…“As things stand”: Romano drops concerning Man Utd update that’ll have fans worried
Fast bowler feels Pakistan have a balanced side with the return of Mohammad Yousuf and Rana Naved
Cricinfo staff23-Aug-2009
“No rivalry can match the India-Pakistan rivalry”•Associated Press
Fast bowler Umar Gul has said that Pakistan are desperate to beat India in the upcoming Champions Trophy fixture. Pakistan are grouped with Australia, West Indies and India, and the two teams face off on September 26 in Centurion.”While every match will be important, the game against India, as always, will be special for both the sides,” Gul said. “No rivalry can match the India-Pakistan rivalry and I think the match will be something billions of people all over the world will be waiting for.”For us, the match is also important for the simple fact that we haven’t beaten them in an ICC event and we’re desperate to break that sequence [Pakistan have actually beaten India in the 2004 Champions Trophy],” he said.Gul said that being World Twenty20 champions adds pressure due to increased fans’ expectations.”Although it is a different format, it is always good to go in as a champion side because it gives you that extra confidence which is vital in big tournaments,” he said. “However, our victory in England has raised the bar of expectations and our supporters want us to win everything. That puts us under more pressure.”Pakistan have included the promising Umar Akmal in the squad, and the tournament will also mark the comeback of fast bowler Mohammad Asif. Gul feels the side is well balanced, with the return of experienced ICL players like Mohammad Yousuf and Rana Naved. “I believe we have an excellent team for one-day cricket and it is the combination that makes us a quality side. The return of Mohammad Yousuf and Rana Naved has provided further impetus to the side which is bubbling with confidence after its victory in the ICC World Twenty20 in England in June.”Gul said he was looking forward to leading the bowling attack. “I’m ready to take the spearhead’s role and the requirement of that role is to try to come up to expectations whenever the ball is tossed at you,” he said.”There’s no greater feeling than to contribute in the success of your side. After the victory in England, the side is hungry for more successes and I’m desperate to contribute more to those successes.”
Já classificada para a próxima fase da Copa Paulista – torneio que dá direito ao campeãooptar por uma vaga na Copa do Brasil ou na Série D do Campeonato Brasileiro – chega à última rodada hoje. A Portuguesa, que tem o torneio como esperança após eliminação na Série D, e sem vaga garantida em competições nacionais em 2018, visita o Água Santa, às 10h, no estádio Distrital de Inamar, em Diadema. O Netuno tem 22 pontos, na terceira posição posição, três a menos que a Lusa, que lidera. O clube de Diadema precisa vencer para não correr risco de perder a vaga para o Nacional, que ainda tem chances e classificação. Os quatro primeiros de cada chave avançam à próxima fase da competição. O técnico PC Gusmão, que está a seis partidas sem saber o que é derrota enquanto treinador lusitano, intensificou o trabalho físico de seus co- mandados nos treinos durante a semana, focando também nas finalizações e marcação. Não participaram dos treinamentos, o volante Dinho e também o atacante Romarinho ( em recuperação). O goleiro Ricardo Berna, também é desfalque certo. Desta maneira, Douglas e João são as opções na meta Rubro-Verde, enquanto Dedé não defende mais as cores da Portuguesa pelo fim do seu vínculo com o clube. Na próxima fase, serão formados três grupos com os quatro classificados das três chaves do torneio. XV de Piracicaba, Ferroviá ria, Linense, Inter de Limeira e Desportivo Brasil, além do Leão do Canindé, já estão carimbados na outra etapa do torneio.
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Andrew Flintoff has said he would like to be remembered as a good bloke first and foremost, after bowing out of Test cricket with the Ashes regained
Andrew Miller24-Aug-2009
Andrew Flintoff says his family will come first now that his Test career is over•Getty Images
Andrew Flintoff has said he would like to be remembered as a good bloke first and foremost, after bowing out of Test cricket with the Ashes regained and few regrets to haunt him in retirement. Dispelling the notion that he qualified as a “great” player, Flintoff added that the timing of his departure, after 79 Tests in 11 years, would allow him the joy of watching his young family grow up, and that, ultimately, was of far greater value than further glories on the field.”I would rather be regarded as a decent bloke rather than any sort of cricketer I might have been,” Flintoff told reporters on the morning after the triumph. “That is far more important to me. Whatever you do on the cricket field is one thing, but being able to face yourself in the mirror every day and say ‘You’re not a bad egg’, that is far more important. Cricket is one thing, but I want some friends afterwards.”I don’t think I ever achieved greatness and I don’t profess to,” he added. “I was asked, ‘have you been a great cricketer’, and the obvious answer is no. That’s the Bothams, the Sobers, the Imran Khans, the Tendulkars, the Ricky Pontings, who achieved greatness over a long period of time by playing Test after Test after Test.”I have had an Ashes victory twice, I have had a Test career where I have played 79 Test matches, and hopefully I will go on playing one-day internationals, so from a professional point of view I am happy,” he said. “For the bulk of my career I have played through pain and with injury, so to be out on the field was an achievement in some ways. But is that greatness? No.”Flintoff’s final day as a Test cricketer contained two moments typical of the man. He was unable to touch the heights of old with the ball, but his exocet arm at mid-on plucked out Ricky Ponting’s off stump to turn the contest decisively in England’s favour, and then, at the very end of the game, when Mike Hussey flicked Graeme Swann to short leg to fall for a gutsy 121, his first instinct was to walk straight past the cavorting huddle of team-mates that had gathered on the edge of the square, and offer the crestfallen Hussey a consoling handshake.Flintoff, of course, made a similar gesture at the end of the Edgbaston cliffhanger in 2005, when Brett Lee was left high and dry, a mere three runs short of victory. He said that his attitude in victory had been coloured by his own experience in defeat, at the end of the thrilling ICC Champions Trophy final in 2004, when Iain Bradshaw and Courtney Browne guided West Indies to a remarkable two-wicket victory in near-darkness.”When we won, the opposition ran around all over the place,” Flintoff recalled. “We put our hands out, but there was no-one to shake hands with. When you play in a series like that you have to respect the opposition. We had plenty of time to celebrate and enjoy each other’s company. It is par for the course to show the opposition some respect and shake their hands.”So often the heart and soul of England’s victory celebrations, this time it was a more muted Flintoff who drank in the surroundings at the end of his farewell performance, and he even admitted a few tears were shed in the dressing-room as he reflected on the fact that he’ll never again play in the ultimate form of the game.”It was quite strange, to be honest,” he said. “I didn’t think I would get emotional but I did a little bit. I went up there and sat in the corner, the place I always sit at The Oval, on the left with my kit everywhere, and while the lads were jumping around and celebrating, it was a teary moment. Then I saw the Sky Sports cameras coming into our dressing room and I thought: ‘No-one’s seeing me crying’. I nipped into the toilets to give myself a minute and pull myself together.”The euphoria of being in an Ashes victory again, the realisation that I will not walk out in whites again, there was a lot of mixed emotion walking around the ground,” he said. “Seeing my family up in the box – my missus, the kids, my mum and dad and everyone. I enjoyed last night, however, it has actually dawned on me this morning that the next time England play a Test match I am not going to be involved, and that is something I will desperately miss. At this moment in time I am not sitting too comfortably.”Nevertheless, there was a flip side to Flintoff’s emotion, and that came when the players’ families – including his wife, Rachael, and their three children, Holly, Corey and Rocky – joined in the celebrations. “I was looking at the lads and how happy they were which was one thing, but then I looked at my wife and kids and I thought ‘I’ve made the right decision here’.”I’m probably not going to get 25,000 people in my house chanting my name,” he joked. “Or people shouting ‘Super Fred’ when I am doing the school run. However, you know, for me, spending time with my family and having the opportunity to do that is far more important and something I’m really looking forward to doing.”Holly, the eldest, turns five in September, and Flintoff admitted that the days of long overseas tours was something he was happy to put behind him. “It is quite a nice time for me to finish,” he said. “The kids are coming to an age where they need their Dad around, and I am going to be there for them. Bittersweet as it is, having to finish Test cricket through injury, the one thing I am excited about is being at home. That is far more important than pinging a few down in a Test match.”Five minutes after Flintoff’s press conference had finished, he went nil- by-mouth in preparation for a general anaesthetic, ahead of the knee operation that could make or break his future as a limited-overs specialist. Already, however, he was looking beyond the knife, starting on Saturday, with the wedding of his long-standing physio, and the man who will guide his rehabilitation, Dave “Rooster” Roberts.”That’s the next biggest day in my life,” he said. “Beefy is best man and I’m a page boy, which is quite fitting.”
كشفت تقارير صحفية بريطانية، أن نادي ليستر سيتي يقترب من صفقة مفاجأة في اليوم الأخير من سوق الانتقالات، بالتعاقد مع مارسيلو.
البرازيلي بعد مسيرة رائعة مع ريال مدريد في سانتياجو بيرنابيو، فاز بـ دوري أبطال أوروبا خمس مرات، و6 ألقاب للدوري الإسباني، من بين العديد من الألقاب الكبرى.
طالع أيضًا.. تقارير: مارسيلو قد يستمر في الدوري الإسباني
هيئة الإذاعة البريطانية “BBC” أكدت بأن مارسيلو يقترب من ليستر سيتي في صفقة انتقال حر وهو في عمر الـ34 عامًا، وذلك بعد أن رحل عن النادي الملكي بنهاية عقده الأخير.
ليستر سيتي يعاني منذ بداية الموسم بسبب رحيل كاسبر شمايكل إلى نيس، مع اقتراب فوفانا من تشيلسي، وتراجع مستوى الفريق، مع عدم وجود الكثير من الصفقات.
مارسيلو لم يلعب لأي نادٍ في أوروبا طوال مسيرته إلا مع ريال مدريد فقط، وربما تكون ليستر سيتي خطوته التالية.
Wolves are the ‘first suitor’ to sign former West Ham forward Enner Valencia, according to a fresh transfer rumour that has emerged.
The Lowdown: Valencia linked with Wolves move
Bruno Lage’s side have jumped to eighth in the Premier League after a strong run of form and they host in-form West Ham on Saturday afternoon.
Despite Wolves thriving at the moment, there may still be the need for new signings to improve the depth and quality in the squad and one player who has been linked with a move to Molineux is Valencia.
The 32-year-old is currently plying his trade at Fenerbahce, where he has scored twice and registered three assists in the Turkish Super Lig this season.
The Latest: New update emerges
It is a rumour that is refusing to go away, with Fotomac [via Sport Witness] claiming that Wolves are at the front of the queue to sign him.
It is also stated that ‘negotiations with Fenerbahce will begin’ in the January transfer window, as he eyes up a fresh challenge.
The Verdict: Is he worth it?
This is a rumour that doesn’t make a huge amount of sense, with Valencia not someone who set the world alight during his time in England, despite being described as ‘dangerous’ by Ronald Koeman during a loan spell at Everton.
The Ecuadorian has scored a superb 34 goals in 67 caps for his country, in fairness, but he only managed 10 in 68 games for West Ham, suggesting he struggled in the Premier League. A 23-game stint at Goodison was also forgettable, with only three goals scored.
Valencia is also 32 and doesn’t represent the long-term future, so it feels like more of a quick fix that suggests Adama Traore could possibly be moving on and Lage wants a short-term replacement.
In other news, some Wolves fans have gushed over a club social media post. Read more here.
أعلن نادي تشيلسي المنافس في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز عن تجديد عقد ظهير أيمن الفريق الأول لكرة القدم، ريس جيمس، خوفًا من رغبة ريال مدريد ومانشستر سيتي في التعاقد معه.
وكان عقد جيمس القديم يستمر حتى 3 سنوات مقبلة أي إلى يونيو 2025، ولكن كان هناك اهتمام كبير من جانب ريال مدريد في الفترة الماضية، وكان يريد تشيلسي تحصين الإنجليزي.
جيمس أحد اللاعبين الذين تخرجوا من أكاديمية تشيلسي، بدأ مسيرته مع النادي اللندني في تمام السادسة وتطور حتى صعد إلى الفريق الأول.
اقرأ أيضًا | أحمد عادل ميسي: حاربت من أجل الرحيل عن الزمالك.. والأهلي لم يفاوضني رسميًا
Reece James: here to stay! ✍️🔵 — Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) September 5, 2022
وتوصل تشيلسي لاتفاق رسمي مع جيمس لتمديد عقده حتى يونيو 2027 ليستمر لمدة 5 سنوات مقبلة ويغلق الباب أمام ريال مدريد ومانشستر سيتي.
وعلق جيمس على تلك الخطوة في تصريحات لموقع ناديه، وقال: “ممتن للغاية بتلك الخطوة، أشكر الملاك الجدد والجماهير وكل المسئولين لإتمام هذا التجديد، لا أطيق انتظار حتى أعيش ما يخبئه لي المستقبل، متأكد من أنه سيكون لدينا فرصة للفوز بالعديد من الألقاب”.
وأتم: “لقد نشأت هنا، أشجع تشيلسي منذ أن كنت في السادسة، لقد وقعت على عقدي الجديد لأن هذا هو المكان الذي أريد أن أكون فيه، أود ان أتقدم بشكر خاص للجماهير ولدينا مستقبل مشرق أمامنا”.
Many Everton fans have been slamming some transfer news involving Dusan Vlahovic.
As per 90min, the Goodison Park outfit are one of seven Premier League clubs who are now eyeing up a move to sign the Fiorentina striker, with the others being Newcastle United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, while Juventus are also named as having an interest.
The player’s agents were in England earlier this month to engage in talks with top-flight clubs, and their client is likely to be available for around £70m.
However, given the Toffees’ problems with Financial Fair Play (FFP), it does seem rather unlikely that they would pay that kind of money for a player.
Vlahovic is also one of the emerging superstars of the beautiful game at just 21 years of age and has scored 12 goals in just 14 matches across all competitions so far this season (Transfermarkt).
Therefore, it seems unrealistic that he would move to the Toffees anyway, with the likes of City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Juve, all of whom are currently competing in the Champions League, all likely to be preferred destinations for the Serbia international.
James Anderson believes England will have to improve in all areas of their cricket if they are to overturn a 2-0 deficit in their seven-match ODI series against Australia
Andrew Miller07-Sep-2009Click here to listen to the full audio interview with James AndersonJames Anderson wishes England could have got off the treadmill briefly between international campaigns•AFP
James Anderson believes England will have to improve in all areas of their cricket if they are to overturn a 2-0 deficit in their seven-match ODI series against Australia, and give themselves a realistic chance of performing well in the ICC Champions Trophy that gets underway in South Africa at the end of the month.Nevertheless, despite England’s best intentions to move seamlessly into one-day mode, Anderson admitted that it had been tough for the team to maintain the same intensity that had carried them to Ashes glory at the end of last month, and reiterated the belief that a longer gap between the Test and ODI series would have been beneficial to all concerned – not least the fans who have turned up to the matches so far.Lord’s and The Oval were the scenes of England’s two victories in the Ashes, but this week they were the scenes for a pair of dispiriting one-day performances, as England contrived to let slip two run-chases that they seemed to have under control at the half-way mark of their respective innings. And though he did not blame the fans for failing to get enthused by the below-par performances, Anderson felt that the lack of intensity could not help but rub both ways.”We remembered the atmosphere we got all the way through the Oval Test match, and especially on that last day, and then we came into the one-dayer, and it was very, very quiet and a very different atmosphere,” Anderson told Cricinfo’s Switch Hit podcast. “And at Lord’s as well, it was very different. It’s strange when, from the dressing room, you can actually hear players shouting encouragement on the field, because obviously through the Ashes you couldn’t hear that.””It is difficult, but that’s just the way the schedule is at the minute,” he said. “Wherever we go in the world, each series is pretty much back-to-back and we don’t get much rest in between. Ideally we’d have wanted a few more days after the Ashes to let things settle down and let people’s bodies recover, but it just wasn’t to be. It’s just something we have to try and get used to.”England’s cricketers made all the right noises in the immediate aftermath of the Ashes victory, even when faced with the unpalatable prospect of a trip to Belfast less than 24 hours after the scheduled finish to the Oval decider. But their on-field efforts have failed to live up to their stated intentions, and Anderson admitted there was no hiding from their shortcomings.”It’s been very disappointing to be honest,” he said. “We came into this one-day series with quite high hopes. We were on a high after the Ashes and we had quite a fresh look to the team from a one-day point of view.”We’ve got into some good positions in the games we’ve played, and given ourselves a chance to win by keeping Australia to some low totals. But we’ve not really hit our straps with the bat, and our top six will probably hold their hands up for that. They won’t be best pleased with their performances so far, but it’s something we’ll look at for the next few games.””I think we can improve in all areas,” he said. “Certainly the batting, because the top six realise more than anyone that they need to get the bulk of the runs, and we can improve on our bowling as well. It’s not been at its best, and though we’ve done reasonably well, we can still improve there. We’ve got to realise not only have we got a series to win here, we’ve also got the Champions Trophy just around the corner, so we’ve got to get some plans in place that work for us, and are going make us successful in that tournament.”On a personal level, Anderson did at least have a moment to cheer during the Lord’s ODI, when he bowled Australia’s top-scorer, Callum Ferguson, for 55 to claim his first international wicket since August 3. “Obviously you do realise when you’re not taking wickets, and that was my first since the Edgbaston Test, which does seem quite strange. But people go through dry spells with the bat when they struggle for runs, and the last month has been like that for me with the ball.In the past, Anderson might have allowed such a barren spell to unsettle him, but these days he believes he’s a more rounded competitor, and more able to deal with the game’s ups and downs. “I think now I’ve got a very clear gameplan,” he said. “I’m very clear in what I’m trying to do, and although I’ve not taken a wicket for a month, I still think I’ve been bowling pretty well and asking questions of the batsmen. I’m not too bothered about it, and hopefully in the next few games I’ll get back into the wickets.”Overall, Anderson admitted that he fell short of the standards he had set himself for the Ashes – he claimed vital first-innings wickets at Lord’s, then picked up a five-for in a rain-affected draw at Edgbaston, but lost his incisiveness for the final two games at Headingley and The Oval. But arguably his most vital contribution came with the bat in the very first match at Cardiff, when he and Monty Panesar blocked out the final 69 of the match to secure a draw that had massive ramifications for the rest of the summer.”I think at the time, and certainly the day after, we realised it could actually be a huge factor in the series,” Anderson recalled. “Looking back now, it was a huge day for us as a team, not only did not lose the Test match, we actually took momentum into Lord’s and managed to get the win there. And the way we played at Cardiff on that last day really helped. Me and Monty got a bit of praise for the way we batted those last 40 minutes, but I thought Paul Collingwood was fantastic on that last day.”Anderson’s batting was notable for another reason throughout the summer – since his debut in 2003, he had gone 54 innings without ever recording a Test duck, until that notable run came to an end in the first innings at The Oval. Anderson, however, insisted the preservation of that record had not been a significant factor in the determination he has brought to his game in recent months.”Not really, the only thing I knew about it was when people kept reminding me about it,” he said. “I didn’t really think about it when I was out in the middle, I was just thinking about watching the ball, and very basic stuff to take my thoughts away from that record. In a way I’m glad it’s gone now, so that I won’t keep getting reminded about it.”This summer team sponsor Vodafone brings you the Nightwatchman. Find the answers hidden in the Nightwatchman videos and you could win England v Australia ODI tickets. To enter, visit www.vodafone.co.uk/nightwatchman