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Liverpool fans are far from happy with the news that Thiago Alcantara has not featured in any images from the Reds’ latest training session at Kirkby.

The Spain international was signed from Bayern Munich last summer, and was expected to become a key member of Liverpool’s squad. However, it hasn’t quite worked out like that.

He has so far managed just 35 appearances for the club since making the switch (Transfermarkt), as injuries have curtailed his chances of really unleashing his obvious quality.

He has made just two starts for Jurgen Klopp’s side in the Premier League this campaign, and has missed the last two through injury. Now, it appears that he could be out of the action for a little while longer as he was not pictured during the club’s latest training session.

The news was shared on Twitter by @AnfieldWatch, and it attracted plenty of attention from the supporters. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Thiago update below

“This man is a big fraud”

Credit: @l3mzyL

“He’s worse than naby”

Credit: @Jef46916091Jeff

“Be gone in the summer I expect. Bit part player. So disappointing”

Credit: @LeighBergin

“Such a plastic midfield”

Credit: @JohnSno36837584

“He misses all our important big games while only being available against the dross.”

Credit: @kevin_the_gray

“Lets just swap this guy for Kessie.. Heard Milan are interested”

Credit: @Bwoy_Tynnie

In other news, Liverpool fans want this man to leave the club.

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard has proven to be an inspired managerial appointment at Rangers since his arrival at Ibrox in 2018.

The former England midfielder has successfully managed to wrestle back supremacy for the Gers in Scottish football, winning the Premiership title in the 2020/21 campaign and now trying to defend Rangers’ crown this term.

Along the way, he has made some shrewd decisions in the transfer market, both in selling players and in signing them. One player on whom he made an astute call was left-back Declan John.

Gerrard arrived in 2018 and the sale of John was one of the first decisions he had to make in terms of recruitment, with the defender ultimately being sold to Swansea for a reported fee of £801,000. This was after he played 31 times the previous season, scoring three goals and providing four assists from left-back.

In the subsequent three years since leaving Ibrox, John has gone on loan to Sunderland and Bolton and then left Swansea permanently for the Trotters and is currently playing in English League One, having been promoted out of the fourth tier last season.

Transfermarkt currently has him valued at just £270,000. This is a 66% decrease from the fee Rangers received from Swansea for his services in 2018, despite him now being in what should be the prime years of his playing career at the age of 26.

His value plummeting since leaving Rangers suggests that it was a masterstroke from Gerrard to sell him at the time, as his decrease in value could have happened with the Ibrox club had they opted not to cash in on him. Therefore, it may have been perfect timing from Gerrard and the Light Blues in making the most of the situation by getting rid of someone who, quite frankly, had been a bit of a flop in Glasgow.

What makes the deal even better from a Rangers perspective is that the man they brought in to replace John was Borna Barisic. The Croatian left-back has gone on to play 119 times for the club, scoring seven goals and providing 33 assists and is now valued at a cool £5.4m, 20 times greater than John’s current valuation.

Therefore, it was an all-around masterclass from Gerrard. The 41-year-old was able to sell a player in John before his career took a turn for the worst and duly replaced him with an upgrade in his position who is now worth far more than his predecessor.

AND in other news, Gerrard provides fresh injury update that’ll leave Rangers fans delighted…

Preview of the second Chappell-Hadlee Series match in Melbourne

Brydon Coverdale05-Feb-2009Match facts
Brad Haddin’s glovework has soured relations between the two teams © Getty Images
Friday, February 6
Start time 2.15pm (03.15 GMT)The Big PictureThe occasional one-off incident aside, Australia and New Zealand share a strong cricketing relationship and encounters between the teams are generally friendly. Unfortunately, one of those out-of-the-ordinary occurrences came up at the WACA on Sunday, when Brad Haddin’s gloves appeared to knock the bail off when Neil Broom was adjudged bowled. It has sparked a vigorous to-and-fro and while both teams want to put it behind them, it is yet to be seen whether tensions will remain in the second match at the MCG.If there can be one positive from the incident from Australia’s perspective it is that it has overshadowed the fact that Australia are 1-0 down and in a serious slump after losing 4-1 to South Africa. They will need to turn their form around without their two leading run scorers over the past six games. Shaun Marsh hurt his hamstring during Sunday’s loss and the captain Ricky Ponting is being forced to rest ahead of the Test tour of South Africa. Australia have two fresh faces, including one potential debutant, and it all adds up to a less-than-convincing argument for a team aiming to level the series.New Zealand were impressive in the field in Perth, where Kyle Mills was a capable spearhead and picked up four wickets, while Iain O’Brien made a strong return to the format and Daniel Vettori began his 31st year with a typically tight performance. The concern for New Zealand was a lack of fluency in their batting and apart from Ross Taylor, nobody looked like dominating the Australians. That will work chasing a small total but it will be hard to win the series unless some of the other batsmen stand up.ODI form guideAustralia – LLLLW
New Zealand – WWNWL
Team newsThere is no Marsh and no Ponting from the Perth line-up and after a disappointing batting display, Australia will be tempted to include both of their replacements in the starting side for the sake of change. The Western Australia batsman Adam Voges has experience of this opposition after playing his only ODI in Hamilton nearly two years ago and he will be an especially attractive choice as he offers another part-time spin option. The South Australia batsman Callum Ferguson, 24, is a strong chance to debut having scored 81, 115 and 89 at the MCG this week. Australia’s other decision is who should take Marsh’s opening spot and the strongest contender is Michael Hussey, who opened in the first ODI against South Africa. However Clarke said any of four men – himself, Hussey, James Hopes or Haddin – could partner David Warner.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Michael Hussey, 3 Michael Clarke (capt), 4 Callum Ferguson, 5 Adam Voges, 6 David Hussey, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 James Hopes, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Nathan Bracken, 11 Shaun Tait.It’s always hard to change a winning side but New Zealand’s hit-and-miss batting at the WACA will bring Craig Cumming into consideration for the second game. Cumming is a sturdy opener who would add solidity to the top order but he is probably more suited to the longer format and has not played an ODI since Australia visited New Zealand in 2004-05. If Cumming plays it could be Grant Elliott who misses out, although Elliott could yet hold his spot due to his value as an extra bowling option.New Zealand (possible) 1 Brendon McCullum, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Peter Fulton, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Neil Broom, 7 Kyle Mills, 8 Daniel Vettori (capt), 9 Tim Southee, 10 Jeetan Patel, 11 Iain O’Brien.Watch out for …Brad Haddin has been under the microscope all week – it is unfortunate for him there was such a long break between games – and it will be interesting to see how he reacts on the field. An unfussy sort of player who doesn’t like to be forced away from his natural game, Haddin needs to retain his focus. In a batting line-up that has been struggling, he cannot afford to be distracted.Martin Guptill made only 13 in Perth but he is clearly a class act, having posted a century on his ODI debut against West Indies last month. An uncomplicated player who described his batting philosophy as “see the ball and hit the ball”, Guptill has now had a sighter from Australia’s new-ball men and will be looking to make the opening spot his own in the absence of the injured Jesse Ryder.Pitch & conditionsThe match will be played on the same pitch used in Wednesday’s domestic one-day match, where South Australia were skittled for 200. The drop-in surfaces at the MCG have tended to be two-paced in recent times and it has not been the easiest venue to score big runs. Melbourne is expecting a sunny day on Friday with a top temperature of 32 degrees.Stats and triviaNew Zealand are ahead in the Chappell-Hadlee tally, having won six of the 12 matches, with five wins to Australia and one no-resultThe MCG hasn’t been Australia’s best venue in recent times – they have won one of their past five ODIs thereAustralia will take such an inexperienced line-up into the match that Haddin is their third highest career scorer and Clarke is their third highest wicket takerQuotes”We had a really good chat yesterday. We have been a little bit disappointing of late and we’ve got some work to do to get back to where we want to be and it starts tomorrow.”
Michael Clarke“A lot of these guys don’t know what it’s like to play for a long time and win lots of games. We set a standard in the last game and we’ve got to make sure we keep that up.”
Daniel Vettori

On a day when the Hussey brothers did the winning act for Australia, India found their answer in the two Pathans, with Yusuf and Irfan scripting a thrilling three-wicket win in the one-off Twenty20 game.

The Bulletin by S Rajesh10-Feb-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Tillakaratne Dilshan’s half-century was undone by two smaller but far more significant Indian contributions © AFP
On a day when the Hussey brothers did the winning act for Australia, India found their answer in the two Pathans, with Yusuf and Irfan scripting a thrilling three-wicket win in the one-off Twenty20 game. Set a challenging 172 for victory, India seemed to have botched up the chase when Sri Lanka’s spinners reduced them to 115 for 7, but then came the last twist on an evening which had several: a 59-run partnership off 25 balls, and India were home and dry with four balls to spare, ending the tour with five wins in six games.The Twenty20 game is designed to thrill, and this game did that in ample measure: there were 345 runs scored in 39.2 overs, with 11 sixes and 32 fours. The most important of them, though, came late in the evening from the Pathan brothers, after it seemed Sri Lanka’s spinners had spun the match irreversibly in their favour.From an utterly dominant 81 for 2 after eight overs, India lost their next five wickets for 34 runs as Malinga Bandara, the legspinner, and Sanath Jayasuriya turned it around with a mix of fine bowling and some curious shot selection from the Indians. With Yuvraj Singh – who continued his sublime form with an utterly dominant 21-ball 32 – Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja all back in the hutch and the asking rate an imposing 11.40 an over, Sri Lanka were well on their way to an incredible come-from-behind victory.Enter the Pathan brothers. Yusuf had already made a name for himself in the IPL, and here he decided to remind the Sri Lankans of his prowess before the second season which starts later this year. The second ball he faced, from Bandara, was smashed over extra cover, the next one disappeared behind the sightscreen, and two balls later, another hit vanished over wide long-on. The requirement had come down to 40 from four overs.That forced Tillakaratne Dilshan to abandon the idea of bowling more overs of spin, but when the fast bowlers returned, Irfan was ready to join in the fun. Lasith Malinga was carved over extra-cover for a one-bounce four, Dilhara Fernando was clubbed over midwicket for six, before the coup de grace was finally delivered off Malinga with a meaty blow over midwicket. Game, set, and match for the Pathan brothers.Till that amazing turnaround, the match had gone pretty well for Sri Lanka and for first-time captain Dilshan: he won the toss – something that has been as rare as a victory for Sri Lanka in this series – starred with the bat despite a shaky start with a busy 61 to lift his team out of a mid-innings slump, and then, doing the job of makeshift wicketkeeper, even managed a sharp catch to dismiss the fluent and in-form Yuvraj. When he did make mistakes, lady luck still smiled on him: Irfan dropped a sitter in the first over when Dilshan was 0, but when Dilshan missed a chance from Raina on 28, it only cost his team seven runs.It was with the bat, though, that Dilshan made his biggest contribution, getting to his first half-century in this format. Sensibly, he played the second fiddle to the rampaging Jayasuriya, contributing just 18 in an opening partnership of 59. Thereafter, he assumed the role of senior batsman, flaying through the off side, running hard, and pushing the score along with some support from Chamara Kapugedera. Ishant Sharma, who redeemed himself somewhat with a fine last over, and Zaheer were pasted all over the park by a marauding Jayasuriya and Dilshan as 53 came in the first five overs.At that stage, a total of around 200 was well on the cards, but Sri Lanka lost the plot completely in the middle overs, scoring just 36 between the sixth and 12th overs, as Jehan Mubarak did his best to neutralise the momentum his team had got from Jayasuriya’s early blitz. Eighty-two came from the last eight, which ensured Sri Lanka had a reasonable total to defend, but Dilshan will still rue the sloppiness of his bowlers. There were seven wides in the first six overs, and ten in all, and Dilshan was left screaming at his bowlers and wringing his hands in despair.His spinners brought his team back into the contest, just as India’s had, but the ultimate difference was the last three overs of both teams: Sri Lanka scored 19; India hammered 30.

A major update has emerged on the future of Ainsley Maitland-Niles at Arsenal…

What’s the word?

The versatile 24-year-old midfielder had been in talks over a move to Premier League rivals Everton on loan with an option to buy, per The Athletic’s David Ornstein early on Monday morning.

However, the Gunners have performed a U-turn on their stance since then, according to The Mirror’s chief football writer John Cross, who delivered the fresh claim to Twitter later this afternoon.

Maitland-Niles has barely been given a chance under Mikel Arteta in recent times, having to go to relegated West Brom on loan in January, whilst he played only 48 minutes of competitive action since his return this summer.

Arteta mistake?

The England international has already vented his frustrations at a lack of game time amid the seemingly failed move to Goodison Park, taking to Instagram to say (via football.london’s Chris Wheatley): “All I wanna do is go where I’m wanted and where I’m gonna play @arsenal”

As a result, plenty of the Emirates Stadium have vented their frustrations and anger over the situation.

Arteta was lambasted as a “clown” by one supporter, another urged the club to “let him go” to Everton, whilst a further fan suggested that the saga reflected how poorly the club was being run, as relayed by Caught Offside.

The Gunners’ season couldn’t have got off to a worse start as Arteta and his squad have lost all three of their opening Premier League matches, including a recent 5-0 drubbing by Manchester City.

Maitland-Niles cannot even get into the squad despite all of their defensive struggles and his desire to play at right-back, so it’s no wonder that he wants to leave.

The £14.4m-rated academy graduate started only five league games before being shipped out to the Baggies last season and whilst this move would be another temporary spell away from north London, he could garner some funds next summer.

Arteta also has plenty of options at right-back, including Hector Bellerin, Cedric and Calum Chambers, which is another reason for Maitland-Niles’ recent exclusion.

Therefore, it really is a perplexing move to not sanction his exit before Tuesday’s 11pm deadline and it is why so many are fuming at the club.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Steve Howey says Arsenal are in huge trouble…

MatériaMais Notícias

Cuca chama Keno para conversar, diz que confia no futebol do atacante e avisa que ele tem tudo para crescer muito no Palmeiras. Essa cena não aconteceu (só) nesta última semana, antes do jogo contra o Atlético-MG, às 16h deste domingo, no Allianz Parque, em que o camisa 27 será titular, mas sim no ano passado. Keno ainda estava no Santa Cruz, e o técnico teve peso importante para que ele decidisse optar pelo Verdão.

– Tivemos uma conversa, sim. Tinha outros clubes interessados em mim quando eu tinha contrato com o Santa Cruz. Conversei primeiro com minha família para decidir o que seria melhor para mim, mas também conversei com o Cuca, com alguns jogadores também. Eles disseram que se eu viesse para cá eles iam me acolher. Hoje estou bem feliz de estar jogando aqui – disse o jogador, em entrevista ao LANCE!.

Cuca acabou deixando o Palmeiras em dezembro, antes de Keno se apresentar, mas aquele bate-papo do ano passado mostra que foi uma das contratações aprovadas por ele.

– Isso ajuda, porque passa mais confiança. A gente sabe que é um treinador bom, que foi campeão brasileiro. Ele passa confiança total para mim quando vou entrar nos jogos, nos treinamentos. Isso só vai me fazer crescer no Palmeiras – disse Keno.

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Keno tem 22 jogos pelo Palmeiras, sendo seis como titular. Ele marcou dois gols, contra Ferroviária e Atlético Tucumán

Contra o Galo, o baiano de 27 anos jogará no lugar de Dudu. Essa mudança ocorreu ainda no primeiro tempo do jogo contra o Internacional, quarta-feira, pela Copa do Brasil, quando o camisa 7 sentiu lesão no adutor da coxa esquerda. O desempenho de Keno foi uma das poucas coisas que agradaram Cuca naquela atuação bem abaixo da média do Verdão.

Pode ser o início de uma nova fase para o atacante. Ele chegou a ser titular com Eduardo Baptista, com atuações destacadas, mas não vinha conseguindo se colocar novamente na briga por espaço entre os 11 preferidos. Antes de ser acionado por Cuca contra o Colorado, Keno fez parte do mistão que encarou a Chapecoense e entrou no decorrer dos jogos contra Vasco e São Paulo, sem muito destaque. Chegou a hora de embalar.

Confira um bate-bola exclusivo com Keno:

O Palmeiras é o primeiro clube grande da sua carreira. Encontrou alguma dificuldade para se adaptar?
Eu não encontrei dificuldade, os jogadores são gente boa. Desde o primeiro dia aqui estou tranquilo, converso com os meninos como se conhecesse há anos. A torcida também apoia muito. A gente sabe que dependemos de resultado, eles querem ver a gente jogando bem, saindo com a vitória, mas estou adaptado a isso também.

Mudou muita coisa com a saída do Eduardo, com quem você chegou a ser titular, e a chegada do Cuca?
Os jogadores já conhecem o Cuca. O Eduardo teve um bom trabalho aqui, mas isso (demissão) acontece em todos os clubes do Brasil. O Cuca veio para fazer um bom trabalho e está se firmando. São trabalhos diferentes. Estamos vindo de resultados que não estão agradando, mas a confiança vai voltar e a gente vai conseguir embalar.

O que está achando dessas primeiras semanas de Cuca?
É um trabalho bom. Eu já acompanhava nos jogos do ano passado. Ele passa confiança para os jogadores, conversa, o que é muito importante. Ele conversou bastante comigo sobre aproveitar as oportunidades. Entrei contra o Inter, fui bem e conseguimos sair classificados.

Vai jogar contra o Galo?
Estou treinando, porque se ele precisar de mim vou ter que dar o meu melhor. O Dudu é um jogador importante, então se eu entrar vou ter que jogar bem.

Qual a diferença entre você e o Dudu?
O Dudu vem mais por dentro, eu gosto de ir mais para o fundo. Mas posso ir por dentro também, depende mais do jogo. Se estiver congestionado, como estava contra o Inter, com o meio muito cheio, ele manda ir para o fundo, com velocidade.

Alex McLeish has given his reaction to the news that Steven Gerrard would fight harder to keep Ryan Kent over any other player at Glasgow Rangers.

The Lowdown: Gerrard on Kent

As per The Athletic, the manager would fight harder to keep the 24-year-old over any of his other players at Ibrox as the summer transfer window edges closer to an end.

According to a report from Football Insider back in September 2020, the winger has a release clause of £20m in his current contract with the reigning Premiership champions, and that clause remains given that he has not signed any kind of new deal.

There will surely be interest from a number of clubs in his signature come the end of the window, as Leeds United registered theirs last summer.

The Latest: McLeish on Kent

Speaking to Football Insider in the wake of The Athletic’s report, former Light Blues manager McLeish claims that his old club cannot afford to lose Kent in this window, as he would be a very difficult player to replace. The 62-year-old said:

“I don’t think so, in the current climate.

“Replacing him would be extremely difficult. Unless Gerrard’s looking at experimenting or thought of something else where he could play a different system.

“Something to keep the domination of Rangers upon other teams when they play against them.

“He is a kind of game-changer. That would be a big blow for Rangers and the fans if they were to lose him at this moment.”

The Verdict: Keep

Kent has proven on a number of occasions just how important he is to Rangers, and it certainly speaks volumes that Gerrard would fight harder to keep him over any other player.

The Englishman scored 13 goals and supplied a further 15 assists in 52 games in all competitions across the 2020/21 season (Transfermarkt), which is a highly impressive return.

At 24 years of age, he certainly still has potential to improve even further, and he could be a vital member of the squad for years to come. As McLeish says, losing him in the final days of the transfer window would be a seismic blow to the Gers.

In other news, find out whose performance against Alashkert was criticised by some Gers fans

MatériaMais Notícias

Os jogadores do Cruzeiro saíram satisfeitos com o empate por 1 a 1 diante do Sport, nesta noite de domingo, pela segunda rodada do Brasileirão. Alisson marcou o gol para os mineiros, mas Diego Souza deixou tudo igual para os pernambucanos. No final da partida, os jogadores da Raposa valorizaram o empate fora de casa.

– Jogando fora de casa, temos que ter sempre esse objetivo, de trazer pontos para casa. A gente poderia ter conquistado a vitória. Mas foi um resultado importante, jogamos para vencer e isso é importante – comentou Henrique.

Depois de abri o placar no primeiro tempo, Alisson teve duas ótimas oportunidades de dar a vitória ao Cruzeiro. Porém, o atacante parou em duas ótimas defesas do goleiro Magrão no final do jogo. Apesar disso, o jogador valorizou a entrega do time.

– O Magrão foi feliz. Tentei virar o pé para tirar dele, pois tinha muita gente na frente. Mas estão todos de parabéns. Sabíamos das dificuldades de jogar aqui. Agora é ter uma ótima semana de trabalho e descansar para fazer um grande jogo contra o Santos – disse.

Em sua entrevista coletiva, o técnico Mano Menezes elogiou a postura do time no segundo tempo. Apesar de não ter alcançado o gol da vitória, o time se comportou melhor, inverteu o cenário negativo do primeiro tempo e terminou o jogo em alta, controlando a partida.

– Eu gostaria que o Cruzeiro jogasse sempre como jogou no segundo tempo. Mas não vai ser sempre assim, do outro lado tem equipes que dificultam o jogo. No primeiro tempo nós saímos do jogo, precisamos melhorar isso. No segundo tempo, fica claro a importância do Ariel para a equipe, controlamos o jogo, empurramos o Sport, rodamos a bola e todos os jogadores começaram a crescer. Já fizemos isso em outras oportunidades, é isso que queremos, temos capacidades para fazer isso outras vezes – falou o comandante.

Lee Ryder has claimed that Newcastle United could sign Tom Davies in a potential swap deal with Sean Longstaff before the summer transfer window ends.

The Lowdown: Davies linked before

The St. James’ Park faithful were reportedly linked with a move for Davies in last summer’s window, before he ended up staying at Everton.

It seems as if they could revisit their previous interest this summer, as the new 2021/22 Premier League season draws ever closer.

The Latest: Swap deal?

Writing in his latest piece for The Chronicle, Tyneside journalist Ryder has claimed that Longstaff could be used in a swap deal to bring Davies to the North East.

The move has been played down at this moment in time, but it has not been ruled out.

The Verdict: Avoid

It seems a bit unnecessary for the Tyneside club to swap Longstaff for Davies, as they are both very similar players.

They both managed no goals and just one assist in the top flight last term, and while Davies, lauded as an ‘excellent’ player by pundit Paddy Kenny back in June, averaged more interceptions, clearances, blocks, dribbles and passes per game, Longstaff averaged more tackles, shots, key passes, crosses and long balls (Whoscored).

Put simply, they are both tenacious midfielders with an eye for a pass, but little potency going forward and plenty of room to develop their games further.

Longstaff is also a local boy and so the Toon Army would not be pleased in letting one of their own go, unless a much better replacement was brought in.

Thus, the Magpies should only look to add Davies to their squad if Longstaff was not included as part of a deal.

In other news, find out which Premier League NUFC are ‘desperate’ to sign here!

Reliable reporter John Percy claimed on Friday that Manchester City have made a £100m offer for Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish.

And, as to be expected, his post had plenty of Villa supporters talking on social media.

Grealish has been linked with a move to the Etihad since March, and according to Percy, who writes for The Telegraph, City have finally tabled a huge bid for the attacking midfielder.

Should Villa accept the £100m bid, Villa would receive a Premier League record fee for the 25-year-old, eclipsing Manchester United’s £89m move for Paul Pogba.

Grealish is set to return to Villa training next week following his holiday after the Euros, however, Percy claims City are hopeful of reaching an agreement in the next few days.

Villa fans react

Percy shared the news regarding City’s offer for Grealish on Friday lunchtime on Twitter. These Villa fans were quick to interact with the update, with one labelling it as a Percy ‘own goal’.

“Oh my god”Credit: @alishaavfc”WOW. I think he’s gone.”Credit: @AVFCTheReligion”It’s game on now!! Can our owners hold their nerve, or will £100Millon convince them to sell up? A nervous few days for us all.”Credit: @footymadluke123″Percy at the back posttt with an own goal “Credit: @cday_AV”He’s gone then.”Credit: @jwavfc1996″Noooooo Percy”Credit: @ChrisBrady1982

In other news: ‘Some good news today’, ‘Finally’ – Many AVFC fans erupt at ‘unreal’ transfer news.