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After a long summer full of twists and turns, we’ve made it to deadline day, and Chelsea look set to complete some last-minute business.

The Blues have already backed Enzo Maresca and his squad in a big way this window with eye-catching additions like Joao Pedro, Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens.

Yet, with the club set to compete in the Champions League for the first time in years this season, there is a sense that the West Londoners could do with a little more quality in the side.

Fortunately, if reports are to be believed, Chelsea are eyeing a late move for an international gem who has been compared to Lamine Yamal and Bukayo Saka.

Chelsea eye late swoop for Yamal & Saka hybrid

According to a recent report from Caught Offside, Chelsea are still very interested in Fermin Lopez.

Transfer Focus

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

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Interestingly, there are several other sides also keen on landing the Barcelona gem, but the West Londoners appear to have the most concrete interest at this point.

The report has revealed that the Catalan giants would be willing to part ways with the 22-year-old for a fee of up to €90m, which is approximately £78m.

While that is a substantial amount, it might well be worth it for a player compared to those of Yamal and Saka.

How Lopez compares to Saka & Yamal

Now, there are several surface-level similarities you can point to between Saka, Yamal, and Lopez, such as all three being young attackers who play for one of the biggest teams in their league – alongside one another in the Spaniards’ case.

However, thanks to FBref, we know that there are also some undeniable statistical similarities between them, as according to them, the Englishman has been the seventh most similar attacking midfielder or winger to the Barça gem over the last 365 days, and his teammate was the fourth most similar in La Liga last season.

You can gain a better understanding of how these comparisons were made by examining the underlying numbers in which Lopez ranked closely to the two international monsters.

Lopez & Saka

Statistics per 90

Lopez

Saka

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.69

0.71

Non-Penalty G+As

0.79

0.78

Tackles

1.37

1.51

Successful Take-On %

45.5%

45.6%

Carries into the Final Third

1.58

1.67

Aerial Duels Won

0.65

0.52

All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 League Campaign

Interestingly, when it comes to the Gunners’ mercurial number seven, the El Campillo-born dynamo ranks closely in things like expected and actual non-penalty goals, tackles, aerial duels won, carries into the final third and more, all per 90.

Yet, when it comes to his club teammate and compatriot, the “spectacular” midfielder, as dubbed by former manager Xavi, ranks similarly in metrics such as key passes, crosses, progressive passes, and other key creative statistics, all per 90.

Lopez & Yamal

Statistics per 90

Lopez

Saka

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.69

0.75

Progressive Passes

5.68

5.05

Key Passes

2.09

2.02

Live Passes

44.9

47.2

Crosses

3.38

3.41

Tackles

1.37

1.32

All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 League Campaign

In other words, it looks like the La Masia product could be as much of a goal threat as the North Londoners’ talisman, while being as creative and intuitive as the Catalan’s Ballon d’Or winner in waiting.

While he still has plenty of developing to do, that sounds like a pretty sensational combination, and when you factor in that he scored eight goals and provided ten assists in 46 appearances, totalling just 2,039 minutes, last season, it becomes clear why Chelsea are so keen to sign him.

Therefore, while it won’t be cheap, the Blues should do all they can to bring Lopez to Stamford Bridge before the window slams shut at 7pm this evening.

Related Their own Gyokeres: Chelsea make late move to sign "aggressive" £69m star

Chelsea could snap up their very own Viktor Gyokeres with this late £69m swoop.

Posts ByKelan Sarson Sep 1, 2025

كشفت تقارير صحفية أن قطبي الدوري الإسباني برشلونة وريال مدريد يتنافسان على التعاقد مع أحد نجوم منتخب المغرب للشباب بعد تألقه في بطولة كأس العالم تحت 20 عامًا في تشيلي.

وخاض منتخب المغرب نهائي كأس العالم للشباب، فجر يوم الإثنين الماضي، ضد الأرجنتين حيث حقق فوزًا بهدفين دون رد، ليحقق بطولة تاريخية.

وذكرت شبكة “ديفينسا سنترال” الإسبانية أن لاعب واتفورد، عثمان معما، نال اهتمامًا من جانب نادي ريال مدريد بعد أدائه المميز في بطولة كأس العالم للشباب رفقة منتخب المغرب.

وأوضحت أن الانطباعات الداخلية في ريال مدريد بشأن معما كانت إيجابية للغاية، مع العلم أن قوته، سرعته، جودة مراوغته وتمركزه في الجناح الأيمن، دفعت كشافي النادي الملكي إلى الاهتمام به والتفكير به مستقبلًا.

وسيجمع رئيس قسم الكشافة في ريال مدريد، جوني كالافات، معلومات خلال الموسم لتحديد ما إذا كان معما يلبي التوقعات بالنظر إلى المستوى الذي سيقدمه مع واتفورد، وإذا نجح في ذلك، سيكون مؤشرًا قويًا على إمكانية التعاقد معه في المستقبل.

اقرأ أيضًا.. أول رد فعل من ميسي على خسارة الأرجنتين أمام المغرب في نهائي كأس العالم للشباب

وتعاقد واتفورد مع معما مقابل 1.3 مليون جنيه إسترليني ذلك الصيف، ولكنه لم يشارك بعد في أي مباراة في تشامبيونشيب ذلك الموسم، مع العلم أنه يمتلك عقدًا حتى 2029.

ومن المتوقع أن يرتفع سعر معما بعد أدائه المميز في كأس العالم للأندية، كما ستزداد فرصه في الحصول على فرص للعب المنتظم مع واتفورد، ولذلك يراقبه ريال مدريد بحذر، مع العلم أنه يُذكره ببدايات كريستيانو رونالدو.

كما ذكرت شبكة “Fichajes” الإسبانية أن مسؤولي برشلونة يراقبون عثمان معما، مع قدرته على اللعب علي أي من الجناحين، ونال اهتمامًا من جانب بطل الدوري الإسباني بأدائه في مونديال الشباب حيث سجل هدفًا وصنع 4 في 6 مباريات.

وأوضحت أنه بعد انطلاقته، أصبح معما محط اهتمام برشلونة الذي يتطلع إلى الاستفادة من موهبته قبل ارتفاع قيمته التسويقية.

Strong showing on opening day of campaign puts new-look Warwickshire attack on back foot

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay04-Apr-2025

Tom Clark raises his bat on reaching a century•Getty Images

Sussex 386 for 5 (Clark 140, Simpson 116*, Coles 51) vs Warwickshire Centuries by Tom Clark and John Simpson ensured that Sussex returned to the Rothesay County Championship Division One with a strong day’s work against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.Clark struck an accomplished 140 (279 balls) and Simpson an assertive unbeaten 116 (142) in a partnership of 200 in 44 overs as Sussex recovered from 40 for three to close on 386 for five.Three early wickets for debutant Ethan Bamber appeared to vindicate Warwickshire’s decision to bowl first, but thereafter it was a struggle for an attack missing injured first-choice opening bowlers Olly Hannon-Dalby and Chris Rushworth.Clark and Simpson took full advantage to post their fourth and 16th first-class centuries respectively.Warwickshire, their squad in deep transition, started the season with four debutants – Bamber, Vishwa Fernando, Tazeem Ali and Kai Smith – and two of the newcomers opened the bowling to very different effect. Fernando went for three fours in his first over of a fruitless spell but Bamber unfurled an excellent opening burst of 7-5-8-3. The former Middlesex all-rounder trapped Tom Haines lbw, playing across the line, then removed Daniel Hughes and Tom Alsop with successive balls. Hughes copped an arguable lbw decision before Alsop edged an outswinger to Rob Yates at second slip.The brittle foundation of 40 for three was diligently shored up by a stand of 121 in 37 overs between Clark and James Coles (51, 102). The latter played fluently to be first to his half-century but then rather gave it away when he skied an ill-judged leg-side swipe at Tazeem to give the 18-year-old leg-spinner his first championship wicket.Any hopes the sizeable home crowd harboured of another Sussex clatter proved ill-founded. Instead, Simpson joined Clark to make it back-to-back century stands.Sussex skipper Simpson enjoyed a superb first season at Hove last year, averaging 74.81 with the bat in the championship, and resumed in the same vein as he breezed to a 58-ball half-century. Clark, meanwhile, concentrated implacably and reached his fourth first class century, from 223 balls, with his 15th four, cut off a short delivery from Dan Mousley.On a pitch offering little assistance for the bowlers, the limitations of Warwickshire’s injury-hit attack became clear as the fifth-wicket pair’s partnership passed 150. The depleted nature of that attack does raise a question mark over Warwickshire’s decision to bowl first, though that decision might have a bit to do with the recent history of Edgbaston pitches to flatten out as the match goes on, making wickets even harder to acquire.Clark perished six overs before the close when he edged Ed Barnard behind but in the next over Simpson followed him to three figures, becoming the first Sussex player ever to reach a first class century with a three to backward point on a Friday in Birmingham. Sussex’s return to Division One has been highly encouraging.

Any cautious optimism that was slowly building in the West Ham United fanbase over the international break was obliterated on Saturday afternoon.

Instead of building on their impressive 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, the East Londoners reverted to type and lost by the same scoreline against Tottenham Hotspur.

With an abysmal record of six wins, five draws and 13 losses in his 24 games in charge, it now feels like a matter of when and not if David Sullivan and Co sack Graham Potter.

One of the names recently touted to replace him has been Nuno Espírito Santo, but West Ham might be wiser to re-sign a former coach instead, and no, we aren’t talking about David Moyes.

Why West Ham might want Nuno

While he might not be the first name on the wishlist of every fan, it’s not hard to understand why West Ham are reportedly keen on Nuno.

Firstly, unlike some of the other managers that have been suggested as replacements for Potter, like Frank Lampard, the Portuguese coach is currently out of work, and therefore should be far easier to bring on board.

Secondly, he’s already very familiar with English football, and the Premier League specifically, having managed Wolverhampton Wanderers for 199 games, Spurs for 17 and Forest for 71.

Nuno’s managerial career

Team

Games

Forest

71

Al-Ittihad

53

Spurs

17

Wolves

199

Porto

49

Valencia

62

Rio Ave

80

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Finally, although his time in North London was far from successful, he made a significant impact at the other two clubs.

For example, the 51-year-old led the Old Gold into the top-flight, and then not only made them a permanent fixture, but led them into the Europa League, where they reached the quarter-finals in the 19/20 season.

Likewise, when he took over the Tricky Trees, they were staring down the barrel of relegation, and now they are preparing for life in the Europa League.

In all, Nuno would undoubtedly be an improvement on Potter, but West Ham may be able to make an even better appointment than the former Forest boss by re-hiring someone who’s already spent time in the London Stadium dugout.

The coach West Ham should re-hire instead of Nuno

Now, when we talk about West Ham re-hiring an old coach, the first name that may come to mind for many is David Moyes.

Manager Focus

Who are the greatest coaches in the land? Football FanCast’s Manager Focus series aims to reveal all.

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However, the Scotsman is currently doing a brilliant job with Everton, and we aren’t even talking about him in this instance. Instead, the coach the Hammers should bring back to the London Stadium is Edin Terzić.

Yes, while the 42-year-old has never been the East Londoners’ manager, he was the assistant to Slaven Bilić during the Croatian’s time at the helm between 2015 and 2017, a period in which the club notched up some impressive wins against the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City.

The German tactician took up his first head coach role in December 2020 when he was appointed as Borussia Dortmund’s interim manager following the departure of Lucien Favre.

The boyhood Dortmund fan was an instant hit at the Signal Iduna Park, overseeing 20 wins, four draws and just eight losses, which saw the team finish in third place, just a point off RB Leipzig.

More importantly, though, he managed to win the DFB Pokal, beating Leipzig 4-1 in the final, which was likely more than the club could have hoped for when appointing him.

The Menden-born would be given the job permanently a year later, following the firing of Marco Rose at the end of the 21/22 season.

It didn’t take long for the “incredible” manager, as dubbed by former Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke, to work his magic as the German giants found themselves in a title race, losing out on goal difference on the final day.

While such a bitter disappointment would be enough to destroy some coaches, the Hammers assistant remained in the job and led Dortmund on an incredible Champions League run the following year, which saw them make the final, only to lose out to perennial winners Real Madrid.

He opted to leave his role following that game and has been without a club since.

In all, the still young coach has overseen 128 matches in his managerial career, winning 75, drawing 24 and losing just 29, which comes out to a points per game average of 1.95, which is significantly better than Nuno’s average of 1.71 points per game.

Terzic’s Managerial career

Games

128

Wins

75

Losses

29

Draws

24

Points per Game

1.95

Goals For

267

Goals Against

153

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Ultimately, while the former Forest man would be a great hire, we can’t help but think Terzic would be the more ambitious option, as his record at Dortmund shows.

Related Ex-Tottenham prospect emerging as favourite to replace Potter at West Ham

He was once in the Lilywhites reserves during his playing career.

Posts ByEmilio Galantini Sep 16, 2025

MatériaMais Notícias

Dois jovens promissores estão chamando atenção no carioca sub-20. São eles, o meia João Pedro Murilo, do Vasco e o zagueiro Cleiton, do Flamengo.

João Pedro, ou JP como é conhecido, é volante de origem, mas que recentemente começou a utilizar a camisa 10 do Cruz-Maltino. Convocado pela primeira vez por Ramon Menezes em maio, para treinar com a Seleção Brasileira Sub-20 no período de preparação para o Mundial da mesma categoria, se destacou pelo sub-17 na temporada 2022 (40 jogos, 6 gols e 11 assistências) e disputou a Copa São Paulo de Futebol Junior com o Vasco nesta temporada, quando foi promovido ao sub-20. Nesta temporada, o meio-campista tem 10 jogos – nove como titular – e três assistências no sub-20.

O jogador vem de grandes conquistas pela base vascaína. Em 2021 venceu o Carioca sub-17, marcando dois gols na competição. Já em 2022, foi campeão da Copa Rio sub-17. O meia de 18 anos foi crucial para carimbar a vaga do time para a final. JP marcou seu primeiro gol pelo Vasco na partida de ida da semifinal do torneio, na vitória de 2 a 1 contra o Botafogo.

Já Cleiton, é mais conhecido da torcida rubro-negra. Já tendo atuado pelo time profissional desde o ano passado, o defensor reforça a base do clube sempre que necessário, para seguir com ritmo.

Constantemente elogiado pela comissão técnica, o zagueiro recebeu recentemente propostas para deixar o Flamengo, mas o clube não fechou negócio. A última vez que foi relacionado para o profissional foi contra o Ñublense-CHI, pela Copa Libertadores no dia 24 de maio. Pelo Campeonato Carioca sub-20, o zagueiro já deixou anotado três gols na competição.

A final do Campeonato Carioca sub-20 acontece nos dois próximos finais de semana. O jogo de ida será no sábado (8), às 10h, na Gávea. A volta está marcada para o dia 15, às 15h, em São Januário.

Leeds United won the Championship title with a staggering haul of 100 points in the 2024/25 campaign, but they knew that the jump up to the Premier League was still a huge one.

The last six teams to have been promoted to the top-flight have all gone straight back down in the last two seasons, which illustrates the size of the task ahead for Daniel Farke’s Whites, Sunderland, and Burnley.

Unfortunately, though, Leeds ended the summer transfer window without doing all the business that they wanted to do in the forward areas, as they missed out on a deadline day deal for Harry Wilson.

The only attacker the Whites paid a transfer fee for in the window was Switzerland forward Noah Okafor, who joined from AC Milan for a reported £18m.

The 25-year-old winger only scored seven goals in 57 matches for Milan and Napoli in the last two seasons combined, per Sofascore, and was an unused substitute against Newcastle United last time out.

Another one of the club’s attacking signings over the summer who still has a big question mark hanging over him is centre-forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who joined on a free transfer from Everton.

Why Dominic Calvert-Lewin is a risk signing for Leeds

Speaking earlier this month, Leeds United’s managing director Robbie Evans explained the reasoning behind the signing: “When you acquire a new player, you’re making a sacrifice somewhere as far as their age, their experiences, their ceiling, their character or their injury history.

“Something is not going to be perfect, unless they are the highly expensive player. We’d rather take somebody that’s got the experience, the physicality, the profile, the goal record and the character, and bet on ourselves to keep them healthy, than take somebody who doesn’t have that ceiling.”

These are interesting comments from Evans and understandable to a point. Calvert-Lewin is a vastly experienced Premier League performer who has been there and done it in the past, but the main issue is that his best performances are well and truly in the past.

The former England international has failed to hit double digits for goals in the Premier League in any of the last four seasons, and has underperformed his xG in all nine of his seasons in the division.

Calvert-Lewin’s Premier League career

Season

xG

Goals

24/25

8.85

3

23/24

13.63

7

22/23

6.50

2

21/22

6.22

5

20/21

18.21

16

19/20

16.11

13

18/19

6.17

6

17/18

5.44

4

16/17

1.25

1

Stats via Understat

As you can see in the table above, Calvert-Lewin is a wasteful finisher who has not provided much in the way of quality since the last season without crowds at games.

Evans also mentioned the injury risk, which is a big one with the striker, because the forward has missed 112 matches through injury in his career, per Transfermarkt.

The 28-year-old attacker is, therefore, an incredibly risky signing for Leeds because his goal record and his injury record both suggest that the Whites may struggle to get much of an impact out of him this season.

Time will tell whether or not that risk will end up being worth it or not, as it is now up to Calvert-Lewin to get his career back on track, but Leeds may regret letting go of a number nine who has outperformed the Englishman in recent years.

Where Are They Now

Your star player or biggest flop has left the club but what are they doing in the present day? This article is part of Football FanCast’s Where Are They Now series.

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Spanish striker Rafa Mujica left Elland Road to sign for Las Palmas on a free transfer, per Transfermarkt, in the summer of 2021, and has since gone on to shine in multiple countries.

Why Leeds must regret releasing Rafa Mujica

The young centre-forward went out on loan to various teams across Spain during his spell with Leeds before they ultimately decided that he was not going to make the grade in West Yorkshire and let him join Las Palmas for nothing.

He had failed to score more than four goals in any of his loan spells, per Transfermarkt, which may be why the club were willing to let him go in 2021, but they may look back on that decision with regret considering what the star has gone on to achieve.

Mujica really hit his stride at first-team level after his move that saw him sign for Arouca from Las Palmas in 2022. The Spanish marksman scored 14 goals in 32 matches in his first season in Portgual, per Transfermarkt.

Since the end of that season, from the summer of 2023 onwards, the former Leeds academy starlet has significantly outperformed Calvert-Lewin as a goalscorer in the past two seasons.

Mujica, who signed for Qatar-based side Al-Sadd last year, has scored 44 goals in all competitions for Arouca and Al-Sadd since the summer of 2023.

23/24 + 24/25

Rafa Mujica

Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Appearances

65

26

Minutes played

5,297

4,243

Goals

44

11

Minutes per goal

120

385

Assists

9

5

Stats via Transfermarkt

As you can see in the table above, the 26-year-old striker has scored 33 more goals and provided four more assists than Calvert-Lewin in the last two years, with a far more impressive minutes per goal ratio.

Mujica, who was hailed as “magnificent” by former boss Pepe Mel, also outperformed his xG of 16.27 to score 20 goals in the Portuguese top-flight in the 2023/24 campaign, per Sofascore.

These statistics suggest that the Spanish attacker is far more clinical and lethal in front of goal than Calvert-Lewin, having delivered at a decent level in Portugal and, now, in Qatar.

Whilst he is an unproven quantity in England and the Premier League, Mujica appears to be a far better player and far more valuable asset than he was when Leeds decided to let him join Las Palmas on a free transfer four years ago.

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Posts ByDan Emery Sep 8, 2025

This is why supporters may look back on the decision to release Mujica as a poor one, particularly given the risks that the club have had to take with the signing of Calvert-Lewin in the hope that he can fire them to survival in the Premier League.

حرص المهندس هاني أبوريدة رئيس الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم، وأعضاء المجلس حمادة الشربيني ومصطفى أبو زهرة ومحمد أبو حسين وطارق أبو العنين على مساندة ودعم منتخب مصر تحت 17 عاما قبل المشاركة في بطولة كأس العالم في قطر.

ويشارك منتخب مصر، بقيادة المدير الفني أحمد الكأس، في منافسات بطولة كأس العالم تحت 17 سنة، المقرر إقامته في قطر، خلال الفترة من 3 نوفمبر إلى 27 نوفمبر 2025.

وتحدث أبو ريدة مع اللاعبين عن ضرورة بذل أقصى ما لديهم في المرحلة المقبلة من أجل تشريف الكرة المصرية.

طالع | نتائج قرعة كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا.. منتخب مصر مع إنجلترا

وأشار أبو ريدة في اجتماعه مع اللاعبين، إلى أنه كان حريصا على توفير كافة طلبات الجهاز الفني بقيادة أحمد الكاس من أجل الوصول إلى أبعد نقطة في كأس العالم.

كما تواجد الجهاز الفني للمنتخب الأول بقيادة حسام حسن وإبراهيم حسن مدير المنتخب وطارق سليمان المدرب العام، من أجل حث اللاعبين على ضرورة بذل أقصى ما لديهم في البطولة.

وأكد حسام حسن في كلمته، أن جميع اللاعبين تحت أنظار جهاز المنتخب وأن فرصة تواجدهم في المنتخب الأول قائمة حال تألقهم مع المنتخب وأنديتهم.

وأسفرت القرعة، عن وقوع منتخب مصر تحت 17 عامًا في المجموعة الخامسة مع منتخبات إنجلترا وفنزويلا وهايتي.

Queensland captain confirms Khawaja will play in the Sheffield Shield final after last week’s fitness saga

Alex Malcolm25-Mar-2025

Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne chat at training•Getty Images

Captain Marnus Labuschagne has confirmed that Usman Khawaja will play for Queensland in the Sheffield Shield final and believes last week’s public spat will high performance manager Joe Dawes will “improve his performance” rather than distract him.Khawaja, 38, has been the subject of an unusual media drama in the lead-up to the final after missing the last match of the regular season against South Australia at Karen Rolton Oval.Related

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Dawes spoke last Wednesday claiming Khawaja did not have any hamstring issues that they were aware of and said, “it’s just disappointing he didn’t play a game for Queensland when he had an opportunity to.”Queensland Cricket board member Ian Healy had also made strong comments on his SEN radio show saying, “It’s just this pick and choose mentality that has been evident in his later years that Queensland haven’t been happy with.”Khawaja fired back in an emotional and lengthy press conference, saying the accusations of him not having an injury were “categorically untrue” and that he was disappointed and disheartened by claims that he didn’t want to play for Queensland despite spending five days in Melbourne at the Australian Formula One Grand Prix while the Shield game was going on.Labuschagne confirmed that Khawaja would definitely play in the final at Karen Rolton Oval on Wednesday and was confident that Australia’s Test opener wouldn’t be distracted after a turbulent week.”No, not at all,” Labuschagne said at the captains’ pre-game press conference. “If anything, it’ll probably improve his performance. He just loves the big moments. He’s been an amazing player for a long time, so I don’t think he’s going to have any issues with going out there and performing at his best.”Queensland captain Marnus Labuschagne and South Australia captain Nathan McSweeney pose with the Sheffield Shield trophy•Getty Images

South Australia captain Nathan McSweeney, who was Khawaja’s opening partner for the first three Tests of the Border-Gavaskar series and is a former Queensland team-mate, said he had spoken to Khawaja in the lead-up to the final and expected him to perform well.”He wanted to see if he could get a tee time at Kooyonga,” McSweeney said. “So I did send him a cheeky text. But he’s all good. “He’s a professional player, has been for a long time now, and I think he’ll be definitely ready here tomorrow, and he’ll be a massive wicket for us.”Queensland’s staff put together a video of former Shield winning players sending their well wishes to the current team, which the squad watched on the big screen at Karen Rolton Oval before training on Tuesday.Labuschagne would not confirm Queensland’s final XI, but they will need to make at least one change from the side that drew with South Australia to accommodate Khawaja’s return. The concern for Queensland will be trying to take 20 wickets after claiming just 12 in four days last week, with Labuschagne taking four of them with his part-time medium pace.How a drawn final is decided

In the event the Sheffield Shield final ends in a draw, the title will be decided on first-innings bonus points which are accrued across the first 100 overs.

Batting teams earn 0.01 of a bonus point for every run scored over 200 in the initial 100 overs; bowling sides get 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket in the first 100 overs. For example, the batting side scores 350 all out in 90 overs they earn 1.5 points and the bowling side 1 point.

Should bonus points be tied and the match drawn, SA will win the Shield given they finished top of the ladder and earned hosting rights for the final.

“The wicket is probably not as hard as it was for last week’s game here,” he said. “I think there’s probably a little bit more moisture in it. The grass is probably a fraction longer. But obviously [curator] Trent [Kelly] hasn’t cut it yet, so we’ll have to wait and see whether that gets cut in the morning.”I think, all in all, last week would have been a really good cricket wicket for a five-day game. South Australia had us in a position where if they really wanted to try and win the game, they probably could have pushed down that route.”Even last week, on that wicket that was quite flat, there could have been a result. So I don’t think there’s going to be any problem with trying to get a result this game.”South Australia squad: Nathan McSweeney (capt), Jordan Buckingham, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Henry Hunt, Jake Lehmann, Ben Manenti, Nathan McAndrew, Conor McInerney, Harry Nielsen, Lloyd Pope, Jason Sangha, Liam Scott, Henry ThorntonQueensland squad: Marnus Labuschagne (capt), Jack Clayton, Lachlan Hearne, Usman Khawaja, Angus Lovell, Ben McDermott, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Matthew Renshaw, Mark Steketee, Tom Straker, Mitchell Swepson, Callum Vidler, Jack Wildermuth

MatériaMais Notícias

O Santos conseguiu realizar um efeito suspensivo no Superior Tribunal de Justiça Desportiva (STJD). Após solicitação do Peixe, por enquanto, os próximos compromissos do clube serão realizados na Vila Belmiro, mas ainda sem a presença do público.

+ Até 70% OFF em produtos do Peixe para os torcedores fanáticos!

O Alvinegro Praiano recorre da pena concedida na sessão que julgou os episódios ocorridos na derrota para o Corinthians. O tribunal optou por punir o time com pagamento de multa no valor de R$ 80 mil e a realização de 8 jogos com portões fechados e com perda do mando de campo, ou seja, a 150 km de distância do seu estádio.

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O Santos divulgou uma nota sobre a conquista da suspensão da penalização e relatou o empenho para poder voltar a contar com seu torcedor em dias de jogos.

– A relatoria argumentou que a junção de penas de perda de mando de campo e portões fechados “não parece adequada”, como foi definido no julgamento em primeira instância. O Clube segue tentando que sua torcida volte às arquibancadas na Vila Belmiro o mais breve possível – manifestou o time.

A suspensão da pena santista é provisória. O Peixe poderá jogar na Vila Belmiro as três próximas partidas ou até que o novo julgamento da equipe seja realizado.

Com base nisso, se uma nova sessão não for feita pelo STJD neste intervalo, o Alvinegro poderá jogar Botafogo, Athletico Paranaense e Grêmio dentro de sua casa.

RELEMBRE ‘CAOS’ NO DUELO DIANTE DO CORINTHIANS

Com a derrota por 2 a 0 encaminhada no clássico contra o Corinthians, gritos contra o elenco, o ex-técnico Odair Hellmann e o presidente Andres Rueda começaram a ecoar no estádio, junto de bombas e artefatos pirotécnicos que foram arremessados no gramado a partir dos 40 minutos do segundo tempo.

Enquanto acontecia a confusão dentro do estádio, e os atletas eram escoltados para irem ao vestiário, a polícia e torcedores santistas entraram em confronto nos arredores do local.

Amazingly, Leeds United’s record at this early stage in the Premier League season lines up well to their positive start out of the blocks under Marcelo Bielsa during the 2020/21 season.

Directly after sealing promotion up to the big-time, the much-loved South American would steer the Whites to an unbelievable ninth final position, having initially picked up two wins from his side’s opening five clashes in the league.

Daniel Farke already has two victories under his belt, too, with the 3-1 success away at Wolverhampton Wanderers last time out further mirroring Leeds sides of old when it came to the clinical nature of their first-half display.

Of course, there is still a long way to go, but the German will be hoping he can pull off a similarly high finish down the line.

Leeds will no doubt feel a boost knowing Ao Tanaka is also slowly but surely returning to full fitness, with the Japanese midfielder going down as an instant revelation in the Championship.

The shrewd capture of Tanaka

The Whites really did win in the summer transfer market before embarking on their promotion adventure, as the likes of Jayden Bogle and Joe Rodon joined to enhance the defence, while Manor Solomon added more quality up top on loan from Tottenham Hotspur.

Yet, snapping up the services of Tanaka for just £2.9m from Fortuna Düsseldorf managed to slip under the initial radar.

However, it’s safe to say that Tanaka is now a well-known and much-loved presence at Elland Road, with the silky 27-year-old going on to collect five goals and two assists last campaign on the way to Farke and Co. returning to the Premier League.

He made such a blistering impact to proceedings that Farke would even label him as “unbelievable” for what he can offer, with those glowing words backed up by his well-rounded game when averaging both a 90% pass accuracy last season, while also getting stuck in with 4.3 duels per second-tier clash, as per Sofascore.

Further noted as being “difficult to dislodge” from the starting XI by Paul Robinson last season, it is testament to Leeds’ collective strengths so far this campaign that they haven’t been derailed by Tanaka’s injury issues.

While Tanaka has been sidelined, another astute capture achieved this summer has stood out, with the cost-effective buy perhaps going down as Leeds’ best foray in the market since the £2.9m deal to bring the number 22 to English shores.

Leeds have made their best signing since Tanaka

After all, Leeds have managed to bolster their midfield positions this summer, away from solely relying on more of Tanaka’s magic up a division.

Indeed, Anton Stach is also in the running to be considered Leeds’ smartest purchase since landing the Japan international last year, with the versatile 26-year-old costing £20m and proving to be worth all that cash alone just based on this fierce free-kick being hammered home at Molineux.

Wth an assist also next to his name, it’s clear that Leeds have struck gold already with another standout buy from the Bundesliga.

Yet, it could well be argued that Gabriel Gudmundsson is actually a better buy than Stach, despite his electric start to life in West Yorkshire, with the arrival of the Swede making the Whites feel far more assured about their problematic left-back spot.

While Leeds did recruit well when making the step-up, it was a clear body blow when Junior Firpo exited the building this summer, with the former Whites hero amassing ten assists last season from the left-back position.

This left Farke and Co. in a considerable spot of bother as Sam Byram was now the only recognised option on the left. Thankfully, Leeds would seal a deal to bring Gudmundsson for just £10m to fill the Firpo-shaped hole, with this looking to be a worthwhile bargain already.

Gudmundsson – PL stats

Stat – per 90 mins*

Gudmundsson

Games played

5

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Touches*

63.2

Accurate passes*

31.6 (81%)

Ball recoveries*

3.6

Clearances*

3.8

Total duels won*

4.2

Stats by Sofascore

Minus his own-goal horror show away at Fulham, Gudmundsson has been a solid addition, with his calming influence on the ball different to that of a gung-ho Firpo, but more effective in the Premier League.

Moreover, with 4.2 duels won on average, he has more than helped Leeds to pick up those two invaluable victories, with three duels successfully won on the road at the Old Gold. He was arguably the club’s “best player” in that latest victory.

Heralded as a “fantastic” addition to the camp already by ex-Leeds defender Tony Dorigo, it could well be that the Malmo-born star goes on to be viewed as another Tanaka-like bargain, particularly if his efforts steer the Whites to immediate survival and, potentially, even more.

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Posts ByCallum Kemp Sep 21, 2025