In an attempt to sharpen what has been a fairly blunt attack at times this season, Manchester United are now reportedly willing to offer as much as £66m to sign a reinforcement who just embarrassed Andre Onana.

Man Utd transfer news

It would be an understatement to suggest that Manchester United desperately need reinforcements. The Red Devils ditched Erik ten Hag for Ruben Amorim and the former Sporting Club boss has been given reality check after reality check ever since. Switching to his favoured 3-4-2-1 system, the new manager is quickly learning just who is capable of keeping up and just who he’ll likely show the door to, having already exiled Marcus Rashford.

Clearly not a fan of the forward, Amorim could yet receive an instant replacement for Rashford as soon as the January transfer window, with one impressive name already reportedly eyed.

According to reports in Spain, Manchester United are now willing to offer €80m (£66m) to sign Matheus Cunha in 2025, but face competition from Paris Saint-Germain in the race to land the Wolverhampton Wanderers star.

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The Red Devils’ interest should come as no surprise, given their need for a clinical goalscorer who suits Amorim’s system and just how ready Cunha seems for his first big move since the Atletico Madrid days. Whether Manchester United can lure Wolves into a sale remains to be seen, however.

The Brazilian will need no introduction to the Old Trafford faithful if he does arrive next year, of course, after playing a starring role in Wolves’ recent 2-0 win over Manchester United.

"Special" Cunha could solve Man Utd problem

If Amorim wants to use the power of Rasmus Hojlund to replicate the role that Viktor Gyokeres excelled in during his time at Sporting, then having a player like Cunha to play behind the forward could prove to be the key to finally unlocking goals galore at Manchester United.

The Brazilian may well be an instant upgrade on Joshua Zirkzee and his arrival would undoubtedly come as a relief to Onana, who was recently left embarrassed when Cunha scored straight from a corner on the way to a famous victory over the Red Devils.

It has not taken the Wolves star long to impress Vitor Pereira either, with the new manager recently telling reporters as relayed by the official Premier League website: “He is a special player. He can do things that can make the difference in small details.

“We try his corner because we want the swing inside to explore this. But you can work a lot and in the end nothing happens. With this kind of player this can happen. I think it is not about work, it is about quality, his individual quality.

“Matheus Cunha is a player, in my opinion, who can reach high standards in this league. I hope not [elsewhere] because we need him.”

Rangers look set to be without a key player ahead of their Scottish Premiership meeting with Kilmarnock this week, in a blow for manager Philippe Clement.

Clement clinging on as Rangers manager

The Gers picked up a much-needed victory in the league on Sunday afternoon, winning 1-0 away to St Johnstone to just about keep in touch with Celtic and Aberdeen, getting to within seven points of the latter and having a game in hand.

It was a result that has helped ease a little pressure on Clement, who continues to battle to save his job at Rangers, following an unconvincing start to the season. It was far from the greatest performance, however, with an own goal needed to get them over the line, and further improvements are needed.

Next up for the Gers is a league clash with Kilmarnock at Ibrox on Wednesday evening, with Celtic making the trip to Aberdeen at the same time, meaning at least one of their rivals will drop points.

Another win is essential for Rangers, not only in terms of their slim title hopes, but also when it comes to Clement remaining in charge heading into Christmas. With the match not too far away, an injury blow has emerged from the St Johnstone game, though.

"Unlucky" Rangers player could miss Kilmarnock game

Speaking after Sunday’s action, Clement admitted that Dujon Sterling could miss Rangers’ visit of Killie, having to see a specialist to get to the bottom of a blocked nerve issue.

“Dujon is unlucky, because it’s not a real injury. It’s a blocked nerve, so he has to see a specialist to unblock it, to get treatment and because of that, he was not available today. We will see if he’s available on Wednesday or not. It’s not a long-term thing, but those things happen.”

Being without Sterling on Wednesday night would be a blow for Rangers, considering he has featured plenty this season, making 10 appearances in the Scottish Premiership, as well as playing four times in the Europa League, even registering an assist in last week’s 4-1 win away to Nice.

Meanwhile, Michael Stewart spoke of his admiration for the 25-year-old after he signed a new deal at Ibrox, saying back in October: “We are delighted that Dujon has committed his future to the club. He has become a vital member of the squad over the past year since I came to the club, showing his potential in several positions and always being ready for the team.

“We are going to continue working hard together with him to get everything out of his abilities and believe he will continue to have a big impact on the squad.”

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On the plus side, Clement hasn’t completely ruled the £22,000-a-week Sterling out of the midweek game at Ibrox, but the fact that he missed St Johnstone and is seeing a specialist does suggest that he may have to sit it out.

After such a disastrous start to the season, Rangers have been back to their best in recent weeks, and could now get another boost in the form of a returning player for the first time in 15 games against Ross County.

Rangers injury news

Still 11 points behind Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic despite their recent resurgence, Rangers may be left with no choice but to set their focus on moving ahead of Aberdeen and at least into the top two once again. It’s a more realistic goal given that they sit just four points behind them with a game in hand, with the Gers having been boosted by seven games without defeat.

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Among their improved results have been victories over Nice in the Europa League in thumping fashion and a recent 6-0 thrashing of Kilmarnock ahead of their clash against Ross County this weekend.

The good news, in what is a relief for the under-pressure Philippe Clement, looks set to continue for those at Ibrox, who are set to receive a welcome injury boost ahead of Sunday’s game.

As confirmed by Clement, Oscar Cortes could now make his long-awaited return against Ross County after missing the last 15 games in all competitions through injury. The winger may finally have the chance to get a run of games under his belt after suffering constant setbacks on the injury front.

Providing an update on the potential returns of Cortes and Rabbi Matondo, Clement told reporters (as relayed by Football Scotland): “Rabbi Matondo and Oscar Cortes were in full training today for the first time, so that is positive news.”

Of course, the Belgian won’t want to rush either player back, but there’s no doubt that Cortes’ return in particular should provide Rangers with another much-needed boost.

"Direct" Cortes can finally make his mark

After injury cut his loan spell short last season, it looked as though Cortes would make up for lost time when he arrived on a permanent deal during the summer transfer window, only for injury to strike the Rangers star once again.

Missing the last nine league games in what has been a mixed Rangers run, Cortes now finally has the chance to kickstart his Ibrox career.

Described as “direct” and someone who “has an eye for goal” as he was on his way to Rangers by South American football journalist Nathan Joyes, there’s clearly still a talented player in Cortes.

Whether the Ross County game comes too soon for a return remains to be seen, but forthcoming games against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League and a must-win Old Firm derby against Celtic could see the return of Cortes at last.

Aston Villa are understood to be in regular talks with an Italian club who are interested in landing one of their key players.

Aston Villa latest news

After a poor run that saw them win just once in nine games across all competitions, Aston Villa now seem to have rediscovered their best form. Unai Emery’s side have won four of their last five games in all competitions, most recently beating struggling Manchester City in the Premier League at the weekend.

Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers were both on the scoresheet in an impressive 2-1 victory, which manager Emery described as a “great day” at the office.

“Manchester City are a very difficult team and I think we played fantastic,” said the Spanish coach. “Every player, in the tactical structure, was fantastic, defensively and offensively. Their commitment to do everything we worked on before the match was very important.I think every player performed great. It was a really great day for the team and for individual players as well.”

Rogers, who was voted as the Man of the Match, said: “To a man, I thought we were outstanding, so I thought we deserved the win.”

Napoli readying new and improved Duran bid

Duran, Villa’s other scorer against City, has been the subject of intense interest from clubs all around Europe thanks to his scintillating displays this season. The Colombia international, who is rated at £80 million by Villa, has scored 12 goals in all competitions, including three in the Champions League – one of which was the only goal in Villa’s historic 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich.

FC Barcelona, Chelsea and Manchester United are all understood to be keen on the former MLS hitman. However, it seems as if it’s Napoli who might be winning the race for his signature. According to Il Mattino, as per Sports Witness, the Italian club have already made a £29 million offer for Duran, which was rejected.

The publication states that Napoli, however, aren’t prepared to stop and have sent across “signals” to Villa that a second offer of £33 million will be made soon. Napoli are having constant and “frenetic” phone calls with NSWE about the 21-year-old, who they see as a potential replacement for Victor Osimhen. They are yet to get anywhere close to Villa’s price tag however.

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Osimhen came close to joining Chelsea in the summer, but the proposed deal collapsed on deadline day, and he ended up joining Turkish side Galatasaray on-loan instead. Though he’s not expected to stay in Turkey beyond the end of the season, he is widely expected to leave Napoli, with Chelsea reportedly maintaining their interest in signing him.

Ex-Chelsea midfielder and Nigeria international John Obi-Mikel said in the summer that Osimhen “wanted” to move to Stamford Bridge.

The concept of retiring a batter out is really starting to bed into T20 cricket with Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Faf du Plessis contemplating walking off the field to allow the big-hitting Dinesh Karthik more time in the middle in their game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday.As it turned out, RCB lost a wicket off the second ball of the 19th over and in came the man with the highest strike rate (200) of anybody in IPL 2022 (min 24 balls faced). Karthik smashed an unbeaten 30 off only eight deliveries to lift the total up to 192 for 3Related

• Karthik: 'Doing everything I can to be part of the Indian team'

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• Ashwin becomes first batter to be tactically retired out in the IPL

“If he keeps hitting sixes like that, everyone always wants to get him in and bat for as long as possible. But he’s just so clear. I mean, to be honest with you, I was actually trying to get out because I was so tired to get DK in and we were even contemplating, you know, myself retiring,” du Plessis, who made 73 off 50, said with that last word in air quotes.Harsha Bhogle who was conducting the post-match presentation double-checked. “Retiring out?””Retiring out, yes,” du Plessis replied, “But then we lost that wicket. Yeah, DK is in such good form. But it was a tricky wicket. It wasn’t one of those wickets where you could just come in – I think it was not evident with DK but with other guys, the first few balls, they struggled. And then lucky for us, I think there was a dropped catch off DK in that one over and then he took them apart.”2:15

Retired out – yay or nay?

Last month, R Ashwin and Rajasthan Royals produced the first ever instance of an IPL batter retiring out as a purely tactical move, which gave Riyan Parag the chance to go in and hit some sixes. But that was a lower-order player, not renowned for his power-hitting, making way for a more recognised finisher. This – had it happened – may well have been even bigger because a specialist batter, with more than fifty runs to his name, would have quit his innings.du Plessis was effusive with his praise for the other players in the RCB set-up as well. “There’s some fantastic young Indian batters within our set up. Even someone like Suyash [Prabhudessai] who played three games and probably didn’t go the way he would have liked to, there’s some real talent there. And Rajat [Patidar] comes in and just plays with that freedom. Real cool calm composure about him and those are always really good traits for a youngster to have. And also Mahipal [Lomror] is also another young guy coming into the team. We’re very lucky that we have some real good Indian batting talent.Wanindu Hasaranga, for whom RCB shelled out INR 10.75 crore (USD 1.43 million approx), continues to impress. With his five-for against Sunriesrs, the legspinner is just one shy of becoming the top wicket-taker this season (21 from 12 matches).”Really happy for Wani,” du Plessis said. “I think personally he was looking for that one match where he blows right through the batting line-up. He’s been threatening to do that right throughout the campaign. So very happy that tonight was that night. He’s obviously one of those special bowlers, if you’re not picking him, and especially when you get to the lower-order batters, he can run through them quickly.”

Coleen Rooney has reportedly agreed a £10m documentary deal, but has been warned that said series could lead to “hatred or mockery towards Wayne”.

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Streaming giants battled for 'At Home With' showI'm A Celeb star happy to let cameras into her worldHusband has found coaching career difficultFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty/ITVWHAT HAPPENED?

After seeing her stock soar on the back of a runner-up finish in the 2024 edition of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, Coleen is said to have been inundated with offers when it comes to media work. Disney+ have battled it out with streaming rivals Amazon Prime for the right to give fans a fly-on-the-wall look at life in the Rooney household.

AdvertisementTHE GOSSIP

Coleen is excited by that project, but questions have been asked of whether husband Wayne is quite so enthralled, with the Manchester United legend currently back on punditry duty after enduring another flop in the coaching game at Plymouth.

GettyWHAT AN INSIDER SAID

An insider has told : “Coleen is really excited at the idea of having her own reality show, but some people are worried that it could cause tension between her and Wayne. Having kept a low-profile for so many years, stepping back into the limelight has renewed Coleen’s self-confidence. The only problem is Wayne is at a crossroads in his career and his friends worry being eclipsed by his wife could knock his self-esteem.”

DID YOU KNOW?

The source went on to say: “Her and Wayne’s mutual friends are worried that the producers might want to show Coleen as the one calling the shots at home, while Wayne could be portrayed as this kind of dithering background presence. But that’s more because he can be camera shy – reality TV just isn’t his thing. Coleen has had more experience – she’s a real natural.”

حقق ليفربول فوزًا ثمينًا على ضيفه ليستر سيتي بهدف نظيف في المباراة التي جمعتهما ضمن الجولة 32 من الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، ليواصل الفريق تصدره للترتيب برصيد 79 نقطة.

وجاء هدف الفوز عن طريق ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد، الذي سجّل هدفًا رائعًا من كرة ثابتة، ليقود فريقه نحو ثلاث نقاط ثمينة في مشواره نحو التتويج باللقب.

ورفض آرني سلوت، المدير الفني لفريق ليفربول، أن تتحول الأنظار إلى مستقبل ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد التعاقدي، مؤكدًا أن العنوان الأهم بعد هذه المباراة يجب أن يكون عن هدفه الحاسم، وليس وضع عقده.

وينتهي عقد أرنولد مع ليفربول في نهاية الموسم الحالي، ولم يُعلن بعد عن التوصل لاتفاق للتجديد، على عكس زميليه محمد صلاح وفيرجيل فان دايك وقد وقع كلاهما على العقود الجديدة بالفعل.

اقرأ أيضًا | جماهير ليفربول تختار أفضل لاعب في مباراة ليستر سيتي بـ الدوري الإنجليزي

وقال سلوت في تصريحات نشرها موقع ليفربول الرسمي: “العنوان اليوم يجب أن يكون عن الهدف الذي سجّله أرنولد وليس عن عقده”.

وأضاف: “لكن ما يمكنني قوله هو أنه سيكون من السخيف أن يشكك أحد في التزامه تجاه هذا النادي، بالنظر إلى الجهد الكبير الذي بذله للعودة والمشاركة اليوم وتسجيل هذا الهدف المهم، وكل ما قدمه للنادي طوال السنوات التي قضاها هنا”.

وشدد: “في رأيي، لا يمكن لأحد أن يُشكك في التزامه تجاه ليفربول، لذا، دعوا العناوين تتحدث عن هدفه الرائع، وليس عن وضع عقده”.

Gujarat Titans fell short in the last over and lost their second game in a row

Sidharth Monga06-May-20223:30

Are Pollard’s powers on the wane?

Almost out of the tournament, needing a lot of permutations and combinations in the rest of the tournament to stay alive, Mumbai Indians still gave their raucous home crowd something to cheer about, defending eight runs in the last over with six Gujarat Titans wickets in handTitans, who have snatched wins from the jaws of defeat on a few occasions earlier in the tournament with some incredible six-hitting, took the defeat out of a victory’s grasp thanks to quick ones and twos that resulted in run-outs.For about 33 overs between the Mumbai powerplay and the last over of the match, Titans looked on track for a win that would all but seal their qualifications to the playoffs. They restricted Mumbai to 177 despite a flying start, Rohit Sharma’s best in all IPL matches. Then both Titans openers got fifties followed by quick innings from Hardik Pandya and David Miller. However, thanks to the run-outs, Titans contrived to lose on a night that Jasprit Bumrah went for 48 runs.Rohit shows form
Rohit began the match with an average of 17 and a strike rate of 123 this IPL, but looked in great touch. He took on Alzarri Joseph to begin with but went after every bowler in the first six overs, scoring 42, more than he has ever done inside an IPL powerplay. The smooth hitting was back on display. Ishan Kishan was not so smooth, benefiting from an edge or three, but he too kept scoring quickly. The 63 for 0 after six overs was easily their best powerplay in a disappointing season.Rashid strikes back
Teams have decided to not give wickets to Rashid Khan and Sunil Narine even if it means playing them out at a sub-optimal run rate. Rashid came into this match with just nine wickets but at under seven an over. Rohit, though, was looking to attack everyone because this was a good pitch and they needed a big total. Rashid went for 13 in his first, bowled inside the powerplay. In Rashid’s second, all it took was two dots to bring out the reverse-sweep. Rashid, though, was too accurate for that and trapped him lbw.2:51

Vettori, Bishop laud Sams’ execution of slower balls

Middle-overs muddle
Three Mumbai batters scored more than 40 runs at a strike rate higher than 150, but their eventual score was the lowest among 134 such T20 innings. Kieron Pollard, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav scored 38 off 41 between them to offset 132 off 78 between Rohit, Ishan Kishan and Tim David.Pollard, especially, was a slightly strange choice to walk in during the 13th over when he was going to play out Lockie Ferguson and Rashid. He was looking to play Rashid out, but Rashid was good enough to turn a legbreak past his forward-defensive and hit the top of off.To their credit, Titans responded well to the powerplay by mixing the pace in the rest of the innings to restrict Mumbai. David, who took them to 177 with two sixes in the final over, was despondent at the halfway mark, saying they were well short.The Saha-Gill show
 At the start of the chase, Saha continued his excellent intent and took the pressure off Gill, who has been short of a gallop. He went after Bumrah, using his pace, taking 25 off nine balls in his first two overs, more than anyone has taken off Bumrah in a T20 powerplay. Around the end of the powerplay, it was Gill, who took the load off Saha, who tends to slow down once the field is spread. He took a six and a four off M Ashwin followed by a hat-trick of fours off Daniel Sams and then a six and a four off left-arm wristspinner Kumar Kartikeya.Now Gill must have fancied Ashwin after his earlier success off him, but it was perhaps time for Saha to go after the bowling and for Gill to set up to bat through. However, Gill was the first one to attack and holed out at the start of the 13th over. Saha followed in the same over, top-edging a sweep.Titans run themselves outHardik Pandya, though, continued in the flow he has managed through the season. Despite the hit-wicket dismissal of Sai Sudharsan – trying to hit the pants off a slower bouncer from Pollard and losing the bottom hand on the bat – Titans were on track, needing 22 off 15.This is when Pandya called David Miller through for a quick single when the ball was rolling through to the keeper. A dive or a full stretch would have got Pandya in, but the replays surprised him, catching him on the line when the wicket lit up.In the 19th over, despite an off night, Bumrah created some tension, conceding just four off four. Miller, though, seemed to have sealed the chase when he hit the fifth, a short ball, for a flat six to make it 10 required off seven balls.At eight off five, Rahul Tewatia missed a slower ball from Sams. Off the next ball, he tried a second but couldn’t make it despite a slow and an off-target throw from deep midwicket. Rashid took a single off the fourth ball to give it to Miller with six required off two.Sams managed to go past the bat on both occasions with full and wide slower balls.

West Bromwich Albion have become draw specialists in the Championship this season to the obvious frustration of their fans watching on.

After Sunday’s 2-2 draw with fellow promotion candidates Sheffield United, the Baggies are now up to a startling 11 draws in second tier action from 20 total games, as the West Midlands side begin to worry that these near-misses piling up could stunt their promotion chances.

These draws can be stomached easier when you also consider Carlos Corberan’s men have only lost two times all campaign long, alongside the fact top quality stars in attack such as Josh Maja and Karlan Grant are more than capable of firing in the goals needed for an ongoing promotion hunt.

West Brom's quality in attack

Both players in question had arguably been written off in a West Brom shirt before now coming into their own, with Maja injury-prone last season and Grant loaned out to Cardiff City having found his minutes to be infrequent at the Hawthorns.

Maja is up to double digits with ten strikes tallied up from 20 league contests, whilst his 27-year-old teammate boasts five strikes away from the ex-Sunderland man stealing the spotlight, with three of those coming in his side’s last six second-tier clashes.

Ultimately, Corberan will hope more wins come his side’s way off the back of these entertaining attacking displays, as a victory has now eluded his men in their last four outings in the difficult division.

The Spaniard would love to call upon this other option up top if he wasn’t still sidelined with injury to help their search, which has proven to be a major problem for the £7m Baggies buy throughout his stay to date.

Why Daryl Dike must finally be sold

There was a notable buzz in the air when Daryl Dike swapped America for the Championship in January of 2022, having shone in the EFL for Barnsley previously, before making the switch to West Brom happen.

Dike would fire home a promising nine strikes from 22 games donning a Tykes strip before the Baggies swooped in, with then West Brom boss Valerien Ismael making him a statement buy after he had got the 6 foot 2 ace purring when the pair were together at Oakwell.

Ismael would even state at the time of his signing that Dike had “everything” you’d want in a top striker, with acrobatic efforts like this one managed for Barnsley understandably exciting those at his new club:

Unfortunately, whilst his spell in South Yorkshire was a dream, his time at West Brom has been nothing short of a nightmare, with the 24-year-old only fit for action 32 times across a gruelling three-season stay.

Dike’s numbers at West Brom
Stat	Dike
Games played	32
Goals scored	8
Assists	1
Days missing due to injury	744
Games missing due to injury	121
Sourced by Transfermarkt

Looking at the table above, the eight goals next to Dike’s name make for some early positive reading, but the amount of games the former Orlando City man has missed due to recurring injury issues is alarming.

Missing a gigantic 121 games owing to injury – which adds up to 744 days and counting sidelined – a tough conversation will soon need to take place with Dike over his future at the club, with no real concrete update out in the open over when he will next be available for Corberan to select.

Earning a hefty £32.3k-per-week too whilst still being a permanent fixture in the treatment room, selling on Dike down the line when he’s fit enough to exit looks to be the most plausible ending for the American at the Hawthorns.

This would be a very disappointing end for the towering striker at the second-tier outfit, after he was once seen as a signing that could help the Baggies seal promotion back up to the Premier League.

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Kelan Sarson

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Aston Villa’s generally impressive season continues.

On Saturday, the Claret and Blue Army beat Leicester 2-1, thanks to goals from Ross Barkley and then Leon Bailey, meaning they’re now unbeaten in ten Premier League home games, winning four of the last five.

Unai Emery’s team are currently eighth, a little bit lower than they’d surely have hoped, albeit the fact Villa are fifth in the gigantic Champions League table, on course to go straight through to the round of 16, means one has to cut them a bit of slack.

Nevertheless, continuing to juggle both continental and domestic commitments, the Villans will surely be looking to strengthen their squad in January, so it’s set to be a busy month in the Midlands.

Aston Villa lining up new wing-back

According to a report from Spain, Aston Villa are interested in signing Celta Vigo defender Óscar Mingueza, with Fabrizio Romano on Twitter adding that the Villans “have started talks to explore” the potential move.

It’s believed that Mingueza has a release clause of €20m (around £16.5m) although, as reported by others, they plan to negotiate in an attempt to secure his signature at a lower price or to avoid paying the entire fee up front.

Of course, both manager Emery as well as President of Football Operations Monchi know the Spanish market very well, so it’s no surprise they’ve looked to La Liga for reinforcements.

Mingueza is a La Masia graduate, joining Barcelona at the age of eight, making 66 appearances for Barça’s first-team, most-notably starting their Copa del Rey Final victory over Real Sociedad in April 2021, having scored in el Clásico at Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano a week earlier, albeit in vain as Real Madrid prevailed 2-1 in the pouring rain.

However, after falling out of favour the following season under Xavi, Mingueza was sold to Celta Vigo for just €3m (£2.5m), albeit they do have a 50% sell-on clause, so the Catalan giants would earn a much-needed windfall should Villa secure their man.

Now 25-years-old, he’s made 82 appearances for O Celtiña, starting 16 of their 18 La Liga matches during this campaign so far, hence why Celta boss Claudio Giráldez will be determined not to lose him.

Transfer Focus

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

Expand Collapse How Mingueza could improve Aston Villa's defence

Mingueza is a very versatile player, predominantly deployed at right-wing-back in Celta Vigo’s 3-4-3, although he has filled in on the opposite side six times this season, including during their most-recent league fixture, a 2-0 victory over Real Sociedad at Balaídos just before Christmas.

His impressive club form saw him start Spain’s UEFA Nations League clash with Switzerland in Tenerife in November, just his second senior cap and first for over three years.

So, what could he offer Emery’s side? Well, European football expert Zach Lowy on Twitter notes that Mingueza began his senior career as a César Azpilicueta-esque centre-back/right-back “hybrid”, but has now become a “buccaneering wing-back” who can both “invert and push forward”.

Meantime, according to Data MB football’s performance index, Mingueza is the joint-second best-performing full-back in La Liga this season, behind only Jules Koundé of Barcelona.

So how does he compare to Aston Villa’s existing right-back Matty Cash?

Óscar Mingueza vs Matty Cash 24/25 comparison

Statistic

Óscar Mingueza

Matty Cash

Appearances

19

15

Minutes

1,499

1,148

Assists

5

0

Expected assists

4.3

0.4

Progressive carries

41

23

Passes attempted

1031

555

Pass completion %

75.8%

82%

Tackles

20

37

Blocks

15

11

Interceptions

10

15

Touches

1158

683

Statistics courtesy of FBref.com

As outlined in the table, Mingueza and Cash are stylistically very different.

The Spaniard ranks significantly higher for attacking metrics, assists and progressive carries, helped by the fact he’s playing wing-back, while the data suggests Cash is more defensively solid, racking up more tackles and interceptions.

However, as outlined by Ahmed Walid of the Athletic, Villa’s width comes from their full-backs, suggesting Mingueza would be a good fit and potentially even an upgrade on their current options.

Also, Cash has already missed nine matches this season due to a hamstring and then a calf injury, leading to Ezri Konsa being forced to fill in at right-back on ten occasions already, with youngsters Lamare Bogarde and Kosta Nedeljković the only natural deputies.

Thus, as alluded to earlier, Villa’s Champions League commitments mean games will continue to come thick and fast, with right-back an obvious area in which a reinforcement would be helpful.

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Posts ByStephan Georgiou Feb 3, 2025