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Pundit Kevin Campbell has been reacting to Celtic’s interest in Yokohama F. Marinos forward Daizen Maeda, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Maeda profiled

Maeda, clocked as the quickest player in Japan, can play centrally or out wide, similar to his international teammate and Hoops star Kyogo Furuhashi.

The 24-year-old netted 18 times in 31 appearances last season, taking his tally for his current employers to 21 goals in 65 games.

He’s valued at just £990,000 by Transfermarkt and is under contract until 2024, and it seems as if the Hoops are plotting their move.

The Latest: Celtic links, Campbell reacts

According to The Times, Celtic are confident of landing Maeda in the New Year, with Ange Postecoglou knowing the forward well following his time in charge of the J1 League side.

Campbell, who regularly features on Sky Sports, was talking to Football Insider regarding the links to Maeda.

“Someone who can put the ball in the back of the net is worth their weight in gold.

“I am not surprised Celtic are interested in him. His record speaks for itself, even if it is in the J-League.

“Get him in and get him scoring goals. Postecoglou has already made it clear that there will be some extra bodies coming in in January. It looks like he could be one of them.”

The Verdict: Needed?

Furuhashi has scored 19% of Celtic’s 26 goals in the Scottish Premiership this season, so bringing in a player like Maeda in the winter window could give the Hoops that extra firepower required for the second half of the season.

Postecoglou has only really used Albian Ajeti from the off when he has been down to the bare bones, whereas Giorgos Giakoumakis is only now starting to reach full fitness with his first start and goal last weekend.

On that basis, adding to their attacking ranks with a player who can also fill in out wide could be handy, especially with right-back Anthony Ralston scoring as many league goals as Ajeti and Giakoumakis combined so far.

In other news: ‘That has been alleged’ – Devlin’s worrying answer on ‘quick’ Celtic signing and Dermot Desmond. 

Sri Lankan coach Trevor Bayliss believes the ploy of going into the third and final Test against Pakistan with one spinner has not worked to their advantage

Sa'adi Thawfeeq22-Jul-2009

Sri Lankan coach Trevor Bayliss believes the ploy of going into the third and final Test against Pakistan with one spinner has not worked to their advantage. The visitors batted themselves into a strong position on the third day at the SSC, with their lead swelling to 366 and Sri Lanka facing an uphill battle.”We felt the absence of a second spinner and regret not having played one,” said Bayliss. “If we had played two spinners it doesn’t guarantee you anything, but it would have given us more options. Our attack in this game has lacked a little bit in variety.”Sri Lanka left out spinner Ajantha Mendis and opted for four seamers, giving veteran fast bowler Chaminda Vaas an opportunity to make his farewell appearance in Tests.”Pakistan have played well in this match and batted quite well,” Bayliss said. “Misbah [ul-Haq] and [Shoaib] Malik put their heads down today and looked like they really meant business. They grafted out for two hours and once they got in they started to blossom. I thought they batted really well.”Pakistan put a partnership together and batted well and on the flattest wicket we’ve played on in the series. A few balls out there turned today and that will happen over the next two days. It’s probably been the best conditions to bat. The ball seems to be more evenly paced and coming on to the bat, than the first few days when it was slow and some were a bit quicker and somewhat two-paced.”Bayliss also said the team regretted not having scored more runs in the first innings. “So far we haven’t got batters out of form but batters out of big runs,” he said. “They are all striking the ball well and playing nicely. The difference in this series and in the last couple of years is that they haven’t gone on to make the big scores. This is something a little bit out of the ordinary.”They’ll be looking to turn that around in the second innings. It’s not a real concern chasing down runs. We know we have quality players and we may not be too far down the track before they start producing those big scores once again.”Bayliss said Sri Lanka’s first priority tomorrow would be to take the remaining five wickets as soon as possible. “If we don’t, it’s left to Pakistan and what sort of a target they want to set us. We certainly won’t be giving up. Whatever the target is, we’ll be trying to bat for a long time and score the runs. It’s not impossible to bat on this wicket as the guys showed today. It will start to take a little more turn in the next couple of days but we’ve got some quality players who have scored big runs on these types of wickets before. I am pretty happy with the effort put in by the boys today.”Pakistan batsman Shoaib Malik who brought up only his second Test century said he enjoyed batting at the SSC, the venue where he scored his maiden hundred. “Even on that occasion I had to save the team from defeat,” Malik said. “This ground is quite a lucky one for me. Today I thought no matter what I will just go out there and play my natural game. I got the same message from the captain and the coach. I’ve been telling myself a long time that we had to compensate for the two opportunities we missed out in the first two Tests.”Malik was also full of praise for Misbah-ul-Haq, with whom he put on 119 for the fifth wicket to take Pakistan to a commanding position. “After Sri Lanka took the first four wickets, the match was in their grasp,” Malik said. “The major thing was the way Misbah played and our partnership. Misbah was not in good form and he came back at a crucial stage. Once you’ve broken the bowlers’ confidence you can take them on and get some runs. The best time to bat on this wicket was between lunch and tea. We have performed well while batting in this Test. We are hoping the bowlers will produce something for us.”We’ve worked hard and learnt from our mistakes. The way the team is playing at the moment we have covered a lot of ground. The batting didn’t perform well in the first two Tests we got the opportunities but couldn’t win from there. This is a good batting wicket, turning a bit but not supporting the fast bowlers anymore. That’s what I felt when I was batting. What target we’ll set Sri Lanka depends on the captain and coach. We will play accordingly.”

Sven Botman appears to have confirmed there was interest in his services from Wolverhampton Wanderers and others during the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Wolves eye Botman

During the summer transfer window, the 6 foot 4 Botman was heavily linked with a move to Molineux (Sky Sports).

Liverpool were also interested in his services (via The Mirror), but he ended up staying with Lille, where he won Ligue 1 last term.

The Latest: Botman discusses interest

Speaking to NOS, Botman discussed the summer window. He had this to say when asked about interest from the likes of Wolves and Liverpool:

“I can’t lie about that.

“(The decision to stay came) from the club. But I didn’t think that was a bad idea in the end.

“I have a starting place and play in the Champions League so it’s certainly not wrong to stay. In football sometimes things go quickly – but I believe in the end everything will work out.”

The Verdict: Looking good

Botman burst onto the scene last term as part of Christophe Galtier’s back four for Les Dogues. All in all, he made 37 appearances in Ligue 1 for Lille as they captured the title from Paris Saint-Germain (Transfermarkt).

They conceded just 23 goals in the division, less than any other side (Sky Sports). He has been compared to Virgil van Dijk, which is obviously huge praise (via Give Me Sport).

Unsurprisingly, £25.2m-valued Botman (Transfermarkt) therefore attracted plenty of interest.

However, while Wolves are currently in 12th place in the Premier League table, their defensive record is impressive – only three sides have conceded less than their six goals, so perhaps the push to sign the towering Dutchman was not as crucial as it appeared.

In other news, this Wolves target is keen on a return to the Premier League.

A round-up of the fourth-round action from the Logan Cup as Northerns leapfrog Easterns at the top

Cricinfo staff24-Apr-2009

Northerns took over the lead of in the 2008-09 Logan Cup with a rousing innings-and-290-run thrashing of Centrals at Harare’s Alexandra Sports Club.Northerns massive first innings of 510 for 9 was built around Regis Chakabva’s career-best 131 and good contributions from Brendan Taylor (95) and Tatenda Taibu (92). Taylor was playing in Zimbabwe for the first time since last year after striking a deal with board officials, but he is unlikely to feature again in the Logan Cup as he is due to leave to take up a club commitment in England in the next few days.Centrals never looked likely to offer any serious resistance and were bowled out for 122 and, following on, for 98, losing with more than a day and a half to spare. In the first innings Ray Price returned fine figures of 8.5-6-6-5 and he added 4 for 28 in the second, with Admire Manyumwa chipping in with 5 for 25. Price leads the competition wickets tally with 23 from four matches.Easterns slipped to second despite beating bottom side Westerns by 56 runs at Harare Sports Club. For a while it looked as if an upset could be on the cards as Westerns, set a target of 212, reached 117 for 4. But Hamilton Masakadza struck twice in three overs, and then the offspin pairing of Prosper Utseya and Timycen Maruma polished off the innings as the last four wickets fell for five runs.Until then, Westerns had looked the better side. They bowled Easterns out for 200, John Nyumbu taking 5 for 78, and then took a first-innings lead of 65 thanks largely to a maiden hundred from Mbekezele Mabuza. He had only been in a brief time when Westerns slumped to 99 for 7, but he marshaled the tail to great effect and the last three wickets added 166.Stuart Matsikenyeri ensured that Easterns stayed in the game, his 142 from 204 balls almost single handedly keeping them afloat. He came in at No. 4, saw his side slide to 143 for 6, but was last man out after he had helped them to reach 276. As it turned out, that was just about enough.

Northerns 4 3 1 0 00 55 Easterns 4 30 0 1 0 53Centrals 4 1 2 0 10 30 Westerns 4 04 0 0 0 18

MatériaMais Notícias

O cara certo na hora e lugar certo. Este era Copete para o Santos há um ano, quando saiu do banco de reservas para estrear pelo Peixe. O local era a Arena Grêmio, mesmo palco do jogo deste domingo (às 19h). Atrás com dois gols de desvantagem, o colombiano era a aposta santista para reverter o placar. Chegou perto: fez um gol e deu assistência para Zeca empatar. Mas o Tricolor gaúcho ofuscou seu brilho ao fazer o terceiro e decretar a derrota.

Um ano depois muita coisa mudou, mas não a ponto de mudar o caminho de Copete, que em seu primeiro jogo prometia e muito. Neste domingo, o camisa 36 volta a Porto Alegre como maior artilheiro estrangeiro da história do clube, com 22 gols, como titular. Mas para chegar a esse posto, viveu o último ano intensamente.

-O mais difícil foi ficar no banco em momentos em que eu sabia que poderia dar um pouco mais. Tem que ter paciência e saber trabalhar para ter oportunidade. A felicidade é mostrar que estamos trabalhando bem para aguentar tudo e que agora estamos na fase boa. Fico feliz pelo momento que vivo aqui – reflete.

Antes de ir para o banco, ainda com Dorival Júnior no comando da equipe, Copete chegou a ser improvisado como lateral-esquerdo, posição em que já havia sido utilizado enquanto jogou na Colômbia e na Argentina. Já com Levir, deixou o a reserva para voltar à posição de origem. Era o começo de sua melhor fase no Brasil.

Foi ao lado de Bruno Henrique e Lucas Lima que ele chegou a sete gols em 11 jogos. Mas não se empolgue…

-Sempre disse que não sou artilheiro, sou um jogador que defende, se posiciona bem e no ataque procura fazer o melhor, seja gol ou assistência. Esse é o Jonathan Copete em campo – avisa.

Mas desde o começo a torcida santista aprendeu a não se empolgar com os gols de Copete. Tanto que sua atitude mais valorizada aconteceu recentemente, no clássico contra o São Paulo, justo no dia em que balançou as redes três vezes.

Ao comemorar o primeiro gol no clássico, o atacante de 29 anos tirou a camisa e mostrou as marcar de queimadura no abdômen e nos braços, sofridas em um acidente doméstico na mesma semana.

A demonstração de raça caiu nas graças da torcida nas redes sociais e nas arquibancadas, o que rende aplausos até para as roubadas de bola do colombiano.

Bastou só um ano para que Copete ficasse marcado na história do Santos, mas ele quer mais. Mais copas. Copa Libertadores e Copa do Mundo!

-A importância da Libertadores é grande para isso também, para a seleção ver o jogador. Se tem uma noção do quanto o jogador pode ajudar na seleção pelo que se vê no time. Espero ter as características necessárias.

“Sempre falei que vim aqui para fazer o melhor, que daria o máximo de mim”, Copete, ao L!

ENTREVISTA EXCLUSIVA DE COPETE AO LANCE!

Que lembrança tem da sua estreia pelo Santos, também contra o Grêmio?

Foi um jogo que tentamos muito a vitória, não conseguimos, mas foi importante por ter feito o primeiro gol no Brasil. A orientação foi para tentar ajudar, levar o jogo para o ataque. Precisávamos muito dos três pontos. Entrei com raça para tratar de vencer o jogo.

Você foi campeão da Libertadores com o Atlético Nacional no ano passado. Vê o Santos em um caminho parecido?

Sempre falei que vim aqui para fazer o melhor, que daria o máximo de mim. Vejo o Santos indo passo a passo e a Libertadores é longa. Ainda não tem nada garantido. Precisamos mostrar dentro de campo.

A reação da torcida ao ver suas cicatrizes pelo corpo na comemoração do gol chamou a atenção. Se sente querido por eles?

Desde que cheguei, a torcida me acolheu muito bem, com carinho. Fico muito agradecido por isso. Em campo eu procurei retribuir por eles.

Antes da chegada do Levir Culpi o time passou por momentos difíceis. Acredita que essas cicatrizes deixam a equipe mais forte para o restante da temporada?

O time está forte. Tem coisas que acontecem porque o futebol é desse jeito. Mas o time está fechado, maduro e sabe o que quer. Esperamos que tudo isso que demonstramos ajude a conquistar o que queremos.

Acredita que a raça que você demonstra em campo contagia alguns companheiros?

Todo jogador aqui dá sangue pelo time. Às vezes dá certo, às vezes não, mas não deixamos de acreditar e de demonstrar que queremos ganhar. Assim é com o time, rouparia, médicos… Todos querem estar no Santos e o Santos mostra que é guerreiro.

كشفت تقارير صحفية سبب مغادرة النجم البرتغالي كريستيانو رونالدو لملعب “أولد ترافورد” قبل نهاية مباراة فريقه مانشستر يونايتد أمام رايو فاييكانو الودية.

رونالدو شارك للمرة الأولى مع مانشستر يونايتد بعدما غاب عن الفترة التحضيرية ومباريات الفريق الودية السابقة وكذلك التدريبات “لأسباب عائلية”، وسط أنباء تفيد برغبته في الرحيل. 

وتم تداول صور تظهر رونالدو وهو يغادر ملعب المباراة في وقت مبكر قبل نهايتها، وهو ما أثار استياء المشجعين.

ووفقًا لشبكة “The united stand”، غادر كريستيانو رونالدو وغيره من لاعبي مانشستر يونايتد المباراة مبكرًا بموافقة من المدير الفني إريك تين هاج، لتجاوز حركة المرور والحشود. 

وغادر كلاً من برونو فرنانديز، ودي خيا، ودالوت، ومارسيال، وغيرهم، وذلك في الدقيقة 75 من عمر اللقاء.

من جانبه، علّق رونالدو على عودته للمشاركة وكتب عبر حساباته على مواقع التواصل الاجتماعي: “سعيد بالعودة”.

Cristiano Ronaldo and other #mufc players in the director's box left the match early which was sanctioned by Ten Hag, reportedly to beat the traffic and crowds.

— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) July 31, 2022

Football Insider pundit and former Leeds United goalkeeper Paddy Kenny has tipped Adam Forshaw to leave the club in January.  

The Lowdown: Forshaw’s return

The 29-year-old has missed a whopping 71 games for Leeds over the past few years due to a hip problem.

However, Forshaw has now returned to full fitness and made his first start for the club in 697 days against Crewe Alexandra in the Carabao Cup.

The central midfielder has also made all three of Marcelo Bielsa’s Premier League matchday squads this season, however, Kenny thinks he could be next to leave.

The Latest: Kenny’s comments

Kenny was talking to Football Insider about Forshaw’s future at Elland Road.

The 43-year-old thinks the Whites could look to cash in on the midfielder in the New Year when he would then have just six months remaining on his contract.

“I think there’s a real possibility that he might go in January.

“If he isn’t pushing for the first team, I don’t see why they wouldn’t try and get something for him before he leaves at the end of the season.

“It’s been difficult for him because we know he’s had his injury problems.

“But unless he comes and does something different and gets a run in the team, I can only see him moving on really.”

The Verdict: Not likely

Leeds didn’t add to their central midfield ranks this summer, with Victor Orta recently revealing that Forshaw’s return to fitness was one of the reasons why a midfield acquisition didn’t materialise.

Should Forshaw, on £60,000-a-week, remain fit throughout the campaign, his presence will almost be like a new signing after being sidelined for so long.

You’d expect that, should he stay healthy, a new contract could be forthcoming for Forshaw, who was on the books during Leeds’ 2019/20 title-winning season, so a January move may not be on the cards as Kenny thinks.

In other news: ‘Shocked it didn’t happen sooner’ – Pundit reacts to ‘great’ Leeds news on ‘exceptional’ ace.

Reaction in the aftermath of the abandoned Sabina Park Test

02-Feb-2009Reaction in the aftermath of the abandoned Sabina Park TestMichael Atherton: “It was clear before the game that the pitch was uneven and corrugated and it was only going to get worse. The umpires took the decision to call it off and I think it was the right decision. The pitch was dangerous. The safety of the players was paramount. The senior umpire was in constant touch with the match referee. I was called out and had a chat with Brian Lara, and the officials. Both captains said that conditions were unfit for Test cricket. I don’t want to get into worst pitches, but I repeat it was dangerous. That’s why the decision was taken.”Alec Stewart: “When you were batting there were balls doing more than they should have done. You knew you were going to take hits. It was just a case of when and how many.”Ian Botham: “The pitch is not worthy of international cricket. It’s a disgrace. Someone is going to get seriously hurt.”Wayne Morton (England physio): “There was a bit of war out there and you always fear for a batsman’s safety. You don’t often see too many apologies from West Indian fast bowlers but they seemed pretty embarrassed by it. It was a very busy morning, possibly the busiest I’ve ever known. You always fear for batsmen’s faces, particularly on a wicket behaving like it seemed to be doing this morning. There are medals for bravery to be taken, but at the end of the day we want to play on a level playing field. I’m not too keen on losing players with fractured digits or serious injuries every morning.”Brian Lara: “Cricket has to be played on a fair surface.”Michael Holding: “I’ve never seen a pitch as dangerous as that. The people responsible should be brought to task. This pitch isn’t fit for Test cricket or even club cricket for that matter. It’s completely substandard. Our fast bowlers don’t want to seriously injure anyone at all. It’s an embarrassment.”Barry Jarman (match referee): “Venkat got in touch with me and said, ‘What do you think?’ I said, ‘I think it’s horrific.’ I told him, ‘You do what you want to do and you’ll get support from me.’ I spoke to Mike and Brian and they said, ‘We both agree it’s too dangerous and someone’s going to get seriously hurt’. The pitch is just nowhere near up to standard.”

MatériaMais Notícias

A eleição presidencial do Vasco está se aproximando – está programada para novembro – e os ânimos da diretoria para evitar protestos contra o presidente Eurico Miranda ficam cada vez mais acirrados. Para o jogo contra o Sport, sábado, em São Januário, por exemplo, ficou decidido que a área social poderá ter a presença somente de sócios, e não mais de convidados como vinha sendo permitido pelo clube. A informação foi publicada primeiro pelo “Globoesporte” e confirmada pelo LANCE!.

Depois da goleada sofrida para o Corinthians na noite da última quarta-feira, foram observados diversos protestos dos torcedores. Na arquibancada atrás do gol, spray de pimenta chegou a ser utilizado pelos policiais para apartar a confusão. Na área social, a situação praticamente se repetiu, com alguns torcedores alegando que foram agredidos por seguranças do Vasco.

Em nota divulgada na noite da última quinta-feira pelo site oficial, o Vasco repudiou qualquer tipo de violência. Ainda no comunicado, o clube disse que trabalhará para melhorar a segurança, mas destacou que os profissionais dessa área cruz-maltina não agrediram torcedores. O texto do Vasco ainda garante que os protestos teriam ocorrido justamente por cunho político.

Os jogadores do Vasco voltam a treinar na manhã desta sexta-feira, em São Januário. Será a última oportunidade do técnico Milton Mendes em elaborar estratégia para voltar a vencer no Campeonato Brasileiro. Essas confusões estão na mão do Superior Tribunal de Justiça Desportiva (STJD) que pode vir a oferecer denúncia e, consequentemente, o Cruz-Maltino perder mando de campo.

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Former Newcastle United defender Steve Howey believes that Freddie Woodman is a very good goalkeeper.

Woodman spent last season out on loan at Swansea City, where he kept 22 clean sheets in 52 games in all competitions. It was Woodman’s second loan spell with the Swans, as he spent the previous season also on loan at the Liberty Stadium, where he played 43 games and kept 12 clean sheets.

The 24-year-old was tipped to go out on loan again this season, with AFC Bournemouth touted as the destination for Woodman, but after injury to Martin Dubravka, which saw the shot-stopper require surgery, Woodman has remained at St James’ Park this summer.

Woodman featured in the Magpies’ first Premier League match of the season against West Ham United last weekend, saving a penalty, and Howey was full of praise for the shot-stopper

“I think he’s done his kind of work away from the club, I haven’t seen much of him at Newcastle, but apparently at Swansea last season he was excellent. Everybody has been touting him for years, he will be a very good goalkeeper and I think he is a very good goalkeeper,” Howey exclusively told Football FanCast.

When all are fit, Newcastle United have four good goalkeepers amongst their ranks with Dubravka, Darlow, Gillespie and Woodman, so there is going to be healthy competition for the number one jersey at St James’ Park this season.