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Leeds United have their eyes on a tricky January transfer to sign a new forward who has been compared to Crysencio Summerville.

Leeds’ lack of goals in Premier League as 49ers eye forward

The Whites have struggled in front of goal so far following their return to the Premier League, with centre-back Joe Rodon the club’s joint top scorer in the top flight.

Daniel Farke’s side have only scored 10 goals in 11 games, with bottom of the table Wolves the only team to score fewer (7).

Only three attacking additions were made over the summer, two of which were free transfers in Lukas Nmecha and Dominic Calvert-Lewin. It is looking like a decision the 49ers Enterprises could live to regret, but they do have their eyes on attacking reinforcements in the New Year.

Brazilian forward Jhon Jhon is one name that has emerged in recent weeks, and he already has Red Bull links at RB Bragantino in the Brazilian Serie A. Journalist Graeme Bailey said:

“He’s a fascinating player. Very interesting. A bit of an attacking midfielder, can play as a forward. His name has come up in conversations with Red Bull, and he’s within the Red Bull name. He’s a good age, good player. Ticks a lot of boxes.

“Leeds aren’t the only ones looking. He’s come up in conversations, and one I’d not heard before until recently.”

Leeds set to make imminent bid for Real Madrid ace after Farke convinces 49ers

The Whites are looking to bring in a new forward, having not scored enough goals so far this season.

By
Dominic Lund

Nov 21, 2025

Domestically, Coventry City’s Haji Wright is another attacker who has been linked with a move to Elland Road in recent months, and there has been a fresh claim regaring the Whites taking the USA international in the New Year.

Update on Leeds’ move for Haji Wright

According to TEAMtalk, Leeds have four attacking targets who they could move for in January, one of which is Wright.

It is stated that the Whites ‘have a genuine interest in signing Wright’ and ‘the club are considering a concrete move for a player they have tracked since the summer’.

A deal is viewed as tricky with Coventry top of the Championship, however, Wright’s contract is set to expire in 2027.

Despite the difference in size, Wright has been compared to former Leeds attacker Summerville due to his ability to play off the left.

Primarily a centre-forward, though, the 27-year-old has scored eight Championship goals in 14 appearances so far this season.

Labelled as a “constant problem” for defenders to keep tabs on by his manager Frank Lampard, it has previously been suggested that an offer of £20m could be required to sign Wright.

How Leeds believe they'll convince Raheem Sterling to join with move in the works

Christian Yelich is using a custom Bob Uecker bat for the Brewers' MLB Players Weekend series against the Reds. On Friday night, Yelich and the bat did Uecker proud going 4 for 5 at the plate with two home runs as Milwaukee won their 13th consecutive game, tying the longest winning streak in franchise history.

Milwaukee also came back from a seven-run deficit in the game thanks in no small part of the work of Yelich and that special bat.

Yelich hit a home run to lead off the second inning and tie the game at 1-1. After the Reds scored seven runs in the 2nd inning, Yelich doubled in a run in his second at-bat and then drove in another with a single in the 4th. By the time he came back to the plate in the 6th the game was tied and he only needed a triple for the cycle.

Instead he hit another home run.

The former MVP also paid tribute to Uecker with his outfit on opening day. The legendary Brewers announcer passed away in January.

What a night for a number of reasons.

Rangers are now reportedly in ongoing talks to sign David Watson from Kilmarnock as early as the January transfer window, as they look to fend off competition from Scotland and the Championship.

The Gers are slowly but surely turning things around on the pitch, with new manager Danny Rohl aiming to make it four wins from four in the Scottish Premiership this weekend. And that progress must be matched off the pitch when the January transfer window arrives. It’s repeat or redemption for sporting director Kevin Thelwell, who has come under fire for his decisions in his first few months at Ibrox.

The former Everton man recently spoke about the club’s January plans, sharing that Rangers have given Rohl the chance to evaluate the players already at his disposal ahead of the winter window.

A number of names have already emerged as potential targets for the Gers ahead of 2026, too. According to recent reports, the Scottish giants have set their sights on signing Shea Charles from Southampton.

The former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder starred previously starred on loan under Rohl and could now reunite with the manager at Rangers. But he’s not the only name on their list of targets. Reports have also name-dropped Watson in recent weeks and it now looks as though Rangers’ move is advancing.

Rangers now in talks to sign Watson

As reported by TeamTalk, Rangers are now in ongoing talks to sign Watson from Kilmarnock in the January transfer window. The 20-year-old is out of contract next summer, but the Gers could fend off competition from the Championship and Scotland by securing his signature for a cut-price this winter.

Rohl is also reportedly a big fan of the young midfielder and believes that his energy, tenacity and technical ability would improve his current Rangers side when 2026 arrives.

One of the SPFL's 'most influential players' now can't get a game at Rangers

Rangers have a star who was one of the most influential players in the league last season, now he can’t get a game.

By
Dan Emery

Nov 19, 2025

The praise that Watson has received during his time at Kilmarnock only backs up the verdict that he’s one of the best young talents that Scottish football has to offer. His teammate, Robbie Deas, told reporters: “Davey’s fantastic, honestly. He’s one of the hardest workers you’ll ever meet. He’s absolutely fantastic. You see that today, and he’s putting those tackles in later on.

“Davey’s got all the ability to go to the top, and I’ve no doubt he does, but I’m glad he’s here and he’s playing for us week in, week out, because I would hate to play against him.”

Much of Rangers’ focus was on Championship talent in the summer, but in Watson they would have someone who knows exactly what it takes to thrive in the Scottish Premiership.

Rangers can avoid Gilmour repeat by playing teen who's a "heck of a player"

Troy Parrott has become a “cult hero” with the Republic of Ireland, but will he be back in England by the time a bid to reach the 2026 World Cup is completed? That question has been put to Stephen Carr, with the former Tottenham defender discussing future plans for the in-form striker and collective efforts to reach a first global gathering since 2002.

• Purple patch: How Parrott fired Ireland into World Cup play-offs

  The Boys in Green have earned themselves a shot at securing tickets to FIFA’s flagship event in the United States, Canada and Mexico next summer. A dramatic end to their group stage campaign has seen Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side land a play-off berth.

  Former Tottenham striker Parrott fired them to that point, with the 23-year-old frontman hitting a personal purple patch at the perfect time. He bagged a brace in a thrilling 2-0 victory over Portugal in Dublin that saw five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo sent off for the first time in his international career.

  Parrott, who is now on the books of Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar, went on to net a hat-trick in a final showdown with Hungary – with that treble being completed in the 96th minute – and there is talk of him attracting interest from Premier League sides. The likes of Leeds, West Ham and Wolves are all said to be mulling over their options.

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  Transfer talk: Parrott linked with Premier League return

  Asked about Parrott’s heroics and whether he could soon be on the move, ex-Ireland international Carr – speaking in association with – told GOAL: “Amazing! Fair play to him. He’s had a lot of loans where it hasn’t worked out. He’s found something at Alkmaar that just clicked, so his confidence is very high – which you can see now.

  “He’s a threat. Evan Ferguson will be back, so the manager will have a decision. But Troy has earned it. He scored five goals in two games, a hat-trick away from home – don’t know the last time that happened. He’s a threat. He’s a different player to Evan Ferguson, for me he’s completely different. It’s good now because it’s been a while since the Irish team had to pick up front, we haven’t had that. It’s good for the competition.

  “Hopefully he keeps going at Alkmaar and keeps the form up. He’s turned himself into a cult hero, brilliant. He’s worked at it, kept going and didn’t give up, and now he’s in a really good position. I think he will have offers. Whether that is in January, I don’t think so, probably the end of the season. But it would be nice to get to a World Cup, and then it all opens up for him.”

• Who will Ireland face in the 2026 World Cup play-offs?

  Ireland have been placed in Path D of the European World Cup play-off section. They will face Czechia at the semi-final stage, with either Denmark or North Macedonia to come on home soil if they can progress beyond that point.

  Quizzed on that draw, Carr said: “I think it’s a good one. I think it could have been a lot worse. I’m not saying it’s easy, but I think the manager will be pretty happy with it. It will still be difficult. Any game that you are getting into now, there is a World Cup spot on the line.

  “We play away against Czechia, a tough game. People are already thinking we will play Denmark at home, but you need to get through. The difference now is they are going into it with other teams fearing them a bit. With the last two results, it has given the country a lift, the team a lift because it was on a low. They have proved that they can do it, they can match anyone. Going to Hungary was one of those nights, but you need that bit of luck. Unbelievable result, one of the best in a long time in Irish football. I was at the Portugal game at home as well. There is a good feeling. Confidence will be very high. The break to the next game in March is a little unfortunate, because it will feel like a long time ago since you played that game, but it’s there for them.

  “If they get through, I think Denmark will beat North Macedonia. Denmark are a very good team. There are two tough games, so take it one at a time. Going away to Czechia, it’s only a small stadium – 19,000 and there will be a thousand Ireland fans. They need to get through it. The confidence will be very high and they are going into games with a lot more positivity now they have shown that they can do it. Portugal and Hungary were unbelievable results.”

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  Added motivation: Ireland will have eyes on World Cup draw

  Ireland did grace European Championships in 2012 and 2016, but have failed to qualify for a major tournament since then and are looking to bring a 24-year barren run on the World Cup front to a close.

  Ahead of facing Czechia, they will be among the interested observers when the group stage draw for next summer’s finals takes place at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC on Friday – with it likely that added incentive to qualify will be delivered there.

He had a couple of lives, on 61 and 98, but Labuschagne played with impressive fluency against Tasmania

AAP06-Oct-2025Marnus Labuschagne credited Steve Smith’s influence for helping him rebuild his game after he was dropped from the Australian Test team.Labuschagne took a major step towards reclaiming his berth for the first Ashes Test by top-scoring for Queensland on Monday in their Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania at Allan Border Field.Related

• Labuschagne launches with a century: 'Nothing else matters but runs'

• Weibgen feels wait was worth it: 'I've got to know my game'

• Renshaw, Khawaja, Labuschagne pile up runs against Tasmania

While his 160 was not perfect, Labuschagne clearly won round one of the informal Shield bat-off for top-order spots ahead of the Ashes opener from November 21 in Perth.After a mammoth first innings of 612, Queensland were well-placed at stumps on day three, with Tasmania 62 for 1 in their second innings and trailling by 171.Labuschagne was dropped for the Test series in the West Indies after Australia’s World Test Championship final defeat to South Africa in June. While he starred in the Bulls’ Shield opener, on the other side of the country incumbent Test opener Sam Konstas notably failed again for NSW in their match against WA.Labuschagne said after Monday’s play that Smith had loomed large in his thinking after he lost his Test berth.”It’s always nice to score a hundred and to get the team in a position where we can win the game on day four, it’s always a good thing,” Labuschagne said. “I felt good out there. It felt like I was reading the conditions well. I took the game on at certain times.”I feel like I’ve really stripped it back and my focus is just scoring runs – it’s not really too technical … just what I need out there to score runs. The nice thing is, over the last six or seven years, I’ve played with one of the best players in the world and learned a lot from him.”So having a technique that’s adjustable and something that I can just use, rather than work out what’s the exact, perfect way to play – just going back to find a way to score runs.”Labuschagne also scored a domestic one-day century last month.National selector George Bailey was present in Brisbane as Labuschagne flourished after taking 12 balls to get off the mark.His big innings was not flawless – he was dropped on 61 and nearly blew his century with a wild swipe on 98. Labuschagne went down the wicket to spinner Nivethan Radhakrishnan and wicketkeeper Jake Doran could not take the chance. It was either a dropped catch or a missed stumping. The ball ricocheted off Doran’s glove and landed clear of Jackson Bird at first slip.Soon afterwards, Labuschagne brought up his 33rd first-class century with an all-run four. Labuschagne hit 17 fours and two sixes and only faced 206 deliveries.Queensland took control with their huge first innings, with opener Matt Renshaw also putting his hand up for a Test recall and current opener Usman Khawaja impressing.The pick of the Tasmanian attack was legspinner Nikhil Chaudhary, the Indian-born allrounder who plays for the Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL. Making his first-class debut, he finished with 5 for 108.He found out only two days before the match that he was playing. “Nothing can get better than having a five-for on debut,” Chaudhary said.

Are bettors for some MLB playoff madness? 

The last week in MLB has seen a ton of changes to the playoff picture, starting with the San Diego Padres briefly taking the division lead in the NL West from the Los Angeles Dodgers.

A Dodgers win on Sunday put the teams into a tie atop the standings, but San Diego has been making a serious push to win this race for quite some time.

In the American League, the Boston Red Sox shot themselves back into the top spot in the AL wild card race, taking three of four games from the New York Yankees. 

New York’s win on Sunday gave it a slight edge over the Seattle Mariners — who are just two games back in the AL West — for the No. 2 wild card spot.

Injuries have taken a toll on a contender as well, as the Philadelphia Phillies lost ace Zack Wheeler for the rest of the season due to thoracic outlet syndrome, which will require surgery. 

Philly has a massive lead now over the New York Mets in the NL East standings, but can it make a deep playoff run without Wheeler? 

Speaking of the Mets, they have just a 1.5-game cushion in the wild card over the pesky Cincinnati Reds? Once again, I’ll examine the chances of the Reds sneaking into a playoff spot based on the latest odds.

A new week means that we’re taking a look at the latest betting odds to make the playoffs at SI Betting, and there may be a couple teams with some value to either win the division or make the postseason via the wild card.

American League Playoff Odds

Division Leaders

• Toronto Blue Jays: N/A
• Detroit Tigers: N/A
• Houston Astros: -2000

The division leaders in the American League have remained the same, only now oddsmakers have taken both the Blue Jays and Tigers off the board – a sign that they are locks to make the postseason.

Houston still has a lot of work to do, as it only has a two-game lead on the Mariners in the AL West. 

Wild Card Race

• New York Yankees: -1400
• Seattle Mariners: -575
• Boston Red Sox: -575
• Kansas City Royals: +290:
• Texas Rangers: +550
• Cleveland Guardians: +1000
• Tampa Bay Rays: +2000
• Minnesota Twins: +4000
• Los Angeles Angels: +4000

Even after dropping three of four games to Boston, New York’s playoff odds increased from -1100 to -1400. Vegas appears to be very high on the Yankees, even though they’ve been awful against their own division, going 17-22 overall and 5-15 against division teams that are over .500.

Boston isn’t getting much love in this market, as it remains tied with the Mariners in the odds to make the playoffs despite moving back to the top wild card spot.

Kansas City, the only team that has a chance to really dethrone this top group, sits three games back of Seattle at the moment. At +290, the Royals certainly have a chance to get in, but they’re not nearly as close as the Reds in the NL – despite having better odds. 

National League Playoff Odds

Division Leaders

• Philadelphia Phillies: N/A
• Los Angeles Dodgers: -20000
• Milwaukee Brewers: N/A

Even with Wheeler’s injury, the Phillies have joined the Milwaukee Brewers as the only teams in the NL with their odds off the board to make the playoffs. Both squads have sizable leads in their division races heading into the home stretch of the regular season.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers are in a dead heat with San Diego in the NL West, although both teams are -20000 to make the playoffs this season. 

Wild Card Race

• San Diego Padres: -20000
• Chicago Cubs: -20000
• New York Mets: -350
• Cincinnati Reds: +310
• San Francisco Giants: +2500
• St. Louis Cardinals: +2500
• Arizona Diamondbacks: +3000

San Diego and Chicago appear to have locked up wild card spots – at least – in the NL, but the final spot appears to be a two-team race between the Mets and Reds.

Despite remaining just 1.5 games out, the Reds’ odds to make the playoffs actually fell from +280 to +310, although the Mets fell from -370 to -350 in the process.

Cincy is certainly within striking distance, but it has the second-hardest remaining schedule in MLB.

Liverpool have lost seven of their last ten matches in all competitions after they were hammered 3-0 by Manchester City at The Etihad in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Premier League champions have now lost five of their 11 matches in the division so far this season, per Sofascore, after losing four of their 38 games in the 2024/25 campaign.

After the match, as shown in the clip above, former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane suggested that the Reds should not be considered in the race for the title, and it is hard to argue with.

The current run of form, their position in the league, and their performance against Manchester City do not suggest that they are likely to retain their crown in the 2025/26 campaign.

Liverpool’s current situation is particularly frustrating for the club when you consider the significant money that they splashed on new signings during the summer transfer window in a bid to strengthen their squad.

Attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz was signed from Bayer Leverkusen for a club-record, at the time, fee of £116m, yet he failed to make an impact once again.

Why Liverpool should be worried about Florian Wirtz

It is fair to expect that a £116m signing would be able to make a fairly immediate impact for the club, but he has been anonymous far too often in his Liverpool career so far.

The Germany international produced 16 goals and 14 assists in all competitions for Leverkusen in the 2024/25 campaign, per Sofascore, which led to the Reds splashing a gigantic fee on his services.

This shows that he has the technical ability to make an impact in the final third. That was further evidenced by his two assists against a Bundesliga team in Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League last month.

However, the physicality and intensity of the Premier League has proven a bit too much for Wirtz when it comes to making an impact with goals and assists at the top end of the pitch.

Per Sofascore, the 22-year-old attacking midfielder has no goals and no assists in 11 appearances in the division for Liverpool since his £116m transfer to Anfield in the summer.

As you can see in the table above, Wirtz’s performance against Manchester City on Sunday lacked substance, with no shots on target, key passes, or ‘big chances’ created.

He was efficient in his passing and won half of his duels, to his credit, but his lack of physicality meant that he was unable to really threaten the Cityzens backline, marshalled brilliantly by Ruben Dias.

Liverpool should, therefore, be worried because his performances are not improving and his only goal contributions, outside of the Community Shield, came against a Bundesliga team.

Wirtz needs to adjust to the intensity of the English game, and quickly, to start proving why the Reds were right to spend so much money on his signature this year.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

The Germany international is not the only player whose performances are concerning, though, as central defender Ibrahima Konate put in another disappointing display.

Why Ibrahima Konate should be dropped by Liverpool

The French centre-back must be ruthlessly ditched from the starting line-up by Arne Slot when the team returns to action after the international break, because he put in a dismal showing against City.

For the opening goal from Erling Haaland, Konate was unable to time his jump correctly and allowed the Norwegian giant to beat him to the header, which landed in the back of the net.

That was followed up by some passive defending in the second half for the third goal. Jeremy Doku seemed destined to cut onto his right foot to shoot from distance, but Konate did not shape his body to react to the situation and allowed the shot to come in almost uncontested.

The France international, who was called “horrific” by Liverpool supporter Lawrie on X, was even worse than Wirtz against Pep Guardiola’s side, as he made costly errors for two of the three goals, whilst the German midfielder simply did not do much of note.

Whilst Wirtz, at least, won half of his duels in the game, Konate struggled with the physical challenge posed by Haaland, which is not a surprise given the Norway international’s presence and style of play.

As you can see in the table above, the former RB Leipzig man lost the majority of his duels on the ground and in the air, which shows that he was far too easy to beat in duels throughout the match.

On top of that, the central defender did not step in to make a single tackle or interception, and did not attempt any dribbles to get his team up the pitch to bypass the first line of City’s press.

Passive was the word of the day for Liverpool and Konate, as evidenced by both the result and his individual statistics, which is why Slot may want to shake things up with some changes to his starting line-up after the break.

The France international could find himself out of the team when the Reds next play, with Joe Gomez waiting in the wings for his chance to start at the heart of the defence next to Virgil van Dijk.

Man City fans' brutal chant sums up Florian Wirtz's time at Liverpool

The German struggled, yet again, for the Reds against Manchester City.

By
James O'Reilly

Nov 9, 2025

Whilst it is now down to Slot to decide whether or not that is the right call to make, Konate’s performance on Sunday has given the manager a decision to make.

The two non-conformists are coming together at the IPL for the first time since 2016

Alagappan Muthu22-Mar-20252:05

Cricinformed: MS Dhoni, CSK’s 43-year-old six machine

There is a big silly smile on MS Dhoni’s face. For a second, it becomes easy to imagine him not as a world-famous finisher or a World Cup-winning captain but as a kid, because he had just done something that kids take great pride in. Being sneaky little devils.Virat Kohli had set up for the late cut. This was the season where he almost scored a thousand runs. So once he had decided on a shot, it had no choice but to fly away to the boundary. He waited until the ball passed him, to make sure he could hit it nice and fine. And he did, except Dhoni just stuck his right leg up in the air and stopped the ball dead in its tracks.That technique isn’t in any wicketkeeping manual. Neither is the one he uses to pull off those lightning-fast stumpings, where his hands collect the ball and crash into the stumps without any give. But they have always been his. He saw the sense in them. Even if nobody else did.Related

• 'Quick timing, great hands, good vision' – Hayden on Dhoni's stumping of Suryakumar Yadav

• Trial by spin likely as weakened MI enter CSK's cauldron

• Gaikwad: Dhoni focused on hitting as many sixes as possible

• Suryakumar Yadav confident his T20 runs will come

The other man involved in that sequence of events from 2016 was R Ashwin. He, too, is known for resorting to funventions. Changing his action. His grip. Flicking it using just one finger and making it spin the wrong way. Cutting his fingers under the ball instead of over it so that it doesn’t spin at all. The modest offbreak was becoming irrelevant. Ashwin was loath to letting himself go the same way and the reward for such perseverance was the respect he was given. Kohli scored only six runs in ten balls off him.That was the last season of the Dhoni-Ashwin partnership in the IPL. It has taken eight years for fate to put them back together. These freethinkers wouldn’t be constrained by what had come before them. They preferred to test what was true by themselves. Are yorkers really that hard to score off? What if I meet them with a whirl of my wrists? Are spin bowlers really a bad option in the first six overs? Why don’t we find out? In the final. When we go up against Chris Gayle. Of all the peak CSK moments in IPL history, there aren’t many that can match how they came up against a team whose owners were openly laughing at them for spending US$850,000 on a guy who had picked up just 15 wickets in 14 matches, only to watch in horror as he beat them to win the title.

#WhistlePodu #Yellove pic.twitter.com/TDWRLfoqNN

— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 19, 2025