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According to France Football, Tottenham Hotspur are one of the sides eyeing up a summer swoop for Sven Botman…

What’s the word?

It’s claimed that the north London outfit will try to convince the Dutchman into a move to the Premier League, though nothing has been agreed with either the player himself or his representatives.

Liverpool and Inter Milan are also mooted with interest in the 21-year-old defender.

Having signed Botman from Ajax for just €9m (£7.8m) as per De Telegraaf, via GFFN, it is thought that he’s now valued in the region of €30m (£25m).

Is Botman worth it?

If a new centre-back isn’t the top priority for Jose Mourinho and co this summer, then something is seriously wrong at Hotspur Way.

Last season, the club held the second-worst defensive record of any top-seven team in the Premier League and that problem has continued into this season, where a catastrophe of errors in the backline has been Spurs’ major Achilles heel.

Mourinho’s men have leaked more goals (27) than Aston Villa (26) and even Chelsea (25), who sacked Frank Lampard amid a run of poor form – how things change.

The Spurs boss has frequently chopped and changed his central options, though one player has remained constant in Eric Dier, who has started 21 of their top-flight outings, including four of their last five defeats as per Transfermarkt.

Botman, who has played only four more domestic matches than the Englishman this term, would be a major upgrade and should be signed at all costs this summer.

The Dutch gem, rated at £22.5m, is enjoying quite the season for the Ligue 1 leaders – indeed, according to WhoScored, no centre-back has contributed towards more clean sheets than Botman (13 total).

By comparison, Dier has only guided Spurs to six clean sheets in the Premier League, the last of which coming nearly two months ago at the turn of the year.

And when breaking down Botman’s defensive returns, he outranks the Spurs star considerably too.

In terms of work-rate off the ball, the 21-year-old is beyond clear, averaging more tackles (one) and interceptions (1.7) per game. At a tackle-success rate of 77%, it’s clear that many of Ligue 1’s attackers find Botman a difficult man to get past – the same cannot be said for Dier (0.8 tackles per game).

Whilst his positioning is ten times that of Dier, who only manages 0.9 interceptions per game.

This is often what lets the Englishman down – having moved into defence from midfield last term, he still cannot get in the right places at the right time, meaning his spatial awareness is actually quite shocking.

The Lille colossus is also a bigger and better threat in the air, managing 0.5 more aerial duels won per outing, via WhoScored.

Spurs rank 11th for this ability while six of their 27 conceded goals have come from set-pieces, so clearly there’s work to be done and Botman can help alleviate such a weakness.

At 6 foot 4, that’s hardly a surprise but given Dier is the same height, you can see why the Tottenham star should be doing better and it’s also no wonder that ex-PL defender and current Lille partner, Jose Fonte, “describes him as a machine and a man who doesn’t make mistakes,” according to The Times’ Duncan Castles on the Transfer Window Podcast.

That should be music to Spurs supporters’ ears as Dier has been as calamitous as anybody in the English top-flight this season, as seen by him conceding a clumsy penalty to Chelsea and then being caught out of position against West Ham at the weekend.

Also dubbed a “leader” by Les Dogues boss Christophe Galtier, it’s evident that Botman would not only be an instant upgrade but a massive one at that too for Spurs.

Mourinho desperately needs a new centre-back and the Lille sensation should, quite rightly, sit atop their shortlist ahead of the summer transfer window.

AND in other news, Levy can kill two birds with one stone in Spurs swoop for “insane” £40m-rated colossus…

After slipping to a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United in the Premier League, Aston Villa welcome Liverpool in the FA Cup third round on Friday night.

Dean Smith’s side of course thrashed the Reds 7-2 in league action earlier this season, and will of course take a lot of confidence from that performance into the game.

But with it being a cup competition, the Villa boss may choose to ring the changes, and one man who he should consider giving almost a last chance to, is Keinan Davis.

The young striker has been linked with a move away from Villa Park in recent weeks, and with Ollie Watkins and Wesley ahead of him in the pecking order, opportunities for first-team football are likely to be limited for a player who’s shown virtually nothing all season.

The chance to start from the off against Jurgen Klopp’s side on Friday would give Davis a final opportunity to try and impress Smith and stake a claim to remain at the club for the rest of the season.

Clearly Villa feel like he’s still got a bit of potential in him, and the 22-year-old has got plenty of time to grow and develop, with Jack Grealish even touting how good he can become.

He said: “He’s so, so strong. He’s one of the best hold up players I’ve actually played with and that includes the likes of (Christian) Benteke. He is unbelievable.

“The only thing that he needs to add to his game is his end product and he knows that he needs to improve on that. But I can’t give him enough credit for how good he is just in the game, holding the ball up, his dribbling for a big fellow.”

With the January transfer window open, Johan Lange and co will have to make a decision on Davis’ future fairly soon, and so the game against Liverpool could well be last chance saloon for the centre-forward dubbed a “throwback” by Smith.

Manchester United beat Everton in a 2-0 win at Goodison Park to set up a semi-final with Manchester City in the Carabao Cup.

Edinson Cavani opened the scoring in the 88th minute shortly before Anthony Martial doubled their advantage with just seconds to spare, with the two strikers working in tandem to break the deadlock.

Cavani will take the plaudits for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side and rightly so but it was Martial who proved to be the difference between the two sides as he finished the game with a tally of one goal and an assist.

However, not everyone in the famous Red Devils jersey were at the races against the Toffees, in particular Donny van de Beek, who badly let Solskjaer down during his 67′ minutes before he was replaced by Martial.

His substitution was likely a reflection of his poor performance overall rather than a tactical decision ahead of the Premier League clash with Leicester City on Boxing Day.

The 23-year-old Dutch international, who earns around £108,000-per-week at Old Trafford, was a complete passenger playing out-of-position on the left wing, as he won just three out of his six duels overall (50%), and was dribbled past twice, as per SofaScore.

It’s fair to say that he struggled to get a foothold in the game, only completing a meagre 23 passes out of 29, which is a rather dismal total, especially when you consider the fact that Paul Pogba himself provided 46 out of his 57 passes at Goodison Park.

This was backed up by The Manchester Evening News’ Dominic Booth, who claimed he was ‘much quieter after the break and replaced.’

Van de Beek, who cost United £35m in the summer, failed to record a single shot on target or register a single assist, via SofaScore.

Having not started in any of United’s past three Premier League fixtures, the stage was arguably set for the Dutchman to make his mark, but now he’s going to find it even harder to break into the starting XI after he let the manager down immensely with his lacklustre display last night.

It’s no wonder Van de Beek was hauled off after half-time and he ought to be wary with both Pogba and Bruno Fernandes impressing in recent weeks whilst Martial and Marcus Rashford featured off the bench.

His seventh start of the season could be his last for some time after that showing, with a tough trip to Leicester City next on the agenda.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Former Hull City striker Dean Smith says Jadon Sancho shouldn’t join Manchester United…

According to Football Insider, Newcastle are planning on offering a new contract to Jacob Murphy in order to block a potential January exit.

What’s the story?

After spending the last couple of seasons out on loan, the winger has enjoyed a renaissance in his Magpies career this campaign, coming back into the fold under Steve Bruce and becoming one of the first names on the team-sheet – he’s started the last four games in the Premier League.

However, with his contract expiring at the end of this season, there was speculation that interested sides like Rangers would swoop in, but Football Insider have now delivered a major update on his long-term future.

They claim that the Magpies plan to offer Murphy a contract extension to ward off a potential cut-price departure in the January transfer window, or even lose him on a free transfer next summer.

Steve Bruce deserves credit

Bruce may not be Mr Popular on Tyneside right at this moment given how he’s gotten his team playing, but there’s no questioning that he deserves a bit of credit for giving Murphy the chance to reignite his Newcastle career.

After the winger’s sparkling display in the Carabao Cup against Morecambe, the Magpies boss was absolutely adamant that he wouldn’t be going anywhere in the summer transfer window, saying: “I won’t be letting him out on loan! Not after a performance like that. He deserves to stay with us and he has improved enormously.

“I have been very, very pleased even though he didn’t make the squad for the weekend. We have 20 odd players to choose from. But at this particular moment I won’t be letting Jacob go on loan.”

Since then, Murphy has become one of the few bright spots and key performers in a struggling Newcastle side, netting a stunning last-gasp equaliser against Wolves for example. Having arrived for £10m back in the summer of 2017, the 25-year-old is finally proving why he’s been hailed for having “so much ability”.

Speaking exclusively to FootballFanCast, Steve Howey has claimed his former side Newcastle should have signed Southampton star Danny Ings.

The England international enjoyed a sparkling campaign last year for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side, netting 22 Premier League goals and finishing joint-second in the race for the Golden Boot, with Leicester’s Jamie Vardy taking the crown with 23.

When asked by FFC’s James Beavis about which summer signing from another club Newcastle should have made themselves, Howey said: “I don’t think it was this summer in fairness, but I know for a while, a long while, I was singling out Danny Ings. I thought Newcastle could have benefitted from somebody like him. I think Steve McClaren was the manager, and having a quick conversation with Steve, I think the fee was something like £12m and they were quite happy to pay that. Then it went up to £15m, and it was a case of we’re not paying that fee for him.

“For me it would have been him. Having said that, I was really pleased with Callum Wilson. I’ve always liked Callum Wilson, and I like Josh King. But as I said, I think Danny Ings would have been the one.”

Wilson’s start to life on Tyneside has been a very encouraging one, with the former Bournemouth man bagging four goals in six games – the exactly same amount as Ings.

The latter however, appears to have moved up the pecking order at international level, with England manager Gareth Southgate calling him up for the recent friendlies and Nations League clashes.

Valued at £18m by Transfermarkt, Ings could have been a real marquee signing for the Magpies. But as Howey himself points out, Newcastle have still got a very good striker in the shape of Wilson.

Tottenham Hotspur were one of the teams mooted with interest in James Rodriguez during the summer transfer window, but the 29-year-old would opt for a reunion with his former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich boss Carlo Ancelotti at Everton…

What was the word?

According to the Daily Mail in August, Spurs had the Colombian sensation on their radar, though several Premier League clubs were also in the race as it was believed Rodriguez was keen to make the move to England.

He would then sign for the Toffees for free despite claims he would cost around £22m – Rodriguez’s former club, Banfield, released a statement (via Goal.com) claiming they would not be receiving any funds from the transfer as he didn’t cost the Merseyside outfit a penny.

Perhaps that only goes to show just how desperate the La Liga giants were to offload his £140k-per-week wages from their financial bill.

Everton’s steal

The £31.5m-rated playmaker has already proven that, on his day, he’s still that world-class sensation we witnessed at the 2014 World Cup.

Per WhoScored, Rodriguez has delivered three goals and three assists in ten starts, whilst also averaging 2.5 key passes, 2.2 shots and 1.9 dribbles per game.

Gabby Agbonlahor’s misguided claim that his recent form had tailed off due to the “cold” English weather is merely an uneducated view as he’s been so much more than what the numbers state.

Even during their drab 1-1 draw with Burnley last week, the enigmatic maestro, who’s now only on £90k-per-week, led Ancelotti’s pressing system and attempted more tackles than any other player on the pitch and no other attacking Toffees player made as many defensive contributions either.

In reality, he would’ve been the perfect fit for Jose Mourinho, especially with performances like the one we just saw against Arsenal – doing the dirty work when needed and the ability to turn on the style at a click of the fingers.

The sort of player that Spurs have lacked ever since the departure of Christian Eriksen.

Not a single player of the north London outfit has managed more key passes or dribbles than Rodriguez, whilst it is only Harry Kane that has managed more attempts at goal per game, via WhoScored.

During his time in Munich, Jupp Heynckes lauded him a “god-send” for the club whilst Madrid president once claimed Rodriguez was “a new talent” who “oozes quality.”

Kane’s international teammate, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, has also waxed lyrical, he told the ECHO: “He’s a top, top player and for me, as a centre-forward, I knew chance-creation would be there and it would be down to me to put the ball in the back of the net. I’m really enjoying playing with him. He’s a different level. He dictates games.”

You could only imagine how good a midfield of Rodriguez, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Tanguy Ndombele would’ve been at Spurs.

AND in other news, Levy must perform a U-turn over £150k-p/w “freak of a talent” amid fresh Mourinho claims…

According to an update by Alasdair Gold, Tottenham star Giovani Lo Celso has been withdrawn from the Argentina squad with the same injury that kept him out of Spurs’Â6-1 win against Man United.Â

Lo Celso, who was recently picked for his national side to play against Bolivia and Ecuador over the next week, will now miss their World Cup qualifying encounters.

Football.London correspondent Gold, confirmed the news on TwitterÂ- potentially issuing a less than favourable update for Tottenham and Jose Mourinho.

The 24-year-old, since signing on a permanent deal from Real Betis, has established himself as a core member of the team – making 28 Premier League appearances last season in total.

In that time, he notched two assists for the Lilywhites, becoming a viable midfield option under Mourinho.

However, so far this season, the star man has been in and out of the team due to fitness issues, playing just two matches so far.

Now, as per this update from Gold, Tottenham could be without the ‘exciting’ ace for longer as he works to overcome a niggling thigh injury.

While this could come as a blow for Spurs and Mourinho, there is also reason to be positive given the plethora of options in midfield at the moment.

During the win at Old Trafford last weekend, Tanguy Ndombele, Pierre-Emile-Hojbjerg and Moussa Sissoko were utilised to devastating effect.

Ndombele in particular has shone since being given a chance to perform, and his presence could mitigate the loss, even if the South American has proved extremely useful.

Spurs fans, is Lo Celso a crucial cog in Jose Mourinho’s system? Have your say in the comments down below…

احتسب الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم “يويفا”، هدف ليفربول الأول أمام أتلتيكو مدريد، للمصري محمد صلاح.

وتقدم ليفربول بهدف في الدقيقة الثامنة، احتسب في البداية لصلاح ثم احتسب لاحقًا لزميله جيمس ميلنر.

وبعد دقائق قليلة، عبر الموقع الرسمي لـ”يويفا”، تم احتساب الهدف لصلاح، والذي سجله في الدقيقة الثامنة.

وتشير النتيجة إلى تقدم ليفربول على أتلتيكو مدريد (2-1) في الجولة الثالثة لدور المجموعات بدوري أبطال أوروبا.

ليفربول يواجه أتلتيكو مدريد على ملعب “واندا ميتروبوليتانو” معقل الأخير، ويمكنك متابعة البث المباشر للمباراة من هنا.  شاهد هدف محمد صلاح في مرمى أتلتيكو مدريد 

Sunderland Echo writer Phil Smith has given his thoughts on Will Grigg’s absence from the 2-0 win over Oxford United, touching on whether or not his confidence will be affected.

After arriving on Wearside in January 2019, Grigg has not had the best of times with the Black Cats. With his £4m move from Wigan documented via Netflix series Sunderland Til I Die, the 29-year-old’s struggles have not seen an improvement, seeing him contribute with just three goals in all competitions in the 2019/20 campaign, and it remains to be seen what impact he will have this season.

Grigg played a large part in the opening day League One draw with Bristol Rovers but failed to find the back of the net and he was left as an unused sub against Oxford at the weekend.

Touching on the striker’s absence during his latest Q&A with Sunderland Echo, Smith gave his verdict on whether or not Grigg would have confidence issues moving forward. He said:“The centre-forward position remains, I think, the biggest area of uncertainty as we move into the rest of the season.“At the beginning of pre-season, it had seemed difficult to see a way back into the side, at least in terms of having a prominent, regular role, for Grigg.“One of the most encouraging aspects of those games, then, was to see the striker looking sharp, pressing aggressively and seemingly enjoying the service from his team-mates.“For him to end up on the bench within a game has definitely been a disappointment.“Grigg didn’t have a particularly good game against Bristol Rovers last Saturday but you couldn’t say the service was excellent either.“Parkinson is clearly very keen on getting Graham into the side and while he still isn’t match fit, he was an outlet on Saturday.“From what we’ve heard from Parkinson so far, I expect to see Graham get more and more minutes.“It is definitely a shame as far as Grigg has concerned.”Sunderland face Peterborough this coming weekend in League One, with the Black Cats in fifth as they welcome Posh to the Stadium of Light.

Grigg faces a challenge to turn his form around at Sunderland this season and you have to wonder whether he can achieve that mission.

If Parkinson continues to overlook him in forthcoming games, it may be difficult to see how the Northern Ireland striker comes good at the Stadium of Light.

Do you think Grigg will struggle for game-time after his absence against Oxford? Let us know your views in the comments section below…

MatériaMais Notícias

Com atuações individuais destacadas, o Flamengo derrotou o Confiança por 3 a 0, na noite desta quarta-feira, em Volta Redonda, pela Copa do Brasil. Com isso, o time (que perdeu na ida, em Aracaju, por 1 a 0) está classificado para a segunda fase da Copa do Brasil.

Todo o time rubro-negro foi bem. Mas quatro jogadores estiveram acima da média. Mancuello teve atuação excelente, fazendo o primeiro gol, chutando duas faltas com perigo (uma na trave) e finalizando com perigo em outras duas oportunidades; Marcelo Cirino ratificou a boa fase marcando dois gols; Willian Arão se destacou nas assistências. Foi dele os passes para os três gols. E o estreante Fernandinho também foi destaque, sendo muito efetivo no primeiro tempo.

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O JOGO
Com o Confiança muito fechado, marcando da sua intermediária com duas linhas de quatro e os dois homens de frente voltando para fechar o meio, o time teve maior volume. O estreante Fernandinho, flutuando bem, distribuía as jogadas.

Foram vários escanteios em sequência e os laterais criando jogadas pelos flancos, fazendo cruzamentos que William Arão e Juan cabecearam com perigo.

Mas quem fez a diferença foi Mancuello. Depois ter chutado da entrada da área pela esquerda uma bola que passou raspando, o argentino abriu o placar para o Rubro-Negro aos 24 minutos. Em boa trama pela esquerda, Fernandinho cruzou para a área e Arão ajeitou de cabeça para a entrada de Mancuello. O gringo deu um toque meio sem jeito de joelho, o suficiente para tirar o goleiro Rafael Sandes da jogada e colocar a bola na rede.

Mancuello sobrava. Foi um chute seu (que o goleiro Rafael espalmou) a melhor chance que o Rubro-Negro teve antes do intervalo.

Na volta do segundo tempo, o Flamengo passou a atacar mais pela direita e mostrou maior eficácia ofensiva, entrando facilmente na área. O Confiança ficou ainda mais fechado, fazendo faltas próximas da área. E Mancuello deitou e rolou. Cobrou falta na trave no primeiro minuto; no minuto seguinte, entrou livre e bateu em cima do goleiro. Aos sete, nova falta e a nova defesa díficil do goleiro. Estava insuportável para o campeão sergipano e, aos dez, Mancuello cobrou escanteio que Willian Arão desviou para Marcelo Cirino concluir para fazer 2 a 0.

Com o placar favorecendo o Flamengo, o Confiança – que então precisava de um gol para se classificar – tentou jogar um pouco mais adiantado, com o técnico Fahel colocando o atacante Kivel no lugar do volante Flavio, buscando municiar Tiago Orobó, até então isolado na frente. Foi um erro, pois deu ao Flamengo a possibilidade de contra-ataques. Foi assim que o time carioca chegou ao terceiro gol aos 20 minutos. Wilian Arão recebeu antes do meio de campo e fez lançamento perfeito para Marcelo Cirino entrar desmarcado, driblar o goleiro e fazer um belo gol, fechando o placar e já começando a pensar na semifinal do Campeonato Carioca contra o Vasco, no domingo, em Manaus.

FICHA TÉCNICA
FLAMENGO 3 X 0 CONFIANÇA
​
Local: Estádio Raulino de Oliveira, Volta Redonda (RJ)
Data-Hora: 20/4/2016 – 21h45
Árbitro: Vinícius Gonçalves Dias Araújo (SP)
Auxiliares: Tatiane Sacilotti e Herman Brumel (ambos Fifa-SP)
Público/renda: ND
Cartões amarelos: Laércio e Leandro Kivel (CON)
Cartões vermelhos: –
Gols:Mancuello, 26’/1ºT (1-0), Marcelo Cirino, 9’/2ºT (2-0) e 20’/2ºT (3-0)

FLAMENGO: Paulo Victor, Rodinei, Wallace, Juan e Jorge; Cuéllar, Arão e Mancuello (Alan Patrick, 33’/2ºT); Marcelo Cirino (Gabriel, 30’/2ºT), Fernandinho (Ederson, 39’/2ºT) e Guerrero. Técnico: Muricy Ramalho

CONFIANÇA: Rafael Sandes, Lucas Rocha, Valdo, Alex Gomes e Laércio; Hamilton, Flávio (Leandro Kivel, 12’/2ºT) , Everton (João Guilherme, 22’/2ºT) e Wallace; Orobó e Danilo Bala. Técnico: Fahel Junior