Newcastle United could ‘probably’ persuade Tottenham Hotspur to part with Cameron Carter-Vickers for ‘even less’ than £5m.

That’s according to former Leeds United, Coventry City and Middlesbrough striker Noel Whelan, who was speaking to Football Insider.

The lowdown

The outlet reported last week that Newcastle had moved ahead of Scottish giants Celtic in the race to sign the defender. The Magpies apparently want to sign a centre-back this summer, and the ‘young and affordable’ Carter-Vickers fits their criteria.

Carter-Vickers spent the 2020/21 campaign on loan at Bournemouth, his sixth temporary spell away from Spurs after previous stints at Luton Town, Stoke City, Swansea City, Ipswich Town and Sheffield United (via Transfermarkt).

The American defender started 23 Championship matches last term, averaging 2.8 successful aerial duels, one tackle, 1.1 interceptions and 3.6 clearances per match for the Cherries (via WhoScored).

Spurs have exercised their right to extend Carter-Vickers’ contract by a further 12 months (via Football London), but that seemed to be motivated by ensuring that it didn’t run out this summer and leave him open to departing for free.

The latest

Whelan believes that it makes a great deal of sense for Spurs to cash in on the 23-year-old, so long as they recoup their investment. He told Football Insider:

“He’s not going to make the grade in the Premier League with Tottenham but he’ll also be on big wages.

“It makes sense to try and get a player out of the club permanently, no matter what that is. Get him off the wage bill and recoup what they’ve already paid.

“£5million would probably do that I would have thought, possibly even less. Then Tottenham would have freed up some wages in a position where they can strengthen as well.”

The verdict

Carter-Vickers represents a decent alternative to fellow Magpies defensive target Kristoffer Ajer. Newcastle have been ‘heavily linked’ with the Celtic man having watched him since 2019, but they may have fallen behind other clubs in the race for his signature (via Chronicle Live).

If Newcastle’s transfer budget is as low as has been reported, striking a deal for Carter-Vickers for the kind of price Whelan mentions could be regarded as pretty sensible, although Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo – another name mentioned in connection with the Magpies – could be a viable alternative.

In other news, Lee Ryder reveals that one Newcastle youngster is set to be loaned out.  

Arsenal have edged one step closer to signing Ben White…

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic’s ever-reliable David Ornstein, the Gunners are on the verge of reaching an agreement with Brighton for the England centre-back following talks over a potential deal.

It’s thought that the Seagulls want a guaranteed £50m and that the north London outfit are offering an initial £45m with the rest coming in add-ons.

There are yet to be any offers from other bidders and, with negotiations continuing, it seems that Arsenal are now in pole position to clinch the 23-year-old this summer.

Major coup

This latest development will surely leave the Emirates Stadium faithful absolutely buzzing as it signals their intent heading into the 2021/22 campaign.

Mikel Arteta’s side agonisingly missed out on qualification to any of UEFA’s three competitions for the first time since 1996 so they need to spark a reaction, and that can be done by bolstering the Spaniard’s backline.

He has lost David Luiz, who leaves the club next week following the expiry of his contract, whilst Konstantinos Mavropanos has joined Stuttgart in a £5m deal, so there’s certainly a spot or two available now.

White has enjoyed an impressive breakthrough season in the Premier League, where he rated among Graham Potter’s best-performing central defensive options.

Only Lewis Dunk (89.4%) recorded a better passing accuracy than the former Leeds United loan star (83.2%), via WhoScored, whilst an average of 1.4 tackles, 1.7 interceptions and 1.4 aerial duels won per game shows that he’s more than just a ball-playing defender.

Lauded as a “warrior” and a “special talent”, White could slot right in at Arsenal next season, and he’s also a signing that many supporters have been crying out for.

In reaction to this news, much of the Gunners’ fanbase have been sent into a meltdown. As relayed by football.london, one supporter claimed the club was finally “showing ambition”, whilst another urged Edu and co to make a move for James Maddison next.

It may be a small sample size but the general feeling in north London right now is very good. It’s an exciting time to be an Arsenal fan.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Xhaka: Edu could land Arsenal their next Vieira in £49.5m-rated “huge talent”…

Merv Dillon against VVS Laxman – India first innings at Jamaica © CricInfo For a bowler groomed to be the spearhead of the West Indian paceattack, Merv Dillon went an unusually long time without a fivewicket haul

Samanth Subramanian23-May-2002
Merv Dillon against VVS Laxman – India first innings at Jamaica
© CricInfoFor a bowler groomed to be the spearhead of the West Indian paceattack, Merv Dillon went an unusually long time without a fivewicket haul. After his 5-111 at Karachi in December 1997, Dillonsuffered such a drought that he must have felt considerableempathy with Ramnaresh Sarwan, a teammate who also had problemsin notching up a statistical milestone. But while Sarwan remainswithout a Test century to his credit, Dillon got his 5-71 in theIndian first innings at Jamaica.Dillon’s bowling in the two Indian innings presents aninteresting study in contrasts. When India got out for 212, hepicked wickets with extreme alacrity, at the top of the order aswell as the middle. In India’s second essay, however, with thepressure on the batting team, Dillon could only manage one wicketfor 77 runs in 22.3 overs – that too of Zaheer Khan on the finalday with the second new ball.To analytically compare the performances, take Dillon’s head-tohead against the best batsman in either innings. In India’s 212,VVS Laxman top-scored with an unbeaten 65 off 152 balls, withseven fours. Dillon, however, conceded only 18 of those runs;Laxman just managed to nudge the fast bowler around for paltryruns.
Merv Dillon against Sachin Tendulkar – India second innings at Jamaica
© CricInfoEight of Laxman’s runs against Dillon came in the third-man area,and that is telling. As was warranted on a fast, bouncy pitch,Dillon effectively dug the ball in just short of driving length,and Laxman could only score by gliding the ball twice to thethird-man boundary for four. For the rest of the 42 deliveries,Dillon was spot-on, and Laxman could just sneak singles and twos.Admittedly Laxman at the time was under more pressure than SachinTendulkar in the second innings, and admittedly Tendulkar is amore versatile player. But Dillon conceded 30 runs in 39 balls toTendulkar, 22 of them coming in front of square. Tendulkar droveDillon with ease, a direct result of the fast bowler pitchingfurther up when, on the pacy Sabina Park pitch, he should havedone exactly what he did in the first innings – jag it in shorterand let the track do the rest.If Dillon encountered some hitches with his length, ShivnarineChanderpaul showed Zen-like mastery over that very quality. NamedMan of the Series, Chanderpaul set a new record for the longestinterval between two dismissals. In racking up scores of 67 notout, 101 not out, 136 not out and 58, the Guyanese batsmantormented the Indians for 1,513 minutes in all before JavagalSrinath had him caught behind at Sabina Park. Perhapsunsurprisingly, India, along with Zimbabwe, bore the brunt of theprevious record as well when Jacques Kallis tallied 1,241 minutesearlier this year.

COLOMBO – Steve Waugh is not entirely sure whether he will know some ofthe players who turn out for Pakistan in the first cricket Test startinghere on Thursday.

Michael Donaldson30-Sep-2002COLOMBO – Steve Waugh is not entirely sure whether he will know some ofthe players who turn out for Pakistan in the first cricket Test startinghere on Thursday.Pakistan has been hit by withdrawals and injuries to senior playerswhile others have been dumped, meaning a bevy of young and unprovenPakistanis will take on the world champion in the first of three Testsat neutral venues.”I’m not even sure who’s in their team to tell you the truth,” Waughsaid.”The young Pakistani players have got a lot of talent and I’m surethey’ll pull out someone who does very well at Test cricket without useven knowing about them.”With other countries you know what you’re going to get but withPakistan, half the time they don’t even know what they’ve got.”The changes include openers Imran Farhat and Taufeeq Umar, middle orderbatsmen Hasan Raza and Faisal Iqbal, leg-spinner Danish Kaneria and fastbowler Mohammad Zahid, who have all played for Pakistan in Tests orone-day internationals.Those six have played only 28 Tests between them. Uncapped allrounderRana Naved-ul-Hasan also makes the squad.Waugh said the injuries to middle-order batsmen Inzamam-ul-Haq andYousuf Youhana were a big blow.”Inzamam’s a big loss, particularly on the flat, low Sharjah wicketswhere he likes to dominate.”And Youhana’s probably one of their better batters as well so thatleaves a big hole in their batting.”Waugh said Australia’s line-up had not been discussed but said the pitchconditions would dictate whether young Queenslander Nathan Hauritzplayed his first Test.”I think you’d have to consider two spinners if the wicket’s like it wasfor the (Champions Trophy) semifinal the other night, you’d be silly notto look at it – but the word is the Test wicket will have a bit of grasson it.”

Liverpool are no longer interested in signing Schalke defender Ozan Kabak, despite his impressive six-month spell at Anfield last season.

What’s the story?

The 21-year-old joined the Reds on a short-term loan deal back in January as Jurgen Klopp sort defensive cover following an injury crisis.

Liverpool had the option to make Kabak’s stay on Merseyside permanent in an £18 million deal but chose to sign Ibrahima Konate instead.

However, the possibility of Klopp returning for the Turkey international was not completely off the cards, although that is no longer an option, according to well-respected journalist James Pearce.

Fans should be gutted

Responding to a tweet asking if Liverpool would be looking to bring Kabak back to Anfield this summer, Pearce replied: “No. That ship has sailed.”

The youngster helped the 19-time English champions recover from a terrible start to the 2020/21 campaign, keeping three clean sheets in his nine league appearances as they finished third in the Premier League standings.

Kabak’s impressive performances alongside Nat Phillips in the heart of the Liverpool defence earned several plaudits, including Klopp himself.

“Ozan and Nat do really well. Hopefully, it can stay like this, so they can play a lot of games. They have started seven games together, that is good. I’m really happy for them,” said the German tactician.

“Ozan came in at 20 from Germany, was a big prospect but wasn’t lucky with the last two teams he played for; one went down (Stuttgart), and the other will probably go down (Schalke). But nobody really doubted his quality.

“We were convinced (of his quality), but in the end, you never know, and he really proved that point.”

While Klopp’s decision to bring in Konate over Kabak is understandable, news that the Schalke man definitely won’t be returning to the club should leave their supporters feeling gutted.

Virgil van Dijk will be returning from a potentially career-changing injury next season, while the trio of Joe Gomez, Joel Matip and Konate have all had extensive fitness concerns of their own throughout their careers.

With reports linking Phillips with a move away as well, the addition of Kabak would be a very welcome addition to Klopp’s charges as they attempt to regain their Premier League crown next term as there are no guarantees that Van Dijk, Gomez and Matip will be able to pick up where they left off after such long injury lay-offs.

And, in other news…James Pearce drops an exciting Liverpool transfer update, fans should be buzzing 

Watford have been linked with a move for Mario Lemina recently, and if he were to join Xisco Munoz’s side this summer, it could lead to Will Hughes’ exit from Vicarage Road.

According to Calciomercato, the Hornets have joined the race to sign the Southampton midfielder after he was a regular on loan at Fulham last season as they were relegated back to the Championship.

The Craven Cottage outfit would have had an option to buy the former Juventus man had they managed to preserve their Premier League status, but their relegation means that the Gabon international is now back on the market again this summer as Southampton look to cash in on him permanently after sending him out on loan in recent seasons.

During his time with Fulham, Lemina made 28 appearances in the top flight, contributing only one goal and zero assists and averaging a less than impressive 6.60 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

The report suggests that Watford have already seen a swap deal rejected, so it seems as if they will have to pay somewhere close to his current market value of £9m if they want to bring him to Vicarage Road this summer.

Although his time at Southampton has been something of a disaster, Lemina’s spell at Juventus emphasises that he is not short of ability. Indeed, his impressive performances at Marseille under current Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa earned him that move to England, with the Argentine manager singing his praises in 2015 by saying: “He is a different type of footballer to the majority of footballers.

“He knows how to attack and defend. He offers a lot of solutions to the coach and his team.”

Therefore, if Lemina can rediscover the form he showed before his move to Southampton, then he could be an excellent addition to Munoz’s side, even if it means Hughes potentially departing Vicarage Road. The 26-year-old has been heavily linked with a move away this summer after his impressive performances helped the Hornets to win promotion last season.

Although few Watford fans would want to see the former Derby ace depart, the potential signing of Lemina could well lead to his exit from Vicarage Road this summer, when you consider that they would both play similar roles in Munoz’s side.

In other news… Munoz should seal Watford swoop for £20m “goal king”

Crystal Palace confirmed on Friday evening that they will take on Ipswich Town in a pre-season friendly next month.

And a number of Palace supporters have been giving their thoughts regarding the fixture announcement on social media.

The Eagles will travel to Portman Road on Saturday, July 24 for a 3pm kick-off to continue their preparations for the 2021/22 campaign.

Palace learned on Wednesday that they will travel to Stamford Bridge to face Champions League winners Chelsea for their Premier League opener.

Steve Parish is yet to land Roy Hodgson’s long-term successor, but pre-season plans are rightly being finalised despite the absence of a new boss.

James McArthur scored twice the last time Palace and Ipswich faced off in 2017 in a League Cup clash.

Palace fans react

Palace shared the news regarding the friendly with the League One side on their official Twitter page.

This is what these Eagles fans had to say in reply, with one describing the news as ‘decent’.

“You don’t know how excited I am hopefully I’ll be able to get tickets and we won’t be in a full lockdown again!”Credit: @parnellphoto_”This ones decent. The Darren Ambrose derby”Credit: @ReeceJMT”BRO JUST ANNOUNCE FAVRE”Credit: @CPFC_Trigs”And who’s picking the team?”Credit: @cpfc_Rob”Are we expecting Paddy or Sean Derry to be caretaker manager for all of these pre-season matches ?”Credit: @cmburns76″Do we even have enough players to field a team?”Credit: @cockneydub

In other news: Many CPFC fans react to Lucien Favre latest, find out more here. 

برر الويلزي جاريث بيل لاعب ريال مدريد الإسباني، غيابه عن احتفالات فريقه بلقب الليجا الخامس والثلاثين، اليوم السبت.

وفاز ريال مدريد على إسبانيول في منافسات الدوري الإسباني، بنتيجة (4-0) ليحسم اللقب الـ35 في تاريخه.

بيل غاب عن المباراة وتم استبعاده وقد قيل إنه يعاني من آلام في الظهر، وهو ما أكده الويلزي في رسالته عبر “تويتر”.

اقرأ أيضًا | كاسيميرو: لا يمكننا الاستمتاع بلقب الليجا كثيرًا بسبب مانشستر سيتي

ونشر بيل صورة من احتفالات لاعبي ريال مدريد، وغرّد: “الأبطال.. محبط للغاية لأنني غير قادر على المشاركة في الاحتفالات هذا المساء بسبب تقلص عضلي في الظهر ولكني فخور حقًا بالفريق للفوز باللقب! استمتعوا هذه الليلة يا شباب!”.

بيل، الذي ينتهي عقده في يونيو، سيغادر ريال مدريد في نهاية الموسم الحالي بعد انتهاء المرحلة التي اتسمت بخلافات بين النادي الملكي واللاعب الويلزي.

CAMPEONES 🏆💪🏼

So disappointed that I’m not able to be part of the celebrations this evening due to a bad back spasm but really proud of the team for winning the title! Enjoy tonight boys! #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/RbXttKwHSE

— Gareth Bale (@GarethBale11) April 30, 2022

MatériaMais Notícias

Pela quarta vez nesta temporada, o centroavante Lucas Pratto deixou a sua marca com camisa do São Paulo. Desta vez, a vítima foi o ABC, na vitória por 3 a 1, em duelo válido pela partida de ida da Terceira Fase da Copa do Brasil. Apesar do bom jogo e da vantagem, o argentino queria mais.

O Tricolor pressionou o adversário durante todo o confronto, levando perigo em inúmeras oportunidades. Pratto acredita que o time poderia ter criado um confronto maior para o duelo de volta, em Natal, mas elogiou o desempenho do conjunto.

– O time está bem, estamos melhorando, hoje não demos tantos contra-ataque, acho que poderíamos tem feito mais gols, mas o time jogou bem, é seguir trabalhando – afirmou o atacante na saída de campo.

RelacionadasSão PauloATUAÇÕES: Luiz Araújo volta a brilhar em vitória do São PauloSão Paulo08/03/2017Copa do BrasilElétrico, São Paulo volta a brilhar no ataque e bate o ABC na Copa do BRCopa do Brasil08/03/2017

Os elogios para a equipe não pararam por aí. Com um time cada vez mais entrosado e mostrando futebol vistoso, Lucas Pratto já projeta a recompensa no fim da temporada.

– Estamos goleando, criando situações de gol, mostrando um futebol sólido, com regularidade, nós sabemos que os times mais regulares serão os campeões no fim do ano, agora é continuar trabalhando e evoluindo – comentou.

A partida de volta contra o ABC pelo confronto da Terceira Fase da Copa do Brasil será realizada na próxima quarta-feira, no Frasqueirão, em Natal.

Leeds United are closing in on a deal to bring Nahitan Nandez to Elland Road this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness), who claim that Marcelo Bielsa’s side are very close to completing a deal for the Cagliari Calcio central midfielder, with the Whites having only a few details to sort out before the 25-year-old makes a move to the Premier League club.

The report goes on to state that, despite both Inter Milan and ACF Fiorentina believed to be keen on the Uruguay international, neither side have made a concrete offer for Nandez, leaving Leeds with something of a clear run at the £19.8m-rated man, who is thought to have a €36m (£31m) release clause in his Cagliari contract.

Bielsa will be buzzing

Considering just how impressive Nandez was for Cagliari last season, in addition to how important the midfielder has been for Uruguay at this summer’s Copa America, the news that Leeds appear close to getting a deal over the line for the 25-year-old is sure to have left Bielsa buzzing.

Indeed, over his 32 Serie A appearances for Leonardo Semplici’s side last term, the industrious midfielder made an average of 0.7 interceptions, 1.8 tackles, 1.5 clearances and won 6.1 duels per game.

The £42k-per-week man also impressed for his side in an attacking capacity, scoring two goals, registering two assists and creating four big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of one key pass per league fixture.

These returns saw Nandez earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.80, ranking him as Cagliari’s 11th-best performer in the Italian top flight, playing a huge role in ensuring the Sardinian side retained their status as a Serie A team.

The 25-year-old has also featured in every game for Oscar Tabarez’s Uruguay side at the Copa America this summer, making an average of 1.7 tackles and winning an average of 5.7 duels over his three appearances in the competition, averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.77, helping his side progress to the knockout stages with one group game to spare.

Aside from his impressive displays for club and country, another reason as to why Nandez would be a smart signing for Leeds is the fact that Bielsa currently has no real backup for Kalvin Phillips in the middle of the park, an issue which must be addressed this summer if the Whites wish to push on from their impressive ninth-place finish last season.

As such, if Leeds are indeed close to getting a deal over the line for the man whom Serie A expert Conor Clancy dubbed a “powerful” midfielder and a “machine” this summer, he would appear to be a brilliant first signing of the window for Victor Orta to bring into the club.

In other news: Leeds could strike gold with powerful £17m-rated beast tipped to be “one of the best”