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Ralph Hasenhuttl looks to have received a huge boost at Southampton during the international break, with Danny Ings pictured in training after recovering from his recent injury problems.

The former Liverpool man has been sidelined since the 2-0 win against Sheffield United earlier in March, missing the defeats against Manchester City and Brighton in the Premier League, as well as the 3-0 FA Cup win against Bournemouth before the international break.

Although the 28-year-old has failed to match his levels of last season, when he finished as joint-second top scorer in the top-flight with 22 goals, he has still managed nine goals and three assists in 25 appearances in all competitions this season.

His lack of goals in recent months, after an excellent start to the season, have perhaps been a key factor in the Saints’ poor form since the turn of the year, which has seen them dragged into a relegation battle as they sit just seven points clear of 18th-placed Fulham.

However, if Ings can stay fit for the rest of the season, you would imagine that any relegation fears will soon be quashed, as his quality up front should be enough to see Hasenhuttl’s side pick up more than enough points in their remaining fixtures.

Their first game after the international break sees Saints take on Ings’ old sign Burnley at St Mary’s and if the England international can make a goalscoring return to the side, then it will hopefully give his teammates a big confidence boost ahead of their remaining top-flight fixtures.

Although Ings, who reportedly earns £75k per week at Southampton, has been heavily linked with a move away from the South Coast ahead of the summer, he will have arguably have to rediscover his form if he wants to earn a move to a Champions League side, which could also prove to be a factor in Southampton turning their poor form around. He might want to get himself in the shop window.

Therefore, Hasenhuttl will surely be delighted to have Ings back fit and will be hoping that he can be a regular in his side for the rest of the season, as if he can rediscover his goalscoring touch then Southampton will quickly distance themselves from the chasing pack.

And, in other news… Signed for £15m, now rated at £4.5m: Wilson made a huge error with 27 y/o Saints flop

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Rob Lee, who made 280 Premier League appearances, believes Kevin De Bruyne is as good as anyone else in the world at the moment.

Last season’s Premier League Player of the Year had been out for a number of weeks which coincided with Man City continuing to impress and breezing past teams with ease on a 21-match winning run.

De Bruyne’s quality on the ball is unquestionable, but with City going from having an almost unbeatable solid defence to keeping one clean sheet in the Belgian’s starts since returning from injury, it has raised a few questions.

A story was published in The Athletic which looked at De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva and how both have performed in that role of controlling the game for Pep Guardiola’s side.

However, Lee believes there is no chance that Pep drops the man he has built the City team around and has carried them through so many games.

“No way,” was Lee’s response to FFC when asked if he could see De Bruyne being benched.

He added: “De Bruyne is on a par with anybody in the world at this moment in time, he’s as good as anybody. I genuinely mean that, he’s as effective as Ronaldo and Messi.

“They’re a much better team when De Bruyne plays. He seems to be all over the park. He scores and creates more goals than anybody else.

“When he gets the ball you think he’s gonna do something whether he’s 18 yards from goal or whether he’s 10 yards from goal. He’s deceptively quick as well.”

Even when City look sluggish and off the pace, De Bruyne is able to create something out of nothing, which makes City even more terrifying for other teams.

The Belgian seems to be integral to everything Pep wants to do at City, so to drop his main man would be ludicrous to most people.

كشف حسين الشحات لاعب الأهلي عن الحوار الذي دار بينه وبين زملائه بالفريق بين شوطي مباراة السوبر الإفريقي أمام الرجاء المغربي اليوم الأربعاء.

وانتصر الأهلي على الرجاء 6-5 بركلات الترجيح بعد انتهاء الوقت الأصلي للمباراة التي أقيمت في استاد أحمد بن علي بالدوحة في قطر.

وقال حسين الشحات عبر بث مباشر على الصفحة الرسمية للأهلي بموقع “فيسبوك”: “كنا نلعب منذ بداية المباراة وأهدرنا فرص كثيرة، ولكن هذه هي كرة القدم، وتوقعنا تسجيل هدف التعادل”.

طالع أيضًا.. فيديو | علي معلول عن التتويج بالسوبر الإفريقي مع الأهلي: فوز بعد خيبة أمل

وأضاف: “تحدثنا بين الشوطين أن نهاية المباراة ما زالت مبكرة، وأمامنا شوط كامل ونستطيع أن نسجل هدفين”.

واختتم: “جمهور الأهلي كان يشجع بقوة في المدرجات حتى آخر دقيقة، ونتمنى عودة الجمهور في الدوري المصري بهذا الشكل”.

Many Manchester United fans heavily scrutinised forward Anthony Martial after his side’s 0-0 draw against Arsenal on Saturday evening.

The 25-year-old emerged as a second-half substitute in what was a quiet afternoon for both teams on the attacking front, as both defensive lines came out on top during a chilly affair in North London.

Despite being one of the club’s top earners on £250k-per-week (Spotrac), Martial was not deemed worthy enough to start this game and failed to make an impact on the tie as a whole, proving his manager right.

Sofascore recorded that the France international failed to win any duels, did not get any shots on target and made no successful dribbles.

With this in mind, supporters were incensed by another showing where Martial didn’t turn up, with some saying that he should be performing better, considering his weekly salary.

Martial slated by MUFC fans

“Anthony Martial is stealing a living. #MUFC”

Credit: @Rob_loder

“Martial doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing”

Credit: @peterEmcewan

“Martial body language is absolutely shocking. Notice it every game huffing and puffing”

Credit: @AJLawlesss

“Rashford really suffers being on the right. And- frankly- Martial isn’t worth accommodating for that.”

Credit: @andyyax

“I’d rather Telles play LW than Martial, he offers nothing.”

Credit: @Opryce92

“Rashford & Bruno look absolutely knackered. Martial is off the mark, Cavani getting no service at all.”

Credit: @TheOpinion_MUFC

In other news, Manchester United fans singled out one player after the Red Devils’ 2-1 defeat to Sheffield United.

This time last week it looked as though Wolves were going to fall silent in the transfer window.

Nuno Santo had reportedly been told to forget about splashing a large sum of money and consequently, it appeared they’d be stuck with returning loanees Patrick Cutrone and Morgan Gibbs-White.

Yet, in the last 24 hours that has changed. A deal to sign Willian Jose on loan with an option to buy is being negotiated with just a few finer details left to be ironed out.

This would be the perfect deal for Wolves, mainly because he possesses similar qualities to the injured Raul Jimenez.

Yet, if Jeff Shi completes any further business, another loan move could be on the cards for 31-cap Brazilian Douglas Costa.

Reports in Italy emerged this week that Juventus were unhappy with his lack of game time during a temporary stint with Bayern Munich, and thus, the Premier League had emerged as an option for Costa ahead of the second part of the season.

If they are able to bring the dynamic winger to Molineux then he could be an ideal successor to Adama Traore. It’s unlikely the Spaniard will leave but he has been linked with pastures new heading into January so Wolves can never be too careful.

Irrespective of Traore’s future, Costa would be a superb signing. That’s predominantly because he offers very similar qualities to the Spanish wing wizard.

Like the former Barcelona man, Costa possesses incredible dribbling skills and has frightening speed, traits that can terrify defenders.

When the Juve attacker first signed for Bayern, then-sporting director Matthias Sammer said: “He has great technical ability, a powerful left foot, he is very agile and extremely quick.”

Although they use different feet, the vast majority of what Sammer says can also be applied to Traore.

For further context, you only need to consider their statistics. The Wolves forward is incredible when it comes to beating a man, amassing as many as 4.3 dribbles per game in the Premier League last term.

This season, he’s completed 3.7 dribbles, a tally that usurps Costa’s best season for take-ons by just 0.3. That happened to be during the 2017/18 season.

Of course, that was a while ago but Costa hasn’t relented too much in terms of dribbling. He started just seven times in Serie A last season but still managed 1.9 dribbles a match.

That’s an eye-catching total, one that just goes to show how dangerous he can be. Although this would be a stop-gap loan signing, he has what it takes to succeed Traore if he does indeed depart the Midlands.

AND in other news, Forget MGW: Wolves must unleash rarely-seen “special” talent, he’s shades of Moutinho…

MatériaMais Notícias

O início dos Campeonatos Estaduais está muito próximo. Neste final de semana, Coritiba e Atlético Paranaense estreiam na competição em busca de acabar com a curta sequência em que clubes do interior do Paraná levaram a melhor. O Londrina levantou a taça em 2014 e, no ano passado, o Operário Ferroviário, de Ponta Grossa, levou o título para casa.

Antes disso, o Coritiba dominou a competição e neste sábado faz sua estreia na edição de 2016, diante do Cascavel, às 19h30, no Couto Pereira. A equipe liderada por Gilson Kleina retornou para Curitiba depois de iniciar o ano empatando, sem gols, com o Internacional, na primeira rodada da Copa Sul-Minas-Rio, na última quarta-feira.

Já o Atlético, começou o ano com a vitória por 1 a 0, sobre o Fluminense, também na quarta-feira, pela Primeira Liga. O Furacão, no entanto, estreia no domingo, diante do Operário, atual campeão paranaense. A partida acontecerá às 17h, no Estádio Germano Krüger, em Ponta Grossa. O Atlético, foi o time que mais se reforçou neste ano, trazendo ao todo sete jogadores. O treinador, Cristóvão Borges, já deixou claro sua intenção de utilizar a equipe principal nesta edição do campeonato e começar com força total no torneio que oRubro-Negro venceu pela última vez em 2009.

Além das partidas da dupla ”Atletiba”, mais quatro jogos completam a primeira rodada do Paranaense. No domingo, às 17h, o Toledo enfrenta o Foz do Iguaçu, no Estádio 14 de Dezembro, o Londrina encara o PSTC, no Estádio do Café, e o Maringá recebe o Rio Branco, no Willie Davids, todos no mesmo horário. Por fim, também no domingo, mas, às 19h30, o Paraná joga contra o JMalucelli, no Durival Britto, ou na Vila Capanema, como é popularmente conhecida a casa do Paraná Clube.

Coritiba:
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O primeiro reforço do Coxa para a temporada foi a contratação de Gilson Kleina. A filosofia do treinador nascido em Curitiba é preservar a base que disputou o último Campeonato Brasileiro e, por isso, o clube não trouxe muitos atletas para compor o elenco alviverde em 2016. As contratações, pontuais, como afirmou Kleina em muitas oportunidades foram os atacantes Vinícius, vindo Palmeiras e Leandro, ex-Santos, o meio-campista Amaral, também vindo do Palmeiras, o goleiro Elisson e o lateral Ceará, ambos vindos do Cruzeiro. Dentre os que saíram estão Keirrison, Vaná, Raphael Lucas, Ivan, Misael, Thiago Galhardo, Marcos Aurélio, Paulinho, Lúcio Flávio, Hélder, Rosinei e Fabrício Baiano.

Para Kleina a evolução apresentada nas última rodadas do Campeonato Brasileiro da temporada passada foi um aspecto bastante positivo e o treinador do coxa quer repetir as boas atuações nesta temporada, principalmente, dentro de casa.

– Temos que ter na cabeça que vamos evoluir. Com o apoio do torcedor, vamos ser uma equipe competente, segura e principalmente inteligente dentro de casa – destacou Kleina em entrevista coletiva no Beira-Rio.

Time Base: Wilson, Ceará, Walisson, Juninho, Carlinhos, A Santos, J Paulo, Juan, T Lopes, Negueba e Kléber . Técnico: Gilson Kleina.

tlético-PR
O Atlético foi o clube que mais contratou entre os Paranaenses. Ao todo são oito reforços, sendo cinco para o setor defensivo. O zagueiro Paulo André e o lateral Pará vieram do Cruzeiro. Além deles, vieram ainda o zagueiro Igor Silva, Thiago Heleno e Léo, este último do vindo do Flamengo. Para o setor ofensivo chegaram os atacantes Lucas Tocantins, André Lima, Anderson Lopes e meia Vinícius. O Furacão contará também com a permanência de Walter, artilheiro da última temporada do Campeonato Brasileiro.

Para Cristóvão o momento é de formar um elenco que possa ser a base em todas as competições. Só assim, ele acredita que sua equipe atingirá o mesmo nível de atuações e conseguirá obter regularidade ao longo da temporada.

– Como conseguimos montar um elenco que existe mesmo nível em todas as posições, em necessidade de troca, conseguimos manter um nível de atuação. Isso tem nos agradado muito porque sabemos que é dessa forma que podemos fazer uma grande campanha e ter êxito na temporada. A princípio, devo manter a equipe, a não ser que aconteça alguma coisa – afirmou Cristóvão Borges.

Time base: Weverton, Léo, Vilches, Paulo Andre, Roberto, Otávio, Deivid, Vinícius, Marcos guilherme, Anderson Lopes, André Lima/Crysan. Técnico: Cristóvão Borges.

Carlo Ancelotti can define his Everton tenure with the capture of Dundee United’s highly sought-after hotshot Kerr Smith.

What’s the word?

According to The Courier, Manchester United have taken Smith on a week-long trial as interest begins to swell across the Premier League.

Aston Villa were previously said to be at the front of the queue chasing Smith’s signature after taking the 15-year-old centre-back on trial ahead of turning 16 in a couple of months, at which point he can sign his first professional contract.

Manchester United and Everton have also been tracking the teen sensation’s situation, with the Red Devils welcoming the former central midfielder to their facilities for a week-long trial to run the rule over his potential.

Smith is very highly-rated at Dundee, where manager Micky Mellon awarded the young upstart game time in a pre-season friendly with Sheffield United in August.

Dundee are yet to give up hopes of retaining the promising Smith, but would see a move to England as another feather in the cap of Academy Director Andy Goldie while enhancing the reputation of the Tannadice youth set-up.

United Sporting Director Tony Asghar has also claimed Smith would like to remain at Dundee, though accepted they cannot stop other sides from wanting to take a look.

“You’re talking about some of the biggest clubs in the world,” Asghar told Courier Sport following Smith’s trial at Manchester United. “Plenty of clubs have asked to have a look at him but we can’t let him go to them all.

“It’s great for him but we want the best players at our football club and Kerr has the potential to be one of them. He’s already shown that against Sheffield United. He’s got a great attitude.”

A tenure defining transfer?

Ancelotti moving Everton to the front of the queue and convincing Smith that Finch Farm would be the best place to develop could define the Italian’s tenure at Goodison Park, having already shown supporters what young defenders are capable of in Jarrad Branthwaite.

The Toffees beat off competition from several clubs to seal Branthwaite’s signature in January, having scouted the 18-year-old multiple times while with Carlisle United before sealing a £750,000 deal.

He was only expected to link up with David Unsworth’s Under 23s at first, but the Carlisle-born centre-half was called on to feature on the first-team bench when Premier League action resumed in June before making his debut at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Ancelotti then started the teen star against Aston Villa, Sheffield United and Bournemouth, though has been without the winter arrival this term as a result of an ankle injury sustained in the Carabao Cup against Salford City.

Branthwaite’s debut was lauded by Ancelotti at the time, with the Italian claiming he has the potential to be a “fantastic” addition to the Toffees backline.

“I am really happy with him, he is really young, a kid,” Ancelotti told EvertonTV. “But he showed quality and personality and character.

“He is really calm with the ball, really comfortable, and really aggressive without the ball. He can be a fantastic player for us. The squad is really young but to compete we have to improve quickly.”

Smith could yet follow the path Branthwaite has blazed in 2020, defining Ancelotti’s tenure as a coach not just capable of bringing word-class talents like James Rodriguez to Goodison Park but also setting the Blues up for years after his stay.

AND in other news, Carlo Ancelotti must take care as £40.6m ace once dubbed a “weak-link” is wanted at Everton.

Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum was once again able to showcase his class for the Netherlands on Wednesday night, as his late goal secured a 2-1 win for Oranje against Poland.

The 30-year-old captained his side to victory in Chorzow and was on hand to score an 84th-minute winner to complete the turnaround for Frank de Boer’s side (per SofaScore).

It continues the former Newcastle United man’s impressive international scoring stats, as he now has 15 goals in 62 caps for his country (per Transfermarkt).

This will perhaps be a cause for confusion amongst some Liverpool fans, as in 199 appearances for the Reds, he has just 19 goals, showing that he is much more prolific when he plays for his country.

The midfielder, who earns £75,000-a-week according to Spotrac, has endured a disappointing start to the 2020/21 season with Liverpool, having averaged a poor 6.54 rating across his eight appearances in the Premier League thus far (per WhoScored).

Jurgen Klopp will be hoping therefore that Wijnaldum will return to Anfield after the international break in much more confident form, as if he were to maintain his current level of performances in the Premier League, you would imagine it wouldn’t be too long until the German manager were to drop him.

The Dutch international has been a big part of Liverpool’s successes in recent years, perhaps most notably for his two goals in Liverpool’s incredible 4-0 Champions League semi-final win against Barcelona and this most recent international performance demonstrates his quality.

As per SofaScore, the 30-year-old earned a 7.5 rating for his display, with only Memphis Depay and Poland goalscorer Kamil Jozwiak rated higher on the night.

Wijnaldum enjoyed an impressive pass accuracy rate of 93%, with 26/28 of his passes finding their mark. He also made two key passes and lost the ball on just 11 occasions, suggesting that he was very proficient with the ball at his feet.

He also matched this technical ability with a real battling performance, as he won nine out of 16 ground duels, and two out of four aerial duels during the game, also winning the penalty which Depay dispatched to equalise.

Klopp will surely be delighted with Wijnaldum’s all-round impressive display and will be hoping for a similar performance when Liverpool face Leicester City at Anfield in their next Premier League fixture.

In addition, the Dutchman also sent an important message to Michael Edwards that even though he might be in the final year of his Anfield contract, he still has plenty to offer the Reds.

Manchester City have a big job on their hands as they aim to wrestle back the Premier League trophy from Liverpool.

Pep Guardiola’s side were off the pace last season, finishing on just 81 points, 18 behind Liverpool and 19 short of their record-breaking 100 point haul from the 2017/18 season.

In order to make up the gap on Liverpool, City will have to improve, and one way to do that is to recruit well.

City haven’t spent the hundreds of millions we’ve grown accustomed to them spending so far this summer, but they have made a couple of big additions, and we’ve ranked their new arrivals so far…

Ferran Torres 3/5

A score of 3/5 isn’t a knock on Torres’ talent, because he seems like an exceptional young player who has a high ceiling, but the fact is that he’s not going to improve City’s squad from last season.

Losing Leroy Sane and getting Torres doesn’t feel like a solid trade-off, with Sane being a former PFA Young Player of the Year winner and Torres having just six senior league goals to his name.

Of course, this is one for the future, Torres is just 20 years old and City have a number of solid wide players ahead of him in the pecking order such as Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva.

It will be best to judge this transfer in four or five years, but right now this doesn’t look like a player who will make a huge impact in City’s title charge.

Yan Couto 2/5

Brazilian right-back Yan Couto is certainly one of the future at City.

This deal was agreed back in January, but Couto will finally link-up with his new side ahead of the 2020/21 season.

The teenager has already been compared to Dani Alves and if he does become as good as the former Barcelona man, this rating will go up.

But, with the full-back already costing City £12.5m, this can’t be a highly rated signing due to the amount of money spent.

Of course, £12.5m is a small amount for a team like City, but for a similar price, they could’ve gotten Matt Doherty, a proven Premier League player who could actually play a part in their title charge.

Nathan Ake 2/5

Every year you get players who go from relegated clubs to top teams and show what they’re made of.

Andy Robertson, Harry Maguire and Idrissa Gueye have found a lot of success in England and Europe after being relegated with Hull and Aston Villa respectively, and City will be wanting Ake to do the same thing here.

However, these are only good signings if they’re available for a small fee due to relegated clubs having to raise funds, but it seems as though Pep Guardiola’s side have been ripped off here.

£41m for a relegated centre-half is preposterous no matter which way you look at it, and when you consider that he may not even be a starter, with Kalidou Koulibaly strongly linked with a move to the Etihad, this begins to already look like money down the drain.

MatériaMais Notícias

O São Paulo bateu o Figueirense por 3 a 2, com dois gols depois dos 45 minutos do segundo tempo. O resultado garantiu o Tricolor no G4 a uma rodada do fim do Campeonato Brasileiro. O LANCE! registou belas imagens da emocionante vitória, que selou a despedida de Luis Fabiano.