Barcelona are reportedly on the verge of extending Ansu Fati's contract by five years, but will still look to sell the La Masia wonderkid this summer.

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• Barca to renew Fati's contract
• Will offer new deal that will run until 2030
• Catalans want to save money by offering lengthy extension

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• WHAT HAPPENED?

  According to a report from SPORT, Barcelona are planning to hand Ansu Fati a fresh five-year deal. Fati is currently among the top earners at Barca with a salary of around €13-14 million, and with no potential suitors ready to buy him yet, it has now been revealed why the player is being offered a new deal.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Barcelona are eager to offload Fati and remove his hefty wages from the wage bill, but the player is unlikely to accept any move, as he wants to succeed at the club. With his current deal running until 2027, the club is considering offering him a new five-year contract until 2030 with a significant pay cut. This would spread the €26m he is set to earn over the next two years across the full term of the new contract, allowing the club to save money in the short term.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  When Hansi Flick arrived as the new Barca boss ahead of the ongoing season, reports from Spain revealed that the German manager was going to count upon the former wonderkid. "I have congratulated Ansu on his return. I have a lot of appreciation for him and he is going to do very well," Flick said in September after Fati marked his return to fitness following a cameo in the Champions League.

  However, the 22-year-old has struggled to turn his fortunes around, with Flick regularly leaving him out of Barcelona's matchday squads. A summer departure seems inevitable, although the player is unwilling to seek pastures new.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BARCELONA?

  Currently atop the La Liga table with 60 points, same as rivals Real Madrid, Flick and Co. will face a gruelling fixture calendar in the coming weeks as they are set to play nine games over the next four weeks. Their upcoming assignment is a home game against Osasuna on Thursday, March 27.

Celtic are preparing to face Rangers in the Scottish League Cup final this weekend, but a new update suggests they may be without a key player for the much-anticipated game.

Celtic take on Rangers in League Cup final

The Hoops drew 0-0 away to Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday night, in what was a respectable point in the Champions League, as they continue to give themselves a good chance of getting into the playoffs in Europe’s biggest club competition early next year.

It’s now time to focus on a huge game on Sunday afternoon, however, as Celtic take on rivals Rangers in the League Cup final, as they battle to win the first piece of domestic silverware of the season.

The Hoops’ adversaries are the reigning holders of the trophy, but Brendan Rodgers’ side prevailed against them in last season’s Scottish Cup final and will hope to do the same again at Hampden Park this weekend.

Celtic will go into the game as favourites, given their current lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership title, but it is a match that still has the potential to be decided by fine margins. Both sides have injury concerns leading up to kickoff and a key update has dropped regarding one individual.

Worrying Celtic injury news emerges before final

On Friday, footage from Sky Sports showed that Alistair Johnston wasn’t part of Cetic’s training session, suggesting he could be a doubt for the final against Rangers this weekend. Not having Johnston available for a game of such magnitude would be a major blow for Celtic, considering what a consistent performer he has become at right-back.

The 26-year-old has won two league titles during his time with the Hoops, and this season, he has bagged four goals and assists apiece in the league, highlighting the impressive level of end product he has provided from his full-back role.

Former Celtic goalkeeper Pat Bonner has heaped praise on the job Johnston has done since arriving from CF Montreal at the end of 2022, saying: “Johnston has settled in so well. People talked about (Josip) Juranovic being a star player but Celtic haven’t missed him – that’s how well Johnston has done.”

Hopefully, his absence from training is nothing serious, but the fact that he hasn’t been seen alongside his teammates ahead of such a big occasion can only suggest that there are genuine doubts over him being fit for the showdown with Rangers.

Officials sent as Celtic on verge of losing major academy talent for free

The young forward has been tearing it up for Celtic B.

1 ByBarney Lane Dec 13, 2024

Celtic are simply a better team when Johnston is playing, whether that be because of his defensive solidity or attacking quality, so seeing him in the starting XI on Sunday will immediately increase Rodgers’ side’s chances of winning yet another trophy.

West Bromwich Albion have made a move for a “refreshing” 4-2-3-1 style manager, as they continue their search for Carlos Corberan’s replacement, according to a reporter this week.

West Brom manager latest

The Baggies have been on the lookout for a new manager since announcing on Christmas Eve that they had reached an agreement in principle for Corberan to leave the club and join La Liga side Valencia. The 41-year-old has now returned to his homeland, putting an end to his two-year tenure at the Hawthorns, and in the three games since he has left, West Brom have won, drawn and lost, with a 3-1 win over Preston coming on New Year’s Day.

Attacking 4-3-3 coach leading candidate to replace Corberan at West Brom

West Brom are on the hunt for a new manager.

ByBarney Lane Dec 27, 2024

Since Corberan’s departure, there have been a few names linked to the vacancy; Liverpool first-team coach John Heitinga is a leading contender to become the new West Brom boss. The Championship side are interested in the Dutchman due to his “experience learning in the Premier League under two top managers”. Heitinga is currently working under Arne Slot at Anfield, and before that David Moyes at West Ham, while he has also previously been interim manager at Ajax, winning 11 of his 16 games in charge.

Mark Robins is also a name that was mentioned as a possible option, but the former Coventry City boss is now back in management, as he’s been confirmed as the new Stoke City manager. It was claimed that West Brom were interested in Robins, but that is now no longer an option for the Midlands side.

West Brom make move for "refreshing" 4-2-3-1 manager

As Robins is now no longer available, West Brom have turned their attention to another manager who is out of work. According to talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook, West Brom have made a move for Lee Carsley, the former England interim manager.

The 50-year-old, who was labelled “refreshing” by midfielder Declan Rice, was given the England caretaker role in August and took charge of six Nations League matches before Thomas Tuchel began his role at the beginning of January. Carsley won five of his six games, his only disappointment being the defeat to Greece at Wembley.

Carsley, who likes to have his side operating in a 4-2-3-1 formation, is now back in charge of England’s under-21s, a role he has held since July 2021, having taken charge of 29 games in total. Carsley has had spells as caretaker manager before, as he’s done similar roles at Coventry, Brentford and Birmingham City, but the England under-21s is his only role as the official top dog.

Games

29

Won

23

Drawn

1

Lost

5

His time in charge of both England teams has now put him on the radar of West Brom, but a deal looks very unlikely, as Crook states that Carsley has rejected the Baggies job.

Two new teams – Pamir Zalmi and Hindukush Stars – have joined the league, making it an eight-team competition this year

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2022Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Najibullah Zadran are among the eight premier Afghanistan players to be retained by their Shpageeza Cricket League (SCL) teams ahead of the upcoming eighth season of the tournament.In the players’ draft for the tournament, conducted on June 10, a total of 142 players, national and uncapped, were drafted in five categories by the franchises, now numbering eight after the addition of two new franchises.The players retained ahead of the draft – apart from Rashid (Band-e-Amir Dragons), Gurbaz (Kabul Eagles, the defending champions) and Najibullah (Speenghar Tigers) – were Mohammad Shahzad (Mis Ainak Knights), Darwish Rasooli (Amo Sharks) and Samiullah Shinwari (Bost Defenders), while the two new teams, Pamir Zalmi and Hindukush Stars, picked Shapoor Zadran and Hamid Hassan as their retained players respectively.Of these players, Shahzad was retained in the highest category, Icon, as were ten others: Mohammad Nabi (Kabul Eagles), Fazalhaq Farooqi (Bost Defenders), Hashmatullah Shahidi (Pamir Zalmi), Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Hindukush Stars), Usman Ghani (Speenghar Tigers), Hazratullah Zazai (Hindukush Stars), Asghar Afghan (Mis Ainak Knights), Karim Janat (Band-e-Amir Dragons), Ihsanullah Janat (Amo Sharks) and Noor Ali Zadran (Pamir Zalmi).In addition, two players have been drafted in the Diamond category by each franchise, three in Platinum, four in Golden, and six in the Silver category.The Afghanistan Cricket Board said in a statement that “it’s fine to note that the SCL2022 is expected to be conducted from July 15 to August 2 in Kabul”. Kabul Eagles beat Mis Ainak Knights in the final the last time the tournament was played, in 2020, making it their second title, after 2016. Mis Ainak Knights and Speenghar Tigers have also won the tournament twice apiece, while Band-e-Amir Dragons have won it once.

The Bianconeri returned to winning ways in their first match under their new manager

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Juventus defeat Genoa 1-0Igor Tudor made managerial debutUSMNT's McKennie started, Weah came off benchFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

U.S. internationals Weston McKennie and Tim Weah helped lead Juventus to a narrow 1-0 victory over Genoa in Serie on Saturday, as Igor Tudor earned three points in his first match in charge of the club following the firing of Thiago Motta.

The lined up in a 3-5-2 formation, with McKennie playing on the left flank from the opening whistle, while Weah was an 82nd minute substitute.

The winning goal came in the 25th minute from Turkish youngster Kenan Yildiz.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The result served as Juventus' first win in three matches, after falling in their previous two Serie A contests. With the victory, they sit fifth in the league standings, one point behind fourth-place Bologna and the final UEFA Champions League spot for the 2025-26 season.

McKennie logged 90 minutes in an unnatural left wing position for the midfielder, putting in a solid showing while being defensively composed, while Weah brought a late attacking spark to the attack to help close out the match. In the 92nd minute, he even had a chance to double their lead, but a terrific save denied him.

DID YOU KNOW?

Tudor last managed Lazio in the spring of the 2023-24 season before resigning from his post last summer. This is his first stint in charge of Juventus, and a bright start to his career on the touchline with the club.

WHAT NEXT?

The return to the pitch on Sunday, April 6 for a clash with Roma as both teams continue their hunt for top-four as the season comes to a close.

Ipswich Town have been on an incredible roller coaster over the last few years.

Kieran McKenna took the reins in late 2021 and led them from League One all the way to the Premier League in just two and a half seasons.

The Tractor Boys repaid the Northern Irishman for his brilliant efforts in the summer transfer window by bringing in talented additions like Liam Delap, Sammie Szmodics and Jens Cajuste, who are all vitally important to the club’s goal of beating the drop.

However, while the majority of the summer additions have already paid off, it would be fair to say a few have struggled, including Kalvin Phillips and someone else, someone who might have been a mistake.

Phillips' Ipswich struggles

Following a diabolical short-term loan to West Ham United last season that saw Phillips make ten appearances, lose six games, pick up a red card and then return to Manchester City early, there were serious questions about his next move.

Fortunately for him, Ipswich thought they saw an opportunity to bring someone to Portman Road with plenty of Premier League experience and a point to prove, so in mid-August, they signed the former Leeds United captain on a season-long loan.

Initially, while he wasn’t anywhere near his impressive best, the 31-capped international looked like he’d be a useful enough player to have in and around the squad, but then away to Leicester City, he got himself sent off and essentially cost the club what would have been their first win in an early relegation six-pointer.

The Leeds-born midfielder hasn’t featured at all since that incident, but there is a feeling that, given his incredible experience and undeniable talent, he could still play an important role as the season proceeds, even if it’s not as a regular starter.

However, while there is reason to be hopeful about Phillips’ future in East Anglia, the same cannot be said about another of the club’s significant summer signings.

The Ipswich signing worse than Phillips

So, with most of Ipswich’s summer signings already accounted for, it should come as no surprise that the potential flop in question is Jack Clarke.

Now, we say ‘potential’ as it’s still probably a little early to say anything with absolute certainty, but as things stand, it’s not looking good.

The Tractor Boys agreed to pay Sunderland £15m for the “unplayable” attacker, as pundit Adrian Clarke dubbed him, and considering he’d scored 26 goals and provided 18 assists in just 92 games for the Black Cats across the last two seasons, it looked like a brilliant deal.

However, since making his move to Suffolk, the former Leeds United gem has not looked anything like the utterly sensational player who had been tearing Championship defences to shreds for the last two years.

For example, in his 14 appearances to date, which amount to 559 minutes of action, the 24-year-old has failed to score a goal and has provided just a single assist, which isn’t good enough.

Clarke at Sunderland vs Ipswich
Club	Sunderland	Ipswich
Appearances	114	14
Goals	28	0
Assists	23	1
Goal Involvements per Match	0.44	0.07
All Stats via Transfermarkt

Moreover, it’s not just the lack of output that’s worrying, but also his general play, with the defeat to Crystal Palace a good example, as the East Anglian Daily Times’ Alex Jones awarded him a 5/10 match rating and lamented him for how he ‘lost the ball too often.’

Ultimately, Clarke’s exploits for Sunderland over the last few years were nothing short of extraordinary.

That said, he has been immensely disappointing for Ipswich so far, and considering the fee he cost, it wouldn’t be all that surprising if McKenna regrets his decision to sign him.

Hutchinson 2.0: Ipswich could sign £100k-p/w "superstar in the making"

The incredible talent could provide Ipswich with what they need to stay up.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Dec 1, 2024

يخوض فريق بيراميدز مواجهة مهمة أمام منافسه حرس الحدود، مساء اليوم الأربعاء، وذلك ضمن منافسات بطولة الدوري المصري الممتاز.

وتقام المباراة بين فريقي بيراميدز وحرس الحدود، في إطار مباريات الجولة الثالثة من مرحلة الحسم لبطولة الدوري، على ملعب استاد المكس بالإسكندرية.

ويدخل بيراميدز مباراة اليوم أمام الحرس وهو في صدارة ترتيب الدوري المصري برصيد 44 نقطة، ويحتاج إلى 13 نقطة من أصل 6 مباريات متبقية لحسم اللقب الأول في تاريخه.

ويأمل حرس الحدود، الذي يحتل المركز التاسع برصيد 22 نقطة، لتحقيق نتيجة إيجابية لتحسين موقعه في جدول الترتيب.

يُذكر أن بيراميدز دخل معسكرًا مغلقًا في برج العرب استعدادًا للمباراة، ويغيب عن صفوفه الثلاثي محمد الشيبي ووليد الكرتي للإيقاف، ومهند لاشين بسبب الطرد في المباراة السابقة.

طالع | قائمة بيراميدز لمباراتي حرس الحدود وفاركو.. وقرار خاص موعد مباراة بيراميدز وحرس الحدود اليوم في الدوري

تقام مباراة بيراميدز والمصري، مساء اليوم الأربعاء 29 أبريل، في تمام الساعة 5 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية. القناة الناقلة لمباراة بيراميدز وحرس الحدود اليوم في الدوري

ومن المقرر أن تنقل المباراة بين فريقي بيراميدز ومنافسه حرس الحدود عبر قناة أون سبورت1.

ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنــــا

Glasgow Rangers won’t take many positives from their weekend draw at Easter Road, especially considering the Ibrox side led 2-0 and 3-2 at stages during the game, yet they still managed to draw 3-3.

Defensive issues ensure the Light Blues won’t win the Premiership title this season, as Robin Propper and Dujon Sterling struggled against Hibs on Sunday afternoon, failing to deal with the opposition in the final third.

Despite the dropped points in Edinburgh, one player stood out among the underperformers for the Gers – Hamza Igamane.

The striker has been one of the stories of the season for the club. Eyebrows were raised last summer when Philippe Clement spent £1.7m on the youngster, who joined from AS FAR in Morocco.

Fast-forward seven months down the line and Igamane is showing up plenty of the established first-team players at the club.

Hamza Igamane’s season in numbers

The 22-year-old arrived in Glasgow nursing a small injury which meant he took a few weeks to eventually make it into the senior squad for a match. His debut came at Parkhead during the final stages of a 3-0 defeat. Talk about a baptism of fire for the striker, who hadn’t played football outside of Africa before.

It didn’t take him long to make his mark, especially in Europe. Across the four matches between October and December, Igamane not only started twice, but he scored four goals and grabbed one assist.

Alongside his goals, the centre-forward has averaged 1.3 key passes and 1.3 successful dribbles per game, as well as averaging 1.5 shots per game and this has seen his confidence skyrocket.

Over the festive period, if it was not for Igamane, Rangers would certainly have slipped further behind Celtic. That’s a certainty.

The Ibrox side were trailing 2-0 against Motherwell during their last game of 2024 before the striker netted twice to ensure a point was secured.

As mentioned, his three-goal salvo against Hibs over the weekend should have been enough for the club to gain all three points, but it wasn’t to be.

His displays recently have even attracted plenty of attention, as Igamane could perhaps be the next big thing to leave Ibrox for a major profit.

Indeed, Everton reportedly sent scouts to watch Rangers against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League just before Christmas and it surely won’t be long before a club submits an offer to test the Light Blues’ resolve.

Metric

Europa League

Premiership

Goals

4

7

Shots per game

1.5

2.6

Big chances created

0

4

Assists

1

0

Successful dribbles per game

1.3

1

Clement will be looking to add some more players to his squad between now and the end of the winter window. With defenders the obvious priority due to the injury issues plaguing the club, could the Belgian also make a move for a striker too?

One name has been linked, and he could be a dream rival for Igamane, no doubt about that.

Rangers could sign Igamane rival this month

Towards the end of 2024, South African publication SNL24 claimed that the Ibrox side were monitoring striker Iqraam Rayners ahead of making a potential move when the winter window opened.

“There has been an enquiry about Iqraam (Rayners) from Rangers of Scotland,” a source told SNL24. “I don’t think there has been an offer from them at this stage. What I know is they have shown interest and they continue monitoring him.”

Much will depend on what budget Clement has to play with this month and whether or not he may have to move on some deadwood in order to free up space in his squad.

Rayners is certainly a late bloomer, but if he did make the move to Glasgow, the 29-year-old could rival Igamane for the place in the starting XI, especially after a solid start to the season.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Since moving to Mamelodi Sundowns last summer, the South African hitman has been on fire, scoring 13 goals across just 19 games in all competitions, which works out as a goal every 1.46 matches.

A strike rate like this wouldn’t go a miss at Ibrox, that’s for sure. The question is, could Rayners transfer the form he is showing in his homeland to Scotland should he secure his dream move this month?

His success throughout 2024 was praised by journalist Joshua Hendricks, who said: “Rayners has netted an impressive 23 goals across all competitions in 2024, outscoring every other top-flight player. This milestone marks his best scoring year yet, with 11 goals at Stellenbosch and 12 at Mamelodi Sundowns.”

Domestically, Rayners averages 1.7 shots per game, succeeds with 75% of his dribble attempts and has created one big chance. More importantly, perhaps, is his clinical nature in the opposition box.

Indeed, throughout the South African Premier Division season, Rayners has missed just one big chance, while his goal conversion rate currently stands at 40%, indicating how impressive he has been in front of goal this term.

At international level, the striker was also in fine form. Across ten games for South Africa during the calendar year, Rayners managed to find the back of the net on four occasions, including two in the qualifiers for the Africa Cup of Nations as South Africa went through the entire campaign undefeated.

Following Igamane’s success after making the move from Africa to Scotland in recent months, Clement will be hoping that Rayners could replicate this success should he secure a permanent move to Rangers.

If so, the Gers might just open up a new market which could see more players from Africa link up with the club shortly, going on to shine before leaving for a big profit.

The manager has both Igamane and Danilo to call upon, with the pair shining over the festive period, but Rayners would add some stiff competition.

The club need to make a signing sooner rather than later and diving back into the African market could see the Light Blues sign another gem.

Imagine him & Igamane: Rangers could land Hagi 2.0 in "incredible" star

Rangers will be looking to make a few signings this month…

ByRoss Kilvington Jan 4, 2025

The emotion was plain for Joe Root as he soaked up the acclaim from an enraptured Lord’s crowd. A phenomenally composed 115 not out, his 26th Test hundred but his first in the fourth innings, had guided England to a gripping five-wicket win over New Zealand in the first Test of the English summer, and ended a barren run of results that stretched back 10 months to the Headingley Test against India.But perhaps more significantly, it was a century in Root’s first appearance back in England’s ranks, after stepping down from a role that he had held with pride for five years and a national-record 64 matches, but which he admitted after the match had become an “unhealthy relationship” in its grim final throes.England won just one of their last 17 Tests under Root’s leadership, including a 4-0 defeat in the Ashes and a further 1-0 reverse in the Caribbean in March. And though he insisted in the immediate aftermath of that campaign that he still had the drive to take the team forward, Root conceded upon his return to the UK that the pressures had become too much to bear.”It had become a very unhealthy relationship to be honest, the captaincy and me,” Root admitted after his innings on Sunday. “It started to really take a bad toll on my own personal health. I couldn’t leave it at the ground any more, it was coming home. It wasn’t fair on my family, on people close to me, and it wasn’t fair on myself either.Related

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“I had thrown everything at it and I was determined to help turn this team around but I realised over that time at home that it would have to be in a different way. I’m very excited to do that now and to do everything I can to help Ben [Stokes] really turn this team around and make this team the force it should and can be.”There was little about Root’s form with the bat in the latter months of his captaincy that let on about the mental toll the role was taking – quite the contrary in fact. He amassed an England-record 1,708 runs at 61.00 in 2021, just 80 runs shy of Mohammad Yousuf’s all-time record, and though he endured a dip in form towards the end of the Ashes, his back-to-back hundreds in Antigua and Barbados earlier this year seemed to have signalled his determination to keep leading from the front.Privately, however, Root acknowledged he was feeling the strain of propping up an under-performing team, and while taking a break from cricket at the end of the Caribbean tour, he announced it was time to step down.”I obviously tried as much as I could, but I think I was unaware of how much it was grabbing hold of me,” he admitted. “I just needed to make the decision, and I knew it was the right thing to do. I felt like a big weight had been lifted and I immediately felt a lot better.”As hard as it was, obviously it’s been a huge privilege and something that I’m extremely proud to have done, but it’s time for a new phase in my career. And it’s one that I’m very much looking forward to, seeing one of my best mates now take this team forward and start in a way that he has.”Stokes himself played a big part in securing victory in his first outing as official captain, scoring a chancy but vital 54 to help break the back of a 277-run chase on the third afternoon. But, once he fell to Kyle Jamieson with 118 runs still needed, Root stepped up his own tempo to score his final 81 runs from 81 balls, and ease England home in company with Ben Foakes.”This is a very nice feeling,” Root said in the aftermath of England’s win. “It’s felt like a long time. But it’s one that you want to feel over and over again. So, again, having experienced that this week, it’s one that we want to make sure that, when we turn up to Trent Bridge, we’re on the right side of it again, and can feel it again.”