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With new sporting director Andrea Berta now at the helm, Arsenal are all set for a frantic summer transfer window.

The Gunners are likely to finish second in the race for the Premier League title and they have a few reasons to blame. Injuries have ruined them and they have been on the end of some questionable refereeing calls.

However, the biggest problem, notably in 2025, has been their lack of a central striker after season-ending injuries for Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus.

Jesus was on a fine run of form before sustaining an awful ACL injury against Manchester United in the FA Cup while Havertz has been out since sustaining a hamstring problem during the club’s warm-weather training camp in Dubai.

Mikel Merino has at least found some form, scoring six goals as a striker, but he is not the long-term solution.

As a result, a new shiny centre-forward will be required in the summer.

Who will that be? Well, speaking exclusively to Football FanCast on behalf of NewBettingSites.uk, Jeremie Aliadiere had a few possible solutions for Mikel Arteta.

Aliadiere wants Arsenal to sign Premier League striker

Much of the talk in recent months has been regarding the likes of Sporting sensation Viktor Gyokeres and Newcastle’s Alexander Isak.

Gyokeres has been the most in-form striker in Europe this season, scoring a remarkable haul of 44 goals in 45 games. As for that man Isak, he’s been rampant in England, although hasn’t been quite as prolific as his fellow Swede, netting 24 times in 36 appearances.

Well, if it was down to Aliadiere – one of Arsenal’s Invincibles – he would look at snapping up one of Liverpool’s forwards.

Speaking to FFC, he said: “I’m a big fan of Darwin Nunez. I really like Nunez, I’ve always been a fan of the guy. I love his work ethic, and I still think there’s a good goalscorer in him. He hasn’t had the opportunity and the confidence of his coach and his club to play week-in, week-out for a long period of time. A goalscorer needs to play week-in, week-out to keep scoring goals.”

Nunez has been one of the biggest underperformers at Anfield this term, scoring just seven goals in 42 outings.

The Uruguayan wasn’t the only solution Aliadiere recommended. The player-turned-pundit suggested Arteta and Co could go for a different Premier League striker.

The Frenchman revealed: “I like Ollie Walkins as well, which in terms of finances, will probably be cheaper to buy than Isak, who has had such an unbelievable season. The price to buy them will have gone through the roof. It’s easy to like him and want him, but it’s all about the finance and how much money Arsenal are prepared to pay for players. That’s the type of player I would love to see wearing the No9 for Arsenal, a player that can stretch defences and make runs in behind.”

Watkins was notably linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium in January when Arsenal reportedly saw a bid rejected for the Englishman.

Despite Arsenal’s need for a striker, they could also do with a new winger.

The winger Aliadiere wants Arsenal to sign

A number of different wide men have been linked with Arsenal since Berta came to the club.

Indeed, reports suggest that talks have been held with Kingsley Coman’s camp about a possible summer move while Wolves’ Matheus Cunha is allegedly a player Berta is a fan of.

There is strong interest in Anthony Gordon as well, according to reports, but one player tops all of those three in the words of Aliadiere.

Continuing his chat with FFC, the former striker was asked what winger he’d like to see arrive at the Emirates Stadium this summer.

It didn’t require much thought. Nico Williams was the man in question. “I like Nico Williams. He’s a top, top player,” Aliadiere began.

“He will suit Arsenal’s style really well. If I had a free budget, I’d definitely want to go and try to buy him, that’s for sure. Can he perform in the Premier League? You see players that come from abroad, they have a great season for their club abroad and they come to the Premier League and it doesn’t quite work out for them. It doesn’t click and they can’t really adjust to the style of play. That’s why sometimes buying players from abroad is a bit tricky. That’s why Isak, who’s done it in the Premier League with Newcastle, is a safe bet.”

Signing a new striker must be the top priority for Arsenal, but whether or not they have the finances to complete a deal for a second attacker remains to be seen.

Related He's like Saka & Yamal: Arsenal in talks to sign "world-class" £39m star

The incredible winger would bring so much experience and quality to Arsenal’s squad.

Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 15, 2025

India’s on-field performance deserves scrutiny, but they were dictated by the decisions they made off the field

Alagappan Muthu05-Jan-20252:12

Was India’s batting approach justified?

There was a team whose two key batters were not producing the runs that they were used to. They came under fire from the outside. They had a fast bowler go down with injury. They were the ones celebrating with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on Sunday afternoon.At about 4.30pm in Sydney, Scott Boland, with a well-earned drink – it looked like coffee even if he has been the toast of the town – walked over to the SCG square, which was now cordoned off. His wife and their two daughters were with him. They grabbed on to the rope and started jiggling it. Australia were deserving winners in this series against India after victory in Sydney, but it is remarkable how much their problems mirrored India’s after the first Test in Perth and how they now seem so far away.They had a batter averaging 16.85 in his last eight innings make two single-digit scores in his first appearance of the series. Marnus Labuschagne recovered. Rohit Sharma couldn’t. They had a world-beater go through a lean period. Steven Smith recovered. Virat Kohli couldn’t. It helps being part of a winning unit when you are out of form. Pat Cummins spoke about how the loss in Perth didn’t really prompt Australia into any kind of soul searching.Related

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“Thought we had a bad week, but thought our game plans, methods, [and] selection, all that was pretty much where we wanted it to be,” he said. “But maybe our execution was a little bit off. I think you can very easily panic in those situations, [and] change a lot. I think it’s more important to realise we’re still number one in the world. We’re a very good team. Stay strong.”India’s on-field performance deserves scrutiny, but they were dictated by the decisions they made off the field. They came to Australia with their souls wrenched out of place. Their first ever whitewash at home in a series of three or more Tests – against New Zealand – had raised doubts about their batters’ ability to cope with conditions where run-scoring is difficult.It forced them to look at their bowlers differently. They went into the first two Tests against Australia with only two specialist quicks. The other two – Nitish Kumar Reddy and Harshit Rana – were picked for the runs they could provide down the order.The irony is that when those runs actually came – in the first innings in Melbourne – India were unable to make the most of it. The cushion they have afforded non-performing batters on this tour directly affected their chances of victory, and might also have put their biggest asset on ice for a while. Jasprit Bumrah’s back injury is still being assessed by the medical staff. India coach Gautam Gambhir was not willing to let the seniors off the hook for how it all turned out.All eight of Virat Kohli’s dismissals were to balls outside the off stump•Getty Images”Not a lot of people are playing for the first time in Australia. There are quite a lot of others [who are]; probably two of them in the top eight,” he said after India’s loss in Sydney. “[Other than] Nitish and Yashasvi [Jaiswal], all the other guys have had the experience of Australia. So I’m not going to say that it is only because some of the young guys [that we lost], but I think there are a lot of experienced players as well.”It may also be useful to remember that four of the five Tests were played in conditions that Smith said required luck, and that it is a win as a top-order player if you can face 50 balls. He doesn’t have the 10,000th run yet, but he’s a decent enough authority to speak about these things.”A bit [of the batters’ struggle] could be because of the wickets,” Gambhir admitted. “Then, again, it’s not only the case in Australia. We’ve had the same issues at home as well. So I think everything boils down to the temperament. Everything boils down to how much you want to sometimes play those tough moments.”How much you want to grind in Test cricket. Because Test cricket is all about playing the session. Sometimes see off the spell as well. And that is why it’s the beauty of sport. So I feel that that is one issue where we need to probably look after. That how can we convert those 20s, 30s or 40s into big 100s. Not only 100s, but big 100s, and set the game up for our bowlers. Because your bowling department will always be under pressure if you can’t put those first-innings runs on the board.”Jasprit Bumrah was shouldering a very heavy workload, and in the end, it resulted in an injury•Getty ImagesThere is one other bit that no losing team will ever admit. The opposition was better equipped. Boland’s success is testament to what happens when specialists are trusted to do their jobs; how it has a knock-on effect. Australia didn’t need a lot of runs from their out-of-form batters because their in-form bowlers were knocking India out over and over again.”Yeah, it’s been tough,” Gambhir said reflecting on his time as coach, a time which includes six losses in ten Tests. “Absolutely, no doubt about it. It’s been really tough. And obviously, these weren’t the results what we were expecting in the last eight test matches.”But that is what sport is all about. All I can expect from that dressing room is to keep fighting. And all we all can do – not only as players, but as a support staff – [is] to be honest, and keep fighting and keep doing the right things what is good for Indian cricket. As simple as it can get. But more importantly, it’s a result-orientated sport. And we all play for results. And it hasn’t gone our way. As simple as it can be.”India contributed heavily to this Border-Gavaskar Trophy series being incredibly entertaining, sometimes to the point of going overboard. They played it all with their hackles raised. Right from the send-off to Travis Head in Adelaide, they have felt like they have been behind enemy lines, some portion of their effort siphoned away towards things like a hostile crowd, or a 19-year-old wind-up artist. It has added to the theatre, but could it also have been a sign that they lost a little bit of their composure? Jaiswal had the audacity to block Mitchell Starc and tell him “You’re coming on too slow.” Starc said nothing. He just took him out in the next few innings.India could have seized this series on the fourth day in Melbourne when they had Australia at 91 for 6•AFP/Getty ImagesGambhir said it wasn’t like India didn’t have their moments, and he’s right. Rohit accepted his poor form and withdrew himself from selection. That was good. Rohit, in a previous, desperate search for form, bumped their best-performing batter, KL Rahul, off a position he seemed to have earned after initially letting him have it. That was less good. Bumrah was close to becoming the highest wicket-taker in a series in Australia. That was good. He was getting up there because he was shouldering a very heavy workload, and in the end, it resulted in an injury. That was less good.Reddy scored one of the most memorable MCG hundreds. That was good. He bowled only 44 of India’s 620.2 overs in the series. That was less good. Kohli spent hours and hours in the nets trying to work out a viable way of dealing with balls outside the off stump. That was good. All eight of his dismissals were to balls outside the off stump. That was less good.India could have seized this series on a riveting fourth day in Melbourne when they had Australia at 91 for 6. That was good. They let them off the hook, allowing two 50-run partnerships for the last four wickets. That was less good.Everything good they did kept being overshadowed by something less good. So in the end, it is almost tempting to wonder: did the team that played the best cricket win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, or did the one that made the most mistakes lose?

Despite starting slow, India’s No. 6 pounced on his opportunities and attacked spin better than any of his team-mates

Vishal Dikshit04-Jan-20230:59

Hooda: While batting as a No. 6, I had to do the finisher’s job

When Deepak Hooda came out to bat in the opening T20I against Sri Lanka on Tuesday, India had been strangled by spin, reduced to 77 for 4 in the 11th over. The pitch wasn’t a standard Wankhede surface, where batters could freely play their shots and rely on boundaries.Maheesh Theekshana was bowling flat, short of length and not giving any width. One such delivery trapped debutant Shubman Gill lbw on the back foot for 7. Sanju Samson went after Dhananjaya de Silva’s offbreaks in the seventh over to up the scoring rate, but he miscued one to short third for 5. When Wanindu Hasaranga came on with Ishan Kishan attacking, he sent down one googly after another and had the batter caught at deep midwicket off a slog sweep.Related

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After 11 overs, Sri Lanka’s spinners had bowled five for just 22 runs, and bagged three of the four wickets. India were on a precarious 78 for 4 and ESPNcricinfo’s forecaster predicted a total of around 152, which would be below par on a ground with short boundaries, especially with dew expected later and Arshdeep Singh slidelined with illness.Hooda was beaten on the first ball he faced, another wrong’un from Hasaranga, before he patiently took singles off his next eight balls, six of which were bowled by spinners. With five overs to go, India were only 101, now with Hardik Pandya also back in the dugout. The forecaster predicted 142.Theekshana returned to finish his last over and bowled a rare loose, short ball. Hooda had faced nine deliveries by then without a single boundary, but he was ready. The nature of T20 cricket is such that even if your team is on the back foot, you must seize the moment if you spot an opportunity. Hooda didn’t have time to go deep in his crease, but he transferred his weight enough on the back foot and pulled a mighty six.Deepak Hooda and Axar Patel helped India accelerate at the death•BCCINext ball, perhaps to compensate for the short one, Theekshana pitched too full and Hooda was ready again. This time, he leaned into the ball and blasted it for another six in the same direction. India’s run rate shot up from 6.73 to 7.37 and they were on course for 157 now, according to ESPNcricinfo’s predictor.”That was his [Theekshana’s] last over and there was a loose ball also, and in T20, you have to keep your intent high all the time to hit the ball if it’s in your area,” Hooda said after the game. “So Axar and I thought that was the perfect time to target the bowlers. And that’s what we executed.”That over marked a clear shift in momentum, and Hooda swung it further India’s way by going after the bowlers who had contained his team-mates.Hasaranga conceded only four singles off the first five balls in his final over, but he erred with his last delivery. And Hooda was waiting. The short ball, at 95.4kmph, was much quicker than Theekshana’s, yet Hooda found the time to rock back, open up his body towards leg, and pivot for such a powerful pull that he ended up facing deep midwicket at the end of his follow through.

Watch on ESPN Player in the UK

WATCH the first India vs Sri Lanka T20I replay

The pull was Hooda’s most productive shot in the first T20I, fetching him 13 runs off just three balls. There was also a huge gulf between him and the other India batters when it came to facing spin: Hooda scored 26 off 13 balls (with three sixes) while his team-mates scored 31 off 41 balls (one four). His unbeaten 41 off 23 balls and partnership of 68 off 35 with Axar Patel lifted India to a 162.Hooda knows what’s expected of him at No. 6 and how to go about his job.”It was very clear that we had to build partnerships after we lost early wickets,” Hooda said. “You have to be ready for such situations when you’re batting in the lower order, at No. 6. There can be a collapse any time and it was not a collapse today as such, we were in a good position early on. But yes, that’s the role of a No. 6 or 7.”That’s what the game demands: that you play according to the wicket and post a decent total. That’s what I was thinking while batting as a No. 6 that I had to do the finisher’s job.”

Stats highlights from India’s memorable 2-1 series win in Australia

S Rajesh. With inputs from Shiva Jayaraman21-Jan-2021The experience gap
Going into the fourth Test, India’s playing XI had 13 Test wickets in all (two of which belonged to Rohit Sharma), compared to 1033 for Australia’s bowling attack. That stat encapsulated the gap in experience between the two teams in the series decider.ESPNcricinfo LtdOver the entire series, the average experience for an India player was 31.6 Tests, while that for an Australia player was 42. The difference of 10.4 is the second-highest in any series of three or more Tests in Australia which was won by the visiting team. The only instance of a more inexperienced team, relative to the Australian team, winning in that country was in the 1911-12 Ashes, when the difference in the average Test cap was 11.5.Debutants make their mark
The fact that India beat Australia despite losing so many of their first-choice players is largely because their replacements did so well. The five players who debuted in this series contributed 20.4% of India’s runs (off the bat) and 36.9% of their bowler wickets. Shubman Gill scored 259 out of the 371 runs scored by India’s debutants, while Mohammed Siraj picked up 13 of their 24 wickets. And these numbers exclude the vital contributions of Shardul Thakur, who, playing his second Test, scored 69 and took seven wickets.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn India’s Test history, there have only been five instances when players who debuted in an overseas series of three or more Tests collectively contributed 20% of the team’s runs and wickets. Two of those were in the 1940s, while the others were in England in 1996 (when six players debuted, including Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Venkatesh Prasad), and in the West Indies in 2011, when Virat Kohli, Abhinav Mukund and Praveen Kumar made their debuts.Batting long
India’s second innings in Adelaide lasted just 21.2 overs, but in the remaining six innings (excluding the Melbourne knock when they needed 70 to win) they faced more than 90 overs every time.In the last 40 years, there has been only once instance of an overseas team batting 90-plus overs more than six times in a series in Australia – West Indies in 1988-89; that was also the last time Australia lost a Test at the Gabba before the defeat against India. West Indies won the 1988-89 series 3-1.ESPNcricinfo LtdNo fourth-innings blues for India
In each of the last two Tests, Australia went into the fourth innings of the game as favourites. Each time, they were thwarted by the skill, resilience and determination of India’s batsmen, who batted 131 overs in Sydney for a draw, and 97 in Brisbane to seal the win. Essentially, the difference between a 3-1 scoreline in favour of Australia and the result which eventually transpired were these fourth-innings performances.India’s fourth-innings average in the series was 52.35, which is the fourth-highest in the last innings by an away team in Australia (with a cut-off of 900 balls faced and at least two fourth-innings efforts). Among the 34 series that make the cut-off, the last time a team did better was in 2008-09, when South Africa averaged 57.93 in the fourth innings, thanks to the record run-chase of 414 for 4 in Perth, which was followed by another successful chase of 183 for 1 in Melbourne.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn the last 40 years, there have only been four instances of an overseas team playing 90-plus overs twice in the fourth innings in an Australian series, which includes the 2008-09 series mentioned above. In fact, all four instances have happened in the last 15 years, suggesting that fourth-innings batting in Australia is perhaps not as difficult as it used to be in the 1980s and 1990s.For India, this was the third instance of batting 540 balls or more (90 six-ball overs) twice in the fourth innings of an overseas series. The two previous occasions were also in Australia, in 1967-68, and then again 10 years later; both were during the era of eight-ball overs. Unlike in this series, though, all of those batting efforts came in losing causes.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn both their fourth innings, in Sydney and Brisbane, Cheteshwar Pujara did the job of stalling Australia’s early quest for wickets, facing 205 deliveries in Sydney and 211 in Brisbane. His total tally of 420 deliveries in the fourth innings has been bettered only three times in an away series in the last 40 years; one of those was by Murali Vijay on the 2014-15 tour to Australia.When the toss didn’t matter
As if the unavailability of so many players wasn’t bad enough, India also lost the toss in each of the last three Tests. That didn’t stop them from winning two of those matches, though, making it only the fifth time in the last 40 years that a visiting team has won multiple Tests in Australia after losing the toss.The only occasion during this period when Australia lost three Tests despite winning the toss was in 1988-89 – yes, that series again – when West Indies won in Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne.ESPNcricinfo LtdFor India, this was the fourth instance of winning multiple Tests in an away series despite losing the toss. They had earlier achieved this against West Indies (2019), Bangladesh (2009-10), and New Zealand (1967-68).In fact, the three results in this series all went in favour of the team which lost the toss, which continues a recent trend: since the start of 2020, teams losing the toss have a 15-8 win-loss record in 27 matches.Slim pickings for Lyon, Starc
Nathan Lyon’s 100th Test didn’t go as he would have liked, and neither did the entire series. Needing 10 wickets to reach the 400 mark, he finished with nine at an average of 55.11. Only once has he averaged worse in a home series: 57.66, against South Africa in 2016-17. On that occasion South Africa’s spinners averaged 58.1, but here Lyon was comprehensively outbowled by India’s spinners, who took 23 wickets at 27. The difference of 28.1 between the two averages is the highest by far in any home series that Lyon has played.There are only two other instances when Lyon had a worse average than the opposition spinners in a home series: against Sri Lanka in 2012-13, and against India in 2018-19. On both occasions, the difference was fewer than five runs per wicket. (Click here and scroll down the page for a full list of Lyon versus opposition spinners in home series, updated till before his 100th Test.)ESPNcricinfo LtdAs if Lyon’s sub-par form wasn’t bad enough, Mitchell Starc was also off-colour through much of the series. His opening over to Mayank Agarwal in Melbourne contrasted sharply with his wayward bowling through most of the Gabba Test. Starc finished with a series average of 40.72, which made it two Australian bowlers bowling 100-plus overs at averages of more than 40. The last three such instances for Australia have all been against India. Starc and Lyon are in good company, though, for the two bowlers who met with the same fate in the 2001-02 home series against New Zealand were Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe head-to-head battles that mattered
Two batsmen scored 100-plus runs against a bowler in the series, and both instances were against Lyon, who conceded 496 runs, the most by a bowler in this series. Both Pujara and Rishabh Pant had success against him, and those were the battles which probably swung the series in India’s favour.ESPNcricinfo LtdPat Cummins, the top wicket-taker and the Player of the Series, was outstanding throughout the series, but the one anomaly was his performance against left-handers: he bowled 171 deliveries to them and conceded 91 runs without taking a wicket; Pant scored 56 off 84 balls against him. Cummins averaged 15.38 against the right-handers, taking 21 wickets in 808 balls.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Bryan Woo found out last weekend that he had made the American League All-Star team for the first time in his three years in the big leagues. Moments after getting that news, he called his parents to let them know and their reaction was too good.

The 25-year-old right-hander is 8–4 on the season with a 2.77 ERA. He's a big reason why the Mariners are in second place in the AL West and will be fighting for a possible playoff berth in the second half of the season.

The team recorded Woo's conversation with his parents, which started with him talking to his dad about the family plans for the upcoming All-Star break. He the shared that they need to head to Atlanta, where this year's game will be played.

“Oh my god, Bryan! Holy s—!," his mom yelled upon hearing the news.

This whole video is great:

Safe to say next week is going to be a special one for the Woo family.

Francisco Lindor made a heroic return in the ninth inning of the New York Mets vs. Colorado Rockies game on Friday night.

Lindor has been nursing a broken pinky toe and was out of the starting lineup on Thursday and Friday. However, as the Mets and Rockies entered the ninth inning tied at two runs each, Lindor stepped in to pinch-hit for Tyrone Taylor.

The Mets had two outs and two runners on base when Lindor entered the game. And, of course, he delivered during crunch time. Lindor hit a double, allowing Pete Alonso and Juan Soto to run home. Lindor saw two pitches in the entire game and finished with two RBI, all while playing on a broken toe. What can't he do?

Hopefully, this means Lindor will return to the lineup sooner rather than later. We'll see if he's listed as a starter for the Mets' second game vs. the Rockies on Saturday night.

The captain returns for the first two T20Is against West Indies after recovering from a side strain

Mohammad Isam23-Oct-2025Bangladesh have their T20I captain back with Litton Das returning to the squad for the first two T20Is against West Indies in Chattogram next week. Litton had missed Bangladesh’s last five T20Is after suffering a side strain during the Asia Cup last month. He missed two matches in that tournament as well as the 3-0 win over Afghanistan in Sharjah, where Jaker Ali led the side in his absence.Litton is back in the squad now at Mohammad Saifuddin’s expense. The 28-year-old allrounder bowled superbly in the third T20I against Afghanistan, taking 3 for 15 in three overs.The Bangladesh selectors also left out Soumya Sarkar, who had technically been part of the squad against Afghanistan but did not get to play since he did not get his visa for the UAE, with Parvez Hossain Emon replacing him. Soumya’s non-selection for the West Indies T20Is comes on a day when he scored an 86-ball 91 in the third ODI in Dhaka.The core of the squad that beat Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Netherlands and Afghanistan in consecutive bilateral series remains in place for Bangladesh. Litton will have Saif Hassan, Parvez and Tanzid Hasan for compant in the top-order, withTowhid Hridoy, Jaker, Shamim Hossain and Nurul Hasan in the middle-order.Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed and Mahedi Hasan will make up the spin attack, with Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam forming the customary four-man pace attack.The three T20Is will be played in Chattogram on October 27, 29 and 31.Bangladesh squad for first two T20Is against West IndiesLitton Das (capt & wk), Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Saif Hassan, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Nurul Hasan (wk), Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam.

أعلن أحمد عبد الرؤوف المدير الفني لفريق الزمالك، القائمة المختارة، لمواجهة زيسكو يونايتد في كأس الكونفدارلية.

ويلتقي الزمالك، مع زيسكو غدًا الأحد في تمام التاسعة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة والعاشرة بتوقيت السعودية، على ملعب استاد القاهرة.

طالع.. 

وتقام المباراة ضمن منافسات الجولة الأولى لمباريات دور المجموعات لبطولة كأس الكونفدرالية الإفريقية.

وكان الزمالك قد تأهل إلى دور المجموعات على حساب ديكاداها الصومالي، بعدها أوقعته القرعة رفقة زيسكو والمصري وكايزر تشيفز. قائمة الزمالك لمباراة زيسكو

حراسة المرمى: محمد صبحي – محمد عواد.

خط الدفاع: عمر جابر – بارون أوشينج – محمود حمدي “الونش” – حسام عبد المجيد – محمد إسماعيل – أحمد فتوح.

خط الوسط : نبيل عماد دونجا – محمد شحاتة – محمود جهاد – عبد الله السعيد – ناصر ماهر – عبد الحميد معالي – أحمد شريف – آدم كايد – شيكو بانزا – خوان بيزيرا.

خط الهجوم: عدي الدباغ – سيف الجزيري – عمرو ناصر.

When Everton wrapped up a season-long loan deal for Jack Grealish ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, it felt like the Three Lions star had entered the last-chance saloon.

It also raised questions as to what David Moyes was to do with his Toffees talisman, Iliman Ndiaye. Both mavericks couldn’t play on the left flank, after all.

But Ndiaye has performed excellently in a new right-sided berth, leading the club’s scoring charts with three goals from nine Premier League matches.

Iliman Ndiaye's importance to Everton

Alongside Grealish, he is the standout star in Moyes’ squad. Ndiaye only arrived in 2024, signing from Marseille for about £15m, but he was a beacon of hope throughout the end of Sean Dyche’s tenure and has scored nine goals under Moyes; no active Everton player has bagged more.

His electric pace and sharp-witted brain makes him a tricky customer for even the sternest Premier League defence. As per Sofascore, the Senegal international has won seven duels per game so far this season, and he has yet to miss a big chance when played in on goal.

Grealish has a unique skillset of his own, but there is really no one else quite like him on the blue half of Merseyside, perhaps the red streets too.

He wears the #10 shirt with pride and purpose, and it’s unlikely anyone in Moyes’ squad has the quality to take it from him right now.

There is an Everton up-and-comer who would fancy his chances, though. He’s currently out on loan, and causing quite the storm as he angles toward an emphatic return to the Premier League next season.

The Everton prospect who could take Ndiaye's shirt

For those of an Everton persuasion, it’s a hard thing to admit, but if Ndiaye isn’t playing European football before long, he may well cast an eye on the continent. Already, the likes of Tottenham Hotspur are weighing up a bumper bid, and the Friedkin Group have responded with a price tag spilling over the £70m mark.

Should he leave, Harrison Armstrong might fancy himself worthy of the summer. Certainly, the teenager has been riding the crest of a wave out on loan in the Championship with Preston North End this season, with his performances leading writer Jonny Nelson to predict that he “will be playing for England in two years”.

The 18-year-old has the grace, technical skill and physicality to become a mainstay in the Premier League, and after a promising spell on loan with Derby County last year, he has taken his game to the next level at Deepdale.

Rangy and ever-more athletic, he’s already featured eight times for Everton’s senior side and has racked up three assists, having played prominently for the development side before being determined to warrant a series of loan moves at a lower level.

Lauded for his “unreal” recent performances by the Second Tier Podcast, Armstrong is going from strength to strength.

We are seeing improvements. We are seeing maturity and growth. Armstrong ranks among the top 10% of Championship midfielders this season for progressive carries and the top 13% for successful take-ons per 90 (data via FBref).

But, more crucially, it is the overall level of his game that has been raised, more confident on the ball, more combative against the run of play. This is a Moyes midfielder, and one who stands a compelling chance of emulating Declan Rice at West Ham United, who was schooled into the superstar he is by the Scotsman.

He is not a winger, and would not replace Ndiaye in terms of tactical role, but the Finch Farm starlet has what it takes to dazzle on Merseyside and provide Everton with a new dimension, much like the silky winger.

Everton might just have a superstar on their hands in Armstrong, one who could hit the heights Ndiaye has reached, and more.

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By
Kelan Sarson

Oct 27, 2025

It has been nearly ten years since Manchester United last won a game of football at Anfield. You have to travel back in time to 2016 when a sole goal from the great Wayne Rooney won them the match.

A lot is different since then. As Ruben Amorim’s men defeated Arne Slot’s charges 2-1 on Sunday, it signified the first back-to-back league wins of the Portuguese’s rather dreary tenure in charge.

Perhaps the winds of change are among us. Is this the beginning of Amorim’s charge towards glory? Remarkably, United are now just two points shy of fourth place. They are only six points off the Premier League leaders.

For all of the negativity, for all of the criticism, this was a mammoth win. They deserve their plaudits this time around.

So, how did it happen?

How Man United ended their Anfield curse

This was as far from an Amorim performance as one can imagine. Yes, it’s a good time to play Liverpool, but arguably it’s always a good time to face Man United right now.

They changed the narrative around them on Sunday, however, and they did it in dramatic fashion.

The Red Devils came out of the gates firing when, with barely a minute on the clock, Bryan Mbeumo fired the visitors in front. It was poor defending from Virgil van Dijk who failed to track the winger and he then fired past the goalkeeper at the near post.

Mbeumo hasn’t been his rip-roaring best since trading London for Manchester, leaving Brentford behind in the summer, but he is a talisman United can build their team around. He was hailed as “one of the best in the world” during the game by BBC Sport’s Umir Irfan.

The big-money summer arrival wasn’t the only player Amorim had to thank. New goalkeeper Senne Lammens – an understated and quiet figure – looks an instant upgrade on Andre Onana. He claims crosses, looks assured and simply goes about his business without making a fuss. What a world of difference that makes.

However, the most telling story from a Man United persuasion was the way in which they responded to Cody Gakpo’s late equaliser.

When that goal went in, the game could have changed. Liverpool have made a habit of scoring late winners this term and they had the wind in their sails during that part of the clash.

United have usually wilted under pressure during the Amorim era and could have done here. This time it was different. Liverpool wilted instead and the visitors, in a big test of their mental resolve, stood up to the test.

Bruno Fernandes, always the main talisman of the club, hooked a ball into the box and there was man of the hour, Mr Harry Maguire, rolling back the clock and firing a bullet header into the net. Gary Neville cried tears of joy on commentary, Peter Drury roared and Jamie Carragher sat in silence. It was an iconic moment and one that could turn the tide of Amorim’s tenureship.

Yet, while Lammens, Mbeumo, Fernandes and Maguire came up with big moments, an ounce of praise should be fired in the direction of United’s new Carlos Tevez.

Manchester United's new Tevez has arrived

While the Argentine ultimately left United in controversial circumstances, heading to rivals Manchester City, his time at Old Trafford was something to savour.

A South American maverick, a player who’d run himself into the ground and, principally, a player who knew where the back of the net was, he was a workhorse for United.

A slender figure at 5 feet 7, his game was certainly bigger than that. He ultimately won two Premier League titles during the Sir Alex Ferguson era, played 99 games and scored 34 goals in the process. Tevez also registered 14 assists. He was a genuine all-rounder.

Well, in the present day, summer arrival Matheus Cunha looks like he’s cut from a similar cloth.

Another South American and a maverick sort of player, it’s easy to see where the comparisons stem from but, pivotally, he is actually yet to score in United colours.

His contributions have been first-class, however, and that was in evidence against Liverpool on Sunday. Like Tevez, he ran himself into the ground with a dogged performance on the road.

Scouted Football’s Jake Entwistle encapsulated things perfectly, writing on social media: The fitness of Cunha to scrap for that many duels throughout the game and drag a team up the pitch consistently is absurd. He should be absolutely gassed but he still looks able to do 90 yards with five hand-offs along the way.”

Chalkboard

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

That certainly sounds Tevez-esque, doesn’t it? During the game, the lively Brazilian only had two shots but he was also able to win four of his nine ground duels, making an interception and two clearances along the way. He also completed both of his dribble attempts and was fouled twice. Talk about offering a lot to the team.

Minutes played

90

Touches

55

Unsuccessful touches

4

Accurate passes

24/29 (83%)

Dribbles

2/2

Fouled

2x

Shots

2

Key passes

0

Interceptions

1

Clearances

2

Duels won

5/10

A goal or assist did not come the 26-year-old’s way but journalist Chris Winterburn suggested that “once Cunha starts finding the net, he’s going to be as popular as Tevez.”

Football writer for Forbes and FourFourTwo, Sam Pilger, was equally as impressed with Cunha, noting that he looks like an “incredible signing.” Quite.

United invested heavily in the frontline over the summer and while things didn’t click immediately, they certainly look as though they are now. Mbeumo is in form, Benjamin Sesko has scored twice in his last three outings and Cunha looks just as spritely.

Positives for United? What a shock. Pigs will fly next.