Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has stressed the importance of not rushing Rodri back despite his return to training from a serious knee injury.
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Rodri suffers ACL injuryBack in Man City trainingGuardiola reveals plan for Spain starFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
The 2024 Ballon d'Or winner suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury last September, with reports at the time stating his season was over. However, the Spain international returned to first-team training for City this week, sparking hopes he could play again this term. Despite this, manager Guardiola says the 28-year-old will only feature for his side again when the doctor says he is good and ready.
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He told reporters: "The moment the official doctor says Rodri can start to play minutes, after that he will start to play minutes, but the doctors have to tell me. It was a difficult injury. It was an injury seven to 11 months, the doctor said. Every day Rodri is making more sessions but we have to wait so he doesn’t make a step backwards and get injured again so we have to be careful. Every training session he feels better and when the doctor says Rodri is stable and can start to play. After that, he is going to come back.”
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It may not be a coincidence that City are set to have one of their worst seasons in years at a time when arguably their best player, in Rodri, has been injured. While it will be tempting to have him back playing again, especially as they try to win the FA Cup and qualify for next season's Champions League, the risk of a setback will be at the forefront of the club's minds.
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City, who sit fourth in the Premier League, host in-form Wolves on Saturday in their next league match.
Matt Roller22-Nov-2022Gary Kirsten has left his role as Welsh Fire’s head coach in the men’s Hundred after overseeing a winless 2022 season.Kirsten, 54, spent both of the Hundred’s first two seasons with the Cardiff-based team but, after winning their first two games, their results nosedived: they won one of their final six fixtures in 2021 and despite a squad overhaul at the draft, lost all eight matches in 2022.Kirsten had initially planned to build his side around Jonny Bairstow as captain, but he has only played for them twice since his Test recall last year. Unlike most of their rivals, Fire have struggled to foster a team culture or a sense of identity.His exit was long expected but only ratified recently. The decision was made by Fire’s board, which is run by the chief executives of Glamorgan, Gloucestershire and Somerset, the Welsh businesswoman Aileen Richards (who acts as an independent director) and Glamorgan head of operations Dan Cherry, with Mark Wallace serving as general manager.Kirsten confirmed his departure to ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday following a report in the .Candidates to replace Kirsten could include Paul Farbrace, the former England assistant coach, who revealed earlier this month that he is open to working in the Hundred after leaving his job as Warwickshire’s director of cricket.
Chelsea are now the front-runners in the race to sign an “exceptional” £50m striker, despite interest from Premier League rivals Manchester United, according to reporter Ben Jacobs.
Chelsea short on striker options
Despite spending heavily in almost every transfer window since the arrival of Todd Boehly, the Blues find themselves a little light on striker options heading into a crucial stage of the season, with a number of forwards suffering injury setbacks.
Not only is Nicolas Jackson set for a prolonged period on the sidelines, but Marc Guiu has also been ruled out, with Enzo Maresca recently confirming the Spaniard could be out for quite some time.
“Marc Guiu, unfortunately, it’s a bad injury,” said the Blues boss. “Could be [long-term], yeah. We are still waiting but it doesn’t look a short injury. It’s a long injury. Probably weeks or months.”
As such, Christopher Nkunku is the obvious choice to lead the line, but that may not be the case beyond the end of the season, with it being revealed the Blues are now willing to cash in on the forward, and there is interest from Bayern Munich.
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Chelsea have been on the lookout for a new striker to potentially replace Nkunku, and reliable reporter Ben Jacobs recently told GiveMeSport the west London club are the front-runners in the race for Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap.
Even if Ipswich avoid relegation from the Premier League, Delap is set to leave, and there are indications he could be keen on a move to Stamford Bridge, as he is “intrigued” by Maresca’s project and the possibility of becoming Chelsea’s no.9.
Jacobs also states Manchester City are unlikely to activate their buy-back clause, with Ipswich instead set to hold out for a fee of around £50m.
Ipswich still have a fighting chance of avoiding the drop, and they owe a large part of that to their striker, who’s bagged nine of their 22 goals so far this season.
Pundit Glenn Murray lauded the 22-year-old as “exceptional” earlier in the campaign, and he has shown no signs of slowing down, bagging a goal and an assist in a 2-0 victory over the Blues in December, while also scoring against Southampton last time out.
Ipswich Town'sLiamDelapapplauds fans after the match
With Nkunku potentially on the move at the end of the season, and doubt lingering over Jackson, who has been without a league goal since mid-December, it is clear the Blues will need to bring in a top-quality striker this summer.
Delap’s performances for Ipswich indicate he would be capable of making the step-up to one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs, so it is exciting news Chelsea are the front-runners for his signature.
Luis Enrique was "very satisfied" with his Paris Saint-Germain side despite their 2-1 loss to Strasbourg before they face Arsenal on Wednesday.
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PSG lose to European hopefuls StrasbourgLuis Enrique made 10 changes to his teamDonnarumma & Co rested for Arsenal tie Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
The coach made 10 changes to the starting XI that beat Arsenal 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie in midweek, with only Joao Neves keeping his place in the team against Strasbourg. The likes of Gianluigi Donnarumma, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Marquinhos and Achraf Hakimi were all dropped.
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A Lucas Hernandez own goal after 20 minutes was followed by a Felix Lemarechai goal just before the stroke of half-time as the hosts enjoyed a strong opening 45 minutes. PSG started the second half perfectly, though, with Bradley Barcola scoring within 60 seconds of the restart. The Ligue 1 champions were unable to draw level and lost for the second time in a row in the French top-flight, but Luis Enrique was not bothered by the result as he turned his attention to the European clash.
WHAT LUIS ENRIQUE SAID
"I'm very satisfied with my team's performance and the way they played," he told reporters. "We were up against a very strong opponent who want to qualify for the Champions League. It's a young team, we had a very high-level team, four players from the centre, I'm happy with them, they're young players. It was a very high-level match. All the objectives I had in mind came to fruition, apart from the result. It's ridiculous to go beyond that. I also want to say that we were close to a draw, we had chances."
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With so many PSG players rested this weekend, Luis Enrique will hope they will be able to get the job done when they host Mikel Arteta's team on Wednesday. They will, however, be hoping for good news on the injured Ousmane Dembele, who made the difference in London.
Chamari Athapaththu dominated for Renegades but her 75 wasn’t enough
AAP03-Nov-2022Hobart Hurricanes legspinner Maisy Gibson returned career-best figures in a four-wicket win over the Melbourne Renegades in the WBBL.Gibson put in a supreme display with the ball to help restrict the Renegades to a modest 5 for 133 batting first at Blundstone Arena.In the run chase, Hurricanes allrounder Heather Graham (39* off 26 balls) put her foot on the accelerator at the right time to ensure her side cruised to victory with 11 balls to spare.The turning point in the chase was the 27 runs Hurricanes made in the power surge, which they took in the 13th and 14th overs.Hurricanes captain Elyse Villani (29) made her highest score this season before she was bowled by a superb skidding delivery from Renegades captain Sophie Molineux.Renegades slumped to their sixth consecutive defeat and are in last position in the ladder, while Hurricanes are in fifth spot but have a game in hand over the top four sides.Opener Chamari Athapaththu was the star of the Renegades innings with an unbeaten 75 from 59 deliveries. The Sri Lanka captain was on a different level to the rest of the batters, with her straight hitting clinical and power-packed.Renegades got off to a fast start with the bat, with opener Hayley Matthews (26 off 23) the prime mover.Gibson took two wickets in her first over, including Josephine Dooley with an athletic caught and bowled in her outstretched left hand. She was in the groove and another over where she snared two wickets made sure the Renegades never got away.The fielding of the hosts was supreme, with Ruth Johnston diving full stretch to take a one-handed diving catch with her left to dismiss Molineux.
Ecclestone’s miserly three-wicket haul compounds West Indies’ woes
Valkerie Baynes10-Dec-2022Nat Sciver was in the runs – again – and the wickets as England wrapped up a 3-0 sweep of their ODI series against West Indies in Antigua.Sciver, the player of the match and the series, scored her second half-century in three games after having made her comeback on this tour from a three-month mental-health break, setting a record for most ODI runs by an England woman cricketer in a calendar year in the process.Her 85 off 69 balls to steady England from 84 for 4 took her to 833 ODI runs for 2022 and past Claire Taylor’s 2005 mark of 807 despite missing the three matches against India in September. It followed her 96-ball 90 in the first match against West Indies, which marked her return to action.Related
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Sciver also took two important wickets in an excellent bowling performance by England, led by Sophie Ecclestone’s miserly three-wicket haul, as West Indies collapsed to 105 in pursuit of 257.For the second match in a row, West Indies failed to capitalise after bowling England out inside their 50-over allocation and they have now gone 11 ODI innings without reaching 200.Apart from captain Hayley Matthews, who had given her side a chance by claiming the wickets of Sciver, Danni Wyatt and Charlie Dean as England were bowled out for 256 in 43.3 overs, West Indies’ batting performance was poor, with no one else passing 13.Even Matthews’ 28 from 39 fell well short, but she started well enough with some exquisite extra-cover drives early on off Freya Davies, in the side for Lauren Bell, who was rested following her crucial four-wicket haul in Tuesday’s second match.Matthews fell to a brilliant one-handed catch by Ecclestone, launching herself to her right at slip to pluck the ball off Kate Cross and put West Indies at 40 for 1 in the 11th over.Cross was extremely economical with 1 for 14 from her seven overs, but left-arm spinner Ecclestone was next-level in that department with 48 dot balls in her nine overs, which yielded three wickets for just nine runs. Offspinner Dean was also frugal with 40 dot balls in eight overs and 1 for 16.West Indies’ run rate nosedived after Matthews’ dismissal. Sciver had Kycia Knight caught by Tammy Beaumont and pinned Rashada Williams, who had scored an unbeaten half-century in the second match, lbw either side of Dean’s removal of Aaliyah Alleyne, stumped for 8 as West Indies lost three wickets without a run in the space of ten balls.Hayley Matthews played her part with ball and bat, but there was little support from her team-mates•Hagen Hopkins/ICC/Getty ImagesEcclestone then had two in an over when she removed Chedean Nation for a laboured 10 off 30 balls and Chinelle Henry, both lbw, to make it 91 for 7 at the end of the 32nd over. From there, the tail fell away and with Shakera Selman unable to bat because of injury, the home side posted their worst total of the series.Earlier, Kaysia Schultz, the left-arm orthodox spinner on debut, had claimed the wickets of opener Emma Lamb, ending a 63-run opening stand with Beaumont, and No. 3 Sophia Dunkley before Sciver and Wyatt steadied England with an 80-run partnership for the fifth wicket.Sciver clipped a fuller ball from Cherry-Ann Fraser to the boundary through backward square-leg to bring up her 20th ODI fifty. But Matthews brought herself back into the attack in the 28th over and prised out two key wickets, tossing one up to get an advancing Wyatt stumped, before her full, flighted delivery slid under Sciver’s attempted slog-sweep and clattered into leg stump.Selman had bowled Beaumont as England went from 63 for 0 to 65 for 2 and she grabbed her second when she trapped Ecclestone lbw and England wobbled again at 218 for 7.Matthews enticed Dean with a well-flighted delivery that resulted in a return catch and, after Cross fell to Selman’s yorker, Henry – who had seen chances go down off Wyatt and Amy Jones – had Davies caught by Shemaine Campbelle at cover point.That left Amy Jones, still standing in for resting captain Heather Knight as she returns from hip surgery, stranded on 32 off 31 balls following her impressive 70 not out in the second game.
“Any time you come into an ODI series and the top score is 160, you’re probably missing out a bit with the bat. It’s definitely an area that we need to pay more attention to, find a way to score more runs on the whole”Hayley Matthews
Jon Lewis, England’s new head coach, now has three wins from as many games in charge and both Jones and Sciver spoke positively about the more aggressive approach he has tried to instil in the side since taking over from Lisa Keightley late last month.”We’re committing to a style of play and we’re fully backed,” Jones told BT Sport. “Whilst it’s not going to come off every time, we’ve made three pretty decent scores in this series anyway, so it’s definitely a good thing for us going forward. It’s something we’re going to commit to for sure.”Sciver added: “I’m feeling really good about being back and really positive about being back with this team and with a new coach who’s really helped us to see a different way of playing.”Matthews was in no doubt that her side’s batting had continued to let them down, having posted totals of 165 and 118 in the first two matches, both of which England won by 142 runs.”Any time you come into an ODI series and the top score is 160, you’re probably missing out a bit with the bat,” Matthews said. “It’s definitely an area that we need to pay more attention to, find a way to score more runs on the whole, hopefully we can do that in the T20 series coming up. This series was disappointing but as a team I reckon we’ll learn from it a whole lot and hopefully we can take some of those learnings into the series we have coming up.”The sides play the first of five T20Is on Sunday in Antigua before moving on to Barbados for the remaining four.
Potentially stealing the transfer headlines once again, a Premier League insider has now backed Aston Villa to lead the race in pursuit of one particular attacking reinforcement this summer.
Aston Villa transfer news
After grabbing the spotlight by signing Marco Asensio, Axel Disasi and Marcus Rashford on loan as well as welcoming Donyell Malen and Andre Garcia on a permanent basis in the January transfer window, Aston Villa look destined to return to the market this summer.
A recent 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Crystal Palace certainly suggests that there’s still plenty of work to be done in the Midlands and the Villans seem to be well aware of that with the transfer rumours coming thick and fast.
Among those who have reportedly emerged onto Villa’s radar is Porto’s Samu Aghehowa, who could yet arrive to replace Jhon Duran following his January exit to Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr.
The young forward has enjoyed an excellent debut season in Portugal, potentially sparking a Premier League battle for his signature when the summer arrives. He’s not the only attacking addition on Villa’s radar it seems, however.
Aston Villa lining up summer swoop to sign "aggressive" want-away £20m ace
He’s a wanted man…
ByTom Cunningham Feb 27, 2025
Former Premier League scout Mick Brown now believes that Aston Villa will be in pole position to sign Ferran Torres from Barcelona this summer in a move that would bring the winger back to English football.
Aston Villa backed to enter pole position for "incredible" Torres
Speaking to Football Insider about Villa’s potential move to sign Torres, Brown said: “He’s got that Premier League experience with Man City and Villa would give him the chance to play more regularly than he is at Barcelona. Their contacts in Spain will allow them to do their work behind the scenes and probably move to the front of the queue to sign him.
“They could do with a right-winger in the summer, that’s somewhere Emery wants to strengthen. Bailey and his other options come into the side, they do what they do, but they’re not a shoo-in to play every week and that’s what they need.
“Emery wants a stronger option who can nail down his place in the side. He wants more firepower on that side as well, because their left-hand side is very strong with the likes of Malen, Rashford and others.
FC Barcelona'sFerranTorrescelebrates scoring their second goal
“Adding quality and balance on the right will make them even more lethal. So it’s definitlely a deal which makes sense for Villa and I think it’s one they’re going to work on.”
Previously praised for his “incredible sense of goal” by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, Torres desperately needs a return to English football. The Spaniard has started just seven La Liga games all season and is unlikely to win his place back anytime soon amid competition from Lamine Yamal and Raphinha.
At Villa, meanwhile, if Rashford does not arrive on a permanent basis, then Torres could instantly receive the role he has been looking for since leaving Manchester City.
Manchester United are reportedly threatening to muscle in on Tottenham's move for Real Betis star Johnny Cardoso this summer.
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Tottenham have Cardoso purchase optionNo guarantee he leaves Real BetisMan Utd threaten to muscle in on moveFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Tottenham sold Giovani Lo Celso to Betis last August, and as part of the deal, they secured a €25 million (£21m) purchase option to buy Cardoso this summer. Now, El Desmarque states United and Atletico Madrid are keeping tabs on him, raising the possibility that he does not go to Spurs after all.
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The report adds that Tottenham's clause is valid in June but even if they activate it, Cardoso will ‘will have the last word’ on whether to join them. The United States international could reject them, stay at Betis, or move elsewhere this summer.
DID YOU KNOW?
Cardoso, who signed a new deal with Betis until 2030 earlier this year, expressed his desire to stay at the Spanish outfit for "many years" just last month. The 23-year-old is enjoying a breakout season in the green and white after joining from Internacional in 2024.
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The report adds that his entourage are aware he could receive better offers later this summer and that he seems to be torn over his future – something that could be swayed by United or Tottenham winning the Europa League later this month, when they compete in the final in Bilbao on May 21.
GOAL understands that Chelsea are all set to launch a shock transfer bid for out-of-favour Real Madrid star Rodrygo in the summer window.
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Chelsea set to launch bid for RodrygoBlues in touch with Rodrygo's representativesBrazilian wants to leave Madrid in the summerFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Reports have emerged in the last few days that Rodrygo is planning to quit Real Madrid after falling down the pecking order in the team's attack. reported last week that the Brazilian is in a 'complicated moment' and already 'has one foot out of Madrid'. He wants to wait for Xabi Alonso to officially join the club as Real's new head coach before he decides what to do with his future.
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GOAL can confirm that Chelsea are closely monitoring Rodrygo's situation in the Spanish capital and are considering a bid to sign the forward once the summer transfer window opens. The Blues are yet to initiate formal talks with Los Blancos, but are already in touch with the 24-year-old's representatives.
DID YOU KNOW?
Rodrygo's current deal at Madrid runs until 2028, which means that the Premier League giants will have to shell out a substantial amount to sign the forward. Other than Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United have also shown interest in the Selecao star.
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Madrid will play their final league game of the season on Saturday as they take on Real Sociedad. This will also be the last time that Carlo Ancelotti will sit in their dugout.
With the dust having settled on Thursday night’s Europa League clash away at Real Sociedad, it’s hard to know what to make of Manchester United’s display, with a largely positive performance having been somewhat overshadowed by a familiar sense of Deja vu late on.
It must be said that a far more competent United side could have already had the tie wrapped up, with the Red Devils once again coming up short in the final third, prior to Joshua Zirkzee’s opener just before the hour mark.
Zirkzee, Dalot, De Ligt
Even that sweeping, stroked effort from the Dutchman epitomised the at times casual nature of the away side’s forward play, with Ruben Amorim’s men lacking that real ruthless cutting edge even when firmly in control, as Alejandro Garnacho notably lashed two efforts into the side netting from the angle.
Predictably in this dismal season of woe, the Old Trafford outfit were made to pay for that profligacy as Mikel Oyarzabal converted from the penalty spot to level proceedings. The hosts almost inflicted even more misery in the closing stages, only for Orri Oskarsson to inexplicably poke his attempt wide.
Thankfully, the scoreline remains level ahead of Thursday’s reverse fixture, albeit with Amorim left with key selection decisions to ponder…
Man Utd's worst performers vs Sociedad
While Bruno Fernandes can feel aggrieved to have been penalised for a somewhat harsh handball call that led to Oyarzabal’s equaliser, it must be said that the Portuguese playmaker was far from at his brilliant best on the night.
Not only did the 30-year-old fail to offer his usual attacking verve, after registering just a solitary key pass, but he was also caught out at times defensively, after being dribbled past on three occasions in the centre of the park.
Elsewhere, it also proved to be a frustrating outing for Fernandes’ compatriot, Diogo Dalot, with the 25-year-old full-back coming under fire for failing to pick out Rasmus Hojlund in the first half, a decision that even his manager described as “not the best”.
As for Hojlund himself, it was hard to doubt the Dane’s endeavour on this occasion as he tirelessly worked the channels, although the 22-year-old particularly faded from view as the game progressed, with the lack of a suitable alternative on the bench seemingly not helping matters.
Having failed to register 17-year-old, Chido Obi, for the competition, Hojlund will have to remain the go-to striker moving forward, albeit with Amorim certainly needing more from a player who hasn’t scored since mid-December, as he also lost the ball eight times from just 19 touches on the night.
Hojlund
In the case of the former Atalanta man, Amorim’s hands were tied in a sense due to the club’s depleted bench, yet the same cannot be said for Hojlund’s international teammate, Patrick Dorgu, with the 20-year-old perhaps fortunate not to have been withdrawn at some stage.
Patrick Dorgu's game in numbers vs Sociedad
Mixed would be the word to describe Dorgu’s start to life in Manchester.
Performance in Numbers
Subbed at half-time against Leicester City in the FA Cup, the former Lecce man then put in a lively display away at Goodison Park, with Amorim subsequently stating that the wing-back is “going to be a very good player for us now and in the future”.
Unfortunately for Dorgu, that was followed by a chaotic showing against Ipswich Town as he teed up the visitors’ opener before being dismissed just before the break, with that early red forcing him to sit out Sunday’s FA Cup tie at home to Fulham.
Having been reinstated for the trip to San Sebastian, there were signs of life from the £30m man again down the left flank as he regularly looked to get forward, albeit while having been found desperately lacking with regard to his end product.
Much like his compatriot, Hojlund, it is hard to criticise the defender’s work rate as he frequently bombed up and down the wing, although he failed to pick out a teammate with any of his three crosses, having lost the ball on 19 occasions.
That corroborates the verdict of the Daily Express’ Alex Turk, who handed the defender a 5/10 match rating, while also writing that Dorgu was ‘so often an attacking outlet for United down the left flank but wasn’t hitting the sweet spot with his crossing.’
90 minutes
52 touches
66% pass accuracy
1 key pass
0/3 crosses completed
0/1 long balls completed
0/2 successful dribbles
1 big chance created
3/8 ground duels won
1/2 aerial duels won
19x possession lost
While his tally of 52 touches was even more than influential goalscorer, Zirkzee (45), Dorgu did only record a 66% pass accuracy rate, while also struggling in a defensive sense after winning just four of his ten total duels.
There certainly remains reason to be optimistic surrounding United’s January arrival, yet perhaps Dorgu might have benefitted from being replaced when he started to tire, with teenage sensation, Harry Amass, waiting in the wings to make his ‘long overdue’ first-team debut, as per journalist George Smith.
While throwing on a 17-year-old for his first taste of senior football may have been a real gamble, it did look as if United were in need of fresher legs as Sociedad wrestled back control, having been left hanging on in the final throes of the game.
Senior options are, frankly, desperately limited at present, yet with games coming thick and fast, Amorim may need to start trusting his academy talents – like Amass – sooner rather than later.
Lost the ball 21x: Man Utd's 4/10 star showed why INEOS need to sell him
Man Utd held on for a draw away in San Sebastian on Thursday evening