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Chelsea have had a verbal offer for Montpellier centre-forward Elye Wahi turned down, according to reliable journalist Ryan Taylor.

Is Elye Wahi leaving Montpellier?

The France U21s international, who graduated from the academy at the Stade de la Mosson, has become a regular feature of Michel Der Zakarian’s senior fold since getting promoted to the first team back in 2021 where he was handed 29 Ligue 1 starts last season, but with more exposure comes more attention.

Despite still having two years left to run on his contract, the 20-year-old firmly established himself as his club’s top-performing offensive player during the previous campaign and these impressive displays have majorly caught the eye of Todd Boehly and Mauricio Pochettino in the Premier League.

The Blues have reportedly already agreed personal terms with the talented prospect and Fabrizio Romano delivered an exciting update on the owner's pursuit just last week, stating via his social media:

“Understand Chelsea are now advancing in talks to sign Elye Wahi — agreement getting closer, new negotiations round scheduled with Montpellier. Chelsea plan includes loan move for Wahi this season then CFC future. Chelsea want to accelerate next week as there’s competition."

Are Chelsea signing Elye Wahi?

Taking to Twitter, Taylor revealed that Chelsea have actually had their first bid rejected by Montpellier who are clearly holding out for a much higher fee for their prized asset. He wrote:

“Chelsea have seen [an] opening verbal offer for Elye Wahi worth in the region of £21.5m rejected by Montpellier. Talks continue between clubs. France U21 international also believed to be sceptical about joining Strasbourg on loan if agreement struck.”

Chelsea clearly view Wahi as more of a signing for the long-term future of the club to be wanting to send him out on loan as a result of being just 20 years of age, but looking at his outstanding numbers from 2022/23, there’s no reason why the striker couldn’t be introduced straight away, so this news is a blow for Pochettino.

The youngster posted a remarkable 25 goal contributions (19 goals and six assists) in 33 Ligue 1 appearances last season whilst recording a total of 62 shots over the course of the campaign which was higher than any other member of his squad, via FBRef, highlighting just how much he stands out from his fellow peers.

Sponsored by Adidas, Montpellier’s “jewel”, as lauded by talent scout Jacek Kulig, also has the flexibility to operate in five various positions across the pitch, including everywhere across the frontline and even two roles in the midfield, so he would add wonderful versatility to the boss’ ranks and be a great option to have available.

The Blues may feel that having already signed Villarreal's Nicolas Jackson and RB Leipzig's Christopher Nkunku that they don't need any more immediate attacking reinforcements, but considering what he's capable of, Wahi deserves to be given a fair chance at staking his claim in the senior fold should he end up putting pen to paper, rather than being sent straight out on loan.

ECB Reporters Network13-Jul-2017
ScorecardRyan ten Doeschate produced the innings of the night•Getty Images

South African spin bowler Simon Harmer led a parsimonious attack in defending a total of 170 to give Essex their first win of the NatWest T20 Blast campaign.Harmer, who has taken the red-ball domestic cricket by storm with 47 Specsavers County Championship wickets to date, added three more white-ball victims to his tally as his 3 for 39 from four overs ended Essex’s two-defeat start to the campaign.It was a fine response by Essex as they recovered from the shock of losing Tamim Iqbal who had abruptly returned to Bangladesh after only one match in unexplained circumstances.Harmer was backed up by a fine spell by Pakistan paceman Mohammad Amir, who posted outstanding figures of 1 for 17 from his 24 balls. Paul Walter took two wickets in the final over to finish with 3 for 28.Somerset were undone by two wickets in five balls by Harmer mid-innings and were unable to keep up with the required run rate, falling short by 22 runs.Essex had struggled to penetrate some outstanding Somerset fielding and were indebted to Ryan ten Doeschate’s 37-ball 56 and some lusty late hitting by Ashar Zaidi, who included three sixes in his 35, for setting what turned out to be a matchwinning total.Chasing 171, Somerset lost Johann Myburgh to a top-edge that lobbed to Harmer at backward point to give Jamie Porter his first T20 wicket.’I’d like to see top order get going’ – ten Doeschate

Ryan ten Doeschate (Essex captain):
“I’d like to see the top-order get going a little bit. It’s crucially important in T20 cricket. But we’ve relied heavily on the top three in the past – someone like Tom Westley has been leading run-scorer at the club for the last three or four years. It wasn’t a typical Chelmsford pitch – you couldn’t hit through the line easily – and the second half of the game with the ball was our best showing for a long time.”
Matt Maynard (Somerset director of cricket):
“This was probably the hardest game to try and get our batting form back. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about it. If you start doubting yourself then things creep into your game. If you see the ball in the right area you’ve just got to try and hit it out of the park. But, look, we’re two games in, Essex were in the same position as us before this game and there is a long way to go.”

Two wickets in the eighth over for Harmer knocked the stuffing out of Somerset’s reply after they had reached 47 for 1. He had Jim Allenby caught in the covers by ten Doeschate and Peter Trego pouched on the long-off boundary by Tom Westley.Steven Davies was next to go when he swished at a wide one down legside from Ravi Bopara and was caught behind. Suddenly Somerset were 58 for 4 and nine overs gone.Like Essex, Somerset were struggling to get the ball away on a slow pitch, but Adam Hose and James Hildreth tried the aerial route with straight sixes off Zaidi and Bopara respectively. But when Hildreth attempted to do the same to Harmer he was caught by ten Doeschate diving forward on the long-leg boundary for 27.Hose got a bottom edge to Amir to give James Foster his second catch behind and Lewis Gregory was caught behind for a belligerent 23 off 12 balls. But time and overs were running out for Somerset. They required 36 from 12 balls with Amir restricting them to just eight from the penultimate over.Craig Overton went for broke but was caught at cow corner by Dan Lawrence before Tim Groenewald was held by Zaidi to give Walter two wickets in the final over.Essex had looked in some trouble themselves from the start of their innings and were 36 for 3 in the sixth over after being put in.Lawrence started the rot when he lost his off-stump going for an ungainly heave against Gregory. He was followed swiftly by Varun Chopra who was reprieved by Hose’s dropped catch at deep mid-on, but next ball skied Craig Overton and Groenewald took the catch at short third man. And Westley departed when he played over a slower delivery from Groenewald.Bopara and ten Doeschate set about a repair job, turning singles into twos, with the captain upping the tempo with a straight six and a one-bounce four off successive balls from Roelof van der Merwe.Lewis Gregory celebrates an Essex wicket•Getty Images

But when the partnership had reached 50 inside six overs, Max Waller took a brilliant return catch low to his left to remove Bopara for 24.Essex became bogged down in the middle overs before Zaidi pulled Waller for successive sixes over the short midwicket boundary and out of the ground.Ten Doeschate hooked Overton for four before pushing a two into the on-side to reach fifty off 34 balls that included five fours and a six. But he departed in the penultimate over, caught on the long-off boundary by Overton diving forward.Zaidi launched his third six over midwicket in the same over, but was caught out of his ground for 35 when James Foster hit the ball straight back to van der Merwe who turned and removed the bails. But Essex’s total proved to be enough.

Amid the talk of who should make up England’s batting line-up for the Ashes, there has been a growing mood behind Alex Hales after his shift down the order

Jon Culley30-Aug-2017

In the days when a strong performance in a one-day final at Lord’s could make up the mind of an indecisive England selector, Alex Hales would surely have had his winter itinerary firmly mapped out by now, with Christmas in Australia at the centre.After all, it is hard to imagine anything much stronger than his record-breaking unbeaten 187 as Nottinghamshire beat Surrey to lift the Royal London Cup.Yet things are different now on two counts. The selectors – apparently – are a bit more scientific in the way they go about their business. And the one-day final takes place not in September but July.Whether something special on Finals Day in the NatWest T20 Blast can make any difference, therefore, is open to debate. Nonetheless, Hales will be doing all in his powers at Edgbaston to put himself in the spotlight again and, perhaps, revive a Test career that has been on hold since the Pakistan home series in 2016.”To go on an Ashes tour would be an unbelievable experience and I will try to keep knocking on the door,” he said. “I know it’s a cliché, but all you can do is score runs.”So the ball is in my court now to score as many as I can across all formats before the end of the season and leave the selectors with a tough decision to make.”In fact, even though there will not be September showcase at Lord’s to take into account, they almost certainly will be looking at Hales’s white-ball form for guidance. They have no choice. With a one-day series against West Indies taking up much of the final month of the season, Nottinghamshire’s Championship fixture against Worcestershire next week will be his last opportunity to face a red ball in a season that has generally not afforded him many.”That has been a bit of a frustration,” he said, speaking during Nottinghamshire’s match against Northamptonshire in the Championship this week.”Before this match, I played three four-day games at the beginning of the season, then a random pink-ball game in June and then a game in the middle of the T20 block at the beginning of August.”I have not really had a run of four or five games in a row of red-ball cricket. It’s been sort of stop-start.”In all of those games, what’s more, he batted only once, which means no one has had much of a chance to assess his form since swapping his place at the top of the order for the No.5 slot, in which he hopes the judgment the Test selectors evidently reached after his 11-match run as an opener can be reversed.Yet Hales believes 2017 has seen his game rise to another level in every aspect, in every competition. And there is evidence to back it up. Thrown in with all the brilliant moments in one-day cricket, he has a Championship double-hundred against Derbyshire in the early-August round to support the claim.”The highlight of the year has certainly been the Lord’s final,” he said. “To beat a strong Surrey side in that manner when we had our backs against the wall for a lot of the game is probably one of the highlights of my career so far.”I definitely think it was as well as I have ever played, up there if not better than the Pakistan innings at Trent Bridge [when he made England’s highest ODI score of 171 in their world-record total of 444], just because of the occasion it was for the club and how we were up against it against a team that had their tails up.”But I have really enjoyed batting where I have been batting in the Championship side. Across all three formats this year I have felt really on top of my game and felt that I have taken it to that next level.”Working with Peter Moores, he says, has had a lot to do with that, not so much in anything the new Nottinghamshire head coach has done in terms of technical advice but in giving him confidence to play his own game.”He is very good at player management, he understands what players need and what certain players don’t need. He just lets me get on with my stuff.”And he brings this constant positive energy. There is never a day when he is down, never a day when he is frustrated. His general all-round positive energy has been a massive lift for the squad and it is something I have really enjoyed.”It has helped give that squad a chance to mark Moores’ first season in the role with a treble, assuming that the Division Two title is in the bag along with the One-Day Cup.Hales, meanwhile, has found his own way of taking a relaxed view of his Ashes prospects. “The next few months is a win-win situation for me,” he said. “I have a chance to go on an Ashes tour, and there is also the chance to play in South Africa and maybe the Big Bash too and develop my white-ball game, so whatever happens it is going to be exciting.”It has been an approach that has served him well in the NatWest Blast so far. His strike rate of 206.38 is the best in the country, he has a first domestic T20 century to his name and, against Durham, at Trent Bridge in August, he would have equalled Chris Gayle’s 30-ball world record for the fastest T20 hundred had he not been out attempting to hit a 10th six.Anything similarly explosive at Edgbaston on Saturday would only add to a dilemma the selectors are surely facing already.

Everton are interested in making a move for Leicester City striker Patson Daka in the summer transfer window, according to a fresh update from journalist Alan Nixon.

How old is Patson Daka?

The 24-year-old joined the Foxes from RB Salzburg back in 2021, with big things expected of him after an impressive spell in Austria. He hasn't quite managed to replicate that form in England, though, with only nine goals in 53 Premier League appearances coming his way.

Last season, Daka featured 30 times in the top flight, chipping in with four goals and assists apiece, but he ultimately couldn't do anything about Leicester being relegated to the Championship. This has seen numerous key players move on from the King Power Stadium this summer, including James Maddison, Youri Tielemans and Harvey Barnes, and the striker could also depart in the next new weeks.

Read the latest Everton transfer news HERE…

Everton are badly in need of adding to their current attacking options, following some goal-shy recent seasons and concerns around the long-term fitness of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and it looks as though Daka may have emerged as a possible option for the Blues.

Will Everton sign Patson Daka?

According to Nixon on Patreon [via Goodison News], Sean Dyche is keen on adding pace to his side ahead of the upcoming new Premier League season, and sees the Leicester man as a strong option to come in and provide it.

The update claims that the potential deal could occur at a "reasonable cost", with Everton keen on another two attacking additions this summer, even though talks over a move for Sheffield United youngster Daniel Jebbison have stalled after he picked up an injury last weekend.

As mentioned, Daka hasn't exactly lit up English football since arriving at Leicester a couple of years ago, but he is still a striker with lots of pedigree who could shine being the main man in the Blues' attack.

The former Salzburg man scored 68 goals in 125 appearances for the Austrian outfit, while at international level, he has netted 12 times in 35 caps for Zambia. He has been called "brilliant" by former Leicester striker Iwan Roberts in the recent past, and at 24, he remains a young player still learning his trade.

It seems highly unlikely that Daka will want to remain the Championship this season, so the opportunity to return to the Premier League will surely appeal to him, and if Dyche can get the very best out of the Zambian, he could prove to an inspired signing by Everton.

His current Foxes deal doesn't expire until the summer of 2026, however, putting them in a strong bargaining position, so a sizeable bid could be needed from Everton, in order to prise him away from the King Power.

Daka wouldn't be a nailed-on success story for the Blues, should the move go through, but there is enough evidence to suggest that he could thrive at the club, especially if he is promised regular starts – something that hasn't always happened at Leicester, potentially affecting his rhythm and confidence in the process.

دافع جلين جونسون لاعب إنجلترا السابق، عن رد فعل محمد صلاح جناح ليفربول، بشأن مشادته مع يورجن كلوب مدرب الفريق، عقب مباراة وست هام.

وشهدت مباراة ليفربول ووست هام بالجولة الماضية في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، مشادة كلامية بين محمد صلاح وكلوب، لحظة مشاركة المصري كبديل في الدقيقة 80.

وعقب المباراة سُئل محمد صلاح عما دار بينه وبين المدير الفني، ورد باقتضاب: “إذا تحدثت ستشتعل النار”.

وقال جونسون في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “ميرور” البريطانية: “أنا أقدر صدقه، لأنه هو الشخص الوحيد الذي يخسر، إذا تحدث محمد صلاح عن رأيه وأخبرك بما يدور في ذهنه حقًا، فسوف ينتقده الجميع ولن يفوز في ذلك”.

وأضاف: “لهذا السبب لا ينبغي للاعبين إجراء المقابلات عندما يكونون غاضبين أو عندما يغادرون الملعب للتو أو يتم طردهم، لأنهم سيتحدثون من القلب، وبعض الناس لا يتناسب ذلك معهم”.

اقرأ أيضًا | بالفيديو | رد فعل غير متوقع من محمد صلاح في تدريبات ليفربول بعد مشادته مع كلوب

وأشار: “لذلك لا مانع مما قاله صلاح، على الأقل كان محسوبًا ويعرف أنه سيقول بعض الأشياء التي ستزعج الناس، لذلك أنا متأكد من أنه أخبر الأشخاص الذين أزعجوه شخصيًا، أنا أحترم ذلك، ومتأكد من أنه أطلق العنان لطاقته في مكان آخر”.

وأكد: “من الواضح أن المشجعين الآخرين والصحافة يحبون أن يفعل ذلك من أجلهم، لكن الأمر لا يتعلق بهم، أنا متأكد من أن كل ما سيقوله هو لصالح المدرب والفريق”.

وقلل كلوب نفسه من أهمية الخلاف، وقال في تصريحات بعد المباراة: “لقد تحدثنا بالفعل في غرفة تبديل الملابس، بالنسبة لي لقد انتهى الأمر”.

A new logo representing the new governing body was unveiled on Sunday, on the 173rd anniversary of the first international sporting contest between USA and Canada in New York City played in 1844

Peter Della Penna24-Sep-2017

In one of the first tangible representations of progress in the reformation of American cricket governance in the wake of USACA’s expulsion at the ICC annual conference in June, ICC Americas has announced that the new governing body being formed to replace USACA will be known as USA Cricket. A new logo representing the new governing body was unveiled on Sunday on the 173rd anniversary of the first international sporting contest between USA and Canada held in New York City on September 24, 1844.”One of the things we really tried to do is build a brand that not only connected with our past and 300 years of cricket in the United States, but also helped paint a picture for what the future of this sport could be,” Eric Parthen, USA project manager for the ICC, told ESPNcricinfo in an interview during the event. “We started the process working with Adrenalin, a company out of Denver that has done some work with the NHL, Phoenix Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings.”The logo process engaged a wider population of people through surveys. Once we got through the survey process, we drove it more internally with Adrenalin, taking the feedback we got both from the [ICC’s USA] advisory groups and from the surveys in the wider population within the cricket community and ultimately used that as the guiding principles for creating this logo.”Unlike the USACA logo, which featured an eagle embedded in a cricket ball, the new USA Cricket logo looks similar to the shield logo of the National Football League (NFL). The logo prominently features a cricket bat, something that was non-existent in the USACA logo and a trait that Parthen feels would help signify a new identity to bridge the gap between mainstream American sports fans and the core cricket membership base of expatriates from South Asia and the Caribbean.”As we want to take this sport mainstream and not just be a sport for the people that are currently playing it or the expats, that bat was the single most identifying factor for cricket within the United States,” Parthen said. “Maybe that’s not true for Australia or England or India, but in the United States, the one thing that mainstream America associates cricket with, is the bat.”So we felt it was an important part and we wanted it to be detailed enough that it didn’t look like a rowing paddle, an oar or a fraternity paddle. We looked at a number of different iterations and we felt this was the bat that had the detail that really looked like the cricket bat. So it’s a prominent feature of the logo but something we feel is pretty important to try to connect the sport to mainstream America.”USA Cricket

According to Parthen, a cricket ball appears in the majority of logos throughout the cricket world. He also noted that the logos of most American sports leagues and teams also include a ball in their logo.”In line with winning the Auty Cup for the first time in 26 years, we felt like this logo needed to be something that’s fresh and unifying in rebuilding and something that everybody could connect with.”Not just connect with the past or the future but embrace the past and look to the future and the goals we have for developing and promoting cricket, the goals we have for creating more competitive teams for competing on the highest stage. We just wanted something that resonated with the American public. If we were going to be relevant to the American people as a sport, we needed an element that clearly defined our game.”The logo’s red, white and blue color scheme is a nod to the American flag while Parthen says the other main characteristic is a single star placed inside the ‘U’ in ‘USA’ which he cites as a symbolic touch for what USA Cricket should represent both on and off the field.”The single star in the U speaks to a couple different things,” Parthen said. “One, through this whole process we’ve tried to be a unifying body. We want this to be a unifying organization so we felt the star speaks to one organization providing that strong leadership and also equally as important this one star represents cricket being one team that’s necessary to be successful.”It’s not a great individual, great bowling, batters are more important than bowlers or vice versa. It takes a full team to win and we felt that star ultimately spoke to the fact that if we’re going to succeed, we need to do it both on the field and off the field working together.”

تحدث كيليان مبابي، نجم فريق باريس سان جيرمان، عن الفشل في بلوغ نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا أمام بوروسيا دورتموند مساء أمس.

وخسر باريس سان جيرمان أمام بوروسيا دورتموند بهدف دون رد، في إياب نصف نهائي البطولة على ملعب “حديقة الأمراء”.

ونجح بوروسيا دورتموند في بلوغ نهائي البطولة خاصة وأنه فاز في الذهاب بهدف دون رد.

وقال مبابي في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “rmcsport” الفرنسية: “بالطبع نشعر بخيبة أمل، أردنا التأهل إلى النهائي، عليك أن تكون فعلًا في كلتا المباراتين في دوري أبطال أوروبا، هم كانوا أفضل منا”.

وأضاف: “نشعر بخيبة أمل من أجل جماهيرنا وأحبائنا، ولكن هذه العملية طويلة، إلا أننا أظهرنا خلال هذا الموسم أننا قادرون على الذهاب بعيدًا”.

وعما إذا كانت تلك آخر مباراة له في دوري أبطال أوروبا، رد: “من المؤكد أننا لن نلعب مرة أخرى هذا الموسم، لآن كما قلت من قبل، نشعر بخيبة أمل كبيرة من نتيجة اليوم، أردنا الفوز”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. الخليفي يهاجم صحفيًا بعد توديع دوري أبطال أوروبا.. ويعترف: لم أرى ما حدث من قبل

واستكمل: “حاولنا وضع المكونات اللازمة للفوز، ولكن في المباريات النهائية في دوري أبطال أوروبا عليك أن تكون فعالًا، لم نكن فعالين بدرجة كافية في المباراتين”.

وعما إذا كان هناك ثقة مفرطة في باريس سان جيرمان، قال: “لا، على الإطلاق، إذا لم نقنع أنفسنا بأننا قادرون على الفوز، فمن سيفعل ذلك لنا؟ لا أحد، لا أعتقد أن هذه هي المشكلة”.

وأوضح: “المجموعة كانت هادئة كما كانت منذ بداية الموسم، إنها كرة القدم ولكن لا ينبغي إهدار كل شيء، لا تزال هناك أهداف، سنواصل العمل ومحاولة الفوز بها”.

وطُرح سؤال مثير على مبابي عندما سُئل عما إذا كان سيكون من مشجعي ريال مدريد في مباراة الأربعاء ضد بايرن ميونخ، حيث أدار اللاعب عينيه قبل أن يغادر دون رد.

¿Apoyará Mbappé mañana al @realmadrid?

¡Menuda carita! #LaCasaDelFútbol #UCL pic.twitter.com/VYU24gsiQO — Fútbol en Movistar Plus+ (@MovistarFutbol) May 7, 2024

Southampton are now believed to be in "pole position" to sign Premier League player Flynn Downes this summer, and an exciting new update has revealed a timeline on the transfer talks.

Who is Flynn Downes?

Downes was given little chance to prove his worth for West Ham in his debut campaign there, making 21 appearances in the league last season, only seven of which were starts. While clearly not a regular starter, he proved to be an effective squad player, completing 88.4% of his passes.

It could be that the 24-year-old is keen on a fresh challenge this summer, however, in order to be a guaranteed regular somewhere, rather than warm the substitutes' bench most weeks.

Downes' current West Ham deal may not expire until the summer of 2027, but it does look as though the Hammers will sanction a move, especially with Southampton hero James Ward-Prowse on his way to the London Stadium.

It could even be that the Englishman heads in the other direction to the south coast, with a new report revealing the latest on negotiations.

Will Southampton sign Flynn Downes?

According to Football Insider, Saints are now very much the front-runners to acquire Downes' signature this summer, pipping Leeds to his signature in the process:

"Southampton are in pole position to sign West Ham midfielder Flynn Downes, sources have told Football Insider. The Saints were in talks late on Thursday to land the 24-year-old after accepting the Hammers’ bid for James Ward-Prowse.

"But the south coast club lead the way and are now primed to land the midfielder in the final weeks of the window. The 24-year-old will be pushed down the pecking order at the London Stadium due to the arrivals of Edson Alvarez and Ward-Prowse."

While Saints have made a strong start to their Championship campaign, winning 2-1 away to Sheffield Wednesday in their opening game last Friday, it is still vital that new faces arrive before the summer transfer window closes.

That is particularly important with Ward-Prowse seemingly moving on, and while Downes may not be on his level currently, he could be a really shrewd signing. He has 21 Premier League appearances to his name, standing him in good stead in terms of experience and not being daunted by dropping down a league, and his industry and quality in the middle of the park can help fill the void left by the skipper.

Saints boss Russell Martin has managed him before at Swansea City, hailing him as "incredible", and the fact that he already knows him so well as a player can only be a good thing, making it less of a risk.

Granted, some may point towards West Ham being happy to sell Downes and be concerned that he isn't good enough, but the drop down in quality from the Premier League to the Championship is significant, and he could excel in the division as a key man week in week out.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Paraná embalou neste começo de Série B. Com um time rápido e eficaz, o Tricolor tem colecionado bons resultados dentro de campo e termina as quatro primeiras rodadas na liderança da competição, com 10 pontos.

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A última vítima foi o Guarani, que chegou a sair em vantagem no Brinco de Ouro da Princesa, mas não resistiu ao Tricolor na etapa final e acabou superado.

Agora, o rival do fim de semana é o Operário-PR, time que o técnico Allan Aal e seus comandados conhecem muito bem devido ao duelo no Campeonato Paranaense.

‘Mais um jogo difícil. Vamos trabalhar nos dias que antecedem a partida e preparar a estratégia sabendo da dificuldade que será. É uma equipe competitiva, que tem característica de muita força e utiliza bem a bola aérea’, afirmou o comandante à Rádio Banda B.

No último encontro das equipes, o Tricolor levou a melhor e venceu pela vantagem mínima (1 x 0).

Sunderland may not be done with their transfer business this summer, as they look to build a squad capable of reaching the Championship play-offs for a second consecutive campaign.

So far this summer, Tony Mowbray has welcomed a number of players, including Jobe Bellingham. Now, he has revealed his club's transfer method for the rest of the window.

What's the latest Sunderland transfer news?

It's been a fairly busy summer at the Stadium of Light so far. In total, Sunderland have welcomed seven new arrivals, with the aforementioned Bellingham being the pick of the bunch, in terms of reputation.

Alongside the former Birmingham City youngster, however, the Black Cats have also welcomed the experienced Bradley Dack on a free transfer in what remains a smart piece of business.

As for departures, the biggest name that Mowbray lost came at the end of last season when Amad Diallo's loan spell came to an end, and he left for Manchester United once more. Sunderland now face the task of replacing his quality, having seen him score 14 goals.

They may not be done in the transfer window, either, with Mowbray admitting in his pre-Rotherham press conference that he is still after attacking reinforcements, even revealing that he will be looking towards the loan market as the window nears its end.

He said, via The Sunderland Echo: "There’s time, and we have to get it right and not just get any old footballer. We’re working hard, and hopefully we’ll have the right.”

The manager then spoke about potential midfield signings, saying: “The midfield area is quite light if you think that there’s Dan Neil, Pierre Ekwah, and then Jobe – after that you are into Chris Rigg, who is a 16-year-old boy,”

“It’s an area that maybe we should be looking at. I think the reality is that we have to get the front end of the pitch sorted out first but we are mindful that we are a bit light in there.”

He added: “It’s an area that potentially we might look for a more experienced footballer to help the area out. Dan (Neil) is 21, Pierre (Ekwah) is 21 – it’s not as if they are 26 or 27 and have 300 appearances under their belts.”

With that said, it could be an interesting end to the window for Sunderland, who will be keen to get the best squad together possible. Reporter Phil Smith shared more of Mowbray's insight, revealing the club could save money by going strictly for late loan deals:

"(Mowbray) says club are looking at loan market – deals that tend to happen towards the end of the window."

Do Sunderland need to strengthen?

As Championship games come thick and fast, Sunderland may believe that they will have more than enough in the tank to challenge for the play-offs once more.

New signings such as Bellingham and Dack should help that, too, and if they can avoid any major departures, then they may just find themselves in the running come the end of the season.

It will be difficult to compete against relegated sides Southampton, Leicester City, and Leeds United, and a tough start of two defeats in two games has far from helped, but gaining some momentum could be key.

Next up, the Black Cats square off against Rotherham United, desperate for three points.