With the 2026 World Cup fast approaching, dual-national midfielder Richard Ledezma has made his intentions clear: he wants to represent Mexico. The Chivas playmaker, who has featured for the U.S. at both youth and senior level, says wearing El Tri’s colors on home soil would fulfill a lifelong dream – one he believes is within reach if he performs in Liga MX.
West Ham could oversee a host of exits when the winter window reopens for business, including some pretty noteworthy names.
January is set to be vital for Nuno Espirito Santo and co, with reports suggesting that chairman David Sullivan and the board are prepared to back their new manager to the hilt.
The Hammers have just been given some real encouragement they can avoid a dreaded drop to the Championship, having secured back-to-back home wins for the first time since October last year whilst scoring six goals in their last two games.
Sunderland 3-0 West Ham
West Ham 1-5 Chelsea
Nottingham Forest 0-3 West Ham
West Ham 0-3 Tottenham
West Ham 1-2 Crystal Palace
Everton 1-1 West Ham
Arsenal 2-0 West Ham
West Ham 0-2 Brentford
Leeds 2-1 West Ham
West Ham 3-1 Newcastle
West Ham 3-2 Burnley
West Ham’s crucial wins over Newcastle and Burnley at the London Stadium have relieved some major pressure on Nuno, with the January window set to hand him another potential lifeline amid reports that the club are looking to sign a new defender and striker at the very least.
Nuno has also been given “confirmation” that West Ham will have money to spend mid-season (Sky Sports), and ExWHUemployee has backed this up recently whilst confirming that the club are scouting heavily in Belgium.
That being said, incomings are not the only item on West Ham’s agenda at the turn of the year.
After being axed from the squad, pretty much immediately after Nuno replaced Graham Potter, midfielder James Ward-Prowse is now resigned to leaving in January, despite being a vice-captain and first-team regular at the start of 2025/2026.
The 30-year-old, who is just one free-kick goal away from equalling David Beckham’s all-time Premier League record of 18, is not in Nuno’s long-term plans.
Meanwhile, The Times recently reported that Lucas Paqueta is keen to leave West Ham in the winter, with Fabrizio Romano also stating in his GiveMeSport newsletter that an exit for the Brazil international isn’t ruled out in the slightest.
Now, as per a report from El Intransigente, midfielder Guido Rodriguez could follow them out the door.
Guido Rodriguez wants to leave West Ham in January
The Argentine, signed on a free deal from Real Betis last year, is another who’s suffered from Nuno’s axe — having managed just 19 minutes of action since the tactician’s arrival.
He was largely a bench player under Potter as well, and El Intransigente reports that Rodriguez is looking to leave West Ham as he aims to battle his way into Argentina’s squad for the 2026 World Cup.
River Plate boss Marcelo Gallardo also “dreams” of signing Rodriguez and could offer him a route out of London, but he isn’t alone, as Real Betis, Espanyol and Club América are also actively targeting the 31-year-old World Cup winner whose contract expires at the end of the season.
West Ham could be forced to sell him on the cheap in January because of this, but considering they signed him on a Bosman deal in 2024, any fee received for Rodriguez would go down as pure profit through the lens of PSR.
Selling him is a real no-brainer, and Sullivan will be particularly keen to get his £75,000-per-week wages off the books to free up space for a potential striker.
As well as Rodriguez, Ward-Prowse and Paqueta, it is believed that Niclas Fullkrug has told West Ham he wants a January transfer, so they’ll need to replace the German.
Mitch Killeen bowls outstanding opening spell to take 3 for 15 from 10 overs and restrict Spitfires
ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay10-Aug-2025Emilio Gay hit a brilliant century as Durham coasted to a seven-wicket win over the Kent Spitfires in the Metro Bank One Day Cup at Beckenham.Gay carried his bat to finish on 119, from 110 balls, including a six and 12 fours, alongside Colin Ackermann who was unbeaten on 38 at the end.Earlier, Mitch Killeen bowled an outstanding opening spell to take 3 for 15 from 10 overs as Kent were held to 238 for 8. Ben Compton made 55 before Jack Leaning hit 68 from 50 to give the hosts something to defend, but it never looked like being enough and the visitors won with 10.4 to spare.Kent chose to bat on an oppressively hot day at the New County Ground, but struggled to cope with a stifling display in the field by Durham.Although Killeen missed a caught-and-bowled chance off Jaydn Denly off the seventh ball of the innings, he failed to cash in and was caught at mid-on by Scott Borthwick in Killen’s next over for six.Joey Evison was his next victim, caught by George Drissell at point for a duck and Chris Benjamin went in almost identical fashion in Killeen’s next over for 1.At 25 for 3 in the eighth over Kent had little choice other than to drop anchor for a while, but it might have been worse for the Spitfires, as the former Kent all-rounder Ollie Robinson fumbled the chance to run out Harry Finch when he and Compton were stranded in the middle.They put on 60 for the fourth before Finch, who took 71 balls to make 28, was out cutting Paul Coughlin straight to Borthwick, and Compton was then bowled by Will Rhodes.It took the hosts 41 overs to get to 150. As soon as they did Ekansh Singh hit Rhodes back over his head for six, but he tried to repeat the trick two balls later and was caught by Codi Yusuf for 45.Mohammed Rizvi made an enterprising 17 from 14 but was bowled middle stump by Luke Robinson and Durham were into the tail.Fred Klaassen hit Rhodes straight to Drissell for a duck but Leaning’s late pyrotechnics, including a six that was dropped onto the rope in the final over, and a single taken when Borthwick dropped him off the final ball, at least made the target seem challenging.Not for long, however. Durham got off to a rapid start, with Ollie Robinson racing to 26 before he chopped on to Fred Klaassen. Gay and Rhodes put on 98 for the second wicket before the latter was lbw to Parkinson for 32.David Bedingham went in the same fashion for 8 but Ackermann was on three when he skied Parkinson and Ekansh couldn’t take a simple catch.By the time Gay took two from Parkinson to reach three figures any tension had evaporated and he fittingly he the winning run when he scrambled a single of Evison.
Wood will continue to train as planned ahead of Perth Test, but whether England select him or not remains to be seen
Tristan Lavalette15-Nov-2025
Mark Wood was in good spirits after being cleared of a hamstring strain•Getty Images
Mark Wood has been cleared of a hamstring injury in a relief for England ahead of the Ashes, but he will not take the field on the final day of England’s sole warm-up game at Lilac Hill in Perth against England Lions.In what came as a scare for England, Wood experienced stiffness in his left hamstring on Friday after bowling two four-over spells to start the three-day match. He left the field after his second spell midway through the second session before being sent for scans.Related
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England's Ashes squad have pace in abundance, but do they have the miles?
Ollie Pope puts selection talk to bed with warm-up century
Hazlewood out of Ashes opener with hamstring injury
“Following precautionary scans on Friday, England fast bowler Mark Wood has been cleared of any concerns regarding his left hamstring,” the ECB said in a statement.The ECB also said that Wood would continue to train as planned ahead of the first Test, starting on November 21 in Perth, but whether England are going to select him or not remains to be seen.Brydon Carse, who overcame illness on the first day of the warm-up to claim three wickets in England’s second innings, welcomed the prospect of England’s fastest bowler being part of the mix at Perth.”That’s great news,” Carse said. “Woody found out last night that it’s nothing serious, he’s going to have a couple of days off and then have a good bit of training up leading up to that first Test.”For any player, when you’re waiting on a result of a scan, it can be a little bit niggly, but he was fairly confident. So, he’s all up and about and full of energy at the moment.”England have taken a cautious approach with Wood’s rehabilitation from the knee injury that he sustained at the Champions Trophy in February. He had initially hoped to feature in the final Test of their summer series against India, but a setback in training ended up ruling him out of the entire home season.”He’s got a huge amount of resilience,” Carse added. “You look back at some of the setbacks that he’s had over his career, to keep going through the processes to get back out on the field, it’s very exciting, and it shows the sort of character that he has.”Wood, on the first day, had bowled several lively deliveries on a relatively sedate surface at Lilac Hill, a suburban ground in the fringes of Perth.The conditions at the Optus Stadium are expected to be more conducive to fast bowling and, in addition to Wood and Carse, the squad also has Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Matt Potts, Josh Tongue and Ben Stokes as quick-bowling options.”This week was all about bowlers getting miles in their legs,” Carse added. “It’s exciting. I think we’ve got a group of six bowlers who, whatever dynamic we go with, will relish those conditions.”Later on Saturday, Australia suffered a major blow when Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the opening Test with a hamstring injury after initially being cleared during the Sheffield Shield game against Victoria last week.
All the records that the South Africa batter broke on his Test debut against Zimbabwe
Sampath Bandarupalli28-Jun-202519 years, 93 days Lhuan-dre Pretorius’ age on Saturday, when he scored 153 in the first Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. He became the youngest batter to score 150 in Test cricket, bettering Javed Miandad, who was 19 years and 119 days old when he notched up 163 against New Zealand on the opening day of the Lahore Test in 1976.4 Number of players younger than Pretorius with a hundred on their Test debut. Three of those four have done it in the second innings on debut.1 Pretorius is also the youngest among seven South African men to score a hundred on their Test debut. In fact, no man younger than Pretorius had scored a fifty in any format for South Africa in International cricket. His hundred off 112 balls is also the fastest for South Africa on debut.157 Balls that Pretorius needed for his 150 against Zimbabwe. It is the fastest 150 for South Africa in Tests, a record previously held by AB de Villiers, who had achieved it off 162 balls against Australia in 2012 (where data is available).
His effort is also the second fastest by a debutant in Tests, only behind Shikhar Dhawan, who got to his 150 in only 131 balls against Australia in 2013.4 Batters to have scored a century on their Test debut as well as their first-class debut. Pretorius had scored 120 on his first-class debut in December last year against the Warriors. Gundappa Viswanath, Dirk Wellham and Prithvi Shaw are the other players to have achieved this feat.38 Balls that Dewald Brevis needed for his half-century on Saturday, the fastest by a debutant for South Africa in Tests. The previous quickest was by Dave Nourse, who scored a fifty off 40 balls on his debut against Australia in 1902. Brevis’ 38-ball effort is also the joint-fourth fastest on debut in men’s Tests.95 Partnership runs between Pretorius and Brevis for the fifth wicket. It is the highest partnership between two debutants for South Africa in men’s Tests. The previous highest was 92 between Andrew Hudson and Adrian Kuiper, also for the fifth wicket against West Indies in 1992.
West Ham United have now made an enquiry over the signing of Union Saint-Gilloise striker Promise David, amid doubts over Niclas Fullkrug’s future at the London Stadium.
West Ham have been much-improved from an attacking point of view since the beginning of November, scoring eight goals in their last three Premier League games, with Callum Wilson finding the back of the net three times in his last two outings.
Most recently, a first-half brace from the former Newcastle United man put the Hammers in a very strong position to pick up three points at AFC Bournemouth, but the Cherries fought back and Nuno’s side squandered a two-goal lead, which will undoubtedly be frustrating for the manager.
That said, Wilson’s recent form in front of goal is definitely encouraging, especially considering Niclas Fullkrug’s future with the Irons is now in major doubt, as revealed by Sky Sports reporter Florian Plettenberg earlier this month.
West Ham lodge enquiry to sign Promise David
With Wilson’s current deal to expire in the summer, and the Englishman potentially in the latter stages of his career at 33-years-old, West Ham have now made contact over a deal for a new striker, namely Union Saint-Gilloise star David.
That is according to a report from Claret & Hugh, which states enquiries have been made about a deal for the centre-forward, with chief analyst Max Hahn particularly keen on bringing in players from the Belgian Pro League.
The 24-year-old remains under contract at the Belgian club until 2030, which puts them in a strong negotiating position, but there are signs it could be worth the Hammers paying whatever they ask for.
The eight-time Canada international is off to a flying start to the campaign, having already scored eight goals in all competitions, including one on his Champions League debut in the 3-1 victory against PSV Eindhoven back in September.
The Ontario-born centre-forward also caught scout Jacek Kulig’s eye as a result of his form during the 2024-25 campaign, being lauded as “outstanding” in March, before going on to finish the season on 24 goals in all competitions.
With Fullkrug looking to move on, it would make sense to bring in a new striker this January, especially given that there are still likely to be concerns over Wilson’s injury record, having spent long periods on the treatment table during the previous two seasons.
Callum Wilson’s injury record
Games missed
2023-24
28
2024-25
29
It would be a gamble to sign David, with the Canadian yet to prove himself in a major European league, but his goalscoring record in Belgium is certainly encouraging.
West Ham send scouts to watch the "best" striker in the Championship West Ham now send scouts to watch the "best" striker in the Championship
The Hammers are hoping to be impressed.
ByTom Cunningham Nov 22, 2025
Nottinghamshire captain wary of looking too far ahead as they aim to depose three-time defending champions Surrey
ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay23-Sep-2025The stage is set for one of the most memorable ends to a Rothesay County Championship season with the battle for the Division One title and relegation places still very much alive heading into the final round this week.Nottinghamshire put themselves in pole position to win their first title in 15 years after snatching a 20-run win over three-time reigning champions Surrey last week. It was a contest to highlight the very best of the Rothesay County Championship and leaves Notts needing a maximum of 10 points to be crowned champions when they host Warwickshire at Trent Bridge starting Wednesday.With excitement building in the east Midlands after their success at the Kia Oval, Notts captain Haseeb Hameed has warned they will still need to produce “four more days of quality cricket”.Related
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“We have to go into the game with that mindset and focus because Warwickshire are a really good team,” Hameed told ecb.co.uk. “I think you can see that across the whole County Championship this season – anyone can beat anyone. It has been a really tight and tough year and that’s probably why it’s so close at the bottom as well.”There are no easy wins in this division and we go into the final round knowing we have to play four more days of quality cricket.”Surrey have been the county to catch for the past four seasons as they have set the bar high for the chasing pack. They will draw on that culture of success as they look to become the first county, since the great Surrey side of the 1950s, to win four titles in a row when they travel to Hampshire.Rory Burns’ team know that anything other than a win will probably not be enough while Hampshire, who could welcome back talisman Liam Dawson from England duty, have plenty to play for themselves as one of five counties that head into the final round looking to avoid relegation.The south-coast club are just two points above Durham, who sit inside the relegation zone on 140 points, but the northern-most county do have their fate in their own hands as make the journey down the A1 to a Yorkshire team who need 10 points to be assured of staying up.Sussex and Essex both have 150 points and know avoiding defeat in their final-round matches against already-relegated Worcestershire and third-placed Somerset respectively would be enough to retain their place in the top tier.It sets the scene for an intriguing final round at both ends of the table and Hameed admits he’d have it no other way.”At the start of the season the goal of every team would be to put themselves in the position we’re in heading into the final round,” he said. “It’s a great position to be in, but there’s work still to be done and that’s the focus. There is going to be a bit of noise around and there will be some excitement I’m sure across the four days with everything that is going on at the top of the bottom of the division.”We just have to be ready to go on Wednesday morning and focus on doing what we’ve done in the 13 matches so far.”Hameed is not letting himself think about becoming a title-winning captain, after reviving his career since moving to Notts from Lancashire ahead of the 2020 season. The 28-year-old, who has 10 Test caps, scored 1235 runs when he helped Notts win promotion from Division Two in 2022 and could surpass that mark this week as this season’s second-leading runscorer.”I just want to lead from the front and do my job. I’ve been here five or six years now and it feels like home and I’ve enjoyed my cricket,” said Hameed, who also highlighted the influence of his opening partner Ben Slater, who could pass 1000 runs for the season this week.”It’s been great establishing an opening partnership with Slats. He’s had a great season and has loads of experience which is so important. But I come back to it – the whole team knows we have to focus on our job because Warwickshire are a quality team. I’d love to see a good crowd at Trent Bridge and hopefully we can make it a week to remember.”In Division Two, Leicestershire will head into the final round knowing the title – and a return to Division One for the first time in 22 years – is already assured. The Foxes’ star allrounder Rehan Ahmed, who has struck five Championship centuries in a breakout summer with the bat, was not born when they were last in the top-flight.Leicestershire make the short trip to Northamptonshire to round out their season while Glamorgan, who under head coach Richard Dawson have secured their place in Division One for the first time since 2004, will host Lancashire at Sophia Gardens.Kent welcome Derbyshire to the Spitfire Ground in Canterbury while Middlesex host Gloucestershire at Lord’s.
Newcastle United’s December fixture list is looking extremely busy already.
By the time the action-packed month closes, Eddie Howe’s Toon will have played eight games in all competitions, with Bayer Leverkusen up next for the frantic Magpies in the Champions League.
So far for Howe and Co, it’s been one draw and one win in the hectic month, with the 2-1 win over Burnley secured last time out in the Premier League far more nervy than it needed to be, after the hosts had gifted the ten-man Clarets a penalty right at the death.
Thankfully, no late fightback was on the cards, but with fixture congestion obviously going to become a big issue the more the month goes on, some changes could be on the agenda for the trip to Germany on Wednesday night, whether it’s because of tired legs or an actual drop in performance.
Where Eddie Howe needs to rotate against Leverkusen
With 17 shots tallied up on the Burnley goal throughout, Newcastle, arguably, should have notched up a far more comprehensive win against Scott Parker’s valiant visitors.
Nick Woltemade didn’t cover himself in much glory up top, in this regard, with just 18 touches of the ball passing him by, leading to zero on-target shots being powered at Martin Dubravka’s busy goal.
With Yoane Wissa back and available for selection after a lengthy injury, too, it could well be the perfect time to test out the ex-Brentford striker from the start against Leverkusen, with the German dismissed as having a “sloppy” performance, as per the Daily Mail’s Craig Hope.
He wasn’t the only performer on the pitch that stood out for all the wrong reasons, though, with Jacob Ramsey struggling throughout, next to Bruno Guimaraes, who grabbed another memorable Toon strike.
Sandro Tonali and Joelinton will likely walk back into the midfield spots ahead of Ramsey, who would give up the handball that gifted Zian Flemming a 94th-minute lifeline.
Anthony Elanga also continues to look lost in Newcastle black and white, with just one of his seven dribbles coming off against Burnley, but other Newcastle faces managed to cement their first-team position even more on Saturday afternoon, as this often hit-and-miss attacker continues to turn around his initially underwhelming season.
Newcastle's "best player" is now undroppable again
Newcastle have been very hit and miss so far this season, but with three Premier League victories now from their last four clashes in the tough division, Howe will hope his wobbly team have turned a corner.
Anthony Gordon certainly has, with the ex-Everton winger’s days of drawing blanks in league action this season firmly over, as he has now converted two crucial penalties back-to-back at St. James’ Park.
Without the England international’s ice-cold precision from the spot, the Magpies might well have been staring at two completely different results.
It’s been a very sharp turnaround in fortunes for the 24-year-old, with one analyst claiming that Gordon had entered “Gabriel Obertan territory” earlier in the campaign when he was consistently drawing blanks in the Premier League.
Obertan would only go on to score three goals for the Toon across a difficult 77-game spell, having never lived up to his early hype in England, when on the books of Manchester United.
Thankfully, Gordon now looks to have recaptured his gung-ho best, away from looking passive down the channels, with Howe – come the full-time whistle of the Burnley win – even labelling the Liverpool-born forward as the “best player” on the pitch as his “direct running” ultimately helped Newcastle overcome a stern Clarets battle.
Gordon’s numbers in 25/26
Stat
Gordon
PL games played
10
PL goals scored
2
PL assists
0
Champions League games played
5
CL goals scored
4
CL assists
1
Stats by Sofascore
Looking at the table above, too, Gordon has the chance to firm up why he deserves to be one of Howe’s first names on the teamsheets by putting in another memorable showing in the Champions League at the BayArena, having mustered up a sublime four goals and one assist this season in Europe’s first-class competition.
With a whirlwind 37 goals and assists amassed over his previous two seasons on Tyneside, too, Gordon will hope he can enter into another purple patch of form after suffering from some shaky moments here and there this campaign, off the back of his manager’s glowing words.
There’s certainly plenty of action ahead for Gordon to sink his teeth into, as he prays more words of praise come his way soon from his manager and beyond, alongside Newcastle continuing to pick up more wins.
Fewer touches than Ramsdale & 1 duel won: Newcastle star could be dropped
This Newcastle star struggled in the 2-1 win vs. Burnley
ByJoe Nuttall 5 days ago
Liverpool’s disastrous campaign is showing little sign of relenting at the moment, and there are so many different parts of Arne Slot’s system to criticise.
After the 4-1 defeat at Anfield against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday evening, the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate took heavy pelters for their woeful defensive displays.
However, they were hardly the only Redmen who flattered to deceive, with Cody Gakpo yet again failing to convince on the left side of Slot’s frontline.
It might seem somewhat blunt to say, but Gakpo plays with a lack of dynamism, often repeating the same old patterns. As per Sofascore, he is averaging less than one dribble per game in the Premier League this season, while only completing 39% of his attempted ball carries on the continent.
Though he scored 18 goals and provided seven assists across all competitions for Liverpool last season, it always felt like Luis Diaz had more to his game.
Well, now Diaz plies his trade with Bayern Munich, and Liverpool are searching for a left-sided forward after opting against a like-for-like replacement this summer.
Liverpool searching for a left winger
We’re just over one month away from the opening of the January transfer window, and Liverpool’s interest in Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo has been confirmed.
Semenyo, 25, has been one of the most in-form forwards in the Premier League this year, but FSG and Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes appear to have earmarked an alternative who may actually prove a better pick than the Ghanaian.
According to Football Insider, Liverpool chiefs have learned that a deal for Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Junior would likely cost the club about £80m next summer, with the Brazil international informing Los Blancos he will not be renewing his contract, of which has entered the penultimate year.
Manchester United are set to rival the Reds for the 25-year-old, while old suitors in the Saudi Pro League are bound to return for his signature. Hughes needs to pull the right strings quickly if he is to get this one over the line.
What Vinicius Junior would offer Liverpool
Vinicius Jr has been a thorn in Liverpool’s side on numerous occasions over the years, scoring five goals and providing two assists across six meetings. It was his goal that sealed the Champions League title against Jurgen Klopp’s side in 2022.
Brought from his Brazilian homeland to the Spanish capital in 2019, Vini has won the whole gamut at the Santiago Bernabeu, scoring 111 goals and supplying 89 assists across 340 matches in all competitions.
There’s no question that Vinicius Jr would mark an upgrade on a player like Gakpo, offering a wide range of qualities that could even see him replace, metaphorically, Mohamed Salah, as the club legend begins to wind down.
Matches (starts)
12 (10)
13 (10)
Goals
3
5
Assists
2
4
Shots (on target)*
2.5 (0.4)
2.6 (1.2)
Big chances missed
2
5
Accurate passes
19.3 (81%)
26.8 (82%)
Chances created*
1.8
2.2
Succ. dribbles*
1.3
2.3
Tackles*
0.8
1.2
Duels won*
5.1
5.5
Hailed as “the best player in the world” by teammate Jude Bellingham, it stands as a testament to Vinicius Jr’s level that he is still comfortably outstripping Gakpo as far as respective league stats are concerned, having endured something of a testing campaign under Xabi Alonso’s wing.
The fact that Gakpo is hitting the target less than once every two Premier League matches is deeply concerning. This is not the rip-roaring prolific form that Slot and Liverpool’s coaches would expect, and his limited output across other areas amplifies the noise. That said, Gakpo is creating a consistent number of chances this season, and that does count for something.
Hailed by former Los Blancos teammate Luka Modric as being one of the Spanish outfit’s “world-class superstars” and as “the best player on the planet” by Statman Dave, signing Vinicius Jr would signal an ominous statement of intent at Liverpool, and now it’s up to the Reds to put the plan into action.
Would that mean the end of Gakpo at Liverpool? The Dutchman did cohabit with Diaz, but there is a difference in quality that Vini would be sure to take advantage of, and it would throw Gakpo to the backbench.
As bad as Konate & Van Dijk: £85m Liverpool duo cannot start together again
Liverpool plummeted to new depths after losing 4-1 to PSV at Anfield in the Champions League.
ByAngus Sinclair Nov 27, 2025
Chelsea have taken serious interest in one of Europe’s most promising young forwards amid his stalled new contract talks, and a move to Stamford Bridge may well be on the cards for him next year.
Enzo Maresca has somehow guided his side to third in the Premier League table, just six points behind league leaders Arsenal, which is made all the more impressive by the sheer amount of injuries they’ve had so far this season.
Levi Colwill, Cole Palmer, Benoit Badiashile, Malo Gusto, Enzo Fernández, Roméo Lavia, Pedro Neto, Dario Essugo, Liam Delap, Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Tosin Adarabioyo, Trevoh Chalobah, Andrey Santos and Josh Acheampong have all been sidelined due to injury or suspension at least once this season, forcing Maresca into a league-high 93 squad rotations.
Much was made about how the Club World Cup, which forced Chelsea to play an unbelievable 65 matches in 53 weeks, could impact the fitness of Maresca’s players, and it is safe to say 24/25’s intense fixture schedule had a long-lasting impact.
While Chelsea spent nearly £300 million in the summer, Maresca was left dissatisfied with his current options, especially at the back.
Rank
Club
Gross Spend
Sales
Net Spend
20.
Bournemouth
£136.7m
£202.5m
+£65.8m
19.
Brighton
£67.7m
£127.5m
+£59.8m
18.
Brentford
£92.8m
£152m
+£59.2m
17.
Wolves
£105.6m
£126.5m
+£20.9m
16.
Chelsea
£296.5m
£314.4m
+£17.9m
Chelsea have been linked with both a new goalkeeper and centre-back heading into 2026, while other media sources suggest that they could also look to sign a head-turning winger despite their current abundance of wide forwards.
One of their top attacking targets is believed to be Juventus sensation Kenan Yildiz.
The Turkey international has been nothing short of a revelation at Juve, finishing 2024/2025 with 12 goals and nine assists in all competitions. He also ended the campaign as their best-performing regular by average match rating per 90, according to WhoScored, with a host of sides linked as Yildiz’s long-term future remains uncertain.
The 20-year-old wants a significant pay rise on his current deal to bring him in line with Juve’s top earners, as befitting his star player status, and Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Chelsea ‘really’ like Yildiz as these new deal discussions continue.
Juventus 2-0 Parma Calcio
8.88
Juventus 4-3 Inter Milan
8.51
Juventus 3-1 Udinese
7.55
Juventus 0-0 Torino
7.38
Atalanta 1-1 Juventus
7.10
via WhoScored
Now, according to TEAMtalk, there’s been another update.
Chelsea plot fresh Kenan Yildiz talks after rejected bid and 'very exciting proposal'
The same outlet previously reported that Chelsea had a £62 million bid rejected in the summer and recently made a ‘very exciting proposal’ to his entourage.
In another development, TT writes that Chelsea want to have fresh discussions with Yildiz, on the condition that they’re given encouragement he does, in fact, want to pursue a new challenge.
Right now, it is simply a waiting game from Chelsea’s perspective, as they await the outcome of new Juve contract talks with Yildiz which have currently stalled due to wage demands. The main obstacle in Maresca’s way is Juve’s seismic £79 million valuation of the player, which would more than likely increase in the event of an extension.
That being said, Yildiz represents exactly the type of elite young talent Chelsea should be targeting to elevate their attacking options to a title-challenging level.
Yildiz has averaged a goal contribution every other game this season, bagging three goals and four assists from 14 outings in all competitions, and he’s even been compared to Juve legend Alessandro Del Piero.
The winger loves to cut in from the left, boasting wonderful control technique and the ability to beat a man before unleashing a shot at goal.
Jacek Kulig, an expert on world football’s most elite young talent, has also praised the young forward’s dribbling ability, saying he has “high on-the-ball bravery to make spectacular solo runs”.
Yildiz’s rumoured wage demands of around £5.2 million per year would see him easily fit into Chelsea’s wage structure as well, even sitting between the likes of Liam Delap and Jamie Gittens.