All posts by h716a5.icu

With James Rodriguez set to miss the Copa America this summer, Everton should be growing concerned over his fitness.

The Colombian was absent for the final two matches of the season with fatigue and then a calf problem, but the situation hasn’t improved and it looks as though he could be set for an extended period of time out.

If the 29-year-old struggles for fitness when the new season gets underway in August, it will be a huge blow to the Toffees’ chances of qualifying for Europe. The attacking midfielder was Everton’s second-best creator in 2020/21 in terms of assists, registering nine in all competitions.

Only Gylfi Sigurdsson recorded more assists than Rodriguez but the Iceland international has been enigmatic at times this season. His missed penalty on the final day against Manchester City just about summed up his inconsistent campaign.

On the chalkboard

With those two problems in mind, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if Everton decide to invest in a creative and goalscoring midfielder this summer.

Ross Barkley has been tipped to go back to Goodison Park, but another option lies in Lazio’s Joaquin Correa.

According to La Repubblica (via Sport Witness), Everton are at the front of the queue to sign the Argentine this summer. The report doesn’t state the fee which may be needed but Transfermarkt value the 26-year-old at a lofty £27m.

Despite the price, Carlo Ancelotti and co would be wise to lure him to Merseyside in the coming months. Correa is a wonderful attacking talent who has racked up 30 goals during his time with Lazio.

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Eleven of those came this season as the vibrant ‘second striker’ also registered six assists across all competitions. His form has earned praise from some of the best to play the game, with Juan Sebastian Veron suggesting that he was “crushing it” in Italy.

It’s easy to see why that assessment was made. Playing just behind the striker, Correa is a magician in possession of the ball. He possesses the ability to make things happen on a relentless basis, something which should be music to the ears of somebody like Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Correa has the qualities to beat his opponents on a regular basis, an attribute which may benefit Ancelotti’s top-scoring number nine in terms of touches inside the area.

The Everton target is a wonderful ball carrier and, amassing 2.3 dribbles per game, he is better at beating opponents than everyone in the squad at Goodison Park.

The way in which he opens up spaces and drags defenders towards him could prove incredibly fruitful for Calvert-Lewin. The Toffees marksman netted 21 goals this term but, with fewer players picking him up because Correa has the ball, he would likely enjoy even more opportunities in front of goal.

An article on Breaking the Lines epitomises everything which is great about the Argentine’s game. The piece read: “Correa’s wide repertoire of skills and his tricky dribbling makes him a menace for opposing defenders. His quick movement and awareness allow him to move into spaces or drop deep to enable his teammates to move forward.”

At a price potentially around the £27m mark, it would be yet another expensive acquisition for an attacking midfielder. However, with Correa in the prime of his career and improving all the time, it would appear to be a solid purchase from Everton if they pull it off.

AND in other news, Everton must complete summer swoop for “ruthless” £18m beast, he’s “similar to Lukaku”…

Some Liverpool supporters have been mocking Gary Neville after the Reds finished third in the Premier League following his reaction of surprise at their achievement.

The Reds knew that a win would all but guarantee a top-four finish on Sunday, as Crystal Palace made the trip to Anfield with 10,000 fans present at the stadium. Jurgen Klopp’s men got the job done in professional fashion thanks to two goals from Sadio Mane in either half, and they even ended up in third place when all was said and done.

[freshpress-quiz id=“355458″]

Considering that Liverpool looked dead and buried in March, having lost six league games in a row at home, it was a great effort by Klopp and his players to bounce back and finish best of the rest behind the two Manchester clubs.

Neville’s dislike for the Reds is well-known, given his previous with Manchester United down the years, as characterised by one particularly dramatic celebration at Old Trafford in a game between the two teams.

On Sunday, the Sky Sports pundit revealed his shock at finding out live on air that Liverpool had actually finished third ahead of Chelsea and Leicester City, much to the hilarity of those around him.

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Liverpool fans mock Neville

These Reds fans took to Twitter to mock the former United defender, with whom they have had a few run-ins over the years.

“This is quite a treat”

Credit @matthewsbunch

“You know he was actually dying inside!”

Credit @mrsocialmisfit1

“love this”

Credit @GavRiceRef

“Tears in his eyes”

Credit @SoLockedIn

” ‘Worst title defence in Premier League history’ and they’ve finished one place below Man United in their ‘best season post-Fergie’ with Rhys Williams and Nat Phillips in defence as well as Trent Alexander-Arnold who ‘can’t defend’. “

Credit @Mal_TQ

“That’s why he ruined Valencia”

Credit @Gin20151512

In other news, some Liverpool fans are desperate for the Reds to sign a prolific midfielder this summer. Find out who it is here.

Western Province ended the penultimate day of the UCB Bowl final much the happier team

Peter le Grange24-Mar-2002Western Province ended the penultimate day of the UCB Bowl final much the happier team.A brilliant century from their skipper Jonno McLean set up a challenging target of 243, espescially so with the pitch aiding the spinners; while two wickets for left arm spinner Paul Harris in the few remaining overs saw the visitors needing another 229 runs to win with both the openers dismissed.The day started on a quiet note. The first four overs were maidens, and when McLean cover drove for four in the 11th over of the day, this was only the third scoring shot. However, McLean and Rashaad Magiet were intent on survival. Magiet eventually went for 52 made in just under three and a half hours. McLean was then further and ably assisted by Warren Wyngard and Renier Munnik with successive century partnerships. These could have gone further, but Wyngard was run out by Freidel de Wet attempting a second run to complete his 50. Munnik was pedestrian while McLean worked on a big total. Indeed, Munnik contributed just 11 to the 50 partnership, and had scored 16 off 89 balls before suddenly launching into the bowling.Northerns then produced an unexpected turnaround when Christo Karemaker produced a spiteful delivery which struck Munnik on the hand. After receiving treatment, the young all-rounder faced just one ball before retiring hurt on 33. Shortly afterwards, McLean was caught in the deep for 152, a dismissal which was the start of an astonishing collapse. Johan Myburgh, no more than an occasional bowler in the senior team, pulled the rug out from underneath the home batsmen, taking 6 for 22 in the space of 39 balls with his gentle off spinners. Munnik was last out, his “second” innings lasting just two ball. Only Wesley Euley provided much resistance in a dramatic hour, hitting 28 off just 20 balls, an innings which included six powerfully struck boundaries.Northerns were left needing 243 to win off a minimum of 111 overs, seven of them to be bowled before stumps. WP were hampered by Munnik being unable to bowl, but McLean shrewdly introduced Harris into the attack after just three overs. Aldin Smith was outfoxed by his fourth delivery, an arm ball, and fellow opener Maurice Aronstam prodded a leading edge back to the jubilant bowler in his next over. The visitors were left in dissarray on 14 for 2 when the umpires offered them the light with just one over still to be bowled.

Mark Ramprakash steered Surrey Lions to a four-wicket triumph over Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road, breaking his side’s duck in the Norwich Union League at the third attempt

Robin Reid03-Jun-2001Mark Ramprakash steered Surrey Lions to a four-wicket triumph over Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road, breaking his side’s duck in the Norwich Union League at the third attempt.Replying to the hosts 213-6, Surrey were struggling on 155-6 only for Ramprakash and Jonathan Batty to settle the issue with an unbroken stand worth 62 in only six overs.Ramprakash finished 85 not out off 100 balls, featuring eight boundaries, and the Lions reached their target with two overs to spare.Northants got off to a dismal start when Mal Loye went for a duck to Ed Giddins’ second ball, but Mike Hussey (80) and Jeff Cook (47) hit back by adding 96 in 23 overs for the second wicket.Hussey hit four fours in his 121-ball knock, but it took a late flourish from Alec Swann – who notched 28 from 30 deliveries – to guide the Steelbacks past 200 in the face of tight bowling from Giddins and Martin Bicknell, who conceded only 56 runs between them in 18 overs.Mark Butcher (55) and Alistair Brown (15) gave Surrey a purposeful start, but Butcher’s departure to Jason Brown triggered a collapse from 90-1 with Tony Penberthy claiming 3-43 including his 150th wicket in the competition.It looked as though the Steelbacks had turned the match around, only for Ramprakash and Batty (21 not out) to tilt the balance back in the Lions’ favour and condemn Northants to a fourth successive defeat in all competitions.

Graham Thorpe believes that Alec Stewart will captain England in the Second Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford after standing in as deputy at Lord’s for the injured Nasser Hussain

CricInfo20-May-2001Graham Thorpe believes that Alec Stewart will captain England in the Second Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford after standing in as deputy at Lord’s for the injured Nasser Hussain.Stewart took on the role after Hussain fractured his thumb while batting. The skipper is likely to be out of action for four-five weeks, meaning he will definitely miss the Second Test and possibly the NatWest one-day series involving Pakistan and Australia.The selectors are waiting before making a decision on who will captain England at Old Trafford but on Channel 4’s website, cricket4.com., Thorpe says: “It’s a blow what has happened to Nass, but to have someone like Stewie fitting in so easily is good for the team and I would imagine that having been given the stripes here he will do the job at Old Trafford.”Thorpe reveals that the decision over who should take over from Hussain in an emergency was made before the Test even started and that he was more than happy with the choice of Stewart, even though Thorpe would have been in the running for the role himself.”It was something we brought up before the game,” he said. “Past experience has taught us that these things can happen.”It was something I brought up within our management structure because Ithought it would be good if the person who has to stand in knows about itbefore the game.”Duncan Fletcher came back the other morning and said that Stewie would takeover if anything happened to Nass and that was fine with me.”He’s done it before and knows what to do and to be honest both of us areshort-term options anyway and as long as the team are comfortable with it is allthat I’m bothered about.”Thorpe stressed: “I wasn’t upset not to be asked and the important thing tome is that we all know where we stand before something like this happens.”It makes a difference to how you watch and read the game when you arevice-captain. As number two you are looking at the game from a tactical point ofview whereas when you are a player you are just looking at it as a man in thefield.”He added: “It’s a knock to lose Nasser at this stage. His batting is lookinggood and tactically he is a good captain, but we have to get on with it becausethese things can happen.”This tests how good we are. It will test us to the full losing players likeCraig White and Hussain from a side that has been together continuously for overa year or so. It’s going to have a little bit of an effect on us – it’s asetback but one that good sides come back from.”Nass has had this happen to him before and this is the last thing he wouldhave wanted. To come back after four weeks out of the game will be difficult andit’s a shame for him and the team.”

West Ham United are plotting a move for Joe Worrall this summer, according to reports over the weekend…

What’s the word?

The Sun’s Alan Nixon claims the Irons have “been making calls” to Nottingham Forest over the 24-year-old centre-back ahead of the upcoming transfer window.

However, they are likely to face stiff competition from Premier League rivals Burnley as well as Championship title-winners Norwich City.

It remains to be seen how much Worrall would command but it is also thought that the Midlands outfit will sell to the highest bidder.

He is currently valued at just £3.6m by Transfermarkt, whilst the Daily Mail claimed last summer that Forest had a £12m asking price.

Another lower league bargain

The Hammers’ record when signing players from the lower doldrums of English football has been very hit-and-miss – for every Michail Antonio, there’s a Jordan Hugill, and for every Aaron Cresswell, there’s a Sam Byram.

A move for Worrall could certainly sit alongside the left-back sensation and may well potentially eclipse him one day.

At just 24, the Forest star isn’t anywhere near reaching his peak, especially as a central defender and that should be hugely appealing to David Moyes as Angelo Ogbonna, 32, Craig Dawson, 30, and Fabian Balbuena, 29, are all or close to the wrong side of 30.

They won’t be around for several years.

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Despite all of the Reds’ struggles this campaign, Worrall has been one of the few bright sparks, so it’s no wonder there is now coveted interest in his services.

The 6 foot 4 colossus has averaged a whopping 4.2 clearances, 2.2 aerial duels won, 1.1 interceptions and 0.7 tackles per game, contributing towards a solid average rating of 6.75, which sees him rank as Forest’s fifth-best performer, as per WhoScored.

By comparison, the Englishman wins more battles in the air than Issa Diop (1.5) and Balbuena (1.5), and would rank second for clearances behind the Paraguayan.

Worrall would also add leadership qualities to that backline, as his former loan boss Steven Gerrard once revealed to reporters (via the Nottingham Post), he’s “a leader” and will “be a captain of whatever team he plays for.”

That echoed the thoughts of ex-Forest man Kenny Burns, who once claimed: “He has got an old head on young shoulders and he is not frightened of letting people know if they are not putting a performance in.”

The “no-nonsense” defender could be a bargain just like when the Irons snapped up Creswell from then-Championship side Ipswich Town for just £7m.

David Sullivan and co must look to complete this deal this summer.

AND in other news, Hammers eyeing their next Payet in 31 G/A “special talent”…

Fast bowler James Ormond led Leicestershire to their second win in two days in the Benson & Hedges Cup with a brilliant four-wicket spell against Yorkshire at Grace Road

Neville Foulger03-May-2001Fast bowler James Ormond led Leicestershire to their second win in two days in the Benson & Hedges Cup with a brilliant four-wicket spell against Yorkshire at Grace Road.Returning to the field after treatment on a hamstring injury, Ormond battled through the pain barrier to claim four wickets for 19 runs in 38 balls and wreck Yorkshire’s victory march.The Tykes lost eight wickets for 47 runs in 13 overs to crash from 163 for two in the 36th over to 210 all out, giving Leicestershire victory by 14 runs.It was a superb fight-back by the home side and a brave performance from the injured Ormond, although it has now put him out of action for the game against Durham on Saturday.But Yorkshire will be kicking themselves for squandering such a match-winning opportunity and now face an uphill task to qualify for the quarter-finals.After winning the toss they put the home side into bat and restricted them to 224 for eight. Leicestershire would have hoped for better when they were 137 for one thanks to a stand of 119 between Vince Wells and Ben Smith.Wells top-scored with 76 off 95 balls and Smith made 50 off 94 balls. But their dismissals triggered a collapse, five wickets falling for 38 runs in ten overs.Then Darren Stevens and Neil Burns put on 42 in seven overs to give Leicestershire a defendable total. Yorkshire’s England man Michael Vaughan proved his worth as an off spinner by taking four for 46 off nine overs – a competition best.But it was his batting which looked set to give Yorkshire victory. He struck a brilliant 92 off 88 balls with 15 fours, before being sensationally caught by Daniel Marsh. It was a career-best score in limited overs competition for Vaughan.But it was not enough to give Yorkshire victory. Ormond dismissed Darren Lehmann, Michael Lumb, Anthony McGrath and Gary Fellows to turn the game on its head and earn the Gold Award.

Many Sunderland fans have been reacting to the news that the club will take part in an nationwide social media boycott next week to combat racism.

While there are huge strides still to be made, it feels as though football, in parts, is finally ready to combat racism in the sport. Taking the knee prior to matches as part of the Black Lives Matter movement is now common practice, and players are regularly speaking up about the abuse they are receiving. Players and staff from several clubs, including Rangers, took part in a week-long social media boycott earlier this month (Sky Sports).

As such, Sunderland have confirmed that they too will be coming off social media next weekend. They shared the news on their official Twitter account, and it attracted plenty of attention from the club’s supporters – some were wryly pleased that they at least wouldn’t hear from the club after a disappointing result, while others felt the gesture was meaningless.

These supporters took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the Sunderland fans had to say below

“Fair but to be honest I don’t think this is the answer.”

Credit: @robertstweets1

“You got the headline correct but not the story… Enough is enough.”

Credit: @PeterWi20128039

“Will this work?”

Credit: @sunderlandafc11

“A meaningless gesture that costs football nothing. Other than using poster’s for 40+ yrs, football has done very little to end or punish racial abuse in football. Enough is enough, football needs to accept that setting an example of intolerance will cost it pounds not a token”

Credit: @RoystonWilbur

“Bottlers”

Credit: @nicklummasmith

“Brilliant news, now I don’t have to read the updates from the Circus clowns that we call a football team. Please shut the account down full time”

Credit: @Dexter___k9

In other news, many Sunderland fans slammed this man’s performance against Accrington Stanley.

If Odsonne Edouard doesn’t leave Celtic this summer and finally walk through the Parkhead exit door, it will be a serious surprise.

The Frenchman has been a wonderful servant to the Bhoys throughout the years but as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end.

Edouard has scored 81 goals in 165 outings for the Hoops and crucially, has been a part of three league triumphs.

He’s still bagged on 20 occasions this term but for a plethora of reasons, his performances have started to dwindle.

The short end of the stick is that Edouard isn’t bothered anymore. He looks disinterested and he lacks the same potency we’ve seen in the penalty area on so many occasions in the last three campaigns.

The forward is sluggish in possession and can be found guilty of trying far too much. His touch is lackadaisical and he’s now struggling to score.

Edouard has now only scored once in his last seven outings and didn’t even find the net against Livingston in the 6-0 rout.

Arguably, though, he has saved his worst performances of the season for the last two games. He is getting in the right areas to score but lacks any sense of ruthlessness when he gets played the ball.

In the Old Firm, Edouard fired off target from just a matter of yards out before seeing a rather tame spot-kick saved by Allan McGregor in the second period.

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The French youth striker then missed a succession of chances in the 1-1 draw with Aberdeen on Wednesday evening. Celtic’s number 22 was dragged off just after the hour mark having fired three shots off target.

He missed a glaring opportunity after being rolled in by Jonjoe Kenny, only to put the ball wide, before he fired two chances at Aberdeen stopper Gary Woods.

It was a torrid evening as the attacker made just 15 passes in the entire game. For context, goalkeeper Scott Bain made three more.

Edouard has had a tendency to coast through games and then pop up with a moment of magic. Unfortunately, that isn’t happening for him right now.

Kenny may have been at fault for Lewis Ferguson’s goal but had Edouard taken his chances, they’d have walked away from Pittodrie with all three points.

With interest from the Premier League so rife, his Paradise career is surely done and dusted.

AND in other news, Exciting twist emerges in Celtic manager hunt, Desmond could now perform a big U-turn…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Premier League midfielder Rob Lee has expressed his concerns over Tottenham’s reported interest in Southampton defender Jannik Vestergaard.

According to the Mirror, Jose Mourinho is eyeing a move for the 6ft 6in centre-back as he prioritises strengthening that area of his squad this summer.

Vestergaard, 28, has been one of Southampton’s standout performers this season, excelling at the heart of defence. The Denmark international has won 3.6 aerial duels on average in the current Premier League campaign, which is the highest average in the Saints’ squad (via WhoScored).

For Lee, though, Vestergaard is not worth breaking the bank for and does not come close to someone like Virgil van Dijk, who was arguably the best defender in England prior to the serious injury he picked up last October.

“I’ve seen him play well, seen him play badly, so I wouldn’t go breaking the bank for him,” the ex-Newcastle United player told FFC. “I’d go and break the bank for Danny Ings, but for Vestergaard, no, not really. He’s not Virgil van Dijk, is he?”

With Jan Vertonghen leaving Tottenham last summer and his compatriot Toby Alderweireld not getting any younger, it is hardly a surprise that Mourinho is looking to bring in a new central defender before the start of next season.