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After an incredibly intense ten months of football that have seen Arsenal stage last-second comebacks, demolish their nearest rivals, and rack up the most wins they have ever had in the Premier League, it's another second-place finish for the north Londoners.

Mikel Arteta's side have been pretty much perfect for most of the season, but pretty much is not nearly enough when coming up against Pep Guardiola's freakishly resilient Manchester City, and while Arsenal took them to the final day, it's back to the drawing board over the summer.

However, with the Spaniard's team boasting the best defence in the league by five goals, it's clear that the attack must be the focus, and based on recent reports, the Gunners could be about to sign a forward who could replace Gabriel Jesus and make them forget about Alexander Isak.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from the Independent, Arsenal are intent on signing a new striker before the start of pre-season, and there are two names at the top of their list: Isak and Brian Brobbey.

The former has been a target for some time and remains their top choice over the latter, but according to the report, the Gunners believe the chance of Newcastle United selling the Swede this summer is low and, as they do not want to get drawn into a protracted saga, they have earmarked the Ajax ace as their secondary top choice.

A reliable price for the 22-year-old has not been reported at this point, but Football Transfers' Player Valuation Model has claimed he could be worth around €24m, or £21m, which, if true, would represent an absolute bargain, and one the Gunners' should jump on.

The Dutchman may not be a household name like Isak, but he has been in red-hot form this year and could be the perfect Jesus upgrade to boot, and if the price is anywhere close to £21m, Arsenal can't afford to miss out.

How Brobbey compares to Isak and Jesus

So, if Arteta and Edu Gaspar are looking to sign a striker who is going to help them bridge the gap to City next season, the most critical factor is their pure output.

In his 43 games this season, Brobbey has scored a whopping 22 goals and provided 12 assists to boot, giving him an average of a goal involvement every 1.2 games, which would be impressive for any player, let alone for one who turned 22 in February.

In comparison, Jesus has returned eight goals and eight assists in 36 games, giving him an average of 2.2 goal involvements per game, while Isak's 25 goals and two assists in 40 games mean he averaged 1.48 goal involvements per game last season.

Appearances

43

36

40

Goals

22

8

25

Assists

12

8

2

Goal Involvements per Match

0.79

0.44

0.67

So, with it clear that the Amsterdam-born "powerhouse", as described by U23 scout Antonio Mango, comes out ahead for output, how do the trio's underlying numbers compare?

Well, it is once again advantage to the Dutchman as in almost every striker-relevant metric, he comes out on top, including non-penalty expected goals and assists, non-penalty goals, shots on target, goals per shot on target, goal-creating actions and especially aerial duels won, all per 90.

Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists

0.95

0.77

0.62

Non-Penalty Goals

0.67

0.64

0.24

Assists

0.30

0.08

0.30

Shots on Target

1.50

1.44

1.16

Goals per Shot on Target

0.45

0.44

1.16

Passing Accuracy

78.2%

78.1%

78.6%

Shot-Creating Actions

3.44

2.87

3.55

Goal-Creating Actions

0.56

0.40

0.49

Aerial Duels Won

2.43

0.36

0.91

However, he does come out second best to the Gunners' number nine for shot-creating actions and passing accuracy while producing the same number of assists as the 27-year-old per 90.

Interestingly, Newcastle's star striker fails to come out ahead in any of the comparisons, suggesting that while Brobbrey is currently Arsenal's second choice, he should perhaps be their first.

Ultimately, Jesus and Isak are both incredibly talented strikers and the number of goals the latter scores would surely improve Arteta's side.

However, considering the potential price, output, and underlying numbers, the Spaniard should look to Ajax's star striker first this summer.

5/10 Arsenal star let Arteta down on their big day

Arsenal held up their end of the bargain but couldn’t seal the Premier League title.

ByMatt Dawson May 19, 2024

Both the New Zealand captain and coach have had to answer questions about their equation in recent times

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2020Kane Williamson and Gary Stead, the New Zealand captain and coach respectively, have had to answer questions about their supposedly frayed relationship ever since they got to Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui for a training session. After Williamson called the relationship “very good”, Stead has called it “really strong”, adding that they are both gung-ho about taking the team to the next level.Some of the chatter in local cricket circles started after speculation in May that Stead wanted Tom Latham as the regular Test captain in place of Williamson after Latham led New Zealand in one Test – a 279-run loss in a 3-0 series sweep – in Australia earlier this year. “Kane and I have a really strong relationship, and we spoke about it,” Stead told Stuff on Saturday. “There was no basis in truth and the disappointing part is it’s coming from somewhere and someone, but it’s not Kane and it’s not I.”I really enjoy working with Kane. The discussions we have are robust and always directed at what’s best for the team, which is something I know we are truly aligned on.”It’s like any business, you always have positive conflict and if there wasn’t, then I’d be worried.”ALSO READ: Jeremy Coney hits out at Gary SteadWilliamson was asked the question a couple of days back too, when he attended a press interaction after a nets session, and he said, “Gary and I have a very good relationship. We are always honest with each other and keen to challenge each other with our views on the game. Ultimately we both share the vision of where we want the team to go – how we get there is a constant discussion as in any organisation – and we are happy to have those honest discussions together.”Stead, the 48-year-old former Test batsman, took over from Mike Hesson in August 2018, and it has been a largely good run so far, with nine wins and five defeats in 16 Tests, which have taken them to No. 2 in the ICC’s Test rankings. They also finished as the runners-up at the 2019 ODI World Cup final. On the other hand, the Test series sweep in Australia was the lowlight.”For the most part we’ve had some pretty amazing experiences as a group and I cherish a lot of those,” Stead, who would be expecting a contract extension when the current one expires after what should have been the end of the T20 World Cup in October, said. “Most of the time it’s an enjoyable job, and there’s always things that are tough which is part of the role as well.”Selection is always difficult when you know there’re some very good players that miss out, and at times the media side and the extra scrutiny you get is more demanding.”

Cristiano Ronaldo was honoured in style by Al-Nassr ahead of their clash with Al-Ahli after hitting 900 career goals over the international break.

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Ronaldo hits incredible landmark with PortugalAl-Nassr celebrate star's latest achievementPresent forward with special 'GOAT' shirtWHAT HAPPENED?

Ronaldo has dominated headlines once again over the international break by bagging the 900th goal of his extraordinary career during Portugal's Nations League clash with Croatia. The 39-year-old is now back with club side Al-Nassr and was presented with a special 'GOAT' jersey with the number 900 on the back ahead of Friday's Saudi Pro League side with Al-Ahli. An impressive tifo carrying the messages '900 goals' and 'Only heroes achieve glory' was also on display in the stands.

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Ronaldo's latest landmark is another slice of history for the Portuguese superstar but he's already admitted "he has more dreams" before he finally hangs up his boots. Both national team manager Roberto Martinez and midfielder Ruben Neves have already refused to rule out Ronaldo going on to score 1,000 goals before he finally calls it a day.

DID YOU KNOW?

Most of Ronaldo's 900 goals came during his stay at Real Madrid where he netted 450 times. Ronaldo also scored 145 goals for Manchester United, 131 for Portugal, 101 for Juventus, 68 for Al-Nassr and five for Sporting.

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Ronaldo may not be able to stop scoring but he is yet to pick up a trophy with Al-Nassr other than the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup. He'll hope to put an end to that this season after losing out on the Saudi Pro League title to Al-Hilal last term.

Just like the opening weekend victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, Manchester United ended the 2023/24 campaign with three points and a clean sheet.

However, the same issues witnessed on matchday one occurred this afternoon yet again, with their performances being a true reflection of the club’s worst campaign since the 1989/90 season.

In truth, the Red Devils were fortunate not to end the season in defeat, with Brighton & Hove Albion tallying up 17 shots, 55% possession, and an xG of 1.55, superior to the visitors’ 1.20.

Luckily, Diogo Dalot and Rasmus Hojlund were on call to help Erik ten Hag's side collect the win, but on a more positive note, one player in particular may have just had his best game of the season.

Diogo Dalot’s performance vs Brighton

When the 2024/25 campaign kickstarts, wholesale changes are expected to occur to the United starting lineup, but one player that’s guaranteed to keep his place is Dalot.

Man Utd’s Player of the Season proved why he received that award against Brighton, despite playing out of position as a left-back.

Playing against a tricky Simon Adingra is never an easy task, but the Portuguese full-back was solid from the first minute to the last, making two tackles and interceptions.

The number 20 was as confident as always on the ball, making two key passes, taking 48 touches, and completing 87% of his passes, as per Sofascore.

However, it was his goal in the 73rd minute that made the difference, showing the movement and composure of a seasoned striker to give United the advantage. Yet even with his goal, he wasn’t quite the most impressive on the pitch.

Casemiro’s game in numbers against Brighton

There’s no two ways about it, Casemiro has received a huge amount of backlash in recent weeks for his performances as a centre-half, but today he silenced all of those critics.

The Brazilian lined up alongside Lisandro Martinez in the backline, and he was tasked with keeping Danny Welbeck quiet, who failed to have a single attempt at goal.

Instantly, there was a different look to Casemiro. He looked a little bit sharper, a lot more composed, and much less vulnerable, which hasn't been the case as of late.

Sofascore gave the 32-year-old a 9.1/10 (9) rating for his performance based on statistics, by far the highest rating on the field and far superior to Dalot, for example, who received an 8.0.

Sofascore rating

9.1

7.5

Passes completed

52

22

Pass accuracy

90%

71%

Touches

78

46

Possession lost

7

9

Tackles

5

3

Clearances

5

5

Casemiro’s lack of athleticism has been highlighted as a huge issue, but today he was proactive and timed each defensive action brilliantly, whether that was his five tackles or five clearances, one of which was off the line.

Furthermore, the former Real Madrid ace was far less erratic in possession, boasting a massive improvement upon his pass accuracy season average of 83%, which enables United to control the game in spells.

The 9.1 rating by Sofascore was his best score since he moved to Old Trafford nearly two years ago, and it was a far better showing than his last start against Newcastle United in the week.

Although Casemiro may reportedly be on the move this summer, he had the perfect performance today, and it was without doubt one of his best this season, if not his best. If he performs like that every week, Sir Jim Ratcliffe may think twice about selling him.

Ten Hag could save Casemiro’s Man Utd career by unleashing a “diamond"

The Man United star has been described as a “leader” by Erik ten Hag.

ByTom Lever May 15, 2024

Lionel Messi's absence from Inter Miami training has been explained amid fears of a further injury setback.

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Inter Miami play Philadelphia Union this weekendFans hoping Messi makes returnArgentine was not on the grass on WednesdayWHAT HAPPENED?

Messi was absent from Inter Miami's training session on Wednesday, as they went through their paces ahead of this weekend's clash with Philadelphia Union. The 37-year-old was inside the building instead of working on the grass, and the reason for that has now been explained.

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The World Cup winner, and arguably the greatest player of all time, has been dealing with the symptoms of the flu, per Gaston Edul. He has not sustained a further injury to his ankle, which he has been rehabilitating for the last two months, and remains on pace to return in one of the Herons' next two matches.

DID YOU KNOW?

Messi last played for Miami in June, scoring in a 3-3 draw with St. Louis City. In nine games without him, Inter have embarked on a remarkable run and have won eight of those fixtures.

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Miami will hope that Messi is fit to play against Union this weekend but if he isn't, he could instead return against Atlanta United next Thursday.

A Premier League star is likely to choose to sign for Chelsea this summer ahead of Manchester United, according to one journalist.

Chelsea transfer rumours

Another transfer window, another big spend from Chelsea? The west Londoners have become accustomed to splashing the cash since Todd Boehly took over, with around £420m spent on signings during the 2023/24 season. The campaign prior, meanwhile, saw the Blues bring in a number of players for around £590m. Spending over £1b in two seasons is quite a feat but the club are seemingly not done on the transfer front despite their big squad and major spending.

Maresca can unlock Colwill as Chelsea eye "high-quality" £26m sensation

He has impressed this season in the Premier League

ByJoe Nuttall Jun 1, 2024

Ahead of Enzo Maresca's arrival, his new side have seemingly been quite active on the transfer front already. Chelsea want Brest defender Bradley Locko, they are reportedly eyeing a move for former Leeds United winger Raphinha and may look to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen this summer.

Elsewhere, Chelsea are interested in signing Georgiy Sudakov, who currently plies his trade with Shakhtar Donetsk, for whom he is regarded as one of their most important players.

Journalist confident £60m star will pick Chelsea over Man Utd

Now, a long-term target has been tipped to make the move to the Emirates in the coming months. The player in question? Crystal Palace's Michael Olise.

Last week, it was reported that Arsenal were the side leading the race for the 22-year-old. However, it appears that it is Chelsea and Manchester United who will battle it out for the winger's signature this summer, with the former looking to have the advantage over United at present.

Discussing Chelsea transfer news recently, journalist Simon Phillips told Caught Offside that he has heard confidence Olise will pick Chelsea over the Red Devils: “I’m hearing more and more winger noise from sources, and the two names I’m hearing the most is Michael Olise and Crysencio Summerville of Leeds United.

“Olise is a long-term club target now with Joe Shields driving the move. A second source has now added more confidence that Olise will pick Chelsea over Manchester United, following on from my top source saying that last week. We will have to see how that one unfolds in the next days/weeks.”

Olise is under contract at Selhurst Park until 2027 but is reported to have a release clause of around £60m. While that is a large sum, Chelsea have proven under Boehly that they are more than willing to spend in order to get their targets, even if they do not have Champions League football. Olise is also Premier League-proven, having scored 10 and assisted six in 19 league outings for the Eagles across 2023/24. Two of those goals came during Palace's 4-0 drubbing of Manchester United in May, giving the Manchester outfit a close-up look at the talent they are vying to sign alongside Chelsea.

Rodri has been ruled out for the rest of the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained against Arsenal on Sunday.

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Rodri out in crushing blow for championsSustained ACL injury in 2-2 drawMay not play again this seasonFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Per a new report from , Rodri is set to miss the remainder of the season after rupturing his ACL in City's 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium, despite earlier reports to the contrary. The Euro 2024 winner is a frontrunner for the Ballon d'Or but is now set for an extended period on the sidelines, giving Pep Guardiola a huge problem to solve.

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While Rodri does require further tests for the ACL injury to be confirmed, quotes a source who claims that all signs point towards a lengthy lay-off. The midfielder went down early in the first half clutching his knee. He played 50 times in all competitions last season and was central to Spain's Euros triumph.

DID YOU KNOW?

Rodri has rarely been injured throughout his career, with his longest lay-off coming at the start of this season, as he missed three games due to a hamstring injury. City will now have to find a way to replace him at the base of the midfield.

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It remains to be seen if City try to source cover for Rodri in the January transfer window. In the summer, they were linked with a swoop to sign Crystal Palace and England defensive midfielder Adam Wharton.

In other news, they have hired a sports psychologist with an emphasis on mental conditioning

Shashank Kishore26-Aug-2020According to Royal Challengers Bangalore head coach Simon Katich, retaining the faith in young Indian players and wanting to get the right balance with respect to their overseas contingent are two aspects captain Virat Kohli has emphasised on.The Royal Challengers have three uncapped Indian players in batsmen Devdutt Padikkal, Pavan Deshpande and allrounder Shahbaz Ahmed. Twenty-year old Padikkal, who was retained ahead of the auction, is also the youngest of the lot. Both him and Ahmed are coming off breakthrough domestic seasons and could potentially lend the kind of balance that Kohli is looking for.”Once you see him [Kohli] up close and in person, you realise how calm and measured he is in terms of his thoughts to us with respect to the group [and] his knowledge of this group,” Katich said. “That’s the beauty from our point of view. Coming into this group with a fresh set of eyes, we had our own opinions on the squad. Being able to get his insight and information on the squad was great.”The other thing he’s got is passion and energy for this group, a real affinity. If you look back at the auction, we retained a lot of players despite the last few seasons not going to plan. The biggest change we’ve made is more so from the overseas contingent to try and balance the team. From that point of view, there’s a real belief from Virat that’s directed to this group and his backing of the local boys. That’s probably been the stand out thing for me.”On its part, the franchise has for the first time hired a sports psychologist, who is also part of the travelling contingent in the UAE. While there has been a lot of emphasis on mental conditioning for the overall squad, there has been a conscious effort to involve a lot with the younger players in particular. The Royal Challengers have also set up a digital platform for players, coaches and support staff to be in constant communication right through the pandemic.ALSO READ: AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn, Chris Morris link up with Virat Kohli & Co. in Dubai”We actually identified the need to have some mental skills within our support staff well before the pandemic happened,” team director Mike Hesson said. “We’re sort of ahead of the curve in respect to that with Dr. Chaitanya Sridhar coming onboard in January. We identified this would be something we needed to work on even in a normal IPL. We are well covered in that space. Yes, it’s not just players, it is [also] the support staff being away from their loved ones for such a long time [that] it is challenging for families. We are very fortunate these days with respect to Zoom and so forth. People at home are supportive of the fact that we are here to do a job. We need to help each other along the way over the next three months – it’ll be challenging times for everybody.”With the players completing their quarantine on Thursday, the team has a variety of net sessions, open wickets, match scenarios and intra-squad matches planned•BCCIKatich, meanwhile, stressed on the need for players to continue to embrace the uncertainties, while being able to prepare in the best possible way. “It’s a balancing act when you have a normal IPL in April-May,” Katich said. “This season presents a different challenge because the guys are jumping out of their skins, get out there, train and do their best after six months off. A number of overseas players have been training regularly in different parts of the world depending on the severity of lockdown.”But this challenge is more mental because cricketers aren’t used to having this much time off between games. The challenge is with younger players who are still learning their way and finding their routines. We have had to spend extra time over the last couple of months with them, using Dr Chaitanya Sridhar’s expertise.”With the players completing their week-long quarantine on Thursday, the team has a variety of net sessions, open wickets, match scenarios and intra-squad matches planned over the next three weeks at the ICC Academy. Outside of their training routine, and within the biobubble, Royal Challengers have also included tennis and basketball challenges as part of the “fun activities”, apart from dedicating a team room for indoor games and playstation.”Yeah, we’ve got some very creative people at RCB. So it all starts tomorrow night (Thursday) once we are released from quarantine,” Katich laughed. “We’ve got a few team activities in our sort of team room, a tennis court downstairs. There’s going to be some football and table tennis, so a bit of a competition created.”Obviously throughout the competition, we’ll have our social groups and units to keep the camaraderie in the group together. Obviously being in a bubble will be a challenge. At the same time, we’re also going to give the players the opportunity to make their own decision about how they socialise and things like that.At the end of the day, it is a long time to be together and sometimes, it is important for people to have time to themselves to gather their thoughts and prepare for games. We’ll have a mixture, it’ll be a good balance.”

UFC legend Conor McGregor enjoyed a kickabout at the Emirates with Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka after Arsenal's win over Paris Saint-Germain.

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Arsenal beat PSG 2-0 in Champions LeagueMcGregor enjoys post-match kickabout on the pitchLinks up with Gunners stars Rice and SakaFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

First-half goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka secured Arsenal a 2-0 Champions League win at home to PSG on Tuesday night. Spirits were clearly high as Saka and team-mate Rice were filmed, courtesy of footage from journalist Julien Laurens, having a knock-about with Irishman McGregor – who evidently loved his chance to play on the Gunners' turf.

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This was a statement performance from Arsenal, who, arguably, announced themselves on the European stage this season. This display even prompted winger Saka to say "this is the year" Arsenal will end their 21-year wait for a Premier League title.

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Mikel Arteta's Arsenal side return to Premier League action on Saturday afternoon at home to bottom of the table Southampton. The Gunners sit third in the division, one point adrift of early pace setters Liverpool.

Leicester City will hope their ongoing quest to replace Enzo Maresca doesn't stretch on for too long, knowing that they need to start adding players to their squad soon ahead of a season back in the top flight.

A large majority of the current Foxes camp, who are just fresh off being crowned as Championship title-winners, have tasted Premier League football before, however, with the likes of Jamie Vardy even boasting a Premier League winners medal on his mantelpiece, alongside that more recent second-tier success.

That means Maresca's replacement won't have his work cut out too much entering into the hot seat, knowing that the squad is littered with top talents already, but one major frontrunner for the King Power Stadium vacancy could get more out of a particular member of Leicester's defence, if appointed.

Leicester narrowing down their hunt for a new manager

Many different outlets have now reported that Graham Potter is the standout name the powers that be at Leicester want as their next boss, with a toss-up between the ex-Chelsea boss and Steve Cooper forming according to Football Insider.

Potter might well need some convincing to take on the Leicester vacancy, however, as the newly promoted side wait it out to see if the 49-year-old does want to take on the reins or not, with the precarious situation at Manchester United now settled, which Potter was previously in the running for.

If they are finally successful in their approach for the in-demand manager, players such as Wout Faes could be boosted by this news, having witnessed what the former Brighton boss did with Lewis Dunk when in charge of the Seagulls.

Dunk now finds himself in Gareth Southgate's England squad for the forthcoming Euros off the back of Potter's time on the South Coast, and so Faes will want to shine in a similar fashion for the East Midlands side next campaign, having found his introduction to Premier League football tricky under previous management.

How Potter could get the best out of Faes

The 6 foot 2 defender was always going to be expected to immediately set the world alight when joining from Stade De Reims in 2022, relocating to England for a bumper £15m.

It was somewhat of a disappointing debut season for the £50k-per-week signing therefore, not helped obviously by Leicester slipping down to the Championship during this same campaign, with the 26-year-old keeping just seven clean sheets from 31 contests.

Stat – per 90 mins*

Faes

Games played

43

Goals scored

2

Assists

0

Touches*

90.2

Pass accuracy*

90%

Clean sheets

14

Yet, making the drop-down, Faes has excelled – as can be seen when glancing at the table above – and will strive to continue being an "aggressive" gem, as he was labelled by Gary Lineker, when venturing back up to the Premier League.

Potter could be the exact manager the Belgian needs to truly help him come into his own in the top division, therefore, with the ex-Brighton boss turning Dunk into a fantastic performer in the elite division, having gifted the now 32-year-old the captain's armband on his arrival in 2019.

The England international would go on to shine after his manager's decision to gift him these duties, picking up three goals and three assists from the back during his first campaign as captain, whilst nearly matching Faes' passing accuracy total at 87% across his stellar 33 matches.

Even stating that he was "proud" of Dunk back in 2021, for how much he had seen his game be elevated under his management, Potter will hope he can have a similar transformative impact on Faes soon, who will want to kick on after an excellent second-tier campaign.

Leicester still eyeing Potter alternative who could be perfect for Justin

Leicester City look to be closing in on Enzo Maresca’s successor.

ByKelan Sarson Jun 12, 2024