علق محمد هاني لاعب فريق الأهلي على التعادل مع بورتو البرتغالي، وتوديع منافسات بطولة كأس العالم للأندية 2025 من مرحلة المجموعات.

وتلاقى الأهلي أمام بورتو البرتغالي فجر اليوم الثلاثاء، في إطار منافسات الجولة الثالثة من دور مجموعات البطولة، المُقامة حاليًا في أمريكا.

وانتهت المباراة بتعادل إيجابي بين الفريقين، بأربعة أهداف لمثلها، ليودعا البطولة سويًا، في حين تأهل بالميراس وإنتر ميامي من المجموعة الأولى.

وقال محمد هاني في تصريحات تلفزيونية عبر قناة “إم بي سي مصر”: “أعلم أن الجماهير حزينة، والأداء لم يكن الأفضل في أول مباراتين، واليوم، بذل معظم اللاعبين 100% من جهدهم وحاولوا كثيرًا الوصول إلى المرمى، لكننا لم نوفق”.

وأكمل: “كان يجب أن تكون النتيجة مختلفة، وأن نفوز بنتيجة أكبر بكثير، لكن هذه هي كرة القدم، وأحيانًا تتحقق نجاحات وبطولات، وأحيانًا أخرى تخسر، وهو درس يجب أن نتعلمه”.

طالع | حسين الشحات يبرر إهدار فرصته الشهيرة أمام إنتر ميامي.. ويقدم وعدًا لجماهير الأهلي

وواصل: “كانت هناك العديد من الفرص المهدرة التي كان يمكن أن تغير نتيجة المباراة تمامًا، الجماهير من حقها أن تفرح، فقد سافرت خلفنا إلى آخر الدنيا لتشجيع الفريق”.

وزاد: “أعلم أن الجماهير حزينة لأن هذا الأداء لم يكن متوقعًا منا، ولكن لدينا لاعبون جدد في الفريق، وهذه أول مباريات للمدير الفني لتطبيق عمله وتكتيكاته، وهذا يحتاج إلى وقت، وكانت بطولة صعبة، وإن شاء الله نعد الجماهير بأن القادم سيكون أفضل بكثير”.

Celtic are edging closer to a sixth treble in just nine seasons.

With only nine Premiership fixtures still to play, Brendan Rodgers’ side are a whopping 16 points clear at the top, looking to increase that gap even further when Rangers visit Glasgow’s East End a week on Sunday.

Before then, this Sunday, the Hoops will welcome Hibernian to Parkhead in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals.

Hibs are currently unbeaten in 13 top-flight fixtures, their longest such streak in a single season since 1949/50, a sequence that features a 2-1 win over Celtic at Easter Road a fortnight ago, hence why David Gray’s side, who will be backed by 7,000 supporters, will fancy their chances of an upset.

So, as Rodgers, who’s won all 19 Scottish Cup ties he’s overseen as a manager, seeks to lead his team to Hampden yet again, he should unleash an “on fire” Celtic star in Sunday’s huge tie ahead of January arrival, Jota.

Why Jota has underwhelmed since returning to Celtic

Fair to say, Jota is yet to catch fire since returning to the club in January.

The Portuguese winger rejoined from Stade Rennais for a reported fee of £8m earlier this year too much excitement, both from himself and the entire fanbase.

So far, he’s scored three goals in nine appearances for the Hoops, marking his second debut with a goal at Motherwell, before finding the net during emphatic home victories over both Dundee and Aberdeen.

Speaking prior to the first leg against Bayern Munich, Rodgers revealed to TNT Sports that while the winger is “a top, top player”, he’s not quite reached peak fitness levels. “You need to be physical in these games and the front three are in a good place,” the boss noted.

He didn’t start again in the 5-2 win over St Mirren and with Jota yet to, as Sourav Mahanty of Sports Illustrated puts it, ‘rediscover his form’, Rodgers should reward another wide-attacking option with a start, following his exceptional recent scoring spree?

Celtic's in-form attacker must start over Jota

Yang Hyun-Jun is, without a shadow of a doubt, in the best form of his Celtic career right now.

The South Korean came off the bench Saturday night, but unlike Jota, he made a huge impact, scoring twice at St Mirren. He headed home the Hoops’ crucial go-ahead goal, before tucking home a fifth, also a back-post header, late on.

This took Yang’s tally to five goals for the season, previously on target against Aberdeen last Tuesday, with all of these goals coming since 14 January.

The 22-year-old winger joined Celtic for £2m from K League side Gangwon FC in the summer of 2023, but made very little impact during his first 18 months in Glasgow, scoring only one goal, while 34 of his 57 appearances to date have come as a substitute.

Up until very recently, his Celtic career looked set to go the same way as compatriot Oh Hyeon-gyu who, despite scoring 12 goals for the club, saw his opportunities dwindle, leading to him forcing through a move to Gent.

Now though, as Korean journalist Joel Kim puts it, Yang is “on fire”, while Rodgers described him as a young player who is “growing and developing”, crediting Yang’s girlfriend for the winger’s recent form, given that she’s been in the country for “a little while”, with the manager jokingly saying he’ll do everything in his power to make sure she can stay in Scotland.

So, let’s see how his recent form compares to that of Jota.

Appearances

26

9

Minutes

1,026

389

Goals

5

3

Minutes per goal

205

130

Assists

6

1

Big chances created

4

3

Successful dribbles %

44.35%

48.35%

Average Sofascore Rating

6.91

7.09

Of course, considering how few minutes Jota has played since returning, the Portuguese winger only offers a very small sample size, part of the reason why he’s outperforming Yang in a few metrics.

Nevertheless, as Josh McCafferty of the Glasgow Times notes, Yang is the man in form, hence why he certainly deserves to start Sunday’s huge cup tie against in-form Hibernian.

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KL Rahul, meanwhile, has said the break between games helped LSG overcome the “downer” of their hard-to-digest loss to Titans

Hemant Brar28-Apr-2023After losing to Gujarat Titans in a game KL Rahul said he didn’t know how they lost, Lucknow Super Giants bounced back with a thumping 56-run win over Punjab Kings in Mohali.According to Rahul, the six-day gap between the two games helped the players take their minds off the defeat and come back stronger.”The last game was a bit of a downer and did hurt us as a team,” Rahul said at the post-match presentation. “But we had three or four days’ break after that, which was good. Everyone got some time off, got their minds off cricket, and just rested a bit. We came back fresher and we were always clear on how we wanted to bat.”Related

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Lucknow Super Giants smash the second highest total in IPL history

And this is how they batted: after Kings inserted them, Kyle Mayers, Ayush Badoni, Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran all played blazing knocks to muscle Super Giants to 257 for 5, the second-highest total in IPL history. In response, Kings could manage 201.Stoinis was the biggest contributor with bat, scoring 72 off 40 balls. With ball, he got rid of Shikhar Dhawan in the first over of the chase. His Player-of-the-Match performance would have tasted even sweeter had he not hurt his finger while trying to make a stop in his follow-through.It happened in Stoinis’ second over, when he tried to intercept an Atharva Taide shot and took a blow to his left index finger. Wincing in pain, Stoinis went down on his knees almost immediately and, after initial treatment by the physio, walked off the field.”It’s been better but yeah, it is what it is,” Stoinis said after the game. “We will get a scan later.”The Mohali pitch was quite in contrast to the slow Lucknow surface Super Giants played on against Titans. Talking about what he and Badoni were discussing during their stand of 89 in 47 balls for the third wicket, Stoinis said, “We were joking about the difference between that and our surface at home, and how we can cash in and take advantage of this beautiful batting wicket.”No, I wasn’t [thinking about 250]. I don’t think Ayush was either. We were just trying to build a partnership. He got off to a flyer as well and was hitting some nice shots; he’s a very talented player. We were just trying to keep building on that and that was our only focus.”It was the first time Stoinis was batting at No. 4 this IPL. Until now, he had batted either at No. 5 or 6. But he isn’t really fussed about batting higher up the order. And while he has five wickets from just 8.5 overs in the tournament, he felt his bowling was better suited to Lucknow’s slow tracks.”I do enjoy the responsibility of batting a bit lower and seeing the game home as well,” he said. “Part of my journey has been batting in every position. Bowl the first over, bowl the last over, try to mix and match, I’m happy to do whatever my team needs.”I was swinging a few in the nets the other day, so the bowling coach got a bit excited and thought maybe start me with the new ball. But probably our home wicket suits me a little bit more in terms of taking the pace off and being a bit more creative and using the wicket. No one loves bowling on flat ones.”

Good news, Tottenham Hotspur fans, the season will be over in about two months.

It’s not been the campaign the Lilywhites’ faithful would have been hoping for this year, as instead of building on their fifth-place finish in the Premier League last term, Ange Postecoglou’s side look set to finish in the bottom half.

With that said, there are undoubtedly reasons to be optimistic for the North Londoners, as, when fit, the likes of Guglielmo Vicario, Micky Van de Ven, James Maddison and Dominic Solanke make an exciting spine.

Moreover, amid the seemingly endless stream of injuries the club have had to deal with this season, a number of youngsters have stood up and stood out.

As a result, they’ve made it onto Goal’s NXGN 2025, a list that celebrates the 50 best wonderkids in world football.

Where Tottenham's best talents rank on 2025's NXGN list

Starting with the highest-placed Spurs player on the list, who is not out on loan, brings us to the incredible Archie Gray, who is placed at 13th on the list.

The former Leeds United star joined Tottenham for around £30m in the summer, and while he is a midfielder by trade, he’s stepped up in a big way amid the club’s defensive injury crisis, making 38 first-team appearances, 31 of which have come in the backline.

Moreover, while the Durham-born gem has impressed fans and pundits alike with his performances and ability on and off the ball this term, his attitude and mentality have been equally encouraging and suggest he could be a future leader in N17.

Moving up four places to 17th on the list brings us to the brilliant Lucas Bergvall.

The Swedish maestro signed for the club in an £8.5m deal last winter but joined up with the squad in the summer, and so far, he’s looked entirely at home in a top-five league.

Yang Min-hyeok

#43

Luka Vuskovic

#26

Mikey Moore

#22

Lucas Bergvall

#17

Archie Gray

#13

The former Djurgården star has made 38 appearances for Postecoglou, in which he’s scored one goal, provided four assists and looked like a bonafide future superstar.

Despite being so young, the Stockholm-born gem looks entirely assured on the ball and, as analyst Ben Mattinson puts it, ‘can change a game through his creativity or goal-scoring ability.’

With that said, another of the North Londoners’ teenage talents made it onto the list, someone whose value has skyrocketed this season.

The Spurs teen whose value has skyrocketed

So, as we’ve already spoken about the incredible Gray and Bergvall, it should come as no surprise that the final Spurs teen – who isn’t on loan – to make it onto the list is Mikey Moore, who sits in 22nd place.

The 17-year-old is one of the most highly rated prospects in English football at the moment, and when you take a look at his record in junior football, it’s not hard to see why.

For example, in 34 appearances for the Lilywhites’ various youth sides, the teenage phenomenon has scored 21 goals and provided 15 assists, resulting in a simply sensational average of 1.05 goal involvement every game.

Games

24

5

5

Goals

19

2

0

Assists

13

2

0

Goal Involvements *

1.33

0.80

0.00

Moreover, while he hasn’t featured as frequently for the first team as some of his young teammates have this term, he’s looked good when he has.

In just 16 appearances, totalling 632 minutes, the “fearless” winger, as dubbed by teammate James Maddison, has scored one goal and provided two assists, coming out to an average of a goal involvement every 210.66 minutes, which isn’t bad going for someone so young.

Moreover, even when he hasn’t produced a goal or assist, he has blown people away, as it was in the first league phase game against AZ Alkmaar that Maddison compared the Hotspur Way talent to Neymar Jr of all people while he’s also received glowing comparisons to Spain’s Lamine Yamal.

Finally, such an incredible record with the youth teams and impressive cameos for the first teams have seen the Englishman’s value explode this season, with Transfermarkt pricing him at just €1m, or about £800k, in October and €15m today, which is about £12.6m, or a staggering 1475% increase within a single campaign.

Ultimately, while things haven’t gone as well as they could have this season, Tottenham have several sensationally talented youngsters in their squad, including the increasingly valuable Moore.

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Rasmus Hojlund’s eyes must have lit up as the ball fell his way, with the struggling Manchester United striker seemingly having a clear run on David Raya’s goal, as Sunday’s Premier League tussle headed into the closing stages.

An on-fire and on-form centre-forward may well have converted without hesitation, but now on a run of 20 games without a goal, Hojlund dallied, allowing Declan Rice the chance to produce what was an expertly timed tackle.

Having also been denied by Gabriel after meeting Toby Collyer’s cross at the near post, it proved to be another luckless outing for the 22-year-old Dane, with his Premier League tally remaining at just two goals for the season – level with centre-back colleague, Matthijs de Ligt.

Signed for a mammoth initial fee of £64m – more than Newcastle United and Manchester City spent on Alexander Isak (£63m) and Erling Haaland (£51.2m), for context – Hojlund really is enduring a dismal campaign, having shown signs of life in 2023/24 after finishing as the club’s top scorer.

The former Atalanta man is still young enough to come good at Old Trafford, although it would appear that INEOS are already seeking new striking targets for the summer…

Man Utd's pursuit of Mateta

Recent days have been rife with talk surrounding United’s interest in Crystal Palace hero, Jean-Philippe Mateta, with French outlet L’Equipe reporting that negotiations have already been held regarding a £40m move for the 27-year-old.

The former Mainz marksman – who arrived at Selhurst Park back in January 2022 – has been something of a revelation for the Eagles in recent times, having ended last season with 16 Premier League goals to his name.

Despite a slow start to the current campaign, after scoring just four times in the top flight before the turn of the year, Mateta has hit fire in recent months, taking his tally to 12 league goals to date.

That respectable haul includes a crucial brace in the 2-0 win for Oliver Glasner’s side against the Red Devils at Old Trafford, with his overall record against United standing at three goals from just seven meetings.

It is then no surprise that the 6 foot 4 machine has caught the attention of those at the Theatre of Dreams, although he is certainly not the only striker that INEOS are keeping tabs on.

Man Utd's search for a striker

As reported by GIVEMESPORT, the Palace talisman is a ‘surprise name’ who has ‘shot up their list of considerations’ ahead of the summer window, with Ruben Amorim in need of a ready-made solution, despite the initial preference for a younger signing.

Transfer Focus

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The report does go on to state, however, that United’s ‘dream’ target would actually be Nigerian superstar, Victor Osimhen, with the Napoli man currently out on loan at Turkish side, Galatasaray.

As per the piece, the issue is that acquiring the 26-year-old looks ‘increasingly difficult’ due to potential demands over a wage and fee for the player, while United’s inability to qualify for Europe could also prove a stumbling block.

With a Europa League triumph still tentatively on the cards, however, that situation could be altered, with Osimhen representing the perfect upgrade on both Hojlund and Mateta.

Man Utd's dream upgrade on Hojlund & Mateta

Man United’s current number nine, Hojlund, has scored just seven goals in all competitions this season, while his positional ‘rival’, Joshua Zirkzee, has only netted six times since signing from Bologna, albeit having typically operated in a number ten berth of late.

The need for an attacking figurehead truly is stark, hence why bringing a talent like Osimhen into the fold would be a dream solution. As Statman Dave has stated, the one-time Lille ace is the “best striker on the market, by some distance”.

While the in-demand forward is operating outside of Europe’s top five leagues this season, he has been in red-hot form once again, scoring 23 goals in only 29 outings for the Istanbul side thus far – as many as Hojlund has scored in total in 80 games for United.

76 in 133 for Napoli. 18 in 38 for Lille. 20 in 36 for Belgian side Charleroi. This is a man who has delivered the goods wherever he has been, aside from a brief goalless stint with Wolfsburg. As for Mateta, the Frenchman had scored just 27 goals in 71 games for Mainz, prior to joining the Eagles.

Yes, Osimhen boasts no prior Premier League experience, but it would be hard to bet against him delivering should he make the move to Manchester.

Described as a “monster” by analyst Ben Mattinson, the Lagos native is a true centre-forward in every sense of the forward, as shown by the fact that he ranks in the top 1% among his European peers for touches inside the attacking penalty area per 90, across the last 365 days.

Not just a poacher supreme, Osimhen is also a “beast in the air” and boasts “insane movement” – according to Mattinson – thus possessing all the attributes to make him a perfect fit in Amorim’s 3-4-3 system.

Reportedly available for roughly £62m this summer, the Napoli outcast does appear reasonably priced considering his remarkable scoring rate in his career so far, with it perhaps time for United to truly land a striker who is at the peak of their powers.

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Napoli striker Victor Osimhen reportedly wants to join a top club in Europe after rejecting a fifth proposal from Saudi heavyweights Al-Hilal.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Al-Hilal sent fifth offer to Osimhen
• Napoli striker rejects advances from Saudi side
• Prefers staying in Europe

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Napoli striker Osimhen has reportedly made up his mind on his future, and it seems like it won't include a sensational move to the Middle East. This comes from a scoop from journalist Buchi Laba, who reports that Osimhen has rejected a fifth offer from Saudi side Al-Hilal and would rather continue his career in Europe.

Advertisement

• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Laba claims that Osimhen is not interested in a move to Saudi Arabia, regardless of the money that he would receive. At the end of last month, it was reported that Al-Hilal had offered a three-year deal to the 26-year-old worth €120 million. Additionally, Napoli rejected Al-Hilal's €70m offer, which fell short of the Serie A outfit's €75m valuation.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Interest in Osimhen among Europe's big clubs still remains intact. Galatasaray remain keen on signing the Nigerian permanently after he scored 37 goals in 41 games across all competitions to help them win the Super Lig. Laba mentioned that a top Italian club is currently monitoring his situation, with other clubs from Europe on alert as well.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  WHAT NEXT FOR VICTOR OSIMHEN?

  Osimhen's decision to snub Al-Hilal more or less rules out his participation in the Club World Cup, which means he will next be seen in club football when the new campaign commences. Whether he signs for Galatasaray or joins another club in Europe remains to be seen.

MatériaMais Notícias

Palmeiras e Puma são parceiros desde 2019, e estão juntos em toda essa fase vitoriosa, que conta com duas Libertadores conquistadas e duas participações em Mundial de Clubes. No entanto, o casamento tem passado por alguns pontos de desacordo que, segundo apurou o LANCE!, caminha para uma melhora na relação das partes.

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GALERIA
> Relembre as contratações do Palmeiras na Era Anderson Barros

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> Veja classificação e simulador do Brasileirão-2022 clicando aqui

> Conheça o aplicativo de resultados do LANCE!

No acordo entre clube e fornecedora de material esportivo, consta a exclusividade no Brasil, ou seja, nenhuma outra agremiação poderá ser patrocinada pela empresa enquanto estiver sob contrato com o Verdão, que tem validade até a temporada de 2024. Vale lembrar que o vínculo foi renovado no ano passado após o sucesso da parceria.

Acontece que, assim como em outros relacionamentos, há pontos de divergência. Por parte do Palmeiras, um deles foi bastante citado pelas fontes consultadas pelo LANCE!: a distribuição de camisas oficiais. Segundo ouviu a reportagem, a reclamação é de que a tiragem é muito pequena para atender à torcida palmeirense, que mostrou crescimento nas últimas pesquisas e é muito engajada.

O LANCE! também consultou lojistas, em condição de anonimato, que revelaram a falta de peças para atender às demandas da torcida. A situação vem desde 2019 e gera reclamações do público alvo, que muitas vezes têm dificuldades de encontrar os modelos. De acordo com o que foi ouvido pela reportagem, já há conversas em andamento sobre esse tema para tentar corrigir a questão.

Recentemente, o clube enviou carta à empresa registrando os pontos que tinha a reclamar. Ao LANCE!, fontes também disseram que no início do ano já houve uma divergência com a Puma por conta do vídeo de lançamento da camisa deste ano. A mudança de perfil nos presidentes também influencia, uma vez que Leila Pereira tem uma postura bastante diferente nas tratativas do que Maurício Galiotte.

Outro assunto que incomoda o Verdão é um desejo de campanha de Leila em ter uma linha de camisas com preços mais populares, em virtude dos altos valores das camisas oficiais, que acabam afastando os torcedores de expor a marca palmeirense, ou induzem o público a comprar camisas “piratas” que atendem aos bolsos alviverdes.

Para esse assunto, já há um modelo em desenvolvimento que será colocado em breve para vender. A equação não é fácil, já que é preciso manter a qualidade do produto que leva as marcas Puma e Palmeiras, e conseguir colocá-lo no mercado por um preço popular.

A reportagem do LANCE! também conversou com fontes da Puma, igualmente em caráter de anonimato, que admitiram os desentendimentos com o Palmeiras em alguns pontos, incluindo a alegação de dificuldade de criação de uma linha a preços populares. Assim como há reclamações sobre os profissionais do departamento de marketing do Alviverde, que sofreu mudanças na gestão de Leila.

Segundo fontes consultadas junto ao marketing palmeirense, os conflitos se dão por conta da defesa dos interesses do Verdão e dos torcedores em termos da quantidade, qualidade e valores dos produtos, que seria uma obrigação de quem trabalha para o clube.

O Palmeiras, nos bastidores, não nega os pontos de desentendimento, mas acredita que as conversas têm melhorado desde as mudanças nos representantes da Puma no relacionamento com o clube. Ambas as partes acreditam que pode haver uma evolução nessas tratativas pensando no melhor para os envolvidos, que já trabalham no desenvolvimento da quarta camisa do clube.

A Puma foi consultada de forma oficial pela reportagem para se manifestar sobre o tema. No entanto, segundo a assessoria de imprensa da marca, a empresa não comenta rumores.

Nos últimos dias, Palmeiras e Puma lançaram um vídeo ironizando um possível desentendimento entre as partes. Já no último jogo, diante do Goiás, no Allianz Parque, os dirigentes palmeirenses receberam membros da cúpula da empresa, tais como o presidente para o Brasil Sebastian Diaz, e a diretora de marcas, Rubia Dalla Pria.

Fast bowler claims England made all the running at Edgbaston and will come harder at Lord’s

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jun-2023Ollie Robinson has stepped up his war of words with Australia’s cricket establishment by claiming it is the visitors who will have to change their ways to keep up with England’s Bazballers in the second Test at Lord’s, despite Australia having taken the series lead with their two-wicket win at Edgbaston this week.Writing in his new column for Wisden.com, Robinson said he was surprised by Australia’s unwillingness “to go toe-to-toe with us”, adding that Brendon McCullum, England’s head coach, had told the team in his post-match address that they had made all the running in the game and that “it feels like we’ve won, lads”.”He just said, “Lads, I’m immensely proud of the efforts that you’ve put in, we’ve made the game what it was,” Robinson related. “We were so close to pulling off an unbelievable victory. We played all the cricket in the game. If it wasn’t for us, the Australians wouldn’t have even had a chance to win.”Robinson added: “We’re trying to create memories and be that team that everyone still speaks about in 20-30 years’ time. We’ve entertained the world, and we’ve put the Aussies on the back foot. For him to say that after a loss is quite significant for us.”Robinson’s comments come after his run-in with Usman Khawaja during the Edgbaston Test, in which he had told him “f**k off, you f***ing prick” after bowling him for 141 in the first innings, before James Anderson had to pull him away from another confrontation during his second-innings 65.Those incidents, and Robinson’s mid-match remark that he “doesn’t care” what people think of his on-field attitude, drew an angry retort from Australia’s former opening bat, Matthew Hayden, who described him as a “forgettable cricketer”, and suggested that his opinions were not in keeping with his talents.Related

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Ponting: If Robinson hasn't learned already … then he's a slow learner

“He’s a fast bowler that is bowling 124kph nude nuts and he’s got a mouth from the south,” Hayden told SEN Radio in Australia. “Someone like him, you can just go, ‘Brother, I’m coming at ya’. Davey Warner can do that, right. He can just say, ‘You’re bowling 120′.”Hayden’s former captain, Ricky Ponting – whom Robinson had referenced as an example of a previous Ashes sledger – also took aim at his comments.”This England cricket team hasn’t played against Australia, and they’ll find out pretty quickly what playing Ashes cricket and playing against a good Australian cricket team is all about,” Ponting said on an ICC podcast. “And if Robinson hasn’t learned that already after last week, then he’s a slow learner.”On the Khawaja incident, Robinson told Wisden.com: “I didn’t realise the Ussie send-off was such a big thing until I got off the pitch to find my phone blowing up with mates texting me and it all going off.””I just got caught up in the moment,” he added. “I was desperate for a wicket; I hadn’t bowled that well in the first innings. Obviously Ussie was the big wicket, he was playing beautifully. It was nothing against Ussie, it was just one of those things, I got caught up in the moment and let myself go.”It was certainly an interesting week for me, taking Broady’s mantle as Australia’s public enemy number one!” Robinson added, referencing a tweet from Fox Cricket that described him as the “No.1 villain”.Broad – whose refusal to walk in the Trent Bridge Test in 2013 was the major flashpoint of that year’s Ashes action – responded to the same tweet, saying: “No1 Villain?! I can’t have lost that tag already can I?! Disappointing.”Looking ahead to next week’s second Test at Lord’s, Robinson added that England “know what’s at stake” but promised that “you’re going to see us come harder and harder” in their bid to turn around the scoreline and win the Ashes for the first time since 2015.”It’s not just the game and the result on the line, but also the faith that we’re asking the English public to have in us for playing in this new way,” he added. “I have faith in this team that, even if we went 2-0 down, we could still win 3-2, because of the style of cricket that we’re playing.”

Ethan Nwaneri has revealed the impact that boss Mikel Arteta has had on him since breaking into the Arsenal first team.

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Nwaneri reveals Arteta impactArsenal boss "onto everything"Stopped youngster from "slouching"Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Nwaneri enjoyed a breakout season at the Emirates Stadium in 2024-25, with the 18-year-old stating that "there's a lot to learn" from his manager. That includes being told not to "slouch" by the Spaniard.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT NWANERI SAID

Nwaneri told : "There’s a lot to learn from Mikel. If you ever met him, you’d see how intense he is. How he’s so good with his words and he knows what he’s saying. He’s elevated my game, definitely. There’s so much, not even just tactically but mentally too. On a personal level, he’s helped me a lot. He’s really big on body language and the way that he presents himself. Before, maybe the way that I’d walk or slouch a bit or just the way I’d be sitting, he’s onto everything. That’s helped me just sharpen up in my mind and it’s helped me a lot."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Nwaneri has scored nine goals and assisted two in 39 appearances for the club, though saw his game-time reduced towards the end of the season. "Going from playing quite a lot to not playing as much is normal in football," he added, "So I don’t really take it to heart. I understand Mikel’s got a decision to make at the end of the day, and it’s hard for him to make.

"He obviously wants to include everyone but he can’t. But I think it’s part of football and it’s those times that can really define where you’re going to be. I think I’ve dealt with it well. I’m in a good place mentally and physically."

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR NWANERI?

Nwaneri is the youngest player in Lee Carsley's England Under-21 squad, which begins its defence of the European Championship this week. The Young Lions take on Czechia on Thursday before games with Slovenia and Germany in the group stage.

Mikel Arteta has had to deal with a lot at Arsenal this season.

In what really should have been the campaign in which his side finally got their hands on the Premier League title, he’s had to contend with a general drop in form and a dreadful injury crisis to his frontline.

Worse yet, instead of pushing the boat out and signing the Spaniard a new forward during the winter window, the board decided to keep their powder dry, which some saw as a white flag for the season.

This chronic lack of options up top has led to Arteta playing Mikel Merino as his starting number nine, and while the summer signing has done okay, his efforts have paled in comparison to a centre-forward sold by Arsenal for a pittance last year.

Arteta's Merino experiment

If you had asked Arsenal fans who they thought would be leading the line for the team towards the backend of the season earlier in the campaign, we’d hazard a guess that precisely none would have answered Merino.

However, this is the situation the Gunners now find themselves in, and while the Spaniard will not be playing up top next season – lest another set of disastrous circumstances play out – he hasn’t been dreadful for a central midfielder anyway.

For example, he helped the team avoid an embarrassing draw away to Leicester City with a perfect header and brilliantly placed shot in his first appearance leading the line.

Moreover, he scored and assisted a goal away to PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League and headed home the winner against Chelsea just before the international break.

However, while his tally of four goals and one assist in seven appearances up top is genuinely impressive on paper, he failed to score or assist a goal against West Ham United, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United in the league and against PSV at home.

The former Real Sociedad ace might just about work as an emergency stand-in striker for a game or two, but it has become abundantly clear that he’s not good enough to play up top for any significant period.

What makes it all the more annoying for fans is the fact that a striker the club sold for pennies on the dollar in the summer has been scoring for fun on the continent while Merino has been struggling.

Where Are They Now

Your star player or biggest flop has left the club but what are they doing in the present day? This article is part of Football FanCast’s Where Are They Now series.

The ex-Arsenal star who'd be their best striker

It would be fair to say that while Arsenal made a bit of a mess out of their signings last summer, they did pretty well when it came to their sales, getting £30m for Eddie Nketiah, up to £34m for Emile Smith Rowe and up to £25m for Aaron Ramsdale.

However, while fans were pretty happy with the sizable fees the club got for players deemed surplus to requirements, they may not have been aware that a young up-and-coming striker was sold to Austrian outfit Sturm Graz for just £4m: Mika Biereth.

Now, at the time, those who were aware likely didn’t care all that much, as while he managed to rack up a tally of 15 goals and nine assists on loan with Motherwell and Sturm Graz last season, he had never played for the Gunners’ first team, and with a fit Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus in the squad, it seemed like he never would.

However, the Dane’s simply sensational form this season has since proven that not only was it a massive mistake by the club to sell him for such a small sum of money, but a mistake to sell him full stop.

For example, in the first half of the season, the “crazy” talent, as dubbed by former GOAL reporter Robin Bairner, hit the ground running and by January had already scored 14 goals and provided five assists in just 25 appearances.

Appearances

25

12

Minutes

1971′

860′

Goals

14

11

Assists

5

3

Goal Involvements per Match

0.76

1.16

Minutes per Goal Involvements

103.73′

61.42′

Such a rate of return was enough to tempt AS Monaco into spending £10.8m plus £1.75m in add-ons on the 22-year-old early into the winter window and to say that the investment has since paid off would be a considerable understatement.

In just 12 appearances for the Ligue 1 side, totalling 860 minutes, the London-born gem, whom former Manchester United defender Paul Parker described as “one of Europe’s most dangerous strikers,” has scored 11 goals and provided three assists.

That means he’s currently averaging 1.16 goal involvements every game, or one every 61.42 minutes on the French Riviera, which is just the sort of attacking output Arsenal desperately need.

Ultimately, while Merino is clearly trying up top, he’s not a natural goalscorer, and had Arteta and Co kept hold of Biereth, there might not even be a discussion around the club’s lack of cutting edge at all.

Bad news for Nwaneri: Arsenal want to sign "unplayable" Premier League star

Ethan Nwaneri’s development might be in danger if Arsenal sign this £50m star.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Mar 26, 2025