Chelsea’s return to the Champions League was undone by costly mistakes, as Cole Palmer admitted their own errors gifted Bayern Munich a 3-1 victory at the Allianz Arena. Harry Kane, once again tormenting his former Premier League rivals, scored twice as the Blues faltered in their league-stage opener. Palmer, who netted a superb strike himself, insisted the defeat was avoidable.

Chelsea crumble against Bayern Munich

Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea side started brightly in Munich but collapsed under pressure with three defensive lapses. Trevoh Chalobah’s own goal opened the scoring, Moises Caicedo conceded a penalty converted by Kane, and Malo Gusto’s mistake handed the England captain another goal. Palmer struck with a fine goal, but it was not enough to rescue the Blues against Vincent Kompany's ruthless side.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportPalmer opens up on Chelsea's costly mistakes

“I thought we played well. We’ve shown we deserve to play here," Palmer said. "The three goals we conceded were our own fault. We had chances. We deserved better than what we got.

“We started well. We had early chances to score, but when you make mistakes at the back it’s always difficult to come back into the game. It was a lack of concentration, and not managing the moments correctly. I feel like we showed we can play against the best teams in the competition.

“The manager said to us before (the game) that he knows we can go toe-to-toe. I think we showed that despite the result. To be back in the competition is nice, we just need to kick on from here. We are not coming here for it to be a learning curve. We want to compete.”

Chelsea's return to the Champions League shows chinks in armour

Chelsea’s return to Europe’s biggest stage highlighted both promise and fragility in equal measure. While Palmer’s goal and their attacking approach showed clear progress under Maresca, defensive lapses ultimately decided the contest. Kane’s brace was a reminder of his ruthless efficiency, and the Blues will need to cut out costly errors to stand a chance of progressing deep into the tournament.

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Getty Images SportChelsea looking to iron out mistakes

Chelsea will look to regroup quickly ahead of their next Champions League clash against Jose Mourinho's Benfica, where they cannot afford to repeat the same mistakes. Maresca will be tasked with shoring up defensive concentration while keeping Palmer and the attack firing. Meanwhile, they shift their focus towards the Premier League.

Georgia Voll has been included for the ODIs and T20Is while Grace Harris will be part of the latter

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Dec-2024Allrounder Sophie Molineux has been ruled out of the multiformat Ashes series due to a knee injury that will require surgery while captain Alyssa Healy remains unsure whether she will keep wicket due to her ongoing knee problem.Molineux, a left-arm spinner, managed a knee issue through the WBBL, where she captained Melbourne Renegades to a maiden title, and the problem flared again after the ODI series against India. Molineux was ruled out of the recent trip to New Zealand and now faces a further spell on the sidelines.”Sophie Molineux will undergo left knee surgery next month, following that we will provide further updates on an anticipated return date,” team physiotherapist Kate Beerworth said.Related

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One of the key issues for Australia to resolve ahead of the Ashes will be whether Healy is able to keep wicket having handed the gloves to Beth Mooney in New Zealand. Healy has been included in the Governor-General’s XI squad for a 50-over warm-up game against England on January 9 at North Sydney Oval which she said would be good test for her knee.”That’ll be a great opportunity for me to take the gloves for a little bit and see how everything’s progressing,” Healy told reporters at the MCG. “I can’t really give you any more information than that. It’s kind of play it by ear at the moment to see how everything pulls up.”But I did thoroughly enjoy running around the field in New Zealand. So if that’s the option and is less disruptive to our side, then that could be the way moving forward. But the aim is to take the gloves and hopefully I can do that.”Having an angry joint in there and flaring that up, and knowing the really tight schedule with the Ashes as well, probably managing that and not wanting to blow it up too much that it’s going to affect my ability to play at all. So that’ll be the real test, I think, in the next 10 days, moving into the series as to how that pulls up, how it responds to keeping again, and we’ll just assess as we go.”Georgia Voll, who made a stunning start to her international career against India, with 173 runs in three ODIs including a century, has been included for the one-day and T20I series which form the first two parts of the Ashes. Grace Harris will join for the T20Is at the SCG, Canberra and Adelaide.”It was pleasing to see Alyssa Healy return to action against New Zealand and looked in good touch, along with a number of batters continuing their strong form on from the recent series against India,” national selector Shawn Flegler said.”Whilst Georgia Voll didn’t play against New Zealand, she’s made a brilliant start to her international career and will be a strong option with the bat if required in her debut Ashes series. The bowling group provides plenty of variety which will be important against a strong England batting line up.”A squad for the day-night Test at the MCG in late January will be named in the coming weeks.”I think you look at the way we’ve probably shaped up in Test cricket over the last couple of seasons, it’s looked a little bit different to what we’ve done in the white-ball format,” Healy said. “So there is some reasoning as to why that Test squad hasn’t been announced, and we’ll probably look at that over the next few weeks, just to see where all the bowlers in the domestic cricket are at and their loads and how they’re going to prepare for a Test match.”Knowing it’s pink ball, knowing it swings a little bit more, and what the conditions are going to be like, I think there’s a few players around the country at the moment that could stick their hand up for a baggy green which I think is really exciting.”The Ashes starts with the first ODI at North Sydney on January 12 followed by matches at Junction Oval in Melbourne and Hobart.Meanwhile, legspinner Georgia Wareham has also been called into the Governor-General’s XI squad in place of fast bowler Darcie Brown to give Wareham more game time ahead of the Ashes having only featured in one of Australia’s last six ODIs where she wasn’t required to bat or bowl.Australia ODI and T20I squad for Women’s AshesAlyssa Healy (capt), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris (T20s only), Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham

MatériaMais Notícias

As casas de apostas se manifestaram após a deflagração da Operação Penalidade Máxima. As empresas, que dominam o mercado de patrocínio esportivo no Brasil, são tratadas como vítimas do escândalo de manipulação de resultados e apostam na regulamentação do setor das apostas para impedir novos casos deste tipo.

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Um dos grupos a se manifestar foi o Instituto Brasileiro de Jogo Responsável (IBJR), que é formado e representa nove empresas do ramo (Bet365, Flutter, Entain, Betsson Group, Betway Group, Yolo Group, Netbet Group, KTO Group e Rei do Pitaco). Em entrevista ao LANCE!, o diretor-presidente da entidade, André Gelfi, falou sobre a importância da regulamentação e também ressaltou os riscos destes esquemas fraudulentos ao esporte.

+ Regulamentação das apostas: veja principais pontos de texto da MP entregue ao presidente Lula

– A manipulação de resultados atenta contra a credibilidade do esporte nacional. Sem credibilidade a atividade das casas de apostas é inviável, perde seu atrativo essencial. A imprevisibilidade permeia o ato de apostar, sem ela não há apostas. A integridade dos esportes é pedra angular para nosso setor, trabalhamos proativamente junto aos demais stakeholders para assegurá-la – disse André Gelfi, antes de completar:

– Com a regulamentação do setor de apostas esportivas, serão criados processos e mecanismos locais de monitoramento para identificar apostas suspeitas nas casas autorizadas para operar no Brasil. Quando pertinente, casos suspeitos podem ser investigados por entes como a CBF, FIFA, UEFA, CONCACAF, entre outros. A expectativa é de que com a regulação, existam regras claras para coibir os esquemas de manipulação de apostas e também diretrizes para punir os envolvidos.

Além de defender a regulamentação, o IBJR também anunciou parceria com uma entidade que atua com a integridade do esporte. Leia, abaixo, a nota publicada pela entidade:

“Em relação às recentes investigações de manipulação de resultados, o Instituto Brasileiro de Jogo Responsável (IBJR) vê a regulamentação do setor de apostas esportivas no Brasil como essencial para a segurança de apostadores, esportes e operadores, de forma que possam contribuir para o crescimento do país. Os membros da IBJR têm experiência em colaborar com órgãos reguladores e outras autoridades relevantes com o objetivo comum de garantir a integridade do esporte.

Nesse sentido, o IBJR firmou, nesta semana, uma parceria com a International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) para desenvolver projetos que garantam a integridade do esporte brasileiro e já apresentou os representantes da IBIA às autoridades responsáveis pelas investigações, para que possam trabalhar em conjunto. O objetivo é implementar ações que preservem a segurança e a integridade dos operadores, do esporte e dos apostadores, reforçando o papel das apostas esportivas como entretenimento.”

ANJL também se posiciona após escândalo

Outro grupo a se manifestar foi a Associação Nacional de Jogos e Loterias (ANJL). A entidade foi criada em março com o objetivo de defender os interesses do setor e ser o interlocutor das casas de apostas esportivas e de loterias com o governo e Congresso, em meio ao debate sobre a regulamentação. Leia, abaixo, a nota publicada pelo ANJL:

“A Associação Nacional de Jogos e Loterias (ANJL) vem a público se manifestar sobre as recentes denúncias e investigações de casos de manipulação de resultados de jogos das principais divisões do futebol brasileiro, noticiados pela imprensa. Os deploráveis episódios envolvendo jogadores profissionais mancham a história do esporte brasileiro. A ANJL lamenta e condena qualquer ação de cunho ilícito que prejudique o esporte, a prática do jogo responsável, a integridade dos resultados e, principalmente, o mercado de apostas esportivas. É preciso deixar muito claro que as casas de apostas são as principais vítimas das fraudes ocorridas.

A ANJL apoia a apuração dos casos e espera que as autoridades competentes e as entidades federativas punam, de forma exemplar, esses atletas. A ANJL esclarece ainda que está investindo em programas de integridade do esporte, monitoramento de atitudes suspeitas, prevenção e bloqueio de contas e apostadores suspeitos para aprimorar ainda mais os controles de modo a coibir atitudes e comportamentos ilegais.

Por fim, reafirma que a regulamentação do setor é fundamental para que sejam adotadas medidas ainda mais eficazes e contundentes por meio da parceria dos setores público e privado, com o objetivo de eliminar esse tipo de prática ilícita no mercado brasileiro.“

Mumbai, the winners of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, haven’t made the knockouts

Shashank Kishore05-Jan-2025

Mayank Agarawal slammed his fourth List A hundred in five innings as Karnataka entered the knockouts of the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy along with defending champions Haryana, Punjab, Bengal and Tamil Nadu among others.Mumbai, the winners of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, haven’t made the knockouts after finishing third in Group C with five wins in seven games. Both their losses, to Karnataka and Punjab, deflated their campaign which they ended on a winning note on Sunday with teenaged opener Aayush Mhatre hitting an unbeaten 148 to seal victory over Saurashtra in a 290-run chase.Mhatre, who made his List A debut for Mumbai during the competition, finished as the side’s leading run-getter with 458 runs in seven innings, including two centuries and a half-century. The only other centurion for Mumbai was Shreyas Iyer, the captain, who also hit two centuries: an unbeaten 55-ball 114 in a losing cause against Karnataka and a match-winning 133-ball 137 not out against Puducherry.Related

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Karun Nair sets new List A record for most runs without being dismissed

Meanwhile, Punjab’s road to the knockouts was dotted with impressive batting performances that helped them rack up scores of 424 and 426 against Saurashtra and Hyderabad respectively. On Sunday, they scored 338 to win by 167 runs against Puducherry and finish the group stage with six wins in seven games. However, Karnataka by virtue of their one-wicket win over Punjab topped the group.That loss notwithstanding, Punjab finished as the best second-ranked team (in terms of points) from all five groups to earn a direct quarter-final berth. Their campaign has been spearheaded by wicketkeeper-batter Prabhsimran Singh, who has so far slammed three centuries: 150* vs Mumbai, 125 vs Saurashtra and 137 vs Hyderabad.Prabhsimran’s opening partnership with Abhishek Sharma has been particularly formidable. Against Saurashtra, they put on 298, the joint second-highest opening stand in the tournament history, equalling the record set by Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran and Sudip Gharami in 2022. Abhishek, Punjab’s captain, hit a career-best 170, off just 96 balls, while Prabhsimran hit 125.Punjab’s scintillating run has also seen wholesome contributions from pace spearhead Arshdeep Singh, who sits atop the wicket-takers’ charts. Arshdeep’s 17 wickets in six games have come at an economy of 5.53, with a best of 5 for 38 against Mumbai.Elsewhere, Gujarat and Vidarbha were the only two teams to finish the group stage with an all-win record, while Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan Bengal are the only three teams (out of ten) to make the knockouts having lost two games.Gujarat’s campaign has been spearheaded by their fast-bowling pair of Chintan Gaja and Arzan Nagwaswalla, who are second and third on the wicket-taker’s charts while Vidarbha’s run comes on the back of Karun Nair’s record-breaking run of form: he has hit four hundreds in five innings.Nair holds the record for most List A runs without being dismissed. He’s currently second on the run charts with 542 runs, behind Agarawal’s tally of 613 in seven innings, which includes four hundreds and a half-century.Vijay Hazare Trophy knockouts line-upPre-quarterfinals: Haryana vs Bengal, Rajasthan vs Tamil Nadu (both on January 9)
Quarter-finals: Vidarbha vs Punjab, Karnataka vs Baroda (both on January 11); Gujarat vs winner of Haryana-Bengal, Maharashtra vs winner of Rajasthan-Tamil Nadu (both on January 12)Semifinals: January 15 and 16.Final: January 18

علق حسن ناظر لاعب منتخب المغرب الأسبق، على فرص بلاده ومنتخب مصر في النسخة المقبلة من بطولة كأس أمم إفريقيا، والمقرر انطلاقها في ديسمبر من العام الجاري.

وقال حسن ناظر في تصريحات تلفزيونية عبر قناة أون سبورت: “كأس أمم إفريقيا القادمة ستكون مميزة جدًا من جميع الجوانب، فالملاعب مجهزة على أعلى مستوى، وكل منتخب سيكون لديه ملعب خاص للتدريبات، وهي ميزة لم تكن متوفرة من قبل، المغرب يمتلك كل المقومات لتنظيم مثالي يليق باسم القارة”.

طالع | منتخب مصر في اختبار سهل أمام جيبوتي لحسم بطاقة التأهل إلى كأس العالم 2026

وأضاف: “منتخب المغرب عليه ضغط كبير لأنه يلعب على أرضه وأمام جماهيره، والجميع يريد أن يرى الكأس تبقى هنا في المغرب، خاصة بعد المستوى المميز الذي وصل إليه المنتخب خلال السنوات الأخيرة”.

وواصل: “عندما نتحدث عن تاريخ كأس الأمم الإفريقية، لا يمكن ألا نذكر منتخب مصر، فهو صاحب الرقم القياسي في عدد الألقاب بسبع بطولات، ودائمًا من أبرز المرشحين للفوز، حتى إن لم تكن بدايته قوية في البطولة، إلا أنه غالبًا ما يصل إلى المربع الذهبي أو النهائي، وأحيانًا يخطف اللقب”.

وأتم: “من المنطقي أن يكون منتخب المغرب المرشح الأول بحكم عاملي الأرض والجمهور، لكن منتخب مصر يبقى منافسًا قويًا لا يمكن تجاهله، الضغط موجود على المغرب، لكن لدينا الإمكانيات والطموح لتحقيق اللقب هذه المرة”.

West Bromwich Albion kicked off the new Ryan Mason era with a victory at the Hawthorns last time out as the former Tottenham Hotspur coach picked up a debut three points as a rookie manager.

The Baggies just about edged past opponents Blackburn Rovers on the intense opening day in the Championship, as Isaac Price proved to be the difference-maker between the two sides with an early first-half effort.

Former West Brom manager Valerien Ismael could only watch on with a grimace from the opposing dug-out as he was undone by the 33-year-old, who was helped by Aune Heggebo putting in a standout performance during his first outing donning Baggies blue and white.

Heggebo's standout debut for West Brom

While Price stole the limelight with the only goal of the day, Heggebo did play a key role in the ex-Everton youngster lapping up the plaudits.

Indeed, the Nordic attacker was alert to the action unfolding around him after a long throw-in from Darnell Furlong caused confusion, leading to West Brom’s £4.7m summer buy laying it off to Price to tap a shot home.

His efforts against the Riversiders didn’t go unnoticed, either, with Heggebo actually winning himself a place in the Championship Team of the Week off the back of the former Brann attacker also winning 11 duels in the hard-fought win, as per Sofascore.

But, there will be a worry that he won’t cut it at the intimidating level when it comes to actually picking up the goals, having only fired two weak efforts at the Blackburn goal on Saturday.

This is where Mason could dip his toes back into the market to win himself an EFL-ready goal machine, with a £7m attacker potentially on his radar.

West Brom could look at signing £3m attacker

Over-relying on Heggebo to deliver the goods does feel as if it could backfire on the Baggies, particularly if the pressure is ramped up on the Scandinavian forward’s shoulders in the intense heat of a promotion race.

This is where Wycombe Wanderers’ Richard Kone could come to the rescue, with the former non-league striker turned EFL gem piquing a lot of interest in the Championship this summer regarding his availability, having been allegedly subject to a £7m bid in recent times from Luton Town.

The 22-year-old striker has experienced quite the rapid rise from the non-league pitches of Essex to leading the line for the Chairboys with some venom.

However, despite his form, he could be available as cheap as £3m now, according to football journalist Ron Walker, which might well even spur the Championship side into making a bid.

His explosive track record in the EFL automatically makes him an upgrade on Heggebo, who is still learning the ropes of the English game, with EFL-oriented pundit Gabriel Sutton even labelling Kone’s heroics in front of goal at Adams Park as “extraordinary.”

Games played

74

146

Goals scored

25

51

Assists

9

14

Hat tricks

1x

0

Goals per game

0.33

0.34

While the table above does look to swing initially in the favour of Heggebo, Kone is only 26 strikes shy of matching his counterpart’s goal tally for Brann, with his exploits last season for Wycombe making him look ready-made for a step-up in quality.

A blistering 21 of those efforts would come near the very top of League One last season, with the brand-new Baggies number 19 only registering 11 goals all of last year in the Nordic top-flight, on the contrary.

Further dubbed as a “mentality monster” by football writer Kai Watson, Kone should be able to take the pressures of the Championship in his stride if his League One prowess is anything to go by.

Heggebo could be forced to take a back seat if Kone were to join, however, but he shone in a more subdued role on the opening day anyway, as West Brom tries to fire in the goals no matter who scores them to seal promotion.

"Extraordinary" West Brom star's camp speaking to new club, they can afford him

Ryan Mason will be sweating over his exit.

ByHenry Jackson Aug 8, 2025

An extra ODI has been added to Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka which will provide the visitors additional preparation for the Champions Trophy.The two matches will now take place on February 12 and 14 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and will be day games.The first of the games begins just two days after the scheduled fifth day of the second Test in Galle so it remains to be seen how many players featuring in that match can turnaround for the one-dayer if the Test goes the distance.However, Australia have nine players in their preliminary Champions Trophy squad who aren’t part of the Test series, including captain Pat Cummins and fellow quick Josh Hazlewood.But Cummins’ participation remains uncertain as he is carrying an ankle injury which he played with during the India Test series.Australia’s ODI players are expected to arrive in Sri Lanka around the start of the second Test. Their first match in the Champions Trophy is against England on February 22 followed by South Africa on February 25 and Afghanistan on February 28.The first semi-final will take place in Dubai on March 4 with the second in Lahore on March 5 following confirmation of the hybrid model due to India not traveling to Pakistan. The final will be on March 9, in either Dubai or Lahore depending on whether India qualify.

Tottenham Hotspur’s summer has been anything but quiet.

After a rollercoaster 2023/24 season that saw them lift the Europa League trophy while only narrowly avoiding relegation with a 17th-place league finish, the club’s leadership took the controversial decision to part ways with Ange Postecoglou.

In his place, Brentford’s Thomas Frank has been handed the reins, charged with overseeing a rebuild that balances European competition with the demands of the Premier League.

Key players have come and gone in recent months. Club legend Son Heung-min brought the curtain down on a decade of service, heading to LAFC, while West Ham’s Mohamed Kudus arrived in North London for £60m to inject fresh attacking quality.

More recently, Spurs have moved closer to finalising a big-money deal for Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze, set to beat rivals Arsenal to his signature.

The 27-year-old England international is seen as a natural creative replacement after James Maddison was ruled out for the season with an ACL injury.

But Frank and the Spurs hierarchy know that one player alone cannot transform their attacking play.

Spurs eyeing La Liga star

Eze’s flair and invention will be vital, but Spurs remain determined to add further options before the window closes.

With Manchester City’s Savinho also linked, the North London club are actively scouring the market for players who can offer versatility, directness, and a final-third threat.

Among the names discussed internally, one winger in particular has emerged as a serious target.

According to reports from Spain, Tottenham are considering a move for Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo, with claims suggesting they are weighing up a €70m (£60m) bid to secure his signature.

The Japan international has become one of La Liga’s standout wide players in recent years, described by journalist Kiyan Sobhani as an “offensive menace.”

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Still only 24 years old, Kubo is tied down to Sociedad until 2029, but tensions between player and club have grown.

He has voiced frustration with president Jokin Aperribay’s management, publicly criticising the lack of squad investment and the absence of reinforcements needed to challenge for Champions League qualification.

His concerns were sharpened after Sociedad slumped to 11th last season, watching bitter Basque rivals Athletic Club celebrate a top-four finish. Despite this, manager Sergio Francisco has insisted that Kubo remains central to his plans.

Nevertheless, the winger is reportedly open to leaving and views the Premier League as the ideal next step in his career.

Interest from other Premier League sides – including West Ham and Everton – has been noted, but Spurs’ financial power and Champions League football give them an edge.

How Kubo and Eze could transform Spurs

Should Spurs complete the double swoop of Eze and Kubo, they would boast two of the most dynamic attacking midfielders in the league – players who thrive on creativity, dribbling, and unlocking defences.

Both possess the rare ability to make something out of nothing, and their numbers suggest they could be highly complementary in Frank’s system. Looking at their best seasons at club level, the data is telling.

Matches

36

Goals

5

Chances Created

45

Touches in opposition Box

129

Take-ons

75

Kubo averaged 4.32 progressive carries per 90 in 2022/23, compared to Eze’s 2.40 last season.

This demonstrates Kubo’s tendency to drive the ball forward aggressively from wide areas, while Eze excels in advancing possession through passing.

He averaged 3.37 progressive passes per 90, significantly higher than Kubo’s 2.99.

Together, they could provide balance: one primarily advancing with the ball at his feet, the other through vision and distribution.

Passing efficiency is similar, with Kubo completing 71% and Eze 74.2%, while both ranked highly in terms of creating danger.

Eze’s 4.69 shot-creating actions per 90 underline his playmaking pedigree, while Kubo produced a healthy 3.55.

In terms of dribbling, both are capable: Eze attempted 2.33 successful take-ons per 90, slightly above Kubo’s 1.81, but the Japan international had more overall carries (31.0 vs. 29.2) and more touches in the attacking third (27.2 vs. 20.7).

In other words, while Eze is more of a central orchestrator who combines creativity with goal threat – as shown by his 14 goals and 11 assists last season – Kubo offers relentless forward momentum from the wings, stretching defences and providing service into the box.

Between them, they could supply a constant stream of chances to Richarlison and Solanke, while also chipping in with goals themselves.

Comparisons have already been made between Eze and a young Dele Alli – a player once valued at £90m for his blend of skill, vision, and goalscoring instincts.

The financial outlay would be significant, but with Champions League football secured and the club eager to back Frank, there is a clear sense of ambition.

In a summer that began with disappointment over Postecoglou’s dismissal, Spurs are now building momentum.

If they can land both Eze and Kubo, Tottenham’s supporters may soon find themselves watching one of the most exciting attacking duos in Europe – a partnership capable of reviving the magic that once made the Lilywhites a feared force in the final third.

He's a dream for Kudus: Spurs open talks to sign "exceptional" £26m PL star

Tottenham Hotspur have shown an interest in a star who could be a dream for Mohammed Kudus.

1 ByDan Emery Aug 18, 2025

We’re just a week away from the return of the Premier League, and Chelsea are looking like a scary proposition.

Enzo Maresca’s side finished last season in fine form, and the board have only made them stronger with their work in the transfer market this summer.

The likes of Jamie Gittens, Liam Delap and Joao Pedro will make them far more dangerous in attack, while Jorrel Hato looks like he could be one of the next great defenders.

The Blues aren’t done there, though, as they also appear intent on adding Xavi Simons to their squad, as well as another international who’d be brilliant alongside the Dutchman.

Chelsea target Simons' perfect partner

Simons has been one of the more prominent names linked to Chelsea over the last few weeks, and while it started as nothing more than an interest, it now looks like they’re dead set on signing him.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Reports from the last week or so have gone as far as claiming that personal terms have already been agreed and that an offer of around £61m would be enough to seal the deal.

It would be a brilliant bit of business if the Blues could get it done, and yet, they still want to do even more, as they’re now closing in on someone who could end up being unplayable alongside Simons.

At least that’s according to a recent report from transfers expert Fabrizio Romano, who has reaffirmed that Chelsea want to sign Alejandro Garnacho this summer.

The Italian journalist goes further than that, though, revealing that the Argentine ace has now agreed to “every detail of personal terms” with the Blues and that he “only wants” a move to Stamford Bridge.

Romano doesn’t mention how much the 21-year-old could end up costing, but based on stories from the last few weeks, it would appear that the Pensioners do not want to pay much more than £40m.

While Garnacho could still end up costing a little more than that, this feels like a deal that’s worth pursuing, as he’s got plenty of potential, and alongside Simons, he could become unplayable.

Why Garnacho could be unplayable with Simons

While it might have seemed unlikely a few weeks ago, Romano has made it quite clear that Chelsea want to sign Simons and Garnacho this summer, and though some might see that as overkill, we reckon they could be perfect teammates.

The first reason stems from their raw output last season, as an attacking player is always judged on their goal-scoring or chance-creating abilities.

For his efforts, the RB Leipzig star scored 11 goals and provided eight assists in 33 appearances, totalling 2763 minutes, which comes out to an impressive average of a goal involvement every 1.73 games, or every 145.42 minutes.

Then, in his 58 appearances last season, totalling 3568 minutes, the Madrid-born “superstar,” as dubbed by journalist Liam Canning, scored 11 goals and provided ten assists, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 2.76 games, or every 169.90 minutes, which is very impressive considering he was playing in a historically bad Manchester United team.

Not only do these numbers suggest that both players would be able to contribute in a meaningful way for the Blues next season, but they also make it clear that they’re both as good at scoring goals as they are at creating chances.

In other words, when playing together, opposition defenders will be unsure which one of them will be the creator and which one will be the finisher, and those minute moments of hesitation could allow them the space to thrive.

On top of this, both youngsters are more than comfortable playing as a ten or out wide on the wings.

This would allow them to play more games together, interchange with relative ease on the pitch, and crucially, cover for one another when one needs to be rested.

Ultimately, on their own, Simons and Garnacho would be excellent signings, but together they could become unplayable at Chelsea.

The next Cole Palmer: Chelsea "keep working" to sign £61m "game-changer"

The superb international would be an unreal signing for Chelsea.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Aug 7, 2025

Leeds United have now made late contact to sign a 63-cap international before the transfer deadline alongside Fulham’s Harry Wilson.

Leeds in talks to sign Harry Wilson

The Whites have been looking for attacking reinforcements in the final days of the transfer window after missing out on Brighton winger Facundo Buonanotte.

Leeds thought they were close to signing the Seagulls gem on loan, however, Chelsea came in at the last minute and hijacked any Elland Road deal.

With targets and time running out, Leeds have also failed with a loan offer to sign Emi Buenida on loan from Aston Villa. However, they are now in a race against time to sign Fulham’s Harry Wilson.

The 49ers Enterprises could eventually manage to grant Farke’s wish for further attacking reinforcements after the Leeds manager urged the club to bring in more quality.

“I don’t play any games. Everyone in the club says: ‘OK, we want to try everything to give us the best possible squad’. Everyone wants to add, in the offence, some more quality players. If not, we also won’t raise the white flag and say, ‘OK, that’s it’.

“We have shown we are competitive in the first three games, but it will be difficult (thereafter). There’s also no moaning, but, until the last hour of the window, we have to try everything to bring some more quality in.”

Contact made: Leeds now plotting last-gasp offer to sign "underrated" star

He’s in excellent form.

5 ByTom Cunningham Sep 1, 2025

With a potential addition in attack, another signing in defence could be on the cards.

Leeds make contact for Albania international Berat Djimsiti

According to reports from Markaj News on deadline day, Leeds have been in contact over a deal for Atalanta defender Berat Djimsiti.

Capable of playing anywhere across the back four, Djimsiti stands at 6 foot 2 and is under contract with the Serie A side until 2026.

The 32-year-old has also won 63 caps for Albania, but considering Leeds and Farke want attacking additions, signing Djimsiti would be a real surprise.