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Steven Gerrard has said that his Glasgow Rangers backline is “complete” with less than a month of the transfer window now left.

The Gers have been busy during the transfer window, and have made two signings in defence with Calvin Bassey and Leon Balogun both making the move to Ibrox. So far, the 54-time Scottish champions have been immaculate at the back, with them yet to concede in the opening six games of the Premiership season.

Discussing the club’s transfer plans over the next few weeks, Gerrard has said that the back four is all sorted. He explained to Rangers TV (via GlasgowLive):

“It’s a good place to be in and when I look at the squad now with four or five weeks left of the window, I’m really content we are complete in those areas and have two really good players in each position.

“The young kid (Nathan Patterson) is pushing Tav, Calvin (Bassey) is pushing Borna and the four centre halves are all good enough to play. I’m really happy with what I have from a back five point of view.”

There hardly seems to be any need to add to the back four, which is good news for Gerrard. However, other areas of the pitch could certainly do with a bit of improvement. Brian Laudrup has called out for a creative midfielder, whilst Ianis Hagi, an attacking midfielder, has been forced to play primarily on the right wing so far this season.

There is still time for Gerrard and Ross Wilson to bring in the players they need, but it is important they move quickly.

Let us know what you think below!

Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of a new centre-back before this evening’s transfer deadline has taken an interesting fresh twist, according to The Athletic.

What’s the word?

Stuart James claims that Spurs are weighing up an offer for Swansea City centre-back Joe Rodon, who has been the subject of interest from Premier League rivals West Ham United this summer.

It’s claimed that the north London outfit are very much in the picture to sign him, though it’s thought that the Championship side would want £18m for his signature.

Daniel Levy would potentially try to negotiate this down but the Swans’ owners are insistent that he will not leave on the cheap.

Mourinho’s next Terry?

James goes onto describe the 22-year-old as “one of the brightest prospects in the Championship” having made huge progress for the club during their playoff campaign last season.

Per WhoScored, the Welsh international is averaging a whopping 7.8 clearances, 5.3 aerial duels won, 2.3 interceptions and one tackle per game this season already.

His manager Steve Cooper believes Rodon is destined for the top, claiming he’s a “good young player” whilst the player himself is said to be inspired by new Spurs addition Gareth Bale.

The links to the club do not just stop there either with the 6 foot 4 colossus drawing comparisons to John Terry, who was an integral figure during Mourinho’s successful reigns at Chelsea.

EFL pundit Andy Hinchcliffe told Sky Sports: “You look at Ferdinand and Terry and there are elements of both in Rodon’s game – maybe John Stones as well. What I want from a centre-half is someone who loves to defend. Yes, they can play, but they don’t just like defending, they really want to defend – they want to get in the line of fire, they want to stop the opposition scoring. That’s what we see with Rodon.”

Could Levy secure his manager another Terry? It’s certainly possible as the young defender clearly has all the attributes needed to be a modern defender in the system deployed at Spurs.

His towering presence at the back would be a most welcome threat alongside Eric Dier or Toby Alderweireld.

Terry was an aggressive leader, who could also play out from the back and Mourinho would undoubtedly mould the deceptively quick central defender into the next star.

AND in other news, Levy could work his magic to secure sensational Spurs return

أكد المدرب الهولندي رونالد كومان، المدير الفني لنادي برشلونة، أن مواجهة أتلتيكو مدريد لن تكون سهلة بالنسبة لفريقه، بسبب الطريقة والأسلوب الدفاعي للروخي بلانكوس.

برشلونة يحل ضيفًا على أتلتيكو مدريد، مساء غدًا السبت، على ملعب “واند متروبوليتانو”، في تمام الساعة التاسعة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، بالجولة الثامنة من الدوري الإسباني.

وقال كومان في المؤتمر الصحفي الخاص بالمباراة: “نحن وأتلتيكو مدريد لدينا أسلوبان مُختلفان، لكن كلاهما يؤدي إلى الفوز بالعديد من الأشياء، لقد حصلوا على لقب الدوري الإسباني لأنهم استحقوا ذلك”.

وأضاف: “سيكون من الصعب جدًا خلق فرص أمام أتلتيكو مدريد، إنهم فريق رائع ويدافعون بشكل جيد، علينا أن نكون جيدين في التمريرة الأخيرة، وعلينا أن نسجّل أهدافًا من أجل الفوز بالمباراة”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. كومان عن سؤاله بشأن علاقته مع لابورتا: لن أجيب.. وسئمت الدفاع عن نفسي

وبسؤاله عما يُنقص الفريق الحالي لـ برشلونة، أجاب: “نحن نفتقر إلى التوازن في الوقت الحالي، لدينا عدد قليل من المُهاجمين المُتاحين”.

وواصل: “من الطبيعي أن يكون تقدم أنسو فاتي ببطء بعد الابتعاد لفترة طويلة، نحن نفتقر إلى اللاعبين المتميزين والسرعة، وإذا كان لدينا ذلك ستتغير الدفاعات وستكون لدينا مساحات”.

وتابع: “نحن نفتقر إلى الفعالية أيضًا، أتذكر في مباراة العام الماضي أتلتيكو خلق فرصًا أقل، لكنه فريق قادر على تسجيل هدف واحد بتسديدة واحدة، ونحن صنعنا أربعة فرصة وسجلنا هدفًا، وهذا أمر يكلفنا بالتأكيد”.

فيديو | كومان يُلمح لرحيله عن برشلونة مستعينًا بتصريح شهير لـ فان جال! https://t.co/6FtvMle5N8 pic.twitter.com/LU3Of8whOE — Btolat.com (@Btolat) October 1, 2021

وأكمل: “علينا أن نواصل تغيير الأشياء في الفريق، نحن نُنهي المباريات بشباب صغار”.

وأردف: “أعتقد أن الفريق سيكون نفسه مع مدرب آخر، ليس لدينا أجنحة، لذا علينا البحث عن الهجوم من خلال الظهيرين، وظيفة المدرب تعتمد على لاعبيه”.

واسترسل: “أعتقد أنه إذا كان لديّ النقود، لكان ميسي لا يزال موجودًا هُنا، وسيكون لديّ لاعبين أقوياء، وأنا أستعد للمباريات بما هو مُتاح، لطالما قلت أن الفريق يفتقد إلى أشياء، إذا استعدنا جميع المهاجمين سيكون لدينا فريق قوي، إلى جانب ذلك سيكون هُناك فرص للشباب”.

وبسؤاله “هل يُمكنك أن تخبرنا عن أفضل لحظة لك واسوأ لحظة هنا في برشلونة؟”، أجاب: “أعتقد هذا السؤال يفترض أنني رحلت بالفعل، لكن أفضل لحظة عندما وقعت عقدي مع برشلونة واسوأ لحظة هي خروج ميسي”.

وأنهى تصريحاته ردًا على ما إذا يتوقع أن يستمر حال انتصر على أتلتيكو مدريد قائلًا: “إنه سؤال للغد، حتى الآن من الصعب الإجابة على ذلك، الأهم هو ان يفوز الفريق غدًا، أنا هُنا من أجل حُبي للنادي، أنا في وضع مُعقد لغاية، والمهم هُنا هم اللاعبين”.

M’baye Niang has reportedly rejected Tottenham Hotspur in favour of a big money move to Qatar. 

Jose Mourinho is desperate to make additions to his attacking options in the summer, as Spurs talisman Harry Kane has only recently recovered from a hamstring injury. In Kane’s absence, the Lilywhites only won three games in the Premier League while he sat on the sidelines.

According to L’Equipe, Niang is highly coveted by an unnamed Qatari club, who are prepared to make a substantial offer to the Rennes striker.

Spurs have been linked with the Senegalese in the past, but finding a forward who is capable of replacing Kane is proving to be more and more difficult.

Despite the interest from Daniel Levy, Niang ended up moving to AC Milan instead, although he struggled for game time at the San Siro, and spent spells on loan at various European clubs, including the likes of Montpellier and Watford, before he was finally sold to Torino.

The Hornets did not make a bid for the Senegal international as they were left unimpressed by his loan spell at Vicarage Road.

Following another loan, he eventually joined Stade Rennais, and his performances have improved over time, as he has scored 10 goals in 26 games in Ligue 1, taking 2.5 shots on average via WhoScored.

Shockingly, Niang has failed to provide a single assist all year, and has averaged a mere 0.4 key passes and 0.6 dribbles per game in the French top flight at the time of writing (WhoScored).

Nevertheless, Mourinho has made it clear he wants to sign the forward in the summer as a backup for Kane.

While Niang clearly knows how to find the back of the next, there are holes in his playing style that he still needs to work on, as he must make improvements to his passing accuracy and link-up play.

The former Watford loanee didn’t live up to his full potential at Vicarage Road, as he only managed 2 goals in 16 appearances. He has also attracted interest from Marseille but it is likely his head will be turned by Qatar.

However, this could turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the club in the long-term. As previously mentioned, the 25-year-old doesn’t have a great track record in the Premier League, and Mourinho may have dodged an expensive bullet.

He could instead turn his attention to Troy Parrott and other promising academy graduates to give them a chance.

Levy previously splashed the cash for infamous Spurs flop Roberto Soldado and he will surely be looking to avoid making a similar mistake in the future.

Tottenham fans, have you seen enough of M’baye Niang to convince you? Let us know down below!

MatériaMais Notícias

A classificação adiantada e a liderança da primeira fase já estão garantidas para o Cruzeiro. Por isso, o técnico Deivid vai aproveitar a última rodada do estadual para colocar um time repleto de jogadores reservas e que tiveram poucas chances até o momento. Em contrapartida, com apenas 10 pontos na tabela, o Boa Esporte precisa vencer a qualquer custo para pelo menos sonhar em deixar a zona de rebaixamento.

Entre as novidades de Deivid para o confronto, está o garoto Bruno Nazário. O meia foi um dos oito contratados no início do ano, mas ainda não entrou em campo em jogos oficiais. Esta será a primeira oportunidade para o jovem de 21 anos, assim como o companheiro e xará Bruno Ramires, que também fará sua estreia.

– A expectativa pela estreia é enorme. Desde que cheguei ao Cruzeiro venho trabalhando firme nos treinos, esperando essa oportunidade chegar. Agora preciso corresponder dentro de campo e, aos poucos, ir ganhando meu espaço – comentou Bruno Nazário.

Além de triunfar dentro de casa, o Boa Esporte ainda terá que contar com outros resultados positivos para não ser rebaixado diante de sua torcida. Tombense e Tricordiano também possuem 10 pontos, mas superam a equipe de Varginha no saldo de gols. Por isso, o tropeço de alguma dessas equipes poderá determinar o futuro do Boa na elite do futebol mineiro.

Vale lembrar também que se o Cruzeiro vencer, o time conseguirá alcançar 29 pontos e a segunda melhor pontuação na primeira fase do estadual desde que o atual modelo com 12 times passou a ser utilizado, em 2005. De lá pra cá, apenas na temporada de 2013 o líder do campeonato alcançou uma marca melhor, fazendo 31 na ocasião.

Boa Esporte x Cruzeiro

Motivo: 11ª rodada, Campeonato Mineiro 2016
Data/Hora: 10/04/2016, às 16h
Local: Estádio Melão, Varginha (MG)
Árbitro: Ronei Cândido Alves
Assistentes: Pablo Almeida Costa e Filipe Ramos Santana

Boa Esporte: Rodolfo; Leonardo, Junior Lopes, Rafael Vitor e Regis Potiguar; Léo Baiano, Matheus Queiroz, Daniel Rezende e Sillas; Daniel Cruz e Erikys. Técnico: Nedo Xavier.

Cruzeiro: Rafael; Mayke, Léo, Bruno Viana e Fabrício; Gino, Bruno Ramires e Marciel; Bruno Nazário, Pisano e Douglas Coutinho. Técnico: Deivid.

Liverpool surely have a big decision to make on Marko Grujic this summer – either sell him or give him a chance in the first-team squad.

The Serbia international signed for £5.1m from Red Star Belgrade in 2016, but he has made just 14 appearances for the Reds since then. He has spent most of his time out on loan, with a spell at Cardiff preceding two years at Hertha Berlin – he is now halfway through his second campaign with the Bundesliga outfit.

He has done rather well with the German club – former manager Pal Dardai said he was the best midfielder he had seen in 20 years at the club. The eight goals in 45 matches he has managed from the middle of the park is not too shabby either.

On Monday, it was his 24th birthday, which led to the club’s official Twitter account sending him their best wishes. The tweet actually got the club’s fans talking, and it seems many want to see him return to Anfield next year. One even suggested that manager Jurgen Klopp had ‘failed him’ so far.

They have taken to the social media platform to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments below.

Do you want to see Grujic back at Anfield next season? Let us know below!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Tottenham Hotspur are scouting Kosovo international Vedat Muriqi, per Sporx.

What’s the word?

The Fenerbahce striker has scored nine goals in 13 Super Lig games thus far this season and netted 17 in 34 last term, or one every other game.

The report states that Spurs sent scouts to run the rule over the forward as Fener played his former club Genclerbirligi, in which Muriqi netted a brace in a 5-2 win.

Lazio, Monaco, Leicester City, and Eintracht Frankfurt have also been credited with an interest in the 25-year-old.

Forever a Spurs legend: Honour Pochettino by getting 100% on this all-Poch quiz…

Unproven

Muriqi is scoring goals for Fenerbahce but the Turkish league has never been known for its quality.

He only joined Fener in the summer but his record elsewhere has hardly set the world alight.

He scored just 23 goals in 69 games for Giresunspor, 25 in 52 for Caykur Rizespor, 10 in 55 for Genclerbirligi, three in 21 for KF Teuta and three in 13 for Besa Kavaje.

It just isn’t a record that will appeal to potential employers and Spurs can surely do better.

They do need back-up to Harry Kane, who is their only senior out-and-out striker, but one has to believe their scouts can find a more consistently prolific target.

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho can win over his doubters with his treatment of one Spurs man. 

Many Watford fans have shared their appreciation for Abdoulaye Doucoure after the club announced that nobody ran further him in the game against Norwich City, with him covering a mammoth 12.21km.

The Watford admin described the Frenchman as an ‘engine’ as fans replied with their positive messages after they were finally able to break the curse and be the last out of the 91 football league clubs to win a league game.

Doucoure managed to put in a strong performance – getting given a 7.5/10 rating on WhoScored – as Watford were able to get themselves off the bottom of the Premier League into 18th and within striking distance of Villa, who are three points ahead in 17th.

Many Watford fans appreciated the effort put in by Doucoure and replied with their positive messages, while one fan even has a theory about him being better in the blue kit.

Here are some of the replies below…

أسفرت قرعة بطولة كأس العرب المقررة إقامتها في قطر خلال شهر ديسمبر من العام الجاري، عن وقوع منتخب مصر في المجموعة الرابعة.

ويشارك منتخب مصر في البطولة التي ستُلعب خلال الفترة من 1 إلى 18 ديسمبر في قطر، وستقام المباريات على 6 ملاعب، بمشاركة 23 منتخبًا عربيًا.

وتضم قائمة المنتخبات المشاركة في البطولة كل من قطر البلد المستضيف، والجزائر والبحرين وجزر القمر وجيبوتي ومصر والعراق والأردن والكويت ولبنان وليبيا وموريتانيا والمغرب وعمان وفلسطين والسعودية والصومال وجنوب السودان والسودان وسوريا وتونس والإمارات العربية المتحدة واليمن. مجموعة منتخب مصر في بطولة كأس العرب

1-منتخب مصر.

2-منتخب الجزائر.

3-(الفائز من مباراة لبنان أمام جيبوتي).

4-(الفائز من مباراة ليبيا والسودان).

وجاءت باقي المجموعات على النحو التالي:

المجموعة الأولي

قطر – العراق – الفائز من (عمان والصومال) – الفائز من (البحرين والكويت)

المجموعة الثانية

تونس – الامارات – سوريا – الفائز من (مويتانيا واليمن)

المجموعة الثالثة

المغرب – السعودية – الفائز من (الأردن وجنوب السودان) – الفائز من (فلسطين وجزر القمر)

Leeds United returned to the top of the Championship table on Saturday afternoon after they defeated Queens Park Rangers at Elland Road.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side put in a tireless showing with Tyler Roberts and Jack Harrison grabbing both goals to secure all three points.

The Manchester City loanee was first a provider as he fed the 20-year-old with the perfect ball to slot past the visiting goalkeeper and then he got on the scoresheet himself eight minutes from time.

Watch Leeds United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Harrison pounced on a defensive mistake before slamming home the second.

The 22-year-old attacking midfielder played the game at left wing-back and has often been a marmite figure in west Yorkshire despite now providing four assists in five matches, per WhoScored.

Although that attitude may be starting to change as several of the Whites faithful have been talking up his performance following Saturday’s victory.

One supporter claimed Harrison was better than Lionel Messi while another labelled him an ‘assist king.’

Others described his showing as a ‘masterclass’ and ‘excellent’ with a further member of the Elland Road crowd believing he is starting to prove his worth to the team.

Here’s the best of the reaction: