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With just the one win in the Premier League this season, Marcelo Bielsa will be hoping that his Leeds United side can pick up some much-needed momentum when they take on Wolves on Saturday afternoon.

The Whites manager is facing arguably the most difficult time in his spell at Elland Road, with a combination of poor form and numerous injuries seeing them hover just above the relegation zone eight games in.

While Bielsa will be boosted by the return of Raphinha for the game against Bruno Lage’s side, he still has to contend with the likes of Patrick Bamford and Luke Ayling being ruled out. With that in mind, below is a look at how Leeds might line up for today’s clash.

In goal, Illan Meslier will be hoping to keep a rare clean sheet in the Premier League this season, with his only shutout coming in the 1-0 victory over Watford a couple of weeks ago.

The back four should remain unchanged with Ayling still out, so Diego Llorente and Liam Cooper will continue their centre-back partnership, while Jamie Shackleton and Stuart Dallas occupy the full-back roles.

In midfield, Adam Forshaw could be in line to make a rare start in the Premier League after coming on as a substitute against Southampton last time out, and that could help offset the absence of Kalvin Phillips in the engine room.

Raphinha should also come straight into the line-up, with 23-year-old Dan James dropped to the bench after some underwhelming performances, so last season’s partnership of the Brazilian and Jack Harrison will be given the chance to impress.

Up front, Bielsa has a big call to make over the underperforming Rodrigo, and having given Joe Gelhardt a cameo against the Saints, the teenager might be given the nod to start today.

Meanwhile, Leeds must finally unleash this academy starlet…

Alan Hutton believes that Rangers can make the most of Alfredo Morelos’ desire to impress potential suitors. 

The former Scotland international was discussing the Colombian’s future with Football Insider.

The lowdown

Morelos claimed in September that Rangers had received transfer offers but failed to reach an agreement. That tallies with a report from journalist Ekrem Konur, who said that Rangers rejected a €12m (£10.2m) offer from FC Porto back in July, and the 25-year-old hopes that he will ‘soon’ be allowed to move on from Ibrox.

The striker joined from Finish outfit HJK Helsinki in 2017 for a fee of just £1.08m and has since gone on to bag 101 goals in 201 appearances for the Scottish champions. The Colombian’s £33,000-per-week contract runs until the end of the 2022/23 season.

The latest

Hutton has said that Rangers will be able to bank a healthy fee for Morelos, who is apparently keen to catch the eye; adding that the better he plays for the Gers, the more lucrative his next opportunity could be.

“It’s a win-win for everybody – if Rangers are going to sell, it will be for a good fee which they will reinvest in the squad,” the 36-year-old told Football Insider.

“Steven Gerrard isn’t silly; he knows exactly what’s going on. Morelos’ best performances come under the lights on European nights when he knows everyone is watching.

“It works for both parties. As long as he’s putting the ball in the net, there’ll be teams watching him.”

The verdict

Next summer may be a logical parting point for Rangers and Morelos. Having explicitly stated his intention to move on in the near future, it seems highly unlikely that he’ll entertain any contract offers at Ibrox.

Also, Rangers will know that it could be their last chance to fetch what they feel is a fair sum for the 25-year-old. Come January 2023, pre-contract agreements would be a possibility.

There are similarities with the case of Odsonne Edouard, who left Celtic in a deal which could be worth £18.5m after entering the last year of his contract. It will be intriguing to see if Morelos plays his way to a big-money transfer with his performances this season.

In other news, some Gers fans slammed this player for his performance on Sunday

MatériaMais Notícias

Para deixar o Z4 da Série A, o Avaí vai em busca de uma grande vitória sobre o Palmeiras, neste sábado, fora de casa. Para o zagueiro Gustavo, a partida será especial, já que irá enfrentar um clube pelo qual nutre enorme respeito e conquistou um título paulista, em 2008.

– O Palmeiras foi um clube que me marcou muito. Tenho um carinho muito especial pelo clube, pelo torcedor. Minha passagem pelo clube foi inesquecível e sempre recebo o carinho do torcedor quando encontro com eles. É sempre muito especial mesmo – afirmou Gustavo.

O defensor, que briga por vaga na equipe titular, acredita que os visitantes vão precisar de uma apresentação acima da média diante do Verdão, se quiser sair com placar favorável do Allianz Parque.

– Vamos precisar fazer uma partida perfeita contra o Palmeiras, que tem uma grande equipe, para sair de lá com um resultado positivo. É ter intensidade durante os noventa minutos e aproveitar as chances que criarmos. Vai ser um grande jogo, sem dúvida alguma – afirmou.

Ainda de acordo com o zagueiro, a equipe catarinense tem tudo para se afastar do Z4 e não voltar mais para a zona da degola do Brasileirão.

– Nós temos que fazer uma boa sequência agora para nos afastar do Z4 e não voltar mais para ele. Não faltará luta e dedicação de todos para que isso aconteça. Esse elenco tem tudo para conquistar esse objetivo – finalizou.

Palmeiras e Avaí se enfrentam neste sábado, às 19h, no Allianz Parque, em jogo válido pela 17ª Rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. Enquanto o Verdão ocupa a 5ª posição na tabela, o time catarinense está em 17º lugar.

Scorecard and ball by ball details
How they were out

Phillip Hughes and Simon Katich registered centuries as contrasting as their cricketing resumes to provide Australia with the kind of start not seen since the halcyon days of Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer. But two late strikes from Paul Harris spared some South African blushes, reducing Australia to an authoritative, if not entirely overbearing, 303 for 4 at stumps on the first day.The 20-year-old Hughes combined with the vastly experienced Simon Katich (108) for a 184-run partnership – the highest first-innings opening stand by an Australian duo since 2005 – and in so doing announced himself a legitimate international force. Just nine days removed from a fourth-ball duck in his maiden Test innings, the rookie left-hander produced a powerful, nerveless 115 highlighted by a pair of towering sixes that guided him through the 90s and into Australian cricketing folklore. Not since Doug Walters in 1965-66 has an Australian batsman notched a Test ton at such a tender age.The Australians could not have hoped for a brighter start from their fledgling opening combination, but their bid to close out the series in Durban was undermined by the finger-spin of Harris. His dismissals of Ricky Ponting (9) driving on the up and Michael Clarke (3) playing down the wrong line tempered Australia’s once-rampant run-rate and drew the South Africans back into the contest. Harris’ effectiveness on day one should unnerve Australia’s selectors, who again overlooked the specialist spin of Bryce McGain in preference of two allrounders in Andrew McDonald and Marcus North.But those concerns are for another day. For Friday will be remembered as one of triumph for the Australians who, in just two Tests, have gone far to dispursing the vultures of doubt that circled after Matthew Hayden’s retirement in January.Targetted by South Africa coach Mickey Arthur in the press during the week over his supposed short-comings against short bowling, Hughes seldom looked troubled during his 151 ball stay at the crease, taking full advantage of a low Kingsmead pitch and inoffensive South African bowling. At one stage, Hughes struck four consecutive boundaries against Morne Morkel which, combined with a no-ball and four byes from an errant bouncer, left the out-of-sorts paceman with the unflattering return of 21 runs from four legal deliveries. Whatever pressure Dale Steyn and Makhaya Ntini built in their opening spell had vanished. The Australians were away.

Curiously, after all the talk of short-pitched bowling, the South Africans maintained a full, straight line to Hughes. He duly responded by driving strongly down the ground, and clipping crisply off his pads. Hughes raised his second consecutive Test half-century with an extravagant square drive off Jacques Kallis that raced to the boundary, then duplicated the stroke (and the four) the very next ball. But the highlight of the innings was undoubtedly the consecutive sixes swatted over the head of Harris to raise his first Test ton – a feat he celebrated with an exuberant leap in the air and pump of the fist.Hughes was granted a life by Kallis at a wide first slip, but the allrounder had his revenge one run later when he coaxed Hughes into a slash outside his off stump that was snaffled by a diving Neil McKenzie in the gully. Katich also received a reprieve when turfed by Hashim Amla at midwicket off the bowling of Steyn, and the senior opener appeared intent on punishing the South Africans for their error in advancing to an unbeaten 84 at the tea break.Katich’s watchful approach was rewarded in the final session with a seventh Test century, and fifth since his recall to the Test side last May. The revitalised left-hander has scored 1,250 runs in those 14 Tests – better than half his career tally – at the robust average of 54.34 and, with Hughes, provided the team with hope that a new, dominant opening partnership has been uncovered.The South Africans will be bitterly disappointed with the opening two sessions. Steyn and Ntini threatened sparingly – the former swinging into the pads of the left-handers, the latter angling across – and Morkel proved underwhelming in the extreme. Arthur’s mantra of winning the first hour of a Test match was brutally dispatched by the swinging blade of Hughes, and the pair of dropped catches in the second session will do little to improve the coach’s mood.The period leading up to tea was notable for the first Hot Spot referral – the umpires found in favour of the batsman – and the demise of Ponting. Clarke’s fall shortly after temporarily raised South African hopes of a late day fightback, but North and Michael Hussey weathered a testing period from Steyn and Ntini with the second new ball to carry their bats through to stumps.

MatériaMais Notícias

A atuação de Jefferson contra o Atlético-MG, neste domingo, ainda repercute no Botafogo. Não é para menos. Após 14 meses, ele voltou a campo e foi o grande nome da partida ao fazer grandes defesas e evitar até um gol de pênalti. Jair Ventura terá, em breve, que escolher: mantém o ídolo ou faz voltar Gatito Fernández, que vem fazendo grande temporada? O meia João Paulo acredita que o treinador não vai reclamar.

– É um “problema bom” para o Jair resolver. Temos grandes goleiros no elenco. Saulo e Helton Leite também são grandes goleiros. Estamos felizes com a volta do Jefferson. Ele salvou a nossa noite e nos deu força para irmos atrás do empate. E o Gatito também vive grande fase – celebra João.

O goleiro paraguaio sofreu um corte no joelho direito na vitória sobre o Nacional-URU, na última quinta-feira. Fora do duelo contra o Galo, ele também não deve entrar em campo no Clássico Vovô. Nem foi a campo na atividade desta quinta-feira, no Estádio Nilton Santos. Quem acompanhou a atividade foi o pai dele, o ex-goleiro Gato Fernández.

RelacionadasFutebol InternacionalAntes certo com o Botafogo, atacante Andrés Rios é anunciado pelo VascoFutebol Internacional10/07/2017

Get French Football News features writer Adam White has exclusively told Transfer Tavern that he expects Jonathan Bamba to remain at Lille amid links with West Ham United on deadline day.

Reliable Irons insider ExWHUemployee said on his show, via Patreon, on Tuesday lunchtime that the east London outfit were in last-gasp talks to try and bring the attacker to the London Stadium before the 11pm deadline tonight, with discussions with the player’s agent ongoing.

The Frenchman helped Lille to a shock Ligue 1 title win last term scoring six goals and providing a further 11 assists in 38 French top-flight matches, although his best campaign in front of goal came in 2018-19 when he netted 13 times in the same number of appearances.

White doesn’t believe the 25-year-old has been in top form in 2021 to date, and believes he will stay at Lille, as he told Transfer Tavern: “As far as we understand at GFFN, Jonathan Bamba is expected to remain at Lille unless a late bid, that hasn’t materialised yet, arrives for the player.

“His career with Lille has been very up and down so far. Before Christmas last season he was perhaps the most important player for a team that eventually won the title, playing with a swagger and intensity as well as an end product that has often been lacking.

“However, since Christmas, his form has trailed off to the point where he wasn’t even a guaranteed starter at the end of the season before falling off a cliff this season. He’s been playing like a player who wants to leave.”

West Ham have been relatively busy in the transfer window to date, bringing in the likes of Alphonse Areola and Kurt Zouma, while Nikola Vlasic followed on deadline day from CSKA Moscow.

The Hammers are also being linked with a late swoop for Spartak Moscow’s Alex Kral, with a deal reportedly on the cards.

It’s that time of the season when favourites emerge for the top and the drop. Going into the fourth round, there are teams who can book their places in the knockouts with a big win, and there are some who can kickstart their journey to the Plate League if they fail to score points. A look at the Super League matches starting Sunday:

Group A

Gujarat v Delhi in Valsad
Delhi, with five points from three matches, will know the time has come for them to pick their game up drastically if they are to harbour thoughts of defending their title. And they don’t have pushovers waiting for them. Gujarat have had a good start to the season, their first after their promotion to the Super League. They have beaten Saurashtra outright, lost to Mumbai, and fallen short by a session in their drive for an outright win against Hyderabad. If they can hold their own against Delhi, they will stay close to the top three.Hyderabad v Rajasthan in Hyderabad
VVS Laxman adds gloss to this otherwise low-key affair. Hyderabad are fifth in Group A, and Rajasthan are at the bottom with only one point to their credit. Hyderabad have done well to register a first-innings lead against Delhi, and especially by hanging on for one point against Gujarat by batting out 106 overs in their second innings. A win here could take them from the middle of the order towards the top three.Orissa v Punjab in Bhubaneshwar
This match could have similar implications as the Hyderabad-Rajasthan match. Punjab are tied with Hyderabad with seven points, and Orissa are one place from the bottom, with four points. With the match, a new stadium makes debut – the East Coast Railway Sports Association Stadium. This will also be the first Ranji match in Bhubaneshwar, Orissa’s capital.Saurashtra v Mumbai in Rajkot
Mumbai, the solid leaders in Group A and so far the best team in the whole Super League, take a trip down to the run capital of India. If India scored 387 in an ODI against England, Cheteshwar Pujara scored a triple by himself. Nine centuries have been scored in Rajkot so far, for the fall of 68 wickets, in three matches. It hasn’t all been boring – two of the matches have been innings victories. This is also a crucial match between the No. 1 and No. 2 sides in the Group A, with five points separating them.

Group B

Railways v Andhra in Delhi
Railways haven’t set the Ranji Trophy on fire in their return to the Plate League, but they still have four points and a game in hand after three rounds. Although they are way behind the leaders, Tamil Nadu, they are only three and two points behind the No. 2 and No. 3 teams – Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, who have yet to make a pit stop. Andhra, though, have been reduced to fighting relegation from now on, with two points from three games.Uttar Pradesh v Maharashtra in Kanpur
RP Singh, who has been dropped from the Indian ODI side, will lift a fledgling UP side. Mohammad Kaif, the batting mainstay who missed their last game, will be back too. UP are waiting on Praveen Kumar’s fitness, and will know tomorrow morning. All put together, they would want nothing less than an outright win against an inexperienced Maharashtra side. Their capitulation to Tamil Nadu, in the absence of Kaif and Praveen, has meant they are placed at No. 3 in the table, and need a shot in the arm. Maharashtra, who only two points ahead of the bottom-placed Andhra, will want to maintain some space.

Australia are prepared for a smoggy start to the crucial third Test starting on Wednesday due to the expected lingering smoke from the Indian festival of Diwali

Cricinfo staff28-Oct-2008
The Australians have tried getting used to the smog during their practice sessions © Getty Images
Australia are prepared for a smoggy start to the crucial third Test starting on Wednesday due to the expected lingering smoke from the Indian festival of . Fireworks and firecrackers are a major feature of the “festival of lights” and if the weather is overcast on the morning of the match, which it has been for the past couple of days, the haze could lead to a delay.”If it is like it was yesterday [Monday] or worse we might be starting late,” Ricky Ponting said. “By the time we got down to the ground, which was 9.30am, it was still touch and go whether you would start on time. If it is smoggy in the morning I don’t think there is really much you can do about it. I don’t think it will really change the way the game is played.”India lead the four-match series 1-0 and Australia might have to force the pace if there are too many disruptions. “Tomorrow [Wednesday] might be an exceptional day as well with all the haze hanging around from the fireworks tonight,” he said. “We will assess that as we go and if it does get to the stage where we need to do things differently, to take in calculations about losing some time and some light, then we will do that to try and force a result.”The Australians have altered their training to cope with the haze, particularly with their fielding. “We made the guys do a lot of high balls,” Ponting said. “Brad Haddin started off doing high balls and said it was definitely different to catch the ball – harder to pick up and judge things – so all the guys made sure they got that work done.”The third Test was originally scheduled to start on Tuesday but was pushed back a day so the match did not begin on , which is a public holiday. Ponting is also wary of the potential for bad light to shorten the match.”It has been getting dark quite early as well, but then I noticed last night that it held out a bit longer and we could have been playing easily at five o clock,” he said. “We will factor that sort of stuff in if the first few days of the game are going that way.”

A reason has now been given why Newcastle United’s Deadline Day offer for Boubacar Kamara was rejected.

The Lowdown: Late offer

As per Le Phoceen, the St. James’ Park faithful made a last-minute offer to try and sign the Marseille ace on Transfer Deadline Day.

However, he would have been ‘extremely hesitant’ to have made the move to the North East.

The Latest: Deal off

As per The Athletic, Kamara decided that he wanted to stay at Marseille in the end, despite offers from both Wolves as well as the Tyneside club.

The Ligue 1 team had hoped to move him on given that he only has a year left on his current deal, and now it is anticipated that he will either sign a new contract or leave on a free transfer in 2022.

The Verdict: Shame

It is a shame that a move for Kamara to Steve Bruce’s side eventually fell through.

Once dubbed a ‘phenomenon’ by his former teammate Rolando back in May 2020, the Frenchman still has a lot of potential at just 21 years of age, and his ability to be equally as comfortable at centre-back as well as in defensive midfield (Transfermarkt) would have been a valuable asset to have in the squad.

Nonetheless, the Magpies only managed to bring in one player on a permanent deal in Joe Willock from Arsenal, and given that he was on loan there last season, fans have every right to be worried about the lack of improvement from last term.

In other news, find out why this Toon ace’s move was blocked here!

According to Football Insider, Tottenham Hotspur youngster Dennis Cirkin has already arrived at Sunderland to complete his north London exit after an agreement was reached over the weekend – with the Lilywhites accepting a six-figure bid.

The Lowdown: Cirkin on the move…

Reliable reports indicate that the promising starlet is indeed on his way out of Tottenham this summer.

Journalist Charlie Eccleshare of the Athletic backed Football Insider’s first claim that a Sunderland move was on the horizon, taking to Twitter last week and saying that the exit is ‘expected to go through’.

Alasdair Gold also believes that the 19-year-old is on his way out, as explained on his YouTube channel, with the journalist stating that Cirkin ‘looks like he’s going to move on permanently’.

The Latest: Cirkin exit imminent…

As per FI, bringing an update, they claim that the defender has arrived on Wearside to complete his move from Spurs to Sunderland.

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Indeed, they say Cirkin is now joining the Black Cats after Tottenham accepted a six-figure bid for his services – with talks having progressed and an agreement reached over the weekend.

Personal terms have also been agreed on a four-year deal at the Stadium of Light with a Sunderland source explaining that Cirkin was even there yesterday for a medical and to put the finishing touches on his move – coming after he rejected the offer of a new deal at Spurs.

The Verdict: Real shame…

Spurs may be about to lose an exciting prodigy in the left-back area and one who was garnered real praise in the past.

Former Lilywhites boss Jose Mourinho described Cirkin as a player with ‘a lot of quality’ almost immediately after his arrival at Tottenham to succeed Mauricio Pochettino (The Metro).

As he prepares to seal his move away from north London, supporters could be somewhat dejected at this transfer, but it is arguably understandable given the amount of competition in Cirkin’s position.

Sergio Reguilon, Ryan Sessegnon, Ben Davies and Japhet Tanganga can all play at left-back, leaving Cirkin’s first team chances under new boss Nuno Espirito Santo slightly limited.

In other news: ‘Yes yes yes’, ‘Buzzing’, ‘Game changer’…Many Tottenham fans erupt as ‘beautiful’ news confirmed, find out more here.