Conor Coady says Wrexham want to "upset and disrupt" Championship teams this season, despite their gut-wrenching loss at Southampton.
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Everton have had their fair share of poor dealings in the transfer market, with the club wasting a lot of money on players who clearly aren't up to the standard of the Premier League.
The club signed players such as Moise Kean and Yannick Bolasie, with the duo failing to make any sort of positive impact at Goodison Park before leaving either for free or for a loss on what they paid.
The arrival of Bolasie in particular is one of the reasons the club have found themselves in trouble with the Premier League for their FFP and PSR breaches, with the club forking out £25m on the attacker before allowing him to leave for nothing.
However, the club also invested a hefty fee in another player, with the club doing well to offload him when they did, given his lack of impact at the club.
After joining for a fee of £23.6m from Ajax back in the summer of 2017, attacking midfielder Davy Klaassen arrived at Goodison Park with a lot of excitement after his 14-goal season in the Eredivisie.
However, he failed to make a positive impact during his time on Merseyside, with the midfielder failing to score a single goal during the 2017/18 campaign.
Klaassen also only made 17 appearances during his one season at Goodison, with the Dutch international failing to live up to the expectations he came with.
He subsequently departed the Toffees in July 2018, to German side Werder Bremen for a fee in the region of £12m, with the club making a loss of £11.6m in less than a year.
Klaassen has gone on to find his feet once again all over Europe, with the midfielder racking up 54 goals and 26 assists since departing Goodison nearly six years ago.
Despite his brilliant return with goals and assists, his market value has rapidly decreased, with Klaassen now worth less than another Everton flop.
The 31-year-old may have produced a solid return in recent years, but he has struggled this campaign with Italian giants Inter Milan, registering no goals and no assists in his 16 outings for the club, with the Dutchman mainly used as an impact player off the bench.
As a result, he's seen his value plummet, with Klaassen now only valued at £4.2m, as per Transfermarkt, with his value lower than that of current Everton flop Michael Keane, who is currently worth £6m.
Klaassen, who was described as "awful" by one Ajax source on Twitter, certainly has struggled when plying his trade in one of Europe's top five leagues, as demonstrated by his stints in the Premier League and Serie A with Everton and Inter Milan, respectively.
The Dutch midfielder certainly hasn't had the career he was once expected to given his brilliant form for Ajax before his big-money move to England, with the Toffees making the right decision to cash in on the 31-year-old back in the summer of 2018.
Market Movers
Football FanCast's Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club's star player or biggest flop worth today?
Yorkshire rue Covid-related absence of four first-choice players
ECB Reporters Network14-Sep-2020Lancashire took advantage of Yorkshire’s lack of four senior players due to a coronavirus-related issue to seal a commanding six-wicket Vitality Blast win at Headingley, taking a significant step towards the quarter-finals.The Vikings were without Matthew Fisher, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Josh Poysden and captain David Willey, and they now have a mountain to climb to qualify for the last eight. The club released a brief statement, saying that the players had “been withdrawn from tonight’s squad in accordance with Covid guidance” and adding that results of a Covid test would determine their future availability.Yorkshire actually made an excellent start, reaching 62 for 1 after six overs having elected to bat before stumbling to 145 for 9 after 20 overs, with Matt Parkinson and Luke Wood taking three cheap wickets apiece.The Lightning, far from their best in the field and with the bat, then chased down the target in nervy fashion at times. They recovered from 77 for 4 in the ninth over as captain Dane Vilas top-scored with 44 not out off 36 balls, winning with 13 balls to spare.They have consolidated second spot in the North Group with a fourth win, moving to 10 points – two behind leaders Nottinghamshire. More importantly, they are four points ahead of Yorkshire on six points in fourth.Both teams have three games remaining, including Thursday’s return clash at Emirates Old Trafford. The top two teams from the three groups qualify for the quarters, as do the two best third-placed teams.After a racing start, Yorkshire’s innings fell away through the middle, with legspinner Parkinson striking twice in his first three balls to remove Dawid Malan and former England Under-19s allrounder George Hill.The Vikings slipped from 78 for 1 in the ninth over to 87 for 4 in the 11th, with stand-in captain Adam Lyth also falling for an innings-high 36 having been dropped twice.With no Willey and Kohler-Cadmore, Yorkshire’s batting order was particularly inexperienced, with academy batsman James Wharton, aged 19, making his first-team debut.Lyth and new opening partner Harry Brook took 15 off each of the first two overs, both pulling huge sixes into the Western Terrace.Brook was the first wicket to go in the third, brilliantly caught by a diving Tom Hartley running around from short third man off Wood – 30 for 1.Malan, a reserve player in England’s bubble for the ODI series against Australia, was released to make his Yorkshire T20 debut and played confidently as the hosts reached 62 for 1 after six overs.However, after Lyth was stumped off Hartley’s left-arm spin, Malan was the first of the two wickets to fall in Parkinson’s first over when he was caught at deep mid-wicket on the slog sweep. Two balls later, Hill chipped to cover.Wickets continued to fall in excellent batting conditions as spin dragged things back for a somewhat lucky Lightning side who dropped a trio of catches – two from Tom Bailey.Wharton, like Hill, was caught at cover off Parkinson – 104 for 5 in the 15th – before Mat Pillans was stumped off Liam Livingstone’s legspin almost two overs later as the score fell to 121 for 6. Left-arm seamer Wood then snapped a run of five wickets to spin when he struck twice in the 17th over, getting Jordan Thompson lbw and Will Fraine caught behind for 24 – 124 for 8. Danny Lamb got Ben Coad in the last over of the innings.Coad then conceded six wides with the first two balls of the Lancashire reply before Pillans and Thompson removed openers Livingstone and Davies. Livingstone was caught behind and Davies holed out to deep square leg as the score fell to 35 for 2 in the fourth.Lancashire maintained a healthy run-rate, only to lose Steven Croft, run out following a mix-up with Vilas, and Josh Bohannon, bowled via inside-edge by Coad, in successive overs – 77 for 4 in the ninth.But Vilas and Rob Jones steadied the ship with Lancashire’s best fifth-wicket partnership in the history of this fixture, an unbeaten 71 inside 10 overs.Jones hit a six over long-on in a career best 38 off 35 balls and hit the winning runs to ensure the Lightning are now unbeaten in this fixture since August 2017.
The shortlist for world football's most prestigious individual award has been revealed ahead of the ceremony in Paris on September 22
The Ballon d'Or. Love it or loathe it, it's the award every footballer in the world dreams of one day winning. And now, after a memorable 2024-25 campaign, the shortlist of nominees for the 2025 Golden Ball has been announced.
There are a host of top names vying to claim the prize that Rodri took home in 2024, with performances over the past 12 months – including at the recent Club World Cup – having been taken into account when selecting this year's list of potential winners.
Who will take home the prize? Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele is the favourite with the bookmakers after his electric form in front of goal fired the French side to the treble, including their first-ever Champions League title, though he could face competition from within his own dressing room, with Vitinha and Achraf Hakimi among a clutch of PSG stars who have genuine cases to win themselves.
Elsewhere, Lamine Yamal truly announced himself as the game's next superstar with his outstanding performances for Barcelona, while both his team-mate Raphinha and Liverpool's Mohamed Salah returned remarkable goal and assist numbers on the way to securing league titles for their respective sides.
We will have to wait until the ceremony in Paris on Monday, September 22 to find out who will come out on top; for now, here are the players who have been shortlisted for football's ultimate individual honour:
His innings of nine sixes and two fours was CPL 2020’s highest individual score
The Report by Sreshth Shah25-Aug-2020Evin Lewis hit CPL 2020’s highest individual score and then Ben Dunk struck a crucial 11-ball 22 to seal St Kitts and Nevis Patriots’ first win of the season, ending a three-game losing streak, by defeating Barbados Tridents by six wickets in a battle between the two sides stranded at the bottom of the points table.It was a tricky chase despite Patriots having plenty of wickets entering the death overs, and that was because of the sluggish batting from Denesh Ramdin, who made a 32-ball 20. But that eventually did not hurt the Patriots as Lewis struck 89 in 60 deliveries to ensure Patriots stayed in touching distance of the required run-rate and then Dunk’s cameo took them over the line.Patriots keep Tridents’ top order quietOpting to bowl, Rayad Emrit’s rotation of his bowlers didn’t allow the Tridents batsmen to settle early on. Sohail Tanvir’s cutters and Alzarri Joseph’s accurate line stopped openers Johnson Charles and Shai Hope to get on top of the bowlers, and then Emrit’s slower balls stifled the Tridents, with their scoring ate of 6.50 in the Powerplay.Despite a ten-run seventh over that looked to break the shackles, Charles fell in the eighth for a run-a-ball 24 as he tried to slog offspinner Jon-Russ Jaggesar’s carrom ball. Hope struggled with his timing too, and Jaggesar added to his wicket tally on the last ball of the tenth over when his sweep found deep midwicket, out for a 30-ball 29.No. 3 Kyle Mayers looked to attack thereafter, but fell for 22 in the 13th over – caught behind off Tanvir – and then Tridents fell into a deeper hole when No. 4 Corey Anderson’s straight drive three balls later caught Tanvir’s fingertips and crashed into the non-striker’s stumps with Jason Holder outside his crease. At the end of 13 overs, Tridents were 81 for 4 and struggling.Anderson and Nurse turn on the screwsWith a deep batting line-up, Tridents had to up their scoring rate and they did when Anderson and No. 6 Ashley Nurse got together. At first, it was Anderson who began attacking, unafraid to take legspiner Imran Khan on, but when Tanvir returned for his second spell, neither batsman spared him as the 17th over went for 21, and Tridents sneaked past 120.The 18th over from Joseph looked promising for the Tridents again as Nurse crunched a six over long off to start the over, but he fell two balls later, ending a 29-ball stand that earned the Tridents 56 runs. Anderson was out for 31 next over, but they did enough to ensure Tridents set Patriots 152 to win.Lewis, Dunk save Ramdin the blushesWith Chris Lynn failing in his fourth straight game – trapped lbw by Rashid Khan – the responsibility of ensuring Patriots don’t lose their fourth-straight game fell on Lewis.Finding his team on 41 for 2, he combined with No. 4 Ramdin to anchor the innings through the middle overs. With Ramdin struggling to rotate the strike, Lewis took the onus of hitting the boundaries, including a hat-trick of sixes off Hayden Walsh Jr in the ninth over to reach his first fifty of CPL 2020.Despite a few tidy overs from Rashid and debutant Nyeem Young after the tenth over, Lewis’ aggression could not be controlled, shellacking enough boundaries to bring the equation down to 36 off 24, then 31 off 18 and then 22 off 12, but he eventually ran out of gas in the 19th over, out for a 60-ball 89 trying to clear Kyle Mayers over long off.With the equation now reading 20 off nine balls, and two new batsmen in the middle, it looked like Tridents were going to make the league double over Patriots. But then Ben Dunk came to the party, first flicking a full and wide ball over short third man to close the 19th over out and then hit two sixes off the inexperienced Young in the 20th to seal a six-wicket win, much to the relief of Ramdin, who was struggling to get going in the middle.
As Crystal Palace appear destined for another season of mid-table obscurity in the Premier League, Steve Parish looks set to give the Eagles whatever is necessary to take them to the next level.
Ever since Wilfried Zaha's departure from Selhurst Park, the Eagles have struggled to replace the Ivorian's attacking influence. No Palace player has scored more than six league goals this season, with the south London outfit relying heavily on goals to come from midfield and wide areas.
Crystal Palace were rinsed by £170k-p/w signing who earned more than Eze
The highly-rated star cost the clubs millions and offered nothing in return.
By
Jack Salveson Holmes
Mar 22, 2024
|
Crystal Palace Top Scorers 23/24 |
Games Played |
Goals |
Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Odsonne Edouard |
22 |
6 |
0 |
|
Michael Olise |
11 |
6 |
3 |
|
Eberechi Eze |
18 |
6 |
1 |
|
Jean-Philippe Mateta |
25 |
5 |
4 |
|
Jordan Ayew |
26 |
4 |
6 |
Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise have been Palace's standout performers this season, but have both faced injury problems and have struggled to get on the pitch. Jean-Philippe Mateta and Odsonne Edouard are the closest thing the Eagles have to a traditional number nine, though both have failed to impress during the campaign.
With this in mind, there is no wonder why signing a striker is at the top of Parish's shopping list as he looks to back Oliver Glasner in the transfer market.
As first reported by Football Insider's Pete O'Rourke, Crystal Palace look set to put in a bid for Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah. The Eagles have been interested in signing the 24-year-old for some time, however, this news is the first mention of the south London outfit putting in an official bid ahead of the summer.
Nketiah has been on the radar of numerous Premier League clubs including Wolves and Brentford, with the Gunners reportedly setting a minimum price tag of £40m for the striker. In a modern game in which young strikers easily fetch north of £100m, signing Nketiah for the figure quoted could represent a major coup for whichever side lands him.
The Englishman has operated on the peripheries of the Gunners' starting XI for much of his senior career, normally limited to appearances in the cup and brief cameos off the bench. Whilst this will have satisfied Nketiah in his early days, the 24-year-old is clearly now itching for regular first-team action.
In his limited appearances this season, the striker has managed to find some success, in particular a first career hat-trick in Arsenal's 5-0 victory over Sheffield United back in October. Speaking after the game, ex-Palace and Arsenal striker Ian Wright was full of praise for Nketiah on Match of the Day, saying of his performance:
"I thought he was fantastic. I like it when he stays in and around the area, and he looked very sharp. The defenders were very poor but, at the same time, he was very sharp."
"It's about having composure and think that is what Eddie has got. He is very aggressive and I don't think Luke Thomas was strong enough to deal with the mood Eddie was in."
With Palace clearly in the market for a new number nine this summer, there would be few better options than snapping up an established Premier League talent like Nketiah.
Live updates as AB de Villiers, Temba Bavuma and Reeza Hendricks’ teams fight it out – all in one match
ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2020
The semi-pro Blues, largely owned by locals, are one of the best-attended franchises in lower league soccer
For most soccer clubs, the season ends with some kind of festivity. Real Betis, famously, throw stuffed animals onto the pitch. Fans across England stay behind to sing. In Argentina, that pre-match asado might last just a little bit longer.
In Annapolis, Maryland, they throw water balloons at each other.
Before the final fixture of the season, Annapolis Blues fans showed up to toss burstable balloons at each other in the parking lot of Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on the edge of the Chesapeake Bay. Absurd? Perhaps. Silly? Almost definitely. But for the Blues, its tradition, the third season in a row of what has now become the annual water balloon fight to mark the final day of the USL League Two campaign.
The Blues are semi-professional. They play fourth division soccer in the United States at a field that doesn't belong to them. But they also boast attendance that eclipses some USL Championship sides. This is a tiny club that has the atmosphere, following and vibe of a massive one.
It is also deeply embedded in the community of Maryland's state capital, the humble side project turned main event of a number of vets of the area, who have headed back to something resembling their roots to flesh out the ultimate proof of concept of what lower league U.S. soccer can be at its very best.
"Annapolis happens to be a soccer savvy, really great community," owner Michael "Hitch" Hitchcock, told GOAL. "And I think when you take the right approach and you execute the playbook, if you will, great communities respond, and that's what we're seeing."
After placing sporting director Dan Ashworth on gardening leave amid links with Manchester United, Newcastle United have turned their attention towards a potential replacement.
Ashworth spent just two years at St James' Park before seemingly being lured away by Manchester United. The Red Devils and Newcastle are now reportedly working on a hefty compensation package, as the Magpies prepare to lose one of the highest-rated sporting directors around.
CEO Darren Eales confirmed the departure of Ashworth, saying via the club's official website: "We are naturally disappointed that Dan has chosen to leave, however our exciting journey doesn't stop and the process to recruit a new sporting director will begin immediately. We thank Dan for his efforts at Newcastle United and we wish him and his family well for the future."
£60,000-p/w Newcastle star to return from injury earlier than Howe expected
Relief for the Magpies…
By
Tom Cunningham
Mar 14, 2024
Without him, PIF must turn elsewhere at a crucial stage of their project, having seen Eddie Howe's side fall away in the current campaign after qualifying for the Champions League last season. Hoping to ensure a swift return to European football next season, Newcastle are reportedly looking to speed up Ashworth's exit before naming his replacement.
According to The Telegraph, Newcastle have held internal talks over Monaco transfer chief Paul Mitchell, having worked with recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson to act as an agent to reach out to options, with Steve Nickson leading that search. Mitchell is reportedly keen on a Premier League return after previous stints at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur.
Now a board member at AS Monaco, Mitchell doesn't have the same gardening leave as Ashworth in what would be a welcomed boost for PIF and Newcastle, should they decide to appoint the 42-year-old. With a busy summer ahead, Newcastle must get their next decision right in the hunt to replace the Old Trafford-bound Ashworth.
Mitchell's best work arguably came at Southampton, when the Saints enjoyed their best moments in the Premier League under Mauricio Pochettino and Ronald Koeman. As the Saints' head of scouting, Mitchell played a large role in the recruitment behind that rise, as shown by some of Southampton's best signings from 2012 to 2014.
|
Paul Mitchell's best signings |
Year |
Fee (via Transermarkt) |
|---|---|---|
|
Victor Wanyama |
2013/14 |
€15m (£13m) |
|
Dejan Lovren |
2013/14 |
€10m (£9m) |
|
Sadio Mane |
2014/15 |
€23m (£20m) |
|
Fraser Forster |
2014/15 |
€13m (£11m) |
|
Shane Long |
2014/15 |
€15m (£13m) |
At a time when Newcastle need to get their summer recruitment right after failing in that department last summer, Mitchell has a proven track record of finding top players for bargain prices. And as the Magpies look to stay in line with Financial Fair Play rules, bargains will be the name of a game that their top target has become an expert at.
Replacing someone of Ashworth's expertise is no easy task, and that will become apparent in the coming months for PIF, but Mitchell isn't exactly an inexperienced man, himself. With Monaco, Southampton, Spurs and RB Leipzig under his belt, the role at St James' Park would simply be the latest impressive string to his bow.
The series was to be played in June as part of the World Test Championship cycle
ESPNcricinfo staff09-Apr-2020The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and Cricket Australia (CA) have mutually agreed to postpone the two-Test series that was scheduled for June, due to the persisting Covid-19 threat. The boards took the decision with the welfare of their players and communities in mind, and will work together to find a suitable date to play the series once the situation becomes clearer.The series was to be played between June 11 and June 23 in Chattogram and Dhaka, and is part of the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. It becomes the third WTC series to affected after the Sri Lanka-England series scheduled for March, and the second Test of Bangladesh’s staggered tour of Pakistan, which was scheduled to begin on April 5.BCB CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said, “This is understandably disappointing for players and fans of both sides. However, in the current global scenario of the Covid-19 outbreak and considering the nature of the health emergency, the BCB and CA are in agreement that this is the most sensible and practical decision. We hope that the situation will improve soon and we are able to hold this series at a convenient time in the near future. To that end, the BCB will continue to work closely with CA with whom we share a history of support and cooperation.”The series is among two WTC series that are scheduled for June, with England scheduled to host West Indies around the same time. It was also to be Australia’s first visit to Bangladesh since their 1-1 series draw in 2017 – and, in fact, their first meeting in a bilateral setting since that one. Australia had, in 2018, called off hosting Bangladesh for two Tests and three ODIs because broadcasters were understood to have been uninterested in televising the series in the middle of the football season.”Postponing the tour is regrettable,” CA chief Kevin Roberts said through a statement, “but I would like to thank the Bangladesh Cricket Board for the open, honest and responsible discussions that led us to this mutually-agreed position. The health of our people and communities is the number one priority for both Boards and that is reflected in the action we have taken in postponing the two Test matches. As we know, the global cricket calendar is very busy but we will do everything we can to honour our commitment to Bangladesh and will continue to work with the BCB on an agreed date.”Australia are currently second in the WTC table with 296 points, having won two of their three series, while Bangladesh sit at the bottom, in ninth place with no points after one completed series.