Tag Futebol

Antoine Semenyo is the hottest name in the Premier League, and it’s approaching kitchen-sink time for Liverpool in the race to sign him from Bournemouth.

If it is a race, then Liverpool have lagged behind, but only because they decided to slow things down as Manchester City ramped up the gas. Senior sources at Sky Sports felt that Liverpool stood a strong chance of signing the Ghanaian had they only initiated formal talks.

There’s still time, and recent reports suggest Liverpool remain keen, but Pep Guardiola’s side are circling as the January transfer window looms large, and it looks like they will win the race.

Arne Slot could do with a direct wide forward, though.

Liverpool looking at Semenyo alternatives

Luis Diaz has been in fine fettle for Bayern Munich this season, having joined the Germans from Liverpool in a £65.5m deal in August.

The Colombian’s departure has only accentuated Cody Gakpo’s limitations. Gakpo knows how to score a goal and create a chance, but in spite of this, he has been one-dimensional and predictable down Liverpool’s left flank, struggling for connections with newbies Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez.

Semenyo would be the perfect addition, but perhaps Liverpool are holding out for another elite winger, such as Real Madrid’s Rodrygo.

Rodrygo’s name has been bandied about in transfer discussions for some time now, and Liverpool have been regularly linked. In fact, it was reported at the start of December that the £70m-rated Brazilian would be keen on the move to Merseyside.

Given his tenuous relationship with the powers that be at Los Blancos, Liverpool could get this one over the line if they push hard enough, and Rodrygo’s track record suggests they would get bang for their buck.

Why Rodrygo is better than Semenyo

Rodrygo has endured the roughest spell of his senior career over the past year, falling by the wayside under Carlo Ancelotti last season and failing to pick himself back up this year, with Xabi Alonso at the helm.

But the two-time Champions League winner has scored 70 goals and supplied 55 assists for Real across his career, clinching two goals and tw

Former Real Madrid teammate Luka Modric even hailed him as a “world-class superstar”, with his physicality and dynamism underscoring his skill as one of the world’s finest.

Semenyo has been riding the crest of a wave in Andoni Iraola’s Cherries system, but Liverpool would land a star of a different calibre in Rodrygo, who is a tailor-made superstar with a two-footed quality to match Semenyo.

Subscribe for expert Premier League transfer analysis Craving clearer takes on the Semenyo vs Rodrygo transfer debate and Liverpool’s options? Subscribe to the newsletter for in-depth transfer analysis, data-backed comparisons, and expert Premier League transfer coverage you can trust.

---

Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

It’s a no-brainer. After all, the players’ respective statistics over the past year work in Rodrygo’s favour, given he has been at his lowest ebb and yet is still maintaining respectable levels.

Rodrygo vs Semenyo (past 12 months)

Stats (per 90)

Rodrygo

Semenyo

Goals scored

0.31

0.41

Assists

0.19

0.19

Shots taken

2.80

2.60

Shot-creating actions

4.94

3.57

Touches (att pen)

6.40

4.84

Pass completion (%)

85.4

72.9

Progressive passes

4.10

3.40

Progressive carries

5.79

3.65

Successful take-ons

2.34

1.60

Ball recoveries

4.02

4.20

Tackles + interceptions

2.07

1.82

Data via FBref

As Mohamed Salah’s potential Anfield exit looms in the background, the need to sign an out-and-out winger grows stronger for FSG and sporting director Richard Hughes.

Liverpool need to get this one over the line. Rodrygo has been there, done that – and he’s still got so much to give, two years Semenyo’s junior and having already conquered Europe’s tallest mountains.

Would Rodrygo be able to translate his finest form to the Premier League theatre? That’s anyone’s guess. However, he hasn’t exactly struggled against English opponents in the past, and this wealth of top-level experience could help him make the same kind of impact that Semenyo is touted to make when he completes his big move.

Related Wirtz will make him "world-class": Liverpool ready to push for £65m star

Liverpool are ready to react to opportunities during the January transfer market.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair

The pressure is growing on Norman Arendse, the Cricket South Africa (CSA) president, as leading figures in the game prepare for a set of hastily-arranged meetings in Johannesburg to discuss selection and quota issues.Logan Naidoo, the manager of the squad in Bangladesh and vice-president of CSA, has flown back to South Africa amid rumours that Arendse will face a vote of no confidence from senior figures next week.The current controversy stems from the squad selected to tour Bangladesh. Initially the 14-man party was rejected by Arendse for not conforming to CSA quota requirements which state the need for seven players of colour. The squad only included four – later five when Robin Peterson replaced Paul Harris – and it required the intervention of Gerald Majola, the CSA chief executive, to release the team.Majola and Arendse issued a joint statement apologising for the public nature of the disagreements but tensions below the surface are still running high.Adding to the debate are comments from Butana Komphela, chairman for the parliamentary portfolio committee on sport, who has said that the CSA president should have the right to veto a South African team that doesn’t meet the transformation policy. reported that Komphela said that while parliament will never select sporting teams, they will continue to insist they are representative of the country.

Clive Lloyd: ‘I hope to motivate the players by making them realise the pride of representing the West Indies at cricket’ © Getty Images

Clive Lloyd threw his weight behind West Indies, saying they are capable of playing better than they have done in the Super Eights.”This West Indies team can play much better than they have done. They played well in India and advanced to the final, something no one had expected them to do so,” said Lloyd, referring to West Indies’ runners-up finish in the Champions Trophy last year.After three successive defeats in the Super Eights, the hosts face an early exit from the World Cup and need to win all three remaining matches against South Africa, Bangladesh and England to have any hope of reaching the semi-finals. After an all-win record in the group stages, Brian Lara’s men suffered a 103-run defeat against the defending champions Australia, a seven-wicket thrashing by New Zealand and a crushing 113-run loss to Sri Lanka.Those defeats have left millions of Caribbean fans disappointed, former players looking for scapegoats and organisers fearing for the financial implications if seeing even emptier stadiums for the remaining matches.Lloyd, the most successful West Indies captain of all time who led them to victory in the 1975 and 1979 World Cup finals and a runners-up spot in 1983, said he would do his utmost to lift morale. “I hope to motivate the players by making them realise the pride of representing the West Indies at cricket,” said Lloyd, who was also a former coach, manager and is now an adviser.Lloyd said the West Indies team lacked experienced players. “We have a lot of young and inexperienced players, who have not been exposed to much international cricket and they need backing,” said Lloyd.Brian Lara has been singled out as the main culprit for the team’s demise, with former fast bowler Michael Holding demanding his removal as captain.Even a ten-day break, for which some players headed home to rest, has not been met with enthusiasm by some former players. “We are hearing they need time to go home and relax and that’s unbelievable in the middle of the tournament when they should be representing their people. Aren’t other teams tired?” questioned former captain Richie Richardson. Another former fast bowling great Joel Garner asked: “Going home, for what? “You can’t walk off in the middle of the battle. We have to be together and correct the errors,” said Garner.

Rahul Dravid with his ace bowler as India turned it around with a thrilling spell of spin © Getty Images

Supersubs may be an extinct phenomenon but it’s the Powerplays that came to the fore in the low-scoring dogfight at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Both batting line-ups suffered jolts with the effect of the second Powerplay and, in a coincidence of sorts, both scored exactly 24 runs and lost three wickets in the ten specified overs.While Andrew Flintoff preferred to enforce the two Powerplays immediately after the 10th over, when India were motoring along at a run-rate of 5.6, Rahul Dravid, defending a modest target, chose to hold it back. While England fought back through the nagging accuracy of their unheralded medium-pacers – Kabir Ali and Liam Plunkett – India turned it around with a thrilling spell of spin.It would have no doubt been a tough decision to take: India didn’t have too many runs to play with, the ball had lost much of it’s early shine, and Kevin Pietersen was toying with the medium-pacers with some brash swipes to leg. Dravid, who’s usually favoured wicket-taking to restriction, revealed the rationale behind the move.”It was a tough one as a captain and it’s not easy with players of the calibre of Pietersen and Flintoff to come. We had only 203 to defend and needed wickets. At that stage, Pietersen was going really well. We thought we’ll just break things up a bit and delay it by two or three overs. We got another wicket but Flintoff came in and that posed some more problems.”Flintoff had joined Pietersen in the 12th over and the duo hushed up the jam-packed Kotla by carting 60 in the next eight. To compound matters, Dravid hadn’t yet used his fifth bowler yet. That was when dust started turning into gold. Yuvraj came on and delivered, of all things, a full toss. Pietersen swept it straight to deep midwicket.Dravid needed to act, swiftly. “Once we’d got Pietersen, we had the opportunity to use the second Powerplay. For me it was the last throw of the dice. If Pietersen hadn’t got out in three or four overs, we would have had to use it anyway.” As it turned out, the dice landed magically. Flintoff swept to his doom and heralded a manic passage of play when the stadium erupted back to life. Within the next ten overs the game was as good as over (when England crumbled to 141 for 8) and chants of “Bring back Sourav” (that were heard during the lunch break) were a distant memory.

Yorkshire have signed the South African Deon Kruis for the coming season. Kruis, 30, is a fast-medium bowler who has played for Griqualand West, Northern Transvaal and the Eagles in domestic cricket. He has signed under the Kolpak rule.Kruis, who is also a handy lower-order batsman, has taken 252 wickets at 29.25 in first-class cricket, and 99 in senior one-day cricket. He has some experience of cricket in England: he played for Esher in the Surrey Championship in 2001.He said: “I am delighted to be joining a county of Yorkshire’s stature, and while its record of the last few years has not been what they would have wished, I feel I could play a part in restoring former glories – but I am encouraged to be helping the young Yorkshire talent that is emerging.”David Byas, Yorkshire’s director of cricket, explained the signing: “Having lost a number of senior quick bowlers over the last couple of years we are delighted to have Deon aboard to give us experience and stability, and above all to provide help and guidance to our young seamers who are coming through."

In February and March next year, Bangladesh plays host to the ICC Under-19 World Cup. In any ordinary circumstances, such an undertaking would be routine, maybe even a nuisance. But for Bangladesh it is the latest, and to date the greatest, step in their accelerated development towards becoming a fully fledged Test nation. Last night, as yet another dispiriting home series prepared to dribble to a conclusion, it was time to look to the future, as the tournament was officially launched at Dhaka’s Sheraton Hotel.The 2004 Under-19 World Cup will feature 16 teams (two more than appeared in last year’s senior event) and 54 matches, all crammed into a schedule of three weeks. By the time the competition reaches its conclusion on March 5, four new venues will have been inaugurated all across the country, with a new headquarters in Dhaka to follow. With any luck, Bangladesh will have demonstrated to the world (but, more importantly, to their long-suffering supporters) that their cricket has a future worthy of their status.By a strangely coincidental quirk of fate, last night’s launch took place exactly three years to the day since Bangladesh’s most uplifting moment in their short Test history. On November 11, 2000, and in front of an exultant crowd of 40,000, Aminul Islam scored a century on his Test debut as Bangladesh posted a total of exactly 400 in the first innings of their inaugural Test match, against India. Two days later, however, they had crumbled to 91 in their second innings, and defeat. It hardly needs pointing out that things have never been quite so rosy since.Many lessons have been learned in the intervening years, most of them painful, and not all of them limited to the Bangladeshis. Even the ICC themselves are a chastened band of men. Yesterday their chief executive Malcolm Speed came as close as any official to admitting they had jumped the gun with Bangladesh’s Test status. “If they win a Test or a one-day series over the next two years,” he said, “we’ll be fairly satisfied.”By the same token, however, all present were eager to emphasise Bangladesh’s massive potential, and it was not just empty rhetoric. The fans may have been subdued during the Test series against England, but their goodwill towards the game is far from exhausted – as demonstrated by some wildly enthusiastic support during Monday’s hammering at Dhaka. On occasions the scenes threatened to get a little out of hand, but Michael Vaughan was right to laugh off any dangers to England’s players. A few good-natured food-fights and the odd bonfire on a concrete terrace are hardly the stuff of international censure.On the flip side, however, the fans’ intense dissatisfaction with their captain, Khaled Mahmud, is a clear warning that mediocrity will not be tolerated forever. The BCB should take heed. It would be a tragedy if Bangladesh’s own opinion of their game was allowed to plumb the same depths that it has occasionally reached abroad.After today’s match, Bangladesh take a three-month break from international commitments, and the emphasis will shift squarely onto the final preparations for next year’s tournament. At last night’s launch, an attractive sterling-silver trophy was unveiled, along with a swooshing World Cup logo that apparently denoted “youth and movement” and “pace and energy”. But every bit as intriguing as the unveilings themselves were the veiled threats that accompanied them.”This is a tremendous opportunity for Bangladesh,” said the ICC’s president, Ehsan Mani – a statement which might have been loosely translated as “Don’t screw it up.” There is no direct financial reward for hosting the event, but in terms of infrastructure and global exposure, Bangladesh can expect to reap what it sows. For such a young country, it is not far removed from being awarded the Olympics.But, much as Athens is dawdling ahead of next year’s games, so Bangladesh is also cutting its preparations somewhat fine. The Divisional Stadium in Chittagong is a case in point. Situated about half-an-hour outside the city centre, it is one of the five purpose-built cricket grounds currently under development. It hosts its first match on February 16, and expects to be fully up and running for India’s Test tour in April.The stadium itself is an unremarkable concrete bowl, whose stands are currently used by the local farmers to thresh grain, and whose perimeter is patrolled by a large herd of cows. The pavilion is the only built-up section of the ground, but at present it is a fog of construction work, with the top three floors remaining at their most skeletal stage, without even the merest hint of plumbing, plastering, or electricity.The constraints of Ramadan are hardly conducive to intensive construction work, but the tournament organisers are optimistic that everything will fall into place at the last minute, especially with so much cheap labour that can be called upon in a crisis. Of greater concern is the state of the new pitches. The ICC’s second threat was a reduction in Bangladesh’s overseas tours – an understandable move, but one that runs counter to the development requirements of the team. The onus may soon fall on Bangladesh to equip themselves with the type of pitch that will accelerate their progress – even if it dents their short-term prospects of that long-awaited victory.To that end, Andy Atkinson, the former head groundsman at Edgbaston and Newlands, has been drafted in to oversee the pitch preparations. With luck he will be able to coax more life out of the new pitches than was displayed during England’s tour (with the notable exception of the Chittagong Test strip). This will, in turn, oblige the Bangladeshis to develop their techniques against the short ball. There is no point, as Dav Whatmore put it, of being “tigers at home, and pussycats abroad”.Last, but by no means least, the team themselves have a duty to perform – they have played in every tournament since it became a biennial event in 1998, and as England discovered in their two first-class warm-up matches, there is no shortage of young talent in Bangladesh. In both games, England faced eight of the current U19 squad, and on both occasions they were held to draws, albeit rain-affected ones. In the second match, the current U19 captain, Nafis Iqbal, scored a fine century, after which he had the temerity to denounce England’s spinners as “ordinary”.That is a charge that has rarely been levelled at Bangladeshi cricket, because their performances have rarely been anything but substandard. Three years ago this week, they tried to run before they were ready. But in the next few months, they must walk, and walk tall.

Successful New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming put the 2-0 National Bank series victory over Bangladesh behind him immediately today and started to concentrate on the Australian tri-series and, most importantly, the forthcoming England series.Fleming was pleased with the way all areas of the game were handled by the home team but it wasn’t as polished as he would have liked and that gives the side something to work on before their next campaign.The Bangladeshis were not capable of giving New Zealand a thorough indication of how they were placed but the most positive thing to come out of the series for him was the way the side is continuing to try and play a good brand of cricket.He signalled that would be how New Zealand attempted to play against England.”The England tour for me is massive,” the former Middlesex professional said in looking ahead.The side now had some good options. Twelve months ago there were gaping holes in the side’s make-up but now there were genuine options to be considered and he was excited by that.That was being reflected in the way the players were looking to compete for places in the one-day side.”I’m looking forward to the tri-series with excitement. A lot of guys want to perform for places. We are wanting to mix it with two very good sides.”Shane Bond has definitely put his hand up and he adds a dimension we’ve been lacking,” he said.New Zealand had adopted something of a ‘one-dayish’ approach to its batting yesterday by working on running between the wickets with effect, he said.The two State Shield games that all players will take part in before the side is named were really important to getting into the right frame of mind and all were looking forward to playing in the games.”The series will give us an indication of where our one-day side is and an indication of what we have to do for the World Cup.”It is a great time for it to happen,” Fleming said.The prospective absence of Nathan Astle from the side was a blow because the loss of any senior player was significant and in a way it was a positive thing that it happened now rather than before the England series.

Michael Vaughan classy innings will encourage England selectors Photo © CricInfo

Michael Vaughan and Darren Lehmann carried Yorkshire through to a draw intheir championship match against Durham at Leeds with a century each. In so doing they made amends for the team’s batting breakdown on the second day which had led to Yorkshire following on.Vaughan held the side together in scoring 118 with ten fours from 306deliveries in little short of seven hours. The game was already safe whenNeil Killeen bowled him after the England batsman had added 102 with Lehmann.Starting the day on 149-1 Yorkshire lost the obdurate Richard Blakey – 15runs from 117 deliveries – to a catch at the wicket off Mel Betts. On reaching his hundred Vaughan played quietly while Lehmann laid about with pulls and drives to attain his half-century from 58 deliveries.Vaughan quickly notched up his century but then had to play second fiddle asLehmann launched into a series of powerful drives and pulls to reach 50 from58 balls. Blakey had to run for him after lunch because of a back injury.Lehmann reached his first championship hundred at Leeds from 120 balls and, then, continued to score freely with five more fours until he was caught for 136 runs. With little competitive points to the game David Byas declined to declare which gave Matthew Wood much needed batting practice before the close at 386-4.Yorkshire travel on Wednesday to play leaders Surrey in a clash which willhave a major impact on the championship.

Northerns secured the Logan Cup title with a thumping innings-and-98-run win over Centrals at Kwekwe Sports Club. The result meant they ended the tournament with a 100% record and given that they beat Easterns, the defending champions, in the opening round, their success was well deserved.Brendan Taylor’s 150 and Ishmael Senzere’s 131, his maiden hundred, provided the foundations for Northerns’ 493 for 7. Senzere and Alois Tichana got the innings off to a flier with a stand of 193, and then Taylor flayed a tired and dispirited attack while the in-form Ray Price chipped in with a late fifty.Centrals were as good as buried by the close of the second day as they slid to 114 for 6. They followed on 335 in arrears, and although they did slightly better second time round, none of their batsmen were able to play the dominant innings needed and no one passed 40.At Bulawayo, Southerns thumped a very disappointing Westerns by nine wickets in a low-scoring game. Westerns, who last season beat Northerns by an innings and have Robin Brown, the national coach, among their technical team, have lost all three games and face a tough task in the last match when they meet Easterns. Only when Southerns raced to victory with 137 for 1 did the bat dominate the ball.

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	Draw	Aban	Pts
Northerns	4	4	0	0	0	0	73
Easterns	3	2	1	0	0	0	42
Southerns	3	1	2	0	0	0	27
Centrals	3	1	2	0	0	0	24
Westerns	3	0	3	0	0	0	10

One of Sunderland’s pieces of January business failed miserably earlier this month as Jermain Defoe announced his retirement from football.

The striker joined the club to bolster their attacking options for the second half of the campaign and has now decided to hang up his boots earlier than expected.

Whilst this is disappointing for the Black Cats and means that he was a wasted signing, the club did pull off at least one brilliant acquisition in January…

Masterclass on Clarke

Kristjaan Speakman pulled off a masterclass as he sealed a dream deal to sign Jack Clarke on loan from Premier League giants Tottenham.

The winger, who Spurs signed for £10m from Leeds in 2019, arrived at the Stadium of Light on loan until the end of the season on the 26th of January.

Ex-Black Cats boss Lee Johnson explained the signing by saying: “The competition for places in our final third is strong and we want to be able to change games as we move into the back end of the season. Jack understands that this is a big club with a lot to play for, but he wants to be an influential player for us and help to ensure we have a successful end to the season.”

Clarke has lived up to the hype so far, albeit under Alex Neil now instead of Johnson, as he has been in impressive form in League One since his arrival. He has an uncanny ability to create space for himself out wide and his play on the ball has been a joy for fans to watch.

Former Premier League forward Noel Whelan previously showered the young forward with praise saying:

“He has got a great ability to glide past players. I don’t think I’ve seen a winger really as talented as that, where it looks effortless, just to take somebody on and he really does get you on the edge of your seat, he’s one of those exciting players.”

In 11 third-tier outings for the club, the ex-Leeds man has created 1.4 chances and completed 1.1 dribbles per game for the Black Cats. This proves that he has the quality, as Whelan explained, to take the ball past opposition players to excite fans and create opportunities in the final third, for both himself and his teammates.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

He has also chipped in with one goal to go along with his chance creation, whilst completing 79% of his attempted passes and making 1.2 tackles and interceptions per game. His average SofaScore rating of 6.98 also proves that he has been consistently delivering strong displays as he has maintained a high standard since coming through the door.

Therefore, Speakman pulled off a masterclass by being able to snatch up the winger on loan from a Premier League team in January and it is proving to be a dream deal for the club as it stands.

AND in other news,  Forget Defoe: Sunderland must now swoop for teen prodigy with 21 goals in 13 games…