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O técnico Fernando DIniz traçou sua perspectiva em torno de Vini Jr. O atacante do Real Madrid, que se recuperou recentemente de lesão, está na lista de convocados da Seleção Brasileira para os jogos contra Venezuela e Uruguai.

Aos olhos do treinador, o atacante se firma como uma referência.

– Enxergo ele como protagonista, a gente não consegue entender como ele ficou fora da lista de melhores do mundo. Se tornou um grande personagem para a sociedade, como conseguiu se defender e defender a sua causa.

O Brasil encara a Venezuela no dia 12, na Arena Pantanal, e o Uruguai no dia 17 de outubro, no Centenário. A apresentação dos jogadores será no dia 9 de outubro.

Marcus Trescothick replaced Jimmy Adams as the batting coach for the men’s Hundred

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jun-2025

Luke Williams has two titles in the WBBL and one in the WPL apart from Brave’s maiden Hundred trophy as assistant coach•Getty Images

Luke Williams has been appointed head coach of Southern Brave for the Women’s Hundred 2025. He replaced Charlotte Edwards, who has been appointed head coach of England Women.Williams has a rich reputation as coach, being Edwards’ assistant at Brave since the inaugural edition of the women’s Hundred. Brave finished runners-up in 2021 and 2022 before winning their maiden title in 2023. That aside, he also coached Adelaide Strikers to their maiden Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) title in 2022 and went back-to-back in 2023. He also was the head coach when Royal Challengers Bengaluru won their first trophy – across men and women – in the Women’s Premier League 2024.After Edwards took charge of England, he was one of the consultant coaches for the home series against West Indies last month. At Brave, he will have a familiar face in South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt, who is also part of the Strikers in WBBL.”It’s a privilege to take charge of Southern Brave this year from Charlotte Edwards,” Williams said in a statement. “Having worked with the team since for a number of years, we have an excellent group of players and staff and recruited well in the draft earlier this year, so hopefully we can get back to Finals Day and lift the trophy this summer.”Trescothick appointed batting coach for Southern Brave menFormer England opener Marcus Trescothick has been appointed as the batting coach for Southern Brave for the men’s Hundred 2025. He replaced Jimmy Adams, who will be coaching Hampshire in the men’s One Day Cup in August.Trescothick is also the batting coach for England men and was the interim coach for the team in white-ball cricket last July. This will be his first coaching assignment in the Hundred.

Williams scored more than half of Zimbabwe’s first-innings total but the visitors still took a 167-run lead and ended day two 216 ahead

Himanshu Agrawal29-Jun-2025Since 2020, Zimbabwe have had ten individual hundreds in Tests. Sean Williams alone has scored five of those. One of those centuries came against South Africa in Bulawayo on Sunday, and formed the centerpiece of Zimbabwe’s innings.South Africa declared their first innings on their overnight score of 418 for 9, and in reply, Zimbabwe were struggling at 23 for 2. Williams walked in at No. 4, and Zimbabwe’s woes were further compounded when Brian Bennett walked back due to a delayed concussion. Bennett was struck on the helmet by a Kwena Maphaka short-of-a-length delivery and while he faced three more balls, he decided he couldn’t continue any further and walked off.Related

Bennett walks off with concussion, Masvaure named replacement

From thereon, it was almost all about Williams. He found a little help from captain Craig Ervine, with the duo adding 91 runs. They got together with Zimbabwe 390 runs behind, and with Maphaka and debutant Codi Yusuf in good rhythm. Yusuf had Takudzwanashe Kaitano caught at backward short leg off his fifth ball in Tests, and Nick Welch edging behind to the wicketkeeper in his third over.Both of South Africa’s new-ball bowlers were extracting plenty of bounce and carry. South Africa may have opted to bowl on the second morning in anticipation of exactly that after they saw Zimbabwe’s quicks getting a lot of help from the surface in the first session on Saturday.Despite the early wickets and assistance for the seamers, Williams counterattacked. He got two early boundaries off Maphaka: one an outside edge flying past gully, and another a short-arm pull to deep-backward square leg. While Maphaka was taken for runs, Yusuf was much tighter: his in-between lengths drew the batters forward, and his line around the off stump checked the flow of runs.Zimbabwe however, ended the morning session without any further damage. Wiaan Mulder and Corbin Bosch replaced the new-ball bowlers, and continued to test the batters with accurate lines and lengths. Ervine was especially cautious, managing just nine runs off his first 44 balls. But he dispatched his second boundary when he cut hard at a short and wide delivery from Bosch in the 19th over, and that seemed to have injected some momentum into Zimbabwe’s innings.Sean Williams and Craig Ervine steadied Zimbabwe with a 91-run stand•Zimbabwe CricketBoth Ervine and Williams found success by punching or slashing the ball behind – and in front of – square on the off side. Zimbabwe were chipping away with that partnership before Keshav Maharaj made things happen. He beat Williams after tossing one up at him in the 24th over, and could have had him stumped on 40 had Kyle Verreynne not fumbled on the first attempt.After lunch, with the ball turning into him, Williams decided to use the sweep against Maharaj. One of those attempts saw the ball pop up off his forearm, and just behind the slip fielder. Finally, it was Maharaj who broke through. Ervine skipped down the pitch to Maharaj, who floated one full and wide of off. Ervine, on 36, missed, and this time Verreynne flicked the bails off in time.Thereafter, it was all about the remaining batters playing a supporting role for Williams. Wessly Madhevere confidently swung Maharaj for six over long-on early in his innings, with the South Africa captain being attacked by Williams as well. Williams faced 52 balls from the left-arm spinner and scored 43 runs – a strike rate of 82.69 – including five boundaries.Twice Williams advanced down the pitch to convert potential length deliveries into full tosses, and heaved them away to the deep-midwicket boundary. Mulder trapped Madhevere for 15 in the 43rd over, but Williams remained firm. Four overs later, Williams got to his sixth Test hundred – the joint second-highest by a Zimbabwe batter – but next ball, saw Prince Masvaure, the concussion substitute for Bennett, edge Mulder behind.Wiaan Mulder finished with figures of 4 for 50•Zimbabwe CricketMulder got his third when he had Tafadzwa Tsiga balloon a leading edge to point in the 49th over. Yusuf bagged his third wicket soon after when Wellington Masakadza got a faint tickle behind to Verreynne. At that stage, Zimbabwe were 217 for 7, still two runs short of avoiding the follow-on. But Williams comfortably got them past that mark in the company of Vincent Masekesa, who blocked and dabbed much to South Africa’s frustration.Williams’ stay ended at 137 when Maharaj had him stumped for Verreynne’s fifth dismissal of the innings. Masekesa, Blessing Muzarabani and Tanaka Chivanga added only two more runs from that point, as Zimbabwe were bowled out for 251, leaving South Africa 167 runs ahead in the first innings.Despite falling behind by a huge margin, Zimbabwe hit back early. Chivanga had Matthew Breetzke edging to gully for 1 in the second over, but Tony de Zorzi and Mulder kept South Africa on track. They survived the evening despite some help for the Zimbabwe seamers, and took the score to 49 and the lead to 216 without any further damage.

The most remarkable thing about Punjab Kings’ (PBKS) run to the IPL 2025 final was that they did so with hardly any international experience in their batting. Shreyas Iyer was the only capped Indian batter they had and even he is out of favour in two of the three international formats right now. Josh Inglis, who can perhaps consider himself an Australia regular now, played only 11 out of 17 matches. Glenn Maxwell played seven. Marcus Stoinis batted too low.Throughout the season, this merry band of inexperienced and shackle-free Indian batters kept taking the game on even if it meant getting bowled out for 111 and 101. This approach came off even when they found themselves down at 34 for 3 against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on one occasion.In the final, though, probably for the first time all season, PBKS blinked. In overs three and four, they didn’t try to make the play and found themselves at 32 for 0, only one more than their lowest four-over score all tournament. That brace of 31s was 31 because they had lost three wickets in the first four overs in those matches.Related

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Here, in the big final, PBKS’ inexperienced openers were playing in a way that wasn’t true to their game. Part of it was not because it was the final. It was actually smart, their coach Ricky Ponting said later. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) bowled Josh Hazlewood in the first three overs for only the fourth time this IPL. The openers probably decided RCB were looking for an early wicket. They also recognised that Hazlewood had done against them in previous matches, and were circumspect.It was the over after, bowled by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, that Ponting felt could have been attacked. Just four runs came off that over as the openers, Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh, played to the merit of the ball instead of playing their natural attacking game. “You know, when you have a really good defensive over, it’s really important that the next one you go after and try and capitalise on,” Ponting said. “And we weren’t able to do that in the fourth over of that powerplay.”After that, PBKS were always chasing the game against RCB’s well-rounded attack. Asked if this circumspection was a reaction to their 101 all out against the same team in Qualifier 1, Ponting said, “I would like to think not because one thing I’ve told this group is always taking the game forward, always seeing the positive result and the way that we go about it, and not thinking about the negative result that might happen if you get out.”One thing as a batsman in this game, you can’t be worried about getting out. If you’re worried about getting out, you can’t play the game well.”It just made Phil Salt’s catch of Arya much more significant – he ran about 20 yards to his right and along the boundary, took the catch, lobbed the ball up before stepping out, and came back in to complete the catch.Ricky Ponting: “I think I talked at the first press conference I had with Shreyas about becoming a daring, dynamic, and different team”•Getty Images

Even if it was the lack of experience that might have cost PBKS the final, Ponting promised similarly competitive and aggressive cricket from his players, who will be more experienced come next season. “I can’t speak highly enough for what those young boys have done through the tournament,” Ponting said. “I think I talked at the first press conference I had with Shreyas about becoming a daring, dynamic, and different team.”On the back of that, what Prabh and Priyansh and [Nehal] Wadhera and these sort of guys were able to do, there’s probably enough been said through the media over the last couple of months. The way that we’ve been able to play our cricket, it’s been highly entertaining. For a coach to be able to sit back and say that about a team gives me a lot of satisfaction.”You can probably look at it tonight and say, ‘was it probably a little bit of inexperience that cost us?’ Maybe a little bit of experience in that middle order today might have helped us out, but what I know is that we’re going to have these younger guys around this team for a long time and I think they’re going to win us a lot of games going forward.”Ponting did feel, though, that PBKS let this one slip after keeping RCB down to 190. “We’ve got it right for most of the year,” Ponting said. “It was only a couple of days ago that we were here celebrating one of our great wins for the season to get into the final, and today we probably feel that we’ve let one slip, but as I said, with this group being as young as it is, we’ll be back bigger and stronger next season.”

It was a significant show of faith in Rio Ngumoha’s potential when Liverpool opted against directly replacing Luis Diaz this summer.

Diaz, 28, had been a steady source of positivity down the left flank for over three years on Merseyside, and he was instrumental in winning the Premier League last season, posting 17 goals and eight assists across all competitions.

But he and FSG had reached a contract dispute, and his openness to moving for new pastures saw Bayern Munich’s £65.5m offer accepted in August. He brought four major honours to Anfield.

Liverpool welcomed a wealth of talent to their ranks this summer, but they didn’t sign an out-and-out left winger. Partly, this was because of Cody Gakpo and £116m arrival Florian Wirtz’s ability to play out on the flank, but Ngumoha’s emergence also played a factor.

However, the up-and-down start to the season will have shown Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes that perhaps that was a mistake. And if rumours are to be believed, the Reds hierarchy are considering rectifying that blunder.

Why Liverpool need a left winger

When Wirtz joined Liverpool in July, it was expected that he would settle in as one of the Premier League’s best players. That is still the anticipation, though his start to life in England has left much to be desired.

After assisting Hugo Ekitike on his debut in the Community Shield, the 22-year-old has since blanked across each of his eight appearances, lacking the quality and confidence in the crucial moments to make a difference.

That quality is in there, but Liverpool’s wider tactical struggles this term have exacerbated Wirtz’s slow start, with the attacking midfielder struggling to find his feet across central and wide berths.

While the German international can play out wide, this is not his most effective role, and with that in mind, Liverpool might want to sign a Diaz-like winger in 2026 to help balance the system out once again, perhaps raising Wirtz’s game concurrently.

And, according to Spanish sources, FSG are preparing an official €75m (£65m) offer for Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams, though the Basque outfit are holding out to see that their €90m (£78m) valuation is met.

Williams, 23, was reported by Fabrizio Romano this summer to be Arsenal’s “dream target”, but the Gunners failed to make a breakthrough and went down a different track.

Liverpool are aware of interest from other suitors and hope to close a deal swiftly, so keep a close eye on this one.

What Nico Williams would bring to Liverpool

A maverick of a winger, Williams rose to prominence for his performances at the 2024 European Championship with Spain, vital to the Iberian nation’s triumph, hailed for his “incredible” talent by Barcelona’s Pedri.

During that summer tournament, Spain were simply a cut above the rest, and Williams and Lamine Yamal drew so many plaudits for their electric performances, uncontainable.

The fast-footed talent has played 171 matches for Athletic Bilbao and earned 30 caps for Spain. For his club, he has posted 32 goals and assists apiece.

A groin injury has disrupted his start to the current campaign, but with a goal and two assists to his name already, the £276k-per-week ace is sure to hit form once fitness levels have been recovered.

Last season wasn’t one of seamless success for Williams, who only scored five times in La Liga, but he notched 14 goals across all competitions and showed through his underlying data his high-level ability. As per Sofascore, he completed 2.3 dribbles and won 4.9 duels on average each game.

It’s more than Williams operates in a similar way to Diaz, and thus could be an invaluable puzzle piece for Slot as the Dutch manager works on recalibrating his out-of-sorts Liverpool team.

You would hope that the Merseysiders’ struggles would have been combatted by the end of the campaign, but Williams could prove a long-term success and an upgrade on Wirtz down the left channel.

Florian Wirtz vs Nico Williams (past 12 months)
Stats (per 90)	Wirtz	Williams
Goals scored	0.29	0.34
Assists	0.35	0.23
Shots taken	2.59	2.48
Shot-creating actions	4.89	5.17
Touches (att pen)	5.21	5.13
Pass completion (%)	78.9	71.0
Progressive passes	6.33	3.22
Progressive carries	3.95	5.91
Successful take-ons	2.53	3.66
Ball recoveries	4.03	4.77
Data via FBref

Curiously, there are quite a few similarities between the respective players, even though stylistic differences are clear when observing them in action.

Both players are adept at taking on defenders, with staggering close control. Wirtz is artful on the ball. However, Williams is more of a relentless carrier, and that is something Slot’s side need to stretch lines and accommodate Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak in the centre.

In fact, he has been described in the past as a “world-class prospect” by journalist Zach Lowy, who went on to say that the “absolute menace” was proving a terror for Spanish defences across the 2023/24 campaign.

It’s clear that Wirtz is a talented footballer and that he could become one of the Premier League’s leading figures at Liverpool. But Liverpool need to sign a first-class winger to add width and energy to Slot’s flanks.

Williams is that man, with his “unpredictable” and “relentless” dribbling, as noted by analyst Ben Mattinson, bound to add a dimension to the Liverpool fold, especially when Mohamed Salah lacks his one-time athleticism on the alternate wing.

Is Williams a more technically talented footballer than Wirtz? Does his ceiling stretch higher than the German playmaker’s own? In both cases, probably not.

However, Liverpool haven’t looked quite right this season, and the Spaniard’s electric pace and Diaz-like qualities as a winger might prove the upgrade needed to restore the tactical equilibrium.

Their answer to Semenyo: Liverpool have a future "best winger in the world"

Liverpool have so much talent within Arne Slot’s squad.

By
Angus Sinclair

Oct 16, 2025

After a disastrous few weeks, Liverpool have now reportedly joined the race to sign a bargain Bundesliga ace in an attempt to solve their current defensive problems.

Klopp fails to rule out Liverpool return

After four defeats in a row, the last thing that Arne Slot needed to see was a Liverpool legend’s admission that he could still one day return to the club. But that’s exactly what Jurgen Klopp handed him when speaking to Steven Bartlett on The Diary of a CEO podcast. Speaking more openly than ever before, the German failed to rule out an Anfield return.

That said, Klopp also took the time to hand Slot plenty of praise, having watched on as the Dutchman secured Premier League glory in his first season at the club.

The Liverpool legend said: “I tried to make it as easy as possible for the guy who would come after me. We have had a lot of contact after I left. He is a super good guy and got the best out of the team.”

Whether Slot will turn to Klopp for advice in the face of Liverpool’s current problems is something that only he will know, but there’s no denying that he needs a solution from somewhere.

Liverpool dud who "plods around like he's 40 years old" is on borrowed time

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The Reds were once again fragile from the off on Sunday, with Manchester United the latest team to benefit, and Harry Maguire’s late goal ensured that it’s four defeats in a row for the Premier League champions.

For all their spending in the summer, breaking their transfer record twice, Liverpool’s weaknesses are clear for all to see and Michael Edwards must return to the transfer market in search of a solution in January.

Liverpool enter race to sign Diogo Leite

As reported by Milan Live, Liverpool have now joined the race to sign Diogo Leite from Union Berlin in 2026. The Portuguese defender will reportedly be available for just €5m (£4m) next year and has attracted interest from those at Anfield as well as AC Milan and Wolverhampton Wanderers as a result.

It should come as no surprise that Liverpool have found themselves in the race to sign the central defender. As things stand, Slot has just three senior centre-backs to choose from in Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez, who fans will remember cost a similar fee when he joined from Charlton back in 2015, just £3.5m.

Although Marc Guehi is officially set to leave Crystal Palace as a free agent in the summer, there’s no guarantee that Liverpool will win the race for his signature in such circumstances. Instead, they may be better off targeting someone like Leite.

Dubbed “superb” by scout Jacek Kulig during his Porto days, Leite represents the kind of bargain deal that Edwards initially became known for at Anfield. Now, he could return to what he does best to get the Reds back on track.

Arsene Wenger has proclaimed that Florian Wirtz has "destroyed" Liverpool's title-winning midfield, with the Arsenal legend putting the blame on the £116 million ($154m) man for the Reds' struggles in this campaign. The former manager suggested that the club bent over backwards to accommodate his transfer demands and have paid the price for it ever since.

A record fee and a rocky start for Wirtz

Liverpool beat Bayern Munich to the signature of Florian Wirtz in the summer, paying a staggering £116m to secure his services. Expectations were enormous as the 22-year-old had been the creative heartbeat of Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen, who had raced to a historic Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal double in 2023-24. Wirtz emerged as the chief contributor, and during his stint at Bay Arena, he racked up 57 goals and 65 assists in 197 appearances. But the magic that defined his time in Germany has vanished on Merseyside. In 14 games for Liverpool, Wirtz has yet to score and has registered just three assists, one of which came in the Community Shield. While Wirtz has struggled to find form, Arne Slot’s Liverpool have stumbled, suffering six defeats in seven matches before recovering with crucial victories over Aston Villa and Real Madrid.

AdvertisementTactical gamble gone wrong

Wenger believes the problem began with Liverpool’s willingness to give Wirtz the central attacking role he demanded as part of his transfer. Speaking on before Liverpool’s Champions League win over Real Madrid, Wenger delivered a brutal assessment of the Reds’ troubled start to the season, pointing the finger directly at the £116m recruit.

"Liverpool is an interesting example," Wenger began. "When Wirtz had the choice between going to Bayern Munich or Liverpool, he said to Liverpool: 'I come to you if I play No 10. I do not want to play wide.' Liverpool, to get him, they say Okay. They started him and they destroyed their midfield – which was (Ryan) Gravenberch, (Alexis) Mac Allister, (Dominik) Szoboszlai. To play Wirtz, they took Szoboszlai out."

After a dreadful run of results, Slot finally made the bold call to revert to last season’s midfield trio, and the turnaround was instant. Against Aston Villa, Gravenberch found the net in a 2-0 win, while Mac Allister found his mojo in a deeper role. Days later, in the Champions League, the Argentine scored the decisive goal against Real Madrid, sealing a vital 1-0 victory that rekindled hope at Anfield.

"What have they done against Aston Villa? They have gone back to their midfield of last year," Wenger said. "And tonight, they play Wirtz, but I'm sure that Wirtz will play on the side. The manager has said: 'If you want to play again, you will have to play wide because I do not want to disturb the midfield.' That will be interesting to see tonight. Wirtz is back in the team but certainly will have to play left, where he was when he played at Leverkusen."

Wirtz has to adapt

Wirtz was deployed on the left flank against Madrid, which was a role he occasionally filled at Leverkusen under Alonso. And though it’s not his preferred position, it could be his best route back into form. The challenge now, however, is that his new role overlaps with Cody Gakpo, who has been one of Liverpool’s most consistent forwards during their slump. If Wirtz wants to justify his enormous price tag, he may have to abandon his insistence on playing centrally and embrace the wide role that first thrust him into the limelight in Germany.  

Not everyone has joined Wenger in criticising Wirtz. Alonso, who had mentored the young midfielder during their triumphs at Leverkusen, defended him in front of the media and even revealed how his performances in Germany helped shape his own career trajectory.

"I have no doubts, it's just a matter of time," Alonso said in a pre-match news conference. "It's a big chance for him, coming to Liverpool after so many years in Germany, and being there his whole life. He needs to adapt, but he's a really special player. He's competitive. One of the reasons I am here is because of Flo. Hopefully not tomorrow (Tuesday), but I hope soon he'll show his quality and his class."

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Getty Images SportDecisive Man City clash next for Liverpool

Liverpool’s next challenge is monumental as it would see them make a trip to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City. Their forward line is being led by an unstoppable Erling Haaland, who already has 17 goals in 13 games this season.

أعلنت لجنة الحكام في الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم، عن طاقم حكام المباراة النهائية لبطولة كأس السوبر المصري 2025، بين قطبي الكرة المصرية الأهلي والزمالك.

ويلتقي الأهلي مع الزمالك، على ملعب استاد محمد بن زايد في أبو ظبي، للمنافسة على لقب كأس السوبر المصري في نسخته 23.

طالع | الأهلي والزمالك في قمة نارية للتتويج بالسوبر المصري.. وظهور زيزو الأول موعد مباراة الأهلي والزمالك في نهائي كأس السوبر المصري

وتقام مباراة الأهلي والزمالك في نهائي كأس السوبر المصري، الأحد 9 نوفمبر 2025، في تمام الساعة 5:30 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة.

واختار لجنة الحكام في الاتحاد المصري، طاقم تحكيم أجنبي لقيادة ديربي القاهرة بين الأهلي والزمالك، بقيادة التركي خليل أوموت. حكم مباراة الأهلي والزمالك في نهائي كأس السوبر المصري

حكم الساحة: التركي خليل أوموت.

حكم مساعد أول: التركي جيهون سيسيجوزال.

حكم مساعد ثاني: التركي عبد الله بورا.

حكم رابع: الإماراتي سهيل الملا.

حكم الفيديو: المجري استيفان فاد.

حكم مساعد الفيديو: المكسيكي أنخيل بيو.

وكان الأهلي تأهل إلي نهائي كأس السوبر المصري، بالفوز على سيراميكا كليوباترا 2-1، بينما جاء تأهل الزمالك على حساب بيراميدز بركلات الترجيح 5-4 بعد انتهاء الوقت الأصلي بالتعادل السلبي.

Newcastle United fans will be clinging onto Nick Woltemade’s electric start in England as one major positive so far this season.

Indeed, despite the Magpies only picking up two Premier League wins to date, the lofty and instinctive German has already powered home four goals in the demanding league from just five outings.

Still, while the ex-Stuttgart striker has already proven why he cost a significant £69m to bring to Tyneside this summer, Anthony Elanga, on the other hand, is in danger of looking like a major waste of money so soon into his Toon career.

Elanga's poor start at Newcastle

Woltemade ultimately stole the limelight right at the death of the transfer window when leaving Germany behind for that bumper amount.

However, there was equal excitement in the air when Elanga put pen to paper on a £55m switch to leave the Tricky Trees behind for St James’ Park, having been branded a “frightening” talent in the past by the Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell.

With six goals and 12 assists under his belt for Forest last season, too, it did seem as if this was going to be a sublime bit of business from the get-go. Unfortunately, his time so far under Howe’s wing hasn’t gone to the pre-planned script.

From eight Premier League games to date this campaign, the Swedish attacker has zero goals or assists to shout about, touching the ball just 24.4 times per game across those largely forgettable league showings in black and white.

Long gone now are the days when the “electric” winger – as he was once labelled by statistician Statman Dave – was bursting forward with pace and scaring the lives out of Premier League defenders, with just 20 touches of the ball and one feeble attempted dribble against Brighton, leaving Howe with no choice but to hook Elanga at the half-time interval.

He won’t be completely written off, with the 23-year-old perhaps just needing more time to gel and acclimatise, before finding his mojo again.

But, Howe could now be looking for some left-field options on the right wing to add some depth – away from solely relying on the trusty back-up option of Jacob Murphy.

Howe's surprise Elanga replacement

Howe hasn’t shied away from gifting rising youngsters chances to impress in his senior side since taking on the Newcastle reins in 2021, with Lewis Miley only 17 years of age when he was chucked into the Premier League deep-end on his debut.

William Osula has also been handed the odd chance here and there in attack, with U21s superstar Alfie Harrison no doubt eager to leave a lasting impression too when a first-team opportunity heads his way, having once been branded a “star in the making” by football writer Thomas Hammond when first signing for the Magpies.

Coincidentally, Harrison – much like Elanga – opted to walk away from Manchester to try and kickstart his career, with the 23-year-old also well aware of how tricky it is to make that step-up from youth football to the demands of the men’s game.

Still, with 14 goals and eight assists under his belt for the Man City U18s, it was clear that the Toon had bagged themselves a gem going after Harrison when they did.

The goals have somewhat dried up in the U21 frame at Newcastle, with zero goals in Premier League 2 action for the teenager this season to date.

Harrison’s numbers by season

Season

Games

Goals + Assists

25/26

8

0 + 4

24/25

22

3 + 7

23/24

10

0 + 3

Sourced by Transfermarkt

But, it’s clear when assessing his numbers above that he has a laser focus on picking up assists after bursting forward with pace from down the right wing, or in a more central spot on the pitch, which are two trademark parts of Elanga’s game when he’s at the peak of his powers.

Woltemade will surely already be dreaming of lining up next to such an assist-heavy presence, with the German very rarely needing a second bite of the cherry to score.

Further lauded as an “electric” talent this summer by Magpie Media, it only feels like a matter of time before Harrison is making waves in the senior scene, with Howe perhaps ready to test him out imminently if Elanga continues to falter.

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Newcastle United’s defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion has highlighted some issues for Eddie Howe.

Posts 1 ByEthan Lamb Oct 19, 2025

It is fair to say that Liverpool would have expected more from their big-money signings than what they have seen so far on the pitch across all competitions.

Alexander Isak was brought in for a £125m British record transfer from Newcastle United to bolster their attack, but his only goal so far came against Championship side Southampton in the League Cup.

The Sweden international did ‘assist’ Cody Gakpo’s goal in the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday, although some may argue that it was a miscontrol rather than a deliberate touch for the Dutchman.

Jeremie Frimpong, signed from Bayer Leverkusen, has started one Premier League match this season and was an unused substitute against the Blues at Stamford Bridge.

Milos Kerkez has not hit the ground running at Anfield, since his move from Bournemouth, but he has, at least, started all seven of the club’s league matches under Arne Slot.

One player who does need to step up with more moments of quality at the top end of the pitch is £115m signing Florian Wirtz in the attacking midfield position.

Why Liverpool need more from Florian Wirtz

The Germany international was a bona fide superstar for Leverkusen in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns, delivering 34 goals and 33 assists in the two seasons combined, per Sofascore.

Wirtz produced consistent quality in the final third as both a scorer and a creator of goals for Leverkusen, as shown in the incredible clips in the footage above.

Unfortunately, though, Liverpool are yet to see the best of the 22-year-old attacking midfielder since his big-money move to Anfield, which was a club-record signing before the Isak deal went through later in the window.

Wirtz has yet to deliver a goal or an assist for the Reds since he set up Hugo Ekitike for his goal in the Community Shield loss to Crystal Palace at the start of the season.

The German playmaker has, though, been unfortunate not to register an assist or two in the Premier League and the Champions League this term with the chances that he has created for the team.

Appearances

2

7

Starts

2

5

xG

0.37

1.03

Goals

0

0

Key passes

7

11

Big chances created

2

1

Assists

0

0

As you can see in the table above, Wirtz has created three ‘big chances’ and 18 chances in total in nine appearances in those two competitions, which is an impressive return.

However, his teammates have been too wasteful with the chances that he has created, such as when his impressive flick fell Mo Salah’s way against Chelsea, just for the winger to blaze the ball over the bar.

Wirtz does need to improve when it comes to carrying a threat as a goalscorer, though, as his record for Leverkusen suggests that he is much better than he has shown in English football to date.

With the struggles that Liverpool have had at the top end of the pitch this season, with their new signings and the players they already had, it must be frustrating to see one of their former attackers shining.

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The Reds sold Xherdan Shaqiri to Lyon in the summer of 2021 for a fee of around £9.5m, after he had been a solid rotation player for the club for several years.

Since leaving Anfield, the Switzerland international has played for Lyon, Chicago Fire, and Basel. He is currently on fire in his home country, playing like Salah and outperforming Wirtz.

Why Liverpool may rue selling Xherdan Shaqiri

The left-footed star produced eight goals and nine assists in 63 matches for Liverpool, per Transfermarkt, whilst typically playing as a substitute because of Salah’s form in his position.

Shaqiri returned to Basel, the club he started his career with, in the summer of 2024 and is now playing like he is the Egypt international with his terrific output in the final third over the past 18 months or so.

Salah ended the 2024/25 campaign with a haul of 34 goals and 23 assists in 52 appearances in all competitions, and has started this season with three goals and three assists in ten appearances, per Transfermarkt.

Shaqiri, who was described as a “powerful” player by writer and analyst Kai Watson, did his best impression of the Liverpool number 11 in his first season back at Basel last season.

The experienced forward ended the campaign with an eye-catching return of 21 goals and 22 assists in 39 appearances in all competitions for the Swiss side, which shows that he was almost as influential as Salah as both a scorer and a creator of goals.

Not only is the left-footed star playing like Salah, the former Liverpool star is also outperforming Wirtz in the current campaign with his output at league level for Basel, albeit in a different division to the Premier League.

Appearances

7

7

Goals

0

4

Big chances missed

1

1

Key passes per game

1.6

4.6

Big chances created

1

4

Assists

0

3

As you can see in the table above, Shaqiri has provided seven goals and assists in seven Super League matches for his club, whilst the German attacking midfielder is still looking for his first goal contribution in the Premier League for Liverpool.

Whilst the Switzerland international’s form for Basel does not mean that he would be the answer to the club’s current issues at the top end of the pitch, as he is playing outside of the top five leagues in Europe, it does suggest that he still has something to offer.

Shaqiri was a useful player, as shown by his aforementioned output in limited minutes, for the Reds and could have still been a solid option as a back-up to Salah, which would have been helpful with how Wirtz and Isak have started their Anfield careers.

Liverpool star slammed after fewest touches and "dire" display vs Chelsea

It was a hard watch at Stamford Bridge.

ByHenry Jackson Oct 5, 2025

Therefore, Liverpool may rue that they only sold him for £5m when they look at what he is currently achieving in comparison to the players they spent a combined £240m on in Wirtz and Isak.