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Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay is set to miss the Premier League clash with Chelsea this afternoon with a knock.

McTominay limped off during United’s 4-0 Europa League win over Real Sociedad, adding to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s ever-growing injury list.

What’s the word?

Solskjaer has subsequently confirmed that McTominay remains sidelined with a minor knock and will once again play no part in United’s trip to Chelsea in what will be a massive injury blow for the Red Devils, having missed the goalless draw with Sociedad at Old Trafford.

However, it wasn’t all bad news, as Solskjaer expects Donny van de Beek to back in time for their trip to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Speaking in his post-match press conference after the game against Real Sociedad, Solskjaer said: “Donny trained today and he felt okay after training so hopefully [there is] no reaction.”

“So he should be with us. It was just a tweak [for Dan]. I need to give him until Saturday or even Sunday so, hopefully, he can shake it off, but I’m not sure.

“They [Pogba and McTominay] are out. They’ve not trained, Edinson hasn’t trained yet, so I wouldn’t be too optimistic about that, but miracles can happen.”

Significant blow for Solskjaer

Given that Solskjaer previously expressed hope that McTominay could be available to play against the Blues, he may have been left feeling a little aggrieved that he will be without a player who has been tipped as the next captain to take over from Harry Maguire.

Of course, with McTominay nursing a lingering issue, it’s easy to understand why the the club legend is being so cautious, as it’s unlikely he will want to aggravate the existing problem in the midst of a busy schedule.

But that will be no small consolation to the Norwegian manager, who will once again be without one of his key men when the Red Devils make the trip to Stamford Bridge this afternoon.

United have drawn one and lost one of the last three games that McTominay has missed, while Gary Neville has stressed the importance of the Scottish international.

He said: “He is emerging and growing.

“He’s someone Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] can rely upon in the big games with Fred and Fernandes in front of them. Then Pogba, Matic and Van de Beek fit in around that.”

The 24-year-old – who is currently valued at £22.5m via Transfermarkt – has been one of the standout performers under Solskjaer, making over 80 appearances across all competitions for the manager, and has continued to grow and develop as a player under his guidance. He has scored seven goals, recording a further assist, across 32 appearances in all competitions so far this season.

Give United’s mounting injury crisis in the midfield, the ongoing situation will be giving Solskjaer a major headache. There’s no doubt the United boss will be concerned about how he is going to cope without the services of one of his star midfielders.

AND in other news, Man Utd considering Jesse Lingard swap-deal for West Ham’s Declan Rice…

Southampton have been dealt a huge blow ahead of their game against Leicester City on Saturday, as Danny Ings has been ruled out after testing positive for the current viral outbreak.

Ralph Hasenhuttl confirmed in his pre-match conference on Thursday that the England international would be forced to sit out the game against the Foxes after a positive test, as he will now have to self-isolate due to the government’s guidelines.

This comes as a big blow for the Austrian as he saw his side fail to score in three games over the Christmas period that Ings missed through injury before the former Liverpool man returned to score the winner against his old side in the Saints’ last Premier League fixture.

It is an important game against Brendan Rodgers’ side on Saturday evening, with both sides having enjoyed an impressive start to the season which sees them challenging for a top-four spot, so to have your top scorer missing is obviously a huge blow for the South Coast club.

So far this season, the 28-year-old has managed seven goals and three assists in just 13 top-flight appearances for Southampton, averaging a superb 7.17 rating.

The Englishman is picking up where he left off last season, where he finished as the second joint-top scorer in the Premier League, despite a disjointed season so far where injuries, and now the current viral outbreak, have ruled him out of matches.

Last season, Eddie Howe was full of praise for the striker, saying:

“The most impressive thing about Danny is, of course, he’s an outstanding player.”

“Technically he’s very good, plays with real intelligence and the way he’s come back from his disappointments, the injury setbacks he’s had, the way he’s fought back and kept his mental strength has been hugely impressive.”

Hasenhuttl will surely be frustrated to have his top goalscorer missing for the game against Leicester and he now faces a dilemma on who to select up front alongside Che Adams, who should return after missing the game against Liverpool with a concussion.

And, in other news… Southampton signing England U21 gem would cast doubt over the future of Hasenhuttl favourite

Glasgow Rangers may have brought in backup for Borna Barisic in the shape of Calvin Bassey, but they may well have another long-term replacement lined up for a future move to Ibrox if recent reports are to be believed.

What’s the story?

According to The Daily Record, Rangers are interested in signing Croatian left-back Marijan Cabraja from Gorica.

It’s claimed that the 54-time Scottish champions are closely monitoring his situation, with his agent Miroslav Bicanic adding that there is interest from Italy, Poland, Russia and the United States as well as from the Ibrox outfit.

Cabraja said: “It is true that Rangers are following me, contact has been established but it all depends on how the situation with Borna Barisic develops.

“I don’t believe that the Scots will pay as much as Gorica are asking for, but let’s leave that aside now, the only thing that matters to me is how we will play in Split on Sunday.”

Ross Wilson would be wise to secure his services as not only would the former Croatia U21 international be able to provide cover and competition for his fellow countryman and he’d also add an alternative threat in attack

Papac 2.0?

Ibrox has borne witness to some of the best full-backs ever to grace the Scottish game, but that hasn’t always been the case.

For every Arthur Newman, there’s an Agnestis Argyriou, although it looks like the club could land an absolute bargain in the 23-year-old defender.

Standing at 5 foot 9 inches, Cabraja is cut from a similar cloth to former Rangers left-back Sasa Papac, who spent six years with the Govan-based Glaswegian giants.

The Bosnian defensive stalwart, who stands slightly taller at 1.85m tall, was also known for his unflappable style of play, having scored six goals and supplied 14 assists in all competitions for the club, via Transfermarkt.

In 13 appearances in the HNL, the Pula-born left-back has bagged one goal and two assists in total, whilst he has played in every minute of every single game so far this season.

This kind of calm presence and confidence on the ball would be most welcome in Glasgow as the Gers crashed out of the League Cup after Calvin Bassey conceded a sloppy penalty.

To sign a player with Cabraja’s obvious potential, whose market value is estimated at as little as £585,000, to provide injury cover for Barisic, could be a shrewd bit of business.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers must cash in on Greg Stewart in January…

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O volante Marciel e o apoiador Bruno Nazário foram apresentados pelo Cruzeiro na tarde desta segunda-feira, na Toca da Raposa II. Ambos foram emprestados ao clube mineiro, chegaram com o valor dos seus respectivos direitos econômicos fixado e serão opções para o técnico Deivid armar o meio de campo celeste.

Marciel, de 20 anos, foi emprestado pelo Corinthians até o fim deste ano na negociação que levou Willians para o Alvinegro. Ele garantiu que gosta de auxiliar o setor de criação.

– Estou muito feliz de estar aqui, um pouco nervoso (risos). Sou segundo volante, meu estilo de jogo é um pouco de marcação, gosto de dar arrancadas. E gosto de tocar bola, fazendo triangulação com os companheiros. Gostava de ver o Riquelme jogando, me inspiro nele. Estou feliz de estar aqui e farei meu trabalho – disse Marciel.

Campeão da Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior e do Brasileirão do ano passado pelo Corinthians, Marciel ainda exaltou ter sido bem recebido pelo torcedor cruzeirense:

– Ganhei um carinho da torcida do Corinthians, espero ganhar da torcida do Cruzeiro. Pressão sempre tem. Mas a gente tem é que mostrar dentro de campo. Cruzeiro sempre briga por títulos. Temos que mostrar nosso futebol e ser campeão. O ultimo clube bicampeão brasileiro.

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Já Bruno Nazário, também de 20 anos, foi cedido pelo Hoffenhein, da Alemanha, até o fim de junho do ano que vem. Ele destacou quais são as suas características antes de elogiar a torcida do Cruzeiro.

– Sou um meia-armador. Gosto de dar assistência. Gosto de partir para frente. Mais a vontade gosto de jogar centralizado. Mas depende do jogo também, se me colocar na ponta, partindo para cima, está bom também. Sou feliz dentro de campo e hoje estou no time maior do Brasil. A primeira vez que fui na Toca I já vi a torcida cantando. Nenhum clube faz isso. Fiquei muito feliz de vir para cá. Só tenho a agradecer essa torcida maravilhosa e sei o tamanho dela.

Além de Marciel e Nazário, o Cruzeiro contratou outros cinco jogadores: o volante Federico Gino, os apoiadores Sánchez Miño e Matías Pisano e os atacantes Rafael Silva e Douglas Coutinho. O volante argentino Lucas Romero, doVélez Sarsfield, está próximo de ingressar em tal lista.

Not a week goes by without Wilfried Zaha being linked with the Selhurst Park exit, but that doesn’t mean that Steve Parish should forget about Vicente Guaita.

The veteran goalkeeper’s contract with Crystal Palace is set to expire at the end of the season and his recent heroics have warranted a new deal.

Guaita was beaten from 25 yards out after Harry Kane gave Tottenham Hotspur the lead with a long-range effort which he should have saved comfortably.

But, following Wayne Hennessey’s injury and after Jack Butland tested positive for Coronavirus, the 30-year-old should be allowed a margin for error. After all, what choice does Roy Hodgson have anyway?

And Guaita atoned for his early mistake as he moved to deny Eric Dier in stoppage time with an incredible one-handed save to ensure Palace leapfrogged Newcastle and Wolves into 11th place in the Premier League.

It’s hard to deny the fact that it would be a real shame to see him leave Selhurst Park at the end of the season, as he has become such a reliable asset for Hodgson, which is more than can be said for Nathaniel Clyne, who struggled to get into the game on Sunday.

Palace have several players who are out of contract at the end of the current campaign, including former Chelsea defender Gary Cahill, but Parish must tie Guaita down to a new deal.

Valued at £3.6m via Transfermarkt, in 71 appearances for Palace, the Spaniard stopper has saved 21 clean sheets and conceded just 85 goals in all competitions. Not bad, not bad at all.

Hennessey has never really shown that he can be relied upon, but Guaita has continued to prove his worth time and time again at Selhurst Park. Sunday night was no different. Parish must secure his future at all costs or face serious consequences.

AND in other news, Crystal Palace defender Nathaniel Clyne was a total liability vs Spurs…

Leeds United make the trip south later this evening as they look to build on their encouraging recent form.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side were unlucky to only draw 0-0 with ten-man Arsenal before dispatching Everton for three points last weekend, and across both matches, the Whites totalled a whopping 48 shots.

Now they head to west London to face third-placed Chelsea, who have a plethora of attacking talent at their disposal.

But this is what you get with the Premier League – some of the very best players to currently grace the game, and Bielsa will need to be at his best tactically to find a way past the division’s best attack. No team has scored more goals than the Blues.

It gives the Argentine plenty to ponder, especially in terms of defensive selection as he will need his men at their very best to compete with the likes of Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, Kai Havertz and even both Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount.

Indeed, this encounter could be one or lost out wide and if you were Frank Lampard, you’d surely be targeting Gjanni Alioski despite his impressive form as of late.

Only two teams have conceded more goals than the Yorkshiremen this term, so it would be wise to consider an actual left-back instead of the attack-minded 28-year-old.

In the past, Alioski has often been dubbed a “liability” and a “weak link” by the Elland Road faithful, as seen here, which is a train of thought backed up by former Leeds striker Noel Whelan, who told Football Insider last season:

“His defending at time is very lacking in quality, he can be a liability. Alioski is a 100 per center who will run all day but when it comes to defending, he goes to ground and sells himself too often.”

Ziyech has already contributed to four goals in four starts in the English top-flight this season, building on his 48 goals and 82 assists across four seasons at Ajax.

Across his career, the North Macedonian international has averaged 1.2 fouls per game and has picked up more yellow cards at Leeds (25) than goals (20), so if he’s not careful the Chelsea sensation could devour him clean tonight.

Bielsa is better off trusting Stuart Dallas over the £55k-per-week livewire in the role. A ruthless but necessary call.

AND in other news, Leeds dodged a massive bullet in mooted Bielsa £20m target once dubbed “unplayable”…

Aston Villa appear to have had the last laugh despite seeing former goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini now play for Champions League side Atalanta.

What’s the story?

The club signed the Italian shot-stopper back in the summer of 2016 when Roberto Di Matteo was in charge, and the then Villa boss made it clear that they had made a major statement of intent with his signing.

Di Matteo insisted: “We have managed to sign him despite the fact he was being chased by a number of top sides and that is a great sign. He’s a young man but has plenty of experience and I’m sure he’ll prove to be an excellent signing for the club.”

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In the end, Gollini managed just 20 appearances in total for Villa, before Steve Bruce made the decision to let him leave the club permanently for just £3.75m. Whilst things have worked out for him back in Italy, Villa shouldn’t feel too regretful now.

Emi Martinez’s arrival

Make no mistake about it, prior to the summer transfer window, Gollini’s exit would surely have been looked at by Villa with a sense of regret and ‘what if’.

The Italian has established himself as the number one goalkeeper for Atalanta who stunned sides across Europe by reaching the Champions League quarter-finals, before eventually losing to Paris Saint-Germain.

A cruciate ligament injury has kept him out of action for the start of this season, but with 41 appearances across all competitions in the previous campaign, there’s no doubting he will reclaim his spot in between the sticks.

But whilst Gollini has impressed, Villa have solved their goalkeeping conundrum with their summer move for Emiliano Martinez. The massive Argentine arrived off the back of a FA Cup and Community Shield victories with the Gunners, and has helped his new club keep the best defensive record in the Premier League with just two goals conceded.

What was initially a massive Bruce blunder in letting Gollini go, has now seen Villa enjoy the last laugh, with Martinez set to form the backbone of their side for the next few years to come.

It is no secret that Glasgow Rangers are looking to sign a midfielder this transfer window and this has seen them heavily linked with Preston North End player Daniel Johnson.

Negotiations between the two sides are nowhere near completed yet, but it looks like the Gers finally know the sort of fee they will have to pay following the latest news.

According to Football Insider, Championship side Preston want £4million for Johnson. The Glasgow giants have only submitted a £2 million offer for the 27 year-old, so we will have to see if they match the price-tag.

The 27-year-old has a decent goal contribution record as a midfielder as he has scored 65 goals and provided 43 assists in 321 career appearances, per Transfermarkt, and any club would like to have such a creative midfielder. He recorded 12 goals and seven assists in the Championship last season, managing on average 1.4 key passes, 1.3 shots and 1.7 tackles per game, via WhoScored.

These figures suggest that he would be a very good signing for the ‘Gers if they pull it off and it would give Steven Gerrard an injection of talent as well as some much-needed squad depth in midfield.

Hopefully the ‘Gers look to finalise this deal sooner rather than later, even at the price of £4 million, as he definitely looks to have the quality to succeed and with his age, he can definitely have an impact at the Scottish side for many seasons to come.

Glasgow Rangers fans, what are your thoughts on this news? Comment below!

MatériaMais Notícias

O técnico Dunga, enfim, poderá contar com Neymar nas Eliminatórias para a Copa do Mundo de 2018. O atacante do Barcelona cumpriu suspensão nos dois primeiros jogos da Seleção Brasileira na competição e volta a ficar à disposição para o confronto com a Argentina, nesta quinta-feira, às 22h, no Monumental de Nuñez, em Buenos Aires.

Em entrevista coletiva nesta quarta-feira, antes do treino fechado na Arena Corinthians, o treinador brasileiro analisou o crescimento de Neymar na temporada. Para Dunga, o craque do Barcelona faz um ano melhor que Lionel Messi e Cristiano Ronaldo.

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– Se fizermos o ranking por número, estatística, o Neymar está mostrando um aproveitamento superior. O Messi está machucado, o Cristiano Ronaldo a gente tem expectativa de que repita o ano passado. Neymar tem crescimento constante, desde que chegou ao Barcelona. Sem o Messi, tem correspondido à expectativa. Está em um bom momento – afirmou o treinador.

Dunga também brincou sobre o golaço marcado por Neymar na vitória por 3 a 0 sobre o Villareal, na rodada passada do Campeonato Espanhol. Na ocasião, o atacante brasileiro recebeu pelo meio, domingou de barriga e, sem deixar a bola cair, chapelou o marcador e mandou para o fundo da rede.

– Quando eu vi, pensei: por que não faz comigo (risos). Essas coisas fazem o futebol bonito, é um gol plástico. Mas, como diria o Dadá (Maravilha), gol é gol. É o importante. Se for bonito, melhor ainda – disse Dunga, que não quis garantir o craque como titular.

-É Neymar e mais 22. Nos primeiros jogos como ficaríamos? Tem de criar uma forma de superar os desfalques – comentou o treinador, que mostrou bom-humor nesta entrevista coletiva.

A Argentina não poderá contar com diversos jogadores, principalmente no setor ofensivo: Messi, Tevez e Arguero estão fora do clássico desta quinta-feira. Dunga, no entanto, minimizou os desfalques do rival e ressaltou as dificuldades.

– Nós temos que jogar da mesma forma para buscar o resultado, porque sempre vai ter desfalques. Tem nos clubes, nas seleções, não tem como ser diferente. Às vezes você perde um jogador muito técnico, mas pode ganhar um jogador muito mais focado, com mais força, velocidade, que pode criar complicações para o adversário. E é a Argentina, todos os jogadores que vão entrar jogam nos grandes clubes da Europa. Será um jogo muito difícil – analisou Dunga.

MatériaMais Notícias

Artilheiro do Santos na temporada e maior goleador do Brasil no ano, Ricardo Oliveira teve muito a comemorar na noite desta quarta-feira. Na vitória sobre o São Paulo, que garantiu vaga do Peixe na final da Copa do Brasil, o camisa 9 santista reverteu a ausência no aniversário da filha por conta da concentração para o clássico em gols: foram dois marcados, que conferem a ele a marca de 35 no ano.

De acordo com o artilheiro, o primeiro gol, dedicado à filha Pietra, que completou 10 anos na última terça, já estava prometido a ela. Já o segundo também tinha a quem homenagear: um amigo de longa data.

– Ontem (terça-feira) foi aniversário da minha filha, e por compromisso com o trabalho não pude estar com ela, passar esse momento com ela. Então prometi fazer um gol e dizer ‘papai te ama’ por ter completado dez anos. O segundo foi para um amigo que me acompanha desde sempre e prometi um gol a ele também – destacou o camisa 9, com a sensação de dever cumprido.

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“Está aí mais um objetivo alcançado”, disse Ricardo Oliveira

– Dentro de campo procuramos os resultados, sempre foi essa a tônica do Santos. Acho que meu número é importante, 35 gols no ano. Conseguimos isso com muito trabalho, empenho, dedicação, mas o coletivo me ajudou bastante a corresponder com gols. Está aí mais um objetivo alcançado – encerrou o capitão.

Depois de abrir 3 a 0 em menos de meia hora de jogo e marcar dois destes gols, Ricardo Oliveira comemorou a marca de 35 tentos alcançados no ano e destacou a principal característica do Peixe: a ofensividade.