No Alfredo Jaconi, o Juventude derrotou a Ponte Preta por 2 a 1. Com o triunfo, o Jaconero chegou aos 52 pontos, na 3ª posição. A Macaca é a 7ª, com 46 pontos.
+ TABELA DE CLASSIFICAÇÃO DA SÉRIE B
Na próxima rodada, o Juventude visita o Cuiabá, na Arena Pantanal. A Ponte Preta faz o derby contra o Guarani, no Brinco de Ouro da Princesa.
O jogo
A etapa inicial teve poucas chances claras. As duas defesas mostraram qualidade e levaram a melhor em quase todas as divididas.
Diante de tanta dificuldade, a Ponte Preta chegou com perigo em cobrança de falta com Camilo, mas a bola passou rente ao poste. A resposta do Juventude veio no chute cruzado de Rogério, que assustou o time paulista.
Na etapa final o ritmo foi totalmente diferente e a Ponte abriu o placar aos 5 minutos. No levantamento, a bola sobrou com Luan Dias, que bateu forte e venceu Carné, 1 a 0.
O empate veio um minuto depois. Rogério dominou na entrada da área e de bicicleta mandou para dentro do gol, 1 a 1.
Melhor em campo, o Jaconero assumiu a liderança do placar na casa dos 31 minutos. Após cruzamento da esquerda, Éverton jogou na medida para Rafael Grampola, sozinho, testar firme e vencer o goleiro, 2 a 1.
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After sleepwalking their way to wins in the league phase, Mumbai exhibit lower-order might to clinch victory in a tricky chase
Saurabh Somani in Bengaluru20-Oct-2018Saurabh Somani/ESPNcricinfo
Navdeep Saini brought alive what should have been a routine chase for Mumbai, blasting out three wickets and being denied a fourth due to over-stepping, but he couldn’t stop Mumbai’s march to the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19 title.Mumbai’s bowlers had won the patience game with Delhi’s batsmen after Shreyas Iyer opted to bowl first, and the tight lines drew a number of rash strokes that ultimately cost Delhi dear. With a few more runs to defend, Saini could have induced real panic in Mumbai’s batsmen. But despite getting Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane and Suryakumar Yadav within the first five overs – and Kulwant Khejroliya snaring Shreyas Iyer after the same batsman had been dropped off him – Mumbai had the depth to chase down the 178-target in 35 overs, with four wickets standing.Siddhesh Lad, who benefitted from a Saini no-ball when he drove tamely to point before opening his account, hit a 68-ball 48 while Aditya Tare carved out 71 (89 balls) in a match-defining 105-run stand for the fifth wicket. Gautam Gambhir had attacking fields, knowing that wickets was Delhi’s only path to victory, but both batsmen showed admirable temperament in their counter-attack, putting away anything loose and not letting the pressure of a 40 for 4 scoreline consume them.Tare was lbw to Manan Sharma with Mumbai 33 runs away, and Lad fell at 176, but Mumbai were not to be denied.The margin appeared reasonably comfortable at the end, but it was hard-fought all the way. Saini’s first spell had brought 3 for 41 in seven overs, but once that initial phase was weathered, Mumbai were in control. They had been the best team in the league stages, and they lived up to their star billing, winning the first domestic 50-overs title since 2006-07, when Amol Muzumdar’s team had beaten Rajasthan by 72 runs in Jaipur.The first two balls of Mumbai’s chase had been glanced and punched for fours by Shaw, but Saini’s third ball straightened to cannon into the stumps past the outside edge. In the fifth over, Saini got the ball to move off the seam again and beat Rahane for pace, trapping him in front. Three balls later, Suryakumar’s airy drive went straight to the keeper.Mumbai could have been four down if Nitish Rana held on to a straightforward edge off an Iyer flash in the very next over, and in the over after that, Lad was caught off a no-ball. Iyer repeated his error in Khejroliya’s next over, and this time he was pouched safely. Eight overs into the chase, Mumbai could have been six down, but had lost only four wickets. While things were still rocky, they had two batsmen up for the fight in the middle, and that made the difference in the end.Both men survived a few other close calls too, with the third umpire kept busy. Suryakumar’s dismissal had been touch and go with regard to Saini over-stepping, and Lad’s reprieve was almost equally close. On both occasions, a millimetre made the difference. In 19th over, Subodh Bhati drew a bottom edge off an attempted cut from Tare, and Unmukt Chand tumbled forward to claim the catch. Numerous replays later, third umpire Ulhas Gandhe overturned the soft signal of ‘out’, ruling that the ball had touched the ground first.Bhati was the bowler again when Lad hit a bullet straight drive that crashed into the stumps at the non-striker’s end with Tare out of his crease. The point of contention now was whether Bhati had got a touch on the ball with his boot, and once again, the third umpire ruled in favour of the batsman, with the ball showing no appreciable deviation from its path.The feature of the Lad-Tare stand though, was that they never allowed those moments to curb their natural games. If the bowlers strayed, as they were likely to in an all-out attack to get wickets, the ball was put away for runs.Earlier, lapses with the bat had cost Delhi. Gambhir slashed the pacy Tushar Deshpande straight to Shaw at third man in the second over, putting Delhi on the back foot at the start with the in-form batsman gone.Delhi couldn’t string partnerships together, and the move to send Manan in at No.3 backfired too. Nitish Rana and Dhruv Shorey tried to rebuild with a sedate 39-run stand for the fourth wicket, but that ended when Rana tried an ill-advised pull that resulted in a top-edge. It wasn’t until Himmat Singh (41 off 65) and Pawan Negi got together that Delhi showed any fight.Fresh from his heroics in the semifinal, Negi was confident, and even hit Shams Mulani out of the attack with a 15-run over. But a Deshpande snorter struck his right hand hard, forcing him to retire hurt. Bhati swung his bat for a few quick runs, but the pace trio of Deshpande, Dhawal Kulkarni and Dubey kept striking, as Delhi finished on 177.At the halfway stage, it looked completely inadequate given Mumbai’s imposing batting line-up. Saini’s fire breathed life into the contest, but eventually, Mumbai’s resilience and discipline won the day.
يقترب نادي آرسنال الإنجليزي من حسم صفقة جديدة في سوق الانتقالات الصيفي الجاري وفقًا لتقارير.
وبدأ آرسنال نافذة الانتقالات بتفعيل بند شراء حارس المرمى ديفيد رايا، وتبع ذلك التعاقد مع ريكاردو كالافيوري من بولونيا.
ووفقًا لـ”ريليفو” آرسنال في مراحل متقدمة من التعاقد مع ميكيل ميرينو لاعب ريال سوسيداد الإسباني.
ويشير التقرير إلى أن آرسنال وريال سوسيداد اتفقا على رسوم أولية قدرها 30 مليون يورو، إلى جانب المتغيرات.
ومن المتوقع أن يقوم آرسنال بالإعلان عن صفقة ميرينو في غضون الأيام القليلة المقبلة.
ويوضح التقرير أن اللاعب البالغ من العمر 28 عامًا تحدث بالفعل عدة مرات مع ميكيل أرتيتا مدرب آرسنال بشأن الانضمام إلى النادي.
وفي حديثه هذا الأسبوع، فتح رئيس ريال سوسيداد، جوكين أبيريباي، الباب أمام ميرينو لمغادرة النادي.
وقال جوكين أبيريباي: “أعتقد أن ميكيل كان صادقًا للغاية مع ريال سوسيداد، لقد تلقى عرضًا للتجديد لمدة عام وإذا لم يجدد فذلك لأنه لم يرغب في إخبار جماهير الفريق بأنني سيبقى ثم يرحل، وأعتقد أن هذا يتحدث بشكل جيد عنه”.
وأضاف: “أود ألا يرحل، كلنا نريد ذلك، ولكن إذا أخبرنا أنه يقبل أحد العروض التي لديه على الطاولة ويريد منا التفاوض، فسنفعل ذلك”.
وأكد: “نحن نعلم أنه لديه عروض، ولكن في الوقت الحالي، نستمر في الأمل في بقاء ميكيل ميرينو في ريال سوسيداد”.
وأتم: “نود أن يكون هذا قراره، ولكن إذا لم يكن كذلك، فسنحاول التفاوض على طريقة أفضل لترك ريال سوسيداد”.
Glasgow Rangers made the decision to part ways with English head coach Michael Beale at the start of last month and quickly swooped to appoint Philippe Clement as their new manager.
The former AS Monaco manager has enjoyed a fine start to life at the club with six wins and two draws in his opening eight matches in all competitions.
He won four Pro League titles during his time in Belgium with Club Brugge and Genk and is now tasked with delivering trophies, including a Scottish Premiership title, after Beale failed to produce any silverware during his tenure.
Glasgow Rangers managerPhilippe Clement.
One player who could be key to any success that Clement wants to achieve at Ibrox is attacking midfielder Todd Cantwell, who has not been at his best this season after a lightning-fast start to his career in Scotland.
The Belgian head coach could help the former Norwich City star to get back to his electric best by signing a natural defensive midfielder to unlock the attacking quality within the rest of the midfield.
A number six option has, in fact, been linked with a move to Glasgow in recent weeks and this suggests that the Scottish giants are keen to improve in that area of the pitch.
Rangers transfer news – Lennon Miller
It was recently reported by TEAMtalk that the Light Blues are keeping tabs on Motherwell defensive midfielder Lennon Miller as a possible target to bolster their squad.
However, they are not the only team interested in the teenage prospect as Premiership rivals Celtic are also said to be monitoring his progress with the Scottish side.
There could also be competition from a host of Premier League outfits south of the border as Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Brighton, Brentford, West Ham United, and Newcastle United are all said to be eyeing him up.
This means that it could be difficult for the Gers to secure a deal for his services as Miller has no shortage of suitors to offer him a way out of Motherwell during the upcoming January transfer window.
Although, there is no mention of how much his current club would demand to let him go at the start of 2024 or whether or not the player is prepared to ditch them ahead of the second half of the campaign.
Cantwell's 2022/23 season in numbers
The 25-year-old whiz – Cantwell – arrived from English Championship side Norwich during the January transfer window as one of Beale's first signings at Ibrox and he hit the ground running in Scottish football.
He caught the eye with six goals and four assists in 16 Premiership appearances as the talented gem showcased his ability to produce goal contributions on a regular basis from a midfield or wide position.
Rangers midfielder Todd Cantwell.
Cantwell completed 1.5 dribbles per game and impressed in possession with a pass success rate of 89% and 1.3 key passes per match for the Light Blues.
His superb performances for the club earned him an excellent Sofascore rating of 7.36, which was the third-highest score within the squad – only behind James Tavernier and Borna Barisic.
Cantwell's season in numbers
The former Bournemouth loanee has not been able to kick on and continue to provide a regular stream of goals and assists for the Gers this season.
Cantwell has made nine Premiership appearances so far throughout the 2023/24 campaign and has only contributed with one assist in that time, with his last league goal coming against Hearts in May.
The English magician has only completed 0.8 dribbles and made 1.2 key passes per game across those matches, alongside a pass success rate of 79%.
Rabbi Matondo and Todd Cantwell
These statistics show that the Rangers midfielder's form has endured a sharp decline this season after his fantastic displays last term for Beale.
He is not scoring or assisting as many goals and is not dribbling as much or creating as many chances this time around, which suggests that Clement needs to work out how to get the best out of him.
The head coach, based on the evidence of last season, knows that there is far more to come from Cantwell at the top end of the pitch and signing Miller from Motherwell could play an important role in helping the 25-year-old ace return to his best.
Lennon Miller's season in numbers
The 17-year-old enforcer is an exciting young talent who is already proving himself to be an excellent Premiership performer who has the ability to anchor the Rangers midfield.
Miller, who manager Steven Hammell dubbed a "fantastic" talent, is currently out with a knee injury and is expected to be back around a month into the new year.
However, his performances before suffering that knock were very impressive for a player of his age, which may be why the Gers and a host of other clubs are keen on acquiring his services.
The teenage starlet has started nine Premiership matches for Motherwell so far this season and caught the eye with his strong defensive instincts.
Miller has made 3.6 tackles and interceptions along with 7.6 ball recoveries per match, which points to how frequently he is able to cut out opposition attacks to win possession for his side.
He has also won an impressive 71% of his duels and this shows that the 17-year-old ace has the physicality to compete at senior level in spite of his age and inexperience.
Meanwhile, John Lundstram, who is currently anchoring the midfield, has made 2.6 tackles and interceptions alongside 7.4 ball recoveries and has only won 51% of his duels across 11 Premiership outings.
These statistics suggest that Miller could win the ball back more frequently for Rangers in the number six role whilst also being able to win a much higher percentage of his physical contests.
This could, therefore, provide the Light Blues with a stronger presence in the middle of the park and allow them to create more attacking opportunities whilst also freeing up the other midfielders to press forward knowing that they have the 6 foot gem there to screen the back four.
This is why Clement could unlock Cantwell's quality as Miller could free up the English ace to produce magical moments at the top end of the pitch instead of focusing on his defensive responsibilities.
تحدث المدرب البرتغالي جورجي جيسوس المدير الفني لفريق الكرة الأول بنادي الهلال عن مواجهة الأهلي في إطار منافسات كأس السوبر السعودي.
وتقام بطولة كأس السوبر السعودي هذا الموسم بمشاركة 4 أندية وهم الهلال والأهلي والنصر والتعاون.
ويحتضن ملعب مدينة الأمير سلطان بن عبد العزيز الرياضية في المحالة، في السابعة والربع من مساء غد الثلاثاء، مباراة الهلال والأهلي بدور نصف النهائي.
“بعد العرض الثاني”.. فيتور روكي يبلغ الهلال بموقفه من الانتقال إلى السعودية
وقال جيسوس في المؤتمر الصحفي الذي يسبق المباراة: “بداية موسم جديد، حققنا اللقب الموسم الماضي، ونطمح في تحقيق اللقب الحالي من أجل كسب الثقة، ومواصلة الانتصارات خلال الموسم الحالي”.
وأضاف: “غياب البرازيلي مالكوم عن مواجهة الأهلي، وبقية الغيابات لن تؤثر على فريقنا، وتوجد لدينا غياب أيضًا على مستوى خاليدو كوليبالي وعلي البليهي، ولدينا 20 لاعبًا متاحًا، وفي تدريب اليوم سنلعب 10 ضد 10، وهذا العدد مناسب جدًا، وأملك الثقة في لاعبيّ”.
وواصل: “أما عن البدلاء في الخط الدفاعي، حسان تمبكتي لاعب أساسي، ويملك ثقة كبيرة، واللاعبون مستعدون جميعًا، لا فائدة من الحديث عن لاعب غائب، يجب أن نتحدث عن الذي سيحضر ونعطيه كامل الثقة”.
وفي السياق ذاته، أكد حسان تمبكتي لاعب الهلال ثقته في خيارات جيسوس، مشددًا على أن المباراة بين فريقين كبيرين لديهما هدف مشترك في تحقيق اللقب، ونسعى إلى حصده”.
وأتم: “حيث أنهينا الموسم الماضي بالتتويج، أشكر زملائي الذين ساعدوني على تقديم مستويات جيدة، وأحترم ثقة المدرب التي منحني إياها”.
Arsenal have been enjoying something of a resurgence over the last couple of years under the management of Mikel Arteta. They have once again come to be defined by free-flowing, entertaining and, above all, effective football.
They have reaffirmed their place near the top of the Premier League as regular title challengers alongside the Manchester City and Liverpools of the world, and perhaps most importantly, the club have once again joined the European elite in the Champions League.
However, it wasn't that long ago that the club were well and truly in the trenches – well, as much as a 'big six' side can be in the trenches anyway – and were relying on their youth products to bail them out of an ever-increasing spiral of footballing despair.
Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Emile Smith-Rowe and even Eddie Nketiah, to an extent, all stepped up when it looked like Arteta was heading to the nearest job centre.
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These players have now either become a core part of the starting XI or play an important squad role for the side and yet, there is another Hale End graduate who could come in and make a name for himself in the coming seasons.
One that could ultimately save the Gunners the tens of millions it would take to sign Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz: Charlie Patino.
Charlie Patino's youth Statistics
Patino has firmly established himself as a senior, fully-fledged professional footballer these days thanks to his recent and relatively successful loan spell away from north London, but when he was regularly turning out for the Arsenal youth sides, he was making quite a name for himself.
Across the U18 Premier League and Premier League 2, for example, the "special talent", as described by journalist Phil Smith, scored two goals and provided five assists, but he hasn't just been putting in the work at club level.
From the U15 level to U21, Patino has earned 22 England caps, with his debut for the U21 side coming against Luxembourg in September of this year.
Overall, his time as a club-level youth player was incredibly impressive, and the midfield "maestro", as labelled by football scout Jacek Kulig, certainly justified the hype with his performances.
Charlie Patino last season
After impressing at youth level and making two senior appearances for the Gunners, Patino made his first loan move away from the Emirates and joined Championship side Blackpool for the 2022/23 season.
The 6 foot midfielder made 37 appearances in all competitions for the Seasiders, scoring three goals and providing four assists.
It was a fantastic platform for the former Luton Town youngster to show his quality, and when the club were drawn against Premier League side Southampton in the FA Cup, he took his chance and scored a brilliant goal that caught a lot of attention.
However, it was a rather bleak campaign for the club as a whole, and they ended up getting relegated after finishing in 23rd place.
That said, while the surrounding team struggled to deal with the demands of England's second tier, Patino looked more than comfortable, as if he was destined to patrol Premier League midfields one day; at least, that was how his manager, Michael Appleton, certainly seemed to feel about him when he said:
"We've used him as a six, an eight, even as a number 10 at times. He deals with it, he copes with it, he's got an understanding of the game beyond his years.
"He can deal with the ball and move it, he's got a big future ahead of him."
And there's only one way if Appleton was right.
Charlie Patino vs Douglas Luiz this season
So we have seen the steady progression of Arsenal's promising youngster from youth team gem to Championship star, but how is he faring this season?
Well, he was sent to Swansea City on loan for the 2023/24 campaign, and while the Swans aren't necessarily where they want to be in the table, they are significantly better off than Blackpool were, and Patino has a large part to play in that.
So far, the 20-year-old dynamo has made 14 appearances for the club this season, in which he has scored two goals and provided four assists, which, when broken down, gives him a goal involvement every 135 minutes – not bad from a central midfielder.
In comparison, Luiz has also made 14 appearances, but he has scored five goals and provided two assists, which, when broken down, gives him a goal involvement every 172 minutes of football.
Douglas Luiz celebrates for Aston Villa
While this difference could certainly be chalked down to the oppositional quality, it still suggests that the Arsenal youngster has the ability to influence his side's attacking threat, starting from a deeper position.
Okay, how about their underlying numbers, then?
Well, perhaps unsurprisingly, Luiz is the more complete player, and his statistics show it. The Brazilian produces more progressive carries and passes per 90, more shot-creating actions per 90 and wins significantly more tackles per 90 than his younger competition.
Douglas Luiz vs Charlie Patino
Stat
Luiz
Patino
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists per 90
0.16
0.31
Progressive Carries per 90
2.39
1.33
Progressive Passes per 90
5.52
4.44
Shots on target percentage
23.8%
25%
Shot Creating Actions per 90
4.04
3.91
Tackles won per 90
1.72
0.67
Stats via FBref for the 2023/24 Premier League & Championship Season
However, Patino produces almost twice the non-penalty expected goals and expected assists as the Villa man and is more accurate when he is in front of goal. Furthermore, aside from tackles, the Hale End graduate isn't too far off his competition, especially given the age gap.
Ultimately, the question Arteta and Edu Gasper have to ask themselves is whether they think it's worth spending the £60m plus required to sign the Villa star, who Paul Merson regards as "the most underrated player in the Premier League", or save that money and promote Patino into the first team.
The majority of the BPL franchises were not in favour of Smith’s inclusion from outside the players’ draft list as a replacement player
Mohammad Isam20-Dec-2018
Steven Smith fields in a CPL match•Getty Images
The BCB has upheld the BPL governing council’s decision to not allow Steven Smith from playing in this season’s BPL. The BPL has written to Comilla Victorians, for whom Smith had signed, saying that the majority of the franchises were “not in favour of” including Smith from outside the players’ draft list as a replacement player. Smith had been signed by Comilla as Asela Gunaratne’s replacement.Smith’s exclusion comes in the wake of his tarnished image after the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town earlier this year, which led to him being banned from international and Australian domestic cricket for a year. He was barred from playing in the IPL but participated in the Global T20 Canada league and the Caribbean Premier League in July-August and also led his grade side, Sutherland, to the New South Wales Premier T20 title at the SCG last week.ALSO READ: Steven Smith returns to commercial fold wth BBL ad campaignESPNcricinfo obtained the letter written by the BCB to Comilla Victorians that says that after the franchises did not agree with Smith’s inclusion during the December 11 meeting held at the BCB’s Mirpur headquarters, the decision was referred to the BCB who upheld the earlier pronouncement.The letter said: “Given that the Players’ Draft Rules does not allow any franchisee to replace any directly signed player from outside the players’ Draft list and in view of the decisions taken by majority of the Franchisees on 11.12.2018, the Board has upheld the decision of BPL Governing Council to withdraw the inclusion of Mr. Steve Smith in Comilla Victorians for upcoming 6th edition of BPL T20 tournament 2019. In view of the above, Mr. Smith will not be eligible to register for Comilla Victorians for the 6th edition of BPL T20 tournament 2019.”ESPNcricinfo understands that Comilla wanted Smith as replacement for Shoaib Malik, who was unavailable for much of the BPL. When other franchises objected to this replacement, Comilla signed Smith as a replacement for Gunaratne, who was then playing the Emerging Nations Cup. The franchises then apparently pointed that out to the BCB as well with an objection.Comilla Victorians have not made a comment on the issue yet.
O Santos começou o ano com uma verdadeira maratona de jogos para encarar. Depois de empatar com o Boca Juniors na quarta-feira, pela primeira partida das quartas de final da Libertadores, o Peixe visita o São Paulo no domingo, pelo Brasileirão, e faz a volta com o argentinos já na próxima quarta. Veríssimo falou sobre a sequência.
>> CONFIRA COMO ESTÁ O SANTOS NA TABELA DO BRASILEIRÃO
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– Não é fácil. Fisioterapeutas vão cuidar para a gente chegar bem contra o São Paulo, assim como chegamos hoje aqui na Argentina – comentou o defensor.
O Santos visita o São Paulo no próximo domingo. O clássico será disputado no Morumbi, 16h, e é importante para as duas equipes. O Peixe busca se aproximar da zona de classificação para a próxima Libertadores. O rival busca manter a liderança do Campeonato Brasileiro.
Pela competição sul-americana, os santistas voltam a campo na próxima quarta-feira, quando a equipe recebe o Boca Juniors, na Vila Belmiro. Quem vencer ficar com a vaga na final. Empate com gols dá vantagem aos argentinos. Outro 0 a 0 leva a decisão para os pênaltis.
Despite suffering through an abysmal campaign last year, there was quite a bit of optimism surrounding Chelsea going into this season.
They had appointed a well-respected, Premier League-proven manager in Mauricio Pochettino, shipped off most of their deadwood to Saudi Arabia, and spent egregious sums of money on exciting young players to replace them.
However, that optimism has yet to translate into on-pitch performances, and the Blues are once again enduring a dreadful campaign in which there seems to be no end in sight.
There are, of course, a multitude of reasons why the wheels have so spectacularly fallen off at Stamford Bridge this year. Still, one that is hard to ignore is the injury to Christopher Nkunku, who, prior to his knee issue, was looking particularly deadly.
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Luckily for the Pensioners, the Frenchman isn't too far off returning, and the idea of him combining with transfer target Ivan Toney should make rival fans feel a little nervous.
Chelsea transfer news – Ivan Toney
According to a prior from talkSport, Chelsea are one of several Premier League clubs interested in signing the Brentford striker in 2024, and the fact that he has yet to sign a new deal has only further increased that interest.
The "unplayable" forward, as described by Alan Shearer, will see his current deal at the Gtech Community Stadium expire in 2025, meaning that the Bees are likely to sell their star striker in 2024 to protect their investment – regardless of what they tell the press.
There have been reports in recent months that a fee in the region of £50m-£60m would be enough to tempt the west Londoners into selling, but Sky Sports has confirmed that Toney is valued at £100m by his club and when Thomas Frank said as much in the summer, he wasn't joking: "£100m plus?… What would you pay for a striker that guarantees you 20-plus goals? And this is 20 goals for a mid-table club. What can he do in a bigger club?"
While that is an undeniably mammoth investment in a player who is already 27 years old and will have not played any football for over seven months, the prospect of him pairing up with Nkunku should be enough to convince Todd Boehly and co.
And hey, when has a massive price tag ever dissuaded Chelsea before?
How Ivan Toney could get the best out of Christopher Nkunku
One of the biggest problems at Chelsea this season – and over the last few years as well – is their inability to finish chances. The Blues have actually registered the fourth-highest expected goals total so far this season at 29.39, yet when it comes to finishing those chances, they rank eighth, with 25 goals, per Understat.
Compare that to the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle United, who have all scored more than their expected goals number, and the Blues' ineffectiveness in the six-yard box becomes all the more apparent.
Expected Goals to Actual Goals
Team
Expected Goals
Actual Goals
League Position
Manchester City
32.61
36
3rd
Liverpool
31.83
32
2nd
Newcastle United
31.31
32
6th
Arsenal
28.19
29
1st
Tottenham Hotspur
24.26
28
5th
Chelsea
29.39
25
10th
All Stats via Understat and correct as of matchweek 14
The return of Nkunku is undoubtedly going to help alleviate this problem somewhat, as the 26-year-old "monster", as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, found the back of the net 16 times in 25 Bundesliga appearances last season and 20 times in 34 the season before.
Christopher-Nkunku-Chelsea-target
However, were Pochettino able to play the Frenchman alongside Toney – who has the "mindset of a lion" according to Frank and managed to bag 20 goals in 33 Premier League games last season – Chelsea could finally have a genuinely lethal attack to get on the end of the mountain of chances they create.
Additionally, while Nkunku excels best down the middle, his ability to play out wide would allow Pochettino to play three up top and include Raheem Sterling on the right, who has been one of the club's few bright sparks this year – scoring five league goals so far.
While this deal will force Boehly to put his hands back in his pockets, the idea of a front three comprising Nkunku, Toney and Sterling should be enough to reinvigorate any deflated Chelsea fan out there.
خسر فريق الكرة الأول بنادي الزمالك، على يد نظيره طلائع الجيش بثلاثية مقابل هدف في المباراة التي أقيمت بينهما ضمن منافسات الدوري المصري الممتاز “النيل”.
مباراة الزمالك وطلائع الجيش أقيمت كتحصيل حاصل، على ملعب استاد القاهرة الدولي ضمن مواجهات الجولة 33 من عمر البطولة المحلية، حيث تأكد فوز الأهلي بلقب المسابقة.
افتتح فريق طلائع الجيش التسجيل عن طريق عمر السعيد بتسديدة من داخل منطقة الجزاء أرضية زاحقة غالطت محمود الشناوي حارس الزمالك وسكنت الشباك في الدقيقة 25.
تشكيل الزمالك أمام طلائع الجيش في الدوري.. أكينيولا يقود الهجوم
وتعادل سامسون أكينيولا بهدف للزمالك في الدقيقة 35 من عمر اللقاء بعد مراوغة رائعة لدفاع الجيش وتسديدة لمست أقدام الدفاع وغيرت اتجاهها لتسكن الشباك.
وفي الدقيقة 40 سجل طلائع الجيش الهدف الثاني عن طريق كريم طارق بكعب أكثر من رائع، مستغلًا عرضية إسلام محارب.
ثم عزز فريق طلائع الجيش تقدمه بهدف ثالث سجله البديل محمد حمدي ذكي عن طريق ركلة جزاء نجح في تنفيذها.
ومن المقرر أن يستكمل نادي الزمالك مشواره في بطولة الدوري المصري هذا الموسم، إذ يخوض مواجهة الجولة الختامية من عمر المنافسة.
ويواجه الزمالك نظيره بلدية المحلة الهابط رسميًا لدوري المحترفين في خضم مباريات الجولة 34 والأخيرة من عمر الدوري المصري الممتاز. موعد مباراة الزمالك وبلدية المحلة في الدوري المصري
ويواجه الزمالك نظيره بلدية المحلة يوم السبت 17 أغسطس، في تمام الساعة السابعة مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية.
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