Everton recently sent scouts to watch a winger who has been compared to Gareth Bale, according to reports, as we close in towards the January transfer window.

Everton transfer news

Despite a resounding 4-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in their last outing, Everton’s Premier League season has been generally disappointing. The Toffees have managed just 14 points from their first 14 matches and are currently at 15th in the table, just five points above the drop zone. As such, manager Sean Dyche is likely to focus on bolstering his squad during the January transfer window.

Reports suggest the Toffees are eager to secure the signing of Fenerbahce winger Oguz Aydin, following a recent scouting trip to assess the player, while the club is also understood to have made an approach for Botafogo striker Igor Jesus.

The Brazilian, who has eight goals in 30 games for Botafogo, is seen as a potential upgrade on Portuguese striker Beto, who is set to return to Italy after what’s been a difficult spell on Merseyside.

Torino are reportedly in advanced discussions over a potential £16.5 million deal for the striker, who has scored just six times in 48 games for the Toffees since moving from Udinese last summer.

Everton sent scouts to watch Baris Alper Yilmaz

According to TBR Football, another player on Everton’s radar is Galatasaray winger Baris Alper Yilmaz. The publication claims that the Toffees, alongside a host of other Premier League teams including West Ham United, Newcastle and Aston Villa, sent scouts to watch the Turkey international action against Sivasspor at the weekend.

They would have likely been impressed with what they saw, with Yilmaz scoring the decisive goal in what was a hard-fought 3-2 victory for Okan Buruk’s side, who are now six points clear at the top of the Turkish Super Lig.

The goal was Yilmaz’s seventh of the season and second in as many games, with the 24-year-old also having found the net against Eyupspor a week prior.

Baris Alper Yilmaz Turkish Super Lig Stats (2024/25)

Games

12

Goals

6

Assists

1

Pass completion rate (%)

78.1

Dribbles per game

1.4

Man of the Match

2

Yilmaz, who has 24 caps and two goals for Turkey, has previously been likened to Tottenham, Real Madrid and Wales legend Gareth Bale by former Kayserispor coach Ilker Puren.

“I compare Baris Alper Yilmaz to Gareth Bale in terms of strength,” Puren told GS Gazette, per the Express. “He has the ability to sprint three or four meters after eliminating the opponent with the ball.”

Puren also compared Yilmaz to Manchester City and England star Phil Foden.

“One day, he will definitely play in the Premier League because physics comes to the fore there. He has also improved his positional knowledge,” he said. “The level he is at now is close to Phil Foden.”

TBR Football claim that Yilmaz, who is reportedly valued at £25 million by Galatasaray, is open to a move to the Premier League in January.

حقق الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي الزمالك فوزًا كاسحًا على فريق بهتيم بنتيجة 12-1، في المباراة الودية التي جمعتهما مساء الجمعة على ملعب القلعة البيضاء، ضمن الاستعدادات لمواجهة المصري البورسعيدي المقبلة في الدوري المصري.

وشهدت المباراة سيطرة كاملة من الزمالك، الذي أحرز أهدافه عن طريق سيف الدين الجزيري (هاتريك)، وأحمد عبد الرحيم “إيشو”، وسيف فاروق جعفر (هدفين لكل منهما)، بالإضافة إلى نبيل عماد دونجا، ومحمد حمدي، وناصر منسي، ومحمد عاطف، وأحمد فتوح، فيما سجل أحمد عمارة هدف بهتيم الوحيد.

طالع.. الزمالك يوضح لـ”بطولات” حقيقة تواجد حسام عبد المجيد في اتحاد الكرة للاستفسار عن عقده وأقيمت المباراة على أربعة أشواط مدة كل شوط 30 دقيقة، وفقًا لاتفاق الفريقين، بهدف منح فرصة المشاركة لأكبر عدد من اللاعبين.

افتتح “إيشو” التسجيل في الدقيقة 19 بتسديدة قوية، قبل أن يضيف دونجا الهدف الثاني في الدقيقة 29. وفي الشوط الثاني، قلّص بهتيم الفارق بهدف لأحمد عمارة، لكن الزمالك واصل تألقه وأضاف عدة أهداف متتالية.

وفي الشوط الثالث، تألق سيف الدين الجزيري بتسجيل هدفين متتاليين، كما ساهم بصناعة هدف لمحمد عاطف، فيما واصل “إيشو” وسيف فاروق جعفر تسجيل الأهداف وسط عرض هجومي مميز من الفريق الأبيض.

واختتم الزمالك مهرجان الأهداف في الشوط الرابع عن طريق أحمد فتوح وسيف فاروق جعفر، وسط تغييرات موسعة من الجهاز الفني بقيادة جوزيه بيسيرو لمنح اللاعبين فرصة المشاركة.

Chelsea continued their 100% record in the UEFA Conference League with a resounding 5-1 victory over Shamrock Rovers, leaving the Blues top of the Conference League table.

Chelsea once again put on an impressive attacking display, dominating 73% of possession and amassing an incredible 20 goal attempts as the Irish side were blown away with four first-half goals.

Young forward Marc Guiu was the man of the moment, scoring his first Chelsea hat-trick, but despite the youngster’s impressive Conference League form, he has only made one Premier League appearance this season.

With doubts about Christopher Nkunku’s fitness, it seems that Enzo Maresca is reliant on Nicolas Jackson to fill that number nine void ahead of a busy festive schedule. With Chelsea fighting on more than one front, the striker area may be a position that owner Todd Boehly looks to add some firepower.

Chelsea lining up striker dubbed the 'new Aguero'

Despite Jackson’s standout start to the season with 12 goal contributions in his 15 Premier League appearances and youngster Guiu finding his feet in European competitions, it seems that Chelsea are looking to add to the forward options in the upcoming January window.

According to journalist Graeme Bailey, Chelsea are interested in Spartak Moscow striker Manfred Ugalde, with the 22-year-old attracting interest across a number of other Premier League clubs, including Arsenal and Manchester City.

The Costa Rica international has been in scintillating form this season, notching 15 goals in 18 games for Spartak in the Russian Premier Liga ahead of the winter break.

Clubs across the Premier League are on red alert with the young striker having a reported £25m release clause in his contract after his move from FC Twente back in January.

Why Ugalde would be a good signing for Chelsea

The signing of Ugalde, dubbed the “new [Sergio] Aguero” by one football scout, would bring even more firepower to a front line that has already been purring this season – Chelsea are the top scorers in the Premier League.

The Spartak Moscow striker has already scored more goals this season than both Jackson and Guiu and is outperforming the Chelsea pair in a number of key metrics.

Indeed, in all competitions, the in-demand talent has netted 16 times in 2024/25, while Jackson and Guiu have contributed ‘just’ 15 goals between them across all fronts.

Manfred Ugalde v Nicolas Jackson & Marc Guiu domestic season 24/25

Stats (per 90)

Ugalde

Jackson

Guiu

Goals

15

9

0

Shots

3.64

3.12

0

Shots on target

1.82

1.6

0

Crosses

9

3

0

Tackles won

5

6

0

Stats via FBref

With more shots and shots on target per 90 minutes, it is clear to see why Ugalde has been so deadly this season in the Russian Premier Liga.

The hope will be that the 5 foot 8 marksman can follow in the footsteps of the aforementioned Aguero – who also stands at just 5 foot 8 – with the Argentine netting 260 goals in 390 games during his time at Manchester City.

However, it is not only Ugalde’s goalscoring ability that would bring that extra ingredient to Maresca’s side, Ugalde has also attempted more crosses than his Chelsea counterparts, proving his creative nature as well as predatory finishing.

Furthermore, Jackson, often lauded for his defensive ability and pressing from the front, has only made one more successful tackle than Ugalde – suggesting the Costa Rican can put a shift in defensively too.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

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Whether Chelsea can position themselves at the front of a long queue for Ugalde remains to be seen, but it is clear the Costa Rica striker would bring something extra to this flourishing Chelsea side, and who knows, possibly fire them to a Premier League title.

Related Move over Guiu: 8/10 star just showed why he's the "future of Chelsea"

Chelsea extended their dominant winning run against Shamrock Rovers in the Conference League group stage.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair Dec 20, 2024

MatériaMais Notícias

Lênin Franco está de saída do Botafogo. O executivo entregou o cargo de diretor de negócios e, por decisão própria, pediu demissão do Alvinegro nesta sexta-feira. O clube se pronunciou oficialmente em nota divulgada durante a manhã.

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+ Começo do Brasileirão, reta final da janela e expectativa por reforços: o abril do Botafogo

O executivo chegou ao Alvinegro em julho de 2021 e ajudou a formatar o novo programa de sócio-torcedor, o “Camisa7”. Mais recentemente, ele tinha fechado um acordo com a Volt para ser a nova fornecedora de materiais do clube, mas John Textor rompeu com o contrato.

Ele também foi responsável por fechar o contrato com a EstrelaBet, marca que foi patrocinadora master do Botafogo nos últimos meses – o Alvinegro não tinha um acordo neste sentido há dois anos. Ele se despediu do clube em uma rede social.

“Vai chegando ao fim uma bela história, que graças a Deus teve um final feliz.

Valeu, Fogão!”

The former Atlanta United star bagged the only goal to carry Lionel Scaloni's men a step closer to the 2026 World Cup

With no Lionel Messi for help, Thiago Almada played hero for Argentina Friday night, scoring the only goal in an otherwise drab affair to give his side a 1-0 win over Uruguay in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying.

The first half was defined by its relative lack of action. Both sides settled into a midfield scrap, with few chances to speak of. Argentina came closest when Enzo Fernandez had a shot cleared away from close range.

Little changed after the break. The game became a brutally untidy affair, with forward passes and goalscoring opportunities coming at a premium. Almada changed things, though. Afforded space for the first time all evening, the former Atlanta United attacking midfielder received the ball on the left, cut onto his stronger right foot, and unleashed a wonderful curling effort into the top corner.

Argentina sat in otherwise. There were a couple of half-hearted forays forward, but the Albiceleste mostly pulled off a wonderful act of game management. This wasn't a pretty one by any means, and they aren't the same team without their leader in Messi, but it remains an important step towards the World Cup.

GOAL rates Argentina's players from Estadio Centenario…

• Getty
  

  Goalkeeper & Defence

  Emi Martinez (6/10):

  Got into a scary clash with one of his defenders in the first half – but played on. Nothing else to do.

  Nahuel Molina (5/10):

  Pretty easily exploitable at right-back, and was beaten in one-on-ones here and there.

  Christian Romero (6/10):

  Didn't have much to do other than keep the ball moving – which he did a fine job of.

  Nicolas Otamendi (6/10):

  Given a tough go of things by the lively Darwin Nunez, but came out on top. Made a couple of key interventions.

  Nicolas Tagliafico (7/10):

  Pressed reasonably high on the left, and won the ball back on a few occasions. Involved in the run-up to the only goal.

Advertisement

• Getty
  

  Midfield

  Leandro Paredes (8/10):

  Excellent at the base of midfield. Won the most duels in the match and moved the ball well under pressure.

  Alexis Mac Allister (7/10):

  Started well, and was up for the fight throughout. Broke midfield lines with a couple of useful marauds forward.

  Enzo Fernandez (5/10):

  Rather wasteful on a couple of occasions, and didn't connect play well enough. Hasn't shown up for his country since the World Cup.

• Getty
  

  Attack

  Giuliano Simeone (5/10):

  Full of legs and effort, but didn't offer much in the way of final product.

  Julian Alvarez (5/10):

  Struggled to make an impact as the lone No.9. Functions better with a man just off him or in a two-striker setup.

  Thiago Almada (8/10):

  A few nice touches in the first half. Curled in an absolute beauty to win it in the second.

• Getty
  

  Subs & Manager

  Nico Gonzalez (4/10):

  Valuable extra legs in midfield, and then got sent off for an awful challenge.

  Exequiel Palacios (N/A):

  No time to make an impact.

  Leonardo Balderi (N/A):

  No time to make an impact.

  Angel Correa (N/A):

  No time to make an impact.

  Lionel Scaloni (7/10):

  Went with his strongest XI given the Messi-less situation. His team wasn't exactly wonderful, but it took its one real chance and didn't let up anything at the other end. A solid away performance.

The inaugural Pakistan Junior League will be played from October 1 to 15, featuring six teams and 19 games, at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium. It is also understood that, after the PCB invited corporate entities to be a part of the tournament, there were as many as 24 companies that came forward with a desire to be involved in different capacities. And at least three of the six existing PSL franchises are also believed to be interested in buying teams.The PCB feels there is enough interest to attract commercial partners, and is hopeful of roping in Pakistani legends as mentors and coaches.”I am delighted, encouraged and motivated by the response we have received to the Pakistan Junior League’s Request for Expressions of Interest,” Ramiz Raja, the PCB chairman, said in a statement on Friday. “This feedback has strengthened my belief and confidence that we have a huge appetite for cricket and a strong commercial market, which is keen, eager and happy to partner with the PCB on its projects of introducing new properties so that we can strengthen ourselves financially and commercially, and the return on investments are shared with all cricketers.”Following the success of the Pakistan Super League and the ever-improving reputation of the PCB, the potential sponsors have shown excitement and expressed their interest in the city-based Pakistan Junior League in their endeavour to play an important role in helping the PCB to create an environment of brilliance by providing a clear pathway to the talented youngsters, which, in turn, will fortify our bench-strength and produce new national stars and heroes.”The plan for a franchise-based T20 league for junior cricketers – locals with a smattering of overseas players – was communicated by the PCB two weeks ago. The aim is to pick players from the 15-19 age group through a draft process. The PCB has confirmed that all overseas cricketers will be allowed to have a parent accompany them, with the cost to be footed either by the organisers or the franchises.The domestic cricket structure in Pakistan has been subject to a lot of rejigging over the years but the pathway for age-group players has mostly been structured, featuring levels between the Under-15s and the Under-19s. Historically, the age-group players have been nurtured through longer-format games, playing two- or three-day games alongside one-dayers.They have not really been exposed to the T20 format during their development phase in accordance with PCB regulations. The exception has been the PSL, where each franchise is required to field at least one emerging player in every game. That has led to quite a few new faces coming to the fore over the years.

Newcastle United will travel to Manchester United later on today full to the brim with confidence, whilst the hosts will fear another defeat is on the cards after a torrid away outing to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Boxing Day.

The Magpies celebrated a comfortable 3-0 win over Aston Villa on the contrary, with another potential three points against an out-of-sorts Red Devils side meaning Eddie Howe’s men would have been victorious four times on spin in the Premier League.

There have been plenty of impressive performers for Newcastle over recent matches, with the attacking personnel, in particular, standing out as the Toon continue to be a captivating watch on their A-Game.

Standout Newcastle attackers

Of course, a logical place to start when discussing exceptional attackers for Howe’s side is Alexander Isak, as the deadly Swede has been in inspired form lately for his high-flying outfit.

He would even score a hat-trick against Ipswich Town when Newcastle dispatched the Tractor Boys with ease in a 4-0 win, whilst also getting in on the goalscoring act versus Villa last time out to extend his rampant team’s lead.

That simple tap-in finish against Unai Emery’s opponents has shot Isak’s Premier League goal tally for the season up to 11, with Jacob Murphy also loving life next to the clinical Scandinavian down the right wing.

Murphy has been a revelation in December for the Magpies, with a stunning three goals and four assists picked up this month more than helping his side pick up win after win across a congested run of fixtures.

But, in Anthony Gordon, Newcastle have one of their most daring players in the attacking positions away from both on-fire names mentioned, and a face Ruben Amorim wouldn’t say no to if he could add him to his low-on-confidence Red Devils group.

He would likely barge his way straight into the main XI based on Man United’s ongoing woes, with the ex-Everton attacker hopeful he can cause havoc at Old Trafford later on.

Gordon's heroics for Newcastle

Gordon would get his team up and running against the Villans last match with this sublime curled effort which took his own goal haul in the Premier League for this season to four strikes from 17 games.

Also helping himself to three assists, it’s no shock to see football pundit Troy Deeney label the electric winger as a “wonderful” asset to Newcastle recently, alongside also being a star that has bettered many a Man United player this campaign in terms of end product.

Player

Games played

Goals scored

Assists

Gordon

17

4

3

Amad Diallo

16

2

6

Alejandro Garnacho

17

3

1

Bruno Fernandes

18

4

5

Joshua Zirkzee

18

3

1

Marcus Rashford

15

4

1

Rasmus Hojlund

13

2

0

Stats by Sofascore

Only Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo can boast more goals and assists in league action than Gordon in the Man United attacking ranks, with both Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho – who mainly operate on his same trusty left-hand side – struggling to keep up with the Newcastle ace’s numbers away from others impressing.

Gordon will hope his rich vein of form against sides from Manchester continues into this away trip to the Theatre of Dreams, having netted a late penalty versus Manchester City earlier in the campaign to secure a share of the spoils for his side, alongside also boasting three career strikes in total against the Red Devils.

He will surely be confident he can bump that number up to four by the close of the Monday night contest as Man United’s lax defending once again becomes their own undoing.

Newcastle supporters won’t want to get too carried away, but with the attacking arsenal Howe can put out, any defence in the Premier League right now would be scared.

PSG now make Newcastle star their priority target; £83m move possible

One of Eddie Howe’s key players could be on the move…

2 ByDominic Lund Dec 29, 2024

“My stuff is still left in the room,” the 25-year old said, indicating that he will be returning to India to see out the rest of the season

ESPNcricinfo staff08-May-2022Shimron Hetmyer has left the Rajasthan Royals to return home to Guyana for the birth of his first child. “My stuff is still left in the room,” the 25-year old said, indicating that he will be returning to India to see out the rest of the IPL. Royals are in third place and are looking like one of the better placed teams to make the playoffs which are set to begin on May 24.Hetmyer has been a huge contributor to the Royals’ surge up the points table. As the team’s finisher, he has scored 291 runs at an average of 72 (he has remained unbeaten in seven out of 11 innings). A more telling statistic of his influence is his death-overs (17-20) strike rate. At 214.28, he is among the top-five most destructive finishers this season (min 30 balls).

Shimron Hetmyer has travelled back to Guyana early morning today for the imminent birth of his first child, but he’ll be back soon.

Read more: https://t.co/cTUb3vFiNl#RoyalsFamily | @SHetmyer pic.twitter.com/u52aO9Dcct

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 8, 2022