Most recently, Moroney worked as convenor selector for the Under-19 men’s side, which included last year’s World Cup selection

Firdose Moonda17-Jul-2025Patrick Moroney, a former national selector, has been appointed as South Africa’s new convenor selector for the men’s senior side. Moroney will begin work on August 1. That means his first series in charge will be South Africa’s white-ball tour of Australia, which starts on August 10.Moroney has had a long involvement in selection which dates back to 2001. He has worked with the South African National Academy, the emerging sides, and was in the running to become South Africa’s convenor of selectors in 2019. Then, he lost out to Victor Mpitsang but was appointed to work alongside him.Most recently, Moroney worked as convenor selector for the Under-19 men’s side, which included last year’s World Cup selection. Both Kwena Maphaka and Lhuan-dre Pretorius were among his picks at that tournament.”His deep understanding of the game, combined with decades of experience in talent identification and selection across various levels, makes him the ideal person for the job,” Enoch Nkwe, director of national teams and High Performance, said in a statement announcing Moroney’s appointment.This is the first time coach Shukri Conrad will have to work with a selection convener since his appointment in January 2023. At the time, Nkwe did away with the selection panel, which was chaired by Mpitsang and also included Moroney, the national coach, and the captain. That left the duties of picking squads and teams solely with the national coaches.Conrad was put in charge of the Test side, and made several left-field selections, including most recently putting Wiaan Mulder at No. 3 – though Mulder now holds South Africa’s highest Test score – while Rob Walter had the white-ball job. Walter faced criticism from various quarters over taking a squad with only one black African player to last year’s T20 World Cup, where South Africa reached the final.It is learnt that CSA’s board had since insisted on the reinstatement of a convenor of selectors, albeit not a full panel. Interviews were concluded in May, when Conrad was given the all-format coaching job, and at the time Nkwe explained the reason to bring back a convenor of selectors to offer “support” to a coach who would already have a lot on his plate.”We needed to review, and look at areas in terms of where we can actually support the coach,” Nkwe said. “We need to have more eyes on the ground as the coach is going to be focusing on performance.”Also at the time, Conrad said he was happy to work with someone, and hoped that person would be a “like-minded person, and that has got South African cricket and the Proteas at heart”.Earlier, Mpitsang and Moroney had worked together in the selection panel from late 2019 until early 2023, and that period coincided with Mark Boucher’s tenure as South Africa’s head coach. Among the most debatable choices that panel made was changing a winning XI on the tour of England in 2022. After South Africa won the first Test at Lord’s, they picked a spinner to play on a seamer-friendly pitch in the second Test at Old Trafford, which forced South Africa to bat first on a difficult track. As a result, they lost that match and then the series. The panel also selected a then-unknown Marco Jansen, who has since gone on to represent South Africa in all formats.

After finding life rather tricky in the Basque Country two weeks ago, winning 2-0 against Athletic Club, Arsenal once again were made to work hard for their win in the Champions League.

Welcoming Olympiacos to the Emirates Stadium, meeting the Greek champions for the 13th time in 15 years, they were a difficult side to get the better of, but like they did in Bilbao, Mikel Arteta’s men got the job done, 2-0 victors again.

While the Gunners struggled to create clear-cut opportunities to score from in the second half, in truth, it was a game they could have won by four or five goals.

In the opening 45 minutes the Londoners were electric, scoring early through Gabriel Martinelli before substitute Bukayo Saka rounded things off late on.

While not on the scoresheet, the biggest positive from the night was undoubtedly the performance of skipper Martin Odegaard.

After suffering an ankle injury on international duty just over a year ago, the Norwegian has looked a little lost for form but was back to his best in Europe on Wednesday, putting in a masterclass performance from the middle of the park.

It was Odegaard who supplied Saka’s goal and it was the club captain who played the ball in behind in the build-up to the opener.

To see him in full flow again is a joy, and he will be vital now as Arteta’s side aim to go deep in this year’s competition. So far they have six points from six, but trickier ties await, notably Atletico Madrid in match week three.

Speaking of Odegaard, Viktor Gyokeres will have no doubt been delighted he was back in the side.

Viktor Gyokeres' performance in numbers vs Olympiacos

In all honesty, this has been a difficult start to life for the hulking Swede in north London.

At Sporting CP last season, he showcased his credentials by scoring 54 goals, three of which came against Manchester City in this very competition.

Yet, in Arsenal colours, he’s not been able to demonstrate the same level of clinicalness inside the penalty area.

Gyokeres has scored three times, two coming in one game against Leeds United, but there is a sense that he needs to work on his final action.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

He had six shots against Newcastle on Sunday but none of them felt too clean. The truth is that he’s taking too much time to get his efforts away.

That said, the summer arrival is improving. The very fact he was so threatening last weekend is evidence of that.

Against Olympiacos, the 27-year-old perhaps put in his best non-scoring display for Arsenal yet. Finally afforded space in behind, he was unlucky not to score on a few occasions.

His forward play for the first goal was sublime. Odegaard fed the ball in behind and Gyokeres bulldozed his way forward, crashing past two defenders and then getting a shot away that came off the post.

Fortunately, Martinelli was ready and waiting to tap the rebound into an empty net.

Gyokeres was a willing runner for much of the game and was found with great regularity by an in-form Odegaard. You can tell the chemistry between Arsenal’s chief creators and their new striker is indeed improving.

It’s hard to judge him too much so far. Visits to Old Trafford, Anfield and St James Park’ have historically been tricky and with easier fixtures to come, the Swedish superstar looks like he’s growing in confidence at just the right time.

Whether he goes on to replicate some of Arsenal’s great strikers of the past remains to be seen. He bears the number 14, famously worn by Thierry Henry and later, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

No Gunners striker has lifted the Premier League since the days of Henry, not even the likes of Robin van Persie or Auba. Perhaps now will be the year they finally do so.

To stand any chance of that, not only will they need Odegaard and Gyokeres in top form, but they will also need to find a way to get more out of their future Van Persie.

Arteta could be brewing the next Van Persie at Arsenal

The scorer of 30-plus goals in a single campaign during the Arsene Wenger era, Van Persie was a menacing centre-forward and Gyokeres will no doubt hope to emulate him.

However, one player who already looks ready to emulate the great Dutchman is Martinelli.

The Brazilian has endured a sticky few years. In 2022/23, he ended the term as the club’s joint-top scorer alongside Saka and Odegaard, but he has not replicated that since.

While he still looks a tad timid in 2025/26, he is finding his feet once more, even with limited game time.

Martinelli’s start on Wednesday evening was just his fourth of the season to date but he more than made it count, scoring the first goal of the game.

The 24-year-old is certainly a man in form having scored three in his last four, the most important of which came against Manchester City, delicately lobbing Gianluigi Donnarumma in the Citizens’ net with barely minutes remaining.

All of his goals this season have so far come from central areas and that’s where the Brazilian could become a force in the years to come.

For years, Martinelli has been a wide forward. Those 15 goals in 2022/23 came from the left flank, but there is a striker waiting to be unleashed. His record as an out-and-out centre-forward is better than in any other position, albeit that is from a small sample size.

Left wing

186

40

26

Right wing

18

3

3

Striker

16

9

0

Total

220

52

29

Having netted nine goals in 16 matches, the proof is there. He’s a very threatening striker. He’s got pace and he’s got the ability to run in behind. The goal in Bilbao a few weeks ago showed no defender is quick enough to keep up with him and that goal against City came courtesy of another run in behind the defence from a central position.

Interestingly, it was as a central attacker where Unai Emery got a lot of joy from Martinelli, too. During his debut year in England, 2019/20, he found the net on seven occasions in nine matches as a centre forward.

So, why the comparison to Van Persie? Well, when the Netherlands icon first signed for Arsenal, he did so as a wide player. Like Martinelli, he was traditionally a left winger.

That said, the plan for Wenger was always to transform him into a striker and he did just that, to great success too.

While Van Persie may not have had the pace of Martinelli, his finishing ability was remarkable. At Arsenal, the Flying Dutchman registered 132 goals in 278 matches, cementing himself as one of the finest players to don the famous shirt. It was a great success story for Wenger.

Now, in 2025, Arteta must take a leaf out of the Frenchman’s book. The Brazil international may well have been fielded on the wing on Wednesday night, but he looks more at home centrally, just as Van Persie did.

After the arrivals of Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke this summer, Arsenal’s number 11 was always going to find it tricky to get regular starts, but with Kai Havertz out and Gyokeres still getting up to speed, perhaps the forward could revive his career by permanently moving to the striker role.

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The first game of the New York Yankees–Los Angeles Dodgers matchup in the World Series got off to a slow start Friday night, but it wasn’t without some early controversy.

MLB umpire Carlos Torres, who is working home plate in Game 1 at Dodger Stadium, got his World Series debut off to a questionable start, to say the least. In the first inning, Torres called a strike on Dodgers’ Jack Flaherty’s pitch to Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm Jr. even though the ball appeared well outside the strike zone.

Torres’s strike zone continued to baffle fans, even as Fox analyst John Smoltz said that it would be “a hitter’s strike zone tonight.” 

Then, when Yankees’ Gerrit Cole took the mound early in the game, Torres called a ball and then a strike on two nearly identical pitches. Take a look for yourself:

MLB fans were far from impressed.

At least Torres is consistently inconsistent? The rest of the game could feature plenty more controversial calls as the MLB ump continues to build what appears to be a so-so report card.

Game 2 is just not going the Los Angeles Dodgers' way.

The Dodgers quickly fell behind 6–0 to the New York Mets on Monday in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series on Monday afternoon at Dodger Stadium. To make matters worse, the team found a snake in its dugout during a break between innings.

After reliever Brent Honeywell finished off the Mets in the top of the fifth inning, he headed for the team's dugout. As he was about to step down into it, he pointed to the ground and a snake could be seen slithering on the top step. No, Padres fans, it wasn't Dave Roberts.

Yeah that's pretty unsettling. Dodger Stadium is pretty old but you'd figure they could keep the local snake population at bay.

A home run by Francisco Lindor to lead off the game and a second-inning grand slam by Mark Vientos gave the Mets five of their six runs. Sean Manaea did the rest, cruising through five innings allowing two hits and one run, which came on a Max Muncy home run.

The Dodgers are going to need that slithering reptile to turn into a rally snake if they don't want to lose home field advantage in the series.

تحدث فلورنتينو بيريز، رئيس نادي ريال مدريد الإسباني عن ملعبه سانتياجو برنابيو والتجديدات التي صنعت رابطًا وثيقًا مع جمهور الملكي.

واستضاف ملعب “سانتياجو برنابيو” مباراة قوية وتاريخية في كرة القدم الأمريكية، جعلته يعود للمحافل العالمية مرة أخرى.

وقال بيريز، في تصريحات عبر صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية: “يجب على أي مدريدي يزور برنابيو أن يشعر بأنه جزء من تجربة مميزة، والتكنولوجيا تُمكننا من تحقيق ذلك، تحسين كل تفاعل من الجمهور وتقوية الرابط العاطفي مع جميع مشجعينا”.

وأضاف: “أقرب ما يمكن أن يُجسد هذه التجربة هو تجربة الواقع الافتراضي الجديدة التي نطورها، إنها تجربة تتيح لأي شخص خوض مباراة بشعور من الحضور والتفاعل لم يكن مُتاحًا من قبل”.

اقرأ أيضًا | ليفربول يقدم عرضًا لتجديد عقد لاعبه.. وريال مدريد يترقب

وأكمل: “ستكون بمثابة فتح أبواب الملعب للعالم أجمع وبلا حدود وبمستوى تكنولوجي يُمثل نقطة تحول في عالم الرياضة”.

وعن التأثير الاقتصادي، أردف: “الأمر الجوهري حقًا هو منح مليار مشجع لريال مدريد التجربة التي يتطلعون إليها”.

وأتم: “لم يكن ستيف جوبز مهووسًا بالنتائج المالية بل كان مُهووسًا بابتكار منتجات استثنائية، عندما تُركز على التميز تستطيع أن تصل إليه”.

Ibrahima Konate has revealed that a final decision on his future at Liverpool will be made soon amid strong interest from Real Madrid. The French centre-back has entered the final part of his five-year contract with the English champions that he signed in 2021. The Reds are yet to agree a new deal with the defender, with only weeks left before he can initiate pre-contract talks with foreign clubs.

Defender's five-year spell at Liverpool so far

Konate joined Liverpool in 2021 from RB Leipzig when Jurgen Klopp was still their manager. The French defender slowly established himself as a key figure in the Reds' backline, first under Klopp and then under Arne Slot. He played a key role in helping the Merseyside club win their record-equalling 20th English top-flight title last season. He has regularly featured for the club at the heart of their defence alongside Virgil van Dijk.

Despite being a key member of Slot's side, Konate is yet to commit his future to the club beyond 2026, while the Merseyside giants are also yet to offer a new deal to the player. The Frenchman can formally hold pre-contract talks with clubs outside England from January. Real Madrid continue to remain interested in the player and want to convince him not to sign a new deal and then join them as a free agent next summer. Madrid are also joined by Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich, who are also in search of a quality centre-back option. 

AdvertisementGetty ImagesKonate to decide on his future soon

Ahead of France's dead-rubber World Cup qualifying game against Azerbaijan in Baku on Sunday, Konate addressed questions on his future as he told reporters: "My agents continue to discuss with Liverpool. I hope my decision will be made very soon so I can announce it."

The defender rubbished rumours which claimed that Liverpool have already approached with a new contract, as he added: "I don’t know where that’s coming from."

Madrid using Mbappe to convince Konate

In a chat with , Konate also revealed that he gets constant phone calls from his France team-mate and captain Kylian Mbappe, as he said that the 26-year-old Real Madrid star "calls me every two hours to sign for Real Madrid." Mbappe is determined to convince the Reds defender to join him at the Spanish capital next summer. 

There is no urgency in the Madrid camp when it comes to Konate's transfer, as Liverpool have only a few weeks to convince the player and make him sign a new deal before he starts to negotiate new offers. The La Liga side would want Konate to reject a new contract offer from the Premier League champions and then join them in the summer for free, quite similar to the way they landed Trent Alexander-Arnold this season.

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GettyLiverpool are not dependent on Konate

Earlier this month, Reds legend and pundit Jamie Carragher claimed that while he would love to see Konate stay back and continue at Anfield, if he leaves for Madrid next summer, the Merseyside club won't miss the centre-back much. 

Carragher told the : "I’d like him [Konate] to stay but if he doesn’t stay, Liverpool will sign someone else. Liverpool won’t fall apart if Konate leaves. He's not Virgil van Dijk. He's a good centre-back who you hope will sign, but if he doesn’t want to sign, Liverpool will be absolutely fine. He's a very good centre-back, he's a title winner at Liverpool, he's played in the Champions League final against Real Madrid. He's obviously a quality centre-back. It's not poor management [if he goes for free]. You can't physically make somebody sign a contract. Then it's your decision, do you keep him to the length of his contract or do you sell him?"

Real Madrid's iconic Bernabeu stadium is gearing up to host its first-ever NFL match as Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders are set to lock horns in the Spanish capital on Sunday. The event marks a major step in the NFL's expansion into Europe as the Bernabeu follows in the footsteps of Wembley Stadium, which first held an NFL encounter in 2007.

• Real Madrid set to host NFL game after €1.6b makeover

  The Bernabeu underwent a major transformation earlier this decade as the club spent a whopping €1.6 billion (£1.4b/$1.8b) to add new features to the venue, including a retractable roof, retractable pitch and lots of new commercial space, as well as VIP and hospitality facilities. Ahead of the NFL clash between Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders, Madrid shared a glimpse of the transformation.

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• Why is Real Madrid hosting NFL match?

  Following the massive spending to upgrade the venue, Madrid now plans to maximise their revenue from the new facilities. The club get paid for renting their stadium to the NFL, while they also get a small share of the ticket sales.

  From the NFL's point of view, this is another step to increase the game's popularity internationally. This is the final NFL game that will be hosted outside the United States of America. Earlier NFL had hosted matches in Sao Paulo, Dublin, London (which hosted three games) and Berlin.

  For the Dolphins, Miami has 66 percent Spanish-speaking residents and thus, culturally, it made sense to play a match at the Spanish capital. Dolphins' vice president of international development, Felipe Formiga told : "A fantastic opportunity to grow the sport and do so in a city that has so many similarities to Miami."

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  NFL game sparked tensions between Real Madrid and Atletico

  While Los Blancos hoped that the entire event would revolve around Bernabeu and the club, their city rivals, Atletico Madrid, silently struck a deal with the Dolphins to host them at their Metropolitano Stadium throughout the week, building up to the game. The NFL side reached Atletico's set-up earlier this week and then trained at their facilities, taking advantage of the international break. Several representatives of Atletico, including manager Diego Simeone, went to meet the Dolphins squad and the Argentine manager even gifted a jersey to the NFL coach. 

  Madrid chief Florentino Perez's camp made every effort to block the arrangement, but he strong relationship between Atletico and the Dolphins prevailed.

Yorkshire 354 for 7 (Bean 102*, Wharton 84) beat Durham 142 (White 3-24) by 212 runsFinlay Bean broke Yorkshire’s record for their fastest-ever List A century with a 53-ball hundred in a landslide 212-run win over Durham at Scarborough to maintain their relentless march towards the Metro Bank One-Day Cup knockouts.Bean, batting at No. 5, boosted the Group B leaders to a total of 354 for 7 with a destructive innings of 102 not out off 57 balls, with eight fours and six sixes. James Wharton also contributed a dynamic career best 84. In only his second appearance of the competition, Bean’s maiden List A hundred set Yorkshire up for the fifth win in six matches.Durham then crumbled to 142 all out in 36 overs, losing their fourth game in seven to all but end their knockout hopes. This was their heaviest-ever List A defeat by runs margin. New-ball seamer Jack White returned 3 for 24 from eight overs for the hosts.Yorkshire started solidly under an overcast sky on a pitch with pace and bounce, reaching 99 for 2 after 20 overs. Imam-ul-Haq was caught behind pulling at Ben Raine’s seam for 22 – his lowest score in five One-Day Cup matches – and Adam Lyth caught at deep backward square-leg for 37 following a top-edge against former team-mate Will Rhodes.Having reached 123 for 2 after 25 overs, Will Luxton and Wharton looked to accelerate, and did so for a period as they shared 88 in entertaining fashion. Luxton pulled Raine for six over deep backward square-leg and Wharton also pulled with authority en route to a 54-ball fifty.Almost immediately afterwards, Luxton – on 46 – miscued the pace of Sam Conners to midwicket with the score on 169 in the 33rd. But that only served to bring Bean to the crease, and what followed was sensational. He shared a 101-run stand for the fourth wicket with Wharton.Best known as a determined red-ball opener, Bean reached 50 off 33 balls and scored his second fifty off 20. All of his sixes were leg-side as he beat the previous record for Yorkshire’s fastest List A hundred by seven balls. Lyth, on this ground in 2016, reached his hundred in 60 balls in a two-wicket win over Northamptonshire.Wharton fell short of his own maiden List A hundred as the White Rose scored 174 in the last 15 overs.Durham’s chase then got off to a nightmare start at nine for two in the fifth over, which included two wickets for Ben Coad’s seam and the visitors failing to score off the first 22 balls of the innings.Coad bowled Alex Lees for nought and had Emilio Gay caught at second slip but walked off the field immediately after the second wicket with a suspected hamstring injury. Still, it didn’t hamper Yorkshire in the short term – even if it may do in the next month and a bit.Durham’s race was run before it had got going, with them sinking to 32 for four in the 10th over. Matt Milnes had an uppercutting Colin Ackermann caught behind and White forced captain Ollie Robinson to miscue to Bean at point. George Hill and captain Dom Bess then removed Scott Borthwick and Robbie Bowman before Durham reached 50.Rhodes and George Drissell were Durham’s only two batters to reach 20, with 27 and a consolatory List A best 46 respectively. Rhodes was caught at short third off Lyth’s offspin before Drissell skied White to mid-on, leaving the score at 131 for 9. White finished things off by trapping Codi Yusuf lbw.

New Zealand’s domestic T20 competition will kick off on Boxing Day for 32 days and 64 games in all

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Aug-2025The Hagley Oval in Christchurch is set to host the Super Smash women’s and men’s elimination and grand finals games for the upcoming season. It means the teams that make it to the last stage will get together for these finals games in the last three days of January, just like it was done at the Basin Reserve in Wellington last season.New Zealand’s domestic T20 competition will kick off on Boxing Day for 32 days and 64 games in all, starting with Northern Brave hosting Auckland’s men’s and women’s teams at Seddon Park in Hamilton.While announcing the fixtures for the next season, an NZC release stated the 2024-25 season was a “watershed one for Super Smash with TVNZ broadcasts reaching over one million people, along with a record 7.3 million views across Super Smash content on NZC’s digital channels.”Related

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Tom Bruce, Central Districts captain and Men’s Player of the Year last season in the Super Smash spoke of the competitive nature of the season which forced players to constantly evolve.”You’ve got BLACKCAPS and WHITE FERNS scattered across the teams along with plenty of up and coming stars pushing for their chance at the next level,” he said. “With only six teams in the competition, you have to constantly be thinking about evolving your game as you often play similar squads a few times a season.”You’re forced to progress your game as individuals and as a team, otherwise players will figure you out pretty quickly. It’s also great for players to get used to playing in front of a large crowd and a pretty substantial TV audience too.”If they can get a taste of playing in that context, then once they make the step up to BLACKCAPS or WHITE FERNS, they already have some invaluable experience playing in that sort of environment.”Suzanne Pearce, executive manager of the Canterbury Cricket Trust which owns and operates the Hagley Oval, was confident Christchurch hosting the finals games would inspire more youngsters.”We think we have the best ground in New Zealand and it’s a huge vote of confidence in the venue, the city and the cricket community here in Christchurch, so we’re very pleased,” she said.”Our crowds the past few seasons are testament to how loyal the fans are here. It’s a big win, not only for the city but the wider Canterbury region. It’s a chance for our fans to see the best players in the country play some awesome cricket and for those young players coming through to be inspired.”There is something really special about having a world-class international cricket ground in the middle of our city park. You look one way and see the southern alps and see the city and the port hills at the other end.”New Year’s Day will see last season’s finalists – Canterbury and Central Districts – come face to face again, at the Hagley Oval.Canterbury will be chasing their first T20 title in 20 years after coming agonisingly close as runners-up in the past five seasons.The NZC release also said KFC’s “6’s for Surf” will be back too, with KFC pledging $100 for every six hit, with $38,100 donated to Surf Lifesaving NZ last season.

There is a lot to be delighted about for Arsenal fans at the moment.

In the Champions League, they have won all four of their games; in the League Cup, they’re through to the quarter-finals, and in the Premier League, they’re top of the table.

Moreover, they’re defensively out of this world, unstoppable at set-pieces and have once again introduced another world-class prospect to the squad in Max Dowman.

The 15-year-old looks destined for greatness, and now Hale End appears to be brewing another supreme talent for Arsenal, who could be Bukayo Saka 2.0.

Dowman's rapid rise

There is no getting away from the fact that, for Arsenal, this season is primarily about finally getting over the line in the Premier League.

In The Pipeline

Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

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However, one of the secondary stories has been that of Dowman’s rapid rise from 15-year-old academy gem to semi-regular first-teamer.

The Chelmsford-born gem was first introduced to the fans during pre-season, where his eye-catching performances led respected analyst Ben Mattinson to claim he was “humiliating Premier League players.”

The youngster was then given his first taste of competitive football against Leeds United, where he once again ran senior defenders ragged and won his side a penalty.

The next step was his first start in the League Cup against Brighton, a game in which he completed the most dribbles of anyone on the pitch and officially became the youngest player to start for Arsenal.

Then this week, he broke another record, becoming the youngest player to ever make an appearance in the Champions League, coming on in the 72nd minute and once again looking right at home.

After the match, Arteta was full of praise for the youngster, saying: “What he’s done on the pitch – he comes in, the first ball he takes is he takes people on, he starts to dribble and gets a foul. That’s personality, that’s courage – and you cannot teach that.”

It wasn’t just the Gunners’ boss who was impressed, though, as Slavia Prague’s David Zima went so far as to call him “a miracle player.”

In all, Dowman appears to be on track to reach the very top with Arsenal, and now there is another young talent making waves in the academy who could be the next Saka.

Arsenal's new Saka

There are more than a handful of exciting talents coming through Hale End at the moment, with Brando Bailey-Joseph being one of them.

The 17-year-old only signed scholarship terms with the club a few months ago, but due to his impressive performances, he put pen to paper on a professional deal last month.

There is a chance he could be a future Saka-esque player for the club, as, like the talismanic number seven, he has shown an ability to play on both sides of the attack.

In fact, like the Hale End icon, he has also played deeper, on both the right and left of the midfield.

Moreover, while he’s not as prolific as Dowman, he’s shown an ability to score and assist goals.

Bailey-Joseph’s 25/26

Appearances

13

Minutes

901′

Goals

4

Assists

4

Goal Involvements per Match

0.61

Minutes per Goal Involvement

112.62′

All Stats via Transfermarkt

For example, in 13 appearances this season, totalling 901 minutes, he has put the ball in the back of the net four times and provided four assists for good measure.

In other words, the “explosive” attacker, as dubbed by Hale End expert Will Balsam, is currently averaging a goal involvement every 1.62 games, or every 112.62 minutes, which is seriously impressive for a winger.

Moreover, what makes him such a “menace” for opposition defenders is, per Balsam, his “quickness & sharp cuts” with the ball at his feet.

Finally, according to Mattinson, what makes the youngster such an exciting prospect is his “good ball manipulation” and the fact that he “releases shots quickly in and around the box.”

Ultimately, he has a long way to go to become the next Saka, but as things stand, Bailey-Joseph appears to have all the raw materials necessary to succeed.

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Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Nov 6, 2025