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Leeds United are preparing for the 2023/24 Championship season after suffering relegation from the Premier League this year, three years on from their monumental return to the top flight after 16 years away.

According to the Daily Mail, Daniel Farke is on the verge of assuming the role of manager at Elland Road, and given his pedigree in England's second tier – winning promotion on two occasions with Norwich City – there are few available bosses better placed to orchestrate a return to prominence.

While United are starting to commence transfer plans following a slow start to the window, it might be wise for Farke to utilise the club's prestigious youth academy and manage the squad's finances aptly.

This shifts attention to Cody Drameh. The rising star completed a successful loan spell last season with Luton Town, who earned promotion to the Premier League for the first time in the side's history, and the 21-year-old could now repeat the feat with his parent club.

How good is Cody Drameh?

Given Leeds' woeful defensive fortunes last term, the crux of their demise, it is hardly likely that Farke will be contented with his current options.

But Drameh now stands in stellar stead to cement a starting berth, with his average 7.09 Sofascore rating in the league last term evidence that he can thrive and provide a different dynamic to the right flank.

Indeed, the marauding ace made 16 appearances after joining the Hatters on a six-month loan in January, registering two assists, averaging 1.6 key passes per game, and 3.1 tackles and 2.6 clearances per outing.

Hailed as a "Duracell bunny" by former Cardiff City boss Steve Morison during his previous loan stint in Wales, the £2.5k-per-week gem's multi-faceted prowess is evidenced through FBref, where he ranks among the top 5% of full-backs for shot-creating actions across the Men's Next 8 divisions – the top leagues below the established European 'big five' – as well as the top 12% for successful take-ons, the top 3% for tackles and the top 1% for blocks per 90.

Given that Luke Ayling has been branded an "idiot" by Jamie Carragher and mustered only a lowly 6.60 Sofascore rating after conceding 78 times in the Premier League – a divisional high tally – the 31-year-old is surely not the answer.

And with Rasmus Kristensen closing in on a move to Serie A side Roma, Drameh could well find the right-back position is his own under Farke's wing.

Kristensen arrived from RB Salzburg one year ago for around £10m and impressed as the campaign drew into the latter stages, scoring three goals after Christmas and establishing a prominent role both on the defensive right flank and the centre.

Drameh boasts the energy and enthusiasm to impress in West Yorkshire next term, and he simply has to be provided with the opportunity to star – perhaps proving the difference as the Whites seek an instant return to the Premier League.

Liverpool are fighting a number of Premier League rivals for the signing of Southampton youngster Romeo Lavia and have asked about details over a potential transfer, journalist Fabrizio Romano has claimed.

How good is Romeo Lavia?

The 19-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric rise over the past 12 months or so, having moved to the Saints from Manchester City, in order to enjoy regular football.

While the south coast side ultimately finished bottom of the table and suffered relegation from the Championship, Lavia was arguably their standout player, so often catching the eye with his displays in the middle of the park.

The £25,000-a-week Belgian scored a superb long-range strike at home to Chelsea early in the season, immediately making people sit up and take notice, and he ended up starting 26 league matches in total.

Lavia will surely move on this summer, rather than staying put in the second tier, and his quality is highlighted by the level of interest in his signature. Liverpool have been linked with a move for him numerous times and a fresh update suggests that he is still very much on their radar as new sporting director Jorg Schmadtke looks to make an impact in his first summer at Anfield.

What's the latest on Lavia to Liverpool?

Taking to Twitter on Monday morning, Romano claimed that Liverpool are still in the mix to snap up Lavia this summer and have approached Southampton over the conditions of a deal, but it is clear that there is strong competition for his signature:

"Understand Liverpool asked conditions of Romeo Lavia deal, they’re in the race. Arsenal, working on this deal for 15 days — no official bid from both clubs yet. Man Utd and Chelsea, monitoring the situation but not in active talks yet."

The importance of Liverpool strengthening their midfield greatly this summer cannot be stressed enough, with the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita and James Milner all leaving the club. Alexis Mac Allister has already arrived from Brighton, so Lavia could be the next eye-catching addition.

The Belgium international has a huge amount of potential, already becoming such an important player for a Premier League team in his teens, sso he could be seen as Fabinho's natural long-term replacement at Anfield, mastering the No.6 role in front of the defence.

A defensive force, Lavia averaged 2.1 tackles per game last season, but he is also impressive in possession, with Manchester United legend Paul Scholes saying he has "a pass in his locker", with the media labelling him as a "shining star" in Southampton's relegated team last season. Meanwhile, journalist Jacob Tanswell has lauded his "press-resistant" ability on the ball – something that would surely appeal to Jurgen Klopp.

If Liverpool could bring in Nice star Khephren Thuram as well as Lavia, with Mac Allister already signed, it would represent an excellent summer of midfield reinforcements.

Manchester City are readying a late move for Napoli centre-back Kim Min-jae, whose £50m release clause becomes active in July, according to a report from Football Insider.

Are Man City signing a centre-back?

With Ilkay Gundogan on his way to La Liga champions Barcelona, one of Pep Guardiola's main priorities is likely to be a replacement for his captain, and West Ham United's Declan Rice has recently emerged as a key target.

However, Man City have also been linked with moves for a number of centre-backs, including RB Leipzig's Josko Gvardiol, with a recent report indicating the Croatian has fully agreed personal terms.

If the Sky Blues miss out on Gvardiol, The Athletic reports they could turn their attentions to Villarreal's Pau Torres, who has been on their list of targets for quite some time, though West Ham United and Aston Villa have also registered their interest.

Another potential option for City is Kim, with Football Insider reporting they are readying a late move for the Napoli defender, who has a £50m release clause included in his contract, which is set to become active this July.

However, there is likely to be huge competition for the South Korean's signature, with Bayern Munich currently said to be in pole position, while he is also a target for rivals Manchester United.

Despite his side securing a historic treble last season, Pep Guardiola is keen to improve his squad even further this summer, and a top centre-back is of particular interest, meaning Aymeric Laporte's time at the club is likely to come to an end.

Who will Kim Min-jae sign for?

At the moment, it appears likely the 26-year-old will be on his way to Bayern Munich, with Sky Sports reporter Florian Plettenberg detailing the German club want to finalise a deal in the next few days.

However, if Man City were to make a late swoop for the centre-back, it would certainly give him a lot to think about, given that a move to the Etihad Stadium is likely to provide him with a great chance of competing for the top prizes.

If City do manage to win the race for Kim, they could have a top player on their hands, considering he has been lauded as "extraordinary" by teammate Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who also branded him "one of the best in the world".

The South Korea international could be an ideal fit for a Guardiola side, given his very impressive distribution, ranking in the 90th percentile for his pass completion rate per 90, and in the 97th percentile for passes attempted over the past year.

That said, a move for Gvardiol appears to be much more plausible at present, with journalist Rudy Galetti claiming City are "on the verge" of agreeing a long-term contract with the defender.

Habib Bank Limited struck back with four quick wickets, but Salman Butt’s 20th first-class ton ensured Water and Power Development Authority were marginally ahead on Day 2

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Dec-2016
ScorecardFile photo: Salman Butt struck 18 fours in his 234-ball knock•AFP

Salman Butt’s 20th first-class century, his third of the season, helped drive Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) into the lead, but Habib Bank Limited (HBL) hit back with three late strikes including that of Butt for 125. WAPDA ended day two on 244 for 5, ahead by just eight runs, at the National Stadium in Karachi. Kamran Akmal (23 not out) and Khalid Usman (7 not out) were at the crease.Resuming on 23 without loss, Butt and Adnan Raees put together 162 for the first wicket to lay a solid platform, before left-arm seamer Usman Khan struck in the 58th over. Raees pushed at a delivery away from the body and was pouched by Imran Farhat at first slip. His 170-ball vigil fetched him 50.HBL struck almost immediately after when they had Mohammad Saad run-out for 5. He was more than halfway down the pitch when he was sent back as Amad Butt’s throw to the keeper’s end resulted in his downfall. Butt and Aamer Sajjad then held fort for 14.2 overs in which they added 27 before Sajjad’s was out caught behind.Sixteen deliveries later, Butt was involved in a second run-out; this time he was the victim as an attempt to pinch a run to cover resulted in him being caught short of the crease at the non-striker’s end. WAPDA had slipped from 162 without loss to 205 for 4. Then, shortly before stumps, HBL had another when Zahir Mansoor was bowled by Amad Butt.Mohammad Asif was the star on the opening day; his four-wicket haul justifying Butt’s decision to bowl first as HBL were bundled out for 236. Asif was complemented by Mohammad Irfan, who took three wickets.There will be no play on Monday, which has been announced as rest day because or Rabi-ul-Awal. Play will resume on Tuesday.

Glasgow Rangers are in talks regarding a summer swoop to bring Cyriel Dessers to the Scottish Premiership, according to reports.

Who is Cyriel Dessers?

The Nigeria international is a striker who currently plays his football for Cremonese having moved there from KRC Genk last summer, and during his debut season at the Giovanni Zini Stadium, he clocked up a total of 29 appearances under Davide Ballardini.

The Scottish Daily Mail (via Ibrox News) first credited Michael Beale with an interest in the 28-year-old and revealed that he was one of the names “on a list” of targets being considered for the upcoming window, and it wasn’t long before the boss made his opening move.

The Daily Record earlier this month reported that the Light Blues had submitted a seven-figure bid for the Serie B forward after seeing their initial offer turned down which resulted in the two parties getting locked in talks, though it would appear that there has now been a successful breakthrough in negotiations.

Are Rangers signing Dessers?

According to Football Insider, Rangers are "pursuing" a move for Dessers with talks firmly "underway" ahead of the 2023/24 campaign. The Cremonese striker has been a target north of the border for "some time" and it's stated that a fee of £5m "could be enough" to get a deal over the line this summer.

The Italian outfit are looking to "trim costs" following their recent relegation so are resigned to selling some of their prized assets, one of those being the attacker who could well be on his way to Glasgow.

Rangers have confirmed that Alfredo Morelos has left the club upon the expiration of his contract so Beale will need a natural centre-forward to replace him, and having been described as someone who is “awkward to play against” because of his physical strength by journalist Josh Bunting, Dessers could be the perfect successor.

The Stirr Associates client, who has the versatility to operate everywhere across the frontline, posted 13 goal contributions (ten goals and three assists) from 32 appearances in all competitions last season so was prolific in the final third, but he also posed a threat when he wasn’t on the scoresheet.

Dessers ranked in the 92nd percentile for number of attacking touches in the opposition’s penalty area and recorded 49 shots over the course of the term which was the second-highest total throughout his squad, as per FBRef, so should he sign on the dotted line, it would be a massive coup for Beale.

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has stunned fans by scoring a brilliant goal after just 13 seconds before then scoring another volley in the second half.

What is the quickest-ever FA Cup final goal?

Meeting at Wembley in the FA Cup final, Pep Guardiola and co faced bitter rivals Manchester United with both aiming for a double.

Indeed, City have already won the Premier League and also have a Champions League final to come.

The Red Devils, on the other hand, have already lifted silverware at Wembley this season after beating Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final.

With so much on the line, both teams would have been raring to go but all of Erik ten Hag’s pre-game plans would have had to have been reassessed after just a matter of seconds.

Indeed, after a long ball upfield was nodded to the edge of his own box by Victor Lindelof, Gundogan volleyed the ball into the back of the net.

Incredibly, this moment of magic was the fastest goal in an FA Cup final. What’s more, it’s the first scored in the opening minute of the competition final since Louis Saha netted for Everton against Chelsea in 2009.

Supporters were blown away by Gundogan’s quality – as he netted another fine volley after United had equalised – and here are the best reactions on Twitter…

Supporters just couldn’t believe it.

Here’s his second goal.

With the CPL’s entry into the USA, Kumar Sangakkara has said the exposure to cricket through the league will help the growth of the sport in the USA

Peter Della Penna in Florida23-Jul-2016The Caribbean Premier League’s initial foray into the USA kicked off on Friday with the arrival of Jamaica Tallawahs at Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill, six days ahead of the first CPL games to be played in the USA. Tallawahs wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara, who captained Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International played in the USA at the same facility in 2010, has said the CPL could help the growth of cricket in USA.”It’s very exciting to be back,” Sangakkara said at the Tallawahs first press conference in Lauderhill on Friday. “I remember when we played New Zealand here in 2010, [it was] two very competitive games and I think it finished one-all and we enjoyed our time here.”To bring cricket back to Fort Lauderdale, to be here at Broward Park to play again is just about making sure the game is exposed to new viewership, to encourage new spectators to come and watch what happens on a cricket field, to watch the differences between cricket and baseball and to hopefully better understand it and hopefully grow to like it enough to actually experiment playing it.”The first experience for Sangakkara did not provide the fireworks that were billed to new fans, with scores under 100 in three of four innings, and a total of four sixes hit during the two games. Two years later, West Indies posted 209 for 2 against new Zealand, a record total at the time.However, it has been four years since high-level cricket has been played at the facility. In its absence, soccer has been a primary tenant, resulting in the square being dug up and relaid. New Zealand curator Mark Perham has been brought in to work on the pitches.”The pitch looks pretty good and by the reports that we hear over the years there’s been a lot of improvement done,” Sangakkara said. “A new curator has been doing a lot of hard work trying to get it up to standard and by the scores of the subsequent matches played after we were here it seems all pretty good.”We hope that the crowds do come in and the ordinary American comes in and has a look to see what it’s all about. It could be just a case of curiosity, or it could be that they’ve heard of it before or watched it on TV once or twice maybe but crowd participation is absolutely important to any sport. It’s absolutely vital. That’s what the players play for, to play in front of a packed stadium, having kids and families come and watch. That’s what I think drives us or any sport higher.”Sangakkara toured the USA in November last year as part of the Cricket All-Stars series. The largest crowd of the three games featured 27,000 people at Citi Field in New York City. Although the Central Broward Regional Park has a capacity of 10,000, Sangakkara said it will be as good for the fans due to the facility being designed for cricket.”Either way it’s got to be entertaining,” Sangakkara said. “Whether it’s 10,000 in a small stadium where it feels as if it’s a much larger crowd because it gets noisier and the atmosphere is a little more intense. In baseball stadiums we played in, there were a huge amount of people there but they were far removed from the action because of how the stadium is configured. Either way I think it’s all about getting smiles on their faces, making sure that when they walk away after three and a half hours they walk away with good memories.”

The WICB has agreed to release captain Jason Holder, batsman Darren Bravo, allrounder Carlos Brathwaite, legspinner Devendra Bishoo, and wicketkeeper-batsman Denesh Ramdin for the Caribbean Premier League, starting June 30, which is four days after the tri-series final in Barbados. They can remain with their franchises until July 11, ten days before West Indies’ first Test against India in Antigua.WICB announced a confirmation of the India tour last December, but they released the full itinerary only last week. A possible clash of dates with the CPL had been one of the main reasons for the delay.According to the WICB policy, the head coach and the national selectors had final say in determining whether their players would be free to participate in the CPL. It is understood that head coach Phil Simmons had no objections with his men playing the tournament’s initial stages, provided they returned in time to prepare for the four Tests against India, which are the only Tests in West Indies’ home season.Damien O’Donohoe, the CPL chief executive, welcomed the WICB’s decision and said that the players’ availability would would be a “tremendous boost”.”Our thanks to the West Indies Cricket Board, coach and chairman of selection committee for facilitating the release of the players for the opening weeks of the CPL,” he said. “It’s a tremendous boost for the competition and I have no doubt that each of the players will be motivated to add great value to their squads.”Ramdin, who is part of the onging tri-series against South Africa and Australia, was announced as the replacement for injured fast bowler Fidel Edwards, for St Lucia Zouks. Edwards had suffered a fractured ankle in the lead up to the final day of Hampshire’s County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley in April.

Arsenal returned to the top of the Premier League table on Tuesday night as they beat Frank Lampard’s Chelsea side 3-1 at The Emirates.

The Gunners took the lead in the 18th minute through their captain as Martin Odegaard beautifully curled a strike in off the crossbar from an excellent and intelligent cutback from Granit Xhaka.

Mikel Arteta’s side only needed 13 minutes to double their tally and the same duo combined to make it 2-0, with Xhaka crossing for the Norway international to grab his second. Three minutes later, Gabriel Jesus made it 3-0 with a low finish after a few seconds of pinball in the Chelsea six-yard box.

Noni Madueke pulled one back in the 64th minute as Oleksandr Zinchenko fell asleep from a ball over the top and the Blues forward scrambled his shot past Aaron Ramsdale.

Odegaard was undoubtedly the one who will steal the headlines with his brace on the night, as the playmaker returned to form after a dismal outing against Manchester City, registering a WhoScored match rating of 5.94, rather going into hiding when the pressure was on.

That said, Arsenal’s real hero of the match was central midfielder Xhaka as his display in the middle of the park was simply a joy to watch.

How did Granit Xhaka perform against Chelsea?

The £120k-per-week brute was exceptional in midfield and was one of the standout players for the Gunners as his constant running and clever forward play made him a nightmare for the opposition’s defence.

During Sky Sports’ live commentary on the game, pundit Jamie Carragher claimed the Swiss had “caused massive problems for Chelsea all night” after one specific piece of play in the second period. Indeed, Xhaka picked up the ball just outside the area, nutmegged a Chelsea player and then very nearly scored

That happened to be an astute observation by the former Liverpool defender who was seemingly very impressed by the ex-Arsenal captain’s display.

Xhaka was consistently picking up positions in the space that N’Golo Kante vacated when the Frenchman attempted to deploy a high press on Arteta’s defence and that allowed him to set up Odegaard twice in the first half, with both of his assists coming from the left flank.

The 30-year-old, who had 51 touches on the night, also played a big role in the third goal for Arsenal as his shot from inside the six-yard box fell kindly for Jesus to smash in.

He also completed 87% of his attempted passes and two of his three attempted dribbles. The midfield general was effective and efficient with his work in possession and, ultimately, provided some of the most important touches in the game with his contributions to all three goals.

Therefore, the experienced ace was the big difference between the two sides from a tactical and technical perspective and Arteta will surely be hoping for more of the game from him until the end of the season.

أعلن يورجن كلوب المدير الفني لفريق كرة القدم الأول بنادي ليفربول، عن تشكيل اللاعبين لمواجهة آرسنال، ضمن الدور الثالث من بطولة كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي.

المباراة تجمع بين الفريقين على ملعب الإمارات بالعاصمة الإنجليزية لندن، على ملعب آرسنال، بعدما انتهت المواجهة الأخيرة بينهما في انفيلد بالتعادل الإيجابي 1-1.

طالع أيضًا.. روبي فاولر: انتقال محمد صلاح إلى السعودية الخيار الأفضل لجميع الأطراف

ويغيب عن ليفربول النجم المصري محمد صلاح هداف الفريق، ويعوضه يورجن كلوب بـ كودي جاكبو، وذلك هارفي إليوت بتبادل الأدوار بين الثنائي. تشكيل ليفربول أمام آرسنال في كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي

حراسة المرمى: أليسون بيكر.

خط الدفاع: ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد، إبراهيما كوناتي، كونساه، جو جوميز.

وسط الملعب: أليكسيس ماك اليستر، هارفي إليوت، كورتيس جونز.

الهجوم: داروين نونيز، لويس دياز، كودي جاكبو.