Category Uncategorized

Arsenal are on the verge of completing the signings of both Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres and Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera, but there is another target who sporting director Andrea Berta is also making significant moves for.

£140m signings start alongside Zubimendi: AI predicts Arsenal's 2025/26 line-up

It could be a productive transfer market for the Gunners.

4 ByCharlie Smith Jun 28, 2025

Mikel Arteta, following Noni Madueke’s £50 million move from Chelsea, is reliably reported to be closing in on both Gyokeres and Mosquera too.

In what is a huge boost for the Gunners boss, Arsenal have reached a full agreement to sign Mosquera for a total package of around £17 million, including add-ons, and the versatile centre-back is due for a medical this week (Fabrizio Romano).

The Spaniard appears set to replace Takehiro Tomiyasu, after Arsenal mutually agreed to terminate the latter’s contract, with Arteta also believed to be closing in on Gyokeres.

19/20 – winter

£0

20/21 – summer

£81.5m

20/21 – winter

£900k

21/22 – summer

£156.8m

21/22 – winter

£1.8m

22/23 – summer

£121.5m

22/23 – winter

£59m

23/24 – summer

£208m

23/24 – winter

£0

24/25 – summer

£101.5m

24/25 – winter

£0

25/26 – summer

£75m

A prolific striker has long been viewed by some as the final missing piece of Arsenal’s jigsaw which could transform them into Premier League title winners once again, following an agonising two-decade-long-plus wait.

After deciding not to pursue RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, Gyokeres emerged as their priority centre-forward target following a stellar second season at Sporting – where he bagged an incredible 54 goals in all competitions and spearheaded Rui Borges’ side to a domestic double.

Arsenal have been in talks with Sporting over a deal for Gyokeres, and it’s taken some time to find middle ground over the final fee after agreeing personal terms with the Sweden international last week (David Ornstein).

However, according to some reliable media sources, like Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg and The Athletic, Arsenal’s move for Gyokeres is now considered a “done deal” – with an agreement in principle now reached on a total £64 million deal including add-ons.

After Gyokeres and Mosquera, Arsenal are reportedly turning their attention towards £100,000-per-week Crystal Palace playmaker Eberechi Eze – who’s been repeatedly linked in the last fortnight.

Eberechi Eze loosely agrees personal terms to join Arsenal

Eze’s representatives have apparently held positive talks with Arsenal, but formal club-to-club negotiations are yet to open with Palace over a potential deal for the England international.

Now, Football Transfers have an update on the situation, and the outlet states that a player-plus-cash bid isn’t off the table as Arsenal look to agree a deal beneath his release clause.

The news website estimates his clause could be as high as around £70 million, so the north Londoners have looked at offering certain players as makeweights to bring his price down – including Leandro Trossard, Fabio Vieira and Reiss Nelson.

Any player going the other way would be in a separate, ‘unofficial’ swap deal for accounting purposes – but Oliver Glasner’s side are said to be “open” to the prospect of accepting this as a potential solution in talks.

What’s more, Football Transfers has also reported that Eze has reached a “broad, informal agreement” on personal terms with Arsenal, so this story could be one to keep an eye on over the coming weeks as Berta continues making serious statements of intent.

The 27-year-old scored 14 goals and registered 11 assists in all competitions last season, and Arsenal view Eze as a central playmaker to complement club captain Martin Odegaard.

If Rohit Sharma, the Player of the Match for his 41-ball 92 in India’s 24-run win over Australia in T20 World Cup 2024, had to “open up all sides of the field” to counter the breeze in Gros Islet, Arshdeep Singh said the bowlers had to prevent “the wind to come into play” to not let the Australia batters take advantage of it. Arshdeep finished with 3 for 37, removing David Warner in the first over and then getting the wickets of big-hitters Tim David and Matthew Wade in the death overs.”As a player and as a team, our motto is to adapt as well as we can to the conditions,” Arshdeep said after the match. “As for the wind factor, when we bowled from the end opposite to the pavilion, we got a lot of swing. From the other end, bowling against the wind… the batters were going to use the wind since the ball was travelling. So we had to look for defensive options there and not allow the wind to come into play.”Josh Hazlewood, the most economical bowler of the day with 1 for 14 from four overs, said that 180 or thereabouts would have been a par score in those conditions; India ended with 25 more than that. Rohit was the main reason for that, but Suryakumar Yadav (31 off 16 balls) and later Hardik Pandya (27* off 17) contributed to the cause too.Related

• Boom will always shake the room

• Rohit transformation steers India towards date with destiny

• Rohit had to 'open up all sides of the field' to counter breeze

• Stats – Rohit rewrites record books with whirlwind 41-ball 92

“From one end, it was very hard for the bowlers to even pitch the ball, and the ball was flying to the boundary,” Arshdeep said. “So having the cushion of extra 15-20 runs always helps, gives you the extra freedom of going for wickets.”With his three wickets, Arshdeep reached the top of the pile for the tournament, joint with Afghanistan’s Fazalhaq Farooqi. But he was quick to accept that a lot of his success was down to Jasprit Bumrah being Jasprit Bumrah at the other end, who dismissed Head in the 17th over to put India ahead.”I guess a lot of credit goes to Jassi because he puts a lot of pressure on the batters – he gives, what, three or four runs in an over – so batters are coming hard against me, and I just have to try and bowl my best ball and there are a lot of chances of getting wickets there,” Arshdeep said. “On the other end they see the runs are not coming and the asking rate is going high, so they take more risks against me. [There’s a] chance always of getting a wicket there. So a lot of credit for my wickets goes to Jassi .”Head took the lead in Australia’a chase by slamming 76 in 43 balls, with a spot in the semi-finals at stake. At the start of the 14th over, when Australia were 128 for 2, Kuldeep Yadav got rid of Glenn Maxwell, and Axar Patel removed Marcus Stoinis in the next over, and Australia were suddenly 135 for 4 with 71 to get in just under six overs.”The thought [process] was clear. Our batters also batted on the same wicket, and early on it was easy to score runs, the ball was coming on nicely. But afterwards, it became tough to hit boundaries,” Arshdeep said. “We knew if we took a couple of wickets, it will be tough for the new batters coming in to hit boundaries at will. That was the plan. A couple of nice overs from the spinners in the middle overs helped us.”

Chelsea are now in “ongoing” negotiations over a deal to sign an “incredible” striker, with a meeting taking place “in recent days”, according to RMC Sport journalist Fabrice Hawkins.

Blues looking to bolster squad before Club World Cup

The initial summer transfer window is set to close on June 10th ahead of the Club World Cup, before reopening on June 16th, and the Blues are looking to get a number of deals over the line before the first deadline.

Jamie Gittens has emerged as a major target since it was confirmed Jadon Sancho will not be making a permanent move to west London, while there have long been doubts over the goalkeeper options, with Robert Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen being used interchangeably last season.

The interest in Hugo Ekitike is a little stranger, given that Enzo Maresca has already added Liam Delap to his squad this summer, but the manager may feel he needs a more experienced option at centre-forward, with the former Ipswich Town man yet to prove himself at the top level.

There has now been a new update on Chelsea’s Hugo Ekitike pursuit, with Hawkins taking to X to reveal they are in “ongoing” negotiations over a deal for the Eintracht Frankfurt striker, having held a meeting with his camp “in recent days”.

Deal close: Chelsea now nearing agreement to sign "world-class" £25m star

The Blues could seal a move for a new signing “tomorrow”, following a recent positive development.

1 ByDominic Lund Jun 8, 2025

The Blues are still considering a move for the forward, with contact yet to be broken off, despite talks not progressing, but a deal will not be cheap, with Frankfurt currently unwilling to compromise on their asking price of €100m (£84m).

Ekitike could be "incredible" signing for Chelsea

While the 22-year-old is the same age as Delap, he has more experience than the Englishman, having regularly provided goals and assists for Reims, Paris Saint-Germain and Frankfurt across spells in Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga.

Competition

Appearances

Goals

Assists

Bundesliga

47

19

10

Ligue 1

52

13

8

Teammate Rasmus Kristensen has also been left impressed by the Frenchman, lauding him as “incredible” back in January, so it is little wonder that Chelsea are keen to take him to Stamford Bridge, although there are doubts over whether he is worth £84m.

With the Frankfurt star contracted until 2029, the German club are in a strong negotiating position, but the Reims-born striker is yet to prove himself in the Champions League, while a return of 15 goals in 33 Bundesliga games last season isn’t out of this world.

As such, while Ekitike could go on to be a top striker, the £84m asking price is a little steep, so the Blues should continue to try and negotiate a lower fee.

It’s been a bruising and rather dismal season for the Arsenal faithful this year, but last night’s game is one that’ll live in the memory for years, if not decades, to come.

Mikel Arteta’s side went into the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid in the knowledge that they needed at least a one-goal lead heading to the Bernabéu but did far better than that.

Two utterly sublime free-kicks from Declan Rice and yet another striker’s finish from Mikel Merino mean the hosts will travel to Spain with a genuine chance of making the semi-finals for the first time since the 2008/09 season.

Player ratings courtesy of Sofascore

There were outstanding performances from Arteta’s men across the pitch, including from one starter who could well be the club’s own Jude Bellingham.

Bellingham's performance vs Arsenal

Going into last night’s game, the significant threats Arsenal had to be aware of were Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Junior, Rodrygo and Bellingham.

The latter, alongside Rice, is arguably one of England’s best players, but unlike the former West Ham United star, he did not have a particularly good game.

Granted, he made a few incisive passes that perhaps would have led to a goal on another night, but apart from that, he was practically a passenger and just watched the game pass him by, which is not something you can usually say about the UCL winner.

We aren’t the only ones to hold this opinion either, as the Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick gave him a 5/10 match rating at full-time, writing that he ‘drifted in and out of the game.’

It’s also backed up by his statistics, as in his 96 minutes of action, he amassed a combined expected goal and assists figure of just 0.25, had just one shot on target, didn’t make a single cross or play a single long ball, lost ten of 14 duels, lost the ball nine times, committed one foul and was dribbled past twice.

Minutes

96′

Expected Goals

0.07

Goals

0

Expected Assists

0.18

Assists

0

Touches

45

Shots on Target

1

Crosses

0

Long Balls

0

Duels (Won)

14 (4)

Lost Possession

9

Fouls

1

Dribbled Past

2

It was a bad day at the office for the world-class international, and to his credit, he admitted as much afterward and even accepted that the Gunners could have won by more.

However, he’s still a brilliant player, so it’s exciting for Arsenal that they could already have their own version of him in the squad.

Arsenal's own Bellingham

So, there are a few players in Arsenal’s squad who are arguably at a world-class level, such as Bukayo Saka and Rice, but one who seems destined to get there and become the team’s own Bellingham, especially after last night, is Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Now, before the pitchforks come out, we are not saying the teenager is at the level of the Real star, and they aren’t even playing the same position at the moment, but there are some undeniable similarities.

The first is that both players burst onto the scene when incredibly young, with the former Borussia Dortmund ace debuting for Birmingham City at just 16 years old, while the Gunners’ young phenom was just 17 when he made his first competitive appearance earlier this season.

Moreover, despite being so young and inexperienced, both played with such an extraordinary level of self-belief, boarding on arrogance from the word go, which translates into their playstyle, with the Islington-born gem bursting past some of Real’s most prominent stars last night.

We aren’t the only ones to think this either, as in his analysis after the game, Jamie Carragher claimed that the Hale Ender “reminds me a little bit of [Jude] Bellingham at that age.”

Lastly, while the “unplayable” 18-year-old, as Jack Wilshere dubbed him, is playing at left-back at the moment, he’s a midfielder by trade, and due to his strength, awareness and technical ability, we would not be surprised to see him move into the middle of the park as time progresses, potentially alongside Bellingham for the Three Lions.

Ultimately, Arsenal are blessed with several incredible players, but Lewis-Skelly looks like he could develop into a genuinely world-class talent.

Not just Rice: 9/10 Arsenal star just proved he could start for Madrid

Declan Rice put in a magical display as Arsenal beat Real Madrid 3-0.

1 ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 9, 2025

Glasgow Rangers completed a dramatic comeback to beat Dundee 4-3 in the Scottish Premiership last time out, as they came from 3-1 down to win the match.

The Light Blues gave themselves a mountain to climb but managed to overcome it thanks to goals from Tom Lawrence, James Tavernier, and Cyriel Dessers in the second half.

Barry Ferguson should, however, be disappointed by the fact that his team were in such a difficult position to begin with, which is why he could make some changes to the team when the Gers return to action against Hibernian this afternoon.

Why Cyriel Dessers should be dropped

Despite scoring the winner in the 93rd minute, Dessers must be ruthlessly dropped from the starting line-up for the clash with Hibs today after his showing against Dundee.

The Nigeria international deserves credit for scoring the winner, but it is hard to ignore the rest of his performance, in which the striker missed a staggering five ‘big chances’ and scored once from 12 shots on goal – nine of which were on target.

He was incredibly wasteful with the chances that came his way, which was part of the reason why Rangers needed late goals to get anything out of the game.

Hamza Igamane has only missed five ‘big chances’, whilst scoring ten goals, in 27 Premiership matches this season, which suggests that Rangers would be better off with him as the focal point receiving service in the box instead of Dessers.

Chalkboard

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

With this in mind, Ferguson must ruthlessly drop the wasteful Nigerian centre-forward from the XI in order to bring Ianis Hagi into the team alongside Igamane.

Why Ianis Hagi should start against Hibernian

Rangers lined up with a 3-4-1-2 formation against Dundee and this change would allow them to play a 3-4-2-1, with Hagi and Mohamed Diomande in the number ten positions behind the Morocco international.

This would make Igamane the focal point of the team and mean that the side is built to create chances for him to score, to make the most of his lethal finishing – as opposed to consistently creating chances for Dessers to spurn.

Hagi coming in could help to create those opportunities for the Moroccan sensation because he has proven his creative quality in the Premiership already this season, under Philippe Clement and Ferguson.

Starts

16

Goals

3

Big chances created

5

Assists

5

Key passes per 90

2.5

Assists per 90

0.3

As you can see in the table above, the Gers number 30 has been incredibly creative for the Light Blues with 2.5 key passes per 90 and eight goal contributions in 16 starts.

This suggests that he has what it takes to provide Igamane with the service that he needs to put Hibernian to the sword later this afternoon.

Hagi, who former Romanian international Ilie Dumitrescu dubbed “sensational” earlier this season, is an attacking midfielder who can break forward into the box to make things happen, as a scorer and a creator, which is why he could perfectly suit a number ten role in a 3-4-2-1 system.

This would also allow Dessers to come off the bench as a goal threat in the second half if needed, rather than him having the entire 90 minutes to waste ‘big chances’ in front of goal – as he did against Dundee.

Rangers must sell Ibrox star who was "one of the best talents in Europe"

As Rangers prepare for a massive squad overhaul in the summer, they should sell a star Gerrard once said was “one of the best talents in Europe”.

ByBen Gray Apr 3, 2025

It is now down to Ferguson to be brave and ruthlessly drop the former Cremonsese man from the team, despite his late winner, in an attempt to improve his side’s performance.

The oppression of women in the country has raised tough questions for ICC

Sidharth Monga20-Jun-2024If you go to some of the T20 World Cup 2024 venues early on a match day or a day earlier, before everything gets drowned out in the crowd, you can hear this message in the rehearsals. I have not paid attention to the accompanying video but the audio is clear: a voiceover from a girl saying on the field, we are all the same; that the field should be a safe place for girls because cricket empowers girls.The ICC has partnered with UNICEF to help empower girls through cricket. It spends a lot of money on women’s cricket, which remains a long-term investment rather than an immediate return on the business bottom line. In a lovely video on the UNICEF website, among girls from different backgrounds playing cricket, one with a headscarf in Afghan national colours (not the Taliban ones) is unmissable.That’s where the ICC must be finding itself in a helpless state. The Afghanistan men’s team is an unqualified success story, not just of their own human spirit but the support they have received through ICC’s developmental programmes and the will to expand the sport. That their progress into the Super Eight this World Cup is being seen as a mild surprise and not a big upset is testament to how far they have come.Related

Khawaja: Australia 'should be playing Afghanistan'

Maxwell in focus as Afghanistan await Australia in spin-friendly Kingstown

IOC will decide if Afghanistan play in the Olympics – ICC CEO Allardice

Afghanistan's status as ICC Full Member unlikely to be affected

Afghanistan's bowlers will ask questions, and India's batters must answer them

Not that Afghanistan was a beacon of female power before, but ever since the Taliban takeover three years ago, the country has been bleaker than ever for its women. Forget having a women’s cricket team or infrastructure, Afghanistan is denying basic human rights like access to education and healthcare to the women.Allowing men’s cricket is a classic oppressors’ ploy: deny them to such an extent that they be thankful for one small piece of joy, not a right but a benevolence that can be snatched away any time, so you better behave. The ICC has probably thought about it a million times: does it want to ban Afghanistan for not following its charter and take away from the country that one small relief? Penalise the men who have fought unimaginable odds to make it this far? That is probably why the action has not been swift and unequivocal as it was with the government interference in Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.That the Taliban even allows cricket is not because someone there appreciates the legbreak bowled with a wrong’un release, but because the sport is popular among Pakhtun men, a source of their power. To the Taliban, cricket is just a pawn in the public image game. Letting them play is nothing short of sportwashing, not so much in the eyes of the world as inside Afghanistan.Afghanistan’s cricketers are national heroes•ICC/Getty ImagesIt also says that the Taliban cares about how it is perceived, if only a little bit. That it is cynical to think cricket embargos won’t make any difference. They may not succeed in forcing the Taliban to let women play or go to university but it will not be nothing. That if cricket turns its back on the Afghanistan men’s team, it is not penalising Rashid Khan but the Taliban. He and his team-mates are a significant collateral damage but not as big as the one being caused to half of their population.Many a potential South African great was denied an international cricket career not because they were individually deemed to be racist but because Apartheid was evil. Most of them continued to play county cricket. Now whether cricket played a significant role in the fall of Apartheid is debatable, but it is undeniable that it played a part in piling on the pressure on the government.Now South Africa is a country that can enforce transformation targets on its sports teams, once upon a time the bastion of the powerful white minority. Not that it doesn’t create tensions of its own. CSA now games the system by playing more players of colour in series of less significance so as to maintain the average requirement. In this World Cup, they have only one black African player in their squad. They are still contenders but not quite the South Africa we have come to know. The rainbow is a little less colourful.Those who want to see sport free of politics will not be happy to know that even a response to this Afghanistan situation can merely be political. Even if the ICC does decide to give up the soft diplomacy it is undertaking right now, which has its merits, and decides to take firmer action, it might not get full support of its own members because Afghanistan is now a vote on the table.These are uncomfortable thoughts at the start of the Super Eight of ICC’s latest attempt at globalising the sport, but we can’t look away; we mustn’t look away. If anything, as consumers of the sport, we can inform the direction the governing bodies take.

A grueling – but successful – winter across formats has not dented Bairstow’s appetite

Matt Roller30-May-2022There is a vibe to England’s new teal training tracksuits, a fitting resemblance since their schedule has left multi-format players resembling competitors in a survival drama. Jonny Bairstow has been cast in many different roles over his decade-long Test career but his latest is that of the Korean TV series’ protagonist, Seong Gi-hun – the only man left standing after a brutal winter of varying challenges.Bairstow was the only England player to tour all three of the UAE, Australia and the Caribbean between October and March and emerge with both reputation and fitness intact, and in keeping with his general restlessness he travelled straight (or as straight as possible for a journey with at least two layovers) from Grenada to Mumbai.He arrived at home last Monday night after two more months in a strict biosecure environment and left for St George’s Park – England’s football training base – the following morning for two days of training and fitness testing. On Sunday night, he travelled to Lord’s ahead of the first Test against New Zealand on Thursday, where he is due to play as a specialist batter.Related

Ollie Pope: 'I've always seen myself as a top-order batter. I know I've got the game to succeed'

McCullum's mission to reinvigorate England's Test team has a global remit at its heart

Kyle Jamieson is always looking for the perfect ball, the perfect plan

Henry Nicholls, Trent Boult doubtful for first Test against England

It is a schedule that is exhausting to think about let alone undertake, and one which underlines why Rob Key was so determined to split the coaching roles along format lines when he was appointed as England’s managing director of men’s cricket. The itinerary does not get any easier over the next 12 months, either.A separate squad will travel to Amsterdam to play three ODIs against the Netherlands between the second and third New Zealand Tests, while there are a dozen more limited-overs internationals in three-and-a-half weeks between the one-off India Test and the end of July. Over the 2021-22 winter, there are tours to Pakistan (twice), New Zealand, Bangladesh and South Africa, as well as a T20 World Cup (and a series either side for good measure) in Australia.It is a daunting prospect, and one which will stretch players’ mental and physical wellbeing to the limits. Perhaps Bairstow might have been wise to skip the IPL in the circumstances but turning down an INR 6.75 crore (£690,000 approx.) contract from Punjab Kings would not have been easy; after a slow start to the tournament at No. 4, his form after moving up to open should ensure he is offered a retention for 2022.”I feel good, to be honest,” Bairstow said on Monday, speaking in the drizzle on the Lord’s outfield after training. “I’m happy with where my body’s at physically, and hopefully that is now the end of bubbles which is an excitement as well because that gives you an added amount of freshness – to be able to do some more normal things and to be able to leave your hotel.”He described the possibility of missing the first Test for some time off as “not something I’ve thought about,” adding: “You know my desire to play for England, my desire to play Test cricket. That hadn’t even come into my mind. I’ve never been one for resting when there’s opportunities to play for England: it’s extremely special.With injury concerns hanging over all of England’s cross-format seamers, Joe Root a peripheral figure in the T20I set-up and Ben Stokes openly prioritising Test cricket – “Ben won’t play white-ball this summer,” Eoin Morgan confirmed in a newspaper interview last week – Bairstow is the only member of the Test squad who can realistically be considered a first-choice pick in all three sides as things stand.”There hasn’t been a specific sit-down discussion as yet [about workloads] but obviously I want to be playing Test cricket,” Bairstow said. “That is something that I really want to be doing. I’m sure that conversation will be happening over the next period of time, because if you are playing in all three formats, there are things you are potentially going to have to miss out on.”