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Ben Jacobs has dropped a behind-the-scenes claim on the potential takeover of Newcastle United involving the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium.

Writing as part of a Twitter thread in reaction to the emails between the Premier League and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) that showed how close the deal between Mike Ashley and the KSA group was, the journalist and regular takeover commenter tweeted:

“Can also reveal prior to withdrawing, & in mid-June, club & consortium considered releasing a statement putting pressure on EPL to conclude Test. They spoke openly about this tactic, only to instead withdraw in July. Very possible DCMS were aware of this potential statement, too.”

Newcastle takeover talk looming again

As was very much the case in the summer, when the emails were said to be exchanged before the KSA’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) eventually decided to withdraw their bid, the talk of a potential takeover of the St. James’ Park faithful has come roaring right back in recent days.

Jacobs’ claim from within the club seems to supply more evidence of just how desperate both the Magpies and the consortium were to get this done, given that they were willing to try anything to heap pressure on those making the final call.

Considering how close it was to being pushed through, it is very possible that the takeover will be revisited come the end of the 2020/21 term, when the fate of the North East club is sealed in terms of whether they manage to avoid being relegated from the top flight down to the EFL Championship.

Nonetheless, a path would have to be cleared for PIF to come back to the table, and the Premier League would surely have to hurry their Owners’ and Directors’ Test (ODT) given the growing impatience, with the results holding the key over whether the deal can be revived or not.

In other news, find out what revelation Craig Hope has dropped on the potential new owners here!

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O resultado da partida desta segunda-feira entre Fluminense e Atlético-MG pode transformar o jogo entre Palmeiras e Flamengo em uma espécie de final antecipada. Exagero? Talvez. Fato é que um ponto separa os dois times na tabela e uma vitória será importantíssima para o título.

Os confrontos entres as duas equipes costumam ter muitos gols. Nos últimos cinco jogos, foram 22 gols, média superior a quatro gols por partida. Selecionamos dez jogos inesquecíveis para servir de aperitivo para o jogo desta semana.

Em 1979, o Palmeiras goleou o Flamengo de Zico por 4 a 1. O resultado ficou entalado na garganta dos cariocas, que revidaram com um 6 a 2 no ano seguinte, ambos pelo Brasileirão.

Vinte anos depois, as equipes decidiram uma vaga na semifinal da Copa do Brasil e o Verdão levou a melhor, após derrota no Maracanã, uma goleada por 4 a 2 no Palestra Itália. No mesmo ano, porém, veio o troco. Pela Copa Mercosul, o Flamengo venceu o primeiro jogo da final no Maracanã por 4 a 3 e empatou o segundo por 3 a 3 para festa Rubro-Negra.

Em 2007, Edmundo fez o que quis em uma estrondosa goleada por 4 a 2 no Maracanã, com direito a golaço de falta por cobertura em Bruno.

No ano seguinte, o Flamengo que ganhou por goleada, 5 a 2 e três gols do meia Ibson. Em 2009, o Palmeiras esteve muito perto de conquistar o Brasileirão, mas uma derrota em casa para o Flamengo por 2 a 0, dois gols de Petkovic, fizeram o Mengo encostar e depois conquistar o título.

Nas duas últimas temporadas, muitos gols. Em 2014, 4 a 2 para os cariocas, com dois gols de Alcsandro, hoje no Verdão. Em 2015, mesmo placar, 4 a 2, só que para os paulistas, com gols de Samir (contra), Jackson, Dudu e Alecsandro.

يخطط نجم مانشستر يونايتد كريستيانو رونالدو للعب حتى يبلغ سن 42 عامًا، وتعرض رونالدو لانتقادات بسبب موسم الفريق المضطرب، لكن الفائز بالكرة الذهبية خمس مرات لا يزال قويًا، على الرغم من تقدمه في العمر (36 عامًا).

سجل المهاجم 14 هدفًا وصنع 3 تمريرات حاسمة في 22 مباراة عبر جميع المسابقات حتى الآن هذا الموسم، ولا يخطط للاعتزال في أي وقت قريبًا.

قائد البرتغال واثق من أن جسده يمكن أن يستمر حتى الأربعينيات من عمره، لكنه يصر على أن “المعركة الحقيقية هي عقليته”.

قال رونالدو لـ ESPN Brasil: “أشعر بالسعادة لكوني لاعبًا أظهر أن طول العمر كان عاملًا حاسمًا بالنسبة لي لمواصلة اللعب بمستوى عالٍ، وتقديم عروض جيدة”.

وأضاف: “وراثيًا أشعر أنني أبلغ من العمر 30 عامًا، أنا أعتني بجسدي وعقلي كثيرًا، شيء تعلمته مؤخرًا هو أنه بعد 33 عامًا، أعتقد أن الجسد يمكن أن ينجز إذا كنت في حاجة إليه، لكن المعركة الحقيقية هي عقلية”.

وتابع رونالدو: “إن القيام بالعديد من الأشياء مع التركيز على الهدف النهائي للبقاء على مستوى عال هو أصعب شيء، وهذا ما كنت أفعله خلال السنوات القليلة الماضية”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. رونالدو ينتقد شباب مانشستر يونايتد: لا يتقبلون النقد.. ولست هنا من أجل المركز السادس

وواصل نجم مانشستر يونايتد: “لقد كنت أعمل وأركز أكثر على العمل عقليًا، أعلم أن جسدي سيتعامل معي لأنني أحترمه كثيرًا وأستمع إليه كثيرًا”.

وأصر رونالدو: “يجب أن تمر الحياة بلحظات مهمة، في السراء والضراء، ولكن عندما تسقط يجب أن تكون لديك القوة للنهوض، أنا سعيد، أريد أن أبقى هنا وأرى ما سيحدث”.

وأتم: “أريد معرفة ما إذا كنت سألعب حتى أبلغ من العمر 40 أو 41 أو 42، لكن الشيء الأكثر أهمية هو أن هدفي اليومي هو الاستمتاع باللحظة”.

يولي رونالدو الكثير من الاهتمام للياقته وكذلك نظامه الغذائي، حيث يقال إنه سيأكل ما يصل إلى ست وجبات في اليوم ويفضل الأسماك.

Jordan Rhodes is not your traditional big target man, please remember that Neil Thompson.

Sheffield Wednesday slumped to a third consecutive league defeat on Wednesday evening, and the longest-serving Owls star was severely let down by his interim manager, having to feed off scraps throughout the duration of the match.

The 31-year-old, who stands at just 6 foot 1, was not deployed in a role that suited his strengths. As once outlined by former Scotland no.2 Mark McGee, Rhodes is a poacher – or as Owls legend John Sheridan once put it, a “fox in the box” similar to Gary Lineker.

Indeed, this has been an all too familiar story for the £10m signing since his arrival in 2017 – only last season, YorkshireLive reporter Dom Howson claimed that Wednesday had never utilised him correctly, he wrote: ‘For him to shine, he needs quality service from the wide positions.’

Before adding:

‘The trouble with Rhodes is he is a limited player outside of the 18-yard box. He is not physically strong, lightning-quick, skilful or the best at holding the ball up.’

This begs the question, just why did Thompson expect him to do all that – and more.

Throughout the 90 minutes, the visiting Owls could only muster up a total of two key passes, whilst only 10% of their 21 crossing attempts were successful, as per SofaScore.

Rhodes was evidently left to feed off scraps and poor service, so it’s no wonder he graded as one of their worst players on the night, pulling in a rating of 6.5 – seven other members of the Owls XI either matched or bettered this.

As a result of the diabolical support that simply isn’t suited to his game, the Scotsman struggled to win many of his battles – particularly in the air – where he won only three of 18 aerial duels, taking his total duels lost to 80% overall, via SofaScore.

That, in turn, affected his ability to make any sort of impact, as he failed to register a single shot all match, which is well below his career average of two shots per game.

The £35k-per-week high-earner was left mere a passenger as the Owls succumbed to defeat at the hands of Brentford, and the blame must lie with Thompson, who simply isn’t playing to Rhodes’ strengths, as evident above.

If the south Yorkshiremen are to stave off relegation, then finally playing a system around Rhodes could hold the keys to achieving that. The caretaker boss must act ahead of a crucial encounter with Luton on Saturday.

AND in other news, Worse than Reach: Sheffield Wednesday calamity who lost 84% of duels let Thompson down…

According to The Daily Record, Glasgow Rangers outcast Jordan Jones is set for a six-month loan away from Ibrox at the Stadium of Light with Sunderland.

What’s the word?

After falling out of favour with Steven Gerrard for breaching Covid-19 rules with George Edmundson, Jones has found himself playing very little football this season and has been deemed surplus to requirements by the Ibrox boss.

It’s claimed that he had attracted interest from clubs across Scotland but favoured a move south of the border.

And now, he may have already played his last game for Rangers.

End of the road?

Jones, 26, has been nothing short of a flop since he first arrived at Ibrox from Kilmarnock, having been the subject of a failed bid from the Light Blues the year beforehand.

When he arrived on the scene in in 2019, he took to social media to share his delight, writing it was an ‘unbelievably proud day for me and my family’, adding ‘I’ve waited for this moment for a long time and today is a dream come true!’

However, despite being capped nine times by his country, the Northern Irishman has failed to rediscover the form he enjoyed at Kilmarnock.

In 19 appearances across all competitions, Jones has scored just once, as per Transfermarkt, which is a pretty measly return for a player who contributed to 33 goals in 119 games during his time at Rugby Park.

Gerrard praised him for his impact in the Europa League qualifier against Willem II at the start of the season, calling him a “real threat”, but he has been unable to break into the starting XI after his latest indiscretion. In fact, he is yet to feature since the turn of the year.

With Rangers recently confirming they have signed left-winger Scott Wright on a pre-contract agreement from Aberdeen, it might be the end of a chapter for Jones in his faltering Ibrox career.

AND in other news, Why Glasgow Rangers should give Ryan Kent whatever he wants…

MatériaMais Notícias

Rodriguinho foi o último protagonista de uma história que o corintiano conhece bem o enredo: gols marcados no fim das partidas estão definindo os placares que mantêm a equipe invicta em 2016 até o momento. Foi assim contra XV de Piracicaba (vitória), Cobresal (vitória), Ferroviária (empate), São Bento (empate) e Oeste (vitória). De 11 gols oficiais anotados na temporada, seis foram nos 15 minutos finais, mas este fato não é motivo de preocupação para os comandados de Tite. Nesta segunda-feira, Rodriguinho explicou que o importante é conquistar os resultados, independentemente do momento do jogo em que a rede for balançada.

– Engraçado, a gente está invicto e todo mundo vê que a gente só ganha no final, mas para mim a equipe está jogando bem. Não importa o tempo, e sim conseguir os resultados. O Tite fala para manter concentração alta o tempo todo, porque a chance pode aparecer. Então precisamos acertar mais a finalização para podermos ser menos dependentes dos gols no fim. Mas gol para vencer e para somar ponto não importa o tempo – disse o meio-campista, antes de explicar sua visão sobre a necessidade de “acertar mais a finalização”.

– Se conseguirmos placares mais elásticos e conseguirmos marcar em 50% do que cria vamos ter bons resultados e isso vai dar uma melhorada grande. Melhorar isso (finalizações) assim é difícil,porque não tem muito tempo para treinar. Temos treino hoje (segunda-feira) e amanhã (terça, às 16h, no CT Joaquim Grava), mas fomos bem contra o Oeste, criamos espaço e só pecamos na finalização. Se fizermos o gol cedo, a equipe adversária acaba saindo e criando mais espaços. Temos de caprichar mais nas finalizações para o jogo se tornar mais fácil- argumentou o titular do meio de campo alvinegro ao lado de Bruno Henrique, Guilherme, Giovanni Augusto e Lucca.

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Nos dois últimos jogos, os números do Corinthians no quesito finalização são alarmantes: contra o São Bento, foram 16 chutes e apenas dois em direção ao gol. Já diante do Oeste foram 17 finalizações e só quatro deram algum trabalho ao goleiro adversário. Na soma, seis chutes certos em 33 realizados.

Para tentar se livrar do “fantasma” dos gols no fim e buscar um placar mais tranquilo, o Corinthians entra em campo nesta quarta-feira, às 21h45, pela segunda rodada da Copa Libertadores. Com Rodriguinho entre os titulares, o Timão encara o Independiente Santa Fé, da Colômbia.

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CorinthiansRodriguinho

كشف صالح باي عبود المنسق الإعلامي لمنتخب الجزائر، عن الحالة الصحية للاعب محاربي الصحراء بغداد بونجاح، بعد إصابته أمس أمام مصر في كأس العرب.

والتقى منتخب مصر مع نظيره الجزائر، أمس الثلاثاء، في مباراة البحث عن صدارة المجموعة الرابعة، وانتهت بالتعادل الإيجابي بهدف لكل فريق، ولكن تصدر الفراعنة باللعب النظيف.

طالع أيضا.. كيروش يوجه رسالة للاعبي منتخب مصر بعد التعادل مع الجزائر في كأس العرب

وتعرض بغداد بونجاح للإصابة بعد تدخل من محمد الشناوي لإبعاد كرة عرضية، فصدم عن غير عمد باللاعب الذي سقط على أرضية الملعب وارتطمت رأسه بها.

وقال باي عبود خلال مداخلة هاتفية عبر قناة “الكأس” القطرية: “كان هناك اصطدام مع حارس مرمى المصري، واللاعب سقط مغشيًا عليه بين الشوطين، وكان لا بد أن يتم تغييره، وفي نهاية اللقاء ذهب إلى المستشفى، وأجرى فحوصات عميقة”.

وتابع: “الحمد لله الإصابة ليست خطيرة على حد قول طبيب المنتخب، ولكن يجب إجراء فحوصات عميقة لمعرفة تأثير الصدمة في الرأس”.

واختتم: “الشناوي لم يكن يقصد إيذاء بونجاح، وجاء الحارس بعد اللقاء يبحث عن اللاعب لكي يطمئن عليه”. اهداف مباراة مصر والجزائر (1-1) كاس العرب

It was something of a surprise when Leeds United man Robbie Gotts joined League One Lincoln City on loan ahead of this season but his impressive performances this season seem to suggest that the Yorkshire club made the right decision.

The 21-year-old joined the Imps on a season-long loan in October and has been a regular in Michael Appleton’s side since then, having made seven appearances in all competitions, featuring as both a right-back and a central midfielder.

When he joined the club, Appleton was full of praise for the youngster, telling the club’s website:

“He’s got bags of quality in possession of the ball and he’s got the energy and athleticism to get up and down the pitch too.”

Gotts’ performances have helped Lincoln make a superb start to the League One campaign, as they currently sit second in the table ahead of this weekend’s game away at Rochdale.

Bielsa has kept faith in young midfielder Jamie Shackleton at times this season, with the academy graduate having made three appearances in the Premier League this season, in which he has averaged a less than impressive 6.3 rating (per WhoScored).

Whilst Gotts is obviously playing a lower level, his performances have earned him the praise of Leeds fans on Twitter recently, so if he can continue as a regular in this Lincoln side, perhaps he could challenge Shackleton for his spot in Leeds’ first-team when he returns.

Marcelo Bielsa is well aware of the youngster, having praised his efforts after the made his debut in the Whites’ 1-0 defeat against Arsenal last season, so there seems no reason why he couldn’t establish himself as a regular in the Argentinian’s side in the future.

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Leeds fans will be hoping that Gotts continues to feature regularly for the Imps and helps them to promotion to the Championship, which would be a great experience for the 21-year-old.

And, in other news… Orta must prioritise handing a new contract to Bielsa favourite before it’s too late 

Despite Celtic’s best efforts, Glasgow Rangers maintained their 16-point lead at the summit of the Scottish Premiership with a 2-0 win at St. Mirren on Wednesday night.

Rangers have now won four in a row across all competitions as they seem to have shaken off any lingering effects from the chastening 3-2 defeat to the Saints in the Scottish League Cup earlier this month.

However, Jim Goodwin’s side threatened to derail their momentum, as they came close to toppling the league leaders on several occasions, only to be denied by the combined efforts of Connor Goldson and Allan McGregor.

Goldson was colossal at the back, but Filip Helander’s latest display left a lot to be desired, which will no doubt give Steven Gerrard genuine cause for concern ahead of the Old Firm clash with Celtic at the weekend.

The Swedish centre-back was unveiled as a marquee signing when he first arrived at Ibrox after signing from Bologna on a four-year deal for a reported £3.5m fee in 2019.

But Helander has looked shaky at the back at best when in possession and flaky when defending, and his latest showing against the Saints was a typical example of the performances Rangers fans have come to expect from the Sweden international, who spent three seasons with the Serie A outfit.

The Gers may have cruised to a comfortable 2-0 victory over the Saints but the centre-back was abysmal, as he lost possession 21 times throughout the entire game. It’s hard to point the finger directly at any player in particular after such a strong team performance overall, but Helander was a bit of a liability.

He was also caught out of position at the back on a regular basis, particularly in the first half, as Jonathan Obika came close to scoring twice in quick succession, committing one foul in the process, as per SofaScore.

Helander, who reportedly earns £9,300-a-week, sprayed long balls left and right but largely failed to find the target, as he produced just three accurate long balls from a whopping 19 attempts.

It sounds crazy to say after such a comfortable scoreline, but the Swede badly betrayed Gerrard last night.

Even though Helander took 96 touches of the ball, he struggled to make all of that possession count, as he failed to record a single cross or single key pass, despite playing the full 90′ minutes.

After being left on the bench against Hibernian, this was his chance to make a real statement with Leon Balogun waiting in the wings, but it’s fair to say that he did anything but after he let his manager down massively with his display last night. He can only be grateful Goldson put in a worldie of a performance beside him at the back.

In fact, it’s worth pointing out only Steven Davis received a worse rating than the struggling defender. We must admit it would be a bit of a surprise to see him start in a few days time after such a dismal showing.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers defender Connor Goldson stole the show against St. Mirren…

Arsenal have produced plenty of truly amazing players over the course of their illustrious history, ranging from Cesc Fabregas and Ashley Cole to a more recent example in Bukayo Saka.

But they’ve also let a plethora slip from their grasp, most notably Serge Gnabry who is now a Bundesliga and Champions League winner for Bayern Munich.

Soon, there could be another name to put alongside the German with Donyell Malen continuing to elevate his meteoric rise for both club and country.

Where is Malen now?

The 21-year-old now plies his trade for PSV Eindhoven in the Eredivisie, where he has bagged 32 goals in just 77 appearances.

After back-to-back campaigns of scoring at least ten times, Malen has already started this season on fire, scoring two goals in just three starts whilst also averaging a whopping 3.8 shots, 1.5 dribbles and 1.3 key passes per game, via WhoScored.

Such form has resulted in a call-up to the Netherland national side, whom he has already earned four caps for in the past year. He even bagged against Germany in a Euro 2020 qualifier too.

The Gunners sold the young sensation for just £500k back in the summer of 2017 despite never being able to feature for the first-team and now prices in excess of €60m (£55m) according to some reports.

This is surely something that the north Londoners regret considering he could have been the long-term heir to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or even a decent replacement for Alexandre Lacazette if he secured his own exit this summer.

Instead, Mikel Arteta will have to live with Arsene Wenger’s mistake to let him leave prematurely sometime in the future.

European football expert Andy Brassell was full of praise for Malen to talkSPORT earlier this year, he said:

“He looks an absolute natural in front of goal. He’s a very quick and explosive forward.

“What really strikes you if you see those goals is the variety of finishes; you’re talking right foot, left foot… someone under 6ft who is very, very good in the air.

“He’s someone who looks like a natural goalscorer.”

His value has increased substantially, around 10900% in fact, so there’s no way the north Londoners can be happy with that considering the 21-year-old was once on their books.

Malen may not have shown his potential then, but he certainly is thriving now.

AND in other news, Arsenal can unearth their next Jack Wilshere with Hale End teen sensation…