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A frustração no clássico acentuou um alerta para o Fluminense em sua sequência no Brasileirão. O Tricolor das Laranjeiras não saía de campo com sua defesa sofrendo quatro gols há cerca de quatro meses.

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Antes do 4 a 2 aplicado pelos cruz-maltinos no Estádio Nilton Santos no sábado (16), a equipe só havia saído de campo com um placar dilatado em 29 de abril. O Fortaleza derrotou o Fluminense também por 4 a 2. Reflexo de uma oscilação defensiva que vem se refletindo em campo.

Thiago Galhardo abriu a contagem, Moisés marcou duas vezes e Hércules completou a vitória do Tricolor do Pici. Alan e John Kennedy fizeram os gols da equipe das Laranjeiras, que havia poupado jogadores na partida.

Por mais que tenha lidado com desfalques, a sensação de que o rendimento diante do Vasco ficou abaixo do esperado ficou nítida. O meia Lima foi veemente ao falar sobre as oscilações defensivas.

– É complicado tomar quatro gols. Não tem o que falar. O Diniz cobra bastante para não tomarmos esse tipo de gol bobo. Quando a gente acha que não vai acontecer, acabam vindo erros – afirmou o meia Lima, na zona mista.

Em seguida, o camisa 45 foi taxativo em relação à sequência da equipe.

– Tivemos uma infelicidade e precisamos voltar a vencer. Vamos trabalhar para corrigir os nossos erros – declarou.

O Fluminense pega o Cruzeiro na quarta-feira, dia 20, às 21h30.

Red Rose turn to veteran seamer with Marcus Harris absent to attend the birth of his child

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jun-2025

James Anderson will captain a side for the first time•PA Photos/Getty Images

Lancashire will be captained by James Anderson in their next two County Championship matches, with the 42-year-old stepping into an interim role due to Marcus Harris returning to Australia for the birth of his child.Anderson has only played once in the Championship this season, after a calf injury ruled him out for the first six weeks, but has been in good form in the Vitality Blast. He is set to lead the side against Kent in Blackpool starting on Sunday, in what will be his first experience of captaining a professional XI.Anderson will become Lancashire’s third red-ball captain this summer, with Harris having succeeded Keaton Jennings after a difficult start to the season that also cost Dale Benkenstein his job as head coach.Related

Dal, Morley defy Anderson, Hartley as Derbyshire escape

Benkenstein leaves Lancashire as Croft takes over as head coach

James Anderson: I've missed out on T20 over the past ten years

Anderson shines again as Lancashire continue Blast revival

“Jimmy [Anderson] will lead the side and it is exciting for him and us,” Steven Croft, Lancashire’s interim head coach, told the BBC. “He has captained only once and that was in a pre-season tour T20 game in Dubai so it will be nice for Jimmy and nice for the lads.”He has obviously got a lot to offer on and off the field. It will be a proud moment for him. It is not obviously all on Jimmy but it helps and his presence, particularly as captain, is a massive boost for the rest of the lads.”Lancashire are currently second from bottom in Division Two, having drawn five and lost two of their seven games, but they have enjoyed a successful start to the Blast, winning four of six to sit third in the North Group. Anderson has played his part, returning to the format after more than a decade and taking ten wickets in four matches.The Blast will break after Friday’s fixtures for two rounds of the Championship, with Lancashire facing Kent at home before a trip to play Derbyshire at Chesterfield. Harris will miss both games, but Lancashire will be able to call on Australian overseas signings Ashton Turner and Chris Green.”The way I’m looking at it and what I will say to the team is this is a pivot in the season,” Croft said. “Seven games that have gone before we can’t do anything about. But we still have seven games to climb the ladder and there is still a chance we can go up.”We are only a few wins away from being right at the top so we can use it as pivot in the season to get in the right direction. That break with the Blast, suddenly those wins seem a little bit more attainable.”

Tilak Varma, the young Indian batter, has signed a short-term deal with Hampshire that will see him play four County Championship matches for them in June and July.Tilak, 22, has played four ODIs and 25 T20Is for India and impressed for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, but has played only 18 first-class matches. He will look to build on a strong start to his red-ball career in England: he has already scored five first-class hundreds – including one for India A against New Zealand A – and averages 50.16 in the format.Hampshire, who were acquired by the Indian conglomerate GMR Group last year, are seventh in Division One of the County Championship after a mixed start to the season. Tilak’s arrival ahead of their game against Essex at Chelmsford on June 22 should help to bolster a batting line-up that has struggled since James Vince decided to quit red-ball cricket.Related

• Khaleel Ahmed signs up with Essex for County Championship and One-Day Cup

• Kishan signs short-term deal with Nottinghamshire

• Ruturaj Gaikwad to join Yorkshire for Championship, One-Day Cup

Hampshire had initially hoped that Dewald Brevis would be available for their two Championship fixtures at the end of June, but he will instead be with South Africa’s Test squad in Zimbabwe.Brevis and Lhuan-dre Pretorius will both miss the second half of the T20 Blast group stage after their call-ups, and Hampshire’s director of cricket Giles White said on Friday that the club was in “advanced conversations” for replacements. Tilak will not be eligible to play in the Blast, since the BCCI does not allow active Indian men’s players to feature in overseas T20 leagues.Tilak will join a handful of other Indian players in the Championship, with Ruturaj Gaikwad set to join Yorkshire for the second half of the summer and Yuzvendra Chahal due to return to Northamptonshire later this month.Hampshire are yet to announce Tilak’s signing, but his domestic team said on Wednesday: “The Hyderabad Cricket Association wishes him a great stint with Hampshire County.”

The only change is Usman Hashmi replacing Hassan Cheema as the data analyst

Danyal Rasool12-Jun-2025The PCB has quietened speculation about wholesale changes to the current selection committee, with four of the five men retaining their posts. These are Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Aaqib Javed and former umpire Aleem Dar.The only change is Usman Hashmi replacing Hassan Cheema as the data analyst. Unlike Cheema, Hashmi will not be a voting member and will only assist the selection committee.Reports of significant changes, or even a complete disbanding, of the committee were widespread enough for the PCB to issue a statement denying it. Notably, the statement also appeared to open the door for the head coach and the captain to begin having a say – if not an explicit voting right – on matters of selection. “The selection committee is bound to discuss with the head coach and captain of [the respective] formats before finalising the team,” the statement said.In October, when the selection committee was announced, the PCB revoked the captain and coach’s right to vote on selection matters, leading to some frustration. It was given voice most notably by Jason Gillespie, Pakistan’s Test coach then, who complained he had been reduced to the role of “match-day analyst”, stating it was “not what [he had] signed up for”. Both he and white-ball coach Gary Kirsten exited in the following weeks.That there was no significant change to the committee is almost notable in itself, given the frequency with which the PCB has changed the selectors in recent years. Since August 2021, Pakistan has used 26 different selectors for the men’s national side.Pakistan’s next international assignment is in July, when they travel to Bangladesh for a T20I series.

On Aug. 26, New York Yankees center fielder and designated hitter Aaron Judge became immortal in the cartoon world. The 2022 American League MVP hit 100 home runs in a home-run derby on the animated television show , a spin-off of .

However, it may have come at a price in our own world.

Judge has not hit a home run since his guest appearance, Fox Sports pointed out in a Tuesday evening tweet. His last home run came on Aug. 25 in a 10–3 win over the Colorado Rockies—one day before Judge's episode aired.

That is a home-run drought of 15 games—tied for the longest of his career with a 15-game dry spell in 2017.

Judge smashed 51 home runs in the Yankees' first 131 games this year, which would have put him on pace for an American League-record 63 home runs. Now, he is on pace for a "mere" 57 dingers.

A note to Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani: avoid like the plague.

Glasgow Rangers have officially confirmed the appointment of Danny Rohl after youth team manager Steven Smith led the side out at Ibrox at the weekend.

Smith oversaw a 2-2 draw with Dundee United in front of the home support at Ibrox after being placed in interim charge, two weeks after the club decided to part ways with Russell Martin.

The former Light Blues boss, as shown in the graphic above, endured a dismal time in the dugout in Glasgow after joining in the summer as the first appointment of the new ownership.

Five wins and 24 goals conceded in 17 matches was nowhere near good enough and it was not a surprise to see the board opt to remove him from his post after the draw with Falkirk before the break.

Now, Rohl has been confirmed as the new head coach at Ibrox and will lead the team out against Brann in the Europa League on Thursday night.

Why Danny Rohl can bring success back to Ibrox for Rangers

Supporters, after what happened with Martin, may look at Rohl and be unimpressed by another manager coming up from English football and the Championship, which is understandable.

The 36-year-old head coach finished 20th and 12th in his two seasons in the second tier managing Sheffield Wednesday, who had “never-ending” problems behind the scenes, per chairman of the Sheffield Wednesday Supporters’ Trust Ian Bennett.

Even though progressing the Owls from 20th to 12th with ‘never-ending problems’ was an impressive achievement, it may not provide supporters with hope that he can turn Rangers into a winning machine.

Manager Focus

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However, his time as an assistant manager at the very top level suggests that he knows exactly what it takes to coach an elite team to win trophies on a consistent basis, as he was Hansi Flick’s assistant for two seasons with Bayern Munich.

Rohl won seven trophies in those two seasons, including the treble in the 2019/20 campaign, winning the Champions League, the DFB Pokal, and the Bundesliga, per Transfermark, which is why he could bring success back to Ibrox.

Sheffield Wednesday

Manager

89

Germany national team

Assistant manager

25

Bayern Munich

Assistant manager

101

Southampton

Assistant manager

24

RB Leipzig

Assistant manager

83

RB Leipzig

Video analyst

15

RB Leipzig U17s

Assistant manager

29

As you can see in the table above, Rohl has worked at some top teams, including Leipzig, Bayern, and Germany, as well as impressing in difficult circumstances at Sheffield Wednesday, and can bring a winning mentality to Glasgow that Martin could not.

TalkSPORT noted that Rohl, as one of the coaches at Bayern, helped Robert Lewandowski to score 55 goals in 47 matches in the 2019/20 campaign, as the Poland international led the team to a treble, per Transfermarkt.

The legendary marksman also scored 48 goals in 40 matches in all competitions for Bayern under Flick and Rohl’s coaching in the 2020/21 campaign, per Transfermarkt.

Lewandowski scored 41 Bundesliga goals in that season with Rohl as one of his coaches, and he has never scored more in a single league season in his career, before or since.

This suggests that the Rangers manager has coaching ability to get the best out of a clinical number nine, albeit he was working alongside Hansi Flick as his assistant at the time. At the very least, he knows how to coach a team to create chances for a striker on a consistent basis.

With this in mind, Rohl could unearth his next version of Lewandowski at Ibrox by getting the best out of summer signing Bojan Miovski this season, and beyond.

What Rohl needs to do to get Miovski firing at Rangers

Rangers swooped to sign Miovski from Spanish side Girona in the summer transfer window to bolster their options at the top end of the pitch, 12 months on from his move to Spain from Aberdeen.

Unfortunately, though, the Macedonia international has struggled for form at Ibrox since his move back to Scotland. Per Sofascore, he has scored one goal in five matches in the Scottish Premiership under Martin and Smith to date.

One of the issues that Miovski has had since his move to Rangers has been that the team have not created enough chances for him in front of goal.

The left-footed star has only had four ‘big chances’ to find the back of the net in five appearances, and only averaged 0.6 shots on target per game, per Sofascore, which shows that he is getting a lack of service into the box.

Celtic

32

11

Hibernian

24

14

Hearts

19

19

Dundee United

18

14

Falkirk

18

10

Kilmarnock

17

11

Motherwell

16

12

Aberdeen

15

5

Rangers

13

8

St Mirren

11

5

Livingston

11

10

Dundee

8

8

As you can see in the table above, Rangers rank ninth in the Premiership for ‘big chances’ created, illustrating exactly what Rohl needs to improve to get Miovski firing.

The German head coach’s Sheffield Wednesday side created 98 ‘big chances’ in 46 games in the Championship last season, per Sofascore, the fifth-most in the division despite spending less than £5m on new signings after finishing 20th the previous campaign, per Transfermarkt.

This shows that Rohl, who predominantly plays a 4-2-3-1 formation, can coach a team to excel in the final third as a creative unit, even with limited resources, which is further backed up by his work as an assistant in Lewandowski’s best league season of his career.

Miovski, who was hailed as a “complete” player by journalist Josh Bunting, has the potential to be the manager’s next lethal centre-forward, given his impressive form for Aberdeen in the past.

The Rangers forward, as shown in the graphic above, has proven that he can score goals on a regular basis in Scotland, but it is down to Rohl to put together a team that creates enough chances for him to thrive.

If his work with Lewandowski at Bayern Munich and with Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship is anything to go by, Rohl has the coaching ability to turn Miovski into a goalscoring machine at Ibrox.

Rohl won't like him: Rangers must drop Ibrox star with "big potential"

It’s unlikely Smith will persist with this Rangers underperformer.

ByBen Gray Oct 20, 2025

After Arsenal spent nearly £300m in the transfer window, pundits were making no excuses for Mikel Arteta’s side.

Despite a tough opening run of fixtures, they were told in no uncertain terms that this season they simply had to win the Premier League title.

While expectations were no doubt lofty, they still have to overcome the challenge of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City and a Liverpool team that in signing Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak had broken the division’s transfer record twice in one summer.

In spite of those circumstances, the Gunners are top by one point heading into the October international break.

It’s been a seriously impressive start to 2025/26, and while they signed a plethora of new forwards, it’s their sturdy defensive record they have to thank yet again.

After seven weeks, they have the best defensive record and have conceded just one open play goal all campaign; that strike from Erling Haaland against City a few weeks ago. Fair enough, really, few have kept the Norwegian quiet lately.

How Arsenal's defence can carry them to the title

It’s safe to say that Arsenal’s defence has come a long way since Arteta first took the reins at the Emirates Stadium.

The Spaniard’s first match in charge saw the Gunners head to Bournemouth on Boxing Day in 2019. A 1-1 draw played out in which Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang rescued a point for the visitors at the Vitality Stadium.

GK – Bernd Leno

RB – Ainsley Maitland-Niles

CB – Sokratis

CB – David Luiz

LB – Bukayo Saka

CM – Granit Xhaka

CM – Lucas Torreira

RW – Reiss Nelson

No. 10 – Mesut Ozil

LW – P-E Aubameyang

CF – Alexandre Lacazette

A marker of the rise at Arsenal is the fact that Bukayo Saka started at left-back that day. Since then he’s become the poster boy of the Arteta project, playing in his 200th game for the club on Saturday.

It’s safe to say the backline has changed considerably. From those dreary days of Sokratis, David Luiz, Shkodran Mustafi and Rob Holding, to William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes, the quality has soared.

From being a laughing stock defensively, the north Londoners now have not just the best defence in England, but arguably in Europe’s top five leagues.

In Saliba, they possess a Rolls-Royce defender, a player who in the words of Leandro Trossard is “one of the best in the world at the moment.”

In Gabriel, they have a colossus. He’s not as calm as Saliba, but that’s why the duo complement each other so well. The Brazilian is a titan and his goal record summarises that perfectly.

Even when one of them are injured, Arsenal have been able to cope well. When Gabriel sustained his hamstring injury during the second half of last season, Jakub Kiwior stepped up admirably, notably keeping a clean sheet against Real Madrid.

This term, with Saliba missing a few games due to his own injury problems, new £13m signing Cristhian Mosquera was outstanding, hailed by some as the club’s “signing of the summer”, such is the bargain price they have paid.

Combined with the likes of David Raya, Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori, Arsenal have shipped just three league goals in seven matches. In the Champions League, they have conceded none. It’s a water-tight defence.

Now, however, they need a bit more help from the attackers.

How Arteta can improve Arsenal's forward line

It was blindingly obvious what the primary issue for Arsenal was last season; they didn’t score enough goals.

There were a number of reasons for that, chiefly the fact that Saka and Kai Havertz missed large parts of the campaign through injury.

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Still, once all was said and done, for the first time since the 1923/24 season, an Arsenal player failed to make it to double figures across a league campaign.

So, over the summer, Andrea Berta and Co invested heavily in improving the attack. Viktor Gyokeres, the scorer of 54 goals in 2024/25 arrived, while Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze also came in to bolster the forward ranks.

Despite that, it still feels like there is a missing link in attack. Whether that be Arsenal’s left-hand side, or the chemistry being built with Gyokeres, there are a few problems.

Arsenal’s big Swede is improving game by game and Arteta appears to be happy with his performances, but ultimately, he will be judged on goals and he is not finding the net regularly enough.

After scoring against Nottingham Forest in the fourth gameweek of the season, he has not beaten the goalkeeper in his last six matches. In fact, across the striker’s last ten outings in all competitions, he has only scored once.

Yet, he is not the biggest problem. Like it was last season, the primary issue has been the left flank.

That being said, certain circumstances have dictated what they can and cannot do in that area of the pitch.

Madueke, now injured, played there against Manchester United and Leeds while Eze featured there against Liverpool, Nottingham Forest and Athletic Club.

Since then, he’s been preferred in a more central role and that will likely continue after Martin Odegaard’s new injury setback.

As such, despite improved form for Gabriel Martinelli, Arteta has turned back to Trossard. The Belgian has feen a mighty fine servant since arriving from Brighton, notably scoring 17 times during the 2023/24 campaign. Only Saka found the net more regularly that year.

However, his powers are waning and he ended last year with just ten goals in all competitions from over 50 matches.

The forward has scored some big goals in Arsenal red. To some, including one content creator on X, he is “the best finisher at the club.” Certainly, some of his goals throughout his career in the capital have showcased why that is the case.

That 2023/24 season saw the 30-year-old net two goals against Chelsea, while he also scored against Manchester United, Liverpool and came up with vital strikes in the Champions League versus Porto and Bayern Munich.

Truth be told, Trossard is a clutch player, but he isn’t a player in 2025/26 that Arteta should be relying upon to start regular games.

His involvement over the last three games demonstrates why. Last weekend against Newcastle he only created one key pass and was unusually wasteful in front of goal, striking the post in the first half when he should have at least hit the target.

The Belgium international was again wasteful in midweek against Olympiacos, missing what were deemed as two ‘big chances’.

Then, against West Ham on Sunday, his influence was limited once again. Reduced to two blocked shots and only one accurate cross from six attempts, he lost possession a whopping 16 times and only completed one dribble. Nuno Santo’s men played with a deep block but Trossard only continues to look like the weak link in this forward line.

So, as much as this Arsenal team need to find a way to get more out of Gyokeres, equally, they need to find solutions on the left-hand side. That could well begin by dropping Trossard after the international break.

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ByMatt Dawson Oct 5, 2025

تمكن فريق الأهلي مواليد 2007، من تحقيق الفوز على غريمه التقليدي فريق الزمالك، في إطار منافسات دوري الجمهورية للناشئين لكرة القدم. 

وواجه فريق الأهلي 2007، نظيره الزمالك، عصر اليوم، على ملعب الأهلي بمدينة نصر، في إطار منافسات الجولة التاسعة من بطولة دوري الجمهورية. 

طالع.. خالد مرتجي: زيزو تعرض لإهانة قوية من جمهور الزمالك.. وهذا ما حدث خلال مراسم التتويج بالسوبر

وحقق فريق الناشئين بالنادي الأهلي مواليد 2007، الفوز على فريق الزمالك بثلاثية مقابل هدفين، في الجولة التاسعة من بطولة دوري الجمهورية للناشئين لكرة القدم. 

وبهذه النتيجة رفع فريق الأهلي مواليد 2007، رصيده إلى 18 نقطة محتلا المركز الثاني في جدول ترتيب دوري الجمهورية، حيث فاز في 5 مباريات، وتعادل في 3 لقاءات، وأحرز المارد الأحمر 22 هدفًا واستقبلت شباكه 6 أهداف. 

جدير بالذكر أن الجهاز الفني لفريق الأهلي مواليد 2007، يقوده فنيا هاني العقبي مديرا فنيا وأحمد جلال مدربا عاما وعصام الغندور مدربًا للحراس 

   

For some, a shirt number may seem arbitrary, although it is hard to ignore the status and significance of the number seven at Manchester United, having become synonymous with the club’s brightest and best.

From Eric Cantona, to David Beckham, to Cristiano Ronaldo, the Red Devils enjoyed a glittering 17-year period in the Premier League in which that shirt had a rightful home, with all three wearing it with distinction.

In the 16 years since Ronaldo’s exit for Real Madrid, however, the No.7 has become something of a poisoned chalice, a cursed offering for a string of new signings who have all flattered to deceive.

Its current incumbent, Mason Mount, has notably scored just five goals during an injury-hit two-year spell at Old Trafford, with questions likely to be asked over whether the Englishman was worthy of such an honour in the first place.

Talented, but undoubtedly unreliable due to his repeated stints on the treatment table, Mount could well benefit from relieving that burden and pressure on himself, with Ruben Amorim perhaps already having the perfect successor lined up.

Man Utd's post-Ronaldo number seven curse

Have United ever truly recovered from the summer of 2009? Out went Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, with Sir Alex Ferguson securing Gabriel Obertan, Antonio Valencia and an ageing Michael Owen as their replacements.

That significant drop in quality perhaps epitomises the malaise that has set in during the much-maligned Glazer regime, with initial success post-Ronaldo having quickly been extinguished in the years following Ferguson’s retirement.

To have gone from the Portuguese sensation to that man Owen as the club’s new no.7 remains a real headscratcher, with the former England international – that Manchester derby goal aside – proving something of a forgotten figure at Old Trafford.

The mantle was subsequently passed on to Valencia for 2012/13, although the Ecuadorian swiftly relinquished such status, while the next recipient – Angel Di Maria – lasted just a solitary season before departing the club for Paris Saint-Germain.

Memphis Depay, meanwhile, scored just seven times in 53 games before being shown the door by Jose Mourinho, while Alexis Sanchez could only fire home five times in 45 games, during his miserable £400k-per-week stint at the club.

Fellow South American star Edinson Cavani enjoyed a promising first campaign as the no.7 with 17 goals in all competitions, before the decision was made to hand the returning Ronaldo the honour instead, for the 2021/22 campaign.

The Portuguese goal machine’s homecoming ultimately proved short-lived, amid his explosive exit under Erik ten Hag, with Mount later taking on the honour following his 2023 summer arrival from Chelsea.

Man Utd No.7’s since 2009
Player	Games	G (A)
Michael Owen	52	17 (3)
Antonio Valencia*	40	1 (6)
Angel Di Maria	32	4 (11)
Memphis Depay	53	7 (5)
Alexis Sanchez	45	5 (9)
Edinson Cavani**	39	17 (6)
Cristiano Ronaldo	54	27 (5)
Mason Mount	53	5 (2)
*just in 2012/13 season
**just in 2020/21 season
Stats via Transfermarkt

All in all, the jersey has been an albatross around the neck for a succession of high-profile figures, with United now needing to look inwards to find a rightful holder again.

Why Bruno Fernandes should be the new number seven

The man who scored the opener against Sunderland last time out, Mount has shown flashes that he can be a go-to figure under Amorim, with the Portuguese coach lauding him as a “proper footballer” amid his arrival at the club just under a year ago.

As already explained, however, the 26-year-old unfortunately can’t be trusted to stay injury-free, making just 53 appearances in all competitions since joining on a £55m deal.

Whether Mount stays or goes next summer, it would be wise for United to consider re-housing the number seven, with ever-reliable skipper, Bruno Fernandes, surely deserving and worthy of such an honour.

Described as a “genius” in the past by Ten Hag, Fernandes has been central to anything and everything good about the club over the past five years or so, recently reaching a milestone of 100 goals from his now 298 appearances.

With a further 86 assists to add into the equation, the 31-year-old has for so long been United’s chief provider and goal-getter, a fact emphasised only last season, as he ended the campaign with 38 goal involvements across all fronts.

Despite flirting with an exit both last summer and during the most recent window – amid interest from Saudi Arabia – the Red Devils skipper has remained intently loyal to the club, seemingly relishing his talismanic status as the central figure in the side.

Right from the off, the ex-Sporting CP man has been a game-changer for United, even while those around him might have suffered, with comparisons to that man Cantona having flooded in amid his early impact at Old Trafford.

While the silverware has unfortunately not followed in the degree that it did after the Frenchman’s entrance in 1992, Fernandes is a similarly heroic figure, carrying the responsibility on his back time and again.

Like Cantona, he certainly isn’t perfect – having notably seen red on three occasions in 2024/25 – but the at-times combustible playmaker more than makes up for that with his repeated genius.

Two penalties might have been missed this season, but Fernandes is never one to shy away from the pressure and the limelight, showing all the attributes of a player worthy of joining the likes of Cantona and Ronaldo as the next number seven.

It would perhaps be a brutal act to snatch that status away from Mount, although few could argue against Fernandes being rewarded for such fine service with a richly deserved promotion.

Man Utd's "insane" talent is being given the Mainoo treatment by Amorim

It isn’t just Kobbie Mainoo who is being given the cold shoulder by Man Utd by Ruben Amorim.

By
Robbie Walls

Oct 11, 2025

Given the very underwhelming start to the season the club have endured, Celtic supporters are demanding reinforcements when the transfer window re-opens in January.

During the summer, the Scottish Premiership champions did make 11 senior signings, albeit the arrivals of Marcelo Saracchi, Michel-Ange Balikwisha, Sebastian Tounekti and Kelechi Ịheanachọ all came right at the end of the window, after the club had crashed out in the Champions League play-off round against Kairat.

Meantime, Brendan Rodgers’ side were beaten 2-0 by Dundee at Dens on Sunday, so are currently five points adrift current league leaders Hearts, who they face at Tynecastle in an eagerly-anticipated clash on Sunday.

In summary, supporters are not happy, chants of “sack the board” can be heard loud and clear at every game, so could a new signing or two this Christmas help lift the mood?

Celtic targeting January reinforcements

Last week, totally out of the blue, it was reported that Celtic were close to signing Bobby Clark for £6m; the 20-year-old midfielder is currently on loan at Derby County from RB Salzburg.

However, Rodgers told Sky Sports “I haven’t a clue where that has come from”, pretty emphatically shutting those rumours down.

More recently, according to a report by Sports Boom, Celtic ‘have expressed an interest’ in re-signing Andy Robertson from Liverpool.

While the defender learned his trade at Queen’s Park and Dundee United, he was in the Hoops academy from 2003 to 2009.

The report adds that the Scotland captain is into the final 12 months of his £160k-per-week contract on Merseyside, so will be free to sign a pre-contract agreement come 1 January, but the Premier League champions may be willing to sell before then, ‘providing the price is right’.

Transfer Focus

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

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So, could the 31-year-old soon swap Anfield for Celtic Park?

Why Celtic could seal a bigger coup than Clark

Since joining Liverpool from Hull City for around £8m eight years ago, Robertson has been an absolute stalwart of the Reds’ success.

Right now, only nine men have made more Premier League appearances for Liverpool than Robertson, set to overtake Roberto Firmino, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Robbie Fowler in the next few weeks.

During the 254 appearances, the left-back has accumulated 56 assists, meaning he ranks among the very best defenders in Premier League history by this measure, as the table below documents.

Defenders – most assists in PL history

Players

Assists

Trent Alexander-Arnold

67

Andy Robertson

56

Leighton Baines

56

Antonio Valencia

52

Graeme Le Saux

44

Kieran Trippier

38

Kyle Walker

37

Andy Hinchcliffe

36

Ian Harte

36

César Azpilicueta

36

Stats via Squawka and Statmuse

As the table documents, Robertson is behind only former partner-in-crime Alexander-Arnold in terms of Premier League assists by defenders, underlining his attacking prowess, with Liverpool legend, and former Rangers manager, Steven Gerrard labelling the duo “world-class”.

He has been such a key contributor at Liverpool for so many seasons, making his current predicament peculiar.

The Scotsman started 29 Premier League games last season, but hasn’t started any this time round so far, following the arrival of Miloš Kerkez from Bournemouth, despite the fact the Hungarian is yet to impress.

Speaking on Sky Sports following Manchester United’s shock victory at Anfield on Sunday, Jamie Carragher said that he thinks it’s “strange” that Robertson is “getting treated like Tsimikas”, where Kerkez is the undisputed first-choice and Robertson is a deputy, rather than even a rotation option.

If that continues to be the case, it appears pretty likely that he’ll be on the move in 2026, so could Robertson fulfill a lifelong ambition?

Born and raised in Glasgow, Robertson has spoken repeatedly about his desire to play for Celtic one day, having been released by the club as a 15-year-old, before going on to play for Queen’s Park and Dundee United.

In 2022, he stated that he’s “always dreamed” of representing his boyhood club, elaborating that “when you watch them and see a packed Celtic Park… as a fan you always have that dream”.

At international level, the 31-year-old now has 88 caps to his name, just three behind Jim Leighton, while chasing down Sir Kenny Dalglish’s all-time record of 102 that has stood since 1986.

Of course, the eternal dilemma for Scotland managers has been how does one get both Kieran Tierney and Robertson into the same side, a headache that could soon not only occur at Hampden, but three miles across the city at Celtic Park too.

Nevertheless, the addition of the national team captain would represent a major coup for the Hoops, with his Premier League experience and title-winning credentials far exceeding the undoubted promise of a player like Clark, one who previously struggled to make his mark after joining Red Bull Salzburg last summer.

With Celtic also already boasting similar talents to the Englishman, a deal for a figure like Robertson should well be the priority, helping to get supporters back on side, adding much-needed experience and quality to this struggling outfit.

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Posts ByBen Gray Oct 20, 2025