Bayern Munich are ready compete with Barcelona to secure a transfer for Liverpool winger Luis Diaz this summer. The Bundesliga giants are looking for a quality left-wing option and have put the Colombian in their shortlist. The German champions, though, are yet to initiate formal transfer talks with the Reds as they are still evaluating their options.
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Bayern eyeing move for Diaz
Ready to compete with Barcelona
German champions want a left winger
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WHAT HAPPENED?
According to Sky Sports' Florian Plettenberg, Diaz could be sold in the summer if a suitable offer comes Liverpool's way. The Colombia international is also being linked with a move to Barcelona, who have identified the winger as a possible option after their pursuit of Nico Williams hit a snag.
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Bayern are also closing in on securing a move for Stuttgart's Nick Woltemade, as the player has reportedly agreed to move to Munich. Plettenberg, however, claims that irrespective of Woltemade's move, the Bundesliga winners are considering Diaz as a serious target.
DID YOU KNOW?
Diaz enjoyed a successful 2024-25 campaign with the Premier League champions and played an important role in Arne Slot's side winning the English top-flight title for a record equalling 20th time. The attacker appeared in 50 matches across all competitions, where he scored 17 goals and provided eight assists.
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WHAT NEXT FOR BAYERN MUNICH?
After a thumping 4-2 win over Flamengo in the Club World Cup round of 16, Kompany's men will next face Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-final on Saturday.
NBA superstar Jimmy Butler is a member of a consortium attempting to buy a stake in Crystal Palace, per a new report.
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Consortium to make offer worth $200 million (£147m)Aiming to buy 43 per cent stake from Eagle FootballButler a memberFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Per , Butler is a member of a consortium of sport and entertainment executives, who want to buy Eagle Football's 43 per cent stake in Crystal Palace. They are expected to make an offer of $200m. The group is being led by Bejan Esmaili and Wajid Mir, who previously had a period of exclusivity with Eagle Football head John Textor to buy a stake in Palace but they allowed it to lapse.
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Butler has now entered into the group and the consortium is now being backed by an American group, which has previously invested in different football clubs. The proposed fee involved would value Palace at $465m (ÂŁ343m) as a whole.
DID YOU KNOW?
Palace finished 12th in the Premier League but won the FA Cup and qualified for the Europa League as a result. Textor and Eagle Football also own Lyon, though, and as they have qualified for the competition too, Palace's participation is in doubt, hence the shareholder's desire to sell.
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Palace will hope to formalise a sale soon so that they can get on with the business of playing in the Europa League next season, and with reshaping their squad this summer.
Abdul Rahman, the young medium pacer, has earned a recall with Afghanistan getting their preps for the ODI World Cup on the road
ESPNcricinfo staff15-May-2023Abdul Rahman, the 21-year-old uncapped medium fast bowler, has earned a recall to Afghanistan’s ODI squad for the three-match series in Sri Lanka early next month. It’s a strong squad with most of the regulars, including some players who are currently at the IPL – Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Noor Ahmad and Fazalhaq Farooqi – among the 15.Series schedule
June 2 – 1st ODI June 4 – 2nd ODI June 7 – 3rd ODI
Afghanistan have qualified directly for the 2023 ODI World Cup, to be played in India later this year, unlike Sri Lanka, who have to go through the qualifiers in Zimbabwe and hope to finish in the top two there to make the make the global tournament.”It’s good to have a couple of young faces for the series; the build-up for the ICC Cricket World Cup has already begun, and we are looking for every possible opportunity to build a good combination of the team and prepare them well for the event,” Mirwais Ashraf, the Afghanistan Cricket Board chair, said in a statement.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe squad has the experience of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid, as well as captain Hashmatullah Shahidi, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Ibrahim Zadran and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, but Shahidullah Kamal, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zia Ur Rahman Akbar and Gulbadin Naib have been named in the reserves.The bowling looks especially strong. Apart from Rashid, Mujeeb and Nabi – No. 6, No. 8 and No. 10 in the ICC ODI bowlers’ rankings – there is Noor, who has had an impressive run in his debut IPL season with Gujarat Titans, while Farooqi will lead the fast bowling attack. Rahman comes in on the back of a good showing in the ongoing domestic one-day tournament in Afghanistan, where he has picked up seven wickets in five games at an economy rate of 5.81 for Hindukush Strikers.Afghanistan ODI squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), Rahmat Shah (vice-capt), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Abdul Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Farid Ahmad Malik
Josh Hazlewood has lost his race to be fit for Australia’s World Test Championship final against India. He has been replaced in the squad by Michael Neser. This makes Scott Boland a favourite to make the XI for the match, which starts on June 7 at The Oval.Hazlewood, who picked up side soreness at the IPL, remains in Australia’s squad for the Ashes, though, with chief selector George Bailey saying he remains in contention for the first of those Tests, in Edgbaston on June 16.”Josh was very, very close to being given the green light but we are cognisant that our upcoming schedule [the WTC final quickly followed by five Ashes Tests] means this is not a one-off Test match of us.Related
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“This will give Josh an ideal preparation leading into Edgbaston. With six Test matches in a little over seven weeks we will need all of our fast bowling assets.”Neser comes in on the back of a stint with Glamorgan on the county cricket circuit. Given the uncertainty over Hazlewood, Neser, along with Sean Abbott, had been pulled out of county duty to train with the Australian squad in Beckenham. “Michael’s county form has been strong and knowing that he was going to be close by allowed for him to keep playing and for us to be able to call on him,” Bailey said. “He is a great strength to have as part of the fast-bowling group.”Hazlewood had been withdrawn from the IPL after three games for Royal Challengers Bangalore, and at the time the decision was considered to be a precautionary measure, with scans clearing him of any damage to his side. The precautions were due to his recent run of injury, including two side strains over the past two years and an Achilles issue. This has all meant that he has only played four of Australia’s last 19 Test matches and has not played in back-to-back first-class games since early 2021.He was picked for the WTC final subject to proving his fitness with heavy training loads leading up to the game, and as recently as May 31 he was still very hopeful of making it. Sunday’s announcement came after Hazlewood bowled three spells at training on Saturday.As for the other specialist quicks in Australia’s WTC squad, captain Pat Cummins is back after missing Australia’s previous two Tests, in India, due to family reasons, and Mitchell Starc is fully fit having missed the first two games of that India series with a finger injury.
His unbeaten 155-run stand with Henriques set up a convincing 125-run win
Andrew McGlashan21-Jan-2023Sydney Sixers 187 for 2 in 19 overs (Smith 125*, Henriques 45*, Sandhu 2-42) beat Sydney Thunder 62 (Warner 16, O’Keefe 4-10, Abbott 3-11) by 125 runsThe BBL had already enjoyed a resurgent season, but Steven Smith produced one of its grandest performances in front of a packed SCG to keep Sydney Sixers in the hunt for the top spot with a crushing 125-run victory in the local derby against Sydney Thunder.Smith followed his 56-ball hundred against Adelaide Strikers by matching that figure to the delight of the majority of the 38,757-strong crowd, after a slightly delayed start bringing the game down to a 19-over contest with rain briefly threatening to spoil the occasion, despite having battled back spasms earlier in the day.Smith finished on a career-best 125* from 66 balls, peppered with nine sixes, as cross-town rivals Thunder had no answer as he dominated an unbeaten second-wicket of 155 with captain Moises Henriques. He became the second player in the BBL to score back-to-back hundreds after Ben McDermott.However, the overall contest peaked with Smith’s innings. The contrast with David Warner was stark. He took 17 balls to find the boundary as Thunder never threatened to make any sort of impression on the target.Sensational SmithAfter Sixers opted to bat, Smith was quickly into his stride, carving his second ball for four, playing a superb back-foot drive against Chris Green in the second over then sweeping Daniel Sams into the stands for his first six.The home side were briefly set back when Gurinder Sandhu struck twice in the fourth over – Josh Philippe dragging on and Kurtis Patterson top-edging three balls after being dropped – but Smith was in the zone.There was a period of consolidation where three overs from the fifth to the seventh did not produce a boundary before Smith deposited Joel Davies straight down the ground. That marked a gear change for Smith who went to fifty from 31 balls in an over where he again put Sams into the stands.Smith was given a life on 51 when Usman Qadir spilled a return catch having already taken a painful blow on the hand. Smith sped into the 90s with two sixes in three balls off Sandhu in the 15th over before launching Qadir over wide long-on, his second fifty taking just 25 deliveries. In the space of three innings he had equaled the most sixes for the season.Smith’s 125* was the highest T20 innings at the SCG, overtaking Shane Watson’s 124 against India in 2016 and his performances have shone a light on his omission from Australia’s T20 side, even if there were logical reasons behind it.Henriques’ painful supporting roleThe Sixers’ captain had one of the best seats in the house, although he copped a few blows for his efforts. He struggled somewhat early on and was 15 off 19 balls before sending Qadir over long-on, although by and large was able to leave the heavy lifting to Smith.In the 14th over he was struck a painful blow on the chin when a throw from the outfield bounced on the edge of the pitch and missed his helmet. In the penultimate over he was then in the firing line from Smith himself when a fiercely struck drive off Sams hammered in his thigh at the non-strikers’ end.In the end, the third-wicket stand ended as Sixers’ second-highest in the BBL and the highest partnership for that wicket in the tournament’s history.Warner struggles as Thunder slideWarner’s return to the BBL, after a much longer gap than Smith’s, has brought nowhere near the same rewards for Thunder. There wasn’t a lot he could do about the yorker he got from Riley Meredith against Hobart Hurricanes, and he played a useful hand against Melbourne Renegades, but this was a painful innings.He didn’t often have much of the strike – facing just 23 balls by the time he fell in the tenth over – but couldn’t get his innings going and the frustration was clear. Eventually, he spooned a catch into the leg side against the wily Steve O’Keefe as Thunder’s chase fell in a heap. Warner’s final tally was the third slowest double-figure innings of his T20 career.Thunder have endured some significant batting struggles this season, although with one game remaining can still make the finals.Lyon sits out againThis is a watching brief at the moment, not quite a cause for major concern. For the second consecutive match, Nathan Lyon was kept on the sidelines as medical staff took a precautionary view of a knee niggle, described as a lateral meniscus irritation.He will be assessed again ahead of Sixers’ final regular-season match against Hobart Hurricanes on Monday, but there won’t be any risks taken with the proximity of the India tour – plus the fact that Sixers are well-stocked for spinners, at least at the moment. They will have to use their bench strength when both Lyon and Todd Murphy, who bowled very tidily in this game, have departed for India. Smith will have gone, too, by then but has certainly left his mark on this year’s tournament.
Ipswich Town have made an out-of-window move to sign a young attacker from Premier League rivals Arsenal, it has been reported.
Ipswich Town’s January signings
The Tractor Boys were relatively busy in the January transfer window, bringing in four new players for the second half of the season. The first to arrive was centre-back Ben Godfrey from Atalanta on loan until the end of the campaign. He was then joined by winger Jaden Philogene on a permanent transfer from Aston Villa.
Ipswich Town’s next five Premier League fixtures
Date
Aston Villa vs Ipswich Town
15 February
Ipswich Town vs Tottenham Hotspur
22 February
Man Utd vs Ipswich Town
26 February
Crystal Palace vs Ipswich Town
8 March
Ipswich Town vs Nottingham Forest
15 March
Then, Ipswich secured the services of attacking midfielder Julio Enciso on loan from Brighton. To round things off for Kieran McKenna’s side, Ipswich signed goalkeeper Alex Palmer from Championship side West Brom on deadline day.
Talking after signing Palmer for £2m last week, McKenna said: “With Christian (Walton) out the department was short with just Aro (Muric) and Cieran Slicker, who is very talented but who hasn’t played as many senior games, so we felt it was important to add.
“Alex coming in gives us another experienced goalkeeper, strengthens the unit and gives us the option to make decisions that we think are going to be best for the team.
“He’s (Palmer) certainly a good communicator – that’s one of his strengths. Christian has specialisms different to Aro, who has got different specialisms to Alex and Cieran Slicker. We just expect each of them to bring the very best of themselves to the team.”
Even though the transfer window is now shut until the summer, Ipswich have still managed to add to their academy ranks for the future, as per a fresh update.
Ipswich Town sign young attacker from Arsenal
As reported by the Daily Cannon, Ipswich Town have moved to sign youngster Jayden Adetiba from Arsenal. It has been claimed that Adetiba had been on trial with Ipswich, Bournemouth and Brentford, and the player’s father has now stated on X that Adetiba has moved to Ipswich.
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Presumably penning scholarship terms at the age of 15, Adetiba has been described as a skilful attacker while at Arsenal, where he appeared for the Gunners’ U18 side in pre-season, scoring against Paderborn last summer.
Now, it looks as if he will continue his development in East Anglia, looking to hopefully turn out for the first team at Portman Road in the future.
Despite the fact it has been a disappointing season for Wolverhampton Wanderers so far, there have been two standout players in attack for the Old Gold.
Of course, one of those players has been Matheus Cunha, who has ten goals and four assists in 22 Premier League games. That includes three occasions where he has scored and assisted at least once in the same game.
Norwegian centre-forward Jorgen Stand Larsen has also been a standout player at Molineux this term. He has found the back of the net seven times, and has two assists, in 23 Premier League games.
Despite the fact they have just 16 points this season, they have still scored 32 times, a fairly decent number. Whilst that is largely down to Cunha and Strand Larsen, they might be trying to add to that attacking firepower this January.
Wolves eye up new attacker
The player in question here is experienced Portuguese attacker Rafa Silva. The 31-year-old is currently plying his trade in Turkye for Besiktas, where Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has just taken charge as manager.
However, according to a report on Portuguese television channel V+ TVI, Wolves are believed to have sent an enquiry out about the player. At this stage, it is unclear whether the Old Gold would be looking for a loan deal or a permanent move.
Rafa Silva celebrates scoring for Besiktas.
Should the former Benfica star move to Molineux on a permanent deal, or even on loan with a buy clause, it should not be too expensive. He is valued at just ÂŁ10m, according to Transfermarkt. With that being said, the wages could be an issue, given he earns ÂŁ160k-per-week in Turkey, as per Capology.
Why Rafa Silva would be a good signing
If there is one thing that Silva could bring to Vitor Pereira’s side, it is experience. The 31-year-old has not only got experience winning trophies with Benfica but has played over 500 professional games.
This term, he has been impressive for Besiktas. In 31 appearances across all competitions, he has ten goals and seven assists. He starred in Solskjaer’s first game, scoring once and grabbing two assists in a 4-1 thrashing of Athletic Club in the Europa League.
Upon his arrival at the club, journalist Kaan Bayazit described Silva as a “magician”, and he showcased why in that game.
The Portugal international will also bring great versatility to the Wolves squad. Over the course of 326 games for Benfica, in which he bagged 94 goals and registered 79 assists, the attacker played as a winger, a number ten and even as a centre-forward.
Silva record per position for Benfica (min 45 mins played)
Position
Games
Goals
Assists
Second striker
62
20
9
Attacking midfield
56
20
21
Right-wing
53
14
21
Left midfield
43
20
4
Right midfield
42
7
11
Left-winger
40
8
6
Centre-forward
8
4
3
Stats from Transfermarkt
This could certainly be useful for the Old Gold, who will be looking to add to the attacking quality already in the side, including the likes of Cunha and Strand Larsen. Silva would certainly enhance that if he made the move to the West Midlands this month, and Pereira would have the luxury of playing him alongside a range of players.
If Wolves do bring Silva to the club, he could end up being their best attacker since Pedro Neto. Another versatile Portuguese forward, Neto left Wolves in the summer to join Chelsea for a hefty ÂŁ54m fee.
Wolves star Pedro Neto
During his time at Molineux, Neto was scintillating. He scored 14 goals and grabbed 24 assists, and whilst injuries affected him, stood out in his last season, with two goals and nine assists in 20 Premier League games.
Liverpool legend turned Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher described Neto as a “special talent” just after his move to Stamford Bridge, and that was certainly something he showed as a Wolves player.
Well, Silva will certainly have a lot to live up to if he wants to hit the heights of Neto at Wolves, but all the pieces of the puzzle are there. Not only is he incredibly experienced, but he possesses a goal threat and lots of versatility.
Transfer Focus
He could well be their biggest attacking threat since his fellow Portugal star, and help the Old Gold avoid regulation.
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The Midlands club have seemingly made a late move.
“Their fight is outstanding to watch,” India captain says of Sri Lanka, who won their semi-final against Pakistan by one run
Mohammad Isam14-Oct-2022India will take on Sri Lanka in the Women’s Asia Cup final on Saturday, and Harmanpreet Kaur talked up her players’ strength of character for the quick switch from pleasant England to steaming Sylhet, hitting their stride after just one training session.”Conditions and wickets were totally different [in England], and it is totally different here. We only got one day to change our gears,” Harmanpreet said. “In England, we were getting good batting tracks and ball was swinging. But when we got here, we had to change our plans. But the good thing was that all the players took the challenge.Related
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“We got only one [warm-up] session before the game, so it shows how strong we are as a team. The character is building. It is something I really appreciated in the team meetings also. We are enjoying our cricket.”India lost just one game in the league phase, against Pakistan, to finish as table-toppers, and now take on Sri Lanka, who they beat comfortably, by 41 runs, on the opening day of the Asia Cup.Along the way, they tinkered with the team combination a fair bit, and Harmanpreet said that the idea was to try different things with an aim to find new match-winners. “When we came to Bangladesh, we discussed that we need to look for a different match-winner,” she said. “We don’t want to depend on one or two players. We want every player to step up, and win the game for the team. I am happy that we are getting match-winners in every game.”Sri Lanka finished the league stage in third place, but a close win over Bangladesh and then in the semi-final against Pakistan make them dangerous opponents.”We saw a lot of positives in their side, especially they don’t give up till the last ball,” Harmanpreet said. “Their fight is outstanding to watch. Whenever any team plays good cricket, you can always learn from them.”
“We tried a lot of combinations. The World Cup [in South Africa next year] is around the corner. It was a great platform to test, and we are happy with how we used this opportunity”Harmanpreet Kaur
Chamari Athapaththu, sitting next to Harmanpreet, returned the compliment: “India is the favourite team in the tournament. They have good players. But as a captain, I don’t want to feel any pressure for tomorrow’s game. Whoever plays good cricket and makes fewer mistakes on that particular day, the team can win. We will stick to our plans.”Plans that came good in the semi-final against Pakistan, which they won by one run, to make the Asia Cup final for the first time since 2008.”It was a crucial game for us since we haven’t played the Asia Cup final for 14 years. We got the opportunity tomorrow,” Athapaththu said. “We want to play good cricket because all the media and fans [back home] will be watching.”The Asia Cup was not just about the big teams from the region, but also Thailand, Malaysia and UAE. Thailand, especially, impressed, beating Malaysia, UAE and Pakistan, in one of the biggest results in their cricket history.”This tournament is a great opportunity for all of us, especially teams like UAE, Malaysia and Thailand. It was outstanding to watch Thailand play in this tournament,” Harmanpreet said. “This is a platform where you can test your limitations, what type of cricket you want to play in the future.”We were always testing ourselves, putting ourselves under pressure, to see how we can go about it. We tried a lot of combinations. The World Cup [in South Africa next year] is around the corner. It was a great platform to test, and we are happy with how we used this opportunity.”
Surrey spinner “working as hard as I can on my bowling” ahead of England’s return to Pakistan in December
Matt Roller26-Sep-2022Will Jacks is one of six England players who will fly home from Pakistan next week while the rest of the touring squad travel to Australia for the T20 World Cup, but he hopes that he will have the chance to return before long.Jacks had only taken four first-class wickets this time last year and his first-class bowling average is 53.28 but he made a significant contribution to Surrey’s title-winning County Championship season with bat and ball and is in the frame for a place in the Test squad as a back-up allrounder for England’s three-match tour to Pakistan in December.Gareth Batty, Surrey’s interim head coach, has drawn a comparison with Moeen Ali and Jacks revealed that the pair spent some time working on his bowling together during the Karachi leg of England’s T20I series. With Moeen distancing himself from a Test call-up earlier in the tour despite having reversed his retirement from the format earlier this year, Jacks will come into contention.Related
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“I’m working as hard as I can on my bowling,” Jacks said, speaking at the Pearl Continental hotel in Lahore after flying from Karachi on Monday. “I’ve been chatting to Mo since I’ve been here and we’ve been talking about our similarities as bowlers, me compared to him when he was younger.”He sees a lot of similarities in our actions – the way our arms move, all technical stuff – and it’s about how I can almost… not replicate what he’s done, because everyone is different, but take things from how he’s gone about changing his action [and] become tighter, so that I can bowl more consistently.”I know there’s something there for me and I know if I can improve then going forward, I can make myself into that allrounder and push for spots. I know how important that is and I’m giving everything to try to make myself that.”Jacks has developed his bowling significantly in recent years, to the extent that Batty told him in pre-season that he was likely to start as Surrey’s main spinner. His selection was controversial at the time, squeezing Amar Virdi and Dan Moriarty – widely considered to be two of England’s most promising young spinners – out of the side, but has been vindicated by their title win.Jacks’ contribution with the ball was relatively modest, with 17 wickets at 47.00, but he regularly performed a holding role and allowed seamers to rotate. He also finished the season with 648 runs at 54.00 from the middle order, and earned a Lions call-up for the four-day match against South Africa in August.”There were chats with the coaches there,” he said of his experience with the Lions. “They spoke about how they liked the way I put shape on the ball and spin the ball, so they’re obviously telling me to keep working and keep pushing which I am doing.”The first five or six [Championship] games before the T20s, I made loads of mistakes and bowled a lot of terrible balls, but it’s something that I’ve really had to grow. It’s forced me to learn quickly, which has definitely helped me, and when we came back I feel like I bowled much more consistently and more maturely.Jacks made 40 from 22 balls on his T20I debut•Getty Images”I was coming in and playing instead of two guys who have done really well. They’ve got records over a few years, so I did kind of feel that pressure. At the beginning, I put too much pressure on myself: I was expecting to bowl like a real high-quality county spinner when at that stage I wasn’t that.”Jacks is one of three Surrey players in Pakistan for the T20I series and admitted it was “strange” to miss out on their title celebrations after playing an important role in their title win. “Me, Sam [Curran] and Toppers [Reece Topley] were on the WhatsApp group, seeing the photos and videos sent through and were disappointed to be missing out on the fun,” he said.”But you wouldn’t change playing for England for anything. It’s a mixed feeling: I’m over the moon and delighted to be here – it’s something I’ve worked my whole life for. But seeing those celebrations… I’m not going to lie, I was gutted to miss out. When I go back in a week’s time, I’ll celebrate with them.”Jacks has not yet been required with the ball in this series and has experienced contrasting emotions with the bat, hitting 40 off 22 on debut before being bowled by Mohammad Hasnain for a third-ball duck in Pakistan’s last-gasp win on Sunday night.”I’ve loved every second,” he said. “All the games have been such high intensity, and the crowds have been amazing. The message to me coming in has been to play my natural way and play how I’ve done for Surrey: that’s what’s got me into this team so I should play how I have been to stay there and perform in international cricket.”
Having already welcomed Vitor Reis, Abdukodir Khusanov and Omar Marmoush this month, Manchester City are now reportedly set to hold talks with another young star over a January deal.
Man City transfer news
The Citizens have been in no mood to waste time this month, instantly welcoming two future stars in Reis and Khusanov to finally add some youthful exuberance to an ageing backline and then instantly turning their focus towards a big-money deal for Marmoush. The Eintracht Frankfurt forward arrived for a reported ÂŁ59m and should ease the goalscoring responsibility on Erling Haaland.
Speaking for the first time since putting pen to paper, the Egyptian told Manchester City’s official website: “This is a day I will never forget. To sign for Manchester City – one of the best teams in the world – is an amazing feeling. I am delighted, my family are so proud, and we are all very happy to be here in Manchester.
“With Pep, his technical staff and the world-class facilities here, players have everything they need to improve. That was really enticing for me when I had the chance to come here.”
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The Premier League champions are not done there though. According to Fabrizio Romano, Manchester City are now set to hold talks with Sverre Nypan who has flown in to see the project that they are proposing this month. The young Norway midfielder will reportedly take his time with his decision with a move to City potentially including a swift loan exit to Girona.
Still just 18 years old, like Khusanov and Reis, Nypan is undoubtedly one for the future.
"Elite" Nypan can become De Bruyne heir
Having already welcomed the future of their backline, Manchester City can welcome the future of their midfield in Nypan this month. The teenager shares similar qualities to a certain Kevin de Bruyne, who is currently on course to leave The Etihad at the end of his contract this summer, and Ben Mattinson detailed those qualities in an impressive verdict.
The analyst dubbed Nypan an “elite potential talent” before praising his “ability to control the pace of the game” and “decisive” passing ability in the final third – three traits that De Bruyne holds better than most.
With that said, Nypan remains one to watch in the closing stages of the transfer window as Manchester City look to round off what has been an excellent month of young arrivals.