Category Uncategorized

Glasgow Rangers target Jose Cifuentes is set to fly in to complete a medical ahead of a move to the Scottish Premiership, according to reports.

Who is LAFC's Jose Cifuentes?

The Los Angeles FC midfielder first arrived in the Major League Soccer back in 2020 and has since gone on to make a total of 113 appearances for Steve Cherundolo’s side, but with his contract set to expire at the end of the year, he’s likely to be available for a cut-price fee this summer.

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Fabrizio Romano credited the Light Blues with a strong interest in the 24-year-old and claimed that initial conversations are “going well” after Michael Beale and Co offered him an “interesting project”.

The Ecuador international also recently sparked excitement among supporters after he was spotted liking social media comments from fans welcoming him to the club despite a deal having not yet even been completed, though it sounds as if a move is pretty imminent.

Are Rangers signing Cifuentes?

According to The Herald, Cifuentes is “poised to quit” Los Angeles FC in the MLS and is “expected to jet in for a medical sooner rather than later” to finalise his switch to Rangers. Beale now “closes in” on securing his next new signing and one that will add “further strength” to the centre of the park, with all of the fresh faces set to join up with the rest of the squad in next month’s pre-season training camp over in Germany.

Could Cifuentes be a strong addition for Beale?

Rangers recently confirmed the signing of Crystal Palace goalkeeper Jack Butland so Beale will now be focusing on what other targets he can bring in next, and having been described as a “physical” central midfielder by Ecuador specialist Benedikt Duda, Cifuentes would be a fantastic addition at Ibrox.

The World Cup participant, who pockets £5k-per-week, is naturally stronger in the attacking aspect of his game, ranking in the 98th percentile for successful take-ons and turning his dribbling skills into results having posted five goal contributions (four assists and one goal) in 18 appearances across all competitions this season.

Cifuentes, however, is also good at getting stuck in defensively having won 15 of his 19 tackles made since the start of the term so loves to dispossess the opposition and win the ball back for his side. For someone who has a positive impact at both ends of the pitch, this seems like a no-brainer of a deal to complete.

A round-up of the action from day 1 of the eighth round of Group C Ranji Trophy matches

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Nov-2016Shadab Jakati rescued Goa with a career-best 8 for 53 to dismiss Andhra for 159 in Dhanbad and restrict Goa’s first-innings deficit to 44. The left-arm spinner’s performance on what both sides termed a “grassy surface” came after Goa were all out for 115 after Andhra spinner Bhargav Bhatt took 6 for 36 on a day when 20 wickets fell.Defending a slender first innings total, Jakati opened the bowling and dismissed opener Prasanth Kumar in his second over. Srikar Bharat (68) and Ravi Teja (17) added 54 for the second wicket. That was the only substantial partnership as Jakati dismissed Teja and four other Andhra batsmen to leave them tottering at 118 for 7 after they had been 62 for 1. Bhatt hit a 23-ball 25, but Jakati cleaned up the tail.Earlier in the day, Goa openers Sumiran Amonkar and Swapnil Asnodkar saw off the new ball with a 33-run partnership that lasted 21.2 overs before Bhatt’s legspin had the latter caught for 15. Bhatt dismissed five others – all six caught off his bowling – as Goa crumbled from 74 for 3 to 115 all out.Kerala’s Sandeep Warrier and Jalaj Saxena shared three wickets each as Tripura were all out for 213 in Cuttack. In reply, Kerala finished the day on 11 without loss.Tripura suffered a middle-order collapse, from 76 for 2 to 124 for 7. Warrier took three of those wickets, as Tripura’s Udiyan Bose (36) and Smit Patel (26) fell as soon as a partnership seemed to be developing. Yashpal Singh scored a 99-ball 50, stitching together a 69-run partnership with captain Manisankar Murasingh (42) to take them past 200, before Saxena dismissed the last two batsmen within the next 13 runs.Haryana’s Guntashveer Singh scored a first-class ton on debut as they finished on 237 for 3 after day one, against Himachal Pradesh in Valsad.Himachal were made to toil after choosing to field as Singh and opener Nitin Saini (39) helped Haryana put on 91 before the loss of a wicket. They had, however, lost opener Shubham Rohilla, who had to retire hurt after scoring 2 off 21. Singh went on to add significant partnerships with Chaitanya Bishnoi (26) and Rajat Paliwal (25) before seeing out the day unbeaten on 110, with captain Mohit Sharma (20*) at the other end. Kanwar Abhinay picked up all the three wickets of the day.In Mumbai, Services were all out late in the day for 225 after Chhattisgarh’s left-arm spinner Sumit Ruikar picked up his third five-wicket haul in first-class cricket. Opener Nakul Verma (54) and No. 7 Vikas Hathwala (50) top-scored for Services but, with no concrete partnerships for the team, they were unable to build a big total. Ruikar was aided by Abhimanyu Chauhan’s 2 for 24, as Services were all out in the 86th over.Openers Sahil Gupta and Chauhan saw out the day as Chhattisgarh finished on 8 for no loss.Tanmay Agarwal scored his fifth first-class ton and remained not out on 106 as Hyderabad finished the day on 234 for 3 against Jammu & Kashmir in Vadodara.Opener Akshath Reddy was dismissed for 18 by Samiullah Beigh with Hyderabad on 36 but Agarwal and S Badrinath (47) added 105 for the second wicket before Pervez Rasool dismissed the latter. Rasool also got B Anirudh (46) late in the day, but by then he had added 93 runs with Agarwal for Hyderabad to finish the day on top.

Pundit Clinton Morrison has praised Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek for his display in their most recent game.

What's the latest on Man City vs Chelsea?

Essentially nothing beyond pride was on the line for either team as the Blues travelled way to Manchester City in the Premier League.

Indeed, Pep Guardiola's men wrapped up the title yesterday with Arsenal losing, and so the side with 115 alleged breaches of financial rules to their name enjoyed a guard of honour for Chelsea ahead of kick-off.

And much of the first half was played at the sort of pace you would expect from two teams will little on the line and this was reflected well by the opening goal.

Wesley Fofana misplaced a pass and City broke with purpose as Cole Palmer found Julian Alvarez who finished well when through on goal.

Chelsea came out in the second half and did well to keep themselves in the game and it seems Loftus-Cheek was one of the standouts.

Indeed, commentating for BBC Radio 5 Live, Morrison noted: "Chelsea are making a game of it in the second half. Ruben Loftus-Cheek has been travelling well with the ball, he's so elegant when he carries it. Chelsea are definitely looking to get on the front foot a bit more."

How good was Ruben Loftus-Cheek vs Man City?

The intensity of the match as summed up well by Sky Sports' Jamie Redknapp as he noted:

"There's a testimonial feel to the game.

"Man City players won't want to get injured and Chelsea just want this season over with now. It's been that bad for them."

But even so, Loftus-Cheek still put in a decent shift. Indeed, in his 81 minutes before being subbed, he showed quality on the ball with 24/26 (92% attempted passes, one out of one long balls attempted and lost the ball just three times from 36 touches.

On top of that, he battled hard for his team winning six of seven ground duels and was fouled three times too (via SofaScore).

All in all, it's fair to say the £120k-p/w midfielder was a rare bright spot in another drab day for the Blues.

ScorecardMichael Richardson took a blow but made an important fifty•Getty Images

There is the faintest risk of relegation in the air for Durham and Warwickshire, with the whiff about to become stronger for whichever county finishes on the wrong end of the result here. Just the time then with the Championship season at such a critical juncture for Paul Collingwood to stage an encore for Brigadier Block.Durham’s coach, Jon Lewis, had summoned the squad in on Monday, barely 24 hours after their defeat in the final of the NatWest T20 Blast, for a practice session that he called “more mental than physical”. The emphasis had to switch to four-day cricket and Collingwood, who ground out 23 in 107 deliveries, certainly gave it his full attention.It was clear from the outset that if Warwickshire got him out it would be over his dead body – it was just that there were times in a stubbornly strokeless display when it seemed that his death had been a little premature.It was the sort of Bowling Day that legitimised such defiance with plenty of encouragement for the bowlers in humid conditions and on a pitch that Warwickshire regarded as a bit “tacky”. Only Michael Richardson, who made 55 from 72 balls before he edged Keith Barker low to second slip, and more briefly Jack Burnham, also picked up at slip, this time off Chris Wright, made much headway in a total of 207 that took 81 overs to compile.Richardson has handed over the gloves to Stuart Poynter and the batting responsibility seemed to spur him on. But generally, it was attritional fare for a decent sun-drenched crowd.Barker bowls his left-arm medium with grace despite his bulk, a man who one suspects would barely leave a footmark in a fresh fall of snow. Such economy of effort enabled him to deliver 11 overs with the new ball, bowling Mark Stoneman and swinging one away from Keaton Jennings to have him caught at first slip. Barker has made a habit of tormenting Durham with bat and ball in recent seasons and 3 for 29 off 17 overs was another decent effort.But once Richardson had departed, half the Durham side sent back for 151, the last five wickets fell to the offspin of Jeetan Patel. Figures of 5 for 32 in 15.3 overs are not what you expect from a spinner on an opening day at Emirates Riverside, even in a season where attempts have been made to encourage spinners back into the game.At a time when Collingwood might have hoped to benefit, he became increasingly careworn, feet not always moving, bat likewise. His only boundary was a delicate leg glance off Barker from the 67th ball he faced. There was a flurry of activity straight after tea when he tried to drive Patel and the ball spun past leg stump and trundled for four byes.He fell in hesitant fashion to the next delivery, sitting back to dab the ball between silly point and slip, flinging his head back in response to some modest turn and bounce and somehow depositing the ball into the hands of silly point. It was an innings to make his various injuries niggle away a little deeper, but Durham scored 114 for 2 while he was at the crease and the value of his innings might be recognised in hindsight.Patel made short work of the rest. Poynter and Barry McCarthy, back from Ireland duty, were both bowled, Paul Coughlin swept to deep midwicket and Graham Onions’ idiosyncratic reverse paddle against Patel was the sort of T20 shot Lewis had feared, only from a No. 11 who had not actually been part of the squad.Durham’s resolve has never been higher this season than when they won at Edgbaston last month, surviving Chris Woakes’ brilliant 9 for 35 to secure the game on the final morning. They will need a display of similar determination, one fancies, if they are to come out on the right side of this one.

Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun is set to return from his season-long loan deal with Reims in Ligue 1 but he is expected to seek an exit from the north London club.

Why did Balogun leave on loan?

Over the summer, Arsenal made a number of ambitious signings which included the arrival of players like Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City.

The summer additions alongside the continuous development of the current squad under Mikel Arteta has seen the Gunner put together an ambitious title charge.

Of course, that surge for the title has hit the rocks over recent weeks with Manchester City taking control of the pursuit for the Premier League crown.

The competition for a spot in the starting XI as a striker saw Balogun leave the club in search of more regular football which is what he has found in France.

Under manager Will Still, the youngster has enjoyed a stream of action in the starting XI in which has seen the Englishman shine abroad (via Transfermarkt).

However, it seems as if the 21-year-old may not look to showcase his talent in north London upon his return with a potential move away believed to be on the cards.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano provided an update on his future ahead of the summer:

(3:20) "What they want to do? One more loan to send the player to any other club or to sell him on a permanent deal. This is something to be decided but on [the] player's side, he feels that he wants to try a different kind of challenge – as [Charlie] Patino – on permanent basis. This is why Balogun is one to watch, for Patino the decision is already made."

Could Balogun impact the Arsenal starting XI?

The gauntlet has certainly been laid down in attack for the Gunners this season with Arteta's men the second-highest scorers in the league this season.

And one player who has largely impressed this season is Jesus who only joined the Gunners over the course of the summer.

Over his 21 appearances in the league, Jesus has returned nine goals and six assists for the north London side having also battled a significant injury issue (via Transfermarkt).

Considering Arsenal spent big money to bring the Brazilian to the Emirates, it is difficult to see how he could be dislodged from the starting XI when he is providing a goals return.

Perhaps the spot on the bench could be won, having said that, Arsenal did only recently reward Eddie Nketiah with a significant deal which has him earning £100k-per-week.

Even if that spot on the bench was there to be won, you have to question whether a player who is currently Ligue 1's fourth-highest goalscorer would be willing to sit on the bench waiting for his opportunity.

And it seems that is the case, on the back of an impressive campaign, the "goal machine" – as hailed by journalist Garland Gillen – is seemingly on the hunt to continue his run of games ahead of next season.

Fans online have reacted after Manchester City goal machine Erling Haaland missed a plethora of opportunities against Leeds United.

How bad was Erling Haaland against Leeds?

The Norwegian striker has simply torn English goalscoring records into pieces in his debut Premier League season so far.

Indeed, there are three games left to play in the competition, but the 22-year-old already has scored the most goals (35) in a single league campaign.

This topped Mohamed Salah’s 32 goals for Liverpool in 2017-18 in a 38-game season, as well as Alan Shearer and Andrew Cole’s previous best of 34 strikes in a 42-game season.

However, against Leeds United and Sam Allardyce at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon, Haaland was uncharacteristically wasteful with his opportunities.

While Ilkay Gundogan scored twice to give City a 2-1 win, the £375k-p/w striker missed three big chances, hit the woodwork, fired four shots off target, and finished the game with an xG of 0.98 despite failing to hit the back of the net (via SofaScore).

Perhaps most notably, he missed the opportunity to cap off a beautiful move as Gundogan played a clever outside of the boot to Kevin de Bruyne who, in turn, flicked it perfectly into the path of Haaland.

That alone was bad enough to spark some shocked comments.

But Haaland actually went on to miss a number of other key opportunities and somebody online created a montage of his poor finishing on the day.

Here are some of the best reactions to this…

Haaland of course grew up supporting Leeds – as his father Alf Inge played for the club – and Harry Potter actor Matthew Lewis (who played Neville Longbottom) was left wondering if maybe the misses were on purpose.

Seeing as the 22-year-old also turned down the opportunity to take a penalty, which was then missed by Gundogan, there could be something to this conspiracy…

أعلن مايكل أرتيتا، المدير الفني لفريق آرسنال، تشكيل لاعبيه في مواجهة ليفربول، التي ستنطلق بعد قليل، ضمن منافسات كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي.

ويستضيف نادي آرسنال نظيره ليفربول، ضمن منافسات الدور الثالث من كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي.

ويخوض آرسنال مواجهة اليوم أمام ليفربول على ملعب “الامارات”، في تمام السادسة والنصف مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة.

اقرأ ايضاً.. آرسنال ينافس برشلونة على صفقة من الدوري الإنجليزي

وشهدت قائمة آرسنال في مواجهة اليوم، غياب المهاجم البرازيلي جابرييل خيسوس، بسبب إصابته في الركبة. تشكيل آرسنال أمام ليفربول في كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي

حراسة المرمى: رامسديل.

خط الدفاع: بن وايت – ساليبا – جابرييل – جاكوب كيويور.

خط الوسط: ديكلان رايس – جورجينهو – مارتن أوديجارد.

خط الهجوم: نيلسون – بوكايو ساكا – كاي هافيرتز.

⚪️ 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠𝙉𝙀𝙒𝙎 ⚪️

⚖️ Jorginho in the middle
🦋 Nelson on the wing
🪄 Havertz leads the line

Let’s start the year off right, Gunners 👊 pic.twitter.com/EH9xqouM2S — Arsenal (@Arsenal) January 7, 2024

Manchester United are reportedly interested in making a move for Porto midfielder and former Liverpool man Marko Grujic in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Grujic impressing for Porto

The 26-year-old has forged an impressive career for himself since failing to properly make the grade under Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, becoming a key man for his current club.

Grujic has now racked up a total of 105 appearances for Porto since arriving in the summer of 2020, proving to be a dominant figure in the middle of the park.

During that time, the Serbian has won one Primeira Liga title, Portuguese Cup and Portuguese League Cup apiece, justifying his move there in the first place.

It could be that Grujic looks for a new challenge in the near future, however, and with his performances catching the eye, a return to England may be on the cards.

That’s where United come into play, with an intriguing new transfer update emerging.

The Latest: United eyeing move

According to Telegraf [via Sport Witness], the Red Devils are one of the clubs who are ‘seriously enquiring’ about the potential signing of Grujic this summer.

Contacts are believed to have ‘already been stabilised through intermediaries’, with AC Milan also noted as possible suitors in the report.

That being said, it is also stated that Grujic is a ‘big fan of Liverpool since childhood’ and may not want his decision to join United to be seen as ‘disappointing’ by Reds supporters.

The Verdict: Liverpool connection an issue?

There is no denying that Grujic has grown hugely as a footballer in recent years, winning 19 caps for Serbia and becoming a more rounded individual than the one who departed Liverpool.

He could be a really shrewd summer signing by United – he once was called the ‘best midfielder we have had in the last 20 years’ by Hertha Berlin boss Pal Dardai during a loan spell there in 2018 – adding physicality and quality to their midfield.

Not only has Grujic won an average of 2.3 aerial duels and 1.7 tackles per game in the league this season, but he has also enjoyed an 87.3% pass completion rate in the Champions League, showing his ability on the big stage.

The key drawback is the lingering Liverpool issue, however, and while the midfielder wouldn’t be directly joining the Red Devils from their arch-rivals this summer, it would still be a controversial piece of business, especially for someone who grew up supporting the Merseysiders.

Robbie Mustoe believes that Roberto De Zerbi would be a great David Moyes successor at West Ham.

The Lowdown: Pressure growing on Moyes

The pressure is certainly growing on David Moyes with every passing week and every passing Premier League fixture at least as the Hammers find themselves outside of the bottom three but only via goal difference.

While West Ham are very impressive in Europe this season having won every game in the Conference League, if they end up winning that competition but get relegated, not many people will be impressed.

Despite West Ham’s poor run of form this entire season, there have been no grumblings from inside the club with reports suggesting Moyes does indeed still have the backing of the board.

The Latest: De Zerbi would be a top appointment

While nothing appears to be imminent in terms of sacking Moyes, Mustoe has admitted on The 2 Robbie’s podcast that Brighton’s De Zerbi would be a top replacement for Moyes having shown his ability this season averaging 1.44 points per game in the Premier League.

He said: (59:30) “If I was Director of Football at West Ham I would be like, let’s stick with David Moyes, trust him to get us out of it as he’s done it before but in the summer let’s have a look around a little bit.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-latest-news-6/” title=”West Ham latest news” poster=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/cropped-david-moyes-premier-league-scaled-1.jpg” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

“De Zerbi, Roberto De Zerbi I think there’s quite a lot [of potential managers] but how good would he be for West Ham by the way.”

The Verdict: West Ham have a huge decision on their hands

The idea of bringing in De Zerbi to West Ham will be exciting and something the Hammers faithful would likely love to happen, but given where Brighton and West Ham are in the table, it would be a big decision for him to leave the Seagulls.

As things stand, Brighton are on the cusp of securing European football for the first time in the club’s history and that would likely be too good to ignore and not want to build on for next season from De Zerbi’s point of view.

Even if Moyes is able to turn West Ham’s season around, it would be quite a surprise for them to stick with the Scott heading into next season, just because he seems unable to get the most out of an expensively assembled squad under his watch.

Chelsea have made contact with Mauricio Pochettino regarding taking over at Stamford Bridge, according to reports.

The Lowdown: Potter under pressure

The Telegraph’s Matt Law has claimed that Graham Potter could be sacked should he not pick up results over the next two games, with the 51-year-old Argentine allegedly on the list of potential successors.

The former Spurs boss reportedly actually turned down an approach from Todd Boehly despite being keen on a return to the Premier League, but an update has now emerged to the contrary.

The Latest: Chelsea hold talks

According to Football Insider, Chelsea have ‘made contact’ with Pochettino as they consider a change in the dugout.

The Blues have ‘spoken’ to the out-of-work boss, and it’s now believed that he would be ‘interested’ in accepting the job should it become available, in what FI’s report describes as a ‘twist’.

Talks ‘at this point’ haven’t yet turned into anything more serious, but with him still owning a home in London, this could be one to watch.

The Verdict: Perfect candidate

Pochettino has been dubbed a ‘world-class’ manager by pundit Jamie O’Hara and he would be the perfect candidate for Chelsea.

The Murphy native will already be used to the style of play in England from his time at Tottenham, where he won 160, drew 60 and lost just 73 of his 293 games in charge.

Spurs’ former coach has a preferred 4-3-3 attacking formation and knows what it takes to be successful at a club with huge expectations like the Blues, having secured three trophies during his spell at Paris Saint-Germain.

Pochettino is also currently a free agent so the Stamford Bridge higher-ups wouldn’t have to pay any compensation to secure his services, making this a move suitable for both parties.