Everton have finally come to life it seems after a torrid start to the Premier League season, as once again their lack of a striker hampered them in the opening fixtures.

Despite carving open Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers on numerous occasions, accumulating a 2.73 and 1.34 expected goal tally in those games respectively, the absence of Dominic Calvert-Lewin unsurprisingly proved essential.

They would lose 1-0 on both occasions, spurring Sean Dyche to act fast in the market.

Acquiring Udinese forward Beto for a whopping £30m, already this is proving to be a shrewd investment, as not only does it offer that crucial focal point up top, but also it has given the England international enough slack to return from injury better than ever.

Two goals in his last two games emphasise such success, which could now help them towards a campaign hopefully devoid of the relegation stresses of the previous two.

However, if reports are to be believed, the Toffees could have actually acquired a number nine with quality that surpasses both their current strike partnership, and the youth to dominate for the next decade.

After all, there is not a team on earth that would not jump at the opportunity to have Erling Haaland on their side nowadays.

Did Everton nearly sign Erling Haaland?

Although Calvert-Lewin has enjoyed some impressive goalscoring spells during his tenure on Merseyside, having notched 16 league goals under Carlo Ancelotti during the 2020/21 campaign, it cannot really come close to the levels reached by the Norway international ever since he burst onto the scene in Austria.

Again, whilst their new Portuguese forward's tally of ten in Serie A last season was admirable, the Manchester City man stands out above all else.

So, with the suggestion that he very nearly joined the Goodison Park outfit circulating, it must mark a frustrating report for the numerous managers to have been thwarted since the departure of Romelu Lukaku.

As noted by the Daily Mail, former Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson recalled a 2018 visit to Finch Farm in which he was shown a video of an 18-year-old Haaland tearing it up for his hometown club.

However, then chief executive Robert Elstone delivered a crushing blow by suggesting that the £7m commanded would have been too expensive.

To make matters worse, some haggling with the Norwegian club Molde made them willing to then sell for a reduced £5m, which was again knocked back, deemed too much for a player who would seemingly not have made an instant first-team impact.

Although that line of thought can be appreciated, it is also worth noting that, around the reported time frame of their interest in the 23-year-old, the club was spending with ridiculous freedom. Across the 2017/18 campaign, Ronald Koeman would unload a mouth-watering €203.2m (£175.77m), yet could not spare a fraction to invest in their future.

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And what an investment it could have been, given how he would go on to thrive for RB Salzburg, Borussia Dortmund and now the Citizens.

In Austria he would notch 29 goals in 27 appearances, assisting a further seven, and upon moving to Germany, increase these figures even more despite the increase in standard. Improving his creativity, the hulking marksman would add 23 assists to his 86 goals, spread impressively across just 89 appearances.

He was ready to take his final step to the apex of world football, and given their steady rise alongside him, the Etihad seemed a natural fit.

However, few could possibly have predicted just how dominant the forward would instantly become, acquired for a supreme bargain reaching just £51m.

How many goals has Erling Haaland scored for Man City?

Whilst many might gawk at those ludicrous goalscoring figures across lesser divisions across Europe, it was expected that upon moving to statistically the toughest league on the continent, there could be a drop-off.

However, it could be argued that Haaland has never been so in-form, having broken all manner of records last season whilst spearheading Pep Guardiola's push for, and subsequent winning of an unprecedented treble.

Claiming the Premier League title, alongside the FA Cup and Champions League marked an unparalleled return for a debut season, made even sweeter as he would break the division's record for most goals scored in a single term.

Already across his short career in Manchester, he boasts 60 goals in just 62 appearances, with his 11 assists taking him over a goal contribution per game. Haaland always scores, and as such the words of pundit Rory Smith cannot be disputed: "Haaland's different. Haaland is a generational talent."

Unsurprisingly, his Spanish manager has rushed to laud him too, noting: "It is unbelievable how many goals he has scored – so many important goals to help us win games. He is a unique person, as a player but also the person is special. He deserved the guard of honour."

To truly emphasise the exponential growth the 26-cap ace has enjoyed over the last few years, it is worth noting where his value lies given Everton passed up that £5m opportunity only five years ago.

What is Erling Haaland's market value now?

CIES Football Observatory offers a fair estimation and unsurprisingly rates him among the most expensive players on the planet. Seemingly worth more than Bukayo Saka and Kylian Mbappe, and alongside the likes of Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, an astounding €250m (£215m) figure has been placed on his head. Realistically, few could argue with it.

Given the goalscoring woes suffered on Merseyside in recent years, as their failure to find a natural heir to Lukaku has haunted them for so long, at last they seem to be in a good place, with Beto and Calvert-Lewin feeding off one another and pushing each other to reach new heights. Then, should one be struck down, a more than capable alternative is waiting to take the opportunity presented.

However, there is likely no striker that will come close to Haaland in this generation, and as such it will be a mistake that the Toffees are forever made to rue.

What's worse is that this is only the beginning. There is no limit to the heights he can reach and the records he will inevitably break. A true freak of nature, but deemed £5m too expensive by Everton.

Glasgow Rangers failed to extend their winning run to five matches as Aberdeen came away from Ibrox with a 3-1 victory which further piles the pressure on Michael Beale.

The 43-year-old had led the Gers to four wins from their previous four matches following the international break, conceding zero goals during that run, yet the Dons made the most of their chances and the result currently leaves the club seven points behind Celtic in the Premiership table.

The Ibrox side missed a few glaring chances in the first half and once Aberdeen got a foothold in the game, Beale couldn’t spur his side on to secure a positive result.

Scott Wright even received a red card and although Abdallah Sima netted, the away team secured the three points with a late goal and a player who impressed in midweek failed to build upon his display – Ridvan Yilmaz.

How did Ridvan Yilmaz play vs Aberdeen?

Having scored his first goal for the club against Livingston in the League Cup on Wednesday evening, the defender was looking to stamp his authority on the left-back spot.

He only lasted 45 minutes however and during that period, he managed to lose possession 12 times while delivering only two accurate crosses from eight attempts and completed just 24 accurate passes.

It wasn’t the performance that he would’ve been looking to deliver and Borna Barisic replaced him at half-time. The young Turk is still adapting to the Scottish game, but he will need to be more consistent going forward.

As poor as Yilmaz was, Cyriel Dessers put in yet another disappointing showing for the Gers, and he is certainly struggling to live up to expectations since his summer move.

Did Cyriel Dessers score against Aberdeen?

The striker should have found the back of the net against the Dons, missing two big chances throughout his 84 minutes on the pitch and Rangers Review journalist Joshua Barrie felt he should have gotten his name on the scoresheet.

He said: “Early chance from Dessers moving off the shoulder but he can't hit the target – the forward should do better there. Rangers with control of the first few minutes. Lammers noticeably more central from the start.”

The forward only completed nine passes when he was on the pitch along with winning just one ground duel from seven attempted, suggesting he struggled to cope with the physicality of the Aberdeen back line.

Dessers also failed to properly get involved in the game, taking only 25 touches before being substituted in the 84th minute for youngster Zak Lovelace, and Beale should perhaps look to utilise some more of the young talent in the first team.

Across 12 games for the Light Blues, Dessers has scored only three goals, and judging by his performance this afternoon, he may struggle to score over ten goals throughout the entire season.

There were very few positives to take from the defeat, but Beale must surely reassess his attacking options as soon as possible and put the summer signing on the bench for the next match.

ScorecardMiddlesex defeated Glamorgan by the slender margin of two runs in a high-scoring game at Sophia Gardens, and achieved their second successive win in the competition.Glamorgan, meanwhile, suffered their third loss and need to win nearly every game to have any chance of qualifying.The home side needed 16 from the last over and would have tied the game had the final blow from Timm der Gugten against the Middlesex pace bowler Tom Helm, with six needed, not landed a metre or so inside the boundary.Earlier, Middlesex, who were put in on a true pitch, made 304 for 6 with three batsmen passing 50, but no one going on to reach three figures.Paul Stirling and Nick Gubbins gave their team a rapid start, with 50 coming in the first seven overs, with eleven boundaries struck by the openers, before Stirling wafted at a ball wide of the off stump, with the edge well taken by wicketkeeper Chris Cooke.Gubbins was strong through the offside, but shortly after reaching his half century, he was well held low down on the cover boundary by Aneurin Donald, his 53 coming from 55 balls with 4 boundaries.Steve Eskinazi and Eoin Morgan then settled into a productive partnership, and at 185 for 2, Middlesex appeared set for a large total, but Colin Ingram had other ideas, as he dismissed Morgan, Eskinazi and John Simpson in his first three overs.Morgan had made 57 from 55 balls, before attempting to hit Ingram into the River Taff, he holed out on the long on boundary. In his next over, he had Eskinazi caught down the legside by Cooke, before Simpson gave Cooke his third catch when he edged behind.The visitors then recovered, thanks to a breezy 62 not out from James Franklin, and with a wayward over from De Lange yielding 20 runs, Middlesex went past 300.Glamorgan, needing to score at 6.1 an over, also made a promising start, with Nick Selman and Aneurin Donald, who was dropped for the two opening games, racing to 50 in the ninth over. They put on 86 before they were dismissed in successive overs by Ravi Patel. Donald edged to the wicketkeeper, before Selman was unlucky to be given out LBW with a ball that pitched outside leg stump.Worse was to follow, when Shaun Marsh drove Stirling’s first ball back at the bowler, with Glamorgan having lost three wickets for ten runs after their good start. Ingram was then joined by David Lloyd, and after a steady start they accelerated, with Lloyd, the junior partner, playing the major role. He was the first to reach 50 before driving Patel and Nathan Sowter for two straight sixes.When Steven Finn and Helm returned to the attack, they were also struck over the ropes, but when the fourth wicket pair had added 126, Ingram swept Patel into the hands of Cartwright at deep square leg. Cooke soon followed, then Lloyd’s excellent innings ended when Sowter fired one down the leg side to have him stumped for 92 from 75 balls.When Andrew Salter was out, Glamorgan required 37 from 28 balls, then 22 from the last two overs. But when Wagg was bowled in the penultimate over, Glamorgan’s chase faltered, for all der Gugten’s attempt to remedy matters at the last.

Aston Villa are back in action in Europe tonight, as Unai Emery’s side hope to kickstart their progression in Group E of the UEFA Europa Conference League against Zrinjski.

Despite cruising through the qualifiers with an 8-0 aggregate win over Hibernian in an all-British tie, the Villans were dragged back to reality in the opening group game as they faced defeat to Legia Warsaw in Poland.

Emery’s side were hit with a footballing lesson against Legia, losing the game 3-2 in what was an overall disappointing performance by the Midlands club who were well poised to top the group at first glance.

What is the latest Aston Villa team news?

Just as Villa learnt in their opening game of the tournament, no side should be underestimated, which is a lesson that must be carried over to tonight’s contest as Zrinjski were victorious in their opening fixture against AZ Alkmaar.

Villa got back into their groove last weekend by seeing off Brighton & Hove Albion 6-1 at Villa Park, however the match saw two integral members of Emery’s squad sustain knocks forcing them to withdraw from the contest.

The Spaniard confirmed in his pre-match press conference that he will be without Moussa Diaby and Boubacar Kamara for the showdown at Villa Park, with both players having not trained following their withdrawal against Brighton.

Another unfortunate blow is Jacob Ramsey, who scored his first goal of the season against the Seagulls after missing the start of the campaign due to a broken metatarsal injury, with Emery confirming that the Englishman is also unavailable.

In the Conference League opener against Legia, a host of players were far below par, leaving questions over whether Emery will continue to rotate his side to accommodate those that were incapable of fighting for the win in Poland last time out.

Should Douglas Luiz start against Zrinjski over Leander Dendoncker?

Away from the Conference League, the manager opted to rotate his squad against Everton in the Carabao Cup, seeing Leander Dendoncker come into midfield to hand Kamara a rest.

Now that the Frenchman is out of contention, the Spaniard should avoid rotating the former Wolves dud back into the side, after his woeful performance against the Toffees that saw him earn a 6.4 Sofascore match rating.

Instead, Luiz should partner Youri Tielemans, who despite being another poor performer on the night, has shown glimpses of what he can offer to the side when at the top of his game.

Once lauded as a “warrior” by journalist Jack Grimse, Luiz has been the glue to Villa’s transformation in the middle of the park, and while the Brazilian would be the natural target of rotation due to his importance, tonight’s fixture poses little room for error.

With just 33 touches and a failure to impose himself defensively in midfield against the Toffees, Dendoncker was hooked at halftime, with Birmingham Live's John Townley writing that the 28-year-old was 'slow in possession and didn’t progress the ball particularly well'.

Considering Villa’s growing injury problems, Emery will be short on his options in midfield after losing both Kamara and Ramsey, however he should opt against risking another Dendoncker disasterclass.

After the defeat to Legia, Villa must begin to make waves in the group, which they could start tonight with a win over Zrinjski, which they will have to be at their best to ensure with Luiz often possessing the keys to the squad’s success.

MatériaMais Notícias

Em São Januário, o Vasco reencontrou o caminho das vitórias e derrotou o Caracas por 1 a 0 pela Copa Sul-Americana. O gol da partida foi marcado por Tiago Reis, após lindo passe de Andrey, que deixou Guilherme Parede em condições de cruzar para o centroavante. Com o resultado, o Gigante da Colina tem a vantagem de empate no duelo de volta que acontece dia 4, às 21h30, na Venezuela.

Com um a menos, o Cruz-Maltino conseguiu o resultado aos 42 do segundo tempo e agora tem mais tranquilidade para trabalhar e tentar se recuperar também no Brasileirão. Na saída de campo, o herói da noite, Tiago Reis, comentou sobre a importância do resultado para elevar a moral da equipe.

– É muitoimportante essa vitória para o grupo, a gente estava precisando. Foi entrega, A gente trabalhou forte essa semana. Time de guerreiros é assim mesmo. A gente lutou até o final e mesmo com um a menos, conseguimos fazer o gol – destacou.

RelacionadasVascoCom um a menos e gol no fim, Vasco vence o Caracas, encerra jejum e fica em vantagem na Sul-AmericanaVasco28/10/2020VascoVasco anuncia a contratação do atacante Gustavo TorresVasco28/10/2020VascoEleição Vasco 2020: ‘Compromisso da minha administração. Não teremos salários atrasados’, diz Julio BrantVasco27/10/2020

– Temos de ter equilíbrio. Sabemos que será complicado jogar em outro país. A gente vai buscar a vitória, mas se não der, vamos segurar a casinha lá para buscar a classificação que é o mais importante – completou.

Na próxima rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, o Vasco volta a campo contra o Goiás, na Serrinha domingo, às 20h30. O time tenta se recuperar também na competição para deixar a zona de rebaixamento no duelo com o lanterna, fora de casa.

Kent equalled their highest one-day total and Surrey never got close to challenging them

ECB Reporters Network01-Jun-2018
ScorecardKent swept aside neighbours Surrey by 220 runs to land a fourth successive Royal London One-day Cup victory with almost 20 overs in hand on a flat pitch in Beckenham.Heino Kuhn’s century helped Kent post 384 for 8 – their best List A score against a first-class county – then Kent fielded tigerishly in support of Darren Stevens’ career-best 6 for 25 as Surrey succumbed for 164 inside 30.1 overs.Chasing at 7.7 an over, the visitors lost deposed England opener Mark Stoneman when he dabbled outside off against Matt Henry to be caught behind, then Sam Billings pouched another as Will Jacks nicked an ambitious back-foot force against Mitch Claydon.Though he needed treatment for a bruised right thumb early on, Jason Roy eased to a 39-ball 50, but might have gone run out for 52 when Sean Dickson missed with a direct hit from backward point.Left-arm spinner Imran Qayyum, on his season’s debut, teamed up with Calum Haggett to send down a string of tight overs that forced Roy to try and break the shackles only to chip to long-off and exit for 68.Qayyum struck again, holding a sharp overhead return catch to account for Ben Foakes then, with the run-rate edging past nine an over, Stevens clipped Ollie Pope’s off stump as the right-hander aimed to push-drive.Stevens snared Rikki Clarke leg before with an off-cutter, had Rory Burns held at mid-on for 42, rearranged Tom Curran’s stumps and trapped Jade Dernbach lbw for his third career List A five-for before taking his sixth wicket in 29 balls by having Gareth Batty caught in the deep.Batting first after losing the toss, Kent equalled their highest total in List A cricket and their best against Surrey, easily beating their 337 for 3 at Canterbury a decade ago.Openers Kuhn and Daniel Bell-Drummond laid the foundations in notching 55 in the 10-over Powerplay though Kuhn was dropped on 21 when Dernbach downed a low return chance.Bell-Drummond lifted the 3,000-strong crowd with the first six of the day, clearing the left leg to a Curran free-hit, he easily beat the ropes over long off as he and Kuhn added 93 before Bell-Drummond slashed at a Curran wide to be caught behind.Kuhn reached his second half-century of the campaign from 58-balls and, in the process went past the 4,000-run milestone in List A cricket as he and Joe Denly kept the board ticking at a run-a-ball.Denly broke loose with a flat, straight six off Batty to raise his 45-ball 50 as Kent reached 156 for 1 at the innings mid-point, but, with his score on 78 from 71 balls, Denly smashed a Curran long-hop to wide mid-on to end a second wicket stand of 138 inside 19 overs.Kuhn posted his maiden List A century for Kent from 91 balls with 10 fours and a six, yet soon lost skipper Billings when, in looking to glance, he gloved to the keeper and gifted Clarke a wicket.Alex Blake plundered four successive sixes off Batty to raise Kent’s 300 and his own 50 from 24 balls. In looking to clear the ropes again, Blake skied to Roy at long off to go for 59.Kuhn, who cramped up toward the end of his 193-minute stay, departed for 117 after top-edging a hook to long leg against countryman Morne Morkel, then Dickson, in attempting to reverse paddle, was bowled by Dernbach.Cameos from Stevens and Haggett helped Kent equal their List A record total against Berkshire at Finchampstead in 1994, while, of Surrey’s bowlers, only Curran with a flattering 4 for 75, will want to remember the day.

Record-breaking transfers, relegation battles and a whole host of managerial sackings – Farhad Moshiri’s tenure as Everton owner was chaotic.

The Iranian businessman’s arrival on Merseyside was welcomed with much optimism due to his well-documented wealth. That money, however, has not been spent well to say the least, with just over £600m worth of transfers seemingly going to waste in recent years.

Moshiri’s spell of eight turbulent years came to an end when he was replaced by the Friedkin Group in December 2024.

Here, we take a closer look at some of the worst Everton signings under Moshiri’s ownership.

10 Salomon Rondon

Now, this was a move that had flop written all over it, and the only reason it isn’t higher on this list is that there was no fee involved.

The only reason Rondon joined the club in August 2021 is due to Rafael Benitez, whom he had played under at Newcastle United and Chinese Super League outfit Dalian Pro.

In all, the Venezuelan striker made 31 appearances for the Merseysiders, scoring just three goals and providing a single assist. Those are atrocious numbers, and when it was clear that he wasn’t at the required level, he agreed to terminate his contract with the club six months early.

Poor decisions were rife during the short-lived Benitez era, and Rondon’s signing was chief among them. Granted, the Spanish boss will have been hamstrung by Financial Fair Play constraints at the time, but this only serves to point the finger at Moshiri once more, as his catalogue of previous expensive mistakes is clearly continuing to hurt the club to this day.

9 Theo Walcott

Now, there is no denying that Theo Walcott had a rather excellent career in the Premier League; you can’t spend 12 years at a club like Arsenal and not have something special about you.

However, when he finally left north London and joined Everton, he was undeniably past his best, and his record for the Toffees shows that.

In total, the former Gunner made 85 appearances for the Toffees, in which he scored 11 goals and notched nine assists, giving him a goal involvement on average every 4.25 games. Were he signed on a free, those kinds of numbers could be seen as good enough, but he wasn’t free. In fact, he cost the club a whopping £20m when they signed him in the summer of 2018.

Ultimately, Walcott wasn’t an atrocious signing for the club, but you would generally want to get more out of an experienced attacker who costs £20m, so he has to make this list. Whoever sanctioned this has a lot of explaining to do.

8 Moise Kean

Moise Kean was destined for Everton greatness when the club signed him from Juventus for an initial fee of £29m in August 2019, but after just 39 appearances for the club and three seasons on loan, he was sold back to the Old Lady.

Admittedly, the fact that Everton were able to sell the player for £25m – practically erasing the cost of signing him in the first place – is rather impressive, but it doesn’t make that transfer any less of a failure.

In his 39 appearances, the young Italian scored just four goals and provided two assists, which is well below what was expected of him. He also picked up a straight red during his time with the Toffees.

In all, he failed to live up to the hype, and the four years he spent at the club were a waste of time for all involved.

7 Fabian Delph

Now, this might seem a little bit harsh to some; after all, Fabian Delph was a Premier League winner at Manchester City and could well have been a difference-maker at Everton had it not been for injuries that weren’t his fault – but that is the problem: he was always injured.

Delph signed for the Toffees in July 2019 for a reported fee of £8.5m, which for someone of his experience, seemed like a reasonable deal, especially as he signed a three-year contract at the club.

However, injury problems quickly arose, and before he had even seen his first Christmas as an Everton player, he had already missed 25 games for club and country through a myriad of injuries. In total, Delph would miss 63 games through injury as an Everton player and make just 41 appearances across three campaigns.

This signing was only made worse by the fact that it was well-known just how injury-prone he was before Everton signed him, but they did it anyway.

6 Jean-Philippe Gbamin

Gbamin joined the club in the summer of 2019 for a reported £25m from German outfit Mainz.

Hopes were high when the midfielder first arrived on Merseyside, with Everton having reportedly shrugged off interest from the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham to land the Ivory Coast international.

Sadly for both Everton and Gbamin, the midfielder’s time in England has been constantly plagued by injury, with the player’s agent recently describing his Everton spell as ‘a nightmare’.

Racking up only six Premier League appearances to date, Gbamin’s body has prevented him from making the impact he would have desired.

Recent loan moves to CSKA Moscow and Trabzonspor have not changed the midfielder’s fortunes, as he remains without a club after leaving Goodison Park in the summer.

5 4 Yannick Bolasie

One of the first signings of the Moshiri era, Bolasie’s flair and unpredictability during his time at Crystal Palace got a lot of Everton fans excited ahead of his move.

Joining for around £25m, the winger had an impressive start to life on Merseyside, contributing to five goals in his first 13 games. Bolasie then, however, would sustain a cruciate ligament rupture just four months after arriving at Goodison Park – an injury that would ultimately derail his Everton career.

Bolasie would only go on to make a further 16 appearances for Everton the next season and then headed out on a number of loans to clubs such as Aston Villa and Sporting CP, later leaving the club on a free transfer in 2021.

3 Davy Klaassen

Regarded as one of the most talented players in the Netherlands at the time of the move, Klaassen joined Everton for £23.6m from Dutch giants Ajax in the summer of 2017.

However, the midfielder, could not replicate the form that he had shown back in his homeland, ultimately failing to make an impact on Merseyside.

Seemingly struggling with the pace of the English game, the Dutchman only went on to make seven league appearances in his one season at the club.

He later left the Toffees to join Werder Bremen in a deal that saw Everton lose £13m on the player in the space of a year.

2 Cenk Tosun

Following the departure of Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United, the Toffees were in dire need of a goalscorer back in 2017. This led to them signing Turkish striker Cenk Tosun in a deal just shy of £30m.

After notching six goal contributions during the Champions League group stage earlier that season, Everton fans will have been hopeful that Tosun could fill the void left by Lukaku.

With four goals in his first seven games, the striker started well under the stewardship of Sam Allardyce. However, that is as good as it got for Tosun, as following the departure of Big Sam, the Turkiye international struggled for goals and game time under his successor, Marco Silva.

Scoring four league goals over the next two seasons, Tosun fell down the pecking order at Goodison Park – heading out on two loan moves at Crystal Palace and Besiktas in search of minutes.

Tosun eventually left Everton to join Besiktas permanently on a free transfer in 2022, meaning the Toffees did not recoup a single penny of the £28m they paid for the striker.

1 Sandro Ramirez

First hailed as an astute piece of business, the La Masia graduate joined the Toffees back in 2017 for what was an apparent bargain £5.25m fee.

The Spaniard’s performances on Merseyside soon changed those opinions, as the striker struggled to resemble anything like a top-flight striker – scoring only one goal in 16 disappointing appearances for the club.

Sandro would head out on numerous loan moves to clubs such as Sevilla and Real Sociedad, before leaving Everton permanently in 2020 to join SD Huesca on a free transfer.

Seven games into the Premier League season, and it looks as though Liverpool have got things pretty spot on when it comes to their transfer business. The Reds revamped their midfield to great success, with the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch all getting off to flying starts under Jurgen Klopp.

Now that they have solved their problems in the middle of the park, however, Liverpool can turn their attention towards strengthening elsewhere, and it looks as though that's exactly what they're doing. Those at Anfield may have to bide their time for one particular target, though, with reports suggesting that they're eyeing one particular Bundesliga star.

What's the latest Liverpool transfer news?

During the summer transfer window, Liverpool spent a reported €172m (£149m) as they began to rebuild under Klopp. They may not be done there, either, with the January transfer window and next summer's window to come – both of which could feature further big moves from the Merseyside club.

After failing to achieve Champions League qualification last season, the Reds look more determined than ever to avoid back-to-back failures by planning ahead for the future, perhaps making up for their midfield panic during the previous campaign in other positions. And that's where RB Leipzig forward Lois Openda could come in.

According to Christian Falk, who provided an Openda transfer update on Fabrizio Romano's Daily Briefing, Liverpool are likely one of the clubs keeping an eye on the forward. Falk wrote: "Leipzig are a little relaxed at the moment, as next summer there's no active release clause for Lois Openda. It begins in 2025 and I heard it's a bit higher than the €80m [£69m] that has been reported elsewhere.

"I'm sure that clubs like Liverpool will be keeping an eye on him. You've already seen with Dominik Szoboszlai that they've had a mostly positive experience with RB Leipzig players. It's also worth noting the similarity in style between the two clubs, which is obviously of benefit to Liverpool."

How has Lois Openda performed this season?

After scoring 21 goals in Ligue 1 last season for RC Lens, Openda more than deserved his move to RB Leipzig. And he hasn't looked back ever since, hitting the ground running in the Bundesliga – finding the back of the net five times in 11 games for the German club so far this season. Statistically speaking, too, he would certainly give Klopp plenty to think about when compared with Darwin Nunez in league action prior to this weekend, via FBref.

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Openda has earned plenty of praise during his career, including from current VfL Bochum boss Thomas Letsch, who said, via the official Bundesliga website: "It was important for him to have rhythm. He got playing time and got his confidence back. In his development, he also accepted certain things. I put a lot of emphasis on his work off the ball and he took that on board. It's thanks to that he improved the speed of his play in transition. He has constantly improved. He's gone from being a talented player to a very good player."

Pakistan aim for repeat performance as England seek a response to Lord’s humiliation

The Preview by Danyal Rasool31-May-2018Big PictureOn an overcast Tuesday afternoon just over two weeks ago in Malahide, Pakistan found themselves three wickets down for 14, still needing 146 more to prevent Ireland becoming the first team since 1877 to win their maiden Test match. With a worrying recent history of fourth-innings implosions, Pakistan looked set for a defeat so ignoble it would define their time on British shores this tour, and highlight the malaise of their Test team since, indeed, the last time they were in the UK just under two years ago.Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam carried them through that ordeal, and since then, the post-mortems of sharp declines in Test fortunes are suddenly the opposition’s problems. The series against England began with two Test teams that had, with varying degrees of rapidity, gone from being the best in the world to distinctly mediocre. Pakistan’s – as you would expect – was a more expeditious, less explicable downturn, albeit one hastened by the retirement of two of their greatest batsmen, Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq, while England’s arguably has reasons stretching back for a decade: from cricket no longer being on free-to-air TV, to the marginalisation of the County Championship, to their well-documented struggles in replacing Andrew Strauss and Graeme Swann, not to mention Kevin Pietersen and Andy Flower.But the manner of England’s decimation at Lord’s – their fifth defeat in 12 Tests at that holiest of grounds, where previously they had not lost since 2005 – may be the jolt the home side need to assess how far they’ve fallen. In last week’s Test, England were out-thought by a team that isn’t exactly renowned for its meticulous planning, out-fielded by an outfit that has never been a torch-bearer in that regard, and out-batted by a group whose susceptibility to the moving ball is well-documented. After all that, it was hardly a surprise that Pakistan out-bowled them, too. The dismissiveness, almost derisive, with which Sarfraz Ahmed’s young team put England away seems to have set alarm bells ringing at the ECB, with an urgency that wasn’t in evidence even in the wake of a 4-0 drubbing in the Ashes earlier this year.As a result, Pakistan find themselves in the unfamiliar position of being the steady clinical team from which no drama is expected, while England have faced all manner of uncertainty over the past few days. The only blot on a perfect Test at Lord’s for Pakistan was the loss of Babar to a wrist fracture, while Joe Root’s men have been left to contend with changes in strategy and personnel if they are to avoid a first home series loss to Pakistan in 22 years.Form guideEngland LDLLD
Pakistan WWLLWKeaton Jennings and Joe Root warm up ahead of the second Test•Getty Images

In the spotlightDawid Malan managed to escape some of the more excoriating criticism in the wake of the first Test, but he will doubtless be aware of the pressure on his shoulders. Since making his debut against South Africa last July, he has shown flashes of the brilliant talent – most notably in Perth – that got him into the England team in the first place. But the cold hard facts are these: Malan averages 29 with the bat and hasn’t added to the solitary (albeit classy) century that he made at the WACA. Since then, his form has actually fallen away. He has added just 177 runs at 19.7 to his career tally, and has never quite looked an assured presence at the crease – particularly when the likes of Trent Boult and Mohammad Amir have pinned him there with a full left-arm length. He will be acutely aware of the intensifying scrutiny on his place.It’s hard to single out a Pakistan player in the spotlight; there wasn’t one you could accuse of having a poor Test match without coming off as incredibly churlish. But if you must, you could say that Shadab Khan has had better Tests with the ball. He bowled six wicketless overs that went for 34 in the first innings – albeit in seam-friendly conditions. But his bowling in the second innings, especially when England got a couple of partnerships going, arguably failed to put them under the sort of pressure that Shadab’s wizardry is capable of. He was a shade guilty of failing to exploit the rough his seamers had created. The two wickets he did get had an element of fortune to them, too, with the delivery to Stoneman keeping exceptionally low, and the wicket of Stokes off a long hop more down to the Englishman’s shocking shot selection. Shadab can – and will – only get better, so England have one more thing to be wary of.Team newsAs if England didn’t have plenty to ponder already, Ben Stokes is a serious doubt with a hamstring injury, with a late decision expected before the toss. Teenage prodigy Sam Curran has been brought in as cover. Chris Woakes’s chances of starting in Stokes’ absence look good, particularly given his all-round credentials, and though Dom Bess had an indifferent debut, it is unlikely that England will risk starting the Test without a specialist spinner. As for the batting department, Stoneman has been left out, with Jennings returning to partner Alastair Cook at the top of the order.England (probable) 1 Alastair Cook, 2 Keaton Jennings, 3 Joe Root (capt), 4 Dawid Malan, 5 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 6 Ben Stokes/Chris Woakes, 7 Jos Buttler, 8 Mark Wood, 9 Dom Bess, 10 Stuart Broad, 11 James AndersonIt is much more straightforward for Pakistan. With Babar Azam out of the side, Usman Salahuddin is set to make his debut at Leeds tomorrow. No other changes are expected.Pakistan 1 Azhar Ali, 2 Imam-ul-Haq, 3 Haris Sohail, 4 Asad Shafiq, 5 Usman Salahuddin, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Mohammad Amir, 10 Hasan Ali, 11 Mohammad AbbasPitch and conditionsThe Headingley pitch is usually helpful to seam bowlers, though it does tend to go flat when the sun makes an appearance. The surface for tomorrow looks like one that will abet run-scoring, and deter England from fielding an all-pace attack. Cloudy weather is expected, especially over the weekend, so how well each side bowls could be crucial to the outcome.Stats and Trivia England have lost six and drawn two of their last eight Test matches. The last time they won was against West Indies at Lord’s in September 2017. While England’s last home-series defeat to Pakistan came in 1996, failure to beat Pakistan at Headingley would mean Pakistan haven’t lost any of their last four Test series against England. The most recent one – in 2016 – was drawn 2-2, while Pakistan won the previous two in the UAE by margins of 2-0 and 3-0.Quotes”It was very clear where we needed to improve from last week. We’ve had some good preparation, the guys have really worked hard and now it’s just doing it, going out and proving a point, putting a really strong performance in as a group and showing some pride in the badge.'”
“We have to forget Lord’s and move on to this now. If we want to move ahead as a team we have to forget our wins. We did well, we enjoyed it for two days, but now we’re here.”

نجح مجلس إدارة نادي الزمالك، برئاسة حسين لبيب، في التعاقد مع الروسي ديمتري ياكوفيلف، لتدعيم صفوف الفريق الأول لكرة الطائرة بالقلعة البيضاء.

وجاء تعاقد نادي الزمالك، مع المحترف الروسي، بناءً على طلب البرازيلي كارلوس شوانكي، المدير الفني الجديد للفريق الأول لكرة الطائرة بالقلعة البيضاء.

وتولى هشام نصر نائب رئيس نادي الزمالك، ورامي نصوحي عضو مجلس الإدارة والمشرف على فريق كرة الطائرة، ملف التفاوض مع المحترف الروسي.

طالع | خاص – الزمالك يُفعل بند شراء محمد شحاتة ويحصل على خدماته نهائيًا

ويمتلك ديمتري ياكوفيلف سيرة ذاتية ممتازة، إذ لعب لأندية: “دينامو أوليمب ودينامو موسكو ونيفتوتشيميك بورجاس البلغاري وفاكيل نوفي يورنجوي ونيفتيانيك أورينبورج وينسي كراسنويارسك وكوزباس كيميروفو”.

وحصد خلال مشواره العديد من الألقاب والبطولات، ومنها: “كأس السوبر الروسي وكأس بلغاريا وكأس السوبر البلغاري، بالإضافة إلى الدوري الروسي للناشئين”، كما يمتلك في سجلاته 3 ألقاب دولية وهي: “لقب بطولة أوروبا تحت 21 عاماً ولقب بطولة كأس العالم تحت 21 عاماً ولقب بطولة جامعة FISU العالمية”.

جدير بالذكر، أن مجلس إدارة نادي الزمالك، تعاقد في وقت سابق مع البرازيلي كارلوس شوانكي، لتدريب الفريق الأول لكرة الطائرة بالقلعة البيضاء، بداية من الموسم الجديد.