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Mike Ashley has been heavily criticised for Newcastle’s transfer business and rightfully so, but there is one deal that the Magpies owner played absolutely perfectly.

On the chalkboard

This time last season, Kenedy was the hottest prospect Newcastle had got their hands on in quite some time.

Joining the club mid-way through the last campaign on a six-month loan, he scored two goals and added two assists in 13 starts, playing a huge role in the surge that took the Magpies from relegation trouble all the way into the top ten.

And last summer, plenty of fans begged Ashley to make the Brazilian’s loan move into a permanent one, just as he did with Martin Dubravka.

But while Dubravka represented fantastic value at £3.6m, Chelsea wanted a whopping £20m for Kenedy, a figure that Ashley unsurprisingly baulked at.

Still, such was the impact of Kenedy’s first stint on Tyneside that even at such a ridiculous price for a player with so little senior experience plenty of fans wanted to pull the £20m trigger.

Nearly 12 months on, and it’s pretty clear who got the better of this war of words between the Toon Army and their much-maligned leader.

Kenedy has scored just once in 24 appearances this term while his shooting, passing and defensive contribution have all plummeted, per Whoscored.

He is getting dispossessed more this season, completing barely half the tackles, creating half as many chances all while his overall pass completion rate has dropped from 77% to 72%.

Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals why Tyne-Wear is a more intense derby than anything London can offer – check out the video below….

Clearly, the 23 year-old’s motivation has gone off a cliff and Ashley saw it coming. However, it would have been foolish to not sign him at all after such a productive first spell with the club, so another loan move was the best possible solution.

He doesn’t get much right, but the 54 year-old Magpies magnate absolutely nailed this one.

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Liverpool would be interested in signing Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves according to the club’s assistant manager, Pep Lijnders, per O Jogo.

The Portugal international has been in excellent form for the club this season, scoring four goals and laying on three assists in all competitions prior to this weekend as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have consistently flirted with the top-seven.

And Lijnders told the Portuguese outlet: “I know him very well, his ambition, his passion for the game, his professionalism. I know what he gives to the team and this type of player always interests us. I recognised him when I saw him at Wolves. I saw technique, professionalism. I saw the 2013-14 player I knew.”

With the transfer window approaching, Football FanCast considers the potential consequences of Neves moving to Anfield this summer. Take a look below!

Henderson phased out

Jordan Henderson is a limited but experienced and passionate midfielder.

The England international had played 35 games in all competitions this season before the weekend but manager Jurgen Klopp already appears to be preparing for the day that the 28-year-old leaves the club.

Prior to Sunday’s clash with Chelsea, he had completed 90 minutes in the Premier League just ten times.

Signing Neves would only see those opportunities limited further.

It is unlikely that Fabinho or Naby Keita would be dropped for Neves, and would likely play alongside him in a 4-3-3.

The obvious casualty, then, is Henderson.

Another transfer record broken

Pep Guardiola can’t afford Neves.

That’s Pep Guardiola, manager of Manchester City, the club with all the money in the world.

Wolves have reportedly placed an asking price of £110million on the jewel in their current crown.

Guardiola replied thus, per the London Evening Standard: “A month ago, I started reading – ‘Ruben Neves, £100m. That is not going to happen, we are not going to pay £100m for a holding midfielder.”

Liverpool might.

They broke the world transfer record for a goalkeeper when they signed Alisson Becker and did the same with a defender when they secured Virgil van Dijk from Southampton. The highest current transfer fee for a midfielder is Paul Pogba – who cost Manchester United £89m. The top three transfers of all time – Neymar and Kylian Mbappe to PSG and Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus – all involved attackers.

Liverpool could well break the record for a midfielder if they convince Neves to move to Anfield.

A lack of dynamism

Despite the potentially extortionate price, would Neves really change all that much?

Liverpool’s current problem in midfield is a lack of attacking thrust. Fabinho, Keita and Henderson, plus Georginio Wijnaldum, are all exceptional water-carriers and travel with the ball well. But they all lack the ability to score or create regularly.

Fabinho, Keita and Henderson had all scored once this term, Wijnaldum twice, before the weekend.

Neves had scored just four goals heading into this gameweek and, while he has a penchant for the spectacular, he would not solve the issue.

He would surely add something, of course he would, but spending £100m on a player who will not truly take the team to the next level is not the kind of strategy Klopp should be employing this summer.

يرى ناصر ماهر لاعب الأهلي أن الفرنسي باتريس كارتيرون المدير الفني الحالي لنادي التعاون السعودي تسبب في تشويه صورته أثناء وجوده في القيادة الفنية لفريق الكرة بالقلعة الحمراء.

ومن المقرر أن يعود ناصر ماهر لصفوف الأهلي في الموسم الجديد بعد انتهاء فترة إعارته لنادي سموحة.

وقال ناصر ماهر أثناء استضافته ببرنامج “الماتش” المذاع على قناة “صدى البلد”: “كارتيرون صدر للجماهير صورة سلبية عني بأنني لا أستطيع أن أستكمل المباراة، سواء كنت جيدًا أو سيئًا كان يخرجني في الدقيقة 60، وأنا عمري 22 عاما وعبد الله السعيد كان يستكمل المباراة”.

وأضاف: “بعد رحيل كارتيرون تولى محمد يوسف مهام المدير الفني لكنه كرر معي نفس الشئ، فذهبت وتحدثت معه، لكنه كان يخرجني أيضًا في الدقيقة 60”.

وعن أزمة مشاركته في مباراة خماسية وتوقيع غرامة مالية عليه تحدث لاعب الأهلي: “مشاركتي في مباراة الكرة الخماسية أخذت أكبر من حجمها، ولقد شاركت لمدة 4 دقائق فقط، لكن وُقع علينا خصم كبير حينها”.

وأضاف: “الأزمة بدأت بدعوة من أحمد فتوح لاعب الزمالك عندما دعانا للحي الذي يسكن فيه ولم نكن ذاهبون من أجل اللعب”.

وواصل: “كارتيرون (قرصني من ودني) بعد أزمة مباراة الكرة الخماسية، ثم استبعدني من مباراة حوريا كوناكري في دوري أبطال إفريقيا”.

ووتابع: “سألت محمد يوسف عن سبب استبعادي قال لي إنه ليس لقرار فني”.

وأردف: “عودتي للأهلي في المرة الأولى تسبب في وجود مقارنات مع عبد الله السعيد، ولكن هناك فارق كبير بيننا من ناحية الخبرات”.

واختتم: “عبدالله السعيد شخصيته محترفة وفاصل نفسه عن أي شئ خارج الكرة، حتى وإن كانت هناك جماهير تهتف ضده، وهو أفضل لاعب في مصر”.

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Arsenal fans have taken to Twitter to slam Shkodran Mustafi, after the centre-back put in a woeful performance as Crystal Palace snatched a shock 3-2 victory at the Emirates Stadium.

The German international (and World Cup winner, somehow) was particularly culpable for the Eagles’ second goal, after a mix-up between him and Bernd Leno allowed Wilfried Zaha to nip in and tuck the ball home.

The North London Derby of 2008 may never be matched for drama. Lewis from Norwich City Central explains why it’s his all time favourite derby in the video below…

Mustafi always seems to be at fault for everything that goes wrong in the Gunners’ backline, and the fans appear to have had enough of the former Everton man’s incompetence at the back.

Whilst most of Unai Emery’s side didn’t turn up against Roy Hodgson’s men, special hatred has been reserved for the 27-year-old, who is perhaps the most disliked member of the entire squad amongst the Arsenal fanbase.

Having missed out on the chance to take advantage of Manchester United’s loss to Everton earlier in the day, let’s take a look at how the clearly frustrated Arsenal fans on Twitter reacted to Mustafi’s performance…

Oh wow, Mohamed Salah!

While this is something we’ve gotten used to recently, but the Egyptian produced something entirely special on Sunday. Playing with a point to prove, he scored an absolute thunderbolt to seal the deal against a persistent Chelsea side.

Indeed, it was the Egyptian’s incredible contribution which helped Liverpool outclass their London rivals to keep the party going at Anfield. After a barren goal-scoring run, he’s yet again hit his best form. The Tottenham Hotspur result gave him his confidence back, as the Egyptian netted a beautiful goal against Southampton before terrorizing Chelsea.

He was all over the place on Sunday, threatening with his clever moves inside through the right, dribbling past players at will and being an absolute menace. Not only did Salah score that incredible effort, but his contribution was much wider than that.

He also created four chances, had three shots on target and completed four dribbles (stats via Fotmob).

It almost felt as if that terrible racist jibe had given him more urgency to prove his point. Unfortunately for those fans, they might’ve woken up the goal-scoring beast inside him. He seems hungry as ever to contribute and is holding no prisoners in his mission.

Salah’s lethality has peaked once again. He’s moving quickly, going past opposition at will and isn’t afraid of taking his chances anymore. With Liverpool in dire need of a hero to sail them into achieving history, their Egyptian King has his weapons ready to thwart whoever stands in their way.

Liverpool fans, do you think Salah will win the golden boot again this season? Join the discussion by commenting below…

[ad_pod ]Raheem Sterling has undoubtedly become one of the most impactful players of his type in the world since leaving Liverpool for Manchester City. He was directly involved in 29 of City’s Premier League goals in 2018/19 as they successfully defended their league title. He has become the guy the greatest coach in the modern era turns to when it matters most. For England too he is indispensable.There was a time too when he was indispensable for Liverpool. During the exhilarating season of 2013/14, the Wembley boy tore defences apart in tandem with Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez as the Red men so nearly broke their Premier League duck. He was loved at Anfield; loved for his adventurous wing-play that conjured up something pure, almost childlike.Speaking of which, though he has been lured north from QPR as a wide-eyed 15 year old Sterling was by default an academy kid. He was theirs, this dribbling tearaway. Raheem Sterling was money.Sadly though money came to define Raheem Sterling, entirely unfairly but through a course of events that can be made sense of. He was no longer adored for his instinct to entertain, nor admired for his ambition and self-belief but rather labelled as ‘greedy’ and in the same manner as ‘Cashley’ Cole before him the player became a by-word for footballing excess and entitlement. More so, his highly publicised switch from Liverpool to Manchester City in the summer of 2015 was the most controversial and fractious since Sol Campbell limousined across north London.We are all pertinently aware of what this stigma led to. There was the media castigation that eventually took the form of a witch-hunt and took us down some very strange avenues such as criticising the City winger for buying a Greggs pasty and damning him for an unwashed car. There was – and is – his hostile receptions at Anfield that were initially vicious but now take the form of pantomime booing to unnerve a dangerous opponent. We know too that thankfully the unedifying circus that surrounded the lad for far too long seems to have finally abated as a reappraisal of who he actually is takes over.This isn’t about any of that though. This isn’t the Raheem Sterling story. This is about a transfer that shook the world.And that began in earnest – or at least entered the public domain – in February 2015 as Brendan Rodgers first acknowledged an impasse in contract negotiations between club and player by stating that Sterling had received an ‘incredible deal’ supposedly worth up to £100,000 a week but in all likelihood no conclusion would now be reached until that summer.Some context is needed here and it is context that damns Rodgers. First of all the winger had two years remaining on his present contract so was in no rush to commit either way. Additionally, there were legitimate concerns emanating from this overtly ambitious player over Liverpool’s ability to match his desire to secure silverware. That season the Reds had relatively struggled, eventually finishing sixth as a collective hangover took hold following their tremendous charge to 84 points the previous May. Suarez had now departed for Spain. Gerrard was heading to America. Sterling, then, was absolutely within his rights to wait and see what Liverpool’s transfer plans were even if that displays the arrogance of a 21st century footballer.Much more of relevance however is this undeniable truth: right now, every single top flight club will have a player who is stalling on penning a new deal. At Manchester United it is David De Gea. At Manchester City it is Ilkay Gundogan. We really could go on. Yet when do we ever hear a manager so candidly reveal such details as Rodgers did? Never. That’s when. Never.The Northern Irishman’s intention clearly was to put pressure on his young charge, pressure of the worst possible kind. Throughout Liverpool – a city much like any other where rumours spread like wildfire – people had long known that Raheem Sterling and his employers were at loggerheads. Rodgers’ words though confirmed it; made it a great big issue. And boy did the club and fans respond.For the following game right up until the end of that season Sterling’s every touch was booed by his own supporters. A coterie of former Liverpool players meanwhile wasted little time in condemning his perceived disloyalty and even his own captain Gerrard got in on the act stating that he found his team-mate’s behaviour ‘disappointing’. In reality it was Gerrard’s decision to invite further castigation onto a colleague that was disappointing.Later Sterling would claim that one of the reasons why he opted to leave Anfield was because he felt ‘bullied’ during this period. Looking back through the press clippings you can see why.

Not that all of the blame however can be attached to the club. Exasperated at seeing his reputation tarnished, Sterling then came out and gave an ill-advised interview with the BBC that April where he denied that money was his primary objective. And if that were not inflammatory enough his agent Aidy Ward soon after insisted that his client would not be staying on Merseyside no matter the amount offered to him. “He is definitely not signing. He’s not signing for £700, £800, £900 thousand a week. He is not signing.â€

Needlessly the player and his agent poured petrol onto an already roaring fire and in July – when it was abundantly obvious to one and all that a move was now inevitable – Sterling then refused to fly out to Thailand as part of Liverpool’s pre-season tour.

The duo’s words and actions have been described above as ‘ill-advised’. Perhaps this is wrong because then for equilibrium the words and actions of Rodgers, the fans, and ex-players such as Phil Thompson, John Aldridge and Jamie Carragher should also be deemed that. And that’s not the case at all. From Liverpool’s side it was, bluntly, hubris because they routinely did this to other clubs – unsettled their best player, even encouraged them to strike if need be. They didn’t have it done to them.

That summer 27 players moved from one Premier League club to another but it was only Sterling’s £49m transfer to Manchester City – that concluded a prolonged chase for his signature – that dominated the headlines and felt like a bitter war.

And four years on we can seek out who was to blame all we like but ultimately it comes down to a deterioration of a relationship, one that is commonplace throughout the game. A player wanted a move. The club wanted him to stay. The player got his way and the club was well remunerated.

The circus, however, pitched up regardless and the madness and witch-hunt duly began.

يستعد منتخب مصر الأولمبي تحت القيادة الفنية للمدرب الوطني شوقي غريب لخوض مبارياته الودية قبل خوض غمار منافسات الأولمبياد.

ومن المقرر أن يواجه منتخب مصر الأولمبي، نظيره منتخب كوريا الجنوبية مساء اليوم الخميس على ملعب استاد الأهلي والسلام. موعد مباراة منتخب مصر وكوريا الجنوبية الأولمبي

ومن المقرر أن تنطلق مباراة منتخب مصر وكوريا الجنوبية الأولمبي في الثامنة من مساء اليوم بتوقيت القاهرة.

طالع أيضًا.. مباشر بالفيديو | مباراة مصر وكوريا الجنوبية استعدادًا لأولمبياد طوكيو القناة الناقلة لمباراة منتخب مصر وكوريا الجنوبية الأولمبي

وتذاع مباراة منتخب مصر وكوريا الجنوبية الأولمبي عبر فضائية “أون تايم سبورتس اتش دي1”.

يُمكنكم مطالعة مواعيد ونتائج جميع المباريات لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنا.

Leicester City are finishing the season in decent form as Brendan Rodgers begins to leave his mark on the club.

The former Liverpool and Celtic manager has seemingly got the Foxes playing somewhere near the free flowing and high pressing best, and the likes of Jamie Vardy seem to be getting back to their best.

Another player who has been superb for Leicester since Rodgers arrived has been on-loan midfielder Youri Tielemans, who has shown his class already at the King Power with some fine midfield performances.

And with the summer set to be a big one for the club in terms of who they bring in, the news of Rodgers wanting to keep hold of Tielemans and secure a £40m deal for the Belgian should be music to the fans ears.

Tielemans has been a class above in his performances so far for Leicester, and it’s easy to see why he is regarded so highly in Europe as one of the best young midfielders in the game.

There is a growing sense too that Monaco could be willing to do business on a permanent basis to move Tielemans on, and Leicester will be getting quite the player if they can secure his permanent signing.

The 21-year-old has already shown he is capable at the highest of levels, and it would be little surprise to see other big clubs come knocking at the door.

However, Leicester appear to have made him feel welcome, and with a guaranteed place in the starting XI under Rodgers, the Belgian starlet might well fancy becoming the main man at the King Power before eventually moving on to a top four club.

Either way, if Leicester can sign Tielemans, then they’ll have a superb talent on their hands for years to come.

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Blamed. Criticised. Some fans even want him to be sold after it. David de Gea came in for some torrential criticism after Leroy Sane’s goal settled the Manchester derby at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

The German’s strike was right at De Gea, but the Spaniard couldn’t keep it out and instead diverted it into the back of his own net.

After his error inside the Camp Nou against Barcelona, and his ineffectiveness as Everton thrashed the Red Devils by four goals to nil, the finger is being pointed at a man who has set such high standards for himself over the years, that any dip in form is met with shock and surprise.

Who would win out of Man Utd’s treble winners and Man City today? Fans discuss in the video below…

However, Sane’s goal was not his fault.

Instead, the blame should lie at the feet of Matteo Darmian.

Why on earth did one of the Premier League’s best wide players have the entirety of Old Trafford to himself from the moment he received the ball to when he put it in the back of the net?

Darmian had already made a mistake before Raheem Sterling released the former Schalke man in on goal. The Italian international was nowhere to be seen, instead hiding behind his centre-back – quite literally – before not even looking interested in closing the shot down.

Sergio Aguero had made a run across goal to free up some space for Sane, but it was a movement that Chris Smalling had covered – the Italian international didn’t need to track the Argentine as well whilst Smalling was doing likewise.

To make matters worse, as I briefly touched on beforehand, when Darmian had realised the error of his ways, he didn’t even make a desperate attempt to block the shot, which is the bare minimum expected from a player who has messed up.

Instead, the former Torino man simply watched Sane draw back his deadly left foot, before rifling a shot towards the target – to be frank, it was pathetic from Darmian, and was deserving of Roy Keane’s scathing assessment following the final whistle.

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Following a candid interview, in which he revealed that he needs to leave the club to be with his partner and their sick daughter, Isaac Hayden is expected to leave Newcastle in the summer after having his wish of a move away denied in January.

Given his amazing performances of late, where he has emerged as one of the first names on Rafa Benitez’s teamsheet, there will be a huge gaping hole where he once stood if he does end up departing St James’ Park.

Who can replace him?

It will be tough to replace a player of Hayden’s quality on the cheap and as we all know, Mike Ashley doesn’t often spend huge sums of cash nor does he enjoy loosening his purse strings.

Has injury cruely robbed Sean Longstaff of a potential England place? The Magpie Channel’s Matty belives he was nailed on in the video below…

Hayden is 24 years of age, English and could easily get better, but given his difficult personal circumstances, it would be unfair to keep hold of him against his will, especially as he has been a model professional throughout the whole situation.

As a result of that, Newcastle should look within their ranks right now to find the answer, and it could well be right before their eyes in Fabian Schar.

Why would he be a capable replacement?

Schar, a £3m bargain summer signing, has been arguably one of the Magpies’ best players this season.

His quality is there for all to see. The Swiss international can pass the ball, dribble with it, time his tackles well and is a dominant presence in the air – all of which are traits that are pivotal parts of Hayden’s game.

If you’re wondering how Rafa Benitez will cope with losing a centre-half to play him in midfield, natural left-back Paul Dummett has excelled in the centre of defence in recent weeks, whilst he also has Jamaal Lascelles and the currently injured Florian Lejeune to choose from.

By making this shrewd move, Benitez can save some cash this summer and allow his team to remain settled.