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Arsenal have received a major fitness boost ahead of their trip to Southampton in the Premier League this afternoon…

What’s the latest?

The Gunners’ attacking duo of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are expected to be available, despite doubts earlier in the week, as per the Evening Standard.

Martinelli had been struggling with illness, as well as a calf problem picked up against Leeds United, and as a result, missed training on Wednesday before their Europa League clash with PSV Eindhoven.

Saka started the game at the Emirates Stadium but limped off with five minutes to go following a kick to his calf.

“I think he [Saka] is fine. He was struggling a bit at the end but hopefully he’ll be fine for Sunday,” claimed manager Mikel Arteta, who also spoke about the Brazilian winger too. He added:

“He had a tough week. He wasn’t feeling great in the week. But in the day before the game he was already feeling better so that’s why we decided to play him a little bit.”

Major boost

Whilst the north Londoners aren’t expected to see the return of Oleksandr Zinchenko just yet, it is certainly hugely encouraging news to have two of their regular starters in line to feature down on the south coast.

Indeed, both Martinelli and Saka have started all ten of their top-flight outings this term, in which Arteta’s side have won nine matches and subsequently lead the standings, where they could hold a four-point cushion over nearest rivals, defending champions Manchester City, with a win against the Saints.

Only goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, defensive duo William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes and vice-skipper Granit Xhaka have played more minutes, whilst the pair both sit on four goals, just one behind Gabriel Jesus, as per WhoScored.

Saka, in particular, has enjoyed a standout campaign thus far with a total of eight direct goal contributions at a rate of one every 110 minutes.

Southampton are by no means the toughest test that Arsenal will face in the coming weeks before the World Cup but it presents a good opportunity for the side to keep up their electric form as they now face the fifth leakiest defence in the Premier League.

Having both Martinelli and Saka available, to play upfront alongside Jesus, will only bolster their chances of success and adding to each player’s impressive exploits in front of goal.

As such, Arteta and his staff will be thrilled to see the pair available for selection at St Mary’s Stadium this afternoon.

AND in other news, Arteta could unearth Arsenal’s new Santi Cazorla in “top class” £34m “special talent”…

Virat Kohli felt India ticked most boxes during the course of a dominating win in Galle

Sidharth Monga in Galle29-Jul-20171:43

Agarkar: The gulf between both sides stood exposed

Away Test wins rarely come any easier than the one for India in Galle. Ever since Shikhar Dhawan was dropped on the first morning – Asela Gunaratne injuring himself out of the series in trying to catch him – this Test for India was about as tough as an arrack joint in Sri Lanka. The toss was won, runs were scored and scored at a frenetic pace, the wickets were taken, more runs piled on, and then India’s biggest away win was sealed on the fourth evening.It was a near-perfect Test for India, but they would have wanted to finish it much earlier by not letting Sri Lanka’s lower-middle order score runs. In the first innings, Sri Lanka’s last four wickets added 148, in the second 129. Victorious captain Virat kohli identified that as an area of improvement to target.”There are still some areas that we want to look back and try to improve upon; especially when you get four-five wickets and not letting the lower order to get away with the few runs in the later half of the innings,” Kohli said. “It’s something that we can still identify and work on in the next two games as well.”But all in all, I think, playing Test cricket – February [the Australia series ended in March] is when we last played Test cricket – and from then, having played so much one-day cricket and not having the time to prepare so much in between… I think from that point of view it was good to get back into the groove and do things that are supposed to be done to win a Test match.”Amid this glut of one-day cricket, it was easy to forget what a poor series Kohli had the last time he played Tests, against Australia. It was a welcome return to red-ball runs for him as he scored a century while setting up the declaration, but Kohli said he wasn’t even conscious of that series against Australia.”I wasn’t looking at things from that point of view,” he said. “I think people on the outside start counting the number of innings when a batsman doesn’t score well, but for us as batsman or anyone playing in the XI, it’s all about what the team wants at that particular situation. And you end up scoring runs as well plus you end up helping team also.”I think the second innings required us to play more positively, and I am glad I was able to do that along with Abhinav [Mukund] to get us enough time to get the opposition out and enough runs on the board for us to feel comfortable. Yeah, I wasn’t certainly looking at things like how many innings I haven’t scored because when you are playing all formats, you don’t think which format you have not scored runs in how many innings. You can’t utilise so much energy in that.”Energy here was utilised in taking wickets because the pitch was really flat. “The last time when we played here the surface offered much more to the bowlers,” Kohli said. “It kept the bowlers in the game throughout, the quicks and the spinners more so. This time around the wicket was really good to bat on even till today. I mean if you applied yourself, you could easily score runs on that surface.”So, yeah, we had to work hard for getting all the wickets that we did. I think the bowlers came up with different plans, persisted with them long enough to get those breakthroughs and that’s something that always helps at the beginning of a series, to get a victory on a surface which is not offering much and that really gives the team the confidence of doing it once more if we get a surface like that.”More confidence is drawn from having found Hardik Pandya as the allrounder to give them the balance. “First innings, he didn’t get opportunity to bowl much but I think in the second innings, he bowled really nicely on a wicket that wasn’t offering much and he kept it in the right areas,” Kohli said of Pandya. “He used the bouncer well. He bowls around 135, when he bends his back he can go higher. So he is a great asset and I have mentioned this before as well.”And specially his batting. Otherwise we would have been 540-550 in the first innings. He got 50 quickly and that saves you time as well. That gives you another 15 overs to bowl at the opposition. And his fielding is also tremendous. I have a lot of faith in him as far as any format is concerned. Test cricket, he has got the technique. He is a really good batsman. You might not look at it precisely but we understand how much he can bring to the table, and I surely have a lot of faith in him that he will be able to perform on any surface on which he plays.”Kohli hoped Pandya will be able to contribute to India in a measure similar to Ben Stokes for England. “When you play away from home, one guy [allrounder] gives you a lot of balance, and I think Hardik can be that guy going ahead, specially playing so much cricket away from home,” Kohli said. “If he grows in confidence – you see someone like Ben Stokes, what he does for England. Brings in great balance as an allrounder. I see no reason why Hardik Pandya can’t become that for India.”

An update has emerged on Leeds United and their interest in signing Club Brugge attacking midfielder Noa Lang…

What’s the talk?

According to Voetbal Nieuws (via Sport Witness), the Whites remain keen on a deal to sign the Netherlands international in one of the upcoming transfer windows.

The report claims that his dip in form this season has caused several teams to back out of the race for his services and it appears as though the Yorkshire outfit are the only side left standing.

It remains to be seen how much the Belgian club would demand for the attacker if Leeds come in for him in January, but it is stated they want to ‘hit the jackpot’ in the future.

Strike gold

Victor Orta could strike gold for Leeds by snapping the 23-year-old up at an apparent low point in his career, with other teams seemingly giving up on him, and helping the gem to find his best form.

Lang’s lack of success in front of goal this season, with one goal and two assists in 10 appearances, does not mean that the Whites, or any other clubs who were interested in him, should drop their pursuit of him.

He only turned 23 in June and is still finding his feet in the professional game, which means it would be unfair to expect him to be consistently brilliant without fail. There have also been examples of players having an off-season, or going through a poor patch of form, before hitting their stride again in the past.

One great example of that is former Chelsea attacker Eden Hazard. In the 2015/16 campaign, the Belgian winger scored four goals and provided four assists in 31 Premier League matches after managing 16 goals and five assists in 2014/15.

He followed that up by plundering 28 goals and 19 assists in the following two top-flight seasons, which shows that it is possible to go through a season of struggle, even if you are one of the top players in Europe.

Lang has shown that he does possess the quality to be a difference-maker at the top end of the pitch. In the 2020/21 and 2021/22 Belgian top-flight seasons, the winger scored 21 goals and provided 20 assists in 55 appearances.

Belgian sports journalist Peter Vandenbempt once hailed the gem a “phenomenon” and talent scout Jacek Kulig previously described him as being “unstoppable”.

The £20k-per-week gem, who has scored once in five caps for the Netherlands, could get back to the levels he has shown in the past if Leeds show faith in his quality and offer him the chance to be a key player in their Premier League side.

Therefore, Orta could strike gold for the club by snapping up Lang when no one else – according to the latest reports – wants him and then increasing his value by helping him to hit the heights he proved he was capable of previously. It is a gamble but one that could pay off handsomely if he becomes a star at Elland Road by scoring and assisting goals on a regular basis.

كشف أندريس إنييستا أسطورة المنتخب الإسباني ونادي برشلونة، عن موعد اعتزاله كرة القدم بشكل رسمي، بعد أيام قليلة.

إنييستا منذ يوليو الماضي بدون نادٍ، ورفض بعض العروض، بعد أن انتهى عقده مع فريق الإمارات الإماراتي، في عمر الـ40 عامًا.

وسيعلن إنييستا عن اعتزاله بشكل رسمي يوم 8 أكتوبر المقبل، وذلك بعدما شارك فيديو عبر مواقع التواصل الاجتماعي أشار فيه إلى أنه سيكشف عن مستقبله في ذلك التاريخ.

طالع أيضًا.. تشكيل برشلونة المتوقع أمام يونج بويز اليوم في دوري أبطال أوروبا

وفي الفيديو، ظهر فنان الجرافيتي TV Boy، وهو يصمم تصميمًا لإنييستا برقمه الأيقوني “8”، حيث تم تدويره ليشكل علامة اللا نهاية.

تلك اللافتة تشير إلى أن أسطورة المنتخب الإسباني سيعتزل ويعلق حذائه بعد مسيرة طويلة وأسطورية مليئة بالنجاحات، خاصة مع برشلونة ومنتخب إسبانيا.

COMING SOON🔜8️⃣🔟2️⃣4️⃣ pic.twitter.com/H0eaSKkTwU — Andrés Iniesta (@andresiniesta8) October 1, 2024

تمكن إنييستا من تحقيق جميع البطولات الممكنة في مسيرته، بـ 9 ألقاب دوري إسبانيا، و 4 مرات بطلًا لـ دوري أبطال أوروبا، و6 كؤوس ملك إسبانيا، مع 3 مرات بطلًا للسوبر الأوروبي و 7 للسوبر الإسباني.

وتوّج ببطولة كأس العالم للأندية 3 مرات، وإنجازاته مع منتخب إسبانيا أيضًا ببطولتي كأس أمم أوروبا، ومونديال 2010 التاريخي، حيث سجل هدف الفوز في النهائي على هولندا بـ جنوب إفريقيا.

على مستوى الأرقام، فقد شارك إنييستا طوال مسيرته في 673 مباراة، وسجل 57 هدفًا وصنع 138.

الرسام الإسباني رحل عن برشلونة بعد أن قضى مع النادي 22 عامًا بين المراحل السنية وحتى تم تصعيده للفريق الأول في عام 2002.

بعد ذلك انضم إلى فيتسل كوبي الياباني عام 2018، وقضى في النادي 5 سنوات، قبل أن يذهب إلى الإمارات الإماراتي، لعب لمدة موسم واحد فقط.

Erik ten Hag oversaw something of a summer revolution at Manchester United upon arriving at the club.

Out went players such as Paul Pogba, Edinson Cavani and Juan Mata, while the 52-year-old managed to sign the likes of Antony, Casemiro and Tyrell Malacia to put his own stamp on the team.

However, it was a move for former Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez which appears to have been his shrewdest signing of the summer transfer window.

The Argentine signed for United for a fee of £57m – reuniting with his former boss Ten Hag – and it looks like it has been money well spent.

His performances in the Europa League have been particularly pleasing, with the 24-year-old taking 84.2 touches and making 2.6 tackles per match, while also displaying his physicality by winning 72% of his total duels.

Martinez is a forward-thinking defender, ranking in the 94th percentile for progressive passes per match (4.13) compared to positional peers in Europe’s big five leagues, and this ball-playing ability allows United to begin attacks from the defensive third of the pitch.

Having conceded 57 goals in the Premier League last season, the same as the number they scored, improving the defence was one of the Dutchman’s main objectives ahead of the new campaign. Despite heavy defeats to Brentford and Manchester City, United gradually appear to be getting to grips with the manager’s way of doing things.

Football writer Karan Tejwani lavished praise on Martinez last week, saying: “Lisandro Martínez is a great talent. Played against the league’s best teams and mostly done well this season. That he was written off because of his height before he even kicked a ball for Manchester United was silly. Ajax’s best last season, Man Utd’s best so far in this one.”

Indeed, the Argentine won Ajax’s Player of the Year award in 2021/22, and given his undoubted potential, a move to England seemed the next logical step for him to continue his development.

The £120k-per-week talent hasn’t let the added pressure of playing at Old Trafford affect him so far and Ten Hag looks to have hit the jackpot with the 24-year-old, who will surely become a regular in the United backline for the next few years if he continues his promising early form throughout his career in Manchester.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte has shared an update on striker Richarlison ahead of their crunch Premier League clash with Liverpool.

The Lowdown: Conte vs Klopp…

The Lilywhites take on Jurgen Klopp’s side at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium tomorrow knowing a win could further cement their status as favourites for a top-four finish.

Spurs have been made to work these last two fixtures in all competitions with Conte’s men sealing dramatic comebacks away to Bournemouth and Marseille.

For the hearts of supporters, there will be hope this upcoming encounter won’t be quite so gut-wrenching, yet the blockbuster occasion will have fans nervously waiting for kick off.

Despite 1-0 home wins against league champions Man City and West Ham recently, Liverpool have lost back-to-back league matches against Nottingham Forest and Leeds, so Conte will be looking to take full advantage of the Reds’ current slump.

The Latest: Conte shares Richarlison update…

Amid Spurs’ plethora of injury problems, the task for Conte is making do with who is available, and one player who certainly won’t be is Richarlison.

The Italian has shared an update on the former Everton star, who is a hopeful for Brazil at this month’s 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

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Conte says Richarlison, like South American compatriot Cristian Romero, will not feature against Liverpool on Sunday.

He explained:

“It’s better to start with a smile. We need to face this situation. We need to finish these three games in the best way possible. We have these injuries. Richarlison is not available for the game, same for Romero.”

The Verdict: Setback…

Richarlison would have been eager to prove himself in a Spurs shirt against Liverpool, the side whom he played countless derbies against for Everton.

Called a ‘warrior’ by Conte, the combative ace is not only a threat in the forward area, but can also get stuck in and provide that real nastiness on his day.

Still not having him to call upon comes as a bitter bit of news to take but the 25-year-old will just be hoping he can return in time for Qatar.

Southampton are set to be handed their first boost under the Nathan Jones regime, with Martin Semmens working hard on a huge deal…

What’s the latest?

According to Pete O’Rourke, speaking to GIVEMESPORT, James Ward-Prowse is reportedly willing to give the new manager a chance by signing a new contract.

The journalist claimed: “I think James Ward-Prowse will be looking to give this new regime an opportunity to see what they can do at Southampton.

“If he sees that there is progress and potential for success, I’m sure he’d be more than happy to stay there.

“Right now, I think Southampton will be determined to keep Ward-Prowse under the new manager.”

It’s a dream start

Of all the things that Jones could have done to kickstart his career on the south coast, tying down his captain and star player would have been high on his list.

Especially given how desensitised fans of the south coast outfit must be to seeing their best players leave, this news comes at a particularly poignant time given the 28-year-old now enters his prime years.

The midfield maestro has been ever-present at St Mary’s this term, having now featured 380 times for the Saints, and earned widespread praise for his proficiency over a dead ball.

He is the current record-holder for most free kicks scored in the Premier League with 14, beating out the likes of Sebastian Larsson, Leighton Baines and even Cristiano Ronaldo.

But that is not all the £45k-per-week star is good for at the club, as he acts as a metronome in their engine room, providing energy and creativity in abundance.

Boasting a 76.7% pass accuracy, he is happy to sit deep and spread the play and make sudden bursts forward to grab his occasional goal or assist.

He does this close to perfection, as he ranks in the top 7% for shot-creating actions across Europe’s top five leagues.

During his career at the club, he has amassed 46 goals and 50 assists, a fine return for a central midfielder.

It is this consistent quality paired with his reluctance to leave that has made him a “true hero” at the club, as labelled by sports writer Kaelen Jones.

This would mark the perfect start to the new manager’s tenure, with any potential future success likely to have Ward-Prowse at the heart of it.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka ‘would be interested’ in returning to Crystal Palace, according to a claim from journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Wan-Bissaka unwanted at Man United

The right-back has endured a tough season at Manchester United so far, finding himself completely out of new manager Erik ten Hag’s plans at Old Trafford.

Wan-Bissaka has made just one appearance in the current Premier League campaign which lasted a mere four minutes, with Diogo Dalot often preferred in his position.

The Englishman made a name for himself at Palace, earning a big-money move to United in 2019, and it could be that a Selhurst Park reunion is on the cards in the near future.

The Latest: Palace return talked up

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke claimed that a return to Crystal Palace would appeal to Wan-Bissaka.

The journalist said:

“I’m sure Wan-Bissaka would be interested in making that return to Selhurst Park, probably on a loan deal initially. I think the right-back position at Palace is maybe not the strongest, with the likes of Joel Ward and Nathaniel Clyne sharing that spot right now.

“Somebody like Wan-Bissaka would probably be an upgrade on what they’ve got right now.”

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The Verdict: Makes complete sense

This feels like a match made in heaven for all concerned, with Wan-Bissaka such a highly-rated figure at Palace before he moved to United, also being tipped to become a ‘top, top’ player by former Old Trafford boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

It hasn’t worked out for him at Old Trafford and his attacking limitations have been exposed, with a meagre two goals and 10 assists in 127 games for United, but he could excel if he rejoins the Eagles, providing Patrick Vieira with another defensive option.

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The hope is that Wan-Bissaka could even return to Palace as soon as January, with the Red Devils surely open to selling a peripheral figure and the player himself no doubt itching to enjoy more regular game-time.

Manchester United have been urged to get rid of Cristiano Ronaldo during the upcoming January transfer window. 

The Lowdown: Ronaldo hitting the headlines

The Red Devils striker has been all over the news this week after being involved in an interview with TalkTV in which he shared his grievances with the club since his return last year.

In the interview, the 37-year-old claimed that he felt betrayed by United as they have been trying to force him out of Old Trafford.

As a result of these comments, it appears as though one journalist has urged the Red Devils to get rid of the attacker once the January transfer window opens.

The Latest: United urged to bin Ronaldo

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Dean Jones was unimpressed with Ronaldo’s comments during his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.

The transfer insider said: “I just feel like it’s a return that probably shouldn’t have happened.

“I know that he will go back to talking about how many goals he scored last season, saying he deserves respect for that, but I just feel like this whole experiment has just been a bit of a disaster really long term; they’ve got to move him on in January.”

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The Verdict: United must act

Looking away from what Ronaldo said about the club in this interview and focusing on what he’s done on the pitch this season, the veteran has only started four of his 10 Premier League appearances.

This suggests that Erik Ten Hag doesn’t have the player – who will be featuring for Portugal in the upcoming World Cup in Qatar – at the top of his pecking order when it comes to domestic action.

Across those 10 league games, Ronaldo has posted one of the lowest percentages for shots on target (24%) at the club, and also one of the lowest percentages for accurate passes (74.7%).

While this interview may well be the final nail in the coffin for his time at Old Trafford, it can be seen from his Premier League statistics that he may not be that much of a miss from the squad.

Moving forward, we feel that getting Ronaldo out of the club in January, as Jones has encouraged, should be one of United’s top priorities.

Glasgow Rangers supporters should ‘take a raincheck’ on Michael Beale’s promise after being confirmed as the new manager at Ibrox, according to journalist Rob Draper.

The Lowdown: Beale announced as Rangers boss

The Premiership giants announced the 42-year-old as their new boss on Monday, taking over the reins from Giovanni van Bronckhorst following his sacking earlier this month.

Speaking during his first interview in charge of Rangers, Beale made a solemn promise stating that he and the team would give everything for the supporters, despite reaffirming his same loyalty to QPR just a few weeks ago after turning down a move to Wolves.

The Latest: Draper’s reaction

Taking to Twitter, Draper reacted to Rangers appointing Beale and wasn’t best pleased with the comments that the new Ibrox manager made, given how his actions have contradicted his words in terms of his commitment to QPR.

He tweeted: “I’m not being funny, but Rangers fans might want to take a raincheck on the ‘solemn promise’.”

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The Verdict: Different this time around

It is completely understandable if some Rangers fans are concerned or thinking that this move might be a risk, but there’s reason to believe that things are different from Beale’s point of view this time around.

The Bromley native previously spent three years at Ibrox as a first-team coach working alongside Steven Gerrard, so he will hold the club very close to his heart and surely want to do the best job possible in proving his worth in the Rangers hot seat.

Penning a contract until 2026 also shows that he sees his long-term future in Glasgow, and having maintained a strong relationship with Ross Wilson, this could be the start of an exciting new chapter at Ibrox under the 42-year-old.