Tag Futebol

Have you ever seen an end to the season like this? For Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal side, it was more stressful than they ever hoped for.

After being sent out of the Champions League by PSG, they have been left to bemoan a run of awful results in the Premier League, putting their hopes of qualifying for a place at Europe’s top table next season in danger.

The 4-0 win over Ipswich Town aside, the Gunners have not picked up all three points in the top-flight since the very first day of April when they defeated Fulham.

So, their 1-0 win over Newcastle United, their top four rivals on Sunday, was rather timely. While Arteta’s side haven’t sewn up second place just yet, they have confirmed their participation in next season’s Champions League.

Behind them, there’s an almighty battle taking shape to finish inside the top five. Thankfully, Arsenal can go to Southampton next weekend with nothing riding on it.

The battle for a top five spot

Team

Games

Wins

Draws

Defeats

points

2. Arsenal

37

19

14

4

71

3. Newcastle

37

20

6

11

66

4. Chelsea

37

19

9

9

66

5. Aston Villa

37

19

9

9

66

6. Man City

36

19

8

9

65

7. Nottingham Forest

37

19

8

10

65

So, who stood out in the new red home strip on Sunday?

How Arsenal beat Newcastle United at the Emirates

When Alexander Isak, William Saliba’s nemesis, was not named on the Newcastle teamsheet due to injury, Arsenal knew they were in for an easier ride.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Expand Collapse

Yet, during the first half, they had their goalkeeper to thank for keeping them in the game.

This certainly wasn’t a straightforward win, particularly for those at the back who worked tirelessly to preserve the club’s clean sheet.

While Raya’s passing was rather errant inside the opening half, he made up for it with a string of superb saves, the two most notable of which saw him the Spaniard sprawl down low to his left to deny Harvey Barnes and then again to his left to keep out Dan Burn’s header from a corner.

Handed the Player of the Match award by Sky Sports after the game, Raya certainly proved why he’s one of the division’s best stoppers.

That being said, it wasn’t Raya who had the most decisive of says. That was Declan Rice who with a swish effort from outside the box, gave Arsenal the win.

It was a peach of a goal from a man who is only going from strength to strength in the final third. He is the Granit Xhaka replacement everyone at the Emirates hoped they’d find.

Raya and Rice were certainly the best players in Arsenal red and will play a crucial part in rebuilding next season. That said, there are some who won’t be around to see the stadium again as a home player.

The players who featured in their last home game for Arsenal

The raucous reception that Kieran Tierney was given as a late second-half substitute was joyous. The Scot has had an injury-hit time in north London and this was sadly the last we will get to see of him as an Arsenal player at home.

The left-back’s contract is expiring at the conclusion of the campaign and it’s widely expected that he’ll head back to Celtic, the side who sold him for £25m.

Also likely playing their last home game was Jorginho. Another of Arsenal’s out-of-contract stars, it looks as though he’ll be going off to end his playing days in Brazil.

Jorginho’s fellow midfielder in Thomas Partey would also be fortunate to be back at the Emirates next season.

The £45m signing from Atletico Madrid has had his days in the famous red and white but Arsenal need fresh blood, and that was certainly evident against Newcastle.

Partey’s day certainly wasn’t disastrous, but it was a shoddy display nonetheless, with the Standard handing him a 5/10 match rating, writing that he was ‘one of Arsenal’s sloppiest players during a poor first half and he was caught in possession a few times’. Meanwhile, one content creator and podcaster, Le Grove, even suggested it looked like the midfielder “was already on the beach.”

His numbers certainly weren’t the finest either, chiefly losing four of his five battles in the air.

Partey vs Newcastle

Minutes played

90

Touches

61

Accurate passes

40/49 (82%)

Key passes

1

Long balls completed

4/8

Shots on target

1

Shots off target

0

Dribbles

0

Ground duels won

4/7

Aerial duels won

1/5

Possession lost

11x

Tackles

3

Interceptions

0

Stats via Sofascore.

The 31-year-old is usually a monster in the duel but his lack of pace and athleticism in the transitional phases of the game is becoming a concern.

He’s quick to get the ball out of his feat but he lacks the drive to get forward and then doesn’t have the speed required to track back if Arsenal get done in the press. He’s the polar opposite to Rice in that regard.

As a result, with Partey’s contract due to expire in a few months, now is surely the time to sever ties with a player who isn’t going to get any better.

There is a reason the club plans to sign Martin Zubimendi this summer. Let him be Rice’s partner next season, please Mikel.

Related Arsenal could see £59m bid accepted for "monster" upgrade on Sesko

Arsenal have been handed the chance to sign an upgrade on Benjamin Sesko.

Posts ByMatt Dawson May 18, 2025

In January, Manchester City made a handful of signings who could become the cornerstones of a team entering a new era under Pep Guardiola next season.

With only the FA Cup winnable this season, it has been one of transition for the Spaniard. He did sign a new deal last November, however, indicating that he is looking ahead to a new challenge starting this summer.

The likes of Vitor Reis, Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez and Abdukodir Khusanov have all proven over the previous few months that they have the required tools to perform for a club like City.

One player who will be departing the Etihad this summer is Kevin De Bruyne, who will end his ten-year association with City when his contract expires.

Guardiola has taken the club to new levels since he arrived in Manchester in 2016 after spells with Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

It could also be argued that the main reason he led the team to such heights was having someone like De Bruyne in his squad to begin with.

The numbers behind De Bruyne's staggering Etihad career

Given what the Belgian has achieved with the club since moving to England from Wolfsburg ahead of the 2015/16 season, the playmaker might be one of the most important players in their history.

Think back to Paul Merson’s verdict on the midfielder in 2015, who said: “I like the signing of Fabian Delph, but I think Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne are pathetically overpriced. They have spent £54.5m on De Bruyne – and he’s a player they don’t really need.”

How wrong was he? At the time of writing, De Bruyne has played 415 matches for City, registering 284 goal contributions – 107 goals and 177 assists – in the process. This is a staggering number for the attacking midfielder, meaning he recorded a goal involvement once every 1.46 matches.

During that time, he helped City win six Premier League titles, two FA Cups and the Champions League in 2023. With City getting closer and closer to glory in the latter competition, De Bruyne took matters into his own hands that season, registering eight goal involvements, creating eight big chances and averaging 2.2 key passes per game as they eventually defeated Inter Milan in the final.

He may not have reached this sort of level over the previous two seasons, as injuries have begun to hamper his involvement. Indeed, the midfielder has missed 48 games since August 2023.

2023/24

26

6

18

2022/23

49

10

31

2021/22

45

19

15

2020/21

40

10

18

2019/20

48

16

22

2018/19

32

6

11

2017/18

52

12

21

2016/17

49

7

20

2015/16

41

16

13

Regardless, the 33-year-old is up there among the pantheon of City greats for his contribution over the previous decade.

The question now for Guardiola is, who comes in to replace him next season? And will the club have to pay a fortune for the privilege? Considering the recent news, they might just have found a perfect heir to the Belgian maestro.

Manchester City's perfect De Bruyne replacement

According to the Mirror, officials from Bayer Leverkusen made a visit to the Etihad last week in order to enquire about the availability of duo James McAtee and Stefan Ortega.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

The German side are keen on landing both players during the summer transfer window. As a result, this may give Guardiola an advantage in their pursuit of Florian Wirtz with it being made known during those meetings that City would like to bring him to England.

He has been valued at around £100m by the club, who would prefer him to leave Germany if a deal was reached to sell him, rather than joining Bayern Munich, who are also keen.

City could use McAtee and Ortega as makeweights regarding any prospective deal and, given his success already on the continent, Wirtz could have the same sort of impact that De Bruyne made.

Wirtz has the same sort of qualities as another City legend – David Silva – and if he manages to make a quick impact upon a move to the Premier League, he has the potential to replicate Silva’s success with the club.

Why Florian Wirtz could be City's next David Silva

If De Bruyne took City to new levels during his career with the club, Silva was arguably the catalyst for their golden era.

The diminutive Spaniard may have taken a few months to properly settle into life in Manchester, but he ended his first season with 19 goal contributions as the club won the FA Cup.

From there on, Silva went from strength to strength. Not only did he have an eye for goal, scoring 77 times for the club, but the midfielder was at his best creating chances for others, as evidenced by his 130 assists in 436 matches for City.

Aided by his small centre of gravity, Silva used this to his advantage, getting into dangerous positions with ease. Wirtz could offer something similar to City should he make the move to England this summer.

Hailed as a “mastermind” by talent scout Jacek Kulig during Leverkusen’s stunning 2023/24 campaign, Wirtz has plenty of qualities that are similar to Silva.

Best in an attacking midfield role, just like the Spaniard, Wirtz has the capability to both score and create in equal measure.

Indeed, since making his Leverkusen debut back during the 2019/20 season, the German international has scored 56 goals and grabbed 63 assists in that time.

His club might not win any silverware this season, but the 21-year-old has still managed to create 15 assists in the Bundesliga, along with averaging 1.9 key passes and succeeding with 2.8 dribbles per game.

The transition from an incredible prospect to a genuine world-class talent is now complete. Like Silva before him, Wirtz can take the next step in his career by moving from the continent to England this summer. Just who knows what he might have achieved at this stage next term.

Man City have a "quality" striker to replace Haaland & it's not Marmoush

With Erling Haaland sidelined for a while, Pep Guardiola must entrust Man City “quality” striker to deputise, and it is not Omar Marmoush.

ByBen Gray Apr 14, 2025

The teams, the format, the big names, and everything else you might have been wondering about

Abhimanyu Bose05-Jul-2024

First things first. When does it start?

The first match is on Friday, July 5, with MI New York taking on Seattle Orcas in Morrisville. The tournament will go on till July 28. There will be a total of 25 matches.

So who are the teams participating? And who won it the first time around?

The six teams are Los Angeles Knight Riders, MI New York, San Francisco Unicorns, Seattle Orcas, Texas Super Kings and Washington Freedom.It was MI New York, inspired by a whirlwind Nicholas Pooran century, who beat Seattle Orcas in the final to win the inaugural title.

Are you sure it’s the MLC and not the IPL? There seem to be a lot of familiar names…

That’s because IPL franchises have invested in most of the teams in the tournament, as they have in other franchise leagues like SA20, ILT20 and the CPL. IPL franchises own four teams in the MLC. Apart from the three obvious ones, Seattle Orcas are owned by the GMR Group, who co-own Delhi Capitals.Washington Freedom, owned by Indian-American entrepreneur Sanjay Govil, have Cricket New South Wales as their high-performance partner. San Francisco Unicorns, owned by Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan, have a partnership with Cricket Victoria.

We saw games in New York and Lauderhill in the T20 World Cup, apart from Dallas. Will the MLC also be played in those grounds?

No. This year’s MLC, like in 2023, will only be played at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas in Texas and Church Street Park in North Carolina’s Morrisville.Last season, the first eight league games were played in Dallas and the next seven in Morrisville, before the tournament shifted back to Dallas for the knockout rounds. This year, however, both stadiums will host games throughout the season.Nicholas Pooran’s 137* in the final helped MI New York win MLC 2023•Sportzpics

So you said Pooran played the last season. Who are some other big names that were there last season and will play this year as well?

A total of 23 overseas players who turned out in the inaugural season will be in action in MLC 2024 as well. Among them, some of the big names include Rashid Khan, Trent Boult, Heinrich Klaasen and Kieron Pollard.Afghanistan’s left-arm wristspinner Noor Ahmad will replace Daryl Mitchell – who has been ruled out by an injury and is currently doing rehab in New Zealand – for Texas Super Kings. You can find the full list of retained overseas players here.

And any exciting new additions this year?

Yes indeed. Pat Cummins, Travis Head and Steven Smith are some high-profile Australian signings, while Daryl Mitchell, Shakib Al Hasan and Romario Shepherd are some of the other new signings. You can see the full squads here.

USA pulled off a surprise and made it to the Super Eight stage of the T20 World Cup. So who will their local heroes line up for?

USA did have an impressive showing at the T20 World Cup, with a Super Over win over Pakistan the highlight. Their captain Monank Patel, Noshthush Kenjige and Shayan Jahangir will be representing defending champions MI New York, while last year’s runners-up Seattle Orcas have USA vice-captain Aaron Jones and Harmeet Singh in their ranks.Milind Kumar, who took a blinder against Pakistan as a substitute fielder, will play for Texas Super Kings, while Andries Gous and Saurabh Netravalkar will play for Washington Freedom.Saurabh Netravalkar, who was impressive in the T20 World Cup, will be playing for Washington Freedom•AFP/Getty Images

All this sounds good. So, what is the format of the league?

Like most franchise leagues, the MLC will first have a round-robin league stage. Last year, each team played the other once, but this time every team will play seven matches each in the league stage. This has contributed to the tournament growing from 19 games last year to 25 this season.The top two teams will meet in the Qualifier, with the winners of that match advancing to the final.The third and fourth-placed teams will meet in the Eliminator. The winner of the Eliminator will face the team that loses the Qualifier in the Challenger, where the second finalist will be decided.You can see the full fixture list here.

But the MLC games don’t count as official T20s, right?

That was the case last year, but the tournament has been given List A status by the ICC. It has become the second Associate-run franchise competition to acquire List A status from the ICC, following the UAE’s ILT20 earlier this year.This means MLC will now be recognised as an official T20 league, with tournament playing records now counted as official format statistics.

And with the packed cricket schedule, is it not clashing with any of the several other T20 leagues around the world?

The Lanka Premier League is on till July 21, so Matheesha Pathirana will remain unavailable till Colombo Strikers are knocked out.There will also be a six-day clash with the Hundred , which means that 12 players who are part of the MLC could arrive late at the UK.

South Africa ignore the dramatics but captain’s heroic shift keeps home ambitions alive

Vithushan Ehantharajah18-Aug-2022Lord’s early in a Test match has never been a ground conducive to cheering. That was especially true on day two against South Africa.The first innings was done and dusted within the first 13 of the scheduled 98 overs, as England’s final four wickets fell for just 49 more runs. A small-fry first innings of 165 usurped soon after tea by South Africa without having to overexert themselves. For the most part, play hummed along as background music to those of an English persuasion in the stands, easing them steadily towards Thursday night and the start of the pre-kend. Paying too much attention to on-field matters risked killing the buzz.Related

Welcome to Bouchball, a work in progress

Ollie Pope's penchant for a shot pays off against Proteas' thunderbolts

South Africa pace quartet give reason for tempered excitement

There were, however, two moments when a crowd usually distracted by the peripheral greens of this ground were squarely focused on the main one in the middle, and in their best voice. The first was on 41 overs – South Africa just 16 runs behind for the loss of two wickets.Jack Leach was stood at the top of his mark at the Nursery End, preparing to bowl. His previous Test appearance against India at Edgbaston had been far from ideal: 1 for 99 in 21 overs. The period since even less so: just 68 overs and one wicket under his belt for Somerset in the County Championship and time warming the bench in the men’s Hundred for Birmingham Phoenix.The second came around 15 overs later. Ben Stokes had the ball in hand at the Pavilion End, raking the ground beneath his feet with Kyle Verreyne in his sights. The skipper had taken out Sarel Erwee and Rassie van der Dussen in a spell that had shades of the Stokes of old: sharp, late movement, occasionally short. And as he stomped in towards Verreyne, the tourists now five down with Leach accounting for Aiden Markram, and just 27 ahead, the crowd crescendoed with him and let out a roar as a delivery into the ribs had South Africa’s wicketkeeper turning away to square leg to cope with the blow.The interest and complexion of the match had shifted dramatically. And it felt apt that Stokes and Leach had done the shifting together. The empowerer and the empowered in tandem, both primarily last resorts here. Stuart Broad revealed at stumps that Stokes had to be convinced to take his less-preferred end because of the turn Leach was getting.And above all else, his ceding to Leach, who he backed with compact, attacking fields, while getting almost comically creative with his own – at one point he had a leg side of bat-pad, leg slip, wide mid on, fine leg (up), fine leg (back), deep square and a position you could only really describe as “short cow” – there was a compulsion to believe in what England were doing. Because, at the moment, everyone on the field and in the home dressing believed in what they were doing. The morning and early afternoon of farce and toil, all broadly well-intentioned, corrected by sheer force of spirit.By the end of play, however, there was no time for whimsy on courage. South Africa’s lead was now 124 for seven down, Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj turning the match their way once more with with a 72-run stand. Leach and Stokes were back on to see out the day, visibly more weathered and audibly less backed. The crowds had withered, just like the belief. The spirit ever-willing, characterised by Stokes chasing down a shot through mid-off from his own bowling, dropping to the floor as he spun and hurled in an instant. Brendon McCullum instilled in them that these are the things that count. But it was hard to see the upside as Stokes laboured to his feet with the help of Broad, who valiantly chased from mid-on knowing he was going to come second.”He carries an inspirational style about what he does,” said Broad of his captain, who was rewarded with a third dismissal when Maharaj clothed a short ball to Matt Potts at midwicket. “I thought it was Stokes who bought great theatre in that sort of middle period after tea.”Truth be told, even the action either side of that “middle period” held the attention. Stokes maintained a sense that something could happen with his decisions, even when sunny, relatively sedate conditions suggested otherwise. As well as the funky fields were more regulation cordons, either packed with four slips and a gully or five bunched up together next to Ben Foakes. The issue, though, was South Africa, barring a couple of missteps, largely kept their focus on their steadfast methods of patience rather than the concocted dramatics around them. Beyond the spell of three wickets lost to Leach and Stokes in 11.2 overs for 32.The new ball and the second innings of this Test is just three overs and three wickets away, respectively. The former needs to bring the latter sooner rather than later if Broad is to get his wish of a first-innings deficit of 150 that he reckoned could be seen off by one solid partnership. Then it will be down to the rest to provide England with a target to defend. Broad still believes.”We’ve proved this summer that anything can happen and we feel really positive in the change room that we’ve got ourselves back in the game because it was 130 for one.”Yet again, England are looking for another hall-of-fame performance in the first match of this series. We will see if they are fifth-time lucky.

All the slow-baked stats from Dom Sibley and Ben Stokes’ mammoth stand at Old Trafford

Bharath Seervi17-Jul-2020568 – Number of balls the Dom Sibley-Ben Stokes partnership lasted, which is England’s second-longest partnership, in terms of balls, since 2000. The longest is 574 balls between Jonathan Trott and Stuart Broad against Pakistan at Lord’s in 2010. It is also the longest against West Indies in this period, edging past 525-ball stand between Shaun Marsh and Adam Voges at Hobart in 2015.1975 – The last time two England batsmen faced 350-plus balls in a Test innings, before Sibley (372 balls) and Stokes (356) doing so in this innings. Mike Denness and Keith Fletcher faced 350-plus balls in the same innings twice in 1975 – against Australia at the MCG and versus New Zealand at Auckland.ESPNcricinfo Ltd260 – The partnership between Sibley and Stokes, was the second-highest by a pair for any wicket in Tests at Old Trafford. The only higher stand than this was 267 between Michael Vaughan and Graham Thorpe against Pakistan in 2001. The stand is also England’s sixth-highest for any wicket against West Indies and best since Andrew Strauss and Robert Key put together 303 runs at Lord’s in 2004.10 – Centuries for Stokes in Tests, all coming at Nos. 5 and 6. He became the fourth England player to score 10 or more centuries at No. 5 and below. Ian Bell has the most in those positions (16 hundreds), followed by Ian Botham (14) and Thorpe (11). Stokes has 4184 runs at No. 5 and below, which is third-most for England. Since Stokes’ debut, Ajinkya Rahane is the only other batsman to have scored 10 centuries at No. 5 and below and Stokes has the most runs there. He is also only the fifth allrounder to score 10-plus centuries and take 150-plus wickets.235 – Previously the most balls faced by Stokes in a Test innings, against India at Rajkot in 2016. His highest score of 258 came from just 198 balls. This innings of 176 runs at a strike rate of 49.43 was Stokes’ lowest of his 10 hundreds.32.25 – Sibley’s strike rate in his knock of 120 off 372 balls, is the fourth-lowest in 100-plus scores in England (where balls faced information is available). He completed his century in 312 balls, the slowest century in Tests anywhere since Azhar Ali made one in 319 balls in Dubai in 2012.!function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var e in a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var t=document.getElementById(“datawrapper-chart-“+e)||document.querySelector(“iframe[src*='”+e+”‘]”);t&&(t.style.height=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][e]+”px”)}}))}();