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Tottenham Hotspur picked up a much-needed win on the weekend, just their 11th in the Premier League, but it’s done little to boost morale.

This season has been an unmitigated disaster for the North Londoners, as while there is still a chance they could win the Europa League, they look destined to finish in the bottom half of the league table, with more losses than wins.

Now, there are a few reasons for this dramatic collapse in form from Ange Postecoglou’s men, but perhaps the most significant has been the near-endless stream of defensive injuries they’ve had to deal with.

For example, neither Micky van de Ven nor Cristian Romero has made even 20 appearances this year, and now it looks like they may lose the latter for good in the summer. Still, they might also already have the perfect replacement in a youngster out on loan.

Romero's unsure future

Romero moved to Spurs on a loan deal with an option to buy back in the summer of 2021 and, since then, has become an essential part of the squad and first team.

In all, the World Cup winner has made 117 appearances for the club, scoring seven goals, providing one assist, and becoming one of the co-vice captains under Postecoglou’s tenure.

However, this rapid rise and impressive form for the team – alongside his international exploits – has seen other major teams from the continent take notice.

For example, earlier this year, it was widely reported that Real Madrid were keen on signing the former Juventus ace in the summer, while more reports from the last few weeks have revealed that Atlético Madrid are now just as interested.

In fact, just last week, it was reported that Diego Simeone had personally contacted the player and that, due to a mutual interest in making the transfer happen, he might be able to leave N17 for around £67m.

There is no doubt that losing a defender of Romero’s calibre would be a blow for Spurs, but it might not all be doom and gloom, as the club might already have the perfect replacement in an exceptionally exciting youngster.

The Spurs youngster who could replace Romero

So, if Romero does leave in the summer, the board will likely replace him with the fee he earns them, but there might already be a perfect replacement in the squad by then: Luka Vušković.

In The Pipeline

Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

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Yes, he might not be a name that everyone is familiar with yet, but based on his performances this season and the way those in the know speak about him, he most certainly will be.

The North Londoners signed the Croatian wonderkid in September 2023, but being just 16 at the time, post-Brexit rules around registering foreign players under 18 mean he cannot officially join the team until this summer.

So, with him unable to move to England this season, the “freak talent,” as dubbed by analyst Ben Mattinson, joined Belgian outfit KVC Waterloo last July, and to say he’s enjoying a good season would be an understatement.

Despite only turning 18 in February, he has made 29 first-team appearances so far, in which he’s helped to keep five clean sheets. More impressive than that, he has scored seven goals and provided two assists.

This level of output for such a young defender suggests he’d be able to at least match the attacking threat Romero has, and with him already being 6 foot 4, there is no way he’d be bullied by opposition players.

Vušković’s 24/25

Player

Vušković

Appearances

29

Clean Sheets

5

Goals

7

Assists

2

Goal Involvements per Match

0.31

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Finally, he’s no slouch when it comes to the defensive side of the game either, with FOTmob revealing that he wins 6.09 duels and 4.05 aerial duels per 90 while also making 5.74 recoveries.

For comparison, Romero wins 5.46 duels and just 2.45 aerial duels per 90 while also making slightly fewer recoveries at 5.39 per 90.

Ultimately, we are not saying that Vušković will be able to immediately replicate what Romero can do next season.

However, he is undoubtedly one of the most exciting defensive prospects around, and with the right coaching, he could reach that level sooner than people expect, which would soften the Argentine’s departure.

Related He's a £101m star in the making: Spurs hit gold on "monster" Nuno signing

The incredible talent has a bright future at Spurs.

Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 7, 2025

The visitors were left with plenty to ponder after their batting struggled in spin-friendly conditions

Andrew Fidel Fernando08-Aug-20245:39

India’s batting (except Rohit’s) against spin a sign of concern

Mohammed Siraj is fired up. Halfway through his seventh over, the 39th of the innings, he strides down the pitch and sprays a few angry words at Kusal Mendis, who responds in kind.In his next over, Siraj bowls a ball to Janith Liyanage that the batter drives back at him. Siraj picks the ball up in his follow through, and flings it at the stumps, and misses. The batter would have been back safely in any case.In the background of that shy at the stump is Virat Kohli, applauding the bowler’s aggression. Through the course of these middle overs, Kohli has gone through some big emotions of his own. He’s celebrated wickets with more verve than the bowlers and yelled at exiting batters, appealed so vociferously it felt like his lungs might come flying out of his body. He’s backed up every move of the bowlers like they were boxers at the Olympics and he was their coach in the corner.Related

• Wellalage five-for sends India crashing to 2-0 defeat

• Stats – SL's spinners end India's 27-year streak

• Asalanka: Top-order contributions a sign of us maturing

At one point he fields the ball at short mid on and throws at the stumps but hits the pad of Charith Asalanka. The batter had not only never seriously attempted a run, he’s so far home he’s fallen asleep in front of a Netflix documentary.But none of this is massively out of the ordinary. We have seen Siraj this fired up before. For Kohli, this is like a six out of 10 on the macho-flailing scale.But this is what is truly surprising. Kohli has played many matches against Sri Lanka in which he has found no need to reach into the angrier portions of his heart. Siraj has usually had a very high smile-to-grimace ratio when facing this opposition.And now all this aggression has been accessed for Sri Lanka? Wow. Should they be blushing? Is this for real?

A 27-year wait is over for Sri Lanka #SLvIND pic.twitter.com/Jg8vZaY2zO

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) August 7, 2024

Before this series, Sri Lanka had played 19 ODIs against India since the start of 2015, and lost 16 of those games. The most recent memories were of being bowled out for 55 at the Wankhede in the World Cup and being blasted out for 50 in the Asia Cup final last year, when Siraj took 6 for 21 at this very venue and was inflicting so much trauma it seemed more appropriate for India’s players to cuddle Sri Lanka’s batters rather than cuss at them.But through the course of this ODI series, this Sri Lanka team, ranked seventh in ODIs, who finished ninth in last year’s World Cup and as such have not qualified for the Champions Trophy, who struggle to get their seam bowlers on the field, and who haven’t made a global-tournament semi-final in 10 years, has asked some serious questions of an India side whose ambitions are world domination.A quick rundown of those questions:

• Are India a little shaky on big-turning tracks, given the results in their last four ODIs in Asia? This series was three matches long. This was their fourth match back.
• Are they over-reliant on Jasprit Bumrah at the death? He was rested for this series, but Sri Lanka’s lower-middle order and lower order produced strong showings and reached totals that proved to be beyond India’s batters.
• Should they keep persisting with floating batters in the middle overs, prioritising left-right combinations over more strongly-defined roles for each batter?
• Are they better off with predictable KL Rahul or mad genius Rishabh Pant?

This is not an exhaustive list of questions. But for Sri Lanka the list is so much shorter, because for a team not playing next year’s Champions Trophy so little beyond the present matters, in ODIs.Their only worry is whether they can be competitive in anything other than extremely spin-friendly conditions. Almost everyone in Sri Lankan cricket – players, administrators, coaches, support staff, fans – has this question in mind right now. But they will happily take Siraj being this angry at their batters. They will take Kohli being this expressive.Sri Lanka gave India a rare dusting up•Associated PressAnd they should take captain Asalanka being realistic. When asked whether he took pride in achieving a bilateral series victory over India that had eluded even greats of the Sri Lankan team such as Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Lasith Malinga, Tillakaratne Dilshan and others, he said:”I don’t think we’re at the level of those players. I think we have the potential, but at ICC tournaments those players took us very far. That’s how we were able to have global recognition. I don’t think we can be equals to those players at the moment. But as a captain I’m happy we were able to defeat a team as good as this. This is a process. We have some talented players. If we manage them and look after them, we can go far.”Sri Lanka have more modest ODI goals now than they have had in roughly 25 years. India are aiming higher than ever. Right now, it’s enough to just have shaken India up a little.

Pakistan have a poor World Cup record, but she feels they are well prepared ahead of their opener against India

Firdose Moonda11-Feb-20231:16

Fatima Sana: I look up to Ellyse Perry and follow her

“If you are a Pakistan [contracted] player, then you have everything. But if you are not a Pakistan player, you don’t have as much. You only have normal things like school cricket, college cricket and that’s it.”That’s how Fatima Sana described the disparity between the professional and the aspiring in Pakistan’s women cricket, which is only set to get bigger as the women’s game enters the big-money franchise era.On Monday, the WPL auction will be held in Mumbai, with the expectation that it will change the women’s game financially and perceptively. And Pakistan will have their noses pressed against the windows when 105 players at this T20 World Cup go under the hammer, none of them in their squad.Related

Mandhana ruled out of Pakistan game with injury

Devika Vaidya is a step away from her World Cup dream

Tensions between India and Pakistan mean that, just like the IPL, no Pakistan players will be part of the WPL. If that isn’t enough of a cold shoulder, the Women’s PSL which was due to be played in March, has been postponed to September thus delaying Pakistan’s own opportunity to enjoy a local franchise tournament. The FICA women’s global employment report, released earlier this week, labelled Pakistan women’s cricket “fledgling professional,” with “limited coverage and funding,” and said “fundamental changes are required to create a recognised pathway for female cricketers in Pakistan to make a viable living out of playing professional cricket.”Those changes are actually happening in fast-forward in India, where the WPL is confirmed as the wealthiest women’s league around, and may be worth more than even some men’s leagues. That may not be such a big deal to Pakistan if they could simply ignore the whole thing, but they won’t be able to. Their first opposition in the tournament is India, who they take on 24 hours before the auction, and who will know the Pakistan match is their last opportunity to impress for a big pay cheque.Given all that and Pakistan’s poor World Cup record – they have won only a quarter of their 28 matches and never made it out of the first round – are they feeling a little undone? Not according to Sana. “We’ve prepared ourselves best because we played against the best side, Australia, before the World Cup so that will help us,” she said.Fatima Sana: “In Pakistan, the [cricket] structure is not as good as Australia’s”•PCBPakistan played three ODIs and two T20Is in Australia [the third T20I was rained out] and lost all of them by big margins in the build-up to this World Cup but the results did not concern Sana. “When you play against the best team, you will learn a lot of things. It’s a great chance for us to become a top four team.”For Sana, the learning came from meeting her hero, Ellyse Perry, who she has idolised since childhood and played against once before, but was too nervous to approach. “When I was 11, I first saw Perry and I saw her bowling the last over in a match against England or New Zealand and I thought I will follow her and look up everything to do with her. After that, she became the best allrounder in the world, so that motivated me,” Sana said. “At the last World Cup, I saw her only, I didn’t say anything. Now when I was against Australia, I asked a lot of things about cricket.”The knowledge-exchange wasn’t what Sana enjoyed most about meeting Perry. “The best thing is that I was bowling and she was batting and that was everything for me. I was trying to get her out and next time I will do it.”If the next time comes at this World Cup, it will have to be in the semi-finals at the earliest, since Pakistan and Australia are in different groups. As much as the romantics among us would like this scenario to play out, the realists will caution against imagining it and secretly maybe Sana would say the same. When asked about whether she was concerned about the growing gap between cricket’s haves and have nots, she conceded that “they have a good structure in Australia where they support Under-19, Under-16 and Under-15 teams. In Pakistan, the structure is not as good as Australia’s.”What Pakistan lacks in their structures, they make up for in talent and Sana is one example of that. She began playing cricket in the street with her brothers, who encouraged her to develop her bowling. She was also able to play a range of other sports and competed in the national athletics championships at Under-19 level. She explained that she only really had that opportunity because she grew up in a city, where access is easier than some of Pakistan’s smaller towns or more rural areas. “In Karachi and Lahore, we have lots of girls playing cricket but we need places like Multan and other places [to also develop players]. There are girls who want to play cricket in those areas but they need an opportunity.”That’s a well-worn trope, especially in women’s cricket, but as the WPL auction looms large over this week, it remains as true as ever.

ESPNcricinfo’s staff picked their Test, ODI, T20 and women’s T20I teams of the year. Do they resemble yours?

Matt Roller30-Dec-2020Even including the three Boxing Day fixtures, there have been fewer men’s Test matches played in 2020 than in any year since 1991, and the same is true of men’s ODIs. Even still, that hasn’t stopped ESPNcricinfo’s staff from completing an annual ritual: testing our ability as selectors and picking our teams of the year. Don’t forget to let us know where we’ve got it wrong.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdOnly four teams played more than three men’s Tests in 2020 before our Christmas cut-off date, so it is no surprise that their players dominate the team of the year. England lead the way with four players included, and three New Zealanders, two Pakistanis, a West Indian and an Australian join them.Dom Sibley is an automatic selection, having scored more than twice as many runs as any other opener in the year, while Shan Masood joins him at the top thanks to hundreds at home against Bangladesh and away in England. Kane Williamson slots in behind them, following his masterful 251 against West Indies, while Babar Azam and Ben Stokes, who had prolific years, are in at No. 4 and 5. Zak Crawley, whose 267 against Pakistan was the biggest innings of the year, is a notable omission.Jos Buttler’s place in the England side was under immense scrutiny back in January, but he put doubts over his Test credentials to bed with a superb series with the bat against Pakistan. He also led the way for most dismissals behind the stumps, helping him earn selection ahead of Quinton de Kock in this side. Jermaine Blackwood would have seemed an unlikely candidate for this XI at the start of the year but he earned a West Indies recall thanks to four-day runs for Jamaica, and played two of the most entertaining innings of the year: a match-winning 95 in England, and a counter-punching 104 in New Zealand.The three front-line seamers were easy picks, all averaging around 15: Stuart Broad passed the 500-wicket mark in Tests, dominating the English summer after being left out at its start, while Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson tore India and Pakistan to shreds. In a year dominated by seamers, Nathan Lyon takes the spinner’s berth despite only playing two Tests.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdAfter losing series to India and South Africa at the start of the year, Australia have been dominant in post-lockdown ODIs, winning both in England and at home against India. As a result, their players make up the majority of this team, with Aaron Finch and David Warner in as openers.It speaks volumes about Virat Kohli’s lofty standards that even in a year in which he has seemed to underachieve, he still managed five half-centuries in nine ODI innings and averaged a shade under 50 to slide in at No. 3 in this side, while Steven Smith and KL Rahul were both popular selections in the middle order. Glenn Maxwell brings his power-hitting to the No. 6 role, with a strike rate of 145.26 and an average above 70 in 2020, while Ravindra Jadeja slides in at No. 7 to balance the XI.Adam Zampa is the leggie to complement Jadeja and Maxwell’s fingerspin, leading the wicket charts for the calendar year with 27, and he is joined by his two closest competitors on that front in Alzarri Joseph and Josh Hazlewood. Jofra Archer played only three ODIs, but terrorised Warner sufficiently to earn a place in this side.Several players’ cases would have been stronger if the pandemic had allowed them to play more games, with South Africa’s Heinrich Klaasen, Bangladesh’s Liton Das and Oman’s Aqib Ilyas all impressing with the bat in their limited number of games.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdWhile there was a Covid-induced pause in the otherwise relentless calendar of T20 tournaments, almost all major leagues were held at some stage in the year, meaning this XI did not suffer from a small sample size to the same extent as the others.Look away now, Pakistan fans: there is no place for Babar Azam in our side. He was beaten to the opening slots by only a couple of votes. In his place, de Kock takes the gloves after a stellar year for both South Africa and the Mumbai Indians, while Buttler made up for his hit-and-miss IPL with some belligerent innings at the top of the England batting order.Rahul’s orange-cap-winning IPL and consistency for India pushed him ahead of Mohammad Hafeez for the No. 3 slot, while AB de Villiers, Nicholas Pooran and Kieron Pollard’s middle-order fireworks form the side’s engine room, from No. 4-6.Shadab Khan’s breakthrough year with the bat combined with his wicket-taking threat sees him picked at No. 7, forming a mouth-watering legspinning partnership with Rashid Khan, the year’s standout spinner as usual. Haris Rauf may have been the leading wicket-taker for 2020, but his relatively high economy rate means he misses out to three seamers who form a compelling trio: Shaheen Afridi and Archer take the new ball, with Jasprit Bumrah doing the heavy lifting at the death.Andre Russell, Mushfiqur Rahim, Marcus Stoinis and Dawid Malan are among the honourable mentions with the bat, while Sandeep Lamichhane, Samit Patel and Kagiso Rabada had successful years with the ball.Girish TS/ESPNcricinfo LtdWith a T20 World Cup at the start of the year and most nations frustrated by a lack of playing opportunities since, performances in that tournament, unsurprisingly, carry plenty of weight among these selections. Six Australians from their World Cup-winning side make it to this team, with three of them – Alyssa Healy, Beth Mooney and Meg Lanning – forming the top of our batting order.Sophie Devine averaged 54.66 and scored 492 runs in the year – comfortably twice as many as any of her New Zealand team-mates – but she moves into the middle order thanks to the quality of Australia’s top three. Heather Knight, a transformed T20 batter in recent times, slots in at No. 5, following her best year in the format by a huge margin, and the middle-order batting is rounded off by Ashleigh Gardner, who edged out Nat Sciver by a single vote.With the ball, Katherine Brunt and Megan Schutt form an enticing new-ball partnership after leading the wicket-taking charts among seamers for the year, while Sophie Ecclestone and Jess Jonassen with 19 wickets apiece, are both picked as left-arm spinners. Poonam Yadav’s beguiling start to the T20 World Cup – and her four-wicket haul against Australia – earned her inclusion as the main legspinner.Fellow leggies Sarah Glenn and Amelia Kerr are both unfortunate to miss out, after finishing the year with 18 and 14 wickets respectively and economy rates below 5.5. Despite India’s run to the final, Yadav is their only representative in the XI, with Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma both overlooked.More in our look back at 2020

Former Manchester City player Joey Barton has received a suspended sentence for 'grossly offensive' social media posts to football pundits Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward and broadcaster Jeremy Vine. The 43-year-old was handed a six-month prison sentence, which is suspended for 18 months. The ex-Newcastle United man claims that he "never meant to hurt anyone" with his electronic communications.

• Barton found guilty by jury

  In November, Barton was found guilty of sending 'grossly offensive' social media posts, where he called Vine a "bike nonce" and compared Ward and Aluko to serial killer couple Fred and Rose West on X. Jurors at Liverpool Crown Court found that he had "crossed the line between free speech and a crime" on six counts after being charged with 12 counts of sending a grossly offensive electronic communications with intent to cause distress or anxiety back in January 2024.

  At the trial, Barton said: "It was not meant to call him a paedophile. It was a bad, dark, juvenile joke. I have not at any point tried to cause distress or anxiety or risk his life or his daughters' lives. I don't want people to fear for their lives, I'm a dad. I cannot believe I'm on trial for this. Words on a social media site."

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• Getty/GOAL
  

  Barton avoids jail term

  The former Bristol Rovers manager was handed an 18-month suspended sentence, which means he will not serve any time behind bars unless he reoffends in that period. He was given six months each for two offences against Aluko and four months for each of the four counts related to Vine and Ward. At the sentencing, Judge Andrew Menary KC also ordered Barton to perform 200 hours of unpaid community work and pay more than £20,000 in costs. 

  After leaving court, Barton told The BBC: "If I could turn back the clock I would. I never meant to hurt anyone. It was a joke that got out of hand. Nobody wants to go to jail."

• 'Sustained campaign of online abuse'

  The judge added that targeting individuals online, in the way Barton did, falls outside the realm of freedom of speech. 

  He told the court: "Robust debate, satire, mockery and even crude language may fall within permissible free speech. But when posts deliberately target individuals with vilifying comparisons to serial killers or false insinuations of paedophilia, designed to humiliate and distress, they forfeit their protection. As the jury concluded, your offences exemplify behaviour that is beyond this limit – amounting to a sustained campaign of online abuse that was not mere commentary but targeted, extreme and deliberately harmful."

  Menary added that he was satisfied that Barton's custodial terms did not have to be "served immediately" and he had faith he could change his ways for good.

  He said: "In light of the steps you have taken, I am persuaded that there is some prospect of rehabilitation – that an immediate custodial sentence is not required to protect either the public or the victims. A suspended sentence order may – may – itself operate as a deterrent against any future defending by you."

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• Getty Images Entertainment
  

  What now for Barton?

  Two-year restraining orders were issued against each of Barton's victims, which includes publishing any reference to them on any social media or broadcast platform.

  After the verdict, Vine added: "I'm happy the case is over. Joey Barton has been made to pay a lot for his disgusting lies and abuse, but I fear he'll keep offending until the day he dies."

  Cheshire Police said they hoped this case would deter others from sharing "abusive and hateful messages" online going forward.

  "Barton's posts would have been seen by hundreds, if not thousands of people, and yet he showed no regard or consideration for how this would impact on his victims and their wellbeing. The sentence handed to him today comes with a number of strict conditions and should he breach these in any way he may face the prospect of time behind bars," said the police spokesperson.

Liverpool and Manchester United are two of many teams throughout Europe who are set to benefit after FIFA revealed those involved will be able to play for their clubs for an extra week before jetting off for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Mohamed Salah and Bryan Mbeumo are among the Premier League's top forwards but will leave their sides to represent Egypt and Cameroon when the tournament kicks off in Morocco later this month.

Liverpool and Man Utd receive much-needed boost

Clubs around Europe will have to make do without some of their key players during the hectic winter months of December and January due to the 2025 AFCON. Stars like Salah and Mbeumo are set to miss a significant number of matches for Liverpool and United when they travel across the world to represent their countries at Africa's biggest stage. Players had previously been required to show up for international duty by December 8 at the latest, leaving some English clubs particularly short during what is always a fixture-filled time of the year. However, FIFA has now amended its rules, meaning clubs around Europe will be able to call upon their African stars for another week.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWhat FIFA said about clubs releasing players for AFCON

In a statement released on Wednesday, FIFA outlined its decision: "Following fruitful consultations led by FIFA with key stakeholders and, thanks to the spirit of solidarity demonstrated by CAF to reduce the impact on various parties, the Bureau of the Council has taken a decision in relation to the mandatory release of players for the CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025, which will take place in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026. 

"In line with the same principle used for the FIFA World Cup 2022™, the release period will be reduced by seven days and start on Monday, 15 December 2025. 

"It was also determined that Member Associations participating in the CAF AFCON 2025 and clubs releasing players who would be playing in continental competitions during the release period be encouraged to hold bilateral discussions in good faith to find appropriate individual solutions. 

"In cases where there continues to be a dispute over the release of players subsequent to such bilateral discussions, FIFA will, in mediating between both parties, apply guidelines that take into account the circumstances of each case, including factors related to the timing of matches of affected competitions, the stage of these competitions, the historical and planned involvement of the players in the matches in question, as well as any other pertinent factors."

Some Premier League teams set to struggle

It's not just Mbeumo who United will be missing for the better part of a month even after FIFA's ruling. Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui are set to represent the Ivory Coast and Morocco, while Sunderland appear set to suffer majorly with seven of their players projected to be involved in the tournament, including Bertrand Traore, Reinildo, Simon Adingra and Habib Diarra. 

Manchester City will lose both Omar Marmoush and Rayan Ait-Nouri, though neither the Egyptian nor the Algerian have been particularly prominent in Pep Guardiola's starting XI so far this season. Tottenham will be without a pair of midfielders in Pape Matar Sarr and Yves Bissouma, but will retain the services of winger Mohammed Kudus after Ghana failed to qualify. Relegation candidates Wolves are also expected to lose five players to AFCON. 

However, there is better news for others. Premier League leaders Arsenal, their London rivals Chelsea and Leeds United will be unaffected for the period. Liverpool, meanwhile, will only lose Salah, with manager Arne Slot previously revealing the Reds would be able to keep the struggling winger until mid-December.

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Getty Images SportWhat comes next?

There are now just under two weeks before clubs throughout Europe say goodbye to the African players who will be present at AFCON. The tournament looks set to be an exciting one with Morocco, Egypt, Algeria and Senegal among the favourites to lift the trophy – which will add to an already packed winter of soccer.

There's a disappointing lack of Premier League action on Boxing Day this year, with United's evening clash with Newcastle the only fixture of the day, but supporters will be able to see Salah's Egypt battle South Africa that afternoon.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Palmeiras perdeu por 1 a 0 para o Internacional nesta quarta-feira (17), na Arena Barueri, pela segunda rodada do Brasileirão 2024. O gol do jogo foi marcado pelo atacante Wesley, e Rafael Borré perdeu pênalti.

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➡️ Siga o Lance! Palmeiras no WhatsApp e acompanhe todas as notícias do Verdão

➡️A boa do Lance! Betting: vamos dobrar seu primeiro depósito, até R$200! Basta abrir sua conta e tá na mão!

Com isso, o Verdão perdeu a marca de 10 anos de invencibilidade diante do Colorado. O próximo jogo do Palmeiras é contra o Flamengo, enquanto o Internacional enfrenta o Athletico-PR. Saiba como foi o jogo no vídeo abaixo.

✅FICHA TÉCNICA
Palmeiras x Internacional
2ª rodada – Brasileirão

🗓️ Data e horário: quarta-feira, 17 de abril de 2024, às 20h (de Brasília)
📍 Local: Arena Barueri, em Barueri (SP)
📺 Onde assistir: Premiere
🟨 Árbitro: Lucas Paulo Torezin 
🚩Assistentes: Victor Hugo Imazu dos Santos e Rafael Trombeta; Wagner Reway (VAR)

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➡️ Clique aqui e confira os próximos jogos e a tabela do Campeonato Brasileiro

⚽ ESCALAÇÕES

PALMEIRAS (Técnico: Abel Ferreira)
Weverton; Mayke, Gustavo Gómez, Murilo e Piquerez; Aníbal Moreno; Richard Ríos e Raphael Veiga; Lázaro, Flaco López e Endrick.

INTERNACIONAL (Técnico: Eduardo Coudet)
Sergio Rochet; Bustos, Vitão, Mercado e Renê; Bruno Henrique, Thiago Maia, Maurício e Wanderson; Wesley e Rafael Borré.

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BrasileirãoInternacionalPalmeiras

Middlesex skipper, who spent five years with Derbyshire, produced a stoic four-and-a-half hour effort

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay09-Sep-2025

Leus du Plooy played a steadfast innings•Ray Lawrence

Leus Du Plooy haunted his former county Derbyshire as his second hundred of the season led Middlesex to a slender first-innings lead on day two at Lord’s.The Middlesex skipper, who spent five years with Derbyshire prior to joining the Seaxes produced a stoic four-and-a-half hour effort with only eight boundaries as the hosts reached 298 all out.Josh De Caires (46) and Joe Cracknell (43) provided the main support, the latter sharing a stand of 80 for the sixth wicket with Du Plooy.Ben Aitchison bowled beautifully for his 3 for 35, while Zak Chappell also claimed three victims, before openers Luis Reece and Caleb Jewell saw Derbyshire through to stumps at 17 without loss – a lead of two heading into day three.Aitchison’s probing opening burst provided a stern examination of the Middlesex openers and it was a test Sam Robson did not survive, this season’s beneficiary trapped lbw by one which beat the outside edge.De Caires and Luke Hollman somehow negotiated the rest of the seamer’s stump-to-stump spell, but in his endeavours to increase the tempo against some looser offerings from first change Chappell, the latter wafted lazily at a wide one to be caught at slip.De Caires picked up where he’d left off in his 175 against Durham for the second XI at Hartlepool last week, driving sweetly through mid-on and cracking a wide one from Chappell to the fence at point. However, four short of 50 and with lunch beckoning he was adjudged to have tickled one through to wicketkeeper Brooke Guest. His disappointment, whether at himself or the decision was palpable.It was left to Du Plooy to provide the innings of substance required. The South African-born left-hander got underway with a tickle for four to fine leg, but this was a studious rather than flamboyant knock, a later square drive another of the six fours in his first 50 reached in 80 balls.His second 50 was even more phlegmatic, nudges into the gaps marking his progress with only one further boundary until he reached the 90s. There was as scare on 91 as the 30-year-old crumpled to the floor after inside-edging a ball from Aitchison, the problem seemingly with his knee.He was able to continue after treatment, albeit hobbling, and a square drive and a punch through midwicket took him to a deserved hundred.Others batted around the skipper, Ryan Higgins threatening a big score before a flash at a wide one from Chappell cut his effort short on 31 and Ben Geddes didn’t stay long before becoming the seamer’s third victim, lbw to a ball which looked to be swinging past leg stump.Cracknell was the man to help in the one partnership of note, the wicketkeeper/batter riding his luck early on before unfurling some trademark aggressive shots, the pick a pull off Haydon which sailed into the Mound Stand. Haydon’s revenge was swift however, a ball stopping a little in the pitch before climbing to take the edge of the bat and flying to backward point.Du Plooy, now struggling physically, fell lbw to Luis Reece soon after the first innings lead was secured, after which the tail crumbled leaving the hosts two runs short of what could have been a precious second batting point.

Glasgow Rangers are still yet to officially confirm their next head coach ahead of their clash with Dundee United in the Scottish Premiership on Saturday at Ibrox.

The Light Blues parted company with Russell Martin prior to the start of the international break, after a 1-1 draw with Falkirk, and Steven Smith will be in charge as an interim this weekend.

Martin left after five wins in 17 matches in charge in all competitions, as shown in the graphic above, and Rangers are closing in on a head coach with a far superior record.

The latest on Kevin Muscat to Rangers

According to RangersReview, Kevin Muscat is set to ‘finalise’ a deal to become the next Rangers manager in a move that could be confirmed over the weekend.

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Meanwhile, the Daily Record reports that the Light Blues board are willing to allow him to see out the remainder of the Chinese Super League season before he makes the switch to Ibrox.

SH Port have three matches left to go in their season, as they sit top of the table, and their last game is on the 22nd November, which means that it could be over a month before Muscat takes the reins in Glasgow to finally replace Martin.

Once the Australian head coach is in charge at Ibrox, one thing that he will be tasked with is getting the best out of central midfielder Mohamed Diomande, who flopped under the previous head coach.

Why Kevin Muscat needs to revive Mohamed Diomande for Rangers

Muscat needs to revive the Ivorian star because he allowed his form to dip way too low under Martin, after an impressive 2024/25 campaign with the Scottish giants.

Diomande’s discipline was a notable cause for concern. He was given three yellow cards and one red card in his last four appearances for the club, and Tam McManus went as far as to call his performance “embarrassing” against Hibernian because of how many fouls he was committing.

The left-footed star was sent off against Genk in the Europa League, a game that the Gers lost, and he was booked against Hibernian, Celtic, and Falkirk, with the Light Blues winning just one of those matches. Embarrassing was a strong word from McManus, but the midfielder did let himself down with too many challenges that caught the referee’s attention.

Appearances

36

6

Sofascore rating

7.19

6.37

Goals

4

0

Assists

7

0

Dribbled past per game

0.5x

0.5x

Ground duel success rate

57%

46%

Aerial duel success rate

48%

17%

As you can see in the table above, his form in his six matches for the former Rangers head coach this season in the league was nowhere near as good as what he produced under Philippe Clement and Barry Ferguson last term.

These statistics show that Diomande is capable of much better than he has shown in the 2025/26 campaign, which provides hope that Muscat can come in and get him back to his best in the middle of the park.

At his best, the 23-year-old whiz, who is valued at £7m by Transfermarkt, is a central midfielder who can provide a combative presence whilst also contributing with goals and assists for Rangers, as evidenced by his form from last season.

However, he has not been anywhere near his best this term, with no goals and one assist in 12 matches, per Sofascore, and that is why one of Muscat’s first jobs should be trying to revive the Ivorian ace.

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If the incoming Rangers head coach can unlock the left-footed star’s top level, Muscat will have a terrific player on his hands in the middle of the park.

While Sunderland stole many of the plaudits in the summer for their outrageous transfer activity, with £100m+ splashed out on new recruits, Leeds United were arguably a tad more methodical in their approach when winning themselves some gems from all around Europe.

Daniel Farke and Co. are already thanking their lucky stars that they gambled on acquiring both Anton Stach and Noah Okafor from Hoffenheim and AC Milan, respectively, with a combined four goal contributions already picked up by the promising midfield duo in Premier League action.

In defence, Gabriel Gudmundsson also already looks like a steal in the left-back spot, having only cost £10m to snap up from Lille, while Lucas Perri was agonisingly close to his first clean sheet in his new location up against West Ham United last time out.

But, away from all these names mentioned, Sean Longstaff rightly sticks out as the best bit of business Leeds signed off on over a bumper summer, with the Premier League-experienced 27-year-old very much allowing the Whites to tick so far this season from the middle of the park.

Why Longstaff is one of Leeds' best signings

Already, the £12m summer purchase feels as if he has been in and around Elland Road for some time.

Longstaff has played a part in all nine of Leeds’ league matches so far this season on their return to the daunting top-flight, and while there have been some nerves on display as they navigate the choppy waters of the top division, the Newcastle-born midfielder has cut a cool and composed figure throughout.

Having seen his career at his boyhood Magpies fizzle out, Longstaff clearly knew – from the get-go at his new employers – that he needed to prove himself, and he has certainly done that when looking at the table above.

Already, the brand-new number eight has chipped in with one goal and two assists from a central position on the pitch, but he has offered up far more than just a goal threat, with an average of five duels won per contest enabling Farke’s men to see out some tight contests.

Accumulating five big chances being created, too, has even led to some bold shouts that Longstaff is Leeds’ second coming of Pablo Hernandez, as Farke now potentially attempts to recreate the magic of this shrewd deal in January by landing another classy top-flight veteran when the transfer window swings back open.

Leeds considering another Longstaff-style signing

It has been some turnaround for Longstaff since ditching the home comforts of Tyneside, with zero goals or assists falling into his lap during his final campaign at Eddie Howe’s Toon.

Ross Barkley will hope he can similarly breathe life back into his waning playing days at Elland Road if rumours are to be believed, with a report from The Leeds Press revealing that the West Yorkshire outfit is considering a move for the reserve Aston Villa presence, who even once had a short-term loan stint at Leeds way back in 2013.

Now, he could be returning, again on loan, but this time as a far more experienced option, as Leeds reportedly weigh up a move for an attacking midfielder in the window, and while he has struggled to break into Emery’s first team picture as of late, he is certainly a classy operator on his day.

Indeed, this fiercely struck effort against Leicester City earlier in the year is just one of seven goals Barkley has put away for the Villans, meaning he definitely has a similar eye for a goal to that of Longstaff.

Games played

287

Goals scored

37

Assists

34

More importantly, too, the 31-year-old has also shone before in a team that is attempting to beat the drop in Luton Town – as seen in his weighty five goals and seven assists for the then troubled Hatters – and became a beloved fan favourite, subsequently, with one of his teammates in Andros Townsend at Kenilworth Road even hailing him as “unbelievable” to play alongside.

It could well be, much like Longstaff, that Barkley comes back into his own in West Yorkshire, with the well-travelled attacking midfielder also being dubbed as “exquisite” by his former Everton manager in Roberto Martinez, for his skilful approach on the pitch.

The £60k-per-week star is somewhat fading away at Villa Park, though, with just 30 minutes of action handed to him this season.

Yet, if he relocates to Leeds this coming January, he could end up rebuilding his career before it’s too late, just as Longstaff has already done this season.

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