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Manchester United slumped to their seventh defeat of the campaign as Watford ran out 4-1 winners at Vicarage Road in today’s Premier League clash, piling even more pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Red Devils almost went behind just minutes into the game after Scott McTominay clumsily brought down Josh King inside the 18-yard box, Ismaila Sarr had both of his penalties saved by David de Gea after the first one had to be retaken due to encroachment.

King soon made up for his teammate’s error, though, slotting in his fourth goal in as many games to give the Hornets a deserved lead just before the half-hour mark. Sarr doubled the home side’s lead prior to the half-time interval, giving United a mountain to climb in the second half.

In response to their dismal opening 45 minutes, Solskjaer introduced Donny van de Beek and Anthony Martial at the interval, and it didn’t long for the former to make his mark on proceedings.

A Cristiano Ronaldo knockdown was slotted home by Van de Beek to give the Red Devils a glimpse of hope, but that optimism was wiped out when the struggling Harry Maguire received a second yellow card, ending their chances of another comeback.

Late goals from Joao Pedro and Emmanuel Dennis rubbed salt into the wounds of United and Solskjaer, with the under-fire boss facing increased scrutiny over his role in the Old Trafford dugout.

However, many of United’s problems against Watford were self-inflicted, none more so than Maguire’s seven-minute red card. The 28-year-old received a match rating of three out of 10 by Manchester Evening News reporter Samuel Luckhurst following his “panicky” display.

“The first-half was an improvement on recent club performances. Saved United a few times during the first-half horror show with blocks and a sliding tackle. Then the panicky play returned and he was sent off,” Luckhurst wrote.

Maguire’s underlying numbers are further evidence of his substandard showing against the Hornets. As per SofaScore, the England international won just one of his three duels throughout his 69 minutes on the pitch, made only one tackle and lost possession six times, highlighting his underwhelming afternoon.

Despite De Gea conceding four goals, it was one of his defenders who was most to blame for United’s latest defeat, possibly providing the final nail in Solskjaer’s managerial coffin.

In other news… Forget Telles: Ole could unearth MUFC gem in rarely-seen 18 y/o with a “great future”

Celtic have been dealt a major injury blow regarding Carl Starfelt ahead of their upcoming Europa League clash.

What’s the latest?

According to a report by Sky Sports, the centre-back has been ruled out of both Thursday evening’s trip to Ferencvaros TC and Sunday’s visit to Dundee due to a hamstring injury picked up in the 0-0 draw with Livingston last weekend.

Speaking about the 26-year-old’s injury, Ange Postecoglou said: “We lost Carl Starfelt in the last game and similar sort of timeline to Tommy [Rogic] I suppose, we are hoping he will be back after the international break, but he will definitely miss these two games.

“It is always a blow when you lose players to injury. To be fair to Carl, he has played every game since he got here and it’s not surprising that he has something like this happen.

“We would have loved to have rotated him earlier, but we tried to build some cohesion, consistency in the back four and we didn’t want to chop and change too much because we had to at the start of the season.”

Postecoglou will be gutted

Considering just how impressive Starfelt has been since his £4.5m move to Parkhead this summer, in addition to the fact that Celtic simply must defeat Ferencvaros if they are to have any chance of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Europa League, the confirmation that the centre-back will not be available for selection on Thursday is sure to have left Postecoglou gutted.

Indeed, over his 11 Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the £2.7m-rated defender has helped his side keep five clean sheets and has chipped in with one goal, as well as making an average of 1.5 interceptions, 1.1 tackles, 3.7 clearances and winning 6.3 duels per game.

These returns have seen the Sweden international average a SofaScore match rating of 7.23, ranking him as the Hoops’ fourth-best performer in the top flight of Scottish football of players still in Postecoglou’s first-team squad.

Furthermore, the centre-back has also been in impressive form over his three Europa League appearances for the Bhoys, helping his side keep one clean sheet, in addition to making an average of 1.3 interceptions, one tackle, 1.7 clearances and winning 3.7 duels per fixture – with these returns seeing the 26-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 6.90.

As such, the fact that Celtic will be without Starfelt on Thursday evening will undoubtedly dent the Hoops’ chances of leaving Hungary with all three points in a fixture that could well prove to be season-defining for Postecoglou and his side.

In other news: Ange must unleash “aggressive” rarely-seen 20 y/o gem, could solve a huge Celtic issue

MatériaMais Notícias

Abel Braga viveu mais uma noite de emoção, desta vez no Moisés Lucarelli. Antes do empate entre Fluminense e Ponte Preta, o treinador, que perdeu o filho mais novo, João Pedro, há duas semanas, recebeu o carinho de Daniel, um pequeno torcedor da Macaca, clube pelo qual Abel trabalhou em 2003. Em vídeo divulgado nas redes sociais, o garoto se emociona ao confortar o técnico.

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Não é só futebol! #ForçaAbel pic.twitter.com/h5O6q1A8iA

— A. A. Ponte Preta (@aapp_oficial) 9 de agosto de 2017

Após o jogo, Abelão comentou o emocionante encontro com o novo amigo.

– Foi um negócio emocionante. Me falaram que havia garotinho. Pensei que teria de ir ao campo, ele estava na porta. Quando o abracei, ele chorava e tremia. Perguntei o motivo. E ele disse: “Pois te adoro, adoro o Fábio e tenho pena pois o João Pedro se foi – afirmou o treinador do Flu, antes de seguir:

-Aquilo antes do jogo, com adrenalina alta… O menino, o abracei e pedi uma camisa a ele. Fiz um autógrafo. É meu amiguinho, o Daniel. Foi inesperado. Ele não era nem nascido quando passei na Ponte. O marcou pelos amigos, pais, irmãos… – finalizou Abel Braga, que também recebeu os aplausos e teve o nome gritado pela torcida da Ponte Preta na entrada dos times em campo.

It was like watching a Ranji Trophy knockout game. India had taken a huge first-innings lead and went about batting New Zealand out of the game. In the Ranji Trophy, the first-innings lead amounts to a win in a drawn game; here, India’s 1-0 series lead means it doesn’t need to push for a result. It is New Zealand who need to do all the running to force a win that would ensure the series ends in a draw.New Zealand have now started six consecutive days bowling and have been on the field for some time on each of the last seven days of the series. India today ensured that New Zealand will be bowling at the start of the fourth day as well.There will be critics of this Indian approach as was the case when they employed 8-1 fields against Australia to defend their series lead in Nagpur last November. But why not grind the opposition when they are down? This Indian team appears to know when to be aggressive and when to let the other team make the mistakes. In Nagpur, Australia were forced to do all the running and lost their wickets in doing so.This match seems to be heading that way unless New Zealand script a world-record chase. But even their coach, Andy Moles, does not consider that likely. “Well, history will suggest that there are not too many sides who have come successful in this situation,” he said.India hold a 531-run lead, with two days to go, and a declaration does not seem imminent. “One of the things that I have spoken to the guys about is that we have to recognise the time when you have got to learn how to draw a Test match,” Moles said. “Certainly this one is shaping into a battle to save the Test match. Whenever we get the opportunity, we need to bat really well.”But should we get into this game where we can go into the last day with six or seven wickets left and we are in a position to chase down a large score, we will do that. It’s all about going into the last day, with lots of wickets in hand. Whatever is given to us, the first thing we need to do is set an early platform.”India need no adventurous declarations; just solid cricket and conserving the bowlers’ energy until they need to be unleashed would help achieve that elusive series win. Gautam Gambhir, who was instrumental in keeping New Zealand on the field with his 167, said India was not being defensive.”We’ve got two days and the kind of bowling that we have at hand, we can easily get New Zealand out in five sessions,” Gambhir said. “If we can’t do that, then we don’t deserve to win this Test match. We’ve got quality in the attack, good pace battery and a world-class spinner. I think five sessions is a lot of time for them to handle – we got them out in three sessions in the first innings. It’s important that we get to 600-plus and just attack. With 600 runs, psychologically New Zealand will only be looking to survive. They will have a lot of trouble with the kind of bowling attack we’ve got.”Some may not like this attitude and would have preferred having a crack at New Zealand tonight, but India have just chosen the firmer road to success. Different strokes for different folks.

Reliable Aston Villa reporter Ashley Preece has admitted that there is a Plan B for Louie Barry in January.

Barry was one of a number of academy players who were sent out on loan in the summer.

He joined League One side Ipswich Town, however, things haven’t exactly gone to plan for the centre-forward, who is awaiting his first goal under Paul Cook.

The 18-year-old has started just three games in all competitions and hasn’t featured in eight of the Tractor Boys’ 10 third-tier fixtures.

Preece was asked by one Villa fan in a Q&A for Birmingham Live on Wednesday about Barry and if the club were planning on recalling the forward in the winter window.

He revealed that Villa are monitoring Barry closely, with a possible plan to end his Ipswich stay before loaning him to a League Two side in the New Year where he would feature more regularly from the off.

Villa fans react

@villareport shared Preece’s claim regarding Barry on Twitter on Thursday afternoon. This is what these Villa supporters had to say in reply…

“It was an absolutely terrible loan move.”

Credit: @DOUGLASLUlZ

“Knew this would be the case. Not worked out at Ipswich.”

Credit: @AVFCFaithful_

“Jedinak needs to send him to Swindon”

Credit: @MasonUTFV

“Hope so, he’s losing important development minutes on the pitch atm. I say bring him home and loan him to Walsall”

Credit: @MikeKnott10

“Would be sensible. Clearly working well for Kesler Hayden, and even the National League was clearly a good move for Archer last season. If Ipswich don’t want to play ball then there’ll be much better spots for him elsewhere.”

Credit: @rad_nauseam

“Get him to Swindon”

Credit: @ViIlaI_

In other news: ‘When is it gonna end?’ – Many Villa fans react as ‘ridiculous’ news confirmed.

Arsenal could sign their next Robert Pires in Club Brugge starlet Noa Lang amid a recent transfer update on his future.

What’s the story?

According to Dutch publication Voetbal24, the winger is interested in a move to the Emirates in the upcoming transfer windows amid speculation linking him with a move away from Belgium.

The report adds that Mikel Arteta’s side are firmly in the race to sign Lang, with Serie A giants Milan also said to be in the running too, but that he prefers a move to north London.

Arsenal’s new Pires

After a superb season last year with the Belgian side – the 22-year-old netted an impressive 17 times across all competitions – it’s no surprise that Arsenal have entered the race to sign him.

Dubbed a “phenomenon” by Belgian sports journalist Peter Vandenbempt, Lang made history when he became the first player in more than a half century to mark his Ajax debut by scoring a hat-trick – something that left manager Erik ten Hag raving about him after the game.

The Amsterdam club’s manager said: “He showed (his talent) today and I am very happy with that. Noa shows (his ability) it during training and during the reserve matches. And today he has also clearly shown it at the highest level too.”

In his pomp at Highbury, Pires was similarly prolific, scoring 15 goals in the Premier League alone in the 2002/2003 campaign, before netting 14 times in back-to-back campaigns the following two years.

Just like Pires, Lang also operates from the left, and it appears not only does he have an eye for goal, but he also Pires’ craft and vision to boot too.

After a fine performance against KRC Genk, Belgian analyst Filip Joos, said: “He is currently the best player in the league, I think. That‘s really pure class. He sees it, makes eye contact with Mechele who finishes it fine. Fantastic goal, because that pass is also ideal. He is constantly moving, he swings across the field, he likes to dribble, but he will always play it at the right time.”

Given that ability to score and create goals from out wide, there’s certainly a lot to like about how similar the 5 foot 10 speedster is to Pires.

Meanwhile, Arsenal are eyeing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s successor in this star…

Newcastle United discussed the possibility of signing Tom Davies in the summer transfer window, says Chris Waugh.

The Lowdown: Davies interest

The North East club were linked with a move for Davies in the 2020 summer window, before he ended up staying at Everton.

As per The Chronicle, Sean Longstaff could have been used in a potential swap deal to bring him to St. James’ Park this time around.

The Latest: Discussions

Writing in his latest piece for The Athletic, Chris Waugh has now said that there were indeed discussions held between both the Toffees and the Tyneside outfit over the signing of Davies.

It would have seen Longstaff move to Goodison Park as a result in the swap deal that was mentioned earlier on in the window.

The Verdict: One for January?

It is a shame that Steve Bruce’s team have now missed out on the signing of Davies, although that could well be revisited in January.

Described as an ‘excellent’ player by pundit Paddy Kenny back in June, he averaged more interceptions, clearances, blocks, dribbles and passes per game than Longstaff in the Premier League in the 2020/21 season (Whoscored).

Longstaff is a local lad, but he only has a year left on his current deal with the Magpies, and so can leave on a free next summer.

Thus, it would be an idea to revisit the potential swap again in January, so that the Toon can get the best possible deal.

In other news, find out what worrying Mike Ashley claim has been made here!

MatériaMais Notícias

O meia do Vasco, Nenê, aproveitou a tarde em família. O jogador, que recuperou a vaga de titular, após passar cinco jogos no banco, passeou de bicicleta na orla do Rio de Janeiro com os filhos e a irmã. Em seu Instagram o jogador fez uma publicação sobre o passeio.

Confira!

The administrative revamp of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) continuesapace with Shafqat Naghmi, an influential senior official from theprevious regime, wanting to step down with a new chairman now in place

Cricinfo staff20-Oct-2008The administrative revamp of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) continuesapace with Shafqat Naghmi, an influential senior official from theprevious regime, wanting to step down with a new chairman now in place.Naghmi, the board’s chief operating officer, joined the PCB as aseasoned governmental bureaucrat during the tenure of Nasim Ashraf in 2007and quickly became a key figure in the board. When Ashraf resigned inAugust, Naghmi became, in effect, the de facto head of the board. But thearrival of Ijaz Butt, with whom he is believed to have a poorrelationship, has prompted him to reconsider his future.”I don’t think I have much to contribute to this administration,” Naghmitold Cricinfo. “Apparently a letter has been sent to the government fromthe board asking them to appoint me somewhere else. I came here because itis a game we all love in this country and I wanted to contribute to it.”There seems little doubt he will not go, especially in light of astatement made by Butt at his first press conference since becomingchairman. Responding to reports that senior officials had been trying totake away documents and files from the board’s headquarters at GaddafiStadium, Butt seemingly singled out Naghmi. “Yesterday there was a manrunning out – with due apologies it was the chief operating officer, whotried to take some files with him in his car.”Nadeem Akram, director HR and another key figure in the Ashrafadministration, has been eased out, while reports suggest that MansoorSuhail, director media, will also go the way of Naghmi, and back to agovernment posting.The developments come swiftly on the heels of the resignation ofSalahuddin Ahmed as chief selector and that of Talat Ali, the team’smanager over the last two years. One official summed up the changessuccinctly: “The board has apparently become a revenge house where eachadministration tries to eradicate everything and everyone from theprevious one.”

Luke Edwards has dropped a worrying claim involving Newcastle United and the chances of late transfer business.

The Lowdown: Low-budget deals

The St. James’ Park faithful have been linked with a number of low-budget deals involving players such as Hamza Choudhury, Mouctar Diakhaby and Lee Kang-In.

However, with only a few days left until the summer window ends, they need to seriously get a move on if anyone else is planned to arrive in the North East.

The Latest: Edwards on transfer

Writing in his official Twitter page, Edwards has claimed that now ‘there is a growing possibility’ that the Tyneside club will not add any more players to the squad before the deadline hits.

This is because the Magpies are saying that ‘there isn’t money to do it’, even on loan, meaning that they may need to sell players first.

The Verdict: Worrying

It is certainly worrying to hear for the Toon Army that they may not be able to bring anyone else in before the deadline.

Joe Willock has been the only player that has been brought in on a permanent deal so far from Arsenal, and he was in the squad last season anyway, albeit on loan.

Nonetheless, serious questions will need to be asked of the board and Mike Ashley in particular that Steve Bruce is not been given more money to spend in this window.

In other news, find out whose display against Southampton was criticised here!