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Leeds United winger Raphinha has reportedly asked the club to sanction a move to Barcelona this summer, according to Spanish outlet Sport (via Sport Witness). 

The lowdown: Out on a high?

The 25-year-old joined in the jubilant celebrations amongst the Whites’ faithful as Leeds salvaged their Premier League status with a 2-1 final day victory over Brentford on Sunday.

Raphinha opened the scoring from the penalty spot to take his own personal tally to 29 direct goal contributions in 67 outings since arriving in Yorkshire from Ligue 1 outfit Rennes in October 2020.

However, having already attracted previous attention from Liverpool, it appears that another of Europe’s big hitters could be set to swoop for the Brazilian this summer…

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The latest: Transfer request

As per Sport, translated by Sport Witness, Raphinha is believed to have asked Leeds to ‘transfer him’ to Barcelona during the summer.

It’s claimed that the seven-cap Brazil international is ‘pushing’ for a move to the Camp Nou, having helped Jesse Marsch’s side to retain top-flight status.

The report claimed that the proposed move has already ‘taken a step forward’, with the man who was hailed by journalist Joe Prince-Wright for a ‘sensational’ performance in a 3-2 against West Ham earlier this year seeking to ‘clarify the negotiating scenario’ over the coming days.

The verdict: Hard to stop

Ultimately, despite securing Premier League football for 2022/23, it seems inevitable that Leeds will struggle to fend off interest from the likes of Barcelona in their star forward.

Raphinha ended the campaign with 11 goals and three assists in 36 league appearances, earning a 6.97 Sofascore rating whilst completing 1.8 successful dribbles per game, highlighting a continued top-class level of output as others struggled at Elland Road.

Holding a perceived market value of £40.5m and under contract until 2024 (Transfermarkt), avoiding relegation does at least mean that Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani can demand the maximum fee for the Brazilian star, who could reportedly have been acquired for just £25m had Leeds dropped to the Championship.

In other news, Leeds are eyeing up a second signing after Aaronson. Find out who it is here

It took him just 17 balls to pick up four West Indies wickets, and no matter the kind of pitch, this feat was impressive

Danyal Rasool18-Jan-2025Theatre actors have often spoken about guarding against losing respect for the art. Arriving on stage night after night to produce the same high standard of performance has a jading effect, and one where the performer has much more to lose than they have to gain. A good performance is just another day at the office, a bad one the stuff of bad reviews and blooper reels that acquire a life of their own – and with the threat of reputational damage. Especially when it feels as if people have been waiting to stick the boot in, anyway.That is what it must feel like to be Sajid Khan, who, unlike his partner-in-crime Noman Ali, identifies as something of a performer.The first Test against West Indies, in Multan, was something of a no-win situation, his success explained away as a masterstroke in pitch curation than the magic in his fingers. Surely, he can’t have been that good on his own merits, the reasoning goes, or why else was he omitted from Pakistan’s squad for the Tests in South Africa immediately prior?Related

• Noman, Sajid share nine WI wickets as Pakistan dominate day two

Do well, and the theory gets even further validation; or don’t, and be written off as a one-series wonder. That was Sajid’s window of possibilities. So what might just be another low-profile Test to an observer was reputational to him. Pakistan’s selection panel had huge expectations of him; when Pakistan folded for 230 on the second day, Aleem Dar, now a member of the selection committee, reckoned it was near 400, factoring in the difficulty of the pitch. The expectation placed upon Sajid was clear.And Sajid knows the talk has to be walked to retain its potence. His in-your-face celebration rubbed a few players in the England camp the wrong way, and needs to be fed by regular wickets. Against West Indies, on Saturday, it took him just seven balls to get his first, what he later called “an offspinner’s dream wicket”, flighting the ball outside off stump, lulling Mikyle Louis into the drive, and sneaking through the gate and rattling the stumps.Eleven balls later, Sajid had four wickets to his name, West Indies’ top order being cut to ribbons. No matter the kind of pitch, this was impressive; it took West Indies’ collective spin attack nearly 62 overs to match what Sajid had managed in 17 deliveries. Indeed, if what Sajid was doing wasn’t exceptional, there would be no point in preparing these surfaces – because anyone could then match him toe-to-toe.West Indies, in contrast, have held off operating spin from both ends, preferring to give Jayden Seales a longer spell first. That may just have to do with Seales’ excellent showing in each innings – far superior, indeed, to anything a Pakistan seamer has managed in these conditions. But bowling wicket-taking spin with the new ball isn’t as easy as Sajid makes it look, either.

“As an offspinner, I have a bit of a complicated bowling style. I can’t introduce too many new things to it”Sajid Khan on his bowling

“I’ve worked with my head coach in Peshawar, Zohaib Khan, to prepare with the new ball,” Sajid said after the second day’s play. “I’ve bowled with him a lot with the new Dukes ball, and worked on it a lot. We used to work on bowling with the new ball for one to two hours on end. The plan was to keep the run-scoring tight. If I concede [runs] off a good ball, [Mohammad] Rizwan doesn’t mind. But the expectation is we’ll continue to hit good areas on this wicket.”Sajid has also continued to add arrows to his quiver. He comes in wider of the crease to exploit footmarks when required, or simply to change the angle to discomfit a batter. His action, which he admits is “difficult”, allows him to vary the pace and trajectory without letting batters pick it up, something he believes is essential to his game.”As an offspinner, I have a bit of a complicated bowling style. I can’t introduce too many new things to it,” Sajid said. “Every coach I work with has said my strength is my sleight of hand. Batters find it hard to read my flight or variation in pace because my front arm moves very quickly – even if I’m bowling in the nets to our own batters.”Sajid Khan removed West Indies’ top four•PCBNo matter the assistance from the pitch, though, there came a reminder that a drop in levels comes with consequences. With Pakistan hunting for the final wicket, the intensity dropped as Sajid went in search of his fifth, greedily flighting it and pitching it up to force the issue. But it wasn’t the right length, and was much too predictable; and though West Indies’ No. 10 and 11 batters were at the crease, Sajid was dismantled. Two sixes and four boundaries came off his final three overs, which leaked 37 runs to mar his figures slightly.Those overs, perhaps more than any of Sajid’s wickets, demonstrated the rarefied nature of his skill: it wasn’t just the pitch, but what he made the ball do on it, that was bringing him success. There will be times it doesn’t work, as is true for every skillset on any surface.For now, Sajid turns it on day-in and day-out, with no signs of losing respect for the art, or his hunger for more. And as he mentioned last year, while people have jumped at the chance to write him off in the past, his continued refusal to play to that narrative means the ink on those pens may have begun to dry.

After a campaign that never really took off, they have some reflecting to do: on batting-order tactics, on individual decision-making, and on whether the time is right for a change in leadership

Shashank Kishore15-Oct-20242:19

Muzumdar: ‘Couldn’t have asked for more from players’

Watching another game nervously with your fate reliant on its result is probably among the least enviable things in sport. Which is why, bags packed, several India players chose not to invest three-plus hours of their emotional energy into the New Zealand-Pakistan game, instead only glancing at the score from time to time.Their hopes rose when New Zealand were kept to 110, but they came crashing down when Pakistan tumbled to 56 all out. It’s the first time since 2016 that India haven’t made the semi-finals of a Women’s T20 World Cup. Their packed bags were ready to head straight to check-in as Harmanpreet Kaur’s team will head to their respective cities, before reconvening in Ahmedabad next week for three ODIs against New Zealand.Between now and then, they’ll have time to reflect on a campaign that never really took off. And that’s perhaps why this will sting more than the one in 2023, when they were contenders through much of the tournament before being stopped in the semi-final by eventual champions Australia.Related

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When they do stop to reflect, here are some of the things they will have to consider.

The batting-order muddle

It’s great to have flexibility and India tried out six different players at No. 3 since Amol Muzumdar took over as head coach in December last year. But when these experiments didn’t yield the desired results, the team management backed the experienced Harmanpreet Kaur to be the impact batter there.In T20s since the start of 2022, Harmanpreet has been striking at 94.07 across 84 innings. The plan here was to free her up to play the role of an aggressor, allowing Jemimah Rodrigues, originally a No. 3, to be a spin enforcer in the middle.Jemimah Rodrigues: No. 3 or not No. 3?•ICC/Getty ImagesBut one loss to New Zealand led to a reshuffle with Rodrigues coming out at No. 3 against Pakistan, a game where the openers failed to hit a single boundary in the powerplay when the need of the hour was quick runs to improve their net run rate if it came down to that.Rodrigues herself had spoken of how batting in a new position had got her to approach batting differently. Yet, in a decisive game against Australia, with spinners Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham and Ash Gardner applying the brakes on India’s scoring rate, they missed Rodrigues in the middle, because she was sent in at No. 3 again, above Harmanpreet. The revolving door at No. 3 may have not been the only reason for their exit, but it certainly forced India to deviate from the template they had wanted to set.

Mandhana, Ghosh off-colour

It also didn’t help that Smriti Mandhana had a forgettable tournament. Barring the half-century against Sri Lanka, she managed just 12, 7 and 6. Mandhana’s powerplay salvo has over the years allowed India’s middle order some cushion. It did so in 2023; not this time though, and it hurt the team. Muddled batting plans down the order didn’t help either, like the decision to send in Deepti Sharma ahead of S Sajana against Pakistan when India were looking to close out the chase quickly.Smriti Mandhana has a forgettable World Cup to reflect on•ICC/Getty ImagesDeepti was unbeaten on 7 off eight balls and by the time Sajana, playing primarily as a finisher, came in to hit her first (and only) ball of the tournament to the boundary to bring up the winning runs, India had eaten up 18.5 overs in a modest chase.Batting-order tactics aside, India also let themselves down with their individual, in-the-moment decision-making. Like Richa Ghosh, India’s biggest six-hitter, chancing a non-existent single to extra cover when big hits, and not quick singles, was the need of the hour.Or Harmanpreet’s decision to take a single with India needing 14 to win off six balls against Australia. It was clear, beyond doubt, that Harmanpreet was India’s last hope. India went on to lose two wickets in two balls. Even when there was still a chance, however unlikely, with India needing 13 off 3, Harmanpreet opted to take another single, leaving No. 9 Shreyanka Patil to hit two sixes.

Why camps over A-tour exposure in Australia?

Patil is a competent batter in domestic cricket but has hardly had opportunities to showcase her credentials at the top level. Okay, she was injured in the run-up to the tournament and needed the National Cricket Academy’s attention, but in simply focusing on skills and fitness camps did India deny themselves a valuable opportunity of sending some of the others, like Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav and Arundhati Reddy, on the India A tour to Australia?All through the South Africa and Bangladesh series, India’s lower order was hardly tested on the batting front. Even when they went 3-0 up in Bangladesh, they stuck to the tried-and-tested. At the time, this might have seemed fair because they were preparing for a World Cup that was expected to be in those same conditions. But hardly any batting time for a lower order for months leading into the World Cup didn’t help.

While India’s T20 World Cup preparation – exclusive fitness, fielding and skill camps across six weeks – may have seemed comprehensive on the face of it, they may have missed a trick by not scheduling a single fielding or training session under lights

Which is perhaps why exposure in a multi-format series against a quality opponent, which featured the likes of Tahlia McGrath, who played an important role in India’s defeat on Sunday, could have provided them exposure and experience that no skill or fitness camp would have compensated for.Also, while India’s preparation – exclusive fitness, fielding and skill camps across six weeks – may have seemed comprehensive on the face of it, they may have missed a trick by not scheduling a single fielding or training session under lights. While three dropped catches against Australia in a crunch game may not have directly contributed to their defeat, it all added up in the end.

So, what next?

Inevitably, the end of every World Cup cycle will prompt questions of a transition. Harmanpreet has been captain for seven years now, and has been a key driver for change amid a revolving door of coaches (Tushar Arothe to Ramesh Powar to WV Raman to Ramesh Powar to Hrishikesh Kanitkar to Amol Muzumdar) since she took over in 2017.Is it time for Harmanpreet Kaur to pass the captaincy baton on?•ICC via Getty ImagesMandhana has been the captain-in-waiting, much like Rohit Sharma until he replaced Virat Kohli, co-incidentally after a group-stage exit at a T20 World Cup in the UAE – in 2021. Mandhana has risen to be a top batter who commands the respect of the players and has built an impressive body of work.Earlier this year, she masterminded Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s maiden WPL win. At 28, with over a decade’s experience, it may not necessarily be a bad idea for the team to go to her, for an influx of new ideas from a player who has come of age under Harmanpreet and can build on her good work.That could possibly unshackle Harmanpreet the batter as well, adding possibly yet another chapter to her illustrious career, especially with a 50-over World Cup to look forward to at home next year.

Mohamed Salah cannot tackle Liverpool’s crisis “head on” because he is not the same type of “leader” as former captain Steven Gerrard, according to ex-Reds striker Emile Heskey. The Egypt star has received criticism for not speaking to the media during a difficult run of form which has seen Arne Slot's men win just one of their last five games in all competitions.

• Liverpool have won just four of last 10 following Sunderland draw

  Hoping last Sunday’s 1-0 Premier League win over West Ham could represent a new dawn, Liverpool were stopped in their tracks once again in a disappointing 1-1 draw with high-flying Sunderland on Wednesday.

  Regis Le Bris’ visitors took the lead thanks to winger Chemsdine Talbi’s 67th-minute strike, before Slot’s side rescued a point late on when Reds midfielder Florian Wirtz saw his strike deflect in off Black Cats defender Nordi Mukiele.

  The result means Liverpool have now won just four of their last 10 games in all competitions, with the Merseysiders currently sitting eighth in the Premier League table and 13th in the Champions League standings.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Star forward Salah questioned for lack of post-match interviews

  Looking to find the right balance to resurrect his side’s fortunes, manager Slot has started Salah on the bench for the last two league games against West Ham and Sunderland.

  While Liverpool have collectively dropped off in what has been alarming 2025-26 campaign so far, Salah has been a shadow of the player who sparkled in the previous season, inspiring the club to a 20th league title after scoring 29 goals and recording 18 assists in 38 glittering appearances.

  And while Salah’s uncharacteristic performances have raised eyebrows, the 33-year-old’s leadership has also been questioned in recent weeks. 

  Having sought out the media to express his disappointment at not initially being offered a new contract by Liverpool last season, Salah is yet to address supporters amid the club’s sharp decline this term, with captain Virgil van Dijk handling the majority of post-match interviews.

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Reds legend Carragher criticises Salah's silence amid poor form

  And that is something which has not gone down well with Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher, who told in November: "I think Virgil van Dijk, after the game, has come out again and spoke, as he should do as a captain, he's called Liverpool a mess. 

  “I must say, on the back of all these Liverpool defeats, it's always Virgil van Dijk who comes out. And as I said, the captain should do that, but there should be other players in that dressing room coming out and speaking for the club. A year ago this weekend, Mo Salah wasn't shy in coming out and speaking about his own situation, about the club not offering him a contract. I only ever hear Salah speak when he gets man of the match, or he needs a new contract. 

  “I'd like to see Mo Salah come out as one of the leaders, as one of the legends of Liverpool, come out and speak for the team. It shouldn't always be the captain.

  “But, obviously, the manager is the one in the firing line. Any manager with results like that, as you said, if they were part of the bottom four or a promoted team, they would be under pressure. So there's no doubt the manager is under pressure now with results like that, on the back of being champions, but also on the fact of what Liverpool spent in the summer.”

  Carragher – who made 737 appearances for Liverpool, winning 11 trophies – called Salah "selfish" for publicly voicing his frustration over his contract saga last season. He subsequently went on to sign a new two-year deal in April.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Ex-Liverpool striker says Salah is not cut from same cloth as Gerrard

  However, one man who doesn’t quite agree with Carragher is his former Liverpool team-mate Heskey, who represented the club between 2000 and 2004. 

  While acknowledging that Salah should “stand up and face the criticism”, Heskey says he expects the former Chelsea and Roma forward to do so on the pitch, insisting he is not cut from the same cloth as Van Dijk and Gerrard, who captained the club from 2003 to 2015.

  Speaking to sports betting site Heskey said: “Liverpool are preparing for life after Mohamed Salah. I’d be surprised if they haven't been preparing for that since the beginning of the season. Because he’s probably got just under two years left in his contract and he’s well into his thirties.

  “It will be a big change for Liverpool when Salah no longer features on a regular basis. Arne Slot will be looking at different formations and styles once he’s phased out of the starting XI.

  “On the criticism he’s received recently about not coming forward to the media about the poor run of form, you’ve got to remember he’s not the same type of leader as perhaps Jamie Carragher or Steven Gerrard were. 

  “The likes of Virgil van Dijk or even Curtis Jones will come out and speak and tackle the situation head on – that’s not Salah. Even when he was flying, I don’t think he spoke much. But as senior player, it’s his role to stand up and face the criticism.”

There has been a major update on the future of Nottingham Forest’s Arnaud Kalimuendo, with three clubs now keen on securing his signature in the January transfer window.

The forward has featured just twice since the arrival of Sean Dyche, being brought on as a late substitute in the 2-0 Premier League defeat at AFC Bournemouth at the end of October, before going to start in the 0-0 draw against Sturm Graz in the Europa League.

It would be fair to say the 23-year-old struggled to make an impact against the Austrian side, however, recording an xG of just 0.16 and touching the ball 22 times, the lowest of any Forest player that started the match.

The summer signing was also uninvolved in the statement 3-0 victory against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, failing to make it off the bench as the Tricky Trees romped home to an easy win, and there has now been a new update on his future at the City Ground…

Update on Arnaud Kalimuendo's future at Nottingham Forest

According to a report from France (via Sport Witness), Kalimuendo’s time at Nottingham Forest is now coming to an ‘abrupt end’, with an ‘abrupt’ exit on the cards, amid interest from the likes of Paris FC, Stuttgart and AS Roma.

The three clubs from across Europe are queuing up for the striker’s signature, with his lack of game time sparking widespread interest from elsewhere, having not yet started a single game in the Premier League so far this season.

The Frenchman may be set to receive even fewer minutes going forward, given that Dyche recently offered a promising update on when a fellow striker could return from injury, saying: “Chris Wood is getting re-scanned, so we are checking up on that. But it is good news so far. Being re-scanned is just part of the process,

“There is nothing untoward about it — it is just a check-up.”

The Forest boss will no doubt be hoping the New Zealand international is able to make a comeback soon, given that Igor Jesus hasn’t exactly set the world alight as of late, having failed to score in his opening 11 Premier League matches this season.

Ultimately, Kalimuendo’s move to the City Ground hasn’t worked out, with Nuno, Ange Postecoglou and now Dyche deciding against giving the centre-forward a run in the side, which suggests he hasn’t been doing enough in training to merit a start.

As such, it may be a wise move to cash-in on the £60k-a-week forward in the January transfer window, in order to reinvest the money into other areas of the squad, with Forest still not out of the woods in the relegation battle, despite moving up to 16th place with the victory over Liverpool.

Sean Dyche personally requests January signing of "fantastic" colossus

Sean Dyche now requests Nottingham Forest sign "fantastic" colossus in January

The Forest manager has specifically asked the board to bring in a new defender, who could be his first signing.

By
Dominic Lund

Nov 20, 2025

Max Scherzer managed just 45 pitches before being pulled from his first start with the Toronto Blue Jays, and now the veteran right-hander is set for a stint on the injured list.

The Blue Jays announced they have placed Scherzer on the 15-day IL with what the team described as right thumb inflammation. Toronto promoted left-handed pitcher Easton Lucas from Triple-A in a corresponding move.

Scherzer threw just three innings on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles and surrendered two home runs in the opening frame. He struck out one batter and gave up three hits without a walk.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters that Scherzer will see a specialist for a closer look at the issue with his hand. It's not immediately clear if the 40-year-old will be ready to return from IL after 15 days.

The three-time Cy Young winner signed with Toronto during the offseason after spending the 2024 season with the Texas Rangers. Injuries have plagued him throughout the last few seasons, limiting him to just 19 starts in 2023 and nine starts in '24. Now, after one appearance in '25, Scherzer already finds himself shelved with a hand ailment.

Former Netherlands and Real Madrid star Wesley Sneijder has claimed it's "possible" that Lamine Yamal will surpass Lionel Messi, while predicting that the Barcelona wonderkid will stay at the club until at least 2035. At just 18, Yamal has already established himself as one of the top players in the world, finishing second to Ousmane Dembele in the race for the 2025 Ballon d'Or.

• Yamal's injury struggles after stellar 2024-25 season

  After a terrific 2024-25 campaign, where Yamal helped Barcelona win a domestic treble and reach the Champions League semi-finals, the teenage sensation has been plagued by injury issues in the first half of the new season. In September and October, Yamal missed four La Liga games due to a groin problem, which was later diagnosed as pubalgia – a chronic groin injury stemming from a tear in the surrounding soft tissue. 

  Just when it seemed that Yamal was slowly recovering from the setback, he was forced to withdraw from the latest Spain squad. He is, however, expected to make a full recovery in time for Barcelona's hectic festive schedule. Despite the fitness woes, Yamal has racked up 11 goal contributions in 11 appearances across all competitions so far this term.

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  Sneijder backs Yamal to surpass Messi

  Yamal has long been billed as the successor to Messi's throne at Barcelona, and Dutch legend Sneijder believes the Spaniard could even eclipse the five-time Ballon d'Or winner. The former Ajax midfielder also thinks Yamal will resist any transfer temptation for at least the next decade.

  Speaking to , Sneijder said: "We speak about whether Lamine Yamal can be Messi one day, well Lamine Yamal at Barcelona is the new Messi. They will never let him go and I think, I believe, that the kid would never want to leave. He’s been there since he was a youngster and he’s already achieved so much as a first team player. He’s earned a lot of money. He’s a big star of the team. Why would you consider going to England or Germany or wherever else? It doesn’t make any sense. 

  "Maybe he will leave later like Messi did to go and try some new experiences but it is 2025. If we speak again in 10 years time, Lamine Yamal will still be at Barcelona. Can Yamal reach Messi’s level or even go beyond him to become a better player? It’s possible. Players improve every year and he is already at such a high level."

• Yamal excited to play at Camp Nou

  Barcelona are gearing up to return to Camp Nou for the first time since its closure in 2023, with an extensive refurbishment almost complete. Yamal expressed his excitement about playing at the newly renovated ground in a social media post. He said, "Special nights are coming," before zooming in on Camp Nou with his phone camera.

  Messi, meanwhile, caused a stir when making a secret visit to the ground at the start of the November international break.

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  Next up for Yamal: Athletic Club & blockbuster Chelsea clash

  After staying away from Camp Nou for two years, Barcelona could return to their iconic venue this Saturday when they face Athletic Club in La Liga with a reduced capacity of around 30,000. Barca hope to have the entire stadium open at full 62,000 capacity by the end of the year. 

  Yamal is expected to be fit for the clash with Athletic Club, which Barca must win to keep pace with arch-rivals Real Madrid at the top of the table. After their latest domestic outing, Hansi Flick's side will start preparing for a blockbuster Champions League encounter against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

He might not have the big trophies just yet, but Mikel Arteta has already achieved a lot at Arsenal.

He has taken a club that was spiralling into competitive irrelevance and turned them into serious contenders for the Premier League and Champions League.

Furthermore, on several occasions, he has helped revitalise the careers of players most considered to be done at the very highest level.

He has done the same this year, with someone who only last year received some particularly scathing criticism.

The best career revivals at Arsenal

When it comes to redemption stories at Arsenal, the one everyone will think of first, and rightly so, is Granit Xhaka’s.

First Impressions

What did pundits and fans alike think about their new star signing when they arrived? Football FanCast’s ‘First Impressions’ series has everything you need.

The Swiss international famously fell foul of the Emirates faithful in late 2019 when, as he was being jeered, he threw the armband and his shirt to the floor while swearing at the supporters.

At the time, it looked like his time in N5 was up, and were it not for the Spaniard, it probably would have been.

The midfielder would later tell the press that “my suitcases were packed, but I had a meeting with Mikel when he came” and that “he [Arteta] is the reason why I’m still at this football club.”

Over the next few years, the passionate international would slowly win the fans back onside, and by the time his final game came at the end of the 22/23 season, the entire Emirates was singing his name, and seemed desperate for him to stay.

Another player whose career has been revived in N5 is Kai Havertz.

The German wasn’t taken particularly seriously when he made his surprise move to the club in 2023, and the fact that he struggled to have an impact in the first half of that season certainly didn’t help.

In fact, just a month into the campaign, former professional Gabby Agbonlahor described the former Bayer Leverkusen man as a “joke.”

However, a move up front completely changed the game for the struggling player, and in 18 starts as a centre-forward, the “magnificent” ace, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, scored eight goals and provided seven assists, meaning he averaged a goal involvement every 1.20 games.

Then last season, despite being ruled out halfway through, he still managed to score 15 goals and provide five assists in 36 games.

In all, Havertz might not be Arsenal’s best player, but his revival under Arteta is undeniably impressive, and now another player previously written off is starting to show his best form again this season.

The Arsenal star who is now undroppable

The good news for Arsenal is that there are more than a handful of players who are currently undroppable, although few would have expected Leandro Trossard to be among them at the start of the season.

Now, the £90k-per-week Belgian is an undeniably talented player, but it would be fair to say that he underwhelmed last season.

While it took him just 46 games to produce 20 goal involvements the previous year, it took 56 games to produce the same number last season.

Moreover, the former Brighton & Hove Albion star was simply having less of an impact on games, unless, of course, you include the red card he picked up against Manchester City, for which Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville blasted him. The latter notably labelled the situation as “ridiculous.”

The 30-year-old was such a disappointment that by the end of the season, fans seemed alright with moving him on to sign someone more dynamic, and based on reports, it looked like that might have been the club’s plan.

However, such a move never transpired, and fans should be delighted about that, as so far this season, he has been utterly superb.

For example, in just 14 appearances, totalling 832 minutes, the Waterschei-born “little magician,” as dubbed by Arteta, has scored four goals and provided four assists.

In other words, he is averaging a goal involvement every 1.75 games, or every 104 minutes, which is a rate of return not even Bukay Saka can match at the moment.

It’s not just his raw numbers that have improved, though; he is also having far more of an influence in games.

For example, while his thunderous effort against Sunderland caught everyone’s attention, he played brilliantly throughout.

Ultimately, it’s early in the season, but as things stand, Trossard is utterly undroppable and looks like another player Arteta has revived.

Arsenal dealt Martin Odegaard injury blow after three-word Norway update

The Gunners captain was reported to be eyeing a return against Tottenham.

By
Emilio Galantini

Nov 13, 2025

Justin Verlander is set to return to MLB for a 20th season in the bigs, only it won't be with the Houston Astros.

The three-time Cy Young winner has reportedly agreed to a one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. The deal is worth $15 million, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.

Verlander turns 42 in February, but he's not quite ready to call it a career just yet. An All-Star as recently as 2022, Verlander is determined to prove he's still got enough left in the tank for another run at a World Series title, and the future Hall of Famer intends to do so in San Francisco.

Last season, Verlander made 17 starts for the Astros, recording a 5.48 ERA while striking out 74 batters across 90 1/3 innings. It was the worst statistical season of his career and the only time he's recorded a negative WAR throughout his 19 seasons as a pro.

He figures to slot in to the back end of the Giants' rotation, which also consists of Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, Kyle Harrison and Jordan Hicks. Verlander brings plenty of pedigree to the Bay. A nine-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, he's registered 262 wins and appeared in 526 games in his esteemed career.

The Giants are the fourth franchise he'll have played for in MLB, having previously spent time with the Detroit Tigers, New York Mets and Astros.

Newcastle United struck victory late on against Fulham to escape from the lower levels of the Premier League and build on the Champions League victory over Benfica, which reminded fans of their attacking quality.

Though injury-hit Fulham proved pests at St. James’ Park on Saturday, nearly escaping with the spoils shared before Bruno Guimaraes’ late goal, slotted smoothly into the net after fine work from substitute William Osula, Benfica were outclassed, and Eddie Howe is beginning to get a tune out of his side.

The Magpies are all about evolution, and the rise of Sandro Tonali and Lewis Miley’s newfound confidence have seen the midfield refashioned, a glimpse of things to come shown over these past few weeks.

But evolution may come at some players’ expense, and Joelinton’s place in the Tyneside engine room is not quite so nailed-on as it once was.

Joelinton's Newcastle future

Joelinton’s is one of the most rousing success stories in the Premier League. Written off after his first couple of seasons in Newcastle as the club’s record signing, the wasteful striker has been repurposed as a physical beast of a midfielder, combining strength and smartness to bulldoze through to the final third.

But the 29-year-old has lacked clarity this season, and Miley’s form at number six and Jacob Murphy’s hints of promise in a dynamic midfield berth suggest the Brazil international may not be quite as indispensable as he once was.

Indeed, United blogger Thomas Hammond has even gone as far as to suggest that Joelinton might have reached “the start of the end”, still as crafty and physical as ever, but undoubtedly the weakest link in a midfield also comprised of Guimaraes and Tonali.

Joelinton has played 11 matches in all competitions this season, and he has only scored twice, both strikes coming against Bradford City in the Carabao Cup.

This is a natural part of any footballer’s career. Joelinton has plied his trade for the club for five years, and he has been an instrumental part of the rise.

But he’s not the only one who might be on borrowed time. In fact, there’s a mainstay who’s been on Tyneside for even longer, and he too is in danger of being replaced.

The Newcastle "legend" on borrowed time

Newcastle have signed some corkers over the past four years, but Howe’s brilliance can be found in the rebirth of several existing stars.

Joelinton is one, while Jacob Murphy is a marvel in polishing his skillset and becoming a purposeful player in a European squad. But Fabian Schar’s rise is just as impressive.

Once hailed as a “walking mistake” by journalist John Gibson, the 33-year-old arrived on a three-year deal from Deportivo La Coruna in 2018 for a nominal fee and ebbed and flowed through those first years on Tyneside.

But he kept working and won Howe over when the English tactician was appointed, not only with 237 total appearances in black and white to his name, but with 21 goals and ten assists and only Guimaraes above him on the outing tally since Howe’s arrival.

But for all this experience, Newcastle’s newbies are starting to shine. Take Malick Thiaw, who arrived from AC Milan in a £34m deal this summer and has won Tyneside over with strong and dynamic defensive performances. The 24-year-old exudes composure and style on the ball.

A continuation of these five-star displays may make Schar’s berth in the team somewhat redundant. The Swiss international, after all, had sat through three of his past four available fixtures on the bench before being used as a second-half substitute during the weekend win over Fulham.

For Schar and Dan Burn to have forged such a steely alliance at the back is quite the thing. Below you see the partnership listed among the division’s greatest, and that duo have worked wonders in spite of injuries to the likes of Sven Botman.

As things stand, Schar, hailed as a “true legend of the club” by one Newcastle content creator, is among the list of ageing Newcastle players who face the end of their Toon careers come the close of the campaign.

Howe has rooted his project in the experience and intelligence of his mature squad, but with the likes of Guimaraes and Tonali and Botman all younger but cultured members of the squad, it may be that veterans such as Schar could depart having given so much to the city, and leaving at the right time at that.

Whether the defender pens another extension on his current deal remains to be seen, but there’s no question that his significance in Howe’s squad is diminishing after many years of tireless service.

He is less than two months away from his 34th birthday, and while there’s a sense he could still play a part in Newcastle’s journey, Schar may grow warm to the prospect of trying his hand somewhere new before the autumn years of his career.

like Joelinton, Schar might be on borrowed time, with signs that he is falling from a once-untouchable position in Howe’s line-up. But, as with Joelinton, the Switzerland native has worked so hard over the past several years, and if he is approaching the final stretch, he would leave with his head held high and with silverware in tow.

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