Sheffield Wednesday have reportedly made an enquiry to sign an international attacker who has “blistering pace”, according to a journalist.
Sheffield Wednesday transfer rumours
It has been a quiet January transfer window at Hillsborough so far and not the one Danny Rohl would have been hoping for. The manager decided to remain at the Championship club amid interest from Southampton and Hamburg and hinted at the end of 2024 about Wednesday taking the “next step” and looking to “attack” the winter market.
“The most important key point is that I’m here and I decide to stay here. I feel very well. In football there are a lot of rumours around a person if you are successful – it’s a normal way.
“I’m very clear in my mind what I want to do. I know we have started a journey 14 months ago and I know my team is still hungry for more and we want to develop and make the next step. I spoke a lot about the topic of what I want to do and see but also what we have to do.
“The next opportunity is in 12 days [when the transfer window opens] and let’s see what we are doing. If we really want to attack or we are just talking.”
Leeds United vs Sheffield Wednesday
January 19
Sheffield Wednesday vs Bristol City
January 22
QPR vs Sheffield Wednesday
January 25
Sheffield Wednesday vs Luton Town
February 1
West Brom vs Sheffield Wednesday
February 8
That hasn’t happened in the first half of the January window, although there have been names mentioned in the media as targets, such as Ipswich Town full-back Harry Clarke and Brisbane Roar attacker Thomas Waddingham.
Now, it seems as if Wednesday have made a move for a speedy attacker, but they haven’t had the answer they were hoping for.
Sheffield Wednesday in contact for Rangers attacker
According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, Sheffield Wednesday have made an enquiry to sign Rangers attacker Rabbi Matondo.
However, despite the interest from the Owls and second-tier rivals Sunderland, Rangers have agreed a deal for the Wales international to join an unnamed European club.
Matondo, aged 24, is a Wales international who has been on the books at Ibrox since 2022 and has come in for praise for his “blistering pace” from pundit Kris Boyd, who previously said:
“With that pace he’s got, he was lightning. We’ve not seen it enough in a Rangers jersey but you just kind of get the feeling that, the last few weeks… maybe because of Ryan Kent before, he always kind of thought ‘I’m not going to get in the team’, but with Ryan Kent moving on and there’s not really been anybody cemented that place at this moment at time, and there’s one thing with Rabbi Matondo – he has got blistering pace.”
Rangers winger Rabbi Matondo.
Capable of playing on the left wing, right wing or as a second striker, Matondo could have been a handy addition for the second half of the campaign under Rohl, but he’ll have to look elsewhere for a final third signing.
Mandhana, Ranaweera, and Nilakshi have had uprises following consistent performances
ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2022Katherine Brunt is back among the top 10 bowlers in the ICC women’s ODI rankings, thanks to her 3 for 18 in the opener against South Africa on Monday. India opener Smriti Mandhana and left-arm spinner Rajeshwari Gayakwad have taken a step up to the ninth spot in the ICC batters’ and bowlers’ lists respectively on the back of notable performances in the third ODI against Sri Lanka.Chamari Athapaththu rose to her joint-career-best spot at No. 8, which she last reached after her mammoth 178 against Australia in the 2017 World Cup. Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 119 runs and picked up two wickets in a Player-of-the-Series performance moved up four spots in the allrounders’ rankings to No. 20. A couple of spots behind, at No. 22, Chloe Tryon emerged with a promotion of 12 positions thanks to her 88 off 73, in the first ODI against England.Full Rankings Tables
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Brunt’s and Tryon’s positions may go up or down as there are two more ODIs. But Smriti’s stable ascension was brought up due to her match-winning 94* in a record 174-run partnership with Shafali Verma in the second ODI. Gayakwad and Harmanpreet finished the series on a high with Gayakwad taking 3 for 36 and Harmanpreet making 75 before picking up the key wicket of Athapaththu to end with 1 for 21.Athapaththu, who played at No. 3 in the second ODI to introduce debutant Vishmi Gunaratne, had a couple of decent starts. Her 44 in the final game of the series meant she moved up two spots.Shafali and Nilakshi de Silva moved up three spots and ten spots respectively in the batters’ list from last week to get to No. 33 and No. 47 respectively. Among the bowlers, Sri Lanka’s Inoka Ranaweera made the top 20, slotting in at 16th, up five places from last week while India’s Meghna Singh climbed four spots up to reach 43.Among the newcomers, centurion Emma Lamb, shot up 76 places to 101 by leading England in their victorious chase with her maiden century that she finished with 102.
Sheffield United supporters will already be dreaming about an instant return to the Premier League, as Chris Wilder’s well-drilled Blades currently sit just outside the top two spots in the Championship.
Obviously, the hard work isn’t done yet, with a large portion of the season still remaining, but Wilder has been here before with the South Yorkshire outfit in managing to secure a dramatic promotion up to the top flight.
Chris Wilder
Even when the passionate 57-year-old hasn’t been occupying the Bramall Lane dug-out, United have tasted similar glories, with Paul Heckingbottom masterminding a promotion season of his own during the 2022/23 campaign.
Of course, United then tumbled straight back down to the second tier, but James McAtee still sticks out to this day as a positive loan signing during the memorable season prior.
McAtee's time at Sheffield United
Now struggling on the fringes at Manchester City and vying for another move away, McAtee must have felt he had a temporary sanctuary in South Yorkshire when he called the Blades home for two years.
Indeed, his heroics during his first loan campaign at the club made him an instant fan’s favourite, picking up nine goals and three assists in league action to steer his team up to the promised land of the Premier League.
He would reaffirm his status as a beloved star by continuing to stand out even as his side finished rock bottom of the pile after promotion, with three goals and three assists tallied up, before returning to the Etihad hopeful his time would finally come for Pep Guardiola’s men.
It hasn’t worked out like that, and even as McAtee is looked at by the likes of United’s promotion rivals in Leeds United, no such homecoming deal will take place this January for him to return to the Blades for a third stint.
Former Sheffield United loanee James McAtee.
Instead, the promotion chasers have their eyes on another promising Premier League youngster in a similar mould to McAtee, who has already made waves in the demanding second tier himself.
Sheffield United could land the next McAtee
As per a report from the Daily Mail Online earlier this week, the Blades will hope they can strike gold with another top-flight starlet tipped for greatness in signing Lewis Koumas, who is currently out on loan at Stoke City.
Koumas has stood out as a bright spark for the Potters, even during turbulent times at the Staffordshire side that has seen a managerial dismissal take place, with the 19-year-old amassing four goals and two assists across 29 total outings.
Player
Games played
Goals scored
Assists
Koumas
51
29
11
McAtee
89
46
29
Sourced by Transfermarkt
Away from mirroring each other in terms of putting together some outrageous numbers for their respective parent clubs at youth level, Koumas will also hope he can be as impactful as the 22-year-old was at Bramall Lane back in 2022, with the aim of guiding his new loan side to promotion.
After all, when Koumas has been shoved into the deep end previously in his short senior career, he has excelled, with the teenager scoring on his senior Liverpool debut after wrongfooting the Southampton goalkeeper with this effort below, leading to then-manager Jurgen Klopp labelling his contribution as “wonderful” and Anfield giving him a standing ovation.
With Koumas also capable of playing all across the midfield positions, and even as a competent striker, he would also be a worthwhile swoop in helping to plug gaps in an injury-depleted United group, with Gustavo Hamer one major absentee in the middle.
Wilder will be confident his team can push into those automatic promotion places – regardless of those injury troubles – with any deals in through the door certainly doing no harm to their chances.
Sheffield United and Wilder in advanced talks to sign Arblaster replacement
Santos star Neymar has made his prediction for the Champions League and he has backed his former club to win the European title.
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Neymar predicts Champions League winnersBacked former club to win the trophyStar recovering from hamstring injuryFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Neymar is among the finest players to have graced European football in the last decade. He has spent 10 years in Europe with Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain and won the Champions League title with the Blaugrana in the 2014-15 season. In 81 appearances in the European competition, the Brazilian has scored 43 goals, and he has now revealed who he expects to win the trophy this season.
AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Neymar left Europe in 2023, and after spending one-and-a-half seasons at Al-Hilal, the forward is now plying his trade with boyhood club Santos. The Brazil icon, however, continues to follow the action in Europe's premier club competition.
DID YOU KNOW?
The 33-year-old first picked the semi-finalists, as he chose PSG, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich to go through to the last-eight stage. Neymar was then asked to pick the winners of the competition, and he chose his former club, Barcelona.
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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR NEYMAR?
Neymar has been out injured since March 10, as the Brazilian picked up a hamstring injury. He has now missed a total of three games for the Brazilian club and two World Cup qualifying matches for the Selecao during the March international break.
Former England Lions wicketkeeper-batter has impressed in Championship and Blast
ESPNcricinfo staff07-Jun-2022Tom Alsop has joined Sussex on a full-time basis after impressing in the first two months of a season-long loan from Hampshire.Alsop, the wicketkeeper-batter and former England Lions player, has averaged 31.30 in the early stages of the County Championship season, including a hundred against Middlesex, and hit 65 off 30 balls on his T20 debut for the club against Kent last week.Related
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Alsop signs for Sussex on season-long loan
“To sign permanently for Sussex is great news,” Alsop said. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time with Sussex and I’m glad that I have made a decent start to the season in both formats of the game.”I’d like to thank Hampshire and I’d like to say a massive thank you to the coaching staff at Sussex for believing in me and to everybody else who has made me feel at home so quickly.”Alsop was a product of Hampshire’s pathway system and played 146 games for them across formats, with his innings of 72 in the 2018 Royal London Cup final – which Hampshire won – among his best moments for the club.His form as a young player earned him England Lions call-ups in 2016-17, and Giles White, Hampshire’s director of cricket, said he had made “a significant contribution across all formats”.Sussex said in a statement that Alsop had signed a two-year permanent deal which will become active upon the completion of his loan deal in November.
Celtic are back in action for the second time in 2025 in the Scottish Premiership as they prepare to welcome St Mirren to Parkhead this afternoon.
The Hoops are looking to bounce back from their horrendous day on the other side of Glasgow on Thursday, as they were beaten 3-0 by rivals Rangers at Ibrox.
It was a first defeat of the league season and the first time that Kasper Schmeichel had conceded more than two goals in a league match for the club, having only let in four goals in the previous 18 games.
Brendan Rodgers could react to the poor performance and result by making some changes to his line-up, starting with Reo Hatate coming out of the team.
Why Reo Hatate should be dropped
The Celtic manager should ruthlessly bin the Japan international from the starting XI after his dismal performance in and out of possession in the loss to Rangers.
Hatate was selected to start in the middle of the park alongside captain Callum McGregor and Portugal U21 international Paulo Bernardo, but failed to justify his inclusion with a strong display.
Minutes
75
Pass accuracy
65%
Duels won
1/3
Possession lost
16x
Errors led to shots
2
Tackles + interceptions
0
As you can see in the table above, the Japanese midfielder did not excel in any phase of the game at Ibrox, as he was incredibly wasteful in possession and failed to offer much in the way of defensive protection.
The 27-year-old star should, therefore, be ditched from the starting line-up after such an ineffectual performance, and that will open the door for Rodgers to bring summer signing Arne Engels back in.
Why Arne Engels should start
The Belgium international, who joined from Augsburg, was dropped to the bench for the Old Firm clash, despite an impressive display from the start against St Johnstone in the previous match.
Engels, who Rodgers claimed is “excellent” in training, produced a sublime cross to assist Kyogo Furuhashi’s second goal in that match, with the Japan international simply having “wow” to say in response to a question about the pass in his post-match interview.
It was his first assist in 16 appearances in the Premiership this season, but it was the fourth ‘big chance’ that he has created for his teammates, which suggests that he has been let down by wasteful finishing from others.
Engels has found the back of the net four times in those 16 matches, starting ten of them, and has recorded one goal and seven assists in nine outings in the Champions League and League Cup this term.
The 21-year-old dynamo, who has won 50% of his duels in the Premiership, is a midfield player who can pick up intelligent positions to create moments in the final third, as shown by the ‘big chances’ he has created and the assists he has racked up.
Therefore, Rodgers should immediately ditch Hatate, after his dismal performance against Rangers, and unleash Engels to cause problems for the St Mirren defence at Parkhead this afternoon with his creativity and quality.
Celtic can sign new Rogic in move for "special" star who's "like Odegaard"
Celtic are reportedly interested in a deal to sign the Premier League talent.
Harry Kane has issued a plea to Bayern Munich to keep one of his team-mates at the club amid transfer links with Arsenal.
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Kane issues plea to Bayern Munich"I'd love for him to stay" at clubTeam-mate linked with Arsenal Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Kane helped Bayern beat St Pauli at the weekend, and after the match he took the time to praise team-mate Leroy Sane. The 29-year-old is out of contract this summer and amid mounting Arsenal transfer rumours, the England international has sent a message of sorts to the club's board to keep hold of the winger.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesWHAT HARRY KANE SAID
He told Bild: "It's obvious that I harmonize very well with him. He has great qualities and terrifying skills. It was a top game from him [against St. Pauli] and great to see how he converted his chances. He often gets into those positions and was ice-cold in front of goal, which is what we need."
On Sane's future, Kane added: "It's not my decision, but the club's. I really like playing with Leroy and would love for him to stay. But that's a discussion between him and the club."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Sane is yet to sign a new deal at Bayern and it seems he could be one of the players the German giants fail to retain for next season. The German international admitted he still has a "fondness" for the Premier League and after nearly five years at Bayern, he may be inching closer to a return to English football.
Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?
Sane, who has scored 59 goals and notched 50 assists in 211 games for the Bavarian outfit, and Kane could feature for Bayern away to Augsburg on Friday in their next Bundesliga outing.
Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone could feature in new head coach’s plans
ESPNcricinfo staff28-May-2022Brendon McCullum has suggested that he will look to reintegrate a number of England’s white-ball stars into the Test side – naming Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone as players who could be part of his future plans.McCullum was unveiled as England’s new Test coach at Lord’s on Friday, speaking at length about his hopes for reinvigorating the set-up. Although the squad named for next week’s first Test against New Zealand featured a number of conservative selections, McCullum hinted that he was keen to talk to several players who have had greater success for England in the limited-overs formats.Buttler endured a miserable Ashes tour to Australia as the Test wicketkeeper, but has rediscovered his form at the IPL, where is currently the leading run-scorer in the competition. Moeen, who retired from Test cricket last year, also enjoyed a productive IPL, as did the uncapped Livingstone; Rashid has not played a Test since the 2018-19 tour of the Caribbean, citing a desire to stay fresh for white-ball cricket.Related
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“Jos is one of those players you look at instantly and think how could he be so dominant in one form of the game and not quite have found his feet, other than a few fleeting performances, in Test cricket?” McCullum said.”There’s certainly guys you look at and think there’s a lot of talent that could improve the side given the right opportunity. There’s no reason why, if you’re good at T20, you can’t bring those skills into Test cricket and you look at some of the guys who have dominated the IPL in the last two months. It’s just a matter of trying to identify how they’re going to do that.”On the question of whether Moeen would be open to a Test return, McCullum said: “We’ll see. I’m sure if Mo wanted to, and was prepared to put the yards in to make it back into the side, then he’d challenge, no doubt.” The subsequently reported that Moeen had spoken to McCullum and was ready to make a comeback in whites.”I’m not sure someone like Adil would play every game every year anyway,” McCullum added. “But my mentality is, if they’re the best cricketers, why not have the conversation and see where you get to?”Livingstone was previously picked for the Test squad on the 2018 tour of New Zealand, but has since made his name on the global T20 circuit. He scored England’s fastest T20I hundred, from 42 balls, against Pakistan last summer and was a member of the team that got to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. At this year’s IPL, he had the highest strike rate of anyone to score 400 runs.”Again, a conversation needs to be had about what his appetite for Test cricket is,” McCullum said. “If he is keen on playing, then how does he see himself getting into the side?”Just because you’re a good cricketer, it doesn’t mean you automatically get selected. You’ve still got to earn the right to be able to do so. I don’t have any pre-conceived thoughts about whether he’s good enough or not good enough. I just look at him and think he’s a very good cricketer, and think it’s worth having a conversation.”Obviously you’ve got the likes of Livingstone, Moeen, Rashid. All these guys have played international cricket before, been successful in the other forms of the game and you’d think they’d be able to transition across.”I look at them and think there’ll be a time where they may get an opportunity if they’re invested enough. There’s probably been a bit of hurt at times for those guys too, because they’ve been in the team at times and then out of the team at others and there hasn’t been that persistence for them.”
Leeds United are back in action in the Championship once again this afternoon as they prepare to welcome Gary Rowett’s Oxford United to Elland Road.
Des Beckingham left the newly-promoted side earlier this month and they are now heading to West Yorkshire for Rowett’s first match in charge.
The Whites will be looking to take advantage of that, whilst also being wary that they could play with added motivation to impress the new boss, to bounce back to winning ways after they were held to a 1-1 draw last time out.
A stoppage-time own goal from Jack Whatmaugh salvaged a point for Leeds against Preston North End at Deepdale last weekend, after they went 1-0 down to a strike from Brad Potts in the first half.
It was a result that has left them second in the table and three points behind Sheffield United in first place, which means that they are well in the race to secure automatic promotion to the Premier League.
The Whites now come up against an Oxford United side that they will not be familiar with, as it has been over 12 years since they last clashed with them.
Leeds United's last clash with Oxford United
Their last meeting came in the League Cup in August 2012 and ended in a 3-0 win for Leeds, who were managed by veteran EFL boss Neil Warnock at the time.
Given that the game was over 12 years ago, the Whites team looked incredibly different to the one that is likely to come up against Oxford this afternoon at Elland Road.
However, it may not look entirely different because Sam Byram, who started against Preston last weekend, started the match on the right of a midfield four.
GK
Jamie Ashdown
RB
Tom Lees
CB
Patrick Kisnorbo
CB
Jason Pearce
LB
Adam Drury
RM
Sam Byram
CM
Michael Brown
CM
Rodolph Austin
LM
Aidan White
ST
Andy Gray
ST
El-Hadji Diouf
As you can see in the XI above, the Leeds academy graduate played in midfield in Warnock’s 4-4-2 system, with Tom Lees and veteran Adam Drury preferred ahead of him in the full-back positions.
Rodolph Austin opened the scoring in the first-half for the Whites before Byram got himself on the scoresheet by lobbing the ball over the goalkeeper from close range, and Lees made sure of the win with a second-half header.
Will the English defender start back-to-back games for Leeds against Oxford 12 years apart, though? Well, the injury issues ahead of this clash suggest that he will.
Latest Leeds United injury news
In his pre-match press conference, Daniel Farke revealed that Junior Firpo and Ilia Gruev remain out injured with their hamstring and knee issues respectively, which means that they will not be available for selection.
Firpo is the only natural left-footed left-back in the squad and his absence from the starting line-up means that the German head coach does not have many other options.
Max Wober, a left-footed centre-back, has operated at left-back at times this season but the Leeds boss claims that he only has a “small chance” of being fit, due to a knee injury.
This means that Byram could keep his place in the XI after his start against Preston last week, because Firpo and Wober could both be missing from the matchday squad.
The other headline injury news is that Pascal Struijk, who has captained the team in the absence of Ethan Ampadu, is a doubt with a hamstring injury.
He did not train for two days earlier in the week and Farke states that it is a 50/50 call as to whether or not he will be available at the back against Oxford.
Predicted Leeds line-up to face Oxford
With this injury news in mind, there could be three changes to the starting XI that line-up against Preston last weekend, starting with an alternation at centre-back.
If Struijk misses out, the armband could go back to club captain Ethan Ampadu, who has come off the bench in the last two matches since his return from a knee injury.
The Wales international played at centre-back next to Joe Rodon in the second half of the 2023/24 campaign and helped Leeds to reach the play-off final, and he could be called upon in that position should the Dutchman miss out.
In terms of any unforced changes to the side, Farke could look to shake up his attacking options after they failed to find the back of the net against Preston, needing an own goal to seal a point.
Brenden Aaronson is one player who could be ditched from the starting line-up after a disappointing showing last time out at Deepdale in the number ten role.
Minutes
65
Key passes
0
Big chances created
0
Shots on target
0
Big chances missed
1
As you can see in the table above, the USA international struggled badly at the top end of the pitch, with zero chances created and zero shots on target in 65 minutes.
He also missed the best opportunity of the first-half by blazing his effort well over the bar after Byram’s flick found him around 12 yards out, with only the goalkeeper to beat.
Football FanCast recently published an article explaining why Mateo Joseph should be unleashed in a new role as a number ten behind Joel Piroe, and the Spain U21 international could replace Aaronson in the XI as part of that against Oxford.
Another change could come on the left side of the attack after Wilfried Gnonto struggled against Preston, with zero shots on target and zero chances created in 65 minutes.
Largie Ramazani created a chance in just 25 minutes off the bench and could start for the first time since returning from injury, to offer an exciting threat down the left wing.
The Belgian whiz, who was once described as an “explosive” player by talent scout Jacek Kulig, scored in his last start, against Watford, and could be given the nod this afternoon.
Leeds had a star who was "similar" to Klich & Phillips, then he left for £0
The former Leeds United star was highly-rated by Marcelo Bielsa at Elland Road.
ByDan Emery Dec 18, 2024
Full predicted line-up for Leeds: Illan Meslier; Jayden Bogle, Ethan Ampadu, Joe Rodon, Sam Byram; Ao Tanaka, Joe Rothwell; Dan James, Mateo Joseph, Largie Ramazani; Joel Piroe.
Barcelona star Raphinha sent out a fiery message ahead of Brazil's World Cup qualifying clash against arch-rivals Argentina.
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Brazil to face Argentina in a World Cup qualifierRaphinha sent out a fiery message to arch-rivalsScored in Brazil's win against Colombia last weekFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?
The South American foes are set to lock horns in a crucial 2026 World Cup qualifying match on Tuesday. Brazil head into the clash after a 2-1 win over Copa America 2024 runners-up Colombia last week where Raphinha and Vinicius Junior were on target. Ahead of the showdown in Buenos Aires, the Barcelona man has sent out a rallying call to motivate his team-mates.
AdvertisementWHAT RAPHINHA SAID
During a chat between Raphinha and Brazil legend Romario, the Selecao icon first asked: "We are going to play against Argentina, our biggest rival. Now, thank God, without Messi, are we going to beat them?" In response, Raphinha said: "We will beat them, no doubt. On and off the pitch, if we have to."
Romario again asked: "Are you going to try to score a goal against Argentina?" The Barca winger replied: "Yes, with everything." The duo then ended the conversation with Romario asking, "F*ck them?" Then Raphinha responded: "F*ck them."
Getty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Messi has not joined the reigning world champions for their latest round of World Cup qualifiers after a muscular complaint. Despite their leader's absence, Argentina won their last qualifying game against Uruguay 1-0 courtesy of Thiago Almada's strike.
WHAT NEXT FOR RAPHINHA?
After competing against the Argentines on Tuesday, it is unlikely that the 28-year-old will be able to take the field for Barcelona against Osasuna in their La Liga fixture on Thursday.