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Russell Domingo has replaced Darren Gough as head coach of Lahore Qalandars. Qalandars announced Gough would be unavailable to take on the role due to “unavoidable personal commitments”.Gough was initially appointed Qalandars coach for the Global Super League in Guyana last year, with the understanding he would continue in that role and take charge of the Qalandars side for the tenth edition of the PSL. While the Qalandars finished fourth and were eliminated in the group stages, they were impressed by Gough’s tactical acumen and made clear the appointment was long-termQalandars have been left disappointed by Gough’s late pullout, though in a statement they said they “understood and respected” his prior commitments. “He remains a valued part of the Qalandars family, and we sincerely wish him the very best.”In his stead, Domingo, former South Africa and Bangladesh coach, will take the job on as Qalandars look to pick up their third title in four years. “I am really excited to be part of the Lahore Qalandars for the 2025 PSL season. I can’t wait to get to work, meet the players and get to know the management and start preparation for what promises to be an amazingly exciting campaign. We know we will have all the support from our faithful supporters and I look forward to making you all proud in the coming weeks.””We are delighted to have Russell Domingo join us as head coach for PSL 10,” Qalandars co-owner Sameen Rana said. “Russel has vast experience at the international level that makes him an invaluable asset for the Qalandars. We believe his expertise will contribute immensely to our team’s success in PSL 10.”The PSL begins on April 11 when the Qalandars take on defending champions Islamabad United in Rawalpindi.

Former India captain and coach Anil Kumble feels that Virat Kohli is “trying too hard” and that’s making it tougher for him to find form amid a lean patch.Kohli has managed just 137 runs in the six ODI innings he has played after the 2023 World Cup, with a single half-century. In India’s first game in Champions Trophy 2025, Kohli made 22 off 38 before falling to Bangladesh legspinner Rishad Hossain in Dubai.”Having been through a lean patch, so to speak, especially in white-ball cricket – he hasn’t had that kind of run for a long period of time – I feel he’s trying a bit too hard,” Kumble said on ESPNcricinfo Match Day. “You have that in players who have been there and done that before, and everyone sort of looks up to you saying he’s the guy who’s going to take the game away and he’s the one guy who is the important man in the team.Related

• Kumble: Time for India to start building for 2027 ODI World Cup

• Gill ton helps India ace tricky chase after Shami five-for

• Mohammed Shami roars back against injury and age

• Manjrekar: Gill is 'the complete player at the moment' in ODIs

“When you have that kind of pressure and you have that kind of expectation, you suddenly start putting undue importance to all of that and then try hard to do well. When you do that, you’re not really relaxed. The best innings that I am sure he’s played, he’s not even thinking about all of that. The best bowling performances, you’re not even thinking about all of that.”I think he’s trying a bit too hard. You can see that in the way he is going about his innings. He just needs to not worry about it. Rohit [Sharma] comes in there, has the freedom because there is plenty of batting and all of them are in great form. Similarly for Virat, he just needs to come in and not worry about anything else.”Kohli’s last six dismissals have come to spin – five of them to legspin.”To start off against spin, on surfaces like that, you need a lot of confidence. He’s certainly trying too hard to manoeuvre that,” Kumble said. “He’s a good player of spin when he’s in form, when he’s wanting to just knock singles off and keep rotating the strike. Now he’s trying too hard to score runs rather than just manoeuvre, and that’s been his game plan.”All players go through tough moments in their career, but I get a feeling watching him bat, I think he is putting a lot more pressure on himself. He just needs to relax a little bit and not worry too much about the outcome of what happens on the field rather than just go out there and have the freedom to just go and play naturally, what he does really well.”2:30

Bumrah or Gill – who should be India’s next ODI captain?

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar suggested that Kohli didn’t have the big-hitting game anymore and his lack of form since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia had pushed him into a corner.”He’s in a tight corner, Virat Kohli. His confidence is still down,” Manjrekar said. “He wants to still show that he’s up there for a fight, and I am starting to see maybe there’s a little bit of bravado as well, and why not? You can’t be revealing what’s inside you.”Rohit Sharma still has the big game. He can step out and hit a guy over extra cover and play the short-arm pull and [is] willing to take chances. Virat Kohli doesn’t have the big game anymore. We’ve seen on occasion him playing the big shot, but he can’t hit at will hit like a Shubman Gill does.”What happened is, after that hundred in Australia, had he just carried on that form… you know it’s a confidence thing as well – when you’re out of form and you don’t have confidence you suddenly don’t quite get that power and the courage to hit the big shots.”Kohli made an unbeaten 100 in the second innings in the first Test in Australia in Perth, but managed just 90 runs in the eight other innings he played in the series.”That slip after Australia where he really struggled… I saw when he got a fifty against England in the one-day series, it was actually more of an insight into how Virat Kohli is batting,” Manjrekar said. “I thought he batted superbly in South Africa when India were there, in Australia that hundred came when already 300 runs were on the board. At this stage, I’m looking at him down on confidence.4:30

Manjrekar: There’s an air of dominance around Gill

“The batting mechanism is not staying with him. And you know what? There was somebody who said many years back to us that as you start ageing, your luck also starts running out. And look at Virat Kohli, you’ve got to feel for him.”What kind of a surface is he going to get for the next two matches? Surfaces that you would hate batting on. Slow, turning pitches. So it’s not helping his cause either.”Manjrekar suggested that spinners are more confident trying to bowl aggressively to Kohli, knowing that he isn’t going to punish them with big shots.”When he comes into bat, the spinners come on. And once the spinners know that you’re not going to be hitting them for three sixes straight down the pitch or over midwicket – Rohit Sharma can still do it, KL Rahul can do it, Shubman Gill can do it – so the spinners also are bowling the kind of deliveries they’ll get wickets off because they don’t fear backlash from the batter.”So he’s cornered in a way. What he needed in this tournament are flat pitches like the ones in Pakistan. But if he finds a way out of this and he finds another peak of Virat Kohli, that will tell you a lot more about the man and how he’s built.”

“We’re going to have a look at the wicket and finalise it [the XI] tomorrow,” says the coach when asked if India’s out-of-form captain will play

Alagappan Muthu02-Jan-20252:51

Gambhir: ‘Chance to draw the series at SCG a good position to be in’

India coach Gautam Gambhir did not confirm whether out-of-form captain Rohit Sharma would be part of the starting XI for the New Year’s Test in Sydney or not.”The head coach is here. That should be enough,” Gambhir said to a room full of reporters wondering why Rohit was not at the pre-match press conference.Rohit had skipped it before the third Test in Brisbane too – Shubman Gill spoke to the press then – but the explanation then was that he had not come for the optional training session at the Gabba where the press conference was being held. Thursday’s training session at the SCG was optional too, but Rohit was there at the ground, on the eve of a Test India must win to draw the series and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.So the question was asked: Is Rohit okay? “Everything is fine with Rohit,” Gambhir replied.And when he was asked again whether Rohit was going to play, he said: “We’re going to have a look at the wicket and finalise it [the XI] tomorrow.”That’s where it all kicked off.Related

Rohit Sharma and the ties that are a fraying

Mitchell Marsh dropped, Beau Webster to debut in Sydney

Akash Deep and Marsh out of Sydney showdown

Rohit has been struggling for form. He’s averaging 10.93 in his last nine Tests and only 6.2 in this series. He was late to India’s training on Thursday. Technically, it was an optional session, so it might not be right reading too much into it, but everybody was there.Gill, who was left out of the XI for the MCG Test, was among the first set of batters in the SCG nets. Dhruv Jurel, who hasn’t played since the first Test in Perth, was among them too; it was one of the few times he has worked alongside the first-XI players. Jasprit Bumrah came out from the doors leading into the members pavilion and went straight to Gambhir for a little chat.Still there was no sign of Rohit at the nets. He had been in the main ground playing a game of foot-volleyball and then disappeared. It was only after the others had batted for an hour that Rohit made his way out to join them, without his kit, in just his sweatshirt and shorts. He went down to where the team analyst, Hari, was standing. Then Bumrah joined the two. This had happened at the MCG as well. Rohit took his time to get to the outdoor nets and had a fairly long session facing only throwdowns. The only difference was in Melbourne he also attended the press conference.At the SCG, he had a light, 40-minute hit facing the fielding coach T Dilip and throwdown specialist Daya off the sidearm. The other frontline batters were already done with their stints by this time. Rohit was batting alongside Tanush Kotian and Abhimanyu Easwaran. There were moments that he looked good, a pull shot off the front foot for example, moments that he seemed to have fun, an apology for an awkward throwback down the pitch had him smiling from ear to ear, and moments where he batted like someone not in form, he left one that took out his off stump.Rohit Sharma was a late arrival at training and did not practice like the others did at the SCG•Getty ImagesAt the end of the Brisbane Test, Rohit had admitted that while he wasn’t batting well, he was still ticking all the boxes that he needed to.”As long as my mind, my body, my feet are moving well, I am pretty happy with how things are panning out for me,” Rohit had said two weeks ago. “Sometimes those numbers can tell you that it’s been a while since he has got big runs. But for a person like me, I think it’s all about how I feel in my mind.”In Melbourne, he seemed to find a semblance of form, or at least a lot more faith in his defence, as he withstood a period of bowling that Pat Cummins said was pretty close to perfect from his side. Australia hunted for his outside edge, he denied them for the first hour, but then gave them their first breakthrough when he played a risky flick shot that ended up in the hands of the gully fielder.”As a batter as well, a lot of the things that I am trying to do is not falling in the place that I would want to,” Rohit said after India went 2-1 down in the series. “But mentally, it is disturbing without a doubt.” Reports emerged in the media that Rohit was already thinking of retiring at the end of the Sydney Test, which then begged the question, if he was thinking along those lines, could he not step away now when the series is still alive?India rarely reveal their XI on the eve of a Test match but Gambhir refusing to confirm whether Rohit will be part of it was odd. Doesn’t the captain walk straight in? Isn’t he the one who decides who plays, not the other way around? The new year has begun with plenty of intrigue for India.

Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta is readying an offer for their potential seventh signing of the summer, which is expected to be placed in the next few days, according to a new report.

Arsenal reach part £30m "agreement" to sign player who Arteta really wants

The Gunners are making progress.

2

By
Emilio Galantini

Aug 1, 2025

Following another season of near-misses, the Gunners have committed to backing Mikel Arteta once again, and their business so far reflects a side serious about ending their two-decade-long wait for a Premier League title.

The blockbuster, headline-grabbing signing has been that of Viktor Gyökeres, who’s widely seen as the final missing piece of their jigsaw.

Arsenal transfer spending under Arteta (via Sky Sports)	Money on new signings
19/20 – winter	£0
20/21 – summer	£81.5m
20/21 – winter	£900k
21/22 – summer	£156.8m
21/22 – winter	£1.8m
22/23 – summer	£121.5m
22/23 – winter	£59m
23/24 – summer	£208m
23/24 – winter	£0
24/25 – summer	£101.5m
24/25 – winter	£0
25/26 – summer	£208m

Arsenal finally secured the Swedish striker from Sporting CP in a deal worth up to £64m, including add-ons, with Gyokeres making his long-awaited debut against Tottenham in the first overseas north London derby ever on Thursday.

Berta has been a long-time admirer and sees him as the clinical, physically dominant number 9 which Arsenal have seriously lacked. The 53-year-old apparently pushed to sign the 27-year-old over fellow top striker target Benjamin Sesko (Simon Phillips), with Berta finally getting his wish last weekend.

Gyökeres arrives off the back of another phenomenal season in Portugal, scoring 54 goals in all competitions, and he could be the difference between success and another ‘close but no cigar’ season for Arsenal.

Despite spending upwards of £200m already on fellow new arrivals Kepa Arrizabalaga, Martin Zubimendi, Christian Norgaard, Noni Madueke and Cristhian Mosquera in that order, Berta’s business may not be done.

Talks continue with Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze and his representatives, as per Fabrizio Romano, with Arteta keen on the England international who could provide more creativity, ball progression and a serious goal return from midfield.

Arsenal missed the deadline to trigger Eze’s £60m release clause, which expired on Friday at 11:59pm, but it was never their idea to activate it anyway, as Berta looks to strike a cheaper deal for him.

Arsenal poised to make "formal" Eberechi Eze bid early next week

Football Transfers have an update on the matter, after the outlet’s previous claim that Arsenal have agreed to pay £30m on a ‘first down payment’ for Eze.

Arsenal are now stepping up their pursuit of Eze, with FT reporting the club are preparing a “formal” £51m bid to tempt Palace, which would be made up of the £30m down payment and a further £22m to be paid over the next two years.

Berta’s offer for Eze will apparently be submitted “early next week”, so in the next few days, with talks intensifying behind the scenes and the Gunners ready to make their move.

Eze would be an ideal fit for Arsenal as a central playmaker, and a different threat to captain Martin Odegaard.

The “unique” forward racked up eight goals and eight assists in just 34 Premier League appearances last season. That’s a goal involvement every other game, and his creativity went even deeper than that.

Eze also ranked in the 94th percentile for key passes and expected assists, with 2.06 key passes per match (Footy Stats) – dazzling around the box and completing over two successful dribbles per game too.

Arteta’s side often struggle against teams in the low block, as evident by their goalscoring record in 2024/2025, but Eze’s proven creativity could seriously help to solve this glaring issue.

Less than 24 hours after sparking off a near-unthinkable push for victory in a game in which only 35 overs had been bowled in the first three days, India’s batters completed the task they had started by smashing down their target of 95 in just over an hour. The highlight of India’s performance on Tuesday came from another record-breaker from the fourth day; Ravindra Jadeja’s triple-strike started a slide for Bangladesh in an extended first session, in which they were bowled out for 146. India lost three wickets in pursuit before Rishabh Pant hit the winning runs in the chase set up by a 43-ball fifty from Yashasvi Jaiswal, and extended their lead at the top of the WTC points table with a 2-0 series sweep.The 312 balls India batted for in this Test is the second-fewest they have faced – and the fourth-fewest overall – to win a Test match, behind the 281 against South Africa in Cape Town earlier this year.Related

• How Bumrah and Jadeja evened India's odds

• Rohit Sharma and the sixes that woke up a dead game

• Mominul Haque finds clarity in Kanpur maelstrom

Bangladesh started the day on 26 for 2, and with Jadeja starting things off in the company of Akash Deep, suffered a collapse of 7 for 55. R Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah also finished with three each. Jadeja first broke the stubborn stand of 55 between Najmul Hossain Shanto and Shadman Islam when he struck in three successive overs, also sending back Litton Das and Shakib Al Hasan. Bangladesh went from 91 for 3 to 94 for 7. After that, Bumrah wiped out the tail. There were no demons in the pitch, no vicious turn, just tight and skiddy bowling from Jadeja and the mounting pressure.Bangladesh were trailing by 26 when the day of 98 overs started and it was Ashwin who struck first. After using the sweep effectively in his unbeaten century in the first innings, Mominul Haque fell to the same shot when he handed a catch to leg slip for 2. Many might have expected Bangladesh to buckle under pressure but Shadman replied with a string of boundaries against Ashwin. He struck three confident cover drives and a back-foot cut for four fours in seven balls against Ashwin, which gave Bangladesh confidence and the lead.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

A few loose deliveries from Mohammed Siraj leaked a few more boundaries; he was struck for two fours each by Shadman and Shanto in his opening spell, although one of them would have been a chance had third slip been in place.It’s possible Jadeja was the last one to get the ball because only left-hand batters had been at the crease. But it took him only two balls to strike. Shanto missed a reverse sweep on his first ball against Jadeja to lose his leg stump before the bowler extracted extra bounce on a pitch that has been keeping low to have Litton caught behind on the cut for 1. Between those two overs, Akash Deep pitched one up to Shadman soon after the batter’s half-century, and the push to gully ended his 101-ball stay.Jadeja was all over Bangladesh by now. In his third over he sent back Shakib with an innocuous delivery bowled slow through the air, which Shakib only chipped back to give Jadeja figures of 2.2-1-3-3 early in his spell.2:35

Manjrekar: ‘This is the legacy Rohit Sharma will leave as captain’

With Bangladesh seven down for 94, Rohit Sharma brought back Bumrah and the spearhead did his job straightaway. His third ball of the fresh spell was a beauty that got Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s edge. It was only Mushfiqur Rahim who delayed the inevitable, extending the lead towards 100. He saw off the quicks and belted two back-to-back fours against Jadeja.Bumrah trapped Taijul Islam lbw to extend the first session at the stroke of lunch before Mushfiqur frustrated the hosts further. He started to farm the strike with only one wicket left but again it was Bumrah who made the difference. Back for one over before lunch, his slow offcutter at 125kph went through a big swing from Mushfiqur on the last ball of the session as he put to waste all his hard work.India again came out all guns blazing as Bangladesh didn’t use any pace in search of wickets. Rohit missed a big swing to the leg side in the first over and when he middled a sweep, he found deep backward square-leg in Mehidy’s second over. Shubman Gill was trapped lbw for 6 by Mehidy to a delivery similar to the one that kept low and dismissed Rohit on Monday. Otherwise India cruised in their chase thanks to Jaiswal’s third half-century of the series. He muscled his back-foot punches and sweeps and came down the track to smash a few boundaries, including a six, down the ground. His brisk partnership of 58 with Virat Kohli nearly saw India through except that Jaiswal miscued a swing to the off side with only three runs required.

Leeds United have brought in Gabriel Gudmundsson, Sebastiaan Bornauw, Jaka Bijol, and Lukas Nmecha to bolster their squad ahead of the Premier League season.

They have placed a clear emphasis on the defensive side of the team in the opening weeks of the summer transfer window, as three of those four players are defenders.

The Championship champions have plenty more work to do to build a squad that can avoid an instant relegation from the Premier League, though, and there is plenty of work going on behind the scenes.

David Ornstein has claimed that the Whites have agreed a fee of up to £15m with Newcastle United to snap up central midfielder Sean Longstaff this summer.

The Magpies academy graduate is now poised to become the club’s fifth signing of the summer transfer window, and will come in to bolster Daniel Farke’s options in the middle of the park.

What Sean Longstaff will bring to Leeds

It will be interesting to see the kind of role that the 27-year-old midfield maestro will play within the Leeds squad next season, and what formation the manager decides to go with.

Should Farke stick with the 4-2-3-1 that has dominated his time in England, with both Norwich and Leeds, then Longstaff will be one of the options for the double pivot in front of the back four.

On paper, Ethan Ampadu and Ao Tanaka are the starting options for the Whites in those positions when fit and available, but a fee of £15m is a significant sum of money for a player if the Whites are not planning for him to be a starter.

What Longstaff has over both Ampadu and Tanaka is that he is a proven Premier League performer who has shown that he can produce solid performances at that level, as shown by his defensive output last term.

Tackles

3.05

Top 19%

Interceptions

0.79

Bottom 35%

Blocks

1.92

Top 8%

Clearances

0.79

Top 46%

Percentage of dribblers tackled

66.7%

Top 4%

Passes blocked

1.35

Top 11%

Errors

0.00

Top 12%

As you can see in the table above, the English ace ranked well among his positional peers in the league in a host of defensive metrics for Newcastle, which shows that he could provide a solid presence in front of the back four.

However, Longstaff also scored zero goals, created zero ‘big chances’, and registered zero assists, which suggests that he is not likely to make a big impact in possession.

Therefore, the experienced midfielder could bring solid, albeit unexciting, performances to the team in midfield, and that could play an important role in the club’s attempts to avoid relegation.

Leeds in talks to sign another midfielder

The Whites could, however, land an even bigger signing for their midfield than Longstaff, as they are reportedly pursuing a deal for a Bundesliga star.

Transfer Focus

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

According to Sky Sports journalist Florian Plettenberg, Leeds United are in talks to sign Hoffenheim central midfielder Anton Stach this summer.

The reporter claims that the two clubs are in negotiations over a possible deal for the 26-year-old giant, but there is no agreement on a transfer fee at this moment in time.

Plettenberg adds that the West Yorkshire outfit have already agreed personal terms with the German midfield star, which suggests that there will not be many hurdles to clear if they can agree a fee with the Bundesliga side.

He also reveals that Hoffenheim are looking for a fee of around £17m, with add-ons on top of that, to allow Stach to move on this summer, and it remains to be seen whether or not Leeds are willing to splash that kind of cash on him.

Why Stach would be a bigger signing than Longstaff

Stach would be a bigger and more important signing for the Whites than Longstaff for several reasons, not least because he would cost at least £2m more to bring to Elland Road.

As well as potentially costing more than the nearly-completed deal for the Newcastle star, the German giant is also five inches taller than the Englishman and would provide more of a presence in the middle of the park.

Possible signing Anton Stach

6 ft 4

Ilia Gruev

6 ft 1

Ethan Ampadu

6 ft

Ao Tanaka

5 ft 11

Sean Longstaff

5 ft 11

Brenden Aaronson

5 ft 10

As you can see in the table above, Stach would be the tallest central midfield option at Farke’s disposal next season, by some distance, if he joins the club.

The £17m-rated star used his physicality to his advantage in the Bundesliga last season by winning 59% of his ground duels and 57% of his aerial duels, winning 5.6 duels per game in comparison to Longstaff’s 1.7. This suggests that he could provide more strength to the team out of possession than the Magpies man.

Stach’s form in the German top-flight also suggests that he has the potential to make more of an impact at the top end of the pitch, as he scored two goals and created four ‘big chances’ for his side, showing that the midfielder can push forward to make things happen in the final third at times.

He also averaged 5.29 progressive passes per 90, compared to Longstaff’s 4.51 per 90 in the Premier League, which suggests that he may progress play more frequently for Leeds by playing through the lines and attempting risky passes.

As further illustrated by the chart above, Stach has the potential to offer more to the team in pretty much every facet of midfield play, with his qualities on and off the ball, based on their respective form in the 2024/25 campaign at league level.

This is why the Hoffenheim star would be an even bigger signing for the Whites because he would provide more quality to Farke’s side on the pitch, and increase their chances of avoiding instant relegation even more than Longstaff would.

49ers biggest deal yet: Leeds weighing up bid to sign £22m James upgrade

Leeds United are reportedly interested in signing a star who would be a Dan James upgrade.

ByDan Emery Jul 15, 2025

Glasgow Rangers manager Russell Martin has plenty of challenges facing him in his new role at Ibrox.

First and foremost, strengthening the squad is a priority. Ianis Hagi, Tom Lawrence and Leon Balogun all left at the end of last season following the expiration of their contracts.

Elsewhere, the likes of Ben Davies, Rabbi Matondo and Kieran Dowell may also be surplus to requirements ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, after spending time out on loan last year.

Add in the fact that Vaclav Cerny, Rafael Fernandes and Neraysho Kasinwirjo all returned to their parent clubs. This leaves Martin short in several areas, notably in defence.

At the time of writing, the only senior centre-backs at the club are John Souttar, Leon King, Robin Propper and Clinton Nsiala.

King and Nsiala are only 21 and played just 18 games between them during 2024/25, highlighting the need for another centre-back or two this summer.

How Martin would love to call upon a player who could command the backline with their sheer presence. Someone who would strike fear in opponents due to their sublime defensive abilities and excellent reading of the game.

Someone like David Weir, for example…

Why Weir was one of Walter Smith’s best Rangers signings

Smith made a host of superb signings during his two spells in charge of the Glasgow giants. Paul Gascoigne, Brian Laudrup and Stuart McCall, to name a few, are all legends at the club who were signed by Smith.

Fast-forward to his second stint and Smith landed talents such as Lee McCulloch, Nikica Jelavic and Pedro Mendes, among others. They all played their part as the Gers won three league titles in a row between 2009 and 2011.

Weir, however, must go down as one of Smith’s most important signings. The veteran centre-back arrived at Ibrox in January 2007 after he left Everton.

It was only meant to be a six-month deal in order to help Smith steady the ship. What followed is the stuff of legend.

Weir made a total of 226 appearances for the Light Blues between January 2007 and January 2012, scoring five goals in the process.

His leadership traits eventually led the club back to the summit of Scottish football, while he was a key part of the team that reached the UEFA Cup final in 2008, playing 61 matches that campaign.

David Weir’s Rangers statistics
Season	Games	Goals	Trophies
2011/12	1	0	0
2010/11	53	0	2
2009/10	51	0	2
2008/09	44	2	2
2007/08	61	3	2
2006/07	16	0	0
Via Transfermarkt

Never one blessed with pace, Weir was wonderful at reading the game and didn’t have to rely on matching an opponent for speed, especially with his excellent footballing brain.

While Weir is an anomaly, Martin could look to repeat Smith’s transfer masterclass by moving for a veteran defender who has spent the previous few years playing in England.

Rangers search for a new defender

Since Martin was appointed as the new Rangers manager, several defenders have been linked with a move to the club.

Harry Darling – who played under Martin at MK Dons and Swansea City – was one. As to was Ipswich Town centre-back Cameron Burgess.

While both would be solid signings, adding some depth to a problematic area, the Gers are interested in someone who has far more experience than those two.

According to Rangers Review journalist Joshua Barrie, the Gers are keen on a move for English defender Conor Coady, with a deal said to have already been “explored”.

While Coady echoes Weir in terms of leadership and a solid ability on the ball, at 32, might Martin perhaps take a deeper look into younger targets.

Weir, however, didn’t do too badly when he signed at the age of 36. Might Coady follow in his footsteps?

Why Rangers must sign Conor Coady

Souttar needs someone next to him who can play to his strengths. Last season, Propper struggled to cope with the physicality of Scottish football, making mistakes and often being rag-dolled by opposition forwards. He himself admitted he had “underestimated” the demands of Scottish football.

Transfer Focus

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

Coady shouldn’t have a problem in this regard. The Englishman played 22 times in the Premier League last season for Leicester City.

While the Foxes may have been relegated, Coady finished the season with a 91% pass completion percentage, along with winning 53% of his ground duels and losing possession just 4.7 times per game for the club.

When compared to his positional peers across the top five European leagues, Coady’s pass success rate ranked him in the top 15%, while he also ranked in the top 5% for shots blocked (1.26) per 90.

Considering the fact that he was playing in a poor team, plus his advancing years, there is still plenty to like about Coady and what he could offer Rangers next season.

The defender has plenty of experience at the highest level and even won ten caps for England under the leadership of Gareth Southgate.

Southgate handed Coady the captain’s armband during just his second appearance for England in October 2020. Against Wales, he scored his first-ever England goal and was even dubbed “infectious” by the boss following his display.

The 32-year-old has just one more year left on his contract at the Foxes and, with their relegation to the second tier, will he be willing to drop a division, especially with plenty to offer?

Martin should act accordingly in order to try and secure a deal for the defender this summer, as he could well have competition for his signature.

On a short-term deal, Coady could potentially have the same sort of impact that Weir had upon arriving in Glasgow in 2007.

It sounds like a real no-brainer of a signing and one that could ease Martin’s fears about the state of the defence heading into the Champions League qualifiers.

Watch this space.

Big Propper upgrade: Rangers keen on signing "outstanding" CB for Martin

As Russell Martin aims to rebuild his Rangers squad, could he sign an “outstanding” young centre-back for free as a massive Robin Pröpper upgrade?

By
Ben Gray

Jun 13, 2025

Leeds United and the 49ers have held internal discussions over signing a £150,000-a-week “monster” who shares the same agent as Jayden Bogle.

49ers looking at Leeds signings alongside Rangers takeover

The Whites are preparing for life back in the Premier League following a brilliant 2024/25 campaign in the Championship, and chairman Paraag Marathe seemingly has big plans at Elland Road this summer.

Talking earlier this month, Marathe confirmed Farke would lead Leeds in the top flight and promised to “spend to be competitive in the Premier League”.

“Together we are going to build the best squad we can, with every penny we are allowed to spend to be competitive in the Premier League. We are going to attack the transfer market and it’s something I’m really excited about.”

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As well as looking at summer transfers for Leeds, the 49ers have now announced their takeover of Scottish giants Rangers, with Marathe named as vice chairman at Ibrox.

There have already been transfer rumours regarding Leeds and Rangers, with the Whites thought to be interested in Gers star Nicolas Raskin, who plays as a central midfielder.

However, he isn’t the only central midfield target for the 49ers, who are eyeing up a potential reunion in Yorkshire.

Leeds hold internal talks over Kalvin Phillips return

According to The Daily Mail, who have shared an in-depth transfer update from Elland Road, Leeds have ‘discussed’ a return to Elland Road for Kalvin Phillips this summer.

Sold to Man City for an initial £42m in 2022, Phillips has struggled for game time at the Etihad and has been sent on loan to West Ham and Ipswich Town as a result.

Alongside internal talks for Phillips, Leeds also have their eye on Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Julian Weigl, with Farke a fan after working with the 29-year-old in Germany.

On £150,000-a-week, Phillips, who shares the same CAA Stellar agency as Bogle, Dan James, Joe Rodon, Wilfried Gnonto and Patrick Bamford, could be a risky signing for Leeds, considering he has recently undergone an operation on his Achilles and is set to be sidelined until August.

Games

234

Goals

14

Assists

13

Yellow cards

54

Red cards

4

Minutes played

18,257

Trophies

1

That would rule him out of the majority, if not all of pre-season, and with his lack of game time over the last three years, may not be the best of decisions to come in and rival Ethan Ampadu, Ilia Gruev and Ao Tanaka.

Phillips has been called a “monster” in the past, though, and by the looks of things, a move could still be one to watch, although the injury update could mean the 49ers pass on any transfer.

Nottingham Forest have now joined the race for an “excellent” AC Milan player, who is set to leave the Italian club in the summer transfer window, according to a report.

Forest stepping up summer transfer plans

Forest should be well-positioned to bring in some top-quality players this summer, given that they have a very good chance of qualifying for the Champions League, and Nuno is keen to bolster his options in a number of different areas.

The goalscoring burden has largely been on Chris Wood this season, and the Tricky Trees are eager to bring in a new striker to provide competition for the New Zealander, with Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Matheus Cunha and Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin among the targets.

There appears to be a heavy focus on strengthening in attacking areas, with Marseille winger Luis Henrique also of interest, alongside Sporting CP star Viktor Gyokeres, and there have been suggestions Jota Silva could be used as a makeweight in a deal for the Sweden international.

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Bringing in attacking reinforcements may be of key significance to Nuno, but the manager could also look to strengthen at the opposite end of the pitch, with a report from Italy revealing Nottingham Forest have now joined the race for AC Milan defender Malick Thiaw.

Thiaw will be allowed to leave Milan this summer, and the Serie A side are set to hold out for around €25m to €30m (£22m – £26m), amid widespread interest in his signature, with Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and Arsenal also keen.

The asking price shouldn’t be a problem for any of the Premier League clubs, but Bayer Leverkusen’s interest could pose an issue, with the German club already making an approach for the 23-year-old.

"Excellent" Thiaw could be success at the City Ground

The German centre-back remained on the substitutes’ bench at the beginning of the campaign, but he has since gone on to establish himself as an important player for Milan, getting on the scoresheet in a 3-1 Champions League victory against Real Madrid.

That was not the first time the 6 foot 4 colossus put in an impressive performance in the Champions League, having previously received high praise from former AC Milan boss Arrigo Sacchi for a top display against Tottenham Hotspur in February 2023.

Sacchi said: “He played an excellent game. He often found himself in one-on-one situations and did not give up an inch to the opponent.”

It has not been the best of campaigns for Milan, with the Italian side sat ninth in the Serie A, but Thiaw’s exploits in Europe indicate he could be a fantastic signing for Forest, and a fee of £22m – £26m is very reasonable for a defender of his quality.

Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea side dropped two vital points in their 2-2 draw against Ipswich. However, it could have been far worse, having gone into the half time interval 2-0 down courtesy of goals from Julio Enciso and Ben Johnson.

In the first half, the Blues had 76% possession, generating 1.03 xG, creating two big chances and taking 15 shots, but didn’t manage to find the breakthrough.

This saw Chelsea come out far more aggressive in the second half, adjusting to Maresca’s attacking 2-2-5-1 shape at times and looking to take the game to Ipswich even more.

In the second half, the Blues had 72% possession, generated another 1.11 xG, created two more big chances and took a further 19 shots, this time managing to score two goals for their efforts, making it 2-2 courtesy of an own goal from Axel Tuanzebe and Jadon Sancho, taking a point from the game.

But, one point will be seen as a huge failure for Chelsea, as they now drop to sixth in the Premier League, sitting one point off Manchester City in fifth, two points off of Newcastle in fourth and three points off of Nottingham Forest in third.

Cole Palmer's woes continue

Cole Palmer has long been the star man for Chelsea, scoring 14 times this season, providing nine assists and totaling 2,962 minutes played.

However, despite adding another assist to his tally against Ipswich, the 22-year-old has been in disappointing form for some time.

Against Kieran McKenna’s side, Palmer had 77 touches, made four key passes and took six shots (only one on target), but the England international has looked off the pace in recent weeks.

He’s lacked confidence and conviction in his actions, having four of his shots easily blocked and losing his duels (seven of his nine in total).

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Whether Palmer can find some confidence and form during this last stretch of the season could be what stands between their Champions League chances, but he isn’t the only one struggling right now.

In fact, the Blues have a far bigger problem at the other end of the pitch, who continues to cost them points this campaign.

Chelsea's 5/10 flop must be axed

Chelsea continue to have struggles between the sticks, as Robert Sanchez put in another sub-par performance, being awarded a 5/10 match rating from GOAL, who wrote of his display that ‘the goalkeeper set a sour tone with incredibly poor distribution and looked a bag of nerves throughout.’

The 27-year-old has made as many as 28 appearances for the Blues this season, already conceding 33 goals, keeping seven clean sheets in 2,520 minutes played.

Sanchez often put Maresca’s side under pressure against Ipswich, looking to play out from the back, but only completing one of his nine long ball attempts in the game and having a 64% passing accuracy, losing possession and allowing Ipswich to attack the Blues when out of shape.

Robert Sanchez vs Ipswich performance

Stat

Sanchez

Minutes

90

Touches

35

Accurate Passes

16/25

Long Balls

1/9

Saves

2

High Claims

1

Errors lead to shot

1

Stats taken from Sofascore

These mistakes have been occurring all season. On certain occasions, the Spaniard has made some big saves to offset the criticism for his blunders, but that was not the case against Ipswich, as Sanchez only managed two saves, conceding two of the four shots on his goal.

Chelsea’s chances of playing Champions League football next season could fall flat due to their issues in this department, and whether they make it or not, big changes will be needed in the goalkeeping department next season, either from internal solutions or the transfer market. Sanchez must be axed, not just for their next game, but for next season.

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