Category Uncategorized

England manager Sarina Wiegman has broken her silence on comments made by Mary Earps in her explosive autobiography. In that, the former Lionesses goalkeeper questioned some of the selection calls made by the Dutch coach. Wiegman feels no need to explain any of the decisions that she has made down the years, with every one of those intended to help deliver collective success.

What Earps said about Wiegman & Hampton

Wiegman’s record suggests that she has got plenty of big calls right, with her time in charge of the Lionesses delivering back-to-back European Championship triumphs and a 2023 World Cup final appearance.

She was, however, subjected to criticism in Earps’ new book ‘All In: Football, Life and Learning to be Unapologetically Me’. In that, ex-England keeper Earps – who helped her country to continental glory in 2022 – accused Wiegman of “rewarding bad behaviour” in her recalling of the previously excluded Hannah Hampton.

Hampton went on to usurp Earps as the Lionesses’ No.1 ahead of Euro 2025, leading to an icon of the modern era announcing her international retirement. Earps watched on from afar as her replacement starred on Swiss soil and delivered penalty shootout heroics en route to capturing the ultimate prize.

AdvertisementGetty Images/GOALWiegman's response to comments from Earps

Wiegman has now said of Earps’ comments and why she will never make decisions just to keep people happy: “We have conversations with different players all the time. What my reality is and what someone else's reality is can be different because how you experience things is very individual. I just know what I want to do is create an environment where we speak up and have clarity.

“I make decisions to win. And what I've said all the time is that we have two incredible goalkeepers and at the end I made that decision to the one I came to and that's what it is for me.”

Wiegman prepared to make unpopular decisions

Wiegman admits that she has not spoken with Earps following the release of her book, with there nothing to be said. She is eager to point out that she cannot “control” the behaviour of others and “would have done the same thing” again if turning the clock back to Euros preparations.

She added on making decisions that will not always be universally popular: “The competition has been really hard. We had a very good goalkeeping unit and the two goalkeepers were competing for the number one spot. I would have done the same thing. In the bigger picture I don’t think I would have done things differently.

“As I always say, I always keep conversations private. When I have individual conversations, I keep that private because I think that builds trust. When I do that I think players will come to me and have conversations with me. We create an environment where we want people to be themselves and everyone’s different. I think that helps on and off the pitch to connect people.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty Images SportEngland fixtures: Next up for the Lionesses

Wiegman does not believe that Earps’ revelations will cause divides in her squad, with everybody in the current England camp pulling in the same direction.

She went on to say: “When there are teams there are always dynamics going on. We're working with people and everyone is different. No matter what the topic is there are always conversations going on. I want my door to be open at all times to have conversations when needed or if someone needs support and the other way round if I need to challenge a player for whatever reason.”

Wiegman sought to end the discussion by stating that she “enjoyed working” with Earps as they shared some “incredible” times together. England’s focus now is on upcoming friendly dates with China at Wembley and Ghana at St Mary’s, with a group of 25 players being selected for those fixtures that will bring the curtain down on another memorable, and often eventful, 12 months for the Lionesses. Chelsea keeper Hampton will play no part in those games as she is currently nursing an injury.

Chicago Fire midfielder Brian Gutierrez is a target for Liga MX club Chivas de Guadalajara, sources tell GOAL. The interest follows Gutierrez’s acquisition of a Mexican passport, which could open the door for a potential switch from the U.S. men’s national team to Mexico. Gutierrez is coming off a breakout campaign where he had nine goals and six assists.

Major League SoccerChivas' interest

Chivas de Guadalajara are expected to make an official approach soon, sources tell GOAL. No formal offer or transfer fee has been discussed, but contact between the clubs is anticipated in the near future.

The interest comes shortly after Gutierrez obtained his Mexican passport. Chivas traditionally sign only Mexican players, though they have shown more flexibility in recent years – most notably by signing Mexican-American forward Cade Cowell, who has represented the U.S. at senior level.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportInternational future

Gutierrez’s new passport could also impact his international career. Sources tell GOAL that the Mexican federation has reached out to gauge his interest in a potential switch to

While no decision was made ahead of the November international break – the final one of 2025 – Mexico are expected to hold training camps in preparation for the 2026 World Cup, providing further opportunities for players to make a push for a World Cup spot.

Gutierrez has represented the U.S. at multiple youth levels and earned two senior caps earlier this year after joining the USMNT’s January camp. He was later named to Mauricio Pochettino’s preliminary Gold Cup roster but has not featured for the national team since.

Homegrown star

A native of Berwyn, Illinois, he joined the Fire academy in 2015 and signed a Homegrown contract in 2020. Since then, he has made 149 MLS appearances across all competitions and helped Chicago end its playoff drought this season with a trip to the postseason.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Major League SoccerWhat comes next?

Chicago’s campaign ended in the MLS Playoffs following a two-game series defeat to top-seeded Philadelphia Union. The Fire had advanced past the Wild Card round with a 3-1 victory over Orlando City – their first postseason win since 2009.

With the season concluded, attention now turns to Gutierrez’s future amid growing interest from abroad.

Harry Kane has opened up on family life and revealed the battles with his daughter Vivienne over his phone. Kane moved to Bayern Munich in 2023 and lived in a hotel for the first six months of his time in Germany as he initially struggled being away from his family. However, they have since settled in the country with the striker tearing up the Bundesliga.

Getty Images SportKane is thriving in Munich

Tottenham were forced into the sale of Kane in 2023 as the England captain entered the final 12 months of his contract in north London. A host of Premier League sides, including Manchester City and Manchester United, were both credited with an interest but it was Bayern who won the race to secure his services.

And Kane has excelled in the Bundesliga having scored freely in Germany's top tier under Vincent Kompany. Earlier this season, Kane made history as he became the fastest player to score 100 goals for a team in Europe's top five leagues, doing so in 104 appearances, beating the record set by Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland, who both reached the milestone in 105 outings.

And the former Spurs man is leading the race for the 'Kicker-Torjagerkanone' having scored 12 league goals in his opening nine Bundesliga outings this season. Kane has since opened up about his family life in Germany, including his own battles with daughter Vivienne over his phone.

Advertisement'She enjoys taking pictures'

In a Q&A on his official Instagram page, Kane rattled through the questions about his phone, which offered an insight into life for the striker. The first question was 'Last photo in your camera roll?' to which the Bayern hitman replied: "The last photo? It's actually me trying to get my phone off my daughter, Vivienne. She had my phone and as you can see, she enjoys taking pictures. That's me trying to get it back off her."

In addition, Kane was asked the last person he called, answering: "The last person I called was my wife Kate. She's get a German number. We was just catching up. Family stuff, kids stuff. Who's picking up who at what time, just the usual stuff really, yeah."

Finally, Kane was asked 'What is your lock screen photo?', replying: "My lock screen changes all the time cause again the kids get hold of my phone. This is it at the moment (lock screen of emojis). Vivienne again she loves messing about and that's supposed to be me (points to emoji of a man) a grumpy man and she's got the love hearts at least, and she's got the cat because she loves cats. So, there you go."

Getty Images Sport'Slowly but surely it starts to feel like home'

Kane has previously discussed his family life and the struggles that come with being away from his wife and children, including son Henry who was born the same month the Three Lions star left Spurs for Bayern. The striker resided in a hotel for the first six months of his time in Germany, and felt the pressure to perform on the pitch while being away from his family for so long.

However, they reunited at the start of 2024, and discussed his family with , stating: "They’re in school now and have been skiing the last couple of weekends. Just having that has been great for them. We’ve met a few of the parents at school and made friends with teammates’ wives and kids. Slowly but surely it starts to feel like home.

"People ask what are the big differences, but a lot of the routine is pretty much the same. You miss friends you have at home or a golf course, but you soon learn about those things here and it becomes part of your home."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Bayern looking to extend remarkable winning run

After drawing a blank in Bayern's 2-1 win at PSG on Tuesday night, Kane has now failed to score in his last two club outings, and scored in just one of his last four club appearances. The Bavarians return to league duties on Saturday afternoon when they take on Union Berlin as they look to extend their remarkable winning start to the season.

Kompany has overseen 16 successive victories ahead of Saturday's trip to the capital ahead of the November international break. Bayern will resume domestic duties against Freiburg later this month before a mouth-watering meeting with Arsenal in the Champions League.

Am I crazy to be fading the winningest team in baseball at home?  Maybe. But, by now, you know my style, so stay with me for a bit. Our bankroll has been growing. 

Yes, the Yankees are the best team in baseball right now and the only team with 50 wins. They will also be sending Nestor Cortes to the mound, and he's been stellar at home.   When pitching at home this season, Cortes has a mere 1.77 ERA. That's dominant.  

Juan Soto is back in the lineup, and Aaron Judge is doing Aaron Judge things. He's batting .300 with 26 home runs, which is on pace to match and possibly eclipse his record-setting 62 home run MVP season.   

Those are just a few reasons to back the favorites in this game. 

Now, hear me out on the case for the underdogs tonight.

MLB Best Bet Today

The Orioles are a frisky young team and just 1.5 games behind the Yankees in the AL East. This win would put them within half a game. 

They will  Yankee Stadium is not an easy place to play, but it's worth noting that the Orioles have a better win percentage on the road this season (22-10) than they do at home (25-14). It's also worth noting that Baltimore has won three of four games played vs. the Yankees this year and that the Orioles have the second-best win percentage in MLB as away underdogs (6-3). 

Albert Suarez takes the mound for the O's tonight.  

Suarez has been excellent in his seven starts for Baltimore this season, and he has allowed a minuscule .20 home runs per nine this season across 44 ⅔ innings pitched.  He has an ERA of just 1.61, with a 35% ground ball rate and an 84% strand rate. 

Both teams have been hitting well recently, but the Orioles have a league-leading 35 home runs in June and are, particularly good vs. left-handed pitching. The Birds have a .195 ISO vs. southpaws this season. 

Look for catcher Adley Rutschman to have success tonight vs. Cortes. The last time he faced Cortes on April 30th, he had a pair of hits, and he is hitting .420 vs. lefties this season.

Cortes allowed four earned runs in that game and took the loss.

So, there you have it. Will the Yankees (-155) win tonight? Maybe.

But it's not a sure enough thing to pay that juice. Give me the O's for plus money (+130).

After another frustrating display in a Liverpool shirt, Chris Sutton took aim at Florian Wirtz as Federico Chiesa’s late strike could not rescue a point against Crystal Palace.

Crystal Palace 2-1 Liverpool: Eagles join late show

Somehow, some way, Liverpool thought they had done it again. It had been the late late show under Arne Slot and for the second time, it was Federico Chiesa who stepped from the bench to rescue the Reds, it seemed. He found the back of the net deep on in the second half and looked to have capped off an excellent week which started with two assists against Southampton in the Carabao Cup.

And then Palace decided to spark a late show of their own through Eddie Nketiah to hand Liverpool their first defeat of the season. It has been coming for some time, some will argue, and the Reds were beaten at their own game.

There’s no escaping that there were another warning signs for Liverpool, however, who were really testing just how long they could keep this up. The answer as far as Slot will be concerned would have been not much longer. The Dutchman would have been well aware that any repeat of his side’s performance in previous weeks could end in far worse results.

It’s also worth noting that it was once again almost an unexpected hero who emerged and not the big-money men. Alexander Isak had a couple of chances that he, at his best, should be scoring. Wirtz, meanwhile, struggled off the left and only showed some signs of life in the middle of the park in the second period. Once again, in truth, the German had an afternoon to forget.

It’s now six Premier League games without a goal or assist, with patience beginning to run out around those watching on. Those at Anfield know the talent that they’ve signed, but he will need to show more than glimpses of his talent sooner rather than later.

BBC pundit Sutton was less forgiving than some too, slamming Wirtz for one moment against Palace.

Chris Sutton takes aim at Wirtz

Taking aim at Wirtz, Sutton was particularly shocked by the German’s struggle in front of goal. The former Bayer Leverkusen man did his record little good by missing a chance that he should have converted, ghosting in behind only to shove a close-range effort right at Dean Henderson.

It’s wake-up call for Liverpool. Slot’s side simply must improve. They remain top of the Premier League, but there are several problems for them to fix before they square off against Chelsea in their next league outing next weekend.

Whether that means a decision is coming for Slot regarding Wirtz is the award question that must be asked at Anfield.

There was no shortage of big names on show when Manchester City hosted Arsenal in a bumper Women’s Super League clash in early October. A quick look through the teams and most would’ve been drawn to the likes of Chloe Kelly, Khadija Shaw, Alessia Russo, Vivianne Miedema and Mariona Caldentey, especially if they were picking out a potential match-winner. In the end, though, it was a rising teenage star who took up that role, one by the name of Iman Beney.

With two minutes of the 90 remaining, the 19-year-old nipped in to steal the ball from Lotte Wubben-Moy before arrowing it beyond Daphne van Domselaar, giving Man City their third lead of a thrilling afternoon, one they would ultimately hang onto to secure a huge three points against a title rival.

It was a big game and a big stage for the teenager to announce herself on, following a summer move to the league widely regarded as the best in the women’s game. In that sense, it was also in keeping with Beney’s year, one highlighted by her starring role in Switzerland’s historic home European Championships.

• Getty Images
  

  Where it all began

  Beney was born in Yverdon-les-Bains, a picturesque town in French-speaking Switzerland, into a footballing family. Her father, Nicolas, is a former goalkeeper who represented seven clubs and won caps for the Switzerland youth teams, while her aunt, Noemie, won 45 caps for the senior women's team. Her older brother, Romeo, also currently plays for FC Basel.

  Beney started playing the sport herself when she was eight years old, first with FC Saviese before arriving at Young Boys via spells with FC Sion and Saxon Sports. It was with the Bern club that she would get her senior breakthrough, impressing so much in her debut campaign that she was voted into the Swiss Women's Super League team of the season, aged 16.

  At the same time, Beney was thriving in the Switzerland youth national teams, named to the best XI at the Under-17 Euros in 2023. Inka Grings, then head coach of the senior team, took great notice of her performances and called the teenager into camp a few weeks later, just before La Nati were heading to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

  Beney took full advantage of the opportunity, too. Granted a debut in a friendly with Zambia, the versatile forward bagged an assist and was a surprise inclusion in Grings’ World Cup squad three days later. However, a devastating ACL tear in training the very next day robbed her of the chance to star at the tournament and sidelined her for a year.

Advertisement

• Getty Images
  

  The big break

  Beney made up for that cruel turn of events this past summer. After missing the entire 2023-24 season, she was back with a bang for Young Boys in 2024-25, named to the Swiss league’s team of the season again after helping them win the title, and that form would be carried into the 2025 European Championships, which Switzerland hosted.

  Named in La Nati’s starting XI for all of their four fixtures, Beney showcased her versatility as a full-back and wing-back as her team made it beyond the Euros group stages for the first time. Only Spain, the eventual finalists and reigning world champions, would end a run that had captured the hearts of the nation in the quarter-finals.

  Fortunately for Man City, they had got a deal for Beney’s summer move to England done before the tournament began, otherwise they might’ve had a bit more competition for her signature, given she was one of the breakout stars of the summer.

• Getty Images Sport
  

  How it's going

  Beney has clearly taken confidence from that huge experience, with there is plenty to like about how she has started her time in Manchester. After debuting on the opening weekend of the new season, in a narrow defeat to champions Chelsea, the teenager has looked more and more comfortable as each week has passed. That has culminated in her first goal involvements in City blue, with an assist in the League Cup win over Everton at the end of September followed up with that composed match-winner in victory over Arsenal.

  “I’m so happy for her,” City boss Andree Jeglertz said after Beney’s first goal for the club. “She’s taken so many big steps, from moving to Switzerland and coming to this big club. There’s a lot of things going on just to do that but what she’s shown, I’m so impressed.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty Images
  

  Biggest strengths

  Beney has all the traits that make a winger great. "She's fast, but not just from A to B, but also when changing direction, with or without the ball, and she can vary the pace,” Switzerland boss Pia Sundhage explained last year, referring to one of her main strengths. Perhaps unsurprisingly given her idolisation of Neymar, Beney has the skill to beat a marker as well as the speed, and despite being so young, her decision-making in the final third is quite advanced, no doubt thanks to the big experience she has already accumulated.

  Another impressive element to Beney’s game was on show at the Euros, when she brought those qualities to a more defensive role. In an interview with Blue Sport, her father revealed that the teenager had little to no experience as a full-back, making her adaptation to the position all the more impressive. “As a 12-year-old, Iman played on the right side of defence, but only for one game, then she ended up in attack,” he explained.

  To play so well there, then, highlighted Beney’s great athleticism, her team-first attitude and her footballing intelligence. With her also having played as a central striker in the past, the 19-year-old is certainly adding versatility to her game.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Chandrakant Pandit has batted for favourable home conditions in the IPL, while also clarifying that currently, the franchise is not in control of preparing the pitches at their home ground Eden Gardens.Even though KKR have played only two games so far in IPL 2025, they started with an opening loss at home, against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), before winning the away fixture against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Guwahati.Within the first ten days of the tournament, there have been a few captains and support-staff members who have spoken about the home conditions the franchises get – whether favourable or not – as only five out of the ten games have been won by the home teams so far.Related

• Slow-starters MI eye first points as they face KKR at home

• Sunil Narine fit to play against Mumbai Indians on Monday

• Fleming: 'No home advantage at Chepauk'

• Thakur on high-scoring pitches: 'All bowlers want is a fair chance'

“Who will not be happy about that? I mean, this is a simple answer,” Pandit replied when asked if all IPL teams should be allowed to have a say in conditions for the seven home matches out of a total of 14 they play before the playoffs.KKR now play Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday, before back-to-back home fixtures against Sunrisers Hyderabad and Lucknow Super Giants at Eden. When asked specifically about who decides the nature of pitches in Kolkata, Pandit said: “See, as a coach, as a team management, whatever the surface has been provided to us, we play. The control, of course, that will be under [the] curator. And at this moment, the focus is definitely going to be on the next game tomorrow which we are playing [against MI].”Pandit was pressed again at the press conference about who calls the shots when it comes to deciding pitches in Kolkata. Was the KKR franchise in charge of everything at the ground?”No. In charge of everything at the ground… I don’t know. That doesn’t mean that they [the franchises] have a control of preparing wickets. I mean, ultimately, I don’t know what is the system in different states or different grounds, whether the control is with the franchise. But, at the moment, what I understand is the surface which is given to us, as a team management, as a coach, as a captain, probably we expect something [helpful] to be provided. So, that’s all.”2:12

Fleming: We haven’t been able to read the Chepauk pitches

The talk around the lack of helpful home conditions stirred up after KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane had said after their loss to RCB that they “would love to see the pitch helping our spin bowlers”. KKR bank heavily on their spin duo of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy, who picked only a wicket each while trying to defend 174, as RCB won with 22 balls and seven wickets to spare. In reply to this, the Eden Gardens chief curator Sujan Mukherjee had said that as per the BCCI guidelines, franchises and players do not have “any say” in the preparation of pitches.”As per the BCCI guidelines, it is clearly mentioned that the pitch and ground preparation for all IPL regular season matches is the responsibility of the chief curator of the host association under the guidance from the BCCI-appointed venue curator, and they will be the sole decision-maker regarding the nomination of practice and match pitches, as is the case for first-class matches in India,” Mukherjee told RevSportz. “It is also instructed that the franchises and players shall not have any say in the preparation of the wicket. The BCCI chief curator is available to give any advice that is required, and will also be able to intervene if any issues arise.”Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming was a lot more scathing in a feisty press conference after their biggest home loss in the IPL, against RCB by 50 runs. Fleming said they had “no home advantage at Chepauk” anymore.CSK have been known to stack their squad with spinners at the auction to make the most of the traditionally slow and turning tracks in Chennai. But their second home game of this IPL was more helpful for pace bowlers, proven by the RCB quicks Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar returning combined figures of 10-0-59-6.”Well, as we’ve been telling you for a number of years, there was no home advantage at Chepauk,” Fleming said. “We’ve won away from home a couple of times. And we haven’t been able to read… we’ve been really honest with you. We haven’t been able to read the wickets here in the last couple of years. So it’s not new. We are trying to come to grips each day with what we get, and we don’t know. We’re having to work really hard to try and understand what the nature of each pitch is, and it’s quite different.”Gujarat Titans’ home victory against Mumbai Indians on Saturday was a rare occasion in this IPL so far when someone from the team management said publicly that they had asked for a particular kind of pitch to make things difficult for the visiting team.”Mumbai have been preparing themselves by playing on a red [soil] surface. It was a deliberate effort from our side [to prepare that pitch],” GT assistant coach Parthiv Patel had said during an in-game interview with the commentators during the match. “We wanted to play on black soil. It’s stopping a bit, and it’s slightly stickier to start with.”The GT fast bowlers made the most of the conditions by taking the pace off the bowling especially while bowling to the MI middle and lower orders in a chase of 197, and got them a 36-run win.

Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group are reportedly inching closer to ending their search to own a second football club. FSG have been at the reins for the Anfield outfit since 2010 and after a slow start, they have overseen a hugely successful period in recent years. But their ambition, it appears, does not stop at Liverpool as they have a Spanish team in their sights.

Liverpool owners FSG want to expand empire

According to , FSG have been considering buying another team in addition to Liverpool for quite some time now, with the Premier League outfit assessing a takeover of Ligue 1 side Toulouse in 2024, which came to nothing.

In fact, FSG, which is headed by John W. Henry, have had a look at more than 20 clubs across Europe, including Malaga, but ultimately, they turned their attention elsewhere. Now, the group are understood to have completed their 'due diligence' on La Liga side Getafe, with CEO Michael Edwards, technical director Julian Ward, and director of football development Pedro Marques leading the charge.

The Azulones were reportedly made aware of the Reds' interest in them when they played Hull City in a pre-season friendly at the MKM Stadium on August 2, and within the week, a delegation from FSG flew to Spain to start the process of looking at their accounts and infrastructure. 

AdvertisementGetty Images SportPositive talks between FSG and Getafe

The report adds that Ward, who is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, and Marques were 'central' to discussions between FSG and Getafe figureheads, with talks so far being 'positive'.

There is said to be no indication on how much it would cost to buy Getafe – who have been owned by local businessman Angel Torres since 2002 – but if the powerbrokers in Boston do wish to proceed, a deal is likely to be 'formality'.

Incidentally, FSG also owns Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox, and the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. This would be the latest step in FSG's plans to expand their sporting empire.

FSG turned Liverpool around

FSG agreed to buy Liverpool from former American owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks in October 2010, something that was greeted with great joy and fanfare.

But while the Reds won the Carabao Cup in 2012, they had to wait until 2019 for their first major trophy success. Then-manager Jurgen Klopp led them to Champions League glory that year, before winning the Premier League the following season.

Now, they are the defending league champions once more, have spent around £450 million ($599.6m) on transfers this past summer, and are back to being one of the biggest and most successful teams in the world – all of which has happened on FSG's watch.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty Images SportLiverpool chairman lifts lid on big summer spend

Liverpool chairman Tom Werner opened up on why Arne Slot's side needed to spend big ahead this season to try and retain their Premier League crown.

"The fact of the matter is it's going to be very difficult," he recently told the podcast. "As much as all the pundits are saying we are going to win the league this year, you can see from our first four matches exactly how competitive the league is.

"We have been resilient, we have been fortunate. The one thing I have learned, and we are relatively humble and modest about this, is we were very enthusiastic about changing the squad because it's very difficult to repeat.

"There was a great intention to bring in new players, obviously to get better. As much as it has been talked about how much our spend was this summer, we have been able to spend to the degree that we did so because we also sold a lot of players.

"One of the most encouraging things about that is we haven't clicked yet and I don't expect us to click right now. I do think part of what we have learned is that you can't just bring the same squad back. You need to bring in a new energy and new ideas."

Whilst Manchester United’s summer clear-out has taken time to get going, reports are now indicating that they’re finally set to sell one of their unwanted stars this month.

Latest Man Utd exit news

The Red Devils have enjoyed a solid summer on the incomings front, but the same can’t be said for their business going the other way. As things stand, they are yet to outright sell a single player despite all their efforts and despite coming off the back of their worst-ever Premier League season. Several players have found themselves on Ruben Amorim’s unwanted list, but INEOS have so far failed to shift all of those.

It’s a list that includes Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho, who desperately need moves this month. Whilst reports have remained positive regarding a deal for Chelsea to sign Garnacho, showing Sancho the door has proved to be a far more complicated task than expected.

Amorim has had his own say on Manchester United’s unwanted players, telling reporters: “I think again, I know that it is not a good thing to have players in this situation, but it’s clear they want to play in a different club, and that is clear.

“So we try to arrange everything for both parts to be happy, so I have to try to imagine to have the training with the guys that I think are going to be the future and the other guys are training and preparing for the next chapter.”

A bigger impact than Sesko: Man Utd holding talks for "special" £51m talent

Manchester United remain active in the transfer market as the end of the month looms large.

1 ByAngus Sinclair Aug 23, 2025

With that said, although it remains to be seen whether Sancho lowers his demands to secure an AS Roma move, there is at least some positive news regarding another likely exit at Old Trafford.

Napoli now "advancing" Rasmus Hojlund deal

According to Fabrizio Romano, Napoli are now “advancing” talks to sign Rasmus Hojlund from Manchester United this month after holding positive talks with the Danish forward. United have reportedly been informed about the talks and are ready to get a deal over the line if an agreement is reached between Hojlund and the Italian giants.

Despite reports suggesting that Hojlund wants to stay put at Manchester United, the arrival of Benjamin Sesko has ultimately cost him his place in Amorim’s side and a sale has, therefore, always seemed likely.

After arriving under Erik ten Hag for an eye-watering £72m in 2023, Hojlund will undoubtedly go down as an Old Trafford flop, with just 26 goals in 96 games very much highlighting his struggles.

Leeds United have less than a week to prepare for their opening game of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign against Everton at Elland Road next Monday.

Despite how close the first game is, head coach Daniel Farke is not satisfied with the work that has been done on the attacking areas in the summer transfer window.

The former Norwich City boss clearly wants to bring in more attackers to bolster his options at the top end of the pitch before the deadline at the start of September.

Football Insider reported in May that the Whites are not planning to build their attack around Joel Piroe, despite the fact that he won the Golden Boot in the Championship with 19 goals.

Leeds are in the market, as Farke confirmed, to bring in reinforcements in the final third, and a new centre-forward to compete with the Dutch marksman is on the agenda.

The Championship champions will be hoping that they can find their next successful Premier League number nine, following in the footsteps of the likes of Mark Viduka and Tony Yeboah.

Leeds United's all-time top scorers in the Premier League

The Whites have not been in the top-flight for a couple of years since they were relegated under Sam Allardyce at the end of the 2022/23 campaign.

From that run of three successive seasons in the Premier League, following their promotion under Marcelo Bielsa in 2020, only one player managed to break into the club’s top ten goalscorers in the history of the division – Rodrigo.

The Spaniard scored 26 goals in 88 matches in three seasons in West Yorkshire after his move from Valencia in the summer of 2020, outscoring Raphinha in that period in the club’s history.

Leeds United’s all-time Premier League top scorers

Player

Appearances

Goals

Mark Viduka

130

59

Harry Kewell

181

45

Rod Wallace

178

42

Alan Smith

172

38

Lee Bowyer

203

38

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink

69

34

Brian Deane

138

32

Ian Harte

213

28

Rodrigo

88

26

Tony Yeboah

47

24

Via StatMuse

As you can see in the table above, no player has scored more Premier League goals for Leeds than Viduka, who was a battering ram up front for the Whites during his time in West Yorkshire.

The Australian centre-forward mixed physical and technical qualities to be an outstanding number nine for the Whites, as Guardian writer Rob Smyth once noted that he had an “interesting mix of styles” due to his strength and ability on the ball.

Leeds are now being linked with a potential move for a player who could arrive at Elland Road with a similar style of play to the legendary striker.

Leeds have growing interest in Championship star

According to TEAMtalk, Leeds United are one of the teams with a growing interest in a deal for Norwich City centre-forward Josh Sargent before the end of the summer transfer window.

The report claims that both the Whites and Burnley are keen to snap up the USA international, who would like to remain in England, to bolster their options at the top end of the pitch.

Transfer Focus

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

Expand Collapse

It adds that the 25-year-old number nine has already turned down the chance to sign for Wolfsburg after the German club agreed a £21m deal with the Canaries, which shows the kind of money that it will take to do a deal.

TEAMtalk reveals that Farke is a big fan of the American striker, whom he signed for Norwich from Werder Bremen in 2021, and would like to reunite with him this summer.

However, the outlet claims that Leeds and Burnley are not currently willing to pay the asking price for the Championship star, and it remains to be seen where this transfer saga will go next.

Why Leeds should sign Josh Sargent

The natural reaction to this news from supporters may not be the most positive, given that Sargent struggled in the Premier League when he last played there in the 2021/22 campaign. However, he was a 21-year-old playing in England for the first time in a team that got relegated from the division, and the majority of his appearances for Norwich came on the right wing, rather than as a centre-forward.

Since their relegation to the Championship, and Teemu Pukki’s exit from Carrow Road, the USA international has had the chance to establish himself in his favoured position, as a striker, and caught the eye with his excellent performances.

Sargent won Norwich’s Player of the Season award last season, thanks to the goals and assists shown in the video above, and has scored 32 Championship goals since the start of the 2023/24 campaign, as per Sofascore.

That is why supporters should not be put off by a haul of two goals in 26 matches in the Premier League in difficult circumstances over three years ago, as his form since then shows that he has the potential to be Viduka 2.0 for Leeds.

This is not to say that Sargent is guaranteed to score goals as frequently as Viduka did for the Whites, given his exceptional record, but he has the all-round game and finishing capabilities to be Farke’s own version of the striker.

24/25 Championship

Josh Sargent

Percentile rank vs STs

xG

13.32

Top 5%

Goals

15

Top 3%

Shots on target

30

Top 9%

xA

3.17

Top 8%

Assists

5

Top 8%

Successful dribbles

16

Top 20%

Duel success rate

42.6%

Top 16%

Aerial duel success rate

35.6%

Top 36%

Stats via FotMob

As you can see in the table above, the £21m-rated forward has developed into a talismanic figure for the Canaries in the number nine position, ranking highly among his positional peers in a host of metrics in and out of possession.

Sargent, who Tony Pulis described as “relentless”, has the physical qualities to win duels on the deck and in the air to be a target man for his side, much like Viduka was for Leeds, whilst also being a prolific scorer and creator in front of goal.

These statistics suggest that the potential is there for him to be a Viduka-esque figure up front for Leeds because he is a technically secure target man who finishes chances clinically and creates for others.

Related Bamford upgrade: "Monster" CF sacks agent in bid to force through Leeds move

Leeds United have reportedly had talks with a star who could come in as an upgrade on Patrick Bamford.

Posts 4 ByDan Emery Aug 12, 2025

It is now down for Sargent, if the Whites strike a deal for him, to show that he can translate that to the Premier League when played in his preferred position at that level.