Everton manager David Moyes desperately wants to bring a “special” Premier League player to the club this summer, according to a new transfer update.

Everton eye attacking reinforcements

The Blues have been linked with lots of players since the 2024/25 season reached its conclusion, but few rumoured signings have caught the eye more than Ben Doak. The Liverpool teenager is reportedly the subject of interest from several top flight clubs, as the Blues look to seal the first direct senior signing between the two Merseyside rivals since 2002, when Abel Xavier traded Goodison Park for Anfield.

The Reds have a big decision to make with Doak, who spent the season on loan in the Championship with Middlesbrough, as they weigh up whether they think he is good enough to make the grade in the years to come, or cash in on him for a healthy amount of money this summer.

Plenty of clubs are hovering if they do decide to sell the 19-year-old, and for Everton supporters, the idea of snapping up a bright Liverpool talent will be a mouthwatering prospect. Now, there has been a fresh development in the saga, as Moyes looks to work his magic.

Doak now Everton's leading winger target

According to TEAMtalk, Doak is now a “leading target” for Everton to sign this summer, as their interest in the Liverpool youngster shows no sign of going away. It is claimed that Moyes is a “huge admirer” of the £30m-rated Scottish wide man, as they look to complete a memorable piece of business.

This has to be considered an encouraging update regarding Everton’s pursuit of Doak, not least the fact that Moyes would seemingly love him at the club.

The Scotland international is exactly what the Blues are crying out for on the flank, with the Liverpool man possessing blistering pace, an ability to both cut inside and hit the byline, and also an enormous amount of long-term potential.

Doak is admired by so many, including former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who has said of him: “Special boy. Really confident, has something nobody else delivers really, this kind of dribbling, this kind of straight-forward bravery, all these kind of things.”

The biggest downside to this whole situation is that the Reds may be unwilling to sell to Everton, given the risk of one of their own players becoming a star for their local rivals, which could put paid to a move.

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By
Brett Worthington

Jun 5, 2025

If the Scot likes the idea of playing for the Blues, though, not least as it would mean not having to move away, Moyes and those high up at the club must pounce while they have the chance.

There was evidence when the India-Australia schedule was announced that there would be doubts over the venue

Karthik Krishnaswamy14-Feb-2023Siddhartha Nanda, a cricket fan who works in a consulting firm in Bengaluru, holidayed in Dharamsala last winter. On the morning of December 22, he visited the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium, and took the photograph you see below.

Work in progresspic.twitter.com/G1esYXGAxZ

— Sid (@sid_2893) December 22, 2022

At the time, the HPCA was relaying the stadium’s outfield as part of its plans to revamp the ground’s drainage.On December 8, the BCCI announced that the HPCA Stadium would host the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, from March 1 to 5. Looking at the state of the outfield on December 22, Nanda wondered if it would be ready in time.And he wasn’t alone.Luke ‘Sparrow’ Gillian made two trips to Dharamsala, in October and January, to scope out the logistics of bringing a large group of travelling fans to watch the Test match in March. Gillian is an Australian cricket superfan who has travelled to more than 200 Test matches since 1995, and organises tours for large groups of fans under the banner of Australian Cricket Tours (ACT).Related

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Third India vs Australia Test shifted from Dharamsala to Indore

Difficult questions are coming for Australia, but not just yet

“I’ve been to Dharamsala twice now,” Gillian says. “Went in October last year for two weeks, and I came out again three weeks ago when I did another lap of every venue [hosting the Test series].”I thought we would be lucky to play in Dharamsala, because there just wasn’t enough grass, and that had been growing for about two months to that point, and I thought, ‘if that’s all they’ve got after two months, they’re not going to have enough in the next three weeks, no way’.”Nanda and Gillian were right to have their doubts. On Monday, the BCCI announced it was shifting the Test match from Dharamsala to Indore.Like all BCCI press releases, the one that made this announcement, signed by secretary Jay Shah, was a masterclass in brevity and carefully curated detail. It summed up the reason for the venue swap in one line: “Owing to harsh winter conditions in the region, the outfield lacks sufficient grass density and will need some time to develop fully.””Lacks sufficient grass density” was certainly one way of saying that the outfield, as ESPNcricinfo has reported, still had bare patches where grass cover had not yet taken hold, when the BCCI inspected the ground on February 3 and 11.The release did not mention the relaying of the outfield either. The BCCI must have known what stage this process was at when it announced the venues for the series, a full 14 days before Nanda took his photograph.Perhaps the BCCI expected the HPCA to have the ground ready in time for the match. Perhaps the winter in Dharamsala – a town situated in the upper reaches of the Kangra Valley in the Western Himalayas – was harsher than usual.But the BCCI must have known this was a possibility, and that there was some risk to choosing Dharamsala to host the Test match. The board went ahead and made that choice regardless.It may have done this knowing its capacity to shift venues swiftly, if needed. The BCCI has twice moved the IPL overseas when it has coincided with the Indian general elections, and once, midway through the tournament, during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. During the 2016 men’s T20 World Cup, the BCCI, as hosts of the tournament, helped the ICC shift the India-Pakistan match from Dharamsala to Kolkata at short notice, over security concerns.When that happened, then ICC chief executive David Richardson said this, among other things, while addressing the media: “The decision was not taken lightly. The ICC and the BCCI understand the disappointment that is likely to be felt by many over the decision to move the match.”There was no mention of fans’ concerns in the BCCI’s statement on Monday. This wasn’t unexpected, considering the experience the board puts spectators through at any given day in any of its stadiums, but the absence of any recognition that fans exist, never mind an apology to them, felt particularly galling in this instance.This was a Test match in March for which the board had announced the dates and venue back in December. This was a venue where the board knew – you would hope – that the state of the outfield could be an issue. And the venue was Dharamsala, which is almost unique in Indian cricket for the number of travelling fans it attracts.Luke Gillian is leading an Australian tour group in India•Getty ImagesThe HPCA Stadium is easily India’s most picturesque ground, backdropped by the snow-capped Dhauladhar range. Dharamsala, and nearby McLeodganj, are major tourist centres. Matches at the HPCA Stadium often coincide with visits from hundreds if not thousands of travelling fans, some driving there from Delhi or other nearby North Indian cities, some travelling from more distant parts of India, and others visiting from overseas, all there to experience the joys of cricket and hill-station tourism.The draw of Dharamsala becomes clear when you speak to Gillian. He says 12 Australian fans travelled with ACT to watch the Nagpur Test, and around 60 will be at the second Test in Delhi, while “55 at the moment” are set to travel to Ahmedabad for the fourth Test.A total of 152 fans signed up for Dharamsala.”People would come to Dharamsala for it being Dharamsala, before the cricket,” Gillian says. “Cricket is a byproduct and a time-filling entertainment.”Gillian is on his seventh tour of India, and is used to the changes in tour schedules, but he says he’s never had to deal with one happening so close to the match.

“If there was a 1% probability that you couldn’t host the match there, you could have picked another venue. You could have given the match to Eden Gardens – Eden Gardens has not hosted an Australia match for 20 years, for heaven’s sake”Mahesh Sethuraman, who was due to travel for the third Test

“I’ve been watching cricket in India since 1996,” he says. “I was celebrating that this was the first Indian cricket tour in all these years [where the schedule] has not changed before the first ball. But even worse, it’s changed after the first ball.”For now, he says there have been no cancellations. “They’re all heading down [to Indore]. They’ve realised that they’ve paid to come this far, and I’m doing my best to limit the damage.”The damage has been extensive.”Flights, hotels, match tickets have all gone. I’ve paid deposits to the hotels, because I said [to them], ‘you will need 1000 bottles of beer. We’ll have parties on day zero, day one and day five – there’s 150 of us and we’ll drink you dry’. So I had to pay a deposit, which is fair enough. That is gone, unfortunately. If we get something back from the hotels, it’s only up to my agent in Delhi to argue on our behalf.”Other fans, travelling individually or in smaller groups, have had to pay heavy prices too. What irks a lot of them is the feeling that the situation was avoidable.”They could have at least said it’s tentative when they announced it,” says Bishen Jeswant, a fan from Bengaluru who had made flight and Airbnb bookings along with a group of friends from within and outside India. “They could have said it was subject to the ground being ready. Then we wouldn’t have made our bookings.”Murali Satagopan, a product-marketing manager based in Lisbon, had travelled to Chennai to meet his family, and pushed back his date of departure by a month – from February 10 to March 10 – to attend the Dharamsala Test. It would have been his first match at an Indian stadium since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.”The financial loss is not the biggest loss for me,” he says. “But this was about the excitement of seeing five days of a Test, and it’s also a key third Test – where we could see India win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and qualify for the WTC final.Australia featured in the ground’s one previous Test in 2017•Associated Press”There are many emotional things attached to it too. Virat Kohli and I are pretty much the same age, and all these guys, guys like [R] Ashwin and [Ravindra] Jadeja, seeing their careers coming towards the end, we don’t know if this kind of team will come together again. A new crop may come, but I want to tick this off and say I saw an iconic Test in Dharamsala when India sealed the WTC [final spot] and went on to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.”Mahesh Sethuraman, a Singapore-based banker and one of the hosts of the podcast, was due to fly out to Dharamsala too. He asks why it was so essential to schedule the match in Dharamsala when India has so many other venues to choose from.”I’m not offended by the fact that they didn’t apologise to the fans,” he says. “I’m offended by the fact that they finalised the schedule two months back, and if you were remotely in doubt [about Dharamsala], even if there was a 1% probability that you couldn’t host the match there, you could have picked another venue. You could have given the match to Eden Gardens – Eden Gardens has not hosted an Australia match for 20 years, for heaven’s sake. You could have given it to Chepauk, or Chinnaswamy. The scale of how much the BCCI takes the fans for granted is mindboggling.”At a time when what it earns from ticket sales is a fraction of a fraction compared to its revenues from selling broadcast rights, the BCCI probably doesn’t have much of an incentive to prioritise spectators at its grounds.1:48

Rohit Sharma: ‘A blessing to have spinners of this quality’

But by not prioritising them, it could be missing a trick. Gillian says the BCCI could be doing a lot more to use cricket as a means to bring more foreign tourists to India.”The fact that the BCCI never confirm a schedule more than four weeks before [a series] makes it impossible to get the inbound tourism that cricket deserves in India,” he says. “Cricket deserves it, and that is cricket across the country. Indore deserves to have 500 Australians or more come to visit. So too does Ranchi or Rajkot or Visakhapatnam, wherever they do it, but without the time [for fans] to prepare to visit, it’s a lot of foreign investment that’s not coming.”The BCCI are so invested in money and earning money, yet they ignore this element.”It would take a seismic shift for the BCCI to embrace this sort of thinking. It gets by perfectly well, financially, without having to. And its relationship with the paying spectator remains what it is. The situation is perhaps best summed up by Sameer Mohan, a product manager from Bengaluru who is one of a group of fans who host the podcast, whose planned and fully-booked Dharamsala plans came to nothing.”The best way to enjoy cricket in India as a cricket fan is on your own couch,” he says. “Take a holiday, order takeout, get your poison of choice, huddle with your loved ones, and then just watch.”

Birmingham City’s summer spending has now officially kicked into gear.

A spree of new signings at St. Andrew’s has finally gone through after plenty of heated transfer conversation, with Demarai Gray and Bright Osayi-Samuel both joining on free transfers, alongside James Beadle and Tommy Doyle entering the building on loan.

The pick of the bunch, however, was reportedly splashing out £10m to land former Celtic star Kyogo Furuhashi from Rennes.

Still, there will be plenty of intrigue from Birmingham fans about the number of other signings made in quick succession away from just their new Japanese ace, with lots expected from Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee Doyle in particular, who has excelled near the top of the Championship previously.

Why Doyle is an exciting signing for Birmingham

Indeed, Doyle – whilst he has found the Premier League to be his more recent permanent home with Wolves – has lit up the second tier regularly when competing there.

Playing for both Cardiff City and Sheffield United on loan, Doyle would let loose with an impressive tally of five goals and seven assists coming his way from 57 Championship outings, which included a fine free-kick being floated home to help the Blades in their pursuit of promotion during the 2022/23 campaign.

His standout Bluebirds loan stint would even see scout Jacek Kulig brand the 23-year-old as “superb” as the ex-Manchester City youth product now looks to dust himself down after an up-and-down patch of his Old Gold career to try and get back to his second-tier peak with Davies and Co.

He might well be joined by some additional competition very soon if rumours are to be believed, as Birmingham’s busy summer activity shows no signs of relenting.

Birmingham could sign another "special" star

All competition for places will be seen as healthy next season, with Davies wanting the best possible squad he can to ruffle some Championship feathers.

Landing the services of Lewis O’Brien would be viewed as a statement in the middle of the park for sure, with journalist Darren Witcoop revealing, whilst writing for TEAMTalk last week, that the ambitious Blues still are keen on adding the wantaway Nottingham Forest man to their ranks, even with Doyle now at their disposal.

A deal would have to be won right from under Wrexham’s nose, with reports suggesting that the Red Dragons had agreed a £5m fee for the ex-Huddersfield Town man’s signature, only for wages to be an unfortunate stumbling block.

This unforeseen hurdle for Phil Parkinson’s men could see Birmingham come out on top for the seasoned Championship professional instead, with O’Brien even more of a well-versed presence than Doyle as to what it takes to become a top battler in such a difficult and taxing division.

Games

38

42

43

23

16

Goals

2

3

3

0

1

Assists

4

3

3

1

0

Touches*

50.6

58.0

56.7

54.8

56.6

Accurate passes*

24.4 (77%)

30.8 (77%)

29.5 (78%)

36.8 (87%)

30.1 (76%)

Big chances created

5

6

4

2

2

Tackles*

3.2

2.0

2.2

1.7

1.9

Total duels won*

6.1

5.8

7.5

4.0

6.1

Looking at the table above, it’s clear that the Forest outcast excels when plying his trade in the Championship as a well-rounded presence in the middle, with O’Brien desperate to get back to his Terriers best if he dons Birmingham blue shortly, as seen in him winning an imperious 7.5 duels on per Championship clash during Huddersfield’s promotion near-miss during the 2021/22 season.

Like Doyle, he has the goals and assists to back up his tenaciousness, with 20 goal contributions and counting next to his name at the daunting level. His midfield counterpart can only boast 12, on the contrary.

Once even hailed as a “special” player by his former Huddersfield boss in Carlos Corberan, this might well be the signing that makes those tipping Birmingham for greatness more secure in the fact they can challenge for those promotion spots, as Davies aims to deliver back-to-back promotions to please the St. Andrew’s masses even more.

Even more exciting than Kyogo: Birmingham City set to sign "silky dribbler"

Birmingham City are reportedly closing in on a deal to sign a star who is even more exciting than Kyogo Furuhashi.

2 ByDan Emery Jul 5, 2025

Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice, including a stunning team goal, to continue his scoring form for Al-Nassr against Spanish outfit Almeria in pre-season.

Two goals for RonaldoFive goals in four daysTeam goal followed by penaltyFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Ronaldo struck twice in the first half at Juegos del Mediterraneo stadium to turn the game on its head and give Al-Nassr the lead. Ronaldo first came after a fantastic team move involving Sadio Mane, before he fired home a penalty to continue his devastating prowess in front of goal for the Saudi side. Al-Nassr's official X page called the Portuguese's first strike "a perfect goal".

AdvertisementWATCH THE CLIPTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Ronaldo continues a red-hot scoring streak with five goals in just a matter of days, after a hat-trick against Portuguese top-flight side Rio Ave on Thursday. The 40-year-old has struck 800 career goals including 99 for Al-Nassr in competitive fixtures and there is little doubt that we will continue to see the former Real Madrid and Manchester United star find the net in the new season. He recently stated that the "hunger never fades".

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR RONALDO AND AL-NASSR?

Al-Nassr face Al Ittihad in the Super Cup on August 19 in their next crunch clash, where Ronaldo may look to score his 100th competitive goal for the club ahead of what will be another important season in a World Cup year. The legendary forward is believed to want to compete for his native Portugal alongside new team-mate Joao Felix in North America in summer 2026, and may even aim to win the Golden Boot at the tournament.

Ellyse Perry, who recently suffered a hip injury, could be a doubtful starter for RCB

S Sudarshanan13-Feb-20254:05

Mandhana: WPL has taught me a lot, not just captaincy

Who’s playing

Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara, February 14, 2025, 7.30pm IST

What to expect: Mandhana vs Gardner

No bowler has dismissed Smriti Mandhana more often than Ashleigh Gardner in Women’s T20s or in ODIs. With Gardner assuming the captaincy of Giants, she could look to bring herself on early against the RCB captain. With Mandhana in sublime form, it could be an interesting contest.Two of Giants’ four wins across two seasons of the WPL have come against RCB, including their first-ever victory.Related

• RCB's title defence hit by player unavailability, injuries

• Can new captain Gardner change Giants' fortunes?

• How the WPL is changing life for young Indian women

• Vastrakar, Sobhana ruled out of WPL with injuries

Team news and likely XIs: Mooney’s opening partner, Perry’s fitness in focus

The choice of Beth Mooney’s opening partner could pose a headache for Giants. Given Deandra Dottin commands a place in the XI, only one of Laura Wolvaardt and Phoebe Litchfield might find a place in the XI.Gujarat Giants (probable): 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 Laura Wolvaardt, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Deandra Dottin, 5 Dayalan Hemalatha, 6 Ashleigh Gardner (capt), 7 Simran Shaikh, 8 Sayali Satghare, 8 Meghna Singh, 9 Tanuja Kanwar, 10 Kashvee Gautam, 11 Shabnam Shakil/Mannat Kashyap.Ellyse Perry is heading into WPL 2025 on the back of suffering a hip injury during the Women’s Ashes Test in Melbourne. She could take the No. 4 spot in the absence of Sophie Devine. If Perry does not pull up well for the opening game, RCB could go with Georgia Wareham at No. 4 and play Charlie Dean as well. The injury to Asha Sobhana, a sure-starter who has been ruled out of the tournament, adds to the selection complications for them.1:43

Gardner: We have fantastic youth in our set-up

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (probable): 1 Smriti Mandhana (capt), 2 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 3 S Meghana, 4 Ellyse Perry, 5 Richa Ghosh, 6 Raghvi Bist, 7 Kanika Ahuja, 8 Georgia Wareham, 9 Jagravi Pawar, 10 Kim Garth, 11 Renuka Singh.

Players to watch: Deandra Dottin and Richa Ghosh

With their acrimonious equation from WPL 2023 behind them, Deandra Dottin could be key to Giants’ success. She made a successful return to internationals just ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup last year, where she was West Indies’ leading run-scorer while picking up five wickets at an economy rate of 5.42. In the home T20Is against Bangladesh, Dottin scored 110 in three games at a strike rate of 203.70. Having played ODIs against India at the Kotambi Stadium, Dottin would have an idea of what to expect, and Giants would want her to step up with the ball too, especially at the death.4:32

RCB will have it tough against well-rounded Giants

Very few Indian players in the WPL can do what Richa Ghosh can – finish matches as a power-hitter. With RCB battling player-unavailability and fitness issues, Ghosh will be a vital cog in that middle order. She showed good hitting form in the home season against West Indies and Ireland. RCB relied on her prowess last year to win the title. She is third in the list of most sixes in the WPL; expect her to move up as the season progresses. How she does could well decide how the defending champions start their campaign.

Key stats

• Ashleigh Gardner is Giants’ leading run-scorer (324) as well as wicket-taker (17)
• Giants have had eight opening pairs in the two years, the most in the WPL.
• Giants have hit 43 sixes in the WPL, the fewest among all teams.
• RCB have two bowlers in their squad with T20I hat-tricks – Ekta Bisht and Heather Graham.

Liverpool are still keeping tabs on Alexander Isak despite signing Hugo Ekitike, with the Newcastle United striker keen to leave St James’ Park. The Reds remain interested in a potential £130 million ($176m) move, but will only act if the Magpies soften their stance and Luis Diaz departs. Despite reports, it is now reported that Isak is not currently in talks with Al-Hilal.

• Liverpool still interested in Isak despite Hugo Ekitike arrival
• £130m package possible if Diaz leaves Anfield this summer
• Isak prefers top-level football over Saudi Pro League switch

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  As per reports, Isak has formally told Newcastle United he wants to explore a move away, with Liverpool and Al-Hilal both showing interest. The Swedish striker missed the Magpies’ pre-season tour, officially due to injury, though speculation continues to rage about his future.

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• Getty Images
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Liverpool have been in direct contact and are considering a bid if conditions align. As per Fabrizio Romano, despite securing the signing of Ekitike, the Reds still view Isak as a priority target. The transfer guru has added that the Reds are prepared to act if the Magpies agree to sell and if Diaz leaves Anfield.

• TELL ME MORE…

  The report also added that negotiations with Al-Hilal haven’t progressed as Isak prefers to continue playing in Europe. He is believed to be more open to joining a Premier League side, especially the current champions. Newcastle remain reluctant to let their star forward go, but a £150 million ($203m) offer could change their approach. The Swedish striker is also reportedly pushing for a new contract worth around £ 300,000 per week if he stays.

• Getty Images
  

  WHAT NEXT FOR ISAK?

  Liverpool are monitoring the situation closely and may return with a formal offer if Newcastle shift their stance. Isak’s desire for top-level football makes a move to Merseyside more likely than Saudi Arabia. For now, Newcastle must decide whether to keep pushing for a contract extension or cash in.