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Dreary drew ensues after youngster stars for Warwickshire with career-best 93

ECB Reporters Network29-Apr-2024Nottinghamshire 400 (Duckett 218, Haynes 74, Slater 65, Hannon-Dalby 5-78) and 75 for 1 drew with Warwickshire 361 (Bethell 93, Barnard 69, James 3-65, Pennington 3-74)Another stalemate landed in the ocean of early-season Vitality Championship draws as the match between Warwickshire and Nottinghamshire petered out at Edgbaston.In reply to 400 all out, Warwickshire extended their first innings to 361, Jake Bethell posting a career-best 93 (163 balls), before Nottinghamshire went in again and acquired 75 for one.As soon as Warwickshire reached 251, which they did with some comfort with five wickets down, the match was consigned to a draw, the home side’s fourth in four championship matches and Nottinghamshire’s third in four.It was a dreary conclusion to a match which delivered some excellence – Ben Duckett’s double-century and the seam bowling of Olly Hannon-Dalby and Dillon Pennington – but was ultimately smothered by a docile pitch and the loss of more than a day to rain.After Warwickshire resumed on the final morning on 175 for five, 76 short of the follow-on figure, Nottinghamshire needed to strike quickly but Bethell and Danny Briggs (37, 79) were soon collecting boundaries. Stubborn batting, allied to a pitch which stubbornly refused to deteriorate, drew the sting of a seam attack which bowled with a quality during this match to suggest they will cause batters a lot of problems in more helpful conditions.Bethell and Briggs added 85 in 23 overs to take their side to the requisite 251. Almost immediately, Briggs swatted Calvin Harrison to mid on where Freddie McCann entered the history books as the first former Papplewick & Linby CC player to take a catch as a substitute in first class cricket with the floodlights on at Edgbaston on a Monday.Bethell’s classy and composed innings ended seven short of a deserved maiden century when he edged Olly Stone to give the former Warwickshire player his first wicket back on his old patch. Bowling remained a joyless assignment though and Michael Burgess (43, 63 balls) and Aamer Jamal (40, 46) added 71 in 15 overs before the latter hammered a return catch to Lyndon James.After Hasan Ali chipped James into the covers, Hannon-Dalby settled in with his customary aplomb before running out of partners when Burgess mowed to mid off. James’ analysis had been upgraded from 0 for 57 to three for 63 in 18 balls.Nottinghamshire went into bat again at 2.54pm and filled the rest of a grey afternoon with batting practice. Duckett followed his 264-ball 218 with a six-ball seven when Hannon-Dalby trapped him lbw but Haseeb Hameed (41 not out, 69 balls) and Ben Slater enjoyed an outdoor net for the remaining two hours as the match fizzled out in a manner redolent of Nottinghamshire’s visit to Coventry in 1928 when they amassed 656 for three, four of the top five scoring centuries (only Arthur Carr missed out with a paltry 58) but their victory hopes were thwarted by a benign pitch, weather damage and obdurate batting by Warwickshire legends Tiger Smith and Bob Wyatt.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou’s future appears more and more likely to be away from north London, and his potential exit could have a knock-on effect when it comes to Spurs keeping a “top-class” player this summer.

Ange Postecoglou faces Tottenham sack regardless of Europa League

Last week, Postecoglou conceded that the general sentiment around his position was that he could be sacked regardless of how the Lilywhites perform in Europe.

52-year-old spotted at Spurs after Levy talks as pundit tips appointment

The Lilywhites chairman has sat down with him recently.

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By
Emilio Galantini

Apr 12, 2025

This remains the case, especially after Spurs’ seventeenth Premier League defeat of the campaign against Wolves, with journalist John Cross of The Mirror reporting of a “growing belief” that Postecoglou may well be fired even if they win the Europa League.

Supporters will be very keen to put this season behind them following a 2024/2025 of historic lows, and there is a serious lack of confidence in Postecoglou being the right man to take them forward, regardless of the Australian’s misfortune with injuries.

In terms of Tottenham’s managerial targets to replace Postecoglou, it is believed Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, Fulham’s Marco Silva, Brentford’s Thomas Frank, Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner and Inter Milan head coach Simone Inzaghi are all admired.

Spurs’ managerial situation also appears set to play a key role in keeping their best players at the club this summer, as well as attracting key transfer targets.

Defender Cristian Romero is rumoured to be pushing for an exit from Tottenham, amid interest from La Liga heavyweights Atlético and Real Madrid, while striker Richarlison is another who’s repeatedly been linked with a departure.

The Brazil international has been unable to showcase his best this campaign due to consistent injury problems, but did score against Wolves over the weekend and has impressed in flashes under Postecoglou when given the chance.

As well as Romero, it has been claimed that Richarlison is also keen on leaving Tottenham (Football Insider), and South American journalist Jorge Nicola reported earlier this month that the £60 million forward is a target for the likes of Palmeiras, Fluminense and Flamengo – even if the cost of an operation makes their moves for him unlikely.

Now, journalist Graeme Bailey has shared an interesting update on his future.

Richarlison could decide to stay at Tottenham if Postecoglou is sacked

Writing for The Boot Room, Bailey reports that Richarlison could decide to stay at Tottenham if Postecoglou is sacked, due to the prospect of a new manager potentially being keen to work with him.

However, while the 27-year-old threatens to perform a full U-turn over leaving N17, Spurs’ stance is that they’d like to find a permanent buyer amid interest from the Saudi Pro League.

While Richarlison’s suffered from a lack of availability when he has played, the former Everton star’s notched an impressive 16 goals and five assists over the last two seasons under Postecoglou – so there can be no complaints about his return in the final third.

Perhaps a fresh face in the dugout can revitalise Richarlison, who’s been called a “top-class” player for Spurs in the past (Paul Robinson).

The U.S. No. 1 is said to be on the move, set to join fellow American Tanner Tessmann with the Ligue 1 outfit

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• USMNT's Turner reportedly set for Lyon move
• Spent 2024-25 campaign on loan at Crystal Palace
• Goalkeeper searching for starting minutes year out from World Cup

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  U.S. men's national team goalkeeper Matt Turner is set to sign for Ligue 1 side Lyon, in a $9.1M (€8M) move from English Premier League side Nottingham Forest, according to

  Turner, 30, spent the 2024-25 season on loan at Crystal Palace, where he made four appearances en route to winning the FA Cup with the .

  The move materialized quickly, according to the report, with Turner searching for regular first-team minutes at a club playing at a high level. Lyon's current starter, Lucas Perri, is reportedly the subject of transfer speculation and is expected to leave the club this summer – making room for Turner as the No. 1.

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  Turner has 51 caps with the USMNT and remains the starting goalkeeper roughly one year out from the 2025 FIFA World Cup. He is currently with Mauricio Pochettino's squad, participating in the CONCACAF Gold Cup camp.

  The 30-year-old was named MLS Goalkeeper of the Year in 2021 with the New England Revolution, which earned him a move abroad to England with Premier League side Arsenal, where he made seven appearances.

  He then moved to Forest, where he was expected to be the starting goalkeeper, but after 17 matches, he lost his starting role to Matz Sels. He then went on loan to Palace, where he struggled to break into the team outside of their early run in the FA Cup.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Turner would join fellow U.S. international Tanner Tessmann at the club, should the deal go through.

• Getty Images
  

  WHAT NEXT FOR TURNER?

  The USMNT plays Switzerland Tuesday in an international friendly in their final tune-up ahead of the Gold Cup. Turner is available for selection. Matt Freese started Saturday as Turner went unused as a substitute Saturday against Turkey, a 2-1 defeat.

No stranger to the expectations of fans in South Asia, Kirsten has already got to work to identify the obstacles ahead

Danyal Rasool16-May-2024Pakistan’s new white-ball coach Gary Kirsten may not have joined the team in person yet but he appears to be preparing for the magnitude of the challenge already. Speaking to , Kirsten said there was little doubt about the talent in the Pakistan squad, but also hinted at problems he had already picked up on.”Everyone always talks about watching some of these players play on any given day and getting mesmerised by their abilities,” he said, talking to former England fast bowler Steve Harmison and broadcaster Neil Manthorp. “But the short time I’ve had in connection remotely with the team, one can pick up very quickly what the potential blockages are. And I guess it’s my role as a coach, to assist in unlocking the natural ability that they have.”Kirsten, who takes over at a time of both on- and off-field flux in Pakistan cricket, said it was natural to expect negativity, suggesting the knock-on effects of poor on-field results seep into all aspects of the game.Related

• Babar to lead a pace-heavy Pakistan side at T20 World Cup

• Gillespie appointed Pakistan men's Test coach, Kirsten named white-ball coach

• Jason Gillespie's philosophy for Pakistan: 'Don't try to be something that you're not'

• Kirsten to link up with Pakistan before T20I series in England

Following a poor ODI World Cup, Pakistan lost 3-0 in Tests to Australia and 4-1 in T20Is in New Zealand. Then against a weakened visiting New Zealand team, Pakistan only managed a 2-2 draw before scraping past Ireland 2-1 this week.During that time, Babar Azam was sacked as captain and replaced by Shaheen Shah Afridi, only for Afridi to be replaced by Babar a few weeks later. Off the field, Mickey Arthur was removed as team director with Mohammad Hafeez performing the role in Australia and New Zealand, while there have been three different PCB chairmen in the last year.”I’ve been around the coaching circuit enough to know that pretty much any team environment that’s not winning, you will get factions. The fact is, it could be highlighted even more in certain cultures and environments. The one thing about being a coach of over 20 years now is that you get a little bit more thick-skinned. And that’s the one thing I did learn from Bob [Woolmer], by the way.”He had a really thick skin by the end of his coaching career. Because you’re just trying to do as best a job you can, accepting the fact that when the team’s not doing well, there’s always going to be a whole bunch of criticism.”Kirsten’s time with India should, in theory at least, prepare him for the administrative challenges of working with a cricket board in South Asia, and the wisdom of accepting there will be inevitable limitations on his powers. “I think my learnings over my three years with India was that there are some battles that you just absolutely not going to win. And then you just focus on the ones that you can win, and hopefully that’s enough for the team to do really well.”It’s really important that you build relationships upwards. You need to work well with the people upstairs and within the confines of the board, and hopefully build a decent relationship so that they buy into your thinking as well.”

Kirsten on Babar: ‘Not fair to depend on one player’

The most obvious example of this comes with the contentious debate around the captain Babar and his best use in the shortest format. Kirsten pointed to his recent innings against Ireland – a matchwinning 42-ball 75 – saying one of his goals was to find Babar the space to play with that kind of freedom more frequently.”It [dependence on Babar] is not fair on any player,” Kirsten said. “He shouldn’t feel like he has to be contributing all the time to a team. I’ve been in touch with Babar. He’s done remarkably well and carries a lot of the weight of the team on his shoulders. What we will try to do as a coaching staff is to lift that a little bit and to realise he’s just one of a whole group of players and that he can free himself up to play with his natural talent.Babar Azam replaced Shaheen Shah Afridi as captain•Sportsfile via Getty Images

“Hopefully we see a lot more of that [the Ireland innings] kind of knock from him. I think if we can unlock that freedom, and understand that there’s a big group of guys that can make match-winning contributions, especially in T20 cricket, that’ll take a lot of pressure off him.”Since Kirsten was appointed coach alongside Jason Gillespie – who will serve as the coach of the Test side – Pakistan have played a three-match T20I series against Ireland, which they won 2-1. Kirsten was not physically with the side during the series due to prior IPL commitments but will link up with the team in England when the two teams play four T20Is ahead of the T20 World Cup.”I got a phone call while I was at the IPL and, they asked whether I was interested. I’m always interested in an international job. It’s always just a massive privilege to be coaching in that space. I haven’t done an international job since coaching South Africa towards the end of 2013. My kids are a little bit older now, which makes it slightly easier to travel, and to work with an international team of the likes of Pakistan was very appealing to me.”

State of Test cricket ‘worries me deeply’

During Kirsten’s two-year contract, Pakistan will participate in three white-ball ICC events: the upcoming T20 World Cup, the 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan, and the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. And though he has admittedly set his sights on winning one of the three events, Kirsten said he was not in favour of ICC tournaments coming thick and fast.”Sometimes I do get concerned about the lack of context in many games. But does it mean we need to have an ICC event every year? No I think it could be dangerous to have a World Cup every year or other year because it’s always fun waiting for those events to come around.”And we’ve got to be really careful we don’t lose Test cricket. Having Test-playing nations like South Africa playing four Tests a year worries me deeply – to think Test cricket is not so important anymore.”

Picking up just one win across their last five Championship contests, Leeds United are in danger of falling out of the coveted top two positions in the tricky division.

If it hadn’t been for Zan Vipotnik’s late equaliser for Swansea City on Saturday, a golden victory would have been coming the way of the hot-and-cold Whites, but a disappointing 2-2 draw would end up being the final scoreline instead.

There were plenty of heroes and villains on show from the hosts, with Wilfried Gnonto firmly in the first bracket after scoring Leeds’ second on the day, whilst Illan Meslier continues to find himself in the club’s bad books.

Best and worst performers vs Swansea

Despite Gnonto displaying obvious class this season, the Italian attacker has only started 20 Championship games across 2024/25 to date.

Still, the 5 foot 8 speedster would only need 14 minutes of action against Alan Sheehan’s Swans to gift his side the slender 2-1 lead, with the 21-year-old’s effort far too fierce for opposition goalkeeper Lawrence Vigoroux to palm away.

Unfortunately for the promotion chasers, that goal would be immediately cancelled out by Vipotnik’s strike right at the death, with questions rightly asked about Meslier after the effort somehow went past him.

Dropping the ball into Harry Darling’s path for 1-1 too, patience will be running very thin in the Leeds fanbase surrounding the error-prone Frenchman, with Meslier pocketing a hefty £30k-per-week wage – as per Capology – which is the same amount Gnonto rakes in.

Whilst promotion might see Farke change up who his starting ‘keeper is, there is one high earner – who earns more than Meslier and Gnonto – who is in danger of being axed in the short-term, with his performance against Swansea another worrying one to watch.

The Leeds high earner who could now be axed

Farke will be glad that there hasn’t been a whole host of injury issues for him to deal with this campaign, with the main concern in this area coming in the middle of the park.

Indeed, the likes of Ilia Gruev and Ethan Ampadu have found themselves sidelined for significant amounts of time this season, missing a combined 47 games, consequently, for both club and country.

Stat

Ampadu

Games missed

16

Leeds league wins when injured

8

Draws

5

Losses

3

Sourced by Transfermarkt

Ampadu’s long absences on the sideline haven’t necessarily hit Leeds hard, however, with Farke calling upon the likes of Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell in the holding midfield positions instead, leading to the Whites managing to pick up eight league wins when the 24-year-old is out of the side.

Arguably, his showing on Saturday looked as if his manager had fast-tracked him back into the XI too quickly after injury, with the shaky Leeds number four only registering 23 accurate passes when he is usually averaging 59.1 per Championship clash.

Of course, like Gnonto who is another high earner in the camp, there’s no doubt that Ampadu will still have a key role to play moving forward in Leeds’ promotion fight, but Farke might well feel he doesn’t need to start his £40k-per-week man every week following the Italian’s example.

With injury issues ramping up, it’s been far from a smooth sailing season for the Welshman, but the ex-Norwich City boss will know he needs to utilise his full squad between now and May in order to deliver a glorious return to the Premier League, even if that means he drops the 24-year-old on occasion.

Therefore, Farke must consider ruthlessly dropping the Wales international from the starting line-up and only bringing him in when the midfielder is fully fit and ready to play at his best.

Not just Aaronson: 49ers must sell Leeds dud who's rinsed them of £22m

Leeds United desperately need to offload one player who’s rapidly declined over the years.

1 ByEthan Lamb Mar 28, 2025

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been warned that Wrexham will be unable to reach the Premier League without breaking a few financial rules.

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Historic run of three successive promotionsMore money required to reach the top-flightCompeting with other big-spending outfitsFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty/GOALWHAT HAPPENED?

On the back of three successive promotions, the Red Dragons are now just one step away from rubbing shoulders with the elite of English football. Hollywood co-owners have never shied away from the fact that they want to bring top-flight action to North Wales.

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Reynolds and McElhenney have helped to fund a meteoric rise, with more investment now being sought as Wrexham’s revenue figures and overall valuation soar. The plan is to bring in Premier League pedigree during the summer transfer window of 2025.

Getty Images SportDID YOU KNOW?

Wrexham have plenty of room for manoeuvre when it comes to Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), but they may need to step outside of those regulations – as part of elaborate spending sprees – in order to compete with rivals that boast even deeper pockets.

WHAT SPORTS FINANCE EXPERT SAID

Sports finance expert Dr Rob Wilson has told of the Red Dragons’ bid to reach the top tier in the not too distant future: “I don't see how Wrexham can get into the Premier League in a season or two without breaching the financial regulations that exist within the division. However, you would probably argue given their trajectory that if they were to get into the Premier League, they would probably stay there for a little while.

“Then they could afford to take any hit if they were then ultimately relegated at some point. I think mid-table is probably where I think you'd see an incredible amount of investment to try and protect that. It links with the new stadium and with some of the broader plans to activate the commercial and the broadcast opportunities.”

Liverpool have reportedly slapped a huge price tag on an out-of-favour player amid Premier League and Bundesliga interest.

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Liverpool man struggling for game timeLinked with summer transfer exitReds set huge asking price for defenderFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Daily Mail journalist Lewis Steele states that Liverpool will want around £50 million ($67.3m) for centre-back Jarell Quansah, despite his lack of game time this season. If he does go, though, a replacement will be needed.

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Quansah made 25 appearances for Liverpool last season but just 13 of those were starts. He was behind captain Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate in the pecking order, and as a result, fellow journalist David Lynch believes the 23-year-old is a 'genuine candidate for a departure'. Lynch adds that Premier League and Bundesliga sides are keen on the defender but £50m does seem a lot.

DID YOU KNOW?

Liverpool academy product Quansah, whose Anfield contract runs until 2029 and there is an option to extend that a further year, made most of his starts (five) this season in the Reds' run to the Carabao Cup final – where they lost to Newcastle United.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

It remains to be seen if Quansah will still be at Liverpool next season, or if he will seek pastures new in a bid for more game time. For the time being, it seems he will be a back-up to Van Dijk and Konate.

Mikel Arteta has been tipped to leave Arsenal if the Gunners miss out on silverware next season as Jamie Carragher hit out at his "excuses".

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• Arsenal falter again in the final lap
• Remain trophyless for another season under Arteta
• FA Cup success in 2020 remains the only silverware

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Arsenal’s hopes of ending their long wait for silverware were dashed once again following their Champions League semi-final exit at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain. The defeat at Parc des Princes means the North London side will finish a fifth successive season without lifting a major trophy, their last success being the FA Cup triumph over Chelsea in 2020.

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  Despite the defeat, Arteta maintained that his side had outperformed their French opponents across both legs. He insisted that Arsenal deserved a place in the final, arguing that the overall display was more deserving than the result suggested.

• WHAT CARRAGHER SAID

  Former Liverpool defender and pundit Jamie Carragher was among those who questioned Arteta’s reaction. Writing in Carragher criticised the Arsenal manager for what he described as "excuse-laden" remarks, likening them to fan reactions often seen on social media.

  He wrote: "Some of Arteta’s most recent public comments have veered into that territory, making him sound more like a fan on social media perpetuating a series of complaints about injuries and refereeing decisions. His remarks about Arsenal deserving to beat Paris St-Germain over two legs in the Champions League semi-final left him open to ridicule. Luis Enrique’s side have been by far the best side in this year’s competition, and they showed their class in both games."

  Carragher further noted that while injuries can derail a season, every title contender faces adversity. He cited Manchester City’s struggles during Rodri’s absence as an example, suggesting that Arteta’s focus on such incidents does little to justify the bigger picture.

  "One club’s valid explanations for ‘failure’ are everyone else’s lame excuses. That is especially true with regard to injuries. We could go through many league seasons in which the runners-up could point to ‘if only’ moments," he wrote.

  "Every neutral football supporter knows that the injury that truly transformed this season was Rodri’s against Arsenal last September – the first of many games Arteta’s side should have won but ended up drawing. Would a fit Rodri have altered the title race and prevented a Liverpool procession? We will never know. More importantly, when a season is reviewed, such facts become incidental, no matter how influential they were at the time."

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Carragher stressed that Arteta’s tenure, although marked by substantial progress, is now at a crossroads. If Arsenal are to avoid a cycle of near misses, the upcoming season must yield tangible rewards.

  "Arteta has so much credit in the bank, it is fair and right, there is more resistance to managerial change at Arsenal than desire for it," he said.

  "But no one understands better than him that all the goodwill for creating an Arsenal team capable of winning is gone. Arteta must deliver next season, otherwise his legacy will be years of groundwork for the benefit of a successor who will be asked to add the finishing touches."

تحدث خوان لابورتا رئيس نادي برشلونة الإسباني في مقابلة مع شبكة قنوات “سي إن إن” عن باريس سان جيرمان الفرنسي بطل دوري أبطال أوروبا.

كما أشاد لابورتا بالنظام الجديد لبطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، واعتبره خطوة إلى الأمام تعزز من قوة البطولة، وأوضح رئيس برشلونة: “النظام الجديد لدوري أبطال أوروبا يُحسن مستوى المنافسة”.

وأفاد لابورتا بأنه يعتقد أن برشلونة وباريس سان جيرمان هما الفريقان في أفضل حالاتهما ويلعبان أفضل كرة قدم في البطولة.

وأضاف: “من المؤسف أننا لم نتمكن من مواجهة بعضنا البعض في نهائي العام الماضي، أو في كأس العالم للأندية”.

وأشار: “كل من يحب كرة القدم قال في الموسم الماضي أن برشلونة وباريس سان جيرمان هما الفريقان اللذان يقدمان أفضل كرة قدم في العالم”.

اقرأ أيضًا | حقيقة ارتداء خوان جارسيا الرقم 1 في برشلونة

وأوضح: “باريس سان جيرمان لديه فريق رائع ومدرب رائع، يلعبون كرة قدم رائعة، من المؤسف أننا لم نتمكن من مواجهة بعضنا البعض لأننا كنا الفريق الأكثر تنافسية، عالم كرة القدم ينتظر تلك المباراة بفارغ الصبر”.

واختتم: “نأمل أن نواجه باريس سان جيرمان هذا الموسم حتى نتمكن من معرفة من هو الأفضل”.

Arsenal could now miss out on signing an “elite” £50m player, with Real Madrid confident about winning the race for his signature, according to a report.

Mikel Arteta keen on a midfielder

There were no new arrivals at the Emirates Stadium in the January transfer window, with Mikel Arteta opting to wait until the end of the season before making any new additions to his squad.

There have been widespread calls for the Gunners to sign a striker, with doubt remaining over whether Kai Havertz is good enough to lead the line for a Premier League title-winning side, while Arteta also wants to strengthen the spine of his team.

It recently emerged the north Londoners are vying for the signature of Chris Rigg, with Sunderland now willing to sanction the midfielder’s departure for a fee of £25m in the summer.

Arsenal keen on "special" £25m ace who's now available to sign this summer

The Gunners have set their sights on a hot prospect, who is being targeted by some of Europe’s top clubs.

ByDominic Lund Feb 9, 2025

At just 17 years old, Rigg is likely to be one for the future, but Arsenal are also keen on a player perhaps capable of making a more immediate impact, and it has long been expected that Martin Zubimendi will move to the Emirates Stadium this summer.

However, there has now been a worrying twist in the transfer saga, with reports from Spain revealing Real Madrid are now confident about winning the race for Zubimendi, as they believe he could be tempted by the opportunity to remain in his home country.

The Gunners aren’t going down without a fight, however, with the report revealing they are still pushing to get a deal done, as they are convinced the Spaniard would fit perfectly into their team.

Arteta is not willing to give up, and the north Londoners remain well-placed to win the race, but there will certainly be concern about Madrid’s interest as it looked like he was on course to move to the Emirates.

Zubimendi would be an "elite" signing for Arsenal

Arsenal are already well-stocked in central midfield, with Declan Rice once again emerging as one of their best-performing players in the Premier League this season, but the Real Sociedad star could take them to the next level.

The 26-year-old, who is expected to cost £50m, has been lauded for his ability in possession of the ball by scout Ben Mattinson.

Not only that, but the Spain international is also capable of pitching in defensively, ranking in the 90th percentile for clearances per 90, and the 90th percentile for aerials won when compared to his positional peers.

It will be a real concern that Madrid fancy their chances of winning the race for Zubimendi, but there is no reason to panic at this stage, with Arsenal still well-placed to get a deal done, and they can boost their chances with a strong finish to the season.