All posts by h716a5.icu

Leeds United now face Burnley in a transfer battle to sign a Premier League level defender on a free transfer this summer, according to a new report.

Leeds eyeing more transfers after Nmecha deal

The Whites confirmed their first signing of the summer transfer window on Sunday afternoon, as Lukas Nmecha agreed to join Leeds once his contract at Wolfsburg expires at the end of the month.

The attacking midfielder is a player who is likely to be an important figure in Farke’s team this season, but the club are not resting with just his arrival, as they are already working on more additions.

As reported by Africa Foot, Leeds have made contact with Manchester City over signing Juma Bah on a loan deal. The 19-year-old joined the Blues back in January but spent the rest of the campaign on loan at RC Lens. He now looks set for another temporary move away, with Leeds and Southampton fighting for his signature.

He'd be better than Bijol: £5m defender now wants to sign for Leeds

Leeds United could seal a better transfer than snapping up Jaka Bijol by landing this deal.

ByKelan Sarson Jun 15, 2025

Meanwhile, defender Jaka Bijol has agreed terms over a move to Elland Road this summer and a deal appears to be nearing completion. He is not the only defender on the club’s radar, as a report from Football Insider states that Alex Moreno is also interested in a move to Leeds this summer. The 32-year-old could be available for £5 million, as the Whites are in the market for a new left-back.

Leeds face Burnley in Keane battle

The list of potential new defenders to sign doesn’t stop there, as according to the Liverpool Echo, Leeds are among the teams interested in signing Michael Keane from Everton.

Keane, who has been at Goodison Park since July 2017, is out of contract at the end of this month, and while he remains in talks over a new contract, he is looking more likely to leave. That has alerted Leeds, who, along with Burnley and Sheffield United, are keen on swooping in and securing the defender on a free transfer.

The 32-year-old, who has been dubbed “immense” in the past by Harry Redknapp, has fallen down the pecking order at Everton in recent seasons. Keane went from playing 32 games in the Premier League during the 2021/22 season to playing just 12, 9 and 14 times in the last 3 campaigns.

Apps

230

Goals

16

Assists

10

Keane could be a viable option for the Whites to provide more depth behind Joe Rodon and Pascal Struijk, and there aren’t many free signings on the market who provide such a wealth of top flight experience.

Rangers are set to be very busy in the transfer market in the next few weeks.

Ever since Russell Martin was unveiled as the new manager last week, the Ibrox side have been linked with umpteen new signings and rightly so, considering their squad requires a major overhaul this summer.

So, could the Gers’ land an attacker labelled “unplayable” in a move reminiscent of a recent fans’ favourite?

Rangers' interest in a new midfielder

According to a report by Joshua Barrie of the Rangers review, Rangers are ‘interested’ in signing Kwame Poku this summer.

The 23-year-old is a free agent having left Peterborough United, with there unsurprisingly plenty of competition for his signature, including from newly-promoted Championship side, Birmingham City.

Poku began his senior career in non-league, representing Cray Wanderers and Worthing, earning a move to Colchester before joining Peterborough in 2021, making 147 appearances for Posh, most notably winning back-to-back EFL Trophies at Wembley.

Transfer Focus

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

Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony believes he will “be a Premier League star in the future”, estimating that he’ll one day “cost £30 million”, so could Rangers tempt him north of Hadrian’s Wall on a Bosman?

Joe Aribo's Rangers career

Six years ago, in an eerily similar deal, Joe Aribo arrived at Rangers as a free agent, a reported £300,000 in compensation was paid, from Charlton Athletic, who were also in EFL League One at the time.

Aribo would go on to make 149 appearances for the Light Blues, scoring 26 goals and registering 25 assists, most famously breaking the deadlock in the Europa League Final against Eintracht Frankfurt at Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán.

A few days later, the Nigerian international helped Rangers win the Scottish Cup at Hampden, but this would prove to be his last outing in a blue jersey, sold to Southampton for £6m in the summer of 2022.

So, could Poku have a similar impact to that of Aribo? Let’s compare the duo to find out.

Appearances

31

39

Minutes

2,364

3,413

Goals

12

10

Assists

11

5

As the table outlines, Poku’s statistics this season were actually more impressive than those of Aribo from his final season at Charlton, despite the fact the former sat out three months of the campaign following hamstring surgery in December.

Writer Kai Watson labels the Ghanian international a “strong ball carrier” who is excellent at “cutting in on his left and getting a shot away”, concluding that he would be a “bargain” on a free transfer. Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson, meanwhile, asserts that he can be “unplayable” at times.

Meanwhile, Oliver Walton of Football League World described him as ‘one of the most in-form players in English football’ earlier this season, while Venkatanarayanan of Total Football Analysis outlines how he boasts the best ‘attacking numbers’ across the entirety of the EFL, praising his ‘excellent finishing’.

So, let’s assess that assertion.

Minutes

2,058

223rd

Goals

12

11th

Goals per 90

0.52

7th

Assists

8

5th

Assists per 90

0.35

1st

Shots per 90

2.71

12th

Goals per shot

0.19

18th

Big chances created

9

28th

Successful dribbles per 90

1.9

2nd

As the table highlights, Poku had an exceptional season at Peterborough, ranked first for assists per 90 and second for successful dribbles per 90 as well, on top of his generally impressive attacking statistics across the board.

Venkatanarayanan of Total Football Analysis also believes his best position is as an attacking midfielder, albeit he can be deployed out-wide, noting that his ‘biggest strength’ is his ability to progress the ball through midfield.

Meanwhile, Fintan O’Reilly of Total Football Analysis labels him a ‘thrilling playmaker’ who is ‘great in tight spaces’ and a ‘very intelligent passer’, destined to go to the very top, so Rangers should do everything in their power to make this deal come to fruition.

Russell Martin considering selling "brilliant" Rangers 22 y/o who wants to stay

He wants to stay at Ibrox, but the decision could be made up for him.

ByHenry Jackson Jun 10, 2025

Tom Alsop 81 not out sets up declaration before hosts chip out five Leicestershire wickets

ECB Reporters Network25-Jun-2024Leicestershire 275 and 139 for 5 (Carson 3-38) need a further 325 to beat Sussex 442 and 296 for 6 dec (Alsop 81*, Hunt 65)Sussex took four wickets in the final hour to put themselves in a strong position to beat Leicestershire at Hove and consolidate top place in the Vitality County Championship second division.Offspinner Jack Carson removed Foxes’ skipper Lewis Hill, makeshift opener Ian Holland and Lewis Goldsworthy after slow left-armer James Coles had made the breakthrough when he bowled Rishi Patel. Ollie Robinson also claimed the key wicket of Australian Peter Handscomb as four wickets fell for 30 runs in 12 overs.It left Leicestershire 139 for 5 and still needing 325 in their pursuit of a target of 464 and with the pitch at the 1st Central County Ground showing signs of uneven bounce and occasionally sharp turn for Carson, the hosts will fancy their chances of picking up the five wickets they need on the final day to claim their fourth win of the season.Foxes’ openers Patel and Holland had settled in promisingly with a stand of 51 before Patel upped the tempo by twice hitting Carson over the midwicket boundary. Slow left-armer Coles took over and broke through with his fifth delivery. Patel hit him for a six and four earlier in the over before he was bowled off an inside edge shaping to cut.Carson returned at the sea end and removed skipper Hill with a beauty which turned just enough out of the rough to find the edge and Holland mistimed a reverse sweep, the ball looping off bat-pad to Ollie Carter at short leg.Robinson got the wicket he deserved in his eighth over when Handscomb, who had been off the field earlier in the day with a sore shoulder, fended a short ball outside off stump into Carter’s waiting hands. Just before the close Goldsworthy was caught at midwicket when he mistimed a slog-sweep to leave Leicestershire facing their first defeat of the season.Earlier, nightwatchman Sean Hunt scored his maiden first-class fifty as Sussex scored 230 runs in 54 overs before declaring on 296 for 6.Hunt, who has a career average of just 6.60 and a previous highest score of 22, cashed in after being dropped at slip by Handscomb off Goldsworthy when he’d made just 9. He needed 69 balls to score his first 13 runs but then raced to 50 by smashing 37 off the next 20 deliveries, including two sixes off slow left-armer Goldsworthy over the short leg-side boundary.Goldsworthy had opened the bowling with offspinner Louis Kimber in an effort to improve Leicestershire’s over rate and between them they sent down 21 overs in 55 minutes and 38 in the morning session with Kimber eventually bowling 24 overs unchanged either side of lunch without reward.Goldsworthy did pick up a wicket when Tom Haines, who’d added 64 for the third wicket with Hunt, chipped back a low return catch and there were two wickets for Scott Currie when Leicestershire reverted to seam. Hunt spliced a pull to mid-off for a fine 65 off 118 balls and Coles, after scoring a run-a-ball 45, holed out trying to deposit Currie over long-off.Leicestershire employed nine fielders on the boundary after lunch and Tom Alsop took advantage with an unbeaten 81, including three sixes, before Sussex declared shortly before 3pm and left themselves 40 overs and the final day to take ten wickets. By the close they were halfway there.

Glasgow Rangers’ busy summer transfer window just continues to click into gear at Ibrox.

With the start of European qualifying now less than four weeks away, new Gers manager Russell Martin is reshaping his new squad.

Plenty of new signings have already arrived at Ibrox, with more still to follow, but could the Light Blues be about to lose a key figure, or perhaps even two?

Rangers striker on the move?

On Wednesday, Rangers unveiled new signing Max Aarons, with the right-back joining on a season-long loan from Bournemouth.

Lyall Cameron was also presented last week, having signed a pre-contract in January, while the Light Blues are also chasing the signatures of both Conor Coady and Owen Beck.

In less good news, however, French publication RMC Sport are reporting that Ligue 1 side LOSC Lille are “in talks” with Rangers over a possible move for Hamza Igamane, adding that the Moroccan striker has “agreed to personal terms”.

Having lost star striker Jonathan David on a free transfer, les Dogues are currently in the process of reshaping their attack, with Jeff Carlisle of ESPN reporting elsewhere that they’ve ‘made an approach’ to sign LAFC centre-forward Olivier Giroud.

In terms of Igamane, Gavin Berry of the Daily Record believes that Rangers “have set” a £20m price tag on the striker, which would make him one of the biggest sales in the club’s modern history.

On the pitch though, this would be a major blow, especially considering it’s set to be all change in terms of Rangers centre-forwards this summer.

Why Hamza Igamane will be a bigger loss than Cyriel Dessers

Igamane is not the only striker seemingly on his way out of Ibrox because, as has been widely reported, Cyriel Dessers is set to join AEK Athens.

The latest reporting from Ewan Paton of the National states that the Greek side are currently offering £4m, while Rangers are holding out for £5m, but that a deal is close, with new manager Martin already ‘looking at replacements’.

Between them, Igamane and Dessers scored 45 goals last season, while the only other player to bag more than six was Václav Černý, who also won’t be at the club next season, having returned to VfL Wolfsburg, following his loan spell.

Thus, there are currently serious question marks over who will be leading the line against Panathinaikos in Champions League qualifying on 22 July, but which of the pair will be the bigger loss?

Appearances

46

55

Minutes

2,651

3,423

Goals

16

29

Assists

3

7

Goals – xG

+2.7

-2.5

Shots per 90

3.88

3.22

Big chances missed

7

31

Touches per 90

51

29

Touches in the area per 90

5.2

6.7

Average Sofascore Rating

7.08

6.81

As the table outlines, despite the fact Dessers scored 13 more goals, doing so in around 800 more minutes, all of Igamane’s underlying statistics are more impressive.

The most interesting statistic is the goals – xG metric where, in last season’s Europa League, the Moroccan finished second with +2.7, behind only Malick Fofana, while Cyriel Dessers was fourth-bottom on -2.5, out of all 712 players who attempted at least one shot in the competition, this according to FBref.com.

The table notes that Dessers missed a whopping 31 Opta-defined big chances across the Scottish Premiership and Europa League, hence why fans are pleased to cash in on him.

Igamane on the other hand, supporters will be sad to see him depart, but it would be for a fee the club simply cannot turn down.

When they won the league under Steven Gerrard, and then reached the Europa League final under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Rangers should have cashed in on prized assets such as Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and Borna Barišić, instead choosing to hold onto them as a sign of ambition, before they ultimately left for free.

Just a year after arriving from AS Far for a reported fee of £2.5m, Igamane’s stock is very high, with writer Kai Watson asserting that he is “destined for big things”, while Samuel Hutchinson of Total Football Analysis outlines his ‘meteoric rise’, believing he ‘performed exceptionally’ in an otherwise mediocre Rangers side.

Thus, Igamane could turn out to be a bargain for Lille at £20m while, for Rangers, this is the right time to sell, but their focus has to be working out how best to spend that money, because finding a replacement in a short period of time will be far from easy.

After Aarons: Rangers open talks to sign £1m star who could be Kent 2.0

After signing Max Aarons, Rangers are in talks to repeat their Ryan Kent trick at Ibrox.

ByBen Gray Jun 25, 2025

Founder of African Caribbean Engagement programme ‘hopeful’ that sport is now awake to the needs of Black community

Andrew Miller16-Jul-2024Ebony Rainford-Brent, the founder and chair of the ACE Programme, says she is more hopeful than ever that English cricket understands the needs and challenges of Britain’s Black communities, one year on from the publication of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report into the sport’s structural inequalities.Speaking at the launch of a new strategy, ‘Road to Representation’, which seeks to bring ten cricketers through the programme and into the professional game by 2030, Rainford-Brent said that the tone of cricket’s conversation about race had been transformed in the four years since the ACE programme was founded in response to a 75 percent decline in Black British professional players.”I’ve gone from hopeless five years ago, in terms of people recognising there are issues around inclusivity within the game, and now I’m really hopeful,” Rainford-Brent said. “I think we’ve recognised the problem and we’re putting in initiatives across the game in response to the ICEC report. But I think it’d be a decade’s worth of real work to say the game has fully changed and opened up.”After launching at The Oval in January 2020, ACE (which stands for African Caribbean Engagement) has since expanded to five further hubs in Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield. A total of 26,000 young players have been engaged with the programme, of whom 200 are considered ‘elite potential’.Young players at The Oval as part of Surrey’s ACE programme•Surrey CCCACE’s rapid impact was recognised earlier this year when it was named as one of three target charities – alongside Chance to Shine and Lord’s Taverners – that will share £14 million of government investment, as part of a new drive to improve access to cricket at state schools over the next five years.Later this summer, ACE will announce the first recipients of its new Rookie Contracts – fully-funded opportunities for two young players (one male, one female) to develop their careers at first-class counties. And, with 21% of ACE Academy players now graduating into county pathways, Rainford-Brent is optimistic that their target of ten professional players before the end of the decade is attainable.”The reality is it’s a big, ambitious challenge, but that’s what we’ve been about with ACE over the past five years,” she said. “We’re already seeing that one in five of our talented youngsters are making it through to the talent pathway at junior counties, and some of those were hardly engaged with cricket before, or simply didn’t have the support. So if we keep producing at the rate that we are, we believe it’s possible to see that talent come through.”Related

ECB unveils new anti-discrimination measures after ICEC report

Rainford-Brent joins ECB board as non-executive director

Rainford-Brent aims even bigger with ACE

ACE programme helping Black players stay in love with cricket

Anderson backs ECB plans to make cricket 'most inclusive team sport'

The new strategy also aims to accelerate female participation within ACE, with hopes that the current figure (circa 20%) could be closer to a 50-50 split by 2030. To that end, they have launched a new scheme called ‘Blaze Her Trail’, aimed at girls who have already achieved elite-level success in other sports, in particular athletics.”We realised with the women’s game, the development rate is slower,” Rainford-Brent said. “And we realised we wouldn’t get to representation if we just go through the traditional way. You look at other sports, bobsleigh and rowing do acceleration programmes, so we’ve done the same, and found female sprinters from our target demographics – guns of athletes who have competed at the highest level and are now trying to convert to fast bowlers.”Rainford-Brent recalled an encounter some years ago with Denise Lewis, the Olympic heptathlete, as part of the inspiration behind the initiative.”She was someone I idolised growing up, but Denise had never played cricket, although with her javelin background she just knew how to get into position. We don’t know how it will pan out, but a lot of people in the talent pathway have had the same theory. If it comes off, we will have another conversion pipeline in the next few years.”

Leeds United may have to brace for the departure of a “fantastic” player, who now wants to leave the club this summer, transfer expert Graeme Bailey has revealed.

Leeds' summer rebuild well underway

Having been promoted from the Championship last season, Leeds have been busy assembling a squad capable of surviving in the Premier League, with centre-back duo Sebastian Bornauw and Jaka Bijol recently sealing moves to Elland Road.

Striker Lukas Nmecha has also secured a move to West Yorkshire, with Daniel Farke looking to bolster his options in attack, despite already having the 2024-25 Championship top scorer at his disposal in the form of Joel Piroe.

Lecce centre-forward Nikola Krstovic also remains of interest to the Championship title-winners, with it being revealed they are now pushing to get a deal over the line, which means one of Farke’s current striker options may need to make way.

"Done deal" as Leeds sell 6 foot 2 player who Farke called "great"

A “full agreement” has been reached.

1 ByCharlie Smith Jul 3, 2025

In an interview with Leeds United News, Bailey has now revealed that Mateo Joseph could be on the move this summer, with the forward eager to seal an Elland Road exit and return to his home country of Spain, amid interest from La Liga side Real Betis.

The transfer expert said: “From what I’ve most recently been told, he does want to go back to Spain. But Leeds have got to be careful, in my opinion. You can’t just let Mateo Joseph go and do whatever and then be left short. That’s the consideration.

“But I think Joseph will end up back in Spain. Betis have sold a forward in Jesus Rodriguez to Como and that’ll be used to help pay for Joseph.

“From what I’m hearing, he could be accelerated into the first-team squad for Spain very quickly. And I think that’s probably in his consideration as well.”

Krstovic could be excellent replacement for Joseph

Piroe was Leeds’ main man in attack last season, scoring 19 goals in the Championship, but Joseph also featured regularly, picking up seven goal contributions in the second tier, and his departure could be a blow for Farke.

At just 21-years-old, the £13m-rated youngster still has a lot of room to develop, but he has already caught the eye of scout/writer Jacek Kulig, who described the forward as “fantastic” a little over a year ago.

That said, Krstovic could be a solid replacement for Joseph, given that the Montenegro international was regularly amongst the goals for Lecce last season, netting 12 times across 38 appearances in all competitions.

Competition

Appearances

Goals

Assists

Serie A

37

11

5

Italian Cup

1

1

0

Having already proven himself in a major European league, the Lecce star could be an instant upgrade on Joseph, so if the starlet makes it clear that he wants to leave this summer, Leeds should not stand in his way.

Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland CEO, said the appointment is a step towards Ireland becoming a “fit-for-purpose Full Member”

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2024Graeme West, the current Cricket West Indies (CWI) high-performance manager, is set to take over as director of high performance at Cricket Ireland (CI).In his stint with CWI that started in 2012, West worked closely with young talent from across the West Indies, and in 2016 was coach of the West Indies team that lifted the Under-19 World Cup. After working with the U-19 and ‘A’ teams, his current role as high-performance manager included the setting up of academy programmes and building a pool of coaches. He is expected to have a similar profile in Ireland, starting next month.Before joining CWI, West spent five years at the Middlesex academy. There, he worked with Ireland internationals Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirnie, Andrew Poynter and Stuart Poynter. West has not played any top-flight cricket, but holds a Level 4 ECB coaching qualification.”I am delighted to be joining Cricket Ireland as the organisation continues to grow and strengthen,” West said in a statement. “The Strategic Plan for 2024-27 is incredibly exciting and I look forward to applying my experience and philosophy to the wealth of talent and expertise that has been assembled as we further establish Ireland as a major cricketing nation.”Warren Deutrom, the chief executive at CI, said the appointment was a step towards Ireland becoming a “fit-for-purpose Full Member”.”When we set out to create and recruit for the role, the profile, initiative and experience that Graeme possesses is exactly what we were looking for,” Deutrom said. “We knew that in order to be successful in this new role, the candidate required leadership experience, exceptional people skills and the ability to be a mentor as much as a manager. In Graeme, we believe we have found that candidate.”As an organisation, we are going through a process of reviewing and evolving our operations to ensure we are fit-for-purpose as a Full Member in a rapidly changing environment. One of the strategic decisions we made was to acknowledge the scale and scope of our work has outgrown our pre-Full Member structures.”The senior men’s team have a busy few weeks ahead, with a white-ball tour of the UAE to play South Africa later this month. The senior women’s team is set to host England for three ODIs and two ODIs starting Saturday.

Nottingham Forest seem set to lose one of their talismanic attackers, Anthony Elanga, in the coming days.

It appears that the Sweden star will sign for Newcastle United in the coming days for £55m, with Fabrizio Romano reporting that the winger has completed his medical with the North Eastern side.

As a result, Forest need a new winger to don Garibaldi Red next season. Sky Sports suggested that they ‘are interested in a deal’ to sign PSV Eindhoven winger Johan Bakayoko and they are thought to have made an approach to the Dutch outfit to enquire about his availability this summer.

However, Bakayoko is not the only player on the list to replace Elanga, with Forest linked with a few more options out wide.

Nottingham Forest target new winger

It is certainly a frustrating situation that Forest find themselves in, having to replace Elanga this summer. However, the fee they are receiving is substantial, and allows them to sign a suitable replacement. Bakyoko is certainly not their only option.

In fact, according to journalist Greame Bailey, one of the players who Forest are considering to replace their number 21 is Ipswich Town star Omari Hutchinson.

Bailey explains that there is a ‘whole host of options out there’, but confirms that Hutchinson is one player the East Midlands side are considering.

At this stage, a price for the England U21 star has not been confirmed. However, given he cost the Tractor Boys £20m from Chelsea last summer, they would surely look to break even on the attacker, at the very least.

Why Hutchinson would be a good signing for Forest

At just 21 years of age, Hutchinson impressed in his first full season as a Premier League footballer. Once described as an “outstanding” player by football scout Antonio Mango, he would be an investment for both the present and future of Forest.

Last season, the versatile attacker, who has played for both Arsenal and Chelsea’s academies, played 31 times in the top flight for Ipswich. He bagged three goals and two assists, all of which came against some big sides, including both Chelsea and Manchester United.

Hutchinson was also a key member of England’s U21 European Championship-winning side last month under Lee Carsley. He played in all six games, including 98 minutes in the final against Germany, where he scored as England won 3-2 in extra time.

As a replacement for Elanga, there is no doubt that the Ipswich star would have a lot of work to do to match his numbers. The Sweden international managed six goals and 11 assists in 38 Premier League games last season.

However, there are similarities between the players, and Bakayoko, too, who managed 15 goals and assists last term.

Elanga and Hutchinson, in particular, are versatile and can play either flank or as a number 10. Bakayoko, too, is naturally a right winger.

The 21-year-old is naturally a left-footed player, and likes to cut inside on his strong foot when playing on the right-hand side. Just look at this goal he scored against Man United, picking up the ball in the right half-space, driving inside and firing home.

Indeed, the stats on FBref stack up well for Hutchinson against the other two players. For example, the Ipswich star stands out when looking at progressive numbers. Last season, he was averaging 1.57 passes into the final third per 90 minutes, more than Elanga’s 1.15 and Bakayoko’s 1.37 each game.

Key passes

1.08

1.80

2.60

Passes into final third

1.57

1.15

1.37

Progressive passes

2.61

2.27

3.60

Take-ons completed

1.78

0.90

2.69

Ball recoveries

3.83

3.20

2.49

Even though a price is not clear at this stage, a deal for Hutchinson could be a snart move for Forest. He has shown elite potential and versatility, and is already comparing well against Elanga and another of their targets in Bakayoko.

As far as an Elanga replacement goes, this could be a dream move for Forest this summer, and help them build for the present and the future.

Forget Fofana: Nottingham Forest could land instant Elanga upgrade for £34m

Nottingham Forest could replace Anthony Elanga with a current Premier League star

ByRoss Kilvington Jul 5, 2025

The fast bowler will return to the UK on Wednesday ahead of the ceremony and is a doubt for the second Test

Matt Roller08-Oct-2024Olly Stone will fly home from England’s tour of Pakistan on Wednesday ahead of his wedding this weekend, and appears unlikely to return in time to be considered for the second Test.Stone took seven wickets in two Tests against Sri Lanka at the end of the English summer, which were his first caps for three years in the format. Brydon Carse was preferred as England’s high-pace option for the first Test in Multan, which started on Monday, which has freed Stone up to fly home earlier than initially planned ahead of his wedding on Saturday.The date of Stone’s return is unconfirmed and may depend on the status of England’s other fast bowlers after the first Test. But with a very tight turnaround between his wedding and Tuesday’s second Test, he is unlikely to feature. Carse, Gus Atkinson and Chris Woakes are the three seamers picked to play in the first Test, with Matthew Potts the other fast bowler in the squad.England’s management are understood to be happy for Stone to leave Pakistan, given he was not included in their last batch of central contracts and his wedding was arranged long before his recall. He spoke to Rob Key and Brendon McCullum – England’s managing director and coach respectively – before the tour, who agreed that he should head home to get married.”We booked the wedding on the basis of me only playing for Notts at the time,” Stone recently told the BBC. “Jess said she was happy to move the wedding and I was adamant on keeping it where it was if possible. For what she has given up and sacrificed for me, I thought the least I could do was to try and make it work.”In a previous era, the seamer Tony Pigott postponed his own wedding at short notice in order to play what proved to be his only Test on England’s 1984 tour to New Zealand. More recently, contracted players have rescheduled weddings due to clashes: Joe Root said on Saturday that he and his wife Carrie had rearranged their own “three times because of different tours”.Root said that Stone would leave the tour with his teammates’ best wishes. “It’s a special time in anyone’s life,” he said. “I’m really excited for him. I’m sure he is all over the place with everything that’s going on, but it’ll be very special for him – and his wife – starting a different chapter in his life. We’ll all be raising a cold water to him at some point, celebrating.”

After missing out on Hugo Ekitike, Newcastle United are now reportedly plotting a fresh move to sign a 27-goal forward for Eddie Howe this summer.

Newcastle working on Ekitike alternatives

Whilst they have at least managed to welcome Anthony Elanga, there’s no denying that it’s been an incredibly frustrating summer for Newcastle so far. They first found themselves linked with moves for Joao Pedro and Bryan Mbeumo, only for their targets to join Chelsea and Manchester United respectively.

Then, their attention turned towards the talented Ekitike and it looked as though he was there for the taking. The Magpies submitted an opening bid and were reportedly preparing a second before Liverpool came swooping in to seal the Frenchman’s signature. Now, for the umpteenth time this summer, Newcastle are back to square one.

The next name on their list on that front seems to be Yoane Wissa. The Brentford striker has reportedly left the Bees’ pre-season camp amid speculation that both Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle are interested, leading to an opening bid from those at St James’ Park.

With Tottenham also interested, Newcastle will be wary that they could yet miss out on another target in what would only be the latest blow in a summer to forget. But that concern means that Wissa isn’t the only name on their shortlist of Ekitike alternatives.

Alongside the Brentford star, the likes of Benjamin Sesko and even Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez have been mentioned. If the Magpies want to exact revenge on the Reds, then one way would be to sign Nunez before finally getting the best out of him.

Their new Ba: Newcastle confident of signing "remarkable" £50m star

Newcastle are weighing up a move for Brentford’s star man after move for Ekitike falls through.

ByWill Miller Jul 23, 2025

Of course, however, that move would come with no guarantee that the South American would finally spark into life. Instead, Newcastle should focus on a Ligue 1 star who scored 27 goals last season.

Newcastle now plotting Biereth move

According to Caught Offside, Newcastle are now plotting a summer swoop to sign Mika Biereth in a deal worth £40m. The AS Monaco forward enjoyed an excellent campaign last time out – scoring 27 goals in all competitions after adding to his initial tally at SK Sturm Graz in the first-half of the campaign.

Stepping up to Ligue 1 level also proved little trouble for the 22-year-old, who scored 13 goals in just 16 games to steal further headlines. Now, six months on from joining Monaco, the Dane could be on his way back to the Premier League.

Dubbed “outrageous” by scout Jacek Kulig, Biereth is not a name that most Premier League fans will know well, but one that Arsenal and Fulham fans should be familiar with.

The forward initially came through at Craven Cottage before making his way to the famous Hale End academy. Ultimately, however, opportunities came few and far between for Biereth, who has since thrived elsewhere.