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2025 US Open winner Carlos Alcaraz has weighed in on the Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi debate, revealing which football ‘GOAT’ he is inspired by.

Alcaraz wins sixth major title in New York

Alcaraz picked up the sixth major title of his career with a victory in the US Open final against long-time rival Jannik Sinner on Sunday, winning the competition for the second time.

The Spaniard defeated Sinner 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 in the presence of Donald Trump, with the US president’s attendance causing the final to be delayed, before eventually starting in front of thousands of empty seats due to ramped-up security measures outside.

The 22-year-old may have a rivalry with the Italian on the court, but he took the time to praise the runner-up after clinching the victory in New York City.

Away from tennis, the World No.1 is well-known to be an avid supporter of Real Madrid, with the Spanish giants taking the time to congratulate the star on his recent success in the USA.

As such, it is no surprise Alcaraz’s list of the top five footballers of all-time may be considered a little Real Madrid-centric, with Ronaldo making the list, alongside Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric, Ronaldinho and Neymar, with Messi being omitted entirely.

The tennis star also said: “I love Cristiano Ronaldo. The confidence he has is unbelievable. He always believes in himself. When I hear he is the first player to go to training and the last one to go home, that shows the hard worker he is and that inspires me a lot.”

Ronaldo has one last chance to reignite GOAT debate

In many people’s minds, the GOAT debate was already settled prior to the 2022 World Cup, given that the Inter Miami star eclipses the Portugal legend in terms of Ballon d’Ors, but Argentina’s triumph out in Qatar arguably ended the conversation.

Ballon d'Or 2025 Final Rankings

Where did the 30 nominees finish?

ByCharlie Smith Sep 23, 2025

With the Al-Nassr star now 40-years-old, the 2026 World Cup will almost certainly be his last, meaning he has one final opportunity to lead Portugal to glory, which would perhaps mean there is a debate there to be had once again.

Albeit in Saudi Arabia, the record-breaking 222-time Portugal international is showing few signs of slowing down, despite his age, maintaining a fantastic goal-scoring record throughout the three previous seasons he has spent with Al-Nassr in the Gulf state.

Ronaldo in Saudi

League appearances

Goals

2022-23

16

14

2023-24

31

35

2024-25

30

25

However, given that Messi led Argentina to 2022 World Cup glory, and has three more Ballon d’Ors to his name, it has become much more difficult to make a case for Ronaldo, and Alcaraz’s preference is likely due to the fact he is a Real Madrid supporter.

Celtic are in a strange position heading into the final few days of the summer transfer window, having just been knocked out of the Champions League.

The Hoops may have been hoping to have the extra funds to target bigger signings before the deadline, but they may have to find other ways to raise money for new additions, including cashing in on their current stars.

According to Anthony Joseph, Adam Idah had a medical at Swansea on Friday ahead of a £7m move to Wales, 12 months on from his £9.5m switch to Celtic from Norwich.

Allowing the Ireland international to move on, though, could provide the Scottish Premiership champions with a chance to reinvest in Brendan Rodgers’ squad in the next few days.

Celtic preparing bid for new winger

Whilst Idah’s exit will create the need for a new striker to arrive at Parkhead, the Scottish giants are also looking to bring in another winger on top of Michel-Ange Balikwisha.

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According to Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph, Celtic are still pursuing a last-gasp deal to sign Hammarby forward Sebastian Tounekti.

The reporter claims that the Hoops have made a second offer for the winger after they already had a first proposal of around £2.6m turned down by the Swedish side.

He reveals that the Scottish giants have offered a deal worth up to £4.7m for the wing wizard, who is said to be valued at £5m, and it remains to be seen what their answer will be.

The winger was recently quoted saying: “You get to know some of what’s going on and I’ve heard that there’s interest. Of course it’s great that a big club (Celtic) that often plays in the Champions League wants me. It’s a top club in Europe. It’s great that there’s that kind of interest and it shows that you’ve done something good.”

What Tounekti could bring to Celtic

One player who could benefit from the club getting a deal over the line for the Swedish attacker is Daizen Maeda, who could love the creative forward.

The Japan international scored a staggering 33 goals in 51 appearances in all competitions last season, per Transfermarkt, but his only goal in six outings this term came against Falkirk in the League Cup.

Tounekti predominantly plays on the left wing and could free Maeda up to play through the middle as a striker, particularly with Idah’s impending exit, and the 23-year-old star has the creative quality to be a dream for the current Celtic marksman.

2025 Allsvenskan

Sebastien Tounekti

Percentile rank vs wingers

Goals

2

Top 37%

Chances created

22

Top 16%

Dribbles completed

41

Top 3%

Pass accuracy

85%

Top 15%

xA

4.53

Top 3%

Assists

5

Top 9%

Stats via FotMob

In 19 league starts this year, as you can see in the table above, the £3m-rated attacker has been one of the most creative players in his home country’s top-flight.

These statistics suggest that he has the potential to be an incredibly creative figure out wide for Celtic, as a player who can consistently beat opposition players as a dribbler whilst also creating high-quality chances for his teammates on a regular basis.

This is why Maeda, who has yet to replicate his goalscoring exploits from last season, may love to play alongside Tounekti at Parkhead this season for the Hoops.

The Celtic target could be the creative spark out wide that Maeda needs to rediscover his shooting boots and hit the goal trail on a regular basis for Rodgers once again, which is why this is a potentially exciting signing for the club for multiple reasons.

Related Worse than Idah: Rodgers must drop Celtic star who lost the ball 20 times

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers must drop this flop who was even worse than Adam Idah against Kairat.

Posts 3 ByDan Emery Aug 27, 2025

The esteemed Golden Ball has been elusive to so many great footballers down the years, but who deserved it the most?

Back in 1995, the Ballon d'Or became eligible to non-European players for the first time, which helped it to become the most sought-after award in the sport. A grand total of 17 players have won it since then, including African icon George Weah, Brazilian quartet Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Kaka, and Argentine maestro Lionel Messi, who has dominated the vote over the last 16 years with a record haul of eight wins.

Meanwhile, Portuguese goal machine Cristiano Ronaldo has brought the Golden Ball back to Europe on five occasions, and Mathias Sammer, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, Michael Owen, Pavel Nedved, Andriy Shevchenko, Fabio Cannavaro, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema and Rodri have each claimed the prestigious prize once. All of those players were deserving winners, too, but so were many of the superstars they beat to the top of the podium.

As we edge closer to the 2025 winner being crowned, GOAL has ranked the top 10 greatest footballers to never win the Ballon d'Or, starting with a man who scored a whopping 573 career goals on his way to lifting 34 trophies…

• Getty Images
  

  10Zlatan Ibrahimovic

  Indeed, only six players in history have won more trophies than Zlatan Ibrahimovic, which is a testament to his insatiable hunger for victory and longevity at the highest level. The indomitable striker won 11 league titles in four different countries, and he is third in the list of the highest scoring players this century behind Messi and Ronaldo, with 62 of his goals coming at international level with an unfancied Sweden team.

  Despite all of that, Ibrahimovic's highest finish in the Ballon d'Or voting was only fourth, which he managed at PSG in 2014. The former Ajax, Juventus, Inter, Barcelona, AC Milan and Manchester United striker's failure to win the Champions League, or even reach the final, always counted against him, but he did still find the net 48 times across 124 appearances, and is the only player to ever score for six different clubs in the competition.

  Ibrahimovic was also a maverick with a penchant for the spectacular. He made the impossible possible and had a larger-than-life personality that made him pure box office. There were plenty of other contenders for the final spot on the list, including Francesco Totti, Dennis Bergkamp, Alessandro Del Piero, Roberto Carlos, Samuel Eto'o, and Gianluigi Buffon, but Ibrahimovic gets the nod for being a one-of-a-kind genius who set incredible standards of consistency.

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• Getty
  

  9Raul

  Raul Gonzalez is regarded as one of the finest players to ever wear the iconic Real Madrid shirt, having scored 228 goals in 550 appearances for the club between 1994 and 2010. The Spanish centre-forward was a deadly finisher with both feet and had unrivalled instincts in and around the box, which were invaluable to Madrid during their runs to Champions League glory in 1997-98, 1999-2000 and 2001-02.

  Real also amassed six La Liga titles with Raul leading the line, including when he was at the peak of his powers in the 2000-21 season. He won the Golden Boot with 24 goals and also finished as top scorer in the Champions League, but narrowly missed out on the 2021 Ballon d'Or to Liverpool frontman Michael Owen.

  Owen was acknowledged for firing Liverpool to an FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup treble, but only hit 24 goals in all competitions compared to Raul's 32. The Real icon, who also racked up 102 appearances and 44 career goals for Spain, was the best player in Europe that year. It could also be argued that Raul didn't always get his due credit in Madrid's Galactico era, despite his quality in the final third never wavering and his underrated leadership skills as captain.

• Getty Images Sport
  

  8Paolo Maldini

  Only one defender was worthy of a place in these rankings: the elegant, unflappable AC Milan and Italy legend Paolo Maldini. was an expert reader of the game with remarkable stamina and strength, which meant he rarely came off second best in one-v-one situations, and he was versatile enough to operate as both a centre-back and left-back.

  “There are great players and there are world-class players. Then there are those who manage to go beyond that term. Paolo is the perfect example," former Italy international Del Piero once said in what was also a "perfect" assessment of Maldini. There has never been a more complete defender, and probably never will be.

  Maldini's career achievements back that up, with five Champions League crowns and seven Serie A titles amassed across his 25-year stint at Milan, while he also earned runners-up medals with Italy at both the World Cup and European Championship. Few players have left a bigger imprint on the game than Maldini, and he should really have claimed multiple Ballons d'Or, but incredibly, he only made it onto the podium once, on the back of a masterclass in Milan's 2003 Champions League final win over Juventus.

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  7Xavi

  Xavi Hernandez was the heartbeat of the greatest club and international sides ever, a masterful deep-lying playmaker who was always one step ahead of everyone else on the pitch. The diminutive midfielder won the Champions League four times and La Liga on eight occasions during his 17-year career at Barcelona, while also leading Spain to back-to-back European Championships and the World Cup.

  Between 2009 and 2012, Barca and Spain were both unstoppable, and Xavi came third in the Ballon d'Or voting in each of those years behind overall winner Messi. The Argentine prevailed through the strength of his insane number of goal contributions and individual flair, but Xavi was unfortunate not to finish above his Barca team-mate at least once.

  Xavi's work in the middle of the park was never anything less than immaculate, and without him controlling the tempo of games, Barca would not have been nearly so dominant, but it went under the radar. As a team player, Xavi had no equal. As former Spain and Man Utd midfielder Ander Herrera said in a fitting tribute to Xavi after his departure from Barca in 2015: "There won’t be another player like him. The style of Barcelona and the national team was forged through him."

Xabi Alonso called Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dani Carvajal’s battle for Real Madrid’s right-back spot “healthy competition”.

WHAT HAPPENED?

The Madrid boss Alonso addressed the competition between Carvajal and Alexander-Arnold ahead of Los Blancos’s return to La Liga action against Real Sociedad. The head coach described their battle for the right-back spot as a case of “healthy competition” and confirmed that team selection will depend on merit. The remarks came in his pre-match press conference as he prepared for an emotional first return to San Sebastian since leaving Real Sociedad B for Bayer Leverkusen in 2022.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT ALONSO SAID

During his recent pre-game press conference Alonso addressed the situation in defence: “Fortunately, we have healthy competition within the team, and they're challenged internally because there are teammates who are ready… It also happens in other positions, like centre-back or winger. Whoever deserves it will play; it's going to be very repetitive all year.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Carvajal, the captain and long-standing figure at the club, has been Alonso’s preferred starter in the opening games. But Alexander-Arnold, signed from Liverpool this summer, offers attacking flair and has already shown flashes of his quality in comeback wins. Alonso’s public insistence on meritocracy reflects his approach to building a competitive squad where no position is guaranteed. The balancing act will define Madrid’s right flank across domestic and European campaigns.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR MADRID?

Madrid head into a crunch September run with seven games before the international break, including the Champions League opener and the Madrid derby. Alonso will be forced to rotate, meaning both Carvajal and Alexander-Arnold are set to share opportunities. How he manages that competition could shape not only Madrid’s defensive solidity but also their attacking balance on the right. For Alonso, Saturday also carries a personal weight as his return to San Sebastian since his coaching days at La Real, a reminder of where his managerial journey began.

The former USMNT star raised concerns about Mauricio Pochettino's squad's readiness for the World Cup

Howard casts doubt on any USMNT optimistismSays team struggles against top-25 opponentsSquad lacks necessary nastiness as a unitWHAT HAPPENED

Assessing the USMNT's 2-0 loss to South Korea and the state of the squad, former national team star Tim Howard discounted any sense of optimism around the program ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

“There's an optimism around this team because there's a World Cup and it's coming to our country," Howard said on the Unfiltered Soccer podcast. "And we just simply as soccer fans, get excited. But when you begin the dissect some of these numbers and stats, there's not a ton to get excited about… but there's there's something with this team that they don't have. I don't know, the moxie, they don't have something to win the big games.

"That like that's not an opinion, that's what they're showing us. And, and so much of this exercise is the build up to the World Cup. Sometimes we picked the bones of it too much, or sometimes it's fluff. But ultimately the World Cup is about winning big games.”

He specifically highlighted the USMNT's struggles against higher-ranked opponents, noting their inability to compete with teams ranked in the world's top 25. Under Mauricio Pochettino, the team has lost to the likes of Mexico, Turkey, Switzerland and South Korea.

“I mean, if you look back on all your World Cups and all my World Cups, I would say, the one takeaway was, how do we get through difficult moments? One how do we persevere in difficult moments? And if you can't persevere, or how the hell do you hang on for dear life, right?" he said. "That's essentially What we do. And this team just hasn't really quite shown the ability to do that in the bigger games. I'll blanket that by just saying top 25 teams in the world, right? The teams that are that are really going to matter, and they haven't shown that ability.”

AdvertisementWHAT LANDON DONOVA SAID

Former national team star Landon Donovan said the current generation of USMNT players lacks the guidance to get them where they need to be.

“After the 2018 failure to qualify for the World Cup, you said U.S, soccer made a decision that basically all of you guys were old, couldn't cut it anymore,” Donovan said. “And we're just gonna bring in all young players and let them grow and develop. On the surface interior, like, ‘OK, I can see that like we need to reboot.' But what happened was massive void in leadership.

"And when I was coaching for a while you realize quickly that when a team has avoid in leadership chaos, or anybody thinks about countries around the world when there's a void in leadership, chaos ensues. And there was a void in leadership. Now, I'm not talking about the coach, [Gregg] Berhalter, necessarily. I'm talking about the players… Of course, they had no guidance. And it's not their fault because they didn't know.”

Donovan said that he hopes US Soccer has learned from those decisions.

“I really do hope that we don't have another reckoning like this in '26," he said. "But I think it could happen, right? It's definitely a possibility. And I just hope you learn from that and don't throw everything out the window."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

With World Cup success ultimately determined by performance in high-pressure situations against quality opponents, the USMNT’s current pattern of results against nations ranked inside FIFA's top 30 rankings represents a concern.

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Getty Images SportWHAT’S NEXT?

The USMNT and Pochettino will face Japan Tuesday night.

A new update has claimed that Sunderland are now thought to be planning a new offer for a player who has been praised for having a “big heart”.

Adingra wants to "achieve greatness" at Sunderland

The Black Cats have completed their latest piece of transfer business this summer, with Brighton winger Simon Adringra arriving at the Stadium of Light.

The 23-year-old has spoken of his excitement about the move, with Manchester United’s Amad Diallo talking Sunderland up after his loan spell there.

“I spoke to the gaffer and the owner, and they showed me interest, so I decided to come and be part of the project. The Premier League was my dream since I was a kid – I am living my dream. Today, I’m here in Sunderland. It’s a big challenge to face big teams and players, and it’s a great league. I’m about dribbling, speed, scoring goals and getting assists.

“I know Amad very well from the national team and he told me how big this club is. Now, I’m looking forward to getting to know my teammates and getting started. It’s a pleasure to be here and I can’t wait to get started – I hope we achieve greatness together.”

Sunderland will still be looking to complete further signings before the window slams shut on September 1st, however, and a new update has now emerged regarding a primary summer target.

Sunderland planning new bid for international star

According to Sky Sports Germany, Sunderland are now set to submit a new offer for Xhaka, who finds a move to the Stadium of Light appealing.

The Black Cats’ opening bid for the 32-year-old was rejected, but the Premier League newcomers’ interest hasn’t gone away, with Fenerbahce also mentioned as an option in the report. Meanwhile, Leverkusen would like to keep hold of him.

Since then, David Ornstein has added that the Black Cats have an agreement with Xhaka, who only wants to move to the north East. Xhaka would be a signing of such intent by Sunderland this summer, so it is extremely encouraging that they are continuing to pursue a move for him.

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The former Arsenal man has been a key player for Bayer Leverkusen, winning the Bundesliga title in 2023/24 and being hailed by ex-boss Xabi Alonso for the “big heart” that he possesses. The Swiss also has quality on the ball, though, with Joe Cole an admirer of his.

“He’s a good finisher, he’s a lovely technician. We’ve seen him score some worldies in his career. He’s a leader in the dressing room, he’s so important for the team.”

Granit Xhaka’s international career

Caps

Goals

Switzerland

137

14

Switzerland Under-21s

5

0

Switzerland Under-19s

10

3

Switzerland Under-18s

3

2

Switzerland Under-17s

13

1

The experience that Xhaka would add to Sunderland’s team would be invaluable, considering he has won an incredible number of caps for Switzerland, and while his very best days may soon be behind him, there is no reason why he couldn’t enjoy two or three excellent years in a Black Cats shirt.

England’s Test players are being lined up to play in the ILT20 and the SA20 at the start of 2025, after missing the second seasons of both leagues due to their tour to India. Joe Root was unveiled as a new signing by Paarl Royals on Friday, and ESPNcricinfo understands that franchises have expressed interest in several other Test players.The reported on Friday that Ben Stokes, who has not played a limited-overs international since the 50-over World Cup, has been offered a substantial contract to play for MI Cape Town. Stokes skipped the T20 World Cup to ensure he was fit to bowl in Test cricket this summer and has not publicly addressed his England future as a white-ball player since.Rob Key, England’s managing director, admitted last year that a lucrative offer made to Mark Wood by Dubai Capitals prompted his decision to give players multi-year central contracts, and players and their representatives may look to use similar offers as leverage. Stokes’ England contract is due to expire at the end of September after he turned down a three-year deal last year.While England are due to play both T20I and ODI series in India at the start of next year, both of their winter Test tours – to Pakistan in October and New Zealand in December – will be over before Christmas. It means that players who are not involved in those limited-overs squads will be available to play full seasons at the ILT20 or SA20.Like Stokes, it is unclear whether Root is in England’s plans for next year’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan, but he has not played a T20 international since 2019. He should therefore be available to Paarl for the vast majority of the SA20 even if he is picked for the three-match ODI series in India, which starts on February 6.The two leagues in the UAE and South Africa have backing from Indian investors and have transformed the franchise landscape in the past two years by offering lucrative salaries to overseas players during the southern-hemisphere summer. Both are due to run from the second week of January until early February in 2025.Jamie Smith, who made his Test debut last week, has already been retained by Gulf Giants in the ILT20 and was the subject of interest from Pretoria Capitals in the SA20. Like Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope, Smith also has ambitions to secure a place in England’s white-ball set-up but will be able to fall back on a month of franchise cricket if he fails to do so.Root had played for Rajasthan Royals – the IPL franchise who bought the Paarl franchise two years ago – in the 2023 IPL. Their global director of cricket Kumar Sangakkara said in a press release on Friday that they would use “his experience, his personality, his brains and also his performances on the field” during the SA20, after reaching the Eliminator in 2024.”We all know what a phenomenal player Joe Root is, and to have him back at the Royals is a great feeling,” Sangakkara said. “He has been a great contributor to all the teams he has represented over the years, and has also proven to be a valuable all-rounder with his bowling and fielding attributes.”

An exciting transfer update has emerged regarding Liverpool’s quest to build a squad capable of retaining their Premier League crown, courtesy of Fabrizio Romano.

Liverpool closing in on stunning Wirtz move

The Reds appear to be edging closer to completing the most exciting signing of the summer in England, with Florian Wirtz on the verge of joining from Bayer Leverkusen.

He is expected to smash Liverpool’s transfer record, with a move of £116m mooted, in what could be among the club’s most significant signings of the past decade or so.

Wirtz has been voted as the best player in the Bundesliga in each of the past two seasons by his peers, highlighting his brilliance, and Reds supporters will be hoping that he can enjoy the same level of world-class influence that the likes of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Alisson have at Anfield.

Once the German superstar is confirmed as a Liverpool player, it will be time for the Reds to turn their attention to other targets.

Romano: Liverpool "on fire" with Kerkez set to join

Speaking on TikTok late on Sunday evening, Romano confirmed Wirtz will join the club once he finishes his holidays and completes a medical, but he also had news on Bournemouth star Milos Kerkez, revealing the Reds are “on fire”.

At this point, it would be a huge surprise if the Reds didn’t bring in Kerkez this summer, with the Hungarian at the top of their list for a long time now, and it’s not hard to see why.

The Bournemouth man, on just £30,000-a-week on the south coast, already looks like such a polished footballer, despite his tender years, and the energy and competitive edge in his game have echoes of a young Andy Robertson, with former teammate Mat Ryan once heaping praise on him.

“Milos is a great boy. A crazy dude, in a good way. He is always positive and smiling. Hopefully he can develop even further in England and become even more mature. He is aggressive, powerful and has so many qualities. A unique skill set. Bournemouth is going to get stronger because of him. Milos still has a great career ahead of him.”

Liverpool could easily get close to a decade of great service from Kerkez, assuming he avoids serious injury, and regardless of whether Robertson stays or not this summer, the Cherries ace must be considered the Reds’ first-choice left-back.

Super-agent Pini Zahavi is keen for one of his illustrious clients to join Arsenal after previous transfer talks, with there being a preference for him to make an Emirates Stadium move if he does choose a Premier League switch.

Arsenal set to seal Martin Zubimendi deal

On Saturday morning, some extremely significant news broke from the Emirates Stadium, courtesy of the ever-reliable Fabrizio Romano.

World's "second-best" player expected to join Arsenal with groundwork done

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After months of advanced talks, which first came to light in January (The Mail), Romano has now confirmed that Arsenal are set to sign Zubimendi from Real Sociedad and will trigger his £51 million release clause – giving his signature ‘here we go’ to the deal.

The Spain international has pledged to sign a long-term contract in north London, one year after Zubimendi rejected a move to Liverpool, and he is now set to become Andrea Berta’s first signing as new sporting director.

Zubimendi’s capture is an undoubted boost for Mikel Arteta, and he will come in as a direct replacement for Jorginho after the Italy international agreed pre-contract terms on a summer move to Flamengo.

With Zubimendi’s arrival seemingly wrapped up, attention turns to who could follow the 26-year-old to N5.

Arsenal are considering the possibility of signing an alternative to Bukayo Saka on the right-hand side, and they remain linked with a move for Bayern Munich star Leroy Sané.

Pini Zahavi keen on Leroy Sané joining Arsenal

The £244,000-per-week forward recently switched agents, employing Zahavi, and that has apparently thrown a spanner in the works of a potential new contract at Bayern.

It has provided some hope Arsenal can strike a free deal for Sane, with Bundesliga insider Christian Falk suggesting Zahavi is keen for his client to end up there if they opt for a Premier League transfer.

Zahavi has a preference for Sane joining Arsenal over Newcastle, as per Falk, if fresh terms with Bayern cannot be agreed.

“Pini is on the prowl. Zahavi is checking out clubs in England and there are a few,” said Falk on the Bayern Insider podcast.

“The player’s previous management had already negotiated with Arsenal, but now there’s a club that actually had its eye on Kingsley Coman, but now a player who plays a similar position, and the club is in the north.

“So, Newcastle is among the candidates being checked out. Leroy Sané actually wants to play in the Champions League, that’s his goal, that’s his aspiration.

“Newcastle is being discounted a bit, they also have great potential, of course, always with the sponsors, but I’d say if things don’t work out at Bayern, the clear focus is on England. Preferably towards London, but Newcastle is also a good alternative.”

Newcastle United advanced to third place in the Premier League when they thrashed Crystal Palace at St. James’ Park on Wednesday evening.

Now, Jason Tindall will lead the Magpies out at Villa Park as Eddie Howe continues to recover from pneumonia. Aston Villa fought valiantly but failed to stage a comeback against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League in midweek, thus heightening what will be billed as a six-pointer of sorts.

19/04/25

Aston Villa (A)

7th

26/04/25

Ipswich Town (H)

18th

04/05/25

Brighton (A)

10th

10/05/25

Chelsea (H)

6th

18/05/25

Arsenal (A)

2nd

25/05/25

Everton (H)

13th

Unai Emery’s side sit in seventh place, five points behind Newcastle. Therefore, it’s paramount that United avoid defeat in the Midlands, reinforcing their strong position as they look to return to Europe’s elite stage after lifting the Carabao Cup in March.

Newcastle team news

Howe isn’t the only one who will be absent on Saturday evening, with Sven Botman, Jamal Lascelles and Lewis Hall all still sidelined. A weakened backline, yes, but Newcastle have proved their resourcefulness when faced with depletion.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Tindall spoke in his pre-match press conference of the importance of keeping a winning formula intact, but having played only three days ago, several players will be eyeing a starting berth. Anthony Gordon, for one.

However, the frontline is firing on all cylinders right now and the Three Lions star may have to wait a little longer to return from the outset.

The stand-in Toon boss may want to make a small tweak to his midfield, though.

Why Newcastle should make a change in midfield

Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimaraes are playing with such brio at the moment that to replace either of them would be a foolish notion. However, Joelinton could start this one from the bench without disrupting the overall fluency of Newcastle’s engine room.

Joelinton is a force of a player, a raging bull, and while he laid on an assist for Alexander Isak against the Eagles, the Brazilian was somewhat anonymous by his usual standards, winning three duels and taking just 33 touches before being hooked just after the hour mark.

Newcastle do have options to step in, should Tindall opt to freshen things up a tad. And who better to unleash than Lewis Miley, who has had to bide his time for minutes this term after an injury-disrupted start and the overall fluidity of Newcastle’s tried-and-tested starters.

Miley, 20, has been a breath of fresh air over the past few years, breaking from the Tyneside academy and making his name as a prospect of genuine potential, already praised for his “unbelievable” technical ability by fellow youth graduate Sean Longstaff.

Though he hasn’t featured all that often this term, the rangy midfielder could make a real impression here, stepping in due to Newcastle’s short turnaround.

His sole Premier League start of the season so far sparked a goal, and a rounded performance besides. As per Sofascore, Miley complemented his crisp, driven strike against Nottingham Forest by taking 63 touches, winning six duels and making two tackles and interceptions apiece.

Now, that dynamism could be utilised against Aston Villa. Miley’s technical, ball-playing quality will be well served against Emery’s hybrid style, looking to spark rapid transitions that could be countered by a midfield three including Miley, blending coolness with creativity.

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ByBrett Worthington Apr 17, 2025