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Prior to the international break Liverpool suffered a chastening 3-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

Considering Pep Guardiola’s side are perennial title challengers, you can excuse that blemish on Arne Slot’s copybook.

However, as the Reds welcomed lowly Nottingham Forest to Anfield on Saturday, it was a wonderful opportunity to build some momentum and find some form ahead of a kinder run of fixtures.

How disastrous it has started. Slot’s job was brought under further scrutiny as his men were downed 3-0 in front of their own fans. Gulp, this was not what Liverpool needed.

Across their last 11 games, they have only won three games. This is certainly not the team that won the Premier League at a canter last term.

At the centre of their issues has been Ibrahima Konate.

Konate's performance vs Nottingham Forest

Last season, Trent Alexander-Arnold didn’t quite throw in the towel but his performances were abject as he pursued a move to Real Madrid.

This season, the same thing appears to be playing a factor in the performances of Konate who looks a shadow of his former self.

The Frenchman has been error-ridden this season and his display against Forest summed everything up.

Analyst Raj Chohan took to social media to exclaim that “every time he makes one error, he makes multiple.”

He was notably at fault for the controversial moment that Igor Jesus was involved in when his goal was disallowed for handball.

Chalkboard

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

The Brazilian completely caught out Liverpool’s underperforming centre-back as he threw himself to the floor and was fortunate that it was ruled out.

So poor was Konate’s display that he was dragged off on 55 minutes soon after Liverpool went 2-0 down. He left the pitch with a wry smile, hardly the attitude you want from someone who’s been linked with a move away so regularly, and to Madrid of all places too.

He was handed a 3/10 match rating by GOAL but didn’t leave the pitch as their worst performer.

Liverpool’s worst performer against Nottingham Forest

While Liverpool’s defence will come under the microscope of scrutiny for their failings against Sean Dyche’s men, their forward line is also not pulling up any trees either.

For a side that spent over £200m on Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, far far more should be expected.

Wirtz did not start the game at Anfield on Saturday but Isak did. Fans, however, must be wishing he hadn’t.

Signed in a British record £125m deal over the summer, it has been a wretched first few months in Liverpool red for the Swede.

He has played nine times now and only has one goal, a strike in the Carabao Cup, to show for his efforts.

Since then, Isak has failed to score. He’s without a goal in five league games and all four of his Premier League starts have ended in defeat.

The nadir of his Anfield career so far came this weekend when he was anonymous against Forest. GOAL handed the striker a dismal 2/10 rating, writing that he ‘hardly had a kick’ and ‘wasn’t even close to breaking his duck here’.

As a result, he was subbed off for Federico Chiesa after 68 minutes and simply cannot be in the starting lineup for their Champions League clash in midweek.

Minutes played

68

Touches

14

Accurate passes

5/7 (71%)

Key passes

1

Successful dribbles

0

Shots

1

Shots on target

0

Ground duels won

0

Aerial duels won

0

While Hugo Ekitike has barely been in good form himself, Liverpool’s best displays in 2025/26 have come with their fellow summer signing in the team.

Isak’s display this time around was so anonymous that he had just 14 touches of the football. In the process, he gave possession away seven times. For every two touches of the ball, he was squandering possession.

Usually so technically secure and comfortable in possession, it’s a huge worry that he can’t even get himself into the action.

To compound the striker’s woes, he lost every single one of his duels and managed just one shot which wasn’t even on target.

For any new signing to be in such a desperate rut would be a concern, but when he’s the most expensive player in Premier League history, it only heightens the issue. He is paying the price for a lack of pre-season and it’s desperately hurting Liverpool’s season.

Perhaps they should have stuck with Ekitike after all.

Despite their financial constraints, Barcelona remain confident of signing a new world-class No.9 to replace Robert Lewandowski, with Bayern Munich star Harry Kane one of the options being considered. Lewandowski is in the final few months of his existing contract and is expected to leave the club as a free agent next summer as the Catalan giants are unlikely to offer him a new deal.

• Lewandowski likely to leave Barcelona

  With just a few months left on Lewandowski's current Barcelona contract, the 37-year-old striker has been closely linked with a move away from the Spanish side next summer as a free agent. The Polish forward's representative, Pini Zahavi recently claimed that the striker could leave the Catalan side, saying: "Lewandowski's contract with Barcelona expires in the summer of 2026, and no decisions have been made yet. We'll have to wait and see what happens in the coming days." 

  With the Lewandowski chapter possibly coming to an end, the Catalan giants have started to prepare for life beyond their star striker. According to , the club have prepared a shortlist of five forwards, which includes world-class options like Julian Alvarez and Kane. 

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  Can Barcelona afford to sign a world-class No.9?

  The report adds that Barcelona's financial department remains confident that the club would be able to secure the transfer for a top striker, with the club's eyes on Atletico Madrid star Julian Alvarez. But to afford the new player, they will have to return to La Liga's 1:1 rule. Once Lewandowski leaves, €40 million (£35m/$46m) will be freed up with which the new transfer can be funded.

  As of now, Barcelona are close to achieving the 1:1 balance, with pending payment for the VIP seat instalments due in December. In the 2024-25 settlement, €70m out of the €100m (£88m/$116m) has already been paid and the club will receive the remaining €30m by December. With that they will be able to match the 1:1 balance. 

  A second clause will be to draw up a financial structure to cover the transfer amount and Barcelona believe that the projected revenue growth after full opening of the Camp Nou will help them to cover that ground. 

• Which players are linked with Barcelona

  After ruling out the prospect of signing Erling Haaland due to the financial requirements, the favourite candidate to replace Lewandowski as Barcelona's main No.9 is Alvarez from Atletico. The shortlist also consists of Bayern and England star Kane, along with Galatasaray's Victor Osimhen, Borussia Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy and a low-cost option in Etta Eyong. 

  The latter, who just joined Levante in the summer, said this week that his dream is to play for the Catalan club and labelled Camp Nou icons Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto'o as his childhood idols.

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  Yamal wants Lewandowski to stay

  While Barcelona have not offered Lewandowski a new deal, their star attacker Lamine Yamal reportedly wants the veteran striker to stay. The relationship between the two players at opposing ends of their respective careers has apparently strengthened both on and off the field. Yamal is said to view the ex-Bayern star as 'a mentor', with there being a productive understanding between the pair as they look to pose problems to La Liga and Champions League opponents.

  Yamal now wants to see Lewandowski remain in his current surroundings beyond the summer of 2027, when free agency is set to be reached. He is said to be of the opinion that there is nobody better suited to continue fostering his development, while providing much-needed leadership.

  The veteran forward has also been linked with a move to Serie A giants AC Milan as Zlatan Ibrahimovic reportedly wants to sign him, while there have also been reports that claimed that the 37-year-old might even consider announcing his retirement from professional football.

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No Grupo D da Libertadores, o Botafogo encara LDU, Junior de Barraquila e Universitario em busca de uma vaga no mata-mata do torneio continental. Nesses adversários, Fábio Matias encontrará atletas rivais conhecidos e que precisará ter atenção redobrada.

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LDU

Uma das mais tradicionais equipes do Equador, a LDU sempre foi uma pedra no sapato dos times brasileiros. Em 2023, conquistou a Copa Sul-Americana e foi vice da Recopa Sul-Americana – perdendo para o Fluminense.

Apesar dos resultados expressivos, o time do Equador sofreu com a saída do treinador Luis Zubeldia, no final de 2023, e do já conhecido pelos brasileiros, Paolo Guerrero.

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A grande aposta para essa temporada se chama Jan Hurtado. O atacante, de 24 anos, chega à equipe equatoriana, emprestado pelo Boca Juniors. O empréstimo chega ao final no dia 30 de junho, porém a LDU deve pagar 900 mil Euros, para ficar com o atleta, em definitivo.

Hurtado surgiu como uma promessa no Boca Juniors, mas acabou não vingando como o esperado. O mesmo teve uma passagem apagada pelo RB Bragantino e agora tenta reencontrar o seu futebol na equipe equatoriana.

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JUNIOR DE BARRANQUILLA

O Junior de Barranquila conta com mais destaques individuais. Na linha de meio, a equipe colombiana conta com a volta de Cantillo, ex-jogador do Corinthians, que voltou ao clube em que se destacou, após três temporadas sem conseguir se firmar no Brasil.

No setor ofensivo, o clube conta com o folclórico Yimmi Chára, que atuou pelo Atlético Mineiro, em 2018 e 2019, e com o craque Carlos Bacca. O experiente centroavante, de 37 anos, já passou por grandes clubes europeus como: Villareal, Sevilla e Milan. O mesmo também disputou as copas de 2014 e 2018 e sem dúvidas é a grande esperança de gols da equipe.

UNIVERSITARIO

O Universitario, assim como, a LDU também não conta com muitos destaques individuais na sua equipe. O time deposita todas as suas fichas em Edison Flores. O ponta esquerda, que chegou em 2023, disputou a Copa D Mundo da Rússia, em 2018, e estava em campo na final da Copa América, em 2019, no Brasil.

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Stats highlights from India’s thrilling victory against England at The Oval

Sampath Bandarupalli04-Aug-2025

Mohammed Siraj was named Player of the Match•Associated Press

6 – India’s margin of victory in the fifth Test against England at The Oval, is their narrowest in Tests in terms of runs. The previous record was 13 runs while defending 107 against Australia in Mumbai in 2004.The six-run margin is also the joint-third-narrowest defeat for England in Tests.332 – England’s score at the fall of their fifth wicket in their chase of 374. Only once before has a team scored so many runs for their first five partnerships and still lost. England were 346 for 5 in a 463-run chase against Australia at the MCG in 1977, but lost by 45 runs.Related

• Siraj the star as India square series with epic six-run victory

• Brendon McCullum: 'We know we've got room to improve'

• The agony, the ecstasy: 56 minutes of Test cricket at its most glorious

• 'Devastating' – Brook expresses regret after dismissal triggers England's Oval collapse

• How Woakes defied injury to front up in England's hour of need

2 – Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna are the second India pair to take four or more wickets in both innings of a Test. Bishan Bedi and Erapalli Prasanna did it against Australia in Delhi in 1969.Siraj and Prasidh’s performance at The Oval was the 15th instance of two bowlers taking four-fors in both innings for a team, and the first since Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann for England against India in Mumbai in 2012-13.23 – Wickets for Siraj in the series against England, the joint-highest for an India bowler in a Test series in England, level with Jasprit Bumrah’s 23 wickets in 2021-22.Harry Brook walks back after making his maiden fourth-innings hundred•Getty Images195 – The partnership between Joe Root and Harry Brook is the second-highest in the fourth innings of a Test to end in a defeat. The highest is 204, between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant against England in 2018, also at The Oval.Root and Brook are only the seventh pair to score hundreds in the fourth innings of a Test and end on the losing side. Rahul and Pant in 2018 were the last of the previous six.4 – Consecutive Test series that England have failed to win against India. Their previous series win against India came in 2018, when they won 4-1 at home. England’s longest streak without a series win against India is five, between 1996 and 2011.1-10 – India’s win-loss record in the fifth and sixth matches of an away Test series. Before the six-run win at The Oval, India had lost ten of 17 such matches, while seven ended in draws. At home, India have a 7-4 record in 27 such Tests.

Arne Slot reportedly pulled out of receiving an award in Manchester following Liverpool's 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest. The Dutchman was supposed to accept the Football Writers’ Association Northern manager of the year accolade on Sunday after guiding the Reds to the Premier League title in the 2024-25 season. But a sixth loss in seven games may have put off Slot from attending the event.

• Liverpool's woes continue

  Liverpool's thumping at the hands of Forest on Saturday saw them drop to 11th in the Premier League as their hopes of retaining their title all but ended. Despite this latest setback, former Feyenoord boss Slot struck a defiant tone, saying that his side will turn their results around. 

  When asked if his players are low on confidence, he said: "I don't feel this, or I don't see this. After we go 1-0, we struggled. I tried to pump them up and give them the information to start the second half well. Immediately, they go 2-0 up. The players kept trying, I can't blame them for that. They blocked every shot we had. The solution is not that far away. We created chances in every and it's not as if we give away 10 chances. That will not go on forever but we have to look at ourselves and what we can do better when we concede a goal. Two games in a row, we haven't scored."

  He did add, however, that his charges were in low spirits following another defeat. 

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  Slot misses awards show

  According to The Athletic, Slot had been due to collect the award in person but pulled out on the morning of the awards' dinner. Instead, Liverpool sent club ambassador and former player Gary McAllister to collect the prize on the 47-year-old's behalf. The Scot reportedly apologised for Slot's absence and said the Dutchman was "extremely proud" to have won this award.

  Incidentally, Slot appears to be shouldering the blame for Liverpool's wretched run of results. 

  He told reporters on Saturday: "It is my responsibility, whether we win or lose. But what I also see is a team keeping on trying until the end and the fans as well by the way, who stayed to the end to support the players. Lately, it’s almost constantly that we miss our chances and the ones we concede go in. That will not continue throughout the whole season. But we need that moment of energy of scoring a goal when playing well and going 1-0 up. The opposite thing happened as Forest got a big energy boost from scoring. I see a lot of things where in a normal situation the result would have been different but we’re now in a difficult situation."

• Van Dijk defends Slot amid criticism

  While there is a growing section of Liverpool fans pointing the finger of blame at Slot, especially after spending more than £400 million on transfers this summer, captain Virgil van Dijk believes his team-mates are "letting the manager and ourselves down". The "angry" centre-back has now called on his side to get themselves out of this "mess".

  "You should be angry and the main thing for me is that everyone has to take responsibility," he said. "It’s not easy during difficult times but we have to do it if we want to get out of this. We’re definitely letting the manager down, but we’ve let ourselves down as well. At the moment it is a mess – that’s just a fact. As the champions we can’t be in the situation we are in right now. What are we going to do about it? We’re going to try to turn it around and that’s the mentality everyone should have."

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  What comes next for Liverpool?

  Liverpool have a chance to bounce back from this drubbing when they entertain PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday. They then host lowly West Ham on Sunday in the Premier League, before taking on promoted sides Sunderland and Leeds United in early December.

And just like that, after only five months and 13 league games at the Southampton helm, the Will Still experiment at St. Mary’s is over.

There was so much hype surrounding Still’s appointment after he had made quite the name for himself in France when spearheading a 17-game unbeaten run in charge of Stade Reims.

But, with only two Championship wins under his belt from those games mentioned, it did feel like only a matter of time before the underwhelming 33-year-old was put out of his misery.

It will be intriguing to see who the Saints turn to next as they attempt to get out of their second-tier slump and rise back into the promotion reckoning, with interim boss Tonda Eckert even in with an outside shout, having masterminded a 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night.

Latest on Southampton's manager search

Indeed, Sky Sports’ Lyall Thomas has already confirmed that Eckert will lead Southampton out again on Saturday as crisis-stricken Sheffield Wednesday come to St. Mary’s, as the club continues to weigh up whether he’s a viable candidate for the full-time job.

If he were to guide the Saints to another league win, he would surely be in the conversation. But, there are various other names also being linked to the ongoing EFL opening.

Reports have suggested that EFL veteran Tony Mowbray could be in the running, alongside ex-Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick, with the Saints’ sporting director Johannes Spor also casting his net out to Germany, on the hunt for a successful replacement for Still.

Sky Sports has even boldly suggested that former Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana would be interested in becoming the next head coach, with Lallana assisting Eckert for the time being during his temporary duties.

The same report does state that it is an unlikely option at this moment in time, owing to Lallana’s complete lack of experience as a head coach.

But, it could well be deemed an inspired choice from left-field, all the same, with the second-tier side perhaps gaining their own Frank Lampard-style figure in the process, who continues to take the Championship by storm with Coventry City.

Southampton's own Lampard appointment

Once upon a time, Lampard was in much the same position as Lallana, as he tried to navigate a coaching career post a glittering playing career from midfield.

While it hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Lampard during his managerial career to date, with tricky spells at both Everton and Chelsea, he has been largely a hit in the Championship, as evidenced by him steering the Sky Blues to the top of the EFL’s elite division right now.

Games managed

94

104

Wins

46

38

Draws

23

21

Losses

25

45

Goals scored

157

145

Goals conceded

108

153

Off the back of his “fantastic” stint at the CBS Arena to date – as journalist Sam Cunningham has labelled it – Lampard has managed to collect 46 victories from 94 second-tier games, with Lallana now wanting to kickstart his own EFL managerial journey, to try and follow in the ex-Chelsea icon’s footsteps.

After all, Lallana would no doubt command the same respect Lampard clearly holds, with the former St. Mary’s playing icon going on to bag a hefty 60 goals and collect a weighty 47 assists while on the South Coast.

He would surely want to make his own Saints side as entertaining to watch as Lampard’s rampant Sky Blues, therefore.

Moreover, Lallana will be hungry to be a success as a main manager, having played under some of the best in the managerial game in the form of Jurgen Klopp and Roberto De Zerbi, alongside also working closely with Lee Carsley in the England U21 set-up.

Russell Martin also gave a glowing assessment of the 34-year-old when he was still manager at St. Mary’s, with the recently sacked Rangers boss lauding Lallana as a “brilliant” voice to have around the dressing room. He’s also been hailed in the past as “very intelligent” by De Zerbi.

Southampton will know that they need to get this managerial appointment spot on, having been on the receiving end of a litany of blunders in recent years, with Nathan Jones and Ivan Juric also going down as failures, as an outside-of-the-box appointment, such as Lallana, is possibly eyed up.

After all, as a Saints player, the one-time Premier League title winner would once score 11 goals and collect ten assists in league action, to seal promotion to the big time. Can he repeat the same magic as a rookie replacement for Still?

Spors is a fan: Tonda Eckert asked directly about becoming permanent Southampton manager

Tonda Eckert has taken over Southampton as interim boss following their dismissal of Will Still.

ByJames O'Reilly Nov 6, 2025

أعرب الهولندي ريان جرافنبيرخ، لاعب الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ليفربول عن استيائه بعد خسارة الريدز أمام بي إس في آيندهوفن ضمن منافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا.

واستضاف ليفربول نظيره آيندهوفن، مساء الأربعاء، في المباراة التي جمعتهما ضمن منافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا، على ملعب آنفيلد”.

وخسر ليفربول بقيادة مدربه آرني سلوت برباعية مقابل هدف أمام آيندهوفن في مفاجأة كبيرة للغاية حدثت بين لاعبي الريدز ووسط جماهيرهم، والتي تعتبر أول هزيمة أوروبية على آنفيلد هذا الموسم.

وقال جرافنبيرخ، في تصريحات عبر الموقع الرسمي لناديه: “نحن غاضبون جدًا من خسارتنا، أعتقد أننا لم نلعب بشكل سيء في الشوط الأول بل خلقنا العديد من الفرص أما في الشوط الثاني، فقد سارت الأمور بشكل سيء للغاية”.

اقرأ أيضًا | كاراجر: أريد من محمد صلاح شيئا مهما من أجل جماهير ليفربول

وأكمل: “تأخرنا بهدف مبكر، ثم رأيتم رد فعلنا في الشوط الأول أعتقد أننا قدمنا ​​أداءً جيدًا بعد ذلك، لعبنا كرة قدم رائعة وخلقنا العديد من الفرص، من الصعب وصف الوضع، نحن ببساطة في وضع سيء الآن”.

وأردف: “أعتقد أننا نستقبل أهدافًا بسهولة، هذه مشكلتنا الآن وأعتقد أن فريقا مثلنا عليه أن يقوم بتحسين أدائه الدفاعي وأن يدافع بشكل أفضل، نعلم أننا فريقٌ قوي ونمتلك إمكانيات جيدة لكن كل شيء يُعيقنا، الوضع صعب للغاية حاليًا لكن علينا أن نتكاتف وننطلق من هنا”.

وأتم: “أعتقد أننا لا نملك الزخم الكافي حاليًا، كما قلت كل شيء لا يسير في طريقنا الآن حتى المواجهات الثنائية، وفرص الفوز المتساوية، الأمر صعب حقًا لكن كما قلت، علينا أن نتكاتف وننطلق من هناك، وأنا متأكد من أننا سنجد مخرجًا”.

Liverpool have taken decisive action in the wake of Mohamed Salah’s shock outburst against the club, with the Egyptian superstar set to be left out of the Reds’ Champions League squad for the trip to Inter. The Premier League title holders are due to face Italian opposition at San Siro on Tuesday, and will do so without their leading goal-scorer from the last eight seasons.

• Why has Salah been dropped by Liverpool?

  Salah has been named among the substitutes in Liverpool’s last three fixtures. He stepped off the bench in a home draw with Sunderland, but saw no game time as the Reds headed out on the road to West Ham and Leeds.

  It was in the wake of the trip to Elland Road, which delivered a dramatic 3-3 draw and more points dropped for Arne Slot’s side, that Salah opted to speak out and air his grievances in public. He accused his current employers of throwing him under the bus, believing he has become a scapegoat for the struggles being endured as a collective, and admitted to having no working relationship with his current head coach.

  He said: "I have done so much for this club down the years and especially last season. Now I'm sitting on the bench and I don't know why. It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That's how I am feeling. I think it is very clear that someone wanted me to get all of the blame." Salah added on his dealings with Slot: "I said many times before that I had a good relationship with the manager and all of a sudden, we don't have any relationship. I don't know why, but it seems to me, how I see it, that someone doesn't want me in the club."

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  Who made the decision to exclude Salah from Champions League squad?

  Plenty of criticism has come Salah’s way in the wake of his explosive comments, with many accusing the 33-year-old of allowing ego to get the better of him. He has suggested that past achievements should almost guarantee him a regular role with Liverpool.

  The two-time Premier League champion has, however, seen it made clear to him that everybody – regardless of their standing at Anfield – must earn their place in the team. Salah will be left to reflect on that stance when his team-mates line up against Inter. is reporting that the decision to leave Salah out of the Reds’ travelling party was made “by the board and Arne Slot”.

• Authority undermined: Why Slot had to make an example of Salah

  Dutch tactician Slot was under pressure to make an example of Salah, with it vital that he does not allow his authority to be undermined by one frustrated individual. He has responded to calls for action to be taken.

  The Egypt international did, however, take part in Liverpool’s training session on Monday. The Reds were put through their places ahead of boarding a plane to Italy. Salah will be left watching on from afar as his colleagues seek to deliver a positive response to the surprising 4-1 reversal they suffered at the hands of PSV in the club’s last European outing.

  While Salah is likely to be forced to sit out a crunch clash with Inter, claims that his exclusion is not considered to represent “disciplinary action” by those working behind the scenes on Merseyside.

  Instead the “step is viewed in isolation, rather than having a bearing on Salah’s possible selection going forward – including for Saturday’s Premier League game at home to Brighton & Hove Albion”. A home date with the Seagulls will be Liverpool’s last before Salah heads off on Africa Cup of Nations duty with Egypt.

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  January transfer: Liverpool's stance on Salah exit talk

  Salah has said, after accusing some of trying to force him out of Anfield, that he intends to bid farewell to Liverpool fans against Brighton. According to , the Reds are expecting him back.

  They are said to “remain fully committed to Salah and his contract, which runs through until 2027, while maintaining that the current situation is temporary and can still be turned around”. Despite future rumours being sparked, Liverpool are “not currently planning for the forward’s exit, nor making plans to use the January transfer window for possible replacements”.

Renshaw finished unbeaten on 114 while Labuschagne is 54 not out after Khawaja made 69 as Queensland reached 248 for 1 at stumps replying to Tasmania’s 379

Alex Malcolm05-Oct-2025Matt Renshaw put his name back in the Ashes discussion with an unbeaten century, Marnus Labuschagne pushed his case for a Test return with an unbeaten half-century, and Usman Khawaja tuned up with a half-century of his own as Queensland’s top three dominated Tasmania at Allan Border Field.After another Ashes hopeful Michael Neser took four wickets for Queensland to bowl Tasmania out for 379 before lunch on day two, Queensland’s top three made a case to be Australia’s top three for Perth piling up 248 for 1 to leave the home side just 131 runs behind Tasmania with nine wickets in hand.Renshaw, who has averaged 34 and 29 respectively in each of the last two Sheffield Shield seasons, cruised to his 24th first-class century to remind the selectors of his quality having tried to ignore the noise surrounding Australia’s openers in the Ashes.”It’s hard – you have to get rid of a lot of things, external noise, off your phone and stuff but I just want to try and go out there [and play],” Renshaw said post-play. “I know that when I’m doing my job for Queensland, opening the batting well, we’re generally winning games.”I had a good opportunity to get in this afternoon. It felt like it was going to be a good batting wicket for us. There were some tough periods, but a really good position for the team now.”There’s a lot of noise that people can and can’t deliver, but I just want to go out there and have fun and play like it. If you told 12-year-old Matt that he was going to score a Sheffield Shield hundred, he’d be pretty pumped.”He shared a 137-run stand with Khawaja, who made a fluent 69 in his first innings since the third Test against the West Indies back in July.After Khawaja fell, gloving an attempted pull shot through to keeper Jake Doran off Kieran Elliott from around the wicket, Labuschagne walked in and picked up where Khawaja had left out. He took a while to get off the mark before striking six boundaries and a six in his 80-ball unbeaten 54.Renshaw and Labuschagne added 111 late in the day and neither looked under any pressure. Earlier, Renshaw and Khawaja had to fight through a challenging new-ball spell from Jackson Bird but thereafter they looked untroubled as the sideways movement disappeared on the true batting surface under the Brisbane sun.Renshaw struck 14 fours and a six while Khawaja found the boundary 10 times. Khawaja would be disappointed to fall in the manner that he did with a big score on offer. Labuschagne showcased some of the technical improvements he had made over the winter but Tasmania’s tired attack that does not feature any real pace was in no position to test him.In the morning, Neser had picked up two of the last four wickets to help bowl Tasmania out having added only 80 to their overnight total. He had Nikhil Chaudhary caught behind for 14 and then produced another outstanding caught and bowled to dismiss Elliott. An offcutter caught the inside edge onto pad and it ballooned into the on side, Neser changed direction in his follow through and dived full stretch to take the catch having already plucked a stunning one-handed return to dismiss Jake Weatherald on day one.Doran made a valuable 66 before he was bowled by Mitchell Swepson and Bird contributed 25, 20 of which came in boundaries.

Can Rob Edwards save Wolverhampton Wanderers from relegation?

During the international break, the 42-year-old controversially left Middlesbrough, currently second in the EFL Championship, to take over the reins at Molineux, returning to the club for whom he made 111 appearances as a player, but he has a massive task on his hands.

Wolves currently have just two points on the board after 11 matches, no side in Premier League history has ever survived from this position, losing four on the spin ahead of Crystal Palace’s visit to the Black Country on Saturday afternoon.

The Old Gold’s eight-year stay in the top-flight is under serious threat, so if Edwards harbours any realistic hopes of leading Wolves to a great escape, he must surely unleash a new-look forward line in attack.

Jørgen Strand Larsen's downturn in form

Last season, his first after arriving from Celta Vigo, only nine players scored more Premier League goals than Jørgen Strand Larsen’s tally of 14, an impressive figure considering Wolves finished 16th.

This saw Newcastle make multiple bids to sign the 25-year-old, the highest of which was £55m, despite the fact he had cost the Old Gold only €30m (around £26m).

Wolves rejected all of these bids, with Strand Larsen instead signing a new five-year contract, but now they desperately need him to rediscover his best form.

So far this season, the striker has just three goals to his name, bagging a Carabao Cup double against West Ham in August, while his only goal in the Premier League thus far was a penalty during the infamous 3-2 home defeat at the hands of Burnley that ultimately cost Vítor Pereira his job.

Strand Larsen did find the target last Sunday as Norway crushed Italy 4-1 at San Siro, officially confirming his country’s place at next summer’s World Cup, so will be hoping to take confidence from that back into his club form.

Nevertheless, Wolves could be doing more to get the best out of their number nine, underlined by the fact that Strand Larsen’s shots and shot on target per 90 statistics have significantly decreased this season, so could partnering him alongside a “huge talent” be the solution?

Rob Edwards must unleash Wolves' next Jimenez

Wolves only made five senior summer signings, all of whom have had varying degrees of little impact, namely Fer López, Jhon Arias, David Møller Wolfe and Jackson Tchatchoua.

The last of the additions, arriving on deadline day, was striker Tolu Arokodare, joining from Genk for £24m, and he is possibly the most exciting of the quintet, even if the Wolves faithful have seen very little from him thus far.

The 24-year-old has taken an unusual route to the Premier League, beginning his senior career at Latvian club Valmiera, scoring 22 goals in just 34 appearances, hence why Jacek Kulig of Football Talent Scout described him as “simply too good” for the Virslīga, currently ranked the 36th best league in Europe.

​​​​​​​

After a brief and unsuccessful stint at Köln, scoring no goals for die Geißböcke, Arokodare​​​​​​​ rediscovered his mojo at Amiens, netting 21 times across two seasons for the Ligue 2 side, earning a move to Genk, scoring on 41 occasions for the Smurfs.

Of these goals, 21 came in last season’s Jupiler Pro League, which Global Football Rankings believes to be the sixth-strongest league in the world, and the Nigerian international’s statistics make for impressive reading.

Tolu Arokodare 2024/25 Belgian league statistics

Stats

Arokodare

League rank

Goals

21

1st

Goals inside the box

21

1st

Headed goals

3

3rd

Expected goals

28.53

1st

Shots

158

1st

Shots per 90

4.9

1st

Shots on target

52

2nd

Big chances missed

34

1st

Assists

5

17th

Big chances created

7

32nd

Key passes

32

52nd

Shot-creating actions

77

16th

Goal-creating actions

9

13th

Aerial duels won

156

3rd

Touches in the box

217

1st

Stats via FBref and SofaScore

The table makes for interesting reading, emphasising the fact that Arokodare is a penalty box presence, considering all 21 of his goals came inside the area, while also ranking first for shots, shots per 90 and touches in the opposition area.

Meantime, he is also excellent in the air, scoring three headers while also ending up third for aerial duels won, behind only Daan Heymans​​​​​​​ and Aurélien Scheidler​​​​​​​; the former joined Genk to replace Arokodare, while the latter moved to Royal Charleroi to replace the former.

The statistic though that leaps off the page most is the fact that Arokodare missed 34 Opta-defined big chances.

For comparison, the leaders in this metric across other European leagues last season were Ollie Watkins in the Premier League (27), Kylian Mbappé in La Liga (29), Serhou Guirassy in the Bundesliga (21) and Roberto Piccoli in Serie A (26), so no one came close to the Nigerian’s 34, which shows he is often in the right position, albeit is regularly an erratic finisher.

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Despite this, Arokodare is still highly rated, with journalist Graeme Bailey​​​​​​​ labelling him a “huge talent”, while the aforementioned Kulig notes that “physicality, heading and link-up play” are his primary assets.

This all sounds rather reminiscent of Wolves’ best striker of their current stint in the Premier League, Raúl Jiménez, who is the club’s all-time leading scorer in the competition with 40.

After bouncing around Club América, Atlético Madrid and Benfica, the Mexican really flourished at Molineux, very much considered to be one of the best centre-forwards in the division prior to suffering a horrific fractured skull in November 2020.

Arokodare certainly possesses all the raw attributes to be as good as Jiménez, so now is the time for him to prove this.

Well, Wolves supporters have been treated to a mere amuse-bouche of what their new striker could offer so far, scoring in EFL Cup ties against Everton and Chelsea, starting only once in the Premier League thus far, not doing so in any of Wolves’ last six.

So, pairing him with Strand Larsen would certainly give opposition defences something to think about, with the duo possessing similar but also complementary skillsets.

With Palace captain Marc Guéhi a doubt due to a foot injury, surely Wolves’ best hope of claiming a first win of the season is to deploy the two strikers together.

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Posts ByDan Emery Nov 11, 2025