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Neser left the hosts reeling at 18 for 3 on a green-tinged surface but the duo turned the match on its head

Tristan Lavalette08-Oct-2024Captain Sam Whiteman and Josh Inglis scored brilliant centuries under pressure to lift three-time Sheffield Shield defending champions Western Australia out of major trouble against Queensland on day one at the WACA.WA started the season disastrously when Test aspirant Cameron Bancroft fell off the first ball of the match to trigger a remarkable opening spell from quick Michael Neser on a green-tinged surface.Neser claimed Jayden Goodwin on the next delivery and soon added Mitchell Marsh to leave WA reeling at 18 for 3. But Whiteman, who was made permanent skipper this season, survived the onslaught and combined in a 203-run fifth-wicket partnership with Inglis to turn the match on its head.Related

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Inglis was in a typically aggressive mood, pummelling 122 off 117 balls before falling to the part-time spin of Matthew Renshaw late in the day. Whiteman was more sedate, but equally effective to bat almost the entire day’s play.Neser, for some time on the Test fringes, inspired a late rally with the second new ball to claim Whiteman and Matthew Kelly. He finished with 5 for 48 from 22 overs.After Queensland skipper Marnus Labuschagne elected to bowl, all eyes were on Bancroft who last played Test cricket in 2019 but has re-emerged in the selection frame given the uncertainty over allrounder Cameron Green’s back injury.But Bancroft, the leading run scorer in the Shield over the past two seasons, was not even afforded a sighter from a pumped-up Neser, who was on the money from the get-go with a trademark back of a length delivery that had him nicking off.Some of the smattering of fans had not even nestled into their seats when Goodwin badly misjudged a delivery and was bowled by Neser on the next delivery.Green and his team-mates on the team balcony looked ashen-faced, while a number of WACA staffers quickly scurried after gathering on the ground’s famous grassbanks for the start of play.Marsh, playing as a specialist batter, scampered to the middle much earlier than expected but did manage to defy Neser’s attempts at a hat-trick. WA did not hit the scoreboard until the fourth over before Marsh decided to counterattack only to fall for 13 to Neser when he was caught on the crease and edged to third slip.Josh Inglis celebrates his century•Getty ImagesUnder overcast skies, Neser was almost unplayable from the Lillee-Marsh end and had the spectacular figures of 3 for 8 from six overs. But Whiteman found a willing partner in Hilton Cartwright, who broke the shackles with a huge six off legspinner Mitchell Swepson that landed in the ground’s construction area and caused a five-minute delay.As the sun broke out, batting became easier in the second session but Cartwright could not cash in after playing on to Swepson. Inglis was in glorious touch from the outset, stroking boundaries all around the wicket as he raced past Whiteman despite facing 100 deliveries less.Desperate for a wicket, Labuschagne resorted to himself as he unleashed a short-ball tactic with his seamers. But it didn’t rattle Inglis, who powered to his sixth first-class century off just 93 balls.Queensland’s attack struggled other than Neser, but first-class debutant Tom Straker bowled a lively initial spell. Part of Australia’s U-19 World Cup title team earlier this year, the athletic Straker’s run-up and smooth action had echoes of former quick Jason Gillespie.Both teams have entered the season with numerous injury concerns. WA’s depth has been tested with stars Aaron Hardie, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson and Joel Paris working their way back from injuries.Allrounder Cooper Connolly, fresh off his international debut during Australia’s recent tour of the UK, was picked ahead of veteran Ashton Turner, who missed most of last season due to a knee injury.Queensland are without quick Xavier Bartlett due a side strain he picked up during the UK tour.

كشف الدكتور أحمد جاب الله، طبيب الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي، عن آخر تطورات الحالة الصحية للاعب إمام عاشور، بعد تعرضه لإصابة فيروسية خلال الفترة الماضية.

وكان إمام عاشور قد تعرّض لإصابة بفيروس التهاب الكبد الوبائي من النوع “A”، الأمر الذي استدعى دخوله المستشفى لتلقي العلاج اللازم تحت إشراف طبي مكثف، قبل أن يغادرها بعد تحسن حالته.

وأكد جاب الله في تصريحات عبر الموقع الرسمي للنادي الأهلي، أن نتائج التحاليل الأخيرة أظهرت استقرارًا تامًا في حالته وتحسّنًا ملحوظًا بعد فترة من العلاج.

طالع أيضًا | خالد مرتجي: ضحيت بمنصب نائب الرئيس من أجل الأهلي.. والخطيب أصابني بالقلق

وأوضح جاب الله أن اللاعب بدأ بالفعل مرحلة التأهيل البدني التدريجي، من خلال أداء تدريبات خفيفة ومحددة تحت إشراف الجهاز الطبي والفني، مع استمرار المتابعة الدقيقة لحالته الصحية وإجراء فحوصات دورية لمراقبة معدلاته الحيوية والتأكد من جاهزيته.

وأضاف أن عاشور سيواصل تنفيذ البرنامج التأهيلي الموضوع له تمهيدًا للعودة إلى التدريبات الجماعية في التوقيت المناسب، مؤكدًا أن النادي لا يتعجل إشراكه قبل التأكد الكامل من تعافيه حفاظًا على سلامته.

ويستعد الأهلي لمواجهة بتروجيت في الجولة الثانية عشر من عمر مباريات بطولة الدوري المصري، على ملعب الكلية الحربية، في تمام الثامنة مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية.

The exploits of the eight Indian players at the Women’s Big Bash League this week

Annesha Ghosh29-Oct-20211:39

Sophie Molineux: ‘To have Harmanpreet Kaur standing at mid-off is pretty handy’

Jemimah Rodrigues
A new week brought two new opening partners and a maiden WBBL fifty for Melbourne Renegades opener Rodrigues, who smashed a scintillating 75 not out, the third-highest score of the season, to sink Sydney Thunder. Having made 33, 14, and 13 in her three previous appearances, Rodrigues reached her half-century in 37 balls, adding 84 for the opening stand with Josephine Dooley. Shuffling across her crease, sweeping with ease, and often making room to free her arms, Rodrigues struck nine fours in her 56-ball knock, propelling Renegades to a winning total of 142 in a fixture that saw four Indians locked in a battle of one-upmanship.Related

• Indians at the WBBL: Shafali Verma blows hot and cold, and Poonam Yadav rediscovers her mojo

Harmanpreet Kaur
A batter historically susceptible to lbw owing to the iffy nature of her front-foot defense, Renegades’ in-form No. 4, Harmanpreet, was trapped in front in a copybook dismissal, having added just three in a 14-run stand with Rodrigues against Thunder. Failure with the bat, however, didn’t deter the allrounder from making an impact on the game, for she knocked the wind out of Thunder’s innings by bowling set batter Smriti Mandhana in a critical phase of their chase and also helped effect the run-out of the middle-order batter Anika Learoyd.That Renegades had won their previous game was also down to Harmanpreet’s all-round brilliance. Her 4-0-17-2 against Sydney Sixers included the wickets of Ashleigh Gardner and Alyssa Healy. She was involved in the dismissal of Shafali Verma as well. And when it was her turn to bat, she capitalised on a lifeline received when she was 20 and pummeled back-to-back sixes in the 17th over to seal Renegades’ 119 chase.Player of the Match Harmanpreet Kaur has a light moment with her India team-mates Radha Yadav (L) and Jemimah Rodrigues (R)•Sarah Reed/Getty ImagesSmriti Mandhana
Three single-digit scores preceded a maiden half-century in Thunder colours for Mandhana even as the defending champions remained winless after five matches this season. Early dismissals to pace meant the opener had to depart for 9 and 3 in chases against Perth Scorchers and Melbourne Stars, before a change of personal fortunes came about, in Thunder’s quest of 143 against Renegades. Though her 44-ball 64 featured an array of trademark lofted shots and a deceptively effortless assortment of pulls, it wasn’t quite enough as her team fell short by nine runs.Deepti SharmaThunder shunted Deepti between Nos. 5 and 8, and she responded with a run-a-ball 20 against Scorchers, 44 not-out off 48 against Stars (a personal best at WBBL), and an unbeaten 10-ball 23 against Renegades. In all three innings, Deepti was either the side’s top-scorer or second most successful batter, but in the absence of sustained support at the other end, her efforts often went in vain. With the ball, the offspin-bowling allrounder picked up two wickets in her three outings this week.Richa Ghosh top-scored for Hobart Hurricanes•Getty ImagesRicha GhoshSlotted below her designated position throughout the opening week, Hurricanes batter Ghosh made 4 and 24 not out at No. 5 and 22 at No. 6. The highest of those scores came in a chase of 145 against Stars. Four fours, including the match-sealing one, underpinned her 16-ball innings. With 119 runs in six innings at an average of 23.80, she holds the eighth position on the highest run-scorers list, three places below Rodrigues.Ghosh also had her first brush with the gloves in the WBBL this week, stepping in for the injured Rachel Priest one over into Heat’s chase, and picking up a smart, low catch to dismiss opener Georgia Redmayne.Poonam Yadav
The wristspinner remained wicketless in her two outings this week. In the rain-curtailed 11-overs-a-side contest against Adelaide Strikers, she leaked 19 off just two overs, 13 of which were plundered by Dane van Niekerk alone. Two days later, Poonam, operating in two spells outside the powerplay, kept the leash on the Hurricanes with 11 dots in 3.4 overs that cost only 16. But the final two deliveries of her spell sullied her figures a touch as Ruth Johnston carted her for a six and a four.Radha Yadav
In Sixers’ only completed game of the week, against Renegades, Radha could have forced the opposition into a tough spot even in a chase of 119 if Healy had not botched a stumping. Harmanpreet, the eventual match-winner, was enticed out of her crease by a flighted delivery in the 16th over but the wicketkeeper failed to collect it cleanly. One ball later, Radha took a return catch to dismiss Courtney Webb and finished with 1 for 12 off two overs. She also helped effect the run out of Rodrigues with a throw from the deep.Shafali Verma
Sixers opener Shafali stumbled to a second straight duck in the WBBL as her oscillation between two extremes continued this week. Her scores so far in the tournament: 0, 0, 57 and 8.

Longevity will determine where he sits vis a vis Gilchrist and the rest, but there’s no doubt he’s already in the debate

Sidharth Monga23-Dec-2022Rishabh Pant, MS Dhoni’s true successor as wicketkeeper-batter for India, went past a Dhoni record in Mirpur. Dhoni was out five times in the 90s, the most by a wicketkeeper in Tests until Pant went past him on Friday.Some might call it unfortunate, but add his five hundreds, and Pant has now made 11 scores of 90 or more in just 55 Test innings, an astonishing rate of once every five attempts.Related

Pant 93, Iyer 87 help India wrest back control

Pant is already India’s best wicketkeeper-batter by a distance, having scored Test hundreds in England, Australia and South Africa. On form he is the best batter in the current Indian side. By extension, leaving romanticism and the virtues of pure wicketkeeping skills aside, he is already India’s greatest wicketkeeper. And he isn’t a shabby keeper either.But the Pant comparisons can no longer be restricted to just India players.Not before long, Pant will be discussed among the greatest wicketkeepers ever, and will likely surpass them, but it is not too early to try and place him in the pantheon. In terms of sheer runs, Pant is now the 30th-highest run-getter among wicketkeepers with 2262 at an average of 44.35. His longevity will be tested, but among those who have kept long enough to score 2000 runs, Pant’s average is behind only AB de Villiers, Andy Flower and Adam Gilchrist.Pant is not like a lot of other keepers, though. This is not to suggest Gilchrist would have done any less batting higher in the order, but he mostly batted at No. 7 and didn’t perform a specialist batter’s duties. Among keepers who have batted in the top six, Pant is already the ninth-highest run-getter, averaging 49.67 for his 1540 runs there. De Villiers, Dhoni, Flower, Gilchrist and Les Ames average higher than him in these positions, but this is elite company.Pant hardly gets to score declaration runs. He is playing in a bowling era where you hardly get flat pitches outside Pakistan, and the attacks are fitter and deeper than ever before. He is also part of a batting line-up in transition, and has batted alongside veterans going through their worst patches. He often finds himself in crisis situations where there are no tired bowlers to take advantage of. Because he bats in the top six, these aren’t usually nothing-to-lose situations either.People talk lightly about certain batters’ presence. For proper presence, look no further than the field settings when Pant comes out to bat even when India are struggling. At 48 for 3 and 72 for 3 in the two Tests in this series, Pant has walked out with long-on and deep midwicket in place. On both occasions, Taijul Islam had been bowling beautifully, getting the ball to dip, not letting batters go on the back foot, but not letting them play attacking drives either. This had allowed him to be in a position to benefit if the pitch did something.Pant, though, completely changes the game. To be fair, the in-out fields were an attacking ploy for him when he came into the side back in 2018. It worked for a while with Moeen Ali getting him caught in the deep. Now Pant just picks up the singles and manipulates the field in other areas. Once he is on, those fielders cease to matter. His power-hitting has come a long way too: even if he gets too close to the ball, he can impart enough power to hit flat sixes. Among wicketkeepers, only Dhoni and Gilchrist have hit more sixes than Pant.With Pant, you can sometimes get a loose waft if the right kind of seamer angles, seams or swings the ball across him, but that is hardly unusual. Every batter will have some weakness, but batting is all about what you do around that weakness. The fields set for Pant tell you that the pitching zone for what qualifies as a good ball is smaller for him. And when you have to aim at a smaller target, you miss more often. He can cut and drive just as well as he can slog and reverse-ramp James Anderson. Okay that reverse-ramp might not be as high-percentage as the other shots, but you get the drift.Any wicketkeeper will tell you what a physically taxing job it is; how far Pant moves up among the handful of all-time greats will come down to his longevity, but it is sure he is already one of them.

Manchester United and Chelsea are struggling to bridge the gap in their valuations of Alejandro Garnacho as the Blues continue their pursuit.

Chelsea eyeing GarnachoWinger valued at £30 million ($41m) by BluesUnited want closer to £50m ($68m)Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Per , United and Chelsea remain locked in talks over a deal for Garnacho, but there is a significant gap in the two clubs' valuations of the player. Chelsea would like to pay £30 million ($41m)  for the Argentina international, but United want closer to £50m ($68m). Bayer Leverkusen made a bid worth around £30m in January, which was rejected.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Garnacho is reportedly keen on the move and has asked United to sell him to the Blues. Chelsea have been in talks with United for some time, and the Red Devils' valuation has already dropped from £70m ($95m), suggesting there may be even more leeway in talks. 

DID YOU KNOW?

Garnacho, who was recently spotted with a vape in his hand, has reportedly passed the Blues' background checks, with any concerns over his temperament and discipline brushed aside by the west London giants.

AFPWHAT NEXT?

Chelsea face Crystal Palace on Sunday in their opening game of the Premier League season, while United play Arsenal. Exiled Garnacho won't be involved in the latter.

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank is a real fan of one Aston Villa star, and the Lilywhites are reportedly prepared to offer him something key which could well tempt him to north London.

Real Madrid "now expected" to make concrete move for £165k-a-week Tottenham star

Xabi Alonso’s side are big fans of the player.

ByEmilio Galantini Jul 3, 2025

Spurs are poised to make J League sensation Kota Takai their second summer signing after a permanent deal for Mathys Tel, with the 20-year-old expected to undergo his medical at the club next week (Luca Bendoni, Sky Italia).

Son Heung-min

7.00

James Maddison

6.98

Pedro Porro

6.95

Dominic Solanke

6.84

Dejan Kulusevski

6.83

via WhoScored

The centre-back was identified by technical director Johan Lange, and there is hope within Tottenham that Takai could eventually replicate the journeys of Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie and Pape Sarr as promising young players who are now crucial to the first team (Alasdair Gold).

Tottenham will pay a record fee for a Japanese player from the J League, around £5 million, but supporters will be hopeful that they could sign a few more senior players as well.

Frank’s side will be competing in the Champions League next season, and they’re in dire need of proven reinforcements to bolster their Premier League squad ahead of another congested fixture calendar.

Tottenham are known to be in talks for West Ham winger Mohammed Kudus, as reported by trusted transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano and other reliable media outlets, with the Ghanaian also apparently keen on a switch to N17.

However, Kudus is not the only Premier League ace garnering their attention.

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank wants Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey

Speaking to Football Insider, former Spurs scout and Daniel Levy employee, Mick Brown, has shared information on their interest in £40 million Aston Villa midfielder Jacob Ramsey.

Spurs have been linked with a move for the Englishman in the last few days, but Brown says Frank is a personal admirer of Ramsey, and Tottenham are prepared to offer him more top-flight minutes, which could turn his head.

“Jacob Ramsey has to make a decision,” said Brown.

“In his own mind, he’ll weigh up whether he thinks he’s going to be a regular in the Villa team. If that’s not the case, he has to ask the same question about whether he would be at Tottenham.

“From what I hear, Spurs would be prepared to offer him more minutes from the start of games than he is currently getting at Villa. If that is the case, I’m sure he would be happy to make that move.

“He’s had doubts about whether he’s going to be a regular starting XI player at Villa, or if he’s going to be better served moving somewhere else. So a move to Tottenham would be a fresh start and a new environment for him. There have been a few questions about what his future at Villa might look like, because the manager isn’t certain he’s going to be a big part of the plans.

“That opens the door for Spurs, because Thomas Frank rates him, and he’s one they’ve been interested in for a while.”

The versatile 24-year-old has made 167 senior appearances for Villa already, and possesses that unique blend of both youth and experience. Taking this into account, Ramsey could be an excellent option to reinforce Frank’s midfield whilst providing first-teamers with more competition for places.

Strength in depth will be vital for Frank next season, so this is a move which could tick a few boxes.

دافع تييري هنري، أسطورة نادي آرسنال والكرة الفرنسية، عن نجم ليفربول، محمد صلاح، وذلك على هامش الانتقادات التي يتعرض لها الدولي المصري خلال الفترة الأخيرة من هذا الموسم.

وانهالت الانتقادات على محمد صلاح هذا الموسم، وذلك في ظل عدم تمكن الدولي المصري من تقديم المستوى المطلوب مع ليفربول وتراجع مردوده بالفعل.

ولم يستطع محمد صلاح سوى تسجيل هدفين فقط في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز خلال 8 مشاركات مع ليفربول هذا الموسم.

ويرى هنري في تصريحات نقلتها صحيفة “ديلي ميرور”، أنه من الصعب أن يكون اللاعب نجم الفريق، موضحًا أن محمد صلاح يتحمل انتقادات زائدة عن الحد بالنسبة له.

طالع .. كوكي عن إلغاء مباراة برشلونة وفياريال في أمريكا: طالبنا بالشفافية فقط

وقال هنري: “ليس من السهل دائمًا أن تكون اللاعب الرئيسي ونجم الفريق، لأنه من الواضح كما ترون عندما لا يسجل محمد صلاح، يخسر ليفربول أيضًا، لكن بعض اللاعبين قد يظهرون أحيانًا بشكل جيد وليس بالضرورة أن يكون صلاح دائمًا في الصورة”.

واختتم هنري في حديثه عن محمد صلاح: “لم يكن دائمًا يسجل، ولكن في أغلب الأحيان يسجل ثم يفوز ليفربول، انظر إلى النتائج، لقد سدد محمد صلاح في القائم ثلاث مرات هذا الأسبوع، كان من الممكن أن يكون الأمر أفضل بالنسبة له، إن الأمر بالتأكيد ليس سهلًا عليه ولا على الفريق”.

ليفربول يستعد اليوم الأربعاء لخوض مباراة مرتقبة أمام أينتراخت فرانكفورت، وذلك لحساب منافسات الجولة الثالثة من مرحلة الدوري في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويسعى ليفربول لتحقيق الفوز على فرانكفورت ومصالحة جماهيره، بعدما خسر الفريق في أربع مباريات متتالية بكافة المسابقات، وهو أمر لم يحدث منذ عام 2014.

da bet nacional： Oliver Glasner is now pushing Crystal Palace to sign a “warrior” centre-back as a possible replacement for Marc Guehi, according to a recent report.

Crystal Palace’s transfer plans beginning to take shape

da apostaganha： The Eagles still remain in the dark about whether or not they will be able to play in the Europa League next season. Due to issues around multi-club ownership, UEFA may make the decision to remove Palace from the Europa League, which would be a huge blow not only on the pitch but in the boardoom, limiting what business takes place this summer.

Related Crystal Palace now keen to hijack 21 y/o gem who's the 'next Upamecano'

The Eagles could get one over on their rivals.

Posts ByTom Cunningham Jun 7, 2025

But while Palace wait to find out the verdict, club chiefs are continuing to work hard behind the scenes to identify players who they think will help them compete both in the Premier League and Europe. Indeed, it came to light over the weekend that Palace have made an ambitious approach to sign Ousmane Diomande from Sporting CP.

The South Londoners have made an enquiry to get an understanding of a potential deal, with the Portuguese club said to be looking to get around £40 million.

As well as looking at Diomande, Palace are also lining up ways of strengthening their midfield, and it’s been claimed that Kalvin Phillips is now a genuine target for the Eagles. Phillips is looking to leave Manchester City this summer, but his wages may be a stumbling block.

Glasner wants Crystal Palace to sign Pavlovic

The Eagles are not keeping their defensive options just down to Diomande, as according to The Sun, Crystal Palace are also looking at signing Strahinja Pavlovic from AC Milan.

The report states that Glasner is a big fan of the defender, and the boss believes Pavlovic would be an ideal arrival for European football next season.

It is claimed that Milan value the centre-back around the £40 million mark, but were Palace to make a move this summer, they would look to start the bidding on the cheap, at around £25 million.

Not only could Pavlovic’s arrival at Selhurst Park be seen as adding more competition, but he could also be seen as a player who could replace Guehi. The England defender has been linked with a move away for the last 12 months, and commenting on Palace’s own links to Diomande, reports in Lisbon believe Newcastle are now close to signing Guehi.

Strahinja Pavlovic’s 24/25 Serie A stats

Apps

24

Starts

21

Goals

2

Assists

1

Touches

67.8

Passing accuracy per game

50.0 (89%)

Clean sheets

7

Interceptions per game

0.7

Tackles per game

2.2

Balls recovered per game

2.8

Dribbled past per game

0.9

Clearances per game

3.3

Palace value Guehi at least the £50 million mark, so his departure would likely pay for the arrival of Diomande or Pavlovic, who has been dubbed a “warrior” by scout Jacek Kulig, standing at 6 foot 4. The Serbia international has played 19 times in the Champions League and 10 times in the Europa League in his career, so he would be bringing European experience with him should he move to Selhurst Park.

While Arsenal have plenty of talented players in their squad, there is one star who most fans would now class as their best: Bukayo Saka.

The Hale End icon has become a lean, mean output machine in recent seasons, as even though he missed over three months of action this year, he ended the campaign with a sensational haul of 12 goals and 14 assists in 37 games.

Unfortunately, Mikel Arteta’s options for off the left have not been nearly as effective, with Gabriel Martinelli chalking up 16 goal involvements in 51 games and Leandro Trossard doing marginally better with 20 in 56 games.

So, with that in mind, it’s hardly been a surprise to see the club linked with a host of brilliant left-wingers in recent weeks, with one of the most notable links being to Rodrygo – although recent reports have now touted a player compared to the Brazilian and Saka for a move to Arsenal this summer.

Arsenal transfer news

As mentioned, the last few weeks and months have seen Arsenal linked with many talented left-wing options, from the versatile Xavi Simons at RB Leipzig to the soon-to-be free agent of Leroy Sané.

Transfer Focus

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

Yet, one of the names that has caused the most excitement among the fans, and understandably so, has been Rodrygo.

The 24-year-old has won all there is to win in the club game with Real Madrid, and according to most reports from the last month or so, could be available for around £85m unless something changes with new boss Xabi Alonso.

However, with the required fee being so high, it’s unsurprising to see the club continue to be linked with other options, and now someone who has been compared to Saka and the Brazilian has reentered the frame in a big way.

According to a recent report from Spain, Arsenal have retained their intense interest in Nico Williams.

In fact, the report has now revealed that the Gunners are ‘very close to signing’ the Athletic Bilbao star, despite the La Liga side’s desire to keep him for another season.

The report has revealed that for the North Londoners to get their man, whom Arteta has made ‘a priority,’ they’ll have to pay his release clause, which, according to stories from earlier this week, stands at about £50m.

While it would be a lot of money to spend on a 22-year-old, it would be more than worth it thanks to his ability and the comparisons to Saka and Rodrygo.

How Williams compares to Saka & Rodrygo

So before addressing the other reasons why Arsenal might want to sign Williams this summer, it’s important to examine these comparisons to Saka and Rodrygo and where they come from.

In both cases, they stem from FBref, which compares players in similar positions in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, and then creates a list of the ten most comparable players for each.

In this instance, it was concluded that the Brazilian was the most similar attacking midfielder or winger to the Spaniard across the last 365 days, while the Englishman was the tenth most similar.

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.35

0.32

Non-Penalty G+As

0.45

0.51

Progressive Carries

5.32

5.28

Shots

2.43

2.52

Shots on Target

0.86

0.93

Expected Assists

0.19

0.20

Passes into the Penalty Area

1.31

1.21

Shot-Creating Actions

5.05

4.95

Blocks

0.90

0.84

The best way to understand how these conclusions were reached is by looking at the underlying numbers in which the players rank closely, which, in the case of the Real Madrid star, include metrics like non-penalty expected goals plus assists, progressive carries, shots and shots on target, passes into the penalty area and more, all per 90.

For the Gunners’ gem, the metrics in which he’s incredibly similar to the Bilbao star include things like tackles won, clearances, carries into the penalty area and non-penalty goals per 90, suggesting he can do some of the defensive work the Englishman so often carries out for the Gunners.

Non-Penalty Goals

0.23

0.26

Tackles Won

0.81

0.78

Clearances

0.41

0.42

Carries

31.4

32.7

Carries into the Penalty Area

2.61

2.66

Aerial Duels Won

0.50

0.52

On top of these flattering and incredibly encouraging comparisons to two of the best wingers around, Arteta and Co should also be going all out to sign the 22-year-old “level-raiser,” as dubbed by data analyst Ben Mattinson, because he’s a reliable source of goals and assists.

For example, since the start of last season, the Pamplona-born dynamo has scored 19 goals and provided 25 assists in 82 appearances, which comes out to a brilliant average of a goal involvement every 1.86 games.

Ultimately, while some fans may prefer the bigger name in Rodrygo, it looks like Arsenal are on track to sign one of the most exciting wingers in the game in Williams, and given his age, there is plenty of scope for him to get even better.

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