Erling Haaland believes he is in the form of his life after extending his latest remarkable goalscoring streak for Manchester City.

The Norwegian has found the net in each of his last nine matches for club and country after hitting City’s winner in the 1-0 victory at Brentford.

Haaland reveals why Brentford star annoyed him into scoring

“You can say so, I’ve never felt better than I do now. So yeah, you can say so,” Haaland told City’s website.

His goal was a trademark strike, chasing a long ball over the top and bulldozing through Bees defenders Sepp van den Berg and Nathan Collins before firing home.

Haaland revealed Dutch centre-half Van den Berg had provoked him into scoring a “proper goal”.

“First five minutes he just kept on pushing me so I said ‘all right, let’s have it’. So then I started pushing him back,” he added.

“For me this is a proper goal. This goal for me is top. This is for me one of my better goals.

“I think it helps me because I was a bit tired before the game, going into the game I was thinking it’s going to be tough. Then after 10 seconds he started pushing me and it motivates me.

“All praise to him, honestly, he made me want to do that.”

For Brentford it was a first home defeat of the season and leaves them 16th, three points above the relegation zone.

“You never want to lose, especially at home as we want to make this place as tough as possible, so that’s really annoying,” said skipper Collins.

“The first half was probably too passive, we let them have too much space and didn’t get in their face enough. The goal is annoying, I thought we could have done better with that.

“In the second half, we tweaked a few things, pressed a bit higher and, overall, I thought we were better.

“We defended the box really well and made it hard for them, we created one or two chances and probably wish we created a bit more.”

Nothing was going the New York Mets' way early in the 2024 MLB season.

The Mets lost their first five games and went 9–19 in May. Edwin Diaz, the once-feared closer, blew four saves in one month and fellow reliever Jorge Lopez was designated for assignment for chucking his glove into the stands out of frustration. The television broadcast on SNY would go viral about once per week for a depressing one-liner during another loss.

And then Grimace entered the picture. The Mets' dramatic turnaround in the 2024 campaign began right around when McDonald's famous mascot threw out the first pitch at Citi Field in mid-June. Ever since then, Grimace has been spotted around New York as the Mets' newly crowned good luck charm.

The Mets, who are playing in their first NLCS since advancing to the 2015 World Series, play host to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday at Citi Field for Game 3. As the Dodgers arrive to the Big Apple, they were greeted by a rather menacing billboard in Times Square featuring Grimace.

"It wasn't luck. It wasn't fate. It was Grimace," the billboard read.

That's just great marketing.

Grimace threw out the first pitch at Citi Field on June 12. At the time, the Mets were 29–37 and 16.5 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East. New York defeated the Miami Marlins 10–4 that night and went on to win seven straight games and 12 of its next 14, climbing over .500 and completely turning the season around.

The Mets finished the season with an 89–73 record and claimed the NL's third and final wild-card spot. They knocked out the Milwaukee Brewers in the wild-card round and defeated the Phillies in four games in the NLDS to earn a chance to take down the Dodgers in the NLCS.

Luis Severino will get the start in Game 3 against Walker Buehler and the Dodgers. When he toes the rubber in the top half of the first inning, you can bet there will be countless purple Grimace costumes in the Citi Field seats.

And an intimidating billboard in Times Square.

أبدى المدير الفني لفريق ليفربول، آرني سلوت، اعتراضه على نظرية المدرب الأسطوري آرسين فينجر والتي زعم من خلالها كون أن أحد لاعبي بطل الدوري الإنجليزي تسبب في تدمير خط الوسط.

وعانى ليفربول من فترة سيئة مؤخرًا قبل أن يستعيد توازنه ويحقق فوزين متاليين، أمام أستون فيلا في الدوري الإنجليزي وريال مدريد في دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويتعرض عدد من لاعبي ليفربول للانتقادات، من ضمنهم فلوريان فيرتز الذي لم يثبت نفسه بالدرجة الكافية مع الريدز منذ قدومه من باير ليفركوزن في موسم الانتقالات الصيفي الماضي.

وصرّح آرسين فينجر، قبل يومين، أن فلوريان فيرتز تسبب في تدمير خط وسط فريق ليفربول كونه يلعب كصانع ألعاب، أي في مركز اللاعب رقم 10، زاعمًا أن اللاعب وافق على الانتقال إلى “الأنفيلد” بعدما تحصل على ضمانات للعب بتلك الطريقة حيث لا يرغب في التواجد كجناح.

وعن ذلك، قال سلوت، في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “جارديان” الإنجليزية: “كل شخص له الحق في إبداء رأيه، كثيرون منهم لديهم هذا الحق، هذا هو الجانب الجميل في كرة القدم، أن لكل شخص رأيه الخاص”.

وأوضح: “إذا احتجت إلى عملية جراحية، قلب مفتوح، فلن أخبر الجراح بما يجب فعله، لكن في كرة القدم الجميع يخبرك بأفضل ما يمكن فعله، وهذا أيضًا الجانب الجميل في كرة القدم لأن الجميع يعرف ذلك، لذا يمكننا التحدث عنه”.

وأضاف: “لدينا خمسة أو ستة لاعبين في خط الوسط متميزين للغاية ويستطيعون اللعب معًا، لكنهم بحاجة إلى اللعب معًا بشكل أكبر لإخراج أفضل ما لدى كل لاعب”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. ليفربول في مأزق بسبب صراع 3 عمالقة أوروبيين على ضم لاعبه

وشدد: “فلوريان فيرتز يحتاج إلى وقت للتأقلم مع زملائه، كما أن زملائه يحتاجون إلى وقت للتأقلم معه، هو يلعب الآن على الجهة اليسرى ولكن يمكنني القول، إن لم يكن الآن فغدًا، سيقدم أداءً رائعًا كلاعب خط وسط مع ليفربول أيضًا”.

وواصل: “فيرتز لديه الموهبة اللازمة لكن الأمر لا يقتصر على لاعب واحد فقط، بل يتعلق أيضًا بالفريق الذي يلعب فيه، ما يمكنني قوله عن فلوريان هو أنه منذ انضمام تشابي ألونسو إلى ليفركوزن، كان يتم الاعتماد عليه بشكل أساسي في خطة 3-4-3 كجناح مقلوب، بينما كان يلعب قبل ذلك في مركز اللاعب رقم 10، كما يلعب في المنتخب الوطني كجناح مقلوب أيضًا”.

واختتم: “بالنسبة لي التحدي الوحيد الذي أواجهه هو ضمان تواجده في تلك المراكز، كجناح مقلوب أو لاعب رقم 10، داخل وحول منطقة الـ18 ياردة حيث يحتاج زملاؤه إلى إيجاده في الوقت المناسب لأنه عندها سيقدم أداءً مميزًا بشكل دائم، لقد فعل ذلك للمنتخب الوطني وفعله مع ليفركوزن، وقد فعل ذلك بالفعل معنا أيضًا”.

Lancashire 367 (Green 121, Jennings 106) and 406 for 6 dec (Turner 121, Balderson 82, Jones 63) beat Derbyshire 261 (Andersson 79, Madsen 70, Balderson 4-71) and 251 (Madsen 95*, Guest 46, Balderson 4-54) by 261 runs George Balderson ended Lancashire’s red-ball drought when he bowled them to a crushing 261-run victory over Derbyshire in the Rothesay County Championship match at Chesterfield.The all-rounder took 4 for 54 and eight in the game as the Red Rose finally celebrated a first Championship victory of the season with Derbyshire dismissed for 251 which ended their unbeaten run in Division Two.Set an improbable 513, skipper Wayne Madsen made an unbeaten 95 and Brooke Guest 46 but once the fourth wicket pair were parted, the hosts collapsed with Tom Bailey taking the last two wickets to finish with 3 for 39.The grey clouds over Queen’s Park suggested the conditions were good for the bowlers, especially Jimmy Anderson, and although the bat was beaten, Derbyshire survived the first hour in relative comfort.Madsen eased Anderson to the cover boundary on his way to his second fifty of the match which came off 86 balls and when the former England fast bowler failed to take a wicket in his four over opening spell, Derbyshire had achieved their first objective of the morning.With Anderson out of the attack, Madsen and Guest kept the board ticking over without taking any risks and the stand was worth 127 in 18 overs when Lancashire finally broke through.The decision to bring on Chris Green at the Lake End was rewarded when Guest tried to shovel the off spinner through mid-wicket, missed, and was lbw.That would have come as a relief to Lancashire who might have been starting to get a little anxious but they were soon celebrating again.Martin Andersson had top scored in the first innings but this time he got a good ball from Balderson that straightened to take the off stump.The morning got even better for the visitors when Anuj Dal, who has figured in several Derbyshire rearguard actions, tried to whip Green off his legs and was bowled.When Balderson again found just enough seam movement to bowl Zak Chappell, Madsen was in danger of being stranded and he saw another wicket fall in the last over of the session.Ben Aitchison edged Balderson low to second slip where Green took a good catch which meant Derbyshire had lost 5 for 33 in 11 overs.Madsen went into lunch unbeaten on 78, his eighth 50 in 15 innings this season, and it was now a question of whether he could convert that into three figures.He was denied by Bailey with the new ball which accounted for Blair Tickner and Jack Morley with Anderson taking the catch at third slip which sparked Lancashire’s long awaited celebrations.

A number of iconic strikers have donned Sunderland red and white over the years, getting the Black Cats out of many sticky patches in the Premier League.

Kevin Phillips will always go down as the most memorable, notably winning The Golden Boot on Wearside when he powered home 30 strikes during Sunderland’s 1999/2000 campaign.

While Jermain Defoe would never hit these amazing heights, the lethal Englishman did consistently bail his team out of relegation danger when scoring 34 top-flight goals over three seasons near the bottom of the tough division.

In the here and now, a new hero is forming to potentially rival the exploits of both journeyman attackers.

Wilson Isidor was already firmly in the Stadium of Light’s good books when he fired home 13 strikes last season to steer Sunderland back up to the top-flight after a seven-year absence.

So, Isidor, already bagging some crucial strikes in the infancy of this season, has not harmed his glowing reputation among the hardened Wearside masses whatsoever. Rather, it has significantly strengthened his fan favourite status.

Isidor's start to Premier League life

Often, the jump-up from the Championship to the Premier League can swallow a player whole.

Many Sunderland supporters might have anticipated that the French striker would find the step-up in quality to be a frightening one to navigate. Instead, he has seemingly taken it in his stride.

Three glorious strikes have already been picked up by the ex-Zenit St. Petersburg forward, with those first two efforts only coming about from a combined 39 minutes of action.

The Black Cats’ “one man machine” – as he was glowingly labelled by Sky Sports’ Dougie Critchley in the second tier – has since become Le Bris’ main starter up top, with that third and final strike falling against Aston Villa handing the ten men on the day a dramatic share of the points.

Isidor will just be glad he hasn’t been branded as a presence who couldn’t handle the intense heat of the Premier League, with Unai Emery’s Villans reportedly contemplating a move for the skilful 6-foot-1 striker, off the back of his late heroics at the tail-end of September.

Unfortunately, not every addition made by Sunderland in recent memory has been able to make their start to top-flight life in England look as seamless, with Jozy Altidore still sticking out to this day as one of the Black Cats’ worst blunders in the attacking department.

Altidore's awful spell at Sunderland in numbers

In the summer of 2013, Sunderland must have thought they’d picked up a stellar bargain when landing Altidore’s signature for a modest £9m.

After all, he was just fresh off an insanely potent season in the Eredivisie with AZ Alkmaar, with a stunning 23 league goals fired home from just 33 games during his swansong campaign in the Netherlands.

Games played

42

Minutes played

2080

Goals scored

1

Assists

1

Unfortunately, he never found that same lethal form on English soil, culminating in Altidore’s smart turn and finish against Chelsea – which can be seen above – going down as his only strike for the Wearside outfit from 42 largely forgettable outings.

Labelled as “Dozy Anti-score” by some Sunderland fans, Isidor will just be glad he has never received similar vitriol, with the Frenchman a reliable source of goals and entertainment, thankfully, as opposed to being public enemy number one for being wasteful in front of goal.

Coincidentally, the American’s nightmare at the Stadium of Light came to a halt when an exchange deal for the aforementioned Defoe to move back to England was arranged with Toronto FC. Altidore then turned into a dependable MLS marksman for the Canadian side.

Yet, a modern-day tale similar to Altidore’s could now be playing out in real time.

Sunderland "powerhouse" could be the next Altidore

Thankfully, most of Sunderland’s summer purchases haven’t fallen victim to the Altidore curse of freezing in the big time.

It was to be expected that Granit Xhaka would be an instant hit under Le Bris’ wing in the Premier League, having already proven himself to be a forceful machine with Arsenal in the demanding division.

But, other new faces such as Nordi Mukiele and Omar Alderete – who once called France and Spain home – have instantly slotted into the Frenchman’s lineup, too, and looked near faultless, with just three league goals given up as a pairing, before a humbling 2-0 defeat to Manchester United.

Yet, while a lot of the summer business has gone down as success stories from the get-go, striker Brian Brobbey is yet to live up to the “goal machine” tag once handed to him by scout Jacek Kulig, when gifted limited opportunities to impress.

In an eerily similar fashion to Altidore, Brobbey had long been seen as a feared goalscorer in the Eredivisie for previous employers Ajax before embarking on a fresh adventure to English shores, with the homegrown Amsterdam product bagging a lethal 56 strikes from 163 contests.

Therefore, with the 23-year-old also costing a bumper £17.3m to obtain in a stunning deadline day swoop, the world would have been expected of Brobbey on his arrival, with Isidor likely to be displaced by the number nine’s efficient ability to put away chances in an instant.

Games played

3

Games started

0

Minutes*

21

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Touches*

5.7

Accurate passes*

1.3 (50%)

Total duels won*

1.3

In reality, Brobbey has struggled for gametime whilst Isidor continues to steal the limelight, much like Altidore was guilty of playing second fiddle to figures such as Steven Fletcher and Connor Wickham.

Worryingly, the brand-new number 9 is yet to even register a single shot in the Premier League from his three lacklustre cameos, away from also averaging just 5.7 touches of the ball per substitute appearance.

He has also looked concerningly weak in physical battles despite once being noted as a “powerhouse” by scout Antonio Mango, with just one aerial duel from four attempted won last time out against Ruben Amorim’s Red Devils.

It is far too early in the season to be writing off individuals, but it will be intriguing to see how long Brobbey’s early barren patch of form can run before he is looked down on as a potential expensive flop.

For now, Le Bris will hope he can come good, but it will be bothering some at the Stadium of Light already that the £17.3m signing could go down as a similar Altidore-style misfire.

Seb Larsson 2.0: Le Bris must unleash Sunderland's "sensational" talent

One wizard shines for Sunderland, drawing early comparisons to Seb Larsson

ByWill Miller Oct 4, 2025

Chelsea’s brilliant run of results, which saw them beat the likes of Benfica, Nottingham Forest and Liverpool, came to a screeching halt on Saturday afternoon.

Instead of picking up another Premier League win against the recently promoted Sunderland, Enzo Maresca’s side managed to lose 2-1 thanks to a late goal from Chemsedine Talbi.

What is most frustrating about the game, though, is that while the West Londoners were not anywhere near their best, they still had chances to win, taking seven shots on target to the Black Cats’ four.

Unfortunately, they just didn’t have their shooting boots on, although with the striker situation at the club, that is hardly surprising.

So, there is an argument that Maresca should look to drop Marc Guiu and start one of Cobham’s most exciting prospects, a striker compared to the legendary Didier Drogba.

Chelsea vs Sunderland

Chelsea

Statistics

Sunderland

1

Goals

2

68%

Possession

32%

16

Total Shots

10

7

Shots on Target

4

629

Passes

293

10

Shots in the Box

7

8

Tackles

14

All Stats via Sofascore

Chelsea's striker situation

In the summer, Chelsea decided to sell Christopher Nkunku to AC Milan and João Félix to Al-Nassr, while also loaning out David Datro Fofana to Karagümrük and Nicolas Jackson to Bayern Munich.

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Now, while these weren’t necessarily bad moves for the club, they did only sign Joao Pedro and Liam Delap to replace the leaving players, and when the latter went down with a hamstring injury earlier this season, they were forced to recall Marc Guiu from his loan with Sunderland.

Moreover, while nobody can question Pedro’s ability, it has become increasingly clear that his best position is just behind another striker, either as an advanced ten or a classic second striker.

In other words, due to their business and the injury to the former Ipswich Town star, Maresca has been forced to either use Pedro out of his best position, start the young Tyrique George up top when he’s a natural winger, or, as he has done recently, play Guiu.

To give the former Barcelona gem his credit, he did score against Ajax in the Champions League, but against the Black Cats on Saturday, he was poor.

In fact, the Spaniard was so underwhelming that the Standard’s Sam Tabuteau gave him just a 4/10 match rating, writing that he showed ‘plenty of energy but not a lot of finesse.’

In short, Chelsea really need another option up top this season, and while it would be a risk, it looks like Cobham might have the player for them – a player compared to Drogba.

Chelsea's future Drogba

Now, it should really go without saying that comparing a youngster to Drogba is not something that should be done lightly.

After all, the Ivorian icon was one of the best strikers to ever play in the Premier League and is most certainly a massive Chelsea legend.

With that said, there is plenty of excitement building around 18-year-old Shim Mheuka, so much so that one analyst has made the bold comparison, calling him “the new Didier Drogba.”

So then, what makes him such an exceptional talent, and one worthy of a proper run in the first team?

Well, simply put, he is starting to look like a real goal machine and potentially one of “Cobham’s finest” prospects, per talent scout Jacek Kulig.

For example, despite being just 16 at the start of last season, he ended the campaign with 11 goals and three assists to his name, 30 appearances across the U18S and U21S.

Moreover, he also got a few run-outs in the first team, making five appearances totalling 118 minutes across the Conference League and Premier League.

Mheuka’s Chelsea youth record

Appearances

59

Goals

31

Assists

8

Goal Involvements per Match

0.66

All Stats via Transfermarkt

This season, he has taken another leap forward, and as things stand, he has already scored ten goals and provided two assists in just ten appearances, totalling 883 minutes for the U21S and Youth League sides.

That works out to an average of 1.2 goal involvements every game, or one every 73.58 minutes, and if that’s still not enough, he has also racked up a tally of ten goals and three assists in 18 appearances for England’s U19S.

Ultimately, while it is still so early in his career, it is becoming increasingly clear that he is a lethal goalscorer, and while he might not reach the level of a Drogba, he might be able to have a significant impact on the team this season.

Related Chelsea now looking to sign "outstanding" £168k-a-week CB who's won 11 trophies

The Blues want to bring in a new defender, having struggled defensively at times this season.

Posts ByDominic Lund Oct 27, 2025

Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola has warned Arsenal that the title race is far from over even with his side trailing the Gunners by six points after 10 games. City could fall even further behind Mikel Arteta's side as they face a daunting game on Sunday against Liverpool in what will be Guardiola's 1,000th match since moving into coaching back in 2007.

Arsenal enjoying best start for three years

Arsenal have only dropped four points in their first 10 matches of the season in their best start to a campaign since the 2022-23 season. City eventually overhauled the Gunners that year although after 10 games they were just one point back, compared to six at the moment. City's 4-1 thrashing of Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium in April proved crucial to them winning the crown at the Gunners expense and Guardiola pointed out that his side will be hosting their rivals again at the height of the title run-in on April 18.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesGuardiola: No one wins the title in November

Guardiola told a press conference on Friday: "All we can do is win our games and be close. They (Arsenal) have to come here. In the last two or three years in terms of rebuilding a club and a team, then they are there [at the top]. It is exceptional what they are doing and did already for two or three seasons. But we are in early November and in early November no-one wins the title."

Guardiola: My numbers are insane

The prospect of his 1000th game as a coach led Guardiola to reflect on his incredible career in the dugouts, in which he has won 12 league titles in Spain, Germany and England as well as three Champions Leagues among a total haul of 40 trophies. He has won 715 of his 999 games in charge of Barcelona B, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City. And his City team achieved a Premier League record total of 100 points when they won the title in 2018.

"I never thought for one second about reaching 1,000 games," Guardiola said. "You just want to do a good job, play football the right way and see what happens. After that it's a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication, passion, love. In that, nobody beats me. When I started, I didn't expect this. But it is a joy. I didn't enjoy every single moment but I enjoyed the journey a lot. I have been blessed."

He also allowed himself a moment of hubris when he said: "The numbers are insane, I'm sorry to tell you. When you have this milestone and you read what you have done … if I start again, I will not reach it."

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Getty Images SportLiverpool fitting opponents for 1000th game

Although Guardiola has had numerous intensely passionate games against Real Madrid while in charge of boyhood club Barcelona and some memorable matches against Borussia Dortmund while coaching Bayern Munich, he picked out Liverpool as his favourite opponent of all. And he said it was fitting that he should be facing the Reds in his 1000th game.

"If I could choose one rival for his personal milestone that I want to share with many, many people – that would be the best," he said. "I have been a long time in this country. Of course, Barcelona and the impact it had on my life as a ball boy, football player and manager. Of course, Bayern was an incredible step. But Liverpool, especially with Jurgen [Klopp], have been the biggest rival in this country and it could not be better. It was the destiny of the universe."

Liverpool lost six out of seven games between late September and the end of October but have turned a corner with two impressive wins in the last week against Aston Villa and Real Madrid. Guardiola poked fun at the English media for writing Arne Slot's side off during their difficult spell of results.

"I know how quickly things change. One week ago it was Liverpool 'disaster, disaster' and now they win two and it's 'Are they back to their best?' I'm sure the managers take a little bit more perspective of the situation. There are always ups and downs in a season."

Manchester United certainly raised eyebrows during the summer transfer window, especially after dropping over £200m on new additions to bolster their first-team ranks.

Such spending may have come as a surprise to many, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe previously stating before the summer that no massive deals would be conducted.

The vast majority of their efforts were directed to the final third, as Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko were all added to Ruben Amorim’s attacking department.

However, the trio have all made an immediate impact at Old Trafford, scoring seven times between them in the first nine Premier League outings of 2025/26.

As a result of their shopping spree, it would be a surprise to no one that other players will need to be offloaded during the January window to try and balance the books.

The United players who could leave the club in January

Over the last couple of days, United forward Joshua Zirkzee has been strongly touted with an exit from Old Trafford – no doubt due to the form of the aforementioned trio.

It was reported earlier this week that the Dutch international is keen on a temporary or permanent move away from the Red Devils in January, with Aston Villa interested in his signature.

Manuel Ugarte is another first-team member who could be shown the exit door in the next few months, with his move to the Premier League failing to deliver at present.

The Uruguayan international cost a staggering £50m from Ligue 1 outfit PSG last summer, but his move has failed to hit the heights – as seen by his lack of game time under Amorim in 2025/26.

He’s only made two starts in England’s top-flight this season, even dropping behind 33-year-old Casemiro in the club’s pecking order during the early stages of the campaign.

One other first-team member in the form of Diogo Dalot could also find himself one step closer to the exit door after failing to impress over the last couple of months.

Despite making six league appearances under Amorim this season, the Portuguese international has fallen way below the standards expected of him – as seen by his tallies compared to the other options at the manager’s disposal.

The 26-year-old has only completed 75% of the passes he’s attempted in the Premier League, the lowest of any defender in the Red Devils squad – showcasing his lack of impact in recent weeks.

The United star now on borrowed time

The Erik ten Hag era at United was a period largely full of disappointment, with the Dutchman unable to take the club back to their former glory during his tenure in charge.

The 55-year-old spent a little over two years in the role at Old Trafford, achieving a 56% win record and also winning the Carabao Cup and FA Cup during such a period.

However, the eighth-place finish in 2023/24 was disappointing to many fans, with the start to last season ultimately spelling the end of his time in England.

Ten Hag was responsible for bringing Zirkzee and Ugarte both to the Theatre of Dreams, further highlighting how disappointing his work in the transfer market at the helm.

Despite the failures in the window, the Dutchman deserves huge credit for his work in the development of midfielder Kobbie Mainoo – subsequently handing the youngster the chance to cement his place in the first team.

He would have been an unknown quantity to many supporters, but the 20-year-old amassed a total of 32 appearances in 2023/24, even scoring on five separate occasions.

Many of his efforts were crucial ones, from last-minute winners against Wolverhampton Wanderers and efforts against Manchester City in the FA Cup final – it truly was a season to remember for the academy graduate.

Such performances led to journalist Liam Canning labelling Mainoo as United’s “best player” in March 2024, but it’s safe to say it’s not been plain sailing for the youngster since Amorim’s arrival.

In the Premier League in 2025/26, the Englishman has failed to start a single outing, subsequently being restricted to just seven substitute appearances – totalling just 138 minutes in the process.

Games played

25

Minutes played

1656

Pass accuracy

87%

Chances created

1.7

Successful dribbles

1.3

Tackles won

63%

Duels won

5.9

Interceptions made

1.2

Recoveries made

4.8

Mainoo has previously voiced his displeasure at the lack of action since the 40-year-old’s appointment – even requesting a temporary loan move away this summer to gain valuable game time.

However, such a request was swiftly rejected by the manager and the board, but he still remains behind the likes of Ugarte and Casemiro in the current pecking order.

Given the lack of faith shown in him by the manager, it’s safe to say the youngster will be on borrowed time at Old Trafford, and the club could look to cash in on him – with a £70m price tag previously mooted.

Ten Hag may have struggled in the role, but one of the best things he did in Manchester was show the needed faith in Mainoo to allow him to flourish in the professional game.

Amorim could learn a thing or two from the Dutchman, as the Red Devils potentially risk offloading yet another top talent far too prematurely.

Casemiro replacement: Man Utd to make £42m bid for "one of the best CMs"

Manchester United look set to make a huge move for a new midfielder in January.

ByEthan Lamb Oct 29, 2025

As Juan Soto tests the waters of MLB free agency this fall, the teams expected to be in the running to offer him a lucrative long-term contract reportedly have reached out already.

Jon Heyman of the reported Wednesday that the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants have contacted Soto's camp about a potential deal that could wind up being worth near $700 million.

All six of those teams are expected answers, as all play in big markets and the Blue Jays were among the finalists to sign Shohei Ohtani last year. But one other member of the AL East also have contacted Soto in rather surprising fashion.

Heyman reported that the Tampa Bay Rays recently reached out to Soto—a big surprise considering the organization had the third-lowest payroll in 2024 at $88 million. Soto is expected to receive at least $50 million—if not $60 million—per season for at least 10 years on his next contract, which would take up a significant chunk of the team's payroll.

The Rays are probably a distant seventh on the list. But they're on the list, which is more than 23 other MLB teams can say in the early days of free agency.

Heinrich Klaasen was the only batter to resist as Orcas were bowled out for 82, which took Freedom just 9.2 overs to overhaul

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jul-2025Shimron Hetmyer had done it three games in a row for Seattle Orcas, but couldn’t on this occasion, against Washington Freedom. That Orcas batting line-up, which had stuttered and stumbled to five losses in a row before Hetmyer took charge, went back to being incompetent as Hetmyer had an off-day, putting up a paltry 82. It took Freedom just 9.2 overs to complete the chase and climb back to No. 2 on the MLC 2025 points table.Freedom won the toss, bowled, and Saurabh Netravalkar struck first ball, sending back Shayan Jahangir. Next over, Glenn Maxwell had Aaron Jones’ number. Netravalkar got rid of Sikandar Raza in the third over. First ball of the fourth, Maxwell sent back Steven Taylor. And Maxwell then finished the powerplay with Kyle Mayers’ wicket, leaving Orcas at 21 for 5 after six overs.Those three wickets gave Maxwell, who finished up by bowling the tenth, figures of 3 for 12 from four, while Netravalkar, who came back to bowl the 16th and got the wicket of Jasdeep Singh, the ninth of the innings, returned 3-13. Jack Edwards was the other major wicket-taker for Freedom, finishing with 3 for 19, including the wicket of Heinrich Klaasen, the only Orcas batter to put up a fight before becoming last man out for a 39-ball 48.The chase was a straightforward one even though Raza saw the back of Mitchell Owen in the third over. By the end of the powerplay, Rachin Ravindra and Mukhtar Ahmed had taken Freedom to 50 for 1, leaving just 37 runs to get from 14 overs. They needed just 3.2 more, as Ravindra scored 32 from 23 before becoming the next batter out, and Mukhtar remained unbeaten on a 21-ball 36.For Orcas, despite the big defeat, the three-match winning run has kept them in the fray for the playoffs. They are still at No. 4, though after nine games, as opposed to fifth-placed MI New York, who are one win behind but with a game in hand.