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Leeds United made it nine home wins in a row on Saturday, claiming a 4-0 victory over newly promoted Oxford United at Elland Road.

The win keeps Daniel Farke’s side within touching distance of current Championship leaders Sheffield United, who maintained the two-point cushion after their own victory against Cardiff City on Saturday.

Yesterday was also the ninth consecutive match on home soil in which the Whites registered two or more goals, a run that has seen the club boast the best home record of any side in the division to date.

Such a record could be pivotal come the end of the campaign as the club look to secure a return to the Premier League after a two-year absence from England’s top flight.

If they are to achieve such a feat, the upcoming January transfer window may be crucial, with numerous players already touted with a move to Yorkshire.

Leeds’ January move for PL star

The January transfer window is always a difficult period to conduct transfer business, with no side wanting to part ways with any of their star players given the lack of time to identify a replacement.

However, journalist John Percy claimed earlier this week that Farke’s men could return to a deal for Nottingham Forest centre-back Andrew Omobamidele after previously targeting a move in the summer.

The Republic of Ireland international, who joined the Reds for £11m from Norwich City last January, has found minutes hard to come by in 2024/25, featuring for just 90 minutes in the Carabao Cup against Newcastle back in August.

He’s found it difficult to dislodge either of Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic from the heart of Nuno Espírito Santo’s backline, with the aforementioned duo helping to their record of the joint-third-lowest goals conceded in the Premier League.

As a result, the 22-year-old could be allowed to depart the City Ground on a temporary basis in the coming weeks, potentially being an upgrade on one player currently plying his trade in Yorkshire.

Transfer Focus

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

Why Omobamidele would be an upgrade on Struijk

Centre-back Pascal Struijk has been an influential figure within the Leeds backline over recent months, starting in 21 matches this campaign, but was an unused substitute during yesterday’s win against Oxford.

The Dutchman has recently been touted with a move to join top-flight sides Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham Hotspur ahead of January, which could bring an end to his near five-year spell at the club.

Undoubtedly, it would take a huge fee to prise the 25-year-old away from Farke’s side given his importance to the squad in recent months, but should the worst come to fruition, Omobamidele would be a superb temporary fix in their quest for promotion.

The former Norwich ace made his name under Farke during their time together at Carrow Road, potentially rekindling their partnership whilst providing an upgrade on current star Struijk.

When comparing their respective stats from the previous campaign, the Irishman has bettered the former Ajax star in numerous key areas, doing so in a higher division after his spell as a starter towards the back end of last season for Forest.

Games played

13

23

Goals & assists

0

3

Pass accuracy

90%

90%

Tackles won in defensive third

1

0.7

Blocks made

1.5

1.1

Interceptions

1.6

0.9

Clearances

4.8

3.5

The “unbelievable” talent, as dubbed by international teammate Gavin Bazunu, may have contributed with fewer goals, but defensively, he outclassed the wanted Leeds man, winning more tackles in the defensive third and making more blocks per 90.

Omobamidele also completed more interceptions and made more clearances, playing a crucial role in maintaining the Reds’ top-flight status for another season.

He mainly operated in a right-side centre-back role during his previous time working under Farke, which could result in Joe Rodon operating on the left, allowing the pair to strike up a solid partnership at the heart of the defence.

However, regardless of which side the German would utilise him in, it’s evident that he would be a superb addition to the current squad, further strengthening their ambitions of returning to the Premier League come the end of May.

As well as Solomon: 122-touch Leeds star was Farke's unsung hero

The Leeds United central midfielder played a crucial role for Daniel Farke.

ByDan Emery Dec 21, 2024

Political uncertainty forced the relocation, with the ODIs expected to start at 4pm

Umar Farooq30-May-2022Pakistan have relocated their home series against West Indies from Rawalpindi to Multan. The decision has been taken in light of political uncertainty in Islamabad – the country’s capital, adjacent to Rawalpindi. The fixtures and schedule, however, remain unchanged, with the three ODIs, which are a part of the Cricket World Cup Super League to be played on June 8, 10 and 12.The games were originally slated for Rawalpindi, but the PCB had kept Multan as a back-up option, with former Prime Minister Imran Khan potentially planning protest rallies in the capital over the coming days. The original protest rally took place on May 25, but there remains a significant possibility of further such rallies over the coming days.Multan remained the only viable option, with Lahore and Karachi’s pitches being relaid, and the Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar undergoing renovation work.Multan is situated in southern Punjab, and among the hottest cities in the country, with temperatures in the high 40s expected on matchdays. Pakistan has never hosted elite cricket at this time of year due to the summer heat, with nearly all high-level competitions including domestic season played during the winter and spring months between September and April.During the summer months, the PCB has mostly held its training camps in northern side of the country mostly in Abbottabad, which is located in the hilly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and experiences relatively milder weather. Last year, the PCB had made an attempt to host women cricketers camp in Multan but had to call off the camp due to extreme heat.The games will start at 4pm in the afternoon to mitigate the weather conditions. Pakistan will carry out their training camp in Lahore from June 1-4, before the squad moves to Multan on June 5. West Indies will arrive in Islamabad as planned on June 6 and will travel to Multan on a charter flight. The ODIs have been carried over from the series scheduled last December, when only the three T20Is took place, a Covid outbreak in the West Indies camp forcing the postponement of the ODIs. There will be no biosecure bubble for the series.

ESPNcricinfo experts Vettori and Lynn feel the Sunrisers seamer should be fast-tracked into the squad for the T20 World Cup

Nagraj Gollapudi28-Apr-20227:48

Is it time to fast-track Umran Malik into the India set-up?

Umran Malik is a fast-bowling “gem” who is creating “anxiety” in all kinds of batters and is now ready to play for India. That is the combined view of Daniel Vettori and Chris Lynn, ESPNcricinfo experts, who agree that Malik’s searing pace can make the difference even at the international level and he should be fast-tracked into India’s squad for the T20 World Cup later this year.According to Lynn, the bouncy and pacy nature of pitches in Australia, where the T20 World Cup will be held this year, would suit Malik. The Jammu & Kashmir seamer debuted for Sunrisers Hyderabad towards the end of IPL 2021 and instantly rattled batters and impressed Indian selectors, who added him as a net bowler for the 2021 T20 World Cup which was held in the UAE.Related

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The decimation and redemption of Rashid Khan

Lynn feels Malik is now ready to be part of the squad.”From the outside looking in, definitely,” Lynn said on after Malik’s maiden five-for dismantled Gujarat Titans’ batting, before Rahul Tewatia and Rashid Khan created their own magic to stun Sunrisers at the Wankhede stadium. “I will factor the wickets are bouncy here in Australia and you need I suppose that youth and just that guys haven’t played against it. You keep going back to whom you drop because it is such a formidable [bowling] line-up, but would love to see this guy in the World Cup. He’s going to take the world by storm if he does get a chance at the international level. It is lucky that I am not a selector for India.”Malik’s figures of 5 for 25 are the second-best by an uncapped Indian seamer in the IPL. According to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, his five wickets were worth almost eight, and his bowling impact of 166.64 is the highest ever for a bowler in an IPL match.Raw pace remains Malik’s weapon as he consistently delivers 145-plus kph speeds, including crossing the 150-barrier frequently. Such high pace, Vettori pointed out, is rare and makes every ball an event.”That pace generates anxiety among batters and not just tailenders, it’s all batters,” Vettori said. “We don’t often see bowlers get around the 153-154 mark. That’s exceptional pace, that’s a rarity that we haven’t seen I suppose consistently since the likes of [Brett] Lee, Shoaib Akhtar or Shaun Tait. So to see that is a huge part of the game now. You can see the excitement factor, brings a bit of X-factor.”ESPNcricinfo LtdIn the early matches this IPL, Malik was utilised during the powerplay where he erred in the lengths and went for runs. Sunrisers changed their approach quickly and started utilising Malik solely in the middle overs (7-16) where batting teams are starting to tilt the balance. But Sunrisers have not asked Malik to compromise on his pace. With the help of Sunrisers’ captain Kane Williamson, who has set smart fields including having two fielders virtually straight behind the keeper to pouch top edges, Malik has steadily become more accurate. On Wednesday, he showed his bowling smarts against Titans’ captain Hardik Pandya.In the teams’ first contest this season, Hardik had been hit on the helmet first ball by Malik. Pandya shooed away the Titans’ physio and responded to Malik’s aggression with equally aggressive batting. Back then, Malik got carried away pitching fuller and shorter. On Wednesday, though, Malik again roughed up Pandya with a short-of-length delivery that hit the Titans skipper on the shoulder. Once again, Pandya sent back the physio who was rushing in. Next ball was in the slot, which Pandya timed nicely for a four. Soon, Malik would return to challenge Pandya’s ego by bowling short and sucking him into playing a pull which was caught easily at fine third man. Having already sent Shubman Gill’s stumps flying, Malik would have fun with the rest of the Titans batting order.A smarter and more accurate Malik, Lynn said, would be a dangerous proposition for batters. “The fact that he’s learning quickly as well is probably (what) impressed me more than anything. He has always got that raw pace, but it is all about that cricket IQ now which is developing every game and he is very, very impressive.”According to Vettori, the Indian team management as well as the national selectors need to quickly manage Malik to safeguard his unique talent.”Potentially. It might be the best thing for him coming under the umbrella of the BCCI or the NCA, and they can manage his workloads, because there is a temptation for a player of his pace to keep bowling. I am reflecting on my conversation with Shane Bond and the fact that he thought the more you bowled, the slower you got.”In the subcontinent, you are used as a net bowler, you are going on tours and things like that. So the workload could get a bit much. This is a gem here and it’s just how it’s looked after in the next couple of years for Indian cricket and how to get the best out of him.”

Harry Podmore hounded his former county to leave Kent in tip-top frame of mind for the Royal London Cup final on Saturday and Middlesex’s Championship season in ruins

Matt Roller at Canterbury27-Jun-20181:57

Kent go top of Division Two

ScorecardMiddlesex slumped to a record first-class defeat against Kent, as Harry Podmore took a maiden five-wicket haul against his former employers. For Kent, the 342-run win secured a spot in the top two of the second division, and meant a winning start as Championship captain for Sam Billings ahead of Saturday’s Royal London Cup final.Not for the first time this season, Kent’s batsmen underwhelmed, only for the spirit of their inexperienced attack to bail them out of trouble. They sit at top of the Championship tonight – although will slip to second if Warwickshire win at Chester-le-Street – and on this showing, there is every reason to think they can seal promotion in the second half of the season.With an eye to the future, perhaps a Division One future, they have also confirmed that they have put a 28-day approach in for the Nottinghamshire seamer Matt Milnes.Don’t blame the lights – Walker

Matt Walker, Kent’s coach, played down the impact of floodlit cricket on Kent’s win following Middlesex’s precipitous collapse on the first evening.
“I don’t really see the point of pink-ball cricket, to be honest… but the lights haven’t really played a part in it. There were about eight overs of it on the first night, and probably similar on the second night. I don’t know why the ECB are doing it – I know they’re trialling it, but I love the four-day format as it is. But look, we’ve won this game, and I’d like to think we’d have won the game if it had been a red ball starting at normal hours as well.”

Chasing an improbable 467 to win with eight wickets in hand, Middlesex went into the day with a clear task: bat, and bat long. But the game was over as a contest within the first hour. Sam Robson, Dawid Malan, and Hilton Cartwright – each a Test batsman – looked all at sea against the swinging ball, as Podmore and Grant Stewart ran riot.Steaming in from the Nackington Road end, Podmore bowled with pace and purpose to a packed slip cordon, and celebrated each wicket with a roar more guttural than the last. When Malan nicked off, he wheeled away in celebration, arms outstretched, before punching the air.The seamer never held down a place in the first team at Middlesex, and his release at the start of April was not mourned by their fans. But here, he looked every inch a Division One fast bowler, moving the ball into the right-hander and beating the bat time and again.Stewart, whose maiden century last night took the game away from Middlesex’s attack, struck first, removing the hapless Robson flashing at a wide one, before Podmore got Malan.The wickets began to tumble: nightwatchman Ravi Patel was caught at fourth slip off Stewart, before Podmore took his fifth and sixth of the innings, all before an hour had been played.Only Tim Murtagh’s bludgeoning 40 off 21 balls spared the visitors from their heaviest-ever first-class defeat in terms of runs, but that will be scant consolation. Middlesex sit fifth in Division Two, 36 points off second-placed Warwickshire; and that margin could increase depending on proceedings at Chester-le-Street.Middlesex have spoken out about the perceived injustices they have faced countless times over the past two seasons. Their relegation from Division One was blamed on the Taunton groundsman and a rogue archer outside the Oval; their struggles at home the fault of the Lord’s groundstaff, rather than their attack’s impotence.They had their excuses here, too: no doubt, they had the worse of the conditions, and they were missing as many as nine of the first-team squad due to international call-ups, injuries, or breakdowns in relationships.But the time for excuses must be over. For all their complaints about the pink Dukes ball, which swung around corners late on the first evening, and their absent stars, Middlesex were outplayed in every department by a fired-up Kent side. Today’s pathetic showing was the nadir: with no blame cast on the floodlights or the mischievous pink ball, they collapsed in spectacular fashion against a Kent attack missing its two spearheads.After an early exit in the Royal London Cup, and with a poor recent record in the T20 Blast, Middlesex’s season rests on the final seven games of the Championship season. With Nick Gubbins, Tom Helm, Paul Stirling, Eoin Morgan, and Steven Finn all in contention for those games, there is at least some reason for optimism, but the manner of the defeat here hints at a club in turmoil.Few could have foreseen the club’s current position after their dramatic, final-day title win in 2016, but their slump has come about on merit. The members will be demanding answers: why have talented young players like Podmore and Gloucestershire’s Ryan Higgins left the county? Why are two stars of the Championship-winning season now either surplus to requirements (Nick Compton) or on loan at a club in the division above (Ollie Rayner)?

Cristiano Ronaldo's late efforts were not enough to save Al-Nassr, who were eliminated from the AFC Champions League by Al-Ain on penalties.

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Teams play out insane seven-goal thrillerRonaldo takes match to shootout with 118th minute penaltyBut Al-Ain progress with victory on spot-kicksGetty ImagesTELL ME MORE

At 1-0 down on aggregate and with home advantage on their side, the onus was on Al-Nassr to make a strong start in front of an expectant crowd. But the hosts were haunted by a familiar face in the first-half, with Soufiane Rahimi adding to his decisive goal in the first leg by scoring a scintillating first-half brace. Three goals down on aggregate mere minutes from the break, the writing appeared to be on the wall – until Abdulrahman Ghareeb's effort in first-half stoppage time gave Al-Nassr life. The 26-year-old winger turned home from close range after Sadio Mane had capitalised on some bizarre decision-making from Al-Ain 'keeper Khalid Eisa.

Hope turned into optimism in the second half when Otavio helped make it 2-2. Eisa was again at fault as he somehow managed to turn the ball into his own net from a tight angle from the Portugese's shot. Al-Nassr pushed late in regulation time and should have gone ahead earlier than they did. Another mistake from Eisa saw him spill the ball directly into Cristiano Ronaldo's path mere yards from goal, but the Portuguese somehow fired wide. His blushes were spared moments later when Alex Telles' cross-cum-shot from a free-kick bamboozled Eisa, who again didn't cover himself in glory as Al-Nassr made it 3-2 to take it to extra time.

The home side's efforts to push for a winner turned on its head when substitute Ayman Ahmed was sent off for a rash challenge following a VAR review. Mere minutes later Al-Ain scored again through Al Shamsi, but this time it was Al-Nassr 'keeper Raghed Najjar who was at fault. He clawed at a tame cross and fumbled it onto his own bar, leaving an easy tap-in for the substitute. The topsy-turvy tie wasn't done there, though. Ronaldo finally had his say, scoring a penalty in the 118th minute to make it 4-3 on the night and send the game to a shoot-out. However, those efforts weren't enough as Otavio missed the vital spot-kick, as Al-Ain progressed 3-1 on penalties.

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Monday's defeat means Al-Nassr are knocked out of the AFC Champions League at the quarter-final stage for the first time since 2018-19.

Getty ImagesTHE MVP

While Otavio missed the crucial kick, this was Rahimi's match – and tie. The Moroccan forward scored the vital goal in the first leg and his brace in the second should have put Al-Ain in cruise control headed to the semi-finals. But Eisa's errors proved costly and the away side had to do it the hard way, as Rahimi's fine individual efforts were cancelled out as Al-Nassr nearly completed a memorable comeback. With eight goals to his name in the competition – one behind Ronaldo after his late effort on Monday night – Rahimi has emerged as one of the AFC Champions League's standout performers this term.

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THE BIG LOSER

What a horrible night for the goalkeepers. Ronaldo's miss was a dreadful one but it was handed to him on a plate by Eisa, who had a game to forget for Al-Ain. He rushed out of his goal for no apparent reason for Al-Nassr's first, leaving himself horribly out of position, before turning home a completely misdirected shot by Otavio for a dreadful own-goal. Eisa also should have reacted quicker for Telles' strike for Al-Nassr's third, even if it was well hit through a crowd of players.

That said, Eisa was ultimately let off the hook – unlike Najjar. The Al-Nassr goalkeeper made some good saves in the match but choked at the crucial moment. He snatched at a seemingly harmless cross in extra time and was unfortunate for it to bounce kindly off the bar into Al Shamsi's path. Not one he'll want to see back, and he couldn't make amends in the penalty shoot-out.

Phil Simmons, the Afghanistan coach, was pleased with the side’s preparation but stressed on channeling white-ball temperament in Test cricket

Shashank Kishore in Bengaluru13-Jun-20182:34

Rashid will come out as the best spinner in this Test – Simmons

Asghar Stanikzai was asked about “nerves” as he arrived for his first official press conference as Test captain. “I’m hearing this for the first time,” he shot back, setting the tone for the next 15 minutes during which he and coach Phil Simmons talked all things Test cricket and the build-up to their inaugural Test.It was in Bengaluru seven years ago that Simmons truly left his imprint as a coach, when Ireland upset England at the 2011 World Cup. Now, he returns to the venue of that famous triumph in charge of another side, who he just helped qualify for the 2019 World Cup two months ago.Having witnessed the turmoil West Indies went through towards the end of his career, Simmons is aware of the immediate challenge to channel Afghanistan’s white-ball temperament to the longest format.”I was with Ireland for a long time, but they haven’t produced the amount of youngsters in the last four-five years like Afghanistan have,” he said. “The batting is a little bit less but the bowling, you will see a young fast bowler in this Test match hopefully. It shows that they have young talent coming up. And exciting prospects for the future.”Preparation wise, Afghanistan picked two vastly different squads for the T20Is against Bangladesh and their inaugural Test. Only Stanikzai, Mohammad Shahzad, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman featured in their 3-0 T20I whitewash of Bangladesh in Dehrarun earlier this month. This decision of allowing players time to prepare for the Test by monitoring their training schedules was a conscious one.”Our preparation has been good. We still had 12-13 players training with red ball,” Simmons said. “Fortunately the three fast bowlers (Wafadar, Sayed Shirzad and Yamin Ahmadzai) were not in T20I squad and they have been concentrating on Test preparation. The two senior spinners Nabi and Rashid am sure will be able to adjust themselves.”Afghanistan are under no illusion about how the pitch will behave and expect India’s three spinners to come hard at them. Having two wristspinners themselves – Rashid and Zahir Khan – along with Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s variations should help cope to an extent.Afghanistan’s players attend the BCCI awards ceremony•BCCI”You prepare for what you expect. We expected Jadeja, Ashwin, Kuldeep,” Simmons said. “We have had our own Kuldeep in young Zahir. We have bowlers of similar ilk and they have been bowling at the batsmen. My feeling is that I can’t tell you how to prepare for a particular player. When you practice it against a spinner you learn how to play him. So we have put that in front of them and I think they have worked hard enough to be put out there.”Simmons cracked up when asked about “grass on the surface” for this Test. “When I played with them (Afghanistan) in Ireland, it was a little more greener than this and it still turned,” he said. “I think our bowlers are experienced enough to turn on that. It looks a lot darker today than it did two days ago, so I think by the time tomorrow (Thursday) comes it will be dry enough to spin on it.”The surface aside, it was also inevitable Simmons was going to be asked about Stanikzai’s remarks of Afghanistan’s spinners being better than India’s. My captain knows what he is talking about,” Simmons laughed with Stanikzai also grinning beside him. “When you look at it, all spinners in this contest will be excellent.”We know that right now, Rashid is the most difficult spinner to play around. He has not played Test cricket. We have to look and see what happens. but his professionalism will help him to adjust and am sure he will come out well.”Afghanistan have trained in India regularly since making Greater Noida their home base last year. Access to different training wickets and modern facilities has been maximised so much that Simmons downplayed the prospect of being undercooked. He stressed more on the temperament needed to succeed and hoped the team had learnt from experience.”The mental part comes from the way you train, how long you bat and how long you bowl and train in the nets,” Simmons said. “That’s the only way you prepare mentally because when you get out there then you understand what it takes. They have played four-day cricket so they have a fair idea…the good thing about it is that they learn quickly.”The press conference was lit up further when Simmons was asked about Virat Kohli’s unavailability. His answer elicited laughter among those in attendance.”I think there will always be a bit of disappointment in the players not to be on the same field as Virat, but at the same time we look at it as win the Test match and beat India, we don’t beat Virat,” he said. “So we are disappointed he is not playing, but little bit happy that we are not going to bowl to him all the time. We are happy to be here and playing India, Virat is not India.”

Former Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa should be fondly remembered by the supporters at Elland Road due to the excellent work he did during his time at the club.

The former Marseille head coach, who is the current national team manager of Uruguay, enjoyed a terrific spell in Yorkshire as he joined them in the Championship and left with the side competing as a Premier League outfit.

Ex-sporting director Victor Orta and the 68-year-old boss worked together to secure promotion to the top flight within his first two seasons at the helm, which was followed by a ninth-placed finish in the top division.

Whilst some may look back at the signings Bielsa made, with the most expensive highlighted below, and how successful they were, the experienced tactician also struck gold with his decisions on who to cash in on.

Rodrigo

£25.9m

Dan James

£25.1m

Jean-Kevin Augustin

£18.2m

Diego Llorente

£17.3m

Raphinha

£16.1m

One sale the Argentine boss hit the jackpot with was centre-forward Kemar Roofe's move to Belgian side Anderlecht in the summer of 2019.

Former Whites owner Andrea Radrizzani revealed that the club needed to bring in money through sales that year in order to avoid a points deduction from the league due to their financial situation.

This means that Bielsa's hand was somewhat forced with Roofe but there were other assets at Elland Road and his decision to cash in on the Jamaica international turned out to be an excellent one.

How many goals did Kemar Roofe score for Leeds?

The energetic attacker spent three full seasons with the Yorkshire-based outfit and plundered 33 goals in 122 appearances across all competitions in total.

He arrived at Leeds off the back of an outstanding 2015/16 campaign with Oxford United in League Two as the talented ace produced an eye-catching 25 goals and 12 assists in 49 matches, which included 17 goals and ten assists in 40 league outings.

However, the English-born star struggled for form at the top end of the pitch during his debut season with Leeds. Roofe scored four goals and provided seven assists in 49 games throughout the 2016/17 term.

The former West Brom academy prospect was then able to find his feet the following campaign with a record of 14 goals and five assists in 39 clashes, which included 11 goals in 36 Championship outings.

His final season with Leeds came in the 2018/19 campaign, which was Bielsa's first year at Elland Road and ended in a play-off semi-final defeat to Derby County. He contributed with 15 goals and two assists in 34 matches in total, which included 15 league goals in 33 appearances.

Roofe was Leeds' top-scorer in the Championship with his 15 league strikes, which was six more than the nine that Patrick Bamford managed after his move from Middlesbrough during the 2018 summer transfer window.

How much did Leeds sell Roofe for?

Bielsa and Leeds reportedly cashed in on the reliable number nine for a significant fee of £7m as Vincent Kompany's Anderlecht secured his services.

He only had one year left to run on his contract at Elland Road and was offered an attractive wage hike by the Pro League side, while the Whites were well compensated for a Championship club selling a player who would have been a free agent the following summer.

His departure left a hole to fill at the top end of the pitch for Bielsa but it also presented Bamford with the opportunity to stake a claim for his place in the side, which is exactly what he did.

The former Chelsea prodigy went on to score 16 goals in 45 Championship appearances, which was seven more than any of his teammates, as Leeds won the title and earned promotion to the Premier League.

Where is Roofe now?

Roofe is currently playing for Scottish giants Rangers at the age of 30, having joined the Light Blues from Anderlecht in the summer of 2020.

The striker scored seven goals in 16 appearances in all competitions for the Belgian outfit before his switch to Scotland after just one season with Kompany.

He has been a fairly prolific scorer for the Gers throughout his three-and-a-bit years in Glasgow to date, with 37 goals in 86 matches to date.

However, his fitness record has been a huge issue over the course of his stay in Scotland. Roofe has suffered seven separate injury problems and missed a staggering 84 competitive games since the start of the 2020/21 campaign.

This means that the former Leeds forward has almost been absent for as many matches as he has played for Rangers over the last three years, which shows that the 30-year-old attacker has been a liability with his lack of consistent availability.

How much is Roofe worth now?

At the time of writing, FootballTransfers have placed Roofe's Expected Transfer Value (xTV) at £850k (€1m), showing that his market value has plummeted since his departure from Elland Road.

The experienced finisher's xTV of £850k is 88% less than the £7m that Leeds raked in for his services in the summer of 2019.

Roofe, who was described as a "Duracell bunny" by former Rangers boss Steven Gerrard, has been a fine goalscorer for the Scottish giants but his injury issues have caused too many problems for him to be worth anywhere near as much as the Whites received for him four years ago.

His team are not able to rely on him to play regular football as he has not played more than 21 league games in a single season since the 2018/19 campaign with Leeds.

Therefore, Bielsa hit the jackpot with his move to sell the ex-Oxford United star in 2019 as his injury issues have caught up with him and his market value has deteriorated drastically, which suggests that the English outfit cashed in on him at the perfect time.

Roofe's exit also allowed Bamford to thrive in the final third, as aforementioned, and fire the Yorkshire side to the Premier League, which suggests that they did not miss the Jamaican marksman's talents on the pitch.

Arsenal’s hard-fought win over Leicester City on the weekend just about kept them in the Premier League title race for another week.

However, while two late goals are always great for morale, Mikel Arteta’s side remain comfortably behind Liverpool in first place.

Moreover, with a thread-bare attack, it certainly feels like it would take a minor miracle for the North Londoners to finally get their hands on the trophy this season.

Worse yet, an attacker they sold back in 2017 has just returned to the Premier League and is now worth millions more than what they sold him for.

Arsenal's notable 2017 transfers

Before getting to the player in question, it’s worth looking back at a couple of signings made by Arsenal in 2017, starting with Sead Kolašinac, who joined on a free from FC Schalke in June that year.

He may have been moving to the Gunners for nothing, but there was a level of excitement over his arrival, as in the season prior, he scored three goals and provided nine assists for the Bundesliga side in just 36 games.

Unfortunately, despite producing nine goal involvements in his first season with the club, the Bosnian international never truly got to grips with English football, being labelled “naive” and “irresponsible” by Gary Neville in his very first game for the club, and after a few more mediocre seasons, he was sent back to Schalke on loan for the latter half of 20/21 and then released by mutual consent in summer 2022.

A more successful signing made in 2017 was that of Alexandre Lacazette, as while he probably didn’t score quite as many goals as fans would’ve liked for his then-club record fee of £46.5m, he was a useful member of the first team throughout his five-year stay in North London.

In all, the French centre-forward made 206 appearances for the Gunners, in which he won an FA Cup, scored 76 goals and provided 32 assists, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every other game, which is just the sort of attacker the club could do with at the moment.

Likewise, the player the club sold for pennies on the dollar that same summer is also someone Arteta could do with today, especially as he’s now worth millions more.

The Arsenal star sold too soon

There were a few notable sales from the first team in the summer of 2017, such as Wojciech Szczęsny and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, but in this instance, the player was sold from the academy side.

Donyell Malen joined Arsenal as a child and had a reasonable record of 18 goals and nine assists in 57 games for the various youth sides, but was ultimately sold to PSV Eindhoven for around £200k in 2017.

Back in the Netherlands, the Wieringen-born star went from strength to strength and eventually ended up with a record of 55 goals and 24 assists in 116 first-team games for the club, which was enough to secure a £27m move to Borussia Dortmund in July 2021.

He was less prolific in front of goal in Germany but still effective.

Over the next three and a half seasons, the “sizzling” Dutchman, as dubbed by U23 scout Antonio Mango, would still rack up a respectable haul of 39 goals and 20 assists in 132 games, which was once again enough to earn him another move to a top five league, only this time it was the Premier League.

Appearances

38

35

38

21

Minutes

2312′

2193′

2378′

957′

Goals

9

10

15

5

Assists

6

8

5

1

Goal Involvements per Match

0.39

0.51

0.52

0.28

Minutes per Goal Involvement

154.1′

121.8′

118.9′

159.5′

Aston Villa were on the lookout for attacking reinforcements last month and set their sights on the former Hale Ender, who they eventually secured for around £21.5m, which is a massive £20.8m increase on the price the Gunners sold him for six and a half years ago.

In fact, the price paid by the Villans represents an incredible 10650% increase on the fee Arsenal received when they sold the attacker to PSV.

Ultimately, hindsight is a wonderful thing, but once he was out of the capital, it didn’t take long for Malen to show his stuff, and while he might not have been a regular starter for the Gunners, we reckon his presence in the team would make their current injury crisis a lot more manageable.

Arsenal struck gold on "beast" whose valued has soared by 1488% this season

The incredible talent has a bright future with Arsenal.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Feb 19, 2025

New Zealand seamer Matt Henry is taking Division Two by storm as another three wickets at Canterbury made clear

ECB Reporters Network11-May-20181:50

Nick Gubbins again advertised his England credentials

ScorecardKent’s New Zealand strike bowler Matt Henry continued his stunning, early-season form by taking 3 for 24 to leave second-placed Sussex struggling on 69 for 4 as 14 wickets fell on the opening day of this Specsavers County Championship Division Two clash in Canterbury.Henry, the Kiwi firebrand with nine Test caps, spent most of the winter carrying the drinks as the Black Caps entertained Joe Root’s England. However, the 26-year-old has fired on all cylinders since joining Kent last month and, in only his fourth game for the club, leads the national bowling averages with 30 championship wickets at a miserly average of 8.56.Sussex lost both openers within 14 balls of starting their reply. Phil Salt departed first, following a Harry Podmore away swinger to feather one through to keeper Adam Rouse, who tumbled to his left four balls later to snaffle an edge from Luke Wells off the bowling of Henry.The slippery paceman was soon celebrating again after having Harry Finch caught throat-high at slip by Sean Dickson and then Stiaan van Zyl played outside a full inswinger to have his furniture rearranged, again by Henry.Ben Brown (20*) and Luke Wright (28*) counter-attacked thereafter, riding their luck to take the visitors through to the second day still trailing Kent by 146 runs.Kent top-scorer Heino Kuhn was delighted by the character Kent showed throughout the day. He said: “I found the conditions pretty decent and, if you applied yourself, there were enough bad balls around to score from. I managed to keep the good balls out for a couple of hours, I inside edged a couple for four, which I’ll away take. But we went from 125 for two to 134 for six, which was a little disappointing, but at least the last couple took us to 215.”I’m happy for Grant [Stewart] and Calum [Haggett] for getting us past 200 and the bowlers with Matt to the fore did really well. Matt is international class and I told the guys in slips today that I’m happy to playing with him, rather than against him, because he bowled a few unplayable balls today.”As for Sussex head coach Jason Gillespie, he was delighted by his side’s mid-session comeback with the ball. “Losing four wickets at the end of the day wasn’t ideal, but the opposition are allowed to bowl well too. I thought we were a little bit slow into our work at the start of the day.”It took us a little longer to get our lines and lengths right and we bowled well after lunch. David Wiese bowled really well, he was slow to get cracking and get the motor running, but when he did he was a real handful. The first hour tomorrow will be pretty crucial. We need ‘Browny’ and ‘Wrighty’ to develop this partnership for sure.”Earlier on in the opening day, Kent had posted their first batting bonus point of the season yet still underperformed with the bat after succumbing for 215 inside 75 overs.Batting first after an uncontested toss on a sunny morning at the Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence, Joe Denly’s third-placed side lost eight wickets for 51 runs in the mid-session but went on to reach 200 in spectacular style when tail-ender Grant Stewart hammered a brace of sixes in taking 17 off an over from Ollie Robinson.In only his fourth first-class game Stewart, who had been out of action for three weeks with a hamstring strain, became his side’s joint second top-scorer with a career-best 31 before becoming last man out when chopping on against Ishant Sharma.Sharma, the Indian paceman who was capped by Sussex ahead of the match, finished with three 62 and Robinson bagged three for 51 against his former county, but it was South Africa paceman David Wiese who stood out with four for 53 – including the prized scalps of Denly and Heino Kuhn, who had added 75 for the third wicket.Kent lost openers Daniel Bell-Drummond and Dickson in the first session of the match but were in the process of rebuilding until Wiese caused havoc after lunch.The 32-year-old right-armer from Roodepoort had Denly caught behind on the hook, then top-scorer Kuhn, after hitting 11 fours in a fluent 60, pushed inside the line of a leg-cutter to edge to Sussex gloveman Ben Brown.Adam Rouse fenced outside off to steer a low catch to Finch at second slip then Zak Crawley gloved a third successive bouncer from Robinson through to the keeper.Sharma replaced Wiese at the Nackington Road End and came to the party with two more Kentish wickets. Podmore pushed down the wrong line to have off stump pegged back, then Henry tamely chipped one to mid-on with Kent still 37 runs short of reaching a batting point.Left-hander Calum Haggett dug in for over 100 minutes for a crucial 31 with three fours before being bowled through the gate by Robinson, leaving Stewart to clinch Kent’s sole batting point with some belligerent, late-order hitting.

Nat Watkins’ 86 ended in vain as Denmark chased down a revised target of 114 from 23 overs, with seven wickets and seven balls to spare

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Kuala Lumpur30-Apr-2018
Peter Della PennaAfter a sterling bowling effort at the death and a two-and-a-half hour delay in a revised chase of 114 from 23 overs, Denmark finished off Jersey with seven wickets and seven balls to spare via Duckworth-Lewis method at Royal Selangor Club.Opener Nat Watkins was named Man of the Match after top-scoring for Jersey with 86 off 111 balls in a losing cause. But after reaching his fifty off 79 balls in the 30th over, he struggled to accelerate in the stifling heat and humidity of Kuala Lumpur.Appearing energy-sapped, Watkins went 14 overs without a boundary until striking one off left-arm spinner Bashir Shah in the 42nd over. Another four and six came off Bashir’s next over before Watkins was bowled charging Bashir to leave Jersey at 194 for 4.Denmark’s bowlers were brilliant at tying down the Jersey middle order with changes of pace. Jersey’s last five overs netted only 33 runs, and just 100 runs came off the last 15 despite being at 138 for 1 in 35 overs on a flat pitch that gave the bowlers little to work with. Denmark’s attack, however was incredibly disciplined throughout as they conceded just two extras, both of them leg byes.A day after scoring a century in a win over Bermuda on the same pitch, Freddie Klokker steered the chase, helping Denmark to 55 for 0 in 13 overs, 24 ahead of the D/L par score, when a massive thunderstorm swept across the ground. The field became flooded within an hour but Royal Selangor’s solid drainage system allowed play to eventually resume once the rain subsided. The target was revised to 114 in 23 overs, leaving Denmark needing 59 off 60 balls.Denmark fell slightly behind in the first three overs after play resumed before Zameer Khan struck Watkins for four in a 10-run 17th over to put Denmark ahead again. Klokker and Zameer fell in the next two overs, but Denmark continued to speed away as 11 was taken off Stevens in the 20th over. A head-high no-ball from Watkins clinched the winning runs for Denmark.