موراتا: كريستيانو رونالدو سعيد بعودتي إلى يوفنتوس

أكد ألفارو موراتا، المنضم حديثًا إلى يوفنتوس الإيطالي، أن رحيله عن صفوف البيانكونيري في صيف 2016 لم يكن بيده.

ولعب موراتا موسمين مع يوفنتوس من 2014 حتى 2016، قبل أن يفعل ريال مدريد بند إعادة الشراء مقابل 30 مليون يورو.

اقرأ أيضًا.. رامسي: نستمتع بالتدريبات مع بيرلو.. ولدينا منافسين على لقب الدوري

وعاد موراتا هذا الصيف إلى يوفنتوس من أتلتيكو مدريد، على سبيل الإعارة لمدة موسم مع أحقية الشراء مقابل 45 مليون يورو.

وقال موراتا، في مؤتمر تقديمه كلاعب لليوفي: “الرحيل عن يوفنتوس لم يكن في يدي، كنت سعيدًا في مدريد، ولكن الآن من المهم لي أن أكون هنا”.

وأضاف: “لقد كنت على تواصل مع الجميع هنا على مر السنوات الماضية، كان لدي ذكريات عظيمة هنا، والآن لدينا تحديات جديدة يجب أن نواجهها معًا”.

وتابع: “يوفنتوس غامر وتعاقد معي عندما كنت أصغر سنًا، كانت العودة إلى هنا حلمي دائمًا وأنا سعيد بتحقيق ذلك”.

وواصل: “لقد عدت إلى توريتو كشخص ناضج بمعنى الكلمة، أنا في المكان المناسب وفي الوقت المناسب، أعرف ما يجب أن أفعله، ولدي الخبرة اللازمة، يوفنتوس هو فرصة العمر”.

وبسؤاله عن بيرلو، زميله السابق في الملعب ومدربه حاليًا، أجاب: “إنه لأمر رائع أن يكون مدربًا لي بعد أن زاملته في الملعب”.

وأفاد: “أنا معجب بكيفية إدارته للفريق، بيرلو الشخص المثالي ليوفنتوس”.

وواصل: “لدينا خيارات هجومية عديدة، سأعمل بجد وسأقدم نفسي للفريق، سأبذل قصارى جهدي مقابل كل ما يطلبه مني المدرب، أريد أن أسجل الكثير من الأهداف ولكن أهم شيء هو الفوز كفريق”.

ونوه: “إذا نظرت إلى الأرقام الفردية فقط فأنت إذًا تمارس الرياضة الخطأ، اعتدت أن أهتم بالنقاد عندما كنت أصغر سنًا، أعلم أنني بحاجة إلى العمل الجاد وأن أكون واضحًا بشأن ما يجب فعله”.

وأوضح: “اللعب مع رونالدو؟ أعرف كريستيانو جيدًا، أنه سعيد بوجوده هنا، تحدثنا كثيرًا حتى قبل أن أعود”.

وشدد: “دوري أبطال أوروبا مهم جدا ليوفنتوس، إذا فزنا به هذا العام سأكون أسعد رجل في العالم، نريد الفوز بهذه المسابقة”.

وأتم: “لقد تابعت الدوري الإيطالي وهو تنافسي للغاية، الفوز به مرة أخرى بعد هذه السنوات العديدة بات صعبًا، المستوى آخذ في الازدياد”.

The Chalkboard: Everton may have found their shock Baines replacement in Dowell

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Everton midfielder Kieran Dowell was handed a surprise new role for loan side Sheffield United when they hosted Middlesbrough at Bramall Lane on Wednesday night, and it may have indicated that he can be the club’s surprise Leighton Baines replacement.

On the chalkboard

Well, the 21-year-old moved to the Championship high-flyers on loan until the end of the season during the January transfer window having found first-team opportunities hard to come by under Marco Silva, and he had largely featured in his preferred attacking midfield role to date.

However, Chris Wilder decided to hand the England U21 international a slightly different job by lining him up at left wing-back against Boro, and he certainly didn’t disappoint with an impressive and tireless display as his temporary team kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 win.

Dowell will be determined to make a positive impression for the Yorkshire outfit to prove to the Toffees that he has a long-term future at Goodison Park, and his latest display may have done his chances of doing exactly that the world of good.

Baines replacement?

It is clear to see that Lucas Digne will be Everton’s first-choice left-back/wing-back for the foreseeable future, but the Merseyside club don’t have a lot of depth beyond the Frenchman.

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That has meant that when he has been absent that veteran Baines has filled in, but sooner or later they will have to find a replacement for the 34-year-old whose contract is due to expire at the end of the current campaign.

Dowell may well have just proven that Silva already has his successor in the squad, and that he has the ability and quality to be Digne’s understudy.

Quick read: Position switch could be best hope for Mustafi this season

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Arsenal are suffering something of a defensive injury crisis at present. First choice right-back Hector Bellerin is out until the end of the season, as is centre-back Rob Holding. What’s more, summer signing Sokratis is also currently sidelined.

35-year-old right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner has proved incapable of dealing with the pace of the Premier League, whilst club captain Laurent Koscielny may also struggle with the strain of starting week in, week out.

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Despite all of this, Unai Emery cannot continue to rely upon 26-year-old Shkodran Mustafi in the heart of his defence. The 20-cap Germany international is a liability at the back. However, in light of Emery’s struggle to find effective cover for Bellerin, Mustafi should be tested at right-back.

The German has played at full-back in the past for his country and previous club Valencia. His passing ability and distribution can be put to good use on the flanks, whilst his defensive mistakes ought to be less costly than they would be at centre-back.

Celtic fans annihilate Jeremy Toljan on Twitter for poor performance versus Hearts

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Neil Lennon’s second stint as Celtic manager got off to a good start as his side emerged 2-1 victors over 10-man Hearts, although in no small part thanks to Odsonne Edouard, who scored the winner in the dying minutes after coming off the bench.

James Forrest gave the visitors the lead just after the half-hour mark before Hearts’ Jamie Brandon was sent for an early shower after flailing an arm in the face of Hoops right-back Jeremy Toljan.

The German, though, surely cannot blame the incident for the performance he produced thereafter. The defender, on loan from Borussia Dortmund, struggled to cause the Hearts defence any problems down the right and, on several occasions, his cross didn’t get past the first man.

Check out a Celtic fan’s viewpoint on last night’s last-gasp win over Hearts in the video below…

Fortunately for the speedster, Scott Brown was on hand to deliver late on – the Scotsman teed up Edouard for the decisive goal on his return to the starting XI.

Here’s how the Bhoys and Ghirls reacted to Toljan’s performance, and they didn’t hold back…

Tottenham fans split over Eriksen’s future

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Loads of Tottenham fans have been discussing the future of Christian Eriksen, and they are completely split as the playmaker continues to stay silent over contract talks.

This could be an awfully long summer for Spurs fans, as it seems practically inevitable that the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli will be linked with moves away, as well as manager Mauricio Pochettino.

On top of having to put up with all that, fans may face the prospect of losing two key players for relatively small transfer fees, due to the contract situations of both Toby Alderweireld and Eriksen.

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Both players will enter the final year of the current deal this summer, meaning it’s only a matter of time before Europe’s elite come calling.

While some may consider Alderweireld to be the more polished and complete product, Eriksen is three years younger than the Belgian international, so would represent a significantly better investment for buying clubs.

The 27 year-old has scored 63 goals and provided 81 assists in 261 Spurs showings, but some fans are ready to cash in this summer.

Other are desperate for the Dane to stay, and either way you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

أمير مرتضى: باتشيكو يوقع عقود تدريب الزمالك اليوم.. وسيحضر مباراة الجونة

أكد ‏أمير مرتضي المشرف العام على كرة القدم بنادي الزمالك، أن البرتغالي جايمي باتشيكو المدير الفني الجديد للفريق الأول لكرة القدم، سيوقع عقود توليه منصبه اليوم الأحد.

وكان مرتضى منصور رئيس الزمالك قد أعلن عن تعيين باتشيكو مديرًا فنيًا للفريق يوم الأربعاء الماضي، وذلك خلفًا للفرنسي باتريس كارتيرون الذي رحل لتدريب التعاون السعودي.

وقال أمير مرتضى في تصريحات صحفية نقلها مراسل “بطولات”: “المدرب سيتواجد في لقاء الجونة مساء اليوم بالمدرجات لمشاهدة الفريق”.

طالع أيضًا.. موعد والقناة الناقلة لمباراة الزمالك والجونة اليوم في الدوري المصري

ومن المقرر أن يقود طارق يحيى المدير الفني المؤقت لنادي الزمالك الفريق أمام الجونة في إطار منافسات الجولة 30 من بطولة الدوري.

يذكر أن الزمالك يحل في وصافة ترتيب الدوري المصري الممتاز برصيد 58 نقطة، أما الجونة فيتواجد بالمركز الثالث عشر برصيد 31 نقطة.

West Ham’s striker issues to get worse as Hugill move to Middlesbrough in doubt

[ad_pod ]According to reliable West Ham news site Claret & Hugh, Middlesbrough manager Tony Pulis has cooled on the idea of signing West Ham United striker Jordan Hugill on a permanent deal this summer following his season-long loan spell.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the centre-forward joined the Championship club on a temporary basis for the 2018/19 campaign last summer, having only made three appearances for the east London outfit between January 2018 and the end of last term.

Despite being a regular starter under Pulis, the 26-year-old hasn’t exactly set the world alight for Boro in terms of goals, scoring just the six in 26 league appearances for the Teesside outfit.

Claret & Hugh report that they are unlikely to look to make the move permanent should they achieve promotion to the Premier League, although they have been told that he will be returning to the London Stadium no matter what happens.

More bad news for West Ham

Manuel Pellegrini and the club would surely have been hoping that they had seen the last of Hugill and that they could recoup some of the £10m fee they paid Preston North End for the striker.

However, if Claret & Hugh are to be believed then that won’t be happening, and it is yet another striker blow for the east London side.

Andy Carroll is out of contract at the end of the season while Lucas Perez was reportedly left behind when the squad travelled to Marbella for a training camp this month because of his attitude.

Meanwhile, Javier Hernandez and Marko Arnautovic were both heavily linked with exits during the January window, and it would be no surprise if we haven’t heard the last of the story involving the latter even if he did recently pen a new contract.

Wolves fans weren’t happy with Rui Patricio’s performance against Newcastle

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Wolves fans have taken to Twitter in a disgruntled manner after they watched their side limp to a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United at Molineux on Monday night.

Barely any player in a gold shirt performed well, but Rui Patricio’s performance in goal was especially poor and opened him up to be criticised both during the game and after the final whistle.

The Portuguese international allowed Isaac Hayden’s effort in at this near post when he really should’ve saved the strike, whilst his kicking throughout the evening was noticeably concerning.

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Nuno Espirito Santo’s men did rally from behind to score a 95th-minute equaliser through Willy Boly, after Magpies stopper Martin Dubravka made an error of his own to level the scores.

However, Wolves fans weren’t bothered about the Slovakian’s mix-up as they were more focused on their own man in between the sticks, and took to Twitter to let their feelings be known about the former Sporting goalie’s performance…

Dean Smith should be encouraged by Jacob Ramsey’s debut

Aston Villa’s play-off hopes were dealt another major blow on Saturday after suffering a 2-0 defeat to West Brom at Villa Park.

Having gone down by two goals before half-time already, it appeared that manager Dean Smith might have started planning for next season after handing teenager Jacob Ramsey his debut in the second-half.

The 17-year-old replaced Conor Hourihane in the 60th minute of the match and provided a solid cameo under the circumstances of the match.

Villa were throwing everything at West Brom towards the final stages of the match and the midfielder looked comfortable in the attacking position with some swift passing and good link-up play.

The defeat means Villa are currently tenth in the Championship but are level on points with Preston, Hull City and Swansea City, having played one more match than the Tigers and the Swans. It will require something truly special from Villa to turn their campaign around and make one final push for promotion.

The unlikelihood of that happening means the manager could start using youngsters like Ramsey more often now in order for such players to gain valuable experience and become comfortable with the pace of the league.

Ramsey has had a good season from a personal perspective and has been a key player in the u-18 and u-23 teams.

He’s been composed in front of goal and has shown the ability to find players in better positions on the pitch.

He was also clinical in the two matches he played in the FA Youth Cup against Swansea City and Reading, scoring a total of four goals.

Ramsey’s substitution came ahead of first-team players like Jonathan Kodjia, Albert Adomah and Anwar El Ghazi, who were all available on the bench.

This could indicate Smith’s plans to ease Ramsey into the first-team and let him show his worth in the final stages of the season.

Tottenham’s transfers nightmares: A pair of failed forwards

There are not many to choose from very recently, are there? From the signings Mauricio Pochettino has helped make over the past five years, the majority have represented some very astute business by Tottenham Hotspur, whereas some others have struggled to adapt.

In more recent transfer windows, Davinson Sanchez, Lucas Moura, Serge Aurier, Fernando Llorente, Juan Foyth and Paulo Gazzaniga were all brought in the last campaign and they have all played their part in helping Spurs to develop as a football side and as a club.

Now we have briefly looked at some of the signings that have worked out rather well on the whole, here are two of the worst signings from the past five years…

Clinton N’Jie

N’Jie joined Spurs for a reported £12m fee in 2015 on a five-year deal.

For such a fee, it would have been fair to assume that in 14 appearances he would make more of an impact. Granted, his time at White Hart Lane was hindered by an injury but when the forward he did take to the pitch, he did little to impress at all, amounting no goals during his time in the capital.

The 25-year-old was then loaned out to Marseille the following season, that deal was then made permanent and it is there where he has continued his career.

Vincent Janssen

Janssen looked to be the ideal back-up for Harry Kane upon his arrival in 2016; being a proven goalscorer; young enough to challenge Kane for numerous years which should him on top of his game.

Having just finished the season as the Eredivisie’s top-scorer, costing a reported £18.6m, Spurs fans had a right to be excited.

In his first campaign, he was rather clinical in both domestic Cups, yet he scored just two League goals and was loaned out to Fenerbahce for the season just gone, as Fernando Llorente was seemingly preferred as the second-choice striker.

The 24-year-old returned to Spurs this season and had been out of action until the New Year with a foot injury. He returned to play twice for the U23s in January, but he has since yet to be involved in a senior matchday squad at Spurs this season and looks set for an exit this summer.

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