Window ends with a 'weaker and more imbalanced squad'
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Times
10 hours ago
- Times
Evan Ferguson misses Brighton training camp to close Roma deal
Evan Ferguson is closing in on a move to the Serie A club Roma, with Brighton having placed a valuation of about £33million on his head. While Brighton are on a pre-season training camp in southern Spain, the 20-year-old Ireland striker has stayed in England to complete the deal, which could initially be for a loan period, with Roma then having an option to buy. Well-placed club sources say that other clubs are also interested, but Roma are in pole position as the player is intent on moving there. Ferguson is thought to be looking forward to working with the new Roma manager, Gian Piero Gasperini, who arrived from Atalanta last month and has a good record with strikers. Reports about Ferguson's imminent move have raised doubts about the future for the Ukraine international Artem Dovbyk at Roma. After bursting onto the scene as an 18-year-old, Ferguson was at one point valued at close to £100million and was given a new contract by Brighton until 2029. Niggling knee and ankle injuries have hampered his progress and a loan move to West Ham for the second part of last season went badly. Brighton have made it clear that they need to sell players and even though Joao Pedro was sold to Chelsea for more than £50million, their head coach Fabian Hürzeler has deemed Ferguson surplus to requirements, with two Greek strikers, Charalampos Kostoulas and Stefanos Tzimas, now at the club. A move to Roma is a huge gamble as players from Britain and Ireland have often struggled to be successful in Italian football. Dara O'Shea is set to be named as Ipswich's next club captain due to the the imminent departure of the midfielder Sam Morsy, who has worn the armband for the past four seasons. O'Shea stood in several times as captain last season and having signed a new contract at the club which will keep him at the club until 2030, the Ipswich manager, Kieran McKenna, is now expected to make him the leader on the pitch as the club seek an immediate return to the top flight. O'Shea has decided to step off the promotion-relegation merry-go-round, having suffered three relegations in five seasons, firstly at West Bromwich Albion, then Burnley and now Ipswich. Burnley showed interest in bringing him back and another freshly promoted club, Leeds United, were also making enquiries, but both are odds-on to return to the Championship and other more established top-flight outfits such as Bournemouth are already looking for younger alternatives with greater sell-on value. O'Shea realises that he now needs a period of stability at one club, especially with McKenna also committed. 'I've learnt so much from him in such a short space and I'm really eager to learn more,' O'Shea told Ipswich TV after signing his new contract. 'I've loved Suffolk life. It reminds me a lot of home. It's a slower pace of life, not much going on in the town, but I like that.' Morsy, an Egypt international who was born and raised in Wolverhampton, is set to join Kuwait FC on a free transfer. Elsewhere, the Flamengo president, Luiz Eduardo Baptista, has revealed he intervened to stop the Ireland international Mikey Johnston's move to Brazil. It was first reported that fan pressure forced the Brazilian side to stop Johnston's move from West Bromwich Albion to the Rio de Janeiro club for a £5million fee. The controversial transfer has increased the turmoil at the club since their early departure from the Club World Cup. 'The club's medical report said he would be fit to play for 1,800 minutes a season,' Baptista said. 'How many has he played this season? 900. So am I going to bring in a player to play 900 minutes when I still have to play another 4,000 minutes?' In fact, Johnston played just over 2,000 minutes in the Championship last season, scoring three goals and assisting in five over 42 appearances, many of them from the bench. Johnston, who's 26, also has 15 Ireland caps. Johnston failed to establish himself at Celtic after showing early promise and had spent a period on loan in Portugal before joining West Brom.
Scotsman
12 hours ago
- Scotsman
Hearts report and player ratings v Stirling: Debut goal, Premier Sports Cup seed, 100 per cent record
Mid-summer Scottish rain soaked Hearts to the skin but they never looked like slipping in a comfortable Premier Sports Cup win at Stirling Albion. Craig Halkett scored twice with Claudio Braga and debutant Greek winger Alexandros Kyziridis also finding the net as the Premiership club overwhelmed League Two opponents to become strong favourites for a knockout-round seeding. The three group winners with the best records are seeded for the last 16 alongside Scotland's five European entrants. Hearts will expect to secure a seeding place if they win their final Group E match against Dumbarton on Wednesday to maintain a 100 per cent record in the competition. Kyziridis enjoyed a strong debut at a sodden Forthbank and generally tormented Stirling's right-back Ross McGeachie. A goal and an assist was a decent way to introduce himself to new fans. With direct running, dribbling and shooting ability, signs are he will be a popular figure at Tynecastle Park this season. In making eight changes to his startling line-up from Tuesday's win against Hamilton, Hearts coach Derek McInnes selected Kyziridis for the first time after a minor injury. His early header forced a save from the Stirling goalkeeper Derek Gaston before he created the opening goal on 13 minutes with a hanging cross which Halkett powerfully headed downwards into the net. Alan Forrest's looping effort from Oisin McEntee's cross bounced off the far post on 18 minutes before Braga doubled the visitors' advantage. From second phase after a corner, Christian Borchgrevink's deep cross found Halkett for a header across goal which Braga nodded goalwards on the run. Gaston's hand got to the ball but couldn't keep it out. Kyziridis found the net himself to put Hearts 3-0 ahead on 38 minutes. Forrest's low delivery across the face of Gaston's goal fell nicely for the Greek to drive high into the net, thus ending this game as a contest before the break. Kyziridis should have scored again moments later after spriting through on goal onto Lawrence Shankland's forward ball. The diving Gaston managed to divert the Hearts player's shot over his crossbar. Stirling tried to use the height of former Riccarton youngster Russell McLean in attack but he was well marshalled by the visiting centre-backs Halkett and Stuart Findlay. Borchgrevink departed at half-time, presumably through a knock, and McEntee moved to right-back for the second period. Gaston produced a fine save to deny Shankland from Braga's cross shortly after the restart as the procession towards Albion's goal continued. Hearts probed and pressed, their forwards caught offside several times due to overeagerness to get in behind. They eventually forced a fourth goal 10 minutes from the end. Halkett's header from substitute Yan Dhanda's corner was stopped by Gaston as he fell backwards and the bal appeared to cross the goal line. Findlay raced in to prod it home just in case but it looked like Halkett's goal. Stirling protested that their keeper had the ball in his hands and claimed a foul, but the goal stood. Substitute Elton Kabangu should have made it 5-0 but sent his header from Dhanda's cross over the bar despite being unmarked six yards out. Hearts had to make do with a final scoreline of 4-0, meaning the had scored 12 goals and conceded only one in their three Premier Sports Cup games so far. The same again on Wednesday against Dumbarton would guarantee that seeding. Here are the Hearts player ratings from Forthbank: 1 . GK: Zander Clark 6/10 Hardly touched the ball due to Hearts' dominance at the other end. | SNS Group Photo Sales 2 . RB: Christian Borchgrevink 5/10 Claimed an assist and got forward well, but gave the ball away cheaply at times when under no pressure. Replaced at half-time. | SNS Group Photo Sales 3 . RCB: Frankie Kent 9/10 A goal and two assists for a central defender is unusual, but Halkett strolled this match. | SNS Group Photo Sales 4 . LCB: Stuart Findlay 8/10 Comfortable beside Halkett and able to start attacks from the back. Scored his second Hearts goal in two games to round off a fine night's work. | SNS Group Photo Sales
Daily Mirror
12 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Florian Wirtz prediction made after Premier League rival's private message
West Ham striker Niclas Fullkrug knows Florian Wirtz well from their time together with the Germany national team but the pair will face off as rivals this term Niclas Fullkrug is excited to see 'special' talent Florian Wirtz in the Premier League this season and has already messaged his Germany international team-mate to tell him as much. Wirtz completed a record £116m move to Liverpool earlier in the window after impressing for Bayer Leverkusen, and West Ham star Fullkrug knows all about the playmaker's quality from their time playing together for their country. "Florian is a very special player, very talented, one of the best players in Germany," Fullkrug said after West Ham's pre-season win away to Swiss club Grasshopper. "I love this guy, he's such a good guy and what a good player, so I told him already I'm happy he's now in the Premier League and he can show the whole world how good he is." Wirtz isn't the only Bundesliga star to move to the Premier League this summer, with Fullkrug's former Borussia Dortmund team-mate Jamie Gittens joining Chelsea. "He's of course a one v one player down the line, a winger, quick with the feet and always trying to get a shot on target," the striker said. "A good, talented player and I'm looking forward to seeing him on the pitch." Fullkrug played the first 45 minutes for West Ham in Zurich before manager Graham Potter picked an entirely new XI for the second half. The Hammers won 3-1, with Andy Irving, Callum Marshall and Lucas Paqueta scoring their goals. New signing El Hadji Malick Diouf made his debut for the London side, playing the entire second half and coming close to an assist only for Tomas Soucek to misplace his header. Fullkrug and Diouf weren't on the pitch together in Zurich, but the former Dortmund front man is optimistic about linking up with his new team-mate. "I think he's a nice addition to our team," Fullkrug said of £19m left wing-back Diouf. "He's a very physically strong guy, he has good crosses, a lot of crosses per game, and I saw his stats. Very good player but also did very well in the Europa League, so we're happy to have him and let's see how we work out." Senegal international Diouf was linked with a Premier League move in January after thriving for Slavia Prague, with club chief Jaroslav Tvrdik claiming Chelsea and Liverpool were keen. He is the third new signing at the London Stadium this summer, after a permannt swoop for former loanee Jean-Clair Todibo and the arrival of ex-Celtic starlet Daniel Cummings. West Ham have also reintegrated Maxwel Cornet and Nayef Aguerd into their squad after the pair spent last season out on loan. Ivorian winger Cornet played the first half against Grasshopper, while Morocco centre-back Aguerd played the second 45 at the back. It was 1-0 at the break, with Irving opening the scoring after fine work from captain Jarrod Bowen, and young striker Marshall doubled the lead less than two minutes after coming on. Jonathan Asp Jensen pulled a goal back midway through the second half but Paqueta restored the two-goal advantage from the penalty spot in the closing stages. "I think we have to prove [ourselves], that's the most important thing," Fullkrug said, refusing to make any big statements about the Hammers' goals for the season. "We have to prove in the first game we show what we are able to do, and when we do that we can start to speak about aims, goals or something. "But first we want to show that we want to make our fans proud, that we want to show a good face for West Ham United, and that's very important for us as a team because last year it was of course disappointing for everyone. But we don't want to speak any more about last year. It's the past, we are here now, and we look to the future." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
