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The Sun
11 minutes ago
- The Sun
Jarrod Bowen might be the perfect forward for Dream Team managers in Gameweek 1
WHERE would West Ham be without Jarrod Bowen? There are some in the east end of London who believe the answer to that question is: the Championship. 3 The latest in our SCOUT REPORT series focuses on the Hammers' talisman ahead of the new Dream Team season. While it's true that gaffers need a certain degree of longsightedness when selecting their XI, there's something to be said for targeting the opening weekend of the Premier League. Those keen on a strong start should be particularly interested in Bowen as he's due to face Sunderland in Gameweek 1. This is not to say the Black Cats should be underestimated as they will be cheered on by a partisan home crowd at the Stadium of Light upon their return to the top flight but it's simply a fact that newly-promoted clubs have given up a lot of points in recent years. And so it's only natural that Dream Team bosses managers will look at Leeds, Burnley and Sunderland for promising match-ups - at least initially. 3 Bowen racked up 277 points last season at an impressive average of 7.7 per game. The England international scored 14 goals and provided 11 assists in 2024/25. That boils down further to a goal involvement every 125.9 minutes. He also ranked third for tackles and fourth for bonus points (among forwards). 3 The 28-year-old has been a consistent performer for several years now and his individual output has rarely dipped, regardless of West Ham's form. Despite his excellent returns, engaged gaffers didn't turn to Bowen until the final Gameweeks of the season in 2024/25. Only then did his ownership rise to a figure befitting of a player who finished as the seventh-best performer in his position. His popularity is limited due to the fact West Ham don't have European fixtures to enhance their schedule but that will only be a relevant factor in September. When it comes to domestic games, there are few players who rattle along at Bowen's rate and so he should be considered a strong option for August, especially with Sunderland (a) in Gameweek 1.


Daily Mail
11 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Two Premier League giants rule themselves OUT of the race for Alexander Isak
Chelsea and Manchester United have ruled out a move for unsettled Newcastle striker Alexander Isak, who has been left out of their pre-season tour of the Far East after saying he wants to explore a move away. World champions Chelsea have been linked with Isak after Mail Sport's Craig Hope broke the news that Isak is willing to explore a move elsewhere. The Blues hierarchy are happy with their current set-up, that includes Liam Delap and Nicolas Jackson, as well as the versatile Joao Pedro as an option up front. The internal suspicion is that their name is being used to drive up a price on the 25-year-old striker. Manager Enzo Maresca plans to lean on rotation in the coming season, especially for managing workloads after their last lengthy campaign, and Chelsea are understood to be unappreciative of them being linked with players they are not actively pursuing for the purpose of creating an auction. Instead, Chelsea are focusing on landing Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig and Jorrel Hero from Ajax currently, while they realise there is a need to accelerate their outgoings. Chelsea believe their name is being used to drive up Isak's price, while Man United are unable to compete with a potential bid from rivals after signing Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha Jackson is expected to stay at Stamford Bridge unless a bid significant enough to turn his and their heads is logged before the transfer window closes. He has been linked with Manchester United but as previously reported by Mail Sport, Chelsea believe he is a potential £100million player. Jackson himself is ready to fight for his place alongside Delap and Joao Pedro, after the two new signings impressed at the Club World Cup in the United States. Man United have currently ruled out a move for Isak and number of other big-money options including Jackson and Benjamin Sesko. With the Sweden striker valued at an astronomical £150million, United are unable to compete with a potential bid from Liverpool and other Premier League rivals after spending more than £130m on Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha this summer, even though they are keen to sign a new centre-forward. Jackson is also out of United's reach after being valued at between £80-100m by Chelsea, although there still a possibility that a swap deal with Alejandro Garnacho could be explored. Garnacho has been training away from the first-team squad at Carrington in pre-season after being told to find a new club by head coach Ruben Amorim. Sesko is available for closer to £60m after Arsenal moved for Sporting Lisbon's Viktor Gyokeres ahead of the RB Leipzig striker, but sources have indicated that he would be too expensive for United as well. Ollie Watkins is one option that has been considered, but he would stretch the budget and Aston Villa are understood to have told United that he is not for sale anyway. It means that Amorim is running out of options after it emerged earlier this week that United are coming to terms with the fact they could kick off the new season against Arsenal next month without a new striker.


Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
Spain set sights on England as they chase elusive European crown
ZURICH, July 24 (Reuters) - Spain's remarkable run in international competitions reaches another high on Sunday when they take on England in the final at the Women's Euros in Basel, playing in their first European decider in only their fifth appearance at the tournament. The reigning world and Nations League champions will be looking for a repeat of their defeat of England in the 2023 World Cup final as they seek to add the European crown to their trophy cabinet. "Now we'll start looking at England more closely, although our analysts have already been watching them live and studying their performance in this Euro," Spain coach Montse Torme told reporters after her side's 1-0 semi-final win over Germany on Wednesday. "We're going to dive deeper into their game, and we're going all-in." For all their dominance in recent years, Spain are still relative newcomers at the top table in women's soccer, and their only previous visit to the semi-finals at the Euros was in 1997. They followed that up with quarter-final exits in 2013, 2017 and 2022. By contrast, Germany, whom they had never beaten at a major tournament before Wednesday, won the tournament five times since 1997. "It's an incredible joy to be in the final, to have beaten Germany for the first time — a great team. I think we knew how to compete in this match. I'm very happy for the players, the staff, and everything we are building here in Switzerland," Torme said. For long-serving captain Irene Paredes, success at the Euros is another welcome milestone in her side's progress towards being the kind of dominant team the Germans once were. "It's incredible. We're making history," she told reporters. "This is what we wanted. It's been tough, but we're in the final."