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Free Malaysia Today
3 hours ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
How window shopping will shape EPL's Big Six
Gazing at the Club World Cup (CWC) or peering through the transfer window? Either way, fans have had plenty to keep entertained. It's been over a month since the EPL season ended, and less than two before the new one starts. A stop-start window has been open for just three weeks in total, yet the Big Six have already coughed up £600 million. Half of it has been spent by Liverpool and Manchester City, with Chelsea a sluggish – for them – third at a mere £100m. Until yesterday, it was effectively only the Big Five as Arsenal were still fiddling with the latch. Finding it as hard to sign a striker as to lift a trophy, the Gunners have a new football director in Andrea Beti who likes to line up all his ducks before taking aim. Long-suffering Gooners had their hopes fleetingly raised when news broke of a Brentford player joining. Alas, it was neither Bryan Mbuemo nor Yoane Wissa, but another defensive midfielder. No disrespect to Christian Norgaard, but a 31-year-old defensive midfielder for £10m was not what the North Bank is looking for. It might be a prudent move as Thomas Partey seems to be in the exit zone, but the need is for a S-T-R-I-K-E-R and it is getting desperate. Real Madrid's Rodrygo is the latest to be linked, but will the Kroenkes meet the €90m (£76m) asking price for the Brazilian? They paid £106m for Declan Rice so what's stopping them? Now that Liverpool has been linked with Victor Gyokores and Benjamin Sesko is deemed too expensive, few alternatives remain. Another inquiry about Ollie Watkins? Darwin Nunez? Mikel Arteta might as well ask Thierry Henry if he still fancies it. If Arsenal are serious about rising one place in the table, they must bite the bullet and get Rodrygo. With 119 goal contributions in 268 appearances for Los Blancos, the silky Brazilian is just 24 and has won everything at club level. At £76m, he's a bargain. Martin Zubimendi is said to be in London to finalise his move from Real Sociedad and they've looked at Anthony Gordon after Bayern inquired about Gabriel Martinelli. But having all that quality in the middle of the park is no good if you can't put the ball in the net. You'd think they'd know by now. The claim that Liverpool could spend another £200m without worrying about PSR – according to the Liverpool Echo – is sure to scare rivals. It seems unlikely that owners Fenway Sports Group would go that far, which would even bring £150m Alexander Isak into range, and they could use a striker. However, the Reds may conclude that the cheaper Swede offers better value at half the price. Liverpool also needs a centre-back with Jarrell Quansah headed for Bayer Leverkusen, while Ibrahima Konate is unhappy with the new deal offered. They're also likely to raise north of £100m from offloads with Nunez, perhaps Andy Robertson or Kostas Tsimikas, Ben Doak, Federico Chiesa, besides Quansah and Caoimhin Kelleher, who has already left for Brentford. Harvey Elliott might still be among them, but his stunning efforts, including four goals, in helping England to the European U21s final, may give Slot pause for thought. With newcomers Florian Wirtz, Jeremy Frimpong and Milos Kerkez already on board, the champions are the team to beat. Manchester City may disagree with no less than eight signings since January. With a decision on the 115 charges looming mid-season, they brought in four players, headlined by Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt, for a total of £142m. Egypt's Marmoush is everything Erling Haaland isn't as a striker and could find himself preferred to the Norwegian if he maintains last season's form. With the verdict still awaited, they added four more recruits this month and have Rodri and Oscar Bobb returning to fitness. City fans may not recognise their team when the new season starts. As bullish about the CWC as they are about the verdict, they seem in a hurry to prove a point. And they even like the CWC. If they suffer no punishment in the legal case, they will be contenders once again. Chelsea's headline signing is Liam Delap for just £30m from Ipswich but there will be more to come. And by advancing from the group stage, have already paid for the striker with obscene prize money. Manchester United appear acutely aware that a lack of goals is a big problem by paying the £62.5m release clause fee for Matheus Cunha. They're also chasing Mbuemo but, you have to ask if they've done their due diligence on the Brazilian. Cunha is a well-known maverick with a quick temper and selfish streak, the very characteristics that are causing them to offload Alessandro Garnacho. They need some good sales to ensure they can keep paying out big bucks for new recruits, but wantaways are not that easy to shift as Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford are showing. Removing perceived bad apples may not be enough if Ruben Amorim fails to forge a cohesive unit. Unless there's a notable improvement, you wonder how long the Portuguese can last. The other great under-performers from last season decided it was the manager who had to go. Spurs got rid of Ange Postecoglou despite the Aussie ending their trophy drought. Replacement Thomas Frank has done a great job at Brentford on a low budget and having his best players plucked by the big boys whenever they shine. But a sign that Spurs will be tightening the defence and going for youth can be seen in their new additions. Japan's Kota Takai, Croatia's Luka Vuskovic and Austrian Kevin Danso, whose loan was converted, you have a trio of centre-backs. And add the former duo to Archie Gray, 19, Wilson Odobert, 20, Lucas Bergvall, 19, Antonin Kinsky, 22, Yang Min-hyeok, 19, and Mathys Tel, 20, you have an exciting and youthful core of players. Frank, the cool-headed father figure, could just be the man to lead them to greater things. By the time Liverpool kick the season off at home to Bournemouth on August 15, some teams will be barely recognisable. It promises to be quite a battle and an awful lot of cash will be spent before it even starts. Keep your eyes on that window! The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.
News18
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News18
Steven Gerrard's Shocked As Thai Fan Tries 'DNA Transfer' At Meet-and-Greet
A fan jokingly rubbed Gerrard's legs and tried to sprinkle his DNA onto his son so that he might inherit the man's talents. A bizarre incident took place at Steven Gerrard's meet-and-greet event in Thailand as the Liverpool legend encountered an overly passionate father who tried to take the great's DNA for his son, hoping he would follow in his footsteps. The clip from the event showed the 45-year-old being filmed with this father-and-son duo before the senior man jokingly rubbed Gerrard's legs and tried to sprinkle his DNA onto his son so that he might inherit the man's talents. While the two Liverpool fans were taken off stage by the security personnel, Gerrard appeared shocked by what had transpired and was seen laughing in the background. The amusing clip of the former English Premier League midfielder has since gone viral on social media, raising the eyebrows of football fans around the globe and attracting a flood of comments. This bloke taking the DNA from Gerrards legs to put them into his own son's 🤣🤣🤣 — george (@StokeyyG2) June 25, 2025 While some were pleased that Gerrard's die-hard fans' son might get some of his virtues, others joked it would be difficult to see the young lad come up with an unreliable footing and cost a Premier League title to Liverpool in the future. It was a funny reference to Gerrard's slip-up during a potential decider against Chelsea in the 2014 English Premier League, where Demba Ba maximised on the opening and scored a crucial goal for his team. With Liverpool desperately needing an equaliser, Gerrard infamously erred and collapsed before Ba went on to produce Chelsea's second strike for the night, ultimately ensuring their 2-0 victory at Anfield. Liverpool's loss denied them a chance to claim the top standing that season as Manchester City eventually lifted the EPL title. Talks over his slip-up continue to follow Gerrard long after his retirement in 2016, when he last turned out for LA Galaxy. He has since taken up managerial roles, enduring mixed success. Gerrard won the Scottish Premier League in 2021 with Rangers before failing in his role with Aston Villa. He was most recently in charge of Saudi Pro rivals Al-Ettifaq but was sacked by the club in January. First Published:
Scotsman
2 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Scotland captain Andy Robertson's Liverpool future in doubt after £40m Milos Kerkez transfer
EPL deal leaves the defender with a decision amid Spain interest Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Scotland captain Andy Robertson faces a pivotal decision on his future at Liverpool following the £40m arrival of Milos Kerkez. The Anfield club signed Kerkez from English Premier League counterparts Bournemouth on a five-year contract, and he is now expected to become first-choice left-back under head coach Arne Slot. Robertson, 31, has held that position for most of his eight years on Merseyside and must now decide whether he is willing to accept a bit-part role or explore a move elsewhere. He is now one of three senior left-backs alongside 21-year-old Kerkez and the Greek Kostas Tsimikas, 29. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Spanish club Atletico Madrid want to take Robertson to La Liga and, with Scotland aiming to reach next summer's World Cup, the national skipper needs to ensure he is playing regularly at a high level. He is mulling over his long-term future on holiday, with his Liverpool contract entering its final 12 months. He is due to report to the club's Kirkby training base to start pre-season on Monday, 7 July. Last season saw the full-back play 55 matches in total - 45 for Liverpool and 10 for Scotland. Having finished the campaign as Slot's established left-back, the signing of Kerkez signals a significant change in circumstances for the former Queen's Park, Dundee United and Hull City man. Atletico offer the prospect of more regular game time and are prepared to sign Robertson as their first-choice on the left side. His former Anfield team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold joined Atletico's city rivals Real four weeks ago and would be a familiar face in the Spanish capital if the Scot decides to move. Should he leave England, chances of Tsimikas remaining at Liverpool would certainly increase. EPL, Champions League and cup wins for Scotland captain but Spain transfer may appeal Robertson knows his place is under threat. Speaking earlier this month, he addressed the prospect of Kerkez joining Liverpool to compete for his position. 'When you play for a big club like Liverpool, you expect challenges, you expect to have competition,' he said. 'I've always faced that and so has everyone in their own positions. We want the club to be ambitious. Wherever we fit into that, if you're happy with the role, you stay and do it. If you're not, I'm sure there will be some people out the door as well.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It is now down to Robertson to decide whether he is seriously interested in pursuing the Atletico option, or whether he will remain on Merseyside for the final year of his contract. Having won the Champions League twice and two English Premier League titles with Liverpool, plus an FA Cup, two League Cups, a UEFA Super Cup and a FIFA Club World Cup, the Scotland defender may feel he has achieved everything he can with the Anfield club.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Gossip: Foxes star could get Premier League return
Everton and Manchester United are both interested in Leicester's Nigerian midfielder Wilfred Ndidi, 28, who has a reported £9m relegation release clause. (Talksport, external)Want more EFL transfer rumours? Check out Thursday's full gossip columnFollow the gossip column on BBC Sport
Barnama
3 days ago
- Business
- Barnama
Digital-first And Purpose-driven: AIA Malaysia's New Era For Life Planners
BUSINESS AIA Bhd Chief Executive Officer Ben Ng (left) and AIA Bhd chief agency distribution officer Leong Chee Soong during an interview session with Bernama recently at the AIA headquarters in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. AIA Bhd Chief Executive Officer Ben Ng during an interview session with Bernama recently at the AIA headquarters in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- In an increasingly digital world, insurance agents must cultivate strong digital competencies, embrace adaptability, and leverage online communication platforms to navigate emerging challenges and shift public perception away from outdated stereotypes rooted in traditional face-to-face interactions. Recognising these challenges, AIA Malaysia launched the AIA Elite Academy (AEA) in 2018 -- an exclusive, first-of-its-kind talent development programme aimed at cultivating a new generation of high-performing insurance agents, known as AIA Life Planners in AIA. The programme features a time-tested syllabus, best-in-class training, and the essential tools and skill sets to help Life Planners grow professionally and thrive as successful entrepreneurs. AIA Malaysia chief executive officer Ben Ng said the company has continuously enhanced the programme over the past seven years to make it more attractive and relevant to the times, with the ultimate goal of inspiring Life Planners to build lasting careers with AIA by fostering long-term engagement and professional growth. Hence, this year, AIA has introduced Elite 2.0 and Elite Premier Leader (EPL) 2.0 -- enhanced programmes focusing on stronger income opportunities and advanced business development skills. Ng said Elite 2.0 is designed for fresh graduates to kick-start their careers with start-up capital support, while empowering them to build a sustainable income through commissions and bonuses. 'Elite 2.0 is also tailored for career switchers, senior management professionals, and established business owners – offering an industry-leading start-up capital of up to 150 per cent of annual income and monthly income matching of up to RM100,000,' he said in a recent group interview. Meanwhile, Ng said EPL 2.0 is crafted for individuals ready to lead teams, accelerating their leadership journey with sustainable income and advanced opportunities within 24 months, with the aim of building a lasting and impactful business. 'We understand that the traditional view of insurance agents is often linked to outdated methods and limited growth. At AIA, we have completely redefined that narrative,' he said.
