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O Cruzeiro já começou a se planejar para a sequência da temporada. Após sondar Kaio Jorge e Matheus Henrique, a bola da vez na Toca da Raposa é o zagueiro Yerry Mina, que jogou a última temporada pelo Cagliari.

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Na Itália, ajudou o time se salvar do rebaixamento. Até o fim de semana, o clube terá uma reunião com o atleta. Aos 29 anos, Mina ainda tem mercado na Europa e tem desejo de permanecer no Velho Continente.

➡️ Siga o Lance! no WhatsApp e acompanhe em tempo real as principais notícias do esporte

Boa relação com Mattos pode ser diferencial para o Cruzeiro

Com a concorrência do futebol europeu e de mais de cinco clubes brasileiros, o Cruzeiro tem em Alexandre Mattos um trunfo. Atual CEO do clube, o dirigente foi o responsável pela contratação de Mina para o Palmeiras, em 2016.

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Mesmo se não for Mina, a Raposa irá contratar mais um zagueiro, com condições de ser titular da equipe, que tem Zé Ivaldo e João Marcelo como titulares. No futebol europeu, o zagueiro ainda atuou por Barcelona, Fiorentina, Everton e, agora, no Cagliari.

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Alexandre MattosCruzeiroFutebol NacionalMina

Bangladesh’s spinners wrested back control from Ireland at stumps on the first day of the Sylhet Test. The visitors lost their way after a strong first session, ending the day on 270 for 8. Mehidy Hasan Miraz took three wickets while Hasan Murad, the debutant left-arm spinner, picked up two wickets.Ireland started losing their way in the middle session as they went from 96 for 1 to 184 for 4. Four more fell in the last session as they ended the first day in a disappointing note. Paul Stirling and debutant Cade Carmichael had given Ireland a bright start with a 96-run second-wicket stand. Stirling, opening for the second time in his career, made 60, with a dominant display through square on the off-side. He struck seven of his nine boundaries through that region.The 22-year-old Carmichael was composed in his first day of Test cricket, batting confidently in his 59. Stirling and Carmichael struck fifties while Curtis Campher and Lorcan Tucker got out in the forties. Towards the end of the day, the 19-year-old debutant Jordan Neill impressed with his drives in his unbeaten 30.Bangladesh had to wait for about half an hour in the last session to get their first breakthrough. But once they had removed Campher, who struck six boundaries including two sixes in his 94-ball 44, Bangladesh made more headways into the Ireland innings.Campher, who was caught at slip, was Murad’s first Test wicket. It was followed by the wicket of Tucker, who was beaten by Murad’s flight and stumped for 41 off 80 balls. Tucker was looking good and hit three fours and two sixes, but he got sucked into an aggressive false shot by Murad. Mehidy got the big wicket of Andy McBrine, also stumped, for five.Ireland however fought back with the eighth wicket stand between Neill and Barry McCarthy, who added 48 runs till the end of the day. Neill made 30 with three fours and a six before falling on the last ball of the day.Bangladesh could have had a much better start to the day, had they held on to three chances in successive overs in the morning. Stirling was dropped twice, at slip and gully, while Taijul Islam spilled Carmichael’s chance at short square-leg. All of this happened betwen overs 4 and 7.Already a wicket down and with Bangladesh creating regular chances, Stirling and Carmichael rode out the difficult period. They found regular boundaries, particularly Stirling cracking numerous hits through backward point. Carmichael was circumspect during the first session, hitting three boundaries.Ireland started losing their way in the middle session. Nahid Rana removed the well-set Stirling in the first over after lunch, getting caught at second slip. Mehidy Hasan Miraz trapped Harry Tector lbw for one in the next over, before Carmichael reached his fifty off 110 balls. Miraz however removed him for 59. Najmul Hossain Shanto then dropped Lorcan Tucker on 11 late in the second session.

The defeat all but ended Sydney Thunder’s qualification hopes

AAP30-Nov-2025An Ellyse Perry masterclass has catapulted the Sydney Sixers back into the WBBL’s top four, with the allrounder leading her side to a crucial win over the Thunder.Chasing 175 for victory on Sunday, Perry scored an unbeaten 77 to take the Sixers to victory with six wickets and five balls to spare.The result all but ends the Thunder’s finals hopes, after a season where they have won just two of their seven completed games.On a crucial day in the WBBL’s finals race, Adelaide Strikers also kept their finals hopes alive with a last-over victory over the winless Brisbane Heat.The victory left them equal on eight points with the Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers, with all three teams having two games to play. The Sixers are one point ahead in third with a game in hand, with the four sides now seemingly battling for the last two spots in the finals.Seemingly down and out when bowled out for 42 against the second-placed Melbourne Stars 10 days ago, the Sixers have not lost since.After Heather Knight (65) and Anika Learoyd (43) rescued the Thunder from 58 for 4 at the end of the 10th over to post 174 for 6, Perry took charge in front of a crowd of 5024.She hit Sam Bates for two big sixes down the ground, including one that landed next to the famous Fig Tree at one end of North Sydney Oval.The veteran also charged quick Shabnim Ismail and hit her over long-on, with Perry rarely looking troubled in her 44-ball 77.Englishwoman Sophia Dunkley also hit 44 up top for the Sixers, while Alyssa Healy provided a quickfire 33 before perishing late.

Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl may still be wondering how his side were unable to see the game out for all three points after they found themselves 1-0 up against ten-man Braga on Thursday night.

The Light Blues are yet to win a match in the Europa League this season and they may not have a better opportunity than the one they had at Ibrox earlier this week.

Whilst Mohamed Diomande was sent off later in the match, the Gers allowed the Portuguese side to equalise whilst they had a man advantage, as Nasser Djiga’s wayward header caught James Tavernier out and allowed Gabriel Martinez to pounce.

The German head coach will be scratching his head and wondering what he could do to turn things around in Europe, as the Light Blues have lost four of their five matches, with two of those losses coming in his three games in the competition.

Attention, for now, will turn back to the Scottish Premiership as Rangers play host to Falkirk at Ibrox, after the reverse game at their stadium led to Russell Martin’s dismissal.

Rohl has won all four of his league games in charge of the club so far, but these league matches present an opportunity to try things out ahead of European games. For example, unleashing Oliver Antman in a new role.

Why Oliver Antman should be unleashed in a new role

You could hardly blame any supporters for getting a bit excited by the signing of the Finland international after he registered 17 assists in all competitions for Go Ahead Eagles in the 2024/25 campaign, per Sofascore.

On top of that, Antman delivered two assists on his debut for the Gers against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League, crossing for Djeidi Gassama and winning a penalty for Cyriel Dessers to score.

Since that impressive debut, though, the Finnish forward has produced no goals and one assist in 18 appearances in all competitions, per Transfermarkt, which shows that he has failed to deliver consistent quality in the final third.

Per Transfermarkt, all 11 of his starts have been on the right flank. With this in mind, it may be time for Rohl to unleash the 24-year-old attacker in a new role in his Rangers career.

RW

69

9 + 13

CM

22

1 + 0

LW

21

5 + 3

CF

18

5 + 0

AM

8

0 + 0

RM

8

1 + 5

As you can see in the table above, Antman has played in other positions throughout his career, on the left and through the middle, which means that the Light Blues can, realistically, use him in other areas of the pitch.

With this in mind, Rohl should unleash the Finland international in a flexible number ten position, which would allow him to drift out to the left or the right when the situation demands.

This would allow him to provide creativity on both flanks and centrally, which could help to support the two wingers whilst also providing the centre-forward, in theory, with more creativity.

In order to make this positional change for Antman against Falkirk, though, the German head coach will have to ditch one of his starters from the 1-1 draw with Braga on Thursday night.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

With this in mind, Rohl should ruthlessly ditch Youssef Chermiti from the starting line-up after his dismal showing against Braga, which would allow Danilo or Bojan Miovski to lead the line up front, with the Finnish whiz in behind them in the number ten role.

Why Rangers should drop Youssef Chermiti

Rangers parted company with sporting director Kevin Thelwell at the start of the week, after just one transfer window at Ibrox, and his lasting legacy may be the signing of the Portuguese striker.

The former Gers chief sanctioned an £8m deal to sign the forward from Everton, which made Chermiti the club’s most expensive signing in 25 years, since Tore Andre Flo’s £12m move to Glasgow.

That staggering outlay was made in spite of the fact that the 21-year-old striker failed to score in two seasons at Everton after Thelwell signed him for the Toffees from Sporting.

So far, Chermiti has delivered one goal and one assist in 14 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants this season, per Transfermarkt, which shows that he has not lived up to his price tag yet.

The former Everton attacker’s performance against Braga was the latest in an unfortunately long line of underwhelming displays from the £8m summer signing.

Minutes

89

Sofascore

5.9

Shots

3

Shots on target

0

Pass accuracy

52%

Key passes

0

Duels won

6/15

As you can see in the table above, the Portuguese centre-forward failed to offer quality on the ball, as he was particularly poor with his passes, and also lost the majority of his physical duels.

After the match, reporter Jonny McFarlane posted that Chermiti is “mind-blowingly bad” and that the striker “offers nothing”, whilst describing him as a “galling signing”.

As harsh as that is, it is hard to disagree with the sentiment because of how poor the £8m attacker’s performances have been for the Light Blues, with one goal in 14 matches far from enough for the money spent on him.

Of course, Chermiti is not at fault for the transfer fee that Thelwell agreed to pay for him. He is a young player who is clearly trying his best and competing for the Gers, as evidenced by his 15 duels on Thursday night, but the quality is not there, on current evidence.

That is why Rohl must ruthlessly ditch him from the starting line-up for this clash with Falkirk at Ibrox, because he has not shown enough on the pitch to suggest that he should be playing week-in-week-out as the main number nine.

Dropping Chermiti will then provide the manager with an opportunity to unleash Antman in this new role, because Danilo can move into a number nine position or also be dropped for Miovski to start.

"Rotten" Thelwell signing is Rangers' biggest waste of time since Dowell

This summer signing by Kevin Thelwell has been as bad as the deal to bring Kieran Dowell to Rangers.

ByDan Emery Nov 26, 2025

Chelsea’s “poor” defeat against Leeds United will end up costing them in the Premier League title race, according to club legend John Terry. The Blues icon has bemoaned his former side’s lack of experience as they slipped to a damaging 3-1 loss which leaves them nine points behind leaders Arsenal, who they held to a 1-1 draw in their previous match.

• Chelsea had been in fine form before surprise Leeds defeat

  After picking up a point following an admirable 10-man performance against Arsenal last Sunday, Chelsea travelled to struggling Leeds just six points behind Mikel Arteta’s Gunners on Wednesday.

  However, while Arsenal got back to winning ways against Brentford on the same night, Chelsea suffered a surprise defeat at Elland Road. Enzo Maresca’s men found themselves 2-0 down at the interval following efforts from defender Jaka Bijol and midfielder Ao Tanaka, before Blues winger Pedro Neto pulled a goal back early in the second half.

  But Chelsea were unable to find an equaliser in an abject performance which was capped off by centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo’s costly mistake in the build up to Leeds’ third goal through striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

  The result was Chelsea’s first loss in their last eight games in all competitions, but the manner in which the defeat was registered has caused frustration amongst a fanbase who are hoping to see their side improve upon last season’s fourth-place finish.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Blues legend Terry could not hide anger after final whistle

  Deflated after the final whistle, Chelsea icon Terry could not hide his anger at a display which – in his opinion – will come back to haunt the west Londoners towards the business end of the title race.

  Speaking on TikTok, Terry – who won 15 major trophies including five Premier League titles and one Champions League crown after 19 seasons at Chelsea – said: “What a poor performance that was.

  “Everything I said about Leeds, they were going to be aggressive, fans were going to be up for it, it was going to be a hostile place to go. You either go there and match them or you take the sting out of it completely, and by looks of it we certainly didn’t do that in the first half.

  “We cannot follow up two unbelievable performances with a performance like that, it’s certainly not going to make you title contenders. Unfortunately that’s what’s going to cost us, we are inexperienced and if you can’t go Leeds away and know what to expect then…”

  @johnterry26

  We can’t follow two great performances with that performance tonight. Some tough away games coming up and we need to be better than that tonight. 💙 #chelsea #chelseafc #premierleague #cfc

  ♬ original sound – John Terry

• Former England captain urges Maresca to end rotation policy

  Still irritated by both the result and the performance, Terry also criticised what he perceived to be a lack of “fight” from Chelsea, urging manager Maresca to end his rotation policy and stick with players who he believes will dig in every week.

  “You need to go there and show the fight, match Leeds in every single way and then earn your right to play,” former England captain Terry added. “After 15, 20 minutes you play your football once you’ve earned that right.

  “Set piece, individual mistakes defensively, clearly not good enough, maybe that’s an opportunity for the manager to look at the squad and go ‘okay rotations not for me moving forward, I know my best 11-14 players and I’ll stick with that and the other players are just going to have to deal with it.”

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Chelsea head coach expected better performance against Leeds

  Chelsea will look to bounce back when they travel to out-of-form Bournemouth in the league on Saturday afternoon. Maresca’s men then head to Serie A side Atalanta in the Champions League on Tuesday, 9 December.

  Looking ahead to the Bournemouth match, Maresca said after the Leeds game: “I think they [Leeds] were better than us in all the aspects. They deserved to win the game.

  “There’s nothing we can take from the game. The only thing we can do is try to understand the mistakes we’ve made and try to reset. In 48 hours we’ve another game [against Bournemouth].

  “When you play the way we have in the last two games against Barcelona and Arsenal, you expect a better performance. But for many reasons it’s not going to be possible. We changed players and when you change players the level drops because the reality is they’re important players for us.”

South Africa’s Test captain looks back on the Pakistan Test series and ahead to the two-Test series against India in November

Temba Bavuma31-Oct-2025I think it would have been fitting to have had a third Test against Pakistan. I know we are going to have the same argument again about whether more Tests should be played and all that. However, it would have been nice to have had a series decider, because you now see a South Africa Test team close to our best, and you would’ve wanted to give Pakistan another opportunity to rectify their wrongs.After the drawn Test series against Pakistan, we have another two-Test series in the subcontinent coming up against India from mid-November. That series will probably be a bit more challenging than Pakistan, and it will be important for us that we start the preparation now and not when we get to India.From a personal point of view, my preparation will come in the form of playing for the South Africa A side against India A. I will play in the second four-day match as part of my return-to-play programme. I’m looking forward to it, though I will have to find my South Africa A training kit because I haven’t used it since 2017! I welcome any match practice and am looking forward to being out there again. I have seen the squad India A have picked, so it will be competitive and more than just a practice game.Related

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• Rabada: South Africa 'a young team that wants to do the dirty work'

• Stats – First-class Harmer enters elite wicket-takers' club

• Maharaj: 'Old-fashioned Test cricket' helped us claw back

When I talk about preparation, I’m not necessarily speaking about our batters and bowlers getting into the nets, but more from a mental point of view. It comes down to understanding the challenges that we are going to face in Kolkata and Guwahati, and subsequently it’s how we are going to go about dealing with them.After losing the first Test to Pakistan in Lahore, we came back strongly in the second Test in Rawalpindi to win on day four. I think in the grander scheme of things, we probably suffered one of our normal issues of starting slowly in the Test series. If we had played in the first Test like we did in the second, who knows what the end result would have been in terms of the overall series.Given that South Africa’s spinners took 35 of 40 Pakistan wickets – including Simon Harmer’s 13 – they should be well prepped for India’s spinning pitches•Associated PressI think I have to be careful because I’m speaking from the outside here, but the wickets in Pakistan’s Test series against England last year looked a lot more spinner-friendly and a lot more deteriorated. I think these ones in our series were your natural subcontinental ones, where in the first innings guys could bat. The track in Rawalpindi looked a bit slow, so the scoring rates weren’t as quick, but guys looked like they could trust their defences. Even in the first Test, it looked like you could trust your defence and kind of build your game around what the conditions were offering.When it comes to India, we hope that the wickets are on the good side. When I say “good side”, it’s about batters being able to get in in the first innings and set out their stall. Then, in the second innings, the spinners will come into the game.To be honest, I don’t see India being any different in terms of the wickets they will prepare. If you look at the series between India and New Zealand, which the latter won, conditions were a bit spinner-friendly so I guess you always want to prepare for the worst, especially as batters. The mantra we subscribe to as a team is to “prepare for the worst and hope for the best”. It’s about how we counter tactics in extreme conditions and come up on the right side of the result.In our shared Test series against Pakistan I think the playing conditions were fair, but naturally the spinners were the main threat and they took the most wickets. In fact, South Africa’s spinners took 35 of the 40 wickets on offer in the series, which set a new record for the team in a two-Test series. However, I do think there was something in there for the batters, evidenced by the century scored by Tony de Zorzi in the first Test. It was also underlined by the way in which Ricky [Ryan Rickleton] got in in the second innings. As well as a guy like Stubbo [Tristan Stubbs] who scored 76 in the first innings, and even Dewald Brevis. In terms of Brev, he’s a little bit different because of the way he plays. He can kind of make a bad wicket a good one because that is the talent of the boy.In terms of our stand-in Test captain and opening batter, Aiden Markram, he didn’t go on to get big scores across the series, but the way he goes about his batting, he sets a good foundation and platform for the other players to follow. He plays off the front foot and is always looking to take it on. We feed off it as batters when guys at the top play with so much freedom and confidence.

After the humiliation of 69 all out, South Africa roared back as Tazmin Brits’ record-breaking hundred powered a statement World Cup win over New Zealand

Firdose Moonda06-Oct-2025

Tazmin Brits and Sune Luus’ 159-run stand took South Africa home•ICC/Getty Images

How do you recover from 69 all out?If you’re Marizanne Kapp, you hit Suzie Bates on the pads first ball in her 350th international to dismiss her in the same match where you become the most capped of your country’s women.If you’re Nonkululeko Mlaba, you take the wicket that sparks a collapse of 7 for 44, and finish with your career’s second four-for.If you’re Laura Wolvaardt, you stick your right arm out, and snatch the ball from the sky to claim what could be the catch of the tournament.Related

Tryon grinds it out, just like South Africa needed her to

India, South Africa seek momentum amid unpredictable World Cup

Mlaba, Brits, Luus seal comfortable win for South Africa

Stats – Tazmin Brits fastest to seven hundreds in women's ODIs

If you’re Sune Luus, you share in South Africa’s highest partnership at a World Cup, with your team’s most in-form batter Tazmin Brits.Oh, and if you’re Brits? You do it by becoming the only woman to score five ODI hundreds in a calendar year, and anchoring a successful chase of 232.Good enough? We’d say so.South Africa showed up in their second World Cup match with a strong all-round display that restored their tournament credentials, and left New Zealand with zero points from two games. But it’s the manner in which they did it that will please them most after their abject display in the opener against England. Nineteen wides aside, South Africa barely put a foot wrong as they squeezed New Zealand in the first half of their innings, and then struck big blows in the second to limit them to a modest total. Still, given the inexplicably poor batting performance South Africa put on three days ago, 232 was a long way away.When Wolvaardt was dismissed in the third over, it was even longer. What South Africa needed was a player with form, confidence and belief. Enter Brits.South Africa fashioned a collapse of 7 for 44 for New Zealand•Getty ImagesBefore this match, Brits had already scored four hundreds this year, including back-to-back-to-back against West Indies and Pakistan. Her last was a career-best 171* in Lahore. So being bowled for 5 by Linsey Smith in the opener was so galling to her that it made her lose her appetite.”It didn’t sit well with me. I was actually very (nauseous), and I didn’t even want to eat that night, and I overthought the process completely,” Brits, who smashed 101 off 89 balls against New Zealand, said after the game. “We put that in the past as quickly as possible, and said we’ve got to move on to the next game.”Brits joked that the – it is fried dough soaked in syrup with or without a desiccated coconut covering – is what upped her form this year, but she wouldn’t have found any of that in Indore. Instead, she had to feast on a new scoring area, which has only opened up for her in the last year.She has gone from being a predominantly leg-side player to understanding how to access the off side too. Against New Zealand, she scored more than two-thirds of her runs – 68 – on the off side, including 27 through or over mid-off. In total, she scored 40 runs in the V down the ground. Apart from taking advantage of the width on offer, she created some of it herself by moving around, and used her feet well throughout her innings.3:20

Mlaba, Brits help SA register first World Cup points

“I’ve just tried to expand my shot selection a bit more, and I’ve been working very, very hard on that,” she said.Brits’ ability to strike powerfully and score quickly also meant this hundred, off 87 balls, was her fastest, and South Africa’s fourth-fastest. It also launched her into the record books. Brits now has 749 runs this year, the second-most by a South Africa batter in a calendar year after Wolvaardt’s 882 in 2022. At the rate she is going, Brits could surpass Wolvaardt’s record during this World Cup itself. She also has more centuries in 41 ODI innings than anyone else at the same stage in their career, surpassing Meg Lanning, whose first seven hundreds came in 44 innings.Happily, she also has a distinct reason to remember this century as different from all the others. Not only is it her first at a World Cup – and South Africa’s third overall – but it also came with a special celebration: the archer.Sune Luus’ unbeaten 83 was the perfect foil to Tazmin Brits’ 101•ICC/Getty Images”I always do a ballerina for my dad, so I did that at 50 and then I actually put it out to the fans,” she said. “There were actually two 13-year-old girls that sent me the archer celebration. So I did it for them.”While Brits will grab the headlines, some praise must also be reserved for Luus, who has better numbers at No. 4, where she averages 33.44 and has scored only ODI hundred, than at No. 3. But against New Zealand, Luus played an innings that could make No. 3 hers. Her unbeaten 83 was the perfect support act to Brits, especially as she employed a more conservative approach early on. That gave Brits the freedom to hit out. Between them, they could, and arguably should, even have got South Africa to the target quicker.Though South Africa reached the target inside 41 overs, which has helped their net run-rate, it remains in negative territory, and they may look at overs 30 to 40, where they scored 46 runs, as a handbrake. In a tournament where the weather could still play a significant part and five or six teams could end up fighting over one or two semi-final spots, South Africa don’t want to be too far behind.They have their first points, though, and after the embarrassment of 69 all out, that’s a start. The next step is another day of travel to play the hosts, India, who are unbeaten, in Visakhapatnam, in what could be an important clash in determining the semi-finalists.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank, in particular, will have been delighted with Saturday’s 2-0 win over his former club Brentford in the Premier League.

Goals from Richarlison, signed for £60m, and Xavi Simons, signed for £52m, secured all three points for the Lilywhites, as two of their most-expensive signings start to show their quality.

An expensive signing who is not offering too much to the team at the moment, though, is £47.5m addition Brennan Johnson, who was an unused substitute against Brentford.

Why Brennan Johnson has not been a waste of money for Spurs

The Wales international has not scored in the Premier League since August, with four goals in all competitions this season, and has not been used off the bench in two of the last three matches, per Sofascore.

Signed for £47.5m from Nottingham Forest in 2023, Johnson does not currently look like good value for money, given his struggles this term, but he has not been a waste of money on the evidence of his overall time at the club so far.

The 24-year-old attacker has delivered 27 goals and 18 assists in 104 games for the Lilywhites, per Transfermarkt, including the winner in the Europa League final last season.

You could argue that his winning goal in that final was worth the £47.5m on its own because of the memories that it created, as the club’s first trophy in 17 years.

Meanwhile, there is another expensive signing in the Spurs squad who should be sold, as he has been a bigger flop than Johnson and has yet to justify his price tag.

The Spurs player who should be sold in January

Dominic Solanke has been out with an ankle injury since August, with no return date given by Frank, but he should be ruthlessly sold in the January transfer window.

Spurs splashed a club-record transfer fee of £65m to sign the English striker from Bournemouth in the summer of 2024, and his performances on the pitch have not reflected that huge outlay.

For a 27-year-old, now 28, who was brought in as a Premier League-proven star in the prime years of his career, Solanke has not offered enough in front of goal to suggest that he has been worth the money, with just nine league goals for the club to date, per Sofascore.

In April, pundit Micah Richards claimed that the £65m signing had “been a disappointment all season” in the 2024/25 campaign, and it is hard to disagree with that assessment when you look at his statistics, notably costing them around £4m per goal so far.

Solanke – 24/25	Premier League	Europa League
Appearances	27	13
xG	10.97	5.58
Goals	9	5
Big chances missed	12	4
Minutes per goal	245	161
Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Solanke underperformed against his xG in both the Premier League and the Europa League last term, missing more ‘big chances’ than he scored goals in the former.

Johnson, meanwhile, hit double figures for goals with 11 Premier League strikes for the Lilywhites, which means that he has scored four more league goals for Spurs than Solanke since the start of last season, per Sofascore.

This shows that the Welshman, who plays on the wing rather than as a striker, has been more productive than the ex-Bournemouth man in the Premier League, whilst also being more impactful overall, given his trophy-clinching goal.

Solanke has simply not done enough on the pitch since signing for the club to prove that the Lilywhites were right to splash £65m on him, which is why they should cut their losses and cash in on him in January.

His current injury issues only add further fuel to the fire because Spurs now do not know if they can rely on him to be fit and available, whilst they also do not know if they can rely on him to be efficient in front of goal as their number nine.

Richarlison’s return of six goals and two assists in nine Premier League starts so far this season, per Sofascore, also suggests that Solanke will not be the first-choice number nine when he is back fit.

Fewer touches than Vicario & 88% duels lost: Spurs flop must now be dropped

One Tottenham Hotspur player may need to be dropped despite yesterday’s win over Brentford.

By
Ethan Lamb

5 days ago

That is further reason for the club to cash in on the big-money flop in January to invest in a new signing in that position, as the Englishman’s move to North London has not worked out so far.

Since the start of last season, Tottenham Hotspur have only won six home games in the Premier League.

A big response was needed ahead of Saturday’s clash against Fulham, but the relegation-threatened Cottagers swept into a two-goal advantage after six minutes, and the damage was done.

(1) Man City

2nd

24.2

(2) Chelsea

3rd

22.9

(3) Crystal Palace

9th

21.1

(4) Arsenal

1st

21.8

(5) Brentford

10th

21.1

(17) Tottenham

12th

11.9

This, sadly, is no uncharted territory, with Ange Postecoglou’s incredible Europa League triumph unable to save him from the axe as the Lilywhites limped to a 17th-place finish in the Premier League.

Thomas Frank was snapped up, the former Brentford boss having done so well in west London.

But things have hardly gone swimmingly several months into the Danish tactician’s stewardship.

Spurs could consider summer target

Frank still believes he can turn things around at Tottenham, but he’s running out of time. The fans are fed up, and there is a widening chasm in regard to the connection between manager and supporter.

To dare is to do, but Spurs daren’t spread their wings and showcase their attacking quality, it seems. Frank might employ a grittier, more pragmatic defensive and build-up structure than his predecessor, but he will fall by the wayside without taking off the fetters.

And with Oliver Glasner likely still on ENIC Group’s radar after summer interest, a solution may be right there for the taking.

In June, Tottenham chiefs held talks with the trophy-winning Crystal Palace manager before opting instead to push ahead with Frank, though the Austrian said he was committed to the Eagles cause after his stunning FA Cup win.

However, rumours of Glasner’s departure from Selhurst Park have since persisted, and the fan view from south London is that the 51-year-old will leave the club by the end of the season.

Why Spurs should appoint Glasner

Glasner has worked wonders since replacing Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace, claiming the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025, but also fashioning this side into a genuine contender at the front end of the Premier League. They are currently competing in the Conference League.

Described as a “top-five manager in the world” by one Premier League content creator, Bayern Munich wanted Glasner’s signature before pushing ahead with Vincent Kompany, and competition is sure to be thick if he remains the Eagles boss next summer.

Typically employing a three-man backline, Glasner would find players in north London who have already established a measure of understanding in a similar system.

His aggressive duelling style and fluidity in set-up could actually play into Xavi Simons’ hands, the Netherlands midfielder having struggled since signing from RB Leipzig this summer.

Simons, 22, has lacked sharpness and physicality in the final third for the Lilywhites, but there’s no question that he is a top talent and that his numbers in the Bundesliga, both in regard to output and athleticism, suggest he has what it takes to cut the mustard.

And if you hark back to that xG-related table, you will observe that Palace sit third in the standings there. Frank will feel hard done by, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski still recovering from injuries picked up last season, but there can be no excuse for the manner of Spurs’ performances. More should be given from the players on the pitch.

You need only look at Simons’ prolific campaigns in Germany to understand that this is a special player, varied in his attacking approach, creative, combative, crafty when on the ball.

Matches (starts)

32 (32)

25 (25)

Goals

8

10

Assists

11

7

Shots (on target)*

2.5 (1.0)

2.0 (0.9)

Touches*

62.6

68.0

Pass completion

82%

83%

Big chances created

14

12

Key passes*

2.5

2.0

Dribbles*

2.6

1.3

Ball recoveries*

5.2

5.1

Tackles + interceptions*

1.4

1.6

Duels won*

6.3

5.4

The young Dutchman is a “game-changer”, as said by talent scout Jacek Kulig, and he has the capacity to become a superstar in the Premier League.

Tottenham haven’t exactly provided him with arable land to root in his skills and grow into a leading man down N17. Frank proved at Brentford that he is a good manager, but maybe he just isn’t right for this Spurs project.

Glasner, however, would be a jackpot appointment, and his previous success in shaping Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise into elite creators on the biggest stage suggests that he would be the manager to revive Simons’ potential.

Under Glasner’s wing, Olise posted seven goal involvements from the eight games he was involved, injured for much of his early time at the helm. Eze scored 20 goals and assisted 14 more across 56 outings before completing a big-money move to Arsenal.

The security and balance of Glasner’s tactical set-up would free Simons’ playmaking quality up, and if Frank is dismissed, this would be the coach to go for.

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Liam Scott made his maiden first-class century and Jake Lehmann also made a ton as South Australia dominate Tasmania

AAP06-Dec-2025

Liam Scott celebrates his maiden Shield century•Getty Images

Liam Scott had the finest day of his cricket career, scoring a maiden first-class century and helping South Australia to a commanding position over Tasmania.After team-mate Jake Lehmann also made a ton, Scott plundered 147 as the home side surged to 426 and a first-innings lead of 231 at Adelaide Oval.Tasmania then went to stumps at 73 for 3 in reply, still trailing by 158 runs at the end of day two after being all out for 195 on Friday.A win would be vital for South Australia, who entered this round in fourth spot on the ladder, just behind Tasmania.And their dominance was best summed up by Scott’s innings, with the bowling allrounder having shown talent with the bat since his debut in 2019-20.The 24-year-old fired from the moment he arrived at the crease, attacking Billy Stanlake and cutting him for five separate boundaries. He also took to the spinners, bringing up his century and pumping the air in joy after one of two slog-sweeps that went for six off Ruwantha Kellepotha.Another six came when he used his feet and hit Nivethan Radhakrishnan back down the ground, before he later took Jackson Bird and Gabe Bell over the legside boundary.Scott’s innings came with Lloyd Pope (36) offering support in a 76-run ninth-wicket stand that completely took the game away from Tasmania.It came after Lehmann reached his second century of the summer, continuing on a late-career resurgence that began at the end of last season.He reached 100 from 96 deliveries, before being bowled next ball when chopping onto his own stumps off Brad Hope.After being put to the sword in the field Tasmania then slumped to 42 for 3 early in their second innings, with Jordan Buckingham removing both Radhakrishnan and Hope.