Promotion beckons for Leeds United as they top the Championship with just nine matches of the season to go, and as each game on the calendar gets ticked off, eyes will slowly but surely begin to look towards the summer transfer window.

The Whites will have a lot of business to tend to in the summer, and one signing they’ll be hoping to make is bringing in Ben White on a permanent deal.

Indeed, Phil Hay has stated that Leeds could get involved in the race to sign him if they are promoted, but the fact of the matter is that the race for White’s signature may be a bit too competitive for the Yorkshire club to land their man, and that is even more prevalent after recent reports.

What’s the story then?

Football Insider are reporting that Arsenal have now joined the race for the Brighton loanee.

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The Gunners aren’t the only side in for White though.

Hay stated recently that Liverpool are watching him closely, while Football Insider’s report also names Manchester United and Leicester City as potential suitors for the Englishman.

While Premier League interest in White is nothing new, the intrigue from Arsenal may have just dented United’s hopes of landing their man.

Big hit

While beating Liverpool, Leicester or Manchester United to any signing is a tough task, Arsenal may actually present a bigger challange to Leeds than any of the aforementioned clubs

The Gunners will be able to offer him quite a lucrative financial package as they still have the fifth-highest wage bill in the league, but they will also be able to offer him a shot at first-team football.

Liverpool and Leicester don’t have much need to veer away from their current centre-back pairing as they have the first and third best defensive records in the division respectively, and while Man United have seemed fragile at times this term, they’ve kept the second most clean sheets of any team in Europe.

In contrast, Arsenal have problems at the back. David Luiz and Shkodran Mustafi are often blasted by their own fans, and if White came in he’d have a great chance of being a first-team regular.

The Gunners’ interest in White may cause problems for Leeds if they want to pursue any deal to bring in the 22-year-old.

In other news, Victor Orta may soon be the most important person at Leeds.

Ason Villa have issued a statement against Jesus Garcia Pitarch, as reported by The Birmingham Mail.

What did they say?

The sporting director was speaking with Spanish outlet Cope about the current Premier League suspension, when he said: “The most reasonable solution, if the League has to be stopped, is that there are no relegations. There is a certain unanimity that there should be no relegations.”

While it may seem as though this is the official line from Villa Park, given that it is someone of relative power giving the comments, that is clearly not the case.

That is because a statement from Villa, quoted by The Birmingham Mail, has ruthlessly gone against him: “The views attributed to Mr Garcia Pitarch in the Spanish media are not those of Aston Villa. Now is not the time to be speculating about future arrangements for Premier League football this season.”

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Poor decision-making

They are correct to do this, as given the severity of the current situation, it is important that the club’s standpoint is being made clear.

However, this does show just how poor Pitarch’s decision-making has been with the initial comment that he made.

It has already been reported by The Athletic that the sporting director’s position at Villa Park is under threat, with Dean Smith’s side sitting in the relegation zone despite a summer of heavy recruitment.

Did he really play for us?! No Villa fan has managed to name all of these obscure Villans….

The suggestion made is that he could be dismissed in the summer, even if the Villans do manage to keep their Premier League status for next season.

This follows disappointing acquisitions such as Wesley, who scored five goals in 21 games before picking up a season-ending injury against Burnley – two of those goals came in a 5-1 win against bottom of the table Norwich City.

Given that his position at the club is already precarious, coming out with that comment really wasn’t the smartest decision from Pitarch.

Meanwhile, FFC writers have given their verdicts on whether Dean Smith should be sacked.

Joleon Lescott has spoken about Aston Villa and the backlash he received after tweeting a picture of a car after a heavy defeat, while on Sky Sports’ The Debate show (March 18).

What did he say?

Lescott had put in a shocking performance during Villa’s 6-0 loss against Liverpool, as he was at fault for the first and last goal scored, while he hadn’t exactly covered himself in glory in the time between them.

After the game, he tweeted a picture of a flashy car, claiming that the post was sent from his pocket, something that he maintains to this day – much to the frustration of Villa supporters.

When asked how much grief he got, Lescott replied (30:30): “A lot. The fans still hold that against me now. And also the club kind of used it as a little bit of a way out to kind of make me the scapegoat for things going wrong.

“I played my part in that, and I hold my hands up, but there was a lot of components to the reason why Aston Villa went down that year.”

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Ill-feeling

It is pretty clear to see that there is plenty of ill-feeling between Lescott and the club’s fans, and it is not much of a surprise considering this incident and the way that things went in general while he was at Villa Park.

Many will remember Lescott as a Premier League winner with Man City, but most Villans will probably see him as the central figure of a leaky defence that got them relegated from the top flight – finishing 17 points behind anyone else in the league in 2015/16.

Red Herring or Real Hero: Only hardcore Villa fans will get all of them right….

During that campaign, which was his only one with Villa, he started 30 league games, averaging 1.1 tackles, 2.6 interceptions, 5.9 clearances and 0.7 blocks per game, but was also dribbled past 0.6 times and made 0.5 fouls.

What is clear is that he is never going to be a popular figure with Villa fans, and his latest comments definitely won’t change that.

Meanwhile, one Villa flop’s season can be encapsulated with one image.

Everton have been linked with a shock summer move this weekend, and it has left fans at Goodison Park absolutely reeling.

According to reports in Spain from Sport.es, the Toffees are interested in signing Barcelona striker Martin Braithwaite and are considering a move for him at the end of the season.

The former Middlesborough forward was only signed by the La Liga giants last month, but they will not sell him for less than the £15m they paid Leganes for him.

Barcelona were granted a special exemption to land Braithwaite after Ousmane Dembele was ruled out for the remainder of the season through serious injury.

It appears Carlo Ancelotti would be keen on bringing the 28-year-old back to England if such claims are to be believed, and this is how fans have been reacting to the news…

Clearly, there aren’t many at Goodison Park that would be keen on the Italian making a ploy for the Barcelona striker, blasting him for being a “joke player” who is at a “circus club” whilst one fan believed Braithwaite wasn’t even at the standard of the Championship.

The Danish international has played 30 times this season, scoring eight goals across La Liga and the Copa del Rey, but he is yet to find the net since joining the Catalan giants last month.

He’s actually only featured for a total of 128 minutes across three appearances, via Transfermarkt.

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Some have likened him to Sandro Ramirez, who has also played for the Spanish champions after coming through the famous La Masia academy before he moved onto Malaga, the side he would join Everton from in 2017 for £5.2m.

The 24-year-old has barely played for the Toffees, only 16 times in fact, and has gone out on loan back to his homeland, Spain, on three different occasions.

A couple of supporters in Merseyside couldn’t help but poke fun at Braithwaite, too, following his embarrassing unveiling at Barcelona – no fans showed up, and the striker struggled to showcase his skills as seen here. Quite pathetic really.

Did he really play for us?! No Everton fan has managed to name all of these obscure Toffees players….

AND in other news, swoop for £5.4m-rated man a major Steve Walsh disaster…

So, Everton fans, with football postponed indefinitely, how will you pass the time?

Unfortunately we don’t have an alternative as great as the beautiful game to offer you, but we do have a short-term fix that might just keep you busy enough to combat those Toffees withdrawal symptoms.

This Everton quiz comes with a simple premise. We show you a picture of a footballer, and you tell us whether they did or did not once play for the Goodison Park outfit.

Don’t be fooled though – this piece of trivia will be a real test of your Toffees knowledge, separating fair-weather fans from those who genuinely bleed blue.

And which of those categories do you fall into? Well, the only way to find out is by taking our quiz and sharing your score on social media so you can compare your knowledge with fellow supporters.

So, what are you waiting for? Give it a go now…

It’s safe to say that the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti has really helped hoist Everton out of a hole this season.

The Toffees have gone from battling relegation to being just six points away from a spot in Europe, but the work isn’t done yet. If the Toffees want to find themselves taking on some of Europe’s best teams, they need to nurture the young talent they have and most importantly, offload the deadwood players that are slowing the side down.

Everton’s midfield this season has been a real cause for concern. Red flags have been popping up everywhere after some questionable displays from the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Tom Davies.

Thanks to Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison, the Merseyside outfit have managed to return to scoring ways, but their engine room needs to be vastly improved. Between Davies, Sigurdsson and Morgan Schneiderlin, Everton have tallied just two goals and two assists in this Premier League campaign – that’s simply not good enough from the middle of the park.

With local lad Davies, there’s still plenty of time for him to play in the U23s and build himself into the Premier League player Everton fans know he can be. Perhaps he was integrated into the senior squad too soon? However, Sigurdsson – who now sports the armband – may have outstayed his welcome at Goodison Park.

The 30-year-old has seriously regressed since last season. His performance against Chelsea was arguably his worst in an Everton shirt, after he attempted no shots, no dribbles, won no duels and made just 26 passes.

With Calvert-Lewin and Mason Holgate both signing new five-year contracts, Ancelotti must look to completely refurbish Everton’s midfield and keep in tone with this youthful, talented side. With better service coming from the middle three, the Toffees’ chances of success will rapidly improve, but not until stagnant players are shown the door.

Some Wolverhampton Wanderers fans have been lauding their former man Robbie Dennison after throwback footage of him was posted by the Midlands club’s official Twitter page.

In the tweet, the 57-year old can be seen parading down the wing before shifting the ball past the defender and onto his left foot and then unleashing a superb curling effort into the top corner, before going off to celebrate with the supporters and his teammates.

Dennison joined Wolves from West Bromwich Albion back in 1987, and would go on to play in the Old Gold for over a decade before moving to Hednesford Town on a free transfer, according to Transfermarkt. As per the website, the Northern Irishman also played for Glenavon in his home country before transferring to West Brom in 1985, and retired at Hereford United.

These WWFC supporters lauded their ex-ace, with one fan describing him as ‘a true club legend’:

Wolves fans, what are your memories of Dennison? Comment below!

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsLuke Wright was the second England batsman to score 99 in a Twenty20 international•Getty Images

The World Twenty20 continued to conform to expectation – disappointingly so, some will say – as England began the defence of their title with a 116-run hammering of Afghanistan. Luke Wright could not quite follow Brendon McCullum’s hundred earlier in the day, but produced a blistering 99 off 55 balls after the holders overcame a slightly tricky start in highly convincing fashion.Wright became the second England batsman to be stranded one short of a Twenty20 hundred following Alex Hales’ innings against West Indies earlier this year. Wright only returned to the line-up at the tail-end of the English season and had not really been earmarked for the No. 3 role until Ravi Bopara’s rapid loss of form but, having made a brace of useful 30s in the warm-ups, provided further evidence of his development over the last year. He powered past his previous best of 71 against Netherlands, at Lord’s, during the 2009 World Twenty20. England, famously, lost that match but there was never a risk of a repeat.Unsurprisingly, Afghanistan came out swinging with predictable results. Mohammad Shahzad picked out mid-off, Shafiqullah skied to cover and the captain Nawroz Mangal was brilliantly held by Stuart Broad off his own bowling. Much has rightly been written and said about the fairytale of Afghanistan’s rise, but this was a harsh of reality check as they slid to 26 for 8. However, they avoided the heaviest defeat in T20 which is Kenya’s 172-run defeat against Sri Lanka in 2007 and Gulbodin Naib, with a gutsy display, ensured they passed Kenya’s lowest T20 total of 67.England, though, did exactly what they needed to. Wright was chiefly responsible for some fierce acceleration as they scored 124 off the second 10 overs of their innings after a slow start against some lively new-ball bowling. He started the final over on 95 and needed three off the last ball to make England’s first T20 hundred but could only club a brace through midwicket.He received solid support from Hales and Eoin Morgan while Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow contributed rapid cameos. There were some costly overs during the innings, most notably 32 off the penultimate from Izatullah Dawlatzai which included two no-balls – the same figure that Wayne Parnell went for at Edgbaston earlier in the month putting it joint second in T20 records. It was also another poor fielding display from Afghanistan – Wright was dropped on 75 – as basic skills let them down as they did against India.

Smart stats

• The 116-run win is the third-highest margin of victory in the Twenty20 internationals and the highest ever for England. The top three victory margins (in terms of runs) have come in World Twenty20 matches.

• Afghanistan’s total of 80 is their joint-lowest in Twenty20 internationals. The previous time they scored 80 was against South Africa in the World Twenty20 2010. It is the also third-lowest total in World Twenty20 matches.

• England’s total of 196 is their third-highest score in Twenty20 internationals and their second-highest total in World Twenty20 games.

• Luke Wright became the 12th batsman to register a score in the nineties in Twenty20 internationals. He is also the second batsman after Alex Hales to make a score of 99.

• The number of sixes hit by Wright (6) is the highest by an England batsman in a Twenty20 international. Eoin Morgan is second with five sixes against South Africa in 2009.

It had not been easy start for England as Shapoor Zadran, who troubled India’s top order, produced a superb opening over. Craig Kieswetter appeared confused by the two-paced nature of the pitch and played out five dot balls before dragging into his stumps to complete a rare wicket maiden. Hales slashed his first delivery just over slip in a far from assured beginning and after four overs the score was 15 for 1.Then the game started to change. Having gauged the nature of the pitch, Hales and Wright located the boundary as Shapoor’s third over cost 23 although four of those were byes when the wicketkeeper was beaten by the bounce. The final ball of the over was launched into the stands by Wright as England began to take control with the last two overs of the Powerplay bringing 37.Hales was unfortunate to be dismissed when Wright’s straight drive was deflected into the non-striker’s stumps by Karim Sadiq. At 84 for 2 after 12 overs the innings hadn’t escaped Afghanistan, but Wright dented Samiullah Shenwari’s figures with a six over long-on and followed that by fetching another delivery through midwicket.Mohammad Nabi, the offspinner, bowled his first two overs for 10 but finished with 0 for 46. Morgan flicked him over deep midwicket – his one convincing shot – and Wright went four, six, four off three consecutive deliveries. There was more of that to come with Buttler continuing where he left off against South Africa and Bairstow drilling his first ball into the stands.Despite having a vast total on the board it was important England did not slack in the field. The quick bowlers made an early impression, zipping the ball through from back of a length with Kieswetter taking a number of deliveries above his head. There was very little for the batsmen to drive although Steven Finn pushed a few deliveries down the leg side.Broad decided to use his bowlers by the gameplan so Jade Dernbach was given one up front before the captain brought himself on. After a difficult home season of catching and fielding they began well in that department, with Buttler producing a sharp dive and throw from midwicket to run out Sadiq then, next ball, Bairstow held a stunning catch running in from fine leg against a top edged hook from Asghar Stanikzai.Graeme Swann started with two maidens then was taken for 16 by Naib who often declined singles and showed why by picking off two sweet sixes against Dernbach to mean there would be no record low for Afghanistan and to help himself to the highest score by a No. 8 in T20 internationals. Nobody should read too much into the result, but it was a good statement by the defending champions.

Jesse Ryder announced his return to competitive cricket with an unbeaten and aggressive half-century on the second day of Wellington’s Plunket Shield match against Central Districts – his first match since May when he played in the IPL. Ryder, who spent the last few months away from cricket, was the top scorer with an 83-ball 84 while the rest of the Wellington middle-order failed to build upon a century opening stand and stumbled to 254 for 8 in response to Central Districts’ 383.In March this year, Ryder had pulled out of the Wellington squad and had decided to take an indefinite break from cricket to resolve personal issues. He travelled to India to play in the IPL with a support structure in place, but later agreed with the NZC to avoid a national contract this year. However, he was offered a Wellington contract for the season.”I’m setting myself some big goals for the season – I’m going to come back stronger than ever and make an impact for Wellington,” Ryder had said in July. “This is the first step in the next stage of my career and I’m going hard out. As I said, I’m just focusing on one job at a time. I don’t have any expectations of being selected for the Black Caps [New Zealand team] this summer – if I score heaps of runs and do the right stuff, that might happen in time.”It’s all about Wellington for me at the moment – whatever happens in the future will happen. I want to play for New Zealand again, but I’m taking one step at a time.”He had impressed the Wellington coach, Jamie Siddons, with his fitness and his attitude during pre-season training.”I wouldn’t say he’s the skinniest person in the world but he has certainly lost a bit of weight and he’s been putting in all the hard yards that we expected of him.” Siddons had said. “I think he’s looking forward to playing cricket. That’s what he does, that’s what he’s great at. He wants to get out there with a bat in his hand and put himself forward for the Black Caps down the track.”Ryder’s last international appearance for New Zealand was during the home ODI series against South Africa in February this year and he was dropped after he broke team protocol while injured.

[ad_pod ]Notts County confirmed the signing of Michael Doyle from Coventry City on Transfer Deadline Day.

The 37-year-old midfielder arrives at Meadow Lane with the Magpies mired at the foot of the League Two table. Neal Ardley will be hoping that the veteran’s experience and leadership can help his side claw their way to survival before the end of the campaign.Â

Check out the below above to see football played as you’ve never seen it before… in a maze!

Doyle certainly brings plenty of experience to the table, having spent much of his career at Championship level. He also brings quality though, and he’ll provide an extra level of calmness and tenacity to the middle of the park for Notts County.

Doyle is something of a Coventry legend, and the leadership he showed at the Ricoh Arena is something that’s been missing at Meadow Park. Ardley will be looking to Doyle to rally his side and restore some confidence in the dressing room, as it’ll be needed if Notts County are to succeed in escaping the drop out of the Football League.

After Doyle’s signing was made official, plenty of County fans took to Twitter to celebrate…