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Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl continued his impressive start to life in the dugout at Ibrox with a 2-0 win over Aberdeen in the Scottish Premiership on Tuesday night.

Set-piece goals from Emmanuel Fernandez and Nicolas Raskin were enough to seal all three points for the Gers in front of their home fans, to take the team up to second in the league table.

The former Sheffield Wednesday boss will have been pleased with Raskin’s performance in the middle of the park, as the Belgian got on the scoresheet and won 11 of his 15 duels, per Sofascore.

However, there is always room to improve the squad and there could yet be more competition for the central midfielder to come through the door in the next few weeks.

Rangers are in talks to sign new midfielder

The German head coach is looking to add to his options across the pitch before the end of the month, and is reportedly looking at a star who could be even better than Raskin in midfield.

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According to Bold, Glasgow Rangers are currently leading the race to sign Hacken central midfielder Silas Andersen before the end of the January transfer window with the player ‘high on their wish list’.

The report claims that the Gers have made contact with the Swedish club to enquire about a potential deal for the 21-year-old starlet, as they look to bolster their squad.

It adds that the Light Blues are now in talks with Hacken to discuss a transfer fee for the Danish youngster, but the report does not reveal how much money they want for his services.

Bold also reveals that Celtic are also one of a number of other clubs in the race to sign the Allsvenskan talent in the coming weeks, which means that Rangers do face competition for his signature.

Why Andersen could be even better than Raskin for Rangers

The Gers could bring in an even better option than Raskin in the number six position by swooping to sign Andersen ahead of Celtic and any other interested parties this month.

Like the Belgian star, the Hacken central midfielder is typically deployed at the base of the midfield, tasked with breaking up play and playing passes to kickstart attacks for his side.

In the 2025 Allsvenskan campaign, Andersen showed that he could provide quality in and out of possession with his performances in the middle of the park, as he contributed with goals, assists, tackles, and interceptions at an impressive rate.

Talent scout Jacek Kulig, as shown in the post above, described him as a “superb” holding midfielder. U23 scout Antonio Mango, meanwhile, hailed his “impressive” performances and his “relentless” nature.

This highlights how much he has caught the eye with his displays for Hacken, which is further backed up by the reported talks between Rangers and the Swedish side, as they have been impressed enough with his performances to enter talks to sign him.

25/26

Raskin (SPL)

Andersen (Allsvenskan)

Appearances

19

26

Goals

2

2

Interceptions per game

0.6

1.7

Tackles per game

2.2

3.2

Clearances per game

1.9

3.3

Duels won per game

6.7

7.4

Ground duel success rate

56%

60%

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Andersen could be an even better option than Raskin in midfield for Rangers as a number six, based on their respective defensive output, as he can produce more defensive interventions whilst winning a higher percentage of his duels.

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These statistics suggest that the Danish youngster could offer even more to the team out of possession than the Belgium international, breaking up more attacks and creating more possessions for the Gers to build attacks from, if he can carry his form over to Scottish football.

This could then open the door for Rohl to play Raskin further up the pitch, possibly in the number ten position or in more of a free role ahead of Andersen and Connor Barron, which would allow him to showcase more of his attacking quality.

The Belgian star has scored two goals and provided four assists in the Premiership so far this season, per Sofascore, and produced five goals and 11 assists in all competitions last season.

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Therefore, Andersen could be a brilliant signing for Rangers because he has the potential to be even better than Raskin in the holding midfield position, whilst also giving the manager the freedom to unleash his current star in a new role.

To say it’s been a wild start to 2026 for Chelsea would be something of an understatement.

New Year’s Day brought news that Enzo Maresca had left the club, and on Sunday, interim manager Calum McFarlane oversaw a spirited 1-1 draw away to Manchester City.

Then, just a few hours after that, reports emerged of Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior being in the capital to complete his move to become the new manager.

As if that wasn’t enough, the club now look set to make the most of the transfer window, and are eyeing a record-breaking move for someone who could send Pedro Neto packing.

Chelsea target Neto upgrade

In no small part due to the managerial situation and their general form, Chelsea went into Sunday’s game as massive underdogs.

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However, while they were certainly second-best in the first half, the Blues looked just as good, if not better than City, in the second 45 and were more than deserving of their point.

However, while the likes of Reece James, Enzo Fernández and even Liam Delap all took the game to the hosts, there were a few starters who underwhelmed, with Neto perhaps being the worst of the lot.

After all, the Portuguese international failed to register a shot on target, missed one big chance, lost the ball 12 times, failed in 50% of his dribbles and registered an expected assists figure of just 0.02.

In other words, it was a disaster class in a huge game, and therefore, it makes sense that the club would be looking to sign an upgrade on the former Wolverhampton Wanderers star.

At least that is what they appear intent on doing, according to a report from Spain, which claims Chelsea are interested in Vinícius Júnior.

In fact, the report goes further than that, revealing that the Blues are now preparing an offer worth a whopping €150m for the Brazilian international, which is approximately £130m, which would be a new British record.

In good news for the West Londoners, Real Madrid have yet to come to an agreement with the winger on a new deal, and there is a belief that the player himself is open to the move.

With that said, it would still be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line for Chelsea, but one well worth pursuing, especially as Vini Jr would be a monster upgrade on Neto.

How Vinícius Júnior compares to Neto

The first reason Neto should be worried about Chelsea potentially signing Vini Jr this year is the fact that he can and has played on both flanks before.

Sure, the Brazilian certainly favours the left, and is at his most potent there, but on top of playing numerous other positions on the pitch, he’s also made more than a few appearances off the right, for club and country.

However, the far more pressing concern for the Portuguese international is that his potential new teammate is simply more dangerous than he is.

For example, since the start of last season, the former Wolves star has scored 15 goals and provided 12 assists in 78 games, totalling 5298 minutes.

That comes out to a reasonable enough average of a goal involvement every 2.88 games, or every 196.22 minutes.

In stark contrast, the “world-class” Real Madrid star, as dubbed by Owen Hargreaves, has scored 27 goals and provided 27 assists in 83 appearances, totalling 6488 minutes.

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That comes out to a far more impressive average of a goal involvement every 1.53 games, or every 120.14 minutes.

Finally, the former Santos gem also comes out miles ahead of the Blues star when comparing their underlying numbers.

For example, he does better across most metrics, such as non-penalty expected goals plus assists, shots on target, key passes, shot- and goal-creating actions, tackles won, and more, all per 90.

Vini Jr vs Neto

Statistics per 90

Vini Jr

Neto

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.54

0.43

Shots on Target

1.28

0.64

Passing Accuracy

79.3%

74.2%

Key Passes

2.18

1.86

Passes into the Final Third

1.79

1.22

Shot-Creating Actions

5.72

3.49

Goal-Creating Actions

0.77

0.35

Tackles Won

0.71

0.35

Successful Take-Ons

3.08

1.57

All Stats via FBref for the 25/26 League Season

Ultimately, Neto could still be a useful player for soon-to-be manager Rosenior, but if Chelsea really want to give him the best chance of success, they’d go out and sign Vini Jr to replace the former Wolves man.

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Shoaib Akhtar: “I just want to repeat what I’ve achieved there, [like] getting Sachin [Tendulkar] out off the first ball” © AFP

Shoaib Akhtar, handed a 13-match ban and a fine for various disciplinary breaches, has said he is looking forward to the series against India in November, a tour he will be available for after serving out his ban.”I want to go to India as it will probably be my last tour,” Shoaib told a television channel in Lahore. “I’m 32 now and I don’t think I’ll have an opportunity to go back in four years’ time. I just want to repeat what I’ve achieved there, [like] getting Sachin [Tendulkar] out off the first ball. I want to recall those moments.”Shoaib’s ban includes the seven matches of the ICC World Twenty20, the two Tests and the first four one-dayers against South Africa. Shoaib said he was not looking to play the fifth ODI against South Africa in Karachi as he wanted to get some match practice before returning to international cricket. “I’m match-fit but I don’t know about my match-bowling”, he said.”I want to play a four-day game at least before getting back. [I’d like to] bowl about 30-odd overs in a four-day game. I don’t want to stretch myself to the limit before starting to bowl again.”Shoaib was also optimistic about his career ahead. “If I play another 80-odd ODIs in the next four years I can end with 400 wickets. That’s my goal. The same with Tests – if I play another 35-40 Tests I could get 300-plus wickets.”It would be nice to look back and say I have done something for my country and maximised my talent.”

‘When I walked in there I didn’t go with any set plans. It just happened that way, with the Powerplays and the field in’ – Damien Martyn © Getty Images

It’s been over a year since the historic Ashes series and Damien Martyn,the birthday boy and Man of the Match, admitted that Australia had beenwaiting for this game for quite a while. It was the first time the twoteams met after the never-to-be-forgotten final day at The Oval and Martyncashed in on some wayward English bowling.”It’s been a year since we last played England and that was a greatseries,” he said at the end of the day. “The boys did well and fieldedwell, Huss [Michael Hussey] and me had a great partnership. Unfortunately I couldn’t stay till the end. It was a good wicket and was nice to get runs on it.”The manner in which Martyn took on Steve Harmison was probably the sightof the night, when colourful Diwali firecrackers lit up the sky.Martyn was severe in his assault and peppered five fours in a space of tenballs, nullifying Harmison’s effect almost instantly. “They didn’t bowlgreat tonight,” said Martyn bluntly when asked about his innings on thenight. “When I walked in there I didn’t go with any set plans. It justhappened that way, with the Powerplays and the field in. And with Huss atthe other end, just shoring up an end, we were able to build a partnership.”Ricky Ponting, his captain, didn’t want to read too much into Harmison’sdismal performance but added that his batsmen wouldn’t let up during theAshes. “It’s pretty easy for bowlers to get their tails up in Australia,”said Ponting when asked for an assessment of Harmison’s expensive spell.”Damien in particular played him very, very well tonight and we put awaymost balls that he bowled. If he comes to Australia and bowls that way,we’ll be looking to do exactly the same thing.”Martyn might have stolen the show but the contribution made by MichaelHussey, who walked into a crucial situation, cannot be under-estimated. “Ihad a chat to Buck [John Buchanan] at the break,” said Ponting when askedabout Hussey’s promotion up the order. “With the wicket playing the way itwas, if we lost a few wickets in a row, it would be nice to have someonelike him to really shore things up. Having to chase such a small totaltonight, it was perfectly suited for him to go in. We had three peoplepadded up at the moment and I made the decision to send Huss out. Heplayed the way we expect him to play in that situation. As we all knowhe’s a terrific player, he sums up situations and plays verywell. With him and Damien and Michael [Clarke] we have a lot of options inthe middle.”Glenn McGrath’s first spell and Shane Watson’s continued failure at thetop of the order were the only negatives that Australia could take fromthis game. Ponting wasn’t too concerned about either, placing faith inboth the performers to deliver in the future. “You don’t end up having alot of concerns about one of the greats of the game that Glenn is,” hesaid when asked about McGrath’s insipid first spell. “He delivers anhonest performance everytime he takes the field and I think hisperformance today was that – it was honest. He’s fulfilling a differentrole at the moment, bowling first change something he’s done for only halfa dozen games in his career. So he’s probably still learning the role.”And would he back Watson to open even after another failure? “He has asound and solid technique and all the shots in the book. As a one-dayopener you want to combine both of those and do it well. He got outpulling but I know how instinctive the stroke is. Sometimes you see ashort ball and just decide to go for the pull, not taking into account thebounce. What you saw before he got out, I think shows that he will be avery good opening batsman for us.”

Andrew Flintoff: a vital spell and zero hassles with his captain © Getty Images

Andrew Flintoff has denied any suggestions that he does not get along with Graeme Smith, World XI captain for the recently concluded Super Test against Australia, and backed his statement with a hostile bowling spell to help dismiss Australia for 199 in their second innings. The England and Lancashire player claimed three for 14 in a testing spell on the third day at Sydney.Michael Vaughan’s new book revealed that Smith termed Flintoff a `big baby’ during last winter’s tour of South Africa, yet Flintoff stated that he was in Australia to represent the World XI and had no problems playing with or under Smith. “Myself and Smithy had some issues during the series in England two years ago, we competed hard when we were on the pitch and it was no different in South Africa.” Flintoff told . “We have got to know each other quite well on this trip, I have spent time in his company and he is all right.”Critics have spared no efforts in denouncing the claims of the World XI, as a team of stars brought together to challenge the Australians lost all the games, including a 210-run thrashing in the Sydney Test, where the longer version of the game was supposed to have bolstered their chances. The singular moment of sheer aggression from Smith’s side came in a manic 24-over spell on the third day when nine Australian wickets fell for just 47 runs, with Flintoff, Steve Harmison, and Muttiah Muralitharan snaring three scalps apiece.Flintoff was quick to come to the World XI’s defense. “The team spirit has been fine since we got together, most of the lads hit it off straight away. Obviously we don’t play together regularly so everyone is still trying to find out what others do and what is the best way to get them to perform.”On Smith and any rift that may remain between the two, Flintoff closed off by maintaining that when the two are pitted against each other it is all healthy competition. “There has been a few words said between us both ways but we get on off the pitch. It is very much what happens on the pitch stays there and afterwards we can have a laugh about it over a beer.”

The ongoing row between the West Indies board and the players took another twist with a warning from the board’s CEO that the appointment of Bennett King as coach heralded a new era of discipline."I think they will recognise straight away that the people who are in charge have a very different outlook with respect to discipline, fitness, commitment and passion," said Roger Brathwaite. "Those who don’t share that philosophy unfortunately will be told that perhaps they should be doing something else. It is going to be very clear going that if you want to represent the West Indies you have to share these qualities. That will be across the board."The West Indies’ management have been criticised for several years for allowing a culture of indiscipline to go unchecked, but Brathwaite argued that was not the fault of the board. "Whatever was done was to ensure that decisions which were taken were consistent with the board’s code of conduct," he told The Nation newspaper. "That has not changed. The code of conduct has been revised and … it is very clear with what is expected of players and officials."The three-week training camp which was supposed to have started in Barbados today was postponed at the last minute as the dispute over contracts rumbled on. It had been thought that the breakthrough in negotiations last week had freed the way for the pre-tour training to go ahead. Nine of the 25 squad members have signed the new contracts and they have already arrived in Barbados.

Shoaib Akhtar is once again in trouble after he failed to appear in court in Lahore to answer a petition demanding an apology for criticisms he had levelled at Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram.”Akhtar or his lawyer must appear in the court on September 1 and respond to a petition against his newspaper interview,” Judge Mudassar Umer Bodla said. “A new summons will be issued against him.”The petition was filed by a local who was angered by comments allegedly made by Shoaib in an interview with the London-based Guardian newspaper. Shoaib was quoted as saying that if he played for Australia then he would have been far more successful. “Imagine if I was playing with Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie softening them up, then I come on, I’d have got more wickets than anyone ever. Because when I play for Pakistan, with Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis they are in decline. They were great but they’re not match-winning bowlers any more. So I have to make it all happen on my own.”Akhtar, who has dismissed the petition as a “publicity stunt”, is unlikely to attend the revised date as he will still be playing for Durham.

It’s finally time for the best venue in India to host internationalTest cricket. The rotation policy adopted by the Indian Board bringsthe touring England team to the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium atMohali for the first Test match. With temperatures dipping to thelowest the England team have experienced on this tour, they should beextremely happy on the eve of the Test. Nasser Hussain has enjoyed allthe attention his team has received so far but acknowledges that theaction will not be easy out in the middle.For his part, the Indian skipper too looks fairly relaxed. The factthat the team has been on the road in South Africa and returns after abit of a thrashing does not weigh too heavily on the Bengal lefthander. Everyone is resigned to the fact that India are two sides -one that take things quite lightly and yet comes out right on top athome, and yet another that can’t seem to put a foot right abroad.That, perhaps, has more to do with the conditions than anything else.And in that regard, England certainly get their Test series off to acomfortable start. The wicket at Mohali was once easily the quickestin the country, before curator Daljit Singh re-laid the topsoil in1996. The hard clay however still retains much of the pace and bounceof old. Overcast conditions will assure that the ball moves around abit early on. However, the lack of much live grass on the wicketsuggests that it will ease up into a good batting strip on the secondand third days, before taking a bit of spin.The pitch in turn dictates the kind of teams that will be chosen. Inkeeping with recent times, there is a big question mark at the top ofthe Indian batting order. While Shiv Sunder Das has cemented oneopening slot, the other remains wide open. The Indian team could stickwith regular opener Connor Williams, who impressed in his last essayin South Africa. There is word however that in the interest ofaccommodating another bowler Sanjay Bangar might open. Bangar opensfor Railways and averages more than 35 with the bat, having scoredfive hundreds and fifteen half-centuries at the first-class level.The Indian middle-order of course is packed with Rahul Dravid, SachinTendulkar, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly all queuing up to have a batin familiar home conditions. Deep Dasgupta dons the gloves and there’sa bit of a toss up in the bowling department. Harbhajan Singh and AnilKumble are sure to play. Depending on composition, the Indians couldgo in with either two or all three medium-pacers from Sanjay Bangar,Tinu Yohannan and Iqbal Siddiqui.The English have their team almost lined up, although the captainHussain did not say so in as many words. Mark Butcher and MarcusTrescothick will open the innings, with Michael Vaughan being out ofform. Nasser Hussain, Graham Thorpe and Mark Ramprakash form thenucleus of the batting with all-rounders, Craig White and AndrewFlintoff, to follow. James Foster looks likely to make his Test debutbehind the stumps. The bowling department has Matthew Hoggardpencilled in, with James Ormond likely to share the new ball honourswith him. Richard Dawson looks set to roll his arm over bowling offspin. Martyn Ball has an outside chance of making the eleven but thatseems unlikely at best.Hussain, speaking to scribes, described India as the “best sideplaying at home” and reminded colleagues of the treatment Australiareceived earlier this year. While one rated Australia’s chanceshighly, it would be unfair to afford this England side the samerespect. Predicting a whitewash at the beginning of the series isnever too clever, but it has to be said that England’s best chance ofavoiding the same begins and ends at Mohali.

Despite an entertaining 90 by Mohammad Kaif, the India Seniors teamedged past India B by six wickets with eleven deliveries to spare inthe Challenger Trophy at Ahmedabad on Friday night.Batting first, the India B team put up a much better show than theIndia A team had the previous day. Kaif enjoyed a good run of formthroughout the recently concluded Under-19 World Cup, but could notmake a big score there. On Friday however, there was no stopping himas he shared a 115-run partnership with captain Ajay Jadeja and sawIndia B through to a score of 274 off their allotted 50 overs. Jadejawas his innovative self and made a half century in quick time.When Kaif tried to push the scoring rate towards the end of theinnings, he fell just 10 runs short of the century mark. Robin Singhgot a ball to stop on Kaif and the youngster went through with hisshot. The ball skied up in the air and Nikhil Chopra pouched thecatch.Nikhil Haldipur made a useful fifty at the top of the innings butprobably did not do enough to stake a claim for selection.Although India B lost quick wickets towards the end, it was of noconsequence as they still managed a challenging total.The India seniors bowlers took some stick from Kaif. The spearhead ofthe Indian bowling attack Anil Kumble went for 57 runs off his 10overs.In response, the Indian senior team went about the job with a rarelydisplayed air of professionalism. Shiv Sunder Das coming off a goodknock in the previous match fell quickly. After he was dismissed, VVSLaxman and pinch hitter Sunil Joshi took the attack to thebowlers. Joshi’s quickfire 16 included a four and a six. ReetinderSingh Sodhi pulled off yet another bit of good fielding as he lungedlow and took a sharp return catch to dismiss Joshi.Rahul Dravid then got into a good rhythm and kept the scoringgoing. He was joined by Vinod Kambli at the fall of Laxman’swicket. The resurgence of Kambli’s career took yet another positiveturn as the Mumbai southpaw made a solid unbeaten 78. When Dravid toowas dismissed, the required rate was mounting and Robin Singh used thelong handle to good effect. Some surprising bowling changes by AjayJadeja proved costly. Jadeja brought Dodda Ganesh and himself on atthe death and they conceded 12 and 17 runs off their oversrespectively.The experience of Singh and Kambli saw the seniors through to victorywith not much to spare. This victory means that the seniors havequalified for the final. On Saturday, the lesser teams of thetournament will clash and that will decide who takes on the seniors inthe title clash.

An update has emerged regarding Newcastle’s interest in Philippe Coutinho, who is currently on loan to Aston Villa from Barcelona. 

What’s the talk?

According to Sport, the Magpies are interested in a deal to sign the Brazil international and are willing to offer him more money in wages to turn down a permanent move to Villa Park.

The report claims that the Midlands club can sign him for €40m (£34m) this summer as part of their loan agreement, with the Toon now hoping to swoop in ahead of them.

Cabaye replacement

Callum Wilson is Newcastle’s top scorer in the Premier League with just six strikes in the top flight, with Allan Saint-Maximin (five) their only other player with more than two goals.

The Toon have struggled to find goals across the pitch and lack attacking quality in the middle of the park. No Magpies central midfielder has more than three direct goal contributions this season, which suggests that they are still looking for their Yohan Cabaye replacement.

In two-and-a-half seasons with the Tyneside club, the Frenchman produced 17 goals and 10 assists from midfield as he proved that he had the quality to be a difference-maker in the Premier League. The statistics from the current campaign show that no-one has been able to take on his mantle this term, but Eddie Howe can now finally replace him with a deal for Coutinho.

As you can see from the graphic above (with stats via WhoScored and the Premier League), both players are similar in terms of their actions on the pitch. They both like to create chances for their team-mates on a regular basis, whilst also taking plenty of shots themselves.

Both players are deadly from set-piece situations, with Cabaye’s four Premier League free kicks and Coutinho’s five showing that they can be a danger from a dead ball. Bringing in the latter would duly add another weapon to Howe’s attacking armoury.

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Roberto Firmino previously dubbed the Brazilian “phenomenal” and claimed that the 29-year-old has “magical powers” and Coutinho’s statistics back up that high praise. The former Liverpool midfielder has 45 goals and 38 assists in his English top-flight career, proving that he can score and set up goals at the top level, creating moments of magic in the final third with his quality on the ball.

This means that Newcastle can find their new attacking threat from midfield, a Cabaye 2.0 if you will, by signing the Brazil gem this summer. PIF must splash the cash to make sure that they can bring him in ahead of Villa to bolster Howe’s squad.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano drops major Newcastle United transfer claim which will excite supporters…