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Sean Manaea and the New York Mets are in agreement on a three-year, $75 million deal that keeps the left-handed starting pitcher in the front of the team's rotation.

Manaea, who signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the Mets that included an opt-out last season, declined a $13.5 player option in November to become a free agent this year. Now, he's back on a larger, long-term deal. 's Jeff Passan was the first to report Manaea's new, $25 million per year deal with the Mets. The deal is pending a physical according to Jon Heyman of the.

He started 32 games for the Mets last season and posted a 3.47 ERA with a 12-6 record. He had four starts in the playoffs where he pitched 19 total innings through the Mets' run to the NLCS and went 2-1.

Manaea, 32, returns to New York's rotation that features Kodai Senga and David Peterson. The Mets brought in Frankie Montas and Clay Holmes this offseason.

Now, Manaea's new deal helps complete the rotation after the team won the Juan Soto sweepstakes where the superstar outfielder agreed to come over from the Bronx for the largest contract in professional sports history. Soto signed a massive 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets on Dec. 8.

Tanvir’s five-for helped Bangladesh break an eight-game losing streak in the format

Mohammad Isam06-Jul-2025

Tanvir Islam gets rid of Dunith Wellalage•Getty Images

Encouraging words from the captain and reverting to his original bowling action helped Tanvir Islam take the five-for against Sri Lanka in the second ODI in Colombo. Tanvir’s 5 for 39, in only his second ODI, proved decisive as Bangladesh roared back into the series with the 16-run win.It also helped break Bangladesh’s eight-match losing streak in the format, dating back to eight months. They had faulted on many junctures of this match, even repeating a bit of their batting collapse from the first game, but one or two players got them out of the jam. Tanvir made the biggest contribution with his five wickets, although he started off poorly in the powerplay. Kusal Mendis had struck him for two fours and a six in a 17-run over that nearly derailed Bangladesh.Related

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“When I conceded 22 runs in the first two overs, the captain stood next to me and said something,” Tanvir said. “He said that a bowler is bound to get hit. He told me I don’t have to bowl defensively. I have to do wicket-taking bowling. Thankfully, I listened to my captain. He kept telling us that we can defend the (248-run) total.”Taking inspiration from his captain’s words, Tanvir bowled more into the stumps in his third over. He removed Nishan Madushka in his next over, caught at point trying to slam him over the covers, before the left-arm spinner removed Kusal in the following over. Bangladesh need the DRS to get the lbw decision in their favour, a telling moment in the game given how Sri Lanka slowed down for the following 30-odd overs.Tanvir said that he tried a new bowling action against the UAE during the T20I series in May, but it wasn’t a successful move. He was dropped after two outings, both times he was quite expensive. He didn’t play against Pakistan, and was almost a non-starter in this ODI series before legspinner Rishad Hossain fell sick on the eve of the first ODI on July 2. Tanvir said that he returned to his original action after speaking to teammate Towhid Hridoy.”I was working on my bowling action during the T20I series against Pakistan. I got a lot of negative feedback for it. I was bowling with the same action since 2013. I was speaking to Towhid Hridoy who told me to return to my old action. He said that the old action made me who I am. That’s why I returned to my old action,” he said.Tanvir also said that he had to wait a long time for a Bangladesh selection. He made his debut at the age of 28, which is well advanced, to say it nicely, in Bangladesh’s context. “I don’t consider age to be a factor. I always considered performance as the key. I never played age-level cricket. I kicked things off from the Dhaka league. I always believed I could take my career forward through this route. I kept trying and finally Allah has smiled at me. I have a five-wicket haul at the international level,” he said.Tanvir also earned his captain’s praise as Mehidy Hasan Miraz said that Tanvir was one of four players who turned things around for Bangladesh.”Every time the momentum shifted, it was a turning point for us,” Mehidy said. “Tanvir made regular breakthroughs. He bowled really well. Shamim gave us the advantage with those crucial nine overs. I thought the way he batted and bowled in his return to the team, was just unbelievable. Emon also contributed with quick runs at the top.”I also want to give credit to Tanzim’s batting towards the end. The way he attacked Hasaranga, those were important runs that made the difference for us. 220 and 250 are two different scenarios.”He however remained guarded about Bangladesh’s overall performance in the game. Mehidy said that they couldn’t bat the 50 overs in both ODIs so far, which also had two run-outs that hurt Bangladesh at crucial stages. Bangladesh also dropped four catches in this game, which could have been costly.”We can now focus on which areas to improve, before the third match,” Mehidy said. “We haven’t been able to bat fifty overs in the first two ODIs. There were couple of run-outs, which definitely shifted the momentum from us. We also lost a cluster of wickets in the last few ten overs. I hope everyone is looking for improvement.”

تلقى منتخب المغرب هزيمة قاسية على يد منافسه البرتغال بنتيجة 6-0 في المواجهة التي جمعت بينهما مساء اليوم في بطولة كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا.

وأقيمت المباراة بين المغرب والبرتغال على ملعب رقم 8 بمنطقة أسباير في مدينة الريان، ضمن لقاءات الجولة الثانية من مرحلة المجموعات بـ بطولة كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا.

ويتواجد منتخب المغرب في المجموعة الثانية من بطولة كأس العالم، مع البرتغال واليابان وكاليدونيا.

طالع.. فيديو | المغرب يسقط بسداسية أمام البرتغال في كأس العالم تحت 17 عاما

وكان منتخب المغرب قد تلقى هزيمة صعبة أمام اليابان في الجولة الأولى بهدفين مقابل لا شيء، بينما فازت البرتغال على كاليدونيا الجديدة بنتيجة 6-1.

وتعادل منتخب اليابان مع كاليدونيا الجديدة دون أهداف، في إطار لقاءات الجولة ذاتها من منافسات المجموعة.

ويختتم منتخب المغرب مشواره بمواجهة أمام كاليدونيا الجديدة في الجولة الثالثة، بينما يلتقي منتخب البرتغال مع اليابان. ترتيب مجموعة المغرب في كأس العالم تحت 17 عامًا

1- البرتغال: 6 نقاط.

2- اليابان: 4 نقاط.

3- كاليدونيا الجديدة: نقطة.

4- المغرب: دون نقاط.

Russell Martin has survived another day as Rangers manager.

On Saturday, the Gers reached the League Cup quarter-finals, managing to win 2-0 at Ibrox, although a Glasgow derby at Hampden on 2 November is probably far from what they need right now.

The question though still remains; will Martin be in charge by then?

Well, to avoid becoming the shortest-serving permanent manager in Rangers’ history, breaking Pedro Caixinha’s record, Martin would still need to be at the helm for the visit of Braga in the Europa League on 27 November, which appears unlikely considering he is yet to win a Premiership match in five attempts, leaving them second-bottom, ahead of Sunday’s trip to Almondvale.

Thus, surely 49ers Enterprises, who took over the club in the summer, are considering potential replacements, so a future “elite manager” should be top of their wish list, not the obvious front-runners.

The favourites to replace Russell Martin at Rangers

Ever since it became clear that Martin was not going to last particularly long in Govan, amid widespread protests against him and chief executive officer Patrick Stewart present throughout the weekend win over Hibs, two obvious front-runners have emerged, both with Merseyside connections.

Steven Gerrard would be the populist choice, with many supporters wanting to see him return to Ibrox, having managed the club for 194 matches between 2018 and 2021, re-establishing Rangers as a force in European football, as well as leading them to their sole Premiership title since 2011, stopping Celtic’s pursuit of ten-in-a-row.

A key figure in Gerrard’s success in Glasgow was then-assistant Michael Beale, who returned to Ibrox as manager himself in 2022, lasting just 43 matches before being hounded out.

The pair did briefly reunite in Saudi Arabia, working together at Al-Ettifaq before Gerrard was unceremoniously sacked in January, so could the 49ers get the band back together?

The other leading candidate is Sean Dyche, who has also been out of work since January, dismissed by Everton earlier this year.

Having taken charge of 557 games as a manager, of which 332 have come in the Premier League, the former Burnley boss is surely one of the most experienced coaches Rangers could attract, and he has proven himself adept at getting the best out of whatever he has to work with, something the current occupant of the Ibrox hot seat certainly is not doing.

However, rather than playing it safe, Rangers should be bold and appoint a future “elite manager” who is currently out of work.

Rangers' dream Russell Martin successor

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Jordi Cruijff, son of the legendary Johan, asserted that “all the best managers were midfielders”, a claim supported by a study from The Athletic, which found that ‘almost half of coaches with a professional playing background were midfielders’.

Well, a man looking to reinforce that stereotype is Michael Carrick – formerly tipped to replace Gerrard in the hot seat by Charlie Adam back in 2021.

After spending 12 years at Manchester United as a player, he retired in 2018 and worked under José Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjær as an assistant coach, placed in interim charge for three matches in 2021, overseeing victories over Villarreal and Arsenal, as well as a draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

After leaving Old Trafford, Carrick returned to the North East, where he was born and raised, appointed Middlesbrough manager in October 2024.

As the table below documents, his time on Teeside was generally pretty successful.

Carrick @ Middlesbrough
Statistics	Carrick
Matches	136
Wins	63
Draws	24
Defeats	49
Goals scored	220
Goals conceded	177
22/23 league finish	4th
23/24 league finish	8th
24/25 league finish	10th
Best EFL Cup run	Semis
Stats via Transfermarkt

As outlined by the table, Carrick led Boro into the Championship play-offs in his first season, having taken over with the side 21st, before they were beaten 1-0 by Coventry City in the semi-finals.

He also guided them to the EFL Cup semi-finals, actually defeating Chelsea 1-0 in the first leg at the Riverside, but eighth and then tenth place finishes in the Championship saw him sacked and replaced by Rob Edwards during the summer, who has made a flying start in fairness, with Middlesbrough currently top of the table.

Nevertheless, Carrick earned plenty of praise, labelled a future “elite manager” by one analyst, while Jack Manship of Total Football Analysis was impressed by his ‘eye-catching’ brand of football, praising Boro’s ‘organisation’ and ability to attack quickly.

Meantime, Solskjær has backed Carrick to be a future Manchester United manager one day, describing him as a “winner”, forecasting he will be a top-class coach in the near future.

Thus, while Carrick is out of work, Rangers should surely do everything they can to convince him to take over in Glasgow, successfully taking a chance on Gerrard back in 2018, even more of a rookie himself at the time, so a young coach with fresh ideas is surely exactly what they need.

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IPL 2025 will resume on May 17 and end on June 3, as per the revised schedule announced by the BCCI on Monday night.The remainder of the tournament, which was suspended on May 9 for a week due to cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan, will be played at six venues: Bengaluru, Jaipur, Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.The venues for the playoffs will be announced later, but the matches will be played on the following dates: Qualifier 1 on May 29, the Eliminator on May 30, Qualifier 2 on June 1 and the final on June 3. A total of 17 matches will be played after the resumption, with two double-headers, both of which will be played on Sundays.The revised schedule features 13 league games and the four playoff matches. This means that the Punjab Kings (PBKS) vs Delhi Capitals (DC) game, which was called off midway through the first innings on May 8 in Dharamsala, will be played again, on May 24 in Jaipur, which will be the temporary home base for PBKS.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Two days later, PBKS will play against Mumbai Indians (MI), a match they were originally meant to play in their second home base of Dharamsala on May 11. The match that will restart the tournament on May 17 will be played between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Bengaluru.On the first of the two double-header days, Rajasthan Royals (RR) will meet PBKS in the day game (3.30pm IST) on May 18 and DC will take on Gujarat Titans (GT) in the evening (7.30pm IST). The next Sunday – May 25 – will see GT take on Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the day game in Ahmedabad and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) meet KKR in Delhi at 7.30pm IST. The last league game will be between Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and RCB on May 27 in Lucknow.The change in venues also means that three teams – PBKS, CSK and SRH – won’t get to play on their original home grounds anymore. With CSK and SRH out of the playoffs race, PBKS will count themselves unlucky to be playing two of their home matches at a neutral venue. With 15 points from 11 matches, PBKS were third on the points table before the tournament was suspended.The official release said the BCCI held “extensive consultations with government and security agencies, and with all the key stakeholders” before finalising the resumption of the tournament.The delayed finish of the IPL, which was originally scheduled to end on May 25 in Kolkata, means it will now coincide with the entire ODI series between England and West Indies starting on May 29 in Birmingham and ending on June 3 at The Oval. It will lead to a clash for Romario Shepherd (RCB), Shamar Joseph (LSG) and Sherfane Rutherford (GT), who have all been picked in the West Indies ODI squad. England have not named their squad yet but the players likely to be affected are Jos Buttler (GT), Phil Salt (RCB), Jacob Bethell (RCB), Liam Livingstone (RCB), Will Jacks (MI) and Reece Topley (MI), depending on which teams make the playoffs.6:21

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The revised IPL schedule also squeezes the gap between the IPL final and the WTC final to just seven days, with Australia and South Africa set to contest the Test world title from June 11 at Lord’s. Both Australia and South Africa are scheduled to announce their squads on Tuesday. The players who are currently part of the IPL teams and are likely to be picked for the WTC final are Australia captain Pat Cummins and Travis Head (both SRH), Mitchell Starc and Tristan Stubbs (both DC), Josh Hazlewood (RCB), Marco Jansen and Josh Inglis (both PBKS), Aiden Markram (LSG), Kagiso Rabada (GT), Ryan Rickelton (MI) and Kwena Mphaka (RR).The revised schedule will also potentially impact the India A tour of England, which is scheduled to begin from May 30, for two unofficial Tests in Canterbury and Northampton. Several fringe India players, some of whom are likely to be part of the India squad for the five-Test series starting on June 20 in England, will now be part of the IPL when the A matches begin.For now, the biggest challenge for the 10 IPL franchises will be to re-assemble their squads and bring back overseas players and support-staff members who had begun flying back home over the weekend. The team that could find it easiest to get back together will be GT, currently on top of the table, who had seen only two of their overseas players fly back: Buttler and Gerald Coetzee. The rest of their squad was continuing to train in Ahmedabad. MI could also benefit from the revised schedule, as their first game is on May 21, four days after the tournament resumes.

A “fantastic” former Chelsea manager would be interested in taking over from Graham Potter as West Ham United manager, a leading agent source has revealed.

Speculation over Potter's future continues despite victory over Forest

It would be fair to say West Ham have made a disappointing start to the campaign, and Potter was under intense pressure heading into his side’s trip to Nottingham Forest before the international break.

However, the Hammers came out fighting, picking up a shock 3-0 victory at The City Ground, which should provide the Englishman with a little while longer to put things right.

That said, it will not be easy, given that the Irons have a tough run of fixtures after the international break, taking on Tottenham Hotspur at home, before also facing Crystal Palace at the London Stadium, who are on a 14-game unbeaten run.

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As such, the West Ham hierarchy have already identified a number of potential options to replace Potter, with it recently being revealed that Jose Mourinho is one of the leading targets, while contact has been made with Coventry City boss Frank Lampard.

According to a new update from Hammers News, a leading agent source has revealed that Lampard would be interested in taking over from Potter at the London Stadium, should the job become available.

The former West Ham man would back himself to be a success in the role and win over the supporters, who he has always had a difficult relationship with, having left to join Chelsea when he was young.

That said, contrary to other reports, a spokesman has reportedly revealed there is no truth to the rumours that an approach has been made for the Coventry boss at this stage.

Lampard has done a "fantastic job" at Coventry

The former Chelsea boss has had a mixed managerial career up to this point, having been sacked by the Blues after failing to win a trophy, while also being dismissed by Everton, although he did manage to lead the Toffees to Premier League safety.

However, the 47-year-old has managed to impress in the Championship, leading Derby County to Wembley in the 2019 Championship play-off final, before also going on to reach the play-offs with the Sky Blues last season after a remarkable turnaround.

That said, given that the former Hammer has had limited success above the second tier, it would be a very questionable decision for West Ham to bring him in as a replacement for Potter.

Not only that, but Lampard burned his bridges with a lot of fans after moving to Chelsea, so it would be a divisive move from owners who are already under intense scrutiny.

Bangladesh are cramming extra training sessions into their schedule in a bid to shift their mindset from T20Is to ODIs ahead of the Champions Trophy. Head coach Phil Simmons is confident that the players can get themselves accustomed to the format despite not playing an ODI since December.The BPL ended on February 7, and the following day, some of the players turned up at a training camp at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka. These were mainly cricketers whose BPL teams had been knocked out before the final. The team will train in Dhaka till February 12, after which they leave for the Champions Trophy – their first match is against India in Dubai on February 20.”I agree that it is not the best preparation, but they were playing white-ball cricket, which means that they are sharp skills-wise,” Simmons said. “We have to get their minds up to 50-over cricket in the next six or seven days. They have the skills. They are performing. It is about getting to that 50-over mentality now. We will have double practice sessions in the next couple of days. We bat and bowl in the morning, and then do the same under the lights.Related

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“We are getting ourselves prepared to bat for 50 overs. The first part of the preparation is about Dubai. Once we can get ourselves in the right frame of mind, and work on the right things for Dubai, I think we can start [preparations for] the rest the competition as well. We will get familiar conditions in Pakistan after that.”Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto is a worry, particularly because he hasn’t played a lot in the last couple of months. Shanto missed the tour of the West Indies owing to a hamstring injury. His last international outing was in November last year. He returned with the National Cricket League T20s, and then played five games for Fortune Barishal in the BPL.”He was working very hard all of those days when he wasn’t playing,” Simmons said. “We are going to need a strong mental attitude from everyone in the team. I think he possesses that, so I look forward to him continuing his work.”Simmons admitted that Nahid Rana’s drop in pace towards the back-end of the BPL was a concern, but he was relieved since Rana has upped his pace in the training sessions.”He has looked slower than normal in the last couple of games. The run-up was less than normal approaching the wicket,” Simmons said. “They [Rangpur Riders] got knocked out early so he had a bit of rest. He looked sharp in training yesterday. The pace was coming back. The run-up was as quick as it was in the Caribbean.”This is Simmons’ last assignment in his current contract, and there are questions about the future. But Simmons wasn’t giving any clues.”I won’t be here if I didn’t believe [that we can win],” he said. “I think you prepare as best as you could when you go into a tournament. On that day, you play your best games. That’s what I look to do, on every occasion. I think we have made a lot of strides in the Caribbean. I think we have a good chance once we play to the best of our ability.”

Leeds United had a disappointing end to the summer transfer window because they failed to bring in the attacking reinforcements that Daniel Farke wanted for his squad.

The Whites reportedly had a deal agreed to sign Harry Wilson from Fulham on a permanent deal before their Premier League rivals backed out of a move at the last-minute.

Farke did not get any new attackers through the door on deadline day, partly because of the Cottagers pulling the plug late in the day, and will now have to work with what he has at his disposal.

The Championship champions did add attackers in other positions earlier in the summer transfer window, signing Noah Okafor, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and Lukas Nmecha.

Leeds won their opening game of the season, against Everton, thanks to a penalty from Nmecha on his debut, but they have failed to score in their two Premier League outings since then.

The centre-forward position is an intriguing one for the Whites because they do not appear to have a clear, standout, starter at this moment in time.

Why Leeds have a striker problem

Farke has a problem with his number nine position because Calvert-Lewin, Nmecha, and Joel Piroe are all fairly unconvincing options on current evidence.

It does not seem realistic to expect any of them to score goals on a regular basis in the Premier League when you consider their form this season and in recent seasons.

Calvert-Lewin, for example, scored three goals in 26 Premier League games for Everton last season, and has failed to score more than seven goals in a league season in each of the last four campaigns, per Sofascore.

The former England international has also missed four ‘big chances’ and missed in a penalty shoot-out against Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup in his first two appearances for Leeds, per Sofascore.

These statistics do not suggest that Calvert-Lewin is likely to establish himself as a regular scorer for the Whites, but his physicality could still give him the edge over Piroe.

Minutes

78

58

Goals

0

0

Key passes

0

0

Assists

0

0

Ground duels won

0/3

0/0

Aerial duels won

1/5

0/3

As you can see in the table above, the Dutch striker struggled badly in the first two games of the season, particularly in physical battles, and was then an unused substitute against Newcastle United.

This has not come as a surprise, though, because Piroe lost a whopping 73% of his duels in the Championship last term, but was able to score 19 goals, per Sofascore, because of how dominant his team were in possession.

Calvert-Lewin, meanwhile, won 45% of his duels and 51% of his aerial contests in the Premier League with the Toffees in the 2024/25 campaign, which suggests that he can provide significantly more to the team as a physical presence up front.

However, the English forward’s lacklustre goal return in recent seasons suggest that there could still be a chance for Piroe to get game time if the former Everton man fails to deliver in front of goal.

In The Pipeline

Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

Whilst Calvert-Lewin, despite his physicality, may not put an end to Piroe’s career at Elland Road, there is a player in the academy who could make the step up to make the Dutchman reconsider his future in West Yorkshire.

We have seen Rio Nguhoma, 16, and Max Dowman, 15, make their Premier League bows for Liverpool and Arsenal this season, and Leeds could follow suit by unleashing Harry Gray in the top-flight.

Why Harry Gray could end Joel Piroe's Leeds career

Supporters already know his brother’s story and how Farke trusted him to play week-in, week-out in the Championship as a 17 and 18-year-old, which led to him moving to Tottenham Hotspur and winning the Europa League.

Farke handed Harry Gray his debut at the age of 16 against Stoke City in the Championship in April, which shows that the youngster is a player who is in the manager’s mind for the first-team.

The England youth international, who turns 17 next month, has enjoyed a sensational start to the current campaign at U21 level and the manager could end Piroe’s career by taking inspiration from Dowman, Nguhoma, even Lamine Yamal, to unleash Gray in the Premier League.

Analyst Ben Mattinson, as shown in the post above, described the teenage forward as a ‘powerful’ and ‘pacy’ player, two attributes that could make him more effective as a physical presence than Piroe, who would not typically be described as either of those things.

Gray, who has also been described as “the real deal” by Mattinson, also has an impressive goalscoring record to back up his physical attributes in the number nine position.

Appearances

11

11

Minutes

819

848

Goals

8

6

Minutes per goal

102

141

Assists

0

2

As you can see in the table above, the 16-year-old marksman has scored 14 goals in 22 games for the club at U18 and U21 level to date, which speaks to his ability to find the back of the net on a regular basis.

That haul includes three goals and two assists in four matches for the U21s in all competitions during the 2025/26 campaign, showing that he is currently in form and flying in front of goal.

This plays into why now could be the perfect time for Farke to make the bold call to unleash him at Premier League level, because Gray is full of confidence and on fire for the U21s, which could provide him with a fearless and confident attitude to take into the first-team.

If the England U17 international can make that step up, whether it comes now or in the coming months or seasons, then it could spell the end of Piroe’s time at Elland Road.

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The Dutchman was an unused substitute behind Nmecha and Calvert-Lewin last time out and Gray’s emergence in the senior side could leave him struggling to make the bench, and forcing him to consider his future.

Rafael Leao admitted he 'can’t take risks' with his injury, ruling him out against Bologna and leaving AC Milan unsure when their star man will return.

Leao sidelined with calf injuryRuled out of Bologna showdownPortuguese star won’t risk setbackFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Leao picked up an injury during Milan's Coppa Italia tie against Bari last month, which forced him off in the first half. Despite returning to training, the 26-year-old admitted he “can’t take risks” with his recovery, leaving coach Massimiliano Allegri short of attacking options ahead of a crucial run of fixtures.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The Portuguese winger's absence is a major blow for Milan, who have shown mixed form in recent weeks – suffering a shock 2-1 defeat to newly promoted Cremonese before bouncing back with a 2-0 win over Lecce. Without their talisman, Allegri will rely on Santiago Gimenez and Christian Pulisic in attack, though both are returning late from international duty. New signing Christopher Nkunku has been training well during the break and could make his Serie A debut, but his fitness is not yet at full capacity.

WHAT RAFAEL LEAO SAID

Speaking at the Gentleman Award ceremony, Leao explained: "I'm working to return as soon as possible, but it's an injury that can't be taken risks. As for me, a centre-forward? It's a position I know well. I'll make myself available to the coach to play as a central striker or as a winger."

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR AC MILAN?

Leao’s return date remains uncertain, with Milan keen to avoid aggravating the issue. The Portuguese forward is expected to sit out at least another game, as the Rossoneri prepare to face Bologna in Serie A on Sunday, September 14. In his absence, Allegri will continue to experiment with Gimenez, Pulisic and possibly Nkunku in attack. Milan will be desperate for their No.10 to recover quickly as the fixtures pile up.

Manchester United have now struck an agreement on personal terms with a “special” player, and David Ornstein reveals the clubs are also ‘closing in’ on a deal.

Man Utd stepping up new striker pursuit

Man United have been trying to get Rasmus Hojlund off the books this summer, with a £30m price tag now deemed to be acceptable, but it has proven to be a difficult task to offload the Danish striker, who recently rejected a move to the Bundesliga.

In fact, Hojlund now wants to stay and fight for his place, despite attracting widespread interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs, which means United could be left with less money to fund their own summer transfer business.

However, it hasn’t stopped the Red Devils recently submitting a huge offer for RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, with a £74m bid tabled, and there has now been a further update on their pursuit of the centre-forward.

According to a report from GiveMeSport, Man United have now agreed personal terms with Sesko, despite rival interest from Newcastle United, with the Magpies recently tabling a £78m offer of their own.

Their sources state the Slovenian has now decided to move to Old Trafford rather than St. James’ Park, and Ornstein revealed on Wednesday morning that the club side of things is progressing too, reporting talks are ‘advancing towards conclusion’ and United are ‘closing in on (a) deal’.

"Special" Sesko could be exactly what Man Utd need

With Joshua Zirkzee and Hojlund flattering to deceive since arriving at Old Trafford, it is clear that Ruben Amorim needs to bring in a new striker this summer, and the RB Leipzig star clearly has a lot of potential. Former Leipzig technical director Christian Vivell once lauded the Slovenia international as “special”, and he has already started to make a major impact at the German club, netting 21 goals across all competitions last season.

The Leipzig star will inject a serious threat in behind for United, clocking a top speed of 35.69 km/h last season, ranking him as one of the quickest strikers in Europe and even faster than United’s top speedster Alejandro Garnacho (35.48 km/h).

Man Utd eyeing move to sign £50m+ CF with 25 G/A in 24/25 alongside Sesko

The Red Devils are in the race for a striker, who could be brought in instead of Benjamin Sesko.

ByDominic Lund Aug 5, 2025

The only concern will be that the 22-year-old could turn out to be another Hojlund-type signing, as he is yet to prove himself in the Premier League, and Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins has been mentioned as a potential alternative.

However, given that Watkins is now 29-years-old, it is worth taking a chance on Sesko, especially considering the Leipzig striker has now had two strong campaigns in the Bundesliga, while Hojlund scored just nine goals in 32 Serie A games the season before moving to Old Trafford.