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Jurgen Klopp may be out of the running, but LAFC boss Steve Cherundolo is expected to be a “finalist” in the race to become the next USMNT head coach.

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• Change made after disappointing tournament showing
• Ex-Liverpool boss Klopp is out of the running
• Former defender a leading contender to take the reins

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  That position has become vacant following the decision to part with Gregg Berhalter. His second spell in charge of the United States has been brought to a close following a disastrous 2024 Copa America campaign that delivered a humbling group stage exit on home soil.

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  The search is on for a suitable successor, with various names being thrown into the mix. Many fans had been hoping that former Liverpool boss Klopp could be talked out of his brief coaching sabbatical, but the German has reportedly knocked back a tentative approach.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Former USMNT star Cherundolo is now considered to be a leading contender, given his MLS record in Los Angeles, and Taylor Twellman has suggested that talks may have already been held with 45-year-old – who earned 87 caps for his country as a player and spent his entire club career in Germany with Hannover.

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  have confirmed that the former defender is in the frame, with Michele Giannone stating: “He has indeed had those conversations and, as of now, if he’s not the leading candidate, he will definitely be a finalist for the job, I believe.”

Manchester United are braced for yet more changes above Erik ten Hag as INEOS group and Sir Jim Ratcliffe continue their overhaul of the club.

Derby defeat hammers home the job on Ratcliffe's hands

As Sunday's Premier League derby day drubbing demonstrated, Manchester United are miles away from where they want to be. The Red Devils have floundered around the edge of the European places all season in what has been a trying year for Erik ten Hag.

Finishing bottom of their Champions League group, they sit a massive 11 points outside the top four and look likely to be missing out on Champions League football again this season barring a drastic turnaround. Though there have been injuries aplenty, there are a large majority who believe it is a matter of when, not if, Ten Hag is shown the exit door in the north west.

10 Manchester United prospects who could break through in 2024

FFC takes a look at the best talent coming out of Carrington.

By
Mark Marston

Dec 5, 2023

While on-field performances may be stagnating, there has been progress off it. Ratcliffe took charge officially in February after agreeing to buy a minority stake in the club at the end of 2023. He has wasted no time since. Already the club have added Omar Berrada from rivals Manchester City, with the Moroccan arriving at the end of the season to take on the CEO role at the club.

They are also believed to be finalising a deal for Dan Ashworth, with the Newcastle United sporting director having been placed on gardening leave by the Magpies as a deal looks to be agreed, though there is a steep £20m asking price involved.

Ashworth would overhaul a dated transfer policy at Old Trafford, having already had success at Brighton and more recently at St James' Park. There is hope that his presence would prevent deals such as that for Antony being completed in the future.

Another Premier League appointment in sight

Now, the off-the-field overhaul is set to continue, with Dougie Freedman being lined up to become the Red Devils' new head of recruitment, where he would work in tandem with Ashworth over transfer business.

Currently Sporting Director at Crystal Palace, United are "expected to make an official approach" for the Scot in the coming days, with the club keen to have their infrastructure in place before the end of the campaign.

Having helped overhaul Palace in the previous five years, Freedman was 'instrumental' in the arrivals of the likes of Marc Guehi, Eberechi Eze and Michael Olise. It is added that he is 'open' to the idea of making the switch to Old Trafford from South London, meaning that should Palace allow him to depart, a deal could be completed very soon.

USWNT star Trinity Rodman has revealed her sporting idols, with a World Cup winner and NBA legend looked to for inspiration.

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• Grew up watching Olympic heroes
• Now chasing down goal medal of her own
• Looking to inspire the next generation

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Rodman, at just 22 years of age, has become a hero in her own right to countless of soccer hopefuls in the United States. She is plying her trade at the very highest level, with 40 senior caps to her name, and will form part of a gold medal bid at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

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• WHAT RODMAN SAID

  The USWNT last savoured Olympic glory in 2012, with Rodman admiring one of the stars in that side. She has told when asked to pick out childhood favourites: “They’re, honestly, all idols. But specifically, I would say I always touch on Tobin Heath because I feel, like, in her game, she shows a lot of creativity and spunk while also being explosive and fast. You can tell her mind is going a million miles per hour, but when she gets on the ball, everything slows down. It’s amazing to watch. She’s someone I’ve studied a lot.”

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  Pressed further on athletes from other sports that she has looked up to, Rodman – who is the daughter of former Chicago Bulls star Dennis – added: “Kobe Bryant was a big one. And obviously, I had a personal connection with him, so that added to it. He was just…his mentality was like no other. The way that he worked the court, the way that he would toy with defenders. I always preach that being able to play with the defence is a huge part of the game. Kobe was so mentally fit all the time. Even if his team lost, he was winning the one-on-one battle.”

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• WHAT NEXT?

  Rodman will be hoping to do that herself when taking to the field in France. The USWNT are set to get their Olympic gold medal bid underway when taking on Zambia in Nice on Thursday – with new head coach Emma Hayes piecing together a star-studded squad.

Liverpool defender Joe Gomez is happy at the club despite rumours his exit may pave the way for Anthony Gordon to join the Reds.

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• Gomez is of interest to Newcastle
• Could be used in swap deal for Anthony Gordon
• England defender not keen on move to Tyneside

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Gomez has been mentioned by multiple reports as rumours of Liverpool moving for Gordon ramp up but The Times say the 27-year-old is keen to stay at Anfield. Previous reports also suggested that Newcastle were willing to pay £45million ($58m) for the defender earlier in the summer.

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  Arne Slot has held discussions with Liverpool's longest-serving player about the upcoming season and Gomez himself is keen to earn his spot under the new head coach. Gomez has not spoken to Newcastle about a possible switch and looks set to remain on Merseyside, ruling out a swap deal between the Reds and Magpies involving Gordon.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  No current first-team player has been at Liverpool longer than Gomez. The England international signed from Charlton in 2015, meaning he has been on the books at Anfield for nine years, outlasting the likes of Jurgen Klopp and Joel Matip.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR GOMEZ AND LIVERPOOL?

  Pre-season preparations are continuing under Slot and Liverpool most recently beat Premier League rivals Manchester United 3-0 during their tour of the US. Gomez has now reported in after a late holiday following his involvement at Euro 2024 and is getting back up to speed alongside the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo.

Tottenham Hotspur has been one of the busiest Premier League clubs transfer-wise since Daniel Levy decided to appoint Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Regardless of the club's league finish this season there is bound to be plenty more activity after the campaign finishes. Spurs finished eighth last term and have hence been limited to domestic action, falling early in both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup nonetheless.

But there's a bigger picture here, and the lion's share of Tottenham supporters are enjoying the gains made under Postecoglou's leadership so far, with last weekend's emphatic victory at Villa Park narrowing Aston Villa's lead in the top four to just two points.

Spurs, who are fifth, have a game in hand. They also have a revived sense of fluency and two wins on the bounce. In short: Postecoglou has done stellar work bringing this squad's quality back to the fore.

Fully fit, Tottenham boast a line-up worthy of challenging for the title; this much was evident after the blistering start to the term, eight wins, two draws, top spot in the Premier League.

Injuries to influential summer signings Micky van de Ven and James Maddison back in November sent this remarkable resurgence into a spiral and the latter, amazing in his playmaking after signing from Leicester City last summer, was a gut-wrenching blow.

Maddison won the Premier League's Player of the Month award for August; the England international operates with intellect from No. 10. That can't be replaced, not readily.

Giovani Lo Celso stepped up, and a pat on the back to him, but his time in N17 may have entered its final few months and he must be sold during the off-season.

Why Giovani Lo Celso must leave Spurs this summer

Do the pros outweigh the cons? Likely not. Lo Celso joined Tottenham from Real Betis in a permanent £27m transfer back in January 2020 after spending six months in the English capital on loan, with Levy having already granted a £15m outlay for his services.

£43m, give or take. That's more than the £40m figure that Tottenham parted with to land Maddison last year. And after 98 appearances the Argentina international has ten goals, eight assists and 14 bookings for his labour, spending a sizeable chunk of his Tottenham career out on loan in Spain with Villarreal.

He's an elegant and creative player and in fairness stepped up in Maddison's absence before Christmas, scoring two goals and providing two assists in the Premier League over November and December.

Moreover, the 27-year-old ranks among the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 11% for shot-creating actions, the top 1% for pass completion and progressive passes and the top 3% for tackles per 90, as per FBref.

But he must leave. Lo Celso is clearly unfavoured by Postecoglou and has only really been handed roles from the outset when his manager had no other option. He's also on £70k-per-week and is out of contract in 2025, so he's not exactly earning a pittance and will continue to clog up valuable space and resources if not cashed in, when that is still possible this summer.

There have been rumours of late that Lo Celso is preparing to leave the club this summer and given the importance of catching up with those at the forefront, it may well be worth shipping him on.

Especially given the rise of Alfie Devine, who is currently competing out on loan with Plymouth Argyle in the Championship but could be ready for a role in Spurs' squad next year.

Why fans should be excited about Alfie Devine

Described as an "exquisite technician" by U23 scout Antonio Mango, Devine is a versatile midfielder with skill on the ball and intelligence without it.

He's scored 20 goals and added 12 assists over 80 outings for Tottenham's various youth sides and scored in the FA Cup for the senior side when he was just 16 years old, etching his name into the record books.

After that prodigious beginning to life on the major stage, Devine spent the next few seasons honing his craft with the development squad, moving out on loan to Port Vale earlier in the 2023/24 campaign and returning in January to move up a notch to the Championship, signing a short-term deal with Plymouth.

Alfie Devine's season in numbers

Devine was fantastic across the opening half of the season with Port Vale in League One. Still, Spurs exercised their option to recall him with the view that his skill set would be better served within the second tier of English football. While Argyle are struggling against relegation, he has offered plenty of promise.

As per Sofascore, the dynamic midfielder has chipped in with two assists across six starts for the Pilgrims, winning 57% of his ground duels and averaging 3.1 ball recoveries per game.

Once lauded as a "top-class" prospect by outspoken pundit Jamie Carragher, Devine has showcased his versatility across his separate loan spells this season while chalking up three goals and six assists in the process,

“Alfie’s performances have been very good, with and without the ball,” says Plymouth manager Ian Foster after his side's 2-0 defeat against promotion-chasing Leeds United.

“He has got a really good tactical brain, a really clear understanding of what we are asking him to do. He applies himself brilliantly.”

Postecoglou likes clever, he loves intuition and understanding. Devine is enjoying a season of growth and he must continue to ply his trade with conviction, as he has been doing, in order to bloom into the kind of player who can really make an impact for Spurs.

With Lo Celso headed for the exit, there's every chance that a prospect of his quality will be handed an opportunity next season.

European competition will be on the cards and Tottenham will hope to wade deeper in the domestic cup competitions.

Rising stars of Devine's ilk will be necessary, and he might just prove to be the perfect homegrown replacement to the likely leaving Lo Celso.

The shirt number that Brazilian teenager Endrick will wear at Real Madrid has been revealed after the initial plan to give him the No. 9 was derailed.

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• Endrick to be unveiled at Madrid this week
• Striker will wear No. 16 in his first season
• Was initially expected to be given No. 9 shirt

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  A year and a half after he initially agreed to join the Spanish giants from Palmeiras, the attacker is finally set to be unveiled as a Madrid player on Saturday after being forced to wait until he turned 18 before he could leave Brazil.

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  The striker was initially to be handed the No. 9 jersey at the Santiago Bernabeu, but that plan was abandoned when Kylian Mbappe was given it after joining from Paris Saint-Germain in a free transfer. Instead, Endrick will wear the No. 16 shirt in his first season with Los Blancos, reports

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Endrick was 16 years old when he made his senior debut with Brazilian side Palmeiras and he donned the No. 16 shirt back then before eventually switching to his preferred No. 9. He will see his career with Madrid begin in a similar fashion.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ENDRICK?

  Endrick will be unveiled as a Madrid player on Saturday. He will be tied to the European and Spanish champions until 2030.

Chelsea fans have been put through the wringer this season, with every impressive win quickly followed by an embarrassing defeat.

However, there have been a few bright spots for the Stamford Bridge faithful to celebrate, such as their progression to the FA Cup Semi-Finals and the brilliant performances of Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer.

The pair have arguably been the club's best players this season, and yet their combined wages amount to less than those of a former flop who left west London with little to show for his efforts.

Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer's wages

Gallagher joined the Blues as a youngster and has been a fan all his life, while Palmer completed his £42.5m move from Manchester City last summer.

The former enjoyed a reasonably impressive season in London last year, in which he made 45 appearances, scored three goals, and provided one assist. At the same time, the latter was playing a bit-part role for the treble winners, seeing just 849 minutes of action across 25 games.

This year, the pair have made 72 appearances between them, although the new boy has had the most significant impact at the sharp end of the pitch. The 21-year-old gem has scored 14 goals and provided 12 assists, meaning he is averaging a goal every 1.3 games.

That said, while the Epsom-born Gallagher's return of four goals and seven assists is substantially lower, he's still having a significant impact on the team's performances from slightly deeper on the pitch and has even been described as "the heart" of the club, by talent scout Jacek Kulig.

With their undeniable importance to the team, fans might expect them to be some of the club's highest earners, but that's just not the case. Gallagher's £50k-per-week wages mean that there are 18 players currently earning more than him in the squad, and Palmer's £75k-per-week wages mean that there are 15 players earning more than him.

What's worse is that a former flop was on more than the pair of them combined.

American superstar Christian Pulisic is the man in question as, despite having bags of talent and even demonstrating said talent in glimpses at Chelsea, he ultimately left as a flop.

How much Christian Pulisic cost Chelsea in total

The Hershey-born ace cost the Blues around £58m when Maurizio Sarri signed him from Borussia Dortmund in January 2019. However, he wouldn't actually join the team for another six months as he played out the rest of the campaign in Germany.

Despite the enormous cost and pressure, the then-20-year-old transitioned to Premier League football relatively smoothly in his first year, returning a respectable 11 goals and ten assists in just 34 games.

However, in January 2020, he suffered an abductor injury that saw him miss 13 games for club and country, which was a sign of things to come for the right-footed dynamo.

Over the course of his four years in the capital, the 5 foot 10 winger missed 65 games for club and country and spent a staggering 413 days out of action, or about 1.13 years.

During this time, the American "magician" as described by sports writer Al Butler, was taking home a hefty pay packet of £150k-per-week, for which he scored 26 goals and provided 21 assists in 145 games.

Therefore, when taking into account his £58m transfer fee and the 210 weeks he was earning £150k – £31.5m – he cost the Pensioners a whopping £89.5m in total, which translates to around £3.4m-per-goal, £4.2m-per-assist, or £617k-per-appearance.

Ultimately, while Pulisic had talent and is looking rather impressive following his £20m move to AC Milan – registering 20 goal involvements – he was a flop for Chelsea, and the fact that his weekly wage was more than Palmer's and Gallagher's combined is absurd.

Wage Burners

Football FanCast's Wage Burners series explores the salaries of the modern-day game.

There's no doubting the fact that Gary O'Neil has enjoyed an excellent first season at Wolverhampton Wanderers, taking the Midlands club from relegation battlers to potential top-half finishers in the Premier League. It's the type of success which may see the former Bournemouth boss rewarded with a busy summer transfer window.

Wolves transfer news

Wolves' biggest concern right now away from the excitement of potential incomings should be the future of Pedro Neto. After the winger's incredible campaign, in which he has scored three times and assisted a further 11 goals, the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal are already beginning to circle over a deal that could be worth as much as £60m this summer.

Wolves are, of course, already familiar with the feeling of bidding farewell to star players, having waved goodbye to Ruben Neves last season and players of Diogo Jota's calibre to Liverpool in the past. Now, it looks as though Neto will follow suit.

Those in the Midlands will at least get a preview of life without the Portugal international, with O'Neil confirming that he is likely to miss the remainder of the season through injury.

If Neto does leave, however, then Wolves will have an increased budget to turn their attention towards incomings, which could include an upgrade on Jose Sa. According to Graeme Bailey for HITC, O'Neil and Wolves now want to sign Brazil international "Bento" Matheus Krepski, who starred as his country defeated England at Wembley 1-0, courtesy of wonderkid Endrick's first ever goal for Brazil.

Wolves may have a "dominant" Toti partner just waiting to be unleashed

Wolves may have an ideal partner for Toti who is shining out on loan at the minute

By
Ross Kilvington

Mar 28, 2024

Worth £15m at Brazilian side Athletico Paranaense, Wolves face a fight if they pursue a deal to sign Bento this summer, with Chelsea and Nottingham Forest also interested in a deal. For such a low price, there's no doubt that it's one Wolves should be going after in the coming months.

"Fantastic" Bento can succeed Jose Sa

Jose Sa, now 31-years-old, has struggled at times this season with his three errors leading to goal highlighting that struggle for all to see in the Midlands. And those errors show that the Portuguese shot-stopper is slowly edging past his prime, leaving Wolves with a decision to make this summer, which is where Bento should come in. Football writer Zach Lowy will certainly be keeping an eye on the shot-stopper this summer, having sung his praises on X this season.

The Brazil international impressed at Wembley, keeping a clean sheet against an England side with the likes of Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden gunning for goal. Given that his price tag sits at just £15m too, Wolves would be wise to make their move ahead of both Chelsea and Midlands rivals Forest.

Burnley fans fume in anger after video emerges of their former coach Vincent Kompany screaming at Johann Berg Gudmundsson.

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• Burnley fans slam Kompany
• Video emerged of him screaming at Gudmundsson
• Joined Bayern Munich this summer

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Kompany helped Burnley to secure promotion to the Premier League in the 2023/24 season after winning the Championship title a season before. However, Burnley's journey in the top flight lasted for just a year as they faced relegation at the end of the last campaign. The Belgian soon left the club after receiving an offer from German giants Bayern Munich.

  A recent video emerged from one of Burnley's training sessions from last season where the manager can be seen screaming and abusing attacking midfielder Gudmundsson.

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• WHAT THE FANS ARE SAYING

  The footage on social media left the fans fuming at the former Manchester City captain as they displayed their anger on X.

  A fan named Matt Snape wrote, "W*nker, Kompany. Seen him speak like this to Zirkzee and now Gudmundsson, and that’s with the camera’s on him. I’d be scrapping if the manager spoke to me like this in front of the rest of the squad. Hope he fails miserably."

  Robbie Kirkham wrote on X, "Bad nobhead Kompany don’t understand the obsession with him very lucky to get that Bayern job."

  A handle named Foz termed the incident 'embarrassing' as he wrote, "Embarrassing. When I listen to Kompany you can see it’s a false persona, it’s like he’s reading a script. Acting not coaching, all for the cameras that is."

  A fan named Lee came into Gudmundsson's defence while slamming the ex-manager as he wrote, "JBG stands for more of what this club is about than Kompany ever did. Good riddance."

  However, there were some supportive voices for the Bayern boss as Gary Martin wrote, "And some people won’t understand that is just normality. Once training is finished it’s all forgotten about."

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  The 38-year-old manager had a difficult start to his journey as the manager of the Bavarian club as in his first pre-season friendly against a fourth-division side, they managed a 1-1 draw. However, the club have bounced back strongly beating Tottenham Hotspur in back-to-back friendlies.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BAYERN MUNICH?

  The Bundesliga giants will play their final pre-season friendly against WSG Tirol on Tuesday before appearing in their first competitive match of the 2024/25 campaign against ULM in a DFB Pokal first-round clash on Friday.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has responded to ongoing rumours surrounding the club's potential acquisition of a new striker.

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• Arsenal start PL campaign with a win
• Havertz and Saka on the scoresheet
• Arteta content with existing firepower

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Arsenal kicked off their Premier League campaign with a solid 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, thanks to goals from Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka. The win provided a promising start for the Gunners, who are looking to build on their impressive form from last season, during which they netted 91 Premier League goals.

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  Although Arsenal's attacking unit has done the job so far, some observers believe that signing a clinical finisher could be the missing piece in Arsenal’s quest to challenge Manchester City for the league title. The Gunners have been heavily linked with a range of prolific forwards, including Napoli's Victor Osimhen, RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko, Newcastle's Alexander Isak, and Sporting CP's Viktor Gyokeres. Each of these players would add significant firepower to the team, but Arteta's latest remarks indicate that the club may not be in the market for another striker this summer.

• WHAT ARTETA SAID

  Speaking to after getting the better of Wolves, Arteta said: "I have faith in [Havertz], we have faith in [Gabriel Jesus]. Leandro [Trossard] has played in that position. So we have different qualities in there and the best thing we can do is trust the players that we have and try improve them. They are so good and so willing and that's what we focus on."

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  This summer, Arsenal have already made significant additions to their squad. The Gunners strengthened their defence with the acquisition of Riccardo Calafiori and solidified their goalkeeping options by signing David Raya from Brentford on a permanent deal. These moves indicate that Arsenal are not standing still, but rather strategically enhancing key areas of the team.

  On the midfield front, Real Sociedad's Mikel Merino has been closely linked with a move to North London. Merino was notably absent from Sociedad's squad for their recent match against Rayo Vallecano, sparking further speculation that he could be on his way to the Emirates.

  However, Arteta has remained tight-lipped about any potential deals and said: "Well there is time, there are options. And when the market is ready in this league, [we'll] be ready."