Pafos FC’s remarkable Champions League journey reaches its biggest night yet as they host Bayern Munich and Harry Kane in Cyprus. Head coach Juan Carlos Carcedo admits one man won’t be enough to stop the English striker, but believes veteran defender David Luiz could be decisive. The Spaniard also hopes his Premier League experience will prove useful against Bayern’s prolific No.9.

Pafos face Bayern in historic Champions League clash

The Cypriot club are set for one of the biggest games in their short history as they welcome Vincent Kompany's Bayern to Cyprus in the Champions League. Pafos, formed just over a decade ago, face the German giants led by Kane, who has been in ruthless form. For Pafos, the night is about testing themselves against Europe’s elite on the grandest stage yet.

Advertisement'One man isn't enough' – Carcedo on stopping Kane

Head coach Juan Carlos Carcedo spoke openly in his pre-match press conference about the daunting task of containing the prolific English hit man, admitting it would require far more than individual brilliance to keep him quiet. The Spanish coach, who once worked as an assistant at Arsenal, drew on his Premier League experience to explain the magnitude of the challenge.

"I know his playing style very well because, when I was assistant coach at Arsenal, we often faced Tottenham. Back then, I even took a close look at him when analysing individual players," Carcedo said. "He has an incredible range of skills. I think many people only realised how good he really is very late. But I've long considered him a superlative player. One man isn't enough to stop him. We want to try to be a well-organized team and prevent him from scoring against us."

AFPDavid Luiz 's experience 'key'

Carcedo also stressed the importance of David Luiz in the upcoming clash, the top name in the Pafos side. The ex-Chelsea, Arsenal and PSG defender, who joined the club in August after leaving Brazilian side Fortaleza, has returned to fitness just in time, and his knowledge of Kane could be vital. 

“David Luiz could be a key help if he gets fit in time. Not only is he our only player with a lot of Champions League experience, he also knows Kane from our time together at Arsenal,” the coach noted. 

Luiz’s presence will be crucial for a squad lacking European pedigree. The Brazilian hero was also notably a part of the Chelsea team that beat Bayern in the 2012 Champions League final.

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Getty Images SportThe Bavarians arrive in form

Kompany’s side are unbeaten this season and boast an attack firing on all cylinders, with Kane already surpassing the 100-goal mark for the club in just 104 games, another remarkable achievement by the English 'history maker'

For Pafos, simply being part of the Champions League league phase is a landmark achievement. They have already made history by qualifying, and hosting Bayern will only raise their profile further. “The fact that FC Bayern would one day visit us in the Champions League was completely unimaginable until recently – now we just want to enjoy it. We want to be bold at home," said Carcedo.

After Tuesday’s clash, Carcedo’s side face Juventus in December and Chelsea in January, fixtures that will test their limits but also cement their growing reputation on the European stage.

The weekend saw Everton get their first Premier League win of the season after beating Brighton 2-0. Both goals came courtesy of Jack Grealish assists, and David Moyes spoke about the quality they’ve added to the side over the summer.

“That’s what we have been hoping for and waiting for. We want to add that extra quality, and that’s what we are trying to do. Kiernan [Dewsbury-Hall] and Jack both played exceptionally well. We are thrilled we are adding a bit more quality, and we need to score some more goals, which we did today.”

Everton have since improved their squad even further by signing Tyler Dibling from Southampton. Dibling will play on the right-hand side of Everton’s attack, an area where they have lacked depth in recent months.

This combination of Grealish and Dibling gives Moyes two skillful wingers that will undoubtedly help his side push on from their impressive end to last year’s Premier League. While there is still time left in the transfer window, Everton have turned their attention to the other end of the pitch as they look to bring in another centre-back.

Everton competing for free agent Lindelof

Everton are attempting to sign the Swedish national team captain, Victor Lindelof, on a free transfer. Lindelof’s contract with Manchester United expired at the end of last season, following 8 years at the club. During his time at United, Lindelof faced Everton 12 times, all of which were in the Premier League, and has beaten the Toffees on 6 occasions.

Everton’s interest has been reported by Fabrizio Romano, who has also revealed that they will face competition from the Italian side Fiorentina, who are in advanced negotiations to sign Lindelof. Fiorentina currently have former United goalkeeper David De Gea between the sticks – the two players have shared the pitch for 16,127 minutes, making De Gea the player Lindelof has played alongside the most.

The Swedish Rumble on X posted that Lindelof’s preferred destination would have been one of the London clubs, such as Fulham, West Ham or Crystal Palace. This could indicate a desire to stay in the Premier League that may allow Everton to tempt him away from Florence.

Lindelof's ball-playing and aerial abilities can help Moyes

If Everton can tempt Lindelof away from Fiorentina, they’ll have a reliable ball-playing centre-back on their hands. Last season, Lindelof was in the top 7% of players for pass accuracy and the top 5% of players for long-ball accuracy, meaning he’d be able to competently play out from the back when necessary.

During his time at United, Lindelof had numerous centre-back partners, but one he featured alongside the most was Harry Maguire. Maguire is often praised for his aerial ability, but Lindelof is also more than capable in the air. The United Stand presenter Mark Goldbridge has previously praised Lindelof for his aerial ability after beating Aston Villa 1-0.

Lindelof’s time spent not playing for Manchester United might also prove valuable to Everton. Later in his United career, Lindelof fell down the centre-back pecking order and received considerably less game time. However, there was never talk of disruptive behaviour because of this, and he always performed to a consistent standard when he was eventually called upon.

All is not well at Celtic right now.

On the pitch, the Hoops were ignominiously dumped out of Champions League qualifying by Kairat, ousted on penalties in Almaty after over three and a half hours of drab, goalless football, before the most dull Old Firm derby in history at Ibrox last Sunday.

Supporters would argue that this is the metaphorical chickens coming home to roost, concerned all summer long about the Celts’ lack of attacking quality, given that Kyōgo Furuhashi, Nicolas Kühn and Matt O’Riley have not been sufficiently replaced.

So, following protests at a charity match against Manchester United legends on Saturday, the club issued an official statement that did nothing to quell dissenting voices, with the names of no individuals attached to the rambling statement, taking no accountability or responsibility for a transfer window many believe to be the club’s worst in modern times.

Thus, Brendan Rodgers has been left massively short ahead of a Europa League campaign that begins against Crvena zvezda in Belgrade later this month, so how he must wish the Hoops hadn’t sold Celtic’s “god of goals” for just £4m.

Celtic's catastrophic striker situation

On deadline day, having failed to replace Kyōgo, who departed in January, Celtic sold their only remaining centre-forward Adam Idah to Swansea City for around £7m, representing a £2.5m loss on the Irishman in just 12 months, but they actually did well to recoup such a large amount, following an underwhelming campaign.

As reports of this sale emerged, supporters thought that the Celtic hierarchy must have a replacement lined up, or at least that’s what one would assume.

The Hoops number one target was Kasper Dolberg but, after haggling over the price, Anderlecht instead sold him to Ajax for a reported fee of €10m (around £8.7m), with the Denmark international re-joining the Amsterdam-based giants.

The window then duly slammed shut, and Celtic did not have a striker, meaning they had 24 hours to secure a free agent, if they were to be included in their UEFA squad.

Emmanuel Dennis and Patrick Bamford were among the underwhelming names mentioned, but they instead secured Kelechi Iheanacho, albeit only after Sevilla had terminated his contract to facilitate the move, emphasising how wanted he was in Southern Spain.

The Nigerian actually scored against Celtic for Manchester City back in December 2016, as the pair drew 1-1 in the Champions League.

Once highly rated, Iheanacho’s career has essentially fallen off a cliff in recent years, scoring just 26 goals across the last four seasons, having netted 19 times during the 2020/21 campaign prior to this decline.

So, how Celtic supporters must wish they still had the forgotten goal machine from the Postecoglou era.

Celtic's "god of goals"

Giorgos Giakoumakis was not at Celtic for a long time, but he certainly made his mark in Glasgow.

In just 57 appearances in hoops, the Greece international scored 26 goals, averaging a goal every 97 minutes, winning the Premiership golden boot during his only full season at Parkhead.

However, unable to secure a regular starting spot due to Kyōgo’s presence, imagine having depth like that now, he was sold to Atlanta United for around £4m in March 2023.

Since then, Giakoumakis has become something of a globe-trotter, leaving Atlanta after less than 18 months in MLS, sold to Cruz Azul for $10m (around £7.4m), albeit he did not live up to expectations in Mexico City, returning to his homeland this summer by signing for PAOK on loan.

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Well, he has made an immediate impact in Thessaloniki, on target off the bench during a 5-0 victory over HNK Rijeka last month, a victory at Toumba Stadium that secured PAOK’s place in the Europa League.

Following Giakoumakis’ arrival in Major League Soccer, Jaime Uribarri labelled him the “Greek God of goals”, while Tom Bogert simply noted that, wherever he goes, the striker “just scores goals”, a useful skillset for a centre-forward to possess.

So, let’s assess how his recent seasons compare to Celtic’s latest centre-forward Iheanacho.

Iheanacho vs Giakoumakis comparison

Season

Iheanacho

Giakoumakis

2025/26

0

1

2024/25

4

9

2023/24

6

5

2022/23

8

28

2021/22

8

17

2020/21

19

29

Total

45

89

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt

As the table documents, across the last five seasons, and the start of this one, Giakoumakis has scored almost twice as many goals as Iheanacho, who hasn’t reached double figures in a single campaign since lockdown when he was at Leicester.

More recently, the Nigerian international endured a miserable loan spell at Middlesbrough this time last year, before scoring just three goals for Sevilla, all of which came in the Copa del Rey, bagging a brace against fifth-tier Las Rozas, before also scoring against UE Olot of the fourth division, but bagging no goals in La Liga.

Having worked with him before, Rodgers will believe he can resurrect Iheanacho’s form and confidence, but this is certainly a gamble, while Giakoumakis guarantees goals, so what a difference the Greek striker would make to this current Celtic side.

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MatériaMais Notícias

A saída de Luís Castro do Botafogo, anunciada nesta sexta-feira, não foi bem vista por muitos torcedores alvinegros, principalmente por conta dos discursos protagonizados pelo treinador nos últimos meses. O português, em diversos depoimentos, pediu respeito e continuidade aos trabalhos dos técnicos no futebol brasileiro.

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Mesmo pedindo pela sequência do projeto e pela valorização dos comandantes, Luís Castro aceitou interromper seu trabalho no Glorioso para ser técnico do Al-Nassr, da Arábia Saudita. Para relembrar os torcedores alvinegros, o LANCE! listou quatro entrevistas marcantes do português nos últimos meses que acabaram como “palavras ao vento” com a saída do técnico antes do fim de seu contrato.

+ Botafogo vai ao mercado: confira treinadores estrangeiros livres no mercado

CONFIRA DEPOIMENTOS MARCANTES DE LUÍS CASTRO AO LONGO DE SUA PASSAGEM PELO BOTAFOGO

– A forma alucinada como o futebol brasileiro tritura treinadores é surpreendente. Eu acho que a troca constante dos treinadores retira o poder de liderança. Porque todos à sua volta sabem que se algo falhar, só vai haver um responsável. Então pode haver um conjunto de desresponsabilização à minha volta que fere de morte o desenvolvimento de qualquer clube. Porque o jogador, se falhar, sabe que o treinador vai embora, o departamento de saúde, se falhar, sabe que o treinador vai embora. Então o treinador vai embora deixando para trás aqueles que são realmente responsáveis por o clube não ganhar. Então essa retirada é fatal quer no Brasil quer no mundo.

+ Até 50% OFF em produtos Alvinegros para os torcedores fanáticos!

– Querem melhorar o futebol brasileiro? Destaque o que há de melhor no futebol brasileiro. Sou ser humano, erro como os outros. Não posso errar? Em outros trabalhos as pessoas erram uma ou três vezes e ninguém fala para afastar. E aqui tem que me afastar. Deem tempo aos treinadores também”, disse o português durante entrevista coletiva no estádio Nilton Santos.

– Deem tempo como dão a muitos de vocês que vão para as profissões e erram uma, duas, três vezes e os mantêm nos cargos e depois são grandes jornalistas, médicos ou engenheiros. Não é para mim que quero tempo, deem tempo ao futebol.

– Eu nunca deixei de rir para os meus jogadores, sempre me entreguei. Muitas vezes não ri na sua frente, mas para mim a vida não é sempre resultados. O trabalho com dignidade está acima dos resultados. Por muito que vocês queiram colar o resultado à vida das pessoas? Quem não tem dinheiro não tem direito a viver? Para mim não é só o resultado que conta. É o trabalho com dignidade e honestidade intelectual que conta.

Leeds United goalkeeper Karl Darlow made his first appearance of the season in the Premier League on Saturday because of Lucas Perri’s injury.

The Wales international made three saves, including one impressive stop from a free-kick, before Gabriel Gudmundsson found the top corner of his own net in the 94th minute.

Perri’s injury provided the former Newcastle United stopper with an opportunity to strut his stuff in the Premier League, but it also meant that Illan Meslier made the bench for the first time this season.

Why Illan Meslier is a Leeds outcast this season

The French goalkeeper has played 214 matches for the West Yorkshire outfit in all competitions, per Transfermarkt, and was the number one option in goal from the 2020/21 season until he was dropped near the end of last term.

Meslier let in 2.73 more goals than expected based on the xG of the shots against him in the Championship last season. He also made three errors that directly led to goals for the opposition.

His errors eventually convinced Daniel Farke to bring Darlow in as the number one for the last seven games, which helped the Whites to clinch the title.

Then, this summer, Leeds decided that Meslier was not good enough to be first or second choice in the Premier League, as evidenced by their move to sign Lucas Perri as the new number one with Darlow as his back-up.

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The French goalkeeper is an outcast in the current squad, only to be called upon if both Perri and Darlow are unavailable, and that is because of his poor performances on the pitch last term.

Leeds have another star who may be on his way to becoming the next Meslier in Joel Piroe, who has had a difficult start to the Premier League season.

Why Joel Piroe could be the next Illan Meslier for Leeds

The Dutch striker, who signed from Swansea for a fee of £10m in the summer of 2023, was immense for the Whites in the Championship last term, scoring 19 goals in the division.

Piroe was the top scorer in the league, ahead of the likes of Borja Sainz and Josh Sargent, and an integral part of Farke’s team with the goal threat that he provided in the final third.

However, a concern heading into the Premier League season was that the left-footed centre-forward does not have the physical profile of a typical number nine in the division, as he tends to struggle out of possession.

Dribble success rate

31.8%

Bottom 27%

Successful dribbles

0.41

Bottom 35%

Fouls won

0.44

Bottom 9%

Duels won

2.24

Bottom 3%

Duel success rate

26.9%

Bottom 10%

Aerial duels won

0.90

Bottom 12%

Aerial duel success rate

21.4%

Bottom 17%

As you can see in the table above, the £40k-per-week striker ranked very poorly among his positional peers in the division in a host of physical and out-of-possession metrics.

Piroe was described as “anonymous” by reporter James Marshment back in February, which is what he can, unfortunately, be when Leeds do not have it all their own way with the ball, as they often will not in the Premier League.

The Dutch striker won 9% of his duels and failed to score a goal or create a ‘big chance’ for the team in the first two matches of the Premier League season, per Sofascore, before he was an unused substitute in the 0-0 draw with Newcastle and missed the loss to Fulham through injury.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha, who scored the club’s only league goal this season against Everton, were signed to compete with Piroe for his position up front in the summer transfer window.

Therefore, Piroe may well be in danger of becoming the next Meslier to be pushed out of the squad because of his lack of suitability for the Premier League, due to his physical attributes, and the signings that have been made in his position.

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Bumrah joined the MI squad on Saturday after receiving clearance from the BCCI’s centre of excellence

S Sudarshanan06-Apr-20250:26

Jayawardene on Bumrah and Rohit’s availability for MI vs RCB

Jasprit Bumrah is available for selection for Mumbai Indians’ game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Monday, head coach Mahela Jayawardene has confirmed.”He’s available, he’s training today, and should be available [for the RCB game],” Jayawardene said ahead of MI’s net session at the Wankhede Stadium. “He arrived last night, he had his sessions with NCA [National Cricket Academy, now Centre of Excellence] to finalise that, he’s been handed over to our physios. He’s bowling today, so all good.”Bumrah was given a warm welcome at the MI team huddle, with batting coach Kieron Pollard hoisting him into the air with the words, “Welcome, Mufasa.” MI have lost three of their first four matches of IPL 2025 and his return is a huge boost to a bowling attack that had included several inexperienced Indian bowlers such as Vignesh Puthur, Ashwani Kumar and Satyanarayana Raju. Bumrah was MI’s leading wicket-taker in IPL 2024 with 20 scalps, the third most in the season.Bumrah was among the first batch of bowlers in the nets on Sunday and bowled alongside Trent Boult, Mitchell Santner and Karn Sharma, with bowling coach Lasith Malinga keeping a close watch. He ran in at full tilt and bowled at brisk speeds to MI’s openers Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton. Bumrah operated primarily from over the wicket to Rohit and went around the stumps to the left-hander Rickelton. He found Rohit’s outside edge with a length ball that would have carried to slip, and followed up with a jog towards the batter. Rohit shouldered arms to the next delivery.After a 30-minute stint in the nets, Bumrah walked away. He returned an hour later to have a word with MI’s bowling coach Paras Mhambrey and bowl at Santner, Corbin Bosch and Bevon Jacobs. He bowled a few deliveries off a short run-up before steaming in again – hitting good lengths and bowling a few yorkers.”Boom’s coming back from a pretty decent layoff, so we need to give him that space,” Jayawardene had said. “Not expect too much. Knowing Jasprit he will be up for it. We’re very happy to have him in the camp, the experience he brings, that extra voice out there in the middle, chatting with Boulty [Trent Boult], chatting with Deepak [Chahar] or any other younger bowler, giving that advice is also very valuable for us. That’s what we’re looking forward to from him.”

Singing "Naaaaaaant's Ingonyama Bagithi Baba!" in the background #MumbaiIndians #PlayLikeMumbai #TATAIPL #MIvRCB pic.twitter.com/g9aVsorOhj

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) April 6, 2025