WPL 2025 auction: Uncapped Indians make a splash; no takers for Rana, Knight

Simran Shaikh, G Kamalini and Prema Rawat all went for big money

Ashish Pant15-Dec-2024

Simran Shaikh was picked for a whopping INR 1.9 crore•BCCI

The uncapped Indian players grabbed headlines as they fetched big money at the Women’s Premier League [WPL] 2025 auction held in Bengaluru.Simran Shaikh, the Mumbai allrounder, turned out to be the biggest buy on auction day with Gujarat Giants picking her up for INR 1.9 crore (USD 223,000 approx). Mumbai Indians meanwhile picked up 16-year-old Tamil Nadu batter G Kamalini for INR 1.60 crore (USD 190,000 approx) while Uttarakhand legspinner Prema Rawat went to Royal Challengers Bengaluru for INR 1.2 crore (USD 140,000 approx).Among the overseas players, West Indies allrounder Deandra Dottin raked in the most money. She was the first name out of the bag on auction day and was snapped up for INR 1.7 crore (USD 200,000 approx) by Gujarat Giants, incidentally the same team that had controversially excluded her after the first season.Related

WPL 2025: Can new captain Gardner change Gujarat Giants' fortunes around?

WPL 2025 FAQs: Fixtures, players to watch, injury updates, and everything else

Charlie Dean replaces the injured Sophie Molineux at RCB for WPL 2025

Dottin goes back to Gujarat Giants to cap her year of new beginnings

A Sunday to savour for Kamalini and family: runs, a trophy and a big payday

With most of the squads already set, a total of 19 players were sold among the 124 that went under the hammer, of which five were overseas names. Each of Mumbai, Delhi Capitals, Giants, and RCB picked four players, while UP Warriorz made just three buys.Shaikh has played in the tournament before while this will be Kamalini and Rawat’s first WPL rodeo. Shaikh was part of the Warriorz side in 2023 where she returned just 29 runs in seven innings. She entered the auction at a base price of INR 10 lakh which swelled thanks to the bidding war between Giants and Capitals.”We’ve been watching the local competitions closely, the T20s and the Challengers. She stands out in terms of her hitting power and strike rate, and complements the other local Indian players [we’ve got in the squad],” Giants head coach Klinger said. “To have someone like her, potentially in our top six-seven, who can hit sixes straightaway, completes us. We were targeting her.”Shaikh scored 176 runs in nine innings at the 2024 senior women’s T20 trophy at a strike rate of 100.57.Kamalini also entered the auction at a base price of INR 10 lakh. She had earlier in the day scored an unbeaten 29-ball 44 to guide India to a nine-wicket win in their opening game of the Under-19 women’s Asia Cup against Pakistan. Rawat, 23, is a promising legspinner for Uttarakhand. She put in impressive performances for Mussoorie Thunders during the inaugural Uttarakhand Premier League and is also known to be an outstanding fielder.The World Boss Deandra Dottin was in huge demand•Getty Images

Among the unsold bunch, the most surprising names were of India spinner and former Giants captain Sneh Rana, England seamer Lauren Bell, England captain Heather Knight and former South Africa opener Lizelle Lee. No Indian capped player was sold at the auction with only the uncapped and overseas players getting bids.RCB made four bids – all on uncapped players – while Mumbai got Nadine de Klerk for INR 30 lakh (USD 40,000 approx). Capitals’ most expensive pick of the day was the uncapped bowler Shree Charani, who they picked for INR 55 lakh (USD 70,000 approx), while they also bought wicketkeeper-batters Nandini Kashyap and Sarah Bryce.”Very good auction for us to be honest,” Sourav Ganguly, Capitals’ director of cricket, said after the auction. “I’ve been with this WPL team for two seasons now, watching them closely, involved in the auction and everything. And we are far stronger squad than we were last year, with Nandini and Sarah in the squad now, we are looking very good.”Warriorz meanwhile got Australia legspinner Alana King late in the accelerated round of the auction while Giants also signed England allrounder Danielle Gibson.Players bought at the WPL 2025 auctionDelhi Capitals: Shree Charani, Nandini Kashyap, Sarah Bryce (Scotland), Niki Prasad
Gujarat Giants: Simran Shaikh, Deandra Dottin (WI), Danielle Gibson (Eng), Prakashika Naik
Mumbai Indians: G Kamalini, Nadine de Klerk (SA), Akshita Maheshwari, Sanskriti Gupta
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Prema Rawat, Joshitha JV, Raghvi Bist, Jagravi Pawar
UP Warriorz: Alana King (Aus), Arushi Goel, Kranti Goud

Man Utd could be forced to loan Jadon Sancho out again as Red Devils struggle to find permanent home for outcast winger despite Besiktas transfer interest

Manchester United, who are looking to sell out-of-favour winger Jadon Sancho, could be forced to send him out on loan once again despite interest from Turkish giants Besiktas. United want a permanent solution for Sancho as he is into the final year of his contract, although the Premier League side have an option to extend the deal by a year.

Man Utd could send Sancho out on loanBesiktas and Dortmund want the wingerSancho has one year left in his contractFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Sancho is part of United's 'bomb squad' – a group of unwanted players that the club would want to get rid of before the summer transfer window closes on September 1. While they have managed to ship off Marcus Rashford to Barcelona on a loan deal, players like Sancho, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho still remain at Old Trafford. Garnacho is strongly linked with a move to Chelsea, but Sancho and Antony's futures remains uncertain.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE

On Tuesday, Sancho saw his Instagram flooded by requests from Besiktas fans to join the Turkish side this summer, while club president, Serdal Adal claimed that he would love to sign the winger this summer. Borussia Dortmund are also keen on reuniting with their former player, who enjoyed two successful stints at the German side. Amid interest from the Turkish league and the Bundesliga, report that the Red Devils might be forced to loan him out again as the window ticks down.

DID YOU KNOW?

Other than Besiktas and Dortmund, clubs in Italy and the Saudi Pro League have also shown interest in the 25-year-old. It now remains to be seen where Sancho heads to before the transfer window closes.

Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR MANCHESTER UNITED?

Amorim's side are now preparing for their season opener this Sunday as they host Arsenal at Old Trafford. The United attack has been bolstered by the additions of Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko.

One year of Bazball: Have England changed the Test game?

Unprecedented scoring rates have been the calling card of the Stokes-McCullum regime

Alan Gardner31-May-2023We don’t know exactly the moment Bazball was born. Was England’s approach to Test cricket discussed in the first meeting between the team’s new coach and captain, Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes? Perhaps we can trace it to the run chase at Trent Bridge, a dizzying 50-over romp to 299 in the second Test of last summer. Or maybe it was a twinkle in McCullum’s eye back when he was still an all-format player.We do know that Friday will mark exactly a year since the pair came together to revive England’s Test fortunes, starting with the home series against New Zealand in June 2022. Never mind the philosophical debates – and the fact that England, and McCullum in particular, don’t like the zeitgeist-surfing nickname for their style of play – it seems a good time to check in on the revolution, with England having won 10 out of 12 Tests and preparing for six more across the next two months, including an eagerly anticipated Ashes series.Stokes the fire
Whatever the effect of Stokes’ captaincy, things couldn’t really have got much worse. England had won one Test in 17 under Joe Root, going back to the winter of 2020-21, and after the failed “red-ball reset” in the Caribbean were ready for a complete reboot.The beauty of Test cricket is that is always more than one way to win – and there is still a place for old-fashioned, copper-bottomed batting, as New Zealand showed when turning the Basin Reserve Test on its head in February, thereby handing Stokes only his second defeat. Australia have already made noises to suggest they won’t be lining up to accept a pasting. Whether Bazball can maintain trajectory into its second year will not be in England’s hands alone.

ريال مدريد يعلن إصابة لاعبه قبل مواجهة ليفربول

أعلن نادي ريال مدريد منذ لحظات، عن تعرض لاعبه للإصابة، وذلك قبل عدة ساعات من قمة الجولة الرابعة من مرحلة الدوري في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا أمام ليفربول يوم غدًا الثلاثاء.

ليفربول سوف يستضيف نظيره ريال مدريد يوم غدًا الثلاثاء على ملعب أنفيلد، حيث يسعى الريدز إلى تحقيق الانتصار على الفريق الملكي واستغلال عامل الأرض والجمهور.

وفي الجهة الأخرى يسعى ريال مدريد إلى الانتصار على ليفربول واستغلال الحالة الرائعة التي يمر بها الفريق الملكي خلال الفترة الأخيرة.

اقرأ أيضًا .. محمد صلاح على موعد مع التاريخ قبل مباراة ليفربول وريال مدريد

وأكد ريال مدريد في بيان رسمي، أن جناح الفريق الشاب ، فرانكو ماستانتونو، قد تعرض للإصابة خلال تدريبات الفريق خلال الأيام الماضية.

وأشار ريال مدريد في البيان، أن ماستانتونو يعاني من آلام في العانة، بالتالي من المتوقع أن يغيب عن الملاعب لعدة أسابيع دون الكشف عن مدة الغياب.

وفي سياق متصل، ذكرت الموثوقة آرانشا رودريجيز، أن ماستانتونو مصاب في الفخد ولا تزال مدة غيابه غير معروفة.

وبذلك، انضم ماستانتونو إلى قائمة المصابين في ريال مدريد والتي تضم كلًا من أنطونيو روديجير، بجانب ديفيد ألابا وداني كارفاخال.

Tim Seifert is prepped and ready

He got his A game going on the slow wickets in the CPL, and being in the UAE and practising during the IPL will hold him good stead too

Deivarayan Muthu19-Oct-2021Tim Seifert could barely hold back his tears when he opened up about his experience of testing positive for Covid-19 in the first half of this year’s IPL. After recovering from the infection, Seifert found joy again. He married his girlfriend, Morgan Croasdale, and went back on the road again for stints with the Knight Riders franchises in the CPL, and more recently the second half of the IPL. He is now preparing to feature in his first ICC event for the New Zealand senior side, as their front-line wicketkeeper.”[I’ve] had some great times. Obviously, getting married,” Seifert recalled, speaking recently during his time back with Kolkata Knight Riders. “Some not-so-great times with the Covid, but it feels a wee while ago now. Obviously, a lot has happened since, and also kind of understanding that once I got over the first few days and then getting out of India, you reflect and the emotions aren’t quite there as they were at that time because you got over it.”It’s nice to be back playing and in a team environment, but also it was a great couple of months to just relax. I think the wedding and spending time with family made it even [more] special with what happened a couple of months before.”Related

Tim Seifert 2.0 can bat anywhere and everywhere

Guptill hopes to draw confidence from 2016 T20 World Cup performance to turn UAE form around

Tim Seifert likes to go bam bam

Emotional Tim Seifert recounts Covid-19 experience

Tim Seifert breaks out of the 360-degree prison

With no room at the top of the Trinbago Knight Riders order, Seifert, who usually opens for New Zealand, slotted into the middle order for a second successive CPL season. In a game against St Lucia Kings on a deteriorating Basseterre track, where finding the fence was particularly difficult, Seifert made it look ridiculously easy, cracking eight boundaries in 16 balls, scoring 40 not out.He walked in to bat after Kieron Pollard had holed out for nine off 11 balls, with Knight Riders still needing 56 off 21. Seifert took 14 runs off the 18th over, 20 off the 19th, and narrowed it down to six to win off the last ball. He couldn’t get the job done, though, and he admonished himself for it, flinging away his gloves in frustration after swinging and missing the final ball.”To get us so close, it was awesome as a player to get your team in the situation to win the game again,” Seifert said, “but also you get so close that you want to win it and then you don’t. It was awesome for my confidence, but gutted I couldn’t get that six off the last ball.”Still, that innings provided evidence of his adaptability and experience of playing on spin-friendly tracks, qualities that could serve him well at the T20 World Cup in the UAE.Seifert gets stuck into one during his 24 off eight balls against Jamaica Tallawahs recently•Getty ImagesSeifert often doubled up as Knight Riders’ finisher along with finisher and his captain there, Pollard. Seifert had the best seat in the house – at the non-striker’s end – when Pollard walloped 33 off a nine-ball stretch in the last two overs of the innings in a whirlwind 62-run fifth-wicket partnership they put on against Jamaica Tallawahs.”I started off my career in that middle order for Northern Districts and my first few tours with the Black Caps was in the middle order as well,” Seifert said. “Obviously been at the top of the order, but I’ve had that experience in the middle order.”Yeah [batting] with one the best finishers in the world – it was great. It was just awesome to go out there and work away off his brain – when to attack and when not to attack, and pick the balls to go. It was awesome to be at the other end watching these massive sixes. Sometimes you try to hit them as far, but you know you’re definitely not [hitting as far]!”Seifert missed the 50-over World Cup in England in 2019 with injury and subsequently needed two surgeries and a bone graft out of his wrist to fix his little finger. Around that time, the feedback from the team management was that he needed to improve his keeping. He reached out to his idol Brendon McCullum, who has since overseen his progress as a keeper.”He talked about the coach he used over in Australia,” Seifert said, “but things just didn’t work out [for me to train with him]. So Baz said, ‘He taught me, so I can kind of teach you.’ It’s nothing dramatic that we changed – just nailing down those basics, and I’ve found huge improvement over the last 12 months in my keeping.”Seifert is hoping to harness the time spent with McCullum and work his way into the New Zealand Test side as the second wicketkeeper.”Tom Blundell has done a great job, so he’ll probably take over the reins [from the retired BJ Watling] and it’s definitely something I want to do – pushing for that second wicketkeeper’s spot for Tests. I think in any conditions my game has improved behind the stumps, and it has been awesome to talk to Brendon no matter where I’m travelling around the world, about the conditions he faced.”One scoop or two? Seifert says he doesn’t practise the stroke too much, “but it’s a great thing to have”•Getty ImagesMost recently at the IPL, Seifert received his maiden cap from McCullum, as Sunil Narine wiped away imaginary tears beside them. Seifert managed only two off four balls against Punjab Kings, but he believes batting against team-mates, mystery spinners Narine and Varun Chakravarthy, on practice pitches that tend to spin more than the ones rolled out for games, has prepared him for the World Cup.”I think it has been great being over here [in the UAE], preparing, and watching what the wickets are doing,” Seifert said. “Played one game here [at the IPL], but been looking at what the scores are… I think that has been crucial and hopefully I get to see the result in the World Cup with that experience and knowing what’s going to happen, but also at the same time, the wickets could change.”Not only facing Sunny [Narine], Varun and Akeal [Hosein, net bowler] here – we’ve got some great net bowlers that are great spinners and slower bowlers as well.”Sometimes the training wickets can be a little bit more tired than in the game, which is a positive as well. I don’t think the preparation could be any better, but hopefully the results come out where you get the job done and that’s on the field.”One of Seifert’s staple shots in white-ball cricket is the scoop, which often invites risk, but he has learnt to embrace it. “I haven’t done a huge amount of [work on the scoop] in the nets,” he said. “It’s more of back-yourself. When you’ve got a gut feeling of them [opposition attack] just going to hit a yorker or bang it away on a length, it’s a gut feel that this is what they’re going to do. I don’t really practise it too much, but it’s a great thing to have.”Sometimes you get out doing that but that’s just the risk you take, because if you do hit that for four or six, that definitely changes his length and puts them under pressure. So [it’s] like any shot – doesn’t always come off, but definitely feels good when it does.”If it does come off more often for Seifert, he could set the scene for the middle order and push New Zealand closer to their first goal of reaching the semi-finals.”I think there are a lot of teams that have a good chance at this World Cup, so hopefully we do well and we just play our best cricket and get to the semi-finals,” he said. “Another little tournament starts in itself [after the semi-finals]. We’ve got a tough pool, especially on these Asian kind of wickets, but we have the players and skill sets to beat these guys as well. We just hope we play our best cricket on the day and the rest will tell.”

Ervine, Bennett tons headline Zimbabwe's day

Afghanistan were 95 for 2 at stumps, staring at a mammoth 491-run deficit

Sreshth Shah27-Dec-2024

Brian Bennett celebrates his century•Zimbabwe Cricket

Bulawayo was buzzing on the second day of the Boxing Day Test as the home fans celebrated one landmark after another, with Zimbabwe creating history against Afghanistan by getting to their highest Test score of all time. Overnight centurion Sean Williams posted his personal best in Tests, the captain Craig Ervine scored his fourth Test ton in a 13-year career, and Brian Bennett struck a dramatic maiden hundred, taking Zimbabwe to 586.Williams set the tone early with a cut through point to pass 150. He looked to be aggressive to the leg side but mistimed a pull off Naveen Zadran to deep midwicket, adding only nine to his overnight score before departing for 154 in the day’s sixth over.The No. 7 Bennett, playing only his second Test, then looked busy upon arrival. His early strokes allowed Ervine, starting overnight on 56, to get his eyes in, and together they put on 82 in only 20.2 overs for the sixth wicket. Ervine showed off his ease against spin to dominate square of the wicket. He reached triple figures with a flick towards backward square leg in the 109th over, took off his helmet, and revealed a smile that bore a feeling of satisfaction.Left-arm spinner Zia-Ur-Rehman had Ervine nicking to the keeper for 104 two overs later, followed by Brandon Mavuta’s dismissal for 0 in the same over, those two wickets did not bring any respite for the inexperienced Afghanistan bowling unit. The turn was predictable, the pacers were ineffective, allowing Bennett and the lower-order to score freely.Bennett, a few streaky boundaries aside, peppered boundaries through the covers, and after lunch the message was clear that the remaining batters would also play positively. Teen debutant Newman Nyamhuri, known for his left-arm seam bowling in the domestic circuit, showed he can also contribute with the bat. He was out on 26 to Zahir Khan, but not before bringing up Zimbabwe’s 500 with a big six down the ground. It ended a 21-year wait for Zimbabwe to breach that mark in Tests.Naveed Zadran celebrates the wicket of Sean Williams•Zimbabwe Cricket

The mystery spin of AM Ghazanfar didn’t have much impact either, with Bennett and Blessing Muzarabani (19) crunching sixes off his overpitched deliveries. As Zimbabwe pushed towards their previous highest score of 563 for 9, achieved against West Indies in 2001, errors crept into the Afghan fielding effort too. Fumbles and misfields allowed singles to become doubles, and Muzarabani survived a dropped chance at deep midwicket too.However Muzarabani fell with Zimbabwe at 550 for 9, earning Azmatullah Omarzai a maiden Test wicket, and with only the No. 11 remaining, Bennett, on 82, moved to fifth gear. A six off Zia-ur-Rehman through midwicket took him to 89, and back-to-back twos in Trevor Gwandu’s company got him closer to triple digits. His 96th run also took Zimbabwe to 564, a new high in their 32-year history in the format.But that was not enough for the crowd. Only a Bennett century would make the innings perfect, and it arrived in cinematic fashion in the 135th over. Zadran had set up a short-ball ploy with two sweeper fielders in the deep on the leg side, but Bennett went for the pull anyway. The fielder in the deep took the catch, only to see that he had stepped into the boundary line, and Bennett roared “come on” in the direction of his family on the grass banks, which included his father and twin brother. He would pin another six next ball over the same region before Ghazanfar picked up his third wicket by removing Gwandu, leaving Bennett unbeaten on 110.”[It is] not just my first Test century but my first century for Zimbabwe, so it’s a great feeling,” Bennett said after the day’s play. “To get a Test match hundred at Queen’s [Sports Club] with my family watching, with Sean Williams and Craig Ervine also getting hundreds and putting on a record score for Zimbabwe in Test matches. I don’t think there’s any better feeling to that. So, yeah, I’m just very proud.”At first, when I saw it going, I thought it was six, but when I saw it coming down, I was like, oh shucks, I’m in trouble here,” he recalled the drama. “But you know what? You create your own luck in cricket. And when it stepped over the boundary there, I was lost for words, actually.”It wasn’t too much about me getting to my hundred. It was more about us getting a big score and getting the Afghan guys out on the field for as long as possible. So credit to the tail-enders as well. They did a good effort for me to get my hundred but also, I think we were six down, and with our tail, we added 120 [121] runs.”Afghanistan’s reply to 587 began in overcast conditions after tea, and Sediqullah Atal lost the battle of the debutants to Gwandu trying to flick across the line in the second over. Gwandu got a ball to swing in and shape away late to gain his maiden Test scalp. The seamer would bowl four overs before an injury while fielding ended his day early.Muzarabani was metronic from the other end, bowling in the channel around off stump, and challenged Abdul Malik’s bat on occasion. It needed someone of Rahmat Shah’s experience at No. 3 to get the runs flowing. His strong off-side play earned him four fours in the space of as many overs bowled by Gwandu and Nyamhuri. Malik, instead, offered soft hands when possible, with his only boundary a gentle glance towards fine leg.With the pitch still good for batting and the effects of the new ball wearing off, both batters milked the Zimbabwe bowling, but looking to make something happen Ervine brought Muzarabani back and the idea worked. Malik, who had mostly offered defensive shots, was proffered a short ball by Muzarabani and the rising delivery forced the error, straight to Ben Curran at fine leg.Hashmatullah Shahidi, at No. 4, battled against the fading light to face some tricky overs of spin from Williams and part-timers Mavuta and Bennett. He struck three boundaries in 24 balls, while Rahmat moved to 49 after surviving one catching chance at slip. Bad light stopped play three overs before close, with Afghanistan on 95 for 2, staring at a mammoth 491-run deficit.

Yasir Shah – Pakistan's first centurion at No. 8 since 2006

His average of 14.06 is the second-lowest average for a batsman with a Test century

Gaurav Sundararaman01-Dec-2019ESPNcricinfo Ltd 7 – The number of batsmen Test hundreds coming in at No. 8 or below against Australia. The previous instance was in 2017, when Wriddhiman Saha made 117 in Ranchi. 2006 – The last time a Pakistani scored a Test hundred at No. 8. Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal made 113 against India in Karachi, a Test Pakistan won to take the series 1-0. Yasir is the ninth Pakistani to achieve this feat.ESPNcricinfo Ltd1 – Only one batsman – Jerome Taylor (12.96) has a lower average than Yasir Shah while scoring a Test century. Yasir’s average after the century stands at 14.06. 213 – Runs added by the last four Pakistan batsmen in the first innings in Adelaide. This is the second-highest for Pakistan in Australia. The best was in 2016 when the last four added 230 at the Gabba in Brisbane. 105 – Runs added by Babar Azam and Yasir, the best seventh-wicket stand for Pakistan against Australia. 87 – The ninth-wicket stand for Pakistan, their highest for that wicket in Australia. Overall, it’s the second-highest ninth-wicket stand against Australia. 89.33 – The average seventh-wicket stand for Pakistan in this series. This is the most they’ve averaged for any wicket in this series. Pakistan’s top five wickets average 18.77 runs while the bottom five average 40. 2015 – The last time Australia enforced the enforcingfollow-on in Tests, against West Indies in Hobart. They’ve not chosen to enforce the follow-on on five occasions since. Pakistan were last made to follow-on at Centurion against South Africa in 2013.

Man Utd eyeing "monster" £63m striker who'd be Amorim's new Gyokeres

Manchester United have a reported interest in Sporting striker Viktor Gyokeres, who worked with Ruben Amorim in Portugal, but they look unlikely to win the race for his signature.

A recent report claimed that the Sweden international has decided that he would rather sign for the club’s Premier League rivals Arsenal instead of making a move to Old Trafford to reunite with his former boss.

The former Coventry star, who scored a staggering 52 goals in all competitions for Sporting in the 2024/25 season, is available for a fee of just over £61m, but it is the Gunners who seem to be in pole position to bring him over to England.

His incredible goal return in Portugal suggests that this news is a blow for Amorim and for Manchester United. However, the club are reportedly eyeing up a star who could be the manager’s next version of Gyokeres.

Man Utd battling to sign Spanish striker

The Premier League giants appear to be in the process of identifying alternative options in the number nine position, as the Swedish star looks to be headed elsewhere.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

According to CaughtOffside, Manchester United are one of a number of teams eyeing up a move to sign FC Porto’s Spanish striker Samu Aghehowa in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that Aston Villa, Arsenal, and Chelsea are all also keen on doing a deal for the former Atletico Madrid centre-forward in the coming weeks.

FC Porto's SamuOmorodioncelebrates scoring their first goal

It states that the Portuguese giants are looking for a fee of up to £63m for the 21-year-old marksman, with United and their Premier League rivals now set to battle it out for his signature.

Whilst they appear to be on the back foot with Gyokeres, the Red Devils should push to win this race to unearth Amorim’s next version of the Sporting superstar.

Why Samu could be Gyokeres 2.0 for Amorim

The Porto marksman is similar to the Swedish ace from a physical perspective, as he stands at 6 foot 4 and has the physicality to occupy and cause problems for defenders.

FC Porto's SamuOmorodioncelebrates scoring their first goal

In fact, talent scout Jacek Kulig once described him as a “monster” in the making due to his physicality and speed, which suggests that the forward could offer similar attributes to Gyokeres.

The Spain international’s performances in the Portuguese top-flight also suggest that he has the potential to be a prolific striker for United, albeit not as prolific as Gyokeres could be in the short-term.

Starts

23

31

xG

14.07

30.95

Goals

19

39

xG differential

+4.93

+8.05

Minutes per goal

119

72

Conversion rate

23%

28%

As you can see in the table above, Samu enjoyed a brilliant season with Porto, scoring 19 goals in 23 starts and outperforming his xG, yet still ended with 20 fewer goals than the Sporting number nine.

It is worth remembering, though, that the Spanish marksman is six years younger than Gyokeres and has plenty of time left ahead of him to hone his skills and improve his output as a scorer.

Samu, dubbed “outstanding” by journalist Josh Bunting, did also score six goals in nine matches in the Europa League, which shows that he can perform on the European stage.

Whilst he may not be the final, polished, product in comparison to the seasoned Gyokeres, the Porto star appears to have the physical and finishing attributes to develop into Amorim’s next version of the Swedish marksman, which is why he could be a shrewd signing for the club.

Twist: "Extraordinary" £60m+ star now plans to snub Man Utd to join Arsenal

The Gunners have received a boost in their pursuit of a forward, who Andrea Berta has already held talks to sign.

1 ByDominic Lund Jun 8, 2025

ترتيب محمد صلاح بقائمة أعلى اللاعبين أجراً في العالم 2025

أصدرت فوربس قائمتها لأعلى 10 لاعبين كرة قدم أجراً في العالم بحلول عام 2025، ويتقاضى اللاعبون مجتمعون 945 مليون دولار هذا الموسم.

وتأتي أرباح اللاعبين من الملعب ومن خلال عقودهم مع فرقهم ومن خلال الإعلانات أيضاً، ويدخل النجم المصري محمد صلاح لاعب ليفربول الإنجليزي في هذه القائمة.

ويتصدر كريستيانو رونالدو مهاجم النصر السعودي والأسطورة البرتغالية هذه القائمة حيث يتقاضى 280 مليون دولار أي ما يعادل 240 مليون يورو، كذلك يتقاضى ليونيل ميسي الأسطورة الأرجنتينية ونجم انتر ميامي 130 مليون دولار أي ما يعادل 111 مليون يورو.

اقرأ أيضاً.. لاعب ليفربول: محمد صلاح أفضل من كريستيانو رونالدو

ويأتي كريم بنزيما مهاجم اتحاد جدة السعودي في المركز الثالث حيث يتقاضى 104 ملايين دولار أي ما يعادل 90 مليون يورو. قائمة أعلى 10 لاعبين أجراً في العالم لعام 2025

1- كريستيانو رونالدو 280 مليون دولار

2- ليونيل ميسي 130 مليون دولار

3- كريم بنزيما 104 مليون دولار

4- كيليان مبابي 95 مليون دولار

5- إيرلينج هالاند 80 مليون دولار

6- فينيسيوس جونيور 60 مليون دولار

7- محمد صلاح 55 مليون دولار

8- ساديو ماني 54 مليون دولار

9- جود بيلينجهام 44 مليون دولار

10- لامين يامال 43 مليون دولار

ويعد ريال مدريد صاحب النصيب الأكبر في هذه القائمة بثلاثة لاعبين وهم كيليان مبابي وفينيسيوس جونيور وجود بيلينجهام.

أسامة حسني يُعلن موعد وصول مدرب الأهلي الجديد

أكد أسامة حسني، نجم الأهلي السابق، إن القلعة الحمراء تقدّر كثيرًا الدور الذي قام به عماد النحاس خلال الفترة الماضية، مشيرًا إلى أنه كان أحد الأسباب الرئيسية في تحقيق الفريق للقب الدوري الموسم الماضي، وكاشفًا عن موعد التعاقد مع المدرب الأجنبي الجديد.

وقال حسني في تصريحات عبر برنامج “اللعيب”، على قناة “mbc masr”: “نشكر الكابتن عماد النحاس على مجهوده الكبير في الموسم الماضي، ففي واحدة من أصعب الفترات التي مر بها الأهلي، تولّى المسؤولية في آخر ست مباريات، وتمكّن من الفوز بها جميعًا، وكان سببًا مباشرًا في حصول الفريق على بطولة الدوري”.

وأضاف: “أما هذا الموسم، فقد خاض الفريق تحت قيادته خمس مباريات، تعادل في الأولى أمام إنبي، ثم فاز في أربع مباريات متتالية، وهو ما ساهم في تصدر الأهلي لجدول الدوري وعودته بقوة إلى المنافسة، وهذا جزء مهم جدًا في مشوار الفريق”.

طالع أيضًا | رانجنيك يكشف لـ”بطولات” الحقيقة الكاملة.. هل اقترب من تدريب الأهلي؟

وتابع أسامة حسني: “لكن السؤال الآن، هل الأهلي بحاجة إلى مدير فني أجنبي؟ بالفعل، الأهلي يحتاج إلى مدرب أجنبي صاحب شخصية قوية، ومعه جهاز بدني مميز أيضًا، لأن هذه الفترة تتطلب إعدادًا خاصًا للفريق”.

وأردف: “خلال الأيام الماضية سمعنا أن التعاقد مع المدير الفني الأجنبي قد يتأخر إلى فترة التوقف في شهر نوفمبر أو حتى كأس الأمم في ديسمبر، لكنني أؤكد أن المدير الفني الأجنبي سيكون متواجدًا خلال فترة التوقف الدولي الحالية، وخلال أسبوع على الأكثر سيتم الإعلان عنه رسميًا”.

واختتم أسامة حسني تصريحاته قائلًا: “الأهلي درس العديد من السير الذاتية، ويبحث عن مدير فني يتمتع بشخصية قوية ويمكنه الاستمرار مع الفريق لمدة موسمين أو ثلاثة على الأقل، لتحقيق الاستقرار الفني المطلوب في المرحلة القادمة”.

Game
Register
Service
Bonus