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West Bromwich Albion supporters will be hoping for a return to winning ways this coming weekend in the Championship when second-tier underdogs Oxford United travel to the Hawthorns.

Whilst a new appointment for the U’s has worked visible wonders – with Gary Rowett catapulting Oxford up to 16th since taking over on Boxing Day – Tony Mowbray’s appointment towards the start of 2025 hasn’t quite been as smooth with just one league victory picked up in February.

The 61-year-old is already testing the Baggies masses, with their grip on a final playoff spot suddenly looking weaker, but he does have the firepower of Adam Armstrong to now fall back on to try and put together a positive patch of form.

Armstrong's EFL heroics

The deadline day pick up of Armstrong on loan from Southampton was arguably the most jaw-dropping deal that took place in the second tier at the death, considering the 28-year-old’s previous explosive form in the EFL’s elite league.

After all, without the former Blackburn Rovers striker’s heroics last campaign, the Saints might well have come up short in the promotion race, with Armstrong firing home a potent 24 strikes to play a huge part in his parent side leaping back up to the Premier League.

Alongside these glittering numbers on the South Coast, Armstrong and Mowbray have also worked together to devastating effect in the past at Ewood Park, with all of the slick attacker’s 64 strikes for the Riversiders coming when he was positioned at the helm.

Therefore, it would have been a no-brainer decision to get him in through the door, as Armstrong already has one goal next to his name from three Baggies appearances, although a couple of blanks fired across West Brom’s recent dip in form will worry some.

Still, there will be an expectation that the 28-year-old can conjure up his Blackburn best in time, with the once £15m forward licking his lips at the prospect of working alongside this assist king in the West Midlands, who is now worth more than his past price-tag.

The West Brom star who's worth more than Armstrong

Mowbray would have been glad he had this star at his immediate disposal when arriving back onto the scene, considering 12-goal ace Josh Maja remains sidelined through injury.

Luckily, even as transfer rumours kicked into gear on deadline day, homegrown winger Tom Fellows remained at the Hawthorns, with the 21-year-old potentially the perfect player to complement Armstrong’s deadliness.

Stat – per 90 mins*

Fellows

Games played

32

Games started

27

Goals scored

2

Assists

11

Touches*

27.7

Big chances missed

6

Big chances created

10

Looking at the table above, it’s clear to see why a number of Premier League outfits were keeping a close eye on the Solihull-born winger during the winter window, with a hefty total of 11 assists coming his way from 32 Championship contests, despite only averaging a low 27.7 touches per match.

When he was still fit, Maja was in dreamland working alongside the Solihull-born sensation, knowing that Fellows only needed a moment’s notice to fashion him a chance that was then regularly put away.

Therefore, he could be an ideal partner for Armstrong to recapture his goalscoring mojo, with the Baggies breathing a big sigh of relief that their £20m-rated man didn’t up and leave for Everton. Equally, that £20m valuation places him ahead of Armstrong, who is deemed to be worth £13m, according to Transfermarkt.

They will likely have to fend off more interest coming their way, especially if Fellows’ ongoing goals and assists see promotion become a reality, but in the short-term, the Toffees target and Armstrong could really spark up an exciting connection.

Having cost the club nothing after coming through the Baggies academy, Fellows’ rise will be even more of a joy to behold for supporters at the Hawthorns, with a hope the “unbelievable” ace – as he has been labelled by fellow teammate Karlan Grant – can guide Mowbray’s men up a division despite their sometimes inconsistent displays.

Forget Armstrong: West Brom could ease Maja blow by unleashing 18y/o star

West Bromwich Albion could soon be boosted in attack by this exciting starlet.

1 ByKelan Sarson Feb 19, 2025

The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) – India’s domestic T20 tournament – will see three changes from the upcoming season: two bouncers allowed per over and minor tweaks to the Impact Player rule, which was trialled last season. Previously, the Impact Player could only be used before the 14th over of an innings in SMAT, but now the rule can be used at any time during the match, like it was in the IPL this year.The other tweak is that teams will now have to announce their playing XIs and four substitute players before the toss, unlike in the IPL where captains brought two team sheets for the coin flip and finalised the XI after the toss.Bowlers being allowed to deliver two bouncers in an over is “to balance the contest between bat and ball,” according to a BCCI release after its 19th Apex Council meeting held in Mumbai on Friday. The T20 tournament is scheduled to be held from October 16 to November 6 this year, after the Irani Cup and before the Vijay Hazare Trophy (50-over competition).Related

• Ambati Rayudu withdraws from Major League Cricket stint with Texas Super Kings

• BCCI announces 2023-24 domestic season schedule

• BCCI approves India's participation in Asian Games

The Apex Council meeting also confirmed India’s participation at the upcoming Asian Games in Hangzhou in September, for both men’s and women’s teams. “Considering the overlap of schedule of the Asian Games with ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, BCCI will select from the players not participating in the World Cup to play in the Asian Games,” the release said.The BCCI also plans to formulate policies around the participation of Indian cricketers in overseas T20 competitions. Currently, only players retired from all forms of Indian cricket can feature in overseas leagues but recently there have been a string of retired cricketers who have opted to play overseas.There was also a two-pronged proposal to upgrade the stadiums in India. While the grounds hosting the ODI World Cup games will get immediate attention, rest of the venues will be upgraded in the second phase of the upgradation plan.

Everything you need to know about Luis Diaz's salary at Liverpool

Colombian star Luis Diaz made headlines with Porto during the 2021-22 season, scoring and assisting freely in the Primeira Liga. His impressive performances attracted interest from top Premier League clubs, including Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool. Eventually, it was the Merseyside club that secured his signature in the January transfer window, marking the beginning of his Premier League journey.

It didn't take long for Diaz to adapt to life at Liverpool, quickly becoming a key player under then-manager Jurgen Klopp. He played a vital role in helping the Reds reach the Champions League final the following season, although they ultimately lost to Real Madrid.

Diaz soon delivered major silverware at Anfield, leading the attack alongside Mohamed Salah and helping the team secure the Premier League title under Arne Slot in the 2024-25 season.

His current contract with Liverpool runs until 2027, and while he is well-compensated for his contributions, his salary remains relatively modest compared to some of the club's top earners. So, exactly how much does the Colombian make?

GOAL delved into the numbers with Capology and found out!

*

Luis Diaz's wages at Liverpool in numbers

Under his current five-year contract with Liverpool, Luis Díaz receives a weekly salary of £55,000 ($73,750), with annual earnings of about £2.86 million ($3.8m).

Player

Nationality

Weekly wages in GBP

Weekly wages in USD

Annual wages in GBP

Annual wages in USD

Luis Diaz

Colombian

£55,000

$73,750

£2,860,000

$3,834,982

AdvertisementAFPTop earners at Liverpool

Mohamed Salah, an Egyptian forward, is Liverpool's highest-paid player, with Virgil van Dijk, the club captain, next in line.

Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson, both fullbacks, are third and fourth, while Alexis Mac Allister, an Argentine midfielder, is fifth.

Player

Nationality

Weekly wages in GBP

Weekly wages in USD

Annual wages in GBP

Annual wages in USD

Mohamed Salah

Egyptian

£400,000

$536,361

£20,800,000

$27,890,776

Virgil van Dijk

Dutch

£350,000

$469,316

£18,200,000

$24,404,429

Trent Alexander-Arnold

English

£180,000

$241,362

£9,360,000

$12,550,849

Andrew Robertson

Scottish

£160,000

$214,544

£8,320,000

$11,156,310

Alexis Mac Allister

Argentine

£150,000

$201,135

£7,800,000

$10,459,041

Top 5 earners in the Premier League

Erling Haaland is the Premier League's highest-paid player, with a nine-year contract at Manchester City until 2034. Kevin De Bruyne follows, and Mohamed Salah is third.

Casemiro is Manchester United's only entry at fourth, and Liverpool's Virgil Van Dijk is fifth.

Player

Club

Weekly wages in GBP

Weekly wages in USD

Annual wages in GBP

Annual wages in USD

Erling Haaland

Manchester City

£525,000

$703,974

£27,300,000

$36,606,644

Kevin De Bruyne

Manchester City

£400,000

$536,361

£20,800,000

$27,890,776

Mohamed Salah

Liverpool

£400,000

$536,361

£20,800,000

$27,890,776

Casemiro

Manchester United

£350,000

$469,316

£18,200,000

$24,404,429

Virgil Van Dijk

Liverpool

£350,000

$469,316

£18,200,000

$24,404,429

Getty Images SportHighest paid players in the world

Although Premier League salaries are high, neither player is among the top global football earners.

The highest earner is Cristiano Ronaldo, the top scorer in Champions League history, now with Al Nassr. Karim Benzema, his former Real Madrid teammate, is next.

Riyad Mahrez, formerly of Manchester City, is third, with Sadio Mane and Kalidou Koulibaly from Senegal in fourth and fifth places.

Player

Club

Weekly wages GBP

Weekly wages USD

Annual wages GBP

Annual wages USD

Cristiano Ronaldo

Al Nassr

£3,270,519

$4,385,050

£170,066,890

$228,022,620

Karim Benzema

Al Ittihad

£1,635,259

$2,192,525

£85,033,490

$114,011,310

Riyad Mahrez

Al Ahli

£853,605

$1,144,498

£44,387,482

$59,513,904

Sadio Mane

Al Nassr

£654,104

$877,010

£34,013,396

$45,604,524

Kalidou Koulibaly

Al Hilal

£567,435

$760,806

£29,506,621

$39,561,925

Glasgow Rangers are not messing around in the summer transfer window. They have already made several moves in an attempt to bolster Russell Martin’s first-team squad.

Lyall Cameron, Max Aarons, Joe Rothwell, and Emmanuel Fernandez had all already arrived through the door at Ibrox before the signing of Thelo Aasgaard was made official.

The Norway international has joined Rangers from south of the border in a permanent deal that is reported to be worth around £3.5m.

Aasgaard, as a player who has predominantly been deployed as an attacking midfielder or off the left flank in his career, could be viewed as their replacement for Ianis Hagi, who left the club on a free transfer this summer.

There are still attacking reinforcements to come for the Light Blues, though, as they have yet to replace Vaclav Cerny, who recently returned to Wolfsburg.

The Czechia international spent the 2024/25 campaign on loan at Ibrox, gracing the right flank each week, and they will need to replace the quality he provided in the final third.

Why Rangers must replace Vaclav Cerny

You only have to take a brief glance at the kind of numbers Cerny put up during his time at Rangers to know that the club were dealt a big blow when his loan deal expired.

The left-footed star produced 18 goals and nine assists in 52 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants, which shows that he provided quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals from the right wing.

12 of those goals and four of those assists for the Light Blues came in the Scottish Premiership, as he showcased his ability to make a big impact on a regular basis in the top-flight.

Cerny was also unlucky to only end the season with four assists to his name in the division, as his teammates let him down too many times with their wasteful finishes.

Goals

12

Top 6%

xG

9.03

Top 6%

xG on target

11.03

Top 6%

Assists

4

Top 25%

xA

8.41

Top 1%

Chances created

81

Top 1%

As you can see in the table above, the left-footed star racked up an eye-catching 8.41 xA tally, the most of any winger in the league, but was only rewarded with four assists.

Overall, these statistics show that it will take a lot to find a quality replacement for Cerny, because he delivered goals and created chances at an exceptional rate for the Gers last season.

However, Rangers are now reportedly eyeing up a potential deal for a winger who could come in as a perfect replacement for the Czechia international.

Rangers pursuing new winger deal

According to reports in Brazil, as relayed by the Daily Record, Rangers are pursuing a deal to sign Maccabi Tel Aviv forward Weslley Patati this summer.

It is claimed that the Light Blues are one of a number of teams interested in the winger, though, as AZ Alkmaar, Al Wahda, Al Ain, and Girona are also keen on signing him, which shows that there is plenty of competition for his signature.

Transfer Focus

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

Unnamed teams from the Premier League and the Championship in England are also keeping tabs on his situation, adding even more potential suitors to the list.

Maccabi Tel Aviv have already rejected £3.5m offers from several clubs, including AZ, and are said to be looking for a fee within the region of £9m for the 21-year-old attacker.

It now remains to be seen whether or not the Scottish giants are prepared to pay the £9m that may be required to bring the Brazilian dynamo to Ibrox before the summer transfer window slams shut at the start of September.

Why Rangers should sign Weslley Patati

The Light Blues should push to bring the left-footed star to Glasgow in the coming weeks, whether it is for that fee or potentially a reduced one if they can lower it in negotiations, because he could be a perfect replacement for Cerny.

As a left-footed forward who predominantly plays on the right, although he can also play off the left wing, Patati could be a dream signing to take the Czechia international’s place in the starting XI.

Like Cerny, Patati is a winger who likes to cut in on his left foot from the right flank to deliver goals and assists on a regular basis, using his ability on the ball to constantly make things happen in the final third.

Analyst Kai Watson claimed that the forward is “so good with the ball at his feet that he’s difficult to stop”, which is backed up by his impressive statistics for Maccabi Tel Aviv in the 2024/25 campaign.

Appearances

30

33

Goals

12

12

Big chances missed

6

6

Big chances created

17

6

Key passes per game

1.4

2.5

Assists

6

4

Dribbles completed per game

1.7

1.4

As you can see in the table above, Patati caught the eye with his contributions as both a scorer and a creator of goals from the right wing, just as Cerny did.

He scored as many goals as Cerny did at league level, with the same level of efficiency in ‘big chances’, whilst also creating a whopping 11 more ‘big chances’ for his teammates.

This suggests that the potential is there for the Brazilian starlet to come in as a potential upgrade, whilst offering a similar stylistic option to the Gers, on the wing, because of his goalscoring pedigree and his consistency as a creative threat.

Of course, he has yet to prove himself in the Premiership, and it remains to be seen if he can adapt to Scottish football, but the 21-year-old ace appears to have all the tools available to be a real success at Ibrox as a replacement for Cerny.

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Therefore, the Gers should push hard to win the race for his signature, amid fierce competition, because the goals and assists he has the potential to deliver from the right wing could make supporters forget all about the Wolfsburg loanee.

Leeds United are set for a busy summer of transfer business as they look to make sure that their squad is ready to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

The Athletic reporter Beren Cross has reported that Newcastle United midfielder Sean Longstaff is one of the names on the club’s shortlist of targets to improve their midfield options. He claimed that no bid has been made for the English maestro, but he is an ‘experienced’ player that they like.

Longstaff only started eight times in the Premier League during the 2024/25 campaign and Leeds could look to offer him a chance to play more regularly next term.

The Championship champions, however, are reportedly looking at another star from the top-flight who would be a way better signing than the homegrown Magpies ace.

Leeds eyeing move for Brentford midfielder

According to CaughtOffside, Leeds United are one of the teams monitoring Brentford central midfielder Yehor Yarmolyuk ahead of the summer transfer window.

The report claims that the Whites, Tottenham Hotspur, Burnley, Everton, Wolves, Borussia Dortmund, and Napoli are all keeping tabs on the Ukraine international.

Transfer Focus

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

It states that the Bees are set to demand a fee of around £25m for the 21-year-old talent, and that no clubs have made any formal offers for his services as of yet.

Caught Offside adds that Brentford would prefer to keep hold of him to utilise his quality in the Premier League next term, but Leeds must now convince them to part ways with the young gem by meeting the £25m asking price.

Why Leeds should sign Yehor Yarmolyuk

Daniel Farke should push for the club to swoop for the Bees midfielder over a move for Longstaff because of his age profile and the quality that he could provide on the pitch.

He is six years younger than the Newcastle star, at the age of 21, and would arrive at Elland Road as a long-term addition to the group, whilst also being able to make an instant impact.

Yarmolyuk, who was described as a “dynamic” player by Thomas Frank, only started 15 of his 31 outings in the top-flight, but showed plenty of promise in the minutes that he did play.

If you look at his performances in comparison to Longstaff’s in the Premier League during the 2024/25 campaign, the Ukraine international appears to be the better option for Leeds on paper.

24/25 Premier League *per 90	Sean Longstaff	Yehor Yarmolyuk
Appearances	25	31
Pass accuracy	85%	87%
Passes into the final third*	2.93	4.41
Crosses into the penalty area*	0.00	0.25
Tackles + interceptions*	3.84	3.85
Clearances*	0.90	2.05
Dribblers challenged*	3.05	3.41
Blocks*	1.92	1.61
Stats via FBref

As you can see in the table above, Yarmolyuk could offer more to Farke’s team with his play both in and out of possession, particularly when it comes to progressing the ball into the attacking third whilst remaining efficient with his passes.

These statistics suggest that the Brentford ace is very similar, if not better, defensively to Longstaff, but is more effective at making things happen at the top end of the pitch.

Therefore, the £25m-rated midfielder would be a significantly better signing than the Newcastle man because he can deliver more quality immediately, having outperformed him in the Premier League, whilst also offering more to the side in the long term due to his age.

He could be a terrific investment for the future, at the age of 21, whilst also being a Premier League proven star who can hit the ground running for Farke next season, which is why the Whites must seal a deal for him this summer.

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Shaw vs Padikkal, the Chakravarthy debate and more

Nagraj Gollapudi11-May-2021When the Covid-19 pandemic first broke out in March 2020, ESPNcricinfo conducted an exercise to account for a situation where a country could field two teams simultaneously to fulfil the obligations as part of the ICC’s FTP, which has been severely affected.Such an imagined scenario is likely to become a reality this July when a B-string Indian contingent will feature in the white-ball series in Sri Lanka when at the same time Indian’s main team, led by Virat Kohli, will be preparing for a five-Test series in England.The Sri Lanka tour will comprise three ODIs followed by three T20s. What could these B-string Indian squads look like? ESPNcricinfo looks at the various options.Top order 
Options: Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Manish Pandey, Ishan KishanBarring Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw, all these top-order batters can fit into the middle order too, but the opening slot is where the selectors will have a variety of options to pick from.Without Kohli and Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan will be the pivot in the batting. Apart from excelling at ICC events, Dhawan’s openness to adapt has made him one of the best batters for Delhi Capitals for the last three seasons.Shaw and uncapped Devdutt Padikkal could be in the running to partner Dhawan. Shaw fell off the rails at IPL 2020, but has realigned his priorities since. Before IPL 2021, he returned with record-breaking numbers in the the Vijay Hazare Trophy (domestic 50-over tournament). Then he carried forward that form into the IPL, where at the halfway stage he had the fourth-highest runs, the best strike rate in the tournament (minimum 100 balls) and also became the second batsman to hit six fours in an over in the tournament’s history.Meanwhile, Padikkal is a good left-field option and has attracted admiration from not just Kohli, his captain at the Royal Challengers Bangalore, but also among cricket experts with his technical fluency and aggressive stroke-play that helped him become only the fourth uncapped player to score a century this IPL.The middle order should not be an issue with Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Sanju Samson along with Manish Pandey likely to feature in both squads. Samson and Kishan will also be the two wicket-keeping options.ESPNcricinfo LtdAllrounders
Options: Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Tewatia, Shivam Dube, Vijay ShankarCan Hardik Pandya bowl a longer spell in more than one match? Is the uncapped legspinning allrounder Rahul Tewatia good enough for the biggest stage? Should Shivam Dube and Vijay Shankar get another audition? The selectors are likely to deliberate such questions.At the moment Hardik is one of the two allrounders along with Ravindra Jadeja who is assured a spot in India’s T20 World Cup squad. However the Sri Lanka series could throw up another viable option which could then have an impact on the balance of that World Cup squad.Spinners 
Options: Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Varun ChakravarthyYuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav’s dip in form in the last two years has made India vulnerable in the spin department, something that became evident at the 2019 World Cup. While Kuldeep has barely played, both for India and the Kolkata Knight Riders, Chahal has become predictable and inconsistent. The selectors could be then tempted to look at the pair of Rahul Chahar and uncapped mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy.This IPL, Chahar showed he could handle pressure and was part of the India’s reserve bowling set for the England Test series at home recently. Chakravarthy could get a third chance after failing on the fitness front the last two times he was named in the Indian T20 squads – for the Australia tour and then recently at home against England.Along with Krunal Pandya, he is the second option as a finger spinner though his fitness issues including a weak shoulder means the latter is only good for T20 cricket.Will it be third time lucky for Varun Chakravarthy?•BCCIFast bowlers 
Options: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar, Jaydev Unadkat, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshal Patel, Chetan SakariyaUnless he has a niggle, Bhuvneshwar Kumar should spearhead the bowling group. Equally confident will be the pair of Deepak Chahar and Navdeep Saini. While Mohammad Siraj has kept Saini out of contention at the Royal Challengers, Saini has the pace and the skillsets to hold his own, especially in ODIs.Chahar can handle the responsibility ably especially in the Powerplay segment in T20s. In the absence of T Natarajan, who is on the mend after undergoing a knee surgery recently, the selectors could think about the left-arm pairing of Jaydev Unadkat and Khaleel Ahmed.If Unadkat is picked, it would’ve been some reward for his record-breaking 2019-20 Ranji Trophy season – he picked up 67 wickets – that culminated in Saurashtra’s historic win.There are two wild cards, too, in the uncapped pair of Harshal Patel and Chetan Sakariya who were among the best bowlers at the halfway stage this IPL.