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Liverpool are pressing ahead in their hunt for new signings and could now turn to a star who Hugo Ekitike has previously shown admiration for due to their blistering pace.

Liverpool keen to support Arne Slot in transfer window

Arne Slot has endured a frustrating campaign in charge of Liverpool, and they have failed to replicate their exploits of last season, finding themselved in a battle for Champions League qualification.

Arsenal and Manchester City may well be out of reach, albeit stranger things have happened, but the Reds know that bringing in new faces during the January window will be pivotal if they are to stake a claim for silverware in any competition.

Defensively, both Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi and Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet have been earmarked by Liverpool, with their rearguard becoming more of a priority amid Geovanni Leoni’s absence.

England international Adam Wharton is also a long-term Reds target. However, it is difficult to envisage the Eagles parting ways with someone they value at around £61 million in mid-season.

Nine matches unbeaten before Liverpool’s trip to Arsenal may sound commendable. Nevertheless, there have been four draws within that run, and tougher tests against the likes of Newcastle United and Manchester City remain to come in the next few weeks.

Some supporters have lamented the tempo of Slot’s football this campaign and others have questioned the mentality of his side. Either way, it is always difficult to defend the Premier League title, and they are hardly the only club to ever experience second season syndrome.

Now, the Dutchman appears primed to fight back against recent events as Liverpool plot a move for a winger who could eventually become Mohamed Salah’s replacement.

Liverpool preparing bid for Bradley Barcola

According to reports in Spain, Liverpool are preparing an offer of over £86 million to sign Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola and the Frenchman is keen to leave his current employers after his minutes were compromised under Luis Enrique.

Attracted to the possibility of a move to Anfield, Barcola has registered five goals and three assists in 22 appearances this term, though he has only started nine Ligue 1 matches out of a possible 16.

Related Liverpool now tracking £35m Guehi alternative who's been dubbed Saliba 2.0

The Reds desperately need a centre-back

Posts ByTom Cunningham

Labelled “crazy fast” by countryman and potential future teammate Ekitike, the 23-year-old has created 19 chances and completed 19 successful dribbles on league duty this term, per Fotmob, thriving against his marker in the French top-flight.

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Notably, strained relations between Slot and Liverpool icon Salah may lead to the Egyptian star departing in the near future, and Barcola has been identified as the man to bring pace, power and explosivity to their forward line should the former decide to call time on his glorious Anfield stay.

Barcola is clearly open to a change of scenery and there is potentially room for him on Merseyside, albeit it remains to be seen whether a deal can be forced over the line in January.

More defenders, Mikel, are you sure? When Arsenal signed Piero Hincapie and Cristian Mosquera over the summer, you could hear the ironic laughs.

The Gunners did bolster their forward line during the last transfer window but very rarely does a market go by without Mikel Arteta spending on the defence.

Well, thank heavens they did. Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White have already missed a decent portion of the season while William Saliba, Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori and Cristian Mosquera have also missed matches due to injury.

It’s left Arsenal in a tricky spot. Christian Norgaard filled in at centre-back against Club Brugge a few weeks ago while Declan Rice even featured at right-back against Brighton last weekend.

Therefore, it’s unsurprising that they’re targeting more defenders heading into 2026.

Games played by Arsenal defenders – 2025/26

Player

Games

Mins played

William Saliba

19

1,535

Gabriel

17

1,356

Jurrien Timber

24

1,848

Piero Hincapie

12

771

Riccardo Calafiori

20

1,493

Cristhian Mosquera

16

823

Ben White

12

604

Myles Lewis-Skelly

19

829

Marli Salmon

1

7

Arsenal chasing highly-rated defender

Despite injuries, Arsenal’s backline looks well set up for the future.

Mosquera has walked into the Arsenal team with relative ease and ensured that when Saliba was absent, he wasn’t hugely missed. The way in which the young Spanish defender performed at Anfield on his first start in the 1-0 defeat at the start of the season spoke volumes.

Combine his presence with Hincapie’s breakthrough, both at centre-back and left-back, and you sense Arteta has plenty of ways he can configure his backline.

Add another defender to the party and his options become even more dreamy.

Transfer Focus

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

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Reports from Fabrizio Romano back in the summer suggested that Arsenal had an interest in Rennes centre-half Jeremy Jacquet.

Well, according to Caught Offside, that interest very much remains. They claim that he is on the club’s shortlist heading into 2026 and that ‘informal discussions’ about the player have taken place regarding the player’s situation.

The report does state, however, that no bid has been made yet.

Jacquet is valued at around £35m according to reports back in November. It’s a high price for a 20-year-old defender but certainly one worth paying. For context, Saliba cost £27m as an 18-year-old and look at him now.

Why Jacquet would be a good signing

If Arsenal added the young French centre-back to their squad, then believe it or not, their defence would get even better.

This is a player very much cut from a similar cloth as Saliba. Like Arsenal’s number 2, he made his breakthrough as a teenager in Ligue 1 and has been earning rave reviews since.

He is yet to be capped at international level but it surely won’t be long before the young centre back makes his way into Didier Deschamps’ squad. A move to Arsenal might well propel his chances.

Already described as a player with “top five centre-back in the world potential” by scout Ben Mattinson, fellow scout Jacek Kulig suggests he’s an “insane centre-back in the making.” It’s easy to see why.

Like Saliba, he plays in an effortless manner. His composure for someone so young is incredible. As Mattinson further outlines, he “plays with a maturity beyond his years.”

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Similarly to Saliba, he’s also got lengthy strides that not only help him to recover quickly and eat up ground swiftly, but it also means he’s particularly strong in the ground duel, winning 62% of his ground battles this season and 60% in 2024/25.

Not just content with being difficult to beat inside his own box, Jacquet also has a bit of Gabriel about him. He’s a “dominant” presence from set-pieces, according to Mattinson, only adding further allure to this young defender.

Said to be “scarily talented” by Mattinson, there is very little the Rennes sensation cannot do. From the same academy as PSG superstar Desire Doue, there is plenty to like about this 20-year-old.

If Arsenal can get their hands on him for as small a price as £35m, they’ll have Europe’s next top centre back, someone ready and waiting to replace Saliba.

Sri Lanka have asked Pakistan to schedule their bilateral one-day series, which was proposed to fill the gap caused by Australia’s pull-out, so that the dates do not clash with those of the Indian Premier League (IPL).Arjuna Ranatunga, the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chairman, had agreed in principle to a one-day series in Pakistan after Australia postponed their tour due to security concerns but the reported dates were between April 23 and May 5, which coincide with the IPL, which runs between April 18 and June 1.”We have told Pakistan that we are keen to help Pakistan only if it [the series] did not clash with the IPL,” Duleep Mendis, the chief executive of the SLC, told AFP. He said that the SLC had already released players for the IPL.Cricinfo had reported that the IPL could affect the series because several Sri Lankan and Pakistan players had been bought by the franchises during the first auction on the basis of their availability, and a newly scheduled series would be an inconvenience. The PCB said that it was willing to offer SLC $800,000 for the five ODIs but only if they sent their full team.Player sources denied any pressure was placed on SLC by the cricketers to delay the tour: “Media speculation over the weekend that some of Sri Lanka’s players might have been considering an early retirement or a series boycott to play in the IPL rather than tour Pakistan is totally unfounded. Playing for Sri Lanka is the No 1 priority.”Meanwhile, Niranjan Shah, the secretary of the BCCI, which is running the IPL, told Cricinfo he had contacted officials of the PCB and the SLC regarding the proposed series. “But it was just at the proposal stage. So we didn’t go any further into it,” Shah said.

Mushtaq Ahmed cries after learning of Bob Woolmer’s death © Getty Images

After Inzamam-ul-Haq, Pakistan’s captain, Mushtaq Ahmed, the caretaker coachand Talat Ali, the manager, were questioned by police on Saturday over Bob Woolmer’s murder, it’s now the turn of Brian Lara, the West Indies captain. Lara was staying in the room opposite to Woolmer’s in the Pegasus Hotel and the questioning, which may be followed by DNA testing, is believed to be part of the routine process of eliminating suspects.After the questioning of Inzamam and the other two, the Pakistan team flew out of Jamaica to home as scheduled.Pervez Mir, the team’s spokesperson, told Cricinfo that the three Pakistan players werequestioned for about half an hour. “They were questioned over a coupleof things that were previously overlooked.” But he was keen to stressthere was “nothing out of the ordinary” about the questioning andreiterated that “no one from the team is involved – this is all justmedia hype.”The team is planning to leave as per our original plan and there isno change in that,” added Mir. The team is due to fly from Jamaica toHeathrow and onwards from there to Karachi.Later, addressing a press conference, Mark Shields, deputy commissioner of Jamaican police, said: “This really continued the process of cooperation that we have had with the Pakistani team throughout. We need to be absolutely thorough and clear and ensure if there is any ambiguity in anyone’s statements we should clear up that ambiguity as soon as we can.”The Pakistan team are free to go and are on their way to the airport. There is no reason at all why they shouldn’t leave the island.”All of this, Shields said, was “standard police procedure when you consider any serious crime investigation.” The important thing, he added, “is that we keep an open mind. What we need to do is look at all of the options, all of the suspicions people have.”Sources close to the team told Cricinfo that Mushtaq was questionedabout his nose injury (which is likely to be the one he picked up inpractice before Woolmer’s murder) and Inzamam and Ali about roomchanges.Inzamam told AFP that the questioning was routine and that they hadbeen told by police that they were free to leave for home as plannedlater Saturday. “It was nothing, just one question, nothing special,”Inzamam said. “There have been so many rumours but we are going hometonight and everything is clear. The police said we are free to gohome.””The police are doing their work and they ask lots of guys differentquestions,” Mushtaq told Sky News. “It is not a big issue, just amatter of timing. It was little things they wanted to know. We have to follow police policies and everything is calm and OK. Weare supporting the police. We are leaving and they wanted to cleareverything up.” reported that investigators were yet to hand over Woolmer’s room on the 12th floor to hotel authorities and that the police were examining the electronic key to Woolmer’s room to find out the number of times the room was opened in the few hours leading to his death.Sayed Hafiz, first secretary at the Pakistani embassy in Washington,attended the media briefing at the Pegasus Hotel. He said: “The team was never under detention. They are understandably traumatised. But this is a serious crime, and we wanted to cooperate. We’re very satisfied with the professionalism shown by theJamaican police.”He added that Murray Stevenson, the trainer, and Asad Mustafa, the chiefoperations officer, would be staying back in Jamaica – Stevenson to escortWoolmer’s body back to South Africa, and Mustafa to “tie up any looseends.”Neither he nor the diplomats would say for sure whether the players wouldbe asked back to Jamaica if required – “We’ll cross that bridge when wecome to it,” said Shields – and it’s still unclear when the coroner willallow for Woolmer’s body to leave the country.Shields said that DNA swabs and fingerprints had been taken from severalpeople, apart from the Pakistan players, and added that CCTV footage wasbeing analysed by his officers. He was also in touch with a representativeof the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit, saying: “We will look at all theoptions.””Everybody in some ways is a suspect,” said Shields, when asked if he andhis investigating team had made any headway in identifying the culprit.”There are no clear suspects at the moment.”

Imran Khan: ‘Fielding cannot be improved by appointing coaches’ © Getty Images

Imran Khan, the former Pakistan captain, has blamed the team management’s “atrocious” strategies for the side’s recent slump in one-dayers. He also criticised the decision to appoint Jonty Rhodes as fielding coach and their decision not to play Mohammad Sami in the recently concluded tour of Sri Lanka.Although Pakistan enjoyed a successful ODI season last year – which included away victories in West Indies (3-0) and India (4-2) – they have appeared a little inconsistent since then. Though they beat England at home, they were thumped by India in February 2006. Including the series against England, Pakistan’s success rate has dropped considerably, and they have lost as many matches as they won (seven out of 15 with one winning as one no-result. “In one-day cricket, other teams put their best batsmen at No. 2, 3, 4 and 5. But Pakistan keeps its best batsman at No.6 and 7,” Imran told the Press Trust of India. “Inzamam-ul-Haq ran out of partners in Abu Dhabi because he was batting lower down the order. I don’t know who is behind these atrocious decisions.”While criticising the Pakistan board’s decision to keep Mohammad Sami out of the Sri Lanka tour, Imran said that, Pakistan will need fast bowlers like Sami, Mohammad Asif and Shoaib Akhtar to be fit, to maintain their winning streak against England. Pakistan has not lost a series in England since 1982, when Imran side was beaten 2-1 by David Gower’s men.When asked about the team’s need for a fielding coach, Imran said, “The Pakistan cricket team has a bowling coach. Now they have a fielding coach and the skipper himself is a batsman. I don’t understand what will Bob Woolmer do.” Rhodes is set to spend two weeks with the Pakistan cricket team and work on their fielding skills before their departure for the tour of England in July.”Fielding cannot be improved by appointing coaches”, he continued. “The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has to understand that Australia and South Africa are good fielding sides because their players play [domestic cricket] on good grounds and in near perfect structure.”

Wright joins Ganguly in wishing the wickets would help a bit more © AFP

John Wright has asked Indian officials in charge of preparing wickets to be more thoughtfulwhen they set their job. In the drawn Test at Ahmedabad, Anil Kumble and HarbhajanSingh could not force the issue despite giving their best. “It is the responsibility of peoplepreparing the wickets to keep these things in mind. Sometimes you probably need to raisethese points with the people responsible,” said Wright at a press conference in Mohali,where the second Test starts on Thursday.”It’s unusual in India that the team batting first scores 500 runs in the first innings andthere is no assistance to the bowlers in the later stages of the match,” said Wright. “Wehave to play on wickets that are given to us. Sometimes you hope for a little bit of homeadvantage. It is the case in all the countries. In Australia, they make sure that theirwickets never turn.”Sourav Ganguly has publicly defended his bowlers for their effort in Ahmedabad, and Wrightechoed these thoughts. “There were three world-class spinners — [Anil] Kumble, Harbhajan[Singh] and [Daniel] Vettori – playing in the match. They all struggled on the track. But thelong spells will help them in the subsequent match.” However, he did not cite this as anexcuse. “You have to play on whatever wicket that is given to you. You have to approachthe game and adapt accordingly. We played good cricket but we could not finish the matchin the way we desired”Wright believed that four bowlers could do the job adequately, unless specialcircumstances demanded the inclusion of an extra bowler. He also had a comforting wordfor Akash Chopra. “It is important to give some space to the newcomers. You have to havefaith in them and show it. You have to allow these players to settle down.”Wright also downplayed calls for preparing fast tracks in India. “Trying to change the basicnature of Indian pitches will not be good for the game. India should keep its tradition. Ifwe start making pitches like the ones in Australia, it will not be good for the game. Thediversity of the game is also important.”

Hundreds for Benjamin Hector and Boeta Dippenaar entertained a small crowd in Bloemfontein, as Griqualand West and Easterns made up ground on Western Province in the latest round of Standard Bank Cup matches.PointsTableGriqualand West 307 for 5 (Hector 126, Bosman 80) beat FreeState 300 for 9 (Dippenaar 111, Beukes 64, Kruis 3-58) by 7runs
ScorecardIn a high scoring match in Bloemfontein, Griqualand West won a close encounter against Free State. When the last over started Free State needed 14 runs for the win. Three wickets in that over, from Deon Kruis, made sure that the work Benjamin Hector and Loods Bosman had done with the bat did not go unrewarded.Boeta Dippenaar top-scored for Free State, and in the process sent a timely reminder to the national selectors. He was ably supported by Johann Beukes.Easterns 191 for 3 (Seymore 74, Hall 59) beat North West189 (De Vos 50, Morkel 3-40) by 7 wickets
ScorecardEasterns ran away with a comfortable seven-wicket win at Benoni againstNorth West. Batting first North West could only muster 189 with Dirkie deVos top-scoring with 50. Bowling honours were shared with Albie Morkeltaking three for 40.A 116-run partnership between Andre Seymore, who made 74, and Andrew Hall (59), was enough to see Easterns home in 43 overs.Eastern Province 200 for 7 (Bryant 46) beat Boland 170(Ontong 65, Hayward 4-36, Love 3-26) by 30 runs
ScorecardBoland went down by 30 runs at Paarl after Eastern Provincehad set a modest target of 200 runs. James Bryant kept Province in thegame with his 46 while too many batsmen got starts and then lost their wickets.Boland looked set to win but when Justin Ontong was dismissed at 142 the team lost momentum, with Mornantau Hayward and Geoff Love sharing seven wickets. Hayward’s return of four wickets earned him a bowling award while Love produced his best List A figures.

The following players have been named by the WA Selectors to represent the Western Warriors in a Pura Cup game v the Victorian Bushrangers at the MCG, from Thursday 28 February to Sunday 3 March 2002.

• SIMON KATICH (Capt.)
• JO ANGEL
• RYAN CAMPBELL
• MICHAEL CLARK
• KADE HARVEY
• BRAD HOGG
• MICHAEL HUSSEY
• SCOTT MEULEMAN
• MATT NICHOLSON
• MARCUS NORTH
• CHRIS ROGERS
• BRAD WILLIAMS

SelectionsThe only selection change from the Western Warrior s previous Pura cup team is Matt Nicholson for Shaun Marsh.

England all-rounder Mark Ealham claimed season’s best figures of five for 35 to dismiss Yorkshire for 145 and leave Kent a last day victory target of 230 in their intriguing championship clash with Yorkshire in Canterbury.The hosts, who trailed by 84 on first innings after being polished off for 317 earlier in the day, rolled the Tykes over inside three and a half hours with Ealham and Martin Saggers ruling the roost.In humid conditions and under solid cloud cover Ealham’s away swingers accounted for Michael Vaughan and Anthony McGrath early on, then Saggers, who trapped Simon Widdup in his opening burst, returned to claim three for one in 10 balls during a crucial second spell from the pavilion end.He had Darren Lehmann, who was dropped at second slip by Martin McCague when on seven, caught behind for a top score of 42 then, in his next over, removed Gary Fellows and Gavin Hamilton to take his championship tally to 57 for the season.Ealham returned to claim the last three as Yorkshire lost their last six wickets for 43 runs.Earlier Kent – who need nine points from this game to ensure their Division 1 survival – notched a vital third batting bonus point courtesy of a patient 42 from Matthew Walker and steady contributions from the tail that took them past 300 for only the second time in a championship first innings this year.

With his first Premier League campaign nearing its conclusion, Brentford striker Ivan Toney has proven to the array of clubs that have previously shown interest in the forward what they’ve missed out on.

One of those clubs is West Ham United, who were confirmed to be a potential suitor for the English striker by Peterborough United owner Darragh MacAnthony on the Hard Truth Podcast before he eventually signed for the Bees.

The 25-year-old scored 24 goals in 32 appearances in the 2019/20 League One season for the Posh before his move to West London, leading Brentford to their first-ever Premier League season the following campaign with 33 goals in 48 appearances.

It was Toney’s efforts in the third-tier that attracted so much interest from numerous clubs before Thomas Frank’s side paid an initial £5m with the fee rising to £10m with add-ons to replace Ollie Watkins who had joined Aston Villa.

Now, after almost a season in the top-flight, in which the striker has netted nine goals in 23 appearances following his first Premier League hat-trick against Norwich City on Saturday, Toney is showing West Ham what they could’ve had.

It’s no secret that the Hammers have been in need of a striker for numerous transfer windows now, having missed out on a centre-forward once again in January.

31-year-old Michail Antonio is currently the club’s only senior striker, meaning that without the Jamaica international, manager David Moyes has to fit square pegs into round holes as the solution.

Moreover, the forward hasn’t scored in the league since New Year’s Day, further highlighting how big a blow missing out on Ivan Toney really turned out to be for the East London club.

Currently valued at £28.8m by Transfermarkt, Toney is worth almost six times the initial fee Brentford paid Peterborough in 2020 and, should the Bees secure top-flight survival, the 25-year-old’s value will surely excel.

When the West London outfit signed the Englishman, it seemed as though they were heavily overpaying for Toney’s services with the striker valued at just £360,000. However, that soon increased heavily to £4.05m in October 2020, although still under the transfer fee.

As Brentford’s talisman kept finding the back of the net, his value kept soaring, with Toney worth £16.2m by March 2021 just before Frank’s side secured a playoff spot.

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Following promotion, the striker’s value sharply increased once again to £25.2m before rising slightly to the current figure of £28.8m in October after bagging 44 goals for the Bees.

Labelled as “exceptional” by Barry Fry when he was in the lower leagues, there is no doubt that the 25-year-old belongs in the English top-flight and could well be onto even better fortunes beyond Brentford.

With their striker issues and a majorly important final set of fixtures to contest, there is no doubt that West Ham will be kicking themselves on what is clearly a prized asset.

In other news: West Ham handed another big fitness blow that’ll have Moyes livid