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Celtic were undone by individual errors as their poor form in Europe continued at Parkhead on Thursday night.

Ange Postecoglou’s Hoops now sit bottom of Europa League Group G after they fell to a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Bundesliga giants Bayer Leverkusen.

David Turnbull’s slip allowed Piero Hincapie to capitalise after just 25 minutes before Florian Wirtz chipped over Bhoys goalkeeper Joe Hart just ten minutes later.

The Premiership outfit then struggled to get going in the second half and were stopped in their tracks once again as the ruthless visitors found a third from the penalty spot, with Lucas Hilario slotting home, and that was before substitute Amine Adli fired in a fourth with the last kick of the game.

Anthony Ralston at right-back was one particularly error-prone individual at Celtic Park, but truth be told, there were plenty of other players who struggled against the German giants, including Tom Rogic.

Deployed in the no.10 role, the 28-year-old midfielder failed to have any sort of influence on the game and that much was seen by the fact that Hoops ‘keeper Hart recorded more touches (57) than the man deployed in the playmaking role (45), as per SofaScore.

From that tally, he provided only 22 passes, which was the joint-lowest of any Celtic starter, and again the last thing you want from someone in an advanced role. The Australian could not create a key chance from those attempts either.

In addition, Rogic lost possession a whopping 15 times, which was pretty much with almost every one of his passes. That was wasteful and merely gave Leverkusen scope to further dominate the game.

He also committed two fouls, handing the Germans a perfect opportunity to get the ball back into the box.

You could argue that this sort of sloppiness invited pressure on Postecoglou’s backline and enforced young and inexperienced players like Ralston into making such errors, and at this level, those are certainly punished.

It’s no wonder Rogic lasted just 66 minutes before being hooked. He was appalling and will do well to feature in the starting XI again anytime soon.

AND in other news, Forget Brady: Celtic must swoop for £5.4m-rated machine who can “sprint like Mbappe”…

A new era at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is firmly underway.

And it could not have gotten off to a better start, with the north London outfit currently sat top of the Premier League table unbeaten without conceding a single goal in their opening three league matches.

It’s fair to suggest that the appointment of Nuno Santo as head coach has, so far, been a massive success but of course, there is plenty of the season left to play.

He’s not been the only change at the club, though.

Spurs appointed their first sporting director since 2015 in Fabio Paratici and he deserves plenty of credit for his instant impact at the club.

The Italian supremo, who won 19 trophies during his time at Juventus in a similar role and was responsible for the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo, has managed to shift on plenty of deadwood, including the injury-prone Erik Lamela as well as regressing veterans Toby Alderweireld and Moussa Sissoko.

Paratici has also worked some magic in the transfer market, signing a couple of players for the future in Pape Matar Sarr and Byran Gil, whilst improving the first-team squad with the arrival of Atalanta duo Pierluigi Gollini and Cristian Romero on loan and Emerson Royal from Barcelona, too.

Not to mention the fact that he managed to keep hold of the talismanic Harry Kane.

However, it was his decision on deadline day that could prove to be the best of them all after he cancelled the contract of the long-serving Serge Aurier, who had clearly slipped right down the pecking order under the Portuguese boss.

Had he remained at the club now, Spurs would have four right-back options and he would be sat rock-bottom in preference – and understandably so.

Earning reported wages in the region of a whopping £120k-per-week, the 66-cap Ivory Coast international would’ve been merely stealing a wage at a club he didn’t even want to be at.

The £18m-rated star told French publication L’Equipe of his intentions to leave N17 back in late May but with no club willing to take a chance on him, he had to be released from his contract.

“Everyone knows that if I wanted to extend my contract at Tottenham, I’d have already done so,” Aurier claimed. “I’m not going to do that in six months’ time. I’ve experienced the Premier League and a Champions League final. I’ve reached the end of a cycle and it’s time to look elsewhere.”

Not only are Spurs now saving a lot of money off their wage bill but they are also getting rid of a player that was often lambasted and marred by controversy.

Off the pitch, Aurier was fined for breaching the country’s lockdown guidelines for the third time whilst on it, he was regularly described as an “absolute liability.”

The Lilywhites’ defeat to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final saw Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher become the latest name to lay into the 28-year-old’s ability.

“Aurier is maybe one of the biggest liabilities in Premier League football and is a player who would possibly put you off management with the amount of crazy decision he makes,” he said, via talkSPORT.

It merely adds to other scathing criticism of his performances over the years since he arrived in a £23m deal from Paris Saint-Germain in August 2017.

Fellow Sky Sports man Roy Keane once labelled Aurier as a “car crash” and suggested that he was a “huge problem” for Spurs. He said (via Football Daily): “He’s got a rick in him. He has caused loads of problems. I have described him as a bit of a car crash. Nice powerful boy, keeps going forward, but defensively I think he doesn’t smell danger or see the danger. And that’s been a huge problem for Spurs, the right-back position.”

On the above evidence, Paratici made a blinding call to offload the right-back. He can now be someone else’s problem as Spurs move on with Emerson and co this season.

AND in other news, Spurs handed “frustrating” injury blow ahead of Premier League return…

Paul Hibbert, the opening batsman who played one Test for Australia in 1977-78, has been found dead in his Melbourne home

Cricinfo staff28-Nov-2008Paul Hibbert, the opening batsman who played one Test for Australia in 1977-78, has been found dead in his Melbourne home. Hibbert, 56, was reportedly found by police in his loungeroom after a relative became concerned at not having heard from him for more than a week.A watchful left-hand batsman, Hibbert was part of the Victoria side for a decade and he finished his first-class career with 4790 runs at 38.62. He was named for the Gabba Test against India in December 1977 and made 13 from 77 balls in the first innings and 2 in the second. “He was a bit unlucky to make his debut on a greentop at the Gabba,” former Victoria captain Ray Bright said. “If it had been a flat deck at Adelaide, who knows how he would have gone? It’s all a matter of opportunity.His son Daniel said an autopsy had showed that Hibbert had suffered an internal haemorrhage, possibly related to alcoholism. He was believed to have also been suffering from depression.His call-up came after he made a remarkably defensive century against the Indians in their tour match in Melbourne. Hibbert became only the second batsman to score a hundred without managing a boundary. Hibbert was also a useful left-arm medium-pace bowler and he collected 15 first-class wickets.

Liverpool have suffered an injury blow ahead of their trip to Leeds United next weekend after Takumi Minamino picked up a knock while on national team duty.

The Japan international was forced to withdraw from the squad after picking up an injury and won’t be able to feature in Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against China.

What’s the word?

Although the 26-year-old was called up by Hajime Moriyasu last week, he didn’t feature in his nation’s 1-0 defeat to Oman on Thursday.

“Midfielder Takumi Minamino (Liverpool FC) has been withdrawn from the team due to an injury at SAMURAI BLUE, which is active for the Asian final qualifying (Road to Qatar) China national team match,” read a statement from the Japan FA (as relayed by the Liverpool Echo).

It continued: “We will inform you of additional convened players to replace Minamino as soon as they are decided.”

Jurgen Klopp will be gutted

Despite Minamino not playing a single minute of Liverpool’s 2021/22 campaign so far, Reds manager Jurgen Klopp is still likely to be gutted to learn of the 26-year-old’s recent setback.

The former RB Salzburg forward is set to join Roberto Firmino on the treatment table after the 29-year-old was forced off the field against Chelsea in the first half last weekend.

That leaves just the out-of-form Divock Origi as backup to a front three of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane, meaning that Klopp is desperately short of options in the final third of the pitch.

The Merseysiders will be hoping to maintain their solid start to the new campaign when they travel to Elland Road to face Leeds following the international break, but they’ll have to do so without a selection of their forward players. News of Minamino’s injury will not amuse his club manager.

In other news… Edwards can redeem himself at Liverpool with January move for “devastating” maestro 

Aston Villa fans would have hailed the signing of Borussia Dortmund midfielder Axel Witsel as a real coup, says Express & Star journalist Luke Hatfield.

Witsel was linked with a surprise move to Villa at the end of the summer transfer window, with Italian outlet Tuttosport claiming that Juventus, AS Roma and the Midlands club were all interested in signing the Belgian.

Witsel has remained at Dortmund, however, and will now be looking to help Marco Rose’s side end Bayern Munich’s dominance of the Bundesliga.

Had the 32-year-old signed for Villa, though, Hatfield is certain he would have been a welcome addition.

“Witsel would’ve obviously fitted into the position Villa probably needed to address,” Hatfield told FFC. “But he’s not the youngest in the world and he’s just coming off a really serious Achilles injury.

“Obviously he would’ve been an amazing signing for fans and the fans would’ve been right behind it. On paper, it would always look good, but in practice, I’m not too sure. But Villa fans would’ve been hailing it as a real coup.”

While Villa did not end up bringing in a midfielder like Witsel, you would have to say it was still a pretty successful transfer window for the Premier League outfit.

Yes, they lost Jack Grealish to Manchester City, but they were still able to make significant attacking additions after signing Danny Ings, Emiliano Buendia and Leon Bailey.

An update has emerged on Aston Villa target Arnaut Danjuma, regarding Liverpool’s interest in his services. 

What’s the talk?

According to Marca, via the Daily Star, Liverpool are keen on signing Bournemouth winger Arnaut Danjuma before the end of the transfer window.

Aston Villa reportedly enquired about a potential swoop for the attacker earlier this summer, but will now have to beat the Reds in order to bring him to Villa Park.

Watkins 2.0

Dean Smith could land another Ollie Watkins type signing by bringing Danjuma to the club this summer. The ex-Brentford coach has had huge success in bringing talent from the second tier to the Premier League, with Watkins arriving in the Midlands last summer and enjoying a terrific season in the top-flight.

In 37 Premier League starts, the forward provided Villa with 14 goals and five assists whilst averaging a superb WhoScored rating of 7.18. This came after he scored 26 and assisted three in 49 Championship starts (including play-offs) for Brentford the previous year. Smith was able to bring him in and help him flourish at a higher level, which is exactly what he could with Danjuma.

The Bournemouth attacker racked up 17 goals and seven assists in 31 starts in the Championship, averaging a WhoScored rating of 7.21. This means that he came up with a goal contribution every 1.3 starts for the Cherries, compared to Watkins’ goal contribution every 1.7 starts for Brentford.

Clinton Morrison lauded the excellent Dutchman last year when speaking about him on Quest, via Football League World:

“Danjuma is an excellent player. Whatever happens, he will be playing Premier League football next year, whether it’s with Bournemouth or without them. He’s an exceptional talent.”

These comments from Morrison and the aforementioned statistics between Watkins and Danjuma suggest that he could be the next star out of the EFL. He has proven that he has the quality to stand out in the Championship and Smith has already shown that he has the coaching ability to help players like that make the step up to the Premier League, Watkins being the case-in-point.

This is why Villa fans would love to see Danjuma join the club. Supporters love to see goals and the Dutchman’s statistics for Bournemouth suggest that he could be able to provide them for the Villans in the top-flight.

It is now down to Johan Lange to strike a deal with the south coast club and then Smith would need to work with him on the training pitch to turn him into Watkins 2.0.

AND in other news, The Athletic journalist drops update on £50m midfielder, Villa fans will be relieved…

The Athletic’s Phil Hay has dropped a big Leeds United update on Kalvin Phillips which will have Marcelo Bielsa delighted.

What’s the story?

The England international missed the opening game of the Premier League season, with the Whites being thrashed by rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford in his absence.

However, Hay has claimed that Phillips is getting set for an immediate return to action.

Writing on Twitter, the journalist said: “Phillips is getting closer to starting. Llorente likely to be back next week. Bielsa says the responsibility for the defeat at Old Trafford was his. Too much of what he asked for from the players went wrong. #lufc”

Bielsa will be relieved

Such is the importance Phillips has on this Leeds side, former Whites man Andrew Hughes said: “The only way to get someone who can cover and do the same job perfectly is to spend £50m, at least. That’s what a player like him costs. Rather than talking about how other players match up, you just have to accept he’s very special.”

While it would be far too easy to suggest that the Whites got hammered against Manchester United mainly down to Phillips being out, the midfielder’s absence did play a large role in that defeat, not least because it meant Bielsa fielded a centre-back in Robin Koch in the anchor man role.

The German struggled immensely both in and out of possession, and let his manager down with a woeful display, and Bielsa would no doubt have been desperately hoping all through this week that Phillips would be back.

With Everton next up at Elland Road, the news from Hay that Leeds’ talisman is “getting closer to starting” is sure to have Bielsa absolutely delighted.

Meanwhile, Leeds United have made an approach for this ace…

Many Glasgow Rangers fans were far from happy with a Twitter headline with regards to a story involving Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton.

On the pitch, Barton is best known for his time in the Premier League with the likes of Manchester City, Newcastle United, QPR and Burnley. However, both he and many Rangers fans would probably like to forget his spell in Scotland, as he made just eight appearances for the 55-time Scottish champions (Transfermarkt).

In all fairness, his time at Ibrox was mainly forgettable, having had his contract terminated early following a training ground altercation and an investigation from the Scottish FA over alleged breaches of gambling rules (BBC).

Barton is once again in the news for the wrong reasons, with him now having been charged with assault, and the STV have decided to go with a questionable headline – they have decided to describe Barton as a “former Rangers midfielder”. Even if he did briefly play in Scotland, there are surely more relevant ways to describe him.

The headline, which was shared on Twitter by STV, attracted plenty of attention from furious Gers supporters. These fans took to the social media platform to share their thoughts on how the story was presented.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about the Barton headline

“Absolutely appalling considering the guy played literally half a season for us and has had at least 2 other clubs since leaving us. Why am I not surprised”

Credit: @james12hendry

“GET A GRIP WITH YOUR GUTTERPRESS REPORTING!! Former Rangers player?? 5 years since he made 5 appearances for @RangersFC”

Credit: @LawTRICIA

“This is a bit laughable considering he’s the current manager of Bristol Rovers. Anything to paint Rangers in a negative light though eh”

Credit: @garryhood1872

“Very poor journalism”

Credit: @lothianguy

“bet it felt great after typing that. Muppets.”

Credit: @GlasgowIsBlue72

“Amateur journalism at its best!”

Credit: @hariborfc

In other news, Rangers are set to sell this “faultless” ace.

The preview of the warm-up tour game between Sri Lanka Board’s XI and India, Colombo

Cricinfo staff17-Jul-2008Match factsFriday July 18 – Sunday July 20, 2008
Start time 10.30am (05.00GMT)
Sachin Tendulkar gets a chance to test his match fitness © AFP
Big PictureAfter three hectic months of Twenty20 and one-dayers, this is India’s only warm-up game before the Tests against Sri Lanka. It is also the only chance for several of India’s players who have had an enforced break from cricket – Sachin Tendulkar (groin injury), Zaheer Khan (ankle injury), Harbhajan Singh (disciplinary ban), and VVS Laxman (fractured wrist) – to get some match practice under their belts. That means India might want to opt for the same XI they have in mind for next week’s Test.Captain Anil Kumble has been stressing that the Test outfit has been performing consistently over the past year and will be keen to redress India’s poor record in Sri Lanka, where they haven’t won a series in 15 years.For the home side, the match will be a chance for Upul Tharanga, who has been out of the Test side since last December, to make his case. Chamara Kapugedera has become a regular starter in Sri Lanka’s one-day unit and will be trying to use this game to stake his claim for a Test spot. At least two other members of the team – fast bowler Dilhara Fernando and batsman Chamara Silva – are also likely to feature in the Test series.One to watchNearly twenty years on the international circuit have taken their toll on Sachin Tendulkar, and he has been struggling with a groin injury for the past few months. The only cricket he has played after the Indian Premier League is a few leisurely games with Lashings. This match will give a better indication of whether he’s fit enough to return to the rigours of Test cricket next week. He’s within touching distance of Brian Lara’s record Test aggregate and will want to use this game to get into the groove.Team newsGautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag get a chance on this tour to translate their opening form in the limited-overs versions of the game to Tests. The experienced middle-order picks itself while the absence of Mahendra Singh Dhoni leaves Dinesh Karthik and Parthiv Patel vying for the wicketkeeper’s spot. Zaheer Khan will reclaim his place as the pace spearhead with Ishant Sharma likely to be his sidekick. India’s spin threat will come from the old firm of Kumble and Harbhajan.India (probable) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Sourav Ganguly, 6 VVS Laxman, 7 Dinesh Karthik/Parthiv Patel (wk), 8 Anil Kumble (capt), 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Ishant SharmaSri Lanka Board XI squad Mahela Udawatte, Upul Tharanga, Jehan Mubarak (capt), Chamara Kapugedera, Chamara Silva, Thilina Kandamby, Kaushal Silva (wk), Chanaka Welegedera, Sujeewa Silva, Dammika Prasad, Rangana Herath, Dilhara FernandoQuotes”We have Zaheer Khan back in the team with his experience of bowling in subcontinental conditions, Ishant Sharma who has really progressed well as a seamer, and Harbhajan Singh is back as well.”
Anil Kumble talks up his bowling attack

Rangers make their return to the Champions League on Tuesday evening as they travel to take on Malmo, with Steven Gerrard’s side looking to avoid a repeat of 2011 when they suffered defeat against the same club in their last Champions League venture.

Gerrard’s side kicked off their 2021/22 campaign with a routine 3-0 victory against Livingston at Ibrox on Saturday but will face a much sterner test against Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side, who beat HJK Helsinki and Riga to earn their place in the third qualifying round.

The Rangers boss will be without some key players for the trip to the Eleda Stadium but will still be hoping to pick up a positive result ahead of the second leg at Ibrox next week.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects the 41-year-old manager to line his side up in Sweden, with five changes from the team which started against Livingston…

After being rested against Livingston at the weekend, it seems likely that 2020/21 first choice Allan McGregor will return in between the sticks, with Jon McLaughlin dropping to the bench.

There are two changes in defence, as Borna Barisic makes his return at left-back in place of Calvin Bassey, who lost possession 24 times at the weekend, whilst Filip Helander comes in for the suspended Leon Balogun at centre-back against his former club.

Gerrard was full of praise for the £3.15m-rated Sweden defender in 2019, dubbing him a “leader”, and his and Connor Goldson’s partnership at the back could be crucial in the Gers keeping another clean sheet on Tuesday evening.

In midfield, Gerrard will be without Glen Kamara due to his suspension, so John Lundstram makes his first competitive start as a Rangers player in his absence.

[freshpress-quiz id=“593776”]

Finally, Scott Wright comes in for Ianis Hagi on the right-hand side after the Romanian was forced off against Livingston, with Ryan Kent and Fashion Sakala keeping their places while Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe are unavailable due to self-isolation and suspension respectively.

In other news… Rangers miss out on “fantastic” gem, Gerrard must be fuming