Noel Whelan says he’s been left ‘questioning’ whether Carl Starfelt was ‘a good signing’ for Celtic.
The former Leeds United, Coventry City and Middlesbrough forward was speaking to Football Insider.
Celtic signed Starfelt from Russian outfit Rubin Kazan for a fee of £4million back in July.
He joined the Hoops on the same day that Kristoffer Ajer left for English Premier League outfit Brentford.
Starfelt wasn’t the only addition to Celtic’s centre-back ranks, with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Liam Scales arriving from Tottenham Hotspur and Shamrock Rovers respectively.
The Swede struggled in Thursday’s Europa League defeat at the hands of Bayer Leverkusen at Celtic Park.
The Daily Record’s Craig Swan handed him a rating of just 5/10 for his display, saying he was ‘never comfortable on the ball’.
Whelan says that Starfelt hasn’t had the impact that would have been desired at Celtic Park.
He’s been told he needs to step up if he’s to justify Celtic’s outlay.
“They brought in new players this year, Starfelt being one of them,” he said. “You expect them to turn the tide.
“Now you’re questioning was it a good signing? Is he the right man for it?
“Because performances need to be a lot better from a player of that standard. You can’t hide away when you’re out there on the field, everyone sees it.”
Starfelt is effectively playing for his place right now, with Christopher Jullien’s return on the horizon.
When everyone is fit, you’d have to say Carter-Vickers ought to be starting alongside the Frenchman.
It was worrying how cautious Starfelt looked on the ball against Leverkusen. It doesn’t really chime with Postecoglou’s philosophy whatsoever.
In other news, read Kieran Devlin’s worrying line on Postecoglou.
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Daniel Vettori was desperate for a Chappell-Hadlee Series trophy but will settle for having a young side that is showing it can match the best teams in the world. New Zealand frightened Australia during the five-match contest and were only a few overs from being in a position to take the overall prize when rain intervened at the Gabba, ending their chase with 33 required from 36 balls.Martin Guptill, the Auckland batsman in his seventh ODI, charged to an unbelievable 64 from 34 deliveries to set up the frenetic pursuit. “I feel pretty good at the moment,” Guptill said. “I’m finding some good areas and hitting the ball cleanly. It was good to get a good score from so few balls.”Guptill launched his second delivery for six behind square leg and pulled Mitchell Johnson’s opening offering into the grandstand. “I knew he was going to bounce me early,” he said. “I saw it, went after it and it went into the first tier. That’s one of the biggest hits in my career so far.”He sped to a half-century in 24 balls and with the debutant Brendon Diamanti took New Zealand closer to an out-of-reach victory. Guptill said the explosive performance “was an exception”. “I’m attacking, but probably not that attacking,” he said.Vettori was amazed by the performance, calling it “some of the best strokeplay I’ve ever seen”. “That was a fantastic innings,” Vettori said. “It was some clean hitting and those are some pretty big boundaries he’s clearing. Those are really big hits back in New Zealand.”In partnership with Diamanti, Guptill led his team to the verge of victory when the rain ended their 50-run stand. “That’s pretty impressive doing that against Australia in a must-win situation,” Vettori said.Vettori saw plenty of good signs for the future in Brisbane, and during the series. “I’m happy that these guys keep turning up and performing,” Vettori said. “If you look at the line-up Martin Guptill continues to impress, Grant Elliott had a successful series, Neil Broom has impressed me, Iain O’Brien has done a pretty good job with his role in the side.”You throw in the likes of Styris, Oram and Ryder back in the mix and you have a nice group of 15 or 16 guys.” After Sunday’s Twenty20 New Zealand’s next engagements are against India later in the month.
Former Premier League star Dean Windass insists that Manchester United won’t win the league, even with the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side sealed the headline-grabbing return of the legendary Portugal international in the final week of the summer transfer window.
Ronaldo had been reported as a target for Manchester City, perhaps prompting United into action as they looked to ensure he did not move to a major rival.
He will make his debut after the international break, in which he became the all-time leading international top scorer by scoring a brace versus the Republic of Ireland.
But Windass does not believe that the signing of the former Real Madrid star from Juventus will propel the club to the title.
Instead, he thinks that there are already three clubs who are more likely to win the competition: Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool.
The former Hull City star exclusively told The Transfer Tavern: “I don’t think they’ll win the league even with Ronaldo.
“I think they’ll be in the top four but your top three, for me, this season, maybe top four, Leicester could be up there again, Jamie Vardy’s scored a couple of goals now, he scored at the weekend. It’s a situation where I think you’re going to have to beat Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea this year.
“You finish above them, any of them three, you’ve won the Premier League. Man United will be in the top four without a shadow of a doubt.”
Daniel Vettori reflects with awe and amazement at Twenty20’s inexorable march to prominence
Alex Brown14-Feb-2009Vettori and Haddin face off as captainsIt was only a few weeks ago that Brad Haddin was embroiled in a heated row with the New Zealanders over his part in the controversial dismissal of Neil Broom during the first one-day international in Perth. Haddin is confident there will be no hostility when he comes face-to-face with Vettori at the coin toss.”We spoke about it after the incident, and we haven’t spoken since,” he said. “I wouldn’t speak to him normally – it’s just pleasantries and saying ‘hello’. But during the series we haven’t had much contact with any of the New Zealand players. Things have been fine.”Vettori also played down whether there would be any tension at the toss on Sunday. “He’s just a captain, cricket captains don’t really go head to head,” Vettori said. “They just shake hands and flip the coin. It’s pretty easy really.”
The standard of play – and hairstyles – has changed since Chris Cairns and Hamish Marshall took part in the first Twenty20 International © Getty Images
National sides are fast learning that Twenty20 is a young man’s game that requires a skill-set different to other forms of the game; a fact reflected in the selections for Sunday’s match. The average age of the Australian squad is just 26, and several of its members – most notably Rob Quiney and David Warner – are not yet permanent fixtures in their state’s first-class teams. New Zealand, too, have rung in the changes, with the likes of Nathan McCullum and Ian Butler flown in specifically for the SCG encounter.Perhaps Australia’s most notable move is at the top of its chain of command. Brad Haddin, who only forced his way into the squad on a full-time basis last summer, has been bestowed the unexpected honour of captaining his country for the first time, and will do so before an appreciative home crowd.”It’s probably come about the same way with me opening the batting – through blokes being rested or injured,” Haddin said. “I’ve seen the work Ricky [Ponting] has to do and it’s an extraordinary role. To be quite honest, I’ve never really thought about doing it full-time. I don’t think it’s something that’s a real goal of mine at all. I’ll enjoy the occasion and do it as a one-off.”
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O senador Romário, que presidiu a CPI do Futebol, comemorou a operação “Bola Fora”, que investiga caixa 2 na campanha do vice-presidente da CBF, Gustavo Feijó, a quem o Baixinho classificou como “calo nas investigações” da Comissão Parlamentar de Inquérito.
Nesta sexta, a PF cumpriu mandados de busca e apreensão na casa de Feijó, e ainda prendeu o filho dele, Felipe Feijó, presidente da Federação Alagoana, por porte ilegal de arma.
A operação é fruto do compartilhamento de informações da CPI do Futebol com o Ministério Público Eleitoral (MPE). Romário pontuou ainda:
– Depois que aprovamos a convocação dele, o senador Ciro Nogueira, representando a Bancada da CBF, pediu a anulação da sessão e Renan Calheiros, então presidente do Senado, anulou. A ação deles foi completamente arbitrária e ilegal, a convocação de Gustavo Feijó e de outras pessoas, como Ricardo Teixeira e Marco Polo Del Nero, foi suspensa, mesmo cumprindo o regimento do Senado. Isso travou a CPI por meses e limitou o trabalho de investigação – citou o Baixinho, por meio de nota.
O documento-chave da CPI para embasar a suspeita sobre Feijó é uma troca de e-mails com Marco Polo Del Nero, presidente da CBF, no qual o dirigente alagoano faz uma lista de gastos e pede apoio financeiro.
Romário ainda concluiu:
– Fico muito feliz que os órgãos competentes, como o MPE e a PF, estejam dando prosseguimento ao trabalho iniciado na CPI do Futebol. Os resultados de uma investigação nem sempre são imediatos, tenho certeza que o que conseguimos provar ainda vai dar muita dor de cabeça para aqueles que fazem do futebol um ofício criminoso.
RelacionadasFutebol NacionalOperação da PF atinge vice da CBF, e presidente de federação é detidoFutebol Nacional09/06/2017
MatériaMais Notícias
A expectativa pela volta de Luis Fabiano ficou ainda maior no Vasco. Poupado no último fim de semana em que o ataque passou em branco, o camisa 9 terá o desafio de manter seu faro de gol aguçado em São Januário, desta vez em um embate com o Corinthians.
Os dois gols do Fabuloso no Brasileirão aconteceram na Colina, e fizeram a diferença nas vitórias sobre Bahia e Fluminense. O único jogo em que o atacante não marcou foi na derrota por 4 a 0 para o Palmeiras, na estreia do Cruz-Maltino, no Allianz Parque.
Ídolos do Vasco creem que Luis Fabiano tem condições de honrar a esperança da torcida. Autor do gol do título brasileiro de 1989, Sorato enaltece o atacante, e valoriza a ascensão da equipe comandada por Milton Mendes:
– Luis Fabiano está acostumado com esta pressão, tem todas as condições de converter suas chances em gols. Mas, embora o Vasco precisasse que ele estivesse apto para esta partida com o Corinthians, a equipe não depende exclusivamente de Luis Fabiano. Milton Mendes tem extraído o melhor da equipe – declarou, ao LANCE!.
Aos olhos do ex-goleiro Acácio, o Fabuloso impõe respeito a qualquer adversário:
– Um jogador com a experiência dele é sempre importante ter no time. Luis Fabiano não só é goleador, mas impõe respeito aos zagueiros, que ficam mais atentos. Isto pesará muito a favor do Vasco.
O desejo do Vasco é manter o “caldeirão” aceso para o Fabuloso.
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كشفت صحيفة “ذا تايمز” البريطانية الموعد المحتمل لانتقال لاعب وسط الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي برشلونة، فرينكي دي يونج، إلى مانشستر يونايتد بعد مفاوضات طويلة بين الناديين في الفترة الماضية.
ويرغب مانشستر يونايتد في التعاقد مع دي يونج منذ تعيين مديره الفني الجديد، إريك تين هاج، ولكن كانت في الفترة الماضية هناك فوارق مالية كبيرة بين ما يطلبه برشلونة وما يرغب الفريق الإنجليزي في دفعه.
وصلت صفقة دي يونج لمراحلها النهائية، بحسب ما ذكرت الصحفية البريطانية، ويحاول برشلونة ومانشستر يونايتد إغلاق المفاوضات قبل يوم الخميس وهو اليوم الأخير في شهر يونيو.
اقرأ أيضًا.. فاولر: مفاوضات تجديد محمد صلاح وليفربول تثير القلق
يقوم الناديان بوضع اللمسات الأخيرة على الصفقة التي قد تقدر بـ 80 مليون يورو، يتركز كل اهتمام مانشستر يونايتد على الاتفاق على شروط دي يونج في العقد.
لطالما كان دي يونج مترددًا في الانتقال إلى مانشستر يونايتد، وأجل قراره أكثر من مرة خاصة وأن الهولندي كان لا يريد الرحيل عن برشلونة بعد تأهله إلى دوري أبطال أوروبا وهو الأمر غير المتوفر في النادي الإنجليزي الذي سيشارك في الدوري الأوروبي.
لكن هناك وعد من جانب، إريك تين هاج، بأن دي يونج هو من سيكون قائد مشروع مانشستر يونايتد الجديد تحت قيادة المدرب الهولندي.
Derby County forward Bobby Duncan is set to remain at the club, following news that his move to Danish side Vejle Boldklub has collapsed [The Athletic via Football League World].
The Lowdown: Derby County’s turbulent start to 2021/22
Enduring a turbulent start to the new campaign, Rams gaffer Wayne Rooney will be praying for some stability in the coming weeks as his side look to start 2021/22 in a positive manner.
Unable to make signings – unless free – so far this summer due to the transfer embargo, the Sky Bet Championship side have not been able to make any additions in the window thus far [Transfermarkt].
Now, the manager has been hit with yet another blow on the other side of things, with an expected departure falling through.
The Latest: Duncan departure called off after breakdown in talks
After opening talks with Velje Boldklub last week, any notion of the deal nearing completion has now been quelled, much to the fury of the Derby County hierarchy [Football League World].
Terms could not be thrashed out to an agreeable deal, meaning the English second tier side have now missed the chance to get around £3,000 per-week off of their wage bill.
The Verdict: Only time will tell with regards to Duncan’s next steps
The news surrounding Duncan presents negative and positive connotations.
On one hand, Derby have struggled with financial irregularities in recent times and moving the former Liverpool youngster on may have helped slightly.
Nevertheless, he may provide some much-needed inspiration to a side in need of fresh ideas in forthcoming months should he get the opportunity.
In 2020/21, he made just one senior appearance for his current employers in an embarrassing 2-0 FA Cup defeat away to non-league Chorley [BBC].
With only two recognised strikers at the club in the form of Colin Kazim-Richards and young starlet Jack Stretton, the Scouser could be given the chance to show the abilities which saw him become a highly sought-after commodity in his youth career.
Moving closer to the start of the Championship campaign, it may be wise for Derby to give Duncan a platform to showcase his abilities – once described as having ‘raw talent’ by his former coach Anthony Barry, can he really be worse than what they’ve got?
In other news, a pundit believes Wayne Rooney should give his ex-teammate a chance at the Rams.
Next week the ICC executive will sit down and discuss the future of Zimbabwe. As their choices narrow, Martin Williamson looks at the three options on the table.
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They have already been out of Test cricket for three years and to suspend them from one-day cricket as well would hardly make much impact given how often they play. At least removing them from the FTP would banish the numerous rows dotted on the calendar whenever they are due to play, as well as relieving pressure on countries to tour there. In return, the ICC could ensure Zimbabwe gets invited to Associate one-day tournaments and other domestic events, probably in Asia, to allow the squad to progress.They would still receive full funding and their place on the ICC executive and the domestic structure, as it is, would survive. The ICC could then review their position at each quarterly meeting.Likelihood A compromise that would suit all parties. Zimbabwe would keep the cash and the clout but not have to worry about finding opposition. The ICC would also be seen to be doing something while actually doing very little of consequence.
Until a few weeks ago, this would have been an almost guaranteed response, but the ICC has been outflanked by events. There are undoubtedly some, until very recently led by outgoing president Ray Mali, who would still want to take this option but they risk more general opprobrium for doing so. Given that David Morgan, Mali’s successor, doesn’t want his two years at the helm to be dogged by the issue that stalked him while he was at the helm of the ECB, he is likely to use his political skills to ensure that something … anything … does happen. But insiders believe that India could well block any major action against Zimbabwe.Likelihood Given the factions within the ICC and Peter Chingoka’s experience, he might be able to drive a big enough wedge between various parties to ensure Zimbabwe limps on. There may, however, be trade-offs regarding their playing side.
This would achieve all the above but also result in a massive reduction in revenues for the board, with a consequential slashing of jobs within Zimbabwe Cricket. To offset this, Zimbabwe could receive what amounts to a parachute payment to allow them to readjust but this would need to come with strings attached in the form of much tighter financial controls.As a further sweetener, Zimbabwe could be guaranteed World Cup entry in 2011. In all other respects, they would then be free to be treated the same as, say, Kenya, in that they would be invited to Associate and ICC tournaments (such as the ICC Intercontinental Cup) but, for the time being, there may have to be an agreement they do not play any games at home.Zimbabwe would also lose Full Member voting rights within the ICC, but it can be argued that a country which does not play Test cricket and barely manages to fulfil its one-day commitments should not have such a powerful voice anyway.Likelihood Remote. There are too many factions who rely on Zimbabwe’s support within the ICC and would be reluctant to see a guaranteed vote removed. Given their playing strength and generally shambolic board, this might be what some believe they deserve but not what they will get.