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Arsenal’s summer has been full of excitement in several ways.

Mikel Arteta has concluded some outstanding business in the transfer market, welcoming Kai Havertz and Jurrien TImber to the club, on top of club-record signing Declan Rice.

The goals have also been flowing having scored ten across two games with the MLS All Stars and now Barcelona.

Scoring five against the former was hardly seen as an achievement given the quality of the opposition but to do so against the LaLiga champions was a statement of intent.

Who was Arsenal’s best player against Barcelona?

As there were against the All Stars, several players stood out. Leandro Trossard was once again the true hero of the evening, adding to his wonderful goal in that previous clash with two more versus Barca.

Fabio Vieira was another to make a statement to Arteta in that win, scoring a late goal from the substitutes bench.

Having missed a penalty in the bizarre post-game shoot-out against Manchester United, this was a confidence booster for a player who has been criticised considerably by sections of the fanbase.

It is unlikely the Portuguese will feature too often in the early parts of the season but this was a moment that helped stake his claim.

Another to do so was Kieran Tierney, a player under the microscope over the summer.

Is Kieran Tierney leaving Arsenal?

After starting just six times in the Premier League last term due to both injuries and the form of Oleksandr Zinchenko, it looked as though the Scot would take his leave once the window opened.

The likes of Newcastle and Aston Villa have both registered interest and indeed it may well be that he still leaves before September 1st.

Yet, on the evidence of his performances throughout pre-season, the left-back deserves to stay and fight for his place.

After Zinchenko’s arrival and displays as an inverted full-back, many forgot just how good Tierney was. Remember, this is a player who not too long ago boasted the side’s biggest threat. Indeed, in 2020/21, only 17% more full-backs in the division attempted more crosses while he sat inside the best 1% of positionally similar players for take-ons that led to a goal.

Yet, his form has severely dwindled in recent years, so much so that he ranked only in the best 38% of full-backs in the Premier League for crosses last season and the worst 45% for take-ons that led to a goal.

Against Barcelona, in particular, he demonstrated the sort of form that once saw him rank in the top 1%.

How did Kieran Tierney play against Barcelona?

The £110k-per-week earner was only on the field for 20 minutes but during his brief outing, assisted Trossard’s second of the game.

Tierney burst forward and from a more central position than he is perhaps typically used to, fired the ball into the box for the Belgian to find the net.

Although the defender may well find it a challenge to play in the inverted role that Zinchenko has made his own, his ability in the final third can never be questioned.

Galivanting forward at any opportunity, the Scotland international still represents a fabulous option and ahead of the new season, has well and truly played himself back into contention for a starting berth.

He was assured in his passing against Barca, ending his time on the field with a 100% success rate while there was a sternness in defending, winning 100% of his duels as he stopped Ousmane Dembele in his tracks on the left.

Whether or not Tierney does start against Nottingham Forest on the opening weekend is up for debate, but he has surely done all he can to make a point to the manager. The haters have well and truly been defied.

Manchester United target Andre Onana felt it was "impossible to reject the opportunity to play for Manchester United" and equally impossible to turn down "having a manager like Erik ten Hag" as the two have worked together at Ajax before, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

Andre Onana is joining Manchester United

It's been an interesting summer at Old Trafford so far this year.

The early stages of the transfer window looked fairly bleak for fans of the club as the news was dominated mainly by disappointing updates surrounding the prolonged takeover process with little in the way of transfer news.

However, the completion of the deal to sign Mason Mount from Chelsea last month changed that, as now the club look set to complete the signing of Inter Milan's £47m goalkeeper Onana, and there are reports of the club's interest in Atalanta's exciting youngster Rasmus Hojlund.

The signing of Onana is particularly intriguing, as only a few years ago, he was already playing under Erik ten Hag at Ajax and helping the Dutch giants reach the semi-finals of the Champions League.

This previous relationship and mutual respect made this move to United all the easier for the Cameroonian keeper.

The calls from ten Hag helped convince Onana that he couldn't reject the opportunity to come and play in the Premier League for a club like United, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:

"Sources feel that for Andre Onana, it was really impossible to say no.

"Andre Onana was really happy at Inter; he had a fantastic season there, he was very happy with the teammates, the manager, the city.

"But then what happened is Erik ten Hag started to call weeks and weeks ago, for Andre Onana, it was impossible to reject the opportunity to play for Manchester United, the opportunity to play in the Premier League, having a manager like Erik ten Hag, who already knows Andre Onana's skills, so it was the perfect match for Andre Onana's dreams and this is why he decided to accept."

What did Andre Onana win under Erik ten Hag at Ajax?

Onana joined the Amsterdam side's youth setup from Barcelona in January 2015 before making his full Eredivisie debut for the senior side a year later against Willem II Tilburg.

It wouldn't be until December 2017 that ten Hag would join the club, bringing immense success and a return to national dominance that was so synonymous with the side.

Despite not winning the league for four years in a row, ten Hag led the club to domestic triumph in each of his three full seasons in Amsterdam, a success that he shared with his new keeper Onana.

It wasn't just league dominance, though, as with both of them at the club, Amsterdam's premier club also won two Dutch Cups and a Dutch Super Cup.

It's clear that ten Hag was grateful for the performances of his then-keeper as he branded him a "masterful goalkeeper" in an interview he gave when he was still Ajax's manager.

The arrival of Onana could be one of the defining transfers of the Erik ten Hag era at United, and if the pair of them can replicate even some of the success they experienced in the Netherlands, then fans of the Red Devils will be in for a brilliant few years.

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane could be subject to another bid from Bayern Munich, with the Bundesliga club "working hard" to secure his signature, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

Is Harry Kane leaving Tottenham?

Kane has reportedly reached an agreement in principle to move to Bayern Munich, with his agent holding talks with the German champions in recent days, however their £60m bid was swiftly rejected by Tottenham.

The offer falls way short of Spurs' valuation of their talisman, with CBS reporter Ben Jacobs recently tweeting: "Spurs have rejected Bayern's €70m plus add-ons offer for Harry Kane. Daniel Levy in no mood to sell, and certainly not for under £100m."

Although his contract is set to expire next summer, Levy is driving a hard bargain, and there have been reports the 29-year-old could be willing to let his current deal run out, before leaving the club on a free transfer in 2024.

At the moment, however, Bayern appear to be undeterred in their pursuit of the England international, and transfer insider Dean Jones has told GiveMeSport he believes they could come back to the negotiating table soon:

"Information coming out of Germany is that Bayern have been working hard behind the scenes to understand the personal drive and ambitions of Harry Kane, and after weeks of exploration around his situation at Spurs, they had enough confidence to step forward and begin the bidding process to try and sign him.

"They know how difficult a deal like this might be, but they need a striker and want full clarification around the chances of getting him before they move on to their other prime targets Randal Kolo Muani and [Victor] Osimhen. The first offer is low but that just makes me think they will be back with another bid."

How much will Harry Kane cost?

According to The Telegraph, Tottenham may choose to cash-in on the Englishman, should they receive an offer of £80m from an overseas club, which indicates Bayern may not be too far off, leaving Levy with a huge decision to make.

It would be a risk to keep the £200k-per-week striker at the club for another year, in the hope that he is persuaded to sign a new contract, as losing him for free would be a real blow.

That said, even if Spurs do receive big money for Kane, it is extremely unlikely they will be able to find anyone capable of replacing him, considering his fantastic goal-scoring record, finding the back of the net 280 times in a total of 435 appearances for the club.

As such, Levy should hold firm for the time being, and only sanction the forward's departure if a bid comes in that is simply too good to refuse.

South Africa ended New Zealand’s unbeaten run in their current home season with a thoroughly dominant performance in the first T20I

The Report by Andrew McGlashan at Eden Park17-Feb-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:35

Tahir’s party tricks sink New Zealand

It won’t come close to making up for losing that World Cup semi-final but South Africa emerged the victors at Eden Park this time, and in convincing style. In turn it ended New Zealand’s unbeaten home season as they slumped to 107 in the chase, set back by two early wickets for Chris Morris and finished off by Imran Tahir’s career-best 5 for 24.Tahir second fastest to 50 T20I wickets

31 Number of T20Is Imran Tahir has taken to get 50 wickets; he is the second quickest to the mark after Ajantha Mendis. Click here for a list of quickest bowlers to 50 wickets in T20Is.

1 South Africa bowlers to take 50 wickets in T20Is before Tahir. Dale Steyn has taken 58 wickets from 42 T20Is. He took 35 matches to get to 50 wickets.

2 Number of five-fors by South Africa bowlers in T20Is before Tahir’s 5 for 24 in this match. Ryan McLaren had got 5 for 19 and David Wiese 5 for 23, both against West Indies.

78 runs New Zealand’s margin of defeat – their second worst in T20Is while chasing.

1 Innings returns for New Zealand that are more economical than Trent Boult’s 2 for 8 from four overs in T20Is. Daniel Vettori had returned figures of 3 for 6 against Bangladesh in 2010.

Hashim Amla’s classy 62 formed the centrepiece of South Africa’s 185 for 6 and if that felt a little underwhelming after a sticky final five overs, a double-wicket maiden by Morris soon had New Zealand on the back foot. He was followed Andile Phehlukwayo, who took three wickets, but the finishing touches belonged to Tahir, the No. 1 T20 and ODI bowler, as he became the second-quickest to 50 T20I wickets and was the second man on a hat-trick for the innings. It may not have been the hardest of five-fors for him, but that didn’t dim the celebrations.For all Tahir’s success to end the match, the Powerplay difference was telling: South Africa made 56 for 1 – as Amla scooted away – while New Zealand sat at 34 for 2 on the back of losing debutant Glenn Phillips and Colin Munro in consecutive balls to Morris whose second over was also a maiden. Phillips could be forgiven for his nervy innings, but Munro’s swing across the line of a full delivery was ugly for a more experienced player.Dane Paterson, who played ahead of the rested Kagiso Rabada, helped set the tone with just seven runs coming off his first 11 deliveries – like Morris, hitting a back-of-a-length area and getting a bit of zip under the lights – before Tom Bruce took him for six.But New Zealand couldn’t break free and Phehlukwayo strengthened South Africa’s position when he had Kane Williamson taken at deep square-leg. It was soon a full-fledged collapse as Corey Anderson and Bruce fell swinging and Luke Ronchi nicked his first ball from Tahir who became the third South Africa bowler to take five wickets in a T20I.It was a little remarkable that there was a match at all given the volume of rain which had fallen in two days. There was some early swing but Amla, one of the South Africa players rested from the T20 series against Sri Lanka, batted serenely. He took a liking to Ben Wheeler’s first two overs, collecting six boundaries in all including four in a row at the start of the fifth over. He zipped to his half-century off 32 balls, was given a life on 61 when Ronchi missed a stumping but fell shortly afterwards when he hoicked into the deep.Faf du Plessis, who enjoyed a productive home season, added 87 off 51 balls for the second wicket with Amla and he twice deposited Mitchell Santner into the stands straight down the ground. He was given a life on 34, when Santner made a mess of a skier at point, but fell the next over. By then, however, the platform had been set for South Africa to press for 200.After Amla fell, AB de Villiers was just threatening to go through the gears when he lofted Colin de Grandhomme to mid-off midway through the 16th over and South Africa couldn’t quite summon the finish that had been on the cards despite JP Duminy’s best efforts.The final five overs brought 46 runs and included the completion of an outstanding four overs from Trent Boult. Earlier he had removed Quinton de Kock for a duck, during an opening two-over spell which cost two runs, then returned to bowl the 11th for just four (and was the bowler to suffer from Santner’s drop) then finished his quota with a two-run 19th over. It gave him the second-most economical return by a New Zealand paceman in T20Is. But that was the only bright spot for them.

Arsenal will have to accept taking a "major hit" financially on winger Nicolas Pepe as he becomes open to a Saudi Arabia move this summer, according to reports.

Who could leave Arsenal this summer?

After missing out on a first Premier League title in nearly 20 years, it is the task of manager Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu to revamp the squad as this transfer window officially opens.

Of the players who could come in, the likes of West Ham star Declan Rice and Brighton's Moises Caicedo have been heavily linked, with the Gunners also searching for a new right-back.

However, to make room for these potential additions, certain fringe players must be offloaded as Arsenal look to operate within their means and abide by FFP regulations.

There are a few nominations for the exit door, perhaps most notably Kieran Tierney, Emile Smith Rowe, Nuno Tavares, Sambi Lokonga, Folarin Balogun and long-serving star Granit Xhaka (Goal).

January signing Jorginho has also been linked with a return to Italy, just six months after Arsenal signed him from Chelsea, and this could be the last summer for club-record signing Pepe.

According to reliable journalist Chris Wheatley, writing for 3 Added Minutes, the Ivory Coast international is "open" to leaving Arsenal and moving to Saudi Arabia – coming as the north Londoners deem him surplus-to-requirements alongside Cedric Soares.

The full sentence was: "Pepe in particular is open minded to moving to Saudi Arabia, where a flurry of marquee names have arrived in recent weeks."

However, given Pepe has just one year remaining on his contract, Arsenal will have to take a "major hit" financially on the £72.5 million they paid for his services in 2019.

Who is Nicolas Pepe?

Scoring six goals in 19 Ligue 1 appearances on loan at Nice last season, Pepe actually impressed in parts going by his attacking statistics.

According to WhoScored, the winger averaged more completed take-ons per 90 than any other player in the Nice squad, all while ranking in their top two for attempts at goal and key passes completed in the final third.

The £140,000-per-week player was even praised by Arteta for his attitude in 2022.

"Obviously he’s not responsible for the price a club paid for him," said Arsenal's manager to the media.

"He’s tried everything. His attitude has been just phenomenal. I think you have to meet the person because you have to love him for the way he is."

Despite this, though, it appears Pepe's time in north London could well be coming to an end – and it's perhaps a regrettable signing overall for the Arsenal board.

Arsenal have now "agreed personal terms" with Brighton & Hove Albion's Moises Caicedo, according to a recent report from Ecuadorian outlet Teradeportes.

Who will Arsenal sign this summer?

The Gunners are searching for a new central midfielder, with Granit Xhaka set to depart, and they have identified Declan Rice as a key target, having recently agreed personal terms with the West Ham United captain.

With Mikel Arteta keen on bringing in three new midfielders this summer, Mason Mount has also been identified as a potential target, although the Chelsea midfielder now appears to be poised to complete a move to Manchester United.

As such, Arsenal may have to turn their attentions elsewhere, and they could look at signing Manchester City's Ilkay Gundogan, who will be available on a free transfer later this month, upon the expiration of his contract.

Another midfielder the Gunners have been linked with is Caicedo, and according to Terdapatores, they have now "agreed personal terms" with the Brighton star, who has made a move to the Emirates Stadium his "priority."

However, there will be competition for the Ecuadorian's signature from some other Premier League clubs, with Chelsea "willing to pay a higher figure" than Arsenal, although they will not be able to offer him European football of any description next season.

Liverpool are also name checked as potential suitors, however the Reds have not made the £15k-per-week youngster a priority signing, as they do not want to meet Brighton's asking price.

Who will Caicedo sign for?

Given that Arsenal have Champions League football to offer the 21-year-old, and the report claims he favours a move to north London, they should be well-placed to win the race for his signature this summer.

If the Gunners do sign the central midfielder, he could be an excellent addition to the squad, given his stellar defensive abilities, making 100 tackles in the Premier League last season, the second-highest amount of any player in the top flight.

Hailed as "incredible" by members of the media, the Ecuador international also excels in his distribution of the ball, ranking in the 94th percentile for his pass-completion rate per 90 over the past year.

With Arsenal set to return to the Champions League next season, Arteta needs to bolster his squad with players who can make his side competitive in Europe's elite competition, and Caicedo has proven he is capable of making the step up.

The BPL has been forced to restart on November 8 after the first four games were washed out in Mirpur without a ball bowled

Mohammad Isam05-Nov-2016The BPL has been forced to restart on November 8 with rain having played havoc with the tournament’s opening fixtures – the first four games have been washed out in Mirpur without a ball bowled. The matches from the new start date will take place according to the existing schedule, while four of the first six matches, earlier scheduled from November 4 to 6, will be played later in the tournament.But there is confusion over whether the opening day’s games will be replayed or the teams will share points. Rangpur Riders and Khulna Titans have agreed to a rematch, according to BPL’s member secretary Ismail Haider Mallick, but Comilla Victorians and Rajshahi Kings are still undecided. BCB vice-president Mahbubul Anam however said that the board cannot legally reassign the November 4 matches unless all the participating teams are unanimous on the decision whether to replay the two games or not.Mallick made the announcement of starting the tournament on a later date on Saturday evening, adding that both matches on Saturday – Chittagong Kings v Barisal Bulls, and Dhaka Dynamites v Comilla – had been postponed earlier in the day. He said that the decision to restart the tournament from November 8 was decided in meeting on Saturday afternoon. The meeting involved the BPL governing council and representatives from the seven franchises, while broadcasters and ticketing partners were also taken into account.”We have a weather report which has a forecast for more rain for another two days,” Mallick said. “So far not a single ball has been bowled in the tournament due to the rain. We have decided to postpone the November 5 and 6 matches. We now want to hold our first match on November 8 as per the existing schedule. We will reschedule the November 5 and 6 matches in the rest days within our fixtures list.”On the issue of the opening day’s matches, Mallick said: “According to the bylaws, we can make the November 4 matches into rematches only if the franchises agree to it. Rangpur and Khulna have agreed for the rematch but we don’t have a decision from Comilla and Rajshahi, who were the teams in the tournament’s first match.”We will try to reassign the five or six matches on November 10 and 14 and, if need be, we will hold three matches in a day. November 20 is also an option for the rescheduled matches.”BCB vice-president Anam however said doing different things for the opening days’ games was not permissible by the rules: “We have already postponed and rescheduled today’s and tomorrow’s [November 5 and 6] matches, but since yesterday’s matches have gone into the record book, we cannot legally change those results unless all the franchises agree on it,” Anam said. “We have left it to them to decide whether they want the one points each. We cannot do anything outside the law. The BCB cannot reverse the results of these two matches unless all the participating teams agree on the decision.”

ScorecardNatalie Sciver made the best of her reprieve – but failed to have the final word•Getty Images

Stafanie Taylor’s unbeaten 74 guided Western Storm to an unlikely but thrilling five wicket victory over Surrey Stars in the Kia Women’s Super League at the Brightside Ground.Taylor, who dropped England star Natalie Sciver (90 not out) on two during the Surrey innings, put on an unbeaten 71 with Sophie Luff (21 not out) to see the Storm home in the final over of a remarkable game in Bristol.The Storm appeared dead and buried when Surrey, who hit 161 for 6 off their 20 overs, reduced the hosts to 17 for 3 in the fourth over. However, Taylor made up for her earlier error to earn the hosts a second victory in three games.Having chosen to bat first, Surrey made a steady start thanks to England’s Tammy Beaumont and fellow opener Bryony Smith. However, having reached 19, Smith tried one expansive shot too many and was bowled by England’s Anya Shrubsole, for 19.Beaumont and Cordelia Griffiths added 18 for the second wicket and Beaumont and Sciver 26 for the third before the former was finally out, for 13, run out by a smart piece of fielding from Taylor.Sciver, who was dropped by Taylor on 2, at deep square leg, batted with great purpose despite losing fourth wicket partner Marizanne Kapp, for two, at 90 for 4.The Storm, who also came into the game having won one and lost one of their opening games, did their best to stem the tide and bowled well between overs 11 and 14.Mark Robinson, England coach, keeps an eye on form•Getty Images

Unfortunately, they were made to pay dearly for Taylor’s slip in the deep, as Sciver edged closer to 50. The gifted all-rounder finally reached her half century off 29 balls with nine fours and a six.With Beth Morgan, she added 29 for the fifth wicket, before Morgan gifted Freya Davies her second wicket at 119 for 5, in the 16th over. Sciver continued to heap misery on Taylor, hitting the West Indian all-rounder for four successive boundaries in the 17th over as Surrey piled on the runs.In the end, Surrey reached 161 for 6 with Sciver unbeaten on a quite brilliant 90, off 45 balls with 16 fours and two sixes.The Storm’s reply could not have got off to a worse start. Having hit seven off the opening over, they lost their first wicket when Rachel Priest was run out for seven at 8 for 1. Captain Knight departed at 16 for 2 and when Fran Wilson was trapped leg before, at 17 for 3, the Storm’s chances appeared to have disappeared.Lee was sublime. She struck two straight sixes into the Ashley Down Road flats before Taylor followed suit, over mid wicket. Lee reached her 50 off 35 balls with eight fours and two sixes, but was out shortly after, for 53, caught by Sciver off the bowling of Lea Tahuhu at 93 for 4. It was soon 94 for 5 with Georgia Hennessey trapped lbw by Sciver.Only then did the Storm come to life with Taylor and Luff hitting the ball to all four corners. Gradually they set off in pursuit of their target and with the help of some poor fielding and one or two dropped catches, they won the day in the final over during which Taylor struck two sixes and a four.Bristol looks resplendent in the sunshine•Getty Images

Glamorgan continued their remarkable form in the NatWest T20 Blast against Sussex with a win that extended their undefeated run in the competition to seven matches

ECB Reporters Network07-Jul-2016
ScorecardTim van der Gugten’s early wickets made the difference•Getty Images

Glamorgan continued their remarkable form in the NatWest T20 Blast against Sussex with a win that extended their undefeated run in the competition to seven matches.A 55-ball 81 from David Lloyd set up a total that was about par on a slow Cardiff pitch but it was made to look a lot more valuable than that when Glamorgan’s Dutch bowler Timm van der Gugten ripped apart the Sussex top order at the start of the Sussex chase and finished with 4 for 17.The story of Glamorgan’s season has been the coming of age of Lloyd. He made his third first-class hundred of the season against these same opponents on Wednesday and tonight he continued that fine run of form. He looked all set to pass his career best T20 score of 97 not out made against Kent this season but he fell in the 17th over when He mistimed a pull shot off Chris Jordan.Lloyd shared decent partnerships with Colin Ingram and Jacques Rudolph, but he was the most impressive Glamorgan batsman by a distance. The next highest score was Rudolph with 24 who had dropped himself down to No. 4 as he searches for a return to form.Rudolph had looked very well set in this innings, at one point hitting a massive six off Chris Nash that is now residing at the bottom of the River Taff. Just when it appeared that he might make his first truly significant T20 contribution of 2016 he drilled a ball from Nuwan Kulasekara to Luke Wright in the covers.A four-over spell from England bowler’s Chris Jordan and Tymal Mills in the final overs prevented Glamorgan from getting a truly daunting total. Mills was particularly impressive as he took two wickets for five runs in his two overs at the death. He bowled with pace and with accuracy showing why he made his England bow this week.Glamorgan stumbled to a total of 159 for 8, but it ended up being more than enough as the ever more impressive van der Gugten took three wickets in three overs at the start of the Sussex innings to leave them 22 for 3 in the seventh over.With the Sussex top order gone the run rate just kept going up, but a partnership between Ross Taylor and Matt Machan that was worth 37 gave Sussex some hope. When both of those men fell within seven balls of each other any feint hopes of an away win were gone.With that partnership broken it became a procession of Sussex wickets as they finished on 113 all out. Michael Hogan, Craig Meschede and Graham Wagg picked up two wickets.Shaun Tait bowled very fast on his return to Glamorgan after his brief spell with the club in 2010 but he was the only seamer to go wicketless.

West Ham could miss out on the signing of James Ward-Prowse this summer due to interest from other clubs, according to a new transfer update.

Is Ward-Prowse leaving Southampton?

The Englishman has been a magnificent servant for Southampton, captaining them for a number of years and making 405 appearances in total. He has remained loyal to the club for such a long time, ignoring interest from other clubs, but this summer could see that change.

Saints now look almost certain to be relegation from the Premier League in the coming weeks, at which point Ward-Prowse will surely find a new challenge. He is far too good to be playing Championship football, with the 11-cap England international sure to be wanted by a host of teams.

West Ham will be looking to make significant inroads in the summer transfer market and the £100,000-a-week Southampton skipper is someone they have been linked with a move for in the recent past. A negative update has now emerged regarding their quest to sign him, though.

Could West Ham snap up Ward-Prowse?

According to Football Insider, The Hammers' hopes of snapping up Ward-Prowse this summer "could be scuppered by interest from Tottenham and Newcastle United". The Premier League pair are also interested in bringing in the 28-year-old, meaning the east Londoners "could find a deal difficult to do with the interest from elsewhere".

This is clearly a potential blow for West Ham, with the Saints man someone who possesses so much quality in the middle of the park, even being described as a "world-class" player by former manager Nathan Jones earlier in the year. In terms of his free-kick taking ability, there are arguably few better in the world currently, and he would such an exciting signing by West Ham, coming in and filling the void likely to be left by Declan Rice.

Ward-Prowse has scored seven times in the Premier League this season, as well as registering two assists, but he is also a fighter off the ball, averaging 1.7 tackles per game. The lure of either Tottenham or Newcastle United could be too great for him to turn down, however, with the former still a huge club despite their current issues and the latter looking highly likely to promise him Champions League football next season.

The hope is that West Ham can still lure him to the London Stadium, but it will be extremely tough for them to fend off other high-ranked clubs for his signature.