Newcastle United headed to AFC Bournemouth on Sunday in Premier League action still bruised from their narrow 2-1 defeat in the Champions League at the hands of Barcelona.

With such a quick turnaround since Thursday’s defeat, too, Eddie Howe had to make five alterations to his starting XI for the trip to the Cherries, with none of these fresh alterations coming in to guide the Toon to a much-needed win, unfortunately.

Instead, the much-changed Magpies would unconvincingly stumble to a 0-0 draw on the road, with Joe Willock, in particular, not banging the door down for more first-team minutes going forward, based on his poor display.

Willock's no-show vs Bournemouth

In truth, it was a flat performance all over the pitch from Howe’s visitors, with only a weak four shots registered all match by the Toon, during the drab stalemate.

Worryingly, Willock showed no sign of being energetic throughout, despite the ex-Arsenal man being handed his first Premier League start of the season, as Howe made all those changes.

The vibrant livewire that once netted eight goals from just 13 league starts during the 2020/21 season is now long gone, with Willock actually managing to register fewer touches of the ball than Nick Pope in between the sticks, as a forgettable 32 touches of the ball were tallied up across his hour or so on the pitch, next to Pope’s 42, per Sofascore.

With just 12 accurate passes notched up from the middle of the park, too, it’s no great shock that the heavily rotated Newcastle that took to the pitch looked so limp in attack when there was a complete lack of creative flair coming from the declining 26-year-old.

Of course, the attackers fielded by Howe also need to take their portion of the blame after firing blanks throughout on the South Coast, as another underperforming member of the concerned manager’s starting XI worries about his first-team minutes moving forward.

The Newcastle flop who should be dropped

It was a tough day at the office for the Newcastle forward players, but Jacob Murphy did manage to show some flashes of his quality here and there.

In all fairness, the long-standing Magpies servant looked somewhat bright for his hour run-out against Andoni Iraola’s stern hosts, with Murphy at least coming away from the bore draw with a shot on target registered, on top of also completing a dribble when trying to catch out the Cherries defence.

It would, however, be one of Murphy’s attacking partners for the day in Nick Woltemade, who would notably struggle throughout, despite plenty of praise coming the ex-Stuttgart centre-forward’s way before the match got underway.

After all, it’s not as if the 6 foot 6 monster has the pressure of attempting to break his Magpies duck weighing down on him, with a debut goal coming his way in the Premier League versus Wolverhampton Wanderers when he graced the St James’ Park turf.

Minutes played

84

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Touches

37

Shots

0

Accurate passes

12/18 (67%)

Possession lost

19x

Total duels won

4/14

Yet, away from grappling well in one instance when having his shirt pulled by a Bournemouth man for a potential penalty, it was very much a forgettable second outing for Woltemade in the top-flight, as is illustrated in the table above.

It will all centre on the mountain man trying to find some consistency moving forward, with his shooting boots presumably forgetting to be packed for the long journey down to the South Coast, as Woltemade failed to register a single meaningful shot at the home side’s goal.

Even more concerningly, the below-par number 27 also struggled to put his towering frame to good use, with only four of his 14 duels being successfully won, per Sofascore.

Willock, at least, came away from his shoddy showing with six duels won under his belt, with Woltemade also losing possession 19 times, while his midfield teammate gave up the ball just nine times. Despite all these worrying numbers, the German would be handed a 6/10 post-match rating by Newcastle World’s Jordan Cronin, although Cronin did state that his performance “dipped” in the second 45 minutes.

After ringing the changes to try and freshen his side up did not work, it could well be that Howe reverts to what he knows more for Newcastle’s upcoming contest in the league against Arsenal, with Willock at risk of being dropped against his former side, alongside Woltemade potentially sitting the clash out back on home soil.

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The striker is of a similar profile to Wissa.

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تحدث حامد حمدان، لاعب وسط فريق بتروجيت، عن التعادل الأهلي، ضمن منافسات مسابقة الدوري المصري الممتاز.

وسجل حمدان، هدف بتروجيت في المباراة التي انتهت بالتعادل بهدف لكل فريق ضمن منافسات الجولة الثانية عشر من الدوري المصري.

طالع.. فيديو | السقوط الأول لـ توروب.. الأهلي يكتفي بتعادل مخيب مع بتروجيت ويفقد صدارة الدوري

وقال حامد حمدان عبر قناة “أون سبورت”: “في الشوط الأول ربما كنا قد استهلكنا طاقتنا بعض الشيء، لكن في الثاني لعبنا على غلق المساحات، والحمد لله نجحنا في ذلك”.

وواصل: “لم يكن هدفنا الحصول على نقطة، لكن الحمد لله النقطة أفضل من لا شيء، وكنا نلعب من أجل تحقيق الفوز وحصد الثلاث نقاط أمام أي فريق، فنحن نحترم جميع المنافسين، والنادي الأهلي كبير، لكن هدفنا كان الانتصار”.

وأتم: “الحمد لله على كل حال، ولن نرضى بأقل من مستوى الموسم الماضي، وإن شاء الله سنكون في مركز أفضل هذا الموسم”.

Many Liverpool players came in for criticism after the 2-1 defeat away to Chelsea, with one individual producing “another dire performance” for the Reds.

Neville slams "absolutely useless" Liverpool attack

The Premier League champions have been brought crashing back down to reality, losing three times in a week and being defeated in stoppage time away to both Crystal Palace and Chelsea.

Reflecting on Liverpool’s performance after Saturday’s game at Stamford Bridge, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville didn’t hold back in his criticism of the attack, with various individuals misfiring.

“I thought after they scored, I was really disappointed in their level of performance. A lot has been made of Liverpool’s defensive work and rightly so, but that’s not why they’ve lost this game. They’ve lost this game because in the last 15-20 minutes, their creative players, their players in the final half of the pitch, the midfield players and the forwards were absolutely useless.

“They were giving the ball away like you wouldn’t believe. Gakpo, Salah, the wastage. Wirtz, not knowing how to get into a game in the last 15 minutes when it was there for the taking and just sort of ended up almost marking Caicedo. I thought their front players were terrible. Salah is sublime.

“How can you criticise the consistency and reliability and brilliance of him, but some of the decisions of him today, when he comes inside and you think he should pass it or you think he should do something better with it, and his finishing was poor.”

It has been a concerning week for Liverpool, with too many players well below their best, and one Reds hero has been lambasted after his showing against the Blues.

Liverpool star slammed for "another dire performance"

Writing on X, Statman Dave slammed Mohamed Salah’s “dire” display for Liverpool against Chelsea, with the Reds legend having the fewest touches of any outfield player to feature for the whole game.

Salah’s form is a definite cause for concern, with the 33-year-old seemingly no longer possessing the blistering pace that he did, making it easier for full-backs in one-on-one situations.

That said, the more troubling aspect of his game is his general use of the ball, with too many passes going astray and his finishing away to Chelsea horribly erratic.

Salah has overcome slumps before, but the fact that he is now well into his 30s means that the voices are only going to be louder when it comes to writing him off.

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He still has a huge amount to offer Liverpool, but if his performances don’t improve immeasurably after the international break, there may have to be genuine talk about him potentially being past his prime.

Rajat Patidar was pulled up even though Jitesh Sharma was RCB’s stand-in captain on Friday against SRH

ESPNcricinfo staff24-May-2025Rajat Patidar and Pat Cummins, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captains respectively, have both been fined for their teams’ slow over-rates during Friday’s IPL 2025 match held in Lucknow.As it was RCB’s second offence of the season – the first was on April 7 – under the IPL’s code of conduct relating to over-rate offences, Patidar was fined INR 24 lakh. The other members of the playing XII were each fined either INR 6 lakh or 25% of their respective match fees, whichever is lower.Cummins was fined INR 12 lakh since it was SRH’s first offence of the season.Related

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Patidar, as the designated team captain, had to bear the responsibility of RCB’s slow over-rate, even though Jitesh Sharma was stand-in captain for the match with Patidar, back after an injury, playing as a batter only.This is similar to how Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson was fined INR 24 lakh for a second offence for the franchise, even though Riyan Parag was stand-in captain during their first infraction.While a third – and subsequent – slow over-rate offence in any upcoming game would lead to a heavier fine, Patidar – or any IPL team captain – will not be suspended, as was the case till IPL 2024. The rule was amended ahead of IPL 2025, although Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya missed his team’s season opener because his suspension had carried forward from last season.

Chelsea “love” an attacker with a “left foot made of gold” and “will push” to hijack Real Madrid’s move, it has been revealed.

Blues looking to sign new attacking midfielder

In Cole Palmer’s absence, the Blues struggled against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, succumbing to a 3-1 home defeat, with Andrey Santos failing to create any big chances prior to being replaced by Josh Acheampong after 54 minutes.

Enzo Fernandez, on the other hand, put in a more impressive performance, scoring his side’s only goal, but the Argentina international has been called into question for his creativity in the past.

With Palmer not fully-fit, Enzo Maresca’s side have put in some poor displays recently, succumbing to a 2-1 defeat against Manchester United, following the England international being forced off with a groin injury just after the 20-minute mark.

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As such, there is arguably a lack of depth in attacking midfield, which Maresca has now set out to rectify, with Chelsea joining the race for Real Madrid target Nico Paz, according to transfer journalist Mark Brus, in a report for Caught Offside.

Brus’ source said: “Chelsea love Nico, Chelsea will push for sure. Real Madrid are confident, but Como will try to negotiate a new contract for him to remove the buy-back clause. They believe they could then sell him for as much as €80m (£70m).”

Should Paz sign a new deal with Como, it could pave the way for a move to Stamford Bridge, but Real Madrid remain confident about re-signing the attacking midfielder, and they currently remain in control of his future.

Paz could take career to next level at Stamford Bridge

Real Madrid may be ruing the decision to let the Argentinian leave in the first place, given the impact he’s made at Como, chipping in with six goals and nine assists in his first Serie A campaign, and he has since made a flying start to the new season.

The Spain-born star has amassed six goal contributions in his opening five league games, showcasing that he could soon be ready to take his career to the next level by signing for one of Europe’s top clubs.

Lauded as having a “left foot made of gold” by football scout Jacek Kulig, the starlet also fits the bill age-wise, given that he is just 21-years-old, and the Blues are well-known to have a policy of signing young players.

Paz ticks every box for Chelsea, and with Maresca clearly in need of players to provide competition for Palmer’s starting spot, he could be the ideal addition to the squad.

Manchester City's Champions League visit to Villarreal should have been a triumphant homecoming for Rodri, a return to the club that made him. But the midfielder will get no warm welcome back from his former fans at the Estadio de la Ceramica on Tuesday as he instead recovers from a hamstring injury that has raised further doubts over his ability to get back to his best a year after undergoing knee surgery.

Rodri was born in Madrid and took his first steps in organised football with Rayo Majadahonda and then Atletico Madrid, but he became a professional with Villarreal. Atletico let him go in 2013 as they believed he lacked the physical presence needed to make it so, aged 17, he moved to the Yellow Submarine. Not wanting to put all his eggs in one basket, he also enrolled in a degree in Business Studies at the University of Castellon and moved into student accommodation.

And when he broke into the Villarreal first team in 2015, his fellow students were shocked to see the midfielder who was coming up against Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi each week walk past them in hallways on their way to doing laundry. "People flipped out when they saw Rodri still living in student halls when he started playing in La Liga," friend Valentin Henarejos told . "He shared space with everyone. He liked to be with his friends or sit on the sofa with everyone. But of course people were shocked to see him play ping pong or put on the washing machine.

"When he got to La Liga he didn't change on a personal level, he lived the same way training, travelling to matches, resting and studying. He managed the step up well."

Rodri, who drove an Opel Corsa and had a 'half-broken' mobile phone when he was starting out, said Villarreal "gave me everything" and was "the ideal place to grow as a footballer", but he did not stick around long. Atletico signed Rodri in the summer of 2018 for €20 million just before he had turned 22, and one year later more than tripled their investment when he was sold to Manchester City for €70m (£62.5m), where he became the Cityzens' record signing at the time. 

It proved to be money very well spent as Rodri helped guide City to four successive Premier League titles and scored the goal that delivered them the Champions League at long last. Having helped Spain win Euro 2024 – their first major international trophy for 12 years – he won the Ballon d'Or, the first-ever City player to do so and the first Spaniard since Luis Suarez in 1960. Not bad for an aspiring business student!

But Rodri now faces a careeer crossroads as the niggling injuries have piled up since he tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in September 2024. There are genuine fears that that he will never be the same player again, certainly not the resilient athlete who could play every match and practically guarantee that his team would win whenever he was on the field.

AFPStill hope

Many great players have never been the same again after suffering ACL injuries. Radamel Falcao, for example, was a shadow of the player he once was after injuring his knee for Monaco in 2014, as he missed the World Cup with Colombia before then bombing with Manchester United and Chelsea, though he did stage a slight resurgence once back at Monaco. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, meanwhile, missed a combined three seasons due to knee issues and finally was forced to retire aged 34.

There are also plenty of good news stories, of players who overcame long spells out on the sidelines to get back to their former heights or be even better. Ruud van Nistelrooy's move to Manchester United from PSV in 2000 was derailed by an ACL injury. but one year later he got back to full fitness and became one of the most prolific strikers to ever grace Old Trafford. Ronaldo tore his ACL in 1999 and then, in his comeback game, ruptured tendons in his kneecap; less than two years later he fired Brazil to glory at the 2002 World Cup and then earned a move to Real Madrid. Roy Keane missed most of the 1997-98 season due to ACL tear but then led United to the treble in 1999, while in 2000 he scooped the PFA Player of the Year award.

More recently, Eder Militao has torn the ACL in each of his knees within the past two years but has returned to being a regular for Real Madrid and Brazil, while his club team-mate Dani Carvajal is also back for Madrid after suffering a triple knee injury last year.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWorst case scenario

Rodri, though, suffered one of the worst case scenarios when it comes to knee injuries. There are two menisci in each knee, the medial (inside) and lateral (outside), while the ACL connects them. Although the ACL is one of the main ligaments in the knee, the menisci are as important as they absorb shock between the shin and thigh bones, helping stabilise the knee and protect it from wear and tear. 

While between 50 and 70 per cent of people who tear their ACL also damage one of their meniscus as well, only around a third of people tear all three. Rodri was one of the unlucky ones, suffering what is known in medical circles as 'the terrible triad'. ACL surgeon Gordon Mackay told that tearing the outer cartilage means "a more challenging recovery, more challenging surgery, and a less predictable outcome". 

Rodri was treated by Dr Manuel Leyes, who runs the Olympia clinic in Madrid that operated on Carvajal, Luis Suarez, Sergio Ramos and Zinedine Zidane, among other notable athletes from the NFL and the NBA. Leyes told that "Rodri has a good head on his shoulders and is surrounded by a team that advises him very well," but he and manager Pep Guardiola appear to have disagreed on the timescale of his recovery.

Getty Images Sport'Big' injury at Club World Cup

As far back as January, Guardiola warned of the danger of Rodri returning too soon. “He's positive but I don't know to be honest. An ACL is an ACL. Always I believe in long injuries there's a time you must respect because of the human body. The most important thing for Rodri now is to recover well. You're not a teenager anymore but still you have years to play. And it's going to happen if you recover well. If you can get back for one week, one month and [take a] step back for next season it's not intelligent."

Guardiola had said shortly after Rodri underwent surgery that he could be out for between nine and 12 months, and yet he returned to the pitch just under eight months after he suffered the injury against Arsenal, playing 10 minutes in the penultimate game of City's Premier League campaign against Bournemouth. But the big mistake, with hindsight, seems to have been taking Rodri to the Club World Cup.

In the United States, Guardiola again repeated his message of being careful with Rodri and only introduced him for the final half-hour against Wydad Casablanca and Al Ain. He then started Rodri against Juventus, giving him just over an hour, but returned him to the bench for the last-16 clash with Al-Hilal. Guardiola brought his star midfielder on in the second half as his team were trailing 2-1, but was then forced to take Rodri off again in extra-time due to a groin problem. Months later, Guardiola admitted it was "a big injury" and explained that Rodri would not start the season.

"Hopefully after the international break, he will be really fit," he said. "Hopefully in these games, he can play some minutes, but what is important is that he doesn't have pain because we don't want Rodri coming back injured. We will try desperately to avoid that."

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Getty Images Sport'Lot of pain'

Rodri got 15 minutes against Tottenham and played 90 minutes against Brighton, the first time he had completed a match in 11 months, to open the campaign, and Guardiola's wish seemed to have come true as Rodri started against Manchester United, Napoli and Arsenal in the space of seven days, playing a combined 226 minutes of a a potential 270. 

But one week later, he was left out of the squad against Burnley, with Guardiola making the concerning revelation that during training in the build-up to the game, Rodri had told him: "I'm not able to play. I have a lot of pain in my knee." 

A few days later, Guardiola warned that Rodri could not cope with City's usual schedule. "He is not injured, but in the tendon he has a difficulty," Guardiola said before City played Monaco. "The week before was so demanding with [Manchester] United, Napoli and especially Arsenal, and right now he's not able to play three games in a week at a top, top, top level – top intensity, demanding opponents. My feeling right now is he is not ready because he needs time. This type of injury, it is minimum one year and after that you start. Be patient and he dictates. If he feels not good, it's better to rest."

He missed out twice against Northamptonshire ahead of the selectors needing to decide the make-up of Australia’s top three

Andrew McGlashan22-May-2025

How important will events in Cardiff over the next four days prove to Australia’s plans for the World Test Championship final? After his twin failures against Northamptonshire, Marnus Labuschagne has one more outing, against Middlesex, to find some form before decision day draws closer for the selectors over the make-up of the batting order.With Cameron Green’s strong showing against Kent, it feels like his recall for the final against South Africa is becoming increasingly assured even though he won’t be able to bowl. Therefore, the last call to make – providing Beau Webster’s overs are wanted and Josh Hazlewood’s shoulder doesn’t become an issue – would appear to be between Labuschagne and Sam Konstas, with Josh Inglis an outside option given chair of selectors George Bailey put his name in the mix. Whoever gets the nod will be Usman Khawaja’s opening partner.Related

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It may be that the selectors are not swayed massively by what happens in a pair of County Championship matches but Labuschagne, while being an incumbent Test player with an average of 46.76 and 11 hundreds, is not coming into the debate from a position of strength. His Test figure in this WTC cycle is 28.33 with just one century which came 29 innings ago against England during the 2023 Ashes; his last hundred in all first-class cricket was in June 2024.There was a similarity in his pair of dismissals against Northamptonshire last week: squared up and edging to third slip, firstly against fellow Australian Harry Conway, who has recently lost his state contract, and then to Ben Sanderson in a small chase. There wasn’t much to gain with Glamorgan needing 66 to win, but the chance of red-inker 30 went missing. As the catch was taken, Labuschagne lingered at the crease with the expression of someone pondering his lot.The selectors will deliberate long and hard before moving Labuschagne aside. Even when not at his best, the three half-centuries against India last season all came at crucial stages of the series. Unlike Konstas, Labuschagne also has considerable experience batting in England. But it would continue a strange time at the top of Australia’s order if they opt to effectively manufacture another opener.