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MatériaMais Notícias

O São Paulo vem de duas derrotas seguidas, para Red Bull Bragantino e Santos, o que fez a equipe ligar o sinal de alerta no Campeonato Brasileiro, visto que a distância na liderança, que já foi de sete pontos, caiu para três. Assim, diretoria e a comissão técnica trabalham para blindar o elenco e passar confiança para os jogadores nesta reta final de competição nacional.

Olho neles! Veja técnicos estrangeiros que podem ser opções para times brasileiros em 2021

O técnico Fernando Diniz e o coordenador Muricy Ramalho já tomaram atitudes para recolocar a equipe no caminho das vitórias e levantar a moral do time na reta decisiva do Campeonato Brasileiro. E a primeira ação foi realizada por Diniz logo na entrevista coletiva do San-São.

VEJA A SITUAÇÃO DO SÃO PAULO NO CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO

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O treinador tratou de blindar a equipe e defender o elenco. Segundo ele, os jogadores são os responsáveis pela equipe estar na liderança do Brasileirão, e não são duas derrotas que vão apagar tudo o que fizeram até aqui.

– Ficamos de querer diminuir o valor do elenco. O elenco é bom, é o elenco líder do campeonato. É o elenco que estou contente. Se me perguntar semana que vem, daqui 15 dias, não vou mudar. Eu gosto, não sei quantas vezes repete essa pergunta quando perdemos um jogo – afirmou o treinador, mostrando certa irritação.

Não foi somente na comissão técnica que os jogadores foram defendidos. Na reapresentação do elenco na última terça-feira, o coordenador técnico Muricy Ramalho, que já foi tricampeão brasileiro como técnico do Tricolor entre 2006 e 2008, reuniu o elenco e Diniz para uma conversa.

O papo, que durou aproximadamente 30 minutos, foi realizado para passar confiança e apoio neste momento instável da equipe. Segundo o ‘GE’, Muricy afirmou que ficará à disposição dos jogadores para o que precisarem. mas que questões técnicas e táticas serão a cargo da comissão técnica.

Uma coisa é certa: o São Paulo precisa acordar e reagir rápido se quiser ter mais tranquilidade na busca pelo título do Campeonato Brasileiro, que não vem desde 2008, ou seja, há 13 anos.

MatériaMais Notícias

O ano do Coritiba termina da pior maneira possível. Como se não bastasse a má fase técnica da equipe, a derrota para o Atlético-MG, junto com o triunfo do Goiás, faz o time encerrar o ano na lanterna do Campeonato Brasileiro.

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Com pelo menos 11 rodadas em disputa, o Coritiba soma apenas 21 pontos, sete a menos que o Bahia, primeiro time fora da zona de rebaixamento e que ainda joga a sua partida neste domingo.

Agora, Pachequinho e elenco terão alguns dias para refletir e tentar buscar o milagre da permanência na Série A.

+ TABELA DE CLASSIFICAÇÃO DO CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO

O próximo adversário do Coritiba é o Goiás, adversário direto do Z4, no dia 6 de janeiro, no Couto Pereira.

MatériaMais Notícias

Na tarde/noite da última segunda-feira, o Paraná conheceu mais um revés na Série B. Desta vez o algoz foi o Brasil de Pelotas, que levou a melhor no duelo da Vila Capanema com gol de Luiz Henrique.

+ TABELA DE CLASSIFICAÇÃO DA SÉRIE B

Com outro resultado adverso, o time comandado por Gilmar Dal Pozzo fica colado na zona de rebaixamento com 32 pontos e o treinador não esconde a sua preocupação.

‘Eu também tenho medo de cair para a Série C. É um frio na barriga normal, mas tenho coragem para encarar. É trabalho, é o único caminho para buscar o resultado. Hoje eu vejo uma luz no fim de túnel’, disse Dal Pozzo em entrevista coletiva.

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Agora, o desafio do Tricolor será bem maior. Na segunda-feira, o Paraná visita a líder Chapecoense, na Arena Condá.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMoeen Ali was England’s star turn on another gripping day of Test cricket at the Ageas Bowl, as he ended India’s spirited pursuit of a victory target of 245 with a series-sealing display of patient, probing offspin.Bowling with renewed confidence after his first-innings five-wicket haul, and with a juicy dinner-plate of rough to aim outside the right-hander’s off-stump, Moeen finished with match figures of 9 for 134, having effectively sealed the contest either side of the tea interval.Bowling significantly slower than his India counterpart, R Ashwin, who had been so notably ineffective on day three, Moeen was able to find more purchase off the pitch as a result, even though it took him until the 17th over of a previously luckless day’s work before his rewards started to come in a torrent.First, he broke India’s determined fourth-wicket stand of 101 with the massive scalp of Virat Kohli for 58. Then, five overs later, he added Kohli’s steadfast partner, Ajinkya Rahane, for 51. By then, he had also out-thought Rishabh Pant, caught in the deep for a cameo 18 from 12, as India slumped from a threatening 123 for 3 to 184 all out.The end of India’s challenge came in a jubilant rush for England – Ben Stokes cemented his side’s post-tea dominance by removing the dangerous Hardik Pandya with his third ball after the break, before extracting a less-than-convincing lbw against Ishant Sharma to send India’s birthday boy on his way, also for a duck.Four years ago on this very same ground, Moeen had sealed England’s restorative victory over India with second-innings figures of 6 for 67. Today he went one better for the match when Mohammad Shami smoked him to James Anderson at long-on, and though Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah made England wait for their glory in a long-handled alliance of 21, the contest was fittingly sealed by the young gun, Sam Curran, whose batting in both innings had been so vital to England’s hopes. Ashwin wandered across his stumps and was sent on his way lbw for 25.Like Ishant’s dismissal, Ashwin’s was shown on replay to have been missing leg stump, but India by then had burnt through their reviews – one of them used rather imperiously by Kohli himself, who had been caught at short leg by Alastair Cook after Moeen had clearly snagged his glove with another tweaker on off stump.Moeen Ali has Virat Kohli caught at short-leg•Getty Images

It was the pivotal moment of the day, but England by that stage had been seriously aggrieved by a key let-off for Kohli early in his stay. On 9, he had once again propped forward to Moeen and was thumped on the front pad for a vociferous appeal. England lost their subsequent review, however, when the third umpire Joel Wilson deemed Kohli to have got an inside edge on his shot. England’s collective reaction to the big screen told its own story.Almost before the dust had settled on that moment, Kohli persuaded England to burn their second review when, on 15, he was pinned on the back leg by a massive offbreak from Moeen that kept low as well. Umpire Dharmasena, to his credit, immediately shook his head, recognising that Kohli had set himself up outside off stump to negate that very dismissal. Sure enough, replays showed he had been struck outside the line, and as Rahane rose through his own gears to match his captain’s inevitable levels, India began to believe.They were forced to find their belief in the wake of another top-order failure, however. Though England’s second innings had been sawn off for the addition of 11 runs inside the first five overs, with Stuart Broad falling to the first ball of the day before Curran was run out for 46 while trying to farm the strike, their senior bowlers responded to that disappointing preamble by striking hard and early with the new ball.Broad, bowling with predatory intent once again, sent shudders through India’s dressing room by torpedoing KL Rahul with an off-stump grubber in his second over, having showcased the pitch’s increasingly variable bounce with two high-kicking snorters in quick succession. James Anderson then found more sharp movement off the seam to dislodge the rock of India’s first innings, Cheteshwar Pujara, for 5, and having troubled Shikhar Dhawan with a brace of lbw appeals that might have clipped leg stump, soon added India’s remaining opener for 17 via a thick outside edge to gully. At 22 for 3, India were in the soup.Kohli, however, was not about to let his resolve crumble with a shot at a series-levelling victory in his sights. Unusually in this series, his initial duel with Anderson was short-lived, as England turned quickly to the spin of Moeen (and latterly Adil Rashid, who bowled tidily for seven overs but never quite posed the same questions as his offspinning sidekick).But that inevitable battle was rejoined in the 38th over, when Anderson returned to the fray and immediately started extracting some skilful reverse swing from the dry and now abrasive deck. Kohli was beaten on a handful of occasions as the ball exploded outside off, but latched onto a rare leg-stump half-volley to bring up his fifty from 114 balls, and continue a stunning personal series in which he has now gone past 500 runs, with a fifth Test still to come.Rahane, at the other end, briefly got the better of Moeen, sending him into a mid-spell lull by stretching confidently forward to smother his wiles. But England, to their credit, never stopped believing that the rewards for their endeavours would come, and one ball after Cook had dropped a tough chance off Kohli at short leg, he clung onto the one that counted, to prise the opening, at 123 for 4 – the precise halfway mark of the chase – that England needed. The rest was not exactly a formality, but the belief in India’s ranks had visibly drained.”England were braver in tough situations than us,” admitted Kohli in the post-match presentations. India’s captain himself was unbowed after a stellar personal summer, but he will know that this series – much like the South Africa tour earlier in the year – represents a massive opportunity squandered by his world No.1 team.

Coming into Saturday night’s fixture in Lauderhill, Bangladesh had never played at the Central Broward Regional Park. The squad had been in discussions with the ICC and USA Cricket to organise a warm-up fixture against a USA XI to get a sense of how the pitch would play, but they fell apart at the last minute.The lone player in their squad to have any kind of meaningful experience at this ground was Shakib Al Hasan, having played four times in Lauderhill for Jamaica Tallawahs in 2016 and 2017 during the Caribbean Premier League. His team-mates leaned on the captain for that invaluable local knowledge to help end West Indies’ unbeaten record at the venue. Player of the Match Tamim Iqbal also credited Shakib for shifting the tide of the innings with his arrival to the crease.”I think Shakib changed the momentum, to be very honest,” Tamim said after the match that went down to the final over. “As soon as he came in, he started to get the boundaries and I think that knock of his was special. Because we didn’t have a flying [start in] first ten overs, his innings was something really important.”Though West Indies produced their best-ever T20I score the last time they played a completed match at the venue in 2016 with 245 against India, 170-180 has been a par first-innings score here in the last two CPL seasons. Bangladesh looked like they would struggle to achieve that when Soumya Sarkar fell at 48 for 3 in the eighth over before Shakib’s arrival spurred Tamim out of his shell in a 90-run stand.The Bangladesh captain struck Keemo Paul over the off side twice to start the tenth over and got a stroke of luck in the 11th when he top-edged Kesrick Williams over the keeper for his third boundary. But he whipped the heavily partisan 7000-strong Bangladesh crowd into a frenzy with three more boundaries off Williams in the 13th over to provide the much-needed impetus.”We always knew that we were capable of coming back strongly,” Tamim said. “After the first ten overs, we recovered really well and got the maximum runs that we could have scored. We knew they had got some serious power-hitters in the team, so we needed to keep on getting wickets and that’s exactly what happened.”Sometimes 200 is not enough, sometimes 150 is enough. So we knew that we need to give our best. We need to field as best as we can and that’s what we did. I think every bowler did their job. Fizz (Mustafizur Rahman) was brilliant, Abu Hider was special. I think everybody did their job.”A pivotal sequence happened in the 14th over when Tamim, on 47, miscued a drive off captain Carlos Brathwaite to mid-off where Rovman Powell shuffled right for a straightforward chance at waist height but the ball popped out. Tamim brought up a 35-ball fifty in the following over before commencing a vicious onslaught on Andre Russell in an over that won the match for Bangladesh.Shakib Al Hasan muscles a pull•AFP

“We didn’t have the right attitude in the field,” Brathwaite told Cricket West Indies after the match. “I think we were a bit casual. We didn’t have the same intensity as the first game. I think due to our lapses in the field, we had to chase more than we wanted to.”I guess it’s questionable if we should have batted or bowled first but I still think I made the right decision in sending them in to bat first. With the start that we had, I think we should have been chasing 150 and if we had been chasing that much, we would have gotten over the line.”Bangladesh were not entirely perfect in the field either with two catches going down, but they balanced it out, thanks to a pair of sensational catches taken by Liton Das at deep midwicket. West Indies were way ahead of Bangladesh’s Powerplay rate at 48 for 2 in the fifth over when Marlon Samuels slammed a drive towards Liton who had little time but covered about ten yards quickly before lunging forward late to snatch the low chance.The second one came in the 17th over when West Indies needed 41 off 23 and Brathwaite slammed Shakib to the leg side and Liton tracked 15 yards left for the chance as a team-mate from long-on hared right. Avoiding a nasty collision, Liton took the catch a yard inside the boundary rope.What was especially impressive was that both catches were taken in the presence of floodlights that are not especially bright.”When we were sitting outside, we were feeling that maybe the light is not enough but when we were batting or fielding I thought the light was fine,” Tamim said. “I didn’t find anything wrong with it. I thought it’s completely fine and I think the ground is 100% ready for night games.”T20 cricket, a lot depends on fielding as well. If somebody takes a brilliant catch or a brilliant run-out, that changes a lot of things. Liton Das took two quite brilliant catches. I think that was special as well.”

MatériaMais Notícias

Na abertura da 12ª rodada da fase de grupos da Série D, o Vitória da Conquista não tomou conhecimento do ABC e venceu por 3 a 1. Com o resultado, o time baiano ficou na 3ª posição, com 19 pontos. O potiguar permanece na vice-liderança, com 20 pontos.

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Os gols

Na etapa inicial o time baiano mostrou a sua superioridade logo aos 17 minutos e abriu o placar através de Breno.

No segundo tempo, o ABC conseguiu a igualdade com Wallyson, mas não durou muito já que Rafamar completou o cruzamento e recolocou o Vitória em vantagem. Antes do apito final, Caio recebeu lançamento e deu números finais ao jogo.

Sky Sports pundit Micah Richards has heaped praise on a West Ham United star who has been proving "everyone" wrong lately.

What is the latest West Ham news?

David Moyes and his Hammers side travel to Anfield on Sunday with a lot of optimism; having started this new Premier League season with real aplomb.

Indeed, the east Londoners have tasted victory in three out of their opening five top flight matches; clinching impressive wins over high-flying Brighton, big-spenders Chelsea and league newcomers Luton Town.

It took European champions Man City to end West Ham's early-season unbeaten streak last weekend, as goals from Jeremy Doku, Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland cancelled out James Ward-Prowse's opener at the London Stadium.

Moyes' men also opened their Europa League account with a 3-1 win over Serbian super league side Backa Topola in midweek, sealing the three points despite an early second-half scare.

There couldn't be any better time to take on Liverpool in Merseyside, but West Ham may tread with caution, as Jurgen Klopp's Reds are in a similar run of form.

West Ham player ratings 2023/2024

There have been a few standout performers for West Ham so far this term; namely the likes of Ward-Prowse, Edson Alvarez and Michail Antonio among others.

However, one player to have thoroughly impressed former Man City defender and popular Sky pundit Richards is none other than Ward-Prowse.

The former Southampton star, who made the move to West Ham from St. Mary's Stadium in mid-August, has got off to an absolute flyer in Claret and Blue.

Indeed, the 28-year-old was very unlucky to miss out on a place in England's squad during the most recent international break, with former Spurs defender Michael Dawson suggesting it was an unfair decision.

Ward-Prowse has bagged two goals and a further three assists in just four league games so far; standing out as their best-performing player per 90 according to WhoScored.

The Englishman also racked up another two assists in midweek against Topola; curling in whipped deliveries from corners for both Mohammed Kudus and Tomas Soucek to head home.

Now, Richards has told The Rest is Football Podcast that he has been vindicated in his long-time praise of the Ward-Prowse.

“I’ve banged on about Ward-Prowse now for so long and nobody was taking me seriously," said the Sky pundit, as transcribed by TBR.

"I was literally saying, he’s in a struggling team that don’t have a style of play and once he goes somewhere where he can express himself more, he’s got more than just taking free-kicks. He’s a comfortable footballer.

“When he’s played for England he’s not really took his chance so everyone sort of questions is he good enough for the highest level. But he is. He’s an amazing player. And he works hard, he can sit deep, also play further forward. I just love him. He’s been my signing of the season so far.”

How good is James Ward-Prowse?

This isn't the only high praise Ward-Prowse has received, with former Southampton manager Nathan Jones saying this last season:

"He’s been absolutely world-class for me. The way he reacted and the performances you’re seeing now, it’s really motivated and driven.”

“He’s vital, I like to get to know my captains and have a real relationship with them, a real personal relationship so they understand decisions we make."

The Super Kings allrounder was fully aware that his bowling had counted for a lot too, even though he had stunned the Wankhede crowd primarily with a match-winning 30-ball 68

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai08-Apr-20181:44

Coach’s Diary: CSK need explosive openers

About 20 minutes after winning the match for Chennai Super Kings with a flurry of sixes in the dying moments of what looked like a losing cause, Dwayne Bravo was asked in the post-match press conference about his strategy in the death overs against Mumbai Indians. Bravo asked the journalist a question in reply: “While batting or bowling?”Bravo was fully aware that his bowling had counted for a lot, too, even though he had stunned the Wankhede crowd primarily with a 30-ball 68. He came out to bat when Super Kings were reeling at 75 for 5 with the asking rate nearing 12. But his barrage of boundaries in the end snatched a win from the hosts.”[While batting] I wasn’t thinking much actually, I was just trying my best to bat till the last over,” he said. “I thought that if I bat deep and till the end, we have a good chance of winning the game because Wankhede is a ground where if you miss your length and yorkers, the ball can travel. So you mistime a few, a few edges go your way and the bowling team is always under pressure because margin for error is so small in this format, you miss your yorker by an inch, it can go for six as you can see tonight.”When I reached 50, I didn’t even raise my bat. I knew the job wasn’t finished, there was still a long way to go. I was in a zone. I was just focusing on trying to get the game done for my team. I was disappointed that I was out in the last over. But I played the innings that put my team in a position to win. I am just happy that I was able to contribute with the bat. It has been a while that I haven’t been able to make runs with the bat. This one will always be special to me.”It was just my day, I’ll take that. It’s always good to start any tournament with a win and this is a special win for us personally because our fans have been so loyal to us and they waited for this opportunity and people in Chennai and throughout India as well, our CSK fans and our captain MS [Dhoni].”Bravo’s task became stiffer and stiffer as each over went by. He watched Kedar Jadhav walk back with an injury, he saw Deepak Chahar dance down to be foxed by debutant Mayank Markande’s googly, and then witnessed soon Harbhajan Singh and Mark Wood hole out in the quest for some desperate boundaries.An elated CSK dugout burst into ecstacy as Kedar Jadhav hit the winning runs•BCCI

Ultimately, it was down to Bravo when Imran Tahir gave him strike in the 18th over and Super Kings needed 46 from only 17 deliveries. Two sixes and a four in that over against Mitchell McClenaghan and three sixes in the next off Jasprit Bumrah, another death-overs specialist, brought it down to seven from the last over.”I just wanted to stay still, keep my eyes on the ball, have a good swing,” Bravo explained. “Here at Wankhede the ball travels every time you miss the length. Just get a good contact and the ball will go. Those two overs, we needed 15 an over. So, at some point, I had to take a chance and it worked off. Anytime you hit a boundary, whether it is a six or a four, automatically the bowler is under pressure.”I know how you feel as a bowler when your first ball goes for a boundary. No matter how good a bowler you are, in these tense moments if you’re put under pressure, you tend to fumble. Again, I was hitting the ball nicely in the nets. I had the confidence and the belief that I can win the game despite losing wickets. I can bat deep. Can’t forget Jadhav, who came back and showed a lot of fight and a lot of guts. To hit that six is a special, special moment. From thereon, we had the game.”Much before that, Bravo had quietly curbed Mumbai to 165 for 4 by conceding only eight runs in two of their last three overs. Bravo clearly said performing in the death overs, with the bat or ball, was his “specialised” role in the team and a lot of planning and training went behind it.”I think it’s a challenge for me,” he spoke of bowling in the end. “I mark myself against the best in the world so in moments like this is where it really matters and I don’t enjoy bowling when there’s not much pressure on. When there’s pressure I need to focus a lot more and in the nets, I prepare very well when I bowl to guys like MS and Suresh [Raina] and these guys, who are good hitters. Even when I’m playing for West Indies, I bowl to [Andre] Rusell and [Kieron] Pollard and those guys so it gave me confidence.”I don’t just turn up in a game and it happens naturally. I prepare in the nets, I make sure I’m executing my yorkers properly so whenever I call on those special deliveries, I deliver more often. Tonight was a little tougher because I bowled the last three overs and the skipper asked me if I’m able to do it and of course I said ‘yes’. And again, bowling to these guys is a big challenge, I embrace it, I enjoy it and tonight was just my night.”Bravo was not only helping Super Kings return on a good note in the IPL, he was himself returning to the league after a two-year gap after missing last year’s edition with a hamstring injury. Since then, he has played three tournaments – the CPL, BPL and BBL – before returning with the yellow jersey. Now 34 and having undergone plenty of rehabilitation, Bravo said he had to be “careful” with his workload.”Well, it’s on my mind in terms of I had to be more careful and I’m no longer 24 like how I used to be before so I have to be very cautious,” he said. “I started very slow and just needed to get momentum going into the game. But as you can see, as the game picked up especially in the later stages, this is where I’m more specialised and this is where the team needs me the most at the close of the game. The captain showed faith in me and this is basically my role in CSK team to finish off games with the ball. Each game now I’ve to make sure I can cover properly, we travel now and fitness is very important but I have a very good medical team and I’m happy that we won tonight’s game.”

Sunderland are considering a move for Kelechi Chibueze, and a new report has revealed the chances of the club offering him a contract with the academy side in the near future.

Who is Kelechi Chibueze?

Chibueze is a goalkeeper who initially started his career within the youth setup at Premier League side Chelsea before making the move to Leicester City, but having departed the King Power Stadium upon the expiration of his contract on July 1st, as per Transfermarkt, he’s now a free agent.

With the 19-year-old being on the market without a home, that means he would cost nothing to recruit, making him an attractive prospect for any potential suitors out there, but it isn’t just his level of performances at club level that have been impressive.

The Foxes’ former shot-stopper previously represented England's U16s, where he made four appearances, and he will now be looking for his next permanent destination to try and help give him a chance of re-entering the international fold at a higher level.

Are Sunderland signing Chibueze?

According to The Sunderland Echo, Chibueze is currently on trial at the Academy of Light, with the goalkeeper having recently been training with Graeme Murty's U21s side.

The Championship outfit getting their target in the building to take a closer look at him is an "indication" that the hierarchy are considering offering him a contract, though it's worth noting that "no decision has yet been made" on whether this will actually come to fruition.

Whilst Nathan Bishop, who joined over the summer, has been training with the academy, Adam Richardson currently being out injured, alongside the departures of Jacob Carney and Harrison Bond, has "caused a void" in this particular department, so this could be a situation to keep a close eye on over the next few weeks.

How many clean sheets has Chibueze kept?

During his time at Leicester, Chibueze kept three clean sheets from a total of 19 appearances, so he’s still very much a work in progress, but there’s no doubt that joining the academy would help him to gain experience and develop as a player even further at Sunderland.

The Lewisham-born talent, who is of Nigerian descent, has also played against a decent level of competition when on international duty having faced youth teams like Croatia, Austria, Japan and Turkey as part of a group of friendlies, so this exposure to an increased standard of opposition will have done him the world of good.

Furthermore, the young shot-stopper only earned £500-per-week in the Midlands so he would be an extremely cheap and affordable recruit for Wearside chiefs to bring on board, a salary that would be more than worth paying for a possible star in the making.

The Black Cats will recognise that Chibueze is still only a teenager, but should he prove himself enough to be handed the chance to put pen to paper on a deal, he's likely to be given the opportunity he requires to go on and become an exciting signing for the long-term future of the red and white stripes.

Aston Villa are reported to be closing in on their fourth summer signing, with reports suggesting that Unai Emery could be about to spend once more in the transfer market.

The Spaniard was shocked in his first game of the 2023/24 calendar, losing 5-1 to Newcastle United at St James’ Park, however the biggest worry surrounding the club is their injury woes.

Tyrone Mings was forced to withdraw after just half an hour played in the North East, where it has since been confirmed that he will be out of action for the foreseeable future, just days after the revelation of Emiliano Buendia’s injury.

The Argentine will join Mings on the sidelines, with the club revealing prior to the opening fixture that he has sustained a significant injury to his anterior cruciate ligament, spelling an extensive period away from the action.

With injury worries and players rumoured to be departing, it’s expected that Emery will delve back into the market before the end of the transfer window.

Who could Aston Villa sign this summer?

The Villans finally landed Italian attacker Nicolo Zaniolo this week, in a move that will ease the blow to Buendia.

Read the latest Aston Villa transfer news HERE…

He isn't the only man they're close to signing, however. Indeed, Fabrizio Romano provided an update on the links to Sevilla full-back Marcos Acuna, with the Midlands club said to expect to “agree terms” with the Spanish outfit soon, with personal terms “already in place”.

The experienced left-back’s arrival could come at the perfect time, with speculation increasing regarding the future of current left-back Lucas Digne.

How good is Marcos Acuna?

Lauded as an “animal” by journalist Facundo Del Real, the 31-year-old has gained vital experience playing in Europe after leaving his home country to join Sporting Lisbon in 2017.

The versatile left-back, with the ability to play in a more advanced role on the flank, has since become an important player for Sevilla, after making the move to Spain three years ago to endeavour on a new journey in the continent.

Now, the full-back could open his eyes to the joys of the English game, with Villa knocking firmly on his door to join Emery at Villa, as well as rekindling his relationship with Monchi, who originally signed him for Los Nervionenses.

At 31, Villa could integrate a player with great playing experience to their side, in what could be the perfect addition following the departure of veteran Ashley Young, who gave a widely valuable knowledge of the game to Emery’s side.

Aside from their extensive experience in professional football, the two bring very similar playing styles to a squad, as supported by their almost mirrored averages last season.

As per FBref, Acuna averaged 2.68 tackles and 4.80 progressive passes per 90 in La Liga last term, showcasing strengths in areas typical for a full-back, with Young following closely in recording 2.21 tackles and 4.73 progressive passes per 90.

Hailed as a “top defender” this week by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola after securing an assist against City in the UEFA Super Cup final, the £30k-per-week Argentine has been identified as a player of significant value by arguably the best manager in the Premier League.

After bidding farewell to Young this summer, Emery could almost instantly restore the attributes and quality displayed by the Englishman in the Midlands by signing Acuna, who could bolster the squad’s left side.