Vesper

Brighton & Hove Albion v Arsenal https://www.sportfacts.net/sports/2022/premier-league-brighton-hove-albion-vs-arsenal-s1/ https://www.vipleague.st/brighton-hove-albion-vs-arsenal-1-live-streaming

Stream links for all the games https://www.sportfacts.net/ We are out having a late lunch at a pub near our house.

Unless Gakpo can play in midfield – or they face Faes every game – Liverpool have a problem https://www.football365.com/news/opinion-gakpo-liverpool-midfield-leicester-faes-henderson-bellingham

FERNANDEZ PRICE TOO HIGH FOR LIVERPOOL https://www.football365.com/news/transfer-gossip-liverpool-fernandez-Chelsea-spurs-surprise-move-ronaldo-snub Liverpool have found the asking price for Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez to be out of their price range, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano. The Reds are on the lookout for the right player to help solve their issues in midfield, which were on display last night as they beat Leicester City 2-1. Numerous midfielders have been linked with a move to Anfield with Jude Bellingham understood to be their top target for the summer transfer window – but they face fierce competition from Real Madrid, Manchester City and other clubs. Romano revealed yesterday that Fernandez has said ‘yes’ to Chelsea with the Blues beginning ‘direct talks’ with Benfica over a potential January transfer. The Portuguese outfit want any interested club to activate his €120m release clause with Fernandez only arriving in the summer transfer window for €10m from River Plate. But Chelsea are willing to spend over €120m in order to avoid paying up front and Romano now claims that ‘focus will be on new midfielder’ for Liverpool but they ‘are not intentioned to pay €120m for Fernandez as of today’. On potential transfer movements, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said on Friday: “We’ve to collect money for a bit, then we can spend. That is how we work.”

MN: Sporting CP, Chelsea and €19m that weigh – Leao’s complex renewal situation https://sempremilan.com/mn-sporting-cp-Chelsea-and-e19m-that-weigh-leaos-complex-renewal-situation AC Milan must tackle the knot of Rafael Leao’s renewal in the coming weeks and there are various fronts that must be resolved, a report claims. MilanNews starts by writing that Leao’s judicial situation is complicated. The Portuguese owes Sporting CP the big sum of €19m euros as compensation for the unilateral termination of the contract exercised in 2018 after fans stormed the training complex. Other players who left Sporting under the same circumstances resolved their position by paying Sporting compensation which Lille did not do, as they contracted Leao without making contact with his former club. There was a charter signed between Lille and Leao’s agent at the time according to which the French club, when claiming Sporting, would have put money on the plate to settle and resolve the matter. This paper, however, is not in the hands of Leao and his current lawyers as the separation from his former attorney was stormy and that document – being a private agreement between the parties – remains under lock and key. Sporting CP originally asked for €45m in compensation through a Portuguese court, and then in the end the Milan court condemned him to pay €19m, which the boy began to pay through 20% of his salary. In the meantime Lille – jointly and severally liable by the TAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) – not only did not pay Sporting a singly euro, but also challenged the sentence of the TAS itself before the Swiss federal court, with a negative result. Leao filed an appeal through his Italian lawyers, with the hearing set for the spring, but the margins for overturning the first-instance ruling are very minimal. That means Leao needs as much money as possible to resolve his dispute with Sporting. How does this affect Milan? The Rossoneri are in constant contact with all of Leao’s entourage, but all they can do is formulate a contractual proposal that is as high as possible based on their own economic parameters. A possible renewal of Leao’s contract should be seen as something to temporarily protect both Milan and the player, given the club would acquire stronger bargaining power in negotiations than it would have in the summer of 2023, given that Leao’s current deal expires in 2024, while the boy could ask for more money from any suitor. Maldini and Massara will do everything to try and keep the Portuguese but they are also ready to make the most of his transfer in the summer. Chelsea are observing and are ready to launch a big bid while guaranteeing the former Lille man a salary over €10m net per season. In his heart Leao does not want to leave AC Milan and Milano as a city, though it is equally true that those €19m weigh on his head every day are something that will affect him.

if it's any consolation, in pounds it was 'only' £75m (£70m fee + £5m in add-ons) lolol smdh £250m likely or perhaps shit away (in other words, around the cost for BOTH Enzo AND Bellingham) just in transfer fees and add-ons Rom, Fofana, KK, Auba, and a £30m or so overpay for CuCu

Boiled it down to the 9 'OMFG we signed them' players atm (Nkunku would be in there to make an even 10, but we signed him already) Jude Bellingham Josko Gvardiol Enzo Fernández then Rafael Leão Victor Osimhen Dušan Vlahović Milan Skriniar Jan Oblak Nicolò Barella (Caicedo is close behind, they are the two 'closest to Kante' types atm) in terms of the 2 positions not (fullback) or barely (winger) listed above: there are no LBs or RBs at that level who are available (hell, there are only 4 of each on the planet, 9 total if your revert Kimmich back to RB) and After Leão the only acceptable buys at winger (non youth, as in both really young (teens) and also no bigger European league experience to compensate) for me would be (AND no, Mbappe is a pipedream so not listed): Moussa Diaby (lefty) Leroy Sané (lefty) Ousmane Dembélé (ambipedal) Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (ambipedal) Federico Chiesa (if fully recovered) (mostly right footed but can player either wing, seems to prefer the RW) Mykhaylo Mudryk (like Leão, he is completely a right footed LW, those two are the only ones of the eight wingers listed who never play on the right, and Mudryk is the only one listed who has no Big 5 experience at all) Karim Adeyemi (lefty)

many variables, but we are not in driver's seat unless we flex NOW IF he doesn't move this January and there is no 2024 £97.5m (€110m) release clause then it comes down to summer 2023 and we may well have no CL to offer, which dooms us IF there IS a 2024 release clause, then in theory we could well have CL to offer in summer 2024 BUT so many clubs will come for him and I rate Real Madrid (by then they will be in desperate need, likely, for a CB, especially a left-footer, Alaba will be 32, and Rudiger turns 32 three months before the end of the 2024/05 season) Barca (they will likely have money by then to spend) Citeh Pool (if Klopp is still there then) Man U provided they all have CL to offer as being able to outpull us (and all can afford a £97.5m pound buy, probably even Barca by then) not sure about PSG, I would need to know more about his feelings about Ligue 1 and France in general, but obviously money would not be an issue for them by then

worst football night of my life

that depends IF West Ham get relegated

Keep up this good form into the knockout stages of the tournament, and Croatia might be indebted to Gvardiol for potentially reaching another final. On a personal level, the more excellent performances he churns out, the more likely he is to be rewarded with a move away from Leipzig. If his recent admission is anything to go by, Madrid is the location he’d love to land in. “Real Madrid is the biggest club in the world, so who knows… maybe one day I can play there. I would like to, yes,” admitted Gvardiol when asked about the club’s apparently interested in his services. “Luka (Modric) doesn’t have to tell me anything about Real Madrid, there’s no need. I already know everything, I know it’s the biggest club in the world and how important it is to be linked to such a team.” That’s got to hurt if you are of a Chelsea persuasion. https://www.thechelseachronicle.com/player-quotes/biggest-club-77m-world-cup-star-says-he-wants-to-sign-for-real-madrid-after-claims-Chelsea-could-bid/

I would not have went blonde, lol it's a jinx too 🤣

Otamendi (of course) and Florentino Luis (Enzo's pivot partner, who was overrun a lot) had poor games, as did WC hat trick Gonçalo Ramos Enzo had some superb crosses but Benfica were inept in the box 3 nil FT

we signed him (he is Argentine though) from a Chilean club, Audax Italiano he never played topflight ball in Argentina until 2020, with San Lorenzo, then left for Turkey in 2022, then Mexico,, and is now back in Chile starting in 2023

Enzo dyed his hair bleach blonde

3 nil Benfica's unbeaten league season is gone

looks like Wolves v Arse

stream https://www.vipleague.st/braga-vs-benfica-1-live-streaming they are down 2 nil

here is an 'out of left field' CB to watch Micky van de Ven 21yo, 1.93m tall left-footed Dutch speed burner (faster clocked pure defender in the Bundesliga this season so far, 7th fastest player overall) only Bayern and Freiburg have allowed less goals so far than Wolfsburg, and they have really tightened up lately

Shakhtar want an insane £85m for him (maybe they will pitch in some to buy weapons against Putin, lol)

removing Enzo and Bellingham the CMF/DMFs left that I rate Nicolò Barella (probably impossible atm) Moisés Caicedo Roméo Lavia Manu Koné Alexis Mac Allister Martín Zubimendi Bruno Guimarães (likely will not leave) Mikel Merino Frenkie de Jong Amadou Onana Marcos Llorente Danilo Khéphren Thuram Manuel Ugarte

so Leicester have scored all 3 goals!

lol, 2 OGs in a half!

shit, forgot to post this stream https://www.sportfacts.net/sports/2022/premier-league-liverpool-vs-leicester-city-s1/