Fofana’s words on Dembele show the true extent of Lyon’s robbery on Celtic

Celtic went into the international break on a good note after beating rivals Rangers 1-0 in the Old Firm derby.

Off the field, however, things were not as positive with Moussa Dembele leaving the club on deadline day for Lyon.

And Dembele’s former team-mate at Fulham Seko Fofana has since come out to question Celtic’s dealing of the transfer.

The Breakdown

Speaking to L’Equipe (via Sport Witness), Fofana said: “I am surprised that clubs didn’t come to take him [Dembele] before. I was told that he cost Lyon €20m (actual price was €22m), but Moussa is worth at least double.

“He is a complete attacker, who can use his head, left foot, right foot and also defend. His delivery, he’s clean technically, he is a big, strong guy.”

With what he was worth to the club and the potential he possesses, at £19.7m (via Sky Sports), Celtic were the team to come out worse in the deal.

In this current climate, the Bhoys definitely should have got at least £30m for Dembele’s services. It was only a while ago where the Frenchman was being touted with a £40m move to Chelsea (via Sky Sports).

Of course, having only had two years remaining on his Celtic contract and at the time the club decided to sanction the sell, it was always going to be an uphill task of getting anything close to that sort of money.

That being said, the £19.7m received still feels like an incredibly undervalued fee for someone of Dembele’s talent and, ultimately, a fee in a deal where Brendan Rodgers and Peter Lawwell have come out second best.

Ivan Cavaleiro’s goalscoring form shows how much Wolves have improved

Ivan Cavaleiro was amongst the first batch of signings after Wolves’ takeover in summer 2016 and the Portuguese enjoyed a productive if somewhat unspectacular debut season at Molineux, netting five times across all competitions.

But the acceleration of that scoring rate this season highlights how much Wolves have improved from their 15th-place finish in 2016/17. The Black Country outfit are now the firm front runners for promotion, extending their lead at the top of the Championship table to four points last night with a 4-1 victory over Leeds.

It involved a fine performance from Cavaleiro who is now one shy of the five-goal total he amassed in 31 appearances last season after netting the second goal on Wednesday, finishing off a fine flowing move that started in Wolves’ own half by rolling one defender and stepping beyond the flailing leg of another before powering an effort into the bottom corner.

What will perhaps impress Wolves fans more though is the immense industry the wide forward showed off the ball; he actually made the joint-most tackles of any Wolves player last night, while ranking joint-second for interceptions.

It was a committed and dynamic performance from Cavaleiro, who Transfermarkt value at £6.75million, that encapsulated how drastically Wolves have improved since last season. They already look like an outfit ready for the challenge of Premier League football.

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Arsenal fans slate Francis Coquelin on his birthday

Arsenal midfielder Francis Coquelin celebrates his 26th birthday on Saturday, and the club sent out a message on social media wishing him well, but it wasn’t met with the kindest of responses from Gunners fans.

Despite making 36 appearances in all competitions this season and only extending his stay at the Emirates until 2021 in January, the Frenchman has struggled to impress in the middle of the park in what has been a largely disappointing campaign for Arsene Wenger’s side.

The north London outfit’s still face an uphill task if they are to qualify for the Champions League and they will know that they will need to beat Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday evening to keep the pressure up on Manchester City and Liverpool.

Arsenal supporters were quick to give their reaction to news of Coquelin’s birthday themselves via Twitter, with many hoping the club gets rid of the midfielder this summer.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Ludogorets poised to haunt Arsenal

Group A could be pretty much done and dusted by the time the clock strikes midnight. With Arsenal travelling to Ludogorets and Paris Saint-Germain heading to Basel, qualification could be achieved by the two away sides, leaving Ludogorets and FC Basel to compete for the Europa League spot. The expectation is that the Gunners, along with PSG, will be left to fight it out for the top spot in the group after a comfortable victory in Bulgaria.Victory for the Gunners would take them to 10 points in the group and secure yet another season of Champions League knockout football. An unbeaten domestic run since defeat to Liverpool on the opening day of the season makes Arsenal one of Europe’s form sides. Attacking football has been flowing, while the defence has looked its most secure in years. Everything is bobbing along swimmingly for Arsene Wenger and his team, but there are faint, weakly-flashing warning lights that should cause some concern.The home draw with Middlesbrough, which could have easily ended in an embarrassing defeat, has been swept under the carpet somewhat. Aitor Karanka’s team managed to stifle Arsenal when in possession and spring a catalogue of devastating counter-attacks that could easily have resulted in the Gunners conceding several times. Adama Traore’s pace had Arsenal defensively uncertain and the Middlesbrough defence was resolute to avoid being pulled apart by the fluid movement of Arsenal’s front four.Then, away to Sunderland last weekend, Arsenal were not quite the ruthless unit we had seen earlier in the month. A final 4-1 victory was well-deserved, but a brief scare something the Gunners should never have allowed when Petr Cech conceded a penalty and Jermain Defoe converted. Chances were created throughout a dominant first half, but such opportunities were not turned into goals, leaving the door ajar for the most unlikely of Sunderland comebacks.The scare was brief thanks to Olivier Giroud’s goal with his first touch, but those flashes of vulnerability is an area of concern. Creating chances was no problem for Arsenal, taking them was the real issue until they were kicked into life by Sunderland’s equaliser.

Arsenal’s woes in November have historically condemned their season to disappointment. Difficulty to kill games off, like last weekend, along with puzzling team selections from Wenger have made this a challenging time of year. Ludogorets proved their ability to trouble Arsenal in the first leg, despite ending up on the end of a thrashing. Lapses in defensive concentration or allowing the game to meander could easily see Arsenal caught off guard.

The temptation, with qualification looking so likely, will be for Wenger to rest players who have started regularly. But Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and the central-defensive pairing of Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent KoscielnyÂmust all begin the match in Razgrad. There is a time and a place for rotation, but a potentially season-changing away Champions League fixture certainly isn’t it.

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Arsenal told eye-popping price for Pedro Neto as Wolves slap hefty price tag on winger ahead of summer transfer window

Arsenal must pay around £60 million to sign Pedro Neto from Wolves as they look to fight off competition from other Premier League teams to sign him.

Article continues below

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  • Arsenal considering move for Neto
  • Winger in excellent form at Wolves
  • Liverpool & Spurs also watching him
  • WHAT HAPPENED?

    The Gunners have been eyeing the Portuguese forward amid his excellent performances for Wolves this season. The Molineux Stadium team are set to demand a club-record fee for him this summer, expecting as much as £60m ($76m), claims.

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    THE BIGGER PICTURE

    The 23-year-old, who joined Wolves from Lazio in 2019 and is contracted to the club until 2027, has also attracted attention from Liverpool and Tottenham – the latter will come up against him when they host Gary O'Neil's team in the Premier League on Saturday.

  • DID YOU KNOW?

    Neto has been one of Wolves' top performers this season, scoring two goals and registering eight assists in the league. He put in a goalscoring performance as his team lost to Manchester United this month and then registered an assist as they beat Chelsea 4-2 three days later.

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    WHAT NEXT FOR PEDRO NETO?

    Arsenal are eager to invest in a new forward this summer and reportedly see Neto as a good candidate to strengthen Mikel Arteta's side ahead of next season. Arteta is said to be a keen admirer of the ex-Braga player, who has made five senior appearances for Portugal.

Queretaro vs Pumas UNAM: Where to watch the match online, live stream, TV channels & kick-off time

Here's where you can watch Queretaro vs Pumas UNAM on TV or stream live.

After bad results under Rafael Puente del Río, Pumas decided to sack the Mexican from his position during the FIFA World Cup and hired the Argentine Antonio Mohamed. For personal reasons, the South American will not be able to be on the bench for Pumas, but he has been able to work with the team in recent days.

For their part, Querétaro continue to sink in the standings and currently occupy the penultimate place in the standings with just 10 points in 12 games played.

Both sides are under pressure as they push for the playoffs.

GOAL brings you everything you need to know about where to watch the game on TV and stream live online.

  • Queretaro vs Pumas UNAM date & kick-off time

    Game: Queretaro vs Pumas UNAM
    Date: April 2, 2023
    Kick-off time: 5:30 pm ET
    Venue: Estadio Corregidora
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  • Where to watch Queretaro vs Pumas UNAM on TV & live stream online

    US viewers can find out what soccer is on TV here!

    In the United States (US), the match will be telecast on TUDN USA.

    Country TV channel Live stream
    US TUDN Univision
    • Check out GOAL's soccer on U.S. TV guide
  • Team news & squads

    Pumas UNAM team news and squad

    Carlos Gutierrez is the only injury doubt for Pumas, and won't be available for the clash.

    Position Pumas UNAM players
    Goalkeepers Sosa, Gonzalez
    Defenders Freire, Ortiz, Aldrete, Bennevendo, Galindo, Sanchez
    Midfielders Ramirez, Salvio, Heurta, Higor, Carreon, Rivas, Figueroa, Molina
    Forwards Dinenno, del Prete, Diogo

    Possible Pumas UNAM starting XI: Sosa; Ramirez, Freire, Ortiz, Monroy; Huerta, Higor, Molina; Salvio, Dinenno, Del Prete

    Queretaro team news and squad

    No injury doubts for Queretaro.

    Position Queretaro UNAM players
    Goalkeepers Alcala, Higuera
    Defenders Mendoza, Balanta, Barbieri, Fernandez, Guzman, Perlaza, Cervantes
    Midfielders Barrera, Escamilla, Rivera, Lopez, Duarte, Hernandez, Aboagye, Garcia, Zuniga
    Forwards Sepulveda, Calderon, Torres

    Possible Queretaro starting XI: Alcala; Mendoza, Balanta, Barbieri, Fernandez; Barrera, Escamilla, Rivera, Lopez; Sepulveda, Calderon

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    Live soccer on U.S. TV

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Messi, Mbappe, Hazard & the European Team of the Season so far

With another international break upon us, Goal selects the most impressive performers of the 2018-19 European club campaign so far…

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    GK: Tomas Vaclik

    An early contender for signing of the season, Tomas Vaclik joined Sevilla from Basel for just €6.3 million during the summer and has already proven himself a bargain buy.

    The Czech Republic international has made more saves (57) and kept more clean sheets (seven) than any other goalkeeper in Europe's 'Big Five' leagues, with his sensational shot-stopping propelling the Rojiblancos to the top of the Primera Division.

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    RB: Joao Cancelo

    Inter's loss has proven Juventus' considerable gain, with former Valencia right-back Joao Cancelo having slotted seamlessly into his new surroundings in Turin after spending last season on loan at San Siro.

    As well as playing his part in the Old Lady keeping six clean sheets already this season, the Portugal international has been sensational going forward.

    Indeed, only Youcef Atal has completed more dribbles than Cancelo, who Bianconeri boss Massimiliano Allegri insists has everything in his locker to become the best right-back in the world.

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    CB: Virgil van Dijk

    Riyad Mahrez may have let Virgil van Dijk off the hook with his horrific penalty at Anfield on Sunday but that reckless challenge on Leroy Sane aside, the Dutch centre-half has been Liverpool's most reliable performer so far this season.

    The Netherlands international is the primary reason why the undefeated Reds have conceded just three times in the Premier League and it is telling that nobody is querying Jurgen Klopp's decision to pay £75m for the aerially dominant defender anymore.

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    CB: Kalidou Koulibaly

    Napoli may not have made any stellar signings during the summer but they did manage to hold on to Kalidou Koulibaly, the defensive rock on which their 2017-18 Scudetto challenge was founded. 

    However, how much longer they can hold on to a player now repeatedly being linked with Barcelona remains to be seen, with the Senegal international picking up where he left off last season by helping the Partenopei keep five clean sheets in all competitions already this term, including one in the Champions League against Liverpool's much-vaunted forward line.

Copa São Paulo: Coritiba leva a melhor diante do CSA

MatériaMais Notícias

No Canindé, o Coritiba começou bem a Copa São Paulo ao derrotar o CSA por 2 a 0. O resultado deixou o Coxa na liderança provisória do grupo 32.

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Na próxima rodada, o Coritiba encara a Portuguesa. O CSA mede forças com o São Bento-SP. Os dois jogos acontecem na terça-feira.

O duelo

O Coritiba iniciou o jogo no campo de ataque. Com bolas longas, o Coxa dava trabalho ao sistema defensivo do CSA e chegou ao gol na casa dos 4 minutos. Pablo Mendes foi lançado, deu um lindo drible no zagueiro e bateu forte, 1 a 0.

Mesmo com o gol o time paranaense manteve o ímpeto ofensivo e criou mais duas oportunidades com Ângelo e João Vitor, mas ambas foram para fora.

Assim como na etapa inicial, o segundo tempo foi marcado pelo Coritiba no ataque. Logo aos 5 minutos, Pablo Mendes aproveitou o erro do CSA na saída de bola, invadiu a grande área e tocou para José Daniel ampliar, 2 a 0.

O terceiro quase veio na sequência com Pablo Mendes, porém o chute explodiu no travessão para alívio do Azulão.

Pênalti defendido, golaço e empate no fim: Palmeiras e Corinthians fazem clássico com final alucinante

MatériaMais Notícias

Em partida com um final alucinante, Palmeiras e Corinthians empataram em 1 a 1, neste sábado, no Pacaembu, pela 32ª rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. O Alviverde dominou o segundo tempo, viu Walter defender pênalti de Scarpa, e sofreu um golaço de Michel nos acréscimos. Mas no lance seguinte, Bruno Henrique apareceu na grande área para deixar tudo igual.

O resultado é ruim para os dois. O Palmeiras pode ver a distância para o Flamengo aumentar, caso este vença amanhã, e o Corinthians pode sair do G6
a depender dos rivais. As equipes voltam a campo no próximo domingo – o Verdão visita o Bahia, enquanto o Corinthians recebe o Internacional.

> Confira e simule a classificação do Campeonato Brasileiro

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PROPAGANDA ENGANOSA
A boa cabeçada de Boselli, para a defesa de Weverton, logo aos dois minutos, fez boa propaganda do clássico. Mas a promessa de um início animado não se cumpriu. Em boa parte do primeiro tempo, as defesas prevaleceram e as melhores chances foram com a bola parada. Gustavo Gómez, em duas oportunidades, assustou o Timão pelo alto.

NO RITMO DE DUDU
A partir dos 30, a qualidade do ataque alviverde começou a sobressair – especialmente com o camisa 7. O chute cruzado do palmeirense, após boa jogada individual pela direita, foi o lance mais perigoso da etapa inicial. Bruno Henrique, que cobrou falta com perigo, também fazia boa partida.

QUASE, DEYVERSON!
Uma das grandes chances do jogo saiu no primeiro minuto do segundo tempo. Walter recebeu bola recuada, se embolou, e depois afastou para a lateral. Na sequência, Scarpa lançou e Deyverson, na pequena área, desviou O goleiro corintiano tirou em cima da linha e se recuperou no lance.

WALTER!
A pressão do Palmeiras continuou e o Corinthians se trancou na defesa. Diante da retranca alvinegra, a mão de Manoel na grande área, aos 33, assinalada com auxílio do VAR, é tudo que o Alviverde precisava. Scarpa cobrou pênalti a meia altura, no canto esquerdo, e parou no homem do jogo: Walter. Na sequência, Borja – que recebeu chance após polêmica com Mano – e Bruno Henrique, perderam chances na grande área e deixaram o Pacaembu com gosto amargo.

ALUCINANTE!
O Palmeiras tomou conta do segundo tempo. Mas, aos 46, o corintiano Michel soltou uma bomba da intermediária, na gaveta de Weverton, e jogou uma cachoeira de água fria no rival. Mas não havia tempo para respirar. Dois minutos depois, Dudu cruzou e Bruno Henrique pegou sobra para soltar a bomba e deixar tudo igual no Pacaembu.

FICHA TÉCNICA
PALMEIRAS 1 X 1 CORINTHIANS

Local: Pacaembu, São Paulo (SP)
Data-Hora: 9/11/2019 – 19h
Árbitro: Vinicius Gonçalves Dias Araujo (SP)
Assistentes: Marcelo Carvalho Van Gasse (Fifa-SP) e Miguel Cataneo Ribeiro da Costa (SP)
Árbitro de vídeo: Rodrigo Guarizo Ferreira do Amaral (SP) – Nota L!: 6,5 – Esteve sempre em cima dos lances e controlou bem o jogo
Assistentes de árbitro de vídeo: Lucas Canetto Bellote e Evandro de Melo Lima (ambos de SP)
Gramado: Regular
Público e renda:34.283 pagantes, 36.290 pessoas e R$ 1.420.520,00
Cartões amarelos: Marcos Rocha, Thiago Santos (PAL); Gabriel (COR)
Cartões vermelhos: não houve.

GOLS: Michel 46’/2ºT (0-1); Bruno Henrique 48’/2ºT (1-1)

PALMEIRAS
Weverton; Marcos Rocha, Gustavo Gómez, Vitor Hugo e Diogo Barbosa; Thiago Santos e Bruno Henrique; Dudu, Gustavo Scarpa (Carlos Eduardo, 38’/2ºT)e Zé Rafael (Willian, 20’/2ºT); Deyverson (Borja, 25’/2ºT). Técnico: Mano Menezes

CORINTHIANS
Walter; Michel Macedo, Manoel, Gil e Danilo Avelar; Gabriel e Júnior Urso; Ramiro (Vagner Love, 33’/2ºT), Pedrinho (Mateus Vital, 12’/2ºT) e Janderson (Clayson, 12’/2ºT); Mauro Boselli. Técnico: Dyego Coelho

Misbah under pressure to finish tour on a high

The last 15 days have been quite difficult for Pakistan, who lost all their limited-over matches to Bangladesh, and in the process, their first ever series against them. The result was celebrated like a festival in Bangladesh, while in Pakistan, it made headlines as one of the country’s most embarrassing sporting moments.Pakistan are now in Khulna for the Test series, a different ball game with a different captain inMisbah-ul-Haq. Misbah’s calm is much like the Khulna town, and in complete contrast to the to hustle and bustle of Dhaka, one of the world’s most densely populated cities. With Misbah around, Pakistan’s Test side has enjoyed stability and performed consistently over the past few years.Misbah has been a regular rescuer for Pakistan since 2010, pulling them out of several difficult situations. On his retirement from ODI cricket, he said: “now I can relax,” bearing the burden of batting for long stretches. In the past, he has had to revive Pakistan from scores like 18 for 3, 33 for 3, 15 for 3, 32 for 3, 32 for 2, and 48 for 3.Much like the situation when he comes in to bat, Misbah has lots of repair and rebuilding work to do ahead of the Tests.When asked if he ever thought of finding himself in a similar situation even after quitting the shorter format, Misbah said: “It’s the part of life and you have to play in pressure, which is the reason you are surviving at such a level. You don’t have to look behind as what has happened in the past but think positive and take everything positively.”There is always a pressure in international cricket and obviously the opposition is playing good and you have to be at your best. We are aware about them and we have to respect the opposition as they are good at their home condition and are coming with the high confidence since World Cup.”At the press conference ahead of the Test series, Misbah was bombarded with questions about the ODI and T20 series loss. Usually one to tackle the media with ease, Misbah seemed to be irked by the barrage of questions from journalists.He did not want to be reminded of the past, and kept reiterating the importance of a fresh start. He was busy convincing everyone that Pakistan in whites were a completely different prospect.Misbah – “Our Test side is quite experienced with this combination and has been consistently performing well for quite a long time now. It’s a different ball game”•Getty Images

“Our Test side is quite experienced with this combination and has been consistently performing well for quite a long time now,” he said. “It’s a different ball game and these players have a better understanding of Test cricket and everybody is in good shape and in the best of his form. Also, the condition here is similar to Abu Dhabi and Dubai and we are hoping to carry on the form we have in the format.”Apart from all the confidence Bangladesh have, we have to our focus on our strengths, concentrate at our basics which is the factor for success we’ve had in this particular format for many years. It’s important for us to break the confidence of the Bangladesh team and for this we have to play our best cricket.”Pakistan were struck by quite a few injuries during the Bangladesh series but for the Tests, their attack seems a lot more settled – Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Imran Khan, Saeed Ajmal, Zulfiqar Babar and Yasir Shah. Misbah felt that the spinners would have a crucial role to play in Khulna, and that perhaps three fast bowlers were not required.Ajmal, who has been far less effective after his remodeled bowling action, could be left out for the first Test, but both Yasir Shah and Zulfiqar Babar were seen making the most of the time during training.”Obviously everybody knows he (Ajmal) is back after a long time and definitely he needs some time to adjust,” Misbah said. “He has only played three games after remodeling his action so he is definitely going to take little bit of time. He actually needs time to adjust with his new action and he’s definitely is going to improve.”

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