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Leeds United winger Raphinha could receive another call-up to the Brazil national squad in two weeks after rejecting the chance to represent his country in the latest international break.

The Lowdown: Refused

Raphinha, 24, received his first call-up to Tite’s squad in August for the September triple header against Chile, Argentina and Peru.

The winger was originally thought to have been refused the right to travel this month due to quarantine protocols, with Andrea Radrizzani since revealing the player himself rejected the opportunity in order to focus on his club.

The Latest: Further problems

According to reports in Brazil [Via MOT Leeds News], Tite is set to name his squad for the World Cup qualifying double-header with Venezuela and Uruguay on Friday 17th September.

South American outlet Ge Globo states that the Brazilian coach expects backing from FIFA this time around to avoid another circumstance where Premier League clubs can stop players participating.

FIFA are discussing a new five-day quarantine rule to aid players in returning to their club duties, and Raphinha could get the call once again.

The Verdict: Headache for Leeds

With the news that FIFA want a shorter quarantine not yet confirmed, Leeds and Raphinha himself could be left with another headache if he is indeed called up once more in nine days time.

Another call-up for Raphinha in two weeks will disrupt the scene again if the situation hasn’t been sorted by then, and the winger could miss the trip to Southampton in the middle of October if he elects to give it a go with his national side.

Raphinha’s importance to Marcelo Bielsa’s side has drastically improved as he has settled in at Yorkshire. His 9.30 expected assists last term have seen him become one of the first names on the team sheet due to his trickery and creativity.

In other Leeds news, Bielsa has been blown away by striker’s performances. Find out more here.

Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans has been linked with a move to La Liga giants Barcelona after a string of impressive performances in recent years.

What’s the story?

According to Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo (as relayed by BBC Sport), Barca are interested in securing the 24-year-old’s services as they look to rebuild their first-team squad.

The report states that: “From the Barca club it is admitted to MD that Tielemans is a midfielder who has been closely followed for a long time, and that he is very interesting due to his physical and technical characteristics, by age, and because his contract ends in 2023, and for now, he does not want to renew with Leicester.”

It was previously reported that Tielemans had entered negotiations over potentially extending his current deal at the King Power Stadium, but Barca’s interest may make him have second thoughts over putting pen to paper on fresh terms.

Leicester City fans will be very concerned

With the Blaugrana missing out on Gini Wijnaldum over the summer and seeing promising academy graduate Ilaix Moriba join RB Leipzig, manager Ronald Koeman is believed to be in the market for a new midfielder.

And Tielemans appears to fit the bill. The technically gifted maestro has established himself as one of the best young players in the Premier League in recent campaigns, scoring 18 goals and laying on a further 19 assists in 113 appearances for the Foxes, securing the FA Cup and Community Shield along the way.

His magnificent goal in the FA Cup final victory over Chelsea at Wembley Stadium capped a magnificent rise under Brendan Rodgers and highlighted his importance to the Midlands outfit.

Therefore, the club’s supporters will be very concerned at this latest revelation regarding interest in Tielemans’ services.

English heavyweights Liverpool and Manchester United have also been outlined as potential suitors in recent weeks and months, but the lure of the Camp Nou may be too much for the youngster to turn down, despite their recent financial troubles.

It remains to be seen whether Tielemans commits his future to Leicester or seeks pastures new, and it’s set to be an agonising wait for everyone associated with the Foxes.

And, in other news…Leicester receive boost in pursuit of £9m-rated beast, fans will be buzzing 

Relaying news from Tottenham Hotspur boss Nuno Espirito Santo, reporter Charlie Eccleshare of The Athletic has shared a setback for winger Lucas Moura ahead of Wolverhampton Wanderers tonight.

The Lowdown: Spurs injuries mount…

Over these last few weeks and ever since the international break, Tottenham have had to cope with a mountain of injuries and absences to key starters.

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Son Heung-min was out of contention for a while before his return to the fold against Chelsea, while South American trio Davinson Sanchez, Giovani Lo Celso and Cristian Romero were all missing before the London derby due to their 10-day Croatia training camp.

While those players are back in contention, electric winger Steven Bergwijn is out of the Wolves clash tonight with Nuno also sharing news on Lucas.

The Latest: Nuno shares Lucas news…

Sharing more bad news from Nuno in regards to injuries, after the pair were taken off against Rennes in midweek, Eccleshare relays that both Lucas and Bergwijn will miss Wolves.

“Bergwijn and Moura out of Wolves trip for THFC, and Nuno ‘cannot answer’ whether they’ll be back for NLD,” he said on Twitter.

“Certainly doesn’t look good for Bergwijn, who “has an injury on his foot, a sprain, he twisted his ankle.”

The Verdict: Big blow…

While losing Bergwijn is a blow, you could argue that not having Lucas to chose from comes as just as bad for Nuno.

The Brazilian, lauded as a ‘monster’ by his compatriot Raphinha, has certainly been one of Tottenham’s bright sparks so far and a real creative outlet for the Spurs head coach.

Out of Spurs’ entire squad, the 29-year-old has completed more dribbles per 90 on average (2.5) than any of them in the Premier League this season and it’s safe to say his positive presence going forward will be missed against Nuno’s old team.

In other news: ‘Wow’, ‘Our club is a parody’, ‘This can’t be real’ – Many Tottenham fans flock to ’embarrassing’ claim, find out more here.

Taking to Twitter, journalist Jordan Campbell of The Athletic has shared news involving Rangers star Ryan Jack as manager Steven Gerrard waits on his return.

The Lowdown: Gers without Jack…

The Scotland international has been out of action for Rangers since the end of last season, even undergoing knee surgery and missing the national side’s Euro 2020 campaign.

Recently, Jack suffered a setback in his recovery with Gerrard admitting he had been told to ‘slow it down’.

The 29-year-old’s comeback has been delayed as a result, but Campbell now has some optimistic news on the midfield maestro.

The Latest: Gerrard set for Jack boost in ‘matter of weeks’…

As per reliable reporter Campbell, sharing news from within Ibrox, a timeline has now emerged for Jack’s return to action in a Gers jersey.

The journalist says that his recovery is now ‘a matter of weeks’ after Jack resumed light training.

“Just light training for the time being but a matter of weeks I believe,” he explained on Twitter.

“Nothing more specific than that yet that I know of. Being cautious after the surgery to make sure everything is healed properly, which is understandable.”

The Verdict: Big boost incoming…

News of Jack’s potential return for Rangers within weeks comes as a boost for Gerrard and the champions, especially considering his impact when available.

He adds a degree of real composure to Gerrard’s midfield, evident by his impressive 89.9% pass accuracy over 16 Scottish top flight starts last season.

Out of Rangers’ regulars with over 15 appearances, only Glen Kamara managed a better percentage last season (WhoScored).

In other news: ‘No way’, ‘Will be the end of the season’…BBC pundit drops Gers claim after what he’s seen, find out more here.

Lots of Glasgow Rangers fans have been left fuming as an update emerged on the Premier Sports Cup.

As per the official Twitter page of the Ibrox faithful, a date has now been confirmed for when they will play Hibernian in the semi-final of the competition.

The game will take place on Sunday 21st November at 4pm, with Celtic facing up against St. Johnstone in the other semi-final.

A lot of Light Blues have been left very unhappy, as it means that they will have little time to celebrate if they get through, and of course the travel arrangements for a late Sunday afternoon game can be brutal for fans.

It is an extremely awkward kickoff time especially for such a big occasion, leading fans to share their frustration on what is just the latest example of putting TV rights money over football supporters.

Rangers fans on Cup news

These Gers fumed as the news on the fixture was shared on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that it was ‘mental’:

“Horrendous kick-off time for fans that need to travel any distance.”

Credit: @GF7Volunteers

“Very unhappy”

Credit: @smcg72_

“Sickener”

Credit: @nathan_aitken

“Mental.”

Credit: @IbroxLive

“Shambles of a kick-off time for fans traveling from Northern Ireland”

Credit: @Neil0806

“4pm on a Sunday! Criminal”

Credit: @blairmcaulay99

In other news, find out which £25.2m-rated Premier League ace has revealed he was ‘going to sign for Rangers’ here!

Some Glasgow Rangers fans have been blasting Hibernian defender Ryan Porteous after his ‘dangerous’ challenge on Joe Aribo resulted in a red card in Sunday’s clash at Ibrox.

The centre-back lunged in on the Nigerian when he appeared to be through on goal and was over the top of the ball with his attempted tackle, resulting in referee Nick Walsh sending him off straight away.

It came at a good time for Steven Gerrard’s team, who were 1-0 down at the time at Ibrox through an early Kevin Nisbet strike, and it certainly helped their cause as they went on to win 2-1 in the end thanks to goals from Kemar Roofe and Alfredo Morelos.

Nonetheless, it was a challenge which left a lot of Light Blues fans fuming, as Porteous could have seriously hurt Aribo with the way that he approached the tackle.

Rangers fans on Porteous challenge

These Gers supporters were left blasting Porteous on Twitter after he made the challenge on Aribo:

“Shocker of a tackle, knee height studs”

Credit: @DeanFerguson4

“That was an absolute ridiculous challenge. He’s gonna break someone’s leg if that’s the way he wants to play.”

Credit: @MichaelAndo88

“Horrific challenge – he’s going to ruin a player’s career one day”

Credit: @yaldydd

“Nasty that was.”

Credit: @_wotta

“A red all day, high straight leg and endangering an opponent. Porteous is reckless and liable for challenges like this against us.”

Credit: @Scooter_RFC

“Aribo so lucky that never fully connected, that was a shin breaker if it did. Honestly first time seeing it I didn’t think it was bad, but replays showed just how bad a tackle it was.”

Credit: @AngelusB4

In other news, find out which player’s display against Hibernian was praised by numerous fans

Reliable Crystal Palace reporter Matt Woosnam claimed that midfielder Eberechi Eze is ‘expected back before too long’.

And, as to be expected, a number of Eagles fans have been reacting to the news on social media.

Eze is yet to feature under Patrick Vieira after suffering a freak achilles injury in training back in May but appears to be making good progress in regards to his return.

The 23-year-old posted a training video on social media earlier in the week, and Woosnam shared a story on The Athletic looking at the Eagles’ midfield options.

Woosnam claimed that Vieira will soon be spoiled for choice with Eze expected back in and around the squad before October is out, labelling his recovery as ‘rapid’.

Palace fans react

Woosnam posted a link to his story on Twitter on Wednesday morning, which led to these Palace supporters interacting with his tweet.

This is what these fans had to say in reply, with one describing Eze’s return and more options in midfield as ‘important’.

“woke up smiling matthew”

Credit: @rileyeagles

“May as well change the PL ribbons to red & blue now”

Credit: @Beulah12

“Lovely read, Eze is 23, not 21.”

Credit: @SWPalace

“Having options is important because we will get injuries and suspensions and will need to tackle some matches differently tactically. Great problem to have”

Credit: @rickyj555

“Only if we have no injuries, which we always get and badly. The biggest fundamental of consistent PL presence is squad depth”

Credit: @CPFCBarbarian

“Good article Matt. Unusual not only to have midfield options but to have some creative midfield players as well. Been a while…and as you say a good problem for PV to have”

Credit: @edmonds_mark

In other news: ‘Finally’ – Many CPFC fans buzz as ‘great news’ is confirmed.

Speaking to Football Insider, Tottenham Hotspur insider John Wenham has lifted the lid on a collapsed stadium deal which saw chairman Daniel Levy squander ‘millions’.

The Lowdown: Spurs eyeing financial boosters…

Following the easing of coronavirus restrictions and life slowly getting back to normality, Tottenham have seen numerous prestigious events being hosted at their brand new state of the art ground.

The NFL, for example, as well as the recent heavyweight boxing bout between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk, will have grossed the club millions of pounds worth of off-field revenue.

However, in a revelation, insider Wenham has claimed that Spurs could have been earning more over lockdown as he lifts the lid on collapsed stadium sponsorship discussions just before COVID.

The Latest: Wenham makes stadium deal claim…

As per the club insider and Spurs source, speaking to FI, the Lilywhites and Levy were actually in talks with HSBC over the stadium’s naming rights but a deal ‘fell through’.

“I know Tottenham were previously in discussions with HSBC, that fell through for whatever reason,” he explained.

“That was right before the pandemic. In hindsight, would Tottenham have taken that deal? Who wouldn’t?

“We could have been earning millions for two years even while the stadium was shut.”

The Verdict: Big blow…

Given Tottenham and Levy announced a £63.9 million loss during the pandemic last year, it’s safe to say a naming rights deal would have assisted the club in a major way financially.

Spurs ended up having to borrow £175 million through the bank of England in what was a turbulent time off-field for the club.

After the HSBC blunder, Tottenham will be hoping to secure the right naming rights deal as soon as possible.

In other news: Spurs already have offered pencilled in to sign ‘world class’ player who Hoddle called outstanding, find out more here.

Liverpool fans were livid with the performance of Jordan Henderson during their 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.

The Reds were in action in Madrid in the Champions League, and they picked up an important three points away from home in a thrilling encounter.

Going 2-0 up early on thanks to goals from Naby Keita and Mohamed Salah, a brilliant brace from Antoine Griezmann levelled things up. The France international was then sent off, however, and Salah grabbed the winner to given Jurgen Klopp’s men the victory.

Captain Henderson started in the middle of the park, but he did not put in his best display. He won the ball back in just one duel in his entire 90 minutes on the pitch (SofaScore), and lacked the usual leadership and composure we have become used to seeing from him, surrendering possession ten times.

The fans were from happy with the performance of the England midfielder, and they took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about Henderson below

“Henderson was horrible and was worse than Keita In fact.”

Credit: @ninawiththe9

“Henderson was atrocious. he should’ve been cutting off the line of pass to griezmann but was caught behind the ball. As a no.6 for the game he didn’t recognise his role and was all over the place and poor in possession.”

Credit: @i98NDK

“Both goals came from the right side, are you not gonna say anything about TAA? What can you say about Milner and Henderson who were equally shambolic. As for the defining game for his career at LFC, not your call, you are not Jurgen.”

Credit: @LNdzabe

“Henderson has been garbage and Milner is an old man. Both should be replaced down the line.”

Credit: @AlucardKing7

“Henderson should never have gotten a contract”

Credit: @LFCShafic

“He was overplayed. Guy played all of his international team games and the game at Watford. Henderson was also very poor.”

Credit: @TemnoLFC

In other news, these were Liverpool’s best three players against Atletico.

A fresh twist has emerged on Rangers’ contingent of players who are set to play for their country at the African Cup of Nations at the start of 2022.

What’s the latest?

According to the Sunday Mail, via Ibrox News, the Gers are confident that they will be able to strike a deal with Nigeria that will see Calvin Bassey, Leon Balogun and Joe Aribo available to face Celtic on the 2nd of January.

The report claims that the players are due to depart to link up with their national squad on the 27th of December, which would see them miss matches away at Aberdeen and Celtic in the Scottish Premiership.

However, Rangers are now working to find a solution to have them available for both games before heading to AFCON.

Fans buzzing

Rangers fans will surely be buzzing by this twist as it suggests that the club will have all three players in the squad for the two huge matches against Aberdeen and Celtic. It goes without saying how important the game against the Hoops is and Steven Gerrard will want as many of his best players available as possible.

Aribo and Balogun, in particular, are crucial members of the squad whose absences would be felt in any matches they miss. They have averaged SofaScore ratings of 7.04 and 7.10 respectively in the Premiership this season, with Aribo starting all 10 games and Balogun starting eight.

This highlights the quality they provide on the pitch, but also the consistency and the fact that Gerrard trusts them to play week-in-week-out in his team. That is why fans will be delighted to read that they may both be able to play against Aberdeen and Celtic.

It would be wrong to ignore Bassey’s importance to the side as well. Despite only starting four Premiership games, he has provided Gerrard with the option to give Borna Barisic a rest from time to time. An average SofaScore rating of 7.10 also shows that he can produce top-quality performances when called upon, which could be useful if Barisic is injured for that spell at the end of the year.

If Nigeria make it all the way to the final, all three players would miss the fourth round of the Scottish Cup and Premiership games against Livingston, Ross County and Hearts. Whilst this is a blow on its own, fans will be buzzing if the trio are available for the Old Firm derby.

AND in other news, 9 duels won: “Important” Rangers beast proved why Wilson has a big decision to make…