With an absolutely cardinal series against the Mariners looming, the Astros are ready to redeploy one of their best young talents.

Houston is activating third baseman Isaac Paredes from the injured list ahead of the team's three-game series against the Mariners, it announced Friday. Paredes, 26, has not played since July 19 due to a hamstring injury.

When he hurt himself, the two-time All-Star was slashing .259/.359/.470 with 19 home runs and 50 RBIs. As noted by Brian McTaggart of MLB.com, each of those last two figures led the team at that time.

The Astros acquired Paredes from the Cubs on Dec. 13 in the trade that sent Chicago star right fielder and designated hitter Kyle Tucker. The transaction has worked out for both teams in the near term, as Paredes, Tucker and Houston right fielder Cam Smith have all provided their share of contributions to their new teams.

With nine games remaining, both the Astros and Seattle have 84–69 records. Houston is seeking its fifth straight American League West title, while the Mariners haven't won their division since 2001.

Tottenham Hotspur’s efforts in the Champions League against PSG last night were a vast improvement from the North London Derby, but it still wasn’t enough to claim all three points.

Luis Enrique’s men secured a 5-3 triumph at the Parc des Princes, but the night could have been a lot better for Thomas Frank’s side at one stage.

The Dane’s side twice took the lead against the reigning Champions League winners, with Randal Kolo Muani and Richarlison putting the Lilywhites ahead before and after the break.

However, numerous moments of madness from numerous players subsequently cost the side all three points, with Frank’s side now winless in their last three outings.

During such fixtures, the first team have shipped a total of 11 goals, many of which have been down to failures of one player – as demonstrated in Paris once again yesterday.

Cristian Romero’s dismal display against PSG yesterday

After Frank’s arrival as manager over the summer, he made an immediate impact by naming numerous first-team members as part of his Spurs leadership group.

Centre-back Cristian Romero was named as part of the group, with the Argentine wearing the armband in every one of his starts for the Lilywhites this campaign.

That was no different on Wednesday night, but the 27-year-old did nothing short of lead the side to a positive result, with his various errors costing the side against PSG.

His questionable pass into the feet of Pape Sarr saw the Senegalese star robbed of possession, which led to Fabian Ruiz firing the hosts into the lead for the first time.

Romero also charged down Vitinha on the edge of his 18-yard box, but his sliding effort saw him block the Portuguese international’s strike – which resulted in a penalty and all but killed off the game.

His underlying stats also showcase his lack of positive impact at the Parc des Princes, with the defender losing 50% of the duels he entered – subsequently being dominated by the opposition’s frontline.

The Spurs star who was as bad as Romero against PSG

After the manner of the Derby Day defeat on Sunday, it was clear that manager Frank needed to make various changes to try and avenge such a disappointing result.

As a result, the Dane made five changes to his starting eleven, which also saw a switch from a five-back to a more familiar four-back system – one which Romero was at the heart of.

The likes of Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray were handed rare starts at the heart of the side, with the duo often linking up with intricate play in large spells of the first half.

With both players aged under 20, there’s no denying that they will have huge parts to play in the immediate and long-term future for the Lilywhites in their quest for success.

However, there will certainly be question marks over a few of the other starters, with Pape Sarr one player who was unable to take full advantage of his recall to the squad.

The 23-year-old was named as a substitute against Arsenal, but was given the chance to stake his claim for a starting role again last night – but he may look back on the game as a missed opportunity.

Sarr certainly wasn’t solely to blame for the host’s third goal, but his lack of awareness after Romero’s pass saw him lose possession in the build-up to Luiz’s emphatic finish.

Minutes played

84

Touches

44

Passes completed

26

Errors leading to goals

2

Possession lost

7x

Tackles won

50%

Dribbled past

2x

Blocks made

0

He also could have done more to prevent Willian Pacho’s strike, with the Senegalese international unable to get ahead of the defender to clear the loose ball in the penalty area.

The youngster’s underlying stats were just as poor, with the midfielder only able to win 50% of the tackles he entered, whilst also being dribbled past twice.

Sarr’s lack of positive impact was highlighted in his tally of possession lost, as he gave the ball back to the opposition on seven separate occasions – often presenting a careless figure in possession.

There’s little denying he put in a shift when out of possession, but he did so to little avail, ultimately leading to journalist Alasdair Gold handing him a 5/10 match rating upon the final whistle.

After such a showing, it’s evident that Bergvall and Gray are both ahead of him in the pecking order, with Sarr needing a huge reaction in the upcoming matches to dislodge the pair.

As for Romero, it was yet another evening to forget, but given his role as captain, he must pick himself and the rest of the team up ahead of Saturday’s clash with Fulham.

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South Africa captain says they had prepared for left-arm spin and was confident of a strong comeback

S Sudarshanan03-Oct-20251:56

Wolvaardt: We’re much better than 69 all out

South Africa’s collapse in their Women’s World Cup opener against England was down to “one of those days where the top order and the middle order failed on the same day”, according to their captain Laura Wolvaardt. Sent in to bat in Guwahati, South Africa were bowled out for 69, their third-lowest total in women’s ODIs, and lost by ten wickets.Wolvaardt insisted they were “much better than 69 all out” and backed her side to bounce back.”I think our prep has been good, I don’t think there were too many demons in the pitch,” she said after the match. “It was just one of those days where everyone went out early and that happens in cricket sometimes. It was not a pitch that we were super foreign to. We spent a lot of time in these conditions in the last couple of months, so definitely wouldn’t put it on the wicket.Related

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“We are much, much better than 69 all out. As a group, we just need to put it behind us as quickly as we can and move forward, because if we’re going to take that into the next game, it’s going to be a very long tournament for us.”South Africa knew what to expect from England, who had two kinds of left-arm spinners, with Sophie Ecclestone’s release point being much higher than that of Linsey Smith.Marizanne Kapp became Linsey Smith’s third victim•Getty Images

On the eve of the match, South Africa’s batting coach Baakier Abrahams oversaw Wolvaardt’s preparation against left-arm spin closely. He specifically asked the net bowlers to change angles and bowl from wide of the crease as well. The focus was on her footwork and shot selection, and Abrahams reminded her of the forward defence with a straight bat. At one point, he praised her shot selection to a particular ball but pointed out that her head was falling over. Towards the end of her stint that lasted nearly 45 minutes, he nodded in approval.On Friday, though, it took Smith only two balls to dismiss Wolvaardt, who chipped a return catch. Smith then used inswing to beat the inside edges of both Tazmin Brits and Marizanne Kapp and hit the stumps. South Africa were four down just 31 balls into the game and couldn’t recover.”You can’t really fault our preparation. Yesterday, personally, I was super specific in my training,” Wolvaardt said. “I had someone bowl like Lauren Bell would and I had the left-armer [bowling] at me. I had already planned which guard I would take and what my options were and what my strong options were. To have that soft dismissal today was very disappointing with all the preparation that we had put in. We’ve been very well-informed by all of our coaches. It’s just one of those days where we played the wrong line for the ball swinging in.”While batting has been South Africa’s stronger suit heading into this World Cup, the defeat put their Nos. 3 to 6 in the spotlight. In ODIs since the start of 2023, South Africa have been one of the top batting teams. That is largely due to Wolvaardt and Brits, the most prolific pair in this period. In the same time frame, their Nos. 3 to 6 average 28.08, the worst among all eight teams at this World Cup. That is down to Kapp not playing all games, plus some players moving up and down the order.”Our middle order has actually been better this year than they have ever been,” Wolvaardt said. “I think the likes of Sune [Luus], Marizanne, Chloe [Tryon], [Annerie] Dercksen, who didn’t play today, have really been scoring a lot of runs throughout the past few series. I don’t think that we have any trouble in our middle order at the moment. It’s just one of those days where both top order and middle order didn’t fire.”In South Africa’s last ODI before the World Cup, they were dismissed for 115 with Pakistan left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu taking 6 for 26. Not all of South Africa’s frontline players played that game, since they had already won the series. Wolvaardt didn’t read much into the similarities between that performance and this one against England.”Those were two quite different spinners. Smith was very good with her swing and her drift today, whereas Sandhu in that game got a lot of turn over the wicket. So very different conditions. In that Pakistan game, we probably didn’t adapt well to a turning wicket, probably a lot more turn than what we were used to, very out of our comfort zone conditions-wise, whereas today, it was just a total collapse. We just didn’t apply ourselves well enough with the bat.”South Africa’s second game in the World Cup is against New Zealand in Indore on October 6.

The tournament will be held in February-March 2026 in India and Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Oct-2025United Arab Emirates (UAE) have qualified for the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, after defeating Japan on Thursday by eight wickets in the Asia-EAP Qualifier tournament in Al Amerat.Haider Ali’s 3 for 20 and and an opening partnership of 70 between openers Alishan Sharafu and Muhammad Waseem helped them comfortably chase 117 against Japan. UAE now join Nepal and Oman as the last three teams to secure their World Cup spot in next year’s edition.Apart from hosts India and Sri Lanka, the other teams with automatic qualification into the tournament are the top-seven teams from the 2024 T20 World Cup – Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, United States of America and West Indies. The three teams that qualified on basis of their T20I rankings were New Zealand, Pakistan and Ireland.Canada comfortably took the lone Americas Qualifier position. Italy, first time T20 World Cup participants, and Netherlands qualified from the five-team tournament in Europe. Namibia and Zimbabwe grabbed the two spots from the eight-team Africa qualifier before Nepal, Oman and UAE wrapped up the list this week in the nine-team Asia-EAP round.The 2026 tournament will follow the same format as the previous edition – the 20 teams will be split into four groups of five each, with every team playing the others once in a round-robin format. The top two teams from every group will progress to the Super 8 stage, where they will be placed into two groups of four according to pre-tournament seedings for another round-robin phase. The top two sides from each Super 8 group will then qualify for the semi-finals. The winners of the semi-final will meet in the final.

This weekend is arguably the biggest in Thomas Frank’s tenure as Tottenham Hotspur manager, when he leads his side out against Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.

The Dane has yet to get his first taste of the North London Derby, but he will be looking to get one over Mikel Arteta and secure bragging rights for the Lilywhites faithful.

Such a fixture is huge for supporters, with the meeting between the two clubs one of the first dates they look for upon fixture release day, before a ball is kicked.

However, it’s been a game that the white side of North London have often come out on the losing side away from home – subsequently winning just one of their last 32 encounters.

If Frank’s side are to write themselves into the history books, they will desperately need to keep one player quiet throughout the clash at the Emirates.

The threat Bukayo Saka poses to Spurs this weekend

Bukayo Saka may ply his trade for Arsenal, but he’s cemented himself as one of the Premier League’s most threatening attackers over the last couple of years.

The Englishman has managed to register over 20 combined goals and assists in all competitions in each of the last three years – often providing the difference in such a fixture.

He’s often popped up with the goods in attacking areas, as seen by his record against the Lilywhites since his senior debut back in the 2020/21 campaign.

Saka has featured on ten occasions against Spurs throughout his professional career, racking up a total of five goals – subsequently finding the net in 50% of his outings in such a clash.

He’s also popped up with various assists in the North London Derby, with his corner to Gabriel securing the Gunners all three points at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last campaign.

It’s evident that the winger possesses serious quality, often coming alive on Derby Day, with Frank and his squad desperately needing to silence him on Sunday afternoon.

However, he too could unleash his own version of the Englishman at the Emirates, with the Lilywhites star potentially able to inflict serious trouble on Arteta’s men.

The Spurs star who’s becoming their answer to Saka

Players such as Saka don’t come around very often, and when they do, they cost a pretty penny – many of which undoubtedly cost a small fortune in the modern-day.

Whilst Spurs are unlikely to pay over the odds for top-level talents, they have invested heavily into the frontline over recent years – as seen by their deal to land Brennan Johnson.

The hierarchy forked out a reported £47.5m for the Welshman’s signature back in the summer of 2023, with the attacker showcasing his talents in North London last campaign.

He registered a total of 18 goals across all competitions last season, the highest of any player in the squad, often starring off the right-hand side of the club’s attack.

However, he’s fallen down the pecking order in recent months, which has resulted in various options being considered within the forward line in the capital.

Mathys Tel joined the Lilywhites on a permanent basis during the summer window, with the Frenchman costing a total of £27m from German side Bayern Munich.

The 20-year-old is capable of operating off the left-hand side or even as a centre-forward, with Frank able to rely upon the youngster in a variety of different positions.

When operating on the left, he’s able to cut inside and onto his favoured foot – something which Saka has made a name for himself for in England’s top-flight.

His similarities to the Englishman are also reflected in his shot on target accuracy, with Tel matching the winger with his tally of placing 33% of his efforts between the posts.

The Frenchman has previously impressed in his professional career, but has transferred his skills over to the Premier League, as seen by his tally of two goals in the league this season.

Mathys Tel – PL stats (25/26)
Statistics (per 90)	Tally
Games played	8
Goals scored	2
Shot on target accuracy	33%
Pass accuracy	73%
Dribble success	50%
Long ball success	83%
Aerials won	1.2
Mins per goal	124.5
Stats via FotMob

Tel’s efforts in attacking areas have led to huge praise from numerous outlets, with Bayern Chairman Herbert Hainer labelling him “one of the biggest talents in Europe”.

However, he will need consistent first-team minutes to reach the heights many have touted him to, with Frank needing to trust him in the near future to reap the rewards.

He’s shown that he’s capable of producing the goods in attacking areas, potentially able to provide the difference in the clash against the Gunners on Sunday.

Tel has proven he’s able to be the club’s answer to Saka, but it remains to be seen if the manager will show faith in him to allow the youngster to continue on his upward trajectory.

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Manchester United have been in contact over the 2026 signing of a “supertalent” ahead of Premier League rivals Liverpool.

Man Utd’s midfield search after update on Casemiro contract

The Red Devils and Ruben Amorim look set to be on the hunt for a midfield refresh in the New Year, with Casemiro’s contract set to expire in 2026.

The Red Devils hold an option to extend the Brazilian’s stay by an additional year, but that may not happen, with Amorim and INEOS seemingly clashing behind the scenes in regards to Casemiro.

Amorim thinks he is still needed at Old Trafford, whereas executives are asking for a wage cut instead of triggering the extension option until 2027, something which Casemiro, the top earner at Man Utd, is unlikely to accept.

Rank

Player

Gross pay per week

Gross pay per year

1

Casemiro

£350,000

£18,200,000

2

Bruno Fernandes

£300,000

£15,600,000

3

Matthijs de Ligt

£195,000

£10,140,000

4

Harry Maguire

£190,000

£9,880,000

5

Matheus Cunha

£180,000

£9,360,000

United arguably need midfield additions even if Casemiro remains in Manchester, especially with Kobbie Mainoo down the pecking order and Manuel Ugarte likewise falling out of favour under Amorim.

Man Utd chief makes contact for Smit

According to CaughtOffside, Man Utd have made their first move to sign AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit.

Christopher Vivell, United’s director of recruitment, is the one who has reached out over an Old Trafford move, with the Red Devils looking to get ahead of Liverpool in the race for the £25m midfielder.

“Everyone at AZ is aware that Smit is likely to attract offers, and they’re open now to letting him go for the right price next summer.

“£25m is the figure I’m hearing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a deal ends up initially being agreed in January to then go through in the summer.

“Christopher Vivell has been internally discussing Smit for some time now, and he’s also contacted the player to sound him out about a move.”

Hailed as a “supertalent” in the past by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Smit has already reached 50 senior appearances for AZ Alkmaar and is catching the eye in the Netherlands.

Former Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman has even compared the 19-year-old to Pedri, who is arguably the best midfielder in the world right now.

“I almost regret mentioning his name again [Pedri], but he’s a guy who plays in the same position. The way he turns away from his opponent, the way he scans the area, his two-footedness… I saw that in Pedri too. If he gets half his career, we’ll be very happy in the Netherlands.”

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Celtic were saved by their captain yet again on Saturday night when they were heading for a drab 0-0 draw away at St Mirren before Callum McGregor stepped up with seconds remaining.

The Hoops skipper picked the ball up from range in the 95th minute and unleashed a screamer of a shot that nestled in the top corner to secure all three points for the visitors.

Up until that point, Martin O’Neill’s side had struggled to show much in the way of quality against St Mirren, despite holding 73% of the possession, per Sofascore, which is why the game was tied with seconds remaining.

The hosts even created a ‘big chance’ from one of their 13 shots on goal, but, thankfully, they were unable to convert any of the opportunities that they created on the night.

Celtic, meanwhile, did not create a single ‘big chance’ from their 16 efforts against St Mirren, per Sofascore, which is why they needed a long-range strike from their captain to win the match.

Whilst McGregor’s sensational strike from distance bailed the club out in general, the skipper also bailed out several of his underperforming teammates on the night.

Celtic's worst performers against St Mirren

It would be remiss of us to speak about the worst performers on the night without starting with the player who was withdrawn from the match after 45 minutes, Johnny Kenny.

The Ireland international, who scored four goals in four matches for Celtic before Saturday’s game, won just one duel and lost possession six times from 17 touches in the first half, per Sofascore, as he failed to provide a focal point up front.

Kenny’s withdrawal meant that Daizen Maeda moved into the centre-forward role, after starting out wide. However, he ended the 90 minutes with two out of seven duels won, no key passes, and no shots on target, per Sofascore, which illustrates his ineffectiveness in the final third.

Minutes

67

90

Shots on target

0

0

Key passes

1

0

Big chances created

0

0

Dribbles completed

2/6

1/2

Duels won

3/11

2/7

Possession lost

14x

12x

As you can see in the table above, Sebastian Tounekti and Maeda both struggled out wide, and the latter up front in the second 45, throughout the game against St Mirren.

These statistics show that all three of the forwards who started on Saturday night failed to do enough to suggest that O’Neill should keep them in place for the club’s trip to play Feyenoord in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

Tounekti, Maeda, and Kenny were not the only underperforming Celtic players who failed to provide enough quality on the pitch against the Saints, though, as one Hoops flop is now looking like the new Luis Palma.

Chalkboard

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Supporters will likely remember Palma, who is currently on loan at Lech Poznan, as a player who made a fast start to life in Glasgow before falling off and eventually being deemed surplus to requirements.

The Honduras international produced seven goals and nine assists, with 14 ‘big chances’ created, in 28 Scottish Premiership games during the 2023/24 campaign for the club, per Sofascore.

Unfortunately, though, the winger followed that up with a return of zero goals and zero assists in eight league matches the following season before being sent out on loan to Olympiacos for the second half of the campaign.

Whilst his fall-off this term may not be quite as drastic as Palma’s was, Celtic central midfielder Reo Hatate appears to be heading in the same direction.

Why Reo Hatate should be dropped by Celtic

The Japan international was a sensation in the middle of the park for the Scottish giants in the 2024/25 campaign with a return of nine goals and 14 ‘big chances’ created in 37 outings in the Premiership, per Sofascore.

Hatate provided regular quality at the top end of the pitch with his ability to make a difference as both a scorer and a creator of goals, as evidenced by his statistics, and that made him a vital player for Brendan Rodgers.

This season, however, the 28-year-old star has failed to deliver consistent quality in midfield for Celtic, with the clash against St Mirren being his latest underwhelming performance, which is why he should be ruthlessly dropped by O’Neill.

The Japanese midfielder, who was described as “sloppy” by ex-Hoops boss Neil Lennon during the game against Sturm Graz in the Europa League, ended the night with no shots on target, no ‘big chances’ created, and a duel success rate of 20% (1/5), per Sofascore.

This shows that his performance was lacking in both quality and physicality, as he lost 80% of his physical tussles without providing any moments of genuine quality on the ball, and that has not been a rare occurrence for him this season.

Appearances

37

10

Goals

9

1

Minutes per goal

241

708

Conversion rate

14%

10%

Big chances created

14

2

Assists

4

1

Dribble success rate

70%

57%

As you can see in the table above, Hatate’s performances have dropped off since the end of last season, as he is scoring and creating goals far less frequently for the Premiership champions.

The Japan international’s last league goal for the club came against Aberdeen on the 10th August, and he has only produced two goals – including one penalty – and one assist in 18 appearances in all competitions this term, per Transfermarkt.

His concerning drop-off in form this season suggests that he may be on the road to becoming the next Palma, as a once supreme talent who now looks too inconsistent to be reliable to the Celtic manager.

Therefore, O’Neill should ruthlessly drop the central midfielder from the starting line-up to face Feyenoord away from home, as the Hoops may need quality and physicality to beat their Dutch opponents, and Hatate did not show either against St Mirren.

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MatériaMais Notícias

O Palmeiras encara o Vitória neste domingo (14), no Barradão, em jogo que abre a campanha do atual bicampeão brasileiro na luta pelo inédito tri.

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➡️ Siga o Lance! Palmeiras no WhatsApp e acompanhe todas as notícias do Verdão

O jogo marca um encontro inédito do Verdão diante de uma Cria da Academia que é campeã da Libertadores com Abel Ferreira.

Trata-se de Lucas Esteves, lateral-esquerdo que foi negociado em definitivo com o Vitória no início de 2024.

O jogador que teve poucas oportunidades como titular do Palmeiras, comentou sobre o primeiro encontro diante do Verdão na sua carreira.

– Passei uma parte importante e alegre da minha vida no Palmeiras. Tive oportunidades na base e no profissional, conquistei títulos expressivos e aproveitei da melhor maneira possível. Serei sempre grato por tudo o que fizeram por mim enquanto estive lá. Jogar contra será uma emoção especial. Ainda tenho muitos amigos no Palmeiras, mas deixarei todo esse sentimento de lado no domingo. Hoje, defendo as cores do Vitória e farei de de tudo para que a gente estreie vencendo no Brasileiro – afirmou Esteves.

➡️ Matador! Com R$50 no Lance! Betting, você leva R$151 se Flaco López balançar as redes do Vitória a qualquer momento

Além de Lucas Esteves, o Vitória conta com outro jogador muito conhecido da torcida do Palmeiras em seu elenco, trata-se de Luiz Adriano, atacante que foi bicampeão da América vestindo o manto alviverde.

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The New York Yankees have been in a prolonged slump and the team didn't get off to a hot start in the month of August, either. Following Sunday's 7–3 defeat at loanDepot Park, the Yankees were swept by the Marlins for the first time ever.

New York has not only seen its comfortable AL East lead slip, but they've even fallen into third place in the division behind the rival Red Sox. They're currently clinging onto a wild card spot by two games as teams continue to close the cap.

Following the humbling sweep in Miami, Aaron Boone spoke to reporters and addressed the team's current woes. He used three words to describe the situation, telling reporters it's "gut check time" for the Yankees as they embark on the final two months of the campaign, via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

As Hoch noted, the Yankees are 25-32 since the end of May and have been swept three times during that span, including twice against division rivals in Boston and Toronto. As the season continues to crumble, Boone is hoping his team can find the mindset needed to overcome their struggles and turn things around down the stretch.

The injury to Aaron Judge certainly makes things more difficult, but there's plenty to criticize about this Yankees team, in particular their lack of focus on defense and on the base paths. If they can't clean up their sloppy play, things may continue to get worse in the Bronx.

عقد هانز فليك مدرب برشلونة مؤتمرًا صحفيًا للحديث عن آخر استعدادات فريقه لمواجهة ريال بيتيس غداً ضمن منافسات الدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم.

وقال فليك عن لقاء ريال بيتيس في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “سبورت” الإسبانية: “المباراة صعبة دائماً، لديهم فريق رائع وعلينا أن نكرر ما فعلناه ضد أتلتيكو، نحقق سلسلة نتائج جيدة، فوز الثلاثاء يمنحنا الثقة”.

وأضاف فليك عن موقف فيرمين لوبيز من المشاركة: “هو قادر على اللعب لكنني لست متأكداً من مشاركته أساسياً، سيحصل على دقائق لعب وهذا مؤكد، أما ما حدث لداني أولمو فهو لاعب مهم وكان يلعب بشكل جيد لكن هذه الأمور واردة وعلينا التعامل معها”.

وعلق فليك على تجديد عقد إريك جارسيا: “هو لاعب ممتاز بمستواه الحالي، يعرف النادي جيداً ويستحق تجديد عقده، هو لاعب مهم جداً في غرفة الملابس وقد يكون قائد للفريق في المستقبل، يبذل قصارى جهده من أجل هذا النادي”.

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وأكمل عن جارسيا: “رأينا إمكانياته منذ بداية الموسم الماضي، عانى من الإصابات وتبعاتها، هو لاعب محترف ويركز دائماً على لعب كرة القدم، عندما تريد أن يكون قائداً فهذا مهم أيضاً، هو منضبط ويهتم بالآخرين، لا يهم إن كان ظهير أو قلب دفاع أو بديل، تجديد عقده أخبار سارة له وللنادي والجميع”.

وواصل عن رضاه عما يقدمه برشلونة في الفترة الحالية: “نحن سعداء جداً باللعب على هذا المستوى، أثق بفريقي، لقد اتخذنا خطوة للأمام وأثبتنا عندما نكون مترابطين جيداً وعندما نلعب كفريق واحد، تسير الأمور على ما يرام، علينا أن نلعب من أجل بعضنا البعض كفريق واحد”.

وأشاد فليك بعلاقته بلاعبه رافينها: “علاقتنا ممتازة، رافا لاعب مهم جداً وقد أثبت ذلك لأنه دائماً ما يبادر بالضغط، يساهم بشكل كبير ووجوده متاحاً أمر رائع بالنسبة لي”.

وأثنى فليك على جيرارد مارتن: “يلعب بشكل ممتاز، أنت تعلم ما سيقدمه لك عندما يكون في الملعب، إنه منضبط دفاعياً وهجومياً، كونه لاعب أيسر يمنحنا خيارات دفاعية وهذا ما نتوقعه منه ولهذا السبب يلعب”.

وذكر عن تحديات المدرب في تشكيل المباراة: “هذه وظيفتي، لا يمكن أن يبدأ إلا 11 لاعباً، أحياناً لا يكونوا سعداء ولكن عندما يشعرون بالإحباط، لا يبذلون قصارى جهدهم، إذا كان لدينا تشكيل أساسي فإني أتحدث مع من لن يلعبوا، بعض المواقف يجب إدارتها لكنها تعتمد على كل لاعب، أريد أن يفكر اللاعبون بإيجابية ويبذلون قصارى جهدهم، بذل البدلاء كل ما في وسعهم ضد أتلتيكو وهذا ما نبحث عنه”.

وسئل فليك عن جافي: “هو بخير، كان يحتفل مع بقية الفريق على أرض الملعب يوم الثلاثاء، إنه منضبط وسيعود أقوى من ذي قبل”.

وأشار فليك للقطة احتفال الفريق بعد الفوز على أتلتيكو مدريد: “هذا ما أظهرناه الموسم الماضي، كانت أفضل لحظاتنا ضد أتلتيكو مدريد، أنا سعيد جداً لما رأيته أيضاً بعد المباراة”.

وسئل فليك عن دي يونج: “أنا لا أعلم بالتأكيد، هو تدرب بشكل جيد وقد يلعب غداً”.

واختتم عن لامين يامال: “نتحدث دائماً عن اللاعبين في كلا الدورين الدفاعي والهجومي، هو يقدم أداء جيد ويضغط بقوة ضد أتلتيتكو، لقد تحسن بشكل ملحوظ هجومياً ودفاعياً، أحب رؤيته وتواجده في برشلونة بهذا المستوى، هو دائماً يسعى للتطور، هو ليس من أولئك اللاعبين الذين ينهارون في المواجهات الفردية، إنه يريد الاستمرار والتغلب على الخصم التالي”.