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Southampton have seen a whole host of talent grace St Mary's over the years as demonstrated in their summer fire sale, reluctantly letting go of James Ward-Prowse, Romeo Lavia, Tino Livramento and Nathan Tella.

While those were just a few of the stars they were forced into selling following their relegation, the talent sold this summer doesn't touch the surface of the profile of players they've sold previously.

The Saints have nurtured and developed some of the game's biggest stars who have gone on to become world-beaters since departing the club, including Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk and Gareth Bale.

In 2013, Mauricio Pochettino came close to adding to that impressive roster – but as seen by the players he brought to St Mary's – the Argentine fell short in the transfer market.

During his 18 months in charge, Pochettino brought in Vegard Forren, Daniel Osvaldo, Victor Wanyama and Dejan Lovren, although the quality of that list would have dramatically improved if he had managed to sign Heung-Min Son at the time.

Did Southampton almost sign Heung-Min Son?

Southampton came close to signing Heung-Min Son in 2013, as revealed by Pochettino before he signed for Bayer Leverkusen.

The Argentine was on the lookout for a goalscorer to keep them afloat in the Premier League and landed on the South Korean as their target after scoring 12 goals for Hamburg in the season prior.

Pochettino knew of his talents from an early age and was desperate to bring him to England that summer, however, his attempts to sign him were thwarted and Son stayed put in Germany.

Speaking in 2019, the 51-year-old revealed they were close to landing the forward, who was 21-years-old at the time, but were unable to agree personal terms.

He commented: "We tried to sign him in Southampton. He preferred to move to Leverkusen. Then we tried again here and we got him.

"Everyone can see his performance. He is doing a fantastic job for Tottenham. We know his quality and potential.

"We were very close but in the end he was so young and his family preferred, rather than leaving Germany and the Bundesliga, to keep him there and he preferred to move to Bayer Leverkusen rather than Southampton. But we were so close."

Pochettino may have failed in his attempts to bring Son to Southampton, but he did succeed two years later when he was manager of Tottenham – and the rest is history.

How many Premier League goals has Son scored?

Becoming the most expensive Asian player in history after Tottenham signed him from Bayer Leverkusen for £22m in 2015, Son's boundless amounts of talent have propelled him into the elite bracket of Premier League players across the past decade, and of all-time.

The South Korean – who has been lavished as "world-class" on numerous occasions, notably by Jose Mourinho – is simply a joy to watch when in full flow, striking the most successful partnership in the competitions history with former teammate Harry Kane – as the pair dominated at the top end of the scoring charts for almost a decade.

In the 2021/22 season, the pair were on fire as Son finished as the league's joint-top scorer on 23, but this wasn't the only record he contributed towards that year, surpassing Frank Lampard's and Didier Drogba's record of most goal combinations as a pair (36).

Lauded by Kane as "unbelievable", the 31-year-old's unrelenting scoring power, exceptional footballing brain and explosive physical attributes have been exercised with regularity in his eight-year spell at the Lilywhites, showcasing his ability to produce all types of goals.

From mouth-watering solo goals – like his Puskas award-winning goal against Burnley – to the superbly placed curling efforts and composed finishes inside the box, Son has almost every finish in the locker with his goal-scoring record speaking volumes about the quality he possesses.

In 379 appearances for Spurs, he has chalked up an eye-watering 150 goals and a further 80 assists, demonstrating an unrelenting capacity to produce moments of brilliance in big matches, haunting Arsenal on several occasions in the north London Derby.

While he's worshipped at Tottenham, he's idolised by supporters in the Premier League after becoming the first Asian player to reach 100 goals in the competition last season.

In recent times, however, things haven't always been rosy for Son. His form took a turn for the worse last season, scoring just three times in the opening 14 league matches, but so did Spurs as they struggled under Antonio Conte.

But since the arrival of Ange Postecoglu, the 190k per-week phenom has been revolutionized, filling the void left by Kane superbly with a hat-trick against Burnley and a brace against Arsenal.

Despite managing their rivals Chelsea, Pochettino will always be remembered at Tottenham for the role he played in bringing the South Korean sensation to White Hart Lane.

When looking at Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool squad over the summer, the main focus was rightly placed on welcoming midfield reinforcements, especially after the departures of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.

The Reds, in the end, managed to solve their midfield crisis with the addition of Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo, and Ryan Gravenberch. But, in solving that problem, they placed another issue to one side – one that they could revisit come the January transfer window.

That problem, of course, is their defensive depth, with the likes of Joe Gomez and Joel Matip suffering regularly from injury problems without other options to step up in their place. With that said, according to transfer insider Dean Jones, Liverpool could join the race and beat Tottenham Hotspur to their own January target.

What has Dean Jones said?

Even after getting off to a solid start to the Premier League season, remaining unbeaten in four games with three wins to their name, Liverpool still reportedly have their eyes on January reinforcements.

Turning their attention to their defensive options, according to Jones, the Reds could battle it out with Spurs to sign Bournemouth defender Lloyd Kelly when the winter transfer window arrives.

The transfer insider told GiveMeSport, when asked about Liverpool's interest in Kelly: "Yeah, I mean, there's a possibility that Liverpool could join the race on that one.

"It's a bit of a strange situation in the way that it kind of fizzled out at the end of the transfer window, and Tottenham were obviously the hottest link to him at that point. But when you consider what Liverpool might be needing in the January transfer window as they start to tweak the squad, it wouldn't be a complete surprise at all if they were mentioned again in the Lloyd Kelly conversation."

Should Liverpool sign Lloyd Kelly?

As already mentioned, Liverpool left their defensive issues to one side in the summer due to their midfield concerns. The fact is, however, they do not have enough depth within their backline.

As things stand, if Klopp has just four central defenders to choose from, and three of those have had injury issues during their Liverpool careers, as shown by how many games they missed last season, as per Transfermarkt.

So, welcoming another defensive option could prove to be crucial when it comes to whether Liverpool can return to the Premier League's top four at the first time of asking. The fact that Kelly can play both as a left-back and centre-back, too, means that he could be an ideal choice.

At his best, the Bournemouth man has earned plenty of praise, including from former manager Gary O'Neil, who said, via the Bournemouth Echo, after the Cherries defeated Liverpool last season: “I thought Lloyd was incredible. I think he had a 12-week ankle injury followed by a six-week calf injury.

"Didn't have much time in between, and then came back today having not trained much, to play left back against one of the best wingers in the world. I thought he showed everything, the potential he has to be a top defender. I thought it was a very, very impressive performance against a top attacker.”

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Titular do Cuiabá, o goleiro João Carlos, com passagens pela Ponte Preta, CRB e CSA, destacou o ótimo momento que vive com a camisa do clube em 2020. Segundo o jogador, sua meta é continuar melhorando seu rendimento em campo para ajudar o Dourado a conquistar seus objetivos na atual temporada.

– Estou muito feliz com tudo que vem acontecendo comigo desde que cheguei ao Cuiabá. Esse segundo semestre tem sido muito bom individualmente e para o grupo. Vou me dedicar ao máximo para melhorar ainda mais meu rendimento em campo com a camisa do clube. Esse é o meu objetivo – afirmou.

Segundo o atleta, o Cuiabá vai com tudo para conquistar o acesso esse ano.

– Vamos continuar nos dedicando ao máximo para que possamos conquistar nossas metas em 2020. Temos que continuar nos empenhando para brigarmos pelo acesso esse ano – concluiu o arqueiro.

Nesta quinta-feira, o Cuiabá conheceu seu adversário nas oitavas de final da Copa do Brasil. Será o Botafogo nos dias 28 de outubro e 4 de novembro, sendo que a partida de volta terá mando dou Dourado.

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A very wholesome video of the Royale Union Saint-Gilloise squad being told they’re playing Liverpool in the Europa League has emerged online, while Alexis Mac Allister received a message from his brother.

Who are Liverpool playing in the Europa League?

The Reds will not be playing in the Champions League this season and instead will have to settle for a place in the European competition one tier below after finishing fifth in the Premier League last term.

As a result, however, this has afforded them the opportunity to come up against some teams they wouldn't usually play.

And as footballing fate would have it, the draw threw out a rather interesting match-up when the groups were revealed this week.

Read the latest Liverpool transfer news HERE…

Indeed, having only just arrived at Liverpool in the summer – signing from Brighton for an initial £35m – Mac Allister will be coming up against his brother Kevin when the two teams meet later this year.

Indeed, Kevin is one year older, plays for Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, and has already sent a message to his sibling in footage shared on the Belgian club's official Twitter account.

As you can see, it's a lovely moment as all the players celebrate with glee upon hearing the news, before the camera pans to the older Mac Allister who says to his brother: "See you soon bro!"

🤩 pic.twitter.com/rE33oESNhH— Royale Union Saint-Gilloise (@UnionStGilloise) September 1, 2023

TNT Sports also shared LASK reacting to the draw, proving that Royale Union Saint-Gilloise weren't the only one to be excited about the prospect of a trip to Anfield.

The full draw will see LASK, Union SG and Toulouse meet Liverpool in Group E of the 2023-24 Europa League.

How old is Alexis Mac Allister?

Liverpool's Mac Allister is 24 years years of age, born 24 December 1998, while his older sibling, Kevin, is 25 and born almost a year earlier on 7 November 1997.

Incidentally, their father, Carlos Mac Allister, was also a professional footballer and played for Boca Juniors in the late '80s and early '90s – even sharing the pitch with Diego Maradona at one time.

In an interview with The Athletic, the Argentine revealed his family roots, saying: “According to our family, we came from Ireland, rather than Scotland.

“We came to Argentina, to a place called Pergamino, but that was three or four generations ago, and later my father and mother married and moved to a different place — Santa Rosa in the Province of La Pampa, which is where Alexis was born.

“Now, when we get together, they always say that our ancestors came from Ireland. I don’t know whether the ones before them were from Scotland, and went to Ireland from Scotland, and then our ancestors came here. But we say that we came from Ireland.”

After completing a move to Liverpool in the summer, Mac Allister has made an okay start to life at his new club, playing in all three Premier League games so far but his red card (ultimately overturned) and lowly 6.54 WhoScored average match rating (the 11th lowest in the squad), suggests there is room for improvement.

It will certainly be fascinating to see how he and his brother get on when the Reds play Royale Union Saint-Gilloise home and away in Europe later this year.

Tottenham Hotspur journalist Alasdair Gold has made a promising claim on Spurs and their remaining transfer business of the window this summer.

Who will Spurs sign?

Ange Postecoglou has seemingly reinvigorated sections of the Lilywhites fanbase with his brand of outright attacking football, and Spurs are starting the new season very well.

It's early days but they remain unbeaten over their first two league matches, having sealed a 2-2 draw away to Brentford on the opening weekend and exceptional 2-0 win at home to Man United last Saturday.

Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr bossed the midfield with their displays against Erik ten Hag's side, now looking transformed under Postecoglou so far, but there is still work to be done this transfer window.

Tottenham have already sealed the signings of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, young centre-back Ashley Phillips, defender Micky van de Ven, playmaker James Maddison, winger Manor Solomon and striker Alejo Veliz, but Postecoglou has previously hinted at the possibility of another defender.

“It's not done yet," said Postecoglou earlier this month.

"We need bolstering in that central defensive area. We need defenders who can work in an aggressive formation, defend well & behind them. We'll be looking to bring in a couple in that area in the coming days."

Postecoglou later said that outgoings need to happen first before bringing in more players, though, so exits will be crucial over this final stage of the window.

"We've to see what happens with outgoings," explained Postecoglou thereafter.

"But, the potential is there to bring in one more centre back after van de Ven."

It appears Spurs will be prioritizing outgoings first, but that isn't to say they aren't making some transfer plans behind-the-scenes, as reliable reporter Gold of football.london explains on his YouTube channel.

The Tottenham correspondent, making a promising claim, has suggested that the club have deals "lined up" and "ready to go" once they shift certain squad members.

Gold said (via The Boot Room):

“Postecoglou said that himself in his press conference on Friday he pretty much said how there’s areas in defence, midfield and attack that they can upgrade on as well.

“I kind of get the feeling that Spurs have got a number of deals lined up ready to go if they can get the players out of the squad first.”

Who should Tottenham sign?

We believe the defensive area needs more reinforcement, especially after last season, where they shipped a pretty poor 63 league goals.

Torino centre-back Perr Schuurs is the star defender to have been most recently linked with a move to north London, and the player may well be available for an attainable £28 million.

The colossal ace made 30 Serie A appearances under Torino boss Ivan Juric last season, all while making more successful tackles and clearances per 90 than any other player in their squad (WhoScored).

Journalist Josh Bunting, taking to X in 2022, was effusive in his praise for Schuurs – who he called a "mountain" at the back for Torino.

Read the latest Tottenham transfer news HERE…

If Spurs move forward on their alleged interest, he could be excellent back up to the likes of Cristian Romero and van de Ven.

Inter Milan teenager Kevin Zefi has been seen as a potential summer signing by Newcastle United in the summer transfer window and a big update has now emerged.

How old is Kevin Zefi?

The Irishman is just 18 years old currently and moved to Inter from Shamrock Rovers two years ago, such was his ability as a young and emerging footballer.

While Zefi is yet to make a senior first-team appearances for the Serie A giants, he has shone in the youth teams, scoring six goals and registering seven assists for the Under-17 side, as well as an incredible 16 strikes in just 13 games for the Under-18 outfit.

The young winger signed his first professional deal last years and is contracted at Inter until the summer of 2024, but it could be that he moves on before the current transfer window closes at the end of this month.

Newcastle have emerged as strong potential suitors for Zefi and a fresh update further suggests that he could be plying his trade at St James' Park in the very near future.

Will Newcastle sign Kevin Zefi?

Eddie Howe revealed Lewis Hall would be the last first-team signing, but according to NUFC Blog, Newcastle are now expected to sign Zefi for the academy:

"Newcastle United look set to follow the signings of AC Milan youngster Cathal Heffernan and Chelsea’s Lewis Hall with the arrival of fellow 18-year-old Kevin Zefi.

"Zefi is being advised by former Toon defender Stephen Carr and is set to join our U21s after a breakthrough in talks. He also plays at international level alongside Toon duo Alex Murphy and Reece Byrne; two players Dan Ashworth has brought to the club’s academy over the past 12 months."

This is a very exciting update for Newcastle, as they continue to show that they are not only planning for the present, instead making sure they sign young players with big futures in the game.

In Zefi, they have someone who is considered something of a wonderkid, with former coach Shane Robinson explaining what makes him so special:

“Kevin is that type of player that catches the eye easily – he backs himself 100% in possession of the ball. He has lovely balance and uses his body very well to protect the ball.

"He has worked very hard on his overall game over the last number of years and deserves credit for that, he has gone up through the levels impressively from U15 to U19 with First Division appearances last season also."

While Zefi clearly wouldn't be arriving as an important member of the senior setup to begin with, given his lack of experience, he is someone who could continue to start at youth team level, gradually blossoming into a top-level footballer who can cut it on the biggest stage.

Read the latest Newcastle transfer news HERE…

It is always hard to gauge how a youngster will develop, with injuries and work ethic always potentially getting in the way, but the former Shamrock ace has all the tools to make it and could be a future hero on Tyneside.

The visitors leave South Africa empty-handed, defeated in the Tests, ODIs and T20s with David Miller’s mauling being the final nail in the coffin

The Report by Firdose Moonda29-Oct-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:00

Knocks like this don’t come every day – Miller

David Miller smashed the fastest T20I century off 35 balls, beating countryman Richard Levi by 10 deliveries. In doing so, Miller took South Africa to a series win and a historic clean-sweep across formats against a visiting team, the first such instance in 17 tours in which they have played an opposition in all three formats. As a result, Bangladesh leave the country empty-handed, defeated in the Tests, ODIs and T20Is, with Miller’s mauling being the final nail in the coffin.South Africa, with new coach Ottis Gibson at the helm, aimed to be as ruthless as possible in this early-season series, and underlined that intention with this performance, in their 100th T20 international.Hashim Amla set the tone with his 85 off 51 balls and seemed set for a century but was dismissed in the 17th over, attempting to clear the midwicket boundary. Miller was on 42 off 20 balls at the time, with 21 balls left in the innings. Miller, however, needed only 15 of those to get the 58 runs that took him to a hundred, including five sixes in succession off Mohammad Saifuddin in the penultimate over of the innings.Bangladesh had reason to rue that assault, for they could have dismissed Miller early in his innings, even before he had a run to his name. The second ball Miller faced was short from Rubel Hossain and he gloved it down the leg side. Mushfiqur Rahim, the wicketkeeper, dived one-handed to his right, got to the ball but could not hold on. In the next over, Miller charged Saifuddin and lofted a drive over the covers. Three fielders converged on the ball but the ball landed between them.At that juncture in the game, Bangladesh were more concerned about Amla, who was timing the ball well and had sauntered to his fifty off 32 balls. He held together the first half of South Africa’s innings, in which the visitors kept them fairly quiet. Shakib Al Hasan bowled both Mangaliso Mosehle and JP Duminy for single-digit scores and AB de Villiers holed out to long-off for 20. South Africa were 78 for 3 at the halfway stage when Amla began to up the ante.He took on the short ball, which Bangladesh offered in abundance, and allowed Miller ample time to settle. Miller seemed to need it and could have been out a third time when he came out of his crease and edged Mahmudullah in the 15th over, with the ball rolling towards the stumps, but missing it eventually. Miller made it back in time and avoided being stumped. That was, however, the last of the nerves shown by him.Miller slammed the next ball over long-off for the first of his nine sixes. There was much more to come. He dispatched Rubel to cow corner for four in the next over, then sent him over long-on for two sixes in the next three balls. By the time Amla was dismissed, Miller had got his eye in. He reached his half-century with a top-edge off a hook and followed that up by smashing a Taskin Ahmed full toss over long-on before the showstopper.Saifuddin, who had figures of 2 for 22 from his first three overs, started his final over with a full, slower ball. Miller clobbered it for a six. Then, he went quicker but still full, outside off. Miller went inside-out over the covers for six. The third ball was also full, Miller shuffled across and flicked behind square leg for the third six. Then Saifuddin darted the next one full down the leg side and out came another flick for another six. It was only after he had been hit for four consecutive sixes that Saifuddin received some advice from his captain but to no avail. He went short and Miller pulled. For six.AFPOnly two other players have hit six sixes in a row in an over in international cricket, one of them a South African – Herschelle Gibbs – and Miller was on the cusp of joining them. The final ball was full and wide and Miller went down on one knee but drove it along the ground for one. He was disappointed but kept strike, which enabled him to go for a hundred in the final over.Miller fell over as he reached for a full Rubel delivery that he sent for four and then under-edged a full toss for four more before a brace of twos took him to the fastest hundred in this format. Farhaan Behardien, the non-striker, was as much a spectator as the beleaguered Bangladesh attack. While Shakib conceded only 22 runs off his four overs, the other five bowlers gave away 201 runs off 16 overs at 12.5 an over. Saifuddin’s 31-run fourth over meant he finished with 2 for 53 but Miller could be heard commiserating with him as the teams left the field.”Tough luck,” Miller said. For Bangladesh, it only got tougher.They have never scored over 200 in a T20 and needed 225 this time. They started well, with 17 runs off the first over but South Africa had a trick up their sleeve. Duminy brought himself on in the second over and should have had a wicket immediately. Soumya Sarkar took him on and sent the ball straight to Robbie Frylinck at mid-on, who had to take a simple catch but could not hold on. Duminy kept Sarkar quiet for the rest of that over and on the last ball, he was desperate to get a move on and called for a suicidal single after belting the ball into the covers. Miller collected and threw the ball wide of Mosehle, who had to move to his left but had enough time to gather and run Imrul Kayes out.Rather than see himself as a novelty, Duminy continued and in his next over, struck the killer blow. Shakib made room and Duminy aimed at the stumps and bowled him. In the next over, Mushfiqur edged Frylink to Mosehle; Bangladesh were 32 for 3 before five overs were up and they had little opportunity left to stage a comeback. It was only a matter of time for them and all of South Africa’s bowlers enjoyed some reward as they wrapped up a professional, clinical victory.

Leeds United seem to be closing in on their second signing of the summer window, once again set to bolster a key area of weakness…

Is Karl Darlow joining Leeds?

That's according to transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, who suggests that Daniel Farke is seeking to aid Ethan Ampadu's pursuit to solve their defensive frailties by swooping for Newcastle United's Karl Darlow.

Taking to Twitter, the Italian journalist would suggest that AFC Bournemouth's alternative signing has had a domino effect in Yorkshire. He wrote: "Karl Darlow, now expected to join Leeds United from Newcastle as Bournemouth will go for Andrei Radu."

With just two years left on his £30k-per-week deal on Tyneside, and having seen chances limited since their signing of Nick Pope, now marks the perfect time for the 32-year-old to branch out and stake a claim elsewhere to be number one.

How good is Karl Darlow?

Such a fine injection of experience and athleticism will be a huge coup for the Whites, who have likely been desperate to replace Illan Meslier following his horror show last campaign.

The French shot-stopper posted a 6.65 average rating in the league, as a mainstay for a side that shipped the most goals in the entire division (78). He also made three separate errors that led to goals, as if to exacerbate his failures, via Sofascore.

News suggesting he would depart this summer worried few, and given his replacement already seems tied up, he is likely already long-forgotten.

Whilst play time has been limited for Darlow, a six-month loan spell at Hull City clearly helped put him in the shop window for this summer. Despite only featuring 12 times in the Championship for the Tigers, the ageing ace excelled.

Maintaining a 7.05 average rating, this was largely buoyed by his 2.9 saves per game, at a 71% success rate, via Sofascore. He managed to keep five clean sheets during that period too, conceding just 1.2 goals per game. For comparison, his potential predecessor shipped two goals per game last term in the top flight.

When linked with a switch to Middlesbrough, pundit Carlton Palmer had suggested: "This would be a shrewd bit of business. He spent the second half of the season on loan at Hull where he was outstanding." It now seems it will instead be the Elland Road outfit who are set to enjoy his exploits.

Having also made 52 Premier League appearances, placing this kind of experience behind fellow new signing Ampadu will surely help him take to his new surroundings well.

However, it is young Charlie Cresswell that will likely benefit more than anyone from his presence, finishing off what promises to be a formidable back three.

Standing at 6 foot 3, the 20-year-old titan enjoyed a fine loan spell of his own in the second tier, shining for the promotion-chasing Millwall last season.

Despite failing to attain a playoff spot, his 7.13 average rating in the league outlined a year of maturing for the young defender with the world at his feet. With 1.5 tackles, 3.1 clearances and 1.3 interceptions per game too (via Sofascore), he really did excel at this level and is set to do so again in the coming year.

Blending an experienced head with a youngster set to star for his parent club, such a deal could not only shore up their backline but provide the perfect foundation for Cresswell to build a successful career.

Leeds United midfielder Tyler Adams could potentially stay put at the club beyond this summer, according to a promising update from journalist Ben Jacobs.

Could Tyler Adams leave Leeds?

The 24-year-old was one of the few positives to take from last season at Elland Road, following the Whites' disappointing relegation from the Premier League. He arrived from RB Salzburg as an exciting signing and he made an immediate impression, adding bite and quality to Leeds' midfield.

Adams started 24 league games in total, averaging 3.7 tackles per game, and he also appeared four times for the USA at the 2022 World Cup, completing 90.2% of his passes at the tournament.

An injury to the American towards the end of the season came at a terrible time – his last appearance came at home to Brighton back in March – and it was no surprise to see the Whites' form suffer badly without him around, and they were consigned to the Championship in the process.

Unsurprisingly, various exit rumours have emerged when it comes to Adams' future, with Aston Villa one of the clubs thought to be eyeing a summer move for him, but an encouraging update has now emerged regarding his situation at Leeds.

Could Leeds keep hold of Tyler Adams?

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jacobs claimed that Adams is one of the players who could yet remain at Elland Road this summer, even though there is clear interest in him:

"Compared to others, Tyler Adams was definitely more open to the Leeds project and the challenge of trying to get them back into the Premier League first time. But there is, of course, interest and uncertainty over his future. I think that Leeds are fighting to retain him. He is recovering from injury as well, which is probably why it's been a bit more of a delayed clarity over his future."

The idea of Adams staying put at Leeds next season is arguably bigger than any new signings that comes in, considering he has been hailed as "exceptionally bright" by England legend Gary Lineker in the recent past.

His vast influence was highlighted by how much he was missed during the back-end of last season, and it could certainly be argued that the Whites could have remained in the Premier League if he has avoided injury completely.

In truth, it would be hard to begrudge Adams a move away from Leeds this summer, should he feel he is too good to be playing Championship football, but if he stayed, it would immediately enhance his legend with the Whites, making him even more of a popular figure among the fanbase.

Daniel Farke will certainly be desperate for him to stay put, no doubt being aware of what a force he could be in the Championship next season, and if that did happen, the Whites would surely be one of the front-runners in the automatic promotion race.

There is still so much more to come from Adams in his career, so to lose him this early in his time at Leeds would be a crushing blow, but one that has admittedly been down to their own shortcomings as a team.

Martin Guptill will miss the remainder of the New Zealand season and the start of the IPL to undergo strengthening work on his hamstrings in an attempt to ensure he is fully fit for the Champions Trophy in June.Guptill suffered injuries to both hamstrings in quick succession over the last few months and though he returned in extraordinary style, with his unbeaten 180 off 138 balls in the fourth ODI against South Africa, it has been decided that for his long-term prognosis he needs further rehabilitation.After his century in Hamilton, and a full fifty overs in the field, Guptill said the hamstrings felt “a little stiff” but that it was nothing unexpected after his period out of the game. He did not have any middle time before his return to the one-day side.He will travel to India for the IPL, where he was bought by Kings Punjab XI having been put back in for the second round of the auction, but won’t initially be available for selection and his recovery will be monitored by New Zealand physio Tommy Simsek, who will also be at the tournament.”At the moment Martin isn’t fit to play and the time we give him now to strengthen his hamstrings will play a big role in mitigating future risk too,” Simsek said. “We’ve put a programme in place to make sure that Martin can return to full strength and we’ll continue to monitor him closely.”Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, said: “Having Martin fully fit is critical, as we all know the positive influence he has on our side. Martin knows this is an important period to get back to 100% so that he can be fully confident when he is on the park. The Champions Trophy isn’t far away and we obviously want Martin firing on all cylinders for that tournament.”Guptill’s times back on the sidelines means his move into the middle order for Auckland, with a view to pushing for a Test recall in that position, will not happen until the next domestic season. It also means that he will not come into consideration if New Zealand need a replacement for Ross Taylor who retired hurt on the second day in Dunedin with a calf injury. Guptill was dropped from the Test side after the tour of India in October.