‘Excited’ Gareth Taylor wants his Manchester City team to take advantage
Gareth Taylor has urged Manchester City to step up and seize their moment in the Women’s Super League title race.
Chelsea returned to the summit on goal difference on Wednesday night with a 3-0 win over Aston Villa but Taylor’s team will play twice before the current champions get the chance to add to their 46-point tally.
While Chelsea switch their attention to Champions League semi-final action with Barcelona over the next two weekends, City host West Ham on Sunday before they travel to Bristol City on April 28 with the aim of being six points clear going into May.
Taylor told a press conference: “Wednesday night changed things around a little bit again but of course we play now two games before Chelsea play again, so it is an important moment for us to step up and do our bit.
“That is all we will do. Attack the next game, give it our very best and do what we can.
“Yeah, I’m excited about this next period and think it is a great opportunity for us.
“If we had looked at that at the beginning of the season, knowing that most of the time the WSL goes to the final game, I think it is a fantastic position for us to be in.
“We’ve worked so hard and we don’t want to lose that opportunity. We want to continue with it and take it all the way.”
City will have first-choice Khiara Keating in goal after she was able to shake off the knee issue which forced her to leave England national team duty earlier this month.
A Women’s FA Cup final dress rehearsal will also take place on Sunday when Manchester United host Tottenham.
Grace Clinton will be a notable absentee due to the terms of her loan at Spurs from United and she will also be unavailable at Wembley on May 12.
Tottenham head coach Robert Vilahamn has made no secret of his desire to keep the England international beyond this season-long loan but his opposite number Marc Skinner talked up his future hopes for Clinton in a United shirt.
Skinner said: “When we signed Grace two seasons ago, it was that we saw this level of potential for sure.
“It’s really interesting talking to people around her and so on, there is still loads more we can give to her and we can keep adding to her.
“But I can’t stress this enough, the whole reason she went on loan was to be able to do that.
“We couldn’t give her the minutes that needed her to be able to do that but she has now proven she is in that space, she has had that exposure and I look forward to welcoming her back to do that for Manchester United.”
Sunday’s other fixture will see third-placed Arsenal host Leicester with the Gunners eager to close the gap on Chelsea, which stands at six points with four fixtures left to play.
Galatasaray, Fenerbahce, and what promises to be an epic title race
FotMob - April 20, 2024, 8:00 AM
This season in Turkish football has been complete chaos. Fenerbahçe fielded their under-19s team against Galatasaray in the Turkish Super Cup only for the youngsters to walk off the pitch just one minute into the match in protest at the sanctions handed out by the federation following a violent pitch invasion after a game against Trabzonspor the month before.
By Graham Ruthven
Fenerbahçe subsequently held a vote to decide whether or not to leave the Turkish Süper Lig and join another division somewhere in Europe. All this came after an incident in December which saw a referee punched – and hospitalised – by a club president. This mayhem has become the norm in the country’s top flight in recent times.
And yet amid the mayhem, a Turkish title race for the ages is unfolding. There is just two points between Galatasaray and Fener at the top of the table with just six games of the 2023/24 campaign left to play. The two Istanbul rivals are going head-to-head and further drama is guaranteed.
Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe have both lost just once in the league so far this season. The defending Turkish champions are currently on a 13-match winning run while Ismail Kartal’s team have won 10 of their last 11 games in the division. This is a title race that looks destined to go the distance with an Intercontinental Derby scheduled for the penultimate fixture of the campaign.
Mauro Icardi scored the only goal of the abandoned Turkish Super Cup after just one minute and the Argentinean has made finding the back of the net a habit this season. Indeed, Icardi has 19 league goals to his name and is the focal point of Galatasaray’s attack. They are playing to the former Inter and Paris Saint-Germain striker’s strengths.
Okan Buruk has been in place as Galatasaray manager since 2022, but he remoulded his team to fit Icardi and Dries Mertens into the same attack as Turk internationals Barıs Alper Yılmaz and Kerem Akturkoglu. While Buruk traditionally favours a 4-4-2 shape with a low defensive line to create space for quick transitions, he has adopted a more possession-orientated approach this season.
Burak was a legendary player for Galatasaray, winning seven Süper Lig titles, and has played a key role in pushing the club back to the top of Turkish football following a three-year stretch without a title between 2019 and 2022. The 50-year-old has turned Galatasaray into a winning machine.
Statistically, Galatasaray are leading the Turkish Süper Lig for average possession share per match (60.5%). They have also completed the most passes and had the most touches of the ball. This, however, is possession with a purpose as the Rams Park outfit lead the division for shots per game (19.3) – although Fenerbahçe have scored more goals than their rivals.
Edin Džeko has contributed more than anyone else to Fenerbahce’s goal tally this season. The Bosnian striker has struck 20 league goals and has given The Yellow Canaries the sort of cutting edge they lacked before his arrival from Inter last summer. Many believe Džeko has been the best player in the Turkish Süper Lig this season.
Sebastian Szymański is another Fenerbahçe star who has shone this season. The Polish international is the creative force behind the Fener attack and has recorded 18 goal contributions in the Süper Lig over the course of the campaign. Szymański has been so impressive that the likes of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have been linked.
At 35, Dušan Tadić continues to operate at a high level and is central to the way Fenerbahçe like to overload teams through their use of the ball in the final third. The Serbian spent five years of his career at Ajax and that comes across in his use of possession and appreciation of space. Intelligence is Tadić’s greatest asset. A natural eye for goal has also helped him score nine goals and assist 11 more.
Turkish football has made headlines around the world for all the wrong reasons, and a lot has to be untangled before the issues of this season can be moved past. However, the 2023/24 campaign could also be remembered for footballing reasons. The title race between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce could go either way.
(Match images from IMAGO)
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Football transfer rumours: Real Madrid revise Davies plan; Zidane waiting for Man Utd
Manchester United ready decisions on Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood
Barcelona prepare to receive fresh interest in Frenkie de Jong
Plus updates on Leny Yoro, Ousmane Diomande, Dusan Vlahovic and more
By 90min Staff
9:05 AM GMT+1
Alphonso Davies and Zinedine Zidane are in the headlines
Alphonso Davies and Zinedine Zidane are in the headlines / Alex Grimm/Hector Vivas/Getty Images
90min rounds up the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip circulating around the world...
Zinedine Zidane is keeping a close eye on Erik ten Hag's situation at Manchester United and would prefer to take charge there rather than at Bayern Munich. (L'Equipe - France)
Bayern have not shortlisted Zidane as a potential replacement for Thomas Tuchel, despite reports to the contrary. (Sky Sports Germany)
Manchester United are prepared to extend the loan spells of Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood, who are currently at Borussia Dortmund and Getafe respectively. (HITC)
Real Madrid will make emerging Lille centre-back Leny Yoro their priority target after Nacho revealed his intention to leave the Bernabeu this summer. (Fabrizio Romano)
Liverpool are the frontrunners to sign Sporting CP centre-back Ousmane Diomande, who has a £68.5m release clause in his contract. (Jornal de Noticias - Portugal)
Arsenal are continuing to weigh up a striker move this summer, with Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic highly regarded. (HITC)
Newcastle United recently scouted Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher in their win over Manchester United. (The Chronicle)
Frenkie de Jong
It's Frenkie de Jong transfer rumour season / Pedro Salado/GettyImages
Real Madrid may wait until 2025 before making a move for Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies. (SPORT - Spain)
Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong is again of interest to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich. An offer between €60m-€70m could be enough to persuade the Catalan giants to sell amid continued financial difficulty. (Relevo - Spain)
Manchester City are in talks with West Ham United over a summer move for midfielder Lucas Paqueta. (Rudy Galetti - Italy)
Tottenham Hotspur will have to look elsewhere for a central defender as Bayer Leverkusen are not interested in selling Piero Hincapie. (Rudy Galetti - Italy)
Everton and Fulham may swoop for former Leicester City and Atletico Madrid centre-back Caglar Soyuncu. (Ekrem Konur - Turkey)
READ THE TRANSFER RUMOURS OF THE PAST WEEK HERE
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Transfers
Bayern Munich
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Man Utd set for Jadon Sancho windfall after Dortmund's Champions League progress
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Borussia Dortmund's Champions League progress is worth money
Man Utd could end up pocketing £3.4m on top of original loan fee
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By Jamie Spencer
19 Apr 2024
Man Utd will earn more money from Jadon Sancho's loan
Man Utd will earn more money from Jadon Sancho's loan / Rene Nijhuis/MB Media/GettyImages
Manchester United could pocket up to £3.4m from Jadon Sancho's loan to Borussia Dortmund if targets – including reaching the Champions League final – are met by the end of the season.
Sancho's United career was put on hold in September following a highly publicised falling out with manager Erik ten Hag, which saw the winger return to his former club on loan in January.
The 24-year-old has made 14 appearances for Dortmund since then, starting all four of the club's Champions League knockout games against PSV Eindhoven and Atletico Madrid.
Dortmund initially paid a £3m loan fee to take Sancho until June. But the deal also included performance-related add-ons, some of which have already been triggered. The Times writes that the value of those add-ons is up to another £3.4m (€4m).
Set to receive at least some of it so far, United will get the full pot if Dortmund go on to reach the Champions League final – by beating Paris Saint-Germain in their semi-final tie next month, if Sancho reaches an appearance target, and if Dortmund qualify for next season's Champions League.
Jadon Sancho
Sancho's Man Utd career abruptly halted in September / Stu Forster/GettyImages
There remains uncertainty over Sancho's longer-term future beyond his loan. Dortmund do not hold an option to make the deal permanent, with any such approach requiring a fresh set of negotiations. United are expected to make a fresh judgement about Sancho's valuation if the intention is that he continues his career elsewhere next season. A reintegration at United still isn't out of the question.
Ten Hag was asked on Friday if he watched Dortmund's Champions League quarter-final and the Dutchman confirmed that he had done.
"Of course, I follow international football and follow the players on loan at other clubs," he said. "It was a fantastic game, Dortmund against Atletico Madrid. It was a great performance from Dortmund and for Jadon, it's good news. He made his contribution to the result for Dortmund."
READ THE LATEST MAN UTD NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS & GOSSIP
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Jason Wilcox: Man Utd technical director's best signings - ranked
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Erik ten Hag adamant nothing has changed for Jadon Sancho
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90min Staff
By 90min Staff
15 Apr 2024
Gyokeres & Guler headline the gossip
Gyokeres & Guler headline the gossip / Carlos Rodrigues | Alex Caparros/Getty Images
90min rounds up the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip circulating around the world...
Manchester United have joined the race to sign Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres but fear that Liverpool could win the race as part of their desire to hire manager Ruben Amorim, who wants to continue working with the Sweden international. (HITC)
Liverpool could also sign Sporting winger Marcus Edwards for £30m and centre-back Goncalo Inacio for £40m. (Football Insider)
Just who will be in charge at Man Utd next season is unclear. Thomas Tuchel, Antonio Conte, Roberto De Zerbi and Julen Lopetegui have been added to a four-man shortlist of potential replacements for Erik ten Hag. (Fichajes - Spain)
Chelsea are preparing a bid for Atalanta midfielder Teun Koopmeiners after scouts watched the Dutch international during the win over Liverpool. (Sport Mediaset - Italy)
Newcastle United have made Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White one of their top targets for the summer transfer window. (Mirror)
Manchester City are currently leading the race to sign RB Leipzig midfielder Dani Olmo, whose contract has a €60m release clause, but Chelsea, Man Utd and Tottenham Hotspur are all keen on the Spain international. (Christian Falk - Germany)
Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes is also on Man City's radar in case Kevin De Bruyne ends up leaving the Etihad Stadium this summer. (Fichajes - Spain)
Erik ten Hag
Ten Hag's future is unclear / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages
Having struggled for minutes this season, both Arda Guler and Real Madrid are in agreement that the Turkish midfielder needs to leave on loan. AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen are all keen. (Fichajes - Spain)
Bryan Gil will ask for a permanent move away from Tottenham this summer after finding himself towards the bottom of Ange Postecoglou's pecking order. (GiveMeSport)
Arsenal, Liverpool and Man City are all keeping a keen eye on 18-year-old Gremio winger Gustavo Nunes. (Fichajes - Spain)
Girona expect Barcelona to make an incredibly low bid for midfielder Aleix Garcia this summer after the Blaugrana told his agent they plan to pursue him. (Mundo Deportivo - Spain)
Paris Saint-Germain have no plans to listen to offers for Xavi Simons this summer, with the Dutchman impressing on loan at RB Leipzig to attract the attention of Bayern Munich. (Ekrem Konur)
READ THE TRANSFER RUMOURS OF THE PAST WEEK HERE
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Football transfer rumours: Man Utd want Rashford sale; Liverpool ready Colwill bid
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•
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Football transfer rumours: Man Utd join Gyokeres race; Guler eyes Real Madrid exit
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