Raptors tie team record with 11th straight win

Terence Davis hasn't forgotten about being passed over for a spot in the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend. Even so, the Toronto Raptors' rookie is just happy he's playing for a contender.

Davis came off the bench to score a career-high 31 points and the Raptors tied a team record with their 11th straight win, beating the Chicago Bulls 129-102.

Toronto also won 11 straight in January 2016 and again Feb. 26-March 16, 2018, as per iSports NBA API.

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Pascal Siakam added 17 points, Serge Ibaka had 16, Chris Boucher 15 and Kyle Lowry 14 for the reigning NBA champions. The Raptors outscored the Bulls 69-39 in the second half to win their 12th consecutive meeting with Chicago.

Davis made a career-high 12 of his 15 field goal attempts, including 6 of 7 attempts from 3-point range.

Davis is the sixth rookie in Raptors history to score at least 30 in a game and the first to do it as a reserve.

An undrafted rookie from the University of Mississippi, Davis had scored 23 points twice this season, most recently against Washington on Jan. 17. He surpassed that mark with a 13-point fourth quarter and received a hug from Lowry when he checked out with 3:12 remaining.

Thaddeus Young fouled out with 21 points, and Zach LaVine had 18 as Toronto swept Chicago for the third straight season, according to iSports reliable basketball API.

Chandler Hutchison scored 17 points, and Ryan Arcidiacono and Coby Whiteeach had 12 for the Bulls, who are 8-18 on the road.

The Raptors were without guard Norman Powell, who broke the ring finger on his left hand in Friday's win at Detroit. Center March Gasol missed his third straight game because of a sore left hamstring. Both players are out indefinitely.

Bulls guard Kris Dunn missed his first game of the season, with Hutchison starting in his place. Coach Jim Boylen said Dunn has been diagnosed with a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

Dunn was injured on the first possession of Friday's loss at Brooklyn. He flew back to Chicago on Saturday to be evaluated by team doctors.

Bulls forward Daniel Gafford didn't return after suffering an apparent injury on an awkward fall in the first quarter, but Boylen said afterward that Gafford was OK. Gafford had missed the previous nine games because of a dislocated right thumb.

Chicago led 63-60 at halftime, but Toronto reclaimed the lead with a 17-4 run over the first five minutes of the third.

Siakam scored nine points in the third, and Ibaka had eight as the Raptors took a 95-85 lead to the fourth.

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander youngest ever with 20-rebound triple-double

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's goal was to play a better all-around game. He did that and then some.

Gilgeous-Alexander had 20 points, a career-high 20 rebounds and 10 assists in his first triple-double, leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 117-104 victoryover the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, as per iSports baskerball API.

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"Coach had challenged me before the game to fill up the stat sheet more and do more things,'' Gilgeous-Alexander said of Thunder coach Billy Donovan. "Because he thought, as well as myself thought, that I was more capable of what I was doing.''

Gilgeous-Alexander came in averaging 23.7 points in his previous 13 games but did much more than score in this one, also matching his career best in assists. At 21 years and 185 days old, he became the youngest player in league history to record at least 20 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in a game, according to iSports NBA livesocre API.

"He's tough. He's very tough,'' Minnesota's Andrew Wiggins said. "He's a big guard that can put it on the floor and create for others, and he's a bucket. He can make a bucket when he needs to.''

Gilgeous-Alexander is the fourth second-year player in NBA history to register a 20-20 triple-double. He joins Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley and Oscar Robertson. The only other guard to have a 20-20 triple-double in the past 30 seasons is former Thunder star Russell Westbrook.

Gilgeous-Alexander did not record an assist in 35 minutes against the Lakers on Saturday.

"I just felt like we were on our heels a little bit in the previous game against the Lakers," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "That was one of the things that Coach mentioned to us, attacking first. I felt we did that as a group. When you attack as a group, you get more comfortable faster.''

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Ajax hoping to re-sign Matthijs de Ligt after rough Juventus start

Ajax are reportedly considering a move to re-sign defender Matthijs de Ligt on loan – just six months after he completed a move to Juventus.

De Ligt was the most coveted young player in Europe last summer after captaining his boyhood club to the Eredivisie title and Champions League semi-finals.

He eventually joined the Serie A champions for €75m but has struggled to establish himself under Maurizio Sarri, starting 12 of a possible 18 domestic games, as per iSports football API.

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According to A Bola, former club Ajax are willing to explore the possibility of bringing the 20-year-old back to Amsterdam if his situation does not change.

De Ligt initially broke into the starting line-up following injury to Giorgio Chiellini but has been displaced by Merih Demiral, making just one substitute appearance in their last five games.

However, Sarri recently indicated that the defender remains firmly in his plans.

“I am the first to be convinced that he will become the best defender in the world,” the Bianconeri boss told Sky Italia.

“He had five difficult months playing every three days and having to settle in a new country, a new league with a new language.”

Juventus return to domestic action against Roma on Sunday.

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Former Manchester City and Chelsea star joins Preston North End on permanent deal

Scott Sinclair has officially made his return to England.

Late Wednesday night, Celtic announced the 30-year-old’s move to Preston North End for an undisclosed fee.

Though originally thought to be a six-month loan before joining permanently, Sinclair has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal to Deepdale.



A major contributor in the past, the soon-to-be out-of-contract Celtic star made only seven appearances this season, scoring twice in just 176 total minutes of action.
For Sinclair, Preston will be his 13th different English side that he’s played for, featuring most frequently for Swansea and Aston Villa with stints at Chelsea and Manchester City also under his belt, as per iSports football API.

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The winger joins Preston as they push for promotion to the Premier League. The Lilywhites are currently in 10th place on 39 points, just two points back of the promotion play-off places.

Sinclair was wildly successful after joining from Aston Villa in summer 2016, scoring 62 goals and adding 34 assists in 167 career games at the club, according to iSports API football database.

Sinclair won the PFA Scotland Players’ Player of the Year in his first year at Celtic. and won all 10 possible domestic trophies he could have won with the Hoops.

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Sadio Mane beats Mohamed Salah, Riyad Mahrez for top African player

Sadio Mane was named African Footballer of the Year for 2019 on Tuesday after winning the Champions League with Liverpool and leading Senegal to the Africa Cup of Nations final.

Mane, 27, wins the award for the first time after finishing runner-up to his Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah of Egypt in 2017 and 2018, according to iSports football API data. He was third in 2016.

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He is only the second Senegalese to win the award after El Hadji Diouf, who was the winner in 2001 and after joining Liverpool in 2002.

"Football is my job, I love it. I am really happy and proud to win this award," Mane said.

"I would like to thank all the Senegalese people, they push always me. I must also thank my Senegal coach, Aliou Cisse and Liverpool, all my teammates there."

Mane finished ahead of Riyad Mahrez and Salah in a poll of national team coaches and captains, and was handed his award at the Confederation of African Football's annual gala in Hurgada, Egypt.

It is the second successive year that the top three are all from English clubs and only the third time since the award was introduced that the leading trio all play in the same league.

In 1991, the top three all came from French clubs.

Mahrez, 28, captained Algeria to Africa Cup of Nations success in July and won the Premier League with Manchester City. He was African Footballer of the Year in 2016, as per iSports API data.

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Jokic scores career-high 47 points with no TOs

Nikola Jokic wasn't keeping track of his points as the night wore on. He just knew he was scoring a lot.

Jokic scored a career-high 47 points, Will Barton added a season-best 28 and the Denver Nuggets held off the Atlanta Hawks 123-115 on Monday, as per iSports API.

The Nuggets, coming off a surprising loss at Washington two nights earlier, have won four of six to improve to 25-11, second-best in the Western Conference. Atlanta, worst in the NBA at 8-29, has dropped 11 of 13.

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Trae Young finished with 29 points and Kevin Huerter had 22 for the Hawks.

Jokic's previous career high of 41 points was set Nov. 7, 2017, at home against Brooklyn. His previous season high, 31, came at home nine days ago against Memphis.

According to iSports API basketball data, Jokic is the third center with 45 points and no turnovers in a game, joining Shaquille O'Neal (Nov. 9, 1994 at Hornets) and Moses Malone (April 8, 1987 at Nets). Turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78.

Jokic surpassed his previous career high with a putback that gave Denver a 114-109 lead with 3:14 remaining. Jamal Murray followed with a turnaround jumper in the lane and Barton put back his own miss to put the Nuggets up 118-109 at the 1:57 mark.

That essentially ended all hopes for the Hawks, but it wasn't entirely easy for Denver. The Nuggets lost 125-121 to the Hawks at home in mid-November as Young had 42 points and 11 assists. Denver had dropped nine of 11 in Atlanta, recorded by iSports API.

After John Collins' dunk cut the lead to 91-88 just 22 seconds into the fourth quarter, Nuggets coach Michael Malone called a timeout. Monte Morrisfollowed with a runner and Michael Porter Jr. jammed in a putback to make it 95-88.

The Hawks cut the margin to one before Barton found Morris for an alley-oop and hit a 3-pointer to make it 106-100 with 6:54 remaining. Atlanta pulled within two on Young's 35-footer with 4:24 left, and Malone called another timeout. The move worked as the Hawks made just three field goals the rest of the way.

Huerter's second straight 3 cut the lead to two at the 6:07 mark of the third, and Malone called a timeout. Jokic quickly followed with a jumper, then stole the ball in the lane from Alex Len to set up Murray's two free throws.

Jerami Grant's three-point play made it 36-34 at the 9:37 mark of the second, and the Nuggets didn't trail again. About three minutes later, Grant rebounded a missed Hawks shot and drove for a layup that gave Denver its first double-digit lead.

Murray's layup in the final second put the Nuggets up by nine at halftime.

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Cavaliers rookie Kevin Porter Jr. exits game with knee injury

Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Kevin Porter Jr. exited Sunday's 118-103 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves early with a left knee injury.

Porter entered Sunday averaging 8.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists this season as per iSports API basketball data.

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The 30th overall pick in last year's draft was injured in the third quarter, when his knee buckled awkwardly while he tried to change directions. The slender guard immediately grabbed his leg and had to be helped to Cleveland's locker room.

Porter was on crutches as he left the trainers' room after the game. He was not available for comment.

Cavaliers coach John Beilein said the team hopes to learn more about the injury on Monday.

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Real Madrid in talks with Flamengo for 17-year-old Reinier

Real Madrid have held talks with teenage Flamengo midfielder Reinier. The 17-year-old Brazil youth international is being followed by a number of top European clubs and has also attracted interest from Barcelona and Manchester City.

Additionally, a Barcelona source revealed that the club have scouted the player on several occasions, but that Flamengo's valuation of Reinier is too high for the Catalan club.

Sources close to the player have told that he is weighing up his options and has not yet made a decision on his future, with his Flamengo manager Jorge Jesus recently hinting that the player is set for a move to on of Europe's top clubs.

Reinier, who was an unused substitute in Flamengo's Club World Cup final defeat to Liverpool last month, has a €30m release clause. A source also told ESPN Brazil that Madrid had already made an offer of €25m, but that Flamengo were holding out for the full release, according to iSports API.

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Under the terms of his contract, Reinier's clause will rise to €35m in June for the summer transfer window and to €70m after that, as per iSports API football data. However, if a deal were to be agreed during the January window, Reinier would not join Zinedine Zidane's first team squad immediately.

Two options under consideration are the teenager joining Real Madrid Castilla for the rest of the 2019-20 season, or remaining on loan at Flamengo for the time being.

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Magic F Jonathan Isaac to miss at least 2 months with knee injury

Magic forward Jonathan Isaac is out indefinitely after an MRI on Thursday revealed a severe sprain and bone contusion in his left knee.

Isaac is averaging 12 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 2.4 blocks and 1.6 steals per game in 29.7 minutes, as per iSports basketball API.

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The team said in a statement that Isaac will be re-evaluated in eight-to-10 weeks.

"While this certainly is disappointing news, there was no damage to his ACL, MCL and PCL ligaments," Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said. "All signs point to a complete recovery and this should not impact his future growth."

Isaac was injured in the first quarter of Orlando's 122-101 victory at Washington on Jan. 1.

The 6-foot-10 Florida State product was in the midst of a breakout season on the defensive end. He's the only player in the NBA this season averaging at least 2 blocks and 1.5 steals per game and held opponents to just 46.7 percent shooting in the paint, eighth-best among 43 players to defends at least 200 such shots, according to iSports API.

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Martin Ødegaard set to return to Real Madrid in 2020

Martin Ødegaard has been one of the most beautiful surprises in all of world football in 2019, with the Norwegian finally showing off his quality with the ball in LaLiga.

Nearly every single weekend with Real Sociedad, Ødegaard has put on a show with his goals, assists, and individual moments of magic.

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With Real Madrid suffering from injuries and below-par performances in the midfield, AS is now reporting that Los Blancos will cut his two-year loan short and Ødegaard will return to the club in the summer.

The loan contract is officially for one season (the current one), but there is a second year verbally agreed between the clubs.

Due to prior business dealings (Asier Illarramendi, Diego Llorente, Theo Hernandez), the relationship between the two clubs is understood to be ‘magnificent’ and it’s not believed there will be any problem with Madrid recalling the Norway international a year early.

Transfermarkt currently valued the 20-year-old Ødegaard at a whopping €50m.

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Mario Mandzukic leaves Juventus for Qatari side Al Duhail

Mario Mandzukic has joined Qatari side Al Duhail, leaving Juventus after four years at the Serie A club.

Mandzukic reached the World Cup final in 2018, and at club level he previously played for Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich, winning the Champions League with the latter in 2013, according to iSports API football data.

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"The team's management succeeded today in contracting with the Croatian striker Mario Mandzukic of Juventus in a free transfer deal after the end of his contract with his Italian team," Al-Duhail said.

Mandzukic, 33, was linked with Manchester United in the summer, but sources told ESPN the Premier League side backed out of a move due to Juventus' asking price and the forward's wage demands.

The former Croatia international, who did not make a single appearance under new Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri this season, joins former Juve teammate Medhi Benatia at Al Duhail.

The Doha-based club are coached by Rui Faria, former assistant coach to Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho.

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Anthony Davis sits in Lakers' loss to Pacers with ankle sprain

Anthony Davis did not play in the Lakers' 105-102 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night due to a mild ankle sprain.

It was the second game Davis has missed this season. He is leading the team in points (27.4), rebounds (9.3) and blocks (2.6) per game, as per iSports basketball API.



In Davis' absence, Jared Dudley made his first start of the season for the Lakers (24-4), who are now tied with the Milwaukee Bucks for the NBA's best record.

Davis tweaked the ankle during Sunday's win against the Atlanta Hawks. He grabbed at his right ankle when fouled on a layup in the closing minutes, but he was able to finish the game.

He had been listed as questionable on the injury report leading into Tuesday's game.

Davis previously has dealt with rib and shoulder soreness this season. Kyle Kuzma (ankle) was also out for Los Angeles, as previously announced.

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Warriors' D'Angelo Russell returns after thumb injury

All-Star guard D'Angelo Russell returned to the Warriors' lineup Wednesday night after missing nine games with a sprained right thumb, giving Golden State's injury-ravaged backcourt an important boost.




Russell played 25 minutes in the 106-91 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, scoring 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting, according to basketball API provider iSports API.

Russell worked out in the morning shootaround before the game against Charlotte, getting final clearance to make his return. Russell was named an All-Star for the first time in his 5-year career last season.

Warriors forward Draymond Green, who was ruled out of Monday night's game against the Thunder with a sore right heel, also returned to the starting lineup Wednesday. He had five points and six assists in 25 minutes on Wednesday.

Warriors All-Star guard Stephen Curry is out until at least February with a broken left hand that required surgery, while Klay Thompson is recovering from surgery for a torn ACL in his left knee suffered in a Game 6 NBA Finals loss to the champion Toronto Raptors.

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Five of the Premier League’s most notorious divers ever

The most recent debate over diving reminded us of some of its worst proponents in the Premier League era.

There was a bit of a stir created by Pep Guardiola this week when, after both Manchester City and Liverpool had completed dramatic late comebacks against Southampton and Aston Villa respectively, he suggested that Sadio Mane had won vital points for the league leaders through diving.

“Sometimes it is diving, sometimes it is this talent to score incredible goals in the last minute,” the Catalan said of their ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, although he never directly referenced the Senegalese.

A verbal catfight ensued, in which Jurgen Klopp highlighted City’s propensity for cynical fouling to stop opposition attacks, before Guardiola tried to set the record straight by saying that he wasn’t trying to insinuate Mane was a diver.

It would be churlish to argue that Liverpool and Mane are the only ones in the Premier League trying to con referees by going down suspiciously easily under a challenge, because it’s become regrettably common in the modern game.

From a player’s perspective though, sometimes you have to make the decision for the referee and make the most of it, otherwise you won’t get the foul called. Some are worse than others however, to an almost embarrassing degree.

Five of the biggest divers in Premier League history, according to iSports API.

Dele Alli

It happens often enough that it’s fair game to label Dele Alli a serial diver rather than someone who just takes a tumble every now and again, as most players do nowadays.

That was such a spectacular dive by Dele Alli. He got more air on that than most skaters do going up ramps.

The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has made such a habit of it that his own manager has called him out on it in the past – not that it’s stopped him.

“He needs to learn,” Mauricio Pochettino warned the midfielder after a particularly dramatic dive against Huddersfield in 2017. “This type of action doesn’t help him, doesn’t help the team and doesn’t help football. We have talked in the last few years about fair play and being honest.”

Because it seems to have been taken down AGAIN... heres Dele Alli’s shameful dive earlier on! I know it wasn’t given, but surely he’s got to be punished for persistent diving? It’s every game now!

Luis Suarez

You would think that great footballers would have less reason to dive – they have more than enough ability to create goal scoring opportunities for themselves, why bother cheating?

Luis Suarez is the greatest example of this. Few players have been so talented and yet so willing to cheat their way to victory simultaneously (Diego Maradona, maybe?). His finest moment came after scoring a legitimate goal for Liverpool in the Merseyside Derby, after which he raced to the sideline and flopped like a fish in front of the Everton bench in response to then Toffees boss David Moyes’ complaints about his fondness for a dive.

The Uruguayan has almost elevated diving to an artform, as illustrated by the one he took during Barcelona’s 5-1 win over Lyon in the Champions League knockout stages last season. He simultaneously fouls the defender and wins the penalty at the same time, thereby taking shithousery to a new plane.

Ashley Young

Another player warned by his own manager about diving, Ashley Young’s reputation certainly precedes him when it comes to the act of leaping. So much so that he’s probably lost the benefit of the doubt from referees when it comes to actual fouls.

We could pick out numerous examples of the Manchester Unitedwinger going down too easily, but this clip is the best instructional guide from a veteran you can possibly find. Young cleverly knocks the ball away so there’s no possibility of the challenger cleanly winning the ball, before initiating contact by sticking his leg out, then finally falls over.

The former Aston Villa man doesn’t dive as much as he used to, but that’s likely has more to do with the fact that he doesn’t have the legs to take on defenders anymore.



Arjen Robben

A world-class player in his day with a world-class ability to hit the deck when the exact moment calls for it. In the same way Arjen Robben became renowned for cutting in off the right before shooting at goal, he gained an extraordinary reputation for diving throughout his career.

The Dutchman did it in the Premier League with Chelsea, in the Champions League with Bayern Munich (much to the chagrin of former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger), and for his national team on the biggest stage possible, ensuring the Netherlands’ progress in the 2014 World Cup.

The winger dived with such regularity that there was such a thing as a ‘textbook’ Robben dive. They didn’t always look the most convincing, but more often than not he won fouls in dangerous areas that gave his team an excellent chance of scoring.



Cristiano Ronaldo

Before the Ballon d’Or awards, before all of the broken records, and before establishing himself as the second-best footballer in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo was all sizzle and no steak. A fancy dan baller with no end product. TV pundit and former Millwall player Eamon Dunphy famously dubbed him a “cod” and a “disgrace to the game”, predicting he wouldn’t become a great player.

The Portuguese winger eventually proved them all wrong, but in his early years at Man United he was notorious for diving at every available opportunity. This was in the mid-2000’s when it wasn’t quite as common as it later became, so Ronaldo inevitably became the poster boy for those pesky foreigners who infected the English game with such a despicable deed.

Ronaldo kept it up long after he left Old Trafford for Real Madrid and his national team, more often than not making a fool of himself rather than win fouls or get opposition players sent off.

Dishonourable Mentions: Jamie Vardy, Harry Kane, Didier Drogba, Steven Gerrard, Robert Pires, David N’Gog, Robinho, Jurgen Klinsmann, Morten Gamst Pedersen, El Hadji Diouf, David Ginola, Nani.

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The five most wasteful Premier League sides in front of goal this season

The Premier League season is almost a third of the way through already, as festive football rapidly approaches in the coming weeks.

Liverpool and Manchester City unsurprisingly lead the way in the title race, though few expected both Leicester and Sheffield United to currently be occupying European places.

We’ve decided to look back over the opening months of the campaign and analyse some of the Premier League’s best stats, and this feature is dedicated to the misfiring members of English football’s top flight.

We’ll look at those who have spurned the most big chances – a chance where a player should reasonably be expected to score.

Here are the five most wasteful Premier League sides in front of goal this season, data collects from iSports API.

Manchester United – 16 big chances missed

Manchester United have endured the club’s worst start to a season in 30 years, and their hopes of securing a top four finish seem to be diminishing with each week as the club continue to stutter.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have struggled to score goals, having amassed just 13 in 11 fixtures so far and their wastefulness in front of goal is a key reason for their disappointing results.

Their wretched record from penalties has been well documented, though they have also proved far from efficient with chances in a team that often lacks creativity.

The club have missed 16 big chances already this season, and Solskjaer’s admission that the ‘fine margins’ have cost his side has never looked more apparent.

Everton – 17 big chances missed

Another team performing well below expectations is Everton, who despite a summer of significant investment find themselves languishing near the foot of the division.

Ambitions of pushing towards the top six have all but been extinguished as they sit just one place outside the bottom three, with the club ranking highly for big chances missed.

Marco Silva’s side have averaged just one goal per game in their 11 fixtures so far, spurning 17 big chances in that same period, as per iSports API.

Summer signing Moise Kean is still yet to open his account for the club in nine league appearances whilst Dominic Calvert-Lewin, often accused of not being a natural goalscorer, has been their guiltiest culprit with five big chances missed.

Chelsea – 23 big chances missed

Chelsea‘s young side have received plenty of plaudits this season following their refreshing emergence under Frank Lampard, though their attacking displays have often seen chances go begging.

Lampard’s lads have missed 23 big chances so far this season, the third highest total in the division. Logic says that the more chances created, the more that will be missed, though Lampard will hope his side can be more ruthless as they bid to close the gap to the top two, according to iSports API football data.

Tammy Abraham has shone this season and currently sits second in the race for the Golden Boot, though the 22-year-old has missed eight big opportunities so far – the equal highest amount in the Premier League.

Liverpool – 24 big chances missed

Slightly ahead of Chelsea are league leaders Liverpool, who have missed 24 big chances during the opening weeks of the new season.

So far, their wastefulness around goal has failed to hamper their prospects, with the club currently possessing a six-point advantage at the top of the division.

Sadio Mane sits level with Tammy Abraham as the player with the most big opportunities missed this season (8), though teammates Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah are not far behind the Senegalese star with six and five big chances missed respectively.

Manchester City – 31 big chances missed

The most wasteful side in the Premier League so far has been the defending champions, with Pep Guardiola’s side having missed 31 big chances in their opening 11 fixtures of the season.

The club’s high ranking is due to their relentless ability to create opportunities, however, with Man City currently the highest scoring side in England’s top flight.

Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling, both amongst the early contenders for the Golden Boot, are also amongst the leading players for big chances missed having spurned six opportunities apiece, with Gabriel Jesus just one behind.

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Five famous footballers who were hated by their own fans

Granit Xhaka’s popularity at Arsenal has reached a new low, the much-maligned midfielder’s angry reaction to the crowd’s jeers during Sunday’s draw with Crystal Palace sparking outrage amongst the club’s support.

Xhaka’s ill-advised decision to cup his ears and mouth “f*** off” to his own supporters has made his position at the club uncertain, not least because he was appointed club captain ahead of the new campaign.

The Switzerland international is not the only player to have suffered a difficult relationship with his own supporters, however, and he is likely not to be the last.

Five famous footballers who were hated by their own fans, all data collects from iSports API:

Gareth Bale – Real Madrid

A world-record signing who has helped his side to four Champions League titles in six seasons, including performing match-winning antics in two of those finals, Gareth Bale must be left wondering quite how it turned so sour for the Welshman at Real Madrid.

Having established himself as arguably the finest player in the Premier League, Bale headed for Spain in 2013 in a record-breaking move and success soon followed. The former Tottenham Hotspur star ended his first season by helping Real to La Decima, scoring in the club’s final success over city rivals Atletico Madrid.

A host of major honours, including three consecutive Champions League triumphs have followed, Bale producing a stunning performance off the bench to score twice and beat Liverpool in the 2018 showpiece in Ukraine.

However, the Welsh winger has fallen out-of-favour under manager Zinedine Zidane who has been desperate to offload the player, whilst he has been targeted by fans as a scapegoat during the club’s worst performances in recent times.

Such has been Bale’s unpopularity at the Bernabeu that the club tried to force him to move China, whilst the Spanish side’s supporters have attacked his car and chanted ‘desagradecido’, the Spanish word for ungrateful, as he has arrived for training.

His reluctance to leave – his current contract worth £600,000-a-week running until 2022 – has made him further disliked and his future at the club remains uncertain.

Joleon Lescott – Aston Villa

The former England defender was part of Aston Villa‘s dismal relegation campaign four years ago, producing a series of uninspired performances as the Midlands side dropped into the second tier for the first time in over two decades.

Many of the side which finished rock bottom of the division were targeted for jeers by the club’s supporters, though Lescott made himself especially unpopular following a pair of rather idiotic incidents.

Following a 6-0 defeat to Liverpool in February, Lescott reacted to the club’s biggest home defeat in 81 years by tweeting a picture of his luxury Mercedes just two hours after the full-time whistle, further fracturing his relationship with an incensed fanbase which had seen their team slump to eight points from safety following a chastening defeat.

Lescott would somewhat embarrassingly claim he ‘pocket tweeted’ the image by mistake, though the common consensus was that this was a middle-fingered salute to the Aston Villa boo boys

The defender would later described the confirmation of the club’s early relegation as a “a weight off the shoulders”, a statement which unsurprisingly did little to boost his popularity.

Charles Itandje – Liverpool

Remember him? Probably not.

A famous face in only the sense that he was a professional footballer at one of world football’s biggest clubs, the former Cameroon goalkeeper endured an all together forgettable time during a three-year spell at Liverpool, making just seven first-team appearances all of which were in cup competition.

However, Itandje is remembered for all the wrong reasons on Merseyside for one particular incident. During the club’s memorial service for the twentieth anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, Itandje was pictured laughing and behaving inappropriately during the service.

He was subsequently suspended by the club and would never play another game at any level in a Red shirt before leaving for Greek side Atromitos, while he also claimed to have been threatened by the club’s supporters following the backlash.

Mauro Icardi

Immensely talented, though a player who endured somewhat of a love-hate relationship with the Inter Milan support.

The Argentine striker has established himself as one of the deadliest forwards in Italian football and was appointed as Inter’s club captain at the age of just 22, though despite his prolific returns in front of goal his relationship with his own fans soon deteriorated.

During a disappointing 2014/15 season in which Inter finished 14 points adrift of Champions League qualification, Icardi was involved in an angry altercation with the Inter ultras, who threw his shirt back in his face after he had given it to the crowd following a 3-1 defeat to Sassuolo.

It was, however, Icardi’s recollection of the events in his autobiography which sparked controversy. Icardi heavily criticised the club’s ultras, going as far to challenge them to a fight and threatening to fly over 100 Argentine criminals to ‘kill them on the spot’.

Unsurprisingly, his comments did not go down well and he was later stripped of the captaincy. He continued to endure a difficult relationship with the club’s supporters in the years since, his wife and agent Wanda Nara continuing to stir proceedings in the background, before joining Paris Saint-Germain on a season-long loan deal last summer.

Granit Xhaka

The most recent player to feature in this list is the Arsenal captain, whose position at the club is uncertain following his aforementioned reaction to jeers from the home support.

The Swiss international has rarely been a popular figure at the club during three seasons at the Emirates, producing a series of inept displays and being targeted, often justified, for some of the club’s poorer performances in recent seasons.

Voted in as club captain during the summer, Xhaka was supposed to be the leader behind a new era under Unai Emery, though that looks unlikely given his actions last weekend.

Having waved his arms and cupped his ears to the supporter’s boos, Xhaka would proceed to tell the Arsenal fans to ‘f*** off’ before visibly removing his shirt as he left the field.

Xhaka’s actions were unacceptable, particularly from a club captain, however it was a visible demonstration of his frustration at a difficult relationship with his own support.

Whether he can come back from this remains to be seen, though it will take some effort to win back the affection of the Arsenal faithful.

For more information, please click iSports API.

Footballing siblings who played together for the same Premier League club

Matthew Longstaff made his dream debut for Newcastle United by putting in a top performance and scoring the winning goal against Manchester United – and he did it while playing alongside his older brother, Sean.

The pair are not the first brothers to play on the same team together, and they probably won’t be the last. Given the promising start both youngsters have made to their careers, they could be anchoring the Magpies midfield for years to come.

Only time will tell, and then we can judge the pair up against the very best siblings to have teamed up.

Brothers who played on the same Premier League team together, all data collects from iSports API.



Kolo and Yaya Touré – Man City & Cote d’Ivoire

The Ivorian duo probably have a strong claim to being the most talented brothers to ever play with each other, although one can imagine Danish legends Brian and Michael Laudrup would have a lot to say about that.

The Touré’s played together for three years at Manchester City, where they helped the club capture their first Premier League title in 2012. They were also teammates on the Cote d’Ivoire national team, with whom they won the African Cup of Nations in 2015, but their greatest contribution to football has to be the Yaya Kolo song that City fans used to belt out.



Rafael and Fabio Da Silva – Man United & Brazil

Identical twins are extremely rare in professional football, but the Da Silva brothers were both snapped up by Man United in 2008 when they were just teenagers at Fluminense.

Fabio made a decidedly lesser impact with the Red Devils than his sibling though, making just 22 league appearances (and taking one title winner’s medal) before leaving the club in 2014. Rafael, on the other hand, played 109 times in the top flight for United, winning five major honours along the way as well as playing in the 2011 Uefa Champions League final.

They both have two caps for the Brazil senior national team, although they didn’t overlap with each other, but they did play together in the youth ranks all the way up to U17 level. Both men currently play in France, Fabio for Nantes and Rafael for Lyon.

Five players Man United should never have let go in the post-Alex Ferguson era

Shola and Sammy Ameobi – Newcastle

Both of the Ameobi brothers came through the academy at Newcastle and spent the majority of their careers at the club. Their time in the senior team overlapped for four years until Shola was transferred to Turkish outfit Gaziantep in 2014.

Sammy is currently playing for Notts Forest, while his elder brother is back on Tyneside as the club’s loan player coordinator, despite never officially retiring. Their brother Tomi is also a professional footballer.

Six of the best players to switch international allegiances



Shaun and Bradley Wright-Phillips – Man City

Both of the Wright-Phillips brothers came through the academy at Man City and spent a brief time together as part of the senior setup. It was Shaun, adopted son of Ian Wright, who had the more successful Premier League career, while Bradley, biological son of the Arsenal legend, has carved out a name for himself in north America.

The former Southampton forward moved to MLS outfit the New York Red Bulls in 2013 and has since won the league’s Golden boot award on two occasions. Shaun reunited with his brother when he made the same transatlantic move in 2015, playing together for two seasons.

The longest unbeaten runs in Premier League history

Andre and Jordan Ayew – Swansea City & Ghana

The Ayew brothers have been in English football since 2015, but have only played together at club level for six months. In January of 2018 Andre rejoined Swansea City, where his brother Jordan was already playing.

The latter had moved to Wales the previous summer from Aston Villa, who had just been relegated, and the Swans suffered the same fate that season. Jordan is now at Crystal Palace, while Andre remains at Swansea in their bid to gain promotion from the Championship. They also play together for the Ghanaian national team.



Gary and Phil Neville – Man United & England

Together they won six Premier League titles, three FA Cups and a Uefa Champions League. There isn’t a pair of brothers alive who have achieved such success together as Gary and Phil Neville did while at Man United, and there probably won’t be ever again.

Phil went off to play for Everton in 2005, while Gary stayed at Old Trafford and won even more silverware. The latter has since become arguably the most well-known football pundit in the country, while the younger brother is currently managing the England women’s national team. They also coached together for a brief time at Valencia, but the less said about that the better.

Christian and Jonathan Benteke – Crystal Palace

And now to finish on an odd one. This fraternal partnership wouldn’t even warrant mentioning if it wasn’t for the strange circumstances surrounding their link-up at Crystal Palace.

Christian Benteke joined Palace from Liverpool in the summer of 2016, and his younger brother arrived at the club not long after. Jonathan had just been released by Belgian side Zulte Waregem, but was somehow deemed good enough for a Premier League team.

The elder Benteke insisted his sibling was there on ability and merit, but Alan Pardew confirmed that he had been recommended by Christian himself.

Jonathan only made one substitute appearance for the Eagles in 2016, coming off the bench for the last six minutes against Middlesbrough – so they didn’t even play together. But we couldn’t leave them out.

For more information, please click iSports API.

Top six teams with the fewest defeats in a single Premier League campaign

Only six clubs in the 27 year history of the Premier League have lost three games or fewer in a single season.

Of course, the best way to win titles is by winning as many games as possible. Or, more pertinently, by not losing them. Every great team manages to stave off defeat for as long as possible, creating an aura of invincibility that appears impenetrable from the outside.

The Reds have done a good job so far in building up that aura this season, but they will have to keep it going for as long as they can if they are to join the immortals and win their first league title in three decades.

Top six teams with the fewest defeats in a Premier League season, as per iSports API data:

6. Manchester United – 3 – 1998/99 and 1999/00

Man United truly peaked between 1998 and 2000, losing just six league games over two seasons. Alex Ferguson’s charges won five out of eight major trophies available, including the first treble in English football.

5. Leicester City – 3 (2015/16)

The fairytale season to end all fairytale seasons, Leicester City‘s unlikely title triumph was aided by their unwillingness to lose matches. They got a lot of luck along the way, but they were simply unstoppable with Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez taking apart opposition teams.

Ironically, two of their three defeats in that campaign came against Arsenal – who finished second in the table.

4. Manchester City – 2 – 2017/18

Manchester City broke just about every Premier League record going when they won their first title under Pep Guardiola, including the most goals scored and highest points total of any team in a single campaign.

Their only league defeats came in a thrilling 4-3 contest with Liverpoolat Anfield and a 3-2 turnover against Man United at home, despite leading by two goals at half-time.

3. Chelsea – 1 – 2004/05

Jose Mourinho transformed Chelsea from a good team to an unstoppable juggernaut in 2004/05, taking the Blues to their first league title in 49 years. Their only loss came in October against Man City thanks to a Nicolas Anelka penalty.

2. Liverpool – 1 – 2018/19

The only team to reach 90+ points in a season without winning the league; only the third team in the last decade to top the table at Christmas and not win the league (the other two? Also Liverpool); and the only team in this list to lose three or fewer games and, well, you know the drill.

Last season the Reds were just one game away from emulating the Invincibles and going a whole campaign undefeated, but that one defeat was the most crucial of all: it came against eventual winners Man City. Surely one of these days they’ll overcome their unwanted records?



1. Arsenal – 0 – 2003/04

For 115 years, Preston North End were the only English team to ever go an entire league campaign without suffering defeat. They now share that mantle with Arsene Wenger’s 2003/04 Arsenal side, who won the title at a canter.

The Gunners’ undefeated streak stretched to 49 games, but they were denied the half century by rivals Man United in the now infamous Battle of the Buffet, in which Cesc Fabregas planted a pizza on Alex Ferguson.

For more information, please click iSports API.

Top tacklers in the Premier League so far this season

Pep Guardiola, undoubtedly one of the best and most innovative coaches of his generation, once said he does not coach his players the art of tackling, whilst former Liverpool star Xabi Alonso stated he does not believe ‘tackling to be a quality’

Christ, even Paulo Maldini, one of world football’s all-time great defenders says he had made a mistake if he was forced to tackle, so someone should tell this lot they’re doing the game all wrong.

We’re joking, of course, and if like us you believe a good old-fashioned tackle to be a fundamental part of the beautiful game, then these ball-winning machines are right up your street.

Here are the top tacklers in the Premier League so far this season, according to iSports API data.

Declan Rice – West Ham – 30 tackles

The West Ham youngster has emerged as one of the most promising talents in the Premier League, establishing himself in Gareth Southgate’s England squad after his switch of allegiance from the Republic of Ireland.

His impressive performances have seen him linked with a move to some of the division’s biggest sides, and the statistics show just why he is so highly-rated in the holding midfield role. The 20-year-old has been prolific in his ball-winning during West Ham’s impressive start to the new campaign, making 30 tackles in his eight appearances so far.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka – Manchester United – 31 tackles

Nicknamed ‘The Spider’ by teammates due to the range of his long legs as he dives into challenges, the full-backs prolific tackling ability has won him admirers throughout the Premier League.

Having made his name at Crystal Palace, Wan-Bissaka’s tackling and difficulty to beat one-against-one saw him join Manchester United in a £50m deal this summer, where he has continued to make challenges at an impressive rate.

The 21-year-old has made 31 tackles in just six appearances, a rate of more than five per game, establishing himself as a fixture at right-back and earning a first call-up to the senior England team.

Oriol Romeu – Southampton – 33 tackles

The Southampton midfielder continues to act as an enforcer down on the South Coast, marshalling in front of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s defensive set-up and breaking down play.

Romeu has started in each of the club’s opening eight fixtures of the new season, making 33 tackles in the process.

Many have tipped Southampton for a season of struggle and the club have won just twice so far, and they will need Romeu to continue to shut-down opposition attacks as regularly as possible if they’re to avoid the drop.

Wilfried Ndidi – Leicester – 35 tackles

The most prolific tackler in each of the past two seasons, speak to any Leicester fan and they will tell you that the Nigerian international is amongst the finest holding midfield players in the division.

Whilst the likes of N’golo Kante and Fabinho may grab more headlines, Ndidi’s statistical numbers are incomparable when it comes to breaking up the play.

The 22-year-old is strong and athletic, whilst his reading of the game allows him to provide a platform for Leicester’s exciting attacking talents to flourish.

Bigger clubs have been linked, though the Foxes will do their utmost to retain him.

Ricardo Pereira – Leicester – 35 tackles

Alongside Leicester teammate Ndidi at the top of the charts is flying full-back Pereira, who has been one of the stand-out players in the early weeks of the new season.

The Portuguese international is quickly being recognised amongst the best right-backs in the Premier League and has played a key role in the impressive early season form of Brendan Rodgers’ side.

Having scored twice already his attacking threat has been well documented in recent weeks, though his joint-leading 35 tackles prove he is equally adept defensively.

*All data collects from iSports API.

Five highest scorers in Euro qualifying history

Cristiano Ronaldo’s one-man assault to claim every goalscoring record ever invented continued this week, the Portuguese superstar scoring the 700th goal of his magnificent career during Portugal’s Euro 2020 qualifier with Ukraine.

It was the latest landmark in Ronaldo’s extraordinary legacy and continued his prolific record in European Championship qualifying, but where does he rank amongst all-time greatest goalscorers in qualification history?

The five highest scorers in Euro qualifying history，according to iSports API football data:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 19 goals

The Swedish superstar is still going strong at the age of 38 in MLS, though the former Manchester United man called time on his international career as arguably his country’s greatest ever player back in 2016.

Comfortably Sweden’s all-time great goalscorer following a 15-year international career that delivered 62 goals in 166 caps, Ibrahimovic fired 19 goals during Euro qualifying as Sweden qualified for four successive finals between 2004 and 2016.

One of the greatest forwards of his generation, 11 of Ibrahimovic’s qualifying goals would come as Sweden reached the 2016 finals, though after a disappointing group stage exit he would retire from international duty at the conclusion of the tournament.

Hakan Sukur – 19 goals

Known as the ‘Bull of Bosporus’, Sukur broke several goalscoring records in a career which spanned more than two decades, including becoming the greatest goalscorer in the history of the Turkish national team during a memorable international career.

Sukur would net seven times as Turkey qualified for the 1996 championships in England, though failed to replicate that form at the finals as his side were eliminated without scoring a single goal.

Capped 112 times, Sukur would score 51 international goals, including a huge 19 in Euro qualifying. His goals would help Turkey once again reach the finals in 2000, where they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Portugal.

Jon Dahl Tomasson – 19 goals

The Danish forward couldn’t buy a goal during a disappointing Premier League spell at Newcastle, though Tomasson was a different proposition in the red shirt of his national team.

He would fire six goals as Denmark qualified for the finals in 2000, while another haul of five saw them once again qualify for Euro 2004, where he was named in the team of the tournament.

A deep-lying forward, Tomasson’s best personal haul would be in qualifying for Euro 2008, though Denmark failed to reach the finals despite his eight strikes.

The former AC Milan striker would remarkably never go more than two qualifiers without finding the net, retiring from international duty in 2010 as his country’s joint all-time record goalscorer with 52 goals.

Robbie Keane – 23 goals

The talisman for the Irish for virtually the entirety of his international career, Keane would prove prolific at international level scoring 62 times for the Boys in Green.

The joint-fifth highest European international goalscorer of all-time, Keane is also the second most prolific player in the history of Euro qualifying.

Despite the regularity of his cart-wheeling celebration in qualifiers, Keane would reach just two finals, in 2012 and 2016 where a place in the last 16 was their best finish. His 23 goals would prove the benchmark, until it was surpassed by one man in September 2019…



Cristiano Ronaldo – 27 goals

Who else? One of the game’s all-time greats continues to set new records and landmarks, surpassing Keane to become the greatest goalscorer in European Championship qualifiers in September 2019. He achieved the feat in typical Ronaldo fashion, hitting four goals in a thrashing of Lithuania.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner further extended his record by scoring in October’s qualifiers with Luxembourg and Ukraine, the latter being the 700th goal of his illustrious career.

Portugal’s all-time record goalscorer now has 95 goals in 162 caps for his national side, whilst he is quickly closing in on Iranian Ali Daei’s record of 106 goals as the greatest goalscorer in the history of international football.