Football transfer news

LAFC may just have finally found the solution to their ongoing striker search with the addition of Olivier Giroud, who’s set to join the Black and Gold this summer.

Giroud reportedly put pen to paper earlier this week to join LAFC on an 18-month contract that ties him to Los Angeles through the 2025 Major League Soccer season, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

The 37-year-old World Cup winner is set to reunite with former France international teammate Hugo Lloris, as both will provide plenty of experience for the 2022 MLS Cup winners for the next couple of seasons. Even though LAFC have been able to remain quite consistent without a true center-forward, the addition of Giroud will aid in the Black and Gold’s attempts to reach a third-straight MLS Cup final and truly unlock an attack with massive potential.

It’s no secret that LAFC have been in the market for a new No. 9, and they’ll soon enough have their hands on one of the most iconic strikers from the last decade. Club legend Carlos Vela — who amassed 147 goal involvements in 188 appearances for LAFC and is currently a free agent — was still getting the job done last season with 14 goals across all competitions.

However, Vela did show signs of being on the decline at 35 and has always been more of a winger than a striker even if he was serviceable up front next to Denis Bouanga and Cristian Olivera. Another point to note is that even though many might think that LAFC could be going backward with a striker that’s older than the out-of-contract Vela, Giroud has still managed an impressive 13 goals and eight assists in 30 appearances for Milan this term.

Giroud’s addition also means that Mateusz Bogusz can return to his preferred role in the midfield and that head coach Steve Cherundolo won’t have to rely on Bouanga scoring the bulk of the team’s goals. In 2023, Bouanga took home the Golden Boot award with 20 goals scored in the regular season (or 37% of LAFC’s 54 goals in 2023), but with Vela’s nine goals now out of the picture, the team’s second-highest goalscorer is full-back Ryan Hollingshead with seven goals — which isn’t exactly ideal.

LAFC weren’t exactly short of players with winning experience, but Giroud will fit right in with the team’s goals of regularly competing in finals and aiming to bring home silverware. Since their first season in MLS back 2018, the Western Conference side have lifted one MLS Cup, one Campeones Cup and two Supporters’ Shields — while also reaching two Concacaf Champions Cup finals.

Along with scoring plenty of goals, Giroud has also played his part in lifting numerous trophies in his extensive career. The former Chelsea and Arsenal figure has lifted four FA Cups, one Europa Leauge and Champions League title, one Serie A title and of course, the 2018 World Cup title with France. When Giroud’s winning mentality combines with players like Bouanga and Ilie Sanchez who are itching to win more trophies, it will only push LAFC on to reaching more finals with their new target man up front.

Giroud is now the latest veteran to make the switch to MLS from Europe while the league has also prioritized young, emerging talent in recent years to form a unique combination of players among squads. The likes of Giroud, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Emil Forsberg, Gareth Bale and Lloris have all moved across the pond to get a taste of what MLS offers.

Right, where do we start?

Chelsea, or whatever this blue-coated sham is pretending to be, were beaten from pillar to post as they shipped five unanswered goals against one of their biggest rivals. A stunning performance for every bad reason imaginable.

Here are Chelsea’s best and worst players according to 90min‘s player ratings.

Djordje Petrovic – 5/10

Djordje Petrovic made an error which led to a goal inside five minutes and somehow still emerged as the only Chelsea player with any shred of dignity intact.

The stopper dusted himself off and made four or five truly excellent saves to stop this from being even worse.

Axel Disasi – 1/10

There’s some serious competition for this honour, but Axel Disasi’s seamless impression of a broken training cone gets him the nod here.

Returning straight to the starting lineup after an injury enforced absence, Disasi was left hoping this was all a medically induced fever dream as he found himself shockingly behind Arsenal’s electric forwards.

Dishonourable mention

Benoit Badiashile – 1/10

Mauricio Pochettino made the genius call of dropping his two most in-form defenders, Trevoh Chalobah and Thiago Silva, in favour of recalling Disasi and Benoit Badiashile. In hindsight, a bit of a bad call.

Badiashile seemingly forgot how to pass to his own team in the second half and, like a Ralph Wiggum heartbreak, you could almost see the moment the confidence started to bleed out of him.

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Everton could hand a huge blow to Liverpool’s Premier League title charge when they host the Merseyside derby on Wednesday night.

Both clubs picked up important victories on Sunday, with Everton alleviating their fears of relegation with a controversial 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest, while Liverpool kept pace at the top of the table by beating Fulham 3-1.

Sean Dyche’s side aren’t out of the mire just yet, but three points on home soil thanks to avid Luton Town VAR operator Stuart Attwell means the Toffees are perhaps just another win or two away from safety. They’re going in search for their first victory over their bitter Merseyside rivals at Goodison Park in 14 years on Wednesday night.

Jurgen Klopp’s Reds reignited their title bid in west London at the weekend having lost at home to Crystal Palace the week before. They, along with Arsenal, can heap the pressure on favourites Manchester City ahead of their trip to Brighton on Thursday night.

Here’s 90min’s preview of Wednesday night’s Merseyside derby.

Everton vs Liverpool H2H record (all-time)

Current form (all competitions)

Sean Dyche could be without his two preferred striker options on Wednesday. Beto is unlikely to feature following his nasty collision with Morgan Gibbs-White on Sunday, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin picked up another knock against Forest and is a doubt for the derby.

Merseyside derby veteran Seamus Coleman is unlikely to feature with a groin injury. Dele Alli is also not ready for a recall to the matchday squad.

Everton predicted lineup vs Liverpool (4-4-1-1): Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison, Onana, Gueye, McNeil; Doucoure; Calvert-Lewin.

Just the one fresh injury concern for Klopp, who confirmed during Tuesday’s press conference that he will be without Diogo Jota for the next few weeks after a minor injury issue. Conor Bradley, Joel Matip, Ben Doak and Thiago Alcantara all remain sidelined.

Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Ibrahima Konate could all return to the Liverpool team in midweek.

Liverpool predicted lineup vs Everton (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Endo, Mac Allister, Szoboszlai; Salah, Nunez, Diaz.

Goodison won’t be quite as angsty on Wednesday given Everton’s victory on Sunday which relieved a ton of pressure, but the Toffees will nonetheless be desperate to hinder their rivals’ title quest.

Liverpool secured an impressive three points at the weekend after a potentially season-crushing week, and Klopp will be able to call upon a group of fresh core players in midweek. Mohamed Salah could return with a vengeance and haunt Everton again, with the hosts bound to cede territory and control in bid to play on the counter-attack.

However, will they be able to muster enough going forward with a half-fit Calvert-Lewin leading the line? Liverpool should win the derby again on Wednesday.

Prediction: Everton 0-2 Liverpool

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Arsenal sent a rocket up their Premier League title push with a dominant 5-0 mauling of Chelsea.

The Gunners put on a dominant show at the Emirates, providing a clinical performance to silence Mauricio Pochettino’s side. It was a semi-nervy first half for Mikel Arteta’s squad, but after securing their second goal, Chelsea proved no threat against the hosts and were beaten into submission.

Here are Arsenal’s best and worst players from the game according to 90min‘s player ratings.

Ben White – 10/10

Ben White looked to be a constant threat against the Blues, making marauding runs up and down the pitch. His efforts enabled him to earn his first senior brace, albeit with luck on his side.

His opening goal fired into the bottom right corner from his left foot, a cultured finish yet uncharacteristic for the right-back.

An element of fortune was on his side for the second, but he still had to be in the right place at the right time to finish it.

Honourable mention

Martin Odegaard – 9/10

Martin Odegaard’s performance against Chelsea may have been his best ever in an Arsenal shirt, which speaks volumes as he was unable to carve his name onto the scoresheet.

His turns were almost unfathomable, making him one of the most useful playmakers on the pitch. Odegaard looked to almost tease the Blues, and there was nothing they could do to stop him in his tracks.

William Saliba – 6/10

It’s difficult to pick a worst player when a team wins 5-0, but William Saliba looked slightly nervous in the first half, especially when playing against Nicolas Jackson.

He looked to struggle in the pace battle against the striker, and sometimes gave him too much space in attack, but does anybody care about that?

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Manchester United are understood to be in talks with Disney over the possibility of striking a “multi-million dollar” deal to create documentary about the club.

Sports documentaries have become a huge hit on streaming platforms in recent years, with both Netflix and Amazon Prime Video each hitting the category hard. Welcome to Wrexham has been a big success on Disney+, which also carries a variety of existing and original sports series and films.

The Athletic notes that the conversations between Disney and United for a project that is so far considered “conceptual” have focused on Sir Alex Ferguson’s era of success. The idea is that there would be “substantial” interview time with the legendary manager himself, plus access to the club’s archive footage, as well as ambassadors like Bryan Robson and Peter Schmeichel.

No deal is thought to have been reached, with United holding out for more than the “low seven figure” offer on the table, less than when Disney previously engaged in talks two years ago. Such a project would also need to be agreed to by Ferguson and the former players, while United would retain “editorial oversight”, which has been standard for clubs granting access.

The Athletic adds there have no been talks between Disney and United about an up to date behind the scenes style series, a la Welcome to Wrexham or the many All or Nothing docuseries that have been made by Amazon. Manchester City documented their 2022/23 treble season for a film now streaming on Netflix, while Liverpool are currently filming Jurgen Klopp’s final campaign.

Disney+ carries ESPN’s extensive documentary catalogue, including many from the wide-ranging 30 for 30 series that began in 2009, while Matildas: The World at Our Feet and Save Our Squad with David Beckham are original football-based productions released within the last couple of years.

Amazon Prime Video is premiering 99 on 17 May, an original series focusing on United’s treble season 25 years on, as told by Sir Alex Ferguson and former players – including David Beckham, Gary Neville, Paul Scholes, Peter Schmeichel and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. But it has not been produced in conjunction with the club and United will not directly profit from it.

Another documentary about the club, The United Way, was released by Sky in 2021. Meanwhile, United additionally have a string of their own in-house produced documentaries on MUTV.

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