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The international break came at a good time for Glasgow Rangers boss Danny Rohl, as it has provided him with time to assess his first block of six matches in charge of the club.

Having arrived at Ibrox last month to replace Russell Martin, the former Sheffield Wednesday head coach did not have a pre-season or any real time to assess the squad and what he wants to do moving forward.

The main focus has been on short-term results, which has resulted in three straight wins in the Scottish Premiership, most recently with a 3-0 win over Dundee at Dens Park.

This international break, however, will have provided Rohl and Kevin Thelwell time to sit down and map out the longer-term plan, so that the next steps can be taken to set foot on that path, in the next few weeks and in the January transfer window.

Part of that longer-term plan should include finding a way to create a better pathway from the academy to the first-team so that the Gers can develop homegrown stars, instead of constantly needing to splash money on new signings to bolster the squad.

Unfortunately, there have not been too many recent examples of stars who have broken through from the B team to the first-team to make a name for themselves at Ibrox.

The most valuable former Rangers academy players

Whether it is changes at academy or first-team level, the Light Blues should look to address the lack of quality academy graduates that have come from the youth set-up in recent years.

19-year-old starlet Findlay Curtis has shown promise this season, with a return of three goals in 11 appearances in all competitions, but he has not started any of his four outings in the Premiership, per Transfermarkt.

The Scottish youngster is currently valued at around £400k by Transfermarkt, which is understandable given his lack of starts at first-team level, and that means that he does not rank within the top ten most valuable former Gers academy stars at this moment in time.

Billy Gilmour

£18m

Nathan Patterson

£11m

Greg Taylor

£5m

Ross McCrorie

£2m

Lewis Morgan

£2m

David Bates

£1m

Robbie Ure

£1m

Ryan Hardie

£1m

Malcolm Ebiowei

£1m

Ross McCausland

£1m

As you can see in the table above, the most valuable former academy talent is Napoli central midfielder Billy Gilmour, who is who is worth as much as the next three highest combined.

Unfortunately, the Scotland international did not play a single game for the Light Blues at first-team level because he opted to sign for Chelsea at the age of 15, with a development fee of at least £500k paid to Rangers.

When asked why he decided to move on from Ibrox, Gilmour later said: “It was between Rangers and Chelsea. Most of my family are Rangers fans and I love the club. I’ll always be thankful for everything they did. But when Chelsea showed me my development plan, I couldn’t turn it down. Everything about the club was amazing and it’s where I wanted to be.”

Whilst the pull of a Premier League title winner and regular Champions League contender will always be big, the midfielder’s comments about a ‘development plan’ were interesting.

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Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

Without knowing what goes on behind the scenes, it is hard to know whether or not the Gers are doing enough to convince young talent that they have a development plan that will turn them into a star at Ibrox.

One academy graduate who has seemingly not had a clear pathway to being a regular in the first-team is Bailey Rice, which is why Rohl must avoid him becoming a Gilmour repeat.

Why Danny Rohl should unleash Rangers teen Bailey Rice

The Gers youngster is not in the exact same situation as Gilmour, because he is four years older and has had experience in the first-team, but the club may run the risk of him wanting to move on if his lack of game time persists.

Thelwell, as shown in the graphic above, made it clear on Saturday that he wants the talented academy graduates at the club to be given chances at Ibrox, but that has not happened for Rice this season.

The 19-year-old star has played 45 minutes of football, against Alloa Athletic in the League Cup, for the Light Blues in the 2025/26 campaign, which means that he has not played a single minute in the Premiership.

In the summer transfer window, Rangers swooped to sign 30-year-old central midfielder Joe Rothwell from Bournemouth to bolster Russell Martin’s options in the defensive and central midfield positions.

That signing has played a part in blocking Rice’s pathway to playing minutes in the Premiership, and the experienced midfielder’s performances so far suggest that they may have been better off giving those chances to the youngster.

Appearances

8

Starts

5

Minutes

412

Goals

0

Assists

1

Tackles + interceptions per game

1.9

Dribbled past per game

0.4x

Ground duel success rate

46%

Aerial duel success rate

50%

As you can see in the table above, Rothwell has offered very little offensively or defensive in the middle of the park in his 412 minutes on the pitch in the league, losing the majority of his overall duels.

The English flop’s struggles suggest that the Gers would have been better off giving those 412 minutes to Rice to benefit his development and put him back on track to becoming a first-team regular, as Thelwell stated that he wants academy players to be given chances.

Rice made his first-team debut as a 16-year-old and was described as “a heck of a player” by former boss Michael Beale, as he made 14 first-team appearances in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns combined.

After a Europa League clash with Manchester United in January, Rio Ferdinand said that he liked Rice and hailed his composed play and “wonderful” passing in midfield, which shows that he impressed a former Premier League title winner and England international.

The teenage talent has only featured in seven Premiership games, starting once, in the subsequent 11 months, per Sofascore. This means that he has not had ample opportunity to nail down a place in the team.

Therefore, Rohl should avoid another Gilmour situation by finally handing Rice a chance to shine in the Premiership after the international break, to let him learn and develop, rather than continue to play Rothwell, who is at the opposite end of his career and has struggled this season.

£3m Rangers flop is becoming their biggest waste of time since Cortes

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ByBen Gray Nov 17, 2025

James Sales’ maiden List A century sets up Northamptonshire’s first win of the campaign

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay15-Aug-2025Northamptonshire 321 for 8 (Sales 117, Robinson 63, Broad 59) beat Durham 171 (Raine 31*, Chahal 3-30) by 150 runs A superb maiden List A century from James Sales – 117 off 110 balls – set Northamptonshire Steelbacks up for a first Metro Bank One-Day Cup win in four games this season, by 150 runs at the expense of Durham at the Banks Homes Riverside.The young Steelbacks side kick-started their Group B campaign following a No Result and two defeats as they successfully defended a commanding 321 for 8 total. Durham, meanwhile, suffered their third defeat in five to threaten their chances of a top-three finish for knockout qualification.Having elected to bat, Northamptonshire were advanced by centurion Sales, who was well supported by New Zealander Tim Robinson’s well-paced 63 off 69 balls and Justin Broad’s more aggressive 59 off 45.Durham then lost early wickets and never realistically threatened. They were bowled out for 171 inside 32 overs. Indian Yuzvendra Chahal finished with 3 for 30 from six overs of leg-spin.Sales, who hit his three sixes down the ground off spin and seam, was strong on both sides of the wicket as he accelerated through his innings having come to the crease at 31 for 1 in the ninth over.The 22-year-old right-hander batted through until the 48th over when he holed out to wide long-on against Ben Raine’s seam.New-ball duo Mitchell Killeen and Paul Coughlin struck twice apiece, but Durham relinquished control of the innings from 35 for two in the 10th over.Killeen had bowled captain Lewis McManus, Coughlin had Ricardo Vasconcelos caught behind by debutant 17-year-old wicketkeeper Robbie Bowman.Sales shared century partnerships for the third and fourth wickets with overseas Robinson and Broad en-route to his fifty off 65 balls and his century off 101.He dwarfed his previous List A best score of 35, though has three Championship hundreds to his name through last season and this.Durham, missing linchpin wicketkeeper-batter Ollie Robinson because of a family funeral, failed to gain control with the ball on the same pitch used for Tuesday’s defeat to Middlesex when the visitors chased an English List A record 388.This pitch was good, but it wasn’t the absolute featherbed of a couple of days ago.The home side lost Coughlin to a suspected shoulder issue having bowled nine overs.The Steelbacks were excellent having failed to reach 230 in either of the first two games played, and they continued their good work when it came to the defence, reducing Durham to 49 for four inside 11 overs.Left-arm quick Liam Guthrie struck twice, as did Luke Procter with his seamers. Alex Lees, Will Rhodes and Colin Ackermann all fell.But the headline dismissal was the first – four for one at the start of the second over – when ex-Northamptonshire opener Emilio Gay was trapped lbw stuck on the crease for a second golden duck in as many matches following disappointment against Middlesex.This was Gay’s first appearance against Northamptonshire since leaving Wantage Road late last summer.And when South Africa Test batter David Bedingham, on 30, miscued Broad’s fifth ball to mid-off, it felt like a decisive blow at 78 for five in the 15th over.Debutant Bowman encouraged for 27 and George Drissell bettered that with 30. But they fell to the spin of Rob Keogh and Yuzvendra Chahal as the score fell to 150 for seven in the 29th.Chahal forced a discomforted Coughlin to miscue to cover before bowling Killeen as he struck twice in the 31st over.Seventeen-year-old debutant off-spinner Nirvan Ramesh then wrapped things up with his maiden first-team wicket, Archie Bailey caught behind. He bowled a tidy 4.2 overs for 23.

A quality four-pronged spin attack propelled Melbourne Renegades to a thumping eight-wicket win over Sydney Thunder at Drummoyne Oval.Chasing a miserly 65 for victory, the defending WBBL champions hit the winning runs on the first ball of the 12th over, but the win was set up earlier when their quartet of tweakers demolished a meek Thunder batting line-up.Charis Bekker, Georgia Wareham, skipper Sophie Molineux and England’s Alice Capsey bowled stump to stump and took wickets at regular intervals, assisted by some poor shot choices by Thunder’s batters.Molineux opened in the chase and finished unbeaten on 29, finishing alongside player of the match Capsey.The win sees Renegades jump into outright second on the WBBL ladder with four wins from their opening six matches, now just two points behind competition leaders, Hobart Hurricanes. With four regular season games to play, Renegades are in a great position to go deep into the finals again.In the first innings Renegades were on top right from the opening ball, restricting Thunder to 19 for 2 in the powerplay, and when in-form opener Tahlia Wilson became crafty left-arm orthodox spinner Bekker’s second wicket, the home side were struggling at 21 for 3.By the end of the 10th over they were in even more trouble at 48 for 5. Former England captain Heather Knight appeared their only hope of getting anywhere near triple figures, but when she fell lbw to Wareham topping 100 was never on the cards.Their 64-run total was the third-lowest in the competition’s 11-season history.Thunder star Georgia Voll, who struck consecutive boundaries before being dismissed by Milly Illingworth, wasn’t making excuses.”That’s obviously not what we rocked up here thinking that was going to happen,” Voll said on the player mic during the broadcast. “Obviously it’s pretty disappointing, to be honest.”[The wicket] was a little bit tacky early on, but I don’t think it was enough to be rolled for 65 probably, just some poor shots all around and not adapting to the conditions quick enough.”Thunder went into the game off the back of two wins that had followed losses in their first three matches. They now sit in sixth with the job ahead of them to turn their season around and qualify for the finals.

كشفت تقارير صحفية عن إمكانية رحيل أحد لاعبي فريق برشلونة الإسباني، خلال سوق الانتقالات الشتوي في شهر يناير المقبل، بسبب منافسات كأس العالم 2026.

وتقام بطولة كأس العالم 2026 في شهر يونيو المقبل، حيث تستضيفها الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية، كندا، والمكسيك، في ملف مشترك.

ويسعى اللاعبون للمشاركة باستمرار وانتظام مع أنديتهم، لإثبات جدارتهم بالتواجد في قوائم منتخبات بلادهم، من أجل حلم المشاركة في المونديال.

وذكرت صحيفة “موندو ديبورتيفو” الإسبانية نقلاً عن “سبورت بيلد” الألمانية، أن حارس مرمى برشلونة، مارك تير شتيجن قد يغادر صفوف الفريق خلال انتقالات يناير.

تير شتيجن يغيب عن المشاركة مع برشلونة منذ أشهر بسبب الإصابة، وقد خضع لجراحة في الظهر ويواصل اللاعب تعافيه استعدادًا للعودة للعب بصورة طبيعية.

ويشير التقرير إلى أن تير شتيجن من المقرر أن يحصل على التصريح الطبي لمباراة برشلونة ضد أوساسونا، والمقرر خوضها يوم السبت المقبل.

ورغم عودته الوشيكة، من المرجح أن يواجه تير شتيجن صعوبة في الحصول على دقائق لعب كافية، خاصة وأن المدرب هانز فليك أكد أن خوان جارسيا هو الحارس الأساسي للفريق.

اقرأ أيضًا | كوبي: أزمة خطيرة.. لاعب برشلونة قد لا يلعب مرة أخرى مع الفريق

ومن أجل ضمان التواجد مع منتخب ألمانيا في المونديال، قد يتجه تير شتيجن للرحيل في انتقالات يناير، للحصول على فرص كافية للمشاركة مع أحد الأندية.

وتشير المصادر إلى أن أندية تركية مهتمة بالتعاقد مع حارس مرمى برشلونة، على الرغم من عدم تقديم أي عروض حتى الآن.

يذكر التقرير أيضًا أن الوضع الشخصي لتير شتيجن، والتواجد مع طفليه، يُمثل عاملاً حاسماً في تحديد مستقبله.

Karim Benzema has admitted he is unsure whether he will stay at Al-Ittihad beyond this season, confirming European offers are on the table while insisting he has no intention of retiring any time soon. As he approaches 38, the 2022 Ballon dOr winner wants clarity over the club's sporting plans before deciding where he will play next, as he remains determined to continue for at least two more years.

Benzema's future uncertain amid Al-Ittihad's struggles

Benzema is entering the final stretch of his current Al-Ittihad contract, and the uncertainty around the club's future plans has left the veteran striker weighing up his next move. Recent speculation has ranged from a contract extension to a possible exit and even retirement, but none of those scenarios has yet been agreed or ruled out officially. His situation has drawn major interest from European clubs keen to bring him back closer to the elite level he dominated for over a decade with Real Madrid.

The Frenchman remains valued highly by Al-Ittihad, who see him as both a sporting leader and a marketing icon, but their early season struggles in the Saudi Pro League have frustrated his competitive ambitions. While he remains settled off the pitch, Benzema has made it clear he does not want to see out his final years without challenging for major silverware. With his deal only running until 2026, any decision will depend on whether the club can fairly urgently present a project that convinces him to stay.

For now, he remains focused on contributing to this season and staying in peak condition as he nears his 38th birthday in December. His message is that he is far from finished physically or mentally, but he wants his final chapters to match his ambitions.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportFormer Ballon d'Or winner opens up on future

Benzema opened up about the crossroads he faces in a recent interview with AS, confirming he will not be rushed into a decision. "It's true that my contract here is coming to an end. I can't say yet what I'm going to do, whether I'll stay or leave – it depends on a lot of things. In December, I'll be 38. I still see myself playing football for another two years."

He emphasised that he wants a long-term vision, not a short extension just for the sake of it. "We'll see what happens, what the club thinks. I like to talk face-to-face and then see what they think. The best thing for me would be to continue here, but not just for one or two more years. I don't want to do that."

Benzema also confirmed offers from Europe remain active, though comfort and respect matter as much as the level of competition. "It's true that I have offers from Europe. I need to consider everything, choose wisely, and see where I feel good, not forgetting that I feel comfortable here and receive everyone's affection. In any case, I'm not going to stop playing football or competing in six months."

Benzema has offers from Europe with contract ending in 2026

Benzema has repeatedly stated that he still feels in strong physical condition despite his age and the demands of the Saudi Pro League. He continues to work rigorously in training, confident that his technical ability and football intelligence allow him to remain decisive in key moments. His affection for Al-Ittihad's fans and the respect he receives in Saudi Arabia remain key parts of why staying is still an attractive option.

Yet the pull of Europe, and especially the Champions League, has never left him. He has openly admitted he continues to watch Real Madrid matches and the top European competitions, describing them as "magical" and a constant reminder of the highest stage. Fenerbahce had reportedly placed the former France international on their wishlist for January; however, are going to be unlikely to actually make a move.

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AFPCan Benzema actually return to Europe?

Talks with Al-Ittihad leadership are expected to take place soon, as both sides seek clarity before the second half of the season. If the club can present a convincing project, Benzema could renew his commitment in Saudi Arabia and aim for one last push for titles. Failure to do so, however, would open the door for a dramatic late-career return to European football.

European interest will likely intensify as the summer window approaches, especially with top-level clubs monitoring both his availability and his fitness. Retirement is not being considered in the short term, and Benzema himself has set a clear timeline by projecting his goodbye closer to 2028.

حلل أسطورة نادي ريال مدريد فوز فريقه السابق على أولمبياكوس أمس الأربعاء، حيث لعبت المباراة في منافسات بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا في مرحلة الدوري.

ريال مدريد استطاع استعادة عافيته وحقق انتصارًا بشق الأنفس على أولمبياكوس بأربعة أهداف مقابل ثلاثة، ضمن الجولة الخامسة من مرحلة الدوري في مسابقة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويعاني ريال مدريد الأمرين خلال الفترة الأخيرة من هذا الموسم، حيث تراجعت نتائج الفريق الملكي ومستوى الفريق كذلك خلال المباريات الأخيرة.

وجاء فوز ريال مدريد على أولمبياكوس ليكسر إحصائية سلبية للميرنجي تمثلت في عدم فوز الفريق في ثلاث مباريات متتالية.

ويرى مانولو سانشيز، أسطورة ريال مدريد، أن الفريق الملكي يعاني بالفعل من مشاكل في دفاعه، موضحًا أن خط دفاع النادي الإسباني أصبح نقطة ضعف حقيقية.

أقرأ أيضًا .. تطورات هامة بشأن موقف فينيسيوس جونيور من التجديد لـ ريال مدريد وقال سانشيز في تصريحات نقلتها صحيفة “موندو ديبورتيفو”: “هذه مباراة ستمنحك فيها النتيجة بعض الطمأنينة لكنها تحتاج إلى الكثير من التحليل، لأن هناك أموراً جيدة، ولكن هناك أموراً أخرى تحتاج إلى تصحيح، لو كان الخصم مختلفاً يلعب نفس المباراة، لما كانت النتيجة هي نفسها”.

وأضاف: “أعتقد أن الجهاز الفني واللاعبين بحاجة إلى معالجة نقطة ضعف أصبحت تمثل نقطة ضعف وهي الجانب الدفاعي، ليس فقط الدفاع بل النظام الدفاعي بأكمله”.

وأوضح: ”أحيانًا يخترق لاعبو خط وسط الخصم بسهولة مما يخلق مساحات كبيرة في الخلف، نستقبل الكثير من الأهداف من الكرات الرأسية والألعاب الهوائية، خاصةً وأن لدينا لاعبين طوال القامة ومتميزين أيضًا في الكرات الهوائية”.

واختتم: “أفتقد شخصًا ينظم الأمور عندما تكون هناك فوضى في منطقة الجزاء في ريال مدريد، شخصًا يصرخ ويضع اللاعبين في أماكنهم ويمنح كل واحد منهم مسؤوليته”.