Manchester United have reportedly set their sights on a move to sign a versatile attacker who has impressed during the current campaign.

What’s the latest Man Utd transfer news?

The Red Devils were busy in the recent transfer market, bringing in eight new players ahead of Erik ten Hag’s second season in charge, with the Dutchman securing reunions with the likes of Andre Onana and Sofyan Amrabat.

However, it has been a poor start to the campaign both on and off the pitch, with a number of defeats, injuries and situations needing to be handled. One main talking point has been Jadon Sancho and Ten Hag’s relationship breakdown, with the latter leaving the player out in recent months due to performances in training, with the winger feeling he has been made a scapegoat.

Sancho’s future could well be away from Old Trafford in the New Year, and as a result, it looks as if the club are already eyeing potential replacements. According to one report from Spain, who shared a Man Utd transfer update, Real Betis teenager Assane Diao has emerged as one of the club’s main targets ahead of 2024 after an impressive start to the campaign.

The report claims that the Red Devils are after a winger and that Diao’s possible €30m (£26m) release clause makes him a very attractive option. Man Utd have set their sights and entered the race to sign the attacker as a result, with Diao catching the eye of fans and scouts in recent months.

Who is Assane Diao?

Diao is just 18 years of age and is primarily a left-winger but can also play on the right or as a centre-forward. The Spain U21 international has scored three goals in five senior appearances this season which has seen Diao’s transfer value increase from €200,000 to €8m in a matter of months. (Assane Diao stats – Transfermarkt)

Earlier this month, journalist Josh Bunting hailed the teenager’s intelligence and composure, saying:

“Assane Diao with two goals in two, his movement and awareness is just so intelligent for a boy who is so young, has that composure in-front of goal. Real Betis have a star on their hands, has that height to hold the ball up and play balls in and around the corner. So sharp.”

Meanwhile, football talent scout Jacek Kulig has highlighted the player’s rise in recent months.

“Assane Diao:

Fantastic time for the 18-year-old Betis academy graduate!”

He could well be a star in the making, and if United feel that way, it may well be a transfer to keep an eye on heading into January, especially if Diao continues his rapid development at senior level.

Sunderland are back in Championship action this weekend, but they have been dealt some bad injury news before the game, courtesy of reliable journalist James Hunter.

Stoke vs Sunderland team news

The Black Cats endured a terrible result before the international break, losing 4-0 at home to local rivals Middlesbrough at the Stadium of Light, in a scoreline that few saw coming.

While this was undoubtedly a big setback, Sunderland are still in a strong position in the grander scheme of things, sitting fourth in the Championship table and looking like strong contenders to at least seal a place in the playoffs.

The key now is for Tony Mowbray's side to produce a big response to the Middlesbrough defeat on Saturday afternoon, as they make the trip to Stoke City, who are currently in 21st position, languishing just above the relegation zone.

Sunderland aren't without injury problems heading into the game, with Aji Alese, Timothee Pembele, Dennis Cirkin and Eliezer Mayenda missing of late, and doubts surrounding the involvement of Pierre Ekwah, Alex Pritchard and Bradley Dack this weekend.

Sunderland injury updates

Taking to X on Thursday, Hunter dropped a new injury update, saying the Alese and Pembele Sunderland injuries mean they have been ruled out of the Stoke game: "Injury setbacks for Alese and Pembele. Better news on Cirkin and Mayenda."

Providing more information regarding the Sunderland injuries for The Chronicle, Hunter said: "Aji Alese and Timothee Pembele have suffered injury setbacks which will further delay their integration into Sunderland's Championship campaign.

"And deadline day signing from Paris St-Germain Pembele was making good progress as he built his fitness following a long-term knee injury, but the full-back has also run into problems which will keep him out for at least another month."

Not having both Alese and Dembele available for the trip to Stoke to an undoubted blow for Sunderland, with the duo both seen as important figures who are key to their side's promotion push this season.

The former has made 24 appearances for the Black Cats since signing for them last year, but Alese's statistics make for grim reading so far this season, with injuries meaning he hasn't played a single minute of action.

Meanwhile, the latter joined from Paris Saint-Germain during the summer transfer window, being seen as an exciting addition, but he is another whose absence has been a big blow, resulting in no minutes played to date (Pembele's stats).

The hope is that they are back sooner rather than later, but on the plus side, Mowbray's men have still shown that they can pick up positive results without them in the team. As the season goes on, though, as much depth as possible will be vital, as legs begin to tire and fixtures come thick and fast.

نجح منتخب هولندا في تسجيل هدف التعادل في شباك نظيره منتخب تركيا، في المباراة الجارية حاليًا بينهما في كأس أمم أوروبا.

وتلاقى المنتخبان في إطار منافسات ربع نهائي يورو 2024، في البطولة المُقامة حاليًا في ألمانيا (لمتابعة المباراة من هنا).

وتمكن منتخب هولندا من تسجيل هدف التعادل في الشباك التركية، في الدقيقة 70 من عمر المباراة.

جاء هدف تعادل هولندا عن طريق اللاعب ستيفان دي فريج، بعد كرة عرضية من ممفيس ديباي، حيث وصلت إلى دي فريج الذي سددها برأسه في الشباك. هدف تعادل هولندا أمام تركيا

Glasgow Rangers may have won three games in a row for the first time this season, but the performances on the park haven’t been pretty to say the least.

A turgid 1-0 win against Motherwell in the Premiership more than likely buys Michael Beale more time at the helm, but having had to endure a chorus of boos ringing out at Ibrox when the final whistle went on Sunday, he may not have much of it left.

This summer saw the Gers embark on a much-needed overhaul of the playing squad, but it has yet to reap the rewards, with the vast majority of the new arrivals struggling to really hit the ground running.

With Danilo arriving for £6m and Sam Lammers joining the club for a fee of £3m, Beale will need to be careful that these players are managed well and don’t end up turning into another couple of expensive flops.

The Light Blues have endured their fair share of big-money duds since returning to the Premiership in 2016, with former manager Pedro Caixinha being responsible for a couple.

Carlos Pena was arguably the biggest mistake, having cost the Ibrox side £2.2m during the summer of 2017 as Caixinha sought to bolster his side as he looked to end Celtic’s dominance of Scottish football.

Another signing from that same year that turned out to be an expensive flop was that of striker Eduardo Herrera.

How much did Rangers sign Eduardo Herrera for?

Pena arrived in Glasgow the very same day as his compatriot as the Gers announced a double signing and Herrera ended up signing for a fee in the region of £1.5m from Mexican side Pumas, and it was clear that the Portuguese manager wasn’t standing still in the transfer market.

He was clearly happy at joining the club, saying: "I am very happy to become part of this great club that has such great supporters.

"I have been waiting for this move for many years now. I wanted to become part of European football and I hope I will be able to make my own contribution to the team."

He also added: “I am a centre-forward and I like to be in the opposition box looking for a chance to score.

"I am used to playing as a target man, to have the ball and support my team and other players in those types of situations.

“I like to compare myself with other players, I have my own style. I like to watch a lot of European football and I try to learn from other players."

Overall, Caixinha signed 11 players that summer in order to build a side which could compete on all fronts, but having suffered an embarrassing aggregate loss to Progres Niederkorn in Europa League qualifying, there was no way back from that as he was eventually sacked in October 2017.

It was hardly surprising news, especially considering the vast majority of his summer arrivals had underperformed massively as they lost in the League Cup semi-finals while slipping behind Celtic in the race for the Premiership title.

Having scored 57 goals in Mexico before joining the Light Blues, Herrera was looked upon as a main source of goals during the 2017/18 season, yet he became a giant drain on precious funds at Ibrox.

How much did Eduardo Herrera earn at Rangers?

The Mexican striker was reported to be earning a staggering wage of £20k-per-week when he signed six years ago.

This is a decent amount now, never mind when the Gers were still struggling financially following a stint in the lower divisions, and they couldn’t even count on European money either due to their woeful defeat before the league season had even got underway.

It was a ridiculous amount to pay the player, despite his goalscoring record and the fact he had won nine caps for Mexico, and he went on to perform poorly for the club.

How many goals did Eduardo Herrera score for Rangers?

For a transfer fee of £1.5m, Caixinha was expecting goals from his centre-forward, yet he failed to deliver. Across just 24 matches for the Ibrox side, he netted only twice and once new manager Steven Gerrard arrived to rejuvenate the club in the summer of 2018, it was clear he didn’t have a future in Glasgow.

Firstly, he was shifted out on loan to Santos Laguna before joining Club Necaxa in January 2019 for yet another temporary spell away from Rangers, and this lasted for a full year before Gerrard had enough and sought to remove the striker from his squad.

Herrera had clearly been frozen out by the former Liverpool captain and eventually left the club in January 2020, joining Puebla in his homeland and ending a two-and-a-half-year spell of utter misery in Scotland.

Indeed, while pulling on a Rangers jersey between 2017 and 2018, Herrera not only cost the club a staggering £750k per goal, but he rinsed the club of £2.6m over 55 weeks.

This was his transfer fee combined with the £1.1m in wages he earned whilst playing for the club, and it was evidently money the club couldn’t throw down the drain due to their financial situation.

No manager is immune from making the odd mistake. Even the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson has had a transfer howler or two during his successful career, yet Rangers have seen their fair share of expensive flops over the previous seven years.

Herrera certainly falls into that category and that time period wasn’t the best time to be a supporter, with defeats to Celtic commonplace and a number of uninspiring signings joining the club.

Beale has spent a vast amount of money this summer, and he will be hoping that this investment will ensure he has a productive stint in charge of the Gers.

Early signs aren’t promising, and he may not have enough time to see just how the team could perform with every new signing fit and firing.

Australia’s captain threatened to turn the game with an onslaught against Moeen Ali but he became Adil Rashid’s third wicket and England closed out the win

The Report by George Dobell27-Jun-2018
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJos Buttler thumped the fastest half-century in his nation’s T20I history to help England withstand a brilliant innings from Aaron Finch and record another resounding victory against Australia at Edgbaston.The result, coming on the heels of England’s 5-0 victory in the ODI series, means Australia have lost all six international fixtures as part of their tour to England and Wales. They depart for a tour of Zimbabwe on Thursday.Buttler, promoted to open the innings after an excellent end to his IPL season in the same position, thrashed 50 from just 22 balls as England posted the second-highest total in their 101-match T20 history. Their highest T20I score remains the 230 made against South Africa in Mumbai in 2016, while the previous record for fastest half-century was 23 set by Ravi Bopara.Even by the standards of these punch-drunk days, when England seem to set new batting records by the week and feats we once thought impossible have become commonplace, Buttler’s batting here was remarkable. The speed of the hands, the range of strokes, the power and timing combined leave little margin for error for bowlers and make perfectly respectably-sized boundaries appear impossibly small.As early as the fourth over here, he followed a six over long-on with a ramped four from the next delivery and then produced what was basically a cross-court winner that would have pleased Roger Federer. The over cost 23 and set the tone for an unhappy evening for the bowler, Kane Richardson.For it was Richardson, on the long-off boundary, who spilt a simple chance offered by Jason Roy when the batsman had 27, Richardson who allowed Alex Hales a two with a misfield and Richardson who conceded 59 from his four overs; the second most expensive analysis in Australia’s T20I history. Later – inevitably, really – he came to the crease in an impossible position and slogged his first ball to mid-off.Partly due to Richardson’s slip in the field, Roy – who made 44 from 26 balls – helped Buttler post 95 for the first wicket (England’s sixth-highest opening stand in this form of the game) with 70 of them coming in the six-over Powerplay. With Hales following up with 49 from 24 balls – for a while it seemed he would break Buttler’s new record – and Jonny Bairstow underlining the depth of England’s batting by driving his first and final deliveries for six, England easily reached 200 for the first time in a home T20.It was clear from the first ball that this was to be a trying night for the bowlers. The ease with which Roy caressed the opening delivery of the match to the midwicket boundary spoke volumes for the nature of the surface: the sort of wicket of which batsmen dream and bowlers shiver. The over cost 13 and, when Mitchell Swepson, the debutant legspinner was introduced, Buttler immediately came down the pitch and, having first smeared him through mid-wicket for a boundary, then deposited him over long-on for six.Later Billy Stanlake missed his attempted yorker by an inch or two and Buttler, stepping back to give himself room, drove over extra cover for 6. It was a shot that would have pleased Viv Richards. Buttler’s 50 contained six fours, four sixes and four singles. And not once did he play and miss.With Australia losing five wickets in the first 10 overs of their innings, it seemed they were heading to a heavy defeat. But Finch had other ideas and, after being starved of the strike for much of the opening overs – he faced only 19 balls in the first 54 – launched an assault on Moeen Ali’s offspin that threatened to turn the game.Demonstrating awesome power, he deposited Moeen for five sixes and three fours – most of them over midwicket – as he added 86 in seven overs for the seventh-wicket with Ashton Agar.But Adil Rashid, who bowled 11 dot balls, and took three wickets kept his head and had Finch caught on the long-on fence by Chris Jordan. And with nobody else in the top six making 20, England’s total always looked just out of reach. Australia went down swinging, bowled out with two balls remaining.It was a good night, too, for Jordan. Having produced a well-disguised slower-ball to defeat Glenn Maxwell, he showed good pace and control of his yorker to end Agar’s resistance. He remains England’s outstanding fielder, too.For Australia there was some fine bowling from AJ Tye – who conceded just three from the fifth over of the innings and a respectable eight from the last – while Agar and Finch can also look back on this game with some pride. But losing all six internationals against the old enemy must rank this as one of the worst tours an Australian team has ever had to England.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Santos enfrenta um surto de Covid-19 no elenco e na comissão técnica. Após Madson, Lucas Veríssimo e João Paulo, foram a vez de mais sete jogadores testarem positivo para a doença após testes realizados neta terça (10).

São eles:Jobson, Alex, Jean Mota, Vladimir, Diego Pituca, Alison, Sandry. Além dos atletas, oauxiliares Cuquinha e Eudes Pedro. também estão infectados. Portanto, o total de atltas infectados chega a dez.

O Peixe fará as contraprovas e ainda não recebeu todos os resultados.Além deles, o preparador de goleiros Arzul e catorze jogadoras do time feminino também estão infectados.

Desde o início do Brasileirão, o Santos havia tido poucos casos positivos de Covid-19 no elenco, sendo apenas os atacantes Kaio Jorge e Raniel.

Com tantos problemas, o Santos encara o Internacional, no próximo sábado (14), às 16h30, pelo Campeonato Brasileiro, na Vila Belmiro.

Veja a nota oficial do Santos

O Santos FC informa que, após a realização de novos exames de COVID-19, mais sete jogadores foram diagnosticados com coronavírus nesta terça-feira (10). São eles: Jobson, Alex, Jean Mota, Vladimir, Diego Pituca, Alison e Sandry, além de seis membros da comissão técnica – entre eles os auxiliares Cuquinha e Eudes Pedro.

O elenco passará por nova testagem na próxima quinta-feira (12)

RelacionadasVídeoVÍDEO: Elenco do Santos realiza teste de Covid-19 no CT Rei PeléVídeo10/11/2020SantosSantos cancela treino por conta de testes de Covid-19Santos10/11/2020SantosMarcos Leonardo tem bons números no primeiro ano como profissionalSantos10/11/2020

There will be those pondering just where it all went wrong for Leeds United, with the Yorkshire giants now plying their trade in the Championship once again following a relatively brief return to life in the top tier.

It was not too long ago that the Whites appeared to be flying under the guidance of enigmatic coach, Marcelo Bielsa, with the Argentine maverick having guided the club to promotion at the second attempt in 2019/20 – ending a 16-year wait for Premier League football.

Not content with merely scrapping for survival in the following campaign, the current Uruguay boss then led his eye-catching, attack-minded side to a respectable ninth-place finish, with the club at the time having been harbouring future ambitions of potentially challenging for European qualification.

Such lofty dreams now appear a long way off following the turbulence that has followed over the past two years or so, with Bielsa having subsequently been shown the door in February 2022 following a dismal run of form.

With Jesse Marsch going on to steer the Elland Road outfit to safety on the final day of the season, there were to be further high-profile departures that summer, with Raphinha joining Barcelona on a £55m deal, while academy graduate Kalvin Phillips moved on to Manchester City for a reported fee of £45m.

The loss of those two first-team stars was undoubtedly a "huge blow" – as per pundit Kevin Campbell – with Phillips, in particular, having cemented himself as a crucial figure at the club after rising up through the youth ranks.

How good was Kalvin Phillips at Leeds?

Having been handed his first-team debut back in 2015, the midfield maestro went on to emerge as something of a local hero over the next seven years, racking up 234 appearances in all competitions, while scoring 13 goals and registering 14 assists.

A crucial cog in Bielsa's promotion-winning machine, Phillips was the man holding things together in his deep-lying midfield berth, with ex-England boss Steve McLaren hailing him as a "screener" and a "destroyer", such was his effective presence in front of the back four.

Not just adept at winning back possession for his side, the Yorkshireman also possessed that gift for being able to dictate the tempo and pick out his teammates with ease, having been lauded for his "fantastic range of passing" by former Whites boss, Neil Redfearn.

Such quality was also on show for his country at the European Championship in 2021, with the 5 foot 10 ace starting all seven games in the Three Lions' surge to the final, even been dubbed the "best modern midfielder" by coaching legend, Fabio Capello.

To have been able to produce such a talent is a testament to the work done in the academy ranks at Elland Road, with Phillips having joined the likes of Alan Smith and James Milner in rising up from the youth set-up, before becoming first-team heroes.

Have Leeds replaced Kalvin Phillips?

With the 27-year-old now on the books at the Etihad – where he has played a peripheral role to date after starting just two Premier League games since the beginning of last season – the club have somewhat plugged the gap in his absence.

The signing of Tyler Adams last summer seemingly allowed Marsch to find a dream replacement as the American "stepped right into [Phillips'] shoes" – according to pundit Noel Whelan – albeit with the 24-year-old swiftly departing in the recent window after an injury-plagued end to last season.

In his place, £7m man Ethan Ampadu has enjoyed a promising start to life in his new surroundings, although while the Wales international has arguably already replaced Adams, attempting to emulate the legacy of Phillips is another matter entirely.

Current boss Daniel Farke has also handed a prominent role to 17-year-old Archie Gray of late – who has been dubbed "phenomenal" by club legend Jermaine Beckford – yet there may be another who could represent a more well-suited successor to the Man City man.

If Farke is to find a long-term heir to that man Phillips then he should perhaps look no further than academy sensation, Cian Coleman, with the 19-year-old seemingly having all the tools to follow in the footsteps of Bielsa's former lynchpin.

Who is Cian Coleman?

The teenage midfielder is an "exciting" and "talented" prospect who is catching the eye at youth level – as per analyst Mark Broomy – having already scored once in four Premier League 2 appearances this season from his defensive-minded berth.

The England-born, Republic of Ireland youth international had previously racked up five goals and ten assists in 52 outings for the club's U18 side, with such form warranting a first professional contract earlier this year.

Despite his relative youth, the emerging gem has been a player to watch out for over the last few years, having even been included in the Guardian's Next Gen list back in 2021, placing him alongside the 20 best young talents in the Premier League.

As journalist Louis Taylor wrote at the time, Coleman is 'extremely highly rated' by those at Elland Road and had even been given the chance to train with the first-team during Bielsa's time at the helm.

Even more interestingly, however, is the fact that the versatile asset was also noted as potentially being the "new Kalvin Phillips" – as relayed by Taylor – after also previously lining up for the U21's at the age of just 15.

A chance to impress in the senior ranks has yet to emerge for the promising dynamo, although on current evidence an opportunity under Farke may not be too far away, with pundit Ben Parker having praised the "big impact" that the teen had made last term, despite slotting in at right-back on occasion.

The hope will be that Leeds could have a future midfield pairing of the aforementioned Gray and Coleman, representing the strength of the club's remarkable academy production line.

Alyssa Naeher was the undoubted hero for the USWNT in their W Gold Cup penalty shootout win over Canada, as she saved three and scored one herself.

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• Thrilling contest went all the way
• Crazy conditions in California
• Veteran keeper made the difference

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Chicago Red Stars custodian, who has become an international centurion after reaching 100 caps, appeared to have suffered spot-kick agony at the end of an epic encounter that saw Adriana Leon snatch a 127th-minute equaliser in a thrilling 2-2 draw.

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  Conditions at Snapdragon Stadium in California made life difficult for both sides, with torrential rain making the pitch almost unplayable. That worked in favour of the USWNT at times, especially when Jaedyn Shaw was assisted by a puddle when opening the scoring, but the game would ultimately be settled by a battle of nerves from 12 yards.

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  Naeher held hers to keep out three of Canada’s efforts – with Leon, Jordyn Huitema and Jessie Fleming all being repelled. Naeher even got in on the penalty-scoring act, as she calmly fired the USWNT’s third penalty low into the bottom corner.

The match footage from the 2017 Ranchi Test included in the Al Jazeera documentary on cricket corruption left little doubt that he was one of the two Australian players being accused

Daniel Brettig24-Jul-2018Glenn Maxwell has spoken about his anger at being linked to allegations of spot-fixing in an investigative documentary, while also revealing he has previously reported suspicious on-field events in IPL matches to anti-corruption officials.An Al Jazeera exploration of corruption in cricket alleged that Australian players were involved in spot-fixing during the 2017 Ranchi Test against India, in which Maxwell made his first Test century after being recalled. While the documentary did not name Maxwell, match footage included left little doubt that he was one of two Australian players being accused.Maxwell said he had been informed by Cricket Australia that the documentary was going to air, but was not questioned by anti-corruption officials about allegations of spot-fixing to meet a pre-planned number of runs in a “bracket” of overs on the first day of the match.It is believed that an ICC investigation into the documentary’s various allegations is still ongoing, amid haggling between the governing body and the filmmakers over hours of raw footage collected by Al Jazeera. The possibility remains that Maxwell may still be interviewed about Ranchi.”I was shocked. I was a bit hurt by it as well,” Maxwell told . “To have these allegations about your involvement in a game where you’ve only got happy memories about it, great memories…I still remember the feeling after hugging Steve Smith after getting my maiden Test hundred.”To have that tarnished by these allegations was pretty devastating and obviously there’s absolutely no truth to it whatsoever. It was 100% unfair, to tarnish one of the best moments of my career was pretty brutal.”The only thing they could have done worse was tarnish that [2015] World Cup win. They’re two of the best moments of my career. To say I’d done anything untoward in that game, when I’d just finally got back in the Test side – I’d worked my absolute backside off – to say I’d do anything to ruin that would be absolutely ridiculous.”The relevant portion of the documentary was sent to Maxwell to view in the days before it went to air. Asked whether he was interviewed by “cricket authorities” about the match, Maxwell said he was “told on the phone they were going to air it” but replied “they actually didn’t” when queried over whether or not anti-corruption officers from CA or the ICC had formally approached him for questions about the veracity of the allegations.”If [Al Jazeera] mentioned any names, they would be taken down pretty heavily,” Maxwell said. “They didn’t mention any specific names but did basically say the time of the game, which was my involvement. You could see it was the gear that I was using, and there wasn’t anyone else using that gear in that game. That was certainly very hard to take.”Speaking about his involvement in other tournaments, Maxwell indicated it was not uncommon for him to report “anything untoward” to anti-corruption officers. Asked whether he had seen things in overseas Twenty20 leagues that were enough to have his “antennae up”, Maxwell replied “100%”.”I’ve been very honest with them [anti-corruption officers] the whole way through with the IPL,” Maxwell said. “If I’ve ever seen anything untoward I always sat down with them, had a long coffee and just talked about everything to make sure nothing ever, ever comes back to me.”If there’s anything slightly amiss, I always give them a call and make sure they have every bit of evidence they can possibly have. There’s some things you see in the game of cricket where you’re always just a little bit unsure. All the things you do hear in the game, and when it comes out later on you go, ‘Oh, I swear I could have noticed that while I was watching it’.”It was probably easier when I was captain and I was able to see the way the game was going, and the instructions that I was giving players, and the way the game was moving, I could actually work it out a little better. There wasn’t really anything untoward in the season I was captain, but you could certainly tell from opposition stuff and that’s why I reported certain things.”

The international break is well underway and a number of Leeds United players have been in action for their respective countries over the last few days.

It has been an opportunity for some of the club's squad options to get some much-needed minutes away from Elland Road in order to stay match fit and give Daniel Farke a reminder of what he has at his disposal ahead of their clash with Norwich next weekend.

One player who may have given the German head coach something to think about is Bulgaria international Ilia Gruev, who lined up at centre-back against Lithuania on Saturday.

Statistic

Gruev vs Lithuania (via Sofascore)

Minutes played

90

Duels won

Three

Duel success rate

75%

Pass completion rate

88%

How many games has Gruev played for Leeds?

The summer signing from Werder Bremen has made three substitute appearances for the Whites so far this season and is yet to make his full debut.

He is a central or defensive midfielder by trade but his outing for Bulgaria as a centre-back suggests that he is also comfortable in defence, which is something that Farke could look to explore.

Gruev lined up on the left of the defence, despite being right-footed, and could, therefore, develop into a surprise heir to 32-year-old Leeds captain Liam Cooper, whose contract expires next year, instead of working his way into the midfield set-up.

Could Gruev replace Cooper for Leeds?

The Bulgaria international has strong defensive instincts and could eventually replace the Scottish defender at Elland Road if Farke unleashes him as a centre-back and helps the ace to utilise his impressive skills in defence.

Gruev made 2.5 tackles and 1.25 interceptions per 90 in the Bundesliga for Bremen last season, which placed him within the top 26% of his positional peers respectively.

That came after he managed 2.64 tackles and 1.58 interceptions per 90 for the German side during the 2. Bundesliga campaign the previous year, which ranked him within the top 12% of players in his position.

The 23-year-old battler also ranked above average for Bundesliga midfielders for blocks (1.31) and clearances (1.19) per 90 last term.

These statistics show that Gruev, who his former coach Ole Werner dubbed "clever", is an excellent defensive option in midfield who is able to make multiple vital interventions per game to cut out opposition attacks.

Cooper, meanwhile, has made 1.8 tackles and interceptions combined and made 1.4 clearances per game across five Championship outings this term.

The Scotland international, who has completed 89% of his attempted passes this season, turns 33 next year and it remains to be seen whether or not Leeds are prepared to extend his current deal.

If Farke and the club opt against a new contract for Cooper then a place in the squad as a centre-back to challenge Pascal Struijk for the position on the left of the defensive pairing could be up for grabs.

Gruev's strong defensive qualities suggest that he has the raw tools to be utilised as a superb option at the back and his display for Bulgaria shows that the 6 foot 1 enforcer is willing and able to play in that role.