Kovar completes PSV medical
Plettenberg reports that a deal is set to be complete for a €5 million fee + another €2 million in bonuses.
Kovar is set to be announced by PSV tomorrow.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
35 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Group that owns Burnley in England also taking over Spanish club Espanyol
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — English-based group Velocity Sport Limited and its American shareholders are taking over Spanish club Espanyol. The club said Monday that its current owners, Chinese group Rastar reached an agreement with VSL to join the holding company and 'participate in a strategic alliance that will position RCD Espanyol at the same level' as Premier League club Burnley, which is also part of the group. 'With this deal, Espanyol and the English club will be part of this investment group, which expands its interests by having a club in La Liga and another in the Premier League, although each will remain independent,' Espanyol said in a statement. 'This business integration formula allows for the coexistence of two historic clubs that will operate independently, although they will be supported by the same financial group,' Espanyol said. Espanyol said the agreement is 'pending officialization and completion until all administrative procedures are formalised.' The club said Rastar 'is not disassociating itself from Espanyol, but rather its shares will become part of this new investment vehicle that will have stakes in both clubs.' Espanyol said that with this 'step forward, Rastar underlines a firm conviction that this integration into the VSL group will strengthen both the economic and sporting structure' of the club. Espanyol, which was twice relegated in the decade or so under Rastar, finished 14th in the league's standings last season. The club's fans had been showing their disappointment with Rastar owner Chen Yansheng for years. Financial details were not released by the club. ___ AP soccer:
Forbes
40 minutes ago
- Forbes
Can Newcastle United Sign Hugo Ekitike To Partner Alexander Isak?
FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GERMANY - AUGUST 31: Hugo Ekitike of Eintracht Frankfurt celebrates scoring his ... More team's first goal during the Bundesliga match between Eintracht Frankfurt and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim at Deutsche Bank Park on August 31, 2024 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Photo by) Throughout the summer, Newcastle United has faced speculation over its star striker Alexander Isak. But ahead of its return to the Champions League, the club is targeting an ambitious move to sign another exciting forward to partner the Swede up front in Eintracht Frankfurt's Hugo Ekitike. The 23-year-old is widely expected to leave the Bundesliga club this summer and a move to the Premier League is said to be a high priority, though Frankfurt is currently demanding any suitor pay his £85m ($115m) release clause. Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool are all interested, with the Reds reportedly looking at Ekitike as a first alternative to Isak if, as expected, Newcastle stands firm on his future. But Newcastle is in need of an attacker after the departure of Callum Wilson, and like the idea of Isak and Ekitike combining, or at least providing strong competition for one another. Ekitike's name will be known to Newcastle fans. The club has attempted to sign him twice in the last four years, initially coming close in January 2022. It was Newcastle's first window after the takeover, and Ekitike, a teenager at the time, was at Reims. The interest was an early indication of Newcastle's recruitment blueprint, signing young, exciting talent at a fraction of its potential value. Ekitike opted to join Paris Saint-Germain, initially on loan, but played a handful of games and struggled with competition from the likes of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar at Parc des Princes. He moved to Germany for the second half of the 2023-24 season on loan, going permanently the following summer having lost valuable development time. His 18 month stint at Frankfurt has worked wonders. Last season, Ekitike scored 22 goals in all competitions with 11 assists, re-establishing him as one of the most exciting forwards around. Newcastle signed Isak and he has thrived at St James' Park. But contact with and interest in Ekitike has never ceased; such is the depth of detail in its scouting, rarely does the club fully move on from a target. Earlier this summer, Newcastle offered more than £50m ($67m) for Joao Pedro, the other striker it wanted to sign before Isak signed, only for him to join Brighton from Watford after the club changed focus in August 2022. The Brazilian opted to move to Chelsea instead. Given Newcastle needs a striker again and has already returned to its old list once, it makes sense for it to do it again with Ekitike. The Frenchman is the ideal profile wanted by Eddie Howe to both compliment and compete with Isak, particularly in terms of versatile, able to play off the left or drop deep and combine with midfielders or run in behind and score. He is good at both creating chances for himself (in the 96th percentile of Bundesliga strikers for progressive carries) and others (94th percentile for shot creating actions, according to and a lethal finisher. Others, including Brentford's 28-year-old Yoan Wissa, are possibilities, but Newcastle's options cover a wide range of scenarios. It would be an ambitious move for Newcastle to make a third attempt to sign Ekitike, and that is genuinely being considered. But there are serious hurdles to surpass. FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GERMANY - APRIL 26: Hugo Ekitike of Eintracht Frankfurt celebrates scoring his ... More team's third goal during the Bundesliga match between Eintracht Frankfurt and RB Leipzig at Deutsche Bank Park on April 26, 2025 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Photo by) Newcastle is considered an outsider in the race for Ekitike for a number of reasons. Firstly, Isak's presence is a complication. Although Howe needs a Champions League-quality addition up front, any potential option will arrive at St James' Park knowing he will be behind Newcastle's top scorer in the pecking order. Yes, it is possible for two strikers to pair up; Ekitike did so with Omar Marmoush at Frankfurt last season before he joined Manchester City and Isak regularly combines with Viktor Gyokeres and new club mate Anthony Elanga for Sweden. But Howe prefers a 4-3-3 system and upsetting the midfield balance in particular would be a risky strategy. Ekitike could play wide on the left, but Newcastle already has Anthony Gordon and and Harvey Barnes there. The reality is Ekitike could get more game time in a position he'd like, as well as better wages, at other clubs who want to sign him. Cost will also be something to consider. Newcastle has a sizeable budget to spend this summer, with £55m ($74m) already spent on Elanga, and a centre back and goalkeeper also required. Although Newcastle reacts to sign priority targets, it would be a push to match Frankfurt's valuation and still cover all bases. Crucially, though, not impossible. Ekitike remains an ideal option up front for Newcastle, and the club is aware of the challenges of getting a deal done. Yet all the reasons to discredit the possibility are speculative; it will undoubtedly be tough, but if the club is to progress, signings like this must become a more regular occurrence.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
How Joao Pedro's clever movement set Palmer free and helped Chelsea beat PSG
From enjoying his holidays to being put straight into the action, Joao Pedro has instantly made his impact. After joining Chelsea this month, the Brazil forward played an important role in their triumph at the Club World Cup. His two goals in the semi-final against Fluminense set up a clash against Paris Saint-Germain in the final, where the 23-year-old scored another goal in Chelsea's 3-0 victory against the Champions League winners. Advertisement Yet, it wasn't only about what Joao Pedro did on the ball, but what he did off it, too. Spearheading Chelsea's 3-2-4-1 shape when in possession, the Joao Pedro's positioning and movement constantly caused problems for PSG's defence in the first half. He knew which spaces to attack and perfectly timed his runs to have an advantage against PSG's centre-backs. Here, he is initially behind Lucas Beraldo as Robert Sanchez chips the ball to Marc Cucurella down the left side. When Chelsea's left-back plays the ball to Enzo Fernandez, Joao Pedro takes a couple of steps forward to be in a position to either link the play or attack the gap between Beraldo and Marquinhos. This movement readies him for the pass when Fernandez plays the ball into the space between PSG's centre-backs. In another example, he is near the penalty spot as Pedro Neto and Fernandez are combining down the left side. When Neto plays the ball to Fernandez, Joao Pedro takes a couple of steps towards the space behind Marquinhos to present himself as a passing option. Fernandez finds him and the forward immediately backheels the ball to Cole Palmer, whose shot narrowly misses the target. Joao Pedro's smart positioning and off-ball movement were vital to Chelsea's plan, which focused on attacking PSG's left side. 'They have three midfielders: two of them were in charge of Reece James and Moises Caicedo, and Vitinha was in charge of Enzo Fernandez,' said head coach Enzo Maresca in his post-match press conference. 'Analysing them, we saw that was a good opportunity to exploit that space, and we used Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto on that side to create a bit of an overload.' While Palmer and Gusto tried to outnumber PSG's left-back, Nuno Mendes, Joao Pedro made sure he occupied the left centre-back, Beraldo, to prevent him from supporting his team-mate. Joao Pedro constantly positioned himself on Beraldo's right side when Chelsea were attacking the right wing. This way, he is attacking the space away from the ball, which forces Beraldo to be in a more central area and isolates Gusto against Mendes. It was a similar situation in the lead-up to Chelsea's opener. Here, Joao Pedro is initially positioned towards Beraldo's left side as Cucurella plays the ball back to Robert Sanchez… … but he adjusts his position to pin PSG's left centre-back and isolate Mendes against Gusto when Chelsea's goalkeeper plays the ball. Mendes fails to properly head the long ball and Gusto recovers it, before the right-back's effort on target is blocked, and the attack ends with Palmer slotting the ball into the bottom corner. For the third goal, Joao Pedro was the beneficiary of his own movement. First, he positions himself in front of Beraldo (out of shot) to prevent the centre-back from moving up towards Palmer as Trevoh Chalobah plays the ball to the England playmaker. Meanwhile, Gusto advances down the right wing to put Mendes in a one-versus-two situation, forcing PSG's left-back to defend him and leave Palmer free. Joao Pedro then moves towards Beraldo's blindside… … which allows him to attack the space behind the centre-back when Palmer threads the ball through PSG's defence. The Brazilian then completes the move by chipping Gianluigi Donnarumma and making it 3-0. 'We attacked more to the left side (of PSG) because Cole was there and he can decide the game like he did,' said Joao Pedro after the match. 'I tried to fix the left side of them, and in the end it happened and we won.' Joao Pedro's fingerprints were all over Chelsea's goals. The second was on an attacking transition where the Brazilian's off-ball run created space for Palmer to attack. In this example, Palmer is facing Vitinha with Beraldo in support. Behind him, Joao Pedro is dashing forward to offer a passing option… … and his run forces Vitinha and Beraldo to react, creating a bigger space for Palmer to dribble into… … and the England midfielder can curl the ball into the bottom corner. Considering Joao Pedro has had limited training time with the squad, his understanding of what he needs to do in and out of possession has been impressive. After winning the Club World Cup, Chelsea fans will be hoping he puts in similar performances in the coming season.
