Michel Ange Balikwisha to Celtic is now 'possible' as next transfer on the brink with two mega exits vetoed
Talks over a move that would bring the wide man to Parkhead have been ongoing as Brendan Rodgers looks to add the winger as a successor to Nicolas Kuhn after his £17.2million move to Como.
The 24-year-old has been a long-term target for the Scottish Premiership champions and reports suggest he is keen on the move.
READ MORE: Arne Engels in powerful Celtic response to direct question about the future of dazzling Daizen Maeda
READ MORE: Daizen Maeda in transfer hint amid Brentford swirl as Celtic face £6m price drop with three deals required
Cash-strapped Antwerp are also on the brink of a summer fire sale with wide man Balikwisha among the players that the Belgian side are keen to move, after he entered the final year of his contract.
Despite this, boss WIls has consistently picked the forward in his pre-season squads - with Balikwisha scoring on Saturday in the win over Willem II.
Asked by Nieuwblad if the sale of the winger was on the cards imminently, Wils said: "That's possible, yes.
'I'm just working with the guys who are here at the moment. They all have the qualities to play here, so it would be foolish not to use them."
One transfer that is set to get over the line is Marco Tilio's departure for Rapid Vienna.
The Austrian side have been trailing him since his successful 18-month loan at Melbourne City - and despite regularly featuring for the Hoops in pre-season the Australia international's Celtic career looks to be coming to an end.
Sky Sports Germany report that the 23-year-old will leave on loan with an obligation to buy for €1.5 million next summer.
Daizen Maeda's future has been questioned amid ongoing contract talks with Brentford said to be among the clubs interested - while his fellow Japan international Reo Hatate has been touted with a switch to Udinese.
But Hoops' hero Stiliyan Petrov reckons that the door should be closed on the duo departing this summer - and questioned why they would want to leave Glasgow's east end at this stage.
Asked about the duo, Petrov told the Sunday Post: "When you win trophies year in and year out and do well in Europe, your players will attract attention.
"That is only natural. But Celtic is a brilliant place to be and not too many footballers get the opportunity to play in front of 60,000 fans every other week.
"I accept there are a few other leagues stronger than the Premiership. There is an attraction, of course.
"I felt that many years ago when I wanted to try English football and signed for Aston Villa.
"But I feel Celtic is a really good place to be right now. There is so much to look forward to.
"Brendan is a top manager and he improves players. He loves to work on the grass on a daily basis and gets so much enjoyment out of his coaching sessions. The team is going for sessions.
"The team is going for another league title and that will be five-in-a-row. So, what's not to like?
"The new season will be here before we know it and the real business will be underway.
"I hope the Celtic squad is settled by then and the manager knows what he has to work with."
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San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
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PORTHCAWL, Wales (AP) — Miyu Yamashita of Japan captured her first major title Sunday when she withstood a charge by Charley Hull by not making a bogey until the outcome of the Women's British Open was no longer in doubt. She closed with a 2-under 70 for a two-shot victory. Yamashita holed two big par putts on the back nine at Royal Porthcawl, the last one when Hull had closed to within one shot of the lead. Hull started the final round three shots behind. She holed a 20-foot birdie putt on the 14th to get within one shot. But the English star hit into a pot bunker off the tee at the 16th and did well to make bogey. She made another bogey on the 17th and had to settle for a 69 to tie for second with Minami Katsu of Japan. ___


USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
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As golf's major season comes to end, the LPGA's historic march of champions rolls on. One day after Japan's Miyu Yamashita celebrated her 24th birthday, the petite Japanese star gave herself what she surely wanted most: a major victory. Yamashita becomes the tour's 21st different winner this season, closing with a 2-under 70 to finish at 11 under and edge out English sensation Charley Hull and compatriot Minami Katsu by two strokes at the 2025 AIG Women's British Open. The record number of champions to this point in the season stands in stark contrast to 2024, when Nelly Korda won seven times and Lydia Ko played her way into the LPGA Hall of Fame. From dominance to diversity, Yamashita becomes the fourth rookie to win on tour this season. 'To win such an historic tournament in front of all these amazing fans is such an incredible feeling,' said Yamashita with the aid of an interpreter. A 13-time winner on the JLPGA, Yamashita is a rookie on the LPGA in name only given her vast success on home soil, including three majors on that tour. She came into the Women's British Open ranked 15th in the world. She leaves with a trophy and a big payday. The first-place prize this year was $1,462,500 out of a record total purse of $9,750,000. The week began with England's newest star Lottie Woad the bookmakers' betting favorite in only her second professional start. A late triple-bogey on Friday halted Woad's bid to win two in a row, but a top-10 finish for a second straight year in this championship is a fine showing, given her recent whirlwind stretch. 'Just walking out from the first tee, I got a loud cheer,' said Woad, 'and I could tell everyone was rooting for me. That was nice.' Woad ultimately took a share of eighth. Yamashita's good fortune started with the pairings, when she found herself grouped with good friend and compatriot Rio Takeda for the first two rounds, a rare opportunity on the LPGA. That comfortable pairing along with the luck of the draw in weather going off late/early in the first two rounds, helped her build a three-shot lead heading into the weekend. On Saturday, however, the straight player with the sweet short game suddenly turned crooked and her putter went ice cold, taking 34 putts. NBC booth analyst Morgan Pressel summed it up best as Yamashita limped home at Royal Porthcawl: "Almost everything has gone wrong for Miyu Yamashita, and she's still in the lead." She stayed on the range late Saturday evening with her father trying to straighten out a two-way miss. Billed as the biggest women's sporting event ever staged in Wales, the crowds were strong all week, even when the weather started out rough on Sunday with rain, wind and cold keeping the early-goers from making much of a move. Perhaps it was Yamashita's cheery yellow sweater that coaxed out the sun late in the afternoon as the leaders made their way along the coast. Stanford's Paula Martin Sampedro showed what was possible down the stretch at Porthcawl, as she put an exclamation point on her week in Wales with a back-nine 30 that included five consecutive birdies. It marked the lowest inward nine for the week by two strokes. The Spaniard, who played alongside two-time Smyth Salver winner Lydia Ko, closed with a 4-under 68 to zoom up the board and cap a summer that included victories at the British Women's Amateur and European Ladies' Amateur Championship in Germany. South Korea's A Lim Kim entered the final round one back and was the only player on the board who'd previously won a major, the 2020 U.S. Women's Open. The powerful, aggressive Kim looked timid in back-to-back bogeys on the third and fourth holes and never posed a serious threat down the stretch. Yamashita, meanwhile, played the first four holes better than most, picking up three strokes on the field with superior scrambling. Whatever ailed her game on Saturday had disappeared. The always-entertaining Hull was 11 back to start the third round and pulled within one of Yamashita, much to the delight of the home crowd. One of the most popular players in the game, Hull came into the week with lower than usual expectations given that she was carted off on a stretcher after fainting several times during the first round of the Amundi Evian Championship three weeks ago in France. The mystery virus caused her to lose both weight and swing speed as she took time off from the gym. Hull also tweaked her back getting something out of her car. For a player who has long been honest about her disklike of links golf, Hull certainly took to Porthcawl and the chance to chase. 'I like hunting someone down,' she said. As the fast-walking, fast-talking Hull electrified crowds with a rare birdie on the most difficult 14th, Yamashita stayed steady, pouring in par putts to keep her advantage. Hull's chances began to wane after back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17 as Yamashita's lead ballooned to three strokes with three to play. Once again, the 4-foot-11-inch rookie towered over the field. Yamashita, who leads the tour in scrambling and bogey-free rounds, dropped a shot on the 17th but, after Hull failed to make birdie on the closing par 5, headed to the 72nd hole with a two-stroke cushion. Her two-stroke victory gives Japan bookend titles at the majors, with Mao Saigo winning the first at the Chevron Championship, and four titles on the season from four Japanese different winners. Japan's golden era has only just begun.