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The Brazil U-23 team defeated Germany via a penalty shootout in which captain Neymar scored the decisive goal…

Brazil defeated Germany 5-4 on penalties in the final of the men's football tournament at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games after the game had ended 1-1 at regulation time.

It was the Selecao's first soccer gold medal at the Games after Brazil had been on the podium on five occasions previously, including three silver medals between 1984 and 2012. To top it off, Neymar scored the winning penalty for the hosts after losing the final at the 2012 London Olympics.

Here, Goal takes a look at where the Brazil 2016 Olympics gold medal winning team is now.

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  1Uilson

  Then from Atletico Mineiro, he was the second-choice goalkeeper at the 2016 Olympic Games but did not have a chance to guard the net even for a single shot.

  Now, at the age of 27, he plays for Coimbra, a small club in his hometown.

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  2Felipe Anderson

  The former Lazio attacker was deployed as a versatile player in attack, and he recorded an assist from four games at the 2016 Rio Games.

  Now, at the age of 28, he has made a return to Lazio from West Ham after a loan at Porto.

• Lucas Figueiredo/MoWA Press
  

  3Thiago Maia

  The defensive midfielder from Santos made a total of three appearances at the 2016 Rio Games including a start in the 2-0 win against Colombia.

  At the age of 24, he is now on loan at Flamengo from French side Lille.

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  4Rodrigo Dourado

  The midfielder from Internacional did not have much role to play at the 2016 Olympic Games, taking to the field for just 11 minutes in the game against Denmark.

  At the age of 27, elevated to the position of captain, he still plays for Internacional.

When the summer transfer window opens, Wolves will need to sign some attackers.

Without the injured Raul Jimenez, their strikers have been pretty non-existent in front of goal, scoring just four times between them all season.

Fabio Silva’s £35.6m move from Porto has pocketed just three goals while Willian Jose had to wait until the middle of April for his first strike in Old Gold.

With that in mind, it feels unlikely that Nuno Santo and Jeff Shi will utilise their option to buy the Real Sociedad forward in the summer.

One alternative could be Sheffield United’s Oliver McBurnie. Wolves are looking to take advantage of their relegation by prising the striker away from Yorkshire in a few months time.

The Sun claim a fee of £15m could be enough to tempt the Blades into selling.

However, with only seven goals in 65 outings for Sheffield United, he hardly looks like he’d be a wise investment.

Instead, Wolves could save themselves a bucket load of cash by unleashing Rafa Mir next season.

If that sentence had been used at the start of the campaign you’d have been laughed at. Though, such is the Spaniard’s impressive season on loan at Huesca that he deserves another chance at Molineux.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-wolves-news-and-views-lingard-leao-jimenez-mir” title= “Read the latest Wolves news and views!”]

Mir’s time in English football has been nothing short of a disaster so far. He’s not scored for Wolves and didn’t beat the goalkeeper during a temporary stay at Nottingham Forest either.

That being said, he is beginning to flourish in Spain and is now among the top scorers in La Liga.

The 23-year-old is enjoying the best spell of his career so far and has 15 goals in all competitions this term, 12 of which have come in the Spanish top-flight. That puts him seventh in the rankings ahead of the £107.6m Antoine Griezmann and the £113m Joao Felix.

Mir is very quickly defying the doubters and his good form, along with the high ceiling he still possesses, should lead to a second chance at Wolves.

He has evolved from a young striker lacking confidence and maturity to a forward with the world at his feet.

He’s even earned comparisons to one of the most bullish forwards around; “He’s a little bit like Diego Costa,” Spanish football write Richard Dunne told The Athletic.

“He’s aggressive, he likes running the channels, he holds off defenders, he’s athletic and strong.”

Dunne continued: “He’s not exactly technically gifted but he has an unorthodox running style that works for him, he can keep the ball, he’s got a powerful strike, he’s quick and he’s good in the air.”

Having become a regular goal scorer in one of the most reputable leagues in world football, Nuno should consider bringing him into the first-team group next season.

He has scored more goals than McBurnie this term and he’d prevent Fosun from shelling out needlessly on £15m.

AND in other news, Forget MGW: Wolves must unleash rarely-seen 18 y/o who creates “things out of nothing”…

With Chelsea and Man City both on form, the two sides contributed several faces to this weekend's ideal XI

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  1Eden Hazard | Chelsea

  Eden Hazard is the fourth player to score more than one Premier League hat-trick for Chelsea (also Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink).

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  2Marko Anautovic | West Ham

  Since the start of 2018, only Mohamed Salah (23) has had a hand in more Premier League goals than West Ham forward Marko Arnautovic (16 – nine goals, seven assists).

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  3Leroy Sane | Manchester City

  Leroy Sane has had a hand in 18 goals in his last 16 Premier League games at the Etihad Stadium (6 goals, 12 assists).

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  4Mesut Ozil | Arsenal

  Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil has had a hand in four goals in four Premier League appearances against Newcastle (3 goals, 1 assist).

With Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang having been reunited at Arsenal, Goal looks back at other devastating pairings…

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  Dwight Yorke & Andy Cole (Manchester United)

  First brought together early in the 1998-99 season, Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole combined to devastating effect as Manchester United won the treble under Sir Alex Ferguson, albeit with their back-ups – Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – sealing the deal in the Champions League final.

  Cole and Yorke started 36 matches together in that campaign, with the Red Devils losing on just one occasion. Between them, they scored 53 goals in all competitions and followed that up with 46 in the next campaign.

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  Fernando Morientes & Raul (Real Madrid & Spain)

  During a period around the turn of the millennium, Fernando Morientes and Raul were one of Europe's most feared strike pairings, with their telepathic connection up front leading the Blancos into the 'Galactico Generation'.

  Such was their close friendship, Raul was one of the witnesses at Morientes's wedding, while after Morientes was dropped for the 2002 European Super Cup following the arrival of Ronaldo, Raul wore his great friend's No.9 jersey as a show of solidarity.

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  Ian Rush & Kenny Dalglish (Liverpool)

  Given his legendary status at Liverpool, it is hard to believe that Kenny Dalglish went on a 10-month scoring drought during 1981, with the Scot contemplating a move into midfield as he struggled for form in the aftermath of his 30th birthday.

  That all changed when Ian Rush arrived on the scene, however, as Dalglish became more of a withdrawn forward in behind Rush, and the pair ran riot. Liverpool won the title in each of their first three campaigns together, with the deadly duo scoring 59 goals between them as the European Cup was also secured in 1983-84.

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  Xavi & Andres Iniesta (Barcelona & Spain)

  One of the greatest midfield partnerships of all time, Xavi and Iniesta changed the way the modern game is played with their precision passing for both club and country.

  Together they won four Champions League titles among a whole host of other trophies at Barcelona, as well as helping lead Spain to two European Championships and their first World Cup, in 2010.

Sunderland have had a horrible habit in recent years of letting their academy gems walk through the exit door for not very much money.

Sam Greenwood was one of the first to start the trend. He departed Sunderland for Arsenal in 2018 and is now on the cusp of senior football with Leeds United.

Josh Maja is the most high profile case. His agent convinced him his future lay elsewhere and he left for Bordeaux in January 2019. Now playing at Fulham in the Premier League, there seems to be a familiar trend here.

Other young prospects like Joe Hugill, Bali Mumba, Luke Hewitson, Morten Spencer and Logan Pye have also all departed.

Though, if you cast your mind back to 2014, there is a name who is arguably doing better things than any of those mentioned above.

That happens to be John Egan. The centre-back never made a first-team appearance for the Mackems before being released seven years ago.

He subsequently joined Gillingham on a free transfer, before moving to Brentford and then Sheffield United.

The Irishman has been a wonderful presence in the Blades’ backline, very rarely missing a game. He played 44 matches during their promotion-winning campaign from the Championship in 2018/19 and since they were promoted, he’s been absent for only two games.

During that time, the 28-year-old has become an established international, earning 12 caps for his country, the Republic of Ireland.

Egan has very much become a classic case of one who got away. The defender is Premier League proven and was part of a backline that proved one of the best in the top-flight last term.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-sunderland-transfer-rumours-and-news-grigg-denayer-louis-dreyfus-sanderson-melamed” title=”Latest Sunderland transfer news and views!”]

The former Sunderland academy graduate helped Sheffield United to the fourth-best defensive record in the entire division. They conceded 39 times, a better tally than Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea.

Egan has come on leaps and bounds over the last few years, being described as “rock-solid” by Chris Wilder.

It’s unsurprising, therefore, that his value has risen so dramatically. Released on a free transfer by Sunderland all those years ago, he is now rated at an eye-catching £9m by Transfermarkt.

That kind of fee is one to bulk at, especially for a club now plying their trade in League One. As the Black Cats tumbled down the leagues, it would have been difficult for them to keep hold of him.

That being said, they got rid of him at a time when they were in the Premier League. He has since proven he is up to the challenge of performing at that very level.

AND in other news, Rarely-seen 18 y/o could rival Diamond at Sunderland, he’s a “talented lad”…

Former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has told Football FanCast in an exclusive interview that Dean Smith needs £150m this summer in order for the Midlands club to continue progressing.

After coming close to relegation last season, Villa are having a brilliant campaign this time round.

Under Smith, the Villans sit ninth in the Premier League and are still very much in the conversation when it comes to those European qualification spots.

To go that one step further, though, and truly challenge for a Champions League place, Hendrie believes Smith will have to spend some serious money in the next transfer window. He told FFC:

“That’s what Dean’s going to have to do. He’s got to bring someone in, or two or three players in, whether it’s £150m he spends. If you’re going to certainly push for that Champions League spot or a European spot, you know, I think he’s got to spend around £150m.

“These days £150m is nothing, but I think Dean will be looking to bring three players maybe that certainly can push Villa forward and build them small steps because that isn’t an overnight process.”

One area Smith could look to strengthen this summer is up front, with The Telegraph reporting that there is a desire at Villa Park to bring someone in who can provide some competition for top scorer Ollie Watkins.

As for outgoings, the same outlet reports Jack Grealish could become a priority for Manchester City if they are unable to land Borussia Dortmund’s in-demand striker Erling Haaland.

Seven years ago to the very day, Wolves took 10,000 fans to Stadium MK when the club were sat in League One.

It was a period of time that Wolves spent in the doldrums of the football league, but that day will stand tall as one of their proudest moments, certainly from a supporter’s perspective.

In early 2014, a group of fans sat down in a pub and embarked on the project of taking 10k to Milton Keynes. Then, in March 2014, they achieved exactly that.

Decked out in Old Gold, their supporters witnessed a 1-0 win thanks to a goal from Liam McAlinden.

Wolves have come a considerable way since. McAlinden is now playing in League Two for Morecambe while the Molineux outfit have now even competed in Europe again.

They have spent a considerable sum of money and have established a partnership with super-agent Jorge Mendes. He has a number of Wolves players and the manager, Nuno Santo, on his books at Gestifute.

He has helped take Wolves to the next level but he could be on the verge of making his biggest deal yet with the Midlands club.

That’s because according to sensational reports in Spain (via The Express), Cristiano Ronaldo is being linked with a move back to the Premier League.

Ronaldo’s future at Juventus is currently in doubt and because of his agent’s ties with Wolves, a natural link has been drawn.

It is, of course, incredibly farfetched to think one of the best footballers of all time could end up at Molineux but it’s a prospect worth drooling over.

Wolves have been desperately poor in attack this season with club-record signing Fabio Silva scoring just twice since his £35.6m arrival. Willian Jose has hardly set the world alight either, failing to find the back of the net after moving in January.

Merely improving their forward line in the summer is crucial, but adding Ronaldo would be mind-blowing.

He is one of the greatest to grace the football world and has won four Ballon d’Or trophies; the latest of which was awarded to him in 2020.

The forward is now 36 years old but age is no barrier to the Portuguese legend. His performances for Juventus have defied description with the veteran racking up 30 goals this term, taking his tally in black and white to 95 since he joined from Real Madrid.

This is a player who has earned copious amounts of praise during his career, but two comments stick out when assessing just what Ronaldo is.

Writing about the icon in his book, Sir Alex Ferguson said: “He possessed an unbelievable talent. I can place everything on that list: training performances, strength, courage, skill with either foot, heading ability.”

When comparing Ronaldo to a certain Lionel Messi, Robbie Savage told BT Sport: “Both are from a different planet, both work incredibly hard, but for me Ronaldo edges it because he’s done it in England, Spain, Italy and for his country.”

We don’t need to tell you why this would be a good deal for Wolves; the statistics, honours and appraisals paint a perfect picture.

This would be one of the biggest moments in the club’s history.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Neto: Wolves must sign “complete” £140k-p/w gem whose “shot is incredible”…

What promised to be a Premier League thriller between Leeds and Chelsea ended 0-0 at Elland Road, with Marcelo Bielsa’s side earning a rare draw.

The Whites were involved in only their second 0-0 stalemate of the league season, but things could have been different had some first half opportunities in particular go their way – most notably an effort from Tyler Roberts which struck the crossbar, with the same player having a goal ruled out for offside.

Given Chelsea’s imperious form under new manager Thomas Tuchel – the latest result seeing the Blues remain unbeaten under the German – a point is certainly a more than credible result.

One man who let Bielsa down, though, was Jack Harrison.

The Manchester City loanee was drafted back into the starting line-up in place of Helder Costa having been dropped to the bench in the last couple of weeks.

However, aside from one delicious cross early on, Harrison just couldn’t seem to get involved in the game, instead spending most of his time just trying to chase Chelsea down rather than offering anything note with the ball.

He had fewer than half the number of touches of goalkeeper Illan Meslier (23 to 50) and made far fewer passes (eight) than the Leeds shot-stopper (21) too, while he failed to provide a single key pass or have a shot on goal – the game just seemed to pass him by offensively, with much of his side’s best openings coming through Roberts.

While Harrison, to his credit, worked hard, he wasn’t his usual snappy self tracking back either – this season, he has averaged 1.6 tackles per game in the Premier League, but made none against the Blues this afternoon and also lost both of his duels.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for Leeds Live, Beren Cross gave him the Whites’ joint-lowest score of five, adding: “Another difficult afternoon for the loanee. One excellent cross which deserved to be buried, but anonymous otherwise.”

After being handed the chance to start, Harrison just couldn’t deliver on his opportunity, and that surely would have frustrated Bielsa.

In October 2019, Andrea Radrizzani told The Times that finance from Qatar Sports Investments could put Leeds on a pedestal with Manchester City.

Extra assets from Middle Eastern shores has long been a subject of interest at Elland Road but despite Radrizzani being close with QSI chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi things haven’t materialised beyond a general chat in a restaurant.

Instead, the Leeds owner looked towards American shores to secure extra money for the football club. The interested party happened to be the San Francisco 49ers.

Their attraction to Leeds has been well documented and they were already involved in the financial aspects of the football club. Though, they will have even more power now after a reported £50m investment from America was gleefully accepted by Radrizzani.

As a result, Paraag Marathe – the 49ers Enterprises President – has become the vice-chairman at Leeds and in the process, secured 37% of the club.

It’s a move that has the potential to be game-changing for Leeds. Their finances might not stretch to the degree that QSI have ploughed cash into Champions League runners-up PSG but it could help take Leeds to a new level.

But why is that? Well, the 49ers and Leeds share similar thoughts and ideas.  Marathe has helped take the San Francisco 49ers from a struggling NFL franchise to one that reached the Super Bowl in 2020.

Speaking to ESPN this week, Leeds’ new vice-chairman said: “Leeds today reminds me of the 49ers 15 years ago. Both teams with a great fanbase and history. The 49ers had such great success in the ’80s and ’90s, like Leeds in the ’70s, and both were struggling a little bit on and off the pitch and the 49ers were playing, at the time, at the oldest un-renovated stadium in the NFL.”

Marathe consequently helped his NFL franchise to build a new stadium and in his words, it “completely transformed” the entire business and team. He reveals that’s something he wants to do at Leeds and that follows a similar tune to Angus Kinnear.

The Leeds managing director previously revealed that he had ambitions of extending Elland Road but it looks as though the club’s new investors could take that to a level.

Marathe added: “We have the right people, the expertise and the playbook blueprint to be able to intellectually grow our broader organisation and we wanted to go into the Premier League and use that expertise to be able to help another club grow in the same way that we grew the 49ers from a bottom-tier franchise to a team which came a few minutes short of winning the Super Bowl last year.”

Leeds are certainly an ambitious club and they’ve already achieved great things under Marcelo Bielsa. His tactical nuances coupled with an adept hierarchy could lead to incredible achievements.

“We want to be in the Premier League for the next 2-3-4-5 years and beyond and then it’s qualify for the Europa League and then the Champions League, to be competing with the best clubs,” Marathe remarked.

Of course, those could be famous last words but as the vice-chairman says, Leeds already have the infrastructure in place for success.

If a fancy new stadium is built, it will only become an even greater lure for new players. The Whites have already been in the Champions League before – it’s time to bring those days back.

If they achieve that, the 49ers will undoubtedly have played a considerable part in making it happen.

AND in other news, Leeds could save millions by unleashing rarely-seen 20 y/o, he’s endorsed by Ian Harte…

Leicester hit a roadblock in the Premier League this afternoon as they were well beaten on home soil by Leeds United. The newly-promoted Whites made easy work of brushing aside the title hopefuls, despite their early opener.

Harvey Barnes put the Foxes ahead but Leeds responded immediately as just two minutes later, the visitors were on the scoresheet thanks to Stuart Dallas, with two more goals coming in the second half to put the game to bed.

It was a weak performance from Leicester as a whole, but Brendan Rodgers must be particularly disappointed with centre-back Wesley Fofana.

Fofana stats vs Leeds

Patrick Bamford is undoubtedly one of the Premier League’s most clinical strikers. His goal and two assists this afternoon took his season tally up to ten goals and three assists in 19 appearances, as per Transfermarkt.

However, he can be silenced. Before playing Leicester, he was on a three-game goal drought and had struggled to make an impact against Spurs, Brighton and Newcastle. But today, he clearly had his shooting boots on.

Fofana was unable to deal with the Englishman’s threat and contributed to the poor defensive display from the Foxes. According to Sofascore, the £30million summer signing completed just 68% of his attempted passes and had fewer touches (37) than goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel (42). Fofana also completed more clearances against Everton (4) compared to today’s performance of just two.

These are not great stats for a centre-back who has been solid in his previous appearances. For example, in his last game against Everton, he took 105 touches and was confident in completing 85 of his 96 attempted passes.

Whilst it won’t warrant him being dropped for the next match against Fulham, Rodgers will be more than aware that this wasn’t a performance of Fofana’s usual calibre, both with and without the ball.

In other news, Exclusive: Rob Lee tips James Justin for big England future…