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Leeds United manager Daniel Farke has again defended divisive attacker Brenden Aaronson, who has been the subject of more abuse from his own fans, albeit while admitting that the USMNT star is an "annoying" player. It comes as Leeds are struggling to tread water on their return to the Premier League, sitting just inside the relegation zone on goal difference, with the pressure also mounting on Farke himself.

Aaronson criticism 'more than unfair'

With the second most goal-shy attack in the Premier League through 12 games, Leeds aren't scoring enough to get the points they need to be higher up the table. Aaronson has featured in all of those fixtures, starting nine of them, supposedly as a chief source of creativity from the right.

The American has contributed one goal and one assist and is frustrating fans, many of whom have openly let him know about it. Even Farke admitted he understood it because of inconsistencies in performances, but is also keen to point out that the criticism is "more than unfair".

He said after Leeds' 2-1 defeat against Aston Villa on Sunday: "I have to say Brenden is a player who polarizes and can be annoying even for me. Sometimes he’s not clear enough and can be a bit hectic. But I have to say what we're doing in criticizing this young man – then we don't have to do all these mental health awareness days.

"He represents so many skills we want to stand for as Leeds United. He works his socks off, gives everything, is relentless and leaves his heart on the pitch. It's more than unfair at the moment. In the last three performances he was always there covering 13 kilometers per game. Why we're looking so solid on our right side – with all respect to Jayden [Bogle] – Brenden is so crucial to protect him."

AdvertisementGetty Images SportFarke concerned about impact of negative comments

Farke went on to address concerns about the kind of impact that persistent criticism and abuse could ultimately have on Aaronson.

"I'm just worried how we are as a society, with social media stuff, how we are as human beings," he said. "You just see the negative comments. If you see 5,000 negative comments about yourself as a 25-year-old guy, you think the whole world is on your shoulders.

"I could make my life easy and also slam him and then everyone would say, 'Yes, Daniel, tell him, great, we don’t like him anyway.’ But I protect human beings. This is what I do. I work with human beings, I don't work with robots. I also see what this lad is doing. And he is always a fantastic team-mate. He works his socks off.

"We feel better if we can put our anger just on other human beings. I don't like it. And when everyone is on his back, for such a young lad, is it really like how we want to treat human beings in our society? At least I don't want to treat them [like that].

"So we can criticize them, and we can think, 'Okay, you should not play football games' – whatever. But also, come on, watch, judge his performances, be at least a little bit fair. And if you don't want to do this in terms of relationship, come on, be a bit respectful with a young lad of 25-years-old. And then, otherwise, we don't have to have all this mental health awareness days, and we can put it into the bin."

Farke defended Aaronson in September

Farke also staunchly defended Aaronson back in September. "It's important to not put too much weight on his shoulders. Sometimes the feeling with Brenden is that we are a bit over-critical in public,” the Leeds manager said at the time. "We know Brenden has challenges in his offensive game in terms of decision-making, being a bit clearer and more straightforward. This is something we speak a lot about.It's not like I press a button and do my magic and he's a completely different player. In training we bring him more into positions where he has to take decisions. It's not like he is not willing to score or not highly motivated. Sometimes because he is so on it he is perhaps losing a bit of his calmness. But it's not helpful if everyone is always criticizing him."

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Getty Images SportLeeds needs points fast

It's more promising for Aaronson that his two Premier League goal contributions so far this season have both come within the last four games. Sadly for an already struggling Leeds, things aren't about to get any easier, with Manchester City away on Saturday, followed by visits of Chelsea and Liverpool.

To avoid another relegation back to the Championship, they need to start picking up points fast.

Chelsea are actively trying to convince one Arsenal star to join them next year following discussions with his representatives, according to a report this week.

Chelsea enjoy triumphant 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League

While the January window is fast approaching, Enzo Maresca’s side are currently riding high off a statement 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Chelsea dominated proceedings from the opening whistle, pressing Barcelona aggressively and preventing the Spanish champions from establishing any rhythm in possession.

The Blues’ high-octane approach paid dividends when Jules Kounde’s unfortunate own goal broke the deadlock after 27 minutes, deflecting Pedro Neto’s effort beyond his own goalkeeper.

Barcelona’s evening unraveled further when captain Ronald Araujo received his marching orders just before halftime, collecting a second yellow card for a clumsy challenge on Marc Cucurella. The dismissal effectively ended any realistic hopes of a Catalan comeback and allowed Chelsea to dictate throughout thcond period.

Chelsea open talks with star who's "very keen" to join amid Barcelona triumph

Enzo Maresca’s side are in dreamland right now.

ByEmilio Galantini Nov 26, 2025

The standout moment arrived ten minutes after the restart when teenage sensation Estevao produced a moment of individual magic. The 18-year-old Brazilian embarked on a mazy dribble from out wide, leaving Pau Cubarsi trailing before cutting inside and firing a thunderous strike into the top corner.

The goal showcased his immense potential on the biggest stage and marked his third consecutive Champions League scoring performance, with Estevao making all the headlines for outshining Barca’s own sensation Lamine Yamal.

Substitute Liam Delap wrapped up the victory with 17 minutes remaining, capitalizing on Enzo Fernández’s clever pass to slot home calmly. The goal initially appeared offside, but VAR intervened to overturn the decision.

Cucurella earned widespread praise for his defensive masterclass against Yamal, with the left-back’s discipline and tactical awareness proving instrumental in keeping the visitors’ attack quiet.

Minutes

93′

Expected Assists

0.59

Tackles (Won)

5 (4)

Interceptions

1

Clearances

2

Blocked Shots

1

Recoveries

4

Aerial Duels (Won)

1 (1)

Key Passes

1

Passes

55/63

Touches

97

Chelsea’s stupendous display comes as the perfect warm-up for their pivotal Premier League clash this weekend against league leaders Arsenal, a match which will define their credentials as genuine title contenders.

Off the field, BlueCo are apparently eyeing one of Mikel Arteta’s young stars.

Chelsea actively tempting Myles Lewis-Skelly into joining them

That is according to journalist Simon Phillips, who reports that Chelsea have held talks with the representatives of Hale End academy graduate Myles Lewis-Skelly.

The England rising star was recently told by Thomas Tuchel that he’d have to play more to stand any chance of getting into the Three Lions squad for next year’s World Cup, with Riccardo Calafiori’s form severely limiting his minutes this season.

That being said, neither the teenager nor Arsenal want to part ways any time soon.

However, this hasn’t stopped Maresca’s side from testing the water, and it is believed that Chelsea are making a ‘bold’ attempt to convince Lewis-Skelly that Stamford Bridge is the place for him.

This comes as Chelsea make future contingency plans for when Cucurella leaves, even if that doesn’t appear to be in the immediate future.

The Spain international eventually wants to return to play in La Liga before he reaches his twilight years, with Lewis-Skelly viewed as an ideal long-term successor.

Australia continue to top the table while Sri Lanka jump to fifth after their first points of this World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Oct-2025Abandoned Sri Lanka will probably be the happier team to get a point out of their washout against world champions Australia in Colombo on Saturday. The conditions didn’t look as bad a day before the game and even on Saturday when the two teams had walked out before toss time to assess the ground. But the rain picked up quickly, and even though the entire ground was covered, the match had to be abandoned about two and a half hours after the scheduled start time.The two teams came into this match with contrasting results in their opening games – Australia had beaten New Zealand by 89 runs in Indore and Sri Lanka had lost to India by 59 runs (via the DLS method) in Guwahati.Australia continue to top the table with three points and Sri Lanka have jumped to fifth place, but with a negative net run rate of -1.255. Australia were the favourites for this game – like they are in the tournament – as Sri Lanka have never beaten them in international cricket across 11 ODIs and eight T20Is.This also means Sri Lanka head into their next fixture – against England on October 11 – after what is now a gap of 10 days, having played India in the World Cup opener on September 30. Australia had flown into Colombo on Thursday from Indore and will continue to stay in Colombo to play Pakistan on October 8 before flying to Visakhapatnam to face India on October 9.Colombo is also set to host the India vs Pakistan match on Sunday, and the weather forecast doesn’t look too optimistic for that either.

Alan Gardner, Andrew Miller and Vithushan Ehantharajah chat about the first Test of the summer as England face Zimbabwe after a gap of two decades

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2025The arrival of Zimbabwe for their first Test against England since 2003 kickstarts a concentrated eight-month period for Brendon McCullum’s team, encompassing a five-match India series and the Ashes in Australia. On this week’s podcast, Alan Gardner is joined by Andrew Miller and Vithushan Ehantharajah to preview the game. Topics for discussion include Sam Cook’s Test debut, Bazball’s need to reconnect, and the challenge for Zimbabwe, as well as the announcement of England’s white-ball squads to face West Indies.