SPL

New signing Adam Le Fondre brings ‘craft’ and ‘nous’ to Hibernian – Lee Johnson

By Sports Desk June 16, 2023

Lee Johnson believes Hibernian have added “craft” and “nous” to their attack after signing veteran striker Adam Le Fondre on an initial one-year contract.

The 36-year-old Englishman, who has amassed 273 career goals, joins the cinch Premiership club after recently leaving Australian side Sydney, where he spent the majority of the past five years.

Prior to moving to the A-League in 2018, Le Fondre played for a range of English clubs, with his most prolific spells coming at Rochdale, Rotherham and Reading, where he played under Hibs’ current director of football, Brian McDermott.

“Adam brings craft to our new frontline and his experience and nous in the game will help develop our younger strikers,” boss Johnson told the Hibs website.

“Throughout his career he has a proven goal-scoring record and physically he’s in good shape. We look forward to working with him.”

The arrival of Le Fondre will help fill the void left by Scotland striker Kevin Nisbet, who was sold to Millwall last weekend. Hibs have the option to extend Le Fondre’s contract by a further year if they wish.

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    Artem Dovbyk netted a hat-trick as surprise package Girona claimed the biggest win in the club's history with a 7-0 thrashing of already-relegated Granada on Friday. 

    Defender Eric Garcia opened the scoring on the half-hour mark, pouncing on the visitors' sloppy defending to head home from close range before Viktor Tsygankov doubled the advantage with a tap-in three minutes later.

    Dovbyk made it 3-0 from the penalty spot in the 44th minute after a foul on Portu, while Tsygankov scored his second with a simple finish nine minutes into the second half.

    Granada were dealt a further blow when they were reduced to 10 men in the 61st minute thanks to Facundo Pellistri's second yellow card before Dovbyk scored again in the 75th. Minutes later, substitute Cristhian Stuani got on the scoresheet with a close-range strike.

    The Ukrainian then completed his hat-trick with a 90th-minute penalty to reach 24 league goals this season, ahead of Villarreal's Alexander Sorloth in the battle for the league's top goalscorer.

    Data Debrief: Girona go out on a high

    Dovbyk scored 24 goals in LaLiga this season, becoming Girona's top scorer in a single season in the competition, surpassing Cristhian Stuani's 21 goals in 2017-18.

    Savinho was also a bright spark for the hosts in this game, winning the final penalty to set up Dovbyk's penalty. His assist for Tsyhankov's goal was his 10th of the season - the most registered for Girona this campaign. 

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  • Women's Champions League final: Barcelona and Lyon set for Bilbao battle Women's Champions League final: Barcelona and Lyon set for Bilbao battle

    The stage is set in Bilbao for a battle of two European Giants.

    Barcelona are striving to make history and win the quadruple, a feat only achieved by Arsenal in 2007 when they won a domestic treble and the UEFA Women’s Cup; this would match Arsenal's achievements, and Barca would be the first team to win such a treble since the rebranding to the Women's Champions League.

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    Barca will play in a fourth consecutive final in the Champions League, and their fifth within the last six seasons.

    The Azulgranas have appeared in five finals in the competition, with only Lyonnais (11), Eintracht Frankfurt (six) and Wolfsburg (six) featuring in more.

    Only Lyon (five between 2016 and 2020) have had a longer run of appearing in consecutive Champions League finals than Barcelona’s current run (this year being their fourth).

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    "We already have three trophies won, so to have the chance to add another Champions League in this fantastic stadium means we can try to show we are still the best team in Europe."

    World Cup winner Salma Paralluelo is the second-highest scorer in the competition, with six goals. She has outperformed her xG of 4.6.

    Paralluelo has had the most shots of any player in the competition (35), joint-top with team-mate Caroline Graham Hansen, who has netted five times in the competition.

    The Norwegian has been in excellent form this year and really made her team tick. Hansen has the highest expected assists (xA) total in the competition, at 4.5. She has provided five assists, level with club-mate and Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmati.  

    Tussle of the titans

    Lyon have been clinical in this year’s tournament, leading the scoring charts. They have netted 36 times in 10 games, an average of 3.6 goals per game, from an xG of 34.

    They also lead the way in total attempts with 252, ahead of Barcelona, who recorded 226.  

    Barca are the second-highest scorers, with their tally of 34 goals being 14 clear of next-best Chelsea (20). They have registered 27.6 xG.

    The Catalan giants have also been more accurate this season and boast the better shot conversion rate – 15.25 to Lyon’s 14.06. 

    This match-up will feature four of the five most creative players in the tournament. Lyon’s Selma Bacha leads the way with 32 chances created. Barca trio Graham Hansen, Bonmati and Mariona Caldentey have created 29, 24 and 20 opportunities respectively.

    Favourably, the sides were on opposite sides of the draw in this year’s competition and seemed destined to meet in another battle of the titans.

    Barca have conceded just eight goals, the joint-best figure in the competition along with Chelsea, but their expected goals against (xGA) of 5.4 suggests they have been unfortunate to concede so many.

    Lyon have conceded 10 times, from 7.24 xGA. These numbers are that of champions and emphasise the quality that will be on display in Bilbao.  

    The best there has ever been

    Lyon have only failed to win two of their previous 10 Champions League finals – on penalties against Turbine Postdam in 2010 and 0-1 against Wolfsburg in 2013. Barcelona, meanwhile, have lost two of their previous four, with both defeats coming against OL in 2019 and 2022.

    Lyon’s Kadidiatou Diani is the leading scorer in the Champions League this season, with eight goals in 10 appearances.  

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    Lyon star Ada Hegerberg has just returned from injury and will bolster the confidence of the French side. The former Ballon d'Or winner has scored five goals from 33 shots. 

    Hegerberg could become the first player to score in five Champions League finals, having netted in four already for Lyon. She currently shares the record for most finals scored in along with Alexandra Popp.

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    Bompastor understands the history of this tie and told reporters: "This Barca is different from the one we faced in the final two years ago. They have made new signings and each final brings with it a different story. It will be a totally different game tomorrow.

    "We are a team that has won a lot in the past. But we remain really ambitious. For me, we are the best team in the world and will continue to be no matter what happens tomorrow. I trust my players; I know there is all the individual and collective talent needed to achieve this goal."

    The Opta supercomputer rates Barcelona as huge favourites going into the tie, giving them a 67.8 per cent chance of winning in the pre-match simulations.

    However, it may be much closer than that in reality. Only time will tell which records will be set on Saturday under the lights in Bilbao. 

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