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Celtic have been name-checked with an interest in Bologna left-back Aaron Hickey by Calciomercato.com.

The Lowdown: Hickey in Italy

Hickey, who shares the same agent as Hoops star David Turnbull, has been in Italy for just over a year now. He left Hearts for Bologna in a deal worth just £1.53m and has gone on to make 32 appearances – 20 of which have come this season.

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Capable of playing as a left-back or left-midfielder, the 19-year-old, labelled as a player with ‘quality’ by Bologna manager Sinisa Mihajlovic, has scored five Serie A goals in 2021/22 after being linked with a move to Celtic over the summer.

The Hoops valued Hickey at £4m compared to Bologna’s £8m asking price, but it seems as if they’re still keen on his services heading into 2022.

The Latest: Late-night news

Calciomercato.com shared a story late on Thursday evening regarding Hickey.

They claimed that the defender has ended up in the sights of Burnley, Celtic and Manchester City, with his current deal running until 2024.

The Verdict: Left-back wanted

Ange Postecoglou seemingly has his eyes set on bringing in a new left-back in the New Year, presumably to challenge Greg Taylor.

Barnsley’s Callum Styles and Hibernian’s Josh Doig are just two names that have been mentioned in recent weeks, and it appears as if the Hoops are still keeping tabs on Hickey.

Reo Hatate looks set to move to Parkhead in January, however, he is reportedly viewed as a midfield addition, even though he can play at left-back.

On that basis, you’d expect that the Hoops could launch a move for Styles, Doig or Hickey over the coming weeks, and should one arrive, Celtic could then look to move on outcast Boli Bolingoli, who has hardly featured this season and was linked with an exit over the summer.

In other news: Ange may look to sign 3rd Irishman for Celtic who can play in 3 positions – reliable journalist. 

Former Leeds United player Carlton Palmer has backed the Whites to make a move for Reading midfielder John Swift in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Leeds linked with Swift move

The 26-year-old is enjoying a superb season for Reading on an individual note, scoring eight goals and registering nine assists in the Championship this season, prompting journalist Conor McGilligan to proclaim that he has “been absolutely on fire” for the Royals.

Swift’s form has seen him linked with a move to Leeds, especially with Kalvin Phillips’ injury absence leaving Marcelo Bielsa short of options in the middle of the park. His current deal expires at the end of the season, so Reading may be willing to recoup a fee for him in January.

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The Latest: Palmer talks up Swift move

Speaking to Give Me Sport, ex-Leeds and England midfielder Palmer talked up a potential move for Swift, saying:

“At the end of the day, he’s not signed a new contract. He’s attracting a lot of interest from several Premier League clubs. He is out of contract at the end of the season, I would think if Reading could get a fee for him, and they’re not particularly doing well in the Championship, what, are they 16th in the league?

“So, I think they’re not going to hold onto him until the end of the season if they could get a fee for him in January. If that fee comes from Leeds United, then he’ll go to Leeds United. That is for sure.”

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The Verdict: Good squad option

While Swift remains unproven in the Premier League, he is someone who could come in and add much-needed depth in midfield, hopefully along with another signing too.

His aforementioned end product this season shows that he could bring some guile in midfield, helping Leeds to create more chances from a position where they have been far from prolific this term; and at 26 he could improve further under Bielsa, who has previously described him as a “great player”.

Swift also won 13 caps for England’s under-21s and scored once at that level, an indicator that he has been considered a top prospect in the past, and he is continuing to deliver the goods in the Championship into his mid-20s.

In other news, Graham Smyth has provided a key update on one Leeds player. Find out who it is here.

South Africa A were favourites to win going into the final day of the second unofficial Test against Bangladesh A in Mirpur, and their bowlers duly completed a 185-run victory with a clinical performance

Cricinfo staff02-May-2010
ScorecardSouth Africa A were favourites to win going into the final day of the second unofficial Test against Bangladesh A in Mirpur, and their bowlers duly completed a 185-run victory with a clinical performance. They had only the last six Bangladesh wickets to take and they claimed them while conceding only 100 runs.The hosts began the day on 125 for 4, needing 286 more for victory, and survival being a more realistic goal. However, Bangladesh A lost Mahbubul Alam immediately, run out for a duck by Thami Tsolekile, and slipped to 128 for 5. Faisal Hossain offered some resistance, scoring 43 in the middle order, but it was futile. Wickets fell at regular intervals, with the bowlers sharing the spoils, and Bangladesh A folded for 225. Paul Harris took 3 for 85 in the second innings to finish with nine wickets in the match.

Karachi opener Shahzaib Hasan, one of three new faces in Pakistan’s side for the upcoming Asia Cup, believes he is ready for the challenges of international one-day cricket

Cricinfo staff09-Jun-2010Karachi opener Shahzaib Hasan, one of three new faces in Pakistan’s side for the upcoming Asia Cup, believes he is ready for the challenges of international one-day cricket.”I am confident that I can play well in the 50-over format of the game,” he told . “While I have no international experience at the 50-over format, I’m sure that I can turn my recent good domestic form into runs at international level and I am ready for the challenge of 50-over international cricket.” In domestic one-dayers, Hasan has scored 504 runs at an average of 38.76 and a strike-rate of 100.Hasan, who has played four Twenty20 internationals, is currently attending the national training camp at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, where the team is being put through net sessions and fielding practice, along with lots of one-on-one coaching. “We are being pushed hard by the coaches and it is tough work in this heat, but I am really enjoying it,” he said. “Waqar bhai and Ijaz bhai are just tremendous; they have a real connection with the boys, and know how to get the very best out of them.”Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi also gave Hasan batting advice, which the 20-year-old has taken to heart. “Shahid bhai has told me to be positive, and to bat with a positive attitude and not to think of any negative thoughts when I am batting, which I think is excellent advice and advice that I will take on board”The tip from Afridi came on top of advice Hasan received from Pakistan legend Javed Miandad at a recent emerging players camp. “He [Miandad] gave me a lot of advice, especially with regards to some technical issues and batting with soft hands and rotating the strike. He also told me to concentrate more on working the ball around the field instead of looking for big shots all of the time.”A fellow rookie in the Pakistan squad, Umar Amin, also expressed his excitement at being called up and his eagerness to succeed at the international level. Umar, who has a first-class average of over 42, was playing a club match in Rawalpindi when he heard the news. “My mother called me up and told me that I had been selected for the Asia Cup squad. I think my form currently is pretty good after the recently concluded Pentangular Cup in Karachi.”Umar said that, if given the opportunity to play, the knowledge of Sri Lankan conditions acquired on A-team tours would prove handy. “I am very aware of the conditions in Sri Lanka and I’m happy to bat wherever I am required.” On that tour, Umar made 153 against Sri Lanka A in a four-day game in Dambulla, the venue for the Asia Cup.

Celtic are considering offers for Osaze Urhoghide in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Scottish Sun, who claim that Ange Postecoglou is weighing up a number of offers for the 21-year-old centre-back this month, with several clubs believed to be interested in taking the defender on loan for the remainder of the season.

However, while it is reported that the 56-year-old Bhoys boss would be more than happy to sanction the temporary departure of the former Sheffield Wednesday starlet this month, it is also stated that the Greek-Australian coach will consult with the youngster before making a final decision on his short-term future.

Disaster for Celtic

While it is true that Urhoghide has not exactly been a first-team regular since his £207k switch to Glasgow last summer, the 21-year-old’s undoubted potential, in addition to his impressive positional versatility, are just two reasons as to why letting him leave the club this winter would be something of a disaster for the Bhoys.

Indeed, the defender has already proven that he has what it takes to feature regularly in professional football, making 16 Championship appearances for Sheffield Wednesday last season, over which he helped the Owls keep three clean sheets, as well as making an average of 1.6 interceptions, 1.8 tackles, 2.7 clearances and winning 5.8 duels per game.

Furthermore, in his single appearance under the management of Postecoglou, the youngster also highly impressed, being deployed at right-back against Real Betis in the Hoops’ 3-2 Europa League win back in December.

In this fixture, the £3.8k-per-week defender enjoyed 65 touches of the ball, completed 30 passes – one of which was key – made five tackles, three clearances, one interception and won nine of his 15 duels.

These returns saw the Englishman earn a very respectable SofaScore match rating of 6.9 on his debut for the club, while Football Scotland also awarded the 21-year-old an eight in their own player ratings for the match.

As such, it would very much appear as if the youngster who Darren Moore dubbed “immense” is an extremely valuable member of the first-team squad at Parkhead, and would seem to be more than ready for a greater share of first-team football in the second half of the campaign – leading us to believe that Postecoglou simply must keep the youngster at Parkhead this winter.

In other news: “I spoke to..”: Ange urged to seal £118k-p/w Jan signing, he’d be “perfect” for Celtic

Kumar Sangakkara, the Sri Lankan captain, is confident his team will pull off a hat-trick of Asia Cup titles ahead of Thursday’s final against India in Dambulla

Sa'adi Thawfeeq in Dambulla23-Jun-2010Kumar Sangakkara, the Sri Lankan captain, is confident his team will pull off a hat-trick of Asia Cup titles ahead of Thursday’s final against India in Dambulla. Sri Lanka enter the final having won all three league games, which included a convincing seven-wicket victory against India on Tuesday. They won the previous two Asia Cup tournaments in 2008 and 2004 and are aiming for their fifth title.”A final is a final and we are going to hit the ground running and really try and win it,” Sangakkara said. “That’s all up to us and how we perform. Winning a final, and especially the Asia Cup at home, is a special thing. It’s going to really inspire us.”Sri Lanka tested their bench strength in the dead rubber against India, and the performance of Farveez Maharoof in his second game of the series gave the selectors a problem of plenty before the final. “It’s a good situation to be in,” Sangakkara said. “We will be thrashing a few issues out with the selectors to see what the best eleven is going to be. We have got to take that match in isolation. We are not going to look too far behind us but just got to focus on picking the best squad for that one game.”Sri Lanka beat India by 100 runs to win the Asia Cup in 2008. Sanath Jayasuriya and Ajantha Mendis were the stars in that game but they are not part of the present squad. Sangakkara, however, was confident Sri Lanka have the personnel to pull off a victory. “In the last one Jayasuriya and Mendis were fantastic in the final. We don’t have them here today [but] we’ve got other players we hope will do similar things for us.”We play as a unit and we stick together. Whether we win or lose we are going to come out very confident from this tournament. But if we keep performing like the way we have, we have a good chance of winning it.”The floodlights at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium were criticised during the league stage and Sri Lanka, who batted first against Pakistan and Bangladesh, decided to test themselves under lights by chasing against India. “It was another step towards challenging ourselves to get a bit better and a bit tougher,” Sangakkara said.”The ball probably does a bit more under lights; you can’t exactly get into a rhythm as a batsman and keep hitting the ball the same way. You have to really watch the ball very closely and, with the lights, that’s not an easy task. The colour goes off the ball but I thought there was good value for shots on this ground. The outfield is pretty fast day or night. You just play a tighter game and bat for longer periods but still have a really positive outlook.”Sri Lanka enjoy an enviable record in ODIs at home, having won 61 of their last 90 games. “Our guys have shown a lot of character and really fought it out since Arjuna Ranatunga took us through the 1995-96 season in Australia,” Sangakkara said. “He has made sure that there is a lot of toughening up in Sri Lanka cricket mentally and character-wise. That’s paying dividends throughout the years and we can see a bit of it even now.”

A number of Liverpool supporters have slammed James Milner’s ineffective performance in the Reds’ 0-0 draw at home to Arsenal in the Carabao Cup.

Jurgen Klopp’s side were in semi-final first leg action on Thursday evening, hosting a Gunners side that had just been dumped out of the FA Cup by Nottingham Forest.

It proved to be an extremely frustrating night for Liverpool, who performed badly throughout, failing to break down an Arsenal side who had Granit Xhaka sent-off in the first half.

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The Reds mustered a single attempt on target and now have plenty of work to do in the second leg at the Emirates next Thursday if they want to make it into next month’s final against Chelsea.

One player who struggled more than most was Milner, who offered little in the middle of the park, losing possession 13 times and playing no key passes, according to Sofascore, with that lack of creativity summing up the team’s overall display.

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Liverpool fans slaughter Milner performance

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to criticise the veteran’s display, with one supporter calling it a ‘disgrace’.

“I’m sorry but Milner and Henderson in the same midfield actually breaks me”

Credit: @ilab1612

“Honestly, I’ve had enough of Milner. He’s washed, it’s a bit of a disgrace he still gets minutes for us”

Credit: @TDJS_92

“Milner and Hendo were woeful yet again”

Credit: @_umairg

“Love Milner done lots for us but surely he has to go”

Credit: @sam76803802

“Milner is one of the worst players in the Prem”

Credit: @UnbiasedLiverp1

“Announce Milner as part of the coaching staff @LFC”

Credit: @KingAfo

In other news, some Liverpool fans have flocked to one transfer update. Read more here.

Dale Richards, the Barbados opener, has said he will be under no pressure when he faces the new ball in the third Test against South Africa at Bridgetown

Cricinfo staff25-Jun-2010Dale Richards, the 33-year-old opener from Barbados, has said he has “nothing to lose” and will be under no pressure when he faces the new ball in the third Test against South Africa at Bridgetown, beginning on June 26.Richards is one of only two openers in West Indies’ 13-man squad and is certain to play his third Test – his first against top-flight opposition. Richards’ first two Test opportunities were against Bangladesh in 2009, when several first-choice players went on strike.”I only have two Test matches under my belt but at the end of the day, at 33 years old, there is nothing to lose. It’s just about getting out there and doing my bits,” Richards said. “A lot of people write off a lot of guys at 30 but I think when you get to that age, you understand batting more. I don’t go in the game with any sort of pressure.”Richards was included in the squad at the expense of Guyana opener Travis Dowlin, who scored only 4, 1 and 10 in three innings during the first two Tests. Richards had played a part in the ODI series against South Africa and scored 157 runs at an average of 39.25, with two half-centuries in four innings.”In the Digicel one-day series I backed myself and batted positively,” Richards said. “This is Test cricket so I need to spend some time at the top of the order along with Chris [Gayle], but I think we should come out and play some very positive cricket. Some positive cricket will really help the people in the Caribbean.”West Indies trail 0-1 in the three-Test series and the Barbados contest is their final opportunity to salvage a win in the home series against the South Africans. Gayle’s men lost the Twenty20 series 0-2, the ODIs 0-5 and drew the second Test after losing the first by 163 runs.

Mark Guidi has dropped an update on Celtic’s bid to secure a deal to bring Jota to Parkhead on a permanent basis.

What’s the talk?

Speaking recently to The Go Radio Football Show (via Vital Celtic), the Daily Record journalist stated his belief that Celtic are comfortable concerning the situation of Jota, as Ange Postecoglou’s side have an option to purchase the 22-year-old written into the winger’s loan contract at Parkhead.

Guidi went on to state that the Portugal under-21 international also appears to be enjoying his time in Glasgow, something that the journalist believes will make it easier for the Bhoys to agree personal terms with the Benfica loanee.

Concerning Celtic’s potential signing of Jota, Guidi said: “I think Celtic will be comfortable with the Jota scenario because what we’re led to believe [is] they do have [a] first option. It’s there in black and white.

“That was part of the loan agreement – that Celtic have the first option at an agreed fee. The fee is already agreed so there’s probably no negotiation [to be had with Benfica]. The negotiation is really with the player, in terms of his individual package.

“So, in terms of financial outlay, if Celtic fancied doing A, B and C just now, and [then] leave [signing] Jota [until] the summer [they could], because they know Jota is theirs if they want him – provided they can agree personal terms.”

Fans will be buzzing

Considering just how impressive Jota has been since his arrival in Glasgow on a season-long loan deal last summer, Guidi’s reassuring words regarding the 22-year-old’s permanent switch to Parkhead are sure to have left the Hoops’ fanbase buzzing.

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It is easy to see why fans would be excited for the Bhoys to secure the winger’s signing. Over his 12 Premiership outings in the current campaign, the £4.95m-rated trickster has been in astonishing form for the Hoops.

Indeed, the Portuguese forward has already scored five league goals, registered four assists and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as taking 2.8 shots and making 1.4 key passes per game.

These returns have seen the £7.1k-per-week forward average a remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.31, ranking him as the joint seventh-best player in the Scottish top flight.

As such, should Postecoglou indeed manage to get a deal over the line for Jota this season, particularly for the reported fee of £6.5m, it would undoubtedly be a major coup for the club. Not only is the winger likely to be a continuous source of goals and creativity during spell at Parkhead, he could also become a hugely valuable asset for the Bhoys further down the line in terms of making an enormous sell-on profit.

In other news: Celtic dealt huge blow as fresh twist emerges on 24 y/o, Postecoglou will be fuming

Pakistan’s problems were compounded on the second afternoon at Edgbaston as Umar Gul was sent for an MRI scan on a hamstring injury, and was ruled out of contention for the rest of the match

Andrew Miller at Edgbaston07-Aug-2010Pakistan’s problems were compounded on the second afternoon at Edgbaston as Umar Gul was sent for an MRI scan on a hamstring injury, and was ruled out of contention for the rest of the match – amid fears that he will be forced to miss the remaining two Tests at The Oval and Lord’s as well.Gul suffered the injury while running in to bowl the first ball of his fourth over of the day. He pulled up in his delivery stride and immediately turned to walk off the field, clutching his right leg, leaving the over to be bowled by Umar Amin.”Gul has gone for an MRI, he has a torn hamstring,” said Yawar Saeed, Pakistan’s manager. “He will play no further part in this match.””I haven’t spoken to the doctor as yet,” said Pakistan’s captain, Salman Butt. “All that I know is that it is a hamstring problem. He wasn’t available today and we still got seven or eight wickets. If we had held the chances that come our way we would have been pretty well off. But obviously he is a very important part of our bowling line-up and we wish he is okay quickly.”If the injury is as serious as feared, then Gul will be looking at an injury lay-off of two to four weeks, leaving him out of contention for the third Test at The Oval which starts on August 18, and a serious doubt for the series finale at Lord’s on August 26.With four wickets in the series to date at 31.50, in addition to a key role in the drawn two-match rubber against Australia last month, Gul has formed part of an incisive three-prong seam attack that has been Pakistan’s redeeming feature on a difficult tour. However, the challenge of playing six Tests in the space of seven weeks was always likely to claim casualties among the squad’s pacemen.”It is very understandable because it is a lot of cricket,” said Butt. “We’ve come straight to the World Cup [World Twenty20], gone to the Asia Cup, come over here, played a few side games. The day we arrived, the next day we played, and the next day we played. It’s been a tough tour and the boys have done really well up to now.If Gul is ruled out, then his likely replacement would be the 25-year-old left-arm seamer Wahab Riaz, who has played five ODIs and one Twenty20 international, but has yet to make his Test debut.