Liverpool now hold talks over "extraordinary" £29m long-term Man Utd target

Liverpool have now held internal talks over a move for an “extraordinary” player who Manchester United have been linked with for a number of years, according to a report.

Reds assessing summer transfer targets

The Reds are now in the process of assessing their targets for the summer transfer window, having had a quiet January, with Arne Slot likely to feel major surgery is unnecessary, with his side performing so strongly in all competitions.

Having missed out on a midfielder last summer, however, the Merseyside club may want to strengthen at the end of the season, despite Ryan Gravenberch doing a stellar job since coming into the team with the Martin Zubimendi move breaking down.

Dominik Szoboszlai has also received praise from Slot in recent weeks, with the Dutch manager stating how happy he’s been with the midfielder’s performances.

“In my opinion, he is a bit underestimated. Not by me, but he doesn’t always get the credits for the fact he is very important for this team, because his work-rate is unbelievable.”

Liverpool eye "phenomenal" £29m star who Slot admires to replace Robertson

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Dominic Lund

Feb 5, 2025

Even though Slot is pleased with his current options, the manager may feel he is a little light on numbers in the middle of the park, and Caught Offside have now revealed internal talks are ongoing regarding top midfield targets for the summer.

Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong is among the players discussed, and there is a feeling the midfielder could be available for a fee of around €35m (£29m), making him a relatively affordable option, with the La Liga side now willing to sanction his departure.

However, De Jong’s high wages could prove to be a stumbling block, given that he rakes in a whopping £304k-per-week, which is a reason the Reds have refrained from making a move in the past.

Liverpool’s upcoming Premier League fixtures

Date

Everton (a)

February 12th

Wolverhampton Wanderers (h)

February 16th

Manchester City (a)

February 23rd

Newcastle United (h)

February 26th

Southampton (h)

March 8th

Why Man Utd have wanted to sign De Jong

The Barcelona maestro has been a long-term target for Man United, with former manager Erik ten Hag believed to be a big fan, and it is clear to see why, given the quality he possesses.

The Dutchman has a keen eye for goal, ranking in the 92nd percentile for non-penalty goals per 90 over the past year, when compared to his positional peers, while he also places in the 98th percentile for his pass-completion rate.

Former manager Xavi has singled out the 27-year-old for praise in the past, describing him as “extraordinary”, so it is exciting news that Liverpool could pursue a summer move.

However, De Jong may have to be willing to take a wage cut if he is keen to move to Anfield, as FSG are unlikely to be willing to match his £304k-per-week wages, given the strict wage structure they have in place.

David Beckham reveals Man Utd agreed to sell him to Barcelona before dramatic transfer U-turn resulted in Real Madrid move

David Beckham came close to joining Barcelona before eventually ending up at Real Madrid, the former Manchester United star has revealed.

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  • Beckham spent four years at Real Madrid
  • Was almost sold to Barcelona instead
  • Opted for his dream move to the Galacticos
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  • WHAT HAPPENED?

    Beckham left United to join Madrid in 2003 and went on to win a La Liga crown as part of the Galacticos team alongside Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and Michael Owen, who joined a year after his fellow England star.

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    However, before Madrid came to scoop up the former midfielder, United reached an agreement that would have resulted in him heading to Camp Nou instead, but he held out for a dream move to the Spanish capital.

  • WHAT BECKHAM SAID

    He told : "My team was always Real Madrid and funnily enough I got sold from Manchester United to Barcelona. I was on holiday, Peter Kenyon [ex-Man Utd chairman] phoned me and he said: 'We've accepted a bid from Barcelona and we're selling you'. I said: 'If you are going to sell me, the only team I want to move to is Real Madrid', because I always had a dream of playing for Real Madrid when I was a young kid.

    "I never thought I'd leave Manchester United but if I did, you know, I'd love to have played for Real Madrid. And if they wanted me to leave then the only club that I wanted to go to was Real Madrid."

    Beckham went on to add: "Funnily enough, in a day and a half, it happened."

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    WHAT NEXT FOR BECKHAM?

    It has been 12 years since Beckham brought an end to his playing career and he is now overseeing business as the president of Inter Miami, who face Minnesota United in MLS this weekend.

Arsene Wenger claims Trent Alexander-Arnold's impending move to Real Madrid shows era of big spending is ending as Los Blancos prepare for latest free transfer bargain

Arsene Wenger claims elite players are now more prepared to run down their contracts to secure moves to clubs like Real Madrid.

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Alexander-Arnold expected to join Real MadridRight-back has announced Liverpool departureKylian Mbappe signed for Los Blancos on free transferFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed Trent Alexander-Arnold's imminent move to Real Madrid reflects a growing trend of elite players no longer commanding huge transfer fees, instead running down their contracts to secure better deals for themselves elsewhere.

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Alexander-Arnold recently confirmed his decision to leave Liverpool at the end of his contract and is expected to become Real Madrid's latest marquee free transfer signing, coming a year after Kylian Mbappe was snared from Paris Saint-Germain in similar circumstances.

WHAT WENGER SAID

Speaking on beIN SPORTS, Wenger said: "I believe it shows a new trend in the game that there is no transfer [fee], for the big big players; they go all at the end of their contract because the wages are so high. 

"If you want to buy Marcel [Desailly] now, you have to pay him so much money that you can't afford the transfer fee anymore so what do they do? 

"They say two years before the end of a contract: 'We want to buy you, we'll give you these wages, and we will try to make an offer. If it doesn't work, we will come back next year and if it doesn't work we'll take you for free', it's what they did with [Kylian] Mbappe.

"Real Madrid approached Alexander-Arnold a long, long time ago."

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR ALEXANDER-ARNOLD?

While Alexander-Arnold may already mentally be in Madrid where he'll link up with Mbappe and fellow England international Jude Bellingham, Liverpool still have three more Premier League games to see out the season. They take on Arsenal on Sunday before clashes with Brighton and Crystal Palace.

20 anos do Penta: os bastidores da cobertura do LANCE! no último título da Seleção Brasileira

MatériaMais Notícias

Há exatamente 20 anos, o Brasil levantava sua quinta e última Copa do Mundo, que foi realizada em 2002, na Coreia do Sul e no Japão. Fundado em 1997, o LANCE! participou da cobertura, que foi a única da história do veículo em um mundial conquistado pela Seleção. Cobrir essa Copa foi algo muito peculiar, que ficou marcado, e mobilizou as redações em território brasileiro e reportagem in loco.

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GALERIA
> Saiba por onde andam os jogadores da Seleção do Penta

TABELA
> Veja tabela e simulador da Copa do Mundo-2022 clicando aqui

> Conheça o aplicativo de resultados do LANCE!

Com um torneio do outro lado do mundo, o que ditava o ritmo da cobertura era o fuso horário, algo que exigiu a divisão da redação em vários turnos de jornada de trabalho, além de duas edições de jornal nos dias de jogos do Brasil e muitas madrugadas em claro para levar conteúdo aos leitores da principal publicação esportiva do país.

Para contar um pouco dessa história, a reportagem atual do LANCE! foi atrás de Guilherme Gomes, editor do jornal na época, que participou ativamente daquela cobertura e ajudou no desenvolvimento da capa que ficou marcada como a do Penta. O jornalista explicou com mais detalhes o funcionamento da redação e a produção dos jornais na única Copa em que o veículo pôde estampar sua capa com um título mundial da Seleção Brasileira.

Cobertura custosa e logística mais complicada após Copa de 1998

Pela primeira vez na história a Fifa organizava uma Copa do Mundo em dois países, a primeira em território asiático, o que popularizou ainda mais o futebol no local, mas inviabilizou a ida de muitos profissionais e torcedores pelos altos custos para estar no Japão e na Coreia do Sul. Dessa forma, o LANCE! acabou enviando apenas dois jornalistas para a cobertura, enquanto na França, na edição anterior, dez integrantes da equipe do jornal montaram uma “mini redação”.

– Foi uma Copa atípica, porque foi a primeira em dois países, Japão e Coreia do Sul, e outro era a questão da logística, por ser do outro lado do mundo, teve a questão financeira, que foi um impedimento grande, porque era um custo bem alto, de passagem, hospedagem, de cobertura, ou seja, diferentemente de outras Copas, a cobertura era bem mais custosa. Uma outra grande situação que foi enfrentada foi o fuso horário – relatou Guilherme Gomes, antes de completar:

– Em relação à questão orçamentária, para efeito de comparação, na Copa de 1998, na França, o LANCE! chegou a montar praticamente uma mini redação na cidade de Chantilly, onde o Brasil ficou, perto de Paris. E o jornal mandou de oito a dez pessoas para a cobertura. Quatro anos depois, na Copa de 2002, por todo o custo envolvido, o LANCE! mandou somente duas pessoas: um repórter e um editor. Então a cobertura in loco foi bem limitada.

Fuso horário provocou a divisão na redação e até lembrou No Limite

Quem não se lembra ou quem não viveu aquela Copa do Mundo, o fuso horário entre o Brasil e Japão/Coreia do Sul era de 12 horas, ou seja, um desafio e tanto para quem trabalhava do outro lado do mundo. Foi preciso trocar o dia pela noite, além de criar uma edição extra para os dias de jogos do Brasil. Toda essa “operação de guerra” fez a redação fazer uma brincadeira com o programa No Limite, sucesso da Globo na época, como lembrou Guilherme Gomes.

-Em relação à logística do fuso horário, ficou estabelecido que com o jogo tendo sido na madrugada ou no início da manhã, o jornal ficaria velho se fosse publicado no horário tradicional, pela manhã, ou seja, não poderia dar esse resultado somente na manhã seguinte. Então ficou decidido que a gente fizesse edições extras nos dias dos jogos do Brasil. A cobertura do jogo era feita na redação com uma equipe, com o jogo sendo de madrugada, ou no início da manhã, como se fosse um fechamento normal de rodada noturna, ou seja, fechando 20 minutos depois do apito final.

– O pessoal brincava com aquele programa “No Limite”, da Globo, aí tinha o grupo Lua e o grupo Sol. O grupo Lua que trabalhava de madrugada nos jogos do Brasil e também dividimos os editores e os responsáveis pelo fechamento. Nesse caso, eu fiquei responsável pelo fechamento do grupo Lua, ou seja, dos jogos do Brasil na edição extra e o editor do grupo Sol continuou fechando a edição normal durante a Copa.

O funcionamento das edições extras nos jogos do Brasil

Como dito acima, com os jogos da Seleção na madrugada e no início da manhã, deixar o noticiário somente para o dia seguinte não fazia sentido, então as edições extras ganharam importância e atenção especial durante a Copa do Mundo. No entanto, exigiu que boa parte da redação trocasse o dia pela noite em prol da publicação do jornal.

– Nos dias de jogos do Brasil era uma operação de guerra para essa edição extra, porque em alguns deles a gente tinha que chegar na redação às 3h da manhã, já que o jogo seria às 4h. Então imagine, o jogo sendo das 4h às 6h, a gente chegava às 3h da manhã e ficava até umas 9h, chegando antes para planejar. O jornal fechava às 7h em dias assim, mas eu lembro que tivemos horários variados de jogos, em que foi possível emendar e não dormir antes de ir para a redação. Mas quando o jogo era mais pro fim da madrugada, tínhamos que dormir antes de ir no meio da noite – relatou Guilherme.

– Tinha uma equipe de metade da redação nesses dias de jogo do Brasil na madrugada. A gente fazia cobertura por aqui com ajuda dos correspondentes, de agências, era um jornal menor do que o habitual, eu creio que eram 16 páginas cada edição extra. Nesse dia, a edição normal, que o pessoal entrava na hora do almoço, usava parte do que havia sido feito na edição extra para montar a edição do dia seguinte. Eu diria que usavam 40% do que havia sido produzido e publicado e acrescentava outras coisas e o restante da Copa, pós-jogo, análises…

-A cobertura das edições extras eram bem factuais em cima dos jogos, ou seja, tinha relato, atuações, tinha notícia de ambiente, climão, além do “vestiário” mais imediato, aquele pós-jogo. O conteúdo das edições extras eram diferentes das tradicionais, que vinham com parte desse factual, relatos mais elaborados e principalmente um pós-jogo completo, análise, repercussão no mundo, ou seja, algo a mais para diferenciar os conteúdos.Essas edições extras, eu lembro que chegavam na banca entre 9h da manhã e 12h, dependendo do horário do jogo do Brasil.

Final da Copa teve inversão de turnos e edição extra mais robusta; capa mais famosa foi feita por várias mãos e entrou para a história

No dia 30 de junho de 2002, quando Brasil e Alemanha decidiram o título mundial daquele Copa, o jogo estava marcada para às 8h horas de Brasília, e exigia uma atenção especial, por isso os turnos foram invertidos para a produção da edição extra e da edição do dia seguinte (1º de julho), que acabou considerada como a capa “oficial” do Penta, com a famosa frase “Os Reis do Futebol” no topo.

– Esse sistema de equipe Sol e Lua mudou somente na final, porque começou às 8h da manhã no horário de Brasília. Como era final, nesse dia foi feita uma edição normal, grande, mas saindo logo depois do jogo. Aí foi feita uma inversão, o editor do dia assumiu esse fechamento, e eu entrei mais tarde para fazer a edição do dia seguinte, quando usamos grande quantidade da edição extra que saiu com o título, mas essa edição extra foi bem robusta, bem maior do que as outras ao longo da Copa – lembrou Guilherme.

-A capa oficial do Penta foi feita com várias mãos, teve a edição extra que foi robusta, que foi imediata, e depois ao longo dia teve a produção da capa que ficou famosa, que é aquela “Reis do Futebol”, elaborada para a edição do dia seguinte, que virou a capa clássica do principal jornal esportivo do Brasil no dia do pentacampeonato. Foi bem bacana, eu lembro que tinha uma página para cada jogador.

Experiência marcante em outros tempos e coroada com o título

Naquele momento, a internet já tomava seu espaço, mas ainda não era povoada por redes sociais, o que fazia com que o jornal impresso ainda tivesse uma enorme relevância. O LANCE! era o principal veículo esportivo do país e proporcionou uma cobertura marcante para quem participou dela e ainda pôde curtir o Penta trabalhando.

– Foi uma experiência bem marcante, diferente, principalmente porque eram outros tempos, em que o impresso tinha um peso muito maior, estamos falando de um período pré-redes sociais, então o mundo era outro, mas foi uma cobertura bem bacana por esses detalhes, e também porque foi coroada com o título, que não vinha há muito tempo e que deu tudo certo nessa campanha do Penta – finalizou Guilherme Gomes.

Milan now eyeing "brave" £50m Wolves ace to replace Champions League winner

As their fight for Premier League survival continues, Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly facing the prospect of losing both Matheus Cunha and one other star man this summer.

Wolves transfer news

Maintaining their Premier League status this season may just turn into a small victory for Wolves, who could end up on the losing battle of a summer war to keep hold of their best players. Having kept hold of Cunha in the January transfer window, there will be those in the Midlands who are hopeful of repeating that when the summer arrives, but the Brazilian’s £62m release clause has already given Wolves an uphill battle.

The forward needs no introduction to England’s top flight these days following another excellent season to earn the attention of both Chelsea and Arsenal, and there’s not a single fan inside Molineux who isn’t aware of his impact on Vitor Pereira’s side.

It’s not just Cunha attracting plenty of attention, however. According to La Gazzetta dellow Sport, AC Milan are now eyeing a move to sign Rayan Ait-Nouri to replace Theo Hernandez this summer.

The exit door has suddenly swung open for the Frenchman in a shock turn of events, leaving Milan to find a replacement. And in the middle of another impressive campaign, Ait-Nouri has seemingly emerged on their radar as an ideal option.

£8m Wolves target rejects new contract in pursuit of Premier League move

A potential boost for Wolves…

ByTom Cunningham Feb 26, 2025

The left-back won’t come cheap though, with Wolves reportedly slapping a hefty £50m price tag on their defender, who they will not want to lose at the same time as Cunha this summer. Whether Milan decide to push on nonetheless remains to be seen.

"Brave" Ait-Nouri has earned top move

Such is life at the bottom of the Premier League, it’s not often that players of Cunha or Ait-Nouri’s calibre stay put and Wolves could learn that lesson yet again this summer. It’s something they’ve been forced to face in past cases such as Ruben Neves and one they could face twice more if both Cunha and Ait-Nouri depart.

Of course, it would leave those at Molineux incredibly frustrated, but there’s no doubt that Ait-Nouri is more than capable of playing for the likes of AC Milan and talented enough to replace a Champions League winner in Hernandez.

League stats 24/25 (via FBref)

Rayan Ait-Nouri

Theo Hernandez

Starts

26

19

Assists

5

2

Tackles Won

38

17

Ball Recoveries

117

84

Looking at the numbers, Milan’s reported interest should come as no surprise as shouldn’t the previous praise of Gary O’Neil. The former Wolves boss told reporters last year: “He can play anywhere on the pitch with the quality that he has and we’re working with him at the moment on his decision-making because he’s unbelievably brave.”

WolverhamptonWanderers' Rayan Ait-Nouri celebrates scoring their first goal

As the summer approaches, Wolves may not get long to celebrate potential Premier League survival and are likely to face an entirely different battle on the transfer front.

Moyes could unleash Bramley-Moore’s very own Cahill in £30m Everton star

Everton have enjoyed their fair share of cult heroes during the Premier League era. Duncan Ferguson initially joined on a brief loan spell from Rangers before going on to win the FA Cup with the club just a few months later.

The Scot ended his career with the Toffees having netted 72 goals for the club and is still fondly remembered by the supporters.

Duncan Ferguson

Marouane Fellaini is another cult icon. The Belgian – famed for his Sideshow Bob haircut – shone during his time at Everton, scoring 33 goals in 171 appearances for the Goodison Park outfit.

His performances on the pitch were iconic. Arguably the finest signing in the Premier League era for Everton was that of Tim Cahill, who played for the club for eight seasons.

Tim Cahill's Everton statistics

After starring for Millwall from 1998 until 2004, culminating in an FA Cup final appearance against Manchester United, Cahill joined the Toffees ahead of the 2004/05 season.

Season

Games

Goals

Assists

2011/12

41

3

3

2010/11

28

9

4

2009/10

43

10

6

2008/09

40

9

7

2007/08

28

10

4

2006/07

21

7

1

2005/06

39

8

3

2004/05

38

12

0

Via Transfermarkt

A total of 68 goals and 28 assists were registered by the Australian during his spell at the club. Famed for his ability to score stunning goals, Cahill didn’t take long to become a cult-like figure to the fans.

He helped the club finish fourth during his maiden campaign and led them to the 2009 FA Cup final, which they lost to Chelsea.

At the end of the 2011/12 season, Cahill joined the New York Red Bulls, embarking on his next adventure in MLS. In the years since, the club hasn’t quite had a player like him.

But with David Moyes returning for his second spell, might he have found his next Cahill-esque star in current centre-forward Beto?

Everton’s next cult hero under David Moyes

Beto joined the Toffees in 2023 from Udinese, costing the club around £30m. However, he scored just three Premier League goals during his maiden season at Goodison, failing to live up to this extravagant fee.

This season has been much better, especially since Moyes took over the reins. Indeed, before the recent 1-1 draw against Brentford, Beto had scored five goals in his previous four top-flight games, including a brace against Leicester City in a 4-0 victory.

Moyes has clearly brought the best out of the 27-year-old, subsequently finding a surprise cult hero from someone who struggled big time under the previous regime.

Indeed, it’s his recent form that has dragged the club away from the danger zone and showcased their credentials to potentially nab a European spot in the forthcoming seasons, just as a Cahill-inspired Moyes side did many moons ago.

Writer Ell Bretland has heaped praise on the centre-forward for his recent displays, demonstrating why we’re making such a comparison to the Aussie legend.

Beto’s composure in front of goal for his finishes against Leicester, Liverpool and Palace has been so impressive. Not controlling the ball to ensure he makes that connection to sidefoot it in takes real focus and calmness. His positional awareness in that situation is class.”

Cahill was a master of finding space and being aware of his surroundings, becoming a force to be reckoned with under Moyes and Beto is now the modern incarnate of the Goodison hero.

Now, the Everton faithful will be hoping the striker can maintain this current form to the end of the campaign, which will fill him with plenty of confidence heading into the new one at Bramley-Moore Dock.

Everton make ruthless decision on "phenomenal" £90,000-a-week man's future

Is it the right call by the Blues?

ByHenry Jackson Feb 28, 2025

بيراميدز يُحذر من كارثة قد تحدث للاعبين في نهائي كأس مصر

أبدى الدكتور مصطفى المنيري، رئيس الجهاز الطبي بنادي بيراميدز، قلقه الشديد من توقيت مباراة نهائي كأس مصر التي تجمع الفريق أمام الزمالك، والمقرر انطلاقها في الثامنة والنصف مساء اليوم الخميس على استاد القاهرة الدولي.

وأوضح المنيري في تصريحات للمركز الإعلامي لنادي بيراميدز، أن أذان المغرب سيحين قبل دقائق من الساعة الثامنة، وهو ما يعني تزامنه مع فترة الإحماء التي تسبق انطلاق اللقاء، محذرًا من أن تناول اللاعبين لوجبة الإفطار قبل وقت قصير من بداية المباراة قد يُعرّضهم لمضاعفات صحية خطيرة.

وأشار إلى أن الصيام الممتد لأكثر من 16 ساعة، يتبعه ارتفاع مفاجئ في مستويات السكر والأنسولين في الدم بعد الإفطار، ما يؤدي إلى انخفاض حاد في نسبة الجلوكوز داخل المخ والعضلات، وقد يتسبب ذلك في هبوط بالدورة الدموية أو إصابات عضلية محتملة، مما يؤثر على أداء اللاعبين وسلامتهم.

طالع أيضًا | تشكيل الزمالك المتوقع أمام بيراميدز اليوم في نهائي كأس مصر

وأضاف رئيس الجهاز الطبي أن الوضع خلال صيام يوم عرفة يختلف تمامًا عن صيام شهر رمضان، إذ يكون الجسم في رمضان معتادًا نفسيًا وبدنيًا على ظروف الصيام واللعب، بعكس يوم عرفة الذي يُعد ظرفًا عارضًا لا يتأقلم معه الجسم بنفس الكفاءة.

وكان اتحاد الكرة قد قرر تعديل موعد انطلاق المباراة النهائية لتقام في الثامنة والنصف مساءً بدلًا من الثامنة، مراعاة لصيام اللاعبين تزامنًا مع وقفة عرفات.

وتأهل بيراميدز إلى المباراة النهائية بعد فوزه العريض على البنك الأهلي برباعية نظيفة، فيما بلغ الزمالك النهائي على حساب سيراميكا كليوباترا عقب انتصاره بهدفين مقابل هدف في نصف النهائي.

James Anderson, Ollie Robinson forge new seam alliance to drive England's famous win

In bygone eras, English quicks would have turned their noses up at the Rawalpindi pitch, regarding it as a great injustice.An underwhelming tinge of beige, offering no movement off the straight, slagged off by the host’s own chair at lunch on day two. Barely worthy of their effort, especially without a trusty Dukes in hand. Any failure had the perfect mitigation given the volume of runs and manner in they were scored. Going into the final day, with 1,580 runs scored for the loss of just 19 wickets, all the excuses were ready to go. This time, however, they were not entertained.Jack Leach might have taken the glory with the final dismissal, sealing only England’s third win in Pakistan, but it was the seamers who dragged the team to the cusp of victory. They were relentless throughout Pakistan’s chase, committing to every plan Ben Stokes proposed: the short-ball tactic to start with, the suffocation of the run-rate in the middle, followed by the reverse swing that left Leach one pin to knock over. Had Ollie Pope not left an edge off Naseem Shah 6.2 overs before he was trapped lbw by the left-arm spinner, all 10 would have been taken by quicks.That missed opportunity would have been Stokes’ second, having dismissed Babar Azam on the evening of day four, and no less than he would have deserved after putting so much effort into the field, from tactics to a characteristically punishing 11-over spell after lunch. But he was very much an accessory to James Anderson and Ollie Robinson, who returned four wickets each with unerring accuracy, guile and, perhaps most importantly of all, a remarkable display of endurance.”The lads are saying that is the best away victory, but I can’t remember many better than that at home either to be honest,” Anderson said. “To force the result on that wicket just took an absolutely mammoth effort from everyone, the way we batted in the first innings, 650-odd runs in 100-odd overs was outstanding.”Robinson, similarly, was overcome trying to compute the scale of this success. “I think all the hard work I’ve put in over the last 18 months, the dark places that I’ve been, to come here to Pakistan and take 20 wickets on that wicket is my proudest moment as an England cricketer. Definitely.”James Anderson and Ollie Robinson compare notes in England’s final-day push•Matthew Lewis/Getty Images

Those comments speak of the juncture in their careers at which both players find themselves. At 40 years old, with 176 caps to his name, there is no better judge than Anderson on how high this victory should rank. He admitted to Stokes that he was emotional ahead of their media engagements at the end of the match. For a player famed for keeping his feelings in check, it was something his captain took as a clear indication of just how special this was.”The way we took ten wickets in that first innings was difficult,” Anderson said. “I thought the spinners helped us out a lot in that innings. Then the way we then went out, with a real clarity of, ‘we’re going to set them something today’.”We knew we’re going to declare [on day four] and have a bowl at them that night. We didn’t necessarily think it would be at tea. But the way we batted allowed us to declare at tea and dangle them a carrot which, on this wicket, I think we needed to do.Related

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“Because, as we saw at the back end of the day, when they just dead-batted it, it was very hard to get anything out of it. But I just thought today was a massive effort. We got the ball reverse-swinging, which was huge, absolutely huge.”That achievement might, on the face of it, have looked like a happy accident. But it was in fact the consequence of a carefully considered tactic, as Anderson himself was held back from the new ball for the first time since the second innings at Chennai at the start of 2021, which also happened to be the last time England won a Test away from home. Instead, England started with bumpers from Robinson and Stokes, helping to rough up one side of the ball before Anderson came into the attack. His first two overs were short before the ball began to tail.”The way Robbo bowled and, actually, the way Robbo and Stokesy bowled with a new ball last night, I thought was brilliant, that bouncer theory got a couple of early wickets, and set the ball rolling. And then today we knew it was going to be a nervy one. But the way we stuck at our task was just brilliant.”Robinson, meanwhile, is a relative youngster at 29, and this was his first Test victory overseas. But we are barely six months on from the very public laments about his fitness in the Caribbean, after the issue was first raised at the end of last winter’s Ashes series. The message was received loud and clear. Again, Stokes was a facilitator, speaking to Robinson early on in his tenure to underline his qualities as a bowler but reinforce the need to be able to give everything to the cause. He returned in the summer during the Test series with South Africa looking slender, but the 43 overs of grind across both innings – split 21-22, and incisive throughout – reinforced his increased durability.”I woke up [on the morning of day five] and I didn’t feel sore,” Robinson explained. “And I think that’s a great sign for where I’m at and where my body’s at.”I’m very proud of the work that I’ve done and the England backroom staff, and how good they’ve been with me and got me into this place. So it’s just been a really good team effort and I’m chuffed to be here now.”It’s one of those games you need all 11 players to pull as hard as they can in one direction. And I think we did that really well. And obviously the light’s just gone and we just got the victory.”Anderson, Robinson and Ben Stokes bask in England’s win•Matthew Lewis/Getty Images

The prospect of going again so soon after such effort, with the second Test starting in Multan on Friday, does not faze him. “I do actually, yeah,” was his answer when asked if he thought he could back this up. “I feel like a couple of days of rest and a little training session before the second Test and I’ll be okay. I’ll get a couple of ice baths and a bit of treatment from the physio, a few rub-downs, and hopefully be ready to go.”There is a lot to be said for the way the relationship between Anderson and Robinson has blossomed, ever since the latter found himself around the Test squad during the extended group practices that were a necessity during the 2020 Covid summer. Robinson’s skills immediately caught Anderson’s eye – as it did the rest of the group, who started calling him “Glenn McGrath” – and immediately considered him not just a peer but someone who could give him a few ideas. And in the absence of long-time bowling partner, confidant and friend, Stuart Broad, who is on paternity leave back in the UK, Anderson has an ideal replacement.The pair consulted throughout their time in the field, with one always at mid-on or mid-off when the other had the ball in their hand. By the end, it was mostly about encouraging the other to keep going, rather than imparting any specific advice. “Things like ‘keep your legs up, pick your legs up’,” Anderson explained. “Just keep running in, just focus on the next ball. Just keep it really simple.””We [the seamers] didn’t bowl a huge amount in the first innings, 20-odd overs [each]. It wasn’t a huge workload. So we were fairly fresh coming in to day five, even though we didn’t have much rest. But I just thought we kept each other going. There were times when one of us would flag and then the other one would have to pick him up. And say just keep going.”Robinson admitted that he even joined Anderson in trying to elicit a reaction from Pakistan’s line-up, in a bid to break their concentration in those crucial final passages after lunch. Not that the Sussex quick needs an excuse to let a batter know what was on his mind. But having seen Anderson indulge in a bit of sledging, he figured he might as well reinforce the senior man’s aggro.”I think that’s part of my game, trying to get under their skin. And I felt like we did that with a few of their batters and got them out of their bubble, playing a few shots that they might not have played.”I think that’s part of the game isn’t it? Try and get a bit out of the opposition and it makes it more enjoyable as well. So yeah, I followed Jimmy.”England arrived into Multan on Tuesday, later than expected after their chartered flight was delayed by three-and-a-half hours due to fog. They will have Wednesday off before training on Thursday ahead of the second Test. A call will likely be made on whether Anderson and Robinson can go back-to-back, especially with Mark Wood understood to have overcome his hip injury.Should they get the chance once more, however, the pair will be motivated to build on what has been an outstanding start to this tour for the team and themselves, and will no doubt drive each other in a bid to reach the same heights.

'Bowl patiently, wait for mistakes' – Taskin's mantra for fast bowlers in flat Chattogram

“If we try to force the issue, it won’t work. We will leak runs. We have to get the new ball to swing a bit”

Mohammad Isam12-Dec-2022

Taskin Ahmed has been Bangladesh’s leading fast bowler in recent times•AFP/Getty Images

Taskin Ahmed reckons the Bangladesh bowlers will have to show patience on what is expected to be a flat batting surface at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, in Chattogram- the venue for the first Test against India.The pitch curator, Praveen Hinganikar, has left a bit of grass on all of the centre surfaces two days out from the Test, but as it was quite evident in the third ODI on Saturday, the batters should enjoy their time here. Fast bowlers can expect a long toil, but Taskin believes the only way forward would be to bowl with discipline.Related

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Taskin has been Bangladesh’s leading fast bowler over the last two years but has had injury concerns in recent times. He missed the first two ODIs against India due to a back injury, before returning with figures of 2 for 89 from his nine overs in the third outing as Ishan Kishan took the bowlers to the sword.The bowling average for seamers at Chattogram in Tests too is high, but Taskin believes it is up to the bowlers to make themselves “so skilful” so as to remove the type of surface out of the equation.”It’s the same everywhere: top of off [stump],” Taskin said on the lines fast bowlers should target in Chattogram. “If we try to force the issue, it won’t work in our favour. We will leak runs. They are good players, so we have to get the new ball to swing a bit. Maybe get reverse swing with the old ball. We have to try to break their patience. We have to bowl patiently and wait for their mistakes. It won’t be right to say that we want to blow them away.”Fast bowlers ideally want to bowl on green tops. Conditions are not in our hands. We have got slow and flat tracks in South Africa and New Zealand. We have to make ourselves so skilful that we can bowl well on all types of wickets. Great bowlers are also getting five-fors on flat tracks. We have to focus on our self-improvement rather than [look at] conditions.”Taskin Ahmed has been under an injury cloud lately•AFP/Getty Images

Taskin isn’t a sure starter for the first Test that gets underway on Wednesday. As he slowly works himself back to full fitness, he admits he isn’t entirely sure whether his workload build-up is up to the standard set by the team management.”The team management is concerned about my workload build-up. I have just returned from an injury, so I am working on increasing workload build-up, fitness and bowling load.”If I can fulfil the load before this game, they may think of playing me. If not, then I might not play this Test. I might be playing the second Test in that case. I have spoken to them about it. I am following my workload plan,” he said.While their ODI outfit is flourishing, Bangladesh have struggled in the Test format, having won just a solitary game this year in eight attempts. They have been on the losing side six times with one Test ending in a draw. They are yet to beat India in a Test match, and Taskin feels Bangladesh’s first attempt will be to take the game into the final day, and then hope for a positive finish.”Chattogram is a batting paradise in Bangladesh. It has never been easy for fast bowlers here. We are improving but we are yet to get favourable wickets. It is usually a batting track,” he said.”Test cricket is always challenging. We have won Tests by taking it to the fifth day, so here too, we have to take the game into the fifth day.”Bangladesh are likely to go into the first Test with two fast bowlers, a combination favoured by the team management at home. Still, Taskin, Khaled Ahmed and Ebadot Hossain have shown enough evidence that they can carry the bowling attack in most conditions. Taskin believes that Bangladesh’s fast-bowling unit has shown improvement in all three formats, with the focus being on better work ethic and desire.”As a pace bowling group, we are hungry for improvement. We are all in it together. Work ethic has improved. This is all we have in our hands. The management is with us, so if our desire remains, we can do better,” he said.

Colin Graves says he is willing to return to Yorkshire chair 'on own terms'

Former ECB chair confirms interest in succeeding Lord Patel at next AGM

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2023Colin Graves has confirmed he is willing to return as Yorkshire’s chair, but “on his terms”, following Lord Kamlesh Patel’s announcement that he will stand down at the club’s next Annual General Meeting in March.Graves, 74, made his fortune as the founder of the Costcutter supermarket chain, and stepped in to rescue Yorkshire from bankruptcy in 2002. He served as chair between 2012 and 2015 before moving onto a five-year term as ECB chair.Now, he has told the Yorkshire Post that he is ready to “ride to the rescue” again, with the club expected to report losses of up to £3 million in their next accounts, in the wake of the racism scandal that gripped Yorkshire last year and led to the suspension of international hosting rights and the withdrawal of a raft of sponsors.However, his candidacy is sure to be divisive, not least because the club still owes some £16 million to the Graves Family Trust, as a consequence of his 2002 bailout. While Graves himself is no longer directly associated with that debt, the link remains a contentious one, with Roger Hutton, Lord Patel’s predecessor as chair, claiming that the Trust had been a roadblock to reform at the club in the wake of Azeem Rafiq’s claims of institutional racism, in particular when vetoing of the removal of two board members.Graves himself has been referenced on numerous occasions at the DCMS parliamentary select committee hearings in Westminster, with the chair Julian Knight telling him to “put up or shut up” after he refused to appear as a witness in November 2021.”The club knows my views,” Graves told the Post. “If I come back, it will be on my terms. I’ll work with the board. But I’ll run it how I want to run it and I know I can turn it around in three years basically.Related

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“It’s up to the club. I know I can bring to the table what Yorkshire want at this point in time, which is healing all the wounds, getting the members back on side to being a members’ club, working with the board to get them in the right position going forward and to sort out the financial situation that they’re looking at.”Yorkshire’s latest accounts refer to a “a material uncertainty” over the club’s “ability to continue as a going concern”, with their total debts believed to be in the region of £20 million. The servicing of these debts has reportedly been hindered by rising interest rates, while there is still the matter of the outstanding court case involving the former physiotherapist Wayne Morton and other staff who were sacked by Lord Patel in December 2021 in response to the racism allegations.On the playing side, Yorkshire suffered relegation on the final day of the 2022 season and will have to play second division cricket for the first time in more than a decade.A Yorkshire spokesperson added: “Lord Patel will step down as chair of Yorkshire County Cricket Club at the next AGM. A new chair will be appointed following a thorough, fair and robust recruitment process, to ensure that the right individual is in place and continue the significant progress which the club has made in his tenure.”Other names reportedly in the frame to replace Lord Patel include Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, the former Paralympic athlete who joined the board as a non-executive director last year, and also serves as a crossbench peer in the House of Lords.

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