All posts by h716a5.icu

Nikola Vlasic, Lukasz Fabianski and Craig Dawson all struggled in West Ham’s 1-1 draw against Burnley.

It was a case of after the Lord Mayor’s show for the Hammers as David Moyes’ side suffered in their quest to put pressure on the Premier League top-four at the London Stadium following their European heroics in France against Lyon.

After an inauspicious start, the game was halted for a lengthy period so Ashley Westwood could receive treatment. When the contest got back underway, it was visiting striker Wout Weghorst who opened the scoring. Things could’ve been worse for the Irons before half-time as Maxwel Cornet missed from the penalty spot having been brought down by Lukasz Fabianski.

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Despite an improved performance in the second half and a goal from Tomas Soucek, Moyes’ men were unable to seal three points and the Europa League now seems like the most realistic route to the UEFA Champions League next season.

According to SofaScore, there were three West Ham players in particular who were particularly below par on the afternoon.

Vlasic 6.6/10

Yet another appearance seemed to pass the Croatian by before being replaced shortly after the hour mark.

Overall, the 24-year-old lost possession on 10 occasions, failed to complete a single dribble, gave away two fouls and only had 36 touches whilst on the pitch, with only four of his teammates having fewer.

Fabianski 6/10

The guilty party for the penalty in the first half and booked for the incident, albeit the 36-year-old Pole was relieved to see the subsequent spot-kick fired wide.

Fabianski ended the match with a passing accuracy of 11/14 (79%), giving the ball away cheaply three times, and perhaps most surprisingly ended the contest without making a single save. 

Dawson 6.7/10

Far from his exploits in France on Thursday night, Dawson failed to have his usual impact on proceedings on this occasion.

The 31-year-old lost possession 10 times, gave away two fouls and was only accurate with 39/49 (80%) of his passes.

In other news: French source earmarks West Ham ace for summer move! Find out more here.

Pakistan legspinner Danish Kaneria has been refused “clearance” by the PCB to join the Test squad for the series against South Africa in the UAE

Osman Samiuddin07-Nov-2010Pakistan legspinner Danish Kaneria has been refused “clearance” by the PCB to join the Test squad for the series against South Africa in the UAE.Kaneria was due to fly to Dubai early on Sunday morning as one of a group of five players but he was called by a board official just before he was due to leave for the airport and informed that he could not go. Mohammad Sami, Azhar Ali, Taufeeq Umar and Mohammad Yousuf all left to join the squad.”Danish has not been given clearance by the board,” Zakir Khan, the PCB’s director of cricket international, told ESPNcricinfo. No other reason was given. Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, and other officials were unavailable for comment.The last-minute development is bound to fuel speculation over the reasons of the sudden u-turn. Kaneria was selected in the original squad announced in October and, as chief selector Mohsin Khan repeatedly stressedthat no player will be selected unless he was cleared by the chairman, it must be assumed that Kaneria was cleared initially.Kaneria was also part of the training camp the team had before the departure for the UAE. He has since played in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy as well, taking 18 wickets in two games for Habib Bank Limited. He last played for Pakistan in the Trent Bridge Test against England in August, after which he was dropped. Kaneria had played 61 Tests and is the country’s most successful spinner with 261 wickets.It is not clear whether the decision has anything to do with the PCB’s attempts – compelled by the ICC’s warning last month – to put its house in order and tighten up against corruption. Kaneria was the subject of a criminal investigation through the summer by Essex police over allegations that he was involved in spot-fixing during a county game. The investigations had begun in May but Kaneria was cleared by police in September.

Tottenham Hotspur, and by extension their transfer chief Fabio Paratici, have sent a club official to Roma as news emerges on transfer target Nicolo Zaniolo.

The Lowdown: Conte loves him…

Spurs head coach Antonio Conte, according to reports, is a big fan of the playmaker and really wants to see him make a move to the Premier League.

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Indeed, a report by Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness) shared news that the 52-year-old ‘really likes’ Zaniolo and would ‘really like him’ as a part of his Tottenham team.

Links to the 22-year-old have been fairly consistent, going as far back as the Mauricio Pochettino era, with yet another report now surfacing this week.

The Latest: Tottenham official travelling…

La Gazzetta dello Sport, as shared by Sport Witness, claim that a Lilywhites official has been sent to run the rule over Spurs’ long-time target tonight as Roma take on Leicester City in the Europa Conference League.

The Tottenham scout will be watching over his performance as Paratici continue to keep close tabs on Zaniolo.

The Verdict: Make a move?

Calciomercato.it recently reported that Roma value their Italy international at around €70 million (£58m), a heavy price, with Juventus, AC Milan, Sevilla and Atletico Madrid also courting the attacker.

His recovery from a shattering ACL injury, which caused him to miss the whole of 2020/2021, has been quite remarkable as he now begins to find form again.

Ex-Liverpool and Juventus midfielder Moussa Sissoko, recently calling Zaniolo an ‘excellent’ player, is certainly an admirer, with the starlet even earning comparisons to Steven Gerrard in past seasons.

As Paratici sends a club official to keep watch, it will be interesting to see how he fares in the Spurs audition.

In other news: Source: Tottenham edge closer to ‘top signing’, he really wants to join Conte! Find out more here.

Ben Edmondson picked up his first five-wicket haul for his new state South Australia, but Victoria remained in the stronger position after two days at the Adelaide Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Dec-2010
ScorecardBen Edmondson picked up 5 for 93•Getty ImagesBen Edmondson picked up his first five-wicket haul for his new state South Australia, but Victoria remained in the stronger position after two days at the Adelaide Oval. By the close of play, the Redbacks were 3 for 98 in their second innings, still trailing by 40 runs after Victoria took a handy first-innings lead thanks to three half-century makers.South Australia were relying on Callum Ferguson, who had 15, and Tim Ludeman, who was on 8 not out, after an important late wicket from Damien Wright. The opener Tom Cooper was guiding the Redbacks steadily until on 53 he was caught at slip by Cameron White, which brought the nightwatchman Ludeman to the crease.The visitors had set up their advantage through consistent efforts right down the batting order, with Aaron Finch (62) the top scorer in their 306. White made 60 and Matthew Wade chipped in with 54, with David Hussey and the injured Andrew McDonald the only specialists to fail, having both made golden ducks.Edmondson, a journeyman fast bowler who switched from Western Australia during the off season, finished with 5 for 93, while the left-arm spinner Aaron O’Brien took 3 for 50. Both teams are struggling towards the bottom end of the Sheffield Shield table and need an outright victory to stay in touch with the pace-setters New South Wales and Tasmania.

Former BBC pundit Noel Whelan has been giving his reaction to some Newcastle United transfer news involving Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

The Lowdown: Bid plotted

As per The Daily Express, the St. James’ Park faithful are now plotting a £30m bid to sign Hojbjerg from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer.

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Antonio Conte is reportedly planning a shake up of his squad, and Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma are also interested in his signature.

Report have claimed Daniel Levy was ‘furious’ with last year’s Tyneside takeover, but those in the media believe he would still sell to the Magpies if the right offer arrived.

The Latest: Whelan reacts

Speaking to Football Insider, former Leeds United and Coventry City striker Whelan has reacted to the news, claiming that it is a ‘no brainer’ for the North East club to sign him:

“As much as Bruno Guimaraes is very competitive in that midfield, he’s one that likes to get forward.

“We’ve seen that in recent weeks so that security of a Hojbjerg in there is an absolute definite. It’s a no brainer for me. That’s what they need, that kind of brute, a big, strong boy in midfield.

“Someone who’s going to break up attacks, win those second balls and keeps the attack flowing for Newcastle. That allows for a little bit more freedom for Guimaraes to get into the box.

“We have seen how clinical he can be when he makes those runs from midfield. I think that’s something that will complement the two of them. They’ve both got that tenacity in midfield as well.

“But Guimaraes is a little bit more forward-thinking. I think that would suit Newcastle down to the ground, a very disciplined holding midfield player.

“Someone who can win those second balls and is very aggressive in that midfield area.”

The Verdict: Big upgrade

Hojbjerg would certainly be a big upgrade on Eddie Howe’s current options in the middle of the park.

Only Kieran Trippier betters his 7.14 average rating in the Premier League out of the Tyneside squad, while he would also rank highly amongst the Magpies players in terms of average tackles, interceptions, dribbles and passes per game (WhoScored).

Hailed as doing a ‘fantastic job’ in midfield by Conte recently, Hojbjerg could be the anchor that the likes of Bruno Guimaraes need to express themselves in the centre of the pitch, and at 26 years of age, the Toon would be signing a player who is about to enter his prime.

In other news, find out who NUFC may now sell this summer here!

AB de Villiers offered no excuses after South Africa were bundled out for 131 in their first innings against India in Durban

Firdose Moonda at Kingsmead27-Dec-2010AB de Villiers offered no excuses for South Africa being bundled out for 131 in their first innings against India in Durban. “We batted extremely poorly. There were quite a few soft wickets, but they also bowled well,” he said at the end-of-day press conference.It was as simple as that for the South African number four, who fell to the best delivery Sreesanth bowled all day, a leg-cutter that had him edging to the keeper without scoring. Sreesanth, along with Ishant Sharma, were much better bowlers with the return of India spearhead Zaheer Khan, who made a noticeable impact. “He put us under pressure from the word go,” de Villiers said.de Villiers admitted that India were a more threatening attack than they were in Centurion, where they were unable to dismiss South Africa once. “Their lengths and lines were spot on. They bowled a bit wide to us so we had to leave a few more.” The Indian fight back may have been surprising to some, but de Villiers said that South Africa were bracing for some form of revival from the world’s top ranked Test side. “You expect the No. 1 team to bounce back after a poor performance. They caught us offside today.”Instead of blaming the Durban pitch, known for its bounce and swing, for a third team total in the 130s in three Tests for South Africa, de Villiers said the inept performance made the pitch look more dangerous that what it was. “18 wickets in the day is not a true reflection of how the wicket is playing. It’s playing better than that.” He felt that the batsmen simply needed to push on once they got starts. “When you get to 30 or 40 it gets easier. You get used to the pace, bounce and swing. You can set yourself a nice platform and do nicely.”The discomfort the batsmen felt was evident, however, as only Alviro Petersen and Hashim Amla managed more than 20 runs. With India batting again, VVS Laxman is primed to be the man who settles in and makes that big score. South Africa are aware that he has the ability to take the game away from them and urge the batsmen around him to do the same. “We’ve seen him play big knocks for India before under pressure,” de Villiers said. “He manages the player at the other end well, who is a youngster at the moment. He is definitely a danger man at the moment.”It’s capturing early wickets that South Africa are targeting to prevent Laxman from making himself too comfortable. de Villiers thinks that the bowlers continue to hold advantage as the match goes on, particularly the tweakers. “There’s always going to be something in it for the bowlers, even a little bit of spin Harris and Harbhajan both bowled well, getting a bit of bounce and turn. We’re just going to have to come out here and get a few early wickets and restrict them to 250, which is very chase-able.”We would like to chase something in between 240 and 260. After a very poor performance today, we’d like to come out and prove ourselves and play well again. Even if we have to chase 300, we’ll give it a good go.”

West Bromwich Albion are set to have a major rebuild this summer following the arrival of four-time promotion-winning manager Steve Bruce, who has been set the task to get the Baggies back into the Premier League.

The Black Country club has fallen short of taking the opportunity to bounce back into the top flight following an inconsistent and disappointing season at The Hawthorns that has led the club to fall into tenth in the league table currently.

The club and manager clearly recognise big changes and improvements need to be made at the end of the season, with Bruce openly giving detail on the plans for the transfer window.

Bruce told BirminghamLive:

“I think we need to freshen the whole squad up. How big? I would think it would be substantial – I hope.

“I think we need as many as five or six – a major overhaul is needed.”

With that being said, West Brom have been in hot pursuit of out-of-contract Reading midfielder John Swift who has had another impressive season with his Championship side and it has been reported that the Baggies have even sent scouts to watch him play this season on several occasions.

Swift has been a consistent and creative attacking threat for the Royals this season scoring 11 goals and contributing 13 assists in 38 league appearances, but his impressive G/A only tells part of the story of his performances this season from the centre of the pitch.

The £25k-per-week ace who was hailed “super talented” by Veljko Paunovic averages 66.8 touches and 2.7 key passes per game, as well as being successful in the majority of his dribbles (58%) and creating ten big chances for his team, proving he is an absolute nuisance for his opponents in the advanced midfield role he is deployed in.

The Reading star was even dubbed the “Championship James Maddison” by journalist Josh Holland, who sang the praises of Swift to GIVEMESPORT:

“It’s quite impressive. Whenever I’ve seen him play this season, he reminds me of a Championship level James Maddison in terms of he comes deep, and it always goes through Maddison, which is the same as Swift at Reading.”

There is no doubt that Swift would be a huge upgrade and make considerably more impact on the West Brom attacking third than Grady Diangana, who has been largely inconsistent in his position for the Baggies this season with just two goals in 40 league appearances.

Ultimately, if Bruce does manage to secure the signature of their hot prospect he will need to rethink what part Diangana will play in the team going forward as the priority is to win games and get back into the Premier League as soon as they possibly can.

AND in other news: Imagine him & Mowatt; Bruce can save WBA millions with “feisty” 22 y/o machine

The BCCI has sent a letter to the IPL franchises asking them if they have any objections to teams signing Indian players who went unsold in the auction

Tariq Engineer31-Jan-2011Sourav Ganguly might find himself back on the field for the 2011 IPL after all, even though he failed to attract any bids from franchises during the auction on January 8 and 9. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that the BCCI has sent a letter to the franchises asking if they have any objections to teams signing Indian players who were unsold in the auction. The letter specifically mentions Ganguly as one of the players the franchises are interested in, along with Wasim Jaffer and VRV Singh, who were the other two Indian players that weren’t bought. IPL rules presently do not permit unsold players to be signed after the auction.The Kochi franchise is reported to have shown interest in signing Ganguly, and had apparently contacted the BCCI, leading to the sending of the letter. However, Mehul Shah, one of the co-owners of the franchise, told ESPNcricinfo that was not the case and they had not asked the board for permission to sign Ganguly.The franchises have until February 3 to respond to the letter, with the BCCI expected to decide on the matter during the IPL governing council meeting on February 4. “There are two conditions to the proposal,” a franchise official said. Teams will have to pay the minimum base price set for the player in the auction and the cost of the player will come out of the team’s salary cap.Ganguly had raised eyebrows when he doubled his base price to $400,000 just before the auction, and officials from a number of franchises were sceptical that he would find any takers. At the time Ganguly expressed incredulity at finding no buyers. “I don’t know what happened,” he said. “It’s up to the teams to decide on the players but I didn’t expect to go unsold. It’s hard to believe that I don’t figure among the 100-odd cricketers.”Subsequently, Ganguly’s original franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders, said that it would be open to having him on board in some capacity.

A potential dispute involving two leading cricketers, Sri Lanka Cricket and a state-owned channel appears to have been doused

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Mar-2011A potential dispute involving two leading cricketers, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and a state-owned channel appears to have been doused after the channel issued a clarification over remarks made by an anchor following Sri Lanka’s 11-run loss to Pakistan on Saturday.A commentary on Sunday on Sri Lanka’s state TV network, ITN, said a businessman had bet roughly $18,000 on a Pakistan victory and, according to an SLC release, implied “that our players might have been involved in match-fixing.”SLC condemned the comments and said it would be taking up the matter “with the relevant authorities of this channel, based on the fact that this channel has brought great distress to two of our national cricketers.” After Sri Lanka’s nine-wicket win over Kenya on Tuesday, a board official said that the matter would be discussed with lawyers and board authorities.Soon after the SLC release, ITN issued its own clarification. “It must be emphasised that our intention was purely not to embarrass” the players. “We wish to express our deep concern if the contents of the programme had hurt both of them or any other party. Today’s “Vimasuma” [the name of the show] was based on making further clarifications with regard to the earlier programme.”Sri Lanka’s team manager Anura Tennekoon denied there would be any inquiry from the SLC or from the International Cricket Council (ICC). “Knowing both [the players], we feel there is no necessity to investigate the matter and, as far as the ICC has concerned, they have the right to investigate but so far they have not brought anything on this,” Tennekoon said. “But we will discuss the matter with our lawyer as well.”

The morning after winning the World Cup the Indian team had an appointment with the president

Nagraj Gollapudi in Mumbai03-Apr-2011″I was in a state of shock,” Gary Kirsten said as he described his emotions to Ratnakar Shetty, the World Cup tournament director, who also happens to be the BCCI’s chief administrative officer, less than 24 hours after India had become world champions. Both men stood on the lawns of the Raj Bhavan, residence of the Governor of Maharasthra, whose capital city is Mumbai. If you were expecting to see bleary-eyed men sleep walking you would have been disappointed. The entire India squad, along with the support staff, had turned up to meet the president of India Pratibha Patil. Wearing the smart green and white-collared team T-shirts, every man looked fresh and relaxed.Not that there were no celebrations after the World Cup triumph. As Yuvraj Singh had assured last evening, he would make sure it would be an unforgettable night. “I did not sleep,” he said, wearing a pair of much-needed sunglasses. Paddy Upton was briefer. “Hungover,” he said when asked about the feeling after the biggest day in his life. Harbhajan Singh concurred with Upton and added “was up till 8am”. Munaf Patel had probably slept the most. “I don’t drink. I don’t party,” he said with his open smile.MS Dhoni, wearing a new look, having shaved his head (purported reasons varied from “spontaneity” to “religious”) was kept busy by the various bigwigs, which included a mixture of politicians, industrialists and administrators. Sharad Pawar, the ICC president, attended the function along with chief executive Haroon Lorgat. The function was also attended by chiefs of other foreign boards: James Sutherland (Australia), Giles Clarke (England), Ernest Hilaire (West Indies) and few members from the Associates and the Affiliates.The fervent celebrations that erupted immediately after Dhoni had lit up the India skies with the winning six continued through Sunday in Mumbai. Even on regular Sundays the Gateway of India, an iconic outpost which stands opposite the Indian team hotel, is the most-visited spot in the megapolis. Today a few thousand extra came in to get a glimpse of the world champions.Through the night the fans had jumped, hooped, danced and shrieked “we are the champions, we are the champions”. Those chants were again heard on the streets leading form the team hotel to the Governor’s house on Sunday. The newspapers had made the people aware of the fact the players were meeting the president. Tourists and locals lined up along Marine Drive, the road which runs along the sea and leads up to Malabar Hill where Raj Bhavan is located.The whistles and the vuvuzelas kept the tempo alive. Flags waved from the balconies and windows. A few decided to take their own victory bus ride as they hired a double-decker and passed behind the team hotel, hooting and cheering the Indians. Mumbai Indians, the IPL team Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh represent, had put out a giant hoarding to congratulate the team.

Even on regular Sundays the Gateway of India, an iconic outpost which stands opposite the Indian team hotel, is the most-visited spot in the megapolis. On Sunday, a few thousand extra came in to get a glimpse of the world champions

The day had started early for the players. They had a photo shoot with the Gateway of India as the backdrop. Tendulkar and Dhoni wore suits, Yuvraj and others were more casual. Every player held the Cup with various poses. Tendulkar later said that he was happy that he had never stopped chasing his dream of winning the World Cup. If anything he made sure he would never give up.”It was a very emotional moment because I had never dreamt in my wildest of dream that I will be able to see such wonderful moments in my life,” he said. “I would like to thank God for giving me such a wonderful day in my life. Whatever hard work as a team we have put in, we have got the fruits of it. Not just we as a team, the entire nation is happy in our win. That is what we wanted to achieve the most.”Tendulkar pointed out that even if winning the World Cup was his ultimate dream his passion for cricket was still very much alive. “I think this would be a proud moment for everyone in our country. We don’t get to see such wonderful days everyday, so I think it is a very special day for every Indian,” he said. Many agreed, including Mukesh Ambani, the owner of Mumbai Indians, who had walked in along with his wife Nita and socialised with Anjali Tendulkar and Sakshi Dhoni.The Ambanis had arrived at the same time the Indian players lined up to meet the first lady of India. Ambani made sure he would not obstruct the flow of the things and stepped back, allowing the players to interact with the Indian president freely. “This is an achievement by the Indian team dedicated to the people of India. This is something that will inspire the youth of India,” Ambani said.His wife said when India won the Cup for the first time she was “just 19”, but today she was one with the Indian team. “I am so happy team India has done us all proud,” Nita Ambani said. Standing by her side, Anjali Tendulkar listened quietly. No amount of requests and pleads would force her to reveal how she felt. Instead, she made sure Dhoni’s wife was comfortable, considering Sakshi was still getting used to attend such social evenings.Kumar Manglam Birla, another noted industrialist, enquired if Gautam Gambhir’s parents were present at the ground on Saturday evening. “No, they were not here as I tend to get tense if they come and watch my game. I asked them to stay back home and enjoy the game,” he said. Later, Birla’s wife told Harbhajan that he was their son’s favourite cricketer. Another elderly lady politely asked Harbhajan about the Powerplays and the pressure on bowlers. Harbhajan did not lose the opportunity to point out the bowlers were under the pump more than the batsmen.Players like Virender Sehwag and Munaf Patel desisted from speaking to the media but youngsters like Virat Kohli and R Ashwin were open about living a dream so early in their lives. Kohli dedicated the win to his late father, who he said always wanted him to play for India.As the sun set, a cool breeze wafted through and the Mumbai police brass band played the national anthem once again to send off the president. The players got ready to leave. They had to pack to get back home before joining their IPL teams. But for the moment, they had to re-join the party.