Category Uncategorized

South Africa’s little-known IPL pick has built a big reputation with his exploits in the Mzansi League

Liam Brickhill21-Dec-2018There were a couple of familiar names in the South African contingent of the IPL auction in December: Colin Ingram is an increasingly sought-after T20 freelancer, while Heinrich Klaasen is also no stranger to the IPL, and Hardus Viljoen is a County regular. But not as many will have heard of the fourth South African picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders earlier this week.Anrich Nortje, a 25-year-old fast bowler from Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape, turned enough heads in three Mzansi Super League games to pop up on the IPL radar. Playing for the Cape Town Blitz, Nortje caught the attention of KKR coach Jacques Kallis, himself a Cape Town local, scoring a INR 20 lakh (R400,000) contract, despite currently being sidelined by minor surgery on his ankle.”I didn’t really expect to get picked up, but I thought, well, definitely give it a shot. When I get on the shortlist I was quite happy. I was in Struisbaai, [a picturesque coastal town of a few thousand people] in the Western Cape, just in a shopping centre when someone phoned me and I heard,” Nortje explained. “I was busy getting meat for a braai that night.”While he has been a cricketer – and bowled fast – since childhood, Nortje’s recent rise has been rapid. Having made his first class debut in 2013, and his franchise debut in 2016, in the 2017-18 season he averaged a modest 35 with the ball in the four-day domestic competition for Warriors but, he says, he “changed one or two things during the winter, and just sort of clicked”.Nortje was selected for South Africa A’s tour of India in August, playing in two matches and dismissing Prithvi Shaw and Hanuma Vihari – for 148 – in the second unofficial Test against India A. The tour meant Nortje went into the 2018-19 domestic season match-fit and bowling with rhythm, and in five first class games for Warriors he picked up 24 wickets at 21.04, including figures of 5 for 51 and 6 for 66 in back-to-back games against Knights.”It started with getting selected for SA A, and then just bowling straight through the winter. I had a lot of cricket, a lot of prep, a lot of bowling. It’s been very busy and very exciting. Getting selected for the MSL was also a great thing. It got people looking my way a little bit. It would have been nice to play a little more, but it was still a great opportunity.”Even before the Mzansi Super League kicked off, word of Nortje’s pace started to get around. “Just watching Nortje bowling, he bowled at the speed of lightning, that was pretty scary,” said Dawid Malan after one of the warm-ups. While those games obviously weren’t televised, it was reported that Nortje touched 150km/h. “He’s got raw pace,” his team-mate Dale Steyn summed it up, simply. Blitz coach Ashwell Prince went as far as saying: “I have no doubt he will go on to play successfully at Test match level.””I was also a little bit surprised to see the speeds,” admitted Nortje. “I did change one or two things and I could feel it’s a little bit quicker, and there’s a little bit more power at the crease. But to see the pace was nice.”

I was just in a shopping centre when someone phoned me and I heard. I was busy getting meat for a braai that night

“I definitely think there was one four-day game at Centurion, that I could definitely feel it was quicker. Quicker than what I bowled at MSL. But that was just one spell that I bowled. This season, compared to previous seasons, has definitely been the quickest.”In that Centurion game, Nortje collected the wickets of Aiden Markram and Farhaan Behardien on his way to 4 for 67. He knocked over big names in the MSL as well, dismissing Hashim Amla and Temba Bavuma (first ball) on his way to 4 for 32 against Durban Heat, and then cut through Jozi Stars with 3 for 30. While he was just doing what he had been doing domestically all season, this was televised. The exposure clearly helped.”Without that [Mzansi], I wouldn’t have been picked up. It was my first big T20 tournament, I’d like to get more exposure from here on, and IPL would definitely help that.”Nortje credited the various coaches and trainers who have helped to shape his career thus far, including age-group coach Andre du Plessis, provincial coach Piet Botha, his Warriors fitness trainer and Warriors coach Rivash Gobind, who “sort of just freed us up, the whole team. Those guys really had an influence on me getting to where I am at this stage”.While Nortje’s MSL adventure was cut short by bone fragments in his left ankle that required surgery and put him out of cricket until the new year, with an IPL contract and plenty of buzz around him, he’s actually in a pretty good place right now.”I’m just excited to be playing [in the IPL]. If I can get a game, that would probably be the most exciting thing for me. It doesn’t really bother me who I’m bowling to or whatever. I just want to play and just do my thing.”Playing for the Proteas is an obvious goal for Nortje, but even before that he will have a chance to bowl at some of the best players in the world at the IPL. Including, perhaps, the greatest of them all.”Bowling to Virat? Wow, I don’t know,” he laughs. “He’s an unbelievable player. I’ll have to assess it on the day, assess the wicket, and just go according to the plan of what the coach and the team wants.””I’d definitely like to play for the Proteas. I’d play any time, any format, it doesn’t matter what it is. I just want to get into the green and gold and play for South Africa.”

Liverpool supporters should be delighted with the way that Jurgen Klopp has successfully reshaped the side after a terrible 2022/23 campaign, now fighting at the forefront of the Premier League pack once again.

That doesn't mean that the Anfield faithful cannot eagerly await the next phase in the rebuild; last year's sapped midfield has been built anew on an industrial scale, but Fabinho's summer sale to Al-Ittihad means that there is still ample room for a shiny new specialist No. 6.

Sunday's draw against Luton Town at Kenilworth Road exposed this, with shades of last season's malaise creeping in as the Reds languished to a 1-1 draw, with the striking performance of Darwin Nunez very much compounding the evening.

Darwin Nunez's stats vs Luton

Having made impressive improvements to his game since the summer, Liverpool were treated to a harrowing spectacle of the Nunez of old against Luton.

Liverpool might've had their blushes spared by Luis Diaz's last-gasp equaliser off the bench – an extraordinary and emotional moment given the Colombian's ongoing family crisis – but the ceded territory highlighted weaknesses in this resurgent Reds squad.

Nunez missed three big chances, hitting the target three times, missing it on four occasions and seeing two efforts blocked, as per Sofascore; candidly, it was not a demonstration of the Uruguayan's best qualities and progress this year, and had he been more clinical his side surely would have walked away with all the goods.

Touches

45

Accurate Passes

14/22 (64%)

Expected Goals (xG)

0.90

Shots on target

3

Shots off target

4

Big chances missed

3

Key Passes

1

Duels Won

4/8

Possession Lost

15x

Stats via Sofascore.

His profligacy is a concern, but given that he has been in such stellar showing over the past few months, Klopp will hope for now that it was a mere blip, having posted seven goals and four assists already this year.

Klopp will hold an unwavering belief in his centre-forward's cutting edge, and while the 24-year-old was the notable underperformer against the Hatters, the continuing struggles of Alexis Mac Allister in midfield present a far more glaring cause for concern.

Alexis Mac Allister's season by numbers

Since signing from Brighton & Hove Albion in a £35m transfer in the summer, it's fair to say that Mac Allister has not really entered his stride.

It's also a fair argument that a large portion of this is down to Klopp's decision to field him in the deep-lying midfield position, negating much of his best quality and precluding him from finding promising offensive positions with the regularity that saw him plunder 12 goals and three assists for Brighton last term.

He certainly hasn't been objectively… bad, it's just that the 24-year-old is still awaiting a consistent deployment in his favoured role, which earned him praise from journalist Roy Nemur for his “unplayable” displays at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he gleaned gold with Argentina.

As per Sofascore, Mac Allister has completed 88% of his passes in the Premier League this season, also making 6.5 ball recoveries and 2.5 tackles per game, but such metrics appear to be deceiving considering the discernible issues when watching him in action.

League Matches Played

11

Goals

0

Assists

1

Shots per game

0.5

Key passes per game

0.7

Pass Accuracy

88%

Interceptions per game

1.3

Tackles per game

2.5

Ball Recoveries per game

6.5

Stats via Sofascore

Against Luton, however, he lost possession 15 times, won just three of his ten contested duels, made only one tackle and was dribbled past on three occasions, certainly not producing the kind of formidable performance that is needed against a squad of Luton's physicality.

There are alternatives, Wataru Endo is an industrious midfielder and of the mould requisite for the defensive midfield role, but is seemingly not considered the solution, having started just once in the Premier League since his £16m summer arrival from Stuttgart, with Mac Allister consistently taking his spot.

The winter transfer market could also be the apt time to pounce on Merseyside, with Fluminense star Andre still reportedly of interest after winning the Copa Libertadores last week.

Mac Allister will likely be made to ply his trade in the same role on multiple occasions over the next few months, but it is increasingly important that Liverpool rectify the situation and find a worthy solution, only enhancing the chance of clinching silverware by next summer.

The series is lost but Ravi Shastri is not “throwing the towel in” yet, and neither are the Indian team. Shastri has singled out his batsmen for not being as mentally strong as they could have been, giving away the advantage to England in situations they should have capitalised on, but despite England holding a series-winning 3-1 lead with only the fifth Test to play, India’s coach believes his team will compete hard in the match at the Oval that starts on Friday, and rectify mistakes made in the first four Tests.The five-Test series got off to an exhilarating start after England held their nerve on the fifth morning at Edgbaston to win by 31 runs. England then obliterated India at Lord’s in a matter of a few sessions. India bounced back collectively to hurt England at Trent Bridge and keep the series alive.In Southampton India had England reeling at 86 for 6 on day one. Still, stunningly, it was India who were left bruised in the end as Sam Curran played another belligerent knock to wrest back control, just as he had done at Edgbaston in the second innings when England were stuttering at 87 for 7. India’s five-man bowling attack failed to stop Curran both times, and paid the price.On the third day, England were in trouble once again and lost quick wickets either side of the lunch break to slip to 92 for 4, but their lower order resisted admirably and hit back to raise a big lead on a worn pitch. India had no answer to Moeen Ali, who kept pitching the ball in the footmarks and getting it to turn and bounce sharply. It was something India’s lead spinner R Ashwin failed to do, which Shastri said was the difference between the sides.But Shastri was still not giving up. “The fact of the matter is that you had a chance,” Shastri said after India’s training on Wednesday. “The scoreline says 3-1 which means India have lost the series. What the scoreline doesn’t say is India could have been 3-1 or 2-2. And my team knows it. They would have hurt, and rightly so, after the last game. But this is a team that will not throw in the towel. It will compete. It will come out there to compete and not look to be on the first flight home, rest assured.”After losing the series in Southampton, India captain Virat Kohli was blunt in his appraisal, saying his team could not be satisfied just with competing, and had to learn how to cross the line. Shastri reiterated that sentiment. “We have run teams close overseas, we have competed. But now it is not about just competing. We have got to complete games from here. And the endeavour is to learn, understand where you made the mistakes, take it head on and try and correct.”Virat Kohli chats with Ravi Shastri•Getty Images

Shastri said India were on top and looking to take a sizeable lead when Cheteshwar Pujara played a ” (a Mumbai cricket term loosely equivalent to bloody-minded)” innings to notch his first century of this tour. But the rest of the batting did not show the same resolve. “It is being aware of being in a good position and then capitalising and not doing something silly to open the door for the opposition. I thought at 180 for 4 there was a definite chance of a 75-80 run lead, and that would have been crucial. So that hurts.”Shastri felt the Southampton defeat would hurt more than the one at Edgbaston because India were in charge of the fourth Test at different points. “At Edgbaston, it could have gone either way. We had our share of luck as well because at one time England were in the driver’s seat. We managed to come back. We were chasing the game there all the time. But here, this would hurt more because you were ahead of them. And there was a stage you could have been really ahead of game after the job the bowlers did on day one.”At the start of this series, Shastri had told ESPNcricinfo that Kohli’s team had the “potential” to be one of the best travelling sides. He said he was making that statement based on India’s spirited performance in the 2-1 series defeat this January in South Africa, where India won the final Test in Johannesburg and were in contention in the first two Tests too, in Cape Town and Centurion.Not everyone is convinced India are improving as a travelling unit overseas though. Speaking to , former India opener Virender Sehwag said India had learned the art of winning overseas under Sourav Ganguly. Back then, India were a stronger batting unit with bowlers who couldn’t consistently take 20 wickets, and Sehwag felt it was the other way round now, with India having a strong bowling unit but a weaker batting group. “Best travelling teams are made by performances on the ground and not by sitting in the dressing rooms and talking about it. One can talk whatever they want to talk about but unless the bat does the talking, they can never become the best travelling team,” Sehwag said.Shastri still maintained India could win overseas. He pointed out that India had won three series and nine Tests overseas since 2015. Incidentally, Anil Kumble was India’s coach for one of those series, against West Indies in 2016, which India won 2-0. Shastri was in his first stint with the team during the 2-1 win on the 2015 tour of Sri Lanka. In Shastri’s second stint, India have won one series overseas, in Sri Lanka (2017), and five Tests.”If you look at the last three years, we won nine matches overseas and three series. I can’t see any other Indian team in the last 15-20 years who had that kind of run in such a short period and you have some great players in those teams.” Shastri said. “So the promise is there. It is just [about] getting tougher mentally. You have got to hurt when you lose such matches, but that is when you look within and come out with the right kind of answers to combat such situations again and get past the finishing line. One day you will, as long as you believe.”

MatériaMais Notícias

O Corinthians deve enfrentar mais processo na Justiça envolvendo um de seus ex-jogadores. Dessa vez a ação foi colocada por Jadson, que deixou o clube no início deste ano, e cobra valores não recebidos em relação ao que foi combinado quando rescindiu seu contrato. A quantia é de R$ 853,9 mil referentes a direitos de imagem. A informação foi publicada pelo UOL.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasCorinthiansOtero retorna e Corinthians segue preparação para encarar o GrêmioCorinthians19/11/2020CorinthiansEleição no Corinthians: Vices de Duílio Monteiro Alves falam ao LANCE!: ‘Gestão de primeiro mundo’Corinthians18/11/2020CorinthiansCorinthians faz trabalho tático por setores em treino de olho no GrêmioCorinthians18/11/2020

TABELA
> Veja classificação e simulador do Brasileirão clicando aqui

Quando fez o acordo para rescindir seu vínculo com o Timão, em fevereiro de 2020, o meia acordou em receber R$ 1,24 milhões, sendo que R$ 740 mil ficariam com o atleta e R$ 500 mil ficariam com o escritório de seu advogado, Marcelo Robalinho, por conta de assessoria jurídica prestada no negócio.

A questão é que Jadson alega não ter recebido esse valor até agora, ou melhor, não recebeu nenhuma das parcelas que foram acordadas no começo da temporada. Naquele momento, o pagamento foi dividido em 24 meses, sendo que cada parcela seria de R$ 30,8 mil. Por isso, o jogador resolveu entrar com uma ação na Justiça cobrando o valor, mais 5% de multa e correção monetária.

No último balancete divulgado pelo Corinthians, que compreende os nove primeiros meses de 2020, a dívida com jogadores por conta de direitos de imagem somam R$ 105 milhões. No fim de 2019, o valor devido era de R$ 48,4 milhões, ou seja, as pendências nesse quesito mais do que dobraram no período. No entanto, de junho (R$ 116,9 milhões) para cá elas já diminuíram.

Jadson teve duas passagens pelo Corinthians, uma entre 2014 e 2015 e outra entre 2017 e 2019. Ao todo foram 245 jogos e 50 gols marcados, além de três títulos paulistas (2017, 2018 e 2019) e dois brasileiros (2015 e 2017).

Crystal Palace are plotting a double transfer raid for a “fantastic” forward and his £30 million teammate, according to a recent report.

Crystal Palace transfer news

The Eagles secured an impressive 2-0 win away at Fulham on Saturday afternoon, and that looks to have cemented their place in the Premier League for another season, even if it is not mathematically true yet.

Crystal Palace now eyeing summer move for midfielder with "great technique"

The Eagles have set their sights on a new target.

By
Dominic Lund

Feb 23, 2025

Palace are now 16 points clear of the relegation zone and while the focus in the dressing room will still be on what they can achieve this season, focus for the hierarchy can begin to turn towards the summer transfer window.

It was reported over the weekend that the South Londoners are keeping a close eye on FC Midtjylland striker Franculino Dju and have sent scouts to watch him in action in recent weeks. Palace are not alone in their pursuit, as they also face competition from Leicester City, but if they suffer relegation, Palace would have an edge in the race.

In other transfer news, it’s been reported that Manchester United have emerged as potential suitors for Adam Wharton, and therefore, the Eagles could have to enter the market for a replacement and are interested in signing Watford’s Edo Kayembe. The Premier League side are said to be keeping a close eye on the midfielder’s performances between now and the end of the season.

Crystal Palace plotting double transfer for "excellent" ace and £30m gem

Dju and Kayembe are not the only players to emerge onto Palace’s radar, as according to The Sun relayed by The Hard Tackle, Crystal Palace are interested in a double move to sign Lewis Koumas and Ben Doak from Liverpool.

The report claims that the Eagles are already pushing to complete a transfer for Doak, as they had bids rejected for the Scottish international during the January transfer window. But while they try to secure a transfer for Doak, they are also considering a move to sign Koumas, who is currently on loan at Championship side Stoke City.

Doak is currently on loan at Middlesbrough and has enjoyed a decent campaign with the play-off hopefuls, as he’s scored three goals and recorded seven assists in 24 league games. The 19-year-old, who has won six caps for Scotland already, can play anywhere across the frontline, and despite his lack of Premier League experience, Palace may see him being the player to be a long-term replacement for Michael Olise.

Palace saw bids worth £15 million rejected for Doak previously, as it’s believed Liverpool were looking for around £30 million.

Ben Doak and Lewis Koumas’ Liverpool stats
	Doak	Koumas
Apps	10	1
Goals	0	1
Assists	0	0

Meanwhile, Koumas is also a winger by trade, and he has currently scored three goals and recorded two assists in 32 Championship games for the Potters. The young star, who has been dubbed “excellent” by Liverpool coach Marc Bridge-Wilkinson in the past, has also been recognised on the international stage, winning five caps for Wales, despite just one game for Liverpool.

It just remains to be seen whether Liverpool would be willing to let Doak and Koumas leave the club at the same time to the same Premier League team, especially when players like Darwin Núñez and Diogo Jota could be coming to the end of their time at Anfield.

Arsenal and Lionesses star Alessia Russo thanked the Gunners supporters after their north London Derby win over Tottenham at the Emirates.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Russo scores the winner in north Londonderby
• Arsenal win at sold-out Emirates
• Russo thanks fans at the stadium

• Getty Images
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Russo scored the lone goal of the clash in the 49th minute to keep the Gunners in the WSL title race. She connected with Beth Mead's pass to keep Arsenal within three points of pace-setters Manchester City. After the game, Russo thanked the fans who turned up at the sold-out Emirates Stadium.

Advertisement

• WHAT RUSSO SAID

  Speaking after the game, the Lionesses star said to the BBC: "I love playing here. The fans and the whole atmosphere are incredible and us as players can feel them from the first minute to the last. We needed them today at points and they always come through and it’s great to play here."

• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  With the victory, Arsenal are now tied with Chelsea on 34 points, three points behind Manchester City. The official attendance of 60,050 is only shy of the record 60,160 at the Emirates, for Arsenal's victory over Manchester United in February, making it the second-highest in Women's Super League history.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• WHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?

  The north Londoners will be in action next up on Wednesday, March 6 when they take on Aston Villa in the semi-final of the FA Women's League Cup. They will return to league action when they take on Chelsea on March 15, in hopes that they could leapfrog the Blues at least into second place.

MatériaMais Notícias

Autor do primeiro gol do Santos na vitória por 2 a 1 contra o Coritiba, no último sábado (17), no Couto Pereira, pela 17ª rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, o atacante Kaio Jorge tem cada vez mais cativado a sua vaga como titular absoluto do Peixe na temporada. Revelado na base santista, o jogador passou a ganhar mais minutos nesta temporada, assumiu a camisa 9 e tem três gols marcados com a camisa alvinegra.

– Com certeza é meu melhor momento no Santos FC. Sempre sonhei com isso, em ser titular, fazer gols. E agora ainda ter a honra de jogar com a camisa 9. Vou dar o meu melhor para manter essa boa fase e ajudar a equipe – afirmou Kaio ao site oficial do Santos FC.

RelacionadasSantosSoteldo participa do único treino do Santos para jogo de Libertadores, mas Marinho não; ambos são dúvidasSantos19/10/2020SantosAo L!, Cristiane, do Santos, avalia momento do futebol feminino brasileiro: ‘Visibilidade em cima’Santos19/10/2020SantosHá quatro anos, Arthur Gomes foi relacionado pela primeira vez pelo Santos: ‘Grande sonho’Santos19/10/2020

O primeiro tento do Menino da Vila foi anotado justamente contra o adversário do Peixe nesta terça-feira (20), pela sexta rodada do grupo G da Conmebol Libertadores, o Defensa y Justicia (ARG).

– Vai ser muito especial jogar novamente contra o time que eu fiz meu primeiro gol. Entrei no segundo tempo naquela oportunidade e consegui ajudar a equipe. Agora estou em uma outra situação, venho trabalhando firme e quem sabe não consigo fazer mais um gol na Libertadores, né!? – disse o centroavante.

No dia 03 de março, as equipes se enfrentaram pela primeira rodada da competição continental, no estádio Norberto “Tito” Tomaghello, na grande Buenos Aires, Kaio Jorge fazia a sua estreia no torneio, começou o jogo no banco de reservas, entrou no decorrer da segunda etapa, com o Peixe perdendo por 1 a 0, e aos 41 minutos do segundo tempo fez o gol da virada por 2 a 1 do Alvinegro.

MatériaMais Notícias

Após o revés contra o Fluminense, o técnico Jorginho pediu reforços publicamente aos diretores e foi atendido. Após a chegada de Ricardo Oliveira, o Coxa oficializou a contratação de Ezequiel Cerutti, que estava no San Lorenzo.

RelacionadasSão PauloPouco aproveitado no CSA, lateral Caio Felipe retorna ao São PauloSão Paulo09/10/2020CorinthiansZagueiro Marllon aparece no BID e pode ser relacionado contra o CearáCorinthians09/10/2020Futebol InternacionalIbrahimovic testa negativo para Covid-19 e celebra nas redes sociaisFutebol Internacional09/10/2020

Aos 28 anos, o atleta desembarca no Couto Pereira com o objetivo de dar mais experiência e principalmente qualidade ao time paranaense.

‘É um futebol com muita técnica, com grandes jogadores, creio que todas as equipes têm muito bons jogadores. É um campeonato longo e muito parelho. Acredito que todos os times jogam bem, e tenho muita vontade de poder jogar e mostrar o que sei fazer com a camisa do Coritiba’, disse ele, em entrevista ao site do Coxa.

Apesar da confirmação do reforço, o Coritiba vai esperar Cerutti mais um pouco. Devido as questões burocráticas em relação ao visto de trabalho, o atleta não está liberado para entrar em campo.

Cerutti

Contratado para dar mais poder ofensivo ao Coxa, Cerutti disputou seis jogos em sua segunda passagem pelo San Lorenzo e não marcou nenhum gol.

Manchester City are reportedly eyeing a move to sign RB Leipzig star Dani Olmo, with Sky Sports reporter Gianluca Di Marzio sharing if the Bundesliga side would be willing to sell the attacker.

What’s the latest Man City transfer news?

The treble winners and Pep Guardiola have been fairly busy so far this summer with moves for Croatia internationals Mateo Kovacic and defender Josko Gvardiol from Chelsea and RB Leipzig.

Meanwhile, the club have lost Riyad Mahrez and Ilkay Gundogan, and it looks as if attacking reinforcements are on the agenda before the September 1 deadline, especially with Kevin de Bruyne potentially out for four months with a hamstring issue.

City are thought to be preparing an offer to sign Rennes’ Jeremy Doku to fill the void left by Mahrez and have now agreed on personal terms with the Belgian.

In attacking midfield, West Ham United’s Lucas Paqueta has been the player heavily linked with a move to Manchester, but it looks as if Olmo is another player of interest.

Di Marzio took to X in the last 48 hours to provide an update on Man City and Olmo, claiming that the new Super Cup winners are “monitoring” the Spaniard.

However, the Sky Sports reporter added that RB Leipzig are not willing to sell the player at this moment in time and are expected to ask for a very high fee.

“Man City are monitoring Dani Olmo closely. RB Leipzig not willing to sell him – it's expected the German side will ask for a very high fee. Guardiola appreciates Olmo.”

Who is Dani Olmo?

Olmo is primarily an attacking midfielder who can also turn out on either wing if required, so could fit into Guardiola’s versatile attacking system relatively easily.

The 25-year-old has been with RB Leipzig since 2020 after leaving Dinamo Zagreb, with Guardiola hailing the player back in 2019 following a Champions League encounter against City.

"He's a top player – he has a bright future, of course. His performance today shows it. About the transfer and the money he deserves, that is not the point.

"The point is he is an incredible player and I am pretty sure he is able to play in the strong leagues in Europe. Hopefully if Dinamo wants and he wants, it can happen."

In Germany, Olmo appears to be going from strength to strength and recently scored a hat-trick in the DFL Supercup against Bayern Munich. Olmo has contributed to 53 goals in 124 games for RB Leipzig and has been compared to Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes, Tottenham’s James Maddison and Liverpool’s Dominik Szoboszlai, as per FBref.

Over the past 12 months, Olmo has ranked highly compared to attacking midfielders and wingers for shots, successful take-ons, while he ranks in the top 1% of his positional peers for through balls.

A move could be one to keep an eye on, but with RB Leipzig not willing to sell, City may have to make an eye-catching offer to tempt the German side into talking after landing Gvardiol following extensive negotiations from the same club.

Getty Images

Dale Steyn endured a wicket-less return to first-class cricket, returning 0 for 16 from his 12 overs for the CSA Invitation XI against Zimbabwe in the first day Paarl. He did, however, come close twice: Solomon Mire nicked behind in the first over but was adjudged not out and Hamilton Masakadza, who went on to top-score for Zimbabwe with 79, was dropped at point in the fifth over on 1. Zimbabwe were eventually bowled out for 196 on a 13-wicket day.Apart from Masakadza, no other batsman managed to go past 26 against a relatively inexperienced bowling attack. The Zimbabwe bowlers, however, fared much better, with Kyle Jarvis (2 for 15) and Chris Mpofu (1 for 0) picking up three wickets to leave the Invitation XI at 55 for 3 by close of play.For the Invitation XI, medium-pacers Lizaad Williams and Michael Cohen combined for six wickets, while legspinner Shaun von Berg claimed 3 for 64.