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Rajinder Goel and Padmakar Shivalkar will receive the CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award, while India’s first Test captain Shantha Rangaswamy will be the inaugural recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Women

Nagraj Gollapudi and Bharath Seervi27-Feb-2017Former left-arm spinners Rajinder Goel and Padmakar Shivalkar will receive the CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award this season. Starting this year, the BCCI has also decided to institute the Lifetime Achievement Award for Women with India’s first Test captain Shanta Rangaswamy being the inaugural recipient of the honour. The trio would each get a cash prize of INR 25 lakhs too.The unheralded four

Goel and Shivalkar are two of only four non-Test players, the others being wicketkeeper Bhausaheb Nimbalkar and journalist KN Prabhu, to receive the BCCI’s lifetime achievement award. Here is the full list
1994 – Lala Amarnath
1995 – Mushtaq Ali
1996 – Vijay Hazare
1997 – KN Prabhu
1998 – Polly Umrigar
1999 – Hemu Adhikari
2000 – Subhash Gupte
2001 – MAK Pataudi
2002 – Bhausaheb Nimbalkar
2003 – Chandu Borde
2004 – Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, S Venkatraghavan, Bhagwath Chandrasekhar
2007 – Nari Contractor
2008 – Gundappa Viswanath
2009 – Mohinder Amarnath
2010 – Salim Durani
2011 – Ajit Wadekar
2012 – Sunil Gavaskar
2013 – Kapil Dev
2014 – Dilip Vengsarkar
2015 – Syed Kirmani

The winners were chosen by a three-person jury comprising the pair of Ramachandra Guha and Diana Edulji (both of them sit on the Supreme Court-appointed committee of administrators that presently supervises the BCCI) along with senior journalist N Ram. Former India and Tamil Nadu legspinner VV Kumar and the late Ramakant Desai, former India and Bombay fast bowler, will have been named as recipients of a Special Award for their yeoman services to Indian cricket. This award also carries a cash prize of INR 15 lakhs each.Both Goel, who played for Haryana and Delhi, and Shivalkar, who represented Bombay, never played for India. Still, their legend is well-known in Indian cricket history. In the mid-1960s, when Bishan Singh Bedi was making his mark, the question that was asked was, “is he as good as Goel?” Ironically, one reason Goel never played for India was because Bedi had cemented his position in the Indian team. The closest Goel came to play for India was in the unofficial Test against Ceylon in 1964-65.In 1985, Goel retired aged 43. He had 637 wickets in the Ranji Trophy, a record that stands to date, going past VV Kumar’s tally. He had an incredible 53 five-fors and 17 ten-wicket match hauls. Overall, Goel played 157 matches and got 750 wickets.Another young man who was denied an India berth as his career clashed with that of Bedi was Shivalkar. A product of the famous Shivaji Park Gymkhana, Shivalkar’s accuracy to land the ball repeatedly on the same spot and then spin it viciously made him unique. He made his Ranji debut at 22 and retired when he was 48. During that time, Shivalkar finished with an aggregate of 589 first-class wickets at an average of 19.69 in 124 matches, between the 1961-62 and 1987-88 seasons. Shivalkar’s 361 Ranji wickets came for Bombay, most by any bowler. He had 11 ten-wicket hauls (joint-second).Rubbing shoulders with the greats: Rajinder Goel (left) with MAK Pataudi•Rajinder GoelWhile recognizing their efforts, the awards committee praised Goel and Shivalkar saying: “The two left-arm spinners traumatized the batsmen picking wickets in a heap.”Rangaswamy, who is 63, played 16 Tests for India out of which she led in 12 matches. In her own words, Rangaswamy was a batting allrounder. She shared the new ball and was a hard-hitting, middle-order batsman. There were many other notable firsts attached to her name: she scored the first Test century, hit the first six and led India to their first series victory (against West Indies in 1976). Rangaswamy, who was the chairman of the selectors till 2016, had also won the Arjuna Award in 1976.Rangaswamy was thrilled to receive the BCCI honour, and felt it was a reward to the collective brilliance of the “pioneers” of Indian women’s cricket. “It is more a recognition of the services rendered to the game of Indian women’s cricket by the pioneers, those founding mothers if I can use the word. Because had we done badly in the initial stages the game would have just withered away. We did well. We could rub shoulders with international teams and that ensured the longevity of the game. And that I feel is the single-most significant contribution of all of us. With pride I can say – yes, we did it.”

A round-up of all the CSA T20 Challenge matches on December 11, 2016

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Dec-2016In a top-of-the-table, rain-affected clash, Titans secured their place in the final with a narrow win over Warriors, who will host Lions in the qualifier. The match was reduced to five overs a side and Titans prevailed thanks to Farhaan Behardien’s 55 not out off 15 balls – including a fifty from 14, the fastest in the competition’s history.Titans lost their openers Jonathan Vandiar and Heino Kuhn in the first seven balls but Behardien stole the show after that. He struck four fours and five sixes in an explosive knock, during which no bowler was spared. Jon-Jon Smuts’ solitary over cost 24, Sisanda Magala’s 27 and Kyle Abbott – playing his first game for his new franchise – was hit for 18. Behardien’s 50 came off 14 balls and he put on 73 runs for the third wicket with Heinrich Klaasen – who scored 17 off nine balls – to take Titans to a competitive five-over total.Warriors appeared up for it in the reply and racked up 19 runs off the first over and 29 off the first ten balls. Smuts was dismissed after that but Colin Ingram and Christiaan Jonker kept up with the rate. Warriors were 53 for 1 after thee overs, needing 28 off the last two.David Wiese conceded no boundaries in his over and dismissed Ingram to leave Warriors needing 22 of the final over. Malusi Siboto conceded just five runs off the first four balls to put the game beyond Warriors and Jonker’s 10 runs off the last two balls were in vain.File photo – Wayne Parnell’s effort went in vain•AFPLions booked their spot in Tuesday’s qualifier with a slender victory over Cobras – bolstered by the return of several international batsmen – on a scorching afternoon in Paarl. Legspinner Eddie Leie’s four wicket haul was crucial in the Lions’ defence of 139.Asked to bat first, Lions started well after openers Rassie van der Dussen and Reeza Hendricks put on 45 inside six overs. The loss of Hendricks and Dwaine Pretorius in successive overs pegged Lions back, but a 61-run third-wicket stand between van der Dussen, who scored the innings’ only half-century, and Mangaliso Mosehle, set Lions up well at 109 for 3 in the 14th over.But Wayne Parnell and Tshepo Moreki carved their way through Lions’ middle-order and took 6 for 48 between them to leave Lions with a below-par total of 139 for 8. Of the Lions’ last six batsmen to visit the crease, only Temba Bavuma managed double figures.Cobras would have been confident of chasing down the total, especially with Hashim Amla and JP Duminy back in their XI, but they were the first two batsmen to be dismissed – Amla for 15 and Duminy for 3, both falling to Dwaine Pretorius – to leave Cobras needing contributions from their domestic regulars.Richard Levi stood man alone for the first half of the reply and plundered 41 runs off 33 balls but the rest were outspun by Leie and Bjorn Fortuin – they lost their last seven wickets for 47 runs and only Kieron Pollards’ run-a-ball 18 looked like it could do any damage.The win put Lions one point ahead of the Cobras and put them through to the qualifiers, where they will face Warriors on Tuesday, with the winner taking on Titans in Friday’s final.In a fixture that had no bearing on the playoffs, Knights secured their third-win of a disappointing campaign as they finished the season at the bottom. They beat the Dolphins, who won the same number of matches and ended above them by a point.Dolphins’ innings did not get going until the final over, in a game reduced to eight overs a side. They were 38 for 5 after seven overs with all of Cameron Delport, Morne van Wyk, Kevin Pietersen, Robbie Frylinck and Keshav Maharaj dismissed in single figures. Khaya Zondo hit three sixes in four balls off Corne Dry in the last over to give Dolphins something to defend.After two overs, they would have known it was not enough. Knights were 29 for 1 at the end of the second over, with David Miller and Patrick Kruger in no mood to hang around. Imran Tahir bowled a boundary-free third over but the Knights were in control after that and reached the total with two overs to spare.

A round-up of the second day’s play from the seventh-round matches from Group B of the Ranji Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Nov-2016

A century from Chirag Khurana and three wickets from the in-form Anupam Sanklecha left Maharashtra in a dominant position against Assam at the IIT-Chemplast ground in Chennai. Khurana, who began the day batting on 14, finished unbeaten on 112 as he helped Maharashtra’s last five wickets add 190 to their overnight total. They were eventually bowled out for 542. Khurana stretched his overnight partnership with wicketkeeper-batsman Vishant More (48) from 25 to 124, and added a further 68 with Sanklecha for the eighth wicket. Abu Nechim Ahmed and Syed Mohammad were Assam’s most successful bowlers, picking up three wickets apiece.Sanklecha – who picked up two seven-fors in his most recent game, against Vidarbha – then came back and ripped out three wickets to leave Assam 13 for 2 and then 56 for 3, before the opener Rishav Das (53*) added an unbroken 76 for the fourth wicket with Kunal Saikia (38*) to steer them to 132 for 3 at stumps, still trailing by 410.Rishabh Pant continued his run of form, scoring a rapid half-century to help Delhi take the first-innings lead against Rajasthan in Wayanad. Resuming on 37 for 0, Delhi were bowled out for 307, with seamers Pankaj Singh and Tanvir Ul-Haq taking three wickets each. Rajasthan ended the day 19 for 1 in their second innings and trailing by 50.Delhi’s openers stretched their overnight partnership to 52 before both fell in the space of four balls, Gautam Gambhir for 10 and Shikhar Dhawan for 38. Unmukt Chand (32) and Nitish Rana (24) added 51 for the third wicket, before Pant walked in at No. 5 and proceeded to score 75 of Delhi’s next 93 runs. He was fifth out with Delhi still trailing by 42, having scored his runs off 59 balls, with nine fours and three sixes. Delhi lost two more quick wickets and were 204 for 7 before Milind Kumar (42) and Sumit Narwal (34 off 25) steered them into the lead with a 54-run eighth-wicket stand. With Vikas Tokas (18) and Nitin Saini (16*) making useful contributions as well, Delhi stretched their lead to 69.Half-centuries from Biplab Samantray and Saurabh Rawat hauled Odisha out of a tight spot and into a sizeable lead against Karnataka at the Palam ground in Delhi. Replying to Karnataka’s 179, Odisha were 140 for 6 when wicketkeeper Rawat joined Samantray. They proceeded to add 106 for the seventh wicket in 34.4 overs before Samantray was out to the legspinner Shreyas Gopal for 58.Shreyas then dismissed Suryakant Pradhan (23) and Rawat, for 85 off 124 balls, to end the day with figures of 5 for 73. Odisha were 318 for 9 at stumps, leading by 139, with Basant Mohanty and Alok Mangaraj adding an unbroken 26 for the last wicket.A 171-run opening stand between Sanjay Ramaswamy and Faiz Fazal moved Vidarbha within sight of taking the first-innings lead against Saurashtra at the Karnail Singh Stadium in Delhi. At stumps, Vidarbha were 242 for 3, trailing by 59.Saurashtra had to wait till the 59th over of the day to taste any success, and used nine bowlers. Eventually, it was the part-timer Prerak Mankad who had Sanjay lbw for 77 to claim his first wicket in his third first-class match. Another part-timer, Amitoze Singh, then dismissed Fazal for 94, before the offspinner Vandit Jivranjani, sent back Ganesh Satish to have Vidarbha 223 for 3. Shalabh Shrivastava (31*) and Jitesh Sharma (6* off 41) saw out the rest of the day, putting on an unbroken partnership of 19 in 13.4 overs.

The first four-day match between Pakistan A and Zimbabwe A ended in a draw at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Oct-2016
ScorecardFile photo – Peter Moor stood out with 157 in Zimbabwe A’s strong first-innings batting performance•AFP

The first four-day match between Pakistan A and Zimbabwe A ended in a draw at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo, as the hosts got some valuable match practice ahead of the Test series against Sri Lanka.Zimbabwe A, fielding a full squad of Test players, opted to bat first and were reduced to 193 for 5 before Peter Moor took charge of the game and scored 157, studded with 11 fours and eight sixes. Contributions from Richmond Mutumbami (38) and Graeme Cremer (54) helped Zimbabwe put on 251 for the last five wickets and reach 444. Legspinner Shadab Khan took 4 for 114 and left-arm spinner Mohammad Asghar took 3 for 112 for Pakistan.Pakistan’s response started with the loss of two quick wickets, but opener Zain Abbas scored his second first-class century as he set up partnerships with Shohaib Maqsood (54) and Saad Ali (62) to take them out of trouble. He scored 137 before falling to Cremer, who ended with 4 for 82. Allrounder Fahim Ashraf scored an unbeaten 61 to take Pakistan to 358.Malcolm Waller scored an unbeaten 87 in the second innings that lasted 75.2 overs before Zimbabwe declared on 219 for 5. Sikandar Raza (40) and Craig Ervine (38) managed to get some time in after veteran Hamilton Masakadza got out without scoring. Asghar had an impressive outing once again, taking four of the five wickets that fell.Fakhar Zaman (40*) and Zain Abbas (39*), the Pakistan openers, took them to 72 for no loss before play ended.

Liverpool are reportedly interested in signing Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves this summer and the Portuguese maestro could be the ideal heir to Thiago at Anfield.

Could Liverpool sign Neves?

According to Football Insider, the Reds have a concrete interest in signing the 26-year-old, who could be on his way out of Molineux this summer after expressing a desire to play in the Champions League.

Although Jurgen Klopp's side won't be able to offer that next season, they have been a consistent force in Europe's top competition in recent years, winning it against Spurs in 2019 before falling short in the final against Real Madrid in 2022.

Barcelona are touted as the current front runners for Neves but want a player-exchange deal, while the Old Gold are holding out for a cash-only sale, with previous reports suggesting that £45m could be enough to prise him away from Molineux.

Klopp is clearly desperate for midfield additions at Liverpool, especially with Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner all departing the club on a free transfer this summer.

However, Neves could potentially arrive as a replacement for Spanish magician Thiago, after his injury problems meant that he would make just 18 appearances in the top flight this season, while he also turned 32 next month, so he cannot be considered a long-term option at Anfield.

Would Neves be a good Thiago heir?

Neves has made a name for himself in both the Championship and Premier League with Wolves having joined the Midlands club in 2017, going on to make 252 appearances, contributing 30 goals and 13 assists in that time.

The Portugal international excels at sitting deep and dictating the play in a similar vein to Thiago, with WhoScored suggesting that his biggest strengths are his passing, long shots, concentration and ball interception skills.

No player in Liverpool's squad has made more long passes per game (5.2) than the former Bayern Munich man but Neves averages a whopping 6.2 per game which suggests that he could easily set the tempo in Liverpool's midfield next season.

Despite Wolves' struggles in the league this campaign which saw them bottom at Christmas before distancing themselves from the relegation battle, Neves has enjoyed a fine campaign, contributing six goals and one assist in 34 Premier League appearances with a strong 6.99 average rating from WhoScored.

Teammate Hugo Bueno was full of praise for his "incredible" captain earlier in the campaign and it would certainly be a big loss for Wolves to lose such an influential player, but their loss could be Liverpool's gain this summer.

Neves' experience, age and passing ability mark him out as the ideal man to take over from Thiago at Anfield in the long term, and Klopp should definitely be looking to bring him in.

نجح برشلونة في تحقيق الفوز أمام ديبورتيفو ألافيس بنتيجة 3/1، في إطار منافسات الدوري الإسباني.

وواجه برشلونة نظيره ديبورتيفو ألافيس، ضمن منافسات الجولة الـ23 من الدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم لاليجا على ملعب “مينديزوروتزا”.

ويحتل برشلونة المركز الثالث في سلم الترتيب العام للدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم لاليجا، برصيد 50 نقطة، فيما يأتي ألافيس في المركز الثاني عشر برصيد 26 نقطة.

اقرأ أيضاً.. جوندوجان يتعرض لإصابة ويغادر مباراة برشلونة وديبورتيفو ألافيس

في الشوط الأول، حاول لاعبو برشلونة افتتاح التسجيل مبكرًا وكاد أراوخو أن يسجل هدف برشلونة الأول لولا تدخل مدافع ألافيس.

ورد صامويل على كرة أراوخو وكاد أن يفتتح التسجيل لأصحاب الأرض.

وبطريقة رائعة، افتتح روبرت ليفاندوفسكي التسجيل بعدما تلقى تمريرة حاسمة من جوندوجان ليضع المهاجم البولندي الكرة بشكل مميز في شباك ألافيس بحلول الدقيقة 22.

وواصل لاعبو برشلونة محاولاتهم على مرمى أصحاب الأرض بهدف تعزيز تقدمهم بهدف ثان لكن دون خطورة حقيقية على مرمى ألافيس.

في الشوط الثاني، ومع الدقائق الأولى كاد أن يعدل النتيجة لويس ريوخا بعد إهداره فرصة هدف مؤكد.

وبحلول الدقيقة 50، نجح الكاي جوندوجان في تسجيل الهدف الثاني بطريقة مميزة، بعدما تلقى تمريرة حاسمة رائعة من قبل بيدري.

وعند الدقيقة 51، نجح صامويل في تقليص نتيجة اللقاء بتسجيله الهدف الأول لفريق ديبورتيفو ألافيس برأسية مميزة في شباك البارسا.

وخرج الكاي جوندوجان مصاباً وحل فيتور روكي بدلًا منه عند الدقيقة 58.

وعند الدقيقة 62، أحرز فيتور روكي هدف برشلونة الثالث بتسديدة بباطن قدمه اليسري، بعدما تلقى تمريرة حاسمة من هيكتور فورت.

وعند الدقيقة 72، تحصل فيتور روكي على بطاقة حمراء بعدما تلقى بطاقة صفراء ثانية إثر تدخله على مدافع ألافيس.

وقام مدرب ألافيس بتعزيز خط هجومه بإجراء عدة تغييرات في محاولة لقلب النتيجة، لكن جميع المحاولات باءت بالفشل، لينتهي اللقاء بفوز برشلونة بنتيجة 3/1 على مضيفه ديبورتيفو ألافيس.  أهداف مباراة برشلونة وديبورتيفو ألافيس في الدوري الإسباني

وقدم بطولات تغطية حية ومباشرة لمباراة برشلونة وديبورتيفو ألافيس بالفيديو ويمكنك المتابعة لحظة بلحظة من خلال الرابط. بداية مباراة برشلونة وديبورتيفو ألافيس في الدوري الإسباني

فرصة خطيرة من برشلونة علي مرمي ديبورتيفو الافيس بالدوري الاسباني

هدف ليفاندوفسكي في مرمي ديبورتيفو الافيس بالدوري الاسباني

فرصة خطيرة من ديبورتيفو الافيس علي مرمي برشلونة بالدوري الاسباني

لاعب ديبورتيفو الافيس يهدر فرصة هدف امام برشلونة بالدوري الاسباني

هدف جوندوجان في مرمي ديبورتيفو الافيس بالدوري الاسباني

هدف ديبورتيفو الافيس الاول في مرمي برشلونة بالدوري الاسباني

هدف برشلونة الثالث في مرمي ديبورتيفو الافيس فيتور روكي

طرد فيتور روكي في مباراة برشلونة وديبورتيفو الافيس بالدوري الاسباني

لامين يامال كاد ان يسجل هدف امام ديبورتيفو الافيس بالدوري الاسباني

After a long season of ups and downs, Wolverhampton Wanderers are on their way back to cementing themselves as a threatening Premier League side once again.

Sitting in the relegation zone in October, Bruno Lage was dismissed from his role as manager after just 15 months in charge.

The sacking came as a blessing in disguise for Wolves, who have since seen a lot of progression under the stewardship of Julen Lopetegui, who confirmed the club's safety and continues to edge them closer to the top ten.

This summer will be the Spaniard’s first chance to make significant changes to his squad, with players expected to depart and arrive at Molineux this transfer window.

The club have been linked with a number of stars, providing both attacking and defensive options for Lopetegui to consider, with news emerging this week that the former Real Madrid manager is eyeing a striker from La Liga.

What’s the latest on El Bilal Toure to Wolves?

UD Almeria striker El Bilal Toure is reported to be one player on Wolves’ radar this summer, according to the Daily Mail.

The former Stade de Reims forward is reportedly attracting interest from three Premier League clubs, including newly-promoted Burnley and Brentford.

At just 21 years of age, the Mali striker has netted six goals in the Spanish top-flight this season, gaining 19 appearances for Almeria, who sit 14th in the standings.

It's thought that the LaLiga side will demand a fee in the region of £25m for his signature heading into the transfer window.

What could El Bilal Toure bring to Wolves?

Likened in terms of statistical profile to Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins, as per FBref, the forward ranks among his club's top five performers this season, averaging a Sofascore match rating of 6.80.

To claim that Wolves have been struggling for goals this season would be an understatement, charting themselves as the league's lowest scorers with just 30 goals in 35 games played.

The Midlands outfit's current strike options have scored a single goal between them in the Premier League this season, so Toure would be a likely – and perfect – successor to Raul Jimenez and Diego Costa, as shown by his numbers this season.

The Adjame-born gem averages 0.4 expected goals per 90 minutes in LaLiga, in comparison to the Mexican's 0.24, he also excels the Wolves forward in the air, winning an average of 3.5 aerials per game with Jimenez scoring 2.63 in this area – as per FBref.

Once described by his former manager David Guion as a "very complete" player, the 21-year-old marksman could be a worthy investment for Wolves to end their goalscoring woes in the summer transfer window.

Chelsea are still in the race to sign Brighton and Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister this summer, according to a new transfer report.

Could Mac Allister leave this summer?

The Seagulls star has become something of a household name in recent times, having arrived at the Amex Stadium back in 2019 as more of an unknown. While he impressed last season, he has gone up another level this time around, proving to be one of his side's most important players.

Making up a strong midfield with the likes of Moises Caicedo and Pascal Gross, Mac Allister has started 25 of Brighton's Premier League games and scored eight goals along the way, as well as chipping in with one assist. Not only that, but he has also become a World Cup winner after Argentina's memorable success in Qatar late last year, in which he was an influential player, starting six of his country's seven matches.

Various recent rumours have suggested that Mac Allister could depart the Seagulls at the end of the season, however, a new challenge at a bigger club potentially appealing to him. Chelsea have been linked with a move for the 24-year-old, although they are far from alone in expressing an interest.

Are Chelsea still in the mix?

According to Football Insider, the Blues are "ready to rival" Liverpool and Manchester United for the signing of Mac Allister in the summer transfer window. It is believed that Brighton would consider accepting a £60m offer, with a potential "bidding war" in the offing.

The Argentine could be a really astute summer signing by Chelsea, at a time when they could do with freshening up their midfield, considering N'Golo Kante turns 32 later this year, while Mateo Kovacic turns 29. He could be an ideal foil for those around him, proving to be a strong link between midfield and attack, having often taken up more of a No.10 role for the Seagulls this season.

Mac Allister has scored eight times in the Premier League, highlighting his ability to contribute end product from the middle of the park, while Sergio Aguero has described him as "very intelligent" player. The fact that he was named the 47th best player in the world in a list compiled by The Guardian earlier this year further speaks volumes about his quality and Chelsea signing him over their rivals could prove to be a real coup for whoever is manager next season.

أعلن نادي برمنجهام سيتي إقالة الإنجليزي واين روني من تدريب الفريق بسبب سوء النتائج، بعد أقل من 3 أشهر على تعيينه في الفريق.

واين روني كان قد تولى قيادة برمنجهام سيتي في أكتوبر الماضي، وبعد أقل من 3 أشهر بسبب سوء النتائج، أعلن النادي إقالته في بيان رسمي صباح اليوم الثلاثاء.

طالع أيضًا | متجاهلًا ميسي ورونالدو.. بيلينجهام يختار أبطال طفولته في كرة القدم

واين روني لعب 15 مباراة مع الفريق وفاز مباراتين فقط، وآخر خسارة كانت بثلاثية نظيفة أمام ليدز يونايتد في الجولة الأخيرة من الشامبيونشيب.

لقد تولى روني قيادة الفريق في المركز الخامس بجدول البطولة، بعد إقالة جون يوستاس، ولكن بعد ذلك تراجع برمنجهام إلى المركز العشرين في جدول ترتيب المسابقة.

توم برادي رئيس مجلس إدارة النادي، قرر الضغط على الزناد كما وصفت صحيفة “ذا صن” البريطانية، لينهي مرحلة روني مع برمنجهام، رغم أن المدرب الإنجليزي أكد في تصريحات بعد المباراة أنه سيواصل القتال ولن يتقدم باستقالته.

ستيف كوبر يعد أبرز المرشحين لخلافة واين روني، وذلك بعد رحيله عن نوتينجهام فورست الشهر الماضي، لكنه ينتظر عرضًا من كريستال بالاس لخلافة روي هوديسون.

Tottenham’s interest in Fulham boss Marco Silva is ‘increasing’ as a contract update comes to light courtesy of 90min.

The Lowdown: Conte exit nears…

It is perhaps an open secret in football that Spurs head coach Antonio Conte looks very likely to depart at the end of this Premier League season.

There is currently little appetite to trigger the 12-month extension clause in Conte’s deal, so as things stand, it looks like he will leave this summer.

The Italian has even admitted the club could sack him earlier than that, stating:

“My contract expires in June, we will see – they might sack me even before the end of the season. Perhaps the expectations were higher and they may be disappointed? What matters for a coach is trying to work and raise the bar. This year we are struggling to raise the bar.”

Spurs have already drawn up a shortlist of candidates to replace him, which includes a host of prestigious names like Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel and Luis Enrique.

The Latest: Spurs handed Silva boost?

As per 90min, Spurs may have been handed a small boost in pursuit of Fulham boss Silva, who is also rumoured to be a target for the club.

Tottenham’s interest is ‘increasing’ in the Spaniard, and as the Whites attempt to tie him down with a new deal, talks over fresh terms have now stalled with Spurs lurking.

90min journalist Sean Walsh, sharing the news on Twitter, explained:

“Fulham are trying to tie Marco Silva down to a new contract, but talks have stalled recently amid increasing interest from Tottenham.”

The Verdict: Perfect alternative to Poch?

Dare we say, if Spurs cannot facilitate a move for fan favourite Pochettino, Silva actually shares some similarities with the Argentine.

Both have worked wonders on a shoe-string budget in the past, with Fulham spending just £62 million since being promoted back to the top flight.

The two managers also encourage expansive attacking football, which could be a potentially key factor in Spurs’ chase for a Conte replacement.

Indeed, Silva and Pochettino both hold one league title on their CV, with the latter man finally winning one with PSG last year.

The former, meanwhile, clinched Greek Super League glory with Olympiacos in 2016.

Spurs journalist Jack Pitt-Brooke has also heaped praise on 45-year-old and Fulham this season, stating:

“Brilliant movement in attack and they all work so hard for each other. Marco Silva is doing a sensational job there, and proving a lot of people wrong.