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West Ham have emerged as contenders to sign Man United sensation Kobbie Mainoo as we slowly approach the January transfer window.

The 10-cap England international, who once burst on to the scene in impressive fashion at Old Trafford, has been starved of impactful minutes under Ruben Amorim.

With his contract still expiring in under two years, speculation understandably remains rife over his long-term future.

Mainoo was heavily linked with a summer window exit from United, with Chelsea previously named as one suitor to take the Stockport-born youngster off Amorim’s hands.

Sunderland 3-0 West Ham

West Ham 1-5 Chelsea

Nottingham Forest 0-3 West Ham

West Ham 0-3 Tottenham

West Ham 1-2 Crystal Palace

Everton 1-1 West Ham

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

West Ham 0-2 Brentford

Leeds 2-1 West Ham

West Ham 3-1 Newcastle

The west Londoners were even quoted a £70 million asking price when they enquired back in January, according to The Athletic, but the price for a permanent deal dropped to as low as £45 million at the end of last summer.

Since United made the decision not to part company before deadline day on September 1, Mainoo is yet to start a single Premier League game, and it is believed he’s been clamoring for an exit.

According to Sky Sports news in August, Mainoo asked United to green-light a loan move away to gain valuable minutes elsewhere, but Amorim was adamant that he needs the academy graduate and urged him to fight for more game time.

Fast-forward to now, and the only start Mainoo has under his belt this season came during United’s dismal loss to Grimsby Town on penalties in the Carabao Cup.

The midfielder is far from satisfied, with reliable journalist Fabrizio Romano reporting that West Ham are proposing a way out for Mainoo.

West Ham's offer to Kobbie Mainoo with Man United star in 'advanced talks' to leave

Speaking on the Here We Go podcast this week, Romano said that West Ham are “offering guaranteed minutes” to Mainoo in a bid to tempt him down south, but they’re not alone.

Indeed, Serie A champions Napoli are also battling for his signature as Mainoo still aims to leave on a temporary deal.

On the Napoli front, there is a pretty immediate danger to West Ham’s chances of signing Mainoo, with Antonio Conte’s side believed to be in ‘advanced talks’, according to another media source.

West Ham are not completely out of the running yet, it would seem, and he’d certainly add a whole new dimension to Nuno Espírito Santo’s midfield.

It wasn’t too long ago when United legend Paul Scholes claimed that Mainoo was “10 times” the player he was at 19, and the youngster’s breakout 2023/2024 campaign briefly sparked suggestions that he could be England’s next big star.

Mainoo’s match-winning display against Man City in the 2024 FA Cup final was followed by a sublime Euros with England, where he registered an historic 96% passing accuracy at one stage and became the fifth-youngest player to ever feature in a major international final — behind Lamine Yamal, Pele, Giuseppe Bergomi and Renato Sanches.

Mainoo is a gem waiting to be plucked away from United’s bench, and his enthusiasm for minutes could seriously benefit West Ham as he yearns to showcase his true ability.

Craig Burley delivered an extraordinary on-air tirade aimed at Virgil van Dijk, accusing the Dutchman of shrinking from responsibility in the lead-up to Sunderland’s goal at Anfield. It was an equaliser that ultimately denied Arne Slot’s men two valuable points, and the former Chelsea player lashed out at the Liverpool skipper for his error in judgment.

• Liverpool continue to struggle for form

  Liverpool were buoyed only slightly by last weekend’s narrow win over West Ham, but produced another flat and fractured first half that left supporters restless. Their creativity was limited, the tempo was sluggish, and the home side struggled to threaten a Sunderland team that have been regularly punching above their weight this season to find themselves within touching distance of the top four. The visitors arrived brimming with confidence and struck the woodwork twice before the interval through Trai Hume and Omar Alderete. The warning shots were not heeded. Sunderland capitalised shortly after the restart when Chemsdine Talbi was afforded the freedom of Anfield’s penalty arc. The midfielder took aim, and his effort clipped the retreating Van Dijk before curling into the far corner. Meanwhile, Liverpool’s attack drifted between laboured and predictable, and Sunderland’s organised defensive line appeared increasingly comfortable as the match wore on. But fortune intervened for the hosts when Florian Wirtz slalomed into the box and toe-poked a scuffed attempt that ricocheted cruelly off Nordi Mukiele, looping over the goalkeeper for an own goal that spared Liverpool from another defeat.

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  Van Dijk’s season under the microscope

  Van Dijk has never hesitated to call out mediocrity. After the damaging home loss to Nottingham Forest last month, he admitted that Liverpool had become "a mess", urging teammates and himself to take accountability. Ibrahima Konate and new left-back Milos Kerkez have absorbed most of the media pressure in recent weeks. Even Van Dijk’s bizarre concession of a penalty in the subsequent defeat to PSV Eindhoven failed to ignite widespread condemnation. That equilibrium was shattered on Wednesday night when pundit Burley ripped into the Liverpool skipper in a withering outburst.

  He said: "I’m fed up sitting here and (listening to people saying) ‘it’s Mo Salah not playing well, Florian Wirtz can’t find his feet, Alexander Isak, Ekitike, the midfield's dynamic has changed’. He (Van Dijk) is the barometer of what is wrong this year. He is supposed to be the leader. All he has done all season is throw Kerkez under the bus, (and) throw his arms up in the air. He is making as many mistakes as any other player. Every game, you could watch him and go … ‘what’s he doing?’."

• Van Dijk's time to take ownership of his mistakes

  Burley reserved his harshest indictment for Van Dijk’s defending in the build-up to Talbi’s strike. He continued by accusing Van Dijk of scapegoating teammates rather than taking ownership.

  "He does everything wrong. Pass, doesn’t close it down and turns his back like a coward," he said. "It’s just absolutely crazy. He (Van Dijk) seems to be coming out of it relatively unscathed, and it is everybody else’s fault. But for me, at the back, he has been as bad as anybody else. And I think that goal and the way that he refused to close it down and the fact that he turned his back is the epitome of his performances this season."

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Title defence hanging by a thread

  The draw leaves Liverpool 11 points adrift of league leaders Arsenal, a gulf that looks monumental given the inconsistencies that have plagued Slot’s team. Six defeats in the Premier League already tell the story of a squad that has struggled to find rhythm or resilience. Injuries, tactical reshuffles and a lack of fluency in key areas have played their part, but Wednesday’s setback reinforced a more worrying pattern that Liverpool are repeatedly failing to impose themselves in matches they once dominated with authority. 

  The road ahead offers little respite. Slot takes his side to Elland Road on Saturday evening, where a buoyant Leeds United await. Daniel Farke’s team stunned Chelsea in midweek and will be relishing the prospect of meeting a Liverpool side visibly short of confidence. They snapped their four-match losing streak, and the three points took them back to safety. Another victory will definitely provide them with some breathing space in the relegation battle. 

Senior seamers Mark Adair and Josh Little fit to return for T20I leg of tour

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2025

Mark Adair is back in Ireland’s T20I squad•Getty Images

Ireland have named five potential debutants in their 15-man Test squad to tour Bangladesh next month, while Mark Adair and Josh Little are fit to return for the T20I series that follows.Ireland were without their two senior seam bowlers for the recent T20Is against England but have received a boost to their preparations for next year’s T20 World Cup with both available for Paul Stirling’s side. Adair underwent knee surgery in August, while Little had been suffering from a side injury.The Test leg will see Ireland play a multi-match series for only the second time. Top-order batters Cade Carmichael and Stephen Doheny, allrounder Jordan Neill and left-arm seamer Liam McCarthy have all received maiden call-ups, while legspinner Gavin Hoey, who is uncapped in Tests, also returns to the squad.They will be captained by Andy Balbirnie, with Ireland having won their last three Tests dating back to February 2024.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Andrew White, Ireland Men’s selector, said: “It is fantastic to have Test cricket on the horizon again – and with that we are excited to see Cade Carmichael come into the Test squad following his ODI debut against the West Indies earlier this year.”Not only has he had a great season, but he has also demonstrated the qualities required to be an international cricketer in this format. Cade compiled an excellent century against Afghanistan A in a four-day match in the UAE earlier this year, and anyone watching his two ODI appearances against West Indies will have noticed his composure and his technical ability against quick bowling.”Stephen Doheny is another player who has had a good domestic season and demonstrated a number of technical changes that we hope will enable him to be successful going forward.”It is likely that we will need all of our seamers across the back-to-back Tests. Given the recent number of injuries we have been managing, and the volume of cricket in the coming months, we will need to proactively manage the group in what will undoubtedly be hot and humid conditions. This is only the second time we have played consecutive Tests as part of a tour – it’s a challenge I know the squad will relish as they adapt to Asian conditions.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The T20I squad is broadly similar to that which played against England, with the additions of Adair, Little and batter Tim Tector. Neill and seamer Graham Hume were omitted.”In terms of the T20 squad, the likelihood is that spin will play a more prominent role – so Gareth Delany, Matthew Humphreys and Ben White are expected to provide options in this area,” White said. “And with Mark Adair and Josh Little returning to the squad, Graham Hume makes way on this occasion.”On the batting front, the 15-player squad allows us to bring in Tim Tector while retaining Ben Calitz to give us middle-order depth.”Ireland Test squadAndrew Balbirnie (capt), Curtis Campher, Cade Carmichael, Stephen Doheny, Gavin Hoey, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Liam McCarthy, Paul Stirling, Jordan Neill, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig YoungIreland T20I squadPaul Stirling (capt), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Ben Calitz, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Matthew Humphreys, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Harry Tector, Tim Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig YoungFixturesNovember 11-15 – 1st Test, Sylhet
November 19-23 – 2nd Test, Dhaka
November 27 – 1st T20I, Chattogram
November 29 – 2nd T20I, Chattogram
December 2 – 3rd T20I, Dhaka

Chelsea have made a solid start to the season under Enzo Maresca despite being presented with a fair few obstacles, and the Blues briefly climbed to second in the Premier League table last weekend.

Maresca’s approach has been defined by extensive squad rotation, a strategy that has drawn both praise and criticism.

The Italian has made 93 changes in total this season, a staggering number and more than any other Premier League side. This rotation policy could reflect Chelsea’s depth and ambitions to compete on all four fronts, even if Maresca reportedly isn’t completely satisfied with the squad right now.

That being said, injuries and suspensions have significantly tested that depth this term.

Levi Colwill remains a long-term absentee after sustaining an ACL injury during pre-season training in August, ruling him out for most of the campaign and likely England’s Euro 2026 preparations. Superstar forward Cole Palmer has also been sidelined with a niggling groin injury since September, with Maresca initially expecting him to return shortly after the last international break before the recovery timeline was extended by six weeks.

The England international missed a full month of action and was targeting a return in December, but he is now expected to return before the end of this month and could feature against Barcelona in the Champions League.

The striker department has been particularly affected by injuries. Summer signing Liam Delap sustained a hamstring problem early in the 2-0 win over Fulham in August, leaving him out for two months, and following his return from a lengthy layoff, the forward’s comeback quickly turned into a disaster.

Delap picked up two needless yellow cards against Wolves, prompting fury from Maresca, who labelled his conduct ’embarrassing’.

After Roméo Lavia’s latest in a long line of injuries since joining from Southampton, Chelsea’s medical room is starting to feel overcrowded again, but the west Londoners have done well to navigate it with Colwill, Palmer, Benoit Badiashile, Enzo Fernández, Pedro Neto, Dario Essugo, Delap, Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Tosin Adarabioyo, Andrey Santos and Josh Acheampong all missing at various points.

Chelsea became the first team in history to win all five UEFA club tournaments back in May, and as Maresca looks to build upon that feat, their form on paper suggests the club have every chance of doing so.

BlueCo’s ownership appears to finally be reaping dividends, but it hasn’t always been this way.

There’s been a fair few trial and error, high-profile mistakes since Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly took over the club in 2022, not least their deal for ex-Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang admits Chelsea transfer was a "big mistake"

Speaking to YouTube content creator Troopz, via ESPN, Aubameyang himself has now admitted that joining Chelsea was a “big mistake”.

Aubameyang signed for Chelsea in September 2022 for a reported fee of around £10 million, reuniting with his former boss at Borussia Dortmund, Thomas Tuchel. However, Tuchel was sacked just days after the Gabonese’s arrival, setting the tone for a disastrous spell.

He was handed his first Premier League appearance in October, scoring his first goal for the club in a 2-1 away victory over Crystal Palace. The now-Marseille striker made 21 appearances in all competitions for the Blues, scoring just three goals, and all three of them came in the space of ten days that October.

By February, he was dropped from the Champions League squad by Graham Potter, highlighting his fall from grace, and he didn’t fare any better under Frank Lampard either. Aubameyang struggled for form and consistency, and just 10 months after signing, the 36-year-old left Chelsea and signed a three-year deal with Marseille on a free transfer.

He’ll go down as one of, if not the worst signing of BlueCo’s tenure — so the feeling of regret will be pretty mutual in London.

The World Series goes through the National League. At least if you go by the top of the betting odds. 

The top three teams in the MLB World Series betting odds currently reside in the NL, starting with the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers at +230 on FanDuel Sportsbook. The NL East rival Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets are next on the odds at +850 each. Both teams made big swings at the deadline, adding bullpen help and, for the Phillies, Harrison Bader as well.

The New York Yankees are fourth on the oddsboard at +900. They added Pirates closer David Bednar at the deadline, but are waiting on MVP/All-Star/heart-and-soul-of-the-team Aaron Judge to come off the 10-day IL. They are also four games behind the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL East and only 2.5 games ahead in the wild card standings.

The Detroit Tigers (+950), Houston Astros (+1200) and Blue Jays (+1400) are next on the oddsboard. All three are at least four games ahead in their respective division races and the Blue Jays made some moves at the deadline that suggest they’re all in on this season. They’re currently battling the Tigers for the best record in the NL while the Astros remain the Astros in a solid AL West. 

The Padres are currently the hottest team in baseball, having won five straight, including a sweep of the visiting Mets. They also went all-in at the deadline, shoring up what is already the best bullpen in the league. 

Here are the odds for every MLB team to win the World Series with odds coming from FanDuel. 

2025 MLB World Series OddsLos Angeles Dodgers +230Philadelphia Phillies +850New York Mets +850New York Yankees +900Detroit Tigers +950Houston Astros +1200Toronto Blue Jays +1400Chicago Cubs +1400Seattle Mariners +1600Milwaukee Brewers +1600San Diego Padres +2500Boston Red Sox +2700Texas Rangers +3000Tampa Bay Rays +9000Cincinnati Reds +10000San Francisco Giants +13000Kansas City Royals +15000Cleveland Guardians +20000St. Louis Cardinals +25000Minnesota Twins +32000Arizona Diamondbacks +55000Los Angeles Angels +75000Washington Nationals +100000Atlanta Braves +100000Pittsburgh Pirates +100000Baltimore Orioles +100000Chicago White Sox +100000Miami Marlins +100000Athletics +100000

The South Australia batter, who is captaining Australia A, plundered the England Lions attack

AAP06-Dec-2025Nathan McSweeney threw up his hand to be the man to replace Usman Khawaja, with a superb double century for Australia A against the England Lions.As David Warner urged selectors to return Travis Head to No. 5 and put a specialist opener alongside Jake Weatherald, McSweeney made his case on Saturday.Related

Kellaway enhances his credentials with top score for Prime Minister's XI

Richardson stands out with four wickets as England Lions collapse

The 26-year-old finished unbeaten on 222 in Brisbane, posting his maiden double-century as Australia A went to stumps on day two at 554 for 7 in reply to the Lions’ 166.This match is now effectively over as a contest, with the hosts leading by 388 at Allan Border Field against a Lions side fielding three frontline bowlers with Test experience.But it has come at a perfect time for McSweeney, who also hit 63 for the Prime Minister’s XI against a more experience English attack last weekend.McSweeney is a natural No. 3 or No. 4, but was given the chance to open for Australia in three Tests last year against India. He was ultimately worked over by the world’s best bowler Jasprit Bumrah, before being dropped after averaging 14.4 across six innings.But he bounced back to form with a century for South Australia in late October, and now has scores of 103, 68, 63 and 222 not out in the past six weeks.Khawaja is hopeful of being fit for the third Ashes Test in Adelaide on December 17, but it remains to be seen whether the 38-year-old will be brought back in.Head hit 33 for Australia in the first innings at the Gabba after his Perth second innings heroics as opener, but the likes of Warner believe he is still better placed at No. 5 as a rear-guard option.”I think they need a genuine opener to compliment Jake Weatherald,” Warner said on Kayo.  “Because the way Jake plays you’re probably going to be hit or miss at the top of the order with two guys who like to go after the ball. That’s Australia’s problem.”If they have a couple of innings where that does happen and they lose early wickets, that’s going to come under the microscope.”Beyond Khawaja, Matt Renshaw has hit three Sheffield Shield centuries for Queensland this year but missed out for Australia A on Friday, scoring 8.Young Victorian Campbell Kellaway has also made a sound case this summer, with his 71 against the Lions on Friday following a century for the Prime Minister’s XI last week.But Saturday was McSweeney’s time to shine, routinely pulling England’s quicks and spinners to the boundary. Batting at No.3, some 11 of his 27 boundaries came in that fashion, while he also used his feet to hit spinner Jacob Bethell for a big six down the ground.Beau Webster also cover-drove well and hit 44 for Australia A after losing out in a selection battle for the Gabba Test, while Cooper Connolly struck 88.

Eight matches into his Rangers tenure, is Danny Röhl any closer to figuring out which players he can trust and who he cannot?

On Thursday night, the Gers were held to a 1-1 draw by ten-man Braga at Ibrox, despite taking the lead through James Tavernier’s spot-kick in first half stoppage time; the fact that only 38,014 spectators were in attendance encapsulates the mood.

So, with just one point on the board after five games, a frankly pitiful effort, unless they somehow manage to beat Ferencváros, Ludogorets Razgrad and then Porto, which seems unlikely if we’re being honest, the Gers’ Europa League adventure will be coming to a premature end in January, having got all the way to last season’s quarter-finals.

This will allow them to concentrate on domestic matters, which may be a good thing, given that they’ve slipped down to fifth in the Premiership table, despite having won all four league matches since Röhl’s arrival in Glasgow.

So, ahead of a visit from Falkirk, who would actually leapfrog their hosts with a shock victory at Ibrox on Sunday, what changes should the German head coach make?

Youssef Chermiti's uninspiring form

Back on Monday, it was announced that both chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell had been sacked, after overseeing a chaotic summer of recruitment, with the £8m, potentially rising to £10m, paid to sign Youssef Chermiti among the more egregious and baffling of their decisions.

So far, he has scored just one goal for the club, on target against Kilmarnock last month, already surpassing his tally of zero goals during two seasons at Everton, also brought to Merseyside by Thelwell for £14m when he was working at Goodison.

Aside from his lack of goals, the striker simply isn’t offering enough, often allowing matches to pass him by and putting in anonymous performances.

Following this week’s draw with Braga, Mark Atkinson of the Scotsman asserted that he is driving supporters ‘demented’, adding that he ‘spurned a couple of presentable’ opportunities and is so far proving to be a mere baffling expensive purchase.

So, ahead of a sequence of three Premiership matches in seven days, facing Falkirk, Dundee United and then Kilmarnock, Chermiti should be stood down and Röhl must instead deploy the “best player in the league” up front.

Rangers' superior Chermiti alternative

Of the 13 players Rangers signed in the summer, many are young and inexperienced, hoping to grow and improve in the coming years, but Bojan Miovski was supposed to be a ready-made starter, brought in to produce right away.

The 26-year-old, returning to Scottish football after a season at Girona, is a proven goalscorer at both club and international level, bagging his ninth goal for North Macedonia against Wales at the Cardiff City Stadium earlier this month.

Meantime, at club level, prior to his season in Catalonia, he had been outstanding during two years at Aberdeen, as the table below documents.

Bojan Miovski’s stats for Aberdeen

Stats

Miovski

Appearances

98

Goals

44

European goals

4

Goals vs Rangers

4

Goals vs Celtic

3

Shots on target per 90

1.1

Big chances missed

31

Average rating

6.9

Stats via Transfermarkt & SofaScore

As the table makes clear, Miovski was an elite-level finisher during his time at Pittodrie, scoring 32 Premiership goals, while his strike rate in Europe as well as against the two Glasgow giants underlines his quality.

Then-teammate Nicky Devlin asserted that Miovski was “the best player in the league in his position”, firing the Dons to a third place finish in 2022/23, before being sold for £6.8m, the Dons’ record outgoing transfer.

However, we are yet to see very much of that from Miovski in a Rangers jersey, scoring his first goal for the club against Hibs in the League Cup, while his only Premiership goal came at Falkirk Stadium in October, the day Russell Martin was sacked.

Since the appointment of Röhl, the North Macedonian has featured in all eight matches but has started just once, this coming at Dens Park before the international break, substituted at half time with the Light Blues leading Dundee 2-0.

So, for whatever reason, the German head coach appears to favour Chermiti and Danilo, despite the fact that Miovski is a proven goalscorer at both Premiership and European level, something this team desperately needs given that, 26 matches into this campaign, Tavernier and Djeidi Gassama are the only squad members who have four or more goals to their name.

Thus, when Falkirk visit Ibrox this weekend, surely Röhl has to bring Miovski back into his XI, ditching the ineffective Chermiti, with the former looking to net as he did against the Bairns once again, just as he did in Stirlingshire just last month.

Related Not just Djiga: Thelwell flop who lost ball 17x looks finished at Rangers

Rangers’ wait for a first Europa League victory goes on, held to a 1-1 draw by Braga at Ibrox, and a summer signing was just as bad as Nasser Djiga.

Posts ByBen Gray Nov 28, 2025

She hopes for a good start to the tournament, but SL’s first five games are against India, Australia, England, NZ and SA

Andrew Fidel Fernando26-Sep-2025

Chamari Attapaththu looks at and dreams about lifting the World Cup trophy•AFP/Getty Images

Chamari Athapaththu would do anything to get Sri Lanka to the semi-final of this Women’s ODI World Cup. No Sri Lanka team has managed this over 11 years, at an ICC event, and the women’s team has never got there. Athapaththu has long been the talisman of this side, but feels she has the young players in her side now, who can excel in their own right.”More than in the other tournaments, I’m pretty relaxed in this one,” Athapaththu said in Colombo. “The youngsters have been performing – Harshitha Samarawickrama, Vishmi Gunaratne, and Kavisha Dilhari, are all batting well. So more than other times, I’m able to relax a bit.”Gunaratne, Dilhari, and Samarawickrama had all played important roles in Sri Lanka’s chart to an Asia Cup victory at home, though that was in the T20 format. Still, that was enough to inspire more trust from Athapaththu, who suggested she would be more fearless in the first 10 overs.Related

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“I’m going to be playing the game I play in the powerplay,” Athapaththu said. “Then, after that, the challenge is to figure out how I can change gears and do more damage. My one aim is to get Sri Lanka into the semi finals. Before I retire, what I want is to take Sri Lanka to a semi-final. If we can get there, we can figure out the next steps. But even getting there is big.”On paper, Sri Lanka have no easy games, especially at the start of their campaign. Their World Cup begins against India on September 30 in the tournament opener in Guwahati before matches in Colombo against Australia on October 4, England on October 11, New Zealand on October 14 and South Africa on October 18. They then play Bangladesh in Navi Mumbai on October 20 before flying back to Colombo for their final league-stage match against Pakistan on October 24.But the motivation is high, since Sri Lanka are returning to the ODI World Cup after eight years. They did not feature in the ODI World Cup in 2022, owing partially to Sri Lanka not having played a single international between March 2020 and January 2022.”We haven’t been able to play a World Cup since 2017. We lost the chance to play in the last World Cup, because with Covid we couldn’t play the qualifying rounds, and that’s where our rankings were. It’s after eight years we’re playing a World Cup.”We’ve sacrificed a lot and worked really hard to get here. We’ve played really well in the last cycle. We’re in a good mental space. I’m hoping we can get a good start to the tournament.”

Only 64 overs were possible on the day as England’s lack of discipline even in helpful conditions kept India afloat

Alagappan Muthu31-Jul-20252:37

‘England would be a little disappointed with the score’

Stumps After four Tests on flat pitches that took bowlers from both teams to the brink and counted among its casualties Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah, The Oval, which has been profoundly seam-friendly in recent times, provided margin for error. England played like they needed it; there were 30 extras but also six wickets and just 204 runs.India came to the ground facing humongous odds. But they beat them. The probability of losing a 15th toss in a row was 32728 to 1. There’s a chance unicorns are easier to find than a coin that will fall the way Shubman Gill wants it to.England got first use of a pitch with 8mm of grass on it and their fast bowlers benefited from the weather in more than one way. Rain through most of the afternoon helped keep their legs fresh and the threat of it, hanging over the entire day, created overhead conditions that were perfect for swing and seam. Only 64 overs were possible but there was enough help to bowl a team out. England’s lack of discipline is the reason why India are still standing. That and Karun Nair scoring a Test fifty after 3149 days dreaming of it. His hopes of becoming a permanent fixture in this batting line-up are still alive, with his opponents lending him a helping hand.Josh Tongue could only create 13 false shots in 13 overs. Watching him bowl raised the suspicion that the stumps aren’t inanimate; that they can get up and move wherever they please. Otherwise why would a Test match bowler stray so far and so often. His first over produced 11 runs in wides. And yet this was the same man who eventually made England feel comfortable about their decision to bowl first when he found his radar – briefly – to dismiss B Sai Sudharsan and Ravindra Jadeja in the space of four overs. India went from a respectable 101 for 3 to a shaky 123 for 5 and it was because Tongue wasn’t bowling line and length. He was bowling filth and jaffas.Karun Nair celebrates his fifty•Getty ImagesGill will take a portion of the blame as well. He was looking good in testing conditions, rendering England’s most experienced bowler – Chris Woakes – toothless by batting a foot and a half in front of his crease and exploiting the mistakes from the rest of the attack – who have 18 caps between them – by cutting and pulling handsomely. In doing so, he went past Sunil Gavaskar’s tally of 732, against West Indies in 1978-79, to become the India captain with the most runs in a Test series.No batter who reaps such a big bounty does so without something special about him. In Gill’s case, it is the sound of bat hitting ball. Often times, it is deafening, a sign of shots well-chosen and perfectly executed. Ironically, though, his dismissal here was the result of a ball he middled. He thought he could get a run off a front-foot block but he hadn’t placed it wide enough of the bowler. Gus Atkinson had a head start thanks to his follow through; he picked the ball up comfortably, took aim at the keeper’s end, and broke the stumps. Gill wasn’t even in the frame. Five minutes later, rain swept the players off the field. It was as untimely as a wicket could be.Sai Sudharsan enhanced his reputation while he was out there on the ground he calls home in county cricket. He didn’t look quite so susceptible to being caught down the leg side, even though England kept targeting him there. There was a moment where a pigeon flew right across the pitch just as Atkinson let go of the ball. It was an inswinger. Nicely pitched up. Searching for lbw and bowled. But Sai Sudharsan, on instinct, prevented his front leg from going too far across and was able to bring down a lovely straight bat.That was the kind of delivery that was taking him out early on in the series. It raised the question that maybe this is the real him and that in Leeds and Manchester, he was just a mess of nerves because he was playing his first few Tests. It took an unplayable delivery from an unlikely source – Tongue – to dislodge him for 38 off 108.1:48

What will be a good score for India?

Nair took over from there, playing some gorgeous drives, particularly through the covers. He still appears vulnerable to the ball in the channel because his bat comes down in an angle and his front foot doesn’t move too far, but England didn’t test him there enough.Atkinson was their most reliable bowler. He only had a second XIs game to prove his readiness for Test cricket again after a hamstring injury and apparently that’s enough of a testing ground. His first spell was pristine 6-1-7-1, where he took down Yashasvi Jaiswal early and caused problems throughout. But the rest of the attack only got their act together in the final session.Tongue and Jamie Overton did point to some extenuating circumstances for their rhythm being awry. They kept slipping as they powered their weight through their bowling action because the landing spot for their front foot kept giving way. Sawdust came to the rescue but it still wasn’t ideal. When you’re running in worried you could twist your leg, you run in less hard.Nair and Washington Sundar saw India through to the close of a strange day’s play. Neither team will be disappointed with their efforts, though England will be mulling the injury that Woakes sustained. His efforts to stop a boundary late in the day might have led to a suspected dislocated left shoulder.

MatériaMais Notícias

Com o retorno de empréstimo de Diego Hernández e o fim de contrato de Gonzalo Mastriani, o Botafogo continua com 12 jogadores estrangeiros no elenco, maior marca do Brasileirão ao lado do Grêmio. E o número deve aumentar: o provável primeiro reforço da janela é o uruguaio Lucas Villalba.

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O limite de atletas de fora do Brasil relacionados para jogos do campeonato nacional é de nove por clube — a demanda dos times nos últimos anos fez a Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF) aumentar de cinco para sete e depois novamente. Em meio a lesões, suspensões e escolhas técnicas, a regra não foi um empecilho para Davide Ancelotti ao longo do ano. O máximo de estrangeiros titulares em jogo do Brasileiro foram cinco — contra o Mirassol na 12ª rodada.

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Sem contar o possível reforço, o elenco do Botafogo tem 12 estrangeiros de oito nacionalidades diferentes, muitos com potencial de eventual titularidade. Se as movimentações da janela fizerem o número crescer ainda mais, Ancelotti pode ter dor de cabeça em partidas de competições nacionais. Vale ressaltar, porém, que na Libertadores não há esse limite.

continua após a publicidadeOs estrangeiros do Botafogo

Cristhian Loor (Equador)
Alexander Barboza (Argentina)
Bastos (Angola)
Mateo Ponte (Uruguai)
Jefferson Savarino (Venezuela)
Álvaro Montoro (Argentina)
Santi Rodríguez (Uruguai)
Jordan Barrera (Colômbia)
Diego Hernández (Uruguai)
Joaquín Correa (Argentina)
Chris Ramos (Espanha)
Kadir Barría (Panamá)

Estrangeiros por elenco do Brasileirão atualmente

Botafogo: 12
Grêmio: 12
Fluminense: 11
São Paulo: 11
Flamengo: 10
Athletico-PR: 10
– Abaixo do limite de relacionados por jogo –
Santos: 9
Vasco: 9
Internacional: 9
Palmeiras: 8
Bragantino: 8
Corinthians: 8
Cruzeiro: 6
Atlético-MG: 6
Vitória: 6
Remo: 6
Bahia: 5
Coritiba: 4
Chapecoense: 2
Mirassol: nenhum

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➡️ Botafogo volta a apostar em promessa uruguaia; compare números

Mais um estrangeiro no Botafogo?

A oferta enviada pela SAF de John Textor ao Nacional para contratar Lucas Villalba foi aceita. Os clubes aguardavam um terceiro envolvido, o Montevideo City Torque, ex-time do atacante, que tinha prioridade para cobertura de propostas. O prazo de cinco dias para a equipe se posicionar sobre o interesse de igualar a oferta expirou nessa terça-feira (9), sem sinalização, deixando o caminho aberto para o Botafogo. O vínculo, caso o acordo seja firmado, será de quatro temporadas.

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