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Celtic enjoyed a comfortable afternoon in the Premiership as they strolled to a routine 2-0 win on Sunday to send them six points clear at the top of the table.

Kyogo Furuhashsi opened the scoring in the first half and then Jota, who set up the first goal, sealed the three points with an 87th-minute strike.

The Hoops dominated the match as they ended the game with 74% of the ball and 22 efforts on goal, with Ross County fortunate that they only conceded twice.

Whilst Jota scored and assisted a goal in the match, the real star of the show for Ange Postecoglou was central defender Cameron Carter-Vickers.

It is easy to point at the attackers and praise them for scoring the goals to win the match but all of their work is built on the back of a strong platform. The solid defence allows the likes of Jota and Kyogo to go and do what they want to do without worrying about constantly needing to drop deep to win the ball back – allowing the opposition to press up on them.

Carter-Vickers was outstanding in central defence as he stood strong at the back and was reliable in possession. He played a major role in Celtic’s dominance throughout the game and the forwards should be thanking him for making their lives easier.

As per SofaScore, he won 85.7% (6/7) of his individual duels and made five clearances, one interception and one block to help his side to a clean sheet. This shows that he was superb defensively as he won the vast majority of his battles with Ross County players and did not allow himself to be beaten by the opposition – keeping them away from Joe Hart’s goal.

On the ball, he completed 85% of his passes from 62 touches and created one chance from centre-back. He is not expected to do anything special in possession from his position but Postecoglou will be delighted with his assuredness on the ball.

The £20k-per-week defender continues to impress at the heart of the defence and fans will surely be wanting to see him back at Parkhead next season on a permanent basis.

In the Premiership this season, the on-loan Tottenham man has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.36 across 29 matches. Celtic have kept 16 clean sheets in those games and the latest one came with the help of his sublime display against Ross County on Sunday.

AND in other news, Source: Celtic on course to seal “immense” summer signing, Ange will be buzzing…

Celtic signing Cameron Carter-Vickers on a permanent deal this summer would be a ‘big, big boost’ according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Dream loan spell

The American traded Tottenham for the Hoops last year, arriving at Parkhead on a season-long loan in order to enjoy regular starts away from north London.

Carter-Vickers has enjoyed a fantastic spell at Celtic to date, becoming an influential figure at the heart of the defence and winning four Man of the Match awards from WhoScored.

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He has also scored four times for good measure, including the crucial winner in the 2-1 victory away to Rangers earlier this month.

The Latest: Permanent move imminent?

Speaking to GiveMeSport, O’Rourke talked up the idea of Celtic signing Carter-Vickers on a long-term basis in the summer transfer window. The journalist said:

“It would be a big, big boost for Celtic if they were to get this deal over the line. I think he has been instrumental in their success this season and has helped to shore up their defence.

“Celtic have got the best defensive record in the Scottish Premiership this season as well, so Carter-Vickers has played his part in that.”

The Verdict: No-brainer for Celtic

There is very little, if anything, which doesn’t make sense regarding the Hoops signing Carter-Vickers permanently, given the impact he has made at the club.

Spurs are reportedly willing to sell him, not seeing him as a key figure, and £6m would be enough for Celtic to snap him up, which arguably feels like a bargain given his performances in green and white.

The 24-year-old has the potential to be a vital player at Parkhead for many years, with his average of 4.2 aerial duel wins and 1.2 interceptions per game highlighting his defensive expertise.

In other news, Ange Postecoglou has admitted ‘concern’ over one player. Find out who it is here.

ScorecardSurrey were left to regret batting first in conditions where the ball movedalarmingly through the air as Tim Murtagh bagged a five-wicket haul in thisCounty Championship Division Two clash at Lord’s.Murtagh took three of the final four wickets to fall as Surrey were shot outfor 167 before tea, returning 5 for 52 against his former county, but it wasPedro Collins who did the early damage with 4 for 68.Surrey’s day soured further after tea when, bowling too short, they allowedScott Newman to reach a watchful 54 from 114 balls until falling leg-before. Middlesex eventually ended the opening day 12 runs ahead with eight wickets in hand.Collins reserved a beauty to claim the key wicket of Mark Ramprakash, who has abetter average against his old team than against any other county. Ramprakash has scored four hundreds against Middlesex in the last 14 months, but this time he was comprehensively bowled for 44 when a superb late inswinger defeated him.When Stewart Walters’ stumps were also wrecked, by Murtagh, Surrey were 116 for5 but continued to go on the attack. They did manage 51 from the next eight overs but were bowled out in the process.Such was the lavish swing under the morning’s heavy cloud, the surprise wasthat it took 50 minutes for the first man to go. Three then fell in eight balls, however, including two in two balls for Collins. The Bajan, a man with a point to prove against the side who released him last autumn, had both Tom Lancefield and Rory Hamilton-Jones trapped legbefore with inswinging deliveries.Usman Afzaal (11) survived the hat-trick ball, and battled for an houralongside Ramprakash, but was a third leg-before victim in the penultimate overbefore lunch.Murtagh had struck the opening blow, to claim his first Championship scalpsince 17 May, as he found Steve Davies’s inside edge and the deflection justdislodged a bail. Indeed, each of the top six batsmen departed bowled or leg-before asintelligent full-length bowling exploited conditions to the full.But Surrey failed to match these methods later and Middlesex had almost halftheir opponents’ total before their first wicket fell. John Simpson, pulling, bottom-edged into his stumps for 36.It was an hour from the late close when Gareth Batty’s off-spin was re-introduced and he immediately removed Newman. But, unquestionably, the first day of the London derby belonged to Middlesex.

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has reiterated that Younis Khan’s experience will be crucial for the side’s upcoming Test matches against England and Australia

Cricinfo staff05-Jun-2010

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has reiterated that Younis Khan’s experience will be crucial for the side’s upcoming Test matches against England and Australia. Younis is the only batsman in the 35-player list of probables for the England tour with an average touching 50. He was banned indefinitely by the PCB in the aftermath of a winless tour of Australia, but the punishment was revoked by the one-man tribunal that heard his appeal on Saturday.”I don’t think it is a big problem that Younis has not been picked in the one-day squad but we definitely need him for the Test matches,” Afridi told . “I am sure he will be ready for a Test comeback in England.”Shoaib Malik, whose ban was reversed during his hearing, featured in the one-day squad for the Asia Cup and Afridi hoped Younis would make a similar comeback in time for the Tests.Younis has been short on international match-practice, having sat out of Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand and the Tests in Australia. He returned for the ODI leg of that tour, after which he was banned for disciplinary reasons by a PCB inquiry committee. He is set to turn out for Surrey in the English domestic season, and Afridi hopes that will help him prepare for the Tests.”I just hope that Younis is able to score runs for Surrey in England. It will be good for us because he is already playing there and would have got used to the English conditions by the time we go there,” he said.

Stephen Moore’s unbeaten 83 off 52 balls set up a 23-run win for Lancashire against Durham in their opening Friends Provident t20 match

Cricinfo staff05-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Stephen Moore’s unbeaten 83 off 52 balls set up a 23-run win for Lancashire against Durham in their opening Friends Provident t20 match at Chester-le-Street. Lancashire took 60 off their last five overs to reach 179 for 4 and Durham were in with a chance at 75 for 2 after 10 overs. But when Lancashire introduced their third spinner, Steven Croft, his first 10 balls produced figures of 2 for 4.The offspinner had Phil Mustard stumped for 47, made off 38 balls, then Ben Stokes drove to long-off for 19. Durham’s investment in South African Albie Morkel and New Zealander Ross Taylor brought no instant dividends.Both had missed difficult chances offered by Moore, and Taylor then made only one before pulling Sajid Mahmood’s third ball straight to deep square leg. At a time when the pressure was mounting, Morkel scored only four in his first four overs at the crease and, although he hit two huge sixes, he was run out for 26 in the final over with the game already lost as Durham finished on 156 for 8.Before the game Durham unveiled their new stadium name, for which it was announced there had been hundreds of entries. The evening had been dubbed Emirates Day in honour of the club’s major sponsors and the match was a sell-out of almost 8,000, making it a record crowd for a county game at what will in future be known as the Emirates Durham International Cricket Ground.Moore atoned for his part in running out opener Tom Smith, who scored 44 off 32 balls, by hitting three sixes and seven fours. He shared an unbroken stand of 74 with Mark Chilton, who made 18.Lancashire opened up with left-arm spinner Simon Kerrigan and Mustard reverse-swept the first ball for four as ten came off the over. Kerrigan made way for skipper Glen Chapple and, after clubbing him back over his head for four, Ian Blackwell tried another rustic swipe and edged to the wicketkeeper.Much as he did in his first stint with Durham two years ago, Morkel took his time to settle in and the pressure was really on for Dale Benkenstein. Although he flat-batted the second ball he faced from Croft wide of long-on for six he added only two more runs before he went down the pitch to left-arm spinner Stephen Parry and was bowled.

The Plays of the Day from the third day at Old Trafford

Andrew McGlashan at Old Trafford06-Jun-2010Decision of the dayIt was by no means a given that Andrew Strauss would enforce the follow-on when England ended Bangladesh’s first innings on the second evening. However, the damp Manchester morning that greeted the team on Sunday did Strauss a massive favour. If he was pondering extending the lead and letting the pitch wear, overcast skies meant it was a no-brainer to stick Bangladesh back in – 34.1 overs later the match was over and England had earned themselves two days off.Failure of the dayThe stuffing was knocked out of Bangladesh’s effort with just the second ball when their swashbuckling hero, Tamim Iqbal, fended at a rising delivery from James Anderson and feathered an edge to Matt Prior. The visitors have ridden on Tamim’s outstanding form during this tour, a continuation of what he showed in Bangladesh earlier this year, but he was due a failure after six fifties in seven innings. His success has clearly rattled England and Anderson’s pumped-up celebration when he claimed the scalp showed how vital they knew the wicket was. And that is the biggest compliment Tamim can be paid.Action replay of the dayWith Tamim gone early England sensed blood with Anderson hooping the ball away from the Stretford End and Steven Finn steaming in from the Brian Statham End. Finn was gaining considerable bounce off a length and had Imrul Kayes in an almighty tangle with a bouncer that the left-hander fended off his gloves. His demise didn’t feel far away and he soon top-edged his second hook of the match to find the man at deep square-leg, giving an identical entry in the scorebook to yesterday: c Shahzad b Finn. Meanwhile, England will feel their plans have worked with Kayes falling to the short ball – and Finn – in all four innings.Pain of the dayMushfiqur Rahim is a gutsy cricketer and a mighty fine batsman who, in the long term, may be better suited to shelving the keeping gloves and being in the top five. When he walked to the crease his team was in tatters at 37 for 5 but he still tried to battle it out in stronger fashion than some of his top-order team-mates. During a testing spell from Ajmal Shahzad, Rahim took a nasty blow on the bottom hand as some extra bounce caught his glove and left him in considerable discomfort.After some treatment from the physio he fought on, but grimaced more than once and the pain probably played a part in his limp chip to midwicket. Finn claimed the wicket, but Shahzad’s role was key.Sub of the dayWhen England play Test matches at home they rely on the local county to supply the substitute fielders so that squad players can return to their domestic teams. It means the opportunity for someone to grab a moment in the spotlight. Occasionally they play a vital role in victory, as when Paul Weekes took two sharp chances at short leg against West Indies, at Lord’s, in 1995. This time, the catch struck the way of Karl Brown, the Lancashire batsman, at midwicket was a simple affair but it will have given him great joy to cling on and savour helping England take a wicket.

Many Everton fans have been buzzing over some transfer news which has emerged regarding Vitaliy Mykolenko.

As per the club’s official website, they have now confirmed the signing of the player from Dynamo Kiev for an ‘undisclosed fee’, and he has signed a four-and-a-half-year deal at the Merseyside club until the end of June 2026.

The Ukraine international becomes the Toffees’ first signing of the January transfer window after impressing with both club and country over recent years.

Mykolenko brings with him a lot of promise, having already won four trophies in his career at just 22 years of age, while he has registered three assists from left-back in the Ukrainian top flight and played in the Champions League this season (Transfermarkt).

Of course, this will only fuel the speculation surrounding the future of Lucas Digne, but a lot of Everton supporters are just excited for now that a new face is coming through the door.

Everton fans on Mykolenko transfer news

These Toffees fans buzzed as the transfer news was shared on Twitter, with one going as far as to claim that it is a ‘great’ start to the month:

“YESSS”

Credit: @EFCOliver7

“HE’S MAGIC YOU KNOW”

Credit: @WhitesideKp

“Yessssssss”

Credit: @Callum14655523

“Moooorning!”

Credit: @ToffeeMc1878

“Great to get business done early, welcome!”

Credit: @TacticallyEv

“New Year. New you Everton. I like it! Happy New Year.”

Credit: @EFCLynne

In other news, these training images have had many Evertonians gushing

Yusuf Pathan played the most astonishing knock of his career, blasting a chance-filled double-century to pilot West Zone to the largest successful chase in first-class history

Cricinfo staff06-Feb-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Yusuf Pathan made his second century of the match to orchestrate a stunning chase•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Yusuf Pathan’s herculean, but fortuitous, unbeaten 210 helped West Zone achieve the biggest chase in first-class history, running down the target of 536 with three wickets in hand to win the Duleep Trophy final. It surpassed the previous highest first-class chase of 513 for 9 between Central Province and Southern Province in the 2003-04 Sri Lankan domestic season. South Zone had only themselves to blame because they dropped Yusuf five times – three were sitters – and it all came down to which team could hold its nerve better under pressure.At the start of the final day, Yusuf was unbeaten on 84 with his team needing 157 with four wickets in hand. He began the day with a boundary off the first ball, driving the seamer C Ganapathy over extra cover. Yusuf did the same to Alfred Absolem in the next over as he sped towards his century. He reached three figures for the second time in the match in signature style, cutting Ganapathy to the deep backward point boundary.A resolute Pinal Shah blunted the South Zone attack on the final morning while Yusuf continued to flay the bowling, aided by a runner after cramping up, and the butter fingers of the fielders. Shah’s role was simple – all he had to do was defend and give Yusuf support. He plodded to six off 40 deliveries and he remained on that score for the next 31.South were desperate for a breakthrough but when the opportunity arrived, they let it slip, literally. Their first blunder came when Ganapathy dropped Yusuf off his own bowling, fumbling on his follow through. He was on 102 then. It was Yusuf’s third reprieve, having been let off on 15 and 65 on Friday.The bowler who suffered the most due to the let-offs was Aushik Srinivas, the left-arm spinner from Tamil Nadu playing his first Duleep final. Having been let down twice on the fourth day, there was more agony on the fifth as Srinivas watched KB Pawan grass a sitter at backward point. Yusuf, on 125, sliced it to Pawan’s left and poor Srinivas looked on helplessly as the fielder grabbed at the ball too early.Yusuf continued to gamble by taking on the bowling, carting the ball over the infield if it was pitched up and cutting if there was width. Shah fell for 16, spooning a catch back to the spinner Rohan Prem, but he had done his job, supporting Yusuf in an invaluable stand of 105 for the seventh wicket.Prem, however, was at the receiving end of a Yusuf onslaught. The batsman smashed him for five fours and three sixes to blaze towards the target. Yusuf had started cramping up, and called for a runner – his brother Irfan Pathan – when on 144. West were 80 short of the target then and it was at that stage when Yusuf really slaughtered Prem, bringing up his 150 with a boundary past cover.South committed another blunder when CM Gautham, keeping in place of Dinesh Karthik, let go another sitter with Yusuf on 170, this time off Ganapathy an over before lunch. South had one last chance when 22 runs were needed, Ramesh Powar would have been caught yards short if there was a direct hit from point, but the throw sailed wide. Powar has worked hard on his batting this season, and it showed during his confident 28-ball 18.Yusuf decided to settle the match in a jiffy after Powar’s run-out opportunity, slamming two consecutive sixes off Prem to bring up his double-century. The final flourish was, fittingly, reserved for Yusuf, who smashed S Aravind over long-on to seal the record chase. It was a classic follow-up to the Ranji final recently, which also went down to the wire in Mysore, attended by thousands. Had the local authorities persisted with their decision to keep the public away from this game, over security issues, this Duleep final would only have been witnessed by policemen in the stands.

MatériaMais Notícias

A delegação do Vasco desembarcou no início da tarde desta segunda-feira no Rio de Janeiro após a derrota por 3 a 1 para o Atlético-PR, no último domingo, na Arena da Baixada. O meia Nenê admite que a atuação do time não foi boa e que isso deixou o grupo chateado. No entanto, o camisa 10 cruz-maltino não desanimou com o resultado e segue confiante que o time pode conseguir a classificação para a Libertadores do ano que vem.

-Ainda temos totais chances de buscar essa vaga, estamos a dois pontos. O que realmente chateou muito foi a performance ontem, principalmente. Porque nas outras vezes jogamos bem e o resultado deveria ser os três pontos, mas não conseguimos. Estávamos chateados e frustados por isso. Mas ontem, eu creio que a performance foi nossa grande perda. Então vejo o resultado justo, e estamos muito chateados pela performance e não termos conseguido buscar nosso objetivo.

Com a derrota em Curitiba, o Vasco perdeu uma posição e agora está em nono, com 50 pontos, dois a menos do que o Botafogo, sétimo colocado. Questionado se era o momento de torcer para Grêmio e Flamengo serem campeões da Libertadores e Sul-Americana, respectivamente, para o Brasileiro ter um G9, Nenê disse que o pensamento do Vasco precisa ser em vencer suas partidas antes de pensar nos outros.

– Vamos buscar primeiro o nosso, temos que fazer o nosso dever de casa. Não dá para ficar torcendo para os outros. Não vamos ganhar a classificação de mão beijada, nem de presente. Então, temos que primeiramente pensar em nós, no que temos que fazer em campo – disse o meia, acreditando que se o time vencer os últimos dois jogos, vai conseguir a vaga naturalmente.

– Nesses últimos dois jogos temos que buscar os seis pontos. Creio que assim praticamente vamos estar dentro – completou.

Os jogadores do Vasco ganharam o resto da segunda-feira de folga e se reapresentam na tarde desta terça-feira para começar a preparação para a partida contra o Cruzeiro. O Cruz-Maltino encara o time mineiro no próximo domingo, às 17h, no Mineirão.

Aston Villa have been handed a major blow in their chase to sign River Plate starlet Julian Alvarez in this January transfer window.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent weeks and months had claimed that Fernando Hidalgo, the agent of the 21-year-old, was set to meet with Villa’s representatives over a move to Steven Gerrard’s side ahead of the new Premier League campaign.

That of course failed to materialise, and now, The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has revealed that the Argentine is instead set for a move to Old Trafford.

He said: “I believe he’s Manchester United-bound. Villa looked to have missed a trick for £17m. Trez, Traore and Bailey all missing for the next month.”

Blow for Villa

Like Emi Buendia, Alvarez is very much a creative attacker bagging four goals and setting up another seven in just 20 appearances last season – including a couple of games where he registered an impressive hat-trick of assists against Godoy Cruz and Central Cordoba.

This campaign however has seen him take his game to a completely another level, scoring 18 goals and providing another seven assists in just 21 games in the Argentine top-flight.

Given his ability to play anywhere across the front-line, and his age, Alvarez seems like the perfect profile of player that could have flourished alongside his fellow Argentine compatriots in Buendia and Emi Martinez.

The duo could have helped Alvarez settle into life at Villa Park a bit more comfortably than he may otherwise would have done, and the fact he’s now headed for a switch to United shows just how highly-rated he is.

Preece’s update is a major blow that will surely frustrate Villa fans that they have let an exciting young talent slip through the net.

Meanwhile, Villa are interested in this Serie A starlet…