Mohamed Salah missed a penalty in Egypt’s friendly with Tanzania, but saw his blushes spared as the ball bounced in off the goalkeeper’s backside.
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Reds forward away on international dutyPreparing for Africa Cup of NationsFluffed his lines again from 12 yardsWHAT HAPPENED?
The Liverpool forward is away on Africa Cup of Nations duty as he prepares to begin his quest for continental glory in the Ivory Coast. The Pharaohs are expected to go well at that tournament, with talismanic forward Salah set to lead their charge.
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Salah was hoping to get into the goal-scoring groove during a meeting with Tanzania, and was presented with a golden opportunity to do just that when stepping up to the spot. He had already provided the assist for Trezeguet’s opener in what would be a 2-0 win, but fluffed his lines from 12 yards.
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Salah – who is sporting a new haircut – crashed his penalty against the crossbar, and was left looking a little sheepish after seeing the ball make its way into the back of the net via a deflection off the unfortunate Tanzanian goalkeeper – who knew nothing about his own goal.
Mikel Arteta has insisted that Declan Rice must improve a key attribute that will take the in-form Arsenal midfielder to "another level".
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Arteta wants Rice to improve key attributeBelieves it will make Rice unstoppableWants the midfielder to reach double figures in both goals and assistsWHAT HAPPENED?
The England international has become an integral figure in the Gunners' midfield since his £105m ($137m) move from West Ham United. Although Rice ticks most boxes that one would generally expect from a No. 8, Arteta believes that he must work on his goal-scoring capability to unlock his full potential.
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Speaking to reporters, Arteta said: "He has shown that he has an eye for goals when he is in the opponents’ box. He is a real threat. That is something that can be developed. His leadership skills will naturally grow in the team and club in the years to come. He has other levels to go. I love his presence on the pitch, he’s got something special. Playing as a No 8 he can be an incredible player.”
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Rice had previously enjoyed a more advanced role in Arsenal's midfield but had to adapt to a deep-lying central position due to Thomas Partey's injury. Notably, at West Ham, David Moyes tweaked the system to allow more freedom to Rice by giving more defensive duty to Tomas Soucek. The midfielder repaid the trust shown in him and made 18 goal contributions in his last two seasons with the Hammers.
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Rice has scored three goals this campaign for Arsenal including two stoppage-time strikes against Manchester United and Luton Town and another against Chelsea.
Normally the season-opener, the tournament has been deferred to the beginning of next season because of a cramped international calendar
Arun Venugopal25-Aug-2017The Duleep Trophy doesn’t find a place in the 2017-18 domestic calendar that kicks off with the Ranji Trophy on October 6. Normally the season-opener, the tournament has been deferred to the beginning of next season given the cramped international calendar that has India playing 20 limited-overs games from September to December.A BCCI official said the Duleep Trophy was conducted in a year-and-a-half cycle and not necessarily on an annual basis. The Duleep Trophy featured three teams – India Red, India Blue and India Green – last year and was played with the pink ball under lights. The official said the tournament, which would continue to be played with the pink ball, was better suited to be played at the beginning of the season than in the middle or the end.Ranji Trophy groups
Group A: Karnataka, Delhi, Assam, Maharashtra, Hyderabad, Uttar Pradesh, Railways Group B: Jharkhand, Gujarat, Kerala, Saurashtra, Haryana, Team Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir Group C: Mumbai, Tamil Nadu, Andhra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Baroda, Tripura Group D: Himachal Pradesh, Vidarbha, Punjab, Bengal, Services, Goa, Chhatisgarh
“If you remember, ahead of the World T20 year [in 2016], we didn’t have the Duleep Trophy because there was no relevance in holding it when we were looking at selecting a T20 side,” the official told ESPNcricinfo. “Last year, we had a 13-Test season, so starting the Duleep Trophy before the Tests had greater relevance and we had time to do it. The Duleep Trophy takes 24 days [to finish], and with such a long season and with all venues being occupied – obviously we can’t do it in June or July – we had only September.”And, this year we are starting the international season on September 17 which means the team would assemble on September 10 or 11. That’s the reason we decided to defer it to the beginning of next season, which is again a Test season with India playing West Indies and touring Australia and New Zealand. The Duleep [Trophy] will then form the basis for selection in the longer formats.”New BCCI tournaments
One-day tournament for the Under-23 age group
Under-16 zonal women’s inter-state tournament
Under-19 women’s inter-state and all-India T20 tournament
In line with the same principle, the Vinoo Mankad Under-19 50-overs tournament will precede the four-day Cooch Behar tournament, with the Under-19 World Cup being scheduled for January-February next year in New Zealand. Despite India playing a number of limited-overs games in the next few months, the Vijay Hazare 50-overs senior tournament hasn’t been advanced.”The thing is even if Vijay Hazare starts in October-November it will spill over into December,” the official said. “However, even the knockouts of Ranji Trophy will be over before India go to South Africa. That way everyone can participate in these games before the South Africa tour begins.”The quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophy are scheduled to be held from December 7 to 11, while the semi-finals will take place from December 17 to 21. The final will be held from December 29 to January 2.In a letter to all the member units, BCCI’s general manager (cricket operations) MV Sridhar wrote that pitch-preparation would be overseen by a curator of the board’s grounds and pitches committee. Sridhar also wrote that the central curator’s decision in the overall preparation of the pitches would be final. “This decision is more to ensure that the wickets are standardised as per the directions of the technical committee.”The Ranji Trophy will also revert to the home-and-away format for league fixtures in accordance with the recommendations of the BCCI’s technical committee which decided to shelve the neutral-venue experiment after just one season. In another significant change to the structure of the tournament, the 28 teams in the competition have been split into four groups of seven each. They have been grouped based on their average points in the last three years.Karnataka and Delhi will headline the matches in Group A, which will also see an interesting tussle between Maharashtra and last year’s quarter-finalists Hyderabad. Group B’s marquee encounter will feature Gujarat and Jharkhand, who clashed in the last four in 2016-17, while Mumbai and Tamil Nadu will resume their rivalry in Group C. The game between Punjab and Bengal is expected to be the highlight of Group D.The new group format means that with a maximum of six games, each team will play at least two fewer matches in the league phase than in the previous years. While a few coaches expressed concerns over fewer opportunities for players, the official defended the decision and said that there was a bigger gap between games now. According to the BCCI’s schedule, a copy of which is with ESPNcricinfo, there is a minimum of four days between each round, with a week’s break during Diwali.”This is something we discussed in the captains’ and coaches’ enclave with everyone,” the official said. “There were in fact complaints that there was no gap between Ranji Trophy matches. There was only a gap of three days earlier and in that your travel takes up one day. Even in Vijay Hazare, the gap between one-day games was very less. At times, we were forced to play two or three matches in a row which is not correct. We could never give that gap because we had to complete our entire schedule in a span of six months.”These are healthy changes. The bowlers had to be given relief. In current-day cricket, with so many formats, spacing [out games] and managing bowlers’ workloads is important. For batsmen it is never a problem, but we are seeing a burnout of bowlers because playing three formats has a very big impact on your body.”With balls frequently going out of shape in the Ranji Trophy last year, the quality of the SG Test balls was a major cause for concern. The official said that a new variety of ball called the SG Test LE would be introduced in the domestic season and will be used for the home Tests against Sri Lanka.”This is imported leather being used on Indian cricket balls for the first time,” the official said. “There have been many trials over the last one year in smaller games and side games and even in Test conditions with the manufacturer. We saw the reports and obviously it looks like a much-improved product. Too many balls were losing shape and not surviving long enough, but we are confident that this ball will remain durable.”
Elliot Anderson would be "massively, massively unlucky" to not make Newcastle United's starting XI for the opening game of the season, according to Daily Mail journalist Craig Hope.
The academy product has been impressive this pre-season.
Where does Elliot Anderson play?
The 20-year-old seems to be being deployed as a midfielder this season, despite making a number of appearances last season as a winger.
This is based on the way manager Eddie Howe has used the youngster throughout this pre-season. The Newcastle academy product has played across both advanced midfield positions so far this summer, and impressed in the roles during the club's US tour as part of the Premier League Summer Series pre-season competition.
According to reports, the Magpies originally planned to bring in two midfielders this window, but the emergence of Anderson, as well as 17-year-old Lewis Miley, has resulted in that aim being put on the back burner following the £55m arrival of Italian Sandro Tonali from AC Milan.
Anderson has drawn comparisons to Paul Gascoigne in recent weeks since his deployment in central midfield, and manager Howe has been full of praise for the midfielder, suggesting he has a real chance of breaking into the Magpies' starting XI.
"He is very much knocking on the door, his journey has been interesting. The loan at Bristol Rovers (season before last) certainly helped him, as much from a confidence perspective. Sometimes, you need evidence to believe how good you actually are.
Coming back last season, he had a few niggly injuries which was frustrating and hampered his progress. This year, he looks stronger and ready to contribute regularly for us."
Speaking on his YouTube channel following the side's pre-season clash with Fiorentina, journalist Hope revealed that he believes Anderson would be really unlucky should he miss out on a place in Howe's starting XI against Aston Villa on Saturday.
He said: "I tweeted after the game if Elliot Anderson doesn’t find himself in the starting eleven next weekend, I think he’ll be massively, massively unlucky.
"For me, I think he was the best performer in America, I thought overall Anderson was the best player throughout the States tour, and today I thought he was brilliant."
Who could start in Newcastle's midfield?
It seems like there will be a tough battle to start in Newcastle United's midfield next season.
One player who is expected to start is Bruno Guimaraes. The Brazilian has been a revelation since his arrival from Olympique Lyon in 2021. The midfielder has received a number of awards during his time on Tyneside, and is expected to start at the base of the Magpies midfield next season.
Another player who would expect to start is Joelinton. The striker-turned-central midfielder is a cult hero on Tyneside and has been a stalwart in Howe's Newcastle sides since his arrival.
The player who won the Magpies' Player of the Year award in the 2021/22 campaign would be one of the two advanced midfielders, assuming Howe maintains his current system.
Newcastle United midfielder Joelinton.
Anderson would face competition from fellow youth academy graduate Sean Longstaff, former Arsenal man Joe Willock and new signing Tonali for the final spot in the starting XI. Longstaff was the most regular starter last season, making 41 appearances last campaign, however, he seems the most likely candidate to lose his spot to Anderson to start the campaign.
Either way, it seems Howe has a big decision to make ahead of the weekend given the depth now at his disposal at St James' Park.
KL Rahul’s promotion up the order prompts questions over his role with India, but he delivers with half-century
The Report by Annesha Ghosh in Mumbai17-Oct-2017AFPA 147-run stand – featuring near identical fifty-plus scores off two distinctly unlike innings – between KL Rahul and Prithvi Shaw set up a 30-run victory for Board President’s XI in the first warm-up game against a full-strength New Zealand side in Mumbai. A brisk 78 from Karun Nair set up the total of 295 for 9 despite a blistering five-wicket haul for Trent Boult. Captain Kane Williamson and Tom Latham made gritty contributions, but three-fors from Shahbaz Nadeem and Jaydev Unadkat restricted the visitors’ chase. ESPNcricinfo takes a look at the highlights from the tour opener:The Rahul rejigFor someone who has opened in 41 out of 47 innings in his international career, a slew of failures – scores of 7, 17 and 4 against Sri Lanka in the ODIs – as a middle-order batsman came at a price for Rahul: non-inclusion in the XI through the home series against Australia followed by omission from the limited-overs squad against New Zealand. However, if a belated inclusion to the Board XI squad for the warm-ups came across as an oddity, having him to open the innings in the first practice game was even harder to comprehend.At a time when the national side already has three batsmen earmarked for the opening slots, Rahul’s taking up the opener’s role – despite the half-century – leaves questions to be asked what role he is expected to play in India’s limited-overs campaigns.’Outplayed by a quality Indian side’ – Boult
Trent Boult was not beating himself up over the defeat in the tour game, although he did credit the opposition. “It’s seven or eight degrees back in New Zealand at the moment,” Boult said. “A bit of a shock for the system to come here. It’s a big challenge, but I think we were outplayed nicely by a quality Indian side today.” Boult said you can take away more than just results from warm-up games. “These [the warm-up games] are good opportunities to try out different tactics, in terms of a bowling plan, to come here and just try and bowl good lines and lengths against some of the best players in the world .It [bouncers] is probably not the best recipe to getting them out. I think they negated it nicely, played some very good shots. Probably today it wasn’t successful, but a lot of credit is due to their openers especially , they set a good platform for rest of the batting line-up to propel off.”
The Shaw showRight from the first ball of the tour opener, New Zealand’s quicks threw everything they had at the 17-year-old: searing yorkers, waist-high short balls, deceptive outswingers. And then, there were the bouncers – a barrage of them, angled into the body, outside the off stump, down the leg side. He delivered by leaping, cutting, pulling, and even took evasive action when needed.In the 19th over, when the infielders appealed for a caught-behind, Shaw nonchalantly drowned New Zealand’s protracted celebrations with a quiet stare at the bowler even before the umpire turned down the appeal. “I heard he’s 17; [I] couldn’t quite believe it,” Boult said of Shaw. An 80-ball 66 against the simmering New Zealand pace battery did lend credence to Boult’s confession of ignorance.Boult from the blackThat New Zealand waited until the tenth over to introduce a spinner, can be reasoned by the bounce and carry offered by what otherwise wore the look of a uni-dimensional flat pitch. More than just the surface, it was the accuracy and lateral movement generated by Boult’s left-armers that applied the choke on President’s XI in the latter half of their innings. Used in three spells, Boult breathed fire every time Williamson brought him on even as the sweltering Mumbai heat began to tell on the hosts. The second and third spells, comprising three and two overs near the close of the 40th and 50th over, accounted for four of his five wickets, triggering a collapse in which the home team lost five for 23.Taking turnsA major part of the build-up to the tour has revolved around New Zealand’s preparations – both technically and mentally – about rising to the challenge of spin. Accordingly, the Board President’s XI bowled 24 overs of spin at them, taking five wickets for 115 runs. However, Colin Munro, Williamson and Latham, in particular, appeared to be adroitly warming up to the spinners before Karn Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem began extracting more from the surface.New Zealand’s own spinners didn’t have a particularly bad day, although Todd Astle’s walk-off with a groin injury, having bowled just three balls, might worry them. Two other frontline spinners – Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi – oversaw the undoing of the well-set President’s XI openers, after they began operating in tandem from the 26th over. Their partnership helped wrest control in the middle overs, and they took 3 for 94 in the 18 overs between them.
South Africa’s Test captain draws parallels from the tour of Australia last year where the visitors dominated the series after being pushed against the wall early on
Firdose Moonda26-Jul-2017Professional sportsmen claim the media serves mostly as a distraction, so they try to avoid it, especially mid-series. But for South Africa, the English press has been a barometer to measure how far under the opposition’s skin they are getting. If the reaction from Trent Bridge is anything to go by, they’ve burrowed deep into England’s epidermis.The immediate analysis focused on England’s batting issues, with several former players slamming their attacking approach. In the days since, everything from Joe Root’s captaincy, which is only two Tests old, to the mindgames England have had to play with Moeen Ali, which essentially involve convincing him he is not the best spinner in the squad even though it is obvious that he is, have come under the microscope. For Faf du Plessis, that only helps put the hosts under pressure, in much the same way as the Australian media did during South Africa’s tour in November 2016.”The situation feels very similar to Australia,” du Plessis said. “After the first game in Australia when we beat them, there was quite a bit of press against the Australian cricket team and then we stepped our game up even more in the second Test and then after that, it was a free for all. You could see the Australian team were feeling a bit of pressure.”Cries of a crisis dominated headlines in Australia after South Africa bounced back from losing Dale Steyn to a broken shoulder on the first day of the first Test in Perth – eventually winning that Test – and then handed Australia a hiding in Hobart. With the series lost, Australia’s then selection-chief Rod Marsh stepped down. England are not at the same tipping point, especially as they give new captain Root the leeway to let his leadership style settle. But, the questions over which direction the Test team is headed in under Trevor Bayliss will mount.Knowing that kind of angst is also hovering around England gives South Africa a vulnerability to try and exploit. “All teams don’t want to feel the pressure and you do feel the pressure when you don’t play your best cricket, that’s part of the game,” du Plessis said. “The England cricket team will be the first to say that they will accept criticism from the last Test match and they will try and brush it off straightaway and start a new game fresh and play some good cricket. And we will certainly try and make use of pressure wherever we can.”Exactly how South Africa will look to use the current uncertainties in the England camp is a detail du Plessis will keep to himself, but using the recent past as an indicator suggests that they will rely on their unity to force the opposition to question themselves. In the last season, South Africa have several members of the squad step up – rather one or two standout performers – and the absence of superstars like AB de Villiers and Steyn caused no hindrance, as predicted. It may even have helped South Africa because these days, despite having only lost one series on the road in ten years between 2006 and 2016, South Africa go into big contests under-rated. And that suits du Plessis just fine.”We don’t always have the names that we used to have and that is how I see our team’s strength. Our focus is on every guy in the team playing a small role to get us over the line. We’ve never wanted to rely on big names,” he said. “You get players that are consistent and put in big performances but if you look at our last year and a half or so of Test cricket, there’s been unsung heroes all the time that have stepped up and made plays for the team when we most wanted them to. I will be very happy to keep being the under-rated team and by making sure that if we keep putting in small performances, we put pressure on the big, strong teams around the world.”In Perth, it was Kagiso Rabada and Keshav Maharaj who picked up Steyn’s load. In Hobart, it was Vernon Philander and Kyle Abbott. In Wellington, Quinton de Kock and Temba Bavuma shared in a series-winning partnership and in Nottingham, runs from Hashim Amla, an all-round effort from Philander and crucial contributions from the likes of de Kock, Maharaj and Chris Morris allowed South Africa to level the series. They’re now in prime position to take the lead and set themselves up for another away win, a result that would further accelerate du Plessis’ vision of the team he wants to create.”When I took over, it was at a time of real darkness as a Test team and I had a vision of where I wanted us to go, and a blueprint for getting there. But getting there doesn’t always happen, you have to be patient and wait for it to unfold. Luckily things happened a lot quicker than I thought it would,” he said. “We’ve won every series that we’ve played, it’s been a good year for the team and for my captaincy.”Du Plessis first led South Africa in August 2016, when they were ranked No.7. Under him, they have climbed to No.2 in less than a year. In that time, their only major gripe has been that none of their batsmen have scored big runs consistently, and that continues to be a challenge in this series. South Africa don’t have a centurion, but England only have one and conditions have not lent themselves to excessive scoring. Du Plessis would like to see that change but isn’t labouring the point, because he knows the media can do that for him.”The conditions that we’ve been playing in haven’t been massive for scoring big runs.I’m not concerned, it’s a case of trusting yourself, of backing yourself, because if you keep talking too much about it, it can I suppose derail you from keeping it really simple,” he said. “We know as a batting unit that we need to do it, and if someone gets an opportunity to score runs they just need to be hungry that’s all I can ask for. If you’re hungry to make big plays for the team then the hundreds will come.”
Italian journalist Rudy Galetti has provided an update on the future of Jadon Sancho at Manchester United.
The Englishman has failed to hit the heights expected since his big-money switch from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2021.
What is the latest Jadon Sancho news?
Sancho could be the subject of late interest this window.
That is according to Caught Offside and Andrew Walker, who revealed that Aston Villa are one of the clubs considering a move for the England international just two years removed from his £73m move to Old Trafford. Following the long-term injury to Argentine forward Emiliano Buendia, the Villains may need to delve back into the market to replace him, and Sancho might be seen by Unai Emery as the solution. The Midlands club aren't the only side interested in the former Dortmund star, with a number of sides in the Premier League and across Europe also interested in securing his signature.
jadon-sancho-manchester-united-premier-league
Manager Erik ten Hag is open to letting the 23-year-old depart this summer should a reasonable offer be received, however, the Dutch manager would want reassurances that the funds would be reinvested in the squad, suggesting that any interested clubs should move quickly to avoid a change of heart from the former Ajax manager.
Sancho has featured prevalently this pre-season for the Red Devils as a false 9, and could be handed an opportunity in the role in United's opening game against Wolves, with Ten Hag stating about his striking options ahead of the game "Anthony Martial is available as well. Jadon Sancho can play there as well, he did it in pre-season very well. The squad can deal with it, as I already said this. There is a strategy behind it."
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Galletti revealed that United are expecting to be busy in the coming days regarding the departure of both Sancho and Anthony Martial, with the club confident of receiving offers for the players before the window closes.
He said: "Manchester United are expecting to be busy when it comes to the exits of Martial and Sancho in the next days. In fact, in the event of a suitable offer for these two players, it will be seriously considered and evaluated. A farewell for Martial and Sancho is possible. Man Utd are confident of receiving some offers for both of them, especially in the second part of August and close to deadline day."
Should Manchester United sell Jadon Sancho?
It doesn't seem like a smart move for United to let go of Sancho now. Especially as he was one of the shining stars vs Wolves after his introduction, with him receiving one of the highest ratings in the team.
The player now seems to have found a role in the United squad in the false nine position, receiving the ball deep and creating in a midfield position. It was a timely discovery for the player, with reports stating that his manager had "ran out of patience" with the player operating in wide areas. Sancho's best performances last campaign often came when deployed more centrally, with Ten Hag stating after his performance against Leicester City, stating in the post-match interview "Today when you see he is coming on in the midfield position now, great runs, great passes, good in possession and also, especially the one that gives me a lot of joy, defensive transition."
Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho.
The issue for the player would be game time. Clearly no longer favoured in the wide areas, his opportunities for playing time could be limited in the middle due to the presence of club captain Bruno Fernandes and new summer signing Rasmus Hojlund. However, he brings something to this United side that no one else offers and that could be the key that keeps him at Old Trafford this summer.
Afghanistan’s stand-in captain said the side’s inability to handle pressure cost them against Hong Kong and put their progress to the Super Six in doubt
Liam Brickhill in Bulawayo08-Mar-2018Rashid Khan cut a downcast figure after Afghanistan’s surprise defeat to Hong Kong at the Bulawayo Athletic Club. As the number one limited-overs bowler in the world, it seemed Rashid could do no wrong ahead of this tournament. But Afghanistan have now lost three matches on the trot, and their route to the Super Six will now need a huge dollop of luck.Chasing 242, Afghanistan appeared to start steadily, but fell away in the middle overs as wickets fell, pressure mounted, and looming clouds approached the ground. “When the pressure was on, we couldn’t control our nerves, and that caused us to lose the match,” Rashid said.”You can’t expect such a performance from Afghanistan, the way we have played in the last two years. The guys played some irresponsible cricket, which wasn’t expected from them. But it happens sometimes in cricket. Sometimes it doesn’t go your way. Sometimes a match doesn’t go your way. Sometimes a tournament doesn’t go your way.”Even after an early wobble, when offspinner Ehsan Khan picked up three wickets in an unbroken spell to help reduce Afghanistan to 73 for 4, it still appeared Rashid’s men had the muscle for a chase, with Mohammad Nabi and Najibullah Zadran at the crease. When a frustrated Najibullah played one shot too many, and Nabi was run out by some sharp fielding, the match turned decisively.”I think we were in the game until Nabi and Najibullah got out,” Rashid said. “But after losing Nabi, the rain came, and the match started to get away from us. Losing Nabi was crucial.”The weather, too, didn’t help Afghanistan. With rain and lightning around the ground, Duckworth-Lewis permutations will have entered the minds of the batsmen even before the rain break, and the change in overhead conditions also made batting more tricky.”The wicket was good for batting in the morning, but it got difficult later on,” Rashid explained. “We weren’t expecting the clouds [in the afternoon]. It was bad luck for us. It suddenly came in, and totally changed the game. But we didn’t bat well.”To make matters worse, Afghanistan were missing two frontline batsmen for this important encounter. Captain Asghar Stanikzai had still not returned to the team after his operation for appendicitis, while Mohammad Shahzad was sitting out a two-match suspension after he had picked up demerit points for his angry reaction to his dismissal against Zimbabwe.”Before the tournament, we lost the skipper,” Rashid said. “And now we lost an aggressive batsman in Shahzad. Things just weren’t going our way. It was a big loss for us, Shahzad, because you know how good he is.”It is still theoretically possible for Afghanistan to make the Super Six, provided they beat Nepal by a huge margin, and Zimbabwe and Nepal then beat Hong Kong.”It’s really touch and go,” Rashid said. “If we can gain something in the Nepal game, and then something happens between Hong Kong and Nepal … anything can happen. But the way we played in the last three games, it’s not what you expect from Afghanistan. But we’ll come back positive.”
Newcastle United host Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday evening, but they have suffered a potentially massive injury setback ahead of the game.
Which Newcastle players are fit vs Brentford?
The Magpies have endured a stuttering start to the season, having strutted into it as likely top-four candidates after a stellar campaign last time around, in which they finished fourth in the table.
The 5-1 win at home to Aston Villa on the opening Saturday of 2023/24 suggested that Eddie Howe's side had gone up another level as a team, but since that point, things have spiralled rather alarmingly. While there was no shame in losing 1-0 away to Premier League champions Manchester City, the 2-1 loss at home to ten man Liverpool at St James' Park was worrying, before being beaten 3-1 at Brighton.
Newcastle return to action after the international break on Saturday evening, hosting a dangerous Brentford side, and the hope is that this is a game that allows them to turn their season around.
There are injury problems going into the game, with Joe Willock still out, although the likes of Sven Botman and Elliot Anderson are expected to be fit.
Will Sandro Tonali miss Newcastle-Brentford clash?
According to The Chronicle, who relayed the information from Howe's press conference, Newcastle could now be without Sandro Tonali for Saturday's visit of the Bees, acting a possible huge blow:
Howe said: "He came back from Italy duty with a strain. He’s had a scan but we will see."
Tonali is already a vital player for Newcastle, announcing himself in style with a goal in the win over Villa, and while he is still adjusting to life in the Premier League, being without him against Brentford would hinder their chances of getting a positive result at St James' Park. The Bees actually top the expected goals table so far this season, so they certainly carry plenty of threat, especially if the spine of your side is weakened.
The Italian has already been described as "magnificent" by Howe, who clearly values him greatly as a player, and the Magpies would lose so much without him in the starting lineup, whether it be his quality on the ball or work ethic off it.
With both Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton searching for their best form at the moment, Tonali's absence could be felt even more, so the hope is that he passes a fitness test and is ultimately named in the team on Saturday.
The importance of a win cannot be stressed enough, following three defeats in succession, and if Newcastle are to secure back-to-back top four finishes, these are the sort of matches where dropped points can be so costly.
Granted, Brentford are a good side in their own right, but with the battle for Champions League football set to be far more fierce this season – the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea should all be a lot stronger than they were in 2022/23 – Howe's men need to get on a good run in between these two international breaks, or risk falling away before the campaign has properly got into full swing.
Everton defender Mason Holgate is likely to leave the club during the summer transfer window, according to an update from journalist Paul Brown.
When is Mason Holgate out of contract?
The 26-year-old arrived at Goodison Park as a youngster from Barnsley back in 2015, making his debut the following year when he was still a teenager. He has since gone on to make 149 appearances for the club, not always standing out as a key starter, but proving to be a largely reliable squad player.
Holgate's ability to play at both centre-back and right-back has been useful for squad depth, and while not a headline-making individual, there have been times when he has shone in the back-line. He is out of contract at Everton in the summer of 2025, however, meaning that the Blues are slowly running out of time to sell him for the highest amount possible.
Last season, the Englishman featured very sporadically, starting only five Premier League matches and appearing just eight times in total in the competition, and it has led to doubts over his future at the club.
Everton defender Mason Holgate.
What's the latest on Mason Holgate's Everton future?
Speaking to Give Me Sport, journalist Brown talked up the idea of Holgate moving on to pastures new during the current transfer window, admitting that he could be deemed surplus to requirements:
"It doesn't really surprise me that he is being linked with a move away. He has been on the transfer list before at Everton. I would argue there was a time when he was probably Everton's best defender, but that little run of form didn't last very long.
"He has certainly taken a couple of steps back in his career over the last year to 18 months. He didn't really play for Dyche last season."
It could be that a permanent move away for Holgate this summer ultimately suits all parties, allowing Everton to get a reasonable fee for his services and get him off their wage bill. It would also allow the player himself to enjoy a fresh challenge as a regular elsewhere, while whoever signs him would be getting an experienced head who has been described as "brilliant" by Peter Crouch in the past.
Blues boss Sean Dyche seemingly doesn't see the defender as an important part of his plans moving forward, though, and it is pointless keeping hold of someone in that position, instead receiving money for him and using those funds to sign a superior replacement.
If Holgate ends up staying put at Goodison Park, it certainly wouldn't be a bad thing – he knows the club inside out and they could sell him next summer and still potentially get solid money for him – but if a bid arrives for him before the new Premier League season gets underway next month, it would make complete sense to accept it and bring an end to his time on Merseyside.
Everton need to be ruthless if they are to start avoiding relegation battles every season, and disposing of players who aren't quite good enough if something that has to be done. That arguably applies to Holgate.