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The fast bowler used his pace and the lack of bounce on the pitch to prise out two important wickets on day one

Umar Farooq21-Mar-2022Soon after assessing the conditions on day one of the Lahore Test, Naseem Shah made up his mind to put in an “extra yard” of pace to try and make up for the slowness of the pitch.Slow pitches have been a burning issue right through the series. Rawalpindi produced a tame draw and Karachi a thrilling one thanks to Pakistan’s resilience with the bat. In Lahore, which is hosting a Test match for the first time in 13 years, the pitch appeared to be another docile one, but two quick wickets from Shaheen Shah Afridi in his second over brought the contest to life. Usman Khawaja and Steven Smith shared a 138-run third-wicket stand to help Australia recover from the early losses, before Naseem bagged two wickets – including the prize scalp of Smith – to move the focus away from the pitch and towards a tightly contested opening day.Related

• Deciding Test finely balanced after Pakistan hit back following Khawaja's 91

• Another Steven Smith fifty, another Steven Smith non-hundred

• Khawaja 'felt absolutely horrible through the day'

• Left-field choice Naseem Shah builds his reputation on slow Lahore surface

Pakistan, who lost the toss, would have ended the day satisfied with their efforts, having shown excellent control with the ball and restricting Australia to 232 for 5.”The sort of pitch it is, we quickly found out that we had to bowl our hearts out,” Naseem said after the day’s play. “It wasn’t quick but on the slower side, so to get the best out of it, you had to give it your all and try to get the ball to reverse when the ball was still hard. You had to bowl with extra pace, and since the ball was staying low, the more pace you put in, there was more chance of hitting the pads. All I tried to do was generate more pace and focus on hitting a fuller length.”Over the course of the three Tests so far, Pakistan’s fast bowlers have only picked up a combined 13 wickets. The debate leading up to the Test had been over whether Pakistan should play a legspinner in place of the offspinner Sajid Khan. In a surprise move, Pakistan went with Naseem in place of the allrounder Faheem Ashraf, who bowls at a brisk pace and offers plenty of lower-order assurance.Naseem was pleased to get a chance despite the conditions not being expected to favour him. He was diplomatic when asked if these slow pitches put him in a bad mood.”It doesn’t anger me because if you get angry, you can’t bowl effectively,” Shah said. “Pitches are not in your control and as a professional I don’t really think about pitches. It’s more about how much effort you are putting in, and how well you adapt yourself.”‘The sort of pitch it is, we quickly found out that we had to bowl our hearts out’ – Naseem•AFP/Getty Images

Lahore was warm compared to Rawalpindi and Karachi, which meant extra toil for the fast bowlers. “In hot weather, bowling in Test cricket isn’t easy. You can get frustrated when you don’t get wickets but you have to keep yourself relaxed because you have to bowl long [spells].”The cream of Australia’s batting is back in the hut, and Naseem suggested the pitch was beginning to show signs of turn.The cream of Australia’s batting is back in the hut, with Sajid taking the important wicket of Usman Khawaja for 91, and Pakistan could have been in an even better position had they taken their chances off both Sajid and Nauman Ali.”We will try and get them all out for under 300,” Naseem said. “The pitch could break up later, there are a few [rough] patches forming on it, and I feel there will be a result.”For now, though, he doesn’t think there is enough wear to trouble Pakistan when they come out to bat. “I can’t say how our batters will do until they come out to bat, but I don’t think there is that much on the wicket to worry them. I’m pretty confident that they will play well and we will win.”

Michail Antonio's former coach Martin Allen paid an emotional tribute to the West Ham forward after his horrific car accident.

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• Antonio's ex-coach pays tribute
• West Ham forward in car crash
• Underwent surgery on lower-limb fracture

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The West Ham star was involved in a horrific car accident on Saturday after his Ferrari FF collided with a tree. The player was airlifted to hospital after being cut free from the wreckage and underwent surgery. The 34-year-old will miss the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign and is expected to take at least a year to fully recover.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Amid uncertainty over Antonio's future in professional football, his former coach Martin Allen paid an emotional tribute to the player. Allen managed the Jamaica international during the player's brief loan spell at Cheltenham Town in 2009, where he made eight appearances before returning to Reading at the end of the 2008-09 season.

• WHAT MARTIN ALLEN SAID

  Taking to X, the 59-year-old coach said: "Michail Antonio has been awesome for West Ham over these last few years. I took him on loan and used to give him lifts home to London after the matches home and away to see his family. He’s a diamond bloke and after wiping away a few tears I hope he makes a full recovery."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR WEST HAM?

  The Hammers, who have struggled in the 2024-25 campaign under Julen Lopetegui's tutelage, will be in action on Monday evening in the Premier League as they take on Wolves at London Stadium.

Former Surrey, Gloucestershire and Northants keeper coached Oval Invincibles to the inaugural Hundred title in 2021

ESPNcricinfo staff05-May-2022Inaugural women’s Hundred-winning coach Jonathan Batty has been appointed as the new coach of the Melbourne Stars for the upcoming WBBL season.Batty, who played county cricket for Surrey, Gloucestershire, and Northamptonshire over a nearly two-decade career, coached Oval Invincibles to the Hundred title last season.The former wicketkeeper-batter becomes Stars’ third WBBL coach in three seasons. Batty replaces Jarrad Loughman who had just one season in charge of Stars but remains as Victoria’s women’s coach in the WNCL competition. Loughnan took over from Trent Woodhill who led Stars to their first WBBL final in 2020-21 where they were beaten by Sydney Thunder.Batty heads to Melbourne with extensive experience coaching women’s cricket in England. He is the current coach of both Invincibles and Surrey Women and led the South-East Stars in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in 2020. He has also worked with England women’s wicketkeepers and England’s Under 17s.”I can’t wait to get started, having watched the competition from afar for a number of years which has been a sector-leading tournament for women’s cricket globally,” Batty said. “To be a part of a team like the Melbourne Stars, and work with such a talented squad who are led by some outstanding world-class players, was a fantastic opportunity that I wanted to be a part of. I can’t wait to work with an outstanding captain in Meg Lanning, I’m looking forward to getting to Melbourne.”Stars’ general manager Blair Crouch was hopeful Batty could lead them back to the finals after finishing fifth last season.”Our aim every season is to play finals and we hope Jonathan can maximise the outstanding talent within our squad,” Couch said. “The process to secure our Head Coach was a global search and Jonathan was the standout candidate from a very strong field.”

At least six debutants are expected to feature in South Africa’s first Test in over seven years

Firdose Moonda17-Jun-2022Marizanne Kapp, Lizelle Lee and Sinalo Jafta have all been included in South Africa women’s squad to play their first Test in more than seven years, against England later this month. The trio missed out on the white-ball tour to Ireland – Kapp after contracting Covid-19 for the fourth time – but have been named in both the Test and ODI squad for the England series. The T20 squad, along with the group for the Commonwealth Games, will be named next month.South Africa last played a Test against India in Mysore in 2014 and four of the members of that XI – Kapp, Trisha Chetty, Lizelle Lee and Chloe Tryon – are in the current squad. Only one other current South African player has featured in a Test – Shabnim Ismail in 2007 against Netherlands – which means South Africa will field at least six debutants against England in Taunton. Chetty is the only player to have two Test caps.Related

• Tryon wants South Africa's concentration higher than usual against England

• Shabnim Ismail's three-for, fifties from Andrie Steyn, Lara Goodall help South Africa take unassailable lead

• Kapp, Lee and du Preez ruled out of Ireland white-ball tour

Dane van Niekerk, the other current South African women’s player who has played a Test, remains unavailable for selection as she continues to recover from the ankle injury that has sidelined her since January. She has returned to training with the aim of being available for the T20Is and Commonwealth Games. Masabata Klaas, who injured her shoulder at the World Cup, is also unavailable. Tazmin Brits, Raisibe Ntozakhe, and Delmi Tucker, who are involved in the ongoing series against Ireland, will return home.South Africa will play a red-ball warm-up match next week, in preparation for the Test.”With the red ball, the main thing is to find our feet as a team again in the format and we take it one day at a time, then we can only progress into it and players can have an opportunity to go into a three-day prep,” coach Hilton Moreeng said. “Those that haven’t had the opportunity when we were back home can also start getting their aim of the red ball. Post that we know we are heading into ODI cricket and T20Is to build up into the Commonwealth Games.”South Africa beat Ireland 2-1 in the T20I series and lead the one-day series, which is part of the ICC Women’s Championship, 2-nil. Their matches against England do not form part of the Women’s Championship (South Africa are due to host England for Women’s Championship matches) but are an opportunity to solidify their strategy as a squad.”We are happy that we could come to Ireland and be able to play in these conditions which are similar to where we are going to. It has been very good and the exciting thing is that the crop of youngsters have started to put in the right performances. Now that we are going to England, we know that we are going to start with a format that most of them haven’t played in a while other than the preparation that we had, so it is exciting times, especially as a young cricketer in the squad,” Moreeng said.”We are up against a very competitive team, a team that plays well in their conditions. It’s going to be tough as we go along but at the end of the day, we are excited with the group that we have and we now have an opportunity against the hosts to be able to win a series in England.”South Africa squad for England tour (Test and ODIs): Anneke Bosch, Trisha Chetty (wk), Nadine de Klerk, Lara Goodall, Shabnim Ismail, Sinalo Jafta, Marizanne Kapp, Ayabonga Khaka, Lizelle Lee, Sune Luus (capt), Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune, Andrie Steyn, Chloé Tryon, Laura Wolvaardt

Hamish Rutherford’s memorable debut takes the mind back to his father’s, and those from other cricketing dynasties in New Zealand

Steven Lynch16-Mar-2013I wrote here a few weeks ago about veterans, and how they seem to be getting younger all the time. And then something happened that made me feel a bit of a veteran myself: the son of someone I knew quite well went out and scored a Test century.We’re not talking Comptons here: I’m not quite old enough to have seen Denis play, although I was lucky enough to meet Nick’s grandfather a few times. I remember feeling inordinately chuffed when, on bumping into him again a few minutes after our initial introduction, I received a genial “Hello, old boy.”No, the relative in question is Hamish Rutherford, who took England apart on his debut in Dunedin a few weeks ago with a superb 171. He professes to be “as blind as a bat” without his contact lenses, but didn’t seem to have too much trouble seeing England’s bowlers in his first Test. Some of his left-handed drives were reminiscent of another son of a Test-playing father, Mark Butcher, who just occasionally touched greatness – Headingley 2001, Brisbane 1998-99 – in the quality of his play straight down the ground. It was something his dad, Alan, never quite matched during a long and successful county career (plus one precious England cap).Hamish Rutherford’s father, Ken, was an early winner of a scholarship from the New Zealand board which sent a promising youngster to Lord’s each year. I was working on the cricket side there at the time, and welcomed him in on his first day in 1984. A couple of years previously the scholarship winner had been Martin Crowe: the contrast between the two was quite striking. Crowe was intense, dedicated to cricket, and anxious to play at every opportunity. He’d been asked to send written reports of what he’d been doing back to New Zealand; he dutifully trotted round to the pavilion every week or so, and asked me to photocopy them and send them off.Rutherford was rather less preoccupied. I don’t recall any written reports at all, although it’s possible the NZ board had stopped asking for them. He was much more laidback, and seemed intent on enjoying life in London. When I later discovered that he liked to bet on the horses, I wasn’t entirely surprised.But both Crowe and Rutherford could play. Crowe remains probably the greatest batsman New Zealand has produced, able to execute the on-drive – possibly the hardest shot of all to get right – as well as anyone I’ve ever seen, apart perhaps from Greg Chappell (actually much of Crowe’s cricket, even his bowling, was Chappell-like). Ken Rutherford was a fine driver too, but more of a square-of-the-wicket player. That’s higher-risk stuff, and partially helps explain why his Test average was 27 while Crowe’s was 45.They both had difficult introductions to Test cricket. Although Crowe was obviously a class act, he was still only 19 when he was named for the home series against Australia in 1981-82, less than six months after that Lord’s stint finished. The Aussie new-ball pair was Jeff Thomson and Terry Alderman, with a rather handy first-change called Dennis Lillee: Crowe predictably struggled, managing scores of 9, 2 0, and 9. A chapter in his autobiography about his debut series was simply entitled “Way too soon”.Rutherford, though, managed to draw an even shorter straw for his first series: he was called up to tour the Caribbean in 1984-85, when the West Indian “mean machine” was at the height of its powers. Rutherford, also 19, was included in the first Test after a century in a warm-up game, and faced a bowling attack of Malcolm Marshall, Michael Holding and Joel Garner. Not the gentlest of introductions – especially when he was asked to open.

“That first Test innings I survived for 20 minutes. It seemed a lifetime. I was out off a bat-pad from the bowling of Marshall. I didn’t score a run”Ken Rutherford on batting against a fearsome West Indies

“That first Test innings I survived for 20 minutes,” he later wrote. “It seemed a lifetime. I was out off a bat-pad from the bowling of Marshall. I didn’t score a run.”He didn’t score a run in the second innings either – or face a ball. Rutherford’s pair was sealed after he was run out without facing when John Wright tried a quick single to Roger Harper, the best fielder in the world at the time.Rutherford’s maiden series didn’t improve much: 4 in the second Test, 0 and 2 in the third, and 1 and 5 in the fourth, for a not-so-grand total of 12 runs at an average of 1.71. “The scars from that tour stayed with me for a very long time,” he admitted in his autobiography, an entertaining read entitled A Hell of a Way to Make a Living. In the circumstances, that career average of 27 wasn’t too bad: his next innings was 65 against Australia, and he eventually scored three Test centuries – and a rollicking 317 in a match in the Scarborough Festival at the end of New Zealand’s 1986 tour of England, an innings that included 199 between lunch and tea.Ken Rutherford, like Martin Crowe, went on to captain New Zealand. Both of them should have had longer Test careers: Crowe’s was blighted by injury, latterly a serious knee problem, while Rutherford was dumped after a modest run and went off to South Africa to play for Transvaal.And now Hamish Rutherford has arrived. He does look a good player, although he’s clearly not, as their respective Test debuts might suggest, really 171 times better than his dad. New Zealand Test cricket has a rich history of families: Martin Crowe’s brother Jeff also captained them, Chris Cairns followed his father Lance into the national side and outdid his achievements, and there have been Hadlees and Bracewells galore, among many others. Ken Rutherford’s brother Ian – Hamish’s uncle – himself had a distinguished career with Central Districts and Otago, although he never quite cracked the Test side.One word of warning, though: England’s bowling looked undercooked – or do I mean under-Cooked? – in Dunedin: Hamish Rutherford may never clatter 171 again. Let’s hope, though, that it’s not a reverse of New Zealand’s Redmond saga: Rodney (another left-hander) announced his arrival in Test cricket with 107 and 56 against Pakistan in Auckland in February 1973… and never won another cap, for various reasons, chief among them an inability to adapt from glasses to contact lenses. Rodney’s son, Aaron, made his Test debut in England in 2008, and collected a duck: in his seventh Test, against Australia in Adelaide later that year, he made his top score of 83… and, in accordance with family tradition, hasn’t played again since.

“There are some general guidelines that are required, but we’re asking players and teams to just be sensible,” says Geoff Allardice

Shashank Kishore28-Feb-2022Strict bio-bubbles and daily Covid tests have been done away with for the 2022 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand, with the ICC planning to stage the tournament in a “managed environment” instead. The rules have been put in place after considering the fact that all teams and officials in the host country would have undergone Mandatory Isolation Quarantine (MIQ) upon arrival.”I think the approach is around having a managed environment around the tournament,” ICC chief executive Geoff Allardice explained in a chat with the media. “Testing will be infrequent; it won’t be daily testing. It’s really about players taking responsibility knowing they are in the country for a month and living away for that period not locked into a very tight bubble. It’s not going to be practical; it’s certainly not going to allow teams to play their best on the field.Related

• Australia allrounder Ash Gardner tests positive for Covid

• WWC warm-ups: West Indies no match for all-round India, Devine-Kerr-Bates show overpowers Australia

• Devine conscious of chance to leave a legacy

• Smriti Mandhana stable but under observation after blow to the helmet

• Lanning: Nine players at the WC would be 'interesting'

“There are some general guidelines that are required, but we’re asking players and teams to just be sensible, stay away from areas that are likely to create transmission. The other thing is, we found out in last few tournaments – like at the Under-19 World Cup [in the Caribbean in January-February] – is even though we had number of positive tests, the number of people displaying symptoms were very low. We want to focus on keeping people safe and healthy. It’s a bit of a change from where we may have been six months ago.”Allardice stressed on how tough the logistics of ensuring all teams reach New Zealand – whose borders are only partially open – first and then facilitating adequate preparation time following MIQs have been.”In November, the New Zealand government increased quarantine period to ten days, so we added extra time for teams to prepare. Then it went back to seven days. So, logistically, it has been challenging with dates and timings,” Allardice said. “They are now restrictions on number of people who can attend matches. We’re hopeful as the situation unfolds, we might be able to get a higher capacity at venues during the second half of the tournament.”With Covid still a major concern, the ICC has tweaked the playing conditions to ensure that all games go ahead as planned. One of the measures is to allow teams to take the field if they have a minimum of nine fit players available. Teams have been allowed extra travelling reserves to prevent such a scenario from cropping up.Allardice said learnings from staging the qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe last November, and the men’s Under-19 World Cup this year, had been taken into consideration while formulating regulations for this tournament.”I hope it doesn’t apply,” he said. “It was something we had to do over the last few months since the Omicron outbreak. In almost all of our tournaments, we have been challenged with number of players being unavailable due to isolation for positive Covid tests. We had quite a close call in the West Indies with the men’s Under-19 World Cup, where a number of teams had outbreaks.”We needed to have some contingency plans. I know they have attracted a bit of attention, but in terms of having to think these things through, how you give teams the best chance to prepare knowing what might happen, that’s the reason we came up with that protocol. The bottom line is, we want 11 vs 11. We have squads of 15, all teams are travelling with reserve players as a contingency.”The announcement or introduction of those protocols was very much given the uncertainty of the event we were dealing with. We had the Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe where one team was marginal in terms of players available for some of the matches. We had the same situation at the Under-19 World Cup [in the Caribbean]. Fingers crossed we don’t have to get anywhere near it. But there may be situations where if a team doesn’t have an XI available, we needed protocols to deal with that.”

Southampton only have a few days left of the frantic transfer window to get their last bits of business in through the door, knowing that more new recruits would very much help in their long haul mission of staving off the Premier League drop zone.

A new option in goal feels like a top priority, with the unsettling news of Justin Bijlow's move falling through understandably irking those at St. Mary's, whilst a new striker could also be on the cards in the form of Brazilian attacker Yuri Alberto.

Russell Martin's men could even roll the dice and get this bold new recruit in before Friday, who might well become Southampton's next Dusan Tadic if a move comes to fruition.

Latest Southampton transfer news

As per reports in Italy, Southampton could land versatile Juventus figure Filip Kostic ahead of deadline day, with a proposal already made by the South Coast outfit.

Kostic is also wanted by Al-Ain out in Saudi Arabia, according to the report, but the 31-year-old is said to be willing to 'evaluate' the offer from the Saints, potentially trading the glamour of Turin for England's south coast.

Kostic, over time, has the potential to be viewed as Southampton's second coming of Tadic if a move is sealed, with the Serbian a real threat down the left, much like the former Saints great was on the South Coast, before leaving for Dutch giants Ajax in 2018.

What Kostic could offer Southampton

Tadic would bow out from his exceptional playing days at St. Mary's with 24 goals and 32 assists tallied up from 162 clashes, constantly offering creativity and standing out as a reliable source of important strikes before departing for the Netherlands.

His compatriot in Kostic has also been a nuisance wherever he's been across his varied career to date, in terms of setting up chances for his teammates when playing down the left and coming up trumps with goals of his own, with a mightily impressive 117 assists notched up from 518 career games to date.

Looking at the table above too, much like Tadic who was drafted out to the right on occasion for the Saints, Kostic can also line up and play in different positions when needed, with the experienced 31-year-old even playing up top when needed in the past.

Even with his game-time somewhat drying up at Juventus of late, Kostic has still managed to deliver on the big stage when required, with four assists coming his way last campaign in Serie A from 29 total appearances.

It will be his time with Eintracht Frankfurt that most will be familiar with how devastating Kostic can be, however, with outrageous strikes like this one managed versus Arminia Bielefeld in 2021 piquing the interest of Juventus, who paid £13.4m to land his services.

Southampton, equally, forked out some big bucks to snap up Tadic in 2014, as Ronald Koeman and Co at the time splashed out £10.9m, and ended up never looking back.

Going on to become a cult sensation in his new surroundings, after once plying his trade in Europe with FC Twente before making the leap, Saints fans will hope the "extraordinary" Kostic – as he has been labelled by former Frankfurt sporting director Fredi Bobic in the past – can become their next hero in the mould of their former star man.

Once touted for a move to Crystal Palace to link up with another ex-Frankfurt face in Oliver Glasner, Southampton might well now land the veteran's services last minute as a very late statement buy.

Bid lodged: Southampton make move for star who'd shine with Brereton

Southampton could well add this new striker to their ranks before transfer deadline day.

By
Kelan Sarson

Aug 27, 2024

Bruno Guimaraes has revealed which club his father "dreams" he will play for one day after leaving Newcastle United.

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• Bruno a key player at Newcastle
• Reveals where his dad wants him to play
• Wants to play for another 10 years or so

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The midfielder has revealed it is his "father's dream" for him to play for Brazilian side Vasco da Gama in the future. The 27-year-old also spoke about his love for former team Athletico Paranaense and that he feels he has at least a decade of playing football ahead of him.

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  WHAT BRUNO GUIMARAES SAID

  He told O Globo: “I also wanted to fulfil my father’s dream of playing for Vasco. My whole family is Basque. I grew up in São Januário, I was always a Vasco fan, but Athletico Paranaense trained me, so I have eternal gratitude for the club. I have a huge gratitude to Athletico, which is a team that I support nowadays too. I think about going back one day, I definitely want to finish my career in Brazil, but I haven’t planned a date or year. I have, I don’t know, 10, 12 years ahead of me. Athletico-PR trained me, so I have eternal gratitude for the club. I left there as an idol, so it’s something I think about a lot in the future.”

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Bruno has become a vital player for Newcastle since joining the Premier League side from Lyon in 2022 for approximately £40 million ($50m). The Brazil international has repeatedly been linked with a move to Manchester City and if Newcastle fail to deliver European football and trophies soon, the ex-Audax man may be on the move in 2025.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  Bruno's Newcastle side, who sit 12th in the Premier League, travel to lowly Ipswich Town in the English top-flight on Saturday afternoon.

Newcastle United are believed to have upped their efforts to complete the signing of a 24-year-old ace this summer, according to a new claim.

Newcastle transfer news

The Magpies continue to be linked with a host of players as they prepare for the new Premier League season, with Eddie Howe aiming to have the strongest squad possible at his disposal.

Tottenham winger Dejan Kulusevski is one player who has emerged as a potential option for Newcastle this summer, with the Sweden international seen as an alternative to Chelsea wide-man Noni Madueke, who has also been strongly backed to complete a move to St James' Park.

Meanwhile, Valencia's Andre Almeida has been linked with a switch to the Magpies, possibly being seen as the next man in after Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi, who could be close to joining. The Portugal midfielder has made 56 appearances for his current club, as well as representing his nation in seven different youth age groups.

In attack, another striker may be needed if Callum Wilson moves on to pastures new, and Boulaye Dia and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, of Salernitana and Everton respectively, are considered top targets. Added firepower is essential for Howe this summer, with a lot of onus currently on Alexander Isak, who hasn't always managed to stay fit.

Newcastle increase efforts to sign 24-year-old

According to a new update from Turkish outlet ABC Gazetesi [via Sport Witness], Newcastle have increased their efforts to sign Galatasaray attacker Baris Alper Yilmaz, sending scouts to watch him in action last week.

Representatives were sent to Turkey to "evaluate his potential", with Aston Villa in the same boat as they look to snap up the 24-year-old in the current transfer window themselves. No bid has been tabled yet, but it looks as though he could be seen as an option to come in and boost Howe's squad.

Recently valued at €35m (£30m), Yilmaz could be a strong signing for Newcastle in the next few weeks should their scouts have seen enough to feel that he would be an ideal addition in 2024/25 and beyond.

At 24, the Galatasaray man remains a young player with plenty of improving to do, but he has already won 20 caps for Turkey, scoring twice in that time. At Euro 2024, he started five matches for his country, helping them reach the quarter-finals, as well as appearing eight times in the Champions League and Europa League combined for his club last season.

Yilmaz has also been compared to former Wales and Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale in terms of the pace and power that he can offer from wide areas.

Newcastle now big admirers of "excellent" £110,000-p/w Madueke alternative

The Magpies could make their move…

By
Tom Cunningham

Aug 10, 2024

Newcastle need to improve their wide options ahead of the new campaign, with Miguel Almiron and Jacob Murphy hardly performing at the very top level, and the Turkish ace looks like a good option to come in and hit the ground running. His ability to thrive on either flank and in a central role makes him a versatile figure, too, so he ticks plenty of boxes.

Former Manchester United star Paul Parker has urged the Red Devils to prioritise keeping Kobbie Mainoo over winger Alejandro Garnacho.

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• Parker urges Man Utd to keep Mainoo
• Garnacho would not be 'missed'
• Academy graduates linked with exits

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Manchester United have seen Argentine winger Garnacho and English midfielder Mainoo come through the academy and into the senior setup in recent years. Through the first few months of his integration with the Red Devils, Garnacho showed a lot of promise and his rise was compared to five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo's time at Old Trafford. However, he has failed to show consistency of late.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Mainoo was integral to United's 2023-24 campaign and forced his way into the England side which reached the Euro 2024 final. Despite this, PSR concerns mean United have been tipped to sell the homegrown duo.

• WHAT PARKER SAID

  Speaking to , Parker said: "I’m sceptical of anything I read and hear now because so many people make things up for headlines, which seems the way to go now.

  "However, I’d look and say with Kobbie Mainoo, where he’s from and everything he is about, does he want to leave Manchester United? I would say no. I would look at the way he is as a person, is he going to be greedy in what he wants? I would say no. So I can’t see them doing that because Manchester United has been built off players who have come through like him. If they were to do that, it would just cause too many issues. INEOS and the new kids on the block are already just hanging in there, so to do that would be a big statement to make.

  "Regarding Garnacho, if someone new were to come in, I don’t think he holds the same as Mainoo. Would he be missed in that sense? I would personally say no, not at all really, and doubt he would be missed too much if he were to go. It appears that he is already looking for that move anyway and will go once he thinks that a big club abroad is going to be better than Manchester United. I think he will only find out once he gets there that it won’t be the same. He will understand that where he is now is virtually as good as it gets, and he needs to show everything."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

  Whether Mainoo and Garnacho stay or leave remains to be seen. They are available for United to face Arsenal in the FA Cup on Sunday.