Liverpool made it three wins from three in the Arne Slot era with a convincing win over Manchester United.
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New Zealand seamer had been due to play first seven County Championship games
ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-2020
Matt Henry celebrates a wicket•IDI via Getty Images
New Zealand seamer Matt Henry has become the latest player to have his county contract cancelled on account of the coronavirus pandemic.Henry was due to join Kent – for whom he starred in 2018 – for seven County Championship games at the start of the season, but with all professional cricket cancelled in the UK until May 28 at the earliest, it became clear that he would be unable to play for the club.Henry becomes the fourth player – after Nathan Lyon, Cheteshwar Pujara and Michael Neser – to miss out on a stint in county cricket due to the virus, with more cancellation set to follow. The vast majority of counties (including Kent) have placed their players on furlough, and with no end to the UK’s lockdown in sight, it seems increasingly unlikely that the season will be able to start in June.Paul Downton, Kent’s director of cricket, said: “Once the decision was announced by the ECB that there would be no cricket until at least the end of May it became inevitable the Matt would not be returning to Kent this season.”The club continues to enjoy a good relationship with Matt. He has many friends here and the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received when we announced the he would return in 2020 is a measure of Matt himself: he’s a fantastic person on and off the cricket field.”We’d like to thank Matt for his understanding in difficult circumstances. Hopefully another opportunity will arise in the near future which will allow him to join us once again.”
England batsman Jason Roy has conceded that it might “make sense” to postpone this year’s men’s T20 World Cup, with the possibility of travel restrictions and biosecurity issues around the spread of the coronavirus set to impact on the viability of Australia hosting the tournament in October and November as scheduled.While Australia has managed to achieve relatively low numbers of infections and deaths related to Covid-19, and guidelines are already being drawn up with a view to allowing the resumption of professional and recreational sport – possibly as early as later this month – there is a great deal of uncertainty over the global cricket calendar.The ECB has put back the start of the English season until July 1 at the earliest, and delayed the introduction of the Hundred by a year. There have been discussions about continuing the season into October or even taking competitions overseas – although it also remains a possibility that no cricket will be played at all. International tournaments face even greater challenges, with many borders currently closed and less than six months to go before the start of the T20 World Cup.ALSO READ: England tour rearranged for January – SLC chief“If players aren’t able to prepare in the right way and are not able to get over to Australia, then it makes sense to postpone it,” Roy said. “But if it goes ahead, it’s our job to play cricket – and if we’re told we have three weeks to prepare to go and play in the World T20, all the boys will be putting the yards in to make sure we’re ready for that. I think all the boys are on edge, waiting for the call saying, ‘Right, we have a month turnaround or a six-week turnaround. Get in the nets and go hit some balls.’ I think the boys will be as ready as they can be.”While Roy said it would be an “incredible feeling” to be able to return to the field of play, he emphasised that safety was paramount, but added that he placed great faith in the ECB and, in particular England’s limited-overs captain, Eoin Morgan, when it came to decisions about cricket’s resumption.”I’ll do what I’m told by [the] bosses,” Roy said. “I won’t be going to my bosses and saying, ‘Put me in the frontline.’ I’ll just get told what to do. I’m just a pawn in the sporting world.”I’ve got a huge amount of trust in the ECB; I think they will look into every single avenue of all the positives, all the negatives. So, I guess I would trust in what they say, probably have a chat with Morgs and see where his head’s at and go with that. I don’t think I’ll have too many questions, especially when it got to the stage of ‘Right, we’re going to play’, because there’ll be a lot of people in those meetings discussing whether it’s the right thing to do or not.Jason Roy works off the pads•AFP/Getty Images
“I just want to play some cricket to be honest. I think for us to be able to go out there and play some cricket would be an incredible feeling. I feel like a kid again. I guess we’re governed by the government here, we don’t really know what is going on or what the safety measures are. There’s way bigger things out there. I’m more than happy to play behind closed doors, it would just be nice to get out there.”The summer of 2019 was a tumultuous one for Roy, who had to battle back from injury during the ODI World Cup at home and then played a key role in England’s success – including fielding the last ball of the Super Over to help pip New Zealand in the final at Lord’s – and made his Test debut before being dropped at The Oval following a torrid time during the Ashes.He will turn 30 this year, and was set to be a key part of England’s back-to-back T20 World Cup planning, as well maintaining hopes of a Test recall. All that is on hold, but while admitting a lost summer would be “a huge chunk out of my international career”, Roy was keen not to dwell on that aspect of the current shutdown.”I try to concentrate on the now, getting as fit and strong as I can now and hopefully reap those rewards coming towards the end of the year,” he said.”I try not to look at it too negatively. It is a huge shame what is happening now and to be missing this amount of cricket is quite a daunting feeling because you don’t quite know how you are going to feel when you get back. You can watch videos and make yourself feel good and train well but, until you’re facing that first ball in the middle, you don’t really know. You worry after three or four months out of the game, are you going to be able to bat, or whatever?”I think mentally over the last year or so has been the best place I’ve been in, barring the end of the summer. Obviously, the Ashes was a very tough time mentally. I think I’ve been in a fantastic place. All I’ve done is just forward on that. Trying to stay as positive as possible, keep a perspective and look at the bigger picture.”
An update on West Ham's search for a David Moyes replacement has been provided over the weekend.
David Moyes expected to leave West Ham
After several years of impressive service for the east Londoners, David Moyes is expected to depart West Ham at the close of the 2023/24 campaign.
Next West Ham manager: Who could replace David Moyes?
Julen Lopetegui appears to have taken a step closer to becoming the new Hammers boss…
ByStephan Georgiou May 6, 2024
The Scotsman led the Hammers to their first major trophy since 1980 in 2022/23, securing the Europa Conference League. The current campaign does not look set to go as well, with the east Londoners likely to miss out on any form of European football – being forced to settle instead for a top-10 finish in the Premier League.
However, given West Ham lost star man Declan Rice to Arsenal during the 2023 summer transfer window and did not really replace him with a similar-quality player, it is not surprising that Moyes' side have not been able to match their output from previous seasons.
Despite this, the higher-ups at West Ham are seemingly eager to part ways with their long-time manager this summer. A number of names have been tipped to make the move to the London Stadium in recent weeks. A report earlier this week claimed former Chelsea and current Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel is wanted by West Ham as he prepares to leave Munich this summer.
Elsewhere, it was claimed recently that West Ham have identified Lille manager Paulo Fonseca as a possible successor. And with widespread reports from reliable media sources in the last two weeks stating that Moyes is set to depart West Ham when his contract expires on June 30, Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim has also been touted as a name of interest to West Ham.
However, it appears West Ham have opted to snub all of the aforementioned names and are close to appointing a former Premier League boss to replace David Moyes.
West Ham manager search close to end
This comes with talkSPORT, which is reporting that West Ham are in advanced talks with former Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui. Lopetegui is now said to be the clear front-runner to replace David Moyes at the London Stadium and there is confidence on both sides a deal is close after technical director Tim Steidten held face-to-face talks with the former Wolves manager.
The Spaniard's last managerial role saw him guide Wolves to a 13th-place finish in the Premier League in 2022/23 but he left the club last August after criticising their lack of summer spending.
Despite issues at the end of his time in the Midlands, Lopetegui was seen as a serious get for Wolves at the time, with Jeff Shi, the club's executive chairman, previously labelling the Spanish tactician as a top coach:
“Julen is a top coach, with excellent experience at an elite level of the game,” said Shi. “Since the very beginning, Julen has been our No 1 choice to manage Wolves, and we look forward to welcoming him and his team when they join us in the coming weeks.”
Though he did not really set the world alight at Wolves, Lopetegui has proven himself outside of England, guiding Sevilla to one of their many Europa League triumphs in 2019/20. Will he be able to repeat that success with West Ham?
Graeme Smith backs Ganguly; CSA more cautious but open
Nagraj Gollapudi and Firdose Moonda21-May-2020Is Sourav Ganguly a dark horse to replace his countryman Shashank Manohar, the outgoing ICC chairman?Ever since it emerged that Manohar would not stand for another term after his tenure ends with the ICC annual conference in July, the general perception was ECB chairman Colin Graves was the frontrunner to take charge as the new chairman of the global cricket body. However, with the Covid-19 pandemic stalling world cricket, the BCCI has taken the opportunity to test interests from several Full Members on whether they would support Ganguly.On Thursday, the former Indian captain got a firm thumbs-up from Cricket South Africa, whose representatives said “strong leadership” was necessary at ICC and Ganguly was “best positioned” to be at helm.CSA, however, backtracked somewhat* in an official press release issued later in the day, saying it did not want to “anticipate any candidates who may be nominated for this important position”.In 2016, Manohar became the first independent chairman of the ICC. The position of chairman had come into being in 2014 when N Srinivasan, another former BCCI president, had assumed that position unelected, though.In 2018, Manohar, the only candidate to file nomination, was re-elected unanimously by the ICC Board. As per the ICC constitution, Manohar is eligible for a third and final term. However, it appears as if he has decided to not take it up. That said, there remains speculation about whether Manohar might extend his term by a few months if asked by the ICC Board as world cricket grapples with the pandemic.It is understood that the ICC Board is yet to finalise the nomination process after which eligible candidates can pitch their hat in the ring. To be eligible, candidates needs to be a current or past ICC Director (one who attends the ICC Board meetings as a representative of the respective country).The 15 directors who sit on the ICC Board then are allowed to nominate one candidate. Nominees with two or more votes become eligible to contest the election. As it stands, the elections will happen at the ICC annual conference, which is scheduled tentatively for mid-July.Ganguly became eligible when he attended his first ICC Board meeting, in late March, via video conference. On May 28, he is once again scheduled to attend the next Board meeting where members would discuss the next step in contingency planning on resumption of cricket.Getty Images’He has the credibility’
On Wednesday, Ganguly led the BCCI team along with Jay Shah (BCCI secretary) and Arun Dhumal (treasurer) in their talks with CSA, who were represented by Jacques Faul (acting chief executive) and former South African captain Graeme Smith (Director of Cricket). After the meeting, Smith was unequivocal about his support for Ganguly should the former India captain contest the ICC chairman elections.”The president (sic, chairman) of the ICC now becomes a very key position going forward in terms of how the game can progress, and progress at the right level,” Smith said on media tele-conference on Thursday. “It would be great to see a cricket man like Sourav Ganguly get into the president (chairman) role of the ICC.”Now it’s even more important to have someone in a role that can provide leadership to cricket; that understands and can navigate the challenges in the game today. Post Covid-19 and with the things that are going to come our way, we need to have strong leadership and I feel like Sourav Ganguly is best positioned for that at the moment. I know him well. I feel that he has got the credibility and the leadership skills and is someone that can really take the game forward.”Smith’s comments come on the back of negotiations between the two boards for a three-match T20I series in South Africa in August. India have shown “willingness” to tour subject to relaxation of travel restrictions. The meeting itself was a result of discussions between Ganguly and Smith over the past few months. Incidentally, Smith had even delivered the 2018 edition of the Jagmohan Dalmiya lecture, organised by the Cricket Association of Bengal, of which Ganguly was president at the time.Smith is the second person from the player fraternity to talk up Ganguly for the role. Recently, former England captain David Gower said he would not be surprised if Ganguly became ICC head in future. Gower said one had to be a “deft politician” to “run” the BCCI.”Sourav has the toughest task imaginable in charge of BCCI, but so far I would say the signs are very good. He has listened, given his own opinion and has pulled strings gently,” Gower said on the fan chat show recently, organised by . “He is a very, very good man and has those political skills. And if you do a good job as BCCI chief in the future, who knows? Being head of ICC is an honour… but look at where the power is. BCCI is definitely the bigger job.”Getty ImagesGanguly has BCCI support
ESPNcricinfo understands that Ganguly would be the clear first choice to replace Manohar even among BCCI members. Srinivasan is another eligible candidate, although he doesn’t qualify to be elected as a representative (over 70 years old) under the existing BCCI constitution.Insiders say even Shah could be nominated as the BCCI’s candidate, although for that he would first need to attend an ICC Board meeting. Anurag Thakur is the other eligible candidate, having attended ICC Board meetings as former BCCI president. However being a minister in the Indian government automatically disqualifies Thakur, the elder brother of Dhumal, as per the ICC constitution.Ganguly was elected BCCI president last October, but his tenure technically ends in July after which he would need to undergo a three-year cooling off period. The same is applicable to Shah, who was previously an office bearer at the Gujarat Cricket Association. However in his case, it could not be confirmed when his cool-off period would start.A month after taking charge Ganguly’s administration approached the Supreme Court requesting the constitution be amended and norms concerning an office bearer’s tenure be relaxed. The court is yet to hear the matter.Neither Ganguly nor the BCCI has made any public comments on whether he would interested in contesting the ICC chairman’s position. The one person who could be surprised if Ganguly were to enter the fray would be Graves. Last December, the trio of Ganguly, Shah and Dhumal had travelled to London to meet the ECB hierarchy giving the impression that the BCCI would back Graves’ nomination.However, the BCCI has been desperate to retain its powerful position at the ICC Board, something it feels has been lost since Manohar became ICC chairman. In recent months, various cricket boards including Cricket Australia, CSA, New Zealand Cricket have had face-to-face discussions with BCCI wanting to explore bilateral engagements to boost their commercial revenue with an India tour.A person privy to the discussions BCCI has had with various boards said if Ganguly decides to contest, he could “sail through”. This person said that most Full Member boards outside of the ECB, PCB and possible Cricket Ireland would support a BCCI candidate. One has already said that in public now.Faul said that CSA was open to supporting BCCI, which it said had played a “leadership role” at the ICC. “We’ve always worked with closely with India and I think India must play a leadership role when it comes to the FTP and a responsible one for that matter,” Faul said. “Our engagement with Sourav has been very positive and he has shown willingness to help us.”We have checked this with the leadership of South African cricket if we would support an Indian candidate and at this stage, we would. But we also have to look at the integrity of the whole process. I don’t think there are any nominations, no candidates that I know of, so they are still in the process.”From a CSA point of view, we don’t see any problems supporting an Indian candidate. To be fair, we’ve got to look at who is nominated, bring it back to the board, and there’s got to be a mandate.”Hours after the comments of Smith and Faul went public, CSA sent out a release quoting its president Chris Nenzani.”We must respect both the ICC protocol and our own protocol in deciding which candidate to back,” the release said. “There have been no candidates nominated as yet and once such nominations have been made the Board of CSA will take its decision in terms of its own protocol and give the chairman the mandate to exercise his vote as an ICC Board Director accordingly.”We have the highest regard for the opinions of our Director of Cricket, Graeme Smith, who is a well-respected figure in world cricket and has already made an immense contribution in fulfilling his mandate to make our cricket teams world leaders again.”At the moment we don’t want to anticipate any candidates who may be nominated for this important position to lead the game we all love.”*GMT 18.45 The story was amended to include CSA’s official statement.
Wesley Fofana has explained how Chelsea players dealt with Enzo Fernandez's controversial video after Argentina's World Cup win.
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أعلن نادي الزمالك رسميًا عن تطورات إصابة ثنائي فريق الكرة الأول وموقفهما من المباراة المقبلة أمام إنيمبا النيجيري، في خضم منافسات الجولة الثانية من دور المجموعات ببطولة الكونفدرالية الإفريقية.
ويعاني ناصر ماهر من إصابة بشد في العضلة الخلفية، فيما أصيب حمزة المثلوثي بكدمة قوية في القفص الصدري.
لاعب الزمالك يُعلن تجديد عقده مع الفريق: لن أبخل بنقطة عرق.. وأشكر حسين لبيب
وأكد نادي الزمالك في بيان رسمي أن ناصر ماهر سيخضع لفحوصات طبية مكثفة خلال اليومين المقبلين من أجل معرفة مدى قدرته على اللحاق بمباراة أنييمبا النيجيري.
وأوضح البيان أن الجهاز الفني يضع أمالًا كبيرة على تجهيز المثلوثي، إذ يسعى الجهاز الفني والطبي لتحديد موقفهما من السفر إلى نيجيريا يوم الجمعة المقبل.
ويقترب المثلوثي من العودة لقائمة الزمالك أمام أنييمبا في حين مازال موقف ناصر ماهر أكثر غموضًا.
ويخوض الزمالك مباراته محتلًا وصافة ترتيب المجموعة الرابعة في الكونفدرالية برصيد 3 نقاط حصدهم من انتصار أمام بلاك بولز الموزمبيقي.
ويستعد الزمالك ليحل ضيفًا على نظيره إنيمبا النيجري، في تمام الساعة السادسة من مساء الأحد المقبل.
MatériaMais Notícias
A semana do Grêmio inicia com o modo pressão mais do que ligado dentro e fora das quatro linhas, principalmente após o empate por 1 a 1 diante do América-MG, em casa.
+ Veja a briga do Z-4 no Campeonato Brasileiro no app do LANCE!
Nem mesmo o jogo dentro do seu campo foi capaz de empolgar Felipão e Cia, que terminaram frustrados no duelo direto para sair do Z-4.
O placar de 1 a 1 é só mais uma das decepções que o Grêmio tem causado em sua torcida quando o duelo é na Arena.
Jejum
Agora, o Tricolor acumula seis partidas sem saber o que é vencer como mandante na temporada. O último triunfo ocorreu diante do Brasiliense, pela Copa do Brasil.
Desde então fora sete partidas, com três derrotas e quatro empates, marca nunca antes apresentadas pelo Tricolor em sua casa.
A próxima tentativa para quebrar a marca negativa será no dia 3 de agosto, quando encara o Vitória, pela Copa do Brasil.
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It's been a brilliant month or so for Crystal Palace fans, as new boss Oliver Glasner has led their side to wins over Liverpool, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United while playing some scintillating football at the same time.
The Austrian has been a revelation in South London and completely turned around the club's fortunes, but he also has some talented players to thank.
The likes of Jean-Philippe Mateta, Eberechi Eze, and, of course, Michael Olise have been essential to the Eagles' recent form.
However, another ace should be spoken about in the same way, and based on recent reports, he's now as valuable as Olise.
Adam Wharton's season thus far
The star in question is young Adam Wharton, who, following his £18m move from Championship side Blackburn Rovers in the Winter transfer window, has been simply sensational at Selhurst Park.
Described as "the English Cambiasso" and "one of the most exciting English U19 talents around" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, the now 20-year-old midfielder has firmly established himself in Glasner's best-starting lineup despite his age and short time at the club.
The Blackburn-born ace has already made 15 appearances for the South Londoners, in which he has provided three assists. While not mindblowing, this is impressive for a player starting primarily as a defensive and central midfielder, not to mention the fact that he is one of the youngest players in the first-team squad.
1
Matheus Franca
April 1st, 2004 (20)
AM
10
2
Joe Whitworth
February 29th, 2004 (20)
GK
0
3
Adam Wharton
February 6th, 2004 (20)
CM
15
4
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi
October 5th, 2002 (21)
RW
8
5
Naouirou Ahamada
March 29, 2002 (22)
CM
23
The left-footed prodigy has clearly left an impression on his manager as well. In an interview earlier this month, the Austrian described his young midfielder as an "excellent football player" and someone destined to have a "fantastic career."
This rapid rise from Championship prospect to Premier League star has understandably impacted Wharton's valuation, although all this attention might not be what Palace wants.
Adam Wharton's valuation in 2024
According to a recent report from the Sun, German juggernauts Bayern Munich, after having missed out on the opportunity to sign Wharton in January, have been observing the youngster's imperious rise south of the river and, as a result, are preparing to come back in for a second time for around £60m.
That's a whopping £42m more than the Eagles paid earlier this year, or an increase of 233%, which would represent some seriously impressive business from Steve Parish and Co, although it's unlikely that they'll be willing to sell so soon, especially as the Englishman's development is showing no signs of slowing.
This new potential price tag means that the former Blackburn ace is now valued the same as the incredibly dynamic Olise, who has been constantly touted for a £60m move to Manchester United in recent months.
Arriving for just £8m from Reading Football Club in the summer of 2021, the incredible Frenchman has been a sensational player for Palace when fit.
Appearances
18
Goals
10
Assists
5
Goal Involvements per Match
0.83
For example, despite making just 18 first-team appearances this season, the 22-year-old has scored ten goals and provided five assists, meaning he is averaging a goal involvement every 1.2 games, which is a truly elite level of output for a winger in the Premier League.
Ultimately, Palace are beginning to look like a seriously promising proposition with their array of brilliant talent and the excellent Glasner in charge to guide them, and while Wharton might eventually move on at some point, at least the club can count on a hefty payday when he does.
Crystal Palace star is becoming Glasner's best player alongside Olise & Eze
The incredible ace has been in superb form this season.
ByJack Salveson Holmes May 9, 2024
Liverpool will play their last game of football under Jurgen Klopp's leadership this afternoon, hosting Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League.
Third in the standings, the Reds were in the thick of a thrilling three-horse title race this season before falling behind in April, though will take a small slice of solace from clinching the Carabao Cup and, more importantly, undergoing a resurgence after falling by the wayside last season.
The clash against Wolves will not carry the weight of responsibility that has been carried throughout most of this relentless campaign; the occasion will transcend the need for three points, for closing down Arsenal and Manchester City.
Liverpool are nailed on for a third-place finish. So, roll up, roll up! Come and see Klopp's Liverpool have one last dance on the Anfield pitch, ending an exhilarating and unforgettable journey.
Liverpool team news
Thiago Alcantara could join his manager in making an emotional final appearance for the club after surviving a week of training. The Spaniard has featured for just five minutes this season and is out of contract in one month.
Andy Robertson and Diogo Jota are expected to return in some capacity after overcoming respective injuries, though Ben Doak and Joel Matip (who is also imminently out of contract) will play no part.
Harvey Elliott and Alexis Mac Allister might both be placed on the bench after their respective performances during the 3-3 draw at Aston Villa on Monday night. Elliott was notably impressive but there are a host of midfielders pushing for a start, namely Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones, with Stefan Bajcetic also waiting patiently in the wings
Cody Gakpo has started Liverpool's past three Premier League fixtures, scoring in his last two games, but Klopp might choose to unleash Darwin Nunez with one final flourish on Merseyside.
Why Klopp should start Darwin Nunez
You'd be right in thinking that Gakpo is the man in form, and thus, the 6 foot 1 "revelation" – as he has been called by pundit Jamie Carragher – is the man that deserves a comfy spot at the spearhead of Liverpool's attack, but a third-place finish has already been confirmed and Nunez is a figure in need of some respite following his recent struggles.
Liverpool's club-record £85m signing has scored 18 goals and added 13 assists this season but he has lost his footing in recent games and has seen supporters' frustrations finally boil over after two campaigns of wasteful finishing.
Matches played
29
35
Matches started
19
22
Goals
9
11
Assists
3
8
Big chances missed
20
27
Pass completion
67%
72%
Big chances created
11
11
Key passes per game
1.0
0.9
Dribbles per game
0.6 (49%)
0.4 (43%)
Duels won per game
2.8 (38%)
2.4 (38%)
The Uruguayan has improved his potency in front of goal but there are still some questionable underlying numbers. That said, however, Nunez ranks among the top 12% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for shot-creating actions and the top 15% for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref.
He's an immense talent but it needs to click sooner rather than later, with the 24-year-old – as the table shows – having missed 47 big chances across two campaigns, scoring just 20 times.
To look at this from a positive stance, Nunez has had 38 big chances from 35 games this season, highlighting his innate ability to find space and opportunity to golden positions.
But he needs to start taking them, and with Nunez about to head into the unknown of the post-Klopp era, his German manager must hand him one last starting berth today, having benched him for four of his past five league matches.
Liverpool eye move for "player of the season" to finally replace Mane
This crafty winger would be perfect for Arne Slot.
ByAngus Sinclair May 18, 2024
If Klopp unleashes Nunez from the outset as his last act, it might just prove to put the influential forward into the perfect position to end his campaign on a high and revitalise his Reds career ahead of a new chapter.