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The City playmaker's classy early goal ensured City got off on the right foot before leading the visitors' exhibition of possession football

Kevin De Bruyne still has unfinished business in the Champions League after getting injured in two finals, and he looked in the mood to reach a third showpiece after running the show in Manchester City's 3-1 win at Copenhagen on Tuesday.

City made a flying start in the Parken Stadium, and after De Bruyne and Ake had missed from close-range, the Belgian made amends with a slick finish into the far bottom corner after lovely work from Phil Foden.

City were dealt their first setback midway through the first half when Jack Grealish pulled up injured, and suffered an even bigger one when Magnus Mattson smashed in Copenhagen's equaliser after a sloppy pass out from Ederson. Pep Guardiola's side looked shaken, but a smart reactive finish from Bernardo Silva put them back in front just before the break.

The second half was a procession as City moved the ball around effortlessly and with barely any resistance but they still wanted a third goal, and eventually got it in added-time with another slick piece of play from De Bruyne, finished off by the equally brilliant Foden.

The thoroughly deserved final goal gave City a two-goal cushion for the second leg at home in three weeks' time and that is likely to be another breeze for Guardiola's all-conquering side.

GOAL rates Man City's players from Parken Stadium…

Getty ImagesGoalkeeper & Defence

Ederson (4/10):

His careless pass aimed for Ake led to Copenhagen's equaliser. It was the only shot he faced.

Kyle Walker (7/10):

Physically dominant and always on hand to sweep up any hint of danger from the hosts.

Ruben Dias (7/10):

Always looked in control, won every aerial battle.

John Stones (6/10):

Back in his hybrid defence/midfield role and did much more of the latter.

Nathan Ake (7/10):

Strong defensively and always looked to get involved in the attack.

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Phil Foden (8/10):

Survived an injury scare in the first half and had an outstanding game, dictating the tempo while twisting his way around the pitch. Rounded off a stunning performance with a deserved goal.

Rodri (6/10):

Kept things ticking over but was able to take a backseat role as his fellow midfielders took over.

Bernardo Silva (8/10):

Also brilliant in ensuring City never lost the ball, while his effortless finish put them firmly back in control.

Getty ImagesAttack

Kevin De Bruyne (9/10):

A class above. His sharp-shooting got City off to a dream start and he set up the other two goals. Back where he belongs, dominating Champions League knockout games.

Erling Haaland (5/10):

Got very little space in behind. Not the blockbuster Champions League night he would have hoped for, but there will be plenty more.

Jack Grealish (5/10):

Was doing well without shining until his first start in five weeks was cruelly brought to a premature end, a groin injury forcing him off in the 21st minute.

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Jeremy Doku (6/10):

Took fewer risks than usual and had fewer flashes of excitement, but looked to be on the same page as the team and did what was needed.

Matheus Nunes (5/10):

Replaced Bernardo in the 78th minute and had a hand in the third goal.

Pep Guardiola (7/10):

His tactic to utterly monopolise possession worked well, ensuring his side barely suffered in what could have been a difficult atmosphere.

Durham christened their new floodlights with an exciting six-run win over previously unbeaten Yorkshire in the NatWest T20 Blast.

ECB/PA29-May-2015
ScorecardGordon Muchall made a useful contribution with the bat•Getty ImagesDurham christened their new floodlights with an exciting six-run win over previously unbeaten Yorkshire in the NatWest T20 Blast.The hosts made 182 for 4 batting first with four of their top six scoring in the 30s, and then limited Yorkshire to 176 for 8 in reply as Keaton Jennings starred with the ball.Jennings finished with figures of 4 for 37 with his occasional medium pace, including the key scalps of Jonny Bairstow and Glenn Maxwell.The victory leaves Durham at the top of the North Group with three wins from four matches, two points ahead of second-placed Yorkshire.Insights

Durham won the match in the final five overs of their innings in which they scored 76 for 1, taking 17, 13, 11, 14 and 21 off overs from Maxwell, Plunkett, Bresnan and Fisher. For the second consecutive day Gordon Muchall and John Hastings finished not out at the end of Durham’s innings. Having scored 31* (27) and 21* (13) respectively against Leicestershire, the pair managed 34* (24) and 37* (16) against Yorkshire. With this duo batting below Stoneman, Mustard, MacLeod and Collingwood, Durham have a formidable batting order.
Freddie Wilde

The attendance was 5,539 for the first match played under the new permanent floodlights at Chester-le-Street, with hopes of attracting the ground’s record crowd for a county match not helped by the weather and the Headingley Test.Rain delayed the 7pm start by 25 minutes, after which the sun shone throughout Durham’s innings after they were put in.Mark Stoneman and Phil Mustard got the hosts off to a flying start with a stand of 30 in 3.2 overs, and Paul Collingwood, Gordon Muchall and John Hastings made sure that was not wasted.Hastings provided the late momentum as he hit Tim Bresnan’s last four balls for three fours and a six as 21 came off the over.In a quirk of fate, Yorkshire also needed 21 runs off their final – bowled by Hastings – to snatch the victory.Bresnan had his chance of revenge with 12 needed off the last two to tie, but he missed the first before hitting the last high over the mid-wicket boundary. It left him unbeaten on 36, but scarcely atoned for his figures of none for 51 with the ball. While it was left to Hastings to finish things off, it was Jennings who did the damage earlier on.Jennings is Durham’s four-day opening batsman and had bowled only one over in the three previous T20 matches. But with skilful variations of pace he persuaded Bairstow and Maxwell to play across the line of straight balls, while he also sent back Jack Leaning and Rich Pyrah as Durham claimed the points.

Tom Cooper and Michael Klinger shared a measured stand of 188 against Western Australia to set South Australia on the path to their first victory of the domestic limited-overs competition

Daniel Brettig17-Oct-2013
ScorecardTom Cooper and Michael Klinger shared a measured stand of 188 to set South Australia on the path to their first victory of the domestic limited-overs competition at Drummoyne Oval, leaving Western Australia last in the table and without a victory.Klinger’s 91 maintained his superior form in the tournament, while Cooper again showed glimpses of the talent that has brought him to the fringes of a national call-up in the past. Their partnership allowed SA to be close enough for Alex Ross and the captain Johan Botha to secure the win with nine balls remaining.It was a strong performance from the Redbacks after another spiky effort from Simon Katich lifted the Warriors to what had seemed a steep tally. Katich used only 39 balls for his 66, cracking five sixes, and rounding off the earlier contributions of Cameron Bancroft, Shaun Marsh and Marcus North.SA’s target might have been taller still if not for the tidy bowling of Peter George, who claimed 2 for 41. The Warriors’ captain Michael Beer bowled with similar thrift for his side, but lacked any kind of support.

While not the best preparation for series against Pakistan and India, Gary Kirsten will again use New Zealand as guinea pigs for his master plan

Firdose Moonda28-Dec-2012Gary Kirsten’s first away tour in charge of South Africa was to New Zealand earlier this year. It was an opportunity to claim the world No. 1 ranking – which would have required a 3-0 series sweep – but Kirsten had other things to think about. For him, it was the time to entrench his philosophy away from the pressures of a prying home media and parochial fans.The trip was the first of three major blocks of time on the road in 2012. The two to come, against England and Australia, would require a certain robustness. Kirsten used New Zealand to toughen the team up by being softer than anyone would have expected.While they prepared for the Test series, he ran a marathon. After they won in Hamilton with days to spare, he encouraged them to enjoy New Zealand’s natural wonders. The South African squad went to Lake Taupo and the Waitomo Caves. Previously they spent free time holed up in soulless hotel rooms playing video games – ask Mark Boucher and Herschelle Gibbs who once boasted that they spent 13 hours doing exactly that. Kirsten opened doors other South African management ignored.Allan Donald was sent home before the final match, to allow him time off in what was dubbed “a heavy year of travel”. It was in that same fixture that South Africa were troubled – by an injury to Jacques Kallis, the resilience of Kane Williamson and Kruger van Wyk and the weather – but it was also one where they came out strongest, not in result terms but in character.Kirsten said so himself. He was pleased with the way the then-fringe player JP Duminy who had to step in to Kallis’ place scored a century. He was equally satisfied with the coming of age of Morne Morkel who took all six New Zealand wickets by relying on control as much as aggression. “There’s a real sense of team-ness,” Kirsten said. “We’ve taken the steps we needed to be able to confront England.”New Zealand was the blank canvas. Once South Africa got to England they had intricate plans drawn and when they reached Australia those plans were coloured in. So far, that exercise has paid off despite the changes that have been made to the Test XI because the broad approach has remained the same: prepare meticulously, don’t work harder than is necessary and be ready to make big plays.Having got all of that right, they face New Zealand again; and again the opposition will be used to plan for the year ahead. “We will play 10 Test matches in 2013 and New Zealand is an important stepping stone,” Kirsten said. Although a much lighter year, especially in terms of travel, South Africa have home and away (most probably in the UAE) series against Pakistan and then host India.The No. 1 ranking will probably not be at risk of being snatched away but both teams from the sub-continent will pose a different challenge to what South Africa have handled over the last 12 months. Technically and tactically, New Zealand are not the right guinea pigs to prepare them but in terms of match practice and habit-forming, they will do as well as anyone else.Kirsten believes those two factors are the basis for South Africa’s string of victories and hopes to continue developing them in the upcoming series. “The success of our team in 2012 was that we remained humble in our play,” he said. “We didn’t take any situation or any team for granted. We made sure that our preparation was spot on and that when we got into Test match time, we set up solid foundations to give ourselves the best chance of success.”They view the upcoming series against New Zealand as part of a broader landscape. Being complacent will not be an option, neither will being arrogant, even though South Africa are the clear favourites. “We take every match we play representing the badge very seriously,” Kirsten said. Evidence of that is in the training schedule: South Africa have five practices lined up before the match starts on January 2, many more than usual.It may be because a series against New Zealand gives South Africa the opportunity to improve their record at home. South Africa last lost an away Test five series ago in February 2010 in Kolkata but they have lost a match at home in every one of the last five series they’ve played there. The previous time they went unscathed was against Bangladesh in 2008/09.But Kirsten does not see it that way. “The guys look proudly at their away record. The success of this team is based what we do every day so whether we are home or away, doesn’t matter.” It’s a cold, clinical explanation and one New Zealand may bear the brunt of.

Leicestershire staged an astonishing fightback against Glamorgan on a dramatic opening day of the new County Championship season at Grace Road.

05-Apr-2012
ScorecardRamnaresh Sarwan made 41 on his Leicestershire debut•Associated PressLeicestershire staged an astonishing fightback against Glamorgan on a dramatic opening day of the new County Championship season at Grace Road.They recovered from the shock of losing two wickets to the first two balls of the game to post a competitive total of 249, with Claude Henderson scoring an unbeaten half-century and Ramnaresh Sarwan making a vital 41 on his Leicestershire debut.Then Matthew Hoggard, Robbie Joseph and Nadeem Malik had Glamorgan reeling with devastating spells as the Welshmen staggered to 25 for 5 in 11 overs at the close of a remarkable day’s cricket.Joseph, making his debut after being released by Kent, struck first with a successful lbw shout against Stewart Walters. In the next over Hoggard dismissed Gareth Rees in similar fashion and then clean bowled Ben Wright.Joseph picked up his second wicket when William Bragg edged to Sarwan at slip and Moises Henriques was caught behind in Malik’s first over, meaning 15 wickets had fallen in the day for 274 runs.The start to the game was one of the most dramatic openings to a season seen on the ground. After putting Leicestershire in to bat on a damp pitch, Glamorgan had them 1 for 3 from three overs.Huw Waters took two wickets with his first two balls, having Greg Smith caught at short leg by Gareth Rees and then pinning Jacques du Toit lbw. He struck again with the fifth ball of his second over when Matt Boyce popped up another catch to Rees at short leg and there seemed no way back for the hosts who finished bottom of the Second Division last season.But a brisk 26 from Josh Cobb, who hit two fours and two sixes, and then some stout and sensible batting from the middle and late order batsmen pulled Leicestershire out of trouble.Sarwan, who had to come in and face the hat-trick delivery from Walters, looked impressive in his 110-ball stay at the crease. He mixed solid defence with some sweetly timed boundaries, six in all, before being trapped lbw by Graham Wagg.Henderson then spearheaded the recovery as he did a year ago in the same fixture, when Leicestershire beat Glamorgan on opening day to claim their only Championship win of the season. He made an unbeaten 80 on that occasion and once again frustrated the Welshmen with another 57 not out. His half-century came off 108 balls and included a six and two fours.He was given excellent support by Ned Eckersley (25), Wayne White (37) and Joseph (29) before Leicestershire’s seamers completed the stunning fightback.

Western Australia thumped South Australia by 10 wickets at the WACA after the home team’s seamers triggered a collapse that helped seal a comfortable victory

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2011
Scorecard
Western Australia thumped South Australia by 10 wickets at the WACA after the home team’s seamers triggered a collapse that helped seal a comfortable victory. South Australia were reasonably well placed when play began, on 206 for 2, with Callum Ferguson having scored a century and captain Michael Klinger on his way towards one. But Klinger fell early on day four, failing to add to his 80, and that marked the start of South Australia’s slide.Michael Hogan bowled Klinger and returned later to rattle the lower order to finish with four wickets and pushed his match tally to nine. In the interim left-arm seamer Jason Behrendorff nipped out Ferguson and Troy Cooper. South Australia lost their last eight wickets for 82, leaving Western Australia to chase a target of just 15, which they did without any damage in 5.2 overs. The win leaves Western Australia placed second on the points table, after Queensland.

Pakistan begin their World Twenty20 campaign against New Zealand, who crushed Bangladesh on Friday

The Preview by George Binoy22-Sep-2012Match facts September 23, 2012
Start time 1530 local (1000 GMT)Dav Whatmore has a word with Kamran Akmal in the lead-up to Pakistan’s first game•AFPBig Picture Pakistan, we’ve been expecting you. The team with the best World Twenty20 record is the last to open its campaign in Sri Lanka. Pakistan have World Twenty20 pedigree. In the first tournament in 2007, they were finalists, and so nearly champions. They won in 2009, and in 2010 they had one foot in the final before Michael Hussey blind-sided them.They’ve been put in the toughest group in 2012, with New Zealand and Bangladesh, and will play their first game against the stronger of those teams. Win against New Zealand, and Pakistan are almost certain to make it to the Super Eights; lose, and they will face a must-win against Bangladesh.The strength of Mohammad Hafeez’s side is unquestionably its bowling. In Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul and Shahid Afridi, three bowlers of varied skills, Pakistan possess the highest wicket-takers in Twenty20 internationals. Any of those bowlers can turn a Twenty20 game single-handedly and a collective performance can be devastating. Their batting is less formidable; it can be hot or cold. In the two warm-ups for the World Twenty20, Pakistan chased 186 successfully against India but failed to achieve 112 against England. The challenge, as ever, will be for Pakistan to combine their enviable talent with discipline.New Zealand go into this game with the opportunity to win Group D. Doing so will make their progress to the Super Eight independent of the result of the Pakistan-Bangladesh fixture. Their evisceration of Bangladesh by 59 runs on Friday was almost faultless. The key battle in that game was tipped to be between New Zealand’s batsmen and Bangladesh’s spinners. They took 117 off 12 overs from the slow men. A strong performance against a more formidable Pakistan will make people sit up and take notice of a team that isn’t considered to be a strong contender for the 2012 title.Form guide (completed matches, most recent first)Pakistan: LWWWL
New Zealand: WWLLLWatch out for The majority of New Zealand batsmen: Brendon McCullum, with his 123 off 58 balls, demolished Bangladesh single-handedly. So aggressive was his approach and so clinical his execution that there was almost no pressure on his team-mates. All they needed to do was give McCullum strike. It’s unlikely that anyone will play as explosive an innings against Pakistan, so the contributions need to be more collective to reduce the reliance on McCullum and Ross Taylor.Saeed and Shahid: In Ajmal and Afridi, not only do Pakistan possess the highest and third highest wicket-takers in this format, but also the third and fourth lowest economy-rates among bowlers who’ve played at least 20 Twenty20 internationals. Ajmal goes at 6.03 per over on average and Afridi 6.10. They strike and they stifle.Team news New Zealand opener Martin Guptill sustained a minor strain to his left hamstring while fielding against Bangladesh and has not recovered sufficiently to play Pakistan. He is expected to be fit for their first Super Eights match if New Zealand qualify. Their only reserve batsman is BJ Watling.New Zealand (probable): 1 Rob Nicol, 2 James Franklin, 3 Brendon McCullum (wk), 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 Kane Williamson, 6 BJ Watling, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Kyle Mills.The four players Pakistan are likely to leave out of their starting line-up are Asad Shafiq, Mohammad Sami, Raza Hasan and Yasir Arafat.Pakistan (probable): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Imran Nazir, 3 Nasir Jamshed, 4 Kamran Akmal (wk), 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Abdul Razzaq, 9 Sohail Tanvir, 10 Umar Gul, 11 Saeed Ajmal.Pitch and conditions The forecast is for some showers in Pallekele. It threatened to rain during the Bangladesh-New Zealand game as well but there were no interruptions. The spinners didn’t get much turn either, with the ball coming on to the bat.Stats and trivia Pakistan played New Zealand in Pallekele during the 2011 World Cup and fed Ross Taylor a diet of full tosses and deliveries that were too straight. He scored 131 off 124 balls. New Zealand and Pakistan have played eight Twenty20 internationals and the head-to-head record is 5-3 in Pakistan’s favour. New Zealand’s three wins, however, came in the last four matches. In Twenty20 matches over the last 12 months, Afridi and Ajmal have economy-rates of less than six an over. Mohammad Hafeez and Sohail Tanvir conceded 5.82 and 5.94 on average during this period.Quotes”I’ve run out of words to praise him. His T20 performances have been match winning for Pakistan. Yes, recently, he has not performed very well but the way he is working hard and focusing on this tournament, I wish him the very best, and God willing he performs well for the team as always.”
“It didn’t spin as much as we thought it might. When you play a second time on it, it could probably spin a little bit more. We’ll have to wait and see.”
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A round-up of the Dhaka Premier Division matches played on September 30, 2013

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2013Sean Williams stormed into the Dhaka Premier Division with a seven-wicket haul in his first appearance for Brothers Union. With the best List A figures by a Zimbabwean, Williams sunk Kalabagan Cricket Academy to 148 in 32.1 overs, which Brothers Union chased in 22.3 overs, with nine wickets in hand to stay on top of the table. His spell included a hat-trick when he dismissed Hamilton Masakadza and Saghir Hossain on the last two deliveries of the 19th over and then got rid of Sikandar Raza on the first ball of the 21st over.The match was reduced to 34 overs a side, starting three hours after the scheduled start due to overnight rain.Williams ran through the first seven wickets with his left-arm spin, finishing with 7 for 25. His victims included one more fellow countryman, Vusi Sibanda, and his three other wickets were of Mizanur Rahman, KCA’s captain Marshall Ayub and Nazmul Islam.His figures are the second-best List A figures in Bangladesh, after Abdur Razzak’s 7 for 17 for Bangladesh A against Zimbabwe A in 2003-04.During the chase, Tamim Iqbal blasted an unbeaten 95 off 65 balls with seven sixes and six fours. He dominated the unbroken 129-run second-wicket stand with brother Nafees Iqbal, who was not out on 36.In another rain-affected match, Kalabagan Krira Chakra crushed Khelaghar Samaj Kallyan Samity by 116 runs. This match at the BKSP-3 ground was reduced to 31 overs per side due to rain that went on all night in Dhaka and its surrounding areas.Batting first, KKC got off to a fine start with Mithun Ali and captain Jehan Mubarak getting half-centuries. They added 141 runs for the second wicket after opener Mahbubul Karim was out for a duck.Mithun raced to his 78 off 64 balls with six fours and five sixes while Mubarak made 69 off 64. Chamara Kapugedara slammed a 33-ball 58 with four fours and five sixes to take their total to 248 for 7.Khelaghar predictably struggled, and were restricted to 132 for 7 in 31 overs. Seamer Dilhara Lokuhettige took three wickets, while comeback man Shakib Al Hasan went wicketless in his six overs.This was Shakib’s first match after recovering from a thumb injury he sustained during the Caribbean Premier League last month.

Yunus Musah believes he is capable of thriving as a wing-back for AC Milan after being asked to fill an unfamiliar role with the Serie A giants.

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American made summer move to ItalyHanded first start versus VeronaFeels happy in a wider roleWHAT HAPPENED?

The 20-year-old United States international has built his reputation in the middle of the park, with his energy and ability being embraced by club and country. That skill set was put to good use at Valencia in Spain, earning Musah a €20 million (£17m/$21m) transfer to San Siro.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

He has been eased into the Milan fold, and made his first start for the Rossoneri when operating as a right wing-back in a 3-4-3 formation against Verona. Musah told of filling a wide role: “I felt really good in this position, I do have the characteristics to play on the wing. I like to play more or less anywhere, as sometimes when I am a midfielder, I tend to drift wide anyway.”

WHAT THEY SAID

Musah helped Milan to a 1-0 victory in their latest Serie A outing, and he is adjusting quickly to the demands of life in a new country and squad. He told : “I’m happy to have played lots of minutes today and also to have won the game. This is a good squad, which welcomed me with open arms right from day one. There are very good players here, and are also very grounded too, so they helped me adapt right from the start and this has helped me adapt better.”

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Musah has USMNT colleague Christian Pulisic alongside him in Italy, with the American duo hoping to help Milan piece together bids for major silverware at home and abroad in 2023-24.

The MCC has announced a change to the Laws meaning a bowler hitting the stumps during their delivery stride will result in a no-ball being called

Alan Gardner21-Feb-2013If Steven Finn needed any further incentive to drop his habit of kneeing the stumps in his delivery stride, it has been provided by the announcement that it will in future be called a no-ball. The change to the Laws, rubber-stamped by the the MCC Committee, has been brought about specifically in response to Finn’s persistent problem, which the England bowler is still trying to eradicate.The new ruling will come into effect from October 2013 but it is possible for the ICC to change the playing conditions for international cricket to immediately reflect the Law.The issue came to wider attention during England’s home series against South Africa last summer, after a complaint from the batsmen that it was causing a distraction during the second Test at Headingley. Graeme Smith was caught at slip off a delivery that was called dead-ball by the umpires, as Finn had clipped the stumps at the non-striker’s end. At the time, the MCC announced that it would review the Laws.Although Finn has been working to deal with the problem in his delivery stride, the habit has seen umpires call dead-ball with regularity since last August and cost Finn another wicket during the ODI series in India, when Suresh Raina edged to slip. In his most recent outing, the second ODI against New Zealand, Finn trialled a new, shortened run-up, with four strides removed – but still clipped the stumps at one point during the match.Until now, umpires only had recourse to Law 23.4(b)(iv) which states a dead-ball should be called whenever a batsman is “distracted by any noise or movement or in any other way while he is preparing to receive, or receiving a delivery”.In practice, Finn has been allowed one warning per series before a dead-ball is called but even this caused confusion on the New Zealand tour, when Finn collided with the stumps during the second ODI and Brendon McCullum hit the delivery for four. The delivery was allowed to stand and Alastair Cook could be heard asking the umpire, Rod Tucker, why a dead-ball wasn’t called, as Finn had been warned during the T20 series.The MCC’s head of cricket, John Stephenson, said: “MCC continues to act as a robust guardian of the Laws of cricket, and must ensure that it consults widely within the amateur and professional game before making changes that will affect anyone who plays the game.”MCC’s decision today to make the breaking of the stumps during the act of delivery a no-ball provides clarity to the situation and removes the need for a subjective assessment to be made by the umpire as to whether the striker has been genuinely distracted or not. It also ensures that the striker will still be credited with any runs that he scores from the delivery, and will act as a significant disincentive to the bowler from doing it.”The change was recommended by the MCC’s Laws sub-committee, which includes the ICC chief executive, Dave Richardson, and Simon Taufel, the former umpire who is now the ICC’s umpire performance and training manager, after discussion with the MCC Cricket committee.