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Bowling coach doesn’t want players “trying to do too much, too quickly”

Shashank Kishore15-Aug-2020

MS Dhoni arrives in Chennai for Chennai Super Kings’ preparatory camp ahead of IPL 2020•PTI

MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Kedar Jadhav, Deepak Chahar and Piyush Chawla were among the batch of local Chennai Super Kings players who arrived in Chennai on Friday for a short IPL preparatory camp. Among those missing were Ravindra Jadeja and Harbhajan Singh, who will link up with the squad ahead of their departure to the UAE on August 21.From Sunday, the Super Kings players will be put through their paces starting with low-intensity training to allow them to get back into their groove. Many players, including captain Dhoni, Raina, Harbhajan and Ambati Rayudu haven’t played any competitive cricket for over a year. The franchise had organised a two-week camp in March to facilitate more training for some of their older players, but that had to be called off due to Covid-19.Among their fast-bowling contingent, Chahar is returning from a stress fracture of the back. He injured himself during the home series against West Indies last December and has only resumed bowling recently, after undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy. Among the overseas players, Shane Watson, their premier allrounder, has only featured in one tournament – Pakistan Super League 2020 – in the last 18 months.L Balaji, Super Kings’ bowling coach, is wary of players “trying to do too much, too quickly” after the forced break. He has advocated a gradual resumption to training and net sessions.”We have to be mindful of fast bowlers, especially, of overloading and need to monitor that,” Balaji told ESPNcricinfo. “Players have all been starved of any cricket in the summer, so it’s only natural that when they’re back at training, they want to bowl, field, do all the routines they’re used to for long periods of time. But because many of them haven’t played for long or are coming back from injuries, we need to gradually phase them back into full-intensity training.”Balaji spoke of how the coaches and support staff have kept in constant touch with the players to ensure they are adequately prepared after the long break.L Balaji at the IPL 2020 auction•BCCI

“It’s very important [communication between players and coaches] for a tournament like the IPL,” Balaji explained. “You can’t overnight prepare your body for six weeks of heavy workload. We will probably play a match every two days or so, for players need to understand their bodies.”The idea is to ensure players finish the tournament without any injuries, and for that management and conditioning is important. The key is to accelerate your training slowly and decelerate when your body has come to a certain level of repetitiveness, so that you recover to do it again. We’ve put in place a proper workload management system, it’s important.”Super Kings’ Indian fast-bowling contingent consists of Chahar, Shardul Thakur and KM Asif, while the overseas pacers include Josh Hazlewood, Dwayne Bravo, Sam Curran and Lungi Ngidi, who missed the previous season due to injury. Balaji believes this mix of experienced overseas personnel and young Indian pacers, feeding off each other in an informal set-up, has helped bring results.”Trust and freedom is key,” Balaji said. “Fast bowlers always thrive under a proactive and supportive on-field captain, that is a huge factor. That is where playing under Dhoni has been a huge advantage for guys like Shardul or Deepak Chahar, because he’s someone who gives them plenty of opportunities and confidence, even when they’ve had off days. Dhoni is process oriented, but at the same time practical. He doesn’t put them under undue pressure and allows them to enjoy and evolve within their own potential.”It’s mostly about knowledge and experience sharing at this level. They’re all among the best, that is why they’re playing in the IPL or for their countries, so you can’t get overly technical. So we give them a platform where they can share inputs in an informal environment and that is why a lot of them thrive.”Some of the best conversations I’ve had as a player are from informal chats with Wasim Akram and Brett Lee, and not from one-on-one sessions. That is the atmosphere we’ve tried to create at CSK, where things are informal, yet players have lots to learn. We’ve all had good conversations between the Indian bowling group – Deepak, Shardul, Harbhajan, Jadeja – everyone’s got their own ideas and inputs to share. This has been of immense help to all of them.”

Glasgow Rangers face a summer of change under Philippe Clement, with the Belgian looking to build a squad full of his own transfer targets at Ibrox.

The Belgian inherited a side from Michael Beale which features a host of players who clearly are not up to the required standard to be long-term solutions for the Light Blues.

Credit to the former Club Brugge manager, as he has managed to somehow drag the club into a Premiership title race, while winning the League Cup and reaching the final of the Scottish Cup, proving how good a boss he has turned out to be.

This summer is the perfect opportunity for the 50-year-old to ship out some deadwood while signing a few targets who can instantly improve the starting XI.

Could the Light Blues perhaps turn to a player who has shone against the Old Firm recently as one of their future transfers? A current Scottish football pundit certainly thinks so.

Rangers tipped to move for defender

It is no secret that the left-back area is a primary concern for Clement. Not only is Borna Barisic out of contract at the end of the season and looks set to depart Glasgow, but Ridvan Yilmaz is injury-prone and simply cannot be trusted to remain fit throughout an entire season.

This will certainly see the club dive into the market for at least one left-sided defender this summer, potentially two, depending on the budget available to Clement.

Pundit Tam McManus, a former striker for Hibs and Dundee among others, has been hyping up a left-back who has shone for Dundee in recent weeks since joining from Burnley on loan – Owen Dodgson.

“I like the left-back, Dodgson,” McManus said when appearing on PLZ Soccer regarding the defender. “He’s been excellent. I think Celtic and Rangers should be looking at him.

“The two games I’ve seen him, against both Celtic and Rangers, I thought he was really really good.”

Could he perhaps be a viable option for Rangers? Even if it were to just add some much-needed depth to the squad over the summer.

Owen Dodgson’s statistics for Dundee

The youngster moved north to secure a six-month loan spell at the Dens Park side, featuring in 13 matches so far for the club.

Across his 12 Premiership appearances, the 21-year-old has shown plenty of promise. Not only does he show plenty of willingness to get on the ball, evidenced by averaging 43.7 touches per game, but he has also won 3.3 total duels per game – a success rate of 55% – along with creating two big chances, impressing across a range of performance metrics.

Accurate passes per game

18.5

Key passes per game

0.8

Successful dribbles per game

0.2

Total duels won per game

3.3

Possession lost per game

14.3

Via Sofascore

It was his displays against both Rangers and Celtic in recent weeks which have seen people sit up and take notice, showcasing his talents while playing the two best teams in the country.

During the clash against the Light Blues, Dodgson won six of his seven contested duels, made four interceptions and wasn’t dribbled past once. A few weeks later, when Celtic came to town, the Englishman delivered a wonderful display which featured five key passes, winning three of his five duels, and creating two big chances during their eventual 2-1 defeat.

This shows the player was clearly not fazed in the slightest by taking on some of the finest attackers in the top flight, which could come in handy should the Gers take a closer look at him.

There is no reason why he couldn’t come in and replace Barisic, especially considering how poor the Croatian has been so far this season as he winds down his six-year association with the club.

Borna Barisic’s stats for Rangers this season

The left-back has been a stalwart at Ibrox since first walking through the doors in the summer of 2018, becoming one of Steven Gerrard’s first signings in the process.

Nearly six years later, he has amassed 234 appearances for the Light Blues, winning every domestic prize on offer along with helping the club reach the 2022 Europa League final.

Since then, however, his performance levels have dipped, and it is clear the club needs to release him once the season has finished in order to add some freshness to the department.

At the time of writing, the 31-year-old has played 33 times for the Gers this term, with the majority of them coming during the first half of the season.

Indeed, Barisic has made just five Premiership starts since the turn of the year, as Yilmaz emerged as Clement’s first choice.

The only reason he was still getting some game time is due to Yilmaz’s injury which he suffered on international duty, otherwise he would have spent the vast majority of the time on the bench.

Among his teammates this season, the Croatian ranks 11th in the squad for goals and assists (three) in the Premiership, while ranking in a lowly 17th spot for big chances created (one), ninth for accurate passes per game (28.6) and 19th for successful dribbles per match (0.3), indicating that even when he does play, his statistics are often poor.

The defender is currently earning £21k-per-week and getting this sort of wage off the books during the summer will give Clement much more flexibility in the transfer window, no doubt about that.

Dodgson will return to Burnley, his parent club, once his loan spell at Dundee comes to an end, but he has impressed significantly across the previous five months.

With a contract at the Turf Moor side until 2025, which suggests he could be available for a knockdown price, that is, if Burnley are open to selling him.

While nothing is concrete, he could certainly be a wonderful option to have at Clement’s disposal next season. Dodgson is still coming into his peak and could even make the Gers a profit in the future, such is his vast potential.

The summer could be an exciting time indeed for the Ibrox faithful.

Leeds United won't want to come this far and not get over the line in winning promotion back up to the Premier League, falling at the final hurdle to then have another season in the Championship to contend with.

Their playoff final opponents won't be a walk in the park to get the better of like Norwich over two legs, however, with Southampton winning 2-1 at Elland Road on the final day and wanting to rain on the Whites parade even more on the biggest stage in London to come.

There could well be a fire sale in West Yorkshire if Russell Martin's men do clinch promotion to the top flight at the expense of Daniel Farke's side, with the likes of Georginio Rutter and Illan Meslier reportedly just a couple of faces who could be sold on if Wembley heartbreak is on the menu.

Crysencio Summerville could also be moved on to Leeds' dismay potentially, having hit the jackpot previously when signing the Dutchman from Feyenoord back in 2020 for a meagre fee, who is now the decorated Championship Player of the Season.

Summerville's transfer to Leeds

Nobody would have anticipated when a wide-eyed Summerville entered into Elland Road four years ago that he would go on to become such a key part of the Whites squad near the top of the Championship, arriving to England as an unknown import from the Netherlands.

Only costing a small fee of £1.3m during Marcelo Bielsa's infamous reign as boss, Leeds would have had high hopes that this deal could end up being a golden bargain based on his promising numbers in the Feyenoord youth set-ups before linking up initially with the U23s at his new club.

Team

Games played

Goals

Assists

Feyenoord U21s

2

0

1

Feyenoord U19s

13

0

2

Feyenoord U17s

22

5

3

Sourced by Transfermarkt

Summerville would never look back after relocating to his new West Yorkshire location, bedding in perfectly to his once unfamiliar surroundings in England with ease by notching up a stunning 16 goal contributions from 30 games in Leeds' U23 structure.

This would lead to more and more first-team action being handed Summerville's way, having outgrown the comforts of youth football, with six Premier League games given to him during the 2021/22 campaign by Bielsa.

It wouldn't be until the campaign after where the electric Whites winger would fully leave his lasting impact on the men's game, with one particular goal away at Anfield catapulting him into stardom.

As a result, Summerville's valuation would also rise higher and higher with Leeds laughing now at the meagre £1.3m they forked out to land him in 2020.

Feyenoord won't see the situation in a comical light now, however, cursing the dreadful decision to allow their homegrown youngster leave when they did, with the once unassuming 18-year-old now reportedly on the shopping list of many a Premier League suitor this coming summer.

Summerville's rising importance at Leeds

Funnily enough, despite Bielsa nurturing Summerville and handing him his senior debut at Elland Road, the Dutchman wouldn't explode into life in the first-team picture until the disastrous Jesse Marsch took over the reins.

All four of the 22-year-old's top-flight goals to date came under the American's supervision, including this dramatic last-gasp winner away at Liverpool which was Virgil Van Dijk's first ever home defeat as a Reds player.

Stating that this winner gives him 'goosebumps' whenever he watches it back, Summerville wasn't quite done there with his memorable strikes based on his output this campaign in Leeds' hunt for quick redemption to win promotion straight back to the Premier League.

The nimble trickster has a staggering 31 goal contributions from 48 games, which included the misery-compiling fourth goal against Norwich in the play-off second leg, and will hope to add more to that ever-growing tally when Southampton and Leeds face off against each other at Wembley at the close of the month.

With this valuation only heading more and more upwards, if Leeds do have to sell up – according to reports – to balance the books, they would make a very handsome profit on a player they plucked out of the Netherlands and transformed into a star.

His current value means he's worth even more than past Leeds icon Raphinha, according to Transfermarkt, with the Whites gaining £55m for their ex-maverick when Barcelona came calling in 2022.

Summerville's value in 2024

According to a report from football journalist Craig Hope in the Daily Mail, that Leeds would look for a fee in the region of £30m or more to even consider parting ways.

With other reports stating that Summerville also has a £45m price-tag above his head, Raphinha's lesser £42m value out in Spain – where he has mustered up nine less goal contributions this season – could well show to the slick winger that the grass isn't always greener leaving for luxurious pastures elsewhere.

Whatever fee Leeds manage to get out of a suitor circling for Summerville if push does come to shove, they can rest slightly easy knowing that they will make a profit on their standout 22-year-old regardless.

Yet, they will want to keep a firm grip on their "outstanding" star – as he was referred to by Farke earlier this year – especially if they do manage to seal promotion, knowing there could be even more to come from the dynamic winger making the step-up.

2024

£17.1m

2023

£6.1m

2022

£3m

2021

£1.4m

2020

£1.3m

Sourced by Football Transfers

Leeds would be far happier with offloading a face such as Patrick Bamford away from Summerville, fully aware that the 22-year-old would only add more goals to his slender four-goal tally in the top flight.

He could well have the opportunity to do that with or without the Whites, with Leeds either heading for a very promising future if promotion is reached or a very bleak looking one if they stay put in the Championship knowing that their star-studded squad could be picked off.

Celtic have had their fair share of blinders and howlers in the transfer market over the years, as they have wasted money on duds and struck gold on sensations.

Danish midfielder Matt O'Riley could become the latest player to earn the club millions after being signed for a modest fee, as he has been linked with a move to Inter and Leeds United in recent weeks.

The Hoops signed him from English League One side MK Dons for a reported fee of £1.5m and now is now reportedly valued at a staggering £25m, which suggests that the Scottish giants could make a gigantic profit on him.

However, there are also many examples of Celtic wasting money on players and versatile defender Massimo Donati was one the club had a nightmare with.

How much Celtic paid to sign Massimo Donati

In the summer of 2007, the Bhoys swooped to sign the Italian enforcer from AC Milan to bolster their squad for a fee Sky Sports reported to be worth £3m.

He had only made 27 appearances for the San Siro giants during his time with the club, and had spent the 2006/07 campaign on loan with Atalanta in the Serie A.

2004/05

34

1

1

3

2005/06

33

1

3

8

2006/07

32

1

3

10

Stats via Transfermarkt

Donati, as you can see in the table above, played regular football in the Italian top-flight over the three seasons leading up to his £3m move to Celtic, on loan with Atalanta in the third year after two campaigns on loan with Messina.

Celtic's Massimo Donati nightmare

The 26-year-old arrived in Glasgow and enjoyed a decent debut season with the club as he racked up four goals and four assists in 36 appearances in all competitions.

However, Donati lost his place in the starting XI towards the end of the 2007/08 campaign and his agent, Andrea D'Amico, claimed that the player was "disappointed" not to play, and wanted to speak with the club to discuss the midfielder's future.

The Italian flop ultimately remained at Parkhead and went on to make just six appearances in all competitions the following season, which included him being either an unused substitute or not in the matchday squad for the opening ten games of the Scottish Premiership term.

Midway through that season, Donati revealed that he would be interested in a move to Atalanta and was desperate enough to make the move from Celtic that he was willing to take a pay cut to join them, although the dud stated that it would not be more than 50% lower.

He said: "I'd be available to deal with any of Atalanta's requirements – it's the club that made me a player. Maybe not a 50% cut of my salary but if we should come to discuss things seriously there wouldn't be any problem."

A move did not materialise in the January transfer window, despite his apparent desperation to return to his home country, and he eventually made a permanent move away from the Scottish giants in the summer, with a £1.5m move to Italian side Bari.

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This meant that Celtic had a nightmare as they sold him for half of what they paid Milan for his services for just one full season of regular football, in which he was still 'disappointed' by his lack of minutes by the end of the campaign.

It was, therefore, £3m wasted by the Scottish giants as they could have spent that money on other targets during the summer window in 2007 and found better value for money, instead of a flop who they lost £1.5m on in the space of two years.

Coach believes new captain can rise to the workload of opening and keeping wicket as well

Firdose Moonda09-Feb-2020Mark Boucher has given Quinton de Kock’s captaincy a thumbs-up after his first series as the permanent ODI skipper, and expects former 50-over and current T20 captain Faf du Plessis to be back for the next series against Australia.De Kock will lead South Africa in three T20s against England next week before Australia visit for three ODIs and three T20s that will end on March 7. Du Plessis and Kagiso Rabada have been given extended rest for the England matches but Boucher expects both to return as South Africa continue to plan for the T20 World Cup and beyond.”Faf is still one of our best T20 players,” Boucher said. “We feel at this point in time he needs a bit of a break away from the game. It’s always good to have a bit of a rest. There is going to be a lot of cricket for them leading up to a World Cup so any opportunity we get to give guys a bit of rest and give other guys opportunities to see what they’re all about. I would like to think against Australia, the rest will be enough and they can come back and play.”De Kock, however, is having entirely the opposite experience and has played in all South Africa’s matches of the summer so far. Since being promoted to ODI captain he also now plays a treble role in leading the side, opening the batting and keeping wicket, something de Kock embraced pre-series and then excelled in, giving Boucher good reason to say he thinks “it is sustainable” for de Kock to have so much to do.”A lot of people questioned [MS] Dhoni when he was captaining India and he had a great captaincy record,” Boucher said. “Quinny enjoys being in the game. Sometimes he sits in the dressing room during Test-match cricket and he gets really irritated because he wants to be doing something all the time. I think he really enjoys it. The off-the-field stuff is the stuff that might get to him a bit. We’re going to have to help him in that regard. But certainly, on the field, he leads well.”De Kock also finished as the leading run-scorer in the series, with a match-winning century in Cape Town and a fifty at the Wanderers and was named player of the series. He was also innovative as captain, most notably when Tabraiz Shamsi was bowling. De Kock kept a slip in place in Cape Town, which resulted in the dismissal of Eoin Morgan and a legslip at Johannesburg, who aided in getting rid of Joe Root, and Boucher was impressed with de Kock’s ability to read the match situation and respond accordingly.ALSO READ: Archer not ‘overbowled’ by England, says Root”We always knew that Quinny has got a very smart cricketing brain. He had a couple of different field placings which I thought were good and he was thinking out of the box,” Boucher said. “Quinny is unique and I think the uniqueness of him can work wonders in a dressing room like this because we’ve got a unique set-up as well.”In a brief post-match television interview, de Kock revealed that not much had changed about his approach or his game plan and that he benefitted from having a group of players who he could consult on the field. That included Rassie van der Dussen, now considered a senior member of the team after just a year in the international game, and Temba Bavuma and Jon-Jon Smuts, both franchise captains on the domestic scene. The collective core of experience and the freshness of young players created a team atmosphere that de Kock enjoyed being part of. “The energy really stood out for me,” de Kock said.Although South Africa were disappointed with their batting performance in Johannesburg and Boucher thought they were “30-40 runs short”, they were satisfied with what the series showed them about their depth. Boucher singled out the performances of 21-year-old quick Lutho Sipamla, who took 1 for 42 in 9.2 overs at the Wanderers, and Bavuma, who was South Africa’s second-highest-scorer, as showing good signs for the future.”I thought Lutho bowled really well today,” Boucher said. “And Temba had a good knock in Cape Town, which was probably deserving of a hundred although you’re going to say he was two [too?] short. [Cue awkward pun laughter] But the way he came in, he dominated from the first ball he faced, which was great to see. He looks the part in that No.3 position. Today he got out lbw, but that happens. He is one of the pluses that I’ve seen in this series.”At the same time, Boucher acknowledged that South Africa still have a lot of work to do before they are ready for the T20 World Cup and will use the Australia series to experiment further.”All the white-ball cricket from now up until the World Cup is giving guys opportunities and seeing what they can do in pressure situations,” he said. “We are trying to look ahead to a World Cup in Australia and we are looking at different options that we’ve got. We will use the next three games against Australia to find some answers and ask some questions.”

One Manchester United star's inclusion for the upcoming international break has been dubbed as 'scandalous' by his compatriot and pundit.

Premier League set for international hiatus

Despite the thrill of the Premier League season reaching unparalleled levels so far this season, there is set to be a brief pause in proceedings for the international break, which largely comprises friendlies for European sides as they look to warm up for EURO 2024, which will be held in Germany this June.

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The break comes at a good time for Manchester United though, who face Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter final on Saturday but who will then be able to allow some of their first team stars time to recover from injury.

In particular, Erik ten Hag is hoping to welcome back Lisandro Martinez from a knee injury and summer signing Mason Mount, who has not featured for the Red Devils since November.

Plenty of their stars will be heading off on international duty, with Bruno Fernandes called up for Portugal and Rasmus Hojlund for Denmark, to name a few. It is another call-up that has been slammed by one former Real Madrid man though.

Eriksen under fire after Denmark inclusion

That comes in the form of Hojlund's club and international teammate Christian Eriksen, whose addition to the Denmark squad has been labeled "scandalous".

That is by former Dane and Real Madrid midfielder Thomas Gravesen, who pointed to the fact that the 32-year-old is struggling for competitive action at Old Trafford this season.

Eriksen has made just two appearances this calender year, totalling just 95 minutes, and is rarely turned to by Ten Hag. Instead, Gravesen believes that his national team spot should have gone to Nicolai Vallys, who made his debut for Denmark in September 2023 and who is impressing in the Danish top flight.

“It is completely scandalous that he has not selected Nicolai Vallys", he told Danish outlet Tipbladet. "It’s a scandal of great proportions that we have a national coach who looks so little towards Denmark when there’s a player running around with those qualities. When you look at the way he is playing football at the moment. And then they choose to take out a player who has sat on the bench at Manchester United, Christian Eriksen, just to maintain relations.

“He’s not that anymore. The Christian Eriksen we all know, he is no longer there. Christian Eriksen doesn’t play football anymore. Christian Eriksen sits on the bench and watches football. Christian Eriksen as we know him, he is no more. You must not fall back on the fact that you are only selected on merit. One must not single out Christian Eriksen only on his merits.”

Should Eriksen turn out either against Switzerland or the Faroe Islands this month, he will become the third most capped player in his nation's history and could move to within one appearance of legendary goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel.

Denmark's record cap holders
1	Simon Kjaer	130
2	Peter Schmeichel	129
3	Denis Rommedahl	126
=3	Christian Eriksen	126
5	Jon Dahl Tomasson	112
=33	Thomas Gravesen	66

Denmark are in England's EURO 2024 group, alongside Serbia and Slovenia, in what promises to be an enthralling competition in Germany, and though Simon Kjaer's continued stay in the Danish national side means that Eriksen is unlikely to overtake his teammate to become the most capped Dane of all time, he will likely stretch his lead over those below him, including Gravesen.

The search is on for Newcastle United to replace Dan Ashworth, and they are reportedly keen on a 46-year-old who masterminded two big Premier League signings.

Dan Ashworth set to leave Newcastle

The Magpies have been rocked by the news that Ashworth wants to leave St James' Park, having been an influential figure at the club, working effectively alongside Eddie Howe when it comes to transfers.

The Englishman has been placed on gardening leave by Newcastle, with Manchester United red-hot favourites to snap him up, as Sir Jim Ratcliffe looks to make a massive appointment. They could have to pay £20m in compensation to get him, however, or accept that he will remain on leave until his contract expires in 2026.

Replacing Ashworth is going to be a huge job for the PIF, assuming an agreement with United is reached in the near future, given the influence of sporting directors in the modern game. Howe has spoken of his admiration, saying "I highly respect Dan and his work", and he could leave a significant void at the club.

The search is on for Newcastle to appoint a new man in the role, with a new update providing more clarity on the current situation.

Newcastle eyeing exciting European sporting director

According to a fresh update from HITC, Benfica transfer guru Rui Pedro Braz is an option to become Newcastle's next sporting director, with the 46-year-old among a number of candidates. Former Roma director Tiago Pinto is also considered a target, as well as Brentford's Phil Giles.

It is claimed that United "want a deal in place that will allow Ashworth to be behind his Old Trafford desk by the summer so that he can begin work alongside new chief executive Omar Berrada", suggesting they will pay the aforementioned £20m in compensation.

And Braz would certainly be an interesting option for Newcastle to be Ashworth's successor, with the Portuguese behind some significant pieces of transfer business in recent years, suddenly rising to become recognised as one of the best in the industry.

5 great Dan Ashworth signings at Newcastle	Year	Cost
Alexander Isak (Real Sociedad to Newcastle)	2022	£63m
Anthony Gordon (Everton to Newcastle)	2023	£45m
Sven Botman (Lille to Newcastle)	2022	£31m
Nick Pope (Burnley to Newcastle)	2022	£10m
Tino Livramento (Southampton to Newcastle)	2023	£30m

During his time at Benfica, he was behind Darwin Nunez's huge £85m move to Liverpool in the summer of 2022, receiving an enormous fee for the Uruguayan superstar. He also masterminded Enzo Fernandez's switch to Chelsea shortly after the 2022 World Cup, in a move worth an eye-watering £107m.

Such business has ensured that Benfica are in a strong financial position, and he has done enough to justify being a strong option as an Ashworth replacement at Newcastle.

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Phil Foden insists England "definitely need" coach Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink ahead of their Euro 2024 semi-final against Netherlands.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• England coached by ex-Netherlands star
• Foden quizzed on former striker's loyalty
• Midfielder says Three Lions 'need him'

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Hasselbaink has been part of Gareth Southgate's coaching staff since March 2023, but the Three Lions will come up against the Dutchman's nation on Wednesday in a battle for a place in the final of the tournament.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Hasselbaink is tasked with preparing the England squad for the match against the nation he represented on 23 occasions between 1998 and 2002. He has been credited with helping the likes of Jude Bellingham improve their penalty taking as the Three Lions look to avoid another upset this week.

• WHAT FODEN SAID

  Foden has no concerns about Hasselbaink having split loyalties ahead of the game. When a reporter jokingly asked him if the former striker would be frozen out by the players and staff ahead of the game, the England star replied: "No, I think we need him! I think we need him for the work that he’s been doing. Yeah, we definitely need him!"

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ENGLAND?

  Foden and his Three Lions team-mates will go head-to-head with Hasselbaink's former national team with the aim of securing a place in the Euro 2024 final, where they will take on either France or Spain.

Ashantha de Mel will have to figure out how to include them now that first-choice picks will be available for the upcoming tour of Australia

Madushka Balasuriya10-Oct-2019

Wanindu Hasaranga has a bat in the nets•SLC

Sri Lanka’s selectors will have to deal with a “good headache” when picking the squad for the team’s tour of Australia later this month, SLC’s chief selector Ashantha de Mel said on Thursday following a string of impressive performances from several fringe players in Pakistan, which culminated in a 3-0 win in the T20I series.The performances of Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Oshada Fernando, whose strokeplay made de Mel think of Mahela Jayawardene, and Wanindu Hasaranga, have now given the selectors plenty of food for thought, not just for upcoming series but also next year’s T20 World Cup.”It’s a good headache to have. Earlier we had a problem of selecting form players, now we have 12-13 players that are vying for about six places, especially in the batting department,” de Mel said. “What I was impressed with the youngsters is that they took the opportunity they were given with both hands. Bhanuka was debuting, and Oshada was debuting as well, and they played out of their skins.”We have watched these players, but to really come out and perform against the best T20I side in the world – their bowling is one of the strongest – for the way they played it was amazing.”Sri Lanka went to Pakistan with several of their first-choice picks refusing to tour. But their second string proved so good they whitewashed the No. 1 T20I team in the world.Both Rajapaksa and Oshada’s defining knocks on tour were match-winning efforts. Following a brisk 32 in the first T20I, the 27 year-old Rajapaksa blitzed a 48-ball 77 in the second game, to help Sri Lanka post a daunting 182. Then, in the final game, with the series already decided, Oshada was drafted in to the side having sat out every game on tour barring the first ODI, where he was out for 1. But if there was any pressure on him to perform he scarcely let it show; coming in to bat with his side struggling on 30 for 3, and then 58 for 4 after eight overs, Oshada produced a counter-attacking knock, breezing to a 48-ball 78, on what was a fairly sluggish batting track.Oshada Fernando looks at the heavens after bringing up fifty•AFP

“He took no risks. He reminded me of Mahela, just placing it over extra cover, very risk-free batting,” de Mel said of Oshada. “As a chief selector, I was happy because we were able to give these guys a chance. Because sometimes what happens is we take them on the tour but we’re not able to actually give them a chance.”De Mel, however, reserved his highest praise for legspinning-allrounder Hasaranga. Still just 22, the youngster from Galle has been a revelation in recent times, and finally looks poised to carry over his domestic form to the national side.Hasaranga was among the few Sri Lankan bowlers to threaten Pakistan’s batsmen in the ODI series, picking up three wickets in two games, but he really came into his own in the T20Is, taking eight wickets at an average of 9.87. While he is still to show off his prowess with the bat in national colours, an average of 45.46 in first-class cricket means it’s possibly only a matter of time.”For me, Wanindu is the most improved player that I’ve seen this year. Whether it’s batting, bowling, fielding, the confidence he has is now fantastic,” de Mel gushed.For de Mel, now comes the unenviable task of picking the best possible squad. Though he explained that he had made it clear to the players that opted out of the tour that they ran the risk of losing their spot if some of the younger guys took their chance.”In this particular instance, I spoke to the [SLC] president [Shammi Silva] and he was also agreeable that we give these boys a chance, and they have now given the selectors food for thought,” de Mel said. “When it comes to selecting the squad for Australia we will have to take these performances into consideration. Because like I told the guys who didn’t go, if the guys who go perform then one or two of the guys who didn’t may have to get left out. Form matters.”

MatériaMais Notícias

Aos 37 anos de idade, Fred segue empilhando recordes e marcas históricas com a camisa do Fluminense. Nesta quarta-feira, o atacante marcou os dois gols do Tricolor na vitória sobre o Santa Fe, da Colômbia, por 2 a 1 e se tornou o segundo maior artilheiro da história do clube com 185 bolas na rede. Agora, apenas Waldo, com 319, aparece à sua frente.

De quebra, o camisa 9 ainda subiu mais um degrau no ranking de goleadores brasileiros na Libertadores. O centroavante atingiu a marca de 21 tentos na competição continental, empatando em volume de gols com Jairzinho, ídolo do Botafogo, na 4ª posição. Confira o top 10:

ARTILHEIROS BRASILEIROS NA HISTÓRIA DA LIBERTADORES

1º – Luizão – 29 gols em 42 jogos
2º – Palhinha* – 25 gols em 30 jogos
3º – Célio Taveira – 22 gols em 43 jogos
4º – Jairzinho – 21 gols em 36 jogos
Fred – 21 gols em 35 jogos
6º – Guilherme – 19 gols em 27 jogos
Ricardo Oliveira – 19 gols em 34 jogos
8º – Sérgio João** – 18 gols em 22 jogos
Tita – 18 gols em 43 jogos
Marcelinho Carioca – 18 gols em 49 jogos

* Palhinha, ídolo do Cruzeiro, que atuou pelo clube na década de 70, não o seu homônimo que também atuou na equipe mineira nos anos 90.
** Sérgio João é brasileiro naturalizado boliviano. No Brasil, jogou por Madureira, América, Americano e Tupi. Na Bolívia, se destacou no Bolívar.

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