Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher hinted that he could exit Anfield in the summer as the Reds prepare to welcome Giorgi Mamardashvili.
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Mamardashvili set to sign for Liverpool in the summer
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South Africa head coach says his inexperienced players now know the ‘harsh reality of Test cricket’ after being thrown in the deep-end
Firdose Moonda08-Feb-2024South Africa’s Test players in New Zealand feel like “Burnley going to Anfield every week” according to coach Shukri Conrad, who called their 281-run defeat in the first match a “jolt and a wake-up call.”While Conrad has known for seven months that he would not have a full-strength squad for the series because of player obligations to the SA20 and prepared accordingly, the gulf between his side and New Zealand’s seems to have hit home in Mount Maunganui after South Africa were completely outplayed in all areas and lost in four days.”It’s not okay. It’s tough for everyone here. It’s like Burnley going to Anfield every week,” Conrad said. “If it was a T20, you know one performance can win the game. [In Tests] it’s five days of relentless effort and pressure. You’ve got to be on top of your game all the time against a quality side like New Zealand.”Related
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For context, Burnley are currently 19th on the English Premier League table and take on leaders Liverpool at Anfield this weekend.Conrad described the players, six of whom were on debut in the first Test, to be “in decent spirits,” but admitted they have been made to confront the quality of their own abilities. “A few of them would have taken a knock in terms of the harsh realities that Test cricket brings, and possibly how far away they still are. Many feel that they’re closer to the Test side than they currently are,” he said. “You go through a few days like they have been through, and that’s a jolt and a wake-up call.”He was particularly critical of two aspects of the team’s game: fielding and batting. South Africa dropped both Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra in the first innings which proved extremely costly. The pair shared a stand of 232, Williamson went on to score 118, Ravindra piled on 240 and South Africa conceded 511 in total.”If we took our chances on day one … you know you’re going to have to live on the breadcrumbs. Every now and again, when a slice comes around, you’ve got to grab it with both hands. And we didn’t. That first day could have been different. And then if we batted properly…”Only David Bedingham scored a half-century for South Africa in the Test match, while Keegan Petersen and Zubayr Hamza failed to convert starts. Those three were the batters who had played Tests before the New Zealand tour, and Conrad said he expected more from them given the inexperience through the rest of the rank.”Pressure does a hell of a lot of things to you,” he said. “Often guys come to this level and feel silver bullets need to be landing from all over. In fact all you do is simplify matters. It’s easy to say go out and back yourself but when your every move is magnified and your technique is being cut to shreds on TV and elsewhere, that’s what the harsh reality of Test cricket is. This is what players are going to have to deal with.”Asked if the batting performance, specifically, was an indictment on South Africa’s first-class system, Conrad said: “When Tony de Zorzi walked in to make his debut, he walked in after Aiden Markram and Dean Elgar,” he said. “Then Temba Bavuma walked in at No. 4. There was lots of experience at Test level.”If he had walked out to bat for the first time the other day, he would have walked out with somebody who was also making his debut, and at three was also someone making his debut. All of these guys are inexperienced at this level. They’ve got heaps of first-class experience but they don’t have any Test experience, and there’s a massive gap anywhere in the world, not only in South Africa.”The current South African squad averages 96 first-class caps per player, which speaks to Conrad’s point that there is a level of know-how in the squad. But it seems that their initial hopes of emulating the women’s team – who won a T20I and an ODI against Australia for the first time on their current tour – were setting the bar a bit too high.”Every time you play in a Test there’s an expectation that, even though maybe you can’t do all the swimming strokes, perhaps you can doggy paddle for a reasonable time and not drown,” Conrad said. “Yes, they’ve been thrown in the deep end. But it’s a great opportunity for the players to put their hands up and, as a group, to go back to the first-class system and spread the gospel in terms of what the requirements are and what their experiences were. Hopefully in that way we can uplift the standard and not create expectation at every turn when someone gets a five-wicket haul or scores a hundred at domestic level. But, yes, it is a sink or swim situation.”
Former ICC umpire says “hypocrisy and lack of consistency from some people and groups is quite interesting”
ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jul-20232:08
Has the Bairstow dismissal been blown out of proportion?
Simon Taufel, the former ICC elite umpire who is presently a member of the MCC laws sub-committee, has suggested Australia had not breached the Spirit of Cricket when Alex Carey stumped Jonny Bairstow on the fifth day of the second Ashes Test at Lord’s.”Was Jonny Bairstow’s dismissal at Lords a breach of the Spirit of Cricket?” Taufel wrote in a post on LinkedIn. “This is a question I have been inundated with, so I thought it best to share my thoughts publicly by asking everyone a question or eight to consider …
“The hypocrisy and lack of consistency from some people and groups is quite interesting and concerning for the future of our game. Maybe I am the odd one out here? The good news is that we are actively engaged with Test cricket, the best form of the game,” he ended.
Cricket owes much of its appeal and enjoyment to the fact that it should be played not only according to the Laws, but also within the Spirit of Cricket. The major responsibility for ensuring fair play rests with the captains, but extends to all players, match officials and, especially in junior cricket, teachers, coaches and parents.
Respect is central to the Spirit of Cricket.
Respect your captain, team-mates, opponents and the authority of the umpires.
Play hard and play fair.
Accept the umpire’s decision.
Create a positive atmosphere by your own conduct, and encourage others to do likewise.
Show self-discipline, even when things go against you.
Congratulate the opposition on their successes, and enjoy those of your own team.
Thank the officials and your opposition at the end of the match, whatever the result.
Cricket is an exciting game that encourages leadership, friendship and teamwork, which brings together people from different nationalities, cultures and religions, especially when played within the Spirit of Cricket.
Bairstow’s dismissal took place when England were five down and needed a further 178 runs to win at Lord’s. He ducked underneath a short ball from Cameron Green, scratched the crease with his boot and walked down the pitch towards his partner Ben Stokes at the non-striker’s end.Before Bairstow had begun to leave his ground, wicketkeeper Carey had gathered the ball on the bounce and, in one motion, under-armed a throw at stumps at the striker’s end. The on-field umpires referred the decision to TV umpire Marais Erasmus, who gave the batter out – and the dismissal was recorded as stumped. Bairstow glared at the Australian huddle as he walked off and boos rang out around Lord’s. The crowd – who were largely subdued throughout the first four days of this Test – then chanted repeatedly: “Same old Aussies, always cheating.” And as the Australian players walked through the Lord’s Long Room at the lunch interval, they were booed and abused by some MCC members.Australia went on to win the Lord’s Test by 43 runs and took a 2-0 lead in the Ashes, but the furore over Bairstow’s dismissal has only snowballed as the series moves to Headingley on Thursday.While Australia captain Pat Cummins defended his decision to appeal for the wicket, his England counterpart Ben Stokes said he wouldn’t want to win that way. England’s coach Brendon McCullum said the teams wouldn’t be sharing a beer any time soon, and that the nature of the dismissal would galvanise England for the rest of the series.The prime ministers of the two countries – Rishi Sunak and Anthony Albanese – have also got involved, taking their teams’ sides.
Real Madrid defender Ferland Mandy is ready to fight for his place in Real Madrid’s starting XI under new manager Xabi Alonso amid transfer rumours.
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“He’s bowling with full rhythm today, too. He’s also putting work in the gym and isn’t complaining of any pains”
Danyal Rasool18-Feb-20252:13
Rizwan hopes to see more ICC events in Pakistan soon
Pakistan have been handed a boost ahead of the Champions Trophy opener, with fast bowler Haris Rauf expected to be “fully fit” against New Zealand, according to their captain Mohammad Rizwan.”Haris bowled 6-8 overs a couple of days ago, and bowled a fair bit yesterday too,” Rizwan said at the captain’s press conference on the eve of the tournament. “He’s bowling with full rhythm today, too. He’s also putting work in the gym and isn’t complaining of any pains. We think he’s fully fit.”Rauf sustained a muscular sprain in his chest while bowling in the opening game of the tri-series against New Zealand on February 8, and was in a race against time to be fit for the start of the tournament. He did not play the remainder of the series, though ESPNcricinfo understands that was more out of an abundance of caution than an indicator of the injury’s severity.Related
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After the press conference, Rauf was seen bowling in the nets during Pakistan’s final practice session before the tournament at the National Stadium. It clears Pakistan up to play what they view as their first-choice bowling lineup, one that features Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah and Rauf. The three played together in an attack that ultimately ended up on the wrong side of a result against New Zealand in the opener of the tri-series. They play the same side tomorrow in the Champions Trophy curtain-raiser as Pakistan prepare to host their first ICC tournament since 1996.”We suffered for 10 years when no side came here,” Rizwan said. “But Pakistan still produced solid results. So we have no doubts about our ability.”However, it is hard to escape the idea that Pakistan go into their first game as relative underdogs. New Zealand beat them twice in the tri-series, going unbeaten across the tournament to lift the title. They went on to demonstrate their all-round ability, defending a total against Pakistan in one game before easing to two chases in games against South Africa and Pakistan. At the same time, they brushed aside injuries to fast bowlers Lockie Ferguson and Ben Sears, retaining their fast-bowling threat, while reigning Pakistan in through the middle overs with a varied array of spinners.”There are ups and downs and certain deficiencies in our side,” Rizwan said. “We are aware we need to bring about certain improvements in our professionalism and consistency.0:57
Urooj: Huge responsibility for Pakistan to defend the title at home
“We tried to learn from the tri-series, which is why we batted first in the final to work out where our weaknesses lie. We used that series as a training experience. We hope we’ve learned enough to cover for those weaknesses tomorrow.”But along with the usual cheery optimism, Rizwan’s statements were laced with a kind of naked hunger he has rarely let slip in the past. Wearing his religion on his sleeve, he tends to resign himself to “the will of Allah” as he often says. It can take the pressure off, a valuable skill for a Pakistan captain, but today, Rizwan seemed to teeter on the edge of fantasising how much he wanted to win an ICC event, and how good it would be to win this one at home.”We’ve come so close a few times,” he said. “We need to work out how to get that extra one per cent to win those big matches. No one can guarantee that success, and we’re still in search of that final step where we lose big games or tournaments.”Every player is desperate for this title. And we’re doing everything we can to work out how to win. I don’t think any country works as hard as we do.”It’s uncommon to hear Rizwan speak with that kind of edge. Soon enough, he was back to his usual gregarious self, talking about how “all 15 players were captains” and the value of team performances over individual brilliance. But then again, perhaps that is the “extra one per cent” Pakistan, and Rizwan, are so desperately hunting for.
Looking to get one over on London rivals Chelsea, Crystal Palace are now reportedly keen to hijack the Blues’ chase to sign an impressive Ligue 1 defender who has been compared to Dayot Upamecano.
For all their hard work, Dean Henderson’s save to deny Omar Marmoush’s penalty, Eberechi Eze’s Wembley heroics and Oliver Glasner’s tactical victory over Pep Guardiola which was months in the making, it could all come crashing down for Crystal Palace. The Eagles looked set to soar across Europe for the first time, but UEFA may well be about to clip their wings.
The same shareholder cannot hold a majority stake in two clubs in the same European competition and that’s a problem for John Textor, who not only holds large shares in the South London club but also French club Lyon, who also qualified for the Europa League. Naturally, the simple solution for all may have been to at least drop Palace into the Europa Conference League. That too would be a problem, however.
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Like Textor, Dan Blitzer’s involvement in Brondby means that he would have two clubs in the UEFA Conference League. Simply put, Palace would have the same problem again and they’re now at risk of being kicked out of European football altogether.
When INEOS had the same problem amid Manchester United and Nice’s European qualification, they put shares into a blind trust to navigate past the rules. The City Group did the same when Manchester City and Getafe both qualified for the Champions League. Although they have reportedly since offered to do the same, however, Crystal Palace have missed the deadline to do so.
Whether Textor and Parish’s meeting with UEFA on Tuesday changed things remains to be seen. For now, Palace must hope for the best and push on with their summer preparations, including on the transfer front.
According to The Boot Room, Crystal Palace are now keen to hijack Chelsea’s chase to sign Ismael Doukoure this summer. The Strasbourg defender enjoyed an excellent season in France and, at 21 years old, is attracting plenty of interest from across Europe. Given that Marc Guehi has been the subject of several exit rumours at Selhurst Park too, a move for the Strasbourg man would certainly make sense for Palace.
U23 scout Antonio Mango went as far as to describe Doukoure as “magnificent” in 2023, whilst scout Jacek Kulig compared the defender to Bayern Munich’s Upamencao in incredibly high praise, praising his pace, anticipation and aerial ability.
|
League stats 24/25 (via FBref) |
Ismael Doukoure |
Dayot Upamecano |
|---|---|---|
|
Minutes |
2,639 |
1,759 |
|
Progressive Carries |
20 |
17 |
|
Tackles Won |
22 |
22 |
|
Aerial Duel Win Percentage |
61.9% |
58.4% |
Kulig’s comparison certainly makes sense. When compared, Doukoure kept up with Upamecano in possession – albeit having played more minutes – and impressively outperformed him in the air.
Also matching his fellow Frenchman for tackles won, Doukoure will be desperate to follow a similar path to the top as Upamecano and that could first feature a move to the Premier League courtesy of Crystal Palace.
Barcelona star Marc-Andre ter Stegen has confirmed he will undergo back surgery and is likely to be out for three months.
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The transfer window might be closed again for a few days, but it feels like Arsenal are starting to fall behind their rivals.
For example, Manchester City have already secured the services of Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders, and Rayan Ait-Nouri and look set for more.
However, perhaps the most worrying development, at least in terms of the Gunners’ chances in the Premier League next season, has been Liverpool’s £116m capture of Florian Wirtz.
The German is about as perfect an example of a statement signing as you’ll ever see, but in some more positive news, reports have recently linked Arsenal to someone who could be their own version of the international superstar.
While Arsenal are yet to make any official signings this summer, they have been linked with a host of potentially game-changing stars, such as Eberechi Eze and Rodrygo.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
The former has a release clause reportedly worth around £68m in Crystal Palace contract, and while that is a sizeable sum of money, it would be a price more than worth paying for a Premier League-proven attacker who scored 14 goals and provided 11 assists in 43 games this season.
Likewise, while Rodrygo could cost a whopping £84m this summer, his tally of 24 goal involvements this season and record of winning the biggest trophies in the game means he’d be a superb addition to the Gunners’ squad.
However, regarding the North Londoners’ answer to Wirtz, it looks like it will be Benjamin Sesko.
According to a recent report from Football Transfers, Arsenal have maintained their intense interest in the RB Leipzig star.
In fact, the report goes a step further, revealing that the Gunners have now made a ‘breakthrough’ in negotiations and are expected to make an offer of €100m early next week, which comes out to around £85m.
It would represent an enormous vote of confidence in the young striker, but given his ability and potential, this is a transfer Arsenal should get done as soon as possible, as Sesko could be their own Wirtz.
Okay, so the first thing to say is that the two players are obviously not comparable in terms of position, as while Wirtz can play in a few other places, he is primarily an attacking midfielder, not a striker.
However, their positions have little to do with why Sesko could be Arsenal’s version of the German.
The first actual reason is that, like Liverpool’s new creator, the Slovenian international has the potential to be a truly game-changing addition to the Gunners.
|
Sesko in 24/25 |
|
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
45 |
|
Minutes |
3258′ |
|
Goals |
21 |
|
Assists |
6 |
|
Goal Involvements per Match |
0.6 |
|
Minutes per Goal Involvement |
120.66′ |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt |
|
For example, even though he’s still just 22 years old, the former Salzburg gem was able to score 21 goals and provide six assists in 45 appearances, totalling 3258 minutes.
That means the Radeče-born “monster,” as dubbed by respected data analyst Ben Mattinson, averaged a goal involvement every 1.66 games, or every 120.66 minutes for a pretty poor Leipzig side.
So, just imagine what he could do under Arteta with Bukayo Saka to the right of him, hopefully, a new left-winger on the other side and a rejuvenated Martin Odegaard behind him.
Moreover, despite standing a mammoth 6 foot 5, the 41-capped behemoth is still incredibly rapid and capable of hitting speeds of 35.69 km/h and then, to top it off, you only need to watch his clips to see how technical he is with the ball at his feet.
Finally, aside from the ways in which Sesko could take Arteta’s side to the next level, he’d also be arriving for huge money and from the Bundesliga, just like Wirtz.
Ultimately, even though the money involved is more than most expected, Arsenal should be doing all they can to sign the Leipzig gem this summer.
He's just like Saka: £68m winger is Tognozzi's dream target for Arsenal
The exciting wonderkid would be a superb addition to the Arsenal squad.
By
Jack Salveson Holmes
Jun 13, 2025
Paris Saint-Germain have lost their court appeal against Gianluigi Buffon and must pay the Italian €250,000 due to a tax clause in his contract.
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