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Last year, Trinidad and Tobago’s (T&T) cricketers dropped just one game in winning the President’s Trophy. In 2005, with one match in the preliminary round of the new KFC Cup in Barbados left to go today-against Guyana-the celebrated “Cinderella Kids” of

Garth Wattley09-Oct-2005

T&T coach gives clean chit to Daren Ganga, the captain © Getty Images
Last year, Trinidad and Tobago’s (T&T) cricketers dropped just one game in winning the President’s Trophy. In 2005, with one match in the preliminary round of the new KFC Cup in Barbados left to go today – against Guyana – the celebrated “Cinderella Kids” of 2004 have lost their title and are still looking for their first win of the tournament.The reason?”Mentally we just broke down,” team coach David Williams said yesterday.The ability to fight out of tight spots, especially when chasing targets, was strength of the 2004 squad. But in this tournament, T&T have been beaten by 14, 41 and two runs in the three matches in which they have batted second thus far. Friday’s six-wicket defeat to fellow strugglers Jamaica in a rain-affected 20-over affair was the only match where T&T had to set a target.Asked about the repeated failures, Williams isolated the area of “mental breakdown”.”It boils down basically to our batting. Mentally, we haven’t batted well at all. That contributed to most of the games that we lost. The bowlers have been doing a tremendous job. The wickets are very, very good here in Barbados. Ideal batting strips. For some reason, the batters can’t seem to get it right.”The current squad contains Dwayne Bravo, Mervyn Dillon and Lendl Simmons, players with West Indies experience who all missed the tournament last year won by a team given very little chance. And Williams yesterday conceded that many key men did not live up to expectations.”We have a lot of senior guys, guys who we expected to have got the job done,” the coach began. “We probably expected a bit more from Dwayne Bravo and Dillon. We probably expected more from both of them. I think Bravo could have done a bit better with the bat.”And Williams refused to blame the successive reversals on either a poor team spirit or the leadership of Daren Ganga. “I don’t think the team spirit was bad, we just didn’t click at the right time. Ganga has done his best. The captain can only do so much. The captaincy was decent. We had no problem with Daren.”The coach also declined to blame poor preparation for the results. “When we left Trinidad, I honestly felt the preparation was decent,” although he added, “More could have been done in terms of more practice matches. I don’t think the effort to give us more knocks was 100 per cent. But that is not an excuse.”The one other plea Williams did make, though, was for the more regular use of a psychologist in the preparation of future teams. “I think we need to get in a psychologist to help with the mental development of the players.” That is a recommendation Williams said he would make to the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB). But for the moment, he is hoping his charges can lift themselves against the Final Four-bound Guyanese in an effort to avoid an embarrassing fifth defeat.”I don’t think this has ever happened,” Williams said. “They (the players) don’t remember a situation like that in the history of Trinidad and Tobago cricket. We are hoping we can pull this one off.”

M Vijay and Virat Kohli added 283 for the third wicket, utterly dispiriting Sri Lanka until Lakshan Sandakan gave them something to cheer with two quick wickets late in the day

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy02-Dec-20172:12

Chopra: Vijay showed he’s India’s No. 1 opener

In deference to the Indian team management’s wishes, there was grass on the Feroz Shah Kotla pitch, but Virat Kohli, at the toss, wished there could have been more. It certainly wasn’t enough to turn New Delhi into Newlands, and India, instead of fighting for survival against snarling South African fast bowlers, settled into a typically subcontinental bat-first, bat-big pattern against a limited Sri Lanka attack, facing more spin (59 overs) than seam (31) on day one.For most of the day, Sri Lanka had nothing to cheer as M Vijay and Virat Kohli added 283 for the third wicket, their partnership an exhibition of relentless self-control and a hunger for runs that never tipped over into greed. India rattled along at more than four an over, and as the shadows lengthened, it seemed as if India would end the day only two down.But wristspin can do strange things, and Lakshan Sandakan, whose figures at that point read 20.5-0-109-0, sent down a deliciously-flighted wrong’un, slanting it across Vijay and asking him to reach out to drive. He didn’t pick the direction of turn, groped for the ball, and missed, dragging his back foot out of the crease in the process. Niroshan Dickwella, quick and nimble, did the rest.In his next over, Sandakan repeated the trick against Ajinkya Rahane. The line was a little wider this time, but again the ball landed on that perfect length, broke in the direction the batsman did not anticipate, and again Dickwella removed the bails with the batsman’s toe on the line. India had gone from 361 for 2 to 365 for 4. Sandakan, whose bowling until that point had made Sri Lanka yearn for the control of the absent Rangana Herath, was now doing what he had been picked to do.Still, this was India’s day. At stumps, Kohli was batting on 156, his third hundred in a row and the quickest – he only took 110 balls to reach three figures – of his 20 in Tests. In the process, he also became the fourth-quickest Indian batsman to 5000 Test runs, getting there in his 105th innings.Until the moment of Sandakan’s transformation, Vijay and Kohli had looked utterly secure. Aside from a couple of clearly not-out lbw shouts, their dominance had gone unchallenged, and, in an indictment of the two specialist spinners, the one bowler who had come remotely close to creating chances was the part-time offspinner Dhananjaya de Silva.On 122, Vijay drove early and sent the ball looping towards midwicket rather than the intended direction of cover; it fell just short of the diving Dinesh Chandimal. Then, on 154, he sent an uppish flick in the same direction. This time it eluded the fingertips of the debutant Roshen Silva. In between, de Silva also found Kohli’s leading edge, which fell between the bowler and mid-off.Bowling exclusively from around the wicket, de Silva ended the day with figures of 0 for 45 in 15 overs. Sandakan and Dilruwan Perera finished with a combined 3 for 207 from 44 overs.The foundation of Kohli’s innings was his supreme reading of the spinners’ length, and thereafter his footwork to pounce on marginal lapses. Before lunch, for instance, he took a massive stride out to a good-length ball from Lakshan Sandakan and bisected wide mid-on and deep midwicket with a whip of his wrists. On 68, he went the other way, deep into his crease, to shorten the length of an otherwise decent Dilruwan Perera delivery and bring his wrists into play once more to find the gap between short fine leg and deep square leg.For the quicker bowlers, a “good” length was a fairly small area on this pitch. When they strayed remotely off that area, Kohli and Vijay were quick to put the ball away. Vijay gave a good demonstration of this with a pair of boundaries in the 23rd over, off Lahiru Gamage: a cover drive, followed by a wristy on-drive, both off balls that were far from half-volleys. Kohli, meanwhile, raced from 43 to 55 courtesy three fours off one Gamage over, the pick of them an on-the-up drive through the covers.Vijay went to tea on 101, and resumed with a flurry of attractive boundaries – an inside-out cover drive off Dilruwan, a square-drive off Gamage, a reverse-paddle off Dilruwan. He would only hit one more four after that, though, as he took the singles on offer and made sure he would do everything in his power to keep his quest for that long-yearned-for maiden double-hundred alive. This time, it would really take a good ball to get him out.This hadn’t been true of Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara, who both got off to breezy starts before falling against the run of play.Once it became clear there was little help in this pitch for the quicks, Dhawan and Vijay were quickly on their way, driving freely on the up and hitting eight fours in the first ten overs. Sri Lanka brought on spin as early as the eighth over, and Dilruwan continued to worry his team with his inconsistent lengths, Dhawan picking up two fours behind point in his first two overs. But he grew a little greedy, and picked out deep square leg with a top-edged sweep on 23. Suranga Lakmal briefly lost the ball in the hazy atmosphere, and lost a shoe while hurriedly changing direction, but managed to hold on.It was Dilruwan’s 100th Test wicket. He might not be the most frugal of spinners, but he has the knack of taking wickets – his 100th had come up in his 25th Test, and no Sri Lankan had got there quicker. Muttiah Muralitharan had taken 27 Tests.In walked Pujara, whose last four partnerships with Vijay read 107, 178, 102 and 209. They seemed to be continuing from where they left off in Nagpur, while scoring twice as quickly, and Pujara in particular was putting the bowlers through the shredder, hitting four fours in the space of three overs, including two back-foot whips off marginally short balls from Dilruwan. But this time, the partnership would only get as far as 36.Lahiru Gamage broke it, Sri Lanka profiting from the same plan that had brought them Pujara’s wicket in the second innings in Galle in late July. Then, he had flicked a full ball from Lahiru Kumara to leg gully. Now, he tucked one off his legs in the same direction, just uppishly enough for Sadeera Samarawickrama to take a sharp catch falling to his left.

He has bowled 334.5 overs across formats in 2017, playing all four of Australia’s most recent Tests and acting head coach David Saker was not averse to the possibility of rotating him out of the XI during the limited-overs series in India

Daniel Brettig14-Sep-2017In 2013, Australia played India in an ODI series before a home Ashes encounter – same again in 2017. In 2013, Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann skipped the tour in order to prepare for the England challenge – same again in 2017. In 2013, Mitchell Johnson played a key role as the ODI spearhead before flying home early to prepare for England – Pat Cummins is in that boat in 2017.Further strengthening the case for Cummins to be spared from full duty in India is the fact that both Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc are currently recovering from injury in the hope that they will be fit to take part in a trio of Sheffield Shield matches that prelude the Ashes. Given his high pace and steep bounce, Cummins stands some chance of having the sort of impact Johnson did four years ago, provided he is well looked after. He has bowled 334.5 overs across formats in 2017, playing all four of Australia’s most recent Tests, and the IPL as well.David Saker, the assistant coach responsible for the pacemen who is deputising for Lehmann in India, did not shy away from the prospect of Cummins being rested at some point during the limited-overs series due to begin on September 17.”At this stage we’re planning for him to play all the games,” Saker said. “We’ll look at [resting him], it’s obviously been brought up between all of us. We know that his workloads are up there, but we know it’s an important series. It’s Australia v India, you don’t get any bigger than that. He’s really determined to play well over here. It’ll be game-by-game basis, we’ll play it by ear.”In discussing Hazlewood and Starc, Saker revealed there was uncertainty about exactly when the pair would be ready to play for New South Wales, with the former recuperating from a side strain while the latter is in the final stages of his own recovery from a foot problem that reared its head during the India Tests earlier this year.”We’re hoping they’ll be ready before the first Shield game or second Shield game and that will give them good preparation,” Saker said. “We’ve probably got a bit of a blessing that we’ve got three Shield games before the first Test of the Ashes and it’s probably as good a build-up as you’d want for an Ashes.”So in that sense as long as they’re ready to go by the first Test in Brisbane [on November 23] and ready to play and perform, I’ll be really happy. This time last year, we were in South Africa and it was the same thing, Hazlewood and Starc were rested for that tour. And they got through a really heavy workload in the summer, got through all the Tests. It’s not such a bad thing that they’re not here, as long as they’re ready to go for that first Test in Brisbane.”The bowlers subbing in during the ODI series in India are Nathan Coulter-Nile – himself an unused Ashes squad member in 2013-14 – and Kane Richardson. Other pace bowling options are provided by the allrounders James Faulkner and Marcus Stoinis, who are among the players in contention to occupy the No. 6 spot in the batting order during the Ashes.

An outrageous half-century from Faheem Ashraf took Pakistan to a victory that, even by their standards, must rate as one of the most improbable in their history.

George Dobell at Edgbaston27-May-2017Pakistan 342 for 8 (Shoaib 72, Faheem 64*) beat Bangladesh 341 for 9 (Tamim 102, Junaid 4-72) by two wickets
ScorecardShoaib Malik’s 72 kept Pakistan in the game before an astonishing finale•Getty ImagesAn outrageous half-century from Faheem Ashraf took Pakistan to a victory that, even by their standards, must rate as one of the most improbable in their history.Fahee, playing his first innings in a Pakistan shirt, thrashed 60 in 34 balls to turn this Champions Trophy warm-up match against Bangladesh on its head. Coming in at No. 9, he helped add 93 in 41 balls for the ninth wicket to take his side to an unlikely victory and make an all-but-undeniable claim for selection in Pakistan’s Champions Trophy side.Sadly for Faheem, this match will barely rate a footnote in the record books. With both sides able to utilise substitutes and Edgbaston sporting a remarkably short boundary towards the Pershore Road side of the ground (it measured just 42 metres, or 47 yards) in an effort to ensure the best surfaces were protected for more important matches, the game will not even be regarded as a List A encounter.But let nobody say this innings came in a soft or contrived manner. At various stages, Pakistan had looked doomed to a fourth one-day defeat in succession against Bangladesh – Bangladesh won the last series between the sides, in April 2015, 3-0 – as they subsided to 168 for 5, 227 for 6 and, in the 42nd over, 242 for 7.That meant they required exactly 100 from the final eight-and-a-half overs. But Faheem, who thinks of his seam bowling as his stronger suit, struck four sixes – none of them over the short boundary – and four fours to take his side over the line.He launched the assault by taking 19 off an untidy over from Mehedi Miraz, followed it with 16 off one from Mashrafe Mortaza and, with 13 required from the last, eased his side’s nerves with a vast pull for six from the first ball of the final over over the longest boundary in the ground.While it was his straight hitting that was most impressive – think of Darren Sammy at his best – it was noticeable that, when Bangladesh dropped short in an attempt to push him onto the back foot, he pulled with powerful assurance. It was, by any standards, a wonderfully persuasive performance by a man pushing for an international debut.Perhaps, had Mustafizur Rahman been playing – he was rested – things might have been different. Taskin Ahmed seemed to tire noticeably as the innings progressed and Shakib Al Hasan did not bowl his whole allocation of overs. But such was Faheem’s power that the Bangladesh bowlers’ ploy of making him hit towards the long boundary was negated and even the experience of Mortaza could find no answer for his clean hitting down the ground.Maybe we should suspend judgement on Faheem. This was a warm-up game, after all, without the large crowds or media scrutiny of a tournament match. But if he replicates anything like this in the game against India a week tomorrow – and it is hard to see how he could be left out of a Pakistan side that has been looking for a seam-bowling all-rounder since what seems the dawn of time – a star really will have been born.There was one other major caveat to this performance. The Bangladesh fielding was, at times, really quite appalling. At least five potential catches were dropped – including Faheem in the final over, allowing him to run three – and one important stumping was missed.Coming on the heels of a match against New Zealand where Bangladesh won despite dropping four chances it underlined the impression that their fielding is a major area of concern going into the Champions Trophy. As Imrul Kayes put it afterwards with a lovely hint of understatement: “I think we need a few more fielding sessions… That’s why we lost the match.”The shame of that is that, for a vast chunk of this game, Bangladesh were the better side. With Tamim Iqbal slamming a century, they set a total that we may well come to think of as something around par in a tournament that looks set to be hugely enjoyable for batsman and a complete nightmare for bowlers.After a relatively cautious start (he scored only 8 from his first 17 balls), Tamim thrashed 43 from his next 22 as he made full use of the short boundary and any width offered by Pakistan’s seamers. Imrul added a run-a-ball 61, Mushfiqur Rahim a typically pugnacious 46 and Mahmudullah and Mosaddek Hossain some impetus towards the end of the innings.With Mohammad Amir rested, Pakistan’s attack offered plenty of pace but no obvious control. Junaid Khan was taken for 25 in one over, Mushfiqur struck Imad Wasim for successive sixes and Wahab Riaz, who cannot be assured of his place in the side, was as mercurial as ever. While Hasan Ali, who could be the unfortunate man to make way for Amir’s return now that Faheem has made such a strong case for selection, leg-spinner Shahdab Khan and Faheem offered a little more control, this was a tough target for a Pakistan side who have made 340 in an ODI only once – and that against Zimbabwe – since the 2015 World Cup.And, for much of their innings, it seemed they had no chance of reaching it. Azhar Ali and Babar Azam both perished poking at balls outside off stump before Ahmed Shahzad’s promising innings was ended by a beauty from Shakib Al Hasan that gripped just a little and took his off bail. While Shoaib Malik, who was dropped on 8, and Mohammad Hafeez added 79 in 12.3 overs for the fourth-wicket to provide some hope, when they went and Sarfraz Ahmed soon followed, it seemed their chances departed with them.But Imad, who survived a stumping chance on 39, kept the chase alive before Faheem delivered his knock-out blow in partnership with Hasan.Insisting he was expecting to force his way into the side before the first match of the tournament – he was a non-playing member of the limited-overs team in the Caribbean – Faheem said he produced such innings “a lot” in first-class cricket – though a List A average of 15.52 with one half-century underlined that his shorter-format batting record is modest – and thanked his captain and coach for “their belief in me.””It’s the first innings I’ve played for Pakistan,” he said. “In first-class cricket I’ve played a lot of innings like that, but that’s the first one in one-day cricket. On one side, the boundary was very small. But they were bowling in good areas and we thought we would hit straight down the ground. I have an ability to hit straight.”He sure does. And while few will recall the details of such a warm-up game in a couple of weeks, his promise might mean that a Pakistan side seen as rank outsiders go into the tournament with hopes just a little higher.

Fifties from three India A batsmen and impressive returns from Shahbaz Nadeem and Siddarth Kaul helped the hosts claim the five-match series with one match yet to be played

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Oct-2017
ScorecardGeorge Worker scored his 11th List A hundred•AFPSeven wickets between Shahbaz Nadeem and Siddarth Kaul helped India A clinch the series with a 64-run win over New Zealand A, despite a century from opener George Worker. Propelled by three half-centuries, India A scored 289 for 6 and dismissed the visitors for 225 to take a 2-0 lead with one match to go in the five-match series.Left-arm spinner Nadeem scythed through the New Zealand A line-up with returns of 4 for 33 off his 9.1, assisted by a handy three-for from Kaul, skittling the opposition inside 46 overs. A 113-ball 108 from Worker proved insufficient as lack of support from the rest of the line-up yielded a second-highest score of 37. Having lost their top three inside 15 overs for only 50 runs, the major part of the resistance came in the form of a 74-run fourth-wicket stand between captain Henry Nicholls and Worker, who added another 63 for the fifth wicket with Tom Blundell (31).Kaul, who triggered the slide with the top-order wickets of Glenn Philips and Will Young, also took out Blundell to finish with 3 for 25 from seven overs. Nadeem, on the other hand, accounted for Nicholls in the 25th over before removing Colin de Grandhomme and Worker in consecutive overs, leaving New Zealand A on 217 for 7.India A’s decision to bat found validation as opener Abhimanyu Easwaran, playing his first match of the tour, scored his seventh List A half-century en route to a 104-ball 83. He peppered seven fours in his knock, anchoring two 50-plus stands, with Ankit Bawne (39) and Deepak Hooda (59), for the second and fourth wickets respectively.While Easwaran’s opening partner Prashant Chopra and captain Rishabh Pant fell cheaply, Bawne and Hooda’s contributions helped the side past the 200-run mark. Hooda hammered five fours and two sixes and found able support in No. 6 Vijay Shankar, who put on 45 runs for the sixth wicket and 55 for the seventh with a 33-ball 61. His knock featured five sixes and four fours, setting up a competitive total, as Scott Kuggeleijn (2 for 37) finished with the best figures for the visitors.

Jurgen Klopp says it would be the “biggest joke in the history of football” to write Manchester City out of the 2023-24 Premier League title race.

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Reigning champions are dropping pointsArsenal lead the way, with Reds just behindBattle for crown expected to go to the wireWHAT HAPPENED?

The reigning champions have gone four games without a win in the English top-flight, dropping them to fourth in the table. Liverpool – following a 2-0 victory over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane – are now the closest challengers to leaders Arsenal, with just two points separating them from the summit. City are only six points adrift, though, and have dominated the domestic scene under Pep Guardiola.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT KLOPP SAID

With that in mind, and with City having dashed Liverpool’s title dreams on a couple of occasions with remarkable winning runs, Klopp told reporters when asked if the Blues are drifting out of the picture: “If somebody would write City off that would be the biggest joke in the history of football. Arsenal are fighting and had a similar experience we had [late win vs Fulham]. It feels really good but anyway you have to start the next game from 0-0. Aston Villa is incredible. United is there, don't play yet maybe exactly the football whoever wants – the media or whatever – but they have points like crazy. Chelsea, I'm not sure if they're coming. The league is incredibly strong, you need to be lucky to get through difficult moments, with injuries especially. So I have no clue [who will win the title]. Probably [there are more challengers]. It was the last years, always two. I'm not interested in that, so long as we're around there. But it's so difficult and intense. Ask me again in April.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Virgil van Dijk and Dominik Szoboszlai got the goals for Liverpool against Sheffield United, with Klopp adding on a professional performance that saw the Reds take maximum points from the division’s bottom club: “Let me say it like this: I am really pleased with the result and I am really pleased with a lot of aspects of the game. I would call it a mature performance besides a few moments when we gave the ball away in areas where we should not do it. That was when the crowd got excited. Besides that if you didn't see the game, you could have heard it because we calmed an atmosphere down that was really ready to go and that was super important. And besides that I don't want to be overly critical, I know we can play better football but this time of the year you play and hopefully win and play again. That is it.”

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(C)Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR LIVERPOOL?

Liverpool have a busy run through to the end of the calendar year, with there still six more games for them to take in across three competitions – with there Premier League meetings with the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal to be factored into an equation that also includes a final Europa League group stage outing and a Carabao Cup quarter-final clash with West Ham.

Chelsea are set for a short pre-season after winning the Club World Cup final, with just five weeks separating their 3-0 win over PSG in New Jersey and their first Premier League game of 2025/2026 against Crystal Palace.

Chelsea hold talks with £100k-per-week England star this week

Enzo Maresca is prioritising one key area.

ByEmilio Galantini Jul 17, 2025

They have scheduled just two pre-season matches as a result of their CWC triumph, needing to fit a holiday in for both players and staff after what was a successful but very long campaign.

Cole Palmer

7.33

Moises Caicedo

7.02

Enzo Fernández

6.95

Nicolas Jackson

6.88

Noni Madueke

6.82

via WhoScored

Chelsea will take on both Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan on August 8 and August 10 respectively, but as things stand, these are the only friendlies they’ll play before facing Palace in the top flight a week later.

It remains to be seen how Enzo Maresca’s side will fare given their minimal preparation, but the Italian did get a chance to try out new tactics during their CWC campaign in the US.

He also managed to give some of his major summer signings a run-out. Joao Pedro seriously impressed at the tournament in particular, scoring three goals in three CWC games, including a brace in their semi-final against Fluminense and a goal in the final against PSG.

Despite Chelsea’s need to sell players and balance out the squad due to a pact with UEFA (Kaveh Solhekol), Maresca could still add more fresh faces before their new season kicks off against Palace.

This will be dependent on departures (Simon Phillips), but perhaps Djordje Petrovic’s £25 million move to Bournemouth has freed up space for AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan to come in.

The France number one was a serious target for Chelsea earlier in the window, and they tried to complete a deal for him before competing in the CWC. However, Milan and Chelsea failed to find an agreement, despite Maignan’s eagerness to join.

Despite reports to the contrary, Chelsea could go back in for Maignan before deadline day on September 1, with Robert Sanchez also told he’s free to find a new club away from Stamford Bridge (Graeme Bailey).

Mike Maignan very keen to join Chelsea, he's a top target

TEAMtalk have another update on the situation this week, claiming Maignan remains a top target for Chelsea.

The 30-year-old is also “enthusiastic” about joining Maresca’s side this summer, even if negotiations previously failed, with the main roadblock being Milan’s £22 million asking price – a figure deemed too high by Chelsea considering both his age and his contract situation.

However, given Maignan’s pedigree as one of world football’s most commanding shot-stoppers, £22 million is surely a price worth paying – especially if they sell Sanchez.

Every title-winning side in history have one thing in common – the presence of a world-class keeper. Maignan, who’s been lavished with praise by his fellow top-level players, arguably stands out as the best option by far this summer.

“He is physical, quick, he has clean technique. He is very strong. He is one of the best in the world,” said Liverpool keeper Alisson about Maignan’s quality.

“The quality of goalkeepers has really increased – Mike Maignan is within this elite.”

Leeds United, having enjoyed a quieter period in the transfer window, now seem set to spring back into life as Daniel Farke seeks to push hard to bolster his squad…

Who could Leeds United sign this summer?

With Joel Piroe their latest big-name addition, the Dutchman rewarded his new club's faith in the market by firing home on his debut to hand them their first win of the Championship season.

It marks the start of what promises to be a very profitable career at Elland Road, with the ultimate goal of a Premier League return now firmly in their sights.

Read the latest Leeds transfer news HERE…

That aim could be handed another huge boost, with Fabrizio Romano suggesting another star they seem set to sign.

He wrote on Twitter:

"Leeds United have submitted official bid for Glen Kamara. Negotiations now at the final stages with Rangers. #LUFC Deal expected to be completed next week, player has already accepted."

Alternative reports have suggested that the Finland international will cost just £5.5m to pry from the Scottish giants, having agreed personal terms earlier in the week.

How good is Glen Kamara?

This acquisition would mark yet another quality addition to Farke's squad, which seems to finally be improving back to the requisite level to challenge at the right end of the table.

This is especially important given the mass exodus endured already this summer, with three permanent exits giving way to a further seven loan departures, many of which were formerly important first-team members.

Kamara would offer a huge upgrade on many of those though, with his performances in the Scottish Premiership over the years having drawn widespread praise.

Steven Gerrard had predicted such a fine career even after first signing the 27-year-old, claiming back in 2019:

"He looked like a Rangers player and he took that performance into the Kilmarnock game and went up a level again. He’s a terrific footballer in possession, always playing with his head up and looking to connect defence and attack.

"But what pleased me most is what I spoke about when we signed him in terms of how he’ll be out of possession. Will he hunt the ball back, be aggressive, work hard for the team and be a monster in the middle of the park? He showed signs of that against Kilmarnock and potentially he can become a top midfielder."

His performances during the 2021/22 season help to supplement this praise, as a relentless midfield warrior but with a surprising offensive impetus that likens him to Casemiro.

After all, he posted six goal contributions that campaign whilst maintaining a 91% pass accuracy, with his one tackle per game still admirable and helping towards his 7.01 average rating, via Sofascore. He remained a key cog in their success, happy to screen a back four but unafraid to push on and add to their attacks.

Elsewhere, the Brazilian joined Manchester United from Real Madrid last summer in a move that baffled many.

It was expected that the 31-year-old would simply offer some solidity at the base of their engine room, but he instead came to create too, with his debut season allowing him to post a 7.21 average rating. This was a figure massively bolstered by his four goals and three assists, alongside his one key pass and mammoth 3.2 tackles per game, via Sofascore.

He is often everywhere, with pundit Robbie Savage noting back in May:

"When you’re listening to legends like Scholesy [Paul Scholes] and Owen [Hargreaves] speak about him, as a midfield player, I didn’t realise he has that much to his game: the passes round the corner, the goals."

He continued: "So I think he’s been terrific and has offered a lot more than what people thought. You listen to ex-managers and ex-players saying they weren’t sure but I think he’s proved, even Casemiro the captain of Brazil, has proven people wrong in the Premier League.”

In Auguat 2021, even Rangers Review editor Joshua Barrie went to lengths to highlight just how important Kamara was for Gerrard at Ibrox, making subtle references to players like the Red Devils star, among many other Premier League greats.

Both of these defensive midfielders boast an offensive impetus that has proven imperative for their respective teams, with Kamara likely hopeful that he can enjoy a similarly stunning debut season at Elland Road by continuing to emulate the play style of the legendary stopper.

Tottenham Hotspur have remained strong in their position concerning Harry Kane's future, insisting that the forward will not be sold.

Daniel Levy is clearly hoping that the England captain's desire to break the all-time Premier League scoring record will outweigh his desperation for silverware, of which he boasts none from his time in north London.

The 29-year-old has given everything to this football club, and with Bayern Munich remaining undaunted by this stance, they continue to test the resolve of a club desperate to keep ahold of a gem with just one year left on his deal.

Ange Postecoglou would likely hope to see this saga cleared up soon, so he can start to plan a brighter future at the club with or without their star man.

Given how active they have already been in the window, far more free-spending than in past years, it seems that their new coach will receive full backing to usher in a new age. Should Kane depart, as devastating as it would be, at the very least the former Celtic boss would get his pick of the new man set to spearhead his side.

As per journalist Ben Jacobs, who noted on Sunday, they have already sounded out Jonathan David as such a replacement.

It is within that report that a fresh bid for Kane is expected, suggesting that the mere presence of a contingency plan in case of his departure suggests there is a reality where he leaves this summer.

How many goals has Jonathan David scored?

In the Canadian, the Lilywhites would gain an all-action forward to replace their technically-exceptional number nine.

The 23-year-old boasts pace, physicality and frightening finishing prowess, which he has shown with regularity during his time at LOSC Lille.

His youth proves no barrier, as last season he managed to notch 24 league goals for the French outfit despite their struggles. It marked his best scoring season thus far for this club, having notched 15 the year prior, and 13 as they momentarily ended Paris Saint-Germain's monopoly against all the odds.

Podcaster Tony Marinaro, who was enamoured with the form of his compatriot went as far as to claim: "He is a student of the game. He does everything right. Simply put, he’s a phenom. One of the best strikers in the world is Canadian".

This title-winning mentality, plus an added emphasis on his physicality, arguably makes him an even better fit for a Postecoglou side that often forces the striker to do plenty of running.

Whilst in Scotland, the 57-year-old deployed Kyogo Furuhashi as a lone striker, with his role focused on leading the press. Although his main marksman would still notch 34 goals across all competitions in his final year in charge, he forged many other chances due to the sacrifices he made for the team.

For all his outstanding qualities, Kane is unlikely to do that.

It would be near-impossible to find a like-for-like replacement for the man who scored 30 Premier League goals last term amidst all the turmoil, as few strikers in the modern game could be so prolific yet so creative too. He would record 1.5 key passes per match too (fourth best in the squad), to supplement that claim.

However, for the betterment of the club, his big-money exit could pave the way for a brighter future where they are not reliant upon just one man.

Redistributing funds to bolster the general squad would provoke long-term success in north London, with David a fine focal point to underpin such revolutionary change.

While United's manager has used his selection headaches as an excuse for failure, the Merseysiders brushed aside their injuries to win another trophy

Liverpool's Carabao Cup win over Chelsea was a tale of both senior leadership and youthful exuberance. One defining image was the sight of Jurgen Klopp and Virgil van Dijk lifting the trophy together. Klopp shook the club up and rebuilt it in his image while Van Dijk's defensive steel completed their transformation, delivering the latest in a long line of trophies with a towering header deep in extra-time.

The other takeaway was Liverpool's long cast of academy graduates, all born in 2003 or after, streaming off the bench and being utterly unawed by the occasion. As Gary Neville put it so succinctly: "Klopp's kids against the billion pound bottle jobs." Liverpool resembled the walking wounded last week, losing Diogo Jota, Cutis Jones, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah in the days before the final, in addition to the already-missing Dominik Szoboszlai, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alisson Becker.

And their injury crisis was aggravated during the game as Ryan Gravenberch, Andrew Robertson and Alexis Mac Allister were all forced off. But far from being knocked down by the absence of their best players, Liverpool rose to the occasion. "Liverpool have been absolutely sensational," Neville added. "Those young players have been incredible. Klopp must be so proud."

What a contrast to Neville's own club Manchester United, who had fallen apart against Fulham a day earlier after losing two players to injury. Erik ten Hag pointed to the key absences of Luke Shaw and Rasmus Hojlund as he sought to explain their latest dire home display this season, but he is beginning to sound like a broken record.

After all, Liverpool have demonstrated that injuries do not matter if you have a clear playing identity and rally behind your coach.

GettySenior players not helping out

Ten Hag had taken a chance on youth the day before by handing 19-year-old Omari Forson his full debut against Fulham to cover the absence of Hojlund. It meant there were four academy graduates in the line-up (including three from the 2022 FA Youth Cup winning side) and four more on the bench.

No one could accuse the Dutchman, whose young Ajax team took the Champions League by storm, of not believing in young players. The difference was that while the likes of Van Dijk, Wataru Endo and Luis Diaz led the way for Liverpool, United's senior players shrunk.

Marcus Rashford was anonymous at centre-forward and Bruno Fernandes was incapable of sparking any danger, save for long-range shots. Casemiro and Harry Maguire were clumsy in the tackle and Victor Lindelof again looked lost trying to deputise for Shaw, whose absence for several months has left United with no natural left backs.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesYou win nothing with (just) kids

After the Carabao Cup triumph, Klopp said: "I got told outside you don't win trophies with kids. Write it new." The German was referring to former Liverpool defender Alan Hansen's infamous declaration on in August 1995 after watching United sink to a 3-1 defeat at Aston Villa on the opening day of the season.

Those words came back to haunt Hansen at the end of that season when a United team containing David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Nicky Butt went on to win the Premier League title and FA Cup.

But Hansen's words have been taken out of context. He meant you can't win anything with kids. The catalyst of that great double winning side, after all, was Eric Cantona, who was still suspended at the time for kicking a fan but who galvanised the team when he returned in October.

United have a lot of exciting young players such as Alejandro Garnacho, Kobbie Mainoo and Hojlund, but they badly lack a talismanic figure like Cantona. Current captain Fernandes has not scored a league goal since November, while Rashford is a shadow of the brilliant player who scored 30 times in all competitions last season.

Getty ImagesPressing problems

Another huge difference between United and Liverpool could be seen in the way the two teams are set up and work as a unit. Reds youngsters are educated in the art of 'Gegenpressing' from an early age, allowing the likes of Bradley and Bobby Clark to fit so seamlessly into Klopp's team. But United's senior players seem incapable of pressing together, allowing Fulham to repeatedly play their way through them at Old Trafford.

Fernandes is a big part of the problem as he is a free spirit, often blindly chasing down opponents and ruining United's shape. Jamie Carragher said recently: "He's emotional. He runs 30 yards to close the goalkeeper down. People sometimes get kidded by it and say, 'look at him working hard'. No, he's killing the team."

Neville has also criticised Fernandes' free role. "He must be told to go and do what you want. Ten Hag is giving him the freedom to go there, there, there. And that means you can never have a combination or a pattern because you've got your main midfield player everywhere on the pitch."

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(C)Getty ImagesLost without Martinez

Ten Hag has acknowledged that not all of his squad fully get his methods or understand what he wants them to do, which becomes a huge problem when just a few key players like Shaw, Hojlund or Lisandro Martinez are unavailable.

"They know what the routines are but definitely things are changed [with injuries]," he said after losing to Fulham. "Not everyone [gets the ideas], other players coming in, different identities, different skills, that is what we have to adapt as a team."

But the fact that a number of players are unable to implement his style and demonstrate the 'automatisms' he talks about ultimately falls on him. More than 18 months into the job, it is still unclear what Ten Hag's playing philosophy is. It seems that with a full squad available, he wants his team to play on the front foot, with Martinez and Andre Onana starting moves from their own area.

But when the Argentine is absent, as has been the case for most of the season, United seem only capable of playing on the counter, leaving Onana with little option but to launch the ball forward with long punts.

And without Hojlund, they have no one capable of holding the ball up and bringing others into play, leading to the hurried attacks they fashioned in the closing stages of each half against Fulham.