All posts by h716a5.icu

Tottenham Hotspur could make a move for Lautaro Martinez in this summer’s transfer window…

What’s the word?

According to The Athletic, Spurs have an interest in the Inter Milan striker if Harry Kane were to depart North London before this month’s deadline.

The Lilywhites will have stiff competition from their arch-rivals Arsenal, who are exploring the opportunity to sign Martinez, with the Serie A outfit looking to sort out their financial problems.

Inter need to sell players this summer and the 23-year-old is someone who could garner plenty of funds, although it remains to be seen how much would tempt them into a sale.

Transfermarkt currently value him at a whopping £72m, whilst his wages are thought to be around €2.5m-per-year – around €52k-per-week (£45k-per-week).

Life after Kane?

If Spurs are trying to plan for life without the England talisman, then Martinez is a pretty outstanding contingency plan and one man who they should absolutely push to sign.

Kane’s future is in doubt right now, with fresh reports from the Telegraph suggesting that the 28-year-old will insist on joining Jack Grealish in a move to Manchester City.

The long-serving youth product has made no secret of his desire to add silverware to his glistening goalscoring record, and with Spurs’ barren run without a trophy stretching back to 2008, it’s no wonder he wants to leave now.

New sporting director Fabio Paratici will know first-hand the credentials of Martinez, who has excelled for Juventus’ rivals in recent seasons.

On Inter’s way to their first league title in 11 years, the 28-cap Argentina international provided 19 goals and 11 assists, averaging a direct contribution every 108 minutes, as per Transfermarkt.

This is similar to the sort of importance that Kane carries in North London, having provided 54.4% of all their league goals scored last term, whilst he averages a goal or assist every 98 minutes throughout his whole Spurs career.

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi is a big fan of his fellow countryman as he once described him as “an impressive forward” to Mundo Deportivo, before adding: “He’s spectacular. He has impressive qualities. You could tell he was going to be a great player, and he is showing that. He’s very strong, really good one on one, scores a lot of goals, and in the area he fights with anyone, holds it up, he can turn, scrap to win it all on his own. He has a lot of quality. He’s very complete.”

That final word is one you’d very much associate with Kane, as the Englishman offers so much more than just goals. He can drop back and find any player with his impressive range of passing, so the pair are in a similar mould.

If the 28-year-old does leave N17 in this window, then Spurs should absolutely launch a swoop for the Inter Milan sensation. He’d be a dream replacement, whatever the costs.

AND in other news, Nuno dealt huge Spurs blow as worrying transfer report emerges, fans will be furious…

Cricinfo staff21-Aug-2008When Sachin Tendulkar said recently that there was a lot of youngcricketing talent coming up in the country, he must have, atleast in a corner of his mind, had the India Under-15 team inmind.The teen cricketers, now doing duty for the country in the Lom-bard World Challenge one-day cricket competition in England, haveprogressed to the final after remaining unbeaten in the prelim-inary league and then registering a fine win over the favouredSouth African outfit in the semis.And now – in a reprise of the rivalry between the two nationsthat lights up the senior level of the game – the Indiansawait the Pakistan team in the final of the event, to beplayed at Lord`s later on Tuesday.The brainchild of Peter English, creater of the England SchoolsCricket Association, the Lombard tournament though unoffi-cial, is the first such tournament in internation- al cricket.And the organisers, in concert with sponsors Lombard, have plansto make this a once-in-four-years event, on the lines of thesenior World Cup.On paper, the Pakistan outfit looks the stronger of the two.And its pedigree, in particular, is exceptional – cap- tainingthe side is no less than Faisal Iqbal, nephew of legen- daryPakistan Test star Javed Miandad. The leading batsman in the teamis Bazid Khan, son of former Pakistan Test opener Majid Khan.And the spearhead of the bowling is a leg-spinner with a bouncy,bubbly action and almost unplayable turn, name of Imran Qadir -whose father just happens to be ace Pakis- tan leggie AbdulQadir.Against this the Indian side – which incidentally was pickedon the basis of performances in the domestic inter- schoolstournament for the C K Nayadu tournament – is a solid, profes-sional side with a good grasp of the basics of one day cricket.Starring with bat and ball has been skipper Ritender SinghSodhi, who was the most economical and successful bowler againstSouth Africa before going on to fashion India`s win in thatmatch with a fluent 67.Joining him in the stellar category are the likes of PradeepChawla (62 vs S`Africa) and Mohammad Kaif, whoseonslaught on the bowling in the middle and end overs has been afeature of the Indian display in the tournament. Kaif, who rat-tled up 54 off only 32 balls in the semifinal against S`Africa,has already compiled 166 runs from four in- nings thus farand, given a reasonably good showing in the fi- nal, looks a certto bag the man of the series award.Though the stars have hogged the limelight, the Indian juniorshave, unlike their seniors during the tour of England underAzharuddin earlier this summer, proved to be a team well versedin the fundamentals of the one-day game. They fielded wellthroughout, bringing off the sort of sliding stops their seniorshave never really managed on the field of play, bowled close tothe stumps and with enough swing and seam to trouble all op-posing batsmen, the spinners got turn and the bowlers, in gen-eral, gave away very few no-balls, wides, and other freebies.And much to the surprise of the observers, the cricket has beenof anything but schoolboy variety. As no less than former Englandbowler Paul Allott admitted in a media column this weekend,”All misconceptions that this tournament would be played outbetween naive and immature teams were dispelled after the firstsemifinal between India and South Africa. You could not havewished for a more competi- tive, highly exciting and skilfulgame of cricket…”Add to this obvious skill the needle that inevitably entersinto any sporting encounter between India and Pakistan, at what-ever level, and Tuesday`s final between the two teams couldturn out to be a humdinger…Besides, of course, providing the first real look at the probablestars of the senior World Cup of, say, 2004 AD?

Jason Krejza, the new Australia offspinner, says it was not until the past summer that he felt committed enough to play at the highest levels

Cricinfo staff15-Sep-2008
Jason Krejza’s move to Tasmania has been successful © Getty Images
Jason Krejza, the new Australia offspinner, says it was not until the past summer that he felt committed enough to play at the highest levels. Krejza’s Tasmania team-mates banned him from alcohol for 2007-08 and excluded him from pre-season training after he was arrested for drink-driving and speeding last year.”That was the pivotal moment in my career,” Krejza told the Sydney Morning Herald. “I had to prove to myself that I was committed enough. When someone asks you to go for a beer, it’s a bit hard to say no sometimes. It was me being able to be committed enough to something to stick at it.”When it is all up against you, you find out things about yourself. That experience really did show me what I wanted to do.”On Sunday Krejza will leave with the Australia squad for India as the back-up spinner behind Bryce McGain and Michael Clarke. His selection is a gamble, but Australia’s preference for a finger spinner forced the selectors to look past Dan Cullen and Nathan Hauritz, who have played Tests on the subcontinent.Krejza turned out in seven first-class games last season and collected 18 wickets at 47.11, a slightly more economical return than Cullen managed in one more match. He also won a spot ahead of Beau Casson, who appeared in a Test in the West Indies. It was Casson’s arrival in New South Wales from Western Australia that convinced Krejza to move to Tasmania in 2006-07.”I was playing a lot of grade cricket and doing quite well but I had Stuey MacGill in front of me and there was Stuart Clark, Nathan Bracken, Doug Bollinger and Brett Lee, so there wasn’t a lot of opportunity to bowl long spells,” Krejza said. “Then they brought in Beau and Nathan Hauritz so I knew I had to look for an opportunity elsewhere.”

Liverpool and Arsenal have both been linked with a switch for Lille midfielder Renato Sanches [L’Equipe via Sport Witness].

Enjoying a productive 2020/21 campaign, the Portuguese midfielder registered five goal contributions in 29 appearances; one goal and four assists [Transfermarkt].

Now, he could be set to have a decision to make on his future following recent developments.

The Reds and the Gunners have been mooted with an interest in Sanches, with his current employers looking to hold out for around €35 million for his services [L’Equipe via Sport Witness].

His former club Bayern Munich alongside Barcelona are also rumoured to be monitoring his situation this summer.

In light of this news, loads of Liverpool diehards took to social media to share their thoughts after the story emerged.

Liverpool FC fans react:

Replying to popular Liverpool fan outlet LFC Transfer Room on Twitter, here is what some fans had to say upon hearing the latest news surrounding Sanches:

“It can be a very risky buy!Just add another 10m and get Saul….”

Credit: @Arqamali118″It’s just boring now, every week we are linked with the same midfielders and nothing seems concrete. Next week it will be Neuhaus, the week after Saul, the one after Bissouma etc……”Credit: @Boromir_FR”Would rather LFC wait 1 more season and sign Gravenberch for 30-35ml”Credit: @KloppoMagic”we dont need a midfielder that much a forward is more important”Credit: @plus7end”Man am tired already”Credit: @BagsmanEra”Not this again!”Credit: @ethan27dIn other news, a Liverpool star is nearing a new deal.

The Pakistan board’s efforts to arrange a home series have been dealt a blow as West Indies have opted to not tour next month because of security concerns

Cricinfo staff08-Oct-2008
West Indies were due to tour Pakistan next month but their players weren’t ready to commit to the series © Getty Images
The Pakistan Cricket Board’s efforts to arrange a home series have been dealt a blow as West Indies have opted not to tour next month because of security concerns. Senior players had already expressed concerns about visiting Pakistan and the decision comes a week after the West Indies women’s team called off the Pakistan leg of their Asian tour.Donald Peters, the chief executive of the West Indies board, said negotiations are on to reschedule the tour. “We are in talks with the PCB at present with the hope of getting the tour deferred to another date, but at this time we are not going to tour the country,” Peters told .”At the end of the last (WICB) board meeting, the directors wanted a security report on the situation in Pakistan and I contacted the PCB. I had requested a security plan from them that was okayed by their police and military.”They got this plan and sent it to me and we were then looking further at getting an independent security firm but this was not done because we had decided that at this point it was not really safe for the players to go to Pakistan.”Pakistan have already had two high-profile postponements this year: Australia’s tour was put off, as was the Champions Trophy. They have not played a home Test since October 2007 and the only tournaments they have hosted this year are the Asia Cup and ODI series against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

Adam White of Get French Football News believes that Manchester United star Paul Pogba wants to join PSG this summer but won’t force a move.

The France international has continually been linked away from Old Trafford in recent years, with various suitors mentioned.

PSG are the latest and White claims that the France international is keen to return to his native country with Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

Pogba is nearing the end of his contract, which expires in 11 months, and The Daily Telegraph has reported that the club remains interested in snapping him up.

They claim that he will begin the season with United and will then make a decision over his future, with the transfer window across Europe set to run for another month.

It is not clear how much he would cost but Transfermarkt value Pogba at £54m, even with his deal expiring.

White believes he does want the move but insists Pogba will not rock the boat by trying to force the move.

He said: “Pogba seemingly wants to go to PSG although he isn’t going to try to force a move to PSG. He’d prefer to go there.”

Much will depend on Harbhajan Singh on his return in Nagpur after missing the third Test in Delhi, as he shoulders the responsibility of being India’s premier slow bowler after Anil Kumble’s retirement

Cricinfo staff04-Nov-2008
Harbhajan Singh: “You just have to focus on cricket. That’s it. If people are retiring that’s their decision. We’re 1-0 up and want to finish the series 2-0” © AFP
A toe injury forced Harbhajan Singh out of the Delhi Test and denied him the opportunity of bowling in tandem with Anil Kumble for one last time, but the offspinner is now “100% fit” and ready to bear the responsibility of being India’s premier slow bowler.Winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is the biggest stake for India in Nagpur, but apart from the wider picture, there are other sub-plots – the most significant being Sourav Ganguly’s final Test and VVS Laxman’s 100th. And Harbhajan has his own milestone to look forward to. He’s on the cusp of becoming only the third Indian bower to take 300 Test wickets, after finishing the Mohali Test on 299.”I would have liked to get the 300th in Mohali [his home ground] but unfortunately I couldn’t,” Harbhajan said. “Hopefully I’ll get it here in Nagpur. If I bowl well, hopefully, I’ll end up with 500.”For the majority of those 299 wickets, Harbhajan had Kumble to back him up at the other end, giving away nothing. He’s bowled with other spinners as well but Kumble’s absence in those phases, unlike the one which is beginning, has been temporary.”Obviously Anil retired and his will be very very big shoes to fill. To fill the gap left by a great player is very difficult. But we’ve got Amit Mishra and some other young bowlers. It’s a good chance for them to get in the team. They are good enough. They have played lot of domestic cricket and done well. I’m sure in time they will perform for the country as well.”Mishra made his debut in Mohali and picked up a five-for but had a poor game in Delhi, where he took only one wicket. Harbhajan also said that despite the emotion-laden circumstances under which the fourth Test would be played, India would not be content with protecting their 1-0 lead.”It’s very simple to be focused. You just have to focus on cricket. That’s it. If people are retiring that’s their decision. We’re 1-0 up and want to finish the series 2-0. Hopefully Sourav will have a very good match here and gets lots of runs. It’ll be great for the team and great for him.”Ganguly was one of two players – Zaheer being the other – who didn’t practice at the old Vidharba Cricket Association on Tuesday because practice facilities aren’t complete at the new Test venue. “Zaheer did a lot of bowling in the last three Tests and Sourav is feeling fatigued with the traveling,” Harbhajan said. “They are both fit but are taking it easy today.”The practice sessions on Wednesday – the eve of the match – are also scheduled at the old stadium, which means the new one, situated on the outskirts of the city, will be new territory for both teams when the Test begins. Harbhajan hasn’t even been there yet but didn’t think it was an issue at all.”We aren’t worried too much about how the wicket will play, how it won’t play, what will happen, what won’t happen,” he said. “We’re looking forward to playing some good cricket and finishing the series 2-0.”

Fulham midfielder Fabio Carvalho has emerged as a transfer target for Leeds United this summer, according to the Daily Mail.

The lowdown

Carvalho made six appearances for the Cottagers in the second half of the 2020/21 season, scoring against Southampton back in May.

The midfielder certainly didn’t look out of place in senior football, having made the move to Fulham from Balham in 2014, having previously been on the books with Benfica. He started their match against Middlesbrough at the weekend, registering two shots and completing four dribbles for Marco Silva’s team (WhoScored).

Former Fulham boss Scott Parker has previously sung the 18-year-old’s praises. Speaking after his goal against the Saints three months ago, the now-Bournemouth manager said of Carvalho: “Massive positive for us because he’s the one who’s going to be here, he’s a player that is really bright and can bring something to this team.”

The latest

It appears as though Carvalho’s impressive showings haven’t gone unnoticed, with Leeds United registering their interest in signing the midfielder.

However, they aren’t the only club believed to be keen on signing the 18-year-old, with the Daily Mail claiming that Norwich City, West Ham United and FC Porto are also interested in signing Carvalho.

The report added that Fulham face a ‘battle’ on their hands to keep him at Craven Cottage in the future, with his contract situation reaching an impasse after he turned down the club’s offer of a new deal, having entered the final year of his current contract.

The verdict

Carvalho has shown real promise for the Cottagers in the early stages of his senior career. As evidenced by his dribbling figures from Sunday, he’s showing no fear when playing in their first team, which is refreshing to see from a young talent.

Leeds could potentially be the ideal move for him as well, as Marcelo Bielsa has already shown that there is a clear pathway through to their first team for young prospects, with the likes of Pascal Struijk and Illan Meslier (both 21) featuring regularly under the Argentine in the Premier League last term.

Carvalho could be the next player to follow in their footsteps, but Leeds will face a battle on their hands to land his signature on a permanent basis, with a number of other clubs reportedly keen on signing him. Given the competition for the youngster, it would seem quite a coup if the Whites can come up trumps in this frenetic transfer race.

In other news, David Norris has made a plea to Marcelo Bielsa regarding these two Leeds players

Manchester City were heavily linked with Romelu Lukaku earlier in the transfer window but the Belgian striker has now completed a move to Premier League rivals Chelsea, which will be a cause of frustration for Pep Guardiola if City cannot complete a move for Harry Kane this summer.

What’s the word?

After a sensational season with Inter, City were said to be keen on signing Lukaku this summer as a replacement for the departing Sergio Aguero, but they seemingly ended their interest when the 28-year-old suggested that he would be staying with the Serie A champions.

However, a number of factors – including Antonio Conte’s resignation, Inter’s dreadful financial problems and City’s pursuit of Kane – have allowed Chelsea to bring in the Belgian relatively unchallenged in a deal worth £97.5m.

Should City have signed Lukaku?

Given that City have already seen a bid of £100m rejected for Kane, with their first game of the Premier League just two days away, you could argue that they should have reignited their interest in Lukaku once it became clear that Inter were keen to sell him, as he would’ve been a cheaper, more attainable alternative to the England captain.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-manchester-city-transfer-rumours-and-news” title=”Read the latest Manchester City transfer rumours and news!”]

As it stands, Guardiola’s side risk going into the new season with just Gabriel Jesus and Liam Delap as their natural centre-forward options, and you worry that their current squad might not have enough attacking depth to help them retain the Premier League title this season when you consider the quality signings that the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool have made this summer.

Lukaku certainly could’ve been the clinical striker that City are missing, as his form during his time at Inter emphasises that he is a very different prospect to the man who left Manchester United in 2019.

Last season saw the Belgium international contribute an impressive 24 goals and 11 assists in just 36 Serie A appearances, averaging a superb 7.47 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

[freshpress-quiz id=“577936”]

Considering that Guardiola labelled Lukaku “world-class” during his time at Manchester United, and he has further improved as a player since then, the Spaniard would surely have loved to have in his City squad for next season. He will be frustrated that Chelsea have managed to sign the Belgian, especially if a deal for Kane cannot be completed in this transfer window.

In other news… Fabrizio Romano drops Harry Kane update, City fans will be buzzing

Clearly keeping an eye on the future, the ECB has decided to send six of the country’s most promising fast bowlers to Florida for a three-week training camp

Cricinfo staff19-Nov-2008
Jade Dernbach: developing the sort of control required for the longer version of the game © Getty Images
Clearly keeping an eye on the future, the ECB has decided to send six of the country’s most promising fast bowlers to Florida for a three-week training camp. Maurice Chambers, Jonathan Clare, Jade Dernbach, Chris Jordan, Mark Turner and Chris Woakes will travel to the IMG multi-sport training facility in Bradenton to work on their strength and conditioning.”This is going to be the toughest period of training they’ll ever have,” Kevin Shine, the ECB’s fast bowling coach, told the . “They won’t be going to the beach. These lads could be the next world-class bowlers to play for England and we want to treat them like Olympic athletes. We want them to be fitter, faster and stronger.”Shine stressed on the importance of knowing an individual’s strength. In his estimation, many young fast bowlers broke down well before their peak because of bowling-related injuries. The six players will undergo three physical training sessions a day, supervised by former Ospreys rugby union coach Huw Bevan. “By the time they’re finished, they’ll be — how can I put this nicely? — they’ll be enlightened,” said Bevan.Dernbach, 22, has been a regular in Surrey’s one-day team for the last couple of seasons and broke into the County Championship side in June with a career-best 6 for 72. His Surrey team-mate Jordan, 20, has all the attributes a West Indian fast bowler and can qualify for England through an English grandmother.Woakes, 19, was Warwickshire’s leading wicket-taker this year with 49 and Clare, 22, had a good first full season for Derbyshire, taking 41 wickets at 26.19. Chamber, 21, and Turner, 24, are talented young fast bowlers who have had their share of injuries.The six will also spend two weeks at the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai, under the tutelage of Dennis Lillee.The ECB will also monitor the development of age-group players as part of the Specialist Skills Development Programme. “If there are any issues with their actions or their physical competencies, we can sort that out at an early age,” said Shine. “The most vulnerable age group is 15 to 19 and we want to make sure that they develop technically and physically at a rate their bodies can accept. We used to do this from 16, but it makes sense to start younger.”