Guglielmo Vicario makes stark Tottenham admission to his agents with exit stance clear

Tottenham number one Guglielmo Vicario faces an uncertain long-term future amid reports of Inter Milan’s interest, with his personal stance on an exit now also coming to light.

Guglielmo Vicario criticised after recent Tottenham outings

Vicario’s tenure at Tottenham appears increasingly uncertain following his costly error against Fulham, which added to the concerns surrounding his capability as their first-choice goalkeeper.

The 29-year-old endured a nightmare moment during Spurs’ 2-1 home defeat to Fulham last Saturday, rushing needlessly off his line before playing a weak clearance straight to Josh King.

Harry Wilson capitalised spectacularly, curling home from near the touchline to double the visitors’ advantage inside six minutes.

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The blunder sparked an immediate negative reaction from frustrated Tottenham supporters, who booed Vicario throughout the remainder of the first half.

Thomas Frank defended his goalkeeper afterward, questioning whether those jeering could be considered true Spurs fans, with damage to the relationship between keeper and supporters appearing pretty significant.

Much was already made of the Italy international’s weak command of his area, with pundits suggesting that opposition teams should target Vicario as a weak link in Spurs’ side.

Frank has also been urged to drop the ex-Empoli star by former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy, who called Vicario ‘nervous as a kitten’ with his distribution.

Despite his torrid time lately, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Inter hold a serious interest in Vicario, and the prospect of a 2026 transfer back to Italy isn’t ruled out.

Now, Italian newspaper La Gazetta dello Sport have shared their own update on the matter.

Guglielmo Vicario yearns for Tottenham exit and sends message to his agents

Indeed, Vicario has apparently communicated his growing frustration with life at Tottenham to his representatives, revealing his weariness and how he’s ‘yearning’ for a Serie A return.

La Gazzetta claim the shot-stopper has grown tired of difficult seasons at Spurs and has informed his agents that the current term could mark his final year in English football.

The newspaper suggests a powerful emotional pull toward his homeland is driving his thinking, with a permanent return to Italy now firmly on his mind.

Inter have emerged as the frontrunners for his signature, with reports in Italy indicating the Nerazzurri have already opened discussions with Vicario’s representatives.

The Serie A champions are said to view him as an ideal long-term replacement for veteran Yann Sommer, whose contract expires at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Tottenham are reportedly already scouring the market for potential replacements.

Brighton & Hove Albion's BartVerbruggenreacts

Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen has been identified as a potential option, with TEAMtalk reporting earlier this week that Spurs have made contact over the keeper who Bayern are also looking at as an heir to Manuel Neuer.

Romano: Leeds make contact to sign “outstanding” £21m attacker in January

Fabrizio Romano has now revealed that Leeds United have received a response after making contact to sign an “outstanding” attacker in the past few days.

Leeds showing fight in battle for survival

Heading into a tricky three-game run against Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool, Daniel Farke would’ve been fearing the worst, given the widespread speculation about his future, but his side have managed to amass a very respectable four points.

Even in the 3-2 loss at the Etihad Stadium, the Whites showed heart, fighting back from 2-0 down, which will be very encouraging for Farke, and the 2024-25 Championship title-winners remain outside the relegation zone for the time being.

That said, it is still very close near the bottom of the Premier League table, with both Nottingham Forest and West Ham United starting to pick up better results since hiring new managers.

Consequently, it is little wonder Leeds have started looking at new signings ahead of the January transfer window, recently making an approach for Tromso star Jens Hjerto-Dahl, and they have now set their sights on £21m summer Como signing Martin Baturina.

That is according to Romano (via Leeds United News), who said: “Baturina is a player Como still wants to focus on, they’re not thinking about a January exit. I’ll tell you the behind-the-scenes story. In the last few days, Leeds has been in touch, the teams are starting to move.

“Leeds has proposed opening talks with Como and the player’s agents about a possible transfer, even a permanent one. Leeds would have practically repaid Baturina to Como,”

“The response I understand from both Como and the player was ‘No, thanks’. Baturina wants to stay at Como, he believes in the project Como is happy with Baturina, with how he trains, the potential he has.

“Baturina continues to work hard, but the door has been closed for Leeds. In short, it also marks some clarity regarding the rumours that have been circulating about the future of the Croatian midfielder.”

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Tom Cunningham

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"Outstanding" Baturina could have bright future ahead

Leeds will be frustrated they didn’t receive the ideal response after making a move for the 22-year-old, given just how impressive he was at Dinamo Zagreb, registering 22 goals and 39 assists in 165 outings, while he has also now scored his first goal for Croatia.

Scout Ben Mattinson has also waxed lyrical about the attacking midfielder, saying a little over a year ago: “His vision and weight of pass is outstanding.”

However, the former Dinamo Zagreb man hasn’t exactly hit the ground running since moving to Italy, being benched for the majority of Como’s Serie A matches this season, having recorded just one goal contribution in his first seven outings.

As such, Baturina clearly isn’t the finished article just yet, so it is not majorly disappointing that Leeds appear to have missed out.

Lamine Yamal's father accused of 'provoking Real Betis fans' in tense exchange that forced security to intervene during Barcelona win

Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal's father has been accused of 'provoking Real Betis fans' in a tense exchange during the club's win in La Liga on Saturday. Ferran Torres scored a hat-trick, while Yamal and Roony Bardghji were also on target as the Catalan giants clinched an eight-goal thriller and extended their lead over second-placed Real Madrid to four points.

Yamal shines with a goal in Barca's win

Yamal started in Hansi Flick's starting lineup against Betis, alongside Marcus Rashford and Torres as veteran forward Robert Lewandowski was rested for the clash. Torres stole the limelight for the visitors as he scored a first half hat-trick after Manchester United flop Antony handed the hosts an early lead. Young summer signing Roony Bardghji also scored in the first half, bagging his first La Liga goal, as the Catalan giants enjoyed a 4-1 lead at the break.

Around the hour mark, Barcelona won a penalty and Yamal took the spot-kick to further extend his team's lead. Diego Llorente and Cucho Hernandez scored a couple of late goals but the defending champions finally emerged victorious and walked away with a crucial three points. 

AdvertisementAFPYamal's father clashed with home fans

While the teenager's performance on the pitch was excellent, his father landed himself in trouble after reportedly clashing with Real Betis fans at the stadium. According to the situation in the stands, where Yamal's father was seated, turned hostile after he deliberately provoked home supporters surrounding him near his seat. 

He reportedly made gestures, which in turn angered the local fans as they became hostile, leading to heckling and tense moments. A stadium security officer had to intervene and he could be clearly seen approaching Yamal's father to ask him to calm down. Yago, though, later claimed (via ): "I just asked my friend who's there, and he said that for the moment things have calmed down, but there was a moment when he even thought something might happen."

Yamal declared La Liga Player of the Month

The Spanish sensation delivered a dominant run of form across Barcelona’s four La Liga fixtures in November, scoring against Elche, Celta Vigo and Deportivo Alaves while adding two assists in the Catalan side’s emphatic win over Athletic Club. Yamal’s standout moments included a two-assist display on Barcelona’s return to Camp Nou and another goal-and-assist performance against Alaves to close out the month. 

Yamal's decisive impact in each fixture reinforced the sense that he had fully rediscovered rhythm and confidence after recent injury struggles. The 18-year-old's explosive contributions helped Barcelona win every league match during the month, propelling him past rivals including Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann in the final vote for La Liga's Player of the Month for November. The teenager's final November tally of three goals and three assists extended his league-leading creative total to eight assists. 

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AFPYamal loving success at Barcelona

At just 18, Yamal is already a generational talent who is destined to achieve great success in his professional career. He has already drawn comparisons with Argentina and Barcelona legend Lionel Messi for his exceptional talent and goalscoring ability.

Speaking about the success he has achieved thus far, the youngster said: "Where I used to play, in my neighbourhood, there were walls where people would sit and there was no better feeling than getting the people who were sitting there to stand up and laugh at the opponents. I think it’s the best feeling in the world and something that reminds me of that a lot is when I’m playing on the field and the fans get up and are surprised by a play I’ve made. I can’t feel pressure when playing football. I just try to enjoy it. I think that my friends and family have been through harder things than me just playing football.

"Football is everything to me. It’s the first love of my life and it will remain so. It’s one of the sports where everyone is on an equal footing. I don’t think I’ve ever felt pressure playing football. My parents faced real pressure as young parents. Managing family, work, being happy, and buying gifts… that’s real pressure for me."

Kuldeep's stump vision defies flat Delhi pitch

The India wristspinner picked up a five-for in unfriendly bowling conditions by beating batters in the air and keeping the wickets in play

Karthik Krishnaswamy12-Oct-20251:15

Chopra: Not a surface Kuldeep would love

Angles. Over the wicket creates an entirely different angle to around the wicket, and while left-arm over and right-arm around create a broadly similar angle, they’re still a little different because of how the human body works. The right-arm-around bowler can deliver from far wider on the crease than the left-arm-over bowler, and the left-arm-over bowler from significantly closer to the stumps.All this, quite naturally, brings us to Kuldeep Yadav, the most artful employer of left-arm over in the history of Test-match spin bowling.That’s quite a claim, but it’s easily backed up, because left-arm wristspin has been such a rare sight in Test cricket. Left-arm fingerspinners bowl over the wicket too, but it’s the mirror image of vanilla when they do it against left-hand batters, and a defensive tactic against right-hand batters. For the left-arm wristspinner, over the wicket is the default setting.Related

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And no left-arm wristspinner in the history of the sport has taken even 100 Test wickets. Johnny Wardle took 102 but primarily bowled left-arm orthodox. Garry Sobers took 235 but mostly bowled left-arm seam and left-arm orthodox.Kuldeep, playing just his 15th Test match, is already the most prolific Test bowler of his kind. He has 65 wickets at an average of 21.90, and if that isn’t impressive enough, his strike rate of 37.00 is the best of any spinner, of any kind, ever, with a cut-off of 50 Test wickets.Kuldeep Yadav has the most wickets – 65 – by a left-arm wristspinner in Tests•AFP/Getty ImagesIt’s the record of a generational talent who combines the often hard-to-reconcile skills of spinning the ball furiously out of the hand and landing it exactly where intended in a manner that only a handful of wristspinners, right- or left-arm, have ever managed. It’s the record of a wristspinner with an exquisite feel for the combination of line, length and trajectory that the batter would be least comfortable facing each time he skips into his run-up. And it’s the record of a master at using the left-arm-over angle.Take two balls that Kuldeep bowled on Sunday morning to send back Shai Hope and Tevin Imlach in quick succession after they had put on 49 for the fifth West Indies wicket.First to go was Hope, who last week in Ahmedabad had been bowled while trying to drive Kuldeep against the turn. The angle across him, accentuated by away-drift, had drawn his bat wider and wider, opening up a huge gate for the ball, which turned sharply into Hope, to burst through.Here in Delhi, Hope was no doubt extremely vigilant about the threat to his inside edge when he stretched forward to defend as Kuldeep floated another ball across him from left-arm over. Even before the ball landed, it began opening up a weakness in Hope’s defence: his front foot went straight down the pitch, toe roughly in line with middle stump, when the ball was already drifting away towards off.Hope correctly read the ball out of Kuldeep’s hand, picking the stock ball that would turn into him, but guessed wrongly about the degree of turn. The ball only really straightened down the line, going past the outside edge to hit the top of off stump.The ball to Imlach was another stock ball, only a little slower and a touch shorter and straighter. It happened to hit a part of the pitch from where the ball turned far more sharply while skidding through slightly low. Imlach, playing back, was lbw, beaten on the inside edge while making a hurried attempt to flick.2:05

Ten Doeschate: Mystery element makes Kuldeep effective

Two stock balls, both angled across the right-hand batter and turning in the same direction. One pitched roughly in line with off stump, one in line with middle or thereabouts. One beat the outside edge, one beat the inside edge. Both ended up hitting the stumps or being projected to hit the stumps.Those two balls summed up the fundamental difficulty of facing Kuldeep as a right-hand batter. He delivers from left-arm over, and from so close to the stumps that he typically releases from somewhere above the umpire’s right shoulder. Delivered from there, his stock ball can land anywhere from leg stump to a fair way outside off stump, turn or straighten inwards, beat either edge, and remain on course to hit the stumps, giving him a seemingly endless range of pitching lines and degrees of turn with which he can get batters lbw or bowled.All this with just his stock ball and his angles. All this before we throw in all the ways he can scramble batters’ judgment of line and length with variations in pace, drift, and dip. He might look to straighten the ball from a middle-stumpish line if he senses that you tend to get closed off, and force you to play around your front pad. He might float the ball slower and wider if he senses that you’re petrified about lbw, and hesitant to get your front foot across the stumps, to try and get you playing away from your body. He might push one through flatter if you tend to camp on the back foot, inducing you to play the trajectory rather than the length. He might do any of these things while keeping both edges the stumps in play.All this before he even feels the need to slip in his wrong’un. It’s no surprise that he uses that variation sparingly against right-hand batters and frequently against left-handers. He does everything in his power to constantly keep the stumps in play.The geometry of Kuldeep’s bowling ensures that he traces a wicket-to-wicket path all the way from pitching point to stumps more often than most spinners, and ball-tracking data supports this notion.In Test matches in India since the start of 2022, spinners on average have pitched in line finished within the stumps with roughly 7% of their balls to right-hand batters, and roughly 5% of their balls to left-hand batters. India’s spinners, unsurprisingly, have done better than the average spinner. R Ashwin has done this with 7% of his balls to right-hand batters and 11% of his balls to left-handers. Ravindra Jadeja has gone at 9% to left-handers and 15% to right-handers.If these two great fingerspinners have shown a greater tendency to be stump-to-stump against their preferred match-ups, Kuldeep has shown no evidence of having a preferred match-up. He’s bowled stump-to-stump deliveries with a frequency of 13% against right-hand batters and 13.5% against left-handers. No surprise, then, that there’s barely any difference between his averages against right-hand batters (21.94) and left-handers (21.73).Kuldeep’s fifth Test five-for might make it harder for India to leave him out in overseas Tests•PTI And keep in mind that these numbers are based on precise ball-tracking, and exclude all the balls that pitch an inch wide of the stumps, or are projected to turn or bounce just enough to miss off stump or leg stump by an inch. Add all those balls to the count, and you begin to see how often Kuldeep makes batters fear for their pads and stumps, and how much error he induces by doing this as often as he does.On Sunday, this relentless stump-to-stump examination produced one bowled and two lbws within the first hour of play. It was exactly the kind of bowling India needed on a slow, low Delhi pitch where edges were unlikely to carry to fielders, and where the ability to keep the stumps in play was priceless.It showed, all over again, what a treasure Kuldeep can be on pitches without too much help for spinners. He’s likelier to beat batters in the air than most fingerspinners, and he turns the ball both ways, but he often doesn’t need to because of his mastery of his stock angle and stock ball.Sunday morning’s display — and the threat he still presents West Indies on this docile track despite their fightback after being asked to follow on — will only have convinced Kuldeep’s fans that India ought to have played him at some point during their recent tour of England. He never got that chance, and India drew 2-2. Did that scoreline vindicate his non-selection, or did not selecting him keep India from winning the series?No one knows, but his fifth Test five-for made one member of India’s coaching staff wonder what could potentially have been.”It’s very difficult,” India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said at his end-of-day’s-play press conference. “I just cast my mind back to all the discussions around teams and how we tried to fit him in. But one thing, I think we got the [reading of] wickets pretty spot-on in England. It was very high-scoring Tests, so we were always trying to balance playing the batting all-rounder or do you play three guys at the end who don’t really bat?”But I guess [Kuldeep has] shown here, even on an unresponsive wicket, it does maybe make you think, oh, what happens if we had played him in Manchester, or what happens if we had played him at Headingley? But those are calls you have to make in real time, and we always try to figure out what’s best, then we go with the call and the players have been brilliant at buying into it.”But I think he’s done himself some favours, looking forward, if we do have to make the brave call where we want to win Test matches, maybe we do go a batter light and play Kuldeep, judged on how he’s bowled again in these two Tests.”If you’re one of the many vociferous fans who believe Kuldeep has to play no matter where India are playing, those words may have left you feeling vindicated, if his bowling on Sunday morning hadn’t already done that job.

Ben Stokes: 'We've not been able to stand up to pressure'

Ben Stokes admitted that England had not been “able to stand up to the pressure” applied on them by Australia after his side went 2-0 down in the series in Brisbane. He said England had to show more fight but reiterated his belief that he could lead them back from the brink, with a 3-2 result now their only route to regaining the Ashes.England’s captain pinpointed dropped catches on the second night as one of the tourists’ key failings, undermining their rally with the pink ball under lights. Having been 290 for 3, Australia fell to 329 for 6 – still behind England’s first-innings 334 – but capitalised on a host of reprieves to eventually stretch their total beyond 500 on the third day.Stokes added that he did not believe there was a skills deficit with Australia but conceded England’s mentality in tough situations had twice been found wanting after two chastening defeats. For the second Ashes in a row, England find themselves 2-0 down after two games and, although they came back to draw in 2023, that would not be enough to reclaim the urn from Australia. Only once in Ashes history has a side won 3-2 after being 2-0 down, and that was Don Bradman’s Australia in 1936-37.Related

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“Very disappointing,” Stokes said at the post-match presentation. “A lot of it comes down to not being able to stand up to the pressure of this game, this format, when the game is on the line. In small passages, we’ve been able to bring the game back into some kind of control and then we’ve let us slip away. We’ve done that again here this week, and it’s very, very disappointing, in particular, because of the ability of the players that we have in that dressing room.”We need to think a bit harder and deeper about those moments and what we’re taking mentally into those, and overall show a bit more fight when it’s needed.”We sit there and watch what’s going on in front of us, what Australia are looking to throw at us, and what plans they’re trying to bowl to,” he added. “And then it’s up to us as players to be able to go out there with a plan and how to negate the threat.”To me, it just seems to be a constant theme at the moment, that when you know the game is in a pressure moment, Australia keep outdoing us. They say Australia isn’t a place for weak men. We’re definitely not weak, but we need to find something, because we’re two-nil down now we’ve got three more games to go, and we need to, sort it.”Speaking to TNT Sport after the game, he said that errors in the field had hurt England the most. England put down five chances on day two – Jamie Smith off Travis Head, Ben Duckett off Alex Carey and Josh Inglis, Brydon Carse off Michael Neser and Joe Root off Carey – as Australia carved out a match-defining lead of 177.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“A huge part of it was that we had to take 15 wickets,” Stokes said. “You can’t drop catches. They always come back to bite you. And I think it definitely showed there. If we were able to hold on to our chances, we shouldn’t have been batting last night [day three]. No one means to do that kind of stuff. No one means to drop catches. No one means to not bowl an area where you set plans to but, yeah, those kind of things just can’t happen at this level.”On the gap between the sides, he said: “It’s a mentality. It’s a mindset about how you take yourself out there in those situations. You know, Test cricket has its own pressures anyway, and how you handle those moments, how you handle yourself in those moments, how you get yourself into a clear head, a clear space to make good decisions. That’s so important to being successful at this level.”England had posted their highest score in Australia since 2018 after opting to bat first in the day-night Test, buoyed by Joe Root’s maiden hundred on Australian soil. But after Head’s reprieve on 3, Australia’s openers raced off to a 77-run opening stand, with Jake Weatherald’s punchy 72 from 78 setting the tone – and Stokes took some of the blame for a wayward bowling effort, as he and Brydon Carse in particular leaked runs.”Not being able to execute skill is something that you can live with, because no one means to bowl away from the plan that we’re trying to do. We knew exactly how we needed to bowl on that wicket, and we weren’t able to do it for a long enough period to put the Australian batters under pressure. And that was evident in the way that Australia were able to score so quickly and so easily against us.”I think Jofra and Gus set the tone very nicely, actually, when we first took ball, but then myself and Brydon sort of let the game get away from us quite quickly. So, yeah, just not being able to execute what’s needed, not only with batting and also with the ball. We’ll be having some conversations that I’ll be keeping in the dressing room.”Asked about lessons from previous tours – England have lost 5-0, 4-0 and 4-0 in their last three Ashes series down under – Stokes said that he wanted to maintain belief within the dressing room.”Don’t panic, don’t flap, don’t waver, and just have complete and utter belief in our guys as a team. Because I know we can do this. I believe emphatically in the group, I believe empathy, myself, as a captain, as a leader, that I can get the guys into a place where they need to be to able to win these next three games.”

'Confidence, backing is needed for any player' – Haris repays Hesson's faith

The batter emerged from a form slump and set up Pakistan’s opening win in the Asia Cup

Shashank Kishore12-Sep-20251:59

Jaffer: Looks like Haris has worked on his game

Mohammad Haris is forever going to be compared to his predecessor, even if their styles may be polar opposites. If he comes off, it’s seen as a vindication in selection. If he doesn’t, there is invariably going to be murmurs about why Mohammad Rizwan’s experience ought to be used better.Rizwan is more of an accumulator, while Haris is synonymous with intent, which brings with it the inherent risk of being hit-or-miss. But when he comes good, he can deliver the thrill. The problem for Pakistan has been that Haris hasn’t been able to come good lately.Since his century against Bangladesh in Lahore in June, Haris had a highest score of 15 in 11 T20I innings until Friday. He had crossed double figures only twice. All through this run, the pitches he largely played on – from Mirpur to Lauderhill to Sharjah – weren’t exactly conducive to strokeplay.Related

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Then there was also the issue of Pakistan struggling to use him effectively. During this string of low scores, he batted everywhere from Nos. 3-8, a yo-yo existence that further added to the scrutiny. His record against spin in this period was also beginning to look suspect – five dismissals in nine innings that fed into the narrative that more accomplished spinners like Kuldeep Yadav or Rashid Khan can work him out.Yet, through this uncertain phase, one man had complete faith in Haris. Mike Hesson has only been in charge since June, but the shades of dominance he had seen sporadically, both at training and during the occasional big knock like that century in Mirpur, gave him the belief here was a talent worth persisting with.And against the ticking clock, on Friday, Haris delivered – a 32-ball half-century that promised much more, but ended on 66. It was, nonetheless, a knock on a slower-than-usual Dubai surface, which would have given him oodles of confidence.The start wasn’t pretty. He crawled to 16 off 18 as Pakistan were slightly hesitant in the first over. But Haris didn’t panic, and he didn’t throw it away. When Aamir Kaleem, nearly 20 years his senior, came on, he launched the left-arm spinner over deep midwicket with a slog sweep.2:08

Samiuddin: Hesson clear with his plans for Pakistan

Then, he produced the shot of the innings – an inside-out drive over extra cover for four. Sixteen runs came off that over, the last of the powerplay, and with it, the mood shifted. From there, Haris found a gear that had been missing for weeks.His next 25 balls brought him 50 runs, including a six that raised his half-century. There was variety and audacity in equal measure. The short-arm jab off seamer Mohammad Nadeem showed he was adept at tackling bounce. With the off-side ring fortified, it was Haris’ way of outsmarting the bowler, as he picked his spot slightly belatedly, but made a sweet connection.Then the sweep off Samay Shrivastava’s legspin exhibited his power and game sense of targeting the shorter boundary. It was as much muscle as it was about game sense. After the game, Haris spoke of how much the innings meant to him.”The confidence and backing is needed for any player,” he said of the 11-match slump since his previous century. “The way the captain and coach, and senior players, backed me, I’m thankful to them. It’s tough when performances don’t come – there’s a lot of criticism to deal with, but I took it positively.”Haris underlined the need to be flexible, but even by those standards, he cheekily took it to an extreme when he said he was ready to bat even at No. 10 if the team asked him to, impressing upon the need to be versatile. “I’ve been working hard with the batting coach, working on my calmness, and how to tackle spin,” he said. “The seniors have been helping, giving advice. I wanted to use all that and deliver for the team.”For now, he has done just that. More than the runs, it was the manner of scoring, the intent, the composure, the sense of belonging that will encourage Pakistan. For a team bold enough to move on from the superstars under a coach keen on giving them a sense of freedom, Haris’ knock was an inkling that the next-gen may be ready to lead the charge and deliver if persisted with.

VIDEO: Erling Haaland shares bizarre clip of himself stood on the banks of a river to celebrate notching 100 Premier League goals for Man City in record time

Manchester City goal machine Erling Haaland shared a bizarre video of himself standing on the banks of a river to celebrate scoring 100 Premier League goals in record time. Haaland became the fastest player in history to become a Premier League centurion as he struck the opener in City's epic 5-4 win over Fulham on Tuesday at Craven Cottage.

  • Haaland's bizarre clip to celebrate 100 goals

    Haaland reached the magic figure on Tuesday as he netted in the 17th minute against Fulham. City ended up winning the clash 5-4 as the Norwegian became the fastest player ever to reach 100 Premier League goals, doing so in 111 appearances. In the process, he also broke the previous record held by Newcastle legend Alan Shearer, who took 124 matches to reach the milestone. 

    A day after achieving the feat, Haaland shared a short clip of himself standing on the bank of a river and holding a special Manchester City home kit with 'Haaland 100 PL Goals' printed on the back. 

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  • 'It's huge and I'm really proud'

    After reaching 100 league goals, Haaland spoke to Sky Sports as he said: "It's huge and I'm really proud. It's a massive thing, the 100 club is a nice thing to be in and I'm happy. I knew about it, that's what I tried to do. I try to help the team scoring goals, that's my job. Every game is a different game, you can't think of the game that's been, you need to focus on what's ahead. The reality is we lost against Newcastle and Leverkusen but now we have two in a row and we have to keep going. I think if you're sitting at home now you enjoyed that game. It was a crazy game, nine goals is a lot. In the end, we win and we're happy but it's not the best win."

    The 25-year-old is only the 35th player to reach 100 Premier League goals in the league's history. And given he has a contract with City until 2034, the Norway international is well placed to join Wayne Rooney, Harry Kane and Shearer as the only players to have netted 200 or more in the division.

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    'Hopefully he is hungry to continue getting goals'

    City boss Pep Guardiola was elated to see his star striker create another Premier League record. Congratulating the striker after the Fulham clash, he said: "Congratulations, it is incredible. What can I say? Today, he was outstanding. He was unbelievable and got a fantastic goal. Enjoy it, hopefully he is hungry to continue getting goals for this club."

    The Cityzens will return to action on December 6, hosting Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium in what promises to be another demanding stretch of the campaign.

Marsh fails in rare Shield outing as Elliott bags five

Mitch Marsh made nine om Sheffield Shield return amid speculation he’s an outside contender for an Ashes spot, as Sam Elliott’s 5 for 33 put Victoria in control

AAP04-Dec-2025

Mitchell Marsh fell for 9 on Shield return•Getty Images

Mitchell Marsh’s return to red-ball cricket has not gone to plan with the Ashes outsider failing for Western Australia against Victoria in the Sheffield Shield.Marsh had been touted as a potential shock factor at the top of Australia’s order in the series against England. But his return to Shield ranks yielded only nine runs, batting at No.3 for WA on Thursday’s opening day at the MCG.WA struggled to 194 all out, with Sam Elliott taking 5 for 33, before ladder-leading Victoria reached 51 without loss at stumps.Marsh’s most recent Shield match was in October last year. And he hadn’t played a first-class game since being axed from the Test side after the Boxing Day win against India last year, when he scored four and a duck.Marsh’s surprise return to red-ball cricket came amid speculation Test selectors are toying with deploying the hard-hitting batter as an opener against England.But after Travis Head’s first Test heroics at the top of the order, Marsh’s prospects of adding to his 46 Tests appear slimmer.On Thursday, the 34-year-old struck two fours, including a trademark pull shot. But he was also troubled by the movement of Victorian quick Mitchell Perry, who had a couple of lbw shouts turned down against Marsh.Australia’s T20 captain lasted only 16 balls, launching at a full, wide delivery from Perry and edging to wicketkeeper Sam Harper.Allrounder Aaron Hardie top-scored with 53 from 73 balls and Cameron Bancroft was next best with 39, while Jayden Goodwin and Cameron Gannon chipped in.But the West Australians collectively folded late as Elliott crashed through the lower order after Perry captured the initial three wickets.Elliott, who also took a five-for against NSW last month, took five of the last six wickets to fall as WA lost 5 for 42.Victoria’s opening batters Blake Macdonald and Harry Dixon posted a half-century stand inside 13 overs.Eight points clear atop the table, Victoria are chasing a fifth win from six games against WA who have one win from five games.

Jacob Bethell misses out as James Rew 92* leads England to victory

Tourists take honours on first innings but Bethell fails to press Test case

AAP30-Nov-2025Jacob Bethell missed a chance to push for a spot in England’s top order, after failing to make an impression for the tourists in their win over a Prime Minister’s XI.With England’s Test players sitting out the match, Bethell had loomed as the most interesting prospect in what was effectively a Lions side on Sunday.But he was caught behind for 16 pushing at a ball outside off stump from South Australian quick Campbell Thompson, as the only tourist who batted not to pass 50.It came as England lost just two wickets as they chased down the hosts’ 308 for 8 declared in Canberra, shaking hands at 309 for 2 and claiming a first-innings victory.Openers Tom Haines and Emelio Gay both hit half-centuries against the pink ball, as did No. 4 James Rew and No. 5 Asa Tribe.The one concern for the tourists was a hamstring injury for Gay, who was forced to retire hurt in the first session on Sunday.Bethell, meanwhile, had arrived in Australia battling with Ollie Pope for a spot in England’s Test team.Pope was the preferred option and was close to England’s best batter in Perth, while Bethell has made scores of 3, 77 and 40 for the Lions in the past fortnight.The left-hander is still likely next in line if a tourist goes down, but a sizeable score in Canberra could have put pressure on if England’s batting fails again in the second Test at the Gabba.The Prime Minister’s XI used eight bowlers on Sunday with even Sam Konstas sending down one over, with Charlie Anderson taking 1-51 and Thompson 1-46.

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