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Arsenal play their final game of pre-season against Athletic Bilbao this afternoon, and it’d be fair to say the mood around the team is mixed.

On the one hand, Andrea Berta and Co have made several impressive signings to improve Mikel Arteta’s squad, like Viktor Gyokeres and Martin Zubimendi.

However, on the other hand, the team have lost their last two games and the attack, especially on the left, has not looked great.

Fortunately, the transfer window is open for a few more weeks, and, unsurprisingly, the Gunners continue to be linked with players who could help level up the attack, such as Rodrygo.

However, if reports are to be believed, Arsenal are now looking at an alternative to the Brazilian, someone who’d be an even better signing, and no, it’s not Eberechi Eze.

Arsenal target Rodrygo upgrade

Arsenal have been linked with Rodrygo for what feels like months now, with some of the first reports emerging as far back as April and May before then quieting down again last month.

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However, the Real Madrid star was once again touted for a move to the Emirates earlier this week, with some reports claiming that he might be available on a loan with an obligation to buy, while others repeated the £86m price tag from earlier this summer.

Regardless of the structure of the potential deal, there is no doubt that Rodrygo would be a massively exciting transfer, although it now looks like the Gunners are looking at another international, someone who’d be an even better signing.

At least that is according to a recent report from the Sun, which claims Arsenal have maintained their interest in Ademola Lookman.

The report has revealed that the Nigerian star is still on the North Londoners’ list of targets, and that, so far, Inter Milan have not been successful in their pursuit of the player.

In better, even better news, the report claims that an offer of £45m would be enough to tempt Atalanta into selling, which for a player of Lookman’s quality would be a brilliant deal.

Why Lookman would be a better signing than Rodrygo

It should go without saying that Rodrygo is a supremely gifted player and would be an excellent signing for Arsenal, but even so, there are a few reasons that mean Lookman would be an even better one this summer.

The first, and undoubtedly the most crucial, is the simple fact that, over the last three seasons, the Nigerian “superstar,” as dubbed by 90min’s Sean Walsh, has been the more effective attacker.

For example, since moving to the Serie A side in August 2022, he has scored a brilliant 52 goals and provided 25 assists in 118 appearances, totalling 7538 minutes.

That means the former Everton flop has averaged a goal involvement every 1.53 games or every 97.89 minutes on the continent, which is frankly outstanding.

In contrast, the Real star has scored 50 goals and provided 31 assists in 162 appearances, totalling 11012 minutes, across the same period, which comes out to a great, but still less impressive average of a goal involvement every other game, or every 135.95 minutes.

Lookman vs Rodrygo since 22/23

22/23

Lookman

Rodrygo

Appearances

33

57

Minutes

1858′

3853′

Goals

15

19

Assists

8

11

Goal Involvements per Match

0.69

0.52

Minutes per Goal Involvement

80.78′

128.43′

23/24

Lookman

Rodrygo

Appearances

45

51

Minutes

2809′

3707′

Goals

17

17

Assists

10

9

Goal Involvements per Match

0.60

0.50

Minutes per Goal Involvement

104.03′

142.57′

24/25

Lookman

Rodrygo

Appearances

40

54

Minutes

2871′

3452′

Goals

20

14

Assists

7

11

Goal Involvements per Match

0.67

0.46

Minutes per Goal Involvement

106.33

138.08′

All Stats via Transfermarkt

The following reason is quite difficult to quantify, and may even be outright refuted by some fans.

Still, as the Atalanta star would be moving up to a Champions League side and the Los Blancos ace leaving arguably the biggest club in world football, there is always the possibility that the former will have far more drive to push the Gunners forward than the latter.

Finally, there is the overall cost of the two deals.

If the reports are accurate, then there is a chance the former Santos gem could cost up to £43m more than the former RB Leipzig star, and then when it comes to wages, the 24-year-old supposedly makes £349k-per-week including bonuses, while the 27-year-old makes just £38k-per-week.

Ultimately, Rodrygo would be an excellent signing, but from output, to the motivation and the potential cost of the deals, it seems clear to us that Lookman would be a better signing for Arsenal.

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The incredible talent would be an unreal signing for Arsenal and the Swede.

Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Aug 7, 2025

Liverpool have met a roadblock in their quest for greatness, and this one might prove insurmountable.

Time was when FSG were perceived as being misers, unwilling to fork out for the big targets that Jurgen Klopp wanted to advance his Anfield project.

But after this incredible summer of spending, who can argue against the Liverpool owners’ intent now?

Arne Slot won the Premier League in his first season at the club, finishing ten points ahead of second-placed Arsenal despite relaxing standards early, with the title wrapped up at the end of April.

But Liverpool’s rivals have also spent this summer, intent on dethroning the Reds. Though Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike and the like have strengthened Slot’s first team and then some, there have also been several departures.

The latest of which looks set to be Darwin Nunez, who leaves Merseyside with a thick air of untapped promise.

Why Liverpool are selling Darwin Nunez

In all honesty, it doesn’t seem likely that sporting director Richard Hughes would cash in on Nunez and Luis Diaz, who joined Bayern Munich for £65.5m last week, without pre-established plans for some kind of dynamic attacking successor.

Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak is that man. The Athletic’s David Ornstein has revealed that “there’s a very good chance” Isak will leave St. James’ Park this summer, with “his preference being Liverpool.”

Though Liverpool have already signed Ekitike, Isak has proven himself at the highest level, and the Sweden striker could certainly cohabit with Liverpool’s mobile attacking recruit.

The fact of the matter is that Isak’s relationship with Newcastle and Eddie Howe is broken, albeit not irreparable. This is Liverpool’s time to swoop in and sign “the best striker in the Premier League”, as Isak has been named by Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher.

There are plenty of variables which could disrupt FSG’s marquee move, however, and not least of which is the Magpies’ £150m valuation of their number nine.

Liverpool begin plan for Isak alternative

According to L’Equipe, Liverpool are considering acting on their long-standing interest in Paris Saint-Germain’s Bradley Barcola this summer, should a move for Isak fall through.

The left-sided Barcola would be seen as a direct Diaz replacement, and is renowned as one of the brightest talents in French football.

PSG do not want to sell the 22-year-old and have valued him at €100m (about £87m), though Liverpool clearly have the funds, having seen a £110m offer for Isak knocked back last week.

Why Liverpool want Bradley Barcola

Two years ago, Barcola left Lyon and signed for PSG in a €50m package including add-ons. Across the 2023/24 campaign, he started slowly, but came alive last term, notching 42 goal contributions across all competitions (including the Club World Cup).

Renowned for his blistering pace and ability to manipulate tight spaces with quick feet and balletic whirls, Barcola would be a credit to the Liverpool project, instrumental across the Ligue 1 side’s earth-shattering quadruple campaign, winning their maiden Champions League title along with all the goods in France.

Given that Barcola ranks so highly against his positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues and is considered to be a statistically similar star to Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, as per FBref, it does feel like Liverpool could hit the jackpot if they complete a deal.

Analyst Ben Mattinson has even declared the Frenchman to be “one of the best left wingers in Europe”, having risen from prospect to prodigy since leaving Lyon for the Parisians.

Barcola’s one of those players best analysed through the eye test, because picking at his qualities through the data diminishes him. Even so, he chalked up quite the impressive return last season.

Raphinha

57

34

25

59

Bradley Barcola

58

21

19

40

Vincius Junior

51

20

17

37

Cody Gakpo

49

18

7

25

Luis Diaz

50

17

8

25

This blooming level of prolificness suggests Barcola could be the perfect Isak alternative, should Liverpool be forced into ending their interest in the 25-year-old.

Barcola might not be a centre-forward (though his dynamism lends itself to alternative roles across the frontline), but he would certainly arrive at Liverpool with the properties to replace Diaz, who Slot used as a makeshift number nine many times last term.

He’s fleet-footed, but there’s also the notion that he has more of a creative capacity than Diaz, and that could be used to establish him as a leading member of Slot’s Liverpool team.

Ekitike will need plenty of creative support as he attempts to find his feet in the English top flight, but then the France forward, 23, has been praised by football scout Jacek Kulig for his talents, the analyst saying, “he could definitely reach world-class striker levels.”

With this in mind, is it truly crucial that Liverpool complete a deal for Isak this summer? Liverpool, after all, have only Cody Gakpo as a senior option on the left wing now.

Rio Ngumoha is an incredible prospect, but he’s only 16 years old; chucking him into the deep end this season could derail the hype train.

Given that Gakpo is more of a goalscoring wide forward, focused on cutting inside and striking on goal, Barcola would provide Liverpool with the perfect contrasting foil, blending flair against economy of movement.

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Barcola is viewed as a “world-class player” by those in the FSG offices after all.

So is Isak, but then, Carragher said on The Overlap that he doesn’t “want Liverpool to spend £150m on Isak”, citing such a fee as Kylian Mbappe-level money.

Given that Barcola would be affordable for a much cheaper, though still hefty, figure, Liverpool might want to push ahead with a deal for the PSG man, whose signature might just prove the more fruitful of the two.

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ByDan Emery Aug 7, 2025

She wants her team to get inspired by the recent success of the Indian men’s team

Daya Sagar27-Aug-20248:27

Newsroom: Is this India Women’s best chance to win the World Cup?

India women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur wants her team to draw inspiration from the India men’s team that won the T20 World Cup in June, when they travel to the UAE for the Women’s T20 World Cup in October. While the men’s team won the title after 17 years and lifted an ICC trophy after 11 years, the women’s team is yet to lift the T20 World Cup. They came close in the 2020 edition, when they were runners-up in Australia.”We have been really inspired by the men’s team, the way they won the T20 World Cup this year,” Harmanpreet said at an event in Delhi, on the same day the India’s T20 World Cup squad was announced. “They worked really hard for this trophy and won some tough matches. We need to learn how they maintained their body language for such matches and how they approached such games. We’re on the same road now and getting ready for our World Cup campaign. The team is working really hard and our attempt will be to give our country and fans another opportunity to celebrate this year.”The women’s side last reached the ODI World Cup final in 2017, when they lost by just nine runs at Lord’s, before going down to Australia in the T20 World Cup final in 2020, and two years later they again lost to Australia, also by nine runs, in the final of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. In last year’s T20 World Cup, India went down to Australia in the semi-final, by just five runs, and when they were the favourites to win the Asia Cup in the T20 format last month, they were beaten comprehensively by the much lower-ranked Sri Lanka.Related

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For the upcoming T20 World Cup in the UAE, India are in Group A with Australia, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Pakistan. Their first three matches will be in Dubai, before they take on Australia in Sharjah. Will India be under pressure against Australia and the new Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka?”The World Cup is a kind of tournament for which all teams prepare differently,” Harmanpreet said. “So no team can be taken lightly and similarly no team should be overestimated either. Bilateral series have a different kind of pressure and for World Cups there is pressure as well as expectations and hopes of fans. We are working extremely hard to live up to those expectations, we have been holding camps where all players are working hard. We have also worked on the mistakes we made the last time. Now we’re ready with a positive mindset.”The T20 World Cup will start on October 3 in Sharjah with two matches on the opening day. India’s campaign will kick off on October 4 against New Zealand, before taking on Pakistan on October 6, Sri Lanka on October 9 and Australia on October 13. After the round-robin stage, the top two teams from each group will play the semi-finals on October 17 and 18, and the final is scheduled for October 20 in Dubai.

Tottenham Hotspur are facing a summer of major change, both in the dugout and in terms of first-team players, with uncertainty surrounding Ange Postecoglou and Spurs anticipating a ‘sell to buy’ transfer window.

Tottenham preparing for season-defining Europa League semi-final

Amid a very regrettable domestic campaign, where the Lilywhites have suffered an inexcusable 19 Premier League defeats, the success of their season rests entirely on the Europa League.

24-year-old confirms decision to leave Tottenham after talks with Spurs

They’ve reached an agreement to mutually part ways.

2 ByEmilio Galantini Apr 29, 2025

After dramatically knocking out Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarter-finals, Spurs face this year’s fairytale underdogs, Bodo/Glimt, in a two-legged semi-final which many are expecting them to win.

West Ham (away)

May 3rd

Crystal Palace (home)

May 10th

Aston Villa (away)

May 18th

Brighton (home)

May 25th

However, even if Tottenham get past the Norwegian minnows and go on to win their first major trophy since 2008, there is still the very real possibility that Postecoglou and Spurs part company – two years after they appointed the Australian to replace Antonio Conte.

The Telegraph reported last week that Postecoglou is heading towards the Tottenham axe, regardless of their success in Europe, and winning the competition could be the most honorable way for him to part ways and end his N17 stay on a high.

Tottenham are already being linked with a host of different managers, from big names to lesser-known quantities, and Postecoglou could be joined out of the exit door by some big-name first-team players.

Matt Law reported recently that Spurs may need to sell players and generate funds for their transfer activity, with right-back Pedro Porro and striker Richarlison among the men tipped to potentially leave. A more regularly mentioned nominee for the transfer list is star defender Cristian Romero.

The Argentine is attracting serious interest from Atlético Madrid ahead of the summer, and it is believed chairman Daniel Levy is growing more open to the possibility of cashing in on him (GiveMeSport).

There are even suggestions that Atlético head coach, Diego Simeone, is personally driving their interest in the £165,000-per-week defender.

Now, another update has emerged courtesy of Spanish news outlet Marca.

Cristian Romero has already told Tottenham he wants to go

The outlet reports that Romero informed Tottenham of his desire to leave in March, and Atlético have been working on a deal for the ex-Atalanta centre-back for as long as five months.

However, they’re postponing formal negotiations for after the Lilywhites’ Europa League campaign, where they may have a better understanding of what it will take to strike a deal for Romero.

While Atlético only wish to bid around £34 million for his signature, as things stand, Spurs are demanding much more for a player who’s been described as “world-class” during his time at the club.

Injuries have largely hindered the 27-year-old’s season, which has been the case for a lot of Tottenham players, but Romero has certainly showcased his serious quality alongside Micky van de Ven in Postecoglou’s high line, especially last season.

Memories of the loss against England were not far from the India allrounder’s mind, but there would be no repeat

S Sudarshanan31-Oct-2025

Jemimah Rodrigues and Amanjot Kaur embrace in the middle•ICC/Getty Images

As soon as she cut the ball past backward point, Amanjot Kaur exulted. She was hoisted by Jemimah Rodrigues, who then sank to the floor, covered her face and started to tear up. Amanjot just stood there and patted her on the back. Navi Mumbai erupted in joy. The Indian players sprinted to the middle. For those in the dugout, the hugs were the tightest. There were tears of joy.Beating Australia was one hurdle India had repeatedly failed to cross in knockouts of recent ICC tournaments. Not anymore. India were in the final of the Women’s World Cup 2025.Related

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When do you actually go for the kill in a run chase? It forms the crux of our sport. Yet it is one of the most discussed, often debated and dissected, parts of the game – the timing of actually stepping on the pedal. A pure judgement call.India hadn’t got it right against England in Indore. An equation of 36 off 30 became 32 off 24. And then 27 off 18. Amanjot was in the middle then. She tried to take the game deep. But they ran out of time. India needed 23 off 12 balls and 14 off the last over; they lost by four runs. The final kick never arrived.This recent bit of history made every one of the 34,651 at the DY Patil Stadium – and those watching on the television – on Thursday twitch in their seats. The set Rodrigues, who scored her maiden World Cup century, was just offered a reprieve. India now needed 48 off 36 in their 339-run chase. Richa Ghosh hit Ashleigh Gardner, who she had taken apart in the WPL 2025 season-opener, for a six and a four in the space of three balls.Annabel Sutherland stood at the top of the mark for her penultimate over. Is there anything she can’t do? She gave away just five runs. More tellingly, she removed Ghosh for the second time in two meetings at this World Cup. The India wicketkeeper’s wild swing only resulted in a top edge to backward point.Jemimah Rodrigues eased the pressure with vital boundaries•Getty ImagesWhen Smriti Mandhana had been ruled out caught behind via the DRS, you could hear a pin drop even in one of the noisiest stands at the DY Patil Stadium. The Bucket Hat Cult, a fans’ group that enhances stadium experience at women’s cricket matches in India, had gone quiet in disbelief. Imagine being in that section of crowd with Amanjot walking in with India needing 7.25 per over.”Should I charge at the bowlers or will you do so?” was Amanjot’s first question to Rodrigues. Both Amanjot and Rodrigues’ physique may not scream out power, but they possess the ability to hit mean sixes. But that wasn’t the need of the hour.”She said, we are good runners. (we will get us home),” Amanjot said after the game. “‘You see the ball, the track is nice, and we should do it.’ It was a great surface. She said we should finish it with one over to spare.”Australia are one team you wouldn’t want to give a sniff. They had one now. Do India have to endure a heartbreak again? The tension was palpable. Stay unmoved. Don’t utter a line about the state of the game. Let’s not talk about the what-ifs. Instructions were going out left, right, centre. The sounds of keys being hammered away was audible in the media box, deadlines drawing closer and the finish unrelenting.This time there would be no heartache•Getty ImagesSutherland ran in for her tenth over but had to abort her run-up because Amanjot pulled away. A long chant from the crowd. Amanjot then took ran a two and a single on the first two legal deliveries, either side of a wide, and gave strike back to Rodrigues, who has seen a fair bit of Sutherland at Delhi Capitals.Sutherland’s slower ball arrived, Rodrigues was early but she waited and scooped it past the wicketkeeper. And then, after another wide, she hung back to a length ball to slash it past backward point. India had managed to take 15 off the 48th over. Now 8 off 12 was a walk in the park, and Amanjot hit two fours in three balls of the 49th over to set off wild celebrations.”After Richa fell, the game was in the balance,” she said. “I had the England game in my mind where I took the game deep but we were left needing 12 [14], which was too much. I did not want a repeat. If she would have asked me to charge [at the bowler], I would have charged. But she asked me to play carefully, and the pitch was good. We calculated and the nine [15] runs that came from Annabel Sutherland’s over helped us greatly.”On the India team sheet, Amanjot was slated to bat at No. 3 and Rodrigues at No. 5. But Rodrigues was informed that she would be one-drop for the day, and within five minutes – and ten balls into the chase – she found herself walking out. It was only a quirk of the day that Amanjot and Rodrigues were in the middle for the photo-finish.

After falling while trying to get out of the line of a short ball at the MCG, Rizwan went after the Australian bowlers in Sydney

Danyal Rasool03-Jan-2024Mohammad Rizwan had got out of the way, and he was furious. He pointed to his arm, gesturing towards a white spot further up the limb the ball definitely hadn’t hit, in an attempt to deflect from the soft, incriminating kiss it had given the wristband of his glove. He went to the Australian fielders to tell them he wasn’t out; given they had opted to send it up to the TV umpire Richard Illingworth, it’s safe to assume they begged to differ. When he was given his marching orders, he seethed some more, animatedly gesturing to the umpire before walking off the MCG in a huff. It wasn’t like Rizwan at all.He had been cramped for room (as he almost famously said in Hyderabad), and now he was acting out.But perhaps what angered him wasn’t the TV umpire’s decision – the evidence was fairly conclusive – but his reaction to Pat Cummins’ body serve of a delivery: he’d got out of the way. And that, if you know much about him, is even less like Rizwan.For the most part, Rizwan’s body is always on the line; he wears blows like badges of honour. It’s possible the mystery mark on his arm was just one of many such bruises decorating his flesh. He throws himself to the ground, diving to complete runs he could have dawdled and still completed, and invariably bruises an arm or a leg, or knocks his helmet grill back into his head keeping the concussion doctor on his toes. He cramps up and yes, he acts. But for a man of faith like Rizwan, getting out of the way must be as close as sport comes to sacrilege.Related

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And having sinned once, Rizwan was ready to repent in Sydney. At 56 for 4, Josh Hazlewood bowled a similar ball to him, arrowing into his body off a slightly short length, but one that would have made ducking tricky. Instead of stepping away, Rizwan moved his body further into the line and got down low, making himself even more vulnerable. Fine leg was stationed on the edge of the boundary, meaning an aggressive shot here would be as much a professional as a personal risk, but Rizwan didn’t care. And then, in a motion that was more a crack of a whip than a swing of a bat, one liquid motion that almost saw him use his ribs as a pivot, he clobbered one over fine leg’s head for six.Hazlewood pitched the next one on a length; it was nothing like the previous ball, nothing, even, like the Cummins ball. But with the zeal of a convert, Rizwan went after this one too, his head falling away well before he was through his shot, and his body following soon after. Either of those two balls could have got him out, but to note that was to miss the point. For Rizwan, there are certain things that bother him, but getting out isn’t intrinsically one of them.Rizwan went off for lunch, but his appetite was nowhere near sated yet. This time, he was facing Cummins himself, the man who had caused him to sin last week, snapping his side out of the heavenly dreams of victory and casting them back into this mortal realm. He bowled two balls wide of off stump, each of which Rizwan tried to attack, but it was when he sent one the third one in short that Rizwan delivered retribution. He rose to his toes, extending himself to his full height and carved him away for a boundary; it was now that Rizwan was tucking in.Mohammad Rizwan was unhappy with his dismissal during Pakistan’s chase at the MCG•Getty Images and Cricket AustraliaWhen Mitchell Marsh came on, Rizwan didn’t need so much as a second look. He cut the first ball over the slips, flashing hard over gully to pick up four, before nearly chopping on against Cummins the following over attempting another high-risk shot. It was that battle against Cummins which Rizwan was, for better or worse, never going to back down from. He attacked just under 20% of all deliveries he faced from the Australian captain, a higher percentage than any other bowler. And of the 61 runs Cummins conceded in 18 overs, 19 of them came off just 21 deliveries he bowled to Rizwan.Masood had fallen by now, but Rizwan was busy constructing a salvage job with Salman Ali Agha. An over before drinks, where he drove Nathan Lyon against the turn and swept him with it set the tone, and fittingly it was a boundary off a short Hazlewood delivery that took him to his second half-century in Australia.Rizwan’s commitment to this brand was so total it appeared to have a proselytising effect on Agha. Like a faithful disciple, he followed Rizwan in planting the front foot and sweeping Lyon, before charging down the wicket the following delivery and walloping him back over his head. Rizwan himself went one better, of course, dancing down and fetching six more off the spinner. Four days after Pakistan had dropped into the abyss following the breaking of a partnership between these two man, here they were, digging them out of it.Cummins ran through his options, bringing Mitchell Starc back on. Starc is perhaps the man who can land the most painful of body blows, but Rizwan flashed two short deliveries square for four as he hurtled towards a record he set the first time he batted in Australia four years ago. No Pakistan wicketkeeper has ever scored a century in Australia; Rizwan’s 95 in Brisbane in 2019 is the closest anyone has ever come. He could put that right in a few minutes. But Rizwan wasn’t looking to make amends from last tour, more from last week.With a weary sense of inevitability, Cummins brought himself back on, and sent down the same delivery that had accounted for Rizwan at the MCG. Rizwan swiftly got himself in line but the ball continued to rise, and the batter’s slash flew up to the square leg it had sailed over two hours earlier. Hazlewood completed the catch with ease, and Rizwan fell a dozen short of that history-making hundred. It was a bad time to get out, and if you watched it in isolation, inoculated from what happened at the MCG and of the way Rizwan thinks about cricket, a naïve way to depart.From Rizwan himself though, there was no remonstration this time. He put his bat underneath his arm and walked briskly off. Rizwan’s body was back on the line, and his team back in the contest. If Pakistan can turn disaster into anything resembling triumph, the origins of it might have been conceived a thousand kilometres away, with an uncharacteristically angry man pointing to a phantom mark on his forearm in late December sunshine.

The Australian players reflect on their title win and what it means to them

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Nov-20213:12

Moody: Credit to Langer and Finch to galvanise this Australian team

Matthew Wade: Huge [on what does this win mean]. At first, T20 World Cup coming in, felt like a lot of people maybe wrote us off and didn’t expect us to get to this moment. But internally we spoke about how we’re going to be the first team to achieve this for Australia. [It’s] something really, really special.Cricket on ESPN+

Match highlights of the Men’s T20 World Cup final is available in English, and in Hindi (USA only).

[On his innings in the semi-final] When we sit down, I will reflect probably closely on that. I think more than my innings, the partnership, we spoke about me and [Marcus] Stoinis in the rooms when we’re chasing, just saying that we probably didn’t realise that we scored as many runs as we did the other night. And then coming into this game, we felt really confident that if the boys could get off to a good start, then we could contribute at the end, but thankfully Mitch [Marsh] and Davey [Warner] and Maxie [Glenn Maxwell] at the end there did the job for us. As Stoinis said, just so proud of this group. Yeah, we’re stoked.Marcus Stoinis: The key…this group of boys, we absolutely, we actually love each other. It is beautiful. I can’t wait to keep playing with this team. I’m so proud of them. You won’t find bigger supporters of Mitch Marsh than right here and probably his family. We’re so happy for him.Adam Zampa: I just tried to use my strengths to the best of my ability. I knew the wickets were going to be pretty low. I bowled at a good time; we won the toss and bowled first. So it was probably a little bit drier when I was bowling, so I tried to use that to the best of my ability, tried to get tickets when we needed them and tried to defend when we need to do that as well.2:47

Moody: Can’t underestimate Australia as they don’t often play T20Is at full-strength

[On backroom staff] A lot of credit goes to those guys. We’ve been in bubbles for almost two years now. And that takes a toll on everyone, including the staff. Our preparation from their side of things has been great. And it’s their win as well.Glenn Maxwell: He [Zampa] has been a superstar in this format as well as one-day cricket for a long period of time. I’ve had the pleasure of having him at the [Melbourne] Stars and watching him go about his work for a long time. So to watch him bring it straight into international cricket, like there’s absolutely no edges whatsoever. He’s just fitted in so well and last three years as a legspinner, I don’t think there are many better in the world.I was able to give myself a few days off before the tournament to really freshen up and I felt like I was hitting the ball really well. Luckily, that wasn’t really required a whole heap. But it was nice to be out there at the end and get the winning runs.Steven Smith: [This win means] a lot. We’ve worked hard for a long time. This is a trophy that has eluded us for a very long time. So it’s an honour to be out here with the boys and to be able to take that trophy home, it’s exceptional.His [Warner’s] last two weeks have been amazing. A lot of people were writing him off at the start, saying he was out of form but it took one good innings and he was away. Today, I thought he came out with exceptional intent again. Him and Mitchell Marsh, that partnership really set us up for the game. I am really proud of those two boys. I think they’ve had great tournament, both of them.Josh Hazlewood: There’s always pressure, the batters are coming at you from ball one basically. But we started really well, we kept the powerplay to I think around 40. Some pretty good effort there and I obviously got away at the end. But we saw the wicket was pretty good and the exceptional chase from our guys.[On Williamson’s knock] He’s a superb player and he has been for a long time now. Another classical Kane innings really, scored all around the ground and hurts you when you bowl poorly.Justin Langer: I suppose everyone who wins a World Cup says it’s hard to process, it’s hard to put it into words. But this is such a special group of people. I know every coach, every captain says the same thing. But we’ve got some amazing cricketers here, we haven’t had a chance to play together because of different reasons for last 12 months. So when we all got back together, it was almost like a reunion. And they’re such close, there’re so many close relationships there. It’s a very, very special moment for everyone.Mitchell Marsh and Pat Cummins celebrate with the trophy•ICC via Getty ImagesWe knew that when we came back together how much talent we had. That’s for one. I mean, there’s enormous talent in this team. When we’re in the West Indies and Bangladesh leading into this series, there were a few missing pieces. And Mitch Marsh took one of those pieces. And he’s been brilliant. And we also embraced fun. In this situation, where everyone talks about bubble, these guys had so much fun on and off the ground. In this form of the game, actually in the game of cricket, it’s important to have fun and enjoy it, and the guys have done that. I think it was a really important part of our success here.Zamps puts a smile on my face every time because he’s a little bit different. He’s a little hippie, but he’s so competitive, and he’s been so good in this form of the game. We see legspinners have an impact around the world and he’s doing that for Australia now.And Josh Hazlewood, well, he didn’t play the last one-day World Cup because he had some issues with his back. He has come in here, he’s been sublime, so it’s just been a great team effort.Pat Cummins: Pretty pumped. I think once we get back home and get back in there, will it only sink in. A lot of support from back home, like getting up at 1am to watch this game, so a great feeling.It was a good thing playing a little bit of the IPL over here. Even someone like Joshy Hazlewood coming straight from the IPL, here he is seeing to adapt really quickly and I mean, you don’t have to get too funky. It’s just part of what we do again more with the red ball stuff with a few slower balls thrown in there. This is really great, it’s such a complete squad of 15 guys here, so really happy.Mitchell Starc: It’s not been the ideal lead-up, but I think just the closeness of the group, we had a great time here. We’ve had some great times off the field, getting around one another. And I think that showed in the way we played our cricket. We’ve had everyone contribute, guys off the field, on the field, different guys in different games. And we saw that again tonight. So I think that the closeness of the group is what really got us through this tournament, and then hopefully that leads into the summer as well.He [Zampa] has been fantastic. He’s been our best bowler, I think, by far for the last couple of years with the white ball. And he made it really easy for us quickies to work around him. I think we’re pretty confident in what we do and run off the back of each other when Zamps is doing what he does. I think it just makes the bowling group, their role a lot clearer and we can do our job quite easy I guess.

أكد حسين الشحات لاعب فريق الكرة بـ الأهلي على جاهزيته للمشاركة في مباريات القلعة الحمراء خلال الفترة المقبلة بعد تعافيه من الإصابة، موجهاً رسالة لـ منتخب مصر الأول قبل مشاركته في بطولة كأس أمم إفريقيا.

وقال حسين الشحات في تصريحات صحفية عبر الموقع الرسمي لـ الأهلي: “سعيد للغاية بالعودة إلى المباريات من جديد، وأنتظر الحصول على الإشارة من جانب الجهاز الفني، وفترة الإصابة كانت صعبة وتوقيتها كان الأصعب بعد فترة من الأداء المميز خاصة أمام الزمالك في مباراة القمة، لكن الإصابات قضاء وقدر والحمد لله دائمًا وأبدًا على كل شيء”.

وأردف: “بطولة كأس عاصمة مصر مهمة، وهي فرصة مناسبة للمشاركة بشكل أكبر في المباريات، وبالتأكيد سوف نستغلها بشكل مناسب خلال فترة مشاركة بقية عناصر الفريق ببطولة كأس الأمم الإفريقية، ونتمنى أن ننجح خلالها في تقديم أداء مميز”.

وواصل: “علاقتي بجماهير الأهلي مميزة للغاية، وهو ما أعتز وأفخر به دائمًا، وأعمل لأن يستمر لآخر العمر، وأسعى دائمًا أن أقدم كل ما يمكنني لإسعادهم، وقد لمست دعمهم لي خلال الفترة الماضية، ومنذ مباراة القمة أمام الزمالك في الدوري التي وفقت خلالها وشاركت بشكل مؤثر ووضعت بصمة في النتيجة”.

وتابع: “سعيد للغاية باستمرار تداول صورتي خلال الاستعداد للمشاركة في مباراة الزمالك، من المهم خلال هذه المواجهات أن يكون لديك قدر كبير من التركيز لصناعة الفارق، خاصة عند الجلوس على مقاعد البدلاء، والأهم هو سعادة جماهير الأهلي بالنتيجة وقتها”.

طالع.. الأهلي يعلن تفاصيل إصابة أفشة وكريم فؤاد

وأكمل: “والحمد لله على التتويج ببطولة السوبر المصري، كانت محطة مهمة للغاية بعد التعثر في بطولة الدوري، دخلنا البطولة بحالة من الإصرار الشديد على الفوز، كنت في فترة الإصابة وخارج المباراة لكني تعايشت مع الأجواء، والحمد لله على التوفيق في الفوز باللقب”.

واستطرد: “كل الدعم لـ منتخب مصر في بطولة كأس الأمم الإفريقية، وأتمنى التوفيق لزملائي المتواجدين في المعسكر وأن ينجحوا في الفوز بالبطولة، بالتأكيد تمنيت التواجد معهم ولكن الحمد لله على كل حال، وأتمنى الفوز باللقب وإسعاد الجماهير”.

وأتم: “دائما ما أقول وأكرر أن جمهور الأهلي عظيم ولا مثيل له، وتواجده معنا يمثل الحافز الأكبر للفوز بالبطولات، وهم السند في كل الأوقات وشرف كبير دعمهم لنا، وأتمنى أن نوفق في إسعادهم من خلال الفوز بالبطولات”.

First home hundred in new role at No. 3 marks overdue arrival of England’s perennial coming man

Alan Gardner12-Jun-20225:55

#PoliteEnquiries: Is Joe Root now the Fab One?

These have been lean years for the production of England Test batters. Since Joe Root’s debut almost a decade ago, a succession of candidates have auditioned without looking the part. Ollie Pope was different, picked out as the heir apparent – but success only came in fits and starts. If there was ever a poster in the dressing room, in the style of the stencilled portrait that accompanied Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, only with HOPE replaced by POPE – well, it was getting a bit tatty around the edges by now.Finally, here at Trent Bridge, almost four years since he made his debut against India, Pope delivered on his promise with a first Test century at home. It came in only his third first-class innings at No. 3, having been recalled following a difficult winter and anointed once again as English batting’s great whites hope. Could he cut it in the pivotal spot in the order, where some say your best batter should be deployed? To borrow from the Obama campaign once again: “Yes he can!”That was certainly the mood of adulation and appreciation which spilled forth to greet Pope’s scampered two after pushing Matt Henry into the covers shortly after lunch on day three. Ben Stokes, his new captain, led the standing ovation on the England balcony, while Joe Root, who was in charge for Pope’s first 23 Test appearances, fair leapt across the 22-yard strip before racing over to enclose his partner in a congratulatory embrace.Root congratulates Pope on his first hundred at home•Getty ImagesEngland’s current regime, overseen by Stokes and Brendon McCullum, is all about pumping the players’ tyres, but there can be no greater confidence-booster than actually producing the goods. Despite the flatness of the surface, and conditions in Nottingham that continued to be on the fill-your-boots side of hospitable, there were still moments when Pope’s technique and temperament were tested. An attack featuring Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Kyle Jamieson rarely gives up easy runs.Pope had reached fifty on the second evening, having survived a sharp chance to first slip off Boult, and England’s batting coach, Marcus Trescothick, emphasised the faith being placed in the 24-year-old, who had never previously batted at first drop before last week’s Lord’s Test.”That’s what we see a lot in county games, and if we can draw that out and continue to let him grow in that position, then we know the player that’s in there,” Trescothick said. “Hence the reason why he’s in the team, and we’ve pushed him up to No. 3, because we all appreciate that he has the talent. It’s nurturing it and bringing it through to be the player he can be.”For all Pope’s silky qualities, his progress at international level has been far from serene. Two brief appearances in 2018 – again thrust into an unfamiliar position at No. 4 – brought him 54 runs at 18.00, and he spent 15 months out of the side before going on to record a maiden hundred on the 2019-20 tour of South Africa. After 10 Tests, which included an innings of 91 against West Indies in Southampton, Pope’s average stood at 43.38.Related

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Few would have predicted the subsequent slide but, either side of a shoulder operation, his returns dried up while concerns about his technique grew. After the winter’s Ashes ended with Pope being scuttled by Pat Cummins, bowled behind his legs to add to English ignominy, his average had fallen below 30 and he was relegated to carrying drinks in the Caribbean.Since then, as Pope told ESPNcricinfo before this series, he had returned to Surrey and worked on stripping his game back. “I’ve just tried to keep it as simple as possible and put a big focus on my decision-making rather than thinking too much about my technique,” he said.Watch Pope bat for any length of time and you will be left in no doubt about his ability to ping shots around the ground. But coming in at No. 3 in Test cricket is only likely to increase the scrutiny on that aforementioned decision-making – as his dismissals for 7 and 10 at Lord’s made clear. The ball from Boult that did for him in the second innings, a searing seam-and-swing skidoosh into off stump, had the air of the unplayable; but Pope’s skittering feet and slightly closed bat face suggested there might have been better ways to to play it.At Trent Bridge, in more benign circumstances, it was again Boult and his left-arm interrogation that would prove Pope’s greatest challenge. The eighth ball he had faced, after coming in early on the second evening, produced a waft in the channel that could only do Pope damage, and it was Boult who found the edge at the start of his second spell, only for Daryl Mitchell to spill the catch going low to his left.That let-off came during an adrenalin-fuelled counter, mainly off the bowling of Henry, in which Pope zipped from 11 to 50 in the space off 22 balls. Two top-edged hooks flew into the stands, but there were several more authentic strokes besides, Jamieson drilled through the covers and then cut away for two fours in the space of three balls to complete his first Test half-century since last September.Devon Conway shakes Pope’s hand after he fell for 145•Getty ImagesHe resumed on a balmy Sunday morning with no doubt about what another expectant full house was hoping to see. With Alex Lees providing positive vibes at the other end, enthusiastically cover-driving his way to a first Test fifty, Pope was able to ease himself back in. There were a couple of anxious fiddles at Boult, another outside edge falling narrowly short of Mitchell, before an authoritative response three balls later as he stroked his first boundary of the day.For a while, as Lees’ cover drive brought his downfall and Root made a typically busy start to his innings, Pope was becalmed, facing just 28 balls during a 15-over period in the lead-up to lunch. He went into the interval on 84, but did not dally after the resumption, aided by four overthrows and then gliding through the 90s in the space of seven balls. The elation, and the relief, was palpable as Pope’s helmet came off, the bat swung vigorously in celebration. England’s coming man had finally arrived.There was time for some fun afterwards, as Pope and Root looked to make good on Neville Cardus’ assertion that Trent Bridge was “a lotus land for batsmen, a place where it was always afternoon and 360 for two wickets”. Henry was ramped for six, then thrashed impudently for four more after switching ends. Root slipstreamed his way to a 116-ball hundred, before Pope eventually fell to another attacking stroke after tea.Pope walked off as only the third man other than Root to score a Test hundred at No. 3 for England since the retirement of Jonathan Trott in 2015. The HOPE in the dressing room now is that there will be a few more to come.

In an age of austerity throughout swaths of baseball, the San Diego Padres remain admirably aggressive—and this year is reportedly no different.

The Padres are zeroing in on three All-Star trade targets as Thursday's deadline approaches, according to a Wednesday evening report from Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal of . Per LIn and Rosenthal, San Diego is bidding for Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran, Cleveland Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan, and Athletics pitcher Mason MIller

All three of those players fall in the "young and controllable category." Duran, 28, is a year removed from an 8.7-bWAR season and is making south of $4 million in 2025. Two-time All-Star Kwan is due just over $4 million this year, while Miller is making just $765,000.

"Considering the top-heavy state of the Padres’ farm system, Preller might need to part with elite shortstop prospect Leo De Vries or well-regarded catching prospect Ethan Salas to acquire any of the above players," Lin and Rosenthal wrote.

San Diego is currently occupying the National League's final playoff spot, and leads the Cincinnati Reds by 3.5 games for that honor.