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Arsenal are now determined to complete deals for two international teammates this summer, having prepared a package worth a total of £99m, according to a report.

Arsenal planning for the summer

There have been widespread calls for the Gunners to sign a striker in the summer, having decided not to bring in a new forward during the January transfer window, which may have gone some way to derailing their Premier League title bid.

As such, work has started on bringing a new striker to the Emirates Stadium, and an exciting new update has revealed the north Londoners are now leading Manchester United in the race to sign Napoli’s Victor Osimhen.

Alexander Isak is another name on Mikel Arteta’s list of targets, but a move for the Newcastle United man could prove to be very expensive, so FC Porto’s Samu Aghehowa has now been identified as a potential cheaper alternative.

Arsenal told they can get "incredible" ace for £9m less than Calafiori cost

He’s a wanted man…

1

By
Tom Cunningham

Mar 1, 2025

Striker is not the only position in which Arteta is keen to strengthen, however, with the manager also looking at a new winger and central midfielder, and a report from Spain has now revealed a move could be made for two international teammates.

According to a report from Spain, Arsenal are now preparing a €120m (£99m) package to sign Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi and Athletic Club’s Nico Williams, with £49.5m being allocated to each player.

However, there may have to be some departures to fund the moves, given that it could be a costly operation, with attacking duo Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli reportedly among the main candidates to leave.

Arsenal need attacking depth

In truth, it is a little strange for the report to suggest Martinelli or Trossard could depart, given that Arteta clearly needs attacking depth next season if his side are to finally go all the way and win the Premier League title.

Bukayo Saka’s absence has hit hard, with 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri being called upon to fill in for the England international, while the injuries suffered by Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz have left the Gunners without a striker during a title run-in.

As such, while there are clear signs Williams could be a solid signing, having been lauded as “world-class” by journalist Zach Lowy, Arteta shouldn’t sell any of his current forwards to fund a move.

Kieran Tierney has also lauded Zubimendi as “world-class”, indicating that Arsenal are lining up moves for two top players, which will be exciting news, however signing a new striker has to be a priority.

Osimhen’s release clause dropping to £62m has presented the Gunners with an excellent opportunity to bring in an out-and-out forward without completely breaking the bank, and the Nigerian’s fantastic goal record indicates he could be the final piece of the jigsaw.

England 281 (Duckett 63, Pope 60, Abrar 7-114) and 202 for 5 (Brook 73*, Stokes 15*) lead Pakistan 202 (Babar 75, Shakeel 63, Leach 4-98) by 281 runs What’s a team to do when its plans for dominance come to fruition too soon? After their toil for wickets in Rawalpindi, interspersed with manic bursts of batting that bought them time to turn the screw, England found themselves in the polar opposite scenario on the second day in Multan.The day dawned with an eight-wicket surge in the morning session that was beyond their wildest dreams, and after that came two sessions of batting consolidation – or at least the closest thing that this high-octane line-up can muster, featuring a brace of even-tempo-ed half-centuries from Ben Duckett and Harry Brook, two wildly ill-judged run-outs from Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope, and a further burst of wickets for the mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed that took his debut tally to ten and counting.The upshot was, that by the close of day two, England had the match – and the series – at their mercy on a surface that promises only to get more challenging as the contest unfolds. After bowling Pakistan out for 202 on the stroke of lunch, a lead of 79, England had extended their advantage to 281 with five wickets remaining by sunset, and with Brook unbeaten on 73 from 106, his third score of real substance of this breakthrough tour.Overall England pressed along at a purposeful rate of 4.12 an over, faster than any of Pakistan’s three innings of the series to date, but their progress was still significantly more watchful than their first-day 281 had been. And yet, to judge by the early signs of England’s reply, such relative reticence perhaps hadn’t been the original gameplan for this second innings.After Crawley had taken on Abrar’s arm at mid-on and lost – a fair sign of a team still in a hurry – Will Jacks strode out to bat at No. 3, a position in which he had never before batted in first-class cricket. Watching on from the Sky Sports studio, Stuart Broad speculated that “Lumberjacks” had been promoted to “chop down” the attack, but the ploy didn’t quite pay off. As Abrar entered the attack for the seventh over, he took his match tally to eight wickets with his sixth ball of the innings, as Jacks climbed into a slog-sweep and had his stumps rearranged.Jack Leach and Ben Stokes celebrate the wicket of Saud Shakeel•Matthew Lewis/Getty Images

At 25 for 2, England were in slight danger of throwing away their morning dominance, but Joe Root’s arrival at No. 4 signalled a reversion to more traditional tactics in spinning conditions – watchful strike rotation and calm partnership building, as he and Duckett carried their third-wicket stand to 54 from 80 balls.After his tour de force in Sri Lanka and India two winters ago, Root’s fluency in spinning conditions is a fairly reliable gauge of the challenge of any given surface. And once again, he was not in total command of his brief in making 21 from 35 balls, even though it took a stunning piece of reaction fielding at short leg to prise him from the crease. Crouched beneath his helmet, Abdullah Shafique tracked Root’s positioning for a pre-meditated sweep, then grasped the chance straight off the face of the bat in his outstretched left hand, inches from the ground.When Brook – Gilbert Jessop’s nemesis at Rawalpindi – opened his latest account with four runs from his first 26 balls, it did seem for a time that England were reformed characters. But inevitably, that staid tempo wasn’t going to suit Brook for long. After drilling Abrar straight back down the ground for his first boundary, he picked off a further seven fours and a six in making 69 runs in his remaining 80 balls before the close.At the other end, Duckett too stepped up his urgency, though seeing as his second dexterous fifty of the match had come from a perfectly brisk 68 balls, perhaps he had no need to go into overdrive. He had already been egregiously dropped by Babar Azam at midwicket on 69 when his previously disciplined knock ended with a further loss of concentration ten runs later, as he rocked back to pull another Abrar long-hop but was bowled as the ball kept low.Even when playing within themselves, it seemed England couldn’t fully divorce themselves from drama, as shown when a skittish Pope – down at No. 6 after his wicketkeeping duties – became the second run-out of the innings as he was sent back for a non-existent single to cover. But Ben Stokes quelled his own more expansive urges to reach 15 not out from 24, and the relative lack of jeopardy reflected England’s comfortable dominance of the match situation, having ripped through Pakistan’s first innings to claim their remaining eight wickets for 95 in the morning session, including a pre-lunch flurry of three for none in six balls.After a misleadingly serene first six overs of the day, in which Pakistan’s overnight pair of Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel had added 35 runs to take their third-wicket stand to an ominous 91, the dismissal of Babar in Ollie Robinson’s first over of the match was the earliest sign of the unsettled display to come.Shakeel followed soon afterwards for 63, handing Jack Leach his 100th Test wicket in the process, and when Pakistan’s other kingpin, Mohammad Rizwan also fell to Leach for 10 – having taken 28 deliveries to open his account in a deeply cagey display – the lower middle-order fell away, with Root’s lesser-spotted offspin claiming two wickets in his first five balls of the day.Robinson, the Player of the Match from last week’s Rawalpindi victory, had been a notable absentee from England’s attack on the first day, but made his presence felt from the moment he entered the fray in the 35th over of the innings. Reverse-swing had been a feature of his match-winning spell in the first Test, and sure enough, his second delivery bent back appreciably as Babar leaned into an ill-conceived drive, and crashed into the middle and off stumps.Related

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• Pakistan, and the curious case of collapsing on flat tracks

• England seek to sweep away the mystery

• Duckett: 'No real mystery' to Abrar's spin

• Abrar: come for the mystery, stay for the legspin

It was a hammer blow to Pakistan’s hopes of converting their overnight 107 for 2 into a dominant position, and Rizwan’s response to the setback was an innings of deep retrenchment. At the other end, Shakeel at least converted his overnight 32 into a 65-ball half-century, his second in three innings in his fledgling Test career, but with England drying up the runs, his eventual dismissal was an aberration that opened the floodgates.A fine drive through long-off off Leach seemed to have signalled an upping of Shakeel’s tempo, but it gave way, one ball later, to an awful hoick through the line, as Anderson at mid-on rushed round to his left to cling onto an skewed outside edge. And two overs later, Rizwan was gone as well, beaten by a dipping ripper from Leach that turned and bounced into the top of middle and off from round the wicket. At 165 for 5, the innings was suddenly in freefall.In theory, the recall of Mohammad Nawaz had added some substance to Pakistan’s lower-middle order. In practice, his response to the mounting crisis was an impetuous skip to the pitch and a scuffed drive to Robinson at mid-off to give Leach his fourth of the innings.Ollie Robinson celebrates after cleaning up Babar Azam•Matthew Lewis/Getty Images

By this stage, Pakistan’s innings had lasted more balls than England’s first-innings total of 281 all out in 51.4 overs, but the lack of intent in their approach had created a level of pressure over and above anything England had felt, even while wickets were falling with greater frequency in their innings.One delivery later, Root returned to the attack with instant success, as Agha Salman popped a gently looping offbreak straight to Ben Stokes at short mid-on, and Root had two in five balls when Mohammad Ali snicked to Crawley at slip, the chance looping off his back pad as he pressed forward with no conviction.At 169 for 8 and with lunch approaching, Stokes was in no mood to let up the pressure. Back came Wood for what could have been the final over of the session, and with his very first ball, Zahid Mahmood was smashed on the pad and sent on his way lbw for the third duck of the innings. Abrar then hung around with Faheem Ashraf for a last-wicket stand of 23, but Wood’s return to the attack induced an airy flick to deep midwicket from Ashraf, to wrap up a session that might yet have set up England’s series.

Leeds United endured a relatively quiet transfer window throughout January, keeping hold of all of their key players, but also failing to make any new additions in their hunt for Championship promotion.

With just a couple of months left of 2024/25, there’s hope that such a decision not to pursue any targets doesn’t come back to bite Daniel Farke with a return to the Premier League expected at this point.

The Whites currently sit top of the pile with just 15 matches to go, with a huge falloff needed if they are to repeat last season’s form which saw them miss out on promotion at Wembley.

However, despite losing various first-team members after their play-off final defeat, Farke has done a superb job in replacing the talents and building a squad more than capable of winning the league title.

The base of the side has relatively been the same, undoubtedly contributing to their success on the pitch in recent months, with the German worthy of huge praise for his work at Elland Road.

Leeds United’s current midfield options in 2024/25

After such high-profile departures of the likes of Georginio Rutter and Archie Gray last summer, there were funds available to the boss to improve his side all over the pitch, with the central midfield department just one area which benefited from the investment.

Ao Tanaka arrived in a £3.5m deal from German outfit Fortuna Düsseldorf, being an unknown quantity to many, but has cemented himself as a regular starter since his summer move.

The Japanese star has since featured in 28 of the 31 league outings this campaign, frequently partnering captain Ethan Ampadu after his return to action following a lengthy layoff with a knee issue.

Joe Rothwell arrived on loan from Bournemouth, mainly as a backup, but has since forced his way into Farke’s starting XI, featuring 28 times – the same as Tanaka – highlighting his importance during his temporary spell in Yorkshire.

The aforementioned trio are good enough to start for the vast majority of sides in the division, not to mention Bulgarian star Ilia Gruev, who like Ampadu has missed large spells of the campaign, but has recently returned, showcasing the club’s strength in depth.

At one stage in another player’s career, it appeared as though he could’ve been the future of the club, but he was sold very early on in his time at Elland Road – a decision that has since proved to be a masterstroke.

Where Are They Now

Your star player or biggest flop has left the club but what are they doing in the present day? This article is part of Football FanCast's Where Are They Now series.

The former Leeds star whose value has crashed

After breaking onto the scene during the 2016/17 campaign, midfielder Ronaldo Vieira was seen as a player with a huge future at Leeds, potentially being the player to play a key role in their Premier League ambitions.

He made 38 appearances across all competitions as a baby-faced 18-year-old, producing performances way beyond his tender years, scoring his first professional goal in the win over Norwich City.

Vieira would follow up his superb debut campaign with another impressive season at Elland Road in 2017/18, a year which would end up being his final at the club.

The midfielder racked up another 32 appearances, but it wasn’t enough to push the Whites towards a play-off place, ending the campaign in 13th place – with Victor Orta cashing in on the youngster in the summer.

He joined Italian side Sampdoria for £7m, a decision which disappointed the fanbase, but one that’s proven to be a great call given his lack of progression since.

Vieira, now aged 26, has massively struggled with injuries, halting his progression at the top level, still featuring for Sampdoria nearly seven years after his transfer, with the Italian side now in the second tier.

He’s only managed over 20 appearances once in the last seven seasons, highlighting how much injuries have impacted his once-promising career, with his market value plummeting as a result.

Games played

11

Goals & assists

0

Pass accuracy

78%

Errors leading to goals

1

Duel success rate

41%

Fouls committed

14

Successful dribbles

2

The Englishman is now only valued at £300k as per Transfermarkt, a decrease of over 95%, with Orta certainly making the right call despite the anger around his departure at the time.

Vieira still has plenty of time to make amends for lost time, but it’s safe to say he’s nowhere near reaching the levels many expected him to after his arrival on the scene as a teenager.

It’s certainly a shame that he’s been unable to extract the best out of the skill set which saw him thrive in Yorkshire, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that the hierarchy conducted excellent business cashing in on him when they did.

Saved by Piroe: Leeds dud just proved why the 49ers need to replace him

Leeds United moved one step closer to Championship promotion after another win last night.

1 ByEthan Lamb Feb 6, 2025

Ruben Amorim has already kickstarted the revolution of Manchester United in the last few weeks, wasting no time in making his mark on the first-team squad.

The 40-year-old made his first senior addition on the form of left-back Patrick Dorgu, joining up with the Red Devils after the hierarchy forked out £30m to lure him away from Serie A side Lecce.

However, the Dane would be the only new addition in the January window, but numerous players left Old Trafford – seemingly not part of the manager’s long-term plans.

Antony, Marcus Rashford and Tyrell Malacia all departed on loan, looking to gain valuable first-team minutes elsewhere after failing to secure a first-team place under Amorim.

Multiple of the aforementioned players joined under the previous management of Erik ten Hag, undoubtedly proving to be a waste of money – but some of the Dutchman’s additions have made a positive impact in the North West.

Ten Hag’s best signings as Man Utd boss

Noussair Mazraoui joined the club in a £12.8m deal from Bayern Munich, bolstering the full-back department – but the Moroccan has thrived with the switch to a back three, featuring on the right-side of the trio.

The 27-year-old has featured 25 times in the Premier League to date, starting each of the last 10 matches, undoubtedly being one of the shining lights of what has been a dismal season to date.

Manuel Ugarte also joined in what proved to be Ten Hag’s final window in charge, costing United a huge sum in the region of £50m from French outfit PSG.

However, the Uruguayan has proved to be worth every penny of his big-money transfer fee in the opening months of his time in England, winning 2.7 tackles and 7.5 duels won per 90 in the league throughout 2024/25.

Despite the impact of the aforementioned duo, one other player has since been touted as the Dutchman’s best addition, but Amorim may want to finally offload him in the summer.

The player for Amorim needs to offload in the summer

Ten Hag splashed over £600m on new signings during his time as a United manager, with many of his additions failing to make the grade – as seen by the decisions to loan out Malacia and Antony last month.

However, there is still a whole heap of deadwood for the new manager to clear out in the summer to allow him to transform the squad and make the changes he desires – enabling him to be a success at the club.

One player who could decide to finally offload is centre-back Jonny Evans, with the 37-year-old unfortunately past the level of a defender needed to push the club back towards the top end of the table.

The former Northern Ireland international re-joined the Red Devils eight years after leaving in the summer of 2023, offering Ten Hag an added option in the defensive department.

Despite his age, Evans would register 30 appearances across all competitions in 2023/24, leading to journalist Jay Motty labelling the experienced man as “Erik ten Hag’s best signing”.

However, this season, he’s struggled massively with injuries, with his age starting to come into play, restricting him to just six league appearances – only one of which has come since Amorim’s arrival.

Jonny Evans’ stats for Man Utd in the PL (2024/25)

Statistics (per 90)

Tally

Games played

6

Minutes played

290

Pass accuracy

89%

Tackles won

1.5

Duels won

6.8

Interceptions made

1.2

Dribbled past

0.7

Stats via FotMob

His contract does expire at the end of the current campaign and with his age and current wage, which sees him earn £65k-per-week, it’s a no-brainer for the manager to offload the defender – enabling added investment in such an area.

He’s been a phenomenal professional throughout his career, racking up over 230 appearances for United, but unfortunately, football is a cutthroat industry, with brutal decisions needing to be made to get the side out of the mess they find themselves in.

No doubt, Evans will likely go into a coaching role upon his retirement, with the hierarchy needing to honour his services with a role in the set-up as the club looks to build for the future and end their long wait for a Premier League title.

Related Worth more than Bruno: Man Utd must rue selling "phenomenal" ace for £15m

Manchester United made a huge mistake in allowing one youngster to depart Old Trafford.

Posts ByEthan Lamb Feb 19, 2025

Joe Root has praised the honesty of Ben Stokes for talking about his struggles with anxiety and believes the England captain’s openness on the subject will continue the progress made against the stigma of mental health.Speaking in his new documentary film, “Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes”, the 31-year-old has opened up about the battles endured, including a series of panic attacks stemming from a build-up of personal trauma over the previous few years. That came to a head in 2021, when Stokes took a break midway through the summer for his well-being having struggled to come to terms with his father’s passing the year before, during which period he contemplated walking away from the game entirely.The allrounder was keen to talk on all matters, good and bad, without sugarcoating. As such, he ends up speaking extensively on working through his issues initially, and the constant management of his anxiety through medication and professional help.Root, who features in the film, watched it for the first at the premiere on Monday in London, along with the rest of the England squad, who then arrived in Manchester on Tuesday morning ahead of the second Test against South Africa, which begins here on Thursday.. While he admits it was a tough watch, Root envisages many who watch the film, whether into cricket or otherwise, will leave with a greater sense of the man and a reaffirmation of the importance of asking those close to you how they are.”I think it’s exactly what you’ve come to see from Ben as a leader,” Root said at Emirates Old Trafford, where England will look to square the three-match series. “How honest he is, what he expects of everyone else is stuff he would be willing to do himself. I think it shows great courage, great bravery to come out and speak openly about that stuff and some of the struggles he has personally been through. We were all there with him going through it, it’s not easy to see a close friend and team-mate like that but look at him now. It’s great to have him leading this team and making Test cricket so enjoyable to play and to watch.Joe Root and Ben Stokes share a joke in the wake of England’s victory over New Zealand at Lord’s•Getty Images

“I think with any of your mates you want to get around them, make sure you do what you can to help. That goes within the dressing room environment and away from the game as well. You just want to do what you can to help out.”It’s quite powerful for people to see. Sometimes it’s okay not to be okay, to ask for help is perfectly alright and a brave thing to do. For someone like Ben to do that – hopefully if there are people out there struggling or finding things difficult, they can gain the courage to ask for that help.”Related

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Root also revealed he knew of the possibility Stokes was considering leaving the game. During Stokes’ time away, Root was one of the few people in the England dressing room still in regular contact. As captain, he had been shorn of his right-hand man for the series against India, before being bolstered by his return for the Ashes that winter. A 4-0 defeat to Australia, then a 1-0 loss in the Caribbean was ultimately Root’s lot, before Stokes took over in May.”There were discussions at different points, but they are things should be kept between the two of us,” he said. “It’s been very powerful watching that documentary – you forget how much he has been through in such a short space of time. It’s very brave to lay himself as bare as he has done. It’s very powerful for anyone watching, to see someone who at times looks superhuman and can do things that other players can’t do – it shows great leadership to put yourself out there and express some of the difficulties he’s had to go through.”

Western Storm overwhelmed after conceding competition-record 334 for 6

ECB Reporters Network11-Sep-2022

Northern Diamonds 334 for 6 (Armitage 131, Winfield-Hill 74, Heath 70) beat Western Storm 230 (Gibson 76, Smale 59, Levick 4-41) by 104 runsHollie Armitage registered her first professional hundred as Northern Diamonds beat Western Storm by 104 runs to secure their place in the knockout stages of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy on a record-breaking day at the Cooper Associates Ground in Taunton.Diamonds won the toss, elected to bat first and ran up a mammoth competition-best total of 334 for 6, eclipsing the previous record score of 224 for 7 achieved by South East Stars against Sunrisers at Chelmsford in May 2021.Armitage top-scored with a superb run-a-ball 131 not out, accruing 10 fours and a six and sharing in stands of 125 and 132 with Lauren Winfield-Hill and Bess Heath for the second and fifth wickets respectively as the visitors took full advantage of a flat deck to claim a bonus point win.England international Winfield-Hill contributed a fluent 74 from 77 balls, while Heath struck an eye-catching 70 from just 46 balls as Diamonds surpassed their previous highest 50-over score of 294, made against Thunder at Chester-le-Street in September last year.It was a chastening experience for Storm’s bowlers, only offspinner Chloe Skelton, who claimed 2 for 39 from 10 overs, emerging with any real credit on a day when bat dominated ball.Danni Gibson restored a modicum of lost pride in a defiant innings of 76 and Sophia Smale posted a gritty 59, but Katie Levick claimed 4 for 41 and Linsey Smith and the ubiquitous Armitage took two wickets apiece as Storm were dismissed for 230 in 45.4 overs.There was no sign of the onslaught to come when Smith clipped Claire Nicholas meekly to short third man and departed for a duck in the second over. But Winfield-Hill and Armitage quickly set about putting the record straight, their partnership yielding 50 from 48 balls as Diamonds posted 56 during the opening 10-over powerplay. Scoring freely either side of the wicket, Winfield-Hill raised 50 from 56 balls, pulled Lauren Filer for four to bring up the hundred partnership and looked set to realise three figures when she inadvertently holed out to long-on off the bowling of Skelton in the 23rd over, having helped herself to nine fours.Hitherto cast in the role of chief support, Armitage went to 50 via 69 balls, while Sterre Kalis and Leah Dobson came and went in quick succession at the other end as Storm worked hard to restrict the scoring and maintain a foothold in the game.But that all changed with the advent of Heath with the score at 169 for 4 in the 33rd over. Going on the attack from the outset, the 21-year-old from Chesterfield combined finesse with raw power to help almost double the score during a blistering 14-over sojourn which left Storm on their knees. Heath and Armitage added 50 from 31 balls as the home side came under sustained pressure, Skelton the only bowler to avoid a mauling.Once again playing second fiddle to a faster-scoring partner, Armitage went to a maiden hundred for Diamonds from 110 balls, while the century partnership occupied 66 deliveries, Heath finding the boundary with impressive regularity as Diamonds surpassed their previous highest score in the 50-over competition.Driving and pulling with intent, Heath had a century firmly in her sights when she drilled the ball straight to Nicholas at short fine leg in pursuit of a ninth boundary, permitting Lauren Filer a much-needed success. Thereafter, Armitage and Lizzie Scott combined forces at the death to usher Diamonds to a record-breaking total.Required to hit the ground running if they were to have any chance of discomfiting their opponents, Storm instead lost Alice Griffiths and talismanic captain Sophie Luff inside nine overs as the powerplay failed to ignite. When Fran Wilson drove Smith to cover in the twelfth over, the home side were 37 for 3 and in danger of running up the white flag.Levick then struck twice in as many overs with her leg-breaks to remove Nat Wraith for 19 and Emma Corney for 29, the latter at least making a decent fist of opening the batting for the first time at Taunton. But there was no way back from 80 for 5 and, an entertaining interlude in which Gibson and Smale added 106 for the sixth wicket apart, Yorkshire grit continued to hold sway.Gibson matched fire with fire and provided the home crowd with something to cheer in a knock that was illuminated by 9 fours and a six until, having garnered 76 from 59 balls, she hit Armitage to cover. Smale’s brave rearguard action yielded a 59-ball 50, but it proved no more than a silver lining.

Run of 12 matches in 25 days means training has been at a premium for new-look team

Vithushan Ehantharajah24-Jul-2022

Jos Buttler, England’s captain, says that a lack of training time amid a tight schedule has hindered the progression of the white-ball team, after the final ODI of the summer, against South Africa, was abandoned.Only 27.4 overs of play were possible on Sunday at Headingley as rain washed out the rest of the day, resulting in an underwhelming climax and a series tied at one-all. The result means England have won just two ODI matches out of six in the last two weeks.With the 50-over World Cup taking place in October 2023, there is still plenty of time to fine-tune England’s plans – and plenty of fine-tuning to be done. However Buttler, along with white-ball coach Matthew Mott had hoped to use the last two weeks, during which time they have been able to call upon a full-strength batting line-up, to fashion their own ethos following the departure of the charismatic Eoin Morgan as captain last month.Unfortunately, a period of 12 T20I and ODI matches in 24 days – this being the ninth of that stretch – has allowed little opportunity between games to put that into practice. In the last week, England have had just one training session, the day before the second ODI at Emirates Old Trafford, something which Buttler described as a “frustration” and a contributory factor to what have been indifferent performances at the start of his tenure.”I think those training days are really important for that team cohesion, the energy within the group, the fielding drills, the camaraderie around the guys without the pressure of a game,” Buttler said on Sunday evening. “And they’re really vital to high performance. When you miss that chance as well, there’s a frustration. It is how it is, and that’s sort of the way this month has panned out. If we find those situations again, we just have to, I think, just find a way… even if you can’t give 100%, can you give 90% of 90? That’s a bit of a learning.””It’s tough, a lot of the time around training is when you do your best work, away from the pressures of the game, having good conversations and having a feel for where the group is at. And not just always in game mode, preparing for guys on the day. To get the highest standard of cricket possible, you need to prepare properly. Hopefully that’s something we can look at going forward. As a new captain, just having that time to bed in and do that work around your players and with your coaches. That’s been a frustration to be truthfully honest – it would be nice to have that time to do the work. But we don’t, so you just have to adapt and find the best way. It’s been a good challenge. “South Africa were no doubt the ones to feel the most aggrieved by the washout, having got to a healthy 159 for 2 with little more than half their overs gone, and with a chance even to exceed their 333 for 5 in the first ODI, their highest total in England. Quinton de Kock found his touch after two false starts of 19 and five in the first two ODIs, and peeled off a near-perfect 92 not out that looked nailed on for century number 18.The two wickets taken – David Willey removing Janneman Malan and Adil Rashid accounting for Rassie van der Dussen – were the only joy for the hosts, and both dismissals were at odds with an otherwise comfortable start from the Proteas. There was a degree of inevitability about England’s approach in the field, given how sharp the turnover was coming into this fixture. Victory in Manchester to square the series came on Friday, before the team travelled to Leeds on Saturday, arriving in the afternoon ahead of the 11am start on Sunday.Nevertheless, Buttler was critical of what he perceived as a lack of enthusiasm on the field, and challenged his players to give more of themselves, even amid the packed fixture list.Related

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Quinton de Kock: 'It's going to start being tough for players – three formats is a lot'

“I only just said to the guys, I thought we didn’t have quite the same intensity we had on Friday night,” he said. ” And I know it’s easy to say that when you get wickets and everyone’s up and about, but I thought we didn’t quite have the same intent and energy… maybe only for the first 10 overs of that 20 overs.”I thought there was a clear difference when we do have it, so just to encourage us to always try and find that as a team. Take the result out of winning or losing, to make sure we’re always competing at our best and highest intensity.”In theory it sounds easy: it’s one-all and you’re playing a series decider. But there’s no getting past the schedule does make that tough.”Next up is the T20I series against South Africa which begins on Wednesday in Bristol, the first of three matches in five days. It will be the final action for England’s limited-overs team this summer before a seven-T20I tour of Pakistan ahead of the World Cup in the format, which begins in Australia in October. Though conditions will not be reflective of what is to come, given how bowler-friendly the one-day surfaces have been this summer, Buttler hopes players will be revived by the opportunity to put a marker down for the 15-man squad, and show what they are capable of in order to secure what would be his first series win as skipper.”These are the games we want to be working towards, finding out our best combination, having in mind Australian conditions. We might not get those in these next few games, but it’s important to have in the back of your mind, exposing people to certain situations or give opportunities in certain areas which may not look right on the day, but in three to four months’ time it may have a bearing.”It would be great to get out there and play some of our best cricket, which we have been short on so far. Just that level of intensity, knowing there’s a World Cup around the corner, guys trying to put themselves forward for a starting XI in a World Cup – which is exciting.”

يواجه فريق مانشستر سيتي نظيره نوتينجهام فورست، اليوم الأحد، في بطولة كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي.

ويستضيف ملعب “ويمبلي” مباراة مانشستر سيتي ونوتينجهام في نصف نهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي.

ومر مانشستر سيتي بموسم مخيب للآمال، مع خروج مبكر من دوري أبطال أوروبا وكأس كاراباو، بالإضافة إلى فشله في الحفاظ على لقب الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ويأمل فريق بيب جوارديولا في التأهل إلى النهائي للمرة الثالثة على التوالي، سعيًا وراء لقبه الثامن في بطولة كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي، في محاولة لإنقاذ موسمه.

على الجانب الآخر، نوتينجهام بقيادة نونو إسبيريتو سانتو يعد مفاجأة الموسم هذا الموسم، ويحقق نتائج مميزة، وهزم مانشستر سيتي في ملعب الاتحاد الشهر الماضي.

وسيلتقي الفائز من تلك المباراة، مع كريستال بالاس في النهائي، بعد فوزه على أستون فيلا بثلاثية نظيفة في نصف النهائي الآخر. موعد مباراة مانشستر سيتي ونوتينجهام في كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي

تنطلق المباراة في تمام الساعة السادسة والنصف مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية. القناة الناقلة لمباراة مانشستر سيتي ونوتينجهام

تذاع المباراة عبر قناة beIN sports HD2. معلق مباراة مانشستر سيتي ونوتينجهام

يعلق على المباراة، حفيظ دراجي.

ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنــــا.

Nine games in, Mumbai Indians have their first win of IPL 2022, giving a perfect 35th birthday gift for the captain Rohit Sharma. That the win came against Rajasthan Royals, touted to go all the way on current form, should come as a massive boost. That it was set up nicely by a debutant who kept the marauding Jos Buttler honest for much of his knock, must be encouraging.But Mumbai started poorlyIn the second over, Daniel Sams reprieved Buttler as he misjudged the trajectory of his pull. Sams ran in from deep square and quickly realised he had overrun the ball and back-pedaled. But it was too late. What should’ve been a wicket resulted in a boundary. Jasprit Bumrah, who had dismissed Buttler four times in eight innings, missed out on a fifth.Off the third, Tim David, brought in for Dewald Brewis, made a right royal mess of a straightforward offering at deep point. This time, it was Devdutt Padikkal who was reprieved. An uppish cut burst through his hands at deep point and went to the boundary. Sams, the bowler, looked on in disbelief.Shokeen and Kartikeya make an entryBumrah. Ishan Kishan. Tilak Varma. Rahul Chahar. Hardik Pandya. Krunal Pandya – in no order, these are some names Mumbai have unearthed over the years through their vast scouting network. Hrithik Shokeen, the offspinner, and Kumar Kartikeya, the left-arm spinner, are the latest entrants to the uncapped club.Shokeen is in only his third game. He comes across as a thinking bowler who isn’t deterred by batters looking to take him on. Getting rid of that fear, experienced bowlers will tell you, is half the battle won. He deceived Padikkal in flight and did him in with his drift as he only managed to skew a lofted hit to long-off in the fifth.Soon after, Kartikeya got into the act. A left-arm all-variety bowler who slips in an excellent wrong’un, he has a deceptive carrom ball along with his other bag of tricks – including the traditional left-arm orthodox, a seam-up and a split-finger knuckleball – and he impressed with his accuracy and control straightaway, delivering three straight overs in which he conceded just one boundary and dismissed Sanju Samson second ball. A break-free shot over point led to a simple catch for David at deep point.Kumar Kartikeya, on his Mumbai Indians debut, returned 1 for 19•BCCI

Buttler tees off, finallyA combination of losing Samson and playing disciplined spinners on a slow surface that forced Royals to recalibrate meant Buttler struck at less than 100 for much of his knock. For a period of 32 balls between overs 9.1 and 14.4, Royals were denied a boundary. Daryl Mitchell too struggled to up the pace.Buttler was on 43 off 46 with six overs left. And he found his release in the following over when he peppered the arc between long-off and deep midwicket to hit Shokeen for a sequence of 6,6,6,6. The fifth was a dot and the sixth was cleverly bowled from around the stumps and away from his hitting arc. Buttler picked out long-off and was out for a 52-ball 67. With Riyan Parag also falling quickly, Royals needed one of their lower-order batters to finish things off. R Ashwin polished off the innings with a neat eight-ball 21 as Royals posted 158.Rohit, Kishan fall; Surya steadyA hint of grip and bounce was enough for Ashwin to make an early entry with the ball as Rohit’s sweep found square leg in the third over. Kishan opened his scoring with an upper cut for six, and for a while it looked as if the lost touch and timing that had eluded him for much of the season was coming back. But he was a victim of over-aggression, as an attempt to take on Trent Boult with the short ball led to him top-edging a pull to Samson in the sixth.Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma knuckled down and kept the scorecard chugging along. Suryakumar swept the spinners off their lengths, brought out his wrists against pace and kept picking boundaries every time there was a semblance of pressure on the batters. The shot of the evening – a swat from nearly a seventh-stump Ashwin delivery – to clear wide long-on raised his half-century. At that point, Mumbai needed 46 from 36.David, Sams seal itBut there was a small twist. Both Suryakumar and Varma fell looking for big hits, leaving Mumbai with a few nervy moments. David brought out his big-hitting game against spin and was aided with some luck along the way as he raced down the runs. But things got a little nervier when Kieron Pollard fell with the side needing 4 off 5. Sams then biffed the first ball into the stands to seal Mumbai’s win with four balls to spare.

Nadella is a lead investor in a $44 million Series A and A1 fundraising round

Peter Della Penna19-May-2022

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft and a part-owner of the Seattle Sounders franchise in Major League Soccer, has been announced as a lead investor in a $44 million Series A and A1 fundraising round by Major League Cricket (MLC), the six-team franchise T20 competition sanctioned by USA Cricket through its commercial partner ACE, which is targeted to launch in 2023.According to a press release issued by MLC on Wednesday, another $76 million has been pledged by investors for a total of $120 million to be utilised primarily for stadium infrastructure projects over the next several years.”The significant funding committed by an outstanding group of investors will allow Major League Cricket to build first-class facilities and accelerate the sport’s development across the country, bringing world-class professional cricket to the world’s largest sports market,” said Sameer Mehta and Vijay Srinivasan, co-founders of Major League Cricket, through a press release. “This investor group comprises leading business executives and successful tech entrepreneurs who have led some of the world’s most prominent companies. They bring tremendous experience and expertise in support of MLC’s plans to launch a transformative Twenty20 league and establish America as one of the world’s leading homes for international cricket events.”Nadella and Soma Somasegar, also a part-owner of Seattle Sounders and a former long-time senior vice president at Microsoft who is currently the managing director of venture capital firm Madrona Venture Group, are majority investors based out of Seattle. It is there that a new stadium venue project is being spearheaded at Marymoor Park in the Seattle suburb of Redmond, Washington. When that venue is complete, it is expected to be the home of one of the six anchor franchises for MLC.Related

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Former Dallas baseball stadium to become 'new home of USA cricket'

“I share the vision Major League Cricket has for the launch of a world-class T20 cricket league and the potential for the United States to become one of the leading cricket nations in the world,” Somasegar said. “I am delighted to be part of a dynamic group of investors who will help the sport reach that level through an unprecedented commitment of resources by MLC to developing the sport.”Ross Perot Jr and Anurag Jain, the founders of Dallas-based venture capital firm Perot Jain, are also among the investors listed in the latest round of fundraising. Airhogs Stadium, a former minor league baseball facility in the Dallas suburb of Grand Prairie, Texas that was the first venue acquired for redevelopment by ACE and MLC in 2020, will also become the home of another MLC franchise.”The ceiling for cricket’s growth in the United States is incredibly high, with the passion for the game at the grassroots level I’ve observed in Texas proof of its potential,” Jain said. “I am proud to be part of a group of investors committed to rapidly accelerating cricket’s progress through Major League Cricket. The plans MLC have laid out to develop infrastructure and build a foundation for professional cricket to thrive nationwide put the sport on a tremendous trajectory and I am excited to support this vision.”Among the other headline investors recruited by MLC are Anand Rajaraman and Venky Harinarayan, the founding partners at Millways Ventures and Rocketship VC; Sanjay Govil, the founder of Infinite Computer Solutions and CEO of Zyter; the Baheti Family, the owners of YASH Technologies; and Tanweer Ahmed, the CEO of PAK Foods and the owner of the Prairie View Cricket Complex, the largest turf wicket complex in America located 50 miles northwest of Houston which opened in 2019 and has been regularly used to host USA Cricket national championship tournaments. As part of Ahmed’s PAK Foods brand, the entrepreneur and cricket enthusiast owns more than 200 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell franchises spread between Texas, Colorado and Las Vegas.Although not listed in Wednesday’s release, the Knight Riders Group had previously been announced as one of the original lead investors in MLC. They have recently pledged their commitment toward helping to fund the development of a $30 million facility at Great Park in Irvine, California, which will be the home of the future Knight Riders franchise in MLC.ESPNcricinfo has learned that the other three MLC anchor franchise locations for the league’s targeted launch date in 2023 are expected to be in San Francisco, New York and Washington, DC. However, there are currently no turf wicket venues located in the two east coast locations as MLC officials continue to pursue options with regards to land acquisition and venue development in those territories.