Category Uncategorized

Martin Skrtel’s agent has revealed that his client would consider a summer switch from Liverpool to Napoli.

The Slovakian international’s future at Anfield is far from certain, after manager Brendan Rodgers elected to drop him in favour of Jamie Carragher after some shaky displays last season.

This has led to rumours that the no-nonsense defender could walk away from Merseyside this summer, particularly with the Reds courting targets that would rival him for a starting berth.

Skrtel was voted Liverpool’s player of the season after the 2011/12 Premier League campaign, but his agent, Karol Csonto, has admitted that a move to Napoli – where he would link up with former boss Rafael Benitez – could tempt his client.

“Between Martin Skrtel and Rafa Benitez is a professional relationship that has gone on from the years they spent together at Liverpool,” he is quoted by talkSPORT via Radio Crc.

“[Napoli midfielder] Marek Hamsik and Skrtel are very good friends and they met last week. The midfielder requested information from Martin about Benitez, while Skrtel has asked questions about Napoli.

“But I think that if Napoli want to take Skrtel, they should first talk to Liverpool.”

Rodgers is said to see Skrtel as more of a squad player than a regular starter, and could sacrifice him in order to raise funds for summer additions.

The Northern Irishman is keen on Schalke’s Kyriakos Papadopoulos and Tiago Ilori of Sporting Lisbon, both of whom operate as centre-backs.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Liverpool fans, should Brendan Rodgers let Martin Skrtel leave?

Voice your thoughts below!

[cat_link cat=”liverpool” type=”grid”]

Sam Billings has said that the past six months have been “the worst of [his] cricketing career by a mile”.After a frustrating stint in the IPL, where he made a four-ball duck in his only game for Chennai Super Kings, Billings dislocated his shoulder in the first over of his Kent return after landing awkwardly while diving in the field, ruling him out for “three-to-five months”.The injury put an end to Billings’ hopes of making England’s World Cup squad. While he had not been named in the provisional 15-man squad and thus had only an outside chance of selection, Alex Hales’ deselection opened up a spot for a reserve batsman, and Billings would have had the chance to impress in the warm-up ODI against Ireland and the T20I against Pakistan.While Billings returned from injury towards the shorter end of the given timescale, he then captained Kent to four defeats and two abandonments in their final Vitality Blast games; after winning six of their first seven games of the group stage to top the group, victory in any of those fixtures would have taken them through to the knockouts.”I’ll be honest, it’s been the worst six months of my cricketing career by a mile,” he said. “It’s not ideal at all really. You miss a home World Cup, come back halfway through a [T20] campaign, and obviously in a losing side as well.”From my point of view, it’s been a really tough six months. Such is life – it’s a matter of actually being able to learn from this experience. As horrible as it is, I have to.Billings suggested that Ben Stokes’ comeback after missing the 2017-18 Ashes whitewash following his role in a fracas outside a Bristol nightclub could provide him with inspiration, and serve as a reminder that he can turn things around for himself.”Look at Ben Stokes,” Billings said, “and how a year, two years down the line, all of a sudden, his life has completely changed around. Why couldn’t that happen for me, as long as I do everything I can?”I pride myself on my work ethic, in terms of everything I do, and I leave no stone unturned. For me, it’s a case of continuing to do that and giving myself the best chance. I can live with whatever happens as long as I do that.”Billings admitted that Kent’s T20 campaign was hit badly by the loss of Mohammad Nabi and Adam Milne, the overseas players who missed their final three defeats – all of which saw Kent mess up run chases from strong positions – due to international commitments.”The balance of the side – with Nabi and Milne, two huge misses, we were a batter and a bowler short – has changed drastically which has had a role in the results,” he said.”We haven’t deserved to go through – the back end of the tournament we haven’t played anywhere near our ability, or had the nerve at those key moments. Three times in a row is really tough to take if I’m honest. It’s hugely draining and frustrating.”Our fielding has been diabolical throughout the competition. The number of catches, and misfields – no-one means to do it, but when it’s a collective thing… there has to be a common denominator if the same mistakes keep on happening.”We’ve got a huge amount of talent as a squad, but you can’t rely on that in professional sport. You learn the most about yourself and your team when things don’t go right.”

Clea Smith’s five wickets, including a hat-trick, helped Victoria sink Western Australia in the opening match in Perth on Saturday and victory for them on Sunday too helped them to the double. In the opener, Mel Jones and Rachael Haynes boosted Victoria to 4 for 239, each reaching fifties in an opening stand of 139, before Smith came in to knock the Fury over for 142. She took the first two wickets, then Angele Gray was run out, to leave them in trouble at 3 for 11. Nicole Bolton and Jenny Wallace gave them some hope with a stand of 85 but Smith had the final say with her hat-trick of Renee Chappell, Charlotte Horton and Joanne Wilson as they won by 97 runs. She ended with 5 for 10 from eight overs.Victoria batted first in the second time again on Sunday – this time by choice – and on this occasion they reached 191, an innings built around Kelly Applebee’s 54. They then bowled out Western Australia for 149 at the WACA, to win by 42 runs. Again Smith’s bowling was important, her 2 for 15 from 9.5 overs completing a solid weekend of bowling, returning 7 for 25 from 17.5 overs. Julie Hunter and Jane Franklin backed her up with two wickets each.

Jagmohan Dalmiya’s expulsion from the BCCI is the latest twist in a dramatic career © AFP

September 29, 2004The BCCI elections. Dalmiya is on a cliff-edge. He’s held every post there is to hold, and names his man Ranbir Mahendra as a candidate for the president’s post. Neither Dalmiya nor Mahendra’s opponent Sharad Pawar has ever lost an election. Dalmiya survives, but only just – and only by virtue of his casting vote as incumbent president. The first signs of his mortality.June 2005Appoints major threat Inderjit Singh Bindra to the marketing committee in a move designed to appease opponentsSeptember 2005The BCCI elections, yet again. Dalmiya can see the winds of change blowing. He tries his best to get the election postponed; Mahendra declares the AGM adjourned sine die. Amid all this, the infamous Chappell e-mail is “leaked”November 2005The AGM finally happens, with an independent observer overseeing the election. Pawar wins by a landslide. End of Dalmiya’s reignDecember 2005Resigns as president of the Asian Cricket Council and the Afro-Asian Cricket CouncilFebruary 2006Pawar appoints a committee to investigate alleged financial irregularities in the PILCOM [Pakistan-India-Lanka Committee] account. PILCOM was formed when the three countries hosted the 1996 World CupMarch 2006BCCI files FIR against DalmiyaApril 2006Bombay High Court grants bail to Dalmiya but BCCI`s Working Committee suspends Dalmiya from participating in any affairs of the board on charges of misappropriationJune 2006BCCI decides to withhold payments and subsidies to the CAB in the light of allegations of misappropriation of funds against DalmiyaJuly 2006Survives at the Cricket Association of Bengal elections, with West Bengal chief minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya famously backing his opponent, Kolkata police chief Prasun MukherjeeOctober 2006Dalmiya abstains from the BCCI’s three-member disciplinary committee while questioning the neutrality of its chairman and board president Sharad Pawar and also claiming that the validity of the adjudication process against him had expiredDecember 16, 2006BCCI expels Jagmohan Dalmiya for embezzlement of funds

Lee will miss the last one-day international © Getty Images

Brett Lee will return home from New Zealand on Thursday to receive treatment for a breathing problem and therefore misses the last one-day international in the Chappell-Hadlee series at Christchurch.Lee has experienced breathing difficulty, caused by a narrowing of his left nasal passage, which is thought to be related to the cellulitis (nasal infection) he suffered, and was treated for in hospital, prior to the Ashes tour this year. He sought medical advice in Wellington and will return to Sydney for consultation with a ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist.Lee said it was important to get the problem sorted: “Whilst I am disappointed that I can’t play the final match in the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series, I am grateful that I can return home and give priority to getting my health right.”Australia wrapped up the series with a thrilling two-run win at Wellington, where Lee conceded 85 runs his 10 overs including 18 off the penultimate over of the match.

Clare Connor: confident England can win© Getty Images

England have been handed a tough draw for their opening match of the 2005 World Cup in South Africa. Clare Connor’s England will face Australia, the favourites, who lost to New Zealand in the last World Cup final in 2000.But England are second favourites to lift the trophy. They are currently ranked second in the world, after winning their home series against New Zealand 3-2 in August.South Africa, India, Pakistan, West Indies and Ireland will also compete in the tournament, in which all eight teams play each other in a league format. The top four then progress to the semi-finals.Claire Taylor, England’s prolific batter and wicketkeeper, told BBC Sport: “It will be a challenge to play Australia first, but what better way to gauge where we are in terms of our form?”England won the World Cup in both 1973 and 1993, when they overturned New Zealand at Lord’s in the final, and they have also reached the final on three other occasions.Clare Connor believes her side has every chance of success when the campaign gets under way in March. She said: “Everyone talks about having the right mix of youth and experience – it’s a bit of a cliché but we’ve got that right at the moment.”We are lucky that we had a tour to South Africa in February and played on some of the same venues,” she added. “We will pick the World Cup squad of 14 players in the autumn from a competitive pool of players.”

All Today’s Yesterdays – July 24 down the years

July 23| July 25

1947
That classical strokemaker Zaheer Abbas was born. Playing in glasses formuch of his career, he scored 5062 Test runs for Pakistan (1969-70 to1985-86) and is the only batsman to hit two separate hundreds in afirst-class match eight times. He twice made a Test double hundred inEngland: 274 at Edgbaston in 1971 and 240 at The Oval in 1974.

1958
A distinguished trio made their Test debuts for England against NewZealand at Old Trafford: Ted Dexter hit 52 and Ray Illingworth tookthree wickets in 45 economical overs. The third newcomer, Raman SubbaRow, made only 9, but it scarcely mattered: England won by an inningsand 13 runs, and became the first side to win the opening four Tests ofa series in England.

1931
Brilliant little George Gunnwas 52 years old when he completed aninnings of 183 for Notts against Warwickshire. His son George Vernon Gunnscored 100 not out in the same innings.

1902
A typically dazzling hundred before lunch by Victor Trumper helped Australia beat England by 3runs at Old Trafford (see Fred Tate below).

1867
The immortal Fred Tate was born. In contrast with his sonMaurice, who took 155 wickets for England, poor Fred played in only oneTest, but he put his name on it – and not just because it began on hisbirthday. After dropping a vital catch at Old Trafford in 1902, he wasthe last man out at the end of the match, which Australia won by justthree runs. By winning ‘Tate’s Match’, Australia retained the Ashes.

1917
Australian opening batsman Jack Moroney was born. After making aduck in his first Test knock, against South Africa at Johannesburg in1949-50, he returned to the same ground later in the series to score ahundred in each innings.

1996
Death of Alphonso (Alfie) Roberts. When he appeared in his onlyTest, against New Zealand at Auckland in 1955-56, he became the firstcricketer from the `small islands’ (in his case St Vincent) to play forWest Indies.

Other birthdays
1888 Arthur Richardson (Australia)
1929 Alfred Binns (West Indies)
1935 George Varnals (South Africa)
1938 John Sparling (New Zealand)
1974 Andrew Penn (New Zealand)