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Chelsea have already turned their attention to recruitment matters ahead of 2026, and could be set to change their transfer strategy to complete an intriguing move.

Chelsea look to Cole Palmer alternatives after injury confirmation

Enzo Maresca and Chelsea will be relieved to see Premier League football return after the international break.

However, it isn’t all good news, with Maresca confirming that Cole Palmer faces six more weeks on the sidelines. The forward’s niggling groin injury has limited his ability to make an impact this term, and he now won’t be back until around December.

Addressing his situation, the Italian boss made it clear that despite the nature of his issue, surgery will remain off the table for now as he aims to recover before the festive period.

Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo and Pedro Neto also suffered fitness issues in the build up to their clash with Nottingham Forest earlier today, continuing a theme of injury concerns at Stamford Bridge that will force Maresca to shuffle his pack amid a busy fixture schedule.

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Chelsea may have found the latest superstar to emerge from Cobham academy.

ByAngus Sinclair Oct 17, 2025

While not on their immediate radar, incoming transfers will become an important part of their long-term planning over the coming weeks, albeit it remains to be seen where Maresca feels his squad needs reinforcements most.

Reports suggest Chelsea are prioritising a centre-back in January, coming after Maresca publicly requested one in the summer window, and links continue to surround a potential new goalkeeper as well.

Interestingly, a new midfielder could be on the agenda too, and Chelsea could now be set to deviate from their transfer philosophy in an attempt to sign an experienced playmaker.

Dean Jones on Chelsea's potential move for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic

Previously, FootballFanCast relayed news from Italy that Chelsea are pushing to sign Sergej Milinkovic-Savic from Al-Hilal in what could be a deviation from their usual transfer strategy of recruiting young players with potential.

Deemed to be earning around £418,000 per week in the Middle East, the Serbia international has regularly been linked with Premier League clubs over the last decade, and he may be available to return to Europe on a free transfer next summer.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s record at Al-Hilal

Appearances

102

Goals

30

Assists

26

Contract expires

30/06/2026

Delivering some clarity on his situation, Dean Jones suggests Chelsea could value Milinkovic-Savic’s leadership qualities, and this may lead the West Londoners to pursuing a deal that would be classed as out of the ordinary compared with their usual transfer activity.

Chelsea are renowned for going for players below a certain age, but Jones says more senior options “will be considered” moving forward.

Successful Chelsea teams of the past have been littered with experienced professionals capable of conjuring important moments, and it appears Maresca wants to lean into that long-held tradition should he get the chance next summer, which could be beneficial for everyone.

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca wanted a centre-back in the summer transfer window, but the west Londoners could be set to finally grant his wish in January.

Chelsea's defensive struggles laid bare after 3-1 defeat to Brighton

Blues legend José Mourinho returns to Stamford Bridge tonight as Chelsea take on Benfica in the Champions League, and the ‘special one’ will be well aware of just how fragile his former club look defensively right now.

Trevoh Chalobah was sent off for denying a goal-scoring opportunity in Chelsea’s last outing, a humbling 3-1 defeat at home to Brighton, where Fabian Hurzeler’s side made the extra man count and ran out deserved winners in the English capital.

Levi Colwill’s ACL injury, which is expected to keep him out for most of 2025/2026, has undoubtedly contributed to Chelsea’s weakness at the back, and Maresca is left with precious few options right now with Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana also injured.

Chelsea are winless in the Premier League since this time last month and have conceded 11 goals in their last five outings across all competitions, with BlueCo arguably paying the price for not signing a centre-back in the summer.

Despite being one of the division’s biggest spenders, Chelsea’s priority at the time was to bring in new attackers, with no room left to bolster Maresca’s backline.

Liverpool

£415,000,000

£187,000,000

£228,000,000

Chelsea

£285,000,000

£288,000,000

-£3,000,000

Arsenal

£255,000,000

£9,000,000

£246,000,000

Newcastle

£250,000,000

£152,000,000

£98,000,000

Man Utd

£216,000,000

£68,000,000

£148,000,000

Nottm Forest

£205,000,000

£107,000,000

£98,000,000

Tottenham

£181,000,000

£36,000,000

£145,000,000

Sunderland

£162,000,000

£44,000,000

£118,000,000

Man City

£152,000,000

£53,000,000

£99,000,000

West Ham

£124,000,000

£55,000,000

£69,000,000

via BBC

Chelsea did try to sign Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth, before the Spaniard’s £50 million move to Real Madrid, and Maresca strongly suggested towards the end of the transfer window that they needed another body in that area.

Since then, reports have claimed that Chelsea could dip back into the market for a new defender mid-season, with journalist Pete O’Rourke sharing an update on this.

Chelsea and Maresca agree on "priority" signing as club work to sign centre-back

According to the reporter, in a piece for Football Insider, Chelsea and Maresca are in alignment about signing a centre-back.

Both the club and manager feel that bringing one is now a “priority” for January, with Chelsea believed to be working on defensive reinforcements for when the window reopens.

It is imperative that Chelsea back Maresca and provide the Italian with another world-class option. Tosin and Fofana’s injuries have added to his woes, as Chelsea brace to take on table-topping Liverpool this weekend with a very weakened backline.

Benoit Badiashile’s return to the fold couldn’t have come at a better time, but Chalobah will be suspended for their Stamford Bridge clash against Arne Slot’s side.

Luckily for Chelsea, the Cobham academy graduate will only serve a one-match domestic ban before returning after the international break against Nottingham Forest.

In the meantime, Chelsea’s recruitment team must get to work on finding the right profile for January, with Club Brugge starlet Joel Ordonez among BlueCo’s potential targets alongside Benfica’s Antonio Silva (Simon Phillips).

Former Manchester United star Michael Carrick is in frame to take over as Rangers manager after Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard decided to step away from the race to replace Russell Martin at the Scottish club. After a poor start to the 2025-26 campaign, which saw fans protesting against Martin and demanding his removal, the head coach was finally sacked from his position earlier this month.

• Rangers sacked Martin after massive fan protest

  Martin, an ex-MK Dons, Swansea City and Southampton manager, only took charge at Ibrox this summer. His ball-playing philosophy was considered to be a good fit for Rangers, but many fans had their doubts from the beginning. Those fears proved to be well-founded, with Martin stumbling out of the blocks and never getting into his stride. A 1-1 draw with Falkirk proved to be the final straw, with Rangers left languishing in eighth spot on the league table, after picking up just eight points from seven top-flight fixtures this season. 

  They have just one league win to their name and are already 11 points adrift of table-topping Hearts, while they trail Old Firm arch-rivals Celtic by nine points. Before the manager's sacking, the Rangers fans had made their feelings clear when they went public with their protest against the boss as they visited the Ibrox for a Scottish League Cup quarter-final clash with banners, which read: "Russell out – worst manager in history." They also hurled balls onto the pitch, which led to a delay in the start of the game.

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  Gerrard walk out of race after emerging as favourite to replace Martin

  After Martin's departure from Ibrox, Anfield icon Gerrard emerged as the favourite candidate to replace him. Gerrard, who had previously worked with Rangers and had even guided them to a league victory in 2021, was tipped to return to Glasgow. Gerrard held positive talks with the club hierarchy, however, journalist reported on Saturday that the 45-year-old is no longer keen on accepting the manager's role at Ibrox Stadium. 

  The report added that the former England international is not quite ready to take up a new assignment as head coach at the moment. further claims that Gerrard had told Rangers chairman Andrew Cavenagh and vice-chair Paraag Marathe that he wanted to have full control over the transfers, but he later opted out. 

• Man Utd legend in contention to accept Rangers jon

  Now that the Gerrard chapter is over, the Daily Mail further claims that Rangers officials have started looking at other options, including Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna, while Sheffield Wednesday head coach Danny Rohl is also being considered by sporting director Kevin Thelwell, CEO Patrick Stewart and Gretar Steinsson of 49ers Enterprises. But the name that has stood out is United legend Michael Carrick, who is currently without a job. 

  The 44-year-old was sacked from his first permanent managerial job at Middlesbrough in June this year. Carrick was appointed as the club's head coach in 2022 and he immediately took the team up the table and secured a play-off place, only to see his team beaten in the semi-finals. Middlesbrough narrowly missed out on a top six in the following two campaigns, leading to Carrick's dismissal ahead of the 2025-26 campaign. The former England midfielder has also managed the Red Devils on an interim basis in the past. 

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• Getty
  

  Carrick linked with a move to United

  Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim's future at Old Trafford has come under scrutiny after the club's ridiculously slow start to the 2025-26 campaign, which has seen them lose three out of their first seven matches to currently occupy 10th position in the league table. Despite spending heavily in the summer transfer window, especially to bolster the team's attack, Amorim's men are still not looking convincing.

  Carrick was closely linked with a move back to his old club last month to replace the underperforming Ruben Amorim, although INEOS chief and club minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has made it clear, recently, that Amorim is here to stay for the long run, as the billionaire provided a three-year cushion to the Portuguese coach. 

أصدر نادي فياريال بيانًا ناريًا بعد قرار رابطة أندية الدوري الإسباني بإلغاء مباراة برشلونة بالدوري الإسباني بمدينة ميامي الأمريكية.

كانت رابطة الدوري الإسباني والاتحاد الأوروبي للكرة القدم “يويفا” قد وافقا في وقت سابق على إقامة مباراة برشلونة وفياريال ضمن منافسات الجولة الـ 17 من الدوري الإسباني يوم 20 ديسمبر في ميامي.

وبسبب ذلك، نشبت حالة من الغضب الشديدة لدى قادة الفرق في الليجا، وفقًا لما أعلنت رابطة لاعبي كرة القدم الإسبانية، كما تقدم ريال مدريد بشكوى إلى المجلس الإسباني لكرة القدم اليوم اعتراضًا على ذلك.

وقدم نادي فياريال تقريرًا مفصليًا حول الأحداث السابقة أمام الجماهير مندهشًا من قرار الرابطة بإلغاء المباراة في حين أنها كانت صاحبة الفكرة، معتبرة ذلك فشلًا كبيرًا في تنظيم اللقاء.

وجاء بيان نادي فياريال على النحو التالي:-

يرغب نادي فياريال أن يعرب عن استيائه العميق من رابطة الدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم، بسبب سوء إدارة تنظيم المباراة المقرر إقامتها في ميامي ضد نادي برشلونة في 20 ديسمبر، بالجولة الـ 17 والتي لن تقام في نهاية المطاف، وبسبب ذلك يرغب النادي في تقديم تقرير مفصل عن التسلسل الزمني الكامل للأحداث المحيطة بهذه المسألة

مشروع إقامة مباراة في لا ليجا خارج إسبانيا هو مبادرة أطلقتها الرابطة نفسها بهدف توسيع نطاق المسابقة عالميًا، هذا الصيف اقترحت الرابطة على نادي فياريال المشاركة واستضافة المباراة التي ستُقام ضد نادي برشلونة قبل عطلة عيد الميلاد، وقد وافق نادي فياريال كما أعلن علنًا في مناسبات عديدة على هذا المشروع إيمانًا منه بفائدته الكبيرة لنمو النادي ومساهمته في تطوير المسابقة، ومع ذلك يتطلب تنفيذه شرطين أساسيين

ستُستخدم الأموال المخصصة لهذه المبادرة من قِبل الرابطة لتعويض حاملي تذاكر نادي فياريال الموسمية، وهم المتضررون فعليًا من هذا الوضع، لغيابهم عن إحدى المباريات المشمولة في تذاكرهم الموسمية، ويشمل ذلك سفرًا مجانيًا إلى ميامي لمشاهدة المباراة أو استردادًا جزئيًا لقيمة التذاكر.

اقرأ أيضًا | تيباس ينفجر بعد إلغاء مباراة برشلونة في أمريكا: “يتحدثون عن النزاهة وهم يضغطون الحكام”

ولن يحصل أي من الناديين المشاركين على أي فائدة مالية مباشرة مقابل لعب المباراة، حيث كان ينبغي استخدام الأموال لتعويض حاملي التذاكر الموسمية لفياريال، ولأن ذلك سيكون أيضًا غير عادل بالنسبة لأندية الدوري الأخرى.

تتفهم رابطة الدوري الإسباني لكرة القدم هذه الطلبات وتوافق عليها، ويواصل نادي فياريال متابعة تعليماته لإضفاء الطابع الرسمي على الطلب بين جميع الأطراف، حيث يجب أن تكون رابطة الدوري الإسباني نفسها، باعتبارها الهيئة المسؤولة والشخص الذي يقود هذه المبادرة على جميع المستويات، هي التي يجب أن تطلب جميع التصاريح المقابلة وتنقل جميع المعلومات إلى بقية الأندية والهيئات المختصة المختلفة مثل الاتحاد الإسباني لكرة القدم والاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم والاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم واتحاد كرة القدم الإسباني.

ومنذ أن بدأ النظر في إمكانية استضافة مباراة بهذا الحجم في الصيف، وفهمًا للتعقيد اللوجيستي لمباراة بهذا الحجم وتداعيات سفر أعداد كبيرة من المشجعين إلى قارة أخرى، جعل نادي فياريال نفسه متاحًا بالكامل لرابطة الدوري الإسباني وأكد على أهمية العمل المسبق والتخطيط لتلبية جميع الاحتياجات المقابلة.

نظرًا لضعف التقدم في تطوير وتنظيم الليجا، أعرب نادي فياريال مرارًا وتكرارًا عن قلقه العميق تجاهها، وحثها على تحديد جوانب أساسية وجوهرية، مثل تأكيد موعد المباراة والتعاقد مع وكالة سفر لرحلة بهذا الحجم، وهي أمور مهمة لبدء تنظيم الحدث.

في الواقع، كان من المقرر عقد اجتماع يوم الخميس المقبل، وفي حال عدم حل هذه المشاكل فورًا، كان سينسحب النادي من المشروع لعدم توفر الحد الأدنى من الشروط اللازمة للتنظيم.

ليلة أمس، وقبل دقائق من انطلاق مباراة دوري أبطال أوروبا بين فياريال ومانشستر سيتي على ملعب لا سيراميكا، تم إبلاغ النادي هاتفيًا من رابطة الليجا بإلغاء المباراة بناءً على قرار الشركة الراعية إلا أن المعلومات كانت سرية وسيتم البحث عن أفضل وقت لإعلانها بشكل مشترك، كما حدث في 8 أكتوبر لتأكيد موعد المباراة.

لكن بعد دقائق، وبشكل مفاجئ للنادي، قررت رابطة الدوري الإسباني إصدار بيان من جانب واحد يعلن إلغاء مباراة لفياريال خلال مباراة بهذه الأهمية للنادي، مما يدل على عدم احترام كامل وشامل للنادي، فضلًا عن الافتقار إلى الحساسية والتعاطف.

يأسف نادي فياريال لأن رابطة الدوري الإسباني، بصفتها الجهة المنظمة، لم تُحسن إدارة وتنظيم المباراة، ولم تتمكن من إقامتها في ميامي، معتبرًا أنها فرصة سانحة لنمو الأندية والدوري الإسباني على الصعيد الدولي.

Both are exceptional ODI outfits, coming in with a string of wins to their name. Both will also already have one eye on their respective semi-finals, which quickly follow Sunday’s game

Karthik Krishnaswamy01-Mar-20252:19

Kumble: ‘Not in favour of resting players at this stage’

Big picture: Kohli joins 300 clubScroll down to the form guide section. Actually, no need, because, spoiler warning, both teams have WWWWW next to them going into this match.These are two exceptional ODI outfits in potentially title-winning form, deep and balanced thanks to the allrounders they possess. They are well-suited to conditions at this Champions Trophy – particularly, perhaps, to those in Dubai where this contest will take place – thanks to their spin options and the variety of batting gears in their top orders.There has also been, especially over the last five years and a bit, a lot of history between these two teams.Related

Phillips confident NZ have the resources to find success in slower Dubai

KL Rahul plays down India's injury worries ahead of NZ clash

India wary of keeping bowlers fresh for semi, says ten Doeschate

Dot-ball 'beast' Bracewell stays under the radar but soars high

Trial by spin on slow Dubai pitches a key step in Gill's evolution

This should, for all those reasons, be a main-course kind of contest, but it’s an appetiser in the context of where this Champions Trophy stands. India and New Zealand are both through to the semi-finals, and know exactly where and when their respective semi-finals will be played. All that remains to be decided is whom they will face there, and it’s unlikely there’s a “preferred” opponent for either team, given it’s a choice between South Africa and Australia.With that in mind, and the short turnaround before the semi-finals – particularly in the case of India, who only have a one-day gap before their game on March 4 – Sunday night’s contest may not necessarily be played at vein-throbbing intensity. There’s a chance of big names resting, and also – as India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate suggested on Friday – of key bowlers not completing their full ten-over quotas.There’s one man whose intensity is never short of vein-throbbing when he’s on the field, though, and he’s set to play a very special match. Virat Kohli is set to play his 300th ODI, becoming the 22nd player and seventh from India to get to that landmark. Given how infrequently ODIs are now played, and given how far away Kohli’s closest contemporaries are – Mushfiqur Rahim (274) and Rohit Sharma (272) are the only two to have played more than 250 – will he also be the last to get there?Virat Kohli is poised to play his 300th ODI•Alex Davidson/Getty ImagesForm guideIndia WWWWW
New Zealand WWWWWIn the spotlight: Shreyas Iyer and Kyle JamiesonIndia’s batting is yet to face a truly daunting test in this Champions Trophy. They have batted second in both their games so far, and chased down targets of 229 and 242. Whether they bat first or second on Sunday, they are likelier to face a stiffer challenge from New Zealand, particularly from their fingerspinners Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell through the middle overs. It is perhaps in this context that Shreyas Iyer becomes especially important. Where Kohli and KL Rahul have gone at strike rates in the low 80s against spin in the middle overs since the start of 2023, Iyer has struck at 95.24. New Zealand know how dangerous Iyer is against spin – he hit five sixes while scoring 48 off 35 balls against their spinners during his century in the Mumbai World Cup semi-final of 2023.If the Kohli generation is India’s golden generation, it probably peaked around the time of the inaugural World Test Championship of 2019-21. And it’s quite possible that India may have won that trophy had they not happened to run into Kyle Jamieson. This towering and hugely gifted fast-bowling allrounder has gone through a testing time since then, mostly due to injury, and he’s now set to face India for the first time in any format since December 2021. Jamieson hasn’t yet had the same impact in ODIs that he has had in Tests; could the sight of his favourite opponents bring out his best?Team news: Daryl Mitchell fit, but where does he fit in?India only have a day’s gap between this match and their semi-final, but had a six-day gap between their previous match, against Pakistan, and this one. Do they believe, then, that their key players are adequately rested for 200 overs over three days? Or do they rest one or two of them? And what of the players on the bench, and their match-readiness should they suddenly be required in a knockout game? Rohit Sharma and Mohammed Shami went off the field with niggles at various stages during the Pakistan game, but both, according to the team’s press-conference representatives, are fit.India didn’t train on Saturday, but Rishabh Pant had an extended session in the nets on Friday, which suggests he could get a game – he has only played one ODI, back in July 2024, since his return from injuries suffered during his car crash. Given that as many as five left-hand batters could feature in New Zealand’s top eight, there’s a chance India may replace one of their two left-arm fingerspinners with the offspinner Washington Sundar. If Pant plays and adds his left-handedness to India’s top five, it relieves them of the need for Axar Patel as a floater.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Washington Sundar, 9 Harshit Rana, 10 Kuldeep Yadav/Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Mohammed Shami/Arshdeep Singh.India, especially, will have a question of balancing workloads to address•Associated PressDaryl Mitchell is fit again after missing the match against Bangladesh with an illness, and this leaves New Zealand with a major top-order headache. Rachin Ravindra, who was himself returning from injury, replaced Mitchell and scored a match-winning hundred against Bangladesh. Will Young scored a hundred in the tournament-opener against Pakistan. Devon Conway, who had replaced Ravindra at the top of the order, has also been among the runs, scoring 97 against South Africa in the tri-series that preceded the Champions Trophy.New Zealand (probable): 1 Devon Conway, 2 Rachin Ravindra, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Michael Bracewell, 8 Mitchell Santner (capt), 9 Kyle Jamieson, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Will O’Rourke.Pitch and conditions: spin to win?Dubai has been the most spin-friendly of the four Champions Trophy venues, with spinners currently returning an average of 37.07 and an economy rate of 4.36 here. Rawalpindi is second on both counts, at 40.60 and 4.81.This, of course, may also have something do to with the quality of India’s spinners. In any case, the pitches in Dubai, far from being square turners, have tended to be merely slow, with the large outfield also serving as an ally to the slower bowlers.Bangladesh and Pakistan both won the toss against India and chose to bat, reflecting the trend for dew not to be much of a factor at this time of the year. It’s possible that bat-first may still be the way to go, given the tendency for the pitches here to slow down over 100 overs.A clear, pleasant day is expected on Sunday, with a maximum temperature of 24 degrees Celsius.Vital runs aside, Tom Latham now has 100 ODI catches as a keeper to his name•ICC/Getty ImagesStats and trivia India and New Zealand have only met once before in the Champions Trophy: the final in 2000 when an unbeaten Chris Cairns century led New Zealand to a four-wicket win. India have won each of their last five completed ODIs against New Zealand; New Zealand won five in a row before that stretch. Tom Latham’s unbeaten 118 made all the headlines, but he also enjoyed a big moment on the field during New Zealand’s tournament-opener against Pakistan: the catch of Shaheen Shah Afridi, off Matt Henry, was his 100th as wicketkeeper in ODIs.Quotes”That’s a lot of ODI games and a lot of international games and yeah, he’s been… I mean, words fall short to express how good a player he’s been, and what a great servant of Indian cricket he’s been.”

Fakhar Zaman is “100% certain” he will play for Pakistan again and is gearing up for the 2025 Champions Trophy, which begins on February 19 and will be hosted in Pakistan and Dubai.”A 100%, I will play for Pakistan (again),” Fakhar, 34, told the . “Actually, many people do not know about that, but after the T20 World Cup I got sick and because of the medical condition I was not fit, so I was not a part of the team.”But now I [have] recovered 100%, and you will see me in the next white-ball series which Pakistan play.”Related

• Saim Ayub to travel to London for ankle fracture treatment

• Champions Trophy 2025: Dubai to host all India matches, including the knockouts if India qualify

• PCB issues Fakhar Zaman show-cause notice after post in support of Babar Azam

Fakhar, once an integral part of the Pakistan white-ball setup, has not played international cricket since the 2024 T20 World Cup last June in the USA and West Indies, where Pakistan were eliminated in the group stage. He last played an ODI in the 2023 ODI World Cup but is hopeful of returning for the Champions Trophy at home.Incidentally, it was in the 2017 Champions Trophy that Fakhar shot to prominence with a title-winning 114 against India in the final at The Oval in London. “My plan has been around the Champions Trophy,” he said. “I did not play in the Australia tour or in the South Africa tour, so my whole plan was just to play in the Champions Trophy, to make myself available and to be fully fit for the tournament.”That was in the back of my mind, and I am thankful, and I am lucky to be fit right now. I started from the Champions Trophy 2017 and that went really well for me and now I am very excited for the next edition also. I talked to the selectors, the head coach, and everyone wanted me to play in the Champions Trophy.”Fakhar Zaman is currently in the UAE for his maiden ILT20 stint•Associated Press

Fakhar had high praise for 22-year-old opener Saim Ayub, who has become a regular across formats for Pakistan. Ayub has had a sensational start to his ODI career, with three centuries and a fifty in nine innings, which includes hundreds in Australia and South Africa. However, an ankle fracture sustained during the first morning of the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town has put his Champions Trophy campaign in jeopardy.”I hope and I believe that he will recover quickly, and I was thinking yesterday to call Saim just to talk to him about this injury,” Fakhar said. “Believe me, he is such a great player that if he continues to play for the next four to five years, he will be at the top and he will be amongst the top three players in the world.”While Fakhar wants to open the batting for Pakistan, he may not find a slot there, with Ayub, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan already at the top of the order.”In Pakistan, we have three of the best players in the world in Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Saim Ayub, so sometimes I feel lucky to be in the team even if I am not able to make my place in the team as an opener,” Fakhar said. “If the team has faith in me and they want me to bat at number four or five, that totally makes sense, because for me the team is always first and I play wherever the team wants me to play, but I always prefer to open.”Fakhar is currently gearing up for his maiden ILT20 stint where he will feature for the 2023 runners-up Desert Vipers. “There are many Pakistani players who have played for the Desert Vipers including Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Azam Khan and Mohammad Amir and they talk really highly about this team, the environment, the management, the way they play the cricket and the way their mindset is,” Fakhar said. “So when I got the offer, without any discussion with anyone, I said ‘yes, I would love to play for this team.'”The ILT20 begins on January 11, with the Dubai Capitals taking on MI Emirates in Dubai.

Pat Cummins confirms just the one change to Australia’s XI but expects Scott Boland to play a role again

Andrew McGlashan13-Dec-2024Josh Hazlewood has been declared fit to play in the third Test against India in Brisbane with captain Pat Cummins confirming he will replace Scott Boland as the only change to Australia’s XI.Hazlewood missed Australia’s win in Adelaide due to a side strain he suffered in the opening Test in Perth with Boland taking five vital wickets across two innings in the second Test.Hazlewood underwent a couple of fitness tests during the week. With only short run-ups available in the Gabba nets and no spare centre wickets, Hazlewood went out to Allan Border Field on Thursday to bowl off his full run alongside Mitchell Starc, under the eye of bowling coach Daniel Vettori.Related

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“He’s had no hiccups,” Cummins said. “He had a really good bowl yesterday and a bowl in Adelaide a couple of days previous. The medical team are super confident.”It means that Boland, who averages 13.54 in home Tests, will again be carrying the drinks but Cummins expected him to have another opportunity across the final two matches of the series. There will likely be a debate about a horses-for-courses selection ahead of the MCG where he has an outstanding record, including the stunning 6 for 7 on debut against England, although he was overlooked against Pakistan last season.”It’s tough [leaving him out], he was fantastic in Adelaide,” Cummins said. “Unfortunately he spent quite a bit of time on the bench over the last 18 months and whenever he plays he’s fantastic. Shame for Scotty, but still a fair bit to play out in the series so I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get another crack at some point.””[We told him] it’s about preparing for the MCG because there’s a good chance we might need you. History suggests there’s always some form of natural attrition throughout a Test series. A good thing [is], he’s probably played a Test earlier in the series than he maybe thought. Showed that his standards still super high. [It’s] about trying to set him up for the last two Test matches.”Hazlewood explained on Monday that the latest injury was not “a typical side strain”, but was part of an ongoing issue he has had which has left him frustrated and searching for a solution.”You’re running in to bowl, and you just grab your hat and you’re off and you’re out for six weeks – it’s not that sort of side strain,” he said. “It’s from sort of repetitive use. It’s caused me a lot of trouble over the last few years, but [had] perfect prep this year, played the Shield game and ticked all that off.”I was very happy where I was, and it still happened. So I was pretty annoyed there for a few days. There was plenty of meetings from CA’s point of view [with] physios, doctors, all that stuff. So [we will] come up with a few options and see if we can stop it from happening again.”The fact Hazlewood has missed just one Test is likely down to him only bowling two more overs after he first felt some pain in Perth.”We’ve seen it a few times where Joshy has kind of pushed through a Test match and a little bit of soreness turns into a month or two injury,” Cummins said. “We kind of made the call it wasn’t worth the risk of keeping him bowling. Think he bowled an extra two overs leading into a tea break and said he felt okay, [but] I thought from there that’s enough.”

A spectacular day’s play in Bengaluru ended with the visitors 134 runs in the lead

Sidharth Monga17-Oct-20244:49

46 all out: decoding India’s batting collapse

It was well worth the wait for New Zealand. On their seventh day of Test cricket in India this year, New Zealand finally got on the field, on day two in Bengaluru, and lost a good toss. Once they were denied their wish to bat first under overcast skies, on a pitch that was covered all week, New Zealand’s seam bowlers were all over India with deadly accurate bowling, bowling them out for 46, their lowest score at home and third-lowest overall.This was the fourth-lowest first-innings score in Test history after a side had chosen to bat. Riding on Devon Conway’s enterprising 91 in conditions that had quietened down a bit, New Zealand had attained a lead of 134 by stumps. They had seven wickets in hand.There is a good chance both sides misread the conditions. India won the toss, picked three spinners and batted first, trusting the dry nature of the pitch more than the overcast conditions and the wet lead-up to the Test. New Zealand had hedged their bets: even though they wanted to bat first, they played three seamers, including the king of these conditions, Matt Henry, who ended up with a five-for that took him to 100 Test wickets.It was apparent as early as the first two overs that the ball was moving more than either of the sides expected. New Zealand started off with just the two slips but reinforced the cordon. India were now reacting instinctively and not via pre-series mental preparation as they showed in challenging conditions in England in 2021.And the instinct was to counterattack. Jaiswal played the first loose drive to just the 12th ball he faced even while Tim Southee had been challenging him. Rohit Sharma survived an extremely close lbw shout off Henry on umpire’s call but soon tried to charge Southee and loft him back over his head. The wobble-seam ball jagged back in to take the top of leg stump.3:32

Did India err in opting to bat?

With Shubman Gill missing because of a stiff neck, Virat Kohli moved up to No. 3 for the first time since 2016. While it was brave of Kohli to move up, the batter perhaps best suited to seaming conditions is the current No. 6, KL Rahul, who is the only Asian opener with centuries in Australia, England and South Africa.As it turned out, Kohli didn’t get a chance to make a mistake or show application as the ninth ball he faced jagged back in and kicked at him thanks to Will O’Rourke’s height. Glenn Phillips at leg slip took the catch off the glove diving forward, his presence there suggesting a plan.Another batting-order surprise followed as Sarfaraz Khan walked in at No. 4, at least one slot higher than the one he takes in domestic cricket. It took him just three balls to attempt an aerial drive on the up, shanking it for a sensational catch by Conway at mid-off, diving to his right and taking it well behind his body. A just reward for Henry, who drew an average seam movement of 1.3 degrees in the first session.Rain brought a brief halt at 13 for 3 in 12.4 overs without a single boundary. India enjoyed some luck after the break with Tom Blundell dropping a sitter from Rishabh Pant and other loose shots not resulting wickets.Eventually the fourth wicket came not off a testing delivery, but a middled cut shot by Jaiswal, who fell for 13 off 63, out of which he was in control of just 42. The luck had turned, and a flurry of wickets followed either side of lunch. Rahul nicked O’Rourke down the leg side six minutes before lunch, and Ravindra Jadeja followed with an extravagant flick that produced a leading edge to what proved to be the last ball of the session.Henry produced a snorter immediately after lunch, taking the shoulder of R Ashwin’s bat from a good length. Pant survived the hat-trick ball, but two balls later he nicked Henry to second slip. Again Henry was on a good length and managed to draw seam movement. Bowling on a good length was New Zealand’s hallmark: they stayed in the 6-8m about half the time, and while they had incentive to go to 5m, they rarely ever went to 4m from where they could be driven.Matt Henry took five in the innings to complete 100 career wickets•BCCI

Henry wasn’t done yet, though. He put in a full-speed sprint to his left from fine leg to give O’Rourke his fourth wicket, Jasprit Bumrah not fancying hanging around after one kicked at him and hit him. Henry had substitute Michael Bracewell to thank for completing his five-for as Bracewell dived to his left at gully to get Kuldeep’s wicket.It was the perfect storm for India. The sun was out as they came out, and while the ball still moved, it wasn’t as threatening as in the morning. India’s innings lasted just 31.2 overs with average seam movement of 0.87 degrees. Their bowlers could extract just about 0.65 degrees in the first 31.2 overs, by which time New Zealand had reached 111 for 1. New Zealand played only 36 false shots in that period; India were bowled out to 75.Conway, especially, drew home the advantage during this period. India’s selection meant they had to go to spin early, and Conway attacked Ashwin before the ball had a chance to start helping the spinners. He drove anything too full from the quicks, and swept, reverse-swept and charged at the spinners. It didn’t help that India missed three chances in the slips: Rahul lost the ball once, and Rohit missed one half chance and one to his right off Jadeja. Pant, too, missed two stumpings. None of the beneficiaries survived till stumps.Rohit made up for it with a gully for Jadeja, which drew a big sweep from Will Young, resulting in a catch at short fine leg. Conway had bossed Ashwin with the new ball, but was bowled nine short of a hundred when trying to welcome him back with a reverse-sweep. The ball was now misbehaving enough for the spinners to provide some justification for India selecting three of them.It also underlined the importance of fourth-innings-proofing the lead for New Zealand. Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell took the first steps towards that by surviving the last 10.5 overs of the day.

Travis Head produced a brutal display of hitting, scoring the most individual runs in a powerplay and hitting a record-equalling 17-ball fifty, as Australia raced to a seven-wicket victory with more than 10 overs to spare in the first T20I in Edinburgh after the bowlers had pulled back a bright start from Scotland.The home side came out of the blocks with good intent, led by George Munsey, and were promisingly placed despite shipping wickets in their attempt to keep up a high early run rate. However, from 101 for 3 in the 12th over they lost 6 for 44 with the changes of pace from Australia’s quicks proving effective on a slightly two-paced surface alongside two wickets from Adam Zampa.Any notion that 154 may be close to competitive was put to bed in an extraordinary display of powerplay hitting by Head and Mitchell Marsh after Jake Fraser-McGurk had fallen for a duck on his T20I debut. At one stage 14 consecutive deliveries were boundaries as Australia finished with the second-highest powerplay total in T20Is of 113 for 1 of which Head had 73 himself, beating Paul Stirling’s 67 runs against West Indies in 2020.

Head’s onslaught (and some Marsh)

Given how much he has been spoken about this year, it was easy to forget that Fraser-McGurk was making his T20I debut. But he couldn’t leave a mark on his first innings as he faced up to the somewhat unexpected sight of Brandon McMullen’s medium pace with the new ball. Looking to pull his third delivery, he miscued into midwicket where Charlie Cassell took a superbly judged catch.But any thoughts of a wobble for Australia vanished in a cavalcade of boundaries. Head, who was player of the tournament in the MLC in July, took three fours of Brad Wheal’s first over and giving McMullen a second over didn’t pay off as it cost 20. But the real carnage was saved for Jack Jarvis in the fifth as he was taken for 30 with three sixes by Marsh. Scotland’s bowlers had no response with multiple deliveries going into the trees.Off the first ball of the sixth over, Head went to a 17-ball fifty to equal Marcus Stoinis’ record as the fastest for Australia in T20Is during the run of 14 consecutive deliveries being either a four or six.

Munsey’s powerplay promise

The early peppering of the boundary had come from Scotland opener George Munsey as he produced repeated whip-pulls over the leg side to ensure Australia were under some pressure with the ball in the powerplay as McMullen also played his part.In the fifth over Munsey sent consecutive deliveries from Riley Meredith, playing his first T20I since 2021, for six and followed that with another boundary as 18 came off it. Munsey brought up Scotland’s fifty in the next over, but then fell to an excellent catch by Josh Inglis who dived to his left to collect a thick outside edge.Adam Zampa picked up a couple of wickets•AFP/Getty Images

Scotland’s fade

Scotland’s progress was further dented when McMullen was taken at deep cover shortly after the fielding restrictions ended. There were signs of captain Richie Berrington starting to get settled but his dismissal, caught at long-off against Zampa, proved a turning point in the innings. From there Scotland struggled to regain any momentum. Consecutive overs from Stoinis and Cameron Green went for just four apiece as the combined four overs from the two allrounders cost only 22 runs.Meredith, Xavier Bartlett and Sean Abbott closed out the innings strongly with only a brace of handsome sixes by Jack Jarvis and Mark Watt offering much in response.

Watt’s long ball

While most attention in the chase had been on Head, Marsh helped himself to 39 off 11 balls before falling to Watt’s first delivery with the left-arm spinner held back to outside the fielding restrictions when perhaps he could have been used earlier.By that stage the result was inevitable, but there were a couple of interesting moments as Australia knocked off the remaining runs with Watt’s long ball – delivered from well back from the bowling crease – twice seeing batters pull away very late. The first occasion was Inglis’ opening delivery and the ball took the leg bail then it happened again when Stoinis was on strike. By the wording of the Law (20.4.2.5) the umpire was correct both times, but it could well provide a talking point in the next two matches when Scotland will hope to be more competitive.

After announcing the arrival of Jamie Gittens, Chelsea now reportedly want to hijack Newcastle United’s chase to sign a Serie A defender who’s worth over £50m.

Gittens realises Premier League "dream"

As ever, Chelsea haven’t been afraid to spend big in the summer transfer window. This time around, they’ve splashed out over £60m to sign Joao Pedro from Brighton & Hove Albion, £35m to sign Liam Delap from Ipswich Town and, most recently, £52m to welcome Gittens from Borussia Dortmund. But even then, the Blues are unlikely to be done there.

After putting pen to paper to confirm his big-money move, the winger told Chelsea’s official website: “I did watch Chelsea when I was younger. Not in the stadium but on the TV at home in Reading, during the time of the Eden Hazard era.

“Eden was the clear player for me at that time. I liked Willian as well, another attacker. He had that little shimmy he did, I liked that.

“It’s my dream to play in the Premier League. Obviously, watching it from Germany, it’s a really intense league. Every week is a battle, and I feel like I can enter that battle strongly. I’m excited to join this team that have a winning mentality – that’s the main thing.

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“I just want to keep improving, especially as a footballer and a human being. I want to be more consistent and keep learning. It’s a great feeling to join Chelsea, such a big club. I can’t wait to learn from everyone in the team and to push myself to the max here. It’s amazing.”

With Pedro, Delap and now Gittens at their disposal going forward, those in West London have seemingly turned their attention towards handing their backline a similar boost in the form of a Serie A star.

Chelsea eyeing Giorgio Scalvini hijack

According to Caught Offside, Chelsea now want to hijack Newcastle’s move to sign Giorgio Scalvini from Atalanta and face competition from Manchester United to do so. The Magpies have set their sights on the defender, but now face competition from two rivals.

Like Gittens, however, the deal won’t come cheap for Chelsea with the Serie A club reportedly demanding as much as €60m (£52m) to sell their central defender this summer.

It’s clear to see why Chelsea are interested in Scalvini even as he returns from an ACL injury, and it’s not just because of his defensive talents. As analyst Ben Mattinson highlighted last year, the Atalanta man has the “front-footed aggressive style” to push into midfield if needed in the type of versatility that no side would turn down.

Whilst he may need time to get back to his best after a long-term injury, Scalvini remains one to watch this summer.