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The tournament, which pits MLS sides against their Liga MX counterparts, is expected to continue in 2025 amid criticism, clash with other tournaments

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• Leagues Cup reportedly to be played in 2025
• MLS considering new format in which 18 clubs participate
• Month-long tournament would clash with 2025 Club World Cup, Gold Cup

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The oft-criticized Leagues Cup will be played next summer, according to a report from . The tournament, which included every MLS club and all Liga MX sides, was thrown into jeopardy due to the expected clash with the new 2025 Club World Cup and Gold Cup. Last year, the tournament ran from July 26-August 25, with MLS postponing its regular season.

  The newly-formed Club World Cup, which announced its draw Thursday afternoon, will run from June 15-July 13. Meanwhile, the Gold Cup, an international competition that typically includes players from MLS, is set for June 14-July 6.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  MLS is reportedly considering changes to Leagues Cup next year, though. The 47-team field could be shrunk to just 36, with 18 teams from each league set to feature. Seattle Sounders and Inter Miami will both be in the Club World Cup, although their matchups with top European sides would likely lead to early exits from the competition.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  There also remains concerns that Leagues Cup conflicts with U.S. Open Cup – a tournament that includes the entirety of the United States soccer pyramid. Last year, MLS clubs were given the option to send their MLS Next Pro youth sides to the tournament. As a result, only eight MLS first team sides appeared.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR LEAGUES CUP?

  MLS and Liga MX are yet to announce the exact format for Leagues Cup, although it appears the competition will continue. Columbus Crew are the reigning holders after beating LAFC in the final.

Stoinis smashed an unbeaten 75 as well to pile on the misery for Hurricanes

AAP19-Jan-2022Glenn Maxwell’s all-out assault on Hobart Hurricanes netted him and Melbourne Stars the highest scores in BBL history, handing Hurricanes a reality check with a 106-run hammering on the eve of the finals.Maxwell thumped an unbeaten 154 from 64 balls at the MCG, smashing 22 boundaries and four sixes in the most brutal display of hitting in the competition’s history.It helped the Stars to a record total of 2 for 273, 41 more than the next best in BBL history and the third highest in any franchise or international T20 game in history. Only totals made by Afghanistan and the Czech Republic have been higher, with those matches against fellow minnows Ireland and Turkey.Maxwell’s score was also the ninth highest in T20 history, after Hurricanes opted to rest Scott Boland and Riley Meredith.He dominated Hurricanes all round the wicket, with the shot of the night an outrageous switch-hit flick over fly-slip for six. His century was the second-fastest in BBL history, coming in 41 balls and just two shy of Craig Simmons’s 39-ball effort in 2014.The right-hander helped take 21 off one D’Arcy Short over, while he hit five boundaries for 22 runs off another from Sandeep Lamichhane.Maxwell was not alone with Marcus Stoinis also finishing unbeaten on 75 from 31 balls. On the same night he lost his record for the highest score in BBL history, Stoinis also showed Hurricanes no mercy.He launched six balls over the rope, also taking 26 from a Tim David over as no Hurricanes bowler went at an economy rate below 10.In reply, Hobart never looked interested in the chase as they finished at 6 for 167 with Ben McDermott top-scoring with 55 from 33.Maxwell’s knock will serve as a great ‘what-if?’ for Stars fans, after they finished the season at 7-7 and with two losses with the bulk of their squad out with Covid-19.”The disappointment of the last week probably culminated in us playing with ultimate freedom,” Maxwell said on Seven’s coverage. “It’s been a real tough year. I have had plenty of injuries, COVID, and pretty much every result go against us.”A lot of things have to go right for that to happen. I had great support the whole way through.”Meanwhile, Hurricanes’ loss means they still finish fifth and face Adelaide in an Eliminator on Friday, but all of a sudden with a serious dent to their momentum.The first three finals will each be played in Melbourne, with the challenger and decider to be at home venues. Perth will use Marvel Stadium as their home, while locked out of Western Australia.

ESPNcricinfo presents the plays of the day from the opening day in Kolkata

George Dobell in Kolkata05-Dec-2012Omission of the day
England’s decision to prefer Steven Finn over Stuart Broad for this Test might mark a watershed moment in the careers of both men. Not only was it the first time that Finn, at 23 the coming force in England’s fast bowling, was preferred to Broad, but it was the first time that Broad had been dropped since 2008 when, under the captaincy of Kevin Pietersen, he was omitted for the Test in Chennai. For England’s Twenty20 captain and the vice-captain of this tour it marks an abrupt moment of clarity in a career that had, at one stage, seemed destined for greater things.Mix-up of the day
Batting had looked relatively comfortable in the morning session. India’s openers appeared to have seen off the new ball and were on the brink of a fifty partnership when Virender Sehwag clipped one off his toes. Having run a comfortable two, he embarked on a third run only to find that his partner, Gautam Gambhir, had remained rooted at the other end and was watching the ball. Sehwag, despite being around two thirds of the way down the pitch, was forced to turn in hope of regaining his ground but was well beaten by a strong throw. If India would rue the self-inflicted injury, England could also congratulate themselves on some committed fielding. Samit Patel, not renowned as one of the better athletes in the side, produced a long run and diving save to stop the ball going to the boundary, while Finn, backing him up, produced the hard, accurate throw to Matt Prior to complete the run-out.Milestone of the day
The shot may have been unobtrusive, merely a flick into the leg side for a single off Monty Panesar, but when Sachin Tendulkar scored his second run he became the first man to reach 34,000 runs in international cricket. Coming into this match with 15,562 runs in Test cricket, 18,426 in ODIs and a token 10 in T20Is, Tendulkar has now scored nearly 7,000 more runs than Ricky Ponting, who is second in the combined table of all international runs. Ponting scored 27,483. Tendulkar also later became just the second man, after Brian Lara, to pass 2,500 Test runs in Tests against two teams, in both cases Australia and England. Whatever his recent trials and tribulations, those statistics underlined Tendulkar’s immense achievements over more than 20 years. It is hard to believe anyone will ever overhaul such a record.Decision of the day
India had lost three wickets for 48 runs by the time that Yuvraj Singh came to the crease. At 136 for 4, England sensed blood and India were in danger of failing to make use of winning another important toss. Before he had scored, Yuvraj was trapped on the front pad by one that swung back into him from James Anderson. Umpire Rod Tucker turned down England’s appeal, perhaps believing that the batsman was hit outside the line, though replays suggested that Yuvraj could count himself fortunate to survive. He survived another huge leg before shout when he was on one, this time off Graeme Swann, just a few minutes later. Had either decision gone against India, they would have been five down with fewer than 140 on the board. As it was the fifth-wicket pair of Yuvraj and Tendulkar added 79 runs to lead India to safer ground.Key moment of the day
For much of Tendulkar’s innings, batting had been a real struggle. As he passed 50, however, he began to rediscover his fluency and produced one vintage drive through extra cover off Panesar that suggested he could build his side a strong position in the game. With India threatening to move into the ascendancy at 230 for 5, however, a new spell from Anderson brought the breakthrough. Tendulkar, half forward to one that held its own, could only edge the ball and was very well held by a diving Prior behind the stumps. The game was in the balance once more.

Arsenal chiefs are believed to be insisting on a move to sign a £60 million centre-forward for manager Mikel Arteta, with the north Londoners looking to potentially end their long search for a classic number nine.

Edu and Arteta scouring market for new Arsenal striker

A prolific frontman has long been viewed by some as the final missing piece of Arsenal's jigsaw, and Arteta's interest in signing a new striker dates all the way back to the summer of 2023.

Arsenal ready to pay £25m to sign "creative" player over Barcelona

The Gunners are going toe-to-toe with Hansi Flick’s side.

By
Emilio Galantini

Jul 25, 2024

This time last year, Arsenal were heavily linked with a move for Brentford striker Ivan Toney, and continued to be in the build-up to January. However, a lack of reports since then suggests that the England star is no longer a top target for Edu Gaspar and the wider recruitment team.

The search still goes on to find the perfect forward for Arteta, though, and a few high-profile names are rumoured to be on Edu's radar after a deal for defender Riccardo Calafiori was secured, making him the first new arrival of the summer.

Sky Sports transfer reporter Gianluca Di Marzio claimed earlier this week that Arsenal could table a bid for Napoli star Victor Osimhen, but it remains to be seen if their president Aurelio De Laurentiis will entertain bids lower than the Nigerian's £110 million release clause.

Arteta managed to cope extremely well without the presence of a star 25-plus goals per season striker over 2023/2024, with Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard and Kai Havertz bagging 51 goals between them in all competitions.

However, it remains the belief that Arteta is keen on a striking partner for Havertz, with Ajax star Brian Brobbey also attracting interest from Arsenal as a potentially cheaper Osimhen alternative.

There have also been constant links to Sporting Lisbon star Viktor Gyokeres this window, coming after the Sweden international's incredible 43-goal haul across all competitions during his debut season in Portugal.

Gyokeres' deal includes an £84 million release clause, but some reports claim that Ruben Amorim's Sporting could be willing to sell for a lower fee. The Boot Room, via TEAMtalk, believe that the former Coventry City forward could depart for around £60 million.

Arsenal pushing to sign Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting Lisbon

According to Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, via Standard Sport [Thursday, 08:00], serious interest from the Gunners remains.

It is believed Arsenal are insisting on a move to sign Gyokeres from Sporting, with Edu and co seemingly pushing for the 26-year-old in their search for a new goalscorer. They may even face competition from north London rivals Tottenham, who also reportedly have Gyokeres on their list of striker targets for Ange Postecoglou.

“Gyokeres at Sporting Lisbon is a very interesting link,” said pundit John Wenham to Tottenham News.

“He had the experience in England with Coventry City, where he was very impressive. His overall game is good. He is big and strong, he can play on the ball and his finishing is ridiculously good.

“That would be an exciting signing."

India’s Deepti Sharma also moved up one spot to occupy fourth position among allrounders

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Feb-2022West Indies’ Hayley Matthews has moved two places up to sixth in the ICC women’s ODI rankings for allrounders, while India’s ODI captain Mithali Raj has gone up one place to be second among batters.Matthews starred with an all-round performance in the two ODIs against South Africa in Johannesburg, taking four wickets at an economy of 3.78 and scoring a 63-ball 51 in the rain-hit first game. This also helped her gain four spots among bowlers as she now occupies 11th place with a rating of 587, the highest in her career so far. India’s Deepti Sharma also moved up one spot to be at the fourth position among allrounders.

Full rankings tables

• Click here for the full team rankings

• Click here for the full player rankings

Raj has 738 rating points among the batters, behind top-ranked Alyssa Healy (750) of Australia. Raj’s team-mate, Smriti Mandhana, is unchanged at sixth with 710 rating points.South Africa’s stand-in captain Sune Luus made a two-spot jump to 18th, with team-mate Ayabonga Khaka and West Indies’ Chinelle Henry also gaining big in the bowling list, led by Australia’s Jess Jonassen. Veteran India pacer Jhulan Goswami has maintained her second place and Australia’s Megan Schutt occupies the third spot.England’s Natalie Sciver leads the allrounders’ chart, while Australia’s Ellyse Perry and South Africa’s Marizanne Kapp are placed at second and third positions, respectively.

Vitor Roque, who is currently having a good loan spell at Real Betis, has admitted that he didn't enjoy his time at Barcelona.

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• Roque admits he had a bad time at Barca
• Was loaned out to Betis in the summer
• Has become a regular under Manuel Pellegrini

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Vitor Roque has opened up on his brief six-month spell at Barcelona before joining Real Betis on a season-long loan this summer, claiming that he faced a lot of hardships and wasn't particularly happy with the way he was being managed by Xavi, the former Barca coach.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  In July 2023, Barcelona announced that they had completed the signing of Roque from Athletico Paranaense. The Brazilian youngster would spend the rest of the season with Athletico Paranaense before joining the Catalans in January 2024, following the completion of the Brazilian football season.

  He managed to scored just two goals in 16 appearances as Barcelona lost the league to Real Madrid and crashed out of both Copa del Rey and the Champions League. Roque completed just 353 minutes of football, which consisted of just two starts. Touted to be the successor to Robert Lewandowski, Roque became an afterthought under Xavi and was eventually loaned out to Betis with an option to buy or to extend the loan for another 12 months.

  The 19-year-old has found his home at the Benito Villamarin and has become vital to Manuel Pellegrini, having found the back of the net five times in 14 games in all competitions. As good as his time has been at the Andalusian outfit, Roque revealed it was quite the opposite at Camp Nou.

• WHAT VITOR ROQUE SAID

  Speaking in an interview on Real Betis' official channel (h/t SPORT), Roque said: "When I arrived [at Barcelona] I had few opportunities, I didn't have time to adapt either. The truth is that I had some bad times there, but they serve as a learning experience, you know? I'm very happy to be here. The things I've learned there help me today and I'm very happy."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR VITOR ROQUE?

  Roque wasn't a part of the Brazil squad that took on Venezuela and Uruguay in the ongoing international break, but he'll hope to win over the Selecao leadership when he returns to Real Betis colours in a LaLiga match away at Valencia on Saturday, November 23.

Pre-season is well and truly here, and after dispatching Hearts and Queens Park Rangers over the last week, Tottenham Hotspur have flown out to Japan to kickstart their brief international tour.

It's hard to take too much from these games, but it will be reassuring for fans to see the team look refreshed and ready for the new campaign.

One of the stars who started the last two games was Spanish right-back Pedro Porro.

While he looked good, recent reports suggest he could have some extra competition next season as the club have been linked with an exciting full-back, a full-back who has won comparisons to a certain Ben White.

Tottenham Hotspur transfer news

According to a recent report from journalist Graeme Bailey, Tottenham are one of three Premier League clubs interested in signing Bayern Munich full-back Noussair Mazraoui.

Alongside the Lilywhites, Bailey claims that Manchester United and West Ham United are also keen on the right-back, whom Bayern have supposedly offered to the teams.

The German Behemoths are happy to sell the Moroccan as they view him as surplus to requirements, although they still want an offer in the region of £25m.

It could prove challenging to get ahead of the chasing pack, but bringing in Mazraoui as competition for Porro would be an excellent idea, and the fact he's been compared to White is undoubtedly a bonus – from a playing perspective, anyway.

How Mazraoui compares to Porro and White

Okay, so before we look at how Mazraoui stacks up against Porro, let's examine this comparison to White and where it comes from.

It stems from FBref, which compared players in similar positions in last season's Champions League, created a list of the ten most comparable for each one, and concluded that the Englishman was the most similar full-back to the Moroccan in the entire competition.

The way they came to this conclusion was by looking at how closely the pair rank for several underlying metrics, including expected assists, actual assists, shots on target, passing accuracy, live passes, goal-creating actions, interceptions and clearances, all per 90.

However, it's not just their underlying numbers that make the two right-backs comparable.

Like the Arsenal man, the Bayern ace has shown himself to be positionally versatile, starting 44 games in central midfield, 13 in defensive midfield, and ten at left-back, among several starts all over the pitch.

So, while it's clear how the former Ajax star could be compared to the Englishman, how does he stack up to the man he may well be battling for a place in Ange Postecoglou's starting lineup next season?

Well, when you compare their underlying numbers from their respective league campaigns last season, it becomes clear that their battle could be an excellent one, with both full-backs coming out on top in ten key underlying metrics each.

For example, the former Sporting CP ace emerges victorious in metrics such as tackles won, blocks, ball recoveries and key passes, whereas his potential rival does better in ones like aerial duels won, progressive passes and carries, assists, and interceptions, all per 90.

Ultimately, if Spurs have a genuine chance to sign Mazraoui this summer, they should absolutely take it. He would be the perfect player to challenge Porro for the right-back position, and while the fans might not be the biggest fans of White, comparisons to him at the moment are certainly not a bad thing.

Already scouted: Spurs in frame to sign a "monster" Richarlison replacement

The impressive youngster has a very bright future ahead of him.

By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Jul 24, 2024

In the tour match against South Africa in Sydney, Phillip Hughes will have the chance to make an impression against the side he began his now flagging Test career against with a bang

Daniel Brettig in Sydney01-Nov-2012At the age of 23, Phillip Hughes grins when recalling his exploits as a 20-year-old. In his first Test series three years ago Hughes laid waste to South Africa’s bowlers in Johannesburg and Durban, fearlessly clouting them to all parts as Australia claimed an unexpected and memorable series victory.Back then, it was a simple game for Hughes, his homespun technique confounding a South African side that now admits to misreading his game. However the years since have brought more days out of the Australian team than in it, and a public examination of Hughes’ technique and character reached its nadir last November when he was caught Martin Guptill, bowled Chris Martin, four innings in a row. That sequence against New Zealand cost Hughes his Test spot, the third time he had been dropped.”It’s hard to put it, how low it really got,” Hughes said. “There have been lots of ups and downs. I’ve been in the international side a couple of times now and had the taste. Back in South Africa was three years ago now, so there has been a fair few low times and there have been a fair few high times as well. It’s about being as consistent as possible and scoring runs is always good for that confidence.”Cricket’s a funny game at times, especially batting up at the top of the order. You nick sometimes, you get low scores. The key is once you get in, you get good scores. I suppose in 2009 I was just going with the flow at that stage. I had confidence behind me, runs were behind me, and I just happened to click on that tour. I was a lot younger then.”It’s the same game. It’s about keeping things very simple. I don’t like complicating things.”Ahead of Australia A’s tour match against the South Africans at the SCG, Hughes is confident once again. Not in the “too young to know better” sense that he took to South Africa in 2009, but in a more mature sense based on a steadily refashioned technique, a so-far-successful move from New South Wales to South Australia and a greater knowledge of what is important in life.”I’m grateful for getting selected in this team,” Hughes said. “It was only four months ago I didn’t get selected in the Australia A team that toured England and that was a disappointing time. I went to Worcester and got an opportunity there. Now, with runs on the board, I see myself in this team and I’ve got a great opportunity ahead of me.”I feel I’ve opened my leg-side play up so I can hit to all areas of the field. A couple of years ago I was probably limited. My strength was the off-side. I feel like now I can play all around the field and I think that’s a big thing in all formats but especially the short format, where you’ve got to open that [leg-side] up.”

“I feel I’ve opened my leg-side play up so I can hit to all areas of the field. A couple of years ago I was probably limited. My strength was the off-side.”Phillip Hughes

South Africa remain intrigued by Hughes, given how confidently he attacked them in 2009. They fared better against him in South Africa last year, though Hughes was still able to craft an important half-century in the first innings of the Johannesburg Test. Dale Steyn said the earlier miscalculations would not be repeated at the SCG.”I think we summed him up badly and he made us pay,” Steyn said. “I think when he came down to South Africa more recently we’d definitely done our analysis a lot better of the Australians, especially him, and he didn’t get away from us. I think we went short and wide [in 2009] and we didn’t realise that he could cut so well.”In the next series we were a lot straighter and we kind of tucked him up a lot more. It was a lot tidier in all honesty. We didn’t give him the freebies that he got in the previous series.”South Africa are much wiser this time around, but so too is Hughes. He will hope that the next three days will be the start of his path back to the kind of Test match glory he experienced at the first time of asking.

Dinesh Karthik’s century took Tamil Nadu to 314, but HP never wavered in their chase

Hemant Brar26-Dec-2021Wicketkeeper-opener Shubham Arora’s unbeaten 136 off 131 balls paved the way for Himachal Pradesh’s maiden Vijay Hazare title as they beat Tamil Nadu by 11 runs via the VJD method at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Chasing 315, Himachal needed 16 from 15 balls with six wickets in hand when bad light stopped play.Left-hander Arora was brisk right from the start. While Tamil Nadu’s spinners struck back with three wickets after a rapid start, Arora found an ally in Amit Kumar. The two put together 148 off 150 balls for the fourth wicket, ensuring the asking rate never went out of hand.When B Aparajith dismissed Amit for a 79-ball 74, Himachal needed 71 from 8.5 overs. That brought captain Rishi Dhawan to the crease, with the stage set for his strokeplay. His quickfire 42 not out off 23 balls meant Tamil Nadu didn’t have an opening. Arora, who struck 13 fours and a six in his maiden List A hundred, was named Player of the Match.Earlier, Dinesh Karthik’s 116 off 103 balls, studded with eight fours and seven sixes, had lifted Tamil Nadu to 314 but in the end, it didn’t prove to be enough.After winning the toss, Dhawan cited moisture in the surface as a reason behind bowling first. On a gloomy morning, he expected the fresh pitch to help his seamers early on.Vinay Galetiya proved his captain right when he breached Aparajith’s defence with the one that kept coming in with the angle. Shortly afterwards, Dhawan himself dealt Tamil Nadu a blow and N Jagadeesan caught behind with his first ball of the day.With the sun not yet out and the ball hooping around, Tamil Nadu promoted lower-order batters R Sai Kishore and M Ashwin to No. 3 and No. 4 respectively. The two added 17 for the third wicket in almost six overs, adding 17 before Kishore edged Pankaj Jaswal to first slip.Ashwin fell soon after, becoming Dhawan’s second victim. That left Tamil Nadu 40 for 4 in the 15th over but by now the sun had come out and they had two main batters, Karthik and B Indrajith, in the middle.Tamil Nadu knew they needed to up the scoring rate and the first signs of that came from Karthik. In the 21st over, he stepped out against Galetiya and hit him over long-on. Two balls later, he slog-swept him over deep square leg for his second six before repeating the shot in the bowler’s next over for the same result.It was yet another sweep – this time off left-arm spinner Akash Vasisht for four – that brought up Karthik’s half-century, off 67 balls. Himachal could have sent him back when he was on 53 but Arora put down the chance off Jaswal.Indrajith, who was playing second fiddle until then, also opened up. With a flurry of boundaries, he reached his half-century off just 57 balls despite being on 27 off 44 balls at one stage.At the other end, Karthik struck 6, 4, 6 off consecutive Jaswal deliveries and moved closer to his hundred. On 96, he offered Himachal another chance when he ended up top-edging a lap sweep off left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar, but short third man grassed the opportunity.Karthik brought up his century off 96 balls but Indrajith fell for 80 off 71. But their 202-run partnership off just 164 balls, followed by Shahrukh Khan’s 42 off 21, gave Tamil Nadu a formidable total even though they were all out in 49.4 overs.Himachal started their chase in a positive manner, with Prashant Chopra and Arora adding 60 in just 8.5 overs. Seeing his seamers going for runs, Vijay Shankar turned to spin, and Kishore didn’t take long to strike, castling Chopra for 21. In the next over, Washington Sundar bowled Digvijay Rangi for nought to make it 61 for 2.Arora, meanwhile, brought up his half-century, while Nikhil Gangta hit a couple of sixes to keep the scorecard ticking. However, their stand was cut short by Ashwin, who had Gangta holing out for a 23-ball 18.Arora and Amit kept Himachal afloat and took the side to 150 in the 26th over. When the boundaries dried up, the duo ran hard between the wickets. As a result, without taking any real risks, they brought down the equation to 142 required from the last 20 overs with seven wickets in hand.Amit reached his fifty off 57 balls; two overs later, Arora brought up his hundred off 95 balls. After reaching the landmark, Arora hit Aparajith for a straight hit to bring the target under 100.Tamil Nadu had a chance to break the stand in the 38th over when both batters found themselves near the striker’s end after a mix-up. Vijay, though, failed to collect the ball, allowing Arora to trace back his steps. Arora was batting on 112 at that time.Aparajith finally broke through with Amit’s wicket, trapping him lbw when the batter tried to swipe one fine, but Dhawan slogged the bowler over deep midwicket on the second ball he faced to ease off the pressure. Then with an array of cut shots, he found successive boundaries against both Ashwin and Kishore. An over later, the required rate had plunged to almost run a ball.Arora gave Tamil Nadu another chance in the 47th over but the mid-off fielder put down the catch, and when play was stopped, Himachal were comfortably ahead of the VJD target.

Manchester City midfielder Rodri believes he could make a comeback from his anterior cruciate ligament injury ahead of next year's Club World Cup.

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• Rodri nursing an ACL injury
• Expected to miss rest of the season
• Man City star aiming to return before CWC

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Initially expected to miss the remainder of the season due to ACL and meniscus damage in his right knee – sustained during the 2-2 draw with Arsenal in September – the Spaniard now aims to return earlier than predicted. The initial prognosis suggested a recovery period of up to 10 months, placing Rodri's return well into next season. However, the 27-year-old is keen to expedite his rehabilitation, viewing the journey as both a physical and mental challenge.

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  WHAT RODRI SAID

  In an interview with Rodri said: "There is the information that the surgeon gives you, who wants everything to go well and it extends up to 10 months or so. I'm trying to set a date for myself. For reasons of my mind, I'm trying to finish this season."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  City earned their spot in the inaugural 32-team Club World Cup by winning the Champions League in 2023. Rodri played a pivotal role in that triumph, scoring the decisive goal in the final against Inter. The revamped tournament, modelled on the World Cup, will feature eight groups of four teams followed by a knockout stage. Running from June 15 to mid-July, the event provides Rodri with a concrete goal to work toward as he recovers.

  "Every year they are longer and I think I will make it," he said. "I don't know how much I will be able to participate, but with the Nations League and Club World Cup at the end, June-July, I think so."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MANCHESTER CITY?

  Rodri’s absence has coincided with a turbulent period for City, marking one of the most challenging stretches in Pep Guardiola’s managerial career. The reigning Premier League champions have lost four consecutive matches, a first for Guardiola, including back-to-back league defeats to Bournemouth and Brighton. After the international break, City will look to rebound with a challenging Premier League clash against Tottenham on November 23.