Mauricio Pochettino has revealed that he has been playing crossbar challenge with Mykhailo Mudryk as he bids to build up the winger's confidence.
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There has been an update regarding Tottenham Hotspur's apparent interest in Southampton talisman, James Ward-Prowse…
What's the latest on Ward-Prowse to Tottenham?
According to Football Insider, the Lilywhites – as well as rivals West Ham United – are believed to be the frontrunners in the battle to land the England international, with the Premier League pair said to be 'pushing hardest' to get a deal over the line.
The piece adds that Spurs, in particular, have been keeping tabs on the 28-year-old over an extended period of time, with the north Londoners now having the perfect chance to pounce following the Saints' recent relegation.
If Ange Postecoglou and co are to make a move for the 11-cap playmaker, previous reports earlier this month suggested that it could require a fee of around £40m, with three years still left to run on the player's existing deal.
Should Tottenham sign Ward-Prowse?
A deal for Ward-Prowse could potentially allow Tottenham to finally fill the creative, midfield void that was left behind by Christian Eriksen following his departure for Inter Milan back in 2020, with journalist Dean Jones having stated last summer that the club "haven't replaced Eriksen's profile and creativity".
Club legend Glenn Hoddle has also spoken of the need to replace the experienced Dane after stating his desire to see Daniel Levy recruit 'a player who can pick passes', before going on to name Ward-Prowse – who he described as a 'major asset' – as a possible candidate for that vacancy.
While filling the shoes of a player who racked up 90 goals and 69 assists for Spurs in 305 games would not be easy, the Saints star also possesses the quality to make a telling impact in the final third, having registered 53 assists and 55 goals in 409 games across all fronts for the south coast side.
Lauded by teammate Jan Bednarek for having the "best delivery in the league", Ward-Prowse also mirrors Eriksen due to his set-piece quality as he has scored 17 Premier League free-kicks to date, with the current Manchester United man – who has scored eight top-flight free-kicks – also having "very, very good set-piece delivery, both from corners and direct free kicks", according to Brentford boss, Thomas Frank.
The introduction of an Eriksen-like figure could also potentially benefit Tottenham's free-scoring talisman, Harry Kane, with talkSPORT pundit Darren Ambrose claiming earlier this year that Ward-Prowse could help his compatriot to score "an extra ten goals a season", due to his devastating delivery.
While there have been claims that Kane could be on his way out of the club this summer – amid links to both Manchester United and Real Madrid – Ambrose even went as far as to suggest that if "you sign James Ward-Prowse, Harry Kane stays."
Whether that proves true or not, it would certainly be a benefit for both Kane – and for new boss Postecoglou – if Spurs could find an heir to Eriksen this summer…
Leicestershire were bowled out for less than 150 for the second time in the match as they subsided to an embarrassing innings defeat at the hands of Sussex
ECB Reporters Network07-Sep-2016
ScorecardOllie Robinson polished Leicestershire off with the ball after making an important 81•Getty Images
Leicestershire were bowled out for less than 150 for the second time in the match as they subsided to an embarrassing innings defeat at the hands of Sussex.Fine bowling from Steve Magoffin and Jofra Archer, both of whom took full advantage of the green pitch and humid atmosphere to finish the match with seven wickets apiece, along with a partnership of 133 between captain Ben Brown and Ollie Robinson earlier in the day, were the highlights of an impressive performance by the visitors.The visitors resumed on 182 for 7, a lead of 47, and with the pitch – on which 17 wickets fell on the first day – still green, the home side appeared to still be in the game.Leicestershire’s bowlers lacked spark, however, and Brown and Robinson mixed aggression with application to impressive effect. Neither was afraid to hit the ball in the air, and though they enjoyed the odd moment of good fortune, they also took full toll of some poor deliveries. Brown was first to his fifty, hit off just 56 balls, and Robinson was not far behind.Leicestershire skipper Mark Cosgrove eventually turned in some desperation to the occasional off-spin of Paul Horton, and the former Lancashire opener made the breakthrough in his first over, Brown, on 71, going back and edging an attempted cut to Angus Robson at first slip.Having picked up his first first-class wicket in his 178th first-class match, Horton promptly made it two, when Robinson, on 81, reverse-swept him gently to Charlie Shreck at backward point.Zak Chappell then knocked Archer’s leg stump out of the ground, but by then Sussex were leading by 178.How much of an advantage that was quickly became clear. Magoffin and Archer, sharing the new ball, immediately began to make inroads, Magoffin striking fast with an outswinger edged by Robson to Chris Nash at second slip.Nash then pouched Horton, also off Magoffin, though the opener had been struck several times by Archer’s seaming deliveries, and one of those deliveries then accounted for Neil Dexter leg before.Cosgrove, and then Mark Pettini, both replicated their first-iinnings dismissals, Cosgrove dismissed leg before trapped on the crease by an inswinger, Pettini losing his off stump when pressing forward in defence, and though Lewis Hill was unfortunate, getting a Wiese delivery which stayed wickedly low, Clint McKay gave first slip catching practice.Archer had his revenge on Chappell by up-rooting his off stump, and though Ned Eckersley fought hard for his 31, another low delivery from Wiese despatched him leg before, and Ben Raine, after another gutsy knock, edged Robinson to first slip.
Jake Libby went close to carrying his bat for Nottinghamshire in their Specsavers County Championship match against Durham at Chester-le-Street. But after batting for three full sessions to make 144 the 23-year-old opener was last out
ECB Reporters Network01-Sep-2016
ScorecardJake Libby almost carried his bat [file picture]•Getty Images
Jake Libby went close to carrying his bat for Nottinghamshire in their Specsavers County Championship match against Durham at Chester-le-Street.But after batting for three full sessions to make 144 the 23-year-old opener was last out with the total on 313, a lead of 69.The Durham openers then put on 67 but they ended the day on 83 for three, only 14 ahead, with Keaton Jennings unbeaten on 34.Mark Stoneman edged Steven Mullaney to slip for 39, then Scott Borthwick fell for nought when he padded up to a straight one from Harry Gurney.With three overs left Imran Tahir came on and skidded a quicker one through an attempted pull to bowl Jack Burnham for three.Libby’s progress has stuttered, partly through injury last year, since he made a century on debut at the end of the 2014 season. This was only his second hundred since, but easily beat his previous best of 108.Durham were guilty of feeding his strength as he scored the vast majority of his runs through the leg side, with the most memorable of his 11 fours being a back-foot punch through mid-on.Having reached 50 off yesterday’s penultimate ball, he completed his 191-ball century just before lunch and was lbw to Paul Coughlin in the last over before tea.Libby was badly missed on 87 by Michael Richardson, who had just been posted at leg gully, and survived a more difficult chance to Borthwick at slip on 116.Otherwise he looked well capable of becoming the solid opener Nottinghamshire have craved, and they would have been in trouble without him, despite Michael Lumb’s fluent 82.Lumb edged a drive to second slip when Graham Onions went round the wicket, then Brendan Taylor sliced to backward point before Libby and Samit Patel set out to build steadily.They had put on 82 in 32 overs when Jennings came on for a couple of overs before the new ball and his fifth ball skidded through low to bowl Patel for 37.That sparked the loss of the last six wickets for 45 as Chris Read and the two Lukes, Wood and Fletcher, all fell to the new ball.Imran Tahir saw off Onions and Chris Rushworth, who finished with three wickets each, only to drive Borthwick to extra cover. Libby departed in the next over.
Lancashire have signed New Zealand batsman Martin Guptill for the 2016 NatWest T20 Blast season.
ESPNcricinfo staff22-Apr-2016Lancashire have signed New Zealand batsman Martin Guptill for the 2016 NatWest T20 Blast season.It is anticipated that Guptill, the first New Zealander to hit an ODI double-century and a member of the team that reached the 2015 World Cup final, will be available for six Lancashire games between his commitments with Mumbai Indians in the IPL and New Zealand’s tour of South Africa.Guptill was drafted into Mumbai Indians’ IPL squad as a replacement for Lendl Simmons after he suffered a back injury that ruled him out of the rest of the tournament.He is currently ranked at No. 3 in the T201 rankings and has previously represented Derbyshire in county cricket. In the 2011 T20 competition he averaged 34 from 14 games. He returned to the club for brief spells in 2012 and 2015 but did not play T20 cricket.Lancashire won the NatWest Blast title in 2015.”Martin is a formidable batsman, particularly in white ball cricket, and is currently ranked as the world’s third best batsman in T20 cricket,” Lancashire’s Cricket Director and Head Coach, Ashley Giles, said. “He’s currently playing IPL cricket alongside Jos Buttler and will be ready to hit the ground running when he arrives at Emirates Old Trafford.”He’s got the ability to take games away from the opposition very quickly once he gets going and I’m sure our fans will really enjoy watching him play.”
Journalist Fabrizio Romano has revealed that the relationship between Brendan Rodgers and Leicester City has not been great since the summer.
What's the latest on Brendan Rodgers and Leicester?
Over the weekend, following a Premier League defeat away at Crystal Palace, the Foxes decided to part ways with their manager.
Indeed, in an official statement, the club said they had reached a “mutual agreement” with Rodgers for him to depart after four years in charge.
The news comes as no great surprise. After all, that loss against Palace left Leicester 19th in the division on 25 points after 28 games.
Even so, despite all their recent issues, it seems as though the problems began to mount up behind the scenes during the summer transfer window.
When speaking about it all on the House of Champions: A CBS Soccer Podcast, Romano explained that Wesley Fofana's move to Chelsea left Rodgers with doubts about what direction the club were heading in.
He said (12:00): "There was this kind of feeling already. In the summer, maybe you remember about the situation of Fofana. When they decided to sell for Fofana to Chelsea, that was not exactly what he wanted. Not about selling the player, but the strategy
"Youri Tielemans is out of contract. [James] Maddison who is attracting a lot of interest and it is not going to be easy for Leicester to keep him in the summer.
"So it's about the whole project and this is why the situation between Rogers and Leicester was not great. Of course on the pitch, but also off the pitch.
Why did Rodgers leave Leicester?
The 50-year-old had a fair amount of success with the Foxes. After all, in the club statement announcing his departure, he is named "one of the most successful managers in the Club’s history".
It notes that he helped the club to their first FA Cup triumph in 2021, and subsequently also saw them lift the FA Community Shield while enjoying a run to their first European semi-final.
However, Rodgers clearly wasn't convinced by the long-term vision behind the scenes.
For instance, when Fofana was sold, he clearly wasn't that keen on letting the defender go, saying (via Leicester Mercury): “I was hoping he would (stay) because he's a top-class operator, and that’s what you want as a coach if you want to improve and develop. You hope he would be here."
And after that, he admitted that he was unsure how that money would be reinvested, adding: “There have been discussions but it’s certainly not going to be the whole fee
“I think there’s part of that that will go to Saint-Etienne as well, plus there's the situation that the club is in…"
While Chelsea paid £75m, a lot less than that has been spent on new arrivals since that deal. With that in mind, it's not hard to see why Rodgers had his doubt about the project.
Still, regardless of that, he wasn't getting the best out of the players he did have available to him and so it's no shock both parties have now agreed to go their separate ways.
Dan Cook has been left fed up by Crystal Palace’s severe lack of attacking output under Patrick Vieira.
The Lowdown: Palace hurtling towards relegation
At the beginning of 2023, it may have been crazy to think Palace could be swallowed up into a relegation battle given some of the results they’d picked up pre-World Cup but that is now becoming a reality.
The Eagles are yet to win in 2023 and that’s seen Patrick Vieira being asked about any pressure he may be coming under from the hierarchy at Selhurst Park.
It’s not just the results which are worrying for Palace and their fans, but also their lack of attacking intent under Vieira as of late with the Eagles failing to even test the goalkeeper in any of the previous three games.
The Latest: Attacking intent is non-existent
If fans have nothing to get excited about going forward, then it will be a tough sell for any manager to keep their job as Cook has spoken about on the HLTCO podcast.
He said: (2:05) “This run of games now without a victory and the fact that we aren’t scoring goals, I mean there are all sorts of statistics you can reel off in relation to our lack of attacking threat.
“The fact that we’re the first team since Opta began recording this statistic in the 203/04 season to go three straight Premier League games without a shot on target really does speak to the difficulties we’re having in front of goal.
“I think there is an argument that Patrick Vieira – and I’ve said this on the podcast in the last couple, of weeks – may well have resorted to a more defensive set-up in order to stem the tide because you saw Spurs for example cut through us and score at will at Selhurst Park at the turn of the year.
“But, if it’s going to come at the complete expense of any sort of attacking cohesion whatsoever, then you do wonder what the point is because you’re immediately going into a game like that against Manchester City on Saturday evening feeling as if 0-0 is the pinnacle of what you can achieve.”
The Verdict: Vieira must strike up the correct balance
The fact that Vieira has seemingly opted for a defensive and negative approach to games hasn’t been able to turn Palace’s season around and given the attacking players at his disposal he shouldn’t be stifling them.
Instead, Palace should be looking to play on the front foot whenever possible with players such as Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Wilfried Zaha all capable of causing damage in the final third on their day.
If Palace are to quickly turn their season around and start looking up instead of over their shoulder, they need to be scoring goals and winning games, which is something they’ve struggled with more than anyone else this season, so it’s understandable why Cook is questioning Vieira’s new approach.
Stats preview of the 3rd Test between India and England at Mumbai
George Binoy17-Mar-2006
Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh have tormented visiting teams in Mumbai © AFP
The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai is India’s most successful home venue among grounds where India have played more than two Tests. India have won nine of their 20 Tests here, drawn five and lost six. England have lost their last three Testsat this venue. Avoid batting last . Seventeen out of 20 times, the captain winning the toss has decided to bat first and in thirteen of those occasions the team has not lost the match. The average runs per wicket declines from 34.1 in the first innings to 19.8 in the fourth. In the last Test played there, the highest total was 205 and Australia were dismissed for 93 in the final innings.If England bat first, it is vital that they post a sizable first-innings score. The Wankhede’s history suggests that as the match progresses the spinners become more than a handful. Since 1995, spinners have taken 95 wickets here to the fast bowlers’ tally of 69.
1st 27.52/36.86 63.36/72.79 2nd 26.76/22.78 52.35/50.38 3rd 26.00/14.55 57.71/33.21 4th 64.50/15.65 138.00/41.05Since 2000, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh have taken a total of 36 wickets in their last three Tests in Mumbai. Kumble averages 21.15 and Harbhajan 17.58 at the Wankhede.While none of the Indian batsmen have phenomenal records at Mumbai, three of the top four average above fifty. Sachin Tendulkar has a century and six fifties from seven Tests at his home ground. . Rahul Dravid averages 63.28 and Virender Sehwag 53.33.
Tottenham Hotspur and new manager Ange Postecoglou have gone into the international break in excellent form, even despite losing talisman Harry Kane, having won three of their first four games in the Premier League.
They currently sit in second place on 10 points.
Their sensational early-season form has been largely thanks to new signing James Maddison, who joined in the summer from Leicester for £40m.
The English international has already scored two goals and provided two assists this season, and has been nominated for Premier League Player of the Month.
In total, Spurs signed seven new players in the transfer window including Brennan Johnson and Micky van de Ven, as well as making Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski’s loan moves permanent, meaning in total the Lilywhites spent £213m.
Although chairman Daniel Levy has spent heavily this summer it may already be difficult to argue that it wasn’t money well invested.
However, the same can’t be said for last summer's window after they signed Brazilian striker Richarlison from Everton on a five-year contract.
How much did Tottenham pay for Richarlison?
After having a reasonably successful 2021/22 campaign that saw Tottenham finish fourth in the league, under then-manager Antonio Conte, it was confirmed that there had been £100m invested into the club to be spent on transfers.
And after young winger Bryan Gil was sent out on loan Conte and Levy needed attacking reinforcements.
This led to the £60m signing of Richarlison from Everton, who had just come off the back of a successful year with Everton where he almost single-handedly kept the Toffees up.
Why was Richarlison worth this much?
Before signing for Spurs in 2022 the 26-year-old had played for two different Premier League clubs, where he enjoyed successful spells for both.
The Brazilian first came to the Premier League in August 2017, when he signed for Watford from Fluminense, at just 20 years old.
During his time with Watford, the striker played 41 times, scoring five goals and providing five assists.
After only one season with the Hornets, Richarlison joined Everton for £40m, where he would spend the next four years, making 152 appearances, scoring 53 goals and recording 14 assists.
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Stats via Transfermarkt
In his final season with Everton Richarlison was his side’s highest-ranking player on Sofascore, with an average rating of 7.02.
He also completed 1.3 dribbles per 90 minutes the second most in the squad, and he created seven big chances across the season, the highest in the squad, proving how pivotal he was to Everton’s survival, as they only escaped relegation by four points.
What is Richarlison worth now?
Since moving to White Hart Lane, a year ago Richarlison has failed to impress anyone, last season he was only able to muster one Premier League goal and four assists, and in all competitions, he managed three goals. Despite playing 35 times.
His most memorable moment from last season came in his side's 4-3 loss away to Liverpool in April.
Coming into the game Richarlison hadn’t registered a Premier League goal, although he had put the ball in the back of the net three times, taking his shirt off to celebrate each time, only for all of them to be hilariously disallowed.
However, after coming on in the 84th minute with his side 3-2 down the striker bagged a 93rd-minute equalizer, inevitably he tore his shirt off in celebration thinking he had rescued a point for his side. Only for Lucas Moura to miss place a pass one minute later, playing Diogo Jota through one one-on-one and allowing him to finish calmly into the goal.
Speaking a couple of weeks after the game, talkSPORT pundit Tony Cascarino highlighted just how disappointed he was with Richarlison since his transfer.
He said:
"If you said to me, the worst player this season, the worst player for what he's got, Richarlison.
“He's been a joke this year. I don't care if he's been injured or gone away to the World Cup, yesterday he hardly tried a leg, he really looked disinterested.
"I know that obviously Antonio Conte pulled him out about his performances or a bit about he's not played well.
"I can't believe… Richarlison was the player last year that I felt was responsible as anybody for keeping Everton up, his performances at the end of last season.
“He hasn't shown any of that at Spurs.
“He's been hugely disappointing Richarlison."
This judgment on Richarlision’s season is backed up by his Sofascore rating, as the Brazilian only managed an average rating of 6.73 – the 16th highest in the squad – and to make things worse, already this season he is Tottenham’s lowest-ranked player, with an average rating of only 6.45.
This has led to his value dropping by a staggering £27m, with him now being valued at just €38.5m (£33m), this means he has had a 45% decrease in his transfer value since his £60m move.
Also speaking on talkSPORT, pundit and Aston Villa legend Gabby Agbonlahor labelled him as one of the worst signings of the season.
He said:
"You look at Richarlison, how many chances is he going to have? For me he's the flop of the season.
"He's going to cost Spurs £60million, three goals in 33 games in all competitions. A goal every ten games, one goal in 25 Premier League games, one goal since September.
"Substituted again today 59 minutes, you were a better team when he came off, flop of the season."
He also followed up by mocking his infamous celebration, he said: "No pigeon dancing is there this week? All this nonsense."
How much does Richarlison earn?
When Richarlison first moved to Watford he earned £32k-per-week but after his move to Tottenham, he is no on an astonishing £90k-per-week, meaning that last season for every goal the Brazilian scored he was paid £1.6m.
What is next for Richarlison?
So far this season Richarlison has played in all five of Spurs’ fixtures and started in four of them, he even scored his first goal of the season in his side's League Cup defeat against Fulham. This means he is already off to a better start than last season.
The striker must try and push past his terrible performances last season and hopefully, for him, under a new manager and style of play, he can re-find the form he had at Everton.
But so far, the Conte signing has been nothing short of a shocking signing for the club.
June 12 Netherlands v Ireland, Rotterdam
June 13 Netherlands v Ireland, Rotterdam
June 16 Ireland v Scotland, Deventer
June 17 Ireland v Scotland, Deventer
June 19 Netherlands v Scotland, Amstelveen
June 20 Netherlands v Scotland, Amstelveen
The Netherlands is set to host a triangular T20 series also involving Ireland and Scotland in Rotterdam, Deventer and Amstelveen, from June 12 to 20.”This tournament will become an annual event between the three strongest European cricket countries,” the Royal Dutch Cricket Association (KNCB) said in a statement.”I am so excited about the announcement of this annual tri-series T20 event with Ireland and Scotland,” said Ryan Campbell, the Netherlands coach. “I believe the three teams are evenly matched and the opportunity to play against our neighbours more often is something that we’ve been trying to put together for some time now. The matches will be action packed and this will be our first steps in preparation for the 2019 World T20 Qualifiers.”The three countries had contested the World Cup Qualifiers last month but failed to make the cut. While Netherlands did not get past the group stage, Scotland and Ireland qualified for the Super Six stage and finished fourth and fifth respectively.