The result ensures Bangladesh have at least one hand on the trophy as they head into the final game 1-0 ahead
Sreshth Shah29-Dec-2023
The rain never eased in Mount Maunganui•Getty Images
No result Mount Maunganui had a solid Friday turnout to start off the year-end weekend, but rain had the final say in the second T20I between New Zealand and Bangladesh after only 11 overs of action.It was an even contest with New Zealand at 72 for 2 in 11 overs, with Bangladesh crawling back after Tim Seifert’s early assault.Seifert scored 43 in 23 balls with six fours and one six, but everything wasn’t spectacular. Craig McMillan on the broadcast said, “he swung like a rusty gate”, suitably describing the opener’s stay with a few lucky boundaries off slogs adding to New Zealand’s early momentum.It was however an important innings because Finn Allen was out driving Shoriful Islam to cover in the second over of the game, and Daryl Mitchell in at No. 3 was slow to start after Bangladesh opted to bowl. In between, on 8, Seifert was also hit on the side of his helmet at the non-striker’s side after Mitchell crunched a drive back. He continued after the physio’s go-ahead.Mitchell struggled in his 24-ball stay of 18, looking to overhit Bangladesh’s pacers or legspinner Rishad Hossain. Rishad’s three overs at 3.33 apiece kept Mitchell and No. 4 Glenn Phillips (9* in 14) in check.On a slippery outfield, Bangladesh’s impressive fielding added to the squeeze. Soumya Sarkar down the ground was busy manning long-on, and it was Najmul Hossain Shanto’s tricky catch running behind from cover that removed a rampaging Seifert in the eighth over.A light drizzle soon gained momentum forcing the players off the field. Had there been a short DLS-adjusted chase, Bangladesh would’ve needed 46 in five overs but those were slim hopes. The rain never relented rather only increased in intensity and the umpires abandoned the fixture at 9.55pm local time.Friday’s washout confirms Bangladesh will have at least one hand on this T20I trophy come Sunday. New Zealand can only level the series in the third T20I on December 31 with the hosts trailing 0-1.
His opposite number Tom Latham admitted it “hurt” to get so close but fall short, but even he could not help gushing over how “fantastic” a game it was
ESPNcricinfo staff28-Oct-20231:17
Tom Moody: ‘Travis Head highlighted how much his game has evolved’
Australia put up 389 on the board, in Dharamsala, and New Zealand came within one six of chasing that down. It was 19 runs needed off the last over with an in-the-mood James Neesham going strong. Pat Cummins turned to Mitchell Starc, who went wicketless for the first time in 24 ODI World Cup matches and must have been feeling the nerves. Not to mention every other person watching this all unfold. At the height of the chaos, Australia captain Cummins felt like one of these riveted spectators.”That was awesome,” a grinning Cummins said after the game. “Sometimes, I had to remember I’m in the middle of a cricket field; it was a fantastic game. They just kept coming at us. It was fantastic.”Tom Latham, New Zealand’s captain, echoed Cummins’ sentiments. “It was a fantastic game of cricket, ebbs and flows throughout the 100 overs, and then, I guess to come so close… obviously hurts but it was a fantastic game.”Related
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Starc missed his line and gave away five wides second ball of the final over, leaving New Zealand needing 13 off five. Neesham got the ball into the outfield three consecutive times but agile fielding – from Marnus Labuschagne in particular, putting in the yards repeatedly at deep midwicket – ensured none of these were boundaries. Cummins appreciated that.”Marnus, out there, throwing himself around, it’s not the easiest ground here [to field on],” he said. “But the way the guys threw themselves around, hung on to the catches, made a big difference.”Australia were ahead for most of the game, thanks to a 175-run opening stand between Travis Head and David Warner. Head was returning to the side after a broken hand left him on the sidelines for Australia’s first five games of the tournament, and he hit his straps right away with a punishing 67-ball 109.Pat Cummins relied on Mitchell Starc to bowl the last over•AFP/Getty Images
“Love that”, Cummins said of the partnership. “Especially Trav, who’s been away for five weeks, to just get back in the game; just their intent – that’s the way we want to play, we want to take the game on and that led from the front.””Not really,” Cummins said when asked if Head had shown any signs of his being in this sort of form ahead of the game. “He was close to playing against Netherlands and had a hit [in the nets] the day before, just didn’t quite feel right. [Then he] managed to have a couple more [nets] before this one. He surprised all of us.”
Bayern Munich look set to miss out on signing Xavi Simons after the RB Leipzig star reiterated his desire to join Chelsea this summer.
Bayern make fresh enquiry for SimonsSimons only wants Chelsea moveBayern also in talks for NkunkuFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
The Bundesliga giants have been strongly linked with a move for Simons, 22, after the Netherlands international told Leipzig he wished to leave the club following their failure to qualify for any form of European football. And according to Sky reporter Florian Plettenberg, Bayern have since made a fresh enquiry to Simons' camp as they look to gauge his interest in moving to Munich.
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However according to Plettenberg, Bayern have been told Simons only has eyes for Chelsea and is waiting for the Premier League side to agree a deal with Leipzig. The Blues are currently trying to offload players in order to raise enough money to match Leipzig's reported £60 million ($81m) valuation.
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In what could turn out to be a transfer merry-go-round between the three clubs, the report also claims Bayern are in talks with Chelsea to sign forward Christopher Nkunku. And should a deal be agreed between the two clubs, Enzo Maresca's Chelsea may then have the means to bring Simons to Stamford Bridge.
Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR BAYERN, LEIPZIG AND CHELSEA?
Bayern have the chance to earn their first piece of silverware of the new season when they take on Stuttgart in the German Super Cup on Saturday. Meanwhile, Leipzig are set to face SV Sandhausen in the German Cup on the same day, whereas Chelsea will lock horns with Crystal Palace in their opening Premier League fixture on Sunday.
Despite a relatively low control percentage among elite top-order batters, he has made 2021 his own with limited resources
Andrew Fidel Fernando24-Nov-2021The first ball he faced in the second innings, Dimuth Karunaratne makes a mistake. He doesn’t quite account for the turn Rahkeem Cornwall would get from his offbreak and edges it. But the ball falls short of gully.Luck? Maybe. This guy’s always lucky. What’s he got on his side? A rabbit’s foot? Witchcraft?In Cornwall’s next over, the first ball, he makes another error. He tries to hit Cornwall inside out, but is through the shot early, and just chips it over short cover. It begins to seem like another one of those Karunaratne innings, in which he isn’t batting so well, because not long after that, he’s hit on the pad by a straighter Cornwall delivery, and because he has played no shot, West Indies review the not out decision. The ball’s going on with the arm, but it’s not turning in, and as such, not hitting the stumps. Karunaratne survives again.Related
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A few overs after that, Cornwall beats Karunaratne’s outside edge with a ball that leaps off the surface. And then, Karunaratne misses a sweep, is hit in line with the stumps, and although West Indies appeal, they don’t review. This time, they should have. Wait. This is uncanny. Was this guy a Mandela-level human rights champion in a former life? Did he save orphans from a burning building in his teenage years? Why does the universe have such a hard-on for him?But take a step back, and you begin to see that this is the pattern that so many Karunaratne innings take. In the first innings, he was dropped at slip on 14 and scratched around desperately – particularly against Cornwall – in the first session. Even on day two, when he was already batting on more than a hundred, he seemed a supremely uncomfortable starter. On day four, he made a worse start than Oshada Fernando and Angelo Mathews – the only other Sri Lanka batters to last more than 30 deliveries. But then, he outscored both of them (Mathews was not out). There’s been a lot of that lately.In 2021, Karunaratne has now hit 854 runs, which puts him at No. 3 on the year’s run-chart, behind Joe Root and Rohit Sharma. What is special about his record this year, however, is his average of 77.63; no one else with more than 400 runs is close (Root’s average – the closest – is 66.13). And yet, if you look at the control percentages, Karunaratne doesn’t fare especially well. Root has been in control of 86.9% of the balls he has faced this year. Mominul Haque, the only other batter to have hit more than 400 runs and averaged over 60 in 2021, has been in control of 86.6% of his strokes. Karunaratne, meanwhile, has a control percentage of 82.1. This doesn’t seem like a huge difference, but among elite top-order batters, 4.5% in control is substantial.And yet, there are the runs. All those runs. His last five Test innings are basically a fantasy. A 75 when Sri Lanka were trying to draw a match in Antigua. A 244 in a drawn Test on a flat Pallekele track, followed by 118 and 66 in a Test that Sri Lanka won. And then, here, 147 off 300 in the first innings, and now, 83 off 104 in the second. Note the difference in those strike rates (49 in the first innings, 80 in the second).
“When he started off, he was a good player, but now he’s turned into a great player”Angleo Mathews on Dimuth Karunaratne
When Sri Lanka were trying to get a foothold in the game, Karunaratne was watchful and conscientious. When they needed to race to a big lead in the second dig after losing much of day three to rain, he was proactive. You expect a captain to always do what is right for the side, but in 2021, he has also been good at doing what is right. Besides this recent run of scores, Karunaratne had also hit a January hundred in the second innings in Johannesburg, when Sri Lanka were trying to save a Test.Mathews, who has played with him since Karunaratne earned a cricket scholarship for the same Colombo school, after having excelled for a smaller school, put it this way: “I’ve been with him since he started playing for college as well. We go back a long way. He’s improved tremendously. When he started off, he was a good player, but now he’s turned into a great player. He’ll definitely end up in the top three or four run-scorers for Sri Lanka. He’s found his rhythm, and he’s not been complacent. He’s hungry for runs. The way he applies himself on a wicket like this is amazing.”Karunaratne is perhaps not the kind of batter whose innings you’d ever call “masterful”. Those adjectives are reserved for the Kane Williamsons of the world, or the Virat Kohlis, Joe Roots, Babar Azams, and Steve Smiths. No one is suggesting he has that kind of talent. No one is saying his name should be taken in the same breath.But despite what the control percentages say, regardless of the nerviness of his starts, although he frequently looks like he doesn’t belong, in 2021, you can’t argue with those numbers. Karunaratne has had the kind of year in which he has put his arms around a modest top order, lifted them onto his back, and carried them to competence, when they have so often seemed clueless without him, such as in that terrible home series against England.Is he lucky, or does he make his own? Does he squeeze every run out of a limited technique, and by international batting standards, pretty average hand-eye coordination.He was a caretaker captain in ODI cricket for a while, and Sri Lanka kind of did alright. They are not a world-beating Test side, but in the series he’s been in charge, they’ve suggested they aren’t terrible either. Getting the most out of limited resources kind of seems like his thing.
ECB NOC policy also high on the agenda as Oliver Hannon-Dalby prepares to take up role
Vithushan Ehantharajah13-Feb-2025Incoming PCA chair Oliver Hannon-Dalby has welcomed the sudden influx of cash into English cricket brought about through the Hundred sale, and urged the ECB to spend it wisely to address a number of issues, including closing the gender pay gap in the flagship competition.The veteran Warwickshire seamer, who has been elected as the PCA’s new chair in place of the outgoing James Harris, was speaking on the day the last of the eight Hundred teams, Southern Brave, were sold to GMR group. The co-owners of Delhi Capitals, a majority shareholder in host county Hampshire, valued Brave at £98 million, taking the overall valuation close to £1 billion. In the immediate term, more than £450m has been raised to be spread throughout the professional and recreational game.The scale of this significant windfall exceeded the ECB expectations, and reinforces the hope of governing body chief executive Richard Gould that the sale will “recapitalise the county game for the next 20 to 25 years”.Related
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One area which Hannon-Dalby believes needs to be address promptly is the pay disparity between the country’s male and female cricketers, which has now widened in the Hundred following 25% rises across the board.This summer, the top bracket in the men’s competition has risen by 60% to £200,000, while the top women’s salaries have gone up just 30%, to £65,000. A difference of £75,000 last year has now increased to £135,000.In the lowest band, men will be paid £31,000 (previously £30,000) and the women £10,000 (£8,000). One of the recommendations of 2023’s Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report was for equal salaries and bonuses in the competition by 2025.”It’s definitely something we need to address,” Hannon-Dalby said of the pay gap. “By this stage, gender pay was meant to be equal and certainly in the conversations that we’ve had with the ECB in previous years, they said they were going to improve it. And it’s actually probably got wider, hasn’t it? The pay gap’s actually got wider, which is not great.”It’s simply just not fair is it? It’s not right. And certainly, if the ECB have promised that it’s going to get better and it hasn’t, that’s not right.”All we can do is ask and all we can do is try. The women’s game in this country is absolutely exploding and its brilliant to see. Certainly, the women’s Hundred has been an absolute success.”It’s a conversation we need to have and it’s something we need to try. It’s something that I put in my manifesto, it’s something that’s important to our members and something we definitely want to improve.”Hannon-Dalby is also keen to push for more clarity on the ECB’s new No-Objection Certificates (NOC) policy, which will deny players on red-ball contracts with their counties from taking part in other competitions that clash with the English summer.The notable exception to the rule is the IPL, which this season will run from March 21 to May 25, encroaching on the start of the English summer. But the main contention over the new stance comes from the fact the PSL is not afforded the same exception, despite concluding more than two weeks earlier, on May 9.Despite constant back and forth with the PCA and individuals, the ECB has not relented on its stance of treating the IPL differently. After James Vince unofficially retired from first-class cricket to take up a deal with Karahci Kings for the upcoming PSL, Hannon-Dalby sees it as his job to protect the movement of the players he has been elected to represent.”James Vince, as I understand it, has gone into a white-ball-only deal. And that’s not great, is it? He’s one of the players of his generation, a brilliant, brilliant cricketer. He’s whacked me around Edgbaston plenty of times, so actually not bowling at him next year, as much as it might help my bowling figures… for the health of the county game, we want James Vince playing red-ball cricket.”[There is] also a bit of disparity between the people able to go to the IPL but then not the PSL. Just on the face of it doesn’t seem very fair. It seems, ‘one rule for one, one rule for the other’.”I understand there has been a lot of open communication and collaboration with ECB. Getting in the room and talking about how we protect players’ movement moving forward is going to be very important.”It’s probably more the movement in the winter and the bit of disparity around different competitions having different rules. I think it’s probably the main bone of contention.”Hannon-Dalby will officially begin his PCA duties at the start of next month, after being ratified at the PCA annual general meeting on March 4. The 35-year-old, who started out at Yorkshire before moving to Warwickshire in 2013, will be the 16th chair of the association, having spent more than 10 years as a PCA representative.
Her 127 is the second Test hundred for India against Australia, and the first in Australia
Sampath Bandarupalli01-Oct-2021127 Smriti Mandhana ‘s score at the Carrara Oval, the highest for a visiting player in women’s Tests in Australia. The previous highest score was Molly Hide’s unbeaten 124, for England, in Sydney in 1949.1 Mandhana’s 127 is the first Test hundred for India in Australia and only their second against Australia. Sandhya Agarwal’s 134 in 1984 was the first Test hundred for India versus Australia. Rajani Venugopal’s 58 in 1991 was the previous highest Test score for India in Australia.ESPNcricinfo Ltd4 Women to score a century in both Tests and ODIs against Australia, including Mandhana. She joins the elite list of Enid Bakewell, Debbie Hockley and Claire Taylor . Mandhana, however, is the only woman with Test and ODI hundreds against Australia in Australia, having scored her maiden ODI century in Hobart in 2016.3 First-innings individual scores in women’s Tests that are higher than Mandhana’s 127 after being put in to bat by the opposition. Kiran Baluch ‘s 242 in 2004, the highest individual score in women’s Tests, came after the West Indies elected to bowl first.Related
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51 Number of balls Mandhana needed to complete her fifty, the second fastest recorded half-century in women’s Tests. The fastest is by India’s Sangita Dabir who scored an unbeaten 50 off 42 balls against England in 1995. Dabir’s fifty came in only 40 balls as per the official scoresheet of that Test match. Mandhana’s hundred off 170 balls is also the fastest recorded Test ton for India.74 Percentage of Mandhana’s runs that came in boundaries. From the information available with ESPNcricinfo, Mandhana’s is the second-highest percentage of runs to have come in boundaries in a century innings in women’s Tests. Charlotte Edwards hit 80% of her runs in fours in her score of 105 against India at Taunton in 2006, which is the highest.195 for 2 India’s total at the fall of Mandhana’s wicket, the second-most runs conceded by Australia in a Test innings before the fall of the second wicket. The highest is 228 runs during England’s first innings of the Sydney Test in 1935.
da blaze casino： A disputa dos Jogos Pan-Americanos trará um contorno significativo para os representantes do Botafogo na competição. Além de mostrar serviço com suas respectivas seleções, o atacante Matheus Nascimento, que atuará pela Seleção Brasileira, e o meia-atacante Diego Hernández, liberado para a seleção do Uruguai, têm a chance de mostrar que podem deslanchar com a camisa alvinegra.
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da aposte e ganhe： A dupla atualmente não vem recebendo chances com o técnico Bruno Lage. Por isso, o Glorioso optou por permitir que os dois estivessem no Pan-Americano, que será disputado entre os dias 20 de outubro e 5 de novembro.
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Destaque da Seleção Brasileira Sub-20, Matheus Nascimento só atuou uma vez nos últimos três meses: no empate em 1 a 1 com o Defensa y Justicia. O camisa 90 disputou o primeiro tempo da partida e foi substituído.
Sua concorrência ficou ainda mais acirrada com a chegada do veterano Diego Costa, considerado a alternativa a Tiquinho Soares.
Promessa da Celeste, Diego Hernández entrou em quatro partidas com a camisa alvinegra. O jovem atuou mais recentemente no dia 27 de agosto, quando entrou no decorrer da vitória por 3 a 0 sobre o Bahia.
Além de ganhar mais fôlego, a dupla tenta ser mais incisiva e aumentar o leque de opções para um Botafogo que almeja o título brasileiro.
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da lvbet： While it certainly wasn’t a disaster, it would be fair to say that Arsenal’s season was something of a failure this year.
da stake casino： A combination of injuries, suspensions and a lack of cutting-edge coalesced to see Mikel Arteta’s side end yet another campaign without a major trophy to their name.
Yet, there were at least a few positives, most notably the continued development of Bukayo Saka.
Saka’s 24/25
Appearances
37
Minutes
2619′
Goals
12
Assists
14
Goal Involvements per Match
0.70
Minutes per Goal Involvement
100.73′
All Stats via Transfermarkt
For example, even though he missed over three months of action with a hamstring injury, the talismanic number seven was still able to amass a sensational tally of 12 goals and 14 assists in 37 appearances.
So, fans should be seriously excited about recent reports linking the club to a Premier League star who could help the Englishman become even more unplayable next season.
Arsenal looking at big-money Premier League star
With how lacklustre the rest of Arsenal’s attacking options were this season, it’s not been a surprise to see the majority of links in recent weeks concern strikers and wingers like Benjamin Sesko and Rodrygo.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
A deal to sign the former, who produced 27 goal involvements in 45 games this season, seems to be moving closer and closer now, with reports from earlier this week claiming that an agreement has been reached on the player’s side and that an offer of between £68m to £85m will be enough to tempt RB Leipzig into selling.
Regarding Rodrygo, talks reportedly took place between the Gunners and the player’s representative last month, while reports from this week claim that a fee of around £77m could be enough to secure his services, and while that is a lot of money, it would likely be worth it, as he’s managed to 14 goals and provide 11 assists in 52 appearances for Real Madrid this term.
Real Madrid's Rodrygo
However, while both players would help alleviate some pressure on Saka in the frontline, a new creative force in midfield would surely be the best way to help boost his numbers, which is where Morgan Rogers could come in.
Yes, according to a recent report from GIVEMESPORT, Arsenal are seriously interested in the Aston Villa star.
In fact, the report has revealed that the Gunners have already made contact and inquired about the possibility of bringing the young Englishman to the Emirates this summer.
However, on top of potentially having to deal with competition from Chelsea, the North Londoners would also have to stump up a fee of around £90m to land the 22-year-old, who has five years left to run on his £75k-per-week contract at Villa Park.
It looks like it would be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line, but given Rogers’ immense ability and potential, it is one worth fighting for, especially as he could help Saka become even more dangerous.
How Rogers could make Saka even better
Now, while there is likely a whole array of ways in which Rogers could help Saka to get even better, from covering for him when he needs a rest, to building an even stronger understanding of one another’s game on international duty, there is one reason more important than the rest: his output.
Morgan Rogers
For example, in 54 appearances for Villa this season, the “unstoppable” midfield maestro, as dubbed by Jamie Carragher, scored 14 goals and provided 15 assists, which comes out to a goal involvement every 1.86 games.
Just imagine how many more goals the Gunners’ number seven could score next season with a number ten as effective as that behind him.
Moreover, with the Villa ace being such a goal threat in his own right, there is every chance that the Hale End icon could see his own assist tally soar as well as having more space to himself with opposition defenders having to pay more attention to the Halesowen-born “machine,” as dubbed by The Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell.
You can also get a good idea of just how dangerous a ten the former Middlesbrough ace is by comparing him to some of the other leading attacking midfielders in the Premier League, like Cole Palmer, Morgan Gibbs-White and the North Londoners’ own Martin Odegaard.
Rogers vs Palmer vs Gibbs-White vs Odegaard
Players
Rogers
Palmer
Gibbs-White
Odegaard
Appearances
54
47
38
45
Goals
14
15
7
6
Assists
15
12
10
12
Goal Involvements per Match
0.53
0.57
0.44
0.4
All Stats via Transfermarkt
Impressively, only the Chelsea ace does marginally better than the Claret and Blue star, but given how he is the talisman of that side, and almost all attacks seem to flow through him, that’s not much of a surprise.
Moreover, if you’re achieving numbers only marginally worse than a player as talented and highly rated as he is, that can only be a good thing.
Ollie Watkins celebrates with Morgan Rogers for Aston Villa.
Ultimately, while the focus of this summer should be on the frontline for Arsenal, they should also do what they can to sign Rogers, as he’d undoubtedly improve the midfield and help make Saka even more unplayable.
Arsenal told key Benjamin Sesko transfer condition as agent makes statement
He’s expressed what it will take for the Slovenian to leave Leipzig this summer.
There might be another 90 minutes to play, but for most Arsenal fans, the season is now done.
Instead of looking forward to what is now a pretty meaningless Premier League game on Sunday afternoon, supporters are beginning to dream about what the club might do in the summer transfer window.
After all, after last year, new Sporting Director Andrea Berta has a big job on his hands convincing them that the board are prepared to go all in to finally get the club over the line next season.
Fortunately, recent reports have now touted an international superstar for a move to the Gunners, someone who is just the sort of signing fans have been crying out for and someone who’d be a dream addition for Bukayo Saka.
Arsenal transfer news
The last few weeks have seen Arsenal linked to a plethora of incredibly talented footballers, such as Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
The former could end up costing the club as little as £55m if reports are to be believed, which may well be one of the deals of the summer, as in just 51 games this term, he has scored 53 goals and provided 13 assists.
Eze, on the other hand, will cost around £68m due to a release clause in his current deal, although again, thanks to his ability to play in multiple positions and the fact he’s racked up 25 goal involvements in 42 games this season, makes that fee seem more than reasonable.
Crystal Palace's EberechiEzecelebrates with the trophy after winning the FA Cup
However, to really help take the team to another level and across the finishing line next season, Arteta and Co may want to sign a bonafide superstar, someone like Rodrygo.
According to a recent report from Sky Sports Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, Arsenal are “now seriously considering” moving for the Real Madrid star.
The journalist has revealed that talks have already “begun behind the scenes” and that the deal is “on.”
The report does not mention a price, but according to other stories from earlier this month, the Brazilian winger could be available for around £85m.
It would be a complicated and costly transfer to get done, but given Rodrygo’s stature and ability, it’s one worth pushing the boat out for, especially as it would seriously help Saka as well.
Why Rodrygo would be a dream signing for Saka
So, if Arsenal are able to get the deal done and bring Rodryo to the Emirates this summer, just why would his signing be such a good thing for Saka?
Well, the first thing is that he’d finally be able to take some of the burden off his shoulders, as not only is he a natural left-winger, but he’s one who knows just where the goal is.
Said to be among the “best players in the world” by Carlo Ancelotti, in 52 appearances last season, he scored 18 goals and provided nine assists in 52 games, which worked out to an average of a goal involvement every 1.92 games.
Then this season, even though Los Blancos have struggled more, he’s still managed to put up impressive numbers of 13 goals and 10 assists in 50 appearances, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 2.17 games.
For context, Gabriel Martinelli has scored ten goals and provided six assists in as many games, and Leandro Trossard has scored ten goals and provided nine assists in 55 games.
Appearances
50
50
55
Minutes
3290′
3493′
3428′
Goals
13
10
10
Assists
10
6
9
Goal Involvements per Match
0.46
0.32
0.34
Minutes per Goal Involvement
143.04′
218.31′
180.42′
So, with someone as effective as the Brazilian off the left, the Gunners mercurial number seven wouldn’t have to do quite as much himself, which could help him perform better.
The next significant benefit to signing the Real ace is that he’s more than comfortable playing off the right as well, so Arteta could more easily rest the Hale End superstar and help prevent him from suffering any more serious injuries.
Finally, during his time in Madrid, the Osasco-born dynamo has won everything there is to win in the club game, from league titles to the Champions League, so his know-how in those tense must-win games could finally help the North Londoners get over the line next season, and in turn, help Saka achieve his dreams of leading the team to glory.
Ultimately, while he’ll cost them a pretty penny, Arsenal should be doing all they can to sign Rodrygo this summer, as not only would he help elevate the whole team, but he could also be the perfect teammate for Saka.
Arteta has struck gold on Arsenal star worth millions more than Mbeumo
Bryan Mbeumo has been linked with a move to Arsenal this summer.
The closest Tottenham Hotspur have come to winning the Premier League in generations was under Mauricio Pochettino.
The Argentine’s best team may have ended up being less successful than Ange Postecoglou’s current side – trophy-wise, anyway – but it was stacked with some outrageously talented players.
The likes of Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and a young Son Heung-min will always get the plaudits from those outside of the fanbase, and understandably so, but the Lilywhites faithful know full well that Mousa Dembélé was just as important to that side.
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The Belgian was an utterly superb central midfielder, so supporters should be excited about recent reports linking the team to a youngster who has shades of the retired monster about him.
Spurs midfield targets
Before getting to the player in question, it’s worth looking at some of the other central midfielders who have been touted for moves to Spurs in recent weeks, like Quinten Timber and Angel Gomes.
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The former is the brother of Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber, the captain of Feyenoord, reportedly worth £25m and could be an ideal addition to the squad, as he’s capable of playing in attacking, central and defensive midfield.
Likewise, Gomes could be a sensational signing as, thanks to his contract with LOSC Lille expiring this month, he’ll be available for nothing, and at just 24 years old, he already has experience of national team football, the Champions League and top-flight football in both Portugal, France and England.
Yet, neither one of these internationals could really be described as having shades of Dembélé to them, unlike Adam Wharton.
Yes, according to a recent report from TEAMtalk, the Crystal Palace star is now a serious target for the North Londoners.
The report has revealed that the club are ‘prioritizing a central midfield’ signing this season, and the young Englishman ‘figures highly on their shortlist.’
However, it won’t be an easy deal to get done, as the Eagles are after upwards of £60m for the midfield maestro, but even then, with his ability and potential, that may be a fee worth paying for Spurs, especially as he could emulate parts of Dembélé’s game.
How Wharton compares to Dembélé
So, before the pitchforks and torches come out, it’s important to state that we are not saying that Wharton is currently as good a player as Dembélé was during his pomp at Spurs, as that would just be silly.
However, given the fact that he’s still just 21 years old and will be until midway through next season, it’s not that out there to suggest he could reach that level in time, especially as there are some similarities between the pair.
The first, and perhaps most significant, is the fact that the Palace gem very rarely loses the ball.
In fact, according to FBref, the “generational” talent, as dubbed by members of the media, sits in the bottom 40% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues for the frequency he is dispossessed, coming in at just 0.89 times per 90, or, in other words, less than once a game.
A great example of this was in the FA Cup final against Manchester City, as, on top of winning duels, making tackles and playing a number of excellent passes, he was also able to hold onto the ball brilliantly despite the immense amount of pressure Pep Guardiola’s side tried to exert on him.
This ability to keep the ball was one of the Belgian’s most impressive, and it seems like the young Englishman has it in spades.
Then there are the more surface-level comparisons, such as both players coming from a London club – Fulham in Dembélé’s case – and the fact that they could and can play in either central or defensive midfield.
Appearances
51
43
Minutes
3571′
3011′
Goals
4
0
Assists
5
5
Ultimately, while it’s a lot of money, Spurs should do what they can to sign Wharton this summer, as he looks like he has the raw abilities and ceiling to become the club’s next Dembélé.
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