Spanish giants Barcelona are now after another prestigious member of the Chelsea squad, after registering their interest in midfielders Romeo Lavia and Carney Chukwuemeka very recently.

Barcelona target Chelsea stars Lavia and Chukwuemeka

Earlier this week, reliable Blues journalist Simon Phillips shared news that the Catalans are considering a raid on Stamford Bridge as they weigh up new men for Hansi Flick’s engine room – given they’re pretty short in the midfield department right now.

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Indeed, Flick’s side have issues in the middle of the park, leading them to consider both Lavia and Chukwuemeka as options.

Newcastle (home)

October 27

Man United (away)

November 3

Arsenal (home)

November 10

Leicester City (home)

November 23

Aston Villa (home)

December 1

While Barcelona are eyeing Lavia from Chelsea as a target, it is believed the club’s hierarchy and head coach Enzo Maresca in particular have adopted a firm ‘not for sale’ stance when it comes to the Belgian – as they theorize he’ll be a “vital” player in their long-term project.

It is a different case for Chukwuemeka, though. The 20-year-old, on a reported £100,000-per-week in west London, is up for grabs and there is a belief that Barcelona have been in contact with Chukwuemeka’s agents ahead of a potential move in January.

“The two names mentioned by our source is Lavia and Chukwuemeka, with Barcelona showing an interest in both players,” wrote Phillips via his Substack on Tuesday.

Carney Chukwuemeka

“There has also been agent contact, which we believe will be for Chukwuemeka as he is the player who is available in January. As for Lavia, we checked in with other club sources and they have said there is ‘absolutely ZERO chance’ Chelsea would even entertain an enquiry for the 20-year-old right now, and he is a huge part of the future of the club and someone who the club and Enzo Maresca see as vital for their plans and project going forward.

“Quite simply, they would tell Barcelona ‘not for sale at any price’ if an enquiry would come in. This will come as no surprise to anyone, thankfully. For Chukwuemeka though, Chelsea would be willing to hold talks over a sale.”

Barca are not the only elite European club after the former Aston Villa gem, with AC Milan also reaching out to Chukwuemeka’s representatives according to separate reports, so Flick may have some competition.

Barcelona eyeing move for Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez

Amid their fondness for Lavia and Chukwuemeka, Phillips also writes that the La Liga side are keen on £180,000-per-week mainstay midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

That is according to some of his sources, again via Substack, with Chelsea’s Fernandez attracting some interest from Barcelona ahead of 2025.

The Argentine World Cup winner signed for Chelsea in a deal worth £107 million last year, and despite a tough start, he is now beginning to impress under Maresca alongside fellow marquee midfielder Moises Caicedo.

This deal could be very unlikely to happen, considering Chelsea would want a good portion of the £107m they paid for Fernandez, and Barca’s well-documented financial problems suggest they wouldn’t even be able to get a move off the ground.

He is an ambitious target for Flick and their president Joan Laporta, with a deal for Chukwuemeka seeming far more realistic.

There was a remarkable role reversal on day one at the Gabba as Australia resembled the tentative under-prepared team that is usually the tourists

Daniel Brettig in Brisbane21-Nov-20130:00

Chappell: Australia got mugged by reality

By Australia’s proud and repeated assertion, Brisbane is supposed to be their fortress. Many an overseas Test side have arrived at the Gabba still shaking off jetlag from a trip halfway around the world and a rudimentary preparation, their captain hearing the coin toss hit the hard, grassy pitch with a percussive sound unfamiliar to players from just about anywhere but South Africa.Sometimes they bat and get rolled, others they field and get pummelled. Always they get lost in the catacombs beneath 40,000 seats. Not once in 25 years have they won.By the time their Test match is finished, touring teams are just about ready to play in Brisbane: second innings revivals are not uncommon. But instead they are leaving town, headed south or west, invariably 1-0 down in the series and with indignant headlines ringing in their ears.As a cricket ground, the Gabba has been something like Australia’s surprise weapon, seldom offering anything other than a decided advantage to the hosts through their far greater familiarity with the place.But on day one of the Ashes a strange dynamic held sway over proceedings. Australia’s batsmen played largely with the fidgeting insecurity of nervous visitors, while Stuart Broad homed in on his quarry in a manner befitting of the Lillee, McDermott, McGrath lineage. James Anderson and Chris Tremlett were similarly confident of their roles and best avenues of attack on a ground offering rich rewards for pacemen with precision. It was possible for a moment to ignore the colour of the caps, the identity of the badges and presume this was an Australian team bowling to a touring side. The men in baggy green were strangers in their own land.All the usual sights were there. An opening batsman, Chris Rogers, surprised by the extra bounce early and lobbing a catch to gully. A No. 3 in Shane Watson fencing at a ball he should have left in the minutes before lunch, tempted into the stroke by Broad’s teasing line and exclaiming “oh no” even before Graeme Swann took the catch. Michael Clarke looked every inch the hunted and haunted visiting captain of the 1990s or early 2000s, psyched out by an intimidatory field setting and a bowler knowing exactly how to unsettle him.David Warner and Steve Smith offered hints of resistance in their contrasting ways, but also perished to the bounce. George Bailey’s first innings was not memorable – few touring debutants in Brisbane have been. And while Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson fought with commendable application and good sense to repair some of the earlier damage, Clarke’s team still ended the day looking likely to fall well short of a total commensurate with the quality of the pitch.

Johnson pleased to be back

Mitchell Johnson believes his hard-earned 64 in a rearguard stand of 114 with Brad Haddin has eased his Ashes nerves and can set him on the path to a staunch bowling display in the first Test in Brisbane.
Admitting to feeling very tense at the start of the day, Johnson worked his way into the game while helping Haddin ensure the hosts will have some sort of total to bowl at.
“Runs definitely help, especially this morning when I rocked up and the nerves start kicking in standing out there in front of a big crowd and singing the national anthem,” Johnson said. “It was quite nerve-racking and quite nice to be able to get out there and bat, I got all the nerves out of my system.
“I definitely feel I’ve had that confidence in myself over the last 12 months, so hopefully that turns into a good bowling performance as well. The wicket’s definitely going to quicken up, there’s definitely swing out there.
“I’ve had a lot of experience bowling at the Gabba and I’m looking forward to bowling with the group of bowlers that we’ve got. We’ve got experience and it’s really exciting to be part of a Test match at the Gabba again.”

So how was it that Australia’s top six looked so out of synch with a ground they have professed such profound affection for? Unless they were satisfied with the simple notion that England are an older, better and more confident team than Australia, most of the 34,889 spectators in attendance puzzled over this question across the day.The answer probably lies in the conflagration of numerous circumstances, both deliberate and accidental, but all related to the summer schedule. Seldom, if ever, can the two Test teams have arrived in Brisbane ahead of the Test match without a single player on either side having played a match there so far in the summer. A resurfacing of the entire ground, the first since 2000, kept Queensland’s domestic fixtures away from the Gabba, meaning the Bulls, Tasmania and New South Wales all played their matches at Allan Border Field, a surface of far less bounce.Aware of this, Cricket Australia were keen to move the Blues’ match against Queensland last week to the Gabba by way of preparation for as many as seven members of the Test side. Logistical difficulties ensured that the match remained at AB Field, and meant that no Australian player visited the Gabba until Tuesday morning, two days out from the Test.This is not to say a lack of cricket is to blame. CA chief executive James Sutherland’s declaration that the nation’s players would reach the Gabba having played plenty of cricket requires a qualifying question. What kind? Before the Shield began, the scheduling of an ODI tour to India in October meant that Watson, Johnson, Bailey and Haddin all entered the Brisbane Test with somewhere between zero and two first-class fixtures behind them.They might have had more, but CA also decided to play the domestic limited-overs competition as a carnival style event in Sydney across three weeks to start the season. The tournament made a stuttering start on a poor pitch at Bankstown, then spluttered into life in later matches at the small and similarly slow North Sydney Oval. Exempted from India, Warner and Smith gained confidence from scoring runs but not the experience of riding the bounce on swifter four-day surfaces.Paradoxically, the greatest casualty of the schedule may actually have been Bailey, the man who bounded into the Test team off the back of his elephantine scoring feats in ODIs on the subcontinent. Anyone watching at the Gabba knew instantly how little these runs meant, scored as they were on flat pitches against amiable bowling under fielding restrictions that left the opposing captain MS Dhoni powerless to plug Bailey’s favoured scoring zones. On his return he played on low pitches at Allan Border Field and at Bellerive in Hobart, never going beyond handy starts in four innings.As he faced up to Anderson in a spell of swing and accuracy at a high enough speed to punish any error, Bailey must have wondered how better his preparation time might have been spent. As several balls whizzed past his outside edge before finally kissing it on the way into the slips, he had cause to question whether he had been set up to fail. Brisbane might be considered Australia’s fortress, but it is nothing like any of the places he, and most of the top six, have been batting on for the past two months.

Australia Test captain is expected to be fit to take part in the tour of Sri Lanka in June

ESPNcricinfo staff13-May-2022Pat Cummins’ stint at the IPL in 2022 has been cut short by a hip injury. It is understood that he has returned home to Sydney to start recovery from what is considered a minor problem and is expected to be fit in time for Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka next month.Cummins played five games for Kolkata Knight Riders this IPL season, which was enough time for him to score the joint-fastest fifty in the tournament’s history. He also picked up seven wickets including 3 for 22 in his last game against Mumbai Indians.Australia tour of Sri Lanka 2022

June 7 – 1st T20I, Colombo

June 8 – 2nd T20I, Colombo

June 11 – 3rd T20I, Kandy

June 14 – 1st ODI, Kandy

June 16 – 2nd ODI, Kandy

June 19 – 3rd ODI, Colombo

June 21 – 4th ODI, Colombo

June 24 – 5th ODI, Colombo

June 29 – 1st Test, Galle

July 8 – 2nd Test, Galle

But with Knight Riders looking unlikely to progress beyond the group stage, and Australia facing a very busy year which includes a T20 World Cup title defence in October, Cummins has decided to step back and get his body right. The 29-year old had already been rested from the T20I leg of the Sri Lanka tour. But given his status as Test captain and new-ball bowler across formats, he is likely to be heavily involved in the team’s other assignments, namely a five-Test home summer, a Test tour of India and an Ashes campaign in England.Cummins came into the IPL on the back of a highly successful tour of Pakistan. His 5 for 56 and 3 for 23 in Lahore were instrumental in Australia winning that series 1-0. Before that, in his first series as captain, he led the side to a resounding Ashes victory, picking up 21 wicket across four Tests. Cummins’ recovery is expected to take two weeks. Knight Riders, who have two games left to play in the IPL, have not asked for a replacement.

Chelsea are ready to continue their impressive gamble on youth with another unexposed talent, who has reportedly left the Blues chiefs “obsessed” in his limited game time thus far.

Chelsea continue to sign youth talents

Since the arrival of Todd Boehly in 2022, Chelsea have changed their transfer focus to pluck future gems out of other clubs, with Cole Palmer perhaps the biggest success case.

There have been mixed results; for every Palmer there has been a David Fofana, and for every Nicolas Jackson a Deivid Washington, but the result has been that Enzo Maresca has been handed the youngest squad in the Premier League and appears to have found a way to balance the immense talent present at Stamford Bridge, with two very distinct sides being used for either the Premier League or Europa Conference League.

Plenty more talents are on their way too; Estevao Willian will arrive at the club next summer after Chelsea signed him from Palmeiras in a deal worth up to £52m, while Kendry Paez has also been signed and the pair will be joined by Anel Anselmino, who was signed last summer but has spent this season on loan at Boca Juniors.

It means that Chelsea’s squad overhaul is likely to continue, with the likes of Ben Chilwell, Raheem Sterling and Cesare Casadei potentially moved on permanently after being axed from Maresca’s plans.

One position that hasn’t been properly addressed, however, is the no.1 spot at Stamford Bridge. That is not for the want of trying; the Blues have signed five goalkeepers in two years at a combined cost of £78m, but are yet to find a reliable presence between the posts.

Chelsea’s goalkeeper signings since 2022

Player

Fee

Filip Jorgensen

€24.5m

Robert Sanchez

€23m

Mike Penders

€20m

Djorde Petrovic

€16m

Gabriel Slonina

€9m

Now, they feel that they may have identified one.

Chelsea "obsessed" with new goalkeeper

That comes as a report in Spain has revealed that Chelsea are one of two London clubs tracking Arsenal shot-stopper Karl Hein.

The Estonian shot-stopper has only made one senior appearance for the Gunners and was sent out on loan last summer, joining Spanish outfit Real Valladolid on loan for the 2024-25 campaign.

And his performances have clearly caught the eye, with the report claiming that Chelsea are obsessed with the 22-year-old, who has just 17 senior appearances to his name.

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Arsenal are thought to be willing to let him leave in the future too, with the club having made David Raya their undisputed no.1 and strongly linked with another La Liga goalkeeper to become their backup option, in the form of Joan Garcia from Espanyol.

As a result, the report suggests that the Gunners would be willing to part ways with Hein for between €15m and €20m (£12.5m to £16.5m) when his loan with Valladolid ends, though the Blues could well be dragged into a bidding war amid interest from Tottenham too.

Could Hein finally be the answer to Chelsea’s problems between the posts, or would he add to a rapidly lengthening list of discarded options at Stamford Bridge?

da dobrowin： In hope of getting one over on their surprise title rivals and advancing into the Scottish League Cup final, Celtic could now receive as many as three injury boosts against Aberdeen.

Celtic injury news

da blaze casino： The Bhoys were forced to square off against Dundee with a number of problems within their squad but eased to victory once again nonetheless, courtesy of goals just seven minutes apart from Arne Engels and Alistair Johnston from the bench. Sealing all three points, Celtic have now dropped just two points from their opening 10 Scottish Premiership games and sit nine points clear of Old Firm rivals Rangers but level on points with the impressive Aberdeen.

Up next the Scottish champions once again do battle against their closest title rivals, this time squaring off in the Scottish League Cup semi-final, in which Celtic could welcome the returns of Callum McGregor, Nicolas Kuhn and another major boost in pursuit of the final.

As confirmed by Rodgers, Adam Idah could make his return vs Aberdeen alongside both McGregor and Kuhn this weekend after all three stars missed Celtic’s victory over Dundee in midweek.

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The Celtic boss told reporters as relayed by the Irish Examiner: “All three will be fine. Nicolas Kuhn had a sore hip after the game at the weekend. But he trained earlier, so that was good. Callum as well, and Adam also. We’ll see their reaction. Hopefully, it will be all right.

“I think he’s got away with one there, Adam. He’s still a bit sore, a bit swollen, but the medical team tell me he’s done a bit of work. So, hopefully no reaction to it.”

Rodgers heaps praise on "strong" Idah

Idah always looked unlikely to reach his full potential at Norwich City, despite breaking through the academy. And after a successful loan move in Scotland, a permanent move to Celtic instantly seemed on the cards. Since the switch, the Irishman has gradually shown signs of becoming the player many tipped him to become when he first emerged, scoring five goals in 13 games for the Bhoys.

Having avoided a serious injury concern, Idah will now be hoping to make his return in one of Celtic’s biggest games of the season so far before earning yet more praise from Rodgers.

The former Liverpool manager told STV after Idah scored the winning goal in the Scottish Cup final last season: “I knew what I was getting because I’d seen him in the Premier League at 18. He has all the attributes. He’s fast, dynamic, strong and I felt with better positioning he’d get goals.

“What he’s done since coming in is show that he’s a goalscorer. He gets different types of goals. He has great movement in the box and he deals with pressure moments.

“Today, he was like a real number nine sniffing in and around the box. He’s been absolutely immense for us and he’s clearly someone I’d like to do something with.”

Dan Friedkin is reportedly eyeing a 4-2-3-1 manager to bring in on an interim basis before hiring Jose Mourinho, should Sean Dyche be sacked by Everton.

Everton manager latest

The Blues’ current boss is still battling to save his job at Goodison Park, although four points from the last two Premier League matches at home to Crystal Palace and Newcastle United have undoubtedly eased the pressure on him.

Despite this, constant names continue to emerge as a potential replacement for Dyche, with Mourinho arguably the most high-profile manager mentioned in recent weeks. The Portuguese is currently in charge at Fenerbahce, but the fact that The Friedkin Group had him as boss at Roma means they already know him extremely well.

Meanwhile, Giovanni van Bronckhorst has also emerged as a rumoured option for Everton, with the Dutchman currently the manager of Besiktas up against Mourinho in Turkey.

A sensational return for David Moyes has been mooted for the Blues, too, with former Manchester United, Tottenham, Aston Villa and West Ham scout Mick Brown saying the Scot would be “interested” in taking the job. Now, a fresh managerial update has dropped – one that could be intriguing to supporters.

Friedkin eyeing interim manager at Everton

According to The Boot Room, Moyes is now “in line” to become interim manager at Everton, should they decide to part ways with Dyche in the near future. It is said by journalist Graeme Bailey Moyes “would be targeted if Dyche loses his job before the end of the current campaign.”

It is stated that Friedkin is “keen to bring Mourinho back to the Premier League”, but will have to wait to bring him in, meaning Moyes could arrive on a temporary basis to fill in before he arrives.

Whether Moyes would be happy to take an interim role remains to be seen – he may only want the job permanently or not at all – but it could be a shrewd move by Friedkin.

The 61-year-old did such a fantastic job during his first spell at Goodison, even finishing fourth in the Premier League back in 2004/05, and he has gone on to impress elsewhere, not least winning the UEFA Europa Conference League with West Ham in 2022/23.

The 4-2-3-1-playing Moyes has the know-how to steer Everton away from the relegation zone, and if he knew that he was only in charge until the end of the season, he would be a perfect stop-gap between Dyche and Mourinho.

The latter would be such an eye-catching appointment, given his league title and Champions League triumphs throughout his career, and his aforementioned relationship with The Friedkin Group means that it would also make perfect sense.

West Ham

230

1.53

West Ham

31

1.19

Sunderland

43

0.72

Real Sociedad

42

1.21

Man Utd

51

1.73

Everton

518

1.54

Preston North End

211

1.72

This is all assuming that Dyche is relieved of his duties at some point, of course, but there is still a chance that the Englishman will turn things around, especially given the last couple of games. Should results continue to be poor after the international break, however, a short-term Moyes deal would be clever thinking.

Make your way to the suburb of Kensington to see where the Don made his home for six decades

Aaron Owen07-Feb-2015Born August 27, 1908 in Cootamundra, New South Wales. Raised in Bowral. Hundred on first-class debut for NSW. Scores 18 and 1 on Australia Test match debut aged 20 at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground in 1928-29. Dropped. Reselected. Not dropped again. Plays 52 Tests; 80 innings, ten not-outs, 6996 runs, highest score 334 at Leeds in 1934, averaged 99.94 runs per innings… blah blah blah. Of course, I’m referring to Don Bradman.Bradman facts, stats and stories have so often been spouted, and are usually so well-worn, that now it might take bits of DGB trivia a little less-known to keep the interested cricket fan interested when it comes to the Don.For instance, did you know he took two Test wickets bowling neat legbreaks – both of which were snared at Adelaide Oval? And did you know that from the mid-1930s until his death in 2001, Bradman made that same city of Adelaide – South Australia’s capital – his home?And so cricketing pilgrims may well begin their Adelaide journey by heading along Sir Donald Bradman Drive from the airport to the city centre. And later, by travelling to the former Bradman residence at 2 Holden Street, Kensington Park.Wandering along the Parade soon reveals local Kensington Oval, which Bradman called his home ground while playing district cricket for Kensington Cricket Club (KCC). Man, what a blast to be able to go to a local Adelaide suburban ground, free of charge, and watch Bradman bat.The Bradman residence at Kensington Park•Aaron OwenAnd to think you’re now walking around streets and places where for so long the man described, in 1998 by then serving Australian Prime Minister John Howard (cricket tragic and awesome bowler), as “the greatest living Australian” lived.While he may well have found bowling conditions favoured him here, it wasn’t because of ripping, legspin-aiding turn in the pitch, or even for the runs he could make on batting-friendly Adelaide Oval strips that inspired him to move from big Sydney, and playing Sheffield Shield cricket for New South Wales, to Adelaide. It was for work.Today soccer players, for example, can command immense fees on transfer. So it’s remarkable to think that – even in the 1930s – an athlete of Bradman’s already proven freakish talent and massive fame could move to Adelaide without any trade (feeble though it could only have been) or without any financial compensation going New South Wales’ way. What a coup for the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA).It was well before Kerry Packer’s well-funded World Series Cricket and its overdue addressing of proper player remuneration, and also long ahead of abundant endorsement opportunities (ask Michael “KFC” Clarke). Bradman played in an amateur era, and as brilliant as he surely was on the field, he was able to be enticed over the border by the lure of being able to learn the stockbroking trade with the backing of local Adelaide businessman and Australian Cricket Board of Control committee member Harry Hodgetts of Hodgetts & Co stockbrokers.The Rex and Basil Sellers Stand•Aaron OwenIn 1934, Bradman and wife Jessie then made the move to South Australia, settling in the pleasant, shaded suburb of Kensington Park in Adelaide’s east. Local architect Philip Claridge designed the Bradmans’ new home. Claridge’s firm had long-term responsibility for maintenance work at Adelaide Oval and this connection led to his working on the Bradman house.For the architecturally minded, the building is considered neo-Georgian, not modernist. Either way, the two-storied but simple and humble – considering his fame – Bradman home of 65 years or so, is easily located and can be viewed without invading privacy.Claridge later designed a billiard room extension – perhaps (with tongue in cheek, I offer) an attempt of Bradman’s to practise for a challenge to contemporary Australian and also in a class all his own, world billiards champion – Walter Lindrum, after whom rules were changed in an effort to curb his dominance. Something akin to Douglas Jardine’s Bradman-restricting Bodyline tactics, perhaps.Even if Bradman wasn’t pursuing elite billiards, his move to Adelaide saw the previously talented junior tennis player take up squash in 1934. And by 1939 he was a South Australian champion. Maybe no Jahangir Khan, but not too shabby.Playing at nearby Kensington Oval with KCC, Bradman didn’t quite match his performances in bigger cricket – but really, would any recruiter today be sacked for snagging this: 3377 runs at 84 in the understandably paltry number of just 37 games between 1935-36 and 1948-49.And perhaps his “form drop” in district cricket can be best illustrated with reference to the average number of innings he took per century. He peeled them off at better than one hundred every three innings in Test cricket, compared to 14 tons in 46 (one every 3.2) district cricket innings. Perhaps he was an early example of the big-game player?Kensington Oval, originally known as Shipster’s Paddock, was once owned by a local private school, and for decades was used as an athletics track-and-field venue. It provides the viewer a choice of the quaint old-time sophistication of the Rex and Basil Sellers Stand, or perhaps the gentility of picnicking on the mounded and gum-tree-studded surrounds while spectating.The view through the gum trees•Aaron OwenKCC are known as “The Browns” (the name creatively derived from their brown caps). And the caps might possibly and unsurprisingly be referred to by the players as a ? Similar to every second Australian team of any age or ability who baggify their caps (without milliner approval, mind you). But I wouldn’t know about the coveted down under baggy experience – I’m a collar-up, long-shirt-donning, wide-brimmed-hat wearer, you see.KCC has been a club in its current form since the 1920s, and the delightful oval dates back even further to the 1870s – with a history of also hosting sports other than cricket, such as Australian Rules Football, soccer and high-level athletics.KCC representatives who have played Test cricket include late bloomer Clarrie Grimmett (another brilliant steal from over the border, this time from New Zealand via NSW and Victoria), Terry Jenner (yet another import, this time from the west), and finally a couple of locals of more recent times: Greg Blewett and Tim May.Coming to Adelaide can easily provide a Bradman-honouring discovery tour – from spying his residence (from a street view, albeit), to investigating Kensington Oval and its cricket club, and not forgetting the Bradman items on free display at both Adelaide Oval and the State Library. There’s enough for any Bradmaniac to get their teeth into in Adelaide.

Tahlia McGrath played with Covid and India had their target in sight, but Australia still found a way to win yet another title, writes Valkerie Baynes

Valkerie Baynes08-Aug-20222:42

Gardner proud of the ‘fight we showed with our backs against the wall’

It might just be official, Australia are invincible.Even when they seemed cursed, the all-conquering Australian Women’s cricket team added the first Commonwealth Games gold medal for their sport to the T20I and ODI World Cups already in their collection with a pulsating nine-run win against India at Edgbaston on Sunday.In an inauspicious start for title favourites Australia, allrounder Tahlia McGrath woke with mild symptoms of Covid-19 and subsequently tested positive. After negotiations between Commonwealth Games Australia, Cricket Australia, the Commonwealth Games Federation and the ICC, McGrath was allowed to play under the Games’ policy of treating such matters on a case-by-case basis.McGrath had been one of the players of the tournament with 128 runs at an average of 42.66 and strike-rate of 148.83 putting her ninth on the run-scorers’ list, while she was the second-highest wicket-taker with eight scalps at 12.12 and an economy rate of 6.92.Related

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• Tahlia McGrath plays CWG final despite testing positive for Covid-19

She didn’t have the best day on the field on Sunday though, making just 2, and conceding 24 off her two wicketless overs.But one of the more bizarre sights of the day – if it could get any more unusual than seeing a player sitting all alone in an entire section of the stand wearing a face mask while waiting to bat – came when McGrath took a steepling catch to dismiss Shafali Verma, who had skied Ashleigh Gardner to midwicket.Australia were elated given that Gardner had seen Shafali dropped by Megan Schutt in the covers four balls earlier, but they couldn’t show McGrath their full appreciation as they initially ran towards her on instinct. They heeded her warning to “stay away” as she held her hands out, smiling. Jess Jonassen, whose arrival in Ireland for Australia’s warm-up matches ahead of the Games was delayed by a bout of Covid, bumped wrists and boots with McGrath, but that’s as close as anyone got until victory was sealed.Jess Jonassen has a foot-tap with Tahlia McGrath, who was cleared to play despite testing positive, after a catch to dismiss Shafali Verma•Getty Images

At that moment, McGrath stood outside the team huddle as they awaited India’s review to confirm Yastika Bhatia’s lbw dismissal and, as the others embraced and jumped up and down in celebration, she remained outside the group with her arms aloft before the circle opened and she jumped into an embrace with team-mates.Schutt described the moment: “We didn’t want to get in trouble. I think we felt bad for Tahlia at the end there,” she said.”That was probably the strangest part of it all, just not being able to celebrate with her. Obviously, when you’re part of a game that’s so thrilling like that, that’s all you want to do. At the end, you know, screw it, if we get Covid so be it.”In Australia, it probably wouldn’t be the case but the fact Tahlia got to go out there, take a crucial catch and be part of a thrilling win is very special.”The sides didn’t shake hands at the close, instead filing past each other a metre or so apart with raised hands, and McGrath wore a mask on the podium as Australia received their gold medals after a close contest in which they, almost predictably, came out on top.India were sublime in the field and claimed 36 for 5 in the last five overs to restrict the target to 162 with Renuka Singh, the tournament’s leading wicket-taker, and Sneh Rana taking two each.Beth Mooney and Meg Lanning combined for a second-wicket partnership worth 74 after Alyssa Healy fell lbw to Renuka in the third over, extending a lean patch with the bat in which Healy hasn’t passed 23 in eight innings since her match-winning 170 in the ODI World Cup final in April.Mooney notched up 61 off 41 balls, her second half-century of the tournament. But this time Mooney batted largely without McGrath, with whom she had shared century and half-century partnerships in Australia’s two previous matches.After helping New Zealand beat England in the bronze-medal playoff earlier in the day with an unbeaten half-century, which also made her the leading run-scorer at the time, New Zealand captain Sophie Devine joked that one of the Australians would probably make a big score to overtake her. Sure enough, Mooney’s knock took her two runs clear of Devine to end the tournament on top with 179 runs.India’s pursuit progressed well via a half-century to Harmanpreet Kaur and 33 from Jemimah Rodrigues. But when Australia took 3 for 3 in nine balls via Schutt and Gardner, the latter removing Pooja Vastrakar and Harmanpreet with successive balls, India needed 41 off the last four overs.The wickets continued to fall as Australia kept the pressure on and Jess Jonassen, the wily left-arm spinner entrusted with bowling the final over, combined with Alana King to run out Meghna Singh and then trapped Yastika to ensure victory with three balls to spare.”That was absolutely crazy,” Schutt said. “One of the best games I’ve ever been a part of, by far. The way we scrapped at the end there – that definitely wasn’t our best game. We didn’t field the best, we didn’t bowl the best, and we scrapped with the bat, but we fight, that’s what we do.”It ebbed and flowed like we knew it would and it was absolutely thrilling. We just kept pushing and that’s the way we play cricket and for that to go our way is amazing.”Fireworks go off after the medals ceremony•Getty Images

And therein lies Australia’s secret to success. They keep fighting no matter what is thrown at them and they always seem to have someone who can step up.Mooney said it was important for the side to continue “evolving”.”The adjustments we make and the adaptability we have within the group is critical to our success, having an environment where it’s okay to fail and for things to look a little bit ugly,” she said. “Certainly a great performance tonight and one to remember for a long time.”Jonassen described the win as “absolutely huge”.”I’ve been blessed enough to be part of some winning World Cup teams but to win the first gold medal for women’s cricket in the Commonwealth Games, we’re only ever going to do that once and I’m proud to be part of that,” she said.”For that final over, my heart was absolutely through the roof. I was pretty nervous, I’m not going to lie, but I just looked down the other end and saw Alyssa Healy behind the stumps there and she was just putting her arms out and putting her shoulders up getting me to take a deep breath. Ultimately, that’s what helped me.”It was unfortunate that such a high-quality match fell under the spectre of Covid, but there is no surer sign of the times and this match may have marked the evolution of a sport as much as the evolution of a team.

Manchester United chiefs are now reportedly racing to sign a German Bundesliga champion who has started the season in fine form.

Man Utd transfer news

Despite several summer upgrades, Manchester United have once again got off to an inconsistent start in the Premier League, with just two wins in their last six games leaving Erik ten Hag’s side in a frustrating run of form. What hardly helps that statistic is the fact that the two wins that have arrived during that time have come against newly promoted Southampton and League One Barnsley in the Carabao Cup.

Man Utd squandered chance to sign unreal Fernandes upgrade now worth £108m

The sensational talent would have been a game-changer for United.

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By
Jack Salveson Holmes

Sep 27, 2024

Even as their Europa League campaign got underway against Ten Hag’s former side, FC Twente, the Red Devils failed to secure all three points, conceding their lead courtesy of Sam Lammers’ equaliser to draw 1-1 at Old Trafford.

It’s the type of run that has seemingly left INEOS with no choice but to turn back towards the transfer market and yet another reported upgrade.

According to Pete O’Rourke of Football Insider, Manchester United chiefs are now battling to sign Jeremie Frimpong ahead of rivals Manchester City in a fierce battle for the Bayer Leverkusen defender’s signature.

A versatile player who can play at right-back, left-back and right-midfield, Frimpong proved invaluable for Xabi Alonso’s side last season as they won the Bundesliga in dominant, invincible fashion in a season which featured just one defeat – a 3-0 loss in the Europa League final against Atalanta.

Now, after picking up where he left off, Manchester United reportedly want to bring Frimpong to Old Trafford in 2025.

"Great" Frimpong could ease Shaw woes

If you were to pick out one area that Manchester United should have strengthened in the summer, it’s their left-back spot. As things stand, Diogo Dalot has been left with no choice but to swap flanks and provide the Red Devils with an option down that side amid the injury struggles of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia.

It is a problem that Dalot can’t solve forever and one that is unlikely to go away due to Shaw’s extensive injury history. And that’s why Frimpong’s arrival would carry such importance, given that he can play both at right and left-back.

League stats 23/24 (via FBref)	Jeremie Frimpong	Diogo Dalot
Assists	7	3
Key Passes	45	37
Tackles Won	17	51
Ball Recoveries	94	195

More of an attacking outlet than Dalot, Frimpong has endured an excellent start to the new season to pick up where he left off, with one goal and four assists in seven games in all competitions.

Described as a “great ball-carrier” by analyst Ben Mattinson at the start of September, the £64,000-a-week Frimpong remains one to watch and a player who could provide Manchester United with the ultimate solution down either side of their back four.

Wrexham co-owner Rob McElhenney was blown away after seeing his team score a late winner to beat Crawley Town 2-1 in League One.

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• Two late goals in dramatic Wrexham win
• Red Dragons come out on top
• McElhenney thrilled by victory

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• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Phil Parkinson's side bounced back from a shock home defeat to Stevenage last time out by beating Crawley Town 2-1 on Saturday. Matty James had put the visitors ahead but they looked set to drop points again when Crawley equalised in the 90th minute. However, Wrexham refused to be denied and hit back with a winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time through Elliot Lee.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  It's a much-needed win for Wrexham after a tricky patch of form and means they now sit four points off Wycombe in second place in the table. Leaders Birmingham remain favourites for promotion as they are eights points clear of the Welsh side and have two games in hand on both Wrexham and Wycombe.

• WHAT MCELHENNEY SAID

  He posted on Instagram: "That was incredible! Up the town reds!"

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  WHAT NEXT FOR WREXHAM

  Wrexham now turn their attentions back to the Football League Trophy and a third round clash against Port Vale on Tuesday.