Liverpool have not been very good this season. Viewed through the prism of extensive summer spending – more, in fact, than any other club in a single summer transfer window – some of the criticism concerning Arne Slot’s side has been justified.

But some of it has been blown out of proportion. The Reds are a team in transition, and while six defeats from seven matches in all competitions were inexcusable, the response to put Aston Villa and then Real Madrid away in the space of four days underscores the quality rippling through this team.

One of the Premier League champions’ biggest problems this year has been a lack of physicality and control in the engine room. And so, against Los Blancos on Tuesday evening, Slot reverted to type.

How Liverpool won the midfield battle vs Real Madrid

In short, Liverpool played like they wanted it more. Gone was the lethargy and limpness of recent months, and Slot grinned as he watched his outfit rekindle that irresistible quality of last year.

Real Madrid might have won 55% of the duels on the evening, but Liverpool’s midfielders were economical in their performances, far more reliable and robust than we have been forced to watch for much of the campaign.

Dominik Szoboszlai was as brilliant as ever in the ten role, unplayable at times and unquestionably in the form of his Liverpool career. Moreover, Ryan Gravenberch instilled calm in an assured showing as the anchor. It is no coincidence that Liverpool’s return to form comes after last season’s midfield have been moulded back together.

After all, it was Alexis Mac Allister who bagged himself a goal after Szoboszlai’s whipped delivery, showcasing the direct danger this midfield can pose against opponents, marrying that with slick passing and crisp defending.

A header from a midfielder against a Spanish giant on a big European night. It was reminiscent of Gini Wijnaldum against Barcelona.

However, there was another man on the field to show Slot that he could be his version of the iconic Dutchman, with a statement showing in a red shirt.

Slot's own Gini Wijnaldum

Liverpool were deserving victors against Real Madrid on Tuesday, and Wirtz played a crucial part in claiming three points, hailed post-match by Szoboszlai, who said, “What a game! He just kept on running.”

Wirtz has flattered to deceive since joining Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen for £116m this summer, but he looks to be turning a corner, settling into the rigours of football in Slot’s Anfield side.

Despite still searching for that elusive first goal in a Liverpool shirt, the German international oozed class of a different kind against Xabi Alonso’s side, and marrying that with a remarkable physical shift, he has set the foundation for an upswing in performances over the next months.

Liverpool 1-0 Real Madrid: Most Distance Covered
Player	Minutes played	Distance covered
Florian Wirtz	88′	11.37km
Dominik Szoboszlai	90′	10.61km
Aurelien Tchouameni	90′	10.51km
Jude Bellingham	90′	10.50km
Hugo Ekitike	79′	9.87km
Data via DaveOCKOP

Hailed as being “something special” by writer Eddie Gibbs, the 22-year-old glittered against the most dominant and destructive European side around, and it’s curious that he has shuffled into a wider berth than the number ten role assigned to him for much of the season so far.

Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger offered an interesting take on the situation. The 76-year-old suggested that the inculcation of Wirtz into the midfield had been to the detriment of Liverpool’s overall fluency.

But, shaped into a more unnatural role on the left, Wirtz’s energy and incredible work ethic played into Liverpool’s victory.

In this way, he could become Slot’s own version of Wijnaldum, who would not have envisaged a permanent remould into an industrious, box-to-box midfielder at the heart of Jurgen Klopp’s team when joining the Reds from Newcastle United in 2016.

And yet Wijnaldum became one of the staples of Liverpool’s incredible successes, featuring 237 times for the club but only posting 22 goals and 16 assists across all competitions.

Wirtz will still hope to provide a prolific dimension at Liverpool over the years of his stay, but it might be that his adaptation to this new land requires something of a shift akin to Wijnaldum’s way back when.

And with such indefatigable performances as the one earlier this week, it’s surely only a matter of time until he announces himself as a superstar.

Arne Slot has just unlocked Liverpool's new Coutinho vs Real Madrid

Liverpool may have unearthed their next Philippe Coutinho after getting the better of Real Madrid 1-0.

By
Kelan Sarson

Nov 5, 2025

When it comes to recruitment, not many did better than Liverpool in the Premier League over the summer. The Reds initially looked set to face a midfield crisis following the exits of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho to add to the departures of Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner. However, the arrivals of Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch quickly put an end to any of their concerns. And since then, Jurgen Klopp's side have been back to their best.

Now, with January approaching, the Reds could move to complete their midfield rebuild in the form of a defensive midfielder. However, Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth believes that they may face a stumbling block for one particular player.

Liverpool transfer news

Sitting provisionally top of the Premier League, before Arsenal potentially regain their place by winning their game in hand, Liverpool have bounced back from the disappointment of missing out on the top four last season in style, but they are still after another midfielder.

Kalvin Phillips

19th December

Khephren Thuram

15th December

Joao Palhinha

10th December

Piotr Zielinski

2nd December

Joao Neves

29th November

At the halfway mark, Klopp's men have a serious claim that this could be their year once again, especially with Manchester City uncharacteristically faltering at times. Given their place in the title race, the January transfer window could make all the difference.

Klopp could land Endo upgrade in Liverpool swoop for £51k-p/w "colossus"

The Reds were touted with a possible move for the midfielder over the summer.

ByDan Emery Dec 28, 2023

Sheth addressed the "noises" surrounding the Reds and Kalvin Phillips. He told GiveMeSport that Manchester City may not facilitate a move to Liverpool for Phillips.

"Maybe it's best for everyone, especially Kalvin Phillips if a move can happen. But he would probably want to go to one of the big six clubs, and I just wonder whether Manchester City would want to do business with what is perceived to be a rival.

"We saw in the summer before last that they were more than happy to allow Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko to go to Arsenal, but they ended up being the main rivals to Manchester City for the title. We've been hearing noises about teams like Liverpool and other clubs being interested in Kalvin Phillips. I wonder whether they would really facilitate a move to a rival. I think, at this moment in time, Kalvin Phillips will probably just want to play football."

"Excellent" Phillips in desperate need of City exit

Liverpool have proved in the form of Endo this season how they can turn a player into a vital cog in Klopp's machine. And Phillips could have a similar impact if City sanctioned the move. Unlikely to allow the England international to choose Anfield, however, the former Leeds United man may need to look elsewhere for minutes next month.

At his best, Phillips is a player who has earned plenty of praise, including from Gareth Southgate. The England boss said:

“He’s been excellent. The way he has taken to international football, it hasn’t surprised us because what we’d seen with Leeds, even in the Championship, we felt could convert into our team. We felt he could play an important role with us. To play in the enormity of the matches he did in the summer and play as well as he did is massive credit to him. He’s a very, very good player and he’s been a really important part of this – we’re 16 games unbeaten [in regulation time] now and he’s been a huge part of that.”

Jesse Marsch’s Leeds United side extended their undefeated run to five Premier League games on Monday night, with the 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace seeing the Whites keep their second consecutive clean sheet away from home, as well as securing what could prove to be an all-important point in their fight for survival.

Indeed, the result sees Leeds pull five points clear of 18th-placed Everton – although the Toffees do have a game in hand – something which, with just five and six league fixtures left to play for the respective teams this season, would appear to give the Whites a fantastic chance of enjoying top-flight football once again in 2022/23.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-leeds-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-marsch-raphinha-dest-philhay” title=”Read the latest Leeds news!”]

However, that is not to say the job is done for Marsch and his side, and, with the Whites’ next three fixtures consisting of Manchester City at Elland Road, Arsenal at The Emirates and Chelsea at home, should the 48-year-old manager wish to give his side a chance of securing safety during this run of fixtures, he must address a glaring issue in his lineup.

Lost possession every two touches

With Patrick Bamford remaining sidelined due to injury on Monday night, one of the biggest challenges the American faced when putting his starting XI together was who to deploy through the middle of his attack – Dan James, Joe Gelhardt or Sam Greenwood.

And, despite being on a run of seven games without a goal when played up top, Marsch once again decided to go for James – a decision which, not for the first time in the manager’s reign at Leeds, did not pay off.

Indeed, while the 24-year-old’s work rate in running the channels cannot be questioned, anyone with two functioning eyes can see that the £25m summer signing is simply not suited to playing as a lone centre-forward – something Marsch must realise.

Over the course of his 59 minutes on the pitch, the £50k-per-week attacker enjoyed just 14 touches of the ball, completed a mere seven passes, managed no shots at the Palace goal, failed to find his man with his one attempted cross and ceded possession for his side on seven separate occasions – meaning he gave the ball away with every other touch.

The Wales international also offered little from a defensive point of view, losing all of his two ground duels and one aerial duel, as well as committing one foul – a rather cynical challenge on Joel Ward, for which the winger received a yellow card and was dubbed “pathetic” by Chris Sutton.

These returns saw James receive a disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.6, ranking him as the Whites’ joint-worst starter on the night, while Leeds Live journalist Beren Cross also appeared unimpressed with the performance of the forward, awarding him a three in his own player ratings, as well as stating:

“Still hard to see what the gameplan is with the diminutive forward in the frontline. Whatever it is, it’s not getting the best out of him. Another hour of chasing shadows.”

As such, while it is true that none of the Whites’ attacking cast particularly impressed on Monday evening – with Jack Harrison, Rodrigo and Raphinha being awarded a three, a three, and a five in Cross’ ratings respectively – it is evident that playing James as a lone striker does not benefit the player himself or his team, as the Welshman failed his manager once again at Selhurst Park.

AND in other news: Orta given green light for “superb” £8.5m-rated signing, it’d be a huge coup for Leeds

Manchester City are only a handful of games away from potentially securing their fourth Premier League title in five years.

With 34 matches played, Pep Guardiola’s side have won 26, drawn five and lost three, scoring 84 goals and conceding 21 along the way.

Despite the four very important games that the Citizens have left to play, it seems as though the hierarchy at the club behind the scenes already have some plans in place regarding the upcoming summer transfer window.

What’s the news?

In a recent tweet, journalist and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano shared an exciting update on what sort of transfer business could take place behind the scenes at the Etihad Stadium this summer.

He said: “Manchester City will sign a new midfielder once [Erling] Haaland saga’s over. Paul Pogba has been discussed internally as @MikeKeegan_DM reported – still nothing advanced, PSG also in the race #MCFC.

“Frenkie de Jong, highly rated but expensive. Scouts have monitored Matheus Nunes too.”

Taking this into account, it could well end up being a rather busy summer transfer period for the reigning Premier League champions.

If they are then able to not only secure Haaland’s signature but bring a new midfielder in as well, this would be music to the ears of Guardiola to help him refresh his squad.

With the Citizens set to wave goodbye to veteran midfielder Fernandinho in the summer once his current contract runs out, it’s easy to see why the club would be aiming to bring in a new midfield option.

Should the Brazilian find himself not putting pen to paper on a new deal, his place in the squad would be open for a potential new recruit to fill.

In terms of the three midfield options that Romano mentioned in his tweet, the fact that all three have provided goals and assists for their clubs in their respective leagues this season could make them valid options for such an attacking team like City.

If the Sky Blues end up sealing the league title and then completing the deals that they want to get done in the summer, this would leave Guardiola ecstatic and put City in a good place to attack the 2022/23 campaign and try to continue being as successful as possible.

In other news: Man City eyeing bargain move for £290k-p/w “work of art”, supporters would be ecstatic

Barcelona are set to secure Wojciech Szczesny’s registration as Inaki Pena signs a new deal until 2029 before heading out on loan to Elche.

Pena signs renewal contract until 2029Goalkeeper joins Elche on season loanSzczesny registered as backup optionFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to Barca have settled their goalkeeping puzzle with a double move with backup goalkeeper Pena has agreed a new contract with Barca until 2029 but will immediately go out on loan to Elche in La Liga, where he will have the chance to play regular football. His departure also helps the Catalan giants financially, as his wages are partly shifted off the books, a key step to registering Szczesny. The Polish veteran remains part of the squad and is expected to serve as second-choice keeper behind Joan Garcia, while Marc-Andre ter Stegen continues his recovery from back surgery.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The move shows Barca’s attempt to balance sporting development with financial pragmatism as Pena, who had limited minutes last season, gets the chance to establish himself as a La Liga starter under Eder Sarabia at Elche. For Camp Nou, the loan frees crucial salary space at a time when La Liga’s financial fair play rules remain strict. Szczesny’s registration gives Hansi Flick an experienced option while Garcia continues as the new first-choice keeper. 

TELL ME MORE

Pena has renewed with Barca until 2029 and is set for a season-long loan to Elche. It’s his second loan after Galatasaray in 2021-22, and this move brings him closer to home in Alicante. Financially, reports indicated Elche couldn’t cover Pena’s full salary, so Barca and Elche worked on a split-wage arrangement to make the move viable. Registering Szczesny is part of the plan as he was already in the squad last season and will serve as backup to Joan Garcia while Ter Stegen recovers from back surgery which gives Flick a defined trio without leaning on youth in the interim.

Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR BARCA?

With this reshuffle, Flick now has a clear goalkeeping roadmap with Garcia as the trusted No.1 and Szczesny offering reliability. The situation could grow complicated when Ter Stegen returns in a few months, however. 

Bangladesh got off to a bright start in the Powerplay, but India’s spinners pulled things back to restrict them to a below-par 153

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy07-Nov-20193:56

Rohit Sharma dazzles in Rajkot to help India level series 

A 43-ball 85 from Rohit Sharma, in his 100th T20I, helped India chase down 154 with 26 balls to spare and draw level in the T20I series against Bangladesh. It was Rohit’s third-quickest innings of 50 or more in T20Is, and it made a below-par Bangladesh total – at the presentation, their captain Mahmudullah reckoned they finished 25-30 runs short – look utterly inadequate in great batting conditions in Rajkot.India have been a bit of a Jekyll-and-Hyde T20I team of late. Since the start of 2018, they have a 7-7 record while batting first, but they have done much better while chasing: Thursday’s win was their 13th in 16 completed games.Rohit extends his sublime runRohit came into this series having just scored three hundreds, including a double, in three Tests against South Africa, and all that form was on display on a Rajkot pitch brimming with runs. Every shot he played along the ground seemed to find a gap, whether he was pulling or driving or cutting or even occasionally when he was simply defending with a slightly open face – one such shot, off Al-Amin Hossain in the fifth over of India’s innings, raced away unstoppably between backward point and short third man.The results were even more spectacular when he went aerial. There were six sixes in his innings – everyone else, on both sides, only managed two between them – including three in a row off Mosaddek Hossain’s offspin in the tenth over. The second of them, which brought up the century opening stand with Shikhar Dhawan, took Rohit to 70.Dhawan, at that point, was batting on 28 off 24 balls. Bangladesh managed to keep one opener quiet by denying him width, but none of their plans had any impact on the other.Bangladesh make bright startSent in to bat, Bangladesh enjoyed a productive Powerplay, getting to 54 for 0 courtesy a mixture of urgency from their openers and some erratic bowling and fielding from India.Khaleel Ahmed, the left-arm quick, had been hit for four successive fours off his last four balls in Delhi. He conceded three successive fours off his first three balls here, making it seven in a row. Khaleel was guilty of bowling a touch too short on a pitch where the ball sat up nicely, and Mohammad Naim put him away whenever there was a chance to play the pull or the straight-bat jab through midwicket.At the other end, Liton Das enjoyed a massive stroke of luck when he was stranded yards down the pitch by a Yuzvendra Chahal legbreak in the sixth over. Rishabh Pant gathered the ball without trouble and stumped him, but third umpire Anil Chaudhary ruled that he had collected the ball marginally in front of the stumps. Liton hit the next two balls – the first of them a free-hit – for fours, to add insult to injury.Spinners strike backThere would be a near-repeat in the 13th over when Chahal beat the advancing Soumya Sarkar with a wrong’un, but on that occasion Chaudhary ruled that Pant had gathered the ball behind the stumps – replays suggested it was another marginal decision.At that point, Bangladesh were 103 for 4. Their last seven overs had only brought them 49 runs for the cost of four wickets. India’s two main spinners, Chahal and Washington Sundar, were chiefly responsible for keeping them quiet. Chahal, getting the ball to grip, used his variations well, and picked up two wickets. He could have had a third if he had had an lbw appeal against Liton upheld in the eighth over after beating him with his googly, but Liton, unaware of where the ball ended up after hitting his pad, hared out of his crease and ran himself out anyway.Washington, varying his pace intelligently and bowling an irritating length – he later said he looks to get the ball to bounce up to hip height when it reaches the batsman – proved difficult to go after, and Bangladesh only managed 25 off his four overs.Bangladesh never really regained the lost momentum. There were a pair of bright knocks from Sarkar (30 off 20) and Mahmudullah (30 off 21), but the rest of the Bangladesh batsmen didn’t really get going. Khaleel continued to go for runs, conceding 22 off his two overs at the death, but the rest of the bowlers didn’t give the batsmen the pace or the lengths to work with. Chahal, dangling the ball wide of off stump and denying the right-hand batsmen easy access to the leg side, and Deepak Chahar, using the slower bouncer adroitly, gave away only eight runs between them in the 18th and 19th overs.

It was Mehidy’s first five-for at home in nearly two-and-a-half years

Mohammad Isam21-Apr-2025Zimbabwe nosed ahead of Bangladesh after the second day’s play of the first Test in Sylhet with half-centuries from Brian Bennett and Sean Williams. Their lower order and tail also resisted to add 80 runs for the last four wickets that got them a lead of 82. They finished the day by breaking Bangladesh’s opening stand, and the hosts are still 25 runs behind.Bangladesh’s solace came in the form of Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s first five-wicket haul at home in nearly two-and-a-half years. He finished with 5 for 52 after speedster Nahid Rana picked up three wickets, including those of the openers. Zimbabwe strung together small partnerships after the opening stand of 69, often dominating periods of play.Bangladesh lost Shadman Islam in the evening for 4 in the fourth over, when a superb Blessing Muzarabani delivery had him edging to second slip. His opening partner Mahmudul Hasan Joy got a reprieve on 6 in the following over when wicketkeeper Nyasha Mayavo dropped a regulation chance to his right.Mahmudul finished the day unbeaten on 28, while Mominul Haque was on 15 when play was called off at 5.33pm.Rana earlier gave Bangladesh their first breakthrough when he banged in a bouncer towards Ben Curran’s chest. The left-hand opener only managed to tap it to short leg where Mominul completed the catch diving forward. It ended Zimbabwe’s impressive opening stand that lasted 16.5 overs.Rana then bowled a fuller delivery to get rid of Bennett, the other opener. Bennett was piercing the off-side field regularly, hitting eight of his ten boundaries in the range between backward point and cover. But when he looked to cut another ball square, it led to his downfall as he edged one behind on 57.Mehidy Hasan Miraz returned 5 for 52 but Zimbabwe still managed an 82-run lead•AFP/Getty Images

Hasan Mahmud joined in the act with a peach of an inswinger against No. 3 Nick Welch, who was bowled through the gate for 2. Captain Craig Ervine and Williams, Zimbabwe’s most experienced pair, steadied things for the next hour. They added 41 runs in 15 overs, before Rana had Ervine caught behind for 8.It was another short ball that reared up high on Ervine, who couldn’t get his bat out of the way. The ball brushed the face of his bat and he was caught behind by Jaker Ali. Williams forged another promising stand, this time with Wessly Madhevere, in the course of which Williams reached his fourth Test fifty. He did that in style too, sweeping Taijul Islam for a six and a four to reach the landmark.The 48-run partnership however ended when Madhevere played on to a Khaled Ahmed delivery, on 24. Williams too couldn’t kick on, mistiming a straight hit against Mehidy, caught by a tumbling Mahmudul running back from mid-off. Williams bent down in disbelief as he looked very well set, having scored 59 off 108 balls with the help of six fours and two sixes.Despite all their frontline batters back in the pavilion, Zimbabwe continued to fight. Mayavo made an enterprising 35 off 54 balls, including five fours, but he fell shortly after tea when Mehidy trapped him lbw. Wellington Masakadza played out 42 balls for his 6, and became Mehidy’s third victim, caught at cover.The tall pair of Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava then took on the Bangladesh bowlers in a 36-run ninth-wicket stand. Muzarabani struck two fours and a massive six, over long-on, during his 17 off 16. Ngarava was unbeaten on 28 off 44 balls, including a lovely straight hit for a six off Mehidy. The offspinner finished things off when he had Muzarabani stumped and Victor Nyauchi caught in the covers, to complete his five-for.

MatériaMais Notícias

da luck： Contratado para comandar o sub-23 do Corinthians, o ídolo e ex-jogador Danilo segue seu trabalho para montar e ajustar o elenco de Aspirantes do clube, que disputa, em julho, o Brasileirão da categoria. Na manhã desta quinta-feira, o Timão anunciou que o grupo contou com o retorno de seis atletas que integravam o elenco sub-20 e estouraram o limite de idade.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasCorinthiansCom ‘semana cheia’, Corinthians folga e volta a trabalhar nesta sextaCorinthians04/02/2021VídeoMancini explica a entrada de Léo Natel no ataque do CorinthiansVídeo04/02/2021VídeoVÍDEO: Mancini ressalta importância da vitória do Corinthians: ‘Devolve a confiança para todo mundo’Vídeo04/02/2021

da imperador bet： TABELA
> Veja classificação e simulador do Brasileirão clicando aqui

GALERIA
>Veja os jogadores que participaram dos gols do Corinthians na Era Mancini

Os Filhos do Terrão que passam a integrar o grupo do técnico Danilo são: Yago (goleiro), Gabriel Araujo (zagueiro), Leo Paraíso (zagueiro), Du Queiroz (volante), Vitinho (meia), Adson (atacante). Os seis já começaram a trabalhar com o grupo. Destaque fica para Vitinho, que é considerado uma joia da base.

No primeiro treino, os atletas fizeram um trabalho de estabilidade e treino físico no campo 2 do CT da base. Durante a semana, o grupo realizou exames cardiológicos e o teste de Covid-19. Todos foram aprovados e estão aptos a integrar o elenco que disputará o Campeonato Brasileiro de Aspirantes 2021.

Uma das promessas de Duílio Monteiro Alves, que completa um mês na presidência nesta quinta-feira, é reformular o sub-23 corintiano, que tem sido motivo de críticas por parte da torcida. A intenção da criação da categoria é aproveitar os atletas que estouram o limite de idade e servir de transição para aqueles que possam ter uma oportunidade na equipe principal.

Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are set for their first action since the Ashes after they were named in the New South Wales squad for the Marsh Cup match against Tasmania on Wednesday.The pair have been kept on ice since the end of the series in England. Cummins played all five Tests as well as the entire World Cup while Hazlewood played in four of the Ashes matches following his return from a stress fracture of the back.After the one-day game Hazlewood is expected to come into the Sheffield Shield side for New South Wales’ next match against South Australia in Adelaide while Cummins is part of Australia’s T20I squad to face Sri Lanka and Pakistan.New South Wales will field six players who were part of the Ashes with David Warner, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon also in the Marsh Cup squad. Warner will be playing his first domestic one-day match since 2013 before also switching to Australia colours, along with Smith and Starc, for the T20Is.Tasmania skipper Matthew Wade has been ruled out due to a minor groin injury he suffered in the Sheffield Shield game that concluded at Drummoyne Oval on Monday. Jordan Silk will captain Tasmania in Wade’s absence.The fixture has been moved to North Sydney Oval after the problems with the SCG surface. The match is between the bottom two sides in the Marsh Cup with both having managed just one win from their first four matches.Elsewhere, Ashton Turner is set to return from a finger injury to captain WA against Victoria at the WACA. Nathan Coulter-Nile will miss the clash due to a calf injury. Australia T20 captain Aaron Finch has been named in Victoria’s squad but is still touch and go to play as he recovers from a side strain. Victoria have rested their first-choice attack of James Pattinson, Peter Siddle, Chris Tremain, and Scott Boland.NSW squad Peter Nevill, Sean Abbott, Pat Cummins, Jack Edwards, Matthew Gilkes, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David WarnerTasmania squad Jordan Silk (c), George Bailey, Nathan Ellis, James Faulkner, Caleb Jewell, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Simon Milenko, Tom Rogers, Clive Rose, Gurinder Sandhu, Beau Webster, Mac WrightWestern Australia squad Ashton Turner (c), Ashton Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Hilton Cartwright, Aaron Hardie, Matthew Kelly, Shaun Marsh, Lance Morris, Josh Philippe, Jhye Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.Victoria squad Peter Handscomb (c), Jackson Coleman, Xavier Crone, Andrew Fekete, Aaron Finch, Sam Harper, Marcus Harris, Jon Holland, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Will Pucovski, Matthew Short, Will Sutherland.

Half-centuries for England pair set up Vipers for 34-run victory in opening match

ECB Reporters Network06-Aug-2019

Tammy Beaumont goes through the off side•Getty Images

Tammy Beaumont and Danni Wyatt, who also struck with the ball, hit half-centuries in an explosive second-wicket partnership of 100 to underpin a resounding Southern Vipers victory over Lancashire Thunder at Aigburth, Liverpool on the opening day of the Kia Super League.Beaumont smashed five sixes in her 53 off 33 balls, including three in as many balls, as the Vipers posted an imposing 166 for 7 after having elected to bat. Beaumont’s first game as captain after taking over from Suzie Bates saw the 2016 champions fly out of the blocks as opener Wyatt hit ten fours in her 54 off 39 balls against her former side, while the dangerous Stafanie Taylor hit a late 25-ball 40.In reply, Thunder opener Georgie Boyce hit a bright 43, but Wyatt’s offspin returned 2 for 14 from three overs, doubling her tally of career KSL wickets, as the hosts were bowled out for 132.Lancashire, who lost by 34 runs, will rue erring in line and length all too often with the ball on a true pitch. Kate Cross, who actually struck early to remove Bates, used eight bowlers on her captaincy debut, with only England team-mate Sophie Ecclestone able to offer any real control with her left-arm spinners. Another left-arm spinner, Alex Hartley, claimed two wickets but was expensive.Wyatt and Beaumont, England’s opening pair in T20Is, shared 100 in 10.3 overs to advance from 8 for 1 in the second. Both were particularly punishing on anything short and wide. Wyatt was first to 50 off 33 balls before, in the 11th over, Beaumont moved to 50 off 23 with three successive sixes off seamer Cross. Sophia Dunkley later took a superb return catch to remove Beaumont in an attempt to stymie progress.Beaumont further stamped her authority on the game early in the Thunder chase when she took a good high catch in swirling wind at midwicket to help seamer Lauren Bell remove Sune Luus, leaving the score at 11 for 1 in the fourth over.Boyce and Tahlia McGrath both hit sixes as 32 then came off the medium pace of Bates and the legspin of McGrath’s Adelaide Strikers team-mate Amanda Wellington in the ninth and tenth overs to take the hosts to 65 for 1 at the halfway mark.But Wyatt’s offspin claimed the scalp of McGrath in the 11th, caught at long-on, as the score fell to 68 for 2. She struck again in the 13th to get Harmanpreet Kaur stumped by Carla Rudd for 1 before wickets fell in a hurry in a forlorn pursuit of quick runs and the victory target.Boyce was one of those, while Wyatt also added a catch to rubber-stamp her memorable day. Tash Farrant finished 3 for 18.Both sides are next in action on Thursday – the Vipers travel to Loughborough and the Thunder take on champions Surrey at Guildford.