Viktor Gyokeres has snubbed Juventus despite a bigger offer, making it clear he wants Arsenal as he prepares to leave Sporting CP.

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Sporting demand €80m, Arsenal bid shortSwede scored 54 goals in stunning seasonJuve shift focus to Jonathan David chaseFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to , Gyokeres’s agent has informed Juventus that the striker is set on joining Arsenal. The Swedish forward has long admired the Premier League and views the move as a clear step up. Although Juventus’s €70 million (£59m/$77m) package was appealing to Sporting CP, the player's preference appears decisive. Gyokeres has reportedly rejected Juve’s approach, with his entourage making it clear that Arsenal is his desired destination. While the Gunners remain keen, they have yet to reach a formal agreement with Sporting, who are holding out for a higher fee.

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Gyokeres's stance complicates Juventus’s striker search, especially with Dusan Vlahovic expected to leave. For Arsenal, securing Gyokeres, who scored 54 goals in all competitions last season, would represent a major attacking coup, though they are also monitoring other targets including Benjamin Sesko. Sporting are pushing for €80m (£68m/$92m) and growing tensions have emerged between the player and the club.

DID YOU KNOW?

The Swedish international joined Sporting in 2023 from Coventry for €20m (£17m/$23m). He has a €100m (£84m/$115m) release clause, but no club has come close to activating it. The 27-year-old’s agent, Hasan Cetinkaya, will reportedly receive 10 per cent of any bid worth at least €60m that is rejected, a clause that puts added pressure on Sporting.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL AND JUVENTUS?

Arsenal are yet to decide on which striker they will prioritise as they look to strengthen Mikel Arteta's team. Meanwhile, Juventus are now pivoting toward Jonathan David, who is currently a free agent after leaving Lille, with Dusan Vlahovic expected to leave Turin.

Leicestershire Foxes wrapped up their Metro Bank One-Day Cup group fixtures with a six-wicket victory over Yorkshire Vikings at Grace Road – but they will have to wait until Tuesday to know whether seven wins from eight will be enough to take them directly to a home semi-final as Group A winners.Hampshire’s win over Surrey means they can still equal Leicestershire’s points tally by beating Kent in a home fixture on Tuesday, which would leave net run-rate to determine the final placings. Whoever finishes second will have to first win a home quarter-final next Friday to stay in the competition.Half-centuries by overseas stars Peter Handscomb and Wiaan Mulder enabled Leicestershire to chase down Yorkshire’s 184 all out with 46 balls remaining after Matt Salisbury (three for 28) and Chris Wright (three for 31) had been the Foxes’ stand-out bowlers.The Vikings risked a more humbling defeat until a ninth-wicket stand of 75 between Dom Bess (40) and Ben Coad (45) – career-best List A scores for both – rescued Yorkshire from 91 for eight, but the defeat combined with Lancashire’s win at Lord’s ends their chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages via a top-three finish.Wright had Yorkshire on the back foot from the start by reducing them to 24 for three in eight overs after Leicestershire had to rethink their bowling plans with two of their leading competition wicket-takers – Josh Hull and Tom Scriven – sidelined with a stomach bug.After the Foxes had won the toss, Wright had Harry Duke caught behind as he under-edged a ball outside off stump before Shan Masood and Will Luxton departed from consecutive balls, the left-handed Masood squared up a little and taken at slip, the right-handed Luxton comprehensively bowled by one that seemed to come back sharply.Until the Bess-Coad fightback, losing regular wickets stymied Yorkshire’s attempts to build momentum. Salisbury, first change at the Bennett End as Wright took a breather with figures of three for 12, struck with his third ball as Fin Bean played across one that thudded into the front pad.Bean and James Wharton built something of a platform, adding 36 in seven overs, but the Vikings stalled again after Bean’s dismissal, losing Wharton to a catch at deep midwicket followed by George Hill, who pushed at one from Salisbury to be caught behind.Salisbury picked up a third wicket when Ben Mike, facing his former team-mates, was leg before to a delivery that kept a touch low before Will Davis – on his first 50-over call-up of the season – had Matthew Revis caught at short midwicket.With no front-line spinner to call on with Rehan Ahmed, Callum Parkinson and Colin Ackermann all attached to Hundred franchises, skipper Lewis Hill stuck with his five seamers, but Bess and Coad looked comfortable until Bess, attempting to paddle-scoop Wiaan Mulder, shovelled the ball into the gloves of wicketkeeper Handscomb.Hill finally turned to Louis Kimber, a part-time spinner but one who had a four-for with his off-breaks in this competition last year. Kimber took only three overs to claim the last Yorkshire wicket, beating Coad’s expansive swing for Handscomb to execute a stumping.It had not looked like a pitch conducive to clean hitting, yet openers Rishi Patel and Sol Budinger perhaps understandably chose not to deviate from the aggressive approach that had brought between them 673 runs in the competition.It backfired this time as both were out inside the first 15 balls of the Foxes innings, Patel miscuing George Hill to mid-on before Budinger, aiming to smear Coad over midwicket, was caught by wicketkeeper Duke after the ball left his bat vertically.Handscomb and Hill adopted a more cautious policy but after a dozen overs of pushing the scoreboard along steadily at a required rate of just over 3.5 runs an over, Hill was given out leg before trying to work a ball from Coad.The scoring rate went up sharply when Handscomb was joined by Mulder, bringing two in-form batters to the crease. After Aussie Handscomb completed his fifth half-century in the competition so far, adding a pull for six off Mike to four boundaries, Leicestershire were 110 for three after 25 overs, needing 75 to win in the second half of the innings.Dom Bess broke their partnership when Handscomb went to turn him down the leg side and feathered a catch through to Duke but Mulder soon completed his fourth fifty in the competition off 73 balls with five fours before Kimber hoisted Jack Shutt’s off spin for six over midwicket and then hammered the winning boundary off Mike.

Manchester City and Pep Guardiola could sanction the departure of an “incredible” £300,000-a-week player this summer, as the club plan an overhaul of the squad, according to a Sky Sports journalist.

Man City reach seven FA Cup semi-finals in a row

The Blues secured their place in the last four of England’s oldest competition on Sunday afternoon, as they came from a goal down to beat AFC Bournemouth 2-1. The FA Cup represents City’s only chance of winning silverware this season, and Guardiola believes his side were “outstanding” in their win over the Cherries.

He was saved by O'Reilly: Pep must drop 4/10 Man City dud after Bournemouth

Man City won their FA Cup semi-final 2-1 on Sunday

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“It was harder for them [Bournemouth]. We played an outstanding game and had incredible chances but missed a penalty. We conceded with one chance we gave away. Our approach was magnificent. Seven times in a row in the semi-final in the FA Cup, no team has done it, and it will be difficult for any other to do what these legendary players, the new ones and the old ones, will have done,” Guardiola told the BBC.

Pep was then asked about City reaching the FA Cup semi-finals for a seventh consecutive season, and he labelled it an “unbelievable” achievement.

“It is unbelievable. The way we competed today compared to the way we played in the first game here [in the Premier League]. I was not good enough to overcome that situation then. We were sloppy for many games, and I was not able to let them realise is what they have done today. For example, Brighton was a difficult game; we didn’t play our best, but we fought. This is what had to happen.”

Man City could sanction Grealish exit as Pep plans busy summer

Despite possible success in the FA Cup, it has been a poor campaign for the Blues, and therefore, there is expected to be plenty of incomings and outgoings come the summer.

According to Sky Sports Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg, Man City could look to sell Jack Grealish this summer as the Blues plan a busy summer of change.

Plettenberg states that City are planning a squad overhaul in the summer, and with them holding an interest in players such as Florian Wirtz and Hugo Larsson, the likes of İlkay Gündoğan and Kevin De Bruyne are likely departures when their contracts expire, while Grealish could also be moved on despite his not ending until 2026.

Grealish, who earns £300,000 a week at the Etihad Stadium, has struggled for regular game time this season, playing just 16 times in the Premier League, six of which have been starts, and the last one came in the defeat to Aston Villa back in December.

Despite the lack of game time, Guardiola has continued to heap praise on the Englishman, labelling him “incredible”.

“I want him to make goals and assists, and he does too, but it’s not about that. It’s about his contribution without the ball and what he can produce for the other ones. We didn’t sign Jack Grealish for the incredible goals or assists at Aston Villa. It was for another reason. He competes with top, top players as well, and he knows it perfectly. He never complains about that.”

كشفت تقارير صحفية تفاصيل جديدة تخص مباراة فيناليسيما، التي ستجمع بين بطل قارة أوروبا وقارة أمريكا الجنوبية، أي بين منتخبي إسبانيا والأرجنتين.

كان منتخب إسبانيا قد توج ببطولة كأس أمم أوروبا، الصيف الماضي، بعدما فاز على إنجلترا بهدفين لهدف.

في حين أن منتخب الأرجنتين تمكن من الحصول على كأس كوبا أمريكا عقب انتصاره على كولومبيا بهدف نظيف.

وذكرت صحيفة “آس” الإسبانية أن رئيسي الاتحاد الإسباني والأرجنتيني لكرة القدم، رافائيل لوزان وكلاوديو تابيا، توصلا إلى اتفاق لإقامة مباراة فيناليسيما في نهاية شهر مارس المقبل.

وأوضحت أن الموعد المتاح لتلك المباراة سيكون بين 26 و31 مارس القادم، وهي الفترة المخصصة لإقامة مباريات الملحق المؤهل إلى كأس العالم نسخة 2026.

اقرأ أيضًا | تصنيف فيفا لشهر يوليو 2025.. صدارة مستقرة وتقدم البرتغال وألمانيا

وأفادت أنه لا توجد مشكلة بالنسبة لمنتخب الأرجنتين كونه ضمن التأهل بالفعل إلى كأس العالم، النسخة التي ستُقام في أمريكا، كندا والمكسيك.

ولكن قد تكون هناك مشكلة بالنسبة لمنتخب إسبانيا حال فشله في التأهل المباشر إلى المونديال واحتياجه إلى خوض مرحلة الملحق.

ولم يبدأ منتخب إسبانيا حتى الآن تصفيات أوروبا المؤهلة إلى كأس العالم، حيث سيبدأ مشواره في سبتمبر المقبل، وسيخوض أول مباراتين ضد بلغاريا وتركيا، قبل ملاقاة جورجيا في أكتوبر.

ويسعى منتخب إسبانيا إلى ضمان تأهله المباشر إلى كأس العالم للأندية وإلا سيضطر إلى خوض مرحلة الملحق، وهنا لن يستطيع لعب مباراة فيناليسيما.

وفي تلك الحالة، لن يكون هناك موعد متاح لخوض مباراة فيناليسيما إلا في الأيام التي تسبق كأس العالم نفسه، وهو أمر لا ترغب به الأرجنتين أو إسبانيا، كونهما ضمن المرشحين للفوز بتلك البطولة.

Meanwhile, Former Australia Test paceman Peter Siddle leaves Strikers to join Renegades while Queensland quick Mark Steketee moves from Heat to Stars

Alex Malcolm01-Sep-2023

West Indies left-hander Nicholas Pooran and Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan have both withdrawn from the BBL draft while South African Dane van Niekerk is out of the WBBL due to the fractured right thumb she suffered during the recent women’s Hundred.Pooran and Rizwan were set to be platinum picks in the BBL draft and Pooran was potentially going to be a sort-after option given he was likely to be available up until finals before heading to the ILT20. But his West Indies white-ball commitments in December against England may have affected his early availability and he has withdrawn from the tournament.Rizwan was always going to have availability issues given his commitments with Pakistan as they are playing three Tests against Australia in Australia across the first month of the six-week-long BBL.Related

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Rauf, Pooran, Harmanpreet and Kapp among platinum nominations

Van Niekerk did not play in the WBBL last year but has previously played for Melbourne Renegades, Sydney Sixers and Adelaide Strikers. But her fractured thumb means she is unavailable for the tournament.Meanwhile, former Australia fast bowler Peter Siddle has returned to Melbourne Renegades after six seasons at Adelaide Strikers where he captained Strikers 27 times. Siddle, who will be 39 by the time the BBL starts, previously played seven games at Renegades from 2013-15 while he was a mainstay in Australia’s Test attack.Renegades have become one of the oldest lists in BBL history with Siddle joining Nathan Lyon (35) as a new signing. Renegades already have three players over 35 – Shaun Marsh (40), Aaron Finch (36) and Jon Wells (35).”We’ve made a concerted effort to add more experience to our playing list this off-season, so to welcome ‘Sidds’ back to the Renegades, alongside the additions of Adam Zampa and Nathan Lyon is a fantastic result,” Melbourne Renegades General Manager James Rosengarten said.”Sidds is well respected not just for his contributions with the ball over a long period of time, but for his leadership, tactical awareness and broader knowledge of players and the T20 landscape.”He has plenty of existing relationships within our playing group and we know he will be an important contributor for us not only on the field but with all the other attributes he brings that help build successful teams.”Peter Siddle returns to Renegades where he started his BBL career•Getty Images

Siddle was thrilled to be back in Melbourne having also moved back to Victoria in domestic cricket after three seasons with Tasmania.”I’m excited to be returning to where my Big Bash journey started and to be back in red this year,” Siddle said.”I’ve loved my time in Adelaide over the last six seasons. But it’s time for a new challenge, and I’m looking forward to reuniting with some good mates of mine at the Renegades.”Looking at the playing list that’s being assembled, there’s no reason we can’t challenge for the title this year.Elsewhere, Queensland and Australia A fast bowler Mark Steketee has signed with Melbourne Stars in the BBL after 10 seasons with Brisbane Heat. Steketee had been a mainstay in all formats for Queensland and Heat earlier in his career but only played eight games in each of the last two BBL seasons. The emergence of Spencer Johnson and Xavier Bartlett forced him out of the Heat side last season and he did not play in their finals campaign.He instead joins the Stars to bolster their bowling stocks alongside the off-season signings of Scott Boland and Joel Paris.”We identified Mark as a target to further strengthen our fast-bowling stocks and we can’t wait to see what he can do at the MCG,” Melbourne Stars General Manager Blair Crouch said.”He has been a consistent wicket-taker in the BBL over a number of years now and he’ll bring a lot of valuable experience and cricket IQ to the group.”

Al-Hilal are chasing the signing of Scott McTominay after the Scottish international's phenomenal debut season at Napoli.

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• Al-Hilal want McTominay
• Midfielder won Scudetto in debut campaign
• Could be joined by Grealish at Napoli

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Saudi Pro League side approached Napoli to see if the Serie A champions could be tempted to part ways with the league's MVP last season, as per Alfredo Pedulla. However, their interest was knocked back immediately and Al-Hilal were told that no deal at any price would be considered for McTominay. The club do not wish to sell their star man after he helped power them to their second title in three seasons.

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  McTominay would be the dream signing for Al-Hilal's new boss Simone Inzaghi who would have watched the Scottish midfielder closely. Inzaghi could only lead his Inter side to second in the Serie A last season as a McTominay-inspired Napoli raced to the title. Now in Saudi Arabia, Inzaghi may be wanting the chance to utilise the Scot in his midfield alongside Ruben Neves and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Napoli are looking to strengthen their squad with signings, rather than weaken it with key departures. Antonio Conte's side are considering a move for Manchester City's Jack Grealish to bolster their wide options after already adding Kevin De Bruyne to their midfield. The club will also be looking to progress deep into the Champions League, playing in its new format for the first time.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MCTOMINAY?

  It is unlikely that McTominay will be leaving Naples this summer. The former Manchester United player has found home in Italy and has already written his name into Napoli folklore after his title-winning performances. A switch to Saudi Arabia is almost certainly not going to happen.

Shadab Khan has been picked up by Desert Vipers, who also have Shaheen Afridi and Azam Khan, after there was no Pakistani presence in the first ILT20 season

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Aug-2023David Warner, Mark Wood, Shadab Khan and Ambati Rayudu are among the major overseas players signed up for the second season of UAE’s ILT20, which will start in January next year. Warner and Wood, rivals at the Ashes recently, will team up at Dubai Capitals, while Shadab joins Pakistan team-mates Shaheen Shah Afridi and Azam Khan at Desert Vipers.Rayudu, who retired from all Indian cricket after IPL 2023 and is currently playing in the CPL, has been signed up by MI Emirates, while Martin Guptill and Maheesh Theekshana will play for Sharjah Warriors alongside Lewis Gregory.Apart from Warner and Wood, Capitals have also signed up Andrew Tye, Dasun Shanaka, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sam Billings. Josh Little, Laurie Evans, Ravi Bopara and David Willey have been signed up by Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, while Mujeeb Ur Rahman, part of Capitals last season, has moved to defending champions Gulf Giants. Qais Ahmed, meanwhile, has moved from Giants to Warriors.Related

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Hales, Russell, Narine, Hetmyer among top retentions

ILT20 2024 to kick off on January 13

Kusal Perera, Akeal Hosein and Corey Anderson have been drafted in by MI Emirates apart from Rayudu. They have also acquired up and coming Sri Lanka mystery spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.USA’s Saurabh Netravalkar and Noshtush Kenjige have been picked by Giants and MI Emirates respectively, while Bas de Leede and Roelof van der Merwe are the two Netherlands players in the mix, as part of Vipers and Capitals respectively. Scotland team-mates Chris Sole and Mark Watt will be part of Warriors while Brandon McMullen is part of Knight Riders.The last stage of the squad-building process will involve selecting the UAE players.The second season of the ILT20 will run more or less concurrently with the second season of the SA20 league in South Africa, and will overlap with the last stages of the BBL, too. That aside, there’s England’s five-Test tour of India starting January 25, which could force players like Root and Wood to leave the ILT20 early.The squads at this stageAbu Dhabi Knight Riders
New signings: Brandon McMullen, David Willey, Jake Lintott, Josh Little, Laurie Evans, Michael Pepper, Ravi Bopara and Sam Hain
Retentions: Ali Khan, Andre Russell, Charith Asalanka, Joe Clarke, Sabir Ali, Sunil Narine, Marchant de Lange and Matiullah KhanDesert Vipers
New signings: Adam Hose, Azam Khan, Bas de Leede, Michael Jones, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi
Retentions: Alex Hales, Ali Naseer, Colin Munro, Dinesh Chandimal, Gus Atkinson, Luke Wood, Matheesha Pathirana, Rohan Mustafa, Sheldon Cottrell, Sherfane Rutherford, Tom Curran and Wanindu HasarangaDubai Capitals
New signings: Andrew Tye, Dasun Shanaka, David Warner, Mark Wood, Max Holden, Mohammad Mohsin, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Nuwan Thushara, Roelof van der Merwe, Sadeera Samarawickrama and Sam Billings
Retentions: Dushmantha Chameera, Joe Root, Raja Akif, Rovman Powell and Sikandar RazaGulf Giants
New signings: Dominic Drakes, Jordan Cox, Karim Janat, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Saurabh Netravalkar and Jamie Smith
Retentions: Aayan Afzal Khan, Carlos Brathwaite, Chris Jordan, Chris Lynn, Gerhard Erasmus, James Vince, Jamie Overton, Rehan Ahmed, Richard Gleeson, Sanchit Sharma and Shimron HetmyerMI Emirates
New signings: Akeal Hosein, Ambati Rayudu, Corey Anderson, Kusal Perera, Nosthush Kenjige, Odean Smith, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Waqar Salamkheil
Retentions: Andre Fletcher, Daniel Mousley, Dwayne Bravo, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Jordan Thompson, Kieron Pollard, McKenny Clarke, Muhammad Waseem, Nicholas Pooran, Trent Boult, Will Smeed and Zahoor KhanSharjah Warriors
New signings: Chris Sole, Daniel Sams, Dilshan Madhushanka, James Fuller, Johnson Charles, Kusal Mendis, Lewis Gregory, Maheesh Theekshana, Mark Watt, Martin Guptill, Sean Williams and Qais Ahmed
Retentions: Chris Woakes, Joe Denly, Junaid Siddique, Mark Deyal, Muhammad Jawadullah and Tom Kohler-Cadmore

Back-room role with one-day squad has helped 2005 Ashes legend in recovery from near-fatal accident

Vithushan Ehantharajah25-Sep-2023Marcus Trescothick says he has been buoyed seeing Andrew Flintoff “grow back into Freddie” during his stint with the limited-overs squad, and hopes to see more of his former England team-mate in a coaching capacity in the future.Flintoff, 45, has been working as an unpaid assistant coach for England’s men during their one-day series against New Zealand and Ireland, as part of his recovery from a near-fatal accident while filming an episode of last December. His presence within the dressing-room proved hugely popular with the World Cup-bound players who featured in the New Zealand series, many of whom grew up idolising him, especially during the 2005 Ashes, and his stint was extended to take in the current series against Ireland, for which a separate 13-man squad was chosen.There are no concrete plans to extend Flintoff’s working relationship with the ECB after the third ODI in Bristol on Tuesday, which concludes the international summer. However, both sides have an appetite for more involvement going forward after the last few weeks. Having attended a few days during the Ashes with the encouragement of Rob Key, director of men’s cricket and a long-term friend, Flintoff has become a more visible presence around England training sessions, taking the mitt to the bowlers, and offering advice to those who seek it.His command of a room has also been noteworthy behind closed doors. He was given the floor to speak at The Oval after Jos Buttler’s side had beaten New Zealand, stating his admiration for what he felt was one of the best England environments he had been privy to. On Saturday at Trent Bridge, Flintoff was given the honour of presenting Tom Hartley, a fellow Lancastrian, with his maiden England cap ahead of the second ODI.Speaking to The Telegraph, Ben Stokes said “you can picture him being involved as a full-time coach”, adding that Flintoff “grew more confident within himself” as he became more familiar with the group. Those sentiments are echoed by assistant coach Trescothick, a fellow 2005 hero and international team-mate of Flintoff’s on 133 occasions between 2000 and 2006, though he also joked there would be a drawback in having someone he knows so well in the set-up.”It’s been hard actually because he hammers me more than anyone else,” Trescothick said. “I’m the first target for his banter at the moment, but having him around has been superb, it really has.Flintoff has proven popular in his role with England’s back-room staff•ECB via Getty Images”Seeing him grow back into Freddie and getting back into the cricket…obviously he’s been away from cricket for a long period of time. But this is where it all starts and where it belongs for him. The guys have really taken to him.'”He’s been brilliant. A couple of times he’s spoken in the changing-room it’s been like, ‘wow’. You can see the difference, and I’ve seen the progression of him as a character; the way he talks and delivers messages to players has been superb. To have him sprinkling a bit of gold dust around the team and having the younger players working with that has been invaluable, really. You can’t put a price on it.”It was during the first ODI against New Zealand at Cardiff that Flintoff was first spotted as part of the staff. This happened to be his first public appearance since he had been left with facial scars following a crash at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome while shooting an episode for ‘s 34th series.As a legend of English cricket, and a key personality in the lineage of talismanic allrounders now carried forward by Stokes, Trescothick was particularly enamoured with how Flintoff has grown into his role. While he has been around the game recently, having worked with England’s Under-19s and frequent visits to Emirates Old Trafford given his sons Corey (17) and Rocky (14) are part of Lancashire’s age-group sides, he was understandably wary ahead of this opportunity with the national team.”I think he was a little bit nervous coming into the environment,” Trescothick said. “He doesn’t know many of the people so, from where he was coming in first at Cardiff to where he is now, he’s grown massively.”He’s back into the person you expect to be around cricket because that’s what I’ve seen for so many years and it’s been great, really good. He’s really enjoyed the opportunity and the team have taken to him being around. Hopefully, we’ll see more of him in the future.”Trescothick, like Flintoff, knows all about cricket’s ability to aid recovery. His mental-health struggles, especially when on tour, meant his international career ended in 2006, at the age of 30. With the help of those within the game, Trescothick has begun to take on more overseas trips in retirement. He returned to Pakistan for England’s Test tour last winter for the first time since 2005, a series which he believes triggered his depression, and he will be assisting England at the upcoming World Cup in India.”You become more comfortable, don’t you?” Trescothick said, recognising how cricket had helped Flintoff as it had helped him. “This is what we know, this is what we’ve grown up with for so many years. Once you come to your comfortable environment, you know what goes on and you understand the place, people have respect for what he has done and enjoy seeing him improving.”That’s really good from our point of view. If we as players and squads and cricket in general keep doing that for people who have fallen on tougher times, then great, we’re doing something right.”

Javier Mascherano's men were overmatched by superior team, as MLS side knocked out of FIFA's flagship club tournament

Lionel Messi couldn't work miracles and the Inter Miami team around him crumbled as a rampant PSG coasted to a 4-0 win to bounce the Herons from the Club World Cup in the round of 16. Miami had unexpectedly made it out of their group, and always seemed to be outmatched here. And their only real achievement was keeping the scoreline respectable.

Miami shot themselves in the foot within five minutes when Maxi Falcon allowed Joao Neves – one of the shortest players on the pitch – to sneak in at the back post and head home for 1-0. And it was pretty much one-way traffic after that. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was a constant buzzing threat on the left wing, while Vitinha and Neves ran the midfield.

The second goal, also from Neves, rather sealed it. Sergio Busquets lost the ball on the edge of the Miami box, and the Parisians went to work. Five touches later and Neves was rolling into an empty net. They grabbed two more before half time, a Tomas Aviles own goal and rebound tap in for the marauding Achraf Hakimi.

PSG rotated throughout the second half, and Miami offered a little more fight. Messi had his moments in the final third, and forced Gianluigi Donnarumma into a neat save late on. Otherwise, though, the Herons were toothless against a Parisian side that dominated on and off the ball. This wasn't an indictment on one player. PSG are simply world class. But the Herons' Club World Cup journey has come to a remarkably predictable end.

GOAL rates Inter Miami's players from Mercedes-Benz Stadium…

Goalkeeper & Defence

Oscar Ustari (5/10):

Made a couple of nice saves, but spent most of the game picking the ball out of his own net – not really at any fault of his own.

Marcelo Weigandt (4/10):

Tragically mismatched against Kvaratskhelia. A little better in the second, and helped keep things respectable.

Maxi Falcon (4/10):

Had a true nightmare, pulled one way and another by the switchable front line.

Noah Allen (N/A):

Lasted 20 minutes before exiting with an apparent injury.

Jordi Alba (5/10):

Absolutely clueless as to how to handle Hakimi and Bradley Barcola. Looked old.

AdvertisementMidfield

Federico Redondo (4/10):

Far too slow when he had the ball, and lacking in legs to squeeze spaces without it.

Sergio Busquets (5/10):

Had a truly miserable time when Miami tried to play out from the back, with no answer for the Parisians' buzzing press.

Tadeo Allende (5/10):

Can't be faulted for his effort, but simply couldn't keep up with the movement.

Telasco Segovia (4/10):

Pretty much anonymous throughout.

Attack

Luis Suarez (4/10):

A better touch might have led to a Miami goal in the second half. Never stopped running.

Lionel Messi (6/10):

A game of moments. Did some really nice stuff on the ball now and then, but nothing quite came off for him.

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Subs & Manager

Tomas Aviles (3/10):

Booked within a minute of coming on, conceded an own goal, and was generally a mess.

Benjamin Cremaschi (4/10):

Puzzling that he didn't start over Redondo. Made things happen when he came on.

Javier Mascherano (4/10):

What was he supposed to do? His side were outmatched here, and he shouldn't shoulder the blame.

Grant Bradburn, the Pakistan head coach, acknowledged their powerplay batting hasn’t clicked yet in India, but it’s something the team isn’t losing sleep over just yet.Much of those top order questions stem from Fakhar Zaman’s indifferent form. He has a highest of 33 in 11 innings since the unbeaten 180 he made against New Zealand in April. The team management insists they’re keeping all options open for the Sri Lanka match without giving away much.At training, Abdullah Shafique was among the first to stride out to the nets with Babar Azam a few kilometres down the road from Rajiv Gandhi Stadium. Whether that’s a hint of them already looking at a change, only time will tell.”We’re well aware that the first phase of our batting is not clicking as yet, which we think is a good thing, in a way, because we have full trust in all of the guys who are capable at batting within the powerplay,” Bradburn said. “And they’ve done it before. Over perhaps the last period between World Cups, the top three have scored the majority of our runs, which maybe is detrimental to other parts of our game.Related

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“So, look, we’ve got full faith in our top order. They will click at some stage. And we’re open and honest to say that we’re not getting what we would like out of the powerplay as yet. But we’re certainly very happy with other phases of our game which have kicked into gear and did enough the other night to get over the line and create a W, create two points for us coming out of that dressing room which was the ultimate goal.”Bradburn is big on team culture. Having already been a part of this group as a fielding coach under Mickey Arthur until June 2020, he’s had a bird’s eye view of the dynamics within the team. It also helped that he worked with a lot of the younger players during his short stint as head of at PCB’s High-Performance Coaching until 2021.One of the areas Bradburn touched upon was giving players what they want at training instead of laying down a set of rules for the group to follow. It’s perhaps a sign of them putting this into practice that a few key players like Imam-ul-Haq, Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Rizwan opted to rest at the hotel instead of pushing themselves at training on match eve.”Our full trust is with our players in terms of understanding exactly what they need,” Bradburn said. “Especially the day before a game, to top off their training, to top up their training rather, and just prepare themselves mentally and physically to put in what we want on the park, which is commanding performances.”We want our players to produce impact performances. It’s not about them individually anymore. It’s about us as a team. It’s about us extracting another two points. And that’s our sole mission. We put full faith in the players to know exactly what they need to do to prepare. And some have chosen to prepare in other ways other than taking more energy out of their bodies today. From a coaching point of view, I’m very, very happy with that.”That said, Bradburn also emphasised on the need to move away from “comfort training” – essentially long net sessions involving bowling or hitting balls as against working on specific areas. Like Saud Shakeel did prior to their opening game, of working on shortening his backswing to give himself a split-second more against fast bowling (LINK Saud Shakeel post-match piece).Bradburn believes team director Mickey Arthur, who was with Sri Lanka as recent as November 2021, is Pakistan’s “secret weapon”•Getty Images

“Early on, from our training point of view there was lots of energy and excitement to get the pads on, to get into the nets and to get into action on Indian soil,” Bradburn said. “The facilities here are excellent so everyone’s been wanting to train. But as a coaching group of course we’ve got to balance that because number one – we want our tanks full of energy for game day. And we’re trying to wean our players off from comfort training and we want them really to have all aspects of their training to be done with purpose in relation to their clear individual roles and our clear game roles.”On the strategy front, Bradburn talked up team director Mickey Arthur’s intel on the Sri Lankan team, having worked with them until as recently as November 2021. Bradburn was all about the markers they’d taken from their most-recent experience of having lost an agonisingly tight game off the last ball that cost them a berth in the Asia Cup final.There was no talk of revenge; just simple acknowledgement of what they needed to do better. “Yeah, look, we’re really looking forward to playing Sri Lanka,” he said. “They’re a team that we’ve become familiar with over recent times, obviously with the Asia Cup, and we know well that they have had the upper hand on us over the last year in white-ball cricket.”But we know their players very, very well. We have a secret weapon, if you like, in Mickey Arthur, who has coached them before. So, in our scouting meetings this morning and our video meetings this morning, Mickey was a very, very handy addition to those meetings to be able to add in some intricate points around their batters and bowlers.”We’ve worked hard on gaining some absolute crystal clarity around what we’re trying to do as a unit to win games of cricket, what the process of that is, what the little battles are along the way to win. And together with that, we’ve also worked very, very hard on giving each of our players absolute clarity of their individual roles within that. So, it’s now not about individuals, it’s now about the group and I’m really excited just sensing that this group is starting to come together really nicely, not only on the park, not only in training, but just as a group.”