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The Blancos, amid a testing 2017-18 campaign, are expected to overhaul their squad in the summer and will have a sizeable budget at their disposal

Galacticos of 2018?

Real Madrid are expected to spend big this summer, with a forgettable domestic campaign highlighting the flaws in a squad that swept to a La Liga and Champions League double in 2016-17. Reports suggest that the Blancos could invest as much as €600 million in fresh faces, with high-profile sales – such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Keylor Navas – helping to counter a sizable outlay and ensure the club adheres to Financial Fair Play regulations. Who, though, is on their shopping list as the next ‘Galactico’ recruitment drive at Santiago Bernabeu is pieced together?

AdvertisementGettyDavid de Gea: €130m

The Manchester United goalkeeper has been a longstanding target, with a deal almost done in the summer of 2015 only for a now-infamous fax delay to scupper a return to Spain for the former Atletico Madrid custodian.

De Gea has said of his Old Trafford future: “I don't think it's the time to start talking about the future, it's not the time to be talking contracts. Being a player and a part of this club is special, so when you get to wear the shirt, you go to away games, that's something you are always proud of and is very special.”

Getty ImagesThibaut Courtois: €100m

Amid the struggles to get an agreement in place for De Gea, Chelsea’s current number one has emerged as a possible alternative – with the former Atletico loanee having made no secret of his desire to return to Spain.

Courtois has said: “Yes, my heart is in Madrid. It is logical and understandable. If they [Real] want me, they have to contact Chelsea. We'll see. But they have not done that. What is certain is that one day I will return to Madrid.”

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Getty ImagesToby Alderweireld: €30m

Another man to have once graced the books at Real’s cross-city rivals Atletico, the Tottenham defender is now considered a realistic target as he is yet to commit to fresh terms in England and has a release clause set to kick in from 2019 if no extension is agreed.

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has said of the Belgian centre-half: “Toby still has two-and-a-half years of contract. Messi was six months left on his contract. Messi! If something happens, the club is going to communicate.”

Alastair Cook issued a rallying cry to England’s potential Test batsmen to put out a marker for the new season and he did just that himself with a Championship hundred for Essex in his first knock of the season

David Hopps at Chelmsford11-Apr-2016
ScorecardAlastair Cook and Tom Westley log their first hundreds of the season•Getty ImagesAlastair Cook had issued a rallying cry to England’s unproductive top order to lay down markers ahead of the first Test – not as much expressing an appetite for change as a simple desire to see consistency of run making from those in contention.Make runs, was Cook’s straightforward exhortation to all concerned and, the message so delivered, responsible guy that he is, he felt obliged to respond himself. In his first innings of the season, he took Gloucestershire for 105, one of the least demanding hundreds of his career perhaps, but one that restated that his desire still runs strong.”I have said that there are places up for grabs,” Cook said. “People have taken that as looking for change. That’s not entirely right but it’s important if you say things like that you have to back up words with actions. We all know how important early-season runs are.”He has spent the past few months as a spectator, as excited as anybody at England’s T20 dash and dare, as briefly downcast by the cruel twist in a final that seemed theirs, but the spectator has given way to the player once more. With a child in his arms and his grandmother looking on, the Cook clan was out in force to support him.At 224 for 1, a hundred also bagged by the impressive Tom Westley, and a record Essex second-wicket stand against Gloucestershire of 222 established, Essex were only 41 behind Gloucestershire’s 262 and a big first-innings lead looked inevitable. But the weather deteriorated, both batsmen fell just before the second new ball and Essex’s lead of 25 at the close with only four wickets remaining was a paltry one. The best batting line-up in the division needs to lose its tendency for wastefulness.When Cook scratched his guard for the first time this season it felt like a staging point in the cricketing calendar, as imprinted on the rhythms of the year as the end of Lent or the Glorious Twelfth. Talk of a World T20 final was consigned to the past. There were Tests to plan for, and Cook immediately set his mind to doing just that.He has four Championship matches to build-up to the first Investec Test against Sri Lanka and from the moment he received the warmest of welcomes – a routine boundary opportunity on his pads offered by Josh Shaw and politely accepted without hesitation – he looked entirely at ease. The more it continued, the more it became clear that it was very much in keeping with the end of Lent, or indeed the Glorious Twelfth, being an opportunity for excess after a period of want.Twenty-eight of Cook’s 52 first-class centuries have been at England level – as have more than half his first-class matches – so his appearances for Essex these days are valued because of their scarcity. The Chelmsford crowd watches him with a respect given to few. There was only one edgy moment to speak of when he nicked Liam Norwell to second slip on 80, Chris Dent doing well to get a hand on it.Jack Taylor’s offspin removed both Cook and Westley. The ECB’s policy on giving the opposing captain the right not to toss is designed to encourage spinners back into the game, but there was some irony when one of the victims of the new regulation turned out to be the England captain. Taylor’s seventh ball of the day, shortly after lunch, turned gently – this, at seam-friendly Chelmsford on the second afternoon – to trap Cook leg before, the umpiring decision given after a decent interlude for thought befitting an England captain.When Westley edged behind, undone by a little extra bounce, Essex then faltered against the new ball. Ravi Bopara was cleaned up by Norwell’s nip backer, Dan Lawrence should have sat in for a while but instead mis-pulled Shaw to mid-off and Shaw then had Ryan ten Doeschate lbw. With drizzle showing in the floodlights, the sooner Essex could retreat for the day the better.Gloucestershire won the Royal London Cup in Richard Dawson’s first season as coach, but a one-day trophy does not mean the Championship becomes a breeze and injuries to two frontline pace bowlers, plus the departure of James Fuller to Middlesex, left them stretched.Shaw and Tom Hampton had four first-class matches between them, so the sight of the England captain 22 yards away should not be under-estimated. Cook dropped his bat so gently on one delivery from Shaw that the bowler must have been taken aback to see it scoot through extra cover for four. It was the antithesis of T20 power hitting: another four runs logged with minimal exertion.Some would have strutted afterwards, confident in their superiority, but Cook is not that type. He has respect for the game and those who play it and Hampton, after a tough day, can only be heartened by his supportive comments.”Two days in this game have already shown this regulation on the toss to be a good decision,” he said. “We have left grass on here before and have got results in two days but that’s not great for English cricket. Tom Hampton might feel he was a bit erratic but they are the guys you have to get overs into because guys with that extra pace and who do swing it will get people out on flatter wickets.”An England captain with a sense of the wider game: as a new season got underway, it made you feel that English cricket was in good hands.

With Rodri suspended, the England midfielder has a glorious chance to boss a game the Gunners need to win to send a message to their title rivals

Declan Rice was the picture of frustration after Arsenal's 2-1 loss in Lens on Tuesday night. He couldn't quite work out how the Gunners had lost a game that he felt they had "dominated". However, while he was disappointed by his side's first defeat of the season, he was far from despondent. "We're just warming up and getting into our rhythm," he told . "Our focus turns back to the league and it's a massive game on Sunday."

He's certainly not wrong about that latter claim. We may only be seven games into the 2023-24 Premier League campaign but the meeting between last season's top two at the Emirates already feels like a must-win match for the home side.

Arsenal were utterly outclassed in both of their games against City last season and those two defeats played a pivotal role in both the Citizens' initial resurgence and eventual title triumph. So, while the Gunners may have edged City on penalties in the Community Shield in August, the pressure is very much on Mikel Arteta's men to show that they can beat the treble winners when it really counts.

Remember, Arsenal have lost all seven of their Premier League clashes with City since Arteta took over in December 2019. "That is why," former defender William Gallas told , "they need to demonstrate they can handle the big occasion, show some balls, and show Man City that things will be different this season."

However, while Rice has made a positive start to his time in north London, he also has plenty to prove on Sunday.

Getty ImagesOutrageously overpriced

The 24-year-old knew before he'd even played a competitive fixture for Arsenal that his £105 million ($131m) move from West Ham meant that he would forever have a price tag "attached" to him. His hope was that he wouldn't be judged on the size of the fee. He obviously will be – that's just how both the media and fandom work in modern football – but, in truth, the numbers involved in the deal are irrelevant.

Rice clearly isn't worth £105m. When even the entertainingly reckless owners at Chelsea baulk at the size of the fee being demanded by the selling club, you know that the player is outrageously overpriced.

However, context, as always, is key. As Liverpool discovered during the summer, effective defensive midfielders are very hard to find these days – and are, therefore, incredibly costly. Arsenal, then, deserve credit for managing to land one of the best on the market during the off-season – and, rather significantly, in spite of interest from City.

AdvertisementGetty Where would Rice have played at City?

Of course, the treble-winners ultimately decided that they didn't need Rice badly enough to fork out a club-record fee – but that doesn't mean that he won't prove value for money at Arsenal.

City, in contrast to the Gunners, were already in possession of the premier player in Rice's position – Rodri, who is, rather incredibly, still only 27.

Given Pep Guardiola usually likes to send his side out with two No.8s that effectively play as No.10s, as well as a centre-back that serves as an auxiliary midfielder (John Stones), Rice was hardly a priority signing.

There would have been immediate questions over exactly where he would have played, with Rodri the obvious first-choice in the No.6 role.

Getty ImagesPep's problem in midfield

Still, City's refusal to match Arsenal's bid for Rice means that they're in a very awkward position this weekend – and Guardiola knows it too.

The Catalan coach was visibly disgusted with Rodri for stupidly getting himself sent off against Nottingham Forest a fortnight ago, glaring at the Spain international as he trudged towards the tunnel.

Rodri's straight red means that he will be suspended for the biggest game of City's season so far and given Guardiola appears to have little faith in Kalvin Phillips, it will be fascinating to see how his side lines up in north London.

Guardiola, of course, is a master tactician, capable of finding surprising solutions to seemingly insurmountable problems, but Arsenal absolutely have to take advantage of City's selection dilemma – and Rice is undoubtedly key in that regard.

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Getty Images'We'll find out how good Rice is'

Let's face it, these are the kinds of games Rice was bought to help Arsenal win. This is why they paid the big bucks. They wanted a player of personality with the requisite quality to boss direct clashes with title rivals, in a similar fashion to Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira.

Rice, of course, is no Vieira – at least not yet. He is not the best defensive midfielder in the Premier League – that's obviously Rodri – and he's not even been the best midfield in north London this season – that's Yves Bissouma, who is one of the main reasons why Spurs have made such a sensational start to the season under Ange Postecoglou.

As the stats underline, Rice isn't as adept as either man at winning possession, duels or tackles. In fact, he's made fewer successful tackles than Bukayo Saka this season, and regained possession fewer times than Martin Odegaard.

He also offers less going forward. Both Rodri and Bissouma have completed more passes and are far better at beating players, which is why midfield icons such as Roy Keane and Graeme Souness both believe Rice has to add much more to his game if he is to go down as a truly great midfielder.

"Arsenal have obviously paid way too much for him," Keane said on at the start of the season. "He's certainly not worth over £100m but he is a good player: he turns up every week and he is a big strong boy.

"And we have talked about his physicality – Arsenal lacked that in the last month or two [of last season]. But we will find out over the next year or two how good Declan is. Has he got that really top quality in terms of seeing a pass and getting nine or 10 goals a season? We'll soon find out."

Sudip Chatterjee’s composed, unbeaten 91 aided by vital contributions from opener Arindam Das and wicketkeeper Shreevats Goswami helped Bengal kick off their Ranji Trophy season on a decent note

The Report by Amol Karhadkar in Vadodara07-Dec-2014
ScorecardFile photo – Opener Arindam Das made 54•FotocorpChatterjee to have ‘sleepless night’ nine short of maiden century

Sudip Chatterjee has been dismissed in the nineties twice in his short first-class career so far. He is understandably going to have a “sleepless” night after ending the first day on an unbeaten 91 in Bengal’s Ranji Trophy opener against Baroda. “I am excited to be in with a chance to score my first century,” Chatterjee said. “I hope I can complete it tomorrow and continue to build on it.”
Chatterjee was dismissed on 96 against Railways last season and on 99 in East Zone’s Duleep Trophy quarter-final against West Zone in October. “The hundred did play on mind but I was more focused on batting out the whole day, so didn’t really go for it,” Chatterjee said.
Son of a garment retailer, Chatterjee hails from a middle-class background in Kolkata. According to him, his parents have made lots of sacrifices to let him pursue his passion and he is keen to justify their faith in his talent. He wants to cement his place in the side by putting up a “big score” and help Bengal bat Baroda out of the game.

Sudip Chatterjee’s composed, unbeaten 91 aided by vital contributions from opener Arindam Das and wicketkeeper Shreevats Goswami helped Bengal kick off their Ranji Trophy season on a decent note. The top order justified their captain Laxmi Shukla’s decision to bat against Baroda by finishing the opening day on 255 for 3.Munaf Patel did extract some bounce early in the morning but once the Bengal openers played him cautiously, the other two seamers, Gagandeep Singh and Abhijit Karambelkar, couldn’t do much with the new ball. With the left- and right-hand combination of Rohan Banerjee and Das rotating strike at will, Baroda captain Aditya Waghmode was forced to introduce spin early.Swapnil Singh, the left-arm spinner making a comeback to first-class cricket after three years, created a chance early in his spell but Pinal Shah missed a regulation stumping opportunity against Das. The batsman was on 25 in a total of 54.Swapnil was finally rewarded for his accurate line as he forced Banerjee to offer a sharp chance at forward short-leg and Kedar Devdhar didn’t falter. While Das continued to gain confidence, Chatterjee carried his good form from the Duleep Trophy by getting off the blocks in no time.Soon after lunch, Chatterjee cut Yusuf Pathan for two boundaries in an over. Immediately after that, Das completed his 23rd fifty by pulling a short one from Gagandeep to the square-leg rope. But in the seamer’s next over, Das’ front-foot prod ended up in an edge to Pinal.In came Manoj Tiwary and didn’t waste any time in dancing down the wicket off Yusuf and hitting him for a one-bounce boundary to long-on. Waghmode brought Munaf back for his third stint and the bowler responded by bowling the spell of the day. Munaf executed his key strength of bowling a tight line and stifled both Tiwary and Chatterjee. It resulted in Tiwary missing out on a straight one and being adjudged lbw. With Munaf running in full steam, Chatterjee and Goswami played him out carefully. The fast bowler’s third spell read 5-4-4-1.Once Munaf was taken off, Goswami started expressing himself freely. His cuts against spinners and drives against seamers, especially Karambelkar, were a treat to watch. Goswami and Chatterjee appeared in little trouble all along their unbeaten 111-run partnership.However, despite the Baroda bowlers starting to tire in the final session, the Bengal batsmen didn’t try to score quicker. Baroda not only delayed the new ball till the end of the 88th over but also didn’t bowl Munaf at all in the session.

The Pakistan Super League, the PCB’s proposed franchise-based Twenty20 tournament, will not kick off this year

Umar Farooq26-Aug-2014The Pakistan Super League (PSL), the PCB’s proposed franchise-based Twenty20 tournament, will not kick off this year. This is the second time in the last 18 months the tournament has been shelved. Earlier it was over logistic problems, this time it is mainly due to the “paucity of lead time” in the face of issues with the bidding process.The PCB was planning to hold the PSL this winter, between December 2014 and January 2015, with the UAE as a potential venue for the five-team T20 competition. The board invited parties to acquire the PSL rights, but quality of the bids meant the PCB has decided to put it on hold.There were six companies that showed interest in bidding but only two – Haier and Aman Foundation – showed the capability to provide a bank guarantee of US$3 million before taking part in the bid process. The board was due to open bids earlier this month but decided to delay the process by 10 days, before postponing it indefinitely.”The PCB chairman [Shaharyar Khan] explained to the representatives of both the bidders as to why it had become extremely difficult to organise the inaugural PSL edition this year,” the PCB said in a press release. “Chief among the reasons behind taking this decision was the paucity of lead time.”The PCB Chairman thanked both the bidders on understanding the board’s predicament, while communicating to them cancellation of the bidding process, simultaneously handing back the financial proposals, bid security and bid participation fee to the bidders unopened.””The PCB is committed to holding the PSL, and I hope that both Haier and Aman Foundation shall take part in the bidding when the tendering process is reinitiated shortly,” Shaharyar Khan said in the statement. “The board meanwhile is finalising a window in the future tours programme, which affords it sufficient lead time to launch PSL well and make the event a success.”During Zaka Ashraf regime, the PSL business model – unveiled in January – was expected to fetch the PCB “in excess of $100 million”. The PCB had also announced the base prices of players for a proposed auction, though it didn’t reveal the pool of players who had signed up for the tournament.The launching the PSL has not been a straightforward business for the PCB so far, as no international cricket has been played in Pakistan since the terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in 2009.

Everton have been handed a staggering 10-point deduction by the Premier League. What happens next for the Toffees?

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Everton docked 10 points in historic punishmentHave slipped into the relegation zoneToffees may decide to appealGetty ImagesWHAT DID EVERTON DO WRONG?

Everton have been docked the points for breaching Financial Fair Play rules. Under the regulations set out by the Premier League, clubs are allowed to lose a maximum of £105m across a three-year period. Everton lost £19.5m more than this, and have been sanctioned as a result.

The Premier League issued a statement confirming the sanction, explaining it further: “In accordance with Rule W.82.1, the Premier League confirms that it has today referred an alleged breach of the league’s profitability and sustainability rules by Everton Football Club to a commission under Premier League Rule W.3.4.

“The assessment period for which it is alleged that the club is in breach is the period ending season 2021/22.

“Commissions are independent of the Premier League and member clubs. The members of the Commission will be appointed by the independent Chair of the Premier League Judicial Panel, in accordance with Premier League Rules W.19, W.20 and W.26.

“The proceedings before the commission will, in accordance with Premier League Rule W.82, be confidential and heard in private.

“Under Premier League Rule W.82.2, the commission’s final award will be published on the Premier League’s website. The League will be making no further comment until that time.”

AdvertisementGettyHOW DID EVERTON GET IT SO WRONG?

Everton have spent lavishly in recent summers in an attempt to arrest an alarming slide on the pitch. The commission that handed down the punishment ruled that such spending was "recklessness that constitutes an aggravating factor."

Everton spent £145m in Farhad Moshiri's first summer transfer window, buying the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson, Cenk Tosun and Michael Keane for vastly inflated fees. They also spent over £100m in the 2019/20 season, buying such flops as Moise Kean and Andre Gomes for big sums.

The belt has notably tightened since, with the club repeatedly failing to qualify for Europe, and thus avoiding any scrutiny from UEFA. That has also played a role in delaying any ruling.

Getty ImagesWHY HAVE EVERTON BEEN PUNISHED NOW?

Everton were referred to an independent commission after their financial records for the 2021/22 season were audited. Burnley and Leeds had written to the Premier League to ask if Everton had broken rules at the time, and the commission held a five-day hearing last month, with the punishment handed down on November 17.

A Premier League statement explained: “Following a five-day hearing last month, the commission determined that Everton FC’s PSR [profit and sustainability rules] calculation for the relevant period resulted in a loss of £124.5m, as contended by the Premier League, which exceeded the threshold of £105m permitted under the PSRs. The commission concluded that a sporting sanction in the form of a 10-point deduction should be imposed. That sanction has immediate effect.”

Everton had previously staved off any intervention by selling Richarlison to Tottenham for £60m ($74m), which helped with FFP, while the COVID pandemic also further delayed any forensic accounting.

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GettyCAN EVERTON APPEAL THE SANCTION?

Yes, and they intend to do so. The appeal, per , will be heard before the end of the season. If it is successful, there is the potential of the 10 points being reinstated.

However, the ruling has had wider implications and could lead to legal action from other clubs, notably Leicester City and Burnley, who could be paid up to £300m in compensation. They have a month to submit such a request if they do want to seek compensation. Both the Foxes and the Clarets have been relegated in recent seasons, while Everton survived.

Mohammed Shami’s reverse swing and West Indies’ self-destruction led to the visitors crumbling after lunch from the promising advantage of 138 for 2

The Report by Abhishek Purohit06-Nov-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammed Shami picked up 4 for 71 on Test debut•BCCIPost-lunch session. A big partnership getting bigger. Suddenly, the game turns on its head. How often has reverse swing done that to a match on the subcontinent? How often have West Indies self-destructed? The umpires changed the ball after 40 overs at Eden Gardens, the replacement reversed appreciably, and the debutant Mohammed Shami bowled Marlon Samuels and Denesh Ramdin in successive overs. In between those dismissals, Darren Bravo ran himself out and Darren Sammy torpedoed his own counter-attack, and the promising advantage of 138 for 2 lay squandered. Soon, Shami uprooted fellow debutant Sheldon Cottrell’s off stump to end the innings on 234 and finish with four wickets.Shami was the form bowler from the recent ODI series against Australia, and was handed a debut ahead of the experienced Ishant Sharma – who ironically presented Shami with his Test cap – and the quicker Umesh Yadav. And how he repaid his captain’s faith. Shami bowled consistently in the late 130s on a slow pitch, and was a different proposition with the ball scuffed up, finding movement that had not been there for him with the new one.It was a proper bat-first pitch at Eden Gardens, slightly uneven and expected to deteriorate later. There was little threat from the new ball and the lack of pace also hampered the spinners. The West Indies openers, however, failed to capitalise on favourable conditions and departed within the first hour. A tentative Chris Gayle succumbed to Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s away-swing, and the solid Kieran Powell was done in on the pull by Shami’s pace.Samuels and Bravo put on 91 for the third wicket to bring West Indies back. Bravo came in to defend and defend, while Samuels took care of the scoring, hitting 56 of his brisk 65 in boundaries before his dismissal sparked the collapse. Every now and then both batsmen attacked the spinners, who were not much of a worry despite the odd delivery turning or kicking or keeping low. Samuels continued to pierce the off-side field against the quicks.It was Samuels’ desire to keep hitting off the back foot that gave India the opening. Even as Samuels set himself up for a punch through the off side, Shami swerved one through the gate from good length. In the next over Bravo, having resolutely blocked his way to 23 off 96, decided now was the time for a casual single to square leg, even though there was a fielder there and though Shivnarine Chanderpaul wasn’t interested. Suicidal was the only word for it. In the next over, with so much reverse happening, West Indies realised having a keeper batting at No 6 wasn’t ideal. Feet not moving, Ramdin was caught on the crease as another one zipped in late. He belatedly tried to chop it, but it had sneaked through by then.At the other end, Pragyan Ojha was cursing his luck. He’d had Samuels, on 60, dropped by Dhoni, then had a close leg-before shout turned down against Sammy. But Ojha did not have to wait for too long because the West Indies captain gave it away. With long-off on the boundary, Sammy tried sending Ojha over, only to find the fielder with precision.In his 199th Test, Sachin Tendulkar gave a disappointingly moderate Eden crowd another reason to cheer at the stroke of tea. Landing his legbreaks and googlies with control in his opening over, Tendulkar trapped Shane Shillingford – also dropped by Dhoni off Ojha – in front for his 46th Test wicket. Chanderpaul, playing his 149th Test, was left to survey and salvage something from another familiar West Indies collapse. He tried to do it his way, turning the strike over and trusting the tail. But R Ashwin eventually sneaked an offbreak past his back-foot defence to end his resistance on 36.India’s openers brought the deficit below 200 in the 12 overs they faced. Tino Best and Sheldon Cottrell, in particular, worked up plenty of pace but did not make the batsmen play enough. They also overdid the short ball, which, despite their speeds, was safely defended or avoided on this pitch. Shillingford sent down a few steady overs, but India’s real test will come when the ball starts to reverse.

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West Ham United goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has been voted the Footballer of the Year by Polish news outlet Pilka Nozna, as per whufc.com, ending a run of seven consecutive seasons in which Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski was crowned champion.

What’s the word?

West Ham’s official website report that Pilka Nozna is Poland’s oldest and biggest magazine.

And they have deemed Fabianski the best performer in the country across the past year.

West Ham signed the 33-year-old from Swansea in the summer, spending £7million, per BBC, to acquire the stopper’s signature.

He was relegated with the Swans last season but was voted the club’s Player of the Season and travelled with Poland to the 2018 World Cup in Russia. He played 90 minutes in the tournament, keeping a clean sheet in the 1-0 win over Japan, per Transfermarkt.

Check out Neymar’s controversial new haircut for 2019 and Xherdan Shaqiri as you’ve never seen him before in the video below…

And, after being ever-present for the Hammers thus far this season, he has been recognised with a major award.

Jakub Blaszczykowski won the award in 2010 before Lewandowski’s era of dominance began.

Bizarre decision

The Bayern man has every right to feel aggrieved, though.

The striker has scored 24 goals in 27 games this season alone while in 2017-18 he netted 41 times in 48 appearances.

Also snubbed is Krzysztof Piatek, now at AC Milan after a January move from Genoa, who has scored 34 goals since the start of 2018.

And it can be argued that Fabianski is not even Poland’s best goalkeeper – Juventus stopper Wojciech Szczesny has kept 13 clean sheets already this season, compared to Fabianski’s four.

The Hammers star should count himself very lucky to have been honoured.

Australia face a must-win against New Zealand in order to keep their tournament hopes alive in this trans-Tasman clash

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale11-Jun-2013Match factsWednesday, June 12, Edgbaston
Start time 1030 (0930 GMT)Big PictureAt the last Champions Trophy, Australia beat New Zealand in the final to secure their second consecutive title. This year, the two teams meet with Australia’s tournament all but on the line. A loss in their opening match against England has left the Australians vulnerable and should they lose to New Zealand, they would not only have to beat Sri Lanka next Monday but they would also need England to lose their remaining two matches to have any hope of scraping through to the semi-finals. Even then, it would come down to net run-rate. Should New Zealand win their progression is not certain, although it would take a similarly intricate series of results for them to miss out to England and Sri Lanka on net run-rate. An Australian victory would keep things fairly even throughout the group.However, the Australians will need to overcome New Zealand without their captain Michael Clarke, who has been ruled out due to a back injury that has plagued him since he arrived in England. The more significant long-term worry will be his availability for the Ashes which follow after. David Warner is a real concern as well, having scored ducks in the two warm-up matches, followed by 9 against England. New Zealand’s cordon will be well advised to be on high alert early in Warner’s innings, given the way he has been slashing and edging of late.New Zealand also have an injury concern around a senior player, with Daniel Vettori likely to miss out having had a saline injection in his troublesome left Achilles tendon. “You only have to look at him. He’s limping and is a bit ginger walking around the field,” the New Zealand fast bowler, Kyle Mills, said on Monday. “He’s been doing it since his teenage years at this level and his body is tired. He shows tremendous toughness and hopefully he can rise to the occasion for these next games to get us over the line. He looked jovial getting his toast and cereal at breakfast this morning, but there’s obviously a lot of discomfort.”Form guide(most recent first, last five completed games)
New Zealand: WLWWL
Australia: LWWWW
Watch out for…Less than five years ago, Luke Ronchi made his debut for Australia against West Indies. During that series he scored a 22-ball half-century, the fourth fastest ODI fifty by an Australia player. Now he is about to line up against his former country for the first time, having qualified for his birth nation of New Zealand earlier this year. Ronchi’s initial forays into the New Zealand side have brought few runs, but against familiar Australian bowlers, he will be keen to prove that he can be a long-term force at the top of the order.Since George Bailey made his ODI debut in March last year, only Ian Bell and Tillakaratne Dilshan have scored more one-day international runs than his 819 at an average of 45.50. During the one-day series in England last year, Bailey was the one shining light in Australia’s batting order and again during their loss to Alastair Cook’s men on Saturday he was the top scorer with 55. Bailey is a capable stand-in captain and a reliable presence in the middle order, but he needs significantly greater support if Australia are to progress to the next stage of this tournament.Team newsIf Vettori is put on ice, New Zealand would likely bring in Colin Munro or Grant Elliott, although Elliott’s availability would also depend on how well he has recovered from a calf injury.New Zealand (possible) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Luke Ronchi (wk), 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 James Franklin, 6 Brendon McCullum (capt), 7 Colin Munro / Grant Elliott, 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Mitchell McClenaghan.
Clarke will again miss out, but Australia have a few backup options in the batting department, unless they want to give Glenn Maxwell a go in place of fellow allrounder Mitchell Marsh. Xavier Doherty might also come under consideration, although the potential for rain on Wednesday could discourage the selectors from bringing him in.Australia (possible) 1 Shane Watson, 2 David Warner, 3 Phillip Hughes, 4 George Bailey (capt), 5 Adam Voges, 6 Mitchell Marsh / Glenn Maxwell, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Mitchell Starc / Xavier Doherty, 11 Clint McKay.Pitch and conditionsBoth matches at Edgbaston so far have been won with relative comfort by the team batting first, for scoring appears to become tougher as the matches wear on. There is some rain expected around the Birmingham region on Wednesday and the forecast is for a high of 17°C.Stats and trivia Kyle Mills will be the outright leading wicket-taker in Champions Trophy history if he claims one more victim. Prior to this match, he stands equal with Muttiah Muralitharan on 24 wickets New Zealand and Australia have not met in a one-day international since the 2011 World Cup Australia have not lost to New Zealand in a world tournament since the 1999 World CupQuotes”All their top order will be feeling the heat a little bit to not only win the game but also hold their spot in the team. If we can take advantage of that I’m sure it will bode well for us in those pressure situations.”
“If it continues to be dry, we need to consider a spinner. We need to get the balance right. We need to get partnerships going.”

Virender Sehwag showed glimpses of his shot-making prowess for an hour and 49 minutes as Delhi’s batsmen took apart a below-par Vidarbha attack, finishing the day on 448 for 9

The Report by Amit Shetty in Delhi15-Dec-2013
ScorecardFile photo: Virender Sehwag hit his first half-century of the season•Associated PressVirender Sehwag showed glimpses of his shot-making prowess for an hour and 49 minutes as Delhi’s batsmen took apart a below-par Vidarbha attack. On the same Roshanara track where Vidarbha were shot out for 88 on the first day, Sehwag hit his first half-century of the season.While Sehwag will take most of the headlines, the biggest contributor for Delhi was the experienced Mithun Manhas, who scored his 25th first-class century to stretch the lead to 360 by stumps on the second day.It is unlikely that captain Gautam Gambhir will extend Delhi’s innings further as he would want his bowlers to use the freshness of the Roshanara track on Monday morning to take seven points, which will be crucial to his team’s progress.If Manhas and Sehwag consolidated Delhi’s position in the match, wicketkeeper batsman Rahul Yadav (81) and Ashish Nehra (57) – fresh from his six-wicket haul on Saturday – clobbered the Vidarbha bowlers into submission, adding 122 for the eighth wicket. This was Nehra’s first 50-plus score in any senior level cricket, and the towering sixes that he hit to cow corner were cheered boisterously by his team-mates.The pitch had good bounce today as well but it was a mix of better batting and some ordinary bowling that led to Delhi taking a firm grip on the match.The BCCI had hurriedly sent the head of their Pitches and Grounds committee, Daljit Singh, today to Roshanara, probably to gauge what went wrong with the surface yesterday, but Delhi’s batsmen certainly made the track seem less tricky with some solid batting.Sehwag got going with a punch straight down the ground off Amol Jungade, after left-arm seamers Shrikant Wagh and Ravi Thakur initially tested him with a few short deliveries.Sehwag went in to lunch on 20 and it was in the first 30 minutes of the second session that he was in his element. The best shot was a late cut off seamer Sandeep Sharma which was applauded by everyone at the ground. Sehwag started walking down the pitch as Sharma charged in and bowled a fuller delivery. Any other batsman would have left it alone but Sehwag just opened the face at the last moment to guide it wide of third slip for a boundary.There were signature cover drives but the other boundary that stood out was the manner in which he dug out a Wagh yorker and sent the ball racing to the midwicket boundary. He didn’t even complete the full follow-through of a forward defensive push off Jungade as the ball raced past mid-on for four to bring up the half-century off 62 deliveries.Sehwag then lofted Jungade for a straight boundary, but was caught by Vidarbha captain Shalabh Srivastava running back from mid-off when trying the same shot again off the part-time seamer Faiz Fazal.During Sehwag’s rampage, the calming presence of Manhas also guided Delhi as it has so often over the past decade-and-a-half. Manhas played the square cut with authority. He clipped anything on the legs through midwicket, and he drove the half-volleys through cover to bring up his third century of the season. It leaves Delhi in a overwhelmingly dominant position at Roshnara, as they push towards a crowded top third of the Group A table.