Barcelona failed to sign Nico Williams last summer, but Joan Laporta's advisor has denied that the deal fell through due to registration concerns.
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Spectators up to 10% of the stadium capacity will be allowed entry at the Ekana International Stadium in Lucknow for India Women’s upcoming series of eight matches – five ODIs and three T20Is – against South Africa Women starting March 7, the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) has confirmed to ESPNcricinfo.The decision was taken on Thursday evening following a meeting between the UPCA and the local health authorities. Tickets for all the matches are going to be put up for sale online at INR 200 and INR 400 (US$ 2.7 and 5.5). No in-person collection of tickets would be permitted.As reported by ESPNcricinfo last week, the UPCA had been in talks with the BCCI and local health authorities to explore the possibility of filling up half the seats at the 50,000-capacity stadium for the best part of India’s eight-match assignment. However, a recent spike in Covid-19 cases across several parts of the country prompted the UPCA to cap the limit at 10%.
All eight matches will be aired on Star Sports 2, Star Sports 2 HD and Disney+ Hotstar VIP
BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla, who is also part of the UPCA board of directors, said that aside from spectators, media personnel, too, will be allowed for all the games, with a viewing to promoting women’s cricket.”Women’s cricket is very important for us. That’s why we brought the matches to UP and Lucknow,” Shukla told ESPNcricinfo. “We want more and more people to come watch the series but the problem is you have to follow whatever the state administration allows given the [Covid-19] situation.”Only a limited number of tournaments are being held right now due to the pandemic. We are organising a women’s [international] series now and the domestic season is about to begin. So, we want to promote women’s cricket; the BCCI also wants to promote women’s cricket.”In the ongoing Test series against England, though, no spectators were allowed for the first Test in Chennai, and crowds up to 50% of the stadium capacity were allowed for the second Test, also in Chennai, as well as the third and fourth Tests, both in Ahmedabad, following a government directive.Related
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This will be the first taste of international cricket for the India Women side since their loss to Australia in the final of the 2020 T20 World Cup final on March 8. The only bit of cricket the prominent – and some fringe – Indian women players have played since then was at the four-match Women’s T20 Challenge in Sharjah on the sidelines of the IPL 2020 playoffs in early November. The 2020-21 women’s domestic season, too, has seen no cricket yet, though the 50-over competition is scheduled to start on March 11.This is the first time women’s international cricket would be played at the new venue in Lucknow, which hosted its first international match in 2018, an India vs West Indies T20I encounter. That match aside, the facility has been used primarily by the Afghanistan team as one of their home venues – they have played one Test, three ODIs and four T20Is there. The Indian men’s team were scheduled to take on South Africa there last March, but that match was cancelled following the Covid-19 outbreak.
Leeds United still have around a month left to go in the summer transfer window to make further additions to their first-team options across the park.
Daniel Farke has already added three new signings to the group, with Joe Rodon, Alex Cairns, Jayden Bogle, and Joe Rothwell coming through the door.
The Whites failed to secure promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, and are now set to embark on another attempt to fight their way out of the Championship.
They could improve their chances of finishing in the top two by signing a player who has already proven himself to be a fantastic player at that level.
Leeds interest in Championship star
According to HITC, Leeds would love to sign Norwich City attacking midfielder Gabriel Sara to bolster Farke's options in the middle of the park.
The report claims that the Whites are big fans of the former Sao Paulo ace, whose left foot was dubbed "magical" by analyst Ben Mattinson, and would be interested in bringing him to Elland Road this summer.
It adds, however, that their Championship rivals are set to demand a fee of at least £20m for their £19k-per-week star, who they bought for £6m in the summer of 2022.
HITC claims that the West Yorkshire side may not have the funds available to sanction a deal for the Brazilian unless they cash in on one or two of their own stars, namely Crysencio Summerville and Wilfried Gnonto.
Gabriel Sara would be a dream for Ethan Ampadu
Farke could land a dream signing for Ethan Ampadu by landing Sara this summer, as the Norwich whiz could brilliantly complement him in midfield.
Whilst the Wales international is a defensive enforcer who does not provide much in the way of quality at the top end of the pitch, the left-footed sensation has the ability to make a consistent impact in the final third.
In the 2023/24 Championship campaign, no central midfielder for Leeds managed more than one goal or more than three assists, which suggests that the team lacked a goal threat from that position.
Appearances
46
Appearances
46
Goals
13
Goals
0
Assists
12
Assists
1
Big chances created
16
Tackles + interceptions per game
2.9
Key passes per game
2.6
Ball recoveries per game
6.9
Dribbles completed per game
0.9
Ground duel success rate
57%
Duel success rate
54%
Aerial duel success rate
63%
As you can see in the table above, Sara racked up a staggering 25 direct goal contributions in 46 matches from a central midfield role for Norwich.
Meanwhile, Ampadu is a dominant defensive presence at the base of the midfield, whilst also being able to operate at centre-back, who who can win the majority of his physical duels and win possession back through tackles, interceptions, and recoveries.
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Sara could, therefore, be a dream signing for the Welsh brute as he has the attacking quality to burst forward from midfield to make things happen in attack, whilst the ex-Chelsea man can sit back and sweep up out of possession.
Glasgow Rangers recorded their first Premiership win of the season at the second time of asking this afternoon.
The Light Blues were playing at Hampden Park due to works ongoing at Ibrox, and it didn’t take them long to open the scoring, as Cyriel Dessers netted his second goal of the week following his last gasp equaliser against Dynamo Kyiv on Tuesday.
Motherwell may have equalised due to a Robin Propper own goal on his debut, but fellow new arrival Vaclav Cerny soon restored the lead.
The Czech winger was making his first start for the Gers after two positive substitute appearances, showcasing his class at Hampden.
Vaclav Cerny’s game in numbers vs Motherwell
The on-loan winger provided a stunning assist for Dessers' goal against Kyiv and much was expected of him ahead of his first start.
Deployed on the right flank, Cerny offered a solid attacking threat, culminating with the eventual winner after just 24 minutes.
His distribution was excellent, finishing with a 90% pass success rate, while he also delivered one accurate cross and lost possession just seven times during his spell on the pitch.
Philippe Clement has been desperate to add a high-quality right-winger during the transfer window. In Cerny, the Belgian may have found exactly who he has been looking for.
His performance was impressive, yet it wasn’t as good as that of James Tavernier, who enjoyed a fine return to form after an underwhelming start to the season.
James Tavernier’s statistics vs Motherwell
The captain failed to score or assist during the first two matches of the current season, yet this all changed at Hampden.
The right-back created the winner for Cerny, who slotted a lovely curling shot into the corner of the Motherwell net, while he also made five key passes, created two big chances and managed two shots on target during the clash.
James Tavernier's stats vs Motherwell
Goals
0
Assists
1
Key passes
5
Big chances created
2
Possession lost
24
Touches
114
Total duels (won)
5 (3)
Via Sofascore
Defensively, Tavernier won three of his five total duels while making one tackle and three interceptions, yet he lost possession a staggering 24 times during the game.
This was due to his regular bursts forward into the opposition half, but the defender, who managed 114 touches, looked like a more positive player this afternoon compared to his recent performances.
It will surely give him a big confidence boost ahead of the crucial Champions League second-leg clash against Kyiv on Tuesday evening at Hampden.
A similar display to that against Motherwell could give Rangers a boost in their pursuit of group stage football in Europe’s premier competition this season, something which will give the club a major financial injection.
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The game was perhaps closer than anticipated, especially during the second half, but three points are all that matters at this stage, as Clement is still trying to strengthen his team prior to the transfer window closing.
Tavernier returned to form in Glasgow, but he will need to remain consistent over the next few weeks, that’s for sure.
While things started a little slowly, there can be no denying that, as things stand, Tottenham Hotspur have enjoyed a brilliant summer.
The North Londoners have looked impressive on the pitch and intelligent off it.
Daniel Levy and Co have signed exciting prospects for the future in Archie Gray and Yang Mi-Hyeok, got rid of those they no longer need, like Emerson Royal, and dramatically improved the first team for the here and now with the massive £65m signing of Dominic Solanke.
The now-former Bournemouth ace was the joint-fourth top goalscorer in the Premier League last season, so there is real hope that he could be even more effective this season in a team with more quality around him.
While many teams would be happy with the business Spurs have done this summer, it appears as if they are set to do even more.
They are now heavily linked with AS Monaco right-back Vanderson, although he'll have to really impress in North London if he wants his valuation to match one of his potential new teammates.
The latest on Vanderson to Spurs
So, according to a report from earlier this week, Spurs were already in talks with Monaco over the potential transfer of Brazilian right-back Vanderson.
The report claimed that the French side expected the North Londoners to make an offer in the region of €40m for the player, which converts to around £34m.
This news was then backed up by another story a few days later, claiming that people close to the right-back believe that the Lilywhites could soon make a 'breakthrough' in the negotiations.
It all sounds rather promising from Tottenham's point of view, and while the supposed transfer fee is relatively high, it could prove value for money in the long run for a full-back who's racked up 15 goals and assists in 84 appearances in Europe.
However, while the "sensational" defender, as dubbed by U23 scout Antonio Mango, looks promising, he'll have to do something special in a Spurs shirt to surpass the value of the club's most exciting full-back.
Destiny Udogie's valuation in 2024
Yes, the player in question is the immensely exciting Destiny Udogie, who, according to the CIES Football Observatory, is worth up to a whopping €83m, which converts to around £71m.
This means the Italian youngster is worth £37m more than Vanderson and, more impressively, £6m more than the club's new number nine, Solanke.
This massive increase from the £15m plus bonuses that he initially cost the North Londoners back in August 2022 might sound ridiculous, but given his form for the club last season and the sky-high potential so many in the know believe him to have, it probably isn't.
Appearances
28
2
1
Goals
2
0
0
Assists
3
0
0
Goal Involvements per Match
0.17
0.00
0.00
For example, in 31 appearances last season, the "incredible talent", as dubbed by journalist Josh Bunting, scored two goals and provided three assists, meaning that in his first Premier League campaign, which he started as a 20-year-old, he averaged a goal involvement once every 6.2 games from left-back.
This impressive output, combined with his overall game, saw him become Tottenham's first player to be nominated for the Premier League's Young Player of the Season Award.
Ultimately, Vanderson looks like he'll be an exciting addition to help improve the team's depth at right-back, but he'll have to blow the roof off the Tottenham Hotspur stadium if he's going to see his valuation get anywhere near Udogies in the coming seasons.
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Manchester United reportedly have a potential deal in place to sign a star who Edwin van de Sar once compared to Cristiano Ronaldo.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS officially secured their first signing as co-owners of the Red Devils, with forward Joshua Zirkzee arriving from Bologna.
Their second addition of the window looks set to be Leny Yoro, who is on course to join in a €50m+ deal, meaning Yoro and Zirkzee look set to replace the departed Raphael Varane and Anthony Martial.
The 18-year-old only had 12 months remaining on his contract, but United are willing to splash the cash on his services with Real Madrid waiting in the wings to sign him for free next year.
Another centre-back who has been heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford is Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt. Talks were reportedly advanced and the Red Devils were ready to pay the £42m asking price, and a new update has emerged after the development on Yoro.
The Faithful MUFC relayed an update from Thursday’s print edition of The Telegraph, reporting Man Utd’s move for Yoro. They claim that the Red Devils remain in the market for another central defender after Yoro and "have a potential deal in place" to sign De Ligt from Bayern.
De Ligt, who was included in the Netherlands squad for Euro 2024 alongside Zirkzee, has been with Bayern since 2022 after previous stints with Juventus and Ajax. Under contract until 2027, it appears as if Bayern Munich and new manager Vincent Kompany are happy to cash in on the defender, who has been hailed for his mentality in recent years.
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Talking back in 2019, former Ajax chief executive and ex-Man Utd ’keeper Van de Sar compared De Ligt to Ronaldo, saying about the centre-back after he signed for Juventus “He had been all his life at Ajax. So to step away, move with your girlfriend and the family to a different city, a different language. But his mentality and the way he wants to improve. He wants to be the best defender in the world. And I've seen that with a few players. One of them is playing in the same team, Cristiano Ronaldo.
“When I played at Man United with him, he had the same desire and attitude to work hard, to become better every training. And that's the same mentality and hunger as Matthijs de Ligt.”
Aaron Finch proud of the way his team adapted to conditions after watching the first innings
Andrew McGlashan05-Mar-2021
Tim Seifert drags on•AFP
New Zealand coach Gary Stead has criticised his team’s approach with the bat in the fourth T20I, saying the batsmen did not “fire a shot” at Australia early in the run chase on what was a challenging surface.Stead acknowledged the game swung significantly Australia’s way when Aaron Finch took 26 off the last over from Kyle Jamieson, but felt New Zealand were timid with their response – they were 25 for 1 after the powerplay and then collapsed to 82 for 9 before some late hitting from Jamieson pushed them to three figures.The surface changed considerably from the first match – this was the fourth game on the surface in three days with the women’s series also taking place – which “surprised” Stead but he said the batsmen had been too slow to adjust.”The disappointing thing for me is I’m not sure we fired a shot at them tonight. When Kyle came in and played the way he did, it was too late then, the game was gone, so we need to think how we do that a little earlier,” he said. “In those situations, when it is tough, that was a very good score they had, then you have to try and get ahead of the run rate if you can and that provides a little more opportunity for the middle order to work out the way they need to play it.Related
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“It’s that intent to hit boundaries, get on the front foot, even just running between wickets and things like that and I thought we took a step backwards from where we had been earlier in the series. There are things we can do better.”Spinners were effective throughout the game with Mitchell Santner setting the tone, and Stead said that Kane Williamson had considered using himself or Glenn Phillips but did not feel the match-ups were right with Finch still at the crease.Finch had the advantage of viewing conditions at very close quarters for 20 overs and was quick to hand Ashton Agar the first over of New Zealand’s chase with the left-arm spinner bowling three in the powerplay.”It was one of those days where we got a lot of information out of the way New Zealand bowled and we adapted beautifully,” he said. “Ashton Agar was outstanding and all the bowlers were really good.”Finch was often starved of the strike but made the decision reasonably early that he would try and take the innings as deep as possible. “We always knew two new batters on a surface like that was going to be really challenging, especially towards the back end when you expect guys to blast them, it’s going to be tough on that kind of surface.”After a poor performance in Christchurch and a narrow loss in Dunedin, Australia now have the chance to clinch the series before quickly packing their kit bags and jumping on a chartered flight back across the Tasman on Sunday evening.”The fact we were 2-0 down and back to 2-2, really proud of the way we’ve fought,” Finch said. “It’s not the first time we’ve done it, either. It’s a really good character test at the best of time because the ebbs and flows are so big.”
Middlesex director of cricket warns against short-term gain of producing surfaces helpful to spin or seam
Andrew Miller30-Mar-2021Angus Fraser, Middlesex’s director of cricket, has insisted that a uniform spread of good cricket wickets remains the best way to develop Test-class cricketers, in spite of the difficulties that England encountered in spinning conditions on their tour of India this winter, where they succumbed to three heavy defeats at Chennai and Ahmedabad.After dominating the first Test at Chennai in the most batsman-friendly conditions of the series, England had few answers to India’s spin duo of R Ashwin and Axar Patel for the remainder of the campaign, as the pair finished with 59 wickets between them across the four Tests.Nor could England find a batsman able to thrive on those later surfaces to the same extent as either Rohit Sharma or Rishabh Pant. Each scored a century, in the second and fourth Test respectively, to put both contests out of reach, as England in reply managed a highest total of 205 in seven innings.In particular, the conditions that England faced in the final two Tests at Ahmedabad, where they slumped to defeats in two and three days respectively, drew comparisons with the situations that many sides face when visiting Taunton in the County Championship – or “Ciderabad”, as it is colloquially known, due to the dominance of spin at the venue.Related
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But Fraser, who once described the pitch for Middlesex’s relegation-sealing defeat at Taunton in 2017 as “dreadful”, believes that it is the disciplines learned by batsmen and bowlers alike on good surfaces that lay the foundations for success in tougher circumstances.”All pitches need to produce good cricket, that’s the starting point,” he said. “Batsmen need to bat on surfaces that they can trust, so that they can play their shots and they’re not fearful that there’s a ball coming around the corner with their name on it, and therefore think, well, I’ll be aggressive and try and make it pay until that ball comes along,”And bowlers have got to bowl with discipline. They’ve got to learn to be accurate, as well as spin the ball or bowl with pace, and they’re going to learn those skills by playing on good surfaces.”Earlier this month, the ECB agreed to increase the number of points available for a draw in the County Championship from five to eight, in response to an appeal from Joe Root, England’s captain, for counties to be incentivised to make their games last longer.And Fraser said that he welcomed that change, particularly in light of the retention of the three-group format for this year’s County Championship.”A result of [two-]divisional cricket is the fact that people are willing to roll the dice. If we’ve got seven home games, if we can win four and lose three, it’s better than winning two and drawing four and losing one, or whatever it might be. And I don’t think that mentality produces decent cricketers.”The conversation we have with Karl [McDermott], our groundsman, is a very short one – just produce the best pitch you can. I want Lord’s to be a good surface, not one where it’s all over in two-and-a-bit days and where 180 is a decent score.”You can’t get funky with pitches. We’ve turned up at some grounds, historically, and there’s saucer-shaped areas outside off stump on the spinners length that look completely different from the rest of the pitch.”To me that’s a very short-term look at things. If we’re trying to produce decent cricketers, we want to play on good surfaces and we want to encourage groundsmen to produce those, rather than compromise by asking them to produce something completely in favour of the home side.”Fraser did acknowledge that the existence of pitches such as Taunton’s could provide players with an insight into the sort of extreme conditions that were encountered in Ahmedabad this winter, and he commended the club on producing both of England’s current first-choice spinners, Dom Bess and Jack Leach.”The conversation we have with our groundsman, is a very short one – just produce the best pitch you can”•Getty ImagesHowever, he reiterated his view that such an approach was merely a short-cut, rather than a solution, to England’s problem of producing enough Test-class spin bowlers to compete in overseas conditions, and cited Bess’ struggles this winter as an example of the lack of grounding he has been offered, despite his opportunities to play.”We get on well with Somerset despite the odd spat,” Fraser said. “As a county we fully respect what they’ve achieved.”When I first came to the Middlesex position, it was to achieve what Somerset are doing, and compete all competitions on a regular basis. But if you look at the Somerset experiment, how many Somerset batsmen are in the England squad?”The real positive for Somerset is, yes, they’re providing England with two of their spinners, including Dom Bess, whom I picked as an England selector. But, not that I’ve spoken to the coach, but Bess got dropped because they were worried about his discipline. And the fact that he bowled too many bad balls.”The Indian spinners were able to exploit those pitches, but I’m sure they play on a lot of flat pitches that don’t offer the spinners a lot of help too, so that they have to bowl with the discipline that’s required.”The Somerset surface angle is one that is often mentioned when you look at an Ahmedabad situation, but has it has it provided England with the cricketers that have allowed us to go to India to win a series?”I’m not having a go at the situation there, I’m just looking at it logically, in the same way that playing on a green seamer at Lord’s might give a false account of a fast bowler. If it’s been an overcast summer, such a player is then likely to get exposed at Test level, because they’re playing on flatter pitches against better batsman.”
While fans understandably pay far more attention to the players their respective clubs might sign in the transfer window and the sagas often accompanying them, player exits can provide just as much drama.
Unfortunately for Tottenham Hotspur, they've been on the wrong end of a few major transfers over the years, be that Luka Modrić in the late 2000s, Gareth Bale in 2013 or, most recently, Harry Kane's move to Bayern Munich last summer.
The Englishman is a modern Spurs legend, but after almost a decade with the club, he did what some thought he'd never do and left the Premier League altogether in search of his first major trophy.
The only positive to come from his exit for the Lilywhites was that he earned them one of the biggest transfer fees in their history, although based on recent reports, they could be set to make even more on one of their current stars.
Harry Kane's transfer
When the final agreements were made and the last contracts signed, Kane's transfer cost Bayern an initial £82m, although the add-ons could reportedly see that figure soar past £100m, and based on his performances last season, we wouldn't be surprised if it already has.
Now, that might seem like an awful lot of money for a player who was 30 years old and entering the final year of his contract at the time, but given his incredible form for the seasons prior and his undeniable importance to the Lilywhites, it was probably fair value.
For example, in the season before he left, the England captain scored a whopping 32 goals and provided five assists in 49 appearances for a Spurs team that looked utterly hopeless at times under Antonio Conte.
Appearances
49
45
Goals
32
44
Assists
5
12
Goal Involvements per Match
0.75
1.24
Moreover, when you factor in that he went on to score 44 goals and provide 12 assists in just 45 games for Bayern last season, his transfer fee starts to look very reasonable indeed.
Overall, while it was arguably fair value, Kane's transfer fee was undeniably sizeable.
However, according to recent reports, a player in Postecoglou's squad could dwarf it if he were sold this summer.
Cristian Romero's valuation in 2024
Yes, the player in question is one of Tottenham's co-vice captains, Cristian Romero.
The World Cup winner was reportedly of interest to European giants Real Madrid earlier this summer, but little seemed to come from said interest.
However, according to Paul O'Keefe on the Last Word on Spurs Podcast (via TEAMtalk), Madrid are still keen on the talented centre-back but have been told that they'll need to make a mammoth offer of £150m to secure his services.
If this were to happen, it would instantly be the biggest transfer in the history of the Premier League, and while it's an undeniably ludicrous sum of money, it reflects how important the 26-year-old is to the North Londoners.
Since making his £42m move from Serie A side Atalanta in August 2021, the "incredible" defender, as journalist Alasdair Gold dubbed him, has made 98 appearances for the Lilywhites, in which he's scored six goals and provided one assist.
Appearances
98
Goals
6
Assists
1
Yellow Cards
28
Second Yellows
3
Red Cards
1
He's also been described as "the best defender in the world" by Lionel Messi, and if there is a player who knows a thing or two about defenders – and how to embarrass them – it's probably him.
Ultimately, while Bale and Kane are the two most expensive outgoings in Spurs' history, there is a chance, albeit a small one, that Romero could surpass them this summer. That said, Tottenham's plan to dissuade Madrid with an enormous asking price will probably work.
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