All posts by h716a5.icu

Manchester United's chances of signing Goncalo Inacio have been rated in Portugal as "becoming likely" after a meeting with his agent.

The summer transfer window beckons and despite a good season, it's clear that further investment into the side Erik ten Hag has improved is needed.

What's the latest on Goncalo Inacio to Manchester United?

A report from Portuguese outlet O Jogo, via Sport Wtiness, states that a move to Manchester United "appeals to the player".

United have approached Inacio's agent already after a meeting was organised with Miguel Pinho.

Sporting planned on extending his contract in order to increase his release clause to around €60m (£53m). Not to squeeze more value out of a potential exit but to keep the player.

Still only 21, there is a bright future ahead of Inacio and is viewed as a replacement for Harry Maguire, United's third most expensive signing in history.

A move to Old Trafford "appeals to the player" and with O Jogo claiming a switch to the Premier League club is "becoming likely".

Is Inacio what United need in the transfer market?

In short, yes, While ten Hag has no doubt done an excellent job compared to his predecessors, there is still a long way to go.

He still an "underrated" player and while that may change with a move to the Premier League, he could quietly walk into the United setup and lift the quality immediately.

The defeat to Brighton summed up the issues facing United in the long term. They remain without a midfield capable of outplaying the Seagulls, but they still don't have the depth in quality in defence required to go from top four hopefuls to serious title challengers.

With Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez injured, the remaining options simply aren't enough. Inacio would immediately make centre-back a strong area of the pitch for United, replacing Maguire and competing with Martinez.

The 21-year-old is a fighter but also remarkably calm when in difficult situations. Most of his strengths are issues United have currently and that he could solve.

Despite being an aggressive player, Inacio is not reckless in the way he pursues defenders. Think more Ruben Dias than Cristian Romero.

Most excitingly, the young defender has excellent distribution. According to Fbref, Inacio is in the 92nd percentile for passes completed and in a ten Hag side, strong passing is a must.

Anurag Thakur has been appointed the BCCI president at the board’s special general meeting in Mumbai on Sunday

ESPNcricinfo staff22-May-2016Anurag Thakur has been unanimously elected the BCCI president at the board’s special general meeting in Mumbai on Sunday. Thakur, 41, and formerly the BCCI secretary, was the only nominee for the post; he will serve as president until September 2017. He will also represent the BCCI on the ICC executive board and the Asian Cricket Council.Thakur is the 34th president of the BCCI and after taking office he nominated Ajay Shirke, the Maharashtra Cricket Association president, as his successor as secretary. Shirke will represent the BCCI at the chief executives committee meetings of the ICC. He had previously served as BCCI treasurer, resigning the post in 2013 because he was unhappy with the board’s response to the IPL corruption scandal.Thakur succeeded Shashank Manohar, who had stepped down as president a week ago so that he would be eligible to be elected the ICC’s first independent chairman. He had held the post of BCCI secretary during Manohar’s tenure and was seen to be the automatic choice to replace Manohar, given the support he gained since he was appointed joint secretary in September 2011.As per the BCCI constitution, its president is elected by a rotational system where each of the five zones is given the chance to put forward candidates at the special general meeting. It was the East zone’s turn and Thakur was formally endorsed by all its six units – Cricket Association of Bengal, National Cricket Club, Odisha Cricket Association, Tripura Cricket Association, Assam Cricket Association and Jharkhand Cricket Association.Thakur, one of the youngest BCCI presidents, is also a politician and is the BJP member of parliament from Himachal Pradesh’s Hamirpur district. The son of the two-time former Himachal Pradesh chief minister, Prem Kumar Dhumal, Thakur is also the head of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association.

After a day in which 14 wickets fell on a pitch offering inconsistent bounce, Yorkshire have a lead of 189 and Andrew Gale’s side bat very deep indeed

Paul Edwards at Headingley30-May-2016
ScorecardTim Bresnan celebrates removing Haseeb Hameed•Getty ImagesFor all that Steven Croft’s bowlers took three important wickets on the second evening of this game, we may be in Gary Lineker territory if Lancashire win the 256th Roses match. Lineker famously promised to present clad only in his underpants if Leicester City won the Premier League and one or two visiting zealots may be tempted into similar sartorial rashness in the hope that their batsmen can chase down whatever total they require in the fourth innings at Headingley.The odds against Lancashire winning do not encourage such pledges. After a day in which 14 wickets fell on a pitch offering inconsistent bounce, Yorkshire have a lead of 189 and Andrew Gale’s side bat very deep indeed. It may be that Lancashire will need to score the biggest total of the game in order to achieve a win that would extend their lead over Yorkshire to 32 points. A match’s last innings rarely achieves such heights and the wise money is probably on these rivals being left level on points, with only Lancashire’s three wins deciding the order in the Division One table.And if Lancashire do lose this game, they will probably conclude that their fate was decided by a 26-over spell either side of lunch on this second day. In that period they declined from 46 for no wicket to 92 for 7 before their last three wickets added a further 104 runs, with Liam Livingstone confirming his reputation as one of the doughtiest finds of the season by making an unbeaten 60 off 83 balls.Yorkshire’s seam bowlers hunted as a magnificent pack to destroy their opponents’ best batsmen yet the truth that may niggle Lancastrians is that for the best part of an hour their openers, Tom Smith and Haseeb Hameed, had played this high-quality attack with watchful ease. Smith had hit four boundaries, the best of them a gloriously free-flowing straight drive off Tim Bresnan in just the third over of the innings, which seemed as much a declaration of intent as a way of getting four runs.Hameed, as is his splendid wont, approached things in quite another way. The Boltonian’s first ball, also from Bresnan, lifted off a length and he played it quite brilliantly between slips and gully for a single. In its way that shot more than equalled Smith’s four and it set the tone for a fascinating hour’s cricket. Bresnan later bowled a full-length ball which Hameed squeezed to the third man boundary. Bresnan scratched his head; Hameed scratched his guard. Bresnan had better get used to that.The scoring rate may not have matched that on other grounds but what did that matter? In the time it took Jack Shantry to get from 50 to 100 at Worcester Hameed progressed from 10 to 11 at Headingley. None of the spectators in their red-rose fleeces gave a stale Eccles cake. Hameed used to play his club cricket at Farnworth Social Circle and they certainly do things differently at Piggott Park.This was hard-fought cricket played during a morning session in which the sun was fighting a losing battle against a grey sky. It was watched in perfect contentment by two sets of supporters who possessed layers of sensible clothing, layers of experience and nurtured a deep layer of loyalty to a particular rose. And very soon it was those sporting the famous eleven-petalled white flower who were by far the happier bunch.The rapid disintegration of Lancashire’s innings began when Smith’s attempted cover drive off Steve Patterson only steered the ball to Gary Ballance’s safe hands at backward point. It accelerated when a full-length ball from Bresnan tempted Hameed into an unconvincing drive. Adam Lyth did the honours at second slip. And Yorkshire’s fun really got under way when Luke Procter played across the line to Brooks. Peter Hartley’s finger went up and the bowler careered off towards midwicket in a fashion he has made his own. Lancashire lunched on 68 for 3. In retrospect, it was as though the blokes operating the guillotine had nipped out for some goat’s cheese and a glass of Claret.On the resumption Croft’s side lost four further wickets for 24 runs in 13 overs. Yorkshire’s seamers can clearly be a democratic bunch and they each claimed a single success. The best ball was that bowled by Bresnan which lifted a shade, took the edge of Croft’s bat and gave a catch to Jack Leaning at third slip. Other batsmen were far more culpable and by the time Lancashire were 92 for 7, Smith’s 26 was still his team top score.Livingstone, though, is a gritty beggar and, joined first by Neil Wagner and later by Kyle Jarvis, he shared stands of 34 and 48 which saved both blushes and the follow on, though it is doubtful whether Yorkshire would have enforced it. The No. 7’s shot selection was excellent and his execution committed. He reached his 50 off 73 balls when he pulled a long hop from Rashid for six but the Yorkshire legspinner had by then begun a seven-over spell which cost 37 runs but also claimed the last three wickets.Indeed, Rashid’s current speciality is dismissing lower-order batsmen. An over-enthusiastic young vet docking a puppy could not show more eagerness to remove a tail. Wagner was lbw for a dozen when attempting to hit to leg; Jarvis, who is having a fine match, was stumped by Andy Hodd for 33 and Simon Kerrigan was leg-before on the back foot.Lancashire conceded a lead of 112 and by the close Yorkshire had extended that advantage quite usefully with Lyth making 44 not out. Wagner, whose company would be welcome in the game’s trenches, removed both Leaning and Ballance with fine deliveries and celebrated with Brooksian enthusiasm. The New Zealand seamer clearly believes his team have a chance of victory. Neutrals would probably disagree. But what the hell use are neutrals at a Roses match?

Every player at Leeds United will have their salary reduced by 50% if the Whites are relegated from the Premier League, according to Phil Hay.

What’s the latest news out of Leeds?

Sam Allardyce is the fourth manager to take charge of the club this season and has three games to lift the club out of the bottom three. His task was made even harder after relegation rivals Everton and Nottingham Forest picked up crucial wins on Monday, whereas Leeds fell to a 2-1 defeat against Manchester City on Saturday.

The Whites now have homes fixtures against Newcastle and Tottenham and a trip to West Ham to save their season, but it looks as if contingency plans have already been put in place to cut costs, should they drop back to the Championship.

Hay shared a story for The Athletic this week, looking at what has happened at Leeds over the last 18 months after a first successful season back in the top flight under Marcelo Bielsa.

Within his in-depth report, the reliable journalist stated that the club are protected by clauses in each player’s deal that would see a salary reduction of at least 50% and possibly 60% for each squad member.

“The better news is that Leeds are protected by significant clauses inserted into every player’s contract, which will see wages fall by a minimum of 50 per cent and maximum of 60 per cent in the event of relegation. This would mitigate the financial damage.”

Good to see…

Leeds’ current expenditure when it comes to wages is £48.1m, with top scorer Rodrigo the highest earner on £100,000-a-week. Therefore, should the Whites suffer relegation, Leeds could save themselves a total of £28.8m, should each player have a 60% deduction in their wages.

It is good to see that Leeds have this plan in place instead of allowing players to pick up a top-flight salary in the second tier, but of course, everyone at Elland Road will be hoping they do not need to activate those clauses and that Leeds will once again be a Premier League club next season.

To do that, Allardyce will need to work his magic in the final three fixtures, starting with a positive result against Newcastle at Elland Road.

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes the size and weight of bats used in Test cricket should be regulated to ensure a greater balance between bat and ball

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jul-2016Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes the size and weight of bats used in Test cricket should be regulated to ensure a greater balance between bat and ball.At present, cricket’s laws only limit the length and width of bats, not the depth or weight. That has led to the development of bats made from lighter material but with extremely thick edges, such as the Gray-Nicolls Kaboom bats used by David Warner.Speaking at a recent Australian Cricket Society function, Ponting said he had no problem with such bats being used in the shorter forms of the game but believed they should be banned from Test cricket. The main issue, Ponting argued, was the lightweight materials used, and he said that players should not be prevented from using big bats as long as they were also heavy.”I don’t know how they are doing it to make the size of bats they are making now,” Ponting said. “The modern day bats and weight in particular — it’s just a completely different game. Full credit to them. If they are there use them, if there’s a better golf club or tennis racquet everyone will use it. It’s nothing against the players.”If you are strong enough to use them that’s fine, but you should not get a bat that’s bigger in size than [MS] Dhoni’s but a whole lot lighter. Chris Gayle’s the same. Everyone talks about Chris Gayle’s bat size, but it’s 3½ lbs. He’s big enough and strong enough to use it. I only get worried when they are really big and really light.”Ponting will be at the next meeting of the MCC’s World Cricket Committee at Lord’s early next week, and he said bat size and weight would be one of the topics discussed.”I think it will happen,” he said. “I am going in a couple of weeks for a World Cricket Committee meeting and that will be one of the topics talked about. I don’t mind it for the shorter versions of the game.”I would actually say you’ve got a bat you can use in Test cricket and a certain type of bat you can use in one-day cricket and T20 cricket. The short forms of the game survive on boundaries – fours and sixes – whereas the Test game is being dominated too much now by batters because the game is a bit easier for them than it was.”

Referee Peter Bankes and his VAR team may have made a big mistake in the recent Tottenham Hotspur win as they awarded Harry Kane a questionable penalty.

What’s the latest on Spurs and VAR?

Spurs’ season suffered another blow on the weekend away at Aston Villa as their Premier League campaign continues to stumble towards the finish line.

Indeed, they suffered their fourth defeat in six games as goals from Jacob Ramsey and Douglas Luiz were enough to win the match 2-1.

The loss means Tottenham are now only ahead of Villa in sixth thanks to goal difference with three games to play and any hopes of securing Champions League football are looking like a distant memory.

One of the few enjoyable moments for Spurs on the day was a late consolation penalty for Kane but footage of the incident suggests it may well have been wrongfully awarded.

Did Harry Kane dive?

As you can see in the replay, while Kane does get to the ball first, he then initiates contact with Emi Martinez, essentially diving into the Vila goalkeeper to draw the foul.

And while this might have been enough to trick a referee live, the surprising thing is that referee Bankes didn’t initially award it. Indeed, VAR then got involved to tell the official to have another look at the incident and eventually, the penalty was awarded.

This seems quite remarkable as the technology is only supposed to intervene when a referee has made a clear and obvious error and that certainly wasn’t the case here with Kane initiating the contract by throwing himself to the ground.

Incidentally, this isn’t the first time the £200k-p/w Tottenham striker has won a dubious penalty against the Villans.

Back in 2021, he drew a foul from Matty Cash by completely missing the ball and then sticking his leg out to be tripped.

Gary Neville, on commentary duty, called it “cute”, while Gary Lineker added: “Never a penalty. A tad unscrupulous from Harry Kane” (via Inews).

Seam bowler Nuwan Pradeep has become the latest Sri Lanka bowler to sustain an injury, putting him in serious doubt for the Galle Test match

Andrew Fidel Fernando02-Aug-2016Seam bowler Nuwan Pradeep has become the latest Sri Lanka bowler to sustain an injury, putting him in serious doubt for the Galle Test match. Pradeep had been Sri Lanka’s only frontline quick in the Pallekele Test, but suffered a hamstring strain during training on Monday. He will undergo a fitness Test on Wednesday before a final decision on his availability is made for the Test starting on Thursday.At least one of the two uncapped seamers in Sri Lanka’s squad are now in line for a debut, with Suranga Lakmal also yet to make a full recovery from a hamstring strain. Left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando is the more experienced of the two candidates, having played 44 first-class matches to 19-year-old Asitha Fernando’s two games. With the Galle surface expected to take significant turn, it appears likely Sri Lanka will field three frontline spinners in their attack again.Though Pradeep now joins an injury list featuring Dhammika Prasad, Dushmantha Chameera, Jeffrey Vandersay and Lakmal, Pradeep had played nine consecutive Tests, going back 11 months. He had also played in ODIs during that time.If he is ruled out, Rangana Herath will be the only man in Sri Lanka’s likely attack to have played more than 10 Tests. Offspinner Dilruwan Perera has played exactly 10, and left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan made his debut in the previous Test.

Tottenham Hotspur could well be eyeing a raid on a fellow Premier League club this summer in their search for a new permanent head coach, according to the latest reports.

What's the latest on Tottenham's manager search?

As per Football Insider, the Lilywhites are reportedly eyeing a 'stunning' move to prise newly-appointed Wolverhampton Wanderers boss, Julen Lopetegui from Molineux, with the Old Gold's sporting director Matt Hobbs also under consideration to fill that respective position.

The north London outfit are still seeking to find permanent replacements for both Antonio Conte and the recently departed Fabio Paratici at N17, with the report suggesting that Daniel Levy and co are 'in talks with intermediaries and senior figures in football' regarding those two vacancies.

In the case of Lopetegui, the former Sevilla and Real Madrid boss only made the move to his current side back in November after replacing Bruno Lage in the hot seat, although the 56-year-old has clearly already made a strong impression during his brief time in English football.

Would Lopetegui be a good appointment for Tottenham?

The one-time Spain head coach has certainly made his presence felt in the Midlands after guiding Wolves to safety in recent months, with the Mirror's Ben Husband stating that the experienced figure had done an "unbelievable job" in such a short space of time.

There will, however, be potential concern among Spurs supporters at the prospect of poaching another manager from Molineux, following the dismal and disastrous spell in charge for Nuno Espirito Santo.

The Portuguese coach was handed the reins back in the summer of 2021 following the sacking of compatriot Jose Mourinho, with Levy and co ultimately settling on the one-time Porto boss after missing out on a string of other targets.

Like Lopetegui, Nuno had done a fine job at Wolves after notably leading the club into Europe, although the pragmatic coach appeared to struggle to make the step up to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with particular "fears over his style of play" – according to Sky Sports' Adam Bate.

As it proved, the 49-year-old was dismissed just a few months into the 2021/22 campaign after a rather grim start to the season, having lost seven of his 17 games in charge of the club.

While Lopetegui typically adopts a different approach to that of Santo as he has a preference for a 4-3-3 formation, there may also be concerns over the Spaniard's style of play, with Wolves still the lowest-scorers in the division this season with just 30 goals in 36 games.

With Levy having previously outlined his desire to bring back "free-flowing, attacking and entertaining" to Spurs, as was the case with Santo, the appointment of Lopetegui could well be at odds with that ambition.

South Africa A knocked over Australia A for 107 at the Tony Ireland Stadium in Townsville, before breezing to the target with eight wickets in hand and 174 balls to spare

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Aug-2016
ScorecardSouth Africa A knocked over Australia A for 107 at the Tony Ireland Stadium in Townsville, before breezing to the target with eight wickets in hand and 174 balls to spare. In doing so, they registered their first win of the quadrangular series and picked up a bonus point, much as Australia A had done against India A a week ago at the same venue.The toss was just about the only thing to go Australia’s way, and, after electing to bat, they lost opener Marcus Stoinis for a duck on the third ball of the innings. Captain Chris Lynn followed three overs later, with an inside edge to the keeper off Dane Paterson to leave the score at 2 for 5. After a 63-ball hiatus, during which the hosts added a laborious 29 runs, Peter Handscomb was run-out when opener Cameron Bancroft drove a ball straight back and the bowler Andile Phehlukwayo got his fingers to the ball which hit the stumps, catching Handscomb well outside his crease.Soon, Bancroft chopped a ball from medium-pacer Malusi Siboto onto his stumps for a 48-ball 16. Paterson then had two more batsmen caught behind – Glenn Maxwell with a short ball and Alex Ross with a stifling line outside off. Then it was Tabraiz Shamsi’s turn – he trapped Kurtis Patterson lbw and had John Mennie caught at midwicket, to leave Australia reeling at 8 for 68 in the 30th over.An unbeaten 43-ball 34 by No. 9 Kane Richardon helped Australia crawl into three figures, before they were bowled out in 37.2 overs. Australia could have been dimissed much earlier but Richardson was dropped twice – on 27 by wicketkeeper Dane Vilas and on 29 by Dwaine Pretorius at mid-off. Paterson and Shamsi bagged three wickets apiece, while Siboto chipped in with two.”We had a look at [their] videos and we had specific plans and they came out good today,” Paterson said after the match. “As a bowling unit we clicked well today. We have been clicking but there were play and misses and stuff like that. All in all, everything clicked today.”South Africa lost Reeza Hendricks for 1 in the second over of the chase when he edged Mennie to third slip. Captain Heino Kuhn departed for 15 in the tenth over, to give Mennie his second wicket and leave South Africa A at 2 for 43. But a target of 108 never seemed to challenge the tourists. Theunis de Bruyn, at No. 3, stroked an unbeaten 57 off 73, and he was kept company by David Miller who ended up unbeaten on 20. The two guided South Africa past the finish line in 21 overs without any further losses. Legspinner Cameron Boyce was the most expensive bowler as he leaked 30 runs in only three overs.”Obviously 107 is going to be a big task for the bowlers to defend. But I think they were too good from pretty much the starting,” Richarson reflected later.The win catapults South Africa from bottom to second in the points table, behind National Performance Squad.

Tottenham Hotspur are believed to be considering Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou for their managerial vacancy, despite growing speculation surrounding Feyenoord's Arne Slot.

What's the latest on Postecoglou to Tottenham?

According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, the 57-year-old has been "discussed" by the Spurs hierarchy as a possible permanent successor to Antonio Conte, albeit with the aforementioned Slot seemingly still the leading option for chairman, Daniel Levy.

Speaking on his Youtube channel, the transfer guru revealed: "Arne Slot is a serious candidate for the Tottenham job. There are contacts internally to decide on the manager but the first step will be new director, then the new manager, with Arne Slot for sure into the race.

“Luis Enrique is also appreciated. Amorim and Postecoglou have been discussed. But Arne Slot is the frontrunner."

This follows a recent report from Sky Sports which also named Postecoglou as a figure that the Lilywhites are 'interested' in, with the Greek-Aussie having come to wider attention due to his fine work in Glasgow over the last two years or so.

Should Tottenham appoint Postecoglou?

The arrival of the former Yokohama F Marinos man would certainly tick a lot of boxes as far as Levy and co are concerned, with the experienced coach potentially able to help end Tottenham's dismal trophy drought, having already claimed silverware at Parkhead of late.

The one-time Australia head coach has guided his current side to Scottish Premiership and League Cup glory in each of the last two seasons, with the Old Firm outfit well placed to add a further Scottish Cup triumph to their collection next month, ahead of a showpiece showdown with Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

It is the manner in which Postecoglou has achieved such success that has particularly caught the eye, however, with BT Sport pundit Owen Hargreaves hailing him as someone who "goes after everyone" with his "attacking football".

Having had to endure the dour brand of football that Conte instilled at N17 – with the Italian's approach described as "negative" earlier in the campaign by Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville – the change to the Hoops boss would certainly be well received by Spurs supporters.

The one-time Melbourne Victory man – who has also been dubbed an "unbelievable coach" by compatriot Jackson Irvine – would likely need encouragement to jump ship in the near future, although pundit Mark Bosnich has suggested "Spurs would be the most suitable" club for Postecoglou to work his magic in the Premier League.

With the prospect of seeing the 4-3-3 coach bring "exceptionally attractive football" to north London – according to Bosnich – Levy must certainly consider the Celtic tactician as an alternative to 'frontrunner', Slot.