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Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has offered an update on the fitness of defender Andreas Christensen, following Wednesday’s shambolic 4-2 defeat to Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.

What’s the word?

Speaking in his post-match press conference, Tuchel revealed that the Denmark international had been withdrawn at half-time against the Gunners due to injury, despite suggestion that the change had been a tactical substitution.

The 26-year-old centre-back set the wheels in motion for what was to be a bruising night for the Blues, with his tame backpass allowing Eddie Nketiah to net his first Premier League goal of the season.

Having not resurfaced for the second half, it was believed that the £31.5m-rated man had been dragged off by his manager for that error, although the former Paris Saint-Germain moved to quash that speculation, while also blaming the pitch for the player’s early error: “He said he cannot continue, so I think he had some problems. I don’t take a player out because he makes one mistake.

“To say the pitch is difficult to play here it maybe sounds like an excuse, but it is a very, very difficult pitch that we have here. It’s not in our favour.

“The ball bounces very awkwardly in front of Andreas when he wants to play this ball. But still, we had the same mistake against Real Madrid that cost us the next round of the Champions League, and this one cost us the next match. I can’t remember when we got two goals like this.”

A Blessing in Disguise

While his manager may be attempting to dig him out of a hole by targeting the home turf, there is no denying that it was a costly error from the 55-cap international, with that early blunder setting the tone for what would be a dismal defensive display all-around.

Although Christensen has since come out and taken responsibility for his high profile mistake, it will do little to appease his doubters, namely talkSPORT pundit Dean Saunders, who suggested that the £80k-per-week man is “not good enough” in the wake of the defeat.

That view was echoed by club legend Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who admitted that both the Dane and a handful of his teammates, simply weren’t up to scratch: “Lukaku, Christensen, Sarr and Alonso were just not good enough for a Chelsea team who should be challenging for the Champions League or Premier League.”

That may appear a rather brutal assessment, although in truth, should his injury complaint cause him to miss this weekend’s game against West Ham United, it could well prove to be something of a blessing in disguise, with the more experienced Thiago Silva likely to be a welcome addition to the side in his absence.

While not the worst performer among Tuchel’s squad this season – he currently ranks 15th for average match rating – the 6 foot 2 giant has not set the world alight either, with the player ranking in just the top 70% for tackles made among central defenders in Europe’s top five leagues over the past year, as well as ranking in just the top 44% for clearances made, as per FBref.

There are also those of a Chelsea persuasion who are simply keen to see the back of the one-time Borussia Monchengladbach loanee, amid reports that he has agreed a deal to join Barcelona this summer on a free transfer.

While the fact that the west London outfit are currently unable to offer new deals may have been a factor in that decision, supporters will no doubt be angered by the player seemingly jumping ship, particularly after he suggested last year that he was in it for the “long-run” at the club.

As they prepare for the visit of the Hammers on Sunday, his name not being mentioned on the teamsheet may prove something of a boost rather than a notable blow.

In other news, Forget Christensen: Chelsea “shambles” who lost ball 22x was real villain vs Arsenal – opinion…

Australia’s selectors have burned another spinner and given two more a chance to feel the heat

Peter English20-Nov-2010Australia’s selectors have burned another spinner and given two more a chance to feel the heat. Nathan Hauritz’s sacking has left Xavier Doherty feeling as buoyant and fortunate as Hauritz did with his catapult two years ago. Doherty will be the ninth Test spin experiment since Shane Warne retired in 2007 and the No.8 Steven Smith is also in the 13-man squad for Thursday’s first Ashes Test.Hauritz has been the most successful of those on trial, with 58 wickets at 36.22 in 16 matches, performing a role without delivering regular victories. The emergence of Doherty, a 27-year-old only recently entrenched in Tasmania’s Sheffield Shield team, has forced a late change to the selectors’ long-held plans. If Australia pick a specialist spinner at the Gabba it will be Doherty wearing his new cap.When Hauritz was told to play for New South Wales at the Gabba instead of stay with Australia’s limited-overs team at the end of October the chairman Andrew Hilditch said: “This is seen as the best preparation for Nathan ahead of a very busy summer.” Two weeks later Hilditch praised Hauritz for having an “extremely good” record in Australia over the past 12 months. Today he said: “He can consider himself unlucky.” He certainly can.The start of the season hasn’t been anywhere near as busy as Hilditch promised Hauritz, who has delivered only 58.4 overs in five games. In his first Shield fixture he was given 12 balls and in this week’s bowl-off with Doherty he rolled his arm over six times in three days.Doherty picked up two wickets in 21 overs for Tasmania while Jason Krejza, the side’s other offspinner, was handed 10 overs. The clinching moment for Ricky Ponting, if he hadn’t already been swayed by his Tasmanian team-mate, was Doherty’s bowled-around-the-legs of Simon Katich.Having stuck with Hauritz through times of trouble and moderate success, the selectors have let him go for the series they had been preparing him for. Marcus North and Michael Hussey were retained to keep faith in the year-old plan, but Doherty comes in on a left-arm hunch. A steady Test bowler has been replaced by a modest first-class operator. The use-and-abuse spin cycle continues.The time for alterations was before the tour of India, giving new players two Tests to get comfortable, but the selectors’ hands stayed steady until the shakes of the past week. It has been a spooky time with the main men spluttering all over the country while England’s preparations purr. Still, one debutant for such an important encounter is better than the two or three threatened by Monday’s bulging 17-man squad.After the double failures of Usman Khawaja and Callum Ferguson in Hobart no batting changes were necessary despite the unconvincing nature of the incumbent line-up. Succeeding in the days before a side is named is the most pressure a young player can have away from a Test match, and Khawaja and Ferguson missed out two weeks in a row. At least Hussey and North know how to succeed, justifying another chance. Given all the circumstances, the side is almost the right one.However, the treatment of Hauritz continues the trend of spinners being treated poorly after Warne’s exit. Only Brad Hogg, the second of the eight replacements, has left in a happy mood. Unlike Stuart MacGill, Beau Casson, Cameron White, Krejza, Bryce McGain and now Hauritz.Smith is the only other one of the group who remains in favour, but he is not yet good enough as a batsman to be in the top six, as displayed by his first-ball dismissal to Chris Tremlett in Hobart today, when he left an offcutter heading for his stumps. He is not ready as a specialist bowler either. A gifted player, he could develop into an all-round genius, but at the moment his selection as a bits-and-pieces man for such an important series is strange. So was White’s elevation in India two years ago.Hauritz is disappointed and Doherty and Smith are ecstatic. The fresh pair need to know those feelings haven’t lasted long for Australia’s spinners over the past four years. Steve O’Keefe, the in-form Australia A left-arm orthodox, could be next to join the queue.

Gautam Gambhir has said the wicket in Centurion has become good for batting and India has the quality to save the Test match

Sidharth Monga at SuperSport Park18-Dec-2010India have turned up. They are two days late, but they have turned up and it is good to finally watch a contest in the series. India still need to bat for the best part of five sessions to get out of Centurion with the series scoreline undamaged, and they will need all the help they can muster from the rain, which started about 40 minutes after the end of the third day’s play. But Gautam Gambhir believes his opening partnership with Virender Sehwag has shown the dressing room they can save the match.Facing a 484-run first innings deficit, Gambhir and Sehwag put together a 137-run opening stand – more than India’s entire first-innings total – and Gambhir reached 80 before he was out lbw to Dale Steyn.”I think it is a very flat track and it’s just a matter of hanging in there, and taking the sessions one by one,” Gambhir said. “Apart from the first day when we lost the toss and the wicket did a lot, this has been a good pitch for batting. It’s going to be hard for the South Africans to get us out. We have batted well in the second innings, so far, and we have got the batting in the side that can pull off a positive result.”Gambhir has saved a Test for India before when they needed to bat out more than two days. In Napier, during India’s tour of New Zealand in March 2009, he batted for 436 minutes to take India to safety, and he said he tried to draw from that experience while batting on Saturday. “It’s a different attack and we have got far more time to play out here, but it does give you that confidence when you have already done it once.”Unfortunately it didn’t happen on this occasion, but I have confidence the rest of the side can pull off a draw. If we can draw this Test, we can turn this series in our favour.”Minutes before bad light brought the day to an early end, Gambhir missed out on what would have been his sixth second-innings century. He was trapped in front by a ball that seemed to stay low, but felt the pitch didn’t hold too many terrors. “It has started keeping a bit low and there is a bit of inconsistent bounce, but not that much. The wicket is not too fast either.”India wouldn’t want to think too much about the weather, but they might get some assistance from the clouds. It started raining minutes after the teams left the stadium, and there are more showers forecast for the fourth day of the match.

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in CF Montreal’s Djordje Mihailovic.

What’s the talk?

According to 1000Cuorirossoblu, PIF are plotting a swoop for the attacking midfielder at the end of the season, alongside a number of other clubs.

The report claims that Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Leverkusen and Leeds are also keen on the gem, whose contract with the MLS side expires in December 2023.

Huge Almiron upgrade

Newcastle must secure a deal to sign Mihailovic as he would be a huge upgrade on Miguel Almiron heading into the 2022/23 campaign.

In 26 Premier League appearances, Almiron has scored one goal and provided one assist for the Toon. Whilst his strike against Crystal Palace earlier this month was a terrific finish and one for the fans to enjoy at St. James’ Park, he has not been able to produce that level of quality on a consistent basis and his lack of impact in the final third is a cause for concern.

Two goal contributions in 15 league starts is a dismal return from a winger, particularly after he managed five (four goals and one assist) in 28 starts last season (34 appearances). He has not been a reliable player for the Magpies in the final third and that is why the club should be looking to sign Mihailovic to take his place in the team.

The Montreal midfielder has had a sensational start to 2022 as he has racked up four goals and two assists in eight appearances. He has averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 7.61 as he has created 2.5 chances per game, showing that he can consistently deliver at the top end of the pitch.

This comes after he managed four goals and 14 assists in 32 starts in 2021. In the 2020/21 campaign, he created a whopping 18 ‘big chances’ and made 2.3 key passes per game and these statistics suggest that he can be a creative force for the Magpies – with journalist Chris Smith dubbing him a “gorgeous passer”.

He can, therefore, be a big upgrade on the Paraguay international if he is able to translate his form for Montreal over to the Premier League next season.

The American dynamo, who has 40 MLS goals and assists combined in his career, is also five years younger than Almiron and has scope to develop further over the years. Howe can work with him on the training pitch to hone his skills and this means that he can be a player for the short and long-term future of the club.

AND in other news, 71% duels won: £19k-p/w NUFC titan brought his “passion off the pitch” onto it vs NCFC – opinion

Sky Sports pundit Kevin Phillips has backed West Brom for a total squad overhaul during the upcoming transfer window, amid reports of the club being interested in a summer move for Aston Villa’s Conor Hourihane.

The Lowdown: Hourihane news

The 31-year-old Hourihane, who is currently out on a season-long loan at Sheffield United from the Midlands outfit, was just last week linked with a potential switch to the Albion at the end of the campaign.

However, the former Baggies striker Phillips has admitted that he believes Steve Bruce should be targeting more youthful options rather than experienced veterans if the club have aspirations of making a return to the top flight anytime soon, essentially calling for a full rebuild at the Hawthorns.

The Latest: Reshuffle on the cards

Giving his thoughts on the link to Hourihane in an interview with West Brom News, Phillips said: “Again, he’s a midfielder who can score goals.

“I would understand why you would go for those types of players, but I think if you bring too many into the squad, I think West Brom need to have an overhaul.

“They have got some good players there, but I think bringing more experience in, might not be the way forward, but bringing youth, energy and pace in the squad as well as those who know the league.

“I think it’s right to get the balance right.”

The Verdict: Play-off ambitions

The midfielder has made 29 appearances in all competitions for the Blades this season, providing five goal contributions during that time, via Transfermarkt.

Despite having plenty of experience in the second-tier of English football, Hourihane, who was once hailed a “quality” player by his former teammate Jack Grealish, isn’t the profile of player that the Baggies should be looking at bringing in, especially considering the fact that their campaign has ended in disappointment, having almost finished as a mid-table side.

Bruce will no doubt want to make some wholesale changes to his squad ahead of the start of the 2022/23 term, but he has to ensure that whichever new signings he brings in have the potential to help reach the play-off places and kick on for a long-term future at the club.

In other news… West Brom are reportedly eyeing a summer move for a Championship duo.

Pakistan’s oldest Test cricketer Aslam Khokhar died in Lahore on Saturday due to a prolonged illness

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jan-2011Pakistan’s oldest Test cricketer Aslam Khokhar died in Lahore on Saturday after a prolonged illness. He was 91. Khokhar played one Test for Pakistan, against England in 1954 during his team’s first tour of the country, and 45 first-class games, averaging 27.80 with two centuries. He was also a good enough legspinner to be considered an all-rounder in his time.Though he played only one official Test, Aslam also took part in the first ‘unofficial’ Test Pakistan played before they gained Test status in 1952-53, against the touring West Indies in Lahore’s Bagh-e-Jinnah in 1947-48.And he is noted for making what is now acknowledged as the first first-class hundred in Pakistan, soon after partition from India in the country’s maiden first-class match between Sind and West Punjab in Lahore. In the city’s early club scene, he played for Universal CC.He was 34 when he toured England in 1954 and the ‘Encyclopedia of Pakistan Cricket’ reports that a toe injury curtailed his participation for much of the tour.He then took up umpiring, on the insistence of Pakistan’s first – unofficial Test – captain Mian Mohammad Saeed and officiated in three Tests – all involving Pakistan and England – in 1973 and 1977. He took over as senior coach at Lahore’s Aitchson College and worked at a national training camp in the mid-80s.”It is sad that we lost Khokhar,” former Pakistan batsman and team-mate Hanif Mohammad was quoted as saying by . “He was a jolly man and friendly with everyone.”

MS Dhoni’s response as captain to the increasing expectations on his team has been to deflect questions

Siddarth Ravindran at the Chinnaswamy Stadium10-Feb-2011The weight of expectation on the Indian cricket team, heavy at the best of times, has risen exponentially with the World Cup being held at home and India among the favourites. MS Dhoni’s response as captain, at his first official World Cup press conference on Thursday, was typical: he played with a straight bat, deflecting questions so that the pressure on the team doesn’t rise further.The mantra was “focus on process and preparation” (and not results or other things like Gary Kirsten’s exit as India coach), pressure isn’t pressure anymore but responsibility, no opposition team was identified as a threat (“all teams are dangerous”), the Indian team had a good mix of experienced players (“who know how to handle pressure”) and youngsters (“who can change the course of the game”). And, significantly, not winning the World Cup is not the end of the world.”A lot of hype is created around the World Cup but every series that the Indian team plays we have a lot of expectation,” Dhoni said in Bangalore. “We are supposed to win the World Cup, the atmosphere was same in 2007, it won’t be right to consider this as one of the final frontiers, it’s one of the big tournaments, the team needs to do well, (but) it’s always the process and preparation that will help us achieve success, not thinking about what’s coming and how big the tournament is.”Dhoni also sidestepped a question on the importance of the tournament for the one-day format. “I’m a big fan of fifty-over cricket. That doesn’t mean I don’t like Twenty20s or Tests. It’s a big stage, big fan following and everybody is looking forward to it.”What was Dhoni’s view on the prolonged World Cup, stretching over 43 days when its football counterpart typically picks out a winner in a month? “It is very difficult to form a perfect schedule and format. A tournament schedule will be either too long or too short but I am quite happy with the schedule. It will give us time to recover from small niggles.”India’s first warm-up match is against Australia on Sunday, and it will be Ricky Ponting’s first game in more than six weeks after being sidelined by a finger injury. Would India target him with short deliveries? “We’ll see about the strategy later.”Today at least there was no visible strategy during the first official training session except that Virat Kohli got special attention from Kirsten, initially during the fielding drills, and later during the throw-downs. Kohli, one of the most prolific Indian ODI batsmen in 2010, would keep his fingers crossed to make his World Cup debut though the return of Gautam Gambhir in the top order has made his position uncertain. But today, Kirsten worked hard on the youngster’s technique, trying to make sure the bat-swing was coming down straight before the point of impact with the ball.It was not a simple day at work for Kohli , who earlier intently heard the pair of Kirsten and Dhoni explain to him the right body position while taking catches in close positions like slips. Both men laid emphasis on anticipation being the key. Whatever they said, Kohli underwent some anxious moments, dropping a couple of straightforward catches. But his seniors were patient and continued to correct his fielding stance.In contrast to light-hearted practice on Wednesday, the Indians had a four-hour long rigorous training session with Kirsten and Dhoni supervising the batsmen while the pair of Eric Simons and Zaheer Khan taking care of the fast bowlers. Harbhajan Singh, after a short spell with the ball, enjoyed playing the axe-murderer alongside Dhoni, using the bat akin to golfers using their drivers. Nine days before the tournament opener against Bangladesh, the Indians appeared in the right frame of mind.Dhoni’s play-it-safe strategy at a spruced-up Chinnaswamy Stadium (“the dressing room looks better, doesn’t mean the dressing room wasn’t good before”) should keep the headlines sober as well. It will also ensure that, after entering the past three ICC events touted as title-winners before ending up well short, the Indian team aren’t distracted from their challenge of living up to their billing as leading contenders this time around.

Tasmania took firm control against Western Australia at the WACA, bowling them out for 160 courtesy a six-wicket haul from Luke Butterworth

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Feb-2011
ScorecardTasmania took firm control of their Sheffield Shield encounter against Western Australia at the WACA in Perth on day one, bowling them out for 160 courtesy a six-wicket haul from Luke Butterworth, before ending the day on 79 for no loss.Being made to field by Marcus North, Tasmania made early inroads as Butterworth picked up two wickets in the sixth over to leave Western Australia at 2 for 10. The hosts never recovered, losing wickets in rapid succession. A 35-run stand for the ninth wicket was the best partnership they could manage in the innings. Butterworth’s 6 for 51 is his best effort in first-class cricket. He’s the leading wicket-taker in the competition.Tasmania’s openers Nick Kruger and Ed Cowan got their side off to a solid start, remaining not out at stumps. Just the start to the match Tasmania were looking for, as an outright win here should guarantee them a spot in the final.

George Dockrell, Ireland’s 18-year-old left-arm spinner, has dislocated his shoulder during the World Cup match against Netherlands at Eden Gardens on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Mar-2011George Dockrell, Ireland’s 18-year-old left-arm spinner, has dislocated his shoulder during the World Cup match against Netherlands at Eden Gardens on Friday.Dockrell was one of the standout performers in Ireland’s campaign, collecting seven scalps – including Sachin Tendulkar – at an average 29.57. He is due to play for Somerset in the upcoming English county season after signing for them last year.”He [Dockrell] has dislocated his [right] shoulder and will probably be out for the standard four to six weeks,” Ireland captain William Porterfield said after his team’s six-wicket victory. “It’s not great timing as he was due to start pre-season training with Somerset, so it is a setback for him and hopefully he gets over it quickly.”Dockrell picked up the injury while trying to field off his own bowling in his fourth over and, in his absence, Ireland conceded 306 in their final match of the tournament. He went to hospital for scans and played no further part in the game.

Dynamic swing bowling by Ryan Sidebottom against his former county led to Yorkshire dominating the first day’s play in their County Championship battle with title-holders Nottinghamshire at Headingley

20-Apr-2011Stumps
Scorecard
Rich Pyrah picked up a career-best 5 for 58 as Nottinghamshire were bowled out for 143 at Headingley•Getty ImagesDynamic swing bowling by Ryan Sidebottom against his former county led to Yorkshire dominating the first day’s play in their County Championship battle with title-holders Nottinghamshire at Headingley.The left-arm paceman, who returned to his native county at the end of last season, grabbed four wickets and Richard Pyrah a career-best five as Notts were fired out for 143, Yorkshire then replying with 213 for 5 by the close to give them a lead of 70.To rub salt into the visitors’ wounds, the debacle came after they had won the toss. Having chosen to bat, they were taken by surprise by the amount of swing Sidebottom obtained in a lethal new-ball spell which brought him three wickets for 15 runs in nine overs, five of which were maidens.Yorkshire made two changes from the side which lost to Durham by 143 runs last week, Oliver Hannon-Dalby and left-arm spinner David Wainwright replacing Steven Patterson and Moin Ashraf, and it was Hannon-Dalby who dealt the first blow by shattering Mark Wagh’s stumps in the fourth over with one which nipped back.The score was on seven and two more wickets fell without addition as Sidebottom struck with consecutive deliveries. Paul Franks edged to second slip where he was brilliantly caught by Anthony McGrath and Samit Patel was pinned back on his stumps, leaving Adam Voges to block the hat-trick ball.Pyrah replaced Hannon-Dalby and captured a wicket with his first ball thanks to another stunning catch, this time by Adam Lyth at first slip. Another fine inswinger from Sidebottom had Ali Brown lbw to leave Notts on 43 for 5 and it became 56 for 6 when captain Chris Read paid the penalty for an ungainly heave across the line at Pyrah and was caught behind by Jonathan Bairstow.Notts would have been in even deeper trouble but for some splendid batting from Alex Hales, who welcomed the introduction of spin by driving Wainwright for six and bringing up his 50 in the same over with his seventh four.But Notts were soon in trouble again after lunch, the second ball from Pyrah being tickled to Bairstow by Steven Mullaney, and Pyrah picked up a further wicket when Andre Adams had a swing and was bowled. Yorkshire’s catching continued to be of a high standard and Luke Fletcher’s thick edge was well held by Lyth at third slip to give Sidebottom final figuresof 4 for 30.With only Charlie Shreck remaining, Hales once more went on the attack by pulling Pyrah for four and six but in trying to repeat the shot he was caught on the midwicket boundary by Gerard Brophy for 85 from 89 balls, with 10 fours and two sixes. Pyrah’s figures of 5 for 58 meant it was the second time within a week that he had enjoyed a career-best return.There was an early shock for Yorkshire as Joe Root nicked his first delivery from Shreck into Read’s gloves, but Lyth and McGrath quickly settled into a second-wicket stand worth exactly 100 in 26 overs, aided early on by some indifferent work in the field. Franks should have cut off a boundary and Fletcher gave away four runs when he hurled back McGrath’s defensive push andthe ball sailed well over the top of Read’s head.Lyth played some crisp strokes in going to his first half-century of the season but Yorkshire suddenly loosened their grip on the match in the evening session, beginning when McGrath was lbw to Adams for 49.Having been lured into several mistimed pulls by Fletcher, Lyth went for the stroke once too often and played straight into the waiting hands of Franks at long leg, the left-hander’s 64 coming off 118 balls with eight fours. Incoming batsman Bairstow had little chance of keeping out a shooter from Fletcher which hit his off stump and half of Yorkshire’s wickets were down for144 when Brophy cut at Fletcher and was caught at third slip by Patel.The slide was halted by captain Andrew Gale (47 not out) and Rashid (39 not out), who retrieved the situation by adding an unbroken 70 by the close.