Crystal Palace have now moved ahead of Leeds United in the race to sign a Championship playmaker, according to a recent report.
Crystal Palace receive UEFA Europa League boost
Not only did the Eagles secure their first major trophy in their history by winning the FA Cup, but they also booked a place in next season’s Europa League. This is unprecedented for Palace, but since that famous FA Cup win, their participation in the Europa League has been under threat due to multi-club rules.
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John Textor’s Eagle Football Group also has a controlling stake in French side Lyon. Both clubs are in the Europa League next season, and things heated up this week as Premier League rivals Nottingham Forest wrote to UEFA over an alleged breach of multi-club rules.
CrystalPalace's Joel Ward and Marc Guehi hold the trophy with teammates during the Victory celebrations
However, according to talkSPORT, UEFA don’t see Textor as someone who has a controlling influence at Selhurst Park, and they recognise the value of having the South Londoners in the competition next season due to their FA Cup win. Therefore, as it stands, UEFA are in favour of keeping Palace in the competition.
Crystal Palace ahead of Leeds in race to sign £20m Championship ace
So, as Palace receive a Europa League boost, they can now concentrate on building a squad that is capable of competing in the Premier League as well as Europe. According to the Irish Examiner, relayed by Football League World, Crystal Palace are now leading the race to sign Finn Azaz from Middlesbrough.
The Eagles are looking to bulk their squad up for the 2025/26 campaign and have identified Azaz as a potential target. It’s already been reported that Palace chiefs have been keeping an eye on the attacking midfielder but face competition as Leeds United and AFC Bournemouth have also registered their interest in the Boro man.
The 24-year-old joined Boro in January 2024 for a fee of £2.5 million, and it’s now been claimed that were he to leave the Riverside Stadium, he would cost any team interested around £20 million. Indeed, he is still under contract until the summer of 2028, has been capped seven times by the Republic of Ireland and has just come off the back of a season in which he scored 12 goals and assisted 11 in 45 Championship games.
Apps
45
Starts
43
Goals
12
xG
9.53
Assists
11
xAG
7.62
Big chances created
10
Key passes per game
2.0
It is looking very likely that Palace could lose Eberechi Eze this summer, as he continues to be linked with a move to some of the biggest clubs in England. So, while Azaz won’t be seen as a like-for-like replacement, Oliver Glasner may see him as someone who could help fill the void left by the Englishman.
Liverpool lifted the Premier League trophy on Sunday afternoon, celebrating Arne Slot’s triumph in front of so many legends, so many fans.
It was a day charged with emotion, an outpouring of joy and, for those such as Trent Alexander-Arnold, ruefulness, for he parted ways with his boyhood club ahead of joining Real Madrid on a free transfer next month.
It’s a big blow going forward: Alexander-Arnold is Anfield’s vice-captain and the club’s beating creative heart besides. However, don’t expect the newly-crowned champions to rest on their laurels.
Slot’s surpassing season has put Liverpool back on their perch, and FSG don’t want to stop there. Indeed, swift and incisive moves are being made to do it all again next season, making a through line into the fresh campaign.
Liverpool plan to make a series of exciting changes, but it’s hard to imagine any deal would top the move for Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz.
The latest on Florian Wirtz to Liverpool
Liverpool made their first official bid for Wirtz on Monday morning, offering Leverkusen a package in excess of €100m (£85m), including add-ons.
This suggests previous claims that the Germany international would cost FSG something in the ballpark of €150m (£126m) were wayward, and indeed music to the ears of those of a Liverpool persuasion.
There are a number of ways the Reds can line up with Wirtz in the squad, and that’s without even entertaining the possible acquisition of a new centre-forward.
WirtzWhere Wirtz could feature for Liverpool
We haven’t reached the finish line with this transfer ‘saga’, but we’re getting close. It would take a drastic and deflating turn of events for 22-year-old Wirtz to begin the 2025/26 campaign in a shirt other than Liverpool’s.
The rapidity with which FSG are taking care of business testifies to the enviable manner in which Liverpool get things done. There’s a reason Anfield has stood near the top of the European pile for a decade, after all.
Remarkably, the bid for Wirtz hasn’t detracted from other ventures. Jeremie Frimpong has reportedly completed his medical, should be announced this week. And moreover, Liverpool are closing in on yet another signing.
Liverpool agree terms with top target
Liverpool are making headway in their bid to sign Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez. At the weekend, Fabrizio Romano revealed the Reds have the lead over Manchester City in the race, and indeed are in active discussions to bring the 21-year-old over to Anfield.
Now, the reputable journalist has confirmed to GIVEMESPORT that Liverpool have agreed personal terms with the sought-after left-back, with just “some small details to be clarified.”
It’s understood the Cherries want £45m for their prized prospect, though FSG would certainly hope to whittle this down and structure the outlay into smaller chunks.
Why Liverpool want Milos Kerkez
Andy Robertson’s performance against Palace on Sunday could be used as a gauge to examine the pressing need for a new left-back.
Andy Robertson for Liverpool
It was wonderful to see the 31-year-old receive his second Premier League title, but he’s past his best, Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher hailing him an “absolute legend” but noting he’s “hanging on in every game.”
Given Kostas Tsimikas has struggled to displace the veteran, forever his deputy, it’s understandable FSG should be pulling out all the stops in their bid to sign Kerkez, who has fallen in love with the prospect of Anfield after his immense breakout campaign.
Milos Kerkez for Bournemouth
The Hungarian, Dominik Szoboszlai’s international teammate, started all 38 of Bournemouth’s Premier League fixtures last season, scoring two goals, providing five assists and notably winning 60% of his ground duels, as per Sofascore.
The left-back will dynamise the left flank, raise the level through enhanced energy levels and attacking output. Moreover, his defensive game is at a superior level. With Wirtz arriving on the scene too, this bodes well for Slot’s second season.
Left-back Alex Grimaldo has been an incredible asset for the Werkself in recent years, bringing energy and enthusiasm to the role and covering large stretches of ground to provide a platform for those such as Wirtz, who is technically a ten but his influence is such that he defies positional definition, often drifting over to the left.
The Leverkusen star might be one of the elite playmakers of his generation, but he can’t do it all alone, especially if his left-back fails to drive play into his zone.
Luckily, Liverpool’s potential new defensive signing has the full package and could complement Wirtz’s silky, stylish attacking arsenal, having been described by pundit Izzy Christensen as a “machine” of a player.
Kerkez has a long way to go before he can call himself a playmaking asset on the level of Alexander-Arnold and Robertson, but with Trent gone and the Scottish star no longer at his best, it’s crucial Kerkez steps in to supply the likes of Wirtz with the support he will need to flourish.
1
Trent Alexander-Arnold
64
2
Andy Robertson
60
3
Leighton Baines
53
4
Graeme Le Saux
44
5
Kieran Trippier
38
However, given his youth and impressive start to life in the Premier League, there’s every chance Kerkez can now go from strength to strength and make a significant impression for Slot’s Liverpool.
Across the past two seasons, Wirtz has posted 69 goal contributions across all competitions for Leverkusen, making a telling comment on the calibre of player the Reds are set to welcome.
Bayer Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz.
With Kerkez in behind him, striking a devastating partnership, this could elevate the Anfield project to a level scarcely imaginable.
Forget Gravenberch: Slot's 6/10 Liverpool star showed why he must be axed
Liverpool drew against Crystal Palace before lifting the Premier League trophy at Anfield.
It may be a tired cliché, but it’s true: this season has been a real roller coaster for Arsenal.
Everything started well enough, with some positive results in challenging games, but it all seemed to go wrong following Declan Rice’s red card against Brighton & Hove Albion.
The team started getting more silly suspensions, injuries began piling up, and it felt like every other result was a draw.
Arsenal manager MikelArtetareacts
However, while Mikel Arteta’s side struggled domestically, they thrived in Europe, and now just two games stand between them and the Champions League final.
Two of the players who have endured a topsy-turvey season of their own have been Mikel Merino and Leandro Trossard, and to ensure the latter is available for the Paris Saint Germain game next week, Arteta should take him out of the team for tonight’s clash.
Merino & Trossard's season so far
It was a cosmically unlucky start to the season for Merino, as, following a summer-long transfer saga, he fractured his shoulder in his first training session as an Arsenal player, which saw him miss the first couple of months of the campaign.
When he did return, it was clear that he was rusty, and while the match-going fans didn’t get on his back, there was a palpable sense in the fanbase that maybe signing him had been a mistake.
However, when Kai Havertz was ruled out following surgery on his hamstring in February, the Spaniard was suddenly tasked with leading the line, and even though he’d never played up top in his career, he looked right at home, scoring two goals away to Leicester City after coming off the bench.
Over the next couple of months, he further added to his tally with goals against PSV Eindhoven, Chelsea and Fulham while also providing two assists in the Bernabeu and another at Portman Road at the weekend, when he was moved back into the midfield to prepare for Thomas Partey’s absence against PSG.
In his place, the manager started Trossard, who, after a lacklustre first half of the campaign, has begun to show signs of the old clinical attacker who’s been a serious asset to the club since his arrival from Brighton & Hove Albion in January 2023.
For example, he scored away at PSV and away at Everton and then picked up a brilliantly taken brace against Ipswich Town on the weekend, which displayed his excellent ability to fire off shots in tight, congested penalty areas.
It was the sort of performance that will almost certainly see him start the first leg of the Champions League semi-final next week, which is why he shouldn’t start tonight.
However, as Merino needs to further bed into the left-eight role ahead of that game, he shouldn’t be the one to replace the Belgian either.
The Arsenal star who should start in place of Trossard
So, with the injury situation still far from ideal and Raheem Sterling simply not in contention at this point, the most logical player to start in place of Trossard tonight would be Ethan Nwaneri.
Now, we know that might sound a little too far, but Arteta has already spoken in the past about how he sees the teenager being able to play there and then in an interview with the Standard’s Simon Collings following the win over Ipswich, the Hale Ender claimed that he can play as a striker.
Moreover, if this season has told us anything about the “unplayable” phenomenon, as dubbed by Jack Wilshere, it’s that he knows where the goal is.
Appearances
33
Minutes
1294′
Goals
9
Assists
2
Goal Involvements per Match
0.33
Minutes per Goal Involvement
117.63′
For example, in just 33 appearances, totalling 1294 minutes, the Enfield-born dynamo has scored nine goals and provided two assists, which comes out to a really impressive average of a goal involvement every three games, or every 117.63 minutes.
Finally, the teenage sensation has also shown over and over again that he is simply unfazed by everything, and while other players his age might well find it too daunting to lead the line for a club like Arsenal, we imagine he’ll just take it in his stride, as he has with everything else asked of him.
Ultimately, Trossard is too important to be risked in a relatively meaningless game like tonight, and with Merino needing more time to get used to the left-eight role ahead of PSG next week, it feels like the perfect time to start Nwaneri up top.
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Who are the big stars in action, what do the teams look like, and everything else you need to know about SA20 2025
Deivarayan Muthu08-Jan-2025Sunrisers Eastern Cape are the defending champions, right?Indeed. Having won the tournament in 2023 and 2024, Sunrisers, under captain Markram and coach Adrian Birrell, will gun for a three-peat. If they manage to do so, they will emulate Jaffna Kings, who had recently won three titles in a row at the Lanka Premier League.Related
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Sunrisers have a particularly strong local core – Markram, Marco Jansen, Tristan Stubbs and Ottneil Baartman – with some talented overseas players complementing them. They have lost Dan Worrall, who was their powerplay specialist last season, to Gulf Giants in the ILT20, but have filled that void by bringing in Craig Overton, who can also swing the new ball from his tall frame, and added Richard Gleeson, who can clock 140kph, to their roster. They have strengthened their batting by snapping up David Bedingham, who is set for his SA20 bow.Markram had a wretched 2024 with the bat in T20Is, but you just can’t look past him and his team in the SA20.Who will challenge Sunrisers for the title?MI had finished rock bottom in 2023 and 2024, but if they perform to potential this season, they could challenge the might of Sunrisers. Before combining with Jasprit Bumrah in the IPL for Mumbai Indians, Trent Boult will work with Kagiso Rabada in a partnership that promises to be just as mouth-watering.Reeza Hendricks, for whom MI forked out Rand 4.3 million will reunite with his Lions team-mates Rassie van der Dussen at MI in the SA20. This is a chance for allrounder Corbin Bosch, MI’s wildcard signing, to enhance his reputation after having enjoyed a memorable Test debut for South Africa in the Boxing Day fixture.Rashid Khan will lead a side that also has Colin Ingram, George Linde and Nuwan Thushara in its ranks. In a significant blow, however, Ben Stokes is set to miss the SA20 with a recurrence of a hamstring tear, for which he has had surgery.South Africa’s best players can play the SA20 this time without worrying about ignoring international cricket•AFP/Getty ImagesDoes the league clash with SA’s international commitments again?No. Not this time.The SA20’s clash with SA’s Test series in New Zealand caused a stir last year, with the CSA prioritising its league over Test cricket at the time. Any South African player with an SA20 deal was informed of their contractual obligations to play in the tournament ahead of the Tests, which resulted in a squad with seven uncapped players, including the stand-in captain Neil Brand, being selected for the New Zealand tour.The SA20, however, overlaps with other T20 tournaments – Australia’s Big Bash League, UAE’s ILT20, New Zealand’s Super Smash and the Bangladesh Premier League.What’s the format of the league like?The top-four teams in the six-team league will qualify for the knockouts, which will have IPL-style qualifiers and an eliminator. To summarise, the teams placed first and second after the league phase will play in the first qualifier, with the winner going straight to the final. The teams placed third and fourth will play an eliminator with the loser out of contention. Then, the loser of the first qualifier will play the winner of the eliminator to determine the second finalist.Gqeberha is set to host the first qualifier while Centurion will stage the eliminator and second qualifier. The final will be held in Johannesburg on February 8.Tell me about the big overseas names who will be in actionDespite the clashes, the SA20 has some big drawcards, including Rashid, Boult, Kane Williamson, Devon Conway, Matheesha Pathirana and Dinesh Karthik.Boult will complete the MI set, having already played for their teams in the IPL (Mumbai Indians), MLC (MI New York) and ILT20 (MI Emirates). For Williamson and Conway, this will be their first stints at the SA20. Williamson will play for Durban’s Super Giants while Conway will reunite with Stephen Fleming at Joburg Super Kings, having already won the IPL title under him at CSK.Having “sold everything” and left South Africa, the Johannesburg-born Conway will have a special homecoming at this SA20. Back in the day, Conway and Tabraiz Shamsi used to be house-mates in South Africa but then their paths diverged. Years later, at the SA20, their paths will converge again.Also, watch out for Pathirana vs Thushara in the battle of the Lasith Malinga clones.Dinesh Karthik will become the first Indian to take part in the SA20•Abu Dhabi T10Did you mention Dinesh Karthik?Yes, the former India international will rock up for Paarl Royals this season. He’s set to become the first Indian to feature in the SA20 and will also serve as the tournament’s brand ambassador. Since retiring from Indian and international cricket in June 2024, Karthik has been part of the Legends League and the Abu Dhabi T10 league.Family affairsHaving been hit by injuries, JSK have called up allrounder Hardus Viljoen, who will play under his brother-in-law Faf du Plessis, who had led St Lucia Kings to the CPL title in 2024.JP King, who was invited for JSK’s training sessions last season, will join them as a rookie player for this season while his brother CJ King will be part of the Super Giants side.The Bosch brothers – Corbin and Eathan – were on the same side (Pretoria Capitals) in SA20 2024, but Corbin has now moved to MI, which could add some spice to the MI-Capitals clash.Is Imran Tahir still an active T20 player?Indeed. Imran Tahir, who will turn 46 in March, is still going strong in T20 cricket. He will link up with Shamsi and Maheesh Theekshana at JSK. Tahir is currently the fourth-highest wicket-taker in T20 cricket, with 526 strikes in 420 games.What about the Impact Player rule?The SA20 doesn’t have the Impact Player rule in place like the IPL, but teams can name their final XIs after the toss. Captains can take two team sheets to the toss – one with their bat-first XI and the other with their bowl-first XI – and offer up the final list once the toss has been completed.
The RCB batter acknowledged the challenge of switching between formats after scoring a match-winning hundred against Sunrisers
Karthik Krishnaswamy18-May-20231:48
Moody: ‘The way Kohli batted, he reminded me of the 2016 season’
The range of shots on display in T20 cricket has never been wider, but Virat Kohli continues to bat like Virat Kohli. He isn’t a 360-degree player, and he doesn’t try to be one, and this, he says, is because he has to juggle the wildly differing demands of cricket’s three formats as an all-year-round player.Kohli said this after scoring a match-winning 100 off 63 balls for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday night. Soon after Kohli completes his IPL season with RCB, he will travel to the UK to play for India against Australia in the World Test Championship final.”I’ve never been a guy who tries so many fancy shots, because we have to play 12 months of the year,” he said. “For me, it’s not [about] playing fancy shots and throwing my wicket away. We’ve got Test cricket after the IPL, so I’ve got to stay true to my technique and find ways to win games for my team, something that I take a lot of pride in, and when I can make an impact in an important game, obviously that gives me confidence, gives the team confidence, and it just helps the team overall, which is something that I look to do.”Related
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It’s a significant statement, because it isn’t often that someone as high-profile as Kohli acknowledges – even indirectly – that trying to play in a T20-specific way during a T20 competition could affect a batter’s ability to handle the demands of Test cricket.In a way, Kohli may have been responding to the criticism he often faces for how he bats in T20. Whether he is playing for India or RCB, he is never been too far from having his approach questioned – click here, here and here for three of many examples from just this website.You could argue that there is merit to these critiques of Kohli and other batters who broadly fall under the anchor category in T20s. From the evidence of IPL 2023 alone, where teams have scored quicker than ever and passed 200 more often than in any other previous season, the anchor appears to be an endangered commodity in T20 teams. They have had to find ways to score quicker to stay relevant, and Kohli has tried to do this too, particularly by adopting a higher-risk approach against pace to try and make up for his slower scoring against spin.But these critiques of Kohli and other players of his kind often address the issue in isolation, without examining how trying to bat more explosively in T20 could hamper a batter’s ability to play long innings in Test or even ODI cricket.’I’ve never been a guy who tries so many fancy shots, because we have to play 12 months of the year’•BCCIBy drawing such a close relationship between “playing fancy shots” and “throwing my wicket away”, Kohli got to the heart of the issue. Batters need to put a price on their wicket in the longer formats; the best T20 hitters are those who unlearn that maxim. They “destigmatise risk”, as the former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori put it while encouraging KL Rahul – another batter who has faced heavy criticism for his T20 approach – to take more chances early on.It can’t be easy to destigmatise risk in a T20 tournament and play a high-profile Test series immediately afterwards, though, and Kohli seemed to acknowledge this when he spoke about staying true to his technique.Plenty of batters have developed T20-specific techniques to meet the format’s demand for frequent fours and sixes. The former Australia allrounder Shane Watson, for instance, developed one that incorporated baseball principles.To switch between a T20-specific technique and a Test-match technique that prioritises survival cannot be easy, particularly when there is no real gap between tournaments and series. For this reason, as T20 continues its rapid evolution, the all-format batter could one day become a rarity.Kohli, for now, continues to score hundreds in the IPL without – as he put it – compromising on his technique. Thursday night’s innings against Sunrisers was his seventh T20 hundred and his sixth in the IPL, and after the game was done he allowed himself a brief moment of soaking in how it felt.”It’s my sixth IPL hundred, and I don’t give myself enough credit for that sometimes, because I put myself under so much stress already,” he said. “I don’t really care about what anyone says on the outside, to be honest, because that’s their opinion. When you’re in that situation yourself, you know how to win games of cricket, and I’ve done that for a long period of time, so it’s not like when I play I don’t win games for my team. It’s playing the situation that I take pride in.”
Here is part 2 of our team-by-team guide to the new Pakistan Super League season
Umar Farooq19-Feb-2021
Lahore Qalandars
Team overview
All those seasons at the bottom of the table were forgotten last year thanks to the Qalandars’ bristling competitiveness. The franchise rose from the ashes and stormed into their final by eliminating Peshawar Zalmi and then the league toppers Multan Sultans, before they lost to the Karachi Kings in the final. Over the years, the Qalandars had struggled to find their ideal combination and grappled with injuries and player unavailability, but last season they managed to create a desirable core under their captain Sohail Akhtar, a product of their player-development program.Related
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The Qalandars now have a deadly bowling trio at their disposal, comprising the three highest T20 wicket-takers of 2020 in Haris Rauf (57), Rashid Khan (56) and Shaheen Afridi (52). And while this dynamic attack makes them stand out from the rest of the teams, their batting also packs a punch, with their top order including Fakhar Zaman, who is looking to revive his Pakistan career, Akhtar, who comes into the tournament with T10 form behind him, and Ben Dunk, who made 300 runs last season at a strike rate of 167.59. The Qalandars have retained him for this season, and released Chris Lynn.The middle order also bursts with authority with Mohammad Hafeez, David Wiese and Samit Patel in the ranks. These three aren’t the youngest, but they bring valuable experience and rock-solid temperaments.Strengths
The Qalandars possess a bowling attack with all bases covered – pace, seam, left-arm spin, legspin, offspin.
The captain Sohail Akhtar is an underrated batsman, who has a T20 hundred under his belt. His career strike rate of 128.68 might not look too flash, but he comes into the PSL with a chart-topping 248 runs at a strike rate of 187.87 in the Abu Dhabi T10.
Hafeez has hit a purple patch in the shortest format of late, scoring 1005 runs at an average of 47.85 and a strike rate of 141.54 since the start of 2020. He’s added a new dimension to his game with improved power-hitting, and even at 40 the Professor shows no signs of stopping.
Weaknesses
Rashid is with the Qalandars for only two games since he will be leaving for national duty to play a Test series against Zimbabwe for Afghanistan. The Qalandars don’t have too much cover for his role, and his loss will be felt going deep in the tournament.
After a promising start to his international career across formats, Fakhar Zaman is now out of favour with his form dipping significantly. The Qalandars will hope he can get back to his best because he is a key figure in their top order.
Roster
Ben Dunk, David Wiese, Dilbar Hussain, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hafeez, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sohail Akhtar, Ahmed Danyal, Maaz Khan, Mohammad Faizan, Joe Denly, Rashid Khan, Samit Patel, Tom Abell, Salman Ali Agha. Zaid Alam, Zeeshan AshrafPotential First XI: Fakhar Zaman, Sohail Akhtar (capt), Zaid Alam, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk (wk), Samit Patel, David Wiese, Rashid Khan, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi, Dilbar HussainBabar Azam will be surrounded by an array of experienced top-order colleagues•PCB
Karachi Kings
Team overview The Karachi Kings broke their playoffs jinx last year to win the title. Otherwise, they had never finished in the top two, losing three times in the Eliminator and finishing in third place in 2017. They have always had a star-studded roster and arguably started each season as one of the favorites with a triumvirate of three long-standing players – Babar Azam, Mohammad Amir, and Imad Wasim as the captain – as their defining feature.This year, as in the last few seasons, they have carefully injected firepower into their top order to bat around Babar Azam, trading Alex Hales with Islamabad United to bring back Colin Ingram, who had two sensational seasons for the Kings in 2018 and 2019, scoring 587 runs at a strike rate of 153.66.Their coaching panel is largely taken care of by director and president Wasim Akram but the franchise has also roped in the former South Africa batsman Herschelle Gibbs as their head coach. Gibbs comes into the role that was previously held by Dean Jones, who died aged 59 in September last year in Mumbai. In November, the franchise dedicated their maiden title to Jones.Strengths
The top five positions offer guaranteed firepower with Sharjeel Khan, Ingram and Dan Christian capable of booming strike rates and batting around the class of Babar Azam.Weaknesses
The Kings have decent bowling options but their pace attack can be over-reliant on Mohammad Amir’s four-over quota. His form cost him his Pakistan place recently, and if he doesn’t fire on a given day, it might test the other fast bowlers – Arshad Iqbal, Waqas Maqsood and Aamer Yamin. It could be a make-or-break season for Amir’s career.
A lack of batting depth could be an issue, with the Kings lacking truly top-drawer hitters down the order, though Imad and Mohammad Nabi can do a decent job.
Roster
Aamer Yamin, Arshad Iqbal, Babar Azam, Colin Ingram, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Sharjeel Khan, Waqas Maqsood, Chadwick Walton, Dan Christian, Danish Aziz, Joe Clarke, Mohammad Nabi, Mohammad Ilyas, Noor Ahmed, Qasim Akram, Zeeshan MalikPotential First XI
Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Colin Ingram, Dan Christian, Imad Wasim (capt), Chadwick Walton (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Aamer Yamin, Mohammad Amir, Waqas Maqsood, Arshad IqbalPeshawar Zalmi will hope the arrival of Mujeeb Ur Rahman can make up for the loss of Hasan Ali•Getty Images
Peshawar Zalmi
Team overview
The franchise is in a rebuilding phase after losing their premier fast bowler Hasan Ali – who parted ways to join Islamabad United. They are the only team after Karachi to have made the playoffs each time they’ve played the tournament in the last five years. They’ve played as many as three finals, but won only once. Zalmi are going through a reboot this year, having retained only five players in the draft while every other team retained the maximum quota of eight to secure their core.This is a new development, since no team has had as loyal a core as Zalmi’s since the league began in 2016. Darren Sammy, Hasan Ali, Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz have worn no other colours until Hasan decided to leave; they also went through a mid-season crisis earlier, having to bench Sammy and appoint him as a coach. Their head coach Mohammad Akram – who has also been with the franchise from the beginning – has said the team is looking to make a fresh start.Strengths
The middle-order is brimming with experience, with Shoaib Malik and Ravi Bopara occupying key positions.
The bowling is largely based on their go-to quick Wahab Riaz, who is the leading wicket-taker in the PSL and has made a crucial contribution to Zalmi’s success over the years. He might be missing Hasan at the other end but the attack will be bolstered by the arrival of the Afghanistan mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who had a decent BBL season, picking up 14 wickets at an average of 13.42 and an economy rate of 6.26.
Weaknesses
Veteran Kamran Akmal hasn’t had a good run lately with the bat, and has missed chunks of the recent domestic season due to fitness issues.
Liam Livingstone pulling out on national duty has exposed cracks in the top order, leaving it largely in the hands of the inexperienced Haider Ali. Tom Kohler-Cadmore has been brought in as a replacement but he doesn’t have a lot of experience in Asian conditions. Imam ul Haq, meanwhile, has hardly played since picking up a thumb injury in New Zealand.
Roster
Haider Ali, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Wahab Riaz, Abrar Ahmed, Amad Butt, David Miller, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Amir Khan, Mohammad Irfan Snr, Mohammad Imran, Mohammad Imran Randhawa, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Ravi Bopara, Saqib Mahmood, Sherfane Rutherford, Umaid Asif, Tom-Kohler CadmorePotential First XI
Haider Ali, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Kamran Akmal (wk), Shoaib Malik, Ravi Bopara, Amad Butt, Wahab Riaz (capt), Umaid Asif, Mohammad Irfan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Imran
A sight no Tigers fan wanted to see occurred on Wednesday during the club's 6–2 victory over the Mets. Lights-out relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan, one of the Tigers' savvy trade deadline pickups and one of the best relievers in all of baseball since the July 31 deadline, appeared to suffer an apparent injury while warming up in the bullpen. The Tigers broadcast showed Finnegan firing a warmup pitch in the bullpen, then squatting down in discomfort. Finnegan then walked through the Tigers dugout and headed down the steps towards the clubhouse.
Will Vest began wamring up in the bullpen in Finnegan's stead, with the former eventually entering the game in the top of the seventh inning, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless in relief. The Tigers announced that Finnegan experienced right groin tightness while warming up, according to Cody Stavenhagen of .
In 14 1/3 innings pitched since his acquisition by Detroit, Finnegan has yet to allow an earned run and has struck out 19 batters.
Tottenham secured a comfortable 3-0 victory over Slavia Prague at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Tuesday evening, strengthening their bid for automatic Champions League qualification with a commanding performance.
Thomas Frank’s side also extended their 100 per cent home record in Europe with their third consecutive N17 victory, all without conceding a single goal in that time.
Spurs have now climbed into a coveted top eight place as a result, and there were a few star performers on the night.
David Zima’s bizarre own goal opened the scoring on 26 minutes, with the Czech defender inexplicably heading Pedro Porro’s dangerous corner past his own goalkeeper after Cristian Romero’s initial flick-on.
The opening period proved slightly chaotic, with Tottenham dominating possession yet struggling to convert superiority into clear-cut opportunities against Slavia’s resilient defence.
Richarlison should have given Spurs the lead within 45 seconds, heading Wilson Odobert’s excellent cross straight at goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek from point-blank range.
Slavia threatened sporadically, with Stanek producing several outstanding saves to deny Tottenham’s attack. The Czech international frustrated Mohammed Kudus and substitute Mathys Tel — who was named in the squad despite being left out of their original 22-man list — with exceptional saves.
Thomas Frank confirms injured Tottenham star won't be back for a "long time"
The timeline is unclear.
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However, two second-half penalties then secured Tottenham’s victory.
Kudus converted their first spot-kick before Xavi Simons completed the scoring after being fouled inside the area, though Slavia’s Igoh Ogbu escaped a second yellow card for the challenge that conceded the penalty.
In some bad news, Micky van de Ven received a booking that rules him out of the crucial Borussia Dortmund clash, representing the evening’s only negative for Frank.
Ben Davies made his first appearance of the campaign during stoppage time, providing a sentimental moment with Son Heung-min watching from the stands following his emotional farewell visit to North London.
The victory maintains Tottenham’s remarkable 22-match unbeaten run at home in European competitions whilst extending Slavia’s winless streak to six Champions League games. The Czech champions also remain without a goal across their last four European matches.
Tottenham now need just four points from their remaining fixtures against Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt to guarantee at least playoff qualification, with top-eight automatic progression firmly within reach.
A lot of the noise has centered around yet another convincing performance from Simons, his second on the bounce after Brentford last weekend, but according to Hargreaves, it was another man who stole the show.
Owen Hargreaves praises 'exceptional' Mohammed Kudus
While the media have lavished Simons’ 9/10 display, it was Kudus who attracted serious praise from TNT Sports pundit Owen Hargreaves.
Speaking after the match, Hargreaves told TNT that Kudus was Tottenham’s ‘best player by far’ and put in a truly ‘exceptional’ display.
The Ghanaian will be facing off against England at the World Cup, potentially Djed Spence, who jokingly said that he was going to pocket his teammate in the States.
However, if we were Spence, we’d certainly be worried.
Kudus has been Tottenham’s standout attacking star by some way this season, and it’s hard to imagine where Frank’s side would be without the former West Ham sensation, who crossed the London divide in July.
The 25-year-old, on top of his nine goal contributions in all competitions this season, has also averaged more successful take-ons per 90 than any other player in the Premier League — marking himself out as England’s most devastating dribbler (WhoScored).
Last night was yet another example of the excellent business done by Spurs to tempt Kudus to north London, and the best could still be yet to come.
It turns out Walker Buehler had a little bit of extra juice in his Twitter fingers when he shot out a social media message targeting Francisco Lindor after their game.
On Tuesday night, Buehler was ejected from the Boston Red Sox matchup with the New York Mets after arguing with home plate umpire Mike Estabrook. After the game, Buehler quote-tweeted a clip of Lindor cheerleading for his ejection and said, "I wouldn't want me out there either. Sad thing is the BULLPEN is full of f–king animals. Tough choice."
Buehler was asked about the tweet on Wednesday, and MassLive's Chris Cotillo relayed his response. The 30-year-old said, "I said my piece—sponsored by Buffalo Trace a little bit. We’re all competitive. It is what it is at that point. I’d probably do the same if I was him."
Having a few pops of whiskey and hopping online to fire off a tweet? We’ve all been there before.
The top-order batter, looking to return to the Test line-up for the Ashes, produced some flowing stroke play against Victoria
AAP17-Sep-2025
Marnus Labuschagne celebrates his century•Getty Images
Marnus Labuschagne’s quest to return to the Test side for the Ashes series gained momentum with a century for Queensland, before Glenn Maxwell responded as only he can.Queensland skipper Labuschagne struck a classy 130 from 118 deliveries in the 55-run win over Victoria in the One-Day Cup clash at Allan Border Field on Wednesday.Related
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Maxwell, who retired from ODI cricket in June, then did Maxwell things in the run chase. It was not enough to win, but his 107 off 82 balls included eight huge sixes and entertained to the max.Runs are the currency for Labuschagne to get back in the Test side, and he has been prolific in the past month. Against Tasmania in practice games he scored 67 in a one-dayer and followed that up with 67 retired in a two-day match. A 57-ball century in T20 Max was another stunner.His innings against Victoria was another step in the right direction.”I just trusted my game today and it was nice to be playing at my best and trusting my instincts,” Labuschagne said. “I think it always happens at some stage in your career where you are searching … and you get a little muddled and not as clear.”The last two months I’ve played lots of games and I’m getting that feel of the game back after three months of not playing, from the [World] Test Championship until now. Nothing else matters but runs. The format doesn’t matter. I know if I am playing my best I will find my way in the team.”My goal is to be there for the first Test. The only way you can do that is with performances on the board.”While Labuschagne has made his mark as a No. 3 batter, he is also open to partnering Usman Khawaja at the top of the order.”I don’t care where I bat, if I have to open or bat three,” he said. “The fact of the matter is that when you are not in the team you don’t have the luxury of choosing where you bat.”Before Wednesday’s match Labuschagne said he was keen to find the “see ball, hit ball” form that rocketed him to the top of the ICC Test batter rankings, a modus operandi adopted to perfection by India maestro Virender Sehwag.”Obviously Sehwag’s method was taking the ball on and just playing it. That’s an element for me,” Labuschagne said. “That is where I want to get to by the start of the summer, where I am so clear and confident with my technique that there is nothing else I am thinking about apart from seeing the ball, hitting it and trusting my game and everything falling into place.”Everything did fall into place on Wednesday for Labuschangne, who drove the ball with precision. His shots down the ground were majestic, including an on-drive off Will Sutherland that brought up his half-century.Queensland accelerated at the end of their innings, with Jack Wildermuth (54 not out off 30) the most effective in a total of 310 for 5.Paceman Michael Neser reminded Australian selectors of his class with a masterful exhibition of swing and seam bowling to have the visitors 16 for 3 including Matt Short and Marcus Harris with consecutive deliveries.Peter Handscomb steadied the ship, before Maxwell took over but Victoria were eventually all out for 255.