All posts by h716a5.icu

Nottingham Forest failed with a last-minute move to bring Domingos Quina to the City Ground.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Athletic, who claim that Forest, alongside AFC Bournemouth, Southampton, Swansea City and LOSC Lille, submitted an enquiry to Watford regarding the 21-year-old’s availability.

However, in what has since proved to be a recurring theme for Dane Murphy on transfer deadline day, the Reds failed with their attempt to land the former Portugal U21 international in the closing stages of the summer window, with Championship table-toppers Fulham eventually securing a deal for the central midfielder.

Fans will be fuming

With recent reports revealing that Nottingham Forest also missed out on deadline day moves for Josh Maja and Yuma Suzuki, the news that the Reds also failed in their bid to land Quina is sure to have left the City Ground faithful fuming.

Indeed, considering just how poorly Forest have started their 2021/22 Championship campaign, picking up a single point over their opening five fixtures of the season, it was abundantly clear that Chris Hughton was in need of further reinforcements prior to the closure of the transfer window.

And, considering the 21-year-old’s substantial amount of potential, as well as his impressive positional versatility and ability to find the back of the net from just about anywhere around the penalty area, the signing of the Watford midfielder would most certainly have been a fantastic deal for Murphy to get over the line.

However, perhaps unsurprisingly, Quina opted to join a side who very much look to be a more attractive proposition than Hughton’s outfit – who are currently rooted to the foot of the Championship table.

As such, the 62-year-old Forest manager has been left to get his side out of their sticky situation with largely the same central midfield with which he finished last season, something that would not appear to bode particularly well for the club considering their performance thus far in the second tier.

In other news: Zero shots on target: £450k-rated Forest dud badly failed Hughton’s trust in August

Younis Khan took full advantage of a dead pitch at the National Stadium, scoring his maiden triple-century – the third by a Pakistan batsman – to push his side to safety

The Bulletin by Sriram Veera24-Feb-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Younis Khan hit his stride after working out the pitch and what he needed to do © AFP
Younis Khan took full advantage of a dead pitch at the National Stadium, scoring his maiden triple-century – the third by a Pakistan batsman – to push his side to safety and the match towards a draw. After four bat-dominated days, the only interest now left in the contest is whether the new Pakistan captain can break Brian Lara’s Test record of 400.It was in line with Younis’ character that he brought up the landmark with a reverse-sweep. The cap was off, was performed and a million-dollar smile lit up his sunny face. Fifty-two years earlier, Hanif Mohammad hit Pakistan’s highest Test score, a mammoth 337 against West Indies that took three days in making. The story goes that a Bajan boy, watching it from a palm tree, fell down and upon recovering consciousness in the hospital, wondered: Is Hanif still batting? He still was. Younis might well have elicited a similar reaction today. He batted on for 545 balls, and is not yet finished.”I have never seen a pitch here where even on the fourth day not a single ball has done anything to trouble the batsmen,” Waqar Younis said on air. Younis took full toll in the middle. He had worked out the pitch, the match situation and what he needed to do. Against Muttiah Muralitharan he defended a lot and nudged offbreaks to the on side before suddenly unfurling a slog-sweep. Occasionally, he charged down the track to lift over the infield. And as ever a Younis knock is incomplete without those reverse-sweeps. Against Ajantha Mendis, he rarely got his pad in way and nudged and dabbed his way without any fuss. It worked like a treat. When the mood seized him, he went for the big shot down the ground.The game lapsed into bit of a farce in the last session. Mahela Jayawardene gave Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tharanga Paranavitana, Kumar Sangakkara and himself some overs. It got weirder when Jayawardene picked up the wicket of Faisal Iqbal. Younis helped himself to easy boundaries in that phase and moved from 243 to his triple-hundred.Sri Lanka, though, persevered gamely till the tea break. Jayawardene used Chaminda Vaas and Mendis in an 18-over spell in the morning and both bowlers kept it tight, giving away only 37 runs. With the wicketkeeper standing up to the stumps and a lone wide slip in place, Vaas kept varying his pace and bowled quite a few offcutters. The batsmen remained cautious but Vaas succeeded in creating a couple of chances with his persistence. On one occasion, Younis edged an attempted cover drive but it flew between keeper and slip. The second time Vaas slipped one just down leg, beating Misbah’s flick but Prasanna Jayawardene could not collect cleanly to complete the stumping.Mendis toiled hard, mixing his deliveries well, using the offbreak as his stock ball and varying the pace. The batsmen generally played him with caution but did strike a few big hits. Younis reprised yesterday’s shot – a smooth clean swing to the straight boundary – and Misbah hit the first six of the match when he cleared long-on.In the second session, Jayawardene used the combination of Muralitharan and Dilhara Fernando, who had removed Misbah with an in-cutter just before lunch. Muralitharan could not create any pace off the track and it was left to Fernando to try posing a few problems to the batsmen. He bowled his heart out in what was his best spell of the match. He got the ball to reverse and was accurate throughout. He had a very close shout for lbw against Faisal with a ball that curved in but the umpire wasn’t convinced. He then rapped Younis with a similar delivery but this one was missing leg stump. Mendis returned to trouble Faisal with his carrom balls but the batsmen survived to score some easy runs against the lesser bowlers.The batsmen were intent on playing out time and managed to do just that. It might have made the cricket boring but the match situation left them with no other option. However, the bigger question still remains: When you are playing Test cricket at home after 16 months, and with Test-match attendance falling rapidly, was this dead pitch the best you could come up with? The authorities need to do a sincere post-mortem.

Adam Pope has delivered his verdict on Leeds United starlet Jamie Shackleton, and has tipped him to have a “big impact” this season in the Premier League.

What’s the story?

The 21-year-old has made a couple of appearances for Marcelo Bielsa’s side in the top-flight, but the only game that he has started came in the Carabao Cup second round clash against Crewe when he played the full 90 minutes.

Now, in response to a fan’s tweet about this season being a break-out one for Shackleton, Pope delivered his take on the young midfielder.

He said: “Thing is he’s made 60 plus appearances so he’s never been far away from it under Marcelo. If he has better luck with injuries he could continue to have a big impact.”

Up to Bielsa now

Yet to make a start in the Premier League this season, Shackleton’s chances of doing so were boosted earlier in the summer when Leeds opted against signing a new central midfielder, or at least failing to do so.

The 21-year-old is one of the players who should benefit hugely from that decision, and while he’s yet to really make his mark on the first-team just yet, it’s not because his manager doesn’t rate him.

In fact, speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game against Southampton in the Premier League last season, Bielsa said: “I believe in Shackleton as an important alternative for Leeds United. He’s in a similar process to that of Pascal (Struijk).

“The only thing is that Pascal has a continuity that Shackleton hasn’t been able to have. I consider him a player that I can trust and I’m satisfied with what he has brought to the team. Apart from that, he is a very serious player, very applied and very conscious of what is needed to play at this level.”

And, speaking after his cameo in the 5-0 win over West Brom earlier last year, the Leeds boss said of the 21-year-old: “Good organisation, energetic, he’s quick, he can surprise opponents, plays in a position which has many varieties as a box-to-box midfielder.”

But as always, actions speak louder than words, and while Bielsa may publicly voice his approval of Shackleton, the only real way he can show that is by giving him the opportunities to start in the Premier League.

With no new central midfielder arriving at Elland Road over the summer, the Leeds boss now has the perfect chance to finally unleash Shackleton.

Meanwhile, this Leeds United transfer target is now set for contract talks…

The 22nd annual Chiang Mai International Cricket Sixes starts on Sunday at the picturesque Chiengmai Gymkhana Club in Thailand

Cricinfo staff26-Mar-2009The 22nd annual Chiang Mai International Cricket Sixes starts on Sunday at the picturesque Chiengmai Gymkhana Club in Thailand. Despite the economic crunch, organisers of the event say it has attracted a keen and competitive range of teams from all over the world.Thirty-two men’s sides and three women’s outfits have registered for the week of action. Up to 15 matches a day will be held involving squads from Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, England, Greece, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, Thailand, UAE, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. Other players are attending from India, Sri Lanka, the USA and Belgium.Abhisit Vejjajiva, the Prime Minister of Thailand, has welcomed the visitors to the popular event, which helps develop cricket in the country. “I am especially pleased to hear about the efforts you are making, along with the Asian Cricket Council, to develop children’s cricket in Thailand, and I believe that several thousand Thai school children have already discovered the joys of playing the game,” he said. “This is particularly relevant considering that cricket will be an official sport at the 16th Asian Games being held in Guangzhou China in November of next year.”

A round-up from the latest County Championship matches

Cricinfo staff30-Apr-2009Division Two2nd dayEssex grasped the momentum against Kent at Chelmsford, bowling out the visitors for 205 and enforcing the follow-on. The hosts only added 40 to their overnight 330 for 7, and James Foster was an early victim, falling for 99, but Essex’s bowlers made quick inroads into a shaky Kent line-up. Chris Wright and David Masters helped reduce them to 96 for 6, before there was a late and much-needed salvage operation from Wayne Parnell, who carved 69 from 80 balls with two sixes and nine fours. However, Maurice Chambers and Danish Kaneria mopped up the rest to dismiss Kent for 205, and Wright then made an early inroad with the new ball in Kent’s second innings to leave them in a perilous position going into the third day.3rd dayAn intriguing final day is in store at Wantage Road tomorrow with Northamptonshire requiring 171 runs to beat Gloucestershire, but only have five wickets in hand. The visitors were very well placed at the start of the day, on 105 for 1 in their second innings, but crumbled to 237 all out. Hamish Marshall and Chris Taylor each made fifties but there was little else in support as David Lucas added three more wickets to end with 4 for 39. However, Northamptonshire also suffered from a batting wobble and were reduced to 102 for 5 chasing 371 before Andrew Hall (50*) and David Willey (43*) stiffened their resolve with an unbeaten sixth-wicket stand of 98. The match is wide open with one day to go.Middlesex were able to enforce the follow-on against Leicestershire at Southgate but found the visitors harder to break down for a second time. Boeta Dippenaar led the defiance as he moved to 85, adding an unbroken 96 for the third wicket with fellow South Africa, HD Ackerman. Dippenaar had earlier put on 79 with Tom New after Matthew Boyce was trapped leg-before early on by Tim Murtagh. The Middlesex attack had done an efficient job of wrapping up Leicestershire’s first innings after Alan Richardson removed Josh Cobb for 60. James Taylor’s 69-ball nine was cut off by Murtagh and Dawid Malan’s part-time legspin claimed two lower-order scalps.There was no play between Glamorgan and Derbyshire at Cardiff due to rain.Division One2nd dayAdam Voges was the cornerstone of the Nottinghamshire batting with 95 as the battled hard to build a lead of over Lancashire at Old Trafford. Rain and bad light cut into the second day and for much of the time available it was closely-fought battle. Oliver Newby and Glen Chapple struck during the morning session to keep Lancashire in the game, but Voges began to take control. He lost Ali Brown for 21 before adding 67 with Chris Read and was approaching his century when, for the second time in a week, was cut-off short when Newby trapped him lbw. Graeme Swann bagged a duck and Lancashire had hopes of wrapping up the tail, but Read’s good form continued as he and Paul Franks batted through to the early close on 263 for 6.Rain washed out any chance of play at The Rose Bowl between Hampshire and Sussex.3rd dayFor a full report from the third day between Somerset and Durham at Taunton click here.For a full report from the third day between Yorkshire and Worcestershire at Headingley click here.

Wolverhampton Wanderers will definitely ‘look into the possibility’ of signing summer target Renato Sanches in January, according to Alex Dicken. 

The lowdown

Wolves had hoped to sign Sanches on a season-long loan on Deadline Day, but walked away from the deal when the extent of the player’s current injury emerged.

The midfielder has missed Lille’s last five matches with a knee problem.

Having pulled out of the move, Wolves failed to add a senior central midfielder to their ranks during the summer.

Sanches has earned rave review, with former Everton and Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell calling him a ‘powerhouse’.

The latest

The report states that Sanches was Lage’s top target, viewed as ‘the missing ingredient’ in the middle of the park.

Lille were willing to part with the player with financial reasons.

He’s ‘certain’ to remain on Wolves’ radar come January, but there’s also likely to be greater competition for his signature once he is fully fit.

The verdict

Sanches would be a real coup for Wolves, even if his lengthy injury history makes the move risky.

You would expect there to be rival offers from some European heavyweights off the back of his mightily impressive performances for Ligue 1 champions Lille and of course Portugal.

There’s an exciting project building at Molineux though, with Wolves playing some captivating football in the early matches of Lage’s tenure, despite the points not quite flying in yet.

In other news, Tim Spiers reveals the changes Lage has made.

In a campaign that has included matches insipid and inspiring the Royal Challengers have well and truly come to life

The Bulletin by Jamie Alter21-May-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Hail the first Indian centurion of the IPL at Centurion•Associated PressIn a campaign that has included matches insipid and inspiring Royal Challengers Bangalore have well and truly come to life. Maintaining the momentum of three consecutive wins, they pulled the rug from under Deccan Chargers’ feet and went to No. 3 in the points table, setting up a semi-final clash with the Chennai Super Kings on Saturday. Deccan will play Delhi Daredevils in Friday’s semi-final.At the end of a clinical win, Bangalore can thank Manish Pandey and RP Singh. Promoting Pandey to open in a pressure situation, Bangalore nearly lost him in the third over but RP’s gross misjudgment at third man settled the nerves and then some. Either cutting solidly or swatting and slapping with efficiency rather than grace, Pandey grabbed the opportunity and notched up just the second century this season – and the first by an Indian in either season. Few in South Africa would have heard of the Under-19 batsman before today but should remember him after this amazing effort.Teams have struggled to defend under lights at Centurion, and Bangalore were put on the backfoot as Herschelle Gibbs waded into the attack. But Anil Kumble took pace off the ball and once Gibbs and Andrew Symonds were dismissed in relative succession it all got too tough for Deccan.RP’s drop in the third over came after Jacques Kallis pulled his seventh ball to short square leg. It proved a costly error. Pandey began his innings looking out of sorts, twice inside-edging Ryan Harris on the bounce to Adam Gilchrist and top-edging safely to third man. Batting as though Bangalore needed to chase 250, Pandey clouted the ball through the leg side with abandon.Roelof van der Merwe showed a liking for RP on the leg side, twice crashing him over through and over mid-on for boundaries, and weighed in with 23 from 18 balls. After he was well stumped off Symonds in the tenth over, Pandey weighed the situation and hung on. By this time he was 33, and on resumption after the strategic break dumped T Suman’s offspin for consecutive sixes to raise his half-century. Now his timing had improved considerably and Bangalore were going at seven an over.Very strong through the leg side, Pandey’s main scoring option was the swipe across the line. RP returned to bowl the 14th over and Pandey reminded him of his reprieve, swatting and edging fours. He continued the same way after Pragyan Ojha accounted for Rahul Dravid in the next over, clearing his front leg and slogging against the turn. The caress – Pandey steered Jaskaran for four – was followed by the clubbed – next ball disappeared for six – and the fortuitous – an edge beat Gilchrist for four – as Pandey moved to 98 at the end of the 17th over.Prime Numbers410 The number of runs scored by Gilchrist in the tournament. He becomes the fourth batsman to go past the 400-mark45The number of runs conceded by Praveen Kumar, making it the second-most expensive spell by a Bangalore bowler this season. Kallis went for 51 off his four overs against Kings XI Punjab in their first meeting this season106The number of runs scored in the last 10 overs by Bangalore3The number of half-centuries for Gibbs in the tournament, making him the batsman with most fifty-plus scores for DeccanThe landmark came up with a couple wide of long-on and there wasn’t much fanfare. Virat Kohli took a cue and pulled six more, followed by a top edge that dropped safely between two clueless fielders, and deposited the last ball over the ropes. That last over summed up the course the two teams had run.With Gilchrist struggling for timing, Gibbs took over the responsibility of scoring and did so in inimitable fashion. He survived a shout against an Kumble topspinner when on 5 but didn’t refrain from walking across his stumps, lapping and pulling the bowlers to distraction. Kallis hobbled off with a troublesome hamstring and Gibbs decided to take on Praveen Kumar. The first two balls were short-arm-flicked for sixes, the third was lapped for four, and Gilchrist put away a low full toss. Gibbs then dismissed van der Merwe for a couple of sixes upon introduction. Taking full toll of the half-volleys and stray balls that were on offer, Gibbs blasted 45 of the 68 runs added by the openers, lashing boundaries on both sides of the wicket.He was dropped on 49 – soon after Gilchrist went for 15 – but didn’t do much damage after Deccan went into the strategic break on a healthy 85 for 1. Symonds walked out in the 11th over after Kumble got Suman, and Rohit Sharma followed him in second ball of the 15th when Gibbs lost his grip and skied one to a tumbling Pandey in the deep. With 52 needed in five, Kumble called back van der Werwe and he bowled Symonds first ball. The pressure was on Rohit and Venugopal Rao but neither contributed; Rao was run out in the 18th over and in the next Rohit lofted Kumble to a very calm Kohli at long-on. The 26 needed off the final over was too much.Bangalore showed an intensity that indicated how keen they were to erase the loss from the last time these two teams met. Pandey has said he would like to join the army, like his father, if he is unable to become a professional cricketer. If he can score hundreds like this going forward he won’t need to reach for that application form.

A number of Leeds United supporters have been critical of Stuart Dallas’ first half performance at home to West Ham.

The Whites play host the Hammers in the Premier League this afternoon, with Marcelo Bielsa’s side still looking for their first league win of the season, having drawn three and lost two of their opening five matches.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359346″]

Meanwhile, West Ham have started well, sitting eighth in the table and looking a strong outfit with David Moyes at the helm.

However, it was Leeds who broke the deadlock, with Raphinha opening the scoring in the 19th minute at Elland Road.

One player who struggled in the opening 45 minutes was Dallas, however. The 30-year-old had a quiet first half, his main contributing being a wayward shot just after the half-hour mark.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-17/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Leeds fans react to Dallas’ performance against West Ham

These Leeds fans took to Twitter to provide their thoughts on Dallas’ showing.

“There’s something up with Stuart Dallas”

Credit: @allan_howe

“Dallas needs to massively wake his ideas up. A ghost of himself at the moment”

Credit: @C1919W

“What’s happened to Dallas? He’s just not the same guy as last season?”

Credit: @Varneyshairline

“I wonder if the personal issue he suffered a few weeks ago is ongoing?”

Credit: @wasreallynowt

“Does Dallas need a break?”

Credit: @MichaeLukeMusic

“31 – A really nice Leeds move goes right to left then back into the middle for Dallas to shoot. We’ll never mention the shot again. 1-0”

Credit: @GrahamSmyth

In other news, Leeds have been tipped to make a move for an exciting player. Find out who it is here.

Flocking to Twitter, many Aston Villa fans have erupted over a three-word message containing a picture of midfielder John McGinn.

The Villans ran out 1-0 winners against Manchester United yesterday afternoon in what was a memorable victory, and one which alerts the Premier League to their presence.

Dean Smith’s men battled away at Old Trafford against a plethora of superstars but came out on top when Kortney Hause buried a late header past David de Gea.

In reaction to the phenomenal win in Manchester, the club have dropped a three-word message involving McGinn as the Scotsman enjoyed a fine afternoon up against the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba in midfield, coming up with one important block and one successful tackle for his team.

Indeed, Villa simply dropped the message ‘what a performance’ in accompaniment to an image of the 26-year-old.

Flocking to the club’s post, many Villa fans erupted with their reactions as they enjoy the heights of a brilliant win away to the Red Devils. Here is a selection of the responses from the Villa Park faithful:

Villa fans flock to McGinn message…

“His game has gone up another level this season.”

Credit: @Jelly31807434

“People keep saying McGinn is back to his best, but I think he has elevated his game to a whole new level, so is better than ever. Him and Dougie have really cemented their relationship in the middle of the park, and with the addition of JJ’s legs, they are bossing games now!”

Credit: @ShaunStait

“Been our best player this season so far, hasn’t had a performance under 8/10 yet”

Credit: @GW_94

“Are we joking”

Credit: @Villal_

“Tattoo this on my left thigh.”

Credit: @Ryan_Wills

“Massive”

Credit: @danielstchr

In other news: “It’s an opportunity” – Aston Villa’s youth players earn pundit’s backing

Pakistan face Ireland at The Oval, and the senior side are determined to crush their minnow opponents

Osman Samiuddin14-Jun-2009Match Facts
Monday, June 15
Start time 1330 local (1230 GMT)Big Picture
The return of Abdul Razzaq has added spice to Pakistan’s already fiery bowling attack•Getty ImagesRevenge will be one theme for sure. But bigger than that will be Pakistan’s opportunity to advance to the semi-finals; Sri Lanka’s narrow win over Ireland now means that any kind of Pakistan win against the Irish almost certainly sends them through to the semis (barring some outlandish scenarios) on net run-rate.If they do get there, it will be some achievement given that they have yet to hit their peak and that nobody is really sure where that peak may be. But their bowling was always a threat and once they got the England game out of the way, it has mostly lived up to its reputation. The return of Abdul Razzaq has livened things up and with Umar Gul, Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal, they were lively in any case.The batting is still a worry and even a 100-run target against New Zealand entailed losses. In particular, concerns centre on the form of Misbah-ul-Haq and Shoaib Malik; powerhouses in the last World Cup, they have scored 144 runs between them here, just six more than Younis Khan and at vastly inferior strike rates. Incidentally, Pakistan’s press has been rife with rumours of a growing rift between the pair and the captain; Abdul Qadir’s claims about Malik does nothing to dispel the speculation.The Irish, as ever, will do their best to exploit any such issue to their advantage. They may be playing only for pride but for an Associate nation in a big tournament that is often the main motivation. Few have been unimpressed by them and only inexperience cost them the chance of an upset over Sri Lanka. They will also need no reminding of the events of the 2007 50-over World Cup. Theoretically, if they can beat Pakistan in a 50-over game, then in a Twenty20 game, the chances increase.Form guide
(last five matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WLWLWIreland LLLWN/RWatch out for
Umar Gul is peaking for Pakistan at just the right time and his world-best figures against New Zealand means he is now joint leading wicket-taker in the tournament. A little stutter early on has been overcome and that frighteningly accurate yorker is back.Ireland’s opening bowlers Boyd Rankin and Trent Johnston bowled fine spells against Sri Lanka and if conditions are murky overhead, Pakistan’s batsmen will not much like their swing, seam and bounce.Team newsGiven the nature of their win over New Zealand, Pakistan are unlikely to make any changes to their XI.Pakistan: (probable) 1 Shahzaib Hassan, 2 Kamran Akmal (wk), 3 Shoaib Malik, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq, 5 Younis Khan (capt), 6 Abdul Razzaq, 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Fawad Alam, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Mohammad Aamer, 11 Saeed AjmalNiall O’Brien aggravated his ankle injury against Sri Lanka but the way he is, he’d probably have had to lost a leg altogether to miss a match.Ireland: (probable) 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Gary Wilson, 3 Niall O’Brien (wk), 4 Andre Botha, 5 Kevin O’Brien, 6 John Mooney, 7 Alex Cusack, 8 Trent Johnston, 9 Kyle McCallan, 10 Regan West, 11 Boyd RankinStats and trivia4 – Number of Pakistan players taking part tomorrow who played in the defeat to Ireland in the 2007 World Cup7 – Number of Irish players taking part tomorrow who played in the same matchQuotes”We can’t wait to play Ireland. My advice to the boys about that game? Just crush them.”
Younis Khan is crystal clear about what he wants.”He didn’t even ask for a runner. It was never in his head.”
William Porterfield on Niall O’Brien after Ireland’s wicketkeeper turned over his already-injured right ankle