West Ham United confirmed the appointment of Manuel Pellegrini as their new manager on Monday morning, with the Chilean signing a three-year contract at the London Stadium.
The West Ham fans are absolutely delighted with the news, and it will be very interesting to see how Pellegrini fares in the English capital.
Transfer funds will have been discussed in the meetings between the two parties, although it is currently unclear what type of budget Pellegrini will have available this summer.
The West Ham fans have been discussing potential summer arrivals, and there are some very interesting names that have been thrown into the mix.
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Indeed, one particular fan account asked the supporters to identify one realistic signing that they want to see arrive in this summer’s transfer window.
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Sporting Lisbon and Portugal midfielder William Carvalho was quite popular, but there were also some surprise and indeed ambitious names in the list of responses.
A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:
As reported by The Sun, Manchester United are ready to make David de Gea the highest paid player at Old Trafford in an effort to rebuff interest from Real Madrid.
What’s the story?
The Spanish goalkeeper has been at United for almost seven years now, but over the years has consistently been linked with a move back to his homeland.
Thus far the Red Devils have managed to keep him happy in Manchester, where he’s become one of the most important members of their starting eleven.
To ensure that continues, the club are prepared to make him their highest paid star, with an eye watering £300,000 per week wage set to be offered according to The Sun.
While his contract doesn’t run out until 2019, with the club holding a year extension option, the paper reports that Man United are set to open contract talks soon to up his current £210,000 per week deal.
Is he worth the money?
The shot-stopper is arguably one of the top three goalkeepers in the world and United are undoubtedly better off with him than without him. He’s bailed them out on numerous occasions and has a lengthy highlight reel of stunning saves, making 111 clean sheets in total.
Rated at £45m by Transfermarkt, handing him a new contract not only ties him down to more years at the club but protects his value too should he ever personally wish to make a move back to La Liga.
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Retaining him is key to Man United’s trophy ambitions over the next few years though and it’s no surprise to hear they are ready to throw money at him.
With close to 300 appearances for the club, he would be almost irreplaceable at this point, especially as he is heading into his prime years at 27.
It wouldn’t have taken much for the post-match interviews to be more dramatic than the drab hour and a half of football served up on Sunday at White Hart Lane, but few could have foreseen the storm that would be created by AVB’s parting comments.
In a remarkable attack on the Tottenham faithful, AVB criticised the fans for creating an atmosphere of anxiety not dissimilar to what is usually afforded to away teams:
“There was much anxiety present in the fans which transmitted to the players, so this victory is down to the players. We did it with no help today.”
“We need people to be patient and support the players and give them the extra energy to go through and not the negative energy.”
As revolutionary as some may want to make this, it has undoubtedly been an issue dogging most fans for a while and many greeted the manager’s comments with a degree of respect and understanding.
Tottenham are like so many Premier League clubs who have seen atmospheres wane ever since the turn of the millennia. Rather than a sense of liberal tribal warfare where fans would give everything for their side on a weekly basis, there is an increasing culture that is reminiscent of theatre goers across the West End. The whole ‘come lets be entertained’ ethos is beginning to dominate much of our football and it is a worry.
Now I know this is part of a more general debate and actually the pattern is understandable. Rising ticket prices that alienate the traditional footballing fan coupled with pressures to maintain safety and order on the terraces have created an environment bereft of heart and soul.
AVB believes Spurs fans can ‘do better’ and THST are inclined to agree:
“Responding to comments on our feed @SpursOfficial are working with us on the atmosphere at WHL. We recognise the need for work in this area.”
The relationship between fans and players runs both ways, fans pay good money in expectation that they will see entertaining free-flowing football. However, players appear unable to do this in an atmosphere of nerve and anxiety. In a way fans and players at Spurs are becoming each other’s worst enemies, an undesirable situation for either party
Spurs are a club who have some of the most loyal and ardent travelling supporters in the country, continually out singing fans up and down the land it is no surprise that Spurs play some of their most carefree and watchable football away from home. Players need their fans most at times of adversity and when you go a goal down that roar from the crowd is what gets the team going again, away from home Spurs could be 2 goals down and they would still receive that same vociferous support.
Contrast that to the Lane where after about 20mins without a goal the tetchiness increases and there is a general sense of unease. This isn’t a question of noise, I have been to both the Emirates and Old Trafford and I can assure you there are far more tranquil environments on match day, it is more the tone of the fans.
Too often though there is this feeling that any mistake may well prompt an outpouring of disapproval from the crowd, as such players appear less inclined to go for that incisive pass rather go for something a bit more simple and readily achievable. The fear of failure at home is stifling the creativity and tempo, is it really surprising that Spurs play at such a pedestrian and predictable pace?
Some have come down hard on Spurs fans, critical of the fact that AVB has guided them to their best ever Premier League start and they now have the squad to go on to more. The debate between results and style has always been a contentious one, especially at Spurs. Central to the Spurs philosophy is the whole idea that there is more than just winning, to quote the great Danny Blanchflower:
“The great fallacy is that the game is first and last about winning. It is nothing of the kind. The game is about glory, it is about doing things in style and with a flourish, about going out and beating the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom.”
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There is a feeling amongst some that AVB is going about things the wrong way that there is Spurs style that must be adhered to first and foremost. I don’t have any qualms with this way of thinking at all, in fact those that believe it has every right to.
My sense though is that this atmosphere issue isn’t something restricted to AVB era Spurs, it is much more endemic than that. It is refreshing that fans, club and players want to do something about it because in the modern era the tide seems to be going so much the other way; and who knows those that yearn for free-flowing football may finally get their wish when the White Hart Lane shackles are finally broken.
Connor Wickham is still in Sunderland manager Martin O’Neill’s thoughts despite having failed to make a senior appearance in the 2012/2013 season.
With injuries and Premier League fixtures coming thick and fast, the England under 21 international will be hopeful of playing a part in Sunderland’s league cup clash with MK Dons tonight.
The 19 year old netted twice against Newcastle United under 21s and was an unused substitute in the Black Cats 1-1 draw with West Ham.
O’Neill said to the Northern Echo, “He scored two goals for the reserves and had to be there in the right position to score them. Goals will give any centre forward a bit of a confidence and that is something he needs. All centre forwards do.”
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Still only September the Ulsterman’s squad could hardly be more stretched for the Tusday night fixture, Seb Larsson and Fraizer Campbell will miss out after picking up injuries on Saturday, while those who missed the tie at Upton Park are still unavailable. Titus Bramble will be rested ahead of Saturday’s league match with Wigan, while Danny Rose cannot play due to the terms of his season long loan deal from Tottenham.
Ireland leave Bangladesh with a 2-0 Test series defeat but their 26-year-old allrounder has impressed with his batting ability
Mohammad Isam23-Nov-2025In the aftermath of their 217-run defeat to Bangladesh, Ireland captain Andy Balbirnie was still proud of the fight put up by Curtis Campher, Gavin Hoey and Jordan Neill on the fifth day in Dhaka.The visitors batted 59.3 overs on Sunday, holding Bangladesh up till almost the tea break, when Hasan Murad removed Hoey and Matthew Humphreys with successive deliveries. Nobody could remove Campher though. He made an unbeaten 71 having faced the greatest number of balls by an Ireland batter in the fourth innings of a Test match (259). Hoey was second on the list with 104.”[Curtis Campher] is someone that is hard to get out when he is in his bubble,” Balbirnie said. “He is very determined not to get out even when he is in the nets. He has such a strong defense, he showed that today.”Bangladesh were pushed to a little bit of an extreme, bowling 100 overs for the first time in the fourth innings at Shere Bangla National stadium. Campher played a big part in that.Related
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“If he puts his mind to it, he can do it,” Balbirnie said. “It is a shame that no one from the top and middle order could hang around for long enough. I think the batters showed fight today, to bat till just before tea on the fifth day. We were behind the game a lot. Bangladesh deserved to win the series 2-0.”Balbirnie also talked about Hoey and his recently-developed skillset as an allrounder: “I play with Gavin in club cricket in Dublin. I have known him since he was a kid. His dad was an Irish international in the 1990s. He was a legspinner as well. I think [Hoey] has only been bowling legspin since [Covid] lockdown, so it’s been five years. He was a seam bowler [earlier].Andy Balbirnie was candid about Ireland’s inability to bat for long periods•ECB/Getty Images
“So to have that skillset in this short time is really impressive. He will get better and better from experiences like this. We have to make sure that he gets enough overs under his belt. We need to have our spinners develop consistency so that we do well in these conditions.”Ireland had some hope of batting the day out and coming away with a draw. “[There were expectations] probably just before Murad took the two wickets,” Balbirnie said. “There was a small bit of excitement in the dressing room at that drinks break. Credit to the Bangladesh spinners. They don’t miss their line and length too often. They test batters a lot. The two wickets in two balls put an end to that [hope] pretty quickly. It was an enthralling day’s play. I think Curtis can be proud of his work today.”The fact that the Test match stretched to the fifth day was also a tribute to the type of pitch prepared for the encounter. “A lot of us had seen the West Indies ODI series. We were a bit nervous coming here,” Balbirnie said, referring to pitches that had, on one occasion, witnessed fifty overs of spin in the first innings. “When we arrived, we thought [the pitch] would break up quickly, but it held together. There was turn, but it wasn’t every ball. It was a good cricket wicket. I thought it was a pretty fair wicket. We had two good wickets over the two Tests.”Balbirnie was also candid about what Ireland hoped for from the series. “We had won three Tests in a row before coming here, so there was confidence in the group,” he said. “We had to manage our expectations. You are coming to places that have experienced cricketers.”We are trying to get that consistency. Our top-order didn’t fire for the last two games. Bangladesh’s top-order showed us how to do it – to bat for a long time and get big hundreds. [Their batting] was the big difference. We weren’t competitive against Bangladesh for longer periods. They showed their class over the nine days,” he said.
Hosts pile on 503 but Durham responded positively after 146.4 overs in the field
ECB Reporters Network11-May-2024Tom Prest flaunted his significant talent with his second Vitality County Championship hundred as Hampshire and Durham’s Division One clash turned into a run-fest.The 21-year-old expertly scored 102, to dovetail with Ali Orr’s day one century and Ben Brown’s 75th first-class fifty, to help Hampshire to 503.Alex Lees led Durham’s response on a Utilita Bowl pitch which has displayed heavy spin in patches but has mostly been fun in the sun to bat on.The opener scored 71 before departing in the penultimate over of the day, having teamed up with David Bedingham to put on a match-high 97 for the third wicket. Durham ended the day on 146 for 3, 357 in arrears.Prest furthered his reputation of being Hampshire’s most exciting homegrown batter since James Vince while showing his complete range.He had enthusiastically reached his half-century on the first evening but was forced to bedded in with Ben Brown, as the visitors bowled accurately during the morning. The pair eventually added 72 together.Prest’s overnight partner Liam Dawson was leg before in the third over of the day – having survived a caught behind appeal from Ben Raine the delivery before.The former England under 19 captain cemented his place in the Hampshire side after a century against Essex in the penultimate match of last season, before an 85 against Lancashire last month proved the ton was no fluke.He never looked in any discomfort, not offering up a single chance as he strode his side to three batting points and a 161-ball century.Prest guided to first slip two balls after reaching three figures to give Brydon Carse his first wicket of the season – having gone nought for 285 up until that point in 2024.Brown, who passed fifty in 95 balls, and Felix Organ maintained Hampshire’s progress – with a clear intention to only have to bat once, especially with rain forecast on Monday.They put on 60 before a flurry of wickets ended the innings. Brown lost control of the bat and splattered one-handed to midwicket, Organ was run out by James Fuller’s lazy running, Kyle Abbott was bowled by a Callum Parkinson ripper before Fuller – after some exciting shot-making – lost his off stump.Parkinson ended with an expensive four-for, with debutant Peter Siddle pilfering three. Hampshire reached 500 at home for the first time since 2019.Vince called for his spinners as soon as the eighth and ninth overs and was quickly rewarded with turn for Dawson and Organ – the former seeing two loud lbw appeals turned down in his first over.Organ was the first to strike when Scott Borthwick brought tea by misreading a full straight delivery to be bowled, and end a pacy 45-run stand with Lees. And then Colin Ackermann was plumb in front to Dawson.Lees batted himself out of danger of becoming a victim of the spin and variable bounce with a series of aggressive boundary shots.But the spell of peril eased and Lees slipped back down the gears to reach 50 for the second time this year in exactly 100 balls, with Bedingham keeping him company.He was adjudged leg-before to Dawson with the seventh from last ball of the day, with Hampshire the only side who could realistically win this game.
Tom Rogers’ first BBL half-century ensure Stars win with 33 balls to spare, keeping their slim final hopes alive
AAP12-Jan-2023Melbourne Stars made light work of their 109-run chase in a nine-wicket thumping of Adelaide Strikers that keeps their slim BBL finals hopes alive.Strikers’ high-powered batting line-up crumbled at the MCG on Thursday night as they were bowled out for just 108, following successive scores of 200-plus. It was the lowest total of any side batting first this season and the third-lowest in Strikers’ history.In reply, Tom Rogers hit the first half-century of his BBL career as Stars cruised to victory with 33 balls in hand. Fellow opener Joe Clarke was the only player dismissed when he was run out by a direct hit from Ryan Gibson.The win lifted Stars off the bottom of the ladder and improved their net run-rate, giving them a finals lifeline ahead of Saturday’s derby against Melbourne Renegades. Strikers host the last-placed Brisbane Heat on the same day and are also firmly in the mix.Strikers’ low total came despite Matt Short hitting two of the first three deliveries of their innings for six as he took 20 off Luke Wood’s opening over. They were the only two sixes of Strikers’ innings.Experienced duo Nathan Coulter-Nile and Adam Zampa shone for Stars, who clamped down on their opponents and bowled almost 60 dot balls.Liam Hatcher removed the competition’s top two run scorers – Short and Chris Lynn – while Beau Webster took a superb diving catch at extra cover to remove Adam Hose. Wood was the only Stars bowler with an economy rate above five an over.Harry Nielsen top-scored for Strikers, who are winless from six attempts against Stars at the MCG.
Dhaka pitch in focus as is unseasonal rain which is forecast from the second to the fourth days
Mohammad Isam03-Dec-2021
Big Picture
Bangladesh have narrowed the gap in skills with Pakistan, but they are still some way off acquiring the mental steel needed to turn corners, handle clutch moments and win Tests. The Dhaka Test is the home side’s last chance to pose the visitors a stern challenge and turn things around for themselves.Shakib Al Hasan’s return to full fitness should help Bangladesh on many fronts. Taskin Ahmed, meanwhile, will be expected to inject a bit of pace.Pakistan’s approach to difficult situations helped them dominate most of the Chattogram Test. When Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das put together 206 runs for the fifth wicket in the first innings, they responded with a strong showing on the second morning. When Bangladesh bowled Pakistan out for 286 in their first dig, their bowlers again got them back in the game.Related
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Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali didn’t just bowl exciting deliveries to get the wickets, they also put together a bowling partnership that left very little wiggle room for the Bangladesh line-up. Such was their dominance over Bangladesh’s top four that the rest of the batting order was left scrambling to compile a big effort.Abid Ali was Pakistan’s batting enforcer in Chattogram. Their gamble to try out newcomer Abdullah Shafique also paid off handsomely, as he struck two fifties in his debut Test. Babar Azam and the rest of the batting order will look to make amends for not contributing much in the first Test.Bangladesh’s batting is their major concern. The top order combusted easily in both innings, which included captain Mominul Haque. Shakib’s inclusion will bolster the batting that was heavily dependent on Mushfiqur and Liton. The bowling, too, will be spin-heavy now that Shakib is back, but how they balance it with pacers is also a big question. The bowling composition will be an early indication of the type of pitch that curator Gamini Silva might dish out.
Form guide
(last five completed matches, most recent first) Bangladesh LWLDL Pakistan WWLWW
In the spotlight
Abid Ali more than made up for his duck against Bangladesh last year with his 224-run tally in the first Test, which included a first-innings 133. Batting like a solid opener, he shifted gears with aplomb, getting into his shell to see Pakistan through good spells of bowling and then opening up quickly to punish errors against spinners and quick bowlers alike.Liton Das bounced back admirably in the Chattogram Test after the T20 World Cup debacle. His maiden Test hundred came at a crunch phase for Bangladesh when they looked down and out. For a player with an aesthetically pleasurable style of play, his inconsistency, though, is frustrating for Bangladesh.
Team news
Shakib and Taskin are set to return to the XI while Mahmudul Hasan Joy could make his Test debut in Saif Hassan’s vacated spot.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Shadman Islam, 2 Mahmudul Hasan Joy, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Mominul Haque (capt), 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Shakib Al Hasan, 7 Liton Das (wk), 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Ebadot HossainPakistan are likely to be unchanged.Pakistan (probable): 1 Abid Ali, 2 Abdullah Shafique, 3 Azhar Ali 4 Babar Azam (capt), 5 Fawad Alam, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Nauman Ali, 9 Hasan Ali, 10 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 11 Sajid Khan
Pitch and conditions
Spinners will definitely come into play at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. The question is when. Unseasonal rain is in the forecast from the second to the fourth days.
Stats and trivia
In the Chattogram fixture, Abid Ali missed out to become the third Pakistani opener, after Hanif Mohammad and Wajahatullah Wasti, to score hundreds in both innings of a Test match.
Afridi is tied with R Ashwin as the top Test wicket-taker in 2021 with a tally of 44.
Liton Das has the second most Test runs among wicketkeepers this year.
Quotes
“Everyone from the subcontinent plays spin very well, so it is better not to give them a spin wicket. I think everyone else would do the same. I prefer a flat wicket.”
From safety protocols to assigning home grounds, here is what could happen during the Sunday meeting
Varun Shetty01-Aug-20207:35
Bal: Hosting IPL a far bigger challenge compared to a bilateral series
What’s the meeting about?
The IPL Governing Council is still awaiting a clearance from the Indian government to host the IPL in the UAE, and according to chairman Brijesh Patel, it “will come” soon. The BCCI has already submitted a letter of intent to the Emirates Cricket Board, and with that out of the way, the council will meet on Sunday primarily to finalise the fixtures and come up with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure safety as players from various countries gather in the UAE. The window for the tournament is between September 19 and November 10.
Who will attend?
The meeting will be chaired by Patel, and also feature BCCI president Sourav Ganguly. Other prominent members expected are IPL COO and BCCI interim chief, Hemang Amin, BCCI secretary Jay Shah, and BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal.
What are the pressing issues? What is an SOP?
Moving the tournament abroad itself isn’t new to the BCCI, but the main point of contention is the safety of doing it this time round. In comparison to, say, the recently concluded bilateral series between West Indies and England, the IPL will have a lot more variables: there will be eight teams, for starters, and they will have to be monitored strictly over a duration that could end up being close to three months.That is where SOPs come in – the procedures that will be defined in microscopic detail and enforced strictly to avoid any infections to the people involved.The SOPs will be drawn across various categories. For example, with something like the testing process: who will be authorised to conduct the tests, and how often will they conduct them? For a player who might arrive later than the rest of his squad, will there be a quarantine period? And how many tests will be required before he can play? What happens if a player tests positive, and what will that mean for the rest of the team given they’ll all be in the same “bubble”?Take that level of detail and apply it across the board to matters like who will be in charge of creating bio-secure bubbles – the franchises or the board – how populated those bubbles can be (will it involve just the team or even the support staff from, say, the hotels?), and how they will be secured against breaches.Get ready for an IPL unlike any other•BCCI
What else needs clarifying
Home grounds and match day protocols: With the fixtures, franchises will be assigned “home” grounds across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah that will likely be on rolling basis. A cap on the number of people allowed at the ground on match days is also expected to be laid down.Closed doors or not? UAE board secretary Mubashir Usmani believes that the active cases in the UAE will reduce from the current figure of about 6,200 by the time the IPL rolls around. He said the board will look to allow spectators to the tune of 30-50% capacity at the stadiums. Given that most sporting events are happening behind closed doors, the council will have to take a call on this.When can teams land in the UAE? Chennai Super Kings are already aiming to get to Dubai in the second week of August to kickstart training, and various franchises are reportedly looking at the August 20-22 window.What about the latecomers? Some players from Australia and England are expected to be engaged in an ODI series till the second week of September, and Lasith Malinga and Isuru Udana could be held up by the Lankan Premier League which is scheduled to end on September 20. Quarantine protocols will dictate how early such players will feature in the tournament.Player replacements Franchises are keen to understand how replacements will work during the tournament. The IPL normally allows mid-season replacements in case of injuries, and this time there will be the added possibility of players pulling out of the tournament for a variety of reasons.Will there be AB? There is also the matter of South Africa’s borders remaining closed both ways at the moment, which adds another dimension to the logistical issues for franchises, particularly to CSK and RCB, who account for six of the ten South African players in the league.Will Indian team players train together at Motera before the IPL? ESPNcricinfo understands that there was an idea to set up a national team camp in late August, and that franchises are waiting to hear on whether or not that will happen.Will families be allowed? Given that players could likely spend a minimum of two months inside hotels – longer for those who will play India’s Tests in Australia in December – there is the very serious question of whether families will be allowed to travel with them.
The tour was originally scheduled to begin in early May, but was postponed following the Easter Sunday blasts in Colombo
ESPNcricinfo staff18-May-2019The PCB has announced that Pakistan’s Under-19s will tour Sri Lanka from May 23 for a series of five 50-over matches. The tour was originally scheduled to begin in early May, with the team set to depart Pakistan on April 30, but was postponed following the Easter Sunday blasts that left over 250 dead in Colombo.The original schedule consisted of two four-day games and three one-dayers against Sri Lanka’s Under-19s, in Galle and Hambantota. Now the tour will consist only of one-day games, all in Hambantota, on May 26, May 28, May 31, June 2 and June 5. The team will depart for Karachi on June 6.The team will be captained by Rohail Nazir, the 17-year-old Islamabad wicketkeeper-batsman, and coached by Azam Khan.Zakir Khan, the PCB’s director – international cricket, said the decision to go ahead with the tour was made after reviewing the security arrangements made by SLC.”I am pleased to confirm the Pakistan U19 cricket team’s tour to Sri Lanka is now back on track following 21 April tragic events,” Zakir said via press release.”Pakistan have themselves been a victim of terrorism. In the past decade, we have suffered massively, both financially and in terms of growing and developing cricket in our country, following international teams’ refusals to visit Pakistan.”When the offer for a revised schedule came on the table, the PCB management team unanimously agreed they will not allow any cricket playing country to go through the same difficulties and challenges as Pakistan. In such difficult times, the cricket family needs to stand together and support their member.”The decision to visit Sri Lanka is not only to show solidarity with them but to also practice what we preach.”In reaching the decision, we have reviewed and are satisfied with the security plans Sri Lanka Cricket have to put place for the Pakistan U19 cricket team. We have complete faith and confidence that our team will be well looked after in Sri Lanka.”In making the final decision, the PCB also took consent of the relevant authorities who backed our view to support Sri Lanka in these difficult times.”Pakistan Under-19 squad: Rohail Nazir (capt & wk), Mohammad Taha, Abbas Afridi, Akhtar Shah, Basit Ali, Haider Ali, Khayyam Khan (wk), Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Junaid, Mohammad Wasim, Niaz Khan, Saim Ayub, Shiraz Khan, Suleman Shafqat, Qasim Akram Reserves: Amir Ali, Irfan Niazi, Mohammad Amir, Nadir Shah, Said Nazir Coaching staff: Azam Khan (coach-cum-manager), Mohtashim Rasheed (assistant coach), Faheem Shah (physiotherapist), Saboor Ahmed (trainer), Usman Hashmi (analyst)