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It’s battle rejoined. Just in case there hadn’t been enough of England facing Australia in recent months, the semi-final of the Champions Trophy has thrown together a rematch

The Preview by Andrew McGlashan01-Oct-2009Match factsFriday, October 2, 2009
Start time 2:30 pm, 12:30 GMTBig pictureIt’s battle rejoined. Just in case there hadn’t been enough of England facing Australia in recent months, the semi-final of the Champions Trophy has thrown together a rematch. There shouldn’t be much these two sides don’t know about each other, but the intrigue of this meeting is that it’s a straight knockout. Most expected Australia to be here, but few imagined England would still be in the tournament.For a while it looked as though Australia would blow their chance of progressing as the batting came to a screeching halt in their chase against Pakistan. However, Brett Lee and Nathan Hauritz did just enough – Australia were through when they levelled scores off the penultimate ball – and another meeting with the old enemy was an added bonus.Australia will bring with them memories of the 6-1 win in the recent one-day series, while England will say that result doesn’t matter anymore. “We thrashed them the last time we played them,” said Graeme Swann, England’s team joker. The truth, as is often the case, lies somewhere in the middle. Australia clearly have the upper hand in recent contests, but England’s resurgence since arriving in South Africa means they have a good chance of extracting revenge.England may secretly be relieved that Australia scrambled the final bye, which meant they wouldn’t have to face Pakistan’s mixture of spin and reverse swing on a slow, wearing Centurion pitch. Not that Australia’s attack will be easy, but at least there won’t be any of the unknown. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The teams probably know each other a little too well at the moment.Form guide (last five completed matches, most recent first)England – LWWWL
Australia – WNWLW
Team newsThough Matt Prior took part in training on Thursday, he was still feeling the effects of his virus, and England have received ICC permission to replace him in their squad with Worcestershire’s Steven Davies, who flew into South Africa as cover last week. England also have concerns over Stuart Broad, who has a torn buttock muscle. He went for a scan and appeared in discomfort while the team trained in Centurion. If he misses out it will probably mean a recall for Graham Onions, but the loss of Broad’s batting could allow Adil Rashid into the mix, especially given the spin-friendly conditions. Rashid may come into the permutations anyway as a replacement for Luke Wright.England (probable): 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Joe Denly, 3 Owais Shah, 4 Paul Collingwood, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Steven Davies (wk), 7 Luke Wright, 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Ryan Sidebottom, 11 James Anderson.David Hussey has been called into the squad, but it would be asking a lot for him to play straight away. Australia are likely to retain the balance they used against Pakistan and will know what to expect from conditions.Australia (probable) 1 Shane Watson, 2 Tim Paine (wk), 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Hussey, 5 Callum Ferguson, 6 Cameron White, 7 James Hopes, 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Nathan Hauritz, 11 Peter Siddle.Watch out for…It was Graeme Swann who enabled England to save face in the home series when he took 5 for 28 at Chester-le-Street and this could be the match where he comes into his own in this event. So far England’s quicks have done the damage, but if the Australia-Pakistan match is any indication spin is going to play a key role. Swann relishes the battle and has had plenty of success in recent months while Australia continue to have a dodgy record against offspin.Brett Lee was outstanding during the series in England where he hit top speed and swung both the old and new ball. He will feel he has a hold over the English top order and provides Ricky Ponting with a strike weapon at any stage of the innings. Reverse swing was evident in the Pakistan match and if there’s one bowler capable of exploiting the movement it is Lee.Pitch and conditions England scored 323 on an excellent batting surface against South Africa, but the pitch for the previous game between Australia and Pakistan was a tough one for run-scoring. The thunderstorms have stayed away since the Australia-India game and the last thing a semi-final needs is rain.Stats and trivia Just in case anyone forgot – because it was a long time ago – Australia beat England 6-1 in the series that finished two weeks ago. However, the last time these two met in a global semi-final England came out on top in the 2004 Champions Trophy, at Edgbaston, where the home side eased to a six-wicket win. Michael Vaughan believed that result laid the base for the following year’s Ashes victory Australia, though, can point to the last Champions Trophy, in India, when they cruised to a six-wicket victory in Jaipur during the qualifying stages. England produced one of their well-rehearsed batting collapses as they fell from 83 without loss to 169 all out.Quotes”England are playing some pretty good cricket of late, but we know their strengths and weaknesses and have been able to exploit them in the past. Now it is a matter of doing that again.”
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Everton striker Cenk Tosun is set to be offered a way out of his Goodison Park nightmare, with Besiktas reportedly keen to secure his signature over the coming months.

What’s the story?

According to Turkish outlet FotoMac (as relayed by SportWitness), the Black Eagles have begun work to re-sign the 30-year-old after two previous spells with the club.

The report states that Besiktas manager Sergen Yalçın wants Tosun “very much,” while the club’s president Ahmet Nur Cebi has reportedly said in a statement: “We definitely want Cenk in the team.”

FotoMac also claim that the officials of the two clubs have agreed to come face to face during the upcoming international break where the terms of the transfer will be discussed during a meeting.

However, with Tosun set to become a free agent next summer, the Istanbul outfit have yet to decide whether to splash out in January and immediately secure his signature or wait an extra few months in order to avoid paying a transfer fee.

Rafa Benitez must axe him

Tosun has struggled to find his best form since arriving on English shores halfway through the 2017/18 campaign for a whopping £27m as former Everton manager Sam Allardyce looked to add a prolific target man to their attack.

The 6-foot striker had scored 41 goals in 96 Turkish Super Lig games since the start of the 2014/15 season and it was hoped that he’d be able to hit the back of the net on a regular basis following his switch to the Premier League.

Unfortunately for Tosun, though, things haven’t turned out as he had hoped during his time as a Toffees player.

Despite making a solid start – bagging five goals in 14 league games during his maiden campaign – a miserly five further strikes followed in his following 35 top-flight appearances between 2018/19 and 2019/20, with five of those outings coming during a loan spell at Crystal Palace.

His underwhelming performances led to severe criticism from certain sections of the media and fanbase alike, with Andy Gray claiming the Turkey international was “not good enough” for Everton following a disappointing display against West Ham United.

“There’s a lot of players that they have got that are out of the side. What he needs to do is get them all fit,” he told beIN SPORTS back in 2018.

“What my problem will be is I didn’t see it today. I didn’t see Tosun being good enough. We saw Oumar Niasse not good enough at this level. When I say this level, I mean the top half of the Premier League. Those boys are not good enough.”

With that in mind, one could argue that he’s even worse than new signing Salomon Rondon. He’s yet to score for the Toffees but that is mainly down to a lack of fitness. His game time would also suggest that he’s firmly in the manager’s plans, an honour that has never fallen on the shoulders of Tosun.

As a result, new Blues boss Benitez should axe the £60,000-per-week flop during the winter window, adding further funds to the Spaniard’s budget ahead of his potential rebuild on Merseyside.

And, in other news…Brands could find EFC’s next Arteta in “incredible” £13.5m-rated gem, Rafa needs him

The Pakistan captain has offered to resign his post following days of increasing rumour and speculation surrounding Pakistan’s exit from the Champions Trophy in South Africa

Osman Samiuddin13-Oct-2009Pakistan captain Younis Khan has offered to resign his post following days of increasing rumour and speculation surrounding Pakistan’s exit from the Champions Trophy in South Africa. The board has yet to take a decision on the offer, which was made during a meeting of a National Assembly committee called to discuss the issue.Pakistan’s semi-final loss to New Zealand, and Younis’s crucial dropped catch off Grant Elliot, were the subject of an Indian newspaper report that hinted at more to the loss than what met the eye. The ICC immediately cracked down on the report and though it was retracted the next day, it snowballed in Pakistan in the following days, culminating in today’s meeting of the National Assembly’s standing committee on sports in Islamabad.The meeting was called for by the head of the committee, Jamshed Dasti, who claimed that Pakistan’s loss was the result of match-fixing, before he took back the allegations. At the meeting, Younis, already prepared with a letter of resignation, publicly made the offer to stand down, incensed at increasing media reports casting doubt on his and the team’s integrity. The PCB turned it down at the meeting – and the committee told them to tackle the matter privately – but after the meeting Younis again, briefly, discussed the topic with Ijaz Butt, chairman PCB, and also in attendance.But the PCB refused to confirm whether they had accepted the resignation, or clarify what the current situation was. “Younis did offer to resign during the National Assembly meeting,” Ijaz Butt, chairman PCB, told Cricinfo. “The matchfixing allegations and Pakistan’s loss was being discussed and this was stated by Younis. It was said in a public forum so we have to think this over and I have to discuss it with him separately. I have to discuss it further and will not comment any further now.”It is believed that in his resignation letter, Younis has also said he does not want to take part in the upcoming series against New Zealand or the tour to Australia towards the end of the year.The development was criticised by former players, who blamed it on political interference and called it a blow to the sport in the country.”Politicians have no need to interfere in cricket and they have not only snatched our captain but have damaged the game badly,” Ramiz Raja said. “Our honourable captain was insulted by the investigation and we acted on baseless allegations.”Another former captain, Rashid Latif, blamed the media and the PCB. “I think the media was irresponsible by relaying an inauthentic statement by someone and Younus, being an honourable man, resigned over that. I don’t see him taking his decision back,” he said.Younis, of course, has a history with captaincy. He once stepped down from his role as stand-in skipper, days before the 2006 Champions Trophy, because he was unhappy with the board administration over a number of seemingly trivial issues. Once the administration changed, however, he took up the role again. A few months later, after the 2007 World Cup and Inzamam-ul-Haq’s resignation, he turned down the captaincy claiming later that the environment and circumstances at the time were not right for him to take it up. He only took over as full-time captain in February this year, after Shoaib Malik was pushed aside.

The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has dropped a worrying contract update about Aston Villa starlet Carney Chukwuemeka.

What’s the story?

Responding to a fan on Twitter about the latest over the midfielder, he said: “He’s contracted to 2023. It’s being dealt with by his reps who aren’t in a rush. I expected it to go through on his 18th birthday but it hasn’t been the case. He’s got a really good chance of starting on Friday. We shall see. Cheers Amir.”

Villa fans will be worried

The recently-turned 18-year-old was handed his senior debut in the Premier League towards the end of last season by Dean Smith, making some late cameos against the likes of Spurs and Chelsea.

The Athletic’s Gregg Evans then delivered some exciting news on the plans for Chukwuemeka heading into this campaign, saying: “Carney Chukwuemeka is the one teenager who will definitely be a part of the first team. He’s starting to fill out and will soon be ready for the demands of Premier League football.”

Indeed, former Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has previously urged Smith to throw Chukwuemeka into the deep end with the first-team.

He exclusively told FFC: “I kind of go off the fans’ views – I know he’s been scoring goals in the Under-18s. When someone is scoring goals, they’ve showed they’re a massive threat, it does attract football clubs and when you’re getting Manchester City and United hovering around the vicinity and are trying to take the young players away.

“This is where I feel if he’s that good we need to see him filtered through to the first team especially at this stage of the season. We’ve seen the likes of Louie Barry, who I felt would have had more of a chance this season, and I would put him in that category. I’d like to see more of him playing, because if you’re good enough, you’re old enough.”

News that a new contract hasn’t yet been sorted is surely a cause for concern for Villa fans, who have seen him play just 63 minutes of Premier League football all season, despite the injury issues in midfield.

After all, a player as talented as he would surely help a side that currently resemble a sinking ship down in 15th place.

Meanwhile, Villa have made contact with this manager…

Newcastle confirmed Steve Bruce’s successor as they officially unveiled Eddie Howe as the club’s new manager earlier this week.

The 43-year-old has taken over with immediate effect and will be in the dugout when the Magpies face Brentford in the Premier League on the other side of the international break.

He inherits a side 19th in the division and without a win in 11 games and could face a difficult settling in period as Newcastle attempt to close the gap between themselves and the rest of the teams outside of the relegation zone.

Wilson 2.0

One thing Howe could do to turn things around is place an emphasis on young players before he has the chance to make his own signings in the January window. The Magpies have some talented youngsters in their academy and he could potentially find Callum Wilson 2.0 in striker Dylan Stephenson.

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Not only has Wilson been a terrific player for Newcastle in the past 18 months, but he was also a key figure for Howe on the south coast over a number of years. He played 187 matches for the head coach for the Cherries, scoring 67 goals and providing 31 assists in all competitions. The centre-forward then signed for the Toon Army in 2020 and has since scored 16 goals in 30 starts in the top-flight.

In Stephenson, Howe could find Wilson 2.0 as he has shown excellent promise in the academy side this calendar year. Back in April of this year, Magpies youth coach Neil Winskill claimed that the youngster is ‘always top of the charts’ for physical data. He told the club’s official website:

“I’m thrilled for Dylan because he is such an honest, hard-working lad. He’s the type of player any team would like to have in their XI, who’s going to really put a shift in for you.

“Every game and training session, the physical stats come through and he’s always top of the charts but we had a chat during the week about the need for him to be consistent with his quality, and he spoke to me about how he thinks people will judge him on goals.”

This suggests that the 18-year-old gem has the physical capabilities to make the step up to senior level. Winskell’s comments indicate that he would not struggle with the intensity of the Premier League and the running demands that would be placed on him in Howe’s team, which is a promising sign for his chances of making the grade.

In terms of his football ability, he has caught the eye recently. He has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.77 in the EFL Trophy, scoring once and providing one assist in three games for the Magpies against first-team Football League outfits.

In the Premier League 2, he has scored seven goals in 10 matches for the U23 side. This shows that he already has the maturity and ability to score regularly at youth level, which is why, along with his physical attributes, he could have the potential to come into the first team and make an impact. It is now down to Howe to unleash him and craft him into Wilson 2.0.

AND in other news, “Still planning”: Fabrizio Romano drops key transfer update that’ll delight NUFC fans…

Zaheer Khan is expected to be back for India, but it’s the fast bowlers that will throw up a debate when the Indian selectors meet to pick the squad for the three Test against Sri Lanka

Cricinfo staff09-Nov-2009Zaheer Khan has recovered well from his shoulder injury and, having featured in Twenty20 matches during the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament and a Ranji Trophy fixture, is expected to be back for India when the selectors meet on Tuesday to pick the Test squad to play Sri Lanka. VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid will duly take their places in the middle order, while Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra are likely to retain their spinning roles. Yuvraj Singh is also expected to feature at No. 6 in the batting line-up, but it’s the fast bowlers that will throw up a debate.Including Ashish Nehra in the Test side is going to be tempting. It is also a risk. Nehra has done well after making his ODI return, but do the selectors want to risk his fitness in the longest format of the game? If Nehra does make the transition, he will replace one of the two back-up fast bowlers that went to New Zealand: Dhawal Kulkarni and L Balaji. India will not need a 16-member squad, so just one reserve fast bowler should do. But even if Nehra is not picked, somebody like Sudeep Tyagi might stand a better chance than Balaji and Kulkarni. Going by how Ishant Sharma was persisted with in the ODIs, he is likely to keep his Test place, along with Munaf Patel.Dinesh Karthik was the substitute middle-order batsman in New Zealand, where he doubled up as a reserve wicketkeeper. Here in India, Dhoni might not need back-up behind the stumps. There is another decision for the selectors to make: whether to retain Karthik in a role similar to the one in New Zealand, or draft in a specialist middle-order batsman like S Badrinath.Probable squad: MS Dhoni (capt/wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Karthik/S Badrinath, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Munaf Patel, Amit Mishra, Ashish Nehra/one back-up fast bowler.

Tottenham Hotspur could finally fill the void left behind by Christian Eriksen after they were handed a timely January transfer boost this week.

The north Londoners have recently been linked with a move for Juventus outcast Dejan Kulusevski, who Spurs sporting director Fabio Paratici originally signed during his time at the Serie A giants.

According to Italian outlet Calciomercato, the 21-year-old attacking midfielder is now likely to be allowed to leave the Turin club, with them currently valuing him at €35m (£30m).

A temporary exit in January isn’t out of the question either, as the report claims that the Sweden international is unhappy at the club and would like a ‘change of scenery.’

The most likely destination appears to be the Premier League, with arch-rivals Arsenal also keen to secure him, as the Old Lady do not want him to thrive at a league rival.

Newly-appointed Spurs boss Antonio Conte needs to find a creative fix as quickly as possible because it has been their main Achilles heel this season – no side is averaging fewer shots per game (10.1), not even the three teams in the relegation zone, and their last shot on target was nearly four hours ago, against West Ham.

There is an argument to be made that Eriksen has never been properly replaced, with neither of their club-record signings, Tanguy Ndombele nor Giovani Lo Celso, stepping up to the mark. In two-and-a-half seasons, neither has recorded more than eight assists altogether.

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By comparison, the Dane hit double figures for assists in each of his last four full Premier League seasons at the club.

Kulusevski, who has been branded as “explosive” and compared to Mohamed Salah, could be the solution. His career average of 1.8 shots and 2.1 key passes per 90 minutes makes for encouraging reading as it suggests that he’s a real thorn in the final third, and evidently one who can create chances.

In 2020/21, when he was entrusted to feature regularly, the young £31.5m-rated gem registered 14 direct goal contributions across 47 matches in all competitions and did so playing no fewer than seven different roles, as per Transfermarkt.

By comparison, Lo Celso has managed only 13 direct contributions since summer 2019, while Ndombele is just four contributions ahead in a longer time frame, too.

Meanwhile, football scout Jacek Kulig has previously lauded Kulusevski as an “athletic phenomenon”, an “advanced playmaker” and a “complete player”, which only bolsters the claims to sign him all that more.

Paratici knows exactly what Spurs would be getting, so he must do all he can to seal the 21-year-old’s signature in January, regardless of whether it’s on loan or on a permanent basis.

AND in other news, “Understand”: Alasdair Gold reveals major behind-scenes Spurs development…

For the second year running Stuart Broad has shown where his priorities lie after shunning the potential riches of the IPL to concentrate on his England career.

Andrew McGlashan in Centurion14-Dec-2009For the second year running Stuart Broad has shown where his priorities lie after shunning the potential riches of the IPL to concentrate on his England career. And his next challenge certainly requires plenty of focus, taking on South Africa on their own soil over four Tests.Broad’s last outing in whites shot him to superstar status as he produced the spell that virtually secured the Ashes with 5 for 37 at The Oval. His performance on that memorable day in South London has given rise to huge expectations of Broad and that is something he will have to confront over the next five weeks.”We’ve had a good tour so far. It’s been a little hampered by weather in the last few weeks but we won our last Test series against Australia and the confidence is high,” he said. “It’s just up to us to make sure we hit them hard in the first Test and we are trying to make sure we do that.”However, Broad appears to be one of the England players suffering most from the truncated nature of the tour so far with so much inclement weather around. During their two two-day matches in East London Broad was below his best as he returned figures of none for 55 and 1 for 57, but he is eager to build on his Ashes experience and his increasingly senior role in the bowling unit. With the retirement of Andrew Flintoff and absence of Steve Harmison, Broad is England’s second most experienced operator behind James Anderson.”Responsibility is something I thrive on as a player,” he said. “Certainly in the one-dayers, Jimmy and I have been opening the bowling together and have developed extra responsibility in that format. In Test matches it’s up a few players to stand up and I think it is good for the side that it’s not the same players performing all the time.”Broad is a level-headed character – as shown by his IPL decision – but hasn’t quite convinced that he knows what type of bowler to be at the top level. His spell at The Oval gave a good indication as he pitched the ball up and aimed at the stumps, but there is still a tendency to go searching for wickets. Broad could still be pushed into performing an enforcers role with Anderson a natural pitch-up swing bowler along with Graham Onions or Ryan Sidebottom.Quite who makes up England’s final attack is still unclear and it depends on the balance they select. Ian Bell could bat at No. 6, while Luke Wright is also pushing for a Test debut at No. 7 but that may yet be a role filled by Broad. He knows that would make run-scoring a necessity rather than a bonus.”Definitely, there would be extra responsibility to score bigger runs but I’ve done it in three or four Tests so far and it’s a position I do enjoy and will look to do in the future,” he said. “It’s a strong position to be in as a side. We have options of going either way. Obviously if we go with six batters it leaves the bowlers with quite a workload but I think we have the bowlers who can cope. It’s a great position to be in to be able to make the choice and it’s down to the management come Wednesday.”Whichever team takes the field, Broad knows England mustn’t sit back and, echoing the comments of selector Ashley Giles, wants the team to take advantage of the home side’s lack of recent cricket.”It’s a great opportunity for us,” he said. “We have looked at South Africa’s strengths and weaknesses and we see it as a great opportunity to start the series hard. It’s what we’ve done in the last couple of Test series is to make sure we start well and that’s what we are focussed on.”Broad’s final comment is only partly true. When England beat West Indies at Lord’s in May it was the first time in 16 series they had won the opening contest and away from home they have lost the first Test on six out of the last seven occasions. The previous occasion they launched an overseas campaign with victory was against South Africa, at Port Elizabeth, in 2004-05. Now would be a good time for history to repeat itself and for that to happen England need Broad to shine.

While the star-studded imports stole the headlines in the early matches, the Australian trio of David Warner, Phillip Hughes and Steve Smith stole the show in Hobart

Alex Malcolm30-Dec-2009
ScorecardSteven Smith’s private master-class with Shane Warne in Melbourne definitely helped•Getty ImagesDefending champions New South Wales have begun their title defence with a clinical 31-run victory over Tasmania at the Bellerive Oval. While the star-studded imports stole the headlines in the early matches, the Australian trio of David Warner, Phillip Hughes and Steve Smith took the honours in Hobart.After Moises Henriques chose to bat on a belter, Warner (67 off 24 balls) and Hughes (71 not out off 50 balls) set the win up with a brutal display of power-hitting to propel the Blues to 4 for 194 from their 20 overs.Their opening stand of 97 came from just 40 deliveries, with Warner producing the fastest fifty in the competition’s history – off 18 balls – eclipsing Tasmanian captain George Bailey’s old mark, with an enormous six over midwicket.Ironically, it was Bailey who ran Warner out, after a poorly judged single from Hughes, to stall the Blues’ progress. Hughes anchored the innings that stuttered after Warner’s loss, with James Faulkner and Xavier Doherty bowling good spells to tie him down.The target of 195 looked well within reach for the Tigers after the start provided by opener Tim Paine, who crunched 48 off 18 balls, which included 22 from one Henriques over. But an ill-fated scoop shot ended his night and the chase went downhill from there, with the Tigers bowled out with an over to spare.Steven Smith, fresh from a private master-class with Shane Warne in Melbourne, was the chief destroyer, bowling with remarkable confidence and control to claim four wickets and give the hosts a bad case of the Blues.

Steven Gerrard nearly selected Ashley Young as a number 10 for his first game in charge at Aston Villa, The Athletic’s Gregg Evans has revealed. 

The 36-year-old had apparently impressed the new boss in the Bodymoor Heath training sessions leading up to the clash with Brighton.

Gerrard considered rewarding him with a start in the attacking midfield role, but ended up selecting Jacob Ramsey, Marvelous Nakamba and John McGinn as a trio instead. Emiliano Buendia slotted in on the right wing.

Could Young get more minutes in an unfamiliar role?

Young has made seven Premier League appearances since he returned to the club in the summer, three of them starts.

Deploying him as a number 10 would certainly have raised eyebrows, given that over the course of his 628-game senior career, the 36-year-old has only played in that role four times, each of those coming as far back as the 2010/11 season.

Nevertheless, Young will hope to make himself impossible to overlook for the trip to Crystal Palace next Saturday.

Fan feed Villa Report relayed Evans’ revelation, and here’s what some supporters made of it, with a largely negative reaction and a couple of responses drawing unflattering comparisons with Steve Bruce, who was much-maligned during his reign as Villa manager.

These Villa fans baffled by Gerrard’s consideration of Young at number 10

“Had to check this wasn’t a fake account”

Credit: @M10Packed

“What in the Steve Bruce is this?”

Credit: @lukewoodyy

“Good lord, Stevie G or Steve Bruce?”

Credit: @billazor

“Blimey”

Credit: @douglasluiz

“This is not a tweet I thought I would be seeing in 2021”

Credit: @WeDoingAVilla

“Bruh no thanks”

Credit: @Stefan__19

In other news, Gerrard’s latest transfer target has emerged