NZ are coming off a long break without Test cricket but their captain backs them to hit the ground running in Galle

Madushka Balasuriya17-Sep-20241:24

Phillips: ‘SL is a tough place to come and win’

New Zealand might not have played a Test since March but they will have little time to get up to speed ahead of a packed Test schedule to close out the year. September’s two-Test series against Sri Lanka will be followed by a three-Test tour of India in October and November, before they head back home to host England in November and December for three more Tests.All eight of these games will encompass the remainder of their World Test Championship cycle, with New Zealand very likely needing to win at least five of them to be in with a chance of making the final at Lord’s.A one-off Test against Afghanistan in Greater Noida, which was not part of the WTC cycle, was ideally supposed to serve as a warm-up for subcontinental conditions. However, rain – and wet outfield – meant that that game was abandoned without a single ball bowled. Captain Tim Southee though chose to focus on the positives.”We’ve had a bit of a break from Test cricket since the end of our home summer and now we’ve got an important part in terms of the Test championship cycle,” Southee said on the eve of the first Test in Galle. “We’ve got eight games between now and December, so it’s an exciting times for us as a Test side and tough times ahead of us – here in Sri Lanka obviously, India in India and then England at home.”Yeah it was disappointing [not to play against Afghanistan] but we still spent a week [in India] which we got some positives out of. We got some training in, some great training here. We spent some time together as a Test side – been a while since we’ve been together – so to have that time, and bonding over that time in India was important as well.”Key among the preparations has been in the spin-bowling department, with New Zealand bringing in Rangana Herath – whose 102 Test wickets in Galle are second only to Mutthiah Muralidaran – as spin-bowling coach.”[He’s] a guy who’s taken over 100 Test wickets on this ground, and been a Sri Lankan great. We’ve got three left-arm spinners in the squad, who he’s been working closely with, along with our other spinners.”New Zealand’s strength though lies not as much in specialisation, but rather their diversity of approach, and an ability to adapt to different conditions. While Mitchell Santner and Ajaz Patel offer frontline spin options, the likes of Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips and Michael Bracewell offer further options. Then, alongside Southee, the likes of Matt Henry, Ben Sears and Will O’Rourke all offer variety in seam.”I think historically here, Galle in particular, spin has played a pretty big part,” Southee said. “But as pace bowlers if you can come here and do well, that’s a tough challenge but a very rewarding challenge.”You look at the balance of squad, we’ve got specialist spinners, we’ve got guys at the top of the order that can offer spin options, as well as four quality seam bowlers that offer different options as well. I think we’ve got a number of bases covered, I guess it’s just figuring out what balance is the right one to go in with in these conditions.”And that can change from the first match to the second match, and then obviously when you go to India it could change again. So I think it’s about having a squad that can cover all bases.”For Southee, meanwhile, there is also a historic milestone not far off on the horizon. Currently on 380 wickets, he’s just 20 strikes away from becoming the 18th player to 400 Test wickets, and the second from New Zealand to the feat after Sir Richard Hadlee.”I guess over time, when you play for a long period, you’re able to I guess come close to those, but still being 20 wickets away is a lot of tours, especially in this part of the world. But yeah, every game you’re going out and trying to do your role and take some wickets for your side and it’d be nice if you do achieve those milestones along the way.”

Manchester United are now plotting a move for another “world-class” Arsenal target, having seemingly missed out on Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres, according to a report.

Arsenal set to win race for Gyokeres

It was always going to be tough for Man United to win the race for Gyokeres, without Champions League football on offer next season, but they are believed to have made a late approach for the striker.

In fact, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano even revealed the Red Devils were given the opportunity to sign the centre-forward by intermediaries, although he always made it clear that Arsenal were his first choice.

Now, it appears as though the Gunners are closing in on the Sweden international, with a medical due in the next 24 hours, meaning United will be forced to move on to alternative striker options, and they are moving quickly to sign RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko.

In the same report, it is revealed that Ruben Amorim also wants to bring in a new central midfielder this summer, and the recruitment team have now set their sights on a different Arsenal target in that area of the pitch.

That is according to a report from GiveMeSport, which states Man United are now plotting a move for Bayern Munich midfielder Joao Palhinha, who could be available for around £30m this summer, having failed to adapt to life in the Bundesliga.

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Given their financial issues, however, the Red Devils would rather sign Palhinha on loan, but Bayern are reluctant to agree to a deal of that nature, and would prefer to get the central midfielder off the books permanently.

It could also be difficult to tempt the Portuguese maestro into a move, as he does not want to leave the Champions League side and would rather fight for his place.

"World-class" Palhinha could be solid signing for Man Utd

The 30-year-old may have failed to make his mark in the Bundesliga, but he has already proven himself in the Premier League, making 152 tackles in the 2023-24 season, the highest number of any player.

During that campaign, reporter Dom Smith was left particularly impressed by the Portugal international’s performances, describing him as “world-class”.

Marco Silva also praised the former Fulham man for the influence he had on his teammates, saying: “His attitude, his commitment, the way he leads the others around are things that are hard to find in football.”

Clearly, Palhinha has the qualities to be a success at Old Trafford, but United’s financial issues could make it difficult to get a deal over the line.

The South East Stars are through to the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy final, after a thrilling fightback against the Southern Vipers in their semi-final at Beckenham.The Vipers had posted 220 for 9 from their 50 overs, Nancy Harman their top scorer with 38 and Tilly Corteen-Coleman taking 3 for 33 and the Stars looked dead and buried at 131 for 7 until a partnership of 90 from 86 balls between Alice Davidson-Richards and Kalea Moore turned the contest on its head.There were seven balls remaining when Davidson-Richards hit Alice Monagan for a single to send the Stars through to the final. Davidson-Richards, who was dropped on 31, finished on 90, while Moore was unbeaten on 52 and the Stars will now face the Sunrisers in Saturday’s final at Grace Road.The Vipers won the toss and chose to bat but lost Ella McCaughan in the third over for 2, caught behind off Corteen-Coleman.Rhianna Southby made a quickfire 20, but she swatted a bouncer from Alexa Stonehouse to Emma Jones and visibly remonstrated with the umpires before heading back to the pavilion.Phoebe Franklin then produced a superb forward diving catch at midwicket to get Naomi Dattani off Stonehouse for 9.Danni Gregory got Georgia Elwiss for 34 with a rank ball she pulled straight to Jones and Emily Windsor then tried to cut Gregory and was bowled for 30.Abi Norgrove was bowled by Kalea Moore for 25 before Nancy Harman and Alice Monaghan put on a useful 48 for the seventh wicket, although there was confusion at the end of the 36th over when the former hit a four and retained the strike. A single was also missed and as the scorers and analysts tried to work out what happened, Corteen-Coleman had Monaghan caught on the long-on boundary by Davidson-Richards for 26.The same duo removed Harman, this time as Davidson-Richards sprinted round the boundary, before Freya Davies was run out by Franklin off the last ball of the innings for 7, leaving Ava Lee unbeaten on 14.At the halfway point the Stars looked favourites but they lost Stonehouse for 10 when she skied Davies and Dattani took a steepling catch and Franklin then top-edged Davies and was snared by Lee for 7.Elwiss then took two wickets in as many balls when she sent Chloe Hill’s off stump flying then bowled Kira Chathli, leaving Aylish Cranstone to block out the hat-trick ball.The pivotal moment came when Davidson-Richards offered the simplest of caught-and-bowled chances to Lee and she was punching the air in anger when Lee somehow dropped her.When Cranstone was caught and bowled in the next over from the Beckenham End, by Rebecca Tyson for 27, the Stars were in trouble on 94 for 5 and things looked bleaker still for the hosts when Emma Jones drove Dattani to cover and was caught by Elwiss for 7.Priyanaz Chatterji was on 9 when Elwiss couldn’t cling on to a difficult return catch off her own bowling, but she couldn’t cash in as she drove Elwiss to Windsor having only added a single.Moore, however, re-injected some belief into the chase and kept the Stars ticking over at a run a ball until 18 were needed from the last three.Dattani bowled the 48th and it went for 14, effectively ending the contest and leaving Davidson-Richardson to hit the winning single.

August is now very much on the horizon for Sunderland as a brand new Premier League campaign grows ever closer.

There will be concerns over the Black Cats’ last friendly contest amid all the excitement, however, as Regis Le Bris’ men were humbled 3-0 by Hearts on their last outing to Tynecastle.

Sunderland are already six signings down across the hectic transfer window.

Still, plenty more new faces will surely arrive through the door soon before West Ham United travel to the Stadium of Light to kick off the hotly anticipated Premier League season.

Sunderland make approach to sign Premier League star

Of course, Sunderland’s main target continues to be ex-Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka.

The ongoing saga involving the Switzerland international had taken a new, unexpected turn when Xhaka featured for Bayer Leverkusen during the German side’s last friendly match, despite past talk centring on the fact that the 32-year-old had reached a verbal agreement over a move to Wearside.

However, that now looks likely to be his final ever appearance for Leverkusen, with a breaking development coming to light on Monday that a fee of £15m has been agreed that will see him move back to England.

On top of that news, as per a report by Mackem News, Sunderland have also approached back-up Manchester City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega to try and strike up a deal, with the 32-year-old eager to stay put in England if he walks away from the Etihad shortly.

The £7m-rated City star is likely to depart the Etihad Stadium this summer owing to England goalkeeper James Trafford re-signing for the Citizens.

Ortega can immediately usurp Anthony Patterson on his arrival, with his top-flight know-how making him a standout signing for a Sunderland side attempting to instantly stay afloat in the top division.

Why Ortega could be a better signing than Xhaka

Winning the £90k-per-week stopper’s signature could even be a more important signing than Xhaka finally joining Le Bris’ camp, particularly if the two-time Premier League title winner goes on to play a pivotal role in securing safety for his new side.

Whilst Ortega has often been placed on the periphery at the Etihad next to Ederson stealing the limelight, the ex-Arminia Bielefeld man has shone in spurts for City when chucked into the first-team spotlight by Pep Guardiola, as seen in his vital, season-altering save against Tottenham Hotspur towards the back-end of the 23/24 campaign.

In total, the “exceptional” Ortega – as he’s been labelled previously by the City boss – has kept a promising six clean sheets in Premier League action from just 26 appearances in Manchester, with a high 67 saves also amassed in some clutch moments for the top-flight outfit.

Ortega’s PL numbers for City

Stat

Ortega

Games played

25

Games started

5

Goals conceded

26

Pass completion %

796 (80%)

Saves made

67

Clean sheets

6

Stats by the Premier League

Amazingly, those six clean sheets have also come about despite Ortega only making five Premier League starts in total for City, meaning he should come into his own even more if he suddenly becomes one of Le Bris’ main starters at the Stadium of Light.

Patterson has never experienced a Premier League outing, on the contrary, so it would be a major risk to shove Sunderland’s number one shot-stopper from the EFL straight into a top-flight contest and expect him to immediately perform, which is where Ortega could come to the rescue.

Xhaka does also have lots of Premier League experience under his belt – with a mammoth 225 appearances in the tough division with Arsenal. He’s also now a Bundesliga winner after a remarkable 2023/24 campaign.

However, Sunderland have been very busy in the middle of the park this summer, upgrading their options already, with a club-record £30m already splashed on Habib Diarra, away from Noah Sadiki also joining Le Bris’ growing ranks.

Between the midfield duo, a bumper 162 appearances have been tallied up in both Ligue 1 and the Jupiler Pro League, with the Premier League not the most daunting next step subsequently.

Therefore, it might not actually be the most pressing move to finally sign Xhaka.

Rather, Sunderland will no doubt welcome Ortega even more, with the arrival of a Premier League-proven goalkeeper simply a necessity this year. It could be the difference between relegation and staying up.

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Posts ByKelan Sarson Jul 25, 2025

The 2025/26 campaign is drawing closer, and Tottenham Hotspur still need to make some signings if Thomas Frank is to challenge among the big hitters on Premier League and Champions League fronts.

There are multiple avenues that Spurs could head down over the coming weeks, but one route we know will not be followed is toward the City Ground for Nottingham Forest playmaker Morgan Gibbs-White, who has signed a new contract in spite of Tottenham activating his £60m release clause earlier this month.

Tottenham have played out two pre-season draws this month, against third-tier side Wycombe Wanderers and Luton Town, who have suffered back-to-back relegations over the past two seasons and indeed now languish in League One.

Why Spurs wanted Morgan Gibbs-White

James Maddison’s two terms with Tottenham have been laced with damaging setbacks, injured badly on several occasions and struggling for fluency at times. However, he has been prolific when playing and has that X-factor about him.

He’s been sidelined since before the end of last season, and Dejan Kulusevski underwent surgery on a patella injury in May that will keep him absent into the 2025/26 campaign.

Gibbs-White, 25, would have been perfect. Industrious and versatile, the England international is a fierce tackler and an intelligent passer, having also chipped with seven goals and eight assists in the league, with his efforts leading The Athletic’s Paul Taylor to say he was “among the most in-form, best performing players in the Premier League” last year.

However, he will ply his trade for the Tricky Trees once again next season, a cruel blow when a deal seemed so close only weeks ago for the Lilywhites.

Tottenham need an alternative, but that doesn’t strictly mean that Frank will sign a player of strict positional similarities to Gibbs-White.

Instead, he might pursue a record-breaking deal for one of Europe’s prized forwards.

Spurs in talks for bigger deal than Gibbs-White

Earlier in July, Iberian newspapers published a report that revealed Spurs’ interest in Real Madrid forward Rodrygo, who looks likely to leave the Spanish capital this summer after falling down the pecking order, Xabi Alonso currently establishing his Los Blancos vision.

The 24-year-old, nonetheless, would cost a pretty penny, having been priced at £87m. Thus, he would break Spurs’ transfer record, were he to join the project this summer.

And now, Spanish reporter Ramon Alvarez has revealed that the London club have opened talks for the versatile forward, suggesting that things could start ramping up in the coming days and weeks.

Further Spanish sources have confirmed interest from Arsenal and Liverpool, with the latter understood to be preparing a formal bid as Luiz Diaz completes a transfer to Bayern Munich, so this is hardly going to be an easy one to pull off.

Why Spurs want to sign Rodrygo

Why do Tottenham want to sign Rodrygo? Well, Jude Bellingham thinks he’s “probably the most talented and the most gifted player” at Real Madrid, and that makes a comment on his potential to become a superstar in the Premier League.

Even though the Brazil international left something to be desired with his performances last season, he still chalked up 14 goals and 11 assists across all competitions, scarcely playing on his preferred left side, where his ball-striking ability is best served.

The right-footer actually recorded 12 goal involvements from as many matches as a left-sided forward across all competitions last season, though this amounted to just 22% of his total action across the year.

Gibbs-White is a fine player, to be sure, but he’s not Rodrygo, who joined Real Madrid from Santos as an 18-year-old. It was 2019, and he arrived for a £39.5m fee.

Since that point, he’s become a mainstay at the world’s (probably) biggest football club, gluttonous with trophy-winning success and an incredibly talented and hard-working winger, willing to play across a range of positions so to best serve the team.

He even won 56% of his ground duels in La Liga last season, as per Sofascore, denoting a crispness in combative situations which will prove crucial for Frank’s Tottenham.

Frank will demand fluent, careful football that marries the exciting with the grounded. Rodrygo will aid this and then some, ranked among the top 6% of attacking midfielders and wingers in La Liga last season for pass completion, the top 13% for shot-creating actions and the top 11% for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref.

He’s the complete package, all right, having shown himself to have a variety of tools across different phases of play. It’s no wonder Luka Modric once labelled his Real teammate a “world-class superstar”.

Moreover, he’s a big-game player, whereas Gibbs-White’s potential on the very biggest stage has yet to be seen with regularity.

Gibbs-White would provide Frank’s system with creativity from the nucleus of the pitch, but Rodrygo, positionally flexible, would bring his own brand of offensive expertise, surely good enough to make the club forget about their Forest target.

In 2022/23, indeed, a young Rodrygo was among the most prolific right wingers across Europe’s top-five leagues, behind only Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah. Not bad, that.

Mohamed Salah

51

30

16

46

Lionel Messi

41

21

20

41

Rodrygo

55

19

11

30

Riyad Mahrez

47

15

13

28

Bukayo Saka

48

15

12

27

Given that Rodrygo pines for a starting role on the alternate flank, with recent evidence suggesting that is his most fruitful position, it’s clear that Tottenham could hit the jackpot by making this signing.

And once the likes of Maddison and Kulusevski are fit and firing on all cylinders again, we could have an incredible team of depth and dynamism, just waiting to pounce on the season’s opportunities and add to that Europa League title, which might be the harbinger of an era of sustained success down N17.

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Leeds United are believed to be interested in signing a “special” player in the summer transfer window, with Daniel Farke a big admirer of the individual in question.

Leeds preparing for Premier League return

The Whites are edging closer to their first game back in the Premier League, with Farke and his players preparing hard after their return to pre-season training.

Leeds’ first match is a home clash with Everton on August 18th, with Elland Road likely to be in raucous spirits under the lights and in front of the Sky Sports cameras, following a couple of seasons away from the top flight.

It has been a productive summer transfer window for the Whites to date, with the likes of Jaka Bijol, Gabriel Gudmundsson and Sebastiaan Bornauw all brought in, but further fresh faces are required, in order to give Farke’s side the best possible chance of avoiding a swift return to the Championship in 2025/26.

Leeds have reportedly made an offer for Fenerbahce and Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, as they look to find an upgrade on Illan Meslier between the sticks, but it looks as though another player who Farke knows well could be an alternative option in the coming weeks.

Leeds keen on signing "special" free goalkeeper

According to journalist Barry Anderson on X, Leeds are interested in signing goalkeeper Angus Gunn this summer, with the Scot available on a free transfer after leaving Norwich City at the end of last season.

Gunn could be such a shrewd signing by the Whites, not only because he would arrive for free, but also due to the vast experience he now possesses.

The 29-year-old is a 16-cap Scotland international, being hailed as “special” on the international stage by David Marshall, and Farke is a huge fan, saying of him all the way back in 2017:

“Angus is very highly-rated and a really talented goalkeeper. He’s brilliant with his feet as well as his hands and is tall too. We’re happy to have him here for the next season and are thankful to Manchester City for helping us with this deal. I’m looking forward to working with such a great talent.”

Gunn has come up against Leeds so many times in his career, losing on five occasions at Elland Road in total, four of which came as a starter, but he could bring great quality in goal for plenty more years.

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1

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He already has 31 appearances to his name in the Premier League, as well as 166 in the Championship, and he could be a safe pair of hands for the Whites, even as a second or third choice option.

Nathan Sowter joins Amazon Warriors as a temporary replacement for Tahir

Deivarayan Muthu17-Sep-2024

Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) have been bolstered by the return of Chris Jordan, ahead of their CPL 2024 home leg, which kicks off on September 18. The Barbados-born England international had played five matches for TKR in 2019, taking seven wickets at an economy rate of 9.05 in their run to the knockouts, where they had lost to eventual champions Barbados in qualifier 2.Jordan, 35, will replace USA fast bowler Ali Khan, who has been sidelined from the entire CPL 2024 with injury.In June earlier this year in Barbados, Jordan enjoyed a happy homecoming, becoming the first England men’s player to take a T20I hat-trick, in a T20 World Cup game against USA.As for Dwayne Bravo, he will play in front of his home crowd for the last time in the CPL. Bravo, who will turn 41 in October, will retire from the CPL after the ongoing season, but will continue to feature in other franchise T20 leagues.Related

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Injured Tahir out for ten days Defending champions Guyana Amazon Warriors have suffered a major blow, with their captain Imran Tahir ruled out for around ten days with injury. Tahir, the oldest player in the CPL at 45, had also missed Amazon Warriors’ last game against Barbados Royals with injury. Shai Hope, who stood in as captain in that game in Bridgetown, will continue to lead the side in Tahir’s absence.Big-hitting allrounder Romario Shepherd is also working his way back from injury, having hurt his toe while training. Shepherd, who had played a key role in Amazon Warriors’ run to their maiden CPL title last season, has featured in just one game so far this season in North Sound, where he slammed 32 off 16 balls.Nathan Sowter has also featured in the ILT20 in the UAE•ILT20

Amazon Warriors have brought in Nathan Sowter, the Australia-born English wristspinner, as a temporary replacement for Tahir. Born in Penrith, Sowter represented New South Wales at Under-23 level before joining Middlesex. Sowter rose to prominence in franchise cricket after winning back-to-back titles under Tom Moody at Oval Invincibles. Sowter also worked with Moody at Desert Vipers at the ILT20 2024, which was his first overseas T20 gig. Moody was so impressed with his agility in the field that he christened him ‘Racing Snake’.After their defeat to Royals, Hope admitted that they were missing Tahir, but backed the others to step up.”We’ve got to find ways to penetrate in the middle,” Hope said after the game. “I think we need to find ways to get wickets. Obviously, Imran Tahir is a big loss for us – he was one of our trump cards in the middle overs – but can’t look at that. We have got to work with what we have and find ways to get wickets. We understand the opposition [TKR] that we’re playing next and it’s important that we finish well in the death overs and take care of the batting after.”

يبدأ فريق برشلونة الإسباني بقيادة مديره الفني هانز فليك، أولى مبارياته في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا لموسم 2025-2026 بمواجهة نيوكاسل يونايتد الإنجليزي.

ويحل برشلونة ضيفًا على نيوكاسل بملعب “سانت جيمس بارك” في مواجهة بالجولة الأولى بمرحلة الدوري لبطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويغيب عن برشلونة نجم الفريق لامين يامال، بسبب الإصابة حيث تم استبعاده من القائمة المستدعاة لمواجهة نيوكاسل.

كما يستمر غياب جافي وأليخاندرو بالدي بسبب الإصابة، فيما عاد الهولندي فرينكي دي يونج للقائمة بعد تعافيه من الإصابة. تشكيل برشلونة المتوقع أمام نيوكاسل

حراسة المرمى: خوان جارسيا.

خط الدفاع: جول كوندي، إريك جارسيا، باو كوبارسي، جيرارد مارتن.

خط الوسط: مارك كاسادو، بيدري، فيرمين لوبيز.

خط الهجوم: رافينها، روبرت ليفاندوفسكي، فيران توريس

ويمكنكم مطالعة مواعيد ونتائج جميع المباريات لحظة بلحظة عبر مركز المباريات من هنا.

Manchester United are assessing a move for an “outrageous” Benjamin Sesko alternative, with his club now open to a sale this summer, according to a report.

Man Utd's Sesko pursuit takes new twist

Sesko has emerged as one of Man United’s major targets at centre-forward and are in a fierce battle with Premier League rivals Newcastle United for his signature.

The Red Devils have reportedly made an offer of their own for Sesko, but if he decides to move to St. James’ Park, Ruben Amorim and co would be forced to move on to alternative targets, and another centre-forward has now entered the frame as a potential option.

That is according to a report from Caught Offside, which states Man United are now assessing a move for Paris Saint-Germain’s Goncalo Ramos, with the French club open to a sale this summer, but there could be fierce competition for his signature.

Within the Premier League, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Liverpool are named as potential suitors, while Serie A sides Napoli and Juventus have also added Ramos to their shortlist, but a deal may prove to be on the expensive side.

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PSG are looking to recoup as much of the €65m (£56m) fee they shelled out as possible, despite the former Benfica man struggling to establish himself as a regular starter since arriving at the Parc des Princes, given the depth Luis Enrique has in attack.

"Outrageous" Ramos could be solid alternative to Sesko

Even though the 24-year-old often found game time hard to come by last season, he remained a regular source of goals and assists for PSG in all competitions, amassing a total of 25 attacking contributions.

Competition

Appearances

Goals

Assists

Ligue 1

22

10

3

French Cup

6

5

2

Champions League

12

3

1

Club World Cup

5

1

0

Football talent scout Jacek Kulig has also praised the Portugal international for his performances at international level in the past.

There may be some concerns over the fact Ramos is yet to solidify his place as a regular starter for PSG, but at 24-years-old, the centre-forward still has plenty of time to develop his game, and he could be a solid alternative to Sesko.

Bayern Munich legends Didi Hamann and Lothaur Mathhaus have slammed supremo Uli Hoeness for his harsh criticism of sporting director Max Eberl.

• Hoeness makes controversial comments about Eberl
• Hamann slams Bayern chief
• Matthaus clarifies he doesn't get along with chief

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Bayern's honorary president caused a stir with his criticism of Eberl after a busy transfer window that saw the German giants miss out on several high-profile targets, including their failed public pursuit of Nick Woltemade. As well as claiming that Eberl is "quite sensitive", Hoeness said that he and fellow board member Karl-Heinz Rummenigge will hand over Bayern's business when they have the right people in the right position, which Hamann believes was a dig at the under-fire sporting director. The former player has demanded that the duo sort things out by communicating privately instead of publicly criticising each other. Matthaus, on the other hand, has stated that he found Hoeness' comments embarrassing. 

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• AFP
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  As well as missing out on the signing of Woltemade, despite reaching an agreement with the new Newcastle striker, the Bavarians also saw Florian Wirtz head to the Premier League despite Hoeness' best efforts to snap him up. Attempts to sign Nico Williams and Bradley Barcola also collapsed, but the German champions were able to splash out £66 million ($88m) to sign Luis Diaz from Liverpool. Bayern hoped to make another big attacking signing but settled for the arrival of Nicolas Jackson on an expensive loan that Hoeness says has no chance of becoming permanent due to the conditions of the £56m ($76m) obligation to buy.

  Hoeness warned that granting Eberl's request to buy a player would have been disastrous for the club financially, but his dig about Eberl's sensitivity is what angered Hamann, who feels such public debates will only lead to a breakup.

• WHAT HAMANN AND MATTHAUS SAID

  Hamann said to : "The statements lead me to believe that the relationship will end in the foreseeable future. I don't know how things should continue after what was said. They shouldn't talk about each other publicly, but rather with each other. These are things they have to resolve at some point."

  Matthaus also addressed the issue, saying: "I found most of what Uli said embarrassing. Not only regarding me or Max Eberl, but also his statements regarding Nicolas Jackson's contract details. Hoeness criticises transfer fees, but Bayern itself participates in and contributes to these. That's why I don't know what Uli wants from me. They also took the €30 or €35 million for [Kingsley] Coman from Saudi Arabia. There are many contradictions there. If Bayern didn't need a player, they wouldn't spend €75 million on Luis Diaz. After the departures of [Thomas] Muller, [Leroy] Sane and then Coman, they were suddenly under pressure and signed Diaz and Jackson. Max Eberl should actually be handling the transfers on his own, but ultimately, everything has to be approved from the top."

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  WHAT'S NEXT FOR BAYERN?

  Bayern are off to a strong start in the Bundesliga despite the off-field drama around the Allianz Arena. They are in action on Saturday against newly-promoted Hamburg, who have taken one point from their first two games.