Manchester United midfielder Casemiro refused to be drawn into a discussion about Erik ten Hag's future at the helm.

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• Ten Hag enduring terrible second season
• Casemiro refuses to comment on Dutchman's future
• But backs United under Ratcliffe and INEOS

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Brazilian has watched large parts of the current campaign from the sidelines due to an ankle injury, and has seen United make their worst start to a Premier League season since 1989-90 under Ten Hag. Such statistics have been matched by numerous abject performances, causing the pressure to ramp up on the Dutchman. However, Casemiro insists that Ten Hag can help the team "grow", and is already looking ahead to life under new investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS group.

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  WHAT CASEMIRO SAID

  Speaking to , the five-time Champions League winner said: "I’m not the person who decides who should be manager. We have qualified people to decide that but [Ten Hag] showed last season he can grow Manchester United. Last season we had really good growth and the team was trending upwards. Of course, Manchester United always needs more and more and always needs to be winning but we showed last season that we are capable of achieving great things. I’m very happy at Manchester United. As I’ve always said, the fans have always helped me. The club is always good to me.”

  On Ratcliffe's appointment, Casemiro added: "He’s already introduced himself to us. I think with his winning mentality and his wins in all sports, it’s always very important to have people that want to continue growing. With his experience he’ll return Manchester United to the highest possible level. We are very hungry to learn, grow and take the club to the highest place.”

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  United's problems during Ten Hag's second season have been clear for all to see. His side sit a lowly ninth in the Premier League table, 11 points off Aston Villa in fourth and with the league's joint-third worst goal-scoring tally. Off-field issues have plagued the Dutchman all campaign, including Ratcliffe's protracted investment bid, a public feud with Jadon Sancho and the most recent disciplinary case involving Marcos Rashford. Ten Hag has also been without a number of first-team stars through injury, such as Casemiro.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

  However, given that the Ratcliffe saga finally drew to a close late last year and with Casemiro, Lisandro Martinez and other key players finally returning to action, the onus will now be on the Dutchman to salvage what has thus far been a disaster of a season. That recovery resumes on Thursday, when United will hope to climb back up the table with a win against Wolves.

Bayern Munich legend Lothar Matthaus has criticised the club for going after ageing players like Eric Dier and Kieran Trippier this transfer window.

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Matthaus slams Bayern Munich Signed Dier and linked with Trippier Bayern recently lost 1-0 to Werder Bremen WHAT HAPPENED?

The 1990 World Cup-winning Germany captain questioned Bayern Munich's decision to sign Eric Dier on loan from Tottenham Hotspur as he felt that the club needed to go after younger talents instead of signing ageing players. The reigning German champions are also heavily linked with a move for veteran England and Newcastle United full-back Kieran Trippier.

AdvertisementWHAT LOTHAR MATTHAUS SAID

Speaking , the legendary player said, "Bayern need more depth and reinforcements, but are these players reinforcements? Eric Dier wasn’t necessarily a key player at Tottenham recently. I remember Uli Hoeness (Bayern’s honorary president) once saying that, ‘We won’t be bringing in any more players who are sitting on the bench at other clubs’. The latest transfer looks different.

"Kieran Trippier would be a similar case. That’s not Bayern Munich for me. Bayern should focus on reinforcements or on the young players. Aleksander Pavlovic sat out against Bremen and wasn’t substituted. When he did play, he was always outstanding. Bayern Munich have very good youth players and Christoph Freund (Bayern’s sporting director) is responsible for that. He has a good network."

He added, "In the summer it was said, ‘We can let (Benjamin) Pavard and (Josip) Stanisic go and get someone else instead’, and then they didn’t get anyone else. As a result, they’ve got problems at right-back and in the centre. They thought, ‘We’ll manage that’. No, they reacted too late. The team can’t find itself."

GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

On Sunday, the German giants suffered a shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga. The Spurs loanee was included in the matchday squad, although he did not play a part in the game. The defeat left Bayern seven points adrift of league leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR BAYERN MUNICH?

Thomas Tuchel's side will aim to get back to winning ways on Wednesday as Harry Kane & Co. take on Union Berlin in a crucial Bundesliga clash at the Allianz Arena.

Ashton Agar followed his three wickets with an unbeaten 26 in a 71-run stand with Hilton Cartwright to seal Perth Scorchers’ chase of 113 on a two-paced pitch in Alice Springs

The Report by Daniel Brettig13-Jan-2018
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAshton Agar and Hilton Cartwright lifted Perth Scorchers back to the top of the Big Bash League table by negotiating a tricky chase against Adelaide Strikers on a challenging surface at Traeger Park in Alice Springs.The first BBL match to be played in the Northern Territory was a low scoring affair between two of the competition’s strongest bowling and fielding line-ups, with Agar’s three wickets contributing to a Strikers collapse before he aided Cartwright in ensuring the Scorchers did not go the same way.Alex Carey had given the Strikers a decent start before the Scorchers, led by Ashton Turner in the absence of the captain Adam Voges – suspended for a second slow over rate offence during the tournament, regathered themselves. The Scorchers then appeared to be struggling in the pursuit thanks to the now familiar brilliance of Rashid Khan, but some sensible batting by Cartwright and Agar took them to a victory that also won them the Jason Gillespie Trophy.Adjusting to the slow lane
Coming from Adelaide Oval and the WACA ground, these two sides are used to swift and bouncy pitches with sleek outfields. Neither were evident in Alice Springs, leaving the Strikers and Scorchers unsure of what a strong score would be. Given this was the first BBL match to be played at the ground, there was also a lack of statistical information available, making this a case of the awkward unknown for players, coaches and analysts alike.The fluent Carey was able to get into stride with regular boundaries and had some initial support from Jake Weatherald, a Northern Territory product, but after his dismissal trying to sweep Will Bosisto the Strikers seemed eager to accelerate in a manner that suggested they felt they needed a score in the region of 160 or more.Falling apart through the middle
As each wicket fell, the Strikers grew more impatient, and it showed in their shot selection, which was chaotic at best. This was epitomised by Jake Lehmann, who to his fifth ball and with the scorecard reading an uncertain 4 for 81, offered up an attempt to reverse paddle Agar that lobbed in the general vicinity of Mitchell Johnson. His resulting one-handed catch was outstanding, but was only made possible by the sort of shot that betrayed an addled mind.In all, the Strikers would lose all 10 wickets for 63, having been nicely placed at 0 for 49. Among all collapses in the history of the BBL, only one by Melbourne Renegades in the fourth edition of the tournament was more catastrophic. Agar, Tim Bresnan and Matthew Kelly all contributed with wickets and parsimony, in weather that forced Kelly to seek treatment for heat exhaustion after the innings had concluded.Spinning around
In order to win, the Strikers needed a couple early wickets in the Powerplay and then to have Rashid Khan weave his spell on a surface that would offer some assistance. While unlucky when the umpire Donovan Koch appeared to miss a thin edge down the leg side by Bosisto off Michael Neser first ball of the innings, the first part of the equation went their way when Bosisto clumped the same bowler to mid-on. Ben Laughlin then held an outstanding catch, diving across from mid-off to see off Michael Klinger, giving Rashid his opening.Used in one over spells by the stand-in captain Colin Ingram, Rashid fizzed a legbreak past Cartwright, and in his second he rushed a googly into Turner’s leg stump soon after Cameron Bancroft had tugged Peter Siddle to short midwicket. Agar’s left-handedness was something of an advantage, but even he was exceedingly fortunate in edging a legbreak past the stumps as Rashid continued to tease.Cool heads and no-balls
As Cartwright and Agar pushed towards their goal, Siddle probed for a wicket. He had reacted with incredulity when the umpire John Ward ignored a first-ball lbw appeal against Turner, saying the batsman had managed to get some bat on a delivery clocked at 141kph. Ward was very alert, however, when Siddle thought he had Cartwright taken on the midwicket boundary with 24 runs still required. Siddle had already begun to celebrate when he noticed Ward’s arm outstretched for a no-ball, and replays showed it to be a correct call on the Victorian seamer’s front foot.When the resulting free-hit was clumped down the ground for a six by Cartwright, the equation had lost most of its tension, leaving Agar and Cartwright to cruise home. They were aided by another no-ball along the way, this time against Laughlin for a high full toss. The Scorchers were thus rewarded for keeping calm in the chase where the Strikers had lost their composure in trying to set a target.

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Ireland clinched their first win of the tournament but in their last attempt of the group stage, when they beat Afghanistan by only four runs in Whangarei. Afghanistan needed 10 runs from the last two overs and only seven from the last but they had only two wickets in hand and were bowled out with four balls to spare. Max Neville started the last over with a no-ball and wide to reduce the equation to five required from six but he removed the last wicket of Qais Ahmad to steal a thrilling win.Chasing 226, Afghanistan could not get any big partnerships going. After losing two wickets for 47 runs by the 11th over, No. 3 Bahir Shah top-scored with 34 and took them close to 100 but handed a return catch to Varun Chopra. Offspinner Harry Tector troubled their middle order with the next three strikes, including the wicket of Tariq Stanikzai (33 off 24) that left Afghanistan on 155 for 6. Captain Naveen-ul-Haq scored 25 off 35 to rally the tail but his was the eighth wicket to fall, at 196. Afghanistan needed 30 from the last seven overs and the pair of Ahmad and Mujeeb took them close but could not finish things off.Earlier, Ireland were troubled by the duo of Wafadar and Ahmad as both took three-wicket hauls. Ireland started slow and were 69 for 2 before Ahmad’s legbreaks accounted for the next three wickets, including opener Jamie Grassi (32), Sam Murphy (2) and Neil Rock (35). Tector, the captain, scored a patient 36 before Wafadar sent the next three batsmen back to leave Ireland on 202 for 8. An unbeaten and quickfire 37 off 24 from Graham Kennedy led Ireland to 225 for 8, proving just about enough in the end.

West Indies A survived a scare on the final morning to secure a nervy two-wicket over England Lions in the first unofficial Test in Jamaica

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Feb-2018

ScorecardWest Indies A survived a scare on the final morning to secure a nervy two-wicket over England Lions in the first unofficial Test in Jamaica, with Rahkeem Cornwall adding to his eight wickets in the match by hitting the winning runs. Jomel Warrican also collected an eight-wicket haul and played a significant role with the bat alongside first-innings centurion Shane Dowrich, as the Lions let slip a potentially decisive lead.Resuming on 31 for 1 chasing a target of 106, West Indies A progressed to 80 for 3 before a collapse against spin threatened to let the Lions back in. Jack Leach claimed a five-for, and Liam Livingstone and Mason Crane were also among the wickets as the hosts lost 5 for 18, before the sturdy figure of Cornwall calmly saw them over the line.Having been put in to bat, the Lions made 252 with half-centuries from Nick Gubbins and Paul Coughlin. West Indies A were then in significant trouble at 114 for 8 in reply, but wicketkeeper Dowrich brought his Test experience to bear during a five-and-a-half hour 119. Warrican was a more-than-adequate ally, scoring 71 during a 161-run ninth-wicket partnership that lifted West Indies A into a 27-run lead.The significance of that partnership became clearer as the Lions suffered a collapse of their own. Haseeb Hameed top-scored with 39 but the tourists slipped from 60 for 1 and 118 for 4 to 132 all out as Warrican, who played the last of his four Tests in 2016, finished with second-innings figures of 7 for 33.Both sides featured a number of Test players. Keaton Jennings, who made 49 in the first innings, captained a Lions side featuring Hameed, Toby Roland-Jones and Mason Crane, the legspinner capped in England’s final Ashes Test at the SCG. West Indies A were led by Kieran Powell, alongside Jermaine Blackwood, Vishaul Singh, Raymon Reifer and Warrican in the first of three first-class matches.There was some further news out the Lions camp, with call-ups for Roland-Jones and Matt Critchley to the squad for the one-day games against West Indies A next month. Roland-Jones will cover for Tom Helm, who has suffered a hamstring injury, while legspinner Critchley replaces Dawson after he was signed for the Pakistan Super League. Two players have also been added to the North-South series: Gloucestershire’s Liam Norwell and Middlesex quick Tom Barber join the South squad after Helm and George Garton were forced to withdraw.

Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen starred for Nigeria as they qualified for last eight stage after beating Cameroon 2-0.

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• Lookman stars in Nigeria's win over Cameroon
• Andre Onana heads back to Man Utd
• Osimhen provided assist for first goal

• TELL ME MORE

  Nigeria imposed their dominance on the game right from the word go and came close to opening the scoring in the ninth minute when Semi Ajayi found the back of the net but a VAR check ruled out the strike for offside.

  Victor Osimhen's heroics then helped his side finally break the deadlock in the 36th minute as the Napoli star snatched the ball away from Oumar Gonzalez before setting up a pass for Ademola Lookman. The Atalanta winger's attempt was initially stopped by Fabrice Ondoa, albeit half-heartedly but the ball eventually trickled through his arms and went inside the goal.

  The Super Eagles then doubled their lead and sealed the fate of the game in the 90th minute as Lookman completed his brace. From a short free-kick, the winger made a solo diagonal run before squaring the ball towards a team-mate who in turn, sent the ball towards Calvin Bassey. The full-back delivered a low cross for Lookman who slotted the ball home.

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  THE MVP

  While Osimhen did all the hard work for the first goal, it was Lookman who stole the show by netting a brace. After converting a simple finish for the opener, the former Leicester City man scored a second with a brilliant solo effort which sealed the fate of the game.

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  THE BIG LOSER

  Oumar Gonzalez's glaring mistake while receiving a simple throw-in and then failing to stop Osimhen's run cost his team dearly as Cameroon bowed out of the competition at the round of 16.

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• WHAT COMES NEXT?

  Rigobert Song's side heads back home after their exit from the round of 16 while Osimhen and Co. will next face Angola on February 2 in a quarter-final clash.

Southampton have not been busy in the summer transfer window in terms of bringing players into the club as they have only made three first-team signings to date.

Who have Southampton signed this summer?

Russell Martin has been able to bring in left-back Ryan Manning on a free transfer from his former team Swansea and versatile defender Shea Charles on a permanent deal from Manchester City, whilst goalkeeper Joe Lumley has also arrived on a free.

Meanwhile, Tino Livramento, James Ward-Prowse, Mohammed Salisu, Mislav Orsic, Ibrahima Diallo, Mohamed Elyounoussi, and Theo Walcott have all departed on a permanent basis.

These sales could provide the Scottish head coach with the funds to dip into the market to bolster his squad further before next month's deadline.

One player who could arrive on the south coast over the coming weeks is Newcastle United outcast Isaac Hayden. The defensive midfielder has been linked with a move to St. Mary's this summer and is reportedly free to depart Tyneside if the right offer comes in for his services.

How good is Isaac Hayden?

Martin could land Oriol Romeu 2.0 for the Saints by signing the English enforcer as he is an excellent ball-winning battler who can screen in front of the back four to make Jan Bednarek and Jack Stephens' lives easier.

Hayden spent the 2022/23 campaign on loan with Norwich in the Championship and showcased his defensive instincts with 2.7 tackles and interceptions per match, which came after he managed three tackles and interceptions per outing for the Magpies during the 2021/22 Premier League season.

The £22k-per-week ace also ranked within the top 3% or higher of his positional peers across the last second-tier term for blocks (2.21) and aerial duels won (3.31) per 90.

These statistics suggest that Hayden could be an outstanding defensive option for the Saints as no midfielder managed more than 0.4 blocks or two aerial battles won per clash for the club last season.

Romeu made 3.5 tackles and interceptions per game during his final Premier League campaign with Southampton in 2021/22. He also averaged 1.22 blocks and 2.09 headers won per 90 at the base of Ralph Hasenhuttl's midfield.

His duel success rate of 55% showed that the Spaniard was strong in his physical contests and the reported Saints target came out on top in 58% of his Championship battles for the Canaries.

The now-Barcelona enforcer excelled at putting out fires across the pitch to win possession back for his side as a holding midfielder and the Magpies outcast is a player who has similar qualities, as ex-boss Dean Smith hailed him as an "excellent" and "technical" ball-winner.

There is, however, a concern over his injury record as Hayden has missed 45 competitive games since the start of the 2021/22 campaign.

However, he had only been absent for 19 matches over the previous three years and his recent issues could just be a flash in the pan.

Southampton could gamble on him being a reliable option as his statistics when he is available suggest that the 28-year-old battler could be Romeu 2.0 for the club as a screening midfielder in front of the back four.

The tournament will retain its usual 4pm and 8pm starts, with double-headers restricted only to weekends

Nagraj Gollapudi14-Feb-2018

Defending champions Mumbai Indians will face Chennai Super Kings in the IPL opener on April 7 in Mumbai. Super Kings will also play the last match of the league phase, which ends on May 20, against Kings XI Punjab. The IPL has also decided not to alter the tournament’s regular match timings with afternoon matches scheduled for a 4pm IST start and the evening matches commencing at 8pm.In a welcome change, all the double headers – 13 in total – will be played over Saturday and Sunday. In the final schedule released by the IPL on Wednesday, 44 matches during the league phase will be played in the evening, while the remaining 12 games will be start in the afternoon.In addition to the home bases of the eight franchises, Indore will be the ninth venue, playing host to the home games of Kings XI. Apart from the tournament opener and the final, Mumbai will also host the first qualifier.Incidentally the venue for the other two play-offs – the eliminator and the second qualifier – remains unnannounced. The main reason behind that was because the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) sent a letter to IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla, demanding the two play-off matches be played in Pune, home of last year’s runner-up Rising Pune Supergiant.In the letter, MCA president Abhay Apte told Shukla that he was merely asking the IPL to stick to the norm and allot the Eliminator and second qualifier to the home base of last season’s runner-up. A final decision on the issue is likely to be taken by the IPL Governing Council at its next meeting.Meanwhile, the IPL acquiesced to the franchises’ demand of sticking to the original match timings and not alter it. In January, the Governing Council had approved the proposal – worked out with the host broadcaster Star – that afternoon matches would begin at 5.30 pm, and evening games would commence at 7pm. The immediate repercussion of that move, the franchises argued, was the second innings of the first match and the first innings of the second would overlap on double-header days.According to an IPL official, one solution was to start the day match at 3.30pm to “avoid” the overlap. That, however, was not a feasible solution considering the IPL is played during peak summer and the franchises did not want the players to suffer in India’s unforgiving heat.

Chelsea attacker Mykhailo Mudryk has sent a defiant message to his supporters on social media amid his slow start to the 2023/23 Premier League season.

Has Mykhailo Mudryk been playing badly for Chelsea?

Over the weekend, the Blues slumped to a disappointing away defeat against West Ham United at the London Stadium, losing 3-1 despite being up against ten men for the final 23 minutes of the 90.

For all the positivity that seems to have been around the arrival of new head coach Mauricio Pochettino, this hasn't quite resulted in performances on the pitch with Chelsea yet to win either of their first two games, following a 1-1 draw against Liverpool on the opening weekend.

In both matches, Mudryk has had the opportunity to make himself a hero but fluffed his lines. Indeed, against the Reds, he was put through on goal late on but took a heavy touch past goalkeeper Alisson Becker and the chance ultimately came to nothing.

You can see the moment via Reddit below.

While against the Hammers, the £88.5m player also failed to deliver a telling moment of quality when the opportunity presented itself, as he skewed a volley so poorly that it didn't even end up as a shot on goal.

Unsurprisingly, the 22-year-old has come under criticism for his displays. For instance, he was handed a 3/10 player rating by journalist Nizaar Kinsella of the Evening Standard, while Jude Summerfield of 90min described one moment involving the player as "comical."

In response to his critics, Mudryk appears to have sent out a defiant message on his Instagram story, saying: "Guys, I just wanna say that I appreciate all your support. We going with y'all in one boat, lose together and we win together, and my success will be yours as well."

What position is Mudryk?

Unfortunately, his lack of composure in these last two outings means that Mudryk is still yet to score a competitive goal for the Blues, having now featured in 19 matches across all competitions for the club.

He hasn't started either game so far, though, coming off the bench both times – playing on the right wing against Liverpool, and replacing Carney Chukwuemeka in a more central role vs West Ham.

Read the latest Chelsea transfer news HERE…

Perhaps Pochettino will be able to get more out of the Ukraine international if he was to play Mudryk on the left wing. After all, this is probably his best position, having played there 77 times in his career – only operating on the other flank 10 times, and even playing as a centre forward and an attacking midfielder once each (via Transfermarkt).

TV pundit and former player Ashley Cole certainly seemed to think the winger shouldn't have directly replaced Chukwuemeka against the Hammers. He told Sky Sports (via Metro): "Maybe the substitution [Chukwuemeka off, Mudryk on] caused an issue.

"They lost a bit of impetus in the game. They weren’t getting the runs in behind between right-back and centre-back. It was all then too easy for West Ham.

"Pochettino will have understood the context behind the change but I felt they lost a bit of ability to drive beyond and cause West Ham a problem. They lost a little bit of power and impetus to sustain attacks."

The offspinner has dismissed suggestions that he is not interested in playing for West Indies; it is just a matter of not rushing back to ODIs with his remodelled bowling action, he said

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Feb-2018Sunil Narine has dismissed suggestions that he is not interested in playing for West Indies. The offspinner said that playing for West Indies remains an “ultimate goal” for him.Recently Narine, who has been working on his remodelled bowling action, told selectors he wanted to focus on his bowling and get his confidence back and hence he would not want to feature in the World Cup Qualifiers that will be played in March.Now Narine is playing for Trinidad & Tobago in the Regional Super50, the local one-day tournament. On Monday, he became the highest wicket-taker during the course of a hat-trick he picked up against Windward Islands. He also has the best economy rate so far in the tournament (2.33), and the best match figures as well: 5 for 10, against Combined Campuses and Colleges.Regardless of this form, Narine does feel he is not ready to bowl for West Indies in ODIs yet. While he played the solitary Twenty20 in England last September, the last time Narine represented West Indies in ODIs was in October 2016, in the UAE, against Pakistan.Since then Narine has been busy playing domestic T20 leagues even while asking selectors not to pick him for ODIs. According to Johnny Grave, Cricket West Indies’ chief executive officer, Narine told the selectors that he is not yet fully confident about his bowling action, and would like to carry on working with specialist coach, Carl Crowe, on his action. Grave said he could understand Narine’s position and was willing to grant the player a bit more time.”It’s nothing like that [not wanting to play for West Indies],” Narine told , a Barbados-based weekly cricket TV programme. “I just don’t want to rush back into international cricket and the 50-over game. I think I need to play some [domestic] 50-overs cricket, get accustomed again [instead of] rushing back and making a mess of myself.”According to Narine, he wanted to “enjoy” his game; that way he could build his confidence before returning to the bigger stage. “It’s about my self-performance, and about self-belief, going out there and trying to perform for Trinidad and Tobago; once I can do that, I will be available for West Indies again.”I think playing for West Indies is the ultimate goal. I think you have to enjoy cricket, no matter where. So I will see how these [domestic] games go in the 50-over [format] and if I am comfortable and enjoying it, why not.”