Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and sporting director Andrea Berta are apparently wasting no time on another transfer pursuit, right after they finally sealed a deal for Sporting CP star Viktor Gyokeres.

He'd be better than Rodrygo: Arsenal "are looking" at signing £100m winger

Arsenal are ready to complete their summer transfer window with a big-money signing.

ByAngus Sinclair Jul 25, 2025

The last month of their summer window has been dominated by their chase for Gyökeres.

Two weeks ago, Arsenal agreed a deal in principle to sign the Swedish striker for £64 million, paying a £55m guaranteed fee plus around £9m in add-ons (The Athletic), but talks were held up over the structure of the aforementioned bonuses (GOAL).

19/20 – winter

£0

20/21 – summer

£81.5m

20/21 – winter

£900k

21/22 – summer

£156.8m

21/22 – winter

£1.8m

22/23 – summer

£121.5m

22/23 – winter

£59m

23/24 – summer

£208m

23/24 – winter

£0

24/25 – summer

£101.5m

24/25 – winter

£0

25/26 – summer

£153m

However, earlier this week, Arteta’s side finally reached a breakthrough for the ex-Coventry City star, and Gyokeres is now set to become a new Arsenal player (Sky Sports).

The 27-year-old, who scored 54 goals in all competitions last season, became Berta’s primary target after the Gunners abandonded initial talks for RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko.

After signing Gyokeres, attention is turning to their pursuit of a central attacking midfielder, as Arteta looks to add more creativity to his squad following their struggles against the low-block last campaign.

Arsenal confirmed Noni Madueke’s arrival last weekend, but aside from Gyokeres, the England international is their only attacking signing of the window. Their deal for Madueke, which attracted mixed reviews from supporters, was apparently pushed by Berta.

Madueke and Gyokeres, according to recent reports, could soon be joined by Crystal Palace playmaker Eberechi Eze.

Eberechi Eze convinced he's going to join Arsenal

Arsenal are expected to accelerate their plans to sign Eze, and journalist Graeme Bailey has shared a very intriguing update in a piece for TBR Football.

According to the journalist, Eze has told friends that he’s going to join Arsenal this summer, following talks with the Gunners, and it is reported that Arteta’s side have held discussions with Palace too.

It is by no means a certainty that Arsenal will formally make a bid just yet, according to the journalist, as Berta is known for spinning many plates at once when it comes to transfer targets, and Real Madrid’s Rodrygo remains on their shortlist.

However, Bailey is convinced that there is a strong possibility Eze will sign for Arsenal by the end of next month.

“I am told that Eze remains firmly on Arsenal’s radar, and they have done plenty of work on him,” said Bailey.

“There is a very good chance that Eze will be an Arsenal player before the end of August.”

Eze bagged 14 goals and 11 assists in all competitions for Palace last season, including their FA Cup final-winning goal against Man City, and his release clause is believed to be around £60 million (plus a potential £8m if bonuses are reached).

The calamity of Cape Town 18 months ago has helped Australia accept that the Headingley loss was simply a game of cricket they can learn from

Daniel Brettig27-Aug-2019The last time an Australian Test tour took on the trajectory of the current Ashes series, starting with a victory before beginning to fall away, the response of a tiring and weakening team desperate for victory was to resort to the infamous, obvious cheating of Newlands.With pressure compounding fatigue, a performance culture wearing away at weary minds and bodies, and anger at how circumstances and failings had conspired against them, that Australian team lost its way in the most awful and spectacular manner, while the rest of the world took the opportunity to raise a host of accumulated grievances.Australia’s current captain Tim Paine and vice-captain Pat Cummins were both part of that group, and in the deep anguish and frustration of Headingley, Ben Stokes’ heroics and all, there was acknowledgement that this time around, a different and better path must be taken. And that, for all of the difficulties of the past 18 months, there are now far more members of the team able to step away from events in the middle and remind everyone that this is, after all, a game.”Someone like Matt Wade, he’s been out of the side for two years and one of the first things he said this morning [before the final day] was, ‘if we win or if we lose, you turn up on the building site and no one knows’,” Cummins said. “So I think it’s a good reminder that it’s not the be all and end all. One lesson we learnt from Lord’s probably on that night where we were really close to ripping the game open, we got really emotional and almost just wanted it too much, so I was really proud how everyone stayed quite level this game.”When we bowled them out for 67 or they got a partnership we were quite even. I think it’s the sign of a pretty confident squad. Painey’s been brilliant. He walked straight into the change room and said it’s one-all, it’s all good, two more matches to go. Bowlers, him as a captain, everyone makes decisions and you reflect after the game and think, what could I have done differently?”When you look at it – a couple of catches, maybe a run out, but when a batsman comes out and scores a hundred like that, hitting sixes from an offspinner out of the rough so cleanly, you’ve just got to say well done. Someone’s had a day out, we’ll be right.”Marshalling the bowlers, Cummins agreed that there were a few moments to ponder. Not least some profligate bowling with the second new ball, having imposed enormous pressure on England for over after over leading up to it. “That was one thing we spoke about was with the new ball,” he said. “Obviously you feel like you’re more in the game with wickets but that wicket almost felt like a one-day wicket or an Indian wicket where with the new ball it’s a double-edged sword.”If you’re not absolutely perfect you can go for runs and I think if we reflect on that half-an-hour, they might have got 30 or 40 runs pretty quickly. But other than that I thought we were brilliant. We’ll have a look at that but the second new ball sometimes is a different ball game to the first new ball.”I think the most pleasing thing for us, one, we bowled really well, but as you said I feel like we’ve got really good plans and processes to all of them. Ben Stokes obviously had a day out today and was probably playing more like one-day cricket towards the end there but we saw yesterday they batted for 70 overs and kept them to two runs an over and always felt like we were in the game. All three games we’ve been in a match-winning position so we know how to do 99 per cent of it. Hopefully we can get over the line in the next one.”Ben Stokes survives an lbw appeal•Getty ImagesThe approach taken by Paine to spread the field for Stokes all the way through his match-winning 76-run stand with the last man Jack Leach (contribution: one run) has been a source of some consternation in the wake of defeat. Paine has admitted that he should at least have spoken more with the bowlers about maintaining attacking lines and lengths with that field, rather than taking it as a sign to effectively put the cue in the rack against Stokes and only try to dismiss Leach. Cummins admitted that such fields tended to put any bowler into white-ball mode.”Unfortunately yeah it is [like one-day cricket],” he said. “When the wicket’s like that and the ball’s still hard, it didn’t feel like it was going to swing or seam so as a bowler your options are you’re hopefully going to still snick him off so you’ve got the slips out there but other than that just trying to limit the damage. He’s faced almost 200 balls and when he started going he’s at the top of his game so it’s certainly hard work but we still had our chances. Obvious thing is the wicket got better and better the longer the game went on. I would have liked to score a few more runs myself.”Runs will more than likely be available from a welcome avenue at Old Trafford, via the return to fitness and selection of Steven Smith. Cummins said that Smith had remained very much involved in the game since he was ruled out through concussion, making his impending recall all the more welcome. “I know last week at Lord’s he said he was screaming at the TV from his hotel room watching the final hour,” Cummins said.”This game we were right on top and we’ve got the world’s best batter coming in for the next one so it’s great. I think from all reports he’s going to play the tour match next week. What has he got? 100-odd, 100-odd and 90-odd so it’s going to be great to be back.”Cummins had one more crucial involvement, firing in the return to Nathan Lyon that, had he held it, would have seen Leach run out with Australia triumphant by a single run. Here, once again, was a reminder why the refreshed Australian approach, forged out of the infamy of Newlands, should serve the tourists well at the pointy end of this Ashes series. “I probably didn’t help him out with the throw there, it could have been a bit better,” Cummins said. “But yeah, like everyone, you just want to win so desperately and the emotion gets to everyone slightly differently.”Gaz obviously wears his heart on his shoulder so we’ve got to get around him. But I think the next ball he bowled after that was three reds [for lbw] so on another day he’s the match-winner. It’s that fine line, if you lived and died by a win and a loss you’d be out of this business pretty quickly.”

The opener will not be part of the India contingent that flies from Dubai to Sydney on Wednesday

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Nov-2020Rohit Sharma will not be part of the Indian contingent flying from Dubai to Sydney on Wednesday for the Australia tour. Sharma, who led the Mumbai Indians to their fifth IPL title on Tuesday, will instead return home to recover completely from the hamstring injury he suffered during the IPL.The Indian selectors initially left Rohit out of all three squads for the Australia tour, which will be played between November 27 and January 19 and will comprise three ODIs, three T20Is and four Tests. This was because Rohit had suffered a hamstring tear in his left leg on October 18 while completing a run against Kings XI Punjab. He sat out Mumbai’s next four matches before returning to play for their last league match followed by Qualifier 1 and the IPL final, in which he was the top-scorer.On November 9, the eve of the IPL final, the BCCI said in a media release that Rohit would feature in the Test series, but was being rested for the limited-overs leg of the Australia tour to “regain full fitness”. It is now expected that Rohit will undergo his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and, once he passes a fitness test, head to Australia ahead of the Test series, which begins in Adelaide on December 17.Kohli unlikely to return to Australia post paternity leaveIt is also understood that India captain Virat Kohli will not rejoin the Test squad in the New Year once he returns to India on paternity leave following the first Test. Kohli and his partner Anushka Sharma are expecting their first child around early January, so he requested the BCCI to release him after the Adelaide Test, which will the India’s maiden overseas day-night Test and is scheduled from December 17 to 21.According to the Australian government’s travel guidelines imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a person entering the country has to undergo a 14-day quarantine. So the India team management has accepted that Kohli will not have enough time to be ready for the final two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which are scheduled in Sydney (January 7-11) and Brisbane (January 15-19).Wriddhiman Saha collects low to his left•BCCI

Kohli, though, would be part of the Indian contingent, comprising all three squads along with their families, flying late on Wednesday on a charter flight organized by the BCCI to Sydney from Dubai. The Indian touring group will start the tour with a two-week quarantine, during which they are allowed to train subject to clearing the testing protocols put in place by Cricket Australia in coordination with the local government. It is understood the Indian party will start training from November 14 in Sydney.Ahead of the Test series the Indians will play two warm-up matches, the second of them under lights, ahead of the pink-ball Test. The first warm-up game between India A and Australia A, scheduled to take place from December 6 to 8, clashes with the T20I series, so only the Test specialists, along with the some of the net bowlers, will take part. The entire Test squad, though, will be available for the second warm-up game against Australia A, scheduled from December 11 to 13.Saha flying to AustraliaWriddhiman Saha, who injured the hamstrings in both his legs while playing an IPL match for Sunrisers Hyderabad, will be part of the touring group flying out on Wednesday. Saha is one of two wicketkeepers named by the selectors for the Test series along with Rishabh Pant.It is understood that fast bowler Ishant Sharma will travel separately to Australia ahead of the Test series once he is declared completely fit by the NCA, where he is undegoing rehab after suffering an abdominal muscle tear during the IPL. Recently the NCA, which is headed by the former India captain Rahul Dravid, had communicated to the BCCI that Ishant would be ready to start bowling from November 18, after which he will need to prove his match fitness.

ECB insists tour plans continue “as normal” in spite of raft of travel measures against UK

Andrew Miller21-Dec-2020

Jacques Kallis and Paul Harris at South Africa training•Getty Images

Jacques Kallis has been appointed as England’s latest batting consultant for next month’s Test series in Sri Lanka, a tour that the ECB insists is set to go ahead as planned in spite of the heightened uncertainty over the UK’s latest wave of measures to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.The ECB last week stepped up its search for full-time appointments for their batting, pace- and spin-bowling coaching vacancies, with applications due to close on January 10, meaning that Kallis’s appointment may be the last consultancy role used by the board. Similar appointments were made for Jonathan Trott during the Pakistan Tests last summer, and Marcus Trescothick on the recent white-ball tour of South Africa.At this stage, Kallis is not expected to be involved in England’s subsequent Test tour of India – although that may yet change, with the ECB having flagged the need to rotate their options for the foreseeable, to mitigate against the strain of living, practising and playing in bio-secure environments.With that in mind, Graham Thorpe, England’s regular assistant coach to Chris Silverwood, has been rested for this leg of the winter, but is expected to be back on board for the India tour. Jon Lewis, the former Gloucestershire and England seamer, travels as fast-bowling coach, while James Foster continues as wicketkeeping consultant in the wake of Bruce French’s retirement last summer, as does Jeetan Patel as spin consultant.Related

Sri Lanka worried about new Covid-19 strain, but England tour likely to be on schedule

Neil McKenzie appointed SA high performance batting consultant

Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer rested for England Test tour of Sri Lanka

Jos Buttler could miss at least two Tests against India

ECB step up coaching recruitments for England men's squads

However, it is Kallis’s appointment which is the most eye-catching for the coming tour. He secured his status as an all-time great with 13,206 Test runs at 55.37 for South Africa, in addition to 292 wickets, while his mastery of Asian conditions is renowned, with eight centuries at 55.62 in 25 Tests in the region.This time last year, Kallis was working as a batting consultant for South Africa’s Test team during their 3-1 series loss against England. However, with CSA committing in September to a policy of affirmative action for future consultant roles, Kallis’s opportunities for further work within his home country are limited, particularly now that the role of High Performance Batting Consultant, a position that spans all levels of the professional game in South Africa, has gone to his former team-mate Neil McKenzie.Discussions between Kallis and the ECB are understood to have taken place earlier this month, and have been described as “very quick and simple”. He is expected to link up with the squad when they travel to Hambantota on January 2, ahead of the first of two Tests against Sri Lanka in Galle starting January 14.Concerns over the viability of the tour, which was belatedly confirmed by the Sri Lankan government earlier this month after protracted negotiations, have resurfaced this week given the extensive travel bans being imposed on the UK by several countries, following the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus.That includes England’s other new-year Test opponents, India, whose government has suspended UK flights as a temporary measure from December 22-31. England’s squad are due to fly directly to India at the conclusion of their Sri Lanka tour on January 27.ESPNcricinfo understands that a meeting is due to take place between Sri Lanka health authorities and those in the UK to discuss the implications of the latest Covid updates. However, given the financial importance of the England tour to Sri Lanka’s finances, and the recent success of the Lanka Premier League, there is no suggestion yet that the tour is in peril.An ECB spokesman told ESPNcricinfo: “We continue to plan as normal. We have regular meetings with Sri Lanka and there is another meeting planned for this week.”

Rory Burns believes that Jofra Archer will be looking forward to dishing out some of the medicine that he and his fellow tailenders received on the first day of action at Lord’s, after being welcomed to Test cricket by a fiery onslaught from Pat Cummins.Archer, who cranked his pace up past 92mph in a promising but wicketless six-over burst before stumps, was on the receiving end from ball one of his Test career, as Cummins went short with ten of his eleven deliveries, before finally having him caught off a leading edge in the gully for 12.And he was not alone in being peppered by a pumped-up Cummins, with Burns himself taking two blows in the space of three deliveries before fencing another lifter in his subsequent over to short leg, where Cameron Bancroft clung onto a brilliant one-handed take.”It’s always nice to get into a little bit of a scrap,” said Burns. “Obviously he got two to hit the same spot, which was nice, but I was just trying to getting amongst it and tough it out.”Burns added that he had been warned from the very start of his innings what was in store for him, but put that down to the fact that, with 197 runs from 472 balls in the series to date, Australia are starting to think about ways to extract him from the crease.”I’ve obviously batted a few balls so far in this Test series, so they’re looking at different ways of getting me out,” he said. “I think Nathan Lyon ran past me this morning and mentioned it within about three balls, so I was well versed in what I was looking at, and prepared for what I was getting. But it’s just a good battle isn’t it?”Jofra Archer’s first over in Test cricket was a lively affair•Getty Images

Asked if Archer was looking forward to getting thrown the ball when Cummins comes into bat tomorrow, Burns replied: “Yeah, I’d have thought so. He copped a fair few as well so he’s probably looking forward to getting his own back.”It’s quite an obvious tactic, what they’re doing, so the boys are preparing for it. And luckily we can dish out some of our own in this game as well. We’ve got some boys in our armoury that do the same things, so it should be pretty interesting.”Lyon, who claimed not to remember his early warning to Burns, admitted that he too was bound to be in Archer’s sights, and joked that it wasn’t a prospect that he entirely relished.”Mate, I can’t bat, so what do you reckon?” he said. “I’m a No.10, No.11 batter, and I average 10.”It’s a world-class bowling attack. It’s Jofra’s first Test, but he’s a world-class bowler. We all know that. You know that. the world knows that. [Stuart] Broad, the same thing. Yeah, of course, it’s going to be challenging.”But it’s Test cricket. That’s why we play it, and for me personally, I want to challenge myself against the best players in the world. And these guys are the best bowlers in the world. So even though I can’t bat I’ll go out and give it a go, unless you want to do it for me!”On the match situation, Burns admitted that England would have fancied a higher score after getting first-use of a good Lord’s pitch, but believes that their total of 258 puts them firmly in the contest.”It’s tight, isn’t it?” he said. “I think it’s a competitive total but there’s probably a sense of disappointment there at the same time. But it’s kept everyone interested all day, because it seamed and If they missed their length you’ve been able to punish it. And it’s just started to offer a little bit to a spinner too, so I think it’s game on, and we’re right in amongst it.”

Albania scored a dramatic late equaliser to claim a 2-2 draw against Croatia and keep their slim Euro 2024 dreams alive.

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• Albania scored early yet again
• Croatia fought back in second half to lead
• Huge drama in final moments sees Gjasula equalise

• Getty Images
  

  TELL ME MORE

  Another game and another early goal for Albania! Qasim Laci was brought into the starting line-up for this fixture and wasted no time in making an impact, as he latched onto a tantalising cross from Jasir Asani in the 11th minute to glance his header home.

  One of the shock stories in this tournament weren't done there, either. Nedim Bajrami found himself free in the box and forced Dominik Livakovic into a smart save down to his right. Albania were pushing for a second.

  Croatia did, however, attempt to address the issues within their line-up at half-time as they made a flurry of changes. Mario Pasalic and Luka Sucic were introduced and they did look more threatening following the changes. Indeed, the goals were coming and they eventually arrived as Andrej Kramaric slotted an equaliser past Thomas Strakosha, before Sucic's effort cannoned off an Albanian defender and gave Croatia the lead.

  Now 2-1 ahead, it looked as if the game was over and the points were in the bag for Croatia. How wrong were we! Albania continued to push and eventually found a stoppage-time equaliser through Klaus Gjasula, keeping their Euro 2024 dreams alive.

Advertisement

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Croatia and Albania had never met in a competitive match prior to their clash in Hamburg on Wednesday – despite the two sides only being separated by just over 500 kilometres.

• CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty Images
  

  THE MVP

  With all the odds stacked against them yet again, Albania simply a found a way to get something from this fixture. They dominated the first half and were forced to adapt after the break – and eventually they got their reward. Hard work, perseverance and belief have kept their Euro 2024 hopes alive as they sit third in Group B.

• Getty Images
  

  THE BIG LOSER

  You can't look past Croatia as a collective being the big losers here. For all their promise in the second half of this fixture, and how threatening they looked in attack, they failed to hold out and secure all three points in the dying embers of the game.

  It looks like this tournament is going to be a step too far for the old guard, and Monday's final group-stage fixture against Italy may well be the last time we see Luka Modric in a Croatia shirt. Sad times.

Former Chelsea boss Emma Hayes' impact is already being felt with the USWNT ahead of this summer's Olympics tilt.

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Hayes swapped Chelsea for the USWNTHas already overseen two friendly winsUSWNT aiming for fifth gold this summerWHAT HAPPENED?

Hayes took the helm in the USA after winning seven WSL titles with Chelsea and has already led her new side to 4-0 and 3-0 friendly wins over South Korea as they gear up for this summer's Olympics in Paris. Her start has caught the eye of a former World Cup winner in Heather O'Reilly.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesWHAT HEATHER O'REILLY SAID

O'Reilly told the : "I know it's a quick transition and [Hayes] hasn't had much time with them, but she's a winner, she's a competitor and so is the team. And so I think that it could be the perfect marriage of her coming in and this time of the national team."

GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Hayes has taken charge of the USWNT at a time of transition, as the nation looks to rebuild following their last-16 exit to Sweden in the 2023 World Cup. The likes of Megan Rapinoe, Julie Ertz and Sam Mewis have all retired from the international game, as Hayes looks to bring forward the next generation of talent.

O'Reilly added on the new era: "People are flying on all cylinders.'Things are kind of like, I don't want to jinx it, but things are in a pretty good place. People seem to be sharp, scoring goals in a lot of different ways, Good variety. So I think they're in a good place and I'm looking forward to it."

WHAT NEXT FOR THE USWNT?

All eyes on are this summer's Olympic tournament in Paris, where the U.S. have been drawn against Zambia, Germany and Australia in Group B. Hayes' side face warm-up matches against Mexico and Costa Rica before their tournament opener on July 25.

Fielding restrictions and inventive batsmen have made bowlers develop other skills, but common sense and the fundamentals can still work

Daniel Brettig18-Feb-2015″Where are the yorkers?”It is possible that at one moment or another on late Saturday afternoon, every spectator among the 84,336 present at the MCG asked themselves this question. When Steven Finn finally managed to land a couple towards the end of Australia’s innings, those same spectators were most likely nodding and wondering why it had taken so long.Ian Pont, the bowling coach, was apoplectic on Twitter, as he watched England’s pacemen bang in short ball after short ball, most of them of the slower or cutter varieties. Amid a flurry of angry repudiations, he wrote that it was “time to stop with the clipboards and laptops … and get in the nets and learn to bowl yorkers … it’s that simple”.But is it, though?Out in the middle, Glenn Maxwell thought there was nothing inherently wrong with forcing the batsmen to strike out for the vast square MCG boundaries. What made it easy for Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh and Brad Haddin though was England had done this often enough before and the field settings for the tactic were imprecise.Proof of both flaws could be found in the fact that while England only conceded three sixes for the innings, a backhanded vindication of their thinking, the same bowlers leaked 38 fours. Maxwell alone struck 11, and his 66 from 40 balls was his highest international score made without a single blow beyond the boundary.”Death bowling is very dependent on the ground you bowl at,” Maxwell said. “I don’t think that was necessarily a bad tactic [from England]. We just, doing our homework, knew that was going to be coming. They do that a lot to us in the death overs, slower balls hard into the wicket to get up around shoulder- and head-height, which is generally pretty hard to play, but I don’t think they had the fields to match it.”You need to have the field to match it, and the MCG with big square boundaries, it’s hard to clear them. So you’re taking the six out of play but we hit a lot of boundaries and we were able to pick gaps, which isn’t always easy to do.”The sight of a yorker screeching under the bat and scrambling the stumps has grown less common recently, as various bowling theories are tried to counter the increasingly brazen batsmen and the hitting power of their weapons. The slower bouncer and the wide full delivery, both intended to force a stroke to a protected area of the field without giving the batsman the option of hitting to either side of the wicket, have become vogue in these latter overs.As a fast bowler with a threatening bouncer, a well-conceived slower ball and the capacity to york a batsman with his speed, Mitchell Johnson can see the value of targeting the batsman’s toes. But he also wonders at how the parameters have changed over his international career, which began in Bangladesh in 2006.’You have to do your homework a bit more on certain batters. Who reverse sweeps, who goes inside out over cover’ – Glenn Maxwell on death bowling as a spinner•Getty Images”I think there’s a number of things – fielding restrictions is one of them,” he said. “The way guys play now with the ramps and the reverse-ramps… and I think it becomes predictable with four out. So I think you still need to bowl the yorker, that’s still part of the game. It’s just trying to make it not predictable. It’s definitely a lot harder but it [the yorker] still plays a huge part.”I was watching the West Indies game against Ireland and when guys did bowl yorkers and got it right they didn’t score, so it’s just about not being predictable with it and that’s getting harder and harder with the way the game’s going. It’s a huge challenge but it’s just part of the game and you have to learn to adapt. That’s what the game is about, it’s about who can adapt the best.”A critical part of the thinking that has led to bowlers trying to deliver slow bouncers instead of fast yorkers is batsmen have become adept at using the crease, either advancing or camping back in the crease and across or away from the stumps to create scenarios for manoeuvring the ball into gaps or getting under and belting it into the stands.As Maxwell said, “You’ve got to put them off somehow. They [England] bowled two really good yorkers to us at the end and they seemed to go away from that a fair bit, they tried a lot of things to try to keep us guessing, so they made it easy for us to wait for them to make a mistake. They just missed their spots and they didn’t really have the fields to back it up either.”The fielding restrictions for this World Cup – only four outside the circle at any time – have also added to the pressure on bowlers. Maxwell is a spinner, but his observations about his fellow tradesmen needing to have a strong working knowledge of the batsmen they face can be applied equally to the quicks.”You have to do your homework a bit more on certain batters,” he said. “Who reverse sweeps, who goes inside out over cover. When you had five out you knew what you had to do, you had to bowl with three out on the leg and two out on the off, it was quite simple for a spinner to have his field at the start. The only decision he had to make was whether he wanted to be attacking and have a slip and a 45 [degrees behind square leg] or just the standard field. Now you have to think about it and do your homework.”As Pakistan showed the following day, it is not impossible to keep the scoring rate down in the closing overs provided they have, and stick to, a decent plan. Sohail Khan and Wahab Riaz did not limit themselves to yorkers, but bowling full and straight allowed them to concede only 21 from the final four overs. England had let slip 76 from Australia’s final six.Johnson has reasoned that bowlers should not be expected to keep the runs down in quite the same the manner they were once able to. But common sense and consistent application of fundamentals can still work more often than not.”I think you’ll find that run rates for bowlers have gone up in this game,” he said. “But I still think you’ve got to find a way and we’re doing it pretty well at the moment. It will be interesting to see when we’re under pressure how we handle it – that will be the key, and if we handle it when we’re under pressure then I’ll be happy.”

Liverpool owners FSG reportedly have a "strong relationship" with an "unbelievable" transfer target, according to an update from journalist Ben Jacobs.

Liverpool transfer news

The Reds are still basking in the glory of their EFL Cup triumph over Chelsea on Sunday afternoon, as a young side sealed glory at Wembley in memorable fashion.

Away from the on-field action, however, work is no doubt going on surrounding new signings in the summer transfer window, with Liverpool's next manager wanting to bring in players who can suit his style of play.

One individual who has emerged as a shock candidate for the Reds is Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, with a move to Anfield something that would not go down well at all among Blues supporters. He is seen as an alternative to fellow target Goncalo Inacio.

Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi is also being looked at as a potential option in defence, and the England international could come in as a direct replacement for Joel Matip, who is likely to leave when his contract expires at the end of the season.

FSG have "very strong relationship" with Leeds sensation

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Jacobs claimed that FSG have a "strong relationship" with Leeds star and Liverpool target Archie Gray, even though he may remain at Elland Road for the time being due to a desire to develop his career organically.

"Some members of Liverpool's hierarchy have a very strong relationship with the Gray family. But it is clear, within that family, that the development of Archie Gray needs to be a patient one. The feeling from the player and the family is that Leeds is the right place for him at this moment in time. If anybody comes in for him in the summer, they're going to have to give a clear pathway and potentially find a short-term solution for minutes through a loan.

"It's unlikely, if Gray signs for a club like Liverpool in the summer, that he would be getting regular minutes. I think the player knows that and, at this stage, he is only really thinking about Leeds."

Gray has been linked with a move to Liverpool in the recent past, and this update adds real encouragement that a switch could happen in the future, even if that isn't as soon as this summer.

Appearances

32

Starts

30

Goals

1

Assists

2

Tackles per game

2.2

Dribbles per game

1.1

Pass completion rate

84%

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RCB’s captain batted in the nets for close to 30 minutes without visible discomfort, and is “going well”, according to their team director

Ashish Pant16-May-20254:12

Bobat: Break was disruptive but afforded rest for players

With Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) enjoying one of their best seasons in recent times before IPL 2025’s week-long suspension, their overseas players were “adamant” to “come back and finish the job”, according to their team director Mo Bobat.RCB are currently second on the points table with eight wins and three losses. They have 16 points, the same as table-toppers Gujarat Titans, and one more win will guarantee a playoffs spot.Related

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“We spoke quite a lot with our overseas guys even before they went and most of them were pretty adamant that they were keen to come back and finish the job,” Bobat said ahead of Saturday’s match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). “We’ve had a good season so far, they want to come back and do that.”Like every other team, RCB have been scrambling to reassemble their squad ahead of the tournament’s resumption on Saturday, but they have managed to get all their overseas players back barring Josh Hazlewood, who is nursing a shoulder injury.Bobat did not divulge too many details about the availability of Hazlewood, who missed RCB’s last game before the suspension of the league. He confirmed that Rajat Patidar was recovering well from a finger injury in his right hand. Patidar, the RCB captain, batted in the nets for close to 30 minutes without any visible discomfort ahead of the KKR clash.3:14

Which overseas players are returning, and for how long?

“With Josh, as you’ll probably be aware, he’s our only player not here at the minute. He’s recovering from his shoulder niggle that he had,” Bobat said. “He’s doing that with Cricket Australia. Obviously, our medical team and their medical team have been liaising on what that detail looks like. He’s just taking that day by day and he’s trying to improve.”Patidar had an injury to his hand. He’s been building up ever so slowly. For him personally, probably the disruption gave him a few more days just to get through some of that early healing, for the swelling to go down and to get used to picking up [the bat] again. He’s practiced the last few days and he’s going well.”While RCB are likely to have a near full-strength squad for their first two league matches, they might need to bring in reinforcements once the playoffs arrive, should RCB make it. Jacob Bethell has been named in England’s squad for the West Indies ODIs and will fly back before RCB’s final group match in Lucknow. Lungi Ngidi is also only available until the end of the league stage, having been named in South Africa’s World Test Championship (WTC) final squad.”Obviously, we’ll lose Jacob Bethell and lose Lungi after a couple of games. So, there’s an obvious impact there,” Bobat said. “We’ve obviously got [Nuwan] Thushara in the squad, an international bowler chomping at the bit. Also, Rasikh Dar, a good bowler. So, we’ve got options in the squad, so certainly no concerns.”Over the next few days, we’ll think about potential replacements. There’s a bit of clamour for that at the minute and lots of teams are doing that. I prefer not to push these things, so we’ll just take our time and have a think about it.”