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Things might have gone awry this season, but the plan at Tottenham Hotspur is clear.

Daniel Levy and Co want to improve the team but have decided to build for the future and focus on young and up-and-coming talents in recent transfer windows to do so.

For example, last winter, the club signed Lucas Bergvall from Swedish side Djurgårdens for around £8.5m and then in the summer, they picked up Archie Gray from Leeds United for £30m and Wilson Odobert from Burnley for around £25m.

They will continue using this approach this summer, as recent reports have linked the club with an incredibly exciting young player who has been compared to Lamine Yamal.

Spurs looking at signing "future Ballon d'Or winner"

We may still be a couple of months away from the transfer window officially opening, but that has not stopped Spurs from being linked with several young and exciting talents.

Perhaps one of the most consistent links has been to Southampton’s Tyler Dibling, who has been valued at around £55m but could potentially be available for less when the Saints are inevitably relegated at the end of the season.

Another young Englishman who has been touted for a £38m move to N17 has been Sunderland’s 17-year-old sensation Chris Rigg, who has thrived this season, scoring four goals and providing one assist in 37 appearances, most of which have come in midfield.

Yet, at least so far, the most exciting link of the lot is to a 21-year-old winger who has been seriously impressing in France this year: Rayan Cherki.

According to a recent report from journalist Graeme Bailey, Spurs are one of several teams incredibly interested in the Lyon ace.

In fact, alongside Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Newcastle United, the Lilywhites have already made contact and asked ‘to be kept informed about’ the star’s situation.

However, while the level of competition is far from ideal, the good news is that, according to the story, there is an agreement between the club and the player that he’ll be allowed to leave for less than £25m this summer.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

Overall, it could be a complicated transfer to get over the line for Spurs, but given Cherki’s immense ability and potential, it’s one well worth fighting for, especially as he’s won comparisons to Yamal.

How Cherki Compares to Yamal

Now, before we get to some of the other reasons why Spurs should look to sign Cherki this summer, it’s worth examining this comparison to Yamal and where it comes from.

In this case, it primarily stems from FBref, which looks at players in similar positions in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, then creates a list of the ten most comparable players for each one and, in this instance, has concluded that the Spaniard is the fourth most similar attacking midfielder or winger to the Frenchman.

The best way to see where this comparison has come from is to look at the underlying metrics in which the pair rank closely, including, but not limited to, non-penalty expected goals plus assists, passes into the penalty area, through balls, successful take-on percentage, goal-creating actions and more, all per 90.

Non-Penalty Expected G+As

0.75

0.77

Passes into the Penalty Area

3.55

3.03

Through Balls

1.08

1.09

Goal-Creating Actions

0.96

1.01

Successful Take-On %

48.8%

49.8%

Ball Recoveries

3.92

3.91

However, as brilliant as it is to be compared to a European Champion and one of the most exciting players in world football, it’s not the only reason the Lilywhites should be looking to sign the Lyon ace.

For example, he’s been having an incredible season of his own this year.

In just 35 appearances, totalling 2355 minutes, he’s scored eight goals and provided 18 assists.

That means the “future Ballon d’Or winner,” as dubbed by The Athletic’s Alex Barker, is averaging a goal involvement every 1.34 games, or every 90.57 minutes.

Ultimately, if Spurs are going to continue building a team full of young up-and-coming prospects, as it looks like they are, then there are not many better additions they could make this summer than Cherki.

Spurs were rinsed by Pochettino signing who was a "poor man's Soldado"

The promising striker failed to live up to expectations in North London.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Apr 2, 2025

Opting for increased batting insurance is placing a greater workload on India’s MVP – and Jasprit Bumrah is still delivering

Alagappan Muthu26-Dec-20242:08

Manjrekar: India preferring Reddy over Gill not a great call

Boxing Day was going to be hard on the team that had to bowl at the MCG. The heat and lack of moisture was so severe that the Met Department had issued a warning. This is “fire weather,” indicating an increased risk of bush fires if people weren’t careful. It was 38C when Jasprit Bumrah came on for his fourth spell.He has been carrying the Indian attack and not just because the rest have been flat -the team’s selections have also been strange. They picked six bowling options for Melbourne but for the first 50 overs of Australia’s innings they had to turn to the same four over and over again. The two India barely needed – Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy – seem to be in the XI as a safety net for a fragile top order.Test cricket brings time into the game. Batters are required to give risk the cold shoulder here. To prise them out – especially in the harsh weather of Melbourne – specialists are needed. The three India had actually did a good job. Bumrah (22), Mohammed Siraj (16) and Akash Deep (14) induced 52 false shots in the first 30 overs (one every three balls). In total there were 55. Ravindra Jadeja contributed the other three at a rate of one every eight balls.The risks Sam Konstas took kept coming off. His livewire half-century forced India into playing catch-up and playing catch-up is not easy when half the bowling attack comprises batting allrounders. That’s the kind of thing that works in limited-overs games because there, batters are obliged to attack and that increases the chance of making a mistake. You don’t always need a specialist to capitalise on that. Sachin Tendulkar has more five-fors than Shane Warne in ODIs.Related

• Kohli fined 20% of match fees after heated altercation with Konstas at MCG

• Konstas arrives at the Test arena like a supernova

• Konstas on taking on Bumrah: 'That's the beauty of being young and a bit naive'

• Teenager Konstas takes Bumrah for record 18 runs in an over

So at 237 for 2 in the 66th over, with Marnus Labuschagne on 72 and Steven Smith on 42, India were courting trouble. Then came a bit of luck. Or perhaps a change of luck, considering a lot of their good work didn’t yield results earlier in the innings? Either way, after Labuschagne charged Sundar but couldn’t clear mid-off, all eyes turned to one man. The ball was too old to be threatening. The weather too hot to be outside. The team angry and too far behind. But as soon as Bumrah is at the top of his mark, there’s renewed hope.Rohit Sharma went to him because walking into bat was . Travis Head. Taking him down was vital. All batters are vulnerable early. Even those who have single-handedly whisked Tests that were in the balance and thrust them into match-winning territory. Twice in this series. Bumrah started from around the wicket. He snapped his wrist down on the ball. Head could have seen the shine was on the inside, which normally means it would move away from the left-hander. This one didn’t. It came in and took his off bail. In the slips, Rohit leapt into the air with the same joy kids all over the world would have done 24 hours or so earlier. Tis the season for jaffas.That three-over spell from Bumrah produced nearly as many wickets as India were able to take all day. There was an immediate debrief at stumps with Rohit and the entire coaching staff. Assistant coach Abhishek Nayar then arrived for the press conference and said he was happy with the XI India picked, though he sympathised with Shubman Gill who paid the price for his team hedging its bets.Jasprit Bumrah bowled 21 out of 86 overs on a hot day in Melbourne•Associated PressIndia have changed their combination before every match of this tour. The spinner that played in Perth didn’t play in Adelaide and the spinner that played in Adelaide didn’t play in Brisbane. Harshit Rana is back on the bench. KL Rahul has been pushed down the order. R Ashwin, who might have enjoyed this pitch, has retired. Is all this a horses for courses thing, or is it something else? Australia have only budged to accommodate injury or loss of form.”The thought process [in picking the XI] wasn’t so much batting,” Nayar said, “If there was an overemphasis on batting, then we would have had Shubman in the team. We just think of the balance of the team based on the conditions and what’s ahead of us.”It is pretty obvious that we felt in these conditions, looking at the pitch, having Washi in the bowling attack will give us that variation. Especially towards the end once the ball gets old, post the 50 overs, we felt that is an area that we wanted to get better at. We felt Washi could give us that solidity with Jaddu, especially the way Travis Head and Alex Carey were getting runs lower down, so we felt having an offie in the ranks will provide us with that.”India went back with a share of the day’s spoils because Bumrah bowled 21 of the 86 overs. That’s nearly 25%. Only twice has he bowled more in a day. By the end, he needed to slip off the field for short periods, which meant India delayed taking the new ball until he had spent that time back on the field and could bowl again, and was seen requiring the physio’s attention on his left calf.Those visuals along with the scorecard, which shows Reddy bowling only five overs – some of them with the wicketkeeper standing up – and Washington not being needed until the last over before tea, tell the story of this series. India’s efforts to protect their out-of-form top-order by picking bowlers based on their batting ability is putting a lot of stress on their greatest asset.

Both of them scored double-centuries at Basin Reserve on Saturday, becoming just the eighth pair with two 300-plus partnerships in Test cricket

Sampath Bandarupalli18-Mar-20231 – Kane Williamson and Henry Nicholls became the first pair to score double-centuries in the same Test match for New Zealand. They are now the 18th pair overall to score double-hundreds in the same Test innings. This is also the first instance of two batters scoring double-centuries in the same first-class innings in New Zealand.8 – Number of batting pairs with two 300-plus partnerships in Test cricket, including Williamson and Nicholls.ESPNcricinfo LtdThey are also the first New Zealand pair with multiple triple-century stands. Their first such partnership came in 2021 when they added 369 runs for the fourth wicket against Pakistan in Christchurch.363 – Partnership runs between Williamson and Nicholls, the fifth-highest for any wicket for New Zealand in Tests. Three of New Zealand’s top-five partnerships in Test cricket have come against Sri Lanka.Similarly, three of the top-five Test partnerships against Sri Lanka have been by New Zealand – the 363 between Williamson and Nicholls is the fourth-highest.ESPNcricinfo Ltd8124 – Runs for Williamson in Test cricket, the first player from New Zealand to complete 8000 Test runs. His current batting average of 54.89 is the fifth-highest among the 35 batters with 8000-plus runs in Test cricket.41 – Hundreds for Williamson across formats in international cricket, the most by any player for New Zealand. Williamson surpassed Ross Taylor’s 40 centuries with his innings of 215 in Wellington.ESPNcricinfo Ltd5 – Test double-centuries for Williamson at home. Only Don Bradman (7), Virat Kohli (6) and Kumar Sangakkara (6) have more in home Tests than Williamson, while Ricky Ponting also has five.9 – Out of 15 Test double-centuries scored at Basin Reserve, nine have come since 2014. No other venue had more than four individual double-centuries in Test cricket in this period.The 15 double-centuries in Wellington are also the joint-fourth-highest at a ground in Tests.

There are a few likely reasons why – including good old luck

Matt Roller12-Mar-2021Since Dawid Malan’s T20I debut in June 2017, he has been a revelation for England and has surged to the top of the ICC’s individual batting rankings. But in that period, there has been a marked difference between his record in T20Is and in domestic T20s: his average in an England shirt is almost twice as high as in the colours of his various clubs, while his strike rate is significantly higher too. What explains the discrepancy?ESPNcricinfo LtdPitches are better at international level
Groundsmen generally have more time to prepare pitches at international level, and aim to hold marquee fixtures on the best strip they have available to them. As a rule of thumb, that means conditions are better for batsmen. Malan has also played six out of his 19 T20Is in New Zealand, predominantly on grounds with very short boundaries, and has scored 320 of his 855 runs there.Related

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Why Malan remains on England fringe despite his T20I record

He has said previously that having to adapt to conditions throughout his franchise career has made things seem easier on better batting pitches at international level. “It’s undervalued how important these tournaments actually are to a player’s development: you go to Bangladesh and you could play on a 200 wicket on the Monday and on the Tuesday, it’s a 120 wicket,” he said last summer. “You’re consistently learning how to adapt and read conditions, which I think is one of my strengths in T20 cricket.”Those experiences have proved particularly useful against spin: he has scored marginally quicker against pace than against spin in domestic T20 cricket across the last three and a half years, but on international pitches that have been less conducive to spin, he has scored at a strike rate of 160.66 against spinners compared to 141.44 against seamers.The freedom to go big
Malan bats in the top three, meaning that how he plays is determined in part by the resources his team has available lower down the order: he has freedom to attack earlier in the innings for England, knowing that Eoin Morgan is due in as low as No. 6, than he does when he is part of a franchise team with much less batting depth.ESPNcricinfo LtdEngland have stacked their batting in T20Is over the past four years. Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid came in at Nos. 9-11 in their most recent series in South Africa. The result has been that Malan has had licence to attack, and while he has a penchant for playing himself in, the strength of the batting below him in the order has given him the opportunity to play his more expansive shots at an earlier stage, rather than feeling the need to wait until the final few overs of the innings.The evidence backs that theory up: in T20Is, his strike rate in the six overs after the powerplay (from the start of the seventh to the end of the 12th) in T20Is is 20 runs clear of his strike rate in that phase of the game in domestic T20s.He has worked for it
Malan prides himself on his preparation, and knowing all the relevant information about a team’s bowling attack. Heading into bilateral international series, there is time to prepare to face a particular attack, in the knowledge that personnel are unlikely to change significantly across a handful of games. In franchise and domestic cricket, preparation time between games is often shorter, leaving him less time to mug up on upcoming opposition.”I’m so big on preparation,” he said in a Professional Cricketers’ Association interview in October. “It doesn’t mean that you’re going to perform but it just gives you that extra slight edge to be a bit more consistent than you are when you’re playing county cricket and you play, travel, play, travel without being able to get into any rhythm on off days.”[In franchise T20 cricket] you’re consistently learning how to adapt and read conditions, which I think is one of my strengths”•Getty ImagesHe has also been able to make use of his extensive franchise experience while playing international cricket: last summer, he played with or against most of Pakistan’s bowling attack during his time in the PSL, while during the series in South Africa, he made use of his experience facing Anrich Nortje and George Linde in the Cape Town Blitz nets during the Mzansi Super League.The luck of the draw
Malan is the exception to a T20 rule in that his international record comfortably outstrips his domestic one, which is even more remarkable given he is yet to make an appearance in the domestic league where the standard is highest – the IPL. The natural response is to look for explanations in his method or technique as to why that is but it is possible that Malan has performed at an unsustainably high level for England.”If you were to play 30 games in a row, you’re going to have that slump in form, whereas if you’re missing out every now and again, you probably don’t have that slump in form if you come in at the right times,” Malan has acknowledged. “I’ve been quite lucky with that.”ESPNcricinfo LtdHe has missed out on selection at the right time: he struggled in the MSL, BPL and PSL in the 2018-19 winter, and was a non-playing squad member in England’s series in the Caribbean, while in 2019-20, he played only once in the South Africa T20Is, making a scratchy 11; playing all six of those games while out of form might well have damaged his overall record.”There have been times when I’ve been left out of the team when I’ve probably been batting really badly,” he has said. “As disappointed as you are to miss out, you know you’re probably not playing as well as you could. But the times that I’ve been given opportunities, I’ve actually been hitting the ball well and I’ve been pretty confident.”While his T20I career spans a four-year period, he has still only played 19 matches. He has been excellent throughout – “remarkable, really,” according to Morgan – yet it remains plausible that his international record is something of an outlier. Malan has an unspectacular domestic record in the last three and a half years but a world-class international one; perhaps his true level as a T20 batsman lies somewhere in between the two.

Aston Villa are now looking to sign a £26m midfielder, with Unai Emery personally an admirer, believing he would be a perfect fit in his system.

Villa looking to sign new midfielder amid Rogers rumours

Morgan Rogers didn’t exactly make a flying start to the season for Villa, but the attacking midfielder has turned things around in recent weeks, scoring against Tottenham Hotspur last time out, while also catching the eye at international level.

Indeed, the 23-year-old scored in England’s 3-0 victory over Wales last week, which led to high praise from Roy Keane, who compared him to one of the Three Lions’ greatest-ever players.

Aston Villa approach made for record-breaking forward with his coaches contacted too

The Villans are keen to strike to land another offensive option.

By
Sean Markus Clifford

Oct 18, 2025

The former Manchester United man said: “He has strength and that physique. He has awareness. He is a nightmare for a midfielder or defender. We can talk all day about getting close [to him], but when you give him an opportunity he will take it.

“He’s enjoying it and I said this before. Sometimes he reminds me of Gazza in his prime. He is strong and powerful. He holds people off.”

As such, it is concerning that there continues to be speculation surrounding the England international’s future, with it recently being revealed that Chelsea are leading the race for his signature, with the Blues now ahead of Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain.

Perhaps with that in mind, Aston Villa have now joined the race for a new midfielder, namely Getafe star Luis Milla, as Emery believes the 31-year-old would be a perfect fit in his midfield.

Milla has established himself as a key player for Getafe, and the Spanish club are hesitant to sanction a departure, although they have set a relatively affordable asking price of €30m (£26m).

The Madrid-born maestro may have a decision to make, however, with Atletico Madrid also in the race for his signature, but a move to Villa Park is considered an equally attractive proposition.

Assist king Milla could excel at Villa Park

Much like Rogers, the Spaniard is a very creative player, having chipped in with five assists in La Liga already this season, while also placing in the 95th percentile for assists per 90 over the past year, when compared to other midfielders.

As such, the Getafe midfielder could flourish at Villa Park, and the fact Emery is personally keen is a good sign, given the way in which the manager has transformed the club over the past few years.

That said, there are some doubts over the potential signing, with the former Granada man now 31-years-old, meaning there is unlikely to be much re-sell value.

If Aston Villa can get a deal done on the cheap, Milla could still be a savvy signing, but the main priority should be to keep hold of Rogers.

Manchester United have now opened talks to sign an “incredible” star, who’s scored a whopping 147 career goals, and they are looking to get a deal done at the start of next year.

Man Utd looking to bring in another leader

In the wake of the 4-1 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday night, Ruben Amorim praised Lisandro Martinez for his leadership capabilities, while also adding: “Mason Mount is always the same thing, training, talking, dealing with people around Carrington. That is not easy. So he is a very, very good player.”

However, the perceived lack of leaders in the squad has been criticised for quite some time, with Roy Keane calling into question whether Bruno Fernandes is a suitable captain after the 1-1 draw against Chelsea last season.

Following the emphatic win at Molineux, the Red Devils are up to sixth in the Premier League table, but they clearly aren’t the finished article just yet, having lost at home to 10-man Everton and drawn with a struggling West Ham United side in recent weeks.

If Man United are to start competing for the top honours once again, they may need to bring in players who are experienced at the top level, and they have now opened talks over a deal for Sergio Ramos, who is a free agent, following his departure from Monterrey.

That is according to a report from Spain, which states negotiations are in the early stages, with United expressing the ‘strongest’ interest in securing the former Real Madrid man’s signature, and they are looking to bring him in at the start of next year.

Several other unnamed clubs are in the race for the Spaniard’s signature, with his future set to be resolved in the next few weeks.

Amorim's priority target: Man Utd step up interest in "special" Madrid star

Man United are now in the race for a “special” player

By
Dominic Lund

6 days ago

"Incredible" Ramos knows what it takes to win

With Keane previously making it clear he is not entirely convinced by Fernandes as a captain, Man United could perhaps do with bringing in an experienced leader, who knows what it takes to win.

The 39-year-old certainly fits the bill in that regard, having become the first player to captain a team to three straight Champions League triumphs during his time with Real Madrid.

Mesut Özil has also made it clear just how highly he rates his former teammate, saying: “Sergio Ramos is the best defender I’ve ever played with. And the one with the most character. At that time I was still very young, but I already had a very strong mentality. It was incredible. It was clear that sooner or later he would lead Real Madrid to UCL glory.”

Not only is the 180-time Spain international a top-quality defender, but he also poses a threat at the other end of the pitch, having amassed a whopping 147 career goals for club and country.

That said, Ramos is now 39-years-old, and hasn’t played in Europe since a spell with Sevilla in the 2023-24 campaign, so there may be some doubts over whether he is still capable of making an impact at a club like Man United.

Leeds United’s scouts have now reportedly been spotted keeping close tabs on a Champions League talent who just helped shock Borussia Dortmund.

Leeds join the race to sign Tyrique George

The Whites are beginning to turn their full attention towards the January transfer window. With survival in mind, those at Elland Road have already reportedly set their sights on key attacking reinforcements, who could take Daniel Farke’s from a relegation battle into much-needed Premier League comfort.

Whether one of those reinforcements is Tyrique George will certainly be interesting to see. The Chelsea youngster has struggled for game time at Stamford Bridge this season and desperately needs a move away from West London to get back on track next month.

The 19-year-old isn’t the only name on Leeds’ reported shortlist, however. Alongside the Chelsea youngster, the Yorkshire club have also reportedly set their sights on Barcelona’s Roony Bardghji in what would be a sensational move.

The young La Liga star is one of the best young talents around recently scored his first league goal for Barcelona since arriving in the summer.

Improving Farke’s frontline seems to be the priority at Elland Road next month and that should come as no surprise after Leeds missed out on a number of attacking targets in the summer.

Whilst the likes of Lukas Nmecha and Dominic Calvert-Lewin have got off to impressive starts, the addition of another consistent goalscorer would certainly do Leeds’ survival hopes no harm. And if it’s not George or Bardghji, then it may well be Jens Petter Hauge who arrives in January.

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The Bodo/Glimt winger is reportedly on Leeds’ radar, with the 49ers joining their Premier League rivals in the race to secure his signature when 2026 arrives.

Leeds scouts spotted watching Jens Petter Hauge

As reported by TeamTalk, Leeds scouts have now been spotted keeping tabs on Hauge ahead of making a potential January move. Joined by Crystal Palace, Brighton & Hove Albion and Everton in the race for the 26-year-old, the Whites would be landing an impressive coup if they secured Hauge’s signature.

It’s easy to see why there’s so much interest in his signature, too. The Bodo/Glimt star was in clinical form in the Champions League earlier this week, shocking Borussia Dortmund by equalising for his side and securing a 2-2 draw against the odds.

His strike against Dortmund took Hauge’s total for the season to 11 goals in all competitions, which certainly looks good alongside the 11 assists that he’s also provided for the Norwegian side.

Having returned to his best form with a return to Bodo/Glimt in the summer, reports are now suggesting that Hauge wants to complete a Premier League switch in a major boost for Leeds and others.

Dubbed “exceptional” by Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank earlier this season, Hauge could earn redemption away from Norway after previous struggles at AC Milan and Eintracht Frankfurt on Europe’s top stage.

Anita 2.0: Farke signing already looks like he’ll never make it at Leeds

Aaron Judge is Captain America.

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa on Monday announced that Judge was named the captain for the Americans in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

Shortly after the announcement on MLB Network, Judge was asked what it means to him to wear "USA" on his chest.

"Just getting a chance to represent this country," Judge said. "What this country means to me—Honestly, every game during the national anthem, God Bless America… It's a time to reflect about all the brave men and women that have fought for this country and given me the opportunity to step on a baseball field and play a game that I love.

"So, now getting a chance to have USA across my chest and represent the great people in our country and represent what this country means—it's a great opportunity."

Speaking at a news conference after the announcement of his captaincy, Judge expanded upon his salute to the American military, adding that being named the team's captain is "humbling."

"Getting a chance to represent our country," Judge said. "I kinda said it earlier this morning, but thinking about all the brave men and women that have fought for this country, and laid their lives down for us to get a chance, and especially me get a chance, to go out here and play a game.

"It's a pretty humbling experience. Just happy to represent the US and happy to be your captain."

DeRosa explained that he informed Los Angeles Angels superstar—and 2023 Team USA captain—Mike Trout of his decision to name Judge the captain for the 2026 squad. Trout replied simply, "He should be."

Judge is not only the perfect ambassador for the Yankees as the team's captain, but he's also that for the sport as well.

Superchargers will progress to Sunday’s final to face Brave if rain scuppers Saturday’s showdown

ECB Media26-Aug-2025Northern Superchargers 96 for 2 (Sutherland 30*, Davidson-Richards 30) beat Manchester Originals 94 (Monaghan 26, Sutherland 3-15) by eight wicketsIn the battle to reach The Hundred Eliminator this Saturday – with Southern Brave having already secured their spot in The Hundred Final – it was the Northern Superchargers who came out on top at Headingley as Manchester Originals, targeting the huge score that would have significantly bumped up their run rate, ended up being bowled out for just 94, a score that the Superchargers knocked off with ease to win by eight wickets and ensure second place.With the runners-up in the table going through to the final in the event of an Eliminator wash-out, the Superchargers will be pleased with their afternoon’s work, their win guaranteeing them that second spot and ensuring London Spirit would join them in the Eliminator.Electing to field first, Hollie Armitage’s side saw Beth Mooney get off to a flyer but once she had gone for 20 off 13, the rest of the innings was something of a procession.Kate Cross put the disappointment of her non-selection for England’s World Cup squad behind her, showcasing the enduring qualities of line and length in conceding just six runs from her 15 deliveries.Annabel Sutherland also starred with 3 for 15, while Nicola Carey took 2 for 13, both off their full allocation. Only Alice Monaghan sparkled, her 26 in 17 balls containing the innings’ only two sixes.Faced with the nigh-on impossible task of restricting the Superchargers to 38 in order to finish in third place or 35 to claim second, the Originals tried hard but the task was simply too great.Those two targets came and went as Alice Davidson-Richards went on the charge, hitting 30 off 18 with six boundaries, before she hit the competition’s quickest bowler Lauren Filer to Deandra Dottin on the edge.Sutherland (30* off 17) carried on attacking, hitting Dottin down the ground exquisitely for four then six, Phoebe Litchfield (26* off 20) at the other end working the gaps and unfurling the occasional well-timed sweep and pull shot.The result was beyond doubt well before the end as the Australian pair eased to victory by eight wickets with 35 balls to spare.The Meerkat Match Hero Annabel Sutherland said: “It feels great. Hopefully we can carry that momentum into the next two games. We love it at Headingley and I guess it shows in the results we’ve got here.”Everyone’s really keen for Saturday, and hopefully we will put our best foot forward. We honestly just have a blast out there. We really enjoy each other’s company. It’s a great tournament, lots of fun.”

MatériaMais Notícias

O Palmeiras foi derrotado de virada pelo Santos, no domingo (8), na Arena Barueri, pelo Brasileirão. Foi o quinto jogo consecutivo sem vitória do Verdão na temporada, algo raro durante a passagem de Abel Ferreira, mas não inédito. Tanto é que este não é o maior jejum sob o comando do português, que já chegou a ficar sete partidas sem saber o que é vencer.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasPalmeirasCinco pontos que explicam momento delicado do Palmeiras na temporadaPalmeiras10/10/2023PalmeirasSegurança, família, exposição… Os motivos que levaram os jogadores a deixarem o PalmeirasPalmeiras09/10/2023FinançasQual é o salário de Abel Ferreira, técnico do Palmeiras?Finanças09/10/2023

+ Veja tabela e classificação do Brasileirão-2023 clicando aqui

A sequência de duelos sem vitória começou diante do Grêmio (derrota por 1 a 0), depois com o Boca Juniors (empate em 0 a 0), diante do Bragantino (derrota por 2 a 1), Boca Juniors novamente (empate em 0 a 0) e Santos (derrota por 2 a 1).

+ Transforme sua paixão pelo futebol em profissão. Descubra o caminho com o curso Gestor de Futebol!

Com isso, o último triunfo palmeirense foi em 15 de setembro, quando venceu o Goiás por 1 a 0, no Allianz Parque. De lá para cá já passou quase um mês e o Alviverde ainda não reencontrou o caminho da comemoração.

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Não foi a primeira vez neste ano que o time passou por isso. Na primeira metade de julho, o Palmeiras também ficou cinco jogos sem vencer: empate em 2 a 2 com o Athletico-PR, derrota para o São Paulo por 1 a 0, empate em 1 a 1 com o Flamengo, nova derrota para o São Paulo por 2 a 1, e empate em 0 a 0 com o Internacional.

+ Opinião: ‘O fim do Todos Somos Um no Palmeiras só tem uma culpada’

Mesmo em 2022, quando a equipe era mais regular, houve uma oscilação entre o fim de agosto e o início de setembro, também com cinco jogos de jejum: empate em 1 a 1 com o Flamengo, empate em 1 a 1 com o Fluminense, derrota por 1 a 0 para o Athletico-PR, empate em 2 a 2 com o Bragantino e empate em 2 a 2 com o Athletico-PR.

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Ainda assim, porém, essas sequências não foram tão grandes quanto aquela estabelecida entre o fim de setembro e a metade de outubro de 2021. Naquele momento foram sete jogos sem vitória: empate em 0 a 0 com o Atlético-MG, derrota por 2 a 1 para o Corinthians, empate em 1 a 1 com o Atlético-MG, empate em 1 a 1 com o Juventude, derrota por 2 a 1 para o América-MG, derrota por 4 a 2 para o Bragantino, e empate em 0 a 0 com o Bahia.

+ Palmeiras ainda briga pelo Brasileirão? Olhar do Porco responde!

Ou seja, a Era Abel Ferreira já teve um momento de até maior oscilação e acabou sendo superado com uma conquista de Libertadores. No entanto, em 2023, não há final para disputar e o Brasileirão parece ter definitivamente escapado das mãos do Alviverde. Missão para o técnico português é recolocar o time nos eixos e buscar, no mínimo, o G4 do campeonato nacional.

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