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For the first time since 2011, India conceded more than 550 at home

Matt Roller06-Feb-20212:54

Gambhir: Staying low helps Root in sweeping the ball well

Joe Root’s second double-hundred in three matches helped England turn the screw on the second day in Chennai, as India conceded more than 550 in a single innings of a home Test for the first time since 2011.Dom Sibley’s dismissal in the last over of the first day had provided India with an opening, with England in danger of wasting an impressive start to the Test and with memories of their last visit to Chepauk – when they had racked up 477 and lost by an innings – still fresh.Related

2nd day, as it happened

Joe Root: 644 runs (and counting) in three Tests

But Ben Stokes opted to attack as the pitch started to show signs of wear, racking up 82 off 118 balls to take England to lunch unscathed, before Root’s stand with Ollie Pope in the afternoon session helped them towards 500. India were eventually rewarded for their bowlers’ hard work, taking four wickets for 52 in the evening session to leave England eight down, but their focus may now be on saving – rather than winning – the Test.After driving the scoring rate on the first evening in partnership with Sibley, Root played second fiddle for most of his stand with Stokes. Having survived an inswinging yorker from Jasprit Bumrah early in the day, jamming his bat down late to keep it out via an edge into the boot, Stokes decided to put his foot down, and launched R Ashwin for a straight six inside the first half-hour.There were signs in the first session that the pitch was not quite as flat as it had seemed on the first day, with puffs of dust from the surface and variable bounce for the spinners. Washington Sundar found some trampoline bounce from the footholes outside Stokes’ off stump, while Ashwin was convinced he had trapped Stokes lbw reverse-sweeping, only to discover on review that the ball had hit him on the glove.India burned their second review five balls later, when Shahbaz Nadeem’s arm ball struck Root on the pad, but ball-tracking confirmed that it would have missed the top of leg stump. Stokes had two further lives, when Ashwin put down a half-chance off his own bowling and Cheteshwar Pujara, diving at full stretch, failed to cling on at midwicket. Stokes made his intentions clear by slog-sweeping Nadeem for six three balls after the second drop, before reverse-sweeping him for a pair of boundaries to bring up fifty.Joe Root is all smiles after getting to his double-century•BCCI

Stokes continued to score freely after lunch, clubbing Nadeem over long-on and clipping Bumrah’s slower ball through midwicket, but eventually holed out, slog-sweeping straight down square leg’s throat where Pujara clung on despite initially fumbling.Pope joined Root at 387 for 4 and unsurprisingly looked slightly rusty after six months out through injury. Kohli used India’s third and final review when Pope swept to leg gully, but replays showed it had clearly hit the forearm rather than the glove.Root, meanwhile, picked up where he had left off on Friday, happily milking Sundar and Nadeem for singles to keep the score ticking over. He was creative in playing reverse-sweeps and laps, but reached his double with a more orthodox shot, skipping down the wicket to swing Ashwin over the long-on boundary for six.Root has scored 644 Test runs in five innings over the past four weeks, and his run tally in 2021 is more than double that of his nearest challenger, Steven Smith. As Rohit Sharma came on to bowl his part-time offspin before tea – which included an impression of Harbhajan Singh’s action – it seemed as though India were becoming increasingly desperate in their bid to dismiss him. He also passed Alec Stewart to go third in the list of England’s all-time leading run-scorers.But the breakthroughs arrived after the interval. Having miscued an Ashwin full toss over Pant’s head two overs before, Pope was struck in front while playing down the wrong line to a ball that didn’t turn and was plumb lbw to leave England five down. In the following over, Root was pinned in front of leg stump by Nadeem, playing down the wrong line to one that skidded on, and while England warmly applauded his epic innings, India sensed an opportunity to expose the tail at 477 for 6.Jos Buttler and Dom Bess rebuilt with an unflashy stand, with Buttler rifling Ashwin for a pair of fours, cutting balls either side of point. He benefitted from Kohli’s enthusiasm to review when he got a thin edge behind off Sundar, which was given not out by umpire Anil Chaudhary to India’s chagrin. Ultra-Edge confirmed that the decision would have been overturned if India had been able to review.The stand took the total past 500 as India’s hard graft continued, before the tireless Ishant Sharma took two wickets in two balls, extracting prodigious reverse-swing with the old ball. First, Buttler left one alone that he thought would miss his off stump only to look back and see it pegged back, before Jofra Archer made a mess of a similar delivery and was cleaned up first ball. Ishant’s double-strike took him to 299 career wickets, though he could not complete 300 with a hat-trick after overstepping.Jack Leach joined Bess, who offered a straightforward chance to Rohit at midwicket only to be put down, and with India’s no-ball struggles returning in the final half-hour, they had added 30 together by the close. When they resume in the morning, it will be the first time in 20 years that England’s first innings has extended into the third day uninterrupted.

Tottenham have completed some impressive business in the transfer market over the last seven months or so.

Ange Postecoglou is here for the long run and that can be seen in the deals they've completed. Lucas Bergvall is now officially a Spurs player and the exciting Archie Gray has recently arrived too.

Troy Parrott, one of the club's academy poster boys, may have left for Dutch shores but with another hot talent in Mikey Moore coming through the ranks, they won't care too much about the Irishman's £6.7m departure.

Will Postecoglou stop in his quest to bring top young talent to north London? Apparently not.

Tottenham looking at elite young winger

There is a young talent who is consistently being talked about as an option in the transfer window for the top clubs in Europe.

That happens to be French superstar Desire Doue, a teenager who is causing a great deal of fuss this summer.

Set to take part in the Paris Olympics under the guidance of the great Thierry Henry, Doue has become an option for a number of sides.

Indeed, according to a report from French outlet L'Equipe, Bayern Munich have lodged a €35m (£30m) bid for the Rennes attacker but it has been rejected.

The German outfit are believed to be not the only club interested. It's suggested that Tottenham and Chelsea are also planning their own offensive in the forthcoming weeks.

Previous reports have indicated it could well take around €60m (£52m) to prise him away from his homeland.

What makes Doue so exciting

Now 19, Doue lit up Ligue 1 as a spritely 18-year-old last season, wreaking havoc in the final third on his way to four goals and five assists in league action. Those aren't jaw-dropping numbers but come on, this is a teenager doing things a mature experienced head would be doing.

So, he can score and assist goals, but what else can he do? Said to be a "one-of-a-kind player" by analyst Ben Mattinson, this is a young individual with the world at his feet, someone who has "one of the most unique profiles out there."

Right-footed, Doue is capable of playing off either wing, namely the left and also as a number 10, galivanting forward and picking up tight pockets of space which he seems to escape from every time.

So, what comparisons can be made? Well, FBRef suggests that the most similar player in Europe's top five leagues to the French sensation is 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, a young talent who has taken Euro 2024 by storm.

Who else could he be compared to? Well, the aforementioned analyst – Mattinson – suggests "Doue’s ceiling is more of as a goal-scoring #10 to play in between the lines like Foden who can also play wide."

Also said to be in the same bracket of talent as someone like Bellingham and Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, it's evident Tottenham would have a very special player on their hands here.

He could operate in the half spaces very well, linking up with the likes of James Maddison and Heung-min Son to devastating effect.

Like Bellingham, he can play in a deeper playmaking role, like Saka, he can cut inside with purpose and like Foden, he can weave beyond defenders in central areas behind the striker.

Also said to be "elite at shifting the ball" by Mattinson, there is seemingly nothing Doue cannot do in the final third. So, let's examine the numbers.

Evidently boasting remarkable numbers when it comes to carrying the ball and possessing that magical ability to make something happen out of nothing, it's clear to see why he's earned comparisons to the likes of Foden and Bellingham.

This is a world-class talent in the making and he could well be heading to Spurs. Just imagine him alongside the likes of Gray and Bergvall. It's enough to make your mouth water.

Ange must finally cash in on Spurs man who earns over 5x more than Doue

He’s rapidly fallen out-of-favour since his move to the club.

By
Ethan Lamb

Jul 14, 2024

The red-ball players will leave Pakistan early to quarantine before the home series against Australia

Firdose Moonda22-Jan-2021

Both the South African and Australian Test squads will quarantine ahead of their yet-to-be-confirmed three-Test series in March, in what will be the strictest biosecure bubble yet in South Africa. Unlike for the England and Sri Lanka series, where training could begin after the squads had taken their first Covid-19 tests – though social interaction was not allowed until after the third test – for the Australia series, players on both sides will be confined to their rooms for a longer period of time.For that reason, South Africa’s Test squad will leave Pakistan on February 9 to begin their quarantine period at home. A separate squad will play the three T20Is in Pakistan on February 11, 13, and 14 in what CSA director of cricket Graeme Smith sees as an inevitable consequence of the times and something member boards will have to work together to ensure the cricket calendar is as unaffected as possible.Related

Boucher: 'Emphasis' on Australia Tests

'Australia's tour at this stage is going ahead' – CSA

“When you work on biosecure environment protocols for Covid-19, you work with other member nations and if member nations don’t support each other and play cricket, cricket’s going to find itself in a very challenging space,” Smith said. “Your objective is to find the protocols that work for both. In working with Cricket Australia (CA), we’ve come to a lot of those medical conclusions and how that’s going to look. There will be an initial quarantine period before that series. Unfortunately, we would have to play two different squads at the time.”While the dates for the Australia series are expected within the next week, ESPNcricinfo understands they are at an advanced stage and will see Australia playing Tests at SuperSport Park and the Wanderers in March. Although Smith told Australian media late last year that he would like to have fans at the grounds for the matches, with South Africa battling through a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, that is highly unlikely. Currently, the country is on Level 3 Lockdown (of five levels, with five being the strictest) and no spectators are allowed into stadiums, while all sports events have to finish by 8pm. The lockdown status will be reviewed before February 15 but even if it changes, it is unlikely to make provision for crowds. Insiders have confirmed that CA has already asked for more extreme measures than either the ECB or SLC required, and CSA is doing all it can to make it happen.The series is the marquee event of this South African summer which has already seen a T20 series against England (but the ODIs that were to follow were postponed following concerns about the bubble in Cape Town) and festive season Tests against Sri Lanka. The men’s team are currently on their first tour to Pakistan since 2007 while the women’s team are hosting Pakistan, with more fixtures in the pipeline. But for CSA, the Australia series is a money-making opportunity through television rights, and a key series because of the historic needle between the two sides.”We would love to get our home summer completed, and Australia are a big part of that home summer. Not only do we want to get it played, we want to compete in that series,” Smith said. “We saw from the Australia-India series the hype around Test cricket. I think it’s going to be a great test of where we are as a squad. We are motivated. The last time a Test series with Australia happened in South Africa it was very heated and we all know what went on. We are very excited to be able to host Australia, but that comes with certain restrictions and medical protocols.”The same is likely to apply to another other cricket played in South Africa this summer, and possibly beyond. The domestic franchise one-day cup is currently being played in a biobubble in Potchefstroom, which was organised late last year after it became clear that having teams travel to various venues around the country would not work. That was the case for the franchise first-class competition, in which two games were affected by Covid-19 in the penultimate round of 2020, and the final round was postponed.All indications are that any other domestic cricket that takes place, including the remaining first-class fixtures, a franchise T20 cup and semi-professional cricket, which has been dormant since before the pandemic hit, will have to take place in biosecure environments as well. “I’m quite positive that with all the Covid-19 issues we’ve been able to get cricket played. There’s going to be a focus on trying to get semi-pro underway,” Smith said.With South African domestic cricket’s impending restructure to 15 provincial teams and no franchises, this season’s semi-professional matches are important for players who are pushing to be contracted next season. At least 75 cricketers across the current franchise and provincial structures will find themselves out of a job, so competing for places is their work this summer.Just as it is for the national men’s team. After slipping as low as eighth on the Test rankings last summer, and winning just one of the five trophies on offer, they are in a period of rebuilding and although Smith would like to see results, he believes this season is one of patience instead. “We want our team to win as much as possible but I wouldn’t say that’s the defining thing for me this season. I would like to answer a few questions in my own head. I think the selectors and the coaching staff would want to do the same,” he said. “(Because of the pandemic) there are going to be more opportunities for players than in the past. I’m really excited to see who puts their hand up and who are the people we can back into the future.”

Luka Modric became the oldest player to play for Real Madrid against Celta Vigo and made it a night to remember with a fine assist to Vinicius Jr.

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• Modric sets club record after Celta appearance
• Surpassed Puskas to become the oldest player in Real history
• Left his mark with a sensational assist for the winner

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  At 39 years and 40 days old, Modric made history by becoming the oldest player to appear in a competitive match for Real Madrid, surpassing a record that had stood for nearly six decades. The previous record-holder, legendary Hungarian forward Ferenc Puskas, played his last match for Real Madrid in May 1966 during a Copa del Rey quarter-final against Real Betis at the age of 39 years and 37 days. And the Croatian midfielder surpassed him during Los Blancos' 2-1 victory against Celta Vigo in La Liga on Saturday evening.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Real Madrid faced a tough challenge at Balaidos after Celta Vigo equalised early in the second half, cancelling out Kylian Mbappe's opener. With the game on the line, manager Carlo Ancelotti turned to Modric in the 63rd minute, hoping his experience would make a difference. And the Croatian did not disappoint. Just three minutes after coming on, Modric produced a moment of magic, threading a perfect pass through Celta’s defence to release Vinicius Jr. The Brazilian forward kept his composure, rounded the goalkeeper, and slotted the ball into the back of the net, restoring Real Madrid's lead, which secured three crucial points for the visitors.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR REAL MADRID?

  Despite Real Madrid's struggles in patches of the game against a resilient Celta Vigo side, the individual brilliance of Modric, Mbappe, and Vinicius secured a much-needed victory. Ancelotti will be relieved to see his key forwards on the scoresheet as the team heads into an important week where they will face Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League, followed by the highly-anticipated El Clasico against Barcelona.

Northern beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by 79 runsNorthern began their title defence with a thumping win over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a 180-run partnership between Haider Ali and Zeeshan Malik propelled them to 242 for 3, the second-highest domestic T20 total in the country.Northern opted for first strike after winning the toss, and following Ali Imran’s early fall to Shaheen Afridi, Haider and Malik combined for a spectacular onslaught. Haider hit 90 off 48 balls, and Malik a 47-ball 77, the Shadab Khan-led side crossing 200 in the 17th over. Despite all four Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bowlers being Pakistan internationals, no one was spared punishment. Wahab Riaz conceded an eye-watering 51 runs in his three overs, and while Junaid Khan did, eventually, account for both Haider and Mailk, it wasn’t before he had conceded 44 in his four overs.Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were never in with a shot, and the early dismissals of Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Hafeez reduced the chase to a damage limitation exercise after 6.1 overs, and that is exactly how they treated it for much of the innings. A slapdash 62 from Sahibzada Farhan did his personal stocks no harm, while a run-a-ball 20 from Shoaib Malik never threatened the outcome of the contest.The wickets were shared around by the Northern bowlers, with all five of them getting in on the action. Mohammad Musa took three, while a pair each for Mohammad Nawaz and Sohail Tanvir early on effectively killed the game off. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa did bat through to the end, compiling 163, but on what was a very high-scoring day, that effort appeared exceedingly tame.Central Punjab beat Southern Punjab by 7 wickets
Abdullah Shafique became the first Pakistani – and second player overall – to score a hundred on both first-class and T20 debuts, his 58-ball 102 not out helping Central to storm to victory in Multan. Chasing 201 after Shan Masood and Sohaib Maqsood had hit half-centuries to take Southern to 200 for 8, Central lost two wickets in the first over. But Shafique, alongside Kamran Akmal, put together a stunning 145-run stand to put their side on course.Akmal was responsible for much of the damage during the powerplay, bringing up his half-century in just 23 balls on his way to a blistering 41-ball 75. Shafique served as more than just a support act, hanging tough even after Akmal was dismissed, and by the time he had eased to a century, the result had long become a formality, coming up in 18.5 overs. Only Mohammad Irfan among the Southern bowlers completed his quota of overs as skipper Masood switched things around in search of a way to halt the momentum.Earlier, Masood was one of two half-centurions after winning the toss and opting to bat, and he and Maqsood put the home side on track for a big score with a 67-run stand for the second wicket. However, regular wickets during the last six overs prevented them from quite taking off in the death overs, and while 200 was by no means indefensible, the flat track meant Central were always in with a chance. Akmal and Shafique ensured that as Central got their campaign off to the perfect start.

The St Lucia Zouks captain says he’s ‘closer to retirement than playing more T20 cricket’

Deivarayan Muthu08-Sep-2020Daren Sammy’s place in the XI was often questioned when he was the West Indies captain. He didn’t quite have the flair or aura of his predecessors, but he undoubtedly brought results, particularly in T20 cricket. Things aren’t too different with Sammy at the helm of St Lucia Zouks in the CPL. He has managed just 34 runs in nine innings at an average of 5.66 and a strike rate of under 80 this season. He has bowled a mere two overs, giving up 19 runs for one wicket. But the Zouks have made the playoffs for only the second time in their history, and will make their first-ever final if they topple five-time finalists Guyana Amazon Warriors on Tuesday.Not many gave the Zouks a chance to go so deep in the tournament, especially after some of their key players, including Chris Gayle, became unavailable. Head coach Andy Flower said as much last week, while reiterating his faith in Sammy, whom he called an “inspirational figure”.So has the lack of expectations worked in Zouks’ favour? “A lot of people have said a lot of things about the St Lucia Zouks and the performance in the history of the CPL. But I’m one who has always been confident silently in our dressing room,” Sammy said ahead of the semi-finals. “I said that the guys we have in the squad this year are not superstars, but guys that could be very effective in these conditions.”You [have] seen the way we played throughout this competition – you know especially when we’re out there in the field as a unit, I can’t stress enough on how my men, especially my bowlers, have responded in these conditions. And the way we defended low totals and we have to do it two more times to win this competition.”While Mohammad Nabi’s displays with ball and bat have made up for Gayle’s absence, the Zouks have also found unlikely heroes in Roston Chase and Javelle Glen. Chase was not a CPL regular before this season, but he has regularly fronted up to bowl in the death overs and accumulate with the bat in the middle order on the turning tracks in Trinidad.Glen wasn’t a CPL regular either before 2020. The 22-year-old was sidelined from the 2018 season with injury and was with Jamaica Tallawahs in 2019, playing as a batsman who could bowl a bit. This season, however, Sammy has used Glen as an attacking legspinner, matching him up with right-handers and restricting them from accessing the smaller boundaries.The pitches for the final week at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy have been more batting-friendly than earlier in the season, but Glen, Chase, and Zahir Khan still combined in the end overs to strangle the Tallawahs in their chase in the last league fixture.”You look at the situation of the game – you know you have the advantage of whether the pitch assists spin or there’s a big boundary to which the batsmen have to hit,” Sammy said. “If you see throughout the tournament spin has been difficult to get away. Plus, Javelle every time he comes on to bowl, he brings this type of energy – positive energy – and it’s infectious and the team goes with it. I needed somebody who can spin the ball away from righty to hit in the big side and he was the guy.”I know he has done it before against Barbados and the confidence level he has…we trust him enough to do the job for us when required. And Roston has showed, his ability to execute – whether wide yorkers or making them hit to the big side – you always go for that experience.”Darren Sammy has become Peshawar Zalmi’s head coach•Pakistan Super League

Sammy had a taste of coaching earlier this year, moving upstairs at Peshawar Zalmi after giving up the captaincy in a mid-season reshuffle at the Pakistan Super League (PSL). Sammy, who will be 37 next year, conceded that CPL retirement has “crossed his mind”, but he hoped to exit in front of his home fans in St Lucia at the stadium named after him.”I’m pretty sure this year if we were playing in front of the crowd and I get to play in front of my home fans in St Lucia, I probably would’ve called it [a day] – like I always say; that’s it. I still have some time and I would really love to finish in front of St Lucia and my St Lucian fans at home and bow out at the Daren Sammy cricket ground. But, it all depends on how hard I work after this. If we win the cup, I will definitely have a think about it. I know I’m closer to retirement than playing more T20 cricket – that’s the truth.”‘One country can’t get all the love’
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the entire CPL season has been played behind closed doors in Trinidad. League leaders Trinbago Knight Riders, who have a bevy of Trinidad-based players in their squad, have enjoyed overwhelming home advantage. Before the start of the tournament, some of their players were also allowed to remain outside the bio-bubble and train while the rest of the squads were holed up in their hotel rooms. That didn’t go down well with Sammy. When asked if he would come back and play the entire tournament in just one country in a similar scenario, Sammy said he would, but wanted another country to get the chance to host the tournament.”I was very vocal in my dissatisfaction of what I was seeing in terms of bubble – guys having access to training and facilities every day when others were not,” Sammy said. “I questioned that but one thing I didn’t question is the availability of cricket for all those probably 160 cricketers that are here showcasing their talent.”Now if, let’s say next year, we still have to play in one country, I know for sure it can’t be Trinidad. You’ve got to share the love somewhere else – whether St Kitts, whether St Lucia – and we can come back. And one country can’t seem to be getting all the love all the time. That’s what I’ll say on that.”

Glasgow Rangers face their most important match of the season so far this Saturday, especially if they are to keep their slim Premiership title hopes alive.

Defeating Celtic at Parkhead is a must, otherwise the trophy will be heading to the opposite side of Glasgow for the third year in succession.

Whatever happens between now and the end of the season, Philippe Clement has a job on his hands improving his squad during the summer transfer window.

With plenty of players likely to depart, there will be space for a good number of additions, and it looks as though the Belgian is eyeing up a talented young winger as one of his first signings…

Rangers transfer news

According to a report by Football Scotland last week, Rangers had emerged as a potential destination for winger Raphael Borges Rodrigues this summer, although Coventry City were another side also showing plenty of interest in the player.

While initial interest is somewhat taken with a pinch of salt, especially at this stage in the season, Rodriques’ agent has confirmed that his client does want to make a move to Europe in order to develop as a player.

“But he’s still contracted with Macarthur for next season and has a lot of respect for them,” said Ben Khalfallah. The way things stand, I imagine he’s a player who will be moving to Europe in the near future.

“I really like him and believe he’s one of the best young talents in Australia, especially in terms of skill and mentality.”

As Khalfallah also added, "he wants to go to Europe and succeed", with Clement potentially able to turn the 20-year-old from a promising talent into one of the finest attacking players in the country.

Not only that, but Rodrigues could be an ideal upgrade to Scott Wright.

How Raphael Borges Rodrigues compares to Scott Wright

If Clement wishes to take this side into the Champions League next season and assert dominance in the top flight, better players than Wright will need to be used, that’s for sure.

This season, the Scot currently ranks in a lowly 17th spot among his teammates for shots per game (0.9), along with ranking 22nd for big chances created (1), 19th for key passes per game (0.6) and 17th for successful dribbles per game (0.4), hardly the statistics of a winger who is contributing effectively during matches.

Combine this with the fact he has scored just twice in 29 matches, these are figures nowhere near good enough to be a player under consideration for a place in the starting XI at the Light Blues.

In comparison, Rodrigues has performed much better than Wright with regard to these metrics. Not only does he rank fourth among the squad for shots per game (1.4), but the pacy winger also ranks sixth for big chances created (four), tenth for key passes per game (0.6), and second for successful dribbles per game (1.5), clearly showing how much more effective in the final third he is compared to Wright.

In 33 games, Rodrigues has chipped in with six goals and two assists, which is six more goal involvements than Wright, yet more evidence of why Clement should be making a move for the Dutch-born Australian winger.

In truth, Rangers have struggled to find a winger capable of filling the shoes of Ryan Kent, who departed at the end of last season following five seasons in Scotland.

Why Rodrigues could fill the void left by Ryan Kent

While the Englishman struggled during his final season in Scotland, scoring just three goals in 44 appearances, it looked like he had downed tools the closer it got to the end of the season.

Despite paying around £7.5m for the winger back in the summer of 2019, Michael Beale allowed him to leave once his contract expired, meaning the Gers lost a significant amount of money, especially as they could have sold him in January in order to recoup some funds.

At his best, Kent was devastating on the left wing. Against Borussia Dortmund in the 2022 Europa League knockout stages, the Englishman was outstanding against a defence which had Mats Hummels at the heart of it.

While it may be a tad hyperbolic to say Rodrigues could fill that void immediately, he certainly has the talent to improve if a move to Rangers came about this summer.

His adaptability across the front three could also be advantageous. While predominantly operating as a left winger, Rodrigues has been known to play on the right or even as a centre-forward if required, which could allow Clement to cover a few positions at once should he sign the youngster.

Journalist Sacha Pisani lauded the winger after watching him for the first time last week, remarking that he "has pace to burn, great feet & a powerful shot.”

These traits could certainly help his transition from the A League to Scottish football. It may be more physical in the Premiership, but if Rodrigues could use his speed to break away from opposition defenders, he could shine.

This summer will see the Belgian undergo a rebuilding job at the Light Blues. It appears every summer the same story is spouted, but there are far too many players in the squad who need to move on in order for Clement to bring in his own targets.

Much will depend on his budget this summer, but the general feeling is, the 50-year-old will be aiming to bring in younger players who have a much higher ceiling for growth, therefore making the club millions in profit when they are sold on.

Rodrigues certainly fits the bill with regard to this, and he could be a wonderful signing for the club during the transfer window.

Rangers haven’t really replaced Kent. Could the Macrthur starlet be the one to come in and fill the void? Only time will tell.

Rangers could sign "clinical" award winner to upgrade on Dessers

The Light Blues are reportedly interested in the impressive and prolific number nine.

By
Dan Emery

May 7, 2024

Everton may have avoided relegation from the Premier League once again this season, but Sean Dyche has a major job on his hands this summer to take the Merseyside outfit back into the top half of the Premier League next term.

Retaining their top-flight status came despite being deducted eight points after breaching several financial fair play regulations, which means they will have to be clever during the summer transfer window.

This could suggest Dyche may need to move a player or two on during the transfer window in order to balance the books, especially if he is looking to make several signings of his own.

It won't be the first time Everton have had to move on their most prized assets, that’s for sure, as the likes of Wayne Rooney, Richarlison, Romelu Lukaku and John Stones have all been snapped up by bigger clubs due to their financial clout, leaving the Toffees short of a wonderful player, yet with a major profit being secured.

Dyche has plenty of young talent who he could sell to raise funds, especially Jarrad Branthwaite and Amadou Onana, who could bolster the club’s coffers, no doubt about it.

One of the most profitable pieces of transfer business the club have conducted since the turn of the century was that of selling Joleon Lescott to Manchester City back in 2009.

Joleon Lescott’s Everton statistics

The centre-back made his senior breakthrough at Wolverhampton Wanderers during the 2000/01 season, going on to eventually make 227 appearances for the Old Gold before making the move to Everton.

The Goodison Park side signed the defender for a fee in the region of £5m, which certainly looked like a bargain given how much he had shone at Wolves over the years.

David Moyes even hailed him as the “best centre-half in the Championship” giving glowing praise to the then 23-year-old as the manager bolstered his defence with the signing of Lescott.

Season

Games

Goals

Minutes

2008/09

46

5

4,154

2007/08

54

10

4,800

2006/07

42

2

3,677

Despite struggling with knee injuries in the past, Lescott emerged as a consistent member of the starting XI during his time on Merseyside, missing just two Premier League games across his three full seasons.

While Moyes managed to make Everton a team who were extremely difficult to beat, even leading them to a fourth-place finish in the 2004/05 campaign, Lescott failed to win any silverware during his spell with the Toffees, losing the 2009 FA Cup final to Chelsea.

Overall, the former Wolves titan made nearly 150 competitive appearances for Everton and his reliability along with remarkable consistency saw him attract attention from other teams heading into the summer of 2009.

There is no doubt Moyes was looking to make a profit on the player, but how much would Everton sell him for?

How much would Joleon Lescott be worth in 2024 money

Lescott was hitting his peak when Manchester City began making advances to sign the Everton defender ahead of the 2009/10 season.

Moyes turned down initial bids of £15m and £18m for the defender while going as far as dropping Lescott due to his “bad attitude” following an opening day 6-1 defeat to Arsenal, and it was clear there was no way back for him after that.

City eventually signed their man for a fee of £22m, which represented a wonderful £17m profit after just three years on Merseyside, not a bad piece of business at all from Moyes.

How much would this £22m transfer fee from 15 years ago be worth in 2024? Well, we have the answer.

The deal taking Lescott from Everton to City in 2009 would now be worth a staggering £57m, according to a conversion tool from the Totally Money Transfer Index, which measures transfer fees from the previous 30 years and adjusts them for inflation in today’s market.

Not only is this an eyewatering sum and proves Moyes was right to hold out for a fee of over £20m, but his value in today’s market is currently more than some of the current Everton players, most notably Onana.

Indeed, according to Football Insider, the 22-year-old may be allowed to depart for £50m this summer – amid interest from Bayern Munich – albeit with that figure still falling short of Lescott's mammoth deal from almost 15 years ago.

What Joleon Lescott did after leaving Everton

Despite arriving at City clearly approaching his peak years, the former England international failed to demonstrate the consistency that had allowed him to shine at Everton.

Across five full seasons, Lescott made over 30 Premier League appearances just once, the 2011/12 campaign, which saw the club finally win the title after a 44-year drought.

After two league titles, an FA Cup and League Cup winners medal, the centre-back departed the Etihad in the summer of 2014, moving to West Bromwich Albion, yet his senior career would last only another three seasons before he retired at the end of the 2016/17 campaign following a brief spell with Sunderland.

At his peak, Lescott was one of the finest defenders in the country, evidenced by the fact he also won 26 caps for England, scoring once at Euro 2012 against France.

Moyes certainly brought out the best in the player, however, as he developed into a solid figure at the heart of the Everton defence between 2006 and 2009.

Everton hit the jackpot with Joleon Lescott

Everton certainly hit the jackpot with Joleon Lescott, who they bought for cheap and sold onto Manchester City for big money.

The Scotsman was a shrewd operator in the transfer window and there is no doubt moving on the defender when he was at his peak surely goes down as one of his best-ever decisions.

Up to half of the state’s staff have been made redundant

Daniel Brettig01-May-2020Up to half of Cricket Victoria’s staff have been sacrificed, with community cricket particularly hard hit, in a restructuring of the state association that has been explained away as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic but has origins stretching back nearly a decade.Two weeks after Cricket Australia staff were informed that the vast majority would be stood down, CV has gone alarmingly further, making a huge chunk of the organisation redundant while asking others to reapply for their jobs – the former AFL coach and now CV talent specialist Guy McKenna among them.Cuts to community cricket, believed to number up to 45 staff, are set to leave as few as 12 employees remaining to be the links to grassroots programs and competitions in Australia’s second most populous state, and leave a gaping hole in CA’s wider strategic plans to grow the game’s participation in every part of the country. Of those 45 positions, three are female participation officers.CA, which made a portion of its recent funding to the states conditional on its use to specifically service community cricket, is understood to be furious at the cuts and the way they have been administered, with multi-million dollar distributions to Victoria’s powerful premier clubs untouched by the changes while a host of staff have been asked to pack up their desks.Other states are also believed to be aghast at the cut backs, even as the associations and the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) haggle with CA over adjustments to their annual grants under a financial model signed up to in 2012 alongside the move to an independent board for the central governing body. There are suspicions that CA’s alarms over the game’s finances helped smooth the ground for CV’s own, more drastic culling.Following discussions between CA, the states and the ACA on Thursday, when the CA chairman Earl Eddings and fellow director Paul Green presented their interpretations of the organisation’s finances and forecasts, there is an increasing likelihood of in-principle agreement on reduced annual grants with in-built flexibility for revenue fluctuations depending on how next summer unfolds. However, it is likely that some states at least will wait until the winter football codes get back under way before formally committing themselves.These latest cuts to CV have arrived less than a year after its board chose to disband the boards of the two Big Bash League clubs, the Stars and the Renegades, and also make their chief executives Clint Cooper and Stuart Coventry redundant. That decision also saw the removal of a selection of highly influential business and media figures, Collingwood president Eddie McGuire, Hawthorn great Jason Dunstall and Sport Australia chairman John Wylie among them, from their positions on the boards.In the wake of these changes the BBL clubs and CV as a whole faced a raft of sponsorship exits, from the likes of Mars and Optus among others, contributing to an overall weakening of the association’s financial position and the recording of an operating loss of around A$2 million for 2018-19.While that trend is believed to have continued over the 2019-20 summer, there is widespread shock at the way that CV has responded to events, outstripping the actions of the South Australian Cricket Association, which cut some 23 staff and contractors earlier this month, and then CA itself, though further cuts to the central governing body are expected in the new financial year.”We are not immune to the impacts of Coronavirus,” chief executive Andrew Ingleton said. “It has already disrupted the conclusion of the 2019-20 cricket season and is likely to continue to impact our ability to deliver cricket at community level. In addition, there are a range of potential future commercial and financial risks to Victorian cricket that we need to have contingencies for.”Faced with a projected funding cut from Cricket Australia and the need to source principal sponsors for our BBL teams in what is a challenging economic environment, it is clear we need to take appropriate action to mitigate these risks.”Problems around the strategic direction of CV have deep roots, stretching back to moves post-2012 to make its board independent of a system of premier, sub-district and regional club delegates that has historically held sway over the game in Victoria.The former chief executive Tony Dodemaide and chairman Russell Thomas fell out with numerous clubland figures, including the Footscray chairman Geoff Collinson and Essendon chairman Simon Tobin, over governance moves and their funding implications, ultimately being replaced by Paul Barker as chairman and Ingleton as chief executive. Peter Williams, Jane Nathan and Phil Hyde, all part of a ticket that had attempted to unseat Thomas and five other directors en masse in 2017, have subsequently worked their way onto the board.Barker, a consensus choice as chairman, is facing a likely further erosion of his support on the CV board itself later this year, with longtime directors Paul Jackson and Claudia Fatone facing re-election in the face of mounting opposition from delegates. The CV board is composed of six delegate-elected directors and three independently appointed directors. At the same time the construction of the A$40 million Junction Oval training and administration hub offered Victoria some of the best facilities in the country but also added significantly to the association’s cost base.

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