Tag Futebol

MatériaMais Notícias

O segundo dia de trabalhos do Palmeiras visando a partida contra o Ceará, no domingo, no Pacaembu, não teve centroavantes no gramado da Academia de Futebol. Mas contou com uma visita para Luiz Felipe Scolari: o técnico Fernando Diniz, atualmente sem clube, que apareceu conversando com o treinador antes do início das atividades.

Como tem sido costume, a imprensa teve direito a somente aos primeiros dez minutos do trabalho no gramado. Neste período, foi possível ver Fernando Diniz, que defendeu o Verdão como jogador em 1996, conversando com Felipão. Ele está desempregado desde 25 de junho, quando foi demitido pelo Atlético-PR com 34% de aproveitamento e em penúltimo lugar no Brasileiro.

No gramado, foi possível acompanhar o aquecimento e constatar que nem Deyverson nem Borja estavam no campo. Deyverson ficou se exercitando nas dependências internas da Academia de Futebol ao lado de Marcos Rocha, lateral-direito que trata lesão na panturrilha direita e só deve voltar a jogar no começo do mês que vem.

Deyverson ainda não é tratado como desfalque para a partida de domingo. Assim como Borja. O colombiano estava à disposição da sua seleção e, por isso, ainda não treinou no clube nesta quarta-feira, mas deve aparecer como opção para Scolari no fim de semana.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasPalmeirasMisturar duplas ou manter plano? Felipão mudará a zaga no domingoPalmeiras16/10/2018PalmeirasBoca x Palmeiras: ingressos para a torcida visitante à venda nesta 5ªPalmeiras16/10/2018Libertadores AmstelConmebol se reúne com clubes por ‘bom andamento’ das semifinaisLibertadores Amstel16/10/2018

O goleiro Weverton, que não tinha treinado no gramado nessa terça-feira, apareceu trabalhando normalmente ao lado dos colegas de posição. O camisa 21 foi poupado da última partida, dando chance a Fernando Prass na vitória por 2 a 0 sobre o Grêmio, no domingo, no Pacaembu.

Os desfalques certos do Palmeiras para enfrentar o Ceará são o zagueiro Gustavo Gómez e o volante Thiago Santos, que receberam o terceiro cartão amarelo e estão suspensos. O lateral-esquerdo Victor Luis e o volante Felipe Melo voltam a ficar à disposição, já que cumpriram o gancho por acúmulo de amarelos na última rodada. Os dois devem ser titulares, enquanto Edu Dracena, Antônio Carlos e Luan disputam as duas vagas na zaga.

O Palmeiras lidera o Campeonato Brasileiro com 59 pontos, três de vantagem para o segundo colocado Inter, a nove rodadas do fim da competição, e enfrenta o Ceará no Pacaembu porque o Allianz Parque receberá show da cantora colombiana Shakira. Daqui uma semana, o time abre contra o Boca Juniores, na Argentina, os duelos semifinais da Libertadores.

Tudo sobre

FelipãoFernando DinizPalmeiras

Jamaica have secured a record-breaking fifth consecutive Regional Four-Day Competition Title, after a dramatic turnaround on the final day of the match against Barbados in Kingston

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Apr-2012
ScorecardIn overcast conditions, David Bernard ripped through the Barbados top order•West Indies Cricket

Jamaica have secured a record-breaking fifth consecutive Regional Four-Day Competition title, after staging a dramatic turnaround on the final day of the match against Barbados in Kingston. Led by seamer David Bernard, they routed Barbados for 90 in 26.3 overs, to seal a 139-run victory.After being the form team all season – they won all their league games and then rolled Guyana in a low-scoring semi-final – Jamaica began the day with the bigger challenge. After conceding a first-innings lead to Barbados, they began the day needing an outright win to take the title, while the visitors just needed to play out a draw.Jamaica began the day on 133 for 3 – effectively 115 for 3. Their batsmen showed the required urgency: captain Tamar Lambert scored an unbeaten 42 at a little less than a run a ball, while Bernard and Horace Miller’s cameos were studded with sixes and helped Jamaica knock off 114 off 18 overs. They declared prior to lunch, having set Barbados 230 with a minimum of 62 overs remaining in the day and match.Then Bernard took over. In overcast conditions, he produced a highly incisive spell in which he ripped through the Barbados top order. He went to lunch with figures of 4 for 19, with Barbados tottering at 36 for 5. There was to be no recovery, as none of the batsmen managed to make more than – or something even close to – Shane Dowrich’s 32.Eventually Barbados were skittled with plenty of time remaining. Spinners Nikita Miller and Odean Brown too played their part, scalping five between them. However, it was Barbados’ left-arm tweaker Sulieman Benn who was named Man of the Match, for his combined figures of 9 for 157.

Mahela Jayawaradene has reiterated that his current role as Sri Lanka captain is a short-term job and he wants to find his successor as soon as possible

Andrew McGlashan09-Apr-2012Mahela Jayawardene has reiterated that his current role as Sri Lanka captain is a short-term job and he wants to find his successor as soon as possible.He accepted a request to captain the team again after Tillakaratne Dilshan lost the post following the tour of South Africa and the results have been creditable so far, especially in the CB Series in Australia where they pushed the hosts to a third final, and then the Test series against England which ended 1-1. Jayawardene also claimed the Man-of-the-Series award after scoring 354 runs including two centuries.However at 34, Jayawardene, who has now linked up with the IPL along with a number of his team-mates, knows he is coming towards the end of his career and sees a large part of his role now as ensuring a smooth transition to a new long-term captain.”I’ve been given the challenge to lead the team and took that for 12 months to see what happens,” he said. “I would love to groom another leader and hand it over to him as quickly as possible. That’s the way Sri Lanka cricket should move on.”But Jayawardene has no immediate plans to reconsider his future in the international game. After a short-term slump in Test cricket, where he did not reach fifty in 12 innings, his results during the England series showed a batsman at the top of his game.”After the World Cup I spoke to the selectors and said I’d take it six months at a time,” he said. “It all depends on the hunger I have. So long as I’m performing to the standards I’ve set myself I’ll play for a little longer, but when the hunger goes that will be the day I quit.”Sri Lanka’s next engagement in Test cricket is against Pakistan following the IPL. There are a number of areas that they will need to address, not least the opening batting combination which failed to produce any solid starts. Lahiru Thirimanne was worked over by James Anderson while Tillakaratne Dilshan was stuck in one-day mode until the second innings in Colombo where he fell to a controversial review.Jayawardene, though, does not want to jump to any conclusions about what changes may be needed and insists consistency will bring rewards in the longer term.”I said before the series that Lahiru was given a chance in South Africa and I wanted to be consistent and give him a decent run before we make judgements on players,” he said. “Now we’ve got a break before our next Test series so that gives us an opportunity to sit down with the selectors and discuss where we need to improve or if we need to make changes. It’s a good place to be in because we’ve been consistent with our selections.”Rangana Herath, who took 19 wickets in the two Tests, will also need greater support in the bowling attack if he is not to be overburdened by the role of needing to take wickets and keep scoring rates down. Suraj Randiv partnered him well in Galle but struggled in Colombo where he was taken apart by Kevin Pietersen and by the end of the match Dilshan was the preferred offspinner.”Rangana is the best bowler I have and you obviously bank on him,” Jayawardene said. “The challenge I have is to try and not do the same thing we did with Murali (Muralitharan) and leave it as one bowler we depend on. We need two or three bowlers so we can take the pressure off him. But Rangana will keep delivering, he has the quality to do that on any surface.”

In the space of a week, AB de Villiers has gone from captaining a team for the first time at any level, to winning an international series with two matches to spare

Firdose Moonda18-Jan-2012In the space of a week, AB de Villiers has gone from captaining a team for the first time at any level, to winning an international series with two matches to spare. He’d be forgiven for thinking leadership is one of the easiest things he has been asked to do. But he doesn’t.Of all the players in the South African side over the past year, de Villiers developed the most. From a rough and tumble, schoolboy-style youngster as recently as during the 2011 World Cup, he has become a reasoning, sensible man whom anyone would want to call their captain. He also showed the ability to motivate, guide, think creatively and strategise, which are essential qualities for a leader of men.”I am very proud of the boys. We took it one game at a time. I would like to think we will keep playing this kind of cricket,” de Villiers said after the victory in Bloemfontein, which gave South Africa a 3-0 lead in the series against Sri Lanka. “We showed a lot of maturity, and a lot of young guys that came in showed experience. We didn’t expect it to be 3-nil but we are very happy that it is.”South Africa managed to stay one step ahead of Sri Lanka even as the visitors took large strides towards improvement. The closest South Africa came to being caught was in Bloemfontein, but de Villiers lead the charge in a pressure situation to win despite wet weather. “The game was in the balance a little bit but I’m glad we got there in the end,” he said.One of South Africa’s successful tactics was the rotation of the No. 4 position between de Villiers, JP Duminy and Faf du Plessis. In the third ODI, du Plessis came up the order and made his highest ODI score, 72, and de Villiers said they would keep the position fluid. “I warned you guys that we are going to mix it up a little bit,” he joked. “I needed to bat down the order because it was important to get partnerships in the front.”du Plessis said he was “grateful” to get the opportunity to spend more time in the middle. “In the previous two games, I got two or three overs at the end so it was nice to go out and express myself.” He also expressed himself in the field, where he effected a run-out to dismiss Kumar Sangakkara and saved lots of runs at point.de Villiers also lauded a “much better” fielding effort by South Africa. Although they dropped four chances and missed five run-out opportunities, they caught four batsmen and ran out three others. de Villiers, however, said they had to improve and were not “a perfect team”.With the series won, de Villiers said the focus would be on “4-nil first” in Kimberley on Friday, because thoughts turn to a whitewash. It will also provide an opportunity to test new combinations, something South Africa started in Bloemfontein but can apply with more freedom in the remaining two fixtures.”We could have one or two bowlers coming in but the batting will stay more or less the same,” de Villiers said. South Africa had a new-look top three in Bloemfontein and de Villiers said they were likely to stick with that for the next two matches. “Colin [Ingram] deserves another chance at No. 3.”de Villiers also indicated that out-of-form batsman Graeme Smith would stay in the side, despite mounting criticism. Smith’s last ODI hundred was during the Champions Tophy in 2009 and he has managed only one half-century in his previous 15 matches. With Alviro Petersen in good form, talk is rife that Smith will dropped once Hashim Amla returns from paternity leave.”His [Smith’s] confidence is not very high at the moment but I am expecting runs very soon,” de Villiers said. “We know he is under pressure and we have to remember that no-one is invincible. Poor form is around the corner for all of us. But he is one of those big match players and he is old enough and experienced enough to know what to do. All we can do is support him.”Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Lonwabo Tsotsobe served South Africa well but two of them may make way for Vernon Philander and Wayne Parnell in the remaining games against Sri Lanka. Philander was brought into the squad after an injury to Rory Kleinveldt, but Parnell has been part of the group from the outset but has yet to get a look in.

MatériaMais Notícias

O torcedor são-paulino assistirá a Copa do Mundo com um sorriso de orelha a orelha. Isto porque, o Tricolor vai para a parada do Mundial em posição privilegiada no Campeonato Brasileiro. No último jogo da equipe de Diego Aguirre no primeiro semestre, o São Paulo não tomou conhecimento do Vitória e goleou a equipe baiana por 3 a 0, com grande atuação do meia Nenê.

Jogando em sua casa, onde ainda não perdeu no Brasileirão, o São Paulo passeou em campo diante do Vitória e se deu um até logo aos seus torcedores em grande estilo. O destaque da partida foi Nenê, que fez dois gols, um deles uma pintura, e ainda cavou a expulsão do meia Yago no primeiro tempo.

Com o triunfo, o Tricolor assumiu a vice-liderança do Brasileirão. O time do Morumbi vai para a Copa do Mundo com 23 pontos, apenas três atrás do Flamengo – que tem um jogo a menos e pode ampliar a diferença. Após o término da rodada, a equipe pode perder uma posição para o Atlético-MG, mas ficará no G4 durante o Mundial.

Que classe!
A apresentação de gala de Nenê começou cedo, na primeira parte do primeiro tempo. O camisa 7 recebeu o passe de Araruna na entrada da área, dominou a bola e chapelou Lucas Marques. Assim que aplicou o drible, o são-paulino endireitou o corpo e bateu com perfeição no ângulo direito de Elias, sem chance alguma de defesa. Um golaço no Morumbi!

Expulsão polêmica
Enfrentando imensa dificuldade para agredir o São Paulo no Morumbi, o Vitória ficou ainda mais exposto após a expulsão polêmica de Yago, no primeiro tempo. O meia do clube baiano fez falta em Nenê na entrada da área e o árbitro Igor Junio Benevuto de Oliveira deu o cartão vermelho sem titubear.

A decisão do juiz gerou grande revolta da comissão técnica do Vitória, que viu a interpretação como exagerada. No lance, Yago e Nenê chegaram a encostar o braço um no outro e o árbitro entendeu como agressão. Ao são-paulino, restou um cartão amarelo.

A noite de Nenê
Vencendo por 1 a 0 e com um jogador a mais em campo, o São Paulo – principalmente os setores de meio de campo e ataque – passeou em campo. Em rápido contra-ataque, Nenê carregou a bola até a entrada da área e rolou para Everton. O meia-atacante cruzou, a defesa do Vitória cortou e, no rebote, o camisa 22 deu um passe açucarado para Nenê fazer o segundo do Tricolor no Morumbi.

Cereja do bolo
Na volta do intervalo, o Tricolor apenas administrou o bom resultado construído no primeiro tempo. O time de Diego Aguirre soube trocar passes no meio de campo, envolver o adversário e ainda deu tempo para Everton ampliar. Depois de jogada bem trabalhada pelo lado direito, Lucas Fernandes cruzou rasteiro, a zaga afastou mal e o camisa 22 mandou para o fundo da rede, sacramentando a vitória do Tricolor por 3 a 0.

Destoou
Nos minutos finais da partida, o meia-atacante Lucas Fernandes, que fazia um bom jogo com a camisa do São Paulo, fez falta em Neilton no meio de campo e levou o segundo cartão amarelo. O camisa 11 foi para o chuveiro mais cedo e foi o único ponto que destoou na grande atuação da equipe do Morumbi.

Folga na Copa
Nos próximos dias, o elenco do São Paulo ganhará uma longa folga por conta da paralisação das competições nacionais e internacionais durante a Copa do Mundo. Os jogadores descansarão e se reapresentarão no CT da Barra Funda no dia 25 deste mês. Durante a intertemporada, o Tricolor ficará uma semana concentrado em Cotia e, por enquanto, não há amistosos marcados.

FICHA TÉCNICA
SÃO PAULO 3 X 0 VITÓRIA
Local: Morumbi, São Paulo (SP)
Data-Hora: 12/6/2018 – 21h30
Árbitro: Igor Junio Benevenuto de Oliveira (MG)
Auxiliares: Felipe Alan Costa de Oliveira (MG) e Ricardo Junio de Souza (MG)
Público/renda: 20.456 pagantes/R$ 468.038,00
Cartões amarelos: Hudson, Jucilei e Nenê (SAO), Neilton, Rhayner e Bruno Bispo (VIT)
Cartões vermelhos: Lucas Fernandes, aos 31’/2ºT (SAO) e Yago, aos 34’/1ºT (VIT)
Gols: Nenê (21’/1ºT) (1-0), Nenê (41’/1ºT) (2-0), Everton (8’/2ºT) (3-0),

SÃO PAULO: Sidão; Araruna, Arboleda, Bruno Alves e Reinaldo; Hudson, Jucilei e Lucas Fernandes; Nenê (Liziero, aos 39’/2ºT), Everton (Caíque, aos 25’/2ºT) e Diego Souza (Brenner, aos 11’/2ºT). Técnico: Diego Aguirre.

VITÓRIA: Elias; Cedric, Bruno Bispo, Ramon e Jeferson; Lucas Marques; Rhayner (Guilherme Costa, aos 37’/2ºT), Neilton, Yago e Wallyson (Rodrigo Andrade, aos 17’/2ºT); André Lima (Lucas Fernandes, no intervalo). Técnico: Vágner Mancini.

ScorecardJacques Rudolph’s 90 was not enough for South Africa A•Zimbabwe Cricket

In a nailbiting finish in Harare, Australia A’s Nos. 10 and 11 – Trent Copeland and Nathan Lyon – held their nerve in a 28-run partnership, and took their team past South Africa A’s 298 off the penultimate ball. Lyon had been dropped by Justin Ontong at backward point off the first ball of Rory Kleinveldt’s last over, and made South Africa A pay by smashing the fifth ball of the over for a six to stretch Australia’s winning streak in the tournament to four matches. South Africa A will now have to make sure Zimbabwe XI don’t beat them comfortably on July 6 to reach the final.The match had already seen several twists before Copeland and Lyon’s last-wicket stand. South Africa’s top order had left Australia stunned and it looked like they would get well in excess of 300. But a couple of wickets from Mitchell Marsh helped Australia peg South Africa back and keep the total to 298. Marsh then scored 72 to put Australia in a strong position but after a couple more turns South Africa A seemed to have wrapped the game up when Vernon Philander dismissed Callum Ferguson and Mitchell Starc in the space of three balls to leave Australia 275 for 9. South Africa did not have their star death bowler Rusty Theron though, and Copeland and Lyon provided a final twist.South Africa would have been satisfied with their total – easily the highest of the tournament till then – but were roused out of complacency as Australia’s openers attacked the new ball. David Warner, who has had a poor tournament so far, fell for 22, but Aaron Finch and Marsh made sure Australia’s run-rate did not dip. After the two were gone, Ferguson, who already had two half-centuries in the tournament, kept things going for Australia and at 213 for 3 in the 35th over it was theirs to lose.Philander, though, struck back for South Africa, removing Tim Paine, and from then on wickets fell regularly. Ferguson, though, reached another half-century, and it looked like he would take Australia home. It was only when he was bowled for Philander for 66 that South Africa became favourites. But Lyon and Copeland hung on to get the remaining runs.An Australia win was almost unimaginable for the first 33 overs of the game. Jacques Rudolph and Jonathan Vandiar pummelled Australia in a 123-run opening partnership, and when Vandiar fell for 60 off 57, Rilee Rossouw picked up from where he left off. Rossouw got 52 off 55 balls, and Rudolph went to the top of the tournament’s run chart with his 90. At 187 for 1 in 33 overs, South Africa were in charge. But they lost four wickets in the next six overs giving Australia a window back into the game. Roelof van der Merwe gave the innings one final push with his 40 off 30 balls and the final target was nearly good enough.

Marcus Trescothick hit his second century of the match to lead Somerset to a 10-wicket victory over Yorkshire in the County Championship Division One match at Taunton

27-May-2011
ScorecardMarcus Trescothick made his second century of the match as Somerset sauntered to victory•Getty Images

Marcus Trescothick hit his second century of the match to lead Somerset to a 10-wicket victory over Yorkshire in the County Championship Division One match at Taunton.The visitors battled hard to extend their second-innings score to 321 all out, Adil Rashid making an unbeaten 51, and set their opponents 228 to win in a minimum of 51 overs. It proved a cakewalk under clear skies as Trescothick (151 not out) and Arul Suppiah (67no) put together their second double-century opening stand of the match.Somerset won with 10.5 overs to spare and took 24 points from their third Championship win of the season, while their opponents had to settle for six. The day began with Yorkshire 249 for 6 in their second innings, with a lead of 155, and an earlier finish looked likely when Jonny Bairstow was caught behind off the third ball of the morning from Charl Willoughby without adding to his 80.But Rashid survived a couple of low chances to James Hildreth at slip and Nick Compton at cover while he and Ajmal Shahzad added 35 runs for the eighth wicket. Somerset’s bowlers were becoming frustrated when Rashid called for a quick single to midwicket and 18-year-old all-rounder Jake Lintott, on as a substitute fielder, ran out Shahzad with a direct hit at the wicketkeeper’s end.Steve Kirby then struck on the stroke of lunch, bowling Ryan Sidebottom middle and leg stump, to claim his 500th first-class victim and make the score 296 for 9 at the interval. Yorkshire led by 202 and a stubborn last-wicket stand of 25 held up the home side further before Oliver Hannon-Dalby edged Gemaal Hussain to Hildreth at first slip. Rashid remained defiant, having hit eight fours in facing 145 balls.There were two wickets each for Kirby, Hussain and Suppiah. With the sun shining and the skies clear, Somerset looked hot favourites. Trescothick survived an early run-out scare when a throw from Hannon-Dalby just missed the stumps, but was soon repeating his effortless strokeplay of the first innings.By tea he had reached his half-century off 48 balls, with seven fours and a six lifted over long-on off Rashid. Suppiah again gave solid support in seeing off the new ball and laying the foundation for a comfortable victory.The Trescothick hundred that had looked inevitable almost from the moment he took guard duly arrived with a four to third-man off Joe Root. It had occupied just 89 balls and featured 13 fours and two sixes.Suppiah then moved to his second half-century of the game off 95 deliveries with six fours. By then the total was 160 and only 68 more were needed. They were gathered in effortless fashion, Trescothick reaching his 150 with the winning hit.

Newly-appointed team manager and former captain, Richie Richardson, says Darren Sammy’s team can “spring a few surprises”

Sharda Ugra10-Feb-2011The weather gods have rained on the West Indies’ parade all throughout their lead-up to the 2011 World Cup. Their five match-ODI series in Sri Lanka was first postponed due to bad weather, then shrunk down to three matches, one of which was, again, rained out. Then ten days before the World Cup began, the latest ICC rankings announced that the two-time World Cup-winning West Indies now find themselves at No.9, behind Bangladesh in the ODI rankings, their lowest position so far.Yet newly-appointed team manager and former captain, Richie Richardson, says Darren Sammy’s team can “spring a few surprises” in a World Cup where, “every team has a chance.”Richardson told ESPNcricinfo from Colombo, “We are not affected or thinking about our ranking… because we have gone down one spot in the ranking won’t have a negative effect on us. We are just trying to get our minds right, get our players in as good a condition as possible. In a one-day tournament, it’s how well a team plays on the day, and how consistent you are. If we can raise our game and if we can really come together and play as a unit, I believe we can spring a few surprises.”At the World Cup, the West Indies have been clubbed with India, South Africa, England, Bangladesh, Ireland and Netherlands in Group B, and are expected to struggle to make it to the knock-out stage. The team has had a very poor ODI record over the last two years, its last ODI victory over a Test team was in June 2009 versus India.Richardson, whose last international appearance was in the semi-final of the 1996 World Cup, said that every World Cup tournament acts as a clean slate. “At a World Cup, it doesn’t matter how you are doing, how good you are, what number in the ranking. Every team at the World Cup looks forward to go out there and win it. Sometimes you have some upsets. The little teams want to cut down the big teams…”If the West Indies are being thought of as a ‘little team’ in this World Cup, it is because they have only beaten Zimbabwe, Canada and Ireland over the last 12 months. A player-strike over the contracts issue in 2009 and the 2010 decision by Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard to turn down West Indian Board contracts have only added to the grim news around the team. Richardson said that as manager of the World Cup team, “What happened in the past in terms of the contracts is none of my business… I just want to make sure the players are in the right frame of mind and are ready to go and play World Cup.”When asked whether the World Cup would be the critical moment in which Pollard, the attacking right-hander who had made a name for himself in Twenty20, could prove his credentials in top-flight cricket, Richardson responded first with a simple emotive message about what the event means for the squad as a whole – an opportunity to win back some territory in the international game.”I say that to the players, we’ve got to go there and prove to the world that we can play cricket. Let’s surprise a lot of people, because people at the moment are not thinking very highly of us. But we have got to just focus on what we have to do, believe in what we can do and create a few upsets. That’s what we want to do – go and impress. Every single player…”He then turned his attention to Pollard, saying, “Pollard is a hard-hitting batsman in Twenty20 and at the end of the day if you are a batsman, you are a batsman and you should be able to adjust in various situations. He (Pollard) should not be thinking that he’s just a Twenty20 player. When he gets the opportunity he should be looking to go there and bat and do well.”And I’m hoping that what he’s thinking. Quite often the press has opinions; the fans have an opinion… At the end of the day you have to focus on what you have to do and work there and work hard.”Other than Pollard, the West Indies have several quality batsmen in their ranks, both experienced and upcoming, but have a fragile and understocked bowling unit. Richardson said, “Well, you know cricket is not played on paper. We don’t think that we are weak in that area, we don’t think, oh we don’t have bowlers in the top five or whatever. We know what we are capable of doing. If players bowl in the areas they have to bowl, bowl with control and the confidence and the fielders support the bowlers, anything is possible.”My approach has always been a very a positive one and this is what you have to instil it the players. You can’t listen to what people are saying, we have just got to work with what we have and back ourselves and do what we have to do to do well in this tournament.”He said the team would not be affected by the fact that the scheduled five-match ODI series versus Sri Lanka had been reduced to three, in which eventually only two full ODIs were possible. “All the players were actively playing cricket prior to arrival here in Sri Lanka. We have still being practicing every day. The rain has not affected our practice session. We have a couple more matches; we think we’re in good shape. We have a few more days to get ourselves right, so we’ll continue to work hard. We believe that at the start of our World Cup, the first match on the [February] 24 [against South Africa in Delhi], we’ll be ready.”Given that he played in a very different era for West Indian cricket, Richardson said taking over as manager at a time when the region’s cricket was at its lowest was “not easy”, but he said, “there are certain things in life you have to accept. You have good periods, you have bad periods. If you are on top, you are not going to be on top forever… I’m not one to have a go at the players, have a go at certain situations. What we need is accept that things are not as nice or as great as it once was, but it is for us to work hard to bring it back… We know the fans expect great things of us and we want them to support us because we will give our 100 percent.”For all the bad tidings around the West Indies, they do have what other teams in the competition would crave for: fifteen fit men to choose from. The worry around the sight of a limping Bravo after pulling off a stunner of a catch for Victoria in the Australian Big Bash versus Western Australia is now a thing of the past. Bravo, a team spokesman said, has recovered well.

Tottenham Hostpur have been dealt a potential setback in their bid to bring Denzel Dumfries to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport (via Sport Witness), who claim that Bayern Munich are growing increasingly keen on the idea of a move for the Inter Milan wing-back this summer, with the Bundesliga side known to be looking for a player in the 26-year-old’s position, and said to be impressed by the Netherlands international’s growth and dedication as well as his technique and athletics.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-spurs-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-much-more” title= “Read the latest Spurs news!”]

However, the report goes on to state that Tottenham are also extremely keen on the versatile defender, with Antonio Conte’s side thought to be leading the race of Premier League clubs interested in a move for the former PSV Eindhoven starlet this summer.

Paratici must move

With Conte’s desire to sign a new right wing-back this summer being well documented, it is easy to see why the Italian has taken a particular shine to the Inter Milan defender, as Dumfries has been in magnificent form for the Nerazzurri ever since his €15m (£12.5m) move to the San Siro last August.

Indeed, over his 30 Serie A appearances this season, the £34m-rated Dutchman has proven a constant threat on Simone Inzaghi’s right flank, scoring five goals, registering five assists and creating five big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of one shot, making 0.8 key passes and completing 0.5 dribbles per game.

The £51k-per-week 26-year-old has also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making an average of 0.2 interceptions, 0.9 tackles, 0.6 clearances, 0.4 crosses and winning 3.9 duels – at a success rate of 53% – per fixture.

These returns have seen the player who Fuad Alakbarov dubbed an “exciting” talent average a very respectable SofaScore match rating of 6.86 – playing a key role in the Nerazzurri’s push to retain their Serie A title this season.

As such, it is clear for all to see just how well Dumfries would be suited to Conte’s right wing-back role at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, leading us to believe that Paratici simply must do everything he can to beat Bayern Munich to the €30m (£25m) signing of the player who Siavoush Fallahi dubbed a “difference maker” this summer.

AND in other news: Sources: Spurs can now seal cut-price deal for £116k-p/w “monster”, Paratici must move

Aston Villa have emerged as a potential suitor for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly according to reports from Italy.

What’s the Word?

Italian outlet TMW has claimed that Premier League sides Aston Villa, Everton and Tottenham Hotspur are all interested in the Senegal international, labelling him a “real tressure” in what would undoubtedly be a sensational signing for Villa.

The centre back is in high demand, with European heavyweights Barcelona also interested, this is despite Napoli placing a €70m (£58m) price tag on his head.

Koulibaly will turn 31 in June and a fee of this size might put a lot of teams off, especially when they may only get a couple of years out of him at his peak.

Imagine him & Konsa

Villa have been leaking goals as of late and surely a centre back is high on the list of Steven Gerrard’s priorities as he looks ahead to his first full season in charge at Villa Park.

There aren’t many defenders better than Koulibaly at the moment, with the Premier League surely being an attractive move having spent the last eight years in Serie A.

Forza Italian football editor Connor Clancy previously stated his belief that the Napoli titan “improves any team” he plays for, as well as dubbing the defender “phenomenal.” High praise for the 30-year-old.

The most important aspect that Gerrard will be looking at is to create a solid centre back pairing of both Ezri Konsa and Koulibaly.

With Konsa having a rating of 6.74 on SofaScore this season, the onus would be on the Senegal international to come in and form a solid backline with the 24-year-old English talent.

Regardless of if Gerrard actually manages to secure his services or not, it shows just how far Villa have come since promotion three years ago that they are linked with one of the finest centre backs in the world.

What a summer Villa supporters have in store.

AND in other news, Gerrard now plotting AVFC bid for £46k-p/w “phenomenon”, he’s better than Phillips