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Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam has accepted responsibility for Pakistan’s poor showing on their tour of Australia

Cricinfo staff07-Feb-2010Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam has accepted responsibility for his team’s poor showing on their tour of Australia, where they were whitewashed in the three Tests, five ODIs and the one-off Twenty20. Intikhab, however, has refused to resign like chief selector Iqbal Qasim did, and is prepared to face an inquiry.”I will not run away and will face an investigation,” Intikhab said after the team’s return to Karachi on Sunday morning. “I am not going to comment on any resignation but I will take full responsibility for the defeat.”Pakistan dropped several catches during the tour and let go of a great opportunity to win the second Test in Sydney, where they collapsed chasing 175. The Pakistan board appointed a six-member committee to investigate the defeat. This was Pakistan’s fourth-successive Test series whitewash to Australia.”It was a disappointing tour but if you look into the history, Pakistan has never performed well on a tour of Australia,” Intikhab said. “Our fielding was very poor and the batsmen lacked determination and their shot selection was bad. I will give a detailed report on team’s performance on the tour and hope a fair analysis is done.”He also denied rumours of a rift in the team and asked the fans to be patient and not jump to conclusions.”Talk of grouping is baseless. Such things come when the team loses.Australia is still the best team in the world and they played well. Australia lost a home Test series against South Africa, were defeated in Tests in India and handed Ashes to England in the last two years, but their people backed them and they have regrouped. We should also back our team.”Pressure has mounted on the top men of Pakistan cricket to step down, including the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt. The captain Mohammad Yousuf is also in danger of losing his job, after Butt announced midway through the tour that a new captain could be named. A disappointed Waqar Younis, the bowling and fielding coach, said he will explain the reasons for the team’s defeat to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Sports.

Newcastle are in talks with the representatives of Bayern Munich defender Niklas Sule ahead of the transfer window, Liam Kennedy has reported. 

The lowdown

The 26-year-old’s contract is up at the end of the season, with negotiations over the course of the year failing to yield a breakthrough as yet.

He has been at Bayern since 2018, when he joined from Hoffenheim in an £18m deal. The German has gone on to make 150 appearances for the Bavarian giants and win 37 caps for his country (via Transfermarkt).

He has racked up 13 major honours during his time at the Allianz Arena, including a Champions League triumph in 2020.

Sule is both imposing (at 6 foot 5) and quick, clocking a top speed of 21.6 miles per hour in the 2017/18 season. Only Kingsley Coman could match that in the Bayern squad (via Bundesliga).

The latest

According to Kennedy via Twitter, Sule is ‘very much on NUFC’s radar’ as they look to strengthen the heart of their defence in January.

Encouragingly, it’s thought that the player would be willing to trade Champions League football for a Premier League relegation battle. However, Newcastle face competition for the 26-year-old’s signature, with reigning Champions League winners Chelsea also in the frame.

The verdict

Newcastle have the second-worstt defensive record in the Premier League, with only bottom club Norwich City (26) conceding more goals than their 24 up to this point. Therefore, it’s no surprise to see that the Magpies are intent on strengthening the centre-back position at the first opportunity.

Signing a player of Sule’s calibre wouldn’t necessarily fix everything straight away, but he could certainly elevate the whole defensive unit, especially in terms of ball distribution – his 88.7% passing accuracy rate in the Bundesliga is better than every Newcastle defender this season and second only to rarely-seen midfielder Jeff Hendrick.

Beating Chelsea to a signing from Bayern Munich would also be quite a statement from the Magpies at the beginning of an exciting new era.

In other news, Newcastle are also battling for this Serie A maestro  

The plays of the day from the fourth day at Centurion

Andrew McGlashan at Centurion19-Dec-2009It’s all about planning
There were a few raised eyebrows when Stuart Broad had a deep square-leg in place while bowling to Jacques Kallis. After all, this has been a surface where the quicks have caused most of their problems by pitching the ball up and getting uneven bounce. Was it a double-bluff from Broad and Andrew Strauss? No, it was a perfect piece of planning. Broad, after drying up the runs, banged in his first short ball of the day, and Kallis obligingly pulled it to Alastair Cook on the boundary who, despite a mini-wobble, held on.Signal failure
Early in the day, there was a lot of arm-waving going on between the pitch and scorers. It wasn’t clear what the issue was until Brian Jerling, the fourth umpire, made his way up to the box, accompanied by a man with two large bulbs. It emerged that there were no indicator lights to enable the scorers to confirm they had registered the umpires’ signals, and so instead they had to resort to semaphore. However, the man with the bulbs quickly went to work, and soon everyone’s life had been made that bit easier.Within an inch
England haven’t had any luck with the review system in this match, and are pretty fed up with the whole process. Their mood won’t have been enhanced when, desperate for a breakthrough, Andrew Strauss gambled on using his final review when Graham Onions had a huge shout for lbw against AB de Villiers. The replay looked good; it pitched in line, hit in line, but would have crashed pretty comfortably into leg stump, but under the parameters set for the margin of error, there was enough doubt still lingering for de Villiers to survive.Young talent
As has been the case since the second day, the crowd were allowed onto the outfield during the lunch interval. Among the many games that sprang up, one young boy caught the attention. He ran in with a neat action, bowled with a hint of swing and then switched to sending down a few leggies. When his turn came with the bat he was quickly into position to play the pull shot. Expect him to be offered a Kolpak deal within days.England finally get one
Given they had spent another sweltering day in the field, England may just have lost the plot if JP Duminy had survived his lbw appeal against James Anderson on review. The ball pitched in line and swung nicely back into Duminy’s pads so Steve Davis was happy to give it out. Height was the concern, but it went in England’s favour – but only just. Replays showed the ball was only clipping the bails but, because it had originally been given out, the on-field call remained.Play that
Hashim Amla had just reached his hundred by flicking Broad through midwicket and was seeing it like a football. Still, he had no chance of playing the grubber from Anderson that scuttled along the deck and crashed into off stump. Anderson barely celebrated, partly because South Africa’s lead was out of reach, but mostly because he knew the challenge that was about to confront England in their second innings.Clouds on the horizon?
During the fourth day, the sky became something other than perfectly blue for the first time in the game. The ominous sign of thunderclouds began forming in the distance – as the forecast had predicted – and they started to turn the sunshine hazy. This match has been notable because it’s the first time here that an England game hasn’t impacted by the weather. But there is still a day to go, and the visitors would welcome some help from above.

Daren Ganga is wary of him, Andrew Puttick is hopeful, while Herschelle Gibbs himself remains confident of coming good in the semi-final

Cricinfo staff21-Oct-2009If you had blinked at the start of the Cape Cobras innings in the Champions League so far, you were likely to miss Herschelle Gibbs. His appearances have been fleeting – he’s scored 0, 1 and 0 – but both the Trinidad & Tobago and Cape Cobras captains, and the batsman himself, were aware of Gibbs’ game-breaking potential in Thursday’s semi-final in Hyderabad.Gibbs had opted out of the Cobras’ game against Victoria in Bangalore after a security alert at the Chinnaswamy Stadium postponed the start of the game by 100 minutes. He did not leave the team hotel for personal security but appeared to be in brighter spirits today and was optimistic of having an impact in the semi-final.”I have just been unlucky. I just tend to hit the ball from ball one,” Gibbs said. “I like the semi-finals and finals irrespective of what tournament I’m playing. I just like the big moments and that brings the best out of me. It is going to be a good wicket and hopefully I can entertain the home crowd.”Gibbs, incidentally, is one of the major reasons the Cobras are playing the tournament as South African champions. He blasted 87 off 62 balls in the Pro20 final against the Eagles, more than half of his team’s total of 147. His captain, Andrew Puttick, hoped that his best batsman could reproduce something similar. “Herschelle is in bit of poor run, but we know if it is his day know he can win us the game,” Puttick said.Gibbs, however, has had a low-key season so far and had an unproductive ICC World Twenty20 as well, scoring only 114 runs in six matches. He also had a poor run at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, the home ground for his IPL team, the Deccan Chargers. In four innings there during the 2008 IPL, Gibbs made only 67 runs, with a top-score of 47. The Cobras will be hoping for a dramatic turnaround tomorrow.”We know the quality of Herschelle,” Ganga said on the eve of the game against the Cape Cobras. “He has not been on song in recent games but in an important match he might come good, and we are prepared for that.”

A round-up of the first day’s play of the third round of the RBS Pentangular Cup

Cricinfo staff13-Jan-2010
ScorecardSialkot were blown away for 78 by the seam attack of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) on the opening day at the Niaz Stadium. Samiullah Khan and Adil Raza breathed fire, sharing eight wickets as the Sialkot batting card began to resemble a zip code with the ninth wicket falling when there were only 40 runs on the board. Number 10 Bilawal Bhatti lashed out for 33 runs, as the last wicket nearly doubled the score. Sialkot’s hopes of skittling out SNGPL similarly were scuppered by Mohammad Hafeez and Ali Waqas who stroked fiftenn boundaries between them. Though they lost wickets in regular intervals, SNGPL’s innings was anchored by Usman Arshad, who struck a fifty, and Yasir Shah. The duo’s 88-run stand put their side 109 runs ahead and well in control by stumps.
ScorecardAn incisive bowling effort from Habib Bank Limited (HBL) restricted The Rest to 142 on the opening day at the National Bank of Pakistan Sports Complex in Karachi. Opener Kashif Siddiq struck a stroke-filled 59, but the rest of the batting line-up fell like a pack of cards with Saeed Bin Nasir’s 30 being the only other score to enter double digits. Imran Fazil snared two wickets while Kamran Hussain and Abdur Rehman took three apiece. HBL’s response got into early trouble and at one stage they were stuttering at 50 for 4, as The Rest chipped away efficiently. Sulaman Qadir and Hasan Raza took them through to stumps without further loss, but they are still fifty runs behind HBL’s score.

Arsenal could be lining up a bargain swoop for Alexandre Lacazette’s replacement if recent reports are to be believed…

What’s the word?

Italian outlet Calciomercato (via Sport Witness) have linked the Gunners with a move for Torino striker Andrea Belotti, who is expected to leave Torino on a free transfer at the end of the current campaign.

Tuttosport have also claimed that the north London outfit had made ‘concrete proposals’ over the 27-year-old in the past, so they now have the perfect opportunity to secure him – and for nothing, too.

II Toro’s manager Ivan Juric has ruled out any sale in January, though, so Arsenal will need to wait until the summer to secure him. However, from January, they can come to terms on a pre-contract agreement.

Lacazette replacement

Mikel Arteta, Edu Gaspar and the club’s recruitment team could do little wrong in looking to Belotti in their bid to replace Lacazette, who himself is yet to sign an extension to his expiring £182k-per-week deal at the Emirates Stadium.

If the Frenchman does indeed depart north London, something that seems rather likely with just eight months to go, then it would leave the Spanish head coach rather light in attacking options.

He’d have a host of youthful choices behind Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with the likes of Eddie Nketiah and Folarin Balogun but they aren’t ready to carry a full-time burden in the starting XI.

Belotti over several years has proven to be a prolific marksman, having bagged double figures in every year since 2015/16, including a career-best of 28 goals during the 2016/17 campaign.

According to former Man City and Spurs goalkeeper Joe Hart, the 5 foot 11 forward is like no other across Europe.

“Andrea is similar to all the great strikers, English and not,” he told Gianluca Di Marzio. “It’s hard to compare him to someone else because he’s special. He’s Belotti and that’s it. He has instinct for goals, personality and he’s a team player. He’s always focused on his team and plays hard to help it.”

Seeing as the Italy international is currently valued at a whopping £31.5m by Transfermakt, the Gunners would be making quite the coup by landing him for nothing, meaning Stan Kroenke and KSE won’t have to fork out much from the budget.

On the above evidence, Belotti would be a very cost-effective and ideal replacement for Lacazette.

AND in other news, Arteta could repeat Arsenal’s catastrophic Gnabry mistake with £13m-rated “gladiator”…

Crystal Palace attacker Eberechi Eze could be set to return to action quicker than first anticipated, according to journalist Tom Barclay.

The Lowdown: Out since May

The 23-year-old enjoyed a brilliant maiden season at the Eagles with 10 goal involvements in his debut Premier League campaign following his move from QPR for £19.5m. However, the player suffered a serious Achilles injury in training back in May and hasn’t played since, with scans revealing that he could face between six to eight months of rehabilitation.

It has been reported that Eze was in Gareth Southgate’s plans for his England squad for the European Championship before he got injured in training.

The Latest: Eze ahead of schedule for a return

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Barclay has suggested that Eze’s return to action may not be too far away, but advised caution over reintroducing him to the fold due to the nature of the injury.

The journalist said: “I’m told there is a good chance that there’s a good chance actually that he’s ahead of schedule on his return. Achilles injuries are bad injuries, they can keep you out for a long time and they can affect you going forward.”

The Verdict: Great news but don’t rush him back

Right now, rushing Eze back is something Viera should avoid given Palace’s decent start to the season. They currently sit 14th in the Premier League table but have taken points off Brentford, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton and most recently Leicester City.

Summer signings Odsonne Edouard and Michael Olise have already made their mark, whilst Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher has caught the eye as Viera’s number 10, with two goals in the 2-2 draw with West Ham in August.

If Palace are to remain in the Premier League and potentially flirt with the top half or even the European places, having their best players available for selection is a must. Eze’s return will obviously be most welcome given his impact last season but, as Barclay has warned, the Eagles must not rush him back prematurely and risk aggravating the injury again.

In other news, these Palace fans have been reacting to a video from the club’s official Twitter channel. Find out more here.

Tottenham Hotspur defender Davinson Sanchez has been one of Nuno Santo’s best-performing players since the start of the new Premier League season, even if he’s recently landed himself in hot water over his international duties.

However, since his arrival in August 2017 from Eredivisie giants Ajax, the 6 foot 2 colossus has seen his value decrease at a very alarming rate.

The 25-year-old was signed for a then club-record £42m and he was soon talked up by former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino, who tipped him for some very big things.

It’s fair to say that his career has not panned out that way thus far.

“I like his personality and how he is aggressive, he is fast, he will fit for us very well. Davinson is with us because a lot of clubs were interested in him but he decided to join us,” he said to Sky Sports.

“It’s a massive opportunity because we believe he will be one of the best centre-backs in the world in the future. That is why we made the effort to try to sign him.”

Sanchez is now valued at just €20m (£18m) by CIES Football Observatory, meaning in the four years he’s been at the club, his total worth has decreased a whopping 57%, which is concerning considering he is yet to hit the peak of his career, particularly as a centre-back.

It’s even more shocking when taking into account Pochettino’s glowing praise but the reality of the matter is, the Colombian international just has not been good enough since arriving in north London.

Yes, his opening three games this campaign have been majorly positive and encouraging but that’s a needle in a haystack compared to the last few seasons.

Back in April, former Republic of Ireland star Kenny Cunningham dubbed the centre-back a “real liability” to his team following Spurs’ 2-2 draw with Newcastle, a game in which they threw away three points because of his defensive frailties.

Even more recently he has been getting plenty of stick – ex-Colombia manager Jorge Luis Pinto told ESPN F90 (via Spanish outlet Marca) that the Lilywhites defender “does not have the talent.”

Perhaps a little harsh given the £75k-per-week star has been one of Spurs’ standout players so far this campaign but it does highlight his previous and long-term struggles at the club.

Overall, chairman Daniel Levy made a big mistake with this transfer, though there is still plenty of time to salvage the decision, especially as he appears to be Nuno’s first-choice defender, despite the arrival of Cristian Romero.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano provides exciting Spurs transfer update…

Sunderland are closing in on a deal to bring Ron-Thorben Hoffmann to the Stadium of Light.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by German publication Kicker (via Bundesliga News), who claim that the goalkeeper looks set to sign a contract extension with Bayern Munich, and, once completed, the Bundesliga champions will then sanction the departure of the 22-year-old.

The report continues to state that the former Germany U18 international will join the Black Cats on what will initially be a season-long loan deal, which will be made a permeant move if Lee Johnson’s side go on to secure promotion to the Championship come the end of the season.

Johnson will be buzzing

Having targeted a number of goalkeepers in recent weeks, including the former Sunderland shot-stopper Vito Mannone, the fact that the club look close to securing the last-minute addition of Hoffmann is sure to have left the Black Cats manager buzzing.

Indeed, while the youngster is yet to make a senior appearance for the Bundesliga side, he has nevertheless impressed over the various youth and reserve sides at the club, conceding 60 goals and keeping 21 clean sheets over 54 appearances for Bayern’s U19 side, as well as conceding 69 goals and keeping 11 clean sheets over 51 appearances for Bayern Munich II.

As such, should Johnson go on to land the services of the German youth international on Tuesday evening, the £540k-rated man would certainly appear to be something of a coup for the League One side, who could certainly do with adding greater depth to his current options in the position.

However, while a deal does appear close for the 6ft 4 shot-stopper, it would be wise for the 40-year-old to tie up the signing of the ‘keeper as efficiently as possible, as there are now only a matter of hours remaining on the summer transfer window.

In other news: Nixon drops fresh SAFC update on “desperate” £1.08m-rated dud, fans will be gutted

Tottenham Hotspur have just been handed a major boost in their pursuit of one mooted transfer target…

What’s the word?

Throughout the summer window, the north London outfit were regularly linked with a move for Fiorentina talisman Dusan Vlahovic, with the Telegraph’s Mike McGrath claiming that he’d be signed to play alongside Harry Kane, rather than to replace him.

Similar reports in Italy also hinted that Lilywhites sporting director Fabio Paratici is a big fan of the 22-year-old striker, whilst Calciomercato suggested last month that the Serbia international was the club’s top target for 2022.

And now an encouraging update has emerged on his future in Florence.

In a statement released by the club (via Sky Sports), La Viola owner Rocco Commisso has revealed that Vlahovic has turned down an offer of a new deal to become the highest-paid player in their history.

“As you know, Fiorentina made a very significant offer to the player. Our proposal would have made him the highest-paid player in the history of the club.

“We also improved our offer on a number of occasions in order to accommodate the requests of both Dusan and his entourage. However, despite our efforts, those offers have not been accepted.

“During my time in Florence over the past few weeks, I have personally endeavoured to find a solution that would make both the player and the club happy, but I am disappointed to say that our efforts and attempts have not been rewarded.”

Paratici must act

Whilst the statement goes on to suggest that the 6 foot 3 forward will remain committed to the club as he is contracted for another 21 months, that shouldn’t stop Paratici and co trying to force Fiorentina’s hand.

Aged just 21, the young frontman has proven to be quite the prolific goalscorer in the Italian top-flight.

Last season, Vlahovic bagged 21 goals in just 37 league appearances and has continued that form into the new campaign, where he has found the net six times from eight appearances, averaging one goal every 118 minutes.

It’s no wonder he has been dubbed a “complete number nine” by Serie A expert Conor Clancy, who told This is Futbol:

“I know it’s just off the back of one season, but he’s strong, can link play up, can hold the ball up and most importantly, he’s scoring goals. He’s one of those players that when he looks confident, you almost expect him to score every time he plays.”

Indeed, Vlahovic has averaged 2.4 shots and 2.1 aerials won per outing this campaign, via WhoScored, proving to not only be a towering physical presence in the final third but one that can regularly be a nuisance in front of goal, as if his goalscoring record didn’t already suggest that.

By comparison, only Heung-min Son (3.2) and Kane (2.5) have managed more shots at goal, whilst neither can match his aerial ability – in fact, only Lucas Moura (4.2) has managed more than Vlahovic’s 2.1 duels won per game, also per WhoScored.

With him not signing a new deal at Fiorentina, it would be foolish to not submit an offer for the striker during the January transfer window. The £36m-rated beast would be a solid addition for Nuno, who is known to want to deploy a two-man attack in north London.

Spurs have been handed a massive boost here, so it’s now on Paratici and Daniel Levy to act.

AND in other news, Reliable journo drops big behind-the-scenes Nuno claim, Spurs fans will be buzzing…