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Viktor Gyokeres knows exactly what Arsenal need to do in order to get their season back on track. The Gunners lost ground in the title race as they fell to just their second Premier League defeat of the season at Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon. Combined with Manchester City's win over Sunderland, Arsenal's lead at the top of the table has been cut to just two points.

AFPArsenal crashed to second league defeat of the season

Villa went ahead with 10 minutes of the first half to play at Villa Park in Saturday's lunchtime kick off as Matty Cash rifled past David Raya from close range. Arsenal were level shortly after the restart as Leandro Trossard scored his fourth league goal of the season having been introduced at the break in the Midlands.

However, the Villans threw a spanner in Arsenal's title pursuit as Emiliano Buendia scored a last-gasp winner for Unai Emery's side to condemn Arsenal to just their second league defeat of the season.

The result means Arsenal have now won just two of their last five league matches, and the dip in form has seen their lead at the top of the Premier League table cut to just two points, with Manchester City hot on their heels. Star striker Gyokeres, meanwhile, has issued his demands to his teammates after Saturday's Midlands reverse.

AdvertisementArsenal 'disappointed' with Villa defeat, claims Gyokeres

After the game, Gyokeres delivered his verdict on the game and admitted that the dressing room was downbeat following the loss at Villa. "We are of course disappointed with the result," the Swede said after Saturday's defeat.

"It’s not a great feeling right now, but it’s only December and there are a lot of games to play. You can always find some positives, but it’s still a very difficult way to lose a football game. It’s tough right now, but we’ll look forward to the next one soon."

Gyokeres, who has endured a spell on the sidelines recently owing to a hamstring injury, has netted just four league goals following his arrival from Portuguese giants Sporting CP over the summer.

Getty Images Sport'We have to keep creating chances'

The 27-year-old last scored in Arsenal's 2-0 win at Burnley last month, but insists that if the Gunners continue to create chances then the goals will flow.

"We have to keep creating chances and get shots on goal because then you’ll eventually score more goals. So yes, that’s of course a positive and we just need to do things in between also a bit better," Gyokeres added after the Villa reverse.

"It’s football. If you score in the last few seconds or minutes, that is an unbelievable feeling, so it goes both ways. Today, unfortunately, it was the other way. It’s tough, but you learn from it. If we focus on what we can control and do in our favour and focus on the next game, we’ll be better, I think."

Arsenal now turn their attention to the Champions League as they take on Belgian side Club Brugge in midweek before they face winless Wolves at Molineux next weekend as the Gunners seek to get their title push back on track.

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'That's the league'

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, spoke about the impact of the defeat at Villa on Saturday, which combined with City's 3-0 win over Sunderland means the north London side sit just two points clear at the top of the table. "That's the league," Arteta started following the 2-1 defeat.

"You go to Old Trafford, you go to St James Park, you go to Chelsea, you come here – we've been in a lot of difficult grounds and today the result could have been different.

"The reality is not, and that's the step that we have to make. We've been 18 games unbeaten and still we are there, very close to each other. That's the level of the league and we know that.

"That's the opportunity that we have ahead of us and that's it. Now it's time to bounce back. They have given me all the right reasons to think that we're going to continue to perform at the same level, because what the boys tried to do today, again, with the schedule that we had, it was amazing. So, [we] move on."

Nottingham Forest have begun to see an excellent upturn in their form since Sean Dyche took over the club. He’s won three from his first six games, including Saturday’s exceptional 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield. It has certainly been a positive start to his tenure.

Indeed, there have been some excellent individual performances since the Englishman became the Forest manager. Morgan Gibbs-White has been one of the standouts, with three goals in his last three Premier League games. The likes of Nicolo Savona and Igor Jesus have also been in impressive form.

With his side in excellent form, Dyche could well turn to the transfer market as he looks to add more quality to the Forest squad.

The latest on Nottingham Forest's transfer plans

It seems like the East Midlands side are looking to add depth in midfield. Reports in the past few days suggest they are plotting a move for talented Belgian midfielder Nathan De Cat, although the likes of Bayern Munich are challengers for the 17-year-old’s signature.

Transfer Focus

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

However, if that move does not materialise, Forest are also considering Everton midfielder and former loanee James Garner.

According to a report from Football Insider, the club are “looking at him” and could make a move, with his contract up in 18 months.

However, this will not be an easy deal to do. There are a host of Premier League clubs interested in the former Manchester United man, with Newcastle United, Aston Villa and West Ham United all keeping tabs.

As for the price, he could cost upwards of £20m, according to a report in mid-November.

Why Garner would be a good signing for Forest

24-year-old Garner has been pivotal for the Toffees this season. He has excelled as a full-back and in the middle of the park, with Everton gaffer David Moyes relying on that versatility several times this season.

Indeed, Garner has played 11 times in the Premier League, operating in different areas of the pitch. He’s played three games as a left-back, scoring a thunderbolt in one of those, seven times in the heart of the midfield, and once at right-back.

Of course, a move to Forest would see Garner return to the club. He played a historic part during his first stint, a loan from Man United.

He played 69 times in Garribaldi Red, scoring and assisting 18 times, and helping Forest return to the Premier League. Statman Dave described him as a “special” player during his time at the club.

If Garner was to make a move back to the City Ground, and Dyche utilised him in midfield, he might well form a strong partnership with Gibbs-White. Unsurprisingly, the England international is a key player under Forest’s new boss.

The former Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder has been in excellent form under Dyche, with the third of his three goals in the top flight coming last weekend at Anfield. However, he has been a consistent performer in Garibaldi Red his whole time at the club.

He’s recently brought up his 50th goal contribution for the club, and has 22 goals and 31 assists in 135 games. Gibbs-White excels as a number 10, but there are times when he needs to play deeper to help Forest out defensively.

The signing of Garner, however, could change that. The Everton man is someone who could play with Gibbs-White in midfield and take some of the defensive responsibility off the Forest number 10. His defensive numbers are impressive, averaging four tackles and interceptions per game this season, for example.

Garner vs. PL midfielders
Stat (per 90)	#	Rank vs PL midfielders
Defensive 3rd tackles won	1.36	Top 11%
Interceptions	1.45	Top 11%
Clearances	2.73	​​​​​​​Top 9%
Blocks	1.64	Top 19%
Stats from FBref

This sort of defensive nous could make Gibbs-White unplayable for Dyche’s side. With a player like Garner behind him, and Elliot Anderson of course, it might mean he is less shackled defensively, thus being able to be more effective going forward.

This midfield dynamic could hugely benefit Forest, and make them a more potent team in attack. In this market, £20m is a nominal fee for a player who knows the club and can benefit the side.

Not Zinchenko: Dyche could now drop “incredible” Nottingham Forest star

Sean Dyche could ditch this Nottingham Forest star alongside Oleksandr Zinchenko for his Premier League return.

By
Kelan Sarson

Oct 26, 2025

They might have dropped points last time out, but Arsenal are flying this season.

They sit four points clear atop the Premier League table and second in the Champions League, with four wins and four clean sheets in as many games.

One of the stars of the Gunners’ impressive campaign so far has been Declan Rice, who has been as crucial going forward as he has been in keeping those clean sheets.

Therefore, fans should be delighted about reports linking them with another top-quality international who’d be a Rice-type signing.

Arsenal target Rice-Type signing

The transfer window is still over a month away, but Arsenal are starting to be linked with some exciting players again.

Transfer Focus

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

For example, stories are once again touting Real Madrid’s Rodrygo for a move to the Emirates following a disappointing start to the season.

A cheaper, lesser-known, but nonetheless exciting wide option the Gunners have been linked with is Lyon’s Malick Fofana, who has been catching the attention of some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

However, while either attacker would be an exciting addition to the team, neither could be described as particularly Rice-esque, unlike Elliot Anderson.

Yes, according to reports from Spain, Arsenal are one of several clubs interested in the Nottingham Forest star.

In fact, the report has revealed that North Londoners are set to enter the bidding war for the England international, who has a price tag of between £100m and £120m.

It could therefore be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line, but given Anderson’s immense ability, it’s one worth pursuing, especially as it would be a Rice-type signing.

Why Elliot Anderson would be a Rice repeat for Arsenal

Now, there are obviously some differences between Rice and Anderson, from their playstyles to career paths, but were the latter to join Arsenal, there would be many parallels with the former’s move as well.

For example, it would be another example of the Gunners going out and spending north of £100m on a top-quality central midfielder from a non ‘big six’ Premier League team.

Moreover, like the former West Ham United captain was at the time of his move, the Forest ace is now an established and vitally important player for England.

In fact, ahead of his side’s win over Serbia, Thomas Tuchel described the 23-year-old as a “key player” for the Three Lions and “one of the best midfielders in the Premier League.”

The fact that he is such an incredible central midfielder is another obvious trait he shares with the Gunners’ number 41, as is his versatility.

For example, since moving to the City Ground, the former Newcastle United gem has made 25 appearances in central midfield, 20 in defensive midfield, five in left midfield and three in attacking midfield.

In other words, like the former Hammers star, the “world-class” ace, as dubbed by one commentator, could play wherever Arteta wanted him to in the middle of the park, and as a result, form relationships with a host of Arsenal players.

Finally, on top of also taking corners, the Whitley Bay-born “powerhouse,” as dubbed by analyst Ben Mattinson, has some incredible underlying numbers to his name, proving that the comparisons to Rice are fully justified.

According to FBref, he ranks in the top 1% of midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues for ball recoveries, the top 3% for tackles in the defensive third, the top 4% for carries into the penalty area, the top 7% for successful take-ons and more, all per 90.

Ball Recoveries

7.42

Top 1%

Dribbles Challenged

3.32

Top 2%

SCA (Defensive Action)

0.16

Top 3%

Tackles (Def 3rd)

1.61

Top 3%

Carries into Penalty Area

0.70

Top 4%

Fouls Drawn

2.14

Top 6%

Outswinging Corner Kicks

1.18

Top 7%

Successful Take-Ons

1.21

Top 7%

Penalty Kicks Made

0.03

Top 9%

GCA (Defensive Action)

0.03

Top 10%

Tackles

2.89

Top 11%

SCA (Take-On)

0.16

Top 12%

Corner Kicks

1.96

Top 13%

SCA (Fouls Drawn)

0.16

Top 13%

Tackles Won

1.61

Top 13%

Dribblers Tackled

1.39

Top 13%

Crosses

3.35

Top 14%

SCA (Dead-ball Pass)

0.64

Top 14%

Penalty Kicks Won

0.03

Top 15%

Ultimately, while it would cost a king’s ransom, Arsenal should do what they can to sign Anderson, as he’s an excellent player and could have a Rice-type impact on the team.

Arsenal lost 'one of the world's best', now he's outperforming Saka & Eze

The incredible international is now playing better than Arsenal’s Eze and Saka.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Nov 14, 2025

MatériaMais Notícias

ABC e Sport se enfrentam no Estádio Frasqueirão, em Natal, neste sábado (23), às 20h30 (de Brasília), pela 7ª rodada da Copa do Nordeste. O jogo terá transmissão de SBT (Nordeste), DAZN (streaming) e Nosso Futebol (pay-per-view). Os mandantes ocupam a sexta colocação do Grupo B, com seis pontos, enquanto os visitantes estão na vice-liderança do Grupo A, com 11 pontos.

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➡️Siga o Lance! no WhatsApp e acompanhe em tempo real as principais notícias do esporte

Confira abaixo todas as informações que você precisa saber sobre o confronto do Brasil com a Inglaterra (onde assistir, horário, escalações e local).

✅FICHA TÉCNICA
ABC x Sport
7ª rodada da Copa do Nordeste

Data e horário: sábado, 23 de março de 2024, às 20h30 (de Brasília)
Local: Estádio Frasqueirão, em Natal (RN)
Onde assistir: SBT Nordeste, DAZN (streaming) e Nosso Futebol (pay-per-view)
Árbitro: Denis da Silva Ribeiro Serafim (AL)
Assistentes: Brigida Cirilo Ferreira (AL) e Rondinelle dos Santos Tavares (AL)

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⚽PROVÁVEIS ESCALAÇÕES

ABC (Técnico: Marcelo Cabo)
Carlos Eduardo, Yuri Ferraz, Wesley Santos, Richardson e Romário; Erick, Daniel e Diego Jardel; Douglas Squilo (Ruan), Daniel Cruz e Javier Parraguez.

SPORT (Técnico: Mariano Soso)
Thiago Couto; Roberto Rosales, Cassiano, Luciano Castán e Felipinho; Ítalo, Fábio Matheus e Lucas Lima; Romarinho, Barletta e Zé Roberto

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Tudo sobre

ABC-RNCopa do NordesteOnde assistirSport

West Indies have the right ingredients to spring a surprise on India, but face an uphill battle amidst cynicism about their future in Test cricket

Karthik Krishnaswamy29-Sep-2025Italy are four-time world champions. They missed out on qualification for the last two editions of the World Cup.West Indies are four-time world champions. They missed out on qualification for the last edition of one kind of World Cup, got into the last eight of the last edition of another kind of World Cup, and the shape of their future presence in the world championship of a third kind is looking, at the moment, a little uncertain.Italy are a football team with a storied history and a less-than-remarkable recent past. West Indies are a cricket team with a storied history and a less-than-remarkable recent past. One team gets to ride the crests and troughs of its fortunes without the world tying every result to the future of the sport in the region it represents. The other doesn’t have that privilege.For West Indies, existential crises are always around the corner.Related

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For a moment, put aside the peculiar position that the tangle of cricket’s history, politics, economics and scheduling has left West Indies in. There is no reason why the maroon cap has to feel so much heavier than caps of other colours. There’s no shame in being the team ranked eighth in the world in Tests, ninth in ODIs, and sixth in T20Is. This is how sport works. For someone to occupy the top of the table, someone else has to occupy its middle and someone else its foot.Great generations come and go, and champion teams routinely become middling teams, sometimes never to recapture old glories. If that’s sad, it’s not the end of the world. Sport, like life, goes on. Hungary are currently 41st on the FIFA rankings, and haven’t qualified for a World Cup since 1986. Football fans may lament that this fate has befallen the team of Puskas, Hidegkuti and Kocsis, but no one’s debating whether Hungary should have the right to play international football at all.West Indies, however, risk being cut out of Test cricket’s top table because cricket is determined to shrink when it has every reason to want to grow. This tendency of cricket’s administrators heightens the anxieties that swirl around the lower-ranked Full Member teams, who have neither the political nor financial clout of the Big Three, nor an Associate team’s sense of nothing to lose. It would be far easier for a strong Associate team like Scotland or Netherlands to create a dressing-room environment that minimises the pressure of results than it is for West Indies, for whom there’s always something at stake.And so we come to where West Indies are now: in two places at once. This is the case both literally – one of their teams is in Sharjah, playing a three-match T20I series against Nepal, and another in Ahmedabad, preparing for a two-match Test series against India – and figuratively.They could be viewed equally as a team on the up – with bowlers of quality who have delivered Test wins in conditions as dissimilar as Brisbane and Multan over the last 22 months, as well as a 2-1 ODI win over Pakistan a month-and-a-half ago – and one in terminal decline – because they just lost a T20I to Nepal and their most recent act in Test cricket was 27 all out.Jayden Seales, one of the key players in West Indies’ bowling group•AFP/Getty ImagesA Test tour of India is among the biggest challenges for any team in the world, let alone one in West Indies’ position. But notice that we said “among the biggest challenges” and not “the biggest challenge”. That downgrading happened last year, when New Zealand came to India and won 3-0 when no one, including possibly themselves, expected them to win even one Test. West Indies will have taken notes from that series, and they’ve brought with them a squad with components that could exploit the kinds of opportunities that Test cricket in India occasionally provides visiting teams.West Indies have lost two key fast bowlers to injury, but in Jayden Seales they have one who can take wickets on most pitches. They have two accurate left-arm spinners in Jomel Warrican, who won them a Test match in Pakistan earlier this year, and the uncapped Khary Pierre, who brings vast first-class experience, bowls at a quickish pace that could suit Indian conditions, and is more than handy with the bat. They have two other allrounders, in Roston Chase and Justin Greaves, to give their XIs at least notional depth with both bat and ball.It’s something, even if it isn’t quite the quality or experience that New Zealand brought to India last year. And New Zealand also enjoyed considerable amounts of luck. Their fast bowlers got the best of seaming conditions in the first Test, when India misread the pitch, and they won the toss in the second and third Tests, which were played on dustbowls that narrowed the quality gap between the two spin attacks.Jomel Warrican bowled West Indies to a win in Multan•PCBWest Indies cannot expect that sort of perfect storm to go their way. They may even have to play an entirely different kind of series, if India react to last year’s drubbing by shifting away from square turners to traditional Indian pitches that enable big first-innings totals. West Indies’ vulnerabilities are likelier to be exposed on pitches where it would take more than one bad session for the better team to lose. And India have taken no liberties; they could have rested Jasprit Bumrah, but they haven’t.This, then, is the challenge that confronts West Indies as they attempt to win their first Test match in India since 1994, and their first series here since 1983. It would take a monumental effort to achieve either of those aims.It would also serve us all – players, coaching staff, board, fans, non-affiliated observers – well to judge the team’s performances by realistic standards, keeping tabs on their processes rather than outcomes.Down that path lies immense potential for growth, but it’s always been West Indies’ fate for their results to mean far more than they should.

Can West Bromwich Albion morph into genuine promotion contenders under Ryan Mason?

At the moment, Mason’s Baggies are wildly inconsistent in the Championship, with a middle-of-the-road finish looking likely if they can’t string together a consistent run of victories sooner rather than later.

The jam-packed December fixture schedule to come will be a big test as to whether West Brom can push up the league, or whether they will have to make do with Championship action for yet another season, having now been outside the Premier League since the close of the 2020/21 campaign.

Whatever does happen, West Brom still have several first-team players out of contract come next June, with West Brom veterans such as Jed Wallace and Josh Maja both at risk of walking away for nothing.

This isn’t new ground for the second-tier outfit, though, with Grady Diangana bringing his up-and-down Baggies career to a close this summer, when his deal expired.

Why Diangana was allowed to leave West Brom

Once upon a time, Diangana would cost West Brom a startling £18m to get through the door from West Ham United.

He demanded such a lavish fee back in the summer of 2020, too, having instantly stood out in the Championship for his new West Midlands employers, with his gung-ho performances in attack.

In total, the Congolese forward would chip in with a sturdy 26 goals and 22 assists from 202 appearances, with Carlos Corberan regularly relying on the magic of his former number 11 when his past Baggies sides were challenging for promotion.

Yet, after mustering up a standout 15 goal contributions under Corberan during West Brom’s promotion near-miss season of 2023/24 , it all began to become a bit pear-shaped for the ex-Hammers winger at the Hawthorns.

Indeed, last season saw Diangana bow out from West Brom as a bit-part figure, with only 14 starts coming his way across a campaign that saw the Baggies fall drastically short of the top six.

With the 27-year-old also reluctant to pen a fresh deal, it was, therefore, agreed that Diangana would walk away from his long-established home, bringing his extensive association with the club to a sad end.

In the here and now, with more contract situations up in the air at the Championship outfit, Mason could have a new Diangana situation unfolding.

West Brom star could be another Diangana

In a summer that saw some of the old guard, such as Diangana leave the building, Mason was also given the appropriate tools to instil some fresh blood into his ranks, with Aune Heggebo already up to six Championship goals for the season, after making the move to England from Brann.

While Mason will be impressed with the current goalscoring exploits of his Nordic recruit, he also has many relics from Corberan’s West Brom past still in his starting XI, with Karlan Grant managing to get minutes here and there under the new regime.

Much like Diangana before him, Grant was once seen as an eye-catching capture when the West Midlands outfit were regularly flirting between the Championship and the Premier League, with £15m dropped on his services in 2020.

In a similar fashion to his former attacking teammate, too, Grant became known as an explosive attacking talent in the EFL’s elite league during the early years of his Baggies career, with pundit Carlton Palmer also praising him for his versatile” edge, even when things weren’t always going his way under Corberan.

Games played

12

Games started

6

Average minutes

54 mins

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Yet, even with 31 goals and ten assists under his belt from 158 total contests, it does look as if the plug will be pulled soon on the number ten’s bumper Hawthorns stay, when you consider he has zero goals or assists from 12 outings under Mason.

With his contract also set to expire this approaching June, it does feel as if it’s a move that suits all parties for his deal to run out without a renewal coming his way, as his past best looks to be far beyond him.

He could, of course, still manage to chip in with a goal or assist this season, having collected seven goals across all of last campaign from inconsistent starting opportunities.

But, with Mason now infrequently starting him this campaign amid poor performances, he is unlikely to want to keep him around, whatever division West Brom end up in when contract renewals pop back up.

Mason must now bin West Brom star who earns more than Heggebo & Johnston

Ryan Mason must now axe this West Bromwich Albion high earner for good.

ByKelan Sarson Nov 26, 2025

The allrounder entered at 179 for 5, with Ruturaj Gaikwad seemingly running out of partners, and did what he does best

Ashish Pant05-Sep-2025Around an hour and a half after lunch on the opening day of West Zone’s Duleep Trophy semi-final against Central Zone, Tanush Kotian jumped down the track and smashed offspinner Saransh Jain for two straight fours. It is unlikely these two boundaries will be spoken about too much in the broader context of this match, but when Kotian hit them, they seemed to shift the momentum of the innings.West Zone were 179 for 5 in the 44th over. Shreyas Iyer and Shams Mulani had fallen in the space of eight overs, and while Ruturaj Gaikwad had reached his century, he seemed to be running out of support. Enter Kotian, Mumbai’s crisis man. He began steadily, getting right behind the line against the quicks, moving his feet swiftly against the spinners, the ball pinging off the centre of his bat. But he couldn’t find the gaps at the start. That changed with his charge against Jain. It changed things not just at his end but at Gaikwad’s too.Related

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West Zone went into the tea break on a high, and kept their foot on the pedal when play resumed. They crashed 73 runs in the first 11 overs after tea, and while Gaikwad did most of the scoring, Kotian ensured he did not clog up the strike.”I’ve played for Mumbai for the last three to four years, so I have an idea of how to bat down the order and how to absorb the pressure,” Kotian said of his innings. “I know how to take chances, when to take chances, and where to rotate the singles and build the game. That’s what I’ve implemented in this match.”Ruturaj was a set batsman in front of me. I just wanted to build a partnership with him, taking it ten runs at a time. That’s what I was planning. I was trying to play as many balls as I could and just wanted to rotate.”Kotian was happy to be the bystander in a 148-run stand with Gaikwad, which came off 184 balls. It was the first time the two had batted together in a first-class game, but Kotian said he “developed a good bond” with Gaikwad and learned a lot along the way.”We have played on the same team before but because he is an opener, we haven’t had a chance to bat together,” Kotian said. “It was quite fun to bat with him, the way he was rotating the singles, and he was also guiding me on how to play, what to do on this wicket, where to take a single.”I learnt a lot from him in this game and the way he was batting, the shots he was playing, it was fun to watch. He was giving me a lot of confidence with the shots he was playing. I think we were batting at a run rate of close to 4 or 4.5 yesterday; that was a plus point.Kotian has been part of the Test squad, but he isn’t worrying about when he’ll get to wear the India cap•PTI “Strike rotation was a key part of our partnership. We were hitting the ball straight to the fielder and running. It was about understanding, just the eye contact and we were off. I think we developed a good bond and that contribution benefited us.”Since his comeback to the Mumbai team in 2022, Kotian has often rescued Mumbai from tricky situations. Now, he was at it for West Zone, his 76 vital to their reaching 438 in the first innings. Kotian says he thrives on the challenge of batting with the tail, and, as a bowler himself, understands the importance of extra runs down the order.”It’s all about how I can utilise myself, because I have the capability to bat well,” Kotian said. “Whenever I go [to bat], I don’t think about how many wickets have fallen, or that the team is in trouble. I have confidence. I just focus on my game, analyse it properly. ‘How can I play my shots, and how can I get the team out of that pressure situation?’ That’s my game plan.”I try and play time and take it one hour at a time. My goal is to reach the next drinks break and take it from there. If I can take it one small session at a time, the opposition automatically gets bogged down and after that it gets easy to score.”Kotian has had a busy couple of seasons. Apart from being a regular in the Mumbai line-up, he has also been part of India A squads in Australia and England. When R Ashwin retired midway through the Border-Gavaskar series in 2024-25, Kotian was the offspinner India called up as his replacement. The India cap seems like the next step, but Kotian says he doesn’t want to get too far ahead of himself.”I have not changed anything in these last six months,” he said. “What I have always done, I am continuing the same. I am not thinking too far ahead. I just like to stay in the present and plan each session accordingly.”Whatever happens in the future is in the selectors’ hand, but I try to give my 100%, whether it is batting or bowling.”Kotian is one of the few genuine allrounders in the Indian first-class setup. Before this semi-final, he averaged 25.93 with the ball and 43.50 with the bat after 38 matches, numbers that would make specialists in either discipline proud. With Ashwin’s retirement, a space has opened up in the Indian Test side, and with the numbers Kotian has accumulated, that cap may not be too far away.

The fastest fifties in IPL history, featuring some of the world’s mightiest hitters

ESPNcricinfo staff03-May-20251:12

Chawla: Very little margin for error against Shepherd

Yashasvi Jaiswal (13 balls) Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL 2023

Yashasvi Jaiswal, 21, ripped up the IPL record books, slamming the league’s fastest half-century, off 13 balls. He made a two-paced pitch look like a belter to reignite their IPL campaign. Surprisingly, KKR captain Nitish Rana gave himself the new ball and the move backfired, with Jaiswal hitting 26 runs off the opening over. The other Rana – Harshit – wasn’t spared either as Jaiswal chopped the fast bowler behind point and flat-batted him down the ground for fours. Jaiswal also laid into Shardul Thakur and brought up his half-century inside three overs. Jaiswal threatened to convert it into a hundred, but the target wasn’t big enough. Eventually, Royals hunted down 150 with nine wickets and almost seven overs to spare.

Romario Shepherd (14 balls) Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Chennai Super Kings, IPL 2025

At the start of the 19th over, RCB were 159 for 5, having slumped alarmingly following quick fifties from openers Jacob Bethell and Virat Kohli. They had scored just 45 in their previous seven overs, for the loss of four wickets, but proceeded to score an astonishing 54 off their last two overs, setting a new IPL record for most runs across the 19th and 20th overs. Romario Shepherd faced all but one of the last 12 legal balls and hammered six sixes and two fours off Khaleel Ahmed and Matheesha Pathirana, en route to an unbeaten 53 off just 14 balls.BCCI

Pat Cummins (14 balls), Kolkata Knight Riders vs Mumbai Indians, IPL 2022

Chasing 162, KKR slipped to 83 for 4 in 12 overs on a challenging Pune pitch. Pat Cummins, though, came in at No.6 and hoicked the second ball he faced for six. In the next over, Cummins took Jasprit Bumrah for a six and a four to raise KKR’s hopes. He then smashed Daniel Sams for 6,4,6,6, 2 (nb), 4,6 to zoom to 56 off 15 balls and seal victory for his side.BCCI

KL Rahul (14 balls), Kings XI Punjab vs Delhi Daredevils, IPL 2018

For nearly four seasons, the record for the fastest fifty in the IPL stood at 15 balls, before KL Rahul went berserk with a flurry of boundaries on his debut for Kings XI Punjab. A fortunate top-edged six off Trent Boult kicked things off, before he unveiled an array of exquisite cover drives and pulls off Mohammad Shami’s first over. At 27 off nine balls, the fastest fifty seemed some way away, until he smashed Amit Mishra’s undisciplined first over for 24 runs to eclipse the previous mark by a single ball. He soon got out trying to whip Boult through the legside, only to be caught at short third man off the leading edge. By then, though, he had taken his place at the very top of a list of the IPL’s elite hitters.BCCI

Sunil Narine (15 balls), Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, IPL 2017

After their destructive opener Chris Lynn injured his shoulder early in the 2017 season, Kolkata Knight Riders experimented with Sunil Narine as a pinch-hitting opener. He got them off to some quick starts and showed enough ability to retain his position as an opener when Lynn returned. Chasing 159 in Bengaluru, Lynn and Narine decided they wanted to try and finish the game inside 10 overs. Both went ballistic, but it was Narine who raced Lynn to a 50. He went after fellow Trinidadian Samuel Badree, hitting him for three sixes in a row, before smashing three fours in a row off S Aravind. When he lofted seamer S Aravind into the stands beyond long-on, Narine equalled the record for the fastest half-century in the IPL.Yusuf Pathan struck the fastest IPL fifty•BCCI

Yusuf Pathan (15 balls), Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, IPL 2014

Yusuf Pathan’s innings came in his side’s final league game, in which they had to chase 161 in 15.2 overs to get two shots at qualifying for the final. After being dropped twice early on in his innings, Yusuf made the most of it, mowing Dale Steyn for 26 runs in an over, ensuring Knight Riders closed out the chase in just 14.2 overs.Associated Press

Nicholas Pooran (15 balls), Lucknow Super Giants vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, IPL 2023

Chasing a mammoth 213 against Royal Challengers, Pooran came in with Super Giants still needing 114 from 56 balls. From 10 off five deliveries at one stage, Pooran ended with a 19-ball 62; seven of those deliveries were dispatched for six, while four went for fours. He reached his half-century off just 15 deliveries, mercilessly going after every bowler. By the time he was dismissed, Super Giants needed just 24 off 18, and would end up edging a one-wicket win.Associated Press

Jake Fraser-McGurk (15 balls), Delhi Capitals vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, IPL 2024

Jake Fraser-McGurk made a mark early in his maiden IPL season, smashing a 15-ball fifty in just his third match, although in a losing cause. Chasing a mammoth 267 against SRH, Fraser-McGurk tried to do his bit at No. 3. After starting with two dot balls, he struck four fours in the next six balls before smashing three sixes against Washington Sundar. He handed the same treatment to Mayank Markande as well, to reach the half-century off 15 balls, and eventually finished on 65 off 18, an innings studded with seven sixes and five fours.AFP/Getty Images

Jake Fraser-McGurk (15 balls), Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians, IPL 2024

Fraser-McGurk matched his feat seven days later, against MI, and this time batting first to haul his team to 257. Opening the batting in a day game, Fraser-McGurk started took on Mark Wood off the first ball of the game. After carting Wood around the park in a 19-run over, Fraser-McGurk also struck a six and four off Jasprit Bumrah in the second over, which went for 18. He brought up his fifty by dispatching Piyush Chawla over long-on for six, followed by a four, before tearing into Hardik Pandya in a 20-run over full of boundaries down the ground. He eventually fell for a stunning 84 off 27, holing out off Chawla, after setting things up nicely for the middle order.

يستأنف فريق ريال مدريد مبارياته في بطولة الدوري الإسباني “الليجا” موسم 2025-2026، مساء اليوم الأحد، بمواجهة أمام جيرونا.

ويحل ريال مدريد ضيفًا على جيرونا في إطار مواجهات الجولة الرابعة عشر للدوري الإسباني، ويستقبل ملعب “مونتيليفي” مواجهة الفريقين اليوم.

ويشهد ريال مدريد غيابات دفاعية في صفوفه بسبب الإصابة، حيث يستمر غياب دين هويسن، داني كارفاخال، وديفيد ألابا، كما عاني راؤول أسينسيو من نزلة معوية أبعدته عن التدريبات ومشاركته محل شك.

فيما تأكدت جاهزية حارس المرمى تيبو كورتوا، وإدواردو كامافينجا، ويتطلع المدرب تشابي ألونسو لاستعادة أنطونيو روديجر أيضًا.

تشكيل ريال مدريد أمام جيرونا في الدوري الإسباني.. عودة الثلاثي المصاب تشكيل ريال مدريد المتوقع أمام جيرونا

حراسة المرمى: تيبو كورتوا.

خط الدفاع: فيرلاند ميندي، ألفارو كاريراس، إيدير ميليتاو، ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد.

خط الوسط: أوريلين تشواميني، جود بيلينجهام، فيدي فالفيردي.

خط الهجوم: فينيسيوس جونيور، كيليان مبابي، أردا جولر.

ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنـــا

Manchester United are now preparing a huge bid for a “sensational” midfielder, who is now their priority target, with Ruben Amorim personally keen.

Man Utd readying move for midfielder after Scholes' Mainoo comments

Paul Scholes has recently made it clear he believes Kobbie Mainoo needs to leave his boyhood club, given a lack of game time this season, saying: “For his football career he has to leave Man United. He has lost 18 months of development.

“I hope he goes abroad, it is embarrassing if he goes to Chelsea. They might go and get him, as they are putting together a very good young squad. They keep buying young players and the right good young players.”

Mainoo is still yet to start a Premier League game, although he did impress after coming on as a second-half substitute in the 4-1 rout of Wolverhampton Wanderers last time out.

The Englishman’s most recent display may give Amorim something to think about, but with his future up in the air, the Red Devils have now set their sights on a new central midfielder.

That is according to a report from Spain, which states Man United are now preparing a €100m (£87m) bid for Crystal Palace star Adam Wharton, who has been identified as their ‘absolute priority’ target in the middle of the park.

Amorim is personally keen on signing the England international, with bringing in a new central midfielder deemed essential, given that Casemiro is likely to leave upon the expiration of his contract next summer.

Crystal Palace are reluctant to sell one of their prized assets, but there is now growing interest, with Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur also keen.

Signing "sensational" Wharton would soften blow of Mainoo leaving

It is always bitterly disappointing when an academy graduate leaves, especially one as talented as Mainoo, with the 20-year-old playing a major role in United winning the 2024 FA Cup, scoring against Manchester City in the final.

That said, it would be understandable if the youngster wanted to leave, amid interest from reigning Serie A champions Napoli, given that his development is being stifled by a lack of game time, featuring for just 183 minutes in the Premier League this season.

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Signing Wharton could soften the blow of losing Mainoo, however, with the Palace star a similar age to the Stockport-born midfielder at 21, and he has put in some top-quality performances this season.

Most recently, the Englishman chipped in with an assist as Palace won 2-1 away at Fulham, while he has also impressed at international level, making three key passes and maintaining a 91% pass-completion rate in the Three Lions’ 2-0 win against Albania last month.

Having proven himself for club and country, Wharton could be an excellent addition for Man United, and it is exciting news that a bid is being prepared.