Tag Futebol

The unpredictable Cape weather intervened on day three of this highly competitive Supersport Series match to leave both sides wondering how to avoid a draw going into the final day.When the umpires finally gave way to the elements as the red ball became hard to see under the floodlights, Western Province had reached 45-1 in their second innings, a lead of 104.Western Province captain H.D Ackerman might be asking himself whether his batsman, Gary Kirsten and Jacques Kallis, should have stayed out there in a bid to really force a result from this game. But with Shaun Pollock and Eldine Baptiste steaming in from either end, it was hard to argue with the batsmen’s decision.Despite the intervention of the rain, there was still plenty to enjoy for the small crowd that straggled in to Newlands in the knowledge that the weatherman had predicted a day of intermittent showers. In particular, there were a series of showdowns between South African internationals, of which there are plenty in this match, as the competitive juices really started to flow.Lance Klusener and Roger Telemachus, Pollock and Kallis and thenHerschelle Gibbs and Klusener again – all took their turns to offer some verbal opinions on the other’s ability – or lack of it. Klusener’s message to Gibbs after getting him out caught at the wicket was particularly forthright, the opening batsman standing his ground to see the umpire send him back to the pavilion after a short delay.The morning had seen Natal’s lower order do well to take the team within sight of the Province’s first innings total. All but Pollock got a start and young John Kent did better than that, finishing unbeaten on 74.Kent is a promising all-rounder – he took three Province wickets earlier in the game – and his innings was full of sweet drives and neat shots punched off his legs.

Tottenham Hotspur could have a new king in town…

Son shocker

For a long time, Heung-min Son has been one of the standout performers for the club and to some extent he still is. After all, he leads the way for goals scored (ten) and creativity (five assists, 45 key passes) in the Premier League.

However, his recent form has been rather questionable and whilst it could be attributed to burnout having played so many matches this season (only three players have managed more minutes), at 29 years of age, it could be time to think of the future amid some pretty poor showings.

For instance, in the defeat to Burnley, he failed to register a single shot on target, whilst against Championship outfit Middlesbrough, none of his four attempts on target resulted in a shot as Spurs crashed out of the FA Cup in extra time.

It was a performance that Press Association journalist Jonathan Veal described as “shocking” on social media at the end of the 90 minutes.

This is likely just a blip for the South Korean sensation but he isn’t going to be around forever and now that there’s a new man in town, his place isn’t as secure as it once was.

Swedish successor

“Gimme, gimme, gimme a ginger from Sweden, Number 21, His name is Kulusevski.” is what the Lilywhites faithful have already been singing around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

It’s fair to suggest that Dejan Kulusevski has made an instant impact at the club ever since he arrived from Juventus on deadline day.

The 21-year-old has already made seven appearances in the past month, in which three have been starts in the Premier League, where he has provided two goals and one assist, via Transfermarkt.

That’s a direct goal contribution once every 111 minutes. If he keeps that up, then that’s on par with Son over the course of his near seven-year Spurs career.

The similarities do not stop there either.

Kulusevski has recently been lauded as a “dangerous” player who’s just like the 29-year-old by journalist Paul Brown.

“He’s like Son, very good at bombing forward on the break. He’s not afraid to take people on and he’ll have a shot or two,” he told GIVEMESPORT.  “He’s looked quite dangerous since he’s been there, and I think he’s going to be a goal threat and will score goals.”

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Whilst initially joining on an 18-month loan, Spurs do have a £29.2m option to buy and that will undoubtedly be triggered should he continue to light it up this season.

Conte has even described the £27m-rated Sweden international as a “perfect player” for Spurs to The Athletic, whilst Italian Football expert Nima Tavallaey Roodsari once dubbed him a “monster”.

If anyone’s going to dethrone Son, then Kulusevski seems like a pretty likely candidate and on recent form alone, it’s the latter who deserves a place in Conte’s starting XI.

AND in other news, Paratici can kickstart Spurs summer rebuild with £30m “machine”, Conte badly needs him…

New Zealand have announced their 15-player squad for the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia next month. There are five players with experience in first-class and provincial cricket, while several impressed at the recent national Under-19 championship.The captain is yet to be decided, although it was Kane Williamson in the recent match in Hamilton. There are two wicketkeepers in the squad – Michael Guptill-Bunce and Michael Bracewell.”The competition gives our emerging players the opportunity to test their skills in a tournament environment against world’s best,” said coach Dipak Patel, one of four selectors alongside Lance Cairns, John Wright and Kaushik Patel. “It is a stepping stone for potential future Blackcaps, giving players a chance early in their careers to experience a high level of tournament play.The squad assembles on Thursday 31 January before attending a camp in Queensland, moving on to Malaysia on Sunday 10 February. New Zealand will play Malaysia, Zimbabwe and Pakistan in the first round.Squad Corey Anderson, Nicholas Beard, Harry Boam, Trent Boult, Michael Bracewell, Tamati Clarke, Fraser Colson, Michael Guptill-Bunce, Greg Morgan, Jeet Raval, Hamish Rutherford, Tim Southee, Anurag Verma, Kane Williamson, George Worker.

Sachin Tendulkar’s tussle with Dale Steyn may be the one to watch out for © Getty Images

Ahead of this Test series, there are some things that don’t require special powers of prognosis: like Makhaya Ntini taking wickets – he has 176 from 35 home Tests at an average of 22.83 – and Rahul Dravid making runs. But you sense that the clinching factor could well be how some of the other big names go in head-to-head tussles. South Africa will start overwhelming favourites,but, as Dravid reiterated at the pre-match press conference, there’s enough quality in the Indian dressing room to hurt any team. Here, Cricinfo takes a look at some of the key contests that might well decide the fate of the three-match series.Graeme Smith v Zaheer KhanIf you went by numbers alone, you’d be inclined to scoff and ask: Whatcontest? Zaheer has just three wickets, all from one innings at Kolkatatwo seasons ago, in three Tests against South Africa, and the average isan unflattering 92.66. Since returning to the side at the start of theone-day series, though, he has bowled as well as he did before the hamstringinjury in Brisbane (2003) sent his career off the rails.Smith has 155 runs at 38.75 in two Tests against the Indians, including abrave 71 in a lost cause at the Eden Gardens, but he was as hapless as adrunk on ice when faced with Zaheer’s incoming deliveries in the one-dayseries. The opening hour or two of each innings could well set the tonefor the series, and a rejuvenated Zaheer currently has the upper hand.Smith: 2 4 0 155 71 47 37 38.75 0 1Zaheer: 3 97.4 278 3 3/64 3/86 92.66 2.84 195.3Sachin Tendulkar v Dale SteynThis is the ultimate clash – the weather-beaten old champion against theeager young pretender. Tendulkar has little left to achieve in the game,but his record against South Africa suggests in no uncertain terms thatthey have troubled him more than any other side. He did play two of thefinest knocks seen on South African soil, the breathtaking 169 at Newlands(1996-97) and the delightfully inventive 155 at Bloemfontein (2001-02),but in 16 Tests overall, he has just 1003 runs at 37.14.Steyn has just eight Test caps, but his unbridled pace makes him theperfect shock tactic. He can be wayward and erratic, but when he gets itright, no one likes it. He combined with Ntini to rout New Zealand atCenturion earlier this year, taking 5 for 47, and worried the Sri Lankansin Colombo, taking 5 for 82 in a 13-over spell that veered fromsensational to atrocious every so often. Tendulkar has been hit on thebody and helmet a few times this past season and, if the South Africansscent a frailty against genuine pace, it will be Steyn who they send infor the kill.Tendulkar: 16 29 2 1003 169 155 111 37.14 3 3Steyn: 8 271.5 1124 32 5/47 7/134 35.12 4.13 50.9Jacques Kallis v Anil KumbleKallis is South Africa’s answer to Dravid, a solid technician with theability to play strokes all around the wicket. Seldom found wanting in acrisis, he has frequently thwarted India, averaging 82.71 over six Tests.Even the small contributions, like the 36 not out in Mumbai (1999-2000),have been invaluable ones. While the likes of Herschelle Gibbs and AB deVilliers might look to give Kumble the charge, Kallis is likely to beentrusted with the task of wearing him down.Kumble himself is the master of the slow choke, applying pressurerelentlessly until the opponent submits. He has 66 wickets at 31.57 from16 matches against South Africa, and he first gave glimpses of his uncannyability here 14 years ago, taking 6 for 53 from 44 overs of non-stopprobing. With both men possessing the gift of patience in abundance, itwill be fascinating to see who blinks first.Kallis: 6 579 121 82.71 1 4 10 3/30 28.70Kumble: 16 906.2 2084 66 6/53 8/113 31.57 2.29 82.3Sourav Ganguly v Shaun PollockOn the face of it, considering Ganguly’s mediocre displays against SouthAfrica (522 runs at 27.47) and Pollock’s stellar performances againstIndia (39 wickets at 20.84), this should be a mismatch. But, as he showedin Potchefstroom in the tour game, Ganguly is a man with everything toprove, most of all to himself. The South Africans have been using thewounded tiger phrase glibly, but some are pretty wary of what this proudman might be able to achieve if his strength of will can overcomeperceived weaknesses against fast bowling.Down the years, no one has exploited those frailties as ruthlessly asPollock, who has dismissed Ganguly six times (in addition to scalpingDravid four times and VVS Laxman thrice). His 10 for 147 won South Africathe Bloemfontein Test in 2001, despite centuries from Tendulkar andVirender Sehwag, and if India cannot deal with deliveries that shape away andjag back from just short of a length, their litany of woe in the Cape willonly continue.Ganguly: 11 522 73 27.47 0 3 5 2/36 42.00Pollock: 9 349.5 813 39 6/56 10/147 20.84 2.32 53.8X-factor: SehwagThat seems to be a funny thing to say about a man who could barely put batto ball in the one-day games, but Sehwag the Test player is a differentcreature. Since his debut here five years ago, Sehwag has seldom had apoor series, and even this relatively lean year has seen stunningcenturies at Lahore and St. Lucia. When he bats with trademarkhigh-voltage intensity, he can eviscerate any attack. The problem now isto find the switch and flick it on.

Daniel Vettori believes the series has a great future © Getty Images

Ricky Ponting, Australia’s captain, and Daniel Vettori, his New Zealand counterpart, believe the Chappell-Hadlee Series has the potential to become cricket’s equivalent of rugby’s Bledisloe Cup. “It’d be great if we can get it to that level,” Vettori said in the .”If you keep coming up with it every year, we’ll get a better feel for playing Australia and knowing what we need to do as opposed to meeting them every two to three years. And therein lies more chance to beat them.”Ponting was also in support of the idea, although he said the long-term success would depend on scheduling. “The cricket has been fantastic, and as long as we can get the timing right for everyone involved, this concept has got a great future,” he said. “The overall concept is great. Any time you get Australia and New Zealand playing any sport, it’s a great contest, as we’ve seen both times we’ve played the series. All I’ll say is it wouldn’t be ideal if it was in the middle of an Ashes series.”The series was awkwardly placed between Australia’s Test campaigns against West Indies and South Africa and Australia host England over five Tests next summer. “It’s not ideal for us as far as getting prepared for a Test series but it’s just what you have to do these days,” he said. “It’s professional cricket.”New Zealand, who won the third game at Christchurch after losing the first two, continue their season with a home series against Sri Lanka later this month. Australia begin the three-Test contest against South Africa at Perth on Friday.

ScorecardLou Vincent played one of his best innings in recent times, scoring an unbeaten 146 to lift Auckland to 345 for 8 at close of play on the second day at the Outer Oval. They now needed just six runs to take the first-innings points.Vincent was in superb form, batting for 246 minutes and facing 214 balls. Auckland had earlier lost their way after a solid 113-run stand for the second wicket between Matt Horne and Rob Nicol. Horne scored 76 before he was dismissed while Nicol made a patient 35.While the other Auckland batsmen had trouble handling Lance Hamilton’s bowling, Vincent did a fine job, and was within 13 runs of equalling his highest first-class score at stumps. Hamilton, who has proven one of the most durable of Central Districts’ battery of medium-fast bowlers, ended the day with 5 for 64.
ScorecardA collapse which saw the last six Canterbury wickets fall for 39 runs allowed Otago a 110-run lead on the first innings of their State Championship match at the University Oval. By close of play on the third day, Otago had extended that lead to 255, and still had five second-innings wickets in hand.Jordan Sheed held Otago’s batting together with an unbeaten 77, his highest first-class score. At close of play he was batting with first-innings century-maker Greg Todd.There was a period during the Canterbury innings when it seemed the experience of Nathan Astle and Craig McMillan could prove sufficient to get them out of trouble. Astle scored 53 off 92 balls and McMillan 51 off 76, but they both fell to smart catches – Astle to Sheed at gully and McMillan to Chris Gaffaney at point.Jeff Wilson claimed Astle’s wicket, but the majority of the subsequent damage was done by Brad Scott who took 4 for 47 as Canterbury were all out for 198. Wilson took two for 41.

Frizzell County Championship Division One
Table

Chris Adams celebrates Sussex’s first Championship in their 164-year history

Sussex 614 for 4 dec beat Leicestershire 179 and 380 by innings and 55 runs at Hove
Scorecard
Jason Lewry rose above the hangovers, to ensure that Sussex’s celebrations will be all the wilder this evening – assuming, of course, that any of the team can look a champagne glass in the face. Lewry’s career-best figures of 8 for 106 secured an innings victory for Sussex with a day to spare, but they were made to sweat off the alcohol in the first half of the day, thanks to a fifth-wicket stand of 208 between John Sadler and Darren Masters. Masters, who came in as a nightwatchman, made 119 – the first century of his first-class career. Sussex had grabbed two early wickets, including George Walker, who lost concentration when a lady with a shopping bag wandered across the outfield. But with Mushtaq Ahmed off the field with a sore hip, it wasn’t until Masters skied a catch to Robin Martin-Jenkins off Billy Taylor, that Lewry took command. Darren Maddy and Paul Nixon fell to consecutive deliveries, and Phil DeFreitas and Vasbert Drakes lasted three balls between them, as Leicestershire’s last five wickets tumbled for 27 runs.Nottinghamshire 376 for 9 dec and 319 for 8 dec v Lancashire 219 and 6 for 0 at Trent Bridge
Scorecard
Lancashire’s forlorn hopes of sneaking the Championship died long ago, but Nottinghamshire are still desperate to avoid the wooden spoon. On this evidence, and with news of Leicester’s capitulation filtering north, they will do so with room to spare. Glen Chapple hadn’t given up the good fight, however – he picked up all six wickets to fall as Notts slumped to 151, but then Paul Franks led the revival with an even 100. He needed just 112 balls for his innings as he cracked 12 fours and two sixes, and Notts were able to declare for the second time in the match. That left Lancashire facing a tricky period of batting, but bad light came to their aid after three overs.Surrey 318 and 194 lost to Essex 464 and 49 for 2 by eight wickets at The Oval
Scorecard
Surrey’s second-string team was no match for Essex’s Mohammad Akram, who steamed through their flimsy line-up for career-best figures of 8 for 49. Surrey were already up against it after Andy Flower’s double-century on the second day, but when they lost Scott Newman and Nadeem Shahid without a run on the board, the end was only a matter of time. Jonathan Batty and James Benning resisted for a time with a pair of 47s, but the only real contest was between Akram and the rest of Essex’s bowlers. Akram had picked up all eight of Surrey’s early wickets, but Graham Napier ruined his chances of a ten-for with two wickets in three balls. Essex were left to score 49 in their second innings, and eased past the total in less than 10 overs.Kent 594 beat Warwickshire 267 and 257 by an innings and 70 runs at Canterbury
Scorecard
Warwickshire’s captain Michael Powell did his best to defy gravity, but Kent nevertheless romped to an innings victory with a day to spare, to consolidate fourth place in the Frizzell County Championship. Warwickshire contrived to lose 17 wickets in the day, including 11 for 122 in the morning, as Mark Ealham’s canny medium-pace and Andrew Symonds’ liquorice allsorts sent them crashing to 55 for 4 in the follow-on. Powell refused to be suckered, and counterattacked impressively in his 110, but Warwickshire’s attitude was very end-of-termish. Their lower-order redeemed themselves to a certain extent with a batch of 20s and 30s, but the damage had already been done.Frizzell County Championship Division Two
TableNorthamptonshire 196 and 379 beat Worcestershire 172 for 8 dec and 311 by 92 runs at Wantage Road
Scorecard
To the loser, the spoils. Yesterday, Worcestershire made a crafty decision to declare their first innings at eight-down, which deprived Northants of a vital bonus point and the Second Division title. But Northants did at least extract a measure of revenge with a comprehensive victory today, as their three-pronged spin attack of Jason Brown, Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann twirled through the Worcestershire second innings. Brown was the pick, finishing with 5 for 89, and though Northants encountered some resistance in the lower-middle order, they were comfortable winners by 92 runs. But it is Worcestershire who take the title – by three-quarters of a point.Yorkshire 476 and 29 for 2 v Gloucestershire 344 at Headingley
Scorecard
Yorkshire have no option but to win this match if they are to regain their place in the First Division, but the elements were not in their favour today. A paltry 7.5 overs were possible, in which they lost two big wickets. With a frugal lead of 161, they will be forced to go for broke tomorrow. Damien Martyn may be the key – if he can clobber a brisk half-century or better before lunch, they might yet have time to bowl Gloucestershire out on a juicy pitch. Glamorgan 270 and 464 for 8 dec beat Durham 247 and 118 by 369 runs at Chester-le-Street
Scorecard
Never mind the overcrowded fixture list – Mike Kasprowicz must wish he could play against Durham every week of the year. For the second time this season, Kasprowicz bowled Glamorgan to a thumping victory over Durham, and for the second time, he picked up nine wickets in their second innings. Kasprowicz’s stunning figures of 9 for 45 in 12.5 overs did not quite outshine his 9 for 36 at Cardiff back in August, but the upshot was very much the same. Chasing an unlikely 488 for victory, Durham were reduced to 44 for 7 before Shoaib Akhtar muscled into the picture to slog 37 from 27 balls. But Kasprowicz, bowling fast, full and straight, soon sent him packing. Of his nine victims, seven were lbw or bowled, and the other two were caught by the wicketkeeper, Mark Wallace. Kasprowicz had earlier been involved in a bullish, unbeaten 93-run partnership for the tenth wicket with Darren Thomas – a foretaste of things to come.Derbyshire 317 and 160 for 4 v Hampshire 580 at Derby
Scorecard
This week Derbyshire have all but lost their captain, Dominic Cork, and now they have all but lost this match – the wooden-spoon decider. Derbyshire were already up against it overnight, but by the time Hampshire’s tail had wagged along to 580 all out, they faced a first-innings deficit of 263, and near-certain defeat. James Hamblin and Shaun Udal were Derbyshire’s main tormentors with the bat – Hamblin was eventually dismissed four runs short of his maiden first-class century, while Udal contributed a brisk 57. Their problems were compounded in their reply when Andrew Gait was forced to retire hurt after being clattered in the ribs, but Michael di Venuto and Rawait Khan both scored half-centuries to steady the ship. By the close, however, Derbyshire were four wickets down, and still more than 100 runs adrift.Yesterday’s Championship review

A rare domestic one-day cricket hat-trick by paceman Nathan Bracken wasn’t enough to prevent NSW losing a helter-skelter ING Cup match against Victoria at the MCG today.Bracken’s dismissal of Cameron White, Darren Berry and Shane Harwood – all for ducks – from successive balls left Victoria reeling at 8-88 chasing the Blues’meagre total of 120 in sweltering conditions.But the steady Simon Dart (10no) and swashbuckling tailender Ian Hewett (29no) survived some anxious moments to get the Bushrangers home for a two-wicketwin and off the bottom of the ING Cup standings.NSW wicketkeeper Brad Haddin and first slip Mark Higgs were both unable to hold on to an edge from Hewett off Stuart Clark’s bowling with Victoria 11 runsshort of victory, while Michael Bevan was inches short of reaching a skied Hewett with three runs needed.”It was just one of those days,” said Hewett, who earlier conceded 12 wides in an erratic five-over spell with the new ball.”I got dropped and as soon as that happened I thought ‘this is our day’.”Hewett and Dart put on an unbeaten 33 for the ninth wicket – the third-highest partnership by either side on a day when the fast bowlers took full advantage of a bouncy MCG wicket.Early on, the Blues looked anything other than the team topping the ING Cup table as they capitulated to be all out for 120, with only Graeme Rummans (30)outscoring a sundries tally of 23 which included 19 runs conceded to wides.Shane Harwood worked up a good head of steam to finish with 3-22 and had two catches dropped off his bowling, while Ian Harvey and Damien Fleming chimedin with two scalps apiece as the Blues lost their last eight wickets for 63.The Blues gave themselves a chance of victory by running out both Victorian openers Rob Bartlett (1) and Matthew Elliott (18) – the latter to a brilliant throw from Bevan with only one stump to aim at.Then Bracken went to work.After dismissing highly rated duo Brad Hodge (18) and Harvey (17), he began the hat-trick by clean bowling White.He then had Berry controversially caught behind from the following ball, before skittling Harwood’s stumps.The left-armer finished with 5-38, although there were several eyebrows raised by skipper Bevan’s decision not to give him a 10th over with the game in the balance.”Really I don’t think we were ever in a position where we should have won,” said Bracken.”Even when we had them eight down there’s still two wickets to get and anything can happen.”The only other players to have taken hattricks in Australian domestic one-day cricket were Victorian paceman Alan Hurst in 1978-79 and WA’s Rob Baker twoyears ago.Bracken’s excellent limited-overs international form last year earned him a berth in the 2001 Ashes squad, but he has only been selected in the Australia A squad for the upcoming one-dayers.”I didn’t expect to be in the (Australian) one-day side, in my opinion I wasn’t bowling well enough,” he said.

Spinners Robert Croft and Dean Cosker put on the breaks after bottom of the table Derbyshire looked set to amass a daunting target at the County Ground.England reject Croft took 1-31 and Cosker 1-30 from nine overs apiece to restrict the home side to 211-8 from their 45 overs.Derbyshire got off to a flyer with Michael Di Venuto and Matt Cassar cracking 37 off the first four overs.There was a short lull after Di Venuto holed out to Alun Evans off Owen Parkin for 16, but Cassar and Robert Bailey soon regained the momentum.Dave Harrision was taken out of the attack after being hammered for 41 from four overs and Glamorgan were pleased to see the back of Cassar when the total had reached 80 from 10 overs.He was caught by Croft off Parkin for 44 and Derbyshire were forced toconsolidate after Matthew Dowman joined Bailey.Dowman made 33 in a stand of 50 before he was ousted by Croft, but Bailey continued to play responsibly before he was bowled by Adrian Dale in the 43rd over for a solid 63.

As per reports from Spain, there has been an update on West Ham United’s transfer pursuit of Real Madrid playmaker Isco.

The Lowdown: West Ham set for big summer?

After failing to strengthen in a January transfer window to forget for the Hammers and David Moyes, reports have suggested that they could be busy in the summer to make up for last month’s radio silence.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-latest-developments-3/” title=”West Ham latest developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

There have even been rumours of West Ham board members potentially bankrolling mega-money strikers bids in an attempt to back the club.

While a lot could depend on the result of their quest for Champions League football, there has been another transfer update out of West Ham, this time involving 38-cap Spain international Isco.

The Latest: GSB willing to offer Isco great terms…

According to reports from Spain, West Ham are one of the four teams ‘fighting’ to sign the Galacticos midfielder who is set to leave on a free at the end of this season.

It is believed that the club, and by extension owners GSB, ‘would offer’ Isco a ‘good contract’, the possibility of playing in the Premier League and a guaranteed starting place under Moyes, something that the player himself ‘is looking for’.

The Verdict: Right move?

Once valued at £100m by Real Madrid, it is debatable whether Isco is exactly what Moyes needs at West Ham right now.

Cutting a bit-part figure under Carlo Ancelotti this season, the ex-Malaga star would also probably have to take a pay cut on his rumoured £210,000-per-week wages to join the Irons at the end of the current campaign.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

By comparison, long-time target Jesse Lingard will also be available as a free agent and could be a better option given his Premier League experience and the fact that he is already proven under Moyes, under whom he had a superb loan spell this time last year.

In other news: Insider shares big update as GSB and West Ham eye ‘boost for the whole club’, find out more here.