John Obi Mikel took another dig at a misfiring Nicolas Jackson as he urged Chelsea to sign Victor Osimhen, Alexander Isak or Viktor Gyokeres.

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Jackson hasn't scored in last four gamesChelsea have dropped 10 points during this periodMikel wants top-tier strikerFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Jackson started the season with promise but has struggled to find the back of the net in the recent past. The forward has failed to score in Chelsea's last four games, a period where the team squandered crucial points and slipped further behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT MIKEL SAID

Mikel, a known critic of Jackson, addressed this issue during , stating that Chelsea's lack of clinical finishing is hindering their progress.

"We are creating chances, we are still playing well, we are still doing the right things but we’re not clinical enough, we’re not scoring goals," Mikel said.

"We’ve talked about getting another top, top striker who can win us these kind of games, difficult games where if Nicolas Jackson is not firing on all cylinders you can give him a rest and then get someone else to come into the team and try to win us games and score goals. We are not clinical enough, he is not scoring enough goals. He puts himself in the right positions but then he’s not finishing, he’s not scoring enough.

"He’s not a striker who’s going to get us to the top four or win us the Premier League title. He’s not that striker. I don’t think he can get us over the line in terms of winning trophies. For me, he’s a player who can link up play, he’s good on the ball but he’s not scoring enough goals."

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Mikel emphasized that Chelsea need a top-tier striker to complement Jackson or even replace him when necessary. He went on to specifically name Victor Osimhen, Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres, and Newcastle's Alexander Isak as players who could significantly improve the team's offensive capabilities.

"If we had Victor Osimhen or the guy from Sporting, Viktor Gyokeres, trust me, we’d still be competing for the Premier League," Mikel added. "Nicolas is not scoring enough, the finishing, he needs to find a way. For me it’s a bit of a worry because we’re not scoring enough.

"Without Cole Palmer I don’t know where we would’ve been this season, definitely not where we are right now, he’s carrying the team on his shoulders, he’s creating chances, scoring goals, what more can he do? One goal in six [from Jackson] is not good enough. You talk about top, top strikers, look at Isak at Newcastle, he’s flying, that’s what we need."

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WHAT NEXT FOR CHELSEA & JACKSON?

Chelsea's relatively light January schedule provides a window of opportunity to recalibrate their approach. They face League Two side Morecambe in the FA Cup third round on January 11, followed by league matches at Stamford Bridge against Bournemouth and Wolves. These fixtures could allow Jackson to regain his confidence and fire on all cylinders until the business end of the season.

Bangladesh’s young players step up to seal a 3-0 sweep over Zimbabwe

Mohammad Isam20-Jul-2021Two critical moments in the third ODI demanded that Bangladesh find someone besides their experienced trio to help the team turn a corner. On both occasions, the “other guys” came through. Nurul Hasan will take the headlines. The 27-year old was playing his first ODI in five years and yet he played the finisher’s role to perfection, scoring an unbeaten 45 off 39 balls to seal victory with two overs to spare.But there were so many crucial contributions.Mohammad Saifuddin and Mustafizur Rahman took five wickets in the space of 13 balls, at a time when Ryan Burl and Sikandar Raza were tearing it up, to bowl Zimbabwe out for 298. Bangladesh have not always had pace bowlers capable of completely changing the momentum of a game like that.Then came Hasan.Zimbabwe had removed Tamim Iqbal – who made a scintillating 112 – and Mahmudullah off successive deliveries. They had their tails up. But that didn’t help one bit.Hasan displayed exactly the sort of batting Bangladesh have been waiting for from one of their younger players. He was calm. He trusted his game. His six boundaries were all perfect cricketing shots. No innovation necessary. He added 64 for the fifth wicket with Mohammad Mithun and 34 for the unbroken sixth wicket stand with Afif Hossain to help the team complete a 3-0 sweep.Captain Iqbal was pleased with Hasan’s performance but made a point to add that his spot – and a couple of others in the middle order – is still up for grabs.”I think everyone should get opportunities,” Iqbal said. “(Mohammad Mithun) didn’t do well in the last couple of matches but if you think back to New Zealand, he made a good contribution in the game we should have won. We don’t have the perfect player at No. 5 and 6 so we are giving them opportunities. Today Sohan’s [Nurul Hasan] innings was very good to see. There are two-three people who are fighting for one spot.”Iqbal played a stroke-filled innings and reached his fastest ODI hundred, off 87 balls.”I felt I was in good rhythm,” he said. “I didn’t think it was a challenging time. I felt I was batting quite well in both Tests and ODIs recently, but maybe I missed out on scoring big runs. I am happy to have contributed in this chase.”He admitted he played through pain due to his knee injury, which will keep him out of action for at least two months. “I was going through a lot of pain although I wasn’t showing it. My knee is heavily taped. It is such an injury that maybe if I continue, I might do the job, but if it flares up, I will be out of cricket for seven-eight months.”I don’t think we need to take that risk. I should be fine before the T20 World Cup if I take rest for eight to ten weeks during which I will do the rehab,” he said.Shakib Al Hasan, who was adjudged Player-of-the-Series for his all-round performance, said that despite the 3-0 series result, Bangladesh were tested in all the matches. Shakib himself had bailed the side out with an unbeaten 96 in the second game when they were 173 for 7, chasing 241.”I think we faced a number of situations when we got tested,” he said. “I think we passed those tests, which was satisfying. But there’s always room for improvement. We should take as much as possible from this series to the next ones. We have to keep improving.”

Lewis Gregory believes England’s success in the first ODI of the series against Pakistan demonstrates the depth of talent within the county game and the strength of domestic competitions.And Gregory, one of five men to make his ODI debut as England cruised to a nine-wicket victory, hopes the unexpected opportunity for county players to show what they can do on the international stage could lead to some of them breaking into the T20 or 50-over World Cup squads.There is a danger that the quality of England’s performances of late could be minimised by concerns over the strength of their opposition. And it’s true that Sri Lanka, who were well beaten in both limited-overs formats in recent days, are a shadow of the team that routinely used to thrash England out of sight.But this Pakistan team actually have an impressive record. Before arriving in Cardiff, they had lost just one of their 12 previous completed ODIs and, if they win at Lord’s, they could still rise to second in the World Cup Super League. They didn’t enjoy perfect preparation, it is true, but England’s success against them is no mean achievement in any circumstances. Coming, as it did, with a hastily-assembled squad lacking around 20 of the best white-ball cricketers in the land, it was even more impressive.Related

• No national consolation as England go again in search for series clean-sweep

• England showcase strength in depth as Saqib Mahmood blows Pakistan away

• Saqib Mahmood: 'You have to do pretty special things' to play in England's white-ball teams

• England return to Lord's with series win in their sights

Gregory, at least, feels that is, in part, due to the quality of domestic cricket in recent seasons and the improvement in wickets used in limited-overs cricket.”I think Thursday’s result shows the strength in depth that there is in white-ball cricket in this country,” Gregory said. “There are a lot of guys who have been brought up with T20 cricket and you see that in the way people go about their white-ball cricket.”It was a fantastic result and it shows the calibre that is in county cricket. There are a lot of guys who are thankful for what county cricket has given them. This is an opportunity for them to showcase what they can do on the big stage.”I think the standard in English cricket is very, very good. I think you see that across the T20 Blast and the Royal London One-Day Cup. The standard is phenomenal.”The wickets you play on tend to be pretty flat and some of the grounds are pretty small, which I think naturally raises the standard. Bowlers have to be spot on or you do disappear.”The call-up was obviously pretty unexpected. It’s an opportunity to show what I can do and put your hand up for selection for the T20 World Cup and the 50-over World Cup that follows. There’s a lot of excited people around.”All this sounds terrific, doesn’t it? But there should be a note of warning. The county game is currently undergoing huge changes – not least the introduction of the Hundred, which threatens to marginalise the Blast and reduce the One-Day Cup to something approaching a second XI competition – which could undermine the foundations of such performances. In performance terms, at least, English limited-overs cricket seems to be faring pretty well without a new competition.It would probably be unfair to ask Gregory, who is hardly in a position of great authority within the England set-up at this stage, to comment on such matters. But, as a player with experience of the BBL, the PSL and the BPL, he is well-placed to comment on the quality of the respective competitions.Lewis Gregory has played in a number of franchise leagues•Getty Images

“Yes, the standard [of county competitions] compares to these other competitions definitely,” he said. “The only thing with these other competitions is the majority of them their national players are playing in them, which obviously we don’t see a huge amount of with the schedule that the England lads normally have. But yeah, the standard across the UK is phenomenal. Thursday showed the depth of white-ball cricket in England.”While Gregory felt England’s players may well have benefited in coming straight out of a busy domestic schedule, he did admit to feeling “a little bit lonely” as Covid protocols are prohibiting social contact among the squad.”A lot of guys have been playing a huge amount of cricket, which helps,” Gregory said. “They are match sharp and match ready.”But yes, things have tightened up a little bit more. We’ve pretty much been stuffed in our hotel rooms because guys have come together at pretty short notice. It’s a little bit lonely but these are the times we’re in at the moment. I’m not sure if we’ll be able to watch the football together on Sunday. We had to watch the last game in our rooms on our lonesome.”It’s not ideal. But Gregory knows he’s lucky to have this opportunity and he knows if he can back up his positive start in Cardiff over the next few days, he has a chance to win more opportunities in an England shirt.”I hadn’t given up on breaking into the England ODI side,” he said. “But I realised it was going to be pretty difficult to break into that squad. I’d not written it off but I knew it was going to be hard to break into the first 16 or 17 they will take to the World Cup.”But you never know in this current climate. Injuries can happen and then there’s what’s going on with Covid. There are always going to be things that are sprung upon us. I’m thankful to be here and it is an opportunity to showcase what I can do.”

Celtic’s incredible start to the 2024/25 Scottish Premiership campaign continued on Saturday as they secured a 2-0 win against Hearts at Parkhead.

The Hoops have kept five clean sheets in their five league matches so far, winning all five games, and are sat at the top of the division, having also won the title in Brendan Rodgers’ first season back in Glasgow.

Summer signing Arne Engels opened the scoring for the Scottish giants from the penalty spot after Nicolas Kuhn’s cross was handled by a defender, which provided the Belgian with a chance to roll the ball past Craig Gordon.

The veteran Jam Tarts goalkeeper may have been disappointed with his part in the second goal for Celtic. Luke McCowan, also signed in the summer, came off the bench and fired a left-footed effort Gordon’s way from the edge of the box and it was helped into the back of the net by a weak hand from the shot-stopper.

Whilst it was another impressive showing from the Hoops, who have continued their near-perfect start to the league campaign, there were some underwhelming performances, including Daizen Maeda on the left flank.

Daizen Maeda's struggles against Hearts

The Japan international was selected to play on the left flank, after his goal against Rangers before the international break, and struggled to make a significant impact at the top end of the pitch.

As ever, Maeda was full of running and constantly looking to threaten in behind and down the sides of defenders to get on the end of long passes and through balls.

However, none of his runs resulted in a clear goalscoring chance for the forward, with Gerald Taylor’s sublime sliding challenge in the first half preventing him from going one-on-one with Gordon.

The 26-year-old forward did create two chances for his teammates throughout the game, but neither of them were ‘big chances’ and he did not register an assist for either of the goals.

He also lost two of his three physical duels during the match, and only completed one dribble, in what was a fairly underwhelming showing from the winger.

Maeda had very little say in the match from an offensive perspective and did not do much defensive work to help to preserve the clean sheet, as shown by these statistics.

However, he was not the worst performer on the pitch for Celtic as Kyogo Furuhashi endured a frustrating afternoon and must now be finally ditched from the starting XI by Rodgers.

Kyogo Furuhashi's frustrating performance against Hearts

The 29-year-old striker scored his first goal of the season against Rangers before the international break but his struggles in front of goal returned for this clash with Hearts.

Rodgers kept him in the starting XI after his strike against the Gers and was not rewarded with a strong performance from the Japanese marksman, who struggled on and off the ball.

Kyogo was presented with one ‘big chance’ to find the back of the net when he was sent one-on-one with Gordon and the striker fired his effort wide of the post, which was one of the four shots he failed to find the back of the net with.

The former Vissel Kobe number nine only had seven touches of the ball in 72 minutes on the pitch and completed two passes, to go along with his four shots on goal, and did not create any chances for his teammates.

He was also a liability out of possession for the Hoops. Hearts defenders came out on top against them in all three of his physical duels at Parkhead, which shows that he struggled with the physicality of the match as he lost 100% of his duels.

These statistics show that he was even worse than Maeda, who at least created two chances for his teammates and won one of his three duels, for Rodgers.

Appearances

5

Shots

20

Big chances missed

7

Goals

1

Assists

1

As you can see in the table above, Kyogo’s showing against Hearts was not out of touch with his form from the previous four appearances in the division.

The experienced forward has struggled in front of goal throughout the season so far, which comes after he missed 24 ‘big chances’ and scored 14 goals in 38 league outings last term.

These statistics show that Kyogo has been an incredibly wasteful finisher for Celtic over the past 13 months or so, whilst also offering very little outside of his goals, due to his weak play out of possession and lack of creativity.

With all of this in mind, Rodgers must finally ditch the striker from the starting XI for the club’s first Champions League clash of the campaign against SK Slovan at Parkhead on Wednesday night.

Kyogo, who scored two goals in six Champions League matches last term, must be ruthlessly dropped from the line-up to make way for Adam Idah.

Why Adam Idah should be unleashed

The Ireland international is yet to score since his return to the club on a permanent deal from Norwich City this summer but was unfortunate to have a goal ruled out by VAR for offside on Saturday, due to an offside on Greg Taylor in the build-up.

His form during his loan spell at Parkhead during the second half of the 2023/24 campaign suggests that the potential is there for the 6 foot 3 star to come in as an upgrade on Kyogo for this clash with Slovan.

Appearances

15

38

Goals

8

14

Big chances missed

7

24

Conversion rate

27%

14%

Aerial duel success rate

64%

26%

As you can see in the table above, Idah outperformed the Japanese attacker in the Premiership, with a higher conversion rate and greater goals to ‘big chances’ missed ratio.

The former Norwich academy graduate also won a significantly higher percentage of his aerial duels and this suggests that he could be more useful in European matches, where Celtic may need an outball when they are under pressure to get up the pitch.

Therefore, Kyogo should be ruthlessly ditched from the starting XI after his poor showing against Hearts and Idah should be unleashed against Slovan.

£5m Celtic flop who was sold by Rodgers is outscoring Kyogo this season

The Hoops allowed the centre-forward to move on from Parkhead last summer.

1 ByDan Emery Sep 11, 2024

Real Madrid are reportedly plotting a bid for Bournemouth teenager Dean Huijsen as Carlo Ancelotti seeks defensive reinforcements.

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• Huijsen making a name for himself at Bournemouth
• Has scored against both Man Utd & Spurs
• Real Madrid are tracking the defender

Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Since signing for the club from Juventus last summer, the Dutch-born centre-back has delivered standout performances, helping the Cherries climb to seventh in the Premier League table. Huijsen has started Bournemouth's last six matches, playing a key role in their back-to-back clean-sheet victories over Manchester United and Tottenham. Not only has he been solid defensively, but he has also contributed offensively, scoring crucial goals in both encounters.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  According to European champions Real Madrid have reportedly been monitoring Huijsen for some time. Club scouts have been impressed by his maturity and seamless transition to the Premier League, prompting speculation about a potential move. Huijsen’s Spanish nationality adds another layer of appeal for Madrid. Though he was born in Netherlands, the defender moved to Spain at the age of five and has represented the Under-21 national team, with many tipping him for a senior call-up in the near future.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  The need for defensive reinforcements has become more pressing for Real Madrid after Eder Militao suffered a long-term injury at the end of last year. Ancelotti is believed to be prioritising defensive additions, and Huijsen has emerged as a prime target for the Spanish giants apart from Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  While Bournemouth is aware of Madrid's interest, the club is unlikely to entertain offers for Huijsen in the January transfer window. Sources suggest that any potential move would be more feasible during the summer. The young defender has reportedly told friends that he remains fully committed to Bournemouth, emphasising his focus on helping the team achieve their goals this season.

أكد السويسري مارسيل كولر، المدير الفني للنادي الأهلي، أن فريقه يدخل منافسات كأس العالم للأندية 2025 بطموح تحقيق الانتصارات، مشيرًا إلى أن مواجهة النجم الأرجنتيني ليونيل ميسي مع فريق إنتر ميامي ستكون تحديًا مثيرًا.

ويشارك الأهلي، بطل دوري أبطال إفريقيا، في البطولة بنظامها الجديد، حيث وضعته القرعة في المجموعة الأولى إلى جانب بالميراس البرازيلي، بورتو البرتغالي، وإنتر ميامي الأمريكي.

ومن المقرر أن يستهل الفريق المصري مشواره في البطولة بمواجهة إنتر ميامي بقيادة ميسي، في المباراة الافتتاحية للبطولة يوم 15 يونيو 2025.

طالع أيضًا | كريستيان فييري: العالم كله ينتظر الأهلي أمام ميسي في افتتاح كأس العالم للأندية

وقال مارسيل كولر في تصريحات نقلتها شبكة “ديبورتي توتال”: “بالتأكيد، إنها مجموعة مثيرة مع ميسي، اللعب ضد ميسي، ضد إنتر ميامي بشكل أساسي ستكون مباراة خارج أرضنا، حيث إن معظم الأمريكيين ربما سيشجعون إنتر ميامي، نعم، أتطلع إليها بفارغ الصبر”.

وأضاف: “أعتقد أن لاعبينا يشعرون بذلك أيضًا، وكلهم سيبذلون قصارى جهدهم لمحاولة تحقيق شيء من هذه المباراة”.

وأشار: “بورتو وبالميراس هما أيضًا فرق من المستوى الأول في البرتغال والبرازيل، لذا فهي مواجهات مثيرة بالنسبة لي وللاعبين أيضًا”.

واختتم: “سنلعب ضد هذه الفرق من المستوى الأول وسنحاول تقديم أفضل ما لدينا، بالطبع، نريد الفوز، لكن خصومنا أيضًا يريدون ذلك؛ ستكون مباريات مثيرة”.

Marcel Koller, entrenador del Al-Ahly se refirió a las posibilidades de su equipo en el Grupo A junto a Inter Miami, Palmeiras y Porto. #FIFACWC

📹: FIFA pic.twitter.com/7EbZeHQJeX

— Deporte Total USA (@deportetotalusa) February 17, 2025

While there has been some more bad news off the pitch for Arsenal this week regarding the fitness of Martin Odegaard, things have been going rather well on it.

Mikel Arteta’s side picked up their third away win in as many years against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and did so without their captain or Declan Rice in the team, setting things up perfectly for Sunday’s top-of-the-table clash with Manchester City.

However, before the Gunners can get too ahead of themselves, they need to prepare for the opening game of their Champions League campaign against Atalanta tonight, and given the quick turnaround, changes to the lineup must be made, one of which should see Leandro Trossard replaced with one of the most exciting youngsters at the club.

Why Leandro Trossard should be dropped

So, there are two key reasons why Trossard should be dropped for tonight’s European tie, and you might even say they are contradictory.

The first is that while he wasn’t bad against Spurs on the weekend, he was underwhelming and remained rather quiet throughout the game despite moving between midfield and forward positions alongside Kai Havertz.

His match statistics reflect his mixed performance. In his 80 minutes on the pitch, he took just 30 touches, failed to have a shot on target, maintained a passing accuracy of just 75%, lost six of ten duels, lost the ball nine times, and was dribbled past once.

Trossard’s game vs Spurs in numbers

Minutes

80′

Touches

30

Shots on Target

0

Passing Accuracy

12/16 (75%)

Duels (Won)

10 (4)

Lost Possession

9

Dribbled Past

1

Dribbles (Successful)

1 (1)

Shots Blocked

1

Key Passes

2

Big Chances Created

1

Fouls Won

2

Interceptions

1

Tackles

1

All Stats via Sofascore

However, the Belgian also succeeded in 100% of his dribbles, had a shot blocked, played two key passes, created one big chance, won two fouls and made one interception and tackle.

So, while the former Brighton & Hove Albion ace wasn’t at his best, he still offered something, which explains his 6/10 match rating from the Standard’s Simon Collings and leads into the second reason he should be dropped to the bench tonight: fitness.

With Odegaard out of the team, Arteta does not have many players who can come in and play the attacking midfield role aside from Trossard. With the must-win game against City coming up on the weekend, the 29-year-old should be rested, even if he wasn’t spectacular against Spurs.

Overall, the combination of a middling performance in the North London Derby and the need to keep him fresh for Sunday’s game regardless means Arteta should drop Trossard.

Why Ethan Nwaneri should start

Yes, the player Arteta should turn to in place of Trossard this evening is talented youngster Ethan Nwaneri.

There were calls for the 17-year-old to start in the North London Derby last week, but even for an academy product as highly rated as he is, that might have been a step too far.

However, an away game against Atalanta within the context of Odegaard’s injury might be the perfect opportunity to hand him his first competitive start.

Now, that is not to say the Italian side are an easy opponent, they certainly aren’t, but the extreme pressure and hostile environment during an away derby match just won’t be there, and judging off his cameo against the Lilywhites, the Hale Ender, whom talent scout Jacek Kulig described as one of England and Arsenal’s “biggest jewels” looks like he’s been playing top-flight football for years.

In those ten minutes, he won his only duel, completed his only dribble, made one clearance, blocked a shot, took eight touches, and generally looked fearless in possession.

Moreover, his record for the youth sides is exemplary, as in 52 appearances across various junior teams, the “top talent”, as dubbed by Kulig, has scored 27 goals and provided ten assists, meaning he has averaged a goal involvement every 1.40 games primarily as an attacking midfielder.

Ultimately, Trossard should be rested to keep him fresh for City, even if he was underwhelming against Spurs, and in his place, Arteta should hand the incredibly exciting Nwaneri his first competitive start for Arsenal. It might be a lot of pressure for the 17-year-old, but as they say, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough.

Related Wilshere thought Arsenal ace was the next Saka, then he left for £0

The incredible talent might have made an impact this season.

Posts 1 ByJack Salveson Holmes Sep 18, 2024

MatériaMais Notícias

Dizem que um grande time começa sempre por um grande goleiro. Talvez por isso uma das primeiras ações do Santos para 2022 tenha sido renovar o contrato de João Paulo. O arqueiro santista foi um dos principais jogadores do clube na temporada, apesar da campanha irregular do time.

Titular durante quase toda a temporada, o camisa 34 entrou em campo 54 vezes, sua maior marca na carreira. Pelo Campeonato Brasileiro, foram 33 jogos e 38 gols sofridos. E mesmo não tendo atuado em todas as 38 rodadas, João terminou a competição como o goleiro que mais realizou defesas difíceis. Segundo dados do Footstats, foram 37 intervenções com um alto grau de dificuldade, mesma marca obtida por Matheus Cavichioli, do América Mineiro, que disputou 35 partidas.

Cria da base santista, João Paulo estreou como profissional apenas em 2017, disputando somente um jogo. A titularidade e a sequência de atuações, no entanto, vieram apenas no ano passado, quando entrou em campo 33 vezes. Consolidado na posição, o atleta teve seu vínculo estendido até o fim de 2026.

JOÃO PAULO NO BRASILEIRÃO 2021
​- Dados do Footstats

33 jogos
38 gols sofridos
37 defesas difíceis (1º do campeonato)
83 defesas (8º do campeonato)
14 jogos sem sofrer gols (4º do campeonato)

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The performances of Dane van Niekerk, Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail in the Oval Invincibles’ run to the Hundred title, ahead of South Africa’s tour to the Caribbean, have boosted the national side’s World Cup preparations. This was the view of South Africa head coach Hilton Moreeng, who also welcomed back designated captain van Niekerk and allrounder Chloe Tryon from injuries.”In coaching terms, we call it ideal,” Moreeng said of the look of the South Africa squad ahead of its departure for Antigua on Monday. “That’s what we’d always love to have as coaches. We know it’s not always in our control as certain things happen like injuries. Now we welcome two members back in the squad: Dane van Niekerk, the captain, and Chloe Tryon [though there is] the omission of Anneke Bosch, who had a successful tour to India but misses out due to injury.”Also, what has been good is that players have been to the Hundred now and how they contributed. You could see even those that played in the final – how they dominated on the day. It shows the quality they have and we, as a team, feel in having Dane in the squad and, also Chloe – the experience and the dynamic they bring into the team. As a team, it just makes us a more forceful unit to deal with and we’re very happy with their achievements as a team.”Related

• van Niekerk in Women's Hundred team of the tournament

• van Niekerk back as South Africa captain WI series

van Niekerk, the Invincibles captain, was the top scorer in the women’s Hundred, with 259 runs, in addition to taking eight wickets with the ball. This, despite having not played any international cricket since the 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia because of a back injury that ruled her out of the series against Pakistan and India. Her captaincy smarts, especially in the playoffs, also played a critical role in the Invincibles emerging the inaugural champions. It was this combination of skills, Moreeng said, that would make South Africa a more well-rounded side as van Niekerk takes back captaincy from Sune Luus.”It has been a bit frustrating for both the country and the player,” Moreeng said. “We, as management, worked closely with the injuries she had. It’s been a setback and frustrated [us] throughout this period. It’s just very exciting to see her back on the field because you know what she brings: she is an all-round cricketer and a very good cricket brain, and we know once she’s on the field how she leads a team.”Sune also handled it very well when the opportunity was given to her. That also it shows that when the youngsters are in the squad how they are learning, how they’re stepping up when you have these kinds of injuries, how even Wolvaardt had a chance to [lead, on the India tour]. [It proved that] These opportunities, when they come, people can take the role.”Moreeng, who has been the side’s head coach since 2012, said the participation of the seven South Africa players – Shabnim Ismail, Kapp, van Niekerk, Lizelle Lee, Tryon, Mignon du Preez, and Laura Wolvaardt – in the Hundred allowed for observing how they had been shaping up for the international season ahead.Chloe Tryon has not played international cricket since the 2020 T20 World Cup•Getty Images

“From the coaching and management point of view, we’ve always been following [the South African contingent] while we were preparing the side [for the West Indies tour],” Moreeng said. “Anything we can pick up we can keep improving as a team. So, overall, we’re very happy with what we’ve seen.”The players look in good nick. Their timing as well as performances have been very good, just on the eve of a very important tour for us as a team, so we are very happy how we’re settling now. The adjusting for now is to just make sure we everything as we can and keep, as controlled as we can be.”Moreeng stressed the South Africans’ showing in high-pressure matches at the Hundred would bode well for the national team as it prepares for the upcoming ODI World Cup to be held in March-April 2022 in New Zealand.”If we look at the history of Shabnim, Marizanne, Dane, and even Mignon also – they have been involved those finals at the best level but not in the capacity that we had the last weekend,” Moreeng said. “Also, with that, the last time we played as a team in front of such a crowd, in such a pressure game, it was the 2017 World Cup [semi-final in Bristol]. That experience, as we can see, how they started to handle that and they’ve grown from that.”It’s still a painful experience for all of us who have been part of that [defeat in the semi-final of the] 2017 World Cup. Hence, the preparation towards this World Cup is to make sure we get through that hurdle of the semi-final because we as a team and the players have played extremely well to get into the semi-finals. It’s just that last hurdle to get ourselves into the final and we can take it from there.”South Africa, who are yet to win a series in the West Indies, will get three days to acclimatise to the conditions after serving a three-day quarantine upon arrival in Antigua. Moreeng said the tour, comprising three T20Is and five ODIs, will be the perfect opportunity to implement the takeaways from their previous visit of the Caribbean, in 2018, when they drew the ODI series against the hosts 1-1 and the T20I series 2-2 and were knocked out of the T20 World Cup in the league stage.”The good thing for us [on this tour is] we start with T20 cricket,” Moreeng said. “So players from the Hundred are well aware of that and players that will be headed home will be prepared accordingly…because we could arrange for slower wickets [in the lead-up to this tour]. Our preparations building up over the last five months have been very good.”The key for both teams will be, [in terms of] the ODIs, they are preparing for the qualifiers and we are preparing for the World Cup, so it’s going to be key for us is to improve. It’s going to be slow wickets; they play well on slow wickets and it’s for us to be able to adapt to the slow wickets.”The good indication we had is our last tour, of India – our batters adapted to that and we need to continue on that and then make sure we complement that with our bowlers and fielding overall because we feel that the last time we were there we did not bat as well as we could although the bowlers did a really good job and kept us in the game. It’s now for us as a batting unit to make sure we counter that because we know we have to face a lot of slow bowling and the wickets are not going to get any quicker.”

A £17,000-a-week Celtic player has been ruled out of the upcoming international break with a new injury, it has been reported.

Celtic suffer first defeat of 2024/25 against Borussia Dortmund

The Hoops tasted defeat for the first time in the 2024/25 season under Brendan Rodgers, losing 7-1 to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Daizen Maeda cancelled out Emre Can’s opener in the first 10 minutes, however, after that, it was all Dortmund, with Karim Adeyemi hitting a first-half hat-trick.

A couple of Celtic players came in for criticism in the media, including left-back Greg Taylor and permanent summer signing Paulo Bernardo, and Rodgers will be looking for an immediate response against Ross County prior to the international break.

Celtic plan to agree new off-field deal which Hoops once called magnificent

It is one to watch before the end of 2024.

ByCharlie Smith Oct 3, 2024

Right-back Alistair Johnston was one Celtic player who spoke to the media after the heavy defeat in Germany and said: “We have got to understand what we did wrong, what they punished us with and what we did right. There aren’t as many things we did right in this match unfortunately, but there will be little moments where we could make a little change to be braver in our positioning, be more compact defensively and things like that. We will get it sorted out.

“It’s a really confident group we have here. We are not going to let this wobble us at all. We just have to understand it can happen, but it can’t happen again.”

Johnston was brought off with minutes remaining of the midweek encounter and looked to be in some pain, with a new Celtic injury update emerging.

Celtic injury latest – Alistair Johnston out of Canada squad

As reported by The Scottish Sun, Johnston has been left out of the Canada squad as he rehabs from a back injury. That’s according to Canada boss Jesse Marsch, who said: “Alistair Johnston and midfielder Ismael Kone are both rehabbing injuries. It’s back and ankle injuries for them.”

It seems as if Johnston, on £17,000-a-week, would have been included in the squad for Canada’s upcoming friendly against Panama if it wasn’t for this new injury, and you’d expect then that the 25-year-old will be missing against Ross County also.

So far this season, Johnston has made six Scottish Premiership appearances, scoring one goal and providing an assist, while also playing a League Cup game and two Champions League ties.

He was hailed by Steven Caldwell last year, who said on the right-back: “His real strength is his mentality in terms of the way he applies himself and how professional and athletic he is. He’s a voracious learner, always wanting to get better, challenge himself. He has an honesty, a sort of British mentality in the way he takes things on the chin and pushes forwards. The way he took different positions and philosophies and his positive outlook make him a real special player and person.”

Anthony Ralston was the man who replaced Johnston against Dortmund, so perhaps the Scot may get the nod against Ross County on Sunday.