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Former Premier League star Carlton Palmer believes that Raphinha will be wanted by a variety of top clubs if he keeps playing as he has been.

The Brazilian has been a shining light for Leeds United this season despite their poor beginning to the campaign.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side have yet to win in the league this season and are currently marooned in the bottom three.

Raphinha, though, has been excellent at the start of the season and is continuing to tear defences apart with his direct running and dribbling.

The Brazilian made six appearances in the top-flight and had scored three goals prior to the visit of Watford, with the Brazilian even earning a call-up to the national team as a result of his performances.

And Palmer believes that there will be clubs who want to bring him in, although he does believe that his agent may be trying to plant stories in order to drive up interest.

He said: “If you’re a player that’s playing well, clubs are always going to be talking about you and you’re always going to be linked with clubs, whether that’s newspapers, whether that’s your agent putting it out there, that’s what they do, that’s how agents get their players a move, they put it out there that he’s making his debut for Brazil and try to raise his profile to get him a move.

“That’s par for the course now. What he’s got to do is keep playing consistently well for Leeds United.”

Having decided to bowl first under overcast skies, Sri Lanka were indebtedto Thilan Thushara for two breakthroughs in a morning session otherwisedominated by Pakistan

The Bulletin by Dileep Premachandran20-Jul-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Mohammad Yousuf played a composed innings but fell 10 runs short of his century•Associated PressFor vast swathes of the 86 overs bowled in the day, Pakistan’s batsmenheld sway, blunting a modest attack on a pitch that lost most of itsmoisture and bite after the opening session. But with stumps beckoning,the second new ball vindicated Kumar Sangakkara’s decision to bowl first,with three wickets in the space of eight balls reducing Pakistan to 289for 7.Pakistan’s total total owed much to Khurram Manzoor and Mohammad Yousuf, who added 167for the third wicket after Thilan Thushara had taken two wickets in anover to stymie a promising start. Both Manzoor and Yousuf were dismissedin the 90s, and it was left to Shoaib Malik and Misbah-ul-Haq to shepherdthe side through to the close. They nearly managed to, until the new ballturned out to be the big bad wolf.Malik, short of runs and form in the series, had struck some pleasingstrokes on his way to 45, and the partnership with Misbah was worth 75when Thushara arced one into his pads from outside off stump. Malikmissed, and that was that. Three balls later, Misbah lunged to drive NuwanKulasekara, and the thin inside edge was neatly taken by TillakaratneDilshan behind the stumps. When Umar Gul then chopped one back on to hisstumps, the reversal of fortune was complete.It may have been the last bow for Chaminda Vaas, a veteran of 111 Testswith 354 wickets to his name, but apart from that Thushara over inmid-morning, there was little for Sri Lanka to celebrate after they sentPakistan in to bat under overcast Colombo skies. Fawad Alam, with acentury on debut last week, had just struck his first four of the innings,when he edged one behind to Dilshan, and if Thushara was delighted withthat, he was positively delirious three balls later. Younis Khan cut oneback on to his stumps, and 34 for 0 had become 36 for 2.As Yousuf walked out, wagers were probably placed on how quickly RanganaHerath would be brought on. As it was, Sangakkara waited till the17th over before throwing the ball to Sri Lanka’s surprise spin weapon ofthe series, but the impact wasn’t what was desired. The first-sessiondamage would have been greater than 103 runs but for a sluggish outfieldthat didn’t give the batsmen full value for their strokes.Once the nerves had settled, Yousuf lofted Herath over long-off for six,and with Thushara then conceding 11 in an over, the runs started toaccumulate at a fair clip. Yousuf cut Herath for four, before drivingAngelo Mathews beautifully behind square, and it was Pakistan that wentinto the lunch break with faith restored. After the slump that cost themthe series, though, complacency certainly wasn’t on the menu.A superb cut and a back-foot punch through cover took Manzoor to hishalf-century from 85 balls, while Yousuf required 15 balls fewer for his.The 100-run partnership arrived in 24.3 overs, and soon after, Manzoorthumped Herath over his head for four, a stroke that he was to repeatlater in the session.Sri Lanka’s bowlers created few wicket-taking chances and struggled forconsistency, though Vaas did staunch the run flow in the second hour afterlunch. With Kulasekara short on pace, another edge fell short of slip andwent for four. And the hosts’ woes were compounded when Vaas missed arun-out chance with Manzoor on 65.Manzoor was content to leave a lot of deliveries and the bowlers obligedby bowling poor lines. By the tea interval, Sri Lanka had endured the firstbarren session of the series. When Sangakkara gave the ball to MahelaJayawardene after tea, it appeared to illustrate Sri Lankan despair, butonce Vaas returned, the game changed.A clearly nervous Manzoor poked at one that left him, and Yousuf was thenrun out off an overthrow after taking the single that had seen himcomplete 7000 runs. His 90 had spanned just 146 balls, and it was left tothe aggressive Malik and the more sedate Misbah to repair the damage. Onceagain, though, wickets falling in a heap undid much of the day’s good work.

Many Everton fans have been left fuming as some news emerged before their game against West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

As per the official website of the Merseyside club, adult supporters attending the match at Goodison Park are now advised to be ready to show proof of vaccination, or a negative lateral flow test.

Matchday spot-checks will be increased for upcoming fixtures, and fans should only go if they either have a valid NHS COVID Pass, can show valid alternative proof that they have been fully vaccinated, or have registered a negative COVID test in the last 48 hours.

The update has been met with unrest from several Toffees, who have cited that they have not always been checked before when rules have been put in place, and that proof of a negative result could be flawed anyway.

Everton fans on West Ham news

These Blues fumed as the news was shared on Twitter, with a few EFC supporters even going as far as to claim that it is ‘pointless’:

“Pretty pointless when you can just upload a negative result to the government website without taking a test.”

Credit: @FalconBlues1878

“Commence operation pointless exercise”

Credit: @bensquires2

“The fact I can just upload a negative result to http://Gov.UK without even taking the test sort of suggests you’re wasting my time here and going to create ridiculous queues again”

Credit: @_barto1

“Pointless exercise…”

Credit: @kenny81efc

“Surely we should have been ready every home game so far?!? Have you just realised no one has been checking?!?”

Credit: @GladwysBlue

“Still won’t get asked”

Credit: @RhysColebourne2

In other news, find out which target’s ‘outrageous’ skill has wowed Evertonians here!

John Crawley has become the latest former England player to announce his retirement in recent days and will end his career at the end of the current season

Cricinfo staff08-Aug-2009John Crawley, one of the most prolific batsmen in county cricket for nearly two decades, has become the latest former England player to announce his retirement in recent days and will end his career at the close of the season.Crawley, 37, has been at Hampshire since 2002 having spent the first 12 years of his career at Lancashire. Before the current Championship match, against his former county, he had 24,328 first-class runs at 46.60 to go alongside 8681 runs in one-day cricket.After scoring more than 10,000 runs for Lancashire he managed to transfer his skills to the spicy Rose Bowl surface and made his career-best score of 311 not out, against Nottinghamshire, on the ground in 2005.”I have enjoyed a fantastic career at the top of the game for over 20 years, meeting some amazing people and collecting some incredible experiences along the way,” Crawley said. “However, I have now realised that the time has come to close this particular chapter of my life and have decided to retire at the end of this season.”I am particularly pleased to have been able to see out my career at such a fantastic club as Hampshire. The last thing I want to do is stand in the way of that talent. I would like to thank Rod [Bransgrove, the chairman], Giles [White, the coach] and the rest of the playing, coaching and support staff for all their fantastic support. Finally I would like to thank all the members and supporters who have followed me throughout my career.”Crawley struggled to replicate his consistent and heavy domestic scoring onto the Test arena and averaged 34.61 during a 37-match career after making his debut, prematurely, against South Africa in 1994. His top score of 156 not out came against Sri Lanka, at The Oval, in 1998 and his final Test was against Australia, at Sydney, in 2003.He joins former England team-mates Mark Butcher and Andy Caddick in announcing their retirements in the last week.

Liverpool currently have four players in their senior squad that have come through the Merseyside club’s youth academy.

These players are Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Neco Williams and Caoimhin Kelleher, making a total of 184 Premier League appearances between them.

One current player that the Reds have in their youth system at the moment that we feel has the ability to replicate the same path at Liverpool as the four previously mentioned players have is 18-year-old winger Mateusz Musialowski.

Since joining Liverpool’s U18 side back in August 2020 from Polish club UKS SMS Lodz, Musialowski has gone on to make 26 appearances for them in which he has managed to score 12 goals and provide three assists in the process. That kind of form has seen him earn comparisons to a certain Lionel Messi.

So far this season, the Polish winger, who has been described as being a “fearless” player by UK-based scout for the Polish FA, Przemek Soczynski, has managed to score three goals in six league appearances for Liverpool’s U23 side.

Moving forward, with Liverpool set to take on Championship club Preston North End in the Carabao Cup next Wednesday, we feel that this could be a great opportunity for Musialowski to see if he can replicate his success on the pitch for the youth teams with Liverpool’s senior side.

Looking even further into the future, with current Reds winger Sadio Mane having his contract at Anfield set to expire in 2023, there’s every possibility that Musialowski could well be a long-term replacement for the 29-year-old – that’s if he ends up leaving the club when his current contract expires.

If he does take the Senegal international’s place, there is the potential that he could become their next first-team academy hero, especially with his goalscoring ability at such a young age. A further review from Soczynski adds more appeal to his involvement down the line: “In Poland, we knew he was an exceptional talent,” he said.

Failing that, perhaps a loan move away from Liverpool to a club where he could play regular senior football could be the best next step for his career development and progression, in the same way that the club have sent players out on loan this season such as Rhys Williams, Sepp van den Berg and Ben Woodburn among others.

Either way, we feel that Musialowski definitely has the talent and ability within him to go on and have a bright future with Liverpool.

In other news: Forget Keita: Klopp must unleash “outstanding” £180k-p/w LFC ace, he’d terrify Atleti – opinion

Gordon Goudie and Majid Haq took nine wickets between them on a cold day in Aberdeen to dismiss defending champions Ireland for 202 at Mannofield Park

Cricinfo staff17-Aug-2009
ScorecardWilliam Porterfield top scored for Ireland with 77•International Cricket CouncilGordon Goudie and Majid Haq took nine wickets between them on a cold day in Aberdeen to dismiss defending champions Ireland for 202 at Mannofield Park. Scotland’s batsmen then recovered from a shaky start to build on their bowlers’ performance by reaching 76 for 2 at stumps, trailing by 126 with eight wickets in hand.Ireland, who are aiming for their fourth consecutive ICC Intercontinental Cup title, got off to a solid start before opener Jeremy Bray’s forward defensive against Goudie resulted in an edge to the wicketkeeper. The innings, however, was anchored by William Porterfield, who was released last minute by Gloucestershire for the game. He drilled Alasdair Evans down the ground and through cover before pulling Goudie into the car park. Porterfield attacked Gordon Drummond’s short balls as well, pulling to the midwicket and square leg boundaries and cutting a wide one through cover point. He scored 77, standing firm at one end as Haq trapped Alex Cusack, who thought he had hit the ball, and Andre Botha lbw in successive overs.It was Goudie, though, who struck the telling blow by having Porterfield caught on the cut by Richie Berrington, diving forward for a sharp take. Ireland were struggling at 160 for 5 and the lower order and table offered little resistance. Goudie and Haq shared the last five wickets between them and bowled the visitors out for 202.In reply Scotland’s openers had made a slow but steady start, reaching 20 in the ninth over before Trent Johnston broke through Fraser Watts’ defence and splayed all three stumps. Ireland were boosted again shortly afterwards when Regan West got one to turn and bounce on Douglas Lockhart and the resulting edge was comfortably taken by Johnston at first slip. The hosts were 33 for 2 but Qasim Sheikh and Ryan Watson ensured Ireland would not gain any more ground with a solid partnership until the close of play.

With 22 goals scored in their opening eight Premier League games of the season, it’s safe to say Liverpool have not been shy in an attacking sense so far in their latest campaign, with Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah contributing 16 of those 22 goals between them.

Despite this impressive start to their season in front of goal, it seems as though the Merseyside club have their eye on potentially adding a new attacking star to their squad.

What’s the news?

It has recently been reported by Italian media outlet Calciomercato (via Sport Witness) that Liverpool are in the lead to sign Club Brugge winger Noa Lang.

The Belgian club originally signed Lang, who has been described as “pure class” by analyst Filip Joos, on a loan deal from Ajax in October 2020 before securing him on a permanent deal in the recent summer transfer window.

Overall, the 22-year-old, who is currently valued at £22.5m according to Transfermarkt, has made 51 appearances for the club across all competitions in which he’s managed to score 21 goals and provide 16 assists in the process, which could be why the Reds are apparently interested in signing him.

Potential Mane heir?

In terms of a potential move to Liverpool, either in the upcoming January transfer window or the next summer window, we feel that he could well be a good signing for the Merseyside club and act as a potential long-term heir for current Reds winger Sadio Mane.

With the 29-year-old’s current contract at Anfield set to expire in the summer of 2023, we feel that if he were to leave Liverpool at that point, this could potentially see Lang take a prominent place in Klopp’s side.

With Lang having made more key passes per game (1.9) and dribbles per game (2.5) than Mane has managed in the Premier League so far this season, with 1.1 key passes and one dribble per game, this shows the similar qualities the two players have and why Lang could be a good option for the club in the future depending on what Mane does.

In our view, if Liverpool are interested in signing Lang for a suitable price, they should definitely explore the possibility to bring him in as a squad player with the potential to then become a regular first-team player given his young age.

In other news: 2.1 key passes PG: LFC could seal ideal Wijnaldum replacement in £58.5m-rated beast – opinion

Chandan Madan hit an attractive hundred and Mohammad Kaif chipped in with a serene fifty to charge Air India Blue to the final against Air India Red in the Corporate Cup

Cricinfo staff06-Sep-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Chandan Madan’s century made sure All India Blue were rarely in trouble•ESPNcricinfo LtdChandan Madan hit an attractive hundred and Mohammad Kaif chipped in with a serene fifty to power Air India Blue to the final against Air India Red in the BCCI Corporate Trophy.Tata Sports Club bowling wasn’t discipline enough to defend 267, which was later readjusted to 246 due to a floodlight failure, against a decent batting line-up on a flat track. Their batting too didn’t click initially and it took a breezy fifty from Ajit Agarkar and a quick cameo from Sufiyan Sheikh to push them to a competitive score but it didn’t prove enough in the end as Madan led the way with an assured knock.He has just played four List A games so far and there is nothing flattering about the average of 11 and a strike rate of 52.38 but on Sunday, he showcased his potential with a measured innings. He was very strong square on the off side against the seamers, repeatedly threading the field with his punchy square-drives. The highlight of them was a check-drive through covers off Usman Maulvi.And when Ramesh Powar bowled a beauty – a floater that went straight to beat Madan’s opening partner Manvinder Bisla in flight and got him stumped – one wondered how Madan would tackle the spinners. The pitch didn’t offer much turn and Madan took full toll. He showed good temperament and skill in handling Powar and the left-arm spinners Gaurav Jhatar and Nishit Shetty. He used his feet well, not only charging down the track to play big shots – there was a big six over long-on off Powar and couple of lofted hits to the straight boundary – but also, to smother the turn and collect singles and twos.He found solid company in Kaif, who guided his younger partner with a composed knock. He knew he didn’t have to do take any undue risks and went about calmly tucking the ball into gaps. The best shot of his stay was a gorgeous check-drive against the turn through extra cover off Powar and he hurried the end with few feisty hits against Agarkar and Mota. He pulled Agarkar twice, the second of those bringing up his fifty, and walked across the sticks to flick Mota to deep-backward square leg boundary. Madan and Kaif fell within seven balls to cause some artificial excitement towards the end but it only delayed the inevitable.The real hard work was done on the field by Air India Blue’s disciplined bowling. RP Singh and Pankaj Singh applied the squeeze in their first spell and the spinners maintained the pressure initially but the bowling fell away in the end to let Tata Sports reach a handy total. It took a whirlwind innings from their captain Agarkar to push them over 250. The seamers tried a few short-pitched deliveries at him which were pulled away for boundaries. Towards the end, he used the long handle to lift full deliveries from the medium-pacer Sachin Rana to the long-on boundary, and once over it, before he pulled Harbhajan Singh over deep midwicket to bring up his fifty. Sufiyan Sheikh took over after Agarkar’s exit with a lovely little cameo where he played a series of paddle-scoops against the seamers.The Air India bowling too fell away in the end; RP was either on a length or too short and the spinners too ended up bowling a tad short. It wasn’t so at the start when RP and Pankaj troubled the batsmen with their movement. RP got the ball to swing and Pankaj got the ball to seam a bit. It was nothing alarming but it was enough to cause trouble. RP set up Sahil Kukreja with a series of inswingers before he caught the edge with one that went away. Pankaj moved one enough to catch the outer edge of Manoj Joglekar and it took a purposeful innings from Ishank Jaggi and a patient hand from Nishant Shetty to turn the innings around.Jaggi oozed intent, unfurling several on-the-up drives against the seamers. He dealt in singles against the spinners before swinging Harbhajan over long-off to bring up his fifty. However, he fell soon, stumped off the left-arm spinner Sonu Sharma. If Jaggi oozed intent, Shetty showcased solidity. It was a risk-free innings from him, dealing mainly in nudges and dabs; such was his discipline that only when the ball was either overpitched or short, he played an aggressive shot. Agarkar later provided the firepower but on a placid track, without a potent attack, 267 didn’t prove enough.

The Pakistan captain picked up the injury while fielding in Pakistan’s second warm-up match against Warriors in Benoni, when he and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal went for a catch in slips

Cricinfo staff22-Sep-2009Pakistan captain Younis Khan has been ruled out of the team’s opening match of the Champions Trophy, against West Indies in Johannesburg on Wednesday, after suffering a hairline fracture on the little finger of his right hand. He picked up the injury while fielding in Pakistan’s first warm-up match against Sri Lanka on Friday in Benoni, when he and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal went for a catch in the slips.Shahid Afridi will lead the side in his absence and Younis will start batting from tomorrow in the hope of being fit for Pakistan’s next game, against India in Centurion on Saturday.Pakistan manager Yawar Saeed, who had initially played down the seriousness of the injury, had a different version to give after Younis went for a fresh X-ray on Monday. “Younis will decide himself on Tuesday after having nets whether he can play the first match,” Yawar said. “But even if he does not play against West Indies he will be fit in time for the big game against India on the 26.”Younis, 31, had earlier suffered a minor fracture on his little finger during a training session on Friday, but had downplayed the injury. “It’s a little fracture. Nothing serious,” he had said. “We will assess it on Monday. Hopefully it should be alright.”

A number of Wolves supporters have been showing their love for striker Raul Jimenez after he spoke about the fans singing his song.

The Mexican has been a fantastic player for Wolves, having joined the club from Benfica back in 2019.

The 30-year-old has scored 49 goals in 119 appearances, not to mention chipping in with a tally of 20 assists, highlighting his all-round quality in the final third.

Sadly, Jimenez saw his campaign cut short last season after he suffered a very serious head injury against Arsenal, but he is now happily back on the pitch again.

On Thursday, ahead of Monday’s clash with Everton, an official Wolves tweet shared a great quote from the Mexico international, in which he outlined how special it is when the supporters sing ‘Si Senor’.

Wolves fans react to Jimenez comments

Needless to say, these Wolves fans took to Twitter to show their love for their hero.

“It’s because you deserve it”

Credit: @WolvesLads

“Si Senor”

Credit: @Jones53272592

“A song is the least we owe. You and Hwang will be firing for the rest of the season”

Credit: @JamesSa36443478

“You deserve all the love Wolves fans give you, it’s a joy to watch you play football”

Credit: @Carol78487983

“Our Mexican sensation”

Credit: @wwfc_alfiee

“Class player, class person”

Credit: @StevenTania

In other news, one player has been linked with a January move to Wolves. Find out who it is here.