Tag Futebol

Pakistan’s limited-overs captain, Shahid Afridi, has said he is ready to testify before the ICC tribunal hearing the case of the three Pakistan players

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jan-2011Pakistan’s limited-overs captain, Shahid Afridi, has said he is ready to testify before the ICC tribunal hearing the case of the three Pakistan players who have been provisionally suspended by the ICC for their alleged involvement in the spot-fixing controversy. Afridi had already spoken to the ICC ahead of its decision against Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asif and Salman Butt.”I have already said what I had to say and what I saw,” Afridi told Pakistani daily . “I could not have lied before the ICC because they already had enough information about the case. I have a clean conscience … I was asked about Mazhar Majeed [the central figure in the controversy] and his brother Azhar so whatever I knew I told the ICC.”The ICC’s tribunal is set to hear the case in Doha from January 6-11, before delivering the final verdict on the trio’s future. They have been suspended from the game since the time the controversy first erupted, after the released a sting video in which Majeed allegedly claimed to have bribed the Pakistan trio to bowl pre-planned no-balls in the final Test against England at Lord’s.Waqar Younis, Pakistan’s coach during the England tour, is also set to testify along with Afridi in Doha.

The New Zealand batsman will not be considered for selection for the home series against Bangladesh as he continues to struggle with a lower stomach muscle injury

Cricinfo staff22-Jan-2010Jesse Ryder, the New Zealand batsman, will not be considered for selection for the home series against Bangladesh as he continues to struggle with a lower stomach muscle injury. Ryder had a recurrence of the injury while training, and there are serious doubts over his availability for New Zealand’s home series against Australia as well as the ICC World Twenty20 in May.”Unfortunately Jesse is not fit at the moment,” the national selector Mark Greatbatch said. “He has had a bit of a relapse with his injury. He has still got quite a bit of work to do to get back and play club cricket and for Wellington.”Ryder recently took a significant step in his recovery from an injury that has troubled him since the Indian Premier League in March 2009, appearing for Wellington A in a practice game against the England Under-19 team. He has been sidelined since suffering an abductor strain that he aggravated during the Champions Trophy in South Africa.New Zealand team physiotherapist Kate Stalker met Ryder in Christchurch, along with other New Zealand Cricket medical staff. “He has some abdominal pain again. He hasn’t reinjured it to the same extent he had in the past, but he’s certainly tweaked it,” she told the . “Biomechanical faults take a long time to sort out. It’s not an overnight fix.”Stalker’s comments indicate that Ryder could easily be out of action for the next few months, but as she put it, there was a much bigger picture looming ahead in 13 months. “Is it more important to have him playing against Bangladesh or playing in the World Cup? … my goal is the World Cup,” she said.”Anything else we can have players ready for, like the world Twenty20, that’s fantastic, but our focus is the World Cup and I want the New Zealand selectors to be able to choose from every player we have to make that squad. It’s really important for its longevity that we sort this out now”.New Zealand host Bangladesh for a Twenty20, three ODIs and a one-off Test in Hamilton during February.

Elliot Lee has delivered a “crap” assessment of his display after seeing Paul Mullin miss a penalty in Wrexham’s disappointing defeat to Accrington.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Accrington beat Wrexham 2-0Mullin missed late penaltyLee gives honest assessment of displayWHAT HAPPENED?

The Red Dragons headed into their latest League Two fixture on an 11-game unbeaten run in all competitions. That positive sequence of results came to a crashing halt against Stanley, as Phil Parkinson’s side went down 2-0 at Wham Stadium – with co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney watching on from afar during their Formula 1-themed visit to Las Vegas.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The two sides became embroiled in a war of words prior to kick-off – which has carried over into the post-match discussion – and Lee concedes that the Welsh outfit were a long way short of their best against fellow promotion hopefuls.

WHAT THEY SAID

Lee – who has 10 goals to his name this season – said when assessing Wrexham’s efforts in an uncharacteristically poor performance from talismanic figures across the pitch: “There were too many of us under par today. That happens sometimes. We take responsibility for that ourselves. My set pieces were crap, for a start. Mulls (Mullin) also misses a penalty. It can’t always be your day. But we will learn from this. Training will be buzzing this week, it always is after a defeat. Every time we have lost a game there has always been a response. After the 5-0 drubbing at Stockport, we went 11 unbeaten. Don’t doubt the character in that dressing room. When we lose, we want to put it right straight away. Roll on Morecambe.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?

Wrexham have dropped to fourth in the League Two table, but are only two points behind second-placed Mansfield and will be back on home soil next weekend when playing host to Morecambe.

Tyler Adams has revealed that he is hoping to play in a friendly during the international break, with a debut for Bournemouth to follow after that.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Midfielder has joined Cherries from LeedsWorking his way back to fitnessConfident of making a positive impactWHAT HAPPENED?

The United States international has been out of action since March, with an unfortunate hamstring problem holding him back. That fitness issue has not prevented Bournemouth from snapping him up in a £23 million ($29m) deal with Leeds.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Adams is eager to open a new chapter in his career, having seen his former club suffer relegation out of the Premier League, and hopes that he will be ready to make his bow for the Cherries in mid to late-September. He has told : “It's tough to watch from the sidelines but I'm very close though. About a couple of weeks out I would say, so I think after the international break is going to be my first look at games. Hopefully in the international break there's a friendly of some sorts I'll play some capacity in that and getting back after the international break.”

AND WHAT'S MORE

Adams believes that he has the qualities to make a telling contribution at Bournemouth, adding on what he will bring to the fold: “After I talked to the staff, the ownership group and exactly what they wanted to do here, I knew I could fit right in. I think I'm going to bring a little bit of tenacity to this team. The way that Andoni [Iraola] wants to play, which is a high press on the front foot, looking to win balls, I think that's something that I'm good at and I'm certainly going to try and bring that here.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Bournemouth will head into the latest international break on the back of a Carabao Cup clash with Swansea and a Premier League trip to Brentford. They will return to action against Chelsea on September 17 – a club that Adams came close to joining this summer – before then heading to south coast rivals Brighton a week later.

Russia 2018 is a wrap, so Goal looks into its crystal ball and tries to predict the starting line-ups for Qatar in four years' time

• Goal
  

  Argentina

  What is beyond dispute is that Argentina's 2018 World Cup squad is in dire need of rejuvenation, which is good news for Paulo Dybala, Giovanni Lo Celso, Santiago Ascacibar and Lautaro Martinez.

  What is less clear, though, is whether Lionel Messi will survive the cull. Then again, would he even want to try his luck again in four years' time? He will be 35 by the time Qatar 2022 rolls around.

  Still, while his peak years will doubtless be behind him, pace is no longer as important to his game as it once was.

  He could still be the best playmaker at Argentina's disposal. So great is his passing, he could easily undertake the role performed by Juan Roman Riquelme in Germany in 2006.

Advertisement

• Goal
  

  Belgium

  Belgium's 'Golden Generation' may have missed their optimal opportunity to win a major trophy by losing to eventual winners France in the semi-finals of this summer's World Cup but several star men are still young enough to return for Qatar 2022.

  Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will almost certainly still be the Red Devils' No.1, while the all-star duo Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard should still have enough left to create chances for prolific striker Romelu Lukaku.

  Adnan Januzaj should be reaching his peak in four years, and the same goes for Youri Tielemans and Yannick Carrasco.

  The defence will need a revamp, though, which could result in starting spots for Jason Denayer, Leander Dendoncker and Jordan Lukaku alongside rampaging right-back Thomas Meunier.

• Goal
  

  Brazil

  The good news for the devastated Neymar is that he is likely to get another crack at World Cup glory in 2022, and with familiar faces Gabriel Jesus and Philippe Coutinho alongside him.

  New Barcelona signing Arthur should be a well-established star by that time and he could well be joined in the team by Lucas Paqueta, the 20-year-old Flamengo ace who made the provisional squad for 2018.

  The defence could also be bolstered by another Blaugrana-owned player, centre-half Marlon, who spent last season out on loan at Nice, as well as Eder Militao and Jorge.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Goal
  

  Croatia

  Luka Modric and several other key members of Croatia's latest golden generation are unlikely to return in four years' time but the 2018 World Cup runners-up should still boast a stellar starting line-up in Qatar.

  The enigmatic Mateo Kovacic will hopefully be a regular by that stage of his career, Lovre Kalinic looks like the ideal successor to Danijel Subasic, Marko Pjaca should have come of age by 2022, and Josip Brekalo is the pick of an exciting batch of up-and-coming attackers.

  In defence, Dejan Lovren and Sime Vrsaljka could still be knocking about, Duje Caleta-Car is on track to become a starter, while Borna Sosa, 20, only narrowly missed out on the squad for Russia. 

MatériaMais Notícias

Artur, emprestado pelo Palmeiras ao Bahia, pediu desculpa por uma foto vazada em que veste a camisa do Flamengo e beija o escudo rubro-negro. O atacante diz que estava pagando uma aposta sobre quem seria campeão brasileiro entre Verdão e Fla.

Aos 21 anos de idade, o atleta pediu desculpa ao Palmeiras e ao Bahia pelo ato, que deveria ter ficado entre amigos, de acordo com ele.

Palmeiras e Flamengo vivem um momento de intensa rivalidade, e são os últimos campeões brasileiros. Após perder o título para o rival carioca, o Verdão planejou um 2020 com mais jogadores formados no clube, como Artur.

Ele voltará de empréstimo para ser reintegrado ao grupo, junto de Vinicius Silvestre e Pedrão. Esteves, Patrick de Paula, Gabriel Menino, Angulo e Veron são garotos que serão promovidos da base.

Veja a nota divulgada por Artur:

“Queria me desculpar com as instituições do Bahia e do Palmeiras e as duas torcidas pela foto que vazou hoje.

Em campo, como sempre fiz, seguirei provando meu sentimento de respeito e dando a vida pelas camisas que represento”.

continua após a publicidade

The bouncer was a key part of Neil Wagner’s weaponry on day two at Hagley Oval, and a weapon that eventually brought him the wickets of Joe Burns and Steven Smith, but it also led to a moment of serious concern. On 78, Smith ducked into a short ball from Wagner and was struck flush on the helmet, falling face-down on the ground and requiring attention from team doctor Peter Brukner before being cleared to resume his innings.After pausing for a few minutes to recover, Smith pulled his next delivery gamely for a single, and Burns faced out the remaining two deliveries of Wagner’s over. It was the last over before tea and the break came at the perfect time for Smith, who in the words of Burns was able to “let the shock settle” for 20 minutes before resuming in the final session, and going on to post his 14th Test hundred.”Not nice is it, it’s a bit of a shaky feeling,” Wagner said after play. “It’s never anyone’s intention to try and hit someone in the head and see them go down like that so I think a hell of a lot of credit to him to take a blow like that and stand up and bat the way he did shows the character of the bloke that he is. Credit to him he did pretty well from that. Hell of a knock.”I ran up straight to him and he sort of flashed his eyes a little bit and I was a bit worried at the start, and then he said he’s fine and he took a bit of time, which we all said make sure you take enough time and get yourself ready, we’ll give whatever you need. So he did and he looked fine after that.”The New Zealand players all moved to check on Smith after the blow, as did his batting partner Burns, who was quickly joined by team physio David Beakley as well as Brukner, who assessed Smith on the field. Burns said Smith got a new helmet and used the tea break to “reset himself” after the incident.”Certainly it’s always a concern when you see someone get hit in the head,” Burns said. “It got him quite flush as well, which was a concerning part. But fortunately the medical staff were out there very quickly and they gave him the all clear.”Luckily the tea break was just around the corner, so it gave him a chance to sit down for 20 minutes and I guess just let the shock settle. And then yeah, he came out after tea and was 100%, so all good.”Smith went on to score 138 before he eventually fell to another bouncer from Wagner, which was pulled straight to Martin Guptill at square leg. Burns had fallen for 170 in almost identical fashion in Wagner’s previous over, but not before his partnership of 289 – an all-time record for Australia in New Zealand – put Australia within touching distance of a first-innings lead.”When you have a long partnership with anyone it’s very satisfying,” Burns said. “The fact that we just applied really basic game-plans for long periods of time is the most satisfying thing. But getting towards stumps we were talking about how we really wanted to be two down at stumps. I guess that’s the disappointing thing, that we’re four down, and it just changes the game a little bit.”However, New Zealand still have a considerable amount of work to do in order to restrict Australia’s lead, with six wickets still in hand, only seven runs in arrears, and the prolific Adam Voges at the crease. Wagner said it had been hard work for New Zealand’s all-pace attack on day two with the Hagley Oval pitch having lost some of its pace.”It definitely slowed down quite a bit and the wicket definitely flattened out a touch,” Wagner said. “But credit to Joe Burns and Steve Smith, they batted exceptionally well and never gave us a chance. I think we bowled well in patches and periods of time where we asked good questions. They just batted really well.”

يأمل بيب جوارديولا، المدير الفني لفريق مانشستر سيتي، التخلص من خيبة أملهم سريعًا قبل نصف نهائي كأس العالم للأندية يوم الثلاثاء المقبل.

ويلتقي مانشستر سيتي، مساء يوم الثلاثاء، مع خصمه أوراوا الياباني في نصف نهائي كأس العالم للأندية، البطولة المُقامة حاليًا في السعودية.

اقرأ أيضًا.. جوارديولا بعد التعادل مع كريستال بالاس: ندفع ثمن قراراتنا وليس سوء حظ

وخاض مانشستر سيتي، اليوم، مباراة في الجولة السابعة عشر من الدوري الإنجليزي حيث واصل إهدار النقاط بعدما تعادل مع كريستال بالاس بهدفين لمثليهما.

وقال جوارديولا في تصريحات نشرها الموقع الرسمي للنادي: “كان من الأفضل أن نخوض رحلة لمدة ست أو سبع ساعات ولدينا نتيجة إيجابية، بكل تأكيد، ولكن هذا هو الحال”.

وأضاف: “أمامنا ثلاثة أيام للتعافي قبل نصف نهائي، ومثلهم قبل النهائي (حال التأهل)، هذا هو الوضع”.

وواصل: “نحن الآن في حالة سيئة، وعلينا أن نستعيد أنفسنا قبل السفر إلى الشرق الأوسط، في أسرع وقت ممكن، ونستعد للمنافسة هناك”.

Rather than being the formidable force they have always been, Mumbai appear to be underdogs against hosts Baroda, who have been boosted by the presence of the Pathan brothers and Munaf Patel

Amol Karhadkar in Vadodara28-Jan-2015Even after the Baroda players had finished their pre-match training and team meeting and were relaxing in the dining area, the Mumbai players were slogging it out in an extended fielding session at the tranquil Moti Bagh stadium in Vadodara.Not always do Mumbai players go through a training session more rigorous than their opponents on the eve of a Ranji Trophy match. Not often do Mumbai enter a Ranji game as underdogs either. But this season is different. On the eve of their penultimate Group A encounter, rather than being the formidable force that Mumbai have always been, the men with the lion crest appear to be underdogs for the clash against hosts Baroda.Baroda will enter the game as favourites not only because of the presence of seasoned campaigners in their ranks but also due to the form of both the teams. While Mumbai have only Wasim Jaffer to look up to when it comes to experience, Baroda are boasted by the presence of the trio of Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan and Munaf Patel, with Munaf having joined the squad after missing the last game due to his sister’s wedding.Praveen to lead Uttar Pradesh

Medium-pacer Praveen Kumar will lead Uttar Pradesh in their crucial Group A game against defending champions Karnataka in the absence of an unfit Piyush Chawla.
Chawla has an infection in his right shoulder. The legspinner will undergo a minor surgery on Thursday. According to Chawla, he has been ruled out for “almost a week”.
Praveen will have a huge task of raising the struggling side’s performance against mighty Karnataka. With eight points from six games, UP are reeling at the bottom of the table and are in danger of being relegated to Group C.

When it comes to form, Baroda couldn’t have asked for a better time to take on Mumbai. Baroda are entering the game after garnering 13 points in their last three games, including a bonus-point win against Uttar Pradesh and the first-innings lead against defending champions Karnataka. Mumbai, on the other hand, conceded the first-innings lead to Madhya Pradesh and then suffered their first innings defeat in 64 years, against Tamil Nadu last week.The defeat turned out to be the trigger for Suryakumar Yadav to resign from the captaincy mid-season. It prompted the selectors to thrust the captaincy on the shoulders of Aditya Tare, who has already been performing the dual role of wicketkeeper and opening batsman. The change of guard seems to have brought the much-needed wave of optimism as the Mumbai camp appeared to be a close-knit unit on Wednesday.While Tare attributed the change in atmosphere to the “professional” approach of the Mumbai cricketers, he didn’t agree that his side would enter the game as underdogs. “I don’t think we are the underdogs or we consider ourselves lesser than anyone else,” Tare said. “For us, every year we are expected to win the Ranji Trophy. Anything less than that is a failure. That’s what the legacy of Mumbai cricket is and I am proud to be a part of it. No doubt we haven’t had a great season but we will try and turn it around.”Tare and his teammates know that they have an enormous task of winning both their remaining league games to keep their campaign alive. They were not at all surprised to see a spinning track at Moti Bagh, considering their meek surrender in Chennai on a turner. Mumbai have called up left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh after the left-arm duo of Iqbal Abdulla and Vishal Dabholkar failed to deliver.Harmeet, the star of India’s Under-19 World Cup campaign in 2012, was dropped from Mumbai’s Under-23 squad due to poor form earlier in the season. But with the first-choice spinners failing to impress, the selectors have turned to him.Baroda, on the other hand, appear to be a settled unit now after starting the season on a shaky note. The new captain-coach combo of Aditya Waghmode and Tushar Arothe took their time to find the best combination. The presence of several allrounders has given the side an edge over their opponents in the latter half of the league stage. Waghmode admitted that the presence of stalwarts like the Pathan brothers and Munaf had made his job of leading the side easier.If the veteran players thrive at home, Baroda will surely live up to their tag of favourites and not only book their place in the knockouts stage but also put an end to Mumbai’s hopes of regaining the trophy.