Australia’s hopes of retaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy have been dealt a major blow, with fast bowler Mitchell Starc flying home due to a stress fracture in his right foot.Starc suffered the problem during Australia’s loss in the second Test in Bengaluru and after the pain failed to disappear in the days following the match, he was sent for scans on Friday, which revealed the fracture.”Mitchell experienced some pain in his right foot during the second Test in Bangalore which unfortunately had not subsided a few days after the Test as we had hoped,” team physiotherapist David Beakley said.”We made the decision to scan his foot in Bangalore this morning and unfortunately it has revealed a stress fracture. Subsequently, this means Mitchell will be unavailable for the remainder of the tour of India and will return home to Australia to start his rehabilitation.”Australia’s selectors are yet to name a replacement player for Starc, but as the backup fast bowler in the squad, Jackson Bird looms as the most likely inclusion for the third Test, which begins in Ranchi next Thursday.Starc will be the second player to fly home in the wake of the Bengaluru Test, after allrounder Mitchell Marsh was ruled out of the remainder of the series due to a shoulder injury. Seam-bowling allrounder Marcus Stoinis will join the squad as a replacement for Marsh.Although spinners have been more successful than fast men so far in this series, Starc picked up important wickets in both Pune and Bengaluru. He also showed his value in Asian conditions on last year’s tour of Sri Lanka, when he claimed a remarkable tally of 24 wickets at 15.16 from three Tests.Australia’s selectors have plenty of options to replace Starc, including the leading Sheffield Shield wicket-taker of the summer, Chadd Sayers, the in-form Western Australia left-armer Jason Behrendorff, and Pat Cummins, who this week took eight wickets in his first Shield match for nearly six years.It is expected that Starc will be available for the Champions Trophy later this year.

Fiorentina defender Igor Julio has "already spoken to Marco Silva" about joining Fulham, but his potential transfer has now "seems to have vanished".

Will Fulham sign anyone?

The Whites enjoyed a successful first full campaign back in the Premier League following 2022 promotion from the Championship, having finished mid-table and above the likes of west London rivals Chelsea.

Fulham also briefly pushed for a European qualification spot but fell just short of Brentford, Aston Villa and Liverpool in that regard.

The foundations are certainly there but Silva may face a fight to keep his best players, with both Joao Palhinha and Antonee Robinson attracting interest.

In terms of incomings, Fulham could strengthen in a variety of key areas, with Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse, Japan international Ao Tanaka, Coventry City's Viktor Gyokeres, Fenerbache defender Ferdi Kadioglu and Roma centre-back Roger Ibanez all being targeted.

It is claimed Fulham may also make a move for Chelsea forward Callum Hudson-Odoi, as Mauricio Pochettino's side are prepared to sell for just £15 million this summer (The Guardian).

Another player to have been linked with a move to Craven Cottage is Igor, but according to a new report out of Italy, it appears he won't be joining the club despite behind-scenes discussions.

Vocegiallorossa.it, in collaboration with Firenzeviola.it, claims Fulham have been chasing a deal for Igor and he has even "already spoken" to Silva about joining.

However, as the Whites move on to alternative defensive targets who could sign on more "favourable terms", a transfer for Igor now "seems to have vanished".

He was initially the Cottagers' main target, according to this report, but it appears Fulham could swoop for a rival Serie A defender instead.

Who is Igor Julio?

The Brazilian ranked in Firoentina's top three for tackles made, interceptions and clearances completed per 90 in the Italian top flight – standing out as one of La Viola's key defensive assets (WhoScored).

Igor also has just 12 months remaining on his Fiorentina deal, and as he enters the final year of his contract, it is reasonable to believe the defender could be available for a fairly cheap fee.

The 25-year-old was one of Fiorentina's most selected players last season – even sitting sixth in their squad listing for most Serie A minutes played over 2022/23.

Igor, who has been described as a "crazy" asset for Fiorentina, may well have been an astute signing for Fulham based on these stats, but this latest report from Italy indicates he won't be signing any time soon.

Liverpool bringing in Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde this summer 'would truly be a surprise' in the transfer window, according to journalist Dean Jones.

What's the latest transfer news involving Federico Valverde?

One report from Spain has indicated that Liverpool want to try and land Real Madrid star Valverde this summer and claim that the Reds saw a bid of £69 million turned down for his services.

Liverpool are set to return with a second bid valued at around £77 million for the Uruguay international, with Jurgen Klopp adamant in his quest not to give up on a potential deal for the £133k-a-week ace.

As per The Daily Mail, Thiago Alcantara may be allowed to leave Anfield this window amid interest from Saudi Arabia, which could free up a spot for Liverpool to strengthen their engine room even further before 2023/23 kicks into competitive action.

Change has engulfed the Reds' midfield since last term, as Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner have all moved on to new pastures. On the other hand, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai have entered the building as part of a squad revamp from Brighton & Hove Albion and RB Leipzig, respectively.

Spanish outlet Defensa Central via The Chelsea Chronicle have thrown a spanner in the works regarding Liverpool's apparent interest in Valverde, indicating that Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino is very keen on the idea of bringing Valverde to Stamford Bridge despite Real Madrid's reluctance to sell the versatile star.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, journalist Jones has signalled that he would be shocked if Valverde was to sign for Liverpool this summer; nevertheless, he doesn't think it completely outwith the realms of possibility.

Jones said: "Yeah, as I say, Liverpool are simply the best at surprising us in the transfer window, so anything could happen. This would truly be a surprise if they could take Valverde away from Real Madrid. One of their most consistent, reliable options in that squad."

How good is Federico Valverde and why do Liverpool want to sign him?

Valverde is an excellent midfielder that possesses versatility and an incredible capacity to cover ground, making him someone who would fit Klopp's high-octane system at Anfield if a sensational deal was to arise.

In 2022/23, the 24-year-old was in fine form for Real Madrid, registering 12 goals and seven assists in 56 appearances across all competitions, as per Transfermarkt.

As per WhoScored, Valverde was also Real Madrid's fourth-most consistent performer during 2022/23 behind Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior and Karim Benzema, earning an average match rating of 7.08/10 for his efforts on the pitch.

Being a crucial part of Real Madrid's midfield arsenal, Valverde has a lot of distinguishable qualities that many sides in world football would envy, with his ability to drive forward from the middle of the part being one of his main attributes.

Evidenced by FBRef, the Uruguay international was able to demonstrate his effectiveness in offensive passages of play, successfully performing 124 shot-creating actions combining his involvement in La Liga and the Champions League.

Liverpool are keen to find another piece to their midfield jigsaw and Valverde would be a statement signing if Klopp was able to convince him to swap the sunny climbs of the Spanish capital in favour of a switch to Merseyside.

Anil Kumble, India’s head coach, has said he is happy India and Australia have agreed to move on from the DRS-related controversy that flared up in the aftermath of the Bengaluru Test match. He also confirmed that the two captains, Virat Kohli and Steven Smith, would meet match referee Richie Richardson before the start of the Ranchi Test.”I think what was important was to bring the focus back on cricket and I am really glad that the BCCI took a mature call along with Cricket Australia to issue a joint statement that cricket needs to move on and we have moved on from whatever happened in that background,” Kumble said on Tuesday, two days before the third Test in Ranchi.”That’s really important because focus obviously has to be on the game, and I thought we made a fantastic comeback after losing the first Test, especially day two and day three (of the second Test); they (Australia) were ahead and to come back from there and win a Test match was rewarding.”M Vijay missed the second Test match with a shoulder injury – it turned out that the opener had been carrying it since the first Test in Pune, but neither Kumble nor Kohli had mentioned it in the lead-up to the game when asked about the fitness of their players. Now, asked if Vijay was fit to play in Ranchi, Kumble said he was “fine”.”Yeah, he’s fine,” Kumble said. “He is a part of the squad, so he is good.”Ranchi will be the 12th Test of India’s home season – which began soon after a four-Test tour of the West Indies – and Kumble was pleased with the way his players had coped with the physical and mental challenges of playing so many games in a relatively short span of time.”I think they have responded really well,” he said. “It’s been a long season, not easy playing 17 Test matches on the trot. Back to back, especially for the bowling unit. And of course the batsmen, it takes its own toll.”Touch wood we have had very little injuries – of course (Mohammed) Shami is injured as a bowler and he is coming back. So we had some injuries but they have responded well to the challenges that have come about. Lots of overs under the belt and that’s something that obviously augurs well. If you are winning constantly and keep performing the way we have been performing at home that helps. That’s been the hallmark.”You can’t point to just one individual in the whole season that has given us these results. I think every individual has stood up and the captain had led from the front. So it’s really nice and augurs well that each individual has contributed to the success.”We would like to finish the last two Test matches in a very good way, and I am sure it will be something that we will be cherishing at the end of the season.”Kumble praised his bowlers for the intensity they have shown through the season, particularly on day two in Bengaluru, which he called a “fantastic day of Test cricket”.’He may not have a five-wicket haul but every time he has bowled, he has looked like he would pick up a five-for’ – Anil Kumble on Umesh Yadav•AFP

“I thought day two was a fantastic day of Test cricket. It was attritional. Only 190 [197] runs were scored in the entire day and we picked up six wickets. But the intensity all the four bowlers bowled with, especially the fast bowlers … It was brilliant. And I think that resulted in the win.”It showed the character and that’s what you want to see in a team… You want to see a lot of character and lot of pride in the way we go about doing things and coming back and winning a Test match.”With Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami missing chunks of the home season with injuries, Umesh Yadav has bowled the most overs – 284.5, with Shami a distant second at 178.1 – among all of India’s fast bowlers in 2016-17. Though his returns – 22 wickets at 39.22 – have not been proportionate to his efforts, Kumble was pleased with Umesh’s bowling through the season. He also hailed Ravindra Jadeja for drawing level with his spin partner R Ashwin at the top of the ICC Test bowlers’ rankings.”We have seen certainly seen what Umesh is capable of.” Kumble said. “Although he doesn’t have the kind of wickets that you would expect, the way he has bowled and the way he has given us those breakthroughs – he may not have a five-wicket haul but every time he has bowled, he has looked like he would pick up a five-for. And that’s the kind of maturity and improvement Umesh has shown.”Yes, the chunk of the wickets have been to the spinners, and I am glad that Ashwin will always be spoken about, but I am really glad that Jadeja has come up and done what he is capable of. Really glad that both of them are currently on top of the ICC rankings.”When asked if the pitch in Ranchi – which has been at the centre of speculation, particularly in the Australian media – would produce a contest lasting five days, Kumble said he didn’t know.”I don’t know. We only hope we will win,” he said. “How many days the Test will last I wouldn’t know. But I only hope there will be a result and it will be in our favour.”Kumble brushed aside reports in the Indian media that suggested the BCCI was looking to appoint him director of cricket and hand over the head coach role to Rahul Dravid.”I have also heard from the media, it is news to me, from the media,” he said. “There is nothing else, no one has spoken about it.”

Tottenham Hotspur's U21 gem Matthew Craig is edging closer to a new deal with Spurs as the club attempts to tie down one of their brightest youngsters.

Who is Matthew Craig?

At just 20-years-old, there is no shame in never having heard of Tottenham's Craig. The youngster currently plays for Spurs' U21s and has impressed the club's hierarchy with consistently strong performances at youth level.

The defensive midfielder is rated so highly that he even debuted in Spurs' final game of last season, a 4-1 win at Leeds United in which he played the final quarter-of-an-hour. Craig's versatility is impressive and he featured at both centre-back and right-back last season as well as his more comfortable midfield role.

He featured 32 times for Spurs' U21s last term, registering five league assists, and has also featured in Scotland's youth teams on a semi-regular basis. His identical twin brother Michael also used to play in Spurs' youth setup, but has since been released and joined Reading.

Is Craig signing a new deal?

The great news for Spurs is that Craig is nearing a new deal with the Lilywhites, something the club are keen to get over the line following successful contract talks with 15-year-old sensation Mikey Moore last week.

According to journalist Alasdair Gold, the deal is nearly done for Craig: "More good news for the U21s. From what I understood the last time I looked into the situation, which was a couple of days ago, is that Matthew Craig looks like he is going to sign his new deal to stay at the club, or certainly they are getting closer to getting an agreement."

"If you are not aware of Matthew Craig, he played mainly as a defensive midfielder last season but was very versatile. He can play as a full-back, he can play as a centre-back. Only 20-years-old, he has been on the bench for the first team quite a lot."

He added: "Probably one of the best players for Spurs' U21s last season, without a shadow of a doubt actually, so that is great news for Spurs."

If Craig does indeed sign a new deal then there would likely be an expectation of increased exposure to first-team football, meaning he could be a more frequent name on Ange Postecoglou's team sheets next term.

Craig has featured on the bench a total of 10 times in the past two seasons and will have to be ready if he is called upon next campaign.

Tottenham Hotspur are also targeting Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi this summer but face competition from a host of Premier League clubs.

Who are Spurs signing?

The north Londoners, boosted by new manager Ange Postecoglou's official arrival last weekend, have already made some serious summer moves.

Dejan Kulusevski and Pedro Porro have put pen to paper on permanent deals from Juventus and Sporting Lisbon respectively, while the likes of Guglielmo Vicario and James Maddison joined them from elsewhere this window.

Maddison, who signed for £40 million from Leicester City, has ended Tottenham's long-wait for a playmaker in the mould of Christian Eriksen – while Vicario's arrival could allow long-serving number one Hugp Lloris to depart.

Former Fulham loanee Manor Solomon is also said to be having a medical today ahead of a proposed free transfer to Spurs, coming after a FIFA ruling which allows the Israeli to depart Shakhtar Donetsk before the actual expiry of his contract.

It is widely believed that the signing of a star centre-back will follow these transfers, with the Lilywhites enduring a woeful 2022/2023 season in terms of goals conceced.

No other top flight side above 15th leaked more at the back than Spurs last season, a fact Postecoglou will be fully aware of as he seeks to bring back faith in the Tottenham cause.

Wolfsburg's Micky van de Ven, Bayer Leverkusen defender Edmond Tapsoba, Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo and Clement Lenglet from Barcelona are the centre-backs most heavily linked with a move to north London as of now.

However, according to Football Insider and journalist Pete O'Rourke, coming from a "well-placed source", Tottenham chiefs firmly have their eye on Guehi of Palace as well.

The England international, who impressed under both Patrick Vieira and Roy Hodgson at Selhurst Park last campaign, is also attracting interest from Newcaste, Liverpool and north London rivals Arsenal.

Spurs are among the sides ready to battle for Guehi, as this report suggests, but a deal could be hard to do given the Eagles could demand in excess of £60 million.

What's been said about Marc Guehi?

As per WhoScored, the 22-year-old was a mainstay for Palace last season, having featured over more league minutes than any other Palace player.

Guehi averaged the highest passing accuracy (85.5%) of any Palace player too, indicating he could fit into Postecoglou's system as a brilliant ball-playing defender.

The defender averaged their joint-highest rate of blocks per 90 and second-highest number of clearances on average, just behind fellow centre-half Joachim Andersen (WhoScored).

Guehi's quality isn't lost on Club Brugge keeper Josef Bursik, who called him an "absolute tank" when asked to pick the strongest player in England's Under-21 squad a couple of seasons ago.

"Easy, Marc Guehi. He’s an absolute tank,” Bursik said.

“It’s like having a brick wall in front of you, he’s massive.”

Meanwhile, Hodgson has also praised Guehi for his ball-playing ability and composure on the ball.

“Marc Guehi and (Joachim) Andersen are very good players," Hodgson explained.

“They’re good defenders and good on the ball, which is very useful because it helps you start attacks, switch play and develop the composure you need to build attacks up.

“They’re both very useful to the club and would be to any club because they’re good players.”

A sore finger, caused by the large workload of bowling in India, is creating concern for Nathan Lyon ahead of the third Test in Ranchi

Daniel Brettig13-Mar-2017Over the past six years, Nathan Lyon has often had reason to worry about his role in the Australian Test team. Seldom, though, has this had anything to do with a case of physical infirmity. A durable body has been central to Lyon’s tenure, even to the point that other challengers for a spin berth have missed chances to replace him by dint of their own injuries.However this week in Ranchi, Lyon is entering arguably the most important Test match of his career with a red-raw spinning finger on his right hand, the aftermath of a split callus caused by bowling so many overs in India’s spin-friendly conditions, often with a new and hard SG ball. Lyon would be the last man to play this up, but his discomfort during the latter stages of the Bengaluru match, having claimed eight memorable victims on day one, was obvious.”I’ve bowled a lot of balls over the summer and it usually happens once or twice a year,” Lyon said. “The last time I was here, the same thing happened in the third Test and I was able to play three days later. So I’m more than confident in turning out for the next Test, depending on selection I guess.”It’s just one of those things. It just split. It was pretty painful there for a bit. And you can’t bowl on tape – there’s rules and laws out there that you can’t bowl on tape. So I wasn’t even considering that. There was a little sharp bit on the quarter seam and I just caught it, catching a couple of times. It just split. There’s no rocket science to it. I had a split finger. That’s it.”Yeah it hurts a lot. I’m able to bowl cross-seam and stuff, so I can still try to spin it, but for variations and trying to get drift and drop and stuff – two go at the back of the ball – the way I bowl. It does impede it a little bit, but we’ve gone through that now and moved on from the second Test and now I’m just looking forward to Ranchi.”A sore spinning finger from plenty of bowling is the sort of problem many a spinner has dealt with, and a problem all would like to have. Lyon’s is in many ways symptomatic of Australia’s fortunes in this series – like the fallout from Bengaluru, it is a by-product of doing far better against India than many had expected.”Yeah definitely there’s a lot of belief. There’s a lot of people who wrote us off, before we even got on a plane and landed in Dubai. Let alone coming over here,” Lyon said. “Everyone said that we were going to lose 4-0. It’s 1-1, we’re one win away from regaining the trophy and that’s what we are here to do.”The pressure is right on India – there’s no pressure on us. Everyone said we were going to lose 4-nil, they’re no good. They’re a young cricket team learning. But we believe we can beat the best teams anywhere in the world. We proved that in the first Test, we came close in the second Test and even that hurt – that’s probably the best thing about that game. That hurt from losing, but being able to get so close to them.”So we know they’re a brilliant team in these conditions. So if we can keep competing hard against them, who knows. Keep batting well in partnerships, bowling well in partnerships, taking 20 wickets and we’ll see where we get to. I think they’re feeling the pressure a little bit to be honest. And it’s good.”A hallmark of Lyon’s work so far in this series has been the vast majority of his overs delivered from over the wicket to the right-handers. Gone are the days when Lyon used the line from around the stumps as a security blanket, but he said that the pitch chosen by India’s captain Virat Kohli for the Ranchi Test would play a role in which angle from he attacked – and also whether Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc’s replacement gained much in the way of reverse swing.”The last two pitches I’ve been able to get good bounce, sharp bounce and fast spin off the wicket as well,” he said. “If the wicket wasn’t doing that as much, then I’d look at the option of coming around the wicket. But it just really depends on the type of wicket. I know there’s three wickets at Ranchi, so we’ll just have to wait and see which one they play.”I think the wickets are abrasive enough in India that we can hopefully get the ball reverse-swinging. We saw Josh Hazlewood take six wickets and Mitchell Starc did what he did in the second innings. With our air speed and ability to get the ball reversing, and the earlier we can do that the better off it is, but the wickets here are that abrasive that normally the ball can tend to go reverse quite early anyway.”

تلقى الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ليفربول بقيادة المدرب، يورجن كلوب، دفعة معنوية بشأن إصابة الظهير الأيسر، أندرو روبرتسون.

وتعرض روبرتسون لإصابة قوية خلال مباراة أسكتلندا الودية أمام إيرلندا الشمالية، وخضع المدافع لفحوصات طبية على كاحله خلال الساعات القليلة الماضية.

وأظهرت الفحوصات أن اللاعب لا يعاني من أي مشكلة خطيرة في العظام أو الأربطة ومن المتوقع أن تكون مدة غيابه معدودة بالأيام وليست بالأسابيع، بحسب صحيفة “ذا أثلتيك”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. كراوتش يكشف عن مرشحه الأقرب للفوز بلقب الدوري الإنجليزي

هناك شكوك حول مشاركة روبرتسون مع ليفربول في مباراته القادمة في الدوري الإنجليزي يوم، الأحد، أمام برايتون على ملعب “أنفيلد”، ولكن من المتوقع أن يعود أمام شيفيلد في الجولة التالية يوم، الخميس.

وفي سياق آخر، دخل ترينت ألكسندر أرنولد في برنامج تأهيلي مكثف من أجل تسريع عملية عودته لكنه ليس مستعدًا بعد للتواجد في التدريبات الجماعية.

ومن هنا، لا يريد ليفربول أن يخاطر في عودة أرنولد حتى لا تحدث أي انتكاسة مفاجئة، في حين أن أليسون بيكر حارس المرمى يحاول التعافي من إصابة أوتار الركبة والعودة في منتصف أبريل المقبل.

The wicketkeeper-batsman is likely to rejoin the squad ahead of the third ODI at the SSC on April 1

Andrew Fidel Fernando23-Mar-2017

Wicketkeeper-batsman Kusal Perera has been ruled out of the first two ODIs against Bangladesh, after sustaining a hamstring strain during Wednesday’s warm-up match in Colombo, Sri Lanka’s cricket manager Asanka Gurusinha confirmed.Sri Lanka squad

Upul Tharanga (capt.), Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Asela Gunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Danushka Gunathilaka, Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara, Vikum Sanjaya, Thisara Perera, Sachith Pathirana, Seekkuge Prassanna, Lakshan Sandakan

The strain – to his left thigh – was a “very minor” one, Gurusinha said, and though there was a chance Kusal could be fit enough to play in the second ODI in Dambulla on March 28, the selectors have chosen to keep Kusal in Colombo while the team travels to Dambulla. A replacement is expected to be named on Thursday or Friday, but Kusal will rejoin the squad ahead of the third ODI at the SSC on April 1, provided he recovers as expected.The timing of this injury is unfortunate for Kusal, who had just worked himself up to some form in his last three competitive innings, after having suffered a lean run of scores going back to the Zimbabwe tour in October. With Kusal dropped from the side for limited-overs series in South Africa and Australia, Sri Lanka had deployed Niroshan Dickwella in the opening position, and it is possible this hamstring strain will deny Kusal the chance to immediately reassert his case.The first of three ODIs is set to be played on Saturday.

Leicester City's Harvey Barnes and Leeds United's Jack Harrison would "do good things" at West Ham United, believes journalist Paul Brown.

The Hammers, fresh from winning the Europa Conference League, could target the relegated stars this summer.

West Ham transfer news – Jack Harrison and Harvey Barnes

According to Matt Law of The Telegraph, West Ham are in pole position to sign Leicester City winger Barnes this summer.

The London club will have plenty of money to spend with the reportedly incoming sale of Declan Rice, and will use some of that budget on bringing in Barnes, as per Law.

Meanwhile, according to TalkSport, West Ham are also in the race to secure the services of Leeds United's Harrison this summer, with Aston Villa also interested in the winger.

What did Paul Brown say about West Ham, Jack Harrison and Harvey Barnes?

Speaking to Football FanCast when asked about Harrison and Barnes' potential moves to West Ham this summer, Brown said: "I would like to see West Ham buy another winger. Harrison is one of the guys they’ve looked at, Harvey Barnes is another.

"So, I like that they’re looking at that kind of player. They clearly struggled to score goals at times this season and be creative enough, and I do think either Harrison or Barnes would be an upgrade on what they have and give them something a little bit different. So, yes, I think they’d do well at West Ham."

Are West Ham signing Jack Harrison and Harvey Barnes

Although reports have seemingly cooled when it comes to Harrison and West Ham, Barnes reportedly remains a firm target for the Hammers.

Given the fact that Bowen is still front and centre as one of the main men at the London Stadium, too, it would be a surprise if David Moyes wanted to welcome two more players in a similar position.

With the Europa League to contend with next season, West Ham will need depth. But, perhaps their budget is better spent across the pitch rather than two players of the same ilk in Harrison and Barnes.

As the summer goes on, the deals will only continue to unfold.