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USMNT forward Brandon Vazquez scored for the second consecutive Champions Cup game to book CF Monterrey a spot in the next round.

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• Rayados defeat FC Cincy 3-1 (aggregate)
• Vazquez scores winner in each leg
• Monterrey to clash with Miami in quarterfinals

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Vazquez found the back of the net in the 67th minute to ice the game, making it 2-1 to the Mexican side, and 3-1 on aggregate. He scored the winner in each leg for Rayados, putting his ex-club FCC to bed each time. Now, with the victory, he's rewarded with a match against Lionel Messi and Inter Miami in the quarterfinals of the region's marquee competition.

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• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The 25-year-old, who narrowly missed out on the 23-man USMNT roster for their CONCACAF Nations League roster this March, added his eighth goal in 13 appearances for Rayados since his January arrival. He's been on fire in Mexico, and now, will have his eyes on a leaky Inter Miami defense in the next round.

  The Herons "biggest weakness," Vazquez will look to exploit their backline, but what they lack defensively, they can attribute for up top. Monterrey will have to handle the attack of Messi and MLS-leading scorer Luis Suarez, with a midfield pivot of Federico Redondo and Sergio Busquets behind them. The biggest question looming moving forward, though, will be the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner's injury status.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR VAZQUEZ AND MESSI?

  The Inter Miami superstar will have time to recover, however, with the next round of the Champions Cup not arriving until April 2 and 9. Although time and location for the home and away legs has yet to be determined, there is a period of recovery available. As for Vazquez and Rayados, they will look to continue their incredible form into the weekend when they clash with Atlas in Liga MX action.

Glasgow Rangers went through a summer of transition under Michael Beale as there were plenty of incomings and outgoings throughout the off-season.

In truth, this overhaul was needed a season or two ago, yet the board failed to back Steven Gerrard adequately enough, and it led to Celtic reasserting their dominance of the Scottish game, ensuring Beale now faces a massive challenge this term in order to claim some domestic silverware.

The 43-year-old signed nine players during the transfer window, with the likes of Jack Butland, Jose Cifuentes and Danilo among the high-profile arrivals.

Butland – who has been described as an upgrade on Allan McGregor by pundit Kris Boyd – is really the only one who has settled well into life at Ibrox, and it may take some of the others some time to gel and forge connections with their new teammates.

As well as reinvigorating the team with some fresh faces, Beale also shipped quite a few first-team stars out of Ibrox. Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos left for nothing as they chose to run their contracts down, while Glen Kamara and Fashion Sakala were moved on for £5m and £4m, respectively.

One of the best pieces of business the former QPR boss did was to sell Antonio Colak, however, despite the striker playing only one season at the Gers.

How much did Rangers sign Antonio Colak for?

After leading the club to their first Scottish Cup since 2009 and coming so close to Europa League glory, Giovanni van Bronckhorst spent the summer of 2022 strengthening his squad ahead of the next season.

Colak was signed from Greek side PAOK and Rangers knew all about his qualities as he had scored a double for Malmo when they knocked the Light Blues out of the Champions League at the beginning of the 2021/22 campaign.

A fee of £1.8m was enough to secure his signature and Van Bronckhorst heaped praise on him, saying: "He is a very experienced player who has played at high levels and scored a lot of goals for the teams he has played for.

"We wanted to add some more players to our attacking options, and Colak is a player we welcome a lot and will give us a lot of strength up front."

Sporting director Ross Wilson was another who lauded Colak. He said: "Welcome to Antonio, we are delighted to have him join our squad. I know how much Gio and the staff are looking forward to working with him on the pitch.”

Everything looked positive that the Croatian would be a success at the club, and it didn’t take him long to hit the ground running.

What happened to Antonio Colak?

Colak came to life for the club during the qualifiers for the Champions League, scoring three goals in four matches, including the winner against PSV Eindhoven that secured group-stage football.

The striker continued his excellent form up until the hiatus for the 2022 World Cup as he ended up scoring 14 goals under Van Bronckhorst, and it was beginning to look like £1.8m was going to be a bargain.

His form tailed off when Beale was appointed manager in November last year, however, with injury issues resulting in him starting just five times under the current boss, and it looked as though he didn’t quite fit his tactical system.

Colak was praised by Rangers Review journalist Joshua Barrie however, who said: “Colak's had a really good game to this point.

“It's his shot that creates the first and his pass the second but more his link-up that's caught the eye. Has dropped in consistently to create overloads and looked sharp.”

He finished the 2022/23 season as the club's joint top scorer with 18 goals, alongside James Tavernier, but it looked as though he was set to leave the club during the summer.

Where is Antonio Colak now?

Italian side Parma came in with a £2.5m bid during the transfer window and having already signed a few new forwards, the Light Blues accepted the bid, and it was a decent profit on the fee they spent on him just a year previously.

Beale only had good words to say about the 6 foot 2 hitman, saying: "Antonio can be really proud of his time here at Rangers. He scored goals and made a good contribution on the pitch but also as a man and professional, he was someone that I enjoyed working with and who built strong relationships with his team mates and staff off the pitch.

“We initially had a conversation at the end of last season, where we discussed football, his family and also what the future would look like in terms of the team. Antonio was very honest on his side and we have been working with him and his agent in the following weeks to find a solution that suits all parties. I am pleased for him to have this excellent opportunity in Italy.”

Although Colak has scored twice in his opening four matches for the Serie B side, it is evident that the Gers have struck gold by selling him on for £2.5m.

According to Football Transfers, Colak is now valued at €2.4m (£2m) and this represents a decline from the fee they spent on him just a couple of months ago.

Although he will continue to score goals in the second tier for Parma, the striker is on the wrong side of 30 and unless something dramatic happens, his value will only continue to drop in the coming months.

He only spent one season at Rangers, but with 18 goals in that timeframe, it represented a solid return for a player who was perhaps slightly one-dimensional and struggled to really get into games.

Beale has spent money on Cyriel Dessers, Danilo, and Sam Lammers this summer in a bid to improve his attacking options, but they have a long way to go in order to catch reach the 18 goals that Colak netted last term.

It is still early days, but none of the three have really caught the eye, and it will be up to Beale to try and get a tune out of them.

Celtic were dealt a blow during the summer transfer window as Parkheaad's star winger Jota was sold ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

Who are Celtic's biggest ever sales?

The Hoops forward moved to Saudi for a reported transfer fee of £25m earlier this year after one season in Glasgow on a permanent basis, having also spent 12 months on loan prior to a £6.5m switch in 2022.

Jota

£25m

Kieran Tierney

£23m

Moussa Dembele

£19m

Odsonne Edouard

£14m

Virgil van Dijk

£13m

Former Bhoys head coach Ange Postecoglou, who left the club to join Tottenham in the Premier League shortly after the 2022/23 campaign ended, certainly hit the jackpot with that particular move.

The Scottish giants made a significant profit on the Portuguese dynamo within the space of a year, showing that the Australian head coach was able to unearth a gem by developing the young talent's potential during their time together at Paradise.

Jota is not the only signing made by Postecoglou who has been a roaring success, though, and another player who could end up leaving the club for a huge fee is Japan international Daizen Maeda.

How much did Celtic pay for Daizen Maeda?

The Hoops reportedly spent £1.6m to sign the attacker on a permanent basis from Yokohama in the summer of 2022 after he spent six months on loan with the club during the second half of the 2021/22 campaign.

Celtic landed the energetic forward initially on loan after he enjoyed a phenomenal 2021 campaign with his former club in Japan.

Maeda showcased his ability as a goalscorer throughout his final year with Yokohama as he plundered an eye-catching 23 goals in 36 J1 League outings. He also assisted three goals and created four 'big chances' for his teammates to go along with his frequent scoring at the top end of the pitch.

The Japanese sensation averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.09 throughout those matches, which was the seventh-highest score within the squad.

That exceptional form came after a difficult year in 2020 where only found the back of the net three times and failed to create a single goal for his teammates in 23 J1 League matches.

Maeda also happened to work with Postecoglou at Yokohama for the majority of that time as he scored 12 goals and assisted four in 50 appearances for the Australian head coach for the Japanese side.

How many goals has Maeda scored for Celtic?

The now-Spurs boss knew exactly what he was getting when he signed the 25-year-old and it has turned out to be a fantastic piece of business for the club.

Maeda has scored 19 goals in 77 matches in all competitions for the Scottish giants to date and has become an incredibly reliable option out wide or through the middle throughout his spell.

He hit the ground running during his initial loan spell with Celtic in the second half of the 2021/22 campaign as he immediately made an impact on the pitch.

The speedy ace racked up six goals and five assists in 16 Scottish Premiership outings, 14 of which were starts, for Postecoglou as he showcased his ability to score and create goals on a regular basis.

Impressively, the at-the-time loanee recorded one goal and four assists in five matches during the top-six split, which shows that he produced consistent quality against the best of the best within the division.

There was no need for a period of adaption to life in Scottish football as Maeda was able to instantly translate his impressive form for Yokohama over to Celtic.

Maeda then completed his permanent £1.6m move to the club in the summer of 2022 and enjoyed a terrific first full season with the Bhoys as they won the domestic treble.

He racked up 11 goals and seven assists in 49 matches across all competitions, which included eight goals and five assists in 31 Premiership outings.

The 25-year-old, who created six 'big chances' for his teammates in the top flight last term, has also enjoyed a strong start to the current campaign, demonstrating himself to be a pivotal component of Brendan Rodgers' side too.

Maeda has created three 'big chances' in five Premiership matches this term and assisted one goal to go along with an average Sofascore rating of 7.10, which shows that he has the ability to split open the opposition's defence as well as being a goal threat.

How much is Maeda worth now?

It was recently reported by TEAMtalk that Postecoglou now happens to be interested in signing the Japanese marksman once again ahead of the January transfer window.

The report claimed that Spurs are monitoring the Celtic star's situation as they consider a possible swoop to sign the versatile forward ahead of the second half of the 2023/24 campaign.

It stated that the Scottish giants would a fee of around £25m for the 5 foot 8 forward's services, as they would like a similar amount to the one that they received from Al Ittihad for Jota in the summer – £25m.

Maeda, who former Celtic striker Chris Sutton once hailed as a pressing "machine" for his relentless closing down of the opposition, has, therefore, seen his value skyrocket from £1.6m to £25m within the space of a year.

The former Yokohama star has been a fantastic signing for the Hoops and Postecoglou certainly played a blinder by bringing him to Scotland after their first spell together in Japan.

He evidently saw enough from the wide attacker to suggest that a move to Scotland would allow him to thrive and the Australian head coach has been proven right over the last 18 months.

Celtic have already benefitted from the move on the pitch, as shown by the aforementioned statistics over the last two seasons, but they could now benefit off the pitch with a significant profit on Maeda if Spurs decided to meet their £25m valuation in the January window.

West Ham are now very eager to sell one surplus player at the earliest opportunity, alongside the likes of Niclas Füllkrug and James Ward-Prowse, who are both nailed on for the exit door.

Fullkrug and Ward-Prowse set to leave West Ham next month

The Hammers are bracing themselves for significant January departures, with both Fullkrug and Ward-Prowse appearing certain to leave the London Stadium when the transfer window reopens.

Fullkrug’s disastrous spell looks destined to conclude after barely 18 months, with the German international having managed just three goals across 29 appearances since his £27m arrival from Borussia Dortmund in August 2024 (GiveMeSport).

The 31-year-old striker has been given official permission to leave by West Ham, with his agency ROOF formally notified that he can seek a January move (Sky Sports Germany via Claret and Hugh).

West Ham ready to take huge loss on mainstay who's 'failed to impress Nuno'

The Hammers are willing to sell for a cut-price fee.

By
Emilio Galantini

4 days ago

Fullkrug himself is keen to leave the club for pastures new with a decision already made, and Fabrizio Romano has backed up reports that the ex-Bundesliga star is poised for his final few weeks at the club.

Ward-Prowse has suffered an equally dramatic fall from grace under Nuno Espírito Santo, having been completely frozen out since the Portuguese manager’s September appointment.

The 30-year-old England international enjoyed an excellent debut season following his £30m transfer from Southampton in 2023, registering seven goals and eleven assists under David Moyes, but his form collapsed under subsequent managers Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter.

Nuno and West Ham have already instructed the midfielder and his agents to seek new clubs in January, with both Everton and Southampton reportedly expressing interest.

Former manager Moyes wants to reunite with Ward-Prowse at Everton, according to ExWHUemployee, as both the midfielder and Fullkrug prepare to pack their bags and leave Rush Green next month.

There are other candidates for the exit door too, including Guido Rodriguez.

West Ham 'determined' to sell Rodriguez 'as soon as possible'

According to reports from Spain this week, West Ham are preparing to cut their losses on Rodriguez, with three La Liga clubs expressing interest in the struggling Argentine midfielder.

Rodriguez has endured a lacklustre spell since arriving at the London Stadium following his impressive performances at Real Betis.

The 31-year-old has managed just four appearances across all competitions this season, failing to establish himself under Nuno, and his lack of playing time has made a January departure increasingly inevitable.

The Hammers are actively facilitating his exit, with West Ham ‘determined’ to offload Rodriguez ‘as soon as possible’.

The World Cup winner needs to improve his chances of featuring in Argentina’s 2026 squad for the USA tournament, making a return to familiar territory in Spain particularly attractive.

Real Sociedad have emerged as serious contenders for his signature, with Girona also monitoring the situation closely after making an inquiry.

Villarreal are the third option, with Rodriguez viewed as an ideal addition to complement existing midfielders Dani Parejo and Santi Comesana.

West Ham face announcing record £100m losses in their December accounts, so Rodriguez’s departure would be very financially beneficial considering he’d count as pure profit in the eyes of PSR.

Rangers’ truly miserable European campaign continues, with their hopes of reaching the knockout stages now hanging by a thread.

On Thursday night, despite taking the lead through James Tavernier’s spot-kick, the Gers were held to a 1-1 draw by ten-man Braga at Ibrox, with the Arsenalists equalising shortly after Rodrigo Zalazar had been sent off for headbutting Nicolas Raskin.

This ended a sequence of seven successive European defeats, the longest streak in the club’s entire history, but they will almost certainly need to beat Ferencváros, Ludogorets Razgrad and Porto to stand any chance of reaching the Europa League knockout stages, which isn’t particularly likely.

Having finished eighth in last year’s inaugural league phase, before reaching the quarter-finals, this quite the fall from grace.

Much of the blame lies at those at boardroom level, hence why chief executive Patrick Stewart and sporting director Kevin Thelwell were both sacked on Monday, much to the delight of many supporters.

Nevertheless, new manager Danny Röhl still has to build a cohesive team with the pieces he has been given, so which of Thelwell’s summer recruits did not impress on Thursday night?

Nasser Djiga at fault once again

The final Tuesday of the final international break of 2025 could prove to be a pivotal day in Rangers’ season.

Mere hours apart, one in Mount Florida and the other in well, Miami in actual Florida, both John Souttar and Derek Cornelius suffered long-term injuries that’ll see them sidelined until Christmas at least.

Thus, just as Röhl had found his first-choice centre-back pairing, he will continue to be without them going into the busiest period of the season, left with no choice but to keep picking Emmanuel Fernandez and Nasser Djiga, despite the continued poor performances of the latter.

Djiga was massively at fault for Braga’s crucial equaliser on Thursday night, completely misjudging a cross into the box which allowed Gabri Martínez to slot home.

The 23 year old joined Wolverhampton Wanderers from Crvena zvezda in January for a reported £10m, but barely featured for the Premier League side, suggesting why that might have been the case since making the loan move north of the border.

It did not start well for Djiga, sent off on his Premiership debut for tripping up Finlay Robertson as the Gers were held to a 1-1 draw by Dundee at Ibrox, before this inexplicable decision which allowed Romeo Vermant to score the first of Club Brugge’s nine goals in the Champions League play-off round.

Djiga, frankly, is costing Rangers points time and time again, which has to be a concern ahead of three winnable Premiership matches in a week against Falkirk, Dundee United and Kilmarnock, but which other starter from Thursday night may have just played himself out of contention?

Rangers summer signing who struggled vs Braga

Röhl made a couple of surprise selection decisions against Braga; Connor Barron came into midfield, while Max Aarons got the nod over Jayden Meghoma at left-back.

The Bournemouth loanee has been in and out the team all throughout the campaign, deployed in both full-back positions, but did not stake a claim for more regular minutes here.

The statistics document the Englishman’s tough night.

Accurate passes

26

13th

Passing accuracy %

76%

12th

Key passes

Zero

10th

Attempted crosses

3

4th

Accurate crosses

Zero

7th

Defensive actions

3

16th

Tackles won

3

7th

Interceptions

Zero

12th

Clearances

Zero

19th

Possession lost

17

4th

Touches

59

6th

SofaScore rating

6.8

12th

As the table documents, despite the fact only two Rangers players, namely Tavernier and Fernandez, had more touches of the ball than Aarons, he did very little with all this possession.

The full-back completed just 26 passes, fewer than Braga goalkeeper Lukáš Horníček, was accurate with zero crosses and turned over possession on 17 occasions.

Fair to say, the Rangers support have not been enamoured by Aarons from the very start.

Under Russell Martin, he was controversially starting Champions League qualifiers instead of long-standing captain Tavernier, which most fans were not on board with, especially when Aarons was sent off just eight minutes into their 6-0 annihilation at the hands of Club Brugge at Jan Breydelstadion.

More recently, Aarons has been asked to fill in on the left-side, which he can do, but does not suit him naturally, especially on the ball, having to play on his weaker side.

Thus, for upcoming Premiership matches, where Rangers will dominate possession, expect Röhl to recall Jayden Meghoma at left-back, even if he has been far from convincing either.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

As for long-term, it would be no surprise to see both Aarons and Djiga return to their parents clubs in the new year, or at the end of the season at the very least.

Forget Djiga: Rohl must bin Rangers flop who lost the ball every 2 touches

Following Rangers’ 1-1 draw with Braga in the Europa League at Ibrox on Thursday, which flop must Danny Röhl axe who was even worse than Nasser Djiga?

Nov 28, 2025

He picked up R Ashwin’s tricks from YouTube videos and went on to become his team-mate and trump card in the IPL. What can we expect from their first Test-match meeting?

Sidharth Monga12-Jun-20182:11

‘I’d to like to dismiss KL Rahul’ – Mujeeb

In many ways Mujeeb ur Rahman has broken the Afghan prototype. He is among the first few homegrown cricketers to make the international side. He was neither born in Pakistan nor did he learn his cricket there. He doesn’t speak Urdu. But he shares one trait with most Afghanistan cricketers. He has taught himself the game. Off YouTube, no less, bowling and bowling until his fingers hurt badly.Mujeeb does enjoy the privilege of being the nephew of one of the founding fathers of cricket in Afghanistan, Noor Ali Zadran. Noor was born in Pakistan and learnt his cricket there, but, a man of means, he made sure there were facilities at home for future generations. It is not uncommon for families in Khost to own 2000-square-meter farms that house the extended family and have space for guest houses, cattle, and their crop. Noor added his own cricket academy to his family farm.Mujeeb was nine when uncle Noor was representing Afghanistan in the 2010 World T20. “That’s when I picked up the ball,” Mujeeb says. He started bowling with the taped tennis ball in the streets, and did the natural thing to squeeze it out of the front of the hand, giving it a flick with the middle finger. Sometime around 2011 or 2012, Noor got the nets ready, and Mujeeb began to bowl with the cricket ball for the first time.When Mujeeb tried to bowl that carrom ball with the cricket ball, it came out as a slow floaty nothing. That is usually when most street cricketers realise what works on the soft tennis ball doesn’t on the hard cricket ball, and try something else. Not Mujeeb. He knew there were others who had made the transition, but he had no access R Ashwin, Ajantha Mendis or Sunil Narine. Nor did he have a coach who could help him.So Mujeeb began to download videos of the three bowlers on his phone, watch them on an app that would play them in slow motion, and go about trying to do what they did. Nobody told him what to do. He just began to copy what he saw, and bowled all day long. “Just bowl until the fingers couldn’t take it anymore,” he says. “I needed strength in my fingers to be able to do it with the hard ball.”Mujeeb was fortunate that apart from bowling alone in the nets he could bowl to a family full of batsmen. Another of Noor’s nephews, Ibrahim Zadran, plays first-class cricket now. Then there was always Noor batting in the nets when not on tour. He advised Mujeeb to lengthen his run-up. His first manager in domestic cricket, Dawlat Ahmadzai, began to use him as a new-ball bowler in local tournaments. He would tell him how to bowl, how to set batsmen up.One day at a family gathering – and he was about 15 then – Mujeeb batted against a legspinner who bowled a wrong’un. Yes, they play cricket at family unions in the Zadran household in Khost. And he went to the man and learned how to bowl the wrong’un. When uncle Noor saw it, he encouraged him to bowl it. “The carrom ball and the googly are my strong balls now,” Mujeeb says.BCCIWhen Mujeeb was playing the Under-19 World Cup, an India international – another cricket lunatic – watched him while on tour to South Africa. He was impressed with the wrong’un, and the unusual action. He began to ask around, and even procured some videos.When Kings XI Punjab picked him on the first day of the IPL auction, R Ashwin must have known they were looking at him as a potential captain, but couldn’t have been sure. By the second day he was in talks with the franchise and told them he wanted Andrew Tye and Mujeeb. They had the budget. They got Mujeeb for INR 4 crore (USD 630,000 approx).This could have been a movie plot. Mujeeb learns by watching Ashwin on YouTube, and Ashwin – not aware of this yet – picks him as his trump card. On their first meeting, Ashwin remembers, Mujeeb was shy. It didn’t help that he had run into KL Rahul in the nets and caught an early glimpse of his stupendous form.Mujeeb couldn’t speak the language but he understood Hindi/Urdu. Hindi, though, is not Ashwin’s first language. One man barely speaks a language, the other man barely understands it. They spoke a common language, though: bowling. Ashwin soon realised both of them “operated at the same frequency”. He saw similarities outside the carrom ball. Mujeeb was self-taught, which is why he was never averse to trying new things. Ashwin was all about new things.In his early days in the IPL, Ashwin was used mainly as the opening bowler because he bowled alongside Muttiah Muralitharan, who got the middle overs. Everybody told Ashwin Mujeeb was a new-ball bowler but he could see it was because he played alongside Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi for Afghanistan. Before IPL, he hardly used to bowl outside the Powerplay. ESPNcricinfo has ball-by-ball records for only three of Mujeeb’s T20 matches before the IPL; in those three games, he had bowled the maximum possible overs, nine, in the Powerplay.Using spinners in the Powerplay is not new but it is not an aggressive ploy, according to Ashwin. Quite early on Ashwin told Mujeeb he wanted to aggressively control games through him. And it was like there were no language barriers.”More often than not we generally spoke about bowling and not much other than that,” Ashwin says. “And when it came to bowling, he has that innate intelligence. He is quite smart. He is a self-made cricketer. Most of the Afghans are self-made and self-taught. It just becomes that much easier then. If you throw him a new option, he is up for it. He would lap it up.”In the IPL, Mujeeb bowled only 11.2 overs inside the Powerplay. “I wanted to give him the luxury of creating more pressure through the middle rather than at the top,” Ashwin says. “Because we had enough ammunition at the top. We had Ankit [Rajpoot] to swing, I could bowl a few overs, Axar [Patel] could give us a couple, Mohit [Sharma] was there.”I tried to use him in overs that were the impact overs of the game. It was more about trying to create control from him through the middle overs and create opportunities at the other end. It was going to be easier trying to take wickets with him at the other end because people are going to go after safer options. Predominantly use him, if I needed wickets, push the batsmen in the corner and then use him. That was the other strategy. And he has never really bowled beyond the new ball outside the IPL. I knew he was capable of doing it, and he did it really well.”BCCIThis freed Mujeeb up. Ashwin is most impressed with Mujeeb’s temperament despite his feeling a little intimidated by the big IPL crowds initially, which resulted in a few misfields early in the season. Mujeeb came back to provide one of the images of the tournament. In an IPL where great players of spin struggled to pick wrong’uns, his dismissal of Virat Kohli was perhaps the most comprehensive.”Dot, dot, and then play with the batsman,” Mujeeb says when asked how he learnt how to take wickets. “You bowl dots, make them feel restless, and then pack their strength and give them a ball to hit.”The key is in knowing what the strength is and when the batsman is going to play the big shot. In that match, Mujeeb bowled five balls to Kohli. The first two went for singles, the next two were dots. He had shown him the carrom ball and the offbreak.”I felt he felt he had sussed my action,” Mujeeb says. “I had him on two dots in a row. I packed the cover field because that is his strength, and then bowled the new ball. He must have thought it was a legbreak.”This was a generously flighted delivery, Kohli went for the drive, playing for a legbreak, and the ball spun back sharply to castle him.There is a great intuition in knowing when to bowl the sucker ball. “I can feel it when a batsman is not relaxed.”Ashwin was not done with Mujeeb, though. He could see Mujeeb was up to learn more, and has shared with him a new delivery: a slow floater that looks like an offbreak but doesn’t turn. If anything, it drifts away. The lack of pace means the batsman struggles to get under it. He has used it to good effect against MS Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik. “It is not really an attacking ball to be very honest,” Ashwin says. “It is a defensive ball. It requires a lot of practice.”Back in the nets in Dehradun after an injury affected the second half of his IPL, Mujeeb has been bowling that ball. Because his index finger is not as strong as his middle finger, his fingers are hurting. But, as Ashwin expected, he is working on it. “If someone is very keen to learn, as most self-taught cricketers are, he will adapt pretty well,” Ashwin says.If he plays on Thursday, which is likely, Mujeeb will make his first-class debut in his country’s inaugural Test match. He will come up against India and Ashwin. It will be a challenge, but Ashwin knows too much about Mujeeb’s skill and attitude to underestimate him. “I am not expecting any gifts”.

“I simply don’t understand, what is the criteria of dropping him and keeping the others who failed?”

Shashank Kishore25-Jun-20232:22

Has Cheteshwar Pujara played his last Test?

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar believes Cheteshwar Pujara has been made a “scapegoat” for India’s batting failures, most-recently at the World Test Championship final which they lost to Australia by 209 runs.Pujara is the only batter to be left out for the upcoming Test series against West Indies, from the core group that featured in that match. With the new WTC cycle beginning with the the two-Test tour of the Caribbean in July, the selection panel, led for now by SS Das, have picked uncapped Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the 17-member squad. This means India will potentially have a debutant at No. 3, unless Shubman Gill drops down one position.Related

• Pujara – back to the grind, back to grinding bowlers down

• What more can Sarfaraz Khan do to get selected for India?

• Suryakumar and Pujara in West Zone squad for Duleep Trophy

• Jaiswal a far cry from Dravid and Pujara, but can make No. 3 his own

• Shastri wants two left-handers in India's top six for the ODI World Cup

“Why has he been dropped? Why has he been made the scapegoat for our batting failures? He has been a loyal servant of Indian cricket,” Gavaskar told . “But because he does not have millions of followers on platforms who will make a noise in case he gets dropped, so you drop him. That is something beyond my understanding. What is the criteria of dropping him and keeping the others who failed? I do not know because nowadays, there is no media interaction with the selection committee chairman, where you could ask these questions.”Pujara managed scores of 14 and 27 at The Oval. Overall, in the 2021-23 WTC cycle, he was India’s second-highest scorer with 928 runs in 32 innings at an average of 32 with one century and six half-centuries. Virat Kohli is at the top but he was only marginally better – 932 runs in 30 innings was 32.13, with one century and three half-centuries.Gavaskar believes Pujara can still offer a couple of years to Indian cricket, but the road back to the team could be very tough, especially if India’s injured regulars Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer return. For now, Ajinkya Rahane, their top-scorer in the WTC final, has been named vice-captain to Rohit Sharma.Gavaskar – “Apart from Rahane, the batting completely failed. Why Pujara has been made the fall guy is something the selectors need to explain”•AFP/Getty Images

“He has been playing county cricket. So, he has played a lot of red-ball cricket, so he knows what it is about,” Gavaskar said when asked if Pujara can make a comeback. “Today, people can play till they are 39-40. There’s nothing wrong, they’re all very fit; as long as you are producing runs and taking wickets, I do not think age should be a factor. Clearly only one man has been singled out, while the others who have failed…to me, the batting failed. Apart from (Ajinkya) Rahane, the batting completely failed. Why Pujara has been made the fall guy is something the selectors need to explain.”Gavaskar also questioned the value of the Ranji Trophy especially in the wake of Sarfaraz Khan’s exclusion. The 25-year-old has stacked up mountains of runs over the past three seasons, His first-class average (79.65) is second only to Sir Don Bradman, among batters who’ve played at least 50 innings. However, Sarfaraz had a modest IPL in 2023 and wasn’t a regular starter for the Delhi Capitals, leading Gavaskar to wonder if the IPL had been a hindrance to his selection.”You do well in the IPL and you get to be picked even in Test cricket. That seems to be the situation,” Gavaskar said. “Even if you look at the selection of the team, you have four opening batters for two Test matches. It’s not the old fast West Indies attack where you needed six opening batters.”Sarfaraz Khan has been scoring at an average of 100 in all past three seasons. What does he have to do to be picked in the [Test] squad? He might not be in the XI, but you pick him in the team. Tell him that his performances are being recognised. Otherwise, stop playing Ranji Trophy. Say, it’s of no use, you just play IPL and think you are good enough for the red-ball game as well.”

GOAL US looks at Liverpool's inevitable trophy lift, Fulham's European ambitions, and selection dilemmas ahead of a busy week

And so we get to the obligatory bit. Has a Premier League title ever felt so processional? So unsurprising? Tell a Liverpool fan nine months ago that they were going to win the league, and they might have laughed. Tell them in February that they would have to wait until the end of April, and they might have been slightly peeved. We have, as Jamie Carragher told GOAL earlier this month, been slightly spoiled in recent years.

Title races have brought jeopardy, drama, and expectations. Most leagues are won pretty comfortably by a decent margin. And Liverpool, barring a mad Tottenham result at Anfield, will wrap theirs up on Sunday.

Midweek European clashes ahead for Spurs, Arsenal and Man United have rather distracted from domestic football. Perhaps the most drama is to be found in the sort of mid-table areas that would normally be irrelevant at this point. If results go a certain way, the Premier League could have 10 clubs in Europe next year. That really feels like too many.

That is, unless you're one of the fringe clubs that are now in with a shot. Such is the case of Fulham, who, with a few wins, could find themselves in some sort of European football next year – an undoubtedly massive achievement for the club.

GOAL looks at Liverpool's inevitable title lift, Fulham's European ambitions, and the selection dilemmas plaguing the league in the Premier League Primer, a weekly rundown of what to watch from an American perspective in England's top flight.

AFPLiverpool, and the slow march to the title

This has never been particularly fun. Title races, in recent years, have been dramatic things. Even if Man City's wins have felt both inevitable and cold-blooded, they have usually come with a sense of jeopardy – second halves of the season defined by Pep Guardiola's machines chugging into life. The result may be tiresome, but the content is always enthralling.

By comparison, 2025 has been a bore. Liverpool are the best team by some distance. Arsenal have done a pretty good job of beating themselves at various points over the course of the season. But Arne Slot's men have seldom been emphatic. Everything has been controlled, death by 10,000 Mo Salah-sized papercuts.

And this weekend, they will almost certainly seal the thing for good. Spurs – maddeningly inconsistent and entirely unpredictable – are the opponent. A draw on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. ET will get them over the line. At this point, it seems more of an obligation.

AdvertisementGOALRuben Amorim's tactical dilemmas get worse

What can Ruben Amorim really do with the remainder of the Prem season? Man United are not going to get relegated. They are not going to make European football without the help of winning the Europa League, either. It leaves Amorim with a difficult decision. He doesn't want to drop points and shred morale. But he also needs to keep legs fresh ahead of a semifinal in which, by most measures, they are thoroughly outmatched against Real Sociedad.

The manager changed things up against Wolves, benching half of his starting XI – leading to an entirely predictable 1-0 loss. They are now on their worst run of form at home in 60 years. The good news, at least, is that they're playing away this weekend. The bad news is a well-drilled and expansive Bournemouth side are their opponent.

It will be an interesting tactical game Sunday at 9 a.m. ET, at least. Odds are, he gives the big guns a brief cameo – but will that be enough to bring the vibes back?

GettyFulham try to stop the slide

There was a time, just a few weeks ago, when it looked as if Fulham could push for a Champions League spot. U.S. international Antonee Robinson was the best left back we had all ever seen. Raul Jimenez was banging in goals for fun. Alex Iwobi was making good on years of promise. The good times were rolling in full.

Funny how soccer changes. Consecutive losses – including a mightily harsh defeat to Chelsea – have them on the outside looking in. They now need to pretty much win out – and hope that either United or Spurs push their way to Europa League glory. It must be admitted that neither of those things look particularly likely for the Cottagers.

All they can do, then, is try to pick up points on their own terms. And in that sense, they have been handed a friendly fixture this weekend. Southampton are officially the worst team in Premier League history after picking up their 11th point earlier this month. But they're a close second. If there ever was a team to play when you need a win, this is it. Saturday morning at 10 a.m .ET. is their chance to get it done.

American ties

+ Antonee Robinson faces a big game for Fulham this week. A win against Southampton would propel the Cottagers back into the European picture.

+ Chris Richards isn't in Premier League action. Instead, he will likely be in the XI as Crystal Palace take on Aston Villa in the FA Cup semifinal. If Palace pull off an upset, he would become one of just a handful of Americans to play in an FA Cup final.

Wolverhampton Wanderers have now been handed an opportunity to sign an “unbelievable” Premier League attacker, according to a report.

Wolves remain in relegation dogfight

The Vitor Pereira era is off to a largely positive start, but Wolves are outside the relegation zone on goal difference alone, and Ipswich Town have started to put in some improved performances over the past few weeks.

As such, the Old Gold may have to strengthen this January to give themselves the best possible chance of avoiding the drop, and it is vitally important they sign a new centre-back, given their very poor defensive record.

Pereira has moved swiftly to rectify his side’s defensive woes, having now reached an agreement to sign Stade Reims’ Emmanuel Agbadou in a deal worth a reported €20m (£16.6m).

The lack of defensive solidity has been the main factor in Wolves’ disappointing first half of the season, as they have been impressive at times in an attacking sense, with Matheus Cunha already notching 10 Premier League goals.

However, the Old Gold are still looking to strengthen in midfield, having held agent talks over a deal for Palmeiras midfielder Richard Rios, and they have now been offered the opportunity to sign an attacking midfielder.

Wolverhampton Wanderers’ upcoming Premier League fixtures

Date

Newcastle United (a)

January 15th

Chelsea (a)

January 20th

Arsenal (h)

January 25th

Aston Villa (h)

February 1st

Liverpool (a)

February 16th

According to a report from Caught Offside, Newcastle United have decided to let Miguel Almiron leave this month, with the Magpies looking to receive a fee of around €20m – €25m (£17m – £21m).

Almiron’s services have been offered to a number of Premier League clubs, namely Crystal Palace, Leicester City and Wolves, while there are also a number of foreign clubs interested.

Although he was once considered an important player by Eddie Howe, the Paraguayan has fallen down the pecking order at St. James’ Park, and it looks like he could be on the move this month.

Almiron still has a lot left to give

Although the 30-year-old is out of favour at Newcastle, there is no reason why he wouldn’t be a good signing for Wolves, having proven himself in the Premier League over a number of years.

Wolves hold talks over move for midfielder with £16m+ transfer possible

He’s been described as a “machine.”

ByBarney Lane Jan 6, 2025

Former Hibernian man Tam McManus lauded the attacker just over two years ago, saying: “He has that pace to get in behind and he has been integral to Newcastle this season, there seems to be a real steel about Newcastle.

“It’s ever since those comments Jack Grealish made about Almiron, maybe that spurred him on. That can happen to a player.

“But Almiron, in any case, has been absolutely unbelievable for Newcastle so far this season and hopefully it continues.”

During the 2022-23 campaign, the Paraguay international bagged 11 goals in 34 games, and if he is able to rediscover that form, he could play a key role in helping Wolves avoid relegation from the Premier League.

While he was disappointed at the heavy defeat in Adelaide, he felt West Indies had had an encouraging year in Test cricket

Andrew McGlashan11-Dec-2022West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite lamented that his team “didn’t show any fight” in Adelaide but believed that overall they had produced a successful year in Test cricket.They crashed to a 419-run defeat within the opening session of the fourth day, their heaviest runs defeat in Test cricket, having shown heart to take the first Test deep into the penultimate session.Related

Australia complete series sweep with a crushing 419-run win

In both matches West Indies’ bowling attack was put to the sword by a combination of Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith and Travis Head. A couple of late wickets for Alzarri Joseph in Adelaide made him their the leading bowler with five at 53.00 – highlighting their struggles – amid a string of injuries that left them with a patched-up attack.Brathwaite produced their standout knock of the series with 110 in the second innings in Perth, but no one passed fifty in Adelaide as they could only make 214 and 77.”It was very disappointing. The first game, we fought to day five which was a decent effort. Coming here we didn’t show any fight at all,” Brathwaite said. “Obviously Australia bowled well but we didn’t fight. The pink ball is always different, under lights is always tough. Bad days happen and bad games. This was a bad game for sure, but it’s not the end of the world, we have a lot of Test cricket to play next year so we have to look ahead.”West Indies came into the series unbeaten in five Tests for the year – including three wins a row – and, before the Adelaide match, were above England and New Zealand on the World Test Championship table.Brathwaite was adamant that, viewed as a whole, and given the strength of the opposition they faced in this series, that it had been an encouraging year in the format.”This loss is a little disappointing and how we didn’t show the fight,” he said. “But I still think it was a good year for us – a very good year – losing one series against probably the No. 1 team in the world is not a bad effort.”‘You’ve got Mitchell Starc coming in at 90mph and you see a guy fighting like that, says a lot about his character’ – Brathwaite on Tagenarine Chanderpaul•Getty ImagesWest Indies’ next Test cricket will come on tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa in early 2023. They are then due back in Australia in a little over 12 months’ time due a quirk of the next World Test Championship cycle, which has seen them paired together again with no other spot on the calendar to try and space out the series a little more. CA had tried to find another window to avoid back-to-back summers with the same opposition but it wasn’t possible.Brathwaite hopes that those players who return can use what they have learned from watching the Australians go about their work with this Test series having been West Indies’ first here since 2015-16.”For a lot of the guys it was their first time to Australia,” he said. “The experience would help, both as batsmen and bowlers. Seeing how Australia play, how their batsmen started their innings, we can learn from that and then how their bowlers bowled throughout a spell. At times in Perth they bowled for the whole day but then you see the areas they bowled. Australia will always be a strong team at home but the key from experiences is learn from them.”One of the encouraging aspects for West Indies was the debut series of Tagenarine Chanderpaul who made 51, 45, 47 and 17 at the top of the order alongside the captain. Such was his occupation of the crease that Australia got very inventive with their fields when they went at him with a short-pitched attack, although Chanderpaul blotted his copybook by running himself out in the first over of the third day.”It showed that he’s tough,” Brathwaite said. “You’ve got Mitchell Starc coming in at 90mph and you see a guy fighting like that, says a lot about his character. I thought he had a good start to his career and can see him really blossoming to have a superb career for West Indies.”Brathwaite, himself, meanwhile said he retained the hunger and desire to lead West Indies.”I love Test cricket and [am] thankful for the job. We’ll see how it goes. I want to lead this team from the front, especially with the bat, that’s my job. As a group we have the talent, we have the ability. It’s for us to believe in ourselves and you learn from all the challenges you go through.”