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William Perkins has been suspended for the remainder of the CPL for handing his Players/Match Official Access pass to a third party for the side’s league game against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in Lauderhill

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Aug-2016

William Perkins will not take any further part in the remainder of this season’s CPL•Caribbean Premier League

Trinbago Knight Riders batsman William Perkins has been suspended for the remainder of the CPL for handing his Players/Match Official Access pass to a third party for the side’s league game against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in Lauderhill on Sunday.Perkins accepted the charges for breaching the ICC’s Minimum Standards for Players and clauses 10.1.1 and 10.1.2 of the player contract. Members of the CPL security team along with ICC Anti-Corruption manager Richard Reynolds had obtained Perkins’ pass, resulting in his immediate suspension. Perkins played four CPL games this season and scored 75 runs at an average of 18.75.Knight Riders face St Lucia Zouks in the second playoff match in Basseterre on Thursday.

Sheldon Cottrell went to Trinidad & Tobago Red Force, while Narsingh Deonarine was picked by Windward Islands Volcanoes in the player draft for the 2016-17 WICB Professional Cricket League

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jun-2016Jamaican fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell was picked by Trinidad & Tobago, while Windward Islands chose Narsingh Deonarine, the left-hand batsman, in the player draft for the 2016-17 WICB Professional Cricket League in Barbados on Friday.Cottrell, who has played two Tests, two ODIs and six T20Is for West Indies, was part of the Jamaica squad in the 2015-16 season. He played only four first-class matches in the four-day tournament, taking seven wickets, including a first-class best of 5 for 38. Deonarine played for Trinidad & Tobago and was their second-highest scorer with 494 runs in nine matches at 35.28.Defending champions Guyana picked five players in the draft of which only 21-year-old Vikash Mohan was from outside the home territory. Barbados had two such players in their list of new picks – Kissoondath Magram (from T&T) and 21-year-old uncapped fast bowler Preston McSween from Windward Islands.The draft system has been in place since 2014, when the WICB revamped its domestic structure to combine the selection of players for the regional four-day tournament and the Nagico Super50, and packaged it as the WICB Professional Cricket League.As per the draft rules, each of the six franchises can select from the talent pool available in both tournaments. Each franchise has to enlist a minimum of 15 players, of whom 10 are pre-selected from the home territory, while the remaining five go through the draft system. Of the five spots that are filled through the draft picks, a minimum of two players need to be from outside the home territory. Each franchise is also allowed to have one international player.The draft is conducted over five rounds and each franchise is allowed one pick that must be made within two minutes. In the event of a franchise failing to make a selection within the allotted time, they will have to pass up their turn and wait for the other franchises to finish making their selections in that round, before picking.Full squads (new picks in italics; for players chosen from outside the franchise’s home territory, the region is mentioned in brackets.)Barbados: , Sulieman Benn, Carlos Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, Jonathan Carter, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Ashley Nurse, Kemar Roach, Kevin Stoute, Jomel WarricanGuyana: , Christopher Barnwell, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Assad Fudadin, Shimron Hetmyer, Keon Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Raymon Reifer (Barbados), Vishaul Singh, Veerasammy PermaulJamaica: , Nikita Miller, Damion Jacobs, Devon Thomas (Leeward Islands), Chadwick Walton, Andre McCarthy, John Campbell, Rovman Powell, Paul Palmer Jr, Brandon King, Marquino MindleyLeeward Islands: , Quinton Boatswain, Nkrumah Bonner (Jamaica), Kacey Carty, Rahkeem Cornwall, Jahmar Hamilton, Montcin Hodge, Alzarri Joseph, Jeremiahn Louis, Kieran Powell, Hayden Walsh JrTrinidad & Tobago: , Yannic Cariah, Kyle Hope (Barbados), Jon-Russ Jagessar, Stephen Katwaroo, Imran Khan, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Yannick Ottley, Marlon Richards, Jeremy SolozanoWindward Islands: , Sunil Ambris, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Mervin Matthew, Kyle Mayers (Barbados), Kenroy Peters, Liam Sebastien, Shane Shillingford, Devon Smith, Tyrone Theophile

Tottenham Hotspur are unlikely to appoint Graham Potter as their new manager, according to journalist Paul Brown, who recently spoke to GiveMeSport.

What's the latest Tottenham manager news?

It is clear that Potter is thought of in high regard by the Tottenham board, with Brown previously telling GiveMeSport they "went for him in quite a big way" while he was manager of Brighton & Hove Albion. The 47-year-old rebuffed Spurs' advances, as he instead wanted to move to a "top tier club", with Football Insider also reporting that he was unwilling to work with chairman Daniel Levy, who has become a controversial figure.

After previously being rejected by the former Brighton boss, Brown does not believe the Lilywhites will make a fresh attempt to appoint him, particularly considering his very poor spell at Chelsea, which is said to have damaged his reputation.

In an interview with GiveMeSport, the journalist said: "I'd be surprised if Daniel Levy went in for him, having been snubbed the way he was before and when you look at how badly it went for him really at Chelsea, his stock has fallen through the floor. It would be a surprise if Potter ended up at Spurs."

Should Tottenham appoint Graham Potter?

It is probably a wise move for Spurs to avoid appointing the Englishman, despite the fact he did a fantastic job at Brighton, leaving the Seagulls in their highest ever position before leaving to join Chelsea. During his time with the Blues, the tactician won just 11 out of the 28 league games he took charge of, recording the worst points-per game tally of any Blues manager in the Premier League era.

That said, it could be argued he was not given the necessary time to embed his chosen play style, with former Wolverhamtpon Wanderers player Karl Henry stating: "It takes time to change the culture, create cohesion and ultimately, implement your footballing philosophy at a new club."

Henry also lauded the former Chelsea boss as a "top-level coach", which indicates he could be a success at Tottenham, if he is given the opportunity to build his squad and bring in the players he wants.

Given his recent sacking, Levy should still avoid Potter for the time being, but it would not be a surprise to see him go on to be a successful Premier League manager, regardless of his recent spell at Stamford Bridge.

Bangladesh’s captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz and coach Mizanur Rahman were wary of the threat posed by West Indies’ quicks, but backed the hosts’ top order to come good

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur10-Feb-2016

Bangladesh captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz has backed his side to come good against West Indies’ quicks•ICC

The day before the two sides first met this year, a member of Bangladesh’s coaching staff was looking at the West Indies pace bowlers quite intently during practice at the National Cricket Academy ground. Exactly a month later, on the eve of the Under-19 World Cup semi-final between the two teams, the focus still remains on pace bowling.West Indies’ new-ball attack has been one of the highlights of this tournament, particularly the sight of the beanpole Alzarri Joseph steaming in and consistently hitting high speeds. He has also generated movement to trouble the opposition. Joseph and Chemar Holder, the injured Obed McCoy’s replacement, put Pakistan under early pressure in the quarter-final, which West Indies won by five wickets.Apart from Joseph and Chemar, West Indies also have Keemo Paul, Odean Smith, Ryan John and Shamar Springer as pace options in their squad.Bangladesh crushed West Indies 3-0 last month, but they need to have a second look at their bowling attack and sharpen up during training sessions. Much of it has revolved around tackling the short balls, which have been regularly directed at the throat by the net bowlers.Bangladesh coach Mizanur Rahman was wary of the threat posed by Joseph, but believed that a solid top-order platform could help his side post a good total.”[Alzarri] Joseph is one of the best bowlers of this tournament,” Mizanur said. “But we have plan against all their bowlers. We hope the video session we had will work in our favour. We know him [Joseph] quite well having played against them in three matches before the U-19 World Cup. We are prepared to face him.””Their strength is the pace attack so if our top order does their job, it becomes easier for the middle and lower-order batsmen. If we can make around 230 to 250 or even more, it will be defendable.”West Indies captain Shimron Hetmyer, meanwhile, has drawn confidence from having the fastest bowler in the tournament, especially in conditions that offer little help to the quicks.”It is a good feeling to be in a team with express pacers in the last two years,” Hetmyer said. “I think we had one pacer in the last World Cup that really went all the way through the tournament, and there was [Kagiso] Rabada from South Africa who was the fastest bowler in the tournament.”This year being in the team with the fastest bowler is a big boost for us. Playing in the sub-continent, which people don’t really with pace pitches and so far the pacers have done well for us.”Joseph has turned heads back home, in the Caribbean, as well with veteran commentator and writer Tony Cozier earmarking him a special talent. Joseph hails from the All Saints Village in Antigua, and has been trained by former West Indies pacer Winston Benjamin in addition to taking tips from the legendary Andy Roberts.Alzarri Joseph has impressed in the Under-19 World Cup by moving the ball at speeds north of 140kph•International Cricket Council

Bangladesh captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz, however, has played down the pace threat, saying the hosts were more comfortable against pace, something that they thrived on while playing in South Africa last year.”We like playing fast bowlers,” Miraz said. “Playing against less pace, there’s a chance of mistiming the ball. We are always confident facing pace. We have done well in South Africa, and also against West Indies. We haven’t faced a really pacy bowling attack yet in this tournament, which has caused problems for our openers.”The second semi-final will also be Bangladesh’s first match against a Full Member since the tournament opener against South Africa on January 27. Miraz took confidence from Bangladesh’s hard-fought win against Nepal, and the manner in which his team bounced back against Sri Lanka in the Youth ODI series last year. Bangladesh rebounded from 2-0 down to seal that series 3-2.”We have the belief to turn around from any situation,” Miraz said.” We don’t think negatively. I enjoy playing in the situation that we faced in the last game [against Nepal]. We won three games on the bounce after losing the first two in Sri Lanka last year. Having taken that much pressure in those conditions, has only done good for our confidence.”West Indies coach Graeme West, too, was not short of confidence ahead of the big game. He has said that West Indies were encouraged by how the Sri Lankan seamers zipped the ball around to test India’s top order in the first semi-final on Tuesday.”We watched the game yesterday and we’re encouraged to see the ball get through,” West said. “The seamers both sides were effective in the first 10 overs. Anyone that would have watched the Pakistan game, will see where one of our strengths lies with the new ball attack. And we got to look to that to really make early inroads into the Bangladesh batting.”West also said that the next challenge for Joseph would be to continue bowling with control, instead of focusing too much on pace.”He’s been very successful and he’s bowled really well,” West said. “We need to make sure that he continues to perform at that level, not to get too carried away. If he starts looking at how fast he’s bowling as opposed to where he’s looking to land the ball, then he might lose some of his potential.”

Tottenham Hotspur are the main contenders to sign Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret, according to Rai journalist Ciro Venerato.

The Lowdown: Spurs look for Lloris replacement…

Spurs are reliably believed to be on the look out for an heir to long-serving shot-stopper Hugo Lloris with the France international currently injured and suffering a decline in form this season.

Antonio Conte’s side are currently relying on Fraser Forster as their number one in Lloris’ absence, and as the 36-year-old’s contract runs down, Fabio Paratici and co are thinking about the future.

The Premier League top-four hopefuls have been linked with many names heading into the summer window and Meret is said to be one of them.

The Latest: Tottenham main contenders for Meret…

According to Venerato, speaking on live radio to ‘1 Football Club’ (via Calcio Napoli 24), Tottenham have ‘above all’ expressed their interest in signing the 25-year-old.

He explained:

“Napoli would like to continue with Meret, and in this sense we will have to sit down at the negotiating table and await developments.

“There are some Premier League clubs that have however registered an interest in the Frulian, Tottenham above all.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/tottenham-latest-news-4/” title=”Tottenham latest news” poster=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/cropped-tottenham-fans.jpg” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Get it done?

Meret’s current deal at Napoli expires in the summer of 2024, and if he doesn’t put pen to paper on fresh terms, he could represent both a quality and financially attainable target for Spurs.

The Italian, capped three times by his national team, has been a mainstay for the Serie A league leaders this season – playing more top flight minutes than anyone in Luciano Spalletti’s squad (WhoScored).

One admirer of the 6 foot 3 keeper in past seasons has been none other than Spurs boss Conte, with agent Federico Pastorello revealing back in 2017 that he was ‘really impressed’ with Meret after scouting him out.

Meret has also been revered by members of the press for his performances in between Napoli’s sticks, with reporter Roberto Rojas calling him a ‘stellar goalkeeper’.

Paratici and co will be watching his contract situation closely as a real candidate to succeed Lloris could soon become available.

Malo Gusto has offered his thoughts on Mauricio Pochettino's future at the helm as Chelsea gear up to face Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final.

Article continues below

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Pochettino has just over a year left on contract Gusto backs him to continue as Blues boss Opened up on camaraderie with "big player" James Getty/GOALWHAT HAPPENED?

Despite facing criticism due to Chelsea's inconsistent performances, Pochettino's leadership has received strong backing from Gusto. While the club's hierarchy plans to evaluate Pochettino's performance at the end of the season, Gusto remains confident in the Argentinian's capabilities to lead the team.

A notable aspect of Pochettino's tenure at Chelsea has been his emphasis on fostering unity within the squad. Following consecutive Premier League losses to Liverpool and Wolves, Pochettino rallied the squad, emphasizing his unwavering belief in their abilities. Subsequently, Chelsea players repaid the trust shown by their manager by securing impressive wins against Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, followed by a commendable draw against Manchester City.

AdvertisementWHAT GUSTO SAID

Speaking to Gusto said: "He (Pochettino) helps us a lot. He has tried to show us the desire to win and to keep fighting against every team. He talks to us a lot about tactics and techniques. He is a good person as well. He tries to help us a lot, on and off the pitch. He is a good coach for this young team.

“That’s (the organising of bonding events at the training ground) what he has tried to do to get everyone all together. The most important thing during this new project is: to help each other and stay all together. If we do that, we can win more.”

When asked whether Pochettino should be handed an extension who has a little more than a year left in his contract, with an option for a further 12 months, the full-back said: "Yeah, yeah, yeah. He is here for this. He knows he has to wake up our mentality. To wake up our desire to win everything. We are Chelsea and a big club like Chelsea has to win everything. To keep fighting.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

In the ever-evolving landscape of football, injuries often serve as opportunities for aspiring talents to step into the limelight. This narrative rings true for Gusto, whose ascent to prominence has been accelerated by circumstances beyond his control.

Gusto's journey at Chelsea initially began with the intention of providing healthy competition for established star Reece James, yet fate had different plans. James' untimely hamstring injury in August forced a recalibration of the club's strategy, thrusting Gusto into a more prominent role sooner than anticipated.
Despite the competitive dynamic between him and James, Gusto highlights their mutual support and camaraderie, underscoring their shared goal of contributing to the team's success.

"Reece is a big player," he said. "One of the best players in this position. It’s not good for the team (that he is out injured) as Reece is the captain and it’s not good for everyone in the club. But for me, I have to be ready and take every chance.

“We talk a lot. I try to help him, he tries to help me as well. It’s a good competition between him and me. We are not similar (as players), but when we are on the pitch we try to help the team, keeping a good mentality, to score and assist. That’s what we have to do.”

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?

As Chelsea gears up for the Carabao Cup final, Gusto's endorsement reaffirms the team's unity and determination under Pochettino's guidance. If they manage to trounce Jurgen Klopp's high-flying Liverpool on Sunday, the victory might usher in a new dawn at Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle United made a long-awaited comeback to the Champions League back in 2023/24. Their fourth-placed Premier League finish in 2022/23 saw them return to the competition for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Of course, this won’t be the first time that the Magpies competed at the peak of European football. They’ve been there before and faced some of the game’s giants.

Given they haven’t been Champions League regulars, you would be forgiven for struggling to recall just how the Magpies got on in the past.

Football FanCast has taken a look back at how Newcastle did in previous years.

1997/98 – Group stage

The mid-90s saw Newcastle make waves in English football, including breaking the world transfer record to sign Alan Shearer in 1996.

While they fell agonisingly short of winning the Premier League, the Mapgies took advantage of changes in UEFA rules that allowed for non-champions to compete in their main competition.

They did need to win a qualifier, but a 4-3 aggregate win over Dinamo Zagreb (then known as Croatia Zagreb) put them into group stages. Waiting for them? Dynamo Kyiv, PSV Eindhoven and Barcelona.

The group stage was also different in those days – there were only six in total, with the winners going straight through to the quarter-finals. The two best-placed runners-up would take the remaining berths in the final eight, meaning Newcastle were up against it to progress.

Things started off brilliantly with a 3-2 win against Barcelona that continues to live long in the memory. Faustino Asprilla earned and scored a penalty before planting a bullet header in the Barca net to leave the Toon faithful in dreamland.

He completed his hat-trick with another header moments into the second half, before Louis van Gaal’s side staged their comeback.

But consolation goals from Luis Enrique and Luis Figo were not enough to prevent the Magpies from grabbing the perfect start to their group campaign.

A 2-2 draw in Kyiv followed, with Newcastle 2-0 down until a late fightback earned a point.

PSV, however, would then pick up back-to-back wins over Newcastle – without the Magpies scoring a goal. In fact, they’d then lost 1-0 to Barca before finally finding more points in the final game against Kyiv thanks to a 2-0 home win.

Newcastle weren’t able to overcome the talent in that group, finishing third behind PSV and… Kyiv. Yes, Barcelona finished bottom of the group, having lost 3-0 and 4-0 to the Ukrainian side.

That maybe makes a bit more sense when you learn a young Andriy Shevchenko scored five goals in six games for Kyiv that season, including a hat-trick at Camp Nou.

All in all, Newcastle were incredibly unfortunate. They came up against three great sides, but certainly had moments to savour.

Second qualifying round, 1st leg

Newcastle 2-1 Dinamo Zagreb

Beresford (2); Cvitanovic

Second qualifying round, 2nd leg

Dinamo Zagreb 2-2 Newcastle (aet)

Simic, Cvitanovic; Asprilla, Ketsbaia

Group C

Newcastle 3-2 Barcelona

Asprilla (3); Luis Enrique, Figo

Group C

Dynamo Kyiv 2-2 Newcastle

Rebrov, Shevchenko; Beresford, Holovko (og)

Group C

PSV 1-0 Newcastle

Jonk

Group C

Newcastle 0-2 PSV

Nilis, De Bilde

Group C

Barcelona 1-0 Newcastle

Giovanni

Group C

Newcastle 2-0 Dynamo Kyiv

Barnes, Pearce

Dynamo Kyiv

6

3

2

1

13

6

+7

11

PSV

6

2

3

1

9

8

+1

9

Newcastle

6

2

1

3

7

8

-1

7

Barcelona

6

1

2

3

7

14

-7

5

2002/03 – Second group phase

Newcastle had to wait a while before getting another crack at the Champions League. They qualified in 2002/03, though – but once again needed to play a qualifying round. Bosnian outfit Zeljeznicar fell to them 5-0 on aggregate, putting the Magpies back in the group stage.

And oh, was it one to remember. Newcastle found Juventus, Dynamo Kyiv and Feyenoord waiting for them and started as miserably as possible. They lost all three of their opening games to sit on zero points at the halfway mark.

But then something magic happened. Newcastle beat Juventus, beat Kyiv, and set up a historic tie with Feyenoord on the final matchday.

If they could claim victory in the Netherlands – and Juve beat Kyiv – Newcastle could qualify, with two slots available in the next phase of the competition.

They did just that, thanks to Craig Bellamy scoring a 91st-minute winner and Juve winning 2-1. That was history – Newcastle were the first side to ever lose their first three games and still get out of the group.

Third qualifying round, 1st leg

Zeljeznicar 0-1 Newcastle

Dyer

Third qualifying round, 2nd leg

Newcastle 4-0 Zeljeznicar

Dyer, Lua Lua, Viana, Shearer

First group phase, Group E

Dynamo Kyiv 2-0 Newcastle

Shatskikh, Khatskevich

First group phase, Group E

Newcastle 0-1 Feyenoord

Pardo

First group phase, Group E

Juventus 2-0 Newcastle

Del Piero (2)

First group phase, Group E

Newcastle 1-0 Juventus

Griffin

First group phase, Group E

Newcastle 2-1 Dynamo Kyiv

Speed, Shearer; Shatskikh

First group phase, Group E

Feyenoord 2-3 Newcastle

Bombarda, Lurling; Bellamy (2), Viana

Juventus

6

4

1

1

12

3

+9

13

Newcastle

6

3

0

3

6

8

-2

9

Dynamo Kyiv

6

2

1

3

6

9

-3

7

Feyenoord

6

1

2

3

4

8

-4

5

Their reward, of course, was yet another group phase. If you’re not familiar, there used to be two group stages before the switch to the format we see today. Barcelona, Inter and Bayer Leverkusen waited.

Leverkusen – the previous year’s finalists – proved no match for the Magpies, losing 3-1 twice in succession.

Newcastle couldn’t quite compete with Barcelona and Inter, however. The Catalonians beat them twice, while Inter smashed them 4-1 at St James’ Park. A 2-2 draw at San Siro provided an extra point, but Newcastle’s seven saw them out as the third-placed team.

Second group phase, Group A

Newcastle 1-4 Inter

Solano; Morfeo, Almeyda, Crespo, Recoba

Second group phase, Group A

Barcelona 3-1 Newcastle

Garcia, Kluivert, Motta; Ameobi

Second group phase, Group A

Bayer Leverkusen 1-3 Newcastle

Franca; Ameobi (2), Lua Lua

Second group phase, Group A

Newcastle 3-1 Bayer Leverkusen

Shearer (3); Babic

Second group phase, Group A

Inter 2-2 Newcastle

Vieri, Cordoba; Shearer (2)

Second group phase, Group A

Newcastle 0-2 Barcelona

Kluivert, Motta

Barcelona

6

5

1

0

12

2

+10

16

Inter

6

3

2

1

11

8

+3

11

Newcastle

6

2

1

3

10

13

-3

7

Bayer Leverkusen

6

0

0

6

5

15

-10

0

2003/04 – Third qualifying round

Unfortunately, this one ends on something of a sour note. Newcastle were back in the competition the following season and, once again, needed to win a qualifying match.

But they slipped up. Newcastle were able to pick up a 1-0 win away from home, and with the away goals rule in effect, seemed well-placed to snatch a group-stage berth. Unfortunately, the Serbians returned the favour, and then some – with Partizan winning on penalties.

Shearer was among four Newcastle players to miss in the shootout, which had remarkably gone to sudden death despite the home side missing their first three penalties.

Aaron Hughes missed the crucial penalty before Milivoje Cirkovic stepped up to break Toon hearts.

That dropped the Magpies down to the UEFA Cup, where they made it to the semi-finals. Beaten by eventual losing finalists Marseille, a double from a certain Didier Drogba ended the Toon’s European adventure that year.

That season marks the last time they competed under the Champions League banner. Of course, that will change come September.

Third qualifying round, 1st leg

Partizan 0-1 Newcastle

Solano

Third qualifying round, 2nd leg

Newcastle 0-1 Partizan (p)

Iliev

2023/24 – Group stage

Newcastle’s fourth-place finish in the 2022/23 Champions League handed them an automatic group stage berth, with Eddie Howe’s side placed in the ‘Group of Death’ alongside PSG, Milan and Borussia Dortmund.

Things started well with a commendable draw in Milan and a historic 4-1 win over PSG, but things unravelled from there as three defeats and a late equaliser denying them a win in Paris saw Newcastle finish bottom of the group.

Group F

Milan 0-0 Newcastle

None

Group F

Newcastle 4-1 PSG

Almiron, Burn, Longstaff, Schar; Hernandez

Group F

Newcastle 0-1 Borussia Dortmund

Nmecha

Group F

Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Newcastle

Fullkrug, Brandt

Group F

PSG 1-1 Newcastle

Mbappe; Isak

Group F

Newcastle 1-2 Milan

Joelinton; Pulisic, Chukwueze

Borussia Dortmund

6

3

2

1

7

4

+3

11

PSG

6

2

2

2

9

8

+1

8

Milan

6

2

2

2

5

8

-3

8

Newcastle

6

1

2

3

6

7

-1

5

Newcastle United's top scorers in the Champions League

Alan Shearer unsurprisingly leads the way in terms of goals at this level for Newcastle with seven, having spearheaded their incredible journey through the group stages back in 2002/03.

Faustino Asprilla has four to his name, while John Beresford and Shola Ameobi have three apiece, including one at Camp Nou for the latter.

There were six different scorers for each of Newcastle’s goals in the 2023/24 Champions League – will anyone be able to add to their tally in 2025/26?

Alan Shearer

7

Faustino Asprilla

4

John Beresford

3

Shola Ameobi

3

Kieron Dyer

2

Lomana Lua Lua

2

Hugo Viana

2

Craig Bellamy

2

Nolberto Solano

2

Temuri Ketsbaia

1

John Barnes

1

Stuart Pearce

1

Andy Griffin

1

Gary Speed

1

Miguel Almiron

1

Dan Burn

1

Sean Longstaff

1

Fabian Schar

1

Alexander Isak

1

Joelinton

1

West Ham United are beginning to spend the £105m that was raised via the sale of homegrown hero Declan Rice as David Moyes looks to strengthen his squad.

Edson Alvarez has already arrived in a £35.4m deal, while Moyes is eyeing up a move for Man United striker Antony Martial in a bid to improve his attacking options.

The Scot could even turn to Serie A before the end of the transfer window.

Who do West Ham want to sign?

According to reports in Italy, West Ham are keen on making a move for Lazar Samardzic before the window slams shut in just under two weeks.

Read the latest West Ham transfer news HERE…

Inter Milan are also keen on the Serbian starlet, as per the Calciomercato, and a move looked set to be completed, however, some extra demands were added at the 11th hour of negotiations and the move has stalled.

This could allow Moyes to swoop in and secure his signature in the coming days, beating the Italian giants to the youngster and it would represent a major statement of intent from the club.

Football Transfers currently value the player at £10m, making this move a potential bargain for the Londoners.

Who is Lazar Samardzic?

Although perhaps not as well known on these shores, the 21-year-old has been drawing plenty of praise during his spell at Udinese.

Journalist Bence Bocsak lauded him in April, saying: “7 out of Lazar Samardžić‘s last 10 goals were scored from outside the box.

“Blessed with an abundance of energy, excellent technique and great vision, he’s got the hallmarks of a top midfielder."

Further acclaim was given by Sacha Pisani, who said Samardzic had “ridiculous skill” and it appears, on the surface anyway, that he’d be an ideal signing for West Ham.

Indeed, the 6-foot livewire is also statistically similar to Arsenal talisman Martin Odegaard and judging by his recent form for the Gunners, turning them from European hopefuls to title challengers, it isn’t a bad comparison to have.

According to FBref, the Norwegian gem is the sixth-most similar player to Samardzic across Europe’s top leagues, suggesting he’d be an incredible addition to the West Ham side.

Last season saw the duo register similar statistics with regard to shots per 90 (2.44 to 2.68), pass success rate (80.1% to 80.3%), goal-creating actions per 90 (both 0.49) and tackles (33 to 36).

WhoScored also suggests that Samardzic and Odegaard excel at key passes and dribbling, as both pose a key threat from the midfield and aim to get forward as often as possible.

The Serbia international did register nine goal contributions last term, which was some way down on Odegaard’s total of 23 and suggests he still has work to do in order to become one of the very best, but it's a promising start nonetheless.

If given the freedom of the West Ham midfield, he could thrive in a similar vein to the Norwegian superstar and register double digits for goal contributions in the Premier League.

With Inter still in the hunt, Moyes will need to act swiftly to bring this deal over the line.

Rumesh Ratnayake, Sri Lanka’s bowling coach, has termed Suranga Lakmal’s spell of 6-6-0-3 as among the best he has seen “in a long time”. Lakmal’s relentless probing on a green Eden Gardens pitch and under overcast skies left India struggling at 17 for 3 at the end of a first day during which only 11.5 overs were bowled.”I would say it is one of the finest I have seen in a long time,” Ratnayake said. “I am not sure if it’s the best spell I have seen but one of the finest I have seen for a long, long time. Saying that, the wicket was very receptive, it was very helpful, and it’s going to be a big challenge [for Sri Lanka’s batsmen later on].”We were sort of expecting, looking at the wicket, we knew that it was going to seam. By saying that, the job isn’t finished. It’s only started, it’s just started.”Ratnayake admitted it was a good toss for Sri Lanka to have won, but he expected conditions to remain helpful to fast bowlers for a while longer.”Yeah, certainly a good toss to win, but I personally feel that it may last about one-and-a-half days or so, maybe more. We can’t play God here and say it will last for two-three days but I would say it will last at least for two days. But since it’s a new wicket, I believe it might be an extra day or two because there is a certain amount of grass. The surface is grassy.”Before they went out to bowl, Ratnayake said he stressed that the fast bowlers pitch the ball up.”As much as we push the batsmen back, it is very important that we keep it up because, as you may have seen, the movement or the vulnerability was more as the bowler pitched it up and also within the wicket. Our tactics on a normal wicket would be different, our tactics in this game are different. So it’s just keeping the ball up.”It was also important for the fast bowlers to make the batsmen play as much as possible; while Lakmal did this, his new-ball partner Lahiru Gamage struggled with his line, bowling too far outside off stump, though Ratnayake suggested he got better as his spell wore on.”Did you see the difference after the [stoppage due to bad light]?,” he said. “It was a matter of him getting his rhythm right and more importantly the timing also right.”So he was not having that right and when you get your rhythm and timing right, you get the place where you want to hit it in a much easier way for the body. As much as you need timing in batting, you need timing in bowling as well. If you rush through the delivery, the chances of you hitting the right place is not as great as when your timing is right.”India’s batting coach Sanjay Bangar, meanwhile, said his batsmen were tested not just by the conditions but also by the fact that there were so many interruptions in play. With the floodlights turned on right through, he felt it resembled a day-night Test.”The conditions were pretty tough for batting, and what didn’t really help us was that we didn’t get an extended passage of play, wherein you had 15-20 overs bowled at a batsman in a particular fashion,” Bangar said. “So that didn’t allow the batsmen to get into any sort of a rhythm.”It didn’t seem to be a day Test match. It was more like a day-night Test match and at times when you play in such circumstances, playing with the red ball becomes pretty tough because it’s more difficult to pick the red ball.”Given how much help there was for the quicks, there was a case for India to pick three fast bowlers and just the one spinner to enable them to play an extra batsman. India, however, picked three fast bowlers and two spinners.”This team management has believed in going in with five batsmen and the quality of the allrounders that we have – Ashwin, Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and also Wriddhiman Saha – we think that that gives a lot of depth in the lower order and it gives us a lot of bowling options as well to pick up 20 wickets in a Test match. That has really worked well for us,” Bangar said. “If you look at the last two-and-a-half seasons, we’ve won nearly 20 Test matches. So that’s mainly due to the team composition that we have opted to play.”The spinners, Bangar felt, would come into the game as it progressed, particularly if the pitch dried out and the dents caused by the ball’s impact on a damp surface hardened.”I think we’ve got all bases covered,” he said. “As the game progresses into the fourth and fifth days, you’ll also find that because of the dampness, there would be dents on the wickets. As the game progresses, there will be variable bounce which might come into play. So both the spinners are really vital to us and we’ve got all bases covered – we’ve got the swing and seam and the pace we require. We’ve got a variety of bowlers and we’ve got all bases covered.”Before that, however, India’s batsmen will need to put up some sort of total on the board.”Yes, you’ll have to grind out quite a bit because there are going to be a lot of balls which are going to beat the outside edge as well as the inside edge of the bat,” Bangar said. “We need to respect the conditions as a batsman and think about the next ball. If you start thinking or worrying about the amount of times you’re getting beaten, it plays on your mind.”The best mindset is to forget the previous ball and accept that you’re going to get beaten on a number of occasions. Probably, on such a wicket, you might not play really, really beautiful shots, but you’ll have to grind it out and take runs. So most of the runs might not be beautiful or elegant but those are equally important runs.”

USMNT captain Tyler Adams recalled the "hostile" press conference before their match against Iran at the 2022 World Cup in a new Netflix documentary.

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Adams reflects on "hostile" press conferenceUSMNT captain mispronounced Iran as "eye-ran"Featured on new Netflix documentaryWHAT HAPPENED?

In the recent Netflix documentary Adams reflected on the incident where he incorrectly pronounced the country's name as "eye-ran", causing a controversy prior to the match. Reports even surfaced labeling it as "discrimination".

AdvertisementGettyWHAT ADAMS SAID

Recalling the incident, Adams said: “As soon as I walked into that press conference, you could just tell immediately how hostile it was about to be.” However, the 24-year-old recognized the situation and understood where the journalist was coming from, mentioning how "super important" it was for him to be educated on the manner prior.

"When he asked me that, it wasn’t him attacking me, me attacking him, or going at him in any sense. We knew we were going to deal with a lot of things that had nothing to do with our performance.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The USA went on to win the match in the group stage against the Middle-Eastern side, with Christian Pulisic netting the winner in the 38th minute in a 1-0 victory. Although no true incidents followed or even proceeded the match, the two nation's history in politics caused a stir in the buildup. Adams did go on to apologize for his mispronunciation, however.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR ADAMS AND USMNT

The USMNT captain is still sidelined due to injury, but is on his way back, with a return to action on the cards in the coming months. He has yet to play a Premier League match for Bournemouth since signing there in the summer.

Gregg Berhalter and co. are back on January 20 when they host Slovenia in an international friendly.