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Stats highlights from the second Test between New Zealand and India, which ended in a high-scoring draw in Napier

S Rajesh30-Mar-2009Gautam Gambhir’s 643-minute innings is the seventh-longest by an Indian batsman•Associated Press

• India batted 180 overs in their second innings, which is the eighth-highest number of deliveries they’ve batted in the second try. The first six of those instances had all been before 1980, which indicates how the nature of the game has changed. The last time they batted more overs was also against New Zealand, in 1999 in Mohali, when they scored 505 for 3 in their second innings after being bundled out for 83 in their first. Surprisingly, seven of the top nine such efforts have happened overseas.
• It’s also the second-highest number of overs they’ve played when following on – the only occasion they batted longer was at Leeds in 1967 against England, when they faced 209.2 overs to score 510 in a match they ultimately lost by six wickets. Of the 30 games when India have been asked to follow on, they’ve saved eight, lost 21 and won one.
• India managed to draw a Test after conceding a lead of over 200 in the first innings for the tenth time. Overall, such a feat has been achieved on 78 occasions.
• For New Zealand, it was the first instance of not winning a Test after enforcing the follow-on at home. Before this match, they had a perfect 7-0 record in games in which the opposition followed on. Overall, of the 14 occasions they’ve asked teams to follow on, New Zealand have won ten and drawn four.
• Gautam Gambhir’s 436-ball 137 was easily the slowest of his 15 fifty-plus scores in Tests. His innings spanned 643 minutes, which is the seventh-longest by an Indian. (Click here for the entire list of longest Test innings in terms of minutes.)
• Gambhir’s knock is the slowest by an Indian, in terms of balls faced, for an innings of less than 150. His strike rate of 31.42 is still better than Sanjay Manjrekar’s strike rate of 24.64, when he scored 104 off 422 balls against Zimbabwe in Harare in 1992.
• There were 12 scores of 50 or more in this Test, which equals the record in New Zealand for most number of 50-plus scores in a match. The only previous occasion when this happened in New Zealand was also in a Test against India, in 1999 in Hamilton.
• This is the ninth drawn game among the last 25 when captains have enforced the follow-on. Eight of those games involved Zimbabwe or Bangladesh, all of which the minnows lost. Exclude them from the equation, and there have been nine draws out of the last 17 Tests which have involved the follow-on.
• VVS Laxman’s unbeaten 124 contained 25 fours, which is the highest by any batsman in an innings of 125 or less. Extend the filter to 150 runs, and still only six batsmen rank above him. Laxman’s century was also his first in New Zealand, and his second against them in six Tests.

Only Healy posed a challenge in Warriorz’s chase but spinners turned the match in RCB’s favour

Valkerie Baynes04-Mar-2024Was it a grimace or a grin that spread across Ellyse Perry’s face with the sound of smashing glass and screaming RCB fans ringing in her ears? A grin, surely, for she had just obliterated the window of a sponsor’s car with her fourth six of a remarkable innings which helped her side to a mammoth total and, ultimately, victory over UP Warriorz.Smriti Mandhana had already roughed up the Warriorz bowlers with her stunning 80 off 50 deliveries, her second half-century in three games, and Perry delivered the decisive blow with a 37-ball 58, the pair sharing a 95-run stand for the second wicket to set Warriorz a lofty victory target of 199.A determined 55 off 38 balls by Alyssa Healy gave Warriorz hope but it wasn’t enough as RCB held on to break a two-game losing streak in their last match at home in Bengaluru before the tournament moves to Delhi, giving Perry and her team plenty to smile about.Mandhana magic S Meghana moved up to open ahead of Sophie Devine and raced to 28 off 21 balls with five fours to complement Mandhana’s no-nonsense scoring. By the end of the powerplay, RCB were flying at 57 for 1, Meghana skying Anjali Sarvani to extra cover where Chamari Athapaththu stood waiting under a comfortable catch. Her departure signalled Perry’s arrival as Devine stayed in the dugout, RCB continuing to play with their batting order.Mandhana should have been out for 28 when she lofted Sophie Ecclestone down the ground but Athapaththu looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her up after she over-ran what should have been a straightforward catch. She sprinted in from long-off and then had to reach overhead but failed to hold on. Mandhana moved to 48 by advancing down the pitch and punching a Rajeshwari Gayakwad delivery over extra cover for a 75m six and she brought up her half-century off 34 balls swinging Grace Harris away through midwicket for a single. Perry chimed in with a maximum off Harris over wide long-on and Mandhana picked off three boundaries in one Athapaththu over followed by three more off Sarvani – plus one to Perry – leaving UP Warriorz looking bereft.An Ellyse Perry six ended up shattering the window of the sponsor’s car•BCCISmashing from PerryBy the time Mandhana holed out to deep midwicket off Deepti Sharma in the 17th over, she and Perry had done serious damage, with RCB cruising at 146 for 2. Gayakwad conceded 21 runs off the 18th over, chiefly through back-to-back sixes to Perry followed by another maximum, slog-swept by Richa Ghosh, who came in at No. 4. Perry raised her fifty off 34 balls charging at Deepti and smashing the ball back over the bowler’s head for four. But it was her heave over wide long-on two balls later off Deepti that was the highlight, leaving the ball to be fished from a mound of glass on the back seat of the promotional car and Warriorz with a mountain to climb. Perry fell in the final over, spooning an Ecclestone delivery to Poonam Khemnar at deep midwicket. Ghosh threaded the final ball of the innings through backward point for four as RCB finished just shy of the 200-mark.Warriorz come out fightingAfter a maiden from Renuka Singh to begin, Warriorz set off in keen pursuit, Healy smashing two sixes off Devine in the second over and Renuka conceding an eye-watering 24 off the next. Devine had Kiran Navgire caught by Georgia Wareham, running back from mid-on in the fifth over, but at the end of the powerplay, Warriorz were just one run behind where RCB had been at the same point in their innings. Healy greeted leg-spinner Wareham’s first ball with a slog sweep for six but she was left stunned when RCB removed Athapaththu on review. A wide-eyed Healy shouted, “no way” when ball-tracking showed the ball pitching in on leg stump and going on to hit middle stump halfway up, contrary to the expected path of a conventional leg-spinner.Harris was relaxed and smiling when she arrived to join Healy at the crease but Devine claimed her second wicket with a slower length ball which Harris looked to scoop, only to find Ghosh, who anticipated her shot and started moving to her left and leapt high in the air to claim an excellent catch. Undeterred, Healy helped herself to three consecutive fours off Wareham’s next over. But then Asha Sobhana, who had taken a five-for as RCB squeaked home by two runs in the first meeting of 2024 between these sides, struck with her third delivery of the match to remove Shweta Sehrawat cheaply. Healy brought up her fifty off 34 balls with four off Asha through midwicket but, no sooner had she nailed a reverse sweep off Sophie Molineux to the boundary than she was out, stumped by Ghosh off the next ball.Asha does it againNeeding 52 runs off the last four overs, Warriorz weren’t done battling as Deepti and Khemnar offered neat cameos in a 41-run stand for the sixth wicket. Both struck four fours and a six en route to 33 and 31 respectively but, in an attempt to reel in the target, Deepti came down the pitch to Asha and skewed the ball straight up. Asha and Ekta Bisht – the latter making her WPL debut at the age of 38 – both went for the catch and Asha managed to hold on, despite becoming entangled with her team-mate and going to ground. Wareham soon removed Ecclestone but Khemnar wouldn’t give up, ending the over with a four and a six. But, with 29 needed off the last, the task proved too much. Molineux bowled Khemnar with the final ball of the match as she, Asha, Wareham and Devine all finished with two wickets apiece.

Michael Salisbury has been stood down from VAR duty ahead of the biggest game of the Premier League season so far, with Liverpool hosting Arsenal.

PGMOL acknowledge refereeing mistakeFulham wrongly penalised by officialsGuilty VAR taken off Liverpool vs ArsenalFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Three hours before kick-off at Anfield between the reigning champions and last season's runners-up, it was confirmed that Salisbury would be taken off VAR duty for the Liverpool-Arsenal clash. John Brooks was swapped in as the late change to the officiating lineup based at Stockley Park.

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The change by refereeing body PGMOL came after Salisbury's VAR intervention during Saturday's west London derby between Chelsea and Fulham, which saw a goal for the latter disallowed at 0-0 midway through the first half. Chelsea eventually went on to win the game 2-0. Joshua King put the ball in the net for the Cottagers, but Salisbury flagged to on-field referee Robert Jones a potential foul in the build-up. The focus was on inconclusive or minimal contact between Rodrigo Muniz and Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah and the baffling decision was to disallow the goal. The Premier League's official Match Centre account on X labelled it a "careless" challenge from Muniz, standing on the foot of Chalobah, in justification.

DID YOU KNOW?

The Daily Mail's Mike Keegan reported that PGMOL "acknowledged" that it was a mistake to disallow the Fulham goal, with chief refereeing officer Howard Webb personally contacting the club about it.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

The Premier League and PGMOL will hope that Sunday's heavyweight clash at Anfield goes down without the focus being on questionable officiating. It could also be a little while before Salisbury, or indeed Jones, land their next high profile games.

MatériaMais Notícias

Palmeiras e Rio Preto-SP se enfrentam nesta segunda-feira (9), às 19h30, no Estádio Anísio Haddad, em São José do Rio Preto-SP, pela terceira e última rodada da fase de grupos da Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior. O duelo terá transmissão do SporTV.

Líder do Grupo 3 com seis pontos, o time comandado Paulo Victor Gomes garante a classificação à segunda fase da Copinha se empatar, além de assegurar a primeira colocação de sua chave.

> Veja a tabela do Campeonato Paulista 2023

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>Confira até quando vai o contrato dos jogadores do elenco do Palmeiras

O Verdão, que tem 100% de aproveitamento, venceu a Juazeirense-BA, por 2 a 0, e o América-SP, por 3 a 1. Já o adversário desta terceira rodada tem três pontos e precisa da vitória. O Rio Preto venceu o América-SP por 1 a 0 na primeira rodada e depois foi derrotado pela Juazeirense por 2 a 1.

O Palmeiras busca o bi. No ano passado, a equipe conquistou o título de forma inédita e invicta, goleando o Santos por 4 a 0 na final realizada no Allianz Parque – Endrick, Giovani e Gabriel Silva (duas vezes) balançaram a rede.

Regulamento

A primeira fase da Copinha conta com 128 equipes, que estão divididas em 32 grupos com quatro times cada. Os clubes se enfrentam em turno único dentro da própria chave, e os dois melhores classificados avançam para a segunda fase. Em seguida, a competição tem terceira fase, oitavas, quartas, semifinal e final, sendo que todas as partidas são realizadas em confronto único.

MS Dhoni had given feelers to Ruturaj Gaikwad about a possible captaincy switch during IPL 2023 itself. Those feelers came alive on the eve of Chennai Super Kings’ IPL 2024 opener against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday, when Dhoni officially relinquished his captaincy to Gaikwad.”Last year itself, Mahi bhai had hinted about captaincy at some point of time,” Gaikwad told IPLT20.com. “He just hinted that, ‘be ready, it shouldn’t be a surprise to you’. When we came into the camp, he involved me in some of the match simulation.”Prior to the season, Dhoni stoked fan-sentiment on social media by hinting about a “new role”. At the time, it was believed to be promotional campaign towards a broadcast sponsor. But on Thursday evening, it became evident that may have not been the case entirely.Related

• MS Dhoni hands over CSK captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad

• Dhoni stepping down as captain opens up tactical possibilities for CSK

• Dhoni's new role, Kohli's comeback in focus in IPL 2024 season opener

• Fleming on CSK captaincy change: 'We weren't ready for Dhoni to move aside in 2022, but the timing is right now'

• A season begins, an era ends, and life goes on for MS Dhoni

“I remember him posting about a new role on social media and everybody was pointing towards me and asking me, ‘are you the next captain?’. I was like, ‘maybe it meant something else for social media’. But back of the mind, it was there. He came and said, ‘I’ve decided this and this’, but definitely now that I’m here, I’m looking forward to this.”Gaikwad was first signed at base price [INR 20 lakh] prior to the 2019 season, where he didn’t get a game. In IPL 2020, Gaikwad had a tough initiation as he began with three ducks in a season where he also contracted covid. He returned towards the back end of the season and became the first uncapped Indian to hit three back-to-back half-centuries.Since then, he’s been an integral part of the group. In 2021, he formed a superb opening combination with Faf du Plessis as Super Kings won their fourth title. He ended the tournament with the Orange Cap for most runs [635 in 16 games], with du Plessis second on the list. After that tournament, Gaikwad had glowingly talked about the backing and encouragement he’d received from du Plessis.MS Dhoni with new CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad at a training session•PTI

“I just met Faf at the [captains’] meeting and said, ‘who would’ve thought a few years down the line, you are playing and leading RCB and me sharing the stage with you at the toss’,” Gaikwad said. “A lot to look forward to. It [opening game] is one of the most exciting first-day games to look forward to.”Dhoni had done something similar in 2022, when he handed the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja prior to the start of the season. The move backfired, and after Super Kings lost six of their first eight games, Dhoni took over the reins again. Super Kings finished ninth that season.The question of succession planning at Super Kings has been a hot topic of debate ever since, which even head coach Stephen Fleming touched upon at his pre-match press conference. This time around, he felt, the change will be a lot “smoother.””It feels great for two reasons,” Gaikwad said of his new role. “To be part of this wonderful franchise right from when my IPL journey started and then to be trusted by MS Dhoni for a leadership role speaks a lot. The challenge lies ahead and I’m looking forward to it.”I’ve got to know how the franchise works throughout the year, got to know their mantra, the reasons behind their success, what kind of things the franchise goes through, what Mahi bhai or the support staff do. I wouldn’t like to change a single bit of it.”He’s a great backbone to have on the field. I also have Ajju [Ajinkya Rahane] and Jaddu as well, a lot of options to look around. I don’t think I’ll need to change anything. Just give the kind of freedom the players want and everything will be fine.”

انضم نادي إنجليزي جديد إلى قائمة الأندية الراغبة في التعاقد مع جناح ريال مدريد رودريجو، في ظل الغموض الذي يحيط بمستقبل اللاعب داخل “سانتياجو برنابيو” هذا الصيف.

ويحظى الدولي البرازيلي باهتمام عدد من كبار الأندية الأوروبية، وسط توقعات بتراجع دوره في الموسم المقبل تحت قيادة المدرب المنتظر تشابي ألونسو.

وارتبط رودريجو بالفعل بالرحيل عن ريال مدريد مع اهتمام أندية إنجليزية مثل ليفربول وآرسنال بالتعاقد معه خلال انتقالات الصيف الحالية.

ووفقًا لصحيفة “آس” الإسبانية، بدأ نادي توتنهام خطوات فعلية في مفاوضاته، وطلب إذنًا من ريال مدريد للتحدث مع اللاعب، على أمل إقناعه بمشروع النادي تحت قيادة مدربه الجديد توماس فرانك.

اقرأ أيضًا | ثورة تحكيمية.. الاتحاد الإسباني يطبق نظام “VAR” جديد في موسم 2025-2026

ورغم إنفاق توتنهام ما يقرب من 150 مليون يورو هذا الصيف على صفقات بارزة، فإن الإدارة ترى في رودريجو عنصرًا مميزًا لتعزيز الجانب الهجومي.

ولكن العقبة الأساسية تبقى في المطالب المالية، إذ يتمسك ريال مدريد بالحصول على 90 مليون يورو للتخلي عن رودريجو.

ويأتي ذلك في الوقت الذي لا يرغب النادي الإنجليزي في دفع هذا المبلغ كاملًا إلى جانب راتبه السنوي الذي يقدّر بـ10 ملايين يورو، مما يجعل التفاوض مع رودريجو لتخفيض راتبه أمرًا حاسمًا لحسم الصفقة.

MatériaMais Notícias

Fausto Vera ainda não completou seis meses no Brasil, mas o argentino joga como se fosse um dos atletas com mais tempo no Corinthians. Peça fundamental no meio-campo de Vítor Pereira, o atleta de 22 anos vem comandando o setor na reta final da temporada.

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+ Balbuena assume o quarto lugar! Veja os defensores do Corinthians com mais gols na Arena

Segundo dados do SofaScore, Fausto lidera o Timão no segundo turno do Brasileirão em passes certos (338), bolas longas certas (24), bolas recuperadas (63) e desarmes (24).

– Estou me adaptando aos poucos. Sempre temos coisas para melhorar, trato de ajudar meus companheiros e escutar bastante quando me aconselham – disse Fausto na zona mista após a vitória corintiana por 3 a 0 sobre o Atlético-GO.

Desde que estreou pelo Corinthians no dia 27 de julho, na derrota por 2 a 0 diante do Dragão, pela Copa do Brasil, Fausto Vera participou de todos os compromissos da equipe, seja iniciando como titular ou entrando como reserva. Ao todo, o argentino soma 998 minutos jogados pelo clube alvinegro.

+ Veja tabela e simule as próximas rodadas do Brasileirão

Com Maycon na transição física, a tendência é que ele seja utilizado por Vítor Pereira no confronto deste sábado (1), contra o Cuiabá, pela 29 rodada do Brasileirão, podendo repetir parceira com Du Queiroz no setor. A dupla vem ganhando entrosamento e a confiança do treinador corintiano.

-Estamos jogando juntos há várias partidas. Mas com o companheiro que jogar, trato de fazer o meu melhor. É seguir trabalhando e pensar em somar mais três pontos na partida de sábado – ponderou Fausto Vera.

Vale destacar que o investimento feito pelo clube alvinegro no meia argentino (4,5 milhões de dólares a ser pago em três parcelas até o fim do ano que vem, mais 4 milhões de dólares por cumprimento de metas e custos da operação) foi o maior da atual administração corintiana.

Celtic supporters are rather enjoying this season, albeit Sunday’s derby defeat for Brendan Rodgers’s men has rather seen them come crashing back down to earth.

Kicking off a humongous 16 points clear of fierce rivals Rangers, the vast majority of those inside Parkhead were ready to party.

Well, there certainly wasn’t a party mood come half-time, given that goals from Nicolas Raskin and then Mohamed Diomandé had given Rangers a shock 2-0 lead.

However, after the break, quick-fire goals from Daizen Maeda and then Reo Hatate got Celtic back on level terms, threatening a full-scale comeback, only for some calamitous defending to allow Hamza Igamane to snatch a famous victory for the visitors.

In the context of the title race, given that there isn’t one, this defeat matters very little, but it’s still a damaging day for Rodgers, so does he and the Celtic hierarchy regret selling an under-utilised star who could’ve made all the difference?

Why Callum McGregor's Old Firm absence was important

Ahead of Sunday’s Glasgow derby, it came to light that Celtic captain Callum McGregor was a doubt due to a ‘calf injury’ suffered during the Scottish Cup victory over Hibernian a week earlier.

McGregor himself admitted he’d been doing “individual work with the physios”, unable to take part in full training, but was optimistic he’d be fit to feature.

Well, perhaps he was fibbing all along because, when the team news was released at 11:15am on Sunday, McGregor’s name was nowhere to be seen, with Rodgers revealing that his calf had “just tightened up” during training the day before, adding he “didn’t want to take a risk”.

After the match, Rodgers said, during his Sky Sports interview with Luke Shanley, that there’s “no doubt” his team missed McGregor, struggling to cope without his “tactical balance”, forced to “shift a couple of things around” in an attempt to fill his void.

Kieran Devlin of the Athletic believes that McGregor’s ‘leadership’ and ‘quality’ mean he is Celtic’s ‘most important player’, and this assertion was certainly supported by how the Scottish Premiership champions played in his absence.

Of course, replacing a player of his stature is never going to be easy, but did the Celts sell their most natural McGregor deputy for just £830,000?

Celtic's ideal McGregor deputy now starring elsewhere

Tomoki Iwata arrived at Celtic in January 2023, initially on loan but with an obligation to buy of just £838,000, thereby reuniting with Ange Postecoglou, who’d been his boss at Yokohama F. Marinos.

Due to Postecoglou’s previous work in the J League, this was part of Celtic’s Japanese influx at the time; Kyōgo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi were already at Parkhead, while Yūki Kobayashi joined at the same time as Iwata.

Upon his arrival in Glasgow, writer and analyst Stewart Ross described Iwata as ‘quality’ in possession, while Postecoglou labeled him “really committed… with some great attributes”, adding he was “very deserving” to have been named J League player of the season for 2022.

However, Iwata was given very limited opportunities, 24 of his 42 appearances coming as a substitute, totaling fewer than 2,000 minutes, unable to establish himself as a regular under either Postecoglou or Rodgers, largely due to McGregor’s undroppable status.

Thus, few eyebrows were raised, nor questions asked when, last summer, the 27-year-old was sold to Birmingham City for around £830,000, the club thereby essentially making their money back, albeit his performances in the English Midlands may have changed a few minds.

His current manager Chris Davies praised the midfielder for being “intelligent”, adding that “he’s quick across the ground and… sees the game really well”, with the Japan international a key cog in the Blues side currently 12 points clear at the top of EFL League One, having made 36 appearances across all competitions so far.

Meantime, fan pundit Mike Gibbs told Football League World that Iwata’s performances have been ‘absolutely outstanding’, going one further by exclaiming that he has been the Blues’ ‘best player’.

Iwata then garnered wider public attention with this astonishing long-range rocket against Newcastle in the FA Cup, described by Rob Smyth of the Guardian as a ‘monstrous’ strike.

So, let’s assess how Iwata and McGregor compare this season.

Appearances

44

36

Minutes

3,786

2,997

Goals

9

7

Assists

1

2

Interceptions (per 90)

0.6

0.9

Tackles (per 90)

1.1

1.3

% of ground duels won

58.3%

47.9%

Average Sofascore rating

7.43

7.06

As the table outlines, stylistically, McGregor and Iwata are very similar, with the Japanese international actually coming out on top when it comes to interceptions and tackles, on a per-90 basis.

So, while selling Iwata, who Transfermarkt believe has almost doubled in value this season, may not be a season-defining mistake, he certainly would’ve improved Celtic’s chances of a victory in Sunday’s Old Firm.

Worse than Schlupp: 4/10 dud had his worst game in a Celtic shirt

The Celtic defender was even worse than Crystal Palace loanee Jeffrey Schlupp.

ByDan Emery Mar 17, 2025

Arsenal are now racing to sign an “exciting” £21m player in the summer transfer window, alongside a number of their Premier League rivals, according to a report.

Gunners gearing up for busy summer

As we approach the business end of the Premier League season, it is looking increasingly likely that Mikel Arteta’s side will finish in second place for the third season on the spin, with injury issues doing the manager absolutely no favours.

With that in mind, Arteta has set out to bring in more depth in the summer transfer window, and one position in which he is currently lacking options is striker, with the likes of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres being targeted to fill the gap.

Bukayo Saka’s absence has also exposed the need to bring in new wide options, and the Gunners are now racing to sign Ademola Lookman, while Bruno Guimaraes and Martin Zubimendi are among the targets in central midfield.

Arsenal could now look to hijack Man City move for "world-class" £54m star

The Gunners have joined their Premier League rivals in the race for a defender.

ByDominic Lund Mar 25, 2025

One position which may be viewed as less of a priority is goalkeeper, but with Neto set to return to AFC Bournemouth at the end of the campaign, Arteta may be tasked with bringing in a new back-up option between the sticks.

According to a report from Caught Offside, Arsenal are now racing a number of their Premier League rivals for Royal Antwerp goalkeeper Senne Lammens, with the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City and Newcastle United also in the picture.

Lammens has caught the eye this season, given his impressive distribution of the ball and presence in the penalty area, with Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain also placing him on their shortlist.

Amid the widespread interest in the goalkeeper, Antwerp believe they can hold out for a fee of around €20m – €25m (£17m – £21m).

"Exciting" Lammens is one for the future

There is currently little reason to replace David Raya, who is in the prime of his career at 29-years-old, however there are signs the Antwerp goalkeeper could be capable of being a solid long-term replacement.

Freelance scout Ben Mattinson has spoken particularly highly of the Belgian, having been impressed by his ability to stop crosses and distribute the ball.

Football talent scout Jacek Kulig has also described the 6 foot 4 colossus as “exciting”, and that is definitely how you would describe his last-gasp goal for Club Brugge to progress against Real Madrid in the UEFA Youth League.

Signing a new goalkeeper shouldn’t be a priority for Arsenal this summer, given that any new signing is unlikely to displace Raya in the starting XI, but Lammens could definitely be one for the future.

Manchester City’s last chance to end this season with a trophy is the FA Cup after they were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid.

The Cityzens are 20 points behind Liverpool in the Premier League table and failed to reach the final of the League Cup, which means that they have to win the FA Cup to avoid a trophyless campaign.

Pep Guardiola’s side, who beat Leyton Orient in the previous round, are set to play host to Championship strugglers Plymouth Argyle at The Etihad this evening.

City must avoid following in Liverpool’s footsteps, by being knocked out by the second tier outfit, and should ruthlessly ditch Savinho from the starting XI to do so.

Why Savinho should be dropped

The 20-year-old star has only scored two goals in 36 appearances in all competitions for the club this season, and has not contributed with a goal or an assist in his two FA Cup outings.

Savinho also struggled in the club’s last outing against Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Wednesday night and should be dropped as a result of that showing.

Minutes

89

Key passes

0

Big chances created

0

Shots

6

Big chances missed

1

Goals

0

As you can see in the table above, the Brazil international was incredibly wasteful in front of goal, failing to score with any of his six shots, and missed a huge chance when he fired an unchallenged shot over from Jeremy Doku’s cross along the box.

The former Girona star also failed to create a single chance for his teammates in his 89 minutes on the pitch, which shows that he struggled badly up against Destiny Udogie.

Chalkboard

Guardiola must, now, ditch the young gem from the starting line-up for this clash with Plymouth in order to unleash Phil Foden from the start on the right flank.

Why Phil Foden should start

The England international, who has one assist in two FA Cup games this season, has scored ten goals and provided five assists in all competitions this season for the Cityzens so far.

Whilst he has failed to hit the heights of last season, when the forward racked up 27 goals and 12 assists for City, the left-footed star has still offered a big threat at the top end of the pitch.

Foden, who former England U21 boss Aidy Boothroyd claimed wriggles out of challenges “like a little eel”, has scored eight more goals than Savinho in all competitions, which suggests that he could offer more in front of goal than the Brazilian this evening.

The 24-year-old sensation has also created seven ‘big chances’ and racked up 5.02 xA in the Premier League, but has only been rewarded with two assists. For context as to how unfortunate that is, Liverpool’s Mo Salah has 6.79 xA – less than two expected assists more – and has 17 assists to his name for the Reds.

He has been let down by wasteful finishing from his teammates but that should not take away from what the midfielder can provide on the pitch, as his statistics show that Foden can score goals and create high-quality chances on a regular basis.

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Therefore, Guardiola could improve his team’s chances of avoiding an upset against Plymouth by dropping Savinho to the bench and unleashing the City academy graduate from the start.