All posts by h716a5.icu

Having joined Celtic in what was a £4.5m deal back in the summer of 2020, the general opinion at Parkhead was that the Bhoys had signed their number one goalkeeper for, at the very least, the length of the 27-year-old’s four-year contract.

Indeed, upon Vasilis Barkas’ arrival in Glasgow, The Athletic’s Celtic correspondent, Kieran Devlin, wrote an article suggesting that the Greece international was the solution to Celtic’s goalkeeping crisis, with the journalist dubbing the shot-stopper “calm, commanding, tall – a complete keeper.”

Devlin was not the only person who appeared convinced of the £20k-per-week man’s ability, with Antonis Oikonomidis stating that Barkas’ best traits are “his flexibility and his calmness.”

The Greek journalist continued: “He’s quick to save with his hands, and knows how to save with his feet, how to catch crosses and corners, how to command his defence. He’s strong, he’s tall [6ft5], he’s a good all-round keeper – a complete keeper.

“But his calmness is his best quality, how stressful the occasion doesn’t matter and he is always very calm. He knows how to handle pressure. He never looks worried even in big games.”

However, after making just 23 appearances in all competitions for Celtic to date, only one of which has come under the management of Ange Postecoglou this season, recent reports have suggested that the Hoops are ready to cut their losses on the shot-stopper, with a January departure looking increasingly likely for the 27-year-old.

It is not difficult to see why Postecoglou is looking to move the £2.52m-rated ‘keeper on, as, over his 15 appearances that came in the Scottish Premiership last season, Barkas made just one save and conceded 0.7 goals on average per fixture – with these returns seeing him earn a seasonal SofaScore rating of just 6.79, ranking him as the club’s joint ninth-worst performer in the league.

And, with summer signing Joe Hart now being Celtic’s undisputed number one, the club’s nightmare regarding Barkas’ signing has only been highlighted further, with it appearing incredibly unlikely that the Hoops will recoup their £4.5m outlay, or even his current Transfermarkt value, upon his potential sale this winter.

However, when taking into account the player who Tam McManus dubbed as “horrendous” has also cost Celtic around £1.4m in wages since his arrival at the club – bringing the total amount of money spent on the shot-stopper to a whopping £5.9m – it would very much appear a good idea to get the 27-year-old’s wages off of the club’s books in January, even if it means giving him away for peanuts.

In other news: Celtic handed major boost ahead of Bayer Leverkusen clash, Postecoglou will be buzzing

Giovanni van Bronckhorst continued his perfect start to life at Rangers with a 3-1 win in the Premiership on Sunday.

The Gers swept Livingston away in what ended up being a fairly comfortable victory, despite some nervous moments in the first half.

Allan McGregor was forced into a couple of terrific saves, but goals from Joe Aribo, Scott Arfield and Fashion Sakala ensured that they came away with the three points.

Forget Tavernier

Whilst James Tavernier may grab the headlines with two assists from right-back, perhaps the real star of the show for the Gers was Alfredo Morelos.

The Colombian bulldozer led the line brilliantly and was crucial to everything Rangers tried to do going forward with his work rate and movement up front. He was constantly harassing the Livingston defenders and trying to hold the ball up, whilst making runs off the ball to create space for the likes of Ianis Hagi, Aribo and Scott Arfield to run through.

Arfield’s goal to open the scoring came from him sprinting through the middle of the pitch after Morelos dragged a centre-back over to the far side. This highlights how much of an impact he can have without even touching the ball in the move.

However, the 25-year-old also made his mark in possession. As per SofaScore, he created an impressive four chances for his teammates throughout the game, whilst completing 81% of his passes and managing one shot on target. One of the opportunities that he created led to Aribo firing them 2-0 up, with his clever first-time pass finding the ex-Charlton man in the box to sweep it into the top corner.

He also put in a shift defensively. As per SofaScore, Morelos won five duels, including four of his seven on the ground, and completed two tackles for Van Bronckhorst’s side. This shows that he was willing to put in the hard yards for his team to win possession back and hold his own against Livingston.

Therefore, he was able to piece together a complete performance by making an impact at both ends of the pitch, which is why he was the real star of the show for Rangers. The Gers’ number 20 may not have managed to get himself on the scoresheet, but he was still crucial to their play and led the line superbly today.

AND in other news, 35 G/A: Rangers secured dream £4m deal for “outstanding talent”, he’s a match-winner…

James Smith and Michael Klinger helped deliver first-innings points for South Australia but the Redbacks will be hoping to push on for an outright win with two days to play

Cricinfo staff09-Feb-2010
ScorecardJames Smith top scored for South Australia with 78•Getty ImagesJames Smith and Michael Klinger helped deliver first-innings points for South Australia but the Redbacks will be hoping to push on for an outright win with two days to play. Queensland and Victoria are well clear at the top of the Sheffield Shield table, which should encourage both the Redbacks and Western Australia to aim for a result.The first part of the points allocation was settled when Aaron O’Brien and Daniel Christian, the sixth-wicket pair, guided South Australia past the Warriors’ 284 late on the second day. At the close, the Redbacks had 5 for 309 and their advantage had grown to 25 runs with O’Brien unbeaten on 46 and Christian on 27.South Australia began the day at 1 for 19 but any thoughts from the Warriors of running through the visitors vanished thanks to a 151-run stand from Smith and Klinger. Brad Knowles eventually removed both men; Klinger played on for 74 from 189 balls and Smith was caught at mid-on for an equally patient 78.But Western Australia couldn’t get the run of wickets that they needed and handy contributions from Cameron Borgas (39) and Tom Cooper (26) helped them edge closer to the lead. The home team’s two key fast men, Steve Magoffin and Ashley Noffke, went wicketless while Knowles and Michael Hogan grabbed two each.

A report commissioned by the players’ unions in England, Australia and South Africa has said that the recent terror threats are credible and that security cannot be guaranteed in India

Cricinfo staff21-Feb-2010A report commissioned by the players’ unions in England, Australia and South Africa and written by the England team’s security adviser Reg Dickason has said that the recent threat from the 313 Brigade, Al-Qaeda’s operational arm in Pakistan, is credible and that security cannot be guaranteed in India, according to newspaper reports in England and Australia. The assessment has apparently already been passed on to the players’ unions and the cricketers concerned have been informed of its contents.England are currently headed to Bangladesh for a full series after contesting a short two-match Twenty20 series against Pakistan in the UAE. The England players signed up for the IPL are Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Owais Shah, Ravi Bapora, Dimitri Mascarenhas, and Graham Napier. Collingwood, England’s Twenty20 captain, and Pietersen are expected to join the IPL only on March 24 but the rest are due to play the entire tournament.”I am aware of the reported security risks and am in constant communication with Delhi Daredevils,” said Collingwood, who till then had not seen the report. “I will make a decision once I have had a chance to review all the available information and talk to the relevant people.”A report in the said no final decision had been taken yet by the Australian Cricketers’ Association on what advice to give the country’s large contingent of players who have signed up with the IPL. ”We’re not in a position to talk about it right now,” Paul Marsh, the ACA’s chief executive, told the paper. ”I’ve just received it and I’m working my way through it.”Security fears regarding the IPL intensified after a string of statements warning countries not to send its representatives to major sports events being staged in India, including the IPL. Tim May, the chief executive of FICA, the international players’ union, has warned of a spate of player withdrawals from the IPL due to security concerns over playing in India.May’s statements came on a day the Jaipur police said they had received intelligence inputs of a terrorist threat relating to the one-day international in the city between India and South Africa on Sunday. This followed other reported threats targeting the Commonwealth Games and the Hockey World Cup, both due to be hosted in India this year. Earlier, the Shiv Sena, a right-wing regional political party, had claimed it would not allow Australian cricketers to participate in the competition as a protest against attacks on Indian students in Australia.

Alasdair Gold has reported that Steven Bergwijn seems to have picked up an injury after a ‘tough tackle’ from Brandon Williams during Tottenham’s win over Norwich.

The Lowdown: Lengthy injuries

Tottenham have encountered some lengthy injuries during the start of the 2021/22 campaign. Recent arrival Cristian Romero has been out of action since the middle of November, missing a total of five matches so far after suffering a hamstring injury.

Before Spurs’ 2-0 victory over Brentford, manager Antonio Conte said that “the injury is serious” and that the defensive colossus is finished for the calendar year.

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Giovani Lo Celso has also been unavailable for nearly three weeks after suffering a knee injury. The Argentine midfielder has missed 46 games due to injury since arriving on loan from Real Betis in 2019 and joining permanently in 2020.

Emerson Royal also missed the last game against Norwich due to an unknown injury.

The Latest: Bergwijn out injured

Taking to Twitter, Alasdair Gold has reported that Tottenham will have to deal with another injury following a tackle on the  “incredible” Dutch attacker Bergwijn.

“Steven Bergwijn looks to have picked up an injury after a tough tackle on him during one recent attack. He’s hobbling around a bit.”

The Verdict: Big blow for Conte

Gold has previously claimed that the Spurs winger is an important player for the squad as he is able to put in an “incredible amount of work”, allowing the likes of Lucas Moura, Harry Kane and Son Heung-min to flourish thanks to his “dirty work”.

Manager Conte has also been full of praise for the Dutchman recently, saying that Bergwijn “has a lot of quality” and that he is “counting on him”. This injury news is clearly a blow to the Italian’s squad depth, as he had been hoping to utilise his versatility across “the three positions up front”.

Thus, this could be a major setback for Spurs if the damage turns out to be serious; they currently lack the attacking output that Bergwijn can provide – he contributes a shot and 0.6 key passes per game.

West Bromwich Albion have been handed a huge fitness setback ahead of their upcoming Championship clash.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a Joseph Masi report for the Express & Star, with the journalist revealing that West Brom will be without all four of Cedric Kipre, Semi Ajayi, Matt Clarke and Conor Townsend for the trip to Barnsley on Friday evening.

Masi goes on to state that all four defenders recently tested positive for the ongoing viral pandemic, and, although two of the four will end their isolation period on the day of the fixture, none of the quartet are expected to feature at Oakwell.

Ismael will be livid

While it is no fault of the players, the fact that four of his first-team defenders are unavailable for selection on Friday will nevertheless have left Valerien Ismael livid.

The loss of both Townsend and Clarke will come as a huge blow to the 46-year-old Albion manager, as the defensive duo have been two of the Baggies’ most impressive performers so far this season.

Indeed, over his 21 Championship appearances this term, the £2.25m-rated Townsend has helped his side keep eight clean sheets, registered two assists and created seven big chances for his teammates, as well as averaging a SofaScore match rating of 7.10.

Meanwhile, over his own 13 second-tier outings, Brighton & Hove Albion loanee Clarke has helped West Brom keep four clean sheets, in addition to averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.92.

As such, being without the pair for the trip to Barnsley on Friday evening, in addition to missing both Kipre and Ajayi, will undoubtedly reduce Albion’s chance of picking up all three points from the fixture – something that could well see the Baggies fall further behind in the race for a top-two finish this season.

In other news: Alan Nixon drops teasing 8-word West Brom transfer claim that’ll have fans buzzing

The ECB will experiment with two-innings one-day matches in their Second XI competition this season

Cricinfo staff25-Mar-2010The ECB will experiment with two-innings one-day matches in their Second XI competition this season. The 40-over matches will be split into two 20-over innings, with the second starting from the point the first innings finished.There will be 20 overs of Powerplays of which 10 will be at the start of the first innings and the other 10 split into blocks of five, one to be taken by the fielding team and one by the batting side as is the case in one-day internationals.The idea of splitting one-day innings into two halves has been suggested as a way of livening up ODIs, although it is a method that has been experimented with before without gaining much support. For example, on England’s tour of Australia in 1994-95 they played a two-innings one-day match against Western Australia at Perth.The tournament will also continue with the experiment of using pink balls to assess how the balls perform in English conditions, while the players will wear whites instead of coloured clothing to see how the two work together.MCC play Durham in Abu Dhabi next week also using the pink balls but that match will be under floodlights.

Calling Newcastle United’s 2021 a rollercoaster of emotions would be underplaying the 12 months the club has gone through this year.

From achieving survival in the Premier League thanks to Joe Willock’s sublime form on loan from Arsenal last season under Steve Bruce to PIF taking over from Mike Ashley and Eddie Howe becoming the new manager, Magpies fans have had a lot to deal with.

Newcastle are currently 19th in the Premier League table and appear on course to head down to the Championship next year, although the January transfer window is on the way and the prospect of PIF splashing the cash may be one that excites the fans.

It remains to be seen what will happen in the market next month or whether or not they will avoid the drop down to the second division, so why don’t we focus on what has already happened?

Take our huge, bumper, Newcastle quiz of 2021 and see if you can get 100% – only real fans will!

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has issued a statement regarding Raqibul Hasan’s emotional decision to retire from international cricket

Cricinfo staff11-Mar-2010The Bangladesh Cricket Board has issued a statement regarding Raqibul Hasan’s emotional decision to retire from international cricket on the eve of the first Test against England, explaining that “the abrupt nature of this announcement has come as a shock to everyone concerned as this was totally unexpected.”It is thought that the root of Raqibul’s anger lies in an apparent disagreement between the board and the selectors over his recall for the England Test series, and in his omission from Bangladesh’s provisional squad for the World Twenty20. Cricinfo understands that the recommendation from above had been that Raqibul should be dropped for the Tests along with Mohammad Ashraful, whose form has deserted him in recent months.Bangladesh’s coach, Jamie Siddons, criticised the decision to leave Raqibul out of the Twenty20 squad, but highlighted his hopes for reconciliation between the board and the young batsman. “I don’t know who he was trying to hurt or what point he was trying to prove, but I hope the BCB welcomes him back because he’s a kid who’s a bit confused,” he said.”He didn’t like being dropped in the way he was dropped, then missing out on the 30 probables for the World Cup Twenty20 squad, which was probably bad selection, and he’s really disappointed,” Siddons added. “He thought he’d proved his point that he was good enough to be in that 30, which I think he is and then he walked away.”In a response to suggestions that selection disagreements were to blame, the BCB countered: “We take this opportunity to reiterate once again that selection of Test, ODI and Twenty20 Teams is based purely on performance and merit and is done at the discretion of the National Selection Committee which has its own criteria for picking players. Therefore, there is no scope for emotion in this regard.”The Board understands that this was a unilateral decision on part of the player but also feels that it was rather premature,” the statement continued. “We certainly do not wish to see a young talented cricketer like Raqibul leaving the game so early and hope that he will reconsider his position. Raqibul is an important member of the Bangladesh national team and it is our sincere expectation that he will return to mainstream cricket at the earliest.”

With 14 points on the board, Mumbai Indians need just one more win from their five remaining matches to progress to the semi-finals

The Preview by Jamie Alter09-Apr-2010Match factsFriday, April 9
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard haven’t had a major impact on Mumbai’s campaign•Indian Premier LeagueBig pictureThe fortunes of these two teams could not be any different. With 14 points on the board, Mumbai Indians need just one more win from their five remaining matches to progress to the semi-finals. Kings XI Punjab, at the bottom of the points table, are all but out of contention for a final-four spot.With all their departments firing – that collapse against Chennai was an aberration – and comfortably perched at the top of the table, Mumbai have no real concerns. A win against Punjab will guarantee a spot in the final four and with it an opportunity to give some of their players a rest from the remaining league games. Three of those are against teams in the top four, as well as a resurgent Kolkata Knight Riders, so sealing vital points against Punjab is imperative.For a team that is yet to prove it can compete against the top sides, three of Punjab’s remaining games are against the most formidable outfits of the tournament – Mumbai, Delhi Daredevils and Chennai Super Kings. Punjab have been the worst fielding side, the batting has been inconsistent, and their problems have been exacerbated by the failure of their bowlers, who have taken just four wickets in the last two matches. Despite trying several combinations, Punjab’s woes have continued and their only incentive to win is to boost their chances of avoiding the wooden spoon.Form guide (most recent first)Kings XI Punjab LWLLL
Mumbai Indians LWWWWTeam talkWith R Sathish having little impact, his omission could be one of the changes in Mumbai’s XI. The man to step in could be Abhishek Nayar or Aditya Tare, the team’s primary wicketkeeper. Ambati Rayudu, in that role, has had trouble keeping to genuine fast bowlers. Zaheer Khan, who was rested against Chennai as a precautionary measure because of a swollen knee, is likely to return, as is Sachin Tendulkar, who suffered from dehydration in Chennai.Punjab have been chopping and changing their XI regularly but the results haven’t been significant. Juan Theron and Sreesanth were drafted back in for the last game but both bled runs, so Brett Lee could get another look-in despite his inability to manage a wicket in three games. Shaun Marsh is fit for selection and he could replace Ravi Bopara.Previously…Punjab 3 Mumbai 2
In 2008, Punjab won the first ever encounter between the two teams by 66 runs and then clinched a thriller in Mumbai by one run. In their first meeting last year , in Durban, Yusuf Abdulla helped Punjab win a last-over thriller. Mumbai then fought back with an easy eight-wicket win in Centurion. In 2010, Mumbai won a close match at home.In the spotlightSachin Tendulkar has spoilt the Mumbai crowd with his spectacular batting and the PCA Stadium will expect nothing else.Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard: The West Indian stars were disasters with the bat during the loss against Chennai when a lot was expected of them. Bravo is a floater in the batting line-up but so far it seems he’s in the team primarily for his bowling. Pollard’s place in the line-up also hasn’t been settled but there’s a concern he’s being kept too low down. Against a side completely shorn of confidence, it may not be a bad idea to push this pair up and get their mojo going.Piyush Chawla: Just why he has been picked to go to the West Indies as part of India’s World Twenty20 squad is lost on many, because Chawla only has five wickets from ten games as compared to the 14 Delhi’s Amit Mishra has from as many outings at a far better economy and strike-rate. Chawla came in for heavy praise after the first IPL from Kumar Sangakkara but this season he’s not even been remotely dangerous.Prime Numbers The fact that Irfan Pathan (204) has outscored both Kumar Sangakkara (183) and Yuvraj Singh (198) this season highlights their lack of contributions to the team.Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Lasith Malinga are all tied on 11 wickets – leaving them joint No. 4 on the list of highest wicket-takers.