سيد عبد الحفيظ: الأهلي يحتاج تدعيمات قوية في يناير.. والدوري يتحقق بشيئين

تحدث سيد عبد الحفيظ مدير الكرة للفريق الأول بالنادي الأهلي عن الفوز الذي حققه المارد الأحمر على نظيره بيراميدز مساء اليوم الإثنين.

وكان الأهلي قد فاز على بيراميدز بثلاثية نظيفة في مباراة الجولة الـ 11 من عمر الدوري المصري الممتاز.

وقال عبد الحفيظ في تصريحات تلفزيونية بفضائية “أون تايم سبورتس”: “هي مباراة من ضمن 34 أسبوعًا، وأقول ونحن فائزون نحن نحتاج للاعبين تزيد من قوة الفريق”.

فرج عامر يعلن اقتراب سموحة من ضم ثنائي الأهلي

وأضاف: “الدوري يتحقق بشيئين، لاعبين جيدين وأجواء إيجابية، وبمناسبة الأجواء لا يوجد فريق في العالم يفوز بـ 34 مباراة”.

وتابع: “قلنا للاعبين بعد مباراة سيراميكا، انسوا تلك المواجهة وحتى بعد فوز اليوم قلنا لهم انسوها فورًا”.

وأردف: “واجهنا فريقًا كبيرًا وطبيعي أن يكون لدينا تنوع في تسجيل الأهداف، هذه كرة القدم ونحتاج في يناير لتدعيمات نحتاج لعدد كبير من اللاعبين لتحمل ضغط المباريات”.

كولر: استاد القاهرة الأفضل في مصر.. وهذا سبب تبديل شادي حسين أمام بيراميدز

واستكمل: “الأمر الثاني بمناسبة الأجواء يوجد الكثير من الانتقادات والحديث عن السلبيات باستمرار، وأظن أن التعادل في وسط الانتصارات أمر طبيعي”.

وأتم: “لا نشكك في أي لاعب لدينا وكل اللاعبين على مستوى عال، وسنتأكد من إصابة كريم فؤاد غدًا”.

واختتم: “نحن نلعب دوري مضغوط ونحتاج للاعبين كثيرين وسنتعاقد معهم في انتقالات يناير”.

لوريس بعد خسارة نهائي كأس العالم أمام الأرجنتين: نهاية مؤلمة لقصتنا

علّق هوجو لوريس، حارس مرمى منتنخب فرنسا، على خسارتهم نهائي كأس العالم قطر 2022 أمام الأرجنتين.

وفاز منتخب الأرجنتين ببطولة كأس العالم، في نسخته الثانية والعشرين، بعدما انتصر على فرنسا بركلات الترجيح بنتيجة 4-2.

وكان الوقت الأصلي من المباراة قد انتهى بالتعادل الإيجابي بين المنتخبين بنتيجة 2-2، ثم سيطر التعادل من جديد على الأشواط الإضافية بنتيجة 3-3، قبل الاحتكام إلى ركلات الترجيح.

وقال لوريس في تصريحات بعد المباراة: “إنها قصة مؤلمة، على أي حال تنتهي بطريقة مؤلمة”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. نيمار يوجه رسالة إلى ميسي بعد تتويج الأرجنتين بكأس العالم 2022

وأضاف: “صحيح أننا كنا الأقل في الشوط الأول، لم نفز بالمبارزات، بل عانينا من صعوبة، منطقيًا كانوا يتقدمون في النتيجة”.

وواصل: “في منتصف الشوط الثاني، كان لدينا فخر كبير وموهبة كيليان لتعود المباراة بنتيجة 2-2، كانت مثل مباراة ملاكمة، ضربة قوية”.

Furacão encara Boa Esporte e busca terceira vitória seguida na Série B

MatériaMais Notícias

O Figueirense vai receber o Boa Esporte-MG, nesta sexta-feira, às 19h15, no Moisés Lucarelli, pela terceira fase da Série B.Com 100% de aproveitamento na competição, o Furacão tenta manter a bosa fase. Dentro de casa são apenas duas derrotas em 21 jogos com o técnico Milton Cruz no comando do time.

Para o duelo, o treinador não poderá contar com o atacante André Luiz. O centroavante está com um edemana coxa direita e desfalcará a equipe pelosegundo jogo consecutivo. A vaga deve ficar comHenan. O zagueiro Cleberson, que está em fase final de recuperação, e o defensor Henrique Trevisan, com lesão no tornozelo esquerdo, também não vão atuar.

O Figueirense deve entrar em campo com: Denis; Diego Renan, Nogueira, Eduardo e Lazaroni; Zé Antônio, Betinho, Jorge Henrique, Renan Mota e Gustavo Ferrareis; Henan.

O Boa Esporteganhou um reforço de peso para o confronto com o Furacão. Artilheiro do time na campanha do acesso, Daniel Cruz poderá fazer sua estreia na competição. O jogador foi inscrito no Boletim Informativo Diário da CBF e a tendência é que seja escalado entre os titulares.

O técnico da equipe de Varginha, Sidney Moraes,fez mistério durante a semana e deve divulgar a escalação apenas minutos antes da partida. A expectativa é que treinador tire uma peça do meio de campo para colocar Daniel Cruz. Também não está descartada a troca com William Barbio, apesar de ser uma opção remota.

O provável time do Boa Esporte-MG para a partida é:Fabrício; Caíque, Gustavo Geladeira e Artur Jesus; Christiano, Amaral, Machado, William Schuster e Alyson; William Barbio e Daniel Cruz.

كلوب يوضح موقف الدوليين من خوض مباراة ليفربول ومانشستر سيتي

كشف يورجن كلوب، مدرب فريق ليفربول، موقف اللاعبين الدوليين من خوض مواجهة مانشستر سيتي الأسبوع المقبل، بعد عودتهم من كأس العالم.

ويلتقي ليفربول مع مانشستر سيتي، يوم الخميس المقبل، في دور الـ16 من منافسات كأس رابطة الأندية الإنجليزية.

ويمتلك ليفربول لاعبًا واحدًا فقط في نهائي كأس العالم قطر 2022، والذي سيُقام يوم الأحد المقبل، وهو الفرنسي إبراهيما كوناتي.

بينما غادر باق لاعبو ليفربول، البطولة العالمية، الواحد تلو الآخر بعد خروج منتخباتهم من كأس العالم.

وعندما سُئل عن موقف الدوليين من خوض مباراة مانشستر سيتي، قال كلوب في تصريحات نشرها الموقع الرسمي للنادي: “نعم، هناك فرصة بالطبع، هم يتدربون بالفعل”.

وأضاف: “هندرسون يتدرب بالفعل هنا، وفان دايك كذلك ولكن لا أعتقد أننا سنحاول فعل ذلك معه (مشاركته)، سنرى ما يتعلق بـ هندرسون وأرنولد، ولكن هذه المجموعة عملت معًا لما يقرب من أسبوعين وقمنا بخطوة حقيقية وهذا رائع (فترة الاستعداد في الإمارات)”.

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وواصل: “لا أعلم ما سيحدث الآن، آمل أن نتجاوز الموقف جميعًا خاصة أننا نعلم أن في إنجلترا وفي أوروبا بشكل عام هناك نوعًا من الفيروسات المنتشرة (إنفلونزا الإبل)، لذلك نأمل أن نتمكن من البقاء بعيدًا عن ذلك”.

واختتم: “ثم سنتخذ القرار بوضوح يوم الأربعاء فيما يتعلق بمن يمكنه اللعب يوم الخميس، لكن الأمور جيدة وستكون مباراة ممتعة للغاية بعد تلك الفترة لكنني أتطلع إليها”.

عامر حسين يوضح سبب تغيير ملعب مباراة الأهلي وفاركو ويعلن موعد نهائي كأس مصر

كشف عامر حسين رئيس لجنة المسابقات بالاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم، سبب تغيير ملعب مباراة الأهلي وفاركو، كما أعلن عن موعد مباراة نهائي بطولة كأس مصر.

وقال حسين إن السبب وراء نقل مباراتي الاتحاد السكندري أمام سيراميكا كليوباترا وفاركو ضد الأهلي إلى استاد برج العرب بدلًا من ملعب الاسكندرية هو إقامة ماراثون.

طالع | اتحاد الكرة: لن نوقع عقوبات على جماهير الزمالك بعد أحداث مباراة المصري

وأضاف حسين في تصريحات تلفزيونية ببرنامج “اللعيب” عبر قناة “إم بي سي مصر”: “تطبيق القوانين التي تمت في كاس العالم على الدوري المصري مثل الوقت الضائع، أمر يخص لجنة الحكام”.

وتابع: “فرغنا كاميرات مراقبة مباراة المصري والزمالك في برج العرب، وتحدثت مع رئيس جهاز الاستاد وأبلغني بعدم وجود شغب، ولكن الأمر اقتصر على وقوف الجماهير على الكراسي”.

واستكمل: “عقب كل مباراة نحصر عدد الكراسي المكسورة ويتم خصم مبلغهم المستحق من التأمين المدفوع من النادي قبل المباراة”.

 وأتم: “قيمة التلفيات 30 ألف جنيه سيتم خصمهم من مبلغ التأمين الذي دفعه الزمالك صاحب الملعب”.

واختتم: “نهائي كأس مصر سيقام يوم 3 فبراير المقبل”.

Cook's shining example

Alastair Cook walked away with the Compton-Miller medal following his recording-breaking Ashes series, but along with the 766 runs he took a shine to Australia in another crucial fashion

Andrew McGlashan at the SCG07-Jan-2011

Alastair Cook was outstanding with the bat but also played a vital role in the field•Getty Images

Alastair Cook walked away with the Compton-Miller medal following his recording-breaking Ashes series, but along with the 766 runs he also took a shine to Australia in another crucial fashion which helped England’s bowlers dominate the opposition batsmen.He and James Anderson were in charge of keeping the ball in ideal condition for reverse swing, which was a key factor in Australia’s batting struggles. It was especially evident in Melbourne and Sydney where the ball started to reverse as early as the 15th over and meant another attacking weapon once the shine had worn off.A perfect example came on the fourth afternoon at the SCG when Anderson produced a masterful six-over spell with the older ball to remove Usman Khawaja and Michael Clarke. It was reminiscent of how England’s 2005 attack operated when Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones terrorised the Australians with reverse.Before the tour one of the main issues continually mentioned about the England attack was their ability to take wickets when the Kookaburra ball went soft. But David Saker, the Australian-born bowling coach, used his local knowledge while his plans were expertly implemented by Anderson, Chris Tremlett and Tim Bresnan. It was just one of many examples were England’s meticulous eye for detail kept them ahead of Australia.”Jimmy and I look after the ball. We banned [Paul] Collingwood from doing it a couple of years ago and have got it to swing a bit better,” Cook said. “It’s those little bits of attention to detail that have served us well over the last two years. If you can get the ball to do just a little bit, even on flat pitches, you can control the scoring a lot better.”And although he hadn’t taken a lot notice of Australia’s tactics involved in keeping the ball in good condition, Cook said England’s hard work had paid off. “I wasn’t paying too much attention to them, but we obviously got the ball moving better and for longer periods which helped us.”Clarke admitted England’s performance with the ball had been a key difference. “They’ve shown us discipline and execution with the ball to be able to bowl in one area for a long period of time and make our batters play a false shot,” he said. “Their bowlers have executed their plans outstandingly to all of our batters.”There were times during the final two Tests where Australia struggled to score at two-an-over after England replaced the wicket-taking, but expensive, Steven Finn with the steady Bresnan who proved a revelation on surfaces that helped develop reverse swing. Apart from when Mitchell Johnson flayed a half-century on the first day at Sydney there was never a time during the Christmas and New Year Tests where Andrew Strauss didn’t have control in the field.”After the last Ashes out here I thought the best way was to strangle the opposition and fortunately we had very accurate bowlers turn up,” Strauss said. “For the bowlers to be able to bowl day-in day-out was an exceptional effort. We have good depth and we’ll need it because the schedule is very tough.”However, despite his polished role in the field it was Cook’s mountain of runs that did so much to help England to their 3-1 triumph. From saving the Brisbane Test with an unbeaten 235, to setting up Adelaide with 148, and ensuring there was no way back for Australia at Sydney with 189 it was a phenomenal performance from someone whose place was on the line last summer.Cook is one of the few England players who will now get a decent break from international cricket as he isn’t involved in either the Twenty20 or one-day internationals, but after soaking up this success knows he’ll be asked to push himself again to reach such heights.”It’s one of our team ethoses,” he said. “We’ve had an amazing two months but we’ve already said that we still want to improve. Andy Flower won’t ever let us have an easy time. He’ll demand that we get better. That will only hold us in good stead. If I can achieve what I just have again it would be amazing, but I honestly can’t believe what I, and the team, have just done. We’ll enjoy it and worry about tomorrow then.”

Erros e polêmicas bizarras que o VAR poderia ter evitado no Brasil

MatériaMais Notícias

Assim como o vôlei, tênis, futebol americano e basquete, o futebol usufrui cada vez mais da tecnologia. A Fifa já anunciou que o VAR (Video Assistant Referee, do inglês) será utilizado na Copa do Mundo de 2018, na Rússia. Além do árbitro de vídeo já ser utilizado em torneios internacionais, como é o caso do Mundial de Clubes, Ligas como a Serie A, Bundesliga, Campeonato Português, a MLS e as fases de semifinal e final da Copa Libertadores.

O Campeonato Brasileiro de 2018 teve início no último sábado e já se viram erros e lances polêmicos que poderiam ter sido evitados com o auxílio do VAR. Eles aumentam uma lista de falhas graves e confusões que só aumenta.

A partida entre Vitória e Flamengo, no Barradão, foi recheada de polêmicas. Aos 12 minutos de jogo, um pênalti a favor do Vitória foi marcado de forma equivocada. Após chute de Rhayner, a bola bateu no rosto do meia Éverton Ribeiro, que evitou o gol em cima da linha. O árbitro, Wagner Reway, viu mão do meia rubro negro e assinalou a penalidade. O flamenguista foi expulso direto e Yago empatou a partida. A arbitragem voltou a errar e aos 26 minutos da segunda etapa, quando Willian Arão, em posição irregular, desviou, a bola ficou com Geuvânio, que tocou para Réver marcar.

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Há uma semana, na final do Campeonato Paulista de 2018, outra polêmica envolvendo a arbitragem se destacou. O Corinthians vencia por 1 a 0 o Palmeiras, no Allianz Parque e levava a decisão para os pênaltis. Quando aos 26 minutos da segunda etapa, Ralf desarmou Dudu por trás, dentro da área e Marcelo Aparecido Ribeiro de Souza marcou o pênalti. Com oito minutos de jogo paralisado, o quarto árbitro avisou o principal juiz da partida de que a falta não havia acontecido e o mesmo, voltou atrás na sua decisão. O Alvinegro sagrou-se campeão nos pênaltis. Os palmeirenses reclamam de interferência externa na partida e inclusive pedem a anulação da final.

Confira alguns erros marcantes de arbitragem que ocorreram recentemente…

Gol de mão Jô – Corinthians 1×0 Vasco

Um dos maiores erros de arbitragem dos últimos anos, aconteceu pela 24ª rodada do Brasilerão de 2017. Em jogo truncado na Arena Corinthians, o Timão enfrentava o Vasco e precisava de uma vitória para se aproximar do título nacional. Marquinhos Gabriel cruza a bola para a área e Jô entra buscando o cabeceio. Porém, o camisa 7 não alcançou a bola e usou o braço para empurrar a bola para a rede. A jogada aconteceu a poucos metros do árbitro adicional Eduardo Valadão e os jogadores do Vasco o cercaram, mas ele manteve a decisão da arbitragem.

Gol anulado – Sport 1 x 1 Vasco

O Vasco esteve mais uma vez rodeado de polêmica, dessa vez na Ilha do Retiro. Entre os 24 e 26 minutos do segundo tempo, Sandro Meira Ricci marcou pênalti no suposto toque de mão do zagueiro Andreson Martins, no chute de Mena. A partida ficou paralisada por 2 minutos, momento em que o árbitro e o assistente número 2, Marcelo Van Gasse, conversaram e optaram em voltar atrás da decisão. A demora para chegar à tal conclusão chegou a levantar a suspeita de interferência externa na partida.

Gol anulado – Corinthians 1×1 Flamengo

Na 17ª rodada do mesmo campeonato, Jô estave envolvido em outro lance polêmico. Em duelo importante para a sequência do Brasileiro contra o Flamengo, na Arena Corinthians, um gol legal dos mandantes foi anulado de forma equivocada. O bandeira Pablo Almeida da Costa assinalou o impedimento no passe de Maycon para Jô, sendo que o camisa 7 estava em posição legal. Com ajuda do tira teima, pode-se ver que Jô estava 3.3 metros atrás da linha da bola.

Gol anulado – Flamengo 2×1 Fluminense

No Fla x Flu do Campeonato Brasileiro de 2016, em Volta Redonda, mais uma polêmica. Sandro Meira Ricci, Emerson Carvalho e Marcelo Van Gasse precisaram de mais de 13 minutos de partida paralisada para anular o gol. Aos 39 minutos do segundo tempo, Henrique marcou de cabeça e o auxiliar assinalou impedimento. Os atletas do Flu pressionaram, o juiz e o assistente validaram o gol. Porém, os atletas do Fla também reclamaram, ato que que ocasionou a paralisação da partida até que o lance voltou a ser considerado irregular. Especula-se que Ricci chegou a dizer para os jogadores do Tricolor que havia chegado a informação de que Henrique estava impedido no lance do gol.

Expulsão – Chapecoense 5×1 Palmeiras

O árbitro Jailson Macedo Freitas gerou polêmica ao voltar atrás em uma expulsão na Arena Condá. Pelo Campeonato Brasileiro, Chapecoense e Palmeiras se enfrentavam e logo aos 15 minutos o lance aconteceu. Após passar pelo zagueiro, William Barbio corria sozinho em direção ao gol quando viu Egídio desarmá-lo com um carrinho na bola. Jaílson apontou falta e, por interpretar que se tratava de uma situação clara de gol, expulsou o lateral. Passaram-se cinco minutos entre a expulsão do palmeirense, atéquarto árbitro avisar o juiz principal de que Egídio havia tocado só na bola, assim anulando o cartão.

O VAR

A prática do árbitro de vídeo foi aprovada na reunião da International Football Association Board (IFAB), em junho de 2016. Desde então, as Ligas passaram a analisar a hipótese de fazer a utilização da tecnologia. E a novidade deu resultado na Europa, nas Ligas citadas no início do texto. Porém, existem regras propostas pela FIFA a serem seguidas para o uso da tecnologia. São quatro os tipos de lances que são analisados pelo VAR, segundo a Fifa.

Gols: O VAR auxilia o árbitro a determinar se houve alguma infração ou irregularidade no gol. Como o jogo já estará parado, não há impacto no jogo.

Identidade errada: Caso o árbitro dê cartão amarelo ou expulse algum jogador errado ou tem dúvidas sobre quem deve ser punido. O VAR, assim, irá informar o jogador correto a ser punido, se é o caso.

Pênaltis: A função do VAR é garantir que não houve nenhum erro claro na atribuição ou não atribuição do pênalti.

Cartões vermelhos: O VAR irá se certificar que não houve erro claro na expulsão ou não expulsão do jogador.

São três profissionais na cabine de vídeo: dois árbitros de vídeo (normalmente árbitros ou ex-árbitros) e um assistente de vídeo (normalmente assistentes ou ex-assistentes, os famosos bandeirinhas). Na hora de acionar o VAR, tanto o árbitro pode acionar o árbitro de vídeo, quanto contrário. Normalmente o próprio árbitro de campo irá acioná-lo.

Em conversa com o LANCE!o ex-árbitro de futebol Carlos Eugênio Simon contou o que acha a respeito da profissionalização da arbitragem no Brasil.

– Fundamental. No Brasil, duas coisas são fundamentais, profissionalização e fim do sorteio. Melhoraria muito, não estou falando só em relação a salários, mas em ter um tempo integral para o árbitro se preparar melhor para essa função, que é extremamente difícil. O futebol é um grande negocio. O juiz é uma figura amadora, solitária, que deve ir atrás de treinamentos e recuperação tudo por conta própria. Debates sobre técnicas de arbitragem, preparação física são importantes, além de conversas com psicólogos. Atos que melhorariam bastante a arbitragem no Brasil – concluiu o árbitro que atuou em 3 Copas do Mundo.

Sálvio Spínola, ex-árbitro de futebol, também conversou com o LANCE! e contou ser um grande defensor da utilização do VAR no futebol brasileiro.

– Sou totalmente favorável, é um caminho sem volta. O árbitro é um ser humano, já tem um século que o futebol começou a utilizar árbitros, em 1863. Já estamos ultrapassados e os números mostram isso,como na Copa do Chile de 1962, o juiz corria 4 km por jogo, na última Copa, realizada no Brasil, a média percorrida foram de 13 km, e o mesmo ser humano. Pode-se discutir o protocolo, mas é necessário para suprir a deficiência, acho que pode ser uma solução para minimizar os erros – disse.

O comentarista de arbitragem da ESPN ainda disse o que acha sobre os clubes terem votado não para o uso da tecnologia.

– A CBF não quis aprovar, foi para a reunião apenas com os pontos negativos, como o valor, a forma que o VAR seria utilizado e que não resolveria problemas. Não critico os clubes, eu acho que a arbitragem é um modelo de responsabilidade da entidade que organiza o futebol. A FIFA exige que seja a entidade filiada, a Liga nunca será donas dos árbitros. A CBF não queria o uso do árbitro de vídeo – concluiu Sálvio.

طبيب البرازيل يوضح حالة تيليس وجيسوس بعد الخسارة أمام الكاميرون

أوضح طبيب منتخب البرازيل، رودريجو لاسمار، وضع اللاعبين بعد مباراة الأمس ضد منتخب الكاميرون في بطولة كأس العالم قطر 2022.

وتلاقى المنتخبان في الجولة الثالثة والأخيرة من دور مجموعات البطولة، حيث فازت الكاميرون بهدف دون رد.

وشهدت المباراة مغادرة أليكس تيليس لأرض الملعب وهو يبكي بعد إصابته، في الدقيقة 54، وبعد ذلك بـ10 دقائق، غادر جابرييل جيسوس المباراة ويبدو أنه غير مرتاح.

وقال لاسمار في تصريحات بعد المباراة: “تعرض أليكس تيليس لضربة في ركبته اليمنى أثناء المباراة، تم استبداله، وبدأنا العلاج خلال اللقاء، ولكن غدًا سيخضع لتصوير بالرنين المغناطيسي لمعرفة مدى خطورة الإصابة”.

اقرأ أيضًا.. تيتي يستشهد بنتائج العرب بعد الهزيمة أمام الكاميرون ويصرّح: لا توجد سهولة في كأس العالم

أكمل: “جابرييل جيسوس اشتكى أيضا من ألم في ركبته اليمنى بعد المباراة وكإجراء احترازي سيخضع لفحص”.

الخبر السار لتيتي والجهاز الفني هو أن دانيلو مضمون فعليًا ضد كوريا الجنوبية في دور الـ16 يوم الإثنين المقبل.

وسيبدأ نيمار وأليكس ساندرو مرحلة الانتقال إلى الملعب، وسيتم تقييمهما في الأيام القليلة المقبلة لمعرفة ما إذا كانا قادرين على مواجهة الكوريين.

Will New Zealand put up a fight?

ESPNcricinfo previews the second ODI between India and New Zealand in Jaipur

The Preview by Sriram Veera30-Nov-2010Match FactsWednesday, December 1
Start time 14.30 (09.00 GMT)
Daniel Vettori is back. Can he help New Zealand stay in the hunt for the trophy?•AFP

The Big PictureFirst the good news: Daniel Vettori, who missed the first ODI, is fit to play the second game. However it’s learnt that Brendon McCullum is a doubtful starter and New Zealand, who are already missing Jesse Ryder, have lost the services of Daryl Tuffey due to a bicep strain.Of late, there seems to be a pattern to New Zealand’s one-day chases. They appear to dawdle initially and allow the required rate to climb, and then lose wickets in a heap in a frantic effort to keep the chase on track. In the absence of three key players, it was always going to be difficult for New Zealand to put up a fight in the first one-dayer.Without McCullum (if he doesn’t get fit in time) and Ryder, much will depend on Ross Taylor. He had a very average Test series but took his first step towards regaining form with 66 in the first match. Martin Guptill provides aggression at the top and Kane Williamson adds stability in the middle. Gareth Hopkins, the wicketkeeper, has however been disappointing so far on this tour.India would have been gladdened by a couple of developments in the first match. Virat Kohli hit his second successive hundred and the way he paced and built his innings stood out. R Ashwin too impressed with his control and composure in the Powerplays, while Munaf Patel caught the eye with a disciplined effort.There were couple of concerns as well. Sreesanth picked up two wickets in the end but struggled with the new ball. His career economy rate is over six and he has struggled with his lengths in the shorter formats. Suresh Raina hit 71 against Australia in his last one-dayer before this series but went 15 games before that without a half-century. MS Dhoni had said he hoped that Raina will get a break after this match, ahead of the South Africa tour, but had added that it would depend on his performance in the first two games.Form guide(most recent first)
India: WWLWL
New Zealand: LLLLL
Watch out for…Kane Williamson looked solid in the Tests and has hit an ODI hundred against Bangladesh’s spinners in his last series. The Jaipur track is reported to play slow and aid turn, and Williamson’s skills will come to the fore.M Vijay impressed with his brief, but skilful, innings in the first game on a wicket that aided the seamers initially. He played his shots and looked good for more before he threw his wicket away. It’s something that we have seen in the past as well: he has been guilty of failing to convert starts. Can he play a big knock tomorrow?Pitch and conditionsThe pitch is expected to play slow, but a bigger worry could be dew in the evening. “Obviously dew is a big factor, they do use the chemical to reduce its effect, but I don’t think it makes much of a difference,” Gautam Gambhir said. “The wicket appears to be on the slower side and it might a spin a bit. We could [play an extra spinner]. Because it looks a little dry, it might spin if we bowl first.”TeamsVettori will replace Tuffey and, given the conditions, New Zealand could retain Nathan McCullum as well. They will hope that Brendon McCullum wins the race for fitness.New Zealand (probable): 1 Jamie How, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Ross Taylor, 4 Scott Styris, 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Grant Elliott / James Franklin, 7 Daniel Vettori (capt), 8 Gareth Hopkins (wk), 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Andy McKay
With Gambhir mulling the possibility of playing an extra spinner, Ravindra Jadeja will fancy his chances of getting a game, coming in for either Sreesanth or Munaf Patel.India (probable): 1 M Vijay, 2 Gautam Gambhir (capt), 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja , 8 Wriddiman Saha (wk), 9 Ashwin, 10 Sreesanth / Munaf Patel, 11 Ashish Nehra
Stats and trivia Sreesanth has the second-worst economy rate in the list of bowlers who have played at least 50 ODIs and taken 50 wickets
India have played 10 games in Jaipur and lost four. They beat South Africa by one run in the last game played at this venue in February 2010.Quotes”I spoke to the curator and he told me that the wicket on which Hyderabad got out for 21 [in the Ranji Trophy] had lots of grass on it and now they have shaved it off. But I don’t think it’s (the nature of the wicket) a concern because we have played on all kinds of wickets. Rather than worrying about the wicket we need to be thinking about what we should do.”

Everton in talks to sign Brennan Johnson

Everton are reportedly now in fresh talks to sign Brennan Johnson in the summer.

The Lowdown: Standout season

The Welshman is certainly having a standout season at Nottingham Forest, where he has managed no fewer than 15 goals and a further nine assists in the Championship so far (Transfermarkt), playing a big part in their promotion push.

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He has recently picked up the division’s Young Player of the Season award, and at just 20 years of age, his ceiling is quite high.

The Latest: Everton talks with Johnson

As per The Independent, Johnson’s representatives have held ‘productive meetings’ with Everton ‘in the last week’, although their ability to sign him may depend on whether they avoid relegation from the Premier League.

Brentford have already offered personal terms to the Wales international, while Leicester City, Newcastle United and Villarreal are also interested in his signature.

Johnson is ‘unlikely’ to sign a new deal at Forest unless they get promoted, with his current contract set to expire in 2023. He is ‘expected’ to go for a fee of between £20m and £25m, should they end up selling him this summer.

The Verdict: Sign him

Johnson is one of the rising stars of British football, so it would be a real coup for the Toffees if they can attract him to Merseyside, especially with the spectre of relegation a clear and present threat.

Described as a ‘different animal’ on the pitch by Paul Bodin, who worked with him when in charge of Wales’ under-19s and later with the under-21s, Johnson seemingly has the fire in his belly to make something happen for his team, which is the kind of character that Frank Lampard’s side could really use right now.

Nonetheless, perhaps with a few players sold, £20m-£25m should be an affordable price range for Everton.

In other news, these were Everton’s three worst performers against Liverpool

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