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Leeds United youngster Joe Gelhardt could return from injury for this weekend’s clash with Newcastle United, according to journalist Phil Hay.

The Lowdown: Leeds’ injury problems continue

The Whites have had a nightmare in the injury department this season, hindering their Premier League form as they have struggled to repeat their 2020/21 performances.

The likes of Luke Ayling, Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford have all missed chunks of the campaign and the latter pair are still missing currently.

Gelhardt is another player who has been out recently, not featuring since the 3-1 win over Burnley on January 2nd, but a positive update has emerged regarding the striker.

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The Latest: Hay makes Gelhardt claim

Taking to Twitter on Thursday, Hay confirmed that the 19-year-old could return to action for Saturday’s crucial visit of Newcastle at Elland Road:

“Better news – Joe Gelhardt could be back at the weekend.”

Hay also states that the same applies to Tyler Roberts, further acting as a boost for Leeds.

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The Verdict: Potential start vs Newcastle?

Last weekend’s superb 3-2 win at West Ham has given Marcelo Bielsa’s men some breathing space in the relegation battle but they now need to kick on further, with three points this weekend feeling significant.

It could be that Gelhardt leads the line in the continued absence of Bamford, with the youngster doing well when given the chance this season, scoring and assisting once apiece in the league.

Gelhardt may have to settle for a place on the substitutes’ bench, however, with Rodrigo potentially coming in or Dan James again playing centrally, as was the case against West Ham.

In other news, Leeds are reportedly keen on signing one exciting young player. Find out who it is here.

Daniel Christian is in line to become the second player of Aboriginal heritage to play an international for Australia

Cricinfo staff17-Feb-2010Daniel Christian, the South Australia allrounder, is in line to become the second player of Aboriginal heritage to play an international for Australia after being selected in the Twenty20 squad to face West Indies. Christian will join Jason Gillespie, the former fast bowler, on the list if he appears in either of the games in Hobart on Sunday or Sydney on Tuesday.Michael Clarke leads the team that will also include the pace trio of Mitchell Johnson, Shaun Tait and Dirk Nannes, which upset Pakistan during a tight victory last month. The selectors have been impressed by Christian’s power with the bat and effective medium pace in the domestic Twenty20 competition and picked him in a 14-man squad.”We continue to look at various options and the balance of the team leading into the World Twenty20,” the panel chairman Andrew Hilditch said. “We see Dan as an explosive allrounder who could have a good impact for us in Twenty20 internationals.”In three seasons of domestic Twenty20 action Christian has 230 runs at a strike-rate of 148.38 and taken 13 wickets in 16 games. He has also been in strong form for the Redbacks in the other competitions and last week took nine wickets and scored 71 in a Sheffield Shield win over Western Australia.Christian grew up in New South Wales and is a graduate of Cricket Australia’s indigenous cricket programme. He captained the national indigenous development squad during a tour of England last winter and is due to help them again later this year when they play Papua New Guinea.”I’m an Aboriginal man from the Wiradjuri tribe in New South Wales, that’s all through my Dad’s side of the family, and they’re all born and bred from down there,” he said in Adelaide. “I’ve grown up in that environment, and I’m an Aboriginal man … it is what it is.”Australia Twenty20 squad Shane Watson, David Warner, Shaun Marsh, Michael Clarke (capt), Cameron White, David Hussey, Travis Birt, Brad Haddin (wk), Steven Smith, Daniel Christian, Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait.

Speaking to Give Me Sport, journalist Dean Jones of Eurosport has made a promising claim as Tottenham Hotspur eye a move for Juventus star Paulo Dybala.

The Lowdown: Spurs join race…

As reported by multiple sources, the Argentine international is a target for Spurs and manager Antonio Conte as his contract in Turin winds down.

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Indeed, Fichajes say that the Italian has personally requested Dybala’s signing while journalist Xavier Jacobelli told Radio Radio (via Calciomercato.it) that Spurs are ‘at the window’ alongside Inter Milan and Barcelona.

Sharing what he believes, Jones has made what could be a promising claim to GMS.

The Latest: Jones makes Dybala claim…

According to the reporter, while this possible move to Spurs may not happen until the summer, Dybala is ‘definitely interested’ in a move to England if he opts against signing an extension with Juve.

“It’s definitely more of a summer move if it’s going to happen,” he explained to GMS when asked about Tottenham’s links.

“If Dybala was to leave Juve, then he’s definitely interested in coming to England.”

The Verdict: Get it done…

If Spurs can in fact persuade the player to leave Italy for the Premier League, there is little arguing that the £222,000-per-week gem would inject real quality into Conte’s team.

Called ‘world class’ and ‘phenomenal’ by ex-Spurs man Paul Robinson, the playmaker has bagged a brilliant 140 goals and 67 assists over his career (Transfermarkt) with there appearing to be little downside to signing him as a potential free agent in the summer.

While Spurs fans will re-call the infamous image rights saga once preventing his move to N17, with any luck they can avoid a debacle of that nature if they decide to take another punt.

In other news: Spurs ‘edging closer’ to signing ‘massive’ £15m defender, find out more here.

Only 9.2 overs of play were possible on the first day of Leicestershire’s County Championship Division Two game against Middlesex at Grace Road

29-May-2010
ScorecardOnly 9.2 overs of play were possible on the first day of Leicestershire’s County Championship Division Two game against Middlesex at Grace Road.But the home side, who were bowled out for just 71 by Glamorgan in their lastmatch, were soon in trouble again. They lost two wickets for only 23 runs beforeplay was abandoned for the day.The start was delayed until 1700 as the groundstaff battled against steadyrain. When play did get under way, Middlesex won the toss and had no hesitation inputting Leicestershire in to bat on a green-looking pitch.Will Jefferson, fit again after injury, resumed to open the innings for thehome side but was run out in bizarre fashion in the first over without a run onthe board. Pushing forward to a delivery from Tim Murtagh, he was rapped on the pad andthe ball went to Neil Dexter at second slip. With Jefferson still out of hiscrease, Dexter ran him out with a direct throw at the stumps.Paul Nixon soon also departed, edging to wicketkeeper John Simpson off thebowling of Iain O’Brien to leave Leicestershire 16 for 2. But Middlesex’s progress was halted after two balls of the 10th over when the teams were forced off again for bad light. And, when rain began to fall again soon afterwards, play was called off for the day.

A round-up from the latest County Championship matches

Cricinfo staff31-Aug-2009Stuart Meaker’s unbeaten 64 helped Surrey put on a much stronger fourth-day performance, but it still wasn’t enough to avoid a six-wicket defeat to Kent at Canterbury. Resuming on 148 for 5, and without Mark Ramprakash to call upon, Surrey steadily built a lead with Meaker dropping anchor in his 200-ball innings which spanned over four hours. He was given solid support from Tim Linley (36) but Amjad Khan wrapped things up with two quick wickets as Surrey were bowled out for 293. This set Kent 200 to win and Rob Key set off in a hurry, blazing 50 from 55 while Geraint Jones, centurion from the first innings, cracked a run-a-ball 45. Darren Stevens was there at the end, unbeaten on 35, as Kent skipped home by six wickets, and the win puts Kent 28 points clear at the top of Division Two.

Kent 12 7 2 0 3 0 174 Essex 13 4 3 0 6 0 146 Derbyshire 13 2 2 0 9 0 140 Northamptonshire 12 4 3 0 5 0 137 Glamorgan 12 2 2 0 8 0 134 Gloucestershire 13 4 6 0 3 0 132 Surrey 13 1 3 0 9 0 126 Middlesex 13 2 5 0 6 0 121 Leicestershire 13 2 2 0 9 0 119

Cricinfo previews the 11th match of the IPL between Delhi and Chennai at the Feroz Shah Kotla

The Preview by Jamie Alter in Delhi18-Mar-2010Match factsFriday, March 19
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)Dinesh Karthik has more captaincy experience than Suresh Raina•Getty ImagesBig pictureNeither side will be with the services of their influential and much revered captains. The man picked to lead Chennai Super Kings in MS Dhoni’s absence, Suresh Raina, has limited experience in the role and certainly zilch when it comes to marshalling players of international caliber and with decades of experience. Neither has he fired yet with the bat. Dinesh Karthik, Delhi Daredevils’ vice-captain, has plenty of leadership experience but his stature in the side does not match that of Gautam Gambhir. Both sides have conundrums, and that presents the biggest challenge for two power-packed sides searching for consistency in all three departments.
Chennai have, statistically, been a far better team on the road and thus they should look at the Feroz Shah Kotla, where Mumbai Indians racked up 218, with a degree of excitement. Raina, Matthew Hayden and Justin Kemp have yet to hit form and this could be the place for them to do so, and against an attack missing Ashish Nehra and having been deflated by Sachin Tendulkar, Saurabh Tiwary and Co. Chennai’s two matches, a 31-run loss to Deccan Chargers and a 55-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders, leaves room for improvement and they don’t look the strong side of the previous two IPLs. Not only has Dhoni been Chennai’s main batsman in their two games this season, but his leadership played a big role in the side bouncing back after losing the first encounter. If they can rise to the occasion in his absence, it will be a real test of their strength and proof of whether they are semi-final contenders this season.Semi-finalists on two occasions, Delhi cannot afford to lose consecutive games at home. Tipped by many to go all the way even before the IPL started, they looked good while picking up wins over Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals, but received a walloping at the hands of Mumbai yesterday. They are bruised, and not having Gambhir and Nehra around has left them smarting. Delhi have a chance to go one better to get to the top of the table for if they win, but for that their catching will also need to improve. Their three matches have seen a mix of incredible takes and sloppy efforts, and up against a strong batting side they can’t afford lapses. Chennai minus Dhoni is just not the same, and Delhi must capitalise on that.Team talkGambhir injured himself during last night’s match against Mumbai and was on the field for barely 10 minutes during the 98-run loss. The team has confirmed that he will miss tomorrow’s game. The loss opens up a spot for another batsman, and frankly it is time Delhi got in David Warner. A specialist Twenty20 opener, Warner would bring to the side a velocity that they so desperately need in Gambhir’s absence and the poor run Tillakaratne Dilshan and AB de Villiers are having.The overseas player to bow out would then be Farveez Maharoof, who in three matches has gone for a whopping 9.91 runs an over. Delhi could easily draft in Aavishkar Salvi as a replacement fast bowler. If, however, Delhi do not opt for Warner, then the likely scheme would be for each batsman to move up a spot and for the allrounder Rajat Bhatia to figure in the puzzle. But frankly, Delhi have kept Warner on the bench too long.Chennai have no other fitness worries apart from Dhoni, and so they should be able to field ten of the XI who beat Kolkata. Dhoni’s replacement behind the stumps will be Parthiv Patel, who has some experience opening with Hayden in previous editions of the IPL, and so he could return to the top. Parthiv has also been in good form on the domestic circuit, so that would mean M Vijay having to step aside. Chennai have the Tasmanian batsman George Bailey in their squad but it’s unlikely they’re fretting about Hayden’s poor form so much as to bench him.Previously…The first IPL saw the teams win a game against each other: Delhi beat Chennai by eight wickets away, and when Chennai visited they won a humdinger by four wickets off the final ball of the match. In 2009 the results were the same: Delhi won the first game by nine runs, Chennai the second by 18 runs.In the spotlight Raina and Karthik: Neither has hit form with the bat, but both find themselves in leading roles. Raina shot to fame during the first IPL but struggled to recapture that glory in the second, and his form in two matches this past week has not been convincing. A good player of spin, Raina could trump the likes of Amit Mishra and Sarabjit Ladda who, despite going for runs in the last game, should hold his place. Karthik, a vital member of Delhi’s shaky middle order, should move up a place in Gambhir’s absence. He’s a skilled Twenty20 player and has bailed Delhi out of a few holes in both the IPLs. This could be his toughest test yet.The compatriots: Watch out for the two turks from South Africa facing-off. Albie Morkel, who is AB de Villiers’ team-mate at their domestic franchise, the Titans, may have the rare opportunity to bowl against him. Morkel has struggled with the ball this season, and de Villiers with the bat. Who trumps who could make for exciting viewing. Similarly, the Sri Lankan pair of Muttiah Muralitharan and Dilshan stand to square off … if Dilshan lasts long enough, that is. He has two ducks and a breezy 17 to his credit, but he’s not hung around long enough to face the spinners. Countering a wily old fox could just be the antidote to poor form.Chennai’s batsmen against spin: Delhi have preferred going in with two spinners. Amit Mishra is the specialist slow bowler, but Ladda has been expensive in two games. If he is benched, Delhi could turn to the former India offspinner Sarandeep Singh, who has been relegated to carrying drinks in three matches. The bowlers will be demoralised by the treatment they received at the hands of Mumbai’s batsmen, but they haven’t been exposed to Hayden, Raina, Kemp and Morkel. Regaining their confidence against a formidable batting line-up will be a challenge and makes for compelling viewing.Prime numbers Justin Kemp may not have clicked with the bat, but with the ball he has taken three wickets at an average at nine runs each, the fourth best of the IPL this season. Kemp also has the best economy rate, 5.22.Dinesh Karthik has the most dismissals so far, four.Chatter”The blow to the elbow, that put him out of action for the next few matches, leaves us without the biggest asset a 3-in-1 champion in dynamic form.”
“The captain plays an important role. He should understand the game and should be able to take quick decisions. So many captains have been fined for slow over-ate in this tournament and we need to be careful.”

Two wickets from seamer Charlie Shreck secured an early foothold forNottinghamshire on despite poor weather on day one of their CountyChampionship Division One clash with Durham

Jon Culley10-May-2010Durham 79 for 3 v Nottinghamshire
Scorecard
Durham twice beat Nottinghamshire by an innings last season and with Steve Harmison belatedly ready to begin his new campaign they might fancy themselves to knock the home side’s confidence a little after their blistering start.Unfortunately, the return to fitness of Harmison after his back trouble has coincided with the loss of Mark Davies, whose ankle injury makes him the 10th Durham player to be hurt with the season little more than a month old.Harmison’s well-being has to be taken slightly on trust. He barely bowled in Durham’s weather-hit match against Durham UCCE last week and sent down six fairly gentle overs in their Clydesdale Bank 40 defeat at Edgbaston on Sunday. There are question marks, too, over Liam Plunkett after he suffered a side injury against Yorkshire two weeks ago. Plunkett is expected to bowl but his county know he could face a long spell out if he breaks down again.In the meantime, they must give Harmison and company something to defend after a stop-start opening day reduced to 27.2 overs. The weather could not have been more frustrating after the forecast suggested a largely dry day. Morning drizzle persisted until early afternoon and then bad light forced more stoppages.Nottinghamshire look credible challengers in the battle to loosen Durham’s grip on the Championship. They have won their first three games and a victory over the title-holders would make them favourites to win their first crown in five years with most pundits outside Yorkshire. In the circumstances, it was probably to Durham’s relief that the weather intervened given that they lost three wickets in the first 12 overs after Nottinghamshire put them in.Darren Pattinson and Charlie Shreck exploited the overcast conditions effectively, although Kyle Coetzer could not blame swing or seam for his dismissal, driving Shreck confidently only for Paul Franks to take a superb catch at mid-off, diving forward and to his left.There was frustration for Pattinson when Mark Wagh dropped a catch at square leg as Michael di Venuto clipped the ball away in the air but the miss cost only six runs as the Australian’s drive was pouched by Samit Patel at gully.Shreck accounted for Will Smith, the Durham captain, whose hopes of a confidence-building score ended when he pushed tentatively at a ball outside off stump and was caught comfortably by Chris Read behind the stumps.From 36-3, Durham recovered to 79 without further loss at the premature close, although Ian Blackwell had an escape on 10 when he almost played on to Shreck. He and Dale Benkenstein now look critical to Durham’s prospects if they are to dampen Nottinghamshire’s fire.

Liverpool overcame injury issues to beat Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final, with Gary Neville hailing “Klopp’s kids against billion pound bottle jobs!”

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Blues have spent heavily in transfer marketMissed some big chances at WembleyReds have three more trophies to aim atWHAT HAPPENED?

The Reds headed to Wembley without the likes of Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez and Alisson. Klopp had to name a number of youngsters on the bench, and gave game time to James McConnell, Jayden Danns and Jarell Quansah.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Eight academy graduates got a medal on the day, with Virgil van Dijk settling the tie late in extra-time as he powered home a dramatic header – having previously seen one effort ruled out due to a controversial offside call from VAR.

WHAT NEVILLE SAID

Chelsea are now in danger of ending the 2023-24 campaign empty-handed, despite spending over £1 billion ($1.3bn) on transfers since the Todd Boehly-led ownership team arrived at Stamford Bridge. Manchester United legend Neville has taken aim at the Blues for buckling under pressure, saying during his punditry on : “It’s Klopp’s kids against the billion pound bottle jobs.”

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GettyWHAT NEXT?

Mauricio Pochettino’s side had plenty of chances to pick up another major trophy, but fluffed them all – while seeing a Raheem Sterling effort ruled out for an offside in the build-up – while Liverpool remain in the hunt for Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League glory in what will be Klopp’s final season at the helm.

An update has emerged on Bournemouth centre-back Steve Cook, regarding interest from Newcastle United…

What’s the talk?

According to The Sun, Eddie Howe is considering a January swoop for the experienced defender to come in and bolster his defensive options.

The report claims that he could be an alternative option to Burnley duo James Tarkowski and Ben Mee, with the Cherries defender ‘creeping’ up the Magpies’ transfer wishlist.

Disaster

PIF could be heading for a Newcastle disaster with a deal for the English flop. They must avoid signing Cook in January as he would not be a good addition to the squad, given his struggles and lack of game time this season in the Championship.

He has played four games for Bournemouth in all competitions this season and averaged a dismal WhoScored rating of 6.21 – with the side conceding 11 goals in that time. Six of those goals came in a hammering against Norwich in the League Cup, a game in which Cook was given an abysmal rating of 4.89.

The 30-year-old was managed by the Magpies boss at the Vitality Stadium and played 29 games as they were relegated together in the 2019/20 campaign.

Howe once reportedly locked Cook, and the rest of the Cherries squad, in the dressing room for 30 minutes after a 4-1 loss to, ironically, Newcastle. The defender, who blasted himself and his teammates as “embarrassing’ for their performances in the top-flight, claimed that the team played ‘like kids’. He said:

“Words have been said, players have stepped up and spoken but it is no good unless we do it on the pitch.

“We are men in the dressing room but played like kids.”

So, why should Newcastle be signing a player who previously struggled under Howe in the Premier League and is currently failing to perform in the second tier with Bournemouth?

He has only played three times in the Championship and his average rating of 6.64 in the division does not suggest that he is playing well enough to deserve a move to the top-flight.

Therefore, the £45k-per-week earner would be a disaster of a signing by PIF and Howe as his statistics suggest that he would be a nightmare in the Premier League, given that he is not standing out in a lower standard of football. Newcastle should avoid Cook and look elsewhere for defensive reinforcements.

AND in other news, “Seriously interested”: Romano drops fresh NUFC transfer claim which fans will love…

Bangladesh’s planned bouncer attack on the Indian batsmen was only partly successful, but added an absorbing edge to the second day’s play at Mirpur

Sriram Veera in Mirpur25-Jan-2010The image of the day was of Rahul Dravid going down like he was shot. Dravid ducked under the Shahadat Hossain bouncer, perhaps anticipating that it would bounce more than it did, but he went straight into it and left the field soon after, clutching his jaw.”It was very much part of the plan,” Shahadat said. “Indian players, particularly Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag leave the bouncers well but are not very comfortable in playing it.”What stood out was the fact that the bouncer was not the result of an impulsive reaction from a fast bowler but part of a well-orchestrated plan. It could well have worked had the catches been taken and if Rubel Hossain’s left foot hadn’t landed a few inches beyond the crease. As it transpired, Sachin Tendulkar and Dravid battled through the tough times to put India in firm control of the game and barring a minor miracle, they should win this game. However, the day’s play was fascinating to watch for the careful thought that went behind the attack.Not every day does a bowler almost knock out Dravid with a bouncer and Shahadat was understandably thrilled with the feat, if not the effect. “Dravid is such a great batsman. To hit his helmet with a bouncer and make him fall on the wicket, I have to admit it felt good. I have hit batsmen before but this is the first time that a batsman has had to go back [after discontinuing batting],” Shahadat, who was unaware at that moment of Dravid’s hospitalisation, said.His reaction was understandable but what was really praiseworthy was that none of the bowlers overdid the bouncer attack. Not a single pull shot was played by an Indian batsman. Perhaps, it was because of the pitch. “It’s a two-paced wicket, the bounce is unpredictable, one ball is taking off, and other is not,” Sachin Tendulkar said. “It’s not an easy track to bat on. They bowled well. They had a specific plan and stuck to it.”The plan was to make the batsmen play the bouncers. For that, they had to direct it well and try to bowl it at the body. It was Shahadat who started it all with a nagging bouncer that cramped Sehwag, forcing a hurried prod to the keeper. Then, Shafiul Islam went round the stumps and fired a short one at Gautam Gambhir’s body to claim the second victim.This is where it got interesting. Dravid was in with Tendulkar and one wondered whether their reputations will force Bangladesh to shelve the short ones, but they stuck to the plan. Dravid was stunned by a wonderfully accurate bouncer from Rubel and Junaid Siddique even took a sharp catch, diving low to his right at slip, but unfortunately it was a no-ball. It took a moment for the fielders and even for Dravid to realise that he had been let off.And they nearly had Tendulkar. Twice. He was on 53 when he didn’t connect properly with an intended uppercut against a lifter outside off, from who else but Shahadat, but Raqibul Hasan, who had already dropped Tendulkar on 27, couldn’t hold on to a difficult chance despite a desperate dive to his left at gully.It was that kind of a day. Bangladesh did everything that was possible to create chances but it just wasn’t to be. When Tendulkar was later asked whether the bouncer attack surprised India, one could sense it hurt his pride as he retorted, “It [the bouncers] doesn’t mean much. The scoreboard reads something different.”That may be so but it is a significant moment in Bangladesh’s cricket history. It was the first time that a Bangladeshi fast bowler has made a batsman of Dravid’s stature retire hurt. Both Mashrafe Mortaza and Shahadat have hit top batsmen before – Shahadat pinged Ponting in a Test in 2006 – but not forced them to discontinue the innings, leave alone putting them in hospital.To understand the significance, you have to place it in the wider context. It was a coming-of-age moment for Indian cricket and its fans when Kapil Dev’s first Test bouncer screamed past a helmet-less Sadiq Mohammad in Faisalabad in 1978. Sunil Gavaskar later wrote, “The normally unflappable and quiet Syed Kirmani clapped with his gloves and screamed ‘Shabhash! Aur ek! (one more)’. To those of us in the Indian batting line-up who had only got used to facing a bombardment of short-pitched deliveries, with only a pea-shooter to return the fire, the sight of an opposing batsman asking for a protective helmet and then getting hit on it, was not only one for sore eyes, but also for cracked fingers and the badly bruised chests and thighs, that we had suffered over the years.” Previously fast bowlers were used exclusively to take the shine of the ball, before the spinners could come into play; everything changed after Kapil’s entry.Shahadat’s felling of Dravid isn’t quite as seminal as that Kapil bouncer, as both Mortaza and Shahadat have hit batsmen before but it will become a part of folklore in coming years and “I was there” stories will be told by people recounting the instance.