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Arsenal have stepped up their pursuit of Chelsea winger Noni Madueke after Enzo Maresca told the Blues' wantaways they could leave.

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Arsenal step up Madueke pursuitClose to agreeing termsMaresca sent message to wantawaysFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The Gunners have been in the market for forward players all summer and transfer journalist Florian Plettenberg claims personal terms are nearly agreed to sign Madueke from their Premier League rivals. However, there is no agreement between the two London clubs yet.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT MARESCA SAID

Asked about players who want to leave Stamford Bridge, given the Gunners' interest, Blues boss Maresca said: "Noni has been very important for us during this season. But my message to the players and to the club is that I want just players that are happy to be with us. The ones that are not happy, they are free to go. It's not for Noni, it's for all the players we have."

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Arsenal have been linked with a number of other wide players this summer. Eberechi Eze is said to be a target from Crystal Palace, while Real Madrid's Rodrygo continues to be linked.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?

The Gunners are also in the market for a number nine. Benjamin Sesko has been a leading target all summer, but a deal is proving hard to do, while Viktor Gyokeres has also been heavily linked.

England piled up 364 before Topley ripped through Bangladesh’s top order to set up a comfortable win

Alan Gardner10-Oct-2023
Defending champions England produced an emphatic response to defeat in their opening World Cup match, crushing Bangladesh by 137 runs in Dharamsala to get their tournament up and running. A total of 364 for 9 was underpinned by Dawid Malan’s maiden World Cup hundred – and fourth this calendar year – before the returning Reece Topley ripped through the top order as Bangladesh faltered in the foothills of what would have been a record chase.Asked to make the running at the picturesque HPCA Stadium, backdropped by the Himalayas, England showed an appetite for the climb. Malan and Jonny Bairstow set off at a steady canter in recording their first century stand as openers, before the former was joined by Joe Root in a clockwork-smooth partnership of 151 in 19.3 overs to give England a formidable platform going into the latter stages – at which point they stumbled against Bangladesh’s death-bowling smarts, Shoriful Islam and Mahedi Hasan claiming regular wickets.Related

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In World Cups, pressure comes with the territory. It's what makes winning sweet

But despite an England slide of 7 for 68 from the final 10.3 overs, Bangladesh were still left with an asking rate of more than seven an over – and a target well in excess of their highest total batting second in ODIs. The challenge swiftly became steeper still, as Topley struck with his fourth, fifth and 16th balls, leaving Bangladesh tottering on 26 for 3, a scoreline that soon became 49 for 4 as Chris Woakes recovered from an expensive start.Although Litton Das, who began the chase by striking Woakes for three consecutive fours, and Mushfiqur Rahim produced half-centuries, their partnership of 72 at close to a run a ball only succeeded in adding some respectability to the scorecard. Woakes ended Litton’s hopes of a hundred when his offcutter grazed the outside edge through to Buttler, and when Mushfiqur steered a Topley bouncer to deep third, the Bangladesh innings had become a quest to limit the damage on net run rate.Bangladesh get over-rate fine

Bangladesh have been fined 5% of their match fee for being one over behind the required over rate against England, after taking into account time allowances. As per the regulations, teams are fined 5% for every over they are found to be short. Shakib Al Hasan accepted the sanction, levied by match referee Javagal Srinath, so there was no need for a formal hearing.
Bangladesh also bowled with only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle to finish England’s innings, in keeping with the new regulations on in-game penalties.

The margin of victory was a comfort to England, whose standing and confidence had taken a dent following their thumping in Ahmedabad. Again they were inserted after losing the toss, but this time the top order more than produced the goods – if not with the overt aggression Jos Buttler had spoken of after defeat to New Zealand, then via a cold-blooded certainty in their methods.No one in the current XI does cold-blooded certainty better than Malan, whose imperious form has seen him go from spare part to first pick in a matter of months. His fourth ball, from Mustafizur Rahman, was stroked through extra cover for four and he proceeded to unload his full repertoire of pulls, flicks and slog-sweeps during the course of his 107-ball stay, which was a masterclass in acceleration.Bangladesh thought he should have been given out caught behind in single-figures, only for DRS to confirm Ahsan Raza’s on-field call after a Mustafizur bouncer flicked his shoulder on the way through. That was as close as Bangladesh came to taking a wicket in the opening powerplay, as Malan responded by driving for four and then swinging his first six over deep backward square; two overs later, Mustafizur was pulled into the crowd at deep midwicket and flipped down the ground in another crisp one-two as England’s tempo began to increase, leaving them well placed on 61 for 0 after ten.Reece Topley was too hot to handle for the Bangladesh top-order batters•Getty ImagesAs Malan moved to a 39-ball fifty, with 40 of his runs coming in boundaries, Bairstow was able to play a little more circumspectly. Nevertheless, he marked his 100th ODI appearance with a first half-century in the format since July 2022, before having his leg stump shivered by Shakib Al Hasan to give Bangladesh a much-needed breakthrough.There was no respite, however, with Shakib the only bowler to exert any control. Root was quickly into his groove, ending a five-over spell without a boundary by ramping Mustafizur for six over fine leg and then reverse-paddling Shakib for four. At the other end, Malan continued to bear down on three figures – for the sixth time in 23 ODI appearances – bringing up the landmark with a push into the covers off Shakib. In doing so, he became the oldest Englishman to score a World Cup hundred.In the next over, Malan crashed Mehidy Hasan Miraz for a sequence of 4, 6, 6, 4, before Root notched his second consecutive fifty of the tournament, from 44 balls, as England looked to turn the screw. Root surpassed Graham Gooch as his country’s leading run-scorer in World Cups, before another pull, off Taskin Ahmed, brought Malan his fifth six. But thoughts he might eclipse another England record – Andrew Strauss’ innings of 158 at Bengaluru – were ended when Mahedi was rewarded for tossing the ball up.With England cruising through the middle powerplay, scoring at 7.9 runs per over, it seemed as if they were on course to post the second 400-plus score of the tournament – and Malan’s dismissal only brought Buttler to the crease, in the mood for carnage. The captain never found his timing during a frenetic 20 off 10, however, and his dismissal to Shoriful, dragging a wide knuckleball on to his stumps, in the 40th over set the stage for a belated Bangladesh fightback with the ball.Shoriful’s variations did for Root – caught behind heaving at another knuckleball – and Liam Livingstone, who lost his off stump to a cutter. Harry Brook, Sam Curran and Adil Rashid all fell to Mahedi as an otherwise dominant innings ended with a bout of ungainly thrashing.Bangladesh had chalked up a win chasing against Afghanistan in their first game on this ground, but this was a completely different beast. Topley, making his World Cup debut after replacing Moeen Ali in the XI, shredded their chances by having Tanzid Hasan edge to second slip and Najmul Hossain Shanto taken at backward point from consecutive balls, before producing a peach of a delivery to skelp Shakib’s off bail and effectively end the game as a contest. Bangladesh eventually battled through to the 49th over, as England’s bowlers got a thorough workout – such was their level of comfort, there was barely any need to worry about the state of the outfield as the World Cup-holders avoided being tripped up again.

GOAL takes a look at five footballers from the CWC that would make sense for MLS teams to pursue this secondary transfer window

The secondary transfer window for Major League Soccer opens on Thursday, July 24, but that doesn't mean teams aren't already picking up the phone ahead of bolstering their squad for the second half of the regular-season campaign and an ensuing playoff push.

This summer, with the FIFA Club World Cup taking place in the United States, teams were playing on their doorstep, allowing clubs and scouts to get first-hand accounts of how teams and players perform in high-pressure surroundings. DAZN commentator for the tournament, Callum Williams, recently told GOAL he believes that multiple clubs are set to pounce on players who had top tournament showings.

"I think for certain teams, it is the right moment to," Williams said. "For sure, there's a handful of teams I know that are looking, they are actively having conversations."

Individuals like Bayern Munich's Thomas Muller, who has been linked with a stateside move for months, as well as Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo De Paul, would be superstar signings for the league. Then, in order to secure their spot with their respective national team at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a move to MLS for U.S. international Gio Reyna and Uruguayan forward Santiago Rodriguez would make sense too, as both have fallen down the pecking order for club and country of late.

There are also breakout players who emerge in the competition to catch the eyes of teams, and per reports, Al Ahly's Wessam Abou Ali could be just that man – as an Eastern Conference contender could be chasing his signature this summer now.

GOAL US takes a look at all five footballers and shares why a move to MLS this summer would ultimately make sense for each individual.

Get the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowGetty ImagesRodrigo De Paul, Atletico Madrid

One of the best players competing at the Club World Cup this year, De Paul is a rare type of midfielder. He's a player who has elite strength and athleticism but is also gracefully and has incredible technical skill – a unicorn in the European game.

A move to MLS would be a no-brainer for any club if they were able to make it happen – but, if reports are to be believed, one in particular might actually be set to make it come true.

De Paul has been heavily linked with a move to Inter Miami this week, where he would join Argentina national team compatriot Lionel Messi at the South Beach club. According to various reports, he himself has signed off on the deal and is open to the move, while Miami and Atletico Madrid just need to come to terms over a potential agreement.

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The 31-year-old mainstay in the midfield for is a known commodity in world football, and is a 2022 FIFA World Cup champion alongside the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, who already hones his trade with the Eastern Conference MLS club. A reunion would be sentimental for Messi and De Paul, who have a well-known friendship off the pitch already.

Reports say a fee in the range of $17 million would be enough for Atletico to let De Paul go, but as it stands, Miami does not have a DP spot to offer the 31-year-old. To make that happen, it would reportedly require Sergio Busquets to forgo his contract with the club, and potentially, retire.

At the CWC this summer, De Paul started all three games for Atleti until they were eliminated in the Group Stage.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesThomas Muller, Bayern Munich

Muller, whose contract with Bayern Munich officially ended upon completion of the Club World Cup, has been heavily linked with a move to MLS this summer over the past few months. He reportedly turned down an approach from FC Cincinnati ahead of the competition, the club that owns his MLS rights.

However, midway through this summer's tournament, he was asked about a potential move there, and he responded with a flirtatious answer, saying: "You have to say, the entire stadium and the spectators were there very well too. They have very good conditions here, you have to say."

Although nothing is confirmed, and any transfer still has a lot of legwork to get done, it feels as though it's become increasingly likely that the German legend is going to land in the league.

MLS side LAFC have also been linked with Muller, while the 13-time Bundesliga champion himself has admitted he's "asking around" the league amid a potential signing with a club this summer.

Any club that takes on Muller will be able to sign him as a free agent, but he would likely take up a Designated Player roster slot.

At the Club World Cup this summer, he started two matches, scoring two goals and recording one assist as the Bavarian club exited the tournament in the quarterfinals to the now-finalists PSG.

Getty Images SportGio Reyna, Borussia Dortmund

Reyna needs to move as his treatment at the Club World Cup was the final straw. Where he lands next will be the most crucial point in his professional career, and playing it safe might be the best course of action for a footballer who was once deemed the next great American soccer player.

While that very well still might be true, or still come true, nobody would know because Reyna has barely played over the past two years. Sure, that's due to a mix of reasons, from injuries to a failed loan move with Nottingham Forest to falling out of favor under the managerial carousel that is Dortmund, but this next transfer is absolutely everything.

He's logged just one appearance under USMNT manager Mauricio Pochettino, and as things stand, he is on the outside looking in with the national team ahead of the 2026 World Cup. A move to MLS – a league that the Argentine manager has CLEARLY shown respect for – would be the safest bet possible to get eyes on him ahead of the competition. Sure, it's not the sexiest of moves, it's not a blockbuster, and frankly, it's a step down from where he was a few years ago, but it's a move that gets him the playing time he desperately needs. MLS would be a confidence builder, and he can always return to Europe – if he succeeds.

Any club with an open DP spot and ambitions should at least make the call. As for Reyna, he and his agency cannot mess this next move up, and a transfer or loan to MLS would ultimately make sense for both parties.

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Getty Images SportSantiago Rodriguez, Botafogo

Well, here's a familiar face for MLS fans, and probably one that has you scratching your head a bit, too.

Rodriguez signed for Botafogo for a monumental fee of $17 million in February, but the move has been nothing short of a disaster. Rodriguez managed to secure only 42 minutes at the Club World Cup, and has only played a mere 430 minutes in total since his move to the Brazilian club.

As for his national team ambitions, he's fallen down the pecking order with Uruguay, too, and time is going to run out fast with if he wants to try and secure a roster spot with his nation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A loan move back to MLS, at least through the end of the 2025 campaign, would make loads of sense for both parties. It would be incredibly difficult for Botafogo to recoup anything close to the fee they paid for Rodriguez roughly six months ago, but getting him regular minutes could be crucial as next summer closes in fast. If a team were to approach the Brazilian side with a permanent offer that was anywhere close, though, it would be hard to see them turn it down.

Any club that needs a top-tier attacking midfielder should pick up the phone and ask, because it's well-documented what Santi can do within this league.

A comprehensive defeat in the Eliminator capped a downturn in fortunes but there were positives to take

Tristan Lavalette29-Nov-2023Captain Heather Knight implored Sydney Thunder to learn from a late season fadeout, but believed her team should be “proud” of their resurgence up the WBBL ladder.After finishing with last season’s wooden spoon, Thunder’s bounce back season ended with a 44-run defeat to Brisbane Heat at the WACA ground in the elimination final. They finished with six losses in their last seven matches having been on top of the ladder after round eight.Related

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“Frustrating…feels like we’ve run out of puff a little bit which is obviously annoying with the start to the season we had,” Knight said. “We just kind of lost momentum…the form dropped off a little and we looked a bit tired. But I still think it’s a season that the girls can be proud of.”Thunder won just five games across the past two seasons in a fall from grace since lifting the title in WBBL06. But under the new leadership of Knight and coach Lisa Keightley, who led England from 2019-22, Thunder entered the season with an “underdog” mentality that served them well.”It really helped us,” Knight said. “I think we’ve got some young talented players…Olivia Porter and Anika [Learoyd] in the middle order are developing and learning how to play in different conditions.”We played a lot in different conditions actually, which has been quite interesting to adapt to and adapt the captaincy, so it’s been quite fun.”The elimination final exposed a flagging Thunder, whose quicks struggled to find their lengths on a bouncy WACA surface after Knight elected to bowl. As had increasingly been the case as the season wore on, Thunder’s batting relied heavily on opener Chamari Athapaththu who was named the player of the tournament in her debut season with the team.Athapaththu top-scored with 41 before she succumbed to a short-pitched delivery from Courtney Sippel, who along with fellow quick Nicola Hancock ripped through Thunder’s batting order.”[We need to] make sure that we’re able to execute our skills for a little bit longer,” Knight said. “I feel like we fought really well… [but need to not] get in that position in the first place. We had to claw games back a little bit like [the Heat game].”As expectations grew, Thunder struggled to cope and they were left to rue a defeat to crosstown rival Sydney Sixers in their final regular season game that cost them second spot and a home final in the Challenger.”I think we just haven’t been used to being at the top…the mentality changes a little bit,” Knight said. “We probably lost a little bit of freedom, a few people maybe tensed up a little bit and that’s a really good learning I think.”I think this team should believe that they should be in the top four. I think at the start of the season we definitely would have taken making it to the final stages.”

Manchester United supporters were responsible for the highest number of football-related arrests in England and Wales during the 2024–25 season, according to the latest data published by the UK Home Office. Over the 10-month reporting period, 121 arrests were linked to fans of the Old Trafford club, more than any other team in the top flight, as revealed by The Athletic.

Manchester clubs occupy top two placesWest Ham came third with 77 arrestsVilla saw the highest percentage increaseFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

In total, 1,932 football-related arrests were recorded across all regulated fixtures in England and Wales during the 2024–25 campaign. This marks an 11 per cent decrease compared to the previous season, with 235 fewer incidents reported. The Red Devils topped the list, followed by local rivals Manchester City, whose fan base accounted for 94 arrests, and West Ham United, who registered 77 arrests.

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One of the most significant shifts came from Aston Villa, whose number of arrests rose dramatically. The Birmingham-based club saw 71 arrests, a notable increase from just 26 incidents during the 2023–24 season. This jump placed them fifth overall, trailing Chelsea who had 76 arrests, and highlights growing concerns around fan conduct at Villa Park.

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While West Ham no longer leads in total arrests, they remain at the top in two related categories. The east London side has the highest number of fans with active football banning orders, totalling 112, and also issued 39 new banning orders during the campaign, again the highest figure among all clubs. Chelsea followed with 31 and Manchester United came in third with 28 banning orders imposed on their supporters in the 2024–25 season. In the 2024–25 season, a total of 685 new banning orders were issued – a slight increase from the 683 recorded in the previous year. This brings the current number of active FBOs across England and Wales to 2,439.

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WHAT THE UK POLICING MINISTER SAID

Commenting on the annual findings, Dame Diana Johnson, the UK's policing minister, praised ongoing enforcement efforts to clean up the game.

“Today’s statistics show that these efforts are paying off and strong action is being taken to stop violence and disorder from ruining football,” she said.

Neser will also cover for Kyle Abbott and Mohammad Abbas for a part of the County Championship

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Feb-2024Hampshire have signed Michael Neser, the Australian seamer, for their first eight T20 Blast games of the season. He will also be available as cover for Kyle Abbott and Mohammad Abbas for a handful of County Championship fixtures.Nathan Ellis, Neser’s compatriot, has been a revelation for Hampshire over the past two seasons and spearheaded their attack during their title-winning run in 2022. But a clash with the T20 World Cup means he is unlikely to be available this summer, leading director of cricket Giles White to turn to Neser, who is not in Australia’s T20 plans.”Nathan had a very positive impact on the team and we are confident that Michael will do the same,” White said. “He adds quality across the disciplines and formats – he also comes with an excellent reputation as a team-oriented player. He has good experience of English conditions and hopefully he can hit the ground running.”Neser, who played for Glamorgan last year, took 12 wickets for Brisbane Heat as they won the Big Bash League earlier this month. He also contributed in the field, taking a series of spectacular catches in the deep, and with the bat, hitting a vital 64 not out in a win over Perth Scorchers to secure a home qualifying final.”I am very excited to have joined Hampshire Hawks for this year’s Vitality Blast and can’t wait to join up with the squad,” Neser said. “Utilita Bowl [Hampshire’s home] looks to be an amazing place to play cricket and hopefully I can contribute to more success on the pitch.” reported that Neser will be replaced by Afghanistan’s Naveen-ul-Haq for the second half of the Blast’s group stage, following the T20 World Cup.

Riyad Mahrez has rebuffed claims by Cristiano Ronaldo that the Saudi Pro League is among the 'top five' divisions in world football.

Mahrez: "We're not far off"Ronaldo claimed SPL superior to Ligue 1Ex-City star calls fellow Saudi pros "pioneers"Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The Al-Ahli star was speaking to French outlet . Perhaps still smarting from Al-Nassr striker Ronaldo's comments claiming "the Saudi Pro League is better than Ligue 1" and "in France, they only have PSG", the paper asked Mahrez for his thoughts on the Portuguese's assertions.

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The ex-Manchester City and Leicester winger was far more diplomatic, saying the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and La Liga are still the best five competitions in world football, but did express his belief that the SPL is on the rise. He also described Ronaldo and his fellow stars who made the switch during the league's recruitment drive in 2023 as "pioneers".

WHAT MAHREZ SAID

Mahrez told when asked if he agreed with Ronaldo's 'top five' claim: "No. I think the five big European leagues are ahead, and then we can start to compete with the other leagues.

"We're not too far off, I think. After that, the goal isn't to be the best league in the world right now. We're looking at the long term.

"Those like me who have arrived are here at the beginning of this adventure, we're a bit like pioneers. We're helping them make this league stronger. And frankly, over my two seasons, I've felt progress in the teams, the coaches, the tactics and the organisation. They're trying to get there, and I think they'll get there. They're putting in the effort and they really want it. "

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?

Both Mahrez and Ronaldo will contiinue to drive the standard of the SPL for their respective clubs in the 2025-26 season. Despite recent speculation that he could be on the move, Ronaldo will remain at Al-Nassr on a £178m-a-year deal.

Pakistan team director believes Shan Masood captained well overall and blamed his side’s fielding for their 0-3 series defeat

Danyal Rasool06-Jan-2024Shan Masood’s communication skills have garnered plenty of praise throughout his career, but this afternoon in Sydney, it seemed no one could quite understand him.After Australia were set 130 to win the final Test, Pakistan didn’t turn to the series’ joint-leading wicket-taker Aamer Jamal all morning. It was only after lunch that, with Australia needing 33 to win with nine wickets in hand and all jeopardy squeezed out of the game that Masood tossed him the ball in the 20th over.It was a decision team director Mohammad Hafeez appeared to slightly distance himself from, saying he believed Jamal should have bowled earlier. However, he also stressed Pakistan understood the importance of bowling offspin on a wicket that was beginning to take plenty of turn, and backed Masood to take on-field calls. Offspinner Sajid Khan opened the bowling and took a wicket in his first over, as well as another one shortly before Australia wrapped up an eight-wicket win.Related

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“It’s up to the captain,” Hafeez said after the game, talking about the bowling plans. “All bowlers were available but it’s the captain’s tactic. We wanted to bowl more from the offspinner because this track can offer a lot from the far end but the rest is up to [Masood]. Tactically, I think Jamal should have bowled earlier, but inside the field, the captain is the best judge so you have to back that up.”In truth, the decision to overlook Jamal will go down as a curious detail in a match where Pakistan’s advantage had been squandered in other areas and phases of the game, most notably a madcap final hour on the third day when they lost five wickets for nine runs to slump from 58 for 2 to 67 for 7. Pakistan frequently found themselves on the wrong end of those sorts of frenetic passages with huge swings of momentum, especially in the last two Tests.In Melbourne, Pakistan found themselves at 124 for one in response to Australia’s first innings score of 318, but lost the next five wickets for 46 runs. In the second innings, the visitors reduced Australia to 16 for 4 in the second innings, before dropping a vital Mitchell Marsh catch early only for him to take the target out of sight. The following day, Pakistan were 98 runs away from chasing down the total with half the side intact but lost 5 wickets for 18 runs to slip to a painful defeat.Sajid Khan did take two wickets but it wasn’t enough•Getty Images and Cricket AustraliaIn this Test, Pakistan had the momentum after skittling Australia’s final five for just 10 runs that gave them a slender first-innings lead, only for a Josh Hazlewood-inspired bowling attack to wrest back those losses.”We learned hard lessons,” Hafeez said. “As a team, we had our moments but we couldn’t grab those. We perhaps didn’t [deserve] 3-0, as a team I think we did some really good things this series, but we couldn’t win the crucial moments of the game and that’s the reason for the 3-0. We lost the series, but watching the talent of the players is what made me say we could compete right from the start. We’ve seen some glimpses of it. There were certain moments in these games that we should have grabbed because they can make a difference, especially in Melbourne when they were 16 for 4. It could have been a situation where we needed to chase just 140-150 but it ended up above 300.”Even here, we dropped some catches. Mitchell Marsh was dropped by Saim Ayub. We didn’t drop catches, we dropped the winning moments of the game. That is the negative side of our team: our fielding. We need to really work hard on this. The coaches worked really hard on it but when the players went inside they couldn’t respond accordingly. This is the one area I believe we need to work on.”It was hard to miss the cosy congeniality that formed a recurring theme in this series. Both sides’ players have spoken about the relationships that were built when Australia went to Pakistan in early 2022 to play series in all three formats, and over the last month, those relationships have sustained. Pakistan’s players presented gift baskets and sweets for the Australian players’ children on Christmas Day, with players and families interacting with easy familiarity. Pakistan formed a guard of honour for David Warner in Sydney in both innings, applauded him off the field and presented him with Babar Azam’s playing top signed by the whole team.”Playing the cricket with the right spirit of the game [was a positive],” Hafeez said. “Our captain led the side very well. He made correct calls at important times. It’s not just about your cricket, it’s about how you behave as an ambassador. I think he did most of the things correctly.”But the cold, hard facts remain unchanged. Pakistan may have competed more ably than in any of the six series they have now been successively whitewashed in against Australia away, but that streak – now stretched to 17 – remains stubbornly unbreakable. And though Australia were pushed closer than most people – even in Pakistan – might have expected given the visitors’ depleted bowling attack, the appetite for drawing consolation in Australia from what-ifs and so-nearly’s has begun to wear thin.

Thomas Frank admitted "football can be brutal" after James Maddison was stretchered off injured during Tottenham's draw with Newcastle United.

Maddison returns from injuryStretchered off for TottenhamFrank confirms "bad" setbackFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The England international came off the bench in the second half of Spurs' 1-1 pre-season draw with Newcastle on Wednesday, only to suffer a knee injury that forced him to be taken from the field. Tottenham boss Frank believes that the 28-year-old, who could not hold back the tears, has suffered a "bad" recurrence of the knee injury that flared up in May earlier this year.

AdvertisementWHAT FRANK SAID

He said, via Football London: "We're pretty sure it was the same knee he injured before. I think sometimes in life and football things can be both beautiful and brutal. That's what we got today. It looks like with Madders a bad injury and then on the other side unbelieveable scenes for Son from his team-mates and the respect from the Newcastle players. First we had the walkaround and then the team-mates gathered around and he was emotional. In the changing room it was more of the same. I just said a few things but not much because it's about Sonny and then he said a few things. It was beautiful."

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Maddison has proven to be a key player for Tottenham since his 2023 move from Leicester City. The playmaker has scored 16 goals and added 21 assists and at times has been Spurs' best player. If the ex-Norwich City man is out for a long time, that is a huge blow for Frank's side ahead of the new season.

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WHAT NEXT?

Tottenham fans will be eagerly awaiting to find out just how serious this Maddison injury is as they prepare for their final pre-season games. Next up for Spurs is a clash with Harry Kane's Bayern Munich on Thursday, followed by the UEFA Super Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain on August 13.

Babar, meanwhile, says he “will continue consulting” Shaheen “for important decisions going forward”

Danyal Rasool31-Mar-2024Newly deposed Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi has called it “an honour” to have led the Pakistan national team on the day it was announced he had been replaced by his predecessor Babar Azam. He called it “my duty to back Babar Azam”, stating that both had the same aims.After a public process in which PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi repeatedly declined to back Shaheen, the PCB formally confirmed that the fast bowler’s one-series stint as T20I captain had come to a close, announcing Babar as T20I and ODI captain once more. With relationships within the team inevitably coming under strain, the PCB has put out a press release with Shaheen and Babar sending out statements of support for each other in a bid to put the whole saga behind them.”I will always cherish the memories and the opportunity,” Afridi said. “As a team player, it is my duty to back our captain, Babar Azam. I have played under his captaincy and have nothing but respect for him. I will try to help him on and off the field. We are all one. Our aim is the same, to help Pakistan become the best team in the world.”

I am surprised by the decision by very experienced cricketers in the selection committee. I still believe that if change was necessary than Rizwan was the best choice! But since now the decision has been made I offer my full support and best wishes to team Pakistan and Babar…

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) March 31, 2024