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BBC pundit Noel Whelan has been reacting to Newcastle full-back Jamal Lewis’ hamstring injury, as per Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Lewis pulls up

The 23-year-old was making just his fourth Premier League start of the season against Liverpool on Thursday but had to make way after just 15 minutes.

The Northern Ireland international was starting to become a regular under Eddie Howe, but he now looks set for a spell on the sidelines, with Howe admitting after the 3-1 defeat that his issue ‘looked bad’.

Matt Ritchie replaced Lewis at Anfield, with the latter possibly missing the entire festive period due to his muscle problem, which starts with today’s clash against leaders and champions Manchester City.

The Latest: Whelan reacts

Whelan, who regularly features as a pundit for the BBC, was talking to Football Insider regarding the injury.

This is what he had to say in reply, labelling it as a ‘massive blow’ for Howe and Newcastle:

“He will be a big miss.

“He’s got that real energy and is capable of getting up and down the pitch in that natural wing-back position – that’s why he was signed from Norwich.

“It’s yet another muscle injury, and that just shows what a demanding season it is for everybody – and it will have been the last thing Eddie Howe wanted. He’s lost an integral part of the team.

“It’s a massive blow for him. He must be thinking: ‘When are things going to change for me?’”

The Verdict: Ritchie to the rescue…

Howe currently has three defenders out injured, two of whom are left-backs, so he may have no other choice but to rely on Ritchie over the coming weeks.

At least the 32-year-old is a player Howe knows well from his time at Bournemouth, and the Scot already has plenty of game-time under his belt this season.

Hopefully Ritchie will stay fit between now and the New Year, as otherwise Newcastle and Howe may have to use round pegs in square holes to fill the left-back void.

In other news, NUFC have made a huge offer to sign this ‘force of nature’

England’s women completed a clinical victory over World Twenty20 finalists New Zealand at Chelmsford, wrapping the visitors up for 113 to win the opening Twenty20 international of the tour by 37 runs.

The Bulletin by Liam Brickhill29-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Charlotte Edwards anchored England’s innings with 46•Getty ImagesEngland’s women completed a clinical victory over World Twenty20 finalists New Zealand at Chelmsford, wrapping the visitors up for 113 to win the opening Twenty20 international of the tour by 37 runs.The victory was set up by a solid performance from England’s batting line-up, with captain Charlotte Edwards’ patient 46 anchoring the innings after she won the toss and opted to bat first, and the middle order chipping in for a total of 150 for 5. Edwards then used her slow bowlers extensively, with spin accounting for seven wickets.Despite the early loss of Suzie Bates – who was superbly caught by Lydia Greenway at straight midwicket – New Zealand had looked well set to challenge England’s effort with the bat when captain Aimee Watkins and Sara McGlashan combined in a 47-run stand for the second wicket. But once Watkins departed for 24, caught by Greenway as she tried to clear the deep midwicket boundary, England had their opening and continued to pick up regular wickets.Laura Marsh had opened the bowling, and it was Danielle Hazell’s offspin that accounted for Watkins. she got rid of McGlashan two overs later to spark New Zealand’s demise, as they lost eight wickets for 54 runs.After a subdued Sophie Devine had been bowled by Holly Colvin for 9 from 15 balls, Liz Perry and Nicola Browne briefly threatened a fightback as they both cleared the boundary in a stand of 28 in under four overs. But after they were removed in consecutive balls by impressive youngster Danielle Wyatt with the score on 100, New Zealand quickly crumbled.Anya Shrubsole picked up two wickets in three balls, dismissing Rachel Priest and Lucy Doolan, and Greenway then capped an outstanding day in the field with the run-out of Kate Broadmore to go with her four catches. With the match already lost, Maria Fahey charged down the track at Wyatt only to miss the ball completely, Sarah Taylor whipping the bails off in a flash to end the game.England’s innings had been well set-up by a 68-run stand between Claire Taylor and Edwards at the top of the innings. With Edwards anchoring the innings, Taylor played her shots in an aggressive 32-ball 34.Marsh picked up where Taylor left off, improvising with gusto in a cameo that included a Dilscoop over the ‘keeper’s head and a flat-batted swipe over square leg. Despite the loss of Edwards four runs short of a deserved half-century, Greenway and Wyatt kept up the momentum to boost England’s match-winning total.

Aston Villa have been rather busy when it comes to adding new players to their squad so far in the January transfer window, with deals completed for Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne.

It now appears that the Midlands club have been making moves in trying to tie down one of their current players for the foreseeable future.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from the Daily Mail, Villa have offered Kortney Hause a new contract to try and keep him at the club after his current deal expires in the summer.

Villa originally signed the defender on loan from fellow Premier League club Wolves three years ago before securing him on a permanent basis in the summer of 2019 in a deal worth a reported fee of £3m.

Overall, the 26-year-old – who is currently valued at £4.5m by Transfermarkt – has made 53 appearances for the Villans across all competitions, scoring four goals in the process – the latest of which came in their 1-0 win over Manchester United in the Premier League earlier this season.

Even though Hause has only made one appearance for Villa in the Premier League since Steven Gerrard was appointed as manager back in mid-November, it will still be hugely pleasing for the Villa boss to see the 26-year-old sign a new deal at the club.

They currently have only Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings in their squad who predominantly play at centre-back alongside Hause, after Axel Tuanzebe’s loan deal was cut short earlier this month.

Despite making just five appearances for Villa in the Premier League this season, Hause has shown that he is just as capable of performing to a solid level as Mings and Konsa, with WhoScored giving him an overall rating of 6.67/10 – the same as the former and higher than the latter.

With this in mind, if the ex-Wolves defender were to put pen to paper on a new deal at Villa Park, it would be a great piece of business for the club to get done this month rather than have owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens worry about Hause potentially leaving in the summer as a free agent if he decides that he would be better off going elsewhere to get regular game-time.

In other news: “In the last hours…” – Journalist drops Aston Villa transfer update, Gerrard will be delighted

West Bromwich Albion manager Valerien Ismael is plotting a move for Daryl Dike in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to Express & Star journalist Luke Hatfield, who revealed in a recent interview with GIVEMSPORT that the Orlando City centre-forward features very highly on Ismael’s list of targets for the winter window.

When asked about West Brom’s potential interest in the 21-year-old, Hatfield said: “I’m sure he’s a player who is very, very high on their list. There were links with him almost endlessly over the summer and his form for Orlando has been very good.

“He’s got a really good goalscoring record in the MLS. No disrespect to the league, but it is maybe a couple of steps below the level that Albion are playing at or hope to play at in the Premier League. He’s clearly a player who’s got real talent.”

Ismael must act

Jordan Hugill has failed to find any real run of goalscoring form since his arrival at The Hawthorns on a season-long loan deal back in August, with the 29-year-old hitting the back of the net just once over his 10 Championship appearances this season. Therefore, a move for a proven goalscorer in January would seem essential for the Baggies if they are to have any hope of securing promotion back to the Premier League come next May.

As Hatfield suggests, Dike would very much seem to be a fantastic option for the club to pursue, as the USA international has been in fine form for Orlando in the current campaign.

Indeed, over his 15 MLS fixtures, the £9m-rated marksman has bagged seven goals – a scoring frequency of one in every 151 minutes of football played – provided one assist and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as taking 1.7 shots and making 0.5 key passes per game

These metrics have seen the player who Nani dubbed a “special” talent average a SofaScore match rating of 7.05, ranking him as his team’s joint third-best performer in the division.

However, it is not only Dike’s form in America which suggests that he would make a fantastic signing for Ismael, but also his returns while playing under the Frenchman during a loan spell at Barnsley last term. The 6 foot 2 striker scored nine goals over 19 Championship appearances at Oakwell at a rate of one goal every 143 minutes.

As such, considering Hugill’s incomparable return of one goal in 562 minutes of Championship football played this season, Ismael simply must do all he can to land Dike in January, as the 21-year-old undoubtedly possesses the goalscoring ability to fire West Brom back to the Premier League.

In other news: Cost the club £13m, left for nothing: WBA had a nightmare on “stupid” £30k-p/w flop

Pending approval from the ICC, South Africa will host India in a one-off Twenty20 match for the Krish Mackerdhuj Trophy in January next year, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban – one of the venues for the football World Cup

Cricinfo staff21-May-2010Pending approval from the ICC, South Africa will host India in a one-off Twenty20 match for the Krish Mackerdhuj Trophy in January next year, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban – one of the venues for the football World Cup.”This match will be CSA’s way of acknowledging the meaningful contribution to the progress of South Africa made by the Indian community, and also to India for its support of cricket here since unity,” CSA chief executive Gerald Majola said. “The BCCI have kindly agreed to the match, and we are awaiting final approval from the ICC.”The late Mackerdhuj is a past president of the South Africa board, and pioneered South Africa’s first international tour, to India, after being re-admitted into the international fold in 1991. The match will also commemorate the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Indians in South Africa.The stadium, which is set to stage five group games, one second round match and a semi-final during the World Cup, has a capacity of 70,000, which will be reduced to 54,000 after the marquee football event. It has space for expansion around the football pitch which makes cricket feasible.

Cricinfo previews the second semi-final between Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers

The Preview by Siddarth Ravindran21-Apr-2010 Match factsThursday, April 22
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)MS Dhoni showed again in Dharamsala that he’s one of the best finishers in the game•Indian Premier League Big PictureAll the headlines over the past couple of weeks have been dealing with the off-field shenanigans of administrators and franchise owners, but in the same period Deccan Chargers have, almost without notice, knitted together five wins to finish the league, against all odds, in second spot. The middle-order trio of T Suman, Rohit Sharma and Andrew Symonds has been crucial to the turnaround, made all the more remarkable as it came on the back of five consecutive morale-sapping defeats. After the final-over choke against Rajasthan Royals, they have shown much more composure in similar situations thereafter to pull off some crucial victories. Deccan have also overcome the disadvantage of having no real home games, or the comfort of a partisan crowd backing them.Deccan’s bowling isn’t their strongest suit, though, and they are up against one of the strongest batting outfits in the tournament, Chennai Super Kings. While it was expected that Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni would plaster the bowling, the surprise package has been the form of M Vijay at the top of the order. Add to that the solidity of S Badrinath, the threatening presence of Matthew Hayden, and the hitting of Albie Morkel and Justin Kemp and the scale of the challenge facing Adam Gilchrist’s bowlers becomes evident. One thing the Deccan coach, Darren Lehmann, will remind his team of is the inconsistency of their opponents who have alternated between victory and defeat in their past five matches. Like Deccan, Chennai’s bowling attack is also not among the more potent ones in the tournament, which means there could be a run-fest at the DY Patil when the two sides face off.Form guide (most recent first)Deccan Chargers WWWWW
Chennai Super Kings WLWLWTeam talkChennai’s overseas players haven’t been as influential as the foreign recruits in most of the other teams. Doug Bollinger is one who has consistently delivered, but Dhoni will mostly have to pick the out-of-form Matthew Hayden and Albie Morkel. Justin Kemp could also be needed to give the side options, especially with all the Indian fast bowlers struggling.Chennai: (probable) Matthew Hayden, M Vijay, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (capt & wk), S Badrinath, Albie Morkel, Justin Kemp, R Ashwin, Doug Bollinger, Shadab Jakati, L Balaji/Sudeep Tyagi
Deccan have to ponder whether to retain Chaminda Vaas or to bring back Ryan Harris, both of whom have performed well in the tournament. Mitchell Marsh hasn’t had too much of an impact in the last few matches, which means Dwayne Smith could be brought back.Deccan: (probable) Adam Gilchrist (capt & wk), Mohnish Mishra, T Suman, Andrew Symonds, Rohit Sharma, Mitchell Marsh/Dwayne Smith, Ryan Harris/Chaminda Vaas, RP Singh, Rahul Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Harmeet Singh Previously…Deccan 4 Chennai 2
Deccan have won both matches between the sides this IPL with ease: They piled on 190 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium to cruise to a 31-run victory, before trumping by six wickets in Nagpur.In the spotlightAdam Gilchrist has had a forgettable tournament so far, but he’s one of the game’s great big-match players. Last season, he stopped the in-form Delhi Daredevils in the semi-finals with a breathtaking onslaught on their spearhead, Dirk Nannes. Can he repeat that performance again?Chennai’s fast bowlers Bollinger has rapidly won over the Chennai crowd with his enthusiasm and tight bowling. He has had little support from the other quicks, though, with Albie and the quartet of Indian medium-pacers all proving expensive.MS Dhoni flopped when he pushed himself to No. 3 against Delhi but in the game against Kings XI Punjab, he showed off the massive hitting that made him popular during his early days in international cricket. How he and Raina perform will have a big impact of the sort of total Chennai will get.Prime numbers and trivia Deccan (39) and Chennai (32) have conceded the most sixes in the league phase while bowling at the death (last six overs)Tyagi has had a horror tournament – an average of 159 combined with an economy rate of 10.04. That economy rate though is better than several competitors to the local fast-bowling slot, like Manpreet Gony and Joginder Sharma The match features the three highest run-getters in the IPL: Raina, Gilchrist and RohitChatter”T20 is a lottery, but we couldn’t use that excuse anymore, so we planned every tiny aspect of the game right from what kind of shots to play after losing a wicket to how wide or slow to bowl to a batsman in the slog overs.”

Many Arsenal fans were critical of the performance of Granit Xhaka in their 2-1 loss at home to Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday lunchtime.

The home side would have felt very hard done by at the end, as a penalty given away by the Switzerland international was followed by a quick red card for Gabriel, which essentially turned the game on its head after they were 1-0 up at the Emirates Stadium.

Aside from the penalty that he gave up, Xhaka also lost out on seven of his duels and failed to record a single shot on goal, successful dribble, key pass, cross or accurate long ball, while he managed fewer touches than his own goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale (SofaScore).

Some Gooners were most disappointed with him giving the penalty away on Bernardo Silva, a moment which got City back in the game at a point when they were trailing to the home side.

Arsenal fans slam Xhaka

These Arsenal slammed Xhaka’s performance on Twitter, with one going as far as to claim that he was a ‘liability’:

“Get Xhaka out of my club. So painful to watch.”

Credit: @Ludakhalifa

“Xhaka is a liability”

Credit: @SiHanTheGooner

“Xhaka needs to be sold though. It’s been known.”

Credit: @fabianmanzoni

“Xhaka spoils the game yet again”

Credit: @LloydBurns

“Xhaka needs to leave Arsenal…”

Credit: @towluuh

“That’s why we’ll never go anywhere with Xhaka. Simple.”

Credit: @JayRowlatt

In other news, find out which City player’s display was slammed by some of their fans

Lionel Messi has become “like Tiger Woods, Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps” for MLS, says Inter Miami’s chief business officer Xavier Asensi.

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Article continues below

Article continues below

Argentine icon moved to America in 2023Made stunning impact on & off the fieldAttracted new audience to game in USAWHAT HAPPENED?

The Argentine icon has attracted more attention to the domestic game in America following his stunning move to Florida in 2023. A mad scramble for tickets is sparked every time that he takes to the field, with A-list guests falling over themselves in a bid to catch a glimpse of the all-time great in action.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Messi is the biggest draw in MLS, with history being made on and off the field, and those pulling strings behind the scenes are determined to maximise a unique opportunity. Few figures in world sport boast the global appeal of Messi, with the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner forming part of an exclusive club.

WHAT ASENSI SAID ABOUT MESSI

Asensi has said in the of MLS enjoying the kind of boom that the NBA once did when a certain Chicago Bulls legend captured the imagination of a new audience: “The arenas were not full pre-Michael Jordan. That has changed completely. It’s like Tiger Woods in golf or Usain Bolt in track and field, Michael Phelps in swimming. He’s the greatest of all time in the biggest sport worldwide in terms of viewership. It’s an opportunity we have to seize.”

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LA Galaxy head coach Greg Vanney, who will be lining up against Messi and Inter Miami on Sunday, agrees. He played in David Beckham’s MLS debut in 2007 and added on a new superstar taking the game to even greater heights in the United States: “The greatest player of all time is now in our league. And it’s pretty exciting. We’ve really entered the global market of the sport. It drives more attention to our league. People will watch and they’ll understand that the league has a higher level than maybe they perceived. It just continues to help the league grow. With the arrival of David and then the eyeballs that came on the league, the sport started to become a business. It started to transform and cross different avenues.”

Rajasthan need Shaun Tait to make more of an impact than he did in the opening game

Cricinfo staff13-Mar-2010The fastest bowler in cricket was in town. His tussle with Sachin Tendulkar had already created the buzz, and thousands braved the scorching afternoon sun to line up outside the Brabourne Stadium two hours before the scheduled start. Shaun Tait paced around marking his run-up minutes after Mumbai chose to bat, aware of the hype preceding his IPL debut.The sense of drama was heightened further when Shane Warne delayed Tait’s IPL baptism by asking Dmitri Mascarenhas to bowl the first over. Finally, when Tait charged in with his rhythmic run-up, he started poorly, slinging two wides behind Sanath Jayasuriya’s legs. But his first legitimate ball nearly took out Jayasuriya, whose 40-year-old reflexes were too slow to pick the toe-crusher, and, if not for a bottom edge, the Sri Lankan’s stumps would have been splayed. Unfortunately, Tait never repeated that delivery again in the innings.Last evening, Adam Gilchrist, who used to keep wickets to Tait for Australia, had said raw pace on Indian pitches would be ineffective if the ball was not pitched in the right areas. It is a cliché, but it also happens to be one of the basic rules of fast bowling. Tendulkar had already knocked down Tait’s challenge with two neatly tucked on-drives that raced to the ropes.Once the big-name opening pair was dismissed, Tait had a golden opportunity to hit back by winning the smaller duels, like the one against another newcomer Aditya Tare. Instead of dominating Tare, Tait ended up being dominated as he bowled short on to the batsman’s hips to begin with and later pitched it short on the off side, giving enough space for the batsman to free his arms.Warne had already taken Kamran Khan out of the attack after his first over and was relying on Tait to halt Mumbai’s charge. Last year, Kamran’s debut IPL season was aborted after a few games due to a suspect action. By picking him today ahead of a senior bowler like Munaf Patel, Warne had taken a big gamble. Tait’s inconsistency only added to the captain’s worries.Clearly, Tait was still struggling when he came back at death. Immediately, he sprayed five wides and then delivered half-volleys, picked and dispatched easily by the Mumbai batsmen.In stark contrast, another bowler with a slingy action, Lasith Malinga, was at the top of his game at the Brabourne. Unlike Tait, who relied solely on pace, he allied accuracy to pace, making an instant impact. Pitching much fuller, Malinga suffocated the batsmen for space while smartly varying his speed all the time. The slower bouncer was deftly utilised – it even beat the marauding bat of Yusuf Pathan, the first centurion of the third IPL.Malinga was brought in during the crunch moments and he did not disappoint. Unlike Warne, who had split Tait’s four overs into two spells at the two ends of the innings, Tendulkar brought back Malinga for an over when Yusuf had just started his rampage and then for the crucial final over. Rajasthan had ransacked 62 runs in three overs, forcing Tendulkar to re-think his strategy. Next over, the 14th, Malinga came back and kept Paras Dogra tied for the first five balls before Yusuf biffed a resounding straight drive for four.The atmosphere inside Brabourne had reached a crescendo when Malinga returned to deliver the final over, which he started with an athletic run-out of Dogra, followed by Amit Uniyal playing on to the stumps. Chants of “Malinga, Malinga” reverberated across the stadium as Rajasthan lost their steam. Tait sat in the dugout deflated, and could only appreciate the Sri Lankan’s skills. “Malinga showed what you can do in the end and hopefully Shaun can learn from that,” Warne said after the defeat.In the absence of Shane Watson, Warne will rely heavily on Tait to make an impact. Perhaps, he got carried away today after his captain had sold him as the season’s best-selling ticket. Tait needs to start delivering or he could end up as a flop show.

The Wellington fast bowler Andy McKay and the Central Districts opening batsman Peter Ingram are in line for their international debuts after being named in the squads to take on Bangladesh next month

Cricinfo staff24-Jan-2010The Wellington fast bowler Andy McKay and the Central Districts opening batsman Peter Ingram are in line for their international debuts after being named in the squads to take on Bangladesh next month. New Zealand will be without Shane Bond, Jesse Ryder, Kyle Mills and Grant Elliott, all because of injury.There was no place for Scott Styris or Aaron Redmond, both of whom played in New Zealand’s most recent limited-overs series against Pakistan in the UAE in November. BJ Watling also missed out on the Twenty20 squad having made his debut on that tour while the selectors could not find a place for Lou Vincent, despite his strong domestic Twenty20 form.McKay, 29, has been named in a 12-man group to take on Bangladesh in three one-day internationals in Napier, Dunedin and Christchurch. A left-arm fast-medium bowler, McKay is the equal leading wicket-taker in the domestic one-day competition this summer with 11 victims at 20.63.Ingram, 31, has been chosen in the one-day squad and the Twenty20 team to play a one-off international in Hamilton next week. Ingram has been on the domestic scene for nearly a decade and has been in outstanding four-day form this season, with 530 Plunket Shield runs at 75.71, although his one-day form has been less commanding with 154 runs at 30.80.”The teams have been selected with an eye to the T20 World Cup in the West Indies in May, and players for next year’s ODI World Cup in Asia,” selector Mark Greatbatch said. “We have picked two sides for Bangladesh, but our mid to long-term focus is on the two World Cup campaigns.”Twenty20 squad Brendon McCullum, Peter Ingram, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, James Franklin, Gareth Hopkins, Jacob Oram, Nathan McCullum, Daniel Vettori (capt), Ian Butler, Daryl Tuffey, Tim Southee.ODI squad Brendon McCullum, Peter Ingram, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Neil Broom, James Franklin, Daniel Vettori (capt), Jacob Oram, Ian Butler, Daryl Tuffey, Tim Southee, Andy McKay.