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Her 103 off 51 balls – the first century by an Indian woman in T20Is – consigned New Zealand to a 34-run loss in the World T20 opener

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu09-Nov-2018
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I perform better under pressure – Harmanpreet

Sixteen months after blitzing an unbeaten 171 against Australia in the 50-over World Cup semi-final in Derby last year, Harmanpreet Kaur unleashed another brutal hundred – the first by an Indian woman in T20Is – to raze New Zealand in the World T20 opener at Providence.After she tip-toed to 5 off 13 balls, Harmanpreet switched on the Harmonster mode and charged to a fifty off 33 balls. When she glanced Sophie Devine off her pads for a couple in the last over of India’s innings, she raised a hundred off 49 balls. Her monster sixes – she smashed eight in total – vaulted India to 194 for 5 for their second highest total in T20Is.New Zealand opener Suzie Bates briefly threatened to do a Harmanpreet and became the top scorer in Women’s World T20s, but the rapidly rising asking rate was too much to overcome.Harmanpreet walked out to bat when India were wobbling at 40 for 3 inside the Powerplay. Fast bowler Lea Tahuhu struck with her first ball to burst through the defences of new opener Taniya Bhatia, and in her next over, she had Smriti Mandhana holing out to deep midwicket, where Hayley Jensen leapt to her left and pulled off a blinding catch – an early contender for the highlights reel of this tournament. When debutant D Hemalatha jumped across off and swept weakly to short fine leg for 15 off 7 balls, questions were raised about players batting out of positions. Why was Bhatia bumped to the top after impressing in the middle order in Sri Lanka? Where would Mithali Raj bat?Harmanpreet Kaur blasted seven fours and eight sixes during her 103•Getty ImagesUltimately, India didn’t need Mithali at all. It was 18-year-old Jemimah Rodrigues, who made the early running in a 134-run partnership with Harmanpreet – the highest for any wicket for India in women’s T20Is. She crunched Tahuhu through extra-cover, swatted Jensen over midwicket, and even left umpire Gregory Brathwaite in the firing line with a fierce drive. After a poke here and a prod there in the early exchanges, Harmanpreet exploded when she ventured down the track and swatted offspinner Jess Watkin over the midwicket boundary. She owned the arc between long-on and midwicket, nailing five sixes and two fours. She was particularly severe on Watkin, taking her for 27 off 7 balls.And just like that, Harmanpreet outscored Rodrigues and raised her fifty in the 15th over. While Rodrigues’s strokeplay was easy on the eye, Harmanpreet’s power-hitting was extraordinary. Although she regularly stepped across the stumps or down the track, she maintained a stable base and launched the bowlers into oblivion.Rodrigues was dismissed in the 19th over by Watkin, but by then India had passed 170. Harmanpreet then nicked behind off the penultimate ball of the innings, but she had armed her side with a mighty total.It did not appear as mighty, though, when Bates jumped across off and mowed the ball into the leg-side boundaries. Bates ran up a 38-ball half-century, but India’s spinners kept striking at the other end. Legspinner Poonam Yadav removed Sophie Devine and Watkin off successive balls with donkey drops that turned and gripped, but it was offspinner Hemalatha, the debutant, who claimed the key wicket of captain Amy Satterthwaite, when she had her skying a sweep to square leg. When seamer Arundhati Reddy removed Bates in the 14th over, New Zealand slipped to 98 for 5. There would be no way back for them.

April Fool's Day has long been celebrated by the footballing world, and 2024 has brought around some more gags, some more believable than others.

April Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. No one is quite sure as to how the ritual began in the first place, however, it has become a heavily celebrated day in media, and the footballing world always has excelled at it over the years.

The below information is part of the April Fool's Day custom and should not be taken seriously.

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  Gemany will not allow England captain Harry Kane to play at Euro 2024

  Gareth Southgate's England squad will head to Germany as one of the favourites to win their first major international trophy since 1966. However, Telegraph reporter Lirpa Loof has reported that the Deutscher Fussball-Bund (DFB) are looking to activate an old but still active clause in the rule book to stop the Bayern Munich striker from appearing for the Three Lions. As per the Foreign Nationals (Football) Act, passed by the Bundestag in 1898, players can only represent the country in which they are resident.

  The DFB have made the demand that they would not activate the clause to stop Kane, if England agreed that the ball did not cross the goal-line during the 1966 World Cup final against Germany, a goal which gave them the win. They also demand that a replay be scheduled for the clash to decide the winner of the 1966 World Cup.

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• The FA will finally introduce the Video Assistant Referee to the Championship

  The Second Tier Podcast revealed an announcement by the EFL that there will be an official introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (EFL) in the Championship, the second tier of English football, starting next season. It was soon pointed out by the disappointed fans that the post was nothing more than an April Fool's prank with the first letter in each line of the press release reading 'APRIL FOOLS'.

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  Kylian Mbappe to reject Real Madrid and join Manchester United

  French World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe has decided to join Manchester United according to @centregoals on X. The Frenchman has been heavily linked with a move away from Paris Saint-Germain in the coming summer, with Real Madrid being the number one option for the summer move as a free agent. However, the 25-year-old forward has now decided to swerve Los Blancos yet again and join the Red Devils.

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• Puma and Adidas to collaborate after years of rivalry

  The feud between Puma and Adidas is very well known after the dispute between brothers Rudolf Dassler and Adolf Dassler created the two brands. However, as per FootyHeadlines, the two companies have decided to put aside their differences to create a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration named 'Adidas x Puma 'dasLA' Collab Collection'.

  The collaboration would include a special boot called the 'dasLA Hybrid Predator King' which would combine the two companies' special leather boot collection. They would also form a special fourth kit for AC Milan and Marseille as the two clubs have switched between the two rivals as their shirt sponsor previously.

Tottenham Hotspur now have an agreement in place regarding an important off-field deal, with the key figure in question now set to start work next week at the Lilywhites, according to reports.

Tottenham Hotspur under Ange Postecoglou

Since arriving in north London from Scottish Premiership champions Celtic in the summer, Ange Postecoglou has been a revelation at the helm and has galvanised a side that looks capable of challenging for the Premier League title in 2023/24.

So far, Spurs have taken 26 points from their opening ten fixtures in the division, playing a style of football that has given supporters real cause for optimism following a damp squib of a campaign in 2022/23.

Nevertheless, former boss Harry Redknapp has claimed that Tottenham aren't a genuine contender to win their first top-flight title since 1961, citing the departure of Harry Kane as a reason why his old club may not be able to go the distance this term.

Speaking to The Daily Express, the 76-year-old stated: "Can Tottenham win the Premier League? No, but they will finish in the top four. People say they are better without Harry Kane, but that’s rubbish. Nobody is better without Harry Kane. He’s the best centre-forward in the world. If he was still at Spurs, he would have scored 12 goals already – and had another half dozen or so assists as well. If they had brought James Maddison in, and Micky van de Ven, and kept Kane – then they would have a team which could win the league."

Despite varying opinions on whether Spurs can genuinely challenge the likes of Manchester City for Premier League glory, it is clear that things are on the up in N17 – and nothing would crystalise that statement more for Tottenham than defeating London rivals Chelsea at home on Monday night.

Nevertheless, Postecoglou is tempering expectations among his Tottenham squad by adopting a game-by-game approach, as he stated ahead of the Chelsea clash via BBC Sport: "We know there's another challenge on Monday night. Looking beyond that doesn't really serve any purpose. The supporters – by all means, this is their football club and they've got to enjoy their football club if things are going well and it provides them with some hopes, dreams and aspirations."

Now, it looks as if Spurs are also taking steps to maximise their potential for success by making an appointment behind the scenes at Hotspur Way.

Tottenham Hotspur's next five fixtures – all competitions

Competition

Opponent

Venue

Premier League

Chelsea

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Premier League

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Molineux

Premier League

Aston Villa

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Premier League

Manchester City

Etihad Stadium

Premier League

West Ham United

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Tottenham Hotspur reach full agreement with Rob Mackenzie

As per Football Insider, Rob Mackenzie will begin his role as head of recruitment at Tottenham next week after reaching a full agreement to join the club from Aston Villa.

The report states that Mackenzie has now handed in his notice to Aston Villa and is free to return to Spurs, where he spent 18 months working alongside Paul Mitchell between 2015 and 2016.

38-year-old Mackenzie has also previously held various positions at OH Leuven, Derby County and Leicester City before going on to work as a chief scout and video analyst at Aston Villa.

Looking ahead, Spurs fans will hope he can help to continue their positive momentum by identifying some gems in the transfer market across future windows.

How will Celtic react to suffering a rare defeat?

On Saturday, the Hoops were beaten 2-1 by Hibernian at Easter Road, with Daizen Maeda’s late equaliser controversially disallowed, because VAR adjudged that the ball had gone out of play; images are certainly inconclusive.

Nevertheless, no damage was done because, for just the fifth time in 15 years, Rangers and Celtic were both beaten on the same Premiership weekend, with St Mirren 2-0 winners later in the day on Saturday.

Brendan Rodgers’ side remain 13 points clear at the top, ahead of Aberdeen’s visit to Parkhead on Tuesday.

The main reasons behind that defeat? Well, VAR were perhaps to blame but left-back Greg Taylor, who was subbed at half-time didn’t cover himself in glory and the midfield was too lightweight with record signing Arne Engels slammed for a “passive” display by Glasgow World’s Ben Banks.

How they could have done with someone like Scott Brown or Victor Wanyama in the middle…

Victor Wanyama's Celtic career

Wanyama arrived at Celtic from Belgian club Beerschot for a reported fee of £900,000, and would leave two years later as a cult hero.

The Kenyan made 91 appearances in hoops, winning two Premiership titles and the Scottish Cup, earning wide-spread acclaim for his performances, with Ewan Murray of the Guardian praising his ‘string of high-level displays’ in the Champions League.

The most high-profile and famous of these came when Celtic beat Barcelona 2-1 at Parkhead in November 2012; Wanyama rising highest to head home the opener, while Jacob Steinberg of the Guardian notes that, up against Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Lionel Messi, Wanyama was ‘the best player on the pitch’.

This saw the Celts sell the midfielder for £12.5m to Southampton in 2013, representing an enormous profit, before he then joined Tottenham for £11m in 2016.

During four years at Spurs, Wanyama made 97 appearances for the club, described by Harvey Byrne of Football Insider as ‘fantastic’, while Charlie Eccleshare of the Athletic believes he enjoyed the best form of his career in a Tottenham shirt, realising the potential Celtic supporters always knew he had.

Now 33-years-old, he’s a free agent, departing Club de Foot Montréal following the conclusion of the most recent MLS season in October having, as Joe Lowery of Total Soccer Show puts it, offered the Canadian club basically nothing, despite being their highest-paid player.

So, while the Kenyan now finds himself in the wilderness, the same can certainly be said of an ex-Celtic midfielder, once touted as the next Wanyama.

What happened to Celtic's forgotten midfielder

Eboue Kouassi joined the Hoops from Russian Premier League side Krasnodar for £2.8m in January 2017, with Graeme McGarry of the Herald expecting the defensive midfielder to ‘walk into the Celtic first team’, believing he could be the next Victor Wanyama, adding the club are likely to see a huge return in their initial investment.

He wasn’t the only one, with manager Brendan Rodgers claiming the Ivorian reminded him of £108m mega star Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling, stating “within 10 seconds you see his talent.”

Well, suffice to say this did not come to pass, with Kouassi making just 22 appearances in hoops, only 12 of which were starts, totalling less than 1,000 minutes.

This is largely due to the fact he ruptured his ACL during a League Cup semi-final victory over Hearts at Murrayfield in October 2018, never seen in hoops again, and joined Genk, initially on loan, before being sold for £1.3m.

Where Are They Now

Fair to say Kouassi’s career has never recovered from that moment, as this table outlines.

The Ivorian did rediscover some form and fitness at Arouca, albeit he didn’t make a single appearance for them during the first half of this season, so joined second-tier Portuguese side União de Leiria during the January transfer window.

Now worth just £600k, according to Transfermarkt, he made his Liga Portugal 2 debut earlier this month, before being an unused substitute against Marítimo on Saturday.

Now 27, Kouassi should be in the prime of his career, so few could’ve forecast he’d be struggling for minutes in the Portuguese second tier when he first landed in Glasgow to so much hype and expectation.

Celtic hit the jackpot selling 'best since Larsson' who's now in PL exile

Celtic striker once described as the “best since Larsson” now in Premier League exile; thankfully the Hoops cashed in.

By
Ben Gray

Feb 21, 2025

Manchester United have agreed terms to make an off-field appointment, according to one new report.

Latest Man Utd news…

The Red Devils have had a busy few months both on and off the pitch, with a takeover saga at Old Trafford potentially nearing a conclusion. The latest Man Utd takeover news has claimed that Sir Jim Ratcliffe is expected to purchase a 25% stake in the club for £1.3bn and wants control of football operations. Ratcliffe is proposing himself, Joel Glazer and Sir Dave Brailsford as a new football committee, and a decision may soon be needed on manager Erik ten Hag.

The club’s form so far this season has been frustrating, with four Premier League defeats from eight and two losses in the Champions League. Recent Man Utd manager updates have even claimed that the Red Devils have made an offer to Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, although the Italian isn’t interested in a return to England.

In regards to transfer news, a number of players have been linked with moves to Manchester recently with the January window around the corner, including Benfica midfielder Joao Neves, Inter Milan full-back Federico Dimarco and Real Betis attacker Assane Diao.

Man Utd agree terms with target

It could be a new-look club on the sporting side of things under Ratcliffe, if a deal goes through, and that may result in changes all the way down to youth-level recruitment. Football Insider shared an update in the last 48 hours regarding one target who is set to take an Old Trafford recruitment role.

The report revealed that Cardiff City’s Ben Clarke, who has impressed with the Championship side, has agreed terms with Man Utd. It is added that Clarke has been a target for United to ‘head up their academy recruitment as they look to bring the best young talent in the country and across the world to Old Trafford’.

The Red Devils are known for placing their trust in their academy all the way up to senior level, with a number of youngsters progressing through the system to become first-team stars, such as Marcus Rashford. However, Clarke’s role will seemingly be to secure deals for a number of exciting youngsters to move to Carrington, who could then go on and follow in the footsteps of Rashford and co on the first-team stage.

Therefore, the agreement with Clarke could prove to be a smart move by those at Old Trafford, and by the look of things, a deal may well become official soon following this update.

Everton can't afford to lose key players in the near future, and a fresh update suggests they are preparing talks with one player over a new deal at Goodison Park.

Where are Everton in the table?

The Blues suffered a terrible result in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon, losing 2-1 at home to newly promoted Luton Town, in a game many expected the hosts to win. After a good week, which included a win away to Brentford in the league and a victory at Villa Park in the EFL Cup, this was a result that brought them crashing back down to reality.

Everton sit 16th in the Premier League table after seven matches, with only one win to their name, and defeats of this ilk suggest that another relegation battle could be coming their way in 2023/24. It is still early days, of course, but Sean Dyche continues to find it difficult to make his presence felt as manager.

There are certain players who are hugely important for the Blues, both in the present and the future, and a key update has emerged regarding the future of one of those individuals.

Which Everton player could sign new deal?

According to Football Insider, Everton are in talks with centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite over a new contract, as they look to tie down arguably one of their most prized assets currently:

"Everton are determined to hand defender Jarrad Branthwaite a new contract, sources have told Football Insider. The 21-year-old has broken into the side in recent weeks and has built a strong partnership with James Tarkowski at the heart of the Toffees defence.

"Branthwaite has been a revelation for cash-strapped Everton following his experience-building loan at PSV Eindhoven in the 2022-23 campaign. PSV were keen to sign him in the summer window after his successful spell, but a deal could not be struck with Everton – who wanted to keep him at Goodison Park. The England Under-21 international was also wanted by Man United as well as other Premier League sides. But Branthwaite is out of contract in June 2025, prompting Everton to ready talks over a renewed deal."

Branthwaite is someone who Everton could do with tieing down to a new contract, considering he has already become an important figure, despite being just 21 years of age. This season, he has started five games in the league, averaging 3.8 clearances and averaging 3.2 aerial duel wins per game, highlighting the defensive ability that he possesses.

The Englishman also enjoyed a successful loan spell at Eredivisie giants PSV Eindhoven last season, where manager Ruud van Nistelrooy was clearly impressed with him, saying:

"How he fought his way into the team, he showed himself fantastic. He’s complete, he’s got speed, he’s big. He’s also only 20, so there’s a lot of stretch. Or am I going to say they have to do everything they can to keep Branthwaite? To the current technical director, the previous one, the future, all of them. Hopefully he is one for the future, that’s how we see him internally."

A potential move elsewhere could appeal to Branthwaite, of course, especially if it is a bigger and more successful club than Everton, but the Blues must do all they can to extend his stay and make him a backbone of the team for many years to come, and it looks as if they will aim to do just that.

The opener scored 94 off 50 balls, the highest this season, to give Lahore Qalandars their third successive win

The Report by Danyal Rasool14-Mar-2018
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsLahore Qalandars continued their late resurgence in the PSL, notching up their third successive win after downing Quetta Gladiators by 17 runs. They had opener Fakhar Zaman to thank primarily for their two points. He put on a show of fabulous power-hitting to clout 94 off 50 balls – the highest individual score this season – and lead his side to 186.Lahore haven’t made any changes to their team since picking up their first win, and their openers Fakhar and Anton Devcich gave them a solid start again. However, when Devcich, Agha Salman and Brendon McCullum – the captain who was controversially given out off a no-ball – fell in quick succession, Fakhar held the innings together, brilliantly supported by a 27-ball 42 from wicketkeeper-batsman Gulraiz Sadaf. A cameo in the end from Sunil Narine (20*) ensured Lahore finished with a flourish.With Jason Roy back in the Quetta side, their top order boasted a frightening quartet of Roy, Shane Watson, Kevin Pietersen and Rilee Rossouw. While the England opener got Quetta off to a fast start – they raced to 52 for 0 in five overs – the wicket of Watson immediately set them back. And from thereon the Quetta chase began to unravel. Narine took care of both Pietersen and Roy, and as the asking rate climbed, Quetta found themselves out of the contest. Rossouw launched a counterattack, smashing five sixes in a 22-ball 42, but it only gave Lahore a late scare. Quicks Shaheen Afridi and Sohail Khan eventually wrapped up a comfortable win.Where the match was won
It may have taken till after Lahore were eliminated to begin working on their weaknesses, but they did illustrate the extent to which they have improved in the middle overs on Wednesday. After losing three quick wickets, Lahore’s run rate had dipped below seven, and after 11 overs they were stuttering at 76 for 3. But instead of capitulating, Fakhar and Gulraiz launched an astonishing onslaught, hitting 64 in the next four overs. It included an over of fearsome hitting from Fakhar that cost 24 runs, with Rahat Ali the hapless recipient. It was the phase of the game Sarfraz Ahmed might have deemed Lahore to be most vulnerable, but they turned that weakness into a comprehensive strength.The men that won it
While it is hard to look past Fakhar, one would be remiss to overlook vital contributions from Narine and Gulraiz. After all, Fakhar was dismissed with nearly five overs left in Lahore innings and the score only at 141, when the pair put on an unbroken 45-run stand in 28 balls.The brain freeze
A team led by McCullum on course to win three in a row is likely to be a happy unit. That was how Lahore had been appearing all tournament. Even when they had lost six on the bounce, they never looked like a dressing room falling out with each other. But towards the end of today’s contest, when both teams were almost going through the motions with the game virtually in the bag for Lahore, a bizarre scuffle erupted. Sohail Khan, who had been trying to get the attention of Yasir Shah on the boundary without success, inexplicably lost his temper and threw the ball on the full towards him. It very narrowly missed Yasir’s head, and the legspinner, to put it mildly, was incandescent. It took all of McCullum’s diplomatic powers to assuage the pair, but the lack of judgment from Sohail couldn’t help leaving one nonplussed. The pair reconciled at the end of the game, and Yasir even laughed it off. It would have been rather different, of course, if the ball had actually made contact with Yasir.Where they stand
Lahore drew level with Peshawar Zalmi, though they are still in last place on net run-rate. Quetta remained second, two points behind table-toppers Islamabad United.

Australia U-19 will feature in a tri-series alongside hosts South Africa and England, this April, for their first overseas tour

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Mar-2018The Australia women’s Under-19 team is set to play for the first time in 15 years when they travel to South Africa for a tri-series, also featuring England, in April. Having last played a match in 2003, against England at home, the tour will also be the maiden overseas foray for the Under-19 side.The Cricket Australia Women’s youth selection panel named a 14-member squad that will take on South Africa’s Emerging Women and England Women’s Academy across four 50-over matches – between April 12 and 18 – and two Twenty20s, on April 24 and 26. The final will be a 50-over match and will be played on April 28. The team will be coached by former Australia batsman and current Cricket Australia high performance coach and Under-19 head coach Leah Poulton, with Ben Sawyer and Luke Williams acting in the assistant roles.The leadership duties will be split across the formats, with 16-year-old allrounder Rachel Trenaman named captain of the 50-over side, with Tasmanian Courtney Webb her deputy. The T20 side will be led by Saskia Horley, with Annabel Sutherland shouldering vice-captaincy responsibilities.”I think it just goes to show how fast the female pathway has moved over the last few years,” Poulton said of the decision to reintroduce the Under-19 team. “It’s an exciting time for women’s cricket and if Australia wants to stay at the top we really need to invest in our pathway, which I believe we’re doing well.”The tour presents a really good opportunity for the players to get a taste of what it’s like to be in an elite touring environment. Putting your skills to the test in a variety of different conditions and situations is an essential part of being an elite cricketer.”England and South Africa are two very good teams who will present some good challenges for the group. We want the players to be tested and to be pushed outside their comfort zones and to have to adapt to the different situations they find themselves in. This is a really exciting group of players who I think all have big futures in the game so I’m looking forward to seeing how they perform.”The re-integration of an Under-19 side comes on the back of structural changes made to the female pathway which brought it in line with the male pathway, with an Australia A side, Cricket Australia XI and National Performance Squad replacing the previous Under-21 Shooting Stars.Australia Under-19 squad: Stella Campbell (NSW), Maddy Darke (NSW), Hannah Darlington (NSW), Josephine Dooley (Queensland), Ellen Falconer (South Australia), Nicole Faltum (Victoria), Saskia Horley (NSW), Hayley Silver-Holmes (NSW), Annabel Sutherland (Victoria), Rachel Trenaman (NSW), Tayla Vlaeminck (Victoria), Georgia Wareham (Victoria), Courtney Webb (Tasmania), Tahlia Wilson (NSW)

Liverpool surely need to sign another midfielder before the transfer window slams shut this week, but whether Jurgen Klopp's side do as such is another question.

Will Liverpool sign anyone before transfer deadline day?

According to The Athletic's Carl Anka, Liverpool have held an interest in Bayer Leverkusen holding midfielder Exequiel Palacios this summer following Fabinho's £40m sale to Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Ittihad.

Despite this, Klopp has received a blow after the Bundesliga club's managing director for sport, Simon Rolfes, has stated that Palacios is going nowhere this year.

The report alludes to embryonic Manchester United interest, and while the 24-year-old is deemed untouchable by Leverkusen, the late stage of the window means Liverpool need to test some outfits' resolve to complete their rebuild.

How good is Exequiel Palacios?

Palacios might be a name few have heard on Merseyside, but Xabi Alonso and the Leverkusen support are waxing lyrical over the Argentine's midfield skills over in Germany, with his manager lauding his "excellent" progress over the past year.

Read the latest Liverpool transfer news HERE…

Having basked in footballing glory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with Argentina, the 25-cap international would link up with compatriot Alexis Mac Allister at Anfield in a move that would likely enhance the cohesion at the club.

Liverpool were left hot under the collar after missing out on both Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia to Chelsea earlier in August, despite agreeing lucrative deals for both, and were forced to swoop for 30-year-old Stuttgart midfielder Wataru Endo for £16m to combat the absence of a No 6.

Caicedo, in particular, would have been a superlative addition to a prestigious club targetting a resurgence after falling by the wayside last term, having dazzled for Brighton & Hove Albion last season, earning an average league rating 7.08 – as per Sofascore – after completing 89% of his passes and averaging 2.7 tackles per match, also earning praise as a “machine man” by renowned scout Jacek Kulig.

The Ecuadorian ranks among the top 4% of midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, the top 11% for passes attempted, the top 12% for tackles and the top 17% for interceptions per 90, as per FBref, emphasising his stunning skill set that left the Reds and Chelsea oh-so desperate for his services.

Caicedo happens to be listed as a comparable player via FBref to Palacios, who ranks among the top 7% of positional peers for passes attempted, the top 4% for tackles and the top 3% for interceptions per 90.

As a result, Liverpool could land a tailor-made alternative, if they are able to complete an unlikely swoop.

The £15m-rated hotshot recorded an average league score of 7.03 last season, completing 83% of his passes and averaging 2.3 tackles per outing, highlighting a similar level of robustness to the new Chelsea phenom.

Klopp must now push to sign the Leverkusen ace before the market closes later this week, eradicating the doubt that has seeped into the club's early-season efforts after a tumultuous transfer window.

No England wicketkeeper can have expended so much energy in the role as Matt Prior. So said the when he called time on his first-class career more than two years ago.Now Prior’s energy levels are hitting maximum again as he comes to the terms with the fact that he can no longer ignore. The vacant head coach’s role at Sussex is a job made for him.If not that precise role then something else where he can bark a few orders, lay down a few ground rules, and sort out a Sussex culture which he is adamant has become slack and unprofessional.Prior, who was part of a great Sussex era when they won three Championships between 2003 and 2007, told the Brighton on Friday: “I am passionate about Sussex cricket. I’ve spoken to a number of senior players in the last month or so, a number of coaches and staff. What I’m hearing is frightening.”Obviously things are not good. I think Sussex have become soft, if I’m honest. I don’t want to sound like I’m here as an enemy. I’m here as an ally.”Whether Rob Andrew, Sussex’s chief executive, will have the courage to recognise that Prior’s challenging persona can be channelled into something positive and long lasting remains to be seen – not many chief executives like the failings of their county to be be openly discussed. Andrew told ESPNcricinfo this week that the decision on a new head coach will not be rushed.By the time he makes it, Prior’s blood pressure could be in need of daily checks. Until then, a thick-set figure will be seen pedalling away his frustrations, uphill into the wind, down Sussex’s country lanes.When Prior retired because of persistent Achilles problems, he turned to cycling for satisfaction, founding One Pro Cycling, Britain’s first continental professional cycling team.But since the removal as head coach of Mark Davis, by mutual consent, last month, so ending a 16-year association with the club, Prior has realised that he would love nothing more than to park his bike inside the cramped and characterful Hove ground where he spent much of his career.Prior was initially coy about his ambitions, perhaps even conflicted, but he is a passionate man and he has been unable to curb his excitement, especially on Twitter where his recent pronouncements have displayed his love for a county that has lost its way.Take this, for instance, the day before Davis’ sacking:”Some big changes going on at @SussexCCC – who knows what’s gone on behind closed doors. All I do know is the culture needs to be rebuilt!”Or this, four days later:”Damage was done long before Mark Davis was put in charge. So frustrating as been saying for a long time things need to change drastically.”And, most recently, this:”For the number of people asking yes I am very keen to be involved with @SussexCCC & help the club get back to winning ways. I have spoken to a number of senior players & staff & what has been going & how a few individuals have behaved is quite frankly worrying. It needs to change.”That Prior has the experience – if not the coaching certificates – for Sussex’s top job is undeniable. He became an increasingly influential figure in the England dressing room in a career that encompassed 79 Tests and 68 ODIs between 2004 and 2014.Kevin Pietersen resented his senior professional role, and emphasis on the team ethic, deriding him as the Big Cheese in one of the most vicious personal attacks ever seen in a cricket autobiography, but then Pietersen was not the greatest fan of authority.Prior has seen Yorkshire and Lancashire make internal appointments in the past year, promoting Andrew Gale and Glen Chapple respectively as soon as their playing days were over.He has also shown in his cycling venture that he has an appetite for a challenge. The development of One Pro Cycling has not been an easy one – funding problems have caused the team to trim back plans to compete in world events, alongside Team Sky, and return to continental level and rosters have also been cut – but the extent of Prior’s sporting ambition has been clear. He knows what he wants to achieve and tends to take the direct approach to getting there.”I’ve learned about the real world – the world outside cricket,” he said.As a player, too, he has had the opportunity to study the various approaches of Peter Moores, both with Sussex and England, Duncan Fletcher and Andy Flower.As Moores turned a largely homegrown Sussex side into one of the best-drilled sides in the country, Prior commanded respect as an up-and-coming player for his drive and the enterprising way he played his cricket. The demanding leadership and sense of direction that Moores instilled in the club remains a strong influence on him.If he returned to Sussex in an influential capacity, he would not be content with a snooze in a deckchair behind the arm and an occasional burst of Sussex by the Sea.