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Manchester United are interested in completing the signing of Atletico Madrid midfielder Conor Gallagher in the January transfer window.

The Red Devils may have found some real form for the first time under Ruben Amorim, but it is also clear that midfield reinforcements are needed, whether that be in January or next summer.

Casemiro feels almost certain to leave United at the end of the season despite finding his goalscoring boots recently, departing when his contract expires, so bringing in a younger alternative to marshal the troops in front of the defence is key.

There is also a general lack of midfield depth for Amorim to call upon, with the club’s 20th most expensive signing Manuel Ugarte struggling to be a convincing signing since arriving, and Mason Mount continuing to be an injury-prone figure.

Gallagher has been linked with a move to United in the past, with the England international considering a potential addition, and now a new update has emerged on a move to Old Trafford.

Man Utd want to seal Conor Gallagher signing

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano claimed that Manchester United remain interested in signing Gallagher on loan from Atletico, with a January move possible.

“I told you several times that Man United want to add a midfielder, but in this moment to go for a very expensive midfielder in the January transfer window might be difficult. Players like (Carlos) Baleba maybe are not even available.

“Same for Angelo Stiller and then there could be opportunities – a name that Manchester United considered in the summer transfer window final days was Connor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid. Conor Gallagher remains an option in case Atletico Madrid decide to open doors to a loan move. At the moment Gallagher is only focused on Atletico Madrid.

“Manchester United’s interest is genuine since August. But Gallagher is one of the options they have in case it could be an opportunity on loan, in case it can be a typical general deal. So we will be following the situation. But Gallagher is a name we have to keep there.”

There is plenty to admire about Gallagher for United, not least the fact that he already has so much Premier League experience from his Chelsea and Crystal Palace days, during which Frank Lampard called his work rate “amazing”.

The 25-year-old has made 136 appearances in the competition, while Atletico’s legendary manager Diego Simeone has lauded his intense style of play.

‘It’s never easy for players coming from England to adapt to the Spanish championship, to the language. He has competed very well in different places and in positions where he doesn’t feel more comfortable. He will evolve, he has room for growth. He is very intense in offensive and defensive play, he brings a lot to us.”

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Gallagher would bring much-needed legs to United’s midfield, potentially proving to be an upgrade on Ugarte, and he has the team ethic to be a popular figure at Old Trafford from the off. The fact that he has only managed two La Liga starts this season also means he could be open for a new challenge.

Man Utd's future "£100m+ footballer" is another Casemiro in the making

Tottenham Hotspur have now expressed an interest in signing a “world-class” forward, who Thomas Frank approved signing during the summer transfer window.

Spurs looking to sign new forward amid Tel and Odobert concerns

Frank strengthened his forward line during the summer transfer window, with Mohammed Kudus arriving from West Ham United, and the 25-year-old has emerged as a key player so far this season, chipping in with one goal and five assists in the Premier League.

However, there are concerns about the performances of some of the players who were already at the club, with journalist Andreas Vou particularly critical of the decision to bring in Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert, rather than making one statement signing in attack.

The duo were benched for the 3-0 victory against Everton on Sunday, having picked up just one top-flight goal between them this term, and the Lilywhites have now set out to sign another new forward.

That is according to a report from Spain, which reveals Tottenham have now expressed an interest in signing Real Sociedad star Takefusa Kubo, who has been put up for sale by the La Liga club ahead of the January transfer window.

Kubo is now expected to leave Real Sociedad this winter, which could open the door for a move to N17, and there is a feeling he could now be available for the relatively affordable fee of €40m (£35m).

Manchester United and Everton are also in the race for the winger, and there are indications that Frank could be keen too, having already approved a move back in the summer transfer window.

"World-class" Kubo may need fresh start

The Japanese forward is clearly very talented, having received plaudits from former Barcelona boss Xavi in the past, who said: “(Takefusa) Kubo is a world-class footballer. Not just with the ball, but also without it.”

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The 24-year-old has also impressed at times over the past year, particularly catching the eye with his dribbling ability, ranking in the 94th percentile for successful take-ons per 90, when compared to other attacking midfielders and wingers.

That said, there may be concerns about some of the Japan international’s recent performances, given that he has provided just one goal for Real Sociedad in La Liga this term, while failing to pick up a single assist.

Kubo may simply need a fresh start in a new league, having been in La Liga since the 2019-20 campaign, so a move to Tottenham could be ideal, although his recent form means he would be a risky signing.

Real Madrid and Barcelona are set to renew their rivalry ahead of Sunday's monumental El Clasico clash at the Santiago Bernabeu. Ronald Araujo, expected to start for the Catalans in defence, was lavish in his praise for Vinicius Junior and credited the Brazilian for bringing "the best out of me". The duo's matchup has been one of the themes of Madrid and Barca's encounters over the past few seasons.

Real Madrid will look to get over the horrors of the 2024-25 season

El Clasico is hands down the biggest club rivalry in Spanish football. An argument can also be made for the Real Madrid-Barcelona rivalry being the most high-voltage rivalry in world football. The two teams will lock horns for the first time in the 2025-26 season on Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

Last season, Los Blancos met their eternal rivals four times across all competitions. While their inability to secure major silverware was already a major concern, it can be said that their poor performances against the Catalans that truly compounded their disappointment. Their first meeting, in October 2024 at the Bernabeu, resulted in a heavy 4-0 loss. A similarly humiliating drubbing was handed in the Supercopa de Espana final, with Hansi Flick's men emerging victors after beating Madrid 5-2. The next two games reflected that Madrid put in a more spirited performance, but the gulf in quality was as big as one could possibly imagine in those Copa del Rey final (3-2) and La Liga (4-3) losses.

Things have changed since the end of last season. Madrid appointed Xabi Alonso, who has managed to win 15 games out of the 18 he has been in charge since taking over, 11 of those coming in the 12 games this season. The hosts, buoyed by home support, will be hoping to exact revenge. It's a game that holds great importance for Alonso and his coaching staff. A loss would result in his project taking a few steps back, but a win would go a long way in lifting the spirits and having a positive psychological effect that will linger for the rest of the season.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesAraujo 'loves' rival Vinicius Jr

One of the most important matchups heading into Sunday's Clasico could potentially be the duel involving Barca centre-back Araujo and Madrid winger Vini Jr. Both players have been in and out of the lineup this season, but are expected to land a starting berth in their respective XIs at the weekend. 

Speaking to ahead of the clash, Araujo said: "Vinicius is a truly spectacular player. Every game with him is a test. Whenever we played each other, he was very professional. He brings out the best in you. The greats do that. He brings out the best in everyone in those duels. It requires the highest level of skill from you. Only high-level players can unlock the opponent's potential in such duels.

"I love players like Vinicius. Bold, confrontational. He is always active on the field, always thinking about victory. I don't pay attention to what he says off the pitch. What matters is what he does on the pitch."

Vinicius Jr's record against Barcelona in numbers

The 25-year-old made his first appearance against Barcelona during the 2018–19 season, his debut campaign after joining from Brazilian club Flamengo. Since then, he has faced La Blaugrana 21 times – more than any other opponent in his career. In matches featuring Vini, Real Madrid have recorded 10 wins, 10 losses, and one draw against their arch-rivals. His seven goals against Barca rank as the third-highest tally he has scored versus any team, complemented by six assists. 

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Getty/GOALMadrid & Barca hampered by injuries

The two giants of Spanish football will head into the game on Sunday with a mounting injury list. Flick will be without the services of Robert Lewandowski (thigh injury), Joan Garcia (torn meniscus followed by knee operation), Gavi (meniscus issue followed by surgery), Dani Olmo (calf injury), and Marc-Andre ter Stegen (lower back surgery). Raphinha, who was initially a doubt for the Clasico but showed signs of recovery, has also been effectively ruled out after missing the team training on Friday.

On the other hand, Real Madrid are sweating over the fitness of centre-back Dean Huijsen, right-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dani Carvajal, and midfielder Dani Ceballos. All four players completed team training sessions on Friday and are likely to be called up by Alonso. However, it remains to be seen if either of them are given a spot in the starting XI. Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba have been sidelined and will not be available for selection.

After failing to win once more in the Scottish Premiership, one journalist believes that Russell Martin is done at Ibrox and has suggested when Rangers could decide to sack their manager.

Martin admits Ibrox atmosphere is "difficult"

It couldn’t have been a much worse start for Martin. Rangers have been inescapably woeful. The Gers sit 10th and haven’t won a single game in five attempts in the Scottish Premiership to mark their worst start to a league campaign in 47 years. It’s history that the 49ers do not need at the start of a new era and history that Ibrox has turned toxic in the face of.

Boos echoed around the stadium as Rangers fell to defeat once again last weekend. Even as Martin returned from the tunnel after half-time, he was met with the anger of his own home fans. This time it was Hearts who benefitted, picking up their first Ibrox victory since 2014, and compiling Martin’s misery to a new level entirely.

Martin admitted that the atmosphere at Ibrox is currently “difficult”, but also claimed that some fans didn’t want him at the club in the first place – telling reporters: “I don’t think many of them wanted me here in the first place.

“We have a lot of new guys in there. We have a lot of players trying to feel their way in an environment that’s really difficult to feel their way into. Really, really difficult. So we just have to make sure they’re alright as human beings first and improve their performance. But there’s anxiety at the moment.”

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Whether that is the case or not, however, there’s no denying that time is running out for Martin to save his job and one journalist has now set a date that he could be sacked.

When Rangers could sack Russell Martin

According to the Daily Record’s Andy Newport, Martin could be sacked if he doesn’t get a result against Hibernian in the Scottish Cup on Saturday. If the Gers exit the cup competition, it will mark five games without a win and potentially game over for Martin’s tenure.

Newport told Daily Record: “In the eyes of the supporters, he’s toast, he’s done. When he came in, it was the most lukewarm of receptions he got when he was appointed, and the scepticism and the concerns the fans have had since then have only grown. If Martin doesn’t get a result against Hibs, that’ll be the end for him.”

That verdict is no real shock. The biggest surprise is arguably that he is still in a job after the Hearts game and Ibrox’s reaction to that result. Alas, as things stand, Martin seemingly has one last chance to save his job in Scotland.

Move offers chance to play in Tier 1 for domestic T20 competition starting in May

Valkerie Baynes30-Apr-2025Lauren Winfield-Hill has joined Essex on loan from Yorkshire for the upcoming Women’s Vitality Blast.Winfield-Hill is captain of Yorkshire, currently competing in Tier 2 of the new women’s domestic competitions, and a move to Essex offers the chance to play in the top tier for the T20 competition starting on May 29. Essex will play their first match the following day, away to Hampshire.Winfield-Hill was part of the Northern Diamonds team which was disbanded under the move to county-based teams from this season onwards, and has been supportive of her former team-mates who had decided to move, many to Durham, to play in Tier 1 immediately.Speaking before her loan move to Essex, Winfield-Hill told ESPNcricinfo that with Yorkshire set to move into the top flight from next season, this year presented unique challenges for the club, such as balancing player development with competing under the heavy expectations of a fully professional side.Related

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“It does look a bit different for senior players in terms of the Tier 2 cricket,” Winfield-Hill told ESPNcricinfo. “I always use the analogy of revving a car. It’s not just like, ‘oh, you’re just cruisy, see what happens, it’s Tier 2’. It’s actually getting into that sweet spot of still really competing. That’s the key thing for a lot of the senior players in the group, is how we get our beans going and compete and almost play games within games sometimes.”As Essex announced her loan signing on Wednesday, Winfield-Hill said the deal “makes perfect sense”.”I want to keep testing myself by playing at the highest level possible, and this move means that I can do that in what is set to be a groundbreaking year for women’s cricket in England,” she said. “I really feel like I can bring something to the group here at Essex, and I’m excited to play in a new environment at Chelmsford, too.”Winfield-Hill has represented her country 104 times across all three formats, most recently for the T20 leg of England’s winter tour of West Indies in late 2022. She has also played in franchise leagues around the world, including the Hundred, WBBL and CPL.An ODI World Cup winner in 2017, she has 19 half-centuries in T20 cricket, with a top score of 98 off 56 balls for Northern Diamonds against Western Storm in the 2023 Charlotte Edwards Cup.Winfield-Hill is also a capable wicketkeeper, having assumed the role throughout her four seasons in The Hundred to date, and from that position has claimed 38 stumpings, as well as 24 of her 91 total catches in the format.Charlotte Edwards, the new England Women’s head coach, was at Hove on Saturday to watch Yorkshire bounce back from a 114-run, first-round loss against Worcestershire with a nine-wicket thrashing of Sussex in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup. Winfield-Hill scored 8 in the first game and an unbeaten 47 off 43 balls in the second.Edwards made it clear upon taking the England post that domestic cricket represented on opportunity for players to press their claims for international selection.Asked if she still saw a place for herself in that landscape, Winfield-Hill told ESPNcricinfo: “I’m obviously not retired and I’ve got a lot of cricket ahead of me. The last couple of years I’ve probably played better than I did when I was wearing an England shirt, which is ironic.”I still think my best years are ahead of me, I just don’t necessarily realistically think that’s in an England shirt. My desire to play for England will never waver, but I think at times you feel like you’ve got more hope than other times.”If that ship has sailed, that ship has sailed. If a couple of players went down and you’re sort of looking around and you’re performing well, then you’re not going to say no to playing for England ever. At the minute it’s probably not a realistic way in for me, and that’s fine, but I’m certainly not retiring, I’m not pulling curtains on my England career.”Andy Tennant, Team Director of Essex Women, was delighted to secure a player of Winfield-Hill’s experince and proven run-scoring ability.”When the chance to sign her became available, it was one that we worked really hard to complete, because we knew how much of a positive influence she is capable of bringing as a role model for our young and developing player group,” he said. “The opportunity to add Lauren’s experience and game sense is every bit as valuable as seeing her out in the middle scoring runs for Essex.”

Manchester City are enjoying their return after the international break, but could be set to allow a Pep Guardiola signing to leave the club despite the player in question only joining mere months ago.

Manchester City summer signings make instant impact

The transfer window has been and gone, leaving Manchester City hopeful they can start to build momentum as they look to reclaim the Premier League title from Liverpool.

Last weekend’s resounding victory over Manchester United will have restored belief after back-to-back top-flight defeats, and the introduction of Gianluigi Donnarumma to the fold has certainly provided an elevated level of assurance within the Citizens’ backline.

Impressing with his gigantic figure between the sticks, Peter Schmeichel admitted to Premier League Productions that he even tried to convince the Manchester City stopper to move to Old Trafford before his transfer to the blue side of the city materialised.

He said, detailing a previous encounter when he was at Paris Saint-Germain: “I asked my first question and he started to answer in Italian, and I had no clue! Over the last season I kept saying to him, ‘We want you at Man United.

“I did. So I went to him, ‘What are you doing here? You should be in the other goal (for United),’ but he said, ‘I’m very, very happy here.’ He showed it, he gave it to the team today, didn’t he.”

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Little did Schmeichel know that Donnarumma would immediately be installed as Guardiola’s number one, but there are always ramifications that come with new signings being made.

Now, the Citizens could be willing to offload one of their summer additions in a surprise move that will shock many supporters.

James Trafford could make Man City loan exit

According to TBR, Man City could allow James Trafford to leave on loan in January to help keep his hopes of making Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad alive, given Donnarumma has become Guardiola’s preferred stopper.

The £50,000 per week earner has fallen down the pecking order, something that is further complicated by Stefan Ortega remaining at the club, and he could be permitted a temporary exit after joining for £27 million from Burnley.

Trafford, who himself is open to a loan move away, has started three of Manchester City’s opening four Premier League matches, keeping a clean sheet against Wolverhampton Wanderers, followed by less convincing performances against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion.

Nevertheless, he is a fine talent who also courted attention from Newcastle United during the summer before settling on a move back to the club where it all started.

Now, he needs minutes to keep his hopes of being under contention with England alive, and he is unlikely to be short of suitors once the January window opens.

MatériaMais Notícias

Na vitória por 2 a 0 contra o Puerto Cabello, na Copa Sul-Americana, Dorival Júnior não só se aproximou de uma classificação para a próxima etapa, como atingiu a marca de três anos sem sofrer derrotas em competições continentais – seja Copa Libertadores ou Sul-Americana.

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A última derrota do treinador em partidas pertencentes a algumas dessas competições foi em 2020, na fase de grupos da Copa Libertadores naquele ano. Na época, Dorival estava sob o comando Athletico-PR e perdeu por 1 a 0 para o Colo-Colo. A vitória contra o Puerto Cabello, pelo São Paulo, foi garantida graças aos gols de Wellington Rato e Alisson.

ATUAÇÕES: Tropa do Supermouse! Wellington Rato se destaca com gol de falta e comanda vitória do São Paulo

Desde esta derrota, em março de 2020, o treinador segurou 14 vitórias e um empate nestas copas. Seis vitórias aconteceram comandando o Ceará, pela Copa Sul-Americana de 2022, sete com o Flamengo pela Copa Libertadores em 2022 – quando foi campeão, um empate e uma vitória com o São Paulo neste ano.

Com o resultado positivo, o Tricolor disparou na liderança do grupo D, com 10 pontos. No dia 8 de junho, pode garantir a classificação em casa, contra o Tolima.

+ Confira os jogos, tabela e a classificação da Copa Sul-Americana-23

Dorival Júnior está perto de entrar na história do São Paulo

Invicto há dez partidas, Dorival Júnior está perto de atingir uma marca histórica pelo clube do Morumbi – e que não acontece há nove décadas.

Com a vitória contra o Puerto Cabello, caso vença os duelos contra o Goiás, Sport, Grêmio e Tolima – sendo este último importantíssimo para a classificação na Sul-Americana e o contra o Sport decisivo para classificação na Copa do Brasil -, ele se torna o primeiro treinador em 90 anos a alcançar 14 partidas seguidas sem perder nenhuma vez desde quando assumiu a equipe.

E ainda pode ir além: caso Dorival Júnior consiga manter essa invencibilidade até o primeiro compromisso de julho – destacando que ainda haverá jogos contra Palmeiras, Athletico-PR, Cruzeiro, Tigre e Fluminense, além dos citados anteriormente -, atinge algo inédito na história do São Paulo. Aí sim, rompe recordes de invencibilidade, porque chegará a 19 jogos sem perder e ultrapassa Ramón Platero, primeiro treinador da história do clube e que atingiu a marca de 18 jogos sem derrotas desde o dia que assumiu.

Unai Emery will be praying that his Aston Villa team puts their slow Premier League start behind them when Crystal Palace comes to town.

After all, much like the Villans this summer, Crystal Palace have had to grow accustomed to the prospect of their top assets being poached by sides higher up the top-flight food chain, with Eberechi Eze now donning Arsenal red and white.

Thankfully, the West Midlands outfit still has Morgan Rogers available for selection – despite new interest in his services coming from Thomas Frank’s Tottenham Hotspur – with a hope he can kickstart his own individual season against the Eagles to steer Villa to a win.

Away from speculation about those who could exit Villa Park between now and September’s looming deadline, there is also a long list of faces that might well relocate to the claret and blue half of Birmingham shortly.

Aston Villa lodge bid for new midfielder

However, it does now look increasingly unlikely that Nicolas Jackson will be one of those faces pulling on a Villa strip.

Indeed, reports from Germany indicate that Bayern Munich has agreed a loan deal for the hit-and-miss Chelsea forward to move to Bundesliga giants, over sealing a return to work under his ex-Villarreal boss in Emery.

The early Premier League underperformers might well feel lady luck could be on their side more by trying to land Christopher Nkunku instead from the West London outfit, but there will also be competition from the German top-flight here as well, with Nkunku’s former side RB Leipzig keen on a reunion.

Villa have also been gifted the opportunity to land Adrien Rabiot to enhance their midfield personnel, with French outlet L’Equipe revealing that Emery and Co. have sent an offer for the wantaway Marseille ace, who is on thin ice at the Ligue 1 side owing to a bust-up.

Other sides, such as West Ham United, Galatasaray, and Inter Milan, are also among those to have lodged a proposal, with Villa hopeful they can get a statement deal over the line that is a far better late foray into the market than snapping up Nkunku or Jackson.

Why signing Rabiot is a better buy than Nkunku & Jackson

The argument in favour of both Nkunku and Jackson will be that they’ve at least been exposed to the intense pressures of the Premier League, with the Frenchman only ever plying his trade on faraway European shores, in contrast.

Yet, it’s been well-documented at this point how tricky both the ex-Leipzig attacker and his Senegalese counterpart have found it to be consistent in the English top-flight, with Nkunku only finding the back of the net a sheepish six times in league action from limited starts.

Jackson does have more credit in the bank, arguably, with the 24-year-old boasting a promising 24 goals in the Premier League to date, but it’s his staggering 43 big chances missed across his two top-flight seasons that will seriously worry Emery.

After all, if Rogers or Watkins were to both leave at the death, the Spaniard would certainly want instantly successful replacements, not unpolished projects who have struggled to regularly make an impact in the testing division.

Rabiot’s club career

Club

Games

Goals + Assists

PSG

227

24 + 17

Juventus

212

22 + 16

Marseille

32

10 + 6

Toulouse

13

1 + 3

Sourced by Transfermarkt

Whereas, despite Rabiot never setting foot onto English soil, his consistent excellence in both Ligue 1 and Serie A should stand him in good stead to be an instant success story at Villa Park, with an outrageous collection of 23 trophies coming his way in Paris and Turin when being an important cog in the middle of the park.

He has even been dubbed “world-class” by French great David Trezeguet, with his efforts for Marseille last season – before his time at the club publicly unravelled – also showing off a star still performing at the peak of his powers, away from both Nkunku and Jackson flopping at Chelsea.

Nine goals and four assists would fall into Rabiot’s lap last campaign in Ligue 1 action, with his manager in Roberto De Zerbi, going as far as to herald the number 25 as an asset who “gives everything” for the cause.

With Boubacar Kamara now out of the Villa side owing to injury, adding in a composed midfielder such as Rabiot into the group could prove to be a very smart next buy.

It certainly does feel as if it would be a better investment than gambling on Nkunku or Jackson to come good, that’s for sure.

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West Indies makes two changes to the squad that won the ODI series against England early last month

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Dec-2024Wicketkeeper-batter Amir Jangoo has earned a maiden call-up to the West Indies ODI squad for the three-match series against Bangladesh. Allrounder Justin Greaves also makes a return to the ODI setup after being left out of the home series against England early last month.Both Jangoo and Greaves have been rewarded for their consistent form in the domestic Super50 ODI tournament which concluded late last month in extraordinary circumstances where the two finalists, Barbados Pride and Jamaica Scorpions, decided not to turn up for the toss and forfeit the final.Jangoo, who plays for Trinidad & Tobago, finished the tournament as the highest run-getter with 446 runs in seven innings at 89.20 with three fifties and a century. Greaves, meanwhile, was second on the run-scoring list with 401 runs in five innings at 133.66 which included three back-back centuries. He also scored his maiden Test century last week against Bangladesh in the opening game which West Indies won by 201 runs.Related

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“Greaves is capable of batting anywhere in the top six and brings that genuine all-round ability to the squad, which is welcomed at this stage,” West Indies head coach Daren Sammy was quoted via a press release. “Jangoo’s prowess in the CG United Super50 shows his flexibility to bring another dimension to our batting unit.”West Indies have left out Hayden Walsh and Jewel Andrew from the squad that won the three-match ODI series against England 2-1. The release further stated that Andrew will join a “cohort of emerging regional batters” that will travel to India to attend a batting camp at the Chennai Academy with the main focus being on batting in spinning conditions.”We continue to build towards the main target of the Men’s 50-over World Cup where we are looking to broaden the pool of players even with the short-term objectives of winning series, especially at home and building momentum on the recent win against England,” Sammy said.The rest of the squad remains on expected lines. Captain Shai Hope and his deputy Brandon King will headline the batting unit, which includes Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford, Keacy Carty and Roston Chase. Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph will lead the fast bowling unit along with Jayden Seales and Matthew Forde. Gudakesh Motie will head the spin bowling department.All three ODIs against Bangladesh will be played in Basseterre on December 8, 10 and 12 respectively. The series will be followed by a three-T20I series from December 16 in Kingstown.West Indies squad for ODIs against BangladeshShai Hope (capt), Brandon King (vice-capt), Keacy Carty, Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, Justin Greaves, Shimron Hetmyer, Amir Jangoo (wk), Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Sherfane Rutherford, Jayden Seales, Romario Shepherd

She welcomes stiff competition ahead of captaincy debut at a World Cup

Shashank Kishore02-Oct-2024Since losing the T20 World Cup crown to West Indies in India in 2016, Australia have gone on a bull run to win three titles back-to-back. As they return to Asia to try to hunt down a fourth straight title, questions have been raised about their invincibility.They whitewashed New Zealand 3-0 in the T20I series at home last month, razed down Bangladesh on some tough wickets in Mirpur in April and overturned a ten-wicket hammering to beat India 2-1 at the start of the year. Upon arrival in Dubai for the T20 World Cup, they beat West Indies and England in the warm-ups.But there have been occasional blips too, like the T20I series loss to England, a defeat each against South Africa and West Indies on away tours on either side of the women’s Ashes.Related

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FAQs: The first ever women's T20 World Cup at a neutral venue

Could this be the closest-ever Women's T20 World Cup?

On Wednesday, at the captains’ pre-tournament media session, Alyssa Healy, the Australia captain, wasn’t going to understate their achievements but also gave a peek into the way the players have trained themselves to think.”You don’t come here to defend the title, that’s not what the World Cup is about, you come here to win it,” she said. “So we are here with that approach. Our pool [Group A with India, New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka] is quite a tricky one. We’ve got to get past these teams to have a chance of lifting the trophy. So it’s a challenge I’m very excited for.”This will be Alyssa Healy’s first World Cup as a full-time captain•Getty ImagesThat no team has played a lot of cricket in the UAE – they will all be playing in Dubai for the first time – adds to the allure of what could be the closest-ever women’s T20 World Cup.Healy stressed adaptability, even though it has not all been about training and matches. While Healy had to accommodate media commitments, the rest of the Australian team spent a day at the water park to cool off in conditions that would test the players’ fitness.”The whole tournament, in general, is about adapting the quickest,” Healy said. “That seems to be the way. If you look at the warm-up games, [it showed] you’ve got to adapt pretty quickly to what you’re given. Probably the team that does the best throughout the tournament will get the job done. We feel like we’re well placed to do that and hopefully, we can do it.”This will be Healy’s first T20 World Cup as full-time captain; she was given the role last December after Meg Lanning announced her international retirement. This was preceded by a small period where Healy had filled in for Lanning, including at last year’s Ashes, without fully knowing if Lanning would return.Did that make her feel like she didn’t have full control as captain?”I wouldn’t say I still have full control,” she said, tongue-in-cheek. “I think I approached it like I do every day in life. You take each day as it comes. Obviously, when she [Lanning] decided to step away from the game officially, there was a process in place. I put up my hand for it and got the job, and it’s been really enjoyable so far.”

“We know what the other nine are going to throw at us given the opportunity. We see it as a challenge and an opportunity to showcase a brand of cricket we like playing”

“I’m very grateful at this point in my career to have an opportunity to learn more about myself and probably more my team-mates, and as a squad on the whole as well, So it’s been good.”Healy also addressed quite candidly the challenges of matching Lanning’s legacy as a leader. She admitted it wouldn’t be easy to fill the “pretty big shoes” but it was also a matter of not overcomplicating it.”Everyone in this room knows the legacy of Meg Lanning, so there’s pretty big shoes to fill,” Healy said. “But I’m not Meg, I’m Alyssa Healy and I’ve brought that approach into this Australian team.”I’m going to do the job the way that I know how to do it and to the best of my ability and hopefully that does the job for Australia. At the moment, I’m just really enjoying the challenge of that.”In saying she has embraced the challenges of the job, Healy also welcomed stiff competition from the rest of the pack.”It feels like, without being disrespectful, we have been hunted for a long period of time,” she said. “We’re constantly being asked about that, and we’re used to it now. Teams are coming really hard at us to put us under the pump which we love.”This World Cup is going to be no different. We know what the other nine are going to throw at us given the opportunity. We see it as a challenge and an opportunity to showcase a brand of cricket we like playing.”Australia open their campaign on October 6 with an afternoon game against Sri Lanka in Sharjah. They next play New Zealand before meeting Pakistan in Dubai. They round off their league engagements with a high-voltage clash against India in Sharjah on October 13.