Category Uncategorized

New Zealand 92 for 0 (Conway 51*, Young 41*) trail Zimbabwe 149 (Ervine 39, Henry 6-39, Smith 3-20) by 57 runsMatt Henry’s 6 for 39 scythed through Zimbabwe, who were bowled out for their lowest total in seven innings and second-lowest in 2025, and their lead has already been reduced to just 57 runs by the end of the first day. New Zealand wiped off 92 of the 149 runs in the 26 overs they faced and hold the advantage in all departments. Their batting was solid and bowling was incisive where Zimbabwe’s has not been throughout their last few home Tests.Henry took wickets with the new and old ball, with full and short deliveries, and followed up perfectly from finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the T20I tri-series. He was well supported by Nathan Smith, who picked up 3 for 20 in his third Test. Those figures do justice to bowlers that had the batters completely confounded with subtle changes in line and length.Related

• Zimbabwe Cricket receives US$ 50,000 sponsorship to support domestic teams

• Brendan Taylor's ban ends, added to second Test squad against NZ

• Latham out of first Test against Zimbabwe, Santner to stand in as NZ captain

According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, Zimbabwe edged 22 deliveries in total, and had a control percentage of just 68.8%. Only two Zimbabwe batters, Craig Ervine and Tafadzwa Tsiga, got past 30 and both were dropped before they had reached 20. They also shared in Zimbabwe’s best partnership: a sixth-wicket stand of 54. New Zealand have already surpassed that with their opening pair.New Zealand’s threat was apparent from the outset as they found the edge six times in the first three overs, which ended with the opening wicket. Brian Bennett – who inside-edged the first ball of the match, then edged one just out of the reach from short leg and then got four as another edge went between gully and the cordon – stayed back to a slightly fuller ball from Henry and this time, the edge flew to Will Young at third slip. Ben Curran, his opening partner, went the same way but only after Henry had changed angles to go around the wicket in his fourth over.Sean Williams was fortunate not to run out Nick Welch when he got off the mark with a single that chanced Mitchell Santner’s arm, but could not find any fortune against Smith. He tried to steer past third and inside-edged onto his stumps to leave Zimbabwe in a mess at 31 for 3 after the first hour.Nathan Smith took three wickets and offered good support to Matt Henry•Zimbabwe Cricket

Welch and captain Craig Ervine used up deliveries and time but did not get many runs for most of the second hour. It took Ervine 23 balls to get off the mark, and he did it with a push past mid-off off Will O’Rourke.Santner, captaining in place of the injured Tom Latham, brought himself on in the 20th over and the introduction of spin allowed Welch to get comfortable. He swept both Santner and Michael Bracewell, who he also reverse-swept for three boundaries in nine balls to get Zimbabwe over 50. But his fun only lasted until Henry was brought back. Welch edged the second ball of the fast bowler’s second spell to second slip to send Zimbabwe to lunch on 67 for 4.Henry completed his over after the break with the wicket of Sikandar Raza, who tried to take on the short ball but gloved it high for Tom Blundell to take a simple catch. Henry could have had Tsiga in his next over but the edge fell short. Tsiga got his own back when he flicked Henry off his pads for four and then drove Smith down the ground to show his range.Ervine was on 18 when he offered Smith a return catch but it hit him on the boot. Nine overs later, Tsiga could have been O’Rourke’s first of the match when he cut him to gully but Devon Conway put it down. Ervine brought up the 50-run stand with a well-timed punch down the ground for four.The pair looked like taking Zimbabwe to tea without further damage but it was not to be. Ervine was given out lbw when he missed a flick off Smith, though the ball seemed to be sliding down leg. With no DRS in place, he could not review. Tsiga was also out lbw, when he was beaten on the inside edge and hit on the back leg in what seemed a better decision. At tea, Zimbabwe were 138 for 7.Devon Conway and Will Young gave Zimbabwe a solid start•Zimbabwe Cricket

Henry took his fifth with a snorter, short and aimed at Newman Nyamhuri’s head. He ducked and the ball took the shoulder of his bat and was caught, again, by Young. Vincent Masekesa was run out after his partner Blessing Muzarabani did not respond to his call for a single and he had to make his way back to the striker’s end. Muzarabani only lasted into the next over, when he got a leading edge off Henry and was caught by Santner at cover to give Henry his sixth. Zimbabwe were bowled out inside 61 overs.If they gave the impression run-scoring was difficult, New Zealand swiftly dispelled the notion. They raced to 40 without loss in the first ten overs when Young hit a short, wide Muzarabani ball for four and Conway took three boundaries off Tanaka Chivanga’s fourth over: a cut, a drive and a pull.Zimbabwe had their best chance when Nyamhuri, in his second over, appealed for lbw against Young when he hit him on the boot with a yorker but it was given not out.New Zealand brought up their 50 off Nyamhuri when Conway cut him for four in the 14th over. Nyamhuri continued to cause problems for New Zealand and hit Conway on the knee – too high for lbw, but enough to cause some pain. Conway continued and reached his half-century off 83 balls with a single of Raza in the penultimate over of the day. Young is nine runs away from his and with the pitch showing few signs of bother and Zimbabwe already using the spinners, both will eye going bigger on the second day.

Moved up to open for Australia’s chase, the left hander produced one of the more remarkable innings in Test history

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Nov-2025

Travis Head produced an incredible display of hitting•Getty Images

Travis Head was lauded for an “out of this world” innings by Australia captain Steven Smith, after his offer to open the batting in place of the injured Usman Khawaja produced one of the most devastating innings seen in Test cricket, but admitted he had to overcome some self doubt leading into the match.Head flayed 123 off 83 balls with 16 fours and four sixes as Australia chased down 205 in 28.2 overs to complete an astonishing two-day victory at Perth Stadium when, just a few hours earlier, England were in control of the game.Head had been lean on runs in the first part of the season with a mixture of T20Is, ODIs and one Sheffield Shield outing. He has often shown an ability to flick a switch but admitted there had been a few nagging thoughts leading into the series.Related

Khawaja's back issues to be examined as Australia float flexible batting order

McCullum backs Crawley; calls on England to show greater 'conviction'

A generational flaying takes its place in England's Ashes lore

Head adds to career catalogue of mind-blowing knocks on the biggest stage

Smith stalls talk on Head's permanent role as Ashes opener

“Probably not the prep that I would have liked going into the Test, but the process was right, the method was right,” he told Channel 7. “I did a lot of training. I trained all four days here, which is unheard of for me. I just found a little bit of rhythm.”I’m never going to doubt my own ability, but I think when you have a big gap in Test cricket and you’re lying in bed a couple of nights before, you’re like, can I do it? Can you still produce it? Can you, as a cricketer each year, keep rolling out good scores in big moments? It’s not going to get much bigger than this.”I think your mind just takes you to, am I good enough to still do it against the absolute best? I’m pleased to slap around a little bit today and get a score and get into the series and to be 1-0 up is a great way to contribute. But I wasn’t worried too much.”When Khawaja suffered further back spasms late in England’s second innings it became clear Australia would again need to reshuffle the batting. Unlike the opening day when Marnus Labuschagne partnered Jake Weatherald, they opted for the aggressive route of Head, who does the role in white-ball cricket for Australia and has previous opened in Tests on the subcontinent.”I was pretty keen to do it,” Head told Channel 7. “Just felt like the moment was right. I felt like if I could get away, obviously the plans that they’ve had over the years with me, with short-pitch bowling where they’ve come to me, I thought that if I could get away with a new ball, [that could] probably take a little bit of sting out of it. [It] could help [Weatherald] at the other end…I feel like when we stack Marnus and Smudge at three and four, it just feels right. So nice that I could move up.”Felt like I got off to a great start. Weathers played beautifully. And once we sort of got 50, 60, I thought that’s a great blueprint, a great start. You see the numbers start ticking down, and you think, you’ve got two world-class batters behind you, hopefully make their job a bit easier.”At the post match presentation, Smith said the innings stood up against any that he had seen. “He played some outrageous shots, even when he shanked it he got it in the gaps. One of those days when you’re on, you’re on and you make the most of it and he got us home. We probably did quite like how it [the top order] worked in the first innings and Travis was like ‘I want to do it’ and I was like ‘go for your life’…that was just incredible to witness.”It’s right up there with knocks I’ve seen from anyone. Fourth innings, albeit day two, the wicket was probably almost at its best to bat at the end there, but the way he went about his business, played some really nice shots early, and when they went short he played the way he wanted to and was kind of toying with them I suppose.”Speaking separately to Fox Cricket, Head said he would have been all right with getting out early because it was the right decision for the team. “Quite easily could have been out first over,” he said. “It didn’t really matter. I thought that was the right process, right way of thinking, go out there, see what happens and it’s worked today.”Once the runs started to flow, Head sensed it was his moment to really unleash and produced a fearsome display of strokeplay as Australia hunted down the target at speed.”I was able to sort of get through Gus [Atkinson] and Jof [Archer] with a new ball, who were dangerous in the first innings. Then sort of seized an opportunity where I could be a little bit more aggressive in moments when they moved the field. They started with a third man, brought third man back up, and then felt like I could get away again…and ride the wave for the first 50 runs. Then once I got past then, I thought, we’ll just pin the ears back and see what happens.”

The less-experienced teams have often been challenged to sustain levels of dominance over longer periods at this World Cup. Bangladesh alone have found themselves in this situation three times. While they prevailed over Pakistan in their opening game, they haven’t been able to match England or New Zealand’s might.On Friday, Bangladesh’s moment of reckoning was when they had woven a web around New Zealand’s top order. Rabeya Khan, the legspinner, was getting them to rip and fizz off the Guwahati pitch. At 38 for 3, the moment was theirs to seize. They couldn’t. Eventually, they conceded 227 for 9, which proved to be 100 too many, as New Zealand got off the mark after losses to Australia and South Africa.Like she had done in those two games, Sophie Devine stood like a rock. And batted without the typical flair or enterprise she is known to bring. She was willing to dig in, play patiently, look ugly, and fight the conditions – both in terms of the heat and the surface – to eke out a half-century that she would consider perhaps far more valuable than the century she got against Australia in a losing cause just last week in Indore.If Devine’s half-century was the pillar, Brooke Halliday’s was the icing on the cake for the inventiveness. Like she briefly did against South Africa, Halliday negated the spin threat by sweeping the bowlers off their lengths. This isn’t to say she was over-aggressive at all times; she was measured to begin with and took calculated risks as her partnership with Devine progressed.They put on 112, and it took them 166 balls. But for much of that duration, they didn’t show the desperation to break free. Halliday top-scored with 69 before falling to trigger another mini-wobble. Her attempt to play a slog sweep led to a top-edge pouched by Nigar Sultana, and Devine was out trying to hack one over cow corner, in the same over where she had hit offspinner Nishita Akter for two sixes back-to-back.Brooke Halliday played the sweep to good effect•ICC/Getty Images

Fortunately, New Zealand were helped by late cameos from Maddy Green, Lea Tahuhu and Isabella Gaze, who combined to add 49 to help give the innings a late lift. New Zealand pocketed 74 off the last ten overs to have momentum with them at the halfway mark.Any chance Bangladesh had to take the game head-on was in the powerplay. But their top order looked diffident, with their inadequacies against the swing and seam of Jess Kerr and Rosemary Mair exposed. They hardly played an aggressive shot in the first ten overs, and quickly found themselves 22 for 3. This included the wicket of Sobhana Mostary. The half-centurion from their previous game against England was out for 2, to a leading edge to short third off Jess Kerr.If Bangladesh went spin, New Zealand continued to frontload with pace. After a thoroughly impressive first spell from Jess Kerr and Mair, Lea Tahuhu showed she has still got her bag of tricks, profiting not as much from raw pace but subtle changes in length and seam movement. Bowling the hard length, she had Sumaiya Akter chipping one to cover, and then had Shorna Akter lbw with a superb nip-backer. At 33 for 6, it was only a matter of time before Bangladesh folded.Fahima Khatun and Rabeya then resisted to add 44 for the eighth wicket to prolong New Zealand’s wait. Fahima’s early reprieve, when Gaze put down a regulation chance, helped her extend her stay. She was eventually the last batter out for 34 after stonewalling her way through 80 deliveries, with Bangladesh bowled out for 127 in 39.5 overs.Despite the win, New Zealand would reflect on their top-order woes that they would want to fix heading to Colombo. Suzie Bates did score 29 off 33 on Friday, her first runs in the World Cup, but Amelia Kerr and Georgia Plimmer were once again not able to force the pace in the powerplay. For now, Devine seems to be raising the bar with every innings, but with more trial by spin to come, they will do well to have the top order contributing more.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has done very well to navigate the club’s list of injury problems this campaign, particularly in attack.

Arsenal are currently sweating over the fitness of Noni Madueke, Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres as they prepare for the North London derby against Tottenham right after the international break.

Arteta, depending on developments, faces another potential selection headache in the final third, but makeshift number nine Mikel Merino has once again done well to fill the void left by Gyokeres since his injury against Burnley.

Most of the aforementioned stars are racing to be fit for their clash with Tottenham on November 23, with Havertz and Madueke believed to have impressed Arsenal rehab staff in their recoveries from knee problems.

Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest

Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 1-1 Man City

Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal

Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

Fulham 0-1 Arsenal

Arsenal 4-0 Atletico Madrid

Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace

Arsenal 2-0 Brighton

Burnley 0-2 Arsenal

Slavia Prague 0-3 Arsenal

Sunderland 2-2 Arsenal

Unfortunately for Jesus, the derby comes too soon for him, despite returning to full training, and he’ll be the last Arsenal star to make his comeback after rupturing his ACL against Man United in January (Simon Collings).

Even without a large number of their attacking contingent, Arsenal have still marked themselves out as the team to beat — thanks largely to their imperious defence and set-piece dominance.

The Gunners have scored eight goals from corners in their opening 11 top flight games this season, the most ever recorded by any team at this stage of a Premier League campaign. Their 36 corner goals since the start of last season tops all of Europe too, with set-piece coach Nicolas Jover largely credited for Arsenal’s superb dead ball threat.

They also recorded eight consecutive clean sheets before the 2-2 draw with Sunderland last weekend, equalling a club record that had stood for 122 years since 1903, and they still boast the best defensive record in Europe’s top five leagues, having conceded just five in all competitions so far.

While Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba have taken a lot of the credit for being two of world football’s best centre-backs right now, you cannot underestimate the impact of Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori in the full-back areas.

Ray Parlour has described them as two of Arsenal’s players of the season so far, with Calafiori’s form even prompting reports that Myles Lewis-Skelly could leave in January due to a lack of game time.

The last thing Arteta needs is an injury concern for the Italian, but according to TUTTOmercatoWEB, that’s exactly what he’s got.

Riccardo Calafiori nursing hip injury as Arsenal learn recovery timeline

According to the Italian news outlet, Calafiori is managing a hip problem on international duty, raising concerns ahead of Tottenham.

The Italian national team are preparing for two critical World Cup 2026 qualifying matches against Moldova and Norway, but the versatile defender’s availability has been called into question.

During Italy’s training session under manager Gennaro Gattuso, Calafiori was spotted completing individual work away from the main group due to discomfort in his hip.

The 22-year-old is being carefully managed by the medical staff as they assess the severity of the issue and determine the best course of action, but there is optimism for Arsenal, as Arteta learns his expected recovery timeline.

Calafiori remains with the Italy squad rather than being sent home, suggesting the injury is not considered serious enough to warrant an immediate return to Arsenal. While the former Bologna star is expected to miss their clash with Moldova, Azzurri officials are targeting a return for Calafiori against Norway instead — allowing him time to recover.

Arsenal will be praying this doesn’t turn out to be more serious and he can in fact feature against Spurs, but all the signs appear good so far.

Arteta will be monitoring the situation closely, hoping Calafiori can avoid aggravating the injury during Italy’s fixtures. With the North London derby looming, Arsenal cannot afford to lose the key defender, particularly given the importance of maintaining their excellent defensive record that has underpinned their phenomenal start to the season.

ATLANTA — If everyone behaves logically over the next few months, Major League Baseball players will compete at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. Of course, that’s a big if.

All sides are incentivized to make this work, and they all know it. The league, which sees dollar signs—and yen signs, and won signs, and maybe even euro signs—wants the exposure. The players want the chance to compete for something even more meaningful than a World Series. And the International Olympic Committee wants—for the first time ever—the best baseball players at its event. Representatives from LA2028 have met with league and union officials here at the All-Star Game to make their case.

Baseball was a full Olympic sport from 1992 through 2008, but major leaguers were never involved—first because their presence violated the IOC amateur policy, and then because the league declined to pause the season to send them. So as leagues in Cuba, Japan and South Korea sent their best players, MLB allowed only minor leaguers and college players to join up. The IOC voted in ’05 to eliminate baseball and softball from the program; IOC president Jacques Rogge cited the lack of major leaguers as the main issue. 

But beginning in 2019, IOC rules have allowed host nations to add sports popular with their citizens as one-offs, so Japan brought back baseball for the Tokyo Games, held in ’21, in which major leaguers did not participate, and the United States is expected to do the same in Los Angeles in ’28. In so many ways, this is a perfect fit: They can play at Dodger Stadium; they don’t have to commit to Brisbane in ’32 or beyond; they can slot it in instead of, or perhaps in addition to, the All-Star Game.

So what’s left? The details, of course. How would an Olympic baseball tournament spliced into the middle of the regular season affect the schedule? Who would play on the teams that would qualify for the event, and when would those qualifiers take place? How would the players get to Dodger Stadium and where would they stay? Who would insure the contracts so that if someone gets hurt in Olympic play, their MLB team does not eat the cost? And who is going to break the news to Fox that the league will be watering down its annual MLB jewel event, the All-Star Game, in order to give all its best players to a competitor, NBC?

“Let me define possible,” said commissioner Rob Manfred in a 45-minute press conference with the Baseball Writers of America on Tuesday. “It is possible to play the All-Star Game in its normal spot, having a single break that would be longer but still play 162 games without bleeding into the middle of November. That’s possible. It would require significant accommodations, but it’s possible.”

He added, “I think it’s an opportunity to market the game on a really global stage. I think, obviously, because it’s in the U.S., the logistics of it are easier.”

Well, that sounds pretty good. And what about the players?

Big names such as Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper and Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani have thrown their support behind the idea, with both vowing to play if they get the chance. And they’re not alone. 

“Players are interested,” Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark during his own BBWAA press conference. “There’s going to need to be—and we’ve had, even, some dialogue while we’ve been here the last few days—a lot of discussion about how it would all work. … In the event that major league players are going to play, what does that mean, what does that look like, and perhaps just as important, what does that mean for those players who aren’t participating?”

Those are all important questions. But this is one of the few times in baseball negotiations that all constituencies agree on something. So there’s no reason they can’t work it out.

U.S. international Christian Pulisic, battling the flu, came off the bench and scored twice in 10 minutes on Monday night to spark AC Milan’s dramatic 3-2 comeback win over Torino, sending the Rossoneri back to the top of Serie A. His introduction in the 66th minute proved to be the catalyst for a remarkable turnaround at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino.

Getty Images SportAmerican makes immediate impact with equalizer

With the visitors trailing 2-1 despite Adrien Rabiot's spectacular first-half strike, the 27-year-old American needed just 60 seconds to make his mark on the contest. After Alexis Saelemaekers delivered a precise cross from the left flank, Pulisic showed his predatory instincts by arriving at the perfect moment to fire home the equalizer.

AdvertisementPulisic completes remarkable turnaround

The American's decisive contribution came just 10 minutes later when he fired Milan into a 3-2 lead with another clinical finish. In the 77th minute, midfielder Samuele Ricci found Pulisic inside the Torino penalty area, and the forward made no mistake with his left foot, beating goalkeeper Franco Israel to complete the comeback. The goal sent the traveling Milan supporters into raptures and silenced the Torino faithful who had been celebrating what seemed like a comfortable lead earlier in the match.

The dramatic comeback seemed unlikely after Torino had established a commanding 2-0 lead within the opening 17 minutes. Croatian international Nikola Vlasic opened the scoring in the 10th minute from the penalty spot after a Milan defensive error. Then veteran Colombian striker Duvan Zapata doubled the advantage just seven minutes later with a clinical finish that left goalkeeper Mike Maignan with no chance.

Milan appeared disorganized defensively until Adrien Rabiot provided a lifeline with a spectacular long-range strike in the 24th minute that reduced the deficit to 2-1. Despite this boost, the visitors continued to struggle creatively until Pulisic's introduction.

Watch full highlights hereENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty Images SportVictory propels Rossoneri back to Serie A summit

The dramatic win carries significant implications for Milan's title aspirations, propelling them back to the top of the Serie A standings with 31 points from 14 matches, level with Napoli but ahead on goal difference. The Rossoneri face Sassuolo next on Dec. 13 before going on the road to face Napoli on Dec. 18 in the Supercoppa Italiana semifinal.

On the TNT Sports panel for Liverpool’s Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, Steven Gerrard was hesitant to say that Arne Slot’s side are in a crisis.

But after being dispatched 4-1 by Peter Bosz’s Dutchmen, it’s difficult to argue anything even bordering the contrary. That was Liverpool’s ninth defeat in 12 matches across all competitions, and the crisis – yes, crisis – is deepening.

The most concerning thing is that there is so much talent in this side. Liverpool are chock-full of elite talent. But synergy and belief are in short supply at Anfield.

Slot is steadfast in his belief that he can craft an exit from this rut with the tools at his disposal, but sporting director Richard Hughes is gearing up for a January signing nonetheless.

Who Liverpool need to sign in January

There has been plenty of chatter relating to the need for a centre-back at Liverpool. It’s true. Despite Real Madrid ending their interest in Ibrahima Konate, the Reds are still short at the back after missing out on Marc Guehi last summer.

However, Slot has suggested that Liverpool have another area of the field on their mind, his frontline so imbalanced this season.

As per i News, Liverpool are leading the race for Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, following initial enquiries, with David Ornstein previously confirming the Reds’ interest and that the Ghanaian winger has a £65m release clause in his contract that becomes active this January.

Semenyo is also courting intrigue from the likes of Manchester City, but Liverpool feel they have a good chance of bringing him over to Anfield after opting against signing a like-for-like Luis Diaz replacement this summer.

What Semenyo would offer Liverpool

It is promising to note the incremental progress Semenyo has made since joining Bournemouth from Bristol City in the Championship for about £10.5m in January 2023.

Last season, he was lauded for going to “another level” in the Premier League by teammate Lewis Cook, growing into his skin under the tutelage of Andoni Iraola, instrumental in the Cherries’ 56-point finish.

Ferocious and powerful, he has only gotten better since the summer, notching six goals and three assists across his first 11 matches in the division this term.

There is far more to the 25-year-old’s game than just goal contributions, but he has still managed to post more than all of his teammates at the Vitality Stadium.

His talismanic qualities and “world-class” form, as said by another teammate, Justin Kluivert, underscore Semenyo’s suitability at Liverpool, especially as his pace and power and burgeoning prolificacy has led Reds analyst Josh Williams to dub him “the closest you’ll find to peak Mane right now”.

This, and Semenyo’s big-game ability, suggests he could be one of the Anfield side’s finest signings in a long time, perhaps even since £60m was paid to RB Leipzig to bring Dominik Szoboszlai over from Germany.

Szoboszlai has had his ups and downs in a Liverpool shirt, but has bloomed into a superstar of a midfielder this season, stepping up and becoming a leader of men while applying his tireless energy and sharp technical skills at a time when ailing Liverpool desperately need them.

Liverpool’s Hungarian general is a masterful midfielder, cut and dry as the outfit’s best player this term; it is not even close.

While he is a wholly different type of player from Semenyo, they share an athletic likeness and have both established themselves as leading lights at their respective sides.

If Liverpool can both add balance to their side while infusing the squad with more in-form ability than has been on show this year, it will only be a good thing as Slot and Szoboszlai and the rest fight to steer the club out of the ditch they have slipped into.

Such a signing could be a catalyst for change, and at a comparatively shrewd £65m figure, Semenyo might just prove to be one of Liverpool’s best signings in a number of years.

Better than Isak: Liverpool join race for "one of the best RWs in the world"

Arne Slot’s Liverpool tenure is crumbling before him, and FSG are considering changes.

By
Angus Sinclair

Nov 28, 2025

Mumbai Indians upped their six-hitting on the big night, to knock Gujarat Giants out

Namooh Shah13-Mar-20257-0 – Mumbai Indians’ (MI) record against Gujarat Giants, MI are the only team to remain unbeaten against an opponent in the WPL.213 for 4 – MI registered their highest total in the WPL, going past the 207 for 5 they made against the same opponent in 2023. It is also the third-joint highest total across WPLs.5 – Fifty-plus scores by Natalie Sciver-Brunt in this WPL so far, the most by any batter in one season. Three other batters have four fifty-plus scores in one edition of the WIPL.ESPNcricinfo Ltd122 – Total runs scored by MI during the middle overs (7-16) in the Eliminator – the most by any team in a WPL innings, bettering the 121 runs scored by UP Warriorz against RCB last week.133 – Partnership runs between Hayley Matthews and Sciver-Brunt in the Eliminator – the joint-highest stand for MI, equalling their own record against UPW this season in Bengaluru. It was also the third century partnership between the pair, the joint-most by a pair in the WPL alongside Shafali Verma and Meg Lanning for Delhi Capitals.9 – Sixes hit by MI – the most they have hit in a WPL match. The MI batters hit a six every 13.33 balls on Thursday, nearly three times their ratio of 43.28 during the league stage. They were able to hit only 21 sixes in the league matches, the least by any team, and they hit no more than four sixes in any of those eight matches.4 – Number of boundaries Giants conceded through misfields in the Eliminator. In addition, they also put down four catches and missed a run-out chance.22 – Runs Priya Mishra’s drop of Harmanpreet Kaur in the 17th over cost Giants, as per ESPNcricinfo’s Luck Index. Harmanpreet had faced only three balls for two runs at that point, including a run that came from the dropped chance.In the next nine balls, she scored 34 runs with four sixes and two fours. According to the algorithm, the other MI batters would have scored only 13 runs in the nine balls that Harmanpreet faced after the reprieve.Giants dropped Matthews twice – when she was on 5 and 42. Those two catches cost them 9 and 12 runs respectively, as per ESPNcricinfo’s Luck Index.

MatériaMais Notícias

De virada, o Palmeiras venceu o Liverpool-URU por 3 a 1 no Allianz Parque, em duelo válido pela segunda rodada da fase de grupos da Libertadores. Rosso abriu o placar para os uruguaios, e o Verdão conquistou a vitória com gols de Aníbal Moreno, Flaco López e Estevão. Veja os melhores momentos da partida no vídeo acima!

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasFora de CampoÍdolo do Palmeiras se derrete por Estevão: ‘Raio caiu duas vezes no mesmo lugar’Fora de Campo11/04/2024PalmeirasTorcedores do Palmeiras exaltam Veiga e elegem o pior em campo na LibertadoresPalmeiras11/04/2024Fora de CampoCarlos Eugênio Simon dá veredito em lance polêmico de Palmeiras x Liverpool-URU; vejaFora de Campo11/04/2024

➡️ Siga o Lance! Palmeiras no WhatsApp e acompanhe todas as notícias do Verdão

Aos dois minutos do primeiro tempo, Rodríguez cobrou direto para o gol, Weverton espalmou para o meio da área e Rosso aproveitou o rebote e estufou as redes. O bandeirinha havia flagrado impedimento na jogada e, após seis minutos de revisão, o VAR não viu irregularidades e validou o gol.

➡️A boa do Lance! Betting: vamos dobrar seu primeiro depósito, até R$200! Basta abrir sua conta!

Na reta final da primeira etapa, Veiga cobrou escanteio na área, e Aníbal Moreno desviou de cabeça para empata. No começo do segundo tempo, Veiga lançou para Flaco López na área, e com toque sutil, o argentino virou o jogo. O terceiro gol nasceu dos pés de Veiga, que cruzou na cabeça de Estevão

continua após a publicidade

O próximo compromisso do Palmeiras será no domingo (13), contra o Vitória, pela primeira rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, no Barradão.

➡️ Veja tabela com datas, horários dos jogos da Libertadores

Tudo sobre

LibertadoresPalmeiras

It looked like it would be the week that would end Daniel Farke’s time at Leeds United. One that would all but condemn the Yorkshire giants to a swift return to the Championship. And yet.

While last weekend’s Etihad fight-back ultimately proved in vain, that second-half showing has sparked new life into the Elland Road side, having since claimed four valuable points at home to both Chelsea and Liverpool in recent days.

Unlike in midweek, however, the Whites were far from at their best this time around, with Hugo Ekitike surging the away side into what appeared to be an unassailable two-goal lead.

This is not the Liverpool side that claimed Premier League glory last term, though, nor is it the Leeds outfit which meekly fell to relegation two years ago – they’re made of sterner stuff.

Aided by the reckless Ibrahima Konate, Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s spot-kick sparked a frantic finale at Elland Road, with Anton Stach levelling things up just two minutes later.

Man of the moment Dominik Szoboszlai then looked to have popped the Leeds balloon, before Ao Tanaka came up trumps at the death – cue bedlam, delirium, and a queue of writers not quite sure what to make of it.

Tanaka the hero in stunning second-half fight-back

It was all going so wrong for Farke and co, with Joe Rodon gifting an opener to that man Ekitike, before the Frenchman netted a second almost within a minute to make it 2-0 on the 50-minute mark.

There looked to be no way back, with Leeds drifting toward defeat, before a trio of changes sparked the game into life.

Up stepped Wilfried Gnonto, Brenden Aaronson and the aforementioned Tanaka to alter proceedings, with the three late arrivals making an impact in all three goals for the home side.

Indeed, it was Gnonto’s direct run which drew the foul from Konate for Leeds’ first, while Aaronson laid on the assist for Stach, as Farke’s men levelled things up just two minutes later.

The headline-grabber, however, was Tanaka, with the Japanese midfielder – who had been replaced by Ilia Gruev in the starting lineup – pouncing at the backpost to snatch a point in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

That moment aside, the 2024 summer signing also notably won 100% of his duels after entering the fray, as per Sofascore, with the decision to start Gruev in his place seemingly backfiring as far as Farke is concerned.

Tanaka will surely be reinstated into the fold next time around, while fellow substitute Gnonto should also be in the mix for a regular starting berth again.

Why Leeds sub now needs to start every game

While Tanaka may have stolen the show in stoppage time, the game truly appeared to change due to the added dynamism of Gnonto in attack, with Leeds looking rather blunt prior to that.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Expand Collapse

Noah Okafor, for instance, was hooked just after the hour mark, having made just five passes in all, while registering just 14 touches, with the Whites in need of a spark to ignite their limp forward line.

As ever, it was the diminutive Italian who proved to be just that, cleverly drawing the foul from Konate with his fleet of foot inside the area, representing one of two fouls he would win in that late cameo.

Direct and penetrating, the 22-year-old also notably recorded a stellar 100% pass accuracy even while seeking to make things happen for his side, having even recorded more touches (17) than Okafor despite his limited time on the field.

From Championship hero to peripheral Premier League figure, Gnonto has not had the game time he would’ve liked in 2025/26, with a calf injury limiting him to just seven top-flight outings thus far.

Gnonto’s 24/25 Stats

Stat (*per game)

Record

Games

43

Starts

26

Goals

9

Assists

6

Big chances missed

6

Big chances created

10

Key passes*

1.1

Pass accuracy*

81%

Successful dribbles*

1.0

Stats via Sofascore

On the evidence of Saturday night, however, he should well be a regular fixture moving forward, now that he is fit and firing again, with Leeds simply looking a different team with the speedy forward spearheading the attack.

As noted by Yorkshire Evening Post’s Graham Smyth, who awarded him an 8/10 match rating, Gnonto was ‘bright, lively, tricky’, having fearlessly taken the hosts forward time and again.

With a trip to Brentford now next on the agenda next weekend, the former Zurich starlet should surely be deserving of a recall to the starting XI.

Related Farke must unleash "wonderkid" who'd be perfect for Nmecha's new Leeds role

Daniel Farke must unleash this promising youngster who could be perfect for Lukas Nmecha’s new role at Leeds.

Posts ByDan Emery 6 days ago