All posts by h716a5.icu

A round-up from the third day of the latest County Championship matches, as Steve Harmison inspired Durham to a win, while Piyush Chawla cracked his maiden first-class hundred

Cricinfo staff13-Jun-2009Division OneSteve Harmison grabbed his first five-wicket haul of the season to lead Durham to a 138-run win over Lancashire on the third day at Chester-le-Street. Lancashire, rolled for 116 in their first innings, fared little better in their second on a pitch offering variable bounce. Set 274 to win, they were castled for 135, with Harmison claiming the first four wickets to fall. Bowling with pace and gaining significant bounce, he removed Paul Horton with a lifter before rapping Ashwell Prince in front. Next to go was Francois du Plessis, caught behind, but Harmison saved his most ferocious for Mal Loye, who received an unplayable brute which took the handle of his bat before flying to Gordon Muchall at third slip. Graham Onions chipped in with three wickets, including that of Andrew Flintoff, brilliantly caught by Mitch Claydon, as Durham wrapped things up after 52 overs.The young India legspinner, Piyush Chawla, smashed a brilliant maiden hundred to give his adopted county Sussex a record total at which to declare, leaving them in dominant position on the third day against Worcestershire at New Road. Chawla was unbeaten on 102 – his second fifty took a mere 28 balls – as Sussex declared on 620 for 9, the seventh-highest total in the club’s history, and the largest total Worcestershire have suffered in 13 years. Chawla, who signed this week as a temporary replacement for Pakistan’s Yasir Arafat, batted at No.9 and cracked seven fours and six sixes in 95 minutes of exhilarating hitting. To cap a fine day, he then won lbw decisions against Vikram Solanki and Ben Smith, as Worcestershire went to stumps on 120 for 3, seeking a further 212 to win.For a report from the third day at The Rose Bowl between Nottinghamshire and Hampshire, click here.Click here for John Ward’s report on the third day at Headingley, where Yorkshire took on Somerset.Division TwoJamie Dalrymple enjoyed another good day for Glamorgan, reaching his highest score and picking up two quick wickets against Derbyshire at Derby. Glamorgan’s last four added an impressive 151, leading Derbyshire by 10 runs, and the home side were soon in trouble at 59 for 3. Steve Stubbings (49) and Wavell Hinds (42*) dug in but Glamorgan picked up three more wickets to leave Derbyshire on 142 for 6 at stumps, leading by 132.Northamptonshire are on the verge of defeat to Surrey who took seven wickets on the third day at Northampton, leaving the home side still trailing by 132 runs. Usman Afzaal cracked his first double hundred of his career, remaining unbeaten on 204 in Surrey’s mammoth 530 all out. Northamptonshire’s reply began dismally, losing four wickets with just 65 on the board, but Stephen Peters fought gallantly in his patient 78, his second fifty of the match. He shared in a crucial fifth-wicket stand of 76 with Andrew Hall, but Hall was removed by Murtaza Hussain, while Peters was caught by Mark Butcher off Chris Schofield. Only rain can save Northamptonshire now.

Marcus North led the Australians with 191 not out and they were also encouraged by the performances of Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee as they completed a useful warm-up for Wednesday’s first Test

The Bulletin by Peter English at Worcester04-Jul-2009
Scorecard
How they were outMarcus North finished the match unbeaten on 191•Getty ImagesMarcus North led the Australians with 191 not out and they were also encouraged by the performances of Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee as they completed a useful warm-up for Wednesday’s first Test. After North sped the Australians to 438 for 4 at the lunch-time declaration in Worcester, the tourists were pleased to see Johnson remove both openers and Lee gain reverse-swing in the 33rd over before the match was called off almost an hour early.The end was signalled shortly after the umpire Jeff Evans collapsed on the side of the pitch with the England Lions 162 for 4. Johnson was more fluent as he built on a rusty performance in the first innings during a nine-over spell that set him up for Cardiff. He enters the Ashes as Australia’s major weapon and the only thing missing is the sharp movement that turned him into a dominator during the series in South Africa.The New Road pitch hasn’t suited the fast bowlers during the four days and the England Lions openers raced to 29 in 4.5 overs. However, the rate slowed when Johnson forced Stephen Moore (16) into an edge to second slip where Ricky Ponting took a slick catch to his right. Ten overs later Johnson (2 for 48) struck again when he went around the wicket and forced a fine nick from Joe Denly to Brad Haddin on 36.With the England Lions set 445 runs for victory in two sessions, there was no push for victory from either side and the Australians were content to give all of their main bowlers a run. Lee, who took six wickets in the first innings, had two spells either side of tea and bowled Vikram Solanki for 28 with a sharp inswinger. On Thursday Lee got the ball to move significantly by the 45th over and this time he was shaping it much earlier in another encouraging sign for the fast bowler, who is returning from ankle surgery.In a pointer to the first Test, Marcus North’s offspin was used before Nathan Hauritz was called, although the specialist broke through when Ian Bell was taken by Simon Katich at short leg, leaving the hosts at 103 at tea. Hauritz continued after the break and was hit for a straight six by Eoin Morgan, who survived a long lbw shout by the bowler at Evans’ end in the third-last over. He was unbeaten on 28 at stumps while Steve Davies was 11 not-out.Evans required attention after experiencing dizzy spells and was held by a couple of the visiting players as they helped him to the ground. The Australian physio Alex Kountouris and a local paramedic ran on to the field to treat Evans, who was able to walk off with the teams and was reported to be fine after stumps.The Australians were unscathed before their declaration and the only interruption came when Michael Hussey “retired hurt” with a very minor left ankle problem. He had been struck in the warm-up but still managed to bat freely for more than an hour before deciding it was time for Haddin to arrive.Following his first-innings century, Hussey breezed to 62 in 69 balls to continue his resurgence on this tour. He collected five fours and his highlight came when he pulled Graham Onions for six shortly before bringing up his half-century. When his return to the field was announced he mockingly shook his leg and smiled.At the other end North was also enjoying being in the middle instead of the dressing room, although the standard of bowling in the second half of the session was ordinary. The spin of Adil Rashid, Denly and Solanki helped North race towards a double-century, but he won’t be bothered that he was nine short when the declaration came. A slog-swept four from Denly was followed next ball by a six and his stay lasted 280 balls.Haddin’s unbeaten 25 assisted the tourists in adding 162 before Ponting sent his bowlers out. Steve Harmison ended with 2 for 55 while Rashid and Denly claimed a wicket each.

Rangers came from behind to beat Hibernian 2-1 in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday as they reclaimed their spot at the top of the table.

Hearts had moved ahead of the Gers on Saturday with their 2-0 win over Motherwell, but Steven Gerrard’s side were able to claim the three points against Hibs to return to the summit.

Kemar Roofe and Alfredo Morelos scored in the second-half after an opening goal from Kevin Nisbet had put Hibernian in the lead.

Despite the victory, there were some negatives to take from the match for Rangers. For example, one player who struggled out on the pitch was central midfielder Joe Aribo.

The ex-Charlton man lined up as the most advanced of the three central midfielders and failed to grasp his opportunity to impress in a forward role. He was unable to make much of a positive impact on the match before being substituted by Gerrard in the 79th minute.

On the ball, Aribo failed to showcase his creativity. Per SofaScore, he had zero key passes and gave away possession of the ball 15 times from 54 touches, completing 80% of his attempted passes and failing to complete a single long pass or cross in his time on the pitch.

This is particularly frustrating as he is capable of providing quality in the final third of the pitch. He has averaged 1.8 chances created per game in the Scottish Premiership this season, which shows that he does have the ability to open doors at the top end of the pitch. That is why his failure to do so against Hibernian let Gerrard down.

Against the ball, Aribo left a lot to be desired. Per SofaScore, he lost eight of his 13 duels on the pitch as he made one tackle and no interceptions. This suggests that he was not strong enough to deal with the Hibernian players in 50/50 duels throughout the match.

It is worth noting, however, that Aribo was subject to a red card challenge from Ryan Porteous in the 30th minute. Although the Hibs centre-back did not make full contact with his tackle, Aribo may have been shaken up by the incident and that could have affected his performance in terms of battling for possession.

Overall, though, it was a disappointing display from the midfielder and one that will have left Gerrard feeling let down heading into the international break.

AND in other news, 118 touches: Rangers beast with 95% pass accuracy was Gerrard’s unsung hero vs Hibs…

A round-up of the matches at the Women’s European Championship Twenty20 in Dublin

Cricinfo staff07-Aug-2009Ireland followed up their victory in the 50-over Women’s European Championships by winning the inaugural Twenty20 event at Rathmines. They defeated Netherlands in the title decider, chasing down a challenging 116 with the loss of just one wicket and with 6.3 overs to spare.Clare Shillington stroked an unbeaten 58 from 49 balls, striking eight fours and a six, as Netherlands were made to pay for dropping her of the very first ball of the chase. Shillington was particularly strong through the covers and square of the wicket initially, before favouring the square leg and midwicket regions later in her innings.Isobel Joyce and Shillington put on a rapid 56 in six overs, with Joyce smashing 35 from just 18 balls. Once Joyce went, caught at short midwicket pulling Mandy Kornet, Shillington grasped the mantle and dominated a stand of 60 in seven overs with Cecelia Joyce.In the Netherlands total of 115 for 6, the main partnership was the fifth-wicket stand of 60 between Marijn Nijman (29*), and Miranda Veringmeier (27), taking their side from a precarious 53 for 4 to 113 for 5. The pair played some powerful strokes, particularly down the ground, and kept the Irish fielders under pressure. The pick of the Irish bowlers were Amy Kenealy and Eimear Richardson with two wickets apiece.In the first match of the day, Netherlands beat Scotland by 38 runs. Batting first they piled up 138 for 7, with six of their top seven batters reaching double figures. Catherine Odoulf top scored with 33, and was ably supported by Marijn Nijman (22) and Mandy Kornet (19*). Scotland bowled reasonably well, but were not backed by the fielders, who turned in a sloppy performance.Scotland were never in serious contention in the run chase, as Kari Anderson (34) ploughed a lonely furrow. She faced 52 balls, and struck just the one boundary. None of the other Scottish batters managed to reach double figures, and their final total of 100 was down mainly to the generosity of the Dutch attack, who bowled 28 wides. Marloes Braart though, managed an excellent braveheart effort of 3 for 13.The game between Ireland and Scotland went the hosts’ way as they won comprehensively by 86 runs. Their total of 148 for 2 was based around yet another fine batting display from the top order. The Joyce sisters were the heaviest scorers – Isobel top scoring with 46 from 42 balls, and Cecelia hitting an unbeaten 35 at exactly a run-a-ball.Clare Shillington (26) shared an opening stand of 66 with Isobel Joyce, before being bowled by 16 year old Lynne Dickson, who also had Isobel Joyce brilliantly caught behind by Lorna Jack. That was to the end of the Scottish success, as Eimear Richardson (31*) shared an unbroken stand of 62 with Cecelia Joyce.Scotland made little attempt to chase the Irish score, creeping to 62 for 7 in the allotted overs, with only Kari Anderson trying to force the pace. She hit three fours in an over from Ciara Metcalfe on her way to 16 in rapid time.Her demise, caught behind by Valmai Gee off Metcalfe resulted in Scotland batting out the overs, getting in some match practice. Amy Kenealy took three wickets in quick succession to finish with 3 for 15, while Ciara Metcalfe bounced back superbly from the Anderson onslaught tofinish with 2 for 16.Eimear Richardson of Ireland was named player of the tournament, while Netherlands collected the ‘Spirit of Cricket’ award.

Some Liverpool supporters believe that Lionel Messi still isn’t over Barcelona’s defeat to the Reds after he didn’t name them as Champions League contenders.

Jurgen Klopp’s men have had some special matches in his six-year reign, but the 4-0 win over Barca back in 2018/19 is surely near the top of the list. Liverpool overturned a 3-0 deficit from the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie, producing one of the most miraculous comebacks in European history.

[freshpress-quiz id=“375258″]

Even the legendary Messi, widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, was powerless to do anything about that result and it is a game which seemingly continues to haunt him, even since leaving Barca for Paris Saint-Germain earlier this year.

When asked by L’Equipe [via LFC Transfer Room on Twitter] who he thinks are contenders to win this season’s Champions League, the Argentine legend conveniently ignored Liverpool, instead replying: “It is true that the centre of attention is on PSG, but there are other very strong teams. Chelsea, the Manchester teams, Real Madrid, who always responds, Inter, Bayern.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-6/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans mock Messi

These Reds fans took to Twitter to poke fun at Messi, claiming that he is still fuming about that defeat at Anfield in May 2019.

“We won it 6 times, beaten in 3 finals and he doesn’t put us on his list, still hasn’t got over 4-0”

Credit: @patrick57672444

“Some wounds never heal. 07.05.2019- Anfield. Never forgotten”

Credit: @TheLiverpo6lWay

“Those wounds will take a long time to heal, as far as Barca, Messi and co are concerned”

Credit: @jonnieivandoyle

“Still thinking about this Leo”

Credit: @LFCTransferRoom

“He’s clearly still triggered by the comeback”

Credit: @Zach89448150

“The 4-0 still haunting him”

Credit: @donnashamzan

In other news, some Liverpool fans have been reacting to an Erling Haaland claim. Read more here.

Sri Lanka and New Zealand will attempt to kick-start the Compaq Cup on Tuesday though the weather threatens to be a dampener

Jamie Alter in Colombo07-Sep-2009Match factsTuesday September 8
Start time 14.30 (9.00 GMT)Nathan McCullum made the most of his chance in the second Twenty20•Associated PressBig PictureSri Lanka, after consecutive Twenty20 defeats, and New Zealand, after a 50-over warm-up defeat to Sri Lanka A on Sunday, will attempt to kick-start the Compaq Cup on Tuesday, though the weather threatens to be a dampener. Scattered thunderstorms are predicted for each of the days this week and a short four-game tournament, already being criticised for its duration and practicality, needs to be competitive throughout to silence growing criticism of the 50-over game’s future.Sri Lanka, almost always formidable opponents on their own soil, do not start as favourites. New Zealand took plenty of confidence from two night wins at the Premadasa last week and they know their biggest shot at winning is getting into Sri Lanka’s top order. New Zealand have repeatedly highlighted the importance of dismissing Tillakaratne Dilshan early to put pressure on Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, leaving a shaky lower order sweating.Successive middle-order muddles during the Twenty20s left Kumar Sangakkara ruing the lack of application and calling on the players to introspect going into this series. Sri Lanka will hope that Sanath Jayasuriya finds form at a venue in which he has scored 2373 runs at 38.27, but contributions from the likes of Angelo Mathews and Chamara Kapugedera will be equally important. Another worry for the home side is that Muttiah Muralitharan is in some doubt after not recovering entirely from a groin strain sustained on day five of the SSC Test, and both teams will keenly await news on his fitness tomorrow.New Zealand did little wrong in the Twenty20s. Their response to Dilshan’s onslaught in game one was calm and their batting and bowling more than efficient during the series clincher. Their effective handling of Ajantha Mendis – who caused nightmares at Trent Bridge this summer – was another reason behind their victory over Sri Lanka.Form guideSri Lanka LLWWW
New Zealand NrWWLWWatch out for…Nuwan Kulasekara had a fantastic 2008 in ODI cricket, and he translated that into a Man-of-the-Series performance in the home Tests against Pakistan. He was rested for the second Test against New Zealand keeping in mind Sri Lanka’s heavy limited-overs workload, and returns to the format which he has dominated. In 15 matches in 2009, he has taken 26 wickets at 22.80 and has become Sri Lanka’s premier one-day quick bowler.Brendon McCullum has earned a reputation as on of the most feared hitters in international cricket, and after easing back to form with 49 in the second Twenty20 international, spoke of a calmness at the crease that was missing during the Tests. Seven years after his debut, McCullum still has only one ODI century; after warning his tri-series opponents about how his confidence has returned, he’ll fancy his chances of improving that count in this series.Team news Murali’s fitness will be evaluated later this evening and tomorrow morning before the game and Sri Lanka are hopeful he will be ready. Sri Lanka may hand young left-handed batsman Gihan Rupasinghe a debut, meaning Angelo Mathews may drop down a spot. Thilan Thushara will come back into the side after missing the Twenty20s and forms a potent pace attack along with Kulasekara and Lasith Malinga.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Chamara Kapugedera, 6 Gihan Rupasinghe, 7 Angelo Mathews, 8 Thilan Thushara, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Lasith Malinga.Daniel Vettori, Ross Taylor and Shane Bond will be back after sitting out the warm-up loss on Sunday. Bond will replace Daryl Tuffey, who is not part of the ODI squad. If Brendon McCullum is given the wicketkeeping role then both Grant Elliott and Neil Broom, neither of whom did anything of note against Sri Lanka A, could feature. The second spinner’s spot will be a toss-up between Jeetan Patel and Nathan McCullum, who impressed in the second Twenty20 and the practice match and brings more depth in batting and fielding.New Zealand: (probable) 1 Brendon McCullum (wk), 2 Jesse Ryder, 3 Martin Guptill, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Jacob Oram, 6 Grant Elliot, 7 Neil Broom, 8 Daniel Vettori (capt), 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Shane Bond.Pitch and conditionsThe pitch at the Premadasa is a dry one and favours batting. Going by the recent trend, the side winning the toss will almost certainly opt to bat. The weather cannot be discounted, however, with rain never too far from Colombo. Scattered showers are forecast. The Premadasa is tied with the SSC as the grounds to have hosted the maximum number of washed out games – six each – and if the prediction turns out to be accurate, this ground could sneak to the top of a rather unflattering category.Stats and TriviaSri Lanka have won 46 out of 75 ODIs at the Premadasa.New Zealand have won three out of nine matches here, but only one against Sri Lanka.In 30 matches since 2004, a 300-plus total has been achieved only four times at the Premadasa. On average, teams have managed 26.77 per wicket at a rate of 4.73.Fast bowlers have taken more wickets at the Premadasa since 2004 – 262 at an average of 27.04. Spinners have managed 160 wickets at 32.53 apiece.Since 2004, the team winning the toss has batted first on 24 out of 30 occasions. In the last 11 ODIs, teams chose to bat every time and the result went their way on each occasion.Murali has a bowling average of 26.37 and a best of 5 for 44 at this ground, with 69 wickets from 52 ODIs. Quotes”If you know a trend, you know the past, you try and go out there and change it.”
“It’s been good to have him back. He’s a smart bowler. He probably doesn’t have the genuine pace he had in the VB Series a couple of years ago [2007] but he’s certainly a better bowler with the ability to read the game and read a player.”
“You can’t really write him off, can you? He’s got so much experience; he’s been tearing attacks apart over the years, so we’re not writing him off.”

A product of the highly impressive Celtic academy, Scott Robertson is very much a player to keep an eye on at Parkhead in the coming years.

Indeed, while the central midfielder has made just one senior appearance for the Bhoys – rather unfortunately coming in a 2-0 Europa League loss against CFR Cluj back in 2019 – the 20-year-old has been quietly developing himself as a footballer over three loan spells south of the border.

The first of these came during the first half of last season, in the form of a four-month stint at Gillingham, where the midfielder would go on to make 19 appearances for the Gills, providing two assists for his teammates along the way.

Upon his return to Parkhead in January, the youngster was almost immediately snapped back up by another League One side, Doncaster Rovers, with Robertson subsequently featuring 15 times for Richie Wellens’ side, registering one assist during his time with the Dons.

As a result of his impressive displays for two separate League One sides last time out, Crewe Alexandra decided to take the 20-year-old on a season-long this summer, where the midfielder has continued his impressive development in the third tier of English football.

Indeed, over his eight League One appearances in the current campaign, Robertson has already bagged one goal, as well as taking an average of one shot and making 0.9 key passes per game.

The youngster has also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making an average of 0.5 interceptions, 2.9 tackles, 1.5 clearances and winning a whopping seven duels per fixture.

These returns have seen the Celtic loanee earn an average SofaScore match rating of 6.88, ranking him as Crewe’s fourth-best performer in the league.

Indeed, the 20-year-old’s consistent level of performance has also led to the praise of his manager, David Artell, who claimed back in September that the midfielder was the club’s best player at that particular moment.

On Robertson’s displays, Artell said: “Scott’s character is bang on. He listens intently and he looks at you and you know he is taking it all in. There is no noise going on in his head when you speak to him. He wants to listen and learn and when you are like that then you are only going to get better.

“He was terrific again [against Burton Albion]. Really, really good and he was absolutely shattered in those last five minutes because he had run himself into the ground. He has probably been our best performer in the last three games but he knows that has to continue. He knows he has to maintain those levels but he has come here, taken things on board and his attitude to the work is first class… we have a real gem of a player on our hands.”

As such, with another season of regular game time, not to mention a collection of impressive performances, under his belt, upon Robertson’s return to Parkhead, the 20-year-old could take one step closer to emulating his academy predecessor in central midfield, Callum McGregor, and could well cause Ange Postecoglou something of a selection headache in the middle of the park next season.

In other news: Forget Jota: “Lively” £9k-p/w Celtic dynamo who made 8 passes finally proved his worth

Batsman Qasim Sheikh has been added Scotland’s ODI squad for the back-to-back matches this weekend against Ireland in Aberdeen

Cricinfo staff21-Aug-2009Batsman Qasim Sheikh has been added to Scotland’s ODI squad for the back-to-back matches this weekend against Ireland in Aberdeen. The selectors were impressed with Sheikh following his century against Ireland in the Intercontinental Cup match, which was crucial in giving his team a slender first-innings lead.Fast bowler Dewald Nel, who broke his finger during the ICC World Twenty20 in June, has been given the all-clear by the doctors to play.”Qasim fully deserves his call-up after his outstanding knock last week, and Dewald returning is a major boost after his lengthy layoff,” Peter Steindl, Scotland’s head coach, said. “We hope to build on the many positives we have taken out of the recent Intercontinental Cup game as we continue to develop our side.”Scotland play a one-off ODI against Australia on August 28 in Edinburgh.Squad: Gavin Hamilton (capt), Fraser Watts, Ryan Watson, Qasim Sheikh, Navdeep Poonia, Neil McCallum, Richie Berrington, Marc Petrie, Majid Haq, Gordon Drummond, Ross Lyons, Gordon Goudie, Dewald Nel.

Southampton fans were far from happy with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s quotes following the Saints’ exit at the hands of Chelsea in the League Cup.

The Saints travelled to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday to face the Blues in the fourth round of the League Cup. The hosts went ahead when Kai Havertz headed in, but Che Adams was able to take the game to penalties. In the end, the European champions progressed, but it was a display full of positives from the St. Mary’s Stadium outfit.

Hasenhuttl spoke to the media after the match, and was clearly happy with what his side produced against the current Premier League leaders. He claimed that his side were the “Pride of London” because of their showing – even though they were unable to progress to the next round.

The comments were shared on Twitter by @SaintsExtra, and it attracted plenty of attention from the supporters. They took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Hasenhuttl comments below

“Play the same team against Watford. I dare you”

Credit: @TheBig_Borowski

“We lost Ralph”

Credit: @Eliassfc2

“Class! We didn’t win… again.”

Credit: @OllieSoton

“Going out of the cup is amazing. Sack him immediately”

Credit: @cleetus_van

“Yeh, I’d still rather we had played crap and scabbed a 1-0 win. Really had enough of heroic failure”

Credit: @rmbyres

“Still lost though.”

Credit: @SouthernMan7

In other news, Southampton fans were far from happy with this man against Chelsea.

Celtic right-back Anthony Ralston is on course to sign a new Parkhead deal, The Scottish Sun report.

The Lowdown: Ralston shining

Ralston has taken the opportunity handed to him by Ange Postecoglou this season with both hands.

The Hoops boss recently labelled the full-back as ‘fantastic’, with Ralston scoring three times assists in 19 games so far.

The 22-year-old has recently been named as the Scottish Premiership’s best performing player by WhoScored, and it appears as if the Hoops will now reward him with a new contract.

The Latest: Postecoglou’s update

The Scottish Sun shared a story regarding the 11-assist defender on Wednesday, with their opening line suggesting Ralston is on course for a new contract.

They then shared comments from Postecoglou, who confirmed that interim CEO Michael Nicholson is handling discussions prior to the trip to Easter Road to face Hibernian.

The Verdict: Good news

Ralston has been a beast for the Hoops this year and the club’s best WhoScored performer by some distance, so an increase on his current £5,500-a-week contract is the least he deserves.

It seems as if that will be finalised, going off this recent update, and hopefully, Ralston will continue to shine in green and white heading into the New Year, helping Celtic push up the table in the process.

In other news: ‘Ambitious’ Celtic beast wanted by Premier League clubs in the summer may now leave in January.