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Chris Silverwood, the former England fast bowler, has been signed by SLC on a two-year deal as head coach of the Sri Lanka men’s national team. His first series in charge will be the team’s upcoming two-Test tour of Bangladesh in May.Silverwood was until February the head coach of the England men’s team, but parted ways with the ECB in the wake of the side’s 4-0 Ashes series defeat in Australia. His term with England lasted a little over two years after he took over from Trevor Bayliss in October 2019.Sri Lanka have been without a full-time head coach since Mickey Arthur’s departure in December after his contract had run out. While he had repeatedly expressed a desire to continue, SLC were understood to have been unresponsive. Since then, former fast bowler Rumesh Ratnayake had been in charge of the men’s team.The appointment of Silverwood also comes after several other international coaches had been approached by SLC and its technical committee, and those coaches had eventually turned down the advances. Graham Ford, who coached Sri Lanka in two separate stints over the past decade, is understood to have been among those approached.”We are delighted to appoint Chris as the new head coach of the national team. He is an extremely experienced coach and from our discussions with him in the recruitment process it is clear he has the required qualities we are looking for to take the team forward,” said Ashley De Silva, CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket, in the board’s statement. De Silva did not specify what those qualities were, and was not available for comment.Silverwood now becomes the Sri Lanka men’s team’s eighth permanent head coach appointment in the last 10 years (Ford had two separate stints in this time), in addition to the interim coaches who took the role on. He inherits a side that is seventh on the Test rankings, eighth in ODIs, and 10th in T20 internationals – Sri Lanka having to qualify for the main draw of the T20 World Cup later this year.On the Test front, Sri Lanka have home series against Australia and Pakistan, and an away series against New Zealand late in the year, in addition to the Bangladesh tour.

Cody Gakpo is leaning on past experiences to be Liverpool's goalscoring hero in their Carabao Cup final against Newcastle at Wembley on Sunday.

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Gakpo netted as PSV claimed Dutch cup final in 2022Scoring in final is 'the best feeling ever' claims GakpoDutchman is Carabao Cup's leading scorer this seasonFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Gakpo scored a second-half winner for PSV in their 2022 KNVB Beker final success over rivals Ajax and the 25-year-old admitted he is hoping to repeat his previous heroics and net Liverpool a second successive Carabao Cup trophy, having scored in the semi-final against Tottenham.

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Liverpool won last season's Carabao Cup by overcoming Chelsea with a youthful side thanks to captain Virgil van Dijk's winner. Gakpo also admitted that "everybody wants to relive" that moment with another victory, knowing full well that lifting silverware on Sunday would be "the beginning of the end to a very beautiful season".

WHAT GAKPO SAID

"I did it once at PSV, so hopefully I can do it again at Liverpool," Gakpo told Liverpool's website when asked about envisioning scoring in a final. "You can ask the players who are here longer and who played more finals and decided the finals how it feels. It's an amazing feeling and maybe the best feeling you can have as an attacking player, to score at that moment in a final.

"Playing a final, winning a trophy is always something special. Last season we won it there in a very beautiful way, in the last minute Virgil [van Dijk] scored a great header and won us that game. That was a beautiful moment and I think everybody wants to relive that again.

"I think when we won it and we celebrated in front of the fans and they sang their songs, that was a very beautiful moment for us. I think those moments will always stick with you for the rest of your career.

"It could be our first trophy of the season, so I think we are very eager to win. Hopefully that would be the beginning of the end to a very beautiful season."

AFPWHAT NEXT FOR GAKPO AND LIVERPOOL?

Liverpool are hoping to bounce back from their Champions League exit against Paris Saint-Germain this week with a win over Newcastle at Wembley knowing victory could provide the perfect catalyst for the rest of their season. The Reds sit 15 points clear at the top of the Premier League with nine games remaining aiming to seal a domestic double in Arne Slot's first season, starting with the Carabao Cup on Sunday.

Liverpool coach Arne Slot has warned Darwin Nunez that he must give his all for the team as he explained his recent criticism of the striker.

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• Slot criticised Nunez after Villa clash
• Took aim at striker's work rate
• Urged him to keep fighting for the team

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Slot criticised the Uruguayan for his "behaviour" after he missed a chance from close range in last week's 2-2 draw against Aston Villa, adding that he "got too much in his head – where he wasn’t the usual Darwin that works his ass off and makes sure he helps the team". The 25-year-old was then left on the bench for the entirety of the Reds' 2-0 win against Manchester City on Sunday.

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  Slot says the Villa game was the second time in a row Nunez left him disappointed as the forward failed to make an impact when he came on against Wolves in the previous match, and the Dutchman insists he will not accept his work rate dipping again.

• WHAT SLOT SAID

  "I helped him by saying you can miss a chance. I wasn’t only hard on him. But for the second time in a row I wasn’t happy with his work effort, against Wolves and against Villa," he said.

  "I always try to be honest with my players and be honest as I can to you guys as well where I always try to protect my players so I don’t say he never worked hard. I know him differently. I know him at Villa at home where he made a 100 metre sprint and scored a goal, I know him when he came on at City at home and was pressing really aggressively and wins the ball back and we score.

  "But I can’t accept if a player doesn’t give everything. That is clear. I can accept it once but twice was a bit too much. That’s why I addressed it. Not that I’m all of a sudden very angry with him. I don’t mind that he missed a chance, I’d have loved him to score it, and I know he will eventually score. But if you miss a chance, you need to be fighting for the team. I’m not saying he didn’t do that at all, but it wasn’t the usual Darwin, the one that is loved by the fans. That is mainly because he always works so hard."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR DARWIN NUNEZ?

  The ex-Benfica star may be given a chance to impress again when the Premier League leaders face Newcastle on Wednesday after putting in a strong display in training.

  Slot added: "[On Monday] he was incredible in the training session when it comes to work rate. Hopefully he can keep doing this, and whenever the team needs him then he is ready for it if he keeps putting in sessions like he did yesterday.”

As if Russell Martin wasn’t dealt enough of a blow by Leicester City’s dramatic 3-2 comeback victory, Southampton already have an injury concern to deal with ahead of the Manchester City game next weekend.

Southampton injury news

It looked as though the Saints finally kicked into gear to get their Premier League campaign going once and for all when Cameron Archer and Joe Aribo put them into a commanding lead after just 28 minutes. That 2-0 lead is where the problems started for Martin’s side, however, who completely capitulated to allow Leicester back into the game.

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Levelling things up courtesy of Facundo Buonanotte and Jamie Vardy in the second-half, summer arrival Jordan Ayew became the hero of the hour when he squeezed his effort beyond Aaron Ramsdale to turn the game on its head in the 98th minute. Beaten and left watching the visitors wheel away in celebration, defeat against Leicester may just be the first nail in the coffin for Martin’s tenure.

The Saints haven’t exactly been handed positive news since that result either, especially on the injury front. As confirmed by Martin, Will Smallbone is an early doubt to face Manchester City next weekend after tweaking his hamstring in his first game back from injury against Leicester. The midfielder came on only to suffer yet another setback.

Martin confirmed the “disappointing” news, telling the Southern Daily Echo: “Will played the last 15 minutes with an injury. It looks like he’s tweaked his hamstring again which is really disappointing for him and for us. He soldiered on and battled through the last 10-15 minutes with that for the team because that’s the kind of guy he is.”

With a trip to face the Premier League champions up next, things couldn’t get much more difficult for a Southampton side desperately in need of a turnaround.

"Gifted" Smallbone adds to Southampton's woes

After missing the last four Premier League games, Smallbone’s return handed Southampton a much-needed boost that they would have been hoping to see play a part in turning a sinking ship around. One game later, however, the midfield is seemingly back on the sidelines to once again add to the woes of those at St Mary’s. As Martin battles for his job, he desperately needs his £25,000-a-week star to make a swift return.

The Saints boss was full of praise for Smallbone after his part in Southampton’s 2-1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday last season, telling reporters, as relayed by the Daily Echo: “He’s a really outstanding footballer and his performances so far have justified why I wanted to sign him at Swansea – so we must have got one right.

“He will play in different roles for us as well. He really is a gifted footballer with some good Championship experience after last season. I hope he enjoyed that tonight because I really enjoyed watching him.”

As things stand though, Southampton look likely to square off against Manchester City – of all sides – without their midfielder.

A fresh update regarding the future of Wolves boss Gary O’Neil has emerged ahead of his side’s clash with Crystal Palace.

Winless Wolves face relegation rat-race

Wolves bravely battled back from 2-0 down to rescue a point at the AMEX stadium in their most recent Premier League outing, with Matheus Cunha finding the net in stoppage time to complete the comeback after Brighton had squandered a glorious chance to make it 3-1.

After the game, O’Neil held up his hands, admitting that he had got it wrong in the first half.

“I’m a little bit disappointed, with myself really, that I started with five [at the back]. I know we did well with a five-back against Manchester City, and [I thought] the lads deserved another go at it.

“I didn’t think a five-back would fit very well against Brighton today, but at least we were quick enough to change it at half-time.

“At 85 minutes, when Brighton scored their second goal, I thought I was going to be stood here answering some more tough questions.”

However, beyond the short-term jubilation the reality of their situation once more set in for Wolves, who are one of three sides yet to win a game this season and sit 19th in the Premier League almost a quarter of the way into the season. They have just two points and have conceded a mammoth 25 goals, five more than any other side in the division.

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ByBrett Worthington Oct 30, 2024 Gary O'Neil given two games to save his job

Now, a fresh report has claimed that the Wolves boss is under increasing pressure to deliver results at Molineux. So far, there has been an acceptance that Wolves have faced one of the hardest starts to the season of any Premier League season, playing all of the current top five (Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Aston Villa) as well as Newcastle United.

Now though, there is set to be a change of tone, with Football Insider reporting that the next two games are crucial in O’Neil’s future in the Wolves technical area. The Old Gold face 18th placed Crystal Palace in their next game, before a mammoth clash with bottom of the table Southampton ahead of the November international break.

Wolves’ next five games

Crystal Palace (Home)

Southampton (Home)

Fulham (Away)

Bournemouth (Home)

Everton (Away)

And they claim that poor results in those games will “change the mood’” in the Midlands, with the upcoming games “critical” for O’Neil’s future, though it is added that the Wolves boss “still has the backing of the changing room”.

However, failure to pick up points against their direct relegation rivals may prove too much for both the Wolves fans and the board, with the prospect of a drop to the Championship likely to become an increasing reality.

Should Wolves part ways with O’Neil over the international break, any new manager would be the beneficiary of a favourable run of games, with the Old Gold not facing a member of the “top six” again until Boxing Day.

This has been an incredibly topsy-turvy season for Tottenham so far and that showed no sign of changing against Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon.

A week ago, Spurs had demolished out-of-form West Ham 4-1. They did go a goal down but Ange Postecoglou’s side responded in emphatic fashion.

The Lilywhites went and beat AZ Alkmaar in midweek too so arrived at Selhurst Park full of confidence. Alas, that does not always result in a win, particularly if you are of a Tottenham persuasion.

They were distinctly average against the Eagles this weekend, losing 1-0 thanks to a goal from Jean-Philippe Mateta.

Even though there was a debut for Mikey Moore – perhaps their biggest positive of the weekend – the young 17-year-old could not inspire them to victory.

Tottenham's worst performers against Palace

Moore was handed his first Premier League start of his career on Sunday afternoon but despite being compared to Neymar in midweek by James Maddison, did not take his chance on this occasion.

He was replaced just after the hour mark having failed to register a single key pass or complete any of his three dribbles.

Dejan Kulusevski also wasn’t at the races, a rarity this season for such a strong chance creator. This time around, he was substituted early as well after a game in which he lacked much inspiration in the final third.

The Swede had just one shot and could only provide one key pass during the clash but arguably wasn’t the main culprit. That goes Micky van de Ven’s way.

The Dutchman has starred at times this term – notably supplying that wonderful assist at Old Trafford but this time he put his team in all sorts of danger, giving the ball away that led to Mateta’s goal.

While he will likely his place, colleague Maddison should be put back on the bench.

James Maddison's performance in numbers

Like Spurs’ season, this has been a topsy-turvy week for the former Leicester midfielder. Maddison was withdrawn at half-time in the 4-1 win over West Ham last week.

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The score was 1-1 at the time before the Lilywhites went on to score three goals without him on the field.

There was a show of faith in the England international in the Europa League in midweek as Postecoglou gave him the captain’s armband. He certainly led by example, selflessly handing a penalty to Richarlison rather than taking it himself.

However, he certainly didn’t lead by example too much at Selhurst Park this weekend. Alongside Kulusevski and Moore, Maddison was withdrawn on 62 minutes and he did so having had a pretty poor game truth be told.

The Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick handed the playmaker a 4/10 rating, writing that he ‘struggled to influence the game, as was ‘outshone by his England rival Eberechi Eze.’

Maddison vs Crystal Palace

Minutes played

62

Touches

48

Accurate passes

25/33 (76%)

Key passes

1

Crosses

1/1

Shots

2

Successful dribbles

1/2

Ground duels won

5/9

Aerial duels won

1/2

Possession lost

12x

Tackles

2

Interceptions

0

Stats via Sofascore.

Eze – who supplied the assist for the game’s only goal – did register the same number of key passes as Maddison (1) but he was ultimately better in most facets of the game.

The 27-year-old proved why he’s been snubbed by Lee Carsley in the latest two England squads, having 48 touches of the ball, four fewer than Guglielmo Vicario in the Spurs net and ceding possession 12 times.

It was wasteful, lacked creativity and showed why he cannot be trusted to start every game. Spurs scored three without him on the pitch last weekend and should consider attempting to go without him again next time out.

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Sophie Molineux took a nasty blow on the face while Rachael Haynes and Beth Mooney had hamstring concerns

Andrew McGlashan26-Sep-2021

Australia were left with a growing list of injury concerns ahead of the day-night Test against India after they saw their world-record ODI-winning streak halted on 26 matches after more than three years by a narrow two-wicket loss in Mackay.Briefly at one stage, when Sophie Molineux left the field having suffered a nasty blow in the face when a return from the deep jumped from the surface, there were three substitutes in use with Rachael Haynes and Beth Mooney having both picked up hamstring issues.Molineux, the left-arm spinner who has filled the role vacated by the injured Jess Jonassen, bravely returned to the field with a heavily bandaged face to bowl at the death and was likely to require stitches in a cut lip.”It was pretty solid blow, it skipped off the wicket, and got her in the lip,” Meg Lanning said. “Think her teeth are okay which is important. To come back on and fight for the team, she was really brave and couldn’t be more proud of her.”The severity of the injuries to Haynes, who returned for this match after missing the second game due to a blow on the elbow at training, and Mooney had yet to be ascertained when Lanning spoke shortly after the match – Mooney’s had been described as “hamstring awareness” – with a degree of caution being taken due to the proximity of the Test which begins on Thursday.Related

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However, the resources in Australia’s large squad are being stretched with legspinner Georgia Wareham sidelined for the final ODI with a quad strain and fast bowler Tayla Vlaeminck not available until the T20Is as she returns from an Achilles niggle picked up late in pre-season. Alongside Jonassen, who is recovering from a stress fracture, Australia were already without Megan Schutt for the entire series.Before the series Lanning and head coach Matthew Mott spoke about how they would need to manage the workload of their young pace bowlers during the multi-format series. Those from Victoria and New South Wales had the added issue of needing to do 14 days hard quarantine in Brisbane.Darcie Brown and Hannah Darlington were both left out of the third ODI having played the first two – with Brown expected to feature in the Test – which paved the way for Stella Campbell to make her debut on Sunday while there was also an impressive return for Annabel Sutherland who could have put herself in contention with 3 for 30.”I think everyone who has come in has played a role and shown some exciting skills,” Lanning said. “It’s great for our future and shows how strong the group is. It’s going to be pretty difficult to pick the team, a lot of young fast bowlers in form.”However, one bowling option currently not in form remains Ellyse Perry who went wicketless through the three ODIs with figures of 0 for 103 from 14 overs. While she was able to find some swing she had trouble controlling the ball and was the culprit for a significant number of the plethora of wides Australia sent down – 67 runs were conceded from wides in the three matches – although there will be more leniency for the bowlers in the Test format.”We’ve bowled a few too many,” Lanning said. “It’s hard, sometimes Midge [Alyssa Healy] comes up to the stumps and you only need a slight miss and it goes for five. It’s a fine balance.”There is no chance of Perry missing the Test, and every chance she will still be handed the new ball, but it will be hoped that the longer game will allow her to settle into a rhythm.Although Australia took some superb catches – notably Sutherland’s to remove Smriti Mandhana and Molly Strano’s to claimed Yastika Bhatia – they were short of their overall best in the field. Having been gifted their own reprieves with the bat, if they had taken the opportunities the streak would still be alive but the 4-2 points margin (and it could easily have been India in front) means things are finally poised heading into the Test.”To be honest there’s some areas to improve in all three areas of our game,” Lanning said. We didn’t take all the chances we had. Still plenty to work on. It was inevitable at some point that we were going to lose again, with the class of the teams out there it’s always close contests, and no easy wins. To have the streak as long as we did I think is an amazing effort over a long period.”

يستعد فريق ليفربول، بقيادة المدرب آرني سلوت، لخوض عدة مباريات في أكثر من بطولة مختلفة خلال شهر مارس 2025، مع اقترابه من تحقيق أولى ألقابه مع المدير الفني الهولندي.

ويتصدر ليفربول جدول الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، في الموسم الحالي 2024/25، برصيد 67 نقطة، مع خوضه مباراة أكثر.

كما تأهل ليفربول إلى دور الـ16 من دوري أبطال أوروبا حيث سيلتقي مع باريس سان جيرمان في المرحلة المقبلة من البطولة.

اقرأ أيضًا | مواعيد مباريات مانشستر سيتي في شهر مارس 2025.. معركة التأهل الأوروبي ومواصة مشوار الكأس

بخلاف خوض ليفربول نهائي كأس رابطة الأندية الإنجليزية، كاراباو، ضد نيوكاسل يونايتد على ملعب “ويمبلي”.

بينما ودع ليفربول منافسات كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي من دور الـ32، بعد الخسارة المفاجئة أمام بليموث بهدف دون رد.

ويتسلح ليفربول بالنجم المصري محمد صلاح، الذي يقدم موسمًا عالميًا تحت قيادة آرني سلوت، ويُعد أبرز المرشحين لجائزة الكرة الذهبية هذا العام. مواعيد مباريات ليفربول في شهر مارس 2025

باريس سان جيرمان وليفربول، ذهاب دور الـ16 من دوري أبطال أوروبا، يوم الأربعاء 5 مارس 2025، 10 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 11 بتوقيت السعودية.

ليفربول وساوثهامبتون، الجولة الثامنة والعشرين من الدوري الإنجليزي، يوم السبت 8 مارس 2025، 5 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 6 بتوقيت السعودية.

ليفربول وباريس سان جيرمان، إياب دور الـ16 من دوري أبطال أوروبا، يوم الثلاثاء 11 مارس 2025، 10 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 11 بتوقيت السعودية.

ليفربول ونيوكاسل يونايتد، نهائي كأس رابطة الأندية الإنجليزية، يوم الأحد 16 مارس 2025، 6:30 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 7:30 بتوقيت السعودية.

Upon his appointment during the summer, Enzo Maresca was the latest manager tasked with the responsibility of taking Chelsea back towards the top end of the Premier League.

The Blues have failed to finish inside the top four in each of the last two seasons, way off the expectations held by owner Todd Boehly who has splashed out over £1.1b on new additions to try and combat the slide.

However, the Italian has made an excellent start to the new campaign, winning three out of the first five matches in the league, currently occupying fifth place.

Their only defeat came against defending champions Manchester City on the opening day, with real progress being shown in their performances since the appointment of Maresca.

He’s been aided in his attempts by one first-team member who has thrived under the guidance of the new Blues head coach.

Noni Madueke’s time at Chelsea

After joining Chelsea in a £29m deal from Dutch side PSV in January 2023, winger Noni Madueke was mainly utilised as an impact player, making just 20 starts over his first 18 months at Stamford Bridge.

However, he’s started all but one league outing so far this season, becoming a regular under Maresca and thriving as a result.

The 22-year-old has already scored three times in the Premier League, seeing him move just two goals off his tally from the entirety of last season – demonstrating the impact of his increased minutes in the first-team.

All three of his strikes in the league came in the 6-2 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers – catching the eye with his ability to get himself into the right areas whilst having the quality to find the back of the net.

Madueke subsequently received his maiden England call-up during the recent international break, a reflection of his excellent form this season, with the hope that he can cement his place in Lee Carsley’s side as he has done at Stamford Bridge.

However, despite his stellar form in recent weeks, he still earns way less than one player whose move to England has been nothing short of a disaster for both parties.

The player who earns more than Madueke

Centre-back Benoit Badiashile moved to the Blues in a £35m deal from Monaco back in the same window as Madueke, with the aim of providing added defensive solidity for the Blues.

However, he’s failed to make the desired impact since his big-money transfer, making just 29 league appearances in the near two-year spell he’s spent in West London.

The Frenchman is yet to feature in the Premier League under Maresca, with his three appearances so far this campaign coming in the EFL Cup and Conference League qualifying rounds.

2022/23

11

1

0

2023/24

22

1

1

2024/25

3

0

0

Total:

36

2

1

His form demonstrates that he’s not been worth the transfer fee, whilst also not proving value for money with his £90k-per-week wages.

Badiashile’s subsequent weekly incoming is nearly two times higher than current first-team star Madueke who still only earns £50k-per-week despite his superb recent form.

When coupling the defender’s wages with his transfer fee, he’s cost the club £44.3m up to now – a huge waste given his lack of impact at Stamford Bridge.

With the club’s PSR situation still touch and go, they cannot afford to be carrying players who are earning a living whilst making no impact on the first team.

Badiashile is just one example of that type of player, with Maresca needing to brutally part ways with the failed talent at the next available opportunity.

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Even as Southampton were brushed aside by Manchester United on Saturday, one youngster impressed enough to earn high praise in what was a promising display on an afternoon to forget in the Premier League.

Southampton pay the penalty against Man Utd

Saints initially got off to a promising start and even earned the chance to take a shock lead when the referee pointed to the spot following Diogo Dalot’s foul on youngster Tyler Dibling. The teenager did superbly to take the Manchester United fullback on before being rewarded for his efforts, only to see Cameron Archer’s attempt saved by Andre Onana just moments later.

The game changed from there. In a flash, United went from celebrating their goalkeeper’s heroics to congratulating summer signing Matthijs de Ligt on his first goal for the club as the Red Devils took the lead. The Dutchman was in the right place at the perfect time to convert Bruno Fernandes’ inch-perfect cross just two minutes after Archer’s penalty miss.

The game was then United’s to lose and they soon took a firm grip on proceedings, coasting to all three points courtesy of goals from Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho either side of a reckless red card for a disappointed Jack Stephens.

Whilst Manchester United got back on track, Southampton could only extend their winless run to four games, but amid all of that it was Dibling who threatened to steal the headlines.

Dibling dubbed "next best thing"

Whether it’s Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alan Shearer, Matt Le Tissier or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Southampton’s academy has become famous for producing gems and Dibling may well be about to join what is an incredibly impressive list.

Just 18 years old, the winger didn’t look out of place for one second as he continuously charged at Dalot, who quickly found himself out of ideas as to how to stop the teenager. Earning plenty of praise as a result, Statman Dave dubbed Dibling “the next best thing” when speaking about his exciting full debut in the Premier League.

A bright spark as Southampton suffered yet another defeat – their fourth in as many games – Dibling’s standout display may well be a sign of things to come. Whilst the Saints are currently crashing back towards the Championship, the 18-year-old’s future should very much be in the Premier League, such is his clear talent.

For now, however, his focus will be on keeping Southampton afloat and following in a long line of academy graduates to have achieved ultimate success after breaking through the ranks at St Mary’s.