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West Ham are interested in signing Sevilla and Morocco striker Youssef En-Nesyri in the January transfer window, according to a new report from Fichajes.

The Lowdown: Potential January reinforcements

The Hammers are enjoying an excellent season so far but squad additions in the winter could help take them to another level. David Moyes’ side will hope to continue challenging for a top-four finish, but that could be a struggle without changes to the current squad.

An exciting new report has emerged regarding El-Nesyri, who scored an impressive 18 goals in La Liga last season and a further six in the Champions League and has been given the nickname ‘Hurricane Youssef’.

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The Latest: En-Nesyri linked with West Ham move

According to Fichajes, West Ham are eyeing up a move for the 24-year-old, who could be available for €50m (£42m), which would almost break the club’s record transfer fee set by £45m man Sebastien Haller.

Daniel Kretinsky’s investment in the Hammers means that funds could be available to snap up the Moroccan, who has scored 11 goals in 39 caps for his country and was the subject of an unsuccessful €35m (£29.5m) bid from the east London club during the summer transfer window.

The Verdict: Perfect mid-season addition

This is the kind of signing which would feel like a statement of intent by West Ham at a time when they are looking to complete with the most successful teams in the country.

En-Nesyri is a proven striker who has delivered in La Liga for a number of seasons now and he could provide strong competition for Michail Antonio in attack, something which is sorely lacking at the moment.

With both domestic and Europa League commitments for the Hammers over the winter and into the New Year, it could also allow Moyes to shuffle his pack more regularly. It’s hard to feel that a move for En-Nesyri wouldn’t make perfect sense.

In other news, some West Ham fans are excited about another transfer rumour. Read more here.

أكد ماسيمليانو أليجري أهمية مواجهة ساليرنيتانا غدًا الأحد، ضمن الجولة السادسة من الدوري الإيطالي للدرجة الأولى.

يوفنتوس بعد الخسارة في المباراة الأخيرة من باريس سان جيرمان ببطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، عقب التعادل مع فيورنتينا، يسعى للعودة لطريق الانتصارات في مباراته غدًا الأحد.

طالع أيضًا.. قائمة ريال مدريد لمباراة ريال مايوركا.. غياب بنزيما

وقال أليجري في المؤتمر الصحفي للمباراة: “باريديس غدًا سيلعب، بينما لوكاتيلي يعاني قليلًا ولن يكون متاحًا، وقد غاب عن التدريبات”.

وأضاف: “أمام باريس سان جيرمان قدمنا مباراة جيدة بعد التأخر بهدفين، وكان لدينا رد فعل جيد. الشيء الذي يعجبني هو أننا سجلنا وكنا أفضل رغم التأخر بهدفين”.

وأشار مدرب يوفنتوس: “لم أقرر بعد التشكيل غدًا. قبل المباراة سأقرر. نحن نفتقد للاعبين مهمين، ولكننا نقدم أداء جيد ويجب أن نكون سعداء به، حن نلعب بدون بوجبا وكييزا ودي ماريا”.

وعن فلاهوفيتش: “نحاول مساعدة دوسان، هو يتحسن ولكن هناك بعض الخصائص التي تعود لطريقة اللعب، هو مهاجم مركزي ويجب أن يسجل، وأنا سعيد للغاية به”.

وشدد: “أعلم أنه يجب علينا الفوز، وبالنسبة لي أن ألعب جيدًا ثم أخسر ليس جيدًا، لأن الفوز أهم شيء في كرة القدم. لكن يجب أن نعلم أننا فقط في البداية”.

وأكد: “نحن نعمل على عودة يوفنتوس إلى حيث ينتمي، لم نفز بشيء العام الماضي. ولكن هذا الموسم يجب أن تكون لدينا رغبة مختلفة”.

واختتم: “نتراجع أحيانًا عندما نتقدم في النتيجة، تحدثت إلى اللاعبين حول هذا الأمر. وعلينا أن نتغيّر في القادم، ونتطور من حيث الجانب العقلي والذهني”.

Jeetan Patel, the New Zealand offspinner, put his first-innings haul of 4 for 78 down to perseverance and his belief in his ability to bowl in the right areas. Sri Lanka appeared to be cruising at 367 for 4 after centurion Thilan Samaraweera and Chamara Kapugedera had added 72 for the fifth wicket. Patel broke that stand, dismissing Kapugedera for 35, and the hosts slipped, losing six wickets for 59 to be bowled out for 416.”They played good shots but I had to stay confident with what I had to do and it meant I picked up a few cheap wickets, but it was good to get the task done,” Patel, who finished with his second-best figures in Tests, said. “It was a bad morning session and a good afternoon session. It just shows that if we stick to our task we can do well. Their tail is not long but they gave us opportunities and I think we took them really well.”Being the second spinner in the team, and still quite inexperienced, Patel said he knew the Sri Lankan batsmen would target him and be cautious against Daniel Vettori. He was struck for two consecutive boundaries by Samaraweera in his 12th over and received the same treatment in his next, as both batsmen scored a boundary each. However, he struck soon after, deceiving Kapugedera in flight as the batsman miscued him to mid-off to kick off the slide.”It looked like they took that into account, that they’d play defensively against Dan and attack me,” Patel said. “There are times when you second-guess yourself but the biggest thing for me today was to come away keeping my belief. They could have slipped away to a bigger score but the guys were really impressive in sticking to their task. After being 260 for 3 it was a great effort.”Patel acknowledged it was difficult bowling in subcontinental conditions, especially when confronted with a strong batting line-up as Sri Lanka’s. “It is always hard when you come to the subcontinent,” he said. “Being a spinner, on these wickets, you’re expected to bowl plenty of overs and take wickets. But the Sri Lankans, being such good cricketers, makes it hard. You have to stick to your guns and remain confident.”The experience of bowling with Vettori, Patel said, was among the exciting features of playing for his country and he added his role was essentially one of supporting his captain. “It’s good fun. It gives me great confidence to have the best left-arm spinner in the world bowling at the other end but it also makes me understand that I cannot be attacking the whole time,” he said. “I have to bowl tight. It is his opportunity to take wickets and mine to be defensive at times.”Patel also attributed his success to the guidance of his coach, a former offspinner, John Bracewell. “With Bracers it was great,” he said. “To have another offspinner as head coach was good. He was such a hard character that the confidence I’m starting to believe in now was rubbed off from him.”Despite the fightback, New Zealand were left struggling at stumps on the second day, losing five wickets with 159 on the board. Patel, sent as nightwatchman, only lasted six deliveries. Ross Taylor, unbeaten on 70, and Jesse Ryder had steadied the innings with an 85-run fourth-wicket stand, but the visitors lost two quick wickets towards the end of the day to undo the recovery.”It was disappointing to lose wickets like that, especially myself being a nightwatchman I should have seen through the session,” Patel said. “We’ve still got Brendon [McCullum] and Rosco [Ross Taylor] who is going really strong at the moment, so we have some batsmen up the sleeve to get to 250 at least. We’re looking to bat as long as we can and from there set up the game.”The pitch, Patel said, was still favourable for batting. “It may be a little low but other than that it’s good. You saw when Sri Lanka opened the bowling they banged it in and it still had got bounce.”

ScorecardRoss Taylor notched his second fifty of the tour•AFP

Two half-century partnerships among the lower-order batsmen lifted the New Zealanders after an unimpressive start on the opening day of their second tour match against Sri Lanka Cricket Development XI, at the NCC grounds in Colombo. The tourists were in a spot of bother at one stage at 172 for 7 but an unbeaten 68 by Jeetan Patel helped push that score to a more respectable 283 for 8.The hosts struck in the opening over when Dammika Prasad trapped Tim McIntosh lbw, one of six batsmen who were trapped in front. Shortly after, Daniel Flynn too missed out when he fell to Tharanga Lakshitha. Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor then added 89 for the third wicket, the most productive stand of the day. Guptill found form with a half-century after failing in the opening game, while Taylor notched his second fifty of the tour. However, the spinners struck in quick succession to peg the New Zealanders back. Seekkuge Prasanna, Jeevan Mendis and Suraj Randiv shared four of the next five wickets to fall and the visitors were in need of a revival again. Taylor fell for 75, trapped by the Prasad, the right-arm fast bowler.Patel scripted that revival, adding 61 with Jacob Oram and then an unbeaten 50 with Iain O’Brien. Patel hit four fours and a six in his unbeaten 68. O’Brien played the supporting role in that stand, hanging around for a stubborn 9 off 41 balls while Patel took control.

Mickey Arthur, South Africa’s coach, believes England need to get the attacking best out of Andrew Flintoff in this summer’s Ashes. Arthur, who coached South Africa to a Test series victory over England last year, said Flintoff’s approach toward the side then was not aggressive enough.”We felt Andrew Flintoff bowled too negatively against South Africa last summer. I’d like to see him used as a more attacking option because he has the ability to do that,” he told the . “I would like to see Flintoff given the licence to attack along with James Anderson, whom we rated very highly when we faced him last year, while Stuart Broad is used asmore of a control bowler, who will make the batsmen play and probe away around off stump.”Another bowler who Arthur singled out was Graeme Swann, expected to be England’s first-choice spinner in Cardiff on July 8. “I’ve been very impressed with Graeme Swann, who has convinced me there can be a future for the orthodox offspinner in Test cricket, contrary to popular belief (and mine),” said Arthur. “He likes to bowl an attacking line which means he might go for more runs but he will take wickets, especially against the left-handers in Australia’s top order. At the moment he is a better option than Monty Panesar, who had no variation against us in 2008.”While he commended the selectors’ decision to bat Ravi Bopara at No. 3, Arthur was wary of how well Bopara would handle the pressure, and how England’s batting would cope against Australia’s pace attack. “England have been bold and made some proper decisions with selection: bringing in Ravi Bopara at No.3 and deciding on a five-man bowling attack with Matt Prior batting at six. There has been total clarity and no room for confusion,” he said. “Players cannot say they don’t know where they stand. My concern, though, is that in their quest to take 20 wickets they have put a huge amount of pressure on their five main batters.”I was impressed with what I saw of Bopara against West Indies but he’s still relatively untried and there is a huge amount of pressure on Kevin Pietersen. If Australia use the new ball well, then they could put the England top order under a lot of pressure. For me the key to the series is how well England’s top five do as a unit. It’s a really tough series to call.”Arthur felt the bowling attacks were fairly even, with England having a clear advantage with spin, but said Australia’s batting had more depth.

Manchester United are reportedly monitoring the situation of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen after identifying him as a possible alternative to Erling Haaland.

What’s the story?

According to Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport (as relayed by Sport Witness), the Red Devils are amongst a host of club’s interested in securing the 22-year-old’s services next summer.

The report claims that fellow Premier League sides Chelsea and Manchester City are also keen on Osimhen’s signature, while Spanish giants Real Madrid are also listed as potential suitors.

It’s stated that Napoli would demand no less than £100 million for their prized asset given they stumped up a fee which could rise to £70m to prize him away from Lille back in 2020.

With the Nigeria international’s current contract at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium next expiring until 2025, owner Aurelio De Laurentiis is under no pressure to sell, meaning this could be a tricky deal to complete.

Solskjaer would love him

Several of European football’s heavyweights have been linked with a move for Borussia Dortmund striker Haaland thanks to his £65 million release clause coming into play in 12 months’ time.

However, only one side will be able to snap up the outstanding Norway international, possibly leaving the likes of United searching for alternative options.

And it’s easy to see why the club’s recruitment department are believed to have identified Osimhen as a potential future star given his recent exploits for Napoli, both in the Europa League and Serie A.

After injuries limited the 6ft 1 beast to just 10 goals in 24 league starts last term, the former Wolfsburg ace has started the current campaign in emphatic fashion.

Osimhen has bagged six goals and provided one assist in just six outings in all competitions in the opening weeks of 2021/22, earning praise from Cagliari coach Walter Mazzarri.

“Osimhen is phenomenal because he runs alone at five players and gets through,” Mazzarri told DAZN (as quoted by Football Italia). “If you look at genuine scoring opportunities, compared to the number Napoli created lately, I didn’t see that many.

“We intentionally kept a deep defensive line, because if we pushed higher like the other teams, we’d concede four or five like they did with Osimhen able to run into space.

“Obviously, Napoli had more possession and attacked more, but this was an intentional approach.”

Osimhen’s effort helped the Azzurri to a 2-0 victory over Mazzarri’s charges on Sunday in another display of his incredible finishing ability, power and pace.

The youngster’s room for improvement makes him an extremely exciting and tempting target for football’s top teams, meaning United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would surely love to have him at his disposal.

Therefore, football director John Murtough must sanction a swoop for the Osimhen if the Red Devils miss out on Haaland, providing Solskjaer with a long-term successor to the ageing pair of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani.

And, in other news…Imagine him and Pogba: Man Utd must complete swoop for £60m beast, he’s a big upgrade 

Leeds United will once again be without Kalvin Phillips ahead of their Premier League clash against Wolves on Saturday afternoon.

What’s the story?

The 25-year-old was not involved in the matchday squad against Southampton last time out amid an injury which forced him to pull out of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the international break.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the match against Wolves today, Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa said: “Kalvin is healthy, but he hasn’t competed for three weeks. If he played on Saturday it would be far too quick. After three weeks out, it’s necessary some more football training.

“And in this stage he’s done training sessions for recovery and physical preparation and progressive work with the ball. I think that to think of him for Saturday would be to bring him back too soon before he’s back at his best.”

Bielsa will be gutted

Make no mistake about it, no Phillips in this Leeds team makes them an absolute shadow of what they can be.

Including the two games that he has missed this season (against Southampton and the opening day at Manchester United), and the nine that he missed last year, the Whites have won just two matches and lost the other nine.

That speaks to a worrying level of reliance on the talismanic midfielder to control things in the engine room for the Whites, and his absence is a major loss of influence. For instance, his match average of 2.3 tackles is bettered only by defender Liam Cooper, which shows just how much bite Leeds lose when the England international isn’t in the midfield engine room.

Given the kind of rut in which Leeds find themselves, being without someone like Phillips is a hammer blow to Bielsa and is sure to leave the manager gutted that the 25-year-old won’t be able to make it for today’s game against a resurgent Wolves.

Meanwhile, Leeds must finally unleash this academy starlet…

Sachin Tendulkar wouldn’t rate his unbeaten 163 against some of his other hundreds

Sidharth Monga in Christchurch08-Mar-2009
Sachin Tendulkar: “When you are making runs it gives you happiness.” © Getty Images
In the fives overs before Sachin Tendulkar had to retire hurt, he had scored 34 runs. India were in the 45th over of their innings and had Tendulkar batted on there was every chance he would have become the first double-centurion in ODI cricket. He needed 37 more at that point and if physically possible, Tendulkar would have tried his best.Midway during his knock he started struggling with a sore muscle where he was hit in the abs in the previous game. “When I was around 65 to 70, I started feeling stiffness there,” Tendulkar said, “but towards the latter half of my innings I starting getting a twitch and it kept getting worse. I knew that I was effectively damaging it, and that was a stage when I couldn’t go on.”He said he was hopeful of getting a double-century towards the end of India’s innings, while Brendon McCullum, New Zealand’s stand-in captain, said only when Tendulkar walked off did it seem out of reach.Tendulkar wasn’t his usual cheery self when he came for the press conference. After he scores a century in a winning cause he’s usually in a much brighter mood. Perhaps the injury was on his mind, perhaps it was just the pain, perhaps it was having to sit in the dressing room as India struggled to defend 392.As regards the injury, Tendulkar said he would come to know more tomorrow. What brought him cheer was when he was asked if this was the best batting line-up he had been a part of. “I would definitely say so,” came the answer. “We have got almost five to six guys who can clear the ropes at will. If we get four or five good overs, we end up scoring 50-plus runs. At no stage we are away from our target. At the back of our minds we knew that with such an explosive line-up, no target is impossible.”Tendulkar showed signs of mortality, and like many others forgot how many centuries he now has in ODIs. He just has so many it’s tough to keep a count. But what’s next after No. 43? Fifty? “I am enjoying the game,” Tendulkar said. “I just want to go out an enjoy my game and not have targets. While doing that if it happens, well and good. The most important factor is to keep enjoying my game, and keep winning games for India.”Tendulkar wouldn’t rate this against some of his other hundreds. “When you are making runs it gives you happiness,” he said. “I don’t believing in giving it ratings.”A last word on the quality of the knock should go the captain who was at the receiving end. “I can hardly remember a shot that didn’t come out of the middle,” McCullum said. “There were times as well that he played with half a blade and hit in areas that he precisely wanted to. I don’t think I have seen too many better innings, in any form of the game.”

Derby will host its first ever Twenty20 double-header on June 25

Cricinfo staff17-Feb-2009Derby will host its first ever Twenty20 double-header on June 25 when the county’s Twenty20 Cup match against Lancashire will be preceded by a Twenty20 Women’s International between England and Australia.The women’s match will start at 2.55pm with the men’s game beginning at 7.10pm.”With the Sky Sports cameras present throughout the day and a double-spectacle of Twenty20 Cricket in the offering, this promises to be an excellent day of cricket,” said Derbyshire’s deputy chief executive Kerry Madeley. “It’s always a compliment from the ECB when they choose our home ground as the venue for an international fixture.””I’m really grateful to Derbyshire County Cricket Club for having the vision to include us in this double header,” said Clare Connor, the former England captain and now the ECB’s head of women’s cricket. “It’s a joint challenge for ECB and Derbyshire to ensure that we promote this match to the best of our ability so that the players can play in front of a really big crowd. As the opening match of our summer against the Aussies, we’re looking forward to it immensely.”

Kevin Phillips has offered his thoughts on the reports of Aiden O’Brien’s failed move from Sunderland to Doncaster.

What’s the talk?

Former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips has admitted that he was surprised by the reports that the club were willing to loan Aiden O’Brien out this summer.

A deadline day move to fellow League One outfit Doncaster was on the cards until a paperwork error caused it to break down, with Phillips now suggesting that the Black Cats may try to ship him out again in the January transfer window.

He told Football Insider:

“I am surprised to hear that, to be honest.

“This season you want people in your squad who know where the back of the net is.

“There will be times where Ross Stewart is suspended or injured this season and in O’Brien you have a player who knows League One.

“He scored a great hat-trick in the cup and he knows where the back of the net is. That’s why I’m surprised they would consider allowing him to leave on loan. He has that experience.

“Luckily it has not happened but perhaps there will be some movement in January. We will have to watch this space.”

Howler

Sunderland chief Kristjaan Speakman must avoid having a howler of a January transfer window and instead, he must keep O’Brien at the club. He must not allow the attacker to depart from the Stadium of Light, on loan or permanently, as he could be an important member of the squad this season.

There is a fair way to go until the January window, of course, but as it stands, it does not appear to be a smart decision to allow him to leave.

As Phillips said, Sunderland need depth in the forward areas as they could be left light if Stewart picks up an injury and misses five or six games. Nathan Broadhead is also in the building, but he is yet to show what he is capable of after two cameo appearances in League One since arriving from Everton on loan.

O’Brien, meanwhile, has already shown that he can score goals this season. The £6.5k-per-week dynamo has scored four goals in two League Cup matches for the Black Cats, with one against Port Vale and a hat-trick against Championship side Blackpool. This suggests that he has the quality needed to step in and score goals in the third tier should Stewart get injured.

Therefore, allowing him to leave would be a disaster for Sunderland and Speakman as it would rid Lee Johnson of key attacking depth. This is why the Black Cats chief must ensure that O’Brien remains in the squad for the rest of the campaign to help with the promotion push.

AND in other news, Forget Stewart: Sunderland dynamo with 11 chances created stole the show in August…