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Arsenal are finally back in action this evening following the latest international break with an away clash against Crystal Palace.

The Gunners secured a 1-0 victory away at Aston Villa in their previous league outing prior to the break, whereas the Eagles managed to earn a 0-0 draw against Manchester City at Selhurst Park in their previous league game.

Patrick Vieira’s side then beat Everton 4-0 in the FA Cup to secure their place in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium, showing how strong they are in defence and lethal in attack.

Looking ahead to this evening’s showdown, it seems as though Mikel Arteta’s could welcome back one of their key figures that was not involved for their country during the break.

What’s the news?

According to a recent report from Football.London, Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka has been in training at London Colney leading up to tonight’s fixture after testing positive for the global pandemic while away on international duty with England.

Speaking in his latest press conference on Friday, Arteta had this to say on the situation.

He said: “Bukayo is feeling good, he’s training today hopefully, if he is still feeling as he was yesterday.”

Great news for Arsenal

Taking into account how the winger has more goal contributions than any other Arsenal player in the league this season with nine strikes and five assists to his name, it’s safe to say that he is a big player for the Gunners and it will be a huge boost for them to have him on the pitch.

To further highlight the Englishman’s attacking prowess and importance to his side, the 20-year-old has racked up a total of 99 shot-creating actions, the seventh-highest out of anyone in the Premier League ahead of the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Allan Saint-Maximin.

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In addition to his impressive attacking play, his overall performances have earned him a season rating of 7.07 from WhoScored, making him the highest-rated player in Arteta’s squad.

Taking all of this into account, having Saka available to play this evening would surely increase the away side’s chances of securing another win and taking a step closer to securing a top-four finish.

In other news: Arteta must ruthlessly axe “shocking” £18m-rated AFC liability, he’s “not world-class”

Zimbabwe Cricket faces another tricky player situation with some contracted players reportedly opting to play league cricket overseas instead of the Logan Cup.Fears for an impasse arose after the players were reported to have been denied permission by managing director Ozias Bvute and team manager Givemore Makoni to be excused from the competition. On being receiving the news, they then applied for leave, which also was turned down.Some players are said to have played in the last leg of the Standard Bank Pro20 in South Africa under protest as they were already supposed to be at clubs in the UK where the season started last week. Their unease was compounded by the board allowing Tatenda Taibu to miss the whole of the Logan Cup to play in the Indian Premier League, even missing the last matches in South Africa’s Standard Bank Pro20.”The guys do not want to do anything that jeopardises their contracts with ZC,” on of those affected said. “But ZC must realise that the guys will not gain anything from playing in the Logan Cup. Club cricket in England is far better than our first-class game. Surely other upcoming players should be happy to get the opportunity to play in the Logan Cup. Perhaps ZC fear for the standards … we do not have a large player base.”Last year Bvute banned players from going to Europe for the summer season, on that occasion holding back payments owed from the World Cup as an incentive for them to remain in Zimbabwe. Nevertheless. Brendan Taylor ignored the ban and moved north, although he was drafted straight back into the national side on his return.

Sourav Ganguly: “I don’t consider Bangladesh as a different country. I captained in my first Test here. So, Bangladesh will always be special” © Getty Images

After consistently hitting half centuries since his comeback, Sourav Ganguly today said he would try to convert his fifties into hundreds if he got a chance in the two-Test cricket series against Bangladesh.”I was the highest run getter in Tests in South Africa recently. The good thing is I have been consistent. Here if I get to the eighties I will surely try to convert them into 100s,” Ganguly told reporters after the nets.Asked how he was feeling on his “comeback”, Ganguly said “I don’t think of it as a comeback. We [Sachin Tendulkar and he] were not dropped, but officially rested. This also gave a few youngsters to perform.”Ganguly said he had no preferences for batting order or bowling during the Test. “I always work hard at the nets. It’s the decision of the team and what the situation demanded,” he said when asked if he would bowl in the Test. About opening the innings, he said “that is again up to the team management. If they deem fit I’m game.”On his huge popularity in Bangladesh, Ganguly said “I don’t consider Bangladesh as a different country. I captained in my first Test here. So, Bangladesh will always be special.”At nets Ganguly looked a picture of concentration when Rudra Pratap Singh, Romesh Pawar and three local bowlers bowled at him. Initially, he looked a bit tentative, but later his form returned. He also stepped out a few times to lift the spinners. Cricket Manager Ravi Shastri stood all along watching Ganguly. At first, he stood at the umpire’s position and then watched him from the point region. Ganguly also bowled at the nets to Wasim Jaffer and Sachin Tendulkar.Ganguly also vehemently denied that he was linked with the breakaway Indian Cricket League and also lashed at the media for being irresponsible with their reporting. “It’s not true. I think there are too many stories going around in Indian cricket,” said Ganguly. “Anybody speaks anything and that’s getting printed. The time has come to clarify things because this is not good for the individual as well as the team. I have not had any discussion with anyone, nor am I willing to have any discussions.”

Brian Lara will be crucial for West Indies’ hopes © Getty Images

It’s quite intriguing that despite having played 15 one-dayers in the West Indies, India are yet to play a game at Sabina Park. The two games that were scheduled on their previous tour, in 2001-02 were both washed out and a spate of showers on match eve, and forecast for thunder showers, threatened to ruin a much-anticipated clash. The locals, though, were confident that the match would carry on uninterrupted and spells of bright sunshine added weight to the same.Now to the 22 yards that usually receives most of the attention. Charlie, the groundsman who’s been around since 1959, delivers an obituary on the bounce at Sabina Park. “It’s the clay you know, they change it sometime in the early ’90s. Then they relaid it and it lost its main quality. Now it’s slowly coming back. The pitch for the one-day games will have decent bounce, but the ball comes on to the bat. The Test match pitch will be different. More bounce, more pace.”Jeffrey Dujon, the legendary wicketkeeper who grew up playing on this ground, thought similarly. “This pitch will be different compared to what the Indians encounter at the other venues,” he told Cricinfo. “It can get a bit lively out here and bowlers will definitely have a say.” Would he pick a favourite? “For the sake of the series, I’d like to see it 1-1 after two games.”For that to materialise, Brian Lara’s boys may need to pull out a special performance. “One must remember,” Dujon points out, “and that’s the bottom line – it’s going to be No.3 against No.8. West Indies’ might have comprehensively beaten Zimbabwe but they weren’t up to the mark in all departments.” India, on the other hand, were coming off a sizzling run. In case he’s a numbers man, and is aware of India’s recent chasing record, Lara wouldn’t like to be fielding second. Dravid might not mind it either way and the game at Montego Bay would have given them a good workout while batting first.In all probability, this series might turn into a battle of flexibility with Dwayne Bravo, Dwyane Smith, Marlon Samuels and Chris Gayle on one side pitted against Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh on the other. Barring a minor miracle, Ramesh Powar will not play and Dravid hinted that Sreesanth would be allowed time to recuperate as well.Yet, none of these players’ performance may matter if one man decides to take matters into his own magical hands. Lara remains the talisman and has often made a mockery of plans and strategies. He’s back as captain and this series provides him a chance to assert himself and to inspire through personal performance.Kingston is abuzz. Most haven’t seen too many players in this side and there’s an anticipation to watch Irfan Pathan bowl, to watch Yuvraj Singh blast. But the real excitement surrounds Dhoni, especially because of his instinct to dominate, his audacity to invent new strokes, and his attacking methods even when under pressure. “This boy born in the West Indies maan,” said one spectator when Dhoni spanked a six outside Jarrett Park in Montego Bay. “You stole him away from us.” It’s that kind of endearment.There’s a small matter of the Indian coach as well. Greg Chappell, Dujon felt, wouldn’t have forgotten the hammering that Australia took against the mighty West Indian side of the ’80s. “He had a terrible time against us in the only series I played against him. He could not score a run and people keep such things in mind. He would surely try to get back at us.”India (probable)
1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Rahul Dravid (capt), 3 Yuvraj Singh, 4 Suresh Raina, 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Venugopal Rao, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Irfan Pathan, 9 Ajit Agarkar, 10 Rudra Pratap Singh, 11 Munaf PatelWest Indies (probable)
1 Chris Gayle, 2 Runako Morton, 3 Brian Lara (capt), 4 Ramnaresh Sarwan, 5 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 6 Dwayne Bravo, 7 Dwayne Smith, 8 Carlton Baugh (wk), 9 Jerome Taylor, 10 Fidel Edwards, 11 Corey Collymore.

Gus Logie: ‘I am disappointed’© Getty Images

As widely predicted in the aftermath of victory in the Champions Trophy, Gus Logie’s tenure as coach of the West Indies is over. The official announcement said that his contract was terminated early by mutual consent.Logie was appointed to the role in 2003 and his contract did not expire until 2005, but in the wake of two comprehensive series defeats by England, even winning the one-day trophy was not enough to save him.”It is no secret that the West Indies Cricket Board is looking for a foreign coach and they have already spoken to a lot of people,” Logie said last week. “Whoever comes in, I hope he gets a lot of support; certainly a lot more than what I was getting. We wanted instant results and if you don’t get that then the knives are always going to be out for you.”I am disappointed. I made a contribution and have been denied the opportunity to work with what has just begun to blossom. A foreign coach will come into this area and will be given the resources and authority I never had to get the job done and this just when results were being seen. I have made a contribution throughout my life to West Indies cricket, and it is time I move on.”Under Logie, West Indies won only four out of 22 Tests, although their one-day record was better, with 20 wins out of 39.Although the timing of the decision of the board might seem inopportune, it wanted to give Logie’s replacement time to settle in ahead of West Indies participation in the VB Series in Australia in January.

Until the end of the Indian tour of Pakistan, we will be running a daily Paper Round of what newspapers in India and Pakistan, and from around the world, are saying about this series. This is what the media had to report today:

Sourav Ganguly: was surrounded by security men and sniffer dogs when he drank his tea© AFP

Security issues have dominated the build-up to this series, and now the Khaleej Times reports on the plight of the players on tour. The report says, “Ganguly came to [a] coffee bar for a round of tea last evening but nobody was willing to serve him. An astonished Ganguly kept requesting the waiters but no one was obliging. The waiters were not rude – they were only acting under the instructions not to serve anything to any Indian player till somebody has tasted it first and declared it safe. Ganguly was bemused and requested a journalist to help him get the tea. After a bit of cajoling, and [the] voice of reason, the journalist himself was allowed to first go to the kitchenette of hotel Pearl Continent in Lahore, taste the tea, and then declare it safe for the Indian captain.”There is also a vivid description of what was going on around Ganguly as he drank his tea. “It was an amusing sight to see Ganguly have his cup of tea with security men – and their sniffer dogs – gawking at him as if he was a UFO.”And this tight scrutiny was not limited to just food and drink. “So tight is the security that even envelopes dropped in the names of players at the hotel are first checked by top bomb-disposal experts to ensure none of it is a paper-bomb. Rahul Dravid immediately sought out the business centre of the hotel, and spent the next two hours on the Internet.”* * *In a column in Rediff.com, Javagal Srinath looks at the psychological aspect of the series. “I am afraid that verbal abuse will be rampant from the Pakistan camp, as their coach Javed Miandad has already initiated the psychological warfare … A little exchange of words is always good to give a boost to the challenging spirit of the game. But indecent personal remarks and vulgar gestures will not augur well for the so-called friendship series.”Srinath singled out a few players in the Pakistan team and remarked on their mental make-up. “Barring the incident in Toronto, where current Pakistani skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq strode into the crowd, taking the law (read bat) in his own hands, his behaviour as a cricketer has always remained exemplary. A great timer of the ball, Inzy has always been a cool customer – be it in victory or defeat.”However, Srinath’s views differ when it comes to a few other players. “The rest of the Pakistani players cannot be put on the same pedestal. Behind the stumps, Moin Khan could be the real culprit. Wicketkeepers can be a menace to the game if they don’t conduct themselves properly. The stumper’s proximity to the batsmen makes it is easier to exchange words.”He added, “There is Shoaib Akhtar, [who] has learnt his lessons from the World Cup encounter. His arrogant remarks only made our batsmen more determined to treat him disdainfully. Although Shoaib is careful with his words this time, the truth remains that he can’t really promise his own good conduct. The game is such a leveller that nobody can get away with a show of arrogance. Even the real exponents of the game dread making such conceited statements for fear of the curse of the game, which could be severe.”* * *In a syndicated column in Mid Day, Rashid Latif has branded Inzamam-ul-Haq as a captain without any dynamism. “He is a routine leader, who makes changes by rota. It is Moin Khan behind the stumps who has brains and actually effects changes. Inzamam, also, is in very poor form, he has scored only 100 runs or thereabout in his last five innings. He just cannot afford a slip-up.”Latif insisted that there was a huge chunk of pressure on Sourav Ganguly as well. “He [Ganguly] has scored only eight runs in his last four innings. If he does not do well in Pakistan, he could lose his captaincy. This series is being held after 15 years — both captains can’t afford a flop show.”There is also a mention of the batting abilities of both players and a specific citing of Inzamam’s running between the wickets. “When on song, though, both are world-class batsmen. Ganguly will be helped by the lack of bounce on our pitches. Inzamam, if he gets past the first 10-15 minutes, will be difficult to stop. In the initial moments, he is not sure of his movements. Steve Waugh always used to have a short cover for him for those spooned drives. His running between the wickets is diabolical but once he is set he does not rely on it, he hits fours and sixes only.”* * *Shoaib Akhtar has said that he is looking forward to enjoying the pressure put upon him by the millions of fans. In a column which appeared in The Times of India, he said, “Playing our neighbors in front of a home crowd is going to be an interesting and challenging experience. Right now I am keeping calm so that I can enjoy the pressure on Saturday.”Shoaib hopes that this historic series wont be trivialised into a battle between himself and Sachin Tendulkar. “I am sure Sachin would agree that such an approach would be trivialising a game between two good sides.”

Almost as big a prize as winning the last game of the National Bank Series with New Zealand in Hamilton tomorrow will be the two weeks break awaiting India when they return home.A win would mean India had brought the series up to a 4-3 loss, but with the last three wins in succession.Captain Sourav Ganguly said India needed to win the game because of the value to be had from going into the World Cup with three wins under the belt.But just as attractive was the thought of two weeks off after 15 months of action and the break would be welcomed by the side.Ganguly wouldn’t look at success as a moral victory because he said he had never believed in moral victories, winning was the thing.He did say the entire series had been closer than the actual results showed.There had been some lessons for the Indian side after the dramatic collapse which almost saw them lose the game in Auckland, before getting home by one wicket.Ganguly said he had avoided talking too much about what had happened because it was not something the side had struck in 16 months.”There was a bit of panic but I didn’t want to raise the issue. We just took it too easy,” he said.Ganguly said the series had been a hard, mentally more than physcially.Players hadn’t spent enough time in the middle to be physically spent. As far as his own form was concerned he said he was hitting the ball well during the best opening stand of the series in Auckland when he and Virender Sehwag added 70 for the first wicket.”I should have carried on because I had got in,” he said.However, he was confident it would not be too long before he would be back in form.

Cricket returns to the controversial Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium when Sri Lanka ‘A’ take on Pakistan ‘A’ in the first of three four-day unofficial ‘Tests’ starting on Wednesday.The stadium, built at an estimated cost of around Rs. 300 million, but now running close to the Rs. 500 million mark, is presently under intense scrutiny due to alleged financial mismanagement.The Dambulla has hosted only two one-day limited-over games previously – both played early this year. One was a practice game including past and present Sri Lanka cricketers to inaugurate the ground, and the other, the first One-Day International between Sri Lanka and England played here on March 23.The pitch was sluggish and England struggled against the off-spin ofMuttiah Muralitharan who took four wickets for 29 runs to dismiss them for 143 well inside the 50 overs. Sri Lanka begun well, racing to 50 for one by the tenth over, but lost three wickets for eight runs within the space of 32 balls.A fifth wicket partnership of 70 between Marvan Atapattu and Russel Arnold saw them through by five wickets with almost ten overs to spare. Graham Thorpe, making his debut as England captain, scored the only half-century of the match – a combative 62 not out off 107 balls.A lot of water has flown under the bridge since that inaugural international match, and the once highly praised stadium, has suddenly become something of a ‘social pariah’ when the Sports Minister took it upon himself to replace the elected Cricket Board officials with an interim committee to administer the game.How the Dambulla pitch will behave over four days is a matter of conjecture as no match of such a long duration has been played on it to date.It was a wise move on the part of the Cricket Board’s interim committee to shift the match from the NCC to Dambulla because of the bad weather being experienced in Colombo at present. Although Dambulla was chosen as a cricket venue to prevent the game from the vagaries of the weather, there is no guarantee that it will be free of it.It rained here all Monday, and although there were threatening dark clouds hovering around the ground Tuesday, a stiff breeze kept the rains at bay allowing the two sides to practice.The Cricket Board’s chief curator Anurudda Polonowita who is handling the preparations of the ground here said the pitch would have more life than the one used for the One-Day International against England.On paper, Pakistan ‘A’ look the more experienced side than their Sri Lankan counterparts with as many as seven of the 15 players having appeared in Test cricket and three others in one-day internationals.Skipper Hasan Raza, Imran Farhat, Qaiser Abbas, Misbah-ul-Haq, Humayun Farhat, Danish Kaneria, and Irfan Fazil have all played at the highest level, and Shabbir Ahmed, Yasir Arafat and Kashif Raza in the shorter game.Comparatively, Sri Lanka ‘A’ have only Kumar Sangakkara and Ruchira Perera with Test experience, and skipper Thilan Samaraweera, Chimera Silva and Akalanka Ganegama who have appeared in one-day internationals, even though the original squad invited for training consists of many experienced cricketers.Although winning is part of the exercise, the most important aspect of these tours is to unearth new talent and feed them to the senior national side. In that aspect, Pakistan coach/manager Mudassar Nazar was more to the point when he said that he would be happy if by the end of the tour, he can pick four to five players who are ready to play at the highest level.Sri Lanka won the last ‘A’ series played at home defeating Zimbabwe by 2-0 (1 drawn) in the three unofficial ‘Test’ matches. They were led on that occasion by Samaraweera who played a prominent role as an all-rounder scoring an unbeaten century at Galle and following it up with a match haul of nine wickets at Matara to seal the two wins.The teams:
Sri Lanka ‘A’ (from):Thilan Samaraweera (captain),Dhammika Sudarshana, Ian Daniel, Kumar Sangakkara, Michael van Dort, Chimera Silva, Jeevantha Kulatunga, Sajeewa Weerakoon, Chandana Samarasinghe, Ruchira Perera, Akalanka Ganegama, Dinusha Fernando, Upekha Fernando, Gayan Wijekoon, Muthumudalige Pushpakumara.
Pakistan ‘A’ (from): Hasan Raza (captain), Imran Farhat, Taufeeq Umar, Salman Butt, Faisal Naved, Qaiser Abbas, Misbah-ul-Haq, Humayun Farhat, Shabbir Ahmed, Najaf Shah, Danish Kaneria, Azam Hussain, Irfan Fazil, Yasir Arafat, Kashif Raza.
Umpires: Gamini Silva and Ranmor Martinesz, Match Referee: Don Anurasiri.

According to a report from Italian news outlet Gazzetta dello Sport (via Sport Witness), Tottenham Hotspur are considering a club-record deal to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.

The Lowdown: Big interest

Spurs aren’t the only side believed to be keen on the 23-year-old with Newcastle United, Manchester United and Arsenal all linked to the ace.

However, with Kane once again being touted with a possible switch to Manchester City, the Lilywhites could be the most desperate of the lot in the need for a centre-forward signing.

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This most recent update would suggest that Nigeria international Osimhen is a leading candidate to fill the void if Kane does indeed depart in search of big trophies.

The Latest: Breaking the bank

According to the Italian source (via SW), Tottenham are among the clubs making ‘evaluations’ regarding the Napoli man ahead of the summer transfer window.

Furthermore, the report states that any move for the 18 times-capped Nigeria star would cost ‘around €100million’ (£83million), which would shatter Spurs’ current £54million record expenditure for Tanguy Ndombele (Transfermarkt).

The outlet believes Daniel Levy and Co. would have that sort of cash to splash if Kane were to leave.

The verdict: Conte is a fan

Boasting 63 goals and 17 assists in 145 career outings across spells with VFL Wolfsburg, LOSC Lille and RSC Charleroi, it’s clear to see why Tottenham would be interested in the Nigerian striker.

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So far this season Osimhen, who was recently described as ‘unplayable’ by football writer Zach Lowy, has scored 15 times and registered four assists in 25 outings across all competitions. He has proven his quality against Premier League opposition too, scoring both goals in a 2-2 draw at Leicester City.

Given the need for an attacking addition with or without Kane beyond this summer, it’s little wonder that Conte would allegedly personally approve of a move for the Napoli frontman.

In other news: ‘I doubt…’ – Pundit claims Tottenham ace may have played final game for the club, find out more here

Hardly a week after the Indian Premier League (IPL) concludes on June 1, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh square off in a short tri-series in Bangladesh beginning June 8. Each team plays the other once, with the final on June 14. All matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. No practice matches have been scheduled for the visiting teams.The tri-series will serve as a warm-up for the Asia Cup in Pakistan which commences on June 24. The series is an add-on to India’s punishing schedule, which includes a three-Test and five ODI tour to Sri Lanka after the Asia Cup concludes on July 6.Bangladesh last hosted a tri-series featuring the same teams in early 1998. India edged out Pakistan in a thriller in the best-of-three finals at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.ScheduleJune 8 – Bangladesh v Pakistan (Mirpur)
June 10 – India v Pakistan (Mirpur)
June 12 – Bangladesh v India (Mirpur)
June 14 – Final (Mirpur)
June 15 – Reserve day