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Sachin Tendulkar talks about how ODIs are skewed in favour of batsmen, and looks back to his landmark Sharjah innings against Australia 22 years ago

Sharda Ugra24-Apr-2020It’s not the time to be fussing over birthdays and celebrations, and Sachin Tendulkar doesn’t have his 47th on his mind. The days he has kept track of instead are the number he has spent indoors in his home in Mumbai, without meeting a single outsider. Count them from March 15 onwards. And let’s not forget that, regardless of whether social-distancing norms are in place or not, it’s not like he can step outside for a change of scene and shop for groceries. What Tendulkar misses is the happy whirl of meeting old friends, playing golf or badminton, and otherwise being busy.This is, though, a chance to think about the future, to reflect on what could be, and think about what the new normal might be when cricket does return. Though players have generally tried to adapt to this “forced off-season” by trying to stay fit at home, it may take a while for them to return to their previous levels of on-field sharpness, no matter how much fitness work they have done during the lockdowns. But Tendulkar says, “I personally don’t feel the game is going to change as such.” What he cannot get his head around is the idea of closed-door contests.”That would be odd. Because you get so much energy from the spectators also. If India is to win a crucial game, you want people to be around you to celebrate – to amplify that. But no one inside the stadium? It’s not going to make anyone feel special. It is going to be a weird feeling, and I don’t know how players will react.”ALSO READ: Kartikeya Date: The three phases of Tendulkar’s ODI batting (2018)International games, at least, Tendulkar says, need their living, breathing audiences.”Can you imagine Roger Federer and [Rafael] Nadal playing on the centre court of Wimbledon with nobody there? It’s going to be such a strange thing to watch. Not just cricket, any sport needs to have that energy.”In contrast to the still vast global appetite for him, Tendulkar himself post-retirement is not an obsessive watcher of live cricket. It has been seven years since his emotional Wankhede farewell, and in that time cricket appears to have been enormously transformed, with the advent and explosion of T20 leagues and fundamental changes in elements of the sport itself.Since these are days of nostalgia and whimsical imaginings, what kind of batsman would a millennial or Gen Z Tendulkar have been? Not much different, he thinks: “I would have continued to be myself in today’s cricket, I don’t think I would have changed anything.” What, no 360-degree shot-making or Dilscoops or switch hits?He has seen his younger self on a few YouTube videos and imagines he would not have needed to use those tools. “I don’t see there would have been any need to do something out-of-the-box different. Because if I had continued doing [what I did] the same way, the boundary line is only 70 yards [away],” he laughs. “So if you are going to back yourself to clear [it], then you work on consistency more than anything else, depending on the surfaces. There are surfaces that compel you to play differently, I would have been flexible in my mind, my thought process. I think that flexibility has to be there.”0:28

Happy Birthday, Sachin

What both longevity in the game and the new rules of modern cricket demand is the willingness to keep innovating. “Like how bowlers have developed the slower-ball bouncer, the knuckleball and the wide yorker – they have developed various things. So have the batters. In time to come, maybe eight-ten years down the line, we will be looking at a totally different game – the batswing could be different, the stance could be different. Or the loading up. A lot of elements which we are not thinking of today because it’s not demanded by the game today. But in time to come, it may change.”He remembers watching Andy Flower reverse-sweeping his way to the top of the Test aggregates on the 1999-2000 India tour and saying that Flower was about “eight-ten years ahead of the rest of the lot”. Twenty years on, Tendulkar is right and Flower has come to be seen as having been an innovator back then. When he is asked about the most visible changes in the game since his retirement, Tendulkar points to two issues. One is the absence of a mechanism to correct umpiring bloopers using the DRS. “Those types of things, when the bowlers didn’t get the wicket even though the batsman was out, or the batsmen were given out when they were not, it costs us games. Those type of things win or lose matches and series. Today that doesn’t happen – a bad decision can be completely negated and you still have a chance.”The other he has touched upon before – the ODI rule changes in the early 2010s, where a total of four fielders were allowed outside the ring in the non-powerplay overs, and the use of two new balls in ODIs.”If you have to look at one-day cricket then [with] the two new balls, if the pitches are not helpful, it makes bowlers’ life really difficult. Two new balls have virtually diminished reverse swing, I have not seen lot of reverse swing. [There is] occasional reverse swing here and there.” The use of a single ball, he says, “guaranteed little bit of reverse swing with the discoloured ball and the softer ball”. With two new balls, the ball stays hard, “travels faster, and so I think bowlers have been challenged more”.ALSO READ: Have the new rules made ODIs an unequal contest? (2013)The five fielders in the ring has been an additional challenge. Tendulkar illustrates, offering a standard field for an offspinner: “You would normally have a long-off, long-on, deep midwicket and deep square-leg, and you have to have a deep point inside the ring. Because of T20, batters are prepared to back themselves, because they’ve worked on those shots, reverse sweeps and all sorts of things.” Earlier, if you pierced the infield ring, he goes on to say, “you got a single for that, with the extra fielder back on the boundary line and you lost strike. If the strike was not rotated, then you [as a non-striker] lost possibly three balls an over. And when you were batting well, the bowler would want to bowl at the non-striker and not you.”It must be remembered that Tendulkar was the first batsman to make an ODI 200, ten years ago, before the new rules came into play, when he was two months short of 37. In the decade since, only five other batsmen have gone past 200, Rohit Sharma thrice.Talking about the new rules, which he sees as palpably unfair to bowlers, gets Tendulkar’s cricket self buzzing again. The on-strike, in-form batsman today is supplied with a bounty. The ball past the infield ring is a four. “If I was batting well,” Tendulkar says, “I would hit a boundary and I would face the ball again. You are getting three runs extra, plus you are retaining strike and I would love to do that.”It is this reminder of his appetite for run-scoring that brings the twin hundreds in Sharjah in 1998 to mind. Those innings were played around this time 22 years ago, and are part of the collective memory of a generation of Indian cricket fans: the Desert Storm innings (143) that took India into the tournament final and the match-winning 134 in the final two days later on Tendulkar’s 25th birthday. His partner in the 143 was VVS Laxman, who scored 23 in a 104-run partnership and remembers talking to Tendulkar in between overs. “But I know he wasn’t listening to me,” Laxman said.On batting under the current field restrictions: “If I was batting well, I would hit a boundary and face the ball again. You are getting three runs extra plus you are retaining strike and I would love to do that”•AFP/Getty ImagesTendulkar has himself recalled being “obsessed” that night about keeping strike. “When you are batting well, you want to face every ball. I wanted to win that game, I didn’t want to just achieve our run rate, I wanted to beat Australia and get into the final, so I was playing for the victory.”What was it like being in the zone that night? “Sometimes, I don’t know… you look at the bowler and whatever you’re thinking, the bowler exactly bowls that,” he says. “It was a little bit of that. I knew more or less what they were bowling and I was ready to play that shot. Sometimes that happens, I wouldn’t say every ball, but whenever one is planning to play a big shot, you say okay, if the ball lands in this area I am going to hit. And exactly that is where the next ball has landed and I have gone for that shot. You have those days where whatever you are thinking, that is what exactly happens.”Over the course of a conversation, especially one of this kind, during a time when cricket itself stands suspended, it is easy to lapse into the past and search for new paths around familiar stories. But the game will go on, cricket will resume, and new stars will be born. Is there anyone in the new crop of gung-ho swashbucklers around the world in whom Tendulkar sees a glimpse of his younger self?ALSO READ: Tendulkar: ‘I wanted to beat Australia twice (2018)It is, of course, a headline-seeking question but Tendulkar, always a batsman of turbo-charged intensity and skill, has remained a man of controlled verbal expression. “Since we are talking about promising youngers, there are a number and the names would be Prithvi [Shaw], Shubman [Gill] and [Sanju] Samson. They all are different players. Just like how when we were playing, Rahul [Dravid] was different to me, I was different to Sourav [Ganguly], and Laxman was different from all of us. Similarly these guys are different but have a promising future. They have their own styles.”Because we are where we are, with cricket stalled, the board chiefs all meeting to talk about the future, and Tendulkar turning 47, maybe this is the best time to talk about what the game could include looking ahead. Something larger than tinkering with powerplays, surely. Tendulkar would personally like the debate about Test cricket to be focused not on quantity (four days not five) but on improving the quality of the contest and keeping spectators engaged.Get home boards to move away from the extremes of dead or unplayable wickets and commit one way or the other – seam or spin. Right in the playing conditions, if need be. It may sound radical and impossible to achieve, but Sachin Tendulkar, cricketer, cricket fan, has a parting observation: “We have two formats in which the bowlers are constantly challenged, have restrictions in their field settings, so there has to be a format where the bowlers are able to challenge batters.”

In a bombshell seven-and-a-half-minute interview after Liverpool's 3-3 draw with Leeds United last weekend, Mohamed Salah accused the club of throwing him "under the bus" and claimed he no longer has any relationship with head coach Arne Slot. The 'Egyptian King', who has scored 250 goals for Liverpool over the last eight years and was the driving force behind the 2024-25 Premier League title success under Slot, didn't see a single minute of action at Elland Road after being named on the bench for the third game in a row, and decided to go public with his grievances.

Salah only signed a new two-year contract in April, but the "hurt" forward is now being heavily linked with a January switch to the Saudi Pro League, with Slot having suggested that he will not be reintegrated into the first team unless he apologises. Liverpool were already in the midst of a crisis after a disastrous start to their title defence, with Salah among those who have allowed their standards to dip significantly, but the noise around Anfield is near deafening now, and it remains to be seen if a harmonious resolution can be reached that helps the Reds salvage their campaign.

It has to be said, though, that dressing room bust-ups like this are nothing new. Below, GOAL goes through the most infamous rows between managers and players in modern football…

Getty/GOAL composite Sir Alex Ferguson vs David Beckham

Perhaps the most infamous manager-player feud of all time. With Manchester United trailing 2-0 at half-time in a 2003 FA Cup tie against bitter rivals Arsenal, Sir Alex Ferguson dished out a few angry words during the interval.

At one point, he singled out David Beckham, who the United boss believed had been taking his foot off the pedal as he closed in on a move to Real Madrid. As Ferguson approached the player, he kicked a boot into his face, with the resulting cut requiring several stitches.

The next day, photos of Beckham's wound was all over the newspapers. Ferguson revealed in his autobiography that the incident convinced him he was losing control of the dressing room and he implored the board to sell the midfielder as soon as possible. They duly obliged, with Beckham moving to Santiago Bernabeu that summer.

AdvertisementGetty/GOAL composite Jose Mourinho vs Paul Pogba

In the immediate months following Paul Pogba's big-money return to Old Trafford, his relationship with manager Jose Mourinho was all sunshines and rainbows. However, during the 2017-18 season, the mask began to slip.

At the beginning of the following season, Mourinho took the vice-captaincy off the player. The decision came after months of reports that the pair's relationship had become irrevocably damaged, with the duo clashing on the training ground in a video captured in September 2018.

Mourinho was sacked soon after, but that was not the end of the feud. In April 2021, after the Portuguese had taken over at Tottenham, Pogba launched a scathing attack on his former manager, telling : "Once I had a great relationship with Mourinho. Everybody saw that and the next day you don’t know what happened. That’s the strange thing I had with Mourinho and I cannot explain to you because even I don’t know."

Mourinho did not accept Pogba's version of events, though, replying: "I would like to say that I couldn't care less with what he says. I am not interested at all."

GettyPep Guardiola vs Zlatan Ibrahimovic

The biggest personality clash in the history of the game? It could well be.

In theory, Zlatan Ibrahimovic should have made Pep Guardiola's brilliant Barcelona side even better when he joined the treble-winners from Inter in 2009, and the early signs were promising. Guardiola has even acknowledged himself that the towering and technically gifted forward was "excellent" for the first half of the season. The problem was that their relationship completely collapsed during the second half of the campaign.

Ibrahimovic had never felt quite at home in what he perceived as a school-like set-up at Barca in which everyone obeyed the man he sarcastically referred to as ‘The Philosopher’, and the outspoken Swede began to throw tantrums after effectively losing his starting spot to Lionel Messi, whom Guardiola decided to deploy as a 'false nine'. Ibrahimovic even accused the Catalan coach of having "no balls" and "sh*tting himself" in front of Jose Mourinho when Barca faced Inter in the semi-finals of the Champions League.

While Guardiola has since refused to throw any more fuel on the fire, Ibrahimovic has never shied away from blaming the former Blaugrana boss for him spending just one season at Camp Nou before returning to San Siro – only this time to play for AC Milan.

"The problem wasn’t with me, it was with him, and he never came to terms with it," Ibrahimovic subsequently stated. "I don’t know what his problem was with me."

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Getty ImagesRoberto Mancini vs Mario Balotelli

"I can understand [if some players are frustrated]. I told [Mario Balotelli] that if you played with me 10 years ago I give to you every day maybe one punch in your head. But there are different ways to help guys like Mario."

That was how Roberto Mancini summed up working with Balotelli at Manchester City, with the pair colliding on more than one occasion. Even if the manager did keep faith in the centre-forward through a lot of the chaos, with his favouritism even frustrating some members of the squad, this was certainly a love-hate relationship.

During a pre-season friendly against LA Galaxy in 2011, the Italian coach dragged the striker off after he bizarrely attempted – and missed – an audacious backheel, instead of tapping the ball into an empty net. In January 2013, the odd couple even came to blows on the training ground after the striker put in a crunching tackle on team-mate Gael Clichy.

Then, in 2023 when Mancini was Italy manager, and ignored the good form of Balotelli to call up uncapped, Argentina-born striker Mateo Retegui, the then-FC Sion striker appeared to aim a jibe at his ex-City boss on Instagram. There's clearly no love lost between the pair.

Monaco midfielder Paul Pogba gave a passionate speech to the home fans after his side earned a narrow 1-0 win over reigning Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain. The former Manchester United and Juventus star finally made his return to competitive football this month, having joined Monaco on a free transfer in the summer. Now back in the action, Pogba is already displaying what he can bring to his new club.

Pogba makes rallying call

Monaco took all three points against PSG on Saturday to blow the Ligue 1 title race wide open. The hosts edged out a narrow victory, despite playing with ten men for the closing stages of the game, thanks to Takumi Minamino's winner. The Japanese international fired Aleksandr Golovin's cross into the bottom corner from just inside the penalty area to put Monaco in the lead with just 22 minutes of normal time remaining.

Monaco then had to stay strong and show remarkable character to cling on to a precious victory over PSG when Thilo Kehrer was given his marching orders with ten minutes left on the clock. The German was shown a straight red card for a poor challenge on Ibrahim Mbaye.

Pogba was brought on in the 86th minute, adding an old head to a side desperate to see off a barrage of PSG attacks. The Frenchman helped close the game out and, having made his home debut for the side, made a speech to the fans after the game.

He said: “Today is an important day. Today we won, but the next match is what matters. We are already working to achieve that. We keep moving forward together. We never give up. Thank you.”

AdvertisementWatch the clipLigue 1 title race opens up

The victory for Monaco ensured that the top six sides in the French top division are separated by just eight points. Pogba’s team moved to sixth in the table on 23 points, trailing Stade Rennais by just one point in the spot above them.

The story is far more interesting higher up in the table though, with RC Lens becoming the new leaders following their 2-1 victory over Angers on Sunday. Lens are one point above PSG, who have 30 points from 14 games.

Marseille are chasing the top two clubs and Roberto De Zerbi’s men will be gutted to have blown a chance to go top on Saturday. Despite goals from Igor Paixao and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg putting the Italian coach’s team ahead against Toulouse, the visitors scored a 92nd-minute equaliser to steal a point away from their southern France neighbours.

Lille sit amongst the rest in fourth, three points clear of Monaco, but five points off the top. They earned a late, narrow 1-0 victory away to Le Havre on Sunday, even with ten men after Ayyoub Bouaddi’s red card.

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AFPPogba influence to grow

Pogba could have a chance to make his first start for his new club next Friday. Monaco travel to Stade Brestois looking to keep applying pressure to those above them in Ligue 1.

On an Adelaide pitch with extra bounce, he scored 61 off 77 balls using a more upright stance at the crease

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-20252:31

Iyer: ‘Definitely hurts losing in this manner’

Shreyas Iyer believes that going back to a more upright stance has helped him counter extra bounce. He has used this “new” stance – adapted from one he used in the past – in domestic cricket, against Australia A, and now, in the ODI series in Australia. While India scratched around on a seaming pitch in the second ODI in Adelaide, Iyer negotiated the tough spells, scoring 61 off 77.Iyer’s game against short-pitched bowling at high pace has always been a talking point. Not part of India’s Test or T20I sides, Iyer spent the time off working on his game to counter extra bounce. “Since last year, I wanted to have an upright stance [for conditions] where the bounce is a little bit more than expected,” he said.”And based on that, I worked with my coach and we developed this new technique, and it was kind of suiting me pretty well. And the way I grew up playing, it was very much that I predominantly had an upright stance, and I just was like, ‘Let’s go back to my old technique and see how it, you know, [holds] up.'”So, yeah, I backed myself and then, from there on, I started [trying the technique] in the domestic [games]… Till now, I’ve been continuing with the same stance.”Related

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Iyer grew up batting with this upright stance, but perhaps the back injuries he has battled made him make changes. “Even in Mumbai, when we play on red-soil wickets – where the bounce is a little bit extra than expected – I think it helps with the upright stance,” Iyer said.”And yeah, you’ve got to keep chopping and changing every now and then, because you don’t play on the same wickets [all the time]. Whatever the wicket demands, you’ve got to change your stance accordingly, and I think I’ve changed so many stances [that] I’m able to adapt anywhere at the moment.”Iyer last played for India during their undefeated Champions Trophy campaign in the UAE in March. Since then, he has played the IPL, two first-class matches, and then captained India A in the three one-day matches against Australia A. At some point during this break, he reached the conclusion that his body, at the moment, is not supporting his first-class cricket, prompting him to request the BCCI for a six-month break from red-ball cricket.”When I played red-ball cricket after the IPL, I realised that if I field for long spells on the ground, my intensity starts to go down. And the intensity that you need to maintain in international cricket, I wasn’t able to match up to it. In ODIs, you know you will get rest after one day and be able to recover. Not in Tests. That is why I made that call, and conveyed that message.”

Wolverhampton Wanderers have made contact to sign a £30m star for Rob Edwards, and the Old Gold feel he “fits the profile perfectly” at Molineux.

Wolves transfer rumours after Edwards appointment

Fosun and Wolves are ready to back Edwards in the January transfer window as they look to climb up the Premier League table and out of the relegation zone in 2026.

However, before the Old Gold can make any new additions, they’ll have to navigate eight top flight fixtures, starting this weekend at home to Crystal Palace.

Wolves’ Premier League fixtures before January

Date

Wolves vs Crystal Palace

November 22nd

Aston Villa vs Wolves

November 30th

Wolves vs Nottingham Forest

December 3rd

Wolves vs Man Utd

December 8th

Arsenal vs Wolves

December 13th

Wolves vs Brentford

December 20th

Liverpool vs Wolves

December 27th

Man Utd vs Wolves

December 30th

By the time the winter market opens, the Premier League season will be 50% complete, and with Wolves currently nine points away from safety, Edwards is facing a tough test.

It looks as if Wolves want to bolster all over the pitch following their poor start to the season as well.

A loan-to-buy bid for Lazio goalkeeper Christos Mandas is thought to be in the pipeline, whereas an offer is also in for Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia.

Domestically, Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips and Everton winger Dwight McNeil are two more 2026 targets, and another Etihad Stadium first-team player is on the radar at Molineux.

Wolves make contact for James Trafford

According to reports from TEAMtalk, Wolves and Fosun have made their first move to sign Man City goalkeeper James Trafford.

After returning to the club in the summer, Trafford has already dropped down the pecking order following the arrival of Gianluigi Donnarumma, arguably the best goalkeeper in world football.

City are open to a loan-with-obligation or permanent exit in January for Trafford, valuing him up to £30m.

Wolves are firmly in the race to sign the Englishman and have even made contact, with one source from Molineux telling TEAMtalk:

However, unfortunately for Wolves and Edwards, Trafford isn’t so keen on a move the Midlands. He appears to prefer a transfer to Newcastle United instead, with the source adding:

“James wants guarantees of game time, but above all he wants to play for a club pushing upwards, not one looking over its shoulder.”

Wolves now want to sign £20m set-piece specialist compared to Declan Rice

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Wolves are clearly after a new first choice shot-stopper with Sam Johnstone and Jose Sa, who are both 32 years of age, sharing the Premier League load so far. Johnstone has made seven appearances, conceding 14 goals, whereas Sa has turned out four times, letting in 11 goals.

But with Trafford preferring a move to St James’ Park where European football is on offer, perhaps Wolves may go for Mandas.

Wolves now in advanced talks to sign maestro who could be Edwards' first signing

Former England star Stuart Pearce has pinpointed Tottenham Hotspur’s “weakness” after spotting what Cristian Romero did against Manchester United in a “horrific” display.

The Argentina international could only watch on with the rest of Spurs’ backline when Amad Diallo’s floated cross found the head of Bryan Mbeumo, who made no mistake. It summed up a frustrating first-half for Thomas Frank’s side, who were once again blunt going forward. Any progress made in 4-0 mauling of Copenhagen seemed to disappear on the Premier League stage.

Related Frank must never start £130k-per-week Spurs duo together ever again

Tottenham ended up drawing a frenetic Premier League clash against Manchester United this weekend.

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Unlike against Chelsea last weekend, however, Spurs fought back against Man United and substitute Mathys Tel soon had them level. Setting up a grandstand finish in the 84th minute, the young forward wheeled away in celebration before Richarlison thought he had stolen all three points seven minutes later.

In a familiar sight, the Brazilian ripped his shirt off in belief that he had headed home a dramatic winner, only for Man United’s Matthijs de Ligt to have the final say by scoring a last-gasp equaliser. From a dull first-half, North London was treated to a frantic, entertaining affair.

Whilst complaints have been made about Spurs’ attack in recent weeks, it was their defence that was found wanting this time around as they continued a run of just one win in their last four games.

Frank spoke about the dramatic draw, telling reporters: Thomas: “I saw this game as one game ahead of us, to try to do everything we could to try to win it. That was the aim. I spoke before the game about it’s clear they have improved this season.

“They look, how can you say, more in sync together, especially going forward they look like a big threat. That’s why I actually think, I know we conceded two goals, but if you said to me before the game you concede five shots, I would take that. So we’re all happy.”

The Dane chose to take the positives, but ex-England star Pearce wasn’t so kind and shared exactly where he thinks Spurs’ “weakness” is coming from after the draw.

Pearce pinpoints Tottenham "weakness" in "horrific" Romero display

Speaking on talkSPORT, Pearce told Tottenham that Romero is their biggest “weakness” after a performance against Man United that he described as “horrific”. The former England man was particularly unhappy that the Spurs defender lost possession in midfield before failing to make a recovery run on Saturday afternoon.

With Arsenal up next in the North London derby, Romero must get back to his best and help Spurs end a recent run which has featured just one win in their last four games in all competitions.

Frank things two Tottenham stars are "expendable" with January exit on the cards

Chelsea toppled Liverpool last weekend and Moises Caicedo was the star of the show, and he has since responded to comparisons between himself and Stamford Bridge icon N’Golo Kante.

Caicedo's excellent form continues in Chelsea's win over Liverpool

West London was home to some fantastic scenes last Saturday night as Enzo Maresca claimed a sizeable victory over Liverpool to alleviate pressure on his shoulders after a run of three Premier League matches without a win.

Estevao took the plaudits after his last-gasp winner to settle the scoring. However, there was no doubt that Moises Caicedo was the best player on the pitch against the reigning champions.

Not only did the Ecuador international deliver a stunning strike to open the scoring. His all-action display and 11 defensive contributions, per Fotmob, earned him serious praise from fans and pundits alike on a day where Chelsea moved seventh in the top-flight standings.

Speaking about his wonderstrike, Glenn Hoddle couldn’t help but wax lyrical at the former Brighton & Hove Albion man’s ‘absolutely sensational’ technique and execution.

He said: “Absolutely sensational from Caicedo.That first touch is excellent, takes [Alexis] Mac Allister out of the game, he goes to hit it, sees there’s no Liverpool player coming towards him, and what a strike to keep it in that top corner. Wonderful goal.”

Continuing his impressive start to the campaign, Caicedo has hit the goal trail for Chelsea with three strikes in his first nine encounters across all competitions, becoming the Blues’ joint-top scorer in the top-flight.

Ranking as the West Londoners’ most expensive ever signing at £115 million, there has always been a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders, but how does he feel about comparisons between himself and Stamford Bridge great N’Golo Kante? It’s time to find out.

Is Moises Caicedo better than N'Golo Kante?

Speaking in a recent interview, Caicedo admitted that he still has a long way to go to match Chelsea icons Kante and Claude Makelele, claiming that he is only striving to improve his game week by week.

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Undoubtedly, Chelsea have a rich history of midfield talent and Caicedo is another who has regularly gained rave reviews from supporters, who will make their own minds up on comparisons between some of their finest recent players.

Either way, he is certainly someone who is pulling all aspects of his game together at the right moment for Maresca, and supporters will expect plenty more where that came from as the Blues look to find the Champions League slots.

The team with the “best squad” in the Premier League, according to Jamie Carragher, Arsenal’s time to end more than 20 years of hurt could finally be here.

Reigning champions Liverpool – in the midst of a three-game losing run across all fronts – have yet to find their feet this season, while not even Erling Haaland can help Manchester City recapture their former magic.

The sense of now or never for Mikel Arteta may be a touch of hyperbole, although the Spaniard does appear to have all the tools at his disposal to be able to steer the Gunners to title glory.

With two and in some cases three genuine options in each position, following an effective summer of recruitment, the north Londoners are now a force to be reckoned with again.

Boasting the division’s meanest defence – with just three goals conceded – Arteta’s men also only rank behind Man City for goals scored (14 vs 15).

This side certainly isn’t perfect, however, with there those waiting in the wings who could perhaps take them to even greater heights.

Latest on Arsenal’s injury situation

The sight of captain Martin Odegaard trudging off against West Ham United last time out has sadly become a familiar one, with the playmaking Norwegian having been replaced inside 30 minutes on three separate occasions this season.

That knee issue could see the former Real Madrid man sidelined for a significant period, adding further frustration for Arteta after losing new signing Noni Madueke to his own spell on the sidelines last month.

Madueke’s bright start to the campaign was halted by his own knee-related setback late in September, with the England international facing six to eight weeks on the sidelines.

That has seen the fleet-footed winger join another ex-Chelsea man, Kai Havertz, on the treatment table, with the German yet to be seen this season after undergoing knee surgery ahead of the start of the new campaign.

Absent for much of 2024/25 too, albeit while netting 15 times in all competitions, Havertz is expected to make his return at some stage in November, with Arteta currently limited with regard to Viktor Gyokeres alternatives through the middle.

It will be an interesting debate as to who the Arsenal boss will favour to lead the line upon Havertz’s return to action, with Carragher predicting that it will be the latter man – instead of Gyokeres – who gets the nod for “the biggest games”.

Fellow absentee, Gabriel Jesus, hardly factors into the equation with regard to the competition in the number nine role, although might the Brazilian prove to be the perfect solution on the left flank?

Why Arsenal’s forgotten man can soon explode

Cast your mind back to August 2022, as a new-look Arsenal side secured a richly-deserved 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Turning out in that eye-catching pink kit, the long awaited debut of William Saliba was no doubt the headline act, although Jesus’ own first Gunners outing more than caught the attention.

In truth, the former Manchester City man was simply “electric” on the day, as noted by Gary Neville at the time, putting in a “magical” first performance following his £45m switch from the Etihad.

Unfortunately, such displays have been few and far between, with Jesus repeatedly struck down by injury in the years since, scoring just 26 goals in 96 games in all – albeit while contributing a further 20 assists.

Injury has no doubt played its part, although perhaps Arteta has yet to get the best out of him, with much of the forward’s best work under Pep Guardiola having come from the flanks.

Indeed, the man previously lauded as a “game-changer” by Alan Shearer recorded 14 goals and assists in just 20 games as a right-winger in Manchester, as well as ten goal involvements in 19 games off the left, as per Transfermarkt.

It is in that latter role where the 28-year-old could well find a home for himself this season, with neither Leandro Trossard nor Gabriel Martinelli yet to properly cement that starting berth, while Eberechi Eze is likely to take up Odegaard’s role more centrally.

Jesus – 22/23 PL stats

Stat (*per game)

Record

Games (starts)

26 (24)

Goals

11

Mins per goal

189

Big chances missed

16

Assists

6

Big chances created

6

Key passes*

1.2

Pass accuracy*

82%

Successful dribbles*

1.7

Stats via Sofascore

Now back on the grass as he steps up his recovery from his ACL blow, Jesus’ return may not come in the immediate future, although he could well prove to be like a new signing for Arteta as the season progresses.

A man with 149 goals and 73 assists in 415 career games at senior level, the 64-cap Brazil international is too good a talent to write off just yet, even if reports suggest that he could be moved on in January.

Fleet of foot and a relentless presser at his best, Jesus still ranks among the top 6% of European forwards for successful take-ons per 90, as well as in the top 3% for tackles made per 90, as FBref, emphasising just what an asset he can be both in and out of possession.

While many at Arsenal may be enthralled by the new faces such as Eze, Gyokeres and Madueke, it would be no surprise if Jesus was able to explode back onto the scene when back fit and firing again.

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Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes Oct 11, 2025

Cameron Green’s irresistible form in county cricket has him all but locked in for the World Test Championship final as Australia coach Andrew McDonald confirmed that other selection debates, including whether an allrounder is needed against South Africa at Lord’s, will dictate where he bats.Green, 25, will be unavailable to bowl in the WTC final but is virtually assured of returning to the side as a batter only which will cause upheaval to the order with the selectors open to all possibilities with Marnus Labuschagne, Sam Konstas, Beau Webster and Josh Inglis all appearing in a state of flux depending on how the XI is shaped.Green has not played Test cricket since March 2024 when he batted at No. 4 for Australia in a two-Test series against New Zealand and made a career-high 174 not out in Wellington. He has scored three centuries and an unbeaten 67 across eight innings at No. 5 for Gloucestershire in recent weeks, his first cricket of any form since back surgery last October.Related

• Green happy to 'just bat' for now as No. 3 role beckons

• Boland: 'I just want to make their decision as hard as possible'

• Hazlewood returns to bolster RCB ahead of IPL 2025 playoffs

• Labuschagne faces vital outing in search for form

• Konstas and Green named in Australia's World Test Championship final squad

Speaking on SEN radio on Tuesday ahead of leaving for the UK, McDonald confirmed that Steven Smith would remain at No. 4 but said Green was capable of slotting anywhere in the top six.”He could be three, he could be five, he could be six, he could open,” McDonald said. “I think he’s got the temperament. He’s got the skill set. He’s got the defensive play as well. I think the higher up the order you go, your defensive skills are a priority. He’s got all bases covered.”Green’s inclusion and where he bats will have a significant flow-on effect. Travis Head will return to No. 5 after opening in Sri Lanka, which will leave Usman Khawaja needing yet another opening partner after cycling through Smith, Head, Konstas and Nathan McSweeney across the last three Test series Australia have played.Webster made an excellent start to Test cricket as Australia’s allrounder at No. 6 against India in Sydney and played well in Sri Lanka. But McDonald confirmed that he was not locked in to play at Lord’s as the selectors mull over whether they need a fifth bowler for a one-off Test final.”There’s an XI on a board, but it’s got some dashes with multiple names in different positions,” McDonald said. “Do we need to play the allrounder depending on the conditions that present? That’ll then shuffle the batting order. We’re quite flexible in our approach to that.”We’ve got roughly what we think it might look like. And then clearly, there’ll be some decisions as we get to the pointy end. And we’ve said before that we only make decisions when we need to.”Cameron Green has scored three centuries in nine innings for Gloucestershire•Gloucestershire County Cricket Club

McDonald was then pressed on whether it was a decision between Konstas and Labuschagne to open the batting, if Green batted at No. 3 and Webster remained.”If you require the allrounder in the conditions that would then lend itself to a decision around the top order, and then if you don’t require it, then clearly you’ve got other options,” McDonald said. “And that’s not to dismiss the fact that Beau Webster can be a bat only as well. It’ll just be how much we prioritise the bowling element of that.”We’ve got some players coming out of the IPL. We’ll see them in front of us when we get to England and make some assessments on what their capabilities will be for the Test match. At the moment, everyone’s tracking well, so I think depending on how you look at it they’ll be able to cope with whatever loads are put in front of them.”Inglis’ form is also a consideration. He made a century on Test debut as a batter in Sri Lanka and continues to score runs in all forms and all conditions. He could also bat at No. 6 if an allrounder was not selected. Chair of selectors George Bailey had previously suggested that Inglis could open but that would seem unlikely given he has never done that role in first-class cricket and has only batted higher than No. 5 seven times without once reaching 50.Marnus Labuschagne’s position is under scrutiny•Getty Images

The Marnus Labuschagne question

It does leave Labuschagne vulnerable despite being Australia’s incumbent No. 3 since 2019 and averaging 46.76 across 57 Tests with 11 Test centuries. But he has not scored one in his last 29 Test innings and averages just 28.33 across this WTC cycle.McDonald was asked whether Labuschagne could open in the WTC final given he has never opened the batting in Test cricket but he did not give a definitive answer. Labuschagne has made 0, 4 and 23 in his three innings for Glamorgan over the last fortnight but will not play again before the side is selected for the WTC final.”You watch the dismissals and it’s isolated incidents that you don’t know what he’s doing in the background, how it looks in the nets, how he’s moving,” McDonald said. “That’ll be the key part of all of it is to see where they’re at in front of us and what those sort of last seven days of prep look like to make good decisions for us.”Labuschagne has opened 15 times in first-class cricket, averaging 34.84 with two centuries including one for Glamorgan in May 2024.

The need to settle the opening pair

That record is the same as Konstas’. Despite the hype and his extraordinary start to Test cricket, the 19-year-old averages 34.89 from 30 innings with only two centuries. He has also never played first-class cricket in England although he has been on an Under-19 tour to the UK. McDonald was pleased with how Konstas’ offseason had gone after working on some minor technical changes.Sam Konstas drives one in the nets•Getty Images

“He feels as though they’re in a good place at the moment,” he said. “The last couple of weeks in Brisbane he’s been going well. Tough conditions up there with Dukes balls and overheads and seaming conditions. He’s got a great future ahead of him. He’s on a journey, I think George Bailey said that, to discover what is the best version of himself and we hope that we can accelerate that across the journey.”McDonald confirmed that the selectors are keen to settle on an opening combination sooner rather than later with the home Ashes in mind later in the year.”We had some moving parts last summer,” McDonald said. “It’s not ideal, in particular, for Usman. So in an ideal world we want a combination that you go that’s our opening combination for the next period of time.”

Hazlewood vs Boland

The other major selection question ahead of the WTC final is a choice between Josh Hazlewood and Scott Boland as the third seamer. That decision may also influence the need for an allrounder given Hazlewood’s injury worries of late, but he has returned to India to play in the remainder of the IPL before heading to England after some concerns with his shoulder.”Everything was good when he left here,” McDonald said. “He had a good hit out last week on Tuesday and Thursday. Intensity was really, really good.”I think [RCB have] got a game tonight, their last game at the tournament before the playoffs. If he plays in that, fantastic. If they hold him back for whatever reason for the finals, that’s also a bonus to us.”

Visitors rue delayed declaration after Tom Price triggers dramatic collapse on final afternoon

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay21-Apr-2025

Gloucestershire were left to rue an overcautious declaration when their Rothesay County Championship with Kent ended at Canterbury in a draw.Tom Price almost single-handedly injected life into what was becoming a tedious final day by reducing Kent to 49 for 4 with 22 overs remaining, but despite some middle-order tremors the hosts dug in to reach 124 for 6. England’s Zak Crawley anchored the defence with an unbeaten 54 from 112 balls and Grant Stewart finished on 16 not out, keeping his head during a tense finale that went to the final over.The visitors batted deeply, arguably too deeply, into the afternoon session before setting a notional target of 413 to win from 41 overs, after declaring on 335 for 5, Miles Hammond making 89, Graeme van Buuren 58 and Ollie Price 56. Tom Price finished with figures of 4 for 33.Few expected this game to go the distance after 36 overs were lost on day three and the word from the Gloucestershire camp on Sunday night was that they were reluctant to set a low target because of the way Kent chased down 316 last week to beat Middlesex.They resumed on 112 for 2, a lead of 191, and Ollie Price and Hammond at least began like a duo who knew they’d have to score quickly if there was any chance of forcing a result. Hammond was the more expansive of the two, passing 50 from 79 deliveries with a cover drive off Jas Singh while Price was more pedestrian, taking 116 balls to reach the same landmark with a single off Jack Leaning.The pace slowed, however, until after an hour and 50 minutes of mounting tedium, a wicket finally fell when Leaning had Ollie Price caught behind by the sub wicketkeeper Chris Benjamin.It was 233 for 3 at lunch, with the lead 312 and 66 overs remaining. Things threatened to get at least semi-interesting when Cam Green was lbw to Joey Evison in the first over after the resumption and Leaning then had Hammond caught by Tawanda Muyeye at first slip in the next over, but no further wickets fell until Gloucestershire declared at just after 3pm, by which time van Buuren had helped himself to a half-century against the part-time spinners and a chase was no longer viable.A collapse was, however, and visiting hopes flared when Tom Price had first-innings centurion Ben Compton caught behind for 1 and Daniel Bell-Drummond lbw for 2.Kent were on a fragile 8 for 2 at tea and with Crawley in what might be described as sub-optimal form Gloucestershire scented an opportunity, but they were frustrated for the next 10 overs and the game was drifting until Price took another couple of wickets, getting Muyeye lbw and Leaning caught by Cameron Bancroft at second slip.That was enough to convince Gloucestershire to keep going after 5pm, the earliest time the teams could have shaken hands on the draw.Just as Kent started to feel safe again Josh Shaw sent Joey Evison’s off stump flying for a 36-ball 15 and Harry Finch, batting with a broken finger, was caught by Hammond at first slip off Ollie Price. At that point there were still 7.3 overs remaining but Stewart survived, the only major scare coming from an inside edge off Shaw that went perilously close to the stumps.Crawley endured a couple of alarms in Ollie Price’s penultimate over, leaving Shaw to try and take four wickets with the last six balls. Stewart blocked the first and drove the next two for fours to ensure Kent survived.