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A key development has emerged on Madger Gomes, following his trial with Charlton earlier this summer.

What’s the talk?

Former Charlton trialist Madger Gomes has officially completed a move to League One outfit Crewe Alexandra, having been a free agent since leaving Doncaster at the end of last season, signing a two-year deal.

The Addicks gave him the opportunity to earn a contract earlier this summer as he played in a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace in a pre-season friendly, before ultimately opting against signing him.

They were right

This development on Gomes’ future shows that Charlton boss Nigel Adkins was right not to sign Gomes on a permanent contract following the end of his trial with the club earlier this year.

Had the Spaniard gone on to sign for a team like Sheffield Wednesday, Sunderland or Portsmouth, who are all vying for promotion, then fans may have questioned why a deal was not done, but he has gone to join a club battling against the drop.

Crewe are currently sat 23rd in the table after five games and have accrued one measly point, with Gomes’ former side Doncaster the only team below them. This shows that Gomes has only been able to attract serious interest from a team struggling at the foot of League One, which means that no other sides competing at the top end of the table believed that he would be an asset for them.

His performances for Doncaster last season were disappointing. He averaged a poor WhoScored rating of 6.49 across 22 appearances in League One, starting 11 of those matches. The midfielder averaged more losses of possession through poor control per game than he did dribbles and chances created combined, suggesting that he was a liability in the final third of the pitch as he gave the ball away more frequently than he made an impact going forward.

Defensively, he was fairly average. He managed 2.3 tackles and interceptions combined per game for Doncaster, which would place him 6th overall in the Charlton squad in the current campaign. He was also exposed aerially when defending his goal, as he lost a whopping 73% of his aerial battles in League One last season.

This could indicate why clubs higher up in the division refused to offer him a contract and he ended up joining struggling Crewe this week.

Therefore, Charlton made the right decision not to bring him into their squad for the campaign.

AND in other news, Possession lost 52x: Charlton dud with only 13 duels won endured disastrous August…

New Zealand will increase security at the grounds for the rest of India’s tour after a bottle-throwing incident during the second Twenty20 international in Wellington

Cricinfo staff28-Feb-2009
The Indians complain about crowd trouble during the second Twenty20 international © Getty Images
New Zealand will increase security at the grounds for the rest of India’s tour after a bottle-throwing incident during the second Twenty20 international in Wellington.Play was interrupted briefly twice during the final over of New Zealand’s chase when a plastic bottle thrown from the crowd landed near a fielder.”New Zealand Cricket [NZC] is fully committed to providing a high level of security, and I have given my assurance to the Indian team that increased security will be in place for the upcoming [ODI] series,” NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan told AFP. “This type of incident is unfortunate, especially in such an exciting and close game as we saw last night. Fortunately it does not occur often.”The measures to step up security will include more staff, higher visibility of personnel in potential problem areas and closer monitoring of the crowd. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian captain, said he hoped such incidents would not happen in the one-dayers.”When you’re playing at the top level you don’t really want bottles to be thrown at you,” Dhoni told the . “A cricket ball is hard enough to hit you and hurt you so you don’t want bottles flying all over. It happens – it’s like a disease and it spreads. That’s one area where they need to put in more of an effort, especially from the security point of view.”The New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori played down the incident. “Noisy crowds are part of the Twenty20 game and add to the excitement of the occasion. They don’t usually distract the players, we’re pretty focused on what’s happening in the middle. Incidents like last night are disappointing but they do happen in grounds all around the world.”New Zealand won the second Twenty20 international off the final ball to win the series 2-0. The five-ODI series kicks off on March 3 in Napier.

Sachin Tendulkar has returned early from India’s tour of Sri Lanka, and will miss the Twenty20 international on Tuesday

Cricinfo staff09-Feb-2009
Sachin Tendulkar won’t play the Twenty20 international on Tuesday © AFP
Sachin Tendulkar has returned early from India’s tour of Sri Lanka, and will miss the Twenty20 international on Tuesday. Tendulkar left on Sunday night since he was not part of the Twenty20 squad, team manager Prakash Dixit confirmed.Tendulkar had a torrid time in the first three games of the tour. Opening the batting, he had scores of 5, 6 and 7, and fell leg-before in all three games. He was rested for the final two ODIs after India won the first three games to seal the series. The five-match contest finished 4-1 in India’s favour.Tendulkar has not been a regular member of the India’s teams for the 20-over format. His only Twenty20 international, in December 2006, was on the tour of South Africa, and in 2007 he had opted out of the ICC World Twenty20 along with fellow seniors Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly. The team, led by present captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, went on to win the tournament in South Africa.

Patrick Vieira will be looking for his first victory as Crystal Palace manager when his side take on Watford in the Carabao Cup this evening.

The Eagles bounced back from an opening-day defeat at the hands of Chelsea with a goalless draw against Brentford over the weekend, and they’ll be hoping to build on that with another positive result at Vicarage Road.

What’s the word?

Vieira awarded Palace debuts to summer signings Conor Gallagher and Joachim Andersen last time out but the French tactician is expected to ring the changes once again for this midweek encounter.

However, one player who won’t be available is club captain Luka Milivojevic. The Serbia international is yet to make an appearance this season and was ruled out of the Brentford clash due to personal reasons.

“Luka is not gonna be available. He had his personal reason,” Vieira revealed in Friday’s press conference.

Milivojevic has not yet returned to the first-team setup in south London, and therefore, is set for an extended time away from the pitch.

The likes of Martin Kelly, James Tomkins, Jack Butland and Jean-Philippe Mateta will all be hopeful of receiving a rare chance to impress from the off, though, as Vieira looks to award some fringe players valuable game time.

He made his intentions to field a strong starting XI against Watford clear following their draw on Saturday, meaning the youth players may have to remain patient for a chance in the first team.

“The young players need to have a chance obviously, but they need to earn it as well. I will use this cup game to build on the confidence. If (on Sunday) and Monday morning, every player is available it will be for me to pick the strongest team because we want to compete in this competition,” Vieira declared.

Patrick Vieira will be gutted

Although securing a place in the third round of the Carabao Cup may not be very high up on Vieira’s priority list for the 2021/22 campaign, the former Nice boss will still be gutted to be without talismanic midfielder Milivojevic.

The 30-year-old has played a crucial part in the capital club’s success in recent years, and his continued absence will undoubtedly have a negative impact upon Palace and their ambitions to progress in the competition.

And, in other news…Vieira must unleash “impressive” £11.7m-rated gem today, could be CPFC’s game-changer 

A number of Liverpool supporters are excited after James Pearce claimed Naby Keita will start Saturday’s Premier League opener at Norwich City.

The Reds make the trip to Carrow Road this weekend, looking to make a flying start to their title challenge.

After a tough season last time around, Liverpool look primed to improve, with key players back fit and both Jurgen Klopp and his players well-rested.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359326”]

One player who is still waiting to fully ignite in a Liverpool shirt is Keita, who hasn’t hit the heights many expected of him when he arrived in 2018, making just 76 appearances.

The 26-year-old has enjoyed an impressive pre-season, however, and with Jordan Henderson and Thiago returning late this summer, The Athletic‘s James Pearce [via Anfield Edition on Twitter] claims the Guinean will be in the starting lineup to face Norwich.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/the-latest-liverpool-transfer-news-copy-4/” title=”The latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Liverpool fans happy Keita is set for start

These Liverpool fans took to Twitter to provide their positive thoughts on the news.

“Naby season let’s go”

Credit: @Himanshu_ahujaa

“Feed him the league”

Credit: @ChrisLiverpool1

“We are all about to witness an absolute masterclass of a season from this lad!! That’s right folks, I’m ready to get hurt again!”

Credit: @NathanLFC2021

“Redemption szn”

Credit: @lfcjohn_5

“Get in”

Credit: @jj__lfc

“Yesssirrrrr”

Credit: @dxnii50

In other news, some Liverpool fans have been reacting to an update regarding Harvey Elliott. Read more here.

Phillip Hughes’ brilliant season continued as his 114 was responsible for New South Wales’ strong position of 4 for 278

Cricinfo staff18-Dec-2008
Scorecard

Phillip Hughes, who put on 170 with Ben Rohrer, collected his third hundred of the season © Getty Images
Phillip Hughes’ brilliant season continued as his 114 was responsible for New South Wales’ strong position of 4 for 278 at the end of the first day against South Australia. While Ben Rohrer also produced a century with 109, Hughes has become a major weapon for the Blues and has 635 runs at 63.5 in a campaign that has led to the 20-year-old being talked about as Australia’s next Test opener.Hughes’ third hundred of the summer was timely for New South Wales after they lost Greg Mail (4) and Peter Forrest (1) despite lengthy stays. Rohrer arrived to help out in his return to the side and the pair put on 170 for the third wicket to justify Dominic Thornely’s decision to bat.Daniel Christian picked up Hughes, who hit 16 fours during his 224-ball innings, when he pulled to Cameron Borgas at midwicket while Rohrer departed when he was caught by the wicketkeeper Graham Manou off Mark Cleary. Thornely was 29 not out when bad light stopped play while Usman Khawaja was 10.

Southampton have been heavily linked with Joakim Maehle in recent years and the Denmark star would be available this summer should the Saints submit an acceptable bid, with the Atalanta man reportedly up for sale.

What’s the word?

Southampton were initially linked with the full-back during his time at Genk and reportedly submitted a bid to the Belgian Pro League side in January 2019.

However, that bid was rejected and he joined Atalanta in January, despite more reported interest from Southampton in the months beforehand.

After an impressive Euro 2020 with Denmark, with the versatile defender helping Kasper Hjulmand’s side to the semi-finals, it was perhaps always likely that links to Southampton would resurface, and according to Serie A football expert Conor Clancy, the 24-year-old will be up for sale by Atalanta this summer.

He told Football FanCast: “Everyone at Atalanta is for sale. That’s just how they work every summer.

“Maehle is not a starter on the left or the right at Atalanta. He showed some flashes of the player we saw at Euro 2020 early on at Atalanta, but then it didn’t quite happen for him.

“If a club wants Maehle, they can sign him. Everyone who saw the Euros knows Southampton would be getting a very good player if they can sign him.”

Should Southampton bid for Maehle?

Although Southampton have already brought in Romain Perraud and Tino Livramento as full-back options this summer, Maehle’s versatility suggests that he could be a great option for Hasenhuttl to have next season, as both Perraud and Livramento are young and inexperienced.

Maehle was one of the stars of Euro 2020, contributing two goals and one assist in six appearances for Denmark, which earned him a fantastic 7.38 rating from WhoScored for his performances. Ian Wright also labelled him “fantastic” after his performance against the Czech Republic in the quarter-finals.

He ticks a lot of boxes when it comes to a typical Hasenhuttl signing, as he is 24 years old, versatile and extremely athletic, whilst his current Transfermarkt value of £17.1m suggests that he could be affordable, especially with the money raised from Danny Ings and Jannik Vestergaard’s departures.

[freshpress-quiz id=“594431”]

Therefore, if Clancy’s claim is true and Atalanta are willing to sell this summer, that is a huge boost to Southampton’s reported hopes of signing Maehle, and Martin Semmens should definitely try and bring him to St Mary’s.

In other news… Semmens heading for Saints transfer disaster with £10.8m-rated “machine”

Everton haven’t been too active in the transfer window this summer but their hopes of securing a big-name signing have been quashed.

The Toffees had been interested in strengthening their attacking ranks with a genuine Premier League star.

What’s the word?

Rafa Benitez and co had been attracted by the idea of luring Manchester United attacker, Anthony Martial, to Goodison Park before the window closed.

It looked as though the Red Devils were willing to him go in order to reduce their wage bill but in a devastating blow for Everton, he is set to stay put.

That’s according to the ever-reliable Alan Myers. He took to Twitter early this week to reveal the following news:

“Anthony Martial will be staying at Man Utd this summer despite links to Inter Milan.”

Although he didn’t mention Everton’s interest, various reports have linked the Frenchman with a move to Merseyside.

Gutting blow

With Everton stagnating in their bid to improve the first team this summer, this will come as a gutting blow to supporters who were hoping for a marquee signing.

Martial hasn’t been one of the first names on the team sheet for Man United but he is an incredibly dangerous player and somebody who could have taken Benitez’s attack to the next level.

Signed for £36m all the way back in 2015, the forward has long been tipped for stardom without ever realising his frightening potential.

That being said, there have been instances when he’s taken the Premier League by storm, being described as “unstoppable” by Stephen Elliott after a first-class goal against Fulham in 2019.

Martial’s record in front of goal isn’t the most jaw-dropping but he has found the net on 78 occasions in United colours. Furthermore, he has recorded 50 assists, showing he knows how to be creative.

Everton have already signed two wingers in the shape of Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend but neither will be good enough to start on a regular basis.

Townsend only scored once in the Premier League last term while Gray ended the Bundesliga campaign at Bayer Leverkusen with just one strike to his name as well.

On that evidence, they could have sealed an instant upgrade in the Man United speedster. Instead, supporters will have to settle for more mediocrity; they have every right to be disappointed.

AND in other news, Benitez could discover his new Xabi Alonso if Everton sign “complete” £35m titan…

A record-breaking innings from Mark Pettini helped Leicestershire to a crushing 103-run victory over Warwickshire at Grace Road.

George Dobell at Grace Road02-May-2017
ScorecardMark Pettini plundered Warwickshire’s attack•Getty ImagesA record-breaking innings from Mark Pettini helped Leicestershire to a crushing 103-run victory over Warwickshire at Grace Road.Pettini thrashed the highest score by a Leicestershire batsman against a first-class county in the club’s List A history. It was also Leicestershire’s highest score against a first-class county and the second-highest score ever conceded by Warwickshire in List A cricket.Pettini won excellent support from the home-grown pair of Tom Wells, who registered his maiden one-day half-century and finished with career-best bowling figures, and Aadil Ali, who made his second half-century in succession. Both took full advantage of a fine batting surface – the same one used for Sunday’s defeat against Worcestershire in which 680 were scored – and a jaded attack, suggesting they had the ability to carve out successful careers at this level.Sam Hain made a polished 103 in reply. But from the moment Dieter Klein trapped William Porterfield, beaten by a ball that swung from leg to middle and hit him on the boot, and Jonathan Trott, edging one that swung the other way to take his outside edge, in his first spell there was only going to be one winner.Ian Bell drove to cover and though Tim Ambrose helped Hain add 118 for the fourth wicket, when the pair fell within a couple of overs of one another – Hain courtesy of an outrageously good diving catch from Ali – Warwickshire’s reply fell away. They lost their last six wickets for the addition of only 14 runs and their last five in the space of 15 balls. It was their second chastening defeat in two days and means their defence of their title is already hanging by a thread.On paper, this should hardly have been a contest. It featured, after all, last year’s champions against a team who finished eighth in their group. Not only that, but it featured a side containing six players with international experience at the highest level against a side which featured one man who had played international cricket and was missing its two first-choice seamers (Ben Raine and Clint McKay) due to injury.And it’s true, it was hardly a contest. From the moment Leicestershire’s openers plundered 72 from the first seven overs of the game, Warwickshire looked just a little slow, just a little tired, just a little old. In the field, with the ball and with the bat, they failed to match the athleticism of their unheralded rivals. You could easily be forgiven for mistaking which was the team from the Test-hosting ground and which was the unfancied small club with only two List A wins in the whole of 2016.Pettini, fed over-pitched deliveries at the start of his innings, drove gloriously and, when Warwickshire pulled back their length, cut savagely. Able to hit anything of good length over the top and on a surface offering no assistance to the spinners, Warwickshire had no answer.It was, in fairness, the sort of pitch that makes a bowler wish they’d become a plumber, a butcher or a Big Issue seller. But it was noticeable that, while Warwickshire’s medium-paced attack could get nothing out of the surface, Leicestershire’s extra pace asked a few more questions of the batsmen. Gavin Griffiths finished with career-best bowling figures.So while it’s true that Pettini’s timing was beautiful and the pitch was merciless, this was not a performance that many of the Warwickshire bowlers – or fielders – will look back on with any joy. Bereft of the pace to force the batsmen onto the back foot – anything short was dispatched – and reluctant to rely on the yorker with the straight boundaries much shorter than the square ones, they instead relied upon slower deliveries. But when the stock delivery is slow, the effect is diluted. Really, Leicestershire’s batsmen just waited and plundered.It is hardly surprising then that Warwickshire have recently made the first of their 28-day approaches to players coming out of contract at other clubs by the end of the season. Tom Kohler-Cadmore, of Worcestershire, is one target but they require bowlers as well as batsmen. They have the money to recruit, but attracting players to Edgbaston has not, historically, been easy. They have also announced a new partnership with Staffordshire Cricket, hoping to attract their best young players into their development system.As for Leicestershire, they seem to be finding a pleasing mix of youth and experience in their side this season. Whereas last year the balance veered too much towards experience, the new coach, Pierre de Bruyn, has seen the importance of creating opportunities for home-grown youngsters alongside a few experienced pros.Zak Chappell finished wicketless, but he has pace and potential that any club would relish, while the catch taken by Ali to end Hain’s innings was the highlight of the match. Running every bit of 30 yards from mid-on to long-on, somehow keeping his eye on the ball despite the floodlights and the proximity of the boundary, he clung on to an almost impossible, diving chance. If there’s a better catch taken this season, it will be quite some spectacle.It was not a perfect day for Leicestershire. Staging this as a day-night match in response to feedback from potential spectators who suggested they could be attracted to come after work, they were unfortunate to find the evening bitterly cold. Few, if any, of the 450 schoolchildren offered free tickets stayed until for the late ending (it is a school night, after all) and few of working age took advantage of the cheap – or even free – tickets available for the second innings. Leicestershire remains a club fighting for relevance in its community.But if they play like this, if they field a team that represents the community and offers hope to young local players, if they continue to reach out to potential spectators, they have a chance. This was a heartening evening that suggested, for the huge amount of ground they have to make-up, they are heading in the right direction.

Sanju Samson scored a half-century for Royals, but struggled to cut loose on a slow Wankhede pitch

Deivarayan Muthu02-May-20221:09

Vettori: KKR superb with their bowling plans for Buttler

Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh offset an early wobble and ensured Kolkata Knight Riders chased down 153 to snap their five-match losing streak, on a slow, grippy Wankhede Stadium track. After Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna had made early inroads for Rajasthan Royals, Rana and Rinku dismantled R Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal respectively to bring the target within Knight Riders’ reach.Rana cracked Ashwin for 23 off 14 balls on Monday, taking his overall head-to-head to 99 off 52 balls without being dismissed by the spinner in the IPL. He first forged a 60-run third-wicket partnership with Shreyas Iyer (34) and then a livelier 66-run stand with Rinku to usher Knight Riders home.Sanju Samson’s wretched luck with the toss continued – he has won only one out of ten tosses this IPL – but despite that Royals made a decent fist of their defence by dragging it deep. However, with 31 needed off 18 balls, Rinku whacked back-to-back fours off Chahal to effectively kill off the game. It was Rana who ultimately finished it with five balls to spare, with an uppercut six off Kuldeep Sen.Sanju Samson began brightly but slowed down considerably after the 30-ball mark•BCCIRoyals’ go-slow
Umesh Yadav got the new ball to swing both ways to threaten both edges of Jos Buttler in his first over. Ankul Roy, who was picked in place of the out-of-form Venkatesh Iyer, kept Buttler – and Devdutt Padikkal – quiet with his stump-to-stump darts. Umesh struck in his second over when he had Padikkal spooning a return catch for 2.After watching Royals gulp down 18 dots in the first four overs, Samson got a move on in the fifth over, hitting Umesh for back-to-back fours. Buttler uncharacteristically dawdled to 22 off 24 balls before Shivam Mavi combined with Tim Southee to dismiss him. Southee had bowled one in his slot – or perhaps just short of it – and Buttler shovelled it away in the air with his powerful bottom wrist. For a moment, the ball seemed to sail away for six, but Mavi intervened by leaping athletically to his right at long-on to pluck the ball out of thin air. At that stage, Royals were 55 for 2 in the ninth over.Samson, Hetmyer give Royals a leg-up
Samson was more fluent, often jumping outside leg to manufacture swinging room and scoring opportunities. He progressed to 40 off 30 balls, but managed only 14 off his last 19 balls. The pick of his eight boundaries was a regal cut off Mavi, but the seamer bounced back to remove Samson for the fifth time in seven IPL innings. During the toss, Shreyas explained that Mavi had slotted back in place of Harshit Rana because of his favourable match-ups against the Royals batters. Mavi did his job, returning 1 for 33 in his four overs.Riyan Parg only flickered briefly (19 off 12 balls), but Shimron Hetmyer fired in the slog overs, as he has often done in the recent past, clattering an unbeaten 27 off 13 balls. He was particularly brutal on Southee, taking him for 17 off just five balls.Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh added an unbroken 66 for the fourth wicket•BCCIKKR’s go-slow
Samson’s early impetus and Hetmyer’s late blows gave Royals’ attack something to work with. Trent Boult swung the new ball and bothered both Aaron Finch and B Indrajith – Knight Riders’ fifth different opening combination this IPL. It was Sen who made the first incision when he rushed Finch and had him chopping on for 4 off 7 balls.Indrajith showed a glimpse of his improved white-ball potential when he ramped Prasidh over short fine leg for four. Prasidh, however, banged in a head-high bouncer next ball to have Indrajith top-edging a hook to fine leg, who had been pushed back onto the boundary after that four. Knight Riders stuttered to 32 for 2 in the powerplay.The Rana-Rinku show
Ashwin was introduced into the attack in the next over, and Shreyas carved his first ball away between backward point and short third man. Rana then laid into him in his third over, picking him off for 4,6,4 with a variety of sweeps, including the reverse-hit.Boult had Shreyas caught by Samson down the leg side for 34 off 32 balls, but Rana and Rinku completed the job for Knight Riders without much fuss. With Rana vulnerable to rapid pace and bounce, Rinku took on both Prasidh and Sen before lining up Chahal too. Often confined to being KKR’s regular substitute fielder in the IPL, Rinku showed off his batting chops by contributing 42 off just 23 balls to an unbroken 66-run stand with Rana.