Former Bears left-armer helps Hampshire establish first-innings lead with ninth five-wicket haul for the club

ECB Reporters Network24-Jun-2024Hampshire 298 and 88 for 2 (Middleton 58, Gubbins 24*, Mousley 1-0) lead Warwickshire 254 (Bethell 69, Mousley 57, Barker 6-74) by 132 runs Keith Barker reminded Warwickshire’s fans of the skills they lost in 2018 as he bowled Hampshire into control on the second day of their Vitality County Championship match at Edgbaston.Barker’s left-arm swing earned him 14 hauls of five wickets or more as a Warwickshire player. He bagged his ninth for Hampshire with 6 for 74 to give them the upper hand in a gripping contest in the Birmingham sunshineIn reply to 298, Warwickshire were dismissed for 254 by Barker and Kyle Abbott (3 for 64) despite impressive resistance from young batters Jake Bethell and Dan Mousley.A lead of 44 is handy in conditions which have given the seamers some encouragement and Hampshire built on it in the final session to reach 88 for 2 as Fletcha Middleton struck his second half-century of the match.After Warwickshire resumed on 51 for 2, the ground echoed to perhaps the earliest ever cry of ‘get on with it’ when, at 11.01am, a long delay ensued while the ball was inspected and then changed. Barker wielded the replacement to spectacular effect with a burst of 3 for 17 in 25 balls. He trapped Danny Briggs lbw, had Sam Hain superbly caught by Ben Brown, standing up, and hit Ed Barnard’s off-stump.From 83 for 5, Mousley and Bethell applied themselves diligently. Destructive batters in the Blast (Bethell smashed 50 from 15 balls last week – this time he scored just two from his first 15), they showed they also have the technique to dig in against good bowling. They added 74 in 22 overs before Mousley was lured into driving away from his body at Barker and edged behind.Michael Burgess joined Bethell to add 64 in 21 overs before Barker returned to strike twice more. Bethell edged a big drive to first slip where James Vince accepted that catch and another two overs later when Chris Woakes edged a footwork-free waft.Craig Miles smote three quick fours but then played down the wrong line to Abbott. Mohammad Abbas finally collected a deserved wicket when Burgess chopped on.With the evening session to enlarge their lead, Hampshire began badly when Toby Albert edged Olly Hannon-Dalby’s second ball to slip, but then advanced meticulously. Middleton continued his good form from the first innings to reach a 60-ball half-century and Nick Gubbins (24 not out in over two hours) unfurled an innings of low entertainment for the spectators but high value to his team as the advantage ticked upwards.Middleton edged Mousley behind 14 balls before the close and though Hampshire are well on top, Warwickshire are very much still in the game. This intriguing match may have a fascinating second half in wait for those spectators, particularly those who are connoisseurs of threes. With a very long boundary on the Pershore Road side of the ground, this has been a veritable festival of threes – there have been 15 already.

Aston Villa couldn’t turn down an offer of around £71m for Jhon Duran in January. The striker may have scored 12 goals in just 29 games for the club, but only seven of those appearances came in the starting XI.

It was unlikely the Colombian was going to usurp Ollie Watkins as Unai Emery’s main man.

While it made financial sense to sell, Watkins remains the only senior centre-forward at the club heading into the summer transfer market.

The Spaniard must bring in another one or two options in this department, especially if he wishes to lead the club to the Champions League once again.

Could he be targeting a young sensation who has enjoyed a fabulous season?

Aston Villa target Spanish centre-forward

A host of attacking players have been targeted recently. Tyler Dibling, the Southampton winger, has been linked with a big-money move to Villa.

Jadon Sancho is another wide option that Emery is showing interest in. Both of these talents would bolster the club’s wide options, but it is a more central player that the manager is desperate for.

According to Caught Offside, Villa are now chasing a move for FC Porto striker Samu Aghehowa.

The Spaniard has spent a single season with the Portuguese giants, but his performances have certainly caught the eye of potential suitors.

They don’t appear in a rush to sell their prized asset, who has a release clause of €100m (£85m) inserted into his current deal.

Despite that, further reports from Spanish publication, Sport, suggest that they have already approached Porto to figure out whether a deal could be done.

Why Aston Villa must sign Samu Aghehowa this summer

Young, an eye for a goal and a desire to succeed in the Premier League. Aghehowa might just be the club’s next Duran.

While Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio came in for the final few months of the season, the club missed the goals and impact of Duran, particularly during the final 30 minutes of games.

Well, Aghehowa scored 25 goals across 42 games for Porto last term, a more than impressive return, especially given it was his debut season at the club.

The striker, who was described as “one of Europe’s most prolific players” by talent scout Jacek Kulig last season, also registered 2.7 shots per game in the league last term, while he also achieved a goal conversion percentage of 23% for Porto.

Put simply, once he gets the ball in the box, the youngster scores more often than not, just as Duran did. He would get more of a chance at Villa than the South American, however, despite Watkins’ stature as the main centre-forward.

Metric

League

Europa League

Goals

19

6

Assists

3

0

Goal conversion percentage

23%

33%

Scoring frequency

119 minutes

228 minutes

Shots per game

2.7

2

Much will depend on the fee Porto are demanding for their star player, but if it is affordable, then Emery must make this deal a priority.

If he manages to lure Aghehowa to the Premier League, he could sparkle for Villa next season and beyond.

Aston Villa join battle for "fantastic" midfielder in cut-price £8m deal

He’s a wanted man.

ByTom Cunningham Jun 8, 2025

Match details

Australia vs Namibia
Antigua, 8.30pm local time

Big Picture – Australia pose tough challenge for Namibia

A number of the so-called ‘big’ teams have found this tournament a struggle so far – the hopes of England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka hang by flimsy threads while New Zealand started poorly. But myAustralia, barring their small stumble early on against Oman, are tracking nicely after their resounding performance against England in Barbados.A win against Namibia will confirm their progression to the Super Eight ahead of their final group fixture with Scotland – a game that could yet be dripping with narrative – although they won’t want to leave anything to chance. A change of venue from Bridgetown to the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua will bring with it the need to recalibrate to the conditions, but there appear very few holes in Mitchell Marsh’s team, with depth on the bench as well.Related

• Australia punch and counterpunch to blow England away

• Australia could rest players vs Scotland in potential Group B decider

The batting performance against England was a perfect team effort with a top score of 39 in a total of 201 with Glenn Maxwell’s strike-rate of 112 the lowest. Perhaps, if nitpicking, one of those scores being converted would have capped things off, but it also showed how a deep batting order can just keep on going once the platform has been laid as it was by David Warner and Travis Head.The only previous occasion these two teams have met in a full international (they played a warm-up game a couple of weeks ago) was at the 2003 ODI World Cup in South Africa. On that day, Glenn McGrath helped himself to figures of 7 for 15 which remain the best figures in that tournament.Namibia’s group stage is backended by the clashes against Australia and the under-pressure England. Their captain Gerhard Erasmus was left frustrated by the performance against Scotland where he thought his team had enough runs but were below their best in the field.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)
AustraliaWWWWW
Namibia LW(Super Over)WWLAustralia have ticked plenty of boxes so far•ICC via Getty Images

In the spotlight: Adam Zampa and Bernard Scholtz

Adam Zampa is settling into the tournament very nicely after coming off a lengthy break following the Australian season. He has a brace of wickets from both outings and was one of the key differences against England when he claimed the dangerous Phil Salt with his first ball. He has developed into a white-ball great for Australia and is now just four wickets away from being their first men’s player to reach 100 T20I wickets.Left-arm spinner Bernard Scholtz has been incredibly tidy in Namibia’s first two outings and, along with the captain, was key to piling on the pressure against Scotland. He has 1 for 20 from both the matches, showing skilful variation of flight and pace, conceding just one four and one six across his eight overs. The prospect of taking on Australia’s heavy hitters will be a daunting one but they would be wise not to take him lightly.

Team news: Australia have an eye on their quicks

Head coach Andrew McDonald said Australia would not be looking too far ahead and would pick their best XI rather than rotate players for this game, although that could come against Scotland should qualification be assured. However, he did leave the door ajar for some management of the quicks given the tight schedule ahead.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Travis Head, 3 Mitchell Marsh (capt), 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Tim David, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodThe one change Namibia have made so far is JP Kotze for Michael van Lingen – both have made first-over ducks. The balance of their side has been knocked out of kilter somewhat by Jan Frylinck and JJ Smit being unable to bowl.Namibia (possible) 1 JP Kotze, 2 Nikolaas Davin, 3 Jan Frylinck, 4 Gerhard Erasmus (capt), 5 Malan Kruger, 6 Zane Green (wk), 7 David Wiese, 8 Ruben Trumpelmann, 9 JJ Smit, 10 Bernard Scholtz, 11 Tangeni Lungameni

Pitch and conditions

The early signs from Antigua’s first match was that it could be a quick-scoring venue as Scotland raced to their target against Oman. The breeze can play a significant factor at this ground. The forecast is for cloudy conditions but no major threat of rain.

Stats that matter

• Although Australia have not played a full international against Namibia since 2003, Tim David faced them once during his Singapore days.
• David Wiese faced Australia four times in T20Is during his South Africa career
• The Scotland-Oman game was the first T20I at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium since 2021 – overall it has the second-lowest T20I batting strike-rate of all grounds in the Caribbean

Quotes

“Some time in the middle, it was a difficult surface outside the power play, [and a] challenge with spin. I think it ended up being 28 off 25 balls. But it was a significant innings in allowing the rest of the batting line-up to get where we wanted them to get to. So, albeit it wasn’t the dynamic innings that we’re used to with Glenn Maxwell, it was a different type of innings.””I think everyone’s been waiting a long time for these last two games against Australia and England. Two previous winners and that’s definitely the two teams you want to play and you want to sort of make a mark for yourself in those games.”

West Bromwich Albion’s drawn-out search for a new manager has ended with Ryan Mason now officially in the Baggies’ hot seat.

There is plenty of intrigue surrounding this appointment as the Championship side ditch the tried and tested approach of Tony Mowbray for something left-field and fresher, with the 33-year-old taking on his first ever head coach role having only once been a stand-in option at ex-employers Tottenham Hotspur.

He will want to get down to business soon in the transfer market to begin to leave a lasting mark on his new side, with plenty of signings rumoured to be entering the building alongside the fresh-faced manager.

West Brom locked into talks with new striker

Mason could utilise those Spurs connections when adding to his Baggies squad, with North London prodigy Mikey Moore already being tipped to make a loan move to the EFL to expand his horizons, away from previous links suggesting Jamie Donley could call the West Midlands home shortly.

Further, it looks as if West Brom could win themselves a new deadly marksman in the form of Hearts’ goal machine Lawrence Shankland.

Journalist Mark Hendry has now revealed that West Brom are locked in talks about bringing the prolific 29-year-old to the Hawthorns, as the Hearts captain increasingly looks more and more likely to walk away from the Edinburgh giants on a free transfer.

But, the Championship promotion hopefuls aren’t alone in their interest, with Hendry surprisingly adding that both Al-Ettifaq and Al-Wedha are sniffing around from Saudi Arabia.

How Shankland could be West Brom's best striker since Maja

If West Brom were to pip these outfits to the coveted signature of the Scotsman, they could be about to seal their best striker signing since Josh Maja’s addition, with the equally lethal attacker going on to be a golden purchase up top himself, considering he joined the ranks in 2023 on a free transfer as well.

Maja has endured difficult periods at the Hawthorns, however, with a mammoth 44 games missed through injury over the last two seasons.

But, when he’s fit, there’s a real lack of strikers in the Championship that possess the same clinical edge the Nigerian has in abundance, with the devastatingly effective number nine picking up 12 goals last campaign, despite only being fit enough to line up for 26 league clashes.

Shankland has also displayed a “ruthless” cutting edge – in the words of pundit Chris Sutton – throughout his celebrated spell on the books of Hearts, with this last-gasp goal against arch rivals Hibernian just one of many crucial strikes the Glasgow-born attacker has powered home for Derek McInnes’ men.

Having played up and down the various Scottish leagues across his goal-laden career to date, it does feel like the time is right for Shankland to test himself in a new and challenging environment, with the 6 foot 1 menace hopeful he can take to the pressures of the Hawthorns in his stride, much like Maja did when taking the plunge two years ago.

Shankland’s G/A record for Hearts by season
Season	Games played	Goals scored	Assists
24/25	43	9	11
23/24	47	31	8
22/23	47	28	4
Sourced by Transfermarkt

After all, before his return to England, the ex-Sunderland forward had begun to garner his own reputation for being a reliable source of goals when leading the line for Bordeaux, with 29 goals tallied up from 93 appearances.

Therefore, when assessing Shankland’s monstrous total of 68 strikes from 137 contests for Hearts, he should find his shooting boots are an equally uncomplicated find in the EFL’s elite league.

Mason would love to welcome in Shankland then as one of his first signings, with the 33-year-old no doubt crying out for a potent forward line to help his new side instantly gun for promotion.

Mason can sign West Brom's next Fellows in young star who's like "Neymar"

Ryan Mason would love to welcome this stunning star to this brand-new West Bromwich Albion squad.

1

By
Kelan Sarson

Jun 4, 2025

A very exciting season awaits for Newcastle United.

Last time round, the Magpies won the EFL Cup, ending their 70-year wait for domestic silverware, and finished fifth in the Premier League, with the Champions League patch featuring rather prominently in Monday’s third kit launch video.

More importantly, ahead of their Champions League return, Eddie Howe – backed by the Saudi PIF – will be determined to bolster his squad, so could some new signings be imminent?

Newcastle looking to bolster their backline

As has been widely reported, Newcastle United are close to signing Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford for £40m, thereby surely set to become the Magpies’ new number one.

This is interesting, because it is pretty debatable if Trafford is a clear upgrade on existing first-choice shot-stopper Nick Pope, more on that later.

Meantime, according to the Mirror, via Fußball Transfers, Newcastle are ‘stepping up their efforts’ to sign Bayer Leverkusen centre-back Edmond Tapsoba, claiming that they’ve made a £50m offer.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

They add that Tottenham are also ‘interested’ in signing the Burkina Faso international, while die Werkself ‘are willing to negotiate a sale’.

However, having already sold Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Jonathan Tah and Odilon Kossounou for a combined £164m this summer, die Schwarzroten are not under pressure to accept a low-ball offer, so could hold out for Tapsoba’s £81m release clause.

Nevertheless, having just brought in Jarell Quansah from Liverpool for a reported fee of £30m, Bayer may well be preparing for life after Tapsoba, so could he be on his way to Tyneside?

Why Edmond Tapsoba would be a better signing than James Trafford

Still only 26 years old, Tapsoba joined Bayer Leverkusen from Vitória de Guimarães in 2020, making 226 appearances for the German club to date, starting 28 of 34 Bundesliga matches as die Werkself picked up the Meisterschale for the first time ever in 2023/24.

His performances have earnt rave reviews, with journalist António Mango labelling him a “monster”, while Jacek Kulig of Football Talent Scout asserted that he is “solid as a rock”.

So, let’s assess how he compares to Newcastle’s current centre-backs.

Appearances

43

42

10

46

Minutes

3,613

3,629

581

3,974

Pass completion %

87%

83.7%

89.4%

88.4%

Tackles

1.4

1.2

2.7

1.1

Interceptions

0.9

1.4

1.1

0.8

Clearances

3.1

4.1

5.5

5.3

Blocked shots

0.6

0.8

0.9

0.7

Ball recoveries

4.5

4.2

3.1

2.8

Aerial duel success %

61%

44%

61%

66%

Ground duel success %

48%

48%

71%

50%

Touches

80.7

72.4

68.5

65.5

As the table documents, Tapsoba compares favourably to Newcastle’s existing centre-backs, leading the way when it comes to ball recoveries and touches per 90, while, across the board, he was only behind Sven Botman on a per 90 basis.

This, however, is due to the fact the Dutchman played fewer than 650 minutes across all competitions last season due to various knee injuries, underlining that centre-back is a position that Howe will be looking to bolster, especially left centre-back.

Goalkeeper, on the other hand, did not appear to be such a problem position, so let’s compare the two ex-Burnley goalkeepers, Pope and Trafford.

Appearances

28

28

Goals conceded

35

62

Saves

86

106

Save %

71.7%

65.7%

Post-shot xG – goals conceded

+1.8

-5.9

% of crosses stopped

10.9%

7.2%

Pass completion %

73.5%

65.5%

As the table highlights, when comparing the pair’s most recent Premier League campaigns, Pope’s numbers are actually more impressive than those of Trafford, with the caveat that the latter was playing for a hopeless Burnley side, and has certainly improved following a season back in the EFL Championship.

Nevertheless, Trafford does not appear to be coming in to fill a position of need, unlike Tapsoba.

Ben McAleer of the Guardian described the defender as calm and composed in possession, while Dylan Buesnel of Total Football Analysis agrees, praising his excellent ball retention and ‘ability to keep the ball under pressure’, adding that his ‘defensive attributes are helping him shine’.

Meantime, Vishnu Anandraj of Breaking the Lines labels him a ‘consistent performer’, impressed by his ‘athleticism and composure’, all of which suggests Tapsoba would be a transformative signing for Newcastle and for PIF, whereas it’s difficult to argue that the same could be said of Trafford.

Clive Madande, Brian Bennett and Johnathan Campbell, who are all part of the ongoing T20I series against India, are the new faces in Zimbabwe’s Test squad, which was named earlier today for the one-off fixture against Ireland later this month. Joylord Gumbie, who is yet to be capped in the format, is also in the squad of 15.Zimbabwe, who last played a Test match back in February 2023, in Bulawayo against West Indies, and are not a part of the ICC’s World Test Championship, will travel to Ireland for the first Test between the two countries, with the match slotted for July 25 to 29. The game will be played in Belfast.Leading them will be Craig Ervine, and making a comeback after missing that series against West Indies because of an injury is Sean Williams, who Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) said would “provide the team with the much-needed experience” along with Tendai Chatara, Blessing Muzarabani, Victor Nyauchi and Richard Ngarava. The last three are currently playing the T20I series against India, which Ervine has missed, with ZC saying Williams and he had not been considered for selection.Of the new faces, Bennett and Campbell have only played T20Is so far, while Madande has appeared in both ODIs and T20Is.Ervine, with 20 Test appearances over the years, and Williams, with 14, are the most experienced Test players in the travelling party, and while Zimbabwe don’t have a lot of pedigree in the format, their opponents have only played eight Tests since playing their first Test in May 2018. They lost their first seven Tests before getting their first win when they beat Afghanistan by six wickets in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.Ireland were expected to host Australia for three ODIs and three T20Is too, and while there is no word on whether those are still part of the plan or not, fund-related issues for Cricket Ireland have meant a cut in the number of home fixtures this summer.When Zimbabwe last played Test cricket, their squad had Gary Ballance, in what became his farewell appearance after he had switched from England to Zimbabwe. The players who were part of that two-Test series but aren’t in the mix now are Chamu Chibhabha, Innocent Kaia, Tanunurwa Makoni, Milton Shumba, Tafadzwa Tsiga, Brad Evans, Brandon Mavuta, Kudzai Maunze and Donald Tiripano.

Zimbabwe squad for one-off Test in Ireland

Craig Ervine (capt), Brian Bennett, Johnathan Campbell, Tendai Chatara, Tanaka Chivanga, Joylord Gumbie (wk), Roy Kaia, Clive Madande (wk), Wellington Masakadza, Prince Masvaure, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Victor Nyauchi, Sean Williams

Australian allrounder set to return home for knee surgery

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Jul-2024Essex have signed Eathan Bosch for the second half of their Vitality T20 Blast campaign after Australia allrounder Daniel Sams was ruled out through injury.Sams, who was the Blast’s MVP in 2023 as Essex finished as runners-up to Somerset, suffered a knee injury playing against Sussex during the first block of group games. With surgery required, he will now return home rather than staying on for the rest of the Blast as planned.Speaking to Essex’s YouTube channel he said that the injury may require “four to six months’ recovery”, which could impact on his availability for the 2024-25 Big Bash League.”It’s been great [to come back here],” Sams said after his third spell at Chelmsford. “My wife and I really enjoy coming back here, and we’ve made some really good friends with the guys and their partners.”It is what it is. I’ve been pretty lucky throughout my career with injuries, so I’ll just have to go home now and recover as best as I can.”Sams had taken seven wickets in six appearances this season, having been a key factor in Essex’s run to Finals Day last summer. They currently six fourth in the South Group, with five wins from eight games.Bosch, 26, was initially brought in for four Championship games and has so far picked up eight wickets at 24.12 from two appearances. A former South Africa Under-19, he has experience of playing in the SA20 for Pretoria Capitals.Essex are next in action when they host defending champions Somerset at Chelmsford on Friday night.

تحدث محمد بركات لاعب الأهلي الأسبق، عن تعادل منتخب مصر مع بوركينا فاسو بالمواجهة التي جمعت بينهما مساء اليوم ضمن منافسات تصفيات كأس العالم 2026.

وانتهت المباراة بين مصر وبوركينا فاسو بالتعادل 0-0، ليتم تأجيل حسم تأهل الفراعنة إلى الجولة المقبلة أمام جيبوتي.

طالع | موعد مباراة مصر القادمة بعد التعادل مع بوركينا فاسو في تصفيات كأس العالم

وقال محمد بركات في تصريحات تلفزيونية عبر قناة ام بي سي مصر: “تعادل مرضي بشكل كبير وتعادل بطعم المكسب، بوركينا المنافس الأقرب لك، وتخوض المباراة على ملعبه، وبالنسبة له كانت فرصة أخيرة”.

وتابع: “حسام حسن تعامل مع المباراة بشكل جيد، وواضح في الملعب أن اللاعبين لم يكن لديهم أي استعداد للخسارة”.

وزاد: “لا يصح أن نضع حسام حسن تحت الضغط طوال الوقت، بل يجب أن نفخر بأن لدينا مدربًا وطنيًا مثله، ويؤدي ما هو مطلوب منه، فهو لم يخسر أي مباراة، وتعادل في مباراتين، ولم تُسجل ضده سوى هدفين، وكل أرقامه مقبولة جدًا”.

واختتم: “محمد هاني كان من أفضل اللاعبين المتواجدين في الملعب، وكان أحد نجوم المباراة”.

وأضاف: “وضعنا قدمًا في كأس العالم للمرة الرابعة، تحية لكل اللاعبين المتواجدة في الملعب والجهاز الفني، نفتخر أننا لدينا جهاز فني يتأهل بنا لكأس العالم”.

Captain’s 76 not enough as Gloucestershire defend 251 at York

ECB Reporters Network02-Aug-2024

Ollie Price added a half-century•Getty Images

Ollie Price’s watchful 98 off 118 balls plus a feverish bowling display led by three-wicket quick Matt Taylor led Gloucestershire to an entertaining win over Yorkshire at York as they successfully defended a 252-target to triumph by 36 runs.Price had underpinned Gloucestershire’s 251 for 9, while opener Miles Hammond leant support with 54. But the visitors added only 85 runs in a damaging final 15 overs which saw seven wickets fall.The Vikings responded on a challenging batting pitch, with new-ball seamer Ben Coad (2 for 27 from 10 overs) particularly impressive as one of four bowlers who struck twice.Shan Masood and James Wharton hit 76 and 56 respectively to leave Yorkshire well placed, but they slumped from 137 for 2 to 215 all out inside 48 overs. Left-armer Taylor finished with 3 for 35 off 10. Both counties have now won two, lost two in Group B.Gloucestershire elected to bat on the same hybrid pitch used for Yorkshire’s Wednesday win over Sussex, and they showed early caution against accurate bowling. After Cameron Bancroft’s early departure, caught behind off Coad, Hammond and Price advanced impressively as extra bounce was evident without extra pace.They rotated strike amidst an 88-run partnership, and a feature of Price’s innings was his sweeping and reverse-sweeping against spin. But the reverse against Dan Moriarty’s left-arm spin was Hammond’s undoing, bowled shortly after reaching his 84-ball fifty. By then, Price had also reached 50 off 65.Price beautifully drove two boundaries almost arrow straight off Ben Cliff’s seam in the 34th over before, at the start of his next, James Bracey hoisted the same bowler over long-on for one of only two sixes in the entire innings. However, Gloucestershire’s acceleration was shackled, as four wickets fell for 19 from 172 for 2 in 36th over to 191 for 6 in the 41st.Cliff struck twice in an action-packed 36th as Bracey played on and Ben Charlesworth was caught behind. Coad then forced Jack Taylor to play on, as did Moriarty to Graeme van Buuren. Tom Smith added a useful 27, but Price was yorked by George Hill as the visitors only just crept over 250.Wickets continued to fall as Yorkshire replied. Fin Bean was bowled off the inside-edge as he left Matt Taylor alone before Ajeet Singh Dale bowled Will Luxton shortly afterwards, the Vikings 24 for 2 in the seventh over.Masood and Wharton set about a no-frills recovery, sharing a third-wicket 113. Masood hit 63 in Wednesday’s Sussex win, and by the time his latest half-century arrived off 52 balls, Yorkshire were on a healthy 94 for 2 in the 21st.Acceleration came when they hit three leg-side sixes off the spin of Price and van Buuren, taking the score to 117 for 2 in the 23rd. It was now Yorkshire’s game to lose. But that’s exactly what happened.Matt Taylor had Masood caught behind and bowled Hill in successive overs before Harry Duke pulled Dom Goodman’s seam to midwicket – 147 for 5 in the 33rd.Wharton reached his fifty off 78 balls, but him crawling through the 40s heightened home nerves. It was, therefore, no great surprise when he miscued Smith’s left-arm spin to backward point, leaving the Vikings six down at 163.That became 176 for 7 in the 39th when Singh Dale trapped Dom Bess lbw. Now it was Gloucestershire’s game, and they didn’t let things slip.Coad was run out before Matthew Revis, for 41, and Moriarty were caught in the deep off Goodman and van Buuren.

Chelsea are believed to be closing in on an agreement for their fourth exit of the summer, with BlueCo attempting to trim the club’s bloated books.

Enzo Maresca’s side have already waved goodbye to Kepa Arrizabalaga, who signed for Arsenal in an official £5 million deal earlier this week, with the 30-year-old joining defender Basir Humphreys and fellow keeper Marcus Bettinelli out of the Stamford Bridge door.

Related Chelsea ready to sell £80m duo after agreeing Pedro and Gittens deals

Enzo Maresca’s side need to balance the books.

Posts ByEmilio Galantini Jul 2, 2025

Humphreys sealed a £12 million permanent move to Burnley in May after spending the 2024/2025 campaign on loan at Turf Moor, helping Scott Parker’s side achieve promotion back to the Premier League, while Bettinelli replaced Scott Carson at Man City.

These departures have yielded around £19 million in total transfer fees, but given the club have spent around £140 million already this summer, they’ll need to orchestrate more exits in an effort to stay in line with PSR and UEFA’s FFP regulations.

Chelsea’s best performers in the Premier League last season

Average match rating

Cole Palmer

7.33

Moises Caicedo

7.02

Enzo Fernández

6.95

Nicolas Jackson

6.88

Noni Madueke

6.82

via WhoScored

Liam Delap’s £30 million switch from relegated Ipswich, Joao Pedro’s now-confirmed £55 million move from Brighton and Gittens’ pending £55 million arrival from Borussia Dortmund could yet be followed by more incomings, so player sales will become an absolute necessity before deadline day on September 1.

Lesley Ugochukwu, João Félix, Renato Veiga, Ben Chilwell, David Datro Fofana, Armando Broja and Axel Disasi are all on the chopping block this summer, according to The Athletic, while Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson, Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke are also linked with high-profile exits lately.

Arsenal are seriously looking at Madueke as a back-up option/competition for star winger Bukayo Saka, and given the plethora of transfers conducted between both sides over the last few years, there is every possibility the England international could be next out of the door.

“Noni Madueke is one of the players Arsenal are looking at,” said David Ornstein to The Athletic.

“Arsenal have long been searching for back-up/competition for Saka. They first looked at Mbeumo, that didn’t work out, so they had to look at alternatives — Madueke is among them.

“A lot appeals to Arsenal about that profile because he can play on the other side too, he’ll be known to many of the Arsenal players, he’s London based and Chelsea are always open to conversations about trading.”

Chelsea close to finalising Djordje Petrovic transfer to Sunderland

Chelsea could also trim their backlog of shot-stoppers down even more, with both Robert Sanchez and Djordje Petrovic up for sale (Simon Phillips).

The latter played a key role on loan at sister club Strasbourg last season, and Petrovic has received plenty of interest this summer. Many suitors have reportedly phoned his representatives to gauge the possibility of a transfer (Simon Phillips), which is no surprise considering his “world-class” talent, as described by Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior.

Now, as per Sky Sports Switzerland reporter Sacha Tavolieri on X, it appears one of them are now closing in on a deal for the Serbia international.

Indeed, it is believed Sunderland are now close to finalising Petrovic’s signing from Chelsea, which could be for around £22 million if all goes to plan.

If done, this is a very solid move for the 25-year-old, as he’ll likely accumulate far more game time between the sticks for Regis Le Bris’ men, and could have the opportunity to play a vital role in helping Sunderland maintain their newly-found top-flight status.