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Liverpool boss Matt Beard said his side's goalless draw with Everton "didn't feel like a derby" and slammed the Goodison Park pitch.

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Everton draw 0-0 with LiverpoolManager Beard criticises pitchSays it 'didn't feel like a derby'WHAT HAPPENED?

After the stalemate on Sunday afternoon, which was watched by just under 10,000 fans, Reds boss Beard said the pitch was too "dry" and "long" and it didn't feel like a Premier League surface. He also felt his team should have come away with all three points from the Women's Super League clash.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT MATT BEARD SAID

He said after the match: "It didn't feel like a derby. The pitch was dry, the grass was long – it slowed a lot down. There were a lot of injuries and the game kept getting stopped. It was disappointing to play on a Premier League ground and the pitch to be as long and slow as it was. It definitely had an effect on our game. But if we can't win it, we need to take a point and we did that. [It was] definitely a missed opportunity in the first half, I felt we were really comfortable and dominated the game. We need to be more clinical in the moments when we get into good positions. So to not take those opportunities was frustrating."

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Despite not claiming the victory, Liverpool have, arguably, been one of the WSL's biggest success stories this season as they are fourth in the table, ahead of 2022/23 title challengers Manchester United. They have already bettered their points total (29 vs 23) from last season and are certainly on the up.

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Next up, Beard's Liverpool take on joint league-leaders Manchester City in the WSL on March 30. Everton, on the other hand, travel to fifth-placed Manchester United a day later, looking to improve on their current position of 10th.

Chelsea have endured a miserable two years, from being crowned champions of Europe in 2021 to now struggling in the mid-table, it has been a stark fall from grace for one of London’s esteemed powerhouses.

In recent times, it is difficult to name a bigger fall from a Premier League side than the Blues, especially given the amount of money splashed on new recruits.

With the aim of fast-tracking their way back to success, Todd Boehly has facilitated such chronic spending having shelled out a staggering £1bn across three windows and while he is yet to reap the fruits of his labour, the American owner has laid down the marker of his ambitions.

Chelsea's youngest new signings

It is clear that Boehly has one eye on the future with the profile of player acquired; normally a wonderkid who is under the age of 23 who has risen to prominence on English shores or across the globe.

In the summer, the Blues showcased their hunger for hoovering up talented youngsters with nine of their 12 signings aged 23 or under, including Manchester City’s Cole Palmer, Southampton’s Romeo Lavia and Stade Rennais Lesley Ugochukwu.

Chelsea’s focus isn’t just on recruiting youngsters from afar, it is also their philosophy to develop homegrown academy talent before throwing them into the senior setup having done so with Reece James, Conor Gallagher and Levi Colwill in the past.

Pochettino’s next job is to cherry-pick the most talented homegrown stars – like the above – and mould them into first-team regulars. One position he could look at targeting the academy for is centre-back.

With 39-year-old Thiago Silva likely to leave the club upon the expiry of his contract in June 2024, the next generation should use his departure as fuel to take his place.

Thiago Silva’s season in numbers

Despite reaching the twilight years of his glittering career at the top of world football, Silva has shown no signs of slowing down this term and Pochettino’s one wish would be to slice a few years off his age.

The Brazilian has established himself as one of the greatest defenders of the modern era and is a beacon of excellence in a sea of mediocrity.

Whilst many around him have dropped their levels, he has continued to shine, impressing with his calmness under pressure, relentless consistency, defensive prowess and winning mentality.

The veteran has remarkably featured in every minute so far in the Premier League and will likely continue that trend against London rivals Tottenham Hotspur tomorrow night.

And although Chelsea have suffered through their lack of cutting edge in attack, Silva has been instrumental to them posting strong defensive metrics.

In the top flight this term, only Manchester City, Newcastle United and Arsenal have conceded fewer expected goals than the Blues 12.47, while only four teams have shipped less than their tally of 11.

The £110k-per-week star has been at the heart of that solidity, winning 70% of his total duels, 77% of his aerial duels, recovering 6.4 balls and making 1.2 tackles per game, as per Sofascore.

Appearances

10

Clean sheets

3

Balls recovered per game

6.4

Clearances per game

4.2

Total duels won

70%

Dribbled past per game

0.4

Accurate pass completion

96%

All stats via Sofascore

In an ideal world, Pochettino wouldn’t have to replace his defensive monster but as he turns 40 next year, the Argentine needs to line up a worthy replacement.

That said, the Argentine could look to his academy and unleash centre-back Josh Brooking into the senior setup.

Josh Brooking’s style of play

Brooking is a central defender who has been a part of Chelsea’s academy set-up since 2018.

The 21-year-old impressed across 14 Premier League 2 appearances last term and although he missed the beginning of this campaign, the youngster has since had a positive impact on the side.

He scored a tremendous solo effort against one of the league's best sides, Manchester City, which demonstrated his pace, athleticism, ball control as well as his presence of mind to slot past the City 'keeper.

Having displayed elegance and confidence with his ability to carry the ball long distances, Brooking’s wonderful goal and sensational performance drew high praise from head coach Mark Robinson.

He told Chelsea’s official website: “Josh has come back into the group to add some experience as well as keep him developing after not going out on loan this past window.

“When we went five months unbeaten last season, Josh was absolutely pivotal to that run both in his performances and leadership skills. He showed that again with a quality performance.”

Dubbed by journalist Antonio Mango as “brilliant” for his display against the Citizens, Brooking is both physically imposing out of possession and a Rolls-Royce in possession; two qualities that are a staple of any modern-day defender.

If he can continue to deliver consistent performances in Premier League 2, he could become the latest Chelsea academy graduate to earn a chance in the first team, following in the footsteps of Colwill in recent times.

Levi Colwill’s statistics 23/24

Colwill has been at the Chelsea academy since the age of nine, rapidly rising through the underage groups.

Like many youngsters at Stamford Bridge, he was loaned out to Huddersfield in 2021/22 where he played a vital role in them reaching the play-offs before starring on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion last term.

Roberto De Zerbi labelled his development on the South Coast as “fantastic” and he has since carried that across to west London, becoming an instrumental figure across Pochettino’s back line.

The 20-year-old has been in fine form for the Blues this term as Gareth Southgate awarded him his senior England debut in the 1-0 win over Australia.

A titan – described as “having everything” by none other than Rio Ferdinand – Colwill’s confidence and composure on the ball is akin to the former, establishing himself as one of the best ball-playing centre-backs in the league since making his Blues debut against Liverpool.

He places within the top 6% against his positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues in the past year for shot-creating actions, top 15% for progressive carries, top 11% for passes into the final third and top 23% for progressive passes, as per FBref.

Colwill’s skill in possession has been complimented by his ability to read the game and come out on top against quality attackers in the battle of pace, strength and aggression.

At the age of 20, he has everything in his locker to become an elite defender in world football and Pochettino’s faith in youth could see him name a defensive duo of Blues academy graduates, Colwill and Brooking, in the not-so-distant future.

The former captain will miss the team’s tour of South Africa in September and also the one to Bangladesh in October

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Sep-2018Zimbabwe will be without their former captain Graeme Cremer for the series against South Africa and Bangladesh in September and October. The legspinner, recuperating from surgery on his right knee, will be out of action for at least eight weeks.Cremer has had a history of trouble with his right knee, and the team physiotherapist said “conservative interventions” had failed to relive symptoms, making the surgery a necessity. The 31-year old last played for Zimbabwe during the World Cup qualifiers in March, where they fell short of securing their progress to next year’s event. He was sacked as captain after that as part of a clear-out which saw the coach and much of the backroom staff lose their jobs. Since then, he, along with Brendan Taylor, Craig Ervine, Sean Williams and Sikander Raza, sat out the T20 tri-series against Australia and Pakistan, as well as the following ODI series owing to unpaid salaries.Fast bowler Kyle Jarvis, who hasn’t played since the start of July with a broken finger, is close to full fitness. In-form opening batsman Solomon Mire, who was forced to miss the ODIs against Pakistan after suffering an gluteal tear, is also back.”Mire has now fully recovered from his ankle injury while his gluteal is now strong following successful rehab. He will be ready for our South Africa and Bangladesh tours,” physiotherapist Anesu Mupotaringa said. “Jarvis is recovering very well following his second operation on his fractured thumb in Cape Town. He has now started doing light bowling and batting drills with the team and we hope he will be ready for South Africa.”Zimbabwe’s first ODI against South Africa takes place on September 30. They play three ODIs and three T20Is against each other, before flying to Bangladesh to play three ODIs and two Tests.

Erik ten Hag has sensationally revealed that Chelsea "did not want to sell" Mason Mount, as he backed the midfielder to make it "big" at Old Trafford.

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Mount was signed in a £60million dealTen Hag reveals Chelsea's reluctancy to sellManager backs midfielder despite injury-ravaged seasonGettyWHAT HAPPENED?

The England international made a £60 million ($76m) move to Old Trafford last summer after months of protracted contract negotiations with the Blues. While many speculated that Chelsea, in light of Mount's injury history, saw an opportunity to cash in on their academy product to alleviate financial pressures, Mount himself hinted at feeling unwanted at Stamford Bridge. "Several months ago, it became clear I wasn't in Chelsea's plans going forward," he said in an interview with MUTV in July 2023.

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Contrary to popular belief, Ten Hag contends that Chelsea made numerous attempts to retain Mount, offering him new contracts on multiple occasions. Ultimately, it was Mount who expressed a desire to pursue new opportunities, leading to his decision to join Manchester United.

WHAT TEN HAG SAID

Speaking to reporters, Ten Hag said: "I don't think Chelsea wanted to sell him. They wanted to keep him and offered him a new contract many times. But he wanted to make this step.

"He's a fantastic football player. It's important first that he's getting and keeping fit. You see it now with Licha (Martinez), you want to avoid that. So you have to do it very carefully. We want to use him so he can have benefit and have a contribution to the team, as he did on Saturday."

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Mount's transition to United has not been without challenges, with injuries limiting his Premier League appearances to just nine so far. However, his recent performance, including opening his goal-scoring account in a draw against Brentford, demonstrates his potential to make a significant impact for the Red Devils.

"I am sure he will contribute and he will become a big player for Man United," Ten Hag said.

"I was so happy for him. But so sorry for him also that it wasn't the winner. He deserved that moment of glory, maybe it was such a small moment but, for a player who came in and suffered so many injuries and worked so hard all the time, and had so many setbacks, it was so frustrating. And then you think you've scored a winner so we were disappointed when we conceded that goal that makes it 1-1. It makes a totally different mood, as you can imagine."

Manchester United could be set to lose one of their first-team stars next summer, with a fresh report revealing that he’s set to receive an offer alongside Bruno Fernandes.

Bruno Fernandes – Saudi Arabia links

According to reports, Fernandes has emerged as a target for some of the biggest clubs in the Saudi Pro League who are keeping close tabs on his situation, with the same outlet claiming that his admirers are willing to offer up to £87m to prise him away from Old Trafford at the end of the season.

The Red Devils midfielder’s entourage are expected to hold talks with representatives from the wealthy division to discuss what a potential switch would look like upon the conclusion of the current campaign, but if the following update is to be believed, he might not be the only senior squad member heading for the exit door.

At the start of the season in the Premier League, Harry Maguire looked to have fallen significantly down the pecking order, but having started the past five consecutive games in the top-flight (Transfermarkt – Maguire statistics), Erik ten Hag appears to have handed the centre-back another lifeline.

West Ham United were heavily linked with a move for England’s international over the summer, whilst Everton also had a proposal rejected, and despite a deal failing to come to fruition for either club before the previous deadline, the 30-year-old is now attracting interest from a new potential suitor in the Serie A.

Juventus plotting swoop for Harry Maguire

According to JMania (via Sport Witness), Juventus are considering tabling a bid for Maguire next summer. The Allianz Stadium outfit are preparing a “monstrous offer” thought to be in the region of €30m (£26m) for their target, but with no further information available, it remains to be seen whether these claims are completely accurate.

Maguire has become "undroppable" under Ten Hag

Standing at 6 foot 4, Maguire is able to provide a real physical presence with his height at the heart of the defensive backline, and since being brought back into the team, he’s more than proved why he deserves to keep his place in the starting line-up at Man United.

The Sheffield-born talent is currently averaging 3.1 clearances and the same amount of aerial wins per game in the Premier League (WhoScored – Maguire statistics), but he’s also capable of posing a threat to the opposition when it comes to the action in the final third.

Sponsored by Puma, Ten Hag’s colossus has clocked up 54 goal contributions (29 goals and 25 assists) since the start of his career, so not only is he effective in his own position, but he can even help the side be successful at the top end of the pitch.

Since he’s returned to the team, Maguire has been described as an “undroppable” player by journalist Josh Bunting for the leadership qualities and the determination that he’s shown, so whilst a summer exit initially seemed likely, it might be a good idea to keep him in the building beyond next summer.

Wilkins, who scored 10,966 first-class runs including 18 centuries, had been in deteriorating health for some time

Liam Brickhill02-Oct-2018Chris Wilkins, the former South African provincial and county opening batsman, has died at the age of 74. Cricket South Africa announced Wilkins’ death “with shock and sadness” on Tuesday morning.An aggressive opening batsman who could also bowl nippy medium pace, Wilkins represented Border, Eastern Province and Natal in a career that spanned nearly 20 years. Wilkins settled in KwaZulu-Natal after his retirement, becoming a farmer in the Harding district. He had been in deteriorating health for some time.During his playing days, Wilkins also had a stint with Derbyshire in the County Championship, and in all scored 10,966 first-class runs, including 18 centuries, and took 142 wickets. He was also an excellent fielder, often keeping wicket when he wasn’t bowling, or standing at slip.It was, however, as a limited-overs cricketer that he made his biggest impact during his time with Eastern Province. His ability to hit the fastest of bowlers over mid-on and mid-off made him a feared competitor.In an interview with The Cricket Monthly in 2017, legendary South African fast bowler Garth Le Roux made special mention of Wilkins’ positively modern approach to batting.”One or two batsmen hit me back over my head for six,” he said. “Viv Richards did it once or twice, but the player who tried it most often was Chris Wilkins. He was particularly good at it. He’d move right back on his stumps and hit straight. This also gave him more time to hook and pull anything a bit short. He was the most annoying batsman to bowl at.”On Twitter, former South Africa spinner Pat Symcox commented: “Sad to hear of the passing of possibly one of South Africa’s most attacking batsmen ever. An opening bowler’s nightmare. Chris Wilkins was a legend.”Wilkins transferred his pinch-hitting skills to first-class cricket, forming a formidable opening partnership for Eastern Province with Simon Bezuidenhout. On one occasion Wilkins scored a century in just over an hour and the pair managed to secure a bonus batting point before the lunch interval. With Currie Cup bonus batting points allocated for surpassing set team totals, this would have meant that the pair must have scored at least 175.”On behalf of the CSA Family I extend our deepest condolences to his family, his friends and his many cricketing colleagues,” CSA Chief Executive Thabang Moroe said.

Dermot Desmond and the rest of the board decided to go down a familiar route over the summer as they opted to bring Brendan Rodgers back to Celtic for a second spell.

The Hoops were in need of a new head coach after Australian tactician Ange Postecoglou departed to join Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur at the end of the 2022/23 campaign.

Rodgers left Leicester City earlier this year and was, therefore, available for the club to swoop for and he has enjoyed and endured a mixed start to his second stint in Glasgow.

The Bhoys are unbeaten in the Scottish Premiership with 11 wins and two draws from their opening 13 matches. However, they are also out of the League Cup after a 1-0 loss to Kilmarnock and are bottom of their Champions League group.

Their form has come off the back of a busy summer of transfer business as the Celtic boss was allowed to bring in nine new recruits; Marco Tilio, Hyeok-kyu Kwon, Hyun-jun Yang, Maik Nawrocki, Gustaf Lagerbielke, Odin Thiago Holm, Paulo Bernardo, Luis Palma, and Nat Phillips.

One of those signings has yet to kick a ball for the Scottish giants in a competitive match, though, and his future has now come into question ahead of the January transfer window.

Celtic transfer news – Marco Tilio

According to a recent report from the Daily Record, Tilio may consider a move away from Parkhead on a temporary basis ahead of the second half of the season.

The outlet claimed that the winger could secure a loan move to find regular game time in the first half of 2024 after a troubled start to life in Scotland.

After being signed before Rodgers arrived in Glasgow, the Australia international dealt with an issue and the Northern Irish boss confirmed that he would miss the start of the season.

However, the ex-Foxes chief did add that Tilio is an "exciting" player and this may have given supporters something to look forward to over the coming weeks. Yet, over four months on from those comments and the forward is yet to make his first-team debut for the Hoops.

A loan exit from Parkhead should not be on the cards for the talented ace, though, as a possible exit for Daizen Maeda could open the door for him to break into the side.

TEAMtalk reported in September that Tottenham are keeping close tabs on the Japan international ahead of a potential swoop to reunite him with Postecoglou in January.

The outlet claimed that it could take a fee of around £25m – the figure they recieved from Al Ittihad for Jota – in order to tempt Celtic into parting ways with him and it remains to be seen whether or not any clubs are willing to pay that.

If Maeda does leave, though, then Rodgers may already have the dream heir to his position in the team in Tilio, who he could unearth as an excellent option on the flanks.

Maeda's season in numbers

The 26-year-old whiz has not enjoyed a phenomenal start to the campaign and raking in £25m for him would represent a masterclass from the Hoops.

Maeda has only contributed with two goals and two assists in 12 Premiership appearances so far this season, which is an average of one goal involvement every three matches.

For context, Jota, who was sold for £25m and is two years younger, managed an eye-catching 11 goals and 11 assists in 33 league outings for the Scottish giants last season – one contribution every 1.5 games on average.

This suggests that Spurs, or any other side, would be overpaying to land the Japanese forward as he is older than the Portuguese whiz and affects games far less frequently as a wide player.

Maeda, who scored eight goals and provided five assists in 35 Premiership matches during the 2022/23 campaign, has also struggled at Champions League level.

Since the start of last season, the right-footed ace has played ten matches in Europe's premier cup competition and contributed with zero goals and one assist. He has missed three 'big chances' and only created one 'big chance' for his teammates during that period.

These statistics suggest that Maeda is not able to influence games with goals, assists or 'big chances' created on a regular basis – certainly not as regularly as Jota was able to do with the same price tag.

The statistics that show why Tilio could be Maeda's heir

Signed from Melbourne City for £1.5m, Tilio's form for his former club over the past two seasons indicates that he has the potential to come in as an upgrade on the Japan international if he does move on in January.

The 22-year-old wizard burst onto the scene as a regular contributor for his side during the 2021/22 campaign as he showcased his attacking quality as a scorer and a creator of goals.

Tilio ended that season with a return of five goals, five assists, and nine 'big chances' created, in 13 A-League starts and 24 appearances in total.

His nine 'big chances' provided and 1.6 key passes per game for his teammates suggest that the Australian ace deserved more than five assists to his name and proved that he has the quality to frequently open up opposition defences.

The left-footed gem, who was once compared to Manchester City and England star Phil Foden by talent scout Jacek Kulig, followed that up with a terrific 2022/23 campaign.

Tilio plundered an impressive ten goals and five assists in 29 A-League outings for Melbourne City, alongside winning two penalties for his side, and was then snapped up by Celtic.

The 5 foot 7 Hoops outcast, who was once hailed as a "phenomenal" talent by A-League striker Bruce Djite, has not had the opportunity to show whether or not he can translate that form over to Scottish football this season.

His return of one goal or assist every 1.93 matches last term for Melbourne is far more impressive than Maeda's aforementioned statistics out wide this term, which is why he could emerge as a dream heir for the Spurs target during the second half of the season.

Ruben Amorim has reportedly reached a “verbal agreement in principle” to succeed Jurgen Klopp and become Liverpool’s next manager.

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German coach preparing to step downReds in the market for a new bossPortuguese set to arrive from SportingWHAT HAPPENED?

The 39-year-old former Portugal international is currently calling the shots at Sporting, but is ready to embrace an exciting new challenge in England from the start of next season. Amorim emerged as a top target for those at Anfield after it became clear that current Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso will not become available this summer.

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According to , Amorim has verbally agreed on a three-year contract with Liverpool. That paperwork is waiting for him to sign on Merseyside, with final negotiations between the Premier League giants and Sporting said to be taking place.

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Bayern Munich, who are preparing to part with Thomas Tuchel, also expressed interest in Amorim. It is claimed that Chelsea asked about the Portuguese’s potential availability at the end of the current campaign, as Mauricio Pochettino faces uncomfortable questions of his future at Stamford Bridge.

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Liverpool have seemingly won the race for Amorim’s services, as they bid a long farewell to German coach Klopp. He will be walking away in the summer after close to nine years at the Reds’ helm – with there still a chance that he will leave a Premier League title-winning squad for Amorim to inherit.

Marcus Stoinis made 81 but could not get Western Australia close to their target after yesterday’s collapse

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2018New South Wales 261 (Patterson 107*. Abbott 69, Richardson 8-47) and 253 beat Western Australia 198 (S Marsh 81, Copeland 4-52) and 212 (Stoinis 81, Lyon 4-86)Nathan Lyon and Sean Abbott bowled New South Wales to back-to-back Sheffield Shield wins as they secured a 104-run victory against Western Australia.The Warriors resumed on 6 for 115 chasing 317 and soon lost Ashton Agar to Lyon who has found excellent rhythm ahead of the Test series against India.The last man to stand between New South Wales and victory was Marcus Stoinis and for a little while he and Cameron Green started to form a useful stand before Lyon struck again to have Stoinis caught in the deep and win an absorbing contest between the two internationals.Abbott claimed the final two wickets as he removed Green and Matthew Kelly.