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Everton host Premier League leaders Manchester City with new Toffees manager Frank Lampard experiencing a mixed start to proceedings at Goodison Park.

The 43-year-old has experienced two wins and two defeats since taking over on the blue side of Merseyside, with both victories coming at home and the losses away.

Next up is a major test for the Toffees who will look to unstick themselves from the bottom end of the table as soon as possible, with Lampard’s side 16th and two points clear of the drop zone.

But who will start for the Merseyside outfit as they host Pep Guardiola’s side in the late Saturday kick-off?

Football FanCast predicts that Lampard will continue with the 4-4-2 formation that he has used in the last two matches against Leeds United and Southampton.

First-choice goalkeeper Jordan Pickford remains in between the sticks with no changes in the defence either, with the two changes coming in the midfield.

With an important FA Cup tie against Boreham Wood to contest on Thursday, there could be an argument for adjustments to the starting lineup as Lampard looks to manage his squad.

Winger Alex Iwobi put in a well below par performance against Southampton last weekend, with the 25-year-old Nigeria international without a goal contribution in the Premier League for almost four months.

The wide man has come under plenty of scrutinies for his lack of involvement in the final third, with TalkSPORT’s Adrian Durham saying earlier this season: “Listen, for a player that cost £36m, and my understanding is he’s on a fair wedge, he’s got to put chances like that away.

“When you get the chance to start for Everton Football Club and you’re presented with opportunities like that and you’re producing an air shot, you’ve got to focus and concentrate harder and make sure you get a contact on the ball, and at least force the goalkeeper to make a save.”

In his place comes Andros Townsend who appears to now be back to full fitness having endured a spell on the sidelines over the festive period and has exceeded expectations since joining last summer.

The £48k-per-week winger, labelled as “tireless” whilst at Crystal Palace, has scored seven goals in all competitions so far this campaign.

Centrally, Donny van de Beek has had a slow start to his temporary tenure at Goodison Park, with the Dutchman on loan from Manchester United for the remainder of the campaign. Although it’s very early days, Lampard may be tempted to tinker with a busy schedule to come and opt for Andre Gomes alongside Allan in the middle.

This would arguably provide more cover against a ruthless opposition, with both midfielders defensively minded. Moreover, Gomes was the Englishman’s preferred option to replace Allan at St.Mary’s last weekend when the Brazilian was on a yellow card and needed to be withdrawn.

In terms of the frontline, Everton fans will be desperate to see Dominic Calvert-Lewin find the back of the net again, with the Englishman struggling for form since his lengthy absence due to injury.

The striker was out of action for three months, having scored in each of his first three league appearances of the season, with a fractured toe but hasn’t scored since returning to the side almost two months ago.

It’ll be a tall task for Frank Lampard’s side to take a result from the league leaders who can’t afford another slip up after their 3-2 defeat to Tottenham last weekend with Liverpool breathing down their necks. Although, stranger things have happened than Everton getting a result against Manchester City.

In other news: Moshiri suffered an Everton howler over £27m-rated “monster”, Lampard will be gutted – opinion

Liverpool centre-back Nat Phillips is attracting Deadline Day interest from Bournemouth, according to The Times’ Paul Joyce. 

The lowdown

With the January transfer window nearing its end, the Reds have yet to offload any senior players.

Phillips was heavily involved in 2020/21 amid an injury crisis, but he has only made three appearances for the first team this season, with his only start coming on the final matchday of the Champions League group stage.

Liverpool had already qualified for the round of 16 as group winners before they faced AC Milan at San Siro in early December, enabling Jurgen Klopp to make changes.

The latest

Joyce tweeted shortly before midday on Monday that Bournemouth want to take the 24-year-old on loan for the remainder of the campaign, with the Cherries also taking an interest in another Liverpool defender.

He outlined: “Bournemouth are looking to sign Nat Phillips, the Liverpool centre-back, on loan for the rest of the season. Phillips will have regular football and Liverpool will receive a loan fee. Bournemouth are also interested in right-back Neco Williams.”

The verdict

It was reported earlier in the month that Liverpool were willing to let Phillips leave permanently if their £15m demands were met, but either the Englishman’s suitors don’t think he’s worth that much, or maybe they simply can’t afford to shell out that kind of sum. Indeed, Watford’s £7m offer may be the best that the Reds have received up to this point.

Phillips showed just how good he is with what called Klopp an ‘outstanding’ performance at the San Siro, where he locked horns with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He would be quite a coup for Championship side Bournemouth, where he will hopefully get the same volume of game-time that he enjoyed at Anfield in the early months of 2021.

In other news, Caoimhe O’Neill has dropped a big Deadline Day update on this £7.2m-rated Liverpool ace

Andrew White’s unbeaten half-century took Ireland to a six-wicket victory against Canada even as rain threatened to thwart Irish hopes on the last day

Cricinfo staff04-Sep-2010
ScorecardAn unbeaten partnership of 59 runs between Andrew White and John Mooney took Ireland to victory against Canada•Bryan Vandenburg, Cricket CanadaAndrew White’s unbeaten half-century took Ireland to a six-wicket victory against Canada in Toronto even as rain threatened to thwart Irish hopes on the last day of an absorbing match.Play began with Ireland four down and requiring only 52 to win with rain forecast for the day. White and John Mooney began patiently before White opened up in the fourth over, driving and pulling Rizwan Cheema for consecutive fours. With 28 runs still needed, rain interrupted proceedings and no play was possible for a major portion of the day. Ireland’s optimism was turning into despair, but the sun eventually came out and play resumed.White did not waste time, reaching his fifty with consecutive fours off Khurram Chohan. He then pulled Umar Bhatti past midwicket to bring up Ireland’s victory, remaining unbeaten on 59 off 73 deliveries with eight fours. Mooney was not out on 16 off 35 balls with three fours in an unbroken 59-run stand for the fifth wicket. White was named Man of the Match for guiding Ireland to victory after top-scoring with 84 in the first innings.It was a comfortable win ultimately for Ireland after Canada had fought back on the second and third days. Ireland now have 52 points from five matches and are placed fourth in the points table. They take on third-placed Zimbabwe XI in Harare in their last match, which begins on September 20. Canada finished last with five losses in six games.

An update has emerged on Newcastle United, regarding their pursuit of Burnley striker Chris Wood…

What’s the talk?

Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie has revealed that the Clarets did not expect the Magpies to stump up the cash to activate his release clause.

He initially Tweeted: “Also hearing as per @JPercyTelegraph that Chris Wood is travelling to the North East tonight for a medical. Newcastle have met his Burnley release clause, which is thought to be in the region of £20m.”

The reporter then added: “Burnley were aware of Chris Wood’s release clause but didn’t think Newcastle would trigger it. They thought it was too high. Clarets angry that Wood would leave to a relegation rival. His Burnley contract was up next year.”

Delight

This update from Downie will surely leave Newcastle fans feeling delighted as it perfectly illustrates the muscle they now have in the transfer market. Long gone are the days of refusing to pay loan fees and missing out on signings because of it.

PIF are making serious moves and putting their money where their mouth is, as shown by Burnley’s surprise at this deal for the striker. That is why fans will be over the moon as it shows that their club is making strides off the pitch in order to change their fortunes around on it.

The supporters will also be buzzing as it means that Wood is poised to arrive to bolster the squad. He is a proven Premier League goalscorer and could provide a lift to the squad on the pitch in the second half of the campaign.

He has previously been compared to Magpies legend Alan Shearer, with former Leeds man Ben Parker saying of a goal he scored for the Whites:

“It was a fantastic header. He’s kind of like Sheareresque and I don’t think there are many strikers in the division, especially in the Championship, even going to the Premier League, who would have scored with that header.”

Wood has scored 10+ goals in each of the past four seasons leading up to the 2021/22 campaign. This shows that he knows how to find the back of the net at this level and could be a key asset for Howe in the coming months as they attempt to work their way out of the relegation zone, which is why fans will be buzzing with the deal overall.

AND in other news, “Still trying”: Keith Downie issues five-word NUFC claim that’ll leave fans buzzing…

New South Wales will look to the West Indies and New Zealand for an overseas player after Sri Lanka blocked Tillakaratne Dilshan from playing in the Big Bash

Peter English25-Jun-2010New South Wales will look to the West Indies and New Zealand for an overseas player after Sri Lanka blocked Tillakaratne Dilshan from playing in the 2010-11 Big Bash. Dilshan, the explosive opener, signed with the Blues in March but his country wants him to avoid any unnecessary setbacks before next year’s World Cup.The move is a blow to the Blues and a spokesman said they had already started searching for a replacement after learning of the development over the past week. Nishantha Ranatunga, the Sri Lanka Cricket secretary, said their contract holders would not be able to play in overseas domestic leagues before the World Cup in February.”The board has taken the position in consultation with the selectors and coaching staff,” Ranatunga told Cricinfo. “The players will be focusing on the World Cup in 2011 and the decision has been made not to release any of them for any domestic tournament.”Dilshan was Northern Districts’ overseas signing last season in New Zealand’s domestic Twenty20 competition before planning his switch to Australia. He has scored at a strike-rate of 120.50 in 31 Twenty20 internationals, but New South Wales will still have a powerful top order including the locals David Warner, Phillip Hughes and Phil Jaques.While the Blues won the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 in India, they failed to qualify for the 2010 event after finishing second last in the Big Bash. West Indians have been in high demand with the states, who are allowed to bring in two overseas stars each.Chris Gayle and Kemar Roach have been contracted by Western Australia and Dwayne Bravo (Victoria) and Kieron Pollard (South Australia) will also take part. Securing the best New Zealanders could also be difficult as their internationals are involved in local campaigns in January.Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor and Daniel Vettori are the most attractive options from New Zealand, although they will also want to try qualifying for the Champions League through their domestic sides. Vettori (Queensland) and Taylor (Victoria) both made guest appearances last summer while McCullum was a controversial late addition in New South Wales’ final victory in 2008-09.Tasmania were initially hopeful of attracting Lasith Malinga and Angelo Mathews before being told of Sri Lanka’s plans to protect their players. Instead the Tigers re-signed the Pakistani Naved-ul-Hasan, who is currently banned for a year by his country following his performances on the 2009-10 tour of Australia.

Hampshire bounced back from an indifferent opening day to peg Yorkshire back on day two of the County Championship match at the Rose Bowl

25-May-2010
ScorecardAdil Rashid had success with bat and ball as Yorkshire fought back at The Rose Bowl•PA PhotosHampshire bounced back from an indifferent opening day to peg Yorkshire back on day two of the County Championship match at the Rose Bowl. Resuming on 300 for 3, Yorkshire seemed set for a mammoth total on a decent batting track with skipper Andrew Gale and former captain Anthony McGrath at the wicket.But Hampshire, in contrast to some insipid bowling yesterday, kept things tight from the off and were rewarded in the 10th over of the day when McGrath nicked James Tomlinson through to Nic Pothas behind the stumps for 64. Gale followed quickly after to a rejuvenated Dominic Cork for a well-constructed 56 to leave Yorkshire on 333 for 5, with new batsmen Adil Rashid and Jonathan Bairstow both at the crease on nought.An excellent morning session looked to be complete for the home side when wicketkeeper Bairstow edged Tomlinson to give Pothas has third victim of the day. But just as the initiative looked to be swinging back Hampshire’s way, so some inspired attacking cricket from Rashid restored parity, the talented allrounder racing to 46 not out at lunch.He and Richard Pyrah moved Yorkshire onto 393 for 6 after lunch, before Pyrah edged David Balcombe to first slip, sparking a mini collapse. First Rashid went for a neat 51, before tailenders Tino Best and Oliver Hannon-Dalby were quickly polished off as Yorkshire’s innings – which had earlier promised a score nearer 500 – limped to 415 all out.Hampshire’s reply got off to a solid if unspectacular start, England cap Michael Carberry and opening partner Jimmy Adams prodding and nudging the score to 49 without loss. But just as the pair began to find the boundary, Yorkshire struck twice in quick succession to tilt the initiative back in their favour.First Carberry went attempting to advance down the track to Rashid, succeeding only in clipping the ball straight back to him where the leg-spinner took a neat return catch. Michael Lumb, restored to Hampshire ranks after a visit to Downing Street with his fellow World Twenty20 colleagues, followed for a duck just moments later when he top-edged a pull off Rashid safely into the hands of first slip Jacques Rudolph.The wicket brought the experienced and in-form Neil McKenzie to the wicket, who combined with Adams to calmly move Hampshire out of trouble to the relative calm of 143 for 2. However, with the light fading, Adams fell to seamer Hannon-Dalby for 82, leaving England prospect James Vince to see out the remaining overs with McKenzie, and leave the game in the balance at the halfway stage.

With 19 games played in the Premier League so far this season, Leeds United have only managed to win three of them, drawing seven and losing eight in the process.

In addition to this, Marcelo Bielsa’s side have only scored 21 goals, which is 11 fewer than they had managed to score last season with 19 league games played.

With this in mind and the fact that the January transfer window has now opened, the Yorkshire club could use this time to acquire some attacking players to help them put the ball in the back of the net throughout the remainder of the season and climb away from the relegation zone.

According to a recent club-by-club January transfer guide from the Daily Mail, Leeds are interested in signing Norwich City’s Todd Cantwell to add another attacking figure to their squad.

As a product of Norwich’s youth system, Cantwell has made a total of 153 appearances for the club across their youth and senior sides, scoring 21 goals and providing 17 assists along the way.

Labelled as a player that has a “fighting spirit” by Kevin Hofland who was assistant manager at Fortuna Sittard during Cantwell’s loan spell there in 2018, this season has been a rather uninspiring one for the 23-year-old so far with 11 appearances and five starts under his belt in the Premier League with no goals or assists.

However, his lack of form could potentially be put down to the fact that he’s been deployed in a number of different positions across the midfield and attack this season and has failed to have any sort of consistency under Dean Smith since he arrived at the club back in November.

While this could put some clubs off making a move for him this month, if Cantwell was able to get some regular playing time under Bielsa’s guidance, this could give him the opportunity to get his season back on track and potentially avoid relegation, which seems to be where Norwich are heading towards with just 10 points on the board.

With Leeds having been linked with a move for the £18m-rated man since 2020, it could be a dream for Bielsa to finally have the player at Elland Road, replicating their long-winded hunt of Dan James across a number of years.

Leeds and Victor Orta should definitely approach Norwich this month to see if they would be willing to cash in and part ways with Cantwell, who could then revive his season and start a new chapter in his career with Leeds. Considering their own inconsistencies, they could do with a player of his talents to improve the squad.

In other news: Orta could unearth Leeds’ next Phillips with swoop for £22.5m-rated “phenomenon” – opinion

Bangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay

Cricinfo staff25-Apr-2010
ScorecardBangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay. South Africa had a chance to steal a win with two balls left in the game, but the last-wicket pair of Emon Ahmed and Subhasis Roy batted them out.Resuming on 145 for 3, chasing 395, Bangladesh were boosted by a 104-run stand for the fourth wicket between Mahmudul Hasan and Shuvagoto Hom. But the lack of partnerships after they were dislodged hurt their chances of fighting on. Keshav Maharaj, the left-arm spinner, started the slide by picking up two quick wickets, including Hasan for 55, before Gino Vries sent back Hom for 74. The South Africans won a series of lbws in their favour as the game slipped further away from the hosts. They lost their eighth wicket with five overs to play but held their nerve in the end.

Abhimanyu Mithun and Under-19 players, Harpreet Singh and Mandeep Singh, have been awarded the Border-Gavaskar scholarship for 2010

Cricinfo staff13-May-2010Abhimanyu Mithun and Under-19 players, Harpreet Singh and Mandeep Singh, have been awarded the Border-Gavaskar scholarship for 2010. The scholarship entitles them to a two-week training stint starting May 15 at Cricket Australia’s Centre of Excellence in Brisbane.Mithun, 20, had a fantastic debut domestic season, finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy, in which he helped Karnataka reach the final for the first time in 12 years. His performances were rewarded with a call-up to the national squad for the Tests against South Africa earlier this year, and an international debut in the one-dayers that followed.He wasn’t picked for either the World Twenty20 or the second-string side to tour Zimbabwe, but is part of the India A outfit that tours England next month. For a player who hasn’t trained or played outside India before, the trip to Brisbane helps him get a taste of overseas conditions.”The scholarship provides good preparation for that tour (of England),” Mithun told Cricinfo. “They have good coaches for fast bowlers there, it will be a good chance to learn more about fitness for fast bowlers, and my coach has told me learn about the slower ball (which he has been working on).”Accompanying Mithun will be two players who were a key part of India’s Under-19 World Cup campaign earlier this year. Harpreet is a left-hand batsman and right-arm medium-pacer from Madhya Pradesh, and Mandeep is a top-order batsman from Punjab. Both of them caught the eye during the U-19 tour to Australia last year, and were part of the Kolkata Knight Riders for the 2010 season.Players who have received the scholarship in previous years include seamer RP Singh, batsman Virat Kohli, Saurastra batsman Cheteshwar Pujara and Delhi seamer Pradeep Sangwan.

Brad Haddin’s second one-day international century gave Australia a 2-1 lead and the most one-sided victory of the tour, as they chased down their target with 16 balls to spare

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale09-Mar-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBrad Haddin’s best ODI score buried New Zealand•Getty ImagesBrad Haddin’s second one-day international century gave Australia a 2-1 lead and the most one-sided victory of the tour, as they chased down their target with 16 balls to spare. Haddin’s 110 was his highest ODI score and he ended Daniel Vettori’s hopes of winning what he said before the match was “the most important game of the series”.Ricky Ponting was annoyed in the opening two games at his batsmen’s inability to capitalise on their starts, and they resolved that problem at Seddon Park. Ponting made 69 and combined with Haddin for a matchwinning 151-run partnership that justified Ponting’s rare decision to send New Zealand in. It is a gamble he has taken 24 times in his ODI captaincy career for a remarkable 20 victories.His bowlers did the job early by dismissing New Zealand for a thoroughly gettable 245 and in the chase, Haddin set about determining the result early. Haddin loves batting against New Zealand; his only two ODI hundreds and his first Test century have come against them, and in all three forms of the game he averages 52.06 against New Zealand compared to an overall career mark of 34.55.He did cruel things to Michael Mason, who at 35 was playing his first international since mid-2008 and must have finished the day wondering if fighting back into the team was all worthwhile. Mason’s opening delivery, a no-ball, was dabbed by Haddin for four past the wicketkeeper and the subsequent free-hit was slapped contemptuously back over his head for six.It left Mason with the extraordinary economy rate of 66 after one legal delivery. Haddin drove two more boundaries in the over, which cost Mason 20, and the bowler was lucky that his ten overs cost only 68. Haddin brought up his fifty from 51 deliveries and also attacked with confidence against Scott Styris, who was hit back over his head for six.Haddin’s timing was exquisite and his shots appeared effortless. Every one of his seven fours and five sixes was felt by Shane Bond, who had put down an extremely tough caught-and-bowled chance when Haddin was on 8, and later by Tim Southee, who put him down on the boundary when he had 83. He ended up being stumped advancing to Vettori with 16 runs still required, and Cameron White and Adam Voges finished the job at a reduced pace.It was the Haddin-Ponting partnership that buried New Zealand. Ponting’s half-century came at nearly a run a ball and featured seven boundaries but it was a support role. The best bowlers, Vettori and Bond, were respected while Styris and Mason were targeted by the two Australians. They knew that Vettori’s bowling options were limited and the only wicket in the first 30 overs was the run-out of Shane Watson for 15.All in all, it vindicated Ponting’s unexpected decision at the toss; Vettori said he would have batted if given the choice. There was little assistance for Australia’s bowlers on a good batting surface but after a footwork-free Peter Ingram edged Ryan Harris behind in the first over, New Zealand struggled to make the best of the opportunity and slipped to 55 for 3.They had much the same problem Australia had endured in the first two games when they batted first: batsmen falling after making promising starts. Five of New Zealand’s top six made scores in the 20s to 40s and Ross Taylor was the only man who went on and registered a half-century, although even his 62 was short of what it could have been.Having missed the Auckland loss due to a leg injury, Taylor showed the rest had not done him any harm as he rocketed off the mark with a crunching square-driven boundary off Mitchell Johnson. He struck a pair of sixes, one pulled off James Hopes and one slog-swept off Nathan Hauritz, and moved to his half-century from 45 balls.But the Australians knew that if they could tie Taylor down they might get a chance, and it came when he faced 20 balls without a boundary just after passing fifty. Watson came on and sent down a bouncer, Taylor’s eyes lit up and he went for the hook, the ball skied off the top edge and Michael Hussey completed the catch at deep square leg.It was a crucial wicket and left New Zealand five down in the 30th over. Styris continued his consistent series with 41 and combined with Gareth Hopkins for a 67-run stand that pushed the hosts past 200 but when they departed, so did New Zealand’s hopes of batting out their overs.Styris skied Watson to long-off and Hopkins, who improvised well in his career-best 45, was taken at mid-off from the bowling of Harris, who finished with 3 for 48. Johnson grabbed three wickets as well and the final three New Zealanders fell for five runs and they were bowled out with 22 deliveries still available.Of course, it was the top-order men who should have stayed at the crease longer. Brendon McCullum (23), Martin Guptill (21) and Neil Broom, who laboured to 24, missed their chances against a ball that wasn’t really swinging. Australia fixed their similar problem in this match; New Zealand must do the same on Thursday to stay in the series.