Chris Sale has been named an All-Star for the second straight year. This is quite the accomplishment for the 36-year old who hadn't been an All-Star since 2018 and missed the entirety of the 2020 season after having Tommy John surgery.
Sale isn't quite where he was last year when he won his first Cy Young, but it's still an impressive showing considering where he was just a few short years ago. Even more importantly, it's a chance for Sale to prove to his youngest kids that he's pretty good. Sale explained what his kids thought of him as a baseball player using a joke he stole from Jake Peavey.
"I remember Jake Peavy telling me one time and I felt like this a few years when I was going through it I remember him telling me when he had three sons at the time he's like my oldest son knew I was a bad—. My middle son knows I played baseball. My youngest son thinks I stink. I stole that joke from him a few years ago. It's cool to let the boys in the house know dad's still got it a little bit."
Peavy retired when he was 35, four years after his last All-Star appearance. By the time Sale retires, hopefully all his kids know he was a bad—.
Eddie Howe says there is “no chance” Newcastle will accept a draw as he plots a first Premier League derby victory over Sunderland in ten attempts.
Newcastle prepare for Tyne-Wear derby
The sides meet in the top flight for the first time since March 2016 on Sunday, when the Magpies will make the short trip to the Stadium of Light looking to end a wait for a win in the fixture which dates back to August 2011.
Head coach Howe and many of his players had a taste of what to expect in January last year when they went to Wearside and emerged with a 3-0 FA Cup third round success over the then Sky Bet Championship Black Cats, and he is conscious of the need for balance in their approach.
He said: “If you don’t get the arousal levels right, if you hype the players up too much, then you can go out and not perform because you’re over-thinking things, you’re not playing the game, you’re playing the atmosphere.
“You need cool heads, but you also need to have the fire in there. If the fire’s not there in this type of game, then you’re not going to perform either. It’s a balancing act of trying to get the players in the right frame of mind.”
Newcastle will arrive on Wearside on the back of a four-game unbeaten run in all competitions to face a Sunderland side who have confounded those who predicted they would go the way of many promoted sides and struggle to keep their heads above water.
Despite last weekend’s 3-0 defeat at Manchester City, Regis Le Bris’ men sit in ninth place in the table on 23 points – one more than their neighbours – after 15 games, and it would take a major collapse for them to slip into trouble.
However, asked if he would take a point, Howe, whose side drew 2-2 at Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Wednesday evening, replied swiftly:
He continued: “We prepare every game to win. This will be no different.
“We’ve got to get the preparation right in a very short period of time. That’s been a challenge we’ve had all season, and I think we’re doing okay at this moment in time.
“We know we can improve, there’s areas to get better in and we’ve got minimal training time to get those tweaks adjusted. But by kick-off, I can assure everybody that we’ll be ready.”
Newcastle star could miss Sunderland game after new injury "issue" emerges
An ill-timed blow for the Magpies.
ByTom Cunningham 4 days ago
Sunday’s game will be the first clash between Howe and Le Bris – Michael Beale was in charge at Sunderland for the FA Cup tie – but the Newcastle boss has been impressed by what the Frenchman has achieved since taking the helm in July last year.
He said: “I don’t know him and it’s my first time going up against him, but I think they’ve done well this season. I’ve been impressed by how they’ve played.”
Daniel Farke was already on borrowed time in the Leeds United dug-out heading into his lowly side’s clash with Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.
Indeed, the depressing backdrop heading into this big tie at Elland Road was four defeats from their last five games in the intense Premier League, and now, it’s five defeats from their last six, culminating in the West Yorkshire outfit sinking into that final relegation spot.
At one stage, Leeds looked in control after a scrappy Lukas Nmecha goal found the back of the net after just eight minutes had been played.
But, in the end, Villa’s quality shone through courtesy of a Morgan Rogers brace in the second half, and while Rogers came good in that pivotal second 45 minutes, Brenden Aaronson produced another no-show to trouble his manager’s precarious position even more.
Why Aaronson must now be dropped by Farke
Not even home comforts could save Leeds from a late Villa comeback.
Of course, last time at home, before this disastrous slip-up, Leeds picked up a much-needed 2-1 win over relegation rivals West Ham United, as Aaronson stole the show with a goal and an overall energetic outing.
Unfortunately for Aaronson, his showing against the Villans was a far cry from his standout performance against Nuno Espirito Santo’s visitors.
Against the Hammers, the American attacking midfielder successfully completed all three of his dribbles as a nuisance that the East Londoners had to keep tabs on throughout. On the contrary, on Sunday afternoon, Aaronson routinely lost the ball when attempting to burst forward with pace, with just one of his five dribbles coming off.
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On top of that, the hard-working figure who won eight duels during that 2-1 win was replaced by a weak number 11 who won just five of his 13 duels. Most importantly, too, the right winger only managed one effort on target at Emiliano Martinez’s goal, as Villa always felt like they had the below-par ex-Union Berlin playmaker under control.
If the German continues to select Aaronson, he will be very much on the chopping block for the sack, with both Daniel James and Wilfried Gnonto perhaps better suited to this right-wing role, over the hot-and-cold 25-year-old.
After all, the Welshman at least excited the Elland Road masses late on when his goalbound effort was disallowed for a handball by Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
That being said, Aaronson isn’t the only underperformer who looks out of his depth in the Premier League.
Not just Aaronson: Big-money signing must be ditched
How much longer will the Leeds hierarchy persist with the former Norwich City boss in the dug-out?
After today’s defeat, they will want to see some immediate positive results, but with Manchester City and Chelsea up next in a very tricky double-header, the near future looks grim.
Still, he could pull off a shock result against either team, as is the unpredictability of the division, particularly if he ditches Lucas Perri in between the sticks, who fell victim to another shaky day at the office on Sunday.
The decisive match-winning free-kick was a wonderfully hit effort from the man of the moment in Rogers, but Leeds fans would have watched on in disbelief as Perri stayed rooted to his spot, with The Athletic’s Beren Cross critical of the ex-Lyon goalkeeper, who “barely moved”.
Away from helping Rogers to collect his brace, Perri also failed to look convincing with just two saves registered, alongside only ten of his passes hitting their intended target, leaving him with a dire 53% pass accuracy come the final whistle.
Games played
7
Goals conceded
14
Goals conceded*
2.0
Saves made
14
Saves made*
2.0 (50%)
Goals prevented
– 1.53
Pass accuracy*
19.0 (58%)
Clean sheets
2
For a newly promoted side who were on the hunt for a clear upgrade on Illan Meslier in the summer, they might well feel ripped off now that they forked out £13.9m on his services, with the flappy Brazilian conceding an average of two goals a game now, having kept just two clean sheets to date.
Amazingly, Karl Darlow – who cost £400k – might be the better option now, having averaged more saves per game than Perri this season from his limited minutes at 2.6 per clash, with Leeds surely fearing a drubbing at the hands of City up next if their new number one is retained.
Journalist Adonis Storr at the full-time whistle stated that Farke must be “in serious trouble” now, as boos headed his direction with some ferocity at the end, with both Perri and Aaronson needing to be dropped for the next crucial game to try and somehow steer the sinking ship back on course.
If they remain in the XI, Farke will likely be out of a job very swiftly.
Leeds 1-2 Aston Villa: "Sneaky" Elland Road moment that VAR may have missed
There was a controversial moment in Aston Villa’s 2-1 victory at Elland Road.
Grab your peanuts and Cracker Jacks. It's finally baseball season, folks.
Every baseball fan knows the big teams to pay attention to this season—the Los Angeles Dodgers look to defend their 2024 World Series title, and the New York Yankees are hoping to get back to baseball's biggest stage. But what about the surprises? What about those teams that nobody is talking about but will be a fun watch throughout the summer?
We're here to help. is bringing back our watchability rankings for 2025, ranking teams in tiers based on how fun the product will be to watch—which doesn't always correlate with wins and losses.
TIER 1: Must-See TV
Harper has long been one of MLB’s most watchable players. / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Los Angeles Dodgers: What more needs to be said? The defending champions won the 2024 World Series in five games and then went out and spent more in free agency than every team in baseball not named the New York Mets. The top of the lineup—Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernández—might be the top four hitters in the NL All-Star lineup this summer in Atlanta.
Atlanta Braves: No team sustained more injuries to key players in 2024 than the Braves, and they still went out and won 89 games and made the postseason. Once Ronald Acuña Jr. returns to the lineup this spring, you’re not going to want to turn off your television.
Philadelphia Phillies: Come for Trea Turner and Bryce Harper, stay for the Phillie Phanatic’s shenanigans.
New York Mets: In case you haven’t heard, Juan Soto switched teams in the Big Apple. That man would make the 2024 White Sox must-see TV. O.K., maybe not, but still.
TIER 2: Big expectations
Carroll, the 2023 NL Rookie of the Year, is primed for a big bounce-back season. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
New York Yankees: Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt at the heart of a lineup would’ve been frightening five or six years ago. In 2025? Maybe not so much. New York is still expected to be one of the best teams in the AL—even with Gerrit Cole’s season-ending Tommy John surgery. That’s a very negative blurb for a team expected to contend for a World Series title in 2025, but that’s what happens when you lose Soto to a crosstown rival.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Corbin Carroll is a 30–30 threat in his third full season in the big leagues, and Corbin Burnes bolsters an already exciting rotation. Hopefully the D-Backs get off to a better start than they did last season, when they Corbin Bleu it.
Seattle Mariners: Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo and Bryce Miller rolling into your town to start a three-game series will terrify any opposing lineup. And when George Kirby returns, put the kids to bed.
Baltimore Orioles: Like the Mariners, the Orioles could’ve shot up to Tier 1 with a signature offseason signing. But they chose to stay rather quiet, leaving it up to an exciting young core to challenge the Yanks in the AL East. Hopefully Jackson Holliday figures it out this year.
TIER 3: Fun and frisky
Crow-Armstrong, right, ranks in the 96th percentile or better in arm strength, sprint speed and range. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Boston Red Sox: The boys of Fenway Park should be, at the very least, a bit frisky this year in the AL East, which hasn’t been the case since they traded away Mookie Betts. Bringing in Alex Bregman, Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler was enough to earn a spot on our list of the best MLB offseasons this winter. Plus, highly anticipated prospects Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer should all arrive in the bigs at some point in 2025.
Chicago Cubs: If you haven’t heard yet, the mom from (Ashley Crow) has a son. His name? Pete Crow-Armstrong. He is not a kid manager like Billy Heywood, but he is a 23-year-old who runs the bases like a maniac. If Crow-Armstrong can get on base enough and rookie Matt Shaw holds down the hot corner, the Cubbies should be a fun offense to watch.
Texas Rangers: The Rangers missed the playoffs last year after winning the 2023 World Series. This year’s roster should be competing for a postseason spot, at the very least, with veterans Marcus Semien, Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia back in Texas and Wyatt Langford expected to take another leap. Plus, Jacob deGrom’s return to the rotation will be fun to watch as he tries to pitch his first full season since 2019.
TIER 4: Low floor, high ceiling
Correa, right, has averaged 119 games played during his three seasons with the Twins. / Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
Minnesota Twins: Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis have the potential to be one of the most electric trios in all of baseball. Unfortunately, none of them can stay healthy at the same time—and Lewis already tweaked his hamstring in spring training. Sigh. We can only hope.
San Francisco Giants: Even if the Giants struggle in 2025, they will always be watchable thanks to beautiful Oracle Park and their elite All-Star roster of broadcasters led by Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow.
Detroit Tigers: The biggest surprise in baseball last season returns for an encore, with AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal and Jack Flaherty leading the way. Detroit should compete in the AL Central—and perhaps the Tigers will find that late summer magic again in ‘25.
San Diego Padres: When your franchise player is vocally expressing his disappointment in his team’s offseason, it’s usually not a sign for baseball fans to be locked in on that team. But watching Luis Arraez do his thing at the top of the lineup is always a treat, and Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado are all-around studs. Yeah, this team is still fun.
TIER 5: Star-driven teams
Kansas City Royals: Bobby Witt Jr. is going to torture AL Central teams for the next decade. If you’re not a fan of one of those teams, the Royals are a must-watch.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Try not to miss a Paul Skenes start. If you check in on the Bucs once every five days or so, you shouldn’t miss too much, although 6’7” center fielder Oneil Cruz is a fun watch, too.
Cincinnati Reds: Elly De La Cruz is a walking human highlight reel. Watch him steal second base … and then third … and then home. That is, if he doesn’t send the ball 400 feet out of the park with one flick of the wrists. With most of Cincinnati’s lineup and rotation under 30 years old, the Reds have a chance to be a young breakout team this year.
Washington Nationals: Remember the first Juan Soto trade? Three of the six players the Nats received have made the 2025 Opening Day roster in C.J. Abrams, MacKenzie Gore and James Wood. Plus, outfielder Dylan Crews, the No. 2 pick of the 2023 MLB draft, is starting the year in the big leagues after making his debut last season.
TIER 6: The Milwaukee Brewers
Pat Murphy was named the 2024 NL Manager of the Year in his first year at the helm for the Brewers. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Milwaukee Brewers: The system works at American Family Field. Once again, the Brewers are projected to finish around .500, which means they will win at least 90 games and secure another NL Central title while starting Dudes You’ve Never Heard Of at the bottom of their lineup and some random journeyman will emerge as the best reliever in baseball by August. The Brewers’ brand of baseball isn’t always fun to watch (though Jackson Chourio is starting to change that), but they just win ballgames.
Cleveland Guardians: See Brewers, Milwaukee.
TIER 7: You know what to expect
Altuve, left, and Alvarez are the two longest-tenured Astros hitters. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Houston Astros: Houston lost three key pieces of its dynastic core as Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker and Ryan Pressly all found new homes for 2025, but look. It’s still Jose Altuve. It’s still Josh Hader out of the bullpen. It’s still Yordan Álvarez batting in the heart of the lineup.
St. Louis Cardinals: So, it turns out Nolan Arenado is returning for another year in St. Louis after all? Their will-they-won’t-they dance this offseason sounds like a soap opera, but don’t expect much playoff-chasing drama from the Cards later in the summer.
Toronto Blue Jays: The Blue Jays enter the 2025 campaign yet again as runner-ups in the chases for baseball’s biggest free agents. Last year was Shohei Ohtani; this year was Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes and Max Fried. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is a stud, though, and backup free agent plan Anthony Santander should provide more pop to the lineup. The rotation is in good shape and it’ll be interesting to see if Max Scherzer still has something to offer.
Tampa Bay Rays: While The Trop undergoes reconstruction, the Rays will have to install their renowned pitching lab at George M. Steinbrenner Field—the spring training home of the division rival New York Yankees that will serve as their home park. To be more watchable this year, the Rays need to improve their offense, which ranked 29th in OPS (.668) last season.
TIER 8: Surprisingly fun
Rooker inked a five-year, $60 million extension this offseason. / Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
Athletics: In yet another middle finger to the city of Oakland, A’s owner John Fisher actually remembered he can spend money in the offseason by signing Luis Severino and inking Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler to contract extensions. The A’s could be scrappy and fun this year. It’s just a shame they won’t be playing to the sound of pounding drums at the Coliseum. And more docked watchability points for having “ATH” as the A’s abbreviation on the scorebug. (That’s right, they are not the Oakland Athletics, Sacramento Athletics or even Las Vegas Athletics. Booooo.)
TIER 9: Bottom dwellers
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Los Angeles Angels: 2019 was a great year. The “Old Town Road” remix with Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus was a national phenomenon. was in theaters. There was no global pandemic. The Angels loved that year so much they are fielding a roster of guys who peaked in 2019 … which does not make for great baseball in 2025.
Colorado Rockies: The Rockies’ front-office philosophy on signing guys just for the good vibes might result in a great clubhouse, but it hasn’t exactly translated to wins. Ezequiel Tovar should be a fun watch this year, at least. Kris Bryant, on the other hand…
Chicago White Sox: They lost a record-setting 121 games last season, and their return in the Garrett Crochet trade isn’t quite ready to make an impact yet. Take your servings of White Sox baseball with a side of a Campfire Milkshake, please.
Miami Marlins: It appears the Marlins plan to just tread water this season until they can acquire a haul at the trade deadline for right-handed ace Sandy Alcantara.
Ireland spinner was suspended from bowling earlier this year after her action was found to be illegal
ESPNcricinfo staff06-Aug-2025Ireland left-arm spinner Aimee Maguire has been cleared to resume bowling in international cricket with immediate effect.Maguire, 18, was suspended from bowling earlier this year after being reported during the first ODI against India in Rajkot on January 10. Her action was deemed suspect under the ICC’s Illegal Bowling Regulations.Maguire has since remodelled her action and subsequently underwent an independent re-assessment at an ICC-accredited testing centre where she was cleared.”An independent assessment of Maguire’s remodelled bowling action at an ICC accredited testing centre concluded that the amount of elbow extension was within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC Illegal Bowling Regulations,” an ICC release said.Maguire made her ODI and T20I debut against West Indies in July 2023. She has so far played 11 ODIs, where she has picked 16 wickets, with best bowling figures of 5 for 19 against England last year. Maguire has also played nine T20Is, where she has nine wickets at an economy rate of 7.20.The 18-year-old is not part of the Ireland squad that faces Pakistan in a three-match T20I series, which begins in Dublin on Wednesday.
Washington picked up two wickets early in the session but Root and Stokes drove back home the advantage
ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2025
Joe Root brought up his 38th Test hundred•Associated Press
Tea Joe Root’s 38th Test century took him up to second on the all-time Test run-scorer’s list. And in typical Root fashion, his 121 and counting has raised England to a dominant position in this fourth Test, leading India by 75 in the first innings at tea on day three.Upon moving to 31, Root snuck past Rahul Dravid (13,288) and Jacques Kallis (13,289), bumping the latter off the podium to join Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting. And, four minutes before the end of the second session, he walked down to open the face for a single down to third to move to 120, knocking Ponting (13,378) down a peg, who sung his praises on Sky as part of their commentary team upon being leapfrogged.Related
Root surpasses Ponting to become the second-highest run-getter in Tests
Root did little more than raise a thumb to his skipper, Ben Stokes, with whom he has so far shared an 84-run stand. They had earlier embraced for his hundred after tickling his 178th delivery around the corner for his 12th boundary around, one which took him level with Kumar Sangakkara’s tally of 38, level fourth on the all-time centuries list. It is also his 12th century against India, the most of any player, now ahead of Steve Smith.He had batted for most of the day with Ollie Pope, sharing in a stand of 144 which was ended seven balls after lunch. It was Pope first after the break, edging Washington Sundar to first slip. And Washington had his second four overs later when he hoodwinked an advancing Harry Brook on the outside edge to have him stumped.It was a passage out of kilter with an otherwise listless performance from India in the field. They missed a chance to remove Root on 22 with a botched attempt at a run out, and they were unlucky when Root, on 98, inadvertently diverted a ball just past his leg stump after it caught his thigh guard.Otherwise, their lack of energy, partly due to being run-ragged by England’s penchant for quick singles, was compounded when Jasprit Bumrah was only able to bowl one over with the second new ball before having to leave the field with an unknown injury. Mohammed Siraj, lionhearted throughout, limped off after the 99th over to leave Shubman Gill with big headache heading into the final session.
Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Manchester City outcast Kalvin Phillips won't feature in his starting lineup for their upcoming Carabao Cup clash against Swansea City, despite the midfielder returning to action in the same competition against Huddersfield Town in September. Phillips is hoping to get more game time after featuring for just seven minutes for the Cityzens in the 2025-26 campaign.
Phillips' Man City nightmare continues
Phillips’ time at the Etihad Stadium has been incredibly underwhelming. After arriving from Leeds United in 2022 for £45 million ($61m), he managed just 12 appearances in his debut season. Guardiola then sent him out on loan, first to West Ham United, where he endured a nightmare spell marked by a costly penalty and a red card in his first few outings, and later to Ipswich Town, where he ended up suffering relegation and appeared in 19 matches for the Tractor Boys. His exile left many assuming his City career was finished for good.
The midfielder was told to find a new club but his massive salary and existing contract, which runs until 2028, proved to be a hindrance as he was unable to secure a move away this summer. On September 24, Phillips appeared for City for the first time in 645 days as he came on as a substitute in the final seven minutes of their 2-0 win over Huddersfield in a Carabao Cup third-round clash.
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Guardiola reveals plans for Phillips
Ahead of another Carabao Cup fixture against Swansea on Wednesday, Guardiola confirmed that the 29-year-old midfielder won't feature in his starting lineup, although he might be part of the travelling squad.
Speaking to reporters, the Spaniard said: "For a start no but maybe he will travel with us. He is a player for the team, the squad. He is coming back, he trains with us, we treat him like another player. The decision of whether he plays or not belongs to me. He is always an unbelievable guy. It is a joy to have him in the locker room."
Man City's injury concerns
City will continue to miss their key midfielder and former Ballon d'Or winner Rodri, who suffered a thigh injury after recovering from ACL. Star striker Erling Haaland also picked up a knock against Aston Villa last weekend as he painfully collided with the post.
Providing an update on his squad and the injury problems, Guardiola said: "Khusa [Abdukodir Khusanov] is ready to play a few minutes tomorrow and Rodri is still not. So [it] is getting better, training with us partially. But, of course, after what happened two times with the muscular injuries we are going to see how he is this week. Erling, I didn’t see him today but it was a knock and day by day is better. But now we train this afternoon and will know more exactly how he feels."
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Guardiola likely to rotate squad
While Haaland might not have suffered a serious injury after his late collision against Unai Emery's side, the City boss could still opt to make personnel changes for the League Cup in midweek. City travel to Swansea on Wednesday as they look to book their spot in the quarter-finals.
Both Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki featured from the bench at Villa Park at the weekend, the former coming on in the 84th minute and the latter replacing fellow summer signing Tijjani Reijnders in the 76th minute. The duo have scored just one league goal between them this season, owing to an injury-hit start to the campaign, and City need the pair to start pulling their weight in front of goal to ease the scoring burden on Haaland.
After the Swansea clash, City will play Bournemouth and Liverpool in two crucial Premier League fixtures, while they will also face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League before the international break. The Cityzens are currently sixth in the Premier League after the Aston Villa loss and are now six points behind table-toppers Arsenal.
It took the combined might of Mitchell Owen, Andries Gous, Glenn Maxwell and Glenn Phillips – not without help from Rachin Ravindra and Obus Pienaar – to match, and eventually top, Andre Fletcher on Thursday night at MLC 2025. Even then, it took till the last ball, and a dropped catch on that ball, to do it.Los Angeles Knight Riders, down on their luck and in the points table in, put up 213 for 4 against Washington Freedom, riding on Fletcher’s 60-ball 104. But it wasn’t enough – though it went down to the wire thanks to an almost-fantastic last over of the chase from Andre Russell. But Freedom got over the line in the end when Jason Holder dropped Phillips at mid-on off a spooned-out yorker, and climbed up to second place on the table, while Knight Riders remained at No. 5.A chase as big as this one needed a big start, but Freedom knew what to do, having pulled off the biggest chase in MLC just the other day. This made it a one-two for them.Owen set the ball rolling, smashing three fours and four sixes in his 16-ball 43, his contribution to a 51-run opening stand with Ravindra, who wasn’t shabby either, scoring 18 off 12. Gous got in then and kept the scoreboard moving, and all of that meant a powerplay score of 73 for 1. Marginally better than Knight Riders’ 67 for no loss.But the runs needed to keep coming, and keep coming at a rate of around 10-11. That happened too. Gous fell for 31 off 27, but Maxwell got going right then, smashing 42 off 23 balls with two fours and three sixes.Andre Fletcher brought up a 59-ball century•Sportzpics for MLC
Then came the next twist – Tanveer Sangha, bowling the 14th over, got rid of both Jack Edwards and Maxwell, and suddenly, it was looking loaded in Knight Riders’ favour. No fear – Phillips rocked up, and hit an unbeaten 23-ball 33 to put Freedom back on top, and when the last over started, only seven runs were needed.Russell had the ball, and started with a wide. And then Pienaar hit a four. Two needed from five. Not over. Three dot balls followed, and suddenly it was two from two. Super Over? But singles from Pienaar and Phillips off the last two balls finished the game off.On most days, Fletcher’s 104 from 60 balls – he retired out at that point – would have been on the winning side. Add to that Unmukt Chand’s 41 from 30 balls in an opening stand of 130 in 12.2 overs, Sherfane Rutherford’s 11-ball 20, and Russell’s unbeaten 13-ball 30, and Knight Riders pretty much had the perfect batting innings, having come into the game on the back of four losses in five games.Chand was slow – managing three fours and six and a strike rate of 136.66 in a game where runs were scored at well upwards ten an over across the two innings aren’t great numbers. But with Fletcher turning it on, Knight Riders stayed above that ten-an-over mark despite Chand’s lack of intent.But his fall, in the 13th over with Fletcher 83 off 45 balls at that stage, was perhaps good from Knight Riders’ point of view. It brought in Rutherford first, and after he fell after a cameo, Russell got in and got going big time right away. Fletcher’s century came up in the 18th over, and he retired one ball after, his knock including seven fours and six sixes.Russell then did his bit with bat and ball, but it was not enough for Knight Riders.
Top of the Premier League with maximum points, having just enjoyed an all-timer of a transfer window too, things could hardly look any better for those of a Liverpool persuasion.
On Sunday, as the champions faced the challengers at Anfield; to describe the game as cagey would be an understatement, but it was the home side who snatched the points, with Dominik Szoboszlai’s astonishing late free-kick downing Arsenal.
Having also enjoyed dramatic late victories over Bournemouth and Newcastle, Arne Slot’s side are sitting pretty at the top of the table, with a trip to Burnley, followed by a Merseyside derby, to come after the international break.
Meantime, things are going pretty well off the pitch as well, with the Alexander Isak saga finally coming to an end on deadline day, the Swedish international striker getting his wish by leaving Newcastle for Liverpool for a reported fee of £125m.
This is the second time this summer that Liverpool have broken the Premier League transfer record, having signed Florian Wirtz for £116m in June, while a further £204m has been spent to recruit Jeremie Frimpong, Miloš Kerkez, Giorgi Mamardashvili, Hugo Ekitiké and Giovanni Leoni, taking their summer spending splurge to £450m.
Thus, the reigning champions have to be favourites to retain their Premier League title, however, would this Slot super team be even more impenetrable had they signed a Jürgen Klopp target who has become “one of the best players in the world”?
Where Alexander Isak will fit into Liverpool's attack
The most frightening aspect for Liverpool’s title challengers is that it’s not like they were finding goals hard to come by before smashing the British transfer record on Monday.
Isak's Premier League record before joining Liverpool.
Yes, they were largely stifled by Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal on Sunday but, before that, Liverpool scored twice against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield, four times against Bournemouth on the opening weekend and then thrice more at Newcastle on Monday.
Summer signing Ekitiké scored in all three of these matches, to add to the 22 goals he bagged for Eintracht Frankfurt last season, form that has earned him a first-ever senior France call-up over the weekend.
However, could he be the biggest casualty of Isak’s arrivals?
When a player is signed for £125m, they are arriving to be first-choice, and the table below underlines why Liverpool are willing to spend big money to recruit the Swede.
Isak – PL stats 2024/25
Statistics
Isak
PL rank
Goals
23
2nd
Goals in the box
20
2nd
Headed goals
4
2nd
Shots
95
7th
Shots on target
41
5th
Big chances missed
18
6th
Goal – xG
+2.7
17th
Average SofaScore rating
7.29
2nd*
*among forwards only (minimum 30 apps).
via FBref.com and SofaScore
As the table highlights, only Mohamed Salah scored more goals than Isak in the Premier League last season, scoring 23 goals from just 95 shots, of which only 41 were on target, underlining his clinical finishing.
So, the general consensus is that Ekitiké will play off the left, but that’s something he’s never really done before at any of his previous clubs, namely Vejle, Reims, PSG or Frankfurt, and what would that mean for Cody Gakpo, who signed a new contract only a matter of days ago?
Nevertheless, hoping to play 66 games this season, Slot will want as many attacking options as he can possibly get his hands on.
Federico Chiesa and teenager Rio Ngumoha have been the attackers introduced as substitutes in recent weeks, both scoring crucial late winners in fairness to them, but they’ll need more and, well, they’ve got it, with this a sharp reminder of the tragic loss of Diogo Jota, so often the super sub himself.
Cody Gakpo for Liverpool
With this array of attackers at Anfield, could Liverpool also have signed one of the best midfielders in the world, had Klopp got his way?
Liverpool could have had a world-class midfielder
Back in April 2023, as reported by the Guardian, Liverpool ended their interest in signing Jude Bellingham, with Borussia Dortmund demanding in excess of £135m for the then-teenager.
The report adds that Klopp told Fenway Sports Group to ‘move swiftly’ amid Real Madrid’s interest in the England international and, of course, Bellingham did move to the Bernabéu for around £88m that same summer.
Jude Bellingham celebrates winning the Champions League
Well, los Blancos legend Luís Figo believes that Bellingham is now “without a doubt… one of the best players in the world”, praising his “talent and commitment”.
Since arriving in Madrid, the Englishman has scored 38 goals and registered 28 assists, making his 100th appearance for los Merengues against PSG at the Club World Cup in July, yet to feature since due to a shoulder injury.
Well, the CIES Football Observatory certainly agree with Figo’s assertion, believing Bellingham’s estimated transfer value to be around £198m, below only Lamine Yamal and Erling Braut Håland in world football, while Isak is 12th on this list with an approximate value of £99m.
Jude Bellingham celebrates for Real Madrid
So, while Liverpool have two £110m+ players in their squad, namely Wirtz and Isak, they could have had a third back when Klopp was in charge, choosing to focus on other targets, ending up signing Ryan Gravenberch, who has proved to be pretty handy.
Nevertheless, since the start of the 2023/24 season, Salah, Ekitiké, Isak, Gakpo and Wirtz have scored a combined 209 club goals, so just imagine if they’d added Bellingham’s tally of 38 from midfield on top of this.
As good as Szoboszlai: £40m star dropped his best game in a Liverpool shirt
Liverpool dug deep to defeat title rivals Arsenal to maintain their perfect start to the Premier League season.
علق عبد الرحمن مجدي، لاعب فريق بيراميدز، على التتويج ببطولة السوبر الإفريقي على حساب نهضة بركان المغربي.
وتوج بيراميدز ببطولة السوبر الإفريقي للمرة الأولى في تاريخه على حساب نهضة بركان المغربي، بهدف دون رد أحرزه فيستون مايلي.
طالع | لاعبو بيراميدز بعد التتويج بالسوبر الإفريقي: نجني ثمار المواسم الماضية وقال عبد الرحمن مجدي في تصريحات لبرنامج “كورة كل يوم” على قناة “الحياة”: “نشكر الله على تحقيق اللقب، جلسنا منذ أول الموسم وتعاهدنا أن ننافس على كل البطولات وهذا ما حدث”.
وتابع: “أمامنا بطولة الدوري وبطولات أخرى، نحصد بطولة وبعد ذلك نغلق الصفحة ونفكر في البطولة التي تليها”.
واختتم: “كان هناك بعض الإجهاد، وواجهنا فريقًا كبيرًا واحترمناه، مثل هذه المباريات لا تلعب ولكن أهم شيء المكسب، وهذا ما اختلف لدينا عن السنوات الماضية، كنا نؤدي بشكل جيد في مباريات ولكن لا نفوز”.