Paul Pogba has reportedly been offered the opportunity to keep playing during his four-year doping ban by a team in the Russian celebrity league.
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Frenchman serving lengthy suspensionIs appealing against that decisionMay have to explore other optionsGetty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?
The French midfielder, who savoured World Cup glory with his country in 2018, has been handed a lengthy suspension in the wake of a failed drugs test. As things stand, the former Manchester United star is set to be out of action until the age of 35.
AdvertisementTHE GOSSIP
Pogba is appealing his ban, as Juventus mull over the termination of his contract in Turin, but alternative solutions to a prolonged spell away from competitive action are being presented. According to , the enigmatic 30-year-old has been approached by Broke Boys – a team from Russia’s celebrity-hosted Media Football League.
WHAT BROKE BOYS DIRECTOR SAID
That championship was created in 2022, with teams made up of personalities from the worlds of social media and acting. Pogba could become a famous sporting figure in the amateur division, with Broke Boys sporting director Artjom Chatjaturjan telling Tuttosport: “It may seem like a joke, but we called him. So far he has politely refused. He is in a desperate moment and needs time to accept it, Pogba is one of the best footballers in world won't be able to play for that long.”
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WHAT NEXT FOR POGBA?
Pogba has been presented with an offer that includes a monthly salary of £1,167 and benefits such as “luxury” accommodation that would not be shared with any other players. For now, the France international is focused on clearing his name and returning to elite competition, but he may have to weigh up other options if a long-term ban remains in place.
Arsenal are back in action this evening, as the Gunners travel to the Gtech Community Stadium to face Brentford in the Carabao Cup.
Mikel Arteta’s side will hope to make an improvement on their third-round history in the competition, having exited at the first stage last season in a forgettable 3-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion at the Emirates.
Last time out for the Gunners, Arteta’s frail squad were held to a 2-2 draw at home to fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur, in what was a closely contested affair despite the host’s injury woes.
What is the latest Arsenal team news vs Brentford?
During the draw against Spurs, club-record signing Declan Rice was forced to withdraw at half-time, a substitution that proved costly as his replacement, Jorginho, was knocked out of possession in the build-up to the Lilywhites’ equaliser.
It’s suspected that the Englishman’s injury isn’t major, as per football.london, however, it’s also expected that the midfielder will be absent for the cup fixture due to squad rotation and recovery.
Gabriel Martinelli missed the north London derby following a hamstring injury he sustained at Goodison Park during Arsenal’s victory over Everton, the Brazilian also looks set to miss the trip to Brentford.
To Arteta’s disbelief, Martinelli’s replacement, Leandro Trossard, was also absent against Spurs after feeling a niggle in training prior to the big occasion.
The extensive injury list, joined with the need to rest players due to a busy schedule could allow some players the opportunity to thrive against Brentford, with one name being Emile Smith-Rowe, who made his first appearance of the season from the bench in the derby.
Should Emile Smith-Rowe start against Brentford?
It’s been a difficult few years for Smith-Rowe, who thought he’d found his place in Arteta’s eleven after making 33 Premier League appearances in the 2021/22 campaign, where he scored 10 goals.
For various reasons, the 23-year-old has fallen down the pecking order at his boyhood club, with him playing just 161 minutes of football in the league last season on the back of undergoing groin surgery.
In the winter of 2022, the Englishman was once dubbed as “incredibly prolific” for his form in north London by talent scout Jacek Kulig, and could be offered a chance to shine this evening against a testing opposition.
Smith-Rowe’s way into the squad could be simple this time around, considering Fabio Vieira’s poor display against Spurs, which saw him be withdrawn at half-time for a performance that gave him a 6.4 Sofascore match rating.
As highlighted by his success already in the Premier League, Smith-Rowe could cause Brentford real problems this evening, with his direct and clever playmaking abilities from midfield.
In the 2021/22 campaign, the Hale End graduate recorded an average of 3.05 progressive carries and 1.41 key passes per 90 in the league, suggesting his strengths on the ball and his eye for a threatening pass, via FBref.
If the England U21’s star can rediscover his form by gaining consistent minutes, his return could be a huge boost for both himself and Arsenal, who have a special talent on their hands if they can utilise him as well as they once did.
Newcastle United have taken great strides toward true prominence at the front of the European game since the PIF club takeover two years ago, and have in fact gone from relegation battlers to Champions League contenders in that timeframe.
Pretty impressive, and while the surface view highlights the newfound monetary power as the foundation of the success, and while this may be the case, the diligence and precision demonstrated has been the true framework allowing St. James' Park to rise again.
Acquisitions such as Alexander Isak, Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimaraes and Nick Pope have been nothing short of emphatic, evidence of technical director Dan Ashworth's intelligence and Eddie Howe's aptitude in imparting his excellent tactical knowledge on the ambitious squad.
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe.
Having indeed qualified for the Champions League with a top four Premier League finish last season, the Magpies are in good stead to secure a European spot once again, having cast aside the slow start to the season and enjoying some statement victories over Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain over the past few weeks.
At the centre of the exploits is a healthy homegrown facet to the fold, with energetic Sean Longstaff, wily Dan Burn and burgeoning Elliot Anderson all playing an important role – the latter growing into his skin in what tantalises to be an impressive breakout year.
Candidly, Newcastle's academy has not been up to scratch over the past few years, minnowed by the profusion of talent blooming from the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur; franker still, it is important that emphasis is placed on improving the youth ranks to provide Newcastle with the bedrock that rivals perch upon.
#
Player
Market Value
Current Club
1.
Sean Longstaff
£22m
Newcastle
2.
Elliot Anderson
£11m
Newcastle
3.
Dan Burn
£9m
Newcastle
4.
Adam Armstrong
£9m
Blackburn
5.
James Tavernier
£6m
Rangers
6.
Freddie Woodman
£5m
Preston
7.
Oliver Kemen
£2m
Kayserispor
8.
Lewis Miley
£2m
Newcastle
The table illustrates how far the Toon formative fold has been from the desired standard over contemporary times; having utterly failed to produce a flow of potential, this has been emblematic of the club's struggles under erstwhile owner Mike Ashley.
But, promisingly, the three players with the highest valuations all serve under Howe's stewardship, while Lewis Miley, aged just 17, will continue to make improvements to his craft and is considered a "brilliant" talent by the Chronicle's Lee Ryder.
The new wave doesn't stop there though, moves have been made to raise the bar in the Tyneside formative fold, with sights set on building a project capable of rivalling the goliaths of English youth football.
One player who could play a role as big as Miley's over the coming years is Alex Murphy, who was signed after the lucrative takeover and is held in high regard.
Who is Alex Murphy?
Irishman Murphy joined Newcastle from his homeland side Galway United in June 2022 before his 18th birthday, and he has since been making commendable progress in his development.
Upon the acquisition, Steve Harper, Newcastle United's Academy manager, said: "We are very pleased to have secured a deal to bring Alex to Newcastle United.
"He is a very promising young player who has attracted a lot of attention from clubs. It is a real coup for our Academy and is testament to the direction the club is going in under our owners."
He has now made 21 appearances for the U21s after forging 32 matches for Galway, scoring two goals and supplying four assists.
And while he only completed 15 starts in the Premier League 2 across the 2022/23 campaign, almost exclusively featured as a centre-half, he has started the current term on the left side of the backline.
Such versatility sets Murphy up to succeed Dan Burn, who is traditionally a centre-back but had been utilised, to great effect, on the left, surpassing Matt Targett in the role.
Burn, aged 31, is one of the rare instances of the old youth fold succeeding at St. James' Park, and while he only joined Newcastle in January 2021, moving from Brighton & Hove Albion for £13m, he is now comfortably ensconced at the centre of Howe's plans.
Now 19 years old, Murphy is still awaiting his first-team debut but has been praised for his “impressive” start by journalist Mark Carruthers, and he could now make the strides to wedging his way into shining senior action.
How good could Alex Murphy become?
It is crucial to remember that progress, development and improvements are not linear in football, such things are distinctive to a particular player.
Miley, for instance, made his debut against Chelsea last season and started in the Carabao Cup victory over Manchester City last month; he is yet to turn 18.
Anderson, however, only broke into the Newcastle first-team last term, having turned 20 last November, and even then he only made three Premier League starts all season. This year, he already has four to his name.
Described as a "big-game player" by Howe, Anderson is crisp and calculated in possession, creative with his distribution, and inventive in his forward movements.
The £30k-per-week gem is evidence of the new surge of quality emanating from Tyneside, and while he is still growing into his skin, he has left teammates such as Trippier calling him "unbelievable" after a focal role throughout pre-season.
Murphy must be handed similar time to forge his path, and given that Jamal Lascelles, Paul Dummett and Fabian Schar are all within the final year of their contracts with Newcastle, talented youngsters such as Murphy could be pivotal in bolstering the squad with a blend of experience and youthful exuberance.
Murphy is on a lower rung of the ladder, but he boasts the quality and skills to thrive in the future, and given the opportunity, there is no reason why he won't work his way into the very core of Howe's first-team plans.
Our rolling report from the second women’s ODI between England and South Africa at Hove
ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jun-2018Welcome to our rolling report from England women’s first ODI against South Africa at Worcester. We will bring you colour, pictures, statistics and intermittent updates from New Road, as England’s World Cup winners begin their home season. For live score updates, click here for our match card.
West Ham United and manager David Moyes are "braced to lose" one player who's been called a "superstar" in January, according to reports.
Who could leave West Ham?
A plethora of Hammers squad members are currently out of contract at the end of this season, a long list which includes Tomas Soucek, Pablo Fornals, Ben Johnson, Vladimir Coufal, Michail Antonio, Conor Coventry, Aaron Cresswell, Lukasz Fabianski and veteran defender Angelo Ogbonna. While the likes of Coufal, Antonio and Soucek have options to extend by one-year, it is believed talks with the latter have stalled over this last year, with Football Insider reporting the Czech Republic ace could well be sold in January as a result.
According to club insider Claret & Hugh recently, Fornals, Johnson and Coventry appear set to leave upon the end of their current deals in 2024. While West Ham did manage to tie down star winger Jarrod Bowen with a new deal till 2030, it appears that a mass London Stadium exodus could well occur next year. Indeed, there is also some doubt surrounding the futures of defensive duo Nayef Aguerd and Kurt Zouma.
Nayef Aguerd transfer update
The former, who was reportedly targeted by Man City not so long ago, is attracting "big-money interest" from the Middle East as clubs from Saudi Arabia take interest. That is according to Football Insider, who shared the latest Aguerd transfer update this week. The outlet and journalist Pete O'Rourke say that Moyes and co are "braced to lose" the Morocco international. They're apparently prepared for offers to sign Aguerd, and his teammate Zouma, as Saudi clubs linger.
West Ham defender Nayef Aguerd.
It's added that, if Moyes were to lose either of the pair, that the Scotsman would be "desperate" to sign a replacement. One of the candidates could be Man United defender Harry Maguire, who West Ham are reportedly in pole position to sign if the Englishman does decide to leave Old Trafford mid-season (Football Insider).
Aguerd, called an international "superstar" by Moroccan journalist Mohamed A Salad, has also been called one of Europe's best defenders by former teammate Achraf Sidki.
"West Ham have signed one of the best defenders in Europe. I’m so proud that one of my former teammates will be playing in the Premier League. I’m surprised he didn’t move to England sooner. When we were younger we both had big dreams of becoming professional footballers. Nayef has done well and I’m confident he will be a great signing for West Ham.
“There were so many times he saved the team when we played together. That’s when I realised he was very good. I remember one occasion we played against a team called Tetouan.
“We needed to win and it was probably Nayef’s best game for the club. He was man of the match and after the game, I told him, ‘One day you will make it to the Premier League. You don’t know how good you are’."
The South Africa captain also wants more clarity over what constitutes ball tampering
Firdose Moonda01-Jul-2018South Africa captain Faf du Plessis who has been found guilty of ball-tampering twice (UAE 2013 and Australia 2016) and been on the receiving end of it at least once (by Australia, in 2018) has called for the ICC to “apply harsher” punishments to those who are caught altering the condition of the ball.Before du Plessis left to play Sri Lanka, who are reeling from their own captain Dinesh Chandimal’s recent involvement in ball tampering, he was asked whether the ICC should change the regulations around the issue and and was decisive in his response. “They have to. It’s happening too often. They definitely need to do that as quickly as possible,” he said. “I know they met a while ago but it doesn’t look like anything has changed. It’s still the same rules and stuff, so they need to change that. The penalties needs to be harsher for ball tampering.”In fact, the ICC is set to approve stricter penalties for the offence imminently. Under the revised rules, ball tampering will be upgraded from a Level 2 offence to Level 3, meaning the maximum penalty for such a breach would increase from a ban of one Test or two ODIs to a ban of four Tests or eight ODIs.Du Plessis, who did not seem aware of this, also called for clarity over what constitutes ball tampering, as he has done since he was found guilty after the Hobart Test in November 2016. Then, du Plessis was caught by television cameras with a mint in his mouth, applying mint-infused saliva to ball. He was found guilty of ball tampering, fined 100% of his match fee, appealed the charge and lost but escaped a ban. Since then, du Plessis has insisted the ICC must clarify what constitutes an “aritifical substance” as it relates to ball tampering, and he reiterated that on Sunday.”I have probably said it too much but there are too many grey areas when it comes to the ICC and the rules. One, you want clarity and, two, you want consistency and that’s definitely something that’s not been part of that body of laws for a while now,” du Plessis said. “There’s a lot of captains that have been speaking about it for a lot of years so, hopefully, when they do bring in all these new things there will be a lot of clarity and, most importantly, consistency for all teams.”All that would indicate du Plessis is likely to sympathise with Chandimal, who also admitted to putting something in his mouth, though Chadimal could not remember whether it was a cough lozenge or an almond, and claimed he had no intention to tamper with the ball. Chandimal was suspended from Sri Lanka’s third Test against West Indies for his misdemeanour, and now faces another sanction after also being charged with a Level 3 offence for conduct contrary to the spirit of the game.Dinesh Chandimal has a chat with head coach Chandika Hathurusingha•RANDY BROOKS/AFP/Getty ImagesChandimal, Sri Lanka’s coach Chandika Hathurusingha and manager Asanka Gurusinha have already pled guilty to the charge but will try to argue that the four-suspension-point penalty (which equates to two Tests) is too harsh. Their hearing is scheduled to take place on July 10, two days before the first Test against South Africa, and if they are unsuccessful, Sri Lanka will be without a captain and a coach for the series.Du Plessis did not seem aware of the second, more serious charge, and was briefed about it by a CSA official before the press conference, but focused his attention on the difficulties his own team may face, rather than the troubles the opposition could have. “I am expecting tough conditions,” he said. “I think Sri Lanka will look at it on paper and think we’ve got a better side on paper and I think they will try and make it as dry as possible and spin as much as possible.”South Africa have not played Tests in the subcontinent since their tour to India in late 2015, where they were defeated 3-0, losing an away series for the first time in nine years and also the No.1 Test ranking. That defeat resulted in South Africa’s batsmen embarking on a careful dissection of their technique and du Plessis hopes they can show improvement on this tour. “It will be a nice opportunity to test ourselves in tough conditions. There were a lot of lessons learnt by us [in India]. You have to go through something like that to pick your game apart, start from scratch and look at how you get better.”Still, South Africa will travel to Sri Lanka without their best batsman of their successful summer, AB de Villiers, who has retired from the international game. Du Plessis played down de Villiers’ departure and chose to see it as an opportunity for a younger player to make a name. “AB has only played the last one or two series for this Test team, so he has actually not been playing for a while,” du Plessis said, referencing the almost two-year-long sabbatical de Villiers took between January 2016 and December 2017. “It will be a nice opportunity for Temba [Bavuma] or somebody else to put his peg in the ground and make the position his own again.”South Africa have opted for a squad with only four fast bowlers – and three specialist spinners – but du Plessis indicated they will trust their quicks to do most of the work. “No matter what the conditions are, a big strength of our team will always be our fast bowlers, especially the personnel we have; [Dale] Steyn, Kagiso [Rabada] and Vernon [Philander] are all wicket-taking bowlers. Those three have proven they can do it in any conditions. Dale has got a fantastic record in the subcontinent and KG [Rabada] is gold. He will be able to do anything, and we’ve got Keshav [Maharaj],” du Plessis said. “If we want to and there’s an opportunity to, because the conditions are really bad, then we can look at a second spinner.”Tabraiz Shamsi and Shaun von Berg are the other two spinners South Africa have included, while Lungi Ngidi is their fourth pace option.
India women’s T20I captain Harmanpreet Kaur defended herself against allegations that her graduation degree was fake, and said that had she known something was amiss, she would have “done graduation again, maybe two or three times over”.Harmanpreet had been appointed a Deputy Superintendent of Police by the Punjab government after her remarkable showing in the 2017 World Cup, which included a stunning 171 not out in the semi-final against Australia. However, reports emerged on July 2 that the Punjab police were set to demote her to the rank of a constable with the Chaudhary Charan Singh University of Meerut saying Harmanpreet’s enrollment number did not exist in their records.Harmanpreet, who had initially refused to comment on the reports, defended herself on Tuesday and pointed out that she had even been accepted into a postgraduate course on the basis of her graduation degree, although her blossoming cricket career meant she could never complete her postgraduate degree.”When you did your graduation, did you go to the head office to verify your enrollment number? Nobody does that,” Harmanpreet told the . “If I am playing, my focus is obviously on cricket. Apart from that, I just wanted to complete my graduation. On the basis of my graduation certificate, I took admission for a post-graduation course in a different university, but could never take my exams because of overseas tournaments. Today, that very degree is being called fake.”Harmanpreet also said that so far the Punjab police had not communicated officially with her about the speculated demotion in rank. “The department should initiate action against me. I am waiting for word from my department… I have not received any notice from my department.”Harmanpreet was previously employed by the Indian Railways and given the rank of office superintendent, in Mumbai, and said she had been offered that post on the basis of the same degree that is being questioned now. “I completed my graduation through distance learning from Chaudhary Charan Singh University in 2009-11,” she said. “Earlier, I was pursuing my graduation from a college in Jalandhar, where I did my first year. Thereafter, I was not able to pursue it as my cricket schedule and the examination dates used to clash always. Besides, as the college principal had changed, and they did not like me pursuing sports, they did not adjust exam timings as per my cricket schedule. So, I had to migrate to another university. I have been playing for India after completing my Class XII.”I have cleared all my exams and my every certificate is legal. My examination centre used to be in Delhi. My subjects were sociology, political science, English and general awareness.”Harmanpreet, 29, made her debut for India in 2009 a day before her 20th birthday on March 7. She has played two Tests, 87 ODIs and 83 T20Is, and is also an Arjuna Award winner. She is in 12th spot on the ICC rankings for batsmen in women’s ODIs, and on seventh for the corresponding T20I list. She took over as the full-time T20I captain in October 2016 and her skills have put her in demand in T20 leagues around the world; she has played in the Women’s Big Bash League for two seasons and signed for the Kia Super League for the 2018-19 edition, starting next week.
Liverpool have now been provided with an update on their pursuit of Brentford defender Aaron Hickey, who is being targeted by some of the Premier League's top clubs.
Is Aaron Hickey leaving Brentford?
The Reds have recently been linked with a move for Hickey, but they are not the only top club eyeing a deal, with Football Insider reporting that Arsenal, Manchester United and Bayern Munich are now ready to battle it out for his signature in January. However, the 21-year-old is currently said to be happy at the Gtech Community Stadium, despite the widespread interest, and Brentford are under no obligation to sell him anytime soon, given that he is contracted until the summer of 2026.
The Scot has solidified his place in the Brentford starting XI this season, appearing in all six of their Premier League games up to this point, and he deputised for Rico Henry in the 3-1 loss against Everton on Saturday, after the left-back suffered a serious knee injury.
As such, the Bees may be even more unwilling to let the full-back leave in the January transfer window, and Football Insider report it will take a huge bid for elite clubs like Liverpool or Arsenal to prise him away from his current club.
Brentford have no plans to let the youngster leave at any point in the near future, in what could be a blow for the Reds, whose links to him come amid the recent injury setback suffered by Trent Alexander-Arnold. Joe Gomez has been deputising at right-back, but the Brentford defender is a more natural option, and Klopp had been hoping he could get a deal done this winter.
However, the Scotland international is keen to play regularly ahead of next year's European Championships in Germany, and he does not want to disrupt his flow of first-team football ahead of the tournament with a mid-season move.
How good is Aaron Hickey?
Lauded as "brilliant" by members of the media, the right-back has impressed for both club and country over the past 18 months, establishing himself as a first-team player for Brentford, and racking up 11 caps for his country since making his debut in March 2022.
Given that the Glasgow-born defender's career is just starting to take off, it is clear to see why he may be unwilling to move to Liverpool this January, where he would undoubtedly be behind Alexander-Arnold in the pecking order.
Considering he is still young, the former Bologna man is still prone to the odd bad performance, and he was withdrawn early against Everton at the weekend, receiving a Sofascore match rating of 6.1, the lowest figure of any player on the pitch.
Brentford defender Aaron Hickey.
As such, it is clear that Hickey needs regular first-team football, if he is going to fulfill his potential, and a move to Anfield may not be exactly what he needs at this point in time.
Considering Brentford are set to hold out for a huge fee, it is probably wise for Liverpool to steer clear, and begin to look at other right-back targets.
The fast bowler has been named in the India A squad for their Quadrangular series third-place match against South Africa A on Wednesday
ESPNcricinfo staff27-Aug-2018Bhuvneshwar Kumar has regained full fitness and will be part of India A’s squad for their third-place game against South Africa A in the ongoing A team Quadrangular Series. The BCCI confirmed the development with a tweet on Monday evening.Bhuvneshwar had been undoing intense rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for the last four weeks, after being ruled out of the first three Tests against England with a lower-back issue. He had been managing this injury for a few months – he had been rested from the Nidahas Trophy T20s and the one-off Test against Afghanistan, and sat out a few IPL games too – and aggravated it while playing the third ODI against England at Headingley.The selectors announced the squad for the fourth and fifth Tests on August 22, but Bhuvneshwar’s name didn’t feature in it. It is possible the selectors wanted the fast bowler to prove his fitness by playing a match at the domestic or India A level before picking him in the India squad.On India’s previous tour of England, in 2014, Bhuvneshwar was India’s most successful bowler in the Test series, picking up 19 wickets in five Test at an average of 26.63.India A will face South Africa A in the third-place match on Wednesday in Alur. On the same day, India B will face Australia A in the final at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.