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A huge Leeds United claim has emerged over current head coach Jesse Marsch’s impact since arriving… 

What’s the talk?

Eurosport transfer insider Dean Jones has claimed that the American boss has been catching the eye behind the scenes since replacing Marcelo Bielsa at the helm.

He told GIVEMESPORT:

“The impact he’s made on the club has been really significant already and everybody loves him.

“We’ll have to see how it pans out but Leeds is quite a positive environment, and they’re positive they can fix whatever comes along.”

Supporters will be bouncing

This will surely leave the Leeds supporters bouncing as it shows that his appointment has been a success beyond the results on the pitch.

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The Lillywhites were in a precarious position in the Premier League towards the end of Bielsa’s reign at Elland Road and relegation was looking like a real possibility as they sat just above the bottom three.

They had won five of their 26 league matches under the Argentine coach, picking up 0.88 points per game before he left the Yorkshire outfit.

There has been a big uplift in form since Marsch came through the door.

In his six top-flight matches in charge of the club so far, he has won three, drawn one and lost two – picking up 1.67 points per game. This suggests that he has been able to get the best out of the players in a way that Bielsa was failing to do in his final months with the team.

Leeds’ impressive form since his arrival may be down to the impact he has made behind the scenes. Jones has claimed that he is making it a positive environment and that could explain why the players are now showing the best of their abilities as they are enjoying their football again.

Fans will love this for the impact that it has had this season and will be bouncing ahead of the 2022/23 campaign as they can get excited about what is to come.

Marsch will be given the summer to bring in his own players with Victor Orta to prepare for a full season in charge of the Lillywhites.

His short time in Yorkshire so far indicates that it could be an exciting year for the supporters to look forward to if he is able to strengthen the squad and get the players on-board to kick on and challenge higher up the table.

AND in other news, Orta can form “incredible” duo as Leeds eye £10m sensation who “does everything right”…

Manchester City are set to rival Manchester United in the race to sign West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice this summer.

The Lowdown: Transfer interest in Rice

A recent report from The Guardian has claimed that the 23-year-old has rejected a third contract offer with the east London club and is therefore ‘open’ to a move away in the summer.

However, Irons manager David Moyes has previously put a staggering £150m price tag on his vice-captain, following reports claiming that the Hammers would let him leave for £100m. This comes as Manchester United have frequently been linked with a move for the England international.

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The Latest: Man City join the race for Rice

According to a fresh report by the Daily Mail, Manchester City are also ready to launch themselves into the race to sign Rice in the summer.

The Premier League champions have asked the Hammers to keep them informed on the 23-year-old’s future as he evaluates his options, although it is claimed that the Irons’ demands could prove to be problematic for Pep Guardiola’s side.

The Verdict: Huge blow for West Ham

Rice’s refusal to sign a third contract offer will come as a huge blow an anxious sign of things to come for Moyes and everyone at the London Stadium.

With the likes of Manchester City joining the race to secure his signature, the midfielder’s pursuit of silverware could become far more attainable.

Therefore, West Ham must do anything they can to keep hold of their “outstanding” star man – in the words of Gareth Southgate – for as long as possible as they look to cement themselves as part of the top six. If even three contract offers can’t persuade Rice, it looks increasingly as if the Irons could lose their grip on the 23-year-old.

In other news: West Ham are in the race to sign this Championship gem

Mark Cosgrove demolished Western Australia for the second time in the match to drive Tasmania to a comfortable ten-wicket win on the third morning at Bellerive Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Dec-2010
ScorecardMark Cosgrove has enjoyed his move to Tasmania•Warren Keir – SMP ImagesMark Cosgrove demolished Western Australia for the second time in the match to drive Tasmania to a comfortable ten-wicket win on the third morning at Bellerive Oval. Set 106 for victory, the Tigers got there with ease, as Cosgrove blasted an unbeaten 86 from 53 deliveries, with his opening partner Ed Cowan on 18 when the winning runs arrived.It continued Cosgrove’s strong form after he made 100 in the first innings and since being axed by South Australia and given a lifeline by Tasmania, he has made 510 Sheffield Shield runs at 56.66. However, Cosgrove was lucky to be there at the end, having been dropped on 74 when he drove Michael Beer to Shaun Marsh at long-on.The day began with the Warriors 76 runs in front with six wickets in hand, but a horrible collapse meant a tiny chase for the Tigers. Luke Butterworth ran out Adam Voges for 38 and then helped to run through the Western Australia lower order with 4 for 59, as the Warriors could only get 20 runs from their last six batsmen.Adding to their problems, the in-form fast bowler Ryan Duffield is expected to miss six weeks with a stress fracture in his back. The Big Bash runs through January and the Warriors don’t have another Sheffield Shield outing until February 10, and the coach Mickey Arthur said with his side sitting on the bottom of the table, major changes were expected to the squad.”I think we’re going to have to sit down now and make some serious decisions about where we want to go with the squad,” Arthur told AAP. “There’s no beating around that bush. We’re clearly not able to challenge for Shield positions with the squad we’ve got.”

The Sun journalist Tom Barclay has admitted that he would ‘be surprised’ but ‘not shocked’ to see Southampton midfielder Oriol Romeu depart the St. Mary’s Stadium this summer.

The Lowdown: Romeu wants to stay

The Spaniard first joined the Saints from Chelsea in a £5m move back in 2015, since establishing himself as a regular in the starting XI, going on to make 251 club appearances and creating 14 goal contributions during that time, via Transfermarkt.

The 30-year-old recently admitted that he would love to remain a Southampton player beyond the end of the season, but with only one year remaining on his current contract, it still remains to be seen whether or not the hierarchy will offer the tenacious midfield maestro a new deal.

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The Latest: Barclay can’t rule it out

When asked about Romeu’s future at the club, Barclay told GiveMeSport:

“The age he’s at, with a year left (on his contract), they don’t like losing players on free transfers. So, I’d be surprised if he left but not shocked.

“And I hope he stays because I think he’s become a pivotal player, who Ralph loves, and I think he said he’s the most professional player he’s ever coached.”

Romeu is not the only midfielder linked with an exit, as James Ward-Prowse is expected to draw major interest from Tottenham Hotspur.

The Verdict: Must keep

If the £59k-per-week star was to leave the top-flight outfit, this would come as a huge loss to Ralph Hasenhuttl because he’s such a valuable player in this Saints side, having made 33 Premier League starts this campaign, forming a great partnership alongside James Ward-Prowse.

Romeu has been an absolute rock in the middle of the park this term, averaging 2.3 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, and 1.3 dribbles per 90 minutes across all competitions, as per WhoScored, displaying the effects he can have at both ends of the pitch.

Once dubbed as being “one of the best” by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, there’s no doubt that the Austrian boss will do everything he can to retain his engine room operator in a bid to secure a top ten finish next term.

In other news… Southampton have reportedly joined the race to sign one of their transfer targets.

Australia were given further injury headaches ahead of the World Cup after Nathan Hauritz suffered a dislocated shoulder and Shaun Tait limped out of the attack

Andrew McGlashan at Bellerive Oval21-Jan-2011Australia were given further injury headaches ahead of the World Cup after Nathan Hauritz suffered a dislocated shoulder and Shaun Tait limped out of the attack during the second one-day international against England at Hobart.Hauritz’s injury is the more serious of the two and he went straight to hospital after being helped off the outfield in clear pain following a dive to stop the ball. He will have further scans in the morning and is unlikely to take any further part in the one-day series so it could mean a hasty reprieve for Xavier Doherty, the left-arm spinner, who missed out on the World Cup squad.Tait, meanwhile, went off five balls into his sixth over with a thigh strain that will be scanned on Saturday before any further decisions are made. The injuries add to the problems surrounding the Australia squad despite them now being 2-0 up against England after their 46-run victory. Mike Hussey is recovering from a serious hamstring injury which required surgery earlier this week and Ricky Ponting is yet to return from the broken finger he collected during the Ashes.However, with the start of the tournament on the subcontinent still a month away Michael Clarke, the Australia captain, was hopeful that both Hauritz and Tait would be fit to take their place in the 15-man unit.”We’re confident that they’ll both be alright for the World Cup,” Clarke said. “It is a setback though because you want to keep playing as much cricket as you can and get as much form under your belt as possible. Anytime anyone gets injured it’s a loss. They are disappointed personally, especially someone like Haury who has had to go back to first-class cricket where he’s been playing really well.”For this to happen now, I feel for him. Hopefully he’ll be right for the World Cup – he’ll play a big part in that.”Despite the injury blows this match continued Australia’s upward curve since the end of the Ashes. They took a share of a closely fought Twenty20 series and have now taken a significant early advantage in this seven-match contest, despite twice being in trouble with the bat on 4 for 33 and 8 for 142.They were led to a defendable total by Shaun Marsh’s 110 in his first innings as cover for Hussey, having been left out of the World Cup squad. He added an Australian-record 88 for the ninth wicket with renowned tail-end rabbit Doug Bollinger, who then made up for the late absence of Hauritz and Tait with 4 for 28.Given the batting woes the hosts have suffered this season Marsh can consider himself unfortunate not be a regular selection. “It shows we’ve got a lot of talent,” Clarke said. “What’s most pleasing for me is when you see someone come in like Shaun and get hold of his opportunity. That continues to show the depth in first-class cricket in Australia.”I know that’s been questioned this summer but I have 100 per cent belief that there is a lot of talent and good players out there. They’re just looking for an opportunity and Shaun showed that tonight. We gave him his chance and he’s grabbed it with both hands. He continues to do it at the international level,” Clarke added. “He’s performed opening the batting for Australia and he’s had success down the bottom of the order.”He’s come into this game in good form, scoring runs for Western Australia and it’s as good an innings as I’ve seen, under pressure and losing wickets around him. He really stood up today.”

A major Rangers claim has emerged over their potential financial position at Ibrox heading into the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell has revealed that the club will make in excess of £80m over the course of the next two seasons if they win the Europa League later this month.

Rangers will qualify for the group stages of the Champions League by winning the Europa final in Seville next week and will receive a hefty financial boost for doing so.

Campbell tweeted: ‘ “Don’t you think they need the Champions League money here? I think so.” Jon Dahl Tomasson wasn’t wrong. It’s pivotal for Rangers but they’re just a game from securing the cash via the #UEL door. Looking at £80m+ over the two seasons if they do it.’

This sum includes their participation in Europe’s premier competition, winning the Europa League and their involvement in the UEFA Super Cup against either Liverpool or Real Madrid at the start of next season.

Van Bronckhorst will be excited

Gers head coach Gio Van Bronckhorst will surely be left feeling excited by the prospect of the club having more money at their disposal in the coming years.

The 47-year-old and Ross Wilson will be able to utilise the increased funds to attract a higher calibre of player, whether that is because they can afford bigger transfer fees or higher wages – or both. They would also have the lure of playing Champions League football, which could also be a factor in convincing players to make the move to Ibrox.

It will be the Dutchman’s first summer transfer window in charge of the club and he will surely want to put his own stamp on the squad by bringing players in. Being handed a larger war-chest will surely only help his cause, as he will be able to pursue quality signings who have the potential to improve the team.

Mateusz Zukowski, a young prospect, was the only player on whom Rangers spent a transfer fee in January as Amad Diallo, James Sands and Aaron Ramsey all arrived on loan, whilst John Souttar will join as a free agent at the end of next month. This shows that Van Bronckhorst has not had much to work with in terms of bringing in players with a long-term goal in mind.

Therefore, he will have the added motivation to do everything in his power to help the team win the Europa League later this month and will be excited by what doing so wouldl mean for the club off the pitch.

AND in other news, Ibrox sources: Gvb set for imminent Rangers deal that’ll leave supporters delighted…

Bangladesh are trying to play down the importance of their their warm-up game against Pakistan to deflect pressure from the players

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur14-Feb-2011For regular visitors to the Mirpur venue, be it players, officials or journalists, it was like entering familiar terrain, but one that had a different feel to it. Bangladesh’s premier cricket ground has been transformed into an excellence centre and it was fully utilised on Monday, with three teams taking the opportunity to enjoy the facilities. After England used the Academy ground in the morning, Pakistan began to use the newly-laid turf on the northern side while Bangladesh sweated it out at the indoor centre in the eastern corner while also using the green retreat of the main venue for their fielding drills.It is here, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, that the latter two teams will play a warm-up match tomorrow, a contest Pakistan at least are taking seriously. “Any match before the World Cup is going to be tough,” Shoaib Akhtar said. “We are going to take it as a proper match rather than thinking it to be only a practice. We have seen India playing against Australia, which was a pretty serious match.”Bangladesh have beaten New Zealand few months ago and we all know what Bangladesh is capable of. I predict that Bangladesh is going to be in the semi-finals or in the quarters for sure.”Pakistan have a settled enough line-up and if they do use 14 players tomorrow, it will be to test some of the youngsters. Ahmed Shehzad (despite his recent century), Asad Shafiq and Junaid Khan have never played an international game in the subcontinent and this game would be an excellent way to blood the trio in front of a sell-out crowd.Bangladesh, however, had a different strategy, and were determined to play down the significance of the game. “They will play fourteen players, we’ll play thirteen so it’s not a real match, just a practice match,” Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons. said. “It is a really good challenge, actually a great practice game.”Pakistan are a good team but I’m not worried about them, I’m worried about us. We won’t be experimenting, the batting line-up will be close to our actually starting XI. We will use extra bowlers as part of the thirteen and give everyone a try.Bangladesh captain, Shakib Al Hasan, adopted the same stance. “We are not thinking about the result but we are concentrating on properly using the practice game. We’d rather do well in the tournament than in these games. The players used the last game very well and I was impressed by the pacers. I think Rubel [Hossain] just returned from injury and he will come back better.”This insistance on ignoring the result is an indication that the Bangladesh camp is keeping a close eye on the pressure the players might face in a home World Cup (although it is just a warm-up game), and why they are repeating the mantra that though a win is important for momentum, ultimately, “it’s not a real game”.

The ICC needs to understand the working of the sports betting industry to recognise when match-fixing may occur, according to Ken Rutherford, the former New Zealand captain who now works in the South African sports betting business

Jason Dasey14-Mar-2011The ICC needs to understand the working of the sports betting industry to recognise when match-fixing may occur, according to Ken Rutherford, the former New Zealand captain who now works in the South African sports betting business. Rutherford said he has “made the point” to the ICC that it needs to understand the sports betting industry and be pro-active in cleaning up the sport.”I would be shocked if a World Cup game was interfered with,” Rutherford said in an interview with this writer. “The spotlight is at its most extreme and the fixers could find better options for their skullduggery in matches where the focus is less strong.”However, he said the ICC had a lot of work to do going forward. Betting markets, he said, should be closely monitored by experts during games for any suspicious movement of money. “(This could be done) by employing traders from the sports betting industry whose job it would be to watch the markets on a daily basis. They could set up some kind of software that would be applied to the markets that would act as an alert should money be moving oddly – that is, against the natural progression of a match.”Citing the example of football, Rutherford said that the ICC should form information-sharing partnerships with the world’s biggest bookies. “When odd betting behaviour is suspected, the network is informed. Often markets will be closed as a result of this information. The network has a direct line through to UEFA (European football’s governing body), who are informed prior to a match beginning if any match fixing is suspected.”At my old job at Singapore Pools, we often heard things in advance from our own network of ”spies”. If something was suspected in football, the match officials would warn the players prior to the game that the match was suspected of being fixed, and that they better not try anything.”But such safeguards would not be able to solve something that continues to flourish on the sub-continent outside the purview of regulation, illegal betting. Rutherford admitted that the only way to try and tackle it was to somehow infiltrate the bookies’ underground network. “It’s not easy – but it’s crucial. Illegal bookmaking operations in India and in other parts of Asia are rife, so some kind of cricket’s own underground network could be set up to better understand the lie of the land. Some of the bet types are only available to clients of the illegal bookies.”The problem of illegal bookies was too large to be wiped out completely, Rutherford, said; the way forward should be to legalise it, so that the government could earn some revenue, and some of the above safeguards could be put in place. “Risk management systems can easily alert the operator to the possibility of foul play. By treating sports betting as a social outcast, it is allowing the whole illegal bookmaking network to flourish. In places like Hong Kong and Singapore where governments have approved sports betting, it has had some impact in combating illegal bookmaking.”

Javed Miandad has said he will consider becoming the permanent batting coach of Pakistan, after their tour of the West Indies is completed

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2011Javed Miandad has said he will consider becoming the batting coach of Pakistan, after their tour of the West Indies is completed. Miandad, however, will not travel with the team to the West Indies, but will work with the batsmen before their departure, as he did for Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand last year.”I had detailed meetings with Mr. [Ijaz] Butt and [Shahid] Afridi, but I told them that I could not travel with the team to the West Indies,” Miandad told . “I think the tour of West Indies is not a tough one. After this tour I might consider taking up the [batting] coaching assignment.”It was on the request of Pakistan captain Afridi and chairman of the Pakistan board Butt that Miandad, who has had three stints as Pakistan head coach, agreed to work with the team’s batsmen before the upcoming tour. The tour begins on April 18, and comprises a one-off Twenty20 game, five one-dayers and three Tests. The tour ends on May 24, after which Pakistan will travel to Ireland to play a one-day series.As far as what his role would be as batting coach, if he were to take the job full-time, Miandad said it would be mostly restricted to advising batsmen on pitches and bowlers rather than looking to make drastic changes to their techniques.”I believe that once a batsman is selected for the national team you can’t change his technique,” he said. “You can only teach him the finer points of the game, like how to handle various bowlers on different pitches.”Batting was a concern for Pakistan during their World Cup, during which they failed in two chases, against New Zealand in the group stages and India in the semi-finals. None of the Pakistan batsmen managed to score a century during the tournament, and none of them were in the top 20 run-scorers either.Pakistan have included five uncapped players in their squad for the West Indies tour: right-hand batsman Usman Salahuddin, allrounder Hammad Azam, fast bowlers Junaid Khan and Sadaf Hussain, and wicketkeeper Mohammad Salman. Miandad said the changes were positive moves.”It’s the right time to look ahead for the future and start preparing for the next World Cup. We have to look for players who could be there in 2015 and, if they have potential, we should start giving them proper chances.”

Rarely has there been a pitch as green at The Oval as the latest produced Scott Patterson, the new head groundsman, so Kevin Pietersen was probably secretly quite happy that his comeback isn’t slated until next week

Andrew McGlashan at The Oval04-May-2011Leicestershire 56 for 2 v Surrey 294
ScorecardTom Maynard top-scored for Surrey with 70 in bowler-friendly conditions•PA PhotosRarely has there been a pitch at The Oval as green as the latest produced by Scott Patterson, the new head groundsman, so Kevin Pietersen was probably secretly quite happy that his comeback isn’t slated until next week. It also meant that Surrey’s 294 was enough to keep them very much in the contest, especially after their strong pace attack claimed two Leicestershire scalps before the close.The first of those, Matthew Boyce, went to Chris Tremlett in his first match of the season following post-winter rest. He is a rhythm bowler, so given the lay-off a certain amount of rustiness was expected, but he immediately located a splice-jarring length which made life difficult. He should have had Will Jefferson for 3 by the time Boyce fell but Tom Maynard, who continued his impressive form with a 73-ball 70, spilled a simple chance at third slip.Too many Surrey batsmen wasted their starts, but unlike last week at Lord’s where the line-up collapsed dismally twice, they can be offered a little more mitigation here because there was help throughout for the quick bowlers. The ball didn’t stop swinging all day and that coupled with the bounce meant wickets were always on offer. It made for lively cricket as runs also flowed at four-an-over.Already it has got to the stage where Surrey are desperate for a win. For all the positive talk around The Oval, this has been another difficult start to a summer in the Championship. One of the key problem areas has been the opening combination and Chris Adams, the cricket manager, opted to pick his best team, which included the fit-again Mark Ramprakash, and find an opening combination from it.These were certainly tough conditions to blood a young and untested pair in, after both Michael Brown and Gary Wilson were dispatched back to the second team. Rory Hamilton-Brown, the captain, offered to fill one of the spots and the other went to 20-year-old Jason Roy who was fresh from a productive weekend of CB40 action.This time, though, Roy was undone by some perfect swing bowling from Matthew Hoggard as two outswingers were followed by a nip-backer which trapped him lbw. However, Surrey appeared to have set a solid platform as Hamilton-Brown and Ramprakash added 68, but that would remain the best stand of the innings.Ramprakash’s first boundary was an edge through fourth slip, but he was soon suggesting there’ll be plenty of runs this season. Hamilton-Brown drove powerfully for most of his eight boundaries and thought he had another when he hooked Wayne White only to see Nadeem Malik pull off a superb catch at long leg. When Ramprakash edged a good delivery from Nathan Buck which bounced, the pressure was back on the middle order.Steve Davies had two recent 90s to his name but played the poorest shot of the top order when he fished at a wide delivery and edged to first slip. Then Zander de Bruyn was undone by another ball that lifted off a length having worked hard to reach 40.Maynard, in a productive run after a maiden hundred and an unbeaten 98, reached a positive half-century off 58 balls and became ever more expansive with his stroke play, twice lofting drives over the off side and also skipping down the pitch at Henderson to drive him over mid-on. However, Gareth Batty was undone by Hoggard’s swing as he tried to play to leg and edged to gully where Matthew Boyce made amends for an earlier drop.Claude Henderson, who is enjoying an excellent start to the season, then showed there was something on offer for the spinners, too. He had already made a few turn when Maynard gave his impressive innings away by loosely picking out cover and shortly after tea Stuart Meaker prodded a simple catch to slip. Arafat gave the total a useful boost with 44, before he popped a catch to short leg to give Henderson his third.Arafat also struck before the close as he complemented Tremlett’s bounce with skiddier swing and found movement to have Josh Cobb caught behind. It set the scene for an enticing duel between Tremlett and the in-form James Taylor, but Tremlett’s spell ended after five overs as the paceman feels his way into the season.