All posts by h716a5.icu

Canterbury Cricket’s new indoor training centre on Iverson Terrace is on target for its July opening

Lynn McConnell23-Apr-2002Canterbury Cricket’s new indoor training centre on Iverson Terrace is on target for its July opening.The concrete floor has been laid in the 40 metre x 20 metre warehouse section, and contractors have begun to erect the walls.The building will house a four-lane indoor training centre as well as the CCA offices, which will be relocated from their central city location.Once completed, the building will open up a host of opportunities for new coaching and development initiatives in Canterbury. These will include the permanent set-up of a bowling machine, on-site video analysis and all-year-round one-on-one coaching. Local CCA clubs, Suburban clubs, CCA districts and schools will also get the chance to train in a top quality facility.It is an exciting development for Canterbury Cricket, who have relied on converting warehouses and hiring other facilities over the past five years to provide adequate pre-season and indoor training facilities.

After playing out a goalless draw last time out in the Premier League, Aston Villa will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways when they take on Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon.

Dean Smith’s side struggled to get things going against Everton at Villa Park, managing just two shots on target over the course of the entire 90 minutes.

The Villa boss could make some changes to freshen up his team given they just played on Thursday night, and with that in mind, below is a look at how they might line up for the trip to Selhurst Park.

In goal, Emi Martinez was outstanding in the draw with Everton, making five total saves and preserving Villa’s clean sheet – it also keeps his hopes of clinching a share of the Golden Gloves this season alive, with Manchester City’s Ederson three ahead of him with three games to go.

The back-four could see one key change with Matty Cash dropping out after seemingly picking up a hamstring injury last time out and being forced off at half-time.

While the likes of Kaine Kesler may have been knocking on the door for a first-team start, his involvement in Villa’s triumphant FA Youth Cup semi-final against West Brom means Ahmed Elmohamady is likely to take Cash’s place.

Further forward, if Smith chooses not to use Grealish from the start, then Jacob Ramsey could well be in line to replace the out-of-form Ross Barkley – the England international hasn’t scored since the end of January.

The one really exciting change Smith could make is by giving 19-year-old winger Jaden Philogene-Bidace his Premier League debut, with Anwar El Ghazi dropping out.

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And up front, Ollie Watkins should come straight back into the starting line-up after serving his one-match suspension against the Toffees.

Predicted XI: Martinez; Elmohamady, Konsa, Mings, Targett; McGinn, Luiz; Traore, Ramsey, Philogene-Bidace; Watkins.

Meanwhile, this Villa star must never play again…

Southampton have been linked with Santiago Moreno recently, and if he were to join Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side this summer, it could spell bad news for Moussa Djenepo.

According to The Telegraph, the Saints, Leeds United and Rangers are all keen on signing the 21-year-old from Deportivo de Cali this summer. The report suggests that his style of play has been compared to former Saints winger Sadio Mane, whilst he is expected to be able to adapt to the demands of Premier League football.

During his time with the Liga Dimayor side, the young winger has contributed 10 goals and seven assists in just 49 appearances, which suggests that he can add a goalscoring threat in Hasenhuttl’s team next season should Martin Semmens bring him to St Mary’s this summer.

This could spell trouble for Djenepo, who has struggled to perform consistently since his move from Standard Liege in the summer of 2019, with just four goals and two assists to his name in 51 appearances for Southampton.

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This season has been particularly disappointing for the Mali international, as he has managed just one goal and no assists in 27 Premier League appearances, earning a less than impressive 6.37 rating from WhoScored for his performances.

This ranks him as the 17th-best performer in Hasenhuttl’s side this season, which suggests that the 22-year-old could soon find himself surplus to requirements should another winger arrive at St Mary’s this summer.

Considering that Nathan Tella has perhaps already moved ahead of Djenepo in the pecking order at Southampton, whilst Theo Walcott’s loan move has been made permanent, it seems likely that the Malian will struggle for game time with the Saints next season unless his performances drastically improve.

Therefore, the addition of a young exciting winger such as Moreno, who seems to have much more of an eye for goal than Djenepo, could spell serious trouble for the latter’s future in Hasenhuttl’s side.

In other news… Semmens can end Hasenhuttl headache with Saints swoop for “explosive” beast

Somerset Head Groundsman Phil Frost made his first visit of the season to the Rec at Bath on Friday, where Somerset will be playing Yorkshire in a 4-day championship match starting on June 13th

Richard Walsh27-May-2001Somerset Head Groundsman Phil Frost made his first visit of the season to the Rec at Bath on Friday, where Somerset will be playing Yorkshire in a 4-day championship match starting on June 13th.Phil spent the day watering and scarifying the wicket, as well as taking delivery of a heavy roller, which will remain at the Rec till after the festival is over."This year we will be able to have more time to complete our preparations at Bath, because there is no cricket at Taunton," he told me.For much of the year the outfield area at the Rec is used as a car park for Bath Rugby Club, and very little cricket is played upon the square apart from the Somerset matches.A sponsorship deal with local solicitors Withy King and matched funding from the local council looks likely to have guaranteed the future of the Bath Festival for the immediate future, but the local organisers will be hoping for fine weather and good support form local cricket followers.

Rangers have been linked with both Gustavo Hamer and Joey Veerman recently but who would be the better signing for Steven Gerrard’s side at Ibrox next season?

Gustavo Hamer

According to Football League World, Rangers are interested in signing the Brazilian-born midfielder this summer, after his impressive debut campaign with Coventry City in the Championship.

The likes of Norwich City, Brighton and Brentford are also said to be interested in the 23-year-old, who has contributed five goals and two assists in 42 Championship appearances for Mark Robins’ side this season, which helped him average a solid 6.74 rating from WhoScored.

Hamer is currently valued at just £1.8m by Transfermarkt, although he has another two years left on his contract with the Sky Blues, who won’t be willing to let him go easily after they comfortably avoided relegation following their promotion to England’s second-tier last season.

Joey Veerman

According to reports from the Netherlands, Rangers are one of the sides interested in the SC Heerenveen midfielder, who has continued to dazzle in the Eredivisie.

This year, the 22-year-old has contributed seven goals and nine assists in 29 appearances in the Dutch top-flight, which has helped him earn a superb average rating of 7.44 so far this season, according to WhoScored.

Transfermarkt currently value the young Dutchman at £6.3m, whilst his contract at Heerenveen is set to expire in 2024, so it would likely cost Rangers a significant amount should they bring him to Ibrox this summer.

Who would be better?

Whilst Veerman would likely be the more expensive option, he has outperformed Hamer when it comes to goals and assists this season, despite playing at an arguably higher level.

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The 22-year-old has also outscored the Coventry City man when it comes to tackles per game (2 vs 1.3), key passes per game (1.8 vs 1.5) and shots per game (2.1 vs 1.8), so definitely seems like he would be the better option for Gerrard this summer.

PSV Eindhoven have also been linked with Veerman and their manager Roger Schmidt was full of praise for the young midfielder recently, saying:

“Veerman is a very good player, especially with the ball. He always has good attacking ideas, makes good decisions under pressure and always looks ahead. He has great vision.”

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Therefore, if Rangers are looking for players with genuine Champions League quality ahead of next season, then Ross Wilson should forget about signing Hamer and instead focus on trying to bring Veerman to Ibrox.

And, in other news… Gerrard dealt shock blow amid huge claim on “top talent”, he could leave Ibrox

West Ham United will be looking to get back on track when they return to Premier League action this evening.

David Moyes’ side have suffered successive defeats, seeing them drop out of a place in the top-four but they now head to Burnley knowing that a victory would see them cut the gap to Chelsea.

It was the Blues who narrowly defeated the Hammers last time out, winning 1-0 at the London Stadium and the 58-year-old manager now has plenty to ponder in terms of team selection.

You could argue that the Irons more than held their own throughout the 90 minutes, given the scoreline, but the statistics tell a different story as the visitors dominated possession (56%) and enjoyed eight more attempts at goal, as per SofaScore.

It was certainly a tough task in the absence of some key players like Declan Rice, Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell. However, those that stepped in failed to deliver and have to be at risk of Moyes wielding his axe.

One name that should be ruthlessly chopped from the starting XI is Ryan Fredericks. He played at left-back, out of position, and that proved to be a very problematic area of the pitch as Mason Mount and Cesar Azpilicueta dominated for large spells.

The 28-year-old lost possession 13 times and was particularly wasteful with the ball, too, completing only 67% of his passes and failing to provide a single accurate cross.

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It left Jesse Lingard and Jarrod Bowen, who spearheaded Moyes’ attack, with very little to feed off, so it was no wonder they managed four fewer shots on target than Chelsea.

Ben Johnson has often been the man to go to left wing-back if either of Cresswell or Arthur Masuaku are missing, and perhaps he would be the better option against the more defensively-minded Clarets.

The 21-year-old academy gem “really impressed” Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville last season, with the former Man Utd right-back also claiming that he “looks an excellent defender.”

Whilst he was rather unlikely to lose his place for the Chelsea encounter, considering he was a rare positive in the defeat to Newcastle United a week earlier.

In terms of consistency, Fredericks is amongst Moyes’ worst performers, registering a paltry 6.47 average on WhoScored. And his returns of 0.5 crosses and 0.8 key passes per game rank as the worst when compared to Cresswell, Vladimir Coufal and Masuaku.

The £40k-per-week star just isn’t good enough to be starting for a West Ham side competing for a fierce European spot. He was shocking against Chelsea and has very rarely looked the part this term.

Moyes must show no mercy and axe the Hammers lightweight tonight.

AND in other news, GSB’s wrath: West Ham “monster” continues to crash under Moyes, transfer value has DROPPED 48%…

Xisco Munoz’s Watford side are considering a move to bring Rafael Santos Borre to Vicarage Road this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by The Sun, who claim that Watford have opened talks with the River Plate centre-forward regarding a potential summer switch, while a number of other Premier League sides are also believed to be monitoring the situation of the 25-year-old, whose contract in Argentina expires in June.

This would mean that the £13.5 million-rated hitman would be available on a free transfer, making a deal extremely attractive for Watford from a financial perspective.

Giaretta must sanction swoop

Having left Atletico Madrid for River Plate in what was a £3.15 million deal back in 2017, Borre has highly impressed over his time in Argentina, scoring 54 goals and providing 18 assists over his 142 appearances for the club, with his total haul of 10 goals and four assists in the club’s 2017/18 campaign helping his side to win the Copa Libertadores.

This season, the £11,000-per week star has already bagged eight goals and registered one assist over his 13 fixtures in the Primera Division, as well as averaging a SofaScore match rating of 7.08 – ranking him as River Plate’s joint eighth-best performer in the Argentinian top flight.

It would also appear that the signing of a centre-forward is something of a priority for Watford this summer, as in the club’s 2020/21 Championship campaign, aside from Ismaila Sarr, no other player scored more than 10 league goals – with Joao Pedro bagging nine, Troy Deeney scoring seven and Andre Gray netting five.

As such, Cristiano Giaretta simply must sanction a move for Borre this summer, as not only would a move for the striker – whom Javier Saviol claimed is currently “among the best” forwards playing the game – dramatically improve Xisco’s attacking arsenal ahead of the club’s Premier League campaign, it would also be a deal that is extremely low risk for the Hornets financially, as the 25-year-old currently takes home a rather modest weekly wage at River, in addition to being available on a free transfer.

In other news: Xisco can land Watford’s dream Deeney successor in “exceptional” 25 y/o goal machine – opinion

Wolves are believed to be interested in a summer move for Arsenal ace Ainsley Maitland-Niles, with a host of other clubs also monitoring his situation.

The 23-year-old is currently on loan at West Brom, making nine Premier League appearances for the Baggies during their struggle to remain in the top flight.

Given Arsenal’s willingness to loan him out, it could be that the north London club listen to offers for Maitland-Niles at the end of the season.

Wolves eye up move for Maitland-Niles

The Mirror reported that Wolves are among the clubs weighing up the idea of signing the Englishman this summer as Nuno Espirito Santo eyes up reinforcements for his squad.

The report claimed that there is also interest from the likes of Leeds United, Crystal Palace and Monaco in what could be a frenetic battle for his signature.

Maitland-Niles, who has been hailed as ‘fantastic’ by three-time Premier League winner Martin Keown in the past, will see his Arsenal contract expire this summer, so the Gunners risk losing him on a free transfer if they don’t offer him a new deal.

Transfer Tavern take

The England international may not have established himself at the Emirates Stadium in the same vein as Bukayo Saka, for example, but he remains a player with plenty of potential.

His ability to thrive in several roles, from right wing-back to central midfield, could be something which appeals to Wolves, and at 23, he would likely be a long-term acquisition rather than a quick fix.

It seems unlikely that he is going to become a regular for a ‘big six’ club like Arsenal, but it is easier to envisage him featuring regularly at Molineux, especially with Joao Moutinho ageing in midfield and Nelson Semedo not consistently impressing at right-back.

The fact that he would cost nothing is also an added bonus for Wolves if they can see off the reported competition for his signature.

In other news, some Wolves fans have slammed one player’s performance against Sheffield United. Read more here.

Leicester City could once again ignite their interest in a move for Juventus defender Merih Demiral this summer.

The Foxes have long been linked with the Turkish centre-back, with CalcioMercato indicating that the club had a huge offer rejected for him last summer.

Now despite having knocked back Leicester’s overtures, the Turin giants are now reportedly open to selling Demiral, a change in approach that Director of Football Jon Rudkin could certainly take advantage of.

Whilst it would appear that Brendan Rodgers does not need another centre-back in his squad, having already signed Wesley Fofana last year and the Frenchman forming a solid trio with Caglar Soyuncu and Jonny Evans, an added option could certainly be useful.

Evans is now 33 years of age and despite having not shown any indication of wanting to retire, he is only likely to have a couple of years left at the top level on a consistent basis. Meanwhile, club legend Wes Morgan is also 37 and sees his contract expire at the end of the season.

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His departure will leave Leicester lacking options at centre-back, with midfielder Daniel Amartey already having had to deputise on a number of occasions throughout 2020/21.

The arrival of Demiral would certainly go some way in rectifying that problem and he would definitely be one of the best candidates to fill the void. After all, Rodgers is already well aware of his ability having labelled the 23-year-old as “talented”.

Capped 19 times for Turkey, Demiral has established himself as one of the most consistent defenders for Juventus having made a total of 31 appearances for the Old Lady since his arrival from Sassuolo – 23 of those coming this season alone after recovering from a serious knee injury.

According to WhoScored, Demiral betters his Juventus central defensive colleagues in terms of interceptions and clearances per game in Serie A, displaying how he has propelled himself into a position of such responsibility.

Now available, Leicester simply must not pass up the opportunity of signing a defender of such quality. This is a deal that Rudkin should be all over.

AND in more news, find out what James Maddison has said that is something all Foxes fans want to hear…

David Moyes can potentially land West Ham United’s dream Sebastien Haller heir in Dinamo Zagreb forward Mislav Orsic.

What’s the word?

According to Football Insider, the Irons have approached Dinamo Zagreb to open discussions over a potential summer swoop for the Croatia international.

West Ham watched the attacker break Tottenham Hotspur’s hearts in the Europa League recently with a hat-trick to seal an unlikely round of 16 win, having trailed by two goals after the first leg.

Orsic’s efforts at home to the north Londoners have scouts on alert as shortlists begin to be drawn up for the summer transfer market, with Arsenal also said to be keen. The Gunners have likewise registered their interest in him, with Dinamo Zagreb after sounding out the Prva HNL side’s asking price, which remains to be seen.

Mikel Arteta is said to be a fan of the 28-year-old as he strives to bolster the attacking options at the Emirates Stadium, where Willian and Nicolas Pepe have often shown inconsistent form.

Orsic is enjoying a remarkable campaign in front of goal, with his hat-trick over Spurs taking his record to 19 for the season while assisting a further eight goals in all competitions.

Four of his goals and three of his assists have come in his last three Prva HNL appearances, moving to within two goals of a career-best return of 21 for a single season, which he achieved last term.

Should West Ham sign Dinamo Zagreb’s Orsic?

Orsic could represent West Ham’s dream Haller heir, despite being a natural wide option, as his ability to play through the centre would allow Moyes to put the 28-year-old on the same path that Michail Antonio took during the 2017/18 season.

Antonio had proven in his first two-and-a-half-years at the London Stadium that he could represent a versatile option, with Slaven Bilic awarding him minutes across the right channel and on either wing.

It was not until the initial arrival of Moyes in 2017 that Antonio established a regular place for himself at centre-forward, a position he would again occupy following Manuel Pellegrini’s sacking having played a wider role under the Chilean.

Moyes has not looked back on playing Antonio centrally since his return to east London, with the 30-year-old striking eight of his nine goals in the Premier League under the Scot last term from a central position.

All seven of Antonio’s top-flight goals this season have come at striker, while providing five assists – only Tomas Soucek (nine) has scored more often for West Ham, while only Aaron Cresswell (seven) has been credited with creating more goals.

Orsic’s hat-trick against Spurs was not the first time that the £6.75m-rated forward has made a European night his playground either, having netted three times against Atalanta in the Champions League group stage last season before the Serie A side reached the quarter-finals.

After that game 18 months ago, former Dinamo Zagreb head coach Nenad Bjelica claimed, via quotes shared by Birmingham Live amid a potential £8m move to West Bromwich Albion: “He talks with his goals.

“That’s one very honest guy who is sacrificing himself for the team. Mislav is a Zagreb boy who has had a very difficult journey, and by his own merit he has arrived at this level.”

AND in other news, West Ham have set their sights on a “competitive beast” who won’t cost David Sullivan a penny…