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While calling for people to be patient with West Indies’ developing side, captain Jason Holder has said that there are signs of progress

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Oct-20161:53

West Indies lose eight out of eight in UAE

In the wake of West Indies’ 133-run defeat in the second Test in Abu Dhabi, captain Jason Holder has said that his young, inexperienced side is making progress, but emphasised that it would take time for that to reflect in the results they achieve.”I don’t feel any pressure as captain,” Holder said. “It is a young and inexperienced squad; it will take time to get the results we have been looking for. We have been inconsistent for the last number of years. I’m here to do a job and I’m trying to do the best I possibly can.”West Indies have had a prolonged underwhelming spell in Test cricket and are currently ranked No. 8 in the format. However, they have turned in a couple of spirited performances recently; they saved the second Test against India in Kingston in July-August and came from behind to run Pakistan close in the first Test in Dubai.Holder asked for patience in West Indies’ developing team and cited their performance in the Dubai Test as evidence that they are moving in the right direction.”We understand the position we are in, but it’s been almost a decade that we have been struggling. We are in situation where we are trying to get things right, but also taking in some young players. It will take some time for these boys to develop and we have to give them the opportunity to do so.”If you have watched our cricket for the last couple of months, we have shown signs of improvement. In Dubai, we put ourselves in a position from where we could have won it. It is just a matter of consistency here.”While consistency may be a longer-term project, West Indies’ immediate task is to find a way to avoid a series whitewash as they head to Sharjah for the third Test. After whitewashes in the T20I and ODI series on the tour so far, even a hard-fought draw in Sharjah might represent progress.Holder said the side must convert starts and take all their chances in order to push for positive results.”The difference between our team and the big teams is that we have not capitalised after getting starts and that is due to the lack of experience. We haven’t carried on. Also, if you give chances to good players, they make you pay. We put down a few chances and that hurt us in this Test match. At this level, giving good players two opportunities is bad.”

Newcastle United midfielder Sean Longstaff “won’t be involved” in the Premier League game vs Brighton and Hove Albion tonight, according to Eddie Howe.

What's the latest injury news on Sean Longstaff?

The Magpies academy graduate was involved in a heavy challenge during the 4-1 win against Everton last month which saw him sustain a foot injury and he therefore hasn’t featured since, missing the three matches against Southampton, Arsenal and Leeds United.

Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie confirmed that the 25-year-old was set to go for a follow-up scan to further assess the extent of his problem, and whilst ChronicleLive soon after revealed that he had suffered no broken bones, not to mention that the manager admitted last week that fans "could see him as early as next week if he improves quickly", he still isn’t ready to stage his comeback to the first-team.

Speaking during Wednesday’s pre-match press conference, Howe confirmed that Longstaff is ruled out of this evening’s fixture vs Brighton, whilst also providing an update on the fitness of Jacob Murphy. As quoted by Newcastle’s official website, he said:

“I think we’re quite clear on the injury but it’s just how long it takes to heal. He made good progress yesterday so let’s see how he feels today but he won’t be involved for this game. Jacob is probably the one doubt we’ll have for the game."

Will Longstaff's absence be a blow for Newcastle?

After Brighton, Newcastle only have two games of the 2022/23 season remaining against Leicester City and Chelsea, so Howe will be hoping to have Longstaff back at his disposal before the conclusion of the current campaign, but in the short-term, it’s definitely a blow for the central midfielder to be ruled out once again.

The St. James’ Park star, who pockets £50k-per-week, has posted seven goal contributions (four assists and three goals) across all competitions this season and has been a regular feature of the first-team having made 27 starts in the top-flight, so he’s clearly viewed as an important member of the squad.

The Magpies’ “superb” dominator, as once lauded by journalist Josh Bunting, also offers wonderful versatility with his ability to operate in five various positions over the pitch, including four in the midfield and even as a second striker, so the sooner he returns to action in the northeast to help try and nail down a place in the Champions League, the better as far as the manager is concerned.

A trio of teenage pace bowlers have been included in the England Lions squad for their one-day tri-series against Pakistan A and Sri Lanka A

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jul-2016

A trio of teenage pace bowlers have been handed England Lions places for the one-day tri-series against Pakistan A and Sri Lanka A. Lancashire’ Saqib Mahmood, Sussex’s George Garton and Sam Curran of Surrey are part of the 13-man squad which will be captained by Dawid Malan.The trio, part of the England’s Under-19 World Cup squad in Bangladesh earlier this year, are joined in the pace-bowling options by the slightly more senior pair of Tom Curran and Jamie Overton. Sam Curran will join the squad midway through the series so that he is available for Surrey’s Championship match against Hampshire.Worcestershire provide two batsmen in Joe Clarke, who has scored three Championship hundreds this season including a match-winning one against Leicestershire this week, and Brett D’Oliveira, who is also averaging over 50 in the Championship.Liam Livingstone, the hard-hitting Lancashire batsman, has been called-up alongside Northamptonshire’s Ben Duckett and Kent’s Daniel Bell-Drummond.Malan, who was in England’s T20 squad for the match against Sri Lanka but did not get capped, is joined by two players who have played for England in the Hampshire allrounder Liam Dawson, who took three wickets on debut against Sri Lanka, and Sam Billings.The Lions call-ups mean the players will be unavailable for their counties at a time when teams are pushing for knockout places in the Royal London Cup and T20 Blast, but the selectors have done their best to ease disruption and players will be released for T20 Blast matches July 22 which is a day when Pakistan A play Sri Lanka A.”There is a balance of players who have represented the Lions before, with a few new faces for the future who we feel will benefit from the experience of and exposure to Lions cricket,” James Whitaker, the national selector, said. “We also had to be respectful to the counties who have important domestic fixtures, while again balancing that with our own competitiveness, and making sure we can perform well.”Andy Flower, who will be head coach, said: “It is important for the Lions to play home matches in the summer as well as touring during the winter for a number of reasons, and we are grateful to the counties for recognising that if we are going to reap the benefits of playing abroad in the winter, we have to offer the equivalent opportunity to the developing cricketers of Sri Lanka and Pakistan.””We’ve had quite a large transition from last winter’s Lions squad to the national side, and that means we will have a much younger group. That is going to make this a challenging series against some experienced cricketers from Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but it will provide a great opportunity for our young players to test themselves.”The series starts with Pakistan A facing Sri Lanka A at Cheltenham on July 18 before England play their first match against Pakistan A the following day. Northamptonshire then host two matches on July 21 and 22 before the series concludes in Canterbury on July 24 and 25.

Chelsea are enduring one of their worst seasons in recent memory as the prospect of playing European is almost out of the equation, and they are closer to the relegation zone than the top six.

Since Thomas Tuchel’s abrupt sacking, both Graham Potter and Frank Lampard have failed to find the solution to revive this horribly out-of-sorts club.

In particular, watching the Blues attack has been an uneasy experience as their array of offensive talent has been unable to show any consistent creative spark.

One player who has criminally underperformed is Christian Pulisic who looks set for a departure from Stamford Bridge.

What has gone wrong for Christian Pulisic at Chelsea?

The American is having a nightmarish campaign, having only recorded one goal and two assists in 27 appearances, whilst being dismally ranked as the 27th-worst Blues player in the league.

The former Borussia Dortmund man seems to have lost all motivation and wasn’t even included in the matchday squad against Arsenal.

However, Chelsea Joe Cole has defended the £150k-per-week man’s patchy form and said: "He's a super talented footballer. He's won the Champions League with Chelsea and he played a big part by scoring important goals. It's just, I feel sorry for Christian the amount of injuries he's got. It's really stopped his development.

"I think he needs to find his happiness again in a Chelsea shirt. It's very difficult and there's always competition. There are 31 players playing in the Chelsea squad, world-class players a lot of them. He has to find his rhythm again."

However, for a player that has been in West London since 2019 and approaching the prime of his career, it is difficult to justify such wretched performances.

This view was echoed by Jamie Carragher, who delivered a damning indictment of the forward.

He said: “I don’t think he’s good enough to play for Chelsea. I think he’s been there for a few years now. I think he’s had enough opportunities.

“To play week in, week out and make a difference for one of the best teams in the world, he’s not good enough for that right now.

“I’ve said before, I think he’s got great ability. Some of those things I’ve seen him do for Chelsea, the goals he’s scored. But it’s not consistent enough, and he gets injured quite a lot.”

These words have stemmed because of a lengthy run of poor performances, having hardly been too much better last term with eight goals in 38 outings.

The squad must be trimmed this summer and with the star linked to a range of clubs including Manchester United, an exit in the coming weeks looks like a serious possibility that would be best for both parties.

West Ham United topped off a superb week as they cruised to a 4-0 win against Bournemouth away from home, with David Moyes' side surely now safe from relegation.

The Hammers advanced to the Europa Conference League semi-finals with a 4-1 demolition of Gent in midweek and utilised the confidence from that game on the south coast, hitting another four goals to earn a rare away win.

What happened in Bournemouth vs West Ham?

There was a fast start by the Hammers against Gary O'Neil's side as Michail Antonio continued his fine recent form by heading in Aaron Cresswell's corner after just five minutes.

Seven minutes later it was 2-0 from another header, with Lucas Paqueta rising highest to nod in Vladimir Coufal's pinpoint cross, as he also added to his goal against Gent with another this afternoon.

Declan Rice made the points safe before half-time with a powerful finish after another Cresswell corner caused havoc, with the England international enjoying his own strong run of form in front of goal.

The best goal was saved till last, however, as Pablo Fornals produced a scorpion-kick finish from Jarrod Bowen's cutback in the second half to make it 4-0 before Maxwel Cornet was denied his first Premier League goal for the Hammers by the offside flag.

The result leaves Moyes' side in 13th position in the top flight, now six points clear of the relegation spots, which you would hope would be enough to see the Hammers safe.

Who was Moyes' best performer vs Bournemouth?

While there were a number of superb performances from West Ham players on Sunday afternoon, notably goalscorer Rice who was the second highest-rated outfield player on the day, via Sofascore, it was arguably Paqueta who was the star of the show in midfield.

As per Sofascore, the Brazilian would earn a superb 8.2/10 rating for his performance, which was the joint-best of any player to feature in the game at the Vitality Stadium.

The former AC Milan man was a dominant force from both an attacking and defensive perspective, contributing two key passes, five tackles and eight successive duels during his time on the pitch.

Considering he has averaged just one key pass and 2.4 tackles per game in the top flight so far this campaign, it is clear that he raised his game to another level against the Cherries this weekend.

Coufal was full of praise for the Brazil international after a strong display against Newcastle United earlier this year and it seems as if the 25-year-old is finally living up to his price tag at the London Stadium.

The Czech defender said: “I think he needed some time to adapt and understand what the Premier League is about, but I think now he has got a lot of confidence. He scored the goal at Leeds from a penalty, and then he was brilliant here. He never panics with the ball and his technique, his skills are unreal."

It is no surprise that Paqueta's upturn in form has coincided with West Ham's best few results of the campaign, and Moyes will be hoping to see a lot more from the club-record signing again next term.

Everton ended their unbeaten run in the Premier League yesterday when they faced Manchester United at Old Trafford and manager Sean Dyche will be frustrated with the way his team performed from the opening minutes.

The Toffees are teetering on the edge of the relegation zone – matching Nottingham Forest on 27 points – and are only outside the bottom three on goal difference following their defeat to Erik ten Hag's side on Saturday afternoon.

Everton failed to dominate in any area of the pitch with just 36% possession of the ball, far fewer shots on target (1 vs 11), fewer big chances created (1 vs 7) and less than half accurate passes completed compared to their opponents (236 vs 535), via Sofascore.

It was a miracle in itself that the Merseysiders managed to hold off Man United's attacking threat over the first half an hour, with Jordan Pickford putting on an incredible goal-keeping display to deny the home side multiple times before Scott McTominay finally converted one of their 21 shots on goal in the 36th minute to take the lead at half-time.

Dyche sought out solutions to avoid another 45 minutes of being smothered by Man United's pressing machine that was dominating the left side throughout the first half – bringing on Vitaliy Mykolenko for Ben Godfrey.

However, it was the right side that found themselves punished when Seamus Coleman switched off to allow Anthony Martial to easily tuck away the final blow in the 71st minute, making the scoreline 2-0 at the final whistle.

How did Ben Godfrey get on vs Manchester United?

The centre-back has suffered injury issues this season but has always been an attractive prospect to his managers at Goodison Park, with Dyche the latest manager to find ways to fit him into the team.

Godfrey has been playing in the left-back position since returning to action under the Everton boss and more recently, has been preferred in the position over his Ukrainian teammate, however, he had an absolute disaster against Man Utd.

Over his 45-minute performance, the £75k-per-week dud was completely outrun by Antony and struggled to make his presence known with just six accurate passes completed, misplaced 100% of his long balls, had one error led to a shot and had fewer touches of the ball than Pickford.

Dyche quickly put Everton supporters out of their misery by hooking Godfrey at half-time, but not before England legend Stuart Pearce offered a scathing assessment of the player's display on talkSPORT's commentary of the game:

"It’s awful defending. If I was Dyche I would take Godfrey off the pitch. I think he’s having a disaster.

"Even at this stage of the game I’d get him off the pitch, because he’s going to cost you a goal.

"He just wasn’t at the races for whatever reason, Ben Godfrey.

"I like him, a very genuine player, but too many straightforward balls dissected him."

With that being said, there is no doubt that Godfrey's struggles against the Red Devils will give Dyche plenty to think about ahead of the Toffees' next game against Fulham.

And it will be interesting to see whether he keeps the faith in the player or opts for Mykolenko instead.

Leeds have seemingly unearthed another gem in Crysencio Summerville, as the 21-year-old's market value has soared during his time at Elland Road.

How much is Leeds' Crysencio Summerville worth now?

Leeds would sign the Dutch winger when he was just 18, with the teenager joining from Feyenoord in a deal worth only £1.3m in September 2020.

It was something of a risk by Victor Orta given that the wide man had failed to make a single appearance for Feyenoord's first team, although he had caught the eye on loan with ADO Den Haag the season prior, contributing two goals and three assists in 22 appearances for De Residentieclub.

Summerville would make an instant impact with Leeds' U21 side, registering an impressive six goals and six assists in the Premier League 2 during the 2020/21 season, which saw him earn a promotion to the senior side under Marcelo Bielsa in the 2021/22 campaign.

He has since gone on to make 31 appearances for the Whites' senior side, contributing four goals and one assist, all of which came in the top flight this term.

Only Rodrigo has scored more goals for Leeds in the Premier League this season, so it seems fair to suggest that the 21-year-old is now an important member of Javi Gracia's squad, although he will need to contribute more if the Yorkshire outfit are to avoid relegation.

Summerville's four goals came in consecutive fixtures before the World Cup break and he has failed to register on the scoresheet in 11 appearances since then, but he is still just 21 and has plenty of time to work on his consistency as a Leeds player.

The Netherlands U21 international's last goal for the club came in the 4-3 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in November 2022 and Michael Owen was full of praise for the youngster's technique during the Premier League's coverage of the game.

He said (via Leeds United news): “This is such a good goal. The ball is behind him. He takes one lovely touch with the outside of his foot, then another one to keep him away from the defender and finishes it brilliantly.

“This is a really hard chance. He’s behind the defender in many ways when he gets the ball. I mean how he does that is really, really exceptional.”

Summerville's status as a regular first-teamer at Leeds has unsurprisingly led to his market value increasing significantly in his time at Elland Road, with CIES Football Observatory now valuing him at €10m (£8.84m), which represents an impressive 580% increase on the £1.3m Leeds paid back in 2020.

Therefore, Leeds, and Orta, deserve a huge amount of credit for bringing in the youngster for such a bargain fee three years ago.

Liverpool are believed to be interested in signing Bayern Munich midfielder Ryan Gravenberch this summer, according to a new transfer rumour.

The Lowdown: Gravenberch out of favour

The 20-year-old has emerged as arguably one of the most exiting midfielders of his generation, having initially burst onto the scene at Ajax, making 103 appearances for them.

Gravenberch’s performances earned him a high-profile move to Bayern last summer but he has struggled to reach the hype early on in Germany.

He has only managed just one start in the Bundesliga all season long, as well as making 14 substitute appearances, falling behind others in the midfield pecking order, such as Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka.

While it is still clearly early days for Gravenberch at Bayern, there may be a part of him that is already considering moving on, should Julian Nagelsmann not see a long-term future for him.

That’s where Liverpool come into play, as Jurgen Klopp continues to look at potential midfield signings during the summer transfer window.

The Latest: Liverpool keen on signing

According to a report from Spain [via Caught Offside], the Reds are interested in signing Graveberch at the end of the season, seeing him as a strong option to bring in.

It is even stated that talks are at an advanced stage currently, with new faces required ahead of the likely exits of Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Gravenberch’s current Bayern deal doesn’t expire until the summer of 2027, so it may not be easy to get him on the cheap.

The Verdict: Potentially great addition

Granted, the 11-cap Netherlands international hasn’t pulled up any trees at Bayern so far this season, but he is such a young player that going overboard about his struggles is nothing more than hyperbole.

Gravenberch remains a huge talent with a massive future ahead of him – former Ajax player Wim Kieft once called him a ‘complete’ player – and for that reason the idea of him in a Liverpool shirt is hugely exciting.

The youngster possesses both physicality and technical quality, both of which have been sorely lacking at Liverpool this season, given his 6ft 2in frame and 89.1% pass completion rate in the Bundesliga this season.

At 20, Gravenberch and Jude Bellingham could both come in and represent the future at Anfield, although both are so incredibly mature for their age that they would surely be considered regular starters from the off by Klopp.

Whether or not Bayern are willing to sell so soon remains to be seen, but Liverpool should see it as a shrewd signing in what is a pivotal summer at the club.

During his time at West Ham United, Felipe Anderson could polarise opinion. However, now that the 29-year-old is arguably outperforming his former team-mate Jarrod Bowen, David Moyes may well be regretting the Brazilian’s departure.

Should West Ham have sold Felipe Anderson?

The Hammers signed the tricky winger from Lazio in 2018 in a then club-record deal worth £36m but like many other attacking additions at the London Stadium, he perhaps failed to live up to expectations in the English capital.

In total, the former Brazil international made 73 appearances in West Ham colours, in which he contributed just 12 goals and 13 assists, the vast majority of which came in his debut Premier League campaign.

He struggled to replicate those numbers in his second season with the club, managing just one goal and four assists in 25 Premier League appearances before a loan move to Porto during the 2020/21 campaign.

Moyes felt that it was necessary to cash in on the winger as he targeted new signings in 2021 and Anderson was sold back to Lazio for just £4m, who were probably laughing all the way to the bank after making a £32m profit in what essentially constituted a three-year loan spell away from Italy.

Is Anderson better than Bowen?

Anderson has quickly rediscovered his goalscoring form with Maurizio Sarri’s side, notching 15 goals and 14 assists across the last two seasons, including six goals and three assists in Serie A so far this term.

This has helped him to earn a strong 7.05 rating from WhoScored for his performances in Italy’s top flight and ranks him a long way ahead of Bowen, who has struggled for form this season after a superb 2021/22 campaign.

The former Hull City man has just four goals and one assist in 23 Premier League appearances this season, with WhoScored awarding him a disappointing 6.70 rating for his performances in the top flight.

He has also averaged far fewer dribbles (0.7 vs 1.2), passes (20.2 vs 33.5) and tackles (1.3 vs two) per game than Anderson, which suggests that the Brazilian could still have offered plenty in Moyes’ side.

While the 29-year-old could have been criticised as being a flair player who didn’t work hard enough, the praise that he received from former Barcelona winger and Lazio team-mate Pedro in 2021 suggests that he was perhaps harshly judged and actually works just as hard off the ball as he does when in possession

Pedro said of the former Irons ace: “It is not easy today to interpret that role. Felipe Anderson played a perfect game, fighting, running, recovering balls, and doing all that had to be done.”

His goal return in his debut season in the Premier League suggests that Anderson was unfairly treated by Moyes; and considering his form compared with that of West Ham’s attackers this season, which sees the Hammers ranked as one of the lowest-scoring teams in the English top flight, perhaps the Irons manager is regretting his decision to sell the Brazilian so cheaply in 2021.

Aston Villa are enjoying a promising shift in fortunes under head coach Unai Emery, with the club now looking to continue their resurgence in the Premier League against Leicester City, who travel to Villa Park this afternoon.

With the Spaniard replacing Steven Gerrard in there managerial role in October, the Midlands outfit have since seen a commendable spike in both performance and fluidity, winning five of their seven league matches with the 51-year-old at the helm and losing just once against Liverpool.

The four-time Europa League winner has been vanquished in both domestic cup competitions, but the overall consensus so far is emphatically in his favour, and there is a real sense that Villa might just be undergoing a fruitful transformation on his watch.

With Brendan Rodgers’ Foxes now seeking to revive their own fortunes at Villa Park, having taken just one point from a possible 15 since the Premier League resumed at Christmas, today’s contest could be one of grit and dogged physicality, with the two teams perhaps requiring a moment of wizardry to settle the result in their favour.

Jacob Ramsey, who is valued at £31m by CIES Football Observatory, could be the man to do just that for the home side, with his dynamic capabilities in midfield making him a valuable focal point within Emery’s system and a regular starting presence despite his tender age.

Hailed as his team’s “hometown hero” by Squawka, the 21-year-old is traversing the right path towards a prominent role in the Premier League, having scored two goals and provided three assists from 14 top-flight starts this term.

Recording an average league rating of 6.94 from Sofascore, Ramsey has completed 85% of his passes and averaged 0.9 key passes per game, also making 2.3 tackles per match and winning 59% of his ground duels.

Douglas Luiz is the only Villa midfielder to boast a better Sofascore rating across the current campaign, and for a player so raw yet so reliable as a creative and all-embracing central outlet, Ramsey is quickly becoming one of his team’s most important assets.

As per FBref, the £70k-per-week gem ranks among the top 11% of midfielders across Europe’s big five leagues for rate of non-penalty goals, the top 5% for progressive carries, top 3% for blocks and top 15% for tackles. That illustrates a dynamic, refined sheen to his play which indeed sets him in good stead to flourish under Emery’s tutelage for seasons to come.

With the Foxes having run wayward of late, losing four of their past five matches in the Premier League and just one point above the dreaded relegation zone, Villa will hope to heap further misery onto their divisional rivals and climb into the top half of the table with a victory.

Ramsey could well be imperative in doing just that, with his transitional approach and robust nature on the pitch. Those quality was very much on display against Southampton last time out, as he won seven tackles and 11 duels, along with making two key passes, in a fine performance at St Mary’s.

With the 21-year-old given license to roam, he could run an out-of-sorts Leicester team ragged, and Emery must therefore start him once again today.