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The Rossoneri drew the Dutch side on Tuesday after losing Leg 1, resulting in their elimination from the European competition

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AC Milan drew Feyenoord 1-1, fall over two legs in UCL 2-1Rossoneri eliminated from 2025 UCLSanti Gimenez, Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah all startedFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

AC Milan drew Feyenoord 1-1 in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, resulting in their elimination from the 2024-25 competition. The fell to the Dutch side 1-0 in the first leg of the series, and failed to secure a victory over their opposition in Leg 2.

U.S. internationals Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah started the match for the Italian side, as did Mexico star Santiago Gimenez, who scored their lone goal on the day. After an initial cross from Pulisic into the box, the ball was headed back into the mix of the six-yard box, where Gimenez was to head home into the back of the net.

However, in the second half, their promising performance turned to disappointment when fullback Theo Hernandez was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for simulation in the opposition box.

Reduced to 10-men, the conceded an equalizer to former Philadelphia Union star Julian Carranza in the 73rd minute, ultimately handing Feyenoord a 2-1 aggregate lead. Unable to find another goal, the final whistle blew on the match, and their European season.

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The were on track to take a regulation victory on Tuesday up until Hernandez's sending off, which ultimately cost them the match and a potential spot in the Round of 16 in the competition. Pulisic, meanwhile, was subbed off the pitch in the 63rd minute for 19-year-old Davide Bartesaghi in unexpected fashion. Gimenez was also removed eight minutes later, with Feyenoord drawing level two minutes after his removal. Musah played all 90 minutes plus stoppage.

Questions will surround Portuguese manager Sergio Conceicao for his decisions to remove his most in-form players, but ultimately, being reduced to 10-men changed the match — with a lack of discipline from the veteran fullback costing his team.

Now, the only have the Coppa Italia to play for, with the Serie A title out of reach and being eliminated from European competition.

DID YOU KNOW?

Feyenoord became the first Playoff Knockout Round side to secure their berth into the Round of 16. They'll play either Inter Milan or Arsenal in the quarterfinals.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR AC MILAN?

The return to Serie A action this weekend when they travel to take on Torino. They currently sit seventh in the league standings.

To qualify for European competition in 2025-26 now, they'll need to guarantee their spot by climbing the table into a top-four position by the end of the campaign.

New Zealand have plenty of time to ponder where it went wrong against England, but when they next take the field in coloured clothes the clock will be ticking to cement their World Cup plans

Andrew McGlashan11-Mar-2018New Zealand have plenty of time to ponder where it went wrong against England, but when they next take the field in coloured clothes the clock will be ticking to cement their World Cup plans.It will be at least seven months before New Zealand play another ODI – scheduled to be against Pakistan in the UAE, or perhaps Malaysia, around October or November – and though their 2017-18 home season has finished with a 10-3 winning record, there are issues for captain Kane Williamson and coach Mike Hesson to consider.New Zealand played well earlier in the season, but West Indies were poor and Pakistan below-par over those eight matches. Hesson termed the England series “a pinnacle event” and New Zealand, not for the first time, stumbled with the prize on the line.A year ago they folded against South Africa at Eden Park, slumping to a six-wicket defeat and a 3-2 series loss, and they also lost a decider in India last October although on that occasion made a good attempt at chasing 338. Naturally, neither Hesson or Williamson believed there was a problem when the pressure was on but certainly in the last two home seasons they have ended with a whimper.Taylor won’t be risked in warm-up match

Ross Taylor is unlikely to feature for the New Zealand XI against England in Hamilton this week to ensure the best chance of him being fit for the first Test.
Taylor had been slated for the second two-day game at Seddon Park – which will be played with the red ball – but after missing the final ODI with a thigh injury will now either attend a camp in Mount Maunganui or train in Hamilton.
“We’re not going to force it too soon,” Hesson said. “We know how to work with Ross in terms what he needs to be ready for the Test but certainly won’t put it at risk by pushing him too hard.”
Hesson was also confident that wicketkeeper BJ Watling would be available after missing the West Indies Tests earlier this season with a hip problem. He is currently keeping for Northern Districts in the Plunket Shield.

After the series against Pakistan later this year, New Zealand’s 2018-19 home summer will consist of 11 ODIs against Sri Lanka (three), India (five) and Bangladesh (three) before a yet-to-be-determined final lead-in to the World Cup which begins at the end of May 2019.The batting, despite wonderful centuries from Williamson and Ross Taylor in this series, is the key concern after another collapse meant they could only reach 223 in Christchurch. It was very similar to the problems in Mount Maunganui. Chris Woakes’ excellence with the new ball kept the top-order under a leash throughout and the one time they did have a platform, 80 for 1 in Wellington, they crumbled to spin. However, Tom Latham’s improved output in the middle order was a tick, while Mitchell Santner’s career-best batting form a significant boost.”We went in with a line-up that was batting heavy and it would be fair to say we never got ourselves in a position to utilise that,” Hesson said. “Sometimes the top order didn’t set it up, sometimes the middle weren’t able to capitalise. It wasn’t one part, but as a combination we weren’t able to set the platform. Throughout the series, there were some very good one-off performances but it probably over-shadowed a batting line-up that hasn’t quite fired.”A lot of the onus in the last two years has been trying to replicate Brendon McCullum’s impact at the top of the order. Colin Munro is the latest to be tried, but the results have been mixed so far and he failed in four out of five innings against England. He is heading for a defining point in his career having shelved first-class cricket to focus on the white-ball. This New Zealand set-up like to show faith in players, but Munro is by no-means a certainly to be included in the next ODI squad.”It’s pretty fair [to say] that our top-order hasn’t set the platform, think that’s pretty clear,” Hesson said. “Colin is a very destructive player and finding the tempo in one-day cricket is certainly still a work-on for him, but we still see him as a very good prospect.”New Zealand used 18 players in ODIs during their season and Hesson said competition for World Cup places would remain right up to the event. There is at least one batting spot up for grabs, the bits-and-pieces role of Colin de Grandhomme will need to be assessed and it may also be a concern that Tim Southee took 10 wickets at 49.40 this season, including just two against England.”There’s plenty of thinking to be done,” Hesson said. “We have an A-series between now and then which will allow us to look at other players, but I think the players based on previous performances earned the right to play this series. Collectively we weren’t where we needed to be so we’ll certainly have to look at the balance of things.”

West Ham United sent scouts to watch an exciting youngster in action last season, but there will now be fierce competition for his signature, according to reports from Spain.

What's the latest West Ham transfer news?

West Ham have made a very promising start to the season, but they may still look at improving their squad in the January transfer window, having failed to bring in a replacement for Gianluca Scamacca in the latter stages of the summer market.

The door is now open for the Hammers to sign Paris Saint-Germain's Hugo Ekitike, with all parties agreeing it is the correct decision for him to move on in the winter, having been keen on a move to the Premier League before the window closed.

Not only could a new striker be on their way to the London Stadium in January, but David Moyes may also look at strengthening his midfield, with it recently being reported that Jesse Lingard is still training with the Irons ahead of a potential move.

Moyes has clarified that no decision has been made about whether Lingard will be offered a contract at West Ham, as he continues to build up his fitness, but a move is seemingly on the cards, with the manager describing him as a "fantastic" player.

According to a report from Mundo Deportivo, the Hammers have also cast their eye on a younger option to bolster their midfield ranks, having sent scouts to run the rule over Royal Antwerp's Arthur Vermeeren back in January.

However, there will now be fierce competition for the 18-year-old's signature, with it being revealed that Barcelona, Liverpool, Ajax and Manchester United continue to follow him strongly, while Brighton & Hove Albion are also named as potential suitors.

It remains to be seen whether the Irons are still interested in a central midfielder, having signed James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez in the January transfer window, but Vermeeren could be an option if they are, having scouted him in the past.

Who is Arthur Vermeeren?

Born in Lier, Belgium, the youngster came through the youth ranks at Royal Antwerp, before making his first-team breakthrough at the tender age of 17, and he was hailed by football scout Jacek Kulig for his performances back in February.

Kulig described the starlet as "incredibly mature", while also branding him "one of the most exciting prospects in Belgium", and later adding: "He plays like a 30-year-old with plenty of games at the pro level. High-quality midfield controller. One of the Jupiler Pro League's biggest jewels. Huge future ahead."

The Antwerp academy graduate already has a great deal of first-team experience, having made 43 appearances, during which time he has registered one goal and four assists, although Kulig's comments indicate he is not the most attacking of midfielders.

Vermeeren is still in the very early stages of what could be a promising career, so it is difficult to assess whether he would be able to make an instant impact at West Ham, but they should keep him on the radar for a move in January or next summer.

David Warner collected the ODI award while Aaron Finch won the award in T20Is. Jhye Richardson, the 21-year-old quick was named the Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year

Daniel Brettig12-Feb-2018Australia captain Steven Smith has crowned a rare year of Test match achievement with his second Allan Border Medal, taking out the most prestigious cricket award down under by a wide margin from his deputy David Warner and the spin bowler Nathan Lyon. Smith’s performances over the voting period also earned him the Test player-of-the-year award.Warner instead claimed the ODI award as Australia’s leading run-maker over the voting period, which was characterised by strong displays at home against the eventual Champions Trophy winners Pakistan, before giving way to less impressive results in New Zealand, England and India. Opener Aaron Finch, Australia’s leading run-getter in T20Is last year, collected the T20I player-of-the-year award, while 21-year-old Australia and Western Australia quick Jhye Richardson was announced as the Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year.In a year when the Australians faced down considerable doubts about their capacity to compete in Asia and then followed up by regaining the Ashes at home, Smith was the central figure in tallying 1305 Test runs over the voting period at 81.56, asserting himself as the pre-eminent long-form batsman in the game and also building his reputation as a leader. Smith had also accepted the medal in 2015, thus joining Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Shane Watson and Warner as multiple winners.An overall tally of 246 votes put Smith well out in front of Warner (162) and Lyon (156). Pat Cummins polled a notable 111 votes in his first year as a consistent member of the Australian bowling attack in all forms of the game after being carefully managed over seven years of injuries and false starts since his Test debut as far back as 2011 in Johannesburg.As the leading figure in both the India series and the Ashes, Smith mastered two contrasting challenges – how to find a way to succeed in the subcontinental conditions with which Australians are most unfamiliar, and then how to deal with the suffocating pressure of a home bout with England – in comprehensive fashion. Though Australia were narrowly unable to beat India away, their efforts won plenty of admiration around the world, particularly when lined up against previously abject displays in the UAE against Pakistan in 2014, and in Sri Lanka in 2016. These performances, which also reaped Smith the Test award, were enough to ensure he wrested the overall garland of the Border Medal from Warner, who claimed it in each of the past two years.Lyon, meanwhile, enjoyed his strongest year in Test cricket, and fell just six votes short of Smith – 32 to 26 – for the award in that format, a result of outstanding displays against India, Bangladesh and then England in the Ashes. While Lyon has always excelled in Australian conditions, making the most of the bounce on offer and proving an expert at supporting the Australian pace bowlers, in Asia he had struggled.However he spent most of the summer of 2016-17 working on improvements to the way he would tackle Asian batsmen and conditions, notably improving his accuracy and subtle variations in pace and trajectory to trap batsmen on the crease and force false strokes. He was thus able to be a consistently dependable bowling weapon for Smith in India and Bangladesh, earning the respect of opposition batsmen who had previously needed little reason to fear him.These performances then worked to build Lyon’s confidence for the Ashes series in more familiar territory, and also against an England batting order that featured plenty of left-handers. They found Lyon’s combination of turn, bounce and nagging accuracy too much to contend with throughout the Ashes, making him the standout bowler on either side and allowing Australia’s quicks the luxury of bowling at their fastest – safe in the knowledge that constant pressure was being applied at the other end.Finch’s win was his second T20I player-of-the-year award, a reward for performances that made him Australia’s leading run-maker during the voting period. Finch seems likely to be entering a new phase of his international career as a middle-order batsman in T20 matches, with the younger D’Arcy Short keeping his place alongside Warner at the top of the order when Finch returned from a hamstring injury at the MCG on Saturday night.Richardson’s win of the Bradman award comes as a sign of infinite promise, one that has earned him a place in the squad to depart for South Africa later this week. While lacking the height of many other young pace contemporaries, Richardson has shown plenty of speed and intelligence with ball in hand, so much so that he is now considered the back-up “impact” bowler to Cummins and Mitchell Starc.

Former Arsenal striker, who features regularly on Sky Sports, says one of Mikel Arteta's stars has been "quietly" doing a job recently.

Everton vs Arsenal

The Gunners, in their bid to challenge Man City for a Premier League title once again, are preparing to take on league-strugglers at Everton on Goodison Park on Sunday.

Arsenal went into the international break in fine form, while not playing at their imperious best; clinching vital victories against Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Man United.

Arteta's side were forced to show grit and determination if they were to reign victorious in these encounters, especially against Erik ten Hag's United.

Surviving an early scare with Marcus Rashford's early goal for the Red Devils, Arsenal came back to win the match 3-1 courtesy of strikes from Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Gabriel Jesus deep into added time.

"We all worked so hard and planned everything for moments like this," Arteta said after the match.

"These moments will stick with us, with the crowd so connected to the team with the big history of these matches, it's great. The will, the determination of the team, that will to win and go and go and go, I'm so proud of them.

"A team needs different tools to win football matches, and the capacity to react. We did that in the first half and that set the tone and brought some calmness to the team."

Meanwhile, Everton are enduring contrasting fortunes on Merseyside. They're yet to record a single league win so far this season, with a draw against Sheffield United and defeats to Fulham, Aston Villa and Wolves.

On paper, this really does seem like a routine win for Arsenal.

Latest Arsenal news

There are a few star players who stand out as real difference-makers, perhaps most notably the likes of Rice, Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka among others.

However, pundit Campbell says there is one man who "quietly" went about his business against United and makes a "massive" difference for Arteta's side; left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko.

“When [Oleksandr] Zinchenko’s not there, I think have Thomas Partey to go into midfield really did help the squad," said Campbell on the Gooners Pod this week.

“People say it didn’t work, well it did work because we won two of those games and we drew one where there’s no way we should have only got a point against Fulham.

“Quietly, I thought he had a really good game against Manchester United.”

The Ukranian was signed from Man City in 2022, where he has gone to impress when available.

Enduring their worst start to a season in their 145-year history, it would be putting it lightly to say that Everton are in desperate need of reinforcement in the few remaining days of the summer transfer window.

The Toffees got their season underway with a frustrating 1-0 loss against Fulham, before being brushed to one side by Aston Villa, and defeated by relegation rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers.

With three losses, and zero goals scored, Sean Dyche and co have been left with some mountain to climb.

They could at least take their first steps towards that crucial turning point through the transfer market, however, with one particular defender potentially arriving.

What's the latest Everton transfer news?

So far this summer, Everton's main focus has been on bolstering their attacking options, adding to the irony of their failure to find the back of the net a single time in the opening three Premier League games.

Dyche will hope to have sorted his side's shortcomings in front of goal once and for all with the reported arrival of Udinese striker Beto, however, allowing him to shift his attention towards the Toffees' leaky backline.

With that said, according to Alan Nixon of The Sun, via Football 365, Everton have made an offer to sign out-of-favour Manchester United defender Harry Maguire on loan this season, paying £50k of his reported £200k per week salary in the process.

Maguire, of course, saw a move to West Ham United fall through earlier in the window, after he failed to agree personal terms with the Hammers.

Now, he has reportedly been thrown a lifeline by those at Goodison Park, as we approach the end of the transfer window.

It remains to be seen if the move will come into fruition, however.

Should Everton sign Harry Maguire?

Things haven't quite worked out for Maguire at Manchester United, resulting in a place outside of Erik ten Hag's plans so far this season. The fact is, a move away would probably suit all parties involved.

If Everton can get the best out of the former Manchester United captain, too, then they'll have themselves a defender who was once playing at a level to warrant a reported £80m move to Old Trafford in the first place.

Read the latest Man United transfer news HERE…

Statistically speaking, too, the England international is a class above current Everton defender Michael Keane, as per FBref.

Player

Progressive Passes Per 90

Interceptions Per 90

Blocks Per 90

Tackles Won Per 90

Harry Maguire

3.06

1.53

2.12

0.71

Michael Keane

2.84

1.28

1.10

0.37

When on form, Maguire has earned plenty of praise in the past, too, including from Manchester United and England teammate Luke Shaw, who said, via TalkSport:

"Of course Harry is an amazing player, an amazing character. He has taken a lot of stick, probably more than I have ever seen before in football but he never hides away, he is always there.

"You can have people that can hide away and not want to be in the spotlight but he keeps putting himself in the spotlight and it shows the strength and character he has got because, come on, everyone knows that he is an unbelievable player."

England captain Harry brook rued the team’s lack of application and rash shots against Australia in the quarter-final

Shashank Kishore in Queenstown23-Jan-2018It was a forgettable shot, one that his captain Harry Brook described “out in a silly kind of way.” Little would have Tom Banton realised when he looked to reverse sweep legspinner Lloyd Pope that Australia would be able to crack open the game. Up until then, England were fairly comfortable at 71 for 3 chasing 128 with the lunch break imminent. That could have disturbed Australia’s momentum, but Banton’s wicket after he raced to a sparkling half-century exposed a lower order that panicked at the first hint of pressure.You didn’t need to look at Brook’s face to say how distraught he was. Repeated references to “the day goes on” were enough indication of his hurt. “Getting through to the quarter-finals is a great achievement, but I am not the kind who likes second place,” he said. “I am pretty disappointed. I don’t think it hurts more because we lost to Australia. Losing to any team is the same.”Brook found it hard to digest that his team, that he felt had played spin “exceptionally well” throughout the tournament, would throw their wickets away to lack of application and rash shots in a game that was superbly set up by their bowlers.”I think we played spin exceptionally well throughout the tournament,” Brook said. “Pope just bowled very well and got some turn off the pitch, but we also played a few bad shots, but the day goes on. The pitch wasn’t that bad really, both sides didn’t bat well. You can’t really fault the pitch. After a defeat like that, we’ll have stuff to say about everything and hopefully the lads will buy into it. I am sure Lewi (Jon Lewis, the head coach) will have a lot of things to say to us.”At lunch, England needed 49 and had five wickets remaining. Brook talked up England’s batting depth in the build-up to the game. This was an opportunity to prove it under pressure. “We didn’t really need to say much at the break,” Brook said. “We had to go at 1.5 an over or something, so all we needed to do was knock it around for a few overs and if we still had wickets in hand, knock them over with ease. We lost some wickets quickly after the break – that didn’t help. There was a lot of pressure. The run out was quite panicky. That’s what happens in big collapses.”Lewis was understanding of his team and the effort they had put in to prepare for the tournament, and hoped the bitter pill would only help them channel the hurt better and become world beaters in the future. “I already spoke to the guys about their journey towards becoming great sportsmen,” he said. “You win some, you lose some, but you learn from dealing with pressure situations and how you react when put under pressure in front of everyone. The captain has been outstanding, he didn’t get runs today but he’s played superbly.”All these players are nowhere near being finished players. They are all still developing and for them to experience the joy of playing in a World Cup for the country will be an experience to cherish. The way this group gets on is brilliant, both on and off the field. I know they will stick together. Yes, we have taken a big knock. This will be tough for them. It won’t feel nice now, it won’t feel nice when they reflect on this three or four weeks later, but this will spur them on to even greater heights in the future.”

Aston Villa marked their return to European football with a bang on Wednesday night, demolishing Hibernian at Easter Road.

Unai Emery’s side were dominant victors in Scotland, brushing their opposition aside in a 5-0 away win in the first leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League play-offs.

The Villans hadn’t competed in Europe since 2010 before the fixture, and all but confirmed themselves as being a strong part of the competition to come with the second leg still to play.

Who scored for Aston Villa against Hibernian?

It took Ollie Watkins 17 minutes to open the scoring for Emery’s team, in a header that marked his and Villa’s first of the night.

The Englishman added to his tally just after the half-hour mark, with the visitors' lead extended to three before half-time through Leon Bailey.

The first few minutes of the second half began encouragingly for Hibs, in which they pressed to gain some possession after what was a dominating first-half display by Villa, however, their feat only lasted minutes, as Watkins sealed his hat-trick after just 48 minutes.

Douglas Luiz capped off the five-star performance with Villa’s fifth through a penalty, after Bertrand Traore was pulled down in the area.

A completely one-sided affair ended with the visitors having 18 shots on goal to Lee Johnson’s side's five, with Watkins leaving with the match ball on his European debut, although he wasn’t Villa’s primary shining light.

How did Lucas Digne perform against Hibernian?

While the Villans’ talisman did what he did best in making himself a nuisance in the box, the 27-year-old wouldn’t have found the net without the brilliance of left-back Lucas Digne.

The Frenchman joined Watkins in registering a hat-trick, assisting all three of the striker’s goals, earning himself a stellar 8.7 Sofascore match rating.

The 30-year-old, who has been getting the headlines due to rumours of his potential exit from Villa Park, set up three goals, as well as showcasing a solid defensive display.

Recording as many as 86 touches from the left side of the defence, the former Everton man gave Emery a taste of just what he could be missing if he is to depart, performing to the highest standard in all areas of his game on the night.

Registering one clearance, one block and winning six out of nine duels (66.6%), as per Sofascore, the versatile defender was lauded as a “machine” by journalist Ty Bracey during the fixture.

The Frenchman seemed to be everywhere, especially in the final third in which he provided three sublime crosses for Watkins to dispatch, registering a total of four key passes in the 90 minutes he played.

Digne also stole the show from Hibernian returnee John McGinn, who was given a mixed welcome back to Easter Road five years after his departure, with the Scotsman not getting a look in due to the 30-year-old’s dominance on the left.

The most crucial part of the night was that Villa gained a healthy lead to take back to the Midlands in preparation for the second leg, with Digne’s performance bound to give Emery a headache as speculation remains over his potential departure.

Sri Lanka competed hard on a bouncy Wankhede Stadium deck, but India pulled ahead at the crucial moments to wrap up a five-wicket win

The Report by Shashank Kishore24-Dec-20172:40

We showed glimpses of where we’re heading – Pothas

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFor the first time in the series, Sri Lanka were genuinely in the contest. The bounce at the Wankhede Stadium gave their seamers some zip that they couldn’t quite manage to generate in Cuttack and Indore. In defence of 136, they dismissed the rampaging pair of KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma, who walloped joint-fastest T20 hundred two nights ago, inside seven overs. India’s asking rate climbed to close to 8.5 per over with eight overs left, a genuine test for a middle order that hasn’t had too much batting time of late.This was Sri Lanka’s best opportunity to close out the game. But India had MS Dhoni in the middle at the end along with Dinesh Karthik. Nuwan Pradeep only conceded six runs off the first five balls of the penultimate over, leaving India nine to get off the last seven balls. At that point it was Pradeep who cracked under the pressure; he sent down a friendly full-toss that Karthik swatted into the stands beyond deep midwicket. That, right there, was the knockout punch with one full over to play. A heady climax eventually turned cold right at the end, but not before India had been given quite a scare.Lack of scoreboard pressure early in the chase gave India some leeway as Shreyas Iyer and Manish Pandey overcame early struggles against the moving ball to add 42 in 6.2 overs to put India back on track. But the match swung again when Iyer was run-out at the non-striker’s end, Akila Dananjaya’s fingertips intercepting a flat-batted strike from Pandey and deflecting it into the stumps.The wicket may have not come about had Thisara Perera not thrown himself to his left to stop a single at cover off the previous delivery. Clearly, Sri Lanka were in the game, waiting to grab at any opportunity. When they sent Iyer back, India needed 55 off 40. This was precisely the moment when Pandey, largely subdued until then, decided to cut loose, hitting three fours off the next five balls he faced. India were back in it.But Sri Lanka weren’t giving up. Hardik Pandya feathered an attempted ramp to the wicketkeeper, leaving India four down with 37 to get off the last five overs. When Pandey was bowled by one that jagged back in to beat his inside edge – the dismissal coming about largely because of his style of playing beside the line – it came down to 28 off 23.Up against Chameera with no slip in place, Dhoni managed to find a thick edge that beat the diving wicketkeeper and ran away for four. In the same over, there was more drama when Sri Lanka reviewed a not-out lbw decision, the tense crowd roaring in unison as the giant screen showed the ball missing the stumps. Dhoni would eventually hit the winning runs.The architects who masterminded Sri Lanka’s downfall after they were sent in to bat were Washington Sundar and Jaydev Unadkat – two bowlers who had been at the forefront of Rising Pune Supergiant’s magnificent run to the IPL final earlier this year.Washington, India’s youngest T20I debutant, bowled three overs of no-frills offspin upfront, often varying his pace between fast and faster, his length between good and full, and strangulated the largely left-handed top order. He finished with figures of 4-0-22-1. Unadkat, IPL 2017’s second-highest wicket-taker who also finished the tournament with an economy rate of 7.02, cramped the left-handers early on and was rewarded for his accuracy. Washington and Unadkat prised out Sri Lanka’s top three inside four overs to set off a procession.It needed Asela Gunaratne’s industrious 37-ball 36 and Dasun Shanaka’s 29 off 24 to haul Sri Lanka to 135 from a precarious 85 for 6.India suffered a few early jitters in their chase. KL Rahul was the first to fall, given out lbw while trying to heave Dushmantha Chameera’s indipper across the line. Rohit too was shaky to begin with, and was saved by the bounce in the first over when he played down the wrong line of a Dananjaya googly that sneaked between bat and pad. Two balls later, he was deceived in flight and nearly chipped a return catch.Rohit broke the stranglehold by disturbing Dananjaya’s length – slog-sweeping him to midwicket and then stepping out to hit him straight down the ground for six. But unlike in the previous two games, Sri Lanka managed to sustain the pressure with Shanaka nibbling away in the off-stump channel and getting the ball to jag both ways.A miscued pull to a ball that skidded on faster than Rohit expected resulted in a simple catch to deep square leg. This left the middle order in the spotlight, and they were able to steer India to their target, with some help from Sri Lanka’s nerves and the dew, and bring a memorable home season to a winning end.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp needs to sign a new midfielder this month following the sales of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson to Saudi Arabian sides.

James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also all left the club upon the expiry of their contracts in June while Fabio Carvalho has joined German side RB Leipzig on loan.

Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai have signed, two very exciting midfield signings, but following the failure to sign Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia – losing out on both to Chelsea – desperation mode is seeping in.

Who are Liverpool going to sign?

As recently reported by ESPN, Liverpool could be poised to meet PSV Eindhoven star Ibrahim Sangare's £32m release clause after missing out on their primary targets.

However, they will face fierce competition with Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain also interested, as per the report.

Read the latest Liverpool transfer news HERE…

Liverpool drew their Premier League season opener against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, but the absence of a natural No. 6 was alarming, with The Athletic's James Pearce saying, "the lack of both control and protection in front of the back line was glaring."

How good is Ibrahim Sangare?

The acquisition of a sturdy, assiduous defensive midfielder may well have a transformative effect on Liverpool's midfield.

It's been a problem for some time, but they say those who live near a waterfall often fail to hear its surge, and now the dereliction of incisive action could plunge the Merseyside outfit into murky waters once more.

Sangare, aged 25, was once hailed as "one of Ligue 1's best midfielders" by talent scout Jacek Kulig before signing for PSV from Toulouse for €9m (£8m) in 2020, playing 136 matches, scoring 14 goals and supplying ten assists.

If he is to sign for the Anfield side, it would be the second time Klopp has raided the Boeren this year, having completed the £35m signing of dynamic forward Cody Gakpo in January.

Gakpo has plundered seven goals from 27 matches for the Reds and ranks among the top 11% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 10% for progressive passes and the top 12% for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref, leaving Fabrizio Romano heralding him as "something special".

Swooping for another highly-rated PSV talent could pay dividends for Klopp's team, especially considering that Sangare fits the profile and is a "dangerous" force in the centre, as stated by analyst Aad de Mos.

He ranks among the top 8% of midfielders across Men's Next Eight divisions for goals, the top 18% for passes attempted, the top 13% for successful take-ons, the top 18% for blocks, the top 12% for clearances and the top 14% for aerials won per 90.

This is an impressive and all-encompassing skill set and something that Liverpool would immensely benefit from, having such a ubiquitous and tenacious force in the middle.

Gakpo and Sangare's link-up could also prove a success story for Liverpool, with Gakpo also ranking among the top 1% of positional peers for tackles per 90, which alludes to a workrate that could ease Sangare's workload and consequently improve the collective efforts and cohesion of the squad.

There is understandably some malaise painted across the Liverpool support right now, but with over two weeks until the closing of the summer transfer window, technical director Jorg Schmadkte has time to ensure a successful finish to the summer plans is achieved.

And given the relative astuteness of Sangare's price tag, his evenly-spread skills and the rival interest from top European outfits such as Bayern and PSG, it might not be a bad move to make at all.