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GOAL preview the continent’s stars expected to feature for their respective clubs around the world this weekend

GettyAfricans to watch in Europe

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s seven goals in 10 games in all competitions puts him in a good place before Sunday’s El Clasico at Real Madrid.

In Serie A, the top three all play on Saturday with Kalidou Koulibaly and Andre Zambo Anguissa looking to put pressure on Ismael Bennacer and Franck Kessie in the Scudetto race.

AdvertisementGetty.Thomas Partey

Arsenal’s five-game winning run was halted on Wednesday as Liverpool secured a 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.

Partey and his colleagues will look to avoid successive losses when they travel to Aston Villa and keep their Top Four aspirations on track.

Mikel Arteta’s team have lost on their last two visits to Villa Park and Gerard's team will back themselves to make it three wins on the trot against the Gunners on their own turf.

Getty ImagesThe FA Cup

There is plenty of African interest in the quarter-finals with several interesting ties in the last eight.

Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha, Jordan Ayew, Cheick Kouyate and Jeffrey Schlupp look to get the better of Alex Iwobi's Everton, while Mohammed Salisu and Riyad Mahrez face off when Southampton host Manchester City.

In the other two ties, giant-killing Middlesbrough chase a third straight scalp when Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy come to town, while Liverpool’s African contingent hope to avoid defeat at Nottingham Forest and keep their quadruple hopes alive.

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Getty ImagesKoulibaly & Anguissa

Napoli’s 2-1 win over Cagliari last week meant they kept pace with AC Milan at the top of Serie A and they host Udinese on Saturday looking for their ninth win at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

Kalidou Koulibaly and Andre Zambo Anguissa are expected to feature for the whose home record has been rather hit and miss this term.

Luciano Spalletti’s team are winless in their last two home games, so a return to winning ways will be timely with Milan only three points ahead.

The Portuguese has enjoyed a fine debut campaign in Turin but has any other player ever made such an instantaneous impact on Italian football?

GettyCristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo has enjoyed a successful start to his Italian adventure.

The Portuguese's first season in Turin wasn't without its disappointments, chief among them Juventus' shock elimination at the quarter-final stage of the Champions League by Ajax.

However, Ronaldo could hardly be held accountable in that regard, given they wouldn't have even made it that far without him, with the forward netting a hat-trick in Juve's stirring second-leg comeback against Atletico Madrid in the last 16.

Indeed, the fact that no other Bianconero scored in the knockout stage underlined just how important CR7 has already become to the Old Lady.

Of course, an eighth consecutive Scudetto was always likely, even before Ronaldo's arrival, but he played a pivotal role in their triumph, racking up 21 goals and eight assists.

Those numbers may not have been enough to finish as Capocannoniere but they did result in him being voted Player of the Season, thus making him the first man to win the accolade in Serie A, La Liga and the Premier League.

So, with that in mind, Goal has decided to back through the history books to see if any overseas superstar has ever made such an instantaneous impact on the Italian game…AdvertisementGettyGabriel Batistuta

After successful spells with both River Plate and Boca Juniors, Gabriel Batistuta secured a move to Fiorentina in 1991 after firing Argentina to Copa America glory with six goals. 

The striker initially found goals hard to come by at the Artemio Franchi, netting only three times by the end of December, but he ended his first season in Serie A with a creditable 13, as a weak Viola side finished 12th.

'Batigol', as he came to be known, struck 16 times during his second campaign but that was not enough to save Fiorentina from the drop. 

However, even though Batistuta had established himself as one of the top strikers in Serie A, he resisted offers from elsewhere to help the club secure an immediate return to the top flight, thus earning himself iconic status in Florence.

Batistuta continued to score freely for Fiorentina but despite some near misses, it was only after leaving to join Roma in 2000 that he won a long overdue Scudetto.

GettyRuud Gullit

AC Milan broke the transfer fee world record in 1987 by signing Ruud Gullit from PSV for approximately £6 million but the Dutchman took time to settle at San Siro, struggling with the Italian language and only scoring two goals during the first half of the season.

However, the forward improved from January onwards, and ended up with nine goals to his name as the Rossoneri claimed their first Scudetto since 1979.

Despite some injury issues, Gullit would go on to become a legend at Milan, whom he helped win back to back European Cups, even scoring twice in the 1989 final against Steaua Bucharest.

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GettyKaka

Despite widespread interest in Kaka's services, AC Milan managed to snap up the Sao Paulo star for just €8.5m (£7.5m/$9.5m), which president Silvio Berlusconi rather prophetically described as "peanuts"!

The attacking midfielder was the revelation of the 2003-04 Serie A season. Kaka had only scored twice by the winter break but he was proving a wonderful creative force, replacing Rui Costa in the starting line-up, and the goals began to flow in the New Year.

Indeed, he ended his debut campaign with 10 in total and was named Serie A Player of the Year for playing such a pivotal role in Milan's title triumph. 

Kaka would go on to become one of the finest players ever to grace Italy's top flight, capping a sensational first spell at San Siro by winning the Ballon d'Or after inspiring the Rossoneri to Champions League glory in 2007.

Jose Mourinho has joked Manchester United might be handed the 2017-18 Premier League title if Manchester City are found guilty of breaching FFP rules.

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United finished 19 points behind City in 2017-18Mourinho still insists it's one of his best achievementsJokes City could be docked points after trialGettyWHAT HAPPENED?

Mourinho was initially appointed United boss in 2016, and delivered a Europa League and Carabao Cup double in his first campaign before guiding the team to second in the Premier League table the following season – their best finish since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure. Results took a turn for the worse in the first half of the 2018-19 season and Mourinho was sacked, but the former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss has since insisted that he ranks finishing second in the Premier League with United among his best achievements, a statement he stands by to this day.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT MOURINHO SAID

Mourinho reiterated that stance during a sit-down with Rio Ferdinand and Stephen Howson for , despite the fact United were still 19 points behind eventual champions City at the end of the season in question. Incredibly, the Portuguese then joked Pep Guardiola's side could see their total reduced as he referenced the fact City are set to go on trial for allegedly breaching 115 FFP rules.

"Maybe there is a chance we win that league, no?" Mourinho, Football.com global ambassador, said when Ferdinand challenged him on his remarks. "Because if Manchester City is caught in financial fair play breaking the rules, maybe they lose a few points and we win that title."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

By the end of his spell at Old Trafford, Mourinho had lost the faith of a large section of the fanbase and alienated several players by criticising them in public, and there were some who suggested his pragmatic style of play was never a good fit for United. However, the 61-year-old looks back on his time in Manchester fondly, and still feels a connection with supporters.

"I loved my time there," he said. "I was so proud of going there, and even prouder a couple of years later going back as a Sky commentator and when I felt the reaction of the crowd I was like 'wow'. I always felt we were together and that reaction touched me. To be a coach in the same club as Sir Alex, you have to feel the pride and responsibility. Historical club, legendary players, I was very happy and proud to be there. Not easy, I don't think media helped me, including yourself maybe, I felt that was not with an intention of hurting, it was more people didn't understand the dimension of the job and potential difficulties. The structure was not very fluid."

Mourinho went on to defend United's much-maligned former executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, instead pointing the finger of blame at the Glazer family for the chaotic state of the club behind the scenes. "I don't like when people criticise Ed Woodward's job, because he's a good man, very intelligent, very polite, very correct, but probably not prepared for the sports side of it," he added. "For a coach not to have a direct communication with the ownership, and not have a structure that shares the same principle and ideas was not easy, with consequences at many levels. But I did my best."

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WHAT NEXT FOR UNITED AND CITY?

Some six years on from Mourinho's departure, United are still in disarray, and currently sit sixth in the Premier League table. City are 11 points ahead of them with a game in hand, and favourites to lift the title for a fourth successive year, though the upcoming FFP trial is still casting a shadow over Etihad Stadium. According to the , the trial is set to begin in Autumn this year, and will be settled by an independent panel.

Most of Australia’s biggest hitters are happier when the ball comes on at pace than when dealing with tweakers with tough variations

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale22-Mar-20141:17

Crowe: Conditions not to Australia’s liking

Match factsMarch 23, 2014, Mirpur
Start time 1530 (0930GMT)Big Picture This is where it all begins for Australia, the push for that elusive World T20 title. George Bailey’s men enter this tournament with five wins from their past five games but those were all in vastly different conditions in Australia and South Africa. The slower pitches in Bangladesh will provide a new challenge, although the massive opening stand of 113 from eight overs between David Warner and Aaron Finch in the practice match against New Zealand in Fatullah was encouraging.Pakistan’s campaign started with a defeat at the hands of India on Friday and while one loss might not hurt their overall chances too much, two from two would make it difficult to fight back into the tournament. It was a lacklustre batting display that set Pakistan on the road to defeat and that is where they require a big improvement in this contest. If any team in world cricket is capable of following a shambles with a success two days later, it is Pakistan.These teams have not met in a T20 since the group stage of the 2012 World T20 in Sri Lanka, when Pakistan cruised to victory thanks to their spinners. And that is the big danger for Australia once again. For all of the power in their batting line-up, most of their biggest hitters are happier when the ball comes on at pace than when dealing with tweakers with tough variations. And with India and West Indies also in this group, this match will be a pointer to how Australia might handle similar spin challenges later in the tournament.David Warner has been in scintillating form in all formats•Getty ImagesForm guide (completed matches, most recent first)Australia WWWWW
Pakistan LLWWWWatch out for David Warner’s recent form across all formats is as imposing as any batsman in this tournament. In the ODIs against England in January he made 65, 18 and 71, then followed that in the South Africa Tests with 12, 115, 70, 66, 135 and 145. Then there was the small matter of 40 from 16 balls in the rain-shortened T20 in Durban. And to cap it off, his only warm-up in Bangladesh brought 65 from 26 deliveries against New Zealand. This is a man who is striking the ball as well, and as consistently, as he ever has. He just needs to make sure Saeed Ajmal and co do not get on top of him.In 10 T20s against Australia, Saeed Ajmal has collected 18 wickets at 13.22 and has gone for five an over or less every time he has met them in Asia. In turning conditions Ajmal ties the Australians down; they cannot get him away and the pressure builds wickets. His doosra especially will cause some headaches for batsmen who have spent the summer dealing with more conventional spin.Team news Australia allrounder James Faulkner will miss the game, as he is yet to recover from a knee injury. It could mean that Daniel Christian retains the bowling allrounder spot.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 David Warner, 3 Shane Watson, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 George Bailey (capt), 6 Brad Hodge, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 Daniel Christian, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Coulter-Nile, 11 Brad HoggIt was Pakistan’s batting that let the side down in their loss to India and the only backup batsman in the squad is Sharjeel Khan. However, given that spin is likely to be their trump card against Australia, they may play two seamers rather than three and bring in the left-arm spinner Zulfiqar Babar.Pakistan (possible) 1 Kamran Akmal (wk), 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Mohammad Hafeez (capt), 4 Umar Akmal, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Shahid Afridi, 7 Sohaib Maqsood, 8 Bilawal Bhatti/Zulfiqar Babar, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Junaid KhanPitch and conditionsSpin played a key role in the first game at this venue, the Bangladesh victory over Afghanistan, and again in Friday’s India-Pakistan match. Again the slow bowlers should have plenty to work with. However, the teams will have to keep an eye towards the skies; it rained in Dhaka on Saturday and more wet spells are forecast for Sunday afternoon.Stats and Trivia Australia and Pakistan have met in 11 T20s – Pakistan have won six, Australia four and there has been one tie, which Pakistan won in a Super Over The Pakistan side features the three top wicket takers in T20 internationals: Saeed Ajmal (82), Umar Gul (75) and Shahid Afridi (73)Quotes “These conditions – the ball turning – that is more suited to us against Australia and the other teams.”

New Zealand’s batsmen are on notice after one bad session in Trinidad, but the captain Brendon McCullum still believes his men can achieve “something special” and take the series decider in Barbados

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jun-20143:28

‘A chance of something special’ – McCullum

New Zealand’s batsmen are on notice after one bad session in Trinidad, but the captain Brendon McCullum still believes his men can achieve “something special” and take the series decider in Barbados. West Indies and New Zealand enter the third and final match with the series tied at 1-1 and it is the hosts who have the momentum after their strong 10-wicket victory in Trinidad.That result was set up by the success of the West Indies bowlers on the first day, when New Zealand collapsed from 120 for 1 to be all out for 221. McCullum said he expected more from the batting group in Barbados, where the likelihood of a quicker surface has not only meant the inclusion of Neil Wagner for Ish Sodhi, but should mean that once a batsman has got himself in, runs are there for the taking.”It looks like it’s pretty good batting surface with some bounce and it should have some decent carry even though there’s not a lot of grass,” McCullum said on the eve of the match. “Hopefully it holds throughout the game and should be able to aid the fast bowlers.”Either way there looks a little bit in it for the bowlers but also it looks like the kind of surface that if you get in on, because it’s got good pace bounce and the outfield is fast, you can score some runs as well.”There was no shortage of runs from New Zealand in the first Test in Jamaica, where centuries from Kane Williamson and Jimmy Neesham pushed the total to 508 before McCullum’s declaration came. In Trinidad, though, it was the West Indies batsmen who showed the patience to graft out a big total and emerged victorious.”We’ve batted really well over the last 12 to 18 months and posted those scores in excess of 400 and every time we’ve done so we’ve either won or drawn a Test match,” McCullum said. “So we know that’s a key stat for us and we’ve got to make sure we try and execute that again. Sometimes you have bad days as a batting group.”We talked about that after that last Test match, we had one bad session where West Indies bowlers to their credit bowled well and we didn’t apply ourselves as well as we should have done. We’re on notice too. We’ve got to make sure we stick to our key fundamentals and get ourselves a big first-innings score.”Brendon McCullum knows the New Zealand batsmen need to lift after their Trinidad failure•WICB Media/Randy Brooks PhotoShould New Zealand manage to win in Barbados, it would mark their first series win away from home since they toured Bangladesh in 2008, excluding the one-off Test against Zimbabwe in 2011. Only once this century have they beaten anyone but Zimbabwe or Bangladesh in a series away from home – when Stephen Fleming’s men took a 1-0 result over two Tests in the Caribbean in 2002.”It certainly sets it up well and gives us a real chance of achieving something special,” McCullum said. “A series win, if we are able to achieve it, would be something that everyone in this squad, players and management included, would hold dearly for the rest of their lives. Certainly for all of us it’s a huge opportunity.”However, the West Indies captain Denesh Ramdin is confident that his men will take the momentum from Trinidad, where they posted 460 in the first innings and then cruised to their target of 93 in the second innings without losing a wicket.”It was important that we won in Trinidad, but what was also important was that we put in an impressive display,” Ramdin said. “We dominated … we got good runs on the board and then our bowlers got 20 wickets, which was also very good. It was a hard fought Test match and we will bring that with us.”The occasion also marks the 50th Test match played at the Kensington Oval in Barbados, a venue that has brought West Indies only 10 defeats – although seven of those 10 have come in the past 11 matches.”Kensington Oval is one of those special grounds … a place where you always look forward to coming and playing,” Ramdin said. “It is one of the top grounds around the West Indies and in the world and we will be looking to do something special to mark the landmark of 50 Test matches here.”I have done well here – I made my highest score Test score here against England and my highest first-class score for Trinidad and Tobago here as well. So personally, I always look forward to coming to Barbados and playing here. It is a good hunting ground for me and once I get that opportunity I will look to bat time and get the runs on the board for my team.”

A 23-innings century-less run has left Alviro Petersen as the man squinting into the spotlight’s glare in the build-up to South Africa’s Test series against West Indies, but the focus is slowly shifting to the other opener, Dean Elgar

Firdose Moonda14-Dec-2014A 23-innings century-less run has left Alviro Petersen as the man squinting into the spotlight’s glare in the build-up to South Africa’s Test series against West Indies, but the focus is slowly shifting to the other opener, Dean Elgar. The left-hander, who took over from Graeme Smith at the top of the order, has only had four of his 12 Tests in that position and is trying to establish himself in the spot against the backdrop of what he called his “toughest” season to date.Elgar moved from Knights to Titans, which meant that for the first time in his career, he is based outside the franchise where he learnt his game and he has found the going tough. Titans are suffering a poor season, having finished last in the 20-over competition after winning just two of their five one-day cup matches and losing the first-class opener. By implication, that has left Elgar with limited opportunity to score runs, although he fared well in the shortest format where he averaged 42.60 in six innings.”This is my ninth season and it’s the toughest I have had domestically – not personally but just from the external factors that influence a franchise,” Elgar said. “When you come to a franchise and you’ve got a bit of a name and been around and played Test cricket, you think you should just fit in and make every side. But that’s one of the reasons I’ve made the change – I’m getting out of my comfort zone. In Bloemfontein I would have played every game and maybe have captained the Knights. But it wasn’t about that. It was about making me a better player, challenging myself to make every team for the Titans.”Elgar did not play in Titans’ last three T20 matches, as they searched for a way to turn their fortunes around, and used the time off to re-energise. “I’ve had about three weeks off and I didn’t touch my bat for that period,” he said. “I was getting myself over what has happened in the T20 campaign and what can happen in the Test scenario. My mind is fresh because I’ve done everything but cricket. I’m ready to go.”Mental preparation is crucial for Elgar because the first Test in Centurion will only be the second time he will open in a Test at home. It is only expected to be the spiciest surface of the three, where opening the batting will be most difficult. “I have done it for eight years in first-class cricket in South Africa so maybe in that sense, I am accustomed to the conditions and I know what’s expected of the wicket,” Elgar said.Although he admitted the pitch will work to the South African pace packs’ advantage, he said there will be enough in it for batsmen who are willing to show patience. “SuperSport Park provides a wicket that if you bowl well, you will get rewarded and if you bat well and apply yourself you will score runs. That’s what our guys do the best in the world,” he said. “The wicket compliments our bowlers because there is extra bounce and a little bit of extra pace behind the ball but the batters seem to enjoy batting here. If you apply yourself and get your mind around batting for a long time, you can do well here.”There is enough evidence to support Elgar’s claim. Centurion is where Jacques Kallis scored his first double-hundred and where Sachin Tendulkar scored his 50th Test century. Neither of those players are playing international cricket anymore and South Africa are still coming to terms with the loss of Kallis and Smith. “That era has come to an end now,” Elgar said. “The guys who are in the team appreciate what has happened and are mature and professional enough to understand that it’s the time for another opening pair to start things out.”That means both Elgar and Petersen will be expected to perform and like coach Russell Domingo, Elgar believes the runs waiting to flow from Petersen’s bat are about to leak out. “There’s a big one around the corner for him. I can just sense he is hungry to perform. When there is a bit of crunch on him, it brings out the best in him,” Elgar said. “I back Alviro for a big hundred and to keep the people quiet. He has done that throughout his career. He has been a guy who is under the pump most of the time and he silences guys with the bat.”

New IPL regulations, including the right-to-match card, have led to mutters from franchise officials that some teams stand to benefit more than others

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Dec-2013The new player-retention rules released by the IPL have attracted an unfavourable response from some franchises, who are particularly displeased by the newly introduced “right-to-match” card. The right-to-match card allows IPL franchises to buy back a specific number of their own players after releasing them for auction by matching the highest bid they attract. The card was recommended by the IPL primarily to help franchises retain a bigger core group of players. Some franchises, however, privately argue that instead of facilitating franchises to retain their core group, the right-to-match rule was devised only to benefit certain teams that were keen to ensure they retained a majority of their best players.According to the IPL 2014 player regulations, every franchise is allowed to retain five players with a specific amount deducted from their auction purse of Rs 600 million ($9.67 million). Franchises can spend a maximum of Rs 390 million on retaining the five. Yet, the new rules state that irrespective of the negotiated amount between the franchise and the retained player, only the designated amount for each retained player (as per IPL regulations) will be listed on the books. This, some franchises argue, makes the idea of a salary cap redundant.The new rules ensure that every franchise can hold on to a maximum of six players with a combination of retentions and players re-signed using the right-to-match card. The rule, said one franchise official, was skewed to start with.”The rule has been tweaked to suit certain teams,” argued an official from another franchise. “The team which retains five gets rewarded with one more (card) whereas the team that does not retain anyone gets only three (cards). This team should be allowed at least one more right-to-match option if not two.”Franchise officials believe that, with the introduction of the right-to-match card, certain players, like the marquee names, might want to put their hats in the auction ring to raise their worth. Considering that retention is a two-way process and is futile without the player’s nod, franchises fear they might end up paying more for the same player in comparison to the previous season.”If I tell the player I will pay him $2 million to retain him, he will not accept and say I want $2.5 million. So if I retained him I would have paid him 125 million rupees. But still I have to pay him more (than the designated amount). So the sanctity of the purse is broken immediately. Now if the same player was picked in the auction at 150 million I would not have a problem,” a franchise official said.

“The rule has been tweaked to suit certain teams. The team which retains five gets rewarded with one more (card) whereas the team that does not retain anyone gets only three (cards). This team should be allowed at least one more right-to-match option if not two.”A franchise official

The right-to-match card was placed at the table during the IPL workshop in Singapore in November. The idea was to offset the original retention rule that was introduced in 2011. That rule allowed a franchise to retain a maximum of four capped players. Not all franchises subscribed to that rule. Some felt that they ended up spending more money buying players in the auction compared to rival franchises that paid half the sum to retain players. To give an example, Kolkata Knight Riders had spent $5.6 million to buy the trio of Gautam Gambhir, Yusuf Pathan and Jacques Kallis whereas Chennai Super Kings retained the quartet of MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, M Vijay and Albie Morkel for $4.5 million.Consequently, some of the affected franchises even suggested in the Singapore workshop that the IPL bring all players into the auction. However, not all eight teams were on the same page. It is understood that one of the bigger franchises wanted a combination of five retained players and three right-to-match cards. Another franchise wanted the card option to retain the capped Indian players while another was interested in exercising that option to buy back uncapped players.This only re-opens the debate over whether the the IPL is a level-playing field as was claimed by Lalit Modi, the first chairman of the league. Smaller franchises argue that their bigger rivals have managed to flex their financial muscle and power to tweak the rules to suit their needs and buy the players they want.”With a salary cap now, at least you know a franchise is paying Rs 390 million if you retain five players,” another franchise official said. “In many ways it is a fair system regardless of the mischief you play in paying under the table. If there was no salary cap then the bigger franchises could have paid anything for any player and gone to the auction and bought more players at ridiculous costs. But today if I retain all five players I am left with just Rs 210 millon to buy the rest of the players to build a balanced squad. So the salary cap puts some sort of restriction.”According to this official the best thing to happen in this auction is that Indian domestic players will be part of the pool unlike in the past. Uncapped players till now were paid upto Rs 3 million, but franchises admit players were lured through various kickbacks. “Giving a BMW to an uncapped player would not help anymore,” the official said.Not everyone agreed. A franchise chief executive was less confident and felt the rules would continue to be bent. “The concept of a salary cap is being abused for the last five years and the trend will continue with the new set of rules. We don’t know how much the teams were paying the big names who had been retained in the last season. And it will be pretty similar this time around. The right-to-match card just adds to the woes as the players’ demands will keep on increasing and the teams will be on the back foot.”

[ad_pod ]Per The Mirror, Liverpool fans are getting excited on TwitterÂover the impending return of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, so where will the midfielder fit in Jurgen Klopp’s title-chasing side following his long injury absence?

On the chalkboard

With no FA Cup fixture to play this weekend due to the defeat at Wolves, Klopp and the Reds are taking advantage of their extended break, flying off to Dubai for a warm weather training camp – as documented by The Daily Mail.

The league leaders scraped past Crystal Palace on Saturday, and now have a week and a half off before they welcome Leicester City to Anfield next Wednesday evening.

And there is good news, as Oxlade-Chamberlain has undergone some pretty rigorous training, according to The Mirror.

Who has the loudest fans in Europe? PSG certainly state their claim in the video below…

What does it mean?

Well, just because the 25 year-old is with the squad does not mean he is in full training, and he is not expected to be ready until late February at the earliest – according to The Times’ Paul Joyce.

However, it means the Anfield fan favourite is clearly on the right path, and will likely return to first team action at some point this season.

But a serious knee injury can have devastating effects on a player’s speed, quickness and agility, so expect to see him participating in several training matches and potentially even Under-23 matches before stepping onto the Anfield turf once again.

Where will he fit?

When Oxlade-Chamberlain does return, Klopp is suddenly going to have one mighty selection headache on his hands, so where does the ex-Arsenal man fit in?

Fabinho quite simply can’t be dropped on current form, as the Brazil international has been superb in multiple positions since breaking into the side, and Georginio Wijnaldum is quietly having the best season of his career.

This leaves just one spot to fight for between Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Naby Keita and the returning Oxlade-Chamberlain, and the latter looks a perfect fit for that final place.

Wijnaldum and Fabinho offer loads of defensive protection but limited attacking output, practically ruling out Liverpool’s captain and vice-captain as complimentary options, and summer signing Keita deserves to drop even further down the pecking order based on this season’s poor form.

While he shares many traits with Oxlade-Chamberlain that also make him a good fit for the third slot in Liverpool’s engine room, the former Leipzig man simply hasn’t acclimatised to the Premier League as well as expected.

If Oxlade-Chamberlain can regain full fitness before the end of this season, the England international should be first choice alongside Fabinho and Wijnaldum, offering Klopp the perfect balance of speed, creativity, work-rate and defensive awareness.

So, Liverpool fans, what would be your preferred midfield when Oxlade-Chamberlain returns? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

Unbeaten fifties from Khurram Manzoor and Kamran Younis and a three-wicket haul from pacer Mohammad Talha helped Port Qasim Authority beat Khan Research Labs for their third win of the Ramadan T20 Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2013
ScorecardKhurram Manzoor was awarded Man of the Match for his unbeaten 85•PCBUnbeaten fifties from Khurram Manzoor and Kamran Younis and a three-wicket haul from pacer Mohammad Talha helped Port Qasim Authority beat Khan Research Labs for their third straight win in Group B of the Ramadan T20 Cup. The win puts PQA at the top of Group B with one league game left to play.Put in to bat, PQA struggled early in their innings, losing their openers to pace bowler Rahat Ali and left-arm spinner Nauman Ali. Those were the only breakthroughs that KRL bowlers could create for the rest of the innings, however, as Manzoor and Younis went on to add 153 runs for the third wicket off just 100 balls. Younis got to his 50 off 37 balls, while Manzoor scored 50 off 44 balls. Manzoor accelerated towards the end of his innings, scoring 85 off 60 balls, with nine fours and three sixes, while Younis scored a 53-ball 70 with eight fours and a six.KRL’s reply was largely centred around Mohammad Yasin’s unbeaten 63-ball 80, but the opener did not get much support from the rest of the batting order. Talha took some early wickets to peg the chase back and the lack of partnerships meant that KRL could only manage 151 for 6 off their 20 overs.

Angelo Mathews has challenged the supporting men in Sri Lanka’s attack to ease Rangana Herath’s wicket-taking burden ahead of the first Test against Pakistan, in Abu Dhabi

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Abu Dhabi30-Dec-2013Angelo Mathews has challenged the supporting men in Sri Lanka’s attack to ease Rangana Herath’s wicket-taking burden ahead of the first Test against Pakistan, in Abu Dhabi. Herath has been Sri Lanka’s spearhead in the four years since Muttiah Muralitharan retired, and has waged many lone battles as others bowlers were rendered toothless by conditions and the opposition.Since Murali left the game Herath has three times the number of wickets any other bowler has managed, with 129, and he has also been the team’s primary match-winner. Herath has taken seven five-wicket hauls in Sri Lanka’s five wins post-Murali, and his 49 wickets in those matches have come at an average of 13.97.Sri Lanka’s attack is far from settled in the lead-up to the match, with five bowlers vying for three positions around Herath. Offspinners Sachithra Senanayake and Dilruwan Perera will compete for the second spinner’s spot, while pace bowlers Nuwan Pradeep, Shaminda Eranga and Suranga Lakmal are frontrunners for the two fast-bowling places.”We all know that Rangana Herath is a great bowler but we can’t just give the burden of taking all the wickets to him,” Mathews said. “We need the help of the seamers and the other spinner who plays. When you compare the Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi wickets, Abu Dhabi has a little bit more pace than the other two. The seam bowlers that we’ve got have a bit of extra pace, so that will help quite a lot here. Our spinners will come into play in all three Test matches, but if our seamers get a couple of crucial wickets early on and a couple of wickets at the end, that will also help.”Mathews was unperturbed by the prospect of facing the opposition’s spin-bowling spearhead Saeed Ajmal, as he banked on his batsmen’s experience to nullify Ajmal’s threat. Ajmal has been effective against Sri Lanka in the past, taking 47 wickets at 29.53 against them, but Sri Lanka have also played Ajmal more than any other team in the past five years. Since 2009, there have been four completed Test series between the teams and a fifth that was cut short due to the terrorist attack in Lahore.”Ajmal has been talked about a lot in the team and we’ve made plans about how we are going to play him. There’s good experience in the team, if you take Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Prasanna Jayawardene. Although we no longer have Tillakaratne Dilshan, we’ve got some experienced players. With that experience and because we are at full strength, we should be able play him well, give him no wickets and make big totals.”Mathews played down suggestions that Pakistan arrived in the series as favourites, and instead suggested that the teams were evenly poised. He did, however, concede Sri Lanka may be short of match practice, having played their last Test in March. Sri Lanka Cricket had organised a four-day triangular first-class tournament during the team’s layoff, but those matches had been played in October.”We’ve played some four day cricket before we left to Dubai, and we had some match-practice there, but it’s not as good as playing a Test match. There will be a bit of rustiness – there might be. But that’s the challenge of adjusting from ODI cricket to Test cricket soon as possible. That will be the main challenge for us.”