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Manchester United loanee Jadon Sancho claimed he understands people's criticism after a slow start back at Borussia Dortmund.

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Sancho understands why people criticised himScored his maiden goal against Werder BremenJoined Dortmund from Man Utd on loan in JanuaryWHAT HAPPENED?

Sancho scored his first goal after coming back to Borussia Dortmund from Manchester United in the club's 2-1 win over Werder Bremen at the weekend. It took the winger nearly two months and 12 appearances across all competitions to find the back of the net.

In between, Sancho was slammed by a section of the German media for failing to live up to expectations since his return to the Bundesliga. The England international claimed that the criticism was justified and that even he was getting frustrated with his poor run of form.

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Speaking to Dortmund's media team, Sancho said: "It felt really good. It took a while, but I stayed patient. I had a feeling this week that I was going to score. I stayed positive, even if my performance didn't always show it and I've disappointed some people a bit in recent weeks. I'm not entirely satisfied with the game in Bremen either; I could've played better and contributed more. But we got the three points; that's the most important thing."

Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl heaped praise on the English star after he finally got off the mark and blamed Manchester United and Erik ten Hag for his poor form, as he felt lack of game time in the first half of the season affected Sancho's performance.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR JADON SANCHO?

The 23-year-old will be next seen in action in the Champions League as the Bundesliga giants face Dutch side PSV Eindhoven in the second leg of their round of 16 clash.

The fans turned Supersport Park into an Asian outpost for the day

Tilisha Govender27-Sep-2009Team supported
I went into the game supporting India, like I always do. As the game went on, however, I discovered a renewed appreciation for the Pakistani team – their passion, their focus and their will to win. It was somewhat reminiscent of a successful Pakistani team of the nineties.One thing I’d have changed about the match
Being an Indian supporter, I would have given Dhoni another lifeline with the bat, and brought him in further down the order – after Suresh Raina.Wow moment
As a Team India supporter, for me it was the fall of Imran Nazir’s wicket. A dangerous batsman once he gets going, seeing him caught by Harbhajan Singh off the bowling of Ashish Nehra for just 20 runs was a great relief.Player watch
Sitting in front of the Indian dressing room, I found it amusing how the players were constantly greeted and asked to smile for photos. One Pakistani player was greeted by the same fan every time he ran up and down the stairs. Considering the player was the waterboy for the day, I’m sure this fan said hi about 16 times! I was impressed with the patience of most players. The new generation of Indian stars could learn a thing or two about friendly demeanour from the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.Shot of the day
Although there was not a lot of big hitting in the game, the most memorable shot had to be the massive six scored by Gautam Gambhir off one of the free-hits. It was met with rapturous applause and a sea of Indian flags flying high.Crowd meter
Supersport Park seemed like the Asian subcontinent for the day. Both teams had immense support and there was no shortage of Hindi and Urdu curses and compliments to be heard. Naturally, the likes of Dhoni, Bhajji and Sachin got the biggest cheers, but there were also sporting cheers and encouragement heard for the younger players like Virat Kohli and Umar Akmal. At one point, somewhere around the 26th over, the chanting was more competitive than the cricket on the field.Entertainment
There was lots of Hindi music heard blaring over the PA system. The songs got the crowd pumped up and on their feet. As far as fan behaviour went, the most entertaining thing about the match had to be the middle-aged Indian supporter behind me jumping on his seat and gyrating his hips to the sound of “Jai Ho.” Even the ever-so-serious Indian dressing room could not contain their amusement.ODI v Twenty20
Having been to most of the IPL games in Johannesburg and Pretoria this year, it was a little bit of an adjustment to find myself sitting through 100 overs again. But I think it’s safe to say, after all the enjoyment of the India-Pakistan Champions Trophy contest, that one-dayers are nowhere near becoming obsolete.Banner of the day
There weren’t many banners or posters in my view, as I was not on the grass. I did have a few ideas for a poster of my own however. One would definitely have been: “Team India’s new theme song – Let’s get it on…”Overall
All in all, the game provided action, drama, quality cricket and great sportsmanship. I’m sure most fans left happy, feeling like they had gotten their money’s worth. Aside from the fact that my team lost on the day, it was a fantastic day out.Marks out of 10
I would rate the India-Pakistan game a generous 9. Let’s take away a point for the loss!

The greatest of fast bowlers, the nicest of men

David Frith14-Jan-2009

“The starburst of delivery”: Lindwall bowls at The Oval in the 1953 Ashes © Getty Images
Most of the truly great cricketers have been unpretentious. They have no need to bang their own drums. They know that the world recognises their talents.Ray Lindwall was born easygoing and with modesty running through his veins. This, and the attraction of his fast bowling and stylish batting, made him a hero around Sydney and most of Australia in the 1950s. Many of us boys tried to adopt a run-up and delivery like Ray’s distinctive flow: a smooth pistoning of the right arm, an acceleration, a thrust of the bowling arm up past the shoulder, then the starburst of delivery – the arm coming through not copybook-high but at 45 degrees, which made it hard not to bowl the late outswinger.We’d study him in the field. At the end of the over he would slap his cap onto his fair head, usually crookedly, and tug his sweater on, causing his shirt collar to disappear, and that florid countenance would break into a grin as he exchanged quips with the other slipsmen.What do you suppose would be the reaction of one of today’s superstars if a youngster, having been privileged enough to get an autograph, then asked the player for a lift home? Well, over half a century ago I did just this. I knew Lindwall lived a suburb or two away from my parents’ place, so I hesitantly asked him.”Sure,” he said. He was usually one of the last to vacate the SCG, for his efforts had dehydrated him somewhat, and he needed a few beers to restore his strength. But the long wait was worthwhile, for here I was, riding in my hero’s carriage as we curved round Botany Bay and headed for Carlton, and wishing there would be an engine problem so that I could have more private time with him.What did that ball do to bowl Everton Weekes? How did he manage to beat Jeff Stollmeyer? Evasiveness from Australian fast bowler. He wanted to free his mind. So he spoke of history – 1770 was when Captain Cook stepped ashore just over there – and geography; or about London, where I was from and he had been (with Bradman’s 1948 side). I didn’t really care what we discussed. Just being there with him was sensational.I consequently saw him differently the next day, when he was a distant figure again, gliding in to take some more wickets, with me sitting rigidly up in the old Sheridan Stand. This was now “my friend” Ray.The dreaded day came when he took his exit from Test cricket, the first genuine fast bowler to have taken 200 Test wickets, recognised by many as the best of all fast bowlers. Cricket suddenly seemed slightly lacking. That unique and beautiful run-up would never be seen again, except in a charity match at The Oval when he was 62 years old and could manage only a stiff five-pace run-up. What do you suppose would be the reaction of one of today’s superstars if a youngster, having been privileged enough to get an autograph, then asked the player for a lift home? Well, over half a century ago I did just this But a consolation was that I got to know him well and saw him often, especially at the Gabba. I even had a chance to say a few words at a testimonial lunch for him, assuring the audience that Lindwall was almost as highly regarded in England as in his homeland. Through all the adulatory speeches that day he looked bashfully down at the table, making the occasional wry remark from the side of his mouth.It’s said that at one function he was approached by one of Australia’s leading latter-day fast bowlers, who, having sunk a few drinks, was keen to explain to Lindwall that he, the modern champion, had superior figures, quoting strike-rates and all that business. Those in the vicinity were horrified, but they need not have fretted. Ray waited until the braggadocio subsided before saying, in that adenoidal voice of his, “You’re probably right.” The younger man had his middle stump knocked out of sight.Ray’s last days were sad. Diabetes cost him a toe, and a loud-mouthed medico had assured him that there was worse to come. One of the penalties was a drastic cut to his beer intake. Three a day was the limit. So how many had he had so far? (Play at the Gabba was just about to start.) “This is my third.” Oh dear. “I’ll be all right,” said my hero. And I could have wept.There had been a nice piece of completion during the 1980s. The Lord’s Taverners held a gala dinner at the London Hilton for Lindwall and his famous new-ball partner Keith Miller. We all sat back and oohed and aahed as the terror twins had Len Hutton and Denis Compton ducking and weaving all over again on the slightly fuzzy black-and-white newsreel. Afterwards, when most of the 750 guests had gone, Ray, as usual, was still there.”Where are you staying?” I asked. He told me, and I insisted on giving him a lift. It wasn’t round the rim of Botany Bay this time, but down Piccadilly. We were both much older now. But if I had changed with the years, he seemed not to have. He still had that gentle drawl and he was still self-effacing. And once again I experienced a thrill running right through me as I sat alongside maybe the greatest of fast bowlers and certainly – beyond the faintest doubt – the nicest of men.That’s how I judge heroes.

From Afridi’s pointed finger to Broad’s misfield to save by Mathews – they’re all in our look back at the moments that defined the tournament

Nishi Narayanan22-Jun-2009The celebration
Is it a plane? Is it a “you-can’t-see-me” hand wave? Or a six-foot high leap? No, it’s a finger pointed to the sky by Shahid Afridi. Instead of indulging in wild revelry, clearly the favoured style of lesser bowlers, Boom Boom simply stood tall and let his team-mates embrace him.The six
Brett Lee had been walloped for 24 runs in his first two overs but Chris Gayle was not done yet. He hit the first delivery of the third high over midwicket and the ball went sailing into the adjoining Archbishop Tennyson School. Two more sixes and two more fours later, Lee’s figures were 3-0-51-0.The barrage
There were 166 sixes in the tournament, three of them by Ireland’s Niall O’Brien in one Mashrafe Mortaza over. The first, off a slower ball, was flicked to midwicket; the second clipped high over square leg; the third scoop-flicked over square leg, by which time O’Brien was limping and in need of a runner.The scoop
Before the tournament, the Scoop was known to be an Evelyn Waugh novel, or for movie-goers, a film by Woody Allen. But henceforth it shall be associated only with Tillakaratne Dilshan. The world premiere of the shot was aired on June 8 at Trent Bridge. Dilshan had raced to 46 off 25 balls against a hapless Australian attack when he ducked under a good-length ball and flicked his bat vertically to lift it over the keeper – like the paddle but straight.The bouncer
Injuries to Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan had already left India’s Twenty20 squad weak but West Indies’ and England’s bowlers found another chink in their armour – their batsmen’s inability to play the short ball – and let ’em have it. The most painful to watch was Suresh Raina. James Anderson and Ryan Sidebottom pinged him with bouncers in their opening overs and he flayed at them, playing and missing the first and gloving the second. Sidebottom then bounced Gautam Gambhir, who played it to gully for a single. Raina faced Sidebottom, and tried to hook the fast bouncer. Instead he got an edge that spiralled away, to be caught by a diving Luke Wright.Stuart Broad’s misfield gave Netherlands a historic win•Associated PressThe peach
With most of the women’s games tucked away in Taunton and not televised, not many will have witnessed the catches, celebrations, and wickets of this tournament. However, the semis and final, played in the same grounds as the men’s games, and broadcast by Sky, gave viewers a chance to see the best of women’s cricket. One of those moments featured New Zealand’s 25-year-old left-arm seamer Sian Ruck on her first international tour. Ruck swung it into the right-handers and had India’s Harmanpreet Kaur completely befuddled when she pitched a ball on middle and it flattened the leg stump.The misfield
As if Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes weren’t haunting him enough, Stuart Broad added more grief to his three-year-old international career with a slip-up that cost England the game against the Netherlands. Two were needed off the last ball, which Edgar Schiferli hit towards mid-on. Broad intercepted it and threw it at the non-striker’s stumps but missed completely – from a range of about four metres – to give an overthrow that allowed Netherlands to get the winning run.The stunt
He did it in the ODIs against West Indies to no effect, but young Broad wasn’t quite giving up yet. In the 17th over against South Africa at Trent Bridge, as he approached his delivery stride, he pointed off to the side, as if to indicate a fielder was out of position, but carried on with his bowling action without disrupting his own rhythm. AB de Villiers worked the ball behind square for a single and later Broad was warned not to repeat his antics.The fielding
Scotland’s Kyle Coetzer literally plucked one out of thin air against South Africa when he ran backwards at long-on and grabbed it in his outstretched right hand before falling just short of the boundary rope, to dismiss Mark Boucher.Kyle Coetzer pulled off a stunning catch to dismiss Mark Boucher•Getty ImagesAnother stunning catch came in Pakistan’s game against New Zealand, by Afridi, running towards the long-on boundary, to dismiss Scott Styris. The ball rose high and looked like it would land safely but Afridi ran hard from mid-on and lunged in the end, four or five metres from the boundary to take it safely.Angelo Mathews rounds up our fielding-brilliance-at-long-on section with the quickest thinking ever in international cricket. Ramnaresh Sarwan smashed the ball down the ground and Mathews took a great overhead catch before realising the momentum would take him over the boundary. So instead he threw the ball in the air, went over the boundary, leapt up and smashed it, tennis-style, back into play.The opening over
Having shown his tennis skills off at Trent Bridge, Mathews unleashed his cricketing ones at The Oval in the semi-final, against the same side, with an opening over that sealed the game for Sri Lanka. He got Xavier Marshall to play on to the first ball, bowled Lendl Simmons round his legs, and knocked Dwayne Bravo’s off stump over after the batsman inside-edged one that pitched on a
length outside off. West Indies were 3 for 1 at the end of the first over with little chance of coming back.Pakistan rookie Mohammad Aamer paid it forward to Sri Lanka in the final and though he took only one wicket in the opening over, it was equal to three since it was the one of Dilshan, the Player of the Tournament. After failing to score off the first four balls – all short – Dilshan went for his scoop and mistimed it, to be caught at short fine-leg.

Sidharth Monga looks back at seven moments in Sourav Ganguly’s career

Sidharth Monga10-Nov-2008

Debut dance
It’s his Test debut, and he is believed to be a political selection for the tour to England, a perception he puts paid to in seven-and-a-half hours of blissful batting. The image – Ganguly celebrating, arms aloft, no brashness of the later days, and Rahul Dravid applauding him in the background – is enduring: the wait has finally ended; the boy who persistently called newspaper offices for four years to see if he is in the team has arrived.That don’t impress me much
In 2000-01 Australia are a world-beating team with 15 straight wins behind them and are at the final stop on their conquest. One man is not impressed. “They have won most of their games at home, beaten West Indies 5-0 at home, beaten India, Pakistan at home,” Ganguly welcomes Australia. “They toured here in ’96 and lost. They toured here in ’98 and lost. So obviously that’s going to be at the back of their mind.” No awe here. If that doesn’t rile Australia, Ganguly goes further during the series. He walks out late for the toss and, if he wins it, he walks off on his own after letting the TV interviewer know what India choose to do. Once, after being pulled up by Cammie Smith, the match referee, he turns up five minutes before the toss – in his tracksuit top. “You had to give him an ‘A’ for effort in his attempt to annoy us,” Steve Waugh writes in his book, “and in particular me. It worked to a certain extent.”Doing the HQ
Indians, not the least Bengalis, are supposed to be studious, meek, wristy, oriental artists. They are not supposed to make opposition captains wait at the toss, make fielders tie their shoelaces and, worst of all, sledge. There the Indian captain is, at Lord’s, no less, waving the shirt he wore a moment ago, shouting four-letter words again and again. With Ganguly, India’s aggression goes naked, one of turning points in the nation’s cricketing history.Surviving the Gabbatoir

He sweeps Stuart MacGill just wide of fine leg, runs very hard to convert what is for him an easy one into two, leaps twice in elation, almost trips over, pumps the air, holds his arms aloft and, without uttering a word tells every Australian that he enjoyed the “sweet chin music”. This is the Gabba, and the year is 2003. Not only the Australian team, the whole nation, it seems, is after him, and this is test of the captain’s mettle. The innings has it all – urgency, emotion, disdain – and sets the pace for the series.Refusal to die
Only about a couple of hundred have come to watch him play a Duleep Trophy match in Rajkot. The email has already been leaked, his integrity questioned. On the surface he has been left out on fitness grounds, but the writing is on the wall. The North Zone attack – VRV Singh, Gagandeep Singh, Amit Mishra and Sarandeep Singh – does not sound intimidating, but on a greenish Rajkot track they are a handful. He comes in to bat on the second day, his team struggling at 54 for 3, and then at 59 for 4. In the short period before stumps, he is hit on the head by VRV. A different Ganguly appears the next day: he is sure, and he is aggressive. He plays all his shots, including the one where he makes room and slashes over point, a shot he usually employed in one-dayers. By the time he finished he had scored 117 off 143, and sent across the message that he should be playing somewhere else.One for himself
The one word that describes the Ganguly who has made a comeback to the Indian side is serene. Almost monk-like, he goes about his business – fields mostly at the fine-leg boundary, bowls a few overs, and bats with utmost calm. No more shirt flinging, no more nail biting on the field. His last century, in Mohali, is one such effort. A century is almost inevitable from the moment he joins Sachin Tendulkar at the crease. Upon reaching the landmark, he doesn’t react extravagantly, despite the drama behind his comeback to the side, he just smiles to himself, pumps the air, and gets on with it.‘Just one last thing lads’

Does he choke for a brief second? After he says “Just one last thing lads” and before he drops the bomb. He does pause, for sure. Is he collecting himself? Does he wait to make sure words will come out? Once he has said what he has said, you are too stunned to think what has happened in that split-second. “Before I leave, I just want to say that this is going to be my last series. I’ve decided to quit. I told my team-mates before coming here.” And the lads don’t have a word to say. They look at him, they look at each other, they look down. The announcement is all Ganguly: he comes in late for the press conference, he is mildly humorous, takes all questions in good spirit, and waits for the media coordinator to end the conference before catching everyone off guard.

حدد الجهاز الفني للنادي الأهلي، بقيادة مارسيل كولر، موعد عودة بعثة الفريق الأول لكرة القدم، إلى القاهرة، بعدما يخوض مواجهة شباب بلوزداد الجزائري، مساء اليوم الجمعة.

ويحل الأهلي ضيفًا على شباب بلوزداد، بملعبه 5 يوليو بالجزائر، ضمن مواجهات الجولة الرابعة من دور المجموعات لبطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا.

ومن المقرر أن تنطلق المباراة، في تمام الساعة 9 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 10 بتوقيت السعودية، 8 بتوقيت الجزائر.

وقرر الجهاز الفني، أن تتوجه بعثة الفريق مباشرة من استاد 5 يوليو إلى مطار هواري بومدين بالعاصمة الجزائرية، عقب انتهاء مباراة الأهلي وشباب بلوزداد لاستقلال الطائرة الخاصة في رحلة العودة إلى القاهرة.

طالع | قناة مفتوحة تعلن إذاعة مباراة الأهلي وشباب بلوزداد اليوم في دوري أبطال إفريقيا

ويتواجد فريقا الأهلي وشباب بلوزداد، في المجموعة الثالثة لبطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا، مع أندية أورلاندو الجنوب إفريقي واستاد أبيدجان الإيفواري.

ويتصدر النادي الأهلي، ترتيب المجموعة الثالثة، برصيد 7 نقاط، من فوزين وتعادل، بينما يأتي فريق شباب بلوزداد في المركز الثالث بـ 3 نقاط.

وكان الفريقان التقيا، في مواجهات الجولة الثالثة، من عمر دور المجموعات، على ملعب ستاد القاهرة، وفاز النادي الأهلي بنتيجة 6-1.

Sri Lanka’s monsoon season was the only winner in Dambulla as the first ODI was abandoned after just 15 overs of play

The Report by Alan Gardner10-Oct-2018
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsSri Lanka’s monsoon season was the only winner in Dambulla as the first ODI was abandoned after just 15 overs of play. England had reached 92 for 2 after being asked to bat, but a heavy storm swept in and despite the entire playing surface being covered, the umpires eventually deemed a wet outfield unsuitable for a shortened game.The groundstaff worked hard to mop up, with persistent rainfall having left several inches of standing water on the covers. However, after a delay of more than four-and-a-half hours, the captain shook hands on the decision to call things off.”It was frustrating, especially as the umpires did call for the covers before the rain arrived, because when it rains here it rains for hours,” England captain, Eoin Morgan said. “They did their best in that regard. Unfortunately when they were taking the covers off there was some overflow, and so there were three or four areas of concern that were very muddy. I think when it gets to that stage, player safety is paramount.”The abandonment meant Olly Stone’s England debut amounted to little more than going through the warm-up and watching his team-mates bat. Stone was picked in the squad as cover for Liam Plunkett, whose wedding clashed with the first part of the tour, and he went straight into the side – but will now have to wait to make an impact.Of Stone’s inclusion, Morgan said: “The thinking behind that was Olly offers something different. He bowls with a bit more pace than the guys we have currently. He’s a like-for-like replacement in the squad for Liam Plunkett. If Liam was here today he would have played the very same role. To change a game, if it’s not mystery spin in the middle overs, it’s with extra pace.”After Sri Lanka had won the toss and chosen to bowl in the first ODI of five, newly instated captain Dinesh Chandimal said he was hoping for a “little bit of moisture in the wicket” to help his bowlers – but rather a lot of moisture was the eventual problem. Both teams will hope for better weather in Dambulla for the second game on Saturday.Joe Root heads off as the covers come on•AFPBefore the rain arrived, at around 3.40pm local time, England had made a steady start to their innings. The opening stand reached 49 at just over a run a ball when Jonny Bairstow got a thin edge behind off Nuwan Pradeep, and Jason Roy fell in the following over, skewing an ugly heave at Akila Dananjaya high towards mid-off.The third-wicket pairing of Joe Root and Morgan did not take too much time over consolidating, pushing the score on to 92 for 2 at the drinks break, but with dark clouds beginning to hove into view, the groundstaff made their move.England had been short of match practice in the lead-up to the series, with their first warm-up match affected by rain and bad light and the second washed out entirely. After a second consecutive abandonment, only the top four of Roy, Bairstow, Morgan and Root have had any competitive time in the middle.”I remember coming here in 2014 a little bit later [during November-December], but I do remember the forecast being the same every day, and we managed to miss the rain last time,” Morgan said.”It was quite competitive in the first 15 overs. The game was just starting to unfold. They took two wickets, and me and Root had just started to get something going, but I don’t think I could predict what would have happened from there.”

Nottingham Forest's referee consultant Mark Clattenburg believes Darwin Nunez's late winner for Liverpool on Saturday should have been ruled out.

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Nunez scored in added timeLiverpool won 1-0 in dramatic fashionClattenburg believes decision was wrongWHAT HAPPENED?

Nunez scored in the 99th minute to give the Reds a vital 1-0 win, and Clattenburg, who is working as Forest's refereeing consultant, felt the decision was wrong. Paul Tierney, the referee in charge, had stopped play for an Ibrahima Konate head injury, while Forest were in possession.

When the game restarted, though, Tierney told Liverpool to play on, instead of kicking it back to Forest. Nunez scored at the end of the move, to the chagrin of the former referee.

AdvertisementWHAT CLATTENBURG SAID

Per the , he said: “As a club, Forest feel there have been one or two decisions that have gone against them -NewcastleUnited,West Ham- decisions that the PGMOL have accepted that there has been a mistake and today was another example where the law is quite clear.

“If the referee is to stop the game for a head injury if he feels there is one. He’s rightly allowed to stop it. However, the ball has to go back to the team that has possession. And Nottingham Forest clearly had that possession.

“He did exactly the same in the first half however it was a different situation. The ball was closer to the penalty area and the Nottingham Forest was towards the corner flag. Nottingham Forest should have had the ball back. Instead, Liverpool have gone upfield and scored from it.”

GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The result is a major one at both ends of the table. Liverpool have returned to the top of the league, while Forest are now 17th, four points clear of the drop zone. It is little surprise, then, that they are fuming about the decision, with Steven Reid, a coach for Forest, sent off after full-time for confronting Tierney.

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GettyWHAT NEXT?

Forest are next in action against Brighton next weekend. Liverpool, by comparison, play Sparta Prague in the Europa League Round of 16 on Thursday before playing Manchester City in a huge encounter at the top of the league.

Everton are finally back in Premier League action again today, and will feel quietly confident of securing a result against a high-flying Arsenal side…

Who should start for Everton vs Arsenal?

Although the Gunners come into this fixture in fine form whilst the Toffees do not, the Goodison Park factor is one that cannot be denied as Mikel Arteta once again returns to the place where his playing career in England exploded.

The Spaniard will be seeking to maintain his unbeaten league start, but despite facing a side that has yet to record a win, it is not the cut-and-dry result that it may seem on paper. After all, the Merseyside outfit have won four of their last five home games against the north London side.

What will also buoy Sean Dyche is the return of many absentees, with the international break coming at the perfect time to allow them to reset today in front of a rampant home crowd, as the likes of Dwight McNeil and Jack Harrison near full fitness – albeit with the latter man having been ruled out for the visit of the Gunners.

The former in particular is someone who simply has to start if the former Burnley manager is to secure a result, with his wand of a left foot poised to terrorise Arsenal.

How good is Dwight McNeil?

The Toffees' poor start to the season is largely down to their profligacy in front of goal, as despite dominating three of their four league games, they have just one point to show for it. That is whilst creating 3.3 big chances per game and raining down 14.8 shots per game, via Sofascore.

So, being without last campaign's top scorer was always bound to put a dent in that proficiency, as the 23-year-old's seven goals and three assists made him integral in their survival push.

His creativity in particular will likely be key in feeding Beto, or another of his size, with his deep corner in this same fixture last term meeting James Tarkowski as they combined to secure a 1-0 win. Before that many assumed Arteta's men would roll over the hosts, who were welcoming Dyche in his first game in charge. However, he and his fellow former Clarets had other ideas.

Throughout the season McNeil would also maintain a 7.06 average rating in the league too, having created 11 big chances despite only registering three assists. This is easy to imagine when the £20m maverick averaged 1.4 key passes per game too, via Sofascore.

He is one of few within their squad truly capable of pulling something out of nothing, and against a well-oiled machine like Arsenal, they will have to rely on that.

Journalist Joe Thomas lauded another piece of "magic" from Everton's number seven back in 2022, which Goodison Park will hope to play witness to that again. Dyche has certainly been vocal in his praise for McNeil in the past: "Fantastic, he’s a real talent. I’ve said it for weeks now, and a long time ago when he first came into the side.

“He’s a really good player, he’s improving, his calmness at the end – I’m saying get it in the corner – but he cuts in, and his calmness to cross it into a dangerous area, and then gets his reward. Before then, his calmness to dribble out of trouble – he’s a really good player, really good, and he can only mature.”

Although the odds are completely against them, this will suit the hosts down to the ground. A moody Merseyside will expect fireworks, cheering on every big tackle and every towering header. The chance of the latter happening is certainly increased exponentially with McNeil in the team, which will hopefully be to create a winner.

Islamabad’s seamers did most of the damage under cloudy skies, limiting the Multan Sultans to 113, setting up their first win of the tournament

The Report by Nikhil Kalro25-Feb-2018PCB/PSL

Not often, in T20s, does a Powerplay decide the direction of a game. When it does, it’s almost always solely down to underfoot or overhead conditions. Under atypically overcast skies in Dubai, after a 25-minute delay due to light rain, Islamabad United’s seamers capitalised on swinging conditions to leave Multan Sultans at 24 for 3 after the first six overs.That period set the tone for the rest of the match. Multan weren’t able to recover, eventually slumping to 113 all out in the final over. At one point during the 54-run fifth-wicket partnership between Shoaib Malik and Kieron Pollard, it seemed like Multan could muster a score they could defend in bowling-friendly conditions.Imran Tahir gave them some hope with 3 for 19, but Hussain Talat snuffed that out with a sparkling innings, first steadying the chase before showing off his range with a 34-ball 48 that gave Islamabad their first win of the tournament.

Where the match was won

Islamabad’s bowlers kept Multan to 24 for 3 in the Powerplay, but the next four overs damaged their hopes of a 120-plus score. Multan’s batsmen took too long looking to consolidate, adding just 18 runs in four overs for the loss of Ahmed Shehzad. With a score at 42 for 4, even a bright cameo wouldn’t have sufficed.

The men that won it

The conditions were skewed towards the fast bowlers so much that legspinner Shadab Khan was given only two overs. Islamabad’s quicks didn’t disappoint. Captain Rumman Raees and Mohammad Sami combined for figures of 7.5-0-33-5 to give their team a distinct edge. Steven Finn and Andre Russell also chipped in with three wickets between them.But the most significant contribution was from Talat. At 63 for 5, Multan were buoyant, but Talat soaked up that pressure initially, before expanding his strokeplay to find the gaps. He finished with four fours and three sixes in his match-winning knock.

Moment of the match

In three innings in this season’s PSL, Sohaib Maqsood has scored 26 runs, at an average of 8.67. That lack of confidence may have manifested into hesitation in the field. In the 10th over of Islamabad’s chase, Talat clipped a delivery from Junaid Khan towards midwicket. He called his partner Asif Ali for a run before sending him back too late. Or so everyone thought. Maqsood picked up, ran towards the bowler’s stumps, glanced at the batsman and missed an under-arm throw from a metre away.

Where they stand

Being the only team with two wins in the tournament, Multan retained their position at the top of the table. Islamabad stayed at fifth spot with one win in two games.