The India head coach said a decision on Rodrigues’ inclusion in the XI against New Zealand will be taken on match day

Sruthi Ravindranath22-Oct-20254:19

Preview: ‘Wounded’ India favourites against New Zealand?

India head coach Amol Muzumdar has said leaving Jemimah Rodrigues out of the World Cup clash against England on Sunday was “one of the toughest decisions” the team has had to make, and one dictated purely by combination and conditions.”To be fair, Jemi [Rodrigues] has been a very important player, an integral part of this side we have built,” Muzumdar said. “Sometimes you just have to take those tough calls. That game, particularly against England, required the sixth bowling option, given the ground of Indore and the [high-scoring] conditions over there, we thought six bowling options would be a better call on that particular day and for that particular match.”Rodrigues, who has managed just 65 runs from four innings this tournament, including two ducks, made way for seamer Renuka Singh in the weekend.”It was a tough call, there is no doubt about it,” Muzumdar said. “One of the toughest decisions, but sometimes tough calls do need to be taken. She took it really nicely and very sportingly.”Related

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Ahead of India’s crucial clash against New Zealand, Rodrigues had an extended net session, closely working on her drives, though Muzumdar said the decision to bring her back into the XI will be taken only on match day.India have now lost three consecutive matches, to South Africa, Australia, and England, all after getting into promising positions. Muzumdar conceded that the pressure of playing a home World Cup is being felt, but backed the squad, including young pacer Kranti Gaud, who’s gone for runs in her second spell in all three games, to bounce back.”I think a home World Cup, of course, there has to be some kind of pressure. But this side, this particular side is well-equipped to handle that. We’ve built a side around it and I think all the players are well-equipped to handle pressure.5:13

‘Fans need to temper expectations with India’

“[Gaud] had not much of experience in international cricket, but that’s the stage we are in. She’s been the spearhead of the fast bowlers in the team. And we’ve had several discussions, we’ve not left any stone unturned with regards to discussion and taking the load off her.”While six Indian batters have crossed fifty in the tournament so far, none has reached three-figures, something Muzumdar said the team is actively trying to address. Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur had laid the platform in the England game with a 125-run stand but were dismissed for 88 and 70 respectively.”We are well aware that a three-figure mark hasn’t come this World Cup. But if you look at the past year-and-a-half, the 18 months that have passed before the World Cup, we’ve had definitely a lot of hundreds that we’ve seen than ever before. I don’t think there is a lot of load on anyone. But we’ve had honest discussions about it. And the players also have been honest that, ‘Yes, instead of a fifty, we could have converted that into a hundred’. They are aware of it. And I’m hopeful that it will come in the next couple of games.”Muzumdar also said there was no burden on either Harmanpreet as captain or on Richa Ghosh to finish games single-handedly.”As a batting group, we’ve discussed we need to get into a certain stage where we can have that, that kind of a liberty for Richa to go out there and play her shots.”

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Os torcedores do Vasco ficaram revoltados com o pênalti perdido por Vegetti. O atacante telegrafou e entregou o canto que ia bater para o goleiro. Os vascaínos ironizaram e deram parabéns ao jogador. Confira abaixo.

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يعقد الدنماركي ييس توروب، المدير الفني للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي محاضرة فنية مع اللاعبين قبل التحرك إلى ملعب مولاي الحسن، لمواجهة فريق الجيش الملكي المغربي، اليوم الجمعة.

ويلتقي الأهلي مع الجيش الملكي على ملعب الأخير بالمغرب، في إطار منافسات الجولة الثانية من دور المجموعات ببطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا.

ويستعرض توروب، خلال المحاضرة خطة اللعب التي استقر عليها، إلى جانب التوجيهات التكتيكية الخاصة بأدوار اللاعبين في الشقين الدفاعي والهجومي. كما يتناول المدير الفني نقاط القوة والضعف الموجودة في فريق الجيش الملكي.

ومن المقرر أن يتحرك الفريق في الساعة السابعة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة “السادسة مساءً بتوقيت المغرب”، إلى ملعب مولاي الحسن بمدينة الرباط، استعدادًا لخوض مواجهة الجيش الملكي.

طالع |القناة الناقلة لمباراة الأهلي والجيش الملكي اليوم في دوري أبطال إفريقيا

ويصل فريق الأهلي إلى ملعب المباراة قبل ساعة ونصف من انطلاق اللقاء، وفقًا لما تم الاتفاق عليه خلال الاجتماع الفني الذي عُقد أمس، والذي حدّد كافة الترتيبات التنظيمية الخاصة بالمباراة.

وتنطلق مباراة الأهلي والجيش الملكي في تمام الساعة التاسعة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة “الثامنة مساءً بتوقيت المغرب”، على ملعب مولاي الحسن بالعاصمة الرباط، في مواجهة يسعى خلالها الأهلي لمواصلة انطلاقته القوية وتحقيق فوزه الثاني في المجموعة.

وكان النادي الأهلي، حقق الفوز في لقاء الجولة الأولى على شبيبة القبائل الجزائري، بنتيجة 4-1، في اللقاء الذي أقيم بالقاهرة يوم السبت الماضي.

ويتواجد النادي الأهلي في المجموعة الثانية من دوري أبطال إفريقيا، مع الجيش الملكي وشبيبة القبائل الجزائري ويانج أفريكانز التنزاني.

Rain in Canberra ruined the opening T20I of the five-match series between Australia and India, also cutting short an eye-catching display from captain Suryakumar Yadav who was beginning to rekindle the form he had showed at the IPL earlier this year.Suryakumar and Shubman Gill had carried India to a promising 97 for 1 in the 10th over of a contest already reduced to 18 overs per side by an earlier stoppage when heavier rain came through and eventually forced the call-off shortly before 10pm.Moments before the rain returned, Suryakumar had tucked into Nathan Ellis’ second over with two fours and a six. He had been given a life on 18 when Josh Philippe couldn’t hold onto a tough chance running back from mid-on and was able to pass 20 for just the second time in his last 15 T20I innings – a period which, of course, sandwiches the prolific IPL.Mitchell Marsh had continued his impressive run with the coin, and unsurprisingly, opted to bowl as he had done on all 18 previous occasions in T20Is when he has had the choice.India’s intent was clear from the very start when Abhishek Sharma, facing Australia for the first time, charged at Josh Hazlewood’s opening delivery. Abhishek ended the first over by again using his feet and carved Hazlewood through point.Gill survived a close lbw shout against Ellis on 11, when he was beaten by a back-of-the-hand slower ball, which Australia reviewed and the replays showed it was clipping the top of the bails. However, Abhishek’s powerplay was cut short when he drove a catch to Tim David at mid-off to hand Ellis a wicket on his opening over.

The fifth over brought a terrific mini-contest between Suryakumar and Hazlewood, who is only available for the first two matches of this series before turning his focus to Ashes preparation.The first ball, a bouncer, whistled past Suryakumar as he considered a ramp to deep third, the second was unplayable as it nipped away from back of a length to beat an ambitious drive, but then Suryakumar responded with an audacious flick over deep square leg for six. Two dots followed before Suryakumar ended it by working a single.Gill, meanwhile, had played briskly between the stoppages and shortly before the final stoppage had slog-swept Matt Kuhnemann powerfully over deep midwicket.Despite conditions being a world away from Dubai, India retained the three frontline spinners they used in the Asia Cup final with Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy all finding spots in the XI. Jasprit Bumrah was set to lead the pace attack which also included Harshit Rana. Allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy was ruled out of the opening three matches as he recovers from quad and neck problems.From a likely first-choice side, Australia were missing Cameron Green (Shield cricket), Glenn Maxwell (available from game three) and Adam Zampa (personal reasons).

Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario was mocked over social media after producing a howler as Tottenham found themselves 2-0 down inside just six minutes against Fulham on Saturday evening. The shot-stopper was punished by Spurs’ London rivals after going walkabout in the build up to the second goal of a chaotic opening to the Premier League encounter.

Vicario makes a mess of it as Tottenham go behind early doors

Already trailing 1-0 after defender Kenny Tete put Fulham in front after just four minutes, Vicario soon compounded Tottenham’s misery following a rush of blood to the head. Racing off his goal line to thwart Fulham striker Raul Jimenez, the Italy international found himself in all sorts of trouble after miscontrolling the ball on his weaker left foot.

In a tight spot near the corner flag, Vicario – under pressure from the revenge-seeking Jimenez – then got his clearance all wrong as he gave possession straight to the onrushing Josh King, who laid the ball off to Harry Wilson as the Fulham midfielder brilliantly curled the ball into an empty net.

And to make matters worse, Vicario did not appear to apologise to his Spurs team-mates but rather shouted in their direction as Fulham’s players wheeled away in celebration at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWATCH: Goalkeeper gets his clearance all wrong against Fulham

Italy international Vicario trolled for 'comical' and 'trash' mishap

Writing on X, @mionomedev did not mince their words, posting: “Vicario funniest player in the world, dog**** touch, randomly decides to kick it to the opposition and then somehow is the one complaining when they score.”

Describing the moment as “criminal”, @jaydmharris said: “Wilson makes it 2-0. Comical defending as Vicario storms out of his area, miskicks the ball by the touchline and Wilson whips the ball into an empty net.”

Arsenal fan @gunnerpunner was enjoying watching his side’s bitter rivals struggle, writing: “Vicario is trash. Said it since he signed. But he made a few 1v1 saves. Spurs players get so much hype. But they’re all rubbish. Glad it eventually becomes clear.”

And finally, @KevJStewart added: “Yeah, we’re a complete shambles — and despite his occasional displays of shot-stopping, Vicario IS among the worst culprits and NOT good enough on the whole. Idiot. Time for some to admit it. Do think we ultimately need a bigger name in charge and a shedload of quality signings…”

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AFPShot-stopper's unfortunate mishap gave Spurs mountain to climb

Tottenham were hoping to bounce back following back-to-back losses against Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain in the Premier League and Champions League respectively, but they gave themselves too big of a mountain to climb as they ultimately slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Fulham. 

While Thomas Frank's side pulled a goal back through Mohammed Kudus, they were unable to find an equaliser as they suffered a fourth home defeat in all competitions this season. Spurs have now conceded 11 goals in their last three games, with Vicario between the sticks for each match.

Jonathan David delivered a dramatic winner in the 90+1 minute to give Juventus a 3-2 victory over Bodo/Glimt in their Champions League group-stage clash. After Kenan Yildiz’s effort was pushed aside by goalkeeper Nikita Haikin, David reacted quickest to slot home the rebound, scoring his second goal for Juventus and his first since late August to secure a crucial result for the Italian side.

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  David’s late strike secures Juventus comeback victory

  Juventus were forced to dig themselves out of trouble after conceding twice to Bodo/Glimt but responded well to pull level. Jonathan David’s decisive goal came early in stoppage time, as he reacted quickest to a rebound after Kenan Yildiz’s shot was saved by Nikita Haikin. The finish restored Juventus’ lead and ended David’s goal drought, his first strike since late August.

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  Win boosts Juventus’ Champions League campaign

  The victory was an important one for Juventus, who have endured a difficult Champions League campaign and had collected only three points from their first four games. That stretch included three draws and a 1-0 loss to Real Madrid. The win moves them up the group table to six points.

  The goal also represents a boost for David, who had struggled to score in recent weeks. His ability to produce in key moments will be important as Juventus look to reestablish themselves among Europe’s top clubs. Since joining the team, the Canadian forward had scored only once – in Juventus’ Serie A opener in late August – before finding the net against Bodo/Glimt.

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  Juventus aim to build on momentum

  With this dramatic win, Juventus strengthen their chances of advancing from the league stage but must maintain consistency in upcoming fixtures. They face Pafos next on Dec. 11 and then Benfica on Jan. 22 in back-to-back home Champions League games before ending the league phase on the road against AS Monaco on Jan. 29.

The Chicago White Sox keep finding new ways to lose. On Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals they entered the bottom of the ninth with a 3-2 lead. With no outs and a runner on first, Drew Waters hit a high pop fly to the right side of the infield. What happened next was chaos.

Infielder Chase Meidroth eventually settled under the ball and stuck his glove up in the air just in time for it to skim his glove, hit him in the head and bounce into right field. Meidroth looked up to locate the ball, but obviously couldn't. By the time he realized where it went, right fielder Michael Taylor was overthrowing shortstop Jacob Amaya at second and everyone was safe.

The next batter, Freddy Fermin, hit a bunt single to load the bases. This was followed by another infield single to tie the game. Bobby Witt Jr. then hit a walk-off single and the White Sox dropped to 10-26 on the season.

After the game on White Sox Postgame Live, host Chuck Garfien and analyst Ozzie Guillen vacillated between shock, depression, disgust and straight up laughter. Guillen said that if he was still the manager the team would have stayed on the field after the game to practice until 2 o'clock in the morning.

The 2024 White Sox, who came within one loss of tying the 1960 New York Mets for the most in modern baseball history, started the season 8-28. Then they won four straight games.

Justin Verlander's immediate response to getting pulled from his start against the Colorado Rockies on Thursday was to make a joke about his age.

The Colorado Rockies beat the San Francisco Giants 4-3 to win their second straight game after one of the worst starts in MLB history. Verlander gave up five hits and two runs in 6.1 innings, but did not take the loss on his personal record. The veteran took the mound in the top of the 7th with San Francisco leading 3-1 and gave up a home run on his third pitch to Ryan McMahon.

Verlander retired the next batter, but was then taken out by manager Bob Melvin. When Melvin got the mound, Verlander was waiting with a joke.

"I just asked him if he took me out because I was old," joked Verlander.

Verlander, now 42, is the oldest active player in baseball, but he has a long way to go if he wants to be one of the oldest players in MLB history. Ichiro played until he was 45. Jamie Moyer started 10 games when he was 49. There were even a few guys born before World War 2 who played in their 50's.

Still, considering the age of most of his peers, Verlander has every right to make jokes about being old.

They haven’t always brought success, but West Ham United has had some incredible players represent them over the years.

For example, while it was short and sweet, Dimitri Payet’s time in the Premier League was incredible.

The Frenchman could do things with a ball that most players could only dream of, and it was easy to see glimpses of the sensational Paolo Di Canio in him.

The Italian was a livewire, but one of the most technically gifted players to don the famous claret and blue. Nuno Espírito Santo has a player with shades of him in his game, but said player is becoming an issue and should probably be sold at the end of the season.

Di Canio's West Ham career

West Ham signed Di Canio from Sheffield Wednesday in January 1999, and right from the off, there was controversy.

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Fans and pundits alike questioned the club’s decision to spend £1.5m on a player with a reputation as a troublemaker and, at the time, serving an 11-match ban for pushing a referee.

However, then-manager Harry Redknapp brushed aside any criticism of the move, telling the press that he was a player who “can do things with the ball that people can only dream of.”

The veteran coach would be quickly proven correct in this assessment, as he ended that campaign with five goal involvements in just 13 appearances for the Hammers and was named OPTA player of the season.

Moreover, just over a year later, he scored that famous strike against Wimbledon that was rightly later named the Premier League’s goal of the decade.

This ability to do anything he wanted with the ball, and his old-school passionate approach, quickly made him a fan favourite at Upton Park, and his decision to stop the game when Everton keeper Paul Gerrard was injured in December 2000, despite having a clear goalscoring opportunity, earned him fans across the Premier League.

However, as gifted and entertaining as the Italian was, his habit of causing problems never went away, and in 2003 he had a public falling out with then-manager Glenn Roeder, which saw him dropped from the team for some time.

At the end of the 02/03 season, despite making it clear he wanted to remain, West Ham refused to offer Di Canio another contract, a decision many attribute to his dispute with the manager.

In all, the Rome-born star was a truly sensational footballer, but his temperament eventually saw the club get rid of him, and the same thing might now need to happen with someone in Nuno’s squad.

Nuno's new Di Canio he should sell

There are a few West Ham players who should be sold in January, or at the end of the season, such as Niclas Füllkrug, Mads Hermansen and probably Max Kilman.

However, the only player who should be moved on who can even remotely be compared to Di Canio is Lucas Paqueta.

Now, before addressing the reasons the club should cash in on him, what makes the Brazilian similar to the Italian?

Well, first and foremost, he too, is capable of making something out of nothing, or as former coach Mark Warburton put it last year, he “sees things that you just don’t see. You look at the pass for the winning goal in the European final.”

That ability was on show again in the game against Newcastle United this season, when he smashed the ball into the net from some distance out.

Moreover, as Warburton puts it, the former Lyon ace is a “mercurial” talent in the sense that he can glide past opposition defenders if he wants, or pass them out of the game when on song.

With that said, then, why on earth should the club sell him?

Well, the first reason is that, like Di Canio at his worst, he can have a bad temperament.

This was on full show against Liverpool at the weekend, when he received a second yellow card for dissent, which is a truly petulant reason to be sent off.

The second reason he should be moved on is that while he can be an exceptional player on his day, he also isn’t irreplaceable.

For example, he has scored only four goals this season, three of which have come in the Premier League, and last season he ended the campaign with a paltry tally of five goals in 36 games.

Ultimately, Paqueta is a great player, but with his contract running out in less than two years, his slightly underwhelming output and the fact that he can do things as silly as be sent off for dissent, West Ham may be wise to move him on at the end of the season.

West Ham set for 'big decision' over selling 'most talented player' with Nuno 'fuming'

It would be a controversial move.

By
Emilio Galantini

Dec 2, 2025

Arsenal suffered a devastating 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday lunchtime, surrendering their five-point lead atop the Premier League table in dramatic fashion.

Emiliano Buendia’s stoppage-time winner completed a remarkable comeback for Unai Emery’s side, dealing a significant blow to the Gunners’ title aspirations.

Matty Cash gave Villa a deserved first-half lead with a thunderous finish at the back post in the 36th minute, capitalizing on Arsenal’s struggles to contain the hosts’ energetic pressing.

The right-back’s half-volley from a deflected cross caught David Raya off guard, sending Villa Park into raptures and rewarding the home side’s dominant opening period.

Mikel Arteta responded decisively at the interval, introducing Leandro Trossard and Viktor Gyokeres for the ineffective Eberechi Eze and Mikel Merino.

Related Aston Villa now want to tempt Chelsea summer signing with surprise January move

It would be a head turner.

Posts ByEmilio Galantini Dec 5, 2025

The Belgian substitute made an immediate impact just seven minutes into the second half, converting a rebound after Emiliano Martínez could only parry Bukayo Saka’s initial effort. Trossard’s poacher’s instinct at the back post hauled Arsenal level and appeared to shift momentum decisively in the visitors’ favour.

Arsenal dominated possession throughout the second period, creating numerous opportunities to snatch victory. Noni Madueke struck the side netting late on when well-positioned, while Declan Rice orchestrated attacks from deep despite struggling with the calf complaint that troubled him against Brentford midweek.

However, Villa refused to surrender tamely.

Emery’s tactical substitution proved inspired as Buendia replaced Matty Cash in the 85th minute, pushing the hosts into a more aggressive attacking shape with Lamare Bogarde dropping to right-back.

The Argentinian playmaker delivered the decisive intervention deep into stoppage time, reacting quickest to a loose ball inside Arsenal’s penalty area and firing home to secure all three points.

The defeat represents Arsenal’s second loss of the campaign and ends their 18-match unbeaten run across all competitions. More significantly, it allows Man City the opportunity to reduce the gap at the summit to just two points, should they defeat Sunderland later today.

Aston Villa 2-1 Arsenal – best players

Match Rating

Emiliano Martínez

7.8

Declan Rice

7.7

Matty Cash

7.5

Boubacar Kamara

7.5

Martin Odegaard

7.2

via WhoScored

For Villa, the victory extends their remarkable home form to just one defeat in their last 25 league matches at Villa Park, maintaining their challenge for Champions League qualification while sitting third in the table.

It also begs the question, are Emery’s men now genuine title contenders?

Stuart Pearce says Youri Tielemans stole the show against Arsenal

With that debate now set to rumble on, former England defender Stuart Pearce has picked out one Villa star to thank for an absolutely incredible afternoon for Emery in the Midlands.

Commenting on the game for talkSPORT, Pearce named his Player of the Match — £150,000-per-week midfielder Youri Tielemans.

The Belgian international apparently stole the show against Arsenal, with Pearce calling his display in the engine room ‘outstanding’.

Tielemans, who is out of contract in 2027, has just made a firm case to the Villa hierarchy when it comes to his long-term future.

The 28-year-old returned to full fitness fairly recently after missing six league games with a calf problem and was left out of the starting eleven for Villa’s thrilling 4-3 win at Brighton.

Emery’s decision to start Tielemans today was a masterful decision, and that performance will give the player huge confidence ahead of Villa’s trips to FC Basel and West Ham.