All posts by h716a5.icu

Pakistan are likely to leave out pacemen Wasim Akram and Mohammad Sami for the first cricket Test against New Zealand starting at Gaddafi Stadium Wednesday

Samiul Hasan30-Apr-2002Pakistan are likely to leave out pacemen Wasim Akram and Mohammad Sami for the first cricket Test against New Zealand starting at Gaddafi Stadium Wednesday.Instead, the home team is contemplating going in the match with two specialist spinners in Saqlain Mushtaq and wrist spinner Danish Kaneria. The leg spinner last played for Pakistan in the home series against the West Indies at Sharjah in February.Pakistan are also expected to retain Shoaib Malik as makeshift opener at the expense of Imran Nazir. Malik hit a career-best 115 in the third One-day and also took three for 37.Pakistan coach Mudassar Nazar confirmed that under present conditions, which are extremely hot and humid, two spinners will play.”Yes, we are considering to rest a couple of senior players and include young guys,” he said at the venue of the Test after his team’s early morning workouts.The wicket prepared for the game was being heavily rolled Monday. But with the temperature rising to 37 degrees Celsius by 11.30am and expected to stay the same in days to come.Mudassar repeated that his team was at par with Australia. He insisted that it was only Pakistan that had the capability to beat the world champions.Mudassar disagreed that his team was on a roll. “I don’t think so because we lost the Asian Test Championship final to Sri Lanka and lost two league matches in Sharjah earlier this year.”Meanwhile New Zealand manager Denis Aberhart Monday said his team didn’t need to go back to the drawing board after suffering a 3-0 whitewash against Pakistan in the One-day International series.”We are disappointed with a 3-0 result but all starts again at love-all. So we are looking forward to the Tests and so not back to the drawing board, just new game,” he told reporters at the Gaddafi Stadium.Pakistan won the first one-dayer at Karachi by 153 runs, sealed the series in Rawalpindi by three wickets before recording their first clean sweep in six years by winning the Lahore match by 66 runs.New Zealand, despite missing Chris Cairns, Shane Bond, Dion Nash and Daniel Vettori, were expected to perform better after they were fresh from victories on the Australian tour and then clinching the one-day series 3-2 against England.”I am disappointed with the performance in Karachi but did reasonably well in Rawalpindi where we stretched Pakistan to the limits. There were parts of the game when we did well in the last match,” he said. But he maintained that Test cricket was a different ball game and both the teams would start even. “We want to do the basics well. Obviously we want to make sure that when we bat, we put good partnerships. When a batsman settles down, we would like to see him get a big score.”Bowling wise, we want to make sure that we bowl at good length, dry down the runs and bring Pakistan batsmen under pressure. If we could do that for a long period of time, I think we have good chance,” he said.Pakistan, in a bid to end victory drought, named two spinners in Saqlain Mushtaq and Danish Kaneria who are likely to be named in the starting lineup. “We believe we played spinners well recently. Our batsmen showed they play spinners well and I am confident they do the same here.”

After seeing his Aston Villa side fall to a 3-2 defeat to Crystal Palace at the weekend, Dean Smith will no doubt be keen to ensure his team get back to winning ways when they take on Spurs tonight.

The Midlands club took the lead on two separate occasions against the Eagles in the first-half, before a late salvo saw Roy Hodgson’s men come away with all three points at Selhurst Park.

Villa were rocked before the game by the news that Tyrone Mings would be unavailable, and in his place, Kortney Hause came in from the wilderness to partner Ezri Konsa at the back.

And while the centre-back had a promising start and could have, and probably should have, scored in the first-half, his rustiness and lack of touch really told after the break when Palace turned the pressure on.

As per Sofascore, the £55k-a-week earning ace finished on a 6.4 match rating, the second-lowest of any Villa player, making no tackles or interceptions and losing possession 12 times.

And most importantly, he was beaten by Christian Benteke in the air for one of Palace’s goals, and that lack of sharpness really told in his decision-making.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for The Birmingham Mail, Ashley Preece gave him a five, saying: “In for his first start since December 28 and he started well and perhaps could have scored two as his headers from Traore’s corner sailed just wide of Butland’s post. Hause was good on the deck and fizzed in passes to the likes of Targett and El Ghazi.

“The centre-back was undone for Palace’s equaliser, though, as Benteke timed his jump to perfection to get above Hause before his effort nestled home. Hause was pick-pocketed by Schlupp in the second half as Palace almost took advantage. A bit rusty which was to be expected.”

With Smith confirming in his pre-match press conference that a late fitness check will be made on Tyrone Mings, the Villa boss will be desperately hoping one of his main centre-backs can pass the test and make his comeback against Spurs.

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Having a rusty Hause trying to deal with an in-form Harry Kane who’s eyeing up yet another Premier League Golden Boot is a recipe for disaster, and one that could prove very costly for Villa.

Meanwhile, Villa must land this “great leader” despite Lee Hendrie’s transfer verdict…

Hampshire’s Derek Kenway proved an instant hero when he returned to his old Hambledon roots to hit a match winning 72 not out and deny Southern Electric Premier League Division 2 rivals, Easton & Martyr Worthy victory at Ridge Meadow

Mike Vimpany11-Jun-2001Hampshire’s Derek Kenway proved an instant hero when he returned to his old Hambledon roots to hit a match winning 72 not out and deny Southern Electric Premier League Division 2 rivals, Easton & Martyr Worthy victory at Ridge Meadow.Hambledon were in desperate straits at 34-7, chasing a rain-cut Easton target of 158, when Kenway was joined by one-time Hampshire left-arm spinner Ian Turner.The pair produced an unbroken stand of 128 to guide Hambledon to an improbable three-wicket victory.Easton posted a tidy 176-7 off 50 overs with Shaun Green (31) and Dave Birch (26) sharing a half-century opening stand.Hambledon’s target was trimmed to 158 after a weather interruption, but with Mark Stone (4-27) and John Summers (3-28) exploiting the rain-freshened surface, the Dons collapsed.When Stone grabbed three wickets in one over to leave Hambledon rocking at 34-7, Easton looked odds-on to win.But Kenway, with a six and 11 fours in a superbly crafted 72 not out, and Turner, whose 49 not out included nine boundary hits, wrested the initiative away from Easton and set up a remarkable Hambledon victory.Stephen Cook, teenage son of Hampshire coach Jimmy Cook, cracked 117 and shared a flowing 154-run partnership with Matt Keech (81) as leaders Portsmouth plundered 302-5 against Sparsholt’s threadbear attack at Locks Lane.Cook started the ball rolling with an 89-run opening partnership with Geoff Pike (34) and, after hitting a six and 13 fours in his maiden league century, sat back and watched as Hampshire’s Lawrie Prittipaul (25) and Paul Dew (23 not out) added to Sparsholt’s woe.Jerry Frith, who earlier took 3-83, toasted his comeback with 64 as Sparsholt reached 204-8 (Will Mariner 38), with Lee Savident returning 4-49.Lymington remain in second place after a century opening partnership between Glyn Treagus (80) and Brian Clemow (69) set up a six-wicket home win over off-colour Old Tauntonians & Romsey, who slumped to a fourth successive defeat.OTs, struggling at 100-5 at one stage, reached 224-9 due to left-hander Stuart Tulk (91), who held things together while wickets fell all around.Keith Trodd (30), Ian Tulk (23) and Charles Forward (20) all made starts, but on the rock-hard Sports Ground surface, OTs were never likely to be able to defend 224.Paul Allen (3-48) and Daniel Peacock (2-25) took the bowling credits for Lymington, who raced towards their victory target, with Treagus and Clemow putting on 127 for the first wicket.United Services are up and running – their 148-run victory over Old Basing leaving last year’s Premier 3 champions firmly rooted to the basement.South African youngster John Geoghegan led the way with a splendid 92 and enjoyed a third-wicket stand of 134 with Gary Hounsome (52) as US ran up a massive 313 all out (Jamie Fulton 32).Dan Quantock took 5-75 before Old Basing tamely surrendered for 165 – 52 of their reply coming from extras … Geoghegan sending down 18 wides !Only Tim Subnaik (40) made his mark as Trojans collapsed to 133 all out (Joe Ashton 3-47) after Hampshire Under-19 pair Neil Randall (87 not out) and Chris Benham (86) shone in Cove’s powerful 238-4.An eight-over rain interruption trimmed Trojans’ target to 200, but the Stoneham club never threatened after slipping to 14-2.

Zac Morris, Hampshire’s 22 year old left-arm pace bowler will not forget his National League debut in a hurry: three wickets including that of Graeme Hick and then the winning runs with just two balls remaining

Pat Symes13-May-2001Zac Morris, Hampshire’s 22 year old left-arm pace bowler will not forget his National League debut in a hurry: three wickets including that of Graeme Hick and then the winning runs with just two balls remaining.In a low-scoring match Hampshire scraped home by three wickets in front of a crowd of around 1,500 for the inaugural National League match at the Rose Bowl.Morris, younger brother of first team regular Alex, dismissed PhilWeston in his first over after Worcestershire had chosen to bat first and then bowled the dangerous Hick between bat and pad for 13 at the end of his first spell. Later he returned to get rid of Nick Boulton to finish with creditable figures of three for 31.Worcestershire were never able to accelerate after a shaky start but Vikram Solanki and David Leatherdale propelled them to respectability with a stand of 65 for the fourth wicket, Solanki hitting five fours in his 38 and Leatherdale making an innings top score of 41 before both were out to spinner Shaun Udal.At 133 for seven Worcestershire were in danger of not being able to set Hampshire much of a total to chase. But then the reliable Steve Rhodes and Stuart Lampitt added an unbroken 50 in nine overs so that Worcestershire’s 183 for seven was at least a test.When Robin Smith departed for 46 to leave Hampshire 95 for four a real battle was about to unfold. Will Kendall and promising newcomer Lawrence Prittipaul appeared to swing the match Hampshire’s way in a stand of 73; the best of the day, but still Worcestershire were not done.Kendall, Prittipaul and Dimitri Mascarenhas were all out with victory in sight so that seven were needed from the last over of the game from Alamgir Sheriyar. There were three balls remaining when Morris straight drove for four to provide Hampshire with a winning total of 186 for seven.

Rangers and their Old Firm rivals Celtic could both have B teams playing in the Lowland Leagues next season, which could prove to be. huge boost to Steven Gerrard and his hopes of developing quality young talent at Ibrox.

As per Sky Sports, both Rangers and the Hoops have been invited to join the Scottish Lowland Football League on a one-season basis ahead of next season, as both clubs look to improve the development of young players, whilst also hopefully boosting the quality of the lower leagues in Scotland.

Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson has recently spoken about the prospective plans for next season, saying:

“That’s something we have looked upon favourably and something that we would potentially be interested in if, of course, it was something the members of the Lowland League wanted to embrace as well.

“We want to test our players in different scenarios. Playing in the Lowland League would provide a completely different test for the young players, as well as our best-v-best games programme that we would continue to operate against some of the best teams in Europe.

“We want to aid that transition, we feel Scottish football needs to do something for that, and we are thankful that the Lowland League have stepped forward when maybe others haven’t.”

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Although sending players out on loan to other clubs can be successful, this would guarantee that all of the youngsters in Rangers’ academy can get regular competitive football whilst also testing themselves against more senior professionals, which is surely something which would stand the Ibrox outfit in good stead for the future.

It also provides a direct pathway to the first-team, as if the youngsters can impress in the lower leagues under the careful eye of Rangers scouts and coaches, then it seems likely that they could be afforded more opportunities in the first-team in the future.

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Therefore, this update from Wilson is undoubtedly a huge boost for Gerrard and the club as a whole, as it will be a great experience for those in the Rangers academy sides to test themselves next season, whilst continuing to make use of the great facilities and coaching on offer at Ibrox.

If even a couple of players use the experience to become better players and help out Rangers in the future, this will have been a more than worthwhile decision for the Glasgow club. Gerrard should be buzzing that his youngsters will be getting this chance to improve and more importantly, prove themselves to him.

And, in other news… Gerrard dealt shock Rangers blow after huge claim on “top talent”, he could leave Ibrox

A number of Liverpool fans want the Reds to keep hold of Kostas Tsimikas, following an update regarding the left-back’s future.

The 24-year-old made the move to Anfield during the summer transfer last August, clinching a move from Olympiakos for £11.75million.

The hope was that Tsimikas would be a perfect backup to Andy Robertson, affording the Scot the odd breather and keeping his legs fresh throughout the season.

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Instead, the Greece international has rarely been available because of injuries, playing just five minutes of Premier League football and making just three starts for Liverpool, in all competitions.

While there may be concerns over Tsimikas’ long-term worth on Merseyside, it looks unlikely that he will be leaving any time soon.

According to Greek journalist Giannis Chorianopoulos on Twitter, the defender is committed to being a success at Liverpool, with ‘no sign’ that he will be moving on.

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Liverpool fans call for Tsimikas to stay

These Liverpool supporters took to Twitter to provide their thoughts on Tsimikas’ future, saying it is only fair that he is given more time to prove himself, following his injury woes.

“Good, next season Klopp needs to try and rotate with him and Robbo. Cause Robbo looks exhausted”

Credit: @philippehunt21

“No need to leave. It was a difficult 1st season. He had COVID and some injuries when he should get a chance. Now full pre-season for him and everything gonna be okay”

Credit: @Domen128

“Happy with this. Think we’ll see more of him next season once we get a more settled back four”

Credit: @hitmanharj

“Deserves more opportunities with us, I like him a lot”

Credit: @LewYNWA

“There’s no reason for Tsimikas to leave. He’s joined the club, looked sharp in the games he’s featured in but was hit by COVID. Suffered some setbacks from it as well as an injury. He’s got a place at Liverpool next season, shouldn’t be going anywhere”

Credit: @AnfieldEffect

“The thing is Tsimikas is actually a good player”

Credit: @Shabbaz77

In other news, some Liverpool fans are keen for the Reds to sign an influential Premier League player this summer. Find out who it is here.

Republic of Ireland legend Ray Houghton enjoyed a glittering international career, with his two greatest moments on that stage coming as he scored the decisive goal in the 1-0 win against England at the 1988 European Championships, before a repeat of the same situation and scoreline against Italy at the 1994 World Cup in America.

The midfielder was also a big part of the famous successful Liverpool team from the late 1980s and early 90s, winning the First Division and the FA Cup twice each between 1988 and 1992, before moving onto Aston Villa and lifting the League Cup in 1994.

Now retired, Houghton is set to swap the hallowed turf for a fishing rod to take part in an exciting new fishing programme called Angling Outlaws, which is to be shown on BT Sport next year.

We spoke exclusively to the football legend about a number of different subjects within the beautiful game…

What are your thoughts on the Celtic managerial situation?

“I think at the moment they’re probably doing their due diligence, which is probably the right thing to do, make sure you get the right person in because Rangers have already won the title. And I think people are getting a little bit panicky, because the Celtic fans want to see big names wanting to come to their club.

“I’m a Celtic fan. I grew up a Celtic fan. I don’t look at it as much as I once did. But yeah, there’s no doubt, you know, with Rangers doing as well as they are and Steven Gerrard, a big name in charge, Celtic feel that they could do likewise. And there’s been quite some names in the frame, Thierry Henry, Roy Keane, you know, amongst others. So, it will be interesting to see who they go for.”

Is Eddie Howe a big enough name?

“Yeah, I think so. Yeah, I think in many respects, as I said earlier, it’s about reinventing yourself, it may be a good place for Eddie. Just to go and because your only real opposition is Rangers, you get into Europe and you’ve done well, you know, the fans will enjoy that give a decent run.

“But your main priority is to finish first in the league. And they just need someone to take them forward again, hopefully the owners invest money in the club. I think that’s one of the stipulations that a big manager coming in would have, they’ve got you have the finances to take the club forward.”

Who’s going to replace Jose Mourinho at Tottenham?

“I really don’t know. They’ve had Pochettino who got them to a Champions League Final – the only time they’ve ever been in the Champions League Final. Tottenham is a huge job, it’s a massive club, they’ve got a fantastic stadium, they’ve got training facilities to die for, but I just don’t see them getting the funds and I don’t know if the owner Joe Lewis puts in anywhere near what other clubs do, or he’s prepared to go into debt or get loans to bring in players.

“There’s no doubt Pochettino and Mourinho are massive names, and whether they can have that calibre of manager again if the finances aren’t there, I don’t know. It’ll be interesting to see who Daniel Levy, who looks like he’s the main man at the club when it comes to the appointments, has got in mind. He thought Mourinho with his CV was going to be the game changer as far as bringing trophies to the club, and that didn’t happen.”

Could you see Steven Gerrard becoming the next Tottenham manager?

“Well, I think with Steven he’s learning. Look what happened to Frank Lampard. Frank went to Derby and had a good season. And then suddenly, the Chelsea job came up, and of course, he’s going to jump at it. You know, you might not get that offered that again. Was it too early?

“So, with Steve, he probably feels he’s still got a little bit of work to do in the managerial side. Every year he’s doing work as a manager, he’s learning about players and with all due respect to Rangers and the players that they’ve got, going to Spurs or Liverpool is a whole new level of expectation.”

Would you see David Moyes getting the Spurs job?

“If it was purely just only football that might be the case. But don’t forget David Moyes was at West Ham when they let him go. So, loyalty works two ways. The club weren’t very loyal to him, were they?”

Do Liverpool need to freshen up their front three?

“I think there were rumours of going after Werner before he went to Chelsea, but there are not an awful lot of strikers around. Harry Kane would be great because he’s like your finished article up front. I don’t know what the finances are like, all I know is that over the last few years recruitments been very good.

“Last season it’s really slowed, we brought in the lad from Preston was in for £400,000, we brought we brought in the other centre-back for Germany – that’s not Liverpool’s way. They buy the best. They did that with Salah, Mane, Allison, and Van Dijk.”

Ray Houghton will be joining Paul Parker, Tony Gale and Frank McAvennie on BT Sport’s Angling Outlaws, next summer.

With the help of Outlaw Pro, the four former pros will be trying their hand at fishing, with the quadruplet facing off at the end of the six-part series to see who knows their slide tackles from their tackle boxes.

Tottenham Hotspur are now on the lookout for a new manager after shockingly sacking Jose Mourinho on Monday.

The Portuguese ace, who only replaced former boss Mauricio Pochettino in November 2019, has been relieved of his duties after just a year-and-a-half in charge of the club.

Indeed, questions about Mourinho’s replacement at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will already have started but the club’s ideal option has surely got to be former Juventus boss Max Allegri.

Currently out of work since his respective departure from the Old Lady and linked to Tottenham as recently as March by Tuttosport, the Italian would bring with him an impressive trophy haul.

In his time in Turin, he won six Serie A titles, as well as four Copa Italias. That winning mentality would certainly be a useful asset with the North-Londoners having not claimed a trophy since the 2008 League Cup.

As a matter of fact, his period at Juventus saw him draw plenty of praise from considerable figures in the footballing world, former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson labelling his work as “fantastic”.

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Whilst it could well be argued that Allegri would simply not be able to replicate those title challenges in North London, a facet that has actually occurred with the previously decorated Mourinho, his style of play should also work extremely well in North London.

Preferring the 4-3-3 formation according to transfermarkt, this would potentially allow Allegri to implement a similar system at Tottenham.

A three-pronged attack of Harry Kane, Heung Min-Son and any of Gareth Bale, Erik Lamela or Steven Bergwijn would be extremely tantalising, whilst a midfield triumvirate of Tanguy Ndombele, Moussa Sissoko and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg appears extremely well-balanced.

Boasting a 70% win rate in all competitions during his time at Juventus compared to Mourinho’s rate of 52% in his time at Spurs, it goes with saying that Allegri would be an instant improvement following the Portuguese’s departure so should definitely be considered as a replacement.

The club have been linked with a move for Julian Nagelsmann but they should ignore him and move for Allegri, who has a proven track record of delivering big trophies.

AND in more news, Barry Fry is adamant that Daniel Levy will not allow Harry Kane to follow Mourinho out of the Tottenham exit door…

According to Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport, via Sport Witness, Tottenham Hotspur have made an enquiry to Juventus over Serie A star Paulo Dybala – with the report touting a possible swap deal between the two clubs.

Dybala, who has missed a fair amount of matches this season through injury (Transfermarkt), is reportedly back on Tottenham’s radar as links continue to emerge over these recent weeks.

Spurs make Dybala enquiry

Providing the latest, Corriere dello Sport (via Sport Witness) claim Spurs have made an enquiry for the £225,000-per-week Argentine but any proposed agreement would have to come in the form of a swap.

Indeed, the Old Lady are allegedly fully aware that they will not be receiving ‘cash only’ offers amid the financial uncertainty caused by coronavirus – with this report touting a possible swap deal as a solution.

Corriere don’t state who could make way from Spurs to bring Dybala to north London, but a swap ‘could arrange the situations both in the bank accounts and on the pitch’.

Transfer Tavern take

While Spurs very publicly tried to sign Dybala in 2019, with the transfer falling through due to a complicated image rights issue, we believe that a move for him now could be illogical from a financial perspective.

Even if a swap could be arranged, the 27-year-old’s sky high reported wages could turn chairman Daniel Levy off.

There is still no doubting his ability despite the absences over 2020/2021 , with the forward still averaging an impressive 2.5 shots and 1.6 key passes per 90 over eight Serie A starts this season (WhoScored).

Italian footballing icon Alessandro Del Piero has lauded him as ‘extraordinary’ (talkSPORT), meanwhile fellow former international Daniele Adani very recently claimed Dybala is still Juve’s ‘most important player’ (Sky Sports via TuttoJuve).

However, amid these circumstances and with the need to invest wisely more paramount than ever, Tottenham signing a much needed leader at the back arguably takes precedent.

In other news: Tottenham in contact for this 6 foot 2 colossus, find out more here.

Kyril Louis-Dreyfus’s arrival at Sunderland has been game-changing and his tenure so far has exceeded even the most ambitious of supporters.

That being said, he didn’t particularly have much to live up to. Stewart Donald’s reign was filled with despair as the Black Cats consistently failed to get promoted.

However, with the young Frenchman at the helm, there is already a brighter future taking shape.

Sunderland have won their first trophy for over 40 years and they are now just three points off top spot with two games in hand in League One. If they don’t get promoted this season, you have to wonder if they ever will.

The atmosphere surrounding the Stadium of Light has been much improved and that’s mainly been down to Dreyfus’ entrance.

He has a plethora of decisions to make when the summer comes round, though. A number of their players will be out of contract, including Charlie Wyke.

Failure to go up, however, and Wyke could take the decision out of the owner’s hands.

Another situation that could be taken out of his hands is the future of Dion Sanderson. The 21-year-old has been a breath of fresh air to the Sunderland backline this term, being dubbed a “shining light” and a “Rolls-Royce” by Lee Johnson for his performances.

He has been part of a Mackems defence that has now kept eight clean sheets in their last ten outings; no wonder Sanderson has received such enormous praise.

As a result of his displays, the youngster has attracted plenty of suitors throughout the Football League. Sunderland have reportedly opened discussions over a potential £2m deal, though.

This would be an almighty show of ambition and it would be a huge statement from Louis-Dreyfus if he spent such money early on in his ownership.

That being said, if they go up, he’d be a vital addition. Sanderson already has Championship experience with Cardiff and as we’ve seen in recent months, he is one of the Black Cats’ most important players.

He has won 23 aerial duels over the last ten matches, making 33 clearances in the process. When an opposition attacker is met with the young defender, they often come out second best.

His talent is undeniable and if you heed the words of Stephen Elliott, he’s set for a bright future.

Speaking to The Athletic, he commented: “It looks like he’s played a lot more football than he has.

“He’s composed, he steps out of defence, he can pass it, he reads the game, wins headers, even if he makes a mistake, he doesn’t get flustered. I can’t really fault him.”

Elliott added on Twitter: “If Sanderson continues playing like this then there will be a lot of higher placed football teams in the football league if not Prem after his signature. Going to be a big star.”

Indeed, that’s exactly why this signing would be such a statement of intent.

Sanderson is destined for bigger things than Sunderland; he is an astute defender with qualities in every area. £2m would be daylight robbery for a player of his quality.

This shouldn’t turn out to be another Will Grigg situation.

AND in other news, Drop him: Sunderland liability who lost possession 35x continues to let Johnson down…