Category Uncategorized

Newcastle United have entered the final week of the summer transfer window and time is running out for them to finish their business.

Dan Ashworth recently smashed the club’s transfer record to bring in Swedish striker Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad, making him the fourth arrival on Tyneside.

Nick Pope, Sven Botman, and Matt Targett have also joined the Magpies on permanent deals from Burnley, Lille, and Aston Villa respectively.

The ex-Brighton chief now has until Thursday to make any further additions to Eddie Howe’s squad and one area in which they may look to strengthen in is the middle of the park.

ESPN recently reported that the club are one of the teams interested in signing midfielder Matt O’Riley from Scottish giants Celtic, who could be available if a bid of up to £20m is lodged.

Newcastle must now push to sign the Denmark U21 international before the deadline passes as he could form an exciting pairing with Bruno Guimaraes in midfield.

First and foremost, would the 21-year-old suit the way Howe wants his team to play? It has been noted that being able to counter-press by reading the game is one of his skills and this suggests that he would fit in with the manager’s aggressive pressing system.

This shows that O’Riley is capable of pushing on from midfield to engage in a high press and this could help the Magpies to force mistakes in the opposition third.

He also has the quality to be a creator for his team. Former Hoops boss Paul Lambert previously heaped praise on the midfielder’s ability in possession, saying:

“The space he can generate for himself is really good, and he makes the game look easy by doing the simple things well. That’s not always an easy thing to say to footballers, to just keep it simple, they want to do the flashy side of the game. But he does the simple side of the game really well.”

In the Premiership this season, the ex-MK Dons machine has created three chances per game and assisted three across five appearances. This comes after he provided 2.2 key passes per outing in the Scottish top-flight last term and ended the campaign with four goals and three assists in 16 matches, whereas no Toon player managed more than 1.6 key passes per game in 2021/22.

The young talent has the potential to be a creative force in the Magpies midfield and Brazilian dynamo Bruno Guimaraes could benefit from that.

In the 2021/22 Premier League campaign, the Brazil international scored five goals in 11 starts and having a player alongside him who is capable of consistently creating opportunities could allow him to add to his Toon goal tally.

The ex-Lyon man has also shown that he can be a creator. In the last 365 days, Guimaraes ranks in the 96th percentile out of players in his position in Europe’s top five leagues for expected goals assisted at 0.19 per 90, which suggests that he is one of the best midfielders around when it comes to creating high-quality chances.

Now, imagine him and O’Riley playing alongside each other in the English top-flight and ripping teams open with their terrific ability on the ball.

Nottingham Forest’s preparations for the new season have been dealt a blow following a fresh injury setback to midfielder Ryan Yates.

What’s the word?

As per Nottinghamshire Post, manager Steve Cooper has confirmed that the 24-year-old will be out of action for the next few weeks, having been absent from the recent 1-1 draw with Valencia in what was the newly-promoted side’s final pre-season game of the summer.

The Englishman had only made his comeback from a knee issue in the meeting with Notts County on Tuesday evening, although Cooper has now revealed that he has sustained another injury problem:

“Ryan played 45 minutes against Notts County the other day. He’s picked up another knock on his knee, so he’s going to be out for a couple of weeks,

“You can imagine what he’s been like! It’s been a challenge for him to get back and get some minutes. It would have been great to have involved him today, but he’s just had a little bit of a few setbacks in pre-season. You know Yatesy, what hurts him will make him stronger. They are only minor things, and we will see him sooner rather than later.”

The former Swansea City boss did also insist that summer signing Wayne Hennessey will be available for selection ahead of next week’s season opener against Newcastle United, despite the 34-year-old having also missed the clash with the La Liga side due to a “quad problem”.

Cooper will be gutted

That setback to Yates will come as a real blow to Forest’s promotion-winning coach with less than a week to go until the new Premier League campaign gets underway, with Cooper set to be gutted at not having his midfield general to call upon.

The academy graduate had been instrumental in securing a long-awaited return to the top-flight last term, scoring nine goals in all competitions – including eight in the league – to help fire the City Ground outfit out of the second tier.

That was by far his best goalscoring return in his club career thus far, with the £3.6m-rated man – who previously endured four loan stints away from the Midlands side – seemingly having been reborn under his current boss.

Not just a threat in the final third, however, the Lincoln-born gem also offers real strength defensively, having averaged 1.9 clearances, 1.9 tackles and 1.2 interceptions per game from his 43 Championship outings, while also winning a solid 61% of his aerial duels.

Having seen promising youngster James Garner return to parent club Manchester United after his impressive loan spell last season, the playoff final winners are distinctly short of options in the centre of the park, albeit with Belgian brute Orel Mangala seemingly set to sign as a matter of when and not if.

Losing Yates to another setback will only pose a further selection issue for the upcoming trip to St James’ Park, as the two-time European champions look to earn a positive start in what will be their first season in the top tier since 1999.

Once dubbed a “diamond” by former Barrow boss Paul Cox, the £7.7k-per-week titan was a key cog in Cooper’s relentless machine last term, with it set to be a major headache for the 42-year-old not to have the reliable figure in tow.

AND in other news: Contact made: Forest in talks for “superb” £10m signing, just imagine him & Mangala

CBS reporter Ben Jacobs has offered an update regarding Arsenal’s reported interest in Bayern Munich winger, Leroy Sane…

What’s the word?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the respected source revealed that while it may prove a “challenge” to prise the 26-year-old away from the Allianz Arena, he is seemingly a player of interest to the Gunners.

Amid reports linking the Premier League outfit to the 45-cap, Germany international,  Jacobs stated: “The Sane links were prior to Raphinha and I think that Arsenal gathered quite quickly, when they turned their attention to Raphinha, that it’s going to be tough to get Sane to move away from Bayern.

“I think Bayern’s preference is still to try and keep Sane, so that one is going to be a challenge, but it’s obvious they admire the player.”

The north London outfit are seemingly plotting an alternative to that of former Leeds United man Raphinha, having appeared keen to land the Brazilian prior to his recent move to Barcelona.

Edu’s next Jesus

A move for Sane could see Mikel Arteta attempt to utilise his Manchester City connections once again – where he was previously assistant to Pep Guardiola – having already seen sporting director Edu move to bring Gabriel Jesus to the club from the Etihad on a £45m deal.

Although yet to take to the field in a competitive game, the 25-year-old has quickly endeared himself to the Emirates faithful, having notably netted a hat-trick in the recent 6-0 thrashing of Sevilla in what was the final pre-season game of the summer.

With that move already looking like a masterstroke, the aforementioned Edu could strike gold again with the signing of his former City teammate, with Sane seemingly the man who can make those at Arsenal forget all about Raphinha.

The 6 foot wizard – who left Guardiola’s side on a £54.8m deal two years ago – is a simply devastating attacking force, combining his sheer relentless speed with an attacking ruthlessness which makes him a simply unique gem.

While struck down by injury towards the end of his previous stint in English football, the £54m-rated sensation still managed to record hugely impressive figures while in Manchester, notably providing 53 goal contributions in just 90 top-flight appearances, winning two league titles in the process.

Although it has proven an at times tricky spell since his return to the Bundesliga for the one-time Schalke man, the “frightening” forward – as described by pundit Micah Richards – still boasts an impressive record for the Bavarian giants, with 25 goals and 27 assists in 90 games across all competitions for the club.

The 2021/22 campaign was particularly fruitful for the £280k-per-week gem as he flourished under Julian Nagelsmann’s watch, scoring 14 goals and providing 15 assists across all fronts, showcasing just why he has been dubbed a “baller” in some quarters.

The new season may only be in its infancy, although the fleet-footed wideman has already got off to a positive start, netting in the German Super Cup triumph against RB Leipzig at the weekend, after entering the fray as a late substitute.

A player capable of producing something out of nothing, Sane would surely thrive under the tutelage of a familiar face in Arteta, with Edu needing to work his magic again – as he did with Jesus – to help add increased firepower to the Spaniard’s ‘arsenal’.

West Ham United have been handed a huge boost in their bid to bring Mohamed Bayo to the London Stadium this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by French media outlet Foot Mercato, who claim that, following a number of reports linking David Moyes with a move for the Clermont Foot centre-forward in recent weeks, the Ligue 1 side are now willing to green light a move for a figure in the region of €14m (£12m) in the summer transfer window.

However, the report goes on to state that the Hammers are not alone in their pursuit of the Guinea international’s signature, with LOSC Lille, Eintracht Frankfurt, Hertha Berlin, Valencia, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton also believed to be tracking the forward ahead of a potential move of their own.

Huge coup

Considering just how exciting a prospect Bayo quite clearly appears to be, should Moyes manage to beat the likes of Spurs, Everton, Eintracht and Valencia to a deal for the 24-year-old this summer, it would undoubtedly represent a huge coup for West Ham.

Indeed, over his 32 Ligue 1 appearances in 2021/22, the £10.8m-rated talent was in electric form for Clermont, scoring 14 goals, registering five assists and creating six big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 2.1 shots, making 1.0 key pass and completing 0.9 dribbles per game.

These returns saw the £10k-per-week forward who Jacek Kulig dubbed “indispensable” average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 6.94, ranking him as Pascal Gastien’s third-best performer in the league – a quite remarkable feat considering Clermont’s 17th place finish in the French top-flight last time out.

As such, with Moyes in desperate need of both backup to and competition for West Ham’s sole centre-forward, Michail Antonio, next season, it would very much appear as if Bayo could be something of a perfect fit for the 59-year-old Scot – especially considering the fact the Guinean now looks to be available for an extremely reasonable fee this summer.

AND in other news: ExWHUemployee drops huge one-word transfer update, West Ham supporters will be buzzing

Celtic have had a good start to their summer transfer window by securing a permanent deal for Cameron Carter-Vickers following his successful loan spell last season.

However, one bad bit of news that emerged recently concerned fellow Hoops defender Josip Juranovic, who has been linked with a move away from the Parkhead club this summer.

In his debut season as a Celtic player, the defender made 35 appearances for the Bhoys across all competitions.

Whether the full-back leaves the club or not, this current transfer period could give Ange Postecoglou the chance to bring in what could be the next version of the Croatian.

The player in question, who has been linked with a move to Celtic Park this summer, is Alexandro Bernabei.

The Lanus left-back, who is currently valued at £2.97m according to Transfermarkt, has made 87 senior appearances for the Argentine club after emerging from their youth ranks.

In those appearances, the 21-year-old has scored five goals and delivered 10 assists, highlighting the attacking prowess he has for a full-back.

This backs up why he was labelled as a “dangerous” player by journalist Fernando Campos on Twitter.

It also shows how much of an asset the starlet could be for the Bhoys up and down the pitch.

With Juranovic scoring 10 goals and providing 25 assists in 241 club appearances throughout his career, this highlights the talent that both players have in the final third.

In fact, in their previous campaigns, both defenders racked up over 30 shots at goal and more than 90 crosses each.

Furthermore, the 26-year-old is included on a list of similar players to the Lanus youngster according to Football Transfers.

In terms of a potential move to Celtic, the fact that Adam Montgomery is reportedly set to join St. Johnstone on loan for next season, in addition to Boli Bolingoli being named as one player the Hoops are looking to get rid of this summer, this could pave the way for Bernabei to take his place in Postecoglou’s squad.

Moving forward, regardless of what Juranovic’s future will look like, Celtic should do all they can to make sure the Argentine puts pen to paper on a deal at Parkhead this summer.

AND in other news: Celtic now given green light to sign “incredibly fast” £5m talent, Ange surely buzzing

Sky Sports pundit Gabby Agbonlahor says he could ‘100%’ see Tottenham Hotspur re-signing Christian Eriksen during the upcoming transfer window.

The Lowdown: Spurs make contact with Eriksen

The 30-year-old arrived back in the Premier League when he joined Brentford on a six-month deal in January, but his short-term contract is set to expire at the end of June, making him a free agent for any potential suitors interested in securing his services.

A Lilywhites source has told Football Insider that Spurs have been in contact with the midfielder and they would be interested in bringing him back to north London.

Transfer insider Fabrizio Romano also revealed over the weekend that Thomas Frank’s side have submitted a ‘serious’ offer to the Dane, but he is considering his options with several clubs in the mix.

The Latest: Agbonlahor supports Eriksen move

Speaking to Football Insider on whether he could see Eriksen making the move back to Tottenham, Agbonlahor said: “100 percent.

“I don’t think he left on good terms to go to Inter Milan but he went to Inter Milan under Conte.

“Conte is going to know him well. I think he had a shaky start under Conte but then started to play under him.

“It’s an option, definitely. It just depends on what Eriksen wants to do with so many offers on the table.

“He might want to try something different. It’s just good to see clubs willing to take a chance on him now.

“You’ve got to give credit to Brentford as the first one who decided to take that chance. He can prove that he can be fine with the procedure that he’s had because he played so many games.”

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/tottenham-latest-developments-2/” title=”Tottenham latest developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Perfect addition after Bissouma?

Spurs look set to secure the signing of Yves Bissouma in the coming days, with Gary Jacob reporting this week that the Brighton midfield enforcer is set for a medical in north London over a £25m move.

Eriksen meanwhile has already enjoyed a hugely successful spell with Spurs, having made a staggering 304 appearances for the club across all competitions, so it wouldn’t come as any surprise to see him come through the door next after Bissouma.

This season, the 115-cap international has been in impressive form for Brentford, with four assists and one goal to his name in just 11 outings, as per Transfermarkt, and he could add the sprinkling of creativity to the squad while the Seagulls star adds the steel deeper in the team.

With director of football Fabio Paratici said to have promised Antonio Conte up to six new signings as he looks to rebuild his squad ahead of the start of the new season, adding two fresh faces to a position that is expected to lose Harry Winks this summer would be excellent for squad depth.

In other news… a journalist has shared an exciting Tottenham transfer rumour that has come to light involving one of the club’s summer targets.

Aston Villa are edging closer to reaching an agreement for the permanent signing of loanee Robin Olsen, according to Fabrizio Romano.  

The Lowdown: Loan move

Olsen made the move to the Midlands back in January from AS Roma after spending the first half of the season with Sheffield United.

The 32-year-old, who was labelled ‘monstrous’ by the Spanish press following a fine performance for Sweden, served as backup to Emiliano Martinez and made his debut on the final day of the season against Manchester City.

NSWE have already made Philippe Coutinho’s loan stay permanent, and it looks as if Olsen could now follow suit.

The Latest: Romano’s post

Romano took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to provide an update regarding Villa and Olsen.

The transfer expert revealed that ‘Villa are getting closer’ to a ‘full agreement’, with a €3.5m option to buy clause ‘expected to be triggered soon’. Romano added that ‘talks are in progress’ and a ‘deal could be completed soon’.

The Verdict: Good news

It may not be a mega-money signing and a marque name like Coutinho or Diego Carlos, but securing Olsen to a full-time deal could still prove crucial for Steven Gerrard.

He has bundles of experience in a number of European leagues, in the Champions League and on the international stage, and seems to be content with serving as back up to Martinez at this stage of his career.

Olsen may also be able to help Martinez improve even further, and at a fee of just under £3m, a move seems to be an extremely shrewd one.

In other news: Villa and NSWE now set to sign ‘astonishing’ star after Carlos; ‘deal will happen’  

According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, Leeds United striker Rodrigo will likely not be ‘willing to stay’ if the club gets relegated at the end of the season.

The Lowdown: Club-record signing

The 31-year-old first arrived at Elland Road from Valencia for what was a club-record fee of £26m back in 2020, where has since gone on to make 59 appearances for the Whites in all competitions to date.

As a result of the Yorkshire outfit’s recent 2-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal, and given the fact that Everton have had a positive turnaround in form, this means that Leeds have now dropped into the relegation zone ahead of Wednesday’s clash against Chelsea.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-leeds-united-news-43/” title=”Latest Leeds United news!” poster=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/cropped-2022-03-10T184055Z_1834933207_UP1EI3A1FW561_RTRMADP_3_SOCCER-ENGLAND-LEE-AVA-REPORT-1-scaled-1.jpg” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Latest: Rodrigo could follow star trio

Leeds could face losing some of their stars if they are unable to maintain their Premier League status for yet another season, with Kalvin Phillips, Raphinha and Patrick Bamford all potentially leaving.

And O’Rourke has admitted that he thinks Rodrigo could be the fourth major exit.

He told GiveMeSport: “He is a quality player, Rodrigo. Leeds fans, I don’t think they’ve seen the best of him. If they go down, I think they might have a problem keeping him.

“He might have to be sold because he’s on big wages, and I’m not too sure if he would be willing to stay and play in the Championship.”

The Verdict: Great attacking threat

The £100k-per-week ace would be a huge loss to the Whites if he was to depart this summer, having made a total of 16 goal contributions during his time at the club so far.

The forward, who was once hailed as an “extraordinary” footballer by former Barcelona manager Quique Setien, has proven to be a real threat in the final third this season, where he has averaged 1.6 shots and 1.2 key passes per game in the top-flight, via WhoScored.

Should Leeds make the fall back down into the Championship, Rodrigo won’t be the only name whose future will be put under doubt, with the aforementioned trio even joined by Joe Gelhardt in recent exit reports, and relegation could now seriously damage the long-term future of the club.

In other news… the Whites are reportedly interested in signing a Premier League maestro this summer.

Much like Sachin Tendulkar in the 1990s, Virat Kohli has been the only consistent batsman for India on tours to Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa over the last five years

S Rajesh06-Aug-2018Virat Kohli 200; the rest of India 214: that was easily the most striking stat from the sensational Edgbaston Test. Kohli had a stunning game, but his runs only served to highlight the chasm between him and the rest of India’s batsmen. It wasn’t the first time he had played the lone hand in an overseas Test either: the story was similar on the tour to South Africa earlier this year. In fact, the narrative looks remarkably like the 1990s, when Sachin Tendulkar used to be the one prolific and consistent batsman in series outside Asia.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn the 10-year period between November 1991 and December 2001, Tendulkar played 23 Tests in Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa, and his numbers in those matches are very similar to Kohli’s stats in the 17 Tests he has played in these countries since the start of the South Africa tour in December 2013.Kohli has the slightly better average, but there is little to choose between their conversion rates, or the manner in which both dominated their batting line-ups, scoring a fifth of their team’s runs off the bat. (In terms of results, Kohli’s India has done better with a 2-10 win-loss record in these 17 games, compared to 0-13 during Tendulkar’s 23 Tests.)ESPNcricinfo LtdLooking at the numbers series-wise, what stands out for Tendulkar is his consistency: in each of the seven series he played in these countries (excluding the one-off Test in New Zealand in 1994), he scored at least one century. Kohli, on the other hand, has been outstanding in each of these series except one, but that one failure was glaring, in England in 2014, when his contribution dropped to less than 6% of India’s bat runs. Exclude that series, and Kohli’s contribution to India’s runs goes up from 20.2% to 25.45%, which means Kohli has scored a quarter of India’s bat runs in the remaining 12 Tests.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn both eras, what has stood out is the gulf between the lead batsman and the rest. While Kohli has averaged 54.48 in these 17 Tests, the rest of India’s top seven batsmen (Nos. 1-7) have averaged 28.13, which means Kohli’s average is 1.94 times that of the other Indian top order. In fact, Kohli has scored as many hundreds as the rest of the batsmen put together. For Tendulkar, the difference is marginally higher at 1.98, because the rest of the batsmen averaged only 26.48.ESPNcricinfo LtdLooking at the individual batsmen list in each period, what stands out is the number of batsmen who struggled to perform in these conditions. During the Tendulkar decade, while Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman averaged more than 40, there were a host of others – including Mohammad Azharuddin (25.24), Sanjay Manjrekar (23.94), Navjot Sidhu (23.45), and Dilip Vengsarkar (17.55) – who averaged less than 26.ESPNcricinfo LtdSimilarly, in the Kohli era, Cheteshwar Pujara, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul have all clearly been underwhelming, while Murali Vijay’s recent stats are extremely disappointing too. In fact, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has a higher average (30.61) than Pujara, Dhawan, Rohit and Rahul, which suggests India missed more than just his bowling at Edgbaston.ESPNcricinfo LtdIndia’s over-reliance on Tendulkar reduced significantly from the start of 2002, when Dravid became a champion in overseas conditions, and Laxman, Ganguly, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag all came up with useful contributions in at least one series. Starting in 2002, Tendulkar played 34 more Tests in these four countries, and while he still averaged more than anyone else in these Tests – 51.42, which was marginally higher than Dravid’s 50.50, and very close to his own 52.39 in the 1990s – in percentage terms, his contribution to India’s bat runs dropped to 16.67%.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe ideal situation for India over the next few years would be if Kohli’s percentage contribution drops similarly, despite him being nearly as prolific as he is now. Given the way India’s top order has performed overseas recently, though, don’t hold your breath on that happening any time soon.

There were moments that impressed from England’s spinners but they were too few and far between for them to be able to seize control

George Dobell21-Oct-2016Gareth Batty could be forgiven for his roar of joy when Tamim Iqbal was caught behind.It wasn’t just that it had been 11 years since he had claimed a Test wicket (Mohammad Ashraful caught at long-on by Matthew Hoggard on June 4, 2005).It wasn’t just that, in the intervening years, he was obliged to shake himself out of his comfort zone at New Road to challenge himself anew at The Oval. “I’ve been meandering through things,” he told ESPNcricinfo back in 2009. “I felt a need to challenge myself more and test myself in conditions where I might be a match-winner. There have been times of late when I’ve woken up, looked in the mirror and thought ‘you’re kidding yourself here, mate.'”It wasn’t even that he had set-up a batsmen who looked in fine form with a series of loopy off-breaks and then beaten him with a quicker slider.It was also that, on a surface on which both his spin-bowling colleagues had already struck, he had already bowled 13 wicketless overs. After opening the bowling for what he believes is the first time in his career, he had beaten the bat a few times but been unable to replicate the success of other off-spinners Mehedi Hasan or Moeen Ali. It was a roar not just of triumph but relief.Batty admitted afterwards that he was more nervous than he could recall at any stage in his career. No English spinner has taken the new ball in the first innings of a Test since John Emburey did so against West Indies in 1988 and his first ball was, in his words, “a pie” that was cut for four, but he soon settled and provided a little more control than either of his spin-bowling colleagues.”When you’re just an average player you enjoy every little bit of success,” Batty modestly reflected in regards to his wicket celebration. “I felt like I’d set Tamim up a little bit and hopefully skidded it through. And it’s nice to get very good players out.”I was very nervous. I haven’t felt like that for years, if ever. But that’s a good thing. You feel alive. The nerves are jangling and you’ve got an England shirt on. Wow! What a place to be!”He accepted England had “bowled some good balls” but failed to “hold the game” as well as they might have done. And it is true that, after Moeen claimed two wickets with magnificent deliveries in his first over, England’s spinners failed to capitalise on the opening. While that is not entirely their fault – Bangladesh, and Tamim in particular, adapted expertly to the surface and the longer form of the game they play so rarely – they will reflect that there were too many release deliveries to allow them to maintain the requisite amount of pressure.Gareth Batty celebrates the dismissal of Tamim Iqbal•Philip Brown/Associated PressEngland’s problem – and this really isn’t breaking news – is that their spinners are either not quite quick enough or not quite tight enough. Not yet, anyway. On slow surfaces like this, good players of spin generally have time to adjust to the movement offered by Rashid or Batty and, while Moeen’s extra pace helped him gain more purchase, he was not quite controlled enough to reap the rewards.All three of England’s main spinners conceded at least three-an-over (Rashid, who mixed up some gems with some full-tosses and long-hops, conceded almost four-an-over) and delivered four maidens between them in 49 overs. Bangladesh’s spinners, by contrast, barely conceded two-an-over (Mehedi went at exactly two-an-over, Taijul Islam conceded 1.95 an over and Shakib Al Hasan 2.42) and delivered 24 maidens in their 82.5 overs. As a result, pressure rarely built upon the Bangladesh batsmen.”When the ball goes quicker the batsman cannot change his mind,” Batty explained later. “Moeen’s two wickets were magnificent balls and were bowled at good pace. It’s a question of varying your pace, but for your wicket-taking balls, a quicker one that spins big is a good ball to bowl.”This is the sort of surface on which Monty Panesar at his best – and we are going back the best part of a decade for that – might have proved devastating. While Batty, for example, turned the ball consistently, it tended to be gentle and fairly predictable. Panesar, by contrast, could hurry the batsman and punish any hesitation or error. Often it seemed he could gain more from the surface, too. But Panesar’s days are gone and Moeen is the only England spinner who bowls at the optimum pace to exploit such surfaces.While there are a few genuinely slow bowlers left in international cricket – Rangana Herath is probably the best exponent – you have to possess outstanding control and mastery of your variations to survive at that pace. Rashid, for all his tricks and skill, does not currently have that control. And when Batty attempt to bowl quicker, he loses his spin. Panesar, and to a lesser extent Moeen and Graeme Swann, were unusual in being able to retain their spin at an increased pace.It is desperately difficult – and rare – for spinners to succeed bowling at anything other than their natural pace. It’s certainly not just a question of gym work. It is more about a strong bowling action and, perhaps, the angle of the seam when the ball is delivered.While Moeen found extra pace after some chance advice from Kumar Dharmasena there are countless tales of other bowlers losing their unique selling point in pursuit of more, or even less, pace: Rashid, for example, tends to drop short in pursuit of pace, while James Tredwell seemed to lose his spin, Even a bowler as skilled as Derek Underwood saw his performance suffer when he reduced his pace in search of more flight and variation.The scoreboard might not show it but England produced an admirable performance on day two of this game. Their ground fielding performance was exemplified by the sight of Stuart Broad, at fine leg, diving full length to save a boundary from a powerful sweep. Their catching performance, notwithstanding one drop by Adil Rashid, was exemplified by an outstanding diving effort by Joe Root that turned out, on review, to have come off the arm of Tamim.Jonny Bairstow kept almost faultlessly in tricky conditions. Yes, he fumbled one catch before securing it, but his work standing up to the stumps arguably represented the best glovework of his Test career to date.And in the last half-hour of another energy-sapping day, England’s seamers, led by the apparently indefatigable Ben Stokes, contributed a burst of pace and swing bowling, both of which had been absent until then, and gained an important wicket. To have produced a snorter that ripped past the nose of Mushfiqur Rahim on this sluggish surface was an almost miraculous effort. It was surely no coincidence that the same batsman, his equilibrium disturbed, nibbled at one outside off a couple of deliveries later.But, on the limited evidence we have seen here, England’s spinners will need to find a way to bowl a little quicker or tighten up appreciably if they are to succeed in India. They are not miles away. But on slow surfaces against batsmen especially proficient at playing spin, the margins between success and failure can be small: a few miles an hour or a foot or two in length. This was a decent day for England, but it’s not hard to see where they need to improve.