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Newcastle journalist Liam Kennedy has made an interesting claim on Manchester United midfielder Jesse Lingard.

What’s the talk?

The Magpies reporter has name-checked the England international as a player he has heard strongly mentioned as a player the club will want to sign in the January transfer window.

His agent reportedly came to St. James’ Park in October to watch a match and keep an eye on developments at Newcastle, ahead of a potential switch.

Kennedy told GIVEMESPORT:

“The likes of Jesse Lingard and others are names that I’ve heard really strongly mentioned.”

Willock 2.0

The club are currently sat 19th in the table and without a win in their ten matches thus far. They are six points adrift of safety already and appear to be heading for relegation, which is why they need a saviour to come in and rescue them in the January window.

Joe Willock joined the Magpies in the winter market last season and helped Newcastle stay in the division by scoring an outstanding eight goals in 11 Premier League starts. He became a consistent goalscorer in the top-flight and won valuable points, which is exactly what Lingard could do for them this term.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/check-out-the-latest-newcastle-pif-news-martinez-ward-prowse” title= “Read the latest Newcastle news!”]

PIF must secure a deal for the United attacker as he could be the difference-maker for them in the second half of the campaign, much like Willock was in the 2020/21 season. Michael Carrick previously lauded the midfielder’s unique skillset and claimed that he is difficult to play against. He said:

“I think his movement is excellent. It’s something that sounds quite simple, but it’s difficult to defend against.

“He senses where the space is and how to use it. I wouldn’t necessarily say he’s a dribbler with skills and tricks but he’s dynamic. How he plays, he is unique in some ways. You don’t see so much of that now as everyone wants to get on the ball. Off the ball, he’s very effective.”

The £80k-per-week dynamo joined West Ham on loan last season and managed a similar output to Newcastle’s current attacking midfielder, bagging nine goals and four assists in 16 Premier League outings for the Hammers. This shows that he has the quality at this level to come in and make an instant impact on the side by scoring and creating goals, which is why – as Willock was earlier this year – he could be Newcastle’s hero in January.

PIF must now work hard to ensure that they can get a deal over the line for the Englishman to bolster their squad and chances of survival.

AND in other news,  Duncan Castles drops exciting NUFC manager update that should leave fans buzzing…

Bangladesh Under-19 coasted to yet another win over a winless England, thereby clinching the seven-match series 4-0

Cricinfo staff29-Oct-2009
ScorecardBangladesh Under-19 coasted to yet another win over a winless England, thereby clinching the seven-match series 4-0. Set a target of 153 in the fourth match in Fatullah, Bangladesh were helped home by the opener Saikat Ali’s 46 and an unbeaten 50 from Tasamul Haque.England’s innings was a disappointing one because they failed to bat out their stipulated overs. Apart from Joe Root’s 54 from 119 balls, batting at No.3, and a brisk 41 from Danny Briggs down the order there was little to speak of for the visitors. Shaker Ahmed did the most damage with 3 for 26 in the middle order, strikes that crippled England’s line-up.In reply, despite two early wickets, Saikat and Tasamul steadied the chase. Bangladesh’s middle order also suffered a bit of a wobble after Saikat’s dismissal but Tasamul finished the chase comfortably.England Under-19 coach Mick Newell conceded his side had been “outplayed” on their unsuccessful tour of Bangladesh, but he believed there would be a collective benefit ahead of the World Cup scheduled in New Zealand from January 15-30. “We played pretty good cricket in the Test and we were disappointed to lose that game on the last day when we deserved better,” he told . “It’s a huge learning curve for all of us. Cricket over here is very different – the pitches are quite slow and they turn a lot.”We have been facing 35 overs of spin in the 50-over matches and starting well against the quicker bowlers, but as soon as the spin bowlers come on we have had a problem knocking the ball around. That builds pressure which has led to mistakes being made.”There are positives to take from this tour and I would single out the likes of Joe Root, Danny Briggs and Nathan Buck as people who have stood out so far for me.”

Graham Manou will have no chance to rest after flying home from India when he joins his South Australia team-mates for Saturday’s FR Cup match

Cricinfo staff12-Nov-2009Graham Manou will have no chance to rest after flying home from India when he joins his South Australia team-mates for Saturday’s FR Cup match against Queensland in Alice Springs. Manou played his first four ODIs as a replacement for Tim Paine, taking five catches, but will quickly slip back into his domestic leadership duties for the game against the competition leaders.Cullen Bailey and Kane Richardson also come in for South Australia, who are taking the match out of their region to promote the game, and Richardson could play a major fixture in his home state of the Northern Territory for the first time. The Redbacks, who took first-innings points in the Sheffield Shield fixture between the sides, named a 13-man squad for the trip, with Tim Ludeman, the stand-in gloveman, and James Smith missing out.Mark Cosgrove remains on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury while Chris Duval is still suffering a stomach problem. Queensland will wait until Friday to finalise their team following an injury to Chris Swan, who has been struggling with a groin complaint, during the Shield game.South Australia squad Daniel Harris, Michael Klinger, Tom Cooper, Graham Manou (capt, wk), Cameron Borgas, Aaron O’Brien, Dan Christian, Cullen Bailey, Matthew Weeks, Kane Richardson, Jake Haberfield, Peter George, Shaun Tait.

Aston Villa hope to have their new manager in place before their next Premier League fixture.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a claim made by The Athletic journalist Gregg Evans, who revealed in a post on Twitter that Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens are hoping to have appointed Dean Smith’s replacement in the Aston Villa dugout by the time Brighton & Hove Albion visit Villa Park on November 20.

In his tweet, the journalist said: “Appt’ expected before Brighton.”

Fans will be delighted

While Aston Villa’s transfer business this summer appeared to suggest that things were very much on the up for the club, with the likes of Danny Ings, Emiliano Buendia and Leon Bailey all joining the Villans in big-money moves, unfortunately for fans of the club, these pre-season hopes have not quite lived up to expectations.

Indeed, over the club’s last five Premier League fixtures, Dean Smith’s side had suffered five consecutive defeats, scoring five and conceding 13 goals in the process – results which left the 50-year-old’s outfit on just 10 points after 11 games played, and only two points above the relegation zone.

And, after spending the best part of £90m in the transfer window, these results are quite clearly not good enough, meaning that, while he was undoubtedly a hugely popular figure at Villa, the club’s decision to part ways with Smith was probably the correct call.

As such, while fans are well within their rights to be sad to see the 50-year-old manager pack his bags, the truth of the matter is that now is an incredibly exciting time to be a Villa fan, as, with the players currently in the first-team squad, should NSWE get their appointment regarding Smith’s successor right, the next era in Aston Villa’s history could well be an incredibly successful one.

And, with the start of this new era looking to begin before the club’s next Premier League fixture, it seems as if fans will not have long to wait before they find out exactly who the next man to take charge of their side will be – something that is sure to delight the Villa Park faithful.

In other news: NSWE could land dream Gerrard alternative at AVFC in “exceptional” 54 y/o manager

Preview for the second ODI between India and Sri Lanka in Nagpur

The Preview by Jamie Alter17-Dec-2009Match factsFriday, December 18
Start time 14:30 (09:00 GMT)Virender Sehwag works on his bat ahead of the second ODI in Nagpur•Associated PressBig PictureThe bowlers will head into Nagpur with the Rajkot run fest on their minds, but they won’t get much relief from another hard track at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium. India have the momentum and victory in Nagpur will give them a formidable 2-0 lead in the five-match series. Making it worse for Sri Lanka is the fact that they are down two bowlers. Muttiah Muralitharan and Dilhara Fernando have been ruled out for the series, meaning the visitors have two fresh faces, both potential debutants, which will not help a side aiming to level the series. It will take a huge effort for them to turn the tide their way on this surface.The most alarming feature of the limited-overs leg of this tour has been the fielding of both sides; on what is believed to be another belter of a track, bowling straight and full and, most importantly, taking every chance will be paramount. The fast bowlers on either side were carted around for the first half of both innings in Rajkot, and the epidemic of spilling catches continued from the Tests and Twenty20s. Three catches and one half chance to Zaheer Khan went down, taking India’s drop tally from three limited-overs games this past week to an even dozen.For one side aiming to tighten their grasp on the series, and the other attempting to clutch a piece of it, wrapping their fingers around the key moments will be decisive.Form guide (last five completed matches, most recent first)
India – WLLLW
Sri Lanka – LLLWL
Watch out for…Mahela Jayawardene: Sri Lanka’s former captain has experienced an unusual run of form in 2009 where he either gets a start and can’t convert or falls early. In 23 innings this year, he has a century and three half-centuries; his next-highest score is 33 and three times he’s been dismissed without scoring. The law of averages says it’s about time for a century, but it will be against a side off which he has only one hundred in 55 innings. To do so, Jayawardene will need to get over his struggles against India’s spinners, who have now dismissed him five times – six if you count the run out in Rajkot during a Ravindra Jadeja over – from his seven ODI innings against them in 2009.Gautam Gambhir: He’s been India’s most consistent Test batsman this year but his figures aren’t so hot in ODIs. His only century came against Sri Lanka in the first week of February and since then Gambhir has managed four half-centuries. For a determined player, who has made a superb effort to convert fifties into centuries in Tests, changing a habit that hampered him for some time, doing the same in ODIs must be a goal. Given the nature of the Nagpur track – India eased past 350 runs when they played Australia here in October – it is tough to visualise one of the top three not getting a big score. Gambhir has been able to bat at the top in only ten of 20 innings in 2009; if he gets the chance to bat at No. 3 tomorrow, count on a significant innings.The batting Powerplay: This five-over block turned out to be a bit of a worry for both sides. In Rajkot, India seemed on course for 450 before they lost Sehwag, MS Dhoni and Gambhir while scoring just 33 runs during their batting Powerplay, taken after 34 overs. Sri Lanka opted for theirs at 291 for 1 after 35 overs and scored 21 runs off the first over, but managed 32 for 3 from the next four. And that was where the match turned.Team newsYuvraj Singh is almost ruled out – he has the flu, in addition to his finger injury and missed practice on Thursday – but Sehwag has been cleared to play after picking up a knee injury in Nagpur. The batting will remain the same as the first ODI, though Sudeep Tyagi may just fancy a debut ahead of Praveen Kumar.India: 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 5 Suresh Raina, 6 Virat Kohli, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Praveen Kumar/Sudeep Tyagi, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Ashish Nehra.Apart from the injuries to Murali and Fernando, Sri Lanka also had to sweat on Lasith Malinga’s fitness. He missed the first match and the management will be hopeful of his return to replace Fernando. If not, it could mean a debut for rookie fast bowler Suranga Lakmal, who teamed up with the squad today, or a spinner coming in. If it is the latter, Ajantha Mendis remains the safe bet but one of Muthumudalige Pushpakumara or Suraj Randiv could debut.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Upul Tharanga, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Sanath Jayasuriya, 6 Thilan Samaraweera, 7 Thilina Kandamby, 8 Angelo Mathews, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Chanaka Welegedara/Ajantha Mendis/ Muthumudalige Pushpakumara, 11 Lasith Malinga/Suranga Lakmal.Pitch and conditionsThis will be only the second one-day international played at this venue – the first was a run fest. India racked up 354 against Australia and then won by 99 runs. The pitch is expected to be conducive for run-making, as it was during the Twenty20 when Sri Lanka made 216 in 20 overs. Scattered showers are forecast by the weather bureau, with temperatures of 27C predicted.Stats and trivia Virender Sehwag, during the course of his 102-ball 146, was most severe on Angelo Mathews, plundering 27 runs off 10 balls. Harbhajan Singh was India’s best bowler in the face of an onslaught from Sri Lanka’s top order. It showed in his figures against centurion Tillakaratne Dilshan: in 26 balls bowled to Dilshan, the batsman only managed 17 runs.Quotes”I expect scores of over 300 for sure. But the fast bowlers will definitely get some help early on with the new ball, and fielding first may not be a bad option.”

Aston Villa winger Leon Bailey turned out for Jamaica in the week but had to be withdrawn in the final stages.

Rumours surfaced on social media suggesting he needed work on his hamstring after being replaced, however, Birmingham Live claimed that he was only suffering from slight cramp.

And a number of Villa fans have been reacting to that injury update on social media.

Bailey, who cost £28.8m over the summer, has started just two of Villa’s 10 Premier League games so far and has been out due to injury in five of those.

But it appears as if he could be in contention to feature in Steven Gerrard’s first game in charge this weekend against Brighton, with his injury issue for his country thought to be minor.

Villa fans react

The AVFC Faithful tweeted late on Tuesday evening regarding the rumours on Bailey’s hamstring issue but then shared the news on it being cramp.

This is what these Villa fans had to say in reply to the correction…

“How is this guy never fit”

Credit: @morley_kev

“Still. rest this man until he’s 100 percent. Sheesh”

Credit: @myburneraccou11

“Damn, I wouldn’t be surprised if he misses the game on Saturday now”

Credit: @VillaFiend

“I have a sad feeling that this may be the norm with Bailey.”

Credit: @TotalRankers

“He seems to get a few of those. What with him and Traore, I hope that we don’t go within a million miles of Winston McKennie. Good players all, but if they are rarely available, not a lot of good to us”

Credit: @thetrees80

“Phew”

Credit: @tom_avfc1

In other news: ‘Excited’ – Many Villa fans rejoice as Gerrard reveals ‘one thing’ he wants. 

England’s coach, Andy Flower, has jumped to the defence of the underperforming batsman, Ian Bell

Andrew McGlashan in Durban22-Dec-2009England’s coach, Andy Flower, finds some aspects of the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) “illogical” and isn’t a supporter of the ICC initiative that was a focal point of the opening Test against South Africa at Centurion Park.England did not enjoy much success in their use of the system, with all four of their bowling referrals turned down. That disappointment was compounded, however, when Kevin Pietersen was bowled by Morne Morkel off in the first innings, off what appeared to be a no-ball. With that in mind, Flower argued that if technology was going to be used, it should check the foot position of the bowler every time.”I’m not a policy-maker and my ideas don’t count that much, but I don’t really like the questioning of the umpires by the players,” he told reporters in Durban. “I think there are also some illogical things about it. We have the technology to review no-balls every ball and we don’t use it.”The two most controversial moments came when England asked for a review of a caught-behind appeal against AB de Villiers in the first innings, but technology couldn’t detect what the players had believed to be an audible nick, then when Stuart Broad questioned the length of time South Africa had taken to refer JP Duminy’s lbw appeal to the third umpire.Upon being given out, Broad marched over to the on-field umpires, Steve Davis and Aleem Dar, and later went to visit the match referee, Roshan Mahanama, although no charges were brought against him. England have also raised the issue over the time taken between South Africa’s appeal and the TV umpire’s intervention.”We spoke to Roshan Mahanama about it and there is no clear indication over how much time it should take,” Flower said. “It’s not 20 or 30 seconds, but they do just want a brief exchange of views and then a decision made.”I personally don’t like it much to be honest, but it looks as though it’s here to stay and certainly is for this series, so there’s no point us grumbling about it. We just have to get on with it and make sure we deal with it.”While the review system doesn’t have Flower’s backing, the under-pressure pair of Alastair Cook and Ian Bell certainly do. He believes both men can bounce back from their twin failures at Centurion Park. Cook made scores of 15 and 12 having spent a lot of time in the latter part of the 2009 season working on his technique, while Bell managed seven runs in two innings, and was embarrassingly bowled when not offering a shot to Paul Harris.”Belly got some runs in the pre-tour games and I think he is feeling quite confident about the way he is playing,” Flower said. “He had a tough Test, of course. He made a misjudgement in the first innings and got nicked off in the second but he’s a high quality player and we are backing him. I think he will be fine.”Cooky scored runs for the Performance Squad up in Johannesburg then scored some runs in East London,” he added. “He’s had a tough Test and it was a tough Test for anyone against the new ball. He’s remodelled a few things but he is a strong young man, a very fine player and a leader in his own right. I think he is going to do good things for us this series.”Despite the batting problems, including the late collapse of 5 for 13, the series is still all-square and Flower was breathing a sigh of relief after the outcome. “Of course we are relieved that, after losing those wickets against the last new ball, we got out of it,” he said.”We always knew the second new ball was going to be a testing period, although we obviously didn’t think we would lose that many wickets. But we did well to fight back and hang on.”

Many Nottingham Forest fans have been left blasting the performance of Brennan Johnson in their 0-0 draw at home to Luton Town on Tuesday night.

It was a frustrating game for the home side summed up by the second yellow card given to Jack Colback just after the hour mark, as Forest had to settle for a point at the City Ground in the end.

None of the forward players particularly impressed for the hosts, but Johnson was one that struggled to make any kind of impact, being the only player on his team to have played the full 90 minutes and still record fewer touches than goalkeeper Brice Samba (SofaScore).

The Wales international also lost out on four of his duels, and failed to record a shot on goal, successful dribble or accurate cross from out wide, losing the ball 12 times in total (SofaScore).

Nottingham Forest fans on Johnson performance

These NFFC supporters blasted his display on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that he was ‘invisible’:

“Johnson was invisible tonight, especially when we have 10 men and need an outlet. Samba outstanding. Ojeda is Majewski reincarnated.”

Credit: @jtweets92

“Good effort with 10. Yet frustrating too. Samba imperious. Worrall, Garner, McK & Ojeda were brill. Johnson bullied by Mpanzu and went in his shell. Taylor the epitome of a donkey. Good to see them all fight though once the red. Need to stop the petulance though.”

Credit: @RedDogCam

“2nd game Johnson been missing”

Credit: @1BarryBazza

“Lolley fantastic! Taylor wild! Johnson….is he playing!? There for the taking this Reds Step it up and try and get them broken down!”

Credit: @FreebsTheTree

“Is Johnson playing? Not heard his name once.”

Credit: @Neurotica0

“How many times has Johnson failed to hold his run and been offside now? Wonder if we will get a tweet from his old man tonight…”

Credit: @red_till_death

In other news, find out whose display against Luton was also slammed here!

Anjum Chopra anchored India Red Women’s innings with an unbeaten 34 to help her team complete a five-wicket victory against India Blue Women

Cricinfo staff02-Jan-2010
ScorecardAnjum Chopra anchored India Red Women’s innings with an unbeaten 34 to help her team complete a five-wicket victory against India Blue Women in the opening game of the Women’s Challenger Trophy in Ahmedabad. Chasing 118 for victory, India Red got home in the 20th over with four balls to spare.Chopra was supported by Thirush Kamini and Rumeli Dhar but India Red’s chase was jolted by three run outs. They lost wickets at regular intervals but Chopra ensured victory by remaining firm at one end. She struck two fours in her 39-ball innings.Earlier the India Blues’ innings had also suffered from a spate of run outs. Anagha Deshpande top-scored with 48 but she was one of three batsmen to be run out as her team was restricted to 117 for 4 in 20 overs. Mithali Raj chipped in with 41 and hers was the only wicket taken by a bowler.

Flocking to Twitter, many West Ham United fans have erupted over what some have called ‘massive news’ as an off-field development comes to light.

Recently, Czech billionaire and part-Sparta Prague owner Daniel Kretinsky purchased a minority 27% stake in the club with the alleged option to buy West Ham outright at a later date.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-developments-2/” title=”West Ham developments” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

This prompted theories that Kretinsky’s new-found involvement with the club could eventually spell an end to GSB’s ownership and now, as per The Evening Standard, those murmurs may be proven correct.

According to their information, the 46-year-old has indeed agreed an option to buy the club outright at a set price and a deal could go through as early as 2023. This could see Kretinsky complete a full takeover of the club at that date even if he isn’t ‘obliged’ to take up that option.

West Ham fans buzzing…

Given the protests and turmoil surrounding GSB’s ownership in recent years, heighted by their unpopular decision to leave the Boleyn Ground, it’s little wonder so many Irons supporters are pleased with this update.

The prospect of a potential full takeover as early as 2023 certainly has supporters excited, as you can see from the Twitter reaction below:

“Tears”

Credit: @dthomson123

“Massive news”

Credit: @statoblue

“GSB GONEEEEE”

Credit: @TalkinWestHam

“Jheeeeee big things coming”

Credit: @SeanLiggett96

“SIUUUU”

Credit: @westham_hub

“wow”

Credit: @whujoe

“Best news in West Ham history”

Credit: @NathWHU_

In other news: ‘Love this club so much’, ‘Makes me happy’ – Many West Ham fans erupt over ‘beautiful’ club post