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Crystal Palace are closing in on a deal for Tottenham winger Brennan Johnson in January, but he might not be their only signing from Spurs.

Crystal Palace closing in on January deal for Brennan Johnson

As per numerous reports, the Wales international is on Oliver Glasner’s January target list as Palace desperately seek attacking cover next month.

Johnson, who ended 2024/2025 as Tottenham’s top scorer in all competitions and bagged their Europa League final-winning goal in May, has found himself far more on the fringes under Thomas Frank.

The signing of Mohammed Kudus has reduced him to just six Premier League starts all season, with Johnson making the vast majority of his 16 league appearances off the bench.

He actually made an electric start to the campaign with two goals in his opening two top flight matches against Burnley and Man City, starting both games, but chances have been few and far between since then.

Now, reliable media sources report that Spurs are ready to let Johnson leave next month, and Palace are right at the front of the queue for his signature.

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Indeed, David Ornstein and others now claim that the south Londoners have reached an agreement with Tottenham to sign the 24-year-old for around £35 million.

This is pending Johnson agrees to the switch, but if all goes to plan, then he will be a Palace player once the January window opens.

Interestingly, Johnson may not even be the only Spurs player who ends up at Selhurst Park in light of this.

Crystal Palace make approach for Radu Dragusin

According to Italian reporter Mirko Di Natale, via X, Palace have also spoken to Tottenham about defender Radu Dragusin and his availability.

The Romania international made his first appearance for 11 months on Sunday when Glasner’s side lost 1-0 to the Lilywhites, replacing match-winner Archie Gray in the dying minutes.

Dragusin was sidelined with an ACL injury which took him nearly a year to recover from, and he now finds himself behind the likes of Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Kevin Danso in the pecking order.

Highly-rated young centre-back Luka Vuskovic is also due back from his loan at Hamburg at the end of the season, potentially limiting Dragusin’s chances even more.

The 23-year-old is attracting Serie A interest and Italian media sources claim that Dragusin is set for crunch sit-down talks with Spurs over his future as January looms.

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Now, Di Natale reports that Palace have asked for information about Dragusin as they potentially look to raid Frank’s team once again.

Di Natale’s suggestion they could strike a loan deal will no doubt appeal to Palace, with the club handed a chance to audition Dragusin before signing him permanently for £26 million.

However, they’ll also be wary of his injury history, and Palace need to be very mindful when potentially searching for Marc Guehi’s long-term heir.

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A successful day behind him, Asad Ali has put SNGPL on top against Habib Bank © Faras Ghani

Going up against the likes of Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi and Hasan Raza in your maiden domestic final is no bowler’s dream. Younis has just come fresh off another successful international season, Raza is Habib Bank’s (HBL) top-scorer of the season, fresh from a double hundred, and statistics don’t really matter for Afridi.The 19-year-old Asad Ali was given the challenge of containing this star-studded HBL batting line. Although Samiullah Khan, his senior bowling partner, captured two early wickets, including that of Younis, the pressure was on Asad to deliver the goods from the other end. He duly responded with three quick and key wickets, a spell that may just prove decisive in dictating the outcome of this final.”I admit I did not bowl that well at the start of the innings,” Asad told Cricinfo. “The first two or three overs were completely useless. But as I settled down, I enjoyed my spell.”Before we took the field, the plan was to end the day with them [HBL] five or six down for under 100 runs on the board. Mohammad Hafeez [captain] advised us to stick to a good line and length and make them play. The onus was on the batsmen playing, whether they hit us for boundaries or we bowl a dot ball. We had to make them play.”All three of Asad’s wickets came from this; Rafatullah Mohmand was caught-behind, Afridi bowled off an inside edge and Aftab Ahmed, beaten for pace, saw his middle stump uprooted. Unsurprisingly, the prized scalp of Afridi was the most cherished.”A feeling that cannot be defined. He had just hit me for two boundaries and even though he was new to the crease, we all knew what he was capable of doing. We had a set plan for him. Hafeez provided me with a packed off-side field while Misbah-ul-Haq told me to make him play outside the off-stump. It worked wonderfully.”That really got me charged up. I felt great dismissing an international batsman, and that too of Afridi’s stature. Following that, I was all pumped up. I ran in faster, bowled faster and basically gave it my all from there till the end. It was only when Hafeez wanted me to take abreak that I was forced to come off.”HBL need another 46 runs to save the follow-on, and even though Hasan Razan and Kamran Hussain appear well-set, early morning conditions have aided swing bowlers over the span of the final.”The pitch still remains a sporting one. Even though the ball is slow coming on to the bat, it helps both batsmen and bowlers. The first hour will be crucial. Our plan is to get another two or three wickets by lunch. We will attack their batsmen right from the start.”Ideally, that gives us a good chance of dismissing HBL second-time round and lifting the trophy.”

The reactions to Pakistan’s shock first-round elimination from the World Cup has, understandably, enraged passionate fans back home and drawn plenty of criticism. In a nation stunned by Pakistan’s three-wicket defeat to Ireland in Jamaica, there have been angry protests, calls for arrest and even Nasim Ashraf, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief, hasn’t been spared.”We will ask for his [Ashraf’s] resignation in the meeting which is due to take place before March 28,” Senator Mohammad Enver Baig, a member of the senate standing committee on culture, sports, youth affairs and tourism told AFP. “You lost miserably to a country like Ireland. There is nothing to compensate and the chairman must resign and go back to the United States.”The way the team has lost is the most disgraceful performance since the World Cup started. The entire nation is shocked.”Baig said Ashraf had no experience to head the PCB and that his “one-man show” management had resulted in the “shameful defeat.” “He is a crony of [President] Pervez Musharraf and the way he [Musharraf] is running the country, the cricket board is also being run in same manner. It is a one-man rule everywhere.”In Multan, Inzamam-ul-Haq’s home town, incensed youth held a protest rally, chanted slogans against Pakistan and demanded that police arrest the World Cup squad. The mob was heard chanting, “Death to Bob Woolmer , death to Inzamam, death to Nasim Ashraf – police should arrest them”.Sarfraz Nawaz, the former Pakistan fast bowler, said the shock was “unbearable”. “I am speaking with deep pain and this shock is becoming unbearable for me,” he said, demanding that those responsible be fired. “The captain, coach and the entire team should be held accountable. It seemed that the umpires also wanted that Pakistan should win, but the body language of the team reflected that they wanted to lose.”The defeat was Pakistan’s second after the 54-run loss to West Indies in the tournament opener. Ireland are provisionally at the top of Group D, with three points – one more than West Indies and two ahead of Zimbabwe – leaving Pakistan at the bottom of the table with no points.

David Graveney was in Sri Lanka to watch England crash for 58 in the Under-19 semi-final © Getty Images

David Graveney, the England chairman of selectors, has said that his committee do not spend as much time as they should with England’s junior players and ‘A’ teams.Graveney, who was in Sri Lanka to watch the Under-19 side participate at the World Cup in Colombo admitted that it was the first time he had watched them at close quarters during his 10-year tenure as chairman.”We’ve not done anything. It is definitely my fault, that’s my call,” admitted Graveney. “Anywhere in the world if you are not actually there with the senior team you can always switch the TV on and watch it.”There is no TV coverage for England ‘A’ and for U-19 I think it’s a good process for the selectors to get to know the young lads and their parents, and they get to know us. Then we can see how they progress because everybody who starts at this level wants to play in the senior team. I’ll be making a report on this.”England went as far as the Super League semi-finals before crashing to 58 all out against India. Graveney said everybody wanted to win but there were a few things that need to be taken into consideration.”The main thing for England is the players learn from playing in the subcontinent. Hopefully, they will have the same opportunity in a few years time. We need to spend more time in the subcontinent which we have done.”We need to develop our players to bowl spin and play spin which is always stated to be a weaker hand. I wouldn’t say we can’t do it. It is just a weaker hand. In England you have to be a top notch wrist spinner like Shane Warne to be successful. The wickets themselves tend to favour the quicker bowling than slow bowling.”

Sourav Ganguly is hoping that the dog days of summer will end soon for him© AFP

Sourav GangulyOn the team
We shall decide after we take a look at the wicket tomorrow.On Lakshmipathy Balaji
He says that he is better. He’ll have a bowl at the nets, and then we’ll find out.On changes in the batting order
Not at this stage of the series.On the pressure on him from the media
When you don’t make runs, criticism will happen. But I have also got some support in the press. It’s my responsibility to score runs, and I have done just that for a number of years, and I believe I can do it again.On what this ground means to him
I have made hundreds on this ground, and not just one-day hundreds butalso two Test hundreds. If I’m lucky, I’ll do it again.On the heat
It is definately a factor. But it was hottest at Kochi, where we played the first one-dayer. The rest of the venues have been hot, but not hot.On his problems with the over-rate
I’ve had a word with the bowlers and fielders. It’s not just about the captain, it’s a team game. We all have to hurry up.On the pitch
One can’t say anything until the game begins. In Visakhapatnam we thought 250 would be a good score, we ended up making 357.On Rana Naved-ul-Hasan
He bowled well in the last game. But we got big scores in the first two.Inzamam-ul-HaqOn Shoaib Malik bowling again
It will take a game or two for him to get back into his rhythm. It is good that our best allrounder has started bowling again.On Ahmedabad
Well, we’ve gone from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to the ground. It seems nice so far.On the security
It looks good. We have no anxiety about playing here. None of our boys have seen anything that gives us reason to worry.On his wearing his heart on his sleeve in this series
You know how hot it is in the gallery. It’s hotter on the field. I’m a human being, I get affected.No, no, on the joy and exuberance that he shows
Earlier you would complain that I don’t show enough emotion.On the pitch
It looks like a spinning track.On the toss
Don’t go by the toss. But what does happen is that the heat is so much that the team fielding first gets affected by it, and that affects their batting. Also, the pitch does get 10 to 20% harder to bat on.

Zimbabwe 441 and 242 for 8 dec (Taibu 58, Ervine 74) lead Bangladesh 331 (Ashraful 98, Streak 4-44) and 24 for 5 (Blignaut 3 for 12) by 327 runs
Scorecard

Andy Blignaut: hat-trick man © Getty Images

A hat-trick from Zimbabwe’s Andy Blignaut left Bangladesh reeling on the fourth evening at Harare. By the close they were staring at their 26th defeat in 27 Tests, despite totalling a handy 331 in their first innings, which finished earlier in the day.Blignaut warmed up for his bowling stint with a rapid 32, including a huge six over long-on, which ushered Zimbabwe to 242 for 8 – and a lead of 352 – before a declaration. Douglas Hondo punched the first holes in Bangladesh’s innings, trapping Shahriar Hossain (1) and Habibul Bashar (0) lbw.And then up stepped Blignaut for his second over, with Bangladesh already in some strife at 14 for 2. His third ball swung in to Hannan Sarkar and pinned him right in front for 10. In came Mohammad Ashraful, whose perky 98 had enlivened Bangladesh’s first innings: but this time he squirted his first ball to gully, where the substitute Travis Friend took the catch. Blignaut produced a fine delivery for the vital ball, swinging it in to Mushfiqur Rahman, who could only manage a thin-edge through to Tatenda Taibu. It was the first hat-trick by a Zimbabwean in a Test.Bangladesh made it to the close without further loss, by which time they had limped to 21 for 5, but unless the weather intervenes they will be contemplating yet another Test defeat early tomorrow morning.Earlier Zimbabwe had made a sticky start, losing Trevor Gripper caught behind for 5 in the sixth over. Dion Ebrahim and Stuart Carlisle then dug in, raising the 50 before Ebrahim was caught by Sarkar off Tapash Baisya for a 68-ball 31. Four runs later Grant Flower was gone too, ticking Tapash through to Khaled Mashud for 3, and when Carlisle was run out by Sarkar’s direct hit from short midwicket in the 34th over, Zimbabwe were struggling a little at 90 for 4.But that was as good as it got for Bangladesh. Thanks mainly to an enterprising fifth-wicket partnership of 90 between Taibu, who faced 107 balls for his 58, and Sean Ervine, who cracked 74 from 78 balls, Zimbabwe eventually motored to 242. Both batsmen hit eight fours.Heath Streak’s declaration left Bangladesh needing an unlikely 353 for victory in around 104 overs. But any optimists among the touring party were swiftly shot down by Blignaut’s hat-trick heroics.

Was it the finest one-day win by New Zealand? Was it the finest individual innings by a New Zealander in a One-Day International? Was it a sign of greater consistency to come in the one-day game?All are questions that could rightfully be asked after New Zealand’s nine-wicket win over South Africa at the World Cup at the Wanderers’ Stadium in Johannesburg yesterday.Was it the finest one-day win?It was certainly an outstanding win, achieved under some pressure with the refusal to go to Kenya the main reason.But the finest?It was an early game in the competition. It was a rain-affected result, and yes, New Zealand were right up and over the Duckworth/Lewis requirement. But the fact remains that scoring 307 to win would have been the real icing on the cake.So far, the victory in the ICC KnockOut at Nairobi in 2000 still ranks above it. That too, was achieved under pressure from the first time New Zealand had been in a major international tournament final.Yesterday is up there, but is one of a cluster of matches of impact: the 1992 World Cup opener against Australia, the victory over South Africa in Brisbane last summer, Jeff Wilson’s victory over Australia at Hamilton in 1992/93, the win over England at Adelaide in 1982/83 when scoring 297 to win, the victory over Australia at the 1999 World Cup and so on.As for the finest individual innings?Again, it is a matter of situations. Certainly, it was a vital innings for New Zealand, a World Cup-saver. History may judge it more significantly in the context of the tournament.But there is still the feeling that Chris Cairns’ effort in Nairobi still edges it out.It was great to see Stephen Fleming finally realise his potential, and it may be the forerunner of things to come. However, it too must rest among a clutch of innings in more recent times at least that include Cairns’ effort against South Africa in the afore-mentioned match at Brisbane, Nathan Astle at Carisbrook in the last two summers against Pakistan and England respectively where his centuries won both series.Whatever the call on great innings, it is to be hoped that with this team now playing as a side that could almost last through until the next World Cup, that some consistency can develop in the New Zealand game.That has been sadly lacking in recent times, to the eternal frustration of supporters.But knowing they can compete, away from home, against the best in the game, has to be a big boost to New Zealand.They did it at the 1999 World Cup, but didn’t kick on, largely as the result of injuries.This time they have a great opportunity. Even if injuries should occur over the next season or two, there is a core of players developed and more waiting in the wings to at last allow New Zealand supporters to believe that they might reasonably expect their side to win more often than they lose.

Gloucestershire County Cricket Club are pleased to announce that Sanderson Recruitment plc are the Sponsors of the Gloucestershire Gladiators v Somerset Sabres Floodlit Match on Tuesday 17th July.This match is the highlight of the domestic season and takes place at Bristol on Tuesday 17th July. As defending champions Gloucestershire will be anxious to defeat local rivals Somerset in this clash of the one-day giants. The match will attract the biggest domestic crowd of the season with up to 8,000 Gloucestershire and Somerset fans expected in Bristol.”Sanderson has a well-established history in sports sponsorship, including rugby and football as well as cricket.” says company Chairman Mike Beesley. “Our clients and thousands of the IT professionals we place in permanent and contract positions every year take a great deal of pleasure from sport and we are very happy to support that.”This particular event between the Gloucestershire Gladiators and the Somerset Sabres promises to be an important and exciting match and we look forward to being involved in one of the highlights of the cricketing calendar.”Gloucestershire Commercial Manager Mark Kirton said “It is important that floodlit cricket continues to lead the way in English Cricket, and with support from Sanderson Recruitment plc, Gloucestershire can continue to deliver the most exciting form of one-day cricket to the Bristol public.”Sanderson Recruitment plc is one of the leading IT recruitment agencies in the UK, providing permanent and contract IT staff for clients across the UK including leading national companies such as Axa Sun Life, Zurich Financial Services, Hewlett Packard and Nationwide Building Society. It has in excess of l,100 working contractors on client’s sites and a database of more than 35,000 registered contract and permanent IT professionals. Parent company Resource Solutions Group was recently identified as the eighth fastest growing middle market company in the whole of the UK.

Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl still may not know who his first-choice number nine is at Ibrox, despite being nine matches into his reign in the Scottish Premiership.

Bojan Miovski looked nailed on to be that player after he scored three goals in two matches against Kilmarnock and Ferencvaros, including a spectacular overhead kick in the latter.

However, the Macedonia international then lost 11 of his 13 duels, per Sofascore, against Hearts and journalist Joshua Barrie noted that Rohl was “frustrated” with his hold-up play in the game.

Who Rangers' first-choice striker should be

Youssef Chermiti came off the bench to score a consolation goal late on against Hearts in the 2-1 defeat at Tynecastle, his second goal in all competitions this season.

The Portugal U21 international has put himself in contention to return to the starting line-up against Motherwell with that strike, especially with how poor Miovski’s hold-up play was.

Despite that goal off the bench against Hearts, though, it still seems like the former Aberdeen centre-forward is the best option for Rohl to go with as his first-choice number nine in the here and now.

25/26 Premiership

Miovski

Chermiti

Appearances

22

19

Goals

5

2

Big chances missed

7

5

Big chances created

1

0

Assists

1

1

Successful dribbles

7

5

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Miovski has been far more impressive in front of goal on the whole this season, with more than twice as many goals, but both strikers have failed to deliver consistent quality.

Whilst Chermiti and Miovski are yet to prove themselves to be amazing signings due to their lack of goals, there is a Rangers duo signed in the summer who make them look good by comparison.

The £7m Rangers flops who make Chermiti and Miovski look good

Former sporting director Kevin Thelwell was given the resources to complete a squad overhaul for Russell Martin in the summer transfer window, and £7m was spent on a pair who have flopped badly so far.

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The Light Blues signed right winger Oliver Antman for a fee of at least £3.5m from Go Ahead Eagles and attacking midfielder Thelo Aasgaard for a fee of £3.5m from Luton Town.

For a combined outlay of £7m, Rangers surely expected an immediate impact, with goals and assists, from the two attacking midfielders this season, but that has not been how it has played out.

Per Sofascore, Aasgaard has produced one goal and two assists in 25 appearances in all competitions for Rangers. That is made even less impressive by the fact that his assists were a pass to Djeidi Gassama on the halfway line before his long-range strike against Kilmarnock and a long clearance up the pitch that Chermiti scored from against Hearts.

Antman, meanwhile, has produced no goals and two assists in 20 appearances in all competitions for the Light Blues. His only goal contribution in the Premiership so far was his cross for James Tavernier’s goal in the clip above.

This means that the £7m pairing have combined for just one goal and four assists in 45 games between them, which is a dismal return from two attacking players, particularly given the nature of Aasgaard’s aforementioned assists.

All competitions

Player

Goals

Assists

Bojan Miovski

5

1

Youssef Chermiti

2

1

Thelo Aasgaard

1

2

Oliver Antman

0

2

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Chermiti and Miovski have at least combined for seven goals and two assists in their time on the pitch this season for the Gers, seven times as many goals as Antman and Aasgaard have produced.

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Whilst the two strikers have not been amazing performers, given that neither have provided consistently in front of goal, their combined output looks good by comparison to the other signings made by Thelwell.

Antman was ruled out for eight weeks with a muscle injury at the start of this month, which means that it will be a while before he is able to get back on the pitch to prove people wrong and show that he was worth the £3.5m that was spent on him.

Aasgaard, meanwhile, needs to start showing an improvement in his performance level immediately, because the Norway international has not offered anywhere near enough quality as an attacking midfielder.

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	Aravinda de Silva will work with U-19 players on their batting © Reuters

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has sought the services of Aravinda de Silva, the former Sri Lanka batsman, to help Under-19 players prepare for next year’s World Cup in Malaysia.de Silva, 42, said he was prepared to help any cricketer who needed his help. “When Sri Lanka Cricket sought my services I was glad to oblige them.” He will meet the squad on January 2 and assist them till February 9, before they depart for Malaysia. He will not accompany them on the tour due to some private commitments.Roger Wijesuriya, the Sri Lanka U-19 coach, was delighted to have de Silva as his team’s batting coach. “Our main worry has been the batting,”Wijesuriya said. “With Aravinda’s knowledge and experience I am sure the boys will benefit immensely. It is not so much from the technical side that they need guidance but on how to tackle match situations and playing under pressure.”Aravinda is a hero and the boys will be excited by his presence at practices. It is good for our cricket to have a person like him helping out at any level,” he said.Wijesuriya said that de Silva will be present for the two practice matches his squad was due to play against Colombo Cricket Club on January 2 and against Tamil Union on January 3. After the two games, the squad will be pruned from 30 to 20 players.Wijesuriya said he was happy with the fitness levels of the team and added that the fielding had improved tremendously as had the bowling. Apart from de Silva, Wijesuriya also plans to ask Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara to speak to the players before they leave for Malaysia.Just before they head for Malaysia, the U-19 team will play a triangular one-day tournament from January 23 to February 8. U-19 sides from England and Pakistan will join Sri Lanka in the competition which will be played in Dambulla.Under-19 triangular tournament fixtures:
Jan. 23: Sri Lanka v Pakistan
Jan. 24: England v Pakistan
Jan. 25: Sri Lanka v England
Jan. 27: Sri Lanka v Pakistan
Jan. 28: Sri Lanka v England
Jan. 30: England v Pakistan
Feb. 1: Final