To say that Manchester United have got off to a poor start in the Premier League this season would be an incredible understatement. Everything has gone wrong for Erik ten Hag following such an impactful debut campaign last time out.

Five games into the season, the Dutchman has had injuries to key players such as Luke Shaw, off-field disputes with the likes of Jadon Sancho, and the results to match what is going from a blip to a potential full-blown crisis at Old Trafford.

United have already lost three of their five games, and their victories have hardly been convincing either. And, with that said, Fabrizio Romano has dropped an update about the future of Ten Hag.

What has Fabrizio Romano said?

In the previous campaign, Ten Hag successfully took United into the Champions League places, and even picked up his first trophy for the club, defeating Newcastle United to win the Carabao Cup. So, fans at Old Trafford would be forgiven for thinking that the opening few weeks of his second season in charge would go slightly better than they have, especially after welcoming the likes of Andre Onana, and Rasmus Hojlund.

It has been quite the opposite, however, placing pressure on the former Ajax manager to turn things around. Things didn't get much better against Brighton & Hove Albion, either, with United losing 3-1 against the Seagulls at home.

Speaking in his Caught Offside column after the defeat, Romano spoke about Ten Hag's future, saying: "The defeat at home to Brighton will obviously have alarm bells ringing with some fans, but my view is that Ten Hag did an excellent job last season because the situation he inherited was complicated.

“Now he needs some time and also to have some players back from injuries because there are many important players not available for different reasons. I’d say: keep calm, let Ten Hag work as he’s an excellent coach. No panic.”

Should Manchester United sack Erik ten Hag?

Just five games into the season, and with his squad facing plenty of issues, it would be a fairly harsh decision to sack Ten Hag. That said, he must turn things around at Old Trafford, after being backed so heavily in the summer transfer window.

It doesn't exactly get any easier for the manager, however. Quite the opposite, in fact. Up next, the Red Devils travel to Germany to face Bayern Munich in their first game of the Champions League group stage. With the pressure on against such a talented side, Ten Hag will be hoping to see his side get a surprise result and kickstart their season in the process.

If things take an even greater turn for the worse, though, then suddenly Romano's verdict of "no panic" may begin to fade away when it comes to those in charge of making the decisions at Old Trafford.

Of course, for now, patience is needed, but it will certainly be interesting to see how much time Ten Hag bought himself during last season's successful debut at Manchester United. A blip is quickly becoming a crisis, that's for sure.

Ross Taylor produced one of the greatest ODI innings – a large part of it on one leg – to help New Zealand level the series 2-2

The Report by Andrew McGlashan in Dunedin06-Mar-20181:57

‘Magnificent’ Taylor levels one-day series

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
New Zealand took a gripping series to a decider as Ross Taylor produced one of the greatest one-day innings in staging a magnificent chase in Dunedin to hunt down an imposing 336. What made Taylor’s career-best unbeaten 181 from 147 balls even more remarkable was that the latter part was played after he injured himself diving to make a second run shortly after reaching three figures.Incredibly, New Zealand got home with three balls to spare when Henry Nicholls swung Tom Curran over the leg side after Colin de Grandhomme hammered 23 off 11 balls to help take the pressure off a limping Taylor. However, in fading light, it was Taylor that did most of the finishing as he took a six and a four in the space of three balls against Chris Woakes in the 47th over, then took him over midwicket again at the start of the 49th to remove any doubt. New Zealand still haven’t lost at this ground. After today, they may feel they never will.It was another wonderfully absorbing contest between these teams, back to the high-scoring variety seen in 2015 in England. Centuries from Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root were the centrepiece of England’s innings, but they suffered a middle-order meltdown as they lost 8 for 46 to slump from 267 for 1 to 313 for 9. Still, it was the second-highest total on the ground – it would become England’s second-highest first-innings in defeat.Ross Taylor struggles to stay on his feet•Getty Images

Taylor combined with Tom Latham – the same pair that did so much to win the opening match of the series – to add 187 in 25.5 overs for the fourth wicket as New Zealand recovered from 2 for 2, and then the loss of Kane Williamson when replays showed he hadn’t edged the ball.Taylor, who gave one chance on 84 when Bairstow couldn’t gather a catch at deep midwicket, brought up his 19th ODI century from 98 balls, but shortly after, on 109, suffered an injury when making his ground for a scampered second. He was patched up by the physio – who made multiple trips to the middle – and hauled himself between the wickets, but largely opted to have a swing. He sent both Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid out of the ground, taking his sixes tally to six, with the fifth of them landing on the roof of a building adjacent to the sightscreen.Latham played superbly in support, having arrived when Williamson was given caught behind pulling at Stokes’ first delivery. Colin Munro had earlier reviewed a stone-dead lbw first ball against Mark Wood, so the New Zealand captain had no recourse. When the asking rate touched nine-an-over, Latham took two sixes in three balls off Wood and Stokes. He might have been lbw twice, once to Moeen Ali and once to Adil Rashid, but was so far down the pitch on both occasions that the umpires were perfectly in their right to say not outLatham fell to Tom Curran’s slower-ball, finding mid-off with 63 needed from 48 balls. De Grandhomme was promoted and struck his first two balls for four, followed by two sixes off Curran in the 44th over to firmly swing things New Zealand’s way. Woakes went for just three off the 45th and Curran then removed de Grandhomme, but there would be no denying Taylor.England will wonder how they have not wrapped up the series. When Bairstow and Root were together adding 190 in 27.2 overs, they were on course to challenge 400. But Bairstow’s dismissal to Munro sparked a horrendous collapse, as Ish Sodhi bagged a career-best 4 for 58. After the top three, the next batsmen to reach double figures were Rashid and Curran at Nos. 9 and 10.England had raced out of the blocks, reaching 77 off the 10-over Powerplay against some inconsistent bowling and fallible fielding. Sodhi broke through with his second ball, Roy top-edging to short fine leg, but that just set the stage for Bairstow and Roy.Bairstow reached his third ODI century – all made as an opener – from 83 deliveries while Root reached his from 99 balls, although that came in the midst of England’s late slump. For Root, it was his first century in 26 international innings – in which time he has passed fifty on 12 occasions – while for Bairstow it broke a sequence against Australia and New Zealand where had missed the chance to convert a few starts.Such was the way Bairstow, given a life on 74 by Mitchell Santner at cover, was progressing, that Roy’s England record 180 – made against Australia in Melbourne – was in danger. Yet things were about to change very quickly. Bairstow skied an off-cutter and Jos Buttler’s promotion to No. 4 lasted two balls when he chipped a catch back to Sodhi.There was no thought of momentary consolidation with Eoin Morgan hoisting Trent Boult into the leg side. New Zealand’s fielding suddenly went up a notch with Munro taking an excellent catch running back. Stokes then picked out deep square leg and Moeen lofted down the ground where Tim Southee made excellent ground running in to take the ball by his bootlaces.When Woakes chipped Munro to long-on, Root was in danger of running out of partners before his century. He, too, fell before the end and it was left to Curran to offer any semblance of a finish as he took 18 off the last over. The days of 336 being virtually unchasable are long gone. Still, this was remarkable.

Glasgow Rangers decided to part ways with English head coach Michael Beale earlier this month after his dismal start to the 2023/24 campaign.

The 43-year-old tactician lost three of his four Scottish Premiership matches and failed to qualify for the group stages of the Champions League with a 7-2 defeat to PSV on aggregate in their play-off clash.

Beale failed to win a single trophy throughout the 2022/23 season after he was brought in to replace Giovanni van Bronckhorst during the break for the 2022 World Cup.

Matches

30

Wins

23

Points

71

Titles

Zero

This led to an overhaul of the squad during the summer transfer window as the club allowed the ex-Gers assistant to revamp his options with a host of new additions.

Who did Rangers sign this summer?

Leon Balogun, Kieran Dowell, Jack Butland, Abdallah Sima, Sam Lammers, Cyriel Dessers, Danilo, Dujon Sterling, and Jose Cifuentes all came through the door, and this opened the door for a number of departures.

Glen Kamara, Fashion Sakala, Antonio Colak, and Ianis Hagi were all either sold or loaned out to make way for the new signings ahead of this season. That came after the likes of Ryan Kent, Scott Arfield, and Alfredo Morelos, among others, moved on at the end of their respective contracts.

However, Beale's transfer business did not have the desired effect and one move, in particular, that looks to have been a blunder was the decision to move Hagi out on loan.

The Romania international returned to action earlier this year after 69 matches out with a knee injury, that was sustained at the start of 2022, and only started three Premiership matches last term before he was sent out to Alaves on a temporary basis.

Rangers, however, could have been better off if they had kept their faith in Hagi instead of swooping to sign Dowell from Norwich on a free transfer.

How has Dowell performed this season?

The former Everton youth prospect has produced one goal and zero chances created in six appearances in all competitions for the Light Blues since his move from the Canaries.

Dowell has been out injured since the 2-2 draw with PSV on the 22nd of August but failed to hit the ground running in Scotland prior to that knock.

The 26-year-old maestro has played two Premiership matches for the Scottish giants so far and produced one goal and zero key passes in those games, along with a pass completion rate of just 71%.

Beale opted against starting him in any of the three Champions League qualifiers that he was available for selection for, which suggests that the English gem did not do enough to convince the head coach that he was ready to make an impact at that level.

How many goals did Dowell score last season?

The left-footed whiz arrived at Ibrox off the back of a five-goal season in the Championship with Norwich under Dean Smith and David Wagner during the 2022/23 campaign.

Dowell contributed with five goals and three assists in 23 league outings for the Canaries to go along with one key pass per game on average, as per Sofascore.

In total, the English midfielder scored 12 goals and assisted six in 75 matches for his former club in all competitions across three seasons at Carrow Road.

This means that he averaged a goal or an assist every 4.17 games for Norwich during his time in East Anglia, which shows that Dowell struggled to deliver quality at the top end of the pitch on a consistent basis.

How many goals has Hagi scored for Rangers?

Hagi, who was hailed as "impressive" by journalist Joshua Barrie earlier this year, has scored 16 goals in 99 matches in all competitions for the Light Blues since his £3m move to the club from Genk.

The versatile gem can play as an attacking or central midfielder as well as off the right as a winger, just like Dowell, and has the quality to chip in with goals and assists.

His horrific knee injury, which kept him out for 12 months, left him short of match fitness when he returned last season but his previous form for the Light Blues suggests that the potential is there for him to make a huge impact on the pitch.

During the 2020/21 campaign under Steven Gerrard, the Romanian wizard produced an outstanding seven goals and 11 assists in 23 Premiership starts. He also created six 'big chances' for his teammates and completed 82% of his attempted passes throughout the league season.

In total, Hagi has scored 16 and assisted 21 goals in his 99 games for the club and this means that he has averaged a contribution every 2.68 matches on average, which is significantly better than the aforementioned return that Dowell managed for Norwich.

How has Hagi performed this season?

The talented whiz, who is also two years younger than the current Gers midfielder, has created two 'big chances' and provided eight key passes in four La Liga starts for Alaves.

He has showcased his creative quality in the top-flight of Spanish football since leaving Ibrox on loan over the summer, whilst Dowell is yet to create a single chance in his six appearances for the club to date.

Hagi also provided supporters with a reminder of his talent with a stunning display for Romania against Andorra during the international break.

Sofascore rating

8.9

Goals

One

Assists

One

Big chances created

One

Penalties won

One

Hagi's most recent performance (via Sofascore)

The 24-year-old magician is capable of producing magic moments with his ability to score and create goals from an attacking midfield position and has already proven himself at Premiership level for Rangers in the past.

Therefore, it was a big blunder by Beale to loan him out in favour of a deal to sign Dowell as the Gers could have been in a better position if they had stuck by the Romania international and helped him to rediscover his best form.

He is younger than the former Norwich man and boasted a better career record, in terms of goals and assists, than the left-footed gem prior to their respective moves over the summer.

New head coach Philippe Clement may want to reassess the situation in January and see if there is a possibility for Hagi to return to Ibrox in order to be given a chance to reignite his Rangers career under the Belgian boss.

A significant difference in quality between teams isn’t like jetlag; it doesn’t wear off in 24 hours. Pakistan turned in another dominant performance in the second game, as they had in the opener on Sunday, thumping West Indies by 82 runs to take an unassailable lead in the three-match series. An unbeaten 58-ball 97 by Babar Azam powered Pakistan to their highest ever T20I score, two more than yesterday’s 203. Hussain Talat, Man of the Match on Sunday, more than played his part in a 119-run partnership with Babar, smashing 63 off 41 balls.Fakhar Zaman fell early to a sharp bouncer from Rayad Emrit, but it wasn’t going to prevent the bowlers from copping relentless punishment.The fielding by West Indies was well below par again. Like replays from the first game, fielders on the boundary let simple pick-ups slip through their fingers for fours. Under pressure from a confident, ruthless Pakistan batting line-up, the bowlers’ lengths went haywire.A side that has won 16 of its last 19 T20Is now, Pakistan’s batsmen were getting help they didn’t need. Even more poignant was the lack of self-belief with which West Indies carried themselves. At one point, they barely appealed for an lbw that, on review, saw Babar saved by inches on the umpire’s call.Pakistan would be encouraged by the cameo Asif Ali played, because it bodes well for the future of their power-hitting. Long bemoaned as a striking weakness in Pakistan’s game, Asif, whose penchant for big sixes came to light in the recently-concluded PSL, showed he could be the solution. It was only 14 off 8 balls, with one six, a bottom-hand jab off the back foot, would have caught batting coach Grant Flower’s eyes, who singled him out as an exciting prospect from this year’s PSL.The only disappointment for Pakistan in the first innings was Babar’s failure to get to his hundred. Incredibly, Ahmed Shehzad’s 111 against Bangladesh is still the only time a Pakistan batsman has scored a century. Babar had his chance in the final over, but his timing deserted him. Kesrick Williams hit his lengths and varied his pace well enough to keep the ball away from Babar, but his hunger, undimmed so far, bodes well for Pakistan.West Indies, in response, avoided the catastrophe of the first game, but it was clear within a few overs that the result would be the same: a comfortable win for Pakistan. The asking rate, over 10 at the start of the innings, stifled West Indies before the chase had even begun, and other than Chadwick Walton, no top-order batsman looked even close to being up to the task.West Indies scored only 30 runs in the Powerplay, and though they had lost only one wicket by then, the required rate had already ballooned to almost 13. Once Shadab Khan cleaned Walton up – with a beautiful flipper – he had scored 40 of his side’s 50 runs, it was only about how many Pakistan would win by.Mohammad Amir found his lengths and hit his yorkers often. Hasan Ali was his usual wily self and Shadab was lethal and potent. Pakistan hadn’t let the lack of competitiveness dim their intensity, keen to drive home the advantage as much as possible. Amir looked especially sharp; the yorker that castled opposition captain Jason Mohammed worth waiting for even in the backdrop of rather dull cricket. His disguise of the slower balls was also world-class as he finished with figures of 4-0-22-3.West Indies mentally checked out of the game well before it officially ended, the point epitomised in the 18th over. Emrit cut Amir to the boundary, wide enough of third man to allow the batsmen to comfortably run two. Williams on the other hand, never so much as looked at his partner, and both batsmen found themselves at one end. Emrit didn’t even bother looking back, never breaking his stride as he jogged back to the pavilion.Hasan and Talat picked up the final two wickets to seal the demolition, as West Indies were bowled out for 123, just about more than double their total from the first match.

MatériaMais Notícias

Revelado nas categorias de base do São Paulo, o atacante Brenner pode completar 50 jogos com a camisa do Tricolor na equipe profissional se entrar em campo na noite desta terça, contra o Binacional, pela Copa Libertadores. O jogador vem sendo titular com o técnico Fernando Diniz e é o artilheiro do clube do Morumbi em 2020, com oito gols anotados.

O jovem atacante, de apenas 20 anos, foi revelado pelo técnico Rogério Ceni, em 2017, após ser o artilheiro do Paulistão Sub-17 daquela temporada com incríveis 34 gols em 14 jogos – superando o recorde que pertencia ao palmeirense Gabriel Jesus. Dali em diante, Brenner sofreu com altos e baixos e este é o seu melhor momento com a camisa do São Paulo.

Depois de ser emprestado ao Fluminense na última temporada, o garoto retornou ao Tricolor sob o aval do técnico Fernando Diniz e, aos poucos, foi conquistando seu espaço. Neste ano, participou de 19 jogos, mas apenas sete deles como titular. Em média, o atacante precisa de 132 minutos para fazer um gol em 2020 – o melhor de todo o elenco.

A escalação do São Paulo será divulgado apenas momentos antes da partida, mas a tendência é de que a comissão técnica não faça grandes mudanças em relação ao time que vem atuando nas últimas partidas. Desta forma, é possível que Brenner seja titular diante do Binacional, do Peru, e alcance a expressiva marca de 50 jogos como profissional do Tricolor.

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Tottenham Hotspur may be flying of late under Ange Postecoglou, but it has been a long and arduous road to finally recapture that feelgood factor that had been absent for so long.

With the seven acquisitions funded by the sale of Gareth Bale arguably kickstarting the chain of events that has transformed the club's trajectory, Mauricio Pochettino’s appointment helped to turn a period of ridicule into relative success.

Although no silverware was claimed, the Argentine led them back into the Champions League, even reaching the final, whilst also coming close to the Premier League title on occasion too.

Despite that, Daniel Levy clearly still craves a trophy to end his 15-year hoodoo, yet cycling through Nuno Santo, Jose Mourinho and most recently Antonio Conte failed to bring what he desired.

Now, it is the Australian tasked with not only striving for that elusive silverware but also forging a play style that can get fans falling back in love with football again.

However, the squad he has inherited still needs work, with the Lilywhites still reeling from various financial missteps by regimes of the past, notably after selling a certain Gareth Bale.

Who did Spurs buy with the Gareth Bale money?

After years of thriving in north London, announcing himself as one of the top players in the entire country, when Real Madrid came calling it was a proposal impossible to deny.

The £85m gained from Bale's sale marked an astronomical fee at the time, shattering the previous world record transfer including Cristiano Ronaldo, and the thought process was clearly to reinvest this across the entire playing squad rather than on a sole successor to the Welshman.

As such, a host of players were brought in across the 2013 summer, which has since been rather questionably dubbed ‘the Magnificent Seven’.

The likes of Paulinho, Roberto Soldado, Vlad Chiriches, Nacer Chadli and Etienne Capoue all largely failed to make an impression, whilst Christian Eriksen was the obvious standout who grew into a key figure at White Hart Lane.

However, one of the more polarising additions of the bunch was Erik Lamela, who too stood the test of time, but despite flashes of brilliance was far too inconsistent to merit widespread praise.

The Argentinian would make 256 appearances for the club, scoring just 37 and assisting a further 45. Given the money expended to bring him in, this was far from a desirable return.

Andre Villas-Boas’ time in north London is now largely remembered for his failure to reinvest those funds wisely, with the 31-year-old having since departed with little fanfare.

Pundit Alex McLeish sought to sum up Lamela’s time at Spurs as his exit neared, noting: “Everybody knows the guy’s got heaps of talent. When you say about his injuries and his inconsistency, he never quite made it to the level of the player we expected.

“He was one of the players that replaced Gareth Bale. There were four or five players, weren’t there, that came in when Bale left. It was to try and fill these gaps.

“I’m not saying he was that player but he certainly had the ability to do things out of the ordinary. That’s the frustrating thing for managers, when you think you’ve got a diamond and the diamond only shines now and again.”

Lamela’s tenure arguably personifies such a tumultuous period in the club’s history, which could have fast-tracked the progression they would eventually enjoy once Pochettino was brought in.

How much did Spurs pay for Erik Lamela?

As the last to join during that busy 2013 summer, Villas-Boas was forced to unload £25.8m to bring the current Sevilla man from AS Roma to England.

It was a fee that turned heads, but given he had scored 15 and assisted five in the Serie A alone the season prior, there was a method to the madness.

Tottenham Hotspur's Record Signings	Fee Paid
Richarlison (Everton)	£60m
Erik Lamela, including wages (AS Roma)	£59.2m
Tanguy Ndombele (Tottenham Hotspur)	£54m
Brennan Johnson (Nottingham Forest)	£47m
Cristian Romero (Atalanta)	£45m

All fees via Football Transfers

He would seldom enjoy a Premier League campaign even close to that level across his eight years at the club before a swap deal with Sevilla was engineered to bring Bryan Gil in as his replacement.

How much has Erik Lamela earned in his career so far?

Earning various lucrative contracts across the three top clubs he inhabited in Europe, it is no surprise that the trickster has amassed a pretty ridiculous figure from football.

With the biggest deal coming courtesy of Spurs, an £80k-per-week contract, and the lowest during his earlier days in AS Roma, at just £31k-per-week, it is a wonder how he managed to accumulate such continued interest throughout a career that never really hit the heights many thought it would.

Despite that, Lamela will likely not be too bothered, given his total career earnings from wages alone sits at €51.83m (£44.5m), via Capology. It is worth noting that €38.93m (£33.4m) of that came solely from the north London club.

Did Erik Lamela deserve to earn £80k-per-week?

Although his spell with the Lilywhites was filled with some standout moments, on the whole it would be hard to argue that Lamela was good value for what he ended up costing the club. After all, when adding his total wage expenditure to his transfer fee, in total his period there saw £59.2m lost.

Despite this, fans will remember his two rabona goals with fondness, the second of which won them the north London Derby and him the 2022 Puskas Award.

But for £80k-per-week and that aforementioned fee, to score just 37 goals, meant that for every time he found the back of the net during his eight years in England he cost them £1.6m.

How much did other Spurs players earn?

What made his tenure even more ridiculous is the calibre of player that he actually earned more than, with his wage matching that of Hugo Lloris' in 2013, who would go on to become a Spurs captain and legend.

Other players whom he looked down upon on the wage bill table were Eriksen, Kyle Walker, Mousa Dembele and a 19-year-old Harry Kane, with the latter being understandable as he was yet to make his big breakthrough.

Even the man he was signed to replace, who had just left for a world record fee as one of the game's most revered talents, was on a mere £20k-per-week more the year before he left.

Lamela's lucrative contract served as an insult to the players who performed consistently, with this deal going under the radar as one of the worst in the club's recent history.

For the fifth time in as many matches, South Africa cantered to victory with the help of several performances all through their line-up

ESPNcricinfo staff14-May-2018Christopher Lee/ICC/Getty ImagesSouth Africa’s bowling prowess came to the fore once again as their new-ball tandem of Shabnim Ismail and Marizanne Kapp took five wickets for 38 runs in 19 overs between them in the fifth and final women’s ODI against Bangladesh. The duo’s parsimony enabled the home team to restrict Bangladesh to 166 for 9 in 50 overs, before opener Laura Wolvaardt’s unbeaten 70 took South Africa to their target in just 35 overs.Even though they played out 50 overs for the first time this series, Bangladesh’s innings was highlighted by two collapses, either side of a fourth and a fifth-wicket partnership. First, Kapp and Ismail reduced them to 23 for 3 after Bangladesh were put in to bat. Wicketkeeper-batsman Shamima Sultana, who opened the innings, held up her end and added 85 for the fourth wicket with her captain Rumana Ahmed.After the stand was broken, with the dismissal of Shamima for 53, Rumana added a further 48 with Nigar Sultana. By the time Rumana was dismissed, she had struck 74 – one run fewer than her highest international score – almost 50 percent of her team’s runs. Bangladesh then lost four wickets in their last two overs to end up with an underwhelming total. Ismail finished with 3 for 17 in nine overs, while Kapp took 2 for 21 in 10 overs.South Africa kept the heat on right through the chase, beginning with Lizelle Lee and Wolvaardt, who stitched together 79 for the first wicket. Wovaardt, however, lost her share of partners after the stand was broken. Trisha Chetty, who, earlier in the game became the first female wicketkeeper to accomplish 150 career dismissals, fell for a two-ball duck, while captain Dane van Niekerk was stumped for 29 on her 25th birthday.After offspinner Khadija Tul Kubra claimed her third wicket – she sent back Chloe Tryon for a run-a-ball nine – Wolvaardt ensured South Africa stayed the course. She finished not-out on 70 off 96 balls, collecting seven fours and a six along the way.

Matchweek Five sees the first-ever meeting between Fulham and Luton Town in the Premier League when the Hatters travel to Craven Cottage on Saturday afternoon to take on the Cottagers. Football FanCast has everything you need to know about the fixture before the two sides go head-to-head in the Premier League this weekend.

Well, technically, all of Luton’s first 19 games this season will be the first time that fixture has been played in the Premier League due to this season being the club’s first foray into England’s top division in its current guise. And even though it’s still early in the season, the five games played by Fulham and the four by Luton can give us a small insight into their form and how they might fare in this upcoming clash.

Fulham started the season strong with a 1-0 away win against Everton, but have seriously struggled since with a 3-0 defeat to fellow West Londoners Brentford and a 5-1 thumping away to treble-winning Manchester City. Granted, they came away from the Emirates with a point, but it’s hard to say that their performance merited one, given that they had less than a third of the possession, and the Gunners ended the game with 11 shots on target.

That said, they were able to halt Ange Postecoglou’s new-look Tottenham Hotspur at home in the EFL Cup thanks to a penalty shoot-out win, which looks to be no small feat at the moment.

Luton, on the other hand, have had an interesting start to their first campaign back in the top flight, as despite looking quite good at points against Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham United, they came away from both games empty-handed. They also suffered a pretty heavy 3-0 defeat away to Chelsea, with their only win so far coming against Gillingham in the EFL Cup.

Ultimately, neither side has started the new season how they would’ve liked and with Fulham in 13th place and Luton all the way down in 19th, both will be desperate to get some more points on the board as soon as possible.

Fulham vs Luton: What's their head-to-head record?

Despite never facing off against one another in the Premier League, Fulham and Luton Town are no strangers to one another, having played each other 47 times across all competitions since their initial meeting in January 1908, over 100 years ago.

While 47 games is a relatively significant number, it also seems much smaller than you might expect, given that their first encounter was over a century ago. Well, the reason the number isn’t much higher is the 20 year gap between their first meeting in 1908 and their second in 1928. They also went another 20 years without meeting between 1999 and 2019.

This is because, in those periods, Luton were often in the leagues below Fulham, falling all the way down to the Conference from 2009 to 2014.

You’d probably expect then that because the Cottagers have spent more time in the top flight than their Bedfordshire opponents, the history of this fixture would be heavily weighted in their favour, not necessarily.

While the West Londoners have won more games – 22 to be exact – Luton aren’t far behind, with 16 to their name. In all, this is quite the competitive fixture, and there’s no reason this weekend’s encounter will be any different.

Fulham Wins

22

Draws

8

Luton Town Wins

16

Fulham vs Luton: What's their Second Division record?

The two sides have only ever met in the old First Division twice in their entire history, in the 1959/60 season, with both sides winning their home ties. So it seems more apt to compare their records against one another from their far more frequent encounters in England’s second tier. These games took place both pre and post-Championship.

The numbers here, perhaps unsurprisingly, mirror the overall record between these sides, with Fulham just about edging things. In total, the West Londoners have won 18 of their 37 second-tier encounters with Luton, giving them a win rate of 48.6%.

The Hatters, on the other hand, are just behind with 14 wins, giving them a win rate of 37.8%, while there have been just five draws.

Fulham Wins

18

Draws

5

Luton Town Wins

14

Fulham vs Luton: What's their record at Fulham?

Well, while the fixture on a whole has tended to be reasonably balanced, with the Cottagers just about edging things, this certainly isn’t the case when they play host. In the 24 games played at Craven Cottage, Fulham have won a seriously impressive 16 times, which means they hold a 66.6% win rate at home.

For their part, Luton have won just three games at the Cottage, one less than the number of games they’ve drawn. We’re sure Rob Edwards will be hoping to buck the trens come Saturday.

Fulham Wins

16

Draws

4

Luton Town Wins

3

Fulham vs Luton: What's their record at Luton?

The Hatters have been able to establish some dominance of their own at Kenilworth Road over the years, even if it doesn’t quite stack up to Fulham’s. In total, the Bedfordshire side have played host to the West Londoners 23 times and come away winners on 13 occasions – a win rate of 56.5%.

Fulham have put up a better fight when away from home compared to the hosts, winning six times and earning at least a point four times.

Fulham Wins

6

Draws

4

Luton Town Wins

13

Fulham vs Luton: Which team has the most goals?

Well, given their slight edge in this game over the years, it probably shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to hear that it’s Fulham who have scored more goals against Luton and not the other way around. That said, with only 19 goals separating the sides, It’s once again a reasonably close affair.

The Whites have scored 85 goals against their Bedfordshire opponents in their 47 games, meaning they score an impressive average of 1.8 goals per game. Whereas, Luton’s 66 goals give them a still respectable average of 1.4.

Fulham Goals

85

Luton Town Goals

66

يشهد اليوم الأحد الموافق 23-6-2024، العديد من المباريات الهامة والقوية، على مستوى كأس أمم أوروبا، والدوري المصري، بالإضافة لمواجهات مُثيرة بالدوري العراقي.

في بطولة أمم أوروبا، تلتقي ألمانيا بسويسرا في صراع لحسم التأهل إلى الدور المقبل، بينما تُنافس اسكتلندا المجر في مباراة ساخنة تسعى من خلالها كلتا الدولتين لتحقيق الفوز وتحسين موقعها في المجموعة.

أما على أرض مصر، فيشتعل الصراع مع مواجهات نارية تجمع بين فيوتشر والإسماعيلي، والمصري وسيراميكا كليوباترا، وبيراميدز والمقاولون العرب.

ولا ينجو الدوري العراقي من سخونة المعارك، حيث تُقام 5 مباريات قوية تجمع بين القوة الجوية ونوروز، والشرطة والطلبة، ودهوك وأربيل، ونفط ميسان وزاخو.

طالع أيضًا | ناجلسمان يرد على يويفا: أخشى تعرض لاعبي ألمانيا للإصابة أمام سويسرا مواعيد مباريات اليوم الأحد 23-6-2024 والقنوات الناقلة مواعيد مباريات الدوري المصري اليوم

 فيوتشر ضد الإسماعيلي، الساعة 4 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “on time sport 1”.

 المصري ضد سيراميكا كليوباترا، الساعة 7 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “on time sport 1”.

 بيراميدز ضد المقاولون، الساعة 7 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “on time sport 2”.  مواعيد مباريات كأس أمم أوروبا اليوم

 سويسرا ضد ألمانيا، الساعة 10 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “beIN Sports HD 1 Max”.

اسكتلندا ضد المجر، الساعة 10 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “beIN Sports HD 2 Max”. مواعيد مباريات الدوري العراقي اليوم

القوة الجوية، الساعة 4:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “الرياضية العراقية”.

نوروز ضد النجف، الساعة 4:45 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “الرياضية العراقية”.

الشرطة ضد الطلبة، الساعة 7:30 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “الرياضية العراقية”.

دهوك ضد أربيل، الساعة 7:30 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “الرياضية العراقية”.

نفط ميسان ضد زاخو، الساعة 7:30 مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية، وتُذاع عبر قناة “الرياضية العراقية”.

ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنــــا

After echoing the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland in apologising to fans of the game, Australia’s captain for now, Tim Paine, believes his team must forge a new and better identity out of the wreckage of Newlands

Daniel Brettig in Cape Town25-Mar-2018Australia’s captain for now, Tim Paine, believes his team must forge a new and better identity out of the wreckage of Newlands, where the infamy of the ball-tampering fiasco was rounded off by the humiliation of an abject 322-run defeat.Smith offence worse than mine – du Plessis

South Africa’s captain Faf du Plessis believes Australia’s ball tampering at Newlands was a more serious offence than his “ball shining” offence in 2016, but admitted feeling some sympathy for his opposite number Steve Smith after he and David Warner were compelled to step down by Cricket Australia pending an internal investigation into the affair.
“For me, yes,” du Plessis responded when asked whether the Australians’ offence was more serious. “Ball shining versus ball tampering is two different situations, and one is more serious than the other.
“It’s difficult for me to give an answer which I think is right. It’s so difficult to say which is right and which is wrong. Obviously he is trying to take responsibility, so there is right in that. There is also right in holding other people responsible for their own actions. I can understand it’s a really tough time for him to be in now. The situation I was in was really difficult for me because people were attacking me, my personality and my character and I felt it was wrong, it wasn’t fair. I don’t know how he feels but I imagine it is a really tough time.
“He’s a very good batsman and somehow we’ve managed to keep him quiet. Its almost like losing two players in one because he’s such a strong batter. I also feel his leadership is good for the team so he’ll be a big loss for them.”

After echoing the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland in apologising to fans of the game, Paine admitted the team had not been prepared for the sheer scale of the reaction that has flowed from across the Indian Ocean over the past 24 hours. He also said that Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were all struggling personally after their respective parts in the affair.But Paine said it was no excuse for a fourth-innings combustion from 57 for 0 to 107 all out, which left the touring team needing to win in Johannesburg to preserve a share of the series, and maintain an unbeaten record in South Africa over the past 24 years. Looking ahead, he showed the first acknowledgement that the Australian team’s wider culture and image needed to change, starting with the way they behaved and performed at the Wanderers from Friday.”There’s ammunition enough but it’s a difficult situation that some guys are going to get an opportunity from, so it’s trying to grab hold of the one positive that may come of it is guys are going to get an opportunity to play for their country,” Paine said. “The whole opportunity for us going forward now is something we can learn from.”Something we can try to control is how we are seen going forward by our Australian public and become the team that we want to become and they want us to be seen as. So that’s an opportunity going forward. I don’t think we all would have expected this to be as big as it has been and particularly the fallout that we have seen from back home, I think the reality and enormity of it has sunk in.”Through the extraordinary circumstances of this tour, Paine found himself elevated to the captaincy a matter of months after he was a surprise choice as Australia’s Ashes wicketkeeper when not even Tasmania’s first-choice behind the stumps. There is no small irony here, for as far back as 2010, he was touted as a leader of the future. This is not the way anyone imagines it happening.4:29

Voges: We will see changes to Australia’s hierarchy

“Strange, not the circumstances that anyone would like to be sitting here, really bizarre, strange, horrible 24 hours,” Paine said. “We had a quick chat as we do as a team every morning and Steve and Dave both announced that they were stepping down and then I was told by the chairman of selectors that I would be captain for the day.”It was extremely difficult, that’s no excuse for what you saw in the last 45 minutes, we are still the Australian cricket team and we are expected to put up a better effort than what we did today. It was in some trying circumstances and probably circumstances we brought on ourselves. No one likes losing and no one likes losing in the circumstances that we have today.”Asked about the state of Smith, Warner and Bancroft, Paine said the trio were coming to terms with the gravity of their situation, with the Cricket Australia integrity officer Iain Roy en route to South Africa to conduct an internal investigation. “They’re not great, it’s been a horrible 24 hours,” Paine said. “They’re struggling, but probably the reality and the enormity of what’s happened is starting to sink in.”All we spoke about today as a team was when we crossed the line to go out and do our jobs and to compete and for the first half of the day I thought we did that reasonably well with the ball then started ok with the bat. Unfortunately, [we] fell apart in a really ordinary manner which only rubbed salt into the wounds of what’s been a horrible 24 hours for us.”Unsurprisingly, Paine had no definitive answers to questions about the captaincy tenure of Smith and the coaching role of Darren Lehmann, and nor did he feel ready to discuss his own captaincy prospects. For Paine and the rest of the squad, this is very much a journey into the unknown.”That’s I think something that might come up this week,” he said of whether Smith and Lehmann could continue, “but there’s an internal review that’s going to take place in the next few days and until that’s happened no one will be making any comment on anything like that.” As for his own leadership future: “I’m not sure what’s going to happen, I don’t think anyone is, so it’s an impossible question to answer.”Apart from knowing that things must change around the Australian team, Paine and the rest are bracing for what happens next. Based on trend set by the events of the past 24 hours, it could be absolutely anything.