More than a test of his ability, the five-match series will be a test of Jaiswal’s adaptability

Sidharth Monga16-Jun-20250:58

Chopra: ‘I will back Jaiswal to do well in England’

Open trials are a wonderfully democratic notion. A place where you can bypass the need for local loyalties and connections. Especially when said trials are being conducted by an IPL team. However, in reality you have a short window of time to impress while facing bowlers you most certainly have not seen before, or heard of even.Most players are invited to trials on word-of-mouth recommendations from local rumour mills that get excited seeing young talent. One such boy at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai was then 16-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal, yet to have played for the Mumbai senior side. His journey to the trials was astounding: leaving home, a village in Uttar Pradesh, at the age of 10 to live alone in big, bad Mumbai, starting out lodging in a tent at Azad Maidan.Nobody cares for such stories at these trials or any selection. You do so much yet you are still just one of hundreds who have turned up, hoping to catch the eye of a scout or a coach. The first ball Jaiswal faced in the nets, he moved across and ramped. This audacity, this courage, struck a chord with the Rajasthan Royals (RR).Related

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There’s nothing to say Jaiswal wouldn’t have made it through the traditional route of playing for his state side – after all, he had made it this far doing the same, and would go on to play for India Under-19 before turning 17 – but this is how it transpired. RR happen to be an anomalous T20 franchise that is format agnostic at their High Performance Centre in Talegaon in Maharashtra. It might not be all philanthropy. They realise kids in India don’t grow up playing a lot of T20 and come with little understanding of the format. So it is better to eliminate errors and have kids expand their games holistically rather than focus on a format they don’t yet know the grammar of.In Jaiswal, RR struck gold. His hunger and drive were comparable to the greats of the game. The courage was evident in his audacious journey from Bhadohi to Bombay. This level of ambition and RR’s investment in him were a match made in batting heaven. RR’s High Performance Centre is led by former Mumbai opener Zubin Bharucha, whose technique and understanding of the game is highly regarded by no less than Sunil Gavaskar. They went about dismantling Jaiswal’s game and then putting it back together.Yashasvi Jaiswal lived in the groundsman’s tent in Azad Maidan while training•Satyabrata Tripathy/Hindustan Times/Getty ImagesWhen Jaiswal played for India Under-19, former Test captain Rahul Dravid was in charge of India’s development squads. Even if he didn’t tour with every Under-19 or A team, he was the one who established the structure and oversaw the feeder systems to India’s senior teams. He remembers Jaiswal as exceptionally talented but someone who needed improvement to do well at senior levels. He was not in the league of, say, Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli before him.When Jaiswal made it as a standby batter for India’s squad for the final of the 2023 World Test Championship, Dravid was the head coach. He saw a much-improved batter. “Some of the practice pitches leading into the Test match were really spicy,” Dravid tells ESPNcricinfo. “It had been raining, and they were not well prepared. And he was willing to go out there and bat against whoever. Side-armers, [Mohammed] Shami or [Mohammed] Siraj or whoever. He just wanted to bat in those conditions, which for me and our other coaches was, ‘Wow, he wants to learn, he wants to improve. He wants to get better.’ From the time that I saw him at Under-19 to then, just his range of shots had improved.”Those who saw Jaiswal and Bharucha work in the intervening years talk of an obsessive streak. There were days when Jaiswal played 300 reverse sweeps to a variety of deliveries: different angles, height of release, pace, length, line. Any shot that needed work was met with similar dedication. There were days when they would practise just the sequencing of reverse sweep, orthodox sweep and the single down the ground. Or just the side-arm replicating bouncers at extreme pace from different angles. Often he left the nets with bloodied palms.Rahul Dravid was wowed by Yashasvi Jaiswal’s hunger to get better•AFP/Getty ImagesJaiswal was still a relatively blank slate so they could work on developing his ability to play shots to where fielders weren’t, and did so relatively safely. The idea was to face a variety of angles and deliveries in a single session. Sometimes he would face close to 100 overs of throwdowns and over-arm deliveries in a day.Skill was only part of it. This is a challenge to the notion that India has so many people playing cricket that they should automatically dominate the world. Amid such high competition, only the most desperate make it, but they also tend to be those who have had a hard childhood, which results in their desperation to succeed in the first place. In Jaiswal’s case, the RR medical team found that his body had been deprived of nutrients most kids his age should grow up with.It is again a testament to Jaiswal’s determination that he has kind of caught up when it once looked impossible. Only deeper into his career will we know how well he has progressed. Jaiswal became extremely diligent about nutrition, more deliberate in how he trained and worked out, realising this could be the difference between a good innings and a big innings, or 50 Tests and 100 Tests.If anything, Jaiswal might be a little too absorbed by his game. Those who have observed him describe him as a maverick, but one who can at times get caught up in his own head. While it is what gives him laser focus, it has the potential to ruffle those around him. That aspect of his personality is also something he has had to work on.Yashasvi Jaiswal celebrated a hundred on Test debut•Associated PressBy the time Jaiswal made his Test debut, his hunger for big innings was apparent. The West Indies attack wasn’t great in Dominica but they were disciplined on a slow pitch and slower outfield. The hosts had been bowled out for 150 so there was time in the game and Jaiswal made sure he nailed this opportunity. He went into stumps on 40 off 73, but completely shut shop the next morning when Jason Holder and Kemar Roach tested him. He added just seven in nearly an hour and ended up with 171 on debut.When conditions and match situations called for it, Jaiswal dominated England in only his third series, charging James Anderson, scoring two double-centuries, hitting 32 sixes. This ability to adapt his game to the demands of the conditions and the match situation is what most impressed Dravid, who exists between tolerating the notion of natural games and appreciating those who play the situation.”They’re all an ability to say I want to score runs, I like scoring runs, I know how to score runs and I’ll do whatever it takes to score runs,” Dravid says. “Sometimes bat aggressively, sometimes bat defensively, sometimes play from middle stump, sometimes play from outside leg stump. That’s a really good trait.”4:19

Jaiswal ‘the greatest news’ to come for India in Australia

In Australia, on tracks with excessive seam movement, Jaiswal’s usual set-up on middle stump followed by a shuffle was exploited by Mitchell Starc to get him on middle and leg. Jaiswal was quick to correct it by starting from outside leg. He was the first Indian batter to walk at the bowlers without compromising on back-foot shots. He was the second highest run-getter in the series, India’s best batter by a distance, and easily the best opener.In a young career of 19 Tests, Jaiswal has 14 fifty-plus scores at strike-rates ranging from 40.38 to 141.17. In a treacherous era for batting, he is averaging 52.88 when the overall average for openers in Tests he has played is 36.42.Jaiswal comes to England as a key member of the Indian Test team. There’s no Kohli or Rohit. Jasprit Bumrah will likely play only three Tests. Along with Rishabh Pant, Jaiswal has the most accomplished record among India’s Test batters.If England stick to playing Bazball, the pitches will be truer than the one we saw in the World Test Championship final. Such surfaces will call for Jaiswal to capitalise on starts and go big. If it seams, he will need to perhaps counterattack and respond to England’s methods. Conditions can vary a lot with the weather in England. More than a test of his ability, this tour will be a test of Jaiswal’s adaptability. And he’s shown plenty of ability to adapt already.

The top-order batter knows he is in a selection race ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup

Andrew McGlashan02-Oct-2025Tim Robinson admitted to mixed emotions after his maiden T20I century against Australia, both from the fact that it was in defeat and also that his opportunity to play only came because of misfortune to a team-mate.Robinson had not been due to feature in the opening match of the series until Rachin Ravindra was ruled out having suffered a nasty facial injury colliding with the boundary board during training.Shortly after walking in at No. 3, Robinson was faced with a scoreboard that read 6 for 3 in the second over. But he was able to transform that into a respectable total of 181 having turned 10 off 14 balls into a century from 65 deliveries, brought up when he scooped Ben Dwarshuis to fine leg off the penultimate ball of the innings. However, it still proved well short of challenging a power-packed Australia line-up who cantered home with 21 balls to spare.Related

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“Bittersweet is a perfect way to describe it,” Robinson said. “It’s definitely a bit of a double-edged sword. I’m obviously personally pretty happy with how I went but probably trumped by the fact that we lost that game.”I wasn’t expecting to play,” he added. “Firstly, I’m really disappointed and upset for [Rachin], and he’s one of my close mates. It’s horrible to see him injure himself and miss out on playing for a team that he loves.”But in saying that, it’s given me an opportunity. So that’s, again, a weird feeling, because I wouldn’t be playing tonight if that didn’t happen. I’m always grateful for any opportunity I can to put on a black jersey, that’s for sure. But I’m really disappointed and gutted that my mate’s gone home. So it’s a bit of a funny one.”Robinson’s hasty call into the XI also meant some hurried conversations with his dad, David, back on the family farm in Rangitikei, lower North Island, where Tim himself had been helping just a week earlier having returned from his county stint with Northamptonshire. After doing farm work on Wednesday morning, David made the four-hour journey to Bay Oval to watch his son score a century.”We had all hands on deck last weekend for docking [sheep],” Robinson said. “We smashed through them. I got off the plane from England…and was straight into it on Saturday and Sunday. It was good. I was on the horse, so I didn’t even have to walk, so I was happy.”Robinson is now averaging 38.40 from his first 13 T20Is with a strike-rate of 137.63 after making his debut in Pakistan last year. His unbeaten 106 trumped the 75 not out he made against South Africa in Zimbabwe during July’s tri-series, where despite that innings he was only able to play two matches.Robinson knows he’s in a selection race for next year’s T20 World Cup with New Zealand having plenty of top-order options if everyone is available. Alongside Ravindra, they are missing Finn Allen and Kane Williamson against Australia from those who will compete for places in the top three.”Absolutely [this is a] trial window,” he said. “And that’s why I want to make the most of everything that comes my way. I love it. Competition for spots is fantastic. It breeds hunger and it’s sort of uplifting for everybody. I think it’s fantastic that we’ve got such good competition for spots and making [head coach] Rob [Walter’s] job really hard. My goal is [to] make him make hard decisions.”

Arsenal star Gabriel aimed a dig at Richarlison on Instagram after the 4-1 victory against Tottenham Hotspur in Sunday’s North London derby.

The Gunners capitalised on Manchester City’s slip-up at Newcastle United by defeating Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, solidifying their place at the top of the Premier League table by moving six points clear of nearest-rivals Chelsea.

With just under a third of the campaign played, it is still very early days for Mikel Arteta’s side, but they will no doubt be starting to believe they can finally go all the way this season, having finished second for three years on the spin.

After blitzing Spurs at the weekend, the north Londoners are now the joint-highest scorers in the Premier League, while they also have the best defensive record, having shipped just six goals this term, four fewer than any other side.

Gabriel has been key to the solid record at the back, having formed a formidable partnership with William Saliba, although the centre-back was forced to miss the North London derby after suffering a hamstring injury on international duty with Brazil.

Gabriel takes swipe at Richarlison on Instagram

Despite recently linking up with Richarlison on international duty, with Brazil suffering a 3-2 defeat against Japan, before going on to defeat Senegal 2-1, Gabriel couldn’t resist having a dig at the striker, tagging him in his celebratory Instagram post after the match.

Although the defender was ruled out for Sunday’s game, he had a dig at his compatriot, who was arguably one of Spurs’ better performers, having scored their only goal of the game, catching out David Raya with a strike from distance.

However, that long-range effort was the centre-forward’s only major contribution, having struggled to make an impact on proceedings, completing just five of the ten passes he attempted throughout the match.

Piero Hincapie, on the other hand, looked solid in Gabriel’s absence, making four clearances, one interception and one tackle to keep Spurs at bay, with the visitors being limited to very few chances.

Arteta will no doubt be hoping to have the Brazil international back soon, having recently said: “It’s clearly a blow. It’s our leader in our backline. To miss him is never a positive thing. The good thing is we have some very good options. They need to stand up now.”

However, having recruited well in the summer, signing Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera to bolster squad depth, Arsenal should fancy their chances heading into a congested run of fixtures.

Gabriel has been named as one of the best centre-backs in the world Related The Best 15 Centre-Backs in World Football Ranked (2025)

Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk is one of the best defenders in the world.

Posts ByCharlie Smith Nov 20, 2025

Italy captain says when he is asked about the plan for the 2026 World Cup, his reply is, they’re planning to “win every game”

Matt Roller12-Jul-2025At least one will play at a next year. Italian football is in chaos: their men’s national team have a proud World Cup history but have failed to reach the last two, and sacked their manager after losing the opening match of their qualifying group for the 2026 edition. But in a small Dutch town on Friday, their cricketers created their own legacy.Italy lost by nine wickets to Netherlands in Voorburg, but Jersey’s win over Scotland earlier in the day – and their own results over the previous week – meant that it did not matter. Instead, Italy wrapped up one of the two spots available at the European Qualifiers for next year’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, the first time that Italy have reached a major ICC event.”It’s still very surreal,” Joe Burns, Italy’s captain, told ESPNcricinfo on Saturday morning. “We’ll probably take a few weeks to get home and decompress a bit to fully realise the impact that the occasion will have on so many people. It was an emotional moment that we’re going to try and reflect on as a group as much as we can over the next few months.”The crucial result for Italy was their 12-run win over Scotland on Wednesday. It was launched by Emilio Gay, the Durham opener, who cracked 50 off 21 balls; set up by Grant Stewart, the Kent allrounder, who hit 44 not out off 27; and sealed by Harry Manenti, who has played a couple of BBL games for Adelaide Strikers, and took 5 for 31 with his medium pace.Those names are reflective of a disparate group of players who are based all over the world, but their heritage provides a common thread. Burns’ own story is typical: his roots are in Calabria, in southern Italy, but his grandfather was a prisoner-of-war in North Africa during the second world war and the family relocated to Australia. He has always felt a connection with Italy, and made his debut for them last year.

“I think we had six Australian-born players in our team yesterday… If we do play Australia and I’m on the field, it’ll obviously be a very special occasion”Joe Burns

It was a long way removed from his first international career, which saw him hit four hundreds in his 23 Tests for Australia. “When you play for Australia, there’s such a history to the baggy green that you’re honouring the past and representing the people that have gone before,” Burns said. “When you’re playing for Italy, it’s very much a blank canvas, trying to shape the future.”Burns first reached out to Cricket Italia in 2009, when qualification rules were stricter, and had to undergo a three-year cooling-off period from his final Australia appearance, in 2020, before he became eligible. But he has thrown himself into his new challenge, taking over the captaincy this summer, and has worn the number 85 shirt in tribute to his late brother, Dominic.”A lot of our grandparents left Italy after World War II, so it’s very much a shared story to come together and to represent past generations,” he said. “I know my grandparents would be very proud, and I know mum and dad have been following the games really closely. There are Italians dispersed all over the world, and I hope this team is a beacon for Italians everywhere.”Burns admires his medal•International Cricket CouncilItaly ramped up preparations for the qualifiers last month with a training camp in Rome, and Burns has demanded the full focus of his team-mates: “I told the guys that I don’t care if we’re playing Luxembourg in the sub-regional qualifiers or India in a T20 World Cup final: I want our team to be the most prepared team in world cricket for every game that we play.”This has all come together on the back of a lot of planning. People ask me what the goal for the World Cup is and I say, ‘Look, we’re planning and preparing to win every game – so we’re planning to win the World Cup.’ I want the guys to enjoy the experience and play with freedom – but you have to earn the right to play with freedom on the back of really solid preparation.”Cricket is a niche sport in Italy, but World Cup qualification will unlock new sources of funding. “It will go a long way for us,” Burns said. “We don’t have any turf facilities, and very little facilities in general, but this gives us an opportunity to develop the game. We’ve had a lot of support from CONI (the Italian Olympic Committee) which keeps building in the background.Time to celebrate after Italy qualified for the T20 World Cup for the first time•International Cricket Council”Associate cricket is very much the grassroots of international cricket, so for us, it’s about trying to unlock funding and build facilities to create opportunities for future generations to come. It’s very rewarding. At different stages in your career, you have different motivations, and I think this came at a really good time for me. It really reinvigorated my love for the game.”Italy will welcome back Wayne Madsen – a man with more than 20,000 runs in county cricket to his name – for the World Cup after he missed the qualifiers due to his Derbyshire commitments, but Burns hinted that he himself may step aside before the main event. “This [qualification] was such a big goal for me,” he said. “It’s probably going to take me a few months to think about it.”But if Burns, 35, does play on, there is one team he would relish the chance to face next year. “We’ve said briefly as a group that we want the big stage. We want to be drawn against the best in the world, and we want to take it on. I think we had six Australian-born players in our team yesterday… If we do play Australia and I’m on the field, it’ll obviously be a very special occasion.”

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Mais de R$ 220 milhões em reforços entre os anos de 2023 e 2024. Sem técnico. Sem patrocínio máster. Sem Diretor Comercial. Promessas de grandes melhorias no CT Moacyr Barbosa. Três pontos de 12 disputados no Brasileirão. Este é o panorama atual do Vasco.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasFora de CampoNarrador da Globo viraliza ao falar da torcida do Vasco: ‘Aplaude o momento histórico que vivemos’Fora de Campo27/04/2024Fora de CampoJornalistas e influenciadores detonam Vasco após derrota: ‘Ridículo, péssimo’Fora de Campo27/04/2024Fora de CampoJornalista dá forte declaração após goleada do Criciúma em cima do Vasco e detona equipe: ‘Desprezível’Fora de Campo27/04/2024

➡️ Tudo sobre o Gigante agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso canal Lance! Vasco

Panorama fora de campo que se reflete nas quatro linhas e sugere ao torcedor, o maior patrimônio do Vasco, que o clube terá mais um ano de sofrimento. São muitos “sem” para uma gestão, que aparentemente, não aprendeu com os erros de um passado recente. 2023 foi logo ali.

O Vasco vai para o quarto técnico no comando e para o terceiro diretor executivo de futebol. Antes de Ramón Díaz, Jorginho e Barbieri foram os treinadores. Como dirigentes cruz-maltinos, Paulo Bracks e Alexandre Mattos antecederam Pedro Martins, que tem o acerto encaminhado.

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Quais são os reforços da “Era SAF”, dentro dos mais de R$ 220 milhões gastos, que são unanimidade? Apenas Léo Jardim, Lucas Piton, Paulinho e Vegetti.

Há responsáveis no Rio de Janeiro, sim. No entanto, os maiores culpados estão nos Estados Unidos. Por que a 777 Partners e a 777 Football Group não se manifestam? Porque os donos da SAF não se comunicam com o torcedor? Qual o protejo esportivo do grupo? São essas e tantas outras perguntas que os vascaínos se fazem e estão sem respostas até então.

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Quem vê se questiona se foi para isso que o Vasco se tornou SAF, que de fato foi uma solução financeira para o clube. Porém, não é o dinheiro que entra em campo.

Grande parte dos que cobram não estão torcendo contra, muito menos estão sorrindo com o caos. Na verdade, só querem parar de ver o Vasco agonizando por mais alguns anos.

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Chaos was on the menu in Williamsport, Pa. Wednesday night.

In an elimination game that went to extra innings at the Little League World Series, the team representing the Southeast region from Irmo, S.C. gave up five runs in the top of the seventh inning to their opponent out of the Midwest region from Sioux Falls, S.D.

With just three outs for South Carolina to overcome a five-run deficit to keep their LLWS title hopes alive they somehow pulled it off.

The rally started right away in the bottom half of the seventh as South Carolina had their first batter draw a walk to fill the empty first base before they drove in a run on their next at-bat. Brayden Gerard doubled next to drive in the second run of the inning to trim South Dakota's lead to three runs.

Then South Dakota let up two walks in a row, first to load the bases and then to force in a run. South Carolina's next batter struck out, putting South Dakota two outs away from shutting the door, albeit in a bases-loaded jam.

Another bases-loaded walk drove in one more run that cut the lead down to one run, which put South Carolina one base away from completing a miraculous comeback in extras. Their catcher, Andrew Bogan, played hero when he stepped up to the plate, doubling to right to secure the walk-off win despite a valiant effort from South Dakota right fielder Grayson Rehfeldt who laid out to try and make the grab.

You can watch the wild sequence with all of South Carolina's scoring plays to win the game in extras below:

Great time for an offensive explosion from both sides who each scored one run apiece in the first six innings.

South Carolina keeps the dream alive and will play the team from Las Vegas representing the Mountain region Thursday in yet another elimination game. The winner of South Carolina and Las Vegas will move on to the United States final against Fairfield, Conn. out of the Metro region. We'll see if South Carolina has some magic left.

تحدث مدرب أتلتيكو مدريد، دييجو سيميوني، في مؤتمر صحفي اليوم قبل مباراة الفريق أمام برشلونة ببطولة الدوري الإسباني.

ويحل أتلتيكو مدريد ضيفًا على برشلونة، في مباراة مقدمة من الجولة التاسعة عشر للدوري الإسباني، وتقام غدًا الثلاثاء على ملعب “سبوتيفاي كامب نو”.

وافتتح سيميوني الحديث بشأن كلمات فليك مشيدًا بأتلتيكو مدريد، وقال في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “آس” الإسبانية: “لا أعلق أبدًا على آراء الآخرين؛ لكلٍّ رأيه الخاص، نواصل العمل على التحسين كفريق، لدينا مجال أكبر بكثير للتحسين مما أظهرناه”.

وأضاف: “المباراة التي نتوقعها واضحة جدًا، لديهم هجوم مذهل، وأسلوب لعب قوي جدًا، وعلينا أن نكون أقوياء للمنافسة، علينا أن ندفع المباراة إلى أقصى حد ممكن لنتمكن من إلحاق الضرر بهم”.

وإذا كان برشلونة هو المرشح الأوفر حظًا، رد: “إنه فريق أثبت جدارته، لا يغيرون استراتيجيتهم الهجومية وخط دفاعهم المتقدم، لديهم خيارات متعددة”. 

اقرأ أيضًا | هاجمه ريال مدريد.. حكم مباراة برشلونة وأتلتيكو مدريد في الدوري الإسباني

وسُئل سيميوني عن الدرس المُستفاد لفريقه من مباراتي آرسنال وليفربول بدوري الأبطال، وأجاب: “إنها مبارياتٌ مختلفة، ولكلٍّ منها أسلوبه الخاص، سنرى كيف سنؤدي غدًا”.

وكان أتلتيكو مدريد تعرض لهزيمة من ليفربول بنتيجة 3-2، وتلقى هزيمة برباعية دون رد من آرسنال.

وأشاد بلاعبه خيمينيز، مؤكدًا: “إنه لاعب بالغ الأهمية بالنسبة لنا، أتمنى أن يحافظ على مستواه”.

وعن دي بورجوس، حكم مباراة الغد، رد سيميوني باقتضاب: “لا أعلق عادةً على الحكام، أحترمهم كثيرًا، وأحاول مساعدتهم”.

وبشأن صورة فليك ورافينها عقب مباراة برشلونة وألافيس، أتم: “هذا طبيعي، فنحن بشر ولدينا مشاعر، من السهل أن نرى ونطلب أشياءً من على مقاعد البدلاء، اللعب ليس سهلاً، ولعب مباريات متتالية أمرٌ معقد، من وجهة نظرنا، نسعى دائمًا للأفضل”.

The Mets ended their losing streak in fashion on Tuesday night, beating the Braves 13–5. New York came into the game having lost 11 of their last 12 and broke out with six home runs, including two from Pete Alonso as he became the franchise's all-time leader in the category.

The Mets hit so many home runs that the crew at Citi Field didn't have enough fireworks to celebrate them all properly. By the time Brett Baty hit the team's sixth homer of the game to tie the franchise record for home runs in a home game, the Home Run Apple appeared too tired to rise.

If only Baty had waited a couple pitches so the apple could catch its breath. Things got so bad that Citi Field had to put an announcement on the scoreboard apologizing for running out of fireworks.

In addition to Alonso and Baty, Francisco Alvarez added two of his own and Brandon Nimmo hit the other home run.

The Mets record for home runs in a game remains eight.

Pundit Jamie Carragher has issued an apology to Eberechi Eze after seeing the Arsenal star bag a hat-trick for the Gunners in a 4-1 north London derby victory over Tottenham. The Liverpool legend admits he has "undervalued" the transfer and now feels the former Crystal Palace man has the ability to make a real impact for Mikel Arteta's side as they bid to land the Premier League title.

Eze steals show in north London derby win

Eze was the hero for Arsenal in a 4-1 win over Tottenham at the Emirates on Sunday, scoring three times and taking home the match ball as the Gunners extended their lead at the top of the table to six points. The England international, who came close to joining Spurs in the summer before making the switch to Arsenal instead, admitted after the game it was "special" to score his first professional hat-trick as he became just the fourth player to net three times in a north London derby. His performance also ensured Carragher has been forced to change his mind about the forward after initially being sceptical of his big-money move to the Gunners from Crystal Palace.

AdvertisementCarragher apologises to Arsenal and Eze

Carragher apologised to Eze after the game and explained why he was initially unimpressed with the transfer. He told Sky Sports: "I must be honest, I think in the summer when Arsenal signed him and I had my Liverpool hat on and I looked at the signings Arsenal made and besides [Victor] Gyokeres, it felt a lot of them were to strengthen the squad really. So where Arsenal had problems the year before was when Saka was out, so they bought Madueke. Odegaard was out, they got Eze. One of the centre-backs was missing so they got another couple of centre-backs. It was only really Gyokeres you felt was going to go into the team and if I’m being honest, I think if Havertz was 100 per cent fit, Havertz would have probably been the centre-forward in this team.  

"So when Eze came in, I thought 'OK maybe it’s not a game-changer' and Les [Ferdinand] knows him a lot better than me and he still said earlier in the show that there’s still more to come. But we are still seeing some of his highlights this season, a few great goals in there and then he goes and gets a hat-trick. So, apologies. I’ve certainly undervalued the importance of that signing because he looks like he could make the real difference for Arsenal this season and going on to win the title."

Eze 'could have scored four or five'

Arsenal boss Arteta was full of praise for Eze after the win and felt his summer signing could have scored even more goals against Thomas Frank's side. He told BBC Sport: "That tells you about the difficulty and what he's done today. To be fair he could have scored four or five. He's a big player who can create magic moments which unbalance a team. We dominated every part of the game. We created massive chances and had a lot of actions that we were very close to scoring. We stayed patient. Whoever we put in there they do the jobs for us. This squad has the belief and quality to deliver consistently. We have really good momentum but you can see how difficult every game in the Premier League is. It's a long run, let's go game by game. Let's enjoy tonight, then we have Bayern here and Chelsea away. We have a tough week."

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Getty Images SportArsenal up against Kane and Bayern next

Arsenal and Eze will now switch focus to the Champions League and a visit from Harry Kane's Bayern Munich next. The former Tottenham man heads to the Emirates in prolific form, having scored 14 goals in just 11 Bundesliga outings and five goals in four Champions League matches for Bayern so far this season. Both teams go into the match with perfect records in the competition so far in 2025-26, meaning something will have to give at the Emirates on Wednesday night.

Liverpool suffered yet another defeat, their eighth in 11 games across all competitions, as the troubles continue to mount at Anfield. Arne Slot’s side were thrashed 3-0 at the hands of Nottingham Forest, who have now won away to the Reds in two consecutive seasons.

It was a dire performance once again from the Merseysiders, who looked short of any sort of creative ideas and weak at the back. The first goal came from a corner again, with Murillo peeling away into space and picking up a loose ball, which he fired past the returning Alisson to put Forest 1-0 up.

The East Midlands outfit thought they had a second, but Igor Jesus saw his goal disallowed for a contentious handball. Their second came seconds into the second half, with right-back Nicolo Savona ghosting into the penalty box and hammering home from ten yards or so.

Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White capped off a wonderful day out for his side in the 78th minute. After brilliant play from Omari Hutchinson, he saw his shot saved by Alisson. However, the Brazilian could only palm it into the path of Gibbs-White, who clinically finished to seal the win.

It was another poor showing from the Reds, with Alexander Isak struggling once again.

Alexander Isak’s stats vs. Forest

The start of Isak’s Liverpool career has been very stop-start. He’s missed six games in total, for various reasons, and hasn’t played in the Premier League since the 19th of October.

His return to top-flight action against Forest was disappointing.

The Sweden international, who is still searching for his first Premier League goal in Red, was hooked by Slot after just 68 minutes, with his side still searching for two goals to bring them back into the game.

Indeed, his numbers reflect just how poor a performance it was from Isak. He managed just 15 touches, losing possession seven times, and only had one shot, which accumulated an expected goals tally of 0.13xG.

Touches

15

Number of times ball lost

7

Passes completed

6

Duels won

0/7

Shots

1

Expected goals

0.13xG

One person who was critical of the Liverpool number nine was Goal journalist Stephen Darwin. He gave the Swede a 2/10 for his performance at Anfield, pointing out that he ‘wasn’t even close to breaking his duck’ when it comes to Premier League goals.

However, the blame cannot solely lie with the striker, who didn’t necessarily get the service he needed.

Two players who struggled to get the ball to Isak

One of the key things that Darwin stressed in his review of Isak’s performance was the fact that he ‘hardly had a kick’ of the ball. Of course, 15 touches makes for poor reading, but you still have to provide the ball for your centre-forward.

Two of the players who struggled with exactly that were wingers Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah. Generally speaking, it was not the worst performance, with Salah creating three chances and Gakpo one, although they were sloppy in possession, losing the ball a combined 53 times.

However, it was their service to the Reds centre-forward which was inadequate at best. According to Stats Zone, the Liverpool number ten passes to Isak just three times, and Dutch international Gakpo twice.

That is certainly not the level of service he needs to help him start finding his best form in front of goal. Perhaps it is due to the clash of profiles. Both Salah and Gakpo are inside forwards who like to cut inside, entering similar areas to those Isak operates in.

Alternatively, the problem could simply be a lack of time spent on the pitch with their new teammate. Isak has missed such a large portion of the season that it simply might take some time for the trio to gel.

Regardless, it is a problem Slot must fix quickly. The Reds’ form is a huge concern, as they slip further down the Premier League table. The Dutchman must get his big-money striker and first-choice wingers firing, as they look to rectify this poor form.

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