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In five minutes, Nathan Lyon was twice ruled not-out, controversially. The Twitter world did not hold back

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Nov-2015Nathan Lyon’s attempt at sweeping Mitchell Santner ended with Kane Williamson catching the ball at gully, and New Zealand appealed immediately. Umpire S Ravi ruled not-out, but Brendon McCullum reviewed the decision because New Zealand thought the ball had hit the top edge, lobbed off Lyon’s shoulder and been caught. Drama ensued.Hot Spot showed a faint mark on the edge of Lyon’s bat and there appeared to be some deviation, but the third umpire Nigel Llong ruled that there wasn’t enough conclusive evidence to overturn the decision because of unfavourable camera angles and real-time snicko indicating no edge.

Hmmm… interesting DRS. I believe that is out, despite being an Aussie supporter. #AUSvNZ

— Lisa Sthalekar (@sthalekar93) November 28, 2015

Do we need more to show that Nathan Lyon actually top edged that.Using technology is one thing,while interpreting 'IT' is another. #AusvNZ

— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) November 28, 2015

To make matters worse, Lyon had started walking off after seeing the Hot Spot replay on the big screen at the Adelaide Oval.

Obvious mark on hot-spot, Lyon clearly hit the ball on to his shoulder & he walked off the ground. Ridiculous waste of time & wrong decision

— Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) November 28, 2015

Because there was no evidence to suggest an edge, Llong even considered whether Lyon could have been lbw.

one review, all the DRS toys on show #AUSvNZ

— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) November 28, 2015

However, that didn’t work too well.

Somehow they managed to review ball 53.4 for a catch and 53.3 for the lbw #AUSvNZ

— Brydon Coverdale (@brydoncoverdale) November 28, 2015

Though the on-field umpires have had most of their decisions upheld when reviewed in this series.

So after all that the umps now 16 from 16 for DRS. #AusvNZ #pinkball

— Jesse Hogan (@Jesse_Hogan) November 28, 2015

On television, Llong was heard suggesting to Ravi that the Hot Spot mark could have been caused by anything, and that he couldn’t be sure it was from Lyon edging the ball.

What is ANYTHING the DRS umpire considered caused the hot spot on the bat of Lyon

— Matthew Hayden AM (@HaydosTweets) November 28, 2015

I can only assume Lyon's bat has partially combusted – spontaneously. #hotspot #AUSvNZ

— Mike Thorpe (@MikeThorpeTVNZ) November 28, 2015

There were a few jokes around Lyon’s stand on walking.

So, does that mean Nathan Lyon is 'walker' or not a 'walker' from what we've just seen? I'm not sure… He sort of did both.

— Adam White (@White_Adam) November 28, 2015

But it was clear that the decision had an impact on the match.

This is now the highest partnership in the match so far. That review gets more and more significant with every run. #ausvnz

— Brydon Coverdale (@brydoncoverdale) November 28, 2015

De Villiers’ excellent batting let the Sunday crowd at Newlands party all day

Samantha Smith05-Jan-2015Choice of game
The sun’s out, it’s the weekend and South Africa’s middle order is batting in a Test match at picturesque Newlands. The average cricket supporter needs no further convincing!Team supported
South Africa. I’m an avid cricket lover and student of the game. However, it would be remiss of me to attempt to remain a neutral spectator. I’ve supported the Proteas since the age of 8 and the idea of cheering any other side is an uncomfortable thought.Key performer
AB de Villiers top-scored for the Proteas with 148. He produced a marvellous knock smashing 15 fours and a six during his 194-ball innings. He put on 97 for the fourth wicket with Hashim Amla and 96 for the sixth with Stiaan van Zyl. His efforts ensured South Africa achieved a helpful lead and, unlike several other batsmen in this Test, he managed to convert a good start into a big score.One thing I’d have changed about the match
Amla and de Villiers are without a doubt the batting pillars of South African cricket. The opportunity to watch this duo bat together in a Test at a venue like Newlands is an understated privilege. To this end, I would have loved to have seen Amla capitalise on an excellent start, if only to watch him bat longer.The interplay I enjoyed
While most batsmen nervously fumble as they near a century, de Villiers raced toward his 21st hundred. In the 99th over, he smashed Marlon Samuels for 16 runs, reaching his century with a reverse sweep off the final ball of the over. Fearless and authoritative, he continues to enthrall everyone who has the pleasure of watching him bat.Wow moment
Leon Johnson’s direct hit from cover to run out Dale Steyn was a simply brilliant piece of fielding which stunted South Africa’s chances of achieving a lead of 100 and generated many gasps from the partisan crowd.Close encounter
I was seated in Upper Block K of the President’s Pavilion, which is directly adjacent to the West Indies’ balcony. Pockets of enthusiastic fans seated in the area lined the steps leading up to the West Indies change room. Children adorning Protea shirts eagerly clutched their mini wooden bats and notebooks patiently waiting for autographs from whichever players would oblige.Shot of the day
De Villiers’ straight drive off the bowling of Jason Holder in the 70th over took the cake. But his sublimely executed on drive off the same bowler in the 100th over took the whole bakery!Crowd meter
A near-capacity crowd cruised into Newlands for the third day’s play. The Railway Stand and the upper tiers of the North Stand were choc-a-bloc. Unsurprisingly, the Oaks grass embankment and the Snake Pit were so full that a match stick would feel suffocated. The crowd became livelier as the morning wore on and South Africa piled on the runs. A Mexican wave made four circuits an hour before the tea break and the folks in the Railway Stand sang the national anthem with great applause from other sections of the ground. In appreciation of his bowling prowess, the Newlands faithful vociferously cheered on Steyn as he strode out to bat. If you don’t usually watch cricket you’d be excused for thinking Steyn was a prolific opening batsman.Fancy dress index
I spotted green afro wigs, a brigade of watermelon hats and hundreds of spectators decked out in the green and gold paraphernalia of the Proteas. Three gentlemen came as superheroes using SA flags as capes, and one lady wore a neon green bodysuit. A large group of lively, chanting supporters dressed up as Hashim Amla. They adorned Test whites, wide-brimmed hats and detachable beards. Their efforts were pleasantly recognised as they performed a lap of honour around the field during the lunch break.Entertainment
The PA system frequently blared the smooth reggae tunes of yesteryear interspersed with current fast-paced Dancehall tracks. No doubt a nod to the Calypso flavour of the West Indies team. During the lunch break, the crowd was entertained by the children from KFC Mini Cricket who excitedly accepted the opportunity to play cricket on the same field as their idols.Tests v limited-overs
Test cricket is the only format of the game which thoroughly tests a player’s skill, stamina and powers of concentration. There is very little you can get from a T20 which you cannot derive from a Test. From India’s miraculous victory over Australia at Eden Gardens in 2001 to South Africa’s nail-biting draw against India at the Wanderers in 2013, Test cricket is as exciting as the shorter formats of the game.Accessories
I opted to bring along a pair of binoculars, and it proved a good decision. The clarity and focus of the images were so crisp that I could see fragments of the pitch bounce up when a batsman marked his guard. I felt like a fly on the helmet of a wicketkeeper.Banner of the day
“South Africa, you inspire Protea Fire” emblazoned across a giant South Africa flag floating over a section of seats in an adjacent stand certainly caught my attention. Technically, it wasn’t a banner but it was arguably the most inspiring, and definitely the most eye-catching, non-verbal display of support.Marks out of 10
9. Great weather, an excellent atmosphere and a sublime century from AB de Villiers made for a brilliant day at the cricket.

From TS Trudgian, Canada

Cricinfo25-Feb-2013
Simon Katich’s strengths are his patience and his ability to adapt to the situation•AFPHis bizarre footwork aside, Simon Katich is surely the opener’s opener. His ability to leave the ball, patiently, over after over, is something that is reminiscent of an old-fashioned approach to cricket. The price he puts on his wicket has been analysed by statisticians hither and yon, but in my mind his temperament must surely single him out as one of our most outstanding opening batsmen, and , give us the first of many head starts to the Ashes.The traditional opening bat is almost as rare these days as a smear-free election campaign. It is, after all, a classic exercise in investing in an innings. Our conventional opener will not be alarmed to face consecutive maidens, given that batting is only going to become easier once he adapts to the conditions of the wicket, the variations in the bowling attack, and gets his feet and body moving with fluent, if not Calypso, rhythm. Some ne’er-do-well pundits will say that in the modern game of scoring four runs an over or (better – read worse – when India and Sri Lanka engage in another run-bloated draw: 700 for 4 plays 650 for 6 — bowlers: thanks for coming) there is no place for indulgence in dot balls and ‘getting the eye in’ over the course of a session. Hello, Mr Sehwag.But even these maverick commentators will concede that 80* from 150 balls is much better than a biff-laden bludgeoning of 30 from 20, before planting the feet in concrete for yet another cavalier uppercut over point, only to be caught at third man. By your leave, Mr Sehwag.Here, though, is where the Kat gets the cream. He will play on and on, letting balls go, nurdling them onto the leg-side for ones and twos, and get to 20 from 80 deliveries. But then he opens up, and not in a power-play how-do-you-do manner, but he uses the time and energy he has hitherto invested into his innings, and starts to kick back, living the high life on the interest payments.His pair of 80s in the first MCC Spirit of Cricket Test against Pakistan this last English summer, proved that, albeit in different ways. In both innings he top-scored — in the first at a reasonable clip (80 from 138), and in the second, when he was trying like Lot to escape but his partners kept on looking behind them, he scored 83 from 174.The first innings would test the patience of these Johnny-come-latelies who are infatuated with Twenty20 tonking. Indeed, I was watching in the early hours of the Canadian morning, and saw his strike-rate tip lower and lower, almost falling through the ‘10’ mark could you imagine?! But then, once he was in, he pushed and cut (he doesn’t cut as well as B.C. Lara, but then, who does?) his way out of the doldrums. He never looked like getting out. I write that sheepishly, since, during the ball on which he was finally dismissed, it was plain to anyone with half an eye and a cork tooth that he looked like getting out. Anyway, he is not afraid to toe the traditional line of looking after your wicket, while the runs look after themselves.Certainly he is not in the same sphere of influence as Matthew Hayden, who could take a game away from the opposition with a session of front-foot pulls and, almost Trudgian-esque, advancing down the wicket. But it is the patience of Katich and his ability to adapt to the situation (cf. the first and second innings mentioned above) which gives him the edge. Moreover, the manner in which he scores his runs is very traditional. With the exception of his despatching a few long hops and full tosses, his run-scoring strokes in front of the wicket are invariably produced from soft, seemingly too soft, pushes.That the defensive stroke can be turned into a run-scoring stroke without any loss of the technical sheen (viz. wristy flicks across the line) is a salute to the openers of the past. There might even be a nurdle to the leg-side, but with Katich it will be played with even softer hands than it will with Collingwood, the nurdliest of all nurdlers. A small push, timed to perfection. And how does he guarantee the timing for such a stroke? By having watched ball and ball pass by, investing in his innings and knowing that, when he does play at the ball, there is a high chance that this will yield the mono-syllabic declaration of approval that Michael Holding gives on air, ‘Runs.’

Nagraj Gollapudi sat in the stands along with Wahab Riaz’s family and thousands of Indian and Pakistani fans. The journalist inside him found it difficult to remain neutral in the charged-up atmosphere

Nagraj Gollapudi at the PCA Stadium31-Mar-2011I asked Annie, sister of Wahab Riaz, why she and the rest of the family were not sitting in the VIP enclosures granted to the players’ near and dear ones. Annie, shaking her head, said they wanted to feel the emotions of the people and immerse themselves into the big occasion that was an India versus Pakistan match. She said there was no way she and her family would sit anywhere else than with the crowd. It is a unique experience. Only few events in team sport – probably ‘The Old Firm’ (Rangers v Celtic) – attract such fervour where the political tensions and the fractured history between two neighbours stoke up the fires when they meet on the field of play. “We wanted to sit in the crowds to experience the atmosphere,” Annie said.And it was atmosphere. The journalist inside me found it hard to stay neutral, to sit on my seat and not stand up and dance, to be part of the Mexican wave, to chant slogans, cheer, jeer, dance, clap. It was impossible to sit and stay quiet. Even if I tried to, the fans around me would shout, stare, whistle, scream in my ears and make sure I was distracted. It was hard being a neutral when the rest around me were gunning for Pakistan’s downfall.At 2 pm, when Shahid Afridi called the toss wrong the crowd came up with a spirited cheer. When Sachin Tendulkar walked out in the company of Virender Sehwag to open the Indian innings it grew a few more notches. When Sehwag slapped Umar Gul for a powerful cover drive the noise reached a crescendo. Mohali was rocking and Lahore, supposedly closer to Chandigarh than New Delhi is, could have heard the noise. Back in Mohali, Afridi had swung his hands like the pendulum in the old wall clock before pacing a few steps up and down the pitch while MS Dhoni told Ravi Shastri that there was no pressure playing in front of a full house at home. Afridi said the semi-final was his biggest match as captain.”Is it a big game”, I asked a couple of Pakistani fans. One of them, holding aloft the Pakistan flag, simply said “we just want to enjoy.” Minutes later an Indian gentleman walked up to the same fan, and politely shook hands and exchanged courtesies. “All the best brother,” the Indian man said very formally. When the time came for the team’s national anthems, every Indian stood up and sang proudly. According to Sharda Ugra, ESPNcricinfo’s senior editor, who has seen every India match this World Cup, this was the first time the whole stadium was singing the national anthem so loudly. The captains, who need to behave as ambassadors for their countries, can be diplomatic but the fan is always stirred by the rivalry, which is registered in his subconscious. And he uses events like today to make sure he is heard. In a bizarre way it does instill belief in the players.Today when India seemed to have floundered after getting off to a bright start and seemed to be losing the plot once Dhoni played a wrong shot, the fans sitting around me started singing religious chants intensely. Men, women, boys, girls all gathered force to give momentum to the prayer. In that moment, these people seemed less like cricket fans and more like belonging to some cult. It was not blind, this fervour. The fans do believe that they can uplift the tempo of the match and they would do anything possible to help their team. A good example was when superstitions took over instinctively when the Pakistan wickets failed to fall at the desired rate. Many clairvoyant fans kept predicting the outcome on the next delivery and kept failing but did not give up. “Sit down, sit down, wickets are falling,” said a fan speaking with a South Indian accent. The rest of the fans obliged. Everyone urged others to join the wave of emotion and support. It was contagious.The fan uses events like today to make sure he is heard•Getty ImagesA group of Indian teenage girls squeaked ” (Pakistan will win).” As soon as they started chanting in support of Pakistan, the Indians around them rolled their eyes. But the girls had not yet delivered the punch line. “India . Ha ha ha (India played a joke),” the girls chuckled their way and drew a good clap. The Pakistani fan corner was not quiet either. When the Indian middle order lost its way after the fall of Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh the Pakistanis unveiled a banner that read: “Munnis & Sheelas are back in the pavilion,” after two famous Bollywood numbers. There was a lot of eye-balling from the Indians of the miniscule Pakistan fans’ contingent, which was like a drop to the ocean of the Indian tri-colour. Most of the Pakistan fans were either top functionaries in the PCB or in a corporate sponsor of the Pakistan board. They were not used to listening to people but today they were heckled.Riaz, who bowled spectacularly to pick his maiden ODI five-for, returned from the field briefly during the change of innings carrying a few bottles of water meant for his family sitting in the stands. Seven members of his family including his parents, sister, younger brother and a niece had travelled by road to reach Chandigarh close to midnight on Tuesday. Annie, trying hard to keep her daughter in check in the crowded stands, said that her brother, before leaving for the World Cup, had said that the one thing he would like to do if Pakistan met India was to erase the bad memories of the only time he had played them in the past. Few years ago in Dhaka, in a tri-series, Riaz was belted for 86 off 9.2 overs before being removed midway into his final over after he bowled consecutive beamers. “He just said that he was not under any pressure at all and would do his best,” Annie said.Everybody wanted to be a hero. ” (Go India)”, a middle-aged, rotund Pakistan fan, who had been waving his flag and dancing all day, screamed looking in the direction of the Indian fans. Instantly he drew big cheers. A fan recorded himself for posterity, citing that he was part of “such a high voltage match. It is a crazy atmosphere,” he screamed into the phone as he pirouetted on one leg to catch a 360 degree angle of the stadium. On days like these every fan becomes an actor. The cricket arena becomes a world stage.Outside in the streets after India’s victory fans blew horns, sat atop roofs and bonnets of their four-wheelers screaming “Indiaaaa, Indiaaaa”. Fireworks lit up the sky as groups of people gathered around various town squares to dance to the popular music. An ice-cream vendor even gave a discount of five rupees.Yet in the end one image remained. A five-year-old toddler sat in the front row to my right. Throughout the match he had stayed quiet. A cute face, he only smiled whenever there was a wicket or a four. Each time either of the two contestants scored a point over the other, this kid would raise the flag of that country. For him, both teams were the winners.

It made for instructive viewing to see Daniel Vettori celebrate his three wickets today

Will Luke at Lord's28-Jun-2008
Calm and composed: Daniel Vettori doesn’t let emotions get the better of him as he removes Ravi Bopara © Getty Images
It made for instructive viewing to see Daniel Vettori celebrate his three wickets today. Celebrate is perhaps the wrong word to use, since his merriment amounted to no more than a casual amble down the pitch, a placid smile and a shake of the hands – a far cry from his and New Zealand’s fist-pumping at The Oval on Wednesday evening. Dare it be suggested, Vettori’s docile celebrations matched New Zealand’s quiet confidence over winning this game, and their 3-1 series victory marked an unlikely denouement of a difficult tour.That they reached the heights of 266 for 5 owed much to Scott Styris and Jacob Oram, two of New Zealand’s most experienced, each of whom cracked aggressive fifties to take the momentum away from England. The hosts had New Zealand struggling on 124 for 4 at one stage, after Brendon McCullum and Jamie How had fought hard to put on 39 in 9.5 difficult overs.”I think it was a tough wicket early on, and I think our openers actually set it up: the ability to bat time and get through a tricky stage,” Vettori said. “Scott Styris and Jacob Oram took the game a little bit away from England with some great hitting. The last ten overs was fantastic – and for me and Scotty [Styris], bowling to their middle-order is a lot easier than their top-order, so the guys who picked up early wickets early did a wonderful job for us.”We just wanted to win the series. The tough thing for us would’ve been if we’d been 2-0 down. We would have looked back to Edgbaston [second ODI] and what happened there. This way we can walk away, 3-1, no drama, and know we were the better team.”If New Zealand’s game lacked anything at the start of the series, it was their characteristic belief; that nagging need at the back of their minds to prove people wrong, to justify their fourth-place in the ODI table. After the Test series, in which they were bossed about to lose 2-0, few observers gave them hope of resurrecting their form in the one-day series, and their confidence was further stunted in thumping defeats in the Twenty20 at Old Trafford and the first ODI at Chester-le-Street. New Zealand were forlorn, drifting nowhere, and yet have turned their fortunes around remarkably quickly.”A lot of it’s to do with experience. In the Test team you’ve got four or five guys who have played less than ten matches and you’ve got to put the emphasis on the senior guys to step up. At times we did…but [at] the Trent Bridge Test we let ourselves down and it was a very poor performance.”We talked pretty long and hard and critiqued a lot of individuals about what they’ve been doing, asked the players to stand up – particularly the senior players,” Vettori said. “When you’ve got guys who have played less than four or five one-dayers it’s tough to sit there and say ‘right, you carry the side.’ So, guys like myself, Brendon McCullum, Styris, Oram, Kyle Mills…I think throughout the last four games they’ve stood up and, one time or another, have been the leading performers.”Whereas New Zealand have rediscovered their form, England let theirs slip. Overflowing with confidence after the Tests, they began well with a 114-win at Chester-le-Street but, as Vettori pointed out, England’s own inexperience cost them.”They don’t play as much one-day cricket as you think,” he said.”I was very surprised that Owais Shah has only played 40 one-day internationals, and you compare that to an Indian or a Pakistan player who racks up one hundred games in next to no time, it makes it more difficult. We’re playing a lot of one-day cricket; I’m not exactly sure how much England are. But they’ve certainly got the talent there to be a force in world cricket.”Of course, ODIs are New Zealand’s comfort blanket, a format they prefer and one in which they excel. And they haven’t simply edged past England in this particular series; 3-1 is almost, but not quite, a walloping. It opens up the intriguing question: how good might New Zealand become, and are they realistic contenders for the Champions Trophy in Pakistan?”It’s a good one-day team. We cover most of our bases with what you need in a one-day set-up: good hitters, good bowlers and a good fielding side on our day. We’ve got the makings of being a team that can compete in the Champions Trophy, and it’s now about time we go away and try and win these tournaments instead of trying to maintain that ranking. We’ll go away to Pakistan thinking we’ve got a chance of winning.”The despondent figure who left Trent Bridge a few weeks ago was nowhere to be seen today. Confident, even bullish, Vettori’s calm leadership – not unlike his predecessor – has ensured that New Zealand fly home, via a brief stay in Aberdeen, with their heads held high. It is a lesson in character that England’s one-day team would do well to learn from.

Joe Clarke blasted 68 from 29 balls on his 27th birthday before Matthew Montgomery revealed more evidence of why Nottinghamshire rate him so highly with a high-quality 51 as the Outlaws launched their Vitality Blast season with a four-wicket victory over neighbours Derbyshire Falcons.South Africa-born Montgomery, who made 177 against Essex in the LV= Insurance County Championship last week, was making his county debut in the 20-over format and took to it impressively as the Outlaws eased home with 18 balls to spare despite Zak Chappell’s 2 for 29 against his former team and George Scrimshaw taking three late wickets in five balls.Half-centuries by Wayne Madsen and Luis Reece in a second-wicket stand worth 112 in under 10 overs had seemed to set up the Falcons for a bumper total as they sought to win at Trent Bridge for the first time in 10 years but the Outlaws fought back well to restrict them to 178 for 6.There were debut wickets for quicks Shaheen Shah Afridi and Conor McKerr – on loan from Surrey with three senior Outlaws bowlers out injured – while skipper Steven Mullaney took 2 for 37.The Falcons lost Pakistan batter Haider Ali to ex-Derbyshire quick McKerr’s first legitimate ball in an Outlaws shirt when a loose drive saw him caught at third but with Madsen smashing 36 from his first 18 balls it turned into a decent powerplay for the visitors, who were 56 for 1 after six having elected to bat first.Madsen looked in superb touch from the start, following three consecutive fours against the off-spin of Matt Carter – also celebrating his 27th birthday – with a couple off Samit Patel’s left-arm spin before bringing McKerr back down to earth with an effortless pick-up for the night’s first six.Reece caught the mood, despatching Patel and Mullaney over the ropes with the Outlaws unable to find a way to stem the runs as Madsen’s ninth four took him to a 26-ball half-century and the Falcons reached halfway at 102 for 1.The two took a six each off Mullaney but when Madsen slapped the last ball of the same over into the hands of extra cover it sparked an Outlaws fightback that saw Reece hole out to long-off – a wicket on Blast debut for Montgomery – and Luis du Plooy bowled behind his legs as 118 for 1 became 134 for 4.Tom Moores, in his first action for six weeks after breaking a finger, pulled off a sharp stumping to remove Anuj Dal and Afridi claimed his first Outlaws scalp as Aneurin Donald missed an attempted ramp, the second half of the innings going in favour of the home side, with 76 runs added for five wickets lost.Needing nine per over, the Outlaws raced to 78 for 1 from the powerplay, 26 off them in a single over of Mark Watt’s left-arm spin as Clarke smashed five fours and a six, completing a 23-ball half-century along the way, Alex Hales – wearing number three on his back after Afridi claimed his regular 10 – the solitary casualty as he skied Chappell to backward point.The home side’s progress was checked when Clarke was pinned leg before by a Chappell yorker that avenged a huge hit over long-off earlier in the over, but Montgomery joined another debutant – the New Zealand international Colin Munro – in adding 60 in 34 balls for the third wicket to bring the requirement down to 32 in 45 balls.Munro fell when he scooped Zaman Khan to long leg, Montgomery departing in similar fashion after hitting six fours and a six in his 29-ball innings as Scrimshaw gained some consolation for an otherwise expensive evening by taking three wickets in the same over as Mullaney and Moores were dismissed before Samit Patel scrambled the winning runs.

GOAL US writers break down the transfer window, with a focus on which Americans helped their 2026 World Cup chances

So, transfer season is done – for now. Are you not entertained? The Premier League had unprecedented levels of spending. Seemingly everyone else their best players pinched. It was a weird one. Never has one league been so dominant over all of the others.

But it will certainly yield a fantastic product on the pitch, and, let's face it, that's all we care about at the end of the day. 

From an American point of view, things got a bit weird. No major USMNT star play moved to the Premier League, but there were still a few compelling transfers. Johnny Cardoso got a step up he perhaps deserved with Atletico Madrid. Malik Tillman, Yunus Musah and Tim Weah all bolted for greener pastures.

These are good things. But then there were a few confusing ones. Benjamin Cremaschi to Parma is puzzling, especially considering he was second choice to, ironically, Gio Reyna. Brenden Aaronson could definitely benefited from a move. Meanwhile, Josh Sargent decided to stick around – which seems to have divided opinion in the USMNT sphere. 

It's all compelling content, though, and, with the World Cup just nine months away, should open plenty of doors – as well as slam a few shut.

GOAL US writers break down a frenetic transfer window in the latest edition of… The Rondo.

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  Which team won the transfer deadline? Which team lost it?

  Tom Hindle: Liverpool are the obvious pick, but it's a bit mindless to say something so reasonable. How about Arsenal, who improved in a number of key areas? Victor Gyokeres was quite the coup, while they did well elsewhere – and Eze is an elite attacking player to add to their ranks, and perhaps replace the immensely frustrating Gabriel Martinelli. The losers? Newcastle. What a nightmare.

  Ryan Tolmich: Liverpool are the clear and obvious winners, and not just because they spent the most money. They spent big, sure, bringing in stars such as Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike to keep their title hopes alive. More importantly, though, they spent on players that will keep that window open long-term, even long after Mohammed Salah inevitably slows down. They didn't just find sidekicks for Salah, they found successors. Because of that, the Reds looked locked and loaded for the foreseeable future.

  Alex Labidou: On paper, Liverpool are the obvious favorites. The Reds really went for it this summer, breaking the British transfer record not just once but twice in acquiring Isak and Wirtz. While one could nitpick about waiting until the transfer deadline to try to sign Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi – which ultimately fell through – overall Liverpool should be even better than they were last year. That’s a scary thought. On the other end, there has to be concern for Crystal Palace. There were already issues over the lack of recruitment, raised by manager Oliver Glasner, especially after Eze left for Arsenal. There was controversy with the club’s qualification to Europe following its FA Cup win, and now there are reports emerging that captain Guehi is furious at the club for letting the Liverpool bid slip through. It all sounds chaotic and very New York Jets-like – and maybe there’s no coincidence considering Woody Johnson, the Jets owner, took a major stake in Palace.

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  Will Josh Sargent regret not leaving Norwich?

  TH: No, because he will score a lot of goals where he is. Sometimes guys need to stay – and that's totally fine.

  RT: If he keeps scoring at this pace, probably not. The striker position is unique in that it is almost exclusively determined by form. Goals are good, droughts are bad. And as long as you have more of the former than the latter, you're golden. If Sargent does as well as expected in the Championship, he'll be just fine – and anything else would have been a risk. Could he have taken his chances? Sure, but there's still something smart about playing it safe, particularly in this position.

  AL: If he can bring his early-season form into the September friendlies, then no. But that’s a lot of pressure – pressure that would have likely been lessened if Sargent had made the move to Wolfsburg or any other top-flight club in Europe’s big five leagues. Sargent is well aware of the narrative that he can’t score on the international level, so it's up to him to change that perception.

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  Which U.S. player should have moved but didn't?

  TH: It would have been Yunus Musah, but he did well to finally get his move at the end of the day. Ricardo Pepi could have probably done with a transfer out of PSV, though. He's ready for a step up and hanging around feels a lot like stasis – even if he goes and scores a bunch more goals this year.

  RT: You can certainly respect Brenden Aaronson's ambition and you can admire his willingness to bet on himself. The road to the World Cup will be difficult now that he's stayed at Leeds, though, as he'll have a real fight for Premier League minutes all season long. Thus far, he's played just 77 across three games and, while it's good he's playing, it's hard to find rhythm with that time. Can he earn more as the season gets going? Can he get a few goals here and there to show he can do it at the Premier League level? The answers to those questions will determine his World Cup chances.

  AL: Gaga Slonina’s decision to remain at Chelsea all but ends his chances of featuring for the U.S. national team before the 2026 World Cup. The USMNT goalkeeper race is wide open – Mauricio Pochettino just called in Roman Celentano and Jonathan Klinsmann for the first time – so it’s hard to understand why Slonina didn’t at least pursue minutes in MLS or a lower-tier European league. 

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  Who improved their World Cup squad chances the most?

  TH: Seems as though everyone is basically nailed down, move or not – which isn't necessarily a great thing, all said. The Benjamin Cremaschi one seems a good shout, though, especially because he could do with some positional continuity and the chance to test himself at a higher level. Right now, he seems to be a fringe guy, and good minutes abroad will do him the world of good.

  RT: A bit further down the pecking order, but let's go with Cremaschi. Generally undervalued by Inter Miami, who used him as a gap-filler rather than a centerpiece, Cremaschi made the move to Serie A with Parma, giving him a big stage to showcase himself. If he can become a Serie A mainstay, it'll be hard to argue he shouldn't be in the squad next summer. It's something that didn't look likely in Miami and, while it's certainly not guaranteed, there's still a path there for him.

  AL: Musah needed a fresh start, and he gets one with Atalanta. And he might have landed on his feet with this move. AC Milan have been a disaster since their title win in 2022 and are out of Europe this season. Atalanta are in the Champions League, have a style of play more suited for Musah – and don’t have the historically high expectations Milan do every year. And also, Cremaschi. Yes, it’s a long shot, but what if he ends up being a starter at Parma? Does that elevate him over a Luca de la Torre, for example? Every World Cup cycle there’s a player whose breakout happens at the right time. Cremaschi could be that guy.

Manchester United’s revamped £50 million ($67.2m) Carrington training centre has officially reopened after a year-long transformation, with Diogo Dalot declaring there are now 'no excuses' for underperformance. Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who led the overhaul, labelled the previous facility 'a hospital'. Dalot says it’s now up to the players to deliver results that match their surroundings.

Dalot says there are "no excuses" after Carrington revampRatcliffe hails "world class" £50m training groundUpgraded facilities include sleep pods and Formula 1 simulatorFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

United’s first-team facility at Carrington reopened on Friday following a £50m rebuild that began last year. The modernised complex features a high-altitude chamber, sleep pods, a padel court, a Formula 1 simulator and even a barber’s room. Originally opened in 2000, the building has been redesigned to meet the highest performance and recovery standards in football.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWHAT DALOT SAID

Speaking at the opening, Dalot said: "Ultimately, we're talking about our second home, which is where we spend the most time after our personal homes with our families. So I think you should be able to feel good once you come in. I think these facilities right now are exactly what we thought it would be and even better. We adapted really quick because there was no time for us to almost think about it because we had so many games to play, so many things to concern.

"But like Sir Jim said today, obviously it's not the perfect conditions that you could have to do a season with so many games and so many difficulties like we had last season. But also the big thing that I like the most is now there's going to be no excuses.

"It's what we're going to do on the pitch that obviously will determine what we do and where we put the club back on top because you're going to have everything that you need to be in your best shape mentally and physically."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

The upgrade comes after Cristiano Ronaldo publicly criticised United’s outdated facilities during his second stint, claiming 'nothing changed' in over a decade. Dalot, responding to those remarks, said Ronaldo 'would love' the transformation and credited Ratcliffe and INEOS for delivering it.

He added: "I'm sure he would love it if he would be able to see it. But overall, I think the message was clear that this club deserved even more and all credit to Sir Jim and his team."

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AFPWHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

The Red Devils will now look to translate their state-of-the-art surroundings into tangible success on the field. Manager Ruben Amorim and his squad head into the new campaign with expectations high and pressure to end the club’s recent trophy drought. For Dalot and his teammates, the message is clear – results must reflect the investment.

Former Manchester United team-mates Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard were reunited in South Korea as Barcelona faced FC Seoul during the Asia tour of the pre-season preparations. After the match, the two former colleagues caught up and shared a photograph on Instagram and under the comment section, Paul Pogba sent an emotional message, while Nemanja Matic cracked a joke.

Rashford and Lingard caught up in South KoreaPogba left an emotional messageMatic joked the duo are a 'problem' when togetherFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres each netted a brace as Barcelona outclassed Lingard's FC Seoul 7-3 in a pre-season friendly on Thursday. While Lingard featured in Seoul's starting lineup, Rashford came off the bench in the second half and contributed with an assist for Torres. 

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

After the game, former United stars Rashford and Lingard caught up, and the FC Seoul star later shared the image on Instagram. In the comment section, two other ex-Red Devils players, Pogba and Matic, left messages for their former colleagues. 

WHAT POGBA & MATIC SAID

Pogba left an emotional message, which read: "Rasha x jlingz I miss you my guys." Matic, on the other hand, wrote: "You 2 together= problem."

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AFPWHAT NEXT FOR POGBA?

Pogba, who has recently started training with the ball at Monaco, could make his informal debut for the French side on August 8 as they take on Inter.

Appointments announced soon after Babar Azam steps down as Pakistan captain, Mohammad Hafeez to replace Mickey Arthur

Danyal Rasool15-Nov-2023

Pakistan have appointed Shaheen Shah Afridi as their new T20I captain and Shan Masood as their Test captain shortly after Babar Azam stepped down from captaincy in all three formats. With no ODIs scheduled in the near future, the PCB has not named an ODI captain just yet.Shortly after the resignation, the PCB issued a statement saying Babar was offered the option to continue as Test captain, while the decision to remove him as white-ball skipper was presented to him as fait accompli. “After consultation with his family, Babar decided to step down and PCB stands behind his decision. PCB respects his decision and continues to support him as a player,””Babar Azam is truly a world-class player and we want him to continue to thrive as a player,” Zaka Ashraf said. “He is one of the best batters Pakistan has ever produced. He is our asset, and we will continue to support him.”Masood’s captaincy marks a remarkable ascent for a man who made his Test debut over a decade ago but never managed to nail a place in the side. He was repeatedly dropped after two or three Test matches where impressive scores were followed by extended barren runs, and went on to spend lengthy periods out of the side. A return to the side late last year for Tests against England and New Zealand produced indifferent scores, though the series against Sri Lanka in July was capped with his first half-century in 17 innings.His first assignment is the one that Pakistan have historically found hardest of all, an away series in Australia. Pakistan have lost their last 14 successive Tests on the bounce, a run that stretches back to 1999, including five series whitewashes.Afridi, 23, was widely tipped to succeed Babar Azam in the shortest format, and will see his first assignment come immediately after that three-Test series against Australia ends. Pakistan travel to New Zealand following the Tests in Australia to play five T20Is. That is the first series in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup next year, which takes place in West Indies and the USA in June 2024.Afridi was appointed captain of his Pakistan Super League franchise – Lahore Qalandars – and enjoyed immediate success. The Qalandars have won both PSL trophies under his stewardship, becoming the first side to successfully defend the trophy. The PCB said an ODI captain would be appointed “in due course”.Mohammad Hafeez appointed Team DirectorThe PCB also announced, shortly after Masood and Shaheen were appointed captains, that Mohammad Hafeez will be the team director, the role Mickey Arthur had occupied until now. While Aurthur has not been removed, he will not travel with the team. It makes official what is a significant demotion for him, while Hafeez, who does not have any previous experience as coach or director, will lead the coaching staff in Australia.Head coach Grant Bradburn will also not travel with the Pakistan team to Australia and New Zealand, with a replacement expected to be announced shortly. Younis Khan is widely tipped to take over the role. It is understood neither Arthur nor Bradburn have been relieved from their duties, an action this temporary management committee likely lacks the authority to take. It has not yet been announced what roles will be assigned to Arthur and Bradburn, but resignations from the pair are not understood to be imminent.