Jake Lehmann made 73 for the home side but generally their batting struggled
AAP16-Oct-2022Jackson Bird and Peter Siddle wound back the clock to help Tasmania run through South Australia for 227 on the first day of their Sheffield Shield match.After the Redbacks won the toss, Bird claimed South Australia’s first four wickets in the morning session before Siddle cleaned up after lunch, with both bowlers finishing with 4 for 51.Only Jake Lehmann and debutant Ben Manenti offered any real resistance for the hosts, with the latter attacking Siddle late in his innings.Manenti’s first day in the Sheffield Shield then reached another high just before stumps, when his a one-handed screamer at second slip allowed Harry Conway to remove Caleb Jewel and leave Tasmania 1 for 17 in reply.That was a rare highlight for the Redbacks on a tough Sunday at Adelaide Oval. Bird in particular had the ball moving, with the 35-year-old beating openers Henry Hunt and Jake Weatherald off the seam to have them caught behind.Former Test skipper Tim Paine caught well behind the stumps in his second game back, diving to his left to remove Weatherald when Bird had squared up the left-hander.Bird claimed Travis Head’s wicket in his next over for five when the left-hander inside-edged a yorker onto his stumps. The former Test quick also trapped Jake Carder lbw for 13, leaving SA struggling at 4-59.About the only man who looked in against the seamer was Lehmann. He brought up 50 just before tea when he pulled Bird for four amid three consecutive boundaries, after also taking a liking to Sam Rainbird earlier.The left-hander eventually fell victim to Siddle, who removed Lehmann and Wes Agar in successive balls in the final session. Siddle also got through Alex Carey’s bat and pad to bowl the Test wicketkeeper on 25, before gaining and edge from Conway to take his fourth victim.At that stage, it looked as though the Redbacks would likely be all out for less than 200, before Manenti got swinging later and hit Siddle for two powerful sixes over midwicket and mid-on.The son of Australia’s world champion men’s rugby sevens coach John Manenti, Ben helped the Redbacks put on 35 for the last wicket to give South Australia something to bowl at come Monday.
Goals from Aitana Bonmati, Ewa Pajor, Claudia Pina and Salma Paralluelo sealed the Catalans' place in May's final as they bid to defend their title
Barcelona will head to Lisbon next month hoping to successfully defend their European title for a second season in a row after humbling Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Leading 4-1 from the first leg in Catalunya, the holders wasted no time at all in putting this Champions League semi-final tie well and truly to bed, racing into a 3-0 lead before half-time in an eventual 4-1 win at a ground where they've now won on each of their three visits.
There were chances for Chelsea to get back into this affair before Barca killed it, too. Sandy Baltimore just couldn't connect properly with Mayra Ramirez's cutback and Sjoeke Nusken was denied by Cata Coll when she raced through one-on-one in a hectic sequence at the midway point of the first half, one which came only two minutes before Aitana Bonmati all-but-secured Barcelona's passage to the final. The two-time Ballon d'Or winner was granted far too much space throughout the encounter and she made the Blues pay when her thumping finish broke the deadlock.
Ewa Pajor's close-range finish, after sublime wide play by Caroline Graham Hansen, doubled that lead just before half-time, and then Claudia Pina added a sensational third with a curling strike from range. It was more than enough to win a tie that was well out of Chelsea's reach before it even reached their own patch, in truth, giving Barcelona a shot at a Champions League three-peat next month while leaving the Blues with plenty of food for thought going into next season.
There was at least a late consolation for the home fans to cheer, delivered to them by Wieke Kaptein, but only after Salma Paralluelo was able to profit from a defensive mishap between Niamh Charles and Hannah Hampton that summed up a hugely disappointing tie from the Blues' perspective.
GOAL rates Chelsea's players from Stamford Bridge…
Getty Images SportGoalkeeper & Defence
Hannah Hampton (5/10):
Swept up well and made a couple of decent stops. Should've taken more control for the fourth goal, however.
Lucy Bronze (5/10):
Was not as guilty as others at giving Barca too much space, though didn't exactly have a stand-out game.
Naomi Girma (5/10):
Had a few sloppy moments on the ball but, like Bronze, was better than most in her defending. Off at half-time, as she continues to build her fitness back up after injury.
Millie Bright (3/10):
Didn't communicate with Nusken to stop Bonmati scoring the first, then let Pajor have far too much space for the second.
Niamh Charles (3/10):
Her desperate lunge was easily avoided by Bonmati as she burst through to break the deadlock, and then her indecision proved costly for Barca's fourth.
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Keira Walsh (4/10):
Just didn't do enough defensively to stop Barca, with her lack of engagement with Pina for the third goal a perfect example.
Erin Cuthbert (6/10):
One of Chelsea's best performers on a bad day. Offered creativity going forward and plenty of focus and tenacity off the ball.
Sjoeke Nusken (5/10):
Provided a lot of positives going forward, but left a lot to be desired defensively.
Getty ImagesAttack
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd (4/10):
Didn't get involved enough at all.
Mayra Ramirez (4/10):
Didn't hold the ball up well enough, was offside at frustrating times and gave away needless fouls. Went off at half-time.
Sandy Baltimore (6/10):
Another rare bright spot on a difficult day. Provided a lively outlet that gave Chelsea some threat in the final third.
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Ashley Lawrence (6/10):
Settled in well at a left-back position she doesn't play too often after being introduced at the break. Helped keep Barca a little quieter in attack.
Aggie Beever-Jones (6/10):
Full of running and endeavour after coming on at half-time. Couldn't fault that effort and her desire to try and make things happen, even if they didn't always come off.
Catarina Macario (5/10):
Had a couple of decent chances to get a consolation on the board, but didn't convert either.
Wieke Kaptein (6/10):
Brought plenty of energy and created a couple of openings. Grabbed a consolation with a great finish late on.
Maika Hamano (N/A):
On for the closing stages. A surprise that she didn't feature more across this tie.
Sonia Bompastor (4/10):
Had to go for it given the first-leg defeat, but the decision to start Charles at left-back rather than Baltimore proved costly, with both of Barca's first two goals coming down that side. Macario could feel aggrieved not to get the nod as well, having starred in midweek.
As they attempt to get their pursuit of Champions League qualification back on track, Aston Villa could welcome the return of Leon Bailey and one other star man against Chelsea this weekend.
Aston Villa injury news
With the fixtures coming thick and fast, any positive injury news is an instant boost for the Villans, who just had their Champions League fate confirmed in the middle of a season which still has plenty of promise. Earning their place in the last 16, Unai Emery’s side will now square off against Club Brugge in what they should see as an undeniable chance to reach the final eight.
There will of course already be those in dreamland at Villa Park plotting a shock route to the Champions League final, and they have every right to imagine that dream. Emery’s side will have their feet firmly fixed on the ground, however, and will be looking ahead of Chelsea and Chelsea only.
Victory against the Blues would be coming at a crucial time – taking the Villans within a point of their London opponents and potentially within two of the top four – making recent injury news all the more positive.
As confirmed by Emery, Aston Villa could welcome the return of both Ezri Konsa and Bailey against Chelsea after both players missed his side’s last two games.
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The Spaniard told reporters when asked about Konsa: “We are going to train later. He did the composition work with the players. I will test him and in case he is feeling good he will be in the squad.”
Then confirming Bailey’s potential return, Emery said: “Leon Bailey trained yesterday and it’s the same like Konsa. In case he trains normally he will be available in the squad.”
"Confident" Konsa returning at a key time
With Axel Disasi unable to play against his parent club Chelsea this weekend and Pau Torres also still sidelined, Konsa’s potential return couldn’t be coming at a better time for Aston Villa. The Villans may have avoided the need to form a makeshift centre-back partnership and can instead roll back the years ever so slightly by turning to Tyrone Mings and Konsa together.
Ezri Konsa for England
Konsa’s ability to fill in at right-back will also be an added boost for those at Villa Park as it has been for England in the past. Full of praise for the defender’s versatility last summer, former Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate told reporters: “We weren’t intending to move him quite as much.
“We took Lewis [Dunk] off as a precaution and the best way was to put Ezri at centre-half, which I think is his strongest position anyway. That’s his third cap, he’s done very well in all three.
“That adaptability is helpful to us. He’s playing in a team that have had an extremely good season and he’s been a big part of that. He looks very confident in an England shirt.”
Changes could be made to England XI after half the squad is laid low by virus on eve of match
Vithushan Ehantharajah30-Nov-2022A decision as to whether England’s first Test in Pakistan for 17 years can get underway on time will be taken at 7.30am local time on Thursday morning, two and a half hours prior to the scheduled start, after a sickness bug swept through their camp on the eve of the match to cause upheaval in Rawalpindi.Having named their XI a full 48 hours ahead of the match, England’s plans were thrown into disarray on their final day of practice, with up to 14 members of their tour party, including half of their 16-man playing pool, reporting symptoms including diarrhoea and vomiting. They were subsequently confined to their hotel rooms for fear of spreading the virus.Emergency talks between PCB chairman Ramiz Raja and ECB officials Rob Key and Neil Snowball ensued, along with ECB medical director Nick Peirce and team doctor Anita Biswas, with the options discussed including a 24-hour delay to the start time, to allow the England players enough time to recover from what is hoped to be a 24-hour bug.”The Pakistan Cricket Board and England and Wales Cricket Board today discussed the outbreak of viral infection in the England men’s Test team camp and unanimously agreed to delay the decision on the commencement of the first Test, which is due to start on Thursday, until 0730 Pakistan time tomorrow [Thursday],” read a joint statement from the two boards.”The two boards made the decision based on medical advice from the England doctors, which revolved around the players’ health and welfare, agreeing that the England cricket team are able to select an XI for the first of the three ICC World Test Championship matches, which will be played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.”The two boards also agreed, subject to the England players not recovering well enough to take the field on Thursday morning, then the Test will commence on Friday and will be a five-day match. In this scenario, the schedule of the second Test in Multan and the third Test in Karachi will remain unaffected and will be played as per original schedule i.e. 9-13 and 17-21 December, respectively.”Ben Stokes, England’s captain, was among the players laid low on Wednesday, with only Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Pope and Joe Root attending an optional training session at Pindi Stadium. James Anderson, who is set to play his first Test in Pakistan at the age of 40, 17 years after featuring in the one-day leg of the 2005 tour, was also reporting symptoms.”I felt unwell yesterday and woke up feeling much better today so hopefully it is a 24-hour thing,” Root told reporters after training. “It is just one of those things that we have unfortunately picked up as a group. We’ve tried to do everything we can to get right for this game but sometimes life throws you these things at you. We have to see how we rock up as a squad tomorrow [Thursday].”England had attempted to mitigate against the risk of illness by appointment their own chef for the tour, Omar Meziane, who has previously worked with the England men’s football team. However, he was among those taken ill, with England confident that the outbreak was not food-related.
Manchester United staff are rebelling against INEOS after seeing more job cuts announced, with CEO Omar Berrada asked: "Why don’t you take a £1m cut?"
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Controversial cost-cutting measures put in placeMore redundancies on the cards at Old TraffordPlayers and board members told to cut their payFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?
Controversial money-saving measures have been put in place since Sir Jim Ratcliffe – Britain’s richest man – completed his purchase of a 27.7 per cent stake in the Red Devils back in February 2024.
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Results on the field have remained disappointing, despite reaching the Europa League semi-finals, and questions continue to be asked of what those pulling the strings are doing in order to deliver a reversal in fortune.
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Ratcliffe and Co remain focused on cost-cutting behind the scenes, with a further 200 positions set to go. Staff at United’s Carrington training complex have been informed that they will form part of that redundancy wave.
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Berrada was charged with the task of delivering that news and found himself in the firing line. A source has told : "Everything has changed since INEOS came in – and not for the better.
"Berrada stood in front of everybody at the academy and said we had to do it. But someone stood up and told him 'you said six months ago that we had to lose 250 jobs but this would be it.
"Now six months later we’re losing another 200 people. What’s to say in six months’ time it won’t be happening again?’ A couple of months ago we got the email about lunches being ended and Berrarda told us it would save £1m a year.
"But someone piped up ‘hang on a minute – that’s one month’s wages for Casemiro; you’re on £4m a year, so why don’t you take a £1m cut?’ The mood is really not good. It’s got to the point where people are choosing not to go to the training ground unless they have to be there."
Tottenham Hotspur are expected to lodge a big-money bid for one of Europe’s most sought-after players in the summer, according to a new report.
Tottenham inconsistencies shine light on transfer plans
If there’s one word to describe Tottenham this season, it’s inconsistent. Ange Postecoglou’s side has swung between unstoppable and absent from one week to the next—beating teams like Liverpool and Manchester City in all too rare one-offs, only to then suffer defeats against the likes of Leicester City and Everton.
That inconsistency was on display again last week. Fresh off three consecutive wins over Brentford, Manchester United and Ipswich Town, Spurs delivered a lackluster performance against City, falling 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. A goal from Erling Haaland was enough to secure all three points for the visitors.
Tottenham Hotspur manager AngePostecogloureacts
Speaking after the match, which saw Spurs drop back down to 13th in the table, Postecoglou insisted there were plenty of positives to take from the defeat – most notablty the performances of young stars like Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert.
“There’s definitely positives and I think you know, I keep saying there’s enormous growth that we’re witnessing before our eyes, even though we’re not getting the rewards for it right now,” he proclaimed.
“We’re disappointed, but like I said, in terms of performance, from my perspective anyway, there’s stuff in there where we can say, okay, we we’re going to take that forward and get to level we want to.”
Spurs bidding for Ademola Lookman
After what’s been a difficult season, Tottenham will no doubt be looking to bolster their squad in the summer, not only to add quality but also strength in numbers. According to reports in Spain, one man Spurs will be looking to acquire is Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman.
Spurs have apparently been scouting the Nigerian, who was named last year’s African Footballer of the Year, for several months. There are ‘offers estimated at around €45m (£40m) plus a number of bonuses’, although it is not clear if the bids have been made or just prepared for the summer, the latter of which seems more likely.
Atalanta's Ademola Lookman in action with AC Milan'sEmersonRoyal
Lookman, 27, has been one of Europe’s top players over the past two seasons. Last year, he scored 17 goals and produced nine assists for Atalanta, including a memorable hat-trick in the Europa League final as they beat Bayer Leverkusen to win the trophy for the first time in their history. This term, Lookman has scored 17 goals and produced seven assists in 30 games across all competitions.
Ademola Lookman Serie A Stats 2024/25
Games
21
Goals
12
Assists
5
Chances Created
43
Successful Dribbles
27
Stats per FotMob
Despite being one of Atalanta’s key men, Lookman’s future at the Gewiss Stadium has recently come into question due to a public spat he had with manager Gian Piero Gasperini. The Italian coach had called Lookman “one of the worst penalty takers” after he missed a spot kick as Atalanta were dumped out of the Champions League at the hands of Club Brugge.
“He has a frankly terrible record even in training, he converts very few of them,” Gasperini said. “Retegui and De Ketelaere were there, but Lookman in a moment of enthusiasm after scoring decided to take the ball and that was a gesture I did not appreciate at all.”
Lookman hit back at his boss by calling his words “disrespectful”.
After Club Leon's CAS appeal was denied, a source confirmed LAFC will host Club America for CWC berth
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CAS rules against Club Leon for CWC spotFIFA says LAFC and Club America will play for tournament placeSource: Match will be in Los Angeles on May 31Get the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowWHAT HAPPENED?
After Club Leon's appeal was rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Tuesday, the court ruled that FIFA would thereby designate who would take the Liga MX side's spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. In March, FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed talks of a one-game playoff between MLS side LAFC and Liga MX side Club America for a berth into the tournament. FIFA confirmed the two teams would feature head-to-head for the spot on Tuesday.
A source confirmed to GOAL that the playoff between the two clubs will be held at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on May 31. reported it will effectively be a $10 million match. The victor of the match will earn a guaranteed entry fee of $9.55 million, plus an additional $2 million per group stage win, along with round-by-round prize money.
The winner will be placed in Group D of the tournament alongside Chelsea, Flamengo, and ES Tunis.
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LAFC were selected because they finished as runners-up to Leon in the 2023 CONCACAF Champions Cup, while America topped the CONCACAF coefficient ranks for the four-year cycle in question to qualify for the competition.
The 2025 Club World Cup will feature 32 of the world's best teams, with eight groups of four competing in a group stage format followed by a World Cup-style knockout round bracket. The competition will be held in the USA one year ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
DID YOU KNOW?
The 2025 tournament will be the largest version of the competition to date, with the expansion to 32 teams. The first game will be played at Hard Rock Stadium on June 14, when Inter Miami takes on Egyptian giants Al Ahly SC.
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LAFC and Club America will be preparing for their May 31 showdown, with the winner securing a large sum of prize money, but more importantly, a coveted berth into the Club World Cup.
The visitors needed less than 13 overs to complete the chase after Thunder made just 111
Andrew McGlashan13-Jan-2023David Warner’s first appearance in the BBL for more than nine years fell flat for Sydney Thunder as tournament-leaders Perth Scorchers cruised to a nine-wicket victory in what is becoming another very impressive campaign.One of their two defeats this season came against Thunder – a surprising loss at home – but once a promising third-wicket stand between Warner and Ollie Davies had been broken that never looked like being repeated. Thunder, who were famously bowled out for 15 earlier in the season, lost 8 for 41 and couldn’t bat their 20 overs. Scorchers needed less than 13 in the chase.AJ Tye put some daylight between him and the chasing pack at the top of the wicket-taking tally in what is becoming a stellar season while Cameron Bancroft produced one of the highlights of a one-sided occasion with a spectacular boundary catch.Davies shines again It was a lone hand in Thunder’s innings. The ease with which Davies timed the ball was a stark contrast to all his team-mates, including Warner, alongside who he dominated a 67-run stand for the third wicket. “I’ll keep nudging them,” Warner said on the player mic. Davies took two straight sixes off Ashton Agar, but saved his best for a strike off Tye which went well back into the stands.A 30-ball half-century was his third fifty of the season but Agar then out-thought him as he fired one in more quickly to have him stumped as Thunder’s collapse set it.Warner’s quiet returnDecember 2013 was the last time Warner played BBL. That day he opened with Usman Khawaja and the pair added an opening stand of 116 in 11 overs. By the time Warner faced his second ball today he had lost two team-mates. He managed to get one strong pull short away against Lance Morris and a few overs later threaded a drive down the ground against Tye as the stand with Davies started to build. However, trying to pick up towards Davies’ tempo, he top-edged an attempted scoop off Matt Kelly.Payne’s promising startDavid Payne, the Gloucestershire left-arm seamer who has played one ODI for England, is one of a host of replacement overseas players Scorchers have called on this season after all their initial signings ended up unavailable for a variety of reasons.It took Payne just two balls to strike in his first appearance, taking the left-arm pace role in place of the rested Jason Behrendorff, when a curving outswinger drew an edge from Matthew Gilkes. Later in the innings, with Thunder trying to engineer a platform for a late use of the power surge, a well-directed short ball brought a top edge from the dangerous Daniel Sams which was held at long leg.It was a team effort from the Scorchers attack with all five bowlers finding success and sending down 63 dot balls in 19 overs. Tye’s fine tournament continued with another three scalps as he became the first to reach the 20-wicket mark for the season.Bancroft’s all-round nightBancroft had a superb evening on the field and then calmly went about the simple chase. In a display where Scorchers barely put a foot wrong, Bancroft’s two catches were especially impressive. He went low to remove Ben Cutting at midwicket, the batter standing his ground before the third umpire confirmed the take was clean. But better was to come in the 19th over when he ran around from long-on and flew full-length at top speed to pluck out Nathan McAndrew’s well-struck pull while still being able to keep himself inside the rope.Barring anything silly the chase was never going to be in doubt and the game was over long before the opening stand of 77 between Bancroft and Stephen Eskinazi was broken. For Eskinazi, another overseas replacement, it was his first significant contribution in his third outing. Bancroft skipped to a 36-ball fifty when he sent consecutive deliveries from Usman Qadir for six and four.
Jacob Oram, meanwhile, has joined MI Cape Town as the team’s bowling coach
ESPNcricinfo staff28-Dec-2022J Arunkumar, the former Karnataka captain and coach, has been roped by Mumbai Indians as their assistant batting coach ahead of IPL 2023. Arunkumar joins his former team-mate R Vinay Kumar, a talent scout, on the franchise’s support staff roster, that will be headed by Mark Boucher; Arunkumar and Boucher were colleagues at Royal Challengers Bangalore during the inaugural IPL season in 2008.Arunkumar will work in tandem with Kieron Pollard, who was announced as batting coach in November after he was released by the franchise ahead of the auction. Pollard had represented the franchise in 189 matches since first coming on board in 2009.A veteran of 109 first-class matches, Arunkumar was until recently head coach of the USA men’s national team for over two years. Prior to that, he was involved in the Indian domestic circuit with Puducherry and Karnataka. In the IPL, he’s previously worked with Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) as batting coach in 2017.Arunkumar achieved great success with Karnataka During his tenure [Arunkumar and Mansur Ali Khan coached the team together], Karnataka won back-to-back Ranji Trophy titles in 2013-14 and 2014-15. They also won two Irani Cups and Vijay Hazare Trophy titles in the same seasons. His time coincided with the team establishing themselves as a dominant force in domestic cricket, with KL Rahul, Manish Pandey and Karun Nair all graduating to play for India.Arunkumar also had an impressive career as a player with Karnataka, being part of two title wins as a player, in 1995-96 and 1997-98. He made 7208 first-class runs in 176 innings, with 20 centuries and 36 half-centuries.The new support staff appointments followed the group’s overhaul of its existing coaching set-up after the acquisition of teams at the UAE’s ILT20 (MI Emirates) and the South African SA20 league (MI Cape Town). Mahela Jayawardene, who was the head coach at Mumbai Indians since 2017, has been elevated to the global head of performance, and Zaheer Khan, the director of cricket operations till last season, is now the global head of cricket development. They will both be involved with all three teams.Jacob Oram roped in as MI Cape Town bowling coach In another update, Jacob Oram, the former New Zealand allrounder, has been appointed MI Cape Town’s bowling coach ahead of the inaugural SA20 season.Oram, who played 33 Tests, 160 ODIs and 36 T20Is between 2001 and 2012, also played four seasons of the IPL, in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2013, finishing up with Mumbai Indians. A coach after retirement, Oram’s most recent position was as the assistant coach of the New Zealand women’s team.He now joins the MI Cape Town support staff team of Simon Katich (head coach), Hashim Amla (batting coach), James Pamment (fielding coach), and Robin Peterson (team manager).
Barry Ferguson is the man tasked with leading Rangers for the remainder of the 2024/25 season following the decision to sack Philippe Clement.
The ex-Ibrox captain is in interim charge until the summer and has been joined by former players Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor as coaches, whereas Issame Charai – who was appointed as Clement’s assistant just last month – has remained at the club.
After making the decision to bring Ferguson back to Ibrox, Rangers CEO Patrick Stewart said: “I also want to welcome Barry back to the club. We appreciate him and his team stepping into the role at this difficult time. Myself, the board and the executive team will give them our full support for the rest of the campaign.”
Rangers are currently way adrift of rivals Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership, but Ferguson will have the chance to take on Jose Mourinho and Fenerbahce in the last 16 of the Europa League.
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Ferguson, who knows what it takes to come through the Gers’ academy, may look towards the future and the club’s youth ranks, especially in the final weeks of the season should Celtic seal another Premiership crown with games to spare.
With Clement arguably only taking advantage of the Light Blues’ youthful talents when absolutely necessary, Ferguson’s arrival could represent an opportunity to fully integrate these youngsters into the first team.
With that in mind, we’ve looked at five Rangers prospects aged 21 or younger who Ferguson could now unleash at Ibrox between now and the end of the season.
1 Ross McCausland 21 years old
Rangers forward Ross McCausland.
Ross McCausland has played less than 700 minutes of football all season at Ibrox, turning out on the left and right under Clement.
The Northern Irishman, who came through Rangers’ academy, started his last Scottish Premiership match back in October and has hardly been seen in 2025.
He does have four goal contributions to his name, so Ferguson may see McCausland as someone he can improve between now and the end of the campaign, giving him more minutes in the process.
2 Paul Nsio 18 years old
Central midfielder Paul Nsio could be another Ferguson looks to use more, with the interim boss himself a former midfielder. Nsio made his Scottish Premiership debut earlier in the year, coming on as a late substitute in a win at Dundee United.
The teenager was also given the nod from the bench by Clement in the Europa League win over Union SG at the end of January.
During pre-season last year, Nsio was reportedly impressing Rangers’ coaching staff with his work ethic, guile and creativity in the middle of the park, so perhaps he will feature more under Ferguson.
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ByRoss Kilvington Oct 9, 2025 3 Findlay Curtis 18 years old
More of an attacking midfielder than Nsio is Findlay Curtis, who can also play out wide if needed. The Scot has made five matchday squads in the Europa League, even playing 30 minutes at Old Trafford against Man Utd in January.
2025 has been a positive year so far for Curtis, who had also been making Clement’s squads in the Scottish Premiership in the weeks prior to the Belgian’s dismissal.
Curtis has also signed a contract extension and was praised by Technical Director, Nils Koppen, who said: “Findlay is a player who has progressed through our youth system since the age of six and his development towards the first team is testament to his own commitment and the hard work of all the coaches who have played a part in his journey.”
4 Bailey Rice 18 years old
Bailey Rice was just 16 years of age when Michael Beale labelled him “a heck of a player”, but since then, the defensive midfielder has found senior game time hard to come by.
The Scotland U19 international has been threatening to make a first-team breakthrough this season, making five of his eight first-team appearances in 2024/25.
Ferguson, previously a no-nonsense midfielder, may look to take Rice under his wing over the coming months and give him more regular opportunities as Rangers look to potentially plan for the future.
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ByRoss Kilvington Feb 21, 2025 5 Zander Hutton 18 years old
Full-back Zander Hutton is still awaiting his Rangers first-team debut, and he may be hoping it is just around the corner after being named as a substitute for the final two rounds of the Europa League’s league phase against Man Utd and Union SG.
A regular in Rangers’ B team, Hutton, who can play as a right or left-back, helped the club beat Celtic 3-2 in the Glasgow Cup Final at the end of 2024.
Ferguson has a number of full-back options including Ridvan Yilmaz, Jefte, Dujon Sterling and captain James Tavernier, but who knows, he could be tempted to throw Hutton in before May.