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The six Pakistan players who have appealed against the punishments handed out by the PCB will appear before a one-man tribunal on Friday. The tribunal will be chaired by Irfan Qadir, a former retired high court judge who was appointed to the task by the PCB last week.”I have issued notices to the players to appear on Friday for a preliminary proceeding on their appeals and they will be given all basic rights under the law,” Qadir told . “If some of the players demand specific reasons for their punishment, we will provide them with that as well, as this is their right.”The PCB took action against seven players it believed were responsible for Pakistan’s failure to win a single game in Australia. The captain Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan were banned indefinitely, Shoaib Malik and Naved-ul-Hasan were banned for a year while Shahid Afridi and the Akmal brothers were fined and placed on probation for six months.Yousuf and Younis were accused of infighting and having a negative influence on the team. Yousuf announced his retirement from international cricket after the ban and is the only one among the punished players who didn’t appeal.The Akmal brothers and Naved lodged their appeals first, followed by Afridi, Younis and then Malik.

Tottenham midfielder Tanguy Ndombele is close to joining French giants Paris Saint-Germain on loan with an option to buy ahead of the conclusion of the January transfer window on Monday.

What’s the latest?

According to Sky Sports, the 25-year-old is set to return to his homeland and join the Ligue 1 leaders for the rest of the season, with a purchase option in the deal.

The Frenchman still has three-and-a-half years left on his contract with the north Londoners, having joined the Lilywhites for a club-record fee of £63m from Lyon in summer 2019.

Having made just three Premier League appearances since Antonio Conte took charge at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the 25-year-old will be seeking regular game-time in order to reignite his career.

Levy could be making a mistake

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has come under scrutiny this month, with the north London outfit still yet to make a signing in the January transfer window with only two days left before it concludes.

Tottenham are currently seventh in the Premier League, although Conte’s side are just two points off the top four and have two games in hand on fourth-placed Manchester United as they seek a return to the Champions League by the end of the season.

There will also be the ambition of putting together a serious attempt of winning the FA Cup, with the Lilywhites’ trophy drought reaching 14 years by the end of next month.

Therefore, the Italian will need to try and keep as much quality in his squad as he can, and that is something Ndombele can provide when at his best.

The move to north London has been nothing short of a disaster for the Frenchman, having played 5,160 minutes across 91 appearances, an average of 56.7 minutes per appearance.

The 25-year-old currently has the likes of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp and Harry Winks ahead of him in the midfield pecking order, with the former playing in all but one of Spurs’ Premier League matches this campaign.

Having not been included in the last two Spurs squads for the 3-2 win at Leicester and 2-0 defeat at Chelsea, it is clear that the Frenchman isn’t foremost in Conte’s thoughts. However, should injuries and suspensions stack up, Tottenham may regret allowing Ndombele to depart if they sanction his proposed loan move to Paris.

After all, he is still capable of producing game-changing moments of magic, while former Spurs boss Jose Mourinho has championed the midfielder’s “great talent”. If Ndombele is allowed to leave, being shorn of his quality could be a contributing factor if they fall short of a top-four finish.

AND in other news, Talks opened: Conte could form frightening Spurs unit by signing £40.5m-rated “beast”…

Australia and New Zealand are believed to be part of a contingency plan to shift the 2011 World Cup out of the subcontinent due to security threats. Justin Vaughan, the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) chief executive, admitted to such a move, but was hopeful that the tournament would go ahead as planned. He also said that New Zealand would tour India as scheduled at the end of the year.”You cannot move the timing of the tournament [the World Cup], in March-April, so really there’s only Australia-New Zealand and South Africa who could host it,” Vaughan told . “Obviously, players need to be safe, but we cannot run away when a threat is made. By tightening the security measures around the teams we somehow have to make it safe otherwise the sport will struggle to survive if we cannot find a solution.”We’ve got to find a way to make this work because Asia is the heartbeat of cricket in the present day.”Vaughan said that assessing security for the India tour would also be critical. “India is so important and you cannot envisage a scenario when you cannot tour India – it’s not worth thinking about,” he said. “The host’s security plans are vital. I’d go anywhere in the world if there was the right security plan. I’d go to Iraq, if the right security was in place.”However, Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, assured that major cricket nations would work in unison to ensure the World Cup did not fall prey to terrorism. “The World Cup is the big piece of work that we have to deliver – and we intend to do so,” Lorgat told the . “The whole issue of security is dynamic, but we will assess it very carefully and implement whatever measures are necessary to ensure safety and security. I do not share the same concerns for India as Pakistan.”We have established a quality network of security managers at each of the full member boards and through that we can develop a far better co-ordinated approach to safety and security.”Security fears regarding the upcoming IPL have intensified after the 313 Brigade, Al-Qaeda’s operational arm in Pakistan, issued a warning to “the international community” not to send its representatives to major sports events being staged in India.While Tim May, the chief executive of FICA, the international players’ union, has warned of a spate of player withdrawals from the tournament due to security concerns, England team’s security adviser Reg Dickason said the threat from the 313 Brigade was credible and that security could not be guaranteed in India.Other reported threats targeting the Commonwealth Games and the Hockey World Cup, both due to be hosted in India this year, have worsened the situation. Earlier, the Shiv Sena, a right-wing regional political party, had claimed it would not allow Australian cricketers to participate in the competition as a protest against attacks on Indian students in Australia.The 2011 World Cup is scheduled to be played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh from February 19-April 2 after Pakistan was ruled out as a co-host following a terrorist attack on touring Sri Lankan players in Lahore in March last year.

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Promessa do goleiro Victor de pagar aposta de 100 reais à Otero por golaçona vitória sobre o Coritibao último domingo, pelo Brasileirão, foi cumprida.

Victor interrompeu a entrevista coletiva do meia Otero para fazer o pagamento da aposta relativa ao golaço do meio de campo marcado pelo venezuelano. De brincadeira, o arqueiro entregou a Otero, inicialmente, um saco plástico cheio de moedas.

– A gente fez uma aposta no treino e, depois, no jogo, ninguém esperava, ele comemorando o gol no meio do campo, comigo, e me falando que estava me devendo cem reais. Foi um momento muito feliz para mim – contou Otero.

O venezuelano comemorou o bom momento com a camisa alvinegra.

– Já tive muitas oportunidades também no Campeonato Mineiro, fazendo gols e ajudando o time. O jogador precisa disso, confiança, continuidade. Agora, estou aproveitando as vezes que entro em campo para ajudar meus companheiros. Para mim, isso é muito bom – comentou o jogador.

O meia reiterou o foco da equipe do Galo de conseguir uma vaga no grupo de acesso à Libertadores e projetou dificuldade para a próxima partida.

– A partida contra o Corinthians vai ser ainda mais difícil. O Corinthians já é o campeão, mas vai ser um jogo bastante difícil para nós porque precisamos dessa vaga para a Libertadores. O Corinthians já é campeão, mas vai jogar para ganhar. A gente também precisa ganhar e vai ser um jogo bastante difícil. Então, estamos nos preparando para fazer um grande jogo – afirmou Otero.

Celtic have been linked with a move for Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Hannes Wolf, according to German tabloid Bild, relayed by Bulinews.com.

The Lowdown: Wolf profiled

Wolf is primarily a left-footed attacking midfielder who can also play on either wing and has made 180 senior club appearances.

He joined Monchengladbach from RB Leipzig this summer following a successful loan spell in a deal worth £8.55m, taking fees to sign Wolf during his career over £20m. [Transfermarkt]

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-20/” title=”Celtic updates!!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The 22-year-old has made just one appearance in Monchengladbach’s last 10 Bundesliga games, and so it seems as if a January exit is on the cards.

The Latest: Hoops keen

Bulinews.com relayed an update from German tabloid Bild, who claimed that Wolf could be one of a number of players to leave Monchengladbach in the New Year.

They suggest that he’s not in Adi Hutter’s plans, with Celtic, Trabzonspor and Rapid Wien all showing an interest.

The Verdict: Needed?

The Hoops could well bolster their midfield and attacking ranks in the New Year with three Japanese signings, and should they arrive in Scotland, Wolf may not be needed.

Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi are Ange Postecoglou’s midfield targets, according to Sky Sports, while forward Daizen Maeda could also be brought in over the coming weeks.

Should those moves materialise, Postecoglou would have a plethora of midfield and attacking options, so the club could be better off looking at a new left-back to rival Greg Taylor instead of looking at Wolf, with the likes of Callum Styles and Aaron Hickey recently linked.

In other news: ‘Outstanding’ Celtic gem could now miss next 11 fixtures, says journalist. 

Chris Jordan and Ajmal Shahzad claimed three wickets apiece as the England Performance Programme continued their impressive run of results with a 75-run victory over the Northern Titans at Pretoria

Cricinfo staff11-Dec-2009England Performance Programme 425 for 9 (Denly 217, Tredwell 70) and 155 for 4 dec beat Titans 235 (du Plessis 124*) and 270 by 75 runs
ScorecardChris Jordan and Ajmal Shahzad claimed three wickets apiece as the England Performance Programme continued their impressive run of results with a 75-run victory over the Northern Titans at Pretoria. Following a declaration set up by Michael Carberry’s quickfire 76, the Titans were left chasing a nominal 346 for victory, but were bundled out for 270 inside 60 overs.Having secured a first-innings lead of 190, EPP resumed on 44 for 1 in their second innings, and though the Yorkshire pair of Joe Sayers and Andrew Gale fell quickly in the morning session, Carberry received solid support in an 83-run stand for the fourth wicket with Rory Hamilton-Brown, who made 38 not out. The innings came to an end on the stroke of Carberry’s dismissal.In reply, Titans fared considerably better than they had done first-time around, when each of their top three was extracted without scoring, with Hendrik van der Dussen and Tumelo Bodibe adding 44 for the first wicket inside ten overs. But Shahzad struck the first blow when Bodibe fell for 18, and five balls later Steven Finn bagged K Pienaar for 1.Faf du Plessis, who knows his opponents well from his time with Lancashire, counterattacked in spectacular style with a 30-ball 42, but Jordan trapped him lbw before Sajid Mahmood removed van der Dussen for the same score.Thereafter, the Titans innings slipped away. Jaco Booysen made 26 before falling lbw to Shahzad; while Christiaan Schoeman and Graham van Buuren both succumbed in sight of their fifties. The spinner, James Tredwell, pitched in with two late wickets to hasten the defeat, before Shahzad bowled the No. 11, D van Onslem for 10 to seal the victory.

An update has emerged on Newcastle’s transfer plans, regarding Tottenham central midfielder Harry Winks.

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the English dynamo is set to become a key target for the Magpies in the January transfer window.

The report claims that Eddie Howe wants players with Premier League experience and has identified Winks as someone who could come in and improve the squad.

Dream signing

Howe could land his dream midfield signing in Winks as the 25-year-old has the ability to control games and function effectively in a possession-based side.

Earlier this week, the ex-Bournemouth boss picked out Jonjo Shelvey as a player who could help him change the style of play at St. James’ Park due to his quality on the ball – suggesting he wants to move to a progressive, possessional play, side. He said:

“I think we’ve got some very good technical players. Just picking one, for example, in Jonjo Shelvey. I knew how good Jonjo was on the ball technically having played against him and seen him many times.

“But having worked with him, you realise he’s a great technician and he can play passes all over the pitch — long, short. He’s someone I’ve looked at in terms of our philosophy, how we want to play and he will become very important for us as we develop.”

In a similar vein, Winks has previously been lauded for his quality on the ball. Back in 2019, ex-Spurs and Leeds player Paul Robinson praised his ability to dominate matches. The 41-year-old said:

“For me, I think Harry Winks is one of the best of the bunch. He dominates the game, defensively and offensively he offers you both and his ball retention, the stats speak for themselves.

“A fit Harry Winks is an important selection for England.”

This shows how the £91k-per-week dynamo could be perfect for the way Howe wants to play, making him a dream signing for the Magpies. Winks has a career average pass completion of 90%, along with 2.0 tackles and interceptions per game, showing that he is an effective passer of the ball who could dictate the flow of games for Newcastle.

Therefore, PIF must ensure that they are able to thrash out a deal with Spurs in January as he could play an important role in Howe implementing an exciting brand of football on Tyneside. If he can get Winks back to his best and dominating matches in midfield then he could be a dream addition to the team.

AND in other news, Howe could find Newcastle’s next Cabaye with swoop for “intelligent” 40-goal beast…

Leeds United managed to rescue a draw in their latest Premier League game against Brentford at Elland Road thanks to a last-gasp injury-time goal from Patrick Bamford.

Tyler Roberts put Marcelo Bielsa’s side 1-0 up in the first half before the visitors managed to get back in front thanks to goals from Shandon Baptiste and Sergi Canos before Bamford saved the day from the substitutes bench.

One Leeds player that also came off the bench but failed to have anywhere near the same sort of impact that Bamford had on this occasion, despite playing a lot longer than the striker did was Jack Harrison, who is currently picking up a weekly wage of £60k-per-week according to Salary Sport.

Bielsa chose to put Harrison on after defender Liam Cooper was forced off with an injury, giving the former Manchester City wide man 75 minutes of playing time under his belt this afternoon.

In those 75 minutes, Harrison had 81 touches of the ball but managed to lose possession of it on 28 occasions, completing just 36 of the 49 passes he attempted.

Having previously been labelled as an “important” player for Leeds by David Prutton, the winger also failed to accurately make any of the eight crosses and two long balls he attempted and lost 11 of the 21 duels he was involved in.

This performance ultimately earned Harrison an uninspiring overall match rating of 6.3/10, making him the lowest rated Leeds player on the day according to SofaScore which goes to show that he did not repay the faith put in him by Bielsa on this occasion.

Leeds Live also picked up on his lacklustre display by saying that it is “still not really happening for a prolonged period for Harrison in attack.”

Moving forward, given his poor display today, it’s hard to see Bielsa giving Harrison a place in the starting XI for their next league game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge next weekend.

Looking at the season as a whole, since Leeds signed the Englishman on a permanent basis over the summer, Harrison has only managed to provide one assist in the league so far this season and earned himself a poor overall rating of 6.44/10, making him one of the lowest-rated Leeds players that have started more than one league game this season according to WhoScored.

With this in mind, it can be argued that the Yorkshire club made a mistake in signing Harrison permanently and that his performances this season have undoubtedly embarrassed their head of recruitment, Victor Orta.

In other news: Bielsa could repeat Gelhardt masterclass with Leeds swoop for 20 y/o “manager’s dream”…

Many West Ham fans were far from happy with Kortney Hause’s poor challenge on Pablo Fornals during the 4-1 victory against Aston Villa on Sunday.

The Hammers enjoyed another fantastic afternoon against the Villans during what has been a fantastic season for David Moyes’ side. The comfortable victory, which came thanks to goals from Ben Johnson, Pablo Fornals, Jarrod Bowen and Declan Rice, sees them move three points clear of fifth place in the Premier League table (Sky Sports).

It was all sweetness and light for the Irons, however. Fornals was the subject of an incredibly strong challenge from Hause, who caught the Spanish midfielder in the face with a stray arm. The Villa defender was not sent off for the tackle, although it is hard to see why he did stay on the pitch, especially when Ezri Konsa was almost immediately dismissed for a less physical infraction.

A video of the “disgraceful” incident was shared on Twitter by @central_louis and it attracted plenty of attention from Irons supporters. These fans took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts on Hause taking out Fornals.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about Hause’s challenge on Fornals

“GBH. Nasty. A Red all day long…”

Credit: @RycraftTim

“Mental this wasn’t a red card…”

Credit: @camwestham

“this needs addressing surely”

Credit: @JohnW50065546

“A brutal assault and should have been a red card!”

Credit: @William37729473

“Looks worse every time I see it. Should have gone as well”

Credit: @ajarv19

“He’s lucky not to be more seriously hurt. That was disgraceful.”

Credit: @KillerHeels_UK

In other news, Darren Lewis has made this big Daniel Kretinsky claim

The English domestic game may not include 50-over cricket from next year after the ECB unveiled plans for a revamped county structure involving three competitions. The 16-match four-day Championship has been retained alongside an expanded Twenty20 tournament, but the format for the third competition has yet to be decided and could involve some radical new concepts including two-innings 40-over matches”The ECB feel there is a worldwide desire to find a way of reinvigorating and revitalising the 50 over game,” a statement said. “The game has experimented with power plays and super subs and now ECB, along with other countries, have decided to explore new options. Research tells ECB this is something the spectators and counties want to see happen. One option being considered is a 40-over concept with two innings per side with no limitations on bowlers.”The new structure will also mean an end to Test matches being staged in May after a series poorly attended series, including this year’s two-Test series against West Indies at Lord’s and Chester-le-Street. “We all recognise that there is little appetite for Test match cricket in early May and this structure allows us to play Tests in June, July and August,” Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, said.The three-tournament domestic structure had been expected, but not the potential scrapping of 50-over matches which is currently played under the Friends Provident Trophy banner. It creates the situation where England will continue to play one-day internationals but without a format to replicate that in the domestic game. It is often a criticism that England’s players are not well prepared for 50-over cricket. Now they will not be prepared at all, while those trying to force their way in won’t be able to impress in a competition that mirrors international cricket.”The ECB is committed to 50-over cricket at international level with a total of 13 ODIs against Bangladesh, Australia and Pakistan as well as an extended programme of England Lions 50-over games,” the statement added. “These matches, along with those played in Australia in the winter of 2010-11, will provide the practice required for the ICC World Cup in early 2011.”The ECB said this new tournament would revive the Sunday League which became a regular part of the fixture list during the 1970s, 80s and 90s and was popular with supporters as it guaranteed them weekend action.After suggestions that the Championship would be cut back to make way for more Twenty20 cricket the four-day tournament will remain intact, while Twenty20 – branded under the P20 name – will become two pools of nine teams split along north-south lines to retain the derby element.”We canvassed a wide range of opinion and everyone was behind the principle of the primacy of Test match and County Championship cricket,” Clarke said. “It is important that the County Championship structure is maintained to support the Test team.”We have also listened to the spectators and counties alike about the structure and the consensus was for Twenty20 cricket to be played in June and July with a final later in the season with the qualification matches primarily at weekends.”