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Should Celtic re-appoint Ange Postecoglou to replace Brendan Rodgers?

Well, the Australian did enjoy great success during his two seasons in Glasgow, winning five trophies, meaning he may remain the club’s most universally popular manager of the modern era.

However, following an ill-fated 39 days stint in charge of Nottingham Forest, reports suggest that Postecoglou is not looking to jump straight back into management, while his record at Tottenham and the City Ground, Europa League triumph aside, would be causes for concern, suggesting he may not be the dream candidate some supporters believe him to be.

Instead, should they target “one of the best coaches” around in a move reminiscent of what occurred in the year 2000?

Martin O'Neill's Celtic career

On Monday evening, when news of Rodgers’ resignation was announced, Celtic also confirmed that Martin O’Neill would be placed in interim charge, working alongside Shaun Maloney.

This is the 73 year old’s first managerial position since an Ange-esque 19 game stint at Nottingham Forest in 2019 and, having been in charge of the Republic of Ireland for five years before that, he hasn’t truly been a club manager since leaving Sunderland in 2013.

He did make a winning start to life back in the dugout, overseeing a 4-0 demolition of Falkirk in the Premiership on Wednesday night, with Johnny Kenny bagging a brace, while Benjamin Nygren and Sebastian Tounekti were also on target.

Sunday’s League Cup semi-final against fierce rivals Rangers at Hampden should be a significantly tougher assignment, but O’Neill certainly has pedigree when it comes to winning Old Firm games.

The Irishman began his managerial career in the ’90s with very impressive stints in charge of Wycombe Wanderers and Leicester City, gaining promotion in charge of both, before winning two League Cups with the Foxes.

This earned him the Celtic job in 2000, viewed very much as a left-field choice at the time, but this proved to be a masterstroke.

Prior to his arrival, Rangers had won 11 of the last 12 Scottish titles, but O’Neill won the league in three of his first four seasons as well as leading Celtic to the UEFA Cup Final in 2003, ultimately defeated by José Mourinho’s Porto at the Cartuja in Seville.

Not since Jock Stein has a Celtic manager been so successful in Europe, with O’Neill also winning 13 of his 24 Old Firm games, while he also boasts the best win percentage of any permanent Hoops boss in history, before even including Wednesday’s win.

Martin O’Neill

283

75.6%

Ange Postecoglou

113

73.5%

Neil Lennon

335

70.7%

Jock Stein

761

69.6%

Brendan Rodgers

292

68.8%

Gordon Strachen

195

64.6%

Willie Maley

1,617

64.4%

Ronny Deila

118

63.6%

Billy McNeill

455

60%

David Hay

209

56.9%

Tommy Burns

140

55.7%

Liam Brady

126

54%

Jimmy McGrory

843

49.7%

Note: minimum 100 matches in charge.

O’Neill will be hoping to improve that win ratio further, for however long he remains in the dugout, although that won’t be easy, with games against Rangers and then Midtjylland in Herning next on the agenda.

So, should Celtic appoint someone who is reminiscent of when O’Neill first arrived a quarter of a century ago?

Celtic could appoint 'one of the best coaches' in England

Of all the people reportedly in contention to become Celtic manager, Nicky Hayen, Craig Bellamy, Robbie Keane, Kjetil Knutsen and others, would Kieran McKenna represent the biggest coup?

Manager Focus

Who are the greatest coaches in the land? Football FanCast’s Manager Focus series aims to reveal all.

Sky Sports has reported that the Ipswich Town boss is a name whom the Celtic hierarchy are ‘very keen on’, although it remains to be seen if he would leave mid-season – while a reported £5m get-out clause could also prove prohibitive.

Just 39 years old, the Northern Irishman has been in coaching since 2009, employed by Tottenham and Manchester United as a youth coach and scout, before working alongside José Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjær as an assistant at Old Trafford.

Solskjær spoke glowingly about McKenna, describing him as “the most thorough and analytical… process-driven coach that I’ve worked with”, while fellow ex-Man United great Nicky Butt agrees, labelling him “one of the best coaches I’ve ever seen on the grass”.

His reputation earned him his first head coach role at Ipswich, enjoying unparalleled success in Suffolk, guiding the Tractor Boys to back-to-back promotions, leading them back into the Premier League for the first time since 2002, even if they were relegated straight away.

A mixed start to this EFL Championship campaign has the Blues 12th, but there is still firm belief that, with McKenna in charge, the East Anglian-based outfit will be promotion contenders.

In fact, despite taking a battering pretty much every week in the Premier League last season, only Mick O’Brien in the ’30s and Sir Alf Ramsey have a better win percentage of any Ipswich boss in history.

As outlined by the Coaches Voice, McKenna favours a ‘short-passing style’ with width provided by attacking full-backs, allowing wingers to drift inside, concluding that this approach should take him ‘ to the top of the game as a coach’, something that would suit how Celtic have played in the past and their current squad.

Also, as documents, McKenna’s history working with youth teams means he is more than willing to bring through younger players, helping Omari Hutchinson and others realise their true potential at Portman Road.

So, while his lack of experience, and poor Premier League record, with an admittedly weak squad, are causes for concern, the Celtic board must be bold, rather than churning through the same three of four faces.

If Neil Lennon wasn’t currently Dunfermline Athletic manager, he’d almost certainly be in the dugout; the Pars face Scott Brown’s Ayr United on Friday, winner gets the Celtic job anyone?

On a serious note, when O’Neill arrived in 2000, this was off the back of work with Wycombe and Leicester largely in the EFL, so who is to say McKenna could not do something similar, as he would certainly bring a freshness and new ideas to a club going a bit stale.

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As good as Kenny: Celtic star who won 10 duels is already undroppable

This Celtic star who was as good as Johnny Kenny is now undroppable for Martin O’Neill.

ByDan Emery Oct 30, 2025

Tottenham Hotspur’s 0-0 draw with Ligue 1 outfit Monaco last night will likely have highlighted the issues currently within Thomas Frank’s first-team squad.

The Dane may have spent upwards of £100m on new attacking talent, but his side’s tally of just two shots on target showcases their lack of quality in the final third.

During their first three Champions League outings of the 2025/26 campaign, centre-back Micky van de Ven is the only player in the current ranks to find the back of the net, with the other two strikes being own goals.

The likes of Mohammed Kudus and Richarlison were both named in the starting eleven for the meeting with Sebastien Pocognoli’s side, but neither managed to get themselves on the scoresheet.

The latter in particular produced yet another performance to forget, which could see his starting role in the first team come under huge questioning in the coming weeks.

Richarlison’s dismal display against Monaco

The Brazilian has mainly been utilised as Spurs’ number one centre-forward option in the opening weeks of 2025/26, with Dominic Solanke out injured after having surgery on an ankle issue.

It appeared as though the Dane’s arrival handed him a new lease of life after scoring twice on the Premier League’s opening day in the 3-0 triumph over Burnley.

However, he’s massively struggled to match such a performance in recent months, subsequently scoring just once in his last 12 outings across all competitions.

The 28-year-old did start the clash in France last night, but was unable to make a huge impact – as seen by his measly tally of just six passes completed in his 70-minute showing.

Other figures, such as no shots on target, no dribbles completed, and a 0.10 xG produced further indicate how little of a bearing he had on proceedings for Frank’s men.

As a result of his poor form of late, it has led to calls from the fanbase for him to be dropped to the bench, with other players like Randal Kolo Muani and Dane Scarlett deserving of a chance to showcase their talents.

However, Richarlison certainly hasn’t been alone in that category in recent weeks, with one other player being criticised for his inability to impress when handed the chance.

The Spurs star who was like Richarlison but now looks undroppable

There’s no denying that the arrival of a new manager brings about a period of change and bedding in – with Frank needing time to work with his Spurs players to understand his best eleven.

Since taking the reins back during the off-season, the Dane has utilised countless players, whilst even testing various four and five-back formations in North London.

As the winter months approach, it’s safe to say the 51-year-old has started to find out who he can rely on to provide the goods in his quest for success with the Lilywhites.

Wilson Odobert came under fire at the weekend for his lack of impact against Aston Villa, but the manager decided to stick with him for the clash against Monaco last night.

Many questioned the decision to keep the forward within the starting eleven, with the youngster yet to register a goal or assist this campaign and struggling just like Richarlison.

However, the Frenchman took full advantage of the chance handed his way by Frank, with such a performance one of the positives during the disappointing Champions League showing.

The 20-year-old featured for 70 minutes against the French side, subsequently completing 95% of the passes he attempted – the most of any player who featured for 45 minutes or more.

Minutes played

70

Touches

35

Passes completed

95%

Chances created

3

Dribbles completed

2

Crosses completed

2

Touches in opposition box

4

Shots taken

1

He also created three chances for his teammates whilst completing two of his three attempted dribbles – highlighting his tremendous ability with the ball at his feet.

Odobert’s incredible showing was further reflected in his tally of two crosses completed and four touches in the opposition area – undoubtedly being the Lilywhites’ most threatening option throughout the stalemate.

As a result of his showing, he was handed an 8/10 match rating by The Standard’s Matt Verri, with the journalist praising his direct nature and end product.

After such a display, there’s no way Frank can drop him from his starting eleven, with Odobert arguably being a player who’s now undroppable and deserving of a consistent run in the first-team.

It’s clear he’s a player who possesses a lot of quality, and he’s only going to get better as he gains more experience in Frank’s system and in the Premier League.

However, the same can’t be said for Richarlison, with the Brazilian now certainly on borrowed time after his inability to produce the goods in front of goal for the sixth game in a row.

Fewer touches than Vicario: Frank must instantly drop Spurs' 4/10 UCL flop

Tottenham Hotspur were only able to secure a 0-0 draw against Monaco in the Champions League last night.

2 ByEthan Lamb Oct 23, 2025

He has carried Australia’s attack in the face of vulnerability and hidden many of its flaws

Andrew Fidel Fernando14-Nov-20233:01

Vettori: Zampa’s control of length makes him ‘almost unplayable’

What are you made of? How will you come back from a blow? Are you just gonna hunker down here? Or are you gonna come back hard? As hard as they are coming at you?Because the real heft of the sport is in its individual battles, cricket asks its practitioners these questions pointedly. It asks these questions especially often of wristspinners. Who are you when there is nowhere to hide? You don’t have a fast bouncer to put your opponent on the back foot or a quick yorker to surprise them with. Someone has just smacked you for repeated boundaries, and you’re really going to toss another ball up at him out of the back of your hand? Eeesh. Good luck.When you watch a wristspinner at the top of their mark and a batter has started shellacking them, what you are watching is vulnerability.Related

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Aus-SA semi-final: All eyes on the weather in Kolkata

Adam Zampa has known this feeling. In one match at Centurion in September, there was maybe nothing this feeling. In that game, he disappeared for 113 runs, took zero wickets – and became the owner, at the time, of the worst figures in men’s one-dayers’ 4600-something match history. Australia would go on to lose that series 3-2. Zampa’s economy rate across the series would be 7.What happens next, though, is the important bit, because what happens next reveals how Zampa tends to respond to all those big questions cricket throws at wristspinners, and maybe more importantly, how the Australia team believes Zampa is going to respond. Instead of pushing Zampa to the fringes, they double down on him. Ashton Agar, the other spinner whom they’d pinned in for the World Cup is injured. Though they have other spinners to choose as his replacement, they pick batter Marnus Labuschagne instead.Uhhh, doesn’t Zampa need back up? It’s a tournament in India. Shouldn’t there be another frontline spinner there at least? It’s not been that long since Centurion.”Nah, our boy’s got it.”If you were an opposition coach or batting strategist at this World Cup, you’d see a big target on Zampa’s back, because who better to attack? Before this tournament began, Mitchell Starc was shaping to be one of the greatest World Cup bowlers ever. The prospect of taking Josh Hazlewood down is like trying to bash up a granite wall with a wooden mallet. Pat Cummins? There are softer spots. You’d go after Zampa, because if Australia lose those middle overs, they’ve got to shift their bowling plans around.Swagger? Resilience? Skill? Our boy’s got it all•AFP/Getty ImagesZampa has in public said he never quite saw it that way.”[Coach] Andrew McDonald said, you know, ‘Ash Agar, he’s not going to be right for the World Cup. You’re going to be the only spinner’. Instead of thinking about it as responsibility I said to him: ‘you guys must think I’m pretty good if you think I can do the job by myself’.”We are now getting to the heart of who Zampa is, because when you watch him at the top of his mark when a batter has started shellacking him, it begins to feel as if we are in unusual territory. Maybe what we are watching here is not vulnerability.”I look around at all the wristspinners around the world, from Kuldeep Yadav, Wanindu Hasaranga, Rashid Khan and all those guys – I probably look at myself and go out of all those bowlers, I’m the least skilful,” he recently said in an interview with Bharat Sundaresan.What Zampa has is not Rashid’s wicked legbreak, or Hasaranga’s spectacular googly, but a will to stay in the fight, a champion chess player’s determination to root out the opponent’s weaknesses, and an ability to adjust to the shot the batter is about to play.Zampa described his performance against England as the “most satisfying”, but his best performance arguably came against New Zealand in Dharamsala, where seeing Daryl Mitchell coming down the track on 50-odd, having hit a hundred against the best attack in the tournament in the past week, Zampa slipped in a rapid slider and had him caught at long-on.Later in the match, he’d have Tom Latham caught reverse sweeping with a ball that was slow through the air. When in his final over, Mitchell Santner hit the first ball for six, Zampa looped it beautifully two balls later: flight, dip, spin, the batter mis-hitting it, the fielder at the boundary gobbling it up. Are you watching, cricket?2:02

Why has Zampa been such a threat?

When he was asked what he did in that week in Dharamsala, was a “recluse” by his own reckoning. He “wore a few robes” and did a trek into the Himalayas. Perhaps in the hyper-macho, uber-competitive world of elite athletes, going golfing is the thing you do. Maybe someone falls off a golf cart and gets a concussion. Boys will be boys.But if you’re in the foothills of the most majestic mountain range on the planet, maybe walking up to get a better view of them is actually not a weird-person move. Such is the warped world of men’s sport that you can do the sane thing and get called weird.Zampa has a manual coffee grinder he carries around, a tender relationship with Marcus Stoinis, a pretty good reading of opposition batters, and an aggressively non-Alpha Male energy. Oh, also a tournament-high 22 wickets at this World Cup, which to be very honest, has carried this attack and hidden many of its flaws.As we arrive at the knockouts, who are you backing when cricket asks all of those tough questions? It feels like Australia had figured it out months ago. Zampa does not have to project strength; he just knows what he is about.

Harry Kane has explained why he was surprisingly named as a substitute before scoring a hat-trick in Bayern Munich’s thumping 5-0 win over Stuttgart on Saturday. The England captain continued his rich vein of goalscoring form in his side’s latest Bundesliga victory, but he admits he was as shocked as anybody that he had to emerge from the bench to do so.

Eyebrows raised as Kompany starts Jackson ahead of Kane

Returning to league action following Wednesday’s triumph over Union Berlin in the last 16 of the DFB-Pokal, Bayern travelled to sixth-placed Stuttgart for what looked to be a tricky test on paper. One of the strongest teams in German football, Sebastian Hoeness’ hosts were also victorious in midweek, downing VFL Bochum 2-0 to book their place in the quarter-finals of the domestic cup.

However, one or two eyebrows were raised before kick-off when the news emerged that Bayern star Kane would start the match on the bench. After scoring in the victory over Union, the former Tottenham forward took his goal tally to 25 in just 21 fixtures in all competitions for Vincent Kompany’s side, who opted to field Chelsea loanee Nicolas Jackson up top.

AdvertisementAFPFormer Tottenham striker shows class with stunning hat-trick

Ever the consummate professional, though, Kane showed no signs of frustration after being introduced on the hour mark, replacing fellow striker Jackson who was unable to find the back of the net for Bayern.

Already in front thanks to midfielder Konrad Laimer’s opener, Kane doubled Bayern’s lead just six minutes after being brought on, before going on to grab his second of the game from the penalty spot.

And to cap off a remarkable 30-minute display, Kane followed up Josip Stanisic scoring Bayern’s fourth by completing his hat-trick on the 88th-minute mark. The win saw Kompany’s side move 11 points clear at the top of the league table ahead of second-placed RB Leipzig’s clash with Eintracht Frankfurt later in the day.

Bayern star man Kane reveals why he started on the bench

When asked about starting the match among the substitutes, Kane lifted the lid on manager Kompany’s thinking, saying the Bayern head coach wanted to keep him “fresh” ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League clash with Portuguese giants Sporting CP at the Allianz Arena.

Speaking after the full-time whistle, Kane said: “It's something I'm not used to, but I did it a couple of times this season. The boss wanted to keep me fresh and save energy. 

“I came on after 60 minutes with a couple of other guys and we were able to exploit the space and get the goals. 

“We had a tough battle in the cup midweek and today we faced one of the best teams in the league away, but we looked stronger in the last half an hour and punished them.”

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Getty Images SportManager Kompany also opens up about his gutsy decision

And when Kompany was asked about the gutsy decision to rest Kane, the former Burnley manager revealed the plan was to always introduce the talisman around the hour mark.

“I had this change in mind before the game started,” said Kompany. “We have 4 games in 11 days. If I start Harry every game and he plays 90 minutes, I'll get questions about why he always plays. 

“Every time we played Stuttgart we've always grown stronger as the game progressed. I felt the spaces would be bigger when Harry came on, it was a good moment for him to come on. And he did what he does.”

Former keepers lined up to heap praise on Carey’s performance in Brisbane where he operated up to the stumps for long periods

Andrew McGlashan08-Dec-2025A modest Alex Carey reflected on being “pretty proud” of his performance behind the stumps in Brisbane as he was lauded as the best wicketkeeper in the world after a putting on a masterclass of glovework in the second Test.Carey produced the finest performance of his career, with his work behind the stumps becoming a defining element at the Gabba, while scoring 63 in Australia’s first innings when the game was at a tipping point late on the second day.On the opening day he took a spectacular running catch to remove Gus Atkinson, but the most notable aspect was his keeping stood up to Michael Neser and Scott Boland which culminated in him gathering an edge off Ben Stokes on the fourth day.Related

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There was some irony in the amount of time Carey spent standing up in this Test given Australia had left out Nathan Lyon and gone with an all-pace attack but he formed a compelling partnership with Neser in particular.”Self-reflection, yeah, pretty proud of my efforts out there,” Carey told . “Thought opportunities to come up to the stumps against some really good bowling and the boys were able to beat the bat. So thought I did a good job for the team. I also thought the bowlers did an amazing job to create those chances.”Carey revealed that standing up to pace bowling is something he doesn’t replicate with bowlers in training but backs his skill to take over when needed.”I don’t practice up to the stumps against fast bowling, think that probably could be a little bit dangerous at times,” he said. “You work on the fundamentals of the game, and for me that’s keeping up to the stumps to Nathan Lyon a lot but doing my drills in the nets with a nick bat, getting throws, trying to get in good positions.”Then when you are in a game of cricket I feel like your instincts take over most of the time, so trusting the positions that I’m in then hoping my instinct takes over and I get into the right position to hang onto them.”Former wicketkeepers lined up in admiration of Carey four years on from when there was scrutiny over his glovework as he began his Test career in the 2021-22 Ashes.Alex Carey celebrates his catch to remove Ben Stokes•AFP/Getty Images”I think he’s clearly the best in the world, probably even before this [Test],” Ian Healy said on SEN radio. “To have such long periods [standing up] to quite fast bowling on a pitch that looks as if something might happen – but didn’t a whole lot of times – clearly cements him as the best. To be able to be effective with it as long as he was, you know, he hardly misgloved any of them.On Triple M radio, Brad Haddin said: “I’ve not seen a better keeping display.”Captain Steven Smith, who was standing alongside Carey at slip for much of the match, including when he produced his own piece of brilliance to remove Will Jacks with arguably the finest catch of his career, said he had not seen a better display.”That performance behind the stumps was something else,” Smith said. “Ness [Neser] was getting the ball up around 137-138kph at times. Boland similar. He just gets in behind it. He finds a way to just get the ball in his hands. It hits the batter’s pads and it ends up in his hands somehow.”He works exceptionally hard. He’s as fit as anyone. He just turns up day in, day out. Rarely makes a mistake and pulls off unbelievable catches.”When I was at slip, when he was up to the stumps, I was so wide just because of how much he covers. He just gets his hands out there. It’s like he knows they’re going to nick it almost at times and gets his hands out there. That keeping performance was as good as I’ve seen.”Neser, who said after the third day’s play that, as a pace bowler, he was reluctant to operate with the wicketkeeper up to the stumps earlier in his career, was quick to acknowledge the role it had played in his maiden five-wicket haul”That wouldn’t be possible without Kez [Carey], and what Steve did there at the end was special,” he said. “I didn’t even have to ask Kez to come up, he just does it … to have a keeper like that is great.”Neser’s comeback has emerged as one of the feelgood stories of the series after he hadn’t played a Test for three years and feared his chance may have gone with a severe hamstring injury last season.”There was a moment earlier in the season where I was just like, man, I hope he gets his chance,” Marnus Labuschagne, a team-mate at Queensland, said. “Obviously a few injuries, and I saw the writing on the wall there, that there’s potential [he wouldn’t play again]. For him to be able to come in and deliver…maybe a bit of nerves that first innings, then to come out second innings and play that role and get five-for, I was just so happy.”Just the work that he’s put in, the body of work in Shield cricket, the consistency that he keeps delivering and delivering, and we didn’t see the best of his batting either. I think that’s probably the exciting part as well, is he’s got a lot to offer with not only the ball, but that and his fielding, he’s got five of the best catches in Big Bash.”

The deals are flowing as Major League Baseball creeps closer to the trade deadline, with teams angling to put themselves in position to make a run for a title.

Among those teams are the New York Mets, who overhauled their bullpen with two deals on Wednesday night, shipping away prospects to bring in submariner Tyler Rogers and 2024 NL Reliever of the Year Ryan Helsley.

On the field, the Mets were not quite as active, ultimately falling to the Padres 7–1, but the team’s goals are bigger than one Wednesday night game in late July, and the moves they made ahead of the deadline are a good step towards accomplishing them.

While his mood was a bit somber after the loss, Mets star Francisco Lindor still expressed excitement when asked about the team’s acquisition of Rogers.

“He’s a good arm. He’s been in the league for a long time,” Lindor said. “I’ve faced him many times and he’s gotten me out many times. I’ve heard around the league that he’s a really good guy, good person. Somebody that’s probably going to pitch in big situations. It’s going to help us.”

Rogers and Helsley join closer Edwin Diaz in the Mets bullpen, and will be charged with getting important outs for the Mets through the stretch run of the season, and hopefully, the playoffs.

Aaron Judge keeps making history.

Not only has Judge belted 33 or more home runs before the All-Star break for the third time in his career—a feat no other player has achieved in MLB history, but he now also stands alone in the Yankees record books.

Entering Wednesday's game, Judge had been intentionally walked 23 times, which tied Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle for the most intentional walks in a single season in Yankees history. That record was toppled in the bottom of the second inning of New York's 9-6 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday.

With a runner on second and two outs, the Mariners elected not to pitch to Judge, intentionally walking the 6'7" slugger. And with the intentional walk, Judge passed "The Commerce Comet" in Yankees history with 70 games to go in the regular season.

Judge tied Mantle during the Yankees four-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays this past week, in which he was intentionally walked a franchise-record five times.

Clearly, teams are approaching Judge with caution—and for good reason. He's in the midst of arguably his best season, as well as one of the greatest seasons ever for a power hitter.

Judge owns a .360/.468/.737 slash line with 34 homers, 77 RBIs, 83 runs scored and 67 walks. He leads MLB in hits with 122. If his 224 wrC+ stands by season's end, it would be the sixth-highest in the history of baseball, behind only marks set by Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds.

It's no wonder that teams would rather take their chances with others in the Yankees lineup.

South Africa completed their fourth chase of the tournament, this time with ten wickets in hand

Firdose Moonda17-Oct-2025

Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits shared a century-stand for the opening wicket•Getty Images

20-overs-a-sideSouth Africa took a big step towards a World Cup semi-final berth by chasing successfully for the fourth time in the tournament, this time in a rain-reduced encounter in Colombo. They played what was essentially a T20 against Sri Lanka, whose innings was paused for five-and-a-quarter hours, and whose semi-final hopes now hang by a thread. Sri Lanka have two points from two washouts and are winless. For any chance of a final-four spot, they must win their last two games and hope other results go their way.After choosing to bat first, Sri Lanka faced 12 overs before the rain delay and scored 46 for 2. They returned to hit 59 runs in eight overs, losing five wickets in the process. South Africa’s target was adjusted up from Sri Lanka’s final score of 105 for 7 to acknowledge the hosts did not know they would only bat 20 overs for 60% of their innings.Similarly South Africa’s bowling plans were scuppered by the revised playing conditions. Both senior seamers – Marizanne Kapp and Masabata Klaas – were bowled out in the first 12 overs as the reduction only allowed for bowlers to deliver a maximum of four overs each. They had also included two offspinners – Sune Luus, returning from a hip flexor strain, and Nondumiso Shangase – but neither ended up bowling.Instead, it was left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba, dealing with a wet ball, who took 3 for 30 and limited Sri Lanka after the resumption. Unlike in their previous two matches against India and Bangladesh, South Africa were barely troubled in the chase. Laura Wolvaardt scored a second half-century at this event and Tazmin Brits supported her with a fifty of her own as South Africa cruised to a win with 5.1 overs to spare. Their net run-rate, though, remains negative after their opening defeat to England.South Africa may not have thought it would be that easy, when hours earlier, Sri Lanka – fresh from topping 250 against New Zealand – decided to go again by batting first in home conditions. But South Africa had an ace, Klaas, who threatened from the get-go when she beat Vishmi Gunaratne first with an outswinger and then an inswinger. In the next over, Gunaratne was completing a single off Kapp when a throw came into the non-striker’s end and struck her on the inside of her left knee. Going down in pain, she received treatment on-field and was stretchered off later. No serious damage was done as Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) confirmed she would bat again later in the innings.Athapaththu was on three of 12 balls at the time and only got her next runs six deliveries later when she hit Kapp inside-out over point for four. Just as she found her touch, South Africa also discovered theirs. Klaas bowled Hasini Perera, who played down the wrong line, with a beauty that shaped away. Then Kapp found Harshita Samarawickrama’s edge but the chance fell short of Chloe Tryon at slip. Klaas then snared the big fish when Athapaththu was given out lbw as she lunged forward to an inswinger. Athpaththu thought the impact was outside the line and reviewed but stayed out on umpires call. Sri Lanka were 37 for 2 after 10 overs.Only two more overs were possible before the drizzle became too heavy and the players were taken off the field. They remained off for five hours and 14 minutes, during which time it rained heavily, eased off and eventually Sri Lanka’s excellent groundstaff got conditions ready for a restart.Mlaba restarted proceedings and was dispatched for six first ball by Kavisha Dilhari, in an over that cost 10. Sri Lanka’s intent was clear when, in the next over, Samarawickrama tried to slog Nadine de Klerk but got a leading edge to mid-off, where Klaas could not hold on. De Klerk was rewarded later in the over when Dilhari handed a catch to Wolvaardt at cover.Nonkululeko Mlaba finished with three wickets•Getty ImagesIt became two in two for Sri Lanka as Mlaba removed Samarawickrama at the start of her next over, with Wolvaardt doing the catching again. That brought Gunaratne back to the crease and she finished the over by hitting Mlaba down the ground for four. Gunaratne was in excellent touch and hit Chloe Tryon through point, and Mlaba for back-to-back fours to keep pressure on South Africa.Nilakshika de Silva took on de Klerk but South Africa pulled things back in the last two overs. De Klerk’s fourth over cost just three runs and Mlaba picked up two wickets and conceded four to take her to second on the tournament wicket-takers’ list. De Silva, trying to get as many as possible, picked out deep midwicket and Gunaratne edged behind to give 18-year old wicketkeeper Karabo Meso her first World Cup catch.Wolvaardt and Brits, who had not had the best tournament as an opening pair thus far, then took complete control. They posted their highest opening stand of this World Cup and dealt well with the early swing Malki Madara generated. Wolvaardt kept one that was destined for the stumps out and then advanced down the track to hit her over mid-on.It took Brits, coming off back to back ducks, some time before she brought out a big shot. But when she did, it was huge. Coming down the track, she sent Inoka Ranaweera back over her head for six. South Africa’s fifty came up in the eighth over as Brits was nearly run out at the non-striker’s end with Wolvaardt pushing for two. Wolvaardt went on to give Brits the best view in the house as she creamed a cover drive off Athapaththu and asserted her authority on the game.Brits survived an lbw review on 20 when Dilhari tossed one up. Dilhari’s night got worse from there when South Africa took 18 runs off her third over including four fours. Wolvaardt reached fifty off the second one, when she hit Dilhari leg-side, then Brits scored two of her own to enter the 40s. She finished things off quickly and got to fifty when she ended the game with a six over midwicket.

All you need is a smartphone and a tripod to find out more about your bowling

Deivarayan Muthu28-Nov-20204:02

Lockie Ferguson: ‘Wanted to put technology in people’s pockets’

Speed is “everything” for Lockie Ferguson. His pace was noted in 2008, when he competed with Jimmy Neesham in a fast-bowling competition on the sidelines of the New Zealand vs England Test at Basin Reserve.Ferguson’s elder brother Mitch Ferguson was also known for his rapid pace back in the day at Auckland Grammar but then slipped through the cracks, and is now a software developer. The Ferguson brothers’ need for speed drove them to develop an application called Machineroad with which bowlers can measure their speeds on their smartphones. In addition to being a pocket speed gun, the app allows you to record your training sessions while providing real-time feedback on lengths and bounce points among other analytics.So, all you need is a smartphone, a tripod set up 1.5 metres high and two metres behind the bowling crease, and “find out more about your bowling”.Watch the cricket on ESPN+

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“It was Mitch’s baby to start with. Fortunately, I’m in cricket as well, so it was a good avenue to get technology this cutting edge into everyday users,” Lockie told ESPNcricinfo during a virtual interaction. “Obviously, as professionals, we get the opportunity to have HawkEye, ball tracking, and pitch mapping and all these sorts of analytics, which help to become a better cricketer and now we’re trying to put that in someone’s pocket.”So, obviously pretty easy with me being a quick bowler and easy alignment for our product there, but certainly from a young age, I wanted to be a quick bowler because my big brother was a fast bowler and I wanted to be faster than him. Off the back of that, I think everyone will probably agree – even talking to some of the batters in the team, getting the app out at training, they’re all charging in and trying to bowl quick. So, it just shows you that there’s a lot of passion for fast bowling and everyone wants to know at some stage how quickly they can bowl.”Mitch drew from his experiences as a raw fast bowler – mismanaging bowling loads and lack of enough awareness about fast bowling – to make the app “hugely scalable” for club cricketers.Lockie Ferguson and Shivam Mavi test out the Machineroad app at the KKR nets•KKR/Machineroad”I guess the main reason behind [creating] the app was some of the stuff that I went through as a young cricketer,” Mitch said. “I was going through the grades and involved in a lot of representative cricket and obviously having quite a few injuries during that time as well. Ultimately, it was kind of based around how we can provide visibility to some of those young players because I definitely missed out on my fair share of opportunities.”You’ve got HawkEye and a range of other pieces of equipment that does enable you to capture some of this data, but one of the biggest things around that is a lot of that equipment is quite expensive, especially when you try to bring that equipment and technology to clubs and lot of other remote areas throughout the world as well. One of the key things that we really wanted to focus on was how we can take that technology, how we can simplify that data.”

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Recently, the Ferguson brothers used the app with the Parnell Plums Women’s side in Auckland, where Maddy Curran clocked 110kph, catching the attention of Northern Districts, who have now called her to their academy.”One of our best [things] happened with the Parnell Women’s team,” Lockie said. “We were out there testing the app with the Parnell Plums – which is a great women’s team in Auckland. Maddy Curran, one of the opening bowlers was bowling on the app and she’s quite quick. It picked it up – she was bowling at almost 110ks – then I posted it on our Machineroad Instagram and my Instagram. And next week, the ND coach got in touch with her and she is now involved with their academy. That might kick-start her career and if we can create more of those stories then that’s awesome.”While the immediate focus is to build engagement and gamification tools in the app to encourage cricketers around the world to challenge themselves against each other, Lockie reckoned it could also help bowlers test their plans at the nets and execute them better in the middle.”In the developing part, one thing Mitch and I talked about was… I hate to quote games, but last year at the World Cup, we were sort of faced up against Steve Smith. So, we were working out a game plan on what my strengths are against a batter like him who is so leg-side dominant and obviously got great plans. So, we sort of talked about this leg-gully option and at the time I wasn’t potentially in a position to be able to do that, but had I had that at training and actually filmed myself working on trying to hit a spot… I’m not always going to bowl that far on the left shoulder – a bumper. Tough to do it in the nets against our batters because they don’t want to face it too much.”But there is an element that I’m trying to create a plan that I think will work, but then how do I train and get real-time feedback? Then, this app is more or less on those lines where you can work on a skill like that [spot bowling] and hopefully, get the wicket or have Martin Guptill catch a one-hander at leg gully .”

Weston McKennie and Jonathan David are in different situations for their club and, with the World Cup around the corner, need to start playing their best soccer.

On Tuesday evening, two CONCACAF stars finally made the difference for Juventus in the Champions League. Their influence was overdue in a 3-2 win that flirted with embarrassment, but when Juve needed someone to steady the ship, first Weston McKennie and then Jonathan David delivered.

McKennie struck first, smashing home a 60th-minute equalizer against Bodo/Glimt. David followed with a stoppage-time winner that secured three points — and, frankly, spared Juve from dropping points in a game they had no business complicating. It was about time for both. McKennie remains an enigma in Turin: ever-present, yet often difficult to pinpoint in terms of tangible impact. David, meanwhile, chose a club with two established strikers and has spent the autumn trying to carve out space for himself. It’s only November, but both feel like they’re approaching a crossroads.

And in recent weeks, that has only gotten worse. Juve did what Italian clubs often do and fired their manager, Igor Tudor, after a poor start to the season. They then responded by hiring Luciano Spalletti, a coach of immaculate pedigree but seemingly a poor fit for the squad.

It is a puzzling situation for both. Spalletti has done little to indicate that he rates David. McKennie has been a regular, but far from the star he could perhaps be elsewhere. In short, the American and the Canadian are struggling – albeit in different ways. And at an unpredictable club quickly falling out of Serie A contention, something has to change.

Getty ImagesSpalletti and what the new manager brings

Spalletti should have made sense. In truth, he still might. This is a frighteningly early time to jump to any conclusions. But what Juventus have is a Serie A–proven manager who showed he can do a lot with a little when he won the league with Napoli in 2023. That team was propelled by Victor Osimhen and a young Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, but it was also wonderfully balanced, with legs in midfield and solidity at the back. Spalletti’s sides can attack, but they can also defend.

His time with the Italian national team was admittedly mixed. The talent pool had dried up, and he argued that he didn’t have the time to shape the squad before Euro 2024. Italy lost in the Round of 16, and he took responsibility:

“We failed because of my team selection; it is never down to the players.”

It was expected that he might leave after the exit, but instead stuck around for another year. He was let go for good in June after losing to Norway in Italy's first World Cup qualifying fixture. 

When Juve appointed him, they hoped for the Napoli version of Spalletti. There could yet be some magic here.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesEarly results are mixed

The early results have been somewhat mixed. Spalletti looks very much like a coach still figuring it out – tinkering with his personnel despite having a recognized system. There is, however, one major constraint to his game. Juve's squad has been assembled to play in some version of a 3-4-3. There will, in whatever tactical vision Spalletti ultimately holds, a base construction of three central defenders, wing backs and two central midfielders. 

That's a problem. At Napoli, he used a 4-3-3 of sorts. For Italy, he tinkered but tended to favor a back four system. He has been given a squad, then, that doesn't quite fit his usual needs. That is not necessarily Spalletti's fault. Juventus have only had a director of football for five months. They are, structurally, a mess, and have appointed three managers in just over a year. He's not been given the best tools here. 

He started his reign by beating Cremonese, 2-1. That was followed by three straight draws in which Juve scored just twice. On Tuesday evening, he had his first big win. The conceded first against last year's Europa League darlings Bodo/Glimt and mounted a second-half comeback to seal three vital points in the Champions League. 

There have been some tactical innovations here. With too many central midfielders to get into his side – and a feeling that Khephren Thuram, Manuel Locatelli, and Teun Koopmeiners are all undroppable – Spalletti moved Koopmeiners into his back three, and tasked the midfielder with playing a crucial role in build-up play. That has certainly made his side more dynamic on the ball – yet the end product is yet to be seen. 

Getty Images SportMcKennie's value amid uncertainty

 What this means for McKennie, though, remains unclear. Every summer brings the same message: the American is no longer valued at Juve, a move is imminent, his time is up. And yet, somehow, he always works his way back into the fold. Sometimes out of necessity, but more often because of his quality. McKennie is a gifted, versatile footballer who should be more than a utility man, though a succession of managers have been reluctant to leave him out.

Spalletti has treated him much the same way, using the Texas native as a right-sided player in various roles. McKennie has started all five of Spalletti’s games so far and has played all but five minutes. Three starts have come at right wing-back; two have come as either a winger or an advanced midfielder. And McKennie has been entirely agreeable. He does everything right without quite standing out. He hasn’t scored or assisted, but he’s a steady 7/10: winning more tackles than he loses, completing passes at a solid rate, and creating a couple of chances each game.

Then, on Tuesday, he came alive. Juve were struggling and trailed Bodo/Glimt 1-0 at half-time. Lois Openda pulled one back early in the second half. And McKennie came up with the next crucial moment. His go-ahead goal wasn’t particularly pretty, but he timed his run perfectly and rose to meet a lofted ball. Juve went on to win 3-2.

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AFPDavid, who can barely get a kick

And David also got in on the fun. It has been a frustrating few months for the former Lille man. He was linked with plenty of high-profile moves after scoring for fun in the French league. Arsenal and Liverpool were both reportedly in the mix. A few other big names were mentioned here and there. Juve, in truth, seemed an odd choice, especially given that they had Dusan Vlahovic up front. David needed to start, and it didn't seem like the club could offer him many minutes. 

So far, those doubts have proven valid. Thus far, David has started five out of 11 Serie A games, registering one goal and one assist in league play. He was bright in the first month of the season, but Spalletti has been reluctant to use him. Davif hasn't started a domestic game under the new boss, and played just four minutes against Sporting CP in the Champions League on Nov. 4. 

His underlying numbers, though, look pretty good. David is in the 90th percentile for shot-creating actions and 99th in pass completion percentage according to . His defensive numbers are as reliable as ever. These are small sample sizes, but the player is still very much there. 

And he proved it in style Tuesday evening. Juve seemed set to kick on after McKennie's second goal. But the home side grabbed an equalizer in the 87th minute. A point wouldn't have been disastrous. Still, in these games, you need all three. David's goal was all instinct. Kenan Yildiz had a shot well parried, and David floated in, reacted first, and turned home. Whether that goal kicks off his Juve career in full remains to be seen, but it was a solid moment for a struggling player.