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Rangers looked back to their best from an attacking perspective as they picked up a 4-2 win and Steven Gerrard’s side could and perhaps should have scored more.

Joe Aribo’s superb curling effort gave the Teddy Bears a first-half lead against Ross County at Victoria Park, before Connor Goldson’s powerful header from a corner made it 2-0.

Harrison Clarke halved the deficit shortly before half-time but in reality, Rangers were never in danger of losing this once they took the lead.

Alfredo Morelos’ precise finish made it 3-1 but Malky Mackay’s side didn’t give up and made it 3-2 thanks to Jordan White’s penalty after Calvin Bassey was adjudged to have handled the ball inside the area.

However, Scott Arfield made an almost immediate impact from the bench and wrapped up the points with a tap in to make it 4-2, in a result which sees Rangers move level on points with their Old Firm rivals Celtic ahead of next weekend’s derby game.

One man who impressed in the win against the Staggies was James Tavernier.

As per SofaScore, the Rangers captain would earn an impressive 7.5/10 rating for his performance, which was only bettered by Connor Goldson (8.0) and Morelos (8.0) of all the players who featured in the game.

The former Wigan Athletic man registered an assist for Goldson’s goal and was a constant threat going forwards, contributing a hugely impressive six key passes during the game, which was the most of any player on the pitch.

Rangers fans will be used to seeing Tavernier get forward down the right-hand side and he was back to his best against Ross County after some less than impressive recent displays, notably against Dundee United and Malmo.

Whilst Morelos was in excellent form up front, where he got his customary goal, Tavernier’s performance from right-back once again emphasised how important he is in this Rangers side.

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The 29-year-old, who was labelled “unstoppable” by Gerrard last year, was accurate with his passing throughout and delivered a real captain’s performance for the Gers, which will surely delight fans as they prepare for a huge game at Ibrox next week.

And, in other news… Rangers look set to sign their next Morelos as Campbell drops transfer update

West Ham United have been handed a major boost in their pursuit of Corentin Tolisso, according to Get French Football News’ Adam White.

David Moyes has been keen to bolster his Hammers squad after leading the east Londoners into the Europa League thanks to registering a club-record Premier League points tally last season.

However, the Scotsman has been frustrated in the transfer market and Alphonse Areola has been the only arrival – on a season-long loan with the option of making the move permanent – from French giants Paris Saint-Germain.

According to German media outlet Sport 1, Bayern Munich central midfielder Tolisso is among Moyes’ transfer targets as the deadline draws closer. The report suggests Juventus are also keeping tabs on the 2018 World Cup winner.

Bild has claimed Tolisso could be picked up for as little as £8.4million this summer, with the 27-year-old’s Bayern contract expiring in less than 12 months.

White is confident France international Tolisso will be welcomed to the London Stadium before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.

He told Football FanCast: “Sources in France say Bayern want to sell Tolisso and the key phrase they used was as soon as possible, which is quite something considering how good a player he is.

“He is very much out of the team so I think Bayern Munich would be open to selling him.

“There’s a willingness to sell if the right offer came in and I think West Ham could afford the transfer fee.”

The past year has been a steep learning curve for Mitchell Johnson, who hopes the injection of youth into Australia’s squad for the Sydney Test will lift the team

Cricinfo staff31-Dec-2008
Mitchell Johnson will be leading an inexperienced attack at the SCG © Getty Images
The past year has been a steep learning curve for Mitchell Johnson, who made his Test debut last November and 14 months later finds himself leading Australia’s attack. When the third Test starts in Sydney on Saturday, Johnson will be the spearhead in a bowling group featuring Peter Siddle and Nathan Hauritz in their fourth Tests and a debutant – either Doug Bollinger or Ben Hilfenhaus.It is a vastly different role for Johnson, who entered the summer as the third fast man behind Brett Lee and Stuart Clark. However, Clark has had surgery on his troublesome right elbow and Lee’s left foot also requires an operation, which has left Johnson as the senior bowler in what will be his 18th Test.Australia’s challenge is to come back from the disappointment of their first home series loss in 16 years to aim for victory in the dead rubber at the SCG. Johnson said he hoped the injection of youth into the squad – the allrounder Andrew McDonald is also set to debut – would lift the team.”I still think we’re a very strong side, even though we’ve got a lot of young guys in the team,” Johnson said after Australia arrived in Sydney. “You’ve got Dougie Bollinger, Andrew McDonald, these guys, Ben Hilfenhaus, they’re going to come into the side with a lot of bubble. I’m still backing our team. We’re going to keep positive and do our best in Sydney.”Australia have not suffered a whitewash in a Test series at home since the 19th century and if they do concede the Sydney match they will also hand over the No. 1 Test ranking to South Africa. Johnson said his overwhelming feeling after the MCG loss was shock, although he said South Africa had thoroughly deserved their success.”I can’t speak for the whole team,” he said. “I guess yesterday afternoon I was in a little bit of shock after coming off the field. You go out there and you are trying to do your best for your country and everyone in the team is trying to do their best. No one likes losing.”I guess to be two-nil down in the series, it has come as a little bit of a disappointment for us. But South Africa are a very, very strong side. They are number two in the world so I guess they outplayed us and they deserve every reward that they get.”

The ICC has confirmed to Cricinfo that seven games will be shown, all from the North Sydney Oval, during the forthcoming ICC Women’s World Cup

Jenny Roesler21-Jan-2009Seven matches on a satellite channel may not seem much in this era of saturated sports broadcasting, but the women’s game can count as a minor coup the fact that their World Cup has this much coverage. The ICC has confirmed to Cricinfo that seven games will be shown, all from the North Sydney Oval, for the tournament which kicks off in New South Wales in March.Fox Sports will be showing the matches in Australia, while Sky will televise games in the UK and New Zealand. ESPN Star sports, who are the official broadcaster for all ICC events, have yet to confirm licensees in all the territories.Women’s cricket has rarely featured on television in Australia, but there was a breakthrough of sorts in February 2008 when Australia and England had their own one-hour highlights package on Channel 9 from a Twenty20 match after being a curtain-raiser for Australia and India men at the MCG.

Liverpool are reportedly lining up a potential move for Watford winger Ismaila Sarr in the final few days of the current window.

What’s the story?

According to the Liverpool Echo, the Reds have identified the highly-rated 23-year-old as an ideal replacement for Divock Origi should the unwanted forward depart Merseyside this summer.

The Belgium international has been heavily linked with an Anfield in recent weeks after being deemed surplus to requirements by Jurgen Klopp and could follow Xherdan Shaqiri in waving goodbye to the 19-time English champions.

The Swiss winger has joined Ligue 1 outfit Lyon in a £9.5m move, and Sarr could prove to be the ideal heir for the diminutive attacker.

Jurgen Klopp will love him

Liverpool were first credited with an interest in the Senegal international 12 months ago following Watford’s relegation to the Championship after he impressed during his only full top-flight campaign for the Hornets.

Sarr bagged five goals and provided six assists in 28 appearances during the 2019/20 campaign, earning praise from the likes of Gary Neville, who labelled him “special” following a scintillating performance against West Ham United.

The Sky Sports pundit went on to further praise the quick, skilful forward, lauding his natural assets – intelligence with the ball at his feet and decision making.

“He’s a big, big talent, honestly he really is,” the former Manchester United full-back said.

On what makes Sarr so good, Neville continued: ‘I always think, particularly as a wide player, what would I have not wanted to have played against? The first thing is pace.

“And then you’ve got to think about, can he use his pace? Well, yes, he can, because he makes really good quality runs: the spin in behind, straight, but also the run inside in between full-back and centre-back – which I always think is the most difficult to mark.”

Unsurprisingly, Sarr improved his output in the Championship last term, playing a pivotal part as Watford earned promotion back to the top flight at the first time of asking.

After racking up 23 goal contributions in 2020/21, it’s easy to understand why Liverpool are reportedly contemplating making another move for the £19.8m-rated gem.

In other news… Fabrizio Romano drops exciting Liverpool transfer update which will have the fans buzzing 

Sheffield United are reportedly closing in on the loan signing of Republic of Ireland midfielder Conor Hourihane.

The Lowdown: Blades look for late summer business

The summer transfer window closes late on Tuesday night, with clubs up and down the country looking to do some business at the 11th hour.

The Blades have been linked with signing a number of players recently, but they now appear to be on the verge of officially completing a move for the Aston Villa midfielder.

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The Latest: Hourihane set for Bramall Lane move

According to The Telegraph’s Matt Law via Twitter, Hourihane is set to join Sheffield United on loan, with his medical taking place on Monday.

He claimed that the 30-year-old will be a ‘great signing’ for Slavisa Jokanovic’s side, having made some ‘huge contributions’ during his time at Villa, tweeting: “Conor Hourihane is close to joining Sheffield United on loan from Aston Villa with the player expected to have a medical today. Will be a great signing IMO. Hourihane has been such a great pro at Villa and made some huge contributions.”

Hourihane has scored 29 goals and registered 23 assists in 151 appearances for the Villains, not to mention winning 26 caps for Ireland.

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The Verdict: Strong signing for Sheffield United

This could be an excellent signing for the Blades, with Hourihane a hugely experienced player at Championship level, playing 145 matches in the division and winning promotion from the second tier with Villa in 2019.

He could help steer Jokanovic’s side clear of the relegation zone following a hugely disappointing start to the season, bringing some much-needed quality to the squad.

Hopefully Law’s prediction regarding Hourihane’s impact at Bramall Lane will come true – his reputation as a stellar professional and his promotion-winning experience suggests that the journalist could be proven right.

In other news, Sheffield United are thought to be eyeing up a late-summer move for a defender. Find out who it is here.

Plays of the Day from the fourth ODI between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo

Sriram Veera in Colombo05-Feb-2009
A stone throwing incident prompted Mahendra Singh Dhoni to lead his players off the field © Cricinfo Ltd
Stones
Another rowdy element in the crowd, another stone-throwing incident – the third of this series – and 27 minutes were lost as the Indian team left the field. Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar and now Pragyan Ojha, fielding at deep fine leg, have all complained of objects being thrown at them. Interestingly, on all three occasions, Dhoni kept the fielder where he was after the game resumed.Record
When Muttiah Muralitharan removed Gambhir to become the highest wicket-taker in ODIs, the celebrations were surprisingly muted – to the point of being almost silent. Was Murali bored at breaking yet another record? Was the crowd – small as it was (see below) – tired of the long wait? Even the brass bands failed to turn it up, though they did break into “For he’s a jolly good fellow” during the interminable pitch side TV interview. However, the moment was spiced up by the identity of the umpire who made the correct decision. It was Murali’s old team-mate, Kumar Dharmasena, who used to bowl his overs so quickly that many batsmen asked the umpires to get him to slow down.Fire
Irfan Pathan and Sanath Jayasuriya were involved in a face-off. After Jayasuriya picked a length delivery over square leg for a fine four, Irfan fired in a high bouncer. Jayasuriya obviously didn’t like it. He charged the next ball to lift it over long-off after which he went down again but edged the ball on to his pad. Off the first ball of Irfan’s next over, Jayasuriya went down the pitch again and hit a stupendous inside-out six over extra cover. Next ball, he dashed down the track once more. Irfan shortened the length and kept it outside off. Jayasuriya went for his short-arm pull but ended up swatting it to short cover.Bananas
When the Indians were fielding, Dhoni munched a banana at the end of an over. It must have been yummy because he took a while to finish it. Play was held up till he completed munching. Thankfully, he was not eating a jack fruit.Missing
Where were they? One local reporter guessed it was the lowest turnout in an ODI game since Sri Lanka won the World Cup. On the brighter side, it must have been easy to find the person who threw the stone.

Pakistan have identified the attackers responsible for the shootout in Lahore on Tuesday directed at the Sri Lankan team and ICC match officials

Cricinfo staff05-Mar-2009Pakistani officials say they have identified those responsible for the terror attack in Lahore on Tuesday directed at the Sri Lankan team and ICC match officials. Salman Taseer, the governer of the Punjab province, said progress had been made in the investigation but nothing yet has been disclosed on the identity of the attackers and their possible connections with radical militant groups.”We have identified the people who did the operation,” Taseer told a news conference in Lahore on Thursday. “We have a lot of information. We have arrested many people, rounded up some suspects but the final investigation will be presented to me tomorrow. Till then I am not in a position to say more.”Up to 12 men fired bullets, grenades and a rocket at the convoy as it approached the Gaddafi Stadium. The van transporting the umpires and match referee was also attacked. Footage captured on closed-circuit TV cameras showed two suspects, carrying rucksacks, fleeing on motorbikes without a trace.Six policemen and two civilians were killed in the attack, which left five Sri Lankan cricketers injured. Police released sketches of four suspects and had earlier rounded-up two dozen suspects in connection with the incident.

Orlando City forward Daryl Dike remains on the radar of Crystal Palace, with a swoop in the January transfer window potentially on the cards to bring him to south London according to The Sun journalist Alan Nixon [via Inside Futbol].

The United States international has enjoyed a goal-laden 12 months, registering 12 goals in 28 appearances between his current club and his loan spell at Barnsley last season [Transfermarkt].

He is said to be still courting the attention of Crystal Palace, with the Eagles potentially looking to make a move for the striker in January [Alan Nixon].

Any move to acquire Dike would provide the Palace frontline with added strength following the signing of Odsonne Edouard from Celtic on transfer deadline day.

In light of these rumours, plenty of Crystal Palace fans took to Twitter to comment on the news. However, despite Dike’s rich vein of form in recent months, many failed to summon any excitement over the Eagles’ links with the 21-year-old.

Crystal Palace fans react

Replying to popular Crystal Palace fan outlet CPFC Transfers HQ on Twitter, here is what some fans had to say about Nixon’s update, with one supporter believing that Dike would be a “strange” signing given Patrick Vieira’s current depth of centre-forward options:

“Can’t see it”

Credit: @cam_cpfc”I’ll be waiting”Credit: @Sumo08112″Parish wants Palace to be the first ever team to field a formation without a single wide player”Credit: @Benteke_SZN”Where does he play with current squad? He and Edouard up top and sit Tekkers? Strange one for me this if any truth at all.”Credit: @CHSCPFC”Why”Credit: @IocaIpIa999tic”No truth in it, it’s the Sun. Only reason we’d go for him is if we’re shipping off Mateta”Credit: @SomePalaceGuyIn other news, one player considered leaving Crystal Palace this summer. Find out more here.

West Indies have nearly made it and the series is almost in the bag. Before this Test Chris Gayle said his team had one hand on the Wisden Trophy, but now they have one hand and four fingers. Barring a single-session collapse the home side are secure and

Andrew McGlashan in Trinidad09-Mar-2009
‘I’m not the most gifted player, naturally talented or free-flowing but I work with what I have and hopefully it works out on the day’ © AFP
West Indies have nearly made it and the series is almost in the bag. Before this Test Chris Gayle said his team had one hand on the Wisden Trophy, but now they have one hand and four fingers. Barring a single-session collapse the home side are secure and the only team to have folded in a session this series are England.The partnership that almost certainly secured the prize was a combination of the old and new of this West Indies team, a combination of someone who has been around through all the lows and batting collapses alongside someone who has added much needed grit and steel to this improving unit.Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Brendan Nash began their massive partnership mid-way through Sunday and it took England 82 overs – the best part of a day – to separate them. At times Chanderpaul was batting on one leg, suffering badly from his groin strain, but his concentration barely wavered. Batting is his life and finally his hours at the crease should be rewarded by success. That’s why it was fitting that he scored an epic hundred in this game because he has so often battled against the tide in defeat.Nash, on the other hand, has yet to experience a Test loss. Even though this is just his seventh match, that is a mark of West Indies’ improvement and his maiden century was richly deserved. He has had a huge effect on the middle order since making his debut against New Zealand, bringing solidity to a line-up that not long ago fell like skittles.Nash flirted outside off stump on 99 against a testing spell from James Anderson, but eventually reached his ton with a tuck for two off Monty Panesar. “It’s been many years of hard work to finally get the opportunity to be there on 98 and [on] 99 I was very nervous,” Nash said. “But I got there in the end so I’m very happy with that.”Shivy and I had to work together and build a partnership,” he added. “It’s very easy to do with him, he likes to bat time and that’s something I’ve learnt from him and hopefully will continue to do so in the future.”The previous home series West Indies played, against Australia, showed why they needed someone like Nash. In Kingston they collapsed from 260 for 4 to 312 all out, in Antigua it was 314 for 4 to 352 and in Barbados 168 for 4 to 216. In each of those three innings Chanderpaul was either the last-man out or not out as the lower order deserted him. What Nash has done is provide a buffer between the powerhouses of Chanderpaul, Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan and the previously fallible lower order.There has been something of a trend recently of Australian left-handers making a mark in Tests. Across in Durban this week Phillip Hughes became the youngest batsman to make twin hundreds, and a few days earlier Marcus North marked his debut in Johannesburg with a crucial century. Their success has probably not gone unnoticed in the England camp given the summer ahead, but at the moment they have had plenty of problems with another Aussie left-hander.Nash opted to leave his modest Queensland career behind and make use of Jamaican parents to qualify for West Indies. It’s fair to say it is unlikely he would ever have earned a chance of the baggygreen, a reflection on the strength of Australia’s batting resources compared to West Indies’. However, that isn’t to suggest that he isn’t a Test-quality batsman. So far his results suggest that he isn’t out of place at the top level. A full judgement will have to wait until he has faced better attacks than New Zealand and this England set-up on flat pitches, but there is no doubting his determination to squeeze every last drop of talent out of himself.He could almost be Chanderpaul’s doppelganger. They are both left handers, both short men and both love to occupy the crease. But whereas Chanderpaul’s style has evolved because of a realisation that for so long he was West Indies’ lone hope, Nash has had to elevate himself from a first-class cricketer, who wasn’t a permanent fixture in the Sheffield Shield, to a Test-match No. 6.”He [Chanderpaul] makes the game look very simple and that gives you a bit of confidence at the other end. He doesn’t look like he is going to get out so you can just play your game and go from there,” he said. “I enjoy my fielding but I enjoy my batting as well so when I get the opportunity I like to stay our there as long as I can even if I’m not scoring runs”If I’m doing a job for the team then that’s what it is about and that’s something I have built my game around. I’m not the most gifted player, naturally talented or free-flowing but I work with what I have and hopefully it works out on the day.”Today was one of those days when it worked to perfection and it has put West Indies on the brink. One more day of composure is all it needs and Nash has that quality in bucket loads.