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The England batsman Kevin Pietersen has been ruled out of the one-day series against West Indies with a minor injury to his right achilles tendon

Cricinfo staff20-May-2009

Kevin Pietersen has been ruled out of the one-day series against West Indies with a minor right achilles tendon injury. He will be treated over the next week and the ECB are confident he will be able to take part in the ICC World Twenty20.The injury, which Pietersen has been managing up to now, flared up during the second Test against West Indies at Chester-le-Street, but the only time he spent off the field was a short period on the fourth morning when he was feeling nauseous.”The injury would not necessarily prevent him from playing,” said Nick Peirce, the ECB chief medical officer. “But by giving him a precautionary period of time out to receive some concentrated treatment and rest we are enabling the niggle to settle down in preparation of the ICC World Twenty20 and the Ashes. This is not an injury that would preclude him from participating in either event.”Pietersen said that although disappointed at missing the three ODIs – the first cricket he has sat out for England since he fractured a rib during the 2006-07 CB Series – that it was important he was fully fit for the contests ahead. “The medical advice is to rest the achilles and although I’m frustrated to be leaving a happy and successful dressing room I’m absolutely confident this will help me overcome what has up until now been a minor ongoing injury.”I hate missing out on playing for England but understand that in this instance it’s necessary in order to overcome the injury,” he added. “Even though I won’t be lining up for England during this series I’ll be watching and supporting the team closely. I’m looking forward to being back in the England line up for the World Twenty20 and the rest of an exciting summer of cricket.”England have not called up a replacement to the squad which means that Ian Bell and Eoin Morgan will be vying for the vacant batting spot at Headingley.

Crystal Palace could create a formidable attacking duo after they were linked with a move for Manchester United striker Anthony Martial.

The controversial 25-year-old has often divided opinion during his time in English football, and it seems as though his days at Old Trafford are numbered.

And earlier in the week, he was linked with a shock move to Selhurst Park.

According to Spanish outlet Fichajes, Palace are interested in securing Martial’s services over the coming months as new manager Patrick Vieira looks to complete the overhaul of his first-team squad.

It’s claimed that the Red Devils have placed a £40m price tag on the France international, but it could be a price worth paying to pair him with compatriot Odsonne Edouard in south London.

While his talent and natural ability has rarely been disputed, Martial’s work rate and consistency have often come into question since United splashed out a significant fee to prize him away from Monaco back in 2015.

It seemed as if the attacking talent was finally going to fulfil his potential after he enjoyed a fabulous 2019/20 campaign, bagging 23 goals and providing a further 12 assists in 48 appearances for the Red Devils in all competitions.

His outstanding displays caught the eye of several impressed onlookers, including former United title-winner Robin van Persie, who claimed that the Frenchman is a “world-class” player.

“Martial always have an eye for his teammates and that’s what sets him apart from the others. That’s why I think he’s a world-class player,” said the Dutchman.

However, he was unable to build on that standout campaign last term and has seen himself fall even further down the pecking order last United this time around.

The acquisitions of Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo have limited Martial to just 247 minutes of action in the opening weeks of the current campaign, signalling that an imminent exit could be on the cards.

And the prospect of Martial linking up with his French compatriot Odsonne Edouard at Selhurst Park is surely a potentiality that the Palace supporters would love to see.

Both men are capable of playing either on the left-wing or through the middle, meaning intriguing rotations and exciting interchanges could become the norm at Palace, should he make the move.

It remains to be seen whether the capital club’s hierarchy follows up their reported interest up with a concrete offer, but it’s certainly a deal that chairman Steve Parish should be considering if he has the required funds available.

And, in other news…Imagine him and Olise: Parish must revive Palace interest in £18m-rated magician 

Leeds United have been name-checked as one of the Premier League clubs interested in signing Arsenal starlet Eddie Nketiah.

What’s the story?

According to journalist Ekrem Konur on Twitter, Marcelo Bielsa’s side are in the race to sign the England under-21 international, with the likes of Brentford and Aston Villa also mentioned.

He added that Nketiah wants to leave the Emirates Stadium in the January transfer window due to a lack of game-time, and is keen for more first team football elsewhere.

He loves Marcelo Bielsa

While he may only have played half a season under Bielsa – he featured just 19 times (mostly off the bench) and scored five goals for the Whites – the £13m-rated forward made a real impression at Elland Road during a loan spell in 2019/20, not least with the manager himself.

The Argentine said of the 22-year-old: “He’s a specialist great player with a lot of resources and our play is a collective way of playing and one player needs to adapt to this style.

“For this reason when we felt he was part of the team we thought that we were going to feel the same and that he would continue with us. He didn’t take this decision but he is a great player, an excellent professional and he had very good behaviour, he is a gentleman in every sense.”

Former Leeds striker Noel Whelan has also waxed lyrical about Nketiah, claiming that his style of play is very much reminiscent of Jermain Defoe.

The 46-year-old said: “He reminds me of another Jermain Defoe and look at how well he did at West Ham. He’s very much that similar sort of player. He plays off the shoulder, very dangerous in the box. He’s a player you can’t take your eyes off because his movement’s so good.”

Crucially, despite the lack of consistent game-time at Elland Road, Nketiah left Leeds clearly feeling like he learned a lot in Yorkshire, and he paid tribute to Bielsa in particular after his recall.

The striker said: “I’m grateful for my time at Leeds. Bielsa is a very demanding manager, so every day I was pushing myself to the limit in training, and I feel that mentality has stuck with me at Arsenal, to always give my all in training and in matches.

“I also learned a lot defensively off the ball with the way Leeds play, I learned a lot about the importance of pressing from the front, defending from the front and the impact it can have to the team and the way we play.

“I definitely learned a lot, I put myself out of my comfort zone which was a good thing for me, it’s made me a lot stronger mentally and has improved me as a player. I’m grateful for my time there.”

Given the recent injury to Patrick Bamford and the lack of cover up front at Leeds, a fresh move for Nketiah would surely have fans buzzing.

Meanwhile, Beren Cross has dropped a Leeds United transfer update…

The philosophy since Fosun took on the ownership of Wolverhampton Wanderers has been to buy young players with sell on value.

If you excuse the likes of Raul Jimenez and Joao Moutinho then Wolves have quite evidently achieved that.

In signing vibrant young footballers like Adama Traore, Ruben Neves and Pedro Neto, the Midlands outfit could rake in a bucket load of cash over the next few years.

Traore was signed for £18m but Bruno Lage rejected an offer in the region of £30m from Tottenham over the summer.

Neves, meanwhile, has been touted at £40m and Pedro Neto has been talked about as a £50m player in some circles.

However, one player who goes under the radar at Wolves has also seen his value rise quite significantly since arriving in English football.

That happens to be Belgium international Leander Dendoncker.

The midfield brute signed for just £12.4m in 2018 and in the last three years his value, per Transfermarkt, has soared to the £27m mark.

That’s quite the rise for a player who is a regular among a Belgian squad thought to contain their golden generation.

Dendoncker is yet to start a match in the Premier League under new manager Bruno Lage but he played a key part under Nuno Santo after they were promoted from the Championship.

The 24-year-old didn’t miss a single league outing during the 2019/20 campaign and featured on 33 occasions last term, only sitting on the sidelines for five matches.

Rarely injured and versatile in terms of his positions, he has become a vital cog in the wheel at Molineux.

Initially a central midfielder, Nuno began playing Dendoncker as a centre-back last term and hailed him as “fantastic” in the process.

He did struggle in a clash with Manchester City but that wasn’t a fair litmus for a player starting in an unnatural position.

Wolves’ tough-tackling Belgian has improved since that clash and ended last term with 2.6 aerial duels per game – the third highest in the squad – and as their central defender with the most tackles per appearance at 1.6.

He is yet to show his true colours under Lage but his market value rise dictates that they have a player with enormous potential on their hands.

Fosun clearly played a blinder with this move three years ago.

AND in other news, Get rid: Wolves owned player who lost the ball every 3.4 touches endures UCL nightmare…

MatériaMais NotíciasRelacionadasSeleção BrasileiraSeleção Brasileira vai do inferno ao céu três anos depois do 7 a 1Seleção Brasileira07/07/2017

John Bracewell admits he did not match up to expectations during his tenure as New Zealand coach. Bracewell, whose last series in charge saw New Zealand slip to a 2-0 defeat in Australia and No. 8 in the ICC Test rankings, said he would miss the team he coached for over five years.”I feel as though I’ve given it a honest shot but in terms of pure statistics or results New Zealand Cricket wanted us to be No. 1 in world cricket in both forms of the game and we didn’t reach that, so if you look at it like that I’ve been a failure,” Bracewell told the . New Zealand won 61 of the 106 ODIs when he was coach, but only 13 of the 41 Tests and lost 20.”In Test cricket our planning has been very, very good in that we often get ourselves in a position to win but often we run out of steam trying to fulfil that,” he said. “That is disappointing, but there are not too many Tests that we don’t put ourselves in a position to win at some stage. We just lose critical moments too often.”During his stint, Bracewell was also on the receiving end from the media. “At times both the media and myself weren’t the best of friends but that is the nature of the business,” he said. “If it’s a kiss-arse business, you are in the wrong one, both from a media perspective and a coaching perspective.”You’ve got to cop it and sometimes you’ve got to give it and you regret that you’ve given it because the media always have the last shot.”He believes the team he leaves in the hands of Andy Moles has the ability to become world-beaters. “These guys are enormously talented and when they harness it and realise it and get into it they will play some really exciting cricket,” he said. “They live in the highlights, they play in the highlights and that is what the public want to see.”There will be some high and lows, I suspect, but, man, when they get it right some of these batters will be absolutely outstanding” he said. “I’m very close to them, it’s been a long association. It’s a family unit with extremely high team spirit. They are close to each other and I will miss them.”

Considering the absolute mess that Derby County are currently in away from the pitch, the results that Wayne Rooney’s Rams side have been picking up in the Championship so far this season have been rather impressive.

Indeed, while a win, two draws and a loss are by no means groundbreaking returns in normal circumstances, considering the 35-year-old manager has just 17 fit outfield players to pick from, the fact that Derby are currently sitting comfortably in midtable is a rather remarkable feat.

The club’s most recent result, a 0-0 draw with a very solid Middlesbrough side, while perhaps not being the most exciting game in Derby’s history, was yet further evidence that Rooney is indeed a very steady hand on the wheel of a rather unpredictable ship.

However, while there were a number of impressive performances in the Derby ranks on Saturday, there was one player who caught the eye for all the wrong reasons – Louie Sibley.

Indeed, over his 64 minutes on the pitch, the 19-year-old managed just one shot, completed 11 of his 16 attempted passes and failed to find his man with his one attempted cross and his two attempted long balls.

The £2.7m-rated midfielder also gave away possession of the ball on 12 occasions, lost all 11 of his duels and touched the ball a grand total of 25 times – 12 times fewer than the Derby County goalkeeper, Kelle Roos.

These returns saw the England U20 international earn an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 5.9, ranking him as the worst performer of any player to feature in the match.

As such, while Rooney does not exactly have a wealth of options waiting to replace Sibley in his squad, should the 19-year-old wish to keep his spot in the 35-year-old’s starting XI going forwards, he will certainly have to up his game in his side’s Carabao Cup clash with Sheffield United on Tuesday night.

In other news: Derby dealt big blow over “outstanding” £35k-p/w ace, Rooney will be livid with Morris

Five Sri Lankan women’s cricketers, including captain Shashikala Siriwardene, have claimed that their refusal to give up their pursuit of the game has cost them their jobs.Siriwardene, a human resources assistant for clothing firm Slimline, told the BBC: “They told me to choose either cricket or the job.” Chamari Polgampola, Shiromala Weerakkody, Chamika Bandara and Dilani Manodara were among the other members of the team who were employed by Slimline.”For over two and a half years, the company helped me – offering duty leave, transport, medicine and sports facilities,” Siriwardene said. The Sri Lankan women’s team, unlike the men’s team, does not get any assistance from the Sri Lankan board or sponsors. Arjuna Ranatunga, the Sri Lanka Cricket chairman, though, has offered to find employment opportunities for the out-of-job players she said.An HR director at Slimline, Shanaz Freena, said the players had given in their resignations voluntarily. “They submitted their resignations saying they got some other job offers and the team wanted to stay together,” he said. We just accepted their resignations.”Sri Lanka are preparing for five ODIs against West Indies women at home to be played from November 5 to 12. “Money is not the main concern,” Siriwardene said. “We are currently focused on winning against international teams and developing ourselves. We would like to see Sri Lankan fans come out to support us against West Indies.”

West Ham’s talks to sign Kurt Zouma are still ongoing…

What’s the word?

That’s according to the ever-reliable ExWHUemployee, who has provided a fresh update on the Irons’ pursuit of the Chelsea centre-back to his Patreon page.

“So the major developments have been on centre backs again. Talks for Zouma continued today, as I said it would, and the clubs can’t agree on the asking price. Although it appears that terms with the player did get a bit closer.

“Chelsea are keen to sell Zouma because of the imminent signing of [Romelu] Lukaku so could be prepared to back down and West Ham would like to get someone in, preferably before the weekend. Zouma also wants to join West Ham.”

Get it done

Back in May, Football Insider reported that David Sullivan and co were to set aside funds to secure a ‘top-level’ centre-back this summer, at the request of David Moyes.

Therefore, it seems strange that the Hammers aren’t prepared to pay Chelsea’s valuation of Zouma as he’s a standout candidate to fulfil one of the 58-year-old’s biggest priorities this window.

But there could be hope yet, as Ex explains, with the Blues looking to raise finances to secure a return for Lukaku.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-west-ham-news-transfer-rumours-the-latest-gossip-and-more” title= “Read the latest West Ham news, transfer rumours, gossip and much more!”]

Zouma has excelled at this level for several seasons now, yet doesn’t seem to get the credit he deserves. Whilst his manager Thomas Tuchel has described him as “top-level”, he’s seemingly not in his plans for the new season, certainly if he’s prepared to sell him.

The 26-year-old, who is valued at €40m (£34m) by CIES Football Observatory, recorded monstrous numbers in 2020/21 after starting 22 league games.

As per WhoScored, the eight-cap France international won an average of 3.6 aerial battles per game and managed a seasonal passing accuracy of 90.9%, which for context, only three other centre-backs managed to exceed and are returns that would see him top the charts at the London Stadium.

Evidently, Zouma is a superb ball-playing defender and one capable of using his brute strength to bully the opposition’s attack – something that the Hammers witnessed first-hand as he tormented former striker Sebastian Haller back in December.

The 6 foot 3 titan, who has since departed for Ajax, was caught offside three times, lost possession 16 times and won just six of 16 aerial battles when coming up against the Chelsea colossus, who himself lost just one duel in the air, and recorded two interceptions, six clearances and made 90% of his passes, as per SofaScore.

It’s no wonder legendary centre-back John Terry once described Zouma as a “beast”.

“He’s a great lad, unbelievable pro and a great professional,” claimed the four-time Premier League winner on Instagram Live. “He’s a beast of a player.”

On the above evidence, GSB must absolutely stump up the cash to seal Moyes his next marquee signing. If he is indeed so desperate for a high-tier defender, then Zouma could well be the most viable and suitable option.

Getting someone of his quality and experience in the side would certainly be a transfer masterclass from the Scotsman.

AND in other news, Moyes can seal another bargain as West Ham “in talks” to sign “fearless” 28-cap titan…

Flocking to Twitter, many Liverpool fans have erupted as the club confirmed they have tied down midfield star Fabinho with a bumper new long-term contract (liverpoolfc.com).

The Brazilian, nicknamed the team’s ‘lighthouse’ by assistant manager Pepijn Lijnders, had been the subject of rumours linking him with an extension at Anfield.

Fabinho was one of many first team players touted with a new deal, coming after the club also recently confirmed a fresh contract for Trent Alexander-Arnold. The 27-year-old now becomes Liverpool’s latest player to commit his future on Merseyside and reports suggest that the Reds aren’t done there.

Flocking to this announcement, it’s safe to say that plenty of supporters are buzzing, with many erupting over this news in response to Liverpool’s official Twitter channel.

Fabinho was forced to play in a makeshift central defensive role throughout 2020/21 to cope with Liverpool’s mounting injury issues but immediately dazzled again upon returning to midfield (The Daily Mail).

It is little wonder that news of Liverpool securing a new deal for the enforcer had some fans hailing it as “more great news” following on from Alexander-Arnold’s renewed commitment. Check out some of the best verdicts from social media below.

Liverpool fans erupt over Fabinho news…

“LET’SSSSS GOOOOOOOOOO”

Credit: @lfcxcathal

“FABULOUS NEWS”

Credit: @HB_JFT97

“Wooow”

Credit: @sokhna_thiat

“Best in the world in that position I would say personally, amazing that he’s signed a new deal he is one of the best buys the club has ever made”

Credit: @IsaacByrom_

“Best news of the summer so far for @LFC along with @TrentAA extending. Hopefully @MoSalah @VirgilvDijk Sadio and Bobby.”

Credit: @AndyDoulou

“Better than any transfer this”

Credit: @_Adam_7

“Unbelievable news”

Credit: @SH35dv5e7

“More great news!”

Credit: @Matt_Mack7

In other news: ‘No way’, ‘We are filthy rich’…Liverpool fans react as bid news emerges, find out more here.