Category Uncategorized

Wolves chiefs may “cash in” on key midfielder Joao Gomes in the January transfer window, which would be an immediate blow to Rob Edwards’ chances of keeping his side in the Premier League.

Edwards made a losing start to life as Wanderers boss last weekend, succumbing to a 2-0 defeat at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday and admitting it isn’t going to be a quick fix for the top flight strugglers.

“It’s not going to be done in a week. We knew it was never just going to be a click of your fingers and that’s it. There’s probably quite a lot there that has been the story of our season so far, fairly tight, maybe a little bit of a lack of confidence and belief, but not much in the game, and then you get punished.

“We need to try and find that first goal, and you can’t just say, ‘Right lads, we need to score first’. We’ve got to make sure that we do everything right, do the basics really well, and work hard and work harder. We’ve definitely tried to up the intensity, but it was quite a bitty week, we’ve not had all the players in.”

Edwards will know the importance of new signings when January rolls around, but equally it is vital to keep hold of key players, and a new update suggests that one star man could be on his way out of Wolves.

David Ornstein talks up potential Joao Gomes exit

Speaking to NBC Sport, journalist David Ornstein claimed that Wolves may look to sell Gomes midway through the season, in order to receive good money for him, amid rumoured interest from Manchester United.

Losing Gomes, Wolves’ highest earner on £105,000-a-week, is clearly something that Edwards won’t want to happen, but those high up at the club will be looking at the bigger picture, in terms of receiving the highest amount of money possible for him.

The 24-year-old is such an influential figure at the heart of the midfield, starting 10 Premier League games this season, and Mathues Cunha has made it clear that he would love to see him at United.

Related Wolves register interest in January loan deal for Real Madrid "goal machine"

The Old Gold have made an approach for a forward, following the 2-0 home defeat against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Posts ByDominic Lund Nov 24, 2025

Ultimately, it does feel as though Gomes’ future lies away from Wolves, unless drastic improvements are made, but selling him in January would feel like a defeatist attitude in the relegation fight.

Before Gomes: Edwards must sell Wolves star who's made them a "worse side"

MatériaMais Notícias

Prestes a estrear na temporada, o Corinthians permanece com lacunas em seu elenco, principalmente no setor ofensivo. A diretoria alvinegra sondou nomes de impacto para a posição nesta janela de transferências, mas esbarrou em alguns obstáculos.

continua após a publicidade

➡️ Tudo sobre o Timão agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso novo canal Lance! Corinthians

Com pendências financeiras para solucionar, a nova gestão focou em honrar com seus acordos, como o pagamento das parcelas à vista das compras de Raniele e Félix Torres, além das luvas salariais atrasadas de Rojas.

Ademais, o Timão se deparou com um mercado inflacionado, que não deseja se desfazer dos atletas de forma parcelada, método que o Corinthians vem adotando em suas negociações.

continua após a publicidade

Alguns nomes foram oferecidos ao clube, que deseja a contratação de uma “sombra” para Yuri Alberto e um ponta. O último deles foi o atacante Pedro Raul, atualmente no México. No entanto, a reportagem apurou que o Corinthians não tem interesse na contratação do jogador.

Apesar da necessidade em reforçar o ataque, a comissão técnica liderada por Mano Menezes aposta na recuperação técnica de Matías Rojas, Wesley e Gustavo Mosquito, jogadores que terminaram a temporada de 2023 em baixa.

continua após a publicidade

Tudo sobre

Corinthians

The move back to his home state will allow the fast bowler to spend more time with his young family in Ahmedabad

Shashank Kishore01-Sep-2025

Hot on the heels of Jayant Yadav’s departure comes another high-profile move away from Haryana, with India seamer Harshal Patel signing with Gujarat for the 2025-26 domestic season.Having completed all formalities, Harshal will be available for Gujarat’s pre-season preparations, which kick off with a tri-series later this month that also features the other two teams from the state, Baroda and Saurashtra.Related

Abdul Samad expects new approach to take him where he hasn't gone before

A 'long rope' and a 'slap on the face': how Haryana created a winning culture

Jayant Yadav signs with Puducherry for 2025-26 domestic season

Harshal’s return to Gujarat completes a circle. He was born there, and made his List A debut for the side in 2008-09 following an impressive Under-19 season. However, he made the switch to Haryana soon after returning from the Under-19 World Cup in 2010, when he was unable to make further inroads in Gujarat.He eventually made his first-class debut, for Haryana, in 2011-12 and had been a key member of their squads across formats since. In all, Harshal has picked up 246 first-class wickets in 74 matches at an average of 24.02, with 12 five-wicket hauls.He was instrumental in Haryana becoming a force across the white-ball formats over the years, and was part of the side that went on to clinch their maiden Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2023-24.”Right from 2010-11 since my Under-19 days, almost the entirety of my professional career has been with Haryana, I owe a lot to them,” Harshal told ESPNcricinfo. “If that move to Haryana as an 18-year-old hadn’t worked out for me I would have probably moved to the USA and not played cricket in India.”Harshal divides his time between the USA – where he has extended family – and Ahmedabad, where he lives. Harshal’s decision to switch teams comes at a time when he felt he needed to prioritise spending time with his young family between cricket commitments.”It was getting difficult for me to be away from the family for long periods of time,” Harshal said. “So I wanted to come back and see if I could finish my career here. Glad I got an opportunity to do that.”Harshal had been approached by another team, but he wanted to first see if Gujarat would be keen. As it turned out, they were “more than happy” to have him back.”I first asked Anil Patel [secretary, Gujarat Cricket Association] and he was gracious enough to say, ‘this is your home, welcome back.’ Having come back, I’m open to play everything and anything that the team wants me to play.”While my specialisation will remain white-ball, I’m only more than happy to take any opportunities that come my way with red-ball cricket.”Harshal hasn’t played for India since January 2023 but an international comeback isn’t on his mind•BCCI

Harshal hasn’t been a first-class regular for the past two seasons, only playing seven red-ball games over that period. But looking ahead, he’s happy with where his body is at and is keen to get back to the grind if picked.”My body allows me to bowl 20 overs in a day over two months or however long the Ranji Trophy season is; it doesn’t bother me,” he said. “I love the grind. The goal has always been to play the best cricket that I can play for as long as I can irrespective of the format.”At 34, Harshal remains an IPL regular and is coming off an excellent season with Sunrisers Hyderabad – 16 wickets in 13 games at an economy rate of 9.80. He played the most recent of his 25 T20Is in January 2023, and isn’t in the mix currently. The prospects of an India comeback, though, aren’t on his mind.”My India selections and IPL and all of these things have come as a byproduct of that mindset of giving it my best wherever I play,” he said. “My motivation has nothing to do with whether I’ll play for India or not or whether I’ll play IPL or not.”My motivation has everything to do with whether I still have the hunger to go to the ground and bowl 10-15 overs in a day, and if I can do it over a period of two-three months. And the answer is yes.”At Gujarat, Harshal hopes to lend his experience to a set-up that is largely in a transition phase under head coach Ramesh Powar.”I’m pretty excited to see what I can add here to the team’s betterment,” he said. “That’s what I spoke about with Ramesh and Axar [Patel] recently. If I can contribute in some way to the development of players, mentor them and help them in their journey, there’ll be no bigger satisfaction.”As far as my own journey is concerned, I’ve always asked myself how can I be the best player I can be. That has kept me going for all these years, and it still keeps me going. My training consistency is probably better than it has ever been.”I’ve been really lucky and I’ve been really fortunate that I don’t have that financial anxiety anymore [thanks to the IPL]. So now that factor is taken away, the only thing that still pushes me is I want to play this game because I love playing this game.”

One of the biggest stunners of the most recent MLB offseason was longtime manager Craig Counsell ditching the Milwaukee Brewers and signing a new contract to be the skipper of the rival Chicago Cubs.

Counsell's contract with the Brewers had expired, but most expected him to join former Milwaukee president of baseball operations David Stearns with the New York Mets. Instead, Counsell—a Milwaukee lifer and the face of Brewers baseball for many years as a player and manager—opted to head 90 miles south to Wrigley Field.

The first year of the Counsell era in Chicago hasn't gone as planned. The Cubs entered Friday with a 78-75 record that has them in second place in the NL Central—but 10 games behind Milwaukee, which officially clinched its second straight division title on Wednesday.

"The message sent is there's a big gap. They're ahead of us by a lot," Counsell said Thursday of the Brewers. "It's a talented team. On and off the field, it's a talented team. But there's a big gap. We've got room to make up, there's no question about it."

Milwaukee entered the 2024 campaign as underdogs in the NL Central. The Wisconsin city is the smallest market in MLB and its team has the 21st-ranked payroll at just under $115 million. The Cubs, meanwhile, hold a $229 million payroll, which ranks seventh in baseball.

"Frankly, that makes it daunting," Counsell said. "They've been good, man. For the whole division, I say that about the other teams, too. They've created a gap the last two years in the division. We've got room to go, man."

Counsell became the highest-paid manager in baseball when he signed with Chicago for five years and $40 million back in November 2023. He has plenty of work to do still to live up to that big paycheck—the top of that list being dethroning his former employer and current division rival.

Liverpool’s luck ran out at Selhurst Park. Crystal Palace were always going to present Arne Slot’s side with a stern test, and their unbeaten start to the campaign continues at the champions’ expense.

It was a poor performance from the Premier League champions, who arrived in south London with a reshaped system, and that was quickly foiled by Oliver Glasner’s eagle-eyed tactics. Slot made the requisite changes at the interval, but Liverpool found themselves on the receiving end of last-minute heartache this time.

Slot might have suffered a rare off-day on the tactical front, but there were any number of Redmen who left with their tails between their legs, producing poor individual performances in the capital.

Liverpool's worst performers vs Palace

Ibrahima Konate has endured a tough start to the season. Out of contract at the end of the year and with Real Madrid hot on his tail, the centre-back has lacked his usual clarity and robustness at the back, and against Palace, Sofascore record that he made two direct errors within half an hour as the Eagles ravaged the visitors’ backline.

Both of the full-backs, Conor Bradley and Milos Kerkez, left plenty to be desired, and the boss will know that chinks in the tactical make-up need to be smoothed out soon if Liverpool hope to start playing with more fluency and control, from start to finish.

Also toiling was Mohamed Salah, who has hardly been himself across the first phase of the campaign. The 33-year-old won the full gamut of individual awards last season to sit alongside his second Premier League gold medal, but he’s struggling at the moment, anonymous and out of sorts against Palace.

However, there’s a glaring spotlight on another of Slot’s stars, and it’s a new recruit. Indeed, one of Liverpool’s new additions is beginning to take the shape of a former title winner in Darwin Nunez, and Slot will hope to change the narrative swiftly.

Liverpool's new Darwin Nunez

Alexander Isak, on his full debut in the Premier League for Liverpool, missed a gilt-edged chance to restore parity with plenty of time left on the clock. However, the Sweden international is one of the most accomplished strikers in Europe, dominant in the English game over the past few years.

It is not the 25-year-old who is at risk of becoming Liverpool’s new version of Nunez, but Florian Wirtz, who broke the British transfer record when swapping Bayer Leverkusen for Anfield this summer, before Isak’s deadline-day arrival.

It’s not the first time the Anfield side have broken the bank in recent years. Nunez was signed from Benfica for a deal rising to a club-record £85m fee in 2022. The striker never maximised his financial potential, largely because his own deficiencies precluded it.

Across three years, Nunez missed a litany of chances and routinely lacked the composure and quality in the big moments. He won some silverware, sure, but he failed to repay the faith with individual performances.

It’s early into Wirtz’s time at Liverpool, but already he is struggling for form, having yet to score or assist across seven appearances in the Premier League. Against Palace, his fortunes did not change.

The 22-year-old is billed as one of the most talented footballers in the world, and there will remain every confidence in the FSG offices that he will come good. But all of a Liverpool persuasion will be hoping that that will be sooner rather than later, for a continuation of these middling returns would only raise the volume around his sub-par start to life in England.

Agonising misses became the Uruguayan’s currency on Merseyside, and there’s no denying Wirtz missed a golden opportunity of his own on Saturday afternoon.

Still, it’s worth noting that the Liverpool Echo handed the German a 6/10 match rating, acknowledging his impetus and tenacity, albeit drawing attention to his lack of quality on the ball too.

Nunez will be fondly remembered by the Liverpool fans for his efforts and his affable personality, but the plain truth is he arrived for a significant sum and, on an individual level, fell by the wayside.

There is hope, such hope and confidence, that Wirtz will not head down the same track, but with every passing performance, the £116m man has yet to show the Premier League what he is about.

Journalist Mark Ogden said before Liverpool’s defeat to Palace that Wirtz is “struggling to make an impact”, and that narrative has not changed now that Slot’s side have been sent packing.

There were times last season when Slot was said to have been riding on the coattails of his predecessor Jurgen Klopp’s success. He wiped such claims away.

However, the Dutchman has since pieced his own super-team together, and now, the new system needs to join as one and prove that the Reds have what it takes to defend their Premier League title.

Not Isak or Ekitike: Liverpool struck gold on star worth more than Salah

This unsung Liverpool hero continues to prove a fantastic signing for the club.

By
Angus Sinclair

Sep 26, 2025

“It’s pretty obvious to see that this is a really talented team that are all on the same page and heading in the same direction,” Ricky Ponting says

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-20251:51

Moody: PBKS attack well suited to these conditions

Punjab Kings (PBKS) might have qualified for the IPL 2025 playoffs for the first time in 11 years, and topped it up by sealing a top-two spot, but for head coach Ricky Ponting, they “haven’t achieved anything yet” with the “big games” still to come.PBKS moved to the top of the points table with a clinical win against Mumbai Indians (MI) in Jaipur and will now have two chances to make the final.”I’m obviously very pleased for the group,” Ponting said on the broadcast after the match. “It’s a lot of hard work that goes into being able to achieve something like this as a team. I think it’s pretty obvious to see that this is a really talented team that are all on the same page and heading in the same direction.”I mean, yeah, it’s a great achievement till now, but really, if you look back, we haven’t achieved anything yet. That’s the one thing I’ve been saying to the players since the moment we qualified.Related

Shashank Singh: 'I'll tell you we are at the top of the world on June 3'

Arya and Inglis – contrasting methods, near-identical results

Arya and Inglis take PBKS to Qualifier 1 and send MI to the Eliminator

IPL playoffs: How can RCB and GT make it to the top two?

LSG in the way of RCB's top-two finish

“The vision for me was always to finish in the top two, and we’ve got there now. It’s a really happy group and we’ve enjoyed our time in each other’s company for the last ten weeks, but we’ve got another week to go yet.”Ponting heaped praise on Shreyas Iyer, with whom he has worked previously at Delhi Capitals (DC). Ponting said that he was determined to acquire Iyer at the last IPL auction, and that was visible with PBKS splurging INR 26.75 crore on him.”I was pretty keen to work with him [Iyer] again,” Ponting said. “It was pretty obvious that how much money I was willing to spend on him at the auction. We had a great working relationship in Delhi, we made a final [IPL 2020] in Delhi under his captaincy.”I’ve known him as a person and as a player for a long time. He’s a quality person and when you’ve got quality people around your team, when you’re trying to make a difference and you’re trying to change culture, that’s what you need. If you spoke to the players individually, I think every single one of them would give Shreyas a great rap because he has spent a lot of time with them.”He’s pumped them up, he’s given them a pat on the back when they needed it, and he’s given them a kick in the pants when they’ve needed it as well, which is a sign of a really good and strong leader.”Iyer: ‘Ecstatic that everything is working’Iyer spoke about his camaraderie with Ponting. “He just gives me that freedom to go out there and express myself, especially being decisive on the field,” Iyer said. “I tell him that ‘you do the thinking outside, let me go and execute things on the field’. So yeah, all these things have culminated in a great way and I’m kind of ecstatic that everything is working.”Ricky has been fantastic with the player management. And for me, it’s important to gain the trust of each and every individual. And that happened initially by winning the matches. And the more interactions you have with the players, the more confidence they get.”2:22

Is this finally PBKS’ year?

Iyer was also effusive in his praise of Josh Inglis, for whom he sacrificed his No. 3 spot. The wicketkeeper-batter did not disappoint as he struck a vital 42-ball 73 against MI, setting the platform for PBKS’ run-chase alongside Priyansh Arya.”Our plan was that since he loves to play new ball, he was the only batsman we were chopping and changing right from the game he played,” Iyer said. “So I wanted him to play more deliveries as much as possible. And we know he can be destructive and he can change the momentum of the game. It worked like wonder for us.”Obviously, he’s a big-match player and we saw that today. So yeah, fantastic attitude and I hope that he keeps continuing with the same.”It’s been a sensational season so far for PBKS as they end the league stage with nine wins in 14 games. What’s changed this time?”I personally feel that every individual stepped up at the right time,” Iyer said. “Starting from game one, we’ve been in that mindset that we have to win irrespective of whatever situation we’ve been provided. When we’re down in the dumps, someone will put their hand up and say that, ‘okay, I’m going to win the game from here’.”That has been happening. Kudos to everyone for the contribution and also the support staff and management. They’ve been tremendous.”

أكد إيهاب الكومي عضو اتحاد الكرة السابق، أن تقرير مراقب مباراة الزمالك وبيراميدز في السوبر المصري الماضي أدان ثلاثي الفريق الأبيض، عبد الواحد السيد مدير الكرة السابق، ودونجا ومصطفى شلبي.

وأعلن اتحاد الكرة منذ لحظات عن إيقاف نبيل عماد دونجا لاعب فريق الزمالك، من المشاركة في بطولة السوبر المصري التي ستقام في الإمارات. 

طالع.. عاجل | اتحاد الكرة يعلن إيقاف دونجا وحرمانه من المشاركة في السوبر المصري

وقال الكومي في تصريحات على راديو “ميجا إف إم”: “تقرير مراقب مباراة الزمالك وبيراميدز في السوبر الماضي أدان ثلاثي الزمالك دونجا وعبد الواحد السيد وشلبي وأكد على العقوبة”

وأضاف: “عقوبة ايقاف نبيل عماد دونجا رسمية وتم الإعلان عنها وقت تواجدنا، واللاعب من حقه السفر الى الإمارات، وجمال علام أكد لي أن عقوبة دونجا تم إرسالها إلى نادي الزمالك”.

وتابع: “خطاب عقوبة دونجا لم يعلن بالفعل في الخطابات الرسمية لاتحاد الكرة، اتحاد الكرة الحالي تأكد أن الخطاب تم إرساله إلى نادي الزمالك” 

وواصل: “لا يوجد بند في عقد حسام حسن بأهمية التتويج ببطولة أمم إفريقيا، والتعاقد لم يتضمن أي بند بشان ذلك”.

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson has dropped an important injury claim regarding one of his teammates ahead of the Champions League clash with Atlético Madrid.

Van Dik excited about "fantastic" Isak

The Premier League champions won 1-0 at Burnley on Sunday afternoon, being frustrated for large periods but winning it through a last-gasp Mohamed Salah penalty.

Liverpool could have done with new signing Alexander Isak’s ruthlessness at times, and speaking after the game, captain Virgil van Dijk waxed lyrical over the Swede, having trained with him last week.

“Very good! Listen, he is going to be very important for the football club. Obviously he is a fantastic player and he has to realise that this is another step up, there’s more things to be asked from him on and off the pitch, but I’m not worried whatsoever.

“He is going to do pretty well, like the other new boys as well. It’s time for him now to get as fit as possible as quickly as possible and be important with goals, with link-up play – like Hugo [Ekitike] is already as well. It’s good to have competition. We have to push each other to be successful and I’m confident that will be the case.”

Alisson drops injury update regarding teammate

Speaking to ESPN after the Burnley game [via Sport Witness], Alisson claimed that Alexis Mac Allister should be fine after being on the end of a bad tackle at Turf Moor, suggesting he should be fit for Liverpool’s visit of Atlético Madrid on Wednesday, also praising the Reds’ new signings.

“He’s a very strong man. Nothing’s wrong with him, he was just in a bit of pain. I think he’s fine.

“All the players who left were important. Lucho, Darwin, they all made a difference for us with goals or their playing, fighting, defending. They had good energy, and we miss them. The ones who arrived are stars, they’re doing very well with their contributions, they have a lot of quality. It’s clear we want to improve because we need to; we have many competitions to play.”

Mac Allister hasn’t quite got going this season, having been injured at one point, and he was off the pace at Burnley, perhaps due to his exploits for Argentina during the international break.

That said, the 26-year-old still has a strong claim for being Liverpool’s most important midfielder, with his blend of quality, work rate, intelligence and leadership making him one of the first names on the team sheet.

It will be interesting to see if Arne Slot starts Mac Allister against Atlético, though, perhaps deciding to give him a breather, partnering Ryan Gravenberch with Dominik Szoboszlai.

Big-money Liverpool star is now in danger of becoming Slot's new Nunez

Arne Slot will already be concerned that this expensive Liverpool attacker is turning into his next Darwin Nunez.

2 ByKelan Sarson Sep 15, 2025

That would then allow Mac Allister to be fresh for Saturday’s Merseyside derby clash with Everton at Anfield, which is the more important game at this stage of the season.

It’s been a brilliant summer transfer window for Chelsea so far this year.

The Blues have generated a considerable amount of revenue through sales and have more than backed Enzo Maresca in terms of signings.

The likes of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro have joined the side from fellow Premier League sides, while Jorrel Hato and Jamie Gittens are two of the most exciting youngsters from the continent.

Moreover, with five days left until the window closes, Chelsea seem intent on making more signings, and should they fail to land Xavi Simons, could go after someone who’d be their own Eberechi Eze.

Chelsea target their own Eze

Chelsea have been linked with a host of brilliant attackers this summer, including RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

In fact, the Flying Dutchman feels like he has been touted for a move to Stamford Bridge for an age now, and while it’s been made abundantly clear he wants to join Maresca’s side, he is still in Germany.

Interestingly, while reports continue to claim that the Blues are working on bringing him to the club, it now looks like they have a backup in mind, someone who could be their own Eze.

At least that is according to a recent report from Caught Offside, which has claimed Chelsea are interested in Morgan Rogers.

The report has revealed that, alongside Tottenham Hotspur, the West Londoners are big admirers of the Aston Villa star, and that should they fail to sign Simons, they could focus all of their attention on him.

It wouldn’t be a cheap deal to get over the line, though, with the story claiming that it’d take an offer of at least £80m to tempt the Claret and Blue into selling their dynamic superstar.

Even so, Rogers has more than proven over the last year and a half that he would be worth such an outlay, especially as he could become Chelsea’s own Eze.

Why Rogers could be Chelsea's own Eze

There are plenty of similarities between Rogers and Eze, and in this case, specifically, one of them could even be the transfer itself.

If Chelsea were to decide to go all in for the Villa star, then there would be parallels to the deal that saw Arsenal sign the Crystal Palace star from under their noses just last week.

Additionally, both players are stars of the Premier League, leading figures in their respective teams, and now regularly feature in senior England squads.

There are also key similarities in their playstyle.

For example, while both are now thought of as primarily attacking midfielders, they’re more than capable of playing on the wing.

Moreover, they’re well-rounded attacking threats who are just as comfortable scoring goals as they are creating chances for their teammates.

For example, despite playing for a mid-table side last season, the Gunners’ new “magician,” as dubbed by Micah Richards, scored 14 goals and provided 11 assists in 43 appearances, totalling just 3303 minutes.

Appearances

54

43

Minutes

4496′

3303′

Goals

14

14

Assists

16

11

Goal Involvements per Match

0.55

0.58

Minutes per Goal Involvement

149.86′

132.12′

In other words, the Greenwich-born superstar managed to maintain an average of a goal involvement every 1.72 games, or every 132.12 minutes.

For his efforts, the Halesowen-born “machine,” as dubbed by The Athletic’s Jacob, scored 14 goals and provided 16 assists in 54 appearances across all competitions last season, totalling 4496 minutes.

That means the often “unstoppable” midfielder, as dubbed by former Liverpool defender turned pundit Jamie Carragher, was able to average a goal involvement every 1.8 games, or every 149.86 minutes.

Last but not least, and this is hard to quantify, but on top of being ruthlessly effective at times, both midfielders are also great entertainers, and more than capable of getting fans on their feet as well as winning games.

Ultimately, even if Chelsea do sign Simons this summer, they should go all out for Rogers, as he could become their own Eze.

Their next Palmer: Chelsea have a new "generational" £45m transfer target

The sensational talent could become Chelsea and Maresca’s new Palmer.

ByJack Salveson Holmes Aug 28, 2025

Fast bowler will travel with the squad on Friday having been forced to miss a UAE training camp

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jan-2025Saqib Mahmood has finally received his visa for England’s upcoming limited-overs series in India, meaning he will be able to travel with the team to Kolkata on Friday ahead of Wednesday’s first T20I.Mahmood, who is of Pakistani heritage, had encountered a delay in obtaining the travel document, forcing him to miss an England training camp in the UAE. Two other members of the T20I squad of similar background – Adil Rashid and Rehan Ahmed – had received their visas earlier.The Lancashire seamer had encountered similar issues in the past when, in 2019, he was replaced for an England Lions tour of India following a drawn-out visa process. In 2024, he sat out Lancashire’s pre-season tour having anticipated the same problem, months after England offspinner Shoaib Bashir missed the first Test against India in Hyderabad due to the slow processing of his visa.Mahmood was supposed to attend a pace-bowling camp in Abu Dhabi ahead of the India tour, led by fast bowling consultant James Anderson, which featured the likes of Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse and Mark Wood. Those plans were scuppered by the fact the Indian Embassy still had his possession of his passport, with Mahmood having originally intended to travel to the UAE with the group last Thursday.The 27-year-old has been on something of a comeback trail, overcoming consecutive lower-back stress fractures to return to the international fold last year, and was named player of the series during England’s T20I series in the Caribbean in November, taking nine wickets at 10.55. With 29 appearances in all formats, including two Test caps against West Indies in 2022, Mahmood will be keen to impress head coach Brendon McCullum who is now in charge of England’s red- and white-ball sides.