Everton fans in the Transfer Tavern are thoroughly enjoying the World Cup in Russia but are starting to get anxious over the lack of transfer activity.

New boss Marco Silva is yet to a make a signing since taking over from Sam Allardyce. New director of football, Marcel Brands, stressed the club must sell before they buy meaning our punters may have to wait until the World Cup is over. There is plenty of work to be done if the duo are to return Everton to the top four.

Signing a new left winger will be high on Silva’s wish list this summer as he looks to bolster his attack. Yannick Bolasie has failed to impress since returning from injury, and his exit could pave the way for a new signing at Goodison. Hirving Lozano has been targeted, but his impressive performances with Mexico will make competition for his signature fierce.

Instead, Everton should attempt to lure Borussia Dortmund forward – Andriy Yarmolenko – to the Premier League. Valued at £20.7m by Transfermarkt, Everton were interested in the Ukrainian during his time with Dynamo Kyiv, he ultimately chose to move to Germany. However, the move has not gone to play due to injury and Dortmund could be ready to cut their losses.

Yarmolenko made 36 appearances in all competitions, scoring ten goals and creating nine for his team-mates. The 28-year-old is blessed with tremendous pace and trickery to give defenders headaches. He would be a serious upgrade on Bolasie that would put Everton back into European contention.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Everton fans, thoughts?

Experience prevailed over youth as the star studded ONGC team pipped PCAColts XI by two wickets in the 7th JP Atray Memorial cricket tournament atthe PCA Stadium in Chandigarh today.The PCA Colts piled up a huge total of 318 for the loss of four wickets inthe allotted 50 overs. However ONGC managed to overhaul this challengingtotal for the loss of eight wickets with one over to spare.The Colts team opened through Gaganinder Garry and Ankur Kakkar. Theopening pair started off slowly, scoring 45 runs in the first 10 overs.Garry was first to go as he has caught brilliantly at gully, trying to cuta short delivery.Yuvraj Singh and Kakkar were in good nick. Yuvraj, fresh from his inclusionin the Indian team for the Nairobi tournament, placed the ball neatly inthe gaps. His knock of 60 included 10 elegant boundaries. Trying to boostthe scoring rate further, he was stumped off the bowling of VirinderShewag. By then he had put his team in a strong position as they were 142runs after 26 overs for the loss of only two wickets.Kakkar carried on merrily at the other end and completed his 50 off 72balls. The brightest part of the innings came when Pankaj Dharmani andSanjay Kumar came together at the crease with the score at 190 at the endof 35 overs. The two added 96 runs off just 77 balls. Dharmani was in fullflow as he smashed an unbeaten 96 off just 76 deliveries. He hit 12powerful boundaries and a huge six. Sanjay Kumar gave him good support insmashing 50 runs off 45 balls.ONGC XI got off to a flying start as openers Gagan Khoda and Sandeep Sharmahammered 80 runs off just 56 balls. Sandeep was in fine form, slamming 50runs off just 29 balls which included nine hits to the fence. Khoda alsoscored at a run a ball for his knock of 34. After the fall of these twowickets, ONGC lost three more wickets cheaply and they were down in thedumps at 117 for five. Mithun Minhas and Shewag however took the team outof the woods. Both scored half centuries to take the team to the doorstepof victory. Towards the end Md. Saif took charge with an unblemished 52runs off 62 balls to clinch the issue in favour of his team. Yuvraj Singhand Vineet Kumar tried their level best to change the course of the matchin their favour, but despite capturing three wickets each for 47 and 66runs respectively, they could not. Shewag was declared man of the match.

Trent Johnston, the former Ireland captain, has been named as the new coach of New South Wales. Johnston had joined New South Wales last September as an assistant to coach Trevor Bayliss, and has now been handed the top job after Bayliss was appointed to lead England.Although best known for his work with Ireland, for whom he played at the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, Johnston was also a former New South Wales player and made his first-class debut for the state in March 1999. After he retired as a player in December 2013 he moved into coaching, initially as head coach of the Ireland women’s team.”The NSW way is to back young talent and we are delighted to offer Trent the opportunity to lead the NSW Blues,” Cricket New South Wales chief executive Andrew Jones said. “I am confident he will be an outstanding success.”Trent is an emerging coach who has performed as a NSW assistant coach and a head coach at the youth, club and inter-provincial level both here and overseas. He is past Blues player with substantial playing and leadership experience and he has formed strong relationships and established credibility with our players since returning to Cricket NSW.”Johnston had taken over in an interim capacity after Bayliss departed, and he said he was looking forward to continuing his work with the squad.”The NSW Blues are about producing Australian players and winning national titles,” Johnston said. “We have a very talented squad ranging from experienced international players to rookies who are at the start of their professional careers. I look forward to helping all of them to achieve our team goals, as well as their personal ones.”This is a very exciting opportunity for me and I am ready to take this next step in my career. I am passionate about cricket, I am passionate about coaching and I am passionate about NSW.”Cricket New South Wales is still searching for a new Sydney Sixers coach, with an announcement expected in August.

ScorecardMichael Carberry was the one batsman to come to terms with conditions•Getty Images

Four wickets from Yasir Arafat helped Hampshire as good as clinch a NatWest T20 Blast quarter-final place with victory over Somerset.Hampshire looked out of the match after posting a well below par 143 for 7 but excellent death bowling from Arafat and spin duo Will Smith and Danny Briggs eased fears of a rare early exit.Barring a truly remarkable win for Glamorgan over Gloucestershire on Friday, and wins for Essex and Sussex, the south coast side will be in the last eight for the seventh year in a row.After electing to bat, Hampshire set off at breakneck speed, with a sumptuous straight drive four from James Vince to get the ball rolling.Michael Carberry continued the onslaught from the other end, pulling six to the short square leg boundary before ferociously landing one into hot water – as he struck the coffee stand.Opener Carberry continued his thumping with a six over the covers as he peppered the minuscule perimeter – reaching his fourth format fifty of the season off 29 balls.It all seemed to be going swimmingly for the hosts before Jamie Overton wonderfully ran out James Vince off his own bowling to end an opening stand of 80.Adam Wheater was out reverse sweeping to short third-man first ball and then Carberry holed out to long-on for 57.Owais Shah and Smith were both bowled by the impressive Max Waller who ended with figures of 3 for 17 from his four overs.And the Hampshire collapse continued with a calamity run out as Joe Gatting took on a Jim Allenby misfield with Hampshire going from 80 without loss to 112 for 6.Chris Wood gave a temporary respite with a six down the ground but was bowled five balls later by Lewis Gregory.Gareth Berg prodded the last ball over point for four to end on a positive as Hampshire posted 143.After a sprightly start to the chase by the visitors, Arafat found a leading edge from Allenby and Briggs took the catch in the covers. Two balls later captain Vince plucked a catch on the edge of the circle to see off Isle of Wight-born debutant Adam Hose for 20.Hampshire’s nemesis Peter Trego – who has smacked them for 317 in 10 T20 innings – departed cheaply, chipping Smith to Arafat at short fine leg. Tom Cooper made 27 but played on off Smith before Briggs bowled Hildreth.Arafat bowled Gregory with the final ball of the 18th over and Jamie Overton departed for a duck in the next to end the contest.The other Overton brother, Craig, was cleaned up by Arafat – who ended with 4 for 37 – in the final over as Hampshire won by six runs.

ScorecardMatt Coles helped to inflict one of Glamorgan’s heaviest defeats [file picture]•Getty Images

Kent inflicted upon Glamorgan their second heaviest post-war defeat, by a runs margin, in the championship.They wasted little time taking the remaining eight Glamorgan wickets, unaffected by showers that removed more than half the morning session on the final day.The 316-run defeat was a reflection of Kent’s superiority in all departments, and there will surely be an inquest on Glamorgan’s woeful performance over the four days.Although captain Jacques Rudolph was absent on paternity leave, they should certainly have scored more than the 444 runs they managed in both innings ,and apart from Colin Ingram and James Kettleborough in the second innings, there was little or no application from the others .One could sympathise with the young opening batsman Jeremy Lawlor, who recorded a pair on his championship debut, especially as he had to open the batting even though he has batted at No.4 for the second eleven for most of the summer.The club might also argue that they only have 15 full time professionals on the staff, and there has been a heavy workload on the quicker bowlers, but they need to sign some players if they not to become perennial under-achievers in Division Two.Kent meanwhile, produced a thoroughly professional performance that belied their position in the division, with none performing better than their two veterans Rob Key and Darren Stevens.It was Stevens who began the collapse in Glamorgan’s second innings when he produced a spell of 4 for 10 in 17 deliveries.Kettleborough was his first victim when he was bowled for 56 – his best score for Glamorgan – before Chris Cooke, Aneurin Donald and Gramam Wagg were dismissed in quick succession.Stevens also claimed his 60th victim of the season, his best return in the championship, and with his 699 championship runs, continues to be an integral part of the Kent team.Key, since returning to opening the batting from No 3, has scored over 500 runs at an average of 75.00 and here he played two faultless innings and compiled an aggregate of 252 runs.Ingram’s first century in the championship came from 174 balls to supplement the three centuries and a fifty he scored in the Royal London Cup. He was given useful support by Andrew Salter at the end of the innings, but when it all ended Glamorgan had gone down to their fourth championship defeat of the season.

When sports teams travel, it is with the intention of taking something away from the place they are visiting. Most of the time, that something is tangible like a trophy. Sometimes it is something much more.”I have learnt the most from India – just from general respect and treating people the way you do. Indian people, as a culture, are the friendliest people around,” Faf du Plessis, South Africa’s T20 captain said. “I have mentioned it to the team and said to them, ‘Really open your eyes and try and listen because there is so much you can learn from people here.”Du Plessis has been to India at least five times, only once (2011) as an international cricketer. Every year since then, he has been part of the IPL and his experience at Chennai Super Kings has shaped his idea about the country and by extension, the cricket.Du Plessis has previously credited the tournament with South Africa’s success in the subcontinent and now he hopes they can draw from it both in preparation and over the course of their 11-week tour of India. “From a skill perspective, I have learnt a lot from batting in these conditions and practising every day against the world’s best spin bowlers,” du Plessis said.Ultimately, the spin factor will have a say in whether South Africa leave India with more than just a cultural education. How their batsmen play it, will be as important as how their bowlers deliver it.For the first time, South Africa have reason to believe they can match up in both departments thanks to their growing spin resources. Their Test squad includes three specialist spinners and their limited-overs’ sides two, although JP Duminy provides a handy part-time option as well. “I suppose they know we have got spinners who can win us games. Imran has proven it right across the world and he has changed the way we have played in the white-ball format. We have always relied on pace to strike first and now our success in the one-day or T20 team lies heavily on his shoulders,” du Plessis said.Tahir is South Africa’s leading bowler in ODI cricket this year and lies fourth overall with 30 wickets from his 17 matches at an average of 22.46. He has only played one T20 in 2015, in order to manage his workload, but was South Africa’s most economical bowler in that match and is certain to play a part in the World T20. Tahir has combined control in the middle overs with the ability to attack, and that has meant South Africa have a genuine means of keeping batting line-ups under pressure during passages of play where they have sometimes let things drift, after the seamers had bowled their opening spells.He will be particularly important in the T20 series, because that is the format in which South Africa are fielding their least experienced pack. In the absence of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, Kyle Abbott, Kagiso Rabada and Marchant de Lange will carry the load. Luckily for them, they are starting on what du Plessis has called “probably the quickest wicket in India”, but will be aware that it will only get more difficult after Dharamsala.That’s not to say anyone is going to find playing at the picturesque ground easy. A surprising amount of dew greeted South Africa during an evening training session, which du Plessis expects will make things tricky for the fielding side but could mitigate against the spin factor. “Dew is never a nice thing for a bowling team or fielding team because the ball gets slippery but the wet ball takes away a little bit of challenge from the spinners.”Ordinarily, that would be seen as advantage for South Africa, who are perceived to be susceptible to spin. But these days, a more well-travelled South African outfit – 10 of the current squad of 15 have played in the IPL and all of them have been to India before – embrace the turn and Du Plessis has promised it has not made them any less aggressive in their intent to leave India with tangible and intangible trophies.”It doesn’t take away the edge to win or the competitiveness on the field. The boundary of right and wrong doesn’t get crossed as much anymore. But when I am batting I am trying to hit you for six or four every ball and I am trying to win the game. It’s just that balance is really good at the moment.”

Pakistan allrounder Shoaib Malik has been included as the 16th member of the Test squad for the upcoming series against England in the UAE. Malik, who last played a Test in August 2010, was picked on the request of the team management who were keen to have him in the side based on his current batting form in limited overs and as an extra bowling option.A press release from the Pakistan Cricket Board stated that team manager Intikhab Alam had made the request to chief selector Haroon Rashid, stating that he and head coach Waqar Younis were in favour of Shoaib Malik being retained “given his present form in T20Is and the ODIs”. Rashid’s recommendation was then approved by PCB chairman Shahryar Khan.Malik made a comeback to the international side in the home series against Zimbabwe in May, after a gap of two years, and struck an ODI hundred in Lahore. In 11 ODI innings this year, Malik has scored 500 runs with a century and three fifties at an average of 100, while his run tally in T20 internationals stands at 118 from six matches. Malik’s most recent fifty was an unbeaten knock of 96 in the second ODI against Zimbabwe in Harare, which ended in a five-run defeat for Pakistan due to bad light.”Following Intikhab Alam’s request, I spoke with my fellow selectors and there was unanimity over retaining Malik keeping in mind his current batting form and the off-spin bowling option that could be handy in the all-important forthcoming Test series against England,” said Haroon Rashid.The three-Test series against England kicks off with the first match in Abu Dhabi from October 13. The second and third Tests will be played in Dubai and Sharjah from October 22 and November 1, respectively.

Sri Lanka Cricket has announced an overhaul of domestic cricket, which features three city-based tournaments that will be launched in the upcoming season.

Elite Championship teams

Colombo
Base: Khettarama
Catchment area: Western province
Major affiliated clubs: SSC, Ragama CC, Badureliya CC
Kandy
Base: Pallekele Stadium
Catchment area: Central Province & Sabaragamuwa
Major affiliated clubs: Colts Cricket Club, Moors Sports Club, Saracens Sports Club
Hambantota
Base: Hambantota Stadium
Catchment area: Uva Province and parts of Southern Province and Eastern Province
Major affiliated clubs: Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club, Burgher Recreation Club, Army Sports Club
Galle
Base: Galle Stadium
Catchment area: Part of Southern Province
Major affiliated clubs: Galle CC, Nondescripts CC, Lankan CC
Kurunegala
Base: Dambulla Stadium
Catchment area: Northwestern Province, North-Central Province, Northern Province, and part of Eastern Province
Major affiliated clubs: Tamil Union, Chilaw Marians, Navy Sports Club

The 2015-16 season will also feature a four-day, 50-over and Twenty20 tournament based out of five regional hubs, in addition to the club-based premier tournaments which will continue as usual. The new city-based structure, titled the ‘Elite Championship’ aims to decentralise Sri Lanka’s cricket from Colombo, and distill talent to ensure a sterner level of domestic competition.According to SLC officials, the plan for the Elite Championship was “spearheaded” by Mahela Jayawardene. The interim committee, which took over in early April, has made the overhaul of the domestic system a priority of their administration, which is set to end in January – before any of the new tournaments are played. It is hoped the new structure will help better identify and foster provincial talent.”Today, the bulk of our cricketers are coming from the outstations,” SLC chairman Sidath Wettimuny said. “We’ve got to encourage these cricketers to remain in their home territory and play. Everybody doesn’t need to come to Colombo. We’re taking cricket out to them and providing them with what they need.”The five Elite Championship teams will be based out of stadiums in Pallekele, Dambulla, Hambantota, Galle and Khettarama, and will take the names of the nearest major urban centre (Kandy, Kurunegala, Hambantota, Galle and Colombo respectively).”Historically and geographically, these are the cities that have brought cricket to the level it is now,” SLC cricket operations manager Carlton Bernardus said. “The advantage also is that the facilities in these regions cater to the game.”By fielding only five teams, SLC aims to concentrate the talent in its domestic pool, in order to better prepare domestic cricketers for the international level. The Premier League first-class tournament, which features 14 club sides, has been criticised by players and administrators for being bloated, and as such, producing relatively-low quality cricket.Each Elite Championship team will be assigned SLC coaches and support staff. Romesh Kaluwitharana, Nuwan Zoysa, Piyal Wijetunge, Roy Dias and Avishka Gunawardene have been identified as head coaches for the five teams. SLC said it was also in the process of advertising for managers, and assigning trainers and physios for each side. The Elite Championship support staff will be advised and overseen by the national coaches in Colombo.Existing clubs have also been given an administrative role to play in the Elite Championship. The top clubs have been split into five clusters, each of which has then been assigned an Elite Championship side. For example, Sinhalese Sports Club, Badureliya Cricket Club, Ragama Cricket Club along with several other clubs have been clustered with the Colombo team.”We will get the support of the clubs and the district associations to run the tournament,” Bernardus said. “The tournament will tap into the facilities and infrastructure which the clubs have.”A new player-payments structure has also been announced for the Elite Championship tournaments. Seventy-five players (15 per team) will be signed up for these tournaments, and those who play will receive 20,000 rupees per day for the Elite Championship four-day tournament, 25,000 rupees per 50-over match, and 15,000 rupees per T20 game.The Elite Championship T20 tournament is set to be the first of the city-based tournaments to be played: it is scheduled from January 26 to February 5 – ahead of the World T20. The Elite Championship four-day tournament is scheduled for March and April 2016. The teams are scheduled to play a round-robin, before two sides progress to the final.The club-based Premier League Tournament is still set to take the largest part of the domestic calendar. That tournament features seven three-day group fixtures for each of the 14 sides, before the top eight teams split off to play four rounds of four-day cricket, known as the Super Eights phase. Club-based 50-over and T20 tournaments are also scheduled.SLC has sought to persist with the club structure instead of doing away with it in favour of the new tournaments for two major reasons. First, the clubs control much of the existing domestic infrastructure and facilities, including coaches, equipment and grounds. Secondly, the clubs also wield substantial constitutional power, via SLC votes.Any moves to marginalise the clubs would have effectively killed the city-based tournament at its inception. At any rate, with SLC elections scheduled for January, the clubs would likely have elected candidates promising to return the club tournaments to their historical place – as the centrepiece of Sri Lanka’s domestic season. Playing the Elite Championship after the Premier League tournament is seen as a sort of compromise.SLC has previously held provincial tournaments that sought to concentrate domestic talent. However, those tournaments had been administered directly by SLC, from Colombo. The Elite Championship aims to herald a greater devolution of power. It is hoped that district associations and the club clusters will administer the week-to-week affairs of each team, and that these teams will only be broadly overseen by SLC. It is also hoped that this devolution of powers brings with it grassroots support from fans in the various cities, as well as organic development of cricketers at each hub.

The Logan Cup match between the CFX Academy and Mashonalandpetered out in a drawThe Academy resumed on 28 for one, and it soon became clear thatthe Academy were taking perhaps a realistic view of theirposition: that they had insufficient time to push for victory byconventional means and even to aim for a declaration game wouldbring about a situation where they were hardly likely to bowl outMashonaland in less than half a day. The overnight batsmen RyanKing and John Vaughan-Davies settled in on a pitch that wasplaying slowly with a bit of turn, and after an hour they werestill there and Mashonaland were growing disgruntled andpressurising the umpires.Then two wickets fell quickly. King was given out lbw toPeacock, the ball hitting him quite high, and soon afterwardsVaughan-Davies was deceived into shouldering arms to the samebowler, who was spinning the ball quite sharply, only to find itcoming straight on and hitting his off stump – the third batsmanto be out this way in the match. He had mixed some good driveswith some vigorous fresh-air swings at balls outside the offstump. Both had made 24, and the Academy were now 68 for three.Greg Lamb scored only 10 before hitting a sharp return catch toViljoen, but Travis Friend was batting soundly, playing some gooddrives and strokes to leg. Due to the slow outfield he hit fivethrees against two fours in his 35 before becoming the eighth lbwvictim of the match, to Matambanadzo. The Academy went in tolunch on 139 for five, 112 ahead (Colin Delport 22, Jason Young2).The afternoon session was a dull one, but vital for the Academy,and Mashonaland grew increasingly frustrated, as was shown intheir body language and the amount of ‘chirping’ they engaged inat times. The only wicket to fall was that of Delport (34),checking a drive against Craig Evans and sending an easy catch toTrevor Penney at mid-on. The score was now 160 for six. PaulStrang, with his knee injury, prepared to come in at nine, butYoung and Clement Mahachi showed tremendous determination andconcentration to hold on until tea, when the score was 201 forsix – unbeaten on 26 and 17 respectively – and the match all butsafe. They mixed sound defence with firm strokes when safe to doso, but the heavy outfield made fast scoring difficult under thebest circumstances. The only chance given was when Young duckeda bouncer from Matambanadzo and wicket-keeper Don Campbell misseda shy at the stumps with the batsman still out of his crease.The Academy batted on after tea, useful practice for theirbatsmen, and the only further wicket to fall was that of Young,lbw to a yorker from Viljoen for 34. Strang decided to risk hisknee by batting with a runner, to be not out with 4 at the end,while the left-handed Mahachi was undefeated with 24. The finalscore was 221 for seven, a lead of 194, at 4pm, the time at whichthe teams could call off the match as a draw if there was mutualagreement. It was a creditable achievement for the Academyplayers to bat out the match, although with more experience theyshould be able to take greater toll of bowling that was ofteninaccurate. They will also learn to build on a good foundation;in their second innings six batsmen passed 20 but none scoredmore than 35. Unfortunately some of the Mashonaland players wereless than gracious about their successful effort to force a draw.

Habib Bank Limited (HBL), lifted the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) one day Cricket Cup, defeating Khan Research Labs (KRL) by 19 runs, in an exciting finish at the Gaddafi Stadium Lahore on Thursday.The KRL Captain Nadeem Abbasi (a former test player) won the toss and invited HBL to bat first on warm sunny late spring day at Lahore. Led by the former Pakistan Captain Saleem Malik, HBL were all out for a modest total of 182 runs. Hasan Raza who had at one time created the record of being the youngest test player in the game, was the top scorer with 57. Incidently, the two former stars of Pakistan, Saleem Malik and Ijaz Ahmed were out for a duck each. With 4 wickets for 31, Yasir Arafat was the most successful bowler for KRL.In reply, the KRL were bundled out for 163 runs in 47.5 overs. Imran Farhat, an upcoming leg spinner had caused the rout by claiming 4 wickets for 57 runs. Naseer Ahmed was the highest scorer with 41.HBL, one of the leading teams in the tournament thus clinched the trophy. The tournament sponsored and organised by the National Bank of Pakistan having offered attractive prize money as well as other awards, was participated by the best teams in Pakistan’s domestic cricket.Chairman PCB Lt. Gen. Tauqir Zia was the Chief Guest, who in the company of NBP President Mian Mohammad Soomro awarded the Championship Trophy and a cheque of Rs.100,000 to the HBL Skipper Saleem Malik, while the KRL Skipper Nadeem Abbasi received the Runners-Up prize of Rs. 50,000. Imran Farhat, deservedly, won the Man of the Match award.Among the other players, Iftikhar Hussain (KRL) won the best batsman of the tournament award for scoring 497 runs while Fazl-e-Akbar of Customs, was declared the best bowler of the tourney with 19 wickets. Taufeeq Umer (HBL) and Aamer Iqbal (Customs) were declared the best fielder and the best wicket keeper respectively. Each one of the players received a cash award of Rs. 5000.