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The left-arm spinner replaces Beth Langston in only change to the squad that clinched theWomen’s World Cup in July

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2017

Eighteen-year-old left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone, who made her ODI debut last year, has been named in the England women squad as they attempt to regain the Ashes, which begins in Australia on October 22. Ecclestone replaced medium-pacer Beth Langston as the only change to the squad that clinched the Women’s World Cup in July this year.”Sophie Ecclestone has finished school now and has had a great summer domestically,” England coach Mark Robinson said. “Her selection will provide another option to our attack.”England leave for Brisbane on October 7 for the multi-format series that starts with three ODIs. That will be followed by a day-night Test in Sydney, before the tour concludes with three T20Is.”Ashes tours don’t come around all too often, so it’s always a special opportunity,” England captain Heather Knight said. “Australia are going to be very strong opponents on their home soil, so we’ll have to be at our best, across all three formats.”England women squad: Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Katherine Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Georgia Elwiss, Jenny Gunn, Alex Hartley, Danielle Hazell, Laura Marsh, Anya Shrubsole, Nat Sciver, Sarah Taylor (wk), Fran Wilson, Lauren Winfield, Danielle Wyatt

Michael Hogan’s 5 for 17 ended on the losing side when the DLS went in Gloucestershire’s favour

ECB Reporters Network03-Aug-2017Jacques Rudolph’s dismissal turned the DLS score from a tie to a Gloucestershire victory•Getty Images

Gloucestershire beat Glamorgan by five runs on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method, despite career-best figures of 5-17 for Michael Hogan, with Jacques Rudolph’s dismissal off what became the final ball proving a match-winning moment.Only five overs of the run chase were possible as the rain came when Glamorgan were 32 for 2, chasing 151 to win, after Thisara Perera bowled Rudolph moments before the players left the field. Had that wicket not fallen, the scores would have been tied on DLS.The match was due to resume at 9.15pm with a revised target of 114, meaning Glamorgan would have required 82 from nine overs, but further heavy rain arrived to bring an end.Having won the toss and put Gloucestershire in to bat, Glamorgan’s bowlers struggled to find their line early on and at the end of the Powerplay Gloucestershire were solidly placed on 45 without loss.However, a bowling change paid off as Craig Meschede, with his first delivery, had Klinger caught by Andrew Salter attempting a pull shot.Phil Mustard brought up his fifty with an on-driven six off Salter in the 12th over, and Ian Cockbain added a six of his own in the same over as the visitors reached 97 for 1.Meschede made a second breakthrough when Ian Cockbain skied to Michael Hogan at mid-off for 22 and he ended with 2 for 28.Colin Ingram was brought into the attack and claimed the scalp of Mustard for 57 when he picked out deep midwicket.Kieran Noema-Barnett took Ingram for two boundaries and Jack Taylor was given a life when he was dropped on the midwicket rope by Aneurin Donald.However, Donald did take the chance offered by Noema-Barnett which began Hogan’s late burst. Hogan took another two wickets in the over, bowling Taylor for 10 before Thisara Perera was removed by an impressive catch from David Miller.Hogan added a fourth when he bowled George Hankins and, after the run out of Matt Taylor, he removed Benny Howell off the final ball of the innings.

On a tour where more had been said about Jonny Bairstow’s headbutt than his batting he was able to let out a few emotions on the second day in Perth

George Dobell in Perth15-Dec-2017Jonny Bairstow ensured he had the last laugh after completing a maiden Ashes century.On the first night of this tour, Bairstow ventured to the Avenue bar in the suburbs of Perth and greeted Cameron Bancroft with a now notorious genial head-butt.While it took a few weeks for the incident to come to light – Australia used it in the second innings of the first Test to unsettle Bairstow and some have subsequently suggested it provides evidence of England’s “drinking culture” – it briefly threatened to disturb the focus of both Bairstow and the England camp.But upon reaching his century here, Bairstow kissed and then gently head-butted his England helmet several times in a clear and good-natured reference to the episode. It was a celebration that demonstrated both an ability to laugh at his own errors and suggested the incident had long been put behind him. And, as he said afterwards, it may well be the whole affair gave him made him “more determined to succeed.”With that context and the fact that it had taken Bairstow until his fourth Ashes series, his 12th Ashes Test and his 20th Ashes innings to make his first Ashes century, it was perhaps not surprising that he rated it his “favourite” Test century.”The hundred in many ways was my favourite one,” Bairstow said. “I’ve played in a few Ashes series now and to score an Ashes hundred – something that had eluded me until now – is something you dream about as a kid. This is the pinnacle of the game.”It means a heck of a lot to be involved in record stands. You want to make an Ashes hundred. You want to look back in the archives when you’re retired and say to your kids or your grandkids: ‘I made an Ashes hundred at the WACA’.”There’s a huge amount of pride that comes with any hundred and in playing for your country.”The celebration was a bit of light hearted fun and it should be taken as such. It was spontaneous. I hadn’t thought about it before.”Hopefully it is a positive reaction I have given in this innings. Sometimes the chat out there spurs people on and makes them more determined to succeed.”Jonny Bairstow celebrates his maiden Ashes hundred•Getty Images

Bairstow hadn’t scored a Test century since an unbeaten 167 against Sri Lanka at Lord’s in June 2016 – 21 Tests and 38 innings ago – though he made 99 against South Africa at Old Trafford in August. But here he posted a stand of 237 with Dawid Malan – a record for England’s fifth-wicket in Ashes cricket – to steer England from the peril of 131 for 4 to the relative comfort of 368 for 4 before a now familiar batting collapse.While Bairstow admitted the collapse was “frustrating” and the manner of Malan’s dismissal “disappointing”, he maintained a ‘glass half-full’ perspective.”It was disappointing the way he got out,” Bairstow said, “but the intent we showed in our batting was much better.”Maybe we’re frustrated in some ways, but it depends how you look at things. We were 100 for 4 at one stage. You can either think it was a fantastic recovery or you can look at it and say we’ve let our position slip.”Meanwhile the ECB confirmed Mark Wood would remain with the England squad after the end of the Lions tour on Sunday. There are currently no plans to retain the services of any of the other players in that squad, most of whom will arrive back in the UK on Monday.That means that, despite the failings of the top-order, England’s only obvious batting options for the final two Tests are Ben Foakes and Gary Ballance. While others are either in Australia or shortly will be – Jos Buttler, Jason Roy and Sam Billings are among those involved in the BBL while Sam Robson is spending time with his family in Sydney – there are currently no plans to utilise any of them in the Ashes.It remains to be seen how much of a role Craig Overton will play in the rest of the match. Overton was forced off the pitch for a while on the second day after jarring a rib as he attempted to claim a tough caught and bowled opportunity. He returned to the field before the close and it was not deemed necessary to send him for a scan. But he will be assessed by the medical team before play on the third day to ascertain his fitness to bowl.

The left-arm spin-bowling allrounder is a like-for-like replacement for the suspended Ravindra Jadeja

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Aug-2017

India have brought in left-arm spin-bowling allrounder Axar Patel for the Pallekele Test, as a replacement for the suspended Ravindra Jadeja. He will be the third spinner in the squad behind offspinner R Ashwin and left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav.Axar is yet to make his debut in Test cricket, but has played 30 ODIs and seven T20 internationals. He has played 23 first-class matches and taken 79 wickets at 30.37. He has just finished playing the 50-over tri-series in South Africa with India A. He finished the team’s third-highest wicket-taker in the series with seven wickets in four games and an economy rate of 4.11.Jadeja was suspended at the end of the second Test for disciplinary issues; following an incident where he threw the ball at batsman Malinda Pushpakumara “in a dangerous manner” according to the on-field umpires. He was given three demerit points, taking his total to six demerit points inside a 24-month period which triggered a one-Test suspension. Incidentally, he was the Man of the Match in that Test for his his unbeaten 70 off 85 balls and second-innings five-for, following which he moved to No. 1 on the Test allrounder rankings, to go with his No. 1 rating among Test bowlers.The Pallekele Test begins on August 12. India have already won the three-match series, with victories in Galle and at the SSC.Updated India squad: Virat Kohli (capt), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-capt), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Abhinav Mukund

Shardul Thakur dominated with the ball, Virat Kohli with the bat and India cruised to an eight-wicket win in Centurion, taking the six-match series 5-1

The Report by Nikhil Kalro16-Feb-2018

Confidence and form are two of the most influential factors in batting. They often dictate timing and placement – requisites for scoring runs. South Africa have lacked both after their sub-par performances this series. Therefore, in good batting conditions in Centurion, South Africa’s batsmen grappled with their own lack of confidence and India’s disciplined bowling, resulting in another mediocre total. Shardul Thakur, playing his first match of the series, led another clinical display from India with figures of 4 for 52 as South Africa were bowled out for 204.On the other end of that form spectrum lies Virat Kohli. With 429 runs in five games prior to the final ODI, Kohli was oozing confidence. Against a jaded bowling attack, and with all that belief, his 35th ODI hundred was almost a formality. It helped India coast to an eight-wicket win, and take the six-match series 5-1. Kohli finished with 558 runs in six matches, the most by a batsman in a bilateral series.Just like in the second ODI at the same venue, South Africa began cautiously to suss out conditions early. What their openers, Hashim Amla and Aiden Markram, found was a surface that was sluggish, with strokes on the up taking the inside and outside halves of the bat. In the thin air of the Highveld and under some pressure, Amla saw an opportunity to hit Thakur over fine leg for six in the seventh over. His attempt to pull, from bottom to top to get underneath the ball, cost him a fraction of a second, and he could only strangle a leg-side delivery to the keeper.Markram played some fluent strokes, including a well-timed six over square leg, but like in Port Elizabeth he was caught in the circle trying to force the pace. He was caught, looking to clear cover, a shot that was preceded by two languid drives off overpitched deliveries that found the same fielder.South Africa’s best period of batting followed, with AB de Villiers and Khaya Zondo attacking India’s wristspinners. In the 18th over, de Villiers hit Kuldeep for three successive fours – a drive through point, an inside-edge just past the stumps, and a reverse sweep. Zondo pulled Yuzvendra Chahal for two sixes over midwicket in the next over. They had added 62 off 65 balls before de Villiers missed a straight, flat delivery, trying to cut.Zondo and Heinrich Klaasen, after the loss of South Africa’s best ODI batsman and with a fragile middle order to follow, were overly cautious, accumulating 30 in 58 balls. Klaasen then drilled a slower delivery to short cover. Farhaan Behardien, playing his first match of the series, holed out to third man in the next over. Zondo’s spirited fight ended when he chipped Chahal to sweeper cover, for 54. South Africa’s score hadn’t progressed much since de Villiers’ dismissal and their momentum had been sucked out.Andile Phehlukwayo and Morne Morkel pleased the sparse Centurion crowd with an exciting 36-run partnership, the second-highest of the innings. Then Morkel scythed a cut to sweeper cover, and Imran Tahir and Phehlukwayo were caught off slower balls. Even though they did reasonably well against the wristspinners – scoring 89 runs for three wickets off 20 overs – South Africa fell well below the target they must have aimed at, ending up with 19 unutilised deliveries.Fresh off a match-winning hundred, Rohit Sharma began the chase with a few exquisite cuts behind and in front of point. South Africa’s short-ball ploy worked as he gloved a bouncer from Lungi Ngidi to the keeper. They persisted with that length thereafter which, on a slow pitch, was always fraught with risk.Kohli pounced on that length. With attacking fields and the short deliveries sitting up, Kohli laid into cross-batted strokes on either side of the pitch. He blazed away to 38 off 25. Dhawan, on the other hand, struggling for timing, was 14 off 30. Dhawan’s 34 ball struggle ended when he nailed a cut to backward point, for 18, South Africa’s last moment of respite in an effortless chase.Kohli and Rahane added an unbeaten 129 off just 117 balls. Rahane contributed 34 off 50 balls, playing adeptly around the belligerence of Kohli. In stark contrast to his usual mode of operation in ODIs, Kohli’s ton was filled with boundaries: 19 fours and two sixes, making up 68.21% of his runs. The trouble he faced in mustering all those runs, though, was nearly zero.

Former India captain concedes players are invariably “more powerful” than coaches in the modern-day game

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2017

The manner of Anil Kumble’s exit as India coach and how the entire captain-coach saga played out in public view was both “unfortunate” and unfair to the former India captain, according to his former colleague Rahul Dravid. He also conceded that players were invariably more powerful than coaches, and any power-struggle inevitably resulted in the favour of the players.Kumble stepped down immediately after the Champions Trophy in June after his partnership with Kohli became “untenable.” Ahead of that tournament, reports of Kohli telling BCCI about players being uncomfortable with Kumble’s “overbearing” ways surfaced.”At the end of the day, I don’t know the specifics of that particular issue, but it shouldn’t have got played out in the way that it did,” Dravid said at the Bangalore Literature Festival. “I think the whole thing got played out in the media which is very, very unfortunate for Anil and not fair on him at all.”So, what’s the reality of it and what happens behind closed doors is not something I’m privy to, so I can’t comment directly. But it was definitely an unfortunate episode, especially to someone like Anil who has been an absolute legend of the game, someone who has done more to win Test matches for India than anybody I know. And he had a successful year as coach as well. But the fact is that it should never have played out the way that it did, publicly.”That the coaching job came with an inherent risk of a sack wasn’t lost on Dravid. “See, coaches get sacked. The first thing you know when you stop playing and become a coach is that some day you are going to get sacked,” he said. “That’s the reality.”As an India A and Under-19 coach, I know that someday I’m going to get the boot. Some football managers get sacked after two games, so that’s the reality. Players are more powerful than coaches. We know that because we were more powerful than coaches when we played.”When there was a suggestion that players had become too powerful, Dravid said players had little say in their journey to superstardom. “A lot of cricketers come from humble, middle-class backgrounds. At the core of all this, if you remove the hype and hoopla, they are just normal guys who grew up and became heroes,” he said. “They became heroes thanks to people like you [anchors, journalists], television asking for interviews, writing books about them. It’s the game that has made them heroes.”I read that the players have become too big, but who has made them too big? It’s very easy to say that, and also a lot of other people have become rich by players becoming rich. It’s reality now. It’s the fact of the matter. At the end of the day, cricketers are simple people. But everything gets blown out of proportion for them. So they have to deal with things a certain way.”

England quick Anya Shrubsole has become the first woman to feature on the cover of

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jan-2018

Following a landmark year for the women’s game, in which the most high-profile Women’s World Cup ever was won by England in a thrilling climax in front of a packed house at Lord’s, 2018 has begun with another ground-breaking accolade. Anya Shrubsole, whose six-wicket haul led England to victory over India in the final, has become the first woman to feature on the cover of .Wisden

Shrubsole is pictured in the familiar primrose hues of the Almanack, holding the Women’s World Cup aloft at Lord’s. Her spell of five wickets in 22 balls had ripped the trophy from India’s hands, as England held on for a nine-run win amid scenes of high drama.It was seen as a watershed moment for the sport, following the advent of professional contracts and increased profile of competitions such as the Kia Super League and Women’s Big Bash League. Lawrence Booth, editor of , said that Shrubsole was the standout candidate to be showcased on the 2018 edition, which will be published in April.”The choice of Anya Shrubsole as Wisden’s cover star for 2018 was reassuringly easy,” Booth said. “She’d bowled the spell that won England the World Cup, so in my mind it was going to take something pretty extraordinary to topple her from the perch. And the fact that she wasn’t a token pick was important.”Women’s cricket underwent a revolution in 2017, so if we weren’t going to reflect that with a photo of an English cricketer brandishing a global trophy, we might as well have given up and said cricket is for men only and always will be. The old-school pick might have been Steve Smith, but cricket has moved beyond that now. Anya was thrilled when I told her, and to judge by the instant reaction on Twitter this morning a lot of people are thrilled on her behalf.”In a similar move, has chosen to put two members of the India side who made it to the Women’s World Cup final – a high-fiving Sushma Verma and Shikha Pandey – on the cover of its 2018 edition.The tradition of putting a photo on the sleeve of the Almanack only began in 2003, with Virat Kohli last year’s cover star. In 2009, Claire Taylor became the first female to be named one of ‘s Five Cricketers of the Year, awarded for performances during the preceding English summer. A number of players from the side led by Heather Knight, including Shrubsole and star allrounder Nat Sciver, are potential recipients in 2018.

West Indies allrounder Andre Russell has admitted he has not yet performed to his standard in the Pakistan Super League so far, having scored 77 runs and taken eight wickets in seven games

Nagraj Gollapudi20-Feb-2016

West Indies allrounder Andre Russell has admitted he has not yet performed to his standard in the Pakistan Super League so far. Russell has scored 77 runs and taken eight wickets in seven matches for Islamabad United. On the eve of the eliminator against Karachi Kings, Russell said he had a clear goal: to “raise the bat” and keep Islamabad’s hopes of making the inaugural final alive.”I still haven’t done whatever I want to. I still haven’t achieved what I want to achieve as yet playing for Islamabad,” Russell told ESPNcricinfo on Friday. “And as of tomorrow I want to start that. I know whenever I go to bat, people are expecting big sixes and me to raise my bat. I haven’t raised my bat in months now. And I want to start that tomorrow.”Russell was named the Man of the Series of the IPL last year, where he played for Kolkata Knight Riders. He was also one of the best allrounders in the recently concluded Big Bash League, where his team Sydney Thunder won for the first time. His overall strike rate in T20s is 166.89, the highest among all 2000-plus run-getters. Still, Russell admits he is not the finished product.Despite his on-field performances not being spectacular, Russell said the PSL has been a good learning experience. “I know for sure by the time I leave, I’m going to learn a lot about how to play against left-arm orthodox. These teams have a lot of these spinners, boy. Even in the nets you would see them.”Even though Russell has been occasionally limited against spinners, he believes his game can overcome those obstacles. “At the end of the day playing spin is crucial in any form of the game, but in T20 cricket I don’t worry about spinners. I would prefer to bat spin more than pace. I love when the ball coming on (to the bat), but I would be more confident playing a shot against a spinner because I know that I have nothing to fear. If he spins the ball, he’ll beat me. Alright, he beat me. If I hit him for six, I win. I can sweep, but with my power I don’t really need to sweep sometime. But I can sweep to rotate strike.”Russell also said he was impressed by the emerging talent on show in the PSL. “A lot of talent in the PSL. This reminds me of playing in the Caribbean where you see so many (talented) guys. I ask a lot of of local guys here ‘Does this guy plays for Pakistan? I think he should play for Pakistan’ Russell said.

Important to focus and not let change in batting positions affect game, says India batsman

Akshay Gopalakrishnan in Alur09-Nov-2017

Mayank Agarwal’s classy century against Delhi on Thursday may have made him the star on most days. But for the few hundreds that gathered at the KSCA ground in Alur, Manish Pandey was all the rage. The Karnataka batsman was the sole recipient of applause from a clamouring crowd as he walked out to bat. Later, when a few members of the team cooled down with a light football session at the end of day’s play, Pandey was the centre of all attention again. It didn’t seem to matter that a few other heroes, who have also played for India, were in closer vicinity, jogging around by the boundary.This popularity of Pandey isn’t newfound, but it has certainly surged since he’s become a part of India’s limited-overs squad. Coming from the same batch of India Under-19s as Virat Kohli, Pandey hasn’t had the same opportunities or exposure at the senior level. He’s had to bide his time despite consistent scores in domestic cricket. His rise hasn’t been meteoric, but he’s still a popular player.Now, over two years since his international debut, Pandey is still fighting to nail a permanent spot. Constant changes to his batting position haven’t made the process easy. An average of 43 and strike-rate of 95 suggests there’s ability and potential, but it hasn’t always been enough. There’s been competition in the form of Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik and KL Rahul, his good friend and Karnataka team-mate. That is perhaps why every opportunity he gets at any level of competitive cricket is a blessing at this stage of his career.Barely a few hours after turning up for India in a T20 international against New Zealand in Thiruvananthapuram, Pandey hopped onto a flight to Bangalore and drove to Alur, on the outskirts of the city, to join his Karnataka mates ahead of a crucial Ranji Trophy game. The batsmen who preceded him had set it up nicely. The sunshine had eased out whatever moisture there was on the surface, and Delhi’s bowlers were tiring. Pandey walked in and stroked a half-century, the significance of which was magnified by the presence of MSK Prasad, the chairman of selectors. After a punchy 74, Pandey acknowledged it was important to not let the bar drop.”It’s a completely different ball game [playing four-day cricket as compared to the limited-overs formats], you know,” he said. “I had more time to settle down and play my shots as the innings progressed. It’ll be important for me to continue batting like this and have fun.”It was quite easy. The plan was to come at No. 4, but with the jet lag and stuff like that, I came in at No. 5. I have been playing a lot of ODI and T20, which obviously starts in the later part of the day. It was good to come back and play Ranji Trophy cricket for Karnataka. It was amazing to see the boys again. The partnership before definitely helped.”Pandey had a rousing start to his one-day career, with a half-century against Zimbabwe in Harare. Three games later, he blitzed a match-winning century against Australia in Sydney. A middling series against New Zealand cost him his place, and it took nearly a year for him to get a chance again, after a highly successful series with the India A team in South Africa.Pandey announced his return with an unbeaten half-century in a crushing 168-run win over Sri Lanka. Since then, he has floated between Nos. 4 and 6, not remaining in the same position for more than three games in a row. It also hasn’t helped that he returned with two single-digit scores in the three innings that he batted at No. 4. With India still in the hunt for a permanent fix to the No. 4 spot, those were costly lapses.Pandey’s game is well-suited to the position as he has the wherewithal to play the big shots as well as build an innings, like he showed in that Sydney hundred against Australia. However, being denied the luxury of settling into a position has made the bid harder.”I didn’t think about international cricket or the memories from before. I only thought about Karnataka cricket and my batting today,” he said. “I was looking forward to play this game. It is a little difficult to adapt, but I think I have done this for a long time. It’s a part of the game where the team wants you to play No. 4 or 5 or 6, and it’ll be important for me to stay focussed and keep waiting for the call-up.”Pandey last played a first-class match in December last year, when Karnataka conceded the quarterfinal of the previous season’s Ranji Trophy to Tamil Nadu inside two days. Given how heavily involved he has been in limited-overs cricket in that time, the pace at which Pandey struck his runs on Thursday perhaps wasn’t entirely surprising. But he denied any conscious effort in tweaking his game.”You don’t look to score a boundary every ball, but I look to score a single every ball, be a little aggressive. Even if it’s a defence, the intention is to be aggressive. Because of a lot of T20 cricket that is happening, cricket has changed in such a way that batsmen want to score runs and score boundaries. In a way, that’s really good for cricket where it’s looking good from the outside. I think we should just focus on getting runs.”

تحدث أوناي إيمري، المدير الفني لفريق أستون فيلا، عن مباراة مانشستر سيتي المرتقبة غدًا، في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ويستضيف ملعب “فيلا بارك” مباراة الفريقين في إطار منافسات الجولة السابعة عشر من بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي، 2024/25.

ويخوض مانشستر سيتي تلك المباراة وهو في أسوأ حالاته حيث لم يفز إلا في مباراة واحدة في آخر 11 لقاءً في مختلف المسابقات.

ويحتل مانشستر سيتي المركز الخامس برصيد 27 نقطة، في حين أن أستون فيلا لديه 25 نقطة في المركز السابع.

وعندما سُئل عن رأيه تجاه المستوى الحالي لـ مانشستر سيتي، قال أوناي إيمري في تصريحات نشرها الموقع الرسمي لـ أستون فيلا: “مندهش بعض الشيء، لكن هذه هي كرة القدم، إنه (بيب جوارديولا) الأفضل”.

وأضاف: “نخوض كل مباراة على حدة، إنها أصعب بطولة في العالم، كل فريق يقدم لنا الكثير من المعلومات حول وضعنا وكيفية مواجهتنا لهم”.

اقرأ أيضًا | ضربة جديدة.. جوارديولا يعلن إصابة لاعب مانشستر سيتي وغيابه لمدة شهر

وواصل: “غدًا سنواجه أفضل فريق في السنوات القليلة الماضية في الدوري الإنجليزي، ربما لا يكونون ثابتين بسبب ظروف مختلفة، لكنهم الأفضل ومدربهم هو الأفضل”.

واسترسل: “لقد وصلت إلى هنا منذ عامين وكنت هنا من قبل، كان الأمر صعبًا للغاية دائمًا، أن تكون ثابتًا، كما هم عادةً، هو الأصعب”.

وأوضح: “لقد حققوا نجاحًا على مدار السنوات القليلة الماضية، وكانوا ثابتين في كل شيء، سيقدمون أداءً جيدًا مرة أخرى، لديهم الوقت ليكونوا فائزين مرة أخرى في هذه البطولة”.

واختتم: “سنواجه مانشستر سيتي غدًا والأهم من ذلك هو كيف سنواجههم، كيف سنرد، كيف سنختبرهم، هذا هو أهم شيء بالنسبة لي”.