Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has lavished praise on summer arrival Senne Lammens for putting in composed and confident performances between the sticks as the Red Devils strive to bring back their glory days at Old Trafford. The 23-year-old was promoted to become the new No.1 ahead of Turkish shot-stopper Altay Bayindir following an embarrassing 3-1 defeat to Brentford, and since then, the Belgian has made that position his own.

Lammens proves himself at United

There has been a lot of noise about the goalkeeping position at United since the departure of David de Gea. They signed Andre Onana from Inter after weeks of protracted negotiations for a massive £48 million ($61m) fee, but the Cameroonian flopped spectacularly at Old Trafford and often grabbed headlines for his gaffes and mistakes, instead of his shot-stopping abilities. United fell to a 15th-place finish in the 2024-25 season, and the goalkeeper had to take a fair share of the blame for his ineptitude. The club's faithful were calling for a change, and the board reacted by signing Lammens for an initial £18m (€21m/$24m) on deadline day from Royal Antwerp. However, he was consigned to a spot on the bench as Bayindir was preferred by Amorim in the early weeks of the new season. But the Turkey international failed to capitalise on the trust placed in him by Amorim, and the defeat to Brentford was the final nail in the coffin. Lammens waited patiently in the wings, and his opportunity finally arrived against Sunderland. He earned a clean sheet with three neat saves, and subsequently, after the international break, he continued with his form against Liverpool at Anfield, which has now led to effusive praise from his manager.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportAmorim 'surprised' by Lammens' form

“Senne Lammens has been great. His impact surprised me a little bit, because it is hard in the moment of our club and all of the speculation around our goalkeepers… he has coped really well with the pressure,” Amorim explained in a press conference. 

His poise with the ball at his feet has been commendable, as it has allowed the two centre-halves more time to play out from the back, rather than hoofing it forward while dealing with the opposition's press. Amorim has taken note of that quality and added: "He is really composed."

Excited fans have already been comparing Lammens to legendary goalkeepers such as Peter Schmeichel, but Amorim has urged patience despite a bright performance against Liverpool on away turf. 

“He’s not Schmeichel yet," Amorim said. "He’s a young guy with talent. He showed a lot of composure, and the fans liked it. But again, that is in the past; we need to prove in the next game."

However, Lammens could indeed turn out to be the next United legend in the future, if he holds his ground. Last season, with Antwerp, he made a total of 173 saves, stopping around 18.4 goals with a save percentage of 77.4. Amorim might have unearthed a rough diamond waiting to be polished.

Schmeichel thinks it's too early for a verdict

However, Schmeichel has warned that United fans might be counting their eggs a bit too early. The former goalkeeper has urged caution as he believes the true qualities of the keeper will be revealed only in the latter half of the campaign. 

Speaking on the , Schmeichel remarked: “You think about the goalkeepers that we’ve had over these last couple of years and how many goals we’ve conceded from errors – nine already this season – it’s too much. My instruction when I played was to save the team 10 points a season, not give them away. It’s nice to see a clean sheet and a solid performance because that’s something we’ve not seen for a while.

“This young lad [Lammens didn’t have much to do for a long time, but he did well when called upon. You could see his confidence grow after that first save, and the defenders reacted well. It’s far too early to judge him, though; he’s young, hardly played any competitive football, and the pressure at Manchester United can be relentless.”

Schmeichel concluded: “He did well, it was clean and positive, things we haven’t been used to. But we’ll really see what kind of goalkeeper he is when he makes mistakes and has to respond to them. That’s when we’ll know how good he can be.”

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Getty Images SportLammens faces tough Brighton test

Lammens is now the undisputed No.1 choice for Amorim. The team has earned six points from two games with his assuring presence between the sticks, and the Portuguese manager will not want to tinker again. His next test comes against Brighton at Old Trafford, and the Red Devils will be gunning for three consecutive victories in the Premier League, which will be a first during Amorim's turbulent reign.

Everton’s 2-1 win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday emphasised the rekindled spirit with David Moyes at the helm.

Work is still being plied in the hope of finding consistency across the park, but after such a fierce stream of summer departures, the Friedkin Group and Moyes and technical director Angus Kinnear can only be praised for reshaping the squad with talented and committed players.

Everton have 11 points after seven matches, and they are eighth in the standings.

However, there are still improvements to be made. Moyes made the point that multiple windows would be needed to lift the squad to the desired, collective standard, and the issues in the final third so far this season have been an illustration of that.

Everton's striker struggles

Dominic Calvert-Lewin left Everton at the end of his contract in June. He played on Merseyside for nine years and was at times considered among the finest strikers in the country.

But injuries and poor form across his final campaigns at Goodison Park made a renewal for the high-salary star difficult. And anyway, Beto had found form in Moyes’ system, scoring seven goals in the Premier League before the end of the campaign.

Beto has struggled to maintain a purple patch since that burst last spring, and with £27m summer signing Thierno Barry yet to adapt to the English game, the Toffees are being hindered by poor quality in the final third this term.

Even so, Everton have come on leaps and bounds, with the likes of Jack Grealish and Iliman Ndiaye spearheading a sharp upturn in general attacking skill.

If the nines fail to raise their game, there’s little question that a new striker will be on the agenda in 2026. With the club going from strength to strength, a focal talisman of the likes of some of the former heavyweights would be nice.

Take, for example, a new version of the man Wayne Rooney believes is Everton’s best scorer for two decades.

Everton's finest modern striker

In 2020, when Rooney was interviewed by The Times and asked to name his finest Everton XI of players he’s played with, he admitted reluctance not to name Duncan Ferguson as his striker, but Big Dunc had to fall behind another.

Five years is a long time, but it’s hard to stake a compelling argument that any who has played for Everton in the intervening years surpasses Romelu Lukaku.

Rooney’s finest Everton XI

GK – Nigel Martyn

RB – Seamus Coleman

CB – Phil Jagielka

CB – Sylvain Distin

LB – Leighton Baines

CM – Thomas Graveson

CM – Idrissa Gueye

RW – Tim Cahill

CAM – Marouane Fellaini

LW – Steven Pienaar

CF – Romelu Lukaku

Speaking to The Times, Rooney waxed lyrical over the Belgian: “Lukaku is the best goalscorer Everton have had in the last 20 years. His link-up play isn’t the best but he just scores and with his power was another like Fellaini who, when he was on it, was almost impossible to play against.

“I know the fans will expect me to choose Duncan, and as good as he was and as much as I loved him as a player, I can’t ignore Lukaku. His goalscoring for Everton was phenomenal.”

The hulking centre-forward has wandered across Europe, playing for a vast range of clubs and winning plenty of silverware. However, there’s a case to be made that he was at his most fearsome when leading the line at Everton.

A knack for scoring goals was built around the usage of his physical attributes, with powerful, sinewy strength coupled with lethal bursts of pace, darting into dangerous positions and brushing aside defenders.

Romelu Lukaku for English Clubs

Club

Apps

Goals (assists)

Everton

166

87 (27)

Manchester United

96

42 (12)

Chelsea

59

15 (2)

West Brom

38

17 (4)

Stats via Transfermarkt

Former Blues boss Roberto Martinez once hailed the 32-year-old’s “elite brain”, proving he was more than just his muscles, and indeed four terms at the club, between 2013 and 2017, saw him hit 20 goals on three occasions, with Martinez also claiming him to be an “iconic figure of Belgian football”.

Given that he was sold to Manchester United for an initial £75m fee at the end of that stint, it’s hard to argue against Farhad Moshiri and the Blues having hit the jackpot. If only they had better applied the recoup and avoided years of struggle.

Ferguson holds a greater legacy, having played 272 games for Everton and having scored 72 goals, but in terms of sheer quality and wow factor when plying their trade in Liverpool, Rooney’s probably fair in his argument that Lukaku takes the cake.

How Moyes must long for such a centre-forward now. It’s easier said than done, but if the Scotsman can land himself a new version of the powerhouse, this Everton project might just become a whole lot more exciting.

Related Moyes must ditch £56m Everton duo who have been holding Grealish back

Moyes’ Everton have made improvements but there are some stars who need to be dropped.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair Oct 2, 2025

West Ham have been given hope of signing a “special” striker in January amid manager Nuno Espirito Santo’s damning update on Niclas Füllkrug, with the importance of bringing in a new centre-forward brought even further to the forefront.

West Ham given Niclas Fullkrug update after thigh injury

Now confirmed by Nuno, the injury-prone Fullkrug is set to be out for “a while”, with Standard Sport reporting that West Ham are waiting on scan results to determine his exact recovery period.

Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann, after West Ham’s striker was excluded from the international squad to face Luxembourg and Wales, announced that Fullkrug torn a muscle bundle in his thigh and Kicker stated he could face “several weeks” out.

The 32-year-old’s injury is a significant blow for West Ham, compounding the club’s ongoing striker shortage. Fullkrug, who has been battling persistent fitness issues ever since joining the Hammers last year, is now set for a likely significant spell out — leaving Nuno with very limited options.

Brentford (home)

October 20

Leeds United (away)

October 24

Newcastle United (home)

November 2

Burnley (home)

November 8

With Fullkrug sidelined, West Ham are left relying primarily on Callum Marshall, a promising but inexperienced young striker, and Callum Wilson, whose own injury history raises questions about his ability to consistently lead the line.

This lack of attacking depth puts considerable pressure on Nuno, and the tactician could even be tempted to play winger Jarrod Bowen up front, as the Englishman has done in the past.

In any case, the message is clear — West Ham need a new striker in January.

In the build up to winter, the Irons have been linked with a host of intriguing options, including Al-Ahli’s Ivan Toney and Man United’s Josh Zirkzee.

One insider reported this week that West Ham have been offered an unnamed forward who “fits the bill” on loan, and while we’re just speculating, it could well be Real Madrid starlet Endrick.

The Brazilian, who’s struggled to play his way into Real’s first team due to a combination of injuries and fierce competition for places, was reportedly open to the prospect of a London Stadium loan move last January.

Given he’s yet to play a single minute under Xabi Alonso this term, the idea of a temporary Premier League move could well appeal to the 19-year-old once again, and journalist Dean Jones has shared a positive update on West Ham’s hopes of signing Endrick.

West Ham given Endrick transfer hope after Real Madrid update

Speaking to TEAMtalk, Jones reports there is “very little doubt” that he’ll be offered the chance to leave in January if his game time continues to be limited, and West Ham are genuine contenders to sign Endrick on a short-term basis.

The South American, who scored 21 goals in 82 senior appearances for Palmeiras before joining Real, despite his very young age, is still one of the most promising young Brazilians in world football.

Despite his limited appearances in La Liga and the Champions League, Endrick actually played a key role during Real’s run to the Copa del Rey final last season — bagging five goals in the competition and scoring in nearly every game before their loss to Barcelona.

Endrick’s arrival would be a real statement of intent from the heavily criticised West Ham board, and perhaps exactly the calibre of signing they need up top.

Leeds United have continued their strong return to the Premier League after beating Wolves in a 3-1 victory.

While the Whites walked away with all three points, barely any of the stats in the match went in their favour. Wolves had a greater xG of 1.78 to their 0.48 and 16 shots to Leeds’s six. Wolves managed to take the lead in the eighth minute following a defensive error that was capitalised upon by Ladislav Krejci, but it didn’t last long.

The key difference in the match was that when Leeds had an opportunity, they took it, leading to their three first-half goals. Dominic Calvert-Lewin headed in Leeds’ first goal before winning a free kick just outside the Wolves box that was converted by Anton Stach for their second.

The final goal of the match came from Noah Okafor, who scored after Jose Sa’s wayward long throw found Stach. Wolves dominated most of the second half but failed to convert any of their chances.

While the result may turn out to be a crucial three points later in the season, the game had some major downsides for Leeds, particularly in the injury department. In the 83rd minute, Jayden Bogle was forced to come off the pitch with an injury that seemed to cause some concern, but he wasn’t the only player to come away from Molineux with a potential problem.

Okafor also limps off for Leeds vs Wolves

The Athletic’s Beren Cross reported after the game that Leeds boss Daniel Farke said it was too early to fully know the extent of Bogle’s injury. The right-back took the force of a Wolves’ player’s studs and subsequently suffered from swelling. An update is expected in the coming days.

Another concern for Leeds is that Cross spotted goalscorer Okafor “slightly limping” after he was substituted in the 70th minute. The replacement of Okafor for Jack Harrison had initially looked tactical, but reports of limping have led to speculation that his removal could have been more serious.

Okafor suffered a few muscle injuries last season for AC Milan and Napoli during his loan spell. They only ended up causing him to miss nine games throughout the 24/25 season, but for a team like Leeds, who have to fight for every point in order to ensure Premier League survival, any time on the sidelines will be a big loss.

Leeds' injury backup plan

Leeds do have options if Bogle and Okafor are out for prolonged periods. During the match, Frake replaced Okafor with Harrison, who spent Leeds’s two-year stint in the Championship on loan at Everton, ensuring that he stayed playing to a Premier League standard.

The replacement for Bogle is a bit more of a risk and comes in the form of summer arrival, James Justin. Justin was once a hotly touted prospect, but two major injuries have hampered his career.

While at Leicester City, he missed out on almost a year with an ACL injury and a further 205 days with a ruptured Achilles. Overall, since 2020, Justin has missed 547 days and 100 games through injury, making it a massive risk to rely on him for a prolonged period.

Farke will be hoping that neither injury is a major one and that they’ll both be back fit soon. However, if they’re not, they do have options, but they may consider rotating a makeshift right back with Justin to keep him fit.

Tottenham Hotspur have long held a reputation for being a Premier League club that gets the maximum out of the up-and-coming talents at their disposal.

Indeed, Gareth Bale was transformed into a Real Madrid superstar thanks to the magic of the North Londoners, with the likes of Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall, and Wilson Odobert all keen to follow in the Welshman’s footsteps in Thomas Frank’s first team picture right now, with the trio in question all 20 years of age and younger.

They have all been afforded for luxury of trying to win first team minutes while Luka Vuskovic attempts to make a name for himself out on loan with Hamburg, with the promising Croat another that could soon bear fruit off the impressive Spurs’ production line.

Why Luka Vuskovic is rated so highly

It’s been a long time in the making for Vuskovic to be the Premier League side’s property, having originally agreed a £12m deal with Hajduk Split for the teenage sensation back in 2023, with the defender then staying put in his native country to develop.

His ex-employers even loaned him out to Belgium for a season-long stint at Westerlo, but despite scoring seven times and picking up three assists on the books of the Pro League side, and already being capped by the senior Croatia national team, Frank and Co opted to send Vuskovic on another European adventure with the Bundesliga outfit this summer.

The Dane will be watching on from the Spurs’ dug-out, very pleased with Vuskovic’s start to life in the Bundesliga, with the Split-born teenager already the recipient of the league’s Rookie of the Month accolade for his assured showings across September.

His league numbers make for some wild reading, with the determined 18-year-old winning a crazy nine duels per Bundesliga game so far this season, having won a whopping 18 aerial duels against Union Berlin at the end of last month.

To apply context to just how remarkable that statistic is, no player has won more aerial duels in a single Bundesliga game across the last ten seasons. Furthermore, he is the first player to win 18 aerial duels in a single match in Europe’s big five leagues over the last five seasons.

It now appears that analyst Ben Mattinson wasn’t being that over-the-top when he claimed Vuskovic was a “freak talent” with a “high ceiling”, with his parent club already looking forward to bedding him into the first team picture when the time is right.

However, despite the brand-new Hamburg number 44 becoming the flavour of the month suddenly, other youngsters back at Spurs are equally as promising as Vuskovic.

Spurs gem is rivalling Vuskovic as their top youngster

While Vuskovic has had to wait for his moment in the senior spotlight, other youngsters of a similar ilk to the raw Croat have been bumped up to the Spurs’ senior fold without much hesitation in recent years.

Last season, in particular, saw Ange Postecoglou use the Europa League as a stage for some of Spurs’ homegrown prodigies to impress, with Dane Scarlett even scoring against Elfsborg in the European competition, despite only being 20.

That same match, Mikey Moore would got in on the goalscoring act, with this first-ever senior goal for the Lilywhites a long time in the making, despite the London-born starlet only being 17 at the time.

Amazingly, long before Vuskovic’s name would start to be uttered, Moore was scoring goals by the bucket load for the Spurs’ U18s, with 19 goals and 13 assists in total in the youth picture, seeing scout Jacek Kulig hail him as “one of the most talented players of his generation in Europe.”

Games played

45

Senior appearances

20

Youth appearances

25

Goals scored

22

Assists

18

A further 20 appearances in the Spurs’ first team fold have come the forward’s way which has resulted in a further two assists being collected. It really is unsurprising that analyst Ben Mattinson claimed he has “superstar potential.”

Still, much like Vuksovic’s fate, Moore was sent out on loan to Rangers this summer, with the new number 47 at Ibrox failing to settle amidst turbulent times at the Glasgow-based club.

Yet, he does at least have one assist next to his name to hang onto from ten appearances, and with a hat-trick just picked up for the England U19s, he will hopefully be able to kick on and get back to his best in the Russell-Martin-less reality awaiting him.

Therefore, while the former Split youngster is certainly raising eyebrows, Moore has shown with that hat-trick that he still has lots about him, too, with the 18-year-old no doubt still prepared to go to the very top, whether that’s with Vuskovic next to him or not in a future Spurs’ starting XI.

Move over Spence: Spurs must unleash "one of the best talents England have"

Frank manages at Tottenham some of England’s finest up-and-coming talent.

2 ByAngus Sinclair Oct 12, 2025

US Soccer generated $263.7 million in revenue during 2025, a 37-percent increase over 2024 and the highest in eight years, according to the federation's annual financial report. The 2017 totals were tied to the hosting of the 2016 Copa America. The 2025 figures point to the buzz for next year's World Cup, with a majority of matches in the U.S.

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Commercial momentum

  Another indicator of excitement toward the 2026 World Cup is the sponsorship element, as the USSF saw a 19-percent increase to $121.1 million. 

  The federation secured deals with The Home Depot, Bank of America, Henkel, Jim Beam and Haleon during its fiscal year. 

  However, it is worth noting USSF actually saw a decrease in its net profit, going down from $9.1 million in 2024 to $8.3 million this year.

Advertisement

• Revenue by years

  U.S. Soccer financials, 2016–2025

  Fiscal year	Revenue ($)	Expenses ($)	Investment return ($)	Change in net assets ($)
  2016	125,301,588	109,809,361	-570,589	14,921,638
  2017	290,198,512	221,826,583	6,855,882	75,227,811
  2018	102,164,601	109,192,197	5,289,330	-1,738,266
  2019	108,660,552	131,804,573	6,035,122	-17,108,899
  2020	135,444,082	165,056,154	1,442,126	-28,169,946
  2021	61,223,417	73,704,217	12,479,092	-1,708
  2022	119,477,884	145,366,248	4,109,727	-21,778,637
  2023	147,147,798	187,937,461	1,321,306	-39,468,357
  2024	192,191,562	190,910,704	7,826,728	9,107,586
  2025	263,740,683	261,932,380	6,462,360	8,270,663

• Other sources of income

  Outside of sponsorship, USSF also drew a significant amount of revenue from philanthropic contributions, raising $50.3 million. The federation's $250M National Training Center project outside Atlanta has also spurred a sharp increase in fundraising activity.

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• Getty Images
  

  Looking ahead

  November promises to be a busy month for US Soccer's two senior teams. Mauricio Pochettino's USMNT host friendlies against Paraguay on Nov. 15 and Uruguay on Nov. 18. Emma Hayes' USWNT will play Italy on Nov. 28, followed by a rematch against Le Azzurre on Dec. 1. 

تحدث عمر جابر، لاعب الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي الزمالك، عن الفوز على بيراميدز في نصف نهائي بطولة كأس السوبر المصري.

وقال عمر جابر في تصريحات عبر قناة “أون سبورت”: “فوز مهم جدًا، الجميع يعرف ظروف الزمالك، والجماهير الوفية تساندنا في كل مكان، لذلك يجب أن نقدم 100% من مجهودنا، لدينا نهائي قادم، ونسأل الله أن يوفقنا فيه”.

وأضاف: “ربنا أكرمنا أمام فريق محترم وكبير، وإن شاء الله نركز في النهائي نحن نلعب على كل التفاصيل”.

طالع.. أحمد عبد الرؤوف يوضح سبب عدم مشاركة محمد صبحي أمام بيراميدز.. ويؤكد: جاهزون للنهائي

وواصل: “كنا نتمنى أن نحسم اللقاء قبل ركلات الترجيح لأنها دائمًا تكون صعبة، سنبدأ التحضير لمباراة الأهلي من الغد، وإن شاء الله نحقق الفوز”.

ومن جانبه، قال محمد إسماعيل عبر قناة “الزمالك”: “مبروك لجماهير الزمالك، والحمد لله أننا تجاوزنا هذه المباراة، وإن شاء الله نحصد البطولة في اللقاء المقبل”.

وأكمل: “كان هدفنا الأساسي الفوز من أجل الجماهير، ونجحنا في ذلك، جماهير الزمالك شيء مختلف، وهي السبب الرئيسي وراء قدومي إلى النادي”.

وأتم: “الزمالك دائمًا خلفه جماهيره، وأي لاعب يتمنى الانضمام إليه من أجلهم، أعد الجماهير بأننا سنبذل أقصى ما لدينا لتحقيق اللقب”.

 

MatériaMais Notícias

O Atlético-MG venceu o Botafogo por 1 a 0 na noite deste sábado (16), na Arena MRV, em Belo Horizonte, pela 23ª rodada doCampeonato Brasileiro.Em um jogo de pouca inspiração dos dois lados, o atacante Paulinho marcou aos 35 minutos do segundo tempo e garantiu a vitória para o Galo.

FICHA TÉCNICA
ATLÉTICO-MG 1 X 0 BOTAFOGO
CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO – 23ª RODADA

Local:Arena MRV, em Belo Horizonte (MG)
Data e horário:16 de setembro de 2023, domingo, às 21h (de Brasília)
Árbitro:Ramon Abatti Abel (Fifa/SC)
Assistentes:Bruno Raphael Pires (Fifa/GO) e Thiaggo Americano Labes (SC)
VAR:Rodrigo Guarizo Ferreira do Amaral (VAR-FIFA/SC)
Cartões amarelos:Di Plácido (Botafogo), Mariano e Zaracho (Atlético-MG)
Gol:Paulinho (1-0, aos 35′ do 2ºT)

ATLÉTICO-MG: Everson; Mariano, Maurício Lemos, Bruno Fuchs e Guilherme Arana; Battaglia, Otávio e Pedrinho; Pavón, Paulinho e Alan Kardec (Zaracho, aos 26′ do 2ºT).Técnico:Luiz Felipe Scolari.

BOTAFOGO:Lucas Perri (Gatito Fernández, após o intervalo); Di Plácido (Janderson, aos 39′ do 2ºT), Adryelson, Victor Cuesta e Marçal; Marlon Freitas, Tchê Tchê e Eduardo; Júnior Santos (Luis Henrique, aos 20′ do 2ºT), Tiquinho Soares (Diego Costa, aos 20′ do 2ºT) e Victor Sá (Segovinha, aos 29′ do 2ºT).Técnico:Bruno Lage.

MINY stretched the game out with quick wickets in the middle overs but Chapman took Freedom home with his unbeaten 45

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jun-2025

Mitchell Owen brought up a quick fifty to set up Washington Freedom’s chase•Sportzpics for MLC

An exhibition of exhilarating powerplay hitting was followed by a long stutter, but the good work done by Mitchell Owen up top was enough to carry Washington Freedom through to victory over MI New York in their MLC 2025 game in Dallas on Saturday.Chasing 189 for their third win, Freedom ended the powerplay on 74 for 2. Owen had hit 48 of those from 21 balls, with four fours and four sixes, young medium-pacer Rushil Ugarkar the worst hit, conceding 22 in the second over of the innings, when Owen hit three sixes.But Owen fell in the eighth over, Freedom having lost Rachin Ravindra and Andries Gous already by that stage. Worse for Freedom was that Mark Chapman just didn’t seem to be able to get a move on, and his 41-run stand with Jack Edwards for the fourth wicket took 5.5 overs. But, importantly for Freedom, Chapman didn’t throw his wicket away even as wickets fell in a rush at the other end, Sunny Patel and Naveen-ul-Haq doing most of the damage.Then the death overs started, and overs 17 and 18 combined for 3 for 2 – Trent Boult conceded just one run, picked up one wicket, and looked like he would get a wicket with each of the other deliveries in the 18th.Unfortunately for MINY, they had been forced to bowl out all their premier bowlers, and had to turn to Ugarkar for the 19th, and that was the release Freedom and Chapman needed to finish the job in the last over, bowled by Kieron Pollard.Sunny Patel got wickets in back-to-back overs to trigger a collapse•Sportzpics for MLC

After they were asked to bat, MINY rode on Quinton de Kock and Monank Patel’s big hitting to get to an imposing 70 in the powerplay. The turnaround began off the first ball after the phase, Owen the man doing it with the ball on this occasion, though the full delivery on the pads didn’t deserve a wicket, perhaps. Another day, Monank would have flicked it for six. Here, he sent it to Mark Adair at deep fine leg.With all the firepower MINY have in their ranks, 70 for 1 in 6.1 overs shouldn’t have been much of a bother, but Nicholas Pooran hasn’t been the Nicholas Pooran we know. After a blazing start to the IPL, his form had tapered off, and he hadn’t gotten into double-digits at MLC 2025 before this game. He did here, but his 33 took 30 balls, slowing the innings down, and MINY also lost de Kock for a 34-ball 55 in that period, compounding their woes.It was only Michael Bracewell’s 24-ball 42 not out, studded with five fours and six – one of only four in the entire innings – that gave them a total to bowl with. It almost proved enough.As a comparison, Freedom scored 74 and 95 in the powerplay and middle overs, respectively, much more than MINY’s 70 and 78 in their innings. It’s not like MINY really stepped it up at the death, scoring just 40 more, but Freedom had lost five wickets by the time the death overs started, and two more within eight balls of the death phase for the addition of just three more runs. It almost cost them two points but, thanks to Owen and Chapman, they squeaked through.The win took Freedom to six points from four matches, the same as Texas Super Kings, but Freedom are third on the table because of an inferior net run-rate to Super Kings. MINY, meanwhile, are fourth with one win from four games.

Essex 248 for 3 (Westley 107, Elgar 94) vs YorkshireCaptain Tom Westley’s determined 107 represented his second successive century in the Rothesay County Championship as his Essex side enjoyed a healthy but not dominant day one against relegation rivals Yorkshire at York.Former South Africa Test captain Dean Elgar fell narrowly short of scoring his first century of the season, falling for an opening 94 off 248 balls late on during an attritional day which Essex closed on 248 for 3 from 96 overs.Westley, who hit 12 fours in 239 balls, shared 198 for the second wicket with left-handed Elgar from early morning to late evening.The pair came together with the score on 24 during the opening exchanges of a Division One clash which had started with Westley opting to bat first on a glorious Minster City day.Yorkshire and Essex came into the contest separated by 14 points in the table, the former occupying ninth place – the second relegation spot ahead of Worcestershire – and the latter in eighth.Elgar will be mightily frustrated at not batting through the entire day, while Westley has had quite the week. Both fell against the second new ball to seamers Will Sutherland and Ben Coad.This Westley innings came hot on the heels of his 130 not out on the final day against Hampshire at Chelmsford on Wednesday, helping to secure a draw when a defeat had been a distinct possibility at the start of the day.Both sides handed debuts to a trio of overseas players between them.Australian allrounder Sutherland and Pakistani batter Abdullah Shafique are playing only one match apiece for Yorkshire, with Indian seamer Khaleel Ahmed starting his half-season stint with Essex.Essex enjoyed much the better of the morning, despite losing opener Paul Walter caught at second slip off a leading edge as he looked to whip Jack White to leg in the 10th over.Elgar’s first of 11 boundaries was beautifully pushed down the ground off George Hill’s bowling and he later reached his fifty off 116 balls – in the same over which saw Westley get to the same milestone off 90. By that stage, Essex were 117 for one in the 39th.Westley was the more aggressive of the two batters, though neither were able to cut loose from a Yorkshire bowling attack who kept things tight with the Kookaburra ball and kicked the door ajar late on.Aside from a lack of wickets, there wasn’t a plethora of chances created by Yorkshire’s bowlers, who had to deal with a lack of movement and pace in the pitch.The one obvious one that did arrive, Adam Lyth was unable to hold on at slip off Dom Bess’s off-spin with Elgar on 69 shortly before tea, where Essex reached at 164 for 1 from 64 overs.The day’s first of only five extras came at the start of the 67th over, a leg bye as Bess bowled to Elgar. That indicated the discipline from Yorkshire’s bowling attack.The hope is that the pitch will break up as the contest goes on to bring the likes of Bess and Essex’s off-spinner Simon Harmer more into things.If not, supporters and players alike could be in for a long four days.When Westley, who was classy on the drive, reached his latest century off 227 balls, Essex were 206 for 1 in the 83rd over, the new ball now in operation.However, both fell in successive overs as Essex went from 222 for 1 to 226 for 3 in the 87th.Westley was trapped lbw playing back against Coad before pulling Elgar was caught behind one-handed down leg by Jonny Bairstow off Sutherland.England fringe batter Jordan Cox will begin day two unbeaten on 13.