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Tom Fell made a memorable comeback for Worcestershire with a stylish half-century against Leicestershire at New Road on his return to the County Championship after an absence of nearly 10 months.

ECB Reporters Network04-Jul-2016
ScorecardTom Fell marked his return to the first team with a stylish fifty•Getty ImagesTom Fell made a memorable comeback for Worcestershire with a stylish half-century against Leicestershire at New Road on his return to the County Championship after an absence of nearly 10 months.In his first innings since recovering from two forms of cancer, he made 61 from 114 balls until Worcestershire wobbled to 193 for 7, still 65 short of avoiding the follow-on after Leicestershire’s confident progress to 407.The 22-year-old Fell was warmly greeted on his home ground, applause ringing out on the long walk to the middle, and from the moment he took guard, he looked comfortable, totally focussed and surprisingly sure of touch.From a first boundary, pinged through midwicket, he picked up from where he left off with a career-best 171 in the final match of last season against Middlesex. There was none of the uncertainty that could have been anticipated after the long months of treatment.Called to the wicket when Brett D’Oliveira mistimed a drive to mid-on in the 12th over, Fell was off the mark from the seventh ball he faced, and apart from one false stroke, most of his 11 boundaries came out of the middle of the bat.All was going so smoothly until a mix-up with Mitchell, which ended a partnership of 97, was quickly followed by another mishap in successive overs from Ben Raine.Mitchell failed to beat Paul Horton’s return when Fell set off for a single after playing the ball to point and Fell himself was driving hard when caught behind. This opened the door to Leicestershire with further wickets for Charlie Shreck and Clint McKay as well as a double bonus in the last two overs.Ben Cox was caught at slip from Mark Cosgrove’s second ball and Neil Dexter secured the important scalp by bowling Clarke for 34, the sixth wicket to fall in the final session.Earlier, Ned Eckersley’s innings revived a habit of making big runs against Worcestershire. In 2013, he made three hundreds off their bowling and in all he now has 515 runs from eight Championship innings at an average of 73.57.Recalled to the side at the end of May, his form had been unproductive, with two single-figure dismissals out of three in four-day games, but a visit to Worcester quickly put him back in the groove.The game was finely balanced, with Leicestershire on 299 for 7, when Eckersley seized the initiative as the last three wickets added 107 on the second morning.Unbeaten with 40 at the start of play, he completed his first half-century of the summer before his overnight partner, Raine, gave a return catch to D’Oliveira.With Raine gone after making 25 in a stand of 55, Worcestershire may have expected a speedy wrap-up, but they were to be disappointed as former New Road player Richard Jones smacked 33 out of 69. Ed Barnard completed a career-best return of 4 for 62 when bowling Jones and D’Oliveira made his figures 4 for 80 with the lbw dismissal of Shreck.After playing so well and hitting 14 fours, Eckersley was stranded when on the brink of another century against his favourite opponents.

Manchester United let slip a two-goal lead last night, as the fatigue finally started to set in following their penalty-shootout victory on Sunday.

Going into the break 2-0 up, having comfortably swept aside Tottenham Hotspur, through their tiredness and some inspiration from Ryan Mason’s men, they would creep back into the game, eventually salvaging a point as it ended 2-2.

Whilst it changes little in their race for the top four, it did allow Newcastle United to leapfrog the Red Devils after their thumping win elsewhere.

With injuries piling up as they travelled to north London, the big talking point was surrounding Bruno Fernandes, as Erik ten Hag had previously suggested he would be a doubt for the clash.

The Portugal international had never previously missed a club match through injury, so all the attention focused on whether the 28-year-old could at least make the bench to uphold his impossible record.

However, he did more than that, starting in midfield against all the odds and shining for 90 minutes.

How did Bruno Fernandes play vs Spurs?

Whilst his inclusion alone marked a mini-miracle, to dominate the game in the way the former Sporting CP maestro did further emphasises not only his importance to this team, but his truly top-end quality with regard to the rest of the Premier League.

As a creative and goalscoring influence, there are few who can compare with this polarising superstar.

Starting just in front of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen in the engine room, the platform was well-built for him to thrive. Fernandes would take this opportunity with both hands, recording 73 touches and maintaining a 7.6 rating throughout. Only goalscorer Marcus Rashford earned higher on his team.

However, it was his magical through-ball that set the speedster free to score their second goal of the night, adding another special assist to his ever-growing collection. It could have been so much more, though, as he forged three key passes and created two big chances. He would even miss one himself, fashioning a golden opportunity all on his own, only to hammer his close-range effort against the bar (via Sofascore).

Such a dominating midfield display led one United writer to take to Twitter, unapologetic in his claim that: “Bruno Fernandes is the best in the world, man, I don’t even care.”

Having been branded a “creative monster” by Statman Dave earlier this month, it seems that with each passing game, the magician only serves to further support this claim.

The £240k-per-week midfielder may not have been on the winning side last night, but his immeasurable play certainly merited it.

Paris Saint-Germain are thought to be interested in signing Newcastle United star Bruno Guimaraes in the summer transfer window, according to a new report.

Just how good is Bruno?

The Brazilian has been a transformative figure since joining the Magpies in January 2022, becoming an instant hero at St James' Park and appearing to raise the level of those around him. His box-to-box quality has been so key since his arrival and he is enjoying a superb 2022/23 season to date.

Bruno has scored three goals and registered four assists across 24 Premier League appearances, with Alan Shearer describing him as "absolutely magnificent" earlier in the campaign. He has been a big reason for Newcastle's strong top-four push and it was no surprise to see their form dip when he was unavailable through suspension in the lead-up to the EFL Cup final defeat to Manchester United.

The Brazilian is contracted to the Magpies until the summer of 2026, but now a worrying exit rumour has emerged, as one of Europe's leading clubs eye up a move for him.

Could Newcastle star depart this summer?

According to iG Esporte [via Sport Witness], PSG are interested in signing Bruno in the summer transfer window, as they look to bolster their midfield options. He has been "evaluated internally" inside the Ligue 1 club, although an offer hasn't been tabled yet.

They are believed to "regret" the decision not to sign the Newcastle ace back when he was at Lyon, considering the impact he has gone on to make at St James' Park. It is noted that the Magpies are "looking to fend off" an interest in Bruno by offering him a new deal, however, so the hope is that he is happy in England and wants to extend his stay.

Losing the 10-cap Brazil international at his point would be a huge blow for Newcastle, at a time when they are on the cusp of returning to the Champions League and potentially embarking on a memorable era at the club. He is so essential to everything they do as a team, whether it is chipping in with end product from midfield or providing great off-the-ball work – he has averaged 2.4 tackles per game in the league this season – so it is essential that they keep hold of him.

The lure of PSG could be great, given their Champions League aspirations and financial power, but even Lionel Messi has struggled to truly excel there at times, so Bruno should see Newcastle as his best option moving forward.

Newcastle United are reportedly eyeing up a potential move for Juventus winger Samuel Iling-Junior this summer.

The Lowdown: Brace for England

Iling-Junior scored a brace for England U20s in their 2-0 win against Germany on Wednesday night as the Young Lions prepare for the FIFA U20 World Cup in Indonesia this summer.

The 19-year-old plays his club football at Juventus, and has broken into the first team this season, with two assists in 11 games in total over all competitions.

The Latest: Newcastle interest

Co-writing in his latest piece for 9omin, transfer expert Graeme Bailey says that Newcastle, as well as fellow Premier League rivals Manchester City and Chelsea, are all taking an ‘interest’ in Iling-Junior ahead of a potential move this summer.

Both Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are also thought to be fans of his, but he has recently signed a contract extension at Juve until 2025.

The Verdict: Another bright prospect

Iling-Junior is certainly another bright prospect that could join the growing pool of talented youngsters at St. James’ Park.

21-year-old Harrison Ashby moved to the North East from West Ham United in the January transfer window, while teenage prodigy Garang Kuol, who recently scored his first senior goal for Australia, joined last summer.

Nonetheless, Iling-Junior is already making a name for himself at a European giant in Juventus, and being English, would also settle in quickly on Tyneside, providing that the Magpies can strike a deal of course.

It will be difficult with the level of competition for his signature, so the Toon would be getting themselves a real coup should they get him to sign on the dotted line.

Everton produced a monumental comeback in their Premier League clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last night and Sean Dyche will be thrilled with the resilience his team showed throughout.

The Toffees climbed to 15th in the top-flight table following their point earned in west London and are now two points clear of the relegation zone with ten games to go.

Despite having only 31% possession, fewer shots on target (3 v 7) and far fewer accurate passes completed (165 v 445), Everton put up a fight until the very end.

It wasn’t until the final 45 minutes of the outing that the action started with Joao Felix giving Chelsea the lead in the 52nd minute, which was followed up 17 minutes later by a strike from Abdoulaye Doucoure to level out the score-line once again.

A penalty converted by Kai Havertz put Chelsea back in front with 14 minutes left, however, it was Everton youngster Ellis Simms who stole the show by earning his team a crucial point with a stunning goal in the dying moments of the game.

Indeed, the Goodison Park faithful will be jubilant following the well-fought draw but not every player put in a performance that was worthy of the 2-2 result with Alex Iwobi having offered very little to his team.

How did Alex Iwobi get on vs Chelsea?

There is no doubt that the Everton midfielder has significantly improved over the last 12 months and has often been a stand-out performer despite the club’s struggles to comfortably compete.

Indeed, he leads the assist chart at Goodison this term with six assists, four more than he managed in 2021/22.

However, in the capital last night, Iwobi was a passenger in his team’s fight for a positive result lacking effort and presence on the pitch.

Over his 90-minute performance, the 26-year-old dud – dubbed “useless” last campaign by Peter Guy – certainly lived up to that tag on Saturday with the ball at his feet.

He lost possession a staggering 21 times, completed just ten accurate passes and lost six of his defensive duels.

In fact, only Seamus Coleman earned a lower rating (6.3) on the entire pitch with Iwobi (6.4) a stand-out for all the wrong reasons, as per SofaScore.

Those statistics would appear to back up reviews from various sections of the media with 90min giving him a 6/10, while saying 'his final pass was poor at times.'

Dyche will surely be happy with the performance but there is still a long way to go before their survival in the Premier League is confirmed and Iwobi’s lacklustre effort could’ve put the club in an even more worrying position if his teammates had not shown moments of quality.

With that being said, Everton must not get complacent as they host Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park after the international break, where they will hope the Nigerian is back to his creative best.

Southampton hit the jackpot in signing Danny Ings from Liverpool back in 2019, signing the striker for £20m after injuries hampered his chances of success on Merseyside, and while his goal threat is missed at St. Mary’s to this day, recent exploits suggest the deal was heaven-sent in cashing in for the maximum.

After scoring 46 goals and supplying ten assists from 100 appearances for Saints, Ings was granted a £25m departure to Aston Villa in 2021, and ever since, he has failed to replicate the feats that left him in eminent standing among the expansive crop of Premier League strikers.

During his stay at Villa Park, the 30-year-old only scored 14 goals from 52 outings, despite the Villans finishing higher than Saints and out-scoring them last season.

The 5 foot 10 gem was shipped out to West Ham United for £15m last month, and despite being in the early stages of his spell with the Irons, the nomadic marksman has failed to score or assist from his first four outings, yet to receive a match rating higher than 6.7, as per Sofascore, in east London.

The innate predatory instinct will seemingly never abandon Ings, once heralded as “dangerous” by his former Reds boss Jurgen Klopp, but there is no questioning the most prolific and fruitful period of his professional career stays with Southampton, something that appears set to remain intact as his value diminishes further and further.

How much is Danny Ings worth now?

At the height of his powers, according to Football Transfers, Ings was valued at £23m, but now, just three years on, he is considered a £10m player.

And considering former Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl sold him for £25m, his current value now represents a whopping 60% decrease, which is alarming considering he is still only 30.

Frankly, Ings should still be firing at full throttle, but having started just eight of his 22 Premier League matches this season across two outfits, he is clearly not entrusted to the same level that was once placed in his powers.

As per Whoscored, the former Burnley star has failed to record the same level of striking output since departing Hampshire, where he was a thorn in his opponent’s sides in averaging at least two shots per match, also only recording a better average rating across two Carabao Cup matches with Aston Villa this season.

As such, while Ings was a resounding success on the south coast, his decline in value over the past few seasons is evidence that Southampton perhaps banked on the forward at the opportune moment.

Current fortunes suggest a first-rate striker would be a coveted asset for the struggling outfit, but Ings might not be the same vibrant presence he once was, and a recent away victory over Chelsea offers hope for the remainder of the campaign.

Sunderland’s run of five games without a defeat in the Championship came to an end on Tuesday night as they were beaten 2-1 by Rotherham away from home.

The hosts took the lead in the 19th minute of the match as the impressive Ollie Rathbone produced a stunning strike from distance to find the bottom corner from the edge of the box, leaving Anthony Patterson with little chance of stopping it.

Tony Mowbray’s side failed to get themselves back into the game at the start of the second half and the Millers punished them with a second goal in the 56th minute. Dan Neil was dispossessed and the ball came across the box for Shane Ferguson to drill past the goalkeeper to make it 2-0.

Leeds United loanee Joe Gelhardt did make the game interesting by thumping in a header from Luke O’Nien’s cross but Sunderland were unable to force in an equaliser before the end of the match.

Whilst it was a disappointing performance on the whole for the Black Cats, one player – in particular – who let the manager down badly was left-back Dennis Cirkin.

How did Dennis Cirkin perform against Rotherham?

The former Spurs man was selected ahead of Aji Alese and handed a huge opportunity to prove why he should be starting ahead of his fellow defender.

However, the 20-year-old was unable to showcase his quality and Mowbray may not be considering him to start ahead of the ex-Hammers prospect in any of the upcoming matches.

Cirkin was poor at both ends of the pitch and put in a disappointing display, particularly given that the gem is capable of putting in good performances at this level.

The defender has won 53% of his individual duels over the course of the Championship campaign but lost 75% (6/8) of his battles against Rotherham, which suggests that he was physically dominated by the opposition.

The Northern Echo’s Scott Wilson was also critical of the full-back’s performance. In his player ratings piece, the journalist handed him the joint-lowest score (five) and wrote: “Had a couple of shaky moments and defensively and wasn’t really able to offer much going forward.”

In terms of what the youngster offered in possession, Cirkin had fewer touches (34) than goalkeeper Anthony Patterson (46) and only completed 64% of his attempted passes – without creating a single chance for his teammates.

The ex-Tottenham talent was sloppy in his passing out from the back and gifted the hosts possession on too many occasions. He was then unable to make up for that by producing any quality in the final third.

Therefore, the defender let Mowbray down on the night as the manager offered him a chance to prove himself and Cirkin – both defensively and offensively – was disappointing for Sunderland.

Liverpool are interested in a summer swoop for Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams, who is attracting mounting attention for his exploits in Spanish La Liga…

What’s the talk?

Flourishing out in Spain, the 20-year-old Williams has joined his brother, Inaki, in starring for the Basque Country outfit, and now earns the attention from several Premier League sides for his performances.

According to prominent Spanish publication AS (via Sport Witness), the Merseyside giants are eager to rival Aston Villa for his signature, with the Claret & Blue failing in their attempts to sign him this January.

The winger has a €50m (£45m) buyout clause, and with Bilbao infamously fierce negotiators, certainly not malleable when it comes to their transfer strategy, Jurgen Klopp’s Reds would likely have to meet the valuation to secure a deal.

Klopp’s next Mane

Liverpool completed the initial £35m signing of Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven this winter to bolster the frontline in the midst of long-term injuries to Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz, while Darwin Nunez was signed from SL Benfica for a club-record £85m last summer.

Despite this, the club have tumbled into a perilous position this season, languishing in tenth place in the Premier League and already out of the two domestic competitions they emphatically gleaned last term.

Stability and cohesion have gone out the window, and the departure of devastating offensive stalwart Sadio Mane – who was sold to Bayern Munich for £35m with just one year remaining on his contract – has certainly played a big part in smashing a hole into Anfield.

By forging ahead with a transfer for Williams, this formerly free-flowing attack might just start to show signs of life once again; having made 25 appearances this season, he has scored six goals and assists apiece.

The seven-cap international wields an innate physicality that transcends his team’s frontal fluidity on the pitch, with one scout report lauding the ‘overwhelming success’ of his direct approach in 1v1 situations, while also waxing lyrical over the blistering pace and fleet-footed nature of his progression with the ball at his feet.

And as per FBref, the Spaniard ranks among the top 6% of positional peers in Europe’s top five leagues for progressive carries over the past year; with his Senegalese counterpart ranking among the top 4% of forwards for the same metric, a clear indication of their dangerous similarities.

Playing the bulk of his most successful endeavours as a pro at Liverpool, Mane won the Premier League and the Champions League under Klopp’s tutelage, signing from divisional rivals Southampton for £34m in 2016.

Arriving as an exciting, dynamic and talented prospect, the Reds’ German boss created a truly prodigious talent on Merseyside, with the now 30-year-old going on to score 120 goals and supply 48 assists from 269 appearances, an integral component to the club’s success – as evidenced by the unravelling this season, following his departure.

Still young and yet to hit the zenith of his ability, the “daring” Williams – as lauded by former boss Marcelinho – is already emulating his established sibling in becoming an integral attacking force for Bilbao, but with the word indeed at his feet, he might look to ply his trade elsewhere in order to truly reach the heights he strives for, and Liverpool’s Klopp can open the door to a stomping ground fit for a man of his ability.

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane should leave Spurs amid growing talk of interest from elsewhere, claims Teddy Sheringham.

The Lowdown: Kane’s future

Kane has once again been the centre of exit talks from Spurs, with the Daily Mail reporting that Premier League top-four rivals Manchester United are looking at making him the Old Trafford talisman next season.

However, it’s since emerged that the 29-year-old is set to commit his future to Spurs and enter talks regarding an extension on his current contract that runs out in 18 months’ time (via The Athletic).

The Latest: Sheringham’s comments

Speaking on TalkSport prior to Tottenham’s victory over Fulham, former Spurs and United striker Sheringham suggested that if he were in Kane’s shoes now, he’d repeat the move he made in 1997, saying:

“I know that Harry Kane was very happy this time last year with Conte, was delighted that he’d come in, he brought that winning mentality to the football club.

“But things change very quickly in football, and it doesn’t seem like it’s working out with Conte at Tottenham.

“He’s decided all the way along to stick with Tottenham and stay there and hope things would change around and there would be a winning mentality to match his ambition while he’s at the club.

“He’s got to make that decision – not me. I made a big decision when I decided to leave Tottenham because I didn’t like the ambition at the club at the time. Harry has to assess that situation himself.

“Out of the two at the moment, Manchester United look more likely to win a trophy than what Tottenham are, so there’s my answer.”

The Verdict: Retiring at Spurs?

Following the revelations of Kane’s desire to enter talks about remaining in north London, it now poses the question of whether the Englishman is set to see out his playing days at Spurs in a bid to win a maiden major trophy with the side he graduated through the ranks with.

At 29 years old, it seemed a move in the near future would potentially be the final chance that England’s and Spurs’ joint all-time top scorer had to make a career-defining move in search of silverware, with a cut-price £85m touted.

Sheringham left White Hart Lane in 1997 and headed to Old Trafford, winning three Premier Leagues, an FA Cup and a Champions League as part of the treble-winning side, before returning to Spurs four years later.

But it seems Kane hasn’t given up on lifting silverware with his boyhood side just yet.

Newcastle United are now closing in on the potential addition of the young midfielder Chris Rigg from their local rivals, Sunderland.

What’s the latest?

Dan Ashworth spoke on Tuesday night ahead of their Carabao Cup clash about the struggles Newcastle will suffer this month as a result of having to abide by FFP:

“Eddie, first and foremost, is brilliant to work with and an experienced manager who understands Financial Fair Play and how to build a squad in a sensible way. We’ll try and work a couple of windows in advance,” he said.

The Toon are yet to add any new faces this month – Garang Kuol aside – despite almost being halfway through the winter transfer window but they have been linked with a move for some young talents.

And insider Graeme Bailey has said on the Talking Transfers podcast that the 15-year-old now looking likely to reject some of the country’s biggest clubs to make the move up the A1 to join Newcastle:

(51:00) “He’s a fabulous prospect. Again this is a player who Chelsea like but it’s a player who Man United like, Man City, he’s got his choice of clubs in England.

“But being the avid Geordie he is, we think he’s gonna be heading to Newcastle for a very small compensation.”

Taking from their rivals

This will feel like a huge blow for the Black Cats who are seemingly set to lose the player who recently became their youngest-ever outfield player after making a cameo appearance in the FA Cup on the weekend.

Rigg has been touted for a big future despite being just 15-yeas-old, with journalist Scott Wilson hailing the midfielder amid the links to a move to Tyneside:

“At the age of just 15 years and 203 days, Rigg is regarded as one of the most exciting prospects in the English game,” Wilson wrote.

Despite being part of Sunderland’s mouth set-up from a very early age, it is believed Rigg was brought up in a family full of Newcastle fans.

And it seems as if he is set to disappoint a number of England’s biggest clubs in favour of joining his boyhood club with Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool and Everton all believed to have shown their interest.

Although he is only 15, Rigg has already played four times in the Premier League 2 and three times in the U18 Premier League this season (via Transfermarkt).

And it is apparent he has impressed the Sunderland manager, Tony Mowbray, who has recently been discussing the young talent ahead of their game on the weekend:

“He’s got a wonderful left foot, and he is an incredibly competitive animal. It was really interesting for me to watch him – I have to say that the potential looks enormous,” he said.

Not only will Newcastle feel as if they are potentially bringing in a real talent for the future, but they will likely take a lot of satisfaction in stealing the march on a number of their rivals, as well as taking him from their local rivals.