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A source from Newcastle United has dropped some promising insight on the parties involved in the potential takeover at St. James’ Park.

The Lowdown: Arbitration date set

The arbitration case between the North East club and the Premier League has been set for July, with the results of it likely to give a much clearer picture over the direction of where the proposed deal between Mike Ashley and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group is heading.

However, with the opening of the summer transfer window and the start of the new season on the horizon around the same time, it would be ideal for the Tyneside club to know their fate as soon as possible so they can go into it as best prepared as they can.

The Latest: Newcastle source drops insight

As per Football Insider, a Magpies source has shared that all parties involved in the bid are still committed and that there is growing hope that it will be concluded by the end of July, a very promising timeline indeed.

The Toon are privately confident that the top flight will approve the takeover after the arbitration hearing takes place, suggesting that they think that the results will go in their favour.

The Verdict: Promising for potential takeover

The voices coming out of NUFC are certainly promising with regards to the potential revival of the takeover.

However, a lot will hinge on the results of the arbitration proceedings, which despite Newcastle’s confidence, can go either way.

The Magpies will be hoping that whatever the result, they will know their fate before the new season kicks off, so that they can plan ahead with regards to player recruitment among other targets.

Nonetheless, the fact that all of the parties involved in the deal are still committed is a good sign, and if all goes well in arbitration, it is possible that the Toon Army could well see a takeover of their beloved club by the end of July.

In other news, find out what big claim Liam Kennedy has dropped on the potential takeover involving Rafa Benitez here!

That India have lost six out of seven Tests at the Kensington Oval is not as significant as the fact that the West Indies have lost only three matches at the ground

Special Correspondent02-May-2002That India have lost six out of seven Tests at the Kensington Oval is not as significant as the fact that the West Indies have lost only three matches at the ground. Naturally, then, when the hosts take on any opponents here, they are more than a little confident of winning.Remember 1997? Sachin Tendulkar’s India could not make 120 in the fourth innings here to win the Test; they subsequently lost the series because of that one disaster. This time around, though, the West Indies are down one Test, and Barbados will provide them an opportunity to only level the series, not win it.One man thinks otherwise. Sourav Ganguly, the Indian skipper, said, “Yes, I know that we haven’t won any Test here, and that we could not successfully chase 120 here last time. But history does not guarantee you any result, so one cannot predict with confidence that India will never win here. We do not play in history. I must admit that it will be tough, but then every match in the international arena, especially abroad, is tough. The wicket seems to be lively, and we have to play well to keep ourselves ahead in the series. That is the basic thing.”Ganguly’s first target is to ensure that India don’t lose. “If we can draw this Test, the probability of winning the Test series will still be good. You know, everybody was equally eager to win at the Queen’s Park Oval. We need to be so in the field here for five more days,” says Ganguly.”Do you remember how (Javagal) Srinath continued bowling after the lunch interval till the tea-break unchanged? Not once did he say that he was feeling tired, although I know very well how it affects a fast bowler to bowl consecutive 12 overs. It is this spirit that makes a team look better on the field. I must say that is the commitment we need to show on the field.”On the composition of the team, however, Ganguly is not so sure. At the moment, Wasim Jaffer and Harbhajan Singh are ahead in the running for the slots of the second opener and spinner. But Ganguly is somewhat worried at the failure of Harbhajan Singh in wiping out the tail.”Anil Kumble is a bit more useful in this aspect, I think. Bhajji tried his best, but he was not at his usual best at Trinidad. So we all are thinking about it. However, one thing is sure. We’ll play with three seamers and a spinner. With the inclusion of Ridley Jacobs, they have one more left-hander in their batting line-up. So the two left-arm fast bowlers will play,” said Ganguly.Carl Hooper, meanwhile, is not too worried about the defeat at Trinidad. “It is not that we lost the match comprehensively. We fought till the last moment. It could have been anybody’s game till the second session of the fifth day. So here too it will be an exciting Test,” he said.Hooper is planning to play four seamers once again. “But I have to speak with the selectors first.” This time, though, he is keen to have Pedro Collins, the left-arm fast bowler, in the attack along with Mervyn Dillon, Cameron Cuffy and Adam Sanford.The Indians, moreover, have a poor history against left-arm fast bowlers, be it Wasim Akram, Bruce Reid or Mike Whitney. The West Indians, thus, seem to have done their homework well ahead of taking on India on their luckiest ground.

After an intense winter in Rod Marsh’s newly formed England Academy down under, Chris Tremlett has returned fitter, stronger and quicker for the 2002 season.

Richard Isaacs12-Apr-2002
Chris Tremlett
Photo Vic Isaacs
After an intense winter in Rod Marsh’s newly formed England Academy down under, Chris Tremlett has returned fitter, stronger and quicker for the 2002 season.It will be a test of the 20-year-old progress, having made a significant impression in Hampshire’s promotion to County Championship Division One with 20 wickets in his seven first-class matches.With a season in the Academy under his belt, Tremlett believes this is going to be a big season, not only for Hampshire, but also for him personally. “I learnt a lot during the winter and feel a lot fitter. And I believe my bowling has come on as well.”My action has improved. I am now bowling in a straighter line, closer to the stumps and with a bit more pace. I am hoping that with me probably being one of the quicker bowlers, I can command and maintain my place in the side.”With the new signings in the batting department, young Tremlett considers there will be plenty of competition, but is hopeful there will be plenty of opportunities for him. “I obviously want to get into the first team, play well, keep my place and get as many wickets as I can.”It is a big season for me. It will be a lot harder in Division One but we can push for the top spot. The lads are certainly up for it, I have noticed that since I have been back.It is not only in the first-class game but also in the limited-overs matches, where he performed well and with plaudits from television experts and many a supporter, where Tremlett is looking to excel.”I did well in the one-day games as well, so I hope to further myself there too.”His Academy excursions in Australia, which he describes as “very intense” were valuable to Tremlett’s learning. “It was pretty much mostly hard work, with training and weight training every day. But I also learnt about other things apart from cricket – lifestyle changes and patterns.”I was able to learn more about myself and this, I hope, can hold me in good stead for the season.”The National Academy have broken up now, with no matches scheduled for the coming year but the 2002-2003 `students’ will be announced earlier and Tremlett wanted to be a part of it again.”I was one of the youngest players out there. Rod Marsh is coming over this summer and will be keeping a close eye on the Academy lads. But I am keen to return, to work further on my body and get even more stronger and fitter.”

Everton defender Ben Godfrey could be a surprise inclusion in England’s squad for the European Championships. 

That’s according to David Ornstein, a journalist at The Athletic.

The lowdown

Everton signed Godfrey from Norwich City last October for a fee of £25m and he’s gone on to make 31 Premier League appearances this season for the Blues, who finished 10th.

Back in February, BBC Sport chief football writer Phil McNulty hailed Godfrey as a ‘revelation’ after an impressive debut campaign for the Toffees. He has averaged 1.8 successful aerial duels, 1.8 tackles, 1.1 interceptions, 3.5 clearances and 1.2 blocks per match minutes in the top flight in 2020/21 (via WhoScored).

The latest

Gareth Southgate is set to name his 26-man squad for this summer’s tournament on Tuesday, and in a piece for The Athletic, Ornstein has said that Godfrey is ‘one to keep an eye on’. Southgate has apparently ‘watched a lot’ of him this season, meaning that he’s very much ‘in the mix’.

Ornstein added that many players are still said to be unsure whether they will feature and are expected to be told only a matter of hours before the public announcement.

The verdict

Godfrey would be a worthy inclusion for England at Euro 2020, especially ahead of someone like Eric Dier, who has been culpable of numerous costly defensive errors this season. The Tottenham man has also averaged fewer tackles, interceptions, clearances and blocks per game than his Everton counterpart.

The 23-year-old Toffees ace has demonstrated his versatility by operating across the back four, making him a real asset to Carlo Ancelotti at Goodison Park and, possibly, to Southgate this summer.

Ornstein is right – keep an eye on this one, folks.

In other news, these Everton fans slammed one of Godfrey’s fellow defenders on Sunday.

Celtic stalwart Scott Brown has dropped an enticing transfer revelation involving Newcastle United.

The Lowdown: Brown a servant to British football

Brown has certainly been a great servant to British football, with well over 600 games played for both the Hoops and Hibernian combined, as well as earning 55 caps for the senior Scotland national team (Transfermarkt).

Nonetheless, it is interesting to wonder whether his footballing career could have panned out differently as he makes the move to Aberdeen in the summer.

The Latest: Brown could have joined Newcastle

Speaking to Sky Sports (via The Chronicle), Brown revealed that he could have signed for the St James’ Park club back in the 2009/10 season, when he also had interest from Tottenham Hotspur. He explained:

“Then Neil [Lennon] was the manager at the time and I had the opportunity to go to Newcastle.

“I was going to be out of contract but Lenny said: ‘I want to keep you as captain, I want to build the team around you and I feel we can push on’.”

The Verdict: Brown could have been a good signing

Given that Newcastle found themselves relegated from the Premier League in 2008/09, and were also relegated again seven years later (Transfermarkt), Brown could have been a good signing given the know-how and experience he would have possessed at the time, which could have had a big impact at St James’ Park.

The midfielder has gone on to win multiple trophies at Parkhead, and his winning mentality could well have been a valuable asset to have in the dressing room on Tyneside.

It is not just off of the pitch that he could have made a real impact, as he has continued to perform strongly despite being 35 years of age now, as his teammate Callum McGregor highlighted back in October of last year by describing him as an ‘immense’ player.

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Nonetheless, it would have no doubt been interesting to see how Brown would have fared for the Magpies had he made the move back in 2009.

In other news, find out whose display against Manchester City has been criticised by Liam Kennedy.

Lymington 268-8 (Trestrail 60, Craft 58, Clemow 33, Young 31, Griffiths 25, Oldcorn 4-49) Old Basing 103 (Summers 39, Quantock 23, Smith 5-21, Phillips 3-15)

Mike Vimpany07-May-2001Premier Division OneAndover 181-6 (M Miller 81, R Miller 43, Hayward 24, Jenkins 4-43)
Burridge 182-1 (Jackson 91, Cunningham 59)BAT Sports 204-7 (Sharizi 63, Kenway 62, Banks 31, King 3-41)
Bashley (Rydal) 182 (Thurgood 46, Neal 38, Goldstraw 3-19)Liphook & Ripsley 136-8 (Berry 34, Tyler 29, J Wilson 3-18)
Bournemouth 137-3 (Swarbrick 68)Hungerford 101 (Radford 29, Hindley 4-22)
Havant 102-3 (Carson 40)Match postponed : Calmore Sports v South WiltsPremier Division TwoOld Tauntonians & Romsey 193 (Forward 43, Stothart 36, Rapley 27, Shotton 4-51, Turner 3-28)
Hambledon 146 (Norris 39,Burdekin 28, Wood 5-32)Lymington 268-8 (Trestrail 60, Craft 58, Clemow 33, Young 31, Griffiths 25, Oldcorn 4-49)
Old Basing 103 (Summers 39, Quantock 23, Smith 5-21, Phillips 3-15).Matches postponed : Cove v Sparsholt, Trojans v Easton & Martyr Worthy, United Services v Portsmouth.Premier Division ThreeWaterlooville 103 (Baumann 27, Shephard 20, Ballinger 7-19)
Alton 107-7 (M Heffernan 33, Rudder 4-19)Bashley (Rydal) II 141 (N Sexton 51, S Latimore 42)
Gosport Borough 84 (Grierson 3-10)Portsmouth II 185-9 (Ali Mohamed 49, Moon 29, Limb 28, Smith 5-50)
United Services II 107 (Norwood 21, Nolan 3-16, Limb 3-16).Matches postponed : Hook & Newnham Basics v Rowledge, Leckford v St Cross Symondians, Lymington II v Havant II, New Milton v Purbrook, Paultons v Hursley Park, Winchester KS v Flamingos.

Craig White has been described as

CricInfo16-May-2001Craig White has been described as “doubtful” by the England management team prior to the First Test against Pakistan tomorrow.White had a scan on his back yesterday which did not rule him out, but continued stiffness in the area is still inhibiting the Yorkshire all-rounder.He will undergo a fitness test today before a final decision is made.
Nasser Hussain
Photo © CricInfo
Nasser Hussain also confirmed that he will bat at number four in this game, providing Michael Vaughan with an opportunity to move up to three in the order.The move won the approval of team-mate Graham Thorpe.”Nasser’s made the right decision to drop down the England order because it was becoming obvious to those close to him that he was struggling to handle the burden of batting at three and captaining the side,” Thorpe told cricket4.com.”Nasser needs to give himself a break from the incessant pressure that has been building up over the past 12 months and going in at four, with Michael Vaughan ahead of him and me at five will help him.”At the moment as soon as he steps off the field he has to whip the pads on and start concentrating on batting.”In Sri Lanka he was bouncing off the walls with the pressure of leading England and it was impossible for him to get his mind set on batting.”Thorpe also revealed that it was Hussain’s century at Kandy that enabled the England captain to move down the order without fear of it being interpreted as a sign of weakness.”He first spoke to me about it after the Kandy Test match in Sri Lanka when he scored that brilliant hundred against Murali and Co,” continued Thorpe.”Up until that point he had been saying it was a sign of weakness to drop down the order, but it’s as if with that century he had proved to everyone, and himself that he was still capable of scoring runs for his country.”After that match he looked back to his old self and you could tell in his face that he felt he had showed everyone he could captain England superbly at the same time as score a century in a Test match.”He’s not the kind of person that you can tell to take their foot off the gas but I knew he was aware that the situation was taking a lot out of him.”It then came as no surprise when he rang me a few weeks ago to say he was going to do things differently this summer. He is an emotional character and you can tell he is thinking all the time about what is best for the team, but in doing so he has been unable to concentrate fully on the job of batting,”

Tuesday night was another reminder of what might’ve been for West Ham United.

Whilst the Irons were enjoying a much-needed week off from action, their local rivals, Chelsea, were competing in a Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.

These are the sorts of matches that many are dreaming about at the London Stadium with David Moyes’ side pushing for a lucrative spot inside the Premier League’s top four.

The Blues defeated the Hammers over the weekend and then held the La Liga giants to a draw, meaning there is still everything left to play for in the return leg next week.

One player starred across both encounters and what makes it worse is the fact that he could’ve become a West Ham player back in 2015 under Slaven Bilic.

This is, of course, N’Golo Kante, who looks back to his best in the heart of Chelsea’s engine room.

Back in the summer of 2015, Bilic enquired to Caen about signing the diminutive Frenchman for just £5m but no move came to fruition and he subsequently joined top-flight rivals Leicester City for just €8m (£7m).

Now look at him.

The £49.5m-rated midfielder pulled the strings on Saturday, making 88% of his 48 passing attempts and managing a game-high four tackles. In fact, none of Moyes’ starting XI could match his 7.2 SofaScore rating either.

Kante then backed up this performance with another fine showing at the Bernabeu, where he recorded a whopping six dribbles against a midfield that contained Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Luka Modric.

This was more than the entire La Liga outfit combined, which is startling.

As a result, he was awarded the ‘Man of the Match’ award and earned the most glowing of endorsements from his ex-teammate Cesc Fabregas, who tweeted: “N’Golo has always been a big game player. Never doubt him. He plays for 2.”

Despite entering his thirties, you can see that the 45-time international is a cut above many in the Premier League and one can only wonder what a current Hammers midfield of Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek and Kante would look like.

All in all, the East Londoners must continue to be haunted by Bilic’s failure to land the World Cup winner. What a catastrophic call that was.

AND in other news, West Ham star a major injury doubt for rest of the season, Moyes will be worried…

Plenty of Crystal Palace fans have been reacting to a managerial update provided by transfer guru Nicolo Schira on social media.

Roy Hodgson’s Eagles contract expires in a matter of months and there have been no real signs he will put pen to paper on a Palace extension.

According to Schira, Hodgson could indeed leave Selhurst Park at the end of the season, with Frank Lampard and Patrick Vieira thought to be the club’s two main targets to replace the 73-year-old ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

Lampard has been out of work following his sacking by Chelsea in January, whereas Vieira has been available since December after he parted ways with French side Nice.

The former Premier League midfielders appear to be high on Palace’s shortlist, however, there is no mention of Eddie Howe, who reportedly spoke to the club earlier this month.

Palace fans react

As to be expected, Schira’s Twitter post in the early hours of Tuesday morning had plenty of Palace supporters talking.

This is what some had to say in reply, with many not exactly thrilled with the news.

“What nonsense.”

Credit: @typicalpalace

“Championship it is”

Credit: @Kevbartleyy

“Today’s been bad enough I can’t deal with this”

Credit: @BenM_CPFC

“Why Vieira”

Credit: @Mark_CPFC

“If we get Vieira I’m off”

Credit: @TPDben

“Vieira?!”

Credit: @joe_cpfc_01

In other news: Many Palace fans buzz over transfer update on £40k-p/w ace, find out more here.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Premier League midfielder Lee Hendrie has suggested that Harry Kane is facing a defining season at Tottenham.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein (via OneFootball), some close to the north London club believe Kane could remain at White Hart Lane for the rest of his career.

However, with Jose Mourinho’s side failing to compete for major honours, Hendrie thinks the 27-year-old could still leave Tottenham in the summer in a now-or-never moment.

Discussing Kane’s future in an exclusive interview with FFC, the former Villa midfielder said:

“The question now to Harry Kane is, ‘does he want to win trophies?’ If he does, let’s face it, he could go to any football club, any football club.”

Speaking on the subject further, Hendrie added:

“I feel this season is going to be the season where we’re going to know if Harry Kane will stay at Spurs or [whether] he’s obviously going to go and leave the club and start to think about trophies. The way Spurs have been this season, they’ve been hit and miss. You know, there’s lots of sagas with [Jose] Mourinho.

“I just feel that at the end of the season, Harry Kane’s got a big choice to make because I can guarantee you now any football club [would take him], well I’m pretty sure he’ll [at least] be linked away again because I can’t see how Spurs are going to end up finishing in Europe this season.”

One club Kane has been linked with in the past is Real Madrid, and it is a potential transfer that makes sense if the England captain does decide to leave White Hart Lane in the near future. The Spanish giants’ first-choice striker Karim Benzema is now 33 years of age, so it would hardly be a surprise to see them targeting a forward of Kane’s calibre as a successor to the Frenchman.