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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Loan Watch series, which takes a closer look at those players who are aiming to galvanise their careers away from the spotlight of their parent club.

Grady Diangana burst onto the scene last season and played his way into Manuel Pellegrini’s thoughts, impressing the Chilean enough to make 21 appearances.

Over the summer West Ham bolstered their attacking options with the addition of Pablo Fornals, whilst the return from injury of Andriy Yarmolenko meant Diangana would have found his game time limited had he satyed.

Instead, he chose to go on loan and play under Slaven Bilic, and it has so far proved to be an inspired decision.

Bilic would have been aware of the winger from his time in East London and the pair have proved a suitable match for one another, with the 21-year-old not taking long to make an impression at the Hawthorns.

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He has three goals in six league games, but his trickery and eye for a pass – best evidenced when he assisted Matt Phillips’ second goal against Huddersfield in late September – shows that he is a well-rounded winger.

As alluded to, the Hammers currently have a plethora of wide players to choose from, and Yarmolenko has made the right-wing spot his own in recent weeks, with Felipe Anderson a mainstay on the left.

However, one man who finds his place in the squad under even more pressure due to Diangana’s form is Michail Antonio.

The 29-year-old has had mixed fortunes since signing in 2014 and injuries have limited his impact in recent years, and since they look likely to persist it is possible that Diangana could be his long-term successor.

He may be playing in a lower division, but the Hammers academy graduate has two assists to show for his average of 1.6 key passes per game so far, which shows he is a winger who looks to get the best out of his teammates as well as going trying to find the net himself.

Added to that, he has proved a constant menace to Championship backlines with 2.5 successful dribbles per game and a pass accuracy of 81%, a respectable return for a player who spends a lot of time in the opposition final third.

He still has a lot to learn, but a year of regular game time should aid that.

In particular, his average of 0.5 successful crosses per game leaves a lot to be desired, and until he can raise his consistency in the final third he could remain on the fringes at West Ham.

Despite that, he has good coaches and teammates to learn from at the Hammers, so it may not be long until he pushes both Antonio and Yarmolenko out of the side.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

One has to wonder how long the production line is at St Andrew’s.

We’ve had the ‘breakout’ somewhat of teenager Jude Bellingham this season with his goals against Stoke City and Charlton Athletic.

Now it looks like we could be on the verge of yet another one in the not too distant future in youngster Odin Bailey.

Having scored the winner against Middlesbrough last Friday night, Bailey is hoping to help blaze the trail along with Bellingham for more of the club’s young talent to push for first-team opportunities.

Speaking to the club website in the aftermath of his late goal against Middlesbrough, Bailey spoke about how grateful he was for the opportunity and what it will mean for the other youngsters who are looking to make the breakthrough.

“I can’t thank him enough for giving me the opportunity and believing in me and trusting in me, just like he has with Jude and the other youngsters. I think it will inspire the others in the Academy coming up that if they keep working hard, they will get their opportunities.”

And if the club keeps producing talent with results like the aforementioned Bailey and Bellingham, there’s no reason why Blues fans can’t expect to see more of them in and around the first team.

Manager Pep Clotet spoke last month about how proud he is to be working with an academy that is producing such young talent:

“Seeing some of our youngsters out on international duty shows this club is doing a very good job in the academy, you need to work for 4-5 years to start seeing results, the academy has been fantastic, they deserve all the credit.”

Given that Birmingham City are still operating somewhat with the dark clouds of Financial Fair Play looming over their heads after last season, it certainly wouldn’t be out of the ordinary to assume that they could be forced to look into the academy to help bolster numbers going forward.

Considering what’s gone before with an embargo and points deduction, that’s not something they need to be ashamed of either.

We’ve seen the trend in recent years for fans of clubs to start singing ‘one of our own’, and if you can keep getting results whilst smattering a number of the kids in there along the way, then it’s pretty much a win-win for the club and the supporters.

What Birmingham now need to ensure they do is keep Bailey and Bellingham. Having seen the likes of Demarai Gray and Nathan Redmond leave, they don’t exactly have the best history of holding onto their best prospects.

For now, Birmingham have put their troubles behind them with an increased focus on youth. It’s also showing why money isn’t always the answer. There is certainly hope for the future at St Andrew’s.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Injury News series, which considers the impact of the latest updates on players’ fitness.

Tottenham Hotspur rather strangely described Eric Dier as a ‘versatile defender’ in an injury update on their official website on Thursday, and given their issues at right-back at the moment it may hint he could be in line for a rare start there.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Spurs were providing the latest on their squad prior to the visit of Crystal Palace to north London on Saturday, and said that Tanguy Ndombele, Ryan Sessegnon, Kyle Walker-Peters and Eric Dier are all back in training, but that Davinson Sanchez could be a doubt following irritation on his ankle.

The Colombian started at right-back ahead of the available Serge Aurier in Walker-Peters’ absence against Arsenal prior to the international break, and if he is ruled out it may leave manager Mauricio Pochettino with a bit of a conundrum if Walker-Peters also isn’t fit enough to start.

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While the latter was described as a right-back on the official website, the labelling of Dier was a little more confusing.

Dier set for right-back role?

Of those matches in which Dier’s position played has been recorded by Transfermarkt, the large majority of them show that he has either featured in a defensive midfield role or as a centre-back, so the wording of him being a ‘versatile defender’ rather than a ‘versatile defensive player’ is certainly notable and timely given their right-back issues.

According to Transfermarkt, he has played there on 25 occasions so he does have previous, and given the shortage of options there it wouldn’t be a total surprise if he was being considered, especially following on from potentially controversial comments from Aurier this week having already been left out against the Gunners.

Given you would think Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld would be guaranteed to play at centre-back if Sanchez is absent, that leaves right-back as the role the ‘versatile’ Dier could fit.

It may all be pure coincidence, but we for one certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see the England international selected there against the Eagles.

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[ad_pod ]Alisson Becker has been named UEFA’s Champions League Goalkeeper of the Year, leading many Liverpool fans to declare him the best in the world.The Brazilian only signed for Liverpool last summer but didn’t take long to make a name for himself. He finished the Premier League season as the goalkeeper with the most clean sheets and his performance in European competition was arguably even better.Watch Liverpool Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Alongside Barcelona’s Marc-Andre ter Stegen, the former Roma man kept the most clean sheets in last season’s Champions League with six, including a crucial shut-out against Napoli in which an astonishing late save ensured Liverpool’s progression from the group stage.

Liverpool fans know the impact Alisson has made on their team and are pleased to see him recognised with an award, an accolade which has caused them to suggest that not only was he the best in the Champions League last season, but overall the best keeper in the world.

Here are some of the responses from Liverpool fans to the announcement.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

West Brom clearly aren’t dwelling on last season’s playoff heartbreak as they have begun the 2019/20 campaign unbeaten in the league.

It is three wins and three draws for new boss Slaven Bilic as the Baggies hold fourth position, less than a handful of points off league leaders Swansea City.

They now exit the international break with a tough fixture against Fulham, who themselves are just two points behind Albion, in Saturday’s early kick-off at Craven Cottage.

No more than five of Bilic’s squad were on national team duty, including Nathan Ferguson, who has risen from academy prospect to first-team regular almost overnight.

The 18-year-old has played in all but one of their Championship matches, mainly at right-back but in their last game against Blackburn Rovers, a 3-2 victory, he was deployed on the other side of defence in Kieran Gibbs’ absence.

On Monday night he again showed his impressive versatility, playing at centre-back for England Under-20s.

On the Chalkboard

Ferguson played the entire 90 minutes for the Young Lions, keeping a clean sheet in their 1-0 victory over Switzerland.

It was a debut at Under-20s level for the West Brom defender having previously earned caps for the Under-19s and Under-18s aged just 17.

His versatility could prove invaluable to the Croatian boss as the season goes on and after filling in on either side of the defence, maybe it is time to play him down the middle.

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He may not seem like an obvious choice to play centre-back for the Baggies, but despite the unbeaten start to the season, they are still yet to record a clean sheet so it would make sense to give it a go, especially after his international exploits in the role.

Ahmed Hegazi is still out through injury while Kyle Bartley hasn’t performed entirely to the level asked of him, as we have previously outlined here.

And a move to the centre would also allow £1.5m summer arrival Darnell Furlong to stake his claim at right-back having just started two of their six matches there this season.

It would be a win-win; the switch should be made as quickly as possible.

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Sai Sudharsan finished on 108 not out off 61 balls and Gill on 93 not out off 53 as they overhauled DC’s 199 for 3 with an over to spare

Hemant Brar18-May-20251:58

Moody: Not having fixed batting positions a ‘nightmare’ for teams

Gujarat Titans (GT) became only the second team in all T20 cricket to chase down a target of 200 or more without losing a wicket. That’s how clinical B Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill were against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Sunday night as they took GT into the playoffs. Sai Sudharsan finished on 108 not out off 61 balls and Gill on 93 not out off 53 as they overhauled DC’s 199 for 3 with an over to spare. That meant KL Rahul’s 112 not out off 65 balls ended in a losing cause.The result also took Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) into the playoffs. DC, Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants are the three teams in contention for the remaining one spot.

The Sai Sudharsan-Gill show

Sai Sudharsan came out all guns blazing. He got off the mark with a four off Axar Patel before hitting three more fours and a six off T Natarajan in the second over. By the end of the third over, he had scored 35 off 13 balls. Even though Mustafizur Rahman and Dushmantha Chameera gave away only 16 in the second half of the powerplay, GT were 59 for no loss after six overs.While Sai Sudharsan brought up his fifty off 30 balls, Gill had a slow start. He was on 21 off 19 after eight overs. But in the next three, he hit three sixes – one each against Axar, Kuldeep Yadav and Vipraj Nigam. He reached his fifty off 33 balls, with a four off Chameera. It was his first four of the innings. As if he had committed a mistake, he hit the following delivery for a six over square leg.GT reached 154 for no loss after 15 overs. As a last throw of the dice, Axar brought Mustafizur for the 16th. Sai Sudharsan hit his first two balls for fours to stamp GT’s domination. Two overs later, he hit Kuldeep for a straight six to bring up his second IPL hundred, off 56 balls. Fittingly, it was Sai Sudharsan with yet another six that sealed GT’s win.1:07

Moody: ‘Rahul has managed to adjust again to a different role’

DC’s slow start

Earlier, DC’s struggled to get going after being sent in. Mohammed Siraj and Arshad Khan stuck to good length with the new ball and gave little room to free arms. There were 15 dot balls in the first four overs. Faf du Plessis, who tried to break the shackles and charged at Arshad, was caught at mid-on for 5 off ten balls. After five overs, DC were 28 for 1.

KL Rahul takes charge

Rahul played plenty of exquisite shots during his hundred. In the first over of the match, he had punched Siraj through covers off the back foot. Then he injected momentum into the innings by hitting Kagiso Rabada for two sixes and a four in the last over of the powerplay. This was Rabada’s first match after a one-month ban for using recreational drugs. He bowled just two overs, was wicketless and went for 34.Coming into this game, Rahul had a strike rate of 96.96 (64 runs off 66 balls) against Rashid Khan in T20 cricket. Here, he took him for 19 off 14. It was with a four off him that Rahul brought up his fifty, off 35 balls. Alongside Abishek Porel, who made 30 off 19, Rahul added 90 for the second wicket in just 8.4 overs.KL Rahul toasts a majestic IPL hundred•BCCI

Luck also favoured Rahul. In the 14th over, he got three fours off R Sai Kishore’s first three balls, all through luck. The first one was drilled back and went through R Sai Kishore’s hands. Rabada misfielded the next before an outside edge sped past short third.

The late flourish

Axar has been superb against spin this season. Still, Gill gave the 16th over to Sai Kishore. Axar ensured he faced all six balls and took 15 from them. Prasidh Krishna returned in the next over and dismissed Axar with his second ball.Rahul brought up his hundred off 60 balls. In the 19th over, he hit Prasidh’s hard-length delivery for a straight six with a straight bat. Two balls later, he pulled him to square leg for four to get to the three-figure mark. Tristan Stubbs played a hand of 21 not out off ten, as DC scored 48 from the last four overs. But it was not enough.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Rangers are looking at Lanus full-back Leonel Di Placido as a potential January replacement for James Tavernier, according to The Scottish Sun.

What’s the story?

With as many as ten clubs looking at Tavernier, per Football Insider, Steven Gerrard has begun to put a contingency plan in place in case the 27 year-old does eventually depart.

Gerrard will face competition from Premier League side Crystal Palace should he need to go in for the 25-year-old Argentine, per the report.

The Argentine right-back has been included in a couple of his national side’s squads of late, for games against Guatemala and Colombia, yet never got onto the pitch.

This is part of the reason he’s viewing a move to Europe, with the report stating his desire to make his international debut.

At £1m, or even a potential loan deal, Rangers would be in line to make a substantial profit if he were to be brought in as a Tavernier replacement.

The wrong time to sell

Tavernier has proven he’s a unique talent and is virtually irreplaceable as a result. His attacking output from right-back is incredible – in his 57 games last season he scored an incredible 17 goals and set up a staggering 20 more.

That’s unheralded for a full-back and, more importantly, makes him pivotal to the Gers’ chances of success, as you can’t easily replace 37 goal contributions.

And it’s not just his attacking prowess that makes him such a key part of the Ibrox club. His leadership skills have meant he has remained captain of a dressing room filled with experienced players and big personalities.

If he were to leave and be replaced in January, the timing would be atrocious. Moving on such an integral figure could derail momentum, momentum that will be crucial as the Gers boss looks to win his first silverware in management.

If the Light Blues must move Tavernier on, then next summer would be a slightly better time to do it (there’s no ‘good’ time to lose a player of his skill).

At least that way Di Placido could come in and learn the ropes with the support of both the skipper and Jon Flanagan, and would potentially be ready to take over the helm permanently from the 2020/21 season.

Losing Tavernier half-way through the campaign though, and replacing him with someone who has never played in Europe, would be a monumental risk with potentially season-defining implications.

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Kuldeep was introduced as late as the 11th over, and bowled three wicketless overs for 27 runs

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Apr-20253:06

Ganga; Kuldeep not finishing his overs a missed opportunity

In Delhi Capitals’ (DC) 14-run defeat at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Tuesday, their captain Axar Patel used only three overs of Kuldeep Yadav, India’s premier wristspinner. Not only did DC not use spin in the powerplay, but Kuldeep was introduced as late as the 11th over. KKR eventually posted 79 for 1 in the powerplay, and that platform helped them post 204 for 9, a score that proved to be good enough on the night.Daren Ganga, the former West Indies captain, said on ESPNcricinfo’s Time Out that Kuldeep is a bowler who must finish his quota every game. He also said that using Kuldeep as a wicket-taking option in the powerplay could have slowed KKR down, and was a gamble worth taking with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sunil Narine and Ajinkya Rahane going hard at the other DC bowlers.”Kuldeep not finishing his spell to me was a bit of a missed opportunity,” Ganga said. “When you have a bowler like Kuldeep, regardless of the day he’s having, I’d like to see him exhaust his full complement of overs. That is something he [Axar] could’ve looked at – bowling Kuldeep’s one over earlier on, and then bowling three overs in the middle. That could’ve changed proceedings and probably informed how the other spinners would go on that surface.Related

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“I was having a conversation about teams and their reluctance to use conventional wristspinners in the powerplay phase. To me, if you’re trying to control a phase by taking wickets, that’s an option for you. And then if you know you have an issue with your bowlers not penetrating opposition batters, then I think it is worth a gamble for you to use, at least one over of wristspin in that phase.”Kuldeep finally entered the attack as DC’s sixth bowler, delivering the 11th, 13th, and 15th overs and finishing with figures of 0 for 27. But by then, KKR had already built a strong platform, and even a few hiccups couldn’t derail their momentum. Wasim Jaffer labelled it “strange tactics” not to use Kuldeep up front when DC were clearly in need of a breakthrough while Ambati Rayudu pointed to Kuldeep’s recent success against left-hand batters and said he could have troubled Narine.”Especially today when KKR batsmen were going great guns, I felt they should’ve brought a spinner on for sure. Kuldeep is a wicket-taker and he’s been bowling brilliantly to left-handers of late,” Rayudu said. “He’s been getting the dip now, which wasn’t there in his bowling earlier, and he’s not afraid to bowl googlies to left-handers, and he’s been getting wickets off googlies.”3:56

‘Axar should back himself to bowl in powerplay’

‘Axar could have bowled in the powerplay too’

Kuldeep wasn’t DC’s only spin option. Vipraj Nigam was brought on in the seventh over, while Axar bowled four overs on the trot from the eighth to the 14th. Despite being effective, Axar too did not bowl in the powerplay, a surprising decision considering his performance in the powerplay in the previous game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).”I think [Axar could’ve bowled] definitely for an over at least,” Rayudu said. “They were going after pace and you had to slow things down, not only time-wise but also in terms of giving pace to the batsmen. I felt they missed a little trick there.”Axar has also become a much, much better bowler. He bowls the under-cutter, which he bowls to left-handers that goes away. And he has that height where he never bowls too full. I think he definitely should have bowled in the powerplay.”Jaffer served a reminder that Axar dismissed left-handers Jacob Bethell and Devdutt Padikkal against RCB too, nullifying the left-arm spinner to left-hand batter worry that some teams have.”I think he should have used at least one over himself, considering in the last game he got two wickets off left-handers,” Jaffer said. “[Not bowling] against Nicholas Pooran you would understand since Pooran is a different beast altogether, but against all other [left-handed] batters, he should back himself.”Ganga, meanwhile, acknowledged the captain’s dilemma when choosing between backing himself or deploying other bowlers. He said that Dushmantha Chameera’s recent inclusion might have influenced Axar’s choices. Still, he felt captains need to show greater conviction.”If the surface was offering a bit more turn, it might’ve prompted him to bowl in the powerplay phase,” Ganga said. “There are also times, as a captain, you find yourself between a rock and a hard place with you putting yourself as an option compared to using other options.”Chameera has been brought in recently to join this DC side. His USP is bowling in the first and last phase, so he was given an opportunity to, but at times, you have to be more determined, take the game by its horns and back yourself. I think we overrate match-ups, sometimes, bowlers can still trouble batters’ inside edge as well. I think at times captains can be a bit more enterprising and use that option.”

Zak Rudden has joined League Two side Plymouth Argyle, and some Rangers fans believe it could mean more incomings at Ibrox this summer.

The 19-year-old striker has made the six-month loan switch to Plymouth having had a goal-laden season at Falkirk last campaign. The forward banged in 13 goals in 35 games, not bad when you consider the Bairns were relegated to the third tier of Scottish football.

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With Kyle Lafferty being released, some had thought that Rudden may be Steven Gerrard’s third-choice striker this season. Yet with his temporary departure confirmed, the Gers look slightly thin on the ground behind Jermain Defoe and Alfredo Morelos.

This has got the fans wondering whether the youngster’s loan move could pave the way for another forward coming in before the end of the window. One name that’s been linked is Kilmarnock’s Eamonn Brophy, but the fans weren’t receptive to that idea at all.

Here’s how they reacted on Twitter as Rudden was sent out on loan again…

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Veteran allrounder opens batting and bowling after Rishi Patel suffers dislocated finger

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay04-Apr-2025Leicestershire 65 for 1 trail Glamorgan 229 (Cooke 55, Holland 3-40, Mike 3-54) by 164 runs Leicestershire took control on the opening day of the 2025 Rothesay County Championship against Glamorgan at Sophia Gardens, bowling the hosts out for 229. Ian Holland and Ben Mike took three wickets apiece for the visitors after putting Glamorgan into bat while Chris Cooke’s half-century was in vain after a series of starts in the top order.Three-match loanee and debutant, Shoaib Bashir participated in a 53-run partnership for the ninth wicket with Cooke as the pitch became easier to bat on, although the England international went wicketless from his solitary over bowled.Despite the success with the ball, concerns were for Rishi Patel who left the field and didn’t return after just 16 balls with a dislocated finger fielding a ball in the slips. As a result, Holland came and went at opener as the Foxes ended the day strongly, returning for day two on 64 for 1 with Sol Budinger and makeshift No. 3 Mike at the crease.After winning the toss and putting Glamorgan into bat on a green-topped Sophia Gardens wicket, the bowlers soon reaped the rewards, led by Leicestershire’s new-ball pair of Holland and Chris Wright with a combined age of 73.Zain Ul Hassan was the first to fall, with full credit deserved for the 34-year-old Holland who troubled the Glamorgan left-handers throughout the day.Eddie Byrom and captain Sam Northeast worked hard to see off Holland’s opening spell combining for a 57-run partnership. Just when the gruelling first hour in bowling-friendly conditions appeared done, the pair fell. Northeast, lbw squared up by Tom Scriven in a mode of dismissal that had been threatened by earlier appeals, and Byrom prodding outside his eyeline for a well-made 41, a familiar story from 2024.Another rebuild for Glamorgan, and more signs of promise. Both Kiran Carlson and last year’s County Championship top run-scorer, Colin Ingram, battled past Ben Green and Scriven bowling consistently, taking advantage of loose Mike deliveries to keep the scoreboard going along into lunch at 90 for 3.Ingram came out after lunch firing, cover-driving his way past 9000 career first-class runs, making light of his early signs of discomfort. In similar fashion to earlier dismissals, however, wickets came in a group: Carlson and Ingram both falling to the second spell from Holland and an uncomfortable 18-ball knock from Ben Kellaway, bowled by Scriven, leaving Glamorgan at 132 for 6.Leicestershire continued to dominate the second session as the hosts bided their time, scoring at two-an-over heading into tea with the wickets of Timm van der Gugten and Andy Gorvin falling to Mike, bowling a better spell the second time around.As the ball began to wear and the sun shone down on Sophia Gardens, the pitch appeared to flatten and life became easier for Cooke and Bashir who added 53 for the ninth wicket, 48 of those in less than 10 overs after tea – before falling to Mike, claiming his third, and Rehan Ahmed picking up a first wicket, respectively.As expected, Patel couldn’t bat for Leicestershire with his return unknown, and Holland faced up before falling to van der Gugten for a third time in as many innings. Mike continued to have his day as he and Budinger negotiated Glamorgan’s bowlers until the end of play with an unbeaten partnership of 47 despite a dropped catch from Ingram and a couple tight lbw appeals denied.