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Aston Villa have now joined the race to sign an “insane” new striker, having identified the need to have greater strength in depth in attacking areas.

Villa keen on new striker amid Watkins' struggles

Villa are very much back on track in the Premier League, having made it five wins in a row courtesy of the 1-0 victory over Manchester City at the weekend, but there are still a few problems for Unai Emery to deal with beneath the surface.

There has been plenty of discussion about the manager’s decision to omit Harvey Elliott from the squad entirely on Sunday, while Jeff Stelling was less than impressed with the decision to substitute Jadon Sancho in the second half, claiming “it was wrong.”

There will also be concerns about some of Ollie Watkins’ performances, with the striker scoring just one goal in nine Premier League games so far this season, and he was once again ineffectual against Pep Guardiola’s side.

The 29-year-old recorded an xG of just 0.13 prior to being replaced by Donyell Malen with just under five minutes left to play, finishing the match with a SofaScore match rating of 6.3, the joint-lowest of any Villa player.

Perhaps with that in mind, Aston Villa have now joined the race for a new striker, according to a report from Caught Offside, which credits them with an interest in Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee, amid his uncertain future at Old Trafford.

It has been revealed that Zirkzee wants to leave Man United, having only played a limited role this season, and his current employers could choose to cash in for a fee of around €35m – €40m (£31m – £35m).

Aston Villa take hilarious swipe at Haaland after victory against Man City

The Villans defeated Pep Guardiola’s side 1-0 at Villa Park on Sunday.

By
Dominic Lund

Oct 27, 2025

A January exit is deemed likely, and there is no shortage of interest in the centre-forward’s signature, with a number of Serie A clubs set to battle it out, while Brighton & Hove Albion are also keen, and West Ham United have made initial contact.

"Insane" Zirkzee may need fresh start

Despite being lauded for his “insane” quality by scout Ben Mattinson, the 24-year-old has been unable to force his way into Ruben Amorim’s plans, having featured for just 82 minutes across four appearances in the Premier League this season.

However, it is always difficult to make an impact when predominantly featuring as a substitute, and there are signs the Dutchman could flourish if given more regular game time, having regularly chipped in with goals and assists for Bologna across the 2023-24 campaign.

That said, the former Bayern Munich man’s unhappiness stems from a lack of game time, so it would be a questionable decision for Villa to sign him, given that Watkins is likely to remain ahead of the United ace in the pecking order.

While the Englishman hasn’t been at his best this season, he is Premier League-proven, unlike Zirkzee, having scored 76 top-flight goals, which indicates it may only be a matter of time before he rediscovers his top form.

Rehan Ahmed has been ruled out of any further participation on the England Lions tour of Australia after suffering a right lower leg strain during the Ashes warm-up match against England in Perth.Legspinner Rehan batted at No. 5 for the Lions, making 16 off 41 balls on day one before becoming one of six wickets for England captain, Ben Stokes. He played no part with the ball, or in the Lions’ second innings, with the ECB announcing afterwards that he would return home to begin his recovery.Related

• Rehan, Cox and Fisher in England Lions squad for Australia

• Jhye Richardson's return steps up with Cricket Australia XI outing

• Anderson says 'weak' Australia are still Ashes favourites

Rehan had signed up to play for Hobart Hurricanes in the 2025-26 BBL, but the BBC reported that the injury was not expected to impact his involvement in the competition, which starts in a month’s time.England Lions are scheduled to play another four-day match at Lilac Hill, against a Cricket Australia XI, next week, before a one-off unofficial Test against Australia A in December. The Lions are also expected to be involved in a pink-ball tour game between England and the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra between the first and second Ashes Tests.It had been speculated that Rehan, who missed out on selection as the second spinner in the main Ashes squad to Will Jacks, could stay on with England after the Lions programme concluded.

Ever since the WTC final, the fast bowler has gone from strength to strength under a management that has emboldened him to unleash his skills as he sees fit

Firdose Moonda22-Aug-20252:16

Ngidi: Always a test of character against Australia

When cricketers are encouraged to express themselves, we usually know what that looks like for batters: play your shots, innovate, entertain. But how do bowlers interpret that instruction?”It’s pretty much about giving you the freedom to bowl what you want to bowl,” Lungi Ngidi said, after claiming his second ODI five-for during South Africa’s 84-run win in the second ODI against Australia in Mackay. “We’ve been playing international cricket for a couple of years now, so we kind of know what we’re good at and what we need to do. Set your field and bowl what you want to bowl according to whatever you see in front of you. Play the conditions in front of you and don’t be scared to try things.”Like offering one of the opposition’s most dangerous batters a little bit of width, in the belief he would nick off. Or dropping your pace down to just over 100kph because you’d seen the efficacy of the slower ball in the first innings.Related

• Green, Head and Marsh flay centuries as Australia put on a show

• Ngidi takes five, Breetzke, Stubbs shine as South Africa win series

Ngidi did both those things as he bowled South Africa to a series-winning victory, and he did them because he had the confidence to make bold decisions about how he wanted to go about his business.His strategy against Marnus Labuschagne was informed by what Ngidi saw in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, when Labuschagne was dismissed in both innings driving loosely at Marco Jansen. Ngidi, of course, is not the same type of bowler as Jansen, but he believed he could exact similar results.Marnus Labuschagne fell into Lungi Ngidi’s deliberately laid trap•Getty Images”We do our video analysis and we’ve seen, even from the Test Championship, outside off with the ball shaping away seems to be effective. He leaves very well, but you need to score runs at some point in ODI cricket so you’re probably going to feel outside off,” Ngidi explained. “I just tried to keep it simple and just plug away at that length and that line and it seemed to come off. It went according to plan.”Pace-off is Ngidi’s speciality but he used it more after getting confirmation that it worked during South Africa’s innings, in which Nathan Ellis was the stand-out seamer. Ellis started with a 110kph back-of-the-hand slower ball and delivered at least two an over among his pace-on, short-ball change-ups, which got him both his wickets. Ngidi was taking notes.”The beautiful thing about bowling second is I get to sit there and watch what works. And I saw Ellis’ plan and he was pretty successful with that,” he said. “It just gives you an idea of what’s going to work later on in the innings. Also Watching [Xavier] Bartlett up front, it seemed to be swinging or nipping around so it pretty much gives you a blueprint of how to go about things.”Both Ngidi and Nandre Burger found movement early on and made the initial breakthroughs but it was Ngidi’s second spell that earned him his first Player-of-the-Match award, in any format, in nearly three years. He ripped through Australia’s lower order and took four wickets for eight runs in 14 balls. The first was a signature Ngidi delivery, a slower offbreak that Aaron Hardie chipped back to him. But it was Ngidi’s quick reaction to get across and take the catch low to the ground that showed how committed he was to the contest against an opposition he loves playing against.’The beautiful thing about bowling second is I get to sit there and watch what works’•Getty ImagesHis career-best, of 6 for 58, also came against Australia and he has taken more wickets against them in ODIs – 26 at an average of 16.96 – than any other opposition (and he has only played against them once more than he has England, India or Sri Lanka) and it’s fair to say they bring out the best in him.”It’s always a battle against Australia. It’s always competitive,” he said. “It’s a test of character because we were put under pressure from the T20s, and we had the opportunity to win a series tonight so just mentally stepping up and finishing it off. It’s just a great rivalry that’s always been there. And it’s going to continue for many, many years.”Ngidi emphasised “staying strong mentally” both to the broadcasters and at his press conference, and it may apply to more than just the ongoing series. His career to date is perhaps best described as stop-start, with injuries and indifferent form often interrupting a good run. The last time he played all matches in a multi-format tour was in 2018, when he played in four of South Africa’s four games in Australia.Currently, Ngidi is on a five-match streak in Australia, and he also played in four of South Africa’s five T20Is last month in Zimbabwe and made a Test comeback the month before that at the WTC final at Lord’s. It was in that game, where his selection raised eyebrows because he had not played a Test in 10 months, that Ngidi showed the value of being backed by the coaching staff and being given freedom by them.Ngidi picked up the second five-wicket haul of his ODI career•AFP/Getty ImagesCoach Shukri Conrad picked Ngidi even after dropping him from the 2024 tour to Bangladesh and, after a rusty start, Ngidi delivered a match-changing second-innings performance when he took 3 for 38. Conrad has since picked Ngidi across all formats, and the returns have only been getting better. Ngidi iced the cake when he became the first South Africa seamer since Kagiso Rabada in July 2015 to take an ODI five-for away from home.Because they came up in the same Under-19 group and are at similar ages, the two are often spoken about in parallel terms, Rabada’s stardust usually leaving Ngidi in the shadows. That was the case in this game too. Ngidi told the broadcasters that when he knew Rabada would be unavailable for this series because of injury, he would “have big shoes to fill.”It’s easy to assume that means he needs to take on Rabada’s role but that only applies to seniority and experience, not style of bowling. While Rabada’s game is based on pace and accuracy, Ngidi’s is on variation and movement and he had the perfect stage to show that in Mackay. That he performed to expectation and beyond is an example of South Africa’s new way, which is as much about staying true to their identity as it is about getting the results they want.”The most important thing is how we played. Are we playing our brand of cricket? Are we playing the way we want to play? When we lose and we’re not playing our way or with the freedom that the coach has given us, then it’s a problem. But when we execute and we play the way we want to play, that’s the beautiful thing,” Ngidi said. “We have lots of white-ball cricket to come. So this is good momentum to kick us off for the rest of the season.”

“Our relationship with that particular hostile country is the same”

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Oct-2025

ICC/Getty Images

For the fourth consecutive Sunday, an India team may choose not to shake hands with a Pakistan team.India Women meet Pakistan Women in Colombo on October 5 in the ongoing Women’s World Cup. On Wednesday, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia did not rule out the possibility that Harmanpreet Kaur’s team could take cues from Suryakumar Yadav’s.”Whether there will be handshakes, whether there will be hugging, I cannot assure you of anything [at] this moment,” Saikia told the BBC’s podcast. “I cannot forecast anything, but our relationship with that particular hostile country is the same. There is no change in the last week.”Related

Handshakes and rain in focus as India look to continue unbeaten run against Pakistan

'Focus is only cricket' – India, Pakistan on mood ahead of World Cup clash

India can come and collect Asia Cup trophy if they want it, says Naqvi

Agha: India are 'disrespecting cricket' with their conduct

India refuse to accept Asia Cup trophy from Mohsin Naqvi

India’s men played Pakistan three times at the recent Asia Cup and chose not to shake hands at the toss and after the game. That tournament also ended in acrimony after India refused to accept their Asia Cup trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, who is Pakistan’s Interior Minister in addition to being the PCB’s chairman and the ACC’s president. Naqvi, for his part, refused to cede the handing over of the trophy to anyone else. The standoff caused a 90-minute delay to the post-match presentation, at which no trophy was ultimately lifted.Saikia said the team would play to the “regulations of cricket”.”India will play that match against Pakistan in Colombo, and all cricket protocols will be followed,” he said. “I can only assure that whatever is in the MCC regulations of cricket – that will be done.”There have been no indications yet from the women’s teams themselves as to how they will negotiate the politics around their match on Sunday.

The three players will start with their new state by playing in the Uttarakhand Premier League

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Sep-2025

Left-arm spinner J Suchith, opener Prashant Chopra and batter Bhupen Lalwani have moved to Uttarakhand ahead of the domestic season in 2025-26. The three players will start with their new state by playing in the Uttarakhand Premier League.Suchith, who represented Karnataka before playing for Nagaland, first played domestic cricket in April 2014 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy before going on to make his List A and first-class debuts in the coming seasons. He played for Nagaland only for one season, in 2024-25, where picked up 43 wickets in six first-class matches and was the highest wicket-taker in the Plate group.Chopra, meanwhile, made his debut for Himachal Pradesh as an 18-year-old in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in February 2011, and has represented them in his entire domestic career so far. Last season, he made 386 runs in seven first-class matches, which included 171 against Uttarakhand. Overall, he has played 81 first-class matches and scored 5093 runs and hit 14 hundreds. He has also notched up 4012 runs in 103 List A games at an average of 41.79, and 2035 runs in 70 T20s at a strike rate of 114.58.Lalwani has represented Mumbai and Chhattisgarh in a short domestic career so far that started in January 2020. He switched to Chhattisgarh ahead of the 2024-25 season, where he played just two first-class matches for them. Overall, he has played 16 first-class matches and three List A games.The change of teams continue a bunch of transfers ahead of the upcoming domestic season, the most notable among them being Karun Nair returning to Karnataka, Harshal Patel switching back to Gujarat from Haryana, and Jalaj Saxena moving from Kerala to Maharashtra.

After going just 1-for-4 with two strikeouts in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 5–2 win over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night, Shohei Ohtani's five-game home run streak came to an abrupt end. On Saturday evening, however, he wasted no time getting back on the wagon.

Sitting on a 1–1 count to lead off the contest against Garrett Crochet, Ohtani received a 97 mph fastball right down the middle from the Red Sox ace—and made him pay. The Dodgers star ripped the pitch to dead center field for his 38th home run of the season, giving Los Angeles a 1–0 lead.

Here's a look at the dinger:

Crochet seemingly knew it right from the get go, slowly turning around to watch the ball fly to dead center field.

Dodgers right fielder Teoscar Hernandez also took Crochet deep to give Los Angeles a 2–0 lead in the first, with Boston center fielder Jarren Duran answering in the second with a two-run triple off Clayton Kershaw.

Chasing a DLS-revised target of 125 in 12 overs, Heat were undone by two-wicket bursts from Molly Strano, Heather Graham and Nicola Carey

AAP15-Nov-2025Lizelle Lee kept Hobart Hurricanes rolling, and Brisbane Heat winless thanks to a power-packed knock in their rain-impacted 16-run WBBL win in Sydney on Saturday.Lee hit an unbeaten 59 off 45 balls, striking six fours and three sixes either side of a rain delay on Saturday. Hurricanes were flying before their innings was reduced to 12 overs and they purred to 114 for 1, with Heat’s target increased to 125 based on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern system.Jess Jonassen (1 for 12 from three overs) and Lucy Hamilton (0 for 26 off three) were the only Heat bowlers to escape punishment.Danni Wyatt-Hodge (44 in 26 balls) combined with Lee in a 106-run opening stand, which only ended in the final over.Grace Harris (28 in 21) hung in as Heat lost regular wickets attempting to maintain the scoring rate and finished at 108 for 9 thanks to a last-ball six from Sianna Ginger.Molly Strano (2 for 17), Heather Graham (2 for 25) and Nicola Carey (2 for 10) proved too clever for the Heat batters.The loss was Heat’s third straight to begin the season while Hurricanes sit on top of the table with three wins.

Aston Villa have now made contact to sign Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia on loan in the January transfer window, but there could be competition from a plethora of rival Premier League clubs.

Villa’s interest in signing Garcia is nothing new, with claims they had even submitted an offer and wanted to get a deal over the line as quickly as possible, amid a lack of game time for the forward at Real Madrid.

The 21-year-old has appeared for just 96 minutes in La Liga this season, which will be a concern, given that he is now at an age where receiving consistent game time is important, otherwise his development could be hampered.

The Villans’ interest in signing a new forward also comes amid Evann Guessand making a slow start to life in the Premier League, having failed to register a goal or an assist, meaning Unai Emery may need a fresh injection of quality this winter if his side are going to push for the European places.

Aston Villa make contact to sign Gonzalo Garcia on loan

According to a report from Football Insider, Aston Villa have now made contact to sign Real Madrid forward Garcia on loan in the January transfer window, having registered their interest, but the Spanish heavyweights are yet to come to a final decision on his future.

Xabi Alonso’s side have concerns about a lack of depth in attack, meaning it could be worth keeping the Madrid-born starlet as a back-up option, especially considering Endrick is also set to go out on loan this winter.

Should the La Liga side sanction a departure, there may be stiff competition for the youngster’s signature, with Brighton & Hove Albion, Leeds United and Wolverhampton Wanderers also being named as potential suitors by journalist Pete O’Rourke.

Although the young Spaniard has been unable to force his way into Alonso’s plans in La Liga, he certainly made a name for himself at the Club World Cup in the summer, receiving high praise from scout Jacek Kulig.

Not only that, but the centre-forward has also impressed at international level for Spain U21s, scoring in each of his last three matches, while also captaining his side during two of his five international caps.

With Ollie Watkins arguably not the player he once was, having scored just one Premier League goal this term, Aston Villa could do with bringing in a young striker with high potential, and Garcia has proven he could be a future star.

Aston Villa looking to sign "world-class" goalkeeper to replace Martinez Related Aston Villa make Emiliano Martinez sale decision amid Unai Emery comments

There has been a key update on Martinez’s future, following the goalkeeper pushing for a move during the summer.

Posts ByDominic Lund Nov 19, 2025

Newcastle United have claimed their fans were "indiscriminately assaulted by the police" and are set to launch a complaint over how they were treated in Marseille. Following the 2-1 Champions League defeat on Tuesday at Stade Velodrome, the Magpies say officers utilised "unnecessary and disproportionate force" against their supporters, as well as using pepper spray, batons, and shields.

• Newcastle to complain to UEFA

  In a statement on the club's website, Newcastle said they will lodge a complaint with UEFA, Marseille, and French police off the back of the "unacceptable" fan treatment. The Toon added that many supporters were "visibly distressed" by how they were looked after when the game drew to a close. 

  The post reads: "We will be formally raising our concerns with UEFA, Olympique de Marseille and French police in relation to the unacceptable treatment of our supporters by police at Stade Vélodrome following Tuesday's UEFA Champions League fixture. Following the final whistle, our supporters were required to remain in the stadium for a period of up to one hour on the instruction of local authorities to ensure their safety when leaving the stadium. 

  "Plans were in place to move 500 supporters at a time, with a police escort to the Metro station for onward travel to Place de la Joliette. Our supporters were in good spirits despite the disappointing result and waited patiently and without incident during the holdback period. The post-match operation was observed at close quarters by our stewards and senior staff. 

  "Once the first group of supporters was released, the police began using unnecessary and disproportionate force to stop the remainder of our fans from moving any further. This was actioned through a combination of pepper spray, batons, and shields, with numerous supporters being indiscriminately assaulted by the police. Many supporters were visibly distressed, particularly in the upper concourse area of the away sector, where crushing became apparent." 

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• AFP
  

  Newcastle call for investigation

  Newcastle have also called for an investigation into this matter to ensure "lessons are learned" and this behaviour is not repeated. The Magpies added that there was a lot of "frustration and anger" amongst the club's staff for how this was handled.

  The post adds: "Our staff immediately addressed the matter with the police, however this had limited impact on their excessive tactics. Fans leaving the stadium rightly shared their distress, frustration and anger with our staff, and we have subsequently received deeply concerning witness reports from supporters who were in attendance. Supporter safety and welfare should always be of paramount importance, and we strongly condemn the treatment of our supporters by the police during this incident. 

  "We will be calling on UEFA, Olympique de Marseille and local authorities to formally investigate this matter to ensure lessons are learned and this behaviour is not repeated. We are continuing to liaise with the United Kingdom Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) as we gather evidence on behalf of our supporters."

• Newcastle fans angry about treatment

  Newcastle season ticket holder, Liam Phillips, vowed never to return to Marseille after what he witnessed on Tuesday. He added that the locals were "very friendly" but the police "whacked people indiscriminately". 

  "To be cooped up from 4pm – and I didn't get back to my hotel until nearly 2am – that's almost 10 hours to watch 90 minutes of football," he told BBC Sport. "It just felt inhumane and felt to me like we were being treated like criminals when actually the vast majority if not everybody were just there to watch their team. There was no aggro. It was all good-natured. We just wanted to watch a game of football. There was no need for it."

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  Newcastle need fans' help

  Ahead of Newcastle's trip to Everton in the Premier League this weekend, the club called on supporters to provide any information they had on the unsavoury scenes in Marseille this week. 

  The club finished by saying: "We would like to hear from supporters affected by this incident as we collate as much supporting information as possible. This will also be shared with UEFA, UKFPU and the Football Supporters Europe organisation. Supporters who wish to share their witness report should email [email protected]."

The PCB has suspended all no-objection certificates for players who want to participate in T20 leagues outside Pakistan.Sumair Ahmad Syed, the board’s chief operating officer, sent a notice on September 29, informing players and agents of the decision.”With the approval of Chairman PCB, all No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for players with respect to participation in leagues and other out of country tournaments are hereby put on hold until further orders,” the notice, seen by ESPNcricinfo, read.No reason has been given as to why this action was taken. Reports have suggested the PCB aims to tie NOCs to a performance based system, the criteria for which has not been made public. The goal, from the board’s perspective, is for players to incentivise national and domestic performances. However, there is no information on how long such an evaluation will take before the current suspension on NOCs is lifted.The move came a day after Pakistan’s tight loss in the Asia Cup final to India in the UAE, but from a tour in which they also won a T20I tri-series. The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan’s premier domestic first-class competition, is also due to start in October, having been delayed from its original start date of September 22.The details around the NOCs and any possible exemptions, or how long they last, are not yet known.Seven Pakistanis, including Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi, are due to play in the BBL this season, which begins in December. There are also 16 Pakistan players in the shortlist for the ILT20 auction, which is due to take place on October 1 in the UAE. Three of those include Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman.