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After having lost to the hosts in the tournament opener, India face a side that have come into this series a little bruised

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando07-Mar-2018Big PictureAlmost everyone remembers Bangladesh-India match. World T20, 2016, Bangladesh need two runs from three balls to knock out the hosts. Instead, a senior batsman allows his emotions to get the better of him, and India pounce to claim a heart-stopping one-run victory.Two years later, Bangladesh players are still asked questions about this match. Have the wounds from that game healed? Will the World T20 clash play on their minds if they find themselves in a similar situation? Perhaps they have the skill, but do they possess the nerve to overcome this opponent?It does not help that even without some of their most formidable T20 players, India appear the more confident side. Though defeated by the hosts on Tuesday, they have a powerful top order, and a promising attack – even if it is a little short on experience.Bangladesh have the raw materials in place, but following a poor home series against Sri Lanka, they have come into this series a little bruised. Without Shakib Al Hasan in the top order, they are not producing runs as consistently as they have done over the past two years, and their bowling appears a little light – particularly as Mustafizur Rahman’s efficiency has recently waned.They do, however, have one thing this Indian side does not have – a win on Sri Lankan soil, on this trip. A comprehensive victory in their practice match in Colombo on Tuesday will have helped repair some of the damage sustained in their most-recent series. Whether that is sufficient to put them on even terms with India, remains to be seen.Form guideBangladeshLLLLW (completed matches, most recent first)
India LWLWWAssociated PressIn the spotlightShikhar Dhawan came into the tournament with good T20 form, and on Tuesday hit a 49-ball 90 – his highest score in the format. Although he was by far India’s highest scorer, his innings was not without a little luck. He was often awkward against the short ball, top edging no fewer than three for six. If he shows a similar vulnerability on Thursday, in Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman, Bangladesh do possess the quicks that could exploit it.If there is anyone who must exorcise the memory of Bangalore, it is Mushfiqur Rahim who had the game in hand, but then celebrated too early, and ushered in Bangladesh’s failure. With Shakib now out of the side, there is also the added pressure of being one of the few senior men left in the middle order. He arrives with a little form behind him, but should India take early wickets, Mushfiqur’s ability to handle the occasion may prove crucial to the outcome.Team newsBangladesh could opt for Nurul Hasan ahead of Sabbir Rahman, while Mehidy Hasan could be picked ahead of a seamer, for his batting. Ariful Haque and Soumya Sarkar are seam-bowling options, if they opt for only two frontline pace bowlers.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Liton Das, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Mahmudullah (capt.), 6 Ariful Haque, 7 Nurul Hasan, 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Nazmul Hossain 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur RahmanIndia may think about fielding seamer Mohammed Siraj in place of Shardul Thakur, who was expensive on Monday. Otherwise, they may remain unchanged – though it is also possible that KL Rahul could enter the top order.India (possible): 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma (capt.), 3 Suresh Raina, 4 Manish Pandey, 5 Rishabh Pant, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Vijay Shankar, 8 Washington Sundar, 9 Yuzvendra Chahal, 10 Jaydev Unadkat, 11 Mohammed SirajPitch and conditionsA standard Khettarama pitch is expected – half decent for batting, but a little on the slow side. It is possible – but not likely – that an evening thunderstorm will blow through.Stats and trivia Bangladesh have lost all five T20s they have played against India. India have not lost two T20s in a row since 2016. They have played 19 completed T20s since then. Shikhar Dhawan’s 90 on Tuesday is the second-highest T20 score at Khettarama, after Luke Wright’s 99 not out against Afghanistan in 2012.Quotes”The Bangalore match was over that day. Accidents occur in cricket. There’s no point sitting with it. It is better to learn from it though.”

Tottenham Hotspur have commenced the 2023/24 Premier League campaign with promise, having defeated Manchester United after drawing away to Brentford, but are still hoping for one or two more signings before the transfer window closes next week.

A raft of signings have been made already since Ange Postecoglou took the helm in June, but despite the arrivals of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario and defenders Micky van de Ven and Pedro Porro (the latter's loan move made permanent), the work still feels incomplete.

Indeed, Spurs shipped 63 goals last term – conceding more than all but the three relegated outfits and newly-promoted sides Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest – and as such, one more move to strengthen the backline further would surely be worthwhile.

What's the latest on Tosin Adarabioyo to Tottenham?

That's according to RMC Sport journalist Fabrice Hawkins, who claims that while Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo wishes to be sold to Monaco this summer, the Cottagers hope for Spurs to launch a bid and offer Eric Dier in return.

Read the latest Tottenham transfer news HERE…

Hawkins revealed earlier in the window that Fulham would hope to recuperate around €15m (£13m) for the 25-year-old, who has entered the final year of his £37k-per-week contract at Craven Cottage.

How good is Tosin Adarabioyo?

The Manchester-born defender has been instrumental for Marco Silva's side since signing from Manchester City in 2020, having made 107 appearances, guiding the club up from the Championship and cementing their position as an established top-flight outfit.

His performances over the past several seasons – showings that have left the likes of writer Muhammad Butt hailing him as "magnificent" – are evidence enough that he would improve Tottenham's defence, and he would undoubtedly be an upgrade on the struggling Davinson Sanchez.

Spurs' Colombian centre-half signed from Ajax for £42m in 2017, which was a club record at the time, and arrived with a weight of expectation, with former manager Mauricio Pochettino even proclaiming that he could become one of the world's best defenders.

It's safe to say that he has flattered to deceive, with pundit Jamie O'Hara even branding the 27-year-old "one of Tottenham's worst ever players", having also compounded his situation by recording an average Sofascore rating of just 6.75 last term, very much at the epicentre of the club's defensive woes and keeping only two clean sheets from 18 outings.

Adarabioyo, comparatively, has been thriving; last term the Whalley Range-born titan recorded an average league score of 6.89, completing 82% of his passes and making a staggering 5.5 clearances per game.

In fact, he ranks among the top 1% of centre-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for clearances per 90, which underscores his impressive robustness and athleticism, batting away danger and protecting the goalkeeper's net.

A no-nonsense central defender, Adarabioyo would evidently bolster Postecoglou's backline in an instant and would do so for a bargain fee, and with the increments being made for the side's resurgence this term, the Fulham ace would prove to be a major success story if Spurs do ward off the competition to secure his signature.

Mark Goldbridge has been reacting to news that a World Cup winning defender could be on their way to Old Trafford this summer as Erik Ten Hag continues his recruitment drive.

Is Benjamin Pavard on his way to Old Trafford?

Sky Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg has issued an update on Twitter X regarding Bayern Munich defender Benjamin Pavard, who has emerged as a target for Manchester United, stating: "Man Utd, at this stage the favorite in the poker for Benjamin Pavard! Pavard can really imagine to join MUFC as Ten Hag wants him. Concrete talks are ongoing and positive. Price valuation: Around €30m [£26m]. Tuchel wants to keep him. Pavard wants to leave Bayern. Would be a massive loss for the club."

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has also confirmed that Pavard is a player on the radar at Old Trafford and indicated that the World Cup winning defender would 'love' to experience life in the Premier League; however, Nice defender Jean-Clair Todibo and Bayer Leverkusen ace Edmond Tapsoba are also being considered as defensive reinforcements by Ten Hag.

As per The Daily Mail, Pavard has been 'sounded out' at Old Trafford as a potential replacement for former club captain Harry Maguire, who has agreed a £30 million move to West Ham United after being stripped of the captaincy earlier in the window.

Last term, Pavard made 47 appearances in all competitions for Bayern Munich, registering seven goals and a solitary assist, as per Transfermarkt.

Of course, the 27-year-old is capable of playing in both right-back and central defensive roles; however, Pavard signalled two years ago in an interview cited by the Bundesliga official website that he prefers to operate at the heart of the backline, saying: "My ideal position is in central defence. But I'm not really thinking about that at the moment, as I'm playing on the right."

Manchester United pundit Goldbridge has had his say on links with Pavard and Manchester United as a potential deal to bring the former Stuttgart man to Old Trafford gains momentum and thinks that his arrival could be a 'masterstroke' by Red Devils boss Ten Hag if he was brought in to succeed Maguire in central defence.

Goldbridge stated on The United Stand YouTube channel: "Is Pavard better than Maguire? Yes. Is Pavard three years younger than Maguire? Yes. Is Pavard cheaper than Maguire? Yes. You can want Todibo, you can want Tapsoba and maybe they are better than Pavard, but when you look at the actual comparison, Maguire goes to West Ham for £30 million at 30 and we get Pavard, who can play right-back and centre-back, who's only just 27 and save £4 million.

"This is almost in a nutshell what you do when you shop in Europe, because everything is more expensive in England, isn't it? From a business point of view, it's a masterstroke by Ten Hag."

Is Mark Goldbridge correct in his assessment of Benjamin Pavard?

It's hard to argue against Goldbridge's logic regarding the sale process of Maguire and prospective arrival of Pavard, which would be covered by West Ham and essentially enable Manchester United to gain a younger replacement with money to spare left over.

Pavard's class cannot be disputed and he excelled for Bayern Munich last campaign as they went on to rubber stamp yet another Bundesliga title, winning 2.1 aerials per match in the German top-flight and recording an average match rating of 7.17/10, as per WhoScored.

Manchester City had also been keen to target Pavard last month when news emerged that veteran right-back Kyle Walker could have been on his way to Bayern Munich, as per The Guardian, showing that the France international has admirers in high places as well as at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils could be making one of the smartest moves of the transfer window if they can get a deal for Pavard over the line and their case is helped further by the fact he has less than a year left on his contract at Bayern Munich, as per Sky Sports.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly believes MS Dhoni needs to change his batting approach in Twenty20s to be successful. Ganguly also said Dhoni still has a lot of one-day cricket left in him, but he was more concerned about the wicketkeeper-batsman’s record in T20s. Ganguly’s blunt appraisal followed strong words of support Dhoni received from coach Ravi Shastri and captain Virat Kohli last week.However, Ganguly felt the pair needed to tell India’s senior-most player to express himself more freely if they were to derive the most out of Dhoni’s batting. “His record in T20I is not that good compared to ODIs,” Ganguly said in Kolkata on Sunday. “I hope Kohli and the team management will speak to him separately. He has immense ability. If he approaches T20Is differently, then he will be successful. I think he should keep playing one-day cricket, but he has to play differently in T20Is. He has to play T20Is freely. It depends on the selectors and how they would like to play him.”Dhoni’s place in the T20 team became the topic of discussion after India’s 40-run loss in the second T20I against New Zealand in Rajkot. His 37-ball 49 raised questions as it elevated the required run rate in India’s chase of 197, even as Kohli struck a more aggressive 65 off 42 on a flat pitch. It prompted former players, most notably VVS Laxman, Dhoni’s former India team-mate, to question his strike rate and inability to hit big shots.Even as the debate has raged on about his future, Dhoni remained unruffled. In his first reaction, Dhoni refrained from responding to criticism, brushing it off gently while launching his first cricket academy overseas. “Everybody has views in life and it should be respected,” Dhoni said in Dubai on Saturday. “I have always felt that sport is one way of learning about life. How you deal with disappointments, how you are supposed to come in front of people when you have either you have won or lost a game. At the same time, how you stand up to criticism, and how you have an open mind about learning and improving yourself.”Dhoni stressed he was still inspired to play for the country and his hunger to perform had not diminished. “Representing the country is the best motivation for me. We play cricket for only a span of time. We play for one year to 15 years, some play for 20 years. But in a lifespan, say you live for 70 years, 10-15 years is nothing.”The only thing I can say is that I am representing my country. My biggest motivation is being part of the Indian cricket team. I have always believed that the process is more important than the result. At the end of the day when the match gets over, if I look into the mirror and say to myself that I have tried my best, then I am satisfied.”

The PCB is set to take the BCCI to the ICC’s dispute resolution panel, with the two boards having failed to resolve their long-standing issue of not fulling their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral tours

Umar Farooq14-Sep-20171:47

‘We cannot force countries to tour’ – Richardson

The PCB is set to take the BCCI to the ICC’s dispute resolution panel, with the two boards having failed to resolve their long-standing issue of not fulfilling a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral tours. The matter was initially meant to be resolved through a “good faith negotiation”, but has dragged on with the boards not finding common ground. The PCB has also weighed up all legal options by hiring a UK-based law firm to take the matter to court if it cannot be settled in the corridors of the ICC.”This process which is under the aegis of the ICC has now reached its final point,” the PCB chairman Najam Sethi said, sitting beside the ICC CEO David Richardson on the sidelines of the second T20I between Pakistan and the World XI. “We’ve had our last meetings with India and the last one was under the chairmanship of [former BCCI president and current ICC chairman Shashank] Manohar. That process is over and the next stage will begin. We are in active consultation with our lawyers and I and others are recording our statements with our lawyers.”Within a month or two months at most, we will go back to the ICC – we have in fact written a letter already asking for the nomination of a three-member board that will look at all these issues. We have nominated one member already. This process is active and we intend to pursue it to its logical outcome.”According to the ICC’s terms of reference, both boards have to get into discussions to resolve a dispute amicably. A failure to find a solution within two months, however, would result in the matter being referred to the ICC dispute resolution panel, which will form a three-member board to hear the case. The decision of will be binding on all parties and cannot be appealed.The PCB and BCCI had signed an MoU in 2014 to play six bilateral series between 2015 and 2023. Four of those series were to be hosted by Pakistan and the six series contained up to 14 Tests, 30 ODIs and 12 T20Is. The cycle was scheduled to start with Pakistan hosting two Tests and five ODIs at a mutually acceptable venue. But the MoU included the understanding that all series are subject to government approval and India’s, reportedly, is not keen to give the BCCI a go-ahead amid strained relations between the two countries.Both sides continue to play each other in multi-team events but have not played a full series since the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Pakistan visited India for a limited-overs series in December 2012, which was seen as a stepping stone to reviving cricketing ties between the countries, but there have been no bilateral meetings since amid further border tensions.The leadership of both boards, mediated by the ICC director Giles Clarke, made an attempt to arrange a series in December 2015 with Sri Lanka as a possible venue. But the BCCI remained unresponsive to the PCB and the series was scrapped without official confirmation from India. Pakistan, meanwhile, are set to skip their tour of India next year, with the PCB firm that the cycle of bilateral tours has to begin with them as hosts.Richardson said the ICC would play a facilitating role in trying to resolve the dispute.”As you know when it comes to ICC events there is no question – if India are drawn against Pakistan, they will play,” he said. “On the question of bilateral series between the countries, all bilateral series are agreed upon a bilateral basis. I understand that at the moment diplomatic relations between the two are not as rosy as they could be. For now anyway it seems the BCCI, without the positive affirmation from their government, don’t believe it is the time to play against Pakistan.”I know the PCB has been talking to the BCCI for a number of years to arrange tours with India, in Pakistan or neutral venues. The PCB have filed a complaint under the ICC dispute resolution process which is a mechanism we have to deal with any disputes between member countries. That process is a work in progress. At the moment ICC’s role in this is to facilitate in any dispute – we don’t like our members fighting with each other, being in dispute. We have a process to deal with it and we need to let it take its course.”Pakistan have been playing their home matches at neutral venues, mostly in the UAE, since the 2009 attack on Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore. In 2015, Zimbabwe became the first international team to tour Pakistan since the attack. Now, players from seven major Test nations, along with the ICC, have joined hands to form a World XI team for the cause of bringing international cricket back to Pakistan. India is the only major country apart from Zimbabwe to not feature in the World XI team brought together and coached by Andy Flower.Richardson acknowledged the difficulties of including Indian players in the World XI.”You cannot ignore the political situation that is between India and Pakistan at the moment and the difficulties that might exist,” he said. “India is about to tour Australia and this tour was sandwiched between a very busy FTP [Future Tours Programme]. One of the reasons why many South Africans are in this team is because they haven’t been playing recently. In India’s case they genuinely are a very busy country. From a political point of view, obviously, if an Indian player would have been a part of this tour you can imagine the level of focus he would have attracted and the pressures it would have brought from the security point of view. I think Andy Flower and the PCB have taken a practical approach.”

Having warmed the bench in the Champions Trophy, Ajinkya Rahane has said he was eager to perform well in the Caribbean

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jul-20173:14

‘Perfect innings for me as an opening batsman’ – Rahane

Before the five-match series in the Caribbean, Ajinkya Rahane last played an ODI against England in January 2017. With a fit-again Rohit Sharma reuniting with Shikhar Dhawan at the top of the order in the Champions Trophy and Kedar Jadhav bedding into the middle order and providing handy offspin, Rahane was benched for each of India’s five matches in their run to the Champions Trophy final.The decision to rest Rohit for the West Indies then tour paved the way for Rahane’s recall in the XI. Opening the batting with Shikhar Dhawan, Rahane made three successive fifty-plus scores, including a hundred in the second ODI in Port of Spain. His latest contribution – a measured 72 off 112 balls in the third game in Antigua – laid the groundwork for India securing a 2-0 lead in the series. After warming the bench in England, Rahane has said he is keen to ‘make it count’ in the Caribbean.”When I was not playing in the Champions Trophy I was focussing on my fitness training as well as my batting,” he said. “It is good to learn something or the other about your batting and about your fitness as well but when we came here I was hungry and wanted to do well. I was batting well in the nets here as well as in England. So, I wanted to make it count.”Rahane scored 19 off the first 19 balls he faced, but slowed down later on a sluggish pitch. His strike-rate of 64.28 was the second-slowest since 2010 for openers batting first and facing 110 balls.”That was a perfect innings for me as an opening batsman,” Rahane said. “Even before that game I got 62 runs [in the first ODI] and I was batting really well. In the second game I wanted to make it really count, the century felt really good.”Rahane, though, wasn’t flustered about his underwhelming strike-rate on Friday and insisted that sussing out the conditions was the key. “I can make up for it [slow start]. This wicket was completely different,” he said. “I do practice different shots in the nets but in the game situation you have to read the conditions and play according to that. I was completely comfortable in the middle. I knew I took some time but I knew if I stay there I can make it count in the end. I was not worried at all and I don’t take things for granted.”MS Dhoni and Kedhar Jadhav then built on Rahane’s work and smashed 81 together in 46 balls to lead India to 251 for 4. Rahane said that the late blows were vital in stretching India’s total by an extra 20 runs.”Kedar is a completely different player. He is aggressive, he likes to play his shots, express himself,” Rahane said. “Today was the perfect situation for him, last 8-10 overs, just go out there and express himself. I felt that partnership between Mahi bhai and Kedar was very important. We were looking to score 225-230 but we got 20 extra runs in the end.”

Newcastle United are looking to continue their rapid rebuild this summer ahead of their long-awaited return to Champions League football and now a new update has emerged on their pursuit of Harvey Barnes.

Is Harvey Barnes leaving Leicester?

According to The Telegraph, Newcastle are interested in signing the Leicester City winger this summer.

As per the report, Eddie Howe is keen to add a left winger to his squad during the transfer window and is particularly interested in the services of Barnes.

Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United are also named as potential competitors for the attacker's signature over the coming weeks as Leicester are preparing to lose their talisman due to their relegation from the Premier League last season.

How good is Harvey Barnes?

Despite a huge Saudi-led takeover that made the Tyneside club the richest in the world just 18 months ago, Howe has benefited from the presence of many players who were already playing key roles.

The likes of Callum Wilson, Joelinton, Fabian Schar, Sean Longstaff and Miguel Almiron have all become mainstays at St James' Park during the former Bournemouth boss' first full season in charge – earning a spot inside the Premier League top four which has led to Champions League football next season and competing in the first final of a major trophy since 1999.

However, not everybody has benefited from Howe's strong development of the squad with Allan Saint-Maximin finding his game-time limited to accommodate players who have become more trusted components in the manager's system and tactical philosophy.

As a result, it has led to wide speculation that the Frenchman could leave the club this summer with interest from both Premier League clubs and the Saudi Pro League too, which could ultimately pave the way for Barnes to push him further out of the first team and into the clutches of another club.

Despite Leicester's devastating drop into the Championship last season, Barnes was consistently a standout performer for the Foxes throughout the season and has always displayed an unwavering work ethic in the final third.

Over 187 appearances for Leicester, the 25-year-old – who has a reported price tag of £35m – has scored 45 goals and registered 32 assists, with a goal contribution every 177 minutes. That is an impressive output when considering his diverse skill set.

The Burnley-born talent has been the recipient of high praise over his career so far with Jurgen Klopp a huge admirer of the winger and what he offers on the pitch:

"Barnes is probably one of the biggest talents, I’m not sure if he is respected or appreciated as much as he should be, he is an unbelievable player to be honest, a proper Leicester product."

As per FBref, when comparing Barnes to both Saint-Maximin and Anthony Gordon over last season, the Englishman outperformed both in a number of key attributes including shots on target per 90 (1.13), shots on goal per 90 (2.39), goal contributions (14) and crosses completed (44), proving that he could be a valuable asset and a potential upgrade on Howe's current options on the wide left.

With that being said, Barnes is definitely one to watch for Newcastle this summer, and it will be interesting to see whether his arrival at St James' Park sparks a move away for Saint-Maximin as he would be one of the first starting players to make an exit during Howe's reign so far.

كشفت تقارير صحفية، أن نيمار دا سيلفا، قد يعود إلى سانتوس خلال العام المقبل، بعد انضمامه في الصيف الماضي إلى الهلال السعودي من باريس سان جيرمان.

لاعب باريس سان جيرمان السابق وقع على عقد لمدة عامين مع الهلال، ينتهي في صيف 2025، ولكنه لم يتمكن من خوض أكثر من 3 مباريات في الدوري قبل أن يتعرض لإصابة بقطع في الرباط الصليبي.

طالع أيضًا.. تقارير: 3 أندية سعودية كبيرة مهتمة بضم تريزيجيه في الصيف

وحسب ما أفادت وسائل الإعلام البرازيلية، من خلال شبكة “UOL” أن نيمار يفكر في العودة إلى سانتوس، كما هي العادات للاعبين البرازيليين، الذين يحاولون إنهاء مسيرتهم في الدوري البرازيلي.

سانتوس البرازيلي هو من شهد بزوغ نجم نيمار دا سيلفا، وأفضل فتراته قبل الانضمام إلى برشلونة كانت معهم، قبل أن يرحل في 2013 نحو النادي الكتالوني.

وقام نيمار بزيارة قصيرة إلى فيلا بيلميرو لمشاهدة مباراة سانتوس وبالميراس في نهائي باوليستا، وانتهز الفرصة ليكون قريبًا من المشجعين الذين رأوه ينمو كلاعب محترف، ولم يتردد الجمهور في الهتاف بأسمه، “أولي أولي، عد إلى المنزل يا نيمار”.

New Zealand Cricket is monitoring the situation in Christchurch ahead of the second one-day international against South Africa next Wednesday as bush fires continue to rage in the Port Hills area close to the city.The fires, which started on Monday, have destroyed homes, caused large evacuations, and led to a state of civil emergency being called in Christchurch.Currently, the ODI at Hagley Oval is expected to go ahead but NZC will be taking advice as required. Health warnings have been issued about the smoke from the fires.”We are monitoring the situation and taking note of the advisories,” an NZC spokesman told ESPNcricinfo.Kane Williamson, the New Zealand captain, offered his thoughts to the people of Christchurch. “It’s pretty devastating, the Cantabs have had a very tough time of it recently and to see the fires, we certainly hope they are out or under control very quickly. It’s obviously a tough time for them.”The fourth ODI of the series on March was moved from Napier to Hamilton earlier this week due to the concerns about the outfield at McLean Park following the abandoned match against Australia.

Liverpool could yet swoop in and try to sign Edmond Tapsoba from under Tottenham's noses, with 90min reporting that the Reds are monitoring the situation and have been "informed" of what is going on with the player.

How has Edmond Tapsoba played this season?

With 33 games and 32 starts in the league for Bayer Leverkusen over the 2022/23 season, the defender has now become a key player for the German side. He is a regular feature in their defensive line and is a reliable face at the back for them. In fact, since joining from Vitoria, the player has already racked up a total of 100 top flight games for the Bundesliga outfit. That's despite the fact he is still only 24-years-old – showing just how important he has become to the club.

In addition, he also averages 5.76 progressive passes per 90 and 1.46 progressive carries per 90. They rank him within the top eight percent for both categories amongst other centre-backs across the Men's 'Top Five' big leagues in Europe – and it shows how crucial to a team's build-up he can be from his deep position.

Now, these showings have caught the eye of Premier League teams. Tottenham have seemingly been leading the race to bring him in, but it might not be so straightforward according to a fresh report from 90min. It states that there are several other English sides, including Liverpool, who have now been "informed" about the ongoing situation.

With the Reds looking for another centre-back option, they are now keeping tabs on the Spurs target.

What could Edmond Tapsoba cost?

There is no mention of what a potential fee could be for the player, but CIES Football Observatory suggest that he could cost around 30 million Euros (or £26m). If that is the case, then Tapsoba would earn current club Bayer Leverkusen a profit on what they signed him for, whilst also not costing whichever club does snap him up a fortune in transfer fees.

He could be worth that amount too if that does turn out to be his value. Football journalist Josh Bunting has stated that the defender's stock "keeps rising" because of how good he has been in Germany and also added that he is very "attack-minded" for a player who predominantly plays in a backline, while journalist Jack Collins has called him "sensational".

It means that, if Liverpool did decide to act on this interest and try and bring him in, they could land a player that could fit straight into their defence and contribute at both ends of the field.