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Liverpool's attention appears to be on signing Bayern Munich midfielder Ryan Gravenberch, with the Dutchman poised to complete Jurgen Klopp's midfield rebuild at Anfield.

This follows signings for creative pairing Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai and the acquisition of experienced holding midfielder Wataru Endo, with the latter targetted after the club missed out on both Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia to Chelsea.

The defence has been left untouched despite seeing 47 Premier League goals shipped last season compared to 26 across the 2021/22 campaign, where the Reds finished one point behind champions Manchester City.

It appears unlikely, but Liverpool could complete a swoop for a centre-back before the transfer window closes tonight, with Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie at the top of the shopping list.

Will Liverpool sign Piero Hincapie?

According to reliable journalist Ian Doyle on Thursday, Liverpool "should" be in for Hincapie if his German outfit grants his departure for around £40m.

In a Q&A, the reporter said: "In terms of Hincapie, it does sound like Bayer Leverkusen want a LOT of money for him. If he was available for £40m or so then the Reds should really be in for him."

Read the latest Liverpool transfer news HERE…

However, such a scenario appears somewhat unlikely, with BILD's Christian Falk claiming that Xabi Alonso's side could demand as much as €70m (£60m) for the 21-year-old's signature.

How good is Piero Hincapie?

Described as an "absolute beast" by scout Antonio Mango, who also tipped the player to become "one of the world's best centre-backs", Hincapie would be a worthy addition to a Liverpool team targetting a resurgence.

Dubbed a “wall” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, the Ecuadorian ace has made 76 appearances for Leverkusen despite his tender age and forged 27 displays for his nation, including playing every minute of Ecuador's 2022 World Cup campaign.

Hailed as a "prodigy" by editor Jose de Jesus Ortiz, Hincapie is already one of the finest ball-playing, progressive centre-halfs in Europe, ranking among the top 19% of centre-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for shot-creating actions, the top 16% for passes attempted, the top 3% for progressive carries, the top 17% for successful take-ons and the top 11% for tackles per 90, as per FBref.

The £34k-per-week gem favours his left foot and therefore fits the profile Liverpool are looking for, which could allow Virgil van Dijk to shift to his preferred right side and finally provide Klopp with a left-footed central defender on Merseyside, in a move that will likely see Joe Gomez edge further toward the periphery.

According to RMC Sport, Gomez is attracting attention from Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad, with the Daily Mirror also claiming that West Ham United are considering a swoop for the England international.

Gomez has fallen by the wayside over the past few years after playing a central role in Liverpool's Champions League and Premier League-winning seasons during 2018/19-2019/20, now branded "finished" after a dismal performance in the final game of the 2022/23 season, a chaotic 4-4 draw against relegated Southampton.

While he was once hailed as "sensational" by Klopp, Gomez looks a shadow of his former self and is unlikely to cement a regular starting berth under Klopp's stewardship again, with the likes of Hincapie earmarked and Ibrahima Konate and Van Dijk the established axis.

Gomez is unlikely to go anywhere any time soon, even if Liverpool do pull off a galvanising deal for the more "confident" Hincapie – as he has been called by Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes – given Klopp won't want to sell himself short, but pulling off a swoop for the young centre-back could prove the difference in a crucial campaign.

MatériaMais Notícias

Protagonistas da decisão do Campeonato Carioca deste ano, Fluminense e Flamengo voltam a se encontrar no Maracanã, desta vez pela oitava rodada do Brasileirão.Separadas por apenas três pontos na tabela, com o Tricolor em oitavo e o Rubro-Negro em quinto, as equipes fazem um confronto direto para seguir na parte de cima da competição.

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O time de Odair Hellmann chega em baixa após um empate com o Atlético-GO em casa e uma derrota de virada para o São Paulo no Morumbi. Além disso, o treinador perdeu um de seus jogadores mais importantes, o atacante Evanilson, vendido para o Porto (POR). Portanto, o dilema para escalar o ataque continua forte nas Laranjeiras.

Já o Flamengo completou três vitórias consecutivas e começa a dar mais tranquilidade ao trabalho do treinador Domènec Torrent. A equipe, porém, terá desfalques importantes. Os goleiros Diego Alves e César continuam em tratamento de Covid-19, enquanto Bruno Henrique, Pedro Rocha e João Lucas estão no departamento médico.

FICHA TÉCNICA
FLUMINENSE X FLAMENGO

Estádio: Maracanã, no Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
Data e hora: 9 de setembro de 2020, às 21h30
Árbitro: Raphael Claus (Fifa/SP)
Assistentes: Danilo Ricardo Simon Manis (Fifa/SP) e Neuza Ines Back (Fifa/SP)
Árbitro de vídeo: Luiz Flávio de Oliveira (Fifa/SP)
Onde ver: Globo, Premiere e tempo real do LANCE!

FLUMINENSE (Técnico: Odair Hellmann)
Marcos Felipe; Calegari, Nino, Luccas Claro, Egídio; Yuri, Dodi, Nenê; Michel Araújo, Marcos Paulo (Fred) e Wellington Silva.

Desfalques: Frazan, lesionado, Muriel e Fred, dúvidas
Pendurados: Fred, Ganso e Nino
Suspensos: Ninguém

FLAMENGO (Técnico: Domènec Torrent)
Gabriel Batista; Isla, Rodrigo Caio, Léo Pereira e Filipe Luís (Renê); Arão, Gerson, Everton Ribeiro e Arrascaeta; Michael e Gabriel Barbosa.

Desfalques: Diego Alves e César, ambos com Covid-19, e Bruno Henrique, João Lucas e Pedro Rocha, lesionados.
Pendurados: Everton Ribeiro, Diego, Gerson e Gabriel Barbosa.
Suspensos: Ninguém

Palpites: Na redação do LANCE!, 65% apostam na vitória do Flamengo, enquanto 15% acham que o Fluminense sairá vitorioso e 20% acreditam no empate.

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.

تقدم فريق العين الإماراتي على نظيره يوكوهاما مارينوس الياباني بهدف دون رد، في المباراة الجارية حاليًا بينهما في إطار ذهاب نهائي بطولة دوري أبطال آسيا.

ويستضيف يوكوهاما منافسه العين الإماراتي، في إطار ذهاب نهائي دوري أبطال آسيا، على ملعب “نيسان”.

وافتتح محمد عباس التسجيل للعين في الدقيقة 12 من زمن الشوط الأول، بعد أن استغل ارتداد الكرة من حارس مرمى يوكوهاما إثر تسديدة قوية من سفيان رحيمي.

طالع أيضًا | فيديو | خالد عيسى: العين عوض خسائره بـ”الكبيرة”.. وهناك فرق “صرفت اللي قدامها ووراها” من أجل أبطال آسيا

وكان العين قد تأهل للمباراة النهائية بعد تخطي عقبة الهلال السعودي بنتيجة 5-4 في مجموع مباراتي الذهاب والإياب بنصف النهائي.

بينما تخطي فريق يوكاهاما الياباني منافسه أولسان هيونداي في دور نصف النهائي بضربات التريجيح بعد انتهاء مباراتي الذهاب والإياب بنتيجة 3-3.

يذكر، أن مباراة الإياب ستقام يوم السبت الموافق 25 مايو الجاري، على ملعب “هزاع بن زايد”، الساعة السابعة مساءً بتوقيت مصر والسعودية. هدف العين الإماراتي الأول في مرمى يوكوهاما الياباني بنهائي دوري أبطال آسيا

Manchester United will focus on "new midfielders" in the coming weeks, and Fiorentina's Morroco star Sofyan Amrabat is "one of the big names on the list", claims transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

Is Sofyan Amrabat joining Manchester United?

The transfer window is in full swing at Old Trafford following a sluggish start that was dominated more by takeover talk than it was transfer talk.

The first name Erik ten Hag welcomed through the doors was former Chelsea academy star and full England international Mason Mount, who joined the side for just £55m after a protracted back and forth saga that felt like it would never end.

Just two weeks later, the club welcomed their new number one to the Northwest, Inter Milans highly rated goalkeeper Andre Onana. The Cameroon international was already a priority target for the Red Devils, but after David de Gea left the club on July 1st, his signing went from important to essential.

The next name that looks to be on the way to the Theater of Dreams following Onana is Atalanta's Danish prodigy, Rasmus Hojlund. According to the Daily Mail, the three-time European champions are 'poised' to make their opening offer to the Bergamo side.

However, even with these three new starters coming into the side, ten Hag will look to add at least one more body to his midfield before the new season gets underway, especially once the club have completed the sales of Fred and Scott McTominay.

The name most touted to fill that gap in midfield has been Fiorentina and Morocco star Amrabat, who had a brilliant campaign last year and, according to transfers expert, Fabrizio Romano is definitely on the club's list.

He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:

"Once they complete the outgoings, Man United will focus on new midfielders and Sofyan Amrabat, for sure, is one of the big names on the list."

How good is Sofyan Amrabat?

The last 12 months might've been Amrabat's best as a professional footballer thus far. He excelled for I Viola on the domestic scene and was an instrumental player in Morocco's run to the World Cup semi-final in December.

So good were his performances for the Atlas Lions that journalist Nigel Adderley declared him Morocco's "player of the tournament."

His performances also won plaudits from Sky Sports, who placed him at the heart of their Team of the Tournament.

His underlying numbers are interesting as they demonstrate that he shines in certain areas, like his passing, whereas in others, like his defensive contribution, he somewhat flatters to deceive. However, systematic changes around him could potentially mitigate any of his shortcomings.

According to FBref, who compare players in similar positions across Europe's top five leagues, the 26-year-old "monster" sits in the top 5% for pass completion, the top 8% for progressive passes, the top 11% for passes attempted and the top 33% for progressive carries, all per 90.

However, he also finds himself in the bottom 42% for interceptions, the bottom 34% for clearances, the bottom 32% for tackles, and the bottom 30% for blocks, also all per 90.

While a few elements of his game could potentially be worked on, Amrabat has more than proven his quality over the last year and would be a brilliant signing for United.

Ben Cotton celebrates a wicket•Getty Images

New Zealand fast bowler Matt Henry starred in an outstanding bowling performance by the Derbyshire Falcons who beat Leicestershire Foxes by seven wickets at Derby to boost their NatWest Blast T20 quarter-final hopes.Henry took 3 for 18 in his four overs as the Foxes were restricted to 104 for 9, their lowest T20 score against Derbyshire who recovered from losing early wickets to claim their fifth victory in the North Group.The Foxes managed only eight boundaries in their 20 overs and although Deitar Klein struck twice in the third over, Wayne Madsen with 49 and Alex Hughes, 36, shared an unbroken stand of 86 to steer the Falcons home with 37 balls to spare.It was the fourth consecutive defeat for the Foxes who went into the game without injured fast bowler Clint McKay and then lost their most destructive batsmen in only the second over after the Falcons put them in.Luke Ronchi played on when he was cramped for room by Hardus Viljoen and for the rest of the innings the Foxes struggled to get the ball away against disciplined bowling with only 29 coming from the powerplay.Mark Cosgrove was run out going for a quick single to cover and although Cameron Delport swung Madsen high over wide long on for six, he holed out attempting to repeat the stroke.Colin Ackermann also fell trying to up the tempo when he pulled Ben Cotton’s first ball to deep midwicket and after Mark Pettini miscued a pull at Henry, the Foxes were 77 for 5 in the 15th over.Any hope of a late flourish vanished as Aadil Ali and Mathews Pillans both tried to attack Imran Tahir and failed and the innings crumbled in the closing stages with Matt Henry striking twice in the 19th over.Gavin Griffiths at least took the Foxes past 100 when he straight Ben Cotton for four but that was the first boundary for 58 balls which underlined just how well the Falcons had bowled and fielded.To have any chance of defending their lowest ever T20 score against Derbyshire, the Foxes had to take early wickets and after Matt Critchley had to retire in the first over when he was struck on the helmet by Deiter Klein, Billy Godleman was caught behind driving at Pillans.After a brief shower, Luis Reece was caught behind down the legside off Klein who swung one back in to bowl Gary Wilson off the last ball of the third over to reduce the Falcons to 21 for 3.Madsen took two fours from Pillans second over and the fast bowler was cut and driven for two more boundaries in his next over to calm the home side’s nerves as the fourth wicket pair completed an impressive afternoon’s work in the 14th over.

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.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:14

Highlights – Smith 74 helps Lions ease to win

Hashim Amla scored his second century of the tournament, only the third player to do so in an IPL season, but Kings XI Punjab’s playoff chances were dented with their sixth loss in 11 matches. Staying fifth on the table, the gap between them and fourth-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad remained three points. Amla’s first century – against Mumbai Indians – had also gone in vain when Kings XI could not defend 198, and on Sunday night, they failed to defend 189 against Gujarat Lions.Not in contention for the playoffs, Lions were depleted without international recruits Andrew Tye, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Bravo and Jason Roy (on national duty), and played only three against Kings XI – Dwayne Smith, Aaron Finch and James Faulkner. Smith’s power-packed 74 off 39 balls gave their chase a rollicking start and threw Kings XI’s plans off track: none of their first three bowlers – Sandeep Sharma, Mohit Sharma and Varun Aaron – struck in their first spells. When Smith departed in the 12th over, they needed 70 off 52 balls, and even though Suresh Raina and Dinesh Karthik did not finish it off smoothly, Karthik stayed till the end to seal a nervy last-over win.

Sandeep penalised

Sandeep Sharma was fined 50% of his match fees for showing dissent against an umpire’s decision. There were no details of the incident in the press release sent out by the IPL, but it is likely the penalty was in response to an incident that occurred in the fifth over of Kings XI’s bowling innings. Sandeep was issued a no-ball for going around the wicket to the left-handed Ishan Kishan without informing the on-field official Nand Kishore. He admitted to the Level 1 offence and accepted the sanction.

The openers’ muscleThe top order of both sides came to the fore to score over 380 runs on a slowish Mohali pitch. When Kings XI were asked to bat, their innings was set up by a second-wicket century stand between Amla and Shaun Marsh. Amla was the more aggressive of the two, after he took off against Pradeep Sangwan in the third over with consecutive fours and relied on boundaries towards the end for the late surge his team needed. He used his supple wrists and crisp drives to mainly score in front of square, bringing up his half-century off 35 balls. His partnership of 125 with Marsh set the tone for a brisk finish, which included 66 runs off the last five overs.Smith, Amla’s counterpart, had not scored a fifty in 10 IPL innings and, before this game, had managed only 103 runs in nine innings this season, with single-digit scores in his last six innings. This time, he used his powerful arms to smash eight fours in the Powerplay, scoring 43 out of the team’s 58. He targeted the region in the ‘V’ down the ground and was even more aggressive once the spinners, Axar Patel and Glenn Maxwell, came on. He had lost his partner Ishan Kishan at the halfway mark but had brought the equation down to 87 from 60 with his 28-ball half-century.Left-handed second fiddles In the first innings, Marsh had been middling strokes from his first ball but was unable to find gaps. His role, since Amla was scoring easily, was merely to stick around and rotate the strike. Marsh’s cue to score briskly came when he faced two spinners – Ravindra Jadeja and Ankit Soni – as both brought the ball into him. He milked runs on the leg side, showcased his trademark cuts square of the pitch and scored a useful 58 off 43.During the chase, Kishan had a similar role to play. Once Smith started using his flashy bat-swings to collect boundaries, Kishan made sure he took those singles, scored at more than run-a-ball and saw off the opening bowlers. A left-hander just like Marsh, he also took off once the spinners came on. Facing Maxwell in the eighth over, Kishan pulled and cut to collect 12 from the over with Smith’s help. Kishan’s 29 off 24 was not quite a match-winning knock but did the job the team needed with Smith firing.Dropping those sittersWhether you spot any other trend in this IPL or not, the spate of dropped catches is unmissable. The first catch that went down on Sunday was the toughest – Jadeja’s leaping attempt from backward point with Amla on 12 – but the ones that followed made only one team look shabby: Kings XI.The simplest of those proved the costliest. David Miller had enough time to circle the ground and still get under a Smith skier in the sixth over but he put it down with the batsman on 42. Two overs later, Smith smashed one down the ground towards Gurkeerat, who did well to dive forward but could not hold on. Smith was on 51. Lions were soon cruising with Raina and Karthik in a stable partnership, but the Lions captain offered Kings XI a chance too, in the 17th over. He miscued a drive to Gurkeerat’s right at long-off and the fielder got his hands under the ball this time but out it popped again. “The bowlers and fielders let us down, we dropped three crucial catches,” Maxwell bluntly stated later.

Martin Guptill’s good form should work in the favour of the visitors as they face a must-win situation in Canberra

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale05-Dec-2016Match factsDecember 6, 2016
Start time 1420 local (0320 GMT)1:18

‘We need to take our innings deeper’ – Munro

Big PictureNew Zealand must have left the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday night thinking, “if only”. If only they had asked for a review when Steven Smith was given not-out by umpire Mick Martell after being trapped lbw on 14, the first ODI might have unfolded quite differently. Trent Boult’s fine delivery had swung in and trapped Smith in front, but New Zealand declined to refer Martell’s decision upstairs. “There was plenty of chat afterwards about that,” New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said. “There were two sounds and the possibility of an inside edge. We’re all well aware there wasn’t. That was the thinking and you could understand it. It was a little bit frustrating.” The reason it was frustrating was that Smith went on to accumulate 164 and set up a big win for Australia.The teams now move on to Canberra with Australia 1-0 up in the three-match series, so New Zealand must win at the Manuka Oval on Tuesday to have any hope of retaining the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy. The good news for New Zealand is that they had one batsman who looked every bit as dangerous as Smith at the SCG, but unfortunately for them, Martin Guptill couldn’t go quite as deep into the innings as Smith, and fell for 114 off 102 balls. The toss may be particularly important in Canberra, where big runs are generally available, and the team batting first has won the six most recent ODIs.Form guideAustralia: WLLLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand: LLWLW
In the spotlightA golden duck in Sydney was hardly the start Aaron Finch wanted in this series, but he will be pleased to arrive in Canberra for the second game. Take a look at Finch’s scores in his three ODIs at the Manuka Oval: 38, 109 and 107. His last two hundreds at the venue have come against South Africa and India, and Finch could use a big score again: in 18 ODIs since the end of the previous home summer, Finch has averaged just 26.25.After New Zealand lost Guptill, their hopes of chasing down the hefty target in Sydney faded. But, while Colin Munro was at the crease, there remained at least a tiny glimmer of hope. Munro struck four fours and one six in his innings of 49, and put on 50 for the eighth wicket with Matt Henry. While they were together, the required run rate hovered around nine an over, but at least it didn’t balloon too much further. But when they both holed out in one Pat Cummins over – the 44th of the innings – the dream was dashed. “It was a different sort of knock than what I’m used to playing,” Munro said. “Given that role to try and take things a bit deeper in the innings sort of suits my game. Hopefully, in the games to come, we can have a few extra batters around me at the end and have a bit of a hit.”Lockie Ferguson had a forgettable debut in Sydney and may make way for Tim Southee•Cricket Australia/Getty ImagesTeam newsGlenn Maxwell and James Faulkner were the two members of Australia’s 13-man squad left out in Sydney, and the selectors may wish to retain the winning XI in an attempt to secure the series.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch, 3, Steven Smith (capt), 4 George Bailey, 5 Mitchell Marsh, 6 Travis Head, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Adam Zampa, 10 Pat Cummins, 11 Josh Hazlewood.Lockie Ferguson picked up a wicket in his first international over, but the rest of his debut was rather costly: he leaked 73 runs from nine overs, sent down four no-balls and therefore four free hits, and also cramped up. Tim Southee might come in for Ferguson in Canberra. New Zealand may also wonder if their batting order could be strengthened by the inclusion of Henry Nicholls.New Zealand (possible) 1 Tom Latham, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Jimmy Neesham, 5 Colin Munro, 6 BJ Watling (wk), 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 Colin de Grandhomme, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Trent Boult.Pitch and conditionsManuka Oval is the kind of venue where big totals are on offer batting first, and chasing can be a challenge. The forecast for Tuesday is for a shower or two and a top temperature of 28 degrees centigrade.Stats and trivia In Sydney, Guptill became the tenth-fastest player to 5000 ODI runs, behind Hashim Amla, Viv Richards, Virat Kohli, Brian Lara, Gordon Greenidge, AB de Villiers, Sourav Ganguly, Dean Jones and Graeme Smith. This will be Kane Williamson’s 100th one-day international. Adam Zampa enters this game as the world’s leading ODI wicket-taker in 2016, with 30 scalps at 27.80. His feat is all the more impressive given he didn’t make his ODI debut until February in New Zealand.Quotes”We were a little bit frustrated with the fact we chased the game with the ball. We had some good plans in place and perhaps we need to back those a bit more. We weren’t far off.”

Rangers have signalled their interest in signing Los Angeles FC winger Kwadwo Opoku, though their Old Firm rivals are also in the race, according to a recent report.

What's the latest Rangers transfer news?

With Ryan Kent leaving Ibrox this summer, Michael Beale will need to bring in a replacement, and the manager has started to run the rule over a number of potential targets.

Having missed out on him in January, the Gers have recently reignited their interest in signing Swansea City's Morgan Whittaker, while Sunderland's Jack Clarke is also an option, with Beale trying to get the majority of his transfer business done early.

The Light Blues have also considered some more unknown players from abroad, including Aris Thessaloniki star Luis Palma, as well as Brian Gutierrez, who currently plays for MLS side Chicago Fire.

Another MLS player that Beale has set his sights on is Opoku, according to Fussball Transfers (via Sport Witness), with it being reported that Los Angeles FC may allow him to leave for anywhere between €3.7m and €4.8m (£3.2m-£4.1m)

Both Rangers and Celtic have signalled their interest in the Ghanaian, placing him on their summer target list, but there is set to be a great deal of competition for his signature, with the likes of Stuttgart, Nice and Bordeaux also named as potential suitors.

At the moment, Los Angeles FC are under no pressure to sell the 21-year-old, as he is contracted until the end of this calendar year, with the option of an extra year.

Who is Kwadwo Opoku?

The Accra-born attacker has started to make a name for himself in MLS, after signing for Los Angeles FC back in October 2020, weighing in with seven goals and two assists in the 2022 regular season.

During the current campaign, the starlet has picked up where he left off, making 13 appearances in the league, and he has averaged 1.5 dribbles per game – the fourth-highest figure in the squad – while 0.8 key passes ranks him fifth.

Football scout Jacek Kulig has previously given an overview of the 5 foot 7 speedster's key traits, claiming that he possesses "pace", "acceleration" and "flair" – all of which are important qualities for an attacking player.

Opoku is still young and relatively unproven, so signing him would undoubtedly be a risk, but he has all the key attributes to become a top-quality player.