It was a tale of two birthday boys in Bengaluru. Baroda’s left-arm quick Lukman Meriwala celebrated by nabbing three top-order wickets in the same over, before Bengal allrounder Shahbaz Ahmed kept his side alive with a half-century in the chase of 173. Shahbaz ran out of partners though, and Baroda beat Bengal by 41 runs to book their place in the semi-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.Bengal were off to a steady start with 28 runs on the board after three overs, before Meriwala’s dream over. He had Karan Lal chopping on for 6, trapped Sudip Kumar Gharami lbw for 2, and took a stunning return catch to dismiss Writtick Chatterjee for a duck.Next over, Atit Sheth added to the damage by having a dangerous-looking Abishek Porel caught at mid-on for 22 off 13 balls. That is when Shahbaz walked out at No. 6, and joined hands with Ritwik Roy Chowdhury. Despite being 31 for 4 in a tall chase, Chowdhury and Shahbaz counterattacked by cracking four boundaries and a six off the first nine balls of their partnership.Shahbaz then swung Sheth for six and also drove him for a boundary in the eighth over, while Chowdhury whacked Hardik Pandya for six over fine leg in the tenth. But next ball, Hardik had Chowdhury caught behind, leaving Bengal at 88 for 5 at the halfway stage, and Shahbaz with too much to do. Although Shahbaz kept losing partners, he smacked 55 off 36 balls with three fours and four sixes before falling to Sheth in the 18th over.The base for Baroda’s total of 172 was laid by their openers Shashwat Rawat and Abhimanyusingh Rajput. They had taken their time to settle in on a slow pitch, with Rajput riding his luck in the powerplay. First, he was dropped on 4 by Chowdhury off Mohammed Shami in the opening over of the game (Shami would finish with the expensive figures of 4-0-43-2). Then, with Rajput on 16, Bengal’s review for a not-out on-field call for lbw off Kanishk Seth returned umpire’s call.Rajput and Rawat upped the rate with 50 runs on the board after the powerplay and all ten wickets intact. Shahbaz was slashed over extra cover for four and reverse swept for six. In the eighth over, Rajput swat-pulled Saksham Choudhary for six over long-on, before Rawat heaved and Rajput slapped Shahbaz for six and four more.Their stand ended on 90 in the tenth over, and that started a phase where Baroda lost 4 for 23 within five overs. But handy cameos from Shivalik Sharma (24 off 17), Bhanu Pania (17 off 11) and Vishnu Solanki (16* off 7) ensured Baroda posted 51 in the last four overs. In the end, the 172 they took their side to proved more than enough.

Leeds United only have two more friendly fixtures left for this summer before the Premier League season finally kicks off.

The remaining matches on the schedule will test Daniel Farke’s Whites ahead of their journey up to the top flight, as Villarreal travel to Elland Road at the start of August, before a trip to Ireland takes place for the West Yorkshire side’s clash with AC Milan.

Anton Stach will hope he’s given his first runout in Leeds white against the visitors from Spain, having just signed on the dotted line for £17.4m.

He is unlikely to be the final signing of Leeds’ action-packed summer, however, as plenty more signings are tipped to join Farke’s camp before Everton come to town next month.

Leeds still chasing £26m attacker

Sunderland have eclipsed Leeds’ spending when considering the business conducted by the promoted clubs, with the Black Cats splashing out £30m on just one player when snapping up Habib Diarra.

The Whites could blow their spending out of the water if they’re willing to fork out a crazy £50m to land Fulham striker Rodrigo Muniz, with that high amount being the wild price tag above the Brazilian’s head courtesy of the Cottagers.

There also appears to be a deal now wrapped up for Lyon goalkeeper Lucas Perri to join the club, but the newly promoted side isn’t just looking at Muniz in isolation when it comes to some statement deals in attack.

Indeed, reports seem to suggest that Leeds are still very much chasing after long-term target Igor Paixao, with an update from Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph indicating that Farke and Co. are “closely monitoring” the unfolding situation with the Feyenoord winger.

At one stage, it looked like a formality that Marseille were going to wrap up a £26m deal for the entertaining forward. However, that deal has gone cold, meaning the Whites have returned to the dramatic race.

Leeds have been here before when splashing the cash on a thrilling addition from Europe, with Farke full of hope surely that Paixao can be his next iteration of Georginio Rutter if a move finally gets over the line.

Why Paixao can become Farke's next Rutter

Rutter would join the building for a mammoth £35.5m in January of 2023, and minus a rocky start at Leeds as they were relegated down to the Championship, the Frenchman was a firm fan’s favourite for the majority of his electric Elland Road stay.

Indeed, the 2023/24 campaign would see Rutter consistently dazzle EFL defences under Farke’s wing, culminating in him registering a mind-blowing seven goals and 16 assists across the span of the ultimately disappointing campaign, as Leeds failed to immediately break back into the Premier League.

Rutter’s whirlwind journey in West Yorkshire would then come to an abrupt end here as he moved onto the Premier League anyway with Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Whites shouldn’t hold the same concerns that Paixao will look to jump ship so soon into his stint, however, with the Brazilian looking readymade to cause a storm in the testing division after Farke and Co. clinched promotion, if his Eredivisie heroics are anything to go by.

Paixao’s Eredivisie numbers last season (24/25)
Stat – per 90 mins*	Paixao
Games played	34
Goals scored	16
Assists	10
Touches*	48.1
Accurate passes*	20.6 (78%)
Big chances missed	11
Big chances created	12
Stats by Sofascore

The direct, “explosive” nature of the £26m attacker – as he’s been labelled by football talent scout Jacek Kulig – was on full display last campaign in the Netherlands, as seen in his colossal tally of 16 goals and ten assists in league action, which eclipses the total amassed by Rutter during the 2023/24 season by three goal contributions.

The agile 5-foot-6 winger should hopefully be able to slot into the Leeds set-up and be equally as devastating, having also been hailed as “incredible” by his Feyenoord manager Robin Van Persie, who definitely knows a thing or two about exciting forward players.

A handful of a player, like Rutter, Paixao is particularly adept at making his presence felt in the final third, having ranked in the top 12% of Eredivisie wingers for touches in the attacking penalty area last season, at an average of 5.48 per 90, as per FBref. Rutter, for context, averaged a similar figure of 5.49 in the Championship in 2023/24.

Both a goalscorer and creator, like the Frenchman, the Feyenoord sensation also mirrors his attacking counterpart in being able to operate in a variety of attacking roles, be it off his favoured left flank or in a central berth.

Paixao will also already be aware of the hallowed ground of Elland Road and the impact stars like him can have on the adoring masses, with the 25-year-old once sourcing Raphinha as a direct source of inspiration as his career unwinds.

He could even boldly attempt to replicate Raphinha’s success story in West Yorkshire in being another sparkling gem that enables Leeds to stay afloat in the top-flight, as the excitement levels continue to build ahead of the Premier League campaign starting.

Better than Muniz: 49ers open first talks to sign "ridiculous" CF for Leeds

Leeds United might prefer to clinch a deal for this ridiculous striker over chasing after Rodrigo Muniz.

5

By
Kelan Sarson

Jul 23, 2025

Juventus head coach Igor Tudor has claimed Inter are the strongest Serie A side, and perhaps they are better than last season’s champions Napoli. This comment comes after the Bianconeri defeated their archrivals on Saturday, as the Derby d'Italia ended in a seven-goal thriller at the Allianz Stadium, giving them a perfect send-off for their Champions League opener.

• Juventus won without giving their all

  Tudor claims Juventus were not at their best against Inter and missed some of their players in the wake of the international break as they sealed the win thanks to a late stunner from Vasilije Adzic. The coach said: “We played against the strongest team in Serie A in terms of squad, in my opinion they are even ahead of Napoli. We won without giving our all and that's a good thing, we were missing some important players and we had some problems with the guys who left for international duty. We weren't at our best and we still won, that's my observation."

Advertisement

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Juventus privileged to play in Champions League

  Tudor's mean now turn their attention to the Champions League, kicking off their campaign with a home game against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday. 

  The Turin side failed to progress past the League phase last term under former manager Thiago Motta. Tudor will hope the triumph against Inter will inject confidence into his side as he prepares for his first European clash with the Italian giants and is sure his players will not be suffering from fatigue from the chaotic weekend win. 

  "It's the start of a new competition that all the players enjoy," he said. "It's a different tournament; if you qualify, it becomes even more different. It's beautiful and fascinating. You prepare like the others. My experience as a coach in the Champions League is that all the players forget about tiredness, etc. Everyone's goal is to play in the Champions League; it's a privilege."

• Preparation remains the same

  Tudor has claimed that he is not taking any separate measures before facing Dortmund, a team they defeated earlier this season in a friendly. He said: “I feel ready to be a coach and do my job to the fullest. Tomorrow's match isn't prepared any differently than the one against Inter. It has nothing to do with the Champions League, the Conference, or anything else; everyone prepares to their full potential.”

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• AFP
  

  Tudor’s side have a better head-to-head record

  Over the last five Champions League matches between Juventus and Dortmund, the Italian side have emerged victorious on three occasions, while losing out on the other two.

ذكرت تقارير إعلامية اليوم الأحد، أن أسطورة نادي برشلونة والكرة الإسبانية، تشافي هيرنانديز قد يعود إلى التدريب من جديد في أحد الأندية العربية خلال الفترة المقبلة.

ولا يدرب تشافي هيرنانديز أي ناد منذ رحيله عن الإدارة الفنية لنادي برشلونة بنهاية موسم 2024، وذلك بعدما دخل في خلاف مع الرئيس خوان لابورتا.

ومر تشافي بعدة مراحل في مسيرته التدريبية، حيث أشرف على تدريب كل من السد القطري وبرشلونة.

وقاد تشافي برشلونة إلى تحقيق لقب الدوري الإسباني في موسم 2023، وكذلك الحصول على لقب كأس السوبر الإسباني على حساب ريال مدريد.

اقرأ أيضًا .. قائمة برشلونة لمباراة ريال سوسيداد في الدوري الإسباني .. موقف لامين يامال

وذكر الصحفي المعروف، ماتيو موريتو، أن تشافي قد يعود للتدريب من جديد خلال الفترة المقبلة، وذلك عبر بوابة الدوري السعودي للمحترفين.

وأشار موريتو عبر حسابه الرسمي في “إكس”، إلى أن تشافي من بين المرشحين المحتملين لتدريب نادي اتحاد جدة، وذلك خلفًا للوران بلان المقال من منصبه.

Xavi es una de las opciones para el banquillo del Al-Ittihad. Conversaciones en curso entre las partes, y hay otros candidatos en liza. — Matteo Moretto (@MatteMoretto) September 28, 2025

وأقالت إدارة اتحاد جدة بلان من منصبه كمدير فني للفريق، عقب خسارة النادي أمام النصر يوم الجمعة الماضي بهدفين دون رد، وذلك في قمة الدوري السعودي للمحترفين.

ويحتل اتحاد جدة المركز الثالث في ترتيب الدوري السعودي برصيد 9 نقاط، عبر مرور أربع جولات على بداية المسابقة.

 

Aston Villa had a quiet start to the window but it appears to be ramping up in the final few weeks. The club was at risk of breaching the Premier League’s PSR rules, but with the impending sale of Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle, they have more freedom to spend.

Unai Emery has already brought in Nice forward Evann Guessand for around £30 million – the boss seems to have been a major contributing factor in the 24 year-old’s decision to come to Birmingham, as in one of his first interviews as a Villa player, he spoke of their relationship.

Villa are looking to quickly follow up this signing with another forward who has already spent some time with the club.

Villa working to bring back Asensio

With the sale of Jacob Ramsey almost complete, Aston Villa have started the process of bringing Marco Asensio back to the club (Sky Sports). Asensio joined Villa on loan from PSG from January until the end of the 24/25 season, but until now, there have been no official moves to make the signing permanent.

Negotiations are already proceeding well, with an agreement in place with the player to sign a three-year contract with all other personal terms having been agreed. On the club front, PSG has already informed Asensio that they are open to selling him in the event that a satisfactory offer is received.

Later this week, Villa are expected to place their first official bid with PSG, with a figure of £17.2 million including bonuses being their asking price.

Asensio to build on his fantastic first impression

From the moment Asensio joined Villa last season, he seemed to buy into Emery’s vision and the club’s project. In February, he held an interview with Sky: “Happy to join the project, be with my teammates and staff, and grateful to be able to give a lot of joy to the fans as well. I want to be able to help us achieve the goals that we have, collectively, as a team and a club.”

His teammates also took a liking to him, with Matty Cash calling him a “Mentality Monster”. His teammates would also have loved his creativity, as he featured in the top 25% of players for chances created per 90 minutes.

As a well-regarded figure, both in the dressing room and global football, who already has a good relationship with the club and the manager, resigning Asensio on a three-year deal for less than £20 million feels like a no-brainer for Villa.

“The most frustrating thing is that it’s always an issue depending on where you are in the world and the style of cricket that’s played”

Vithushan Ehantharajah04-Dec-2024

Shoaib Bashir bowled 20 of England’s 91 overs in the first innings of the first Test•Joe Allison/Getty Images

Ben Stokes has asked the ICC to revisit its over-rate thresholds and criticised them for not engaging with players, after both New Zealand and England copped over-rate penalties from their first Test in Christchurch.Both teams were docked three World Test Championship (WTC) points with 15% match fee fines across the board last week at Hagley Oval. New Zealand now face a stiffer task to make the WTC final next year, dropping from fourth to fifth in the table. England are sixth in the WTC, in part because of over-rate fines that have seen them docked 22 points in the 2023-25 cycle, and had lost 19 of the 28 points gained during the 2023 Ashes on similar grounds.At the end of the first Test, Stokes was seen having a long conversation with match referee David Boon, who imposed the sanctions. Having initially voiced his displeasure at the punishment on his Instagram, Stokes used a media opportunity on Wednesday at Basin Reserve to elaborate on his grievances ahead of the second Test – some of them backdated to the Lord’s Test against Australia in 2023.Related

The problem with Ben Stokes' problem with over-rates penalties

Stokes baffled by England's slow over-rate sanctions

“The most frustrating thing, from both teams’ points of view, is that the game finished early, there was a result,” Stokes said. “But I think the frustration actually stems back to last year in the Ashes where it was the first time I really brought it up to the match referee and the umpires.”I guess the most frustrating thing is that it’s always an issue depending on where you are in the world and the style of cricket that’s played. There’s never an over-rate issue in Asia because of how much spin is played.”There’s so many tactical decisions that you need to make, whether that be chatting with the bowler or field changes. As a captain, I like to change things quite a lot and the field could be completely different six balls in an over. But that’s not taken into consideration. And getting told to just ‘hurry up’ isn’t going to fix it, because we’re out there playing a game.”The times and the rules are the same wherever you go in the world. From a player’s point of view – and I’m not the only one who shares this opinion – we would like to have a lot more communication with the ICC around this.”The point regarding the different speeds of play based on conditions and bowlers predominantly used is a sound one. But it should be noted that offspinner Shoaib Bashir bowled 20 of England’s 91 overs in the first innings of the first Test.Stokes was particularly irked that having relayed his thoughts on the need for a more flexible over-rate framework – particularly to mitigate for in-game tactics – to match referee Andy Pycroft at the end of the Lord’s Test, he has yet to hear back from the ICC. This despite being told a dialogue would be forthcoming.Stokes revealed that he has not signed an over-rate chargesheet – the document from the match referee confirming a team is going to incur a penalty – since Lord’s as a mild form of protest.That being said, he accepted the charges levelled in Christchurch by standing umpires Ahsan Raza and Rod Tucker, third umpire Adrian Holdstock and fourth official Kim Cotton, as did New Zealand skipper Tom Latham.”The two conversations I’ve had with the match referees have actually been very good and the match referees have handled it very, very well and been very understanding from a player’s point of view,” Stokes said. “But it’s been over a year now since I made some comments around the over rates and still to this day we’re yet to hear any response back from anyone at the ICC around that.”I’ve not signed an over-rate sheet since Lord’s in the Ashes just until we hear some communication back from the ICC that we’re still waiting for. Captains have to sign over-rate sheets and fines and stuff, but I have said ‘no’ until I have the conversations. But they still take the fines off you anyway.”Jacob Oram, the New Zealand assistant coach, was on the same page as Stokes but was more focussed on learning lessons.New Zealand’s hopes of making the WTC final have been badly hit because of the sanction•Joe Allison/Getty Images

“There are results in most Test matches now and runs are being scored at a frenetic pace and wickets are falling all over the place, there is a lot of entertainment,” Oram said on Wednesday. “If you bowl 90 overs or 85 overs, there is a lot of stuff going on and I think we need to find a balance and getting some understanding.”It’s a lesson we’re going to have to take on the chin and learn from. It just comes down to hustle, making sure guys are providing that energy and bowlers are doing their job and everyone is getting into position as quickly as they can.”Stokes did have sympathy with match-going fans who end up feeling shortchanged when a full 90 overs are not bowled in a day. In England, where tickets are particularly expensive, over-rates have been a talking point among a section of supporters.”You totally understand why there is frustration from the fans about not getting their full allocation of a day’s play,” he said. “But again, we’re trying. We’re out there to play a game that we try and win and there’s a lot that goes into that. We’re not purposely bowling over rates slower than the rules say.”

MatériaMais Notícias

O Santos tenta reerguer seu desempenho no futebol, mas também visa melhorar a situação financeira do clube. Diante da necessidade de manter um nível competitivo, o Peixe enxerga a arrecadação dos seus maiores rivais dobrar.

Em 2022, de acordo com levantamento da Sports Value, o Alvinegro Praiano faturou R$ 341,9 milhões. O valor é significativamente inferior aos três grandes clubes da capital paulista.

+ Santos homenageia legado de Pelé com “Sala do Trono” no Memorial das Conquistas; veja imagens

O São Paulo, no ano passado, somou R$ 657,2 milhões em receitas. No mesmo período, o Corinthians arrecadou R$ 779,1 milhões. Por fim, como líder entre os clubes do estado que mais faturou, o Palmeiras obteve R$ 856 milhões. Apesar de não ser rival, o RB Bragantino, também presente na Série A do Campeonato Brasileiro, coletou mais que o Peixe, com R$ 350,2 milhões acumulados.

Além disso, os dados da pesquisa revelam que o Santos teve uma diminuição na renda arrecadada em comparação com 2021. No ano retrasado, o Alvinegro somou R$ 406,8 milhões. Por conta de diversos fatores, como a queda no valor arrecadado em premiações, o faturamento caiu R$ 64,9 milhões de um ano para o outro.

No cenário nacional, o Santos foi o 10º clube com a maior receita do Brasil. Contudo, ficou R$ 835,1 abaixo do Flamengo, primeiro colocado do levantamento. Confira lista abaixo:

OS 20 CLUBES QUE MAIS FATURARAM NO BRASIL EM 2022

1º – Flamengo: R$ 1,17 bilhões
2º – Palmeiras: R$ 856 milhões
3º – Corinthians: R$ 779,1 milhões
4º – São Paulo: R$ 657,2 milhões
5º – Internacional: R$ 466,6 milhões
6º – Atlético-MG: R$ 429 milhões
7º – Athletico-PR: R$ 370,6 milhões
8º – Red Bull Bragantino: R$ 350,2 milhões
9º – Fluminense: R$ 347,2 milhões
10º – Santos: R$ 341,9 milhões
11º – Grêmio: R$ 340,1 milhões
12º – Fortaleza: R$ 267,9 milhões
13º – Ceará: R$ 173,2 milhões
14º – Coritiba: R$ 164,1 milhões
15º – Cruzeiro: R$ 155 milhões
16º – América-MG: R$ 148,6 milhões
17º – Cuiabá: R$ 133,3 milhões
18º – Bahia: R$ 108,3 milhões
19º – Goiás: R$ 106,7 milhões
20º – Atlético-GO: R$ 100,2 milhões

Blackburn Rovers have now registered their interest in signing a “pacey” £15,000-a-week ace who would replace Callum Brittain, according to a new report.

Derby agree deal to sign Callum Brittain from Blackburn

Rovers have already seen some big-name players leave Ewood Park in this transfer window, as Joe Rankin-Costello, Tyrhys Dolan, Andreas Weimann, Dilan Markanday, and Danny Batth have all left on free transfers, and now, while it may not be a free, another key individual looks set for a move away.

Derby County agree £3m deal to sign "real leader" who Eustace knows well

Derby County have moved a step closer to reuniting John Eustace with a player he has worked with before.

ByBrett Worthington Jul 23, 2025

EFL Analysis’ Graeme Bailey revealed earlier this week that Derby had agreed a deal with Blackburn to sign Brittain. Rovers placed a £3 million asking price on the defender’s head, and the Rams have agreed to pay that, including add-ons.

However, they are not the only side chasing the fullback, as Middlesbrough have already seen a bid rejected and are now expected to match Derby’s offer, meaning it will be down to the player where his future lies.

Brittain has been at the Lancashire side since 2022 and has been a key performer for the club in his three years there. However, with his time now coming to an end, Rovers are having to look at possible replacements for the defender.

Blackburn register interest in signing a £15k-p/w ace

According to EFL Analysis, Graeme Bailey, Blackburn are now keen on signing Bali Mumba from League One side Plymouth Argyle.

Bailey has revealed that Rovers have let their interest be known with an initial enquiry, but they could face competition from Boro, who looked at signing Mumba back in January.

Bailey said: “Plymouth want to keep hold of him, though. So again, unless someone comes up with the money there, it won’t necessarily be easy to get him out.

“But I’ve heard he’s wanted by Blackburn as well, maybe to replace Brittain. There are a few options for Mumba.”

It is unclear how much the Pilgrims would be looking to get for Mumba, but the versatile defender is under contract until 2027, so they are not under pressure to sell in this transfer window. The 23-year-old, who has been dubbed “pacey” by former manager Daniel Farke, has made a good impression in the last two Championship seasons despite Plymouth’s struggles, as he scored three goals and recorded five assists in 86 games combined.

Mumba

Brittain

Apps

43

33

Starts

37

30

Goals

0

2

Progressive carries

66

63

Progressive passes

121

90

Progressive runs

102

141

Shots per 90

0.58

0.61

Passes attempted

1465

1562

Passes completed

1156

1209

Tackles (won)

84 (55)

56 (34)

Blocks

31

36

Clearances

90

129

Since joining Plymouth, Mumba, who earns a weekly wage of £15,000, has been very impressive in the EFL, as in their 2022/23 League One campaign, where they earned promotion, Mumba scored six goals and registered seven assists. The fact he can operate anywhere across the back four as well as in midfield adds more appeal, as Blackburn look to strengthen in a few areas of the pitch.

Australia will finish in the top two with a win in the New Year’s Test, but a loss will keep India interested while Sri Lanka will be hoping for a draw

S Rajesh30-Dec-2024AustraliaRelated

Australia conjure up 'one of those great wins' to exorcise ghosts of the Gabba

South Africa clinch two-wicket thriller to seal WTC final spot

Make a plan, and believe – SA's not-quite-perfect WTC campaign

If Australia win the Sydney Test against India, they are through to the WTC final regardless of results in Sri Lanka – if Australia were to win in Sydney but lose both Tests in their upcoming series in Sri Lanka, they would finish on 57.02 percentage points to India’s 50 and Sri Lanka’s 53.85.A draw in Sydney will keep them ahead of India, but it would leave the door open for Sri Lanka to sneak through; if Australia were to draw in Sydney but lose both Tests in Sri Lanka, they would finish on 53.51, while Sri Lanka would climb up to 53.85.If Australia were to lose in Sydney, they would need one win in Sri Lanka to qualify. A 1-1 verdict in Sri Lanka after losing in Sydney would leave Australia on 57.02 to India’s 55.26. If Australia draw both Tests in Sri Lanka after losing in Sydney, India and Australia will be level on 55.26, but India will qualify on the basis of having won more series in this WTC cycle.ESPNcricinfo LtdIndiaIndia need to win in Sydney to stay in contention for the WTC final. A win would take India to 55.26, which would be enough for them to finish second if Australia were to achieve no more than two draws in Sri Lanka. As mentioned above, if Australia draw both Tests, they will finish level with India on percentage, but India will qualify with more series wins in this cycle. If Australia lose 1-0, they will drop to 53.51, and Sri Lanka will finish with 48.72 (with a 1-0 win).However, if India only manage a draw, they will drop to 51.75 and will be out of the WTC final race. That is because even if Australia were to lose both Tests in Sri Lanka after drawing in Sydney, they would finish on 53.51, while Sri Lanka would climb up to 53.85.Sri LankaThe only way Sri Lanka can qualify is if the Sydney Test ends in a draw and they then beat Australia 2-0. In that case, Sri Lanka, on 53.85, would finish above Australia (53.51) and India (51.75).If India win in Sydney, they will knock Sri Lanka out. Australia, also, will certainly finish ahead of Sri Lanka if they go to 3-1 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Paris Saint-Germain captain Marquinhos has thrown his full support behind new goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier, who replaces Gianluigi Donnarumma following his move to Manchester City. The Brazilian defender hailed the 23-year-old’s personality, quick adaptation and potential to reach the pinnacle of the game as PSG prepare to begin their Champions League title defence against Atalanta.

• Baptism of fire for PSG’s new No.1

  PSG captain Marquinhos has praised new signing Chevalier, describing him as a goalkeeper with the personality and quality to succeed at the highest level. Signed from Lille for €55 million (£46m/$60m) this summer, the Frenchman has been thrust into the spotlight after Donnarumma’s surprise departure to Manchester City. Despite his limited time at the club, he already impressed by making key saves in the UEFA Super Cup final against Tottenham, showing resilience after an early mistake.

Advertisement

• AFP
  

  Donnarumma exit forces major transition

  The arrival of Chevalier marks a major shift for Les Parisiens, who have kept most of their squad intact after winning their first Champions League title last season. Losing Donnarumma was unexpected, given his strong performances in Europe, but the Italian had been sidelined by Luis Enrique and was entering the final year of his contract with no progress on a renewal. PSG moved swiftly to secure Chevalier from Lille, making him one of the most expensive goalkeepers in history and underlining the immediate pressure on the 23-year-old to deliver.

• Marquinhos gives glowing verdict

  Speaking to ahead of PSG's match against Atalanta, Marquinhos said: "The adaptation was quick, he already speaks French very well. It's good (laughs).It's not easy to arrive in a team like that, after a goalkeeper who had a very good season." 

  He added: "He arrives with a very good personality. He's a goalkeeper we already knew, we played against him, we saw his potential. We saw that he's a goalkeeper who can reach the very highest level of goalkeeping; the coach, the staff, the management saw it too. He didn't have much time to adapt, we had a few training sessions and then the final where he was immediately decisive.

  "He shows his qualities in every match. He has a different profile from Gigio and he will bring us some great things. I hope he will be as decisive for us this season because he has all the qualities and the potential to do so. He is ready, he is well, he has taken his responsibilities."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Up next: Champions League test against Atalanta

  The fomrer Lille star will make his Champions League debut on Wednesday as PSG host Atalanta at the Parc des Princes. The Parisians will need him to step up with Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue both sidelined through injury. With expectations sky-high, the young keeper now has the chance to prove he can handle the pressure of succeeding Donnarumma and help PSG defend their European crown.