يستعد فريق الكرة بنادي الزمالك، لمواجهة منافسه زد، اليوم الخميس، في المباراة التي تجمع بينهما ضمن مواجهات بطولة الدوري المصري.
وتقام مباراة الزمالك أمام زد، على أرضية استاد القاهرة الدولي، في إطار لقاءات الجولة الـ16 من الدوري المصري.
ويحتل الزمالك المركز الثالث في جدول ترتيب الدوري المصري، برصيد 28 نقطة، من الفوز في 8 مباريات والتعادل في 4 لقاءات وخسر 3 مواجهات.
ويقع فريق زد في المركز العاشر من جدول ترتيب الدوري المصري، برصيد 19 نقطة، جمعها من 15 مباراة، حقق الفوز في 4 مباريات وتعادل 7 مرات وتلقى 4 خسائر.
طالع.. خاص | بيسيرو يحسم موقف ناصر ماهر من العودة في مباراة الزمالك وزد
ويدخل الزمالك، اللقاء تحت قيادة مدربه البرتغالي جوزيه بيسيرو، بحثًا عن الفوز الأول له مع القلعة البيضاء بعد التعادل مع بتروجيت والأهلي على التوالي.
ويدرك الجهاز الفني لنادي الزمالك أن المباراة لن تكون سهلة، خاصة أن الفريق يعاني من بعض الغيابات والإجهاد بعد مباراة القمة أمام الأهلي، لكنه سيعتمد على أسلحته الهجومية بقيادة سيف الدين الجزيري وأحمد سيد “زيزو”، إلى جانب صلابة خط الوسط بقيادة نبيل عماد “دونجا” ومحمد شحاتة.
فيديو | الزمالك يواصل نزيف النقاط بتعادل مثير مع زد في الدوري المصري موعد مباراة الزمالك وزد اليوم في الدوري المصري
من المقرر أن تنطلق مباراة الزمالك وزد مساء اليوم الخميس 27 فبراير، في تمام الساعة 7 مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، 8 بتوقيت السعودية. القناة الناقلة لمباراة الزمالك وزد في الدوري المصري
من المقرر أن تنقل أحداث مباراة الزمالك وزد ببطولة الدوري المصري، عبر قناة أون سبورت 1. معلق مباراة الزمالك وزد في الدوري المصري
أسندت القناة مهمة التعليق على المباراة بين الزمالك ومنافسه زد، للمعلق محمد الشاذلي.
ويُمكنكم متابعة أحداث مباريات اليوم لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنــــا.
O LANCE! Rápido fez uma previsão de quem serão os campeões dos principais torneios do futebol em 2022. Palmeiras com mais um título, Flamengo em crise, Galo no topo novamente e muito mais! Vem ver se você concorda ou discorda da gente! (assista ao vídeo acima).
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Heading into the international break, West Ham sit 12th in the Premier League, having accrued eight points from their opening seven games, winning twice, drawing twice, and losing three times.
Julen Lopetegui wants to make the Hammers a more ball-dominant side, but so far, his side have averaged just 45.4% possession in the league, the sixth worst in the division, with an 83.0% passing accuracy (11th out of 20).
Many of West Ham’s issues stem in midfield, with a lack of mobility, a lack of progressive passers in deep areas, and an overall mindset that still seems better suited to Moyes’ style of football than Lopetegui’s
West Ham's midfield woes in 2024/25
West Ham has set up with a double pivot and often one number ten this season. Most commonly, that has been Guido Rodriguez, Tomas Soucek and Lucas Paqueta, who have started as a midfield trio on four occasions in the Premier League already in their seven games played.
The other midfielder in question is the original Declan Rice replacement, Edson Alvarez, who was signed from Ajax in 2023 for around £35.4m, as the Hammers looked to rebuild their midfield with the loss of Rice.
Declan Rice with the Europa Conference League trophy for West Ham.
Alvarez made 42 appearances for the club last season, scoring two goals, providing two assists, and contributing to nine clean sheets in his 3,155 minutes played.
Yet, in the new term, the Mexican has underperformed, notably being sent off in the League Cup defeat to Liverpool last month.
Edson Alvarez for West Ham
Things could have been very different, as there was another name on David Moyes’ list to replace Rice, a player who has just earned a big move to Bayern Munich this summer and has been going from strength to strength.
Who West Ham wanted to replace Rice
Before the Hammers signed Alvarez, West Ham were quoted a £60m fee for ex-Fulham midfielder, Joao Palhinha, according to GOAL, as they were searching for their Rice heir.
Due to such a high fee, West Ham began to look elsewhere, going through some other names before acquiring the Mexico international.
Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha.
Palhinha has since gone on to secure a big move to Bayern, joining the German giants for a deal worth around £47.4m. The Portugal international has slowly settled into life in Germany, making six appearances in all competitions, playing 154 minutes of football, and contributing to three clean sheets.
But, if we cast our minds back to one of his best seasons yet, 2022/23, how does he compare to the aforementioned names?
Palhinha vs Alvarez vs Rice (22/23)
Stats (per 90 mins)
Palhinha
Alvarez
Rice
Progressive Carries
0.23
2.16
2.59
Progressive Passes
2.93
6.86
6.62
Passes Attempted
36.9
80.3
58.8
Pass Completion %
82.5%
88.4%
87.1%
Passes into Final Third
3.42
7.10
6.60
Tackles
4.29
2.49
2.22
Blocks
1.39
1.26
1.20
Interceptions
1.53
1.31
1.63
Aerials Won
2.06
3.36
0.95
Stats taken from FBref
Palhinha, described as a “destroyer” by Statman Dave, clearly shows his defensive qualities in these metrics, making a crazy 4.29 tackles per 90 during the 2022/23 season for Fulham, nearly double both Alvarez and Rice. He also made more blocks, and only 0.10 fewer interceptions than Rice, which shows the type of midfielder Palhinha is.
Alvarez, however, did produce better passing metrics, making the most passes into the final third, the most progressive passes, and having the best pass completion. This could have been part of the decision to go for the Mexican, as he could provide those on-ball qualities closer to what Rice offered to the side.
Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha.
This season, West Ham have already conceded 11 goals, eight of these coming from “open play”, and a midfield option like the Portuguese could have offered the Hammers much more protection in front of their backline, thus minimising chances for the opposition, and perhaps even reducing their chances conceded.
It’s safe to say we can file this as one that got away for the Irons.
Rice 2.0: West Ham can ditch Alvarez for starlet who’s shining out on loan
Hampshire top-scorer was reprieved early on after spotting an extra fielder outside the inner circle
Matt Roller18-Sep-2021
The umpires await confirmation of Joe Weatherley’s reprieve•PA Images/Getty
While Somerset’s tailenders ensured that it did not affect the result, a moment of quick thinking from Joe Weatherley looked for the majority of Hampshire’s Blast semi-final at Edgbaston as though it might be the crucial flashpoint.Weatherley was on 26 off 15 balls ahead of the final delivery of the Powerplay when he shuffled across in an attempt to slog-sweep Josh Davey for six over square leg. He was late on the shot, miscuing it high up into the air, and Tom Banton, Somerset’s wicketkeeper, ran around towards square leg to take a steepling catch on his knees.Somerset celebrated in a huddle but Weatherley went nowhere. Instead, he walked over towards the standing umpire to let him know that a third fielder had strayed outside of the inner ring, with Marchant de Lange – back on the third-man boundary rather than on the edge of the circle – the culprit.Related
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The TV umpire struggled to find an angle with clear evidence either way, but after discussions between the two umpires (Graham Lloyd and Mike Burns), Weatherley, and Somerset’s fielders, he was reprieved. As a result, Davey was forced to bowl a free hit; he missed his yorker, and Liam Dawson smeared the half-volley over long-off for six. Weatherley went on to top-score with 71 off 50 balls.”To me they had two out leg side and to Liam Dawson they had [deep] third man and one out leg side,” Weatherley explained. “I saw that there were two out leg side and a third man, and I just saw it as an opportunity.”I was just desperate for Josh Davey to run in and bowl because I saw the opportunity and wanted to play the big shot. It was come on, run up and bowl it – it was a shot to nothing.”There was a bit of confusion – I’m not sure there was a TV replay, so me and Liam were telling the umpires that there were three men back. To be fair to the Somerset guys, I think they knew there were three men back and Marchant admitted that he was back.””It’s something that I’ve got to take on the chin,” Davey said. “I’m the one that sets the field and I should know where my two men out are, so it was my responsibility to bring third man up.”Luckily it didn’t cost us but it showed that small mistakes like that can be so big because Weatherley went on to make such an important innings there. Sometimes you get caught up in the moment of a day, [so it’s important] just to relax yourself and take that extra second to make sure my field is in the right place.”Weatherley’s quick thinking was by no means unprecedented. Only two weeks ago, Charith Asalanka was alert enough to benefit from a similar reprieve in Sri Lanka’s third ODI against South Africa, while back in 2014, Eoin Morgan had done the same for England in a post-Ashes limited-overs series against Australia at the Gabba.
أوضح مدرب ريال مدريد، كارلو أنشيلوتي، سبب حرصه على مضغ العلكة باستمرار خلال المباريات، وعلّق على مستقبله مع الفريق.
ويتميز أنشيلوتي دومًا باستخدام العلكة طوال المباريات خلال تواجده على خط التماس، ومقاعد البدلاء.
وأجرى أنشيلوتي مقابلةمع جياكومو بوريتي في بودكاست “PorettiCast” ونشرت صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية تصريحاته.
وفيما يتعلق بمستقبله، أكد أنشيلوتي: “لن أقرر متى ستنتهي مغامرتي مع ريال مدريد، هذا واضح بالنسبة لي، الرئيس هو من سيقرر، عاجلا أم آجلا سيحدث ذلك، ابني ديفيد؟ سيكون مدربا جيدا”.
وعن التغيرات التي طرأت على كرة القدم، استطرد المدرب الإيطالي: “ريال مدريد عرف كيف يتكيف مع كرة القدم الحديثة، لا يوجد مالك واحد كما هو الحال في الأندية الأخرى، الملاك هم الأعضاء”.
وتابع: “التقاليد تنتقل من جيل إلى جيل، سانتياجو برنابيو فهم هذا الأمر جيدا والآن فلورنتينو بيريز، لا يوجد أحد فوق النادي”.
اقرأ أيضًا | أنشيلوتي عن شجاره مع لاعبيه: أحدهم غطى وجهه حتى لا يسمعني.. وتمنيت أن أكون ذبابة بسببهم
وتحدث أنشيلوتي عن تأثير تحديث كرة القدم على عمل المدرب، وأشار: “لقد أصبح الأمر أكثر تعقيدًا الآن من ذي قبل، في السابق، كنت أحتفظ فقط بقطعة من الورق أكتب عليها، الحاجز الدفاعي، من ينفذ الركلات الركنية، من ينفذ ركلات الجزاء، من سيضرب الكرة برأسه، العلامات على الكرات الثابتة الدفاعية… وهذا كل شيء”.
وأضح: “الآن هناك مقاطع فيديو توضح مواقع اللاعبين في الكرات الثابتة، سواء في الدفاع أو الهجوم، إذا أخرجت لاعبًا ودخل لاعب آخر، عليك أن تقول له انظر، عليك أن تشغل هذا المركز”.
وعن سبب مضغه للعلكة على مقاعد البدلاء خلال المباريات، أتم: “إنها مجرد طريقة للتخلص من بعض التوتر، ينتقدني بعض الناس بسبب ذلك، ولكن بالنسبة لي فهي طريقة… لأنه عندما تبدأ المباراة، يكون معدل ضربات قلبي 120، والآن على سبيل المثال 63، ربما تساعدني العلكة”.
Além do goleiro Weverton, chamado por Tite para o Brasil, o zagueiro Gustavo Gómez foi convocado nesta sexta-feira (14) para a seleção do Paraguai e também desfalcará o Palmeiras na reta final de preparação para o Mundial de Clubes, que será disputado em fevereiro, nos Emirados Árabes Unidos.
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Capitão da equipe paraguaia, o defensor atuará pelo seu país nas partidas ante Uruguai, no próximo dia 27, em Assunção, e dia 1º de fevereiro, contra o Brasil, em Belo Horizonte (MG), em duelos válidos pelas Eliminatórias Sul-Americanas para a Copa do Mundo de 2022.
O embarque do Verdão para Abu Dhabi acontece no dia 2 de fevereiro, um dia após o confronto no Mineirão.
A estreia do time alviverde na competição intercontinental no Mundial será no dia 8 de fevereiro, às 13h30 (horário de Brasília), contra o vencedor do confronto entre Monterrey, do México, e Al Ahly, do Egito.
Assim como Weverton, Gómez deverá desfalcar o Palmeiras em três das quatro partidas que o clube fará pelo Campeonato Paulista antes do Mundial, ante Ponte Preta (dia 26), São Bernardo (dia 29) e Água Santa (dia 1/2). O Verdão deverá ceder também nesta Data Fifa o lateral-esquerdo Joaquín Piquerez, que integra a pré-lista de selecionados da seleção uruguaia.
TABELA
> Veja classificação e simulador do Paulistão-2022 clicando aqui
> Confira o caminho do Verdão no Mundial de Clubes-2022 clicando aqui
O Palmeiras está em fase final de pré-temporada. Enquanto do lado de fora da Academia de Futebol os assunto eram outros, Abel Ferreira usou o tempo para colocar em prática um desejo antigo, que é adotar o esquema 3-4-3 no Verdão. Aquele mesmo que venceu o Flamengo, em Montevidéu, e que agora conta com um período significativo de preparação para ser aplicado e utilizado.
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TABELA > Veja classificação e simulador do Paulistão-2022 clicando aqui
> Conheça o aplicativo de resultados do LANCE!
GALERIA > Confira a pré-lista de inscritos do Palmeiras para o Mundial de Clubes
Durante a pré-temporada, o Alviverde de Abel realizou cinco jogos-treino. Em todos eles a formação do time titular ou do reserva teve como esquema o 3-4-3, que já era uma alternativa durante as partidas, mas não necessariamente colocado como esquema oficial. Até porque, desde que assumiu a equipe, o treinador não teve um período de treinos para trabalhar esse sistema.
– (Raphael) Veiga como meia direita, ajustar o Piquerez um pouco por dentro sem bola, e com bola fazer o que nós gostamos de fazer, fazer o 3-4-3 – disse Abel em vídeo divulgado pela TV Palmeiras sobre o título da Libertadores.
Na frase acima, o comandante português contou como armou seu time para enfrentar o Flamengo, em Montevidéu, o que acabou surpreendendo a todos, inclusive os palmeirenses mais assíduos, que sabiam de forma decorada como jogava a equipe. Com Piquerez atuando como um terceiro zagueiro ao lado de Luan e Gómez, Scarpa pela ala esquerda, Mayke pela ala direita, Danilo e Zé Rafael pelo meio, e Raphael Veiga, Dudu e Rony em suas posições no ataque.
Uma pista de que isso será efetivado nesta temporada foi o último jogo-treino, em que Abel colocou titulares e reservas frente a frente. Veja as escalações:
Time Verde: Weverton; Gómez, Luan e Piquerez; Mayke, Danilo, Zé Rafael e Gustavo Scarpa; Raphael Veiga, Rony e Dudu.
Time Branco:Marcelo Lomba; Kuscevic, Murilo e Jorge; Marcos Rocha, Gabriel Menino, Atuesta e Wesley; Breno Lopes, Deyverson e Gabriel Veron.
O time Verde, inclusive, foi o mesmo que iniciou contra o Flamengo, no Estadio Centenario, pela final da Libertadores. No time Branco, por exemplo, Wesley ficou responsável pela ala esquerda, enquanto Jorge fez o papel de “fechar” mais na defesa com Murilo e Kuscevic. Marcos Rocha, que vinha sendo titular, por ora perdeu a vaga para Mayke, que foi muito bem na decisão continental.
Ainda que esteja moldando a equipe da forma que gostaria desde que chegou, Abel Ferreira não teve atendido dois de seus pedidos para este ano, por enquanto. O primeiro seria o zagueiro canhoto, para jogar nessa linha de três. Murilo, que chegou para suprir esse desejo, atua pela esquerda, mas é destro e nesse último “teste” foi o zagueiro central desse trio de zaga do 3-4-3.
O segundo pedido era o centroavante goleador, que jogue mais dentro da área, mas ofereça mobilidade para brigar fora dela. Essa solicitação do técnico português vem desde o término da temporada 2020 e até aqui não foi entregue. Sendo assim, ele segue jogando com Rony e com Deyverson, dependendo da situação, e vai ter Rafael Navarro, um jovem, que pode ganhar espaço, já que é o único que se assemelha ao que Abel Ferreira idealizou.
A primeira vez em que esse esquema será visto para valer em campo será no próximo domingo, quando o Palmeiras estreia na temporada 2022, enfrentando o Novorizontino, às 16h, em Novo Horizonte, em partida adiantada da quinta rodada da competição estadual. Provavelmente será também a última antes da estreia no Mundial de Clubes, uma vez que, até lá, por conta das convocações, o time ficará desfalcado em três rodadas.
Everton’s chequered past in the transfer market is an indisputable thing, but there is something to admire about the club’s readiness to cash in on top talents when they no longer want to play under the Goodison Park lights.
This summer, Amadou Onana was sold to Premier League rivals Aston Villa for a £50m fee after a host of top European outfits expressed an interest, and the Toffees cashed in to reinvest elsewhere.
The previous high-priced sale, that of homegrown Anthony Gordon, stung at the time, but it’s not one that fans remain poignant over anymore.
Why Everton sold Anthony Gordon
Everton sold Gordon to Newcastle United in a deal worth £45m in January 2023 after the Scouse-born winger handed in a transfer request and forced himself out of Frank Lampard’s side at the midpoint of the 2022/23 campaign.
Anthony Gordon for Everton
There’s been no love lost between the club and their youth product, who is booed upon every return to Goodison Park and is looked back on as a good talent but one who didn’t produce the best results for the club at a time of great need, having posted merely seven goals across 78 senior showings.
It’s a good thing, in hindsight, that the Merseysiders cashed in on the player when he did, for his head was turned and he only earned £10k per week. It was a good situation, and in £15m summer recruit Iliman Ndiaye, Everton might have found their new star wide forward.
Everton’s transfer history over recent years has indeed been chequered, however, with Brazilian midfielder Allan plying his trade with the side at around the same time as Gordon – however, he cost Farhad Moshiri and co far more.
Allan's total cost at Everton
Allan is not the most memorable market blunder across the past several years, but he certainly didn’t produce the desired results and did not arrive on the cheap.
Signed from Napoli for a fee of £22m, Allan arrived with a weight of expectation after drawing praise throughout his years in Italy, namely hailed as a “defender’s dream” by Everton’s Michael Keane, with his energy and tough-tackling nature making for the prototypical number six.
It didn’t work out, though, with broadcaster and Toffees supporter David Downie even labelling the midfielder as an “imposter” after one particularly poor display.
Allan’s Stats at Everton
Stat
#
Appearances
57
Goals
0
Assists
3
Yellow cards
14
Red cards
1
Stats via Transfermarkt
Allan would go on to join Al-Wahda in the UAE for an undisclosed fee in September 2022, but it’s fair to say that the damage had already been done, with £29m drained of Everton’s resources when combining the transfer fee paid with the South American’s £70k-per-week salary.
That’s a whopping seven times more than Gordon’s pay packet was during his fledgling phase at Everton, as well as (for further contextualization) double the £35k-per-week wage that Jarrad Branthwaite earns under Sean Dyche’s wing today.
Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite
Given that Everton have been plagued by PSR breaches in recent times, this is the exact kind of deal that will be looked back on with regret, for a different track might have yielded far more auspicious results.
Everton hit jackpot on world-class star who was sold for 1,567% profit
Everton struck gold when they signed the impressive defender for a fee of just £3m.
تواجه كرة القدم التونسية أزمة مالية تهدد استقرار الأندية ومسيرة تطوير اللعبة في البلاد، وذلك بسبب تراكم الديون المستحقة على بعض الأندية تجاه لاعبين ومدربين وأطراف أخرى، مما دفع الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم “فيفا” إلى اتخاذ إجراءات قد تؤثر على المنح المالية المخصصة لدعم البنية التحتية الكروية في تونس.
وتشدد الجامعة التونسية لكرة القدم على ضرورة الإسراع في حل هذه الإشكاليات المالية، تجنبًا لعقوبات أكثر حدة قد تؤثر ليس فقط على الأندية المعنية، بل على الكرة التونسية بشكل عام، ومن بين التدابير المحتملة التي قد يفرضها “فيفا”، تقليص الدعم المالي الموجه للجامعة، ما قد ينعكس سلبًا على مختلف مشاريع تطوير كرة القدم في البلاد.
وفي هذا السياق، أصدرت الجامعة بيانًا رسميًا دعت فيه الأندية إلى تحمل مسؤولياتها وتسوية النزاعات المالية العالقة.
طالع أيضًا | بمشاركة الأهلي… تفاصيل جديدة بشأن مكافآت الفرق في كأس العالم للأندية 2025 بيان الجامعة التونسية لكرة القدم
تعلم الجامعة التونسية لكرة القدم أنه تبعًا لصدور قرارات من قبل اللجان المختصة تقتضي بإلزام بعض الأندية التونسية بأداء جملة من المبالغ المالية لفائدة مستحقيها، والتي بقيت دون تنفيذ أو تسوية إلى حدود هذا التاريخ، الأمر الذي يجعل الجامعة تواجه جملة من العقوبات المالية الهامة من قبل الفيفا، وتشمل هذه العقوبات التخفيض من قيمة المنح التي تسندها الفيفا للجامعة التونسية لكرة القدم في إطار تمويل المشاريع المخصصة لتطوير البنية التحتية وتحسين منظومة كرة القدم التونسية.
لذلك، وبالنظر إلى الانعكاسات السلبية لهذه العقوبات على الجامعة وعلى مختلف مكونات كرة القدم التونسية، فإن الجامعة تهيب بكافة الأندية ذات العلاقة إلى الإسراع بخلاص الديون المثقلة عليها وغلق ملف النزاعات بخصوصها في أنسب الآجال، قصد تجنب التدابير والإجراءات الإضافية التي قد تمس من استحقاقاتها المالية والرياضية.
وتؤكد الجامعة، في هذا الشأن، حرصها على حماية مصالح كرة القدم التونسية وسعيها إلى تطويرها، وتأمل في تعاون الأندية وتفهمها لهذه الوضعية الحساسة، والعمل على الإيفاء بالتزاماتها والنأي بكرة القدم التونسية عن التداعيات السلبية للعقوبات التي قد تمس من مصالح الجميع.
South Africa’s then-chief selector says such a decision would have been “unethical to the players already selected”
Firdose Moonda21-Oct-2021
AB de Villiers had called time on his international career before wanting to return for the 2019 World Cup•ICC via Getty
AB de Villiers’ availability for the 2019 World Cup was brought to the attention of South Africa’s then-chief selector Linda Zondi two days before the squad was announced, but was turned down because it would’ve been unfair on players already selected.Zondi appeared before Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) Social Justice and National-Building (SJN) committee to discuss various selections that took place under his watch. Specifically, Zondi went over the incident which saw a de Villiers’ return to the national side, a year after leaving the international game, shot down.”When AB took a break [in 2017], he didn’t share the information with me,” Zondi said. “I contacted him and said I wasn’t happy with what you have done and he apologised. Then there was the World Cup, which was a massive story. The captain [Faf du Plessis] came to me and said AB would like to be included in the World Cup. I turned it down because AB had earlier come to me and said he wanted to retire and I told him [then] we need you in the World Cup in England. If there are certain series you miss, we can work with that. I said I am happy to manage your time and you can retire after the World Cup. He said no, he wants to retire. Then, Faf came that AB wanted to return. I turned it down. I thought it was unethical to the players who were part of the squad.”Zondi also provided more detail on the case of Khaya Zondo, whose non-selection has become, over the course of the hearings, a central illustration of the complexities of selection in South Africa over the years.Former selector Hussein Manack has already claimed at the hearings that de Villiers blocked Zondo’s selection for an ODI against India.”What happened on the day was, because I wasn’t there, the selector on tour became the final decision-maker,” Zondi said. “I’m glad Hussein came and confessed that he had pressure put on him. I was clear with him that I was very unhappy with the decision.”Zondi said Manack had called the selection panel on the previous evening and they agreed that Zondo would play. “He contacted us the night before saying JP is injured, so we will need a replacement. Secondly, we have David Miller who is not in form. The first thing we had to deal with was to fly in a replacement from South Africa. Because even if Khaya played, we still needed to have a back-up.”We said fine, it’s not a difficult situation. Khaya must play. Khaya had been to India. He was in form. He was a batter, and the spot was in his position. He would not have been thrown in the deep end. It was a no-brainer. Khaya must play. It was made clear to Hussein that Khaya must play. In the morning, I turned on the TV and I saw Khaya was not playing.”He [Hussein] shared the information with the captain AB de Villiers and according to Hussein, AB was unhappy. He sensed AB put him in a corner. He felt Dean Elgar, because of experience, should play, and Hussein gave in. When he gave in, he didn’t come back to me and said we are changing our decision. AB knew that I was a full-time convenor. At any stage, if the captain was not happy with the selection, he should have contacted me. The CEO [Haroon Lorgat] was on tour and the CEO himself entertained the discussion. The captain didn’t come to me, the CEO didn’t come to me. When the team came back to South Africa, I made sure the right process was followed and Khaya played in the next series.”In a response to ESPNcricinfo in August, de Villiers did not deny that leaving Zondo out was his call but said he felt it was for the benefit of the team. “It is obviously difficult to pick apart selection discussions many years later, and recollections will vary. However, I can unequivocally state that my input to such discussions was always motivated only by what I considered to be best for the team, and nothing else.”Despite that incident, and his frustration with de Villiers, Zondi said he never experienced any racism from de Villiers and “never had any issues with him in terms of him undermining me because I was a black convenor”.Zondi also spoke of his experience over the exclusion of Thami Tsolekile from the Test team in the 2013-14 season. Tsolekile was nationally contracted and identified as Mark Boucher’s successor in 2012 but did not play in series in England or Australia because de Villiers was preferred. Tsolekile was told by then convenor Andrew Hudson that he would play in the following home series against New Zealand but de Villiers chose to stay on as wicketkeeper, before Quinton de Kock made his debut in February 2014.By then, Zondi had joined the selection panel and been part of discussions over whether Tsolekile should play or de Kock should debut when Alviro Petersen was injured against Australia. Zondi’s view was that Tsolekile should play, but he was outvoted 3-2 on the selection panel. “I personally went to Graeme Smith to speak to him as a captain,” Zondi said. “I said to him that I believe it’s important we see Thami playing. To his credit, Smith said he will take the team from the convener and play that team. We voted on it and it ended up being 3-2, and then Thami didn’t play and wasn’t in the team given to Smith.”The panel at the time consisted of Hudson, former national player Shafiek Abrahams, Zondi, Manack and national coach Russell Domingo. Zondi and Manack voted in favour of Tsolekile playing while the other three voted against it. None of Hudson, who serves on CSA’s board currently, Abrahams or Domingo are due to testify at the SJN.Zondi maintained that during his time in selection he aimed to balance objectives between ensuring transformation goals were being met and that the South African team remained a world-class outfit. “I made sure that the black African players we picked were good enough; that they were world-class. And in doing so, we couldn’t put aside the white players who were doing well within the structures.”We did very well in saying there was no white player who was good enough who never played. For example, [Rassie] van der Dussen, was one of those guys who were doing well in the franchise system and we played him. We had to make sure we created balance.”