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Liverpool extended their winning run to three matches in the Premier League with a 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on Saturday.

The Reds, however, are still ten points behind league leaders Arsenal in their defence of their Premier League crown, which means that there is still a lot of work to be done for them to retain the title.

One of Arsenal’s top performers this season has, of course, been England international Declan Rice, who has scored two goals and provided three assists, per Sofascore, whilst also winning 55% of his duels.

The 26-year-old star’s consistent performances in the middle of the park, with his play in and out of possession, have helped the Gunners to their place at the top of the table.

Liverpool submit bid to sign new midfielder

Now, the Reds are reportedly looking to bring in a new midfielder who could be Arne Slot’s own version of the former West Ham United talent.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

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According to a report from Spain, Liverpool are pursuing a deal to sign Eduardo Camavinga from Real Madrid ahead of the January transfer window.

The report claims that the Premier League champions have already submitted an offer of £61m in an attempt to land the France international to bolster their options in the middle of the park.

However, it adds that Real Madrid do not want to lose the left-footed star ahead of the second half of the season, which makes it an incredibly difficult deal for Liverpool to complete in January.

The Spanish giants view Camavinga as a key player and are not actively looking to cash in on the Frenchman, so the Reds may need to significantly up their offer to secure his services.

Why Liverpool should push to sign Eduardo Camavinga

Slot should push the club to keep trying to sign the Real Madrid star, despite the Spanish team’s current stance, because the midfielder could be his own version of Declan Rice.

Camavinga, like the English superstar, is an incredibly well-rounded central midfielder who has the potential to dominate matches in and out of possession.

Based on their statistics over the past 365 days, as shown in the chart above, both Camavinga and Rice excel in several areas of the game, which shows that they can impact matches in multiple ways, rather than being specialist one-trick ponies.

The France international, who was hailed as a “duel monster” by analyst Raj Chohan, is brilliant in his individual duels, winning 70% of his ground duels in LaLiga so far this season, per Sofascore.

However, per FBref, Camavinga also ranks within the top 20% of midfielders for progressive passes (6.33) per 90 and the top 4% for successful take-ons (1.93) per 90, which shows that he is also exceptional in possession to go along with his defensive qualities.

Like Rice, the Real Madrid star has won 50% or more of his duels on the ground and in the air, per Sofascore, which could make him an upgrade on Alexis Mac Allister in the middle of the park for Liverpool.

25/26 season

Camavinga (LaLiga)

Mac Allister (Premier League)

Appearances

12

17

Goals

1

0

xA

0.89

0.82

Tackles + interceptions per game

2.2

1.6

Dribbled past per game

0.6x

0.9x

Ground duel success rate

70%

47%

Aerial duel success rate

56%

42%

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, the Argentine midfielder has been a lightweight in the Premier League so far this season, losing the majority of his duels on the deck and in the air.

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The former Brighton star has not made up for that with quality on the ball, with no goals and less xA than Camavinga, which suggests that the Frenchman would arrive at Anfield as a much better option in a box-to-box midfield role.

These statistics suggest that the Real Madrid midfielder could improve Slot’s team by adding more quality in and out of possession in the middle of the park, as a replacement for Mac Allister.

That is why Liverpool should be pushing hard to strike an agreement with Real Madrid for the former Rennes midfielder, because he could be Slot’s own Rice and an upgrade on Mac Allister, based on his impressive performances for the Spaniards.

Related Saved by Wirtz: Slot must finally sell Liverpool flop who lost 100% duels

Liverpool secured another shaky win in the Premier League against bottom-of-the-table Wolves.

Posts 4 ByAngus Sinclair

It is now down to the club to improve their offer and present the LaLiga giants with a bid that is too good for them to turn down in the January transfer window.

	Zimbabwe’s players celebrate their first win in the MTN Domestic Championship © Cricinfo

The Titans maintained their unbeaten start to the MTN Domestic Championship with three wins in six days, extending their lead over Cape Cobras to five points.Titans, who also have a game in hand over the Cobras, easily beat their rivals by five wickets in a one-sided match despite Herschelle Gibbs’ hundred, and Cobras title hopes were further dented when they then lost to Zimbabwe Chevrons.The Warriors, who opened with back-to-back defeats, have now won three on the trot. Two convincing wins this week over the Lions and the Dolphins put them within a point of the Cobras. The defeat checked a good start by the Dolphins who earlier in the week had easily beaten the Eagles.The Eagles, who won the SuperSport Series before Christmas, have been well off the pace and although they beat Zimbabwe on Wednesday, two hefty losses has left them languishing in the bottom half.Zimbabwe’s win over the Cobras in Harare was their first of the competition, and face a basement battle with the Lions in Potchefstroom this week. After winning their opening game, the Lions have lost three in three and slipped below Zimbabwe on net run rate.The batting has not been to the fore with only four coming in the 16 matches so far, with the Eagles’ Morne van Wyk topping the pile with his 128. The Warriors’ Juan Theron is the leading wicket-taker with 11.

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Titans	4	4	0	0	0	18	+0.979	750/143.3	739/174.0
Cape Cobras	5	3	2	0	0	13	+0.184	978/194.4	926/191.2
Warriors	5	3	2	0	0	12	-0.506	862/216.2	952/212.0
Dolphins	4	2	2	0	0	9	+0.321	764/171.0	689/166.1
Eagles	6	2	4	0	0	9	-0.316	1103/231.4	1178/232.0
Zimbabwe	4	1	3	0	0	4	+0.025	849/174.0	818/168.3
Lions	4	1	3	0	0	4	-0.394	857/179.0	861/166.1

Rhodes: Technically Woolmer was a good coach, but he had passion, and for me it was more the passion and his attitude towards coaching © AFP

The South African camp has been in a sombre mood since the news broke of the death of their former coach, Bob Woolmer, on Sunday. But of all the players in the squad who knew and respected him, none can have had closer ties than Jonty Rhodes, the team’s fielding coach, whose career was hand-moulded by Woolmer.”The two most important people in my cricketing career were Hansie [Cronje] and Bob and they’re both gone,” said Rhodes. “I just hope they’re not in heaven picking a team because I don’t want to be next.”Under Woolmer’s tutelage, Rhodes was transformed into the most electric fielder in the world, but he still had to hold down a place as a batsman alone. “My cover drive was beyond help,” he said, “but Bob adjusted it. Technically he was a good coach, but he had passion, and for me it was more the passion and his attitude towards coaching. He made it exciting, and he made it fun. It was not about ‘you have to do it this way’. He actually gave us options.”Every week we had the ‘Abuse the Coach’ award,” added Rhodes, “but Bob used to give as good as he got. I had an amazing relationship with him. He was more than just a coach, and he had a way of giving off of himself and it was something I could relate to. That made him more than a coach to me.”Woolmer was in charge of South Africa’s fortunes for five years from 1994, and Rhodes admitted that his departure – in the aftermath of the team’s traumatic exit from the 1999 World Cup – was a big loss that they are only now beginning to overcome. “Similar to Hansie’s leadership he wasn’t easy to replace,” said Rhodes.”In the same sort of way he too was an allrounder. He could be a batting coach and a bowling coach. Like Jacques Kallis, if you replace him with a batsman, the bowling side is weak, and if you replace him with a bowler, the batting side is weak. Bob had that allround ability as a coach, and that comes with the way I coach as well.”The emotions in the Australian camp, understandably, have not been running as high, although Mike Hussey spoke of the “hollow feeling” in the pit of his stomach that he has had since Sunday. “We’re pretty shocked by the news and it’s quite saddening. I had a great respect for the guy, he’s done a lot for world cricket and it’s disappointing news for everyone. All our condolences go out to the Woolmer family.”The latest revelations to have filtered out from Jamaica are uncomfortable for everyone associated with the game, although Hussey would not be drawn into the speculation surrounding Woolmer’s death. “I know they are doing the investigations and a lot of words are being thrown about,” he said. “But we’re very confident we have excellentsecurity in place, and we are very happy with how things have been run.”

Asad Rauf makes it to the Elite Panel © Getty Images

Mark Benson of England, Billy Doctrove of West Indies and Asad Rauf of Pakistan are the latest additions to the Elite Panel of ICC umpires, increasing the panel’s strength from seven to ten. This follows the annual review of umpire performance at the end of March 2006.The composition of the panel was determined by Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive and Sunil Gavaskar, the chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee. The criteria for selection was the percentage of correct decisions given as well as reports from captains and match referees.Speed congratulated the new members on their achievement and explained that the panel was expanded with the purpose of reducing the workload of the existing panel, given the current volume of international cricket.”Umpiring international cricket matches is one of the toughest jobs in world sport and we felt a seven-man panel was probably a little light. We were determined, however, not to expand the panel for the sake of it. So over the last year we have given extra appointments to umpires from the second-tier International Panel who had a good track record in home ODI matches,” Speed said in an ICC media release.Benson made his international umpiring debut in 2004 and has umpired in matches involving all the Test playing countries and is well respected by the players. He was singled out for his creditable performance in the VB Series in Australia earlier this year.”It is a great honour to be named as one of the Elite Panel,” Benson said. “It is important to do the job as well as you can so that you earn the respect of the players.”Rauf recently officiated in the first Test between India and England at Nagpur and has stood in 17 ODIs since 2000. “It’s the biggest news of my long cricket career as a player and umpire,” he said. “It’s a dream come true but I believe the biggest thing is not getting onto the panel but staying there and that will be my focus.”Doctrove has been a familiar figure in ODIs, officiating in as many as 45 games and holds the rare distinction of reaching the top level in both cricket and football. Like Steve Bucknor, a senior panel member, Doctrove is a qualified FIFA referee.He said, “I feel very proud because it means that I have made good progress in my umpiring levels and I know that my country, Dominica, though a very small one of only 70,000 people will be extremely proud of my achievement as they have always supported and encouraged me throughout my career.”David Richardson, the ICC General Manager – Cricket, and former Test cricketer, congratulated the new members and justified the reasons for their elevation.He said, “It is important to remember that just as umpires only make it onto the Elite Panel by proving they are excellent officials, they only retain their place if they can maintain these high standards on a consistent basis from year to year. The ICC will be doing everything it can to support them along the way.”

Look who’s back: Shane Bond will play for an Academy side in Brisbane next month © Getty Images

Mathew Sinclair and Ian Butler have been dumped from New Zealand’s 20-man list of contracted players for 2005-06 after disappointing seasons. Sinclair struggled against Australia in Test and one-day series while Butler was given few opportunities to impress and was unable to stay ahead of the returning Shane Bond in the bowling pecking order.The naming of Bond is a significant boost for New Zealand after their No. 1 pace bowler suffered and then recovered from career-threatening back injuries. Bond re-entered first-class competition late last summer and has been selected for an Academy tournament in Brisbane in July. Chris Harris, who injured a shoulder in the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series in December, has retained his place and will return to bowling through the England club side Lashings.Lindsay Crocker, the New Zealand general manager, said even though Sinclair and Butler were not contracted they were still in the frame for international matches, particularly after they used 33 players over the past 12 months. “Sinclair was not considered as an opener,” he said. “As a middle-order player he ranks behind a number of other players in what is a congested area. Butler is still very much a prospect but does not make the top 20 when considered against Bond, Oram, Martin, Franklin, Mills and Tuffey.”Crocker said the pair’s omissions showed the growing depth of the squad and the competition for contracts was encouraging. He said Jacob Oram’s back injury was healing well, Daniel Vettori had benefited from missing the two-Test Sri Lanka series and Michael Papps, who is best remembered for being hit in the head twice by Brett Lee in the same over, was recovering well from finger surgery. The three players all made the list.”Those who have narrowly missed out on NZC contracts are more than likely to pick up top ranked Major Association contracts,” Crocker said. The 12-month period begins today.Contracted players Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, Chris Cairns, Craig Cumming, Stephen Fleming, James Franklin, Chris Harris, Brendon McCullum, Craig McMillan, Hamish Marshall, James Marshall, Chris Martin, Kyle Mills, Jacob Oram, Michael Papps, Scott Styris, Daryl Tuffey, Lou Vincent, Daniel Vettori, Paul Wiseman.

Central Districts 108 for 7 (Taylor 56) beat Auckland 107 by 3 wickets with 19.5 overs to spare
ScorecardCentral Districts qualified for the final of the State Shield championship, New Zealand’s domestic one-day tournament, when they beat Auckland by three wickets in the rescheduled semi-final at New Plymouth’s Pukekura Park.The match was postponed from yesterday after rain had made play impossible. It seemed the weather was going to thwart play again but the skies cleared, and a helicopter was brought in to help dry the ground, allowing a 40-over match to be played.However, the amount of time that the pitch had been under covers had its effect. Auckland were asked to bat first, and they struggled to 107 all out as the ball swung and seamed around a great deal. Central Districts had a tough time as well, but finally managed to get to their target despite losing a flurry of wickets towards the end.Auckland got off to a miserable start, losing their first four wickets for 22. Their lower order fought spiritedly, but were done in by some outstanding fielding by Central Districts, as four of the last five wickets fell to run-outs. Michael Mason and Lance Hamilton were the pick of the Central Districts bowlers, each returning figures of 2 for 14.When Central Districts batted, Ross Taylor, the 19-year-old batsman, made the difference with a wonderfully aggressive 56, scored off just 45 balls. His first scoring shot was a six, and then he struck two more, off successive deliveries, to post his half-century. He was out when five runs were needed for victory, but the steady hand of Glen Sulzberger was sufficient to ensure the win with 19.5 overs to spare.The one encouraging sign for Auckland, and for New Zealand, was the sight of Andre Adams showing some of his familiar aggression. He dismissed Taylor and Jarrod Englefield off consecutive balls and ended with figures of 2 for 16 from 4.1 overs.Central Districts will play Canterbury, who topped the points table in the league games, in Friday’s final at Christchurch’s Jade Stadium. Friday is New Zealand’s national holiday, known as Waitangi Day, the day the country’s founding document was signed in 1840.

The England women’s U19 team has reached the semi-final of Australia’s Under19 Women’s State Championship, convincingly winning all four of theirmatches in the group stage.England defeated Tasmania by 8 wickets on 2nd January, followed by winsagainst Western Australia by 222 runs, Victoria by 5 wickets and SouthAustralia by 6 wickets yesterday and will play New South Wales in thesemi-final tomorrow (7th Jan).Captain, Sally-Anne Briggs (Yorkshire) has been in spectacular batting form,amassing 244 runs in the four matches, including 114* against WesternAustralia. Her performances have been matched by Isa Guha (Berkshire),England’s seam bowler who made her debut for the senior team last summer,who has taken 18 wickets, with an eight-wicket haul against WA.As the Under 19 State Championship is a domestic competition, England willnot be able to contest the Final but the competition provides some valuablematch practice ahead of two One Day International matches against AustraliaU19s on 14th and 15th January.This winter tour is a first for the England women’s U19 team which has beenrestricted to playing in English summers until now. Due to increasedfunding for the women’s game, the most talented players will have the chanceto tour with England before making their debut in the senior squad.Gill McConway, ECB Executive Director for Women’s Cricket said “It’s greatto see our U19s performing so well and I’m delighted that the dedication ofplayers and support staff is paying off. It’s a competitive winter for bothour U19s and senior England team against quality opposition, and this is thebest possible start”.

One of the more difficult tasks a cricket writer embarks on is thewriting of an obituary. It is with a touch of sadness that one recordsthe passing of Trevor Nyasha Madondo, aged just 24 years. A talentedZimbabwean middle order batsman, Madondo was one of the most promisingblack cricketers in Zimbabwe when he succumbed to malaria at theParirenyatwa Hospital in Harare on June 11.When Zimbabwe came to India in late 2000, they arrived with high hopesfor Madondo. In the first warm up game that was played against theNational Cricket Academy at Indore, Madondo came good with the bat. Abatsman who favoured the classical approach to the game, Madondonotched up a quick 28 (34 balls, 4 fours, 1 six) in the first inningsbatting at number six. Tackling the spinners well, Madondo showed thathe was capable of adapting to Indian conditions and using his feetwell. In the second innings of the same game, skipper Guy Whittallthought it fit to promote Madondo, sending him in at number three.With two wickets falling in a hurry, Madondo was forced toconsolidate. Settling in well, driving through the offside withaplomb, Madondo compiled 65 (138 minutes, 7 fours) and put on 122 withAndy Flower.But that was Madondo’s best effort on tour. The second tour matchyielded scores of 26 and 17. The tour match however, showed anotherside of Madondo. In the second innings, Andy Flower took a breakbehind the stumps and Madondo donned the gloves. Tidy behind thestumps, Madondo made his contribution to a Zimbabwean victory.Not picked to play either of the two Tests, Madondo had to be contentwatching from the sidelines.In the one-day series however, Madondo was picked to play both thefourth and fifth matches. The big moment for the youngster came whenhe top scored in the final one-dayer at Rajkot. Making a 70-ball 71(10 fours) at the top of the order, Madondo gave Zimbabwe a fightingchance of chasing a mammoth Indian total of 302.In 13 limited overs games, Madondo’s top score was 71. In all, Madondoplayed only three Tests, and made a highest score of 74 not outagainst New Zealand at Wellington in December last year. Sadly, thatwas the last Test innings Madondo played.The cricket world is shocked by the passing of a talented cricketer soyoung. Perhaps a death of someone so young causes more grief than thedeath of someone in advanced years. In conversation, Madondo cameacross as an enthusiastic, cheerful young cricketer.A memorial service was held in Harare on Monday and he was buried thenext day.

Gabby Agbonlahor has claimed that Everton will now be ‘buzzing’ over some injury news that has emerged involving Yerry Mina.

The Lowdown: Back at Finch Farm

As per injury expert Ben Dinnery, Mina is back at Finch Farm, as he looks to step up his recovery.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/everton-news-3/” title=”Everton news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

He has not featured for the Merseyside club since early February, with a crucial set of fixtures ahead, including a game away at West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

While it feels unlikely he would immediately return to the XI against the Hammers, his return to action at Finch Farm surely means he is not too far off.

The Latest: Agbonlahor reacts

Speaking to Football Insider, former Aston Villa and England striker Agbonlahor, who is also a pundit for Sky Sports, has claimed that the Goodison Park faithful will be ‘buzzing’ to get Mina back, and suggested that he could replace Michael Keane in the team:

“Michael Keane has been absolutely dreadful in recent months.

“He’s lacked the pace, and he’s even lacked the intelligence at times.

“Mina coming back, for me, will be massive. I love him. He’s a big, physical, giant of a defender. He’s fairly quick, too.

“He’ll be one that I’m sure Frank Lampard will be relying on, they’ll be buzzing to get him back.

“Lampard has got a lot to sort out in the summer with that defence.”

The Verdict: Mina over Keane

It was not long ago that pundit Jamie Carragher called the Toffees’ defence a ‘Championship back four’ after losing 5-0 away at Tottenham Hotspur, and Keane played that night in the absence of Mina.

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The fact that the Englishman has been a just outside of the relegation zone suggests that his defending has not been up to scratch this campaign. In contrast, four of the Blues’ seven wins in the top flight have come when Mina is playing.

Nonetheless, once the Colombia international is fully fit, it seems like a logical swap from Frank Lampard to start him ahead of Keane.

In other news, find out which £18m-rated maestro EFC could now sign for free here!

	Lord’s has been nominated to host the final of the ICC World Twenty20 in 2009 © Martin Williamson

Lord’s and The Oval have been nominated as two of the main venues to host next year’s ICC World Twenty20, with the ECB also recommending Lord’s to host the final.After being chosen as the hosts of the tournament, England have spent the past few months deciding on the venues to be used. The Oval has been chosen as a “preferred bidder” for the warm-ups, group and Super Eight matches and a semi-final.”I am delighted that Lord’s, a world-class venue with a famous history and tradition, has agreed to be recommended hosts,” Steve Elworthy, the tournament director, said yesterday in Auckland. “I was privileged to be director for [the] ICC World Twenty20 2007 and thrilled at the success of the event which generated record crowds and also made broadcasting history in India with 1.4 billion viewers tuning in for the final.”Now I am looking forward to the challenge of raising the standard of Twenty20 cricket even higher here in England and with Lord’s as a nominated venue and The Oval as a preferred bidder – as well as a third world class ground yet to be chosen – we have already got off to a great start.”Keith Bradshaw, the MCC secretary and chief executive, added: “The MCC committee is extremely pleased, and I am personally delighted, at the ECB’s decision to recommend that the final and other matches in the ICC World Twenty20 in 2009 be staged at Lord’s. It is bound to be an exciting and major global event, and MCC looks forward to contributing to its success.”MCC has supported Twenty20 cricket – a form of the game which virtually every cricketer has played – since the county competition started a few years ago. At Lord’s, these matches have regularly attracted crowds of over 20,000, and I am looking forward to seeing the home of cricket full for the 2009 matches.”