Glasgow Rangers overcame a poor start at Ibrox this afternoon to eventually prevail 3-1 against Dundee.

The Dens Park side took the lead after just five minutes, yet goals from Cyriel Dessers and James Tavernier turned the tables, before Abdallah Sima added a third with ten minutes of the first half remaining.

It looked as though the Gers would run away with the tie, yet Jose Cifuentes was sent off following a VAR review and Philippe Clement’s men had to play the second 45 with ten men.

In the end, the sending-off didn’t make a difference and there were some solid performances, with Sima continuing his sparkling run of form.

Abdallah Sima’s statistics vs Dundee

The on-loan Brighton and Hove Albion winger scored in his previous two league matches prior to the match today, and he managed to keep his streak going with yet another fine effort.

With Danilo out injured and the form of Cyriel Dessers hardly setting Ibrox alight, there was a chance that Clement may have unleashed Sima in a more central role.

The 22-year-old was deployed in his usual left-wing slot and impressed once again, taking four shots during the tie, along with making one key pass and succeeding with two of his three dribble attempts.

His pace was a constant threat to the Dundee defence and the Light Blues will need to wrap him in bubble wrap over the coming days as he is their most valuable player at the moment.

Tavernier also put in an impressive display, and he led from the front when the Gers went a goal down.

James Tavernier’s game in numbers vs Dundee

During the midweek win over Hearts, the captain grabbed an assist with a stunning pass to Sima and it led to praise from journalist Mark McDougall, who said: “That pass from James Tavernier is outstanding. A wildly disrespected footballer.”

Of course, he divides opinion at times, but there is no taking away from what Tavernier brings to this Rangers side, and he showed his leadership skills after they went down a goal in the first five minutes.

The Englishman scored his trademark penalty which gave the Ibrox side a 2-1 advantage, but he also hit the woodwork too.

Tavernier took 84 touches throughout the game as he was eager to constantly get on the ball and his attacking traits were on full display and, along with the goal, the 32-year-old made three key passes, delivered three successful crosses and succeeded with 100% of his dribble attempts as he bombed up and down the right flank.

Being so far up the field at times ensured he was dispossesed a total of 18 times during the tie, but that didn’t matter in the end, as the club secured all three points.

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He won four of his six aerial duels and wasn’t dribbled past once, indicating how solid he was defensively, and it was an all-around excellent performance from the captain.

With a crucial Europa League clash on Thursday against Real Betis, this win will have further boosted confidence heading into that tie.

‘When things aren’t quite happening for you, to come out the other side is really pleasing’

George Dobell in St Lucia11-Feb-2019Joe Root admitted it “felt like he had come out the other side” of “a battle” after his Test century in St Lucia.Root went into the match having scored just 55 from his first five innings of the series. As a result, he had been largely powerless to prevent West Indies taking an unassailable 2-0 lead.It was Root’s 16th Test century – meaning he has drawn level with the tally made by Mike Atherton, Graham Thorpe and Herbert Sutcliffe – and his third in his seven most recent Tests.But such are the expectations on Root that his recent form has been causing some concern. He had reached fifty only twice in his previous 19 Test innings before this – on both occasions he went on to register a century – and, after his struggles in the first Test in Barbados, his average slipped below 50 for the first time since August 2014.He admitted afterwards that it had been “a tough series” for him.”It was a good hard scrap,” he said of his century. “But it was really enjoyable because sometimes, when things aren’t quite happening for you, you think you’re battling a little bit. To come out the other side is really pleasing.”It’s been a tough series for me personally and for the guys. We’ve worked extremely hard on this trip but things haven’t gone as we wanted. We’ve not played good cricket at times.”So to respond as we have today and be in this position of strength with two days left is really pleasing. It’s really pleasing to show improvement and willingness to adapt to conditions. Even though the series is gone there’s still a lot to play for.”My feet haven’t always been doing what I want them to so it’s been a constant battle to find a formula that gets me off to a good start. Once you’re off and running things become a little bit easier. It’s nice to see all the hard work come to the fore by being here at the end of the day not out.”Root was also full of praise for Joe Denly, who played some elegant strokes in his maiden Test half-century.”He played beautifully,” Root said. “I thought he played with good balance, good style and grace – as you’d expect him to when he gets runs. He should have a lot of confidence with the way he played.”

Sri Lanka fielding coach Steve Rixon has described Kusal Mendis as a batsman who will make people go ‘wow’ the more they see of him. Rixon, who has had coaching stints with New Zealand and Pakistan earlier, was full of praise for the Sri Lankan team for the manner of their historic 2-0 series win in South Africa.Kusal Perera’s 153 not out had taken the team to an epic one-wicket win in the first Test, and in the second, Mendis and Oshada Fernando put on an unbroken 163-run stand in the fourth innings to turn a potentially tricky chase into an eight-wicket romp.”The big message was amplified loud and clear by everybody, especially the main coach. Hathu [Chandika Hathurusingha] told everyone to relax,” Rixon was quoted as saying by website about the final day’s chase in the second Test in Port Elizabeth. “Going out there with a clean head helped. Kusal Mendis will go onto become a classy player in world cricket. He plays some proper cricket shots. I don’t see them played any better in the world. I am seeing bit of class in Mendis. We need to keep him relaxed so the class can come out.”The kid is only 24 years of age. He needs a lot of mentoring. But you don’t want to take any individuality away from him. The kid has got something special in him. As time goes on, we will see him expand. He is still in the infant stage and has got some self-doubt. But the reality is, he is class. People will see greater things from him as time goes on. The more we see him, the more we are going to say ‘wow’.”The other boy [Fernando] was outstanding as well. I thought he batted beautifully… He has not got baggage to bring. He sees what’s there and reacts. His role was unbelievable. He was attacking the spinner from the start. He doesn’t wait for that big one to turn and take the outside edge. Instead, he takes on the spinner. Coming down the track and going over for the spinners was smart cricket. The spinner is then wondering ‘what am I going to do now’. So, he actually took the game away from the South Africans. A spinner on that sort of wicket could have dominated.”Sri Lanka had arrived in South Africa having endured a particularly bad run of form in Test cricket. They were whitewashed 3-0 at home by England, then lost successive away tours to New Zealand (1-0) and Australia (2-0). Rixon said that while he didn’t see any changes in the approach when the team went from New Zealand to Australia, he saw a difference when they arrived in South Africa.”In New Zealand and Australia, I didn’t see a lot of adjustments but from Australia to South Africa, I have seen a change in mental attitude and the way we have gone about our training, which has got smarter,” Rixon said. “Players feel happier about themselves. Obviously, winning that Test match in Durban was a once in a lifetime experience. It was a case of someone playing out of their skin. That added belief to the young kids who are coming along.”Well, I wasn’t thinking of winning,” he added about chasing down a 304 target in Durban with a 78-run stand for the last wicket. “I didn’t think we had a chance. But the reality of it is, if you stay in the game long enough, you never know. Vishwa [Fernando] did such a good job. He became more comfortable the longer he stayed on at the wicket. KJP [Kusal Perera] from the other end was whacking them out of the park. I didn’t think we had any chance of winning and I moved from where I usually sit to a position where I am ready to shake the opposition’s hand. However, this game is a strange game. I have been watching it for a long, long time and I will never, ever stop being amazed.”Rixon was also full of praise for 25-year-old fast bowler Kasun Rajitha, whom he held up as an example for the other younger players in the squad along with Vishwa.”Kasun, everything that he does from his fielding to his bowling and the time he spends out in the nets working on his batting, his work ethic is unbelievable,” Rixon said. “How it has worked for him is that he has worked hard to get there. He deserves every success that come his way. Vishy comes with nice equipment, bit like Vaas. To me, he will just get better and better the more he learns. Those are the kids who are going to carry the team forward. They set the standards for the younger guys to follow.”

Healy also won the T20I and ODI player of the year titles, to make a sweep of the honours for women at the Australian Cricket Awards

Andrew McGlashan11-Feb-2019

Alyssa Healy swept the honours at the Australian Cricket Awards as she won the Belinda Clark Award alongside the T20I and ODI player of the year titles.Healy was instrumental in Australia’s victorious World T20 campaign in West Indies where she scored 225 runs at 56.25 to be named player of the tournament. Those runs contributed an overall tally in the voting periods (January 9, 2019 to January 7, 2019) of 578 runs at 41.29.In six ODIs, Healy scored 329 runs at 54.83 with a best of 133 – her maiden international hundred – against India in Vadodara. Across both formats there was also her impressive glovework.”This is something unreal,” Healy said. “Honestly, winning that T20 World Cup was a pinnacle of the season, to do it with this new group was special. But to win an award with Belinda Clark’s name on it is something every cricketer dreams of”We’ve got such a tremendous team at the moment, I think anyone in our group could have won this award which is pretty special. I finally turned a corner and believed I was good enough for international cricket. It’s been an unbelievable 12 months, not sure I can cap it but I’ll give it a crack.”It was the first time there had been separate T20I and ODI awards in the women’s categories.Among the nearest challengers were pace bowler Megan Schutt, who claimed 28 wickets at 11.50 in 17 ODIs and nine wickets at 17.44 in five ODIs while also becoming the first Australian women to claim a T20I hat-trick, captain Meg Lanning and allrounder Ash Gardner who was named Player of the Match in the World T20 final against England.Healy winning the Belinda Clark Award made it the first time in six years that it has not gone to either Lanning or Ellyse Perry, the pair sharing the honour between 2014 and 2018 – Lanning three times and Perry twice.Elsewhere in the women’s game legspinner Georgia Wareham was named Betty Wilson Young Cricketer of the Year. Wareham took 2 for 11 in the World T20 final against England as part of a breakout season where she claimed 12 wickets in 11 T20Is at 12.67.Heather Graham, the Perth Scorchers and Western Australia allrounder, was named Domestic Player of the Year after making 481 runs across one-day and T20 cricket and claiming 32 wickets at 19.94. She was also the joint-leading wicket-taker in this season’s WBBL although that fell outside the voting window for this award which spanned December 2017 to November 2018.

An exit for a "sensational" Tottenham Hotspur regular may be edging closer as they tell him he's free to leave, with a replacement apparently "lined up".

Spurs making transfer plans for January

As widely reported, and even confirmed by manager Ange Postecoglou, Spurs are preparing to make possible new additions in the January window.

The Lilywhites boss, speaking in an interview with Sky Sports, suggested his side will be active in the winter market amid their chase for a new centre-back and signings in other positions.

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"It's going to be a challenging month for us because you're talking about three players in Pape, Biss and Sonny who have been very important to what we're trying to build," said Postecoglou on Spurs transfers.

"We've got Maddison, Van de Ven and Rodrigo Bentancur – really significant players who are missing – so fingers crossed the guys we've got at the moment stay healthy through that period.

"It's going to be a challenging period and January is always a difficult transfer window to get things done particularly quickly, so I think we're preparing ourselves for that."

Like many other Premier League clubs, the north Londoners may have to be careful with FFP and not sail too close to the wind.

Spurs invested significantly in their squad over the summer and star players will come at a premium mid-season, making rumoured Spurs transfer targets like defender Jean-Clair Todibo and striker Serhou Guirassy look pretty tempting.

Todibo is valued at around £35 million, while Guirassy's contract contains a £15 million release clause. To fund new signings for Postecoglou, Spurs could also look to move on players like midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

The Dane has featured in Tottenham's vast majority of league games this season, albeit mostly from the bench. Hojbjerg is reportedly open to leaving Spurs as a result, and they could move him on to sign a midfield upgrade.

Tottenham tell Hojbjerg to leave with successor "lined up"

That is according to Football Insider and journalist Wayne Veysey, who claims Spurs have told Hojbjerg he's free to leave with a replacement "lined up".

The Lilywhites will green-light his departure once they do sign his successor, according to the report, and they've set a price tag of around £20 million to interested sides.

Hojbjerg is eager to move to a side where he can earn regular starts, despite being a key member of the squad. Called "sensational" by reporter Seb Stafford-Bloor, Postecoglou has also called him "very important" this season.

"It is obvious someone that has played regularly would have wanted to play more but ultimately our performances have been strong and he has had to bide his time," said Postecoglou on Hojbjerg.

"He has also been very important in a lot of the games that we’ve won late or had to shore up late. He has been one of the people who has helped us and it is not like he hasn’t contributed at all. He’s been a really important part for us. We wouldn’t be in this position if we were just reliant on our starting XI."

Many players could leave West Ham in January as manager David Moyes plots a mid-season shake up, coming after Thilo Kehrer's move to Monaco.

West Ham may sell-to-buy this month

Kehrer reportedly travelled to have his medical with the Ligue 1 side on Thursday, with the Germany international joining them on loan with a mandatory purchase clause.

The 27-year-old struggled for game time under Moyes this season, and a move away for Kehrer may suit all parties as West Ham could have to sell surplus players before making signings of their own. ExWHUemployee, a reliable club insider, revealed late last year that West Ham have a limited January budget to play with.

“I have spoken to the person who would be best placed to answer on our January transfer budget,” said Ex.

“What I was told is that Under Financial Fair Play we are struggling. We overspent in 2021 and we have to be careful to not ‘do an Everton’.

“So although there is money there in the pot, it isn’t a huge amount as the club are being understandably careful. We only need to look at the situations at Everton, Man City and Chelsea to know how serious it can be if not keeping within the parameters.”

Therefore, exits may be crucial at the London Stadium this month to raise much-needed funds. The likes of Danny Ings, Ben Johnson, Conor Coventry, Said Benrahma and even Nayef Aguerd have been linked with departures this month at various points.

Sharing an update on Benrahma, journalist Dean Jones suggests he could be one of the main candidates to leave West Ham.

Benrahma attracting lots of interest

According to the reporter, speaking to GiveMeSport this week, Benrahma could depart West Ham and is a man in demand – with clubs from France, Saudi Arabia and potentially England taking note of his possible availability.

"To be honest, Benrahma is just not going to cut it at West Ham. It's not going to happen for him. There have been umpteen opportunities for this to take off now, but it just hasn't," said Jones.

"I just don't see the benefits of him being around the club. They are getting quite a bit of interest in him, from what I understand, not just from Lyon.

"I know a couple of other teams in France have been interested and there has been Saudi interest. There will probably be interest within the Premier League as well, to be honest, if they start touting him around. There is definitely going to be three or four players leaving West Ham in January."

The Algeria international has started just five top-flight matches this season, despite his attacking flair at points. Former West Ham striker Frank McAvennie has also called Benrahma a "wonderful talent", but it appears he could be best suited to moving elsewhere.

Rangers manager Philippe Clement will hope to bring in new faces during the January transfer window, and a promising update has emerged regarding their business.

Rangers transfer news

Everything seems to be going in a positive direction under Clement at the moment, with the Belgian steadying the ship after the ultimately doomed reign of Michael Beale. In fact, Rangers are now in a position where they will go top of the Scottish Premiership if they win their two games in hand, with Celtic's 2-0 defeat at home to Hearts on Saturday afternoon acting as a huge boost.

While the Gers' title chances are improving all the time, having been a lot further behind their rivals earlier in the season, it does feel as though a few new faces may help give Clement's squad some much-needed extra depth and quality.

Everton centre-back Ben Godfrey has been linked with a move to Rangers, and could be an exciting addition, while Blues defender Mason Holgate is another target, with the Englishman currently out on loan at Southampton. These are the calibre of players that could be moving to Ibrox in January, although it has seemed up in the air as to how much money will be available to spend.

Key Rangers transfer update

According to an exciting update from Football Insider journalist Pete O'Rourke, however, Rangers' board have decided to provide Clement with funds to make new signings next month, in what is a boost for the boss.

"The Rangers board will look to back manager Philippe Clement in the January transfer window, sources have told Football Insider.

"Rangers are keen to add reinforcements in the January window with Clement keen to bolster his squad and bring more balance to his side. "

The report also adds that "signing a striker is the priority" after the injury suffered by Danilo, although no specific players are mentioned as potential incomings. This is an encouraging update for Rangers supporters, who should be increasingly feeling as though something special could be brewing this season, given Celtic's back-to-back defeats and the form that Clement's side have found themselves in.

The Gers may not be perfect, but if they can add a few players in key positions, it could just give them that extra edge needed to in the title race, not to mention also going as far as possible in the Europa League, following Thursday's 3-2 win over Real Betis.

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Another central defender in the mould of Godfrey or Holgate could be perfect, making Rangers even more solid at the back – they have only conceded eight goals in 16 league games so far this season – while a striker definitely feels like a must, in terms of providing the firepower that is now lacking without Danilo around for a number of months.

Hearts' Lawrence Shankland has been linked with a switch to Ibrox, having scored eight times in the league this season, including at Celtic on Saturday, and he could be just what Clement is looking for.

Real Madrid midfielders Luka Modric and Toni Kroos are likely to leave the club this summer, according to reports.

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Duo seeing fewer minutes at MadridBoth out-of-contract this summerLinked with MLS and Saudi movesWHAT HAPPENED?

The dynamic duo – who have been crucial to Madrid's success in recent years – are both in the final few months of their contract and the expectation is that they will move on from the La Liga champions despite their continued dominance in the league and Europe. Reports say despite it being a sad moment, it is necessary to ensure the continued upward trajectory of the club.

Advertisement(C)GettyImagesWHAT THE REPORTS SAID

According to , Kroos and Modric are more likely to leave Madrid this summer than stay. The decision to let the veterans leave is a significant one for the Spanish giants as they will have a hard time replacing such key figures in the dressing room, while fans are believed to want Modric to stay.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Madrid have a new generation of midfield talent in Jude Bellingham and Eduardo Camavinga and they have quickly become part of the furniture at the Santiago Bernabeu. Despite their status as club legends Modric and Kroos have to move on eventually and it may be better to go out while they are on top.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MODRIC AND KROOS?

Before they even consider their next moves, the Croatian and German internationals will want to play their part in the Champions League final at Wembley on 1 June. They face Borussia Dortmund and the opportunity to win a record 15th title. If they can win the match, it would be the perfect closing chapter in their legendary story at Madrid.

MatériaMais Notícias

Fora do próxima edição da Libertadores e com vaga assegurada na Copa Sul-Americana, o Corinthians cumprirá tabela na última rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro, contra o Internacional, atual vice-líder e que briga pelo título da competição, no Beira Rio, em Porto Alegre, na quinta-feira (25), às 21h30.

Ainda que não tenha mais pretensões na temporada e enfrente um time que colocará a vida em campo, o técnico Vagner Mancini garante que o Timão levará a sério jogo pela sua própria dignidade.

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-Se não for por isso vamos brigar pela nossa dignidade, pela nossa força de trabalho, pelo nosso aspecto profissional, por honrar a camisa do Corinthians. A gente tem que encerrar esse campeonato de uma forma digna – disse o técnico em entrevista coletiva virtual concedida neste domingo (21), após o empate em 0 a 0 contra o Vasco, na Neo Química Arena.

Quando assumiu o time de Parque São Jorge, na 16ª rodada da competição, a equipe brigava contra o rebaixamento, mas rapidamente teve uma sequência de bons resultados e passou a sonhar com uma vaga na pré-Libertadores, o que gerou uma alta expectativa sobre o clube, que acabou sendo frustrada.

-Obvio que quando houve a melhora do time gerou uma expectativa muito grande. A minha chegada ao Corinthians, a meta era que o clube saísse da zona do rebaixamento e alcançasse alguma outra coisa, a gente rapidamente atingiu isso. E quando a gente chegou em um grupo com outros times, cem uma briga por uma vaga À Libertadores nos deparamos com uma dificuldade maior – pontuou Mancini.

-Reconheço que houve um momento onde o Corinthians realmente melhorou muito, subiu muito a prateleira, jogou o seu limite muito para o alto e gerou muita expectativa e ela não se confirmou. Nas últimas cinco partidas, seis partidas, até sete partidas, desperdiçamos pontos importantes que talvez nos déssemos até uma vaga na Libertadores. Mas, diante do que foi a temporada, a gente tem que reconhecer que o Corinthians melhorou e melhorou bastante – acrescentou.

>> Confira a tabela do Brasileirão e simule os próximos jogos

West Bromwich Albion's squad situation at this point in time is less than ideal, with injuries mounting up, a number of first-team players leaving for the African Cup of Nations soon and now the development of Jeremy Sarmiento being recalled hitting the Baggies square in the face.

The news of Sarmiento returning to Brighton would have stung even more knowing that the Seagulls were just preparing to offload their South American winger out again to Ipswich Town, the Tractor Boys benefiting from West Brom's dire predicament.

Carlos Corberan won't move away from utilising the loan market completely this January however, with the West Midlands side interested in securing another loan move according to reports to attempt to soften the blow of Sarmiento exiting.

West Brom transfer latest – another loan deal

TEAMtalk have recently reported that the promotion-chasing Baggies are going after Dexter Lembikisa in January, the current Rotherham United man excelling with the Millers away from parent club Wolverhampton Wanderers on loan.

Yet, West Brom could come in this month and offer Lembikisa a better loan move where he could help Corberan's men clinch promotion to the Premier League instead of playing his part in Rotherham staving off relegation.

The Championship playoff hopefuls aren't the only interested party though, with TEAMTalk further elaborating that Middlesbrough and Ipswich are also keen whilst the Tractor Boys' arch nemesis Norwich City have joined the queue too for his services.

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West Brom will hope they can land Lembikisa to get a tetchy Baggies fanbase back on side, the masses at the Hawthorns growing increasingly worried at the threadbare nature of the squad before them.

Dexter Lembikisa's style of play

Lembikisa would push the likes of Darnell Furlong and Conor Townsend all the way on his arrival to the West Midlands to stake a claim for a first-team spot, equally adept at playing down both flanks as an adaptable full-back presence.

The current Millers man is also more than capable of venturing forward and playing further up the field if needed, scoring once so far this campaign for Rotherham under the previous tenure of Matt Taylor by confidently firing home on the volley against Norwich City.

Lembikisa's form has taken somewhat of a nosedive in recent weeks, as his Rotherham side continue to struggle to beat the drop, but Taylor showered the explosive 20-year-old with praise after that stunning strike – the ex-Millers boss describing Lembikisa as 'outstanding' when speaking to BirminghamLive.

Wolves pathways manager Steve Davis also described the Jamaican full-back as a 'confident boy' via the Premier League club's website when Lembikisa joined the Millers, the young defender hoping he can excel with a team higher up the Championship if rumours are correct and justify the confidence he possesses in his own ability too.

West Brom need all the bodies they can get into the building at this moment in time – and in Lembikisa – the Baggies would get a raw, exciting talent that could see the second-tier side go from being passive in games to suddenly upping the tempo and terrifying teams.

Losing Sarmiento will hurt those at the Hawthorns for the time being, but by signing this exciting 20-year-old defender this month, could get the ball rolling with many more purchases coming in after to breathe life back into a depleted West Brom group.