نجح الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي الزمالك، في تحقيق الفوز على نظيره الإسماعيلي بهدفين مقابل هدف، خلال المباراة التي انتهت منذ لحظات ببطولة الدوري المصري الممتاز.

والتقى الزمالك مع الإسماعيلي، على أرضية استاد القاهرة الدولي ضمن مواجهات الأسبوع الـ30 من عمر بطولة الدوري المصري.

وتقدم عبد الرحمن مجدي بالهدف الأول للإسماعيلي في الدقيقة 70 بعد إنفراد تام بمرمى الزمالك وسدد كرة قوية سكنت الشباك.

طالع أيضاً.. رئيس الوزارء يوافق على مقترح أشرف صبحي بشأن مواعيد مباريات الدوري المصري

وأدرك الزمالك التعادل في الدقيقة 77 عن طريق عبد الله السعيد من ركلة جزاء تم احتسابها بعد تدخل من إريك تراوري على ناصر ماهر.

وفي الدقيقة 82، أحرز عبد الله السعيد الهدف الثاني للزمالك من علامة الجزاء، بعد لمسة يد على عماد السيد لاعب الإسماعيلي.

بهذا الفوز، يحتل الزمالك المركز السابع في جدول ترتيب الدوري المصري برصيد 41 نقطة، بينما يتواجد الإسماعيلي بالمركز الرابع عشر، ولديه 31 نقطة. أهداف مباراة الزمالك والإسماعيلي في الدوري المصري

Following Aston Villa's start to the Premier League season, Unai Emery will be desperately hoping that the international break hasn't put an end to their growing momentum. Prior to the two-week stoppage, the Midlands club had finally got out of second gear, enjoying a four-game unbeaten run in England's top flight. The key to keeping that run going could be keeping as much of the squad as possible available and firing on all fronts.

Aston Villa team news

As things stand, Villa are without Jacob Ramsey, Tyrone Mings, Alex Moreno, and Emiliano Buendia when it comes to injuries ahead of the trip to West Ham, leaving Emery slightly short. The former Arsenal boss will hope that he can fall back on the likes of Moussa Diaby, Ollie Watkins, and Pau Torres to once again take his side to victory, in what would be a statement against a side who have got off to a similarly solid start in the form of the Hammers.

The Midlands club have at least been boosted by the latest Nicolo Zaniolo news. Jacob Tanswell of The Athletic posted the update on X, saying: "Nicolo Zaniolo is training and available to play for AVFC in light of assisting the Italian Football Federation and relevant authorities' investigation into alleged illegal betting activity."

Both Zaniolo and Newcastle United's Sandro Tonali were among those to be questioned by police as part of the investigation. Juventus midfielder Nicolo Fagioli was also caught up in the investigation, and has been handed a seven-month ban after agreeing a deal with the FIGC and admitting the breaching of betting rules. It remains to be seen whether Zaniolo and Tonali will be punished.

Nicolo Zaniolo's stats

From Villa's perspective, they'll be hoping that Zaniolo is not punished in similar fashion to Fagioli, if found guilty of breaching betting rules. Zaniolo's stats certainly show that he's an important part of Emery's set-up. According to FBref, the midfielder has made 11 progressive carries, ten progressive passes and made six blocks in just three Premier League starts this season.

The Italian may just get another chance to add to those numbers against the Hammers too, in what will be another tough test. Following the recent investigation, it's unsure whether Emery will opt to throw Zaniolo straight into his side, however.

At his best, Villa's summer signing has been the subject of high praise, including from Claudio Ranieri, who said, via Corriere Dello Sport: “He is a decisive player, we have seen him against Bodo. He is a striker who has to find the ball in space, he has an impressive quality and strength – even if sometimes he could pass it a little more when he is on the edge of the area.

“But when he has the door in front of him, it’s hard to go wrong. Zaniolo is what we saw on Thursday night. Mourinho knows how to manage it. With what he has been through he cannot always play. It is important for the boy to feel the trust of everyone: coach, teammates, club and fans.”

Warwickshire need 519 to beat Kent – a figure never achieved – but at 229 for 1, and Ian Bell again in sumptious form, anything is possible at Tunbridge Wells

ECB Reporters Network22-Jun-2018
ScorecardEngland Test stalwart Ian Bell appears intent on inspiring a momentous Warwickshire run-chase at Tunbridge Wells after Kent set the visitors a mammoth victory target of 519 in a shade over five sessions.In a topsy-turvy Specsavers County Championship match between the second division’s top two sides, Bell posted his third unbeaten hundred in four red-ball innings to take Warwickshire into the final day on 229 for one, requiring a further 290 for victory. The previous two were unbeaten; if this one remains so, Warwickshire would doubtless make history with the biggest successful run chase in Championship history. It is quite a run in the month when he conceded that his England days were realistically over.Bell and his second-wicket partner Dominic Sibley came together after the departure of left-hander Will Rhodes soon after lunch. Rhodes, back on his stumps to a Harry Podmore off-cutter went leg before for 25 leaving Bell and Sibley to bat out the remaining 55.4 overs of the day.Despite numerous Kent bowling changes, the visiting partners reached stumps with aplomb, rarely looking in trouble as they batted throughout the third day’s final session.The home bowlers switched ends in trying to make best use of Keith Barker’s day-two follow-through marks, but in truth off-spinner Adam Riley and rookie seamer Ivan Tomas offered little threat, Indeed Riley, in his last two championship starts, has now sent down 55.2 wicketless overs.Bell, prodding somewhat at his 164th ball, was slightly fortuitous to move to his 55th first-class hundred with a 15th boundary that ran through to the unguarded ropes at fine leg via a thick inside edge against the bowling of Matt Henry.Two deliveries later, Henry dropped to his haunches in exasperation after umpire James Middlebrook turned aside the Kiwi’s strenuous leg before plea.At the other end Sibley, who was downed in the cordon shortly before lunch, looked sound in defence and restrained in his stroke play in reaching 82 from 197 balls faced.The pair will likely need to extend their stand well into the final day if they are to beat the highest ever fourth-innings run chase in championship history set by Middlesex in beating Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 1925.Warwickshire’s own best last innings chase came far more recently however, when they pursued 427 to beat Somerset at Taunton in 2013.At the start of the day, promotion-chasing Kent batted on for a further 22 overs as seventh-wicket pairing Zak Crawley and Harry Podmore frustrated Jeetan Patel’s side for an hour in adding a further 53 runs.Crawley, the 19-year-old former Tonbridge School opener, posted his maiden championship half-century from 87 balls and with four fours, but, with his score on 24, Podmore aimed to force a short, loose delivery from Oliver Hannon-Dalby and succeeded in edging to the keeper Tim Ambrose.Crawley, dropped at slip when on 89 by Jonathan Trott, lasted only two more balls before Hannon-Dalby finally got his man lbw for 93. Having just nicked a streaky boundary to third man, Crawley was undone by an off-cutter that thudded into his front pad.After a lusty 20 from Matt Henry, Kent’s acting skipper Joe Denly declared at 12.25pm, leaving Warwickshire to face a mammoth, first-class record run chase of 519 for victory. By the close, Denly may have already been wishing he’d have batted on a tad longer.

When Arsene Wenger arrived at Arsenal in October 1996, the club was in a mess. They hadn’t won a trophy since 1994 and had endured Premier League finishes of 12th and fifth in the subsequent two seasons prior to the Frenchman arriving in London.

His appointment not only changed the course of Arsenal’s modern history, but also changed English football as a whole, establishing the top flight as one of the finest leagues on the continent.

The former AS Monaco manager didn’t take long to make an impact, securing the double during the 1997/98 season, becoming Manchester United’s first proper challenger in the Premier League era.

Further titles were won in 2002 and 2004 – the latter being dubbed the ‘invincible’ season due to Arsenal remaining unbeaten across the 38 game campaign – while he also added another seven FA Cup trophies to the Gunners’ trophy cabinet.

This success was made possible by his diligence in the transfer market, often signing young talent for a low price before developing them into true world-class players.

Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry, and Robert Pires are just but a few examples of this, and they all contributed heavily to this golden era for the club between 1998 and 2006.

That’s not to say Wenger didn’t have the odd transfer mishap and these were more prevalent as his stint at Arsenal wore on.

When did Arsene Wenger leave Arsenal?

The Frenchman departed the club following the 2017/18 season after 20 full seasons managing the north Londoners, yet his final few years were marred by poor results and even poorer signings.

The likes of Lucas Perez, Shkodran Mustafi, Calum Chambers and Danny Welbeck failed to leave any real impact during their spell at the club and this drop in stature meant Wenger failed to realistically challenge for another Premier League title during his final few years.

One of his worst signings however was that of defender Rob Holding, who arrived at the club in the summer of 2016, and it was hardly a signing which inspired confidence amongst the Arsenal support.

How much did Arsenal sign Rob Holding for?

Having finished the 2015/16 season in second place, failing to overtake surprise winners Leicester City during the final few months, the Frenchman aimed to bolster his squad ahead of another potential challenge.

His transfer business wasn’t exactly exciting and Holding was perhaps the most unflattering signing of the lot during that transfer window, costing just £2m and the 20-year-old was viewed as a signing for the near future rather than challenging for a first-team spot straight away.

Over the next seven years, Holding rinsed the club for millions without offering any real contribution on the pitch and proved to be yet another flop signed by Wenger.

How much did Rob Holding earn at Arsenal?

During his spell in north London, Holding began by earning a modest £13k-per-week during his first season before this rose to £23k-per-week during his second and third years at the club.

From his fourth season to when he departed the Gunners this summer under Mikel Arteta, the former Bolton Wanderers man earned £38k-per-week, which represented a decent rise from his first contract and signified his position in the senior team.

Over the course of his Arsenal career, he made 162 appearances for the club, yet made only 20 Premier League appearances during a single campaign only once, missing 54 games through injury during his time at the Gunners.

Did Rob Holding deserve to earn this amount?

Although the defender probably exceeded expectations at Arsenal following his arrival as a youngster in 2016, going on to win two FA Cups with the club, he wasn’t exactly the most consistent performer.

Indeed, he made just 60 appearances across his first three seasons, and it wasn’t until the 2020/21 campaign that he firmly established himself as a regular in the starting XI, especially in the Premier League, making 30 appearances.

This represented his peak as a player for the club, ranking fifth across the squad for accurate passes per game (52.3), first for clearances per game (3.9) and fourth for overall Sofascore rating (seven), indicating he was a reliable performer on the big stage, yet it proved to be a one-off.

The following season, he dropped to a lowly 19th in the squad with regard to Sofascore rating (6.79), while ranking 17th for tackles (0.9) and 12th for accurate passes (27.5) per game, showcasing just how big a drop-off he endured.

The former England U21 international was even criticised by Gary Neville after he was sent off against Tottenham Hotspur in May 2022, who said: "What is he doing? What is he doing?! Oh my goodness. I’m watching the run from Son and he [Holding] has a jab with his elbow, it comes away from his body. He’s been erratic, rash, he’s lacked composure.

"It’s madness. Mikel Arteta has big problems now. His centre-back has caused him huge issues in the first 35 minutes of this match. We spoke about Holding earlier in the game. Son played him. He played him and played him, like a little boy. Sometimes as a defender your head goes, you’re emotional and you do rash things. Son was in his head."

The centre-back lasted just one more season at the Emirates before joining Crystal Palace for a fee of £4m this summer as Mikel Arteta looked to ship out some deadwood in the squad.

Over the course of his 371 weeks at the Gunners, Holding rinsed the club of £13m, which combines his £2m transfer fee along with the £11m he earned in wages during that spell.

On the surface, this figure doesn’t appear to be a lot, especially for a club the size of Arsenal, yet Holding was just one of a few players signed by Wenger who ended up rinsing the club dry.

Arteta has turned the Gunners around and now has them challenging for honours, both domestically and on the continent, and hopefully expensive flops like Holding are a thing of the past as the Spaniard attempts to take the club into the future and secure glory of some sort in the next few years.

While things are going swimmingly for all at West Ham United right now, it has not always been the case, especially when considering the numerous deals on the transfer front over the past decade or so.

Frankly, the Hammers have spent much of the past two decades languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League – and have indeed fallen into the second tier on multiple occasions.

David Moyes' appointment in the managerial position (for the second time) has proved to be a masterful move, with the squad and culture built at the club over the past several years paving the way for success unseen in east London for many, many years.

Last term, West Ham won the Europa Conference League after beating Italian side Fiorentina in the final, ending a 43-year wait for major silverware, having last triumphed with an FA Cup victory in 1980.

It shrouded the woes on the domestic front, with West Ham struggling for form all season and actually seeing Moyes edge into territory begging questions over the sustainability of his tenure.

One of the main strugglers was Gianluca Scamacca, who had arrived in the summer to serve as the starring new talisman, but ultimately proved to be one of the worst deals struck throughout Moyes' successful reign.

How much did West Ham pay for Gianluca Scamacca?

After completing the 2021/22 season as Europa League semi-finalists and finishing seventh in the Premier League, West Ham felt the time was right to target a new starring striker to bolster the chances of retaining their position of power.

Scamacca was the man for the job, and completed a move from Serie A side Sassuolo for £35.5m on a five-year contract, with the possibility of extension for a further year.

It was a move that created much fanfare after such a promising rise, having scored 16 goals from 36 appearances in the Serie A the past season and eight from just 13 starts the season before.

The 24-year-old was expected to prosper and was expected to be the heir to put right the past failed deal of Sebastien Haller, who scored just 14 times from 54 games for West Ham after joining from Eintracht Frankfurt for £45m, but it was not to be.

How much did Gianluca Scamacca earn at West Ham?

The 6 foot 4 colossus certainly earned a pretty penny with West Ham, taking home £90k-per-week for an annual salary of nearly £4.7m.

The Hammers did manage to demonstrate their shrewd business sense and shipped him off to Atalanta in a £27m deal, but that still represents money down the drain for little outcome and yet another failed centre-forward signing for the club, who have had their fair share over the years.

Indeed, it's around a £13m loss for the east Londoners, when factoring in what they paid in terms of a transfer fee and his wages.

The 11-cap Italy star – who has yet to score for his country – moved back home after his English sojourn, and given that he has already scored twice this season despite only making one starting showing, there is much disgruntlement among the Irons that he did not prove himself under Moyes' wing with the outfit on the up.

How well did Gianluca Scamacca play for West Ham?

Despite earning praise for his “complete' skill set by Luigi Di Baggio, before his move to the London Stadium, Scamacca was unable to showcase the full scope of his talents under Moyes' tutelage.

Scamacca was remarked at for his "miserable" presence by pundit Chris Sutton and really did fail to gel with the team, and while he scored eight times across all competitions, two of those strikes came against Viborg in the Conference League qualifiers and a further three arrived in the group phase, against Silkeborg IF, Anderlecht and AEK Larnaca.

It was in the Premier League, where he was expected to strut his stuff, that the Italy international endured the most substandard of his displays; as per Sofascore, he scored just three goals across 16 appearances, missing as many big chances and completing only 67% of his passes.

It was a far cry from his past feats in his homeland, and given the expensive price tag and lofty wage, he is undoubtedly one of the biggest misfires of recent memory.

There have been a few. Felipe Anderson, in particular, stings to this day after enjoying such a tremendous maiden year at United after signing from Lazio on a club-record £36m transfer in July 2018, plundering ten goals and five assists from 40 outings and was heralded for his "outstanding" efforts by the late Hammers chairman David Gold.

The club-record phenom was sold after three years – back to Lazio – having spent his final campaign on West Ham's books with Portuguese giants Porto, and given that he scored just once in his final season within the West Ham squad, this was probably worthwhile.

To Anderson's credit, he did capture the awe of Hammers fans for that impressive debut term, something Scamacca failed to do, proving to be a colossal failure and waste of money for an ambitious squad targetting sustained success at the forefront.

A player who, ultimately, decided that English football was not for him, Scamacca sought a return to his homeland after just one year, very much a 'miserable' presence in east London.

Subjective, of course, but his failure to serve in the talismanic role as anticipated impacted the club's seasonal endeavours, and had he performed as was expected, the Irons might not have been embroiled in a relegation battle at all.

Moyes opted not to sign a striker this summer, sticking with Antonio and signing the mercurial Mohammed Kudus from Ajax, who can serve across a wealth of offensive roles.

With such a measly contribution in the paramount Premier League fight, Scamacca's signature might have been laced in gilt, but he proved to be a colossal failure and one which Moyes will certainly rue, with his striking replacement still not yet found.

The American midfielder provided the only goal needed for the U.S. to claim their first trophy of 2024.

It's not the trophy the U.S. women's national team is aiming for this year, there's a bigger one on the horizon. For the next few weeks and months, the excitement will only continue to build and build toward this summer's Paris Olympics.

If the U.S. does succeed in France, if they are to put last summer's World Cup disaster behind them, if they do end up regaining their place at the top of the mountain top, we might just say that this Gold Cup was really where it all began. This may just have been the tournament where the USWNT got their swagger back, where they remembered who and what they are and what it takes to be just that.

Lindsey Horan's goal late in the first half was all the U.S. needed to claim a 1-0 victory. After surviving a chaotic semifinal against Canada, Sunday's Gold Cup finale was a different type of match – It was tense and nervy and somewhat stressful. It was a game of fine margins; not calamity and chaos.

And sometimes, in those types of games, you just need a moment. Horan created it, with a little help from Emily Fox and Trinity Rodman, too. Fine margins are what undid the U.S. in Australia… maybe this was the tournament and the game that taught a new generation of young stars how to navigate them.

On Sunday night, the U.S. lifted a trophy. Horan, the captain, led the charge in what truly felt like a team effort. The USWNT is building something, or perhaps rebuilding something. The Gold Cup trophy is in hand… let's see what's next.

GOAL rates the USWNTs players from Snapdragon Stadium…

Goalkeeper & Defense

Alyssa Naeher (6/10):

After going superhuman in the semifinal, the final was much easier for Naeher. Didn't need to do much, which is probably just fine with her.

Crystal Dunn (6/10):

Struggled a bit in the first half, but came alive in the second, which was a good lift to the U.S. but not her best position, still.

Naomi Girma (7/10):

Solid as always. Brazil tried to pressure her but she never looked phased.

Tierna Davidson (6/10):

A few too may fouls and took a few too many risks. Got away with them, though, so it all worked out.

Emily Fox (8/10):

An absolute peach of a cross for the assist. Composed whenever she was on the ball, too. Another fantastic performance from the USWNT's unsung hero.

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Lindsey Horan (8/10):

A big game player, no doubt. Her huge header altered the momentum of the game, ensuring Brazil would go into halftime frustrated. When the U.S. needs her, Horan always seems to step up.

Sam Coffey (8/10):

Absolutely fantastic in the center of the field. her pressing led to Horan's opener, but that was only the most notable moment of the ridiculous amount of dirty work Coffey did to lift the USWNT.

Korbin Albert (7/10):

So much energy. Looked like she belonged again, so it's safe to say that she officially does. A big start for a player that is surging up the depth chart.

USA Today SportsAttack

Rose Lavelle (6/10):

Pretty ineffective in more of a wide role. Just stick her in as a No. 10 and keep her there.

Alex Morgan (6/10):

Came out aggressive, perhaps too much so. Walked the line after getting a yellow card and was taken out early in the second half to avoid a sending-off.

Trinity Rodman (7/10):

Played her part on Horan's goal, holding the ball up before earning the hockey assist. Was dangerous in the second half, too, as her everpresent dribbling and improved decision-making could have led to another goal.

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Lynn Williams (6/10):

Was so unlucky not to get a goal, as her tidy finish was wiped out due to an offside call.

Sophia Smith (7/10):

Definitely felt like a goal threat after coming on. Dangerous on the ball and pressed her heart out when Brazil had it.

Jaedyn Shaw (6/10):

Felt like the game was calling for her early on but, by the time she came in, the U.S. was looking to kill the game, limiting her ability to really change it.

Midge Purce (6/10):

An obvious sub in place of the tiring Rodman. Brought energy and pressing with the U.S. needing to protect their goal.

Casey Krueger (6/10):

Tossed on in place of Dunn late to add some fresh legs, had a huge defensive header in the dying moments.

Twila Kilgore (6/10):

Feels like there were some questionable lineup decisions, particularly involving Shaw. Still, the U.S. got the job done, so you can't hate too much! Her first trophy as interim boss.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed how close Manchester United came to signing Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland during his time as manager.

Article continues below

Article continues below

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• Solskjaer wanted to sign young duo
• His advice to Man Utd went unheeded
• Bellingham & Haaland starring on world stage

• Getty
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  During Solskjaer's stint as United boss between December 2018 and November 2021, the Norwegian tried to recruit Bellingham from Birmingham City and Haaland from Molde and then Red Bull Salzburg respectively. However, his advice went unheeded, the pair both ended up joining Borussia Dortmund and the rest is history.

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• Getty
  

  WHAT OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER

  He said on SkyBet's Stick to Football podcast: "Jude [Bellingham], he was in the building. I was there, Sir Alex Ferguson was there, Bryan Robson and Eric Cantona were all there that day when he came to the club. We all spoke to him and sold it as well as he could. He knew what he wanted a certain amount of minutes in the first team. He was 17 at the time, and he was the most mature 17-year-old I’ve ever met – he had it all planned out."

  On Haaland, he added: “I had him [Erling Haaland] in Molde, for two seasons. The summer before I got here [joined Manchester United], I rang the club and said, ‘You’ve got to sign this boy – he’ll be top class’. That was June/July 2018, and they said no – they had enough reports on players. Then I became the caretaker manager [of United], and we’d sold Haaland to RB Salzburg. I tell the club straight away to buy him while he has a release clause. We knew that then, and no one else would’ve paid the money – €20 million, it would’ve been a bargain. Even though with his links with Alfie [Haaland], and Manchester City and Leeds.

  "It was the club’s decision to not go for it then. We never made bids or went in for him, until after he started scoring for Salzburg. By then, Borussia Dortmund were there, Juventus were there, everyone was there. His release clause then was still good – €60 million.

  "He’s got more than just being a great lad. He’s such a team player, and one-on-one with a keeper, he doesn’t think about his own stats. He passes if someone else is through and it’ll be a 100% goal. He’s a gem.”

• Getty Images
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Both Haaland and Bellingham have since gone onto become one of the best players in the world, with the former winning the treble and bagging a hatful of goals for Manchester City and the latter starring at Real Madrid. This is a huge case of what might have been for United.

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• WHAT NEXT?

  Bellingham is set to be in action for Madrid against RB Leipzig in the second leg of their last 16 tie in the Champions League on Wednesday night and Haaland will feature in City's match against Copenhagen in the famous competition at the same time.

Fast bowler Shardul Thakur will replace the injured Jasprit Bumrah in India’s ODI squad for the three matches against England.Bumrah had already been ruled out of the ongoing T20I series in England, having broken his left thumb during India’s 76-run win in the first T20I against Ireland on June 27.On Friday, the BCCI confirmed that the fast bowler would miss the ODIs too, stating that he had undergone surgery in Leeds on July 4 before returning to India.This is the second injury to hit India’s ODI team before the series, with spinner Washington Sundar being ruled out earlier with an ankle problem and replaced by Axar Patel.Shardul, 26, last played for India in the Nidahas Trophy T20I series in Sri Lanka in March, and hadn’t been picked for the T20I or ODI squads for England. He is already in the UK though, and was an important part of the India A squad that won the tri-series involving England Lions and West Indies A.Shardul took eight wickets in four matches at an average of 21.37 and an economy rate of 5.02. He was on standby to replace Bumrah, with India A coach Rahul Dravid praising his performance for the A side.Despite Bumrah’s absence, India have several pace options to call on in Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Siddarth Kaul and Hardik Pandya, with Shardul now added to the mix.

Karunaratne scored 218 runs on a Galle surface in which no other batsman could manage so much as a half-century, and this is not even his most impressive hundred in tough conditions

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Galle14-Jul-2018Get on top of the spinners before they get on top of you. So goes Dimuth Karunaratne’s mantra, when playing on dusty tracks.Karunaratne hit 218 runs on his own on a Galle surface in which no other batsman could manage so much as a half-century. This was not even Karunaratne’s most impressive hundred in tough conditions – that would be last year’s second-innings 141 on an SSC dust-bowl, an innings played against the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin – the two top-ranked bowlers in the world at the time.”On pitches like this I am always looking for runs and trying to bat positively,” Karunaratne said. “Often my strike rate is in the 70s – like it was in this match. That’s the biggest thing. When you are playing spin you need to have a defence, but more than that you have to dominate the spinners before they dominate you.”Karunaratne’s epic 158 not out in the first innings came off only 222 balls, while his second innings 60 was scored from 80, but in neither of these innings did he rely on boundaries to drive his score forward. Instead, Karunaratne used the crease to create room, or came down the pitch to negate the spinners’ turn. He was busy, rather than bruising.”If you give spinners a chance to dominate you, they will step all over you. To avoid that I use my feet, and I’m trying to create scoring opportunities by doing as much as I can,” he said. “What I’m trying to do is make them bowl in areas that are good scoring zones for me. If you move around the crease and take a little risk when scoring those runs, you can get the bowlers to bowl where you want them to.”Karunaratne has had a good 18 months in general, having also hit hundreds against Bangladesh and Pakistan during that time. He hit more than 1000 runs last year, and now averages 42.8 since the start of 2017 – an excellent figure for an opening batsman from Sri Lanka, which has been the toughest country for openers over the past few years. Karunaratne has also developed the knack of going big when he gets to triple figures – half of his eight centuries are scores of over 150.”When I go to bat, I’m thinking of the first 15 overs, because it’s in those 15 overs that an opener has it toughest,” he said. “But if you can get through that, then you should know how to carry on. Rather than doing all the hard work and passing the job on to someone else, it’s better to build the innings yourself. If an opener that wants to score runs, that’s really important.”I knew in this match that there would be spin after those early overs, because Galle is anyway a spin-friendly track. But I like that challenge, because it tests you. You get better when you face challenges like that. I think I’m applying my skill and doing well on turning tracks.”Karunaratne is far from satisfied with his game, however. With four more home Tests to play this year, and three difficult back-to-back southern hemisphere tours between December and February, he would like to widen his skillset. “The more experience you have, the more you learn how to play in different situations. In New Zealand for example, you have to adjust your backlift and score a lot of runs straight, compared to turning tracks.”I think I’ve matured since I first came into the team. But I’m not complete yet. The more I play, the better I will become.”

أصدرت محكمة العمل في ألمانيا قرارها بشأن الدعوى القضائية التي رفعها اللاعب أنور الغازي ضد نادي ماينز بعدما قرر الأخير فصل اللاعب وإنهاء علاقته بالنادي بسبب موقفه من دعم فلسطين.

يعود الأمر إلى أحداث 7 أكتوبر الماضي عندما بدأ الكيان الصهيوني عدوانه الموسع ضد قطاع الغزة، المستمر حتى الآن، والذي تسبب في سقوط الآلاف من الشهداء والإصابات والمشردين.

وأعلن أنور الغازي دعمه الكامل لأهل قطاع غزة ضد عدوان الكيان الصهيوني، بشكل متواصل عبر حساباته الشخصي بمواقع التواصل الاجتماعي، وهو ما لم ينل إعجاب نادي ماينز.

وقررت إدارة ماينز فسخ عقد أنور الغازي، اللاعب الهولندي ذو الأصول المغربية، وإبعاده عن الفريق، في نوفمبر الماضي، بحجة أن اللاعب معادِ للسامية.

وتوجه أنور الغازي إلى محكمة العمل لرفع دعوى قضائية ضد ماينز، وهو ما قوبل بالمثل من قِبل النادي.

ووفقًا لتقارير صحفية ألمانية، قضت محكمة العمل في ماينز أنه لم يكن لدى النادي الألماني سبب مقنع ووجيه لفسخ عقد اللاعب أنور الغازي، بسبب تعليقاته حول الحرب في غزة.

اقرأ أيضًا | متجاهلين نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا.. سام مرسي وأنور الغازي يقودان مباراة خيرية لدعم أطفال غزة

ووجدت المحكمة أن تعليقات الغازي على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي لا تبرر الوقف الفوري لعلاقة عمله مع نادي ماينز.

وأعلنت المحكمة بطلان قرار فسخ عقد الغازي، وأمرت ماينز بإعادته كلاعب ودفع راتبه ومكافآت أخرى تبلغ قيمتها حوالي 1.5 مليون يورو.

ووجدت المحكمة أن تعليقات الغازي محمية بموجب حقوقه في حرية التعبير عن الرأي.

وكان من المفترض أن ينتهي عقد الغازي مع ماينز في يونيو الماضي، ولكنه يتضمن بند التمديد لعام آخر.

ولم يتضح بعد المكان الذي يمكن أن يلعب فيه الغازي الموسم المقبل، لكن المحكمة قضت بأن ماينز يجب أن يحترم العقد ما لم يتم التوصل إلى حل خلال الفترة المقبلة.