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West Ham United still have a crucial period of their season left to get through in order to finish as high up the Premier League table as they can and potentially winning the Europa League.

However, with the upcoming summer transfer window in mind, it seems as though a clue has been dropped over one potential deal that may or may not take place once the season comes to an end.

What’s the talk?

Speaking to Football FanCast, journalist and transfer insider Dean Jones had this to say on the situation regarding West Ham’s interest in signing £20.7m-rated Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic after a report emerged claiming that the club have a gentleman’s agreement with the player’s agent regarding a potential summer transfer move.

He said: “I think he turned them down once before. I don’t know of any agreement like that, that is in place.

“Maybe there is and I haven’t heard of it, but he’s a player they’ve undoubtedly liked in the past.”

The player was supposedly available for just £13m over the winter.

Not good news for the Hammers

As many West Ham fans will remember, the club were linked with a move for the player Sacha Pisani dubbed a “beast” back in the previous summer transfer window before they secured a deal for Kurt Zouma from fellow Premier League side Chelsea.

Having remained in Italy with Fiorentina, the centre-back has shown the Hammers exactly why they should have secured his signature when they had the chance.

With 26 league appearances under his belt, the 24-year-old has racked up a total of 101 combined tackles and interceptions, the highest of any player at the club, as well as 74 clearances, also more than any of his teammates.

This highlights just what a capable defender he is and why the Hammers were after him last summer.

Taking into account what Jones had to say about him having no knowledge of any gentleman’s agreement that would see the defender make the move to the London Stadium, this will surely be a disappointment for the Hammers fans and their hope of seeing the defender join.

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With Milenkovic actually turning down a move to the east London club when they were previously after him, this certainly wouldn’t go down well with the West Ham supporters either.

Current Hammers centre-back Issa Diop has recently been linked with a move to Lyon in the summer, the club should try and persuade the Fiorentina defender to once again sign to them and see if he can bring his talent to England.

In other news: Big worry: West Ham dealt fresh injury setback that’ll have many supporters sweating

If, when Russell Domingo started coaching, he had been told he would inherit a Test team at the top of the rankings and limited-overs sides that had suffered because of it, he would have taken it. When such riches rain on you, you do not consider the subsequent drain even if you know that in any functioning sporting system, there has to be one.Player pools change every few years so no matter whether you jump in at the shallow or the deep end, you are joining a cycle. From the shallow side, things will improve as the younger swimmers are schooled, a community is formed and they find their preferred stoke. From the deep end, the seas get rough, not everybody slips into the same stream and the waters begin to empty.What has made Domingo’s tenure so topsy-turvy is that these two processes have happened at the same time. “When I took over, there was a little bit of instability in the T20 and ODI teams and the Test side was very stable. Now, roles have reversed,” he said during his assessment of South Africa’s tour of India on their return home.South Africa came back with a perfect illustration of that. They T20 and ODI trophies were part of their luggage, which will boost their confidence ahead of next year’s World T20, but their nine-year unbeaten run on the road in Test series was broken. The gains of the former may not outweigh the disappointment of the latter, which is why so much focus has fallen on the longer format.”There is a lot of work to do with the Test side,” Domingo admitted. “Let’s not be naive about that. There are a lot of spots that people have questions about.”Some of those questions were answered a day later, when the selectors named their 13 to face England in the first two Tests. They stuck with opener Stiaan van Zyl despite the difficulties he faced in India, but deposed gloveman Dane Vilas. Their reasoning was that van Zyl needs to be tested in home conditions, having only opened in the subcontinent – he was promoted to the job in July for the Bangladesh series – but Vilas, who has also only played on the subcontinent, was superfluous to requirements that actually called for an extra batsman.That Vilas and his nearest rival Quinton de Kock are also batsmen was not part of the thinking because Temba Bavuma, the middle-order man who impressed when thrust into a role at the top, is more of a batsman and batsmen are in the spotlight. Domingo wants them to know their sails have not been ripped off, they have merely been blown a little off course.”As far as I’m concerned, India was a very tough tour for any batter to go on. We’ve got quality in our batting line-up that wasn’t able to showcase their skills under those conditions against those bowlers but that doesn’t make them bad players,” he said. “Those conditions were really extreme as it shows with the stats of the Indian batters as well.”India struggled only a little less than South Africa until Ajinkya Rahane’s twin tons in the Delhi Test. But the reality remains that no South African scored a hundred and only AB de Villiers managed to pass 50. Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis stonewalled impressively later in the series but balls faced and time batted do not count as much as runs. Bavuma showed some promise, Dean Elgar was caught and released a few times but eventually caught and the rest all took the bait the India spinners put out.In general, South Africa approached spin like a fish out of water but Domingo does not think they could have prepared any differently. Their batting consultant Mike Hussey was with them for a week before the first Test but could not stay. There is no word on if he will back before the England series. “We would have loved to have him longer but he had some other commitments so he wasn’t able to stay through the series but he did add a lot of value prior to the series,” Domingo said.Even when he had left, the team used any extra time as productively as they could. “We kept complimenting the players about the extra work they were putting in and the meticulous way they were trying to work on how to play against the Indian spinners,” Domingo said.Their floundering took place in the mind where the constant threat posed by both pitch and opposition players took its toll. “We were always under pressure and that can wear you down, whether it’s physically or mentally,” Domingo said. “I’m sure players’ confidence would have been knocked because we pride ourselves on being good players of spin but the fight that was shown on the last day [in Delhi], shows there’s still some fight left there. It shows that they can do it and these next 10 days will be important to make sure they freshen up and get themselves in the right frame of mind of England.”The quick turnaround has been cited by Domingo and captain Amla as the best way to recover. “We’ve got the ideal break,” Amla said. “Everybody will take a couple of days to rest up and get back into the nets and face the new ball on wickets with a bit of nip.”Home conditions are going to cast a different net over batsmen who will have to prepare for the ball flying past their noses instead of reaching down to smell it but Amla is not worried about how his team will tackle that. “I don’t think it’s a huge adjustment because these are the conditions we are accustomed to,” he said. So, in their own waters, Domingo and Amla are hopeful South Africa’s Test team will become big fish again.

Is Jonty Rhodes soon to be wearing the three lions? © Getty Images

Jonty Rhodes is one of the favourites to become England’s fielding coach as the new management team continues to expand the back room staff. It is hoped the position will be filled by the time the one-day squad meets up again for the seven-match series against India in the second half of August.England dropped three catches during the deciding one-dayer at Trent Bridge on Sunday – two in the outfield by Alastair Cook and Ian Bell, plus one by wicketkeeper Matt Prior – while the ground fielding was caught out by aggressive West Indies running. The boundary sweepers often struggled to collect the ball cleanly while those inside the circle rarely managed any direct hits.”As with the rest of the support team we want the right person to do that job,” said England coach Peter Moores. “When we’ve got the right bloke we can look to bring him in and see how he goes. We have seen that in other specialist positions for coaches.”We are talking about people who could make a genuine difference to international performances – and they don’t always grow on trees. If we get a fielding coach we want him to influence fielding in England not just at England level.”Rhodes, who was famous for his work at backward point in his career, has previously held a similar post with South Africa and Pakistan. His former team-mate Allan Donald is currently England’s bowling coach until the end of the Twenty20 World Championships.

Eden Park is set to get a major facelift © Photosport

Renovation work at Eden Park has meant that Auckland Cricket will have to shift from its home base for the first time in 103 years. The stadium, which hosts international cricket and rugby matches, is set to undergo a NZ$320 million facelift in time for the 2011 Rugby World Cup.Traditionally, Auckland play their domestic games at the Eden Park Outer Oval adjacent to the main stadium. However, the Oval will not be in a position to host any matches, with the construction work likely to affect the surrounding areas. International cricket will continue to be played at Eden Park, despite the renovation.According to a report in , Auckland are close to formalising an arrangement with the Eden Park Trust Board (EPTB) – which manages the venue – regarding the shift, but the search for a suitable alternative venue is proving to be difficult, as each has its share of merits and demerits. The possible venues include the University grounds at the Merton Road campus, Melville Park behind the Teachers’ College in Epsom, Western Springs and North Harbour Stadium at Albany.”We are in negotiations with the Eden Park Trust Board,” Brent King, Cricket Auckland’s chairman said. “We’re seeking a way in which we can continue to work with the EPTB and have a ground that’s appropriate for Auckland Cricket.”We are looking at a number of grounds and like anything in life they have benefits and detriments. Some of them are perfect grounds but poorly located. All these things are incredibly testing for everybody. Everyone has their opinions on what is most important.”North Shore City, another likely venue, has indicated that it would be keen to host games. “We have been in a dialogue with Auckland Cricket for the greater part of the year,” Brendan O’Connor, the stadium’s chief executive said. “They’re not just talking to us, they’re talking to other potential venues as well. It hasn’t got to the formal negotiation point yet.”

For the first time, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will running a Level One coaching course, for the fixed price of Rs.5000 (£50).The course will take place at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore, from November 29 to December 3, and will be conducted by qualified foreign coaches. The PCB will award certificates to those who successfully complete the course.Those wishing to participate should send their names and a cheque payable to the PCB, to the Administrator Academies, National Cricket Academy, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore by November 10 at the latest.

Omar Henry: still in charge© WPCA

Omar Henry, South Africa’s convenor of selectors, kept his job today – although the board of Cricket South Africa streamlined the selection panel, which now consists of four members rather than the previous six. Henry will be joined on the panel by Gary Kirsten, who was named today as South Africa’s new high-performance manager; Eric Simons, the national coach; and one other selector, who will be announed shortly after nominations are received from the new provincial franchises.The four selectors will choose the squads for overseas tours and home Tests, but the make-up of the final XIs will be left to the coach and the captain, Graeme Smith, who was reappointed for another year in charge.Kirsten’s appointment to the new post of high-performance manager carries a two-year contract. Kirsten, South Africa’s most-capped player, will take responsibility for identifying and guiding young cricketers who show potential to play for the national team. He will work closely with the six provincial coaches, and will assist with the development of the players on both the technical and mental levels.The meeting also considered the case of Diteko Modise, the UCB’s former finance and administration manager, who has appeared for remand on criminal fraud charges. The board recommended that Cricket South Africa’s audit committee review the completed forensic audit report into Mr Modise’s allegedfinancial irregularities. The UCB has successfully applied to have his assets frozen.Before the meeting started, the board members observed a minute’s silence in memory of Krish Mackerdhuj, the former United Cricket Board president, who died in Durban on Wednesday morning.

India’s scheduled tour of Pakistan next month was conclusively called off after Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Jagmohan Dalmiya stated that the team would not be able to undertake the tour because of a government ban on bilateral cricket series with Pakistan.”It is known to everybody that the government is against bilateral cricketties with Pakistan,” Dalmiya told the Press Trust of India (PTI).”We had sought permission for the team to travel to Pakistan but have been told that the government’s position remains unchanged,” explained SK Nair, BCCI secretary. “The government has informed us that the security scenario in Pakistan is not conducive for an Indian tour.”Following that announcement, Pakistan for its part pulled out of a scheduled tour to India next year. “BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya informed us that though they were willing to tour Pakistan, the Indian government has not given them the approval,” Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesperson Samiul Hassan told PTI in Islamabad.According to the 10-year Test schedule drawn up by the International Cricket Council (ICC), India and Pakistan are scheduled to play four bilateral series until 2010.

Sachin Tendulkar is expected to be fit for India’s tour of SouthAfrica, starting on October 1, the doctor, who is treating themaestro’s foot injury, said on Tuesday."He (Sachin) should recover from his foot injury by the end ofSeptember. I am hopeful that he will be ready to go to South Africa,”Anant Joshi told NDTV in an interview for Star News.Tendulkar had to miss out on the current Sri Lanka tour due to a footfracture which he suffered during India’s recent Zimbabwe tour.”We will take another CT scan after three to four weeks to see how thehealing is progressing,” Joshi said adding that in the meantime theywill also work on protected footwear so that when he gets back therewere no chances of his again getting injured.Normally any injury of a lower limb takes four to six weeks to join orgum up and another four to six weeks to really consolidate and becomestrong enough to take pressure, Joshi said while describingTendulkar’s injury as “fracture of great toe of the right foot.”However, he said in case of players like Tendulkar, who areoptimistic, the recovery was fast.Asked if the injury was due to overdose of cricket, the doctor said”no”. “In Sachin’s case it has nothing to do with overdose of cricket.It is a plain simple accident which could happen to anybody.”Describing his injury as “temporary halt”, Tendulkar said “if I am fitI would like to go tomorrow and play the Test match. I am just keepingmy fingers crossed and hope it will get better as soon as possible andget back to action. What else I can do?”Expressing his eagerness to play against South Africa, Tendulkar said,”South Africa is one of the top sides and I am looking forward to gothere and play against them. I hope to get back in action as soon aspossible.”About the pressure from the public for being away from the game, thebatting maestro said “Sometimes it is difficult to answer each andevery individual but I totally understand their feelings. I feel happythat people are concerned about me and want me to get back to action.All I can say is I am trying my best.”Asked if he thought too much cricket was resulting in injuries among alot of players, Tendulkar said “I don’t want to say that we haveplayed a lot of cricket and that’s why there were so many injuries.But at the same time I would like to play some amount of cricketprovided there are some breaks in between. This help players recoverand recharge their batteries. They can also spend some time with thefamilies and go out to play with a fresh mind. And even sitting athome, one can analyse his game and get better.”Though it was a forced break, Tendulkar said he enjoyed each and everymoment of it with his family. "It was a different feeling altogetherto have breakfast with my son in his school which would not have beenpossible, if I would not have got injured,” he said.

Chelsea are exploring a number of forward options ahead of the January transfer window, as BlueCo continue to pursue stars of the future.

Blues welcome back two forwards ahead of Villa clash

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca will be boosted by the return of Liam Delap and Estevao when Aston Villa visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Unai Emery’s side are in red hot form, winning ten matches on the bounce in all competitions after their 2-1 win against Manchester United.

Delap’s recovery from the shoulder injury he sustained during the draw with Bournemouth on December 6 is reason to be particularly cheerful as it had looked like being a lengthier lay-off for the £30million striker.

The 22-year-old is yet to score his first Premier League goal since moving from Ipswich in the summer, having missed around ten weeks of the season, mostly with a groin problem picked up on his first home start in August.

The return of Estevao, who has not played since coming on as a late substitute in the December 13 win over Everton, also reinforces Maresca’s options.

“Estevao is available for Saturday and also Liam Delap,” the Italian said. “We didn’t know exactly how long (Delap) needed to be out. Very happy for both.”

Related Chelsea have already agreed to sign their answer to Semenyo in 2026

The incredible youngster could be even better for Chelsea than Semenyo would have ever been.

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The Blues will look to reinforce their squad in January as they push for a spot in the top five, but their latest transfer target is one for the future.

Chelsea scouting Saint-Étienne teenager N'Guessan

According to Simon Johnson, writing for The Athletic, Chelsea are scouting ‘many young talents’ in France, including some at sister club Strasbourg.

Rennes centre-back Jeremy Jacquet and Saint-Etienne forward Djylian N’Guessan are both being monitored, with the latter an extremely raw and inexperienced talent.

The Blues have made a habit of recruiting stars of the future before loaning them out in recent years, and N’Guessan could be a perfect candidate for that model having made just ten appearances for Saint-Étienne’s first team, scoring once.

N’Guessan’s career so far

Apps (goals)

Saint-Étienne

10 (1)

Saint-Étienne B

9 (2)

Saint-Étienne U19

13 (8)

Youth football channel Eyeball Football calls the 17 year-old an “extremely talented forward, using his tall and agile frame to create goal-scoring opportunities”.

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The teenager has been spectacular at youth level for France, scoring 23 times in 25 games for France’s U16 and U17 sides.

Jacquet meanwhile is attracting interest from a number of top sides, with the 20 year-old defender being monitored by the Blues, Arsenal and Real Madrid.

Match facts

Sunday, May 11, 2008
Start time 16.00 (local), 10.30 (GMT)

	Shoaib Akhtar is available for selection, but he might struggle to make it to the playing XI © AFP

The Big Picture

The last time these two teams played each other, the pitch at Eden Gardens took centrestage as the ball kicked up, scooted low, jagged around, and in general made life miserable for the batsmen. VVS Laxman hit out at the surface after his team was at the wrong end of the result, but here his team have a chance to avenge that defeat, and more importantly, inject some momentum into what has so far been a disastrous campaign – with two wins in eight games, they are sitting at the bottom of the table and each of their last six matches are virtually must-win games for them.Kolkata arrested a worrying four-match slide with a thrilling five-run win against Bangalore, but the fact that the worst team in the tournament pushed them all the way remains a cause for worry, as does the fact that the batting hasn’t yet inspired any confidence yet. They have played one less game than Deccan, though, and a win on Sunday will put them on eight points from as many games, and in a good position to push for a semi-final spot.Both teams will also have to battle their unfavourable home and away records. Deccan have lost all three games at home, while Kolkata have lost three out of four away matches. Deccan also have a huge problem when batting first: they have lost all five games when setting a target, and most of those defeats have been convincing ones.

Tournament position

Deccan Chargers P8, W2, L6, NRR -0.240
Kolkata Knight Riders P7, W3, L4, NRR +0.461

IPL form (last five matches)

Deccan Chargers: LWLLW
Kolkata Knight Riders: WLLLL

Watch out for …

Adam Gilchrist versus Kolkata’s impressive new-ball attack of Ishant Sharma and Ashok Dinda, who have both been among the wickets.

Shahid Afridi. He has scored just 47 runs in six innings and is due a big one.

Team news

Deccan’s batting has been a huge worry – they’ve depended far too much on Rohit Sharma and Adam Gilchrist, and they could do with more contributions from Herschelle Gibbs, Shahid Afridi and Scott Styris, three foreign stars who have contributed little so far. The bowling was lacklustre in the previous game, and Chaminda Vaas could return to the squad to bolster the attack.Deccan Chargers: 1 Adam Gilchrist (capt & wk), 2 Herschelle Gibbs, 3 Venugopal Rao, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Shahid Afridi, 6 Ravi Teja, 7 Sanjay Bangar, 8 Chaminda Vaas, 9 RP Singh, 10 Pragyan Ojha, 11 DP Vijaykumar.Kolkata have included Shoaib Akhtar in their 14-man squad, but he might find it difficult to break into the XI, considering how well their pace attack has performed. Murali Kartik’s position might be jeopardy after an ordinary performance with the ball against Bangalore, but his vital runs in that match might just give him another opportunity. Salman Butt is almost certain to get a game, after Brad Hodge left the IPL to join the Australian team on their tour to the West Indies.Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Aakash Chopra, 2 Salman Butt, 3 Sourav Ganguly (capt), 4 David Hussey, 5 Tatenda Taibu, 6 Laxmi Ratan Shukla, 7 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 8 Murali Kartik, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Ashok Dinda.

Stats and trivia

Adam Gilchrist averages 163 in the two matches that Deccan have won. In the games they have lost, he averages 20.17.

Deccan average 50.67 runs per wicket and 9.12 per over when batting second. When batting first, those numbers drop to 19.74 and 7.70.

Kolkata’s four fast bowlers – Ashok Dinda, Ishant Sharma, Ajit Agarkar and Umar Gul – have taken 23 wickets at an average of 23.96 and an economy rate of 7.

Sourav Ganguly has struggled for runs so far, getting just 116 at an average of 16.57 and a strike rate of 88.54.

Quotes

“One can’t take the Chargers lightly. They have Adam Gilchrist, Herschelle Gibbs, Shahid Afridi, and any one of them can turn the game around.”