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Aston Villa find themselves in the hunt for additions this summer and could now take up an intriguing set of circumstances to land an exciting talent at Villa Park, according to reports.

Aston Villa move on after PSR deadline

Following a trend that Chelsea set, Aston Villa moved to sell a stake in their women’s team worth in the region of £55 million to avoid any threat of a PSR breach.

Providing some leeway in the market, the Villans are now keen to strike while the iron is hot after another productive campaign under Unai Emery that resulted in Europa League qualification, so who could they attract to the West Midlands?

Despite Newcastle United’s advances, Aston Villa are also interested in a swoop for Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga, though it remains to be seen if they can ward off interest from St James’ Park in the Swedish international.

Reports have claimed that Galatasaray playmaker Gabriel Sara has been the subject of an offer from the Villans. Nevertheless, the Turkish giants want to recoup £34 million and will hope to spark a bidding war amid Manchester City, Manchester United and Leeds United lurking in the distance.

Philippe Coutinho’s long-awaited permanent departure from Aston Villa to join Vasco Da Gama has been confirmed, coming as anothet timely boost on the PSR front with additions now at the forefront of everyone’s mind.

Their next Duran: Aston Villa open talks to sign "powerful" £13m sensation

As Aston Villa go in search of their next Jhon Durán, the Villans have opened talks to sign a £13m successor

Jul 3, 2025

Most of the bricks are still to be laid for Emery this summer, but there is plenty of optimism starting to grow among supporters that another successful campaign could be on the cards, something that will likely be amplified by recent reports.

Aston Villa hold talks with Besiktas over Semih Kilicsoy

According to reports in his homeland via Sport Witness, Aston Villa have been offered Besiktas forward Semih Kilicsoy and he has held talks with the club over a potential £13 million move.

Tammy Abraham’s arrival in the Turkish capital has loosened their stance on the versatile forward, who registered four goals and six assists in 46 appearances across all competitions last season.

Semih Kilicsoy’s Super Liga campaign in 2024/25 – key statistics (Fotmob)

Chances created

15

Successful dribbles

36

Touches in opposition box

83

Tackles won

90.9%

Successful passes

222

Once dubbed ‘The Next Aguero’ by former EFL Scout Jack McGhee, he still has three years left on his contract at Besiktas, though seems to be available for a relative low fee due to his underwhelming campaign in front of goal.

The 20-year-old has also attracted recent interest from Newcastle United and Leeds United, potentially sparking a battle for his services between Premier League competitors this summer.

While Aston Villa’s search for attacking talent goes on, they could do worse than rolling the dice on someone with Kilicsoy’s potential to develop ahead of next campaign.

Wanindu Hasaranga has resigned as Sri Lanka’s T20I captain after roughly six months in the role. He said in a statement put out by the board that his decision was in the best interest of Sri Lankan cricket.”Sri Lanka will always have my utmost best efforts as a player, and I will support and stand by my team always,” Hasaranga said in his resignation letter, later seen by ESPNcricinfo.*Related

• Calm, chilled and selfless: captain Asalanka steps into Sri Lanka cricket's melee

• Jayasuriya appointed Sri Lanka's interim head coach

• Jayawardene resigns as SL's consultant coach

Although Hasaranga’s resignation came on the heels of a poor World Cup in which Sri Lanka failed to qualify for the Super Eight, it was still something of a surprise. There was little public pressure on him to be ousted, partly because he was still so new in the role. He also appeared to be relishing the job, even prioritising Sri Lanka commitments over IPL appearances this year as he recovered from a foot injury.In his resignation, he lamented Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign at length.”Sri Lanka’s early exit at the T20 World Cup is extremely disappointing to me as the captain and for the entire team,” he wrote. “As a team and a nation our expectations were high, and I was confident that the best Sri Lanka team was selected to play the tournament.”I do not wish to place excuses to condone our below-par performance, but also wholeheartedly believe that the Bangladesh game was very close and we should have been able to pull through [Bangladesh won by two wickets, with six balls remaining]. If so, circumstances and the fortunes for our nation would have been very much different.”Sri Lanka won six of the 10 T20Is they played under Hasaranga, winning bilateral series against Zimbabwe and Afghanistan to start 2024. He had also been suspended for two matches for abusing an umpire during this stint.He remains captain of the Kandy Falcons Lanka Premier League team in the ongoing franchise tournament.While there are no obvious candidates to replace him as captain of Sri Lanka in T20Is, Charith Asalanka’s name will be discussed. He took the reins in the two matches Hasaranga had been suspended for, and also leads Jaffna Kings in the LPL this year.Sri Lanka’s next T20I assignment is the three-match series against India at the end of this month. Sri Lanka will enter that series with a new coach as well, with Sanath Jayasuriya taking over in an interim capacity after Chris Silverwood stepped down following the World Cup. Mahela Jayawardene, too, had quit as consultant coach last month.

There has been a twist in Arsenal’s pursuit of an “extraordinary” £60m+ star, with a report revealing he would now prefer a move to the Emirates Stadium ahead of Old Trafford.

Starmer insists Arteta must sign new striker

There have been widespread calls for Mikel Arteta to sign a new striker for quite some time, and Keir Starmer has now weighed in with his thoughts on what the manager should set out to do in the summer transfer window.

The Prime Minister said: “I think one or two extra players, I would not go for widespread change, a striker. That is the one that leaps out and it has been for a little while now.

“It looks like we are shoring up midfield, so that is good and the back four is pretty good, perhaps a little bit more strength because of injuries, but it is that up front striker role we need. We need to add there.”

Not just Sesko: Arsenal in talks to sign £84m star who's like Nico Williams

Arsenal are looking to sign new forwards in the transfer market this summer.

By
Angus Sinclair

Jun 8, 2025

There is certainly no shortage of options for the Gunners, with RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko and Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres thought to be among the main targets, and sporting director Andrea Berta has already held talks over a deal for the latter player.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Gyokeres wants to join Manchester United this summer, with the forward eyeing a reunion with former manager Ruben Amorim, but there has now been a twist in the saga.

According to a report from The Mirror, the Sporting CP striker would now prefer to move to the Emirates Stadium ahead of Old Trafford, and a move to the Premier League is thought to be of more interest than heading to Spain or Italy.

Should the Sweden international get his pick of the clubs, Arsenal would be first choice, with the Portuguese club ready to sanction a departure for a fee of just over £60m.

Gyokeres could be "extraordinary" signing for Arsenal

As previously mentioned, the 27-year-old is thought to be among the Gunners’ main targets this summer, alongside Sesko, and there are some signs the Sporting star could be the better option, given his superior goal return.

Sporting boss Rui Borges has, of course, been left very impressed by the Sweden international’s performances, saying: “There are no adjectives to describe Viktor. He is an extraordinary striker, very important to our team.”

That said, while the Stockholm-born striker is by no means old, Sesko is five years his junior, and the Slovenian has proven himself in a tougher league, while also picking up a total of 21 goals and six assists in all competitions in the 2024-25 campaign.

As such, Arsenal have a very difficult decision to make this summer, but it is promising news that Gyokeres would be keen on a move to the Emirates Stadium, despite the widespread interest from clubs across the continent.

It’s set to be a very busy summer at Rangers. With 49ers Enterprises, spearheaded by Paraag Marathe, close to finalising their 51% takeover of the Ibrox side, they’ve got plenty of work to do before Champions League qualifying commences early on 22/23 July.

Rangers need a new manager and, after a trophyless campaign, the squad requires major surgery too, but could they land a “very talented” midfielder, who would suit the style of play of one of the front-runners to become the new boss?

The latest on Davide Ancelotti to Rangers

As reported by Spanish outlet AS, Carlo Ancelotti’s son, Davide Ancelotti, is one of the front-runners to become the new Rangers manager, claiming that the 35-year-old is excited by the ‘project’.

Mark Atkinson of the Scotsman notes that Ancelotti previously worked with Rangers’ new sporting director Kevin Thelwell at Everton, while Guillem Balague and Chris McLaughlin of BBC Sport are reporting that an official approach has now been made.

Ancelotti has been his father assistant at Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton and Real Madrid, but has never been a head coach in his own right, so it is difficult to forecast what a Davide team looks like, but one can only assume it would be similar to a Carlo side.

With that in mind, perhaps their latest transfer target might be perfect.

The first signing of the Ancelotti era?

According to a report by TEAMtalk earlier this week, Rangers are ‘plotting’ a move to sign midfielder Metinho, who they claim is valued at £4m.

Transfer Focus

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

Born in DR Congo, Abemly Meto Silu and his father Abel fled when he was just one-year-old, moving to Rio de Janeiro, earning the nickname Metinho during his time in Fluminense’s academy.

After turning pro, he was picked up by the City Football Group, officially attached to Troyes, although he’s never made a senior appearance for the Ligue 2 side, loaned out to Lommel in Belgium, another CFG-owned club, as well as Sparta Rotterdam and then, most-recently FC Basel.

The table below illustrates his globe-trotting career so far.

Fluminense

Campeonato Carioca

1

Troyes B

Championnat National 3

8

Lommel

Challenger Pro League

27

Sparta Rotterdam

Eredivisie

41

Jong Sparta Rotterdam

Tweede Divisie

1

FC Basel

Swiss Super League

11

Since leaving Brazil, he has played in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland, so could Scotland be next on this list?

This weekend Basel were crowned Swiss champions for the first time since 2017 and, while Metinho has only made 11 appearances for the RotBlau, he’s quickly established himself as a key figure, dubbed ‘the Brazilian Paul Pogba’ due to their stylistic similarities.

So, where would the 22-year-old fit in at Ibrox, and could he be the perfect first signing for an Ancelotti-led Rangers side?

Where Metinho would fit in at Rangers

Samuel Bannister of Team Talk notes that Metinho is ‘known for his versatility and composure’, adding that ‘he stands out for his ability at taking on opponents… but he’s also good at stopping opponents getting past him’.

​​​​​Meanwhile, Jacek Kulig of Football Talent Scout describes the 22-year-old as “very talented”, while adding in a separate player profile that the Brazilian is a ‘defensive midfielder…. best suited’ to playing at the base of a 4-3-3.

So, could this make him the perfect signing for Rangers’ player of the season Nicolas Raskin who, as noted by Pete O’Rourke of Football Insider, has been ‘one of few silver linings’ in an otherwise miserable campaign for the Gers?

Scott Bradley of Breaking the Lines believes the now Belgian international ‘has the potential to be something special’, with Brandon Liss of Total Football Analysis describing him as a ‘deep-lying playmaker’ who likes to ‘spray passes​​​​​​​’ and ‘roam vertically from touchline to touchline’, suggesting Metinho’s tactical discipline could certainly help to get the best out of him.

Thus, Raskin and Metinho’s skill sets appear to perfectly complement one another, and one can totally envisage the duo operating in a Real Madrid-esque 4-3-3, should Ancelotti arrive at Ibrox.

Of course, neither are quite as good as Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, Federico Valverde or Luka Modrić, which is a pretty high bar in fairness, but, as a pair, they could form the building blocks as Rangers look to rebuild a competitive team.

Perhaps in this situation, Raskin would act as the Modric-like midfielder while Mettinho would be more of a Tchouameni, sitting deeper and protecting the defence while the Belgian goes about creating play.

As referenced earlier, with Metinho valued at just £4m, this is exactly the sort of high-potential, low-cost transfer Rangers need to be targeting and need to get right, if they’re going to be able to compete with Celtic at the top of the table.

He's the next Gerrard: Rangers close in on "big name" appointment at Ibrox

Rangers could go left field with their new manager

ByRoss Kilvington May 13, 2025

Trent Alexander-Arnold might be jetting off to the Spanish capital this summer, but there’s plenty to be happy about for those of a Liverpool persuasion right now.

With the Reds winning their 20th top-flight title under Arne Slot’s management this year, Alexander-Arnold has very much played a pivotal part in putting his boyhood club back on its perch – not just this year, but across the illustrious sweep of his career.

But the vice-captain is going to leave for Real Madrid on a Bosman, and his departure will have a say on the roads taken across the transfer market months.

While sorting out Liverpool’s defensive flanks is sure to be a priority for FSG, there’s no question that changes are going to be enforced from an attacking standpoint.

Liverpool eyeing attacking changes

Liverpool are gearing up for a busy summer, and no mistake. FSG’s approach toward transfer business has stoked frustrations over the years, but can we really begrudge them, given the club’s success over the past decade?

This new version, it must be said, feels different. The framework has been reshaped and Slot is expecting sweeping changes after minimal investment last summer.

Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota may both reportedly depart, opening ample room for a high-level centre-forward. However, with Luis Diaz anticipating new talks to renew his contract, Liverpool’s need for a left winger has been lessened considerably.

That hasn’t stopped the Merseysiders from registering their interest in Morgan Rogers, though, a versatile attacker who shifts seamlessly between the wide lane and a more central berth, and has struck 27 goal contributions from 51 outings this season.

However, Liverpool have yet to double down on a target, and might have found one who would be a better fit than the Aston Villa sensation.

Liverpool could see bid accepted for Premier League star

Sources have confirmed to Caught Offside that Brentford star Bryan Mbeumo is on Liverpool’s radar this summer, with the Bees seeking bids of £60m-£65m in order to let him head to Anfield or any other interested party.

Transfer Focus

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

However, sporting director Richard Hughes will need to accelerate his plans if Liverpool are to prevail, with Manchester United set to make their opening offer in the coming weeks.

While the urgency for a right-sided forward has been eased after Mohamed Salah’s contract renewal, Federico Chiesa has scarcely featured under Slot and is mooted for a return to Italy, with AC Milan reportedly interested.

Mbeumo could be the perfect addition, adding the athleticism and dynamism needed ahead of a title-defending campaign.

What Bryan Mbeumo would bring to Liverpool

Salah’s peerless output in the Premier League this season is something Slot will be hoping to replicate next year. Signing a ball-carrying star such as Rogers could be a way to make that happen, but Liverpool already have a tried and tested midfield three and Diaz is rumoured to be staying put.

1

Mohamed Salah

28

18

46

2

Alexander Isak

23

6

29

3

Bryan Mbeumo

18

7

25

4

Erling Haaland

21

3

24

4=

Cole Palmer

15

9

24

However, he’ll be 33 by the time the 2025/26 campaign arrives, and Mbeumo could be the perfect forward to ease the Egypt international’s workload.

Of course, Mbeumo’s capacity to perform at number nine is something Thomas Frank has made good use of throughout the season and Slot will be sure to take a leaf from the Dane’s book, with his usage of Diaz’s dynamic qualities this year already underlining how he can guide the Brentford man toward new heights.

The 25-year-old has scored 68 goals and provided 50 assists across 239 matches in England, but it would be hard to argue against the current campaign being his finest for the Bees.

After missing only eight big chances in the Premier League this season (scoring 18 times), he’s proven his clinical edge to be the hallmark of a broad-ranging skill set. Of course, that’s not all, with 16 big chances created and 1.3 tackles and dribbles averaged per game, over four duels won each fixture too.

While Villa’s Rogers would be an attractive option given his prolificness in Unai Emery’s system, Mbeumo is the more dangerous goalscorer while proving himself a multi-dimensional player too, creating heartily.

Highly-regarded, Rogers has pulled all the stops this term and would no doubt prove a worthy addition to Liverpool’s high-flying team.

That said, recent rumours have suggested that Rogers will cost suitors around £70m, which is no small sum. Villa’s reluctance to sell could see that stretch even higher.

Meanwhile, Brentford seem open to selling their talisman which could play into Liverpool’s plans, with Mbeumo’s specific quality suggesting that he could one day succeed Salah while serving as his understudy for now and filling in at centre-forward too.

He’s been more prolific than Rogers in the Premier League this season while outstripping him across most underlying metrics. Rogers has won more duels per game, but only by a 0.2 average.

Hailed for his “sensational” efforts in west London by Sky Sports reporter Mark McAdam, Liverpool will kick themselves if they fail to beat off competition from their Red Devil rivals and secure Mbeumo’s signature.

Liverpool are going to want an out-and-out striker to join their ranks ahead of Slot’s second season, but if Nunez and Jota both depart, Mbeumo’s addition would make a significant difference to an outfit looking to challenge across four fronts.

Both the Cameroon international and Rogers have the qualities to leave marked effects on Slot’s Liverpool project, but Mbuemo’s goalscoring ability and completeness have the decisive say on the matter: FSG need to bring him in.

Slot's own Suarez: Liverpool plot big move for "one of the best CFs" around

Liverpool could be about to make a move for a player who could become Arne Slot’s own Luis Suarez.

ByEthan Lamb May 5, 2025

Despite their success since his departure, Aston Villa have never really found a like-for-like replacement for Jack Grealish. His sale was something of a catalyst at Villa Park, helping his boyhood club spend money freely and become a side challenging for European football.

Grealish was sensational in that famous Claret and Blue shirt. In 213 appearances, he scored 32 goals and grabbed 43 assists, playing a huge role in their Premier League survival in his final two seasons.

In terms of the skillset he has, it feels like the West Midlands club never really managed to find someone in the same mould. However, this summer, that could all change with Villa’s latest transfer rumour.

Aston Villa’s latest transfer target

It is never easy to replace a player as influential as Grealish, not only in terms of his ability but also the leadership he provides. With that being said, they have been linked with one Premier League star who could be the player they’re looking for.

Transfer Focus

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

According to a recent report from The Athletic, Villa are one of the many top Premier League sides in the race for Southampton attacker Tyler Dibling. The report explains that Unai Emery’s side have ‘watched’ Dibling, ahead of what will be a busy summer transfer window at Villa Park.

It is a summer in which he will seemingly leave the Saints. Football Insider confirmed at the start of the week that Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City are also interested in a move for the attacker, meaning Villa will face competition for his signature.

As for a price, the same article suggests the South Coast outfit would want £55m for a transfer to happen.

Why Dibling would be a good signing

Last season for Southampton was a disaster. They finished rock bottom of the Premier League, and just about avoided being the worst Premier League side of all time. However, in such a poor campaign, one shining light was Dibling.

The 19-year-old attacker, who is an England under-21 international, left a real impression in his 33 top-flight appearances. Despite the fact that he only scored two goals and assisted one other, he showcased real skill.

In fact, take a look at one of the two assists he grabbed against Cardiff City in the Carabao Cup last term. The winger showed some excellent ball-carrying skills under pressure to evade the defender, before playing a well-weighted pass to Mateus Fernandes, who fired home.

It is easy to see why Ryan Garry, who coached Dibling at England under-17 level, said he plays with an “X-Factor”. There is a certain swagger about Dibling’s game which is similar, in many ways, to Grealish, suggesting he could be Villa’s replacement for their former number 10.

In fact, former England international Stuart Pierce picked up on the similarities earlier in the season when the Saints played Man United. He described the teenager as a “devotee” of Grealish and compared “his mannerisms and how he carries himself” to the England star.

This is further personified in this video of Grealish playing for England back in 2020. Look at the way he carries the ball and is able to shield it from the oncoming defender.

Comparing that to the earlier clip of Dibling, the similarities are, once again, clear.

Looking at Grealish’s FBref stats from the 2019/20 Premier League season, an iconic campaign for him in a Villa shirt, they are not too dissimilar to Dibling’s this term. For example, the Saints star averaged 2.16 successful take-ons per 90 minutes, compared to 2.03 each game for Grealish.

Successful take-ons

2.13

2.06

Take-on success rate

40.9%

62.4%

Progressive carries

3.32

5.91

Carries into final third

2.4

3.54

Carries into penalty area

1.25

2.01

Dibling seems like he could be the second coming of Grealish at Villa Park. The similarities are endless, and whilst the 19-year-old hasn’t necessarily had the goal and assist output to live up to Grealish yet, he is clearly a huge talent.

£55m is roughly half of what they made for Grealish, and being a carbon copy of one of their most iconic players seems a fair way to theoretically spend the money he brought to the club.

A "magical" Bailey upgrade: £13m star now open to signing for Aston Villa

With Leon Bailey potentially set to leave Aston Villa for Saudi Arabia this month, Unai Emery should insist that they sign a “magical” replacement.

ByBen Gray Jun 3, 2025

Proactive captaincy will be hardest to replicate as inexperienced team face up to Pakistan challenge

Matt Roller05-Oct-2024England have only had a fleeting glance at a fully-fit Ben Stokes in the last three years but he has committed his long-term future to them, signing a new central contract which is expected to take in the 2025-26 Ashes tour. Stokes declined to specify the length of his new contract on Saturday, but it is understood to be a two-year deal.Stokes will miss a fourth consecutive Test in Multan, having torn his hamstring in August while playing in the Hundred. The timing was hugely frustrating, coming so soon after he had sorted out his chronic left-knee injury through surgery, to the extent he could bowl 49 overs at full tilt across three matches against West Indies in July.It is now two months since Stokes sustained the injury, but he said he is slightly ahead of schedule and does not believe it is a long-term concern. “Injuries are part of sport,” he said. “I’m 33 now, so I’ve put my body through quite a lot. But I’ve started working incredibly hard over the last two years… it’s not through lack of effort.”The ECB has not announced the latest batch of central contracts, though most of their regular players are already tied to multi-year deals. Stokes was an exception, leaving his options open last year after gambling that his value would rise during the subsequent 12 months. His new deal is thought to see him through until September 2026, taking in next year’s Ashes tour.It is a significant commitment, not least with the backdrop of a lucrative deal to play in the SA20 in January leaving Stokes fully aware of his value on the franchise circuit. But England are just as aware of Stokes’ importance to their Test team, not only as a player but as a leader and figurehead for Brendon McCullum’s regime.Related

• Jamie Smith joins England's senior ranks with two-year ECB contract

• Anderson's golfing absence highlights inexperience of England seamers

• The good news for Pakistan? England have problems. The bad news? Pakistan have bigger ones

Without a genuine allrounder available, England have stuck with the five-bowler formula they used against Sri Lanka and with Chris Woakes at No. 7. It is Woakes’ first opportunity in two-and-a-half years to address his away Test record – 36 wickets at 51.88 – and throughout his career, he has tended to contribute more in Stokes’ absenceAs much as his batting and bowling, England will miss Stokes’ captaincy in Multan. He was the mastermind of their unexpected series sweep in Pakistan two years ago, not least in Rawalpindi when his early declaration – setting 342 in four sessions – defied conventional wisdom. Ollie Pope’s biggest challenge will be matching Stokes’ proactivity in changing the tempo of matches.Pope kept wicket in the first two Tests of the 2022 series, and is one of six men in England’s XI who was ever-present in that series. Jack Leach is their only bowler to have bowled a red ball in Pakistan before; Gus Atkinson will be playing his first overseas Test, and Brydon Carse is on debut. Pope cannot simply rely on his attack managing itself.”There are no doubts in my mind about the bowlers we have picked,” Stokes said, speaking inside an empty commentary box to avoid the 40-degree heat on the boundary edge. “We know they will be able to withstand it. We know it is going to be tough, but it will be great exposure for the first time for them… It will show them how hard Test cricket can be.”Pope tried to follow Stokes’ lead in setting attacking fields against Sri Lanka, but was too slow to react and adjust at The Oval as the third Test slipped away from England. He seemed to lack Stokes’ ability to grasp opportunities to change the pace or mood of an innings in the field, though will have learned plenty from his first experience of the role.Stokes will be on hand throughout to relay any advice, while James Anderson – who got the ball reversing in Multan two years ago – will arrive on the second day. “He has seen what can work out here,” Stokes said. “I’m sure at some point I will want to say something to him, but I will only do it if I think something is worth saying. I don’t want to say things for the sake of it.”[In 2022], it was about trying to push the game forward because of the conditions we were faced with. We were always trying to do something to force a result, even if it means potentially giving Pakistan a sniff of winning the game… me and Brendon will encourage Ollie to influence the game himself, and make sure that comes across in his captaincy.”Shan Masood’s public desire for surfaces that suit his seamers has piqued the interest of England’s players, and there was a significant grass covering on the Test strip two days out. Pakistan are a better side than recent results suggest, not least when Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah are involved, and England will not take them lightly.England’s clean sweep in Pakistan remains their best series result under Stokes and McCullum, and was arguably the regime’s high point, with a 10-8 win-loss record in the past two years. With Stokes unavailable for at least the first Test, a repeat on this tour might trump it.

Jos Buttler’s side retain faith in their fundamentals despite fifth ODI defeat in a row

Andrew Miller31-Jan-2023Anyone who has ever worked to a deadline knows how exquisitely zen the onset of panic can be. It doesn’t work every time, or for everyone, but sometimes – particularly for those who know they have the aptitude but find the application harder to come by – there’s nothing quite like a ticking clock to focus the mind and force the issue at hand.So wakey wakey, England’s world-beating 50-over team. We see you there at the back of the class, feet up on the table, yawning your way through your mocks in Australia and South Africa. But, with eight months to go until the defence of the title so thrillingly won at Lord’s back in 2019, and with just four more ODIs to come this side of the summer, perhaps now’s the moment to allow some urgency to drive the agenda?Or perhaps, on second thoughts, now really isn’t the time. Life moves pretty fast, as another famous slacker, Ferris Bueller, once put it. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.Related

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• T20 franchise commitments leave England short-stocked for ODI tour of Bangladesh

• Roy escapes his 'horrible year' with emotional and 'angry' century at Bloemfontein

• Bavuma hundred before David Miller ices chase for South Africa

After all, England spent most of 2022 proving – to one extreme or another – that a positive mental attitude can overcome all obstacles, be it a record of one win in 17 prior to Brendon McCullum’s appointment as Test coach, or the seizing of the T20 World Cup in spite of a litany of injuries that would have derailed a less composed squad.And so, even though Jos Buttler’s men have just flunked their way to five consecutive ODI defeats – a run of failure unmatched by England since the summer of 2014 – there is still plenty justification for taking it easy right now, and trusting that the team’s proven knowledge of their subject matter will more than compensate for a lack of exhaustive cramming between now and the big day.After all, what’s the point of scaling endless peaks if you’re not permitted to climb back down to base camp occasionally, to take stock of your latest achievement and gird your loins to go again? Barely two months have elapsed since England won the World Cup! But don’t you dare rest on your laurels… there’s a World Cup to win!It’s little wonder that, in response to a recent Twitter enquiry about the cause of the team’s apparent downturn in white-ball fortunes, Ben Stokes – the main man of 2019 and current Bazballer-in-chief, who announced his ODI retirement last summer due to the insane workload he was facing across formats – responded: “Begins with S ends with E and has chedul in there as well”.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhatever the nuance of their current situation, there’s certainly no sense that England are right back to square one in their preparations for their World Cup defence. There’s been a lack of finesse to their efforts from 2020 to date, with 15 wins and 14 losses since that momentous day at Lord’s, but the team remains – by a whisker – the most attacking batting line-up in the world in that period, rattling along at 6.14 runs per over, compared to India’s next-best figure of 6.13.And as Moeen Ali, who featured in that 2014 downturn, put it in the wake of England’s series-sealing loss in Bloemfontein on Sunday, the current squad is not “in a position like before [the 2015 World Cup], where we were terrible and building a team”.”We’re more experienced, used to different conditions, and going to India where we’ve played a lot of IPL, I feel we’ll be ready to go,” Moeen added. “Results don’t show it yet, but I think we will be better than we were.”And yet, do England even have a chance of being as good as they were not so long ago? Regardless of the stars who may or may not bring their A games for the main event, the bald stats of their ODI performances between the last two World Cups are extraordinary, and point to the extent to which the ECB has given up on the format that, for four years up until 2019, it seemed to care for more than any other.Defeat in Bloemfontein was England’s fifth in a row•Getty ImagesBetween their elimination from the 2015 World Cup and their victory at Lord’s in 2019, England played 98 ODIs, winning a hefty 65 of them – or two in every three. They used 32 players in that period, but the core remained extraordinarily stable. Excluding Jofra Archer, who only qualified on the eve of the tournament (but including Alex Hales, whom England weren’t afraid to banish in the same timeframe in spite of his experience) each of the 12 men who formed the core of that World Cup 15 played at least half of the available games, with Eoin Morgan himself missing just six.Compare that to the current febrile situation. Since the World Cup win, England have played 32 ODIs, with just 11 more scheduled before their defence gets underway. Already, however, they’ve churned through 37 players, of whom just four have featured in more than 20 games. And if those stats are skewed by the Covid outbreak in July 2021 that forced England to field, in effect, their third XI for three matches against Pakistan, then equally the squad has lacked the volume of contests to mitigate for such holes in their preparation.In the three full years between the last two World Cups, England played nothing less than 18 ODIs annually, with a high of 24 in 2018, with which Morgan’s men perfected the front-running attitude that allowed them to embrace the mantra of favourites. In three complete years since 2019, however, they’ve played 9, 9 and 12 – their lowest workload in the format since 1995, offering barely even an opportunity to keep their muscle memory attuned.Stokes, incidentally, was the 22nd player to feature in the format in this post-2019 period. He made his ODI comeback against India in March 2021, 20 months after his heroics against New Zealand, but then binned off the format ten sporadic matches later, protesting with some justification that he could not give “100% to the shirt” while also giving his all to the rebooting of England’s Test fortunes.

Begins with S ends with E and has chedul in there as well https://t.co/U2aF9FOSDw

— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) January 27, 2023