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Durham are hoping to complete the signing of Imad Wasim as an overseas player in the NatWest T20 Blast. Imad, who is currently rated as the best T20 bowler in international cricket, will join for five matches before departing for the Caribbean Premier League.Imad, who was born in Swansea, made his international debut in 2015 and was recently a member of the Pakistan team that won the Champions Trophy, playing in every game at the tournament.He has impressed with his left-arm spin in the Pakistan Super League, as well as during stints at the CPL, and will bring something extra to a thin Durham squad, who have lost two from two in the competition so far. Tom Latham, their main overseas signing, is currently out of action with a foot injury.Imad’s signing is subject to him receiving a work permit.

Part-time legspinner Joe Denly was the unlikely bowling hero as Kent opened their Royal London Cup win account with a 46-run victory over South Group rivals Middlesex in Canterbury

ECB Reporters Network07-May-2017
ScorecardSouth Africa’s Wayne Parnell was Man of the Match•AFP

Part-time legspinner Joe Denly was the unlikely bowling hero as Kent opened their Royal London Cup win account with a 46-run victory over South Group rivals Middlesex in Canterbury.Having failed to defend 330-plus scores in their previous two games, Kent managed to protect a modest all out total of 200 with Denly bagging 3 for 20 to secure his side’s first win in four starts and inflict a third defeat on Middlesex. Needing to score at a shade over four an over to record their second win of the campaign, Middlesex committed cardinal one-day errors in losing cheap wickets at regular intervals to fall woefully short.The visitors lost Dawid Malan in the third over when the left-hander sparred outside off against Wayne Parnell to nick to second slip. Four balls later, Parnell, in his last home game of his current spell as Kent’s overseas allrounder, ran one back up the Canterbury slope to trap Nick Gubbins lbw for a single.Adam Voges and Nick Compton added 47 before Kent struck through Darren Stevens, who belied his 41 years by taking a stunning return catch from a Voges’ drive to make it 49 for 3. Eleven runs later and Kent were celebrating again when a direct hit from 12th man Will Gidman, substituting for the injured Matt Coles, ran out John Simpson after Nick Compton had called for a sharp single to the cover fielder.Coles returned after treatment for a sore shin to pocket a comfortable catch off the bowling of James Tredwell that ended Compton’s 85-ball stay for a painstaking 37 and left Tredwell with 1 for 29 from his 10 overs.Keeping pace off the ball, Denly struck to have Ryan Higgins caught behind and then, in his next over, he trapped Toby Roland-Jones lbw when working across the line. Middlesex, with only three wickets remaining, still required 78 going into their final 10 overs when Denly, leaping full-length to his left caught a rasping James Franklin drive one-handed to send the visiting skipper packing for 33.Mitch Claydon replaced Denly to have James Fuller caught off a skier leaving Parnell to finish it with another reflex return caught-and-bowled catch that accounted for Ravi Patel and gave Parnell, the Man of the Match, deserved figures of 3 for 33.Kent’s day started badly when they again lost the toss in overcast conditions and were duly invited to bat with the floodlights already on. Their gloom deepened after only two deliveries when Daniel Bell-Drummond, fresh from scoring back-to-back hundreds in losing causes, feathered a defensive push against Roland-Jones into the gloves of Simpson to depart without scoring.Home skipper Sam Northeast and second-wicket partner Denly, batting against his former county, steadied Kent with a stand of 52 that ended in the 13th over when Denly pulled a short one to midwicket where Voges held a stinging overhead chance.Northeast, who enjoyed a life when on 24 after Voges downed a regulation slip chance, posted his 13th List A half-century from 73 balls and with six fours. He and Sean Dickson added 44 before the latter miscued his attempted pull against Franklin to mid-on to go for 29.Northeast followed, sweeping against Patel to give a catch to the keeper for 55, having spent almost two hours at the crease. Alex Blake lasted only five minutes, tamely hanging his bat out to dry against Franklin, the left-hander went for 2 after edging a third catch to Simpson behind the timbers.The procession of Kent batsmen to the pavilion continued when Stevens miscued to extra cover to gift Patel a second scalp, bringing together Adam Rouse and Parnell for a face-saving seventh-wicket stand worth 34. .With little to lose Parnell went for his strokes only to smear Malan’s first ball of the day, a low full-toss, straight into the hands of Tom Helm at deep midwicket.Coles edged an attempted drive against Helm to slip where Voges took off to hold a stunning overhead catch diving to his left, then, to the first ball of the third and final Powerplay, Rouse nicked an attempted cut to his Middlesex counterpart Simpson to give Helm a second wicket.With four of their 50 overs still to be bowled, Kent’s last man Claydon, who had just hooked the only six of his side’s innings, was yorked by Roland-Jones, the pick of the Middlesex attack with 3 for 35 from his 10 overs.

The two midfielders dominated the lacklustre Eagles as the Red Devils began their Carabao Cup defence in style

That was more like it from Manchester United. Erik ten Hag earned lots of goodwill by winning the Carabao Cup last season and his side made an emphatic start in the competition with a dominant 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace.

Alejandro Garnacho got United off on the right foot by scoring the opening goal following a sweeping team move although Casemiro was the star of the show, heading in the second goal then setting up the third for Anthony Martial.

Sofyan Amrabat had a brilliant home debut, appearing all over the pitch and playing some wonderful passes, while Mason Mount had a strong return from injury and even Harry Maguire gave a solid performance.

GOAL rates Man United's players from a smiling Old Trafford…

Getty ImagesGoalkeeper & Defence

Andre Onana (7/10):

Had a quiet night but did well to beat away two shots from Jean-Philippe Mateta, using his feet and then his chest.

Diogo Dalot (8/10):

Had a brilliant first half, flying up and down the right wing and also dropping into midfield. Combined well with Facundo Pellistri to set up Garnacho's goal.

Raphael Varane (7/10):

Lead a very solid defence as captain for the night and looked sharp after recovering from injury.

Harry Maguire (7/10):

An accomplished performance, seeing plenty of the ball and comfortably nullifying Mateta and Jordan Ayew. Will do his confidence a world of good.

Sofyan Amrabat (8/10):

An excellent full debut for the Moroccan. Rotated between left-back and midfield and oozed class as he sprayed long passes across the pitch.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesMidfield

Mason Mount (6/10):

An encouraging return after a month out injured. Launched the move for the opening goal then got his first assist for United by teeing up Casemiro. Rested at half-time.

Casemiro (8/10):

After showing signs of recovery against Burnley this was the Casemiro United fans fell in love with last season. Physically dominant and classy.

Hannibal Mejbri (7/10):

Energetic and influential. Helped the team in attack and defence although had to be careful after getting booked in the first half.

Getty ImagesAttack

Facundo Pellistri (7/10):

Linked up well with Dalot down the right hand side and worked hard defensively.

Anthony Martial (6/10):

Got his first goal of the season which will help his confidence. Important that he took his chance in the Cup as he won't be starting much in the league ahead of Rasmus Hojlund.

Alejandro Garnacho (7/10):

Got the ball rolling with his first goal of the season but crucially showed he can perform well from the start and not just when coming off the bench.

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Victor Lindelof (6/10):

Brought on for Mount at half-time to shore up the defence and did just that.

Jonny Evans (6/10):

The hero of Turf Moor got a rousing reception from the home fans when he came on and helped United stay in command.

Dan Gore (6/10):

A bright debut for the 19-year-old, did not look overawed by the occasion at all.

Donny van de Beek (5/10):

Made his first appearance of the season. Is unlikely to get many more but did little wrong.

Rasmus Hojlund (6/10):

When he came on the job was already done and didn't really get involved.

Erik ten Hag (8/10):

Did not mess about with his team selection and used his substitutions early to make sure players for some rest while giving others the minutes they needed.

South Africa regained the one-day series lead with the kind of showing that coach Russell Domingo believes typifies their new style of play

Firdose Moonda25-Feb-20171:21

‘We expect New Zealand to bounce back’ – Parnell

In their most dominant performance on the tour of New Zealand so far, South Africa regained the one-day series lead with the kind of showing that coach Russell Domingo believes typifies their new style of play.It is a brand of cricket built on shared responsibility with new members of the squad as able to contribute as some of the stalwarts. Dwaine Pretorius’ career-best 3 for 5 from 5.2 overs on the back of a maiden half-century in Christchurch is the best example of it.”It’s been a feature of our side’s performances over the last year that the younger players have all come in and put in performances straight away which speaks a lot about where the team is at the moment and the culture of the group,” Domingo said. “It’s always pleasing when some new players are stepping up nor relying on one or two players.”And Pretorius is not the only one. Twenty-year-old Andile Phehlukwayo has emerged as a long-term all-round prospect and in the batting department, Quinton de Kock is one of the leading players in the world.Although AB de Villiers, who became the fastest to 9000 ODI runs, was the man of the moment in Wellington, South Africa’s recent ODI successes have been built on the foundations de Kock has laid. As he did in Test cricket last year, de Kock has reeled off five consecutive fifty-plus scores in ODIs. He has yet to convert one of his three in New Zealand into a century, but Domingo brushed that off as part of the game.”He has got a phenomenal rate of transferring those fifties to hundreds so I’m sure he’d be disappointed he hasn’t got a hundred because he is playing as well as he has ever played. I suppose he would feel a little disappointed in the manner of some of his dismissals. That’s the nature of how he plays.”He is such an aggressive player and I by no means want to curb his natural instinct. He is an x-factor player and some days he is going to get it wrong and that’s okay but on the days he gets it right, he is going to win the game for you. He is still a baby, its hard to believe he is only 24. We’ve had some great players play international cricket for South Africa, who’ve got 10 or 11 hundreds in 200 games. He has got 12 in 77. That’s a phenomenal return for a young player like that.”At this early stage of de Kock’s career, he already lies sixth on South Africa’s ODI century-makers’ list above a big name like Graeme Smith. The former captain played 196 ODIs and scored 10 centuries, de Kock could go on to double or even treble that. Also below de Kock is JP Duminy, who has played 170 ODIs and only has four hundreds to his name, three against Zimbabwe and one against Netherlands.Duminy has not registered three figures in two years, since the 2015 World Cup. In that time, he has managed just four fifties. Although he can cite limited opportunity – Duminy usually bats at No.5, behind players who don’t often leave him with many overs to face – by his own admission, there have been chances wasted.After the Christchurch ODI, where he was given a chance at No 4, Duminy explained he understood he needed to step up. “A lot of us got in but we didn’t take it home for the team. That’s something we need to look at – especially myself, getting in and not taking it home for the team,” he said.He was unable to in Wellington, where he was run-out and his string of low scores – only one over 30 in seven innings – could raise concerns, especially with Farhaan Behardien waiting on the bench.Some pressure for his place may be just what Duminy needs to kickstart a change in fortunes, as it did in Tests. After being dropped last summer during the series against England, Duminy returned with a much improved mindset and scored two important hundreds, in Perth and in Johannesburg, to prove he still has plenty to offer. The upcoming Tests will be another chance for Duminy to build on that progress.Eight members of the Test squad, who are not part of the limited-overs outfit, will arrive in Auckland on Sunday, where they will begin a week-long camp. Batting coach Neil McKenzie and fitness trainer Greg King will break away from the ODI group to oversee the Test players’ preparations. South Africa do not have a warm-up match before the series starts in Dunedin on March 8 but all their players have been in action in the domestic one-day cup.Among them are the two senior seamers, Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel, who are the favourites to make up a pace pack with Kagiso Rabada, although South Africa have three other quicks in reserve. Rabada will be the most worked of all of them, with South Africa well aware of his importance to every XI. Rabada was left out of the Christchurch game with a knee niggle and returned in Wellington and Domingo has explained that its unlikely Rabada will be given time off with the series still on the line.”It’s a fine line between resting players and trying to win series. You’ve got to try and and manage that process quite carefully, particularly for a guy like KG. I read the other day that he bowled 200 overs more than anybody else in the last year. He is only 21,” Domingo said. “But its hard to leave KG out of the next game in Hamilton. He is a seriously good bowler and it’s no coincidence that when he is back in the mix, we look a seriously good side.”

Kristen Beams will look to return to cricket for the Melbourne Stars in the Women’s BBL, after being ruled out of action with a finger fracture

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Nov-2016Australia women legspinner Kristen Beams has been ruled out of the remainder of the home ODIs against South Africa due to a finger injury. She had fractured her right little finger during the third match on Wednesday in Sydney and parted with the squad on Friday.While the Australia squad headed to Coffs Harbour for the last two ODIs of the series, which they lead 3-0, Beams returned to Melbourne after undergoing surgery. Beams had bowled six overs for 35 runs and one wicket on the day.”You never want to see one of your team-mates get injured,” seamer Rene Farrell said before training at Coffs International Stadium on Saturday. “We’ve all been there and we’ve all had finger injuries before. Hopefully she’ll be right around the middle of the WBBL season. I know she’ll come back stronger, she’s a tough character.”Beams had broken her finger after bowling four overs on Wednesday and received medical treatment near the boundary line before returning to bowl another two and dismissed centurion Lizelle Lee in her final over.”Her finger was still dislocated and she bowled her last two overs for us,” Australia opener Nicole Bolton said. “That shows the strength of character of someone like Beamsy, who we heavily rely on with the ball, and for her to come out and do that for us was just incredible.”Beams had a terrific tour of Sri Lanka in September, across four ODIs and the lone T20I. She was the leading wicket-taker in the ODI series, which Australia whitewashed, with 13 scalps at a stunning average of 5.92 and took two four-fors. In the T20I, her figures of 3 for 11 from four overs restricted the hosts to 59 for 8. She had bettered her career-best figures in both formats on the tour.She is also Australia’s leading wicket-taker (18) in ODIs this year, behind South Africa legspinner Suné Luus (30), England’s Katherine Brunt (21) and Luus’ team-mate Ayabonga Khaka (21).

Prague has a proud history of producing supremely talented footballers, with stars going through the doors at Sparta and Slavia

The Czech Republic is frequently described as a 'Dark Horse' in European football thanks to its long history of nurturing quality footballers. The capital city, Prague, is a hotbed of talent, with an ever-growing list of stars emerging from the city.

Clubs such as Sparta Prague and Slavia Prague (read more about them here!), as well as Bohemians, have all played their part, though, very often the best players are snapped up quickly and ushered off into the arms of Europe's elite teams.

Here, GOAL takes a look at some of the best footballers who come from or are indelibly associated with Prague.

Prague is one of GOAL's Soccer Cities 23 – find out more here!

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  Tomas Rosicky

  Affectionately known as 'Little Mozart', Tomas Rosicky is one of Prague's most famous and talented football sons. The diminutive playmaker comes from a soccer family, with his father Jiri playing for Sparta Prague in the 1970s, while his brother also spent time at the club.

  Rosicky broke into the Sparta Prague first team as a teenager and played a part in securing back-to-back league titles in 1999 and 2000, but his ability was such that Europe's elite were forced to sit up and take notice.

  Borussia Dortmund came knocking and made him the most expensive player in Bundesliga history when they forked out DM 25 million (equivalent €12.7m today) for his services in 2001. Arsenal was Rosicky's next port of call in 2006 and he earned cult hero status with the Premier League club, helping them to FA Cup glory in 2014.

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  Pavel Nedved

  Pavel Nedved may not be a Prague native, but his performances for Sparta Prague, and indeed the Czech Republic national team, in the 1990s were the catalyst for his future career success. Czech fans of a certain vintage will fondly recall his pivotal role in the national team's run to the final of Euro 96.

  A truly complete midfielder, capable of playing anywhere across the line, Nedved played a part in three league titles for Sparta between 1992 and 1995 before moving on to Serie A, where he shone first for Lazio and later Juventus.

  Indeed, his displays for Juve earned him the Ballon d'Or in 2003 as he saw off challenges from the likes of Thierry Henry and Paolo Maldini. He remains, to this day, the only Czech player to win the prestigious accolade.

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  Vladimir Smicer

  Vladimir Smicer is a Premier League legend for Liverpool fans, but he is also a heroic figure in Prague, where he dazzled in the red and white of Slavia. The 80-cap Czech international began his career in the capital at Slavia and helped them to a league title in 1996.

  His career subsequently took him to France and England – he enjoyed a trophy-laden six years at Anfield, even winning the Champions League – but he made a triumphant return to Prague in 2007, helping Slavia to two more titles.

  Smicer was born in Decin, but is now an adopted son of Prague having lived there for the last quarter of a century and he proudly showed the city off to us ahead of the 2023 Europa Conference League final – check it out below!

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  Petr Cech

  Petr Cech is one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time and Sparta Prague played their part in his remarkable journey when they signed him from Chmel Bisany.

  Indeed, while Cech's time in the capital was brief – just one season – his contribution was strongly felt as he went 903 competitive minutes without conceding a goal, setting a new record in the process.

  Cech left Sparta Prague for Rennes, joining the French club for a reported €5.5 million and his career went from strength to strength, first at Chelsea, where he won four Premier League titles and the Champions League, then at Arsenal, where he secured an FA Cup.

  With 124 caps for Czech Republic, he is the most-capped player in the history of the national team and his status as a legend is unquestioned.

Leeds United face an uphill task to stay in the Premier League, and new manager Sam Allardyce will surely have to improve the defence if he is going to keep the Yorkshire outfit in the Premier League.

What changes must Allardyce make to Leeds' defence?

The 4-1 defeat against Bournemouth ensured that Leeds now boast the worst defensive record in the division, with a remarkable 67 goals shipped in the top flight, which has also included heavy defeats against Liverpool and Crystal Palace in recent weeks.

Fingers have naturally been pointed at both the goalkeeper and the defence after Leeds bested their own record of goals conceded in a calendar month, and huge changes must be made by Allardyce if he wants to avoid similarly disappointing defeats against the high-flying Manchester City and Newcastle United in their next two games.

Despite the number of goals conceded, three of Leeds' defensive options rank in their top six players this season according to WhoScored, with Pascal Struijk, Max Wober and Liam Cooper all performing to a fairly consistent level in the Premier League.

Should Robin Koch be dropped by Leeds?

This begs the question therefore of why Robin Koch has been the main man for Leeds at centre-back so far this term, with the 26-year-old featuring in 33/34 Premier League games, with a shocking WhoScored average rating of 6.52.

Signed from Freiburg in 2020, the Germany international has struggled throughout his time at Elland Road, failing to average above a 6.6 rating from WhoScored in any of his seasons in the Premier League.

Speaking on a Leeds United Live Facebook stream following a 5-1 defeat against Manchester United in 2021, Beren Cross was less than complimentary of Koch's performance.

He said:

“Koch and Struijk today, not good enough at all, for me. I think I gave them 3s in the ratings.

“I mean, Fernandes almost retired Robin Koch, it was just horrible to watch, at times, because he just could not get a handle of him."

As a former defender, Allardyce will surely appreciate the need to have his best-performing centre-backs on the pitch for the final four games, and the stats certainly suggest that the £40k-per-week liability shouldn't be anywhere near the starting side.

He ranks 14th for tackles and sixth for interceptions per game in Leeds' squad, while his pass success rate of 77.6% is worrying considering he completes the second-most passes per game at Elland Road, which suggests that he often has the ball but doesn't know how to effectively use it.

Therefore, with defensive security a must for the tough upcoming fixtures, Allardyce must surely consider finally dropping Koch from the starting team.

ScorecardBen Raine top-scored for Leicestershire and then took three wickets•Getty Images

Yorkshire Vikings were never in the hunt against Leicestershire Foxes who beat them by 54 runs with eight balls remaining in the NatWest T20 Blast at Headingley.It was a disappointing start to the campaign for Yorkshire, who are desperate to do well in the competition this season under a new young captain in Alex Lees, but who drew only 6,000 to Headingley.Leicestershire could feel delighted with the result after opening with a defeat to Northamptonshire last week.Chasing a 175 victory target, Yorkshire failed to put a substantial stand together in a game which was dominated by Ben Raine and the O’Brien brothers, Kevin and Niall.Raine top-scored with 48 before opening the bowling and capturing 3 for 7 in his 3.4 overs. Niall O’Brien powered his way to 39 while Kevin hit 21 and then took three for 27.Yorkshire lost wickets at regular intervals and openers Adam Lyth and new one-day captain, Alex Lees, were both out inside the first five overs, Lyth driving Raine to mid-off and Lees turning Kevin O’Brien to leg-gully.Only Will Rhodes showed any real form, coming in at 32 for 4 and smacking 45 with three fours and two sixes before departing at 109 for 9 by driving Neil Dexter to Tom Wells at long off, by which time the game was well and truly lost for Yorkshire.A late flurry of sixes had revitalised the Foxes’ innings with 102 coming off the final ten overs. It was off the fourth delivery of the 14th over that Niall O’Brien straight drove Lyth for the first six of the match but another eight were to clear the rope in the remaining overs for Leicestershire to close on a competitive 174 for seven.All four of Niall O’Brian’s boundary shots in his 39 off 21 balls came from six hits while Raine included two fours and two sixes in his 48 from 43 deliveries.But Lewis Hill was responsible for the final flourish with three mid-wicket sixes in the last over from Ben Coad who gave away 22 runs, Hill ending unbeaten on 24 from just nine balls.Yorkshire did not have their best night in the field as three catches were put down, the easiest being when Raine, who had just pulled Adil Rashid for two sixes, survived a simple chance to Liam Plunkett on the mid-wicket boundary.Things began encouragingly for Yorkshire as Tim Bresnan, in his first appearance of the season after being sidelined with a calf muscle tear, started with a wicket maiden, Pettini forcing his fifth ball straight into the hands of Rhodes at point.Bresnan’s new ball partner, James Wainman, also enjoyed an early success on his T20 Blast debut. In Wainman’s second over, Mark Cosgrove, who had struck 20 from 11 balls, was caught at deep square leg by Coad.Bresnan and Plunkett each claimed two wickets but Leicestershire kept battling away and their destructive hitting late on proved to be decisive.

Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing a summer move for Leeds United defender Robin Koch, according to a report from Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Summer rebuild needed?

Antonio Conte accused his players of lacking ‘spirit’ in his post-match press conference after the 3-3 draw against Southampton yesterday afternoon, indicating the club could be in need of a summer rebuild, regardless of whether the manager stays.

The Lilywhites have been linked with new options at the back for quite some time now, with versatile Stuttgart defender Borna Sosa said to be of interest, while RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol is a more outlandish target.

However, Spurs could also look at bringing in a new option that has proven Premier League experience, with Koch emerging as a potential signing in recent days…

The Latest: Koch targeted

As per a report from Football Insider, Tottenham are in the market for a new centre-back this summer, and they have shortlisted the Leeds defender as a target, in light of him still not committing to a contract extension beyond the end of next season.

The Yorkshire club could look to cash in on the 26-year-old at the end of the current season to ensure that he doesn’t end up leaving for free in 2024, opening the door for a potential move to north London.

Spurs believe the centre-back could be available on the cheap this summer if Leeds are relegated to the Championship, so they are expected to continue to monitor the situation.

The Verdict: Get it done?

After the 3-3 draw against Southampton at the weekend, it is evident Spurs have glaring deficiencies in defence, with Eric Dier putting in a very poor performance, while Clement Lenglet has also been unconvincing this season, being heavily criticised by John Wenham.

Koch has been hailed by sections of the media for some of his performances this season, with pundit Clinton Morrison describing him as ‘outstanding’ after his performance against Brentford back in January.

However, the 6 foot 3 colossus has not stood out for Leeds, recording an average Sofascore match rating of just 6.72, ranking him as just the sixth-best performing defender in the squad, below the likes of Maximilian Wober and Rasmus Kristiansen.

As such, the eight-time Germany international may not be the huge upgrade that Spurs need in defence, and so he could only be targeted as a rotation option, rather than as the club’s main target to strengthen the centre-back area.

The limelight of Liverpool's transfer activity for what seems like an age has been the pursuit of coveted Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, but manager Jurgen Klopp might have distinguished the perfect alternative.

What's the latest on Gabri Veiga to Liverpool?

According to ESPN, the talented ace has also attracted the attention of Manchester United, Newcastle United, AC Milan and Napoli, following January interest from the likes of Bournemouth and Leeds United.

The 20-year-old is believed to have a €40m (£35m) release clause in his current deal, which could narrow the competition considerably.

With Real Madrid also considered suitors for the precocious talent, it seems unlikely that Los Celestes will succeed in their attempts to tie him down to a new long-term deal, with his current contract expiring in 2026.

Could Liverpool forget Bellingham with Veiga swoop?

Last year, Veiga tantalised glimpses of future prowess with his performances for Celta Vigo B, playing in the Spanish third division, where he scored nine goals and registered an assist from 31 matches.

Playing seven times in La Liga that term, each outing a cameo from the bench, Veiga looked to be asserting himself as a glistening prospect at the maiden phase of his career, and provided the platform to impress this season, he has taken his opportunity to resounding success.

Having scored eight goals and supplied three assists from 17 starts in the top-flight, Veiga is indeed now one of the most coveted starlets in the country, hailed as a "joy of a player" by Alberto Casas.

Speaking to The Guardian, Celta teammate and former Liverpool player Iago Aspas also waxed lyrical, saying: “He has desire, enthusiasm, quality. He’s comfortable here and hope he stays for a long time. If he has to go, let it be leaving behind many millions.”

As per FBref, Veiga ranks among the top 1% of midfielders across Europe's elite five divisions for goals, 16% for assists, 2% for successful take-ons and 7% for progressive carries per 90, illustrating the impact he could have on Klopp's system.

With a successful bid for his name, the Merseyside outfit could boast a player in the mould of Bellingham, who has been touted at as much as £129m by the Yellow Wall.

With the former Birmingham City prodigy among the superlative midfielders in world football right now, scoring ten goals and serving six assists this season from his engine-room deployment and ranking among the top 9% of midfielders across Europe's elite five divisions for goals, the top 13% for assists, the top 11% for progressive carries and the top 1% for successful take-ons per 90, he is discernibly prolific as a robust and all-encompassing phenom.

And with striking similarities between the respective players, Liverpool might be inclined to move for the shrewder avenue and tie up a deal for Vigo's most coveted asset, one who holds all the promise of a future machine flourishing at the very highest level and for a far cheaper price.