Argentina U17 starlet Claudio Echeverri recreated a Lionel Messi-esque finish to complete his hat-trick against rivals Brazil in the U-17 World Cup.

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Echeverri recreated Messi's 2012 finish Both players scored a hat-trick in their respective matchesBrazil at the receiving end on both occasions WHAT HAPPENED?

The Argentine U17 starlet scored an incredible hat-trick in a win over Brazil to fire his side into the semi-finals of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Jakarta on Friday. He opened the scoring with a brilliant sole attempt just minutes before the half-hour mark and then doubled the lead in the 59th minute with a tight finish from the edge of the box. Whereas, his third goal was the cherry on the top as it not only helped him complete a hat trick but also closely resembled a 2012 finish of Messi. On both occasions, the forwards dribbled past the keeper and then pushed the ball into an empty net after latching onto a defence-splitting through ball from midfield.

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Echeverri's goal has some other uncanny similarities to Messi's strike over a decade back. Apart from the electric finish, both players wore the No. 10 shirt during their respective matches and Brazil found themselves at the receiving end of such a genius onslaught. In fact, Echeverri's hat trick was the first since Messi's 2012 heroics against their arch-rivals. Back in his homeland, comparisons are already being made with the 2022 World Cup winner but Echeverii believes that his style is more like Pablo Aimar who is a part of the national team staff.

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Doc. LOC WCU17/BRYWHAT NEXT FOR ECHEVERRI?

The River Plate starlet will hope to carry on with his rich vein of form in the remaining two matches of the U-17 World Cup and emulate Messi by lifting the trophy in the finale on December 2.

Cricket Australia’s decision to rebuff the players’ calls for mediation to end the escalating pay dispute has been accompanied by another attempt to deal directly with some of the nation’s highest-profile players

Daniel Brettig27-May-20173:46

What exactly is the Cricket Australia-ACA pay dispute?

Cricket Australia’s decision to rebuff the players’ calls for mediation to end the escalating pay dispute has been accompanied by another attempt to deal directly with some of the nation’s highest-profile players.CA’s chief executive James Sutherland and his Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) counterpart Alistair Nicholson are set to cross paths in London over the next week, and it is clear a sharp change of course will be required to take the heat out of a dispute that is creeping perilously close to the June 30 expiry of the current MoU without any resolution in sight.After a week’s deliberation, CA chairman David Peever wrote to his ACA counterpart Greg Dyer on Friday to reject the mediation request while maintaining his view that the players’ association had not yet started to negotiate. It also emerged on Saturday that the team performance manager Pat Howard had written to Steven Smith, Meg Lanning, David Warner, Alex Blackwell, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Ellyse Perry to again press the board’s case.Peever’s letter to Dyer emphasised CA’s refusal to countenance any form of fixed revenue percentage model while accusing the ACA of not attempting to negotiate. “This is a regrettable approach because CA’s proposal features substantial increases in player payments while allowing greater flexibility to address the underfunding of grassroots cricket over the next five years,” Peever wrote.”You indicate that the ACA has offered flexibility within the negotiation process around certain issues. However, this does not address the significant problems with the current player payments model from CA’s perspective. While we fully respect the enormous contribution made by the game’s elite players, it is also true that player payments have grown by 63 per cent for international men and 53 per cent for domestic men over the past five years.”These words were echoed by Sutherland in a column in The newspaper, which also reported Howard’s approach to key players, which he said insisted CA’s offer was fair while also questioning whether the players had read its financial details for themselves.”During the player period at the NCC, it became clear to me that very few players have actually read the CA offer,” Howard wrote. “As leaders of Australian cricket, you need to review the actual offer and ask questions. My view as leaders of the game is that your duty is to cricket, not CA, not ACA, but cricket.”This year players will benefit from $79m, our offer next year is $91m. This is a pay rise of over $12m or over 15 per cent. I heard from some quarters that Cricket Australia was ‘screwing us’, as you can see, that is not the case. These are like-for-like numbers and include all male and female players.”BBL salaries will go up 6 per cent every year. Yes, we are trying to put a lid on big increases to state cricket; however, both BBL (6%) and state (1.4%) are going up. I don’t apologise for putting international players ahead of domestic players. (Under) our offer, Australian cricket wages are the highest in the world for males and females and the highest for any team sport in Australia. Something we are proud of.”Howard also expressed discontent that he had been unable to communicate more directly with the players about the pay issue, as distrust grows on both sides of the argument. In response, the ACA said the board was continuing to play “word games” while also questioning how the game’s grassroots could be so underfunded when CA retained 80 cents out of every dollar in the game’s revenue.”These are the word games and evasions of the last six months, and a window into the negotiations over the same period,” an ACA spokesman said. “The CA strategy is to refuse to deal with the ACA and go directly to individual players to try and break the model. This is despite the players’ repeated insistence for CA to respect their request and mediate with the ACA. To refuse mediation at a time when it’s the only sensible way forward shows a clear lack of common sense.”CA takes 80 cents in every dollar that comes into the game: that’s 80% of revenue, yet blames the players for under expenditure on grassroots. CA’s grassroots argument therefore has no factual basis. What CA forget is that the players themselves are the ones that have invested around $10million of their own money in to delivering grassroots programs. The most often asked question in this current climate is the right one: Where does all the revenue go?”The board’s public emphasis on the need for more grassroots facilities funding formed only a part of its formal pay offer to the players. That document also pressed the case for an expanded media production unit and game development staff to rival those of the AFL, and a desire to invest in “other projects” capable of generating more revenue for CA.

Manchester United legend Steve Bruce slammed Marcus Rashford for his poor body language on the pitch against Newcastle United.

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• Steve Bruce slams Marcus Rashford
• Performed poorly against Newcastle
• Has scored just two goals this season

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The former United defender was unhappy with the striker's attitude on the pitch as he produced another poor performance in a 1-0 loss at Newcastle on Saturday night. The England international was deployed on the right flank by Erik ten Hag, but was subbed off just after the hour mark as he had a night to forget against the Magpies.

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• WHAT STEVE BRUCE SAID

  Speaking to , Bruce said: "The body language of some of the players doesn’t look right. We’ve been talking now and the first one you look at is why all of a sudden Marcus Rashford, after how good he was, how good he played for England a few weeks ago, [has gone] to what you see now. Is he not happy playing on the right, what is wrong? We aren’t going to know what has happened behind the scenes if anything has happened.

  "When he comes off, he shows that petulance, he is not happy. I think he needs to have a look at himself, to start with. It’s not just him, you look through the nucleus of the side and they have been blown away by Newcastle. That is the worry."

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  Ten Hag did not publicly criticise Rashford after the game but the Dutch manager said that he would have a chat with him directly in private.

  Among a series of criticisms, former Red Devils skipper Harry Maguire came to his colleague's support as he claimed that the 26-year-old is just experiencing a rough patch of form.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MARCUS RASHFORD?

  The English forward has managed to score just two goals in the 2023-24 campaign to date, in stark contrast to his brilliant run of form last season where he scored 30 goals across all competitions. Rashford is expected to be back in action on Wednesday when United face Chelsea in a crucial Premier League fixture.

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.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed Fabio Vieira is expected to be out for some time after undergoing surgery on a groin issue.

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Arteta confirms Vieira injuryMidfielder has undergone groin operationWill now miss several weeksWHAT HAPPENED?

Vieira missed training ahead of Arsenal's Champions League clash with Lens on Wednesday, with Arteta subsequently confirming the 23-year-old is now facing weeks on the sidelines. The midfielder missed Arsenal's Premier League clash with Brentford at the weekend due to suspension but had been expected to return against Lens. However, the Arsenal boss has confirmed Vieira has been forced to go under the knife after picking up a groin injury.

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Vieira's injury is a fresh blow to the youngster, following his sending off against Burnley which resulted in a three-match ban. The midfielder has made 13 appearances in all competitions so far this season for Arsenal but is now unlikely to play again this year. Vieira joins Jurrien Timber, Emile Smith Rowe and Thomas Partey on Arsenal's injured list.

WHAT ARTETA SAID

"We've got a problem with him. He's been having some discomfort," he told reporters. "He wasn't improving and we sent him to a specialist, the advice was to have an operation which we did yesterday. We expect him to be out for weeks now."

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR VIEIRA?

Vieira will now aim to recover as quickly as possible in a bid to return to fitness and gain more minutes at Arsenal. The midfielder has struggled to nail down a regular place in Arteta's side since his move from Porto in 2022. There has been speculation that Vieira could move out on loan in January, in a bid to play regular. football, although it's not clear yet if Arsenal would be willing to sanction a winter exit.

Glasgow Rangers have made seven summer signings under Michael Beale, however, the summer overhaul could now see a few players departing the Ibrox side during the transfer window and Glen Kamara appears to be attracting interest.

Will Glen Kamara be a Rangers' player next season?

Transfer insider Dean Jones told GIVEMESPORT that “it does look like he will finally leave” amid the growing interest in Kamara from teams such as Southampton, Sheffield United, Stade Rennais and OGC Nice.

With the Gers reportedly slapping a £5m price tag on him ahead of any potential departure, according to Christopher Jack of The Herald, Beale stands to make millions on the midfielder who arrived at the Light Blues for a fee of just £50k back in January 2019, turning an impressive profit on the player.

According to Turkish outlet Sozcu, Besiktas are in the chase for the 27-year-old midfielder and the report claims that Kamara has asked to travel to Istanbul in order to thrash out a deal with the club.

Judging by the sheer volume of clubs who are interested in him, it certainly appears that he will finally depart the Gers after four and a half seasons at Ibrox.

What happened to Glen Kamara at Rangers?

The former Arsenal youngster was seen as one of Steven Gerrard’s finest signings when he arrived for the aforementioned £50k four and a half years ago from Dundee, adding some steel into the midfield at a bargain price.

After 18 months of bedding into the side, he became a key member of the team that went on to secure the 2020/21 Premiership title in record-breaking fashion, going the entire season unbeaten and conceding just 13 goals in 38 matches.

Although Kamara was impressive domestically, he took his game to the next level when appearing in Europe, and during the 2021/22 campaign, he was excellent in the stunning run to the Europa League final, ranking in the top ten across the squad for accurate passes per game, interceptions per game and key passes per game.

His form was already slipping domestically towards the end of that season, however, with Rangers Review journalist Joshua Barrie having dubbed him as “terrible” and he struggled again during 2022/23.

He made just 11 Premiership starts all season, falling out of favour with Giovanni van Bronckhorst and then the returning Beale, whilst his Champions League performances were a major disappointment given how solid he had been on the road to Seville.

Kamara was the worst player in the squad in Europe’s premier club competition with regard to overall Sofascore rating (5.9) and also ranked 15th for accurate passes per game, seventh for interceptions per game and key passes per game, clearly proving he was out of his depth at this level.

The £21k-per-week liability must now make the move away from Ibrox in order to get a fresh start to his career elsewhere. The talent is certainly there, displaying it across his first three years at the club, however, he doesn’t quite fit Beale’s tactical system.

Generating £5m for the midfielder would allow Beale to pursue other targets and significantly boost his squad for the challenges ahead next term.

Ben Stokes has branded criticism of England’s performance in the Trent Bridge Test as “harsh” and “unfair”

George Dobell25-Jul-2017Ben Stokes has branded criticism of England’s performance in the Trent Bridge Test as “harsh” and “unfair”.England were defeated by 340 runs in the second Investec Test leading some well-known former players to dismiss their performance as “appalling” (Michael Vaughan), “rubbish” (Nasser Hussain) and “tripe” (Geoff Boycott). And while Stokes admitted that England had failed to adapt to either the match conditions or pitch in Nottingham, he took exception to any suggestion that the side lacked commitment.”The whole fight and desire [question] and everything like that that’s been thrown at us I think is very, very unfair,” Stokes told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s almost like people are saying that we don’t have the desire or the fight to play for England but everyone who takes part in the game – not just the 11 but everyone in the squad, coaches – the desire, the commitment, the fight to represent your country and do well is always there. So I think that kind of criticism is harsh, yes.”Whether anyone in the media did question England’s “desire”, “commitment” or “fight” is debatable. While Vaughan said England’s batting hinted at “a lack of respect” for the values or Test cricket, the context of his comments suggested he was referring to a lack of sophistication rather than effort.Indeed, the one man who did bring up any lack of fight was England’s assistant coach, Paul Farbrace. Almost immediately after Stokes had given his interview, Farbrace told reporters that “everyone” in the dressing room accepted the team “lacked some fight” at Trent Bridge.”Everyone put their hands up after the Trent Bridge performance and said it lacked some fight, certainly in the second innings, and there were some disappointing dismissals in both innings,” Farbrace said.While it would be stretching a point to suggest such conflicting comments hint at any unrest within the England camp – there is no indication of that at all – it is possible they reveal a lack of direction coming from the dressing room and team management.Certainly both Stokes and Farbrace accepted England’s batting had been below par in Nottingham. Stokes talked of a failure to “assess” the situation, while Farbrace suggested some dismissals were “reckless” and others were “disappointing defensive dismissals”.”The big thing is just for us is to be able to adapt quicker,” Stokes said. “We didn’t adapt whatsoever in that second innings at Trent Bridge to what we needed to do, which was just to bat. But unfortunately it didn’t happen. The only way we can give ourselves the best chance is just assessing the situations better.”Farbrace agreed: “There is a fine line between being positive and being reckless. We had some reckless dismissals, and we also had some disappointing defensive dismissals in the last game.”Not all of them were people playing big shots and getting caught on the rope; we had people caught around the crease, and being bowled, through perhaps being not quite as positive with their footwork and clinical as they could have been in defence. It unfortunately wasn’t a one-off – it’s happened a few times before.”It appears the balance of England’s side will be unchanged at The Oval. While Tom Westley – who had a nervous first session in which he was bowled by a net bowler – will replace the injured Gary Ballance at No. 3, it seems the flat pitch expected for the ground’s 100th Test renders it unlikely that England will drop either of their spinners. “We know what [our best team] is. We play two spinners who are attacking bowlers,” Stokes said.”We have the option to play two spinners or bring another batsman in,” Farbrace added. “But I think the one thing our selectors have done well in the last few years is be very consistent. Players have sometimes been given one game more rather than one game too few and I think that’s the way we should be.”When you pick people, you want them to know they’re going to get a run of games. We’re trying to build confidence in the team. Yes, we know it was not a great performance at Trent Bridge by any means, but chopping and changing doesn’t tend to solve anything.”The only question, then, will focus on the fitness of Mark Wood. He has never previously played three successive Tests in the same series and it emerged at the end of the Trent Bridge Test that he had a heel injury – though he bowled with impressive pace in the Oval nets, knocking Joe Root off his feet. If he is not deemed to be fully fit, Toby Roland-Jones will come into the side in his place.It was also interesting to note the presence of Ben Foakes and George Garton in the England net session. Garton, an unusually quick left-arm seamer who plays for Sussex, has represented the Lions recently and is clearly seen as an outside option for the Ashes in Australia – he is only 20 and has played just seven first-class matches – while Foakes, the Surrey keeper, might well be emerging as England’s second choice behind the stumps.Matt Walker and Anthony McGrath, coaches at Kent and Essex respectively, were also at the training session as part of England’s attempts to involve more county coaches within the set-up.Investec is the title sponsor of Test match cricket in England. For Out of the Ordinary thinking visit investec.com/cricket

Heather Knight led England to 220 on a slow surface before their bowlers strangled West Indies in the chase to set up a semi-final clash against South Africa

The Report by Akshay Gopalakrishnan15-Jul-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsHeather Knight brought England back into the game with a well-paced half-century•Getty Images

West Indies threw away a top-class spin-bowling performance by showing a dismal lack of intent with the bat on a slow pitch in Bristol. Having shown little urgency in a tricky chase of 221, West Indies lost wickets in a cluster, and ended up ambling to 128 for 9 as England ended the group stage of the 2017 Women’s World Cup on top of the table.England had hardly been clinical themselves when they batted. They played all around the legspin of Afy Fletcher, who returned figures of 3 for 33. With Anisa Mohammed and Hayley Matthews playing more than just a supporting hand, the trio tied down England until their captain Heather Knight mounted a late fightback with a gritty 67.The cushion provided by those extra runs was all England needed. Unlike in England’s innings, it was a medium pacer – Natalie Sciver – that inflicted the bulk of the damage. With her team having already combined to reduce West Indies to 73 for 4, Sciver struck thrice in the space of 15 balls to push West Indies into a hole they never got out of.West Indies’ only period of stability came during an opening stand of 34 in 9.4 overs. Matthews and Kycia Knight employed great caution in playing out the new ball. By the end of the sixth over, West Indies had scored 16 with just one boundary.West Indies soon found their fluency. It began with Knight collecting a four with a trickle down to fine leg off Katherine Brunt. She then pulled Anya Shrubsole through midwicket before Matthews launched Laura Marsh for a monstrous six over long-on in the next over. Any signs of a shift in momentum, though, were snuffed out with a run-out the next over.England then swiftly seized control, helped by a 12-ball duck from Stafanie Taylor, the West Indies captain. Then, Matthews, after a brief period of solidity, was deceived by the angle of a straighter ball from Alex Hartley that she attempted to sweep.It wasn’t until the 27th over that the first signs of intent appeared, when Dottin swept Knight for a boundary. By then, the required rate had crept over six, which meant West Indies needed a sustained period of acceleration. Heather,however, denied them that when three balls later, Dottin perished lbw trying the same stroke.With West Indies on shaky ground, Sciver then produced a double-strike in the 32nd over to hasten the slide. First, Chedean Nation was caught brilliantly by Tammy Beaumont running to her right at deep backward square leg, before Merissa Aguilleira misread a straighter one to be trapped lbw. Sciver finished with figures of 3 for 3 in four overs, and West Indies managed all of 29 runs from the final 88 balls.It might seem strange that the turn had been sharper and a lot more vicious in the first innings when England batted, but that was down to the skill of West Indies’ spinners. Perhaps influenced by the overcast conditions, Taylor, surprisingly, chose to put the opposition in with the surface expected to get slower as the game progressed. Fletcher, in particular, got the ball to rip past the outside edge of right-handers, and reaped the benefits of looping it up and slowing it down.She struck in her second over, removing the well-set Beaumont, who scooped a full toss onto her helmet which then ended up a catch to the wicketkeeper. Two balls later, Sciver was sent back for a duck, bowled by one that spun from leg stump to crash into middle and off. Fran Wilson toe-ended a sweep to her body for the Merissa Aguilleira to snap up another catch behind the stumps and England had slid to 105 for 5.Knight then mounted a fightback in the company of the lower order. She did have her share of luck, surviving an lbw shout against Fletcher on 39, with replays showing that the ball would have hit middle and off. The legspinner should have had a slip, considering the purchase she got, but West Indies did not afford her one and Knight, on 45, benefited again. England’s captain enjoyed another reprieve when she had sprinted more than halfway down the pitch at the non-striker’s end after the ball had struck batsman Jenny Gunn on the pad. Aguilleira went after the ball to effect the run-out, but in her haste she couldn’t pick it up cleanly.West Indies also slightly slipped up with their fielding towards the end, letting a couple sneak through to the boundary. But the bigger mistake, perhaps, was their giving away as many as 24 wides on a pitch that was hard to score on.

Bruno Fernandes will miss Manchester United's match against Liverpool next week after moaning at the referee during the loss to Bournemouth.

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• Fernandes booked fo dissent against Bournemouth
• Now has five yellow cards in Premier League
• Midfielder will miss clash at Liverpool next week

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The midfielder was shown a yellow card late in the game at Old Trafford on Saturday for complaining to the referee. The booking is his fifth in the league this season and means he will have to serve a one-match suspension, ruling him out of the trip to Anfield on December 17.

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  The loss of Fernandes will come as a big blow to Erik ten Hag's team as they gear up for a big game against a Liverpool side in fine form. The Anfield club have won their last four matches and are on a six-game unbeaten run in all competitions. United, meanwhile, were left humiliated on home soil with a 3-0 loss to Bournemouth on Saturday.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Fernandes has been a key figure for the Red Devils this season, with the captain having started every Premier League game this season, scoring five goals and setting up a further five across the English top-flight and the Champions League. Indeed, the Liverpool game will be the first league match the Portuguese won't have played in since November 2022, when he was absent for a 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa, again due to suspension.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

  Ten Hag will at least be able to call on Fernandes in his side's next game as they take on Bayern Munich in the Champions League before they face Liverpool. The Red Devils need to beat the German side to have any hope of getting into the next round of the European competition, and will be relying on a draw between Copenhagen and Galatasaray otherwise they will definitely be out.

Hibernian boss Lee Johnson has acted sharply during the transfer window, making six signings as he looks to improve on the fifth-placed finish they achieved in the Premiership last term and with Europa Conference League qualifiers fast approaching, another one or two new arrivals wouldn’t do any harm at all.

The Easter Road side have been linked with a potential loan move for Manchester City starlet Lewis Fiorini ahead of next season, although they face competition from clubs in the Championship for his signature, yet Johnson will be hoping that European football could perhaps be an ideal incentive for the midfielder.

Hibs scored 57 goals in the league last term, which was the fourth-best total in the division, and these were spread out amongst the attack and midfield, with Josh Campbell netting nine from the heart of the Hibs midfield, yet adding Fiorini into the side could give them another extra attacking edge going forward.

Johnson could even form a dream midfield duo of Fiorini and new arrival Dylan Levitt – who is a product of Manchester United's academy – which he will be hoping can propel the club into the group stages of the Europa Conference League while also impressing on the domestic front too.

How good is Lewis Fiorini?

The 5 foot 10 starlet has yet to make an appearance for the City first team, however he has shone for their youth sides, scoring 12 goals and grabbing five assists in that period too. It has been his loan spells away from Manchester that have given him the platform to showcase his talents.

Registering 25 goal contributions – 13 goals and 12 assists – in temporary spells with Blackpool, Lincoln City and NAC Breda throughout the previous three seasons has not only given him an opportunity to play senior football, but an outlet to get his creative juices flowing.

He could thrive alongside Levitt, who notched eight goal contributions for Dundee United last term alongside creating four big chances and making 1.6 tackles per game, suggesting that not only does he provide an attacking threat from the centre of the midfield, but he also likes to get stuck in and win the ball back often.

Despite United's relegation, Levitt proved to be one of the standout members of the squad, ranking third for overall Sofascore rating, second for big chances created and fifth for tackles per game, and these sorts of attributes could allow him to shine at Hibs.

These traits could give Fiorini – who has been lauded for his "quality" by former Lincoln boss, Michael Appleton – more freedom to push forward on a regular basis, and it would surely prove to be a popular pairing at the centre of the Hibs midfield as they aim to finish in third place, behind Rangers and Celtic next term.

The 21-year-old is also a fixture at U21 level for Scotland, scoring twice for his country and under Johnson, Fiorini could land regular game time next season which could help bolster his chances at not only securing a first Scotland cap, but also giving him a chance at bursting into the City first team.