SPORTThursday 9 August 2018

PAGE | 17 PAGE | 18New-look England

hope to tackle India without Stokes

Pogba keen to leave Man United for Barca: Reports

Qatar off to a winning start in Chinese Taipei

CHINTHANA WASALA THE PENINSULA

DOHA/TAIPEI: Qatar began their debut campaign in the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Cup for Men in style with a brilliant three-setter against Vietnam yesterday.

At the University of Taipei Gym-nasium in Taipei, Chinese Taipei, Qatari men had the better of their East Asian counterparts 25-20, 25-19 and 25-23, to take the lead in Pool C which also includes Thailand.

In Pool A, there are Kazakhstan, Japan and Korea while Australia, Iran and hosts Chinese Taipei are drafted in Pool B.

Former champions China had announced earlier that they had to

pull out of the AVC Cup because of limited gap between several major events including Asian Games and World Championship, leaving the top nine teams to compete in this year’s tournament.

Team Qatar will meet Thailand in the second Pool match today.

In other matches which were played on the opening day of the event, defending champions Iran beat the hosts 3-1 (25–23, 14–25, 25–21, 25–23) at the same venue.

Earlier yesterday, Japan and South Korea were involved in a thrilling five setter in which the South Korean men prevailed 3-2 (25–20, 19–25, 23–25, 25–23, 17–19).

The tournament concludes on August 15.

Qatargas U-23 League to kick off on September 4THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The second edition of the hugely popular Qatargas U-23 League will kick off on September 4.

The Qatar Football Asso-ciation (QFA) confirmed yes-terday that the 2018-19 edition will feature 12 teams.

The competing teams are, Al Duhail, Al Sadd, Qatar SC, Al Rayyan, Al Kharaitiyat, Al Gharafa, Umm Salal, Al Ahli, Al Khor, Al Arabi, Al Sailiya and Al Shahaniya.

All these clubs have teams which feature in top League, the QNB Stars League.

The first-round matches will commence on Sep-tember 4.

The matches will con-tinue until December 11.

The matches will be played on Mondays and Tuesdays with three games on each day.

The matches will be played at Hamad Bin Khalifa Stadium, Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium, Saud Bin Abdul-rahman Stadium, Thani Bin Jassim Stadium, Al Arabi Stadium and Al Khor Stadium.

The QFA also announced that during the first three rounds, the matches will kick off at 6:15pm and 8:30 pm.

Qatar Volleyball players and team officials pose for a photograph.

Qatari swimmers gear up for AsiadFAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Eyeing maximum medals, Qatari swimmers are leaving no stone unturned in their prepara-tions for this month’s Asian Games in Indonesia.

To give final touches to their preparations, the swimmers are undergoing a training camp in Slovakia - their second training tour ahead of the multi-sporting continental event - under the supervision of top coaches.

The Slovakia camp that started on August 3 will conclude on August 15 before team returns home to join the national con-tingent ahead of departure to Indonesia.

The 18th Asian Games ‘Jakarta - Palembang 2018’ will be held from August 18 to Sep-tember 2 while the swimming events will take place from August 19 to 24 at the GBK Aquatic Center in Jakarta.

Qatar national team com-prises eight swimmers including Nouh Abdulaziz Al Khelaifi, Yaqoub Abdulaziz Al Khulaifi, Abdulaziz Hassan Al Obaidli, Musalam Abdullah Al Nabit, Hassan Abdulrahman Al Ebaidan,

Abdulrahman Hesham, Yousef Hesham, Feras Al Saadi

Al Obaidli, 16, who is the youngest member of the Qatar’s swimming team, is eyeing an impressive performance at Asian Games.

“The team and I are getting ready before heading to Jakarta for the Asian Games. I will be the youngest swimmer among my team-mates at the Games; this makes me proud and I am looking forward to give my best,” he said.

Prior to the ongoing camp in Slovakia, Qatar diving team underwent an outdoor camp in

Belarus last month as part of their preparations.

Meanwhile, Qatar handball team is also close to finalising their preparations as they will defend their gold medal at Asian Games.

The team defeated Portugal’s Lisbon in back-to-back matches

signalling form ahead of their important assignment.

Al Anabi will play in Group A alongside Iran and Malaysia. The national handball team claimed a gold medal of the last edition with a 24-21 victory over South Korea in the final.

Qatar will send a contingent of over 250 athletes including 40 female athletes at the Asian Games.

The Al Anabi squad will be targeting medals in 30 disciplines with their primary goal is to better their tally of 10 gold medals they won at the 2014 edition in Incheon, South Korea.

QATAR SWIMMING TEAM FOR ASIAN GAMES

Nouh Abdulaziz Al Khelaifi, Yaqoub

Abdulaziz Al Khulaifi, Abdulaziz Hassan

Al Obaidli, Musalam Abdullah Al Nabit,

Hassan Abdulrahman Al Ebaidan,

Abdulrahman Hesham, Yousef Hesham, Feras

Al Saadi

Four key players to skip Asian Games as Team Qatar leaves for IndonesiaTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Key players Almoez Ali, Akram Afif, Basam Al Rawi and Abdullah Abdulsalam will miss the Asian Games in Indonesia as they will focus on the AFC Champions League (ACL) quarter-finals, Qatar Football Association has announced.

Coach Unai Melgosa announced Qatar’s 21-member squad for this month’s Asiad and the four players are part of the two Qatari teams which will feature in the ACL, Al Duhail and Al Sadd.

The national squad left for Jakarta yes-terday, and will compete in Group B during the Games which will begin tomorrow, eight days before the opening ceremony of the Asiad. Group B also includes

Thailand, Uzbekistan and Bangladesh.Al Anabi face Uzbekistan on August 14

in their first match.All countries participating at the Asian

Games will be represented by a U-23 squad with three overaged players and the top two from each group will advance to the round of 16.

QATAR SQUAD: Ahmed Moin, Khaled Munir, Abdul Rahman Mohammed, Hazem Ahmed, Adel Bader, Mishal Ibrahim, Hatem Kamal, Tariq Salman, Tamim Al Muhaize, Elias Ahmed, Ahmed Al Saadi, Saud Farhan, Mashaal Al Shammari, Mohammed Al Bakri, Yazen Naim, Jassim Mohammed, Marwan Sharif, Omar Al Emadi, Nasser Al Nasr, Ahmed Fadel and Mohammed Saeed. Coach: Unai Melgosa

Chanu’s withdrawal latest setback for Team IndiaREUTERS

NEW DELHI: India’s bid to win their first Asian Games gold medal in weightlifting suffered a major jolt with women’s 48kg world champion Mirabai Chanu pulling out of the competition with a back injury.

Expectation has been high since the Manipuri lifter added Commonwealth Games gold in April to her 2017 world cham-pionship triumph but a spinal spasm will keep the 24-year-old out of the Games in Indo-nesia beginning on Aug. 18.

Chief national coach Vijay Sharma has advised the fed-eration against rushing Chanu’s return and risk aggra-vating the injury.

In her email to the feder-ation, Chanu said she wanted to focus on November’s world championship in Turkmen-istan instead as it would double up as a qualifying event for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Chanu’s withdrawal is a latest setback for the feder-ation following the provisional suspension of two-time Com-monwealth Games gold med-allist Sanjita Chanu whose A sample tested positive for an anabolic steroid in May.

Al Rayyan players take part in a practice session at the Al Rayyan Stadium yesterday, in preparation for their QNB Stars League (QSL) second round match against Umm Salal. The match will be played at the Al Sadd Stadium on Friday and will kick off at 5.30pm.

Al Rayyan players prepare for QSL second round

Yaqoub Abdulaziz Al

Khulaifi in action in this

file photo.

Swimming events of the 18th Asian Games ‘Jakarta - Palembang 2018’ will take place

from August 19 to 24 at the GBK Aquatic Center

in Jakarta.

SRI LANKANiroshan Dickwella c de Kock b Duminy ..........34

Upul Tharanga b Mulder ......................................36

Kusal Mendis lbw b Maharaj ............................... 14

Kusal Perera c Miller b Duminy ............................51

Angelo Mathews (c) c de Kock b Ngidi .............22

Dhananjaya de Silva c Dala b Ngidi ................... 10

Thisara Perera not out ...........................................51

Dasun Shanaka c Mulder b Phehlukwayo .......65

Akila Dananjaya not out ..........................................1

Extras (lb 9, w 12, nb 1) ............................... 22

Total (7 wkts, 39 overs) ..................306Did not bat: Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara

Fall of wickets 1-61 (Dickwella, 11.3), 2-92

(Tharanga, 14.3), 3-100 (Mendis, 15.5), 4-159

(Mathews, 22.3), 5-183 (D. de Silva, 24.6), 6-195

( K. Perera, 27.2), 7-304 (Shanaka, 38.3)

Bowling: Ngidi 8-0-65-2, Dala 8-0-64-0,

Phehlukwayo 6-0-45-1, Duminy 6-0-35-2,

Mulder 6-0-51-1, Maharaj 5-0-37-1

SOUTH AFRICA (Target 191)Quinton de Kock b Lakmal ..................................23

Hashim Amla c Kumara b Dananjaya .............. 40

Reeza Hendricks c D. de Silva b Shanaka ........... 2

Jean-Paul Duminy run out (Shanaka) ...............38

Heinrich Klaasen c Mathews b D. de Silva ........17

David Miller b Lakmal ........................................... 21

Andile Phehlukwayo b T. Perera ...........................9

Willem Mulder c D. de Silva b Lakmal .................4

Keshav Maharaj b T. Perera ...................................17

Junior Dala not out .................................................. 3

Lungi Ngidi not out ..................................................1

Extras (lb 5, w 6, nb 1) ..................................12

Total:(9 wkts, 21 overs) .................. 187Fall of Wickets 34-1 (de Kock, 2.6), 51-2 (Hen-

dricks, 4.4), 108-3 (Amla, 9.3), 129-4 (Klaasen,

12.2), 130-5 (Duminy, 13), 149-6 (Phehlukwayo,

15.2), 155-7 (Mulder, 16.4), 183-8 (Maharaj, 19.6),

183-9 (Miller, 20.2)

Bowling: Lakmal 5 0 46 3, Dananjaya 3 0 30 1, T.

Perera 4 0 32 2, Shanaka 2 0 20 1, Kumara 3 0 28

0, D. de Silva 4 0 26 1

SCOREBOARD

17THURSDAY 9 AUGUST 2018 SPORT

New-look England hope to tackle India without StokesAFP

LONDON: England will be without Ben Stokes while India could make changes too for the second Test at Lord’s today.

Stokes played a starring role in England’s 31-run win in the first Test of a five-match series at Edg-baston last week, including taking the wicket of India captain Virat Kohli, who had been anchoring the tourists’ run-chase.

But Stokes was omitted by England because he is in court this week on a criminal charge of affray.

Fellow pace-bowling all-rounder Chris Woakes has been called up in his place to the England squad, with uncapped Surrey batsman Ollie Pope selected instead of Dawid Malan, dropped after a run of low scores.

But in a dry English summer that has seen pitches more receptive to slow bowling than usual, England could recall off-

spinner Moeen Ali to partner leg-break bowler Adil Rashid even though England captain Joe Root bowls occasional off-breaks.

Root confirmed yesterday that Pope would bat at number four but that England would delay a decision on whether to play Ali or Woakes instead of Stokes until the morning of the match, with the uncapped Jamie Porter released from the 13-man squad.

“Ollie Pope will come in and bat at four,” said Root.

That England won their 1,000th Test owed much to Pope’s fellow 20-year-old Surrey rising star Sam Curran.

As well as taking five wickets in his main role

as a left-arm swing bowler, Curran’s

s p a r k l i n g s e c o n d -innings 63,

his maiden Test fifty, enabled

England to set India a tricky target

of 194.It proved beyond

the tourists, despite Kohli making 51 to

follow his first-innings 149 -- the star batsman’s maiden Test century on English soil.

Neither side made 300 in the match, England posting 287 before India replied with 274 in the first innings.

India struggled against the swinging ball, with England finding it difficult to combat Rav-ichandran Ashwin’s off-spin.

In 17 Tests since Root became captain in July 2017, England have managed just nine hundreds between them and, even more con-

cerningly for their fans,

have been dis-missed for under

300 in their first innings seven times and

for under 250 in the second innings nine times.

In Pope they have a batsman who has been in superb form for County Championship leaders Surrey so far this season with 684 runs at a huge average of 85.50, including three centuries and a top score of 158 not out.

Root, frustratingly run out for 80 in England’s first innings at Edgbaston, said it was important to put the side’s batting struggles into perspective.

“I think it’s sometimes easy to criticise the batting group but I thought the way both seaming groups in particular bowled was outstanding.”

India too could make a top-order change with the experi-enced Cheteshwar Pujara waiting in the wings if struggling opener Shikhar Dhawan is omitted.

They also have the option of playing a second-spinner, be it orthodox left-armer Ravindra Jadeja or left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, with all-rounder Hardik Pandya the man most likely to miss out if either slow bowler is selected.

“It’s a good choice, a tough one too,” Bharat Arun, India’s bowling coach, told reporters at Lord’s on Tuesday.

“We really need to look a t a n y change in

s t r a t e g y , depending on the

wicket.”But Arun said Jasprit

Bumrah was “out of con-tention”, the paceman still

sidelined after missing the first Test with the broken thumb he suffered during a Twenty20 international against Ireland in June.

As for India needing more runs from their batsmen, Arun said: “If you look at the (Edg-baston) scores, it’s only Virat Kohli and Joe Root who have been able to contend with the moving ball.

“The conditions were trying. The challenge is there for us to adapt even better and we have our plans in place.”

But he was wary of playing an extra batsman at Lord’s.

“I would consider that as a conservative move,” Arun added.

“Everything depends on the conditions -- and if the conditions are not going to be as friendly as in the first Test, it makes more sense to play five bowlers.”

‘Hundred’ will look normal, says MCC AFP

LONDON: Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) officials gave a guarded welcome to plans for a new 100-balls-per-side competition in the English domestic game after being told it would still “look like a normal game of cricket”.

The England and Wales Cricket Board’s proposal for the new tournament, set to launch in 2020, has proved hugely controversial.

Critics have bemoaned the ‘dumbing down’ of the game given plans to ditch traditional overs and questioned the need for a new format given the global popularity of Twenty20.

ECB chief commercial officer Sanjay Patel told MCC’s world cricket committee, an advisory group chaired by former England captain Mike Gatting and whose members include MCC head of cricket John Stephenson and Australia great Ricky Ponting, that prospective playing conditions would likely include 20 sequences of five balls rather than the traditional six-ball over.

“Basically, they’re still developing the concept,” Stephenson told reporters at Lord’s on Tuesday.

“As custodians of the Laws of the game, what we’re con-cerned about is if you modify the game of cricket too much it ceases to look like cricket.

“They’re still developing how the final format will be.”The former England international added: “The current

thinking is 20 five-ball ‘overs’, but I think today was part of their consultation.

“I think at the maximum, they’re looking at having a substitute fielder. But I think what that’s about is per-formance -- having the best fielders out there at the right time to field.

“But at the moment, as far as I can make out, they’ll have 11 batsmen, they won’t have ‘overs’ per se but 100 balls, 20 balls per bowler.

“Apart from that, it’ll look like a normal game of cricket.”

ENGLAND VS INDIA SECOND TEST: TEAMS

ENGLAND: Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Joe Root (capt), Ollie

Pope, Jonny Bairstow (wkt), Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, James

Anderson

INDIA: Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli

(capt), Ajinkya Rahane, Dinesh Karthik (wkt), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh

Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma

called up in his place to the England squad, with uncapped Surrey batsman Ollie Popeselected instead of Dawid Malan, dropped after a rundropped after a runof low scores.

But inn a aa ddd dryy Englisishh suummmmmmerer thahathas s seenenn p piitchchesess mmmmororororeee erecceeppttiviveeeeee e tootoo sss sllloloww bowwllininini g g thhhaanan uuuuuu uusususussususs alalaal,Engglaanandd cccococcoc uld reccallll oooofffffff -

wickets in his main role as a left-arm swing

bowler, Curran’s s p a r k l i n g

s e c o n ds e c o n d -innings 63,

his maidenhis maiden Test fifty, enenabableled d

Englanandd d toto ssettt InIndidiaa a trtrtrriici ky target

off 1944...ItItt p p provevedd bebeyoyond

tththe e ttototourrisissi tsts, dedespspitiiti eeKoKoKoK hhhli mmamaaakikingng 5 51 totototo

folllloowowoww h hisi first-innninniningngs s 14149 9 -- the sstar battsms anan’s’s mamamamaidiidiidenenn T Tesesst t cecentnturury on English soil.

Neither side made 300 in the match, England posting 287 before India replied with 274 inthe first inningsthe first innings.

India struggled against theswinging ball with Englandswinging ball, with Englandfinding g it ddifficult to combat Rav-icicicichahahhahandndndndrarararan n n n AsAsAsAshwhwhwhwhwiininin’s’sss o oooffff-s-spipin.

In 17 TeTTestts ss sisisisincncncn ee RoRootott became captain in JuJulylyy 2 222010101017,77,77, England have managgggedede jujujujj ststtst n nnninini e e hundredss bebebebetwtwtwtweeeeeen n n ththhememmannnd,dd,d e eveveeen nnnmoree con-

cernrningly for their r fans,

hahh vee b beee nn dis-misseded f or uunder

330300 0 ini ttthheheirir first innningngs seeeveven n titimem s and

fofor undederr 25255000 inninn t ttheheh ssececonondd iniininniniiningngngnggggss s nininin nenenene tt t ttimimimimimesese .

InIIn P Popoppopee eee thththheyeyeyey hhh hhhavavvavaave e e a aaaa bababaaaatststststt mamamam n n whwhhoo o hahahahas s ss bebeebebebbeenneneneee i iin nnn susuus pepepeeeep rbbrbrbbrbr fffform fofofor r CoCoCoCoCoCCoCoununnununtytytytyyy C Chaahah mpmpmppmppmpm ioioiooioionsnsnsshihihhih pppp p lelelelelelelel adadadaaaderers s SuSuSuSuSuSSuurrrrrrrrrrrrr eyeyeeye sssso oo faffar r ththththisiisis sseaaae sosonn n wiwiwwitht 668484448 rurunnsns a aatt t aa aa huhuhhhugegegegeg a aaa avevveraragegege o off 85588555 555.5.55.550,0iiinin lclcl dududududdinininiininnng ggg g gg ththththththrerererer eee centntururieiees s s anananananandddd atotototooopppp p p sscscsscore of 1588 n noto ooututut..

RoRRoottt, , ffrfrususustrtrtrattatatattiiininin lglglglg y yy run ououtt foforr8080080880 iiin n EnEnglglg ananand’d’d ss fifirsrsrst t ininniningggs s s aatatataEdEdEd bgbgbasastoton, said d it wwwwassasasas iiii impmpmpmpm ortantnt tottto pputut t thhehe s sidide’e ss babattttinininggg tststrurugggggglles iintoto perspectitive.

one too,” Bharat Arubowling coach, told reLord’s on Tuesday.

nea tch

s t rdepend

wicket.”But Arun

rah was “omrBum”, the pacen”ttetet ntionafter missind asiddedeed linedthe brokenh tTessstt withduring a Td dsufffffferednal againstoninteeeeernati

Juunnnee.India needor AsA fotheir batsmm runsns f rom

ou look atyosaidd: “If cores, it’s scbaststoon) Joe Root ndKoK hlhllii anto contendle beeenenenen a bl

all.bamoviviinngnn bonditions wco“TTTThhehh enge is therleThThThe e cchhhalan better anvenadadapappt eevin place.”s iououo r ppllpp aaanswas wary he BBBuutt h

atsman at Lbaaann eexxtrra ould conside“I wotive move,” Accocococccc nseervarything depe“EEver

ns -- and if theccondndititionoing to be as arare e nnot go

rst Test, it maiin the firsense to play five bowsense to p

England’s Ollie Pope inspects a bat during a practice session at the Lord’s Ground in London yesterday. England captain Joe Root confirmed yesterday that Pope would bat at number four in the second Test against India which begins today.

Recovering Afridito miss CPL 2018THE PENINSULA

KINGSTON: Jamaica Tallahwahs will miss the services of Shahid Afridi in the upcoming Caribbean Premier League 2018 after the former Pakistan all-rounder confirmed his unavailability yesterday.

Afridi cited rehabilitation from a long-standing knee injury as the reason behind his absence.

The 38-year-old sustained the injury while playing for Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League in March, and with the rehabilitation process still ongoing, he tweeted that he would not be able to turn out for the Tallahwahs this year.

“Due to my knee rehab I’ll have to sadly miss out this year’s #BiggestPartyInSport with the @JAMTallawahs,” Afridi tweeted. “I’ll be cheering for the team from home and I’m sure @simadwasim (Imad Wasim) will fill up for me.”

Afridi has taken the field even after sustaining the injury – he played six matches for Edmonton Royals in the Global Canada T20 League in July, and also captained ICC World XI against the Windies in the Hurricane Relief T20I in May.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi (left) presenting the Imtiaz Ahmed Spirit of Cricket Trophy to Sarfraz Ahmed during the annual PCB Awards Ceremony held in Karachi, yesterday. BOTTOM: Hasan Ali receiving his award for the best ODI player of the year from former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi.

PCB Award winners

Sri Lanka clinch rain-hit thriller in KandyREUTERS

KANDY, Sri Lanka: Suranga Lakmal bowled a tight final over to help Sri Lanka win the rain-hit fourth one-dayer against South Africa by three runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method yesterday and snap their losing streak.

Having lost the five-match series following three defeats, Sri Lanka batted with conspicuous freedom to post 306-7 after rain had reduced the match to 39 overs-a-side.

More rain interruptions left South Africa with a revised target of 191 from 21 overs but Lakmal (3-46) conceded four runs in the final over to seal a thrilling victory in the stop-start game.

Put in to bat, Sri Lanka enjoyed their first 50-plus opening partnership of the series from Upul Tharanga (36) and Niroshan Dickwella (34) which laid the foundation for a big total.

Kusal Perera smashed 51 but it was the 109-run stand between Thisara Perera (51 not out) and Dasun Shanaka (65) that took Sri Lanka past the 300-mark.

Shanaka clobbered five sixes in his 34-ball blitz as Sri Lanka plundered 105 runs from the last 10 overs.

South Africa were initially set a target of 308 under the Duck-worth-Lewis system but further rain interventions left them needing 191 runs from 21 overs.

Hashim Amla made 40 and JP Duminy contributed 38 but South Africa suffered a middle-order collapse that left them needing eight runs from the final

over with two wickets in hand.Lakmal dismissed David

Miller (21) with the second ball to effectively clinch the match as

South Africa finished on 187-9.The tourists will take a 3-1

lead into Sunday’s final one-dayer in Colombo.

Sri Lanka’s Dasun Shanaka hits a boundary during his innings of 65 against South Africa at the Pallekele International

Cricket Stadium in Pallekele, Kandy yesterday.

18 THURSDAY 9 AUGUST 2018SPORT

Neymar is still there, and Paris Saint-Germain are set to kick off

their defence of the French Ligue 1 title against Caen this weekend.

As Marseille play Toulouse in the opening game tomorrow, take a

look at five of the most interesting new signings in France ahead

of the 2018-19 campaign:

THOMAS TUCHEL (PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN) Age: 44Position: Head coach

Previous club: Borussia Dortmund (GER)

-- The biggest change at PSG ahead of this season has come in the

dugout. Indeed, the old season had still not finished when the

capital club announced the appointment of the German Tuchel as

their new coach on a two-year deal. He arrives after a year out of

the game following his departure from Borussia Dortmund, and

succeeds Unai Emery whose last season in charge saw PSG win the

treble but lose to Real Madrid in the Champions League last 16. A

successful defence of the Ligue 1 title combined with a better

performance in Europe are the twin objectives for Tuchel. However,

with a large number of players returning late from holidays after

the World Cup, pre-season has possibly not offered too many

clues as to how Tuchel will fare at the Parc des Princes.

GIANLUIGI BUFFON (PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN) Age: 40Position: Goalkeeper

Previous club: Juventus (ITA)

-- The transfer window does not close for French clubs until the

end of August, so PSG may yet get the cheque book out. So far,

however, the only new arrival has been Buffon. Splashing huge

amounts of money last year on Neymar and Kylian Mbappe while

not recruiting a goalkeeper of proven quality left their squad look-

ing rather unbalanced. But it remains to be seen if bringing in the

40-year-old Buffon is the ideal solution. The goalkeeping great

had the advantage of being available without a transfer fee, al-

though he was expected to retire at the end of last season before

deciding to have another crack at glory in the Champions League,

which has thus far evaded him in a long career.

PATRICK VIEIRA (NICE) Age: 42Position: Head coach

Previous club: New York City FC (USA)

-- As France basks in the glow of the national team’s World Cup

triumph in Moscow, one of the stars of the team that won the

trophy in 1998 makes his return to the French game as a coach.

Vieira is following in the footsteps of other members of his gen-

eration of World Cup winners by making inroads into manage-

ment. Didier Deschamps and Zinedine Zidane have enjoyed fan-

tastic years, and now Vieira is hoping to make his name as a coach

in Europe. Now 42, the former arsenal midfielder arrives at Nice

-- just along the Cote d’Azur from where he started out at Cannes

-- after two years at New York City FC. He will hope to build on the

fine work done by predecessor Lucien Favre.

ALEKSANDR GOLOVIN (MONACO) Age: 22Position: Midfielder

Previous club: CSKA Moscow (RUS)

-- There have again been big departures at Monaco, but they have

pulled off quite a coup with the signing of Golovin. Born in Siberia,

the 22-year-old midfielder arrives in the glitzy Mediterranean

principality after enjoying an impressive World Cup with hosts

Russia. Monaco -- whose billionaire owner and vice-president are

both Russian -- beat the likes of Chelsea and Juventus to his sig-

nature, agreeing a reported 30 million-euro ($34.8m) deal to sign

him from CSKA Moscow. He will have a big role to play in Leonardo

Jardim’s team, with Thomas Lemar, Fabinho and Joao Moutinho all

having been sold.

JEAN-EUDES AHOLOU (MONACO) Age: 24Position: Midfielder

Previous club: Strasbourg

-- Ivorian Aholou will be one to watch after joining Monaco from

Strasbourg on a five-year deal for a reported 14 million euros.

Aholou’s rise has been remarkable -- two years ago he had just

been promoted to Ligue 2 with Orleans before being sold to

Strasbourg for 350,000 euros in January 2017 and helping them

to promotion. His profile means a successful spell in the principal-

ity could have him eventually following the likes of Fabinho,

Moutinho, and Tiemoue Bakayoko before them, to England.

5 NEW ARRIVALS TO LOOK OUT FOR IN LIGUE 1

Pogba keen to leave Man

United for Barca: ReportsAFP

LONDON: France World Cup star Paul Pogba is determined to end his fractious relationship with Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho and move to Barcelona, according to British media reports yesterday.

The 25-year-old -- who scored in the 4-2 World Cup final win over Croatia -- has agreed terms with Bar-celona for a deal worth £89.5m ($115m, 100m euros) over five years, according to the Daily Mail.

The reported agreement would see him pick up £346,000 a week, almost double what he earns at United.

The Sun claims the former Juventus star -- who joined United for a then world-record fee of £89m in 2016 -- has demanded the Premier League side increase his wages from £180,000 to £380,000 a week so he is paid almost on a par with Chilean star Alexis Sanchez, otherwise he will leave.

United, though, would be most reluctant to sell him, with the Daily Mail reporting they have already rejected a bid by Barcelona of £44.5m plus Colombian central defender Yerry Mina and Portuguese midfielder Andre Gomes.

Mourinho has expressed his frus-tration over the club’s transfer policy, and Pogba’s departure would leave little time for executive chairman Ed Woodward to find a suitable replacement with the Premier League transfer window due to close today.

The club has had to deny the claim that Pogba sent a text message to Woodward demanding he be allowed to leave.

The Frenchman is keen to move to Barcelona -- the Spanish transfer window does not shut till the end of the month -- to play with Argentina superstar Lionel Messi, while his close friend and former Juventus

team-mate Arturo Vidal also recently moved to the Catalan giants.

Essentially, though, Pogba’s unhappiness stems from the deteri-oration in his relationship with Mourinho, who not only does he blame for his muted performances for United since his move but also for his qualified praise of his perform-ances for France at the World Cup.

“Paul was like the (France) team. He started average and ended top,” Mourinho told beIN Sports on United’s unhappy tour of the United States last week. Pogba, though, is believed to have been more upset by what fol-lowed in the interview as Mourinho implied being in an enclosed envi-ronment over six weeks ensured he focused just on football and not on outside matters such as commercial contracts.

Pogba’s super agent Mino Raiola -- who was also instrumental in bringing Romelu Lukaku to United last summer -- has remained out of

the fray, refusing to comment on links with Barcelona.

“I will never make declarations about Paul,” said the Dutch-Italian agent, who is reported to have earned just over £40m when Pogba moved to United.

“You have to speak to Manchester United,” added Raiola.

Former United star Rio Ferdinand told yesterday’s edition of the Daily Mail that Mourinho needed to fit the team around Pogba’s sublime talent, but accepted the player needed to adapt too.

“It’s down to the manager to get the best out of him, setting the team up and setting Pogba up in the right way to achieve the best,” said the former England central defender.

“But Pogba needs to play his part in that.

“It’s a case of the player and manager getting an understanding for each other and getting the best out of the player.”

In this file photo taken on May 04, 2018 Manchester United’s French midfielder Paul Pogba controls the ball during the Premier League match against Brighton and Hove Albion in Brighton.

Pogba has agreed terms

with Barcelona for a deal

worth £89.5m ($115m,

100m euros) over five

years, according to the

Daily Mail. The reported

agreement would see him

pick up £346,000 a week,

almost double what he

earns at United.

REUTERS

LONDON: Liverpool will give skipper Jordan Henderson every chance to be ready for Sunday’s Premier League opener against West Ham United despite the midfielder only returning to pre-season training on Sunday, manager has Juergen Klopp (pictured) said.

Henderson, who helped England to a fourth-placed finish at the World Cup, impressed his manager with his fitness levels and played 20 minutes in Tuesday’s 3-1 pre-season win over Torino.

“We have to see how he reacts. But it is Hendo, so to be honest in the first session it looked like he trained for the whole three weeks,” Klopp told the club website https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/first-team/310902-jurgen-Klopp-reaction-liverpool-torino-quotes.

“He’s experienced enough not to bring himself in dif-ficult situations where he has to run two or three miles in two minutes.”

Meanwhile, Burnley defender Ben Mee has signed a new three-year contract at Turf Moor, with an option to extend for a further 12 months, the Premier League club said yesterday.

The 28-year-old has made 248 appearances for the Clarets since joining from Manchester City, initially on loan in 2011 and then perma-nently the following year.

Mee featured in 29 league matches last season as the club finished seventh in the standings and earned their slot in the Europa League.

Henderson in contention for opener, says Klopp

Guardiola prefers improving performance over recordREUTERS

LONDON: Manchester City will aim to improve their performance rather than beat last season’s record-breaking Premier League tally of 100 points, manager Pep Guardiola (pictured) has said.

Defending champions City became the first side to reach 100 points in a Premier League cam-paign and finished last season 19 points above their closest rivals Manchester United.

“People ask ‘can you improve on 100 points’ and I say no because we are not here to do that. However, individually the players can improve,” Guar-diola said during the Sky Sports Premier League launch.

“Of course we can improve. If I felt we could not improve the team I would call my chairman and say: ‘I leave’. But still, we believe we ca n do better and d o m i n a t e more. Will it happen?

I don’t

know but we believe we can do it.” City begin the new season with

a trip to Arsenal on Sunday and Spaniard Guardiola suggested the London side could pose a serious challenge this season under new manager Unai Emery.

“Arsenal I think are going to be more consistent as a team,” Guar-diola added. “It will be tough like it has to be. It’s nice because every season the Premier League is tougher and tougher.

“Unai is a work ethic guy. He knows everything

a b o u t t h e opponents.”

“He achieved s o m e t h i n g u n i q u e i n

European football in three Europa

Leagues in a row and he handled

himself well at PSG. He’s a top, top

manager and it w i l l b e

tough.”

United.ask ‘can you improve

oints’ and I say no are not here to do er, individually the

n improve,” Guar-uring the Sky Sportsague launch.ourse we can I felt we could not e team I l my and e’.e

t

n’t

Unai is a work ethic guknows every

a b o u t opponents

“He achs o m e t hu n i q u e

European foin three E

Leagues in and he ha

himself well aHe’s a top,

manager aw i l l

tou

Bolt to be given time to prove himself, says Mariners bossREUTERS

MELBOURNE: Usain Bolt (pictured) will train at the Central Coast Mariners for as long as it takes to become a professional footballer and has agreed to reside in the A-League team’s sleepy home base as part of the deal, Mariners CEO Shaun Mielekamp said yesterday.

The Mariners confirmed on Tuesday the Olympic sprint champion would train “indef-initely” with the club, which finished bottom of Australia’s 10-team top flight last season and plays in one of the coun-try’s smallest soccer markets.

“His training programme will be structured to see if he can reach a level of play which earns him a professional con-tract,” Mielekamp told reporters at the Mariners’ base in Gosford, a suburb of the Central Coast region north of Sydney.

“This may take three weeks, this may take three months, this may take six months.

“It may take longer, who knows? Only time will tell but it’s exciting to see what this will do for our region. But the importance for us right now is to look after an athlete who is coming to try to become a pro-fessional player.”

Jamaican Bolt, who won eight Olympic golds before retiring at the world champi-onships in London last year, has trained with Germany’s Borussia Dortmund, South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns and Norway’s Stromsgodset.

The Central Coast, a magnet for domestic holiday-makers and retirees in Aus-tralia’s eastern state of New South Wales, is an unlikely destination for a global ath-letics superstar to reboot his sporting career.

But Mielekamp said Bolt had already committed to the club’s community-minded ethos, which requires players to reside in the area rather than enjoy the big-city com-forts of Sydney and commute.

“The same for all our

players, all our players are expected to be living on the Central Coast,” he said.

“It’s a big part of our club and we spoke to him very early doors about living and residing here in the Central Coast and he’s agreed to that which is great.

“The one driving thing that has been through this whole thing has been his own personal passion, his own personal belief and personal desire.

“We’ve spoken to him about our club, what our beliefs are, we spoke to him about going down to the local school and doing school appearances and those sort of things and he’s bought right into that which has been fantastic.”

“We’ve been inundated with sponsors’ calls this morning which has been exciting,” he said.

“And for us that long-term effect is something we’ve got to be mindful of. How can we use this moment to improve the club for the long-term? “But it’s still very early days.”

19THURSDAY 9 AUGUST 2018 SPORT

Tiger could play as vice-captain: FurykAFP

ST. LOUIS: US Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk says Tiger Woods could play and serve as a vice-captain for the Americans if needed at next month’s team showdown against Europe in France.

Woods, a 14-time major winner, must win this week’s PGA Champi-onship to qualify on points. But Furyk makes four captain’s picks next month to complete the lineup and held out hope of double duty for Woods, who has battled back this year from spinal fusion surgery.

“It’s possible he could do both,” Furyk said yesterday.

“Is it best for the team? That’s what we have to consider.

“He’s a big help in either role. If he’s on the team, he has always been a leader. As a player he plays both roles as well.” This week’s final major tournament of the year at Bel-lerive Country Club is the last US team qualifying event.

Woods, 42, has not won a major since the 2008 US Open and not won any event since 2013, having missed most of the past two years with back injuries. The former world number one was only weeks into his latest comeback in January when he brought up the subject of playing

with Furyk, who wanted him early on as a vice-captain.

“At the time it took me off guard. He hadn’t played in so long,” Furyk said. “He knew then that he was on the mend, that he was starting to feel better. He had a plan in place for this year and really felt like he could compete. That was probably a sign that I should have picked up a lot quicker on.”

Woods shared second at the US PGA Valspar Championship in March, fired his best final round in five years in sharing fourth at the National in June and led the British Open on Sunday before sharing sixth last month at Carnoustie.

“By March I saw that his game was in a lot better shape and his health was in a lot better shape,” Furyk said.

“So he has been challenging this year and moving up that points list, which has been fun to watch.”

Furyk wants to confirm his first eight players Monday before thinking about captain’s picks, but he has already pondered a place for 51st-ranked Woods.

“I’m excited about seeing what we have at the end of this week. From that point on, I have three or four weeks before I have to make those picks,” Furyk said.

“So trying to interpret whether he’s done enough or not done enough -- I’ve obviously thought about it -- but it’s a position that I don’t have to put myself in now.”

Woods would still have two US PGA playoff events to impress Furyk if he doesn’t win this week.

“We still get to see weeks ahead in big tournaments,” Furyk said. “And being 20th on the points with very few events is a pretty good spot.”

World number one Dustin Johnson, second-ranked Justin Thomas, US Open winner Brooks Koepka and Masters champion Patrick Reed have already clinched berths for the American squad that will compete September 28-30 at Le Golf National near Paris.

Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson and three-time major winner Jordan Spieth have enough points to all-but secure spots.

Ninth-ranked Rickie Fowler and Webb Simpson, the 2012 US Open champion, hold the last two places but a host of rivals are within reach, the nearest being Bryson DeChambeau and five-time major winner Phil Mickelson.

Furyk recalls being among many partners who paired up with Woods in his heyday.

McIlroy eyes breakthrough win AFP

ST. LOUIS: Rory McIlroy yearns for a breakthrough victory after a season of near misses, with the four-time major winner hopeful this week’s PGA Cham-pionship can launch his “work-in-progress” game to new heights.

“I’m giving myself chances nearly every week,” McIlroy said on Tuesday.

“It’s not as if my game’s in bad shape at all. It’s just I haven’t won as much as I would have liked, but there’s still plenty of time to change that.”

McIlroy has risen to fifth in the world rankings ahead of today’s start of the year’s final major tournament at Bellerive Country Club, trying to claim

his first major title since the 2014 PGA.

“Where my game is, I feel like I’ve done as well as I could with what I have. It’s still a work in progress,” McIlroy said.

“I’m still working on a few things in my swing and trying to iron a few kinks out.

“With a good week this week, it just puts a different spin on my year from being what some people see as dis-appointing to back on track and another major and going forward again.”

One person expecting great things soon from McIlroy is European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn.

“You go through spells where you don’t quite get over the line, but he’s still

contending every week, and I admire his patience and the way he goes about it,” Bjorn said.

“He’s in a place where it’s going to go boom and then he’s going to start winning a lot of golf tournaments again. Even-tually when he wins that one, then I think he’ll just start rolling again.”

McIlroy won at Bay Hill in March but shared fifth at the Masters and second last month at the British Open, his eighth top-10 effort without a win in his past 14 major starts.

“It’s certainly close,” McIlroy said.

“I’ve kept giving myself chances this year. I haven’t closed out those tournaments as I would have liked, but at

least I’m putting myself in position.

“The only thing I haven’t done is win enough. I’ve given myself a lot of chances. I haven’t played well enough when it has counted. I’m just trying to make that little step from contending and getting into final groups to lifting trophies.”

McIlroy learned last week at the WGC Bridgestone Invi-tational, when he stumbled to a final-round 73 and shared sixth, that part of what makes him a strong driver is hurting his short game.

“What makes me so good with the driver is sometimes what makes me inconsistent with the wedges,” McIlroy said.

“So it’s just about trying to

find that blend.” McIlroy blamed injury and bad habits on detrimental swing changes.

“I’m trying to get back to the way I was the last time I won a major in 2014 at Valhalla. I think that’s one of the best times I swung the club really well at that point in time,” McIlroy said.

“I’ve gotten into a couple of bad habits and that just makes it a little tougher for me to be consistent with a shorter club in my hand. So I’m working on it. But it’s a process.”

McIlroy already has a process for what to do if he hoists the Wanamaker Trophy on Sunday.

“Maybe I’ll get to see the nightlife,” he said.

“And bring that Wana-maker into some of the bars.”

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walks with Dustin Johnson of the United States during a practice round prior to the 2018 PGA Championship in St Louis, Missouri on Monday.

Jon Rahm hits his tee shot on the sixth hole during yesterday practice round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Bellerive Country Club.

Wawrinka, Djokovic advance in TorontoAFP

TORONTO, CANADA: Stan Wawrinka and Novak Djokovic reached the second round of the Toronto Masters on Tuesday, with both men polishing their pre-US Open form.

Wawrinka put his comeback from knee surgery back on track with a 1-6, 7-5, 7-5 comeback win over Nick Kyrgios.

Wimbledon holder Djokovic eased to victory, beating Mirza Basic 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) after the Bosnian replaced orignal opponent Chung Hyeon of South Korea, who withdrew before the match with injury.

A pair of Canadian teenagers advanced, with Denis Shapo-valov dominating Jeremy Chardy

6-1, 6-4 while good friend Felix Auger-Aliassime, who turns 18 on Wednesday, thrilled his home fans as he defeated Lucas Pouille of France 6-4, 6-3. Three-time Grand Slam champion Wawrinka put 16th seed Kyrgios out with an impressive display after losing a one-sided opening set.

Wawrinka has been strug-gling to find his best form since returning to the ATP Tour after two knee operations a year ago and has slumped to 195 in the world rankings.

“I’m looking for confidence. I’m looking for matches,” he said. “I’m grateful I got the wildcard to play directly in the main draw.

“I knew it was going to be a

tough match. Winning 1-6, 7-5, 7-5, it’s great for me. Any victory is good to get more confidence.

“I’m happy with the way I’m practicing. I’m really happy with the level and the way I’m moving on the practice court, and I need to find how to put it in the match.”

Wawrinka’s victory in just over two hours avenged a 2015 loss to Kyrgios in Canada, when the Swiss had to retire. That contest was also remembered for Kyrgios insulting his oppo-nent’s girlfriend Donna Vekic.

Kyrgios, with green fluo-rescent tape encircling each kneecap, quit injured in last week’s Washington quarter-finals, and he was treated in the second set here for his

chronically troublesome hip. The 33-year-old Wawrinka broke late in the second set to level the match, and completed his fightback on a second match point as he also broke in the 12th game of the decider.

“My hip is, obviously, a little bit sore. That’s why I called the trainer on the court. So it’s pretty self-explanatory,” Kyrgios said.

“It’s good to see Stan back, I guess. He’s obviously had a tough 12 months with his injury, and it’s good seeing him back winning some matches.”

Djokovic, a four-time winner in Canada, double-faulted while serving for the match to slip into a second-set tie-break, but he finished the job for a second-round spot.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a shot against Mirza Basic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (not shown) in the Rogers Cup tennis tournament at Aviva Centre.

Azarenka breezes into the second round of Montreal eventAFP

LOS ANGELES: Former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, who was playing for first time since retiring in the San Jose quarter-finals, kicked off her WTA Montreal tournament on Tuesday by dismissing Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets.

Azarenka punched her ticket to the second round with a dom-inating 6-0, 6-1 victory in just 55 minutes over the former world number 10.

“I feel better,” she said. “It was definitely pretty bad in San Jose to have such a sudden thing with my back.

“I was hoping it would be

nothing serious, but sometimes when you’re in the moment and get a really bad spasm, there’s nothing you can do.

“I didn’t really practice much after. I’ve only had one practice session this week.”

Azarenka, who needed a wildcard to get into the Montreal draw, moves on to the second

round where she will face British No.1 Johanna Konta.

Azarenka stormed through the first nine games of the match before France’s Mladenovic got on the board.

The two-time Australian Open champion Azarenka even-tually rolled through the final three games to get the victory in

her first Montreal appearance since 2014.

Elsewhere, Maria Sharapova made quick work of Bulgarian qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva, easily winning 6-1, 6-2 in a renewal of their former teenage rivalry.

“No matter what tournament or who you’re playing against,

you have to figure things out as you go. I think I did a good job of that today,” Sharapova said.

Sharapova, a finalist in 2009, performed solidly, defeating Karatantcheva for the fifth time in their five career meetings. “I was aggressive, I served well throughout the match,” Sharapova said.