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Antoine Semenyo is the hottest name in the Premier League, and it’s approaching kitchen-sink time for Liverpool in the race to sign him from Bournemouth.

If it is a race, then Liverpool have lagged behind, but only because they decided to slow things down as Manchester City ramped up the gas. Senior sources at Sky Sports felt that Liverpool stood a strong chance of signing the Ghanaian had they only initiated formal talks.

There’s still time, and recent reports suggest Liverpool remain keen, but Pep Guardiola’s side are circling as the January transfer window looms large, and it looks like they will win the race.

Arne Slot could do with a direct wide forward, though.

Liverpool looking at Semenyo alternatives

Luis Diaz has been in fine fettle for Bayern Munich this season, having joined the Germans from Liverpool in a £65.5m deal in August.

The Colombian’s departure has only accentuated Cody Gakpo’s limitations. Gakpo knows how to score a goal and create a chance, but in spite of this, he has been one-dimensional and predictable down Liverpool’s left flank, struggling for connections with newbies Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez.

Semenyo would be the perfect addition, but perhaps Liverpool are holding out for another elite winger, such as Real Madrid’s Rodrygo.

Rodrygo’s name has been bandied about in transfer discussions for some time now, and Liverpool have been regularly linked. In fact, it was reported at the start of December that the £70m-rated Brazilian would be keen on the move to Merseyside.

Given his tenuous relationship with the powers that be at Los Blancos, Liverpool could get this one over the line if they push hard enough, and Rodrygo’s track record suggests they would get bang for their buck.

Why Rodrygo is better than Semenyo

Rodrygo has endured the roughest spell of his senior career over the past year, falling by the wayside under Carlo Ancelotti last season and failing to pick himself back up this year, with Xabi Alonso at the helm.

But the two-time Champions League winner has scored 70 goals and supplied 55 assists for Real across his career, clinching two goals and tw

Former Real Madrid teammate Luka Modric even hailed him as a “world-class superstar”, with his physicality and dynamism underscoring his skill as one of the world’s finest.

Semenyo has been riding the crest of a wave in Andoni Iraola’s Cherries system, but Liverpool would land a star of a different calibre in Rodrygo, who is a tailor-made superstar with a two-footed quality to match Semenyo.

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It’s a no-brainer. After all, the players’ respective statistics over the past year work in Rodrygo’s favour, given he has been at his lowest ebb and yet is still maintaining respectable levels.

Rodrygo vs Semenyo (past 12 months)

Stats (per 90)

Rodrygo

Semenyo

Goals scored

0.31

0.41

Assists

0.19

0.19

Shots taken

2.80

2.60

Shot-creating actions

4.94

3.57

Touches (att pen)

6.40

4.84

Pass completion (%)

85.4

72.9

Progressive passes

4.10

3.40

Progressive carries

5.79

3.65

Successful take-ons

2.34

1.60

Ball recoveries

4.02

4.20

Tackles + interceptions

2.07

1.82

Data via FBref

As Mohamed Salah’s potential Anfield exit looms in the background, the need to sign an out-and-out winger grows stronger for FSG and sporting director Richard Hughes.

Liverpool need to get this one over the line. Rodrygo has been there, done that – and he’s still got so much to give, two years Semenyo’s junior and having already conquered Europe’s tallest mountains.

Would Rodrygo be able to translate his finest form to the Premier League theatre? That’s anyone’s guess. However, he hasn’t exactly struggled against English opponents in the past, and this wealth of top-level experience could help him make the same kind of impact that Semenyo is touted to make when he completes his big move.

Related Wirtz will make him "world-class": Liverpool ready to push for £65m star

Liverpool are ready to react to opportunities during the January transfer market.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair

	Michael Vaughan has been consistent since returning from injury last year © Getty Images

Michael Vaughan is preparing to head out to New Zealand to lead England’s Test team with a huge drive to ensure he is around to captain the side in next year’s Ashes and also has ambitions to play until the 2010-11 series in Australia.After England’s 1-0 defeat against Sri Lanka, their second consecutive series loss following the 1-0 reversal against India, there have been a few murmurings that Vaughan’s captaincy spell may come under pressure, especially with the one-day side under Paul Collingwood showing promising improvement.With the bat, though, Vaughan has proved his worth since returning to the Test side last summer against West Indies. He scored two centuries last year – a memorable ton on his comeback at Headingley and a stylish 124 against India at Trent Bridge – and feels he could have had plenty more runs to his name.”I know I am good enough to be there,” Vaughan told the at an Urban Cricket event in Sheffield. “That’s never ever been in question.”In the nine games since I have come back and played, I have probably found a rhythm to bat in that I have not had for a few years, which is a really great sign. I could have even averaged 75-80 with the way I played. I had two or three opportunities to go on and get 150s, 200s, massive scores and I didn’t take them.””If I can continue to play in that rhythm and form, I believe there will be a purple patch around the corner where I get big scores on the trot,” he said. “Whether I am there in 2009 – it is still a long way off – I still have ambition to go on beyond it.”I don’t just think 2009 will be it for me, I look maybe at the Australians in Australia the time after that. I would like to still be playing in that.”However, if he is around for the next trip down under he doesn’t think it will be as captain. He first took up the role in 2003 and would like to end his career purely as a batsman.”I don’t think I will do it [captaincy] for that stretch,” said Vaughan. “I really would love to play as a non-captain towards the latter stages of my career. I love the captaincy but I also wouldn’t mind having a ‘do’ eventually at just playing.”That’s why I have enjoyed this little six-week period out of the game when I can just focus on me, if you like: get my body and form to the standard I want it to be at, arrive in New Zealand fitter, and I probably will do, than I have been for years and years.”When I get there, I have to look after all the team so, in these little periods I have, I have to make sure I look after myself and arrive in decent form.”

Ricky Ponting is ready for action © Getty Images

Ricky Ponting is confident Australia have the right blend of youth and experience to snatch a third successive World Cup. Despite losing the No. 1 ranking to South Africa last month, Ponting is unconcerned as his team prepares for its opening Group A match with Scotland in St Kitts on Wednesday.”For some players it could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play in a World Cup,” he said. “I’ve played in three World Cups, and this will be my fourth, and I know what it is like to play in and win a World Cup. At the same time, there are some younger guys in our squad and this is an opportunity for them to stamp themselves on the international game.”Ponting believes he has the right squad mix required to win a fourth World Cup to add to the triumphs in 1987, 1999 and 2003. “The last World Cup for me was one of the most satisfying periods of my career – going through a World Cup undefeated was fantastic,” he said. “One of the things that you do have with World Cups, the way that they are set up now, is that you have quite a bit of time in between games to prepare exceptionally well for the opposition teams.”Australia have lost their past five one-day internationals but Ponting is confident they have improved on the deficient areas. “The thing that worried me the most was that there were 10 or 15 overs through the course of those games, where they slipped away from us,” he said. “In this tournament, you cannot afford to not be playing your best cricket. There are some areas that we can tighten up, and the guys are confident.”Australia completed strong warm-up wins against Zimbabwe and England in St Vincent and they also expect to be strengthened by the return of Matthew Hayden for the game against Scotland. While claiming not to pay much attention to the No. 1 ranking, Ponting said it would be great to finish the tournament on top.”We want to win every game that we play, and that’s the way we train, and we prepare,” he said. “If we are able to win a few more games in this World Cup, and South Africa does not, we will probably leapfrog them again.”

Photo of the year – Keep your eye on the ball – Cayman Islands © ICC

The ICC Americas region has announced the regional winners for the ICC Development Program Annual Awards for 2005.Nine different countries share the awards from the four person panel of judges. The region received a record breaking number of nominations in this the fourth year since the awards were instituted.Martin Vieira, the ICC Americas regional development manager,congratulated the winners and commented: “The nine winners and other nominees are only a small group of the hundreds we rely on to spread the development of this wonderful sport. With our large geographical area crossing many cultural and language barriers, volunteers are essential to our success in developing cricket in the “new world”. To the winners, a well deserved recognition, but to all volunteers I extend our appreciation and gratitude for your efforts”.The Americas regional winners will now compete with the other regions for the Global Awards to be announced on March 30, 2006. The global winners will be selected by a distinguished panel comprising of Ehsan Mani (ICC president), Malcolm Gray (past ICC president), Dr. Ali Bacher (former Development Committee chairman) and Roger Knight (MCC secretary and CEO).The Regional Winners for the 2005 DPAABest Overall Development Program
Bermuda Cricket ProgramBest Junior Cricket Initiative
Brazil – School Program In ParanaBest Women’s Cricket Initiative
Cuba – Santiago De Cuba ProgramBest Cricket Promotional Program
Canada – Celebration Of CricketBest Spirit Of Cricket Initiative
Chile – All Chilean Team TourPhoto Of The Year
Cayman – Keep Your Eye On The BallUnaids Award
Argentina – U15 Tour Of South AfricaVolunteer Of The Year
Costa Rica – Richard IllingworthLifetime Service Award
Mexico – Brian Gay

“The chances of us playing three fast bowlers is bright,” said Sourav Ganguly, but his words could just be gamesmanship© Afp

Through one day of fiercely determined cricket the Pakistan team have gone from being ‘the worst of its kind to tour India’ to being regarded as a serious contender. Inzamam-ul-Haq has pleaded, time and again, for a show of character, for someone to put their hand up and rise to the occasion. Often his pleas have fallen on deaf ears, but in Mohali Kamran Akmal and Abdul Razzaq showed that this team believe in themselves. And it is this spirit that make them a dangerous side when the second Test begins in Kolkata.Sourav Ganguly has insisted all along that the underdog title should not be bestowed lightly on Pakistan. Despite being unable to close out the last Test, Ganguly knows that his team played better cricket on four of five days. He has the benefit of having a settled side, and the option of a great spinner waiting in the wings in Harbhajan Singh, should the need arise. India still remain the better team on paper but, as we are constantly reminded, this game is played out in the middle, not on paper.The groundThe Pakistanis certainly won’t get the same kind of warmth and hospitality from the Bengalis as they did from their Punjabi brethren, but they will not complain about playing at Eden Gardens. In five Tests here they have never lost to India, drawing on four occasions, and pulling off a stunning come-from-behind win in 1999, when they were reduced to 26 for 6 on the first day, and still managed to claw their way back.The pitchThe early clamour over the grass on the pitch seems to be settling as the time for the match draws close. From afar, it appears that there is still some grass on the pitch, but those who have seen the pitch over the last week insist that there has been less grass with every passing day. Kolkata is famous for producing slow turners, and though this strip may not quite be that dead, it is unlikely to be as quick as the one in Mohali, or seam as much as the one on which India played Australia in Nagpur.The teamsPakistan have a real hassle on their hands when it comes down to picking eleven players for this match. There’s still enough doubt about how the wicket will be when the umpires call ‘play’, for Pakistan to consider all options. The top order has been a problem, and it is certain that either Yasir Hameed or Shahid Afridi willfind a place, with either Salman Butt or Taufeeq Umar making way.Naved-ul-Hasan is suffering from a shoulder injury, and this could well rule him out of the game. He did not bowl at all in the nets when Pakistan practised, and a local doctor who treated him recommended a week’s rest. This opens a door for Arshad Khan, if Pakistan choose to gamble and leave Mohammad Sami and Razzaq to share the new ball. In the event that Afridi plays, this looks a serious possibility.

Harbhajan Singh looks likely to play on a ground where he has an awesome record© Afp

India’s selection dilemma is a simple one. Their batting line-up is set and Dinesh Karthik still has the confidence of the team. The state of the pitch will determine whether India go into this match with the same combination that played the first Test, although that seems extremely unlikely. Harbhajan Singh has a fine record on this ground (29 wickets in four Tests), and Ganguly’s saying, “The chances of us playing three fast bowlers is bright,” could just be gamesmanship.Weather, etc.The change of weather from the cool, relatively less humid climes of Dharamsala and Mohali to the hot, balmy Kolkata, is bound to be a factor. Already Mohammad Sami has felt the debilitating effect and was dehydrated at the end of a practice session two days before the match. This will mean that both captainshave to use their bowlers, especially the quick men, in shorter spells, making it harder to apply pressure if one bowler goes off the boil. To add to this, some unseasonal showers hit Kolkata on Monday, and the met office has not ruled out the chance that there might be more rain around the corner.