Improving relationships between Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) should be a priority for the governing body’s next chief executive, according to the former captain and CA Board director Mark Taylor.Speaking for the first time since James Sutherland’s resignation as CEO after a tenure of more than 17 years, Taylor said that the leadership change was an opportunity for CA to refresh, and pointed to a better and more productive relationship with the players and their association as critical to the future.Last year’s pay dispute between the ACA and CA, as it sought to end the fixed revenue percentage model at the core of all collective agreements between the parties since 1998, created distance between CA and the national team that proved unhelpful when the behaviour of Steven Smith’s team deteriorated on the tour of South Africa, culminating in the Newlands ball tampering scandal. That event took place a matter of weeks after Sutherland and CA had warned the team that higher standards of behaviour were expected than those seen in the first Test of the series at Durban.

‘Sutherland harshly judged’

Mark Taylor believes Australia’s Newlands ball tampering disgrace and last year’s pay dispute were two issues that should not be allowed to cloud the achievements of the the chief executive James Sutherland’s long stint at the top. “I think James’ tenure has been outstanding to be totally honest,” Taylor said. “Seventeen years as CEO and you think back to 2001 where cricket was then to where it is today, and people generally try to harp on negatives, but you look at the growth in the game both in numbers and where the game is at, the profile of the game I think James has done a great job.
“The disappointing thing is that James standing down is something that’s been in the pipeline for those of us within Cricket Australia for quite a while, over a year now. It’s very hard to get that timing absolutely right because issues come up all the time and often you get judged on the issue of the day, which is obviously what happened in Cape Town and reviews and all these sorts of things.
“That’s one incident that unfortunately mars what’s been a great era of Australian cricket and James has been at the helm of that. I look back at all the things he’s brought to cricket, the amount of people playing, women’s cricket, day/night cricket, Big Bash Leagues, a lot of things in the game have gone forward over 17 years of James’ tenure. Unfortunately a lot of people focus on a couple of issues that I don’t think James had a lot of say over in recent times.”

“I think that’s a fair comment,” Taylor told ESPNcricinfo when asked whether CA and the national team needed to form a stronger relationship. “I think you’ve only got to see the MoU stuff last year, which in the end I think has worked out well for both sides. But we got there with too much head-banging.”I think if there was a better relationship, full stop, we could have got to the same conclusion without a lot of angst. That’s one area that both sides can improve, Cricket Australia and the players and the Australian Cricketers Association. I think if we get that better, that’ll be good for cricket right throughout Australia.”Taylor’s words will provide food for thought to many, given that CA’s lead MoU negotiator Kevin Roberts is widely favoured to assume Sutherland’s post. Roberts was unsuccessful in pushing a hard line with the ACA, allowing the nation’s best players to fall out of contract and ultimately be sidelined from negotiations as Sutherland entered the fray to broker a compromise a matter of weeks before a Test tour of Bangladesh was threatened.At the same, time the chairman David Peever, who with Roberts was seen as a major driver of the Board’s adversarial industrial relations strategy, was endorsed to serve another three-year term, something Taylor said had been unavoidable due to the fact that Sutherland’s departure called for some measure of stability at the top.”David’s got the unanimous support of the Board, he had that when we made the decision a few months ago and he still has it today,” Taylor said. “There is a lot going on in the game of cricket at the moment, we’ve lost three players through an incident in Cape Town, they’ve lost a coach, we’re now losing a CEO, John Warn leaving Cricket NSW [chairmanship], there is a lot of change going on.”So it’s good to have some stability at the same time. I think David will bring that to CA and sometimes a change is as good as a holiday. There’ll be new people coming in, as we’ve seen with Justin Langer as coach, we’ll have a new CEO at some stage over the next year to bring in some different ideas, thinking and processes, and I think it’ll be a good refresh for the game.”That’ll be all post the reviews that are coming out in a couple of months’ time. So it is a turbulent time – an interesting time for the game but a refreshing time for the game. Sutherland standing down was something [that] those of us in the inner sanctum knew was going to happen last year, so we knew there was change afoot. But when you have an incident like we did in Cape Town, you can’t just say ‘oh well things will change in the future’, because people don’t believe you.”The dual reviews currently being undertaken – one into the whole of Cricket Australia, another more specifically the men’s national team – are set to provide the incoming chief executive with a roadmap for how to take the organisation forward. “We knew there was going to be a refresh of Australian cricket and I think in a way these reviews will certainly help us do that, focus our minds on how we refresh Australian cricket,” Taylor said. “I know there’s been a desire from some people to try to link James’ exit with what has gone on in the last three months, and really they’re not related.”A lot of the big deals have been done, and now I think whoever does come in, be it he or she, will also have an independent document or documents to help them work out where we need to improve. Cricket Australia have had their hand up for a while to say ‘let’s get a body in to work out where we can improve, what areas we need to work on’ and I think these will be great documents for he or she to have to start a new era of Australian cricket.”After the Nine Network lost the rights to broadcast cricket in Australia for the first time in 40 years, Taylor has re-signed for another three years with the broadcaster to continue working as a commentator and digital contributor. Nine retain the rights to next year’s Ashes tour and also ICC global tournaments, including the 2019 World Cup and the World Twenty20, hosted by Australia in 2020. On Saturday night, Taylor will sit alongside the banished David Warner in the studio for the second ODI between Australia and England.”As soon as we unfortunately lost the rights, they were very keen to grab hold of me and keep me because they want to keep some teeth in the game I think – contact with the game they’ve broadcast for 40 years,” he said. “I’m delighted they’ve offered me the job and I was more than happy to stay – I’ve been there for 20-odd years now and looking forward to the next three.”I’m sure David will have his opinions on how the team is going to go and what have you, but how much he talks about yesteryear and a few months ago will be up to David. I suspect it’ll be more looking forward to how the side’s going now and how David’s going to approach trying to get back into the side in a year’s time.”I’ve had lunch with Smithy [Steve Smith] in recent times as I’ve done for a few years. If I know David, he’ll obviously still be disappointed, saddened by what happened but he rebounds pretty quick, David, and I think he’ll be very much looking forward to next year. If I know David at all I’m sure he’ll be pretty perky and more so looking forward than looking back.”

A new report has put Manchester United under the microscope when it comes to contract negotiations with Mary Earps and Alessia Russo's exit.

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• Problems around Man Utd's women's team revealed
• Includes reasons why club failed to keep Russo
• And Earps' contract limbo as end of deal looms

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Russo left the club last summer, joining Women's Super League rivals Arsenal on a free transfer, and there is a chance that Earps could follow suit in a few months' time as her current deal is set to expire at the end of the season. With Man Utd under-performing on the pitch as well as seeing key players leave, there is growing unrest among fans.

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• WHAT HAS BEEN SAID

  These problems have been detailed by , which claims that during January of last year, Man Utd "shook hands" on a new deal with Russo, only to "renege on several conditions", which led to it collapsing. The report also says that, in other contract negotiations, United have been "pushing hard bargains, made disrespectful lowball offers and tried to find ways to save nominal figures here and there".

  Earps is one of several players out of contract at the club this summer, with negotiations for a new one having dragged on for over 18 months. writes: "Poor communication from those in charge regarding budget and strategy for contract renewals, signings and transfer fees are said to have delayed negotiations and led to United missing out on players."

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  Man Utd drew at West Ham on Sunday, meaning they have now dropped points in eight of their 15 WSL outings this season. It leaves them a distant fourth in the table, nine points off the European spots and 12 behind pacesetters Chelsea with just seven games remaining.

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  Head coach Marc Skinner is another out of contract at the club this summer and new owners INEOS will need to decide whether he is the man to take the women's team forward.

Leach felt soreness during the Royal London Cup match against Warwickshire last week and subsequent scans revealed the injury

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2018Worcestershire captain Joe Leach has been ruled out for the remainder of the season after being diagnosed with a stress fracture of the back.Leach felt soreness during the Royal London Cup match against Warwickshire last week and subsequent scans revealed the injury.”Joe felt some soreness during the Warwickshire game and an MRI scan on Friday showed inflammation around the l5 region of the lumbar spine,” Worcestershire head of sports science and medicine, Ben Davies, said”He then had a CT scan on Tuesday which unfortunately showed a stress fracture in that region and he will miss the rest of the season. It will now be a case of resting and then rehab for Joe with the aim of making a complete recovery.”Leach has taken almost 200 Championship wickets between 2015 and 2017 and this season had claimed 23 wickets at 22.08 but Worcestershire will now have to cope without their attack leader. They face a relegation battle in the Championship and the T20 Blast starts next month alongside their quest to reach a Lord’s final in Royal London.Head coach Kevin Sharp said: “It is a big blow and Joe is gutted and quite upset at the minute. He has played such a major part for the club over the last few years.”It is life. Bowling is a very physical job. Joe has had very few injuries but very rarely do bowlers go through their career without some sort of injury.”We now have to regroup a bit. We have lost our captain for the rest of the season and we will have a think about things and sort that out over the next week.”The lads will also be gutted but there is a great spirit in this squad and they will want to do it for Joe on Sunday.”It means there will be an opening for others that might not have had an opportunity. We want the lads to stand up and be counted – and I’m sure they will.”

Dimuth Karunaratne will return to competitive cricket with two four-day matches for Sri Lanka A in the forthcoming tour of Bangladesh. He had fractured his index finger in early May, effectively ruling him out of the ongoing tour of the West Indies, but has now begun training, and will aim to have matches under his belt ahead of July’s home Tests against South Africa.Sri Lanka A are set to play three four-dayers in Bangladesh, but because the third of those matches clashes with the start of the first Test against South Africa, Karunaratne is expected to play only the first two. Nevertheless, he has been named captain of the Sri Lanka A side – which also features Dasun Shanaka, Lahiru Thirimanne, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Lakshan Sandakan and Danushka Gunathilaka, all of whom have played Tests for Sri Lanka over the past year. Fast bowler Shehan Madushanka has also been named in the squad, after his recovery from injury.Sri Lanka A’s first two four-dayers will be played in Cox’s Bazar, before the teams move to Sylhet for the third match. A three-match one-day series is to follow in Sylhet, for which the selectors are expected to name a separate squad.Sri Lanka A squad: Dimuth Karunaratne (capt., first two four-dayers only), Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Lahiru Thirimanne, Ashan Priyanjan, Charith Asalanka, Dasun Shanaka, Shammu Ashan, Manoj Sarathchandra, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lakshan Sandakan, Nishan Peiris, Shehan Madushanka, Nisala Tharaka, Dilesh Gunaratne.

Jeevantha Kulatunga and Tharindu Mendis, working as coaches with SLC, were suspended after being seen in conversation with alleged fixers in Al Jazeera’s documentary

Andrew Fidel Fernando28-May-2018Two of the three former Sri Lankan players seen in conversation with alleged fixers in Al Jazeera’s documentary on cricket corruption are coaches presently working for Sri Lanka Cricket. They have been suspended since the documentary’s release, SLC said.Jeevantha Kulatunga, 44, who had played two T20 internationals for Sri Lanka and had also coached the national women’s team until 2014, was working as a provincial coach in the Western Province. Tharindu Mendis is a coach for the Gampaha district, in addition to being a former first-class cricketer.Both were seen talking to an alleged fixer, as well as the Al Jazeera journalist posing as a prospective bettor. Mendis was seen during the investigation into pitch fixing; Kulatunga in another part of the documentary when those in the room were allegedly speaking about fixing actual games. “Playing cricket for us is like brushing our teeth in the morning,” Kulatunga is shown to be saying at one point. “But playing according to your plan is the easiest thing because there’s no pressure for us.”SLC said its first move after coming to know of these allegations was to suspend those in its employ. “The names we learned about as a result of this documentary – we suspended them immediately,” SLC vice-president Mohan de Silva said. “It’s our duty to protect the game, and we want to reiterate that we have a zero-tolerance approach towards corruption. We will look at our processes and improve them to ensure there is no leeway.”Al Jazeera’s documentary also implicated a third former player, Dilhara Lokuhettige, who was shown to be in the room with Kulatunga when fixing was allegedly discussed. As Lokuhettige lives in Australia and holds no positions within SLC, the board can take no action against him, board CEO Ashley de Silva said.The assistant manager at the Galle Stadium, who is also implicated in Al Jazeera’s allegations, has been suspended as well.

Jordi Alba was reportedly absent from Inter Miami training ahead of Lionel Messi and Co's CONCACAF Champions Cup clash with Nashville.

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• Alba missed training on Tuesday
• Left-back is said to be sick
• Remains to be seen if he can make the trip to Nashville

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  WHAT HAPPENED?

  According to the the defender is sick and hence refrained from participating in the team's training session on Tuesday. The Inter Miami squad will leave for Nashville on Wednesday morning and it remains to be seen if Alba will be well enough to fly with his team-mates.

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  Alba has played every minute in the MLS so far and has been a crucial figure for Tata Martino. He set up Messi for a 92nd-minute equaliser against LA Galaxy which was incidentally the Argentine's first strike of the season.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Alba was signed from Barcelona last summer as a free agent by Inter Miami. He took little time to taste success as the Spaniard went on to lift the Leagues Cup along with Messi & Sergio Busquets.

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  WHAT NEXT?

  Martino will be looking to manage the minutes of his veteran superstars to keep injury at bay. However, if Alba does feel better on Wednesday he should be on the flight to Nashville as the Herons would like to field their strongest XI in the first leg of the Champions Cup last-16.

Virat Kohli wants to try different players in different roles as India’s tour of the United Kingdom gathers steam

The Preview by Varun Shetty28-Jun-20181:58

Chopra: Bhuvneshwar, Pandya need to do more

Big pictureThere were two particular things in evidence in the first T20I. The more obvious of them was India’s complete difference in class to their opponents Ireland. At no point, other than when catches were being dropped in both innings, did the match come close to being a contest.The second visible feature was that India were definitely in the game to experiment. The inclusions of Suresh Raina and Manish Pandey, at the expense of Dinesh Karthik – who single-handedly won them their last T20I – was the first sign of that. Sending Raina up at No. 3 (he was the only batsman other than the openers padded up during the national anthem) instead of at No. 4, that big batting void of India’s across limited-overs formats, all but confirmed this. And with only one game before the England series, we might see this experimental trend extend. Virat Kohli said at the toss that India were trying to get used to the “cool winds” in this part of the world, and more of their players might be given a chance to do that, particularly those who will be sticking around for all of India’s tour of the UK.Ireland weren’t above experimenting either. It is, after all, the time for their next generation to take over. James Shannon and Simi Singh were offered significant batting roles and that isn’t likely to change any time soon. With top-quality cricket hard to come by as the cricket world debates inclusion, they’re likely to treat this game like India would – a practice match. Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar, expected to be at the game on Friday, will have to settle for that.Form guideIreland LTWLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
India WWWWW
Rohit Sharma works the ball into the leg side•Cricket Ireland

In the spotlightKL Rahul is likely to get a shot at the opening position on Friday and it won’t feel any different than all the other times he’s played for India. There will remain a sense that he has to score big just to keep his place in the XI. At least among his fans. Rahul himself is no longer obsessed with perfection in the shorter formats, a reality brought about by a sensational last IPL season. More assured, more mature, the spotlight may finally be what he uses to make runs, rather than score points.After a superb season playing ODIs in India against Afghanistan last year, Andy Balbirnie’s stature as Ireland’s middle-order mainstay had grown. But he hasn’t been able to bring that reputation to bear in T20Is. Mind you, he did make 74 just a few innings ago in the tri-series in the Netherlands, but in nine other innings, Balbirnie has only 98 runs to his name.Team newsUnless they’re tempted to bring in fast bowler Joshua Little, Ireland are expected to play the same XI.Ireland (probable) 1 Paul Stirling, 2 William Porterfield, 3 Andy Balbirnie, 4 Simi Singh, 5 Gary Wilson (capt), 6 Kevin O’Brien, 7 Stuart Thompson, 8 Stuart Poynter (wk), 9 George Dockrell, 10 Boyd Rankin, 11 Joshua LittleKohli made no secret of the fact that India will be looking to rotate their squad around. This could mean wholesale changes in all departments. Rohit Sharma is expected to sit out.India (probable) 1 KL Rahul, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Suresh Raina, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Manish Pandey/Dinesh Karthik, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar/Umesh Yadav, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Jasprit Bumrah/Siddarth KaulPitch conditionsThere is no change expected in the pitch or conditions. It continues to be a high for Ireland, in terms of weather, and the flat pitch is expected to stay as dry as it did throughout the opening game.Stats and trivia Shikhar Dhawan is 42 runs away from becoming the sixth Indian to 1,000 T20I runs. Since June 2010, Suresh Raina has made only international fifty in this format.Quotes’We’ve already announced we will experiment with the middle order a lot. Even in the next few T20 games, even in England, we will look to throw in guys and surprise the opposition. It presents an opportunity for those lower down the order to go in and bat at the top. In the next games, we will play the guys who didn’t play today.’

“We don’t have to get ourselves up for anything. Playing in front of 9000 people in Malahide on days like this against the best T20 side probably in the world – if you cannot get up for that you cannot get up for anything else. We have got ourselves down but we will be back up Friday.”

From a fractured club beyond repair to a side battling at the top of the Championship, Sunderland have now recovered from years of poor ownership, suicidal investment and managerial catastrophes that saw them suffer back-to-back relegations from the Premier League in 2017.

Spearheaded by Tony Mowbray, who has developed a habit of winning matches, developing youngsters and an attractive playing style, the Black Cats are now on the right path to becoming a top-flight club, having narrowly missed out on promotion through the play-offs last season.

While Sunderland are pointing in a forward direction these days, they are still haunted by their terrible decision-making towards the latter stages of their Premier League journey, especially in the transfer window.

The Black Cats' scattergun nature to transfers saw them bring in the likes of Didier Ndong, Jack Rodwell, Papy Djilobodji and Ricky Alvarez, who bled the club dry with their extortionate transfer fees and wages but contributed very little to their plight towards relegation.

What was perhaps more frustrating than the nature of transfer dealings during this period was who the Sunderland hierarchy passed up the chance to sign, only to watch them thrive elsewhere.

Although passing up the chance to sign Ivan Rakitic in 2011 and Toby Alderweireld in 2014 will likely have supporters pulling their hair out, the most infuriating example of a player that got away was Premier League and Champions League-winning defender Virgil van Dijk.

Did Sunderland almost sign Virgil van Dijk?

According to the Daily Mail, Sunderland were eyeing up an £8m move for Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk in the 2015 winter transfer window.

Gus Poyet, their manager at the time, even admitted on the "What the Falk" podcast years later that he was "very, very interested" in landing a deal for the highly-rated 23-year-old. Coincidentally, Poyet also tried to complete a move a few years before when he was at Brighton.

He detailed: "After 20 minutes watching the game with my assistant I knew we had to sign him. It was too easy for him [Van Dijk]. With all respect for all the other players playing in that game, and for the Dutch league, it was like a first-team player playing with under-15s in a training session. It was incredible.

"At that time the price was £3m and Brighton was not able to buy him because our most expensive player was £1.5m.

"The year after we bought Leo Ulloa for £3m but because he was a striker. For a defender? No chance. The following year he goes to Celtic. Then when they said to me about the possibility of getting him, we were very, very interested."

While the Black Cats showcased their interest, Southampton ultimately landed van Dijk for £13m.

With the Saints later selling the Dutchman for £75m to Liverpool in 2017, not taking a plunge on him is a decision Sunderland will live to regret for eternity, as the player that slipped through their grasp went on to become one of the best centre backs to grace the beautiful game, with Michael Owen lauding him as such in 2022.

What has Van Dijk gone on to achieve?

The defensive "monster", as described by Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, has gone on to become a colossus at the back for Liverpool, orchestrating them through a trophy-laden spell as the Reds scooped the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League in 2020.

While he helped transform Jurgen Klopp's side into a trophy-winning machine, he was recognised for his magnificent defensive displays by being crowned the Players' Player of the Year and the UEFA Men's Player of the Year in 2019.

Van Dijk, simply put, is a generational defender, and he has established that tag with his domineering performances, drawing praise from one of the best strikers in the world, Harry Kane, during a question-and-answer session with Prime Video Sport in 2022.

The Englishman said: “Obviously, [Virgil] Van Dijk is a fantastic defender,” Kane said. “He's been consistent now for Liverpool over many years and he won the Premier League and won the Champions League.

“So, he's a tough defender, and he's doing great this year after his injury last year.”

Kane met a multitude of stand-out centre backs across his career when he was at Tottenham, including John Terry, Vincent Kompany and Ruben Dias, but for the Bayern Munich striker, van Dijk tops them all.

At 32-years-old, the impact that the Dutchman has on Liverpool is immeasurable and as seen when he is absent from the starting XI – against Wolves on Saturday lunchtime during a 3-1 win – their defence looks jaded and disorganised.

Van Dijk's presence on the Reds back line is huge, but so is his presence among the elite defenders in world football, ranking in the top 12% for aerials won, top 10% for pass completion and top 9% for non-penalty xG, emphasis his importance in both boxes when compared against players positionally similar to him across Europe's top five leagues, as per FBref.

Given what the £29m-rated titan has gone on to achieve in his career, Sunderland supporters will be tearing their hair out at what could have been.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is “King of Kings”, with the AC Milan icon set to watch the 2024 Kings World Cup from his throne before handing over a $1m prize.

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• Swedish legend is now retired
• Will be involved in Kings League spectacle
• 32 teams competing for global crown

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Swedish legend is now officially retired, with an advisor role being filled at San Siro. He is, however, still passionate about football and has been drafted in to work alongside the likes of Gerard Pique, Neymar and Sergio Aguero when the Kings League takes a global competition to Mexico.

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  Ibrahimovic, with over 500 career goals to his name, will crown the winning team as a seven-figure cash reward is handed out. He is joining a number of celebrity team presidents – with that list including streamers, content creators and football superstars – at the Kings World Cup.

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• WHAT NEXT?

  The Kings World Cup will involve 32 teams – 10 from Kings Spain, 10 from Kings Americas and 12 foreign guests. FURIA FC, with Brazil’s all-time leading scorer Neymar part of their set-up, have already seen their presence confirmed. Ibrahimovic is now on board, with the promise of more big names to come.

Harry Kane has been told he made the right call in joining Bayern as Manchester United’s chances of winning the Premier League are “next to nothing”.

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Left Tottenham in summer of 2023In danger of missing out on silverwareReturn to Premier League speculated onWHAT HAPPENED?

The Red Devils were long-standing admirers of the former Tottenham striker heading into the summer transfer window of 2023. No official approach was made as Spurs made it clear that they were reluctant to do business with a domestic rival and Bayern were prepared to pay big money.

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Kane has impressed on a personal level in Germany – breaking through the 30-goal barrier – but is attracting ridicule as Bayern run the risk of experiencing a first trophyless campaign since 2012. Questions have been asked of whether Kane made the correct decision, and if a hasty return to England could be beaten, but Dietmar Hamann believes long-term benefits will be found at the Allianz Arena.

WHAT HAMANN SAID ABOUT KANE

The former Bayern midfielder, who also spent time with Newcastle and Liverpool in his playing days, has been speaking to , who offer the latest Premier League odds, and said of Kane favouring Munich over Manchester: “It’s a huge club and I think the other option was to go to Manchester United. He’s probably got another two or three good years but in your mid 30s it becomes very hard for the forwards to score goals because you lose a bit of pace and things become harder. If he had gone to Manchester United, what are the chances of him winning the league there? I think the chances are next to nothing. I can’t see United winning the league in the next three seasons at least. Kane made the decision to come here and going abroad is always a good experience to broaden your horizon and learn a new language. There are reasons for and against, it’s just a shame that he might end up without a trophy in his first season because that was the main reason he came here.”

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR KANE?

Kane remains in the hunt for Champions League glory this season, but Bayern must overturn a 1-0 first leg deficit against Lazio in order to reach the quarter-finals of that competition. The Bundesliga title appears destined to fall out of reach as Bayer Leverkusen have opened up a 10-point lead at the summit.