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Jerome Taylor refused to question why he bowled so few overs for West Indies on the first day of the Jamaica Test match, despite looking by far the most likely man to unpick the lock to Australia’s batting order at Sabina Park

Daniel Brettig in Kingston12-Jun-20151:38

Jerome Taylor picked up 3 for 18 from 15 overs on the first day

Jerome Taylor refused to question why he bowled so few overs for West Indies on the first day of the Jamaica Test match, despite looking by far the most likely man to unpick the lock to Australia’s batting order at Sabina Park.Possessing an already handsome record at the ground, Taylor improved it further by picking up 3 for 18 from his 15 overs, a tally of deliveries that might easily have been greater. By day’s end his Sabina Park ledger stood at 26 wickets at 13.11 from four and a quarter Test matches, leaving many to wonder why the captain Denesh Ramdin did not afford him further opportunities in the morning and then again with the second new ball in the evening.”I’m only one person,” Taylor countered. “It is a bowling unit and each of us have to get a fair chance out there. So, at the same time we know what is required moving forward, so it is a case where each and every one has to chip in. And I think the effort was good at the end of the day.”About not using the second new ball, Taylor said: “The old ball was working for us. We didn’t know what the new ball would have been like. So, what was happening was the work we were doing, bowling as well as possible, and see what we could get out of it. So, it is about taking the new ball tomorrow, at whatever time, and at the end of the day it is what it is. It is a good team effort.”As one of the Caribbean’s most storied grounds, Sabina Park features two ends bearing the names of the pace bowling giants Michael Holding and Courtney Walsh. It was from Holding’s end that Taylor raced in to the wicket, finding swing to add to the speed and bounce he was able to extract from the pitch, particularly when it was fresh. His performance came close to validating Ramdin’s decision to send Australia in.”It is a decision that the captain took and decided, we have to support the skipper 100% so as the bowling leader it was up to me to lead the charge from the front,” Taylor said. “It means a lot to me. Of course it is my home crowd, this is a happy hunting ground for me. I have memories that will live with me for the rest of my life. So, being here performing for the crowd and the people of the West Indies and Jamaica, it is just a fantastic feeling.”Once you are comfortable with your run-up and have you balance then, I mean, that’s the two primary things, so it is about hitting the area and concentrating for a long period.”The West Indies’ day turned less on anything Taylor did than the one ball with which his offsider Kemar Roach appeared to have taken a wicket. Roach had a poor day, unable to get his lines or lengths consistent, but when he claimed a return catch from the Australian captain Michael Clarke, the tourists were looking at serious trouble. Instead, Clarke was reprieved by a Roach no-ball, and the rest of the first session provided evidence of how sapping such moments can be as Clarke and Steven Smith wrested control.”It is a blow,” Taylor said. “We all know that having Michael Clarke on a no-ball, it is a big chance, but at the end of the day it is still cricket and these things do happen and we have to move on past that. Unfortunately Roachy didn’t get the wicket there but we got him out in the end and it is a good feeling for us.”The first session of the day went haywire and then the bowlers really came back and pulled it together and pulled back the Aussies so much. So, I mean, we are confident about moving forward.”

ESPNcricinfo brings you the team news ahead of the latest games in the NatWest T20 Blast

Freddie Wilde19-Jun-2015North GroupYorkshire v Nottinghamshire, Headingley, Leeds, 7.00 (Friday)Yorkshire’s assertions that they intended to make Twenty20 cricket a greater priority this season has not brought any upturn in results. They have lost three matches in a row and are eighth in the North Group, level on points with the bottom club Derbyshire. This crucial match sees two of the most star-studded teams in the country face-off with both teams in need of a victory.Scheduled to play at high-flying Birmingham on Sunday, a side they have not beaten in four attempts, Yorkshire could conceivably end the weekend having lost five matches in a row. Although such a position would not be unrecoverable it would be very close to being so.Yorkshire’s head coach Jason Gillespie believes that rain scuppered their chances against Northamptonshire last week, but that bowling is to blame for the two previous losses. “Against Lancashire and Durham we didn’t get our skills right with the ball. By and large, we batted well in those games. We scored decent runs and we were aggressive with our shot selection. I felt in the Lancashire game we should have defended our score. We didn’t do what we needed to do with the ball up front and at the death.”Yorkshire have named two changes to last week’s 12-man squad, adding teenagers Matthew Fisher and Ryan Gibson and resting Jack Brooks.Nottinghamshire, meanwhile, are fifth and have named Michael Lumb and Harry Gurney, both returning from injury, in their squad, while new signing Dan Christian slots straight in as a replacement for Darren Sammy and James Taylor has been released by England. Brett Hutton is left out. Worcestershire v Derbyshire, New Road, Worcester, 5.30 (Friday)This match sees top play bottom in the North Group with Worcestershire’s Thursday night victory elevating them to four wins from eight matches while Derbyshire’s win against local-rivals Leicestershire–their second of the season–was not enough to drag them off the foot of the table.Derbyshire play strong teams Nottinghamshire and Birmingham next but will surely have to take at least two points from their next three matches if they are to maintain hopes of qualifying for the quarter finals.Northamptonshire v Lancashire, County Ground, Northampton, 6.30 (Friday)Had Lancashire won against Worcestershire on Thursday rather than lost off the penultimate ball they would be joint top of the North Group. As it is, the defeat consigns them to sixth place and makes this match against seventh-placed Northamptonshire a mid-table scrapLancashire have named the same 14-man squad from Thursday, while Northamptonshire, who beat Yorkshire in their most recent fixture, are without Shahid Afridi who has left for the Caribbean Premier League, and have included wicket-keeper Adam Rossington, who is returning from injury, in their 12-man squad. They are without David Willey who is on international duty but Alex Wakeley could return following the birth of his daughter.Northamptonshire coach David Ripley has confirmed that he may seek to re-sign Shahid Afridi for the knock-out rounds of the T20 Blast if they make it that far. They have a long way to go to achieve that.Birmingham v Leicestershire, Edgbaston, Birmingham, 6.30 (Friday)Birmingham have built an enviable Twenty20 record without ever quite gaining the credit they deserve. After losing their opening night match against Nottinghamshire they have since won four consecutive matches, extending a run of 10 wins in 11 dating back to the middle of last season’s ultimately victorious campaign.With Birmingham, currently third but level on points with first with one match in hand, playing again on Sunday against struggling Yorkshire, this weekend poses them an excellent opportunity to pull away at the top of the North Group. Their 13-man squad includes Ian Bell.Leicestershire’s bright start has not been maintained. Coach Andrew McDonald has pointed out the importance of this challenging match for Leicestershire’s season and they will be desperate to rectify a poor run of form that is fast rendering their strong start to the season wasted.South Group Gloucestershire v Somerset, County Ground, Bristol, 5.30 (Friday)The County Ground in Bristol is sold-out for this West Country clash. Gloucestershire are well-placed in third, while Somerset, despite the presence of Chris Gayle, have not managed to string two consecutive wins together so far this season and sit in sixth. Hamish Marshall is absent for the second week running with injury, and Gloucestershire have named an unchanged squad.Somerset could drop Marcus Trescothick who has struggled for form this season, scoring 45 runs at an average of 9 while keeping wicket. “We think it might be time for Marcus to take a break. There have been a couple of technical issues with his batting that mean he has not been striking the ball as cleanly as usual,” explained Somerset’s director of cricket Matthew Maynard. Specialist wicket-keeper Michael Bates is in line to take over the gloves.Surrey v Kent, The Oval, London, 6.30 (Friday)Rain and the nasty collision between Moises Henriques and Rory Burns resulted in two abandoned matches for Surrey last week at a time when they desperately needed a victory having played four and won just once. They enter this fixture against second-placed Kent at the bottom of the table but will hope that their next four matches being at home can inspire them to find form.Surrey have made four changes to the squad they took to Arundel last week, Burns and Henriques are out with injury, while Kevin Pietersen is at the Caribbean Premier League. Freddie van den Bergh, Dominic Sibley and Tim Linley are in the squad for the first time this season, and Vikram Solanki is recalled having been dropped after Surrey’s opening weekend fixtures.Kent meanwhile have named the same squad that they used for their victory over Essex on Thursday that got their season back on track following two consecutive defeats.Essex v Glamorgan, County Ground, Chelmsford, 7.00 (Friday)Essex’s defeat on Thursday against Kent ended their streak of three consecutive victories but they are now well-placed in fifth to fight hard for a quarter-final place. Glamorgan are one place above Essex in fourth and with a match scheduled on Sunday against Sussex will be eyeing a tilt towards the top of the table this weekend.Essex, who have won their last six encounters with Glamorgan, have named the same squad that travelled to Canterbury on Thursday. Glamorgan meanwhile have named an unchanged squad from last week’s narrow win against Somerset.Hampshire v Sussex, The Ageas Bowl, Southampton, 7.00 (Friday)Sussex’s abandonment against Surrey last Sunday followed two defeats and has left them seventh. They are without four fast bowlers, Jimmy Anyon, Lewis Hatchett, Chris Jordan and Ajmal Shahzad, who are all absent with injury, so Steve Magoffin is recalled having been dropped after Sussex’s second match of the season. Chris Nash is ill and has not been selected but may well be added to the 13-man squad. This will be Mahela Jayawardene’s last match before departing for the Caribbean Premier League. Jayawardene’s replacement, George Bailey, is expected to be available for Sussex’s match against Glamorgan on Sunday.Hampshire’s superb victory against Middlesex on Thursday was their fourth win in five matches and fifth in seven and has propelled them to the top of the South Group. They have named an unchanged squad.

James Pattinson’s international future is clouded, after scans showed a worrying recurrence of shin stress problems, following his exertions for Australia in their recent Test series victory in New Zealand

Daniel Brettig01-Mar-20161:02

Cloud over Pattinson’s immediate future

Fast bowler James Pattinson’s international future is clouded, after scans showed a recurrence of shin stress problems, following his exertions for Australia in their recent Test series victory in New Zealand.”James had a recurrence of his left shin soreness following the second Test in Christchurch and had follow-up scans in Melbourne yesterday,” Australia physio David Beakley said. “These scans have shown some inflammation around the shin consistent with bone stress. James will now require some time off to allow this injury to resolve and will not be available for the remainder of the domestic cricket season.”After working to find his rhythm in Wellington, Pattinson bowled with pace, hostility and accuracy in Christchurch, while also gaining useful reverse swing. However his demanding stints at Hagley Oval, including one eight-over spell in which he claimed two vital wickets, have taken a toll.The shin soreness had been a problem for Pattinson earlier in the summer. Following the West Indies series, he was unavailable for Big Bash League and Sheffield Shield duty until immediately before the New Zealand tour began. He had admitted previously that he was gambling on his maturing body being able to cope with the stresses of his action, which has been modified several times in order to try to reduce chances of an injury.After his debut against New Zealand in November 2011, Pattinson was first ruled out of Australian duty by a foot stress fracture at the SCG in January 2012. He did not return to the team until South Africa’s visit in November of the same year, whereupon he suffered a torn side in Adelaide and resumed on the tour of India the following year. He then suffered further injury during the Lord’s Ashes Test, and was out of Test cricket until the third Test of the 2014 tour of South Africa due to a back stress fracture.Having bowled well there, Pattinson was found to have suffered the early signs of more back stress, and was again kept out of international cricket for a long time, not playing a Test again until Hobart against the West Indies last December.

An impressive all-round bowling display from Lions helped secure them the Momentum One-Day Cup with a comfortable eight-wicket win

Firdose Moonda28-Feb-2016
Scorecard Aaron Phangiso shrugged off the doubts over his action to take three wickets•AFPLions only have one bowler in the top ten wicket-takers this season in South Africa’s domestic fifty-over competition. That bowler, Eddie Leie, was only able to bowl 5.3 overs in the final before leaving the field with a hamstring injury. Despite that, they bowled Cape Cobras out for 169 at Newlands to claim their first title in this format in the franchise era after previously sharing the cup with Cobras in 2012-13 season.For Cobras, it was scant consolation for reaching a fifth successive one-day cup final and third at home. They last lifted this trophy in the 2011-12 season and at the halfway stage would have known they probably did not have enough to repeat that feat. Lions duly eased to an eight-wicket victory with barely a worry.Cobras’ scoring was slow from the start, after being put into bat. With Hardus Viljoen and Dwaine Pretorius proving difficult to get away Cobras’ openers were frustrated and in their search for runs chanced Temba Bavuma’s arm perhaps hoping he would be less agile than normal as he has just recovered from a back injury. They were wrong because Bavuma was as nimble and alert as always and ran out Richard Levi as the eighth over ended.The bowlers’ reward followed soon after. Pretorius drew an edge from Andrew Puttick and Omphile Ramele played on against Pumelela Matshikwe. When Cobras’ early collapse saw them slump 43 for 3, it was up to captain Justin Ontong and his experienced wicketkeeper Dane Vilas to try and rebuild. For a short while, it looked like they would.Vilas was aggressive and took on the short ball but could not do the same against spin. Aaron Phangiso, fresh from a test on his bowling action, shrugged off the cloud surrounding him, held back his length and had Vilas caught behind.Lions introduced Leie immediately after the wicket to squeeze Cobras with slower bowling from both ends and it brought more success. Aviwe Mgijima played on against Leie which brought in Wayne Parnell, Cobras’ best chance of acceleration to the crease.Parnell had not yet got going when Viljoen served up a short ball that he tried to hammer over backward point but a leaping Dominic Hendricks pulled off a spectacular catch to stop him in his tracks. Cobras went quiet again and Leie continued asking questions but midway through his sixth over he went down clutching his hamstring and had to be helped off the field.Lions only had five specialist bowlers and had to turn to Alviro Petersen to make up the overs. He did a fine job and conceded just 18 runs in his 27 balls to ensure Cobras could not get away. Between the 25th and 40th over Cobras scored only 50 runs and had come under attack from the Lions pack again.Once Petersen’s overs were done, Matshikwe was brought back on. Dane Piedt, who partnered Ontong, whose 50 came off 65 balls, diligently for almost an hour was beaten for pace and caught behind. Ontong’s patience had also ran out. He handed midwicket the simplest of catches in Matshikwe’s next over and Cobras folded. Their final collapse was 4 for 2 in and they were dismissed in 42 overs.Lions were untroubled in a simple chase. Their fifty was up in the 11th over with Stephen Cook controlling proceedings. His opening partner, Rassie van der Dussen, was caught behind off Parnell but Cook kept going. He reached fifty off 62 balls and starred in a 96-run stand with the competition’s top-scorer, Petersen, who added a fifty to his five hundreds before holing out with seven runs needed. Victory soon came, inside 34 overs, to give coach Geoffrey Toyana, who turned 42 on Saturday, a perfect belated birthday gift.

Legspinner Ish Sodhi has credited his partnership with left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner in domestic cricket, with Northern Districts, for their success in the World T20

Arun Venugopal in Kolkata25-Mar-2016Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner, 23 and 24 respectively, neither look nor sound dangerous. They don’t possess a big bank of glittering past performances to fall back upon and no weighty reputation to keep. When New Zealand played three spinners, including Nathan McCullum, in their opening game against India, it may have come across as a case of a foreign side overestimating the spin-friendly nature of Indian surfaces. All it took was 18.1 overs in the chase in Nagpur for such theories to be debunked.The Santner-Sodhi partnership has earned New Zealand 13 wickets at an economy rate of 5.29 in three matches and has inarguably been at the heart of New Zealand bossing their way to the semi-finals. It’s been as emphatic an ambush as any with many players yet to work out the methods of Sodhi and Santner. What is worth remembering is this isn’t so much a selection punt as just reward for their recent consistent performances. Their recent numbers are a good place to start.Since December last year, Santner has picked up 21 wickets from 16 limited-overs games at an average of 20.61, while Sodhi has helped himself to nine from eight limited-overs matches at 20.88. That they are team-mates at the domestic level and are good friends has only strengthened their symphony. “We’ve played a lot of domestic cricket together for the Northern Districts, played some crucial roles with him in Twenty20 and one-day cricket,” Sodhi said. “To be able to do it at this level is really pleasing, and to have a good friend, a good partner at the other end, helps me want to support him really nicely from the other end.”Sodhi said he and Santner always had Daniel Vettori’s ear and reaped the benefits of picking his brains. Sodhi, however, felt there were few similarities between Santner and Vettori as left-arm spinners. “For us to have had Dan [Vettori] for advise and support is really, really good because he’s done that for years and to have that voice to go to whenever needed is really nice for him and myself as well.”I think he is a fantastic bowler in his own right,” Sodhi said. “A lot of people are comparing Santner to Vettori but they are completely different bowlers and I think Santner is being himself as much as he can and it’s working really well for him. I’m hoping he can continue for a long period of time.”Santner’s strength, according to Sodhi, was the ferocious rip he exerted on the ball – an upshot of pitches in New Zealand not facilitating appreciable turn. Consequently, his menace has been amplified on friendlier pitches like the ones in the World T20. “Santner is a finger spinner but he really puts revs on like a leg-spin bowler, he puts a lot of revs on the ball,” he said. “But you have to do that in the conditions we were brought up in because they are not very conducive to spin, so you have to get something out of the wicket and I think he is a product of that. And over here when he puts a lot of revs on the ball he becomes even harder to play. It’s probably a product of where we grow up and it’s seeming to hold him in pretty good stead over here.”Sodhi attributed his own development as a legspinner over the last few years to working on his fitness and discussing his game with his coaches and mentors. “I have met quite a few players who I feed off, quite a few mentors, coaches and stuff like that,” he said. “A lot of the work that I put into my game over the last year or so has been really good. Trying to keep things simple – try and put revs on the ball and put it in the right area – it’s as simple as it has to be. Three or four years of learning the game and going through struggles and things like that and it’s all coming to the fore now.”New Zealand have not been shy of fielding different combinations during the World T20, after factoring the conditions and the opposition’s strength. Sodhi, who admitted to being surprised by the amount of turn on offer, said New Zealand’s preparedness and adaptability helped them invariably settle in on the best XI.”To be completely honest I didn’t expect it to turn as much as it has. Most of the tournaments that I have watched over here in the past few years have been pretty decent batting surfaces,” he said. “Then [for it] to turn as much has been unexpected but we have had to adapt and I think we have done that pretty well so far.”Selection really comes down to the last day. The selections are made by the captain and the coach and you have to put the trust in them that they are going to provide the right team to combat the conditions. We are really blessed to have some good people out there making those decisions and they’ve done a really good job so far. Kane [Williamson] as a captain has been really good over here. He’s really a very good captain when it comes to teaching you to adapt to different conditions because he does with his own batting skill as well.”

Leicestershire could have been forgiven on this of all days if their thoughts occasionally strayed from the Sussex coast to the parties going on in their home city.

David Hopps at Hove03-May-2016
ScorecardMark Pettini hundred added to the success of Leicestershire’s winter imports•Getty ImagesLeicestershire could have been forgiven on this of all days if their thoughts occasionally strayed from the Sussex coast to the parties going on in their home city. Back in Leicester, home of the Premier League champions lest you have been seal spotting in Antarctica for the past month, there were street parties until 4am, fans were reportedly climbing the clock tower and, reinterred last year in Leicester Cathedral, even Richard III was no longer talking of winters of discontent. It could well be the first recorded example of anybody in Brighton being envious of a night out in Leicester.In their own small way, though, Leicestershire had cause for satisfaction even if it did not come with TV cameras, a social media frenzy and an invitation to a Jamie Vardy drinks party. To declare their first innings on 473 for 8, 310 runs ahead of Sussex, pre-season favourites for the Division Two title, was further proof of their determination to lose the tag of the weakest county in the land. Well worth a celebratory room service and an early night.With the leaders Essex seemingly involved in a stalemate with Worcestershire at New Road, Leicestershire have the opportunity to strengthen their hold on second place if they can force victory, but they failed to nick out a couple of Sussex wickets by the close, Ed Joyce and Chris Nash assembling 113 without too many alarms in the 39 overs to the close – although Nash, on 9, was fortunate to survive a slip chance off Clint McKay.Leicestershire have made much of the fact that they were signing leaders when Paul Horton, Neil Dexter and Mark Pettini, former captains all, were identified as key components in the rebuilding of what had been the most ailing county club in the land. They were also signing batsmen: May is barely upon us and all of them have struck a Championship hundred which, even allowing for an early season characterised by flatter pitches, must bring immense satisfaction.Proven players Leicestershire’s trio might be but they are not too far beyond their 30th birthdays, their combined first-class tally is now around 24,000 runs, and all possess solid first-class averages between 35 and 40. The lure of a new county has whetted their appetite. Dexter’s introductory hundred came last week in a strong draw against Kent; Horton and Pettini have followed up here at Hove with Pettini, 42 not out overnight, moving on to an unbeaten 142 – his highest Championship score for nearly a decade – before time was called on their first innings shortly before tea.”It’s been a good start for all of us I guess,” Pettini said. “It is important that we use our experience to get the runs. For myself it’s been fantastic to get a chance to play four-day regularly again. It’s been a great move for me. I have always believed in my four-day cricket but we had some impressive young guys at Essex who needed opportunities.”Pettini lost his way as a four-day player at Essex, but he looked acquitted for the task here, one edge against Ajmal Shahzad which flew wide of slip a rare blemish. He looked strong square of the wicket and three times lofted Sussex’s spinners confidently down the ground for sixes. Luke Wells, a legspinner now with occasional revisitations of his offspin, is a more solid performer these days and he found turn as he struck the stumps of Wayne White with a googly and Ben Raine, heaving to leg, in quick succession, but Danny Briggs, like Pettini eager to prove his Championship worth, went wicketless: so far he has shown more polish than clean-up power.As for the football, Pettini was actually born in Brighton and supports Liverpool. “But it was a great achievement and I’m happy to join the bandwagon,” he said. He has not joined a bad bandwagon at Leicestershire, it seems. If a smallish squad can avoid injuries – and they have mild concern over their captain Mark Cosgrove, who left the field with a jarred hip, suffered intercepting a drive into the covers from Joyce – they look capable of making considerable strides.

The Elland Road outfit have had a rough time of it in the transfer market over the years – Goal takes a look at some of their most disappointing buys

Getty ImagesRoque Junior

Signed on loan from AC Milan in 2003 having helped Brazil win the World Cup just 12 months previously, Roque Junior prompted great excitement when he arrived at Elland Road.

A disastrous debut against Leicester City set the tone, however, with the Whites conceding 24 times in his seven appearances on their way to relegation from the Premier League.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesLee Sharpe

Having played a key role in Manchester United's resurgence under Sir Alex Ferguson in the early 1990s, Sharpe became Leeds' joint-record signing when he arrived for £4.5 million in 1996.

He struggled to make an impact, however, and after sitting out the entire 1997-98 season with an injury he was cast aside by David O'Leary.

Getty ImagesKevin Nicholls

Injured during his first training session with the club following his arrival from Luton Town in the summer of 2006, Nicholls did not get off to the best of starts at Elland Road.

He was, however, made club captain just months later following Dennis Wise's arrival as manager, only to get sent off during his first match with the armband.

By March 2007 he had been dropped having requested to be sold back to Luton, and upon his return to Kenilworth Road he enraged Leeds fans further by stating the Hatters were a bigger club than his former employers.

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Getty ImagesDarren Huckerby

Signed for £6 million from Coventry City in 1999, a player who had previously played solely as a central striker was forced out wide by the weight of top forwards available to David O'Leary.

He spent 18 months at Elland Road, scoring six goals, before being sold to Manchester City for just over half what Leeds paid for him.

Goal's Manchester City correspondent Sam Lee rates each player's contribution to a fine season, that has seen Pep Guardiola's men win a double

Getty ImagesEderson – 9Ederson, then 23, was tasked with succeeding where an experienced international like Claudio Bravo failed, and came for a hefty fee for a goalkeeper too. The pressure was on the Brazilian from the outset but he has been a revelation in goal, displaying wonderful distribution and a calmness under pressure that has been key to City's entire game plan.AdvertisementGetty ImagesClaudio Bravo – 6Claudio Bravo has had to make do with games in the domestic cups this season, and one Champions League dead rubber, such was his disappointing first campaign in England and the performances of Ederson. The Chilean did play a big role in City's Carabao Cup win and looked more dependable than he did last season, but there have still been shaky moments and not much to suggest City could cope with a long-term injury to Ederson in the future.GettyKyle Walker – 8Kyle Walker was another player with question marks around him when he signed for a fee upwards of £50m last summer. His delivery was questioned and Mauricio Pochettino insisted that his best days had been spent at Tottenham. Yet Walker confounded those critics and has had a fine season at City. The England man has taken his game to a new level and he looks set to be an important member of the squad in years to come.ENJOYED THIS STORY?

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GettyDanilo – 7A difficult season to categorise. City were insistent that the Brazilian was signed, in part, because he can provide cover at left-back, but he hardly ever looked comfortable there and even with Benjamin Mendy and Fabian Delph injured he only filled in for a handful of games. That said, his best game in the position probably came in the Carabao Cup final. At right-back he has had ups and downs. Usually solid, and no major howlers, but not as good as Walker.

Some players can invest so much into their routines that they become lucky charms in their minds

In football, players and coaches will do nearly anything to get the slightest edge, something that will bring them over the line ahead of their opponents.

That usually includes seeking out the best diets and trying to train as intelligently as possible, using statistics and so forth in order to maximise the chances of winning.

For some, the pursuit of victory also involves adhering to certain rituals and, while they might seem absurd or odd, an interruption to routine can have an adverse effect.

Goal takes a look at some of the funniest and weirdest superstitions in football.

Getty1Don Revie didn't like birds

Legendary Leeds United manager Don Revie was famously superstitious and felt so strongly about certain matters that he even had someone try to lift a curse off Elland Road.

As well as insisting on the team bus going the exact same route to every game, Revie would wear the same suit as long as the team won – which became a small issue during their successful periods when his trousers wore thin!

Revie also felt that certain birds were bad luck, so the sudden appearance of an owl badge on the Leeds jersey – inspired by the city coat of arms – in the 1960s was a tad unusual. It was eventually dropped in favour of 'L.U.F.C.', with Revie reportedly an influence behind the decision.

Oh, and he didn't like ornamental elephants either.

AdvertisementGetty Images2The battered boots of Jack Grealish

During Aston Villa's 2018-19 promotion-winning season, Jack Grealish became somewhat superstitious about the boots that he wore.

Footballers often have endorsement deals with sportswear producers and more often than not they love to wear the latest boots. However, that was a luxury Grealish decided to ditch.

Having scored a few goals and laid on some more for his Villa team-mates on his return from injury, the playmaker decided that it had to be his boots.

As a result, Grealish kept wearing the same pair, only changing after the club achieved a place in the Premier League.

The leather was tearing off and his favoured left boot was particularly battered.

"They were brand new and then I got a few goals, a few assists," he explained. "I thought these were my lucky boots so I've had to keep them."

Getty3Felix Magath's lucky tie

Former Bayern Munich manager Felix Magath grew quite attached to a green tie when he was manager of Wolfsburg in the late 2000s.

When he steered the Wolves to a then-record number of successive wins, Magath declared that the tie would not be changed as long as they were winning.

Who are we to argue? Magath steered Wolfsburg to Bundesliga glory that season, finishing two points ahead of Bayern Munich.

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Getty Images4Johan Cruyff the belly slapper

While Johan Cruyff scathingly dismissed the idea of pre-match rituals later in his career, he actually had a few himself in the early days at Ajax.

Before games, the Dutch legend would land a customary slap on the belly of goalkeeper Gert Bals before then proceeding to spit his chewing gum into the opponent's half.

He grew out of that 1970s habit though and by the 1990s he was highly critical of players – and coaches – who had their various superstitions indulged.

Can Jurgen Klopp's men go again after last season's quadruple heartache?

After the thrills, spills, glory and ultimately heartache of last season, Liverpool are ready to do it all again this time around.

Triumphant in both the Carabao and FA Cups, yet ultimately coming up just short in the Premier League and Champions League, Jurgen Klopp’s side will surely expect to be there or thereabouts again come May.

There may have been changes at Anfield, with the likes of Sadio Mane, Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi leaving from last year’s squad, but the arrival of a new £64 million ($76m) striker in Darwin Nunez, plus the summer renewal of Mohamed Salah’s contract, provides plenty of cause for optimism among Reds fans.

Pre-season has been mixed, with defeats to Manchester United, Salzburg and Strasbourg offset by wins over Leipzig and Crystal Palace, and a rousing Community Shield triumph against Manchester City.

Whatever happens, this season promises to be every bit as exciting as the last one.

Getty ImagesSquad Goals

It is hard to say definitively that Liverpool are stronger this year, squad-wise, but that is what Jurgen Klopp believes. Mane’s departure will hurt, but the arrivals of Nunez from Benfica and Fabio Carvalho from Fulham are exciting and should, in theory, add a new dimension.

Teenager Calvin Ramsay has replaced Neco Williams as Trent Alexander-Arnold’s understudy, but otherwise it is the same squad, and Klopp will be looking for Luis Diaz to continue his outstanding form in the second half of last season, and for the likes of Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott and Naby Keita to step up and alleviate fears that the Reds are one high-class, reliable midfield player light heading into the new campaign.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesThe Hopes

It will, one suspects, be hard to top or even match the drama of last season, but that is what Liverpool must try.

They proved last year that they have the squad to compete on multiple fronts. They were an Aston Villa collapse away from winning the title, and only a Thibaut Courtois masterclass denied them a seventh European Cup.

The aim, Klopp says, is to improve their performance levels, to be even more consistent and even more ruthless. A big ask, you might say, but one they’ll approach with confidence and determination.

Achieve it, and they can win the lot.

GettyThe Fears

Four words can perhaps sum up the things that keep Liverpool fans – and Klopp – awake at night: injuries and Manchester City.

Keep key players fit and healthy – Salah, Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho, Thiago Alcantara, Alisson Becker – and Liverpool won’t be far away. Lose any of those for a sustained period, and the squad strength will be tested.

And City? Well, everyone knows that the side that finishes above them will win the league, and the likelihood is that you’ll need to beat them to win the Champions League or either of the domestic cups. 

Liverpool laid down a marker in the Community Shield, but bigger battles await those two.

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Getty ImagesThe Hero

A few weeks into his Liverpool career, and Darwin Nunez looks to have Reds fans eating out the palm of his hand.

There is something special, something exciting about the arrival of a new centre-forward, and especially one as talented and with as much potential as the Uruguayan.

Liverpool have already seen what he can do when playing against them, and if he can hit the ground running on Merseyside – the Community Shield suggests he can – then exciting times lie ahead.

Especially with Salah and the brilliant Luis Diaz creating havoc on either side of him, and with Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino offering support and competition alongside.