It's been reported that Chelsea and Todd Boehly will "look to reach an agreement" for one club's rising star "immediately" as they green-light his sale.

Pochettino requests Chelsea signings in January

Both publicly and behind-the-scenes, manager Mauricio Pochettino has requested the Chelsea board move to make new signings in January.

Chelsea plotting move for £60m+ "fast" star ahead of Premier League rivals

The Blues could splash the cash once again…

By
Tom Cunningham

Dec 18, 2023

According to some reports in the English media, Pochettino wants players of height to solve Chelsea's vulnerability in the penalty area, leading to reported interest in the likes of Wolves defender Max Kilman.

Meanwhile, it's been widely reported that the Blues are keen on signing a proven goalscorer. Chelsea are contenders for Brentford star Ivan Toney as a result, with Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic of interest to Pochettino as well.

Speaking to press around 10 days ago, Pochettino was adamant that Chelsea's directors should look to January, coming after his side fell to a 2-0 defeat away at Everton.

"After the first half of the season, we need to check. That is the reality. If we are not receiving enough, maybe we need to do some movement," said Pochettino (via Sky Sports).

"That is the thing to analyse with the sporting directors, to see if we can change this dynamic and improve in the second half of the season. We need to be more aggressive. Then it's a massive assessment and when the transfer window opens, we will see what we can do.

"I don't say if I am going to ask for more or less players. It's to see if the perception matches the reality. We are missing something. We need to improve our reality."

Chelsea also have a policy of buying Europe's most in-form, exciting talents. Boehly has moved to sign talent from all over Europe and South America since Clearlake Capital's takeover, with FC Copenhagen wonderkid Roony Bardghji now being targeted.

Chelsea will look to seal Bardghji agreement "immediately"

The winger, who scored Copenhagen's winner in a sensational 4-3 win over Man United in the Champions League earlier this season, is wanted across England. As well as Chelsea, Aston Villa, Brentford, Brighton & Hove Albion, Fulham, Manchester United and Newcastle United have held talks with Bardghji's agents ahead of a possible move.

However, Boehly and co are very eager to win the race. This is according to 90min, who also claim Chelsea "will look to reach an agreement" for Bardghji "immediately".

This comes after the development that Copenhagen are prepared to green-light his exit, giving Chelsea a push to go and attempt his transfer soon. However, any proposed deal would mean Bardghji joins at the end of the season and not now.

The 18-year-old is viewed as one of Sweden's most exciting talents, and has even been called his country's answer to Lionel Messi.

“He has an understanding of the game, as well as good balance and coordination," said Roger Franzen.

Chelsea's teenage summer signings	Price (via Transfermarkt)
Deivid Washington	£14 million
Diego Moreira	Free transfer
Angelo	£13 million
Romeo Lavia	£54 million
Lesley Ugochukwu	£23 million

"He has exceptional technique with the ball at his feet. It's incredibly difficult to take the ball off him. He is good one-on-one and has a good shot. He can shoot with both feet, even if he is basically left-footed, he can finish with the right as well.

“That makes him very difficult to read for the defenders. Will he go right or left? It makes him difficult to handle.”

Gloucestershire secure victory despite Varun Chopra’s 154 but miss out on knockout spot thanks to NRR

ECB Reporters Network07-May-2019James Bracey scored his maiden one-day century to hand Gloucestershire victory over Essex, but it was in vain as his side exited the Royal London Cup.Batsman Bracey, who only made his format debut earlier in the competition, crashed a classy hundred from 86 balls to see Gloucestershire to a four-wicket victory. But wins for Middlesex and Somerset elsewhere meant the west country men failed to go through due to their lower net run rate.Essex, who were knocked out before the match having only managed two victories in the tournament, had posted 293 thanks to Varun Chopra’s third ton of this year’s competition.Gloucestershire began their reply confidently, although Miles Hammond rode his luck when he was dropped on 20 by Dan Lawrence on the square-leg boundary. Hammond, on the back of 95 against Sussex, only scored one more run before he was caught behind off Simon Harmer while aiming down the track, before Aaron Beard demolished Gareth Roderick’s stumps.Chris Dent and Bracey then settled the innings down and put Gloucestershire on track with the required run rate during an 117-run stand. Neither came across as overly aggressive but both accumulated with skill, both posting half centuries – Dent from 67 balls and Bracey from 51 balls, which included a firmly struck six down the ground.The partnership was broken when Dent walked following a low catch to Harmer at short midwicket and Graeme van Buuren and Jack Taylor followed in quick succession, skewing to mid-on and lbw respectively.Beard, on just his second List A outing, ended with figures of 3 for 51 as he had Ryan Higgins well caught by Harmer running around to cover.Gloucestershire still needed 86 from 9.5 after that wicket but Bracey maturely ticked the runs off along with Benny Howell, who had a runner after injuring his hamstring in the field. Bracey ended with an unbeaten 113 but it was Howell who ended the game by carting Matt Coles for six over midwicket.Earlier, stand-in Essex captain Harmer won the toss and elected to bat on a good-looking wicket, which proved a tad sluggish as the match went on.Chopra enjoyed stands of 42 and 66 for the first and second wickets with Alastair Cook and Tom Westley but both partnerships were ended by run outs. Cook was called through for a quick single after flicking to square leg, before Westley greedily attempted a third run – both comfortably short of their ground after van Buuren’s throws.Lawrence and Ravi Bopara both departed quickly, the former handing Bracey his maiden professional wicket and the latter bowled through the gate by Tom Smith.Essex looked below par at 147 for 4 but they still had Chopra, who owed his team-mates, and he carried the innings – bringing up his half-century in 70 balls. The opener continued his sluggish pace as he ticked over three figures in 129 deliveries during an 83-run stand with Rishi Patel, who scored 26 before edging behind when trying to whoosh down the ground.That wicket saw Chopra kick on with power – demonstrated with sixes down the ground and over deep square-leg – and deftness with paddle sweeps, as he passed through 150 in 163 deliveries. He fell a few balls later, finishing his season with 421 runs from five innings.The hosts looked set for a push for 300 but Essex lost five wickets in the last six-and-a-half overs to stutter to the innings break, and Gloucestershire maintained the momentum to complete their chase with seven balls to spare.

Newcastle United are likely to hold talks to appoint a managerial “legend” at the end of the season, according to a reliable journalist.

Newcastle's season so far

After finishing fourth last season in the Premier League, the black and white stripes secured a place in this year’s Champions League, which was no doubt a fantastic achievement for everyone associated with the club. However, it’s fair to say that things didn’t turn out as they would have hoped.

The Magpies ended up finishing at the bottom of their group below Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Milan, meaning that not only did they fail to progress to the next stage of that particular competition, they also missed out on dropping into the Europa League.

This comes amid an indifferent league campaign to date, with the Magpies outside the European places entirely heading into this weekend's round of fixtures, with just 9 wins in 19 matches.

Should PIF decide to relieve Eddie Howe of his duties in the near future given their inconsistent form, they appear to have set their sights on a possible replacement in the form of AS Roma’s Jose Mourinho, who has plenty of experience in the English top flight having previously managed Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur (Transfermarkt – Mourinho statistics).

The Portuguese’s contract is set to expire at the end of the season, meaning that he will be a free agent on the market should he not sign an extension, and if that does turn out to be the case, the 60-year-old could find himself on the radar of the hierarchy at St James’ Park.

Newcastle linked with Mourinho

Speaking to GiveMeSport, reporter Dean Jones suggested that Newcastle probably do like Mourinho and claimed that they are expected to evaluate the position of Howe upon the conclusion of the campaign.

He said: "At some point, they will get a bit trigger-happy and they will decide to make a change. You're already seeing Jose Mourinho being linked with Newcastle. Those things don't happen by luck. There'll be stories there, there will be conversations had, even if they're very low-key conversations, just try starting to sound out who they could get if they didn't have Eddie Howe.

"I think at the back end of the season, they'll get towards a big decision. Because if Newcastle aren't in the Champions League places in the league, they're already out of Europe, if they don't win a cup, they will be thinking, well, has he taken us as far as he can go? How do we now take this club quickly to being a proper Champions League-level side?"

AS Roma's record under Mourinho

During his time at AS Roma, Mourinho has 67 wins, 29 draws and 37 losses under his belt from 133 games, where he is currently averaging 1.73 points per match, taking 230 out of a possible 399 following his arrival back in 2021.

The Setubal-born coach is a veteran in the dugout and more than knows what it takes to compete and be successful at the very highest level, having secured 31 trophies since the start of his managerial career, including the Premier League and Champions League on multiple occasions.

As described by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, Mourinho is a “legend” for what he has been able to achieve at the helm, so while he might be a slightly older profile than the hierarchy would be open to considering, there’s no doubt that he could be an exciting appointment for Newcastle.

Chelsea fans are enduring a second year of footballing misery this season, as they sit tenth in the Premier League, miles off the Champions League places and 1-0 down in their League Cup semi-final against Championship side Middlesbrough.

Mauricio Pochettino has been unable to build a cohesive team with the wave of new players he was handed in the summer, and a number of those recent acquisitions could already be on the precipice of an early exit from Stamford Bridge.

For example, Axel Disasi has been a regular in the side since joining in the summer. Still, he has been underwhelming at best, and now, with Athletic Bilbao's Aitor Paredes linked to the club, the Frenchman could be about to lose his place.

Chelsea transfer news – Aitor Paredes

According to a recent report from the Sun, Chelsea are keen to add Athletic Bilbao's Paredes to their defensive ranks this month, and even sent scouts to watch him play against Seville last week.

The report has also revealed that, alongside the Blues, Spanish giants Real Madrid and Serie A behemoths Inter Milan are interested in securing the 23-year-old's signature this winter.

Should Todd Boehly and Co manage to get ahead of the competition, then they won't have to break the bank to get this deal over the line, as the Sun claim that a fee in the region of £20m should be enough to tempt Bilbao into selling due to the defender's contract expiring next summer.

In the case this deal goes through, the comparison to former captain Cesar Azpilicueta might become hard to ignore, and if he performs even close to the level of the Spaniard, that could spell trouble for Disasi.

Aitor Paredes' style of play

Azpilicueta had a brilliant career in west London, and considering he was bought for just £7m, he might well be one of the greatest transfers in the club's history – having made 508 appearances in all competitions, while winning a plethora of major honours.

With that in mind, comparing the young and relatively inexperienced Paredes to him could be construed as too kind, but there are a couple of key similarities.

First, both are defensively-minded players who can be deployed as both a centre-back and full-back depending on what is needed at the time, and second, they're both Spaniards who – if this deal does go ahead – would have joined the Blues early on in their careers and at similar ages.

While Blues fans would surely be delighted with a defender who could potentially replicate the career of a former captain, Disasi might be less pleased, as he would surely see a dramatic drop in his game time if he wasn't just sold altogether.

How Paredes compares to Disasi

The former AS Monaco man has featured in 90% of Pochettino's Premier League starting XIs this season, but in the words of talkSPORT pundit Andy Jacobs, he's been "a disaster."

Unfortunately for the 25-year-old, the board also don't seem to have a particularly favourable opinion of him either, as only last month, TEAMtalk revealed that he was among several names that the club would be willing to sell in January to raise funds.

So, how do the pair stack up when you compare their underlying numbers? Well, while there are a couple of areas in which the Chelsea man comes out on top, such as tackles won and general passing accuracy, he lags behind in most other critical areas.

Stats per 90

Paredes

Disasi

Passing Accuracy

85.9%

89.7%

Shot-Creating Actions

0.48

0.45

Tackles Won

0.24

0.68

Blocks

0.83

0.79

Clearances

3.45

3.28

Miscontrols

0.24

0.51

Dispossessed

0.06

0.56

Ball Recoveries

5.48

5.08

All Stats via FBref for the 2023/24 Domestic Season

The Spanish "titan", as described by journalist Luis Calabor Nunez, comes out on top for shot-creating actions, blocks, clearances, ball recoveries, and he is dispossessed a lot less than the Frenchman.

At the end of the day, for as often as Pochettino is playing Disasi, he isn't showing much in the way of improvement, and if Chelsea can sign Paredes for £20m and offload the former Monaco man for around the same price, then this deal seems like a no-brainer.

Seamer Abu Jayed’s first five-wicket haul in only his second ODI coupled with fifties from Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das and Shakib Al Hasan led Bangladesh to a six-wicket win and kept Ireland winless in the tri-series. However, Bangladesh will be sweating over Shakib’s fitness after the allrounder had retired hurt during the chase with a suspected side strain.Earlier, Ireland opener Paul Stirling put on a show, making 130 off 141 balls, and was well supported by his captain William Porterfield, who hit his first ODI fifty in more than a year, but their efforts went in vain as Bangladesh aced their chase.Abu Jayed bowls•AFP

Tamim set the tone with his second fifty in three matches this series, helping Bangladesh to another rapid start. He put on 117 for the first wicket with Liton and piled the pressure on Ireland with a flurry of boundaries. Tamim could have been dismissed on 22 had Gary Wilson hung onto a catch behind the stumps, but he went onto add 35 to his tally.Liton complemented Tamim well and was particularly strong square of the wicket, keeping Bangladesh ticking in the chase. Both the openers were bowled, but Shakib and Mushfiqur then took over, adding 64 runs together in 10 overs. During the process, Mushfiqur became the fifth wicketkeeper to reach 5000 ODI runs after Adam Gilchrist, Andy Flower, Kumar Sangakkara and MS Dhoni. The stand, however, ended when Mushfiqur’s leg-side tickle was superbly intercepted by a diving Wilson.Shakib suffered a suspected side strain while trying to pull Josh Little in the 35th over, and consequently retired hurt. Mahmudullah, though, got them home, with his unbeaten 35 off 29 balls.Such an emphatic Bangladesh victory had looked less likely when Stirling dominated the visitors in the first innings. Stirling got going with a crunch through the covers off Jayed and proceeded to add 174 with Porterfield – the highest third-wicket stand for Ireland in ODI cricket. In all, Stirling struck eight fours and four sixes in his 130.Porterfield made 94 off 106 balls, including seven fours and two sixes, but got out to Jayed just as he tried to accelerate. He had been particularly severe on Mashrafe Mortaza, taking the veteran seamer for 31 off 25 balls. Shakib wasn’t spared either. Porterfield also slammed five fours off Shakib, who finished with 0 for 65 in his nine overs, including a 23-run last over.Jayed also took the prized scalp of Stirling, helping Bangladesh keep Ireland to under 300. Porterfield was caught at the deep extra-cover boundary while Stirling gave deep midwicket a simple catch. Ireland’s slide either side of the Stirling-Porterfield stand and some wayward bowling meant they ended the series without a single win.

Three Notts batsmen reach fifties as visitors stroll to win, despite Billy Godleman’s ton

ECB Reporters Network21-Apr-2019

Luke Fletcher picked up four wickets•Getty Images

Luke Fletcher claimed his first one-day five wicket haul as Notts Outlaws made it two wins in a row in the Royal London Cup with a six-wicket victory over Derbyshire Falcons.Fletcher took 5 for 56 to restrict the Falcons to 297 for 8, which was built around Billy Godleman’s 116 and 88 from Luis Reece.Former Derbyshire opener Ben Slater scored 83 on his return to Derby and, although 18-year-old paceman Alfie Gleadall bagged three wickets, Steven Mullaney – with an unbeaten 68 – and 52 not out from Tom Moores guided the Outlaws to 299 for 4 in the 46th over.The Falcons looked on course for 350 after Godleman and Reece accumulated steadily on a pitch lacking in pace and bounce.Fletcher beat the bat several times in a probing spell but there were few problems for the openers with Reece ending a lean start to the season by reaching his first 50 off 52 balls.Godleman needed 86 balls for his second consecutive half-century and the Outlaws had to wait until the 31st over for the breakthrough which came when Reece top-edged a sweep at Mullaney.Wayne Madsen lifted the scoring rate with 38 from 28 balls until he was deceived by a good slower ball from Jake Ball, who bowled intelligently to check the Falcons’ progress.Godleman drove Fletcher for six but the fact his century came off 131 balls highlighted the slow nature of the pitch and the accuracy of the bowling.Another well disguised slower delivery from Ball removed Matt Critchley and, after Leus du Plooy was bowled advancing at Fletcher, Godleman was caught behind in the 49th over.Alex Hughes pulled Ball for six but Fletcher bowled straight and full to strike three times in the final over to keep the Falcons under 300.It did not look enough as Slater and Joe Clarke plundered 70 from the first 10 overs with Clarke cutting Mark Watt’s left-arm spin for three consecutive fours.But Gleadall tempted Clarke into a skied pull to deep mid-wicket and Ben Duckett played across Reece in the next over.Slater and Jake Libby swung the initiative back towards the Outlaws by working the ball around to add 93 before Gleadall returned to revive the Falcons’ hopes with a double strike in the 30th over. Slater drove loosely to cover and, three balls later, Libby got a top-edge trying to turn it to leg and was caught at mid-wicket for 41 to leave the Outlaws on 173 for 4.Moores responded by driving Gleadall and Watt for sixes, Mullaney twice deposited Watt high over long on before Moores smashed Gleadall for two more sixes to reduce the target to 56 from the last 10 overs. The chase turned into a stroll in the evening sunshine as the pair sealed victory with 29 balls to spare.

Having already added Joe Rothwell to their midfield on loan from Bournemouth, Southampton could now return to the transfer market to make a late swoop for yet another reinforcement in the middle of the park. One point behind second-place Ipswich Town and on a historic unbeaten run, the Saints could use the remainder of the January transfer window to gain an edge over their Championship promotion rivals.

Southampton transfer news

With just seven days left in the transfer window, Russell Martin is in no position to panic over reinforcements. His side are flying and remain within touching distance of an Ipswich side who are beginning to show signs of weakness in England's second tier. Southampton's 21-game unbeaten run has broken a club record that has stood for 103 years, highlighting just how good a place the Saints are in at the moment. Now, amid that record-breaking run, they could welcome yet another fresh face.

According to Bence Bocsak, a Hungarian reporter for The Boot Room, Southampton are interested in Mihaly Kata, who is the captain of MTK Budapest at just 21-years-old.

Those at St Mary's aren't alone in their interest, however. According to Bocsak, The City Group, SC Heerenveen and several other German sides are also eyeing moves to sign the Hungary international in what could prove to be a busy race for his signature. If it is to be Southampton who win the race, then the deal will reportedly cost around £1.5m, though Kata is reportedly not rushing any decision over his future just yet.

"Clever" Kata will only get better

Now could be a better time than ever for Southampton to secure a deal to sign Kata for as little as £1.5m. The young midfielder is on course to get better and better, given his status as a fully-fledged Hungary international and club captain at just 21. As the Saints look to leapfrog Ipswich, a player of Kata's calibre may well make all the difference. X account Hungarian Scout spoke highly of the MTK Budapest man earlier this season.

With Rothwell's move only a short-term solution in midfield, Martin would be wise to welcome a more permanent fix in the form of Kata, whether that be this month or during the summer transfer window.

Southampton will likely be forced to fend off plenty of interest if they want to sign the Hungarian, but everything points towards a player ready to step straight into English football.

While the noise surrounding West Ham United in the late stage of the January transfer market focuses on the strengthening of the frontline, and rightly so, David Moyes is keen to target new additions across multiple positions.

Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta are all injured and the talismanic latter not expected back until March, so it's no surprise that the Irons are pushing for a deal with Al-Ittihad for Portuguese winger Jota on loan before Thursday's deadline.

Pablo Fornals is closing in on a move to Real Betis and a £15m fee has been agreed with French club Lyon for the transfer of Said Benrahma to facilitate the exciting incoming, while Kalvin Phillips completed a loan move to the London Stadium from Manchester City last week.

It was admittedly a slow start to the window but things are very much heating up now and Moyes might look to take advantage of the frenetic nature of the window's closing period by acting on interest for a Premier League star who has yet to feature this season.

West Ham eyeing Premier League defender

According to Sky Sports transfer correspondent Dharmesh Sheth, dynamic Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah is on West Ham's radar, with Moyes keeping an eye on the player, unseen this season after suffering a recurrence of a hamstring injury back in August.

The Hammers were interested in a move for Chalobah in the summer and could now return in the coming days, with a bid of around £25m mooted for his sale earlier in the campaign.

Last summer, Chelsea set a £45m asking price for the 23-year-old but this was not met by any suitor and it is most unlikely that such a figure will hold up at present, with Chalobah on the fringe and yet to feature this term.

Trevoh Chalobah could be Moyes' own Ibrahima Konate

Chalobah might not have been in action this season but he proved his worth as a versatile and promising Premier League talent for a struggling Chelsea side last season, praised for his "ice cold" repose by talent scout Jacek Kulig.

Having chalked up 63 appearances for the Stamford Bridge side, Chalobah has netted four goals and has proved his flexibility on the pitch with stellar showings in central defence, out wide and anchoring the midfield.

As per FBref, the 6 foot 3 titan ranks among the top 5% of centre-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for shot-creating actions, the top 12% for passes attempted, the top 17% for progressive passes, the top 12% for progressive carries, the top 4% for successful take-ons and the top 7% for tackles per 90.

The £50k-per-week ace is evidently an excellent distributor and an intelligent and imposing presence. Given that he is considered a similar player to Liverpool menace Ibrahima Konate too, Moyes might be onto something in monitoring Chalobah's situation in west London.

Piero Hincapie

Bayer Leverkusen

Danilo

Juventus

Rafael Toloi

Atalanta

Josko Gvardiol

Manchester City

Ibrahima Konate

Liverpool

Konate joined Liverpool in 2020 after Jurgen Klopp's side met his £36m release clause with RB Leipzig, and while the France international has ebbed and flowed from fitness, he has been described as an “absolute beast” for his stunning recent performances.

Joel Matip's season-ending injury compounded a certain lack of depth in the Anfield defensive ranks but Konate's recent efforts have been vital for the Premier League table-toppers in fighting for silverware across multiple fronts this term.

As per Sofascore, the 24-year-old has completed 89% of his passes across 15 Premier League outings this season, averaging 0.4 key passes, 1.5 tackles and 4.3 ball recoveries per game while winning 65% of his contested duels.

Moreover, the 6 foot 4 colossus ranks among the top 20% of positional peers for shot-creating actions, the top 9% for passes attempted, the top 14% for progressive passes, the top 15% for successful take-ons, the top 10% for tackles and the top 8% for aerial wins per 90.

There is a clear semblance between Konate and Chalobah, therefore, and while the Chelsea man is of a leaner, rangier build, he is a towering defender nonetheless and has been dubbed a “soldier" in the backline in the past by former Blues manager Graham Potter for his commanding and combative efforts.

How Chalobah would slot in at West Ham

A natural and progressive distributor, Chalobah's forward-thinking approach to his play would be an excellent fit for a Hammers side looking to absorb pressure and fling the ball through the lanes into the danger area.

Passing

Aerial duels

Tackling

Concentration

Ball retention

Source: WhoScored

His tactical intelligence and the crispness of his passing are attractive parts of his skill set and while Chelsea fell by the wayside last season, he did manage to showcase the core of his talents across his 25 outings in the top-flight.

Completing 89% of his passes during the 2022/23 campaign, Chalobah averaged 1.2 tackles and 2.2 clearances per fixture and won 63% of his ground duels.

While West Ham are prioritising the bolstering of the frontline it's wise that plans have been drawn up to secure the services of a talented defender in Chalobah, who could emulate Hammers captain Kurt Zouma in moving to east London and kickstarting his career.

Not a day to remember, but Warwickshire may find that the end justifies their means

Richard Hobson at Edgbaston03-Jun-2019The removal of much of its branding and soporific pace of the play made Edgbaston look and feel more like a working museum than a cricket ground about to be used for the fastest-moving World Cup in history. But despite progress more redolent of the dourest old days of the sport, it also nodded towards a possible future.Dominic Sibley was there at the start and remained there at the end, 81 not out from 264 balls. With England looking for an opening batsman prepared to blunt as much as take apart Australia’s attack come the Ashes, the sight of his big front leg pushing forward, bat not far behind, could easily become a leitmotiv of the series. He is close to a fourth first-class hundred of the season.If Sibley is relatively unknown outside county aficionados, then Stuart Broad is a familiar figure. Not, though, in this incarnation. Over the winter, when he briefly lost his place in the England side, Broad contemplated how best to fill what remains of his career. The answer may well have been on display: no longer a nasty, pouting new ball bowler, but wise first change. Draco Malfoy has become Albus Dumbledore.With James Pattinson available for a first Championship match since 2017, and Luke Fletcher rewarded for his status as Nottinghamshire’s most successful bowler this season, Broad waited until the ninth over to remove his sunhat and join the attack. He was bypassed again when Steven Mullaney took the second new ball as Warwickshire ground on carefully beneath the floodlights.For his first two spells at least, Broad was the pick of the attack. He not only maintained a stranglehold on the scoring (being far from alone in that regard) but also represented the most likely source of wickets. The battle with Rob Yates in particular looked what it was: a man with 437 Test wickets tormenting a 19-year-old only three weeks into his first-team career. To his great credit, Yates never sought to hit his way out of obvious difficulties.Even if the temptation to perm James Anderson with a fresh new-ball partner in Jofra Archer proves irresistible to Joe Root and Trevor Bayliss come the first Test at this same ground at the start of August, the presence as back-up of such an experienced operator in Broad would offer skill and insurance. He is also the man most likely to wind up David Warner and the rest.Broad is already causing mischief, tweeting in fake solemnity the observation that Justin Langer’s plea for an end to the booing of Warner and Steve Smith contrasts with the invitation of Darren Lehmann to make life Down Under a misery for Broad. There isn’t a wooden spoon big enough for Broad to stir this particular pot. He doesn’t sound like a man expecting to be on the sidelines, Archer or not.The pace may be down, but he kept a tight line on the first day here and found a bit of movement at times, especially operating around the wicket to the left-handers. Against less patient batsmen, that is often enough to bring reward. And when he reflects at the end of the season, he might consider Sibley to be the most obdurate of them all. Time after time, he eschewed the invitation to drive at balls outside off stump.Perhaps it was a function of the pitch, perhaps of the first division table or perhaps of the character of the Warwickshire batting that runs came so slowly. The ratio 39/35 sounds like the polling of the main political groups in the days of the two-party system. Those figures here represented runs scored and overs bowled during the session between lunch and tea.Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire occupy the bottom two slots and the only win for either came last week when Jeetan Patel spun the home side to victory against Surrey. Spin is expected to play a large part this time too, explaining why both sides wanted to bat first and why Warwickshire clearly place such value on first innings runs before deterioration takes hold.The loose cut shot that brought the end of Will Rhodes proved a rare concession to temptation, as myriad statistics attest. Sibley needed 185 balls for his fifty. Sam Hain’s second scoring shot came off his 55th ball. Broad returned figures of 7-5-2-1 in his second spell. And, for the most part, the patience of the crowd reflected the pace of the action.Sibley survived a sharp chance to Matt Carter at second slip off Pattinson on 20 and then on 47 when Joe Clarke’s direct hit had him scampering for his ground. In fact, it was Hain, even more abstemious, who was eventually run out having been sent back by his partner, Chris Nash backing up the original throw from Samit Patel to punish a horrible misunderstanding.Warwickshire did accelerate after tea, relatively speaking. They pushed the infield and sought to rotate strike, with Hain and Sibley forcing balls through their favoured leg side. So not a day to remember, but Nottinghamshire have the worst batting record in the division and, come Thursday, Warwickshire may find that the end justifies their means.

Emile Smith Rowe has been identified as a 'priority signing' for Fulham as the Cottagers look to offer the 23-year-old regular game time.

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• Smith Rowe wanted by Fulham
• Arsenal could look to sell homegrown talent
• Gunners interested in Sesko

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Fulham see Smith Rowe as an answer to their depleting attack and may look to secure an audacious move for the Arsenal player, according to . Marco Silva's side are set to lose Willian once his contract expires at the end of the month and the Englishman may provide a solution to the loss of creativity. Smith Rowe has fallen down the pecking order in north London and the Gunners may look to cash in on him.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  After shooting to stardom following his impressive debut against Chelsea in December 2020, Smith Rowe became a mainstay in Mikel Arteta's side and was crucial in transforming a lacklustre team into one with flair and attacking impetus. However, injuries have severely limited his game time and it looks unlikely that he will re-establish himself back in the side.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Since making 33 appearances and scoring 10 goals in his spectacular 2021/22 season, Smith Rowe has only played 25 games across the two following Premier League campaigns. In those 25 games, only three of them came as a starter and he has not scored in that time either.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?

  Arsenal, with one eye on the Premier League's profit-and-sustainability rules, may need to sell homegrown players who represent 'pure profit'. However, the departures of the likes of Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson may mean signings like Benjamin Sesko could be brokered.