“If he is available, no doubt the selectors will put him in,” Alex Carey says of Pat Cummins, who has been included in the squad for the third Ashes Test

Matt Roller10-Dec-20253:24

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Alex Carey believes England’s players will benefit from their mid-Ashes trip to Noosa but insists that memories of the 2023 series will help Australia guard against complacency at 2-0 up.England arrived in Noosa, the affluent resort town on the Queensland coast, on Tuesday for a four-night mini-break, and will train three times in Adelaide ahead of the third Ashes Test. Their preparation has consistently been questioned throughout this tour, despite Brendon McCullum’s claim that they had “over-prepared” ahead of their eight-wicket loss at the Gabba.Players were photographed by Australian media on Tuesday swimming at the beach and drinking at bars, while former England captain Nasser Hussain wrote in his column: “I can’t understand England’s schedule for the week ahead.”Related

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But Carey, who scored 63 and took seven catches in Australia’s eight-wicket win at the Gabba, said that a mid-series break was “not new stuff” and that his team-mates were expecting England to respond strongly in Adelaide next week.”I think it’d be a nice holiday,” Carey said at a Woolworths Cricket Blast event in Adelaide. “It’s a pretty big series, with lots of time between games. For the Australian cricket team, we get to go home for a few days and be with families, so touring parties have got to find time to fill in those little windows.”I’m not sure you need to do it [but] it’s totally up to the touring groups to find ways to take your mind off cricket for a little bit. The Ashes is very hotly contested. You don’t want to be thinking of cricket every single day of the tour. If you do have a little break, it’s probably not a bad time to refresh the batteries.”Carey said that media interest in England’s Noosa trip was unsurprising. “Look, we’re in a pretty lucky position that we’re playing professional sport and people want to follow the journey,” he said. “If the media likes to follow certain teams around, that’s totally up to them to do. We understand that comes with the privilege of playing the game.”1:26

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Australia’s efforts in the first two Tests extended their recent record in home Ashes series to 15 wins, two draws and no defeats in their last 17 Tests. But Carey played down the prospects of a 5-0 whitewash, instead reminding his team-mates that they left a 2-0 lead slip in the 2023 series in England, which ended in a 2-2 draw.”We know England are a very good team. We also understand we were in a position like this a couple of years ago in England,” Carey said. “We weren’t able to win that series, but we were good enough to retain the Ashes. We’re really excited for the opportunity we’ve got, but we understand we’ve got to keep playing good cricket.”We are not looking too far ahead either. I think this playing group has been able to adapt really well, stay really present and again find ways to improve. We all know the threats that England pose, but for us to focus on our best stuff is a pretty good way to go about it. We’re definitely not taking the foot off the gas at all.”2:19

Australia face big selection call on Khawaja

Australia named a 15-man squad for the third Test on Wednesday, with Pat Cummins’ return as captain confirmed. Nathan Lyon will come into contention to play in Adelaide after he was left out of the pink-ball Test in Brisbane, while Usman Khawaja has been included after recovering from his back problems. Jhye Richardson will also join the group in Adelaide to “continue his preparations” as he continues his return from shoulder surgery, CA said.”He looks like he’s moving really well,” Carey said of Cummins. “You’ve probably seen that in the nets. It’s probably just about the body of work he’s put together and being Test-fit. He’s been around the group the whole time, with lots of energy, so if he is available, no doubt the selectors will put him in.”He also expected Lyon to have “a really big role” in the final three Tests, having bowled two overs in Perth before losing his place in Brisbane. “You want guys being disappointed, not being selected,” Carey said. “You want that hunger and we are really lucky to have a squad of 15 who are all ready to go… No doubt, Nathan probably has a big role to play in this Test match.”Meanwhile, Jhye Richardson will join the Test squad to continue his return to action from shoulder surgery. Richardson was impressive against England Lions with 4 for 35 in the first innings and, significantly, sent down 26 overs in the game in his first first-class match in over a year. Australia’s selectors have previously said they hoped he would be an option for the later stages of the Ashes.Richardson will miss Perth Scorchers’ opening BBL match against Sydney Sixers on December 14 but is expected to be available for the game against Brisbane Heat on December 19.Australia squad for third Ashes Test Pat Cummins (capt), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster

Manchester United dropped yet more points at Old Trafford after another lacklustre performance under Ruben Amorim. The Red Devils were held to a 1-1 draw by relegation-threatened West Ham United, failing to create many substantial chances despite having the lion’s share of the possession.

Indeed, the first half went by without the home side creating too many chances of note. The closest they came was thanks to an effort from Joshua Zirkzee.

The Dutchman, who was one of the best players in Red on the night, saw his well-directed effort cleared off the line by former United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

It took United until the second half to break the deadlock. It was a rare Premier League goal from Diogo Dalot, which was enough to put Amorim’s side ahead, and what a strike it was.

The ball dropped to the wing-back in the penalty area, and after a superb first touch, he fired the Red Devils ahead.

United never looked like doubling their lead, with Amorim making substitutions but once again opting against bringing Kobbie Mainoo on.

They paid the price with seven minutes left. The Hammers equalised thanks to a late strike from player of the match Soungoutou Magassa.

Indeed, Amorim’s underwhelming substitutions did not help United’s cause.

Amorim’s in-game management vs. West Ham

One of the biggest criticisms against the United manager throughout his 12-month tenure has been his in-game management. Well, the substitutions he made against the Hammers on Thursday night were underwhelming.

Zirkzee, who was linking up play nicely, was replaced by Mason Mount, and Manuel Ugarte was also brought on. That meant there was once again no place for Mainoo, who still cannot get the chance to showcase his skills for an extended period in the Premier League.

Lisandro Martinez also came on with the score at 1-1. It was a positive thing to see the 2022 World Cup winner coming stepping onto the Old Trafford pitch for the first time since February, but bringing a centre-back on when your side is chasing a goal to win the game is a strange call.

United social media presence, Alice said, the manager’s “subs and in-game management is shocking time and time again.” She also called out the decision to take Zirkzee off, and bringing Ugarte on over Mainoo when the Red Devils “need control” to help get over the line.

However, there was one substitution Amorim did get right, taking off one player who struggled.

The United star who's been overhyped

It was not the return from injury that Matheus Cunha may have hoped for. He was replaced by Ugarte on the 77-minute mark, after a performance which was “ineffective”, according to journalist Laurie Whitwell.

Indeed, the Brazilian struggled to get into the game against the East Londoners. He only had 46 touches across the 90 minutes, losing the ball 18 times and failing to create a chance in that time.

Off the ball, United’s number ten won just three from 11 duels.

Touches

46

Number of times ball lost

18

Pass accuracy

69%

Duels won

3/11

Key passes

0

Crosses completed

0

Expected goal involvements

0.29xGI

His disappointing performance earned him a 5/10 rating from Goal journalist Richard Martin. He noted that Cunha failed to make any sort of impact, describing his efforts at Old Trafford as ‘underwhelming’.

It remains to be seen if Amorim will keep Cunha in the starting lineup for the next game, a trip to his former club, Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Brazilian has not really hit the ground running for the Red Devils so far, with just one goal and no assists in 11 Premier League games.

Whilst that is not necessarily just his fault, United fans may well have wanted more from one of their marquee summer additions. Perhaps there was an element of Cunha getting overhyped, with CEO Omar Berrada suggesting he could be “Cantona-esque” for the club.

That is a lot of pressure for someone to have placed on them immediately after joining a huge club, despite the Brazilian’s obvious confidence.

Things have not really gone that way for Cunha so far in a United shirt, and his performances have certainly left a little to be desired, as the game against West Ham showed.

With other options, such as Mount and Mainoo, at Amorim’s disposal, he may well make the bold decision to rotate his number 10 out of the starting 11 next Monday. Cunha can certainly add a little bit extra in the final third to make him a more dangerous option going forward.

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