ScorecardFile photo: Kamlesh Makvana picked up 7 for 100 to run through Jammu & Kashmir’s line-up•K Sivaraman

Saurashtra wrapped up an innings and 63-run victory against Jammu & Kashmir to book their spot in the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals, thanks to a seven-for from offspinner Kamlesh Makvana. Saurashtra, who had ridden on a century from Sheldon Jackson and fifties from Samarth Vyas and Jaydev Unadkat, eventually ended their innings on 497, earning a lead of 359 runs. J&K, who had folded for 138 in their first innings, once again lost wickets in a hump in their second, falling to 89 for 4. Ian Dev Singh held the innings together by scoring a brisk 127, but no other batsman gave him company at the other end to forge a threatening partnership. Makvana collected 7 for 100 to run through the line-up and bowl J&K out for 296.
ScorecardJharkhand were on course to qualifying for the knockouts, as Saurabh Tiwary’s unbeaten double-hundred earned the team a big lead, before the bowlers reduced Hyderabad to 169 for 6 in their second innings. Four more wickets on day four in Uppal will mean Jharkhand will join Saurashtra from Group C in the knockout stage. Jharkhand, who began the day at 360 for 6, declared for 388 for 8 soon after Tiwary, the overnight batsman, reached his double-hundred, meaning that Hyderabad needed to score at least 243 to make the visitors bat again. Those plans were thrown into disarray, as Hyderabad lost wickets at key intervals. Despite a half-century from Bavanaka Sandeep, three blows towards the end of the day meant the team was staring at defeat. Rahul Shukla and Shahbaz Nadeem picked up two wickets apiece.
ScorecardServices took firm control of their clash in Tripura, after bowling Tripura out for 229 and enforcing the follow on, though they are now out of the running for a place in the knockouts. Tripura, who began the day at 45 for 1, failed to gather any momentum in their innings and lost wickets at regular intervals, with Diwesh Pathania (3 for 49), Muzzaffaruddin Khalid (2 for 62) and Anshul Gupta (2 for 11) making key strikes. Saurabh Das, the No.8 batsman, was the team’s highest scorer with 53, but it was not enough to drag Tripura anywhere close to Services’ first-innings total of 512, as the hosts folded for 229. After being asked to bat again, Tripura saw out the last three overs of the day in their second innings without any damage.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsCameron Bancroft was awarded the Man of the Match for his counterattacking 72•Getty Images

Despite their dominance of the BBL over the years, Perth Scorchers have repeatedly been written off. After they slumped to 2 for 1 in the second over to a formidable Sydney Thunder attack, the Scorchers could probably hear the scepticism reverberating. However, once again, the defending champion’s famed resilience reared and another finals appearance looks assured after a 30-run victory over the Thunder at Spotless Stadium in Sydney.Notching their fourth win of the BBL, the Scorchers pulled a game clear of the Thunder after both teams were deadlocked at second on the ladder.Largely due to contrasting, but highly effective, half centuries from precocious youngsters Cameron Bancroft and Ashton Agar, the Scorchers recovered from the perilous early position to compile 5 for 175 after being sent in to bat.It was a total the highly disciplined Scorchers attack always looked likely to defend. On television commentary, Mark Waugh rated Thunder paceman Andre Russell the “best fast bowler in the competition”. Waugh may have a change of heart after Scorchers spearhead Jason Behrendorff (3 for 26 off 4 overs) again produced a scintillating display claiming the early wickets of Aiden Blizzard and the out-of-form Jacques Kallis to leave the Thunder reeling at 2 for 17 after three overs.Shane Watson, the Thunder’s acting captain in place of an injured Mike Hussey, looked in sparkling form counterattacking young Scorchers paceman Joel Paris, who is set to make his ODI debut against India next week.But Watson fell just when he looked threatening, playing on for 18 to leave the Thunder 3 for 49 in the ninth over.The Thunder’s chase looked forlorn until the powerful Russell produced an extraordinary display of brutish batting. In the ultimate purple patch, Russell smashed five sixes in eight deliveries between overs 12 and 14.The most noteworthy of the bunch was a slog off Behrendorff that astonishingly went 116 metres, just one metre short of Dan Christian’s tournament record.But Behrendorff showed his form, snaring the crucial scalp of Russell, assisted by a clutch catch from Paris after the ball swirled high in the air. Russell compiled a highly entertaining 20-ball 42 but his dismissal effectively ended the Thunder’s hopes, and they eventually finished well short of the target at 9 for 145.A comprehensive victory looked unlikely earlier in the day when the Scorchers struggled mightily with the bat at the beginning of their innings. Much of the Scorchers’ batting had revolved around their opening partnership of Shaun Marsh and Michael Klinger, the Scorchers captain, who was out in the first over for a duck, followed quickly by the dismissal of Marcus Harris.Marsh looked in fine touch compiling 28 with ease, but his dismissal halted the Scorchers’ comeback and left them delicately poised at 3 for 64 in the 11th over. The Scorchers perceived weakness was their inexperienced middle-order, which had hardly batted throughout the tournament due to Klinger and Marsh’s domination.Making a mockery of that perception, Bancroft and Agar combined for Scorchers’ fourth-wicket record partnership of 105 off just 51 balls. Bancroft, a technically correct batsman, played orthodox yet powerfully, particularly through the off side. Smartly, he rotated the strike early in a determined rebuild attempt, and then impressively muscled numerous shots down the ground.In a notable contrast to his teammate, Agar looks ungainly at times with minimal footwork and a wild swing of the bat. But at the core of his burgeoning batting is his attentiveness; Agar watches the ball closely and when in rhythm, morphs into a stylish and powerful batsman. His effervescence was infectious, as the pair scurried between the wickets, rattling the suddenly ragged Thunder.Agar’s cavalier approach netted 68 off 34 balls in his first BBL half-century, while Bancroft scored a 53-ball 72.The impressive performances of their youngsters will well please the Scorchers, who will be without the services of Marsh for the remainder of the BBL.

Delhi is in danger of losing the second T20I between India and Sri Lanka on February 12 should it not produce requisite clearances from government agencies soon. BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur confirmed that an email was sent to the DDCA in this regard.”The BCCI has given them time till tomorrow [to respond to the email],” Thakur told ESPNcricinfo. “We can’t wait for a very long time.” He named Kanpur, Ranchi and Hyderabad as possible alternatives if Delhi failed to obtain the clearances in time. Delhi has also been allotted four matches, including a semifinal, in the World T20 beginning in March. Thakur, however, said the prevailing situation didn’t endanger Delhi’s status as a World T20 host. “This has no connection [to the World T20].”DDCA treasurer Ravinder Manchanda said he was hopeful of securing the clearances in two days. “Since today is a holiday we will reply to the BCCI tomorrow explaining our position.”There was a similar cloud hanging over the fate of the fourth Test between India and South Africa in December, before the Delhi High Court stepped in to provide interim relief by asking the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to provide provisional clearance to the DDCA.There have also been reports of the DDCA being in arrears of payments towards expenses made during the South Africa Test. According to , the DDCA owed Embassy Caterers Rs 11.5 lakh, and had also undertaken expenses worth Rs 41 lakh on repair/installation work on seats and printing tickets. Manchanda, though, denied the claims and said payments to vendors had already been made.However, Justice Mukul Mudgal, who was appointed by the Delhi High Court to oversee the conduct of the Delhi Test between India and South Africa, and also the activities of the DDCA in the process of securing permanent clearances for the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium, has not signed the bills yet. “I am still scrutinising it,” he told ESPNcricinfo, but refused to go into the specifics.DDCA’s fresh round of troubles come barely a week after Mudgal submitted a scathing report on the association’s lack of transparency and mismanagement to a two-judge bench of the Delhi High Court. The report pointed to the absence of records which hampered transparency, and delay in payments to vendors.”For the previous matches, no records were available to indicate how quotations were invited, how the vendors to whom work was allotted were selected, how the competitiveness of the rates was ascertained,” Mudgal noted. “There were no minutes, or record of the tender committee or committees set up for different tasks. There were no agreements with the selected vendors in the past available for perusal.”Many vendors complained that their bills for earlier matches organised during the last 2-3 years were not cleared. This resulted in a large number of vendors not bidding and others quoting higher rates to cover the risk of huge delays in getting payment.”The report had also revealed the DDCA hadn’t filed a balance sheet for 2014-15.

It was a sense of deja vu as Devon Conway and Tom Latham seemingly batted West Indies out of the match for the second time in four days’ space. But the visiting openers Brandon King and John Campbell once again put on a defiant stand, taking them to stumps without any damage done and 419 runs away from their target.Conway and Latham, who added 323 runs for the first wicket in the first innings, racked up centuries again as they put on a 192-run opening stand in New Zealand’s second dig, helping them set West Indies 462 on a testing pitch with uneven bounce.Conway and Latham scored their second centuries of the match, becoming the first pair of openers to score twin tons in the same game in all first-class cricket. Their efforts, along with a 72-run partnership off just 37 balls between Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra helped New Zealand extend their dominance, after taking a 155-run first-inning lead earlier in the day by bowling out West Indies for 420.Kavem Hodge, who finished unbeaten on his career-best 123, provided the only two breakthroughs in New Zealand’s second innings, removing the prolific openers thanks to some terrific catching by Jayden Seales in the deep.Tom Latham scored twin centuries in the Test•MB Media/Getty Images

The pitch had deceptive bounce. Where a shooter from Hodge kept so low to Latham that it nearly bounced twice before reaching him, a length ball from Jacob Duffy also reared up on Anderson Phillip to take the shoulder of his blade for the first wicket of the day. The very next ball, a bouncer stayed much lower to crash into Shai Hope’s abdomen – not making matters any better for him after he missed the last two days’ play with food poisoning.The day started off with Duffy removing Phillip and Hope in his first two overs. While Phillip was done in by extra bounce, Hope tried to pull away a proper short ball and top edged it to long leg. But like Phillip, Seales put in a solid rearguard effort to extend West Indies’ resistance.However, Hodge chose to let the tailenders face a large chunk of the bowling. Of the 69 balls Hodge and Seales faced for their 29-run partnership, Seales faced 53. When Ajaz Patel had Seales bowled with a slider, Hodge took a single off the first ball of the next over and Michael Rae had Kemar Roach nicking off next ball to end West Indies’ innings.Roach had walked off injured on the first day and didn’t bowl on the second day. He didn’t bowl during New Zealand’s second innings either.With the awkward bounce even more pronounced when the ball was hard and new, Conway and Latham had to start off watchfully, with Seales looking especially menacing. Conway picked up the first boundary with a glorious cover drive, and soon he started driving through the off side more regularly.The first NZ batter to score a double ton and a century in the same Test, Devon Conway•AFP/Getty Images

While Latham was happy to hang around, Conway took charge of the scoring. If Conway scored through off against the quicks, he used his feet against Roston Chase’s offspin launch him over the leg side. It took him just 63 deliveries to bring up his half-century.Latham soon shifted gears after ambling to 18 off 52 deliveries. His only boundary until then came off an under-edge that went through Tevin Imlach’s legs, but he hit Chase for back-to-back boundaries to start the 21st over. Latham used the sweep to good effect, but also made good use of his feet.When Seales returned to the attack, Latham drove him through the covers first ball before a pick-up pull over fine leg for a six. He then pulled a Glenn Phillips long hop to the long-leg boundary to bring up his half-century off 77 balls.There was a 49-ball period without a boundary after that, during which Conway became the first New Zealand batter to follow up a double-century with a century in the same Test. In the final over before tea, Latham went 6, 4, 4 against Phillips, which included a no-ball, in an 18-run over.The first over after tea brought West Indies some respite as Conway didn’t get enough distance when he tried to launch Hodge over midwicket. Seales ran to his left, grabbing the ball above his head before tossing it in the air and catching it again after crossing the boundary rope and jumping back in.Latham then found the boundary a couple more times en route to a 16th Test century before miscuing a hoick off Hodge that Seales had to dive to catch at deep midwicket.It was an odd day for Williamson. Usually elegant and composed, he kept getting himself into a tangle, especially as he tried to play the reverse-sweep with great abandon. He was getting in position for that shot so early, that on multiple occasions he ended up playing vertical drives down the ground as a left-hander when the bowlers saw him shape up for the reverse and pitched the ball full.Kane Williamson played an innings full of reverse sweeps•Getty Images

Even when he was trying to slog it away or skip down the ground, he was struggling to get any rhythm, but managed to keep the scoreboard ticking. He managed one six and two fours, his only boundaries in a quick knock of 40 off 37 balls.Rachin, meanwhile, found it easier to take on Chase and Hodge, consistently lofting them in the region between midwicket and long-off.King and Campbell had put on 111 in the first innings, and the duo once again gave West Indies team a platform to build on. Even though there is a long time to go in the game, that West Indies will begin the fifth day with all 10 wickets in hand will give them a big boost.Campbell started out watchfully, while King was more enterprising against the new ball. By the time Campbell got off the mark off the 21st ball he faced, King had raced to 35 off 27 with a handful of drives on the off side.However, as the ball got softer and New Zealand switched to spin, even King reined in his instincts and along with Campbell, played the session out, setting up a fifth day where the game could go any way.

Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks has promised manager Rafael Benitez transfer funds this summer despite the uncertainty at boardroom level.

Hicks and fellow American George Gillett put the Reds up for sale last month following three years in charge at Anfield.

The American duo have been criticised by fans for a buyout which placed a huge burden of debt on the club, while the failure to begin work on a proposed new stadium left many supporters calling for their heads.

On the pitch it hasn't been much better after last season's seventh-placed finish in the Premier League left the Reds facing up to prospect of no lucrative place in next year's Champions League.

However, Hicks insists that Benitez will have money to spend this summer and has rejected suggestions that star players Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard could be sold to boost the empty Anfield coffers.

"We have no intention of selling any of our top players and we have a substantial transfer budget in place," said Hicks.

"There's so much misinformation about transfer spending. It's more than doubled under the ownership of George and myself from the previous three years and we will make a significant investment this summer. It's really about getting the right players."

Meanwhile, Hicks has hit out at suggestions that he and Gillett have taken the club backwards during their time on Merseyside.

"There's been so much misinformation put out by people who have their own agendas and it's unfortunate," he told Sky Sports News.

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"But the truth is the club is much better off than it was three years ago.

"We've done our best. I'm disappointed on a personal level that our efforts have not been received as well as I wish they had been."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

It wasn’t until after the Second World War that England officially appointed managers to take charge of the English national team. Previously, FA functionaries and committees picked the squad. The selected players simply had to turn up at the arranged venue and play.

Aside from a pre-match kick-about coaching, training and management was practically non-existent. Club managers, such as Arsenal revolutionary Herbert Chapman, did advise the FA and brought about some sort of structure, but were never given an official post. How things have changed.

In that early period, the FA achieved 138 wins, 37 draws and incurred 51 losses. Quite an impressive return for a governing body with no determining head. So we’ll use that as a standard by which to determine the worst English managers of all time

3. Graham Taylor

Graham Taylor’s managerial ascendency was quite remarkable. Taylor guided Watford to promotion from the Fourth tier in his second year at the club. A year later he achieved promotion again. By 1983, Watford was in the First Division and a year later narrowly lost in the FA Cup final against Everton.

In spite of his success, Taylor was often criticized for his direct style that was based on the premise that the further away the ball was from his own goal, the more chance Watford had of winning. It was a style that was quickly found wanting as his team entered Europe for the first time and the team suffered heavy defeats in the competition.

Despite broadening his horizons slightly at Aston Villa, Taylor’s approach never converted well to the top-flight.

It was a similar story as he turned his hand to international management. As England manager, Taylor struggled to qualify for Euro 92, narrowly doing so in the last game of the group against Poland. In the tournament, however, England failed to win a game, drawing 0-0 against France and Denmark before being dispatched 2-1 by the hosts Sweden.

Taylor managed to win only 18 of his 38 games, drawing an astonishing 13 times.

2. Steve McClaren

The Wally with the brolly.

Following successful spells coaching at Manchester United and managing Middlesbrough – taking the Teesiders to the UEFA Cup final, McClaren became the less than popular replacement for the outgoing Sven Goran Eriksson. The dull, defensive style of football he had become known for at Middlesbrough had won him no fans, but he was seen as a steady figure by several pundits to guide England through a relatively easy European qualifying group.

After a 5-0 win over Andorra in their first group game, England began to look shaky. Although McClaren managed a 1-0 win at in Macedonia, England drew the home tie in an abysmal performance at Old Trafford. England then failed to win their next two games against Croatia and Israel. After making a u-turn over the David Beckham question, the wheels finally came off in consecutive defeats against Russia and, once again, against Croatia. In the shortest run of any permanent English manager, McClaren had managed to win just 7 in 12 games.

1. Kevin Keegan

Putting McClaren’s meager win percentage in the shade, Kevin Keegan managed only 4 wins in 11 competitive games and has by far the worst win percentage of any manager in the England’s history.

Despite the popularity surrounding his appointment in 1999, Keegan’s lack of tactical nous quickly began to show. His remarkable turnaround at Newcastle won him several plaudits, despite defying all logic. However, his brief spell at Fulham should have demonstrated to the FA how incapable the Geordie messiah was when it came to tactical knowhow.

Even though Keegan managed to beat Germany in England’s second group game of Euro 2000, 3-2 defeats to Romania and Portugal sent England on their way home from the finals in disgrace.

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Keegan, typically, resigned from his England post after beginning the 2002 World Cup qualification with a 1-0 defeat to Germany. It was a poignant match that signaled not only the end of Keegan’s reign but also the end of the FA’s insistence that the national teams managers should be English; it was also, of course, the last game played at Wembley.

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The first glimpse Arsenal fans will have of Cesc Fabregas this season will not be at this weekend’s Emirates Cup, being part of the victorious Spain squad has meant the Arsenal captain will still be on holiday during the tournament. Rather Fabregas’ first appearance in front of the Gunners faithful will be on the club’s member’s day on Thursday 5th August, when the squad will be participating in an open training session and fans will have Q&A sessions with the players. Around 10,000 fans are expected to attend the event so it should be a barometer of how Cesc Fabregas is likely to be welcomed after his long flirtation with Barcelona. After stating that he wanted to leave Arsenal for the Catalan club, it will be interesting to see whether any boo’s will be ringing out in the Emirates as Fabregas trains with his teammates.

It is probably a safe bet that some fans will boo Fabregas during the event, however they are likely to be a minority. Most Arsenal fans still love their captain, who has been the team’s talisman in the last few seasons. Most also understand that Barcelona is Fabregas’ boyhood club, and that for him to want to return there is not totally unreasonable. The anger over the summer’s biggest transfer saga is not with Cesc Fabregas, but with the club chasing him; Barcelona. Their open courting of the player where half the squad seemed to say that Fabregas should join them at the Nou Camp has left a bitter taste in the mouth of fans and the club’s hierarchy. As a result of Barcelona’s less than diplomatic overtures, Arsene Wenger and the Arsenal board have refused to budge over the deal. Only a titanic bid would have been considered, and now that Barcelona’s financial problems have come to light this is no longer a viable option for the Spanish giants.

The sole issue that some Arsenal fans will have with Fabregas is the fact that he admitted he wanted to move. Indeed at the beginning of the season some boo’s may be the result of this, but Fabregas always acted with professionalism and never disrespected Arsenal, so any ill feeling is likely to peter out over the season. The shirt incident where Barcelona players Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique ambushed Fabregas by throwing the Barcelona shirt over his head, accompanied by a braying Pepe Reina, will not be something that Arsenal fans use to attack their captain. He was clearly embarrassed by the incident and was not comfortable wearing the shirt; in fact he appeared to be struggling to take it off. Again the event sparked anger not with Cesc Fabregas, but with Puyol, Pique and Pepe Reina, himself a former Barcelona player.

The transfer saga is beginning to mirror that of Cristiano Ronaldo’s protracted move to Real Madrid. Like Barcelona Real Madrid incensed Manchester United with their unhidden desire to sign the player, with the club’s chairman declaring how much he would love to bring Ronaldo to the Bernabeu at any invitation. Like Arsenal, Man Utd subsequently refused to negotiate, and the Portuguese remained at the club for another season. A small minority of United fans showed their displeasure, but this quickly evaporated as Ronaldo played a crucial part in the Red Devils title winning season. Cesc Fabregas will stay at Arsenal this season, and he will be forgiven by the fans, but many now have a feeling this will be the last season their captain plays for the club. Similarly to Cristiano Ronaldo, it is likely that Cesc Fabregas will play one last season in England, before moving to Barcelona next summer. For now though, Arsenal fans will cheering on the club’s skipper as they enter a new season.

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The Chelsea FanCast crew discuss the ‘pre-season friendly’ – aka the Community Shield against the Mancs and look ahead to the real season opener against West Brom on Saturday.

After Four pre-season losses in a row including losing 3-1 to the Mancs in the Community Shield, on paper it doesn’t look too good for the Chelse: losing matches, leaking goals, toothless upfront, no marquee signings…

Shhhtop!!! This team isn’t ready yet!! That’s right, like the old Grolsch adverts, don’t panic – we haven’t started the season proper yet and many of our players have had a total of a week’s pre-season training. Carlo’s not worried so why should we be. In Carlo we trust!! The boys discuss the Community Shield defeat and whether we really should be worried or not.

We’ll also be have a look forward to the real season opener against West Brom and the return of a true Chelsea gent and legend, one Roberto Di Matteo. We also have a look at the latest transfer and other gossip and welcome Ramires to the Blue cause with ten things you didn’t know about Ramieres!

As always, Dr Martin answers your questions in Dear Mart and Chidge reads out the best posts from the website and facebook group in “You’re on CFFC”…

The Chelsea Football FanCast: Good riddance to the Phoney war!

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Ronald Koeman has confirmed his interest in the managerial vacancy at Aston Villa.

The Dutch coach is interested in succeeding Martin O'Neill in the Villa Park hot-seat following the Northern Irishman's decision to step down on the eve of the new Premier League season.

Koeman has been out of work since being sacked by Dutch Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar in December 2009.

The former Netherlands international has spent time in charge of Vitesse, Ajax, PSV, Benfica and Valencia since turning to coaching in 1999.

"I'm interested in the position of manager from Villa. I know that I'm on their list," he told Dutch media.

"I don't know how many more candidates are on that list. But I haven't had contact yet with Villa."

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O'Neill walked away from Villa Park last week having seemingly become frustrated by a perceived lack of funds to try and strengthen his squad.

Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, Ajax boss Martin Jol and United States coach Bob Bradley have all been linked with the job in recent days.Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

In the week where Tottenham confirmed the controversial signing of William Gallas, it is another former Chelsea and Arsenal player that Spurs are after, but this time there cannot be any split opinions

Lassana Diarra has been told he can leave Real Madrid and his former boss Harry Redknapp is keen to add him to his current Spurs squad as they prepare to embark on their first ever UEFA Champions League adventure. Despite the addition of Brazilian starlet Sandro to an already strong center midfield, it is clear that Redknapp is keen to bring in one more before the transfer window shuts at the end of this month after also declaring interest in West Ham’s Scott Parker

When comparing Diarra to Parker, it is like having the option to buy a Porsche cheaper than a Ford Focus. £15million for a player that gets credit from the media simply due to what it says next to ‘nationality’ on his passport is ludicrous compared to £9million for someone of Diarra’s quality. But wait a second I hear you cry, Parker is a good, competitive old fashioned midfielder. But then again if you were dating a girl who was not the most pleasant on the eye would you say you that or would you say she has a wonderful personality? A “good, competitive old fashioned midfielder” is just a nicer way of saying “not a great player but works hard”, but enough about Parker.

When Real Madrid signed ‘Lass’ in January 2009 for £20million, Spurs and all of the other teams who wanted him thought that there chance was gone as he would go on to become a Madrid icon, when he became their player of the season in just six months those thoughts were seemingly confirmed. But we all should have known better with Real Madrid being the notorious talent-wasters; they made the same mistake with Claude Makelele and Esteban Cambiasso which took them until they signed Diarra to find such an able holding midfielder… and they are about to do it again

Similarly, Wilson Palacios joined Spurs at the same time as he joined Real and had an instant impact, winning over his new supporters and teammates with some pulsating performances. The Honduran added to Spurs what they had been missing for a number of years, determination, bite and a genuine presence in midfield. The Champions League dream would not have been possible without his contribution and must be acknowledged but his dip in form in the last half of the season plus Luka Modric’s superb displays alongside Tom Huddlestone in the big games means that he is no longer a guaranteed starter.

Looking at Spurs’ strength in that position it would be wrong to sign anyone, unless they were signing a world class player, and that is exactly what they would be getting with Diarra. One of the best in his position, impeccable at recuperating the ball and knows how to build up play from deep positions. He is not just the new Makelele, I genuinely believe he is his clone.

A problem stated by Redknapp was that his wages could be a problem in reaching an agreement as he earns around £110,000 a-week but this is a player whose normal value is double the suggested £9m Real are asking, that saving alone should be worth meeting his wage demands.

An opportunity not to be missed for Tottenham, a player whose impact would improve the team greatly. Now to sign a top class striker, Adebayor anyone?

Written By Andrew Vou

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