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Xabi Alonso has taken a massive gamble on Kylian Mbappe as the Frenchman has been included in the Real Madrid squad to face Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday night. The manager is fighting to save his job in the Spanish capital and needs a positive result to ease the pressure. Mbappe missed training on Tuesday due to an injury, but is still in line to feature against City at the Bernabeu.

• Mbappe named in matchday squad for City clash

  Mbappe, who has been the club’s talisman this season, sat out Tuesday’s public session alongside compatriot Eduardo Camavinga, prompting speculation about whether the forward would be available for selection. Spanish radio outlet reported that Mbappe had suffered a problem in his left leg, which further spread panic among fans. But Real boss Alonso has moved to quash the uncertainty by including the 26-year-old in the official matchday squad, confirming he will at least take a place among the substitutes at the Bernabeu.

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  Mbappe's dominance and Madrid’s dependence

  Mbappe has been Madrid’s heartbeat in the 2025-26 campaign. With 25 goals across all competitions, plus four Champions League assists, he is on track to surpass Cristiano Ronaldo’s record for most goals (69) in a calendar year for the club. In La Liga, he has been responsible for half of Madrid’s total goals, and a scarcely believable 75 per cent  in Europe. His last Champions League outing was a four-goal masterpiece against Olympiacos, underlining both his brilliance and Madrid’s reliance on him. 

  Alonso’s decision to include Mbappe in the squad comes at a moment when his own position is under intense scrutiny. Madrid’s 2-0 home defeat to Celta Vigo on Sunday was catastrophic, extending a bleak run of just two wins in seven matches across all competitions. The loss was compounded by two red cards, shown to Alvaro Carreras and Fran García, and a serious muscle injury to centre-back Eder Militao, who is expected to be sidelined for up to four months. The result widened the gap to Barcelona at the top of La Liga to four points and ignited further speculation that Alonso’s reign could be terminated if City inflict another damaging defeat. Reports in Madrid suggest this match, against Pep Guardiola’s side, may be his final chance to steady a season veering off course. 

  However, a defiant Alonso is not ready to throw in the towel. He said: "We are all in the same boat. We have to go through positive and negative times. We need to believe the next game is an opportunity, and tomorrow we have a very exciting game for all of us, and we need to keep our eyes open to have that energy so the Bernabeu enjoys what it sees. Communication [with the board] is constant. We are united, we are all together in this, and I have a good relationship with them."

• Plan 'Endrick’ prepared as cover for Mbappe

  With Mbappe missing training and doubts lingering over his physical condition, Alonso spent Tuesday working closely with teenage forward Endrick. The Brazilian, who has struggled for minutes since arriving in the summer, received special tips from the manager, which indicated that he could play a meaningful role against City. dubbed the tactical contingency "Plan Endrick" with the 18-year-old expected either to start or come from the bench for his first appearance since November 1. Gonzalo García, who has featured more regularly this season, is another attacking alternative if Mbappe is unable to lead the line. But the focus remains firmly on the Frenchman. Without him at full tilt, Madrid’s prospects appear worryingly diminished.

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  Madrid aim for collective strength amid injury crisis

  Whether Mbappe will feature from the start is still unknown. Alonso, under enormous pressure and staring down a make-or-break moment in his turbulent reign, may yet opt to gamble on the fitness of a player who has carried his team almost single-handedly through the season. He is already missing several defenders like Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dean Huijsen, Dani Carvajal and Militao as Madrid’s back line has been ravaged by injury. Hence, it was no surprise when midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni acknowledged the challenge of containing City’s attacking threat, especially that of Erling Haaland. 

  "If we don't win games, it's because we have to do things better with and without the ball, with commitment from everyone and play better in defence and attack. We hope to improve and win more games because what's happening now cannot go on," he said.

  "We're all together. If we want to win games, we all have to fight, coach and team in the same direction. It's us who are on the pitch, and we have to do things better out there. We have a good opportunity to change the dynamic and pick up more points in the Champions League."

From reverse to paddle, she used all sorts of sweeps to counter Bangladesh’s spinners and help her team register their first win of the World Cup

Sruthi Ravindranath10-Oct-20253:24

Devine finds support as New Zealand open account

For the third consecutive game in the 2025 Women’s World Cup, New Zealand found themselves in strife. They were 38 for 3 and Bangladesh’s spinners on top when Brooke Halliday walked in. It wasn’t the first time they had relied on her to stabilise things this World Cup. Tentative at first, she scratched her way to 8 off 21 balls, probing forward, going back, trying to find her rhythm.Then came the release.Fahima Khatun floated one wide outside off, and Halliday pounced. A reverse sweep, perfectly placed past short third, for four to break the pressure. From there, she swept with authority – conventional, reverse, paddle – nullifying the threat of Bangladesh’s spinners, who have been excellent all tournament. Her 69 off 104 balls became the backbone of New Zealand’s first win of the competition.Related

• Devine, Halliday, bowlers give NZ their first win of the World Cup

It wasn’t a shot pulled out on instinct. She has been trying to perfect the sweep over the past year. It was pivotal during her tour of India in late 2024, where she posted her career-best 86 in the third ODI in Ahmedabad, collecting 22 runs off 11 sweep shots, including two boundaries and a six. Earlier this week, against South Africa, she again turned to it, sweeping Chloe Tryon twice to the boundary during a 37-ball 45.With New Zealand not playing an ODI in the last six months, Halliday spent the winter at the CSK academy in Chennai, honing the sweep against spin. Ahead of this clash, she worked with net bowlers to sharpen the shot. On Friday, all that prep came good.Brooke Halliday and Sophie Devine put on a century stand•Getty Images”That [sweep] is something I did try and practice a lot in Chennai just with the turning ball,” she said during the presentation, after collecting her Player-of-the-Match award. “The perks of the last couple of days is that we’ve had a lot of net bowlers who actually bowled quite similar to what we got today. Being able to figure out how we were going to play certain bowlers and then just today going out there and watching the ball and just having an idea of how things were going to go.”In a batting line-up stacked with right-handers, Halliday’s presence as the lone left-hander was always going to be pivotal, especially against Bangladesh’s spin-heavy attack featuring a left-arm spinner and two legspinners. Her ability to play the sweep and disrupt their rhythm proved invaluable.With Sophie Devine at the other end, Halliday kept the scoreboard ticking. The left-right combination forced field changes and unsettled Bangladesh’s bowlers. While Devine preferred hanging back and playing off the back foot, Halliday played sweeps of all kinds. The two added 112 for the fourth wicket, during which Halliday also passed 1000 career ODI runs.Her third boundary of the day, against offspinner Nishita Akter Nishi, came with a paddle sweep. And when Shorna Akter tossed one into the slot, Halliday got down and slog-swept it for a six over midwicket. In all, according to ESPNcricinfo’s data, she played 15 sweeps, scoring 29 runs off them. No batter at this World Cup has scored more runs via the sweep shots of all types than Halliday. She now has 45 off 21 deliveries with the shot, well ahead of India’s Richa Ghosh, who has 28 off eight.But the sweep remains a double-edged sword, also bringing her downfall. She was dismissed sweeping in Ahmedabad off Deepti Sharma, then again against South Africa off Nonkululeko Mlaba. On Friday, it was the same script: having just swept Fahima for four, she attempted the shot again, only to top-edge to the wicketkeeper.”It wasn’t easy to bat out there”•AFP/Getty Images”I’ve got out to it a couple of times now but I’ve also been able to hit a few runs with it,” she said. “So there’s a lot of perks with being able to expand my game and just get a little bit better.”New Zealand are headed to Colombo, where they play Pakistan and Sri Lanka, two more spin-heavy sides. Halliday hopes to take the learnings from her last two innings into those games.”The biggest thing over the last couple of days after that last match was being okay with getting ones and being quite boring. I went out there again with Sophie, so we kind of knew what the plan was: to just try and bat for a very long time to that 40th over and then from there hopefully we can have a bit of a party time, which I failed to get to but Sophie was able to capitalise a little bit.”It wasn’t just Bangladesh’s spinners that Halliday had to negotiate. The heat and humidity in Guwahati added to the challenge. Dripping with sweat, she dug in for what turned into one of her most important ODI innings.”It wasn’t easy to bat out there,” she said. “I think the mental side of it was very tough and then also the physical side kind of hit us a little bit later on. There was a time when Sophie and I both were going, ‘Oh my goodness, single hitting is actually quite hard.’ There’s always a part of us that actually just wants to hit a boundary or two. Sophie is really clear and keeps it really simple, which kind of works for me.”Since her debut in 2021, Halliday has occupied the middle order quietly, operating under the radar in a side where the spotlight usually falls on Suzie Bates, Devine, or Amelia Kerr. But she has made a habit of standing up when it counts. Her 38 off 28 against South Africa in the 2024 T20 World Cup final was one such occasion. On Friday, she delivered again, batting New Zealand out of trouble to put their campaign back on track.

Authoritative displays in Lilac Hill warm-up have ended the speculation leading into Perth Test

Vithushan Ehantharajah16-Nov-2025The debate as to who will bat No.3 for England in the first Ashes Test has been all but settled with Ollie Pope’s standout performance in the warm-up match against England Lions locking up his familiar spot for Friday’s opener in Perth.Scores of 100 and 90 saw Pope emerge from Lilac Hills in credit, hurdling the challenge put forward by Jacob Bethell, who scored 3 and 70. Named in the England side for the warm-up match while Bethell was carded three for the Lions, Pope was comfortably the best batter on show across both innings. He looked more composed, and authoritative, even if this match was a far cry from the intensity the tourists will experience at the Optus Stadium from November 21.It effectively ended what has been months of speculation over Pope’s place in the side for the start of this Australia tour. Initial doubts were triggered by Bethell’s form at the back end of the summer, including a maiden professional century in an ODI against South Africa. They then gained momentum when Pope was ditched as Test vice-captain for Harry Brook. “I respect the decision they’ve made,” Pope said. “If they think that’s the right thing for the team going forward, and obviously Brooky captaining the one-day stuff and the T20 stuff as well, then that’s absolutely fine by me and I respect the decision they’ve made.”Perhaps spurred on further by the loss of an official leadership role, Pope reinforced his reliability on the eve of the biggest Ashes series in generations. Along with an accomplished body of work at No.3 – averaging 41.60 from 57 innings since the promotion up the order, while scoring eight of his nine career centuries – he feels confident this week has ended speculation, in his favour.”I hope so,” Pope said, when asked if he had ended the debate. “I’ve got so used to those conversations being had (about the No.3 position). I don’t go looking for them but it’s pretty hard to avoid sometimes. I’m so used to seeing it, I’ve just learned to focus on my game.Related

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“I’m just trying to become a better player each time I step out and that’s all I can do. Fingers crossed to get the nod, but all the trust is in those guys and I respect the decision they make.”Pope revealed he had made a few technical tweaks which he was workshopping this week, though was unwilling to disclose what they were ahead of the series. However, he did acknowledge the challenge posed by Bethell had narrowed his focus.Both have been pitted against one another since Bethell impressed on his maiden tour of New Zealand in 2024. That opportunity was ultimately provided by Pope, who ceded the No.3 position so he could bat lower and keep wicket after an injury to Jordan Cox in the lead-up to the series, with Jamie Smith on paternity leave.It was a selfless act from Pope that, in hindsight, looked a grave error. But he believes dealing with the extra scrutiny and fighting for his place will serve him well. Amid the huge clamour for Bethell to start against India last summer, Pope struck 106 in his first innings of the series. “It’s been good for me that I’ve learnt that, under the most pressure, I’ve been able to deliver, especially in that Headingley Test. I know that I can learn how to deal with that and get the best out of myself at times.”Everyone wants to be the first name on the team sheet, that’s pretty clear. But at the same time we’re playing international sport. I’ve got to remind myself of that at times – there’s always going to be someone on your heel if you haven’t quite scored the volume of runs that you would have liked.”I’ll try and use the pressure I’m under to get the best out of myself. I think I’m a far better player than I was the last time I came out to Australia. I’ve got those experiences behind me and I know how I want to go about it. So fingers crossed that I can deliver with a lot of runs.”In truth, Pope only really had one way to go after that last tour. A torturous 2021-22 campaign saw him average 11.16 from six innings. He played the first two Tests before being axed, only to be brought back for the last match in Hobart, which Australia won to confirm a 4-0 hammering.Can Pope make this tour count? Time will tell, but the signs are promising. He has faith in the batting improvements he is keeping close to his chest, and, for the first time in a year, has certainty over his place. He may also enjoy the liberation of not having to wonder if he might have to captain, in the event Stokes gets injured, having done so five times in the space of 12 months. Whatever happens, he is raring to go again.”Everyone is just so excited for it,” he said. “There’s obviously a lot of chat from the media, everywhere you look it’s Ashes, and for us it is enjoy that, enjoy the experience of it. But let’s just remember what’s made us a real good side over the last few years, and hopefully if I do get the nod on Friday, then it’s going to be an amazing series to be a part of.”

Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher has had his say on Tottenham and their managerial situation this week amid the pressure on Thomas Frank.

Tottenham urged to replace Frank after underwhelming start

Frank’s troubled tenure at Tottenham received a dramatic lifeline on Tuesday night as captain Cristian Romero’s shinned overhead kick in added time salvaged a 2-2 draw at Newcastle, ending a run of three consecutive defeats across all competitions.

The Argentine defender twice hauled Spurs back from behind at St James’ Park, first with a lovely diving header at the near post on 78 minutes before his bicycle kick rescued a point that looked unlikely when Anthony Gordon buried a controversial penalty just four minutes from full-time.

Despite the heroics, last night’s result does little to ease the mounting pressure on Frank, with certain sections of supporters still urging the board to make a change.

Tottenham remain 11th in the Premier League table with 19 points, having failed to win any of their last five matches across all competitions, and their performance in the North East wasn’t exactly convincing.

Their creativity problems persisted, with Spurs having just two shots on target that turned out to be both of Romero’s goals.

Reports suggest that the Lewis family, who recently pumped £100 million of capital into the club via ENIC shareholdings, are prepared to back Frank with new attackers in January to solve this glaring issue.

Tottenham are believed to be eyeing a move for Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo, amid news of his £65 million release clause which will be active in the early stages of January.

Spurs are also ‘intent’ on trying to sign FC Porto sensation Samu Aghehowa, who’s scored 37 goals since the start of last season and has been compared to former Chelsea star Diego Costa.

Tottenham could prove 'irresistible' to manager who Levy was urged to hire before Frank

He’s on the verge of leaving his current club.

1

By
Emilio Galantini

Dec 2, 2025

However, doubts around Frank’s suitability for the job are ever-present among critics, with ex-Spurs defender Ramon Vega recently claiming that the Dane doesn’t have what it takes to lead the north Londoners.

Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner is believed to be a tactician of interest to Tottenham, but Carragher believes that another Premier League manager would fit in seamlessly.

Jamie Carragher says he's always imagined Marco Silva at Tottenham

Speaking on the latest edition of The Overlap podcast, Carragher suggests that Fulham’s Marco Silva is potentially a match made in heaven.

The Portuguese, who’s out of contract in 2026, has worked wonders on a shoe-string budget after guiding the west Londoners back to Premier League football in 2022.

Fulham even briefly contended for a Champions League place last season, with the Cottagers now six points clear of the drop zone despite spending less than any other English side bar Aston Villa in the summer.

Those who’ve worked with Silva have called him a ‘master’ tactician as well, so you can’t help but wonder if the 48-year-old would do a better job in Frank’s stead.

With little sign of a contract extension, and Silva consistently criticising Fulham’s transfer policy in recent seasons, the door could well open for Spurs here.

John Campbell scores West Indies’ first Test century of the year, while Shai Hope ends 2968 days to move from century No. 2 to century No. 3

Shubh Agarwal14-Oct-202510 – The number of consecutive series wins for India against West Indies, starting in 2002. India have now levelled the record for most successive series wins against an opponent alongside South Africa, who have the same 10-0 record against West Indies starting 1998.This was also India’s 27th Test in a row without a defeat against West Indies, the most for them against a single opposition. The last time they lost a Test to West Indies was in 2002.14 – India’s unbeaten Test-match streak in Delhi. The last time India lost a Test in Delhi was in 1987 against West Indies. Since 1993, India have played 14 Tests in Delhi with 12 wins and two draws.With the latest result, Delhi went past Mohali (13 Tests since 1997) and Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium (13 Tests between 1948 and 1965) for India’s longest unbeaten streaks.7 – The number of Test wins Dhruv Jurel has been a part of in his brief international career, the most for any Indian cricketer from debut. Jurel made his debut in the Rajkot Test against England in early 2024 and has been on the winning side in each of his seven Tests. Earlier, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was part of the winning camp in his first six Tests.13 – The number of wickets India lost in this series, the joint-lowest for them in a series win of two matches or more. Earlier, India defeated Zimbabwe 1-0 in the two-match home series in 2000 losing only 13 wickets.122 – Number of Test wins for India at home. India have now gone third on the tally for most home Test wins, going one above South Africa (121) and are only behind England (241) and Australia (262).390 – West Indies registered their first 300-plus total in 2025. The last time they crossed the 300-run mark in an innings was eight Test matches ago – in the first Test against Bangladesh in 2024. It was also the last time they batted more than 80 overs (which they also did in the first innings of this Test), had a 100-run partnership, and a century-maker in an innings.50 – It took John Campbell his 50th Test innings to mark his first Test hundred. Only Ridley Jacobs (56) and Denesh Ramdin (52) had taken more innings among West Indies cricketers to score their first Test centuries. Among all opening batters in Test history, only South Africa’s Trevor Goddard had a longer wait for a maiden century – 59 innings.More notably, Campbell is also the first West Indies batter to score a hundred this year. Justin Greaves scored the last hundred for West Indies in the North Sound Test in 2024. The last West Indies batter to score a Test century in India was Shamarh Brooks, but not against India – 111 vs Afghanistan in Lucknow in 2019.2968 – The number of days Shai Hope had to wait for his third Test century. Since his twin hundreds in Leeds in 2017, Hope had been in and out of the side. Returning to the Test team after a four-year gap, Hope finally got into the three-digits again. Creating an unwanted West Indies record, he went past Gordon Greenidge’s wait of 2204 days for a Test hundred between April 1977 and April 1983.

“Eventually the pressure kept on building in the second innings and we couldn’t capitalise,” says India’s stand-in captain Rishabh Pant

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Nov-20253:22

Philander: Bavuma ‘a wonderful inspiration’

“I am not a stats man, I am a win man,” Simon Harmer said when asked by Murali Kartik in the post-match presentation about his returns: his 8 for 51 is the best by a South Africa spinner in a Test in India and second only to Dale Steyn’s 10 for 108 back in 2010.The other South Africans at Eden Gardens could say the same. They started the third day staring at a crisis. They fought their way out of it with the bat, led by Temba Bavuma and Corbin Bosch, and then had Marco Jansen first and then Harmer running through the opposition.All India had in front of them was a target of 124. They only got 93.Related

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“A game like this, you can’t dwell into it too much, because… we should have been able to chase this score, but eventually the pressure kept on building in the second innings and we couldn’t capitalise,” Rishabh Pant, standing in as captain in Shubman Gill’s absence, said. “Definitely there was help in the wicket, a [target] of 120 can be tricky on these kinds of surfaces, but at the same time, as a team we should be able to soak in the pressure.”He pointed to the morning session when South Africa, resuming on 93 for 7, added 60 more runs. “That was the turning point,” Pant said. “Temba and Bosch had a brilliant partnership in the morning and that got them back in the game and that hurt us too much at the end of the game.”Bavuma isn’t the sort to talk big, so he kept it simple.”It was about awareness. Second innings, I didn’t change too much. Fortunately I have played in India before, so I kind of understand the little bit of adjustment that you need to make, and luck also plays a part,” he said of his innings of 55 not out, the only half-century in a game where no innings touched 200.”The captaincy, you are only as good as the players. That I give it to them. Batting, I am just comfortable with myself. And technique: not to worry about trigger and all those types of things. I stand as still as I can, watch the ball. I have a decent understanding of my game. I have come here to India wanting to do well. Not the greatest of records when it comes to these conditions. There’s a bit of that exuberance from my side to see myself doing well in these conditions and implement all the little things that I’m trying here, and keep contributing for the team.”The partnership with Bosch, I think with Marco as well at the end of the day [yesterday], just gave a little bit of impetus. The wicket played a bit better this morning, wasn’t as extreme. We tried to stay in the game as much as we could. It is not all the time that you score 120-125 and that’s a winning score. I think it was a case of staying in the game and keep believing.”Contribute he did, and then turned to his bowlers.3:40

Did India let South Africa off the hook in the morning?

“Very exciting. We want to be a part of these games and be on the right side of the result. We tried to hold on to our nerves as much as we could,” Bavuma said. “It was tough for us and we needed the bowlers to exploit what was there and the guys did that beautifully. We were able to change our bowlers frequently and that worked for us.”If Harmer is to be believed, the conditions got a bit tougher for him on the third day.”Today, I felt it probably got a little bit flatter as the ball got softer. It wasn’t exploding as much. I was asking myself some really hard questions,” he said. “Nice to contribute. I have been here before and it was a dark place, losing [three out of four Tests in 2015]. So to get here, to be behind the eight-ball again, and for the team to fight the way they did, shows where this group is and what they are capable of and the belief that they have.”I knew I needed to bowl well. I think it was the same when we were batting – it felt like we were one partnership away from getting ourselves into the game. It was the same with ball in hand. We knew we were one partnership away from getting really close. I just needed to try and put as many balls in the right areas and trust that the wicket would do its bit.”

A number of Sheffield Wednesday’s takeover candidates are now reportedly considering a fresh move to get the sale of the club over the line.

Sheffield Wednesday dealt fresh point deduction

Despite the fact that Dejphon Chansiri is no longer at the club and Sheffield Wednesday are in administration, they’re still facing the consequences for the actions of their former owner. The EFL confirmed earlier this week that the Owls have been dealt a further six-point deduction on top of the initial 12 points that they had deducted.

It’s frustrating news for Wednesday, who were already destined for League One. Administrators will now be hoping to hand supporters some better news regarding the club’s takeover process.

So far, bids have arrived and been rejected from the likes of Mike Ashley, who is looking to get back into English football for the first time since leaving Newcastle United.

Administrators initially set a soft deadline of December 5, but it remains to be seen whether they can actually stick to that on Thursday. Instead, the Owls’ pain may be prolonged as candidates prepare to take a new approach to takeover attempts.

Sheffield Wednesday candidates considering joint bid

As reported by City AM, a number of candidates are considering a joint bid to buy Sheffield Wednesday to get the takeover across the line. The Championship club reportedly have six bidders on the table, but could see some of those opt to join forces to match their £30m valuation.

Sheffield-born takeover candidate makes key contact in race to buy Sheffield Wednesday

He could buy his local club.

By
Tom Cunningham

Nov 26, 2025

As things stand, there is no clear favourite to buy the club and Begbies Traynor’s initial deadline is likely to be pushed back until at least next week.

In the meantime, the Owls could continue looking at the free agent market. Although they are yet to welcome new owners, those at Hillsborough have already signed both Nathan Redmond and former Leeds United man Liam Cooper.

Whether it’s joint-bidders or just the one candidate in the coming weeks, Sheffield Wednesday’s new owners will instantly have their eye on success in League One next season following the club’s inevitable relegation.

Earning instant promotion back to the Championship whilst finally adding financial stability to the club should be top of the wishlist of the new owners.

Simon Jordan reveals Sheffield Wednesday "consortium" as next takeover step shared