sportsbuff

[sportsbuff]

January Transfer Window 2023 - Update

Premier League 2022-2023

January transfer window update for all you sports buffs.

AFC Bournemouth

Out

Ferdinand Okoh (Dorchester) 

James Hill (Hearts) 

Arsenal

Out

Brooke Norton-Cuffy (Coventry)

Miguel Azeez (Wigan)

Arthur Okonkwo (Sturm Graz)

Ovie Ejeheri (SJK Seinajoki)

Aston Villa

In

Aaron Ramsey (loan recall) 

Tyreik Wright (loan recall) 

Alex Moreno (Real Betis)

Out

Cameron Archer (Middlesbrough) 

Tyreik Wright (Plymouth Argyle) 

Jhon Duran (Chicago Fire) 

Frederic Guilbert (RC Strasbourg) 

Indiana Vassilev (St. Louis City SC) 

Brentford

In

Byron Wilson (Coventry) 

Conor McManus (Bray Wanderers) 

Fin Stevens (loan recall) 

Mads Bech (loan recall) 

Beaux Booth (Dorking) 

Kevin Schade (Freiburg) 

Paris Maghoma (loan recall) 

Romeo Beckham (Inter Miami) 

Out

Myles Peart-Harris (Forest Green Rovers) Loan extension 

Aaron Pressley (Accrington) 

Lachlan Brook (Crewe) Loan extension 

Edon Pruti (Hartlepool) 

Mads Bech (Groningen)

Brighton & Hove Albion

In 

Facundo Buonanotte (Rosario Central) 

Jamie Mullins (Bohemians) 

Out

Aaron Connolly (Hull) 

Reda Khadra (Birmingham) 

Ed Turns (Leyton Orient) 

James Beadle (Crewe Alexandra) 

Chelsea

In

David Datro Fofana (Molde) 

Benoit Badiashile (Monaco) 

Andrey Santos (Vasco da Gama) 

Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid) 

Mykhailo Mudryk (Shakhtar Donetsk) 

Crystal Palace

Out

Killian Phillips (Shrewsbury) 

Jack Butland (Man Utd) 

John-Kymani Gordon (Carlise) 

Malcolm Ebiowei (Hull) 

Everton

In

Ellis Simms (loan recall) 

Nathan Broadhead (loan recall) 

Niels Nkounkou (loan recall) 

Out

Salomon Rondon (released) 

Nathan Broadhead (Ipswich) 

Tom Cannon (Preston) 

Niels Nkounkou (Saint-Etienne) 

Fulham

In

Anthony Knockaert (loan recall) 

Out

Idris Odutayo (Maidenhead) Loan extension 

Anthony Knockaert (Huddersfield) 

Ibane Bowat (Den Bosch) 

Leeds United

In

Max Wober (RB Salzburg) 

Georginio Rutter (Hoffenheim) 

Out

Mateusz Klich (MLS pending) 

Alfie McCalmont (Carlisle) 

Leo Hjelde (Rotherham) 

Leicester City

In

George Hirst (loan recall) 

Out

George Hirst (Ipswich) 

Ben Nelson (Doncaster) 

Liverpool

In

Cody Gakpo (PSV) 

Billy Koumetio (loan recall) 

Max Woltman (loan recall) 

Jakub Ojrzynski (loan recall) 

Out

Jake Cain (Swindon Town) 

Manchester City

In

Liam Delap (loan recall) 

Out

Josh Wilson-Esbrand (Coventry) 

Liam Delap (Preston) 

Kayky (Bahia) 

Manchester United

In

Jack Butland (Crystal Palace) 

Wout Weghorst (Burnley) 

Out

Martin Dubravka (loan recall) 

Newcastle United

In

Amadou Diallo (free) 

Garang Kuol (Central Coast Mariners) 

Martin Dubravka (loan recall) 

Out

Garang Kuol (Hearts)

Nottingham Forest

In

Danilo (Palmeiras) 

Gustavo Scarpa (Palmeiras) 

Alex Mighten (loan recall) 

Out

Loic Bade (loan recall) 

Southampton

In

Mislav Orsic (Dinamo Zagreb) 

Carlos Alcaraz (Racing Club) 

Out

Dynel Simeu (Morecambe) 

Dan Nlundulu (Bolton) 

Nico Lawrence (Torquay) 

West Ham United

In

Luizao (Sao Paulo)

Armstrong Okoflex (loan recall) 

Out

Thierry Nevers (Bradford) 

Wolverhampton Wanderers

In

Matheus Cunha (Atletico Madrid)

Joe Young (loan recall) 

Louie Moulden (loan recall) 

Theo Corbeanu (loan recall) 

Christian Marques (loan recall) 

Lewis Richards (loan recall) 

Mario Lemina (Nice) 

Pablo Sarabia (Paris Saint-Germain) 

Out

Leo Bonatini (released)

Joe Young (Telford)

#premier league #transfer #football #sportsbuff4u

[sportsbuff]

Last matchweek of the year 2022…

Premier League - Matchweek 18

Wish you all sports buffs a very happy new year & welcome to the first blog of the year 2023.

Matchweek 18 - in the premier league 

It was a good day in the office for Brentford, Liverpool, Manchester United, crystal palace, Fulham & Arsenal as they win their respective clashes. Manchester City and Newcastle United finally too break from winning as they both drew the matches 

Ivan Toney scored 1 and assist 1 goal to give Brentford an advantage over West Ham United which was enough to close the match on the winning side. Brentford continues to impress with their performance whereas West Ham United need to make comeback in the remaining matches to negotiate relegation this season.

Liverpool managed to get a close win all thanks to Faes who scored 2 own goals 1 cancelled the lead taken by Dewsbury-Hall in 4 minutes of the game and 1 helped Liverpool close the game with a win. Looks like destiny has changed for Liverpool and this will help make the league competitive.

Manchester United managed to win the game with 1 goal thanks to new form-found winger Rashford who was substituted by Ten Haag post a poor performance by Garnacho in the first half. Wolverhampton Wanderers is one more team who is struggling with form this season and they need to up their game to avoid relegation.

Crystal Palace also won in post world cup season with Ayew & Eze scoring 1 each and Olise providing an assist to both goals. The 21-year midfielder Olise continues to impress in managing the midfield well and has a bright future for the club and national team.

Fulham continues their dream run in the premier league & got the win against Southampton while their star striker Mitrovic missed a penalty still Fulham managed to win the match thanks to Southampton captain Ward-Prowse who managed to score 2 goals for both sides (Fulham as well as Southampton).

Manchester City drew their match against Everton who somehow managed to stop the Manchester City attack on the city's home ground. Manchester City managed to grow 7 points gap between the league leaders.

Newcastle United managed a draw against Leeds United. the current form didn't help Newcastle United to go past Leeds defence.

Arsenal is riding on their form and bullying every opponent coming their way, Brighton did fight back but the fight was not enough to defeat Arsenal and Arsenal did manage to get a win and increase their points tally to 43 Points

Aston Villa managed to win their game against Tottenham Hotspur to keep Tottenham's roller-coaster run continuing, Aston Villa without their primary goalkeeper managed to keep a clean sheet against the Tottenham attack. Buendia and Douglas Luiz scored to give Aston Villa a win against Tottenham.

Chelsea managed to draw their game against Nottingham Forest. Sterling scored a goal after 4 Months of a goal drought. Thiago Silva is the best player in Chelsea kit in a currently lot of players. Nottingham Forest gave a good fightback in the second half which yielded a goal for them. It is been 7 years since Chelsea won the new year's match week game and it continues. Poor performance by Chelsea in the second half. Champions League looks difficult for Chelsea in 2nd half.

That's it from the premier league match week 18. Keep looking for this space for match week 19 analysis.

#premier league #matchweek18 #chelsea #manchester united #manchester city #arsenal #liverpool #sportsbuff4u

[sportsbuff]

Wish you all sports buffs a very happy new year.

Thank you 2022, you gave a lot. Welcome 2023 for a lot to achieve.

#new year #sportsbuff4u #2022 to 2023 #newgoals

[sportsbuff]

Old days are back

Premier League - Matchweek 17

To continue analyzing premier league match-week 17 where we left off. 

Chelsea vs AFC Bournemouth gave an expected result in favour of Chelsea. Good start I must say to Chelsea and potter post 6 weeks break. Players were fresh and ready to roll in the match. Reece James started the match and his starting the match makes Chelsea look on to another level. Unfortunately, he got injured in the match and post his substitution Chelsea again looked rusty for the last few minutes. To start the goal scoring the frontline of Chelsea looked good except for Pulisic. Zakaria had to fill big shoes in absence of Kante and Kovacic but he had a good game and he hold the midfield well with Jorginho in the double pivot. Havertz finally managed to show his class this season and scored a goal that will make any striker proud. A finish which Chelsea was missing for so long. Mount bend one in the right corner to give Chelsea their second goal. Bournemouth had their moments in the match but they couldn’t capture them and that resulted in a loss.

We saw regrouped Manchester United post the Ronaldo interview before going on the World Cup break. The midfield and attack were in perfect sync, resulting in a 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest. A clever pass by Eriksen to Rashford from the corner and an excellent finish by Rashford resulted in the first goal. For the second goal, Rashford managed to provide an assist to Martial who scored the second goal for Manchester United in just 3 minutes. Casemiro showed his class in the entire game and was the Player of the match who ended the match with an assist to Fred who scored the third goal for Manchester United to close the game.

Haaland continue to add to his tally with the brace he scored against Leeds United. Manchester City started the post-break league season with Rodri scoring their first goal. For the second goal, Jack Grealish and Haaland combined together for Haaland to tap into the net and the same duo again combined to give Manchester City’s third goal. Pascal Struijk scored a header to give the home side a consolation goal. This means Manchester City is again back in 2nd spot behind Arsenal.

That’s a wrap for match week 17 in the premier league. We will be back with match week 18 on 31st December and 1st Jan. 

Keep looking for this space for more sports updates…………

#premier league #chelsea #bournemouth #manchester united #nottingham forest #manchester city #leeds united #football #sportsbuff4u

[sportsbuff]

League season is back……………

Premier League - Matchweek 17

A warm welcome to all football fans around the world, the world cup has just finished and we have a new world cup winner. World cup managed to unite the fans to support their respective nations. Now that the world cup is over, fans will return to their respective domestic leagues to support their domestic teams. we will be covering in detail analysis of the Premier League and score updates from other leagues like La Liga, League 1, Bundesliga and Indian super league.

The premier league started with an excellent match between Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur. Brentford took lead early in the match to start the dominance at home, but the controversial decision went in favour of Brentford and Kane didn't get the penalty. but Kane redeemed himself with a wonderful header to the far corner and Hojbjerg equalizes with 2nd goal. A good match to start the league.

Crystal Palace vs Fulham match saw 2 red cards to the home team and Fulham is continuing the good form they have shown in the premier league. Mitrovic is having good times in the forward line and has started the post-break league with a goal. 

Everton started the campaign on a losing note Podence scored after a long time. Yari Mina gave Everton the lead but they couldn't hold on to it. Ait Nouri helped the wolves to close out the game on the winning side in 90+5 minutes.

Newcastle United is continuing the dream run with the deadly combo of Almiron scoring the goal and Trippier providing yet another assist. Newcastle took an early lead of 3 goals in the first half and continued on to it to finish the game with a clean sheet.

Southampton looked rusty to start the game and Brighton took advantage of that to score 2 goals, while Southampton gave 1 goal to Brighton in the form of an own goal. to add to the misery of Southampton their most reliable player ward-prawse missed a penalty. it was a complete disaster match for Southampton.

Aston Villa vs Liverpool match did have all the flavours of a great PL match but unfortunately, Aston Villa lacked the finishing touches and missed a few good chances. On the other hand, Liverpool looked like a team in good shape, Nunez missed a few chances but overall Liverpool looked better team between the two.

The last game of the night did end up as expected. West ham took lead with an early penalty but Arsenal showed why they are on top of the table by scoring 3 goals in quick succession in the second half to finish the game and strengthen the top spot on the table.

Table standings as of now

Games to follow

1. Chelsea vs AFC Bournemouth

2. Manchester United vs Nottingham Forest

3. Leeds United vs Manchester City

for complete matchweek 17 updates, keep looking for this space.....................

#premier league #football #crystal palace #fulham #everton #wolverhampton wanderers #leicester #newcastle #southampton #brighton #aston villa #liverpool #arsenal #west ham united fc

[sportsbuff]

1, 2 & 3, sold.........

IPL 2023 Auction

We are nearing to TATA IPL 2023 Auction which is held on 23rd December 2022. there are 273 Indian players and 132 overseas players who will be going under the hammer this year. This year's auction will be at Kochi. 10 IPL franchises will participate and go against each other to bag the players they want to complete their sides with the best of squads. The highest price will be starting from 2 CR where 19 overseas players have been given slots in the highest bracket. The next slot is for 1.5 CR and 11 players have been given slots for 1.5 CR base price.  405 Total players in the Auction will the 10 teams be able to grab the right players? who will be sold at the highest price? which new talent teams will be focused on?

Let's see what the players' teams will go for and the money they have for the auction.

Don't forget to comment, name of the team you are supporting and which player will go for the highest value.

keep watching this space for more updates..............

#ipl 2023 #ipl auction #cricket #t20cricket #tata ipl

[sportsbuff]

Its a wrap to world cup 2022……

FIFA World Cup - Road to championship

It's a wrap to the FIFA world cup 2022. a memorable one for Messi and Argentina fans, they came into this world cup as favourites but they were not clear favourites. Brazil and France were slightly ahead of Argentina in the favourite race. 

Argentina started their first game against Saudi Arabia and they were looking rusty in all aspects of the game and majorly looked like they want to win the world cup for Messi but didn't know how to do it. The next game was against Mexico and the last 2 games were must-win for Argentina since they were denied by Saudi Arabia in the first game. Messi had to produce a magical moment in the Mexico game to wake up their world cup campaign and from this game onwards Argentina team looked in good shape and sync to carry them through to group stages against the Polish challenge.

In the round of 16 Argentina met Australia in their 1st knockout game, Argentina's forward and Midfield looked good, and the defence gave glimpses of their performance in coming games. Messi showed the world he can still make runs in the box and dribble past defenders to score.

The quarter Finals looked boring and one-sided until the 82nd minute when the Dutch players decided to make a game out of it with constant pressuring Argentine defence and finally, the Argentine defence failed. This was the first time E. Martinez showed his talent on the world stage. What amazing goalkeeping.

Semi-final was the complete performance Argentina gave in the entire world cup right from Attack, Midfield and Defence every aspect was in sync and outclassed Croatia.

The final game was one of the best finals I have seen in the last 6 World cups. it was breathtaking and it had worthy opponents to make it the way it got played.

My Top world cup matches will be as follows since 2006.

1. Argentina Vs France - FIFA WC 2022

2. Spain Vs Netherlands - FIFA WC 2010

3. Italy Vs France - FIFA WC 2006

My best World cup 11 & Coach will be 

Thank you for the time provided to read the blogs during the world cup. we will be starting with the league season again.........

#fifaworldcup2022 #argentina #messi #www.sportsbuff4u.online #qatar #croatia #sportsbuff4u

[sportsbuff]

One last Tango by god himself……

FIFA WC 2022 - Final - Argentina vs France

Argentina, we have talked enough about the players let me start talking about the master who runs the show from the sideline Lionel Scaloni if Messi is a magician Scaloni is the technician and the ultimate one. An excellent decision to start the match with a 4-4-2 formation knowing the only way to win against France is to stop Mbappe and Griezmann from creating chances or scoring them. Full points to that thought. Di-maria is the big match player and I like this selection of his ahead of Paredes

Argentina started the match well by attacking from the beginning and France's defence looked vulnerable since it was never tested this much in the tournament. Di-maria cut inside and in the box and fouled by Dembele to earn Argentina's penalty. Who better than Messi to take the penalty. He scored to the bottom right corner sending Lloris to left and getting his tally to 6 Goals. 

Argentina kept the attack on while France was sitting in their half defensively. Mbappe and Griezmann were asking their defenders and midfield to press against Argentina and that is where Argentina created the best team goal of the world cup and who other than Di-maria that final touch to put the ball in the net to increase Argentina's lead by 2.

France made 2 big changes in the first half replacing Giroud and Dembele with Kolo and Thuram, this is the first time in the tournament France made tactical changes before their opposition. A thrilling first half ended with Argentina leading 2-0 and France struggling to get the ball let alone the scoring.

The tactical changes done by Scaloni have paid off with no involvement of Mbappe in the match leaving France's attack not that sharp.

The second half started with both sides looking to contend shockingly France was not looking desperate to score. They made tactical changes by removing Hernandez and Griezmann but the substitutes Kamavinga and Coman didn't do much to create an attack initially. Argentina enjoyed the distributed ball possession with France in the second half. Suddenly France started pressurizing the Argentine defence and they got the penalty, Mbappe scored the penalty and it changed the complete situation in game Argentina proved again they can't control the game even if they are down by 1 goal and they give Mbappe that chance to score the goal and what a goal scored by Mbappe excellent volley to make this a worthy final.

Messi scored a hat trick goal in extra time to give Argentina the hope to lift the world cup but Mbappe got the better of them again to score his hattrick and confirm the golden boot from the world cup.

Match has gone into penalty shootouts and now all eyes will be on penalty takers and goalkeepers.

Martinez you beauty........

Argentina won the world cup. One last Tango by god himself....................

#fifaworldcup2022 #argentina #france #kylian mbappe #last dance

[sportsbuff]

May the best team win……..

FIFA WC 2022 - Final - Argentina Vs France

It's time for Clash of Titans, One last Dance for Messi on the world stage, its Final time. The biggest game of this decade.

what have we not said about Messi & Mbappe throughout this world cup?

It's been a treat to watch Messi this world cup, he is scoring goals and he is creating opportunities for others to score. This has been a best world cup for Messi out of 5 he has played. Except for the penalty Messi missed against Poland his touch has been phenomenal when it comes to Goals or assists (5 goals & 3 assists). On the other hand, we have Mbappe who after not being in his prime form yet manage to score 5 goals and 2 assists this world cup. his biggest asset is speed but unfortunately, the playmaking we saw in the last world cup is not there with Mbappe in this world cup.

While we can write a lot about both star players from Argentina & France, it's a team game and the rest of the players have to also step up during the game for a team to succeed.

France has a balanced starting 11 and apart from 1 defender and 1 defensive midfielder, there are hardly any changes happening in starting 11. Giroud is looking in good touch have shown power and accuracy in finishes. Griezmann and Tchouameni controlled midfield very well. Varane, T. Hernandez, Kounde, Oupamecano/Konate have to be on their toes for the entire match to stop Messi from running between the lines and Alvarez from making runs in the box.

Argentina has looked rusty in their defence, with Griezmann, Dembele and Mbappe they need to keep their head calm and intercept their runs before. Romero and Otamendi have to be calm while defending these players. Their midfield has come to the groove in the last few matches. they will have to repeat their Copa-America final performance to lift the world cup this time.

will Messi lift the world cup or will Mbappe will break the hearts of all the fans of Messi and Argentina across the globe.

For post-match analysis keep looking for this space.......May the best team win.

#fifaworldcup2022 #argentina #france #messi #kylian mbappe

[sportsbuff]

Not 1 Not 2 But 3rd it is…….

FIFA WC - 2022 - 3rd place match - Croatia vs Morocco

What a game we have witnessed finally, Croatia showed some attacking instinct in football as I wrote in my last post. All the players I called out in the last post managed to improve their performance in this game.

Both teams gave chance to some of their bench players in this game. The game started with attacking plays from both teams. while doing so Croatia managed to get a corner and Gvardiol managed to head the ball in the top left corner to give Croatia the lead early in the game also this is the first game in knockouts where Croatia scored first. Morocco immediately responded with a goal and an excellent presence of mind from Dari, Livakovic unfortunately was late to gather/clear the ball and that gave enough time for Dari to head it into the net.

Just like their semi-final game Morocco turn out in 2nd half with more attacking instinct but unfortunately, they were not able to break the Croatian defence. Croatia tried to match the attacking style and got successful this time with Orsic with an excellent right-footed lofted ball over Bounou to the far top corner of the goalpost, ball hit the post before going inside the net.

This world cup has been good for the Morocco team and I think a lot of clubs will be fighting in the January market window of club football to sign certain Moroccan players. below are the players who have impressed in this World cup before we wrap up tomorrow.

Morocco

1. Ounahi (Midfielder)

2. Attiayat Allah (Left Back)

3. Amrabat (Midfielder)

Croatia

1. Gvardiol (Center Back)

#fifaworldcup2022 #croatia #morocco

[sportsbuff]

Clash of Defence.....

FIFA World Cup 2022 - Croatia vs Morocco

We are going to witness the last time Croatia and Morocco face off against each other this World Cup. Two of the heavy defence-oriented sides. this will be the clash of defence.

Croatia will be playing to give their golden boy a well-deserved farewell from the world cup. an excellent Central Midfielder will bid adieu to the world cup. An emotional match for Modric, but he has the experience & composure to see through the match and win it for his country. Croatia played very defensively in their semi-final match & they would be looking forward to adding attack to their arsenal for this match. Kramaric has scored 2 goals for Croatia and he would be looking to add more goals to his tally before this world cup campaign ends. Perisic has not come well for Croatia in any matches while he has run a lot but hasn't converted anything to goal. while we have praised Modric for holding the midfield with Kovacic and Brozovic but he has not been the playmaker the way he makes a play for Real Madrid strikers. It's time for Modric to show his playmaking skills to world football fans for one final time. The defence for Croatia has come good this world cup, with special mention to their defender Gvardiol.

Morocco has shown the world what they are capable to do on the world football stage. while the whole tournament they have shown how good they are defensively I like the fact that they were able to make the attacking plays when it was needed in Semifinal. they have a clear plan of defending from the start and catching 1-2 attacking opportunity that comes during the match. Hakim Ziyech is the top goal scorer for Morocco and he has to come well in this match to give Morocco chance to win the match. Ounahi has shown time and time again how good an attacking midfielder he is for his country. Amrabat manages to impress everyone with his ball possession skills in midfield but he does not manage to close down players who have speed. I hope Saiss will finally not start the match, accept the injury and bench himself. while it is an honour to represent your country on the world stage it is necessary to understand half fit player can be dangerous for the team especially when he is your primary central defender. Hakimi has shown the world how good right back he is for Morocco.

All and all it will be a good match to watch both teams need their attacks to fire in this match to make the difference. Let's see who holds their nerves in the critical moment to win this match and grab 3rd place.

keep looking for this space for post-match analysis.......

#fifaworldcup2022 #croatia #morocco #qatar #luka modric #achraf hakimi #hakim ziyech #football

[sportsbuff]

SPINNER IS THE WINNER

ICC WTC - 1st Test Day 2 - India Vs Bangladesh

Great day for the Indian spinner today not just with the ball but also with the bat. Good comeback for Kuldeep Yadav.

To start the day Bangladesh picked up Shreyas Iyer early, and he managed to add only 4 runs to his overnight score giving Ebadot Hussain his only wicket from 1st Inning. his hard work did pay off with the prized wicket of Iyer.

Indian spinners Ashwin and Kuldeep both looked good with the bat, Ashwin scored yet another half-century, and Kuldeep looked good when he attacks the ball as well as when he defends it. They together put up 92 run partnership which helped India reach near to 400, Umesh Yadav did just Umesh Yadav thing to hit 2 sixes and helped India go past 400.

Bangladesh had a disastrous start with their openers going cheaply. A few of the Bangladesh batsmen got starts but unfortunately, they couldn't capitalize on their starts and converted to a big inning as a result of it Bangladesh on Day 2 is trailing by 271 runs and 8 wickets down in the first inning. Indian pacers blew away the top order of Bangladesh's batting order bagging 4 wickets between them. then comes Kuldeep Yadav who alone bags the rest of the 4 wickets.

to summarize it was a good day for India to start the day and their bowling attack helped them make it even better. Now India will have to capitalize on this and try to get Bangladesh remaining 2 wickets and give Bangladesh a follow-on.

keep looking for this space to know post match analysis of Day 3..........

#icc world test championship #india vs bangladesh #test cricket #day 2 #kuldeep yadav #r ashwin

[sportsbuff]

First touch to Final

FIFA WC 2022 - Semi Final 2 - France Vs Morocco

This is how you take the first touch to the football to take your team through to the Finals.

The Moroccan defence wall has fallen finally France was too good for Morocco to beat. what a time to give your worst performance of the tournament. I am calling it the worst performance not just because Morocco lost but because they showed a lack of finishing and the final touch was not up to the mark for Morocco. whereas it was exactly the opposite for France the only good thing they have done is got that final touch and converted it into a goal.

Let us start by congratulating Morocco for coming this far with the performances they gave. Ounahi & Amrabat are the players in the tournament for Morocco. Ziyech had a below-average tournament from his standard. Morocco's defence was excellent up until the semi-final. Unfortunately, it was supposed to be on point in today's match. Morocco's bad day came at a very bad time. They need to forget this match and concentrate on the game against Croatia for 3rd place. this will be a fight between 2 brilliant defensive sides and will be a treat for football fans.

France has done it again, an entry to the WC final, congratulations to France. The players of the match were Kounde, Griezmann, and Hernandez. France was lucky to get those 2 goals since both times ball somehow landed in front of the France player, but I don't want to take credit away from Hernandez to take the beautiful volley to score a goal, it needed accuracy as well as power and Hernandez checked both boxes to score the goal. Then comes a rear moment of substitution for France where they substituted the next goal scorer. "This is how you take your first touch" what a moment for Kolo Muani to score the goal in Semi-final and confirm a spot for France in the final. Mbappe had an average game from his standard though he provided an assist and few runs in the box but an overall no bigger impact on the game.

It's a wrap now and we have got our finalists, it will be a treat to watch the Final. two of the WC favourites are in the final. 

will Messi lift the WC or Mbappe lift it twice at just 24? 

I will do a pre-analysis of the Final and 3rd place game, keep looking for this space.......

#fifaworldcup2022 #kylian mbappe #theo hernandez #france #morocco

[sportsbuff]

A 50-50 Day in a test match……

ICC WTC - 1st Test - India vs Bangladesh

Test match cricket is back and a good start on 1st day by both India and Bangladesh. India won the toss to start the day on a positive note. 

Both Indian openers KL Rahul & Shubham Gill looked good for their 22 & 20 respectively. Shubhman gill opted for a sweep shot very early in the day when the ball was just 13 overs old and trying to play a cheeky shot threw his wicket away after a good start. KL Rahul chopped onto stumps to get out. Virat Kohli faced a gem of a delivery early in his inning to get out Leg before wicket, credit for Kohli's wicket goes to the bowler nothing much Virat could have done to that ball. Rishabh Pant looked in his usual form of test cricket and played a fast knock with a strike rate of 100+ he too was unlucky to get inside edge on the ball which hits the off stump (a ball which he should have played on the front foot).

Cheteshwar Pujara and Shreyas Iyer steadied the Indian inning both scoring 90 & 82 not out respectively when the day ended. Pujara and Iyer played test cricket for a long time yet both players never looked out of touch all thanks to domestic cricket in India. Pujara played his determined innings just like he does every time, missed out on a well-deserved century by 10 runs. Shreyas Iyer on another hand is still looking good after having the luckiest day in batting and will be eying the century tomorrow before lunch.

Bangladesh will be pleased with their performance on Day 1, especially with their prime spinner Taijul Islam. he has got crucial wickets. Especially the Virat Kohli wicket was special for him to outfox the best batsman in the current era. a catch drop of both Pujara and Iyer has cost them a few more runs than they should be. 

Bangladesh needs to do well in fielding if they want to restrict India under 350 and make a match out of it.

India will want Shreyas Iyer to look for daddy hundred and they can go past 500+ to give chance to close the match with the batting of 1 inning only.

keep looking for this space for Day 2 analysis..............

[sportsbuff]

In pursuit of a Final….

FIFA World Cup - Semi-Final 2 - France vs Morocco

The second Semi-final is a few hours away and trusts me this has the potential to be a legendary one which people will remember for years. Another match between a tournament favourite and an Underdog. All and all balanced side with an attacking instinct and the first-time semi-finalist with a defensive mindset. Let’s focus on the two sides and how they have played so far.

France is defending champions and they have the best line-up and hardly any flaws to point out. While Mbappe has scored goals but he has not looked in his prime form this world cup. The good news for France is in absence of their recent Ballon D’or winner Karim Benzema, Olivier Giroud has got along nicely in the strikers' position. Griezmann and Rabbiot have got their form back just in time. While these are early days for Tchouameni on the international stage he has impressed us in this world cup with his play. Since France’s defence is not pressurized enough by the opposing team which has given the Rabbiot freedom to play aggressively. Looks like France will go with the same playing 11 which played against England in the quarter-final.

Players to watch out for – Giroud, Mbappe, and Tchouameni.

Probable formation and playing 11 - 4-2-3-1

Morocco has shown the world that if you have the desire to win and for that, you are determined to work hard you will get results on your side. While the predominant style of play for Morocco is defensive till now they have taken their chances when it comes to attacking. This is the biggest point in teams which are successful in this world cup. Morocco's defence has shown that greed to not let balls pass through them and Bounou has very little to do. Morocco is the only team in the World cup that has not allowed other teams to score against them (the only goal which they conceded was their own goal). They will be missing their best defender Saiss, we will have to see whether he will be able to start in the Semi-Final. As per the scenes from the last match, there is very small hope for Saiss to start. Key midfielder Amrabat needs to play well for the next 2 games. He is the backbone of Morocco's midfield and reduces the pressure on defenders too. He has covered a lot of ground and we can see similarities between Modric and Amrabat when it comes to ball possession in midfield. Their golden boys Hakimi & Ziyech need to come good, Hakimi has to focus completely on keeping Mbappe quiet.

Players to watch out for – Ziyech, Boufal, Hakimi, Amrabat.

Probable formation and Playing 11 - 4-3-3

This will be a game to watch, we will have to see which side comes on top and finish the game on the winning side. France has done it before so for them, it will be easy to cope with this pressure. But as we know “performing under immense pressure and finishing on the winning side will make you a legend”

I am leaving you with this thought. Catch you all with post-match analysis, keep looking for this space…..

#fifawordcup2022 #qatar #france #morocco #semifinals #kylian mbappe #achraf hakimi #hakim ziyech #aurélien tchouaméni

[sportsbuff]

No time to die

Last Dance for Luka Modric while Argentina advance to Final

Let me start this post by congratulating Croatia for the performance they have put up in the entire tournament. little do people give chance to Croatia at the start of the World cup but they have come a long way. Hats off to Modric for holding midfield and running all the way back to defend also repeat this every match by match. Livakovic who was in god mode against Brazil making 11 saves have not had an impact today at all. defence led Croatia down today but it was just another day. At last, it's the last dance for Luka Modric. I have always thought that Iniesta was the best midfielder but Modric is right up there for me and of course Croatia's golden boy. wish him all the best for the future.

It's time for celebration in the entire world as Messi and co. have reached the final of the WC. the game started differently as Croatia started dominating ball possession in midfield and looked better from start. Alvarez was lucky to get the penalty as the decision looked 50-50 from the Italian referee. Messi scored the penalty to give Argentina the lead in the match. A couple of lucky deflections by Croatian defenders gave Argentina their second Goal. "Magical Assist" were the words that came out of my mouth after seeing the assistance given by Messi to Alvarez for his second and Argentina's third goal. one of the goals where the assist was more beautiful than the finish. Vintage Messi and his dribbling. Unfortunately, Alvarez didn't get his hat trick. Good to see Dybala get some game time ahead of the Final.

All and all a good World cup for Croatia and "No time to die" for Argentina.

See you tomorrow with a preview of the 2nd Semifinal. keep looking for this space.

#argentina #messi #luka modric #fifaworldcup2022 #qatar #julian alvarez #magical messi

[sportsbuff]

Set the base correct!!!

ICC WTC - India Vs Bangladesh 1st test

After a disappointing show in Bangladesh during 3 One-Day internationals, all India managed was a consolation win in the last ODI. while the win was comprehensive but by that time India already lost the series and Bangladesh manage to maintain an excellent record at home for the Bilateral series also keeping the 1st position amongst ODI-playing nations.

The focus is now shifted to the Test series and world test championship (running from July 2021 to June 2023) played by all Test-playing nations. India will be playing without their permanent captain Rohit Sharma, in his absence KL Rahul will be leading the Indian side. India is currently sitting in 4th position in the WTC standings and Bangladesh is in 9th. while we cannot underestimate Bangladesh on their home grounds India should be having an edge against Bangladesh in this series.

India can sort out their fast bowling attack in this series as the next big home series awaits India against Australia and India would like to face the Aussies with their best fast bowling attack. Jadeja is fit but yet not selected for the 1st Test. Ashwin will lead the spin bowling attack with a newly found partner Aksar Patel. Batting looks steady for India with Rohit Sharma missing Shubhman gill will be opening with Rahul. India has a chance to set the fast bowling base correctly in this series.

Bangladesh on other hand will be looking for a strong performance to match their ODI series win. Shakib will be leading the Bangladesh side.

Probable playing 11 for India

Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w), Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj.

Probable playing 11 for Bangladesh

Mahmudull Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Liton Das, Nurul Hasan (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Ebadot Hossain, Khaled Ahmed, Taijul Islam.

It will be good to see how both teams approach this series, stay tuned for the match analysis.....

#india vs bangladesh #cricket #world test championship #teamindia