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'One I'd rather have': Jones clears up Salah debate
Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones has cleared up his comparison of teammate Mohamed Salah and former Premier League star Eden Hazard by reaffirming that the Egypt international is "the one I'd rather have in my team."
Jones felt forced into a social media post on Monday after he made comments about the two wingers in an interview with ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand.
The 23-year-old England player, who is enjoying his best season for the Merseyside club with three goals and three assists in 18 league appearances, admitted he would rather pay to watch Hazard than Salah.
Hazard scored 85 Premier League goals over seven seasons with Chelsea while Salah, who briefly overlapped with the former Belgium icon in west London, has 175 goals in the competition and is this season's top scorer.
"I know this might go a little bit left with our fans because the comparison is always there, but Hazard is the one [I'd pay to watch]," Jones, referencing the different styles of player, said on TNT Sports.
"I know we compare him with Mo all the time and I've been into it with Mo.
"I play it from, who I saw as a kid when I loved the game and I wanted to be like a player.
"I feel like it was Hazard. Every game, I'd watch him, just like, 'wow, that's football.'
"I wouldn't say he's disrespected, but he might not come into certain [conversations] that he should.
"It's a talk I've had with Mo and all the lads. As a footballer, is he better than Mo? In my opinion, yes. But who would you rather have in your team? They're going to say Mo because he gets you your goals and assists."
After the interview went viral on social media, Jones responded with a picture of him and Salah on X that read: "The one I'd rather have in my team."
The one I'd rather have in my team pic.twitter.com/Eb7ugwubdY
Curtis Jones (@curtisjr_10) January 20, 2025
Hazard joined Real Madrid from Chelsea in 2019 but, hampered by injuries, was limited to 54 appearances for the LaLiga giants and only scored four goals. He retired in 2023.
Salah, while only two years younger than Hazard at 32 years old, is enjoying one of his best seasons at Liverpool with 18 goals.
There is, however, a fear that this could be his last year with the club with his contract expiring in June.
AC Milan are considering loan moves for Chelsea's João Félix and Manchester United duo Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Højlund after accepting defeat in their pursuit of Marcus Rashford, sources have told ESPN.
Feyenoord and Mexico forward Santiago Giménez is another target under consideration at Milan for a permanent transfer if England defender Fikayo Tomori leaves the Italian club for a fee this month due to a non-EU player place becoming available.
Milan had set United and England forward Rashford a Monday deadline to commit to a loan move to the San Siro following talks with the player's camp and United.
However, sources have told ESPN that Milan now accept that the 27-year-old is waiting for other options after making it clear that he favours a move to Barcelona if the La Liga team can create space on their wage-bill by offloading fringe players.
With Rashford declining the chance to move to the club, Milan are now set to complete a deal for Manchester City defender Kyle Walker to fill their one remaining slot for a non-EU player.
But after missing out on Rashford, Milan continue to be in the market for a forward and sources have said that the club are exploring the possibility of signing one of João Félix, Zirkzee or Højlund.
Portugal forward João Félix sealed a 46.3 million ($53.2m) transfer to Stamford Bridge from Atlético Madrid last August, but the 25-year-old has made only 19 appearances for Chelsea this season and completed 90 minutes in the Premier League on just one occasion.
Sources have said that the former Benfica and Barcelona forward is Milan's favoured option after failing to sign Rashford, but there is also interest in Zirkzee and Højlund due to United's readiness to do deals this month in an effort to bolster coach Ruben Amorim's squad.
Both Zirkzee and Højlund moved to United after impressing in Serie A with Bologna and Atalanta respectively, but the two forwards have struggled to score consistently in the Premier League.
Sources have said that United would need to sign another forward before allowing either Zirkzee or Højlund to leave on loan, but with Juventus also interested in the pair, the prospect of one of the young strikers leaving Old Trafford this month is realistic, even if Rashford finds a new club.
Manchester City have completed the signing of Lens defender Abdukodir Khusanov.
City have agreed a deal worth 40 million ($41.6m) plus add-ons for the 20-year-old, who has signed a four-and-a-half year deal at the Etihad Stadium.
Khusanov, who has been handed the No. 45 shirt, is set to become the first Uzbeki to play in the Premier League.
"I'm absolutely delighted to be joining Manchester City, a club that I have enjoyed watching for a long time," Khusanov said.
"This squad is full of the best players in the world, and I can't wait to meet them and play alongside them.
"And of course Pep Guardiola is one of the greatest coaches ever and I am so excited to learn from him and improve my game even more.
"This is a very proud moment for me and my family to be joining a great Club like Manchester City and I'm more than ready for this challenge."
Khusanov is City's first signing of the January window. He's set to be followed by Palmeiras defender Vitor Reis and Eintracht Frankfurt forward Omar Marmoush.
Khusanov has only been at Lens for 18 months after joining in 2023. He's made 31 appearances for the French side and been capped 18 times by Uzbekistan.
"We are very happy that he has joined us and we are all very excited about what he will bring," City director of football Txiki Begiristain said.
"For such a young defender, Abdukodir is already very intelligent, as well as being strong, aggressive and extremely quick. "Working with Pep will only make him better and, speaking to him, he is determined to keep improving."
Santos? MLS? What we know so far about Neymar's transfer from Al Hilal
Al Hilal forward Neymar is still recovering from a hamstring injury he picked up in November but is set to leave the club after his coach, Jorge Jesus, recently said that the 32-year-old "can no longer play at the level we are used to" and would not be registered to play in the Saudi Pro League for the second half of the season.
Neymar signed for Al Hilal from PSG for $98.6 million in 2023 and earns an annual salary of around $100m.
With no regular playing time guaranteed at Al Hilal, the most expensive footballer of all time (PSG signed him from Barcelona in 2017 for a world-record $262m fee) has a choice to make over his next destination. But where will he go? And who would sign him at this stage of his career?
Why is Neymar set to leave Saudi Arabia?
Al Hilal have decided not to register him for the second half of the season as his injuries -- he is still not ready to play right now -- have been a big problem, as well as the fact that he is taking one spot amongst the quota of foreign players who are allowed in the squad.
Al Hilal want Neymar to play at the Club World Cup in the summer. However, Neymar doesn't want to stay until June without playing regularly and feels it's the right time to move. Since his transfer over 18 months ago, he has managed just seven games in all competitions, with one goal.
Would Al Hilal agree to loan him?
Potentially, but right now sources say that Al Hilal are not ready to terminate his contract, which expires this summer, and pay him the 60m they owe him in one instalment.
Neymar wants to leave but wants to do so with his remaining wages. A transfer with a fee is unlikely when the 32-year-old has only five months left on his contract, so a loan (with his new team paying some of his salary) is the most probable option here.
Al Hilal could also keep him and play him only in the Asian Champions League before he leaves as a free agent.
Will his wages be an issue?
No, they shouldn't be. No club is able to pay him as much as Al Hilal do right now. Neymar is fully aware of this and will not be too financially demanding for his next club. It won't be about the money, which won't be at the level of his Saudi contract or even his previous one in Paris. He understands the regulations in MLS with the designated players system and salary cap. And he knows the financial context and situation at Santos all too well.
So could he move back to Santos?
Santos CEO Pedro Martins appeared to rule out a loan and said recently: "There is nothing advanced, nothing closed. The club is monitoring Neymar's situation to see how he will resolve his case with his current club. Neymar has a contract with the club. If they resolve it there, we will evaluate what the possibility of coming here could look like."
But, according to ESPN sources, moving back home is the player's priority. Santos is where it all started for him; his father, Neymar Sr., is very close to the Teixeira family who own the club.
Neymar believes it makes sense to go home now and dreams of finishing his career at Santos. He wants to leave an even bigger legacy there and take the team back to the top before he retires.
Could he move to MLS?
That's the other serious option. ESPN broke the story on Thursday that three MLS franchises were keen to recruit him -- one of them being the Chicago Fire -- with a delegation travelling to Riyadh to meet him.
Playing in the U.S. is attractive for Neymar and his brand, and he knows the door to return to Santos will always be open. And it would stay open in two years' time if he decided to go to MLS first. It also would be a huge coup for MLS to get the Brazilian player.
Stevie Nicol quickly disputes Julien Laurens' idea that Neymar could return to form with a move to the MLS.
Are any other leagues interested?
At the moment, no other clubs in other leagues have really come forward for him. At his age, and considering he has hardly played at all in the past 18 months and doesn't look as if he will play much in the next six months, it's hard to see a top team in any of the Big Five European leagues moving for him, even as a free agent.
However, he is still football royalty and will want to join a top project if he decides not to go back to Santos.
Where do you think he will end up?
As sad as it looks, I think he will end up staying at Al Hilal until the summer with very limited time on the pitch because he will be able to play in only the Asian Champions League.
He will run down his contract in Saudi Arabia, get his money, get back to full fitness (eventually) and become a free agent before he chooses where to go next. Then he will be ready to go back home to Santos to finish his career.
Additional reporting from Nathalia Ferrão, Pedro Ivo Almeida and Victoria Leite.
Healy in doubt for rest of Ashes series as she misses first T20I
"As you can imagine, she's pretty flat," Mooney said. "She doesn't want to miss any games for Australia and unfortunately for her, she's missed a few in the last few months. We'll put our arm around her, wait and see what the [medical] staff say and what the prognosis is.
"But, certainly, she's a key member of our playing group both on and off the field and we know what impact she can have to the outcome of the results on field. So, we'll be keeping a close eye on making sure she's okay mentally, but also doing all the right things with [the sports science sports medicine staff] well.
Australia also had to contend with allrounder Ashleigh Gardner being ruled out with a calf injury. She will be assessed again ahead of the second T20I in Canberra.
The injury to Healy meant that Australia pushed back announcing their squad for the day-night Test at the MCG which had been due to be named during the T20I on Monday.
"Alyssa has got a stress response in her foot," head of high performance Shawn Flegler told Fox Cricket. "We're going to try and get a little bit more information before we make a call on her. It's a big call for Alyssa. Test captain as well. So we'll wait and see on what we come up with over the next 24-48 hours."
"We've got a selector meeting tomorrow morning. We'll see what plays out. We're not going to rush into it. There's still a week or so before the Test match
After returning from the plantar fascia injury sustained at the World Cup, Healy had her WBBL cut short by a knee problem which also meant she played as a batter only in the ODIs against New Zealand in December having missed the earlier home series against India.
She returned to keeping duties for the three ODIs against England with the matches taking place in six days. The schedule is also tight for the T20I series with games in Canberra on January 23 then Adelaide on January 25.
Even if Healy is able to play a part in either of those, there will be major questions over whether she can sustain the workload of a Test match, especially as a wicketkeeper.
Depending on the prognosis for Healy, her participation in the WPL and the T20I tour of New Zealand in late March could also be in doubt.
Brendon McCullum promises focus on entertainment as England white-ball era begins
McCullum's unveiling in the role has been a long time coming. His new deal, as England's dual red- and white-ball head coach, was announced back in September, and he has since overseen consecutive Test tours of Pakistan and New Zealand while Marcus Trescothick covered the one-day role in an interim capacity.
Now, however, McCullum is straight into the hot seat, with a five-match T20I campaign against the newly-crowned T20 World Cup champions, followed by three ODIs against the finalists of the last 50-over World Cup in 2023, ahead of their Champions Trophy opener against Australia in Lahore on February 22.
Speaking at Eden Gardens ahead of the first T20I, McCullum described England's batting as being "as powerful as anyone's in the world", but said that, at this stage, he was more focused on freeing up his players to perform at their best, rather than gunning for outright victory.
"Obviously, we want to win every game we play, to try and be successful, and that's ultimately the mission for us," he said. "But our conversations and the language which we use within the dressing-rooms is quite different.
"It's about trying to get the best out of the talent that sits within the dressing room, trying to gel the guys as best we can, trying to work out complementary skills, and how we how we play the style of cricket that gives us our greatest chance.
"I'm desperate for us to play a really watchable brand of cricket," he added. "With the talent we have, there's no reason why we can't. We've got a batting line-up which is as powerful as any batting line-up in the world. We've got gun spinners, very good fielders and guys who bowl absolute rockets with the ball, so you've got options there to be able to entertain and give yourself the greatest chance of success."
McCullum takes over a white-ball set-up deep in the throes of transition, with the team having lost both its 50- and 20-over World Cup titles in the space of seven dispiriting months in 2023-24. His selections for this campaign, however, made it clear that he intends to use his joint coaching role to unify the Test and one-day set-ups, with eight of his 15 selections for the ODI squad having featured in the longer format in the course of 2024.
"He's smiling, that's good. He's very happy at the moment," McCullum confirmed, adding that his pre-existing relationship with Buttler, forged during his own playing days at the IPL and around the world, had enabled them to hit the ground running as a captain-coach combination.
"Obviously we've known for a couple of months that this was going to unfold, so there's been plenty of time to chat to Jos over the last couple of months," McCullum said. "When I took over the Test job, Stokesy and I knew each other and there was a mutual respect, but wouldn't say we were friends necessarily, even though it's now a really tight personal relationship, as well as a working relationship.
"With Jos, we actually start from a slightly stronger base. Jos and I have been friends for a long time, we've often shared some of the philosophies of game, and that friendship gives us really good base to be able to be able to get things going pretty quickly with this team.
"He's in really good space. He's excited about the team, and the opportunity that sits in front of us, I'm sure we'll see Jos really enjoy himself over the next couple of years, and hopefully finish with a real strong enjoyment for the game at the back end of his career."
McCullum also confirmed that Buttler would once again be relinquishing the gloves, in order to lead the team from the field rather than behind the stumps, with Phil Salt likely to continue in the role he took on for both series in the Caribbean in November.
"It's really a really positive thing for us, because it gives Jos the opportunity to have the last say with the bowler, and to have that relationship built at that last second, rather than from 22 yards away," McCullum said. "We've got great keeping options within the side as well."
At the age of 34, and as a double World Cup-winner, Buttler has little left to prove as one of the modern greats of the white-ball game. But, having witnessed the success and enjoyment that Stokes has got from leading the Test team over the past couple of years, McCullum believes there's scope for Buttler to put a cap on his own career in a similar manner.
"I think his best years are definitely ahead," he said. "Sometimes, when you get the opportunity to lead in the latter part of your career, you can be a little bit desperate for success and that can create frustrations, and it doesn't become quite as enjoyable.
"But if you can let yourself go a little bit, with nothing to prove other than trying to get the best out those around you, sometimes that can lift your game up a bit more. Those are the conversations Jos and I have had. He's fully on board with that, he's excited about the next little while, and I'm sure you'll see him smiling.
"It's going to be a tough tour. We're taking on a very good India side, and I'm sure we'll play what I hope is a very watchable style of cricket. I'm sure there'll be some times we don't quite get it right but, hopefully, we'll chisel away at that over the next few weeks and be in good shape come the Champions Trophy.
"But we are very much focused on this series, knowing India are a very good cricket team, particularly in their own conditions."
Axar hints at flexible middle order as India gear up for England T20Is
The series is set to kick off in Kolkata on Wednesday, with Chennai, Rajkot, Pune and Mumbai to host the remaining T20Is.
Over recent months, India have used not just Axar but also Hardik Pandya, Tilak Varma, Nitish Reddy, Washington Sundar and Rinku Singh as floaters with varying levels of success.
"Batting wise, it's not just with me, but we spoke in 2023-24 itself that the openers are fixed, but everyone from Nos. 3 to 7 have been told that they can come into bat anytime, in any situation. It is not just that one batter will bat at a particular position," Axar told reporters on Monday. "Our middle order will come to bat depending on the match situation, what kind of bowlers are bowling at the time, which match-up works well.
"We've spoken about that, how we can all be floaters, be it coming in early or obviously finishing. This is not just for me, but for everyone from No. 3 and below, especially if they are in good touch in the nets. We will adjust accordingly. In T20Is, how you use your batters is so crucial, so this is an important factor in batting."
As Suryakumar Yadav's deputy in T20Is, Axar felt he would have to to learn to take difficult calls. It is a topic he has discussed with the support staff too.
"It has just been a day, but as part of the leadership group there is an extra responsibility," Axar said. "The T20I side is settled, so there's not much pressure, but there are small decisions that need making and during the game I need to work closely with Suryakumar.
"As part of the leadership group, you have to learn to take harsh decisions. We have spoken about sharing our genuine opinions and that will help build trust in this group.
"The T20I format is such that it is so fast that you have to make decisions quickly, so the larger conversations [with the coaches] is about how to do that."
India's immediate focus is on ODI cricket, with the Champions Trophy looming, but T20Is will assume greater significance once that tournament ends. Defending champions India and Sri Lanka are set to co-host the T20 World Cup in February-March 2026. Apart from these five matches against England, India don't have too many T20Is lined up before they embark on their title defence: currently, they are scheduled to play three T20Is in Bangladesh in August, and five at home against South Africa later in the year.
"The World Cup is coming up in a year so how we approach leading up to that, we want to try it from now itself. That's the main target," Axar said. "Momentum is a big thing because if you start well, you can carry it. We finished 2024 well so we want to carry the momentum into this series too.
"But we've discussed that the past is past, however, we want to move ahead with the positives we gained from there. We have taken forward the points that brought us success.
"Transition is also something happening, across all formats, but that's a call for the selectors and captain to take."
Sreshth Shah is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @sreshthx
Alex Hartley: Sophie Ecclestone 'refused TV interview' after Ashes loss
Hartley, who has worked extensively as a broadcaster and pundit since retiring from professional cricket, had said that a handful of players were "letting the team down" with their fitness levels after their shock defeat to West Indies in Dubai. Heather Knight and Jon Lewis, England's captain and coach, both denied that it had contributed to their group-stage elimination.
"The reason I said that they were not as fit as Australia is because I want them to compete with Australia, I want them to be better than Australia, and I want them to win Ashes and World Cups. I'm giving my opinion, and I've been given the cold shoulder from the England team ever since.
"Not all of them have given me the cold shoulder. I don't want to say that they've all been the same, because they haven't. Some of the players have been absolutely outstanding: I've spoken to them in the street, at the ground, wherever. But a few individuals - coaches, players - they literally haven't looked at me."
"I've upset them, clearly," she said. "Jon Lewis has come out and said there isn't a problem with fitness in his squad, there isn't a problem with fitness in the England environment. They obviously think I'm completely wrong in my opinion - which is fine, absolutely fine. I'm entitled to my opinions, and they're entitled to theirs.
"It's my job to say if I see something that needs to be better, and I did, but the way that I've been treated since I think is totally unfair. But they will say that my comments were unfair, so if that's the way our relationship is going to be moving forwards, then so be it If fitness isn't a problem, then it's athleticism from a few, isn't it?"
The England team were contacted for comment.
Kohli available for Delhi's Ranji Trophy game starting January 30
Kohli was a conspicuous absence in the squads for the penultimate round of group-phase matches, starting from January 23, when Delhi play Saurashtra in Rajkot. Both Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja confirmed they would play this match, but Kohli was ruled out after he informed the BCCI medical staff that he was still recovering from neck pain, for which he had taken an injection on January 8, three days after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy ended in Sydney. Several other India players will also feature in the January 23 round of games, including Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
S. Carolina gains ground on No. 1 UCLA in poll
South Carolina has so far cruised through the difficult part of its conference schedule and remained No. 2 in the Associated Press Top 25 women's basketball poll Monday, picking up a first-place vote to gain a bit of ground on top-ranked UCLA.
The Gamecocks are in the midst of a five-game stretch against ranked opponents. So far, they've beaten Texas by 17, Alabama by 18 and Oklahoma by 41 on Sunday. They face No. 5 LSU on Thursday and No. 17 Tennessee on Jan. 27.
UCLA received 27 first-place ballots this week while No. 3 Notre Dame got the other two. USC remained No. 4.
After LSU were UConn, Texas and Maryland -- the Longhorns faced the Terrapins later Monday in the Coretta Scott King Classic -- and TCU and Kansas State moved up to ninth and 10th, respectively, after losses by Ohio State and Oklahoma. The Wildcats were awaiting word on star center Ayoka Lee, who was injured in Sunday's win over Arizona State.
Odds and ends
Tennessee lost at Vanderbilt for the first time since 2014.
Penn State topped Ohio State for its first win over a ranked team since February 2021.
Michigan reentered the poll at No. 24.
Conference breakdown
The Southeastern Conference and Big Ten each have seven teams ranked this week, with the ACC right behind with six. With Utah and Oklahoma State dropping out, the Big 12 is down to four teams and the Big East one.
Ranked Bears
Baylor entered the poll for the first time since the third week of the season. The Bears have won five straight, including a victory over then-No. 23 Utah last week. Nicki Collen's squad has a difficult week coming up with a matchup against No. 1 UCLA later Monday in the Coretta Scott King Classic. The Bears then visit No. 9 TCU on Sunday.
Games of the week
No. 5 LSU at No. 2 South Carolina, Thursday. The undefeated Tigers will try to knock off the Gamecocks in a matchup of two of the best teams in the SEC.
No. 8 Maryland at No. 12 Ohio State, Thursday. The Buckeyes will look to bounce back from their first loss of the season when they host the Terrapins. Maryland also hosts No. 1 UCLA on Sunday.
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