أكد الحكم الدولي السابق سمير عثمان أن التحكيم الإفريقي في الوقت الحالي لا يزال يعاني من العديد من القصور، خاصة في الاعتماد على تقنية الفيديو، وهو ما أثر على مستوى المباريات في بطولات دوري أبطال إفريقيا وكأس الكونفدرالية.

وقال سمير عثمان في تصريحات عبر برنامج “لعبة والتانية” على إذاعة “أون سبورت إف إم”: “اتضح بعد المباريات في بطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا والكونفدرالية التي شاهدناها، أن الحكم الإفريقي يفتقد إلى الموهبة بشكل كبير، ويعتمد اعتمادًا كليًا على تقنية الفيديو”.

وتابع: “شاهدنا في مباراة الأهلي ومباراة الزمالك، وقبلها بحوالي عشرة أيام مباراة الجيش الملكي المغربي، أنه تم احتساب كرة لصالح الجيش الملكي المغربي كهدف سليم، بينما رفع مساعد الحكم راية التسلل رغم عدم وجود تسلل، وكل ذلك بسبب اعتماد الحكام على تقنية الفار، أما عند إزالة الفار، ظهر الحكام فعليًا بمستوى غير جيد للأسف”.

وأضاف: “لا يزال الوقت مبكرًا جدًا على الحكم الإفريقي، كان من المتوقع أن نجد بعض التطورات بعد الإجراءات التي اتخذها الاتحاد الإفريقي لكرة القدم، ونجد حكامًا جيدين، لكن من الواضح أن الجميع لا يزال يعتمد على الفار”.

طالع أيضًا | كاف يصدر قرارًا هامًا بشأن أحداث مباراة الأهلي والجيش الملكي

وأشار إلى أن: “تقنية الفار لا تُطبق في دور المجموعات للبطولات الإفريقية، بسبب تفاوت الحالة الاقتصادية للدول المشاركة، وربما هناك تقنية أخرى مماثلة لتلك المستخدمة في كأس العالم للناشئين، وهي تقنية الفيديو المساعد لكرة القدم (VFS)”.

وأوضح: “هذه التقنية لا تحتاج إلى حكم خاص بالفار، فكل ما عليك هو تسجيل المباراة بالكاميرات، وإذا كان لديك أي اعتراض كمدرب على أي قرار، يمكنك استخدام بطاقتين للتحدي، فتذهب إلى الحكم الرابع وتبلغّه بالتحدي، إذا ثبت صحة اعتراضك بعد مراجعة القرار، يُعاد لك الحق في اللعبة، أما إذا كان قرار الحكم صحيحًا، فتسحب منك فرصة التحدي الثانية”.

واختتم: “كان بالإمكان أن ينفذ الاتحاد الإفريقي هذا النظام بأقل تكلفة وبسرعة، المشكلة أن البطولة الإفريقية للأندية كانت صعبة التنفيذ، خاصة بعد ثلاث مباريات متتالية مليئة بالأخطاء التحكيمية، مباراة الجيش الملكي، ومباراة الأهلي، ومباراة الزمالك، كانت الأخطاء التحكيمية فيها صعبة على أي حكم، ويجب أن ينظر الاتحاد الإفريقي إليها مجددًا”.

Mason Miller is ready for whatever role his new team has in store for him.

The Athletics shipped the 26-year-old reliever to the San Diego Padres in a blockbuster deal before the MLB trade deadline and his role is set to change. The All-Star closer has now moved into a setup role for another All-Star closer, Robert Suarez.

The Padres had three relievers on the National League All-Star team this year and have now added Miller, so things could get crowded in the team's bullpen. That's fine with Miller.

During an appearance on , Miller said he's open to whatever the Padres have in mind.

"So far we've had discussions and I think everybody has kind of came to the same conclusion that everybody has the same goal of wanting to make it to October and make a deep run and compete for a World Series," Miller said. "And whatever that role is, I'm prepared to do that. I know that these guys have had a lot of success here, so it's kind of figuring out how I fit into that equation while also keeping everybody fresh."

The big question since the Padres landed Miller is whether or not he'll remain in the bullpen for the rest of his time with the team. He is under team control for another four years after the 2025 season, and came to the big leagues as a starting pitcher. Given the haul San Diego surrendered to acquire him and the team's glut of high-end relievers, a move to the starting rotation would make sense.

Fans in attendance at Wednesday's Pirates-Dodgers game in Pittsburgh will have the chance to see Shohei Ohtani, but the three-time MVP will only take part in one facet of the game for Los Angeles.

Ohtani was in line to make his 12th start on the mound for the Dodgers on Wednesday, but has instead been scratched in favor of Emmet Sheehan, per L.A.'s lineup announcement. Ohtani will instead serve as designated hitter and bat first in the Dodgers' lineup.

Ohtani made his pitching debut for the Dodgers in June, after missing nearly two seasons on the mound following an elbow injury suffered late in the 2023 season with the Angels. Because he has been an everyday part of L.A.'s lineup, he hasn't had the chance to ramp back up on the mound in the minor leagues, as is traditional, and has instead done so at the big league level, leading to some shaky outings. His last start, on Aug. 27 against the Reds, was his best of the year so far—Ohtani went five innings allowing a single run on two hits, with a pair of walks and nine strikeouts.

Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts Says Shohei Ohtani Is 'Under the Weather'

A few hours after news broke that Ohtani would not make his scheduled start Wednesday, Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts updated the star's status, saying that he has been feeling a bit "under the weather" since Tuesday, per 's Fabian Ardaya. Ohtani is feeling well enough to hit, but was uncomfortable throwing during a recent side session, leading to the decision.

The fact that Ohtani will still appear at the plate—and the Dodgers' understandable conservatism around his return to two-way status—certainly makes this scratch less concerning than it could be.

First pitch between the Dodgers and Pirates—and Ohtani's first at-bat of the game—will take place at 6:40 p.m. ET.

MatériaMais Notícias

Representado pelo diretor de futebol, Anderson Barros, o Palmeiras se posicionou neste domingo (12) sobre a paralisação do Campeonato Brasileiro por causa das enchentes que assolam o Rio Grande do Sul e dificultam demais o trabalho dos cluibes gaúchos que jogam a Série A do Brasileiro.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasPalmeiras‘Se não jogamos no Allianz, não me cobrem para sermos campeões’, dispara Abel, do PalmeirasPalmeiras12/05/2024Fora de CampoTorcedores do Palmeiras detonam titular: ‘Empresta para o Amazonas’Fora de Campo12/05/2024PalmeirasCom show de Pablo, Athletico-PR vence o Palmeiras e assume a liderança do BrasileirãoPalmeiras12/05/2024

➡️ Siga o Lance! Palmeiras no WhatsApp e acompanhe todas as notícias do Verdão

Na zona mista da Arena Barueri, Barros falou sobre ser contra a paralisação do Brasileirão, mas disse que o clube fará todos os esforços para ajudar os clubes do sul do país.

– Será que pararmos o futebol será a solução para todos esses problemas. A melhor forma de ajudar o RS é parando o futebol? Somente o trabalho fará com que a gente supere essa situação, como qualquer tragédia. A Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras entende que não deve se parar o Campeonato Brasileiro, que devemos continuar, que devemos encontrar soluções, como nós estamos fazendo até agora pra suprir, pra afagar e pra abraçar todos os nossos companheiros do Rio Grande do Sul – disse Anderson Barros.

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Apesar de se mostrar contra a paralisação do Brasileiro, o Palmeiras segue somando esforços para ajudar as vítimas da tragédia no Sul do país.

A renda do jogo de hoje será toda destinada para o Rio Grande do Sul, o Allianz Parque está sendo ponto de coleta de doações e a presidente Leila Pereira disponibilizou seu avião para levar cinco toneladas de alimentos para as regiões afetadas pelas chuvas no RS.

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Jasprit Bumrah has been rested from the ODI series but is in the T20I squad

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Oct-20251:19

Chopra: Rohit’s place in the side will now depend on form

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been picked in India’s ODI squad for the series in Australia starting on October 19, marking their international comebacks after last playing in the 2025 Champions Trophy final in March. The squad will be led by Shubman Gill, who has replaced Rohit as the ODI captain, with Shreyas Iyer the vice-captain.The selection panel, headed by former India fast bowler Ajit Agarkar, met on Saturday in Ahmedabad, where India won the first Test of the series against West Indies by an innings and 140 runs.There are five changes to the ODI squad from the 15 that won the Champions Trophy in the UAE in March: Ravindra Jadeja and Varun Chakravarthy are missing, Hardik Pandya is recovering from a quadriceps injury, Rishabh Pant has not yet fully recovered from the broken foot he suffered in England, and Jasprit Bumrah has been rested. They have been replaced by allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was injured for the Champions Trophy, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel and Yashasvi Jaiswal.Related

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“With regards to Jaddu [Jadeja], I mean look, at the moment to take two left-arm spinners to Australia is not possible. He is clearly in the scheme of things with how good he is, but there will be some competition for places,” Agarkar said. “Of course he was there in the Champions Trophy squad, because we took those extra spinners with the conditions there [in UAE]. At the moment we could only carry one and get some balance in the team with Washi [Washington Sundar] and Kuldeep there as well. I don’t think we are going to need more than that in Australia. It’s a short series, you can’t accommodate everyone and unfortunately at the moment he is missing out, but it’s nothing more than that.”Bumrah is part of the T20I squad for the five matches in Australia after the ODI series. The only change to the T20I squad that won the Asia Cup last month is Hardik being replaced by Reddy, while Washington has been added, making it a squad of 16.”We have already rested him for the one-day games. When we can manage his workload, we will do that,” Agarkar said about Bumrah. “Wherever you can give him a break, you will, because we all know how important he is, but we have also got to see what is in the interest of the team. And when we need him to play, he is always available, but we will look after [him]. Not just him, Siraj bowls a lot of overs as well. There are other guys who do play Test cricket, who will end up having a lot of bowling to do, so we will try and manage all the seamers, so that we minimise the risk of injuries.”Agarkar indicated that Gill and Rohit were likely to open in the ODIs, which means Jaiswal could miss out on a place in the starting XI. He also said Jurel was picked ahead of Sanju Samson in the ODI squad due to batting position, while KL Rahul is likely to remain the first-choice wicketkeeper.”Sanju Samson bats at the top of the order,” Agarkar said. “I think when he got a 100, I think he batted No. 3, if I am not wrong. Jurel usually bats lower down the order. KL bats there as well. You have seen how good a player Dhruv is. Again, you are looking at spots. I don’t think there is room at the top again. So, we are looking at guys who can fit in those spots. Obviously, Sanju at the moment in T20 cricket is batting there [middle order] and we are trying him there. But in one-day cricket, it’s a little bit different. So, that’s basically the thought. It’s more the position than anything else.”India play three ODIs in Australia on October 19, 23 and 25, followed by five T20Is between October 29 and November 8.India’s ODI squad for AustraliaShubman Gill (capt), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice-capt), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal.India’s T20I squad for AustraliaSuryakumar Yadav (capt), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice-capt), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar.

Maharaj produced his best ODI figures yet to help down Australia, showing he still has plenty to offer

Firdose Moonda19-Aug-2025If you thought Keshav Maharaj was done trying to make a point about his ability, think again. And watch how he responded to being left out of South Africa’s T20 squad.In his first white-ball game since being overlooked in the shortest format, Maharaj scooped career-best figures of 5 for 33 and his entire haul came in the first 17 overs of Australia’s innings. In helpful conditions, Maharaj produced some of his best work: a consistent stump to stump line, clever use of his angles especially from around the wicket and just the right amount of spin to show off his skills. Asked if that performance was good to remind the coaches of what he can do, Maharaj giggled awkwardly but could not hide that he “definitely,” enjoyed the statement he made.”I want to play all three formats, so I was a bit disappointed (to be out of the T20Is). But I think the coaching staff felt a certain way,” he said to reporters after the first ODI in Cairns. “It’s nice to put in a performance to show that I can do it in the shorter formats of the game. Whatever is meant to be, will be at the end of the day, I’m just focussing on my cricket and enjoying my cricket and I want to try to win games for my country.”Related

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The “certain way” head coach Shukri Conrad (who was operating as sole selector but will now choose squads with convenor of selectors Patrick Moroney) felt was that he needed bowlers who could also offer something with the bat. As a result, allrounders George Linde and Senuran Muthusamy made the T20 squad with the understanding that Maharaj does not have the same batting ability, more so recently. Since rupturing his Achilles in 2023, Maharaj has been open about how his batting may have suffered further, because of the work he needed to put into recovering enough to bowl. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to be a better batter, he has just had to prioritise where he puts his focus.For the last year, that has largely been on the longest format, where he played a key role in South Africa’s run to the World Test Championship (WTC) crown. In the 2023-2025 cycle, Maharaj was South Africa’s second highest wicket-taker (41 wickets at 20.95) and is also the only South African spinner with more than 200 Test wickets to his name.

“A lot of people ask me what’s next? And even though I’m 35 years old, I believe in my journey. I’m always learning. The day I stop learning is the day that I have to walk away from the game”Keshav Maharaj believes he is a ‘scholar of the game’

Those numbers make it easy to forget what he does with the white ball, so let’s remind you. At the 2023 ODI World Cup, he had South Africa’s best economy rate of 4.15 and was their third highest wicket-taker. At the 2024 T20 World Cup, he was their joint third-highest wicket-taker and he was in the top five wicket-takers in the SA20 last season, when he led Durban’s Super Giants to the final.It might be that because he has already done all these things, and is now 35 years old that it seems as though Maharaj’s career is winding down but he has always rejected that. He previously told ESPNcricinfo, he’d like to consider the age of 40 as the time to step away but was willing to push that further out as long as he was still contributing. His first ODI five-for, which came in his 49th match is proof of what he still has to offer and that he has it in him to keep improving.”There’s a lot more that I want to learn and a lot more for me to sort of achieve in my career, especially with the team. I want to try to win more trophies together as a nation,” he said. “Hopefully I can keep raising that bar for spinners coming through in our system. A lot of people ask me what’s next? And even though I’m 35 years old, I believe in my journey. I’m always learning. The day I stop learning is the day that I have to walk away from the game. I’d like to think I’m a scholar of the game. I watch a lot of cricket. I’m always bouncing ideas, even from the younger generation. Because it’s nice to see how the difference in thinking works. I’d like to think I’m getting better as age goes on.”How Keshav Maharaj went through Australia•ESPNcricinfo LtdThere’s no better a place for Maharaj to have done that than Australia, the country where he made his international debut in the Test side, nine years ago. Then, his rise was a credit to seasons of commitment to fitness and a fine-tuning of his craft and his first match in Perth marked the start of an incredibly successful long-format career. Now, he hopes being back in Australia is a new beginning of sorts as he also tries to re-establish his white-ball credentials amid changes in thinking.”Australia is the place where I came to debut, so it’s a wonderful, nostalgic feeling coming back here and getting my first ODI five-for,” he said.While he celebrated his first four wickets with the usual gusto of screams and prayers for his late grandmother, his fifth – Aaron Hardie, who was bowled – was commemorated in a less demonstrative way. Maharaj eventually bowed to the earth, in his own time, and allowed himself to fully absorb the significance of what he had done.”I’m not someone who bowls for five-fors. I’m a process-driven person, so I judge myself on my consistency and my length so it was more a sigh of relief to finally tick the box,” he said. “You dream of playing international cricket, you dream of putting in match winning performances, and the dreams keep building. But to be able to tick the box of getting a five-for will always be special.”It may also be one of the reasons South Africa turn back to Maharaj when their T20 World Cup planning resumes.

Leeds United are already pursuing some January transfer targets in a bid to turn around their declining season in the Premier League.

At the start of the campaign, there looked to be promising green shoots for Daniel Farke’s men in their attempts to instantly clinch survival, with two victories picked up from their opening five fixtures back in the gruelling division.

However, since a 2-2 draw was picked up versus AFC Bournemouth at the tail-end of September, the wheels have started to fall off alarmingly, with four defeats from their last five Premier League games certainly highlighting why Leeds need some game-changing purchases this January.

Rumours have already begun to circulate that AZ Alkmaar goal machine Troy Parrott is on their agenda, with just one goal scored across their last two away-day defeats, really bringing into focus why they need such a deadly finisher in their ranks.

It would take an alleged £25m bid or even more to tempt AZ into getting rid of their 30-goal hero from last season, with Leeds not always coming out the other side of an expensive capture full of glee, which might see them err on the side of caution over a statement deal.

Still, if the Whites are serious about survival, they might well have to put their money where their mouth is and land the potent Irishman.

After all, the West Yorkshire giants have forked out similar wads of cash in January before when landing Georginio Rutter back in early 2023, with the £35.5m splashed out on the skilful Frenchman proving to be somewhat worthwhile, as he went on to score eight goals and pick up 18 assists as a memorable entertainer under Farke’s wing.

Sold for £40m to Brighton and Hove Albion, as well, it’s fair to say Leeds’ most expensive capture goes down as a hit.

The same cannot be said, however, for the likes of Jean-Kevin Augustin, who Leeds wanted to return to RB Leipzig after an unsuccessful loan stint in 2020.

Yet, Leeds would still have to pay up £18.4m for the Paris-born flop two years later, after failing to make the loan permanent, which had been previously agreed. In short, it was labelled as an “absolute disaster” of a transfer by journalist James Marshment.

Still, while Illan Meslier certainly did a great deal more in Leeds colours than Augustin, he has also been something of a disaster.

Why Illan Meslier was such a disaster at Leeds

Arguably, in the here and now, the £5m deal to secure Meslier could also be viewed as a blunder with hindsight on side, even if he was also a recipient of some glowing comments when Marcelo Bielsa still occupied the helm.

It does feel like an awfully long time ago, now, since Meslier was being heralded as a ‘keeper that “transmits security” by Bielsa, and would also come up trumps with top saves, with 72 Leeds clean sheets in his back pocket.

Unfortunately, in more recent times, he could be viewed as a waste of money with the amount of errors that seeped into his game last season as Leeds went for the glory of automatic promotion, which saw Meslier make three errors in total that directly led to an opposition goal.

To make matters worse for Meslier’s long-term future, Karl Darlow – who cost just £400k – would come up trumps in his place with an important tally of four clean sheets from his seven stand-in second-tier appearances, helping to make their promotion dreams a reality.

The reliable Welshman has since lined up for five Premier League games this campaign, while his £5m counterpart now routinely sits on the substitutes bench, presumably planning an exit route out of the club he has made 214 appearances for.

Yet, while Farke has been cutthroat with his former number one by also buying Lucas Perri, he still sticks by this other underperformer week in, week out, who is a far bigger waste of cash than the error-prone stopper.

Leeds flop is a bigger waste than Meslier

Meslier did – at one point – hold down the number one goalkeeper position rather comfortably.

Indeed, during Leeds’ first season back in the big time under Bielsa, the 6-foot-6 ‘keeper would help himself to a weighty 11 clean sheets from 32 top-flight outings, before things started to unravel. In the case of Brenden Aaronson, though, he has never been able to fully settle under the intense spotlight of the top division.

Thankfully, for Aaronson’s sake, he did turn on the style on occasion last season as the Championship title was lifted, with nine goals and two assists collected, which included this wonderfully constructed team goal away at Derby County being finished off by the up-and-down American.

Meslier also chipped in with 21 clean sheets, in all fairness, before it was deemed necessary for a change in between the sticks.

But, he still leaves a lot to be desired with his mediocre Premier League output, with the aforementioned Marshment’s comments about the ex-Union Berlin playmaker falling victim to “anonymous” displays very much ringing true this season, and throughout his playing days in the elite league to date.

Aaronson’s PL numbers

Stat

Aaronson

Games played

47

Minutes played

3098 mins

Goals scored

2

Assists

4

Goal conversion %

9%

Big chances missed

3

Big chances created

8

Sourced by Transfermarkt

For £28.5m, which remains Leeds’ second most expensive capture of all time, you would have anticipated a lot more than what Aaronson has offered up over 47 games in the intense division, with a measly six goal contributions amassed from those 47 games, very much strengthening arguments that he can go missing in crunch moments.

At least when it comes to the other high-profile signings, such as Rodrigo, he came away from his disappointing spell with the club with 28 strikes next to his name, despite costing £2.5m less.

Even Meslier has more to write home about from his Premier League adventures in West Yorkshire, with Aaronson’s output this season of just one goal and one assist from 11 games not exactly encouraging Leeds fans that he can change his ongoing Elland Road tale for the better.

There were faint glimmers of hope when he scored against West Ham United to close out October, with one Leeds-based content creator even dubbing it his “best game in a Leeds shirt”, off the back of Aaronson completing all 100% of his dribbles and winning eight duels to be a livewire throughout.

Yet, that was then followed up by two unmemorable displays on the bounce, as the “lightweight” version of Aaronson – as he was once branded by ex-Leeds player Jon Newsome – reared its ugly head once more.

These inconsistent performances would likely be more excusable if he didn’t cost such a bomb at the £28.5m mark, with it being very clear now that he is a far bigger waste of money than Meslier, and – arguably – one of the club’s poorest pursuits in recent Premier League history.

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