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Manchester United youngster JJ Gabriel marked his Old Trafford debut by setting a new club record after scoring the winner in an FA Youth Cup tie against Peterborough on Tuesday night. The 15-year-old has been linked with Barcelona and Arsenal and nicknamed 'Kid Messi', with many believing he has incredible potential. Meanwhile, Kai Rooney, son of legendary England striker Wayne, was left out of the squad for the third-round clash.

Gabriel stars in FA Youth Cup win and sets new record

Much is expected of Gabriel, even after only just turning 15 years of age, and the teenager wasted little time making his presence known on his first competitive appearance at United's Old Trafford home. Gabriel netted the only goal of the game in the 22nd minute with a lovely sweeping finish into the far corner, earning Darren Fletcher's side a fourth-round tie against Cambridge United or Derby County, with those two teams set to meet on Wednesday. That goal saw the hyped youngster become United's youngest-ever scorer in FA Youth Cup history and also took him to 11 strikes in 12 games this season, having recently scored a hat-trick against Liverpool's Under-18s.

AdvertisementGetty Who is JJ Gabriel?

United have produced plenty of stars through their academy during the club's glittering history and Gabriel is thought to be one who could go on to become a genuinely world-class player in the future. He has received rather flattering comparisons to Lionel Messi, Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo and attracted more praise back in August when he scored an outrageously impressive goal for United's Under-18s.

His performances have caught the eye of many teams around Europe. Barcelona are thought to be keeping track of his situation as they look to find the next Lamine Yamal, while Arsenal have also been credited with an interest. However, the Gunners' admiration of Gabriel has been labelled 'premature' in recent weeks, with the current Premier League leaders not thought to have made a formal offer as of yet.

That is good news for United, who seem to be doing everything they can to keep hold of the prodigious youngster. The Red Devils are said to have even gone as far as offering Gabriel a box at the new Old Trafford stadium, which is due to be completed by 2030. He may well hope to be making his mark in the first-team squad by that point, but United's current senior stars are already familiar with the teenager's talents as he's previously been invited to train with Ruben Amorim's cohorts during the early stages of the season.

Rooney's son Kai left out of squad

While it was all smiles for Gabriel, Kai Rooney, the son of United legend Wayne, was not included in the squad for the win over Peterborough. The teenager has been recovering from injury in recent weeks and made his return for the club's Under-16s over the weekend. Jacey Carrick, son of ex-United and England midfielder Michael, was also absent from the matchday squad.

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Getty Images SportWhat next for Gabriel?

Gabriel will continue playing youth football for United for now, with the hope of breaking into the first-team squad and making his senior debut in the future. He will, however, have to be wary of the treatment some of United's recent academy graduates have received of late.

Marcus Rashford doesn't seem to have much of a future at Old Trafford after being sent on loan to both Aston Villa and Barcelona in the last year, while the curious case of Kobbie Mainoo remains puzzling to many football fans across Europe. The 20-year-old broke into the squad under former boss Erik ten Hag and scored a memorable goal against local rivals Manchester City in the 2024 FA Cup final, but he has not made a single start in the Premier League this season.

One youngster who has been getting first-team minutes under Amorim is Ayden Heaven, who has started the Red Devils' last two Premier League matches. He was unconvincing against West Ham United, being hauled off after 45 minutes, but produced a more accomplished performance in the 4-1 thumping of Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday night.

Left-hander belts 53-ball hundred to maintain Yorkshire’s relentless march towards knockouts

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay22-Aug-2025Yorkshire 354 for 7 (Bean 102*, Wharton 84) beat Durham 142 (White 3-24) by 212 runsFinlay Bean broke Yorkshire’s record for their fastest-ever List A century with a 53-ball hundred in a landslide 212-run win over Durham at Scarborough to maintain their relentless march towards the Metro Bank One-Day Cup knockouts.Bean, batting at No. 5, boosted the Group B leaders to a total of 354 for 7 with a destructive innings of 102 not out off 57 balls, with eight fours and six sixes. James Wharton also contributed a dynamic career best 84. In only his second appearance of the competition, Bean’s maiden List A hundred set Yorkshire up for the fifth win in six matches.Durham then crumbled to 142 all out in 36 overs, losing their fourth game in seven to all but end their knockout hopes. This was their heaviest-ever List A defeat by runs margin. New-ball seamer Jack White returned 3 for 24 from eight overs for the hosts.Yorkshire started solidly under an overcast sky on a pitch with pace and bounce, reaching 99 for 2 after 20 overs. Imam-ul-Haq was caught behind pulling at Ben Raine’s seam for 22 – his lowest score in five One-Day Cup matches – and Adam Lyth caught at deep backward square-leg for 37 following a top-edge against former team-mate Will Rhodes.Having reached 123 for 2 after 25 overs, Will Luxton and Wharton looked to accelerate, and did so for a period as they shared 88 in entertaining fashion. Luxton pulled Raine for six over deep backward square-leg and Wharton also pulled with authority en route to a 54-ball fifty.Almost immediately afterwards, Luxton – on 46 – miscued the pace of Sam Conners to midwicket with the score on 169 in the 33rd. But that only served to bring Bean to the crease, and what followed was sensational. He shared a 101-run stand for the fourth wicket with Wharton.Best known as a determined red-ball opener, Bean reached 50 off 33 balls and scored his second fifty off 20. All of his sixes were leg-side as he beat the previous record for Yorkshire’s fastest List A hundred by seven balls. Lyth, on this ground in 2016, reached his hundred in 60 balls in a two-wicket win over Northamptonshire.Wharton fell short of his own maiden List A hundred as the White Rose scored 174 in the last 15 overs.Durham’s chase then got off to a nightmare start at nine for two in the fifth over, which included two wickets for Ben Coad’s seam and the visitors failing to score off the first 22 balls of the innings.Coad bowled Alex Lees for nought and had Emilio Gay caught at second slip but walked off the field immediately after the second wicket with a suspected hamstring injury. Still, it didn’t hamper Yorkshire in the short term – even if it may do in the next month and a bit.Durham’s race was run before it had got going, with them sinking to 32 for four in the 10th over. Matt Milnes had an uppercutting Colin Ackermann caught behind and White forced captain Ollie Robinson to miscue to Bean at point. George Hill and captain Dom Bess then removed Scott Borthwick and Robbie Bowman before Durham reached 50.Rhodes and George Drissell were Durham’s only two batters to reach 20, with 27 and a consolatory List A best 46 respectively. Rhodes was caught at short third off Lyth’s offspin before Drissell skied White to mid-on, leaving the score at 131 for 9. White finished things off by trapping Codi Yusuf lbw.

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has conceded in his pre-Leeds press conference that the Reds need to get Alexander Isak more involved in games.

Isak, 26, joined the Anfield side this summer for a British record £125m fee. Last season, Jamie Carragher declared him “the best striker in the Premier League”. He scored 27 goals in all competitions for Newcastle United, including the winner in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley, against Liverpool.

25/26 – LFC

17.1

5.6 (65%)

24/25 – NUFC

33.3

14.9 (77%)

23/24 – NUFC

26.8

12.6 (80%)

22/23 – NUFC

29.5

12.5 (78%)

But he’s toiling away at his new club, and to little avail at that. This speaks of the wider tactical imbalances at the club right now, with the forwards all struggling and the midfielders and defenders too.

Change is needed, but with new and elite centre-forward options strapped in, FSG are turning their attention to Liverpool’s attacking flanks.

Liverpool lining up a wide forward

Last month, Slot was quizzed on Liverpool’s transfer plans ahead of the January transfer window, as the dismal form raged on. That stain has only spread since, but the coach hinted that the Premier League champions’ priority lies not with the rearguard but on the wing.

Liverpool didn’t replace Luis Diaz when selling the versatile Colombian to Bayern Munich in August, and that was clearly a mistake. Cody Gakpo knows where the back of the net is, but he’s somewhat one-dimensional, with fans annoyed by the regularity of his cutting inside when the ball finds him down the left lane.

Perhaps that is why rumours have resurfaced of Liverpool interest in Real Madrid star Rodrygo, with TEAMtalk suggesting this week that Anfield is one of the few places the Brazilian would consider joining; Arsenal have also been mooted.

Rodrygo may be undergoing a divorce with superstardom at Los Blancos, but that doesn’t mean Florentino Perez will let the 25-year-old leave on the cheap, tentatively transfer-listing him for around €90m (£79m).

Why Liverpool should sign Rodrygo

It’s no secret that Liverpool are interested in signing Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo in January, but Rodrygo is cut from finer cloth, the Brazil international having conquered Europe and Spain too during his time with Real Madrid.

Across 286 senior appearances, he has scored 68 goals and supplied 53 assists, and last year, Jude Bellingham said “he’s probably the most gifted player in the squad”, with frightening speed and deadly finishing and a versatile take on the attacking game.

Though he has served Real Madrid’s wishes out on the right flank for most of his career, Rodrygo actually prefers playing off the left. The right-footer believes he is at his most clinical in that role, and last season, though he struggled on the whole, he scored six goals and supplied six assists across just 12 outings.

Right winger

148

34

31

Left winger

89

23

18

Centre-forward

85

22

8

Attacking midfield

4

–

1

Rodrygo would surely displace Gakpo and cement a regular starting berth under Slot’s wing at Liverpool. Gakpo, scapegoated at times this season, is still not the multi-faceted wideman that Diaz was, and Rodrygo would restore that presence that FSG are so intent on replacing.

Hailed as a “world-class superstar” by former teammate Luka Modric, he is the real deal, alright, with pedigree on the biggest stage and so much more still to give. Rodrygo has lost his way in Spain, but at Liverpool, he could become a leading man, especially with Mohamed Salah ostensibly winding down.

He is a man of many dimensions, and indeed has more in his locker than Gakpo, even with the Dutchman averaging 2.2 created chances per game in the Premier League this season, the most frequent of any Liverpool player and the fifth-highest average in the division.

But Rodrygo, even at his lowest ebb, ranks among the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues for pass completion, the top 15% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for progressive carries and the top 18% for tackles won per 90, as per FBref.

There is little question that Rodrygo would raise Liverpool’s level, adding width and pace and dynamism down the left flank and maybe serving out on the right when called upon.

Gakpo enjoyed plenty of success last season, scoring 18 goals and supplying seven assists across all competitions. He is a potent threat. But he also needs a counterpoint to jockey with out on the left, and Rodrygo would provide that presence and then some.

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Further work required, particularly at senior leadership levels, according to Sport Structures report

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Nov-2025

A new independent assessment of cricket in England and Wales says that “genuine progress” has been made in the sport’s bid to address its long-standing issues of inclusion and equity – but adds that further work is needed in several areas, including at senior leadership level.The State of Equity in Cricket Report, published by Sport Structures, had been commissioned by the ECB as a follow-up to the damning 2023 report by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC), which found that racism, classism, sexism and elitism were “widespread” in the sport.That original report had concluded with 44 recommendations to the ECB, one of which was to publish a “full State of Equity Report every three years”. This latest document, 53 pages long, has been delivered a year ahead of schedule, with Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, stating that it was intended to “hold us to account” as cricket seeks to become the most inclusive team sport in England and Wales.”Cricket is not yet where it aspires to be, but the tone has changed,” Kate Percival, Sport Structures’ CEO, said in a statement. “Inclusion is now seen as central to the game’s health and future.”The report outlined several “notable areas of progress”, including improved access to talent pathways, and a doubling of the number of women’s and girl’s teams since 2021, backed up by significant increases in the number of professional women’s players and their pay.The establishment of a new independent Cricket Regulator, ring-fenced from the rest of the ECB, was also noted in the report, along with a £50 million investment in facilities since 2023, particularly in urban areas including two all-weather cricket domes in Bradford and Darwen.However, despite improved representation at board level – with female non-executives at 37% compared to 11% in 2019, and 18% ethnically diverse non-executives compared to 5% in 2019 – the report stated that “further action” was required at senior level, with a particular lack of Black representation.Dame Sarah Storey is the only female chair at a first-class county•Lancashire CCC

Dame Sarah Storey, who is currently interim chair at Lancashire, remains the only female chair at any of the 18 first-class counties, while the resignation of Essex chair Anu Mohindru – who was found to have lied on his CV – means the ethnic diversity among county chairs and chief executives remains at 6%.Coaching course data showed that more diversity is required in the Specialist programme which feeds the professional game, while Disability cricket requires “deeper integration” within county and club systems. The recreational game, meanwhile, requires further “capacity and expertise” to deal with discrimination issues, although a newly-formed Recreational Discipline Panel of independent experts is in place to hear the most serious and complex cases.”The State of Equity in Cricket Report holds us to account in relation to our ambitions to become the most inclusive team sport,” Gould said. “It shows us some areas of excellent work and progress, as well as where we need to go further.”The extensive work to open up the talent pathway to young people from every background is a great example of the changes that can be made when cricketing organisations join forces to break down barriers and deliver systemic change.”We know there is still a great deal of work to do, and a number of areas where more action is needed to address structural issues. We said from the start there could be no quick fix, but we committed to delivering meaningful and lasting change, and that will remain our absolute focus in the months and years ahead as we build on the progress we are setting out today.”

Amy Jones aced the chase after New Zealand’s batters had a disappointing outing

Valkerie Baynes26-Oct-2025

Amy Jones celebrates her fifty with Heather Knight•ICC/Getty Images

England 172 for 2 (Jones 86*, Beaumont 40) beat New Zealand 168 (Plimmer 43, Smith 3-30, Sciver-Brunt 2-31, Capsey 2-34) by eight wicketsAn injury to key bowler Sophie Ecclestone proved no barrier for England as Amy Jones overhauled a meagre target to send New Zealand out of the World Cup with a heavy defeat.Ecclestone injured her bowling shoulder while fielding and sent down just four deliveries, including a wicket, before England bundled New Zealand out for 168 inside 39 overs in their final group game.Her fellow left-arm spinner, Linsey Smith, overcame a difficult start to capture three wickets while part-time off-spinner Alice Capsey and seamer Nat Sciver-Brunt took two each before Jones’s unbeaten 86 took England home with ease.Related

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The result meant that England secured the No. 2 spot behind Australia, meaning that in the unlikely event of their semi-final against South Africa being washed out in Guwahati on Wednesday and on the subsequent reserve day, they would progress on the basis of holding a superior position on the table.It also ensured there would be no fairytale farewell for New Zealand captain Sophie Devine, who has played her last ODI in a match where New Zealand’s batters collectively failed convert starts and their bowlers struggled to put dents in England’s top-order.On the face of it, England had an easy ride into their semi-final campaign, but Ecclestone’s injury was cause for concern and they had to overcome a wayward start with the ball and in the field while their re-jigged middle-order went untested.The openers Jones and Tammy Beaumont broke the back of the run chase with a 75-run partnership and Jones combined with Heather Knight for an 83-run stand that took England within 11 runs of victory.England’s top four have all scored runs at this tournament, with Knight and Sciver-Brunt posting centuries and Beaumont and Jones reaching fifty before this game. Down the order they brought in the vastly experienced Danni Wyatt-Hodge for her first match of the tournament, replacing Emma Lamb who has struggled at No. 6.Knight’s dismissal, lbw to Devine for 33, prompted England to send Wyatt-Hodge in at No. 4 ahead of Sciver-Brunt to give her some exposure in the middle ahead of the knockout phase, although it was limited as she faced seven deliveries for 2 not out.Sophie Devine waves farewell after her final ODI•ICC/Getty ImagesBeaumont raced to 26 off 20 balls, with four of her five boundaries up to that point coming in one Jess Kerr over. Back-to-back fours off Amelia Kerr put Beaumont in touching distance of 40 but, once she arrived there, she was struck on the pad by a Lea Tahuhu nip-backer right in line with middle stump.Knight carved the next ball expertly through backward point for four and, having overturned an lbw dismissal to New Zealand’s bemusement as Melie Kerr’s delivery was shown to be going over the stumps, Knight advanced down the pitch to power a huge six over long on in her next over.All the while, Jones had been steadily creeping towards her half-century with excellent timing and she brought up the milestone with six off Suzie Bates. Jones upped the tempo and helped herself to three fours in a row off Rosemary Mair before eventually bringing up the winning runs with consecutive boundaries off Devine, who left the field through a guard of honour from both teams.Earlier, Ecclestone took a tumble trying to intercept a boundary from Bates off the second ball of the match and jarred her shoulder after running from mid-off to chase Capsey’s misfield at extra cover.Bates only managed to reach 10 before spooning a waist-high full toss from Smith straight to mid-off where Lamb stood as a substitute for Ecclestone.Struggling to grip the new ball, Smith continued to serve up some wayward lengths and, after Bates had failed to capitalise, Kerr did with four boundaries on the trot as she set about rebuilding through a 68-run partnership alongside Georgia Plimmer.Sophie Ecclestone picked a wicket in the four deliveries she bowled before going off with injury•Getty ImagesWith Smith pulled from the attack and Ecclestone still off the field having her injury assessed, Capsey entered to make a crucial strike as Kerr sought to go big down the ground and picked out Charlie Dean, who then struck with the first ball of the next over, pinning Plimmer on the pad for 43 as England wrested back control.Ecclestone returned briefly to remove Brooke Halliday, caught by Sophia Dunkley at deep midwicket, but then Dunkley bowled the remaining two balls of the over as Ecclestone, feeling more discomfort in her shoulder, left the field for the remainder of the innings.So it fell to Devine to make one last stand with the bat, even more so when Capsey took an excellent diving catch off her own bowling to remove Maddy Green – although she dropped another off Izzy Gaze next ball – but it wasn’t to be. Devine managed 23 off 35 before she strode forward to a Sciver-Brunt off-cutter which kissed the inside edge before landing in the glove of wicketkeeper Jones.Smith returned in the 29th over and, more comfortable with the worn ball, removed Gaze playing around a slow, full delivery that angled in to hit the top of off stump.Sciver-Brunt grabbed her second wicket by pinning Mair lbw and Jess Kerr was run out by a good throw from Dean at extra cover to Jones to put New Zealand on the brink of being bowled out. Dean finished it with a superb catch over her shoulder while running back at mid-off to remove Tahuhu and give Smith her third.

Stats highlights from Delhi, where DC’s four-match winning streak in IPL 2025 came to an end

Sampath Bandarupalli13-Apr-202515-0 Mumbai Indians’ (MI) record while defending a target of 200-plus runs in the IPL. The highest successful chase against MI in the IPL is 196 by Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2020.MI and Delhi Capitals (DC) are the only teams with a 100% win record while defending 200-plus targets in the IPL. DC have won all 13 IPL matches while defending 200-plus targets.2520 Days between Karun Nair’s previous two fifties in the IPL – against CSK in 2018 and MI on Sunday. It is the longest gap between fifty-plus scores for any batter in the IPL. Nair, however, batted only six times during this seven-year gap.Related

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Travis Head had the previous longest gap between his fifties with 2516 days – against KKR in 2017 and MI in 2024. Head batted only once during that gap and did not feature in any of the six seasons between 2018 and 2023.