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Spain went into the 2014 World Cup in Brazil on the back of winning the previous three major tournaments they had entered and a controversial decision from Diego Costa neatly summed up their prospects of making it four.

As Costa shot to prominence as the spearhead of Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid side that won La Liga and came within minutes of clinching the Champions League as well, he was at the centre of effectively an international transfer tussle.

The uncapped frontman was able to choose between being the number nine for his native Brazil, at a historic home World Cup or attempt to solve the striking problems that his adopted Spain were enduring and he chose the latter.

That underlines the extent to which Vicente del Bosque’s side were fancied to be the first European side to win the world crown on South American soil, despite being drawn in a relative group of death.

They came out of the hat alongside the Netherlands, hipsters’ favourites Chile and Australia but were expected to cruise through, going into their opening match against Louis van Gaal’s side.

The Dutch took Spain to extra time in the final four years previously but their side in 2014 was far from vintage.

Van Gaal agreed to become Manchester United manager prior to the tournament but pragmatically lined up his Dutch side in a 5-3-2 in Brazil; opting for safety in numbers to hide the deficiencies of a defence containing Ron Vlaar and Daryl Janmaat with a workmanlike midfield duo providing the bullets for aging stalwarts Robin van Persie, Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder.

So when Xabi Alonso put the World Champions ahead in the first half of their opening match against the Dutch, it looked as if he had put his side on the way to a routine win.

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Spain were dominating possession and while Costa was struggling to offer the cutting edge he had been nationalised to supply, Holland had scarcely threatened as the first half meandered to a close.

Yet, with under two minutes of the opening period remaining, Daley Blind collected the ball just inside the Spain half. He had ten yards of space and time to lift his head off but only two speculative passing options.

The left-wing-back clipped the ball over Spain’s typically high line to find that van Persie had sprung the offside trap – Gerard Pique played him onside – but the dropping ball left the Manchester United striker with precious few options, even as he bore down on goal.

Necessity is the mother of invention and van Persie was forced to improvise. He produced a stunning, Superman-style header that had the power of a looping volley to leave Iker Casillas stranded.

It was a stunning, ingenious finish that shocked the world champions and saw the Dutch captain sprint to the dugout to celebrate with van Gaal, the man who was soon to be his club manager.

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Man United fans across the globe must have licked their lips at the prospect of the pair linking up at Old Trafford and the second half saw their new manager oversee a dismantling of the world champions.

Spain imploded in the face of the Dutch counterpunching style – a complete departure from their Total Football roots – conceding four unanswered goals as Holland pulled off a result that sent shockwaves around the world.

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The 2018 World Cup is well underway and there are a number of players that have already made a big impact for their country in their opening group game, and surely some of them will have caught the eye of Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez.

The Spaniard will want to be backed by owner Mike Ashley in the transfer market this summer if they are to build upon their 10th-place finish on their first season back in the Premier League, in order to ensure they don’t have to look over their shoulder in the upcoming campaign.

Considering the former Liverpool and Real Madrid chief’s current team had a decent defensive record last term but struggled to put the ball in the back of the net having netted just 39 goals in their 38 top flight matches, his priority will surely be to strengthen his attacking options.

The 58-year-old manager will already have his targets in mind – Toon fans on Twitter hate the idea of signing a previously-linked 27-year-old – a previous but he may well have been convinced by the displays of a number of individuals in Russia, too.

Here are three World Cup stars that Benitez has surely added to his summer transfer wishlist…

One of Benitez’s priorities this summer may well be to add some more strength in depth and quality in wide areas, especially if he fails to sign Kenedy on a permanent basis from Chelsea.

Sisto is one player that may well have caught his eye following a decent performance in Denmark’s 1-0 win against Peru on Saturday, where he showed the pace and skill he has cutting in from the left-hand side – something that he has done throughout the 2017/18 campaign for Celta Vigo.

The 23-year-old scored four goals and provided a further 10 assists in 34 La Liga appearances, and there is no doubt that he would add something to a Newcastle frontline that has struggled at times.

Like Sisto, Zuber played from the left-hand side for Switzerland in their impressive 1-1 draw with pre-tournament favourites Brazil on Sunday, and he even got his nation’s goal with a bullet header from Xherdan Shaqiri’s corner.

The 26-year-old certainly impressed with his pace and trickery against Danilo at the weekend, and having not been a regular for club side Hoffenheim last term – he made 21 Bundesliga appearances, scoring once and assisting twice – he could well be ready to earn a move away following four years with the German outfit.

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Newcastle have been heavily linked with Sisto’s Danish teammates Nicolai Jorgensen in 2018, but perhaps Rafa should be taking a closer look at Finnbogason instead, who impressed and scored Iceland’s first-ever World Cup goal on Saturday.

The 29-year-old was in the right place at the right time to finish well against Argentina, and with 12 goals and three assists in 22 Bundesliga appearances for Augsburg last term, he has shown that he is a regular goalscorer at a decent level – he netted 53 times in 62 Eredivisie outings for Heerenveen previously.

The Magpies need more firepower alongside Dwight Gayle and Joselu, and the Icelandic centre-forward may be the answer to their issue.

Do you agree, Newcastle fans? Let us know below.

The last iconic character to wear the number eight shirt at Liverpool was club legend Steven Gerrard.

The midfielder and former captain was a talismanic figure for the Merseyside outfit, making more than 700 appearances after breaking through the academy.

Since his departure in the summer of 2015, no other player has managed to fill the boots left behind by Gerrard.

Now, though, according to the Liverpool Echo, new arrival Naby Keita will be handed the number eight jersey.

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The Guinea international agreed to join the Reds last year, but part of that agreement included waiting until 2018 to finalise the transfer.

Keita was spotted touching down in Liverpool last week, much to the excitement of the fans.

The box-to-box midfielder could be a crucial figure in Jurgen Klopp’s team this season, but there is one negative about the player’s game.

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Keita has often struggled with his discipline, resulting in numerous red cards.

Fans will be hoping that Klopp can stamp that out of the midfielder’s repertoire, but before he has a chance to show his worth on the pitch, supporters have been posting their thoughts on reports he will be given the number eight shirt.

Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.Comment from discussion (Pearce) New Liverpool signing Naby Keita set to take iconic shirt number.

Manchester City have lined up Real Madrid midfielder Mateo Kovacic as an alternative transfer target to Jorginho, according to Marca, via the Manchester Evening News. 

What’s the story, then?

Napoli playmaker Jorginho has reportedly been close to joining City for days now but the MEN report that Pep Guardiola has moved the Real Madrid into his sights as a backup option.

They also claim that the Croatian international, who has helped his country qualify for the last 16 of the World Cup with a game to spare, wants more regular gametime at the Bernabeu.

They say that Kovacic – valued at £27m by Transfermarkt – is willing to leave to get the gametime he requires and that makes him a viable second choice if the delays over the capture of Jorginho persist.

Kovacic would also add quality at City

Jorginho is a classy playmaker, another player who would improve under Guardiola and help fill the void left by Yaya Toure, but so is Kovacic.

He would be a regular at most other clubs in Europe but it is just that Madrid’s midfield talent is so vast that he has to be content with a backup role for the time being.

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Guardiola is sure to know that himself and he won’t be too bothered which of the pair he secures as they will likely only be very strong backups in the league’s best squad.

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Mike Young has praised the fielding techniques of India’s Under-19 World Cup squad, which is currently training at the Bandra-Kurla Cricket ground in Mumbai

Nagraj Gollapudi17-Dec-2009Mike Young has praised the fielding techniques of India’s Under-19 World Cup squad, which is currently training at the Bandra-Kurla Cricket ground in Mumbai. Young, the former Australia fielding coach, is currently with the Indian team as a consultant during the ODI series against Sri Lanka and had a day-long stop over on Wednesday after the BCCI asked him to spend some time with the youngsters.”If what I witnessed today is an indicator of what the future holds for India at the senior international level, then that future looks very bright,” Young told Cricinfo. The defending champions are preparing for the Under-19 World Cup which starts on January 15 in New Zealand, but before that they leave for a short warm-up series in South Africa on December 20.Young, whose expertise is baseball, got addicted to cricket late in his coaching career and successfully helped Australia become one of the best fielding units this decade. He is sought after for his radical thoughts on fielding methods and worked briefly with New Zealand before the stint with India.Young said he did not want to introduce anything new to the Under-19 players’ preparation. Impressed by coach Chandrakant Pandit’s “terrific” understanding of his athletes and the fundamentals of fielding, Young only validated the drills taught by the former Indian wicketkeeper. “Energy and having fun when fielding, that is what I asked them to focus on,” he said.Ground fielding is an area where Indians have displayed weakness, and Young demonstrated the positions that would aid the fielder get his body behind the ball and quickly release it. “From a technical standpoint – low body height, balance and how those lead to being in an explosive and aggressive attacking position on balls along the ground.”What impressed Young most was the involvement of the players, some of whom could explain the idea behind his methods. “Many of them spoke up and explained how what we had just done felt to them. It was a tremendous sign of them truly wanting to learn and improve but more importantly, wanting to understand the most effective way to do so.”Two years ago Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja and Manish Pandey emerged from the 2008 U-19 World Cup victory as the most promising fielders. This time, Young was optimistic about India’s fielders being among the best in New Zealand if they play with the same kind of energy. “I came away from that training session with a very excited feeling,” Young said.

Fast bowler has contemplated quitting Test cricket but will wait for the emotions to pass before taking a decision

Cricinfo staff06-Dec-2009Frustrated by yet another injury interrupting his career, Shane Bond has contemplated quitting Test cricket but will wait for the emotions to pass before taking a decision.”Everything races through your mind when you get an injury like this. And it has in this situation,” Bond told the in New Zealand. “You think about giving up and you ask yourself whether it’s worth all the effort.”I suppose what I want to do is take a couple of weeks away from cricket and wait until the disappointment and emotion from this latest setback – which is something I’ve always done – subsides before I make any decision. From there, I’ll sit down and look at things. You can’t take a decision like this lightly so I will wait until I’m feeling better first. I can’t rush this.”Bond returned to international cricket in September after terminating his one-year ICL contract. He took eight wickets in Dunedin – his first Test in two years – and was ruled out of the remainder of the series due to an abdominal muscle tear. Bond has struggled with back and foot injuries since his debut in 2001 and featured in only 18 of the 66 Tests that New Zealand have played in the period.”I’m injury-prone. I’m the first to admit that,” Bond said. “What I want to do and what my body allows me to do are two different things. The fact that people say I’m injury-prone and that I get injured a lot, well that’s true. But it’s that other stuff like I’m soft or that I don’t want to play for New Zealand that frustrates me.”Bond said being confined to watching the Wellington Test, which New Zealand lost by 141 runs, on television was deflating. “It’s deflating because the season so far – the three or four months I’ve been back – has gone so well. But that’s the thing, when you least expect something to happen it always does. To have done all that work and get to the point where I’ve reached the high of my season only to be cut off at the knees is a bummer.”I’ve taken this one particularly hard. To have everything go as well as it had and also to feel like I was reaching my best form only for this to happen is a real disappointment. I almost felt like I had beaten the back of these injuries.”If Bond does decide to quit Tests, it would be a major blow to New Zealand who have just lost their other fast bowler Iain O’Brien to county cricket. New Zealand have won 10 and lost only two of the 18 Tests that Bond has played.

Cricinfo previews the third match of the tri-series between Bangladesh and India in Mirpur

The Preview by Kanishkaa Balachandran06-Jan-2010

Match facts

Indis have death bowling worries and the experienced Zaheer Khan will have to show the way•AFP

January 7, 2010
Start time 14.30 (08.30 GMT)

Big picture

Win the toss, win the match. That seems to be the norm so far for this tri-series, for obvious reasons: The dew has been the deciding factor for both games. It has affected the bowlers’ grip and forced the spinners to bowl it flat, reluctant to give the ball air for fear of bowling a friendly full toss. Imagine the plight for a team like Bangladesh, which thrives on its spinners. Mushfiqur Rahim, the wicketkeeper, said his team have been practicing with a wet ball in the nets to get used to the dew.Dew apart, Tuesday’s defeat to Sri Lanka was an eye-opener for India. Their death bowling has been erratic in recent one-dayers and it was reflected in the crucial final stages of the chase when they dished out full tosses and no-balls in attempting to target the base of the stumps. The Rajkot ODI – where they defended 414 by the skin of their teeth – was an example of excellent death bowling, but they haven’t been able to replicate that consistently. Even their best death bowler, Zaheer Khan, had a poor outing on Tuesday. With no bowling coach at their disposal, there may not be enough time to rectify that weakness but the best India and Bangladesh can do is to score a mountain of runs as a safety net.Bangladesh will be expected to be far more potent if they bowl first. They will have to look at ways to contain India rather than attack them, because they could leak runs in the process. Against Sri Lanka, their top order wilted after a good start more due to carelessness, before Mohammad Ashraful led the recovery. Bangladesh certainly have more on their plate, but they will feel a lot better if they win that toss.

Form guide (last 5 completed matches, most recent first)

Bangladesh LWWWW
India LWWLW

Watch out for

Harbhajan Singh: The one bowler who performed against Sri Lanka, with figures of 3 for 47. It wouldn’t have been easy to grip the ball under lights but two of his three wickets came with good use of flight. The Rajkot blitzkrieg is another example – he stood out with figures of 2 for 58 in ten overs, including the wicket of Tillakaratne Dilshan for 160. He’s had a good last ten games, with an economy rate of 4.39 and 15 wickets.Tamim Iqbal: He was Bangladesh’s in-form player in 2009, scoring 642 runs at 32.10 with a career-best 154 and two fifties. He looked poised for another fifty against Sri Lanka but threw it away with a reckless shot. He said recently that he’s trying to focus on occupying the crease for longer periods. If he puts that in practice, it will allow the rest to bat around him.

Team news

Bangladesh are likely to drop Shafiul Islam, who had a difficult debut – where he was smashed for 39 off five overs – for the experienced Syed Rasel.Bangladesh 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Mohammad Ashraful, 4 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 5 Raqibul Hasan, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 8 Naeem Islam, 9 Abdur Razzak, 10 Rubel Hossain, 11 Shafiul Islam/Syed RaselIndia could retain the XI for the second game.India 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (capt and wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8, Harbhajan Singh, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Ashish Nehra, 11 Sreesanth

Stats and trivia

• India have won 10 out of 11 ODIs against Bangladesh in Bangladesh. The home team’s only win came on Boxing Day in 2004.
• Gautam Gambhir has an excellent record against Bangladesh, scoring 401 runs in six games including two hundreds, but Virender Sehwag hasn’t done as well, scoring only 304 runs in nine innings.
• In 11 innings, Mohammad Ashraful’s highest score against India is 36. He has scored 214 runs in these innings, at an average of 21.40.

Quotes

“If the middle order performs and we have a flourish towards the end like we did in the first match, then a very good score is possible. If you are bowling second then it is very important for the new ball bowlers to get a couple of early breakthroughs. Otherwise it tends to get tougher and tougher as the wickets are great for batting.”
“Good yorkers and slower ones are always going to help you win the games but I am not too disappointed as it was tough to bowl yorkers here with the dew.”
MS Dhoni