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The Yankees' busy trade deadline continues.

New York is trading for Rockies reliever Jake Bird in exchange for second baseman prospect Roc Riggio and left-handed prospect Ben Shields, Jeff Passan of reports.

The right-hander heads to the Yankees after spending the first three and a half years of his career in Colorado. This season, Bird is 4-1 with a 4.73 ERA and 62 strikeouts over 53.1 innings. He notably had a 2.48 ERA at home compared to a 7.40 ERA on the road this season.

This marks the latest move for the Yankees, who added more help to bullpen earlier on Thursday by trading for David Bednar from the Pirates. On Wednesday, they brought in White Sox outfielder Austin Slater for Gage Ziehl, and traded for Ryan McMahon last week.

Real Madrid are close to finalising a loan move for out-of-favour striker Endrick as rumoured suitors Manchester United fall behind in the pursuit of the Brazilian wonderkid. The 19-year-old has struggled to find minutes under Xabi Alonso, and a temporary transfer has been arranged to relaunch his career after a frustrating few months at the Spanish capital.

Lyon beat Manchester United to the punch

According to , Real have approved a deal in principle after lengthy talks with Lyon. The French giants are currently seventh in the Ligue 1 standings under Paulo Fonseca and beat competition from United and Aston Villa, who were exploring late loan offers. The Red Devils wanted to bring the Brazilian in after Benjamin Sesko got injured, but their approach came too late, and Endrick's mind was already made up. The teenager sees Lyon as a platform to rediscover his form, with regular minutes and a starting role that could potentially reignite his hopes of making Brazil’s 2026 World Cup squad. 

When Los Blancos secured Endrick from Palmeiras in 2022, in a deal worth up to €60 million (£53m/$70m), he was billed as the next great Brazilian export, following in the footsteps of Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo. Yet his transition to Europe has not gone to plan. In his debut season under Carlo Ancelotti, he showed flashes of promise, scoring seven goals in 37 appearances, but his second campaign has been derailed by injury and competition. A hamstring problem forced him to miss the Club World Cup and the opening months of the season, and once he regained match fitness, Alonso had moved on to more established names in his roster. To put things into perspective, Endrick has managed just 11 minutes of league football so far in 2025-26, with his lone cameo coming in September’s 4-0 win over Valencia.

"Of course, I’d like him to have played already," the Real Madrid coach admitted. "But the situations in our recent matches have been very tight since Endrick returned. I hope he can get those minutes soon. He’s training well, he’s ready, but the right moment has to come."

AdvertisementGetty Images SportWhat are the details of the loan deal for Endrick?

The transfer to Lyon will be sealed closer to the January transfer window. Both clubs have agreed to insert a mid-season recall clause allowing Madrid to bring Endrick back if an injury crisis hits the Spanish giants. It is claimed that negotiations began in mid-October, and according to sources close to the player, Endrick himself was eager to make the switch. He has already started house hunting in Lyon, which indicates that personal terms are agreed and only formal paperwork remains to be done. For Lyon, this is being considered a massive coup. Fonseca’s men have struggled for goals this season, with Czech forward Pavel Sulc leading their scoring charts with only five strikes to his name. 

Real Madrid's long-term faith remains unshaken

Real Madrid have no intention of parting ways permanently with Endrick. The club views the Lyon move as part of his growth plan, similar to how they handled Dani Carvajal’s early development when he was loaned out to Bayer Leverkusen. Sporting director Juni Calafat, who spearheaded the original transfer from Palmeiras, remains convinced Endrick will fulfil his potential in Spain. Madrid had originally preferred to loan him within La Liga, which would have eased his integration into Alonso's squad. Moreover, the forward is just six months away from obtaining a Spanish passport, which was another reason for searching for a club in Spain. But Endrick pushed for a move abroad, prioritising a club that could offer him consistent starts. Carlo Ancelotti, who is now the head coach of the Brazil national team, mentioned that Endrick must rack up minutes to make a case for himself.

"It’s important for Endrick to start playing again," said the Italian coach in an interview with . “I spoke with him at the start of the season. He was injured, but now he’s fine. He needs to think with his team about what’s best, talk with the club, and decide what suits him."

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(C)Getty ImagesA new chapter for the Brazilian talent

For Endrick, this move could be a defining moment in his career. Lyon offer a stage away from the glare that comes with wearing Madrid's iconic white shirt. It is a club where he can rediscover his sharpness with regular game time. If all goes to plan, the young Brazilian will return to Spain next summer rejuvenated, as there is no buy clause in the loan deal, ready to stake his claim in the Real Madrid starting XI.

Weeks do not come much bigger than this for Arsenal.

On Sunday, Mikel Arteta’s team return to action, following the international break, with a bang, hosting Tottenham in the North London derby.

Then, on Wednesday, the top two in this season’s Champions League will go head-to-head, with Bayern Munich and Arsenal both putting their 100% records in the competition on the line, before the Gunners face the small matter of another London derby against Chelsea next Sunday.

If the Premier League leaders are going to still be sitting pretty at the top in ten days time, Arteta will need his key figures to perform at their best, but is sporting director Andrea Berta already putting plans in place to sign a “monster” hybrid of two of Arsenal’s most pivotal players?

Arsenal targeting a midfield monster

Two of Arsenal’s most important signings in recent seasons have inarguably been Declan Rice and Mikel Merino.

The former has been transformational in midfield, potentially now the best in his position in the Premier League, while the Spaniard has been integral in a completely unforeseen way, excelling as the emergency makeshift striker even since he was thrust into the role off the bench at Leicester in February, poised to lead the line again against Spurs on Sunday.

Now, according to TEAMalk, the Gunners and Andrea Berta are targeting another midfield star, reporting that Arsenal are one of many Premier League clubs interested in signing Scott McTominay from Napoli.

They add that the Gunners are exploring a move for a star who is valued at €80m (around £70.5m), by the Partenopei, noting that it would take an ‘astronomical’ fee for them to sell the ‘linchpin’ in Antonio Conte’s team, while noting that the Scotland international would like to return to the Premier League one day.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

In history, only 15 men have ever made a senior appearance for both Arsenal and Manchester United, Robin van Persie, Alexis Sánchez, Danny Welbeck and Henrikh Mkhitaryan among the recent high-profile examples, so could McTominay soon join this exclusive list?

What Scott McTominay would bring to Arsenal

McTominay was in the news this week by virtue of scoring this jaw-dropping overhead kick to help Scotland qualify for a first World Cup in 28 years, breaking the deadlock as his side beat Denmark 4-2 at Hampden in ultra-dramatic fashion; if you somehow haven’t seen this goal, it is well worth your time!

Well, if you think McTominay is popular in Scotland, he holds god-like status in Naples, having been the key figure in their Serie A triumph last season, clinching only the Ciucciarelli’s fourth Scudetto, named the league’s player of the season, with the statistics below underlining why.

Goals

12

7th

Headed goals

3

4th

Shots

76

11th

Shots on target

33

6th

Non pen goals – xG

+4.6

2nd

Goal-creating actions

10

26th

Successful take-ons

39

12th

Ground duels won

141

11th

Aerial duels won

67

25th

Ball recoveries

143

20th

Touches in box

106

20th

Average rating

7.27

8th

As the table documents, McTominay is the complete all-rounder, ranked highly for a wide variety of metrics.

He scored 12 goals from just 33 shots on target, thereby behind only Capocannoniere winner Mateo Retegui in terms of non-penalty goals – expected goals, including this strike on the final day against Cagliari to secure the Scudetto, a goal recently relegated to the second-best bicycle kick on his showreel.

As well as his goal-scoring exploits, McTominay ranked in the top 20 for successful take-ons, ground duels won and ball recoveries, further emphasising his all-action nature.

Ole Gunnar Solskjær, his manager at Manchester United, labelled him a “physical monster”, while Adam Joseph described him as a “true superstar of European and world football”.

So, McTominay appears to have combined all the best attributes from both Merino and Rice.

Like Merino, the Scotsman has harnessed his goal-scoring instincts, as well as being excellent in the air, as underlined by the fact he scored three headers and won 67 aerial duels in Serie A last season.

Meantime, just like Rice, McTominay is an asset all across the pitch, able to cover a lot of ground and help win back possession when his team do not have the ball, while contributing driving dribbles and goal-scoring actions in the final third.

Thus, the World Cup-bound 28-year-old has flourished into one of the planet’s very best all-round midfield players, so would surely be an exceptional addition for Arsenal.

Eze upgrade: Arsenal submit bid for "one of the best wingers in the world"

As Arsenal seek attacking reinforcement to get their title push over the line, will they target “one of the best wingers in the world” valued at £80m?

Nov 20, 2025

Tabraiz Shamsi was tough to score off, and earned himself two opportunities to show off his familiar shoe-phone celebration. Despite his 2 for 17, however, St Lucia Kings had a big chase on their hands in their CPL 2025 game against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots – 178. That Kings got there with 18 balls and seven wickets in hand was down to their openers Tim Seifert and Johnson Charles. 115 runs between them, in just 62 balls, made the chase a canter.Just five runs came off the first over of the chase, bowled by Kyle Mayers. Charles took off after that, against Naseem Shah, and kept going. Kings got 13 off the second over, then 18 off the third, and 21 off the fifth, and finished the powerplay with 72 on the board. Seifert, who was slow to start with – having scored only a run-a-ball 15 by the fourth over – was now batting as quickly as Charles. It was all looking rather ominous for Patriots.Waqar Salamkheil got them the breakthrough – the wicket of Charles for a 17-ball 47 – in the seventh over, but with Ackeem Auguste, the hero of Kings’ previous match, for company, Seifert didn’t let the advantage slip.Auguste and Seifert added 60 for the second wicket, with Auguste contributing 29 in 20 balls. Though Seifert fell in the 15th over for a 45-ball 68, his opening blast had left Kings with very few to get with a lot of time.Johnson Charles smashed 47 in just 17 balls•Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / Getty

Roston Chase (15*) and Tim David (16*) finished things off by the end of the 17th over.Earlier, after Patriots had been asked to bat by David Wiese at Kings’ home ground, the momentum they would have wanted never quite come. Theirs wasn’t a bad powerplay however, with Andre Fletcher especially showing enterprise as Patriots got to 57 for 1 after six overs.The brakes were applied soon after that, as Shamsi got Fletcher to miscue and attempted heave out of the stadium only to sky the ball to Charles behind the stumps. For his efforts, Shamsi was later named the Player of the Match.The fightback came from Mohammad Rizwan, batting at No. 3, who scored 60 not out in 41 balls, and put together partnerships of 71 in 52 balls with Mayers (27 in 25) and an unbroken 37 in 20 balls with Jason Holder (21* in 14). Still, neither Rizwan nor Mayers could score at the sort of rate Patriots would have wanted on a pitch that, as the outcome suggests, was good for scoring.The win took Kings to the top of the table with eight points from six games, while Patriots are now in fifth position with four points from seven games.

The Blue Jays will be thinking about how close they came to winning the 2025 World Series for years. In one of the best series we’ve ever seen, Toronto came up short, losing to the Dodgers in seven bruising games. Despite L.A.’s victory, much of the discussion after the game has focused on the Blue Jays’ blunders.

Toronto had issues running the bases all series, but three massive mistakes led directly to the team’s downfall. Here’s a look at how they happened and how each could have changed the outcome of the series.

Game 3: Schneider thrown out by a mile

In the epic, 18-inning Game 3 battle we’ll be talking about for years, the Blue Jays had several chances to take a lead in extra innings. Unfortunately, they could never push a run across. Some of that was due to John Schneider’s over-managing, but one instance was simply a bad decision on the bases.

In the top of the 10th inning with two outs and the game tied 5-5, Ty France singled to left and was replaced on the bases by Davis Schneider. Nathan Lukes stepped to the place to face Emmet Sheehan and laced the first pitch he saw down the right field line and into the corner. Schneider was off at the crack of the bat, and third base coach Carlos Febles opted to send him home. It was a horrid decision. Dodgers right fielder Teoscar Hernández has a great arm, as does his relay partner Tommy Edman. Schenider was out by a mile attempting to score.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was on deck and would have stepped into the box with runners on second and third and two outs. The Dodgers likely would have walked him to face Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who had pinch-run for Bo Bichette earlier. Still, Toronto would have had a better chance with Kiner-Falefa attempting to get a hit off Sheehan than Schneider running on Hernández and Edman.

Game 6: Barger doubled off second base to lose the game

In Friday night’s matchup in Toronto, the Blue Jays fell 3-1 but had a golden opportunity to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth inning. Roki Sasaki opened the frame by hitting Alejandro Kirk. Then Addison Barger hit a ground-rule double that got stuck under the fence. That likely cost them a run, but created second and third with no outs.

They had three outs to get those runners home and failed to do so.

Tyler Glasnow entered the game for the Dodgers, and Ernie Clement opted to swing at the first pitch he saw, popping out harmlessly to Freddie Freeman at first base. Andrés Giménez then looped a 1-0 pitch into shallow left field, but it hung up just enough for Kike Hernández to sprint in and make a running catch. Barger misread the ball and took off for third base before realizing it wasn’t going to drop. Hernández caught it, fired the ball to second and doubled off Barger, ending the game.

Had Barger held at second, George Springer would have come to the plate with two outs needing only a single to tie the game. Springer was 2-for-4 with an RBI on the night and is arguably Toronto’s second-best hitter. Instead, Barger’s blunder ended the game.

Game 7: Kiner-Falefa’s short lead burns him

In the bottom of the ninth, after the Dodgers tied the game at 4-4 on Miguel Rojas’s improbable solo home run, the Blue Jays had a chance to end it. With Blake Snell on the mound, Guerrero flew out to deep center before Bo Bichette singled to left. Kiner-Falefa pinch ran for him, then Barger walked after a nine-pitch at-bat. L.A. pulled Snell and brought in Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who hit Kirk with his second pitch to load the bases. That’s when things got interesting.

On a 1-2 pitch, Daulton Varsho grounded the ball to Rojas at second. He stumbled making the play, but was able to throw a strike home to catcher Will Smith to barely beat Kiner-Falefa coming home. On replay, it was close as to whether Smith kept his foot on home plate, but the play was upheld after a review.

Observers noticed that Kiner-Falefa took almost no lead off third base, and didn’t get much of a secondary lead after Yamamoto began to move towards home plate. He had plenty of room, as Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy was playing off the line. Visual evidence is below.

If Kiner-Falefa had taken another step or two off the base, he almost certainly would have scored, as Rojas’s throw home only beat him by inches. That would have ended the game and the series. Instead, he was out, and it was a massive missed opportunity.

With two outs and the bases still loaded, Clement flied out to the warning track, where Andy Pages made an outstanding catch to end the inning.

The game moved to extra innings, where the Dodgers would win it thanks to an 11th-inning Will Smith home run and Yamamoto’s heroic pitching performance.

The Blue Jays had repeated chances to win the series, but in the moments that mattered the most, they came up short. That was the difference.

Manchester United are plotting signings and now look to be on the verge of announcing their latest arrival at Old Trafford, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Man Utd prepare to take on Crystal Palace

The dust has settled on a disappointing defeat for Manchester United against Everton on Monday night, which will have left Ruben Amorim with plenty to stew over after being denied by a rigid block that refused to budge at Old Trafford.

Arguably, a change of shape or style would’ve heightened the chances of the Red Devils scoring. Still, some excellent saves from Jordan Pickford ended their five-match unbeaten run in the Premier League, and they will now need to reset against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

South London has proved to be one of the toughest destinations in the top-flight this campaign for clubs keen on points, albeit Manchester United will have no choice but to try and defy recent norms in their pursuit of continental qualification.

Come the January window, Amorim will hope to call upon the backing of INEOS in the hunt for new additions, and Wolverhampton Wanderers pair Joao Gomes and Andre are wanted at Old Trafford.

Casemiro could be on his way out at Manchester United, with Fabrizio Romano confirming that he may only be kept on under reduced salary conditions, as he said: “So now the desire is from Man Utd obviously to continue with Casemiro, but on different conditions.

“So the salary he has right now is a salary Manchester United don’t want to pay in the future. Not because of unhappiness with the player, but because they want to change the salary structure.”

With that in mind, the Red Devils could now be set to imminently sign a younger midfielder who shares similar traits with the Brazil international.

Man Utd set to sign Cristian Orozco

According to Romano on X, Manchester United are now close to signing Fortaleza midfielder Cristian Orozco for a fee in the region of £756,800 and he will arrive in England over the coming days to seal his move.

Despite never playing senior club football, scouts have compared him to the likes of Moises Caicedo and believe he could be the “next Casemiro” due to his “physically imposing” displays in the engine room.

Capped 13 times at Under-17 level by Colombia, he looks to be the latest in a long line of additions Manchester United have made over recent times with an eye for the future, similar to the likes of Chido Obi-Martin, Ayden Heaven and Diego Leon.

Man Utd plotting "bargain" deal to sign "imposing" Ligue 1 defender who scouts love

He could complete Amorim’s back three.

ByTom Cunningham Nov 27, 2025

With Casemiro soon to be into the final few months of his contract, the Red Devils may have now done the groundwork to land his long-term replacement.

The center midfielder, who was a mainstay for the USMNT during the 2022 World Cup, is in danger of missing out on the 2026 tournament on home soil. Could a new manager at Atalanta change his fortunes?

On Aug. 26, Yunus Musah made it clear that he had big plans for the 2025-26 season at AC Milan.

"The nearest goals and achievement for me are winning trophies here at Milan," he told ESPN. "This season we have the possibility to win three trophies [Serie A, Coppa Italia, Italian Supercoppa]. I'd love to win all three of them. And also then go to the national team and win more trophies as well."

That all sounded good. There was confidence, gusto, the idea that Musah believed that all of those things were possible Milan and the USMNT. A week later, he was holding up an Atalanta shirt, grinning, after agreeing to a year-long loan to Milan's direct rivals. Just over two months after that, he is out of the U.S. squad after barely playing for his new club. 

It is impossible to speculate on the minutea here. But some things are true. The first is that Musah has played just under 300 minutes of football this season. He has also played for two different club managers and is about to play for a third after Atalanta sacked Ivan Juric on Monday. And, according to insights offered by U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino, it is playing time, not injury, that has seen him dropped from the U.S. squad. Piece it all together, and this looks like a footballer who made one of those rare, truly poor decisions in his career. His move may have come late, but the destination was also frightfully ill-judged, with Musah now stuck in a spot where he is unlikely to play more, and without a steady parent club to return to. 

• Getty Images
  

  Allegri didn't rate him

  The state of tension between Musah and Allegri was perhaps a bit overblown. But the eye test certainly didn't help. There were, in fact, two significant incidents in the game between Milan and Lecce that suggested that something was up. The first came in the second half, when the American was on the ground after being on the receiving end of a hefty challenge. Allegri didn't "kick" him, per se, but there was, to be sure, contact between the manager's foot and Musah's body. 

  Later in the game, Allegri berated him for trying to take a throw in quickly with his side leading 2-0 in stoppage time. Musah dropped the ball and looked away without even looking at his coach. It must be acknowledged here that managers and players are allowed to disagree. Allegri, too, isn't exactly the most fun guy. He is a strict disciplinarian who plays intense, testy football. He was famously denied a job in the Premier League when he outlined his playing style: "I don't have one." 

  Allegri also made it abundantly clear to Milan's hierarchy that he wanted a center midfielder who could offer a little more control in his side. The solution? Veteran Frenchman Adrien Rabiot, one of Allegri's favorites at Juventus, and a regular for Didier Deschamps in the French National Team. The reality was that Musah was always going to be a bit frozen out. 

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• AFP
  

  Decision to join Atalanta

  And so it proved. Things accelerated rapidly on Musah's move. There had been some scattered talk for a few weeks that his long term future might not lie with the , but the pace at which his loan move was tracked through was remarkable. All of the reporting all summer suggested that Musah was set to be an important player for Milan. But then, on Aug. 27 – less than a week before the transfer deadline – Serie A transfer guru Matteo Moretto reported that a move to Atalanta was gaining traction. The club was reportedly prepared to pay €25 million for his services. Eventually, the two sides agreed on a loan with a club option to buy. 

  But it was an odd call, all said. There were, admittedly, some things to like about playing for Atalanta. They needed a little midfield depth. They play attacking football. They are in the Champions League this season. There seemed to be plenty of minutes to go around, then. 

  Tactically, too, the fit was intriguing. Atalanta play a 3-4-2-1, with two disciplined, defensive center midfielders and proper runners on the wing. Musah, at his best, is an energetic, box-to-box No. 8. But he can also play on the right or left. He even admitted, after playing well in a 4-3-3 for the USMNT, that he could play on the wing if needed.

  "It's more of a position where you're supposed to be that guy that takes the risks, you're supposed to be that guy that takes on a man and creates [scoring] chances," Musah said. "So ultimately, when the coach tells you to play free, then it gives you even more of a chance to do those things."

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Needing a position

  Musah's versatility, in a way, cannot be questioned. But it might have also held him back a bit. In Milan in the 2023-24 campaign, he played nine different positions. But 42 percent of his minutes came in central midfield, where he was genuinely excellent for spells. The rest? Well, there was some time spent out wide, a bit as a defensive midfielder, and even as a right winger. But the point was, largely, he was a center mid doing center mid things. 

  The year after, Milan changed managers, and thereby removed the role that Musah had excelled in. Under Paolo Fonseca, he operated mostly as a right attacking midfielder. The Portuguese did not set up in a system that offered his preferred position. And even if he finished the campaign with 1,600 minutes under his belt and 19 Serie A starts, Musah didn't quite offer a sense of specialization that he needed. 

  And Atalanta have, in a way, capitalized on that. Musah has perhaps a similar problem to Weston McKennie in that he can do a little bit of everything – but is caught in a system that doesn't truly excel in his greatest area. 

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  A nightmare of a start to the season

  The result is a limited role. It was always, perhaps, going to be tough to crack the XI. In Ederson and veteran midfielder Mario Pasalic – a similar profile of player to Musah – they have two established center midfielders. Davide Zappacosta is a mainstay out wide. Raoul Bellanova has impressed on the other wing. Musah isn't a good fit in either of the No. 10 positions. 

  So, yes, the tactical fit is an awkward one. But what is perhaps even more surprising is just how few minutes he might get. Ederson is a star midfielder who plays nearly every minute. But Pasalic is aging. Zappacosta, too, could do with a rest here and there. Rotational minutes may not be ideal, but even they should still be attainable – especially for a player of Musah's potential. Instead, Musah has played just six times in Serie A, totaling 145 minutes. His one start came not for Atalanta, but Milan – where he played all 90 minutes against Lecce. He has only played five of Atalanta's last 10 games, despite being fit and available for all of them. 

  His performances, meanwhile, have been agreeable. It is admittedly hard to make much of an impact when minutes are sparse. But Musah assisted in the Champions League, and his efforts when on the pitch cannot be questioned. His dribbling and ball-carrying stats are as strong as ever, too.

Batter finishes grim tour with 55 runs in five innings, and no sense that he’s answered doubts about role

Matt Roller25-Oct-2024There were only 22 minutes between Ollie Pope walking out to bat and bad light bringing the second day in Rawalpindi to a premature close, yet it was hardly a surprise that he was already back in the England dressing-room. Pope has become an all-or-nothing player, and will return home next week with only 55 runs to show for his tour to Pakistan.This has been a chastening trip for Pope, who has been heavily backed by England’s management over the last two-and-a-half years but is not delivering the returns that such investment demands. Since falling second-ball to a superb catch at midwicket in the first Test (a match in which his team-mates racked up 823 runs between them), he has managed 29, 22, 3 and 1 and has looked out of his depth on two turning pitches.Pope played one of the great England innings in January, a hyperactive 196 which set up an improbable comeback win over India in Hyderabad, but it increasingly looks like an outlier. He has played 23 Test innings since, averaging 26.21 with more ducks (3) than hundreds (2); in Asia, he has batted 13 times and averaged 13.30, without reaching 40.He stared back at the pitch after this latest dismissal, edging Noman Ali to slip as the sun set behind the Sohail Tanvir Enclosure. The ball did turn and bounce to take the shoulder of his bat, but what else was Pope expecting on a dry pitch that Pakistan have openly tailored to suit their spinners? He jabbed at it with hard hands, away from his body: the outcome was predictable.This was Pope’s first dismissal to Noman after three in a row to Sajid Khan, the ebullient offspinner who has changed the complexion of this series. In Multan, Pope was beaten on the inside-edge by a ball that spun sharply, and then chipped back to the bowler via the inside-edge while looking to drive through mid-off; in the first innings here, he was pinned lbw on the sweep.It has taken England a long time to find a settled top seven and with series against India (home) and Australia (away) looming next year, they will rightly be reluctant to make a change unless they are confident that the alternative is better. The problem for Pope is that the route to that change has never been as clear as it is now.England are set to name their squad to tour New Zealand at the end of this Test and it is highly unlikely that Pope will be dropped. But Jamie Smith’s impending paternity leave means Jordan Cox will play at least one match on that tour, and potentially all three: if he succeeds with the bat and Pope fails, there will be a decision to make.Noman Ali removed Pope in the penultimate over of a terrible day for England•Getty ImagesPope was presented his 50th cap by Zak Crawley ahead of the first Test in Multan, who said his ability to “really seize the moment” had helped him become “one of the best players in the world”. It felt like a platitude rather than a genuine belief: Pope has played some exceptional innings, but the world’s best find a way to contribute in between those big scores.Crawley reached the same landmark in Rawalpindi and has also endured a quiet series, falling to Noman four times in a row since his 78 in the first Test. The biggest difference between the two is that Crawley has already proven himself against Australia and India. Pope averages 22.05 in 35 innings against them, including 11.16 on his previous Ashes tour.Six of Pope’s seven Test hundreds have come since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes took over as England’s coach, as he has clearly valued their backing. But more than half of his dismissals in that time (28 out of 51) have been for scores below 20: that is the record of a lower-middle-order strokemaker, not a reliable No. 3.There has been one England batter who looked the part in that role on this tour, but it was not Pope. Joe Root was forced up the order in the first Test after Ben Duckett’s dislocated thumb prompted a reshuffle and had to walk out in the second over after Pope’s duck, but exuded calm on the second evening and eventually piled on a career-best 262..Root has expressed a clear preference to bat at No. 4, dating back to his time as captain. Back then, England’s openers would rarely bat long enough to give him a breather after he had exhausted his mental energy in the field, and often left him exposed to the new ball. The situation is very different now he is back in the ranks, with Crawley and Duckett’s established partnership one of England’s biggest strengths.In any case, Pope’s regular failures at No. 3 mean that Root already comes in soon after the first wicket more often than not. Root and Harry Brook moving up one spot each would either allow Pope a stay of execution in a more suitable No. 5 role, or Cox to be eased in: promoting Root is an option that England must at least consider revisiting.Unless England can manufacture an implausible comeback in Rawalpindi, they will suffer only their second series defeat under McCullum and Stokes. The first, in India, prompted ruthless and decisive change, with Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes and Ollie Robinson not seen since. If he survives until New Zealand as expected, then Pope can count himself lucky.

Arsenal are unbeaten in their last nine matches across all competitions and sit pretty at the top of the Premier League table, boasting a 100 per cent record in the Champions League to boot.

Mikel Arteta answers Arsenal critics

There is a sentiment going around that the Gunners have adopted a ‘boring style of play’, but as long as they get the job done, Mikel Arteta won’t be in the least bit bothered.

Besides, this ongoing narrative is in stark contrast to their imperious win over Atlético Madrid in the Champions League last Wednesday, and club legend Paul Merson was quick to note that nobody blows away Diego Simeone’s side like Arsenal did that night.

Four goals inside just 14 minutes cemented what was a statement three points for Arteta’s men, and summer signing Viktor Gyokeres silenced his own doubters with a quick-fire brace to end his barren run without scoring.

The result means Arsenal still haven’t lost a single game in all competitions since their narrow defeat at Anfield in late August, and even that was down to a sumptuous late free-kick from Dominik Szoboszlai which David Raya could do nothing about.

The catalyst for Arsenal’s amazing run has undoubtedly been their rock-solid defence, which has leaked the fewest goals of any Premier League side, with just three scored past them in nine top flight games.

Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest

Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 1-1 Man City

Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal

Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

Fulham 0-1 Arsenal

Arsenal 4-0 Atlético Madrid

Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace

Much to pundit Jamie O’Hara’s detest, who said last week that Arsenal are “killing” the Premier League with their guerrilla tactics, the north Londoners have proved a constant menace through dead balls and long-throws — which have acted as a secret weapon that no opponent can match.

Gabriel already has four goal contributions as a direct result of corners and free-kicks, bagging a header against Atlético and setting up Gyokeres for his second, and teams barely have an answer to the Brazilian’s constant set piece threat.

It’s been a very promising start to 25/26, and their excellent Champions League run has now forced Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher into a U-turn.

Jamie Carragher admits he got one thing very wrong about Arsenal

Speaking live on CBS Sports last week, analysing Arsenal’s win over Atlético, Carragher admitted that Arsenal are now one of the favourites to win the competition — despite previously saying they’re not a Champions League team.

After a summer of lavish spending, where Andrea Berta splashed nearly £270 million on eight major signings, the pressure is on Arteta to end the club’s two-decade-long wait for a league title.

Arsenal’s water-tight defence has formed the backbone for what could well be a successful challenge after years of near-misses, with both Gabriel and Saliba privately promising to remain at the club for years to come last summer.

With David Raya, who’s won back-to-back Golden Glove awards, commanding his area and defenders who don’t give an inch, Arsenal are proving they can grind out results when it matters most.

That kind of steel is exactly what you need to win a marathon like the Premier League, where every point counts and slip-ups are severely punished, with Arteta’s looking like real favourites for the crown as things stand.