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Sam Carroll has praised the performance of Abdoualye Doucoure despite Everton losing 1-0 at home to Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday.

The Lowdown: Unlucky to lose

The Toffees were certainly unlucky to lose the game against the reigning champions, who scored with just a few minutes to go after Phil Foden tapped home, which was followed by a controversial decision from VAR not to award the home side a penalty after a handball in the box by Rodri.

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Nonetheless, Frank Lampard’s team gave a good account of themselves against quality opposition, and there were many standout performers for his side on the night.

The Latest: Doucoure lauded

Taking to Twitter, The Liverpool Echo journalist Carroll was lauding the performance of Doucoure in particular, along with a few of his Everton team-mates.

The reporter gushed: “Doucoure has superhuman energy levels. Him and Richarlison superb.”

The Verdict: What a return

After just coming back from injury, Doucoure really put in a shift against City.

The central midfielder won four of his duels and also completed one successful dribble, two clearances, two tackles and one key pass, maintaining an 83% pass accuracy and having 54 touches of the ball in total, the second-most out of any of his team-mates (SofaScore).

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He is certainly likely to be a key player for Lampard from now until the end of the season if the Toffees are to avoid relegation.

In other news, these were the Toffees’ three worst performers v City

Everton are still eyeing attacking reinforcements before the deadline and it looks as though a Premier League player could come in tonight, according to a new update.

Are Everton making more signings?

It's fair to say that the Blues have made a grim start to the season, with three defeats in a row coming in their opening trio of Premier League matches. Home 1-0 losses to Fulham and Wolves were sandwiched by a woeful 4-0 defeat away to Aston Villa, with another relegation battle potentially looking on the cards if things to don't improve significantly.

Wednesday's 2-1 win away to Doncaster Rovers in the EFL Cup second round certainly wasn't the most sparkling performance and result, but it should have acted as a boost to Sean Dyche and his players, especially for new signing Beto, who scored on his debut for Everton.

While the Portuguese giant has come in as an exciting attacking signing at Goodison Park, along with Arnaut Danjuma, one more attacking player could be perfect before the summer transfer window reaches its conclusion on Friday night, in order to bolster squad depth.

A fresh update has now emerged, in that respect, with Everton looking to bring in a Premier League player who has become something of a forgotten man of late.

Are Everton signing Maxwel Cornet?

Speaking to Give Me Sport, talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook claimed that the Blues could look to seal the signing of West Ham winger Maxwel Cornet before deadline day ends:

"Che Adams, I think has turned them down, hence the fact that Beto came in. Obviously, Maxwel Cornet played really well under Sean Dyche at Burnley so that one makes a lot of sense.

"But I think there’s a sort of domino effect on that one in that, once Fulham sell Joao Palhinha, that will give them funds to bring in Alex Iwobi from Everton, which will then free up a spot for Maxwel Cornet and so it goes on. But, I could see that happening."

Cornet's spell at West Ham has admittedly been a disappointing one, with no goals coming his way in 22 appearances for the Hammers to date. He may have registered five assists, but there is still no denying that his time at the London Stadium has been underwhelming.

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That being said, the Frenchman is still an attacking player with bags of talent, being hailed as "dangerous" by former Arsenal striker Ian Wright, and the fact that Dyche worked with him at Burnley suggests that he knows the player inside out and has confidence that he can be a success at Goodison moving forward.

At 26, Cornet is still young enough to enjoy a positive next chapter in his career, overcoming his slump at West Ham to become a popular figure on Merseyside, being capable of beating a man with pace and quick feet out wide, and providing end product.

While that hasn't been the case with the Hammers, 51 goals in 252 matches for Lyon was a good return, and six in 30 caps for the Ivory Coast at international level is also a steady tally. Lots may need to happen for the move to go through, but it could be a savvy piece of business.

Zaheer Khan failed to collect the ball as he tried to run out Matthew Hayden © Getty Images

An unwelcome visitor
The two days preceding the match were warm and dry but Hyderabad awoke to the sound of rain on Friday morning. The shower didn’t last long but it was enough for the groundstaff to bring out the covers to protect the square. An early-bird crowd cheered massively as each plastic sheet was removed and when the Indians jogged out to warm up the decibel level went up a notch. The loudest shouts were reserved for the Twenty20 stars – MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh – until, that is, Sachin Tendulkar strode out.A bit too straight
The stumps got hit twice in the first ten overs of the day, and all three times it was by the Australian openers. After facing a wide first up, Matthew Hayden began in style, flicking his first ball through square leg for four and following up with a powerful straight drive for the same result. He nearly had a hat-trick of fours but the booming drive cannoned into the stumps at the bowler’s end, uprooting one and pegging the middle back. In the fourth over, it was Gilchrist’s turn to drive too straight and umpire Shastri began to take cover before the ball hit the stumps.Going from superb to sloppy in a flash
Ricky Ponting drove the ball towards point and Yuvraj moved nimbly, diving full stretch to his right, to pull off a spectacular save. He leapt up in time to see Hayden stranded after Ponting declined a single. Yuvraj threw to the bowler’s end and Hayden wasn’t in the frame when the ball reached Zaheer Khan who broke the stumps. Replays showed that Zaheer didn’t collect the ball and broke the stumps with his hand. An easy run out through a superb throw had been ruined through sloppy finishing.An exercise in self-control
Sreesanth’s antics in Kochi attracted so much attention that he was restrained today. He began tidily, conceding eight off his first two overs before Hayden got stuck into him. In his fourth over, he bowled three wides outside off stump and got smacked for four of the ninth ball of the over. His day got worse in the final over of the game when he dropped a simple return catch off James Hopes. In frustration he shied at the bowler’s end where Hopes was safe and needlessly conceded an overthrow. Two balls remained and just as nothing seemed to be going his way, Sreesanth dismissed Symonds and Hopes off consecutive deliveries.

Sreesanth dropped a sitter from James Hopes © AFP

Watch out for falling objects
During the ICC World Twenty20, spectators often wore hard hats as it was raining sixes. There were no sixes for 39.5 overs today but when Symonds launched Irfan Pathan over midwicket hard hats were the need of the moment. The ball cleared the boundary and fell into the stands, hitting a spectator on the head. Symonds went on to clout four more sixes but the crowd had begun to watch carefully.Free hit anti-climax
The bowlers hadn’t over-stepped for 58.4 overs and then Brett Lee committed the first front-foot offence. Sachin Tendulkar was on strike for the no-ball and Yuvraj Singh reminded him that the next one was a free hit. The crowd realised what was in the offing once umpire Shastri twirled his hand above his head. The roar soon became deafening as they urged Tendulkar to cash in. Lee charged in amid the din, Tendulkar charged down the pitch, Lee fired it fast and outside off stump and Tendulkar was beaten. Terrific noise one moment, silence the next.

Schofield played for Surrey in the latter stages of their summer following injuries to Ian Salisbury and Anil Kumble © Getty Images

Chris Schofield, the former Lancashire and England legspinner, has signed a one-year contract with Surrey with whom he has been registered since August.Schofield, 28, left Lancashire under acrimonious circumstances in 2004 and sued the club the following year for unfair dismissal. Since then he has represented his old club side, Littleborough, and played for Suffolk in Minor Counties cricket before earning a trial with Surrey’s second XI. This is his first full contract with a county for nearly three years.”Chris will not only be a great addition to the spin bowling department alongside Ian Salisbury and Nayan Doshi, but his ability with the bat and in the field will prove vital as the club move up to division one cricket next year,” Roger Harman, Surrey’s chairman of cricket, said.Schofield, clearly delighted at joining the club, thanked Alan Butcher, the coach, for the opportunity while adding: “I found it refreshing how on more than one occasion this year Surrey selected three spinners in the starting line-up and as such I am very much looking forward to playing with Ian and Nayan as we start our Division One Championship campaign next year.”

The Dolphins maintained a strong position on the second day of their clash with Cape Cobras at Paarl. They pushed their score on to 432, Hashim Amla leading the way with 137, as they took advantage of a flat pitch. Lance Klusener pitched in with an unusually measured innings of 35 to reverse what looked like a collapse as the Dolphins lost four wickets for 14 runs in the morning. The Cobras also found batting easy, reaching stumps on 109 for 1, Gerhard Strydom unbeaten on 58.The Lions will scent victory after they took control on the second day against Eagles at Potchefstroom. Resuming 57 runs behind the Eagles with six wickets in hand, the Lions took a 209-run lead ahead thanks to Matthew Harris’ first hundred at this level. He finished unbeaten on 135 and received strong support from the tail, the last four wickets putting on 146. The Eagles then lost three wickets for 47 and will need a big day tomorrow to stave off defeat.Only five wickets fell at East London on the second day, but the Warriors remained in a strong position against the Titans. Four half centuries from the Warriors batting line-up pushed their total to 442 for 9 declared, but they made only one breakthrough when it was their turn to bowl. Titans closed on 121 for 1.

England persevered with Andrew Flintoff, and India will persevere with Virender Sehwag© AFP

From being the toast of the country for becoming the first Indian to score a Test triple-century, Virender Sehwag has been brought back down to earth with a string of below-par performances in one-day cricket. Now we know why they say that six months is a long time in Indian cricket.Had an opening batsman failed in such a manner a few years ago, his house may have been tarred, and his car stoned. And a different coach might have put him out to pasture after doing his best to revitalise his game with a sharp word or two. But this Indian team works differently. John Wright, the coach, and Sourav Ganguly, the captain, have backed their players to the hilt.Just as it has taken England more than five years of investment to turn Andrew Flintoff from a lad with ‘potential’ to a potent strike force, this team has put their not-inconsiderable weight behind the likes of Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif. Now, it appears, they’re prepared to do the same with Sehwag.It is not as though the team has not taken note of Sehwag’s increasing frustration. Ganguly said that the Indians did have a chat with Sehwag. “We have spoken to him. You have to understand that he’s a strokemaker,” said Ganguly. “But he scores runs in Test cricket all around the world. It’s not fair to ask him to just go and defend, or leave balls outside the off stump. That’s not the way he plays and that’s not the way he has scored all his runs. He should probably bat the way he does in Test cricket. He should look to play the ball on merit rather than just trying to get the maximum runs straight away and accelerate.”The opening slot is still the place for Sehwag. The team’s decision to give Sehwag a go in the middle order was only a window of respite. The move did not quite have the desired effect, and India are moving Sehwag back to his original place. “He’s been opening all the time and he’s been exposed to the new ball and its not gone his way recently. Sometimes it helps if he can sit with his pads on and watch the play for a bit,” explained Ganguly. “It just changed the system which he has been going through for quite some time. The shine would go away a bit and the ball would get older by the time he came in to bat. The main bowlers would have finished 5-6 overs, whether it was Harmison or Gough. It was just a bit of a change for him so he could get runs, get his confidence back and get back to opening.”In the last three matches that Sehwag has played, he has found different ways to get himself out. At Trent Bridge he spooned Darren Gough to Michael Vaughan. At The Oval match he was late on the ball, and his lack of footwork caught him plumb in front of the stumps. In the final match, which India won at Lord’s, Sehwag dropped down to the middle order, but made just one run before popping a simple return catch to Ashley Giles. His scores were 4, 0 and 1, the cause of fierce media criticism being directed his way. At the moment, though, the Indian team are keeping the faith with his flashing blade.

South Africa 682 for 6 dec (Smith 259, Kirsten 108) beat England 173 (Ntini 5-75) and 417 (Flintoff 142, Ntini 5-145) by an innings and 92 runs
Scorecard
Graeme Smith
On South Africa’s performance: It was a fantastic team performance. The batting was superb and the bowlers did really well. They put in the hard work and were very disciplined.On Mike Finnegan, the motivational psychologist working with the team: He’s been working really hard on the mental side of our game. He joined up with us after the final. [And, to much laughter from assembled hacks:] He’s from England.On Makhaya Ntini, who shared the Man-of-the-Match award with Smith for taking ten wickets in the match: It was a superb effort by Makhaya. He always comes back from his bad overs and is always ready to bowl. He is superb and is an icon for the country.On his bowlers, whose workload increased after Dewald Pretorius was injured early in the game: Their fitness levels were tremendous. They never once moaned. They just said “give me the ball”.On the dressing-room celebrations after the game: There’s a lot of carnage. Lots of screaming and shouting, nobody really knows what to do. It’s one of the best feelings I’ve ever had. Everyone is running around mad. It’s fantastic.On the third Test: It’s going to be a huge Test. If we can win there’s nothing stopping us.We will celebrate tonight but be humble tomorrow.Michael Vaughan
On England’s performance: We never got into the match. We have a lot to learn and a lot of hard work to do now. We have to pick ourselves up and put in a better display at Trent Bridge. I congratulate South Africa, but we were just not good enough over the four days.We’ve just had a meeting and everyone held their hands up and said we’re just not good enough. Our shot selection was poor, the disciplines with our bowling weren’t right and our catching was not up to scratch.On the road ahead: I’ve given them a talking to in the dressing room which was pretty down to the bone and maybe taught them a few facts which I thought they needed to know. Hopefully it will give them a gee up and get them ready and prepared for next Test.On the captaincy: To get hammered in your first Test as captain, to try and lift the team for the next game will be a huge challenge for myself and I’ll have to show huge character. I don’t think we were as hungry as South Africa. I can’t answer why and it is something that has to be addressed.It’s still a huge honour to captain your country.On team selection for the next Test: It’s easy for me to sit here and say of course we need a change but I’ll sit down in the next 48 hours, do a bit of thinking, where I think we went wrong, where I think we can improve and try and come up with some sort of plan.As to whether we look to the future or not, I don’t know. This week I’ll sit down and settle a few things with the selectors. At the minute I’m not a selector and David Graveney has been very good to say that, if I suggest something, they’ll take it on board.On the qualities an England Test player should have: First of all you need character, you have your good days and your bad days and you need a heck of a lot of character to bounce back . You need an immense attitude and somewhere there you need some ability. I genuinely think that to play at the highest level with the pressures you need a lot of character.On Andrew Flintoff, who hit an entertaining 142 on the last day of the match: [His innings] will definitely give him a boost. His shot selection was outstanding, he picked the right balls to hit.On Darren Gough, whose retirement from Test cricket is being speculated upon widely: If Goughie is going to retire he hasn’t told me. He’s had two years out of Test cricket and come back and bowled on two flat wickets. He’d probably be the first to admit he hasn’t had the best of rhythm but he’s been bowling against a guy in supreme form.On the possibility of Graham Thorpe returning to the side: If he’s right in his mind and personal life then I am sure the selectors will talk about him. He’s a fantastic player.

Puddles of boredom form at East London

©AFP

The Indian players are literally bored to death. They are waiting invain for the four-day match against South Africa ‘A’ to start afterthe first two days were washed down the drain by the incessant rain.Captain Sourav Ganguly is probably ruing the fact that he did not goto Kolkata to be with his wife and new-born daughter after all, whileConnor Williams and Harbhajan Singh cannot wait to see some action.Wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta has borrowed a book on Edmund Hillary fromRahul Dravid; by the looks of it, it must be inspiring stuff.The Indians still routinely go to the ground, partly to have a feel ofthe surroundings and partly to avail themselves of the lunch, which,thoughtfully, is Indian in every sense of the word. The visitingjournalists too do not mind helping themselves to dishes that they areso used to back home.Even though there is no activity, the Indians are a bit edgy about thethree back-to-back Tests that they are being asked to play in the nextthree weeks. After the two remaining Tests of the current tour, atPort Elizabeth and Centurion Park, they will be heading straight forMohali in Chandigarh, where the first Test against England isscheduled for December 3.The team’s genial manager, MK Bhargava, has his hands full with theissue of sorting out travel arrangements for the players. It appearsthat the Indians cannot get a flight back home before November 29, twodays after the Centurion Test ends. Thus, literally, the team will bearriving at Mohali just hours before the first Test against Englandgets underway. Even if he can book tickets on an Emirates flight forsome of the players hailing from the north, they will still reach homeonly on the morning of the 30th because of the timing of theconnecting flight from Dubai to Delhi.

©AFP

Bhargava’s problems, thus, are echoed by the gloomy conditions at EastLondon. The rain-ruined game, which has kept the Indians hostage intheir hotel, is a missed opportunity for many of the players, in moresense than one. Sachin Tendulkar, who has been joined by his wife andtwo lovely kids, Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble were in any casegoing to sit out this four-day match. But Williams, Harbhajan and themedium-pacers would have loved to stake their claims for Test berths,while vice-captain Rahul Dravid could have obtained some valuablepractice at the very top of the order.There seems to be little doubt at the moment that Dravid will beopening the innings for the remaining Test matches. The middle-orderis overflowing with talent at this stage, and one of them has to moveup the order. Hence the choice of Dravid to shoulder the burden of anopener.

©CricInfo

The real mystery could lie in the choice of bowlers for the next Test.If the wicket is grassy and seemingly quick, the Indians could beforced to make a choice between the two regular spinners on this tour- Harbhajan or Kumble. Kumble bowled for long hours – 50 overs in all- during South Africa’s mammoth first innings in the BloemfonteinTest, but his returns were not quite encouraging. He did break throughwith Gary Kirsten’s wicket, but, by then, the hosts had already scoredalmost 200 runs. Kumble’s next success came in the form of NeilMcKenzie’s wicket, when the score was well past 300.It will, then, not be an easy choice for the Indians. To drop Kumblewhen the bowling resources of the visitors are already paper-thinmight appear a blasphemy. But then, stranger things have happened inIndian cricket. It is a situation that will be watched keenly by thosewho are following the fortunes of this beleaguered team.

Auckland won the Super Over
ScorecardFile photo: Michael Bates picked two wickets and gave away just five runs in the one-over eliminator•Getty Images

Michael Bates’ magnificent performance in the one-over eliminator restricted Canterbury to 5 for 2 in five balls, Colin Munro then finished the game in one ball, smashing Hamish Bennett for a six to seal Auckland’s thrilling victory.It was a brutal end to Canterbury’s hopes in their chase of 171 after their final-wicket pair had batted splendidly to tie the game in the first place. Logan van Beek and Ed Nuttall came together with their team needing 32 off the last 15 balls. That equation became 16 off the final over, eventually it was just one run too many. Having fallen so agonisingly short, Van Beek, who made 24 off 15, with two fours and Nuttall, who hustled 13 off 8, with a six, could only watch as their team slumped to a fourth straight defeat in the Super Over.Earlier, opener Aiden Blizzard had kept Canterbury up with the required rate of 8.55 with his 38-ball 57. A knock made all the more necessary because Auckland kept picking up wickets in clumps. Captain Ronnie Hira was the first to go in the third over, Henry Nicholls followed him in the fourth and a score of 37 for 2 left both teams in with a sniff.The pendulum swung Auckland’s way thanks to their captain Rob Nicol – he dismissed Blizzard and Andrew Ellis in the space of two balls and Canterbury were left needing 65 runs in 44 balls with only four wickets in hand. Mitchell McClenaghan took two wickets in the 18th over, which meant the asking rate soared to 12.8, which turned out to be just enough.It was Auckland’s second win in three games and their batting did set it up quite nicely. In the first innings, Colin de Grandhomme got to a fifty in only 25 balls and Nicol came in during the third over and batted through the innings to make 50 not out off 48 balls. Bennett was the pick of Canterbury’s bowlers producing returns of 2 for 30 in his four overs.Prior to the start of the game, a minute’s silence was observed for Jonah Lomu, the New Zealand All Black who passed away at the age of 40.

The next few years will be crucial for Arsenal. Towards the end of next season the club will be much clearer on who is going to be in the dugout as manager for the next few years, and also where they stand with regards to new sponsorship deals. Kit suppliers and sponsors are the big ones coming up for renewal, and any movement on those—positive or negative—will be judged in accordance with the move to the Emirates Stadium.

The order of the day is greater streams of revenue; Arsenal are clearly not happy with the current revenue streams, yet they were absolutely necessary for the move away from Highbury. Adding to the new and hopefully impressive sponsorships for the club, it may also be worth looking into the benefits of a partnership with another club abroad.

Make no mistake, this is very much a suggestion for Arsenal to remain in the higher seat of power in any new partnership with another club. Arsenal have paired with the Colorado Rapids in the MLS and have also worked closely with clubs in Spain, albeit very small clubs. The team have travelled to the Far East in both of the last two summers, clearly looking to reap the benefits of the club’s popularity and reputation around the world. What we’re seeing here is an acknowledgement of avenues that can be exploited for the benefit of the club, so why not a partnership similar to Tottenham and Real Madrid’s?

Once again, it’s worth pointing out that I’m not leaning towards a pairing with a club like Barcelona or AC Milan where Arsenal would clearly be the smaller of the two. Instead, Arsenal should perhaps look at smaller clubs around Europe who are competing in the top-flight to further the growth on a number of fronts.

Arsene Wenger has always been very particular about where his young players go on loan. He looks at the management in place, the style of football and how much exposure to the first-team the player will have. Perhaps teams from Holland, Portugal and even Spain would represent promising opportunities for a long-term partnership. Like Spurs and Real Madrid, the clubs could look to benefit from the quality of training in both countries, with the younger players exposed to different levels of competition and methods. Not only would Arsenal benefit, but it would be a benefit for the English national team if younger players were treated to cultures that differed from what they’re used to in this country.

As always, the need to make money as one of the top priorities for a club like Arsenal, and even those on the other end of the partnership. Arsenal would see their reputation grow and hopefully see a surge in merchandise sales. The other important factor is the revenue received from summer friendlies between the two sides. The size of the Emirates Stadium and the interest surrounding Arsenal’s summer activity would be a huge bonus to both clubs.

Perhaps it’s worth looking at Tottenham from a viewpoint that they’ve potentially started a trend of successful partnerships for the future. Of course, it’s very easy to look at their deal with Real Madrid as one that simply sees the Gareth Bales and Kyle Walkers swapping White Hart Lane for the Bernabeu with very little coming Tottenham’s way. It’s a fair assessment and probably not entirely wide of the truth. But would Daniel Levy put his club is such a weak position in European football, especially considering the great strides he’s taking to establish Tottenham as a regular in the Champions League.

Arsenal have noticeably had trouble moving on a number of players on loan over recent summers, with very few clubs looking to take the risk on the Gunners’ outcasts. But sending them away to a club with close ties to Arsene Wenger’s side means both sides would benefit: Arsenal pay the majority of the wages while getting players out of the squad and into regular first-team football.

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All speculation for now, but perhaps a promising avenue to explore with the need for greater revenue and necessity to allow young players the chance to mature in a competitive environment.

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