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New York Red Bulls II head coach Michael Bradley has emerged as the leading candidate to take over the New York Red Bulls first team, according to The Athletic. While no final decision has been made and contract talks are ongoing, the expectation is that the former U.S. men’s national team captain will be appointed in the near future. Bradley also lifted the MLS Next Pro title in his first year with NYRB II.

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  Bradley's success captures attention of Red Bulls leadership

  The 38-year-old Bradley took charge of Red Bulls II this summer and quickly guided the developmental squad to its first MLS Next Pro Cup title. His approach – a more possession-oriented style than the traditional Red Bull high press – has impressed new Head of Sport Julian de Guzman, who has praised both the team’s play and Bradley’s demeanor.

  “I’m very impressed by what he’s done. … Beyond winning MLS Next Pro itself, it’s his [playing] style,” de Guzman told in November. “It’s attractive for players, for fans. You can see how calm he is, how he delivers his message to the players. I must say it’s refreshing.”

  Bradley also enjoyed a distinguished playing career, earning 151 caps for the U.S. men’s national team and featuring for clubs such as Borussia Mönchengladbach, Roma, and Toronto FC, where he won the 2017 MLS Cup.

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  Coaching background

  The MLS Next Pro head coaching role represents Bradley's first job as a lead coach, following a brief assistant stint with his father Bob Bradley at Norwegian club Stabaek and a guest coaching period under Canada men's National Team head coach Jesse Marsch. 

  "There's so much that he can provide based on his experiences,"  Marsch told GOAL.

  Bradley mentioned to GOAL that the tactical flexibility was appreciated since his arrival. 

  "You're given the freedom in the space to make it your and take the ideas and bring them to life. So that part is really, really cool," Bradley said.

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  Bradley's tie to Klopp

  Bradley acknowledged his decision to join RBNY II came largely from the Red Bulls' global approach to developing coaches. He mentioned a conversation with Jurgen Klopp, the organization's Global Head of Football, was a factor. 

  "One of the things that I've been able to do in the last few months is spend some time on a few different occasions with Jurgen, as well. And when you get that opportunity, and you hear him talk about the game, and you hear the way he speaks, and you see his passion and his energy, it's amazing," Bradley said.

  "The opportunity for a young coach to be inside this organization with people like this. That opportunity doesn't come around very often." 

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  Appointment would continue Bradley's connection with New York

  Bradley's potential appointment would represent a full-circle moment in his soccer career, as he began his professional playing journey with the MetroStars (now Red Bulls) after being selected 36th overall in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft at just 16 years old. His successful transition from player to coach now appears poised to continue with a potential significant promotion to one of MLS's most prominent coaching positions.

Imam-Ul-Haq century impresses but Liam Dawson emerges on top with List A career highlight of 142

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay31-Aug-2025Hampshire are through to next month’s Metro Bank One-Day Cup final after a rain-affected semi-final win over Yorkshire at Scarborough, the visitors defending a revised 41-over target of 254 following Liam Dawson’s stunning List A best 142 off 116 balls.Hampshire, winners of this competition in 2018, will face Worcestershire at Trent Bridge on September 20 after the Rapids beat Somerset at home and the visitors won here by 18 runs on Duckworth Lewis Stern.In reply to Hampshire’s 304 for 6, which saw England Test all-rounder Dawson brilliantly recover his side from 78 for 4 inside 20 overs, Pakistani opener Imam-Ul-Haq impressed for 105.And Yorkshire were well placed at 171 for 3 in the 31st over chasing a revised 254-target in 41 overs following rain.But they lost two wickets in a Scott Currie over, including Imam run out, and Hampshire squeezed impressively, with the hosts 235 for 8.Currie, who struck twice with his seam, had earlier contributed his own List A best 61 not out off 40 balls. Dawson’s left-arm spin also accounted for two wickets, and Yorkshire have now lost 19 of their last 22 List A finals.Yorkshire started well, Matt Milnes dominating as Hampshire slipped having been inserted.Seamer Milnes, having claimed a career-best 7 for 38 in last Sunday’s group-stage win over Sussex at Hove, claimed the first three here, including forcing visiting captain Nick Gubbins to play on with his third ball in the day’s second over.He then removed Fletcha Middleton and Ali Orr before George Hill’s seam also forced Ben Brown to play on.Dawson came in at 53 for 3 in the 12th over and offered a sharp return catch to Ben Cliff on six, clearly a key moment.The 35-year-old was the glue which held the innings together before exploding late on.He shared 89 for the fifth wicket with 17-year-old Ben Mayes, whose 37 helped to turn the tide, before sixth-wicket partner Currie pressed the accelerator.Shortly after Dawson reached his fourth List A century off 103 balls, Currie’s maiden List A fifty came in 35 as Hampshire pushed on from 180 for 5 after 40 overs.Dawson finished with seven sixes and hit strongly down the ground and over cover and long-on, while both he and Currie improvised as they shared 136 inside the last 13 overs of the innings – 75 runs coming off the last five overs.Kyle Abbott and Brad Wheal then bowled very tidily with the new ball, restricting Adam Lyth and Imam to 43 for 0 in the 13th over when the rain arrived.A half-hour delay through to 4.25pm was followed by Lyth edging the second ball back behind off Eddie Jack.Imam, leaving for national commitments after this game, then calmly advanced the hosts to 98 for 1 after 20 overs with a 52-ball fifty.Strong off his legs, the left-hander then united with Will Luxton to share 99.Luxton pulled a couple of sixes, including one the first ball back after the second half-hour rain break. But he chopped on to Jack with the second, falling for 30.James Wharton holed out to Currie shortly afterwards before Imam reached his fourth ton of this season’s campaign off 96 balls.But Wharton and Imam fell, alongside Fin Bean, as Yorkshire lost a defining three wickets for 10 inside two overs to slip to 171 for 5 in the 32nd, still needing 83.Imam was run out by a combination of Jack from midwicket and bowler Currie after Bean pulled and non-striker Imam slipped.Yorkshire then lost Hill and Harry Duke in successive balls to Wheal and Dawson and, seven wickets down, needed 47 off 4.5 overs.From there, they subsided, with Dawson striking again.

Liverpool are prepared to splash the cash on two Premier League stars in January in a bid to derail Arsenal's title charge. Defeat at Manchester City last weekend means the Reds sit eight points behind the Gunners after the opening 11 matches of the season. However, the club seem willing to back Arne Slot in the New Year as they look to make up the gap on Mikel Arteta's men.

Liverpool's title defence faltering

Goals from Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku compounded a miserable afternoon for Liverpool as they crashed to a 3-0 loss at Manchester City earlier this month. The result means the Reds have already lost more league games this season than they did last, with their title defence already faltering.

Liverpool spent big to bolster the squad over the summer, signing Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez and Giovanni Leoni. The club also convinced star men Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk to extend their star at Anfield, though were unable to retain Trent Alexander-Arnold's services, the right-back opting to leave his boyhood club for Real Madrid.

Despite a summer of hefty investment, Liverpool are struggling and return to domestic duties this weekend eighth in the table, level on points with rivals Manchester United, having lost five of their last six league matches. Slot will hope to return to winning ways when they welcome Nottingham Forest to Merseyside on Saturday.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportReds no stranger to investing in January window

And while Liverpool were reluctant to splash the cash in the January market following a summer spending spree, the Merseyside powerhouse are prepared to back Slot in the New Year as they look to get their title push back on track and halt Arsenal'w push for silverware. According to DaveOCKOP Liverpool have two Premier League stars on their radar as they seek to close the eight-point gap between themselves and the Gunners.

Liverpool have previously invested in the squad in the winter window, notably signing Van Dijk, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo in 2017, 2022 and 2023. And another winger signing may be on the cards in January.

DaveOCKOP revealed that "Liverpool will conduct preliminary talks with Bournemouth this weekend over the signing of Antoine Semenyo. Liverpool's sporting director Richard Hughes, who played a key role in signing Semenyo at Bournemouth from Bristol City for a modest £10.5 million back in 2023, is believed to remain a strong admirer of the 25-year-old. It is thought that the Cherries would demand around £75 million for the Ghana international should Liverpool decide to formalise their interest."

Getty Images SportSemenyo and Wharton targets for champions

Semenyo has been a revelation for Bournemouth this season, scoring six goals and providing three assists for the Cherries, though he has failed to directly contribute to a goal in his last four league outings. The Ghana international was linked with a move away from Bournemouth over the summer but instead put pen to paper on a five-year deal with the south coast side.

Liverpool aren't the only side believed to be interested in Semenyo, with Premier League rivals City, Tottenham and United also credited with an interest in the winger. And Semenyo isn't the only top-flight player the Reds are looking into signing in January if reports are to be believed.

"DaveOCKOP can exclusively reveal that Liverpool are holding initial talks to discuss signing Crystal Palace and England star Adam Wharton in 2026," a separate report read. "Just like Semenyo, Wharton has also been a player whose profile has exploded over the past couple of seasons.

"During a period of unprecedented success for Crystal Palace, including both an FA Cup and Community Shield wins for the first time ever, Adam Wharton has been a key part of the club winning those trophies."

Wharton has been a key man for Palace since his arrival from Blackburn Rovers in January 2024 and his form for the Eagles hasn't gone unnoticed. United have been credited with an interest, while City and Real Madrid are also believed to be keeping tabs on the England international, who made just his second senior start for the national team against Albania on Sunday night.

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Liverpool out to bounce back from City loss

Liverpool are back home on Saturday as they take on Nottingham Forest to Anfield in a navigable run of games as the Reds look to build up some momentum. Indeed, they follow up their game against the Tricky Trees with a Champions League tie against Eredivisie outfit PSV before they round off the month with a trip to the capital to take on West Ham.

Slot's side then kick off December with a home game against high-flying Sunderland before back-to-back away games against Leeds and Inter in the Premier League and Champions League, respectively. 

The former Rajasthan Royals spin bowling coach replaces Sunil Joshi

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2025

Former India legspinner Sairaj Bahutule has joined Punjab Kings (PBKS) as their new spin bowling coach ahead of the 2026 IPL season. He replaces Sunil Joshi, who held the role from 2023 to 2025.ESPNcricinfo understands Joshi decided to leave as he is set to take over as spin coach at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.”Sairaj’s deep understanding of the game, particularly his extensive experience in grooming domestic bowlers and managing strategy, will be invaluable to our side,” PBKS CEO Satish Menon said. “His expertise aligns perfectly with our vision of building a strong and cohesive bowling unit for the season ahead.”Bahutule joins a backroom team that has Ricky Ponting as head coach, Brad Haddin as assistant coach, James Hopes as the fast bowling coach, and Trevor Gonsalves as assistant bowling coach.”I’m really excited to join Punjab Kings as a spin bowling coach for the upcoming IPL season,” Bahutule said. “This is a team that plays a different brand of cricket, and I can see the potential is massive. They have a bunch of talented players, and I’m looking forward to working with them to refine their skills and help them reach new heights.”Bahutule was the spin bowling coach at Rajasthan Royals for IPL 2025. He had also been RR’s spin bowling coach from 2018 to 2021 before joining the National Cricket Academy and serving as support staff for India A assignments.Bahutule’s exit from RR follows Dravid’s departure from the franchise as head coach. Dravid has been replaced by Kumar Sangakkara.PBKS finished runners-up in IPL 2025 after finishing top of the points table in the league phase. They lost the final to Royal Challengers Bengaluru by six runs.

Middlesex 394 for 5 (du Plooy 171*, Cracknell 64*, Geddes 60) vs GloucestershireMiddlesex skipper Leus du Plooy’s 24th first-class hundred gave the hosts the upper hand on the first day of the their final County Championship Division Two clash of the season with Gloucestershire at Lord’s.The South African-born left-hander passed the landmark of the third time this season, remaining unbeaten with 171 in an innings sprinkled with 15 fours as Middlesex piled up 394 for 5.Du Plooy shared stands of 127 with Luke Hollman (55), 121 with Ben Geddes (60), and an unbroken 112 with wicketkeeper Joe Cracknell, who had 63 by the close.Ajeet Singh Dale kept the visitors in the contest with 4 for 88, including wickets with successive balls in the afternoon session, while Graeme Van Buuren bowled a frugal spell of spin to return 1 for 35 from 18 overs.Despite the 10:30am start, du Plooy chose to bat on winning the final toss of the campaign and the hosts made a quick start thanks to some wayward offerings from Gloucestershire’s new-ball attack.It was a similarly innocuous delivery from Singh Dale which brought the breakthrough, a leg-stump half-volley which Sam Robson sent straight to square leg. If that was fortuitous, Singh Dale produced a useful fourth stump ball in his next over that Josh De Caires nicked through to wicketkeeper James Bracey.It would be the last success for some time as the bowlers erred in line and length again and du Plooy and Hollman feasted accordingly. Three Hollman fours in one Matt Taylor over raised the 50, while du Plooy was quickly into stride, driving confidently in the mid-off/extra-cover arc. A back foot drive through cover from the skipper was the shot of the morning and he moved to his half-century from 56 balls shortly before lunch.The hundred partnership came up in the first over following the resumption and while Singh-Dale was finding hints of both swing and seam from the Nursery End, the pair carried the score to 161 relatively untroubled. It took a piece of brilliance from Bracey – who claimed a Gloucestershire record 11 victims against Middlesex in the corresponding fixture last season – to break the stand, grabbing a ball that was dying off the inside edge of Hollman’s bat, giving Singh-Dale a third wicket.Higgins followed to his next ball, harshly adjudged lbw to one heading over the top, but Geddes joined his skipper in the middle as and the hosts quickly regained the upper hand.Geddes, impressive in his first season in Middlesex colours, employed the pull shot to great effect, sending one short one from Singh Dale into the Grandstand, before a square drive took du Plooy to a chanceless century.Van Buuren put the breaks on either side of tea and was rewarded with the breakthrough when Geddes was pinned in front. Du Plooy however, had set his heart on a daddy hundred and while the boundaries briefly dried up he glided his way past 150.Cracknell proved a valuable ally, clearing the ropes with a thunderous pull shot and unfurling some pleasing cover drives in becoming the fourth home batter to pass 50 in the late autumn sunshine.Before the start of play there was a poignant minute’s silence in memory of beloved umpire Harold ‘Dickie Bird,’ who passed away on Monday aged 92.

AC Milan have now reportedly dropped their price for Rafael Leao, with Arsenal now preparing to accelerate their interest to sign the impressive Portuguese winger.

The Gunners couldn’t have asked for a much better start to the Premier League campaign, but their recent run of clean sheets finally came to an end against Sunderland.

After over 13 hours, David Raya finally picked the ball out the back of his own net courtesy of Sunderland’s Daniel Ballard. And like London buses, when one arrived, another soon followed with the Black Cats netting a last-gasp equaliser through Brian Brobbey.

Slipping up for the first time since drawing against Manchester City at the end of September, Arsenal’s recent run of form has been nothing short of excellent.

Speaking about the draw at full-time, Mikel Arteta told reporters: “The last feeling is disappointment and frustration because we wanted the three points. We had to navigate through a really tough game, we knew that. It was very disruptive; we have to deal with situations that are difficult to deal with.

“They did really well and we conceded a goal that is not in our standards, but after that I think the team reacted really well, showed a lot of personality and courage.

“They scored the first goal, they scored the second goal, we had totally dominated the game and then you have to rely on defending the box when they start to commit six or seven players there.”

Up next, Arsenal have the small matter of the North London derby in a game that represents the perfect opportunity to get back to winning ways. It also represents the start of an all-important week, with Chelsea and Bayern Munich following the Tottenham Hotspur clash over a seven-day period after the international break.

It’s the type of period that Arsenal’s stars are made for and the type that Leao could soon get the chance to enjoy following the latest transfer reports.

Arsenal accelerate Leao move after learning latest discount

According to Caught Offside, Arsenal are now ready to accelerate their move to sign Leao after AC Milan dropped their price tag to around €85m (£75m) from the winger’s €150m release clause.

Related Goldbridge says Arteta was "massively missing" one Arsenal star v Sunderland

The summer signing’s absence against the Black Cats was noticeable.

Posts ByJames O'Reilly Nov 8, 2025

Milan’s hierarchy is reportedly preparing for the possibility that negotiations between Leao and themselves over a new contract could yet stall and have adjusted their price tag as a result. As things stand, the Portugal international has until 2028 until his current contract runs out, but Milan’s updated stance suggests that he may not see out the final three years of that deal.

League stats 25/26

Rafael Leao

Bukayo Saka

Minutes

453

681

Goals

4

3

Assists

1

0

Successful Take-ons

5

17

When compared to Bukayo Saka, Arsenal’s interest in Leao begins to make sense. On the opposite flank to the England international, the Milan star has already been involved in five league goals in just 453 minutes this season – the same as around five games.

Described as “crazy” by Arsenal legend Thierry Henry in 2023, Leao is a star who’s ready to take the Premier League and The Emirates by storm.

5/10 Arsenal star had his worst game all season against Sunderland

India won their first toss in 21 ODIs, their first since the 2023 World Cup semi-final

Shubh Agarwal06-Dec-2025KL Rahul chuckled before tossing the coin up in the air in the third ODI against South Africa in Visakhapatnam. When the coin landed in his favor, he gave a little fist bump before stating that India will bowl first.The chuckle and the fist bump captured India’s wretched luck with the toss. They had lost 20 tosses in a row in ODIs before this game – a statistical oddity with a mathematical probability of 1 in 1,048,576 instances.The last time India won the toss in ODIs was in the 2023 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand. It was 753 days ago (more than two years). Hardik Pandya was still with Gujarat Titans in the IPL at the time, Gautam Gambhir wasn’t anywhere near India’s coaching staff and India still hadn’t lost a Test series at home for over a decade. Now, eight Indian players have made their ODI debut since India last won a toss in this format.Netherlands held this unfortunate record previously. They lost 11 consecutive tosses in ODIs between March 2011 and August 2013. India were close to doubling it.Netherlands won only three ODIs during this phase, including an abandoned game and a tie. India, on the other hand, won 12 of the 20 ODIs during their dreaded streak (win percentage of 60%) alongside a tie. It includes winning the 2025 Champions Trophy undefeated despite the toss going against them every single time.India’s success rate with the toss was abysmal across formats. Since the 2023 World Cup final which started this streak, India had won the toss only 33 times in 96 completed matches.They lost 11 tosses in a row between November 2023 and January 2024. It included seven matches (two T20Is, three ODIs and two Tests) across their full tour of South Africa. Between January 31, 2025 and July 31, 2025, India went a few steps ahead, losing 15 tosses in a row, which included the England tour where they lost the toss in all five Tests.The previous record belonged to West Indies, when they lost 12 consecutive tosses across formats in 1999.In the two years prior to that (from Nov 15, 2021 until Nov 15, 2023, the semi-final against New Zealand), India won more than 50% of the tosses.