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West Brom are believed to be interested in signing Millwall defender Jake Cooper this summer, but a new report has revealed why it isn't going to be easy to acquire his signature.

What is Jake Cooper's salary at Millwall?

The 28-year-old has proven to be a stalwart for Millwall since arriving from Reading back in 2017, performing with real consistency at the heart of their defence.

In total, Cooper has made 303 appearances for his current club, and 304 in the Championship overall, and he has scored 22 goals and chipped in with 17 assists for the south London outfit, outlining the attacking threat that he can pose at set pieces with his 6 foot 6 frame.

The £10,000-a-week Englishman only has one more year remaining on his current Millwall deal, however, leaving them in a tricky situation. On one hand, they could sell him now and receive a fee for him, but lose a key player in the process, or on the flip side, accept that he will be able to leave for free at the end of next season.

Will West Brom sign Jake Cooper?

According to Football Insider, West Brom are in the mix to sign Cooper before the end of the month, but they face stiff competition for his signature from a couple of big clubs:

"Leeds United and West Brom have joined Rangers in the chase for Millwall defender Jake Cooper, sources have told Football Insider. The centre-back, 28, is entering the final year of his contract at the London club and his suitors are hoping to land him for a cut-price fee.

"Now, Championship duo Leeds and West Brom have registered their interest in deals for Cooper as they look to win the race for his signature this month."

Cooper could be exactly what West Brom are after in the summer transfer window, although it clearly isn't going to be easy to bring him in over the likes of Leeds United and Rangers.

He is a proven Championship player who could immediately make the Baggies more of force at the back, having already conceded four times in their league matches to date in 2023/24, as well as another couple in the 2-1 defeat away to Stoke City in the EFL Cup.

Cooper has been hailed as "immense" and "absolutely outstanding" by Millwall manager Gary Rowett in the recent past, outlining the type of influence he could have at West Brom, and at 28, he is someone right at the peak of his powers, rather than a player who would come in with his best days behind him – he has won 3.5 aerial duels per game in the first two league games of this season.

Whether he sees Leeds a stronger choice because of their recent time in the top flight remains to be seen – Rangers are also a huge club who could compete for the Scottish Premiership title and in Europe – but the Baggies should do all they can to snap up a proven performer at this level.

The drawn inaugural day-night women’s Test meant the Women’s Ashes was in the balance ahead of the Twenty20 leg of the series

The Report by Daniel Brettig12-Nov-20170:52

‘We made sure they didn’t get a sniff’ – Knight

England’s captain Heather Knight held firm as the visitors scrounged a draw from the inaugural day-night women’s Test, leaving the Ashes in the balance ahead of the Twenty20 leg of the series.On a wearing pitch at North Sydney Oval, England were under pressure throughout the final day, particularly after Amanda Wellington’s reprise of Shane Warne’s epochal legbreak to Mike Gatting when she spun past Tammy Beaumont with a delivery that pitched outside leg stump before biting back to take the top of the off stump.It was a moment to savour, but Wellington’s inability to follow it up with a rush of wickets was largely down to Knight, the embodiment of calm temperament and sound technique in an innings that ensured England would not be overwhelmed following Ellyse Perry’s epic double-century on days two and three.Starting the day in considerable deficit, Beaumont and Lauren Winfield played soundly early on to avert the prospect of a collapse, but found life difficult against Wellington and her hard spun legbreaks.Getty ImagesBeaumont’s exit was of the kind that can send shudders through a dressing room, and it was to the credit of Knight and Georgia Elwiss thst they were not dislodged once Winfield had been pinned lbw on the front toe by an inswerving yorker from Tahlia McGrath shortly after the start of the second session.So securely did Knight occupy the crease that Australia’s captain Rachael Haynes was compelled to accept the inevitability of a stalemate around an hour before the scheduled close of play, England having forged into a lead that made them safe from defeat.This in turn means that the series remains open ahead of the final three T20 fixtures, the first of which will take place at North Sydney on Friday. Perry was rightly named Player of the Match for her double-century.

Manchester United built their Premier League success under Sir Alex Ferguson by counting on the use of solid, dependable English centre-backs.

Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister formed the cornerstone of a team who claimed United’s first league title since 1967 during the 1992/93 season and as time went on, Ferguson turned to the transfer market to source local talent.

Rio Ferdinand made the move from Leeds United to Old Trafford in 2002 for a then British record transfer fee of £30m.

The move was a stroke of genius by the wily Scot as the defender won six Premier League titles and a Champions League crown under the tutelage of Ferguson, racking up 455 appearances in the process.

With the need for a dominant centre-back at United, could Erik ten Hag repeat United’s Ferdinand masterclass by making a move for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi?

Are Man United interested in Marc Guehi?

Ten Hag has already signed the club's new number seven, Mason Mount, Andre Onana and Rasmus Hojlund this summer, yet it is clear he is after another defender or two.

Harry Maguire is edging closer to a move away from the Red Devils and this heightens the Dutchman’s need for some reinforcements.

Read the latest Man United transfer news HERE…

According to the Chris Wheeler of The Daily Mail, Guehi has emerged as a possible target for United, and he could cost Ten Hag a fee in the region of £60m.

How did Marc Guehi perform last season?

The Ivorian-born starlet enjoyed a solid campaign for Palace in 2022/23, exuding a positive influence across the squad for his performances, despite his tender years.

He ranked seventh among his teammates for tackles (1.4) per game while ranking second for interceptions (1.2) and for clearances (3.6) per game during the league campaign, demonstrating his defensive ability.

According to WhoScored, Guehi’s key strength is concentration, and he is able to maintain excellent standards during the whole course of a match, similar to Ferdinand, who never let standards slip.

The England international was previously lauded as an “absolute tank” by Josef Bursik, a former teammate during his time playing for the Three Lions' U21 side, while Statman Dave hailed the youngster as a “brilliant talent” in December 2021.

It’s evident that he has progressed since then, going on to win four caps for England at senior level, and he could be a key figure heading into the 2024 European Championship.

The £50k-per-week gem has served his apprenticeship at Palace and now seems destined for a move to the upper echelons of the Premier League.

He should take solace from the trajectory of Ferdinand. Although slightly more experienced at the time, a move from another top-flight side into an environment containing elite players arguably made him reach a much higher level – having blossomed into becoming arguably 'one of the greatest ball-playing central defenders of his era', according to the Premier League's official website.

Guehi may have a fight on his hands to go straight into the starting XI should Ten Hag secure his signature – amid the presence of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane – and he could become their modern-day version of the 81-cap former United defender in the process.

Whatever happens, the Dutchman will need to act fast as the transfer window is due to shut in just under three weeks and time is slowly running out for the former Ajax manager.

Manchester City are reportedly looking at a move for Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich and could make an offer for the player in the coming days.

What’s the latest Man City transfer news?

The Sky Blues and Pep Guardiola have already added to their treble-winning squad this summer by bringing in Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea in a deal worth a total of £30m.

However, Ilkay Gundogan, who played a key role in City’s success last season with two goals in the FA Cup final, has decided to join Barcelona on a free transfer after his contract expired at the Etihad.

Therefore, it looks as if Kovacic will fill the void left by Gundogan ahead of the 2023/24 season, but more new faces could arrive before the window shuts on September 1.

Fellow Croatia international, Josko Gvardiol, has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester, with transfer expert Fabrizio Romano even claiming on Wednesday that the RB Leipzig man had even completed the first part of a City medical.

However, speculation has since cooled on the defender, but it looks as if another Bundesliga star is of interest in Kimmich.

The Faithful MUFC relayed news from Spain regarding Kimmich in the last 48 hours, where City were mentioned. It is believed that City, along with rivals Manchester United and Liverpool, all want to sign the Germany international this summer, with Kimmich keen on leaving the Allianz Arena.

All three English clubs are expected to make offers by sending proposals in the coming days, with the report saying on City:

“Manchester City have shown a clear interest in Kimmich after losing the opportunity to sign Declan Rice, who eventually joined Arsenal. The need to strengthen their midfield has led the 'Citizens' to set their sights on the versatile German player, who excels both defensively and offensively.”

Who is Joshua Kimmich?

Kimmich is 28 years of age and has been with Bayern since 2015, with his current contract running until 2025. Capable of playing as a right-back, holding midfielder or central midfielder, the £300,000-a-week man has already worked under Guardiola.

He made 36 appearances under the City boss during his time at Bayern, with Guardiola hailing the player seven years ago. Since then, Kimmich has gone from strength to strength, making close to 350 Bayern appearances and winning a total of 20 honours in Munich. Jose Mourinho previously praised Kimmich for his versatility, describing him as a “phenomenal” player.

"I see him as a top right-back, left-back, centre-back, No.6, No.8, No.10… he has the qualities to be anything!

"I think he’s phenomenal, an absolutely phenomenal player."

Therefore, should Kimmich move to the Etihad, he would provide options in a number of areas, something which Guardiola could love, especially as right-back Kyle Walker is being linked with a move to Bayern Munich, and it looks as if a deal is one to watch.

All players of category A-plus in the Bangladesh Premier League – including the local talent – have been given the right to choose the franchises they will play for in the upcoming season. The decision was announced by the league’s secretary Ismail Haider Mallick, ending speculation among many cricketers wondering about whom they would play for in 2017.The seven teams have been asked to submit the players they want to retain by the next week with the BPL governing council building towards the draft on September 16.”We have asked the franchises for their list of retained players,” Mallick said. “They can retain any four of their players, which could include their A-plus category player from last season. But it has to be done with consultation with those players, who have a choice of whether to leave or stay in the franchise. July 24 is not a deadline, but we expect the franchises to give us their retention list.”Khulna Titans have already announced Mahmudullah, their captain and A-plus category player from last season, as one of their retained players this season. The 2017 season may also see the introduction of an eighth franchise. Early indications are that the team will be based in Sylhet.The BPL governing council will also have to decide whether to allow five foreign players in a playing XI or let it remain at four. In 2012 and 2013 – the first two editions of the tournament – franchises could field five overseas players, but the rule was changed for the 2015 and 2016 editions. It is learnt the call came from one of the franchises, and the matter will be up for discussion soon.”If it will be four or five [overseas players in the playing XI], we will ask the opinion of the franchises,” Mallick said. “Then we will decide on it.”

ESPNcricinfo is set to start the County Championship Cricket season with a bang as it sets off on a cross-country road trip which aims to take in action from every match on the opening day of the season.Dan Norcross and Ebony Rainford-Brent will be taking on the ESPN #CountyCricketLive Road Trip as they try to see a ball of cricket at each match on Friday, April 7. The pair will attempt to visit six grounds, witnessing cricket in three Division One matches and three Division Two contests on the day.To mark their arrival at each venue, the pair will reprise their familiar roles as radio broadcasters by attempting to commentate on at least one delivery of the BBC’s local radio coverage.The challenge starts at 11am in Leeds at Headingley with Yorkshire v Hampshire, then Norcross and Rainford-Brent will travel down the M1 to Grace Road for Leicestershire v Nottinghamshire, followed by Northampton where Northamptonshire host Glamorgan at the County Ground.After navigating the M25, Chelmsford will be their next stop, for Essex v Lancashire at the County Ground, before they head down the M2 to visit the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury as Kent face Gloucestershire. The final leg of the journey will see the duo race down to London and The Oval, where Surrey are playing Warwickshire, trying to catch some action before play ends at around 6pm.The journey will see the pair competing against traffic as well as the clock, and they will keep cricket fans up to date using ESPNcricinfo’s #CountyCricketLive, sharing live updates, pictures and video throughout the day. The hashtag is an extension of the site’s comprehensive county coverage and live county cricket blog, which in October 2016 won “Online Publication of the Year” for the fifth year running in the ECB’s County Journalism Awards.”The first day of the county cricket season is one of the great days in the British sporting calendar,” said Andrew Miller, ESPNcricinfo’s UK editor. “We’re very excited to start the campaign with this celebration of the game. Dan and Ebony are a great pairing and they are looking forward to the challenge. It’s the perfect complement to ESPNcricinfo’s in-depth coverage of the day, which includes writers covering the matches at all three of the Division One venues.”You can track our progress throughout the day on ESPNcricinfo’s social media channels across Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.

Victoria have recalled legspinner Fawad Ahmed for the Sheffield Shield final against South Australia, to be played in Alice Springs from Sunday. Ahmed has replaced fast bowler Jackson Coleman in Victoria’s 12-man squad for the decider as they aim to win the Shield title for the third consecutive summer.Ahmed has played only one match in this year’s Shield campaign, taking five wickets against Western Australia at the same ground earlier this month. However, the conditions at Traeger Park could favour slow bowling, in which case Ahmed could form a twin spin attack with Jon Holland, who is third on the wicket tally this summer with 42 Shield wickets at 21.11.The Victoria side will be captained by Cameron White in the continued absence of regular skipper Matthew Wade, who is with the Test squad in India.”It’s an amazing achievement to be involved in a third straight Sheffield Shield final, and it’s also a golden opportunity to make history as the first Victorian side to go back-to-back-to-back,” Victoria chairman of selectors Andrew Lynch said.”Everyone from the players to the coaches have worked incredibly hard to get to this point again, and we also can’t wait to take the final to Alice Springs for the first time. The squad we’ve named will thrive in the conditions at Traeger Park, and hopefully can bring home another title to Victoria.”Victoria squad Travis Dean, Marcus Harris, Rob Quiney, Aaron Finch, Cameron White (capt), Daniel Christian, Seb Gotch (wk), James Pattinson, Chris Tremain, Scott Boland, Jon Holland, Fawad Ahmed.

Fulham are now "serious contenders" to sign Southampton star James Ward-Prowse, and it is believed he is keen to make the move to Craven Cottage.

Who will join Fulham this summer?

Marco Silva is keen to make sufficient squad upgrades after a very successful first full campaign back in the Premier League.

Fulham secured an impressive mid-table finish and were never in any real danger of the drop. The Whites also contended for a European spot over much of the season, but were ultimately beaten to it by Brentford, Aston Villa and Liverpool.

As a result, star players of theirs like midfielder Joao Palhinha are attracting serious interest from the likes of West Ham, Liverpool and Man United – but Fulham won't be bullied and are set to demand around £90 million for his services.

When it comes to who Fulham could actually sign this summer, rumours have been circulating the past week involving United midfielder Fred, Leicester City defender Timothy Castagne, Coventry City's Viktor Gyokeres and Norwich full-back Max Aarons.

Silva and club chiefs appear to be chasing options defensively, further forward and in the centre of midfield – with a new target in Ward-Prowse now coming to light.

According to the Belfast Telegraph and PA news agency, Fulham are "serious contenders" to sign the Englishman this window and could be in pole position above the likes of West Ham.

This is because Ward-Prowse actually favours a move to west London over the Hammers, who would come in as a replacement for Palhinha if he were to depart.

The Saints skipper is interested in making the move to Fulham, mainly because he sees Silva'a brand of football as the best fit for him as he seeks a route back into the top flight.

Who is James Ward-Prowse?

Ward-Prowse, as proven by his 22/23 performances at St. Mary's, is Southampton's star player.

As per WhoScored, the 28-year-old racked up 13 goal contributions and stood out as their best-performing player by average match rating.

Former Southampton manager Nathan Jones, speaking to the press, also called him "vital" last season.

"He’s vital, I like to get to know my captains and have a real relationship with them, a real personal relationship so they understand decisions we make," said Jones.

“Sometimes we’ll make tough decisions, out there tactical decisions, but he is one that takes everything on board and understands. You see how the group is."

A number of Liverpool fans believe that Virgil van Dijk has hinted that the club will be making multiple signings this summer after his recent comments.

What’s the latest Liverpool transfer news?

The Reds endured a pretty poor 2022/23 Premier League season, finishing in fifth, four points outside of the Champions League spots.

With that in mind, Jurgen Klopp and co will desperately want to vastly improve next term and they’ll stand a better chance of doing that with some clever business in the transfer window.

Liverpool have made a good start on that front, completing an initial £35m move for Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton and Hove Albion early on in June.

However, it appears that they aren’t done yet and Van Dijk has essentially confirmed as much when speaking to the press recently.

Indeed, the Dutch defender explained that he was looking forward to the future, with “new players”, plural, coming in this summer.

He said (via The Express): “I still have two years left on my contract and I assume that they [Liverpool] still consider me important for the team. If not, I am sure I would have heard about it.

“My contact with the manager is good and I feel very positive about things again. The way we finished the season motivates me to go into pre-season with the new players who are coming in.”

The quotes were quickly circulated on social media and it’s fair to say a number of Liverpool fans spotted the transfer hint and were left pretty excited by it all. Here are the best Twitter reactions…

The Reds haven’t always been that keen to spend big in the market. Notably, last season when they wanted a new midfielder, Klopp ended up with Arthur Melo on loan from Juventus and he saw just 13 minutes of action before departing.

And after missing out on Jude Bellingham, some fans may have feared the worst…

But VVD’s comments seem to bode well.

Cricket Australia’s CEO James Sutherland does not believe a repeat of the Argus review is needed, but concedes that a “closer look” at several issues is necessary

Daniel Brettig16-Nov-2016James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, has denied the game down under is in need of another comprehensive review of its operations, structures and philosophies despite what he called a “very significant fall from grace” dating back to the start of the Sri Lanka tour in July.On the day Rod Marsh resigned as selection chairman in the wake of the Test team’s fifth consecutive heavy defeat and second in a row at home, Sutherland stated in the face of questions about his own future that “it’s my responsibility to lead the people to turn this around”.He admitted that the team’s preparation for the summer had to be re-examined, as did succession planning around the retirements that followed the 2015 Ashes. But Sutherland also stressed his belief that the game overall was in far better shape than it had been in 2011, and denied that he and CA had been too commercially focused at the expense of the national team’s progress.That year, the review of the game led by the former BHP chairman Don Argus brought in a raft of changes to Cricket Australia, and Sutherland maintained its principles and outcome had been sound in the face of criticism from the likes of the former captain Ian Chappell.”I don’t think there needs to be another review,” Sutherland said. “I think [the Argus review] provides a pretty good blueprint or at least a strong reference point for us to have a look at where we’ve come from and where we are now.”Some of the issues or challenges are short term in and around the existing team and others are perhaps more long term as we look through the cricketing challenges that we have both internationally but also domestically.”I think that proper process in terms of management tells me that you need to look very closely at your strategy first and what you’re trying to do. You then look at the structure to support that strategy and then you look at the people. This is clearly an opportunity for us to have a closer look.”We’re pretty clear on strategy – we want our teams to be No.1 in the world, men and women in all forms of the game. We need to need to have a look to make sure that we’ve got the right structures to support that and obviously people come after that.”During the Hobart Test, Sutherland had defended the team’s preparation, but now changed tack. “Preparation is something that we’ll definitely have a closer look at,” he said. “The South Africans from memory had one [two-day] pink ball match and one short two-day red-ball match when they came into Australia.”The discussions we had with team performance and the team itself as to what was the ideal preparation, given the circumstances of playing the one-day series in South Africa beforehand. What we arrived at was the Shield cricket that we played. We knew that was a difficult situation with the Test series starting as early as it did and I said in that [ABC Radio] interview there’s nothing ideal and nothing perfect about preparation.”Preparation is not just about the team, it’s actually about the individual. We had that conversation with team management yesterday to try and understand which players we feel did not have the right preparation coming into the series. And the answer to that was very much around those players that were managing injuries were the ones that were most challenged by it.”Asked whether there was any scope for the Australian team and the coach Darren Lehmann to have more input regarding scheduling, Sutherland reflected that he was as much at the mercy of bilateral requirements as the team were. CA are leading a push to change the structure of international cricket to take on league structures and also reduce the overall volume of matches played.”There are things about the schedule that I would like to change but they’re very difficult to change,” he said. “It’s not just from a team performance perspective it’s also about our obligations to deliver content, to our grounds, to our state associations, to media partners and others. On balance we work through that and make decisions on what we think is best.”It may or may not be an issue in terms of the Australian team getting bowled out for [85] in the first innings of a Hobart Test match. No-one can tell me or guarantee that is actually the case because there are plenty of summers gone by where we’ve had a similar preparation to the season and done well. But we haven’t this time and that gives cause for us to challenge ourselves on how we prepare our players.”Plenty of the spotlight has fallen on the Sheffield Shield competition, once the envy of the world but now increasingly marginalised by the growth of the Twenty20 Big Bash League at the heart of the summer. “It’s hard to measure but clearly there is quite a lot of discussion around whether it still is or not,” Sutherland said when asked whether it remained the game’s pre-eminent domestic competition.”I don’t think it’s a matter so much of comparison, it’s a matter of whether Shield cricket is performing the role that Australian cricket needs it to right now. I think that’s part of a discussion that we need to have internally, in regard to how Shield cricket is supported, where it fits in the schedule and the role that it plays in producing Australian Test cricketers in the future.”