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Rose Lavelle feels it is “poetic” that USWNT legends Megan Rapinoe and Ali Krieger will face off in the NWSL final before heading into retirement.

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OL Reign set to face Gotham FCTwo icons preparing to bow outOne more medal to compete forWHAT HAPPENED?

Two greats of the American game are preparing to bring their respective careers to a close, with one more game left to take in before the most illustrious of boots are hung up for good. There will be major silverware on the line in that contest, with OL Reign having set up a NWSL championship clash with Gotham FC in 2023.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Neither Rapinoe nor Krieger, for all that they have achieved in that game, have ever savoured NWSL glory – giving them added incentive to bow out in style. Both have enjoyed considerable success at international level, earning over 300 caps between them while becoming two-time World Cup winners, but domestic honours are now dominating their thoughts.

WHAT THEY SAID

Current USWNT star Lavelle, who is a club colleague of Rapinoe with the Reign, is among those intrigued to see how an epic battle for last-game supremacy plays out. She has said: “It seems a bit poetic that the championship game is ending with Krieger and Pinoe’s last game. I think it’s really special to be able to get (Rapinoe) there. But not just her, I think like Jess (Fishlock), Lu (Barnes), Laura (Harvey). I think they’ve been the backbone of this club and have made this club into what it is, so I think it’s really special to finally get to this moment and be able to be on this stage.”

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Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Rapinoe is now 38 years of age, while Krieger is 39. The 2023 NWSL final will take place at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego on Saturday, with there set to be plenty of emotion on show regardless of the end result in California.

The South Africa batsman has said that he is in a ‘good space’ physically and mentally after series-turning contributions against India

Sidharth Monga in Johannesburg18-Jan-2018South Africa coach Ottis Gibson was asked in the lead-up to the series if the Indian pace attack had enough in it to make them reconsider the usual policy of batting first in Cape Town. This was, after all, not the usual Cape Town pitch; it had more grass than usual on it. Gibson said it would depend on the overheads on the morning of the Test. The morning was bright with no clouds, and South Africa thought about putting India in, but went ahead and took the challenge of batting the first session out.Three overs in, South Africa were in crisis. Dean Elgar nicked behind while Aiden Markram was pinned lbw. The ball did a lot, and Hashim Amla would soon perish to make it 12 for 3. Bhuvneshwar Kumar took three wickets in each of his first three overs. Batting seemed treacherous. South Africa were pretty close to their gamble of a spicy pitch backfiring on them.AB de Villiers, though, batted as if on a different plane. He was helped by Mohammed Shami bowling the first ball to him on his pads. The score didn’t matter, the situation didn’t matter; the ball was there to be hit, and he hit it. Soon he hit Bhuvneshwar Kumar for four boundaries in one over. In crisis he scored 65 off 84 balls, benefitting from some loose bowling along the way, to take South Africa to a total they could win the Test with.In Centurion, South Africa didn’t get the pitch they wanted. It was slow, it didn’t have much bounce, and it turned on day one. Morne Morkel said it felt “100%” like bowling India. South Africa won the toss again – a big advantage this time – but let India back in by not scoring over 400. There was some ordinary running, some loose shots, that let India off the hook. They took a lead of 28 in the first innings, but the third innings was now important. This pitch seemed to now favour India’s bowlers whose default mode of operation is to attack the stumps. Two early wickets fell to balls that stayed low and were at the stumps.South Africa were now 31 for 2 effectively, and it was anybody’s game. It was de Villiers’ game. Once again he scored 80 at the rate of two runs per three balls to pull South Africa out of trouble. These were two crucial innings in the context of the series even though none of these got him the Man-of-the-Match award. They were played at strike-rates you would be proud of in crisis in ODIs. These were what you would call counterattacks, but to de Villiers these are normal innings.ESPNcricinfo Ltd”Not at all,” de Villiers said when asked if he consciously made an attempt to hit South Africa’s way out of trouble. “I watch the ball and I just play. I have always said that I don’t feel there’s a big difference between the three formats. It is just a mindset applying yourself to the wicket and conditions, and that’s always been the way that I have played. So no definitely it’s not something that I force.”That is how de Villiers bats. He sees the ball early, gets into attacking positions, and defends or leaves only if he must. In an interview to ESPNcricinfo in 2015, he said: “My mindset in all three formats, in any situation, is exactly the same. I just want to get myself in, get myself a nice foundation to hopefully attack and dominate the bowlers. After a period what I call – let’s say a period when you have got to earn the right to dominate the bowling. In some innings it takes one ball, sometimes it takes 10 overs, sometimes five overs…”It hasn’t all been smooth of late for de Villiers, with injuries keeping him out of Test cricket. It must feel great to come back and immediately make such a big impact on a grudge series. “Test cricket is the ultimate challenge,” de Villiers said. “It was very enjoyable to be a part of a really important and good series win. I think it was a great team effort from everyone, from the fielding to the bowlers with big pressure moments with the bat in hand, just an all-round really good team performance. I am obviously enjoying my cricket and loving it out there with the boys. And it has been a great couple of Test matches.”These might not have been big hundreds, but these have been match-turning, and consequently series-turning, innings. And de Villiers has never felt better about his game. “I feel like I am in the best form of my life right now,” de Villiers said. “I am never guaranteed results, never guaranteed five hundreds in a row, I could get five ducks in a row but I am happy where I am at. And I am playing well, and I am doing my preparation well, and I am meeting the ball well. It’s just up to the day to take care of itself. I feel at the best phase of my life right now.”AFPPhysically, too, de Villiers said he felt he was in a good space. “It feels like my debut back in 2004 when I started as an opening batsman then a keeper at no.7 and back to opening, and up and down,” de Villiers said of his body. “It’s funny with my comeback now similar to back in the day. But it has been very enjoyable. I feel very fresh, and I have said it on numerous occasions in the last few months that I just feel like just getting out there and playing, and that’s what a good break does to you.”I am feeling in a good space, and the energy is good, and my body is feeling right at the moment. I do have niggles but that is part of Test cricket. You never get up feeling a 100%. The back is still there, the ankles and knees, everything is hurting at times but to be playing the ultimate form of the game again has been a great challenge.”De Villiers is not done yet with India. He will laugh about the last series in India, where some of the best batsmen in the world lost confidence playing on tracks that Faf du Plessis said bordered on the “extreme”, but they are gunning for 3-0.”I can’t remember what happened,” de Villiers joked. “What happened in 2015? Oh we won the ODI series, yeah. It would be great, India have really impressed me and surprised us in terms of the bowling department so they have shown lot more skill and definitely there is lot more pace than we expected. So we know we are going to have to be watchful in that last Test. They will come out fighting and wanting to finish well in the Test series, and wanting to take that confidence into the ODIs, but obviously we would love to beat them 3-0. But you are never guaranteed of a result. We know we are going to have to dig deep again and make sure that like in the last two Tests we adapt to the conditions and put in our best type of cricket in the conditions.”

Following an impressive showing in the IPL and domestic cricket, a call-up for the T20I series against New Zealand has put fast bowler Mohammed Siraj closer to realising his India dream

Arun Venugopal23-Oct-20171:10

Mohammed Siraj: Fast lane to team India

BioMohammed Siraj’s rise over the last year has been as fascinating as it has been swift. The son of an autorickshaw driver in Hyderabad, Siraj got hooked to the game while in class seven after he was part of the team that won an inter-school tournament. From then on, he would frequently skip classes to play tennis-ball cricket. His pace and an ability to take wickets in clumps meant he acquired a cult status in his mohalla in the Banjara Hills locality.It wasn’t until 2015 that Siraj took to playing with the cricket ball, upon a friend’s insistence. He took took a slew of five-fors in his first few club matches and soon found himself in Hyderabad’s Under-23 side, and then in the senior team. While he played only one game in his first season in the 2015-16 Ranji Trophy, he grabbed eyeballs the very next year with 41 wickets at an average of 18.92 as Hyderabad made the quarter-finals. He was subsequently picked in the Irani Trophy to play for the Rest of India.Earlier this year, aged only 22, Siraj made the jump to the big leagues when Sunrisers Hyderabad acquired him for a whopping INR 2.6 crore. During the 2016-17 domestic season, Siraj admitted to being taken in by the lavish lifestyle – the air travel and five-star accommodation – a professional cricketer’s life offered. Midway through the IPL, Siraj was doing promotional events and obliging requests for selfies, even if somewhat awkwardly. Such initiation is certain to come in handy once he links up with the Indian side for the T20Is against New Zealand.StrengthsSturdy and athletic, Siraj has a deceptive run-up, which initially suggests that a left-arm bowler is steaming in. He is, however, a right-armer and by his own admission is a natural at getting the ball to swing into the right-hander. It was only since 2016 that he started expanding his repertoire. He has always been able to bowl a pretty quick bouncer though, something that had impressed his captain David Warner and team mentor VVS Laxman in the Sunrisers set-up.FormSiraj picked up 10 wickets from six games in the IPL, including a four-for against Gujarat Lions. He took that form into the India A tour of South Africa, where he took a match haul of 5 for 103 in the only unofficial Test he played. He also claimed five wickets from three limited-overs matches against South Africa A and Afghanistan A. Siraj took 2 for 74 in the only Duleep Trophy game he played last month, and in the first unofficial Test against New Zealand A, he bowled the obstinate Jeet Raval for 34 and broke Will Young’s stumps for a duck as well. He also finished with two wickets in the two List A matches against New Zealand A.

Talks between Arsenal and Ajax over the transfer of Jurrien Timber are at an "advanced stage" as the player himself "wants the move", claims Sky Sports reporter Mark McAdam.

Arsenal transfer news – What's the latest on Jurrien Timber

The Gunners were agonisingly close to ending their almost two-decade title drought last season, but a lack of squad depth, especially in defensive areas, cost them in the end.

It looks like Mikel Arteta and the board don't want that happening again, so they have greenlit a summer of massive spending for the Premier League runners-up.

So far, the north London club have spent £65m to secure the signature of Kai Havertz from cross-city rivals Chelsea and look to be very close to finalising a £105m deal for West Ham United captain Declan Rice.

The next player on Edu's list looks to be Ajax defender Timber, with the club edging closer to an agreement with the Dutch giants over an estimated fee of £40m.

The player is also said to be extremely keen on the move, and that desire to be a part of the project is an important factor for Arteta, per Sky Sports reporter Mark McAdam.

He explained the situation on Sky Sports (via Football Daily), saying:

"Talks are continuing between Arsenal and Ajax with regards to the defender Jurrien Timber. They're described as being at an advanced stage at the moment as well, the final valuation and structure still being discussed between the player and, of course, Arsenal.

"He wants the move which is key for Mikel Arteta, and once again Mikel Arteta getting his three key transfer targets very early in the window, so some significant business in that respect."

How Good is Jurrien Timber?

The 22-year-old has excelled for the Dutch giants since he debuted for the senior side in 2020, making 121 appearances, 15 of which were in the UEFA Champions League.

During his three full seasons for the Amsterdam club, he has never achieved a lower average rating for a season than 6.89 and even managed to hit a genuinely impressive rating of 7.40 in the 2021/22 season, per WhoScored.

One of the 5 foot 10 dynamo's best traits is his ability to play multiple roles across the backline. During his time with Ajax, he has been utilised as both a right-back and a centre-back, which could make him the dream player for a team like Arsenal.

Over the last year, Arteta has implemented a style that sees Ben White play as a right-back but then come back into the middle of the pitch when the team is in possession, playing as a de facto third centre-back.

Adding Timber would provide some much-needed competition in that role and allow either himself or White to fill in at centre-back if needed, potentially avoiding another William Saliba situation next year.

If people needed any more convincing of the Utrecht-born gem's quality, just listen to Virgil Van Dijk, who said:

"I wasn't nearly as far along as he is now [at the same age], I have nothing but praise for him. He is a great player and a true professional. He has so much potential."

Should Edu and Co get this deal over the line, Arsenal could well be in for another year of challenging Manchester City for the Premier League title.

Nigeria beat Ivory Coast 1-0 thanks to a second-half penalty as the Super Eagles inflicted a devastating blow to the Africa Cup of Nations hosts.

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Teams played out entertaining first halfTroost-Ekong converted penalty early in secondNigeria held out for important victoryGettyTELL ME MORE

Victor Osimhen saw the game's first real chance when he found himself in a good position but he failed to hit the target. Ivory Coast responded with a promising attack of their own but Stanley Nwabili pulled off a decent save. It was end to end stuff as Samuel Chukwueze went up the other end right away but his low effort was saved, too.

Ivory Coast had another strong chance in the 15th minute when Christian Kouame played the ball back to Evan Ndicka in a good position in the box but Nwabili denied him.

Nigeria got off to a strong start in the second half and their persistence paid off when Ousmane Diomande kicked Osimhen in the back of the leg as both challenged for the ball, giving away a penalty in the process. It was defender William Troost-Ekong who stepped up to take it and he made no mistake in converting, rifling a powerful shot straight down the middle.

Just as in the first-half, Ivory Coast had plenty of the ball throughout the second but were nowhere near as imposing with it as they struggled to create clear chances. The hosts' lack of creativity proved costly as they fell to a narrow defeat which leaves them third in Group A.

AdvertisementTHE MVP

Nigeria goalkeeper Nwabili pulled off three important saves in the first 45 minutes to keep his team in the match and was strong in the second, too, rushing out in a daring decision to kill off an Ivory Coast attack and protect his team's lead. An impressive display from the 27-year-old.

GettyTHE BIG LOSER

Given Nigeria had a hard time getting into dangerous positions before taking the lead, Diomande may feel his tackle on Osimhen cost his team the game. He caught the back of the striker's leg as he looked to win the ball and it provided Nigeria the chance to get the all-important goal.

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WHAT COMES NEXT?

Tournament hosts Ivory Coast will round off the group stage with a game against leaders Equatorial Guinea on January 22, when Nigeria also take on a Guinea-Bissau team sitting bottom of the table with two defeats.

The company has strengthened its hold on television and digital rights to cricket in India by retaining worldwide rights to Indian cricket for USD 944 million for the period 2018-23

Nagraj Gollapudi05-Apr-20181:32

Indian cricket’s rags to riches broadcast rights story

Star India has strengthened its hold on television and digital rights in cricket by retaining worldwide rights to Indian cricket for INR 6138 crore (USD 944 million) for the period 2018-23. They now hold the two most valuable broadcast rights in cricket, having bought the IPL rights for INR 16,347.5 crore (US$ 2.55 billion) in September 2017 for the period 2018-22.In addition to its Indian presence, Star also has a strong grip internationally, having paid USD 1.9 billion for the broadcast rights for ICC tournaments between 2015-23.Star’s bid was declared the winning bid once its close rival, Sony Pictures Network India, listed INR 6118.59 cr as its final bid in the first ever e-auction in sport, which spanned three days. Star’s bid was an increase of 59% from the previous cycle of Indian cricket rights, which were sold for INR 3851 crore (USD 750 million at the time) for the period 2012-18, also to Star. The average cost per match for the Indian cricket rights sold on Thursday was about INR 60 cr (USD 9.2 million approx), which is higher than the average cost per IPL game for the 2018-22 period – INR 54.5 cr (USD 8.4 million approx).ESPNcricinfo LtdStar India gets to telecast 102 men’s international matches over the next five-year period, compared to 96 in the previous six-year cycle from 2012 to 2018. The 102 matches will be split across the home seasons as follows: 18 in 2018-19, 26 in 2019-20, 14 in 2020-21, 23 in 2021-22 and 21 in 2022-23. As per the BCCI, Star listed the following figures as the per match value for each of the five seasons: INR 46 cr, 47 cr, 46.5 cr, 77.4 cr and 78.9 cr respectively. The rights will also include men’s domestic matches as well as the India women’s international matches.There were three categories of rights up for bidding: the Indian television rights and rest of the world digital rights (GTVRD), digital rights for the Indian subcontinent alone (ID), and the global consolidated rights (GCR) for which the winning bid was eventually made.The e-auction, an unprecedented exercise in sport, became a three-horse race after the BCCI pruned the original list of six bidders on Tuesday morning, having conducted feasibility checks on eligibility of the bidders. Star, Sony, and Reliance were the final competitors when the e-auction began at 2pm on Tuesday.On Thursday, bidders had 30 minutes to contest a bid, unlike on Tuesday and Wednesday when they had an hour. There was a 35.81 % difference between the final bids on the first two days: from INR 4442 crores (USD 680 million approx.) on Tuesday evening to INR 6032.50 crore (USD 925 million approx)  by Wednesday evening.On Thursday, the bids rose in smaller increments: INR 6061.05 cr, INR 6085.30 cr, INR 6111.70 cr, INR 6111.70 cr, and finally INR 6138 cr.

Georgina Rodriguez hailed her partner Cristiano Ronaldo as 'the best' just days after Lionel Messi bagged The Best FIFA Men's Player for 2023 award.

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Georgina hails Ronaldo as 'the best'Accompanied star at Global Soccer AwardsIcon won three awards amid Messi snubWHAT HAPPENED?

Days after Messi was handed The Best FIFA Men's Player for 2023 award, Rodriguez – Ronaldo's partner – hailed the Portuguese as 'the best' as she accompanied him to the Global Soccer Awards in Dubai.

AdvertisementWHAT HAS BEEN SAID

Georgina shared multiple photos of her and Ronaldo attending the Global Soccer Awards on her Instagram profile with a caption that read: "Accompanying the best, the love of my life."

GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The 38-year-old bagged three prizes at the Globe Soccer Awards on Friday. The Al-Nassr star won the Best Middle East Player prize, the Maradona Award for the best goalscorer in 2023, and the Fans' Favourite Player of the Year award. While Ronaldo had an eventful night, his rival Messi was snubbed as Manchester City goal machine Erling Haaland won the Best Male Player award.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR CRISTIANO RONALDO?

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United star will be involved in multiple friendly matches in the next couple of weeks including Al-Nassr's friendly clash against Messi's Inter Miami in the Riyadh Cup on February 1.

Chelsea might keep youngster Andrey Santos in west London next season as Mauricio Pochettino is "impressed" and "super happy" with what he has seen from the Brazilian in preseason, per transfers expert Fabrizio Romano.

Is Andrey Santos staying at Chelsea this summer?

The Blues look like they are finally starting to ease off on their mass selling of players this summer and are instead turning towards bringing new faces into the club and keeping the ones they already have.

The west Londoners have already signed the promising Nicolas Jackson from La Liga outfit Villarreal and look poised to complete the signing of French centre-back Axel Disasi from Monaco as well.

One player that will feel like a new signing to fans is 19-year-old Brazilian Santos, who officially signed for the club back in January before going back on loan to Vasco da Gama for the remainder of the season.

Read the latest Chelsea transfer news HERE…

There was an expectation in some quarters that, given his relative inexperience, he'd be sent out on loan yet again this year, but to somewhere in Europe instead, which might well have been the plan prior to preseason, but it appears that plan could've changed over the last few weeks.

In the four games Pochettino's side have played so far this summer, Santos has started three of them and came on as a substitute in the other, and left a real impression on the new manager, per Fabrizio Romano.

He explained the situation on his YouTube channel, saying:

"Andrey Santos Brazilian update. It's true that there is a lot of interest. More than seven clubs [are] asking for Andrey Santos on loan, the last one was an English club from the Premier League, not a big club, but the English clubs [is] asking for the loan of Andrey Santos.

"Porto in June, Salernita from Italy. We heard rumours, but at the moment, it is not something advanced, why? Because, at the moment, at Chelsea they are very happy with Andrey. Pochettino is super happy, the staff is super happy, and so there is a chance for Andrey Santos to stay in the first team and be part of the Chelsea squad for the season.

"This is not 100% decided yet will be decided in the next days, of course, but Andrey Santos is doing really well, not just in the friendly games but also in training. Pochettino is impressed, and so there is a chance for Andre Santos to stay.

"Again, not 100% decided it will be discussed with his agents, but it's a concrete possibility because he's doing fantastic. Otherwise, there are more than six [or] seven clubs ready to sign him on loan."

Who else have Chelsea been linked to this summer?

With a few new faces already through the doors at Stamford Bridge, who else could be joining the new Pochettino era in west London?

The name that has been touted for a move to the Bridge more than any other this summer – and by quite some way – is that of Moises Caicedo.

It would be fair to say that after having already made a number of offers for the Ecuadorian superstar, he is firmly the Blues' top target this summer, and despite getting rebuffed each of those four times, Chelsea are yet to decide whether they will move on or not, per Sky Sports.

Another deal that looks complete – even if the club themselves haven't confirmed it yet – is the £23m signing of Stade Rennes midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu, per Sky Sports.

The 19-year-old had a strong season for the Ligue 1 outfit last year, starting 14 games, providing one assist, maintaining a passing accuracy of 87.6% and averaging a match rating of 6.48, per WhoScored.

The plan for the youngster may be to send him out on loan straight away, as Pochettino seemed to indicate in a press conference, saying:

"My information is he is a player that is from France that maybe they are signing with the idea to send on some loan, using a different club that information was already in your laptop.

"There is nothing to say too much."

It will be an interesting season for Chelsea this year, especially with how many new faces Pochettino might have to integrate into the team, but who knows, all this change could be exactly what the club need.

Gujarat Lions have signed allrounder Irfan Pathan as a replacement for Dwayne Bravo, who was ruled out of the 2017 IPL with a hamstring injury

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2017Gujarat Lions have signed allrounder Irfan Pathan as a replacement for Dwayne Bravo, who was ruled out of the 2017 IPL with a hamstring injury. Irfan, who was unsold at the auction in February at a base price of INR 50 lakhs, posted a photograph of himself wearing a Lions jersey on Twitter, and said he was “looking forward to be part of this wonderful unit.”Irfan, 32, has been part of five IPL franchises – Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rising Pune Supergiant – in the past. He has 80 wickets from 102 IPL games, apart from 1137 runs at a strike-rate of 120.57. However, he had a poor run with Rising Pune Supergiant in 2016, scoring 11 runs in three innings and going wicketless in the eight overs he bowled.Lions had hoped Bravo, who did not play a match this season, would be available for the second half of the tournament. He was undergoing rehabilitation in Rajkot, but couldn’t recover in time. “While recovery is going well and I have made vast improvement and have participated in team trainings with the Lions, my body is not ready to perform at its fullest potential,” Bravo had said in a statement.Lions also lost left-arm wristspinner Shivil Kaushik for the rest of the season through injury. Kaushik’s replacement was 23-year-old Ankit Soni, an allrounder from Mumbai.After making the playoffs last year, Lions are currently in seventh place, with two wins from seven games.

Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta has ended his 11-year stay at Stamford Bridge, leaving new Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino with a big decision to make

There was another significant juncture in Chelsea's extraordinary period of upheaval last week, as Cesar Azpilicueta bid farewell to the club after 11 trophy-laden years of loyal service. His departure immediately adds to Mauricio Pochettino's in-tray, with the new head coach now facing a big decision over who should take the armband.

Indeed, the Argentine needs to form a new on-field leadership team altogether, as Jorginho's move to Arsenal in January means the club has lost both its captain and vice-captain in the space of six months. Mateo Kovacic, another player to have worn the armband recently, has also moved on.

Chelsea's unprecedented overhaul of the first-team squad this summer means the options to replace Azpilicueta as skipper are limited, but a few names in particular stand out as candidates…

Getty Images6Enzo Fernandez

In his brief time at Chelsea, Enzo Fernandez has demonstrated his leadership credentials in his attempts to dictate play from the middle of the park amid relative chaos around him. Indeed, he aspires to be a leader on the pitch, saying in April: "I always dream to be a leader because when I started, I always wanted to be an example."

His authority was noted by interim manager Frank Lampard, but his thoughts are perhaps an accurate reflection of where the midfielder will sit in Pochettino's thinking: "Enzo is becoming a leader," he said. "But he's 22, I think it's quite difficult for us to talk about that, he'll have to find his way."

The language barrier is also an issue, with Lampard revealing in May that Enzo "doesn't speak English much at all". Consequently, this feels like an opportunity that will come too soon for the club's record signing.

AdvertisementGetty5Ben Chilwell

A name that will likely be mentioned in despatches in discussions over the club's next club captain and leadership team is Ben Chilwell. Despite only signing in 2020, the 26-year-old suddenly finds himself among the club's longest-serving players.

A Premier League and Champions League-winner as well as an England international, he has a wealth of experience at the highest level and knows what it means to represent Chelsea through thick and thin, while his disarming, warm character means he is popular among the squad and the fanbase.

His injury record should be a concern, however, as Pochettino will want his captain to be ever-present. Some will also argue that he is perhaps nice for the job.

Getty4Kepa Arrizabalaga

The notion of Kepa Arrizabalaga even being in contention for the captaincy would have been laughable less than a year ago, but the goalkeeper has battled back to prominence at Stamford Bridge.

Kepa enjoyed a quietly solid campaign after reclaiming his place between the sticks from now ex-Chelsea stopper Edouard Mendy, and Lampard even handed him the armband for the home game against Brighton at the backend of last season – although that ended in another disappointing defeat.

He is an outsider for the role, but it has been reported that Pochettino is willing to stick with the Spaniard as his No.1 next season rather than spend on a replacement. That makes him a contender for the captaincy as a vocal presence at the back and one of the longest-serving first-team regulars, despite his shortcomings.

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Getty Images3Raheem Sterling

Raheem Sterling still hasn't even been at Chelsea for a year, but his experience and winning mentality mean he will feature prominently in Pochettino's thoughts as he ponders his decision.

Sterling has emerged as a natural-born leader, captaining both Manchester City and England in the past and earning the respect of his peers with his exploits both on and off the pitch. His trophy-laden time at the Etihad Stadium means he is comfortably the most decorated player in the Chelsea squad.

It's a role the player relishes at international level, saying after captaining the Three Lions last year: "It's a great privilege and never in my wildest imagination as a young player coming through did I ever think I would captain England one day, it comes with maturity the manager sees in you, the passion and love I have for the country.

"I always have this thing where I remember me coming through as a young player and it's nice when senior players put their arms around you, it's a new environment and all we can do is make sure the new ones feel as comfortable as possible."

The main thing that will count against Sterling is his brief time at Stamford Bridge to date, but don't be surprised to see him in his manager's new leadership team.