Bhuvneshwar, Krunal and Suyash maintained economies of under seven in the first innings

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Apr-20254:24

Rayudu: RCB may have to adjust batting tempo in Mullanpur

An all-round bowling show from Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) saw them restrict Punjab Kings (PBKS) to only 157 for 6 in Mullanpur. Less than 48 hours after these two teams played a game in Bengaluru, they were back at it up north.RCB won the toss and had no hesitation in bowling first on what Rajat Patidar thought was a decent surface. PBKS were off to a flying start in the powerplay with Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh going big. After a two-run opening over from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the duo smashed seven fours and a six in the next three overs.However, the change of pace brought RCB back. Krunal Pandya first induced a top-edge off Arya’s blade with Tim David taking a simple catch at mid-on. Prabhsimran went six and four against Josh Hazlewood in the sixth over to end the powerplay on a high. But it was all RCB thereon.Prabhsimran failed to clear long-on first ball after the powerplay and was caught by David at long-on. Shreyas Iyer, who had three fifty-plus and four sub-ten scores in seven innings in IPL 2025, suffered another failure. He was dismissed by Romario Shepherd, with Krunal taking a stunning catch haring to his left from long-on.Nehal Wadhera was needlessly run out, while Suyash Sharma then picked two wickets in an over as PBKS slipped to 114 for 6 in the 14th over. PBKS only managed 67 runs in the middle overs and lost five wickets.Shashank Singh and Marco Jansen tried their best to go big in the death, but Bhuvneshwar and Hazlewood did not give them an inch. According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, RCB landed eight yorkers in the last four overs. Jansen and Shashank were not dismissed but could only manage 28 runs in the last four overs. Jansen smashed a six to end the innings, but RCB will be the happier side going into the break.

Nottingham Forest have reportedly made a decision on Ange Postecoglou's future ahead of the club's clash with Chelsea this weekend. The Australian is staring down the barrel after seven matches without a single victory. His side’s dismal start has left supporters restless and whispers growing louder that a managerial change is on the horizon unless a miracle turnaround begins against the Blues.

Winless and wobbling, Postecoglou on the brink

Postecoglou’s arrival was supposed to herald a new era of attacking football at the City Ground. But what was once billed as bold and brave has quickly looked reckless and naïve. Forest’s adventurous setup, a complete departure from last season’s compact counter-attacking formula, has left their backline vulnerable on multiple occasions. Supporters made their frustrations clear during the 3-2 Europa League home defeat to Midtjylland earlier this month, booing the team off. Just days later, a 2-0 loss to Newcastle compounded the gloom, with Forest noticeably more cautious, and still second best. While there have been flashes of fluid attacking play, their inability to defend set-pieces, maintain shape, or withstand pressure has cost them dearly. Forest’s gaping spaces in transition have become a feeding ground for opponents, and patience among fans is rapidly running out.

AdvertisementGettyMarinakis reluctant but ready to swing his axe

Evangelos Marinakis, a man not known for his patience, is treading a delicate line. The Greek tycoon knows sacking another manager so early in the season could damage both the club’s reputation and finances, yet he’s equally aware of the growing discontent swirling around the terraces. Forest’s revolving managerial door has already seen Nuno Espirito Santo shown the exit barely three games into the new Premier League campaign. Postecoglou was supposed to be the reset. Instead, he’s teetering on the edge of becoming the latest casualty of Marinakis’s ruthless pursuit of results. For now, the owner remains cautious, but those close to the situation suggest Marinakis likes to have a successor ready, just in case. And with the Australian’s stock sinking fast, that “just in case” could soon turn into “when.” A list is being prepared in the boardroom, with more "pragmatic" candidates being favoured for the rescue job, as revealed by

Sean Dyche in frame

Should the hammer fall, former Everton boss Sean Dyche is being tipped as the frontrunner to replace Postecoglou. The 54-year-old has been out of work since leaving Goodison Park in January, but has quietly made it known he’s ready for the right project, and Nottingham Forest ticks several boxes. Crucially, Dyche is available without a compensation fee, an attractive proposition for a club still smarting from recent payout costs. Adding to the appeal, Dyche’s trusted lieutenants Ian Woan and Steve Stone are both former Forest players who know the club inside out, having served under him during his managerial stints at Burnley and Everton.

Another name admired by Forest’s leadership is Marco Silva, whose work at Fulham has impressed across the Premier League. However, his massive release clause is seen as a major stumbling block. Silva’s current contract runs until the end of the season, and prising him away mid-campaign would likely prove too costly for Marinakis’s liking.

As if the turmoil on the touchline wasn’t enough, Forest could soon face upheaval behind the scenes too. Head of recruitment Pedro Ferreira, who only joined in June after a 17-year spell at Benfica, might be heading back to Portugal depending on the outcome of Benfica’s upcoming presidential elections. One of the frontrunners, Noronha Lopes, has vowed to make Ferreira his director of football if elected. Losing Ferreira would be another body blow for Forest’s structure, especially after chief football officer Ross Wilson left for Newcastle just last week. 

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Getty Images SportThe clock is ticking for Postecoglou

Time is no longer Postecoglou’s friend. His fate may be sealed by the next three fixtures, a brutal run that could define his tenure. First up is Chelsea at home on October 18, a match that now feels like a last stand. Then comes a tricky Europa League clash with Porto, followed by a potentially treacherous trip to Bournemouth. Anything less than a string of positive results, and the calls for his head will become impossible to ignore.

After going unbeaten in their last two matches, Leeds United suffered a home defeat against Tottenham Hotspur. The Whites were beaten 2-1 by the North London outfit, and despite creating some good opportunities, they couldn’t capitalise and ended up losing at Elland Road for the first time this season.

It was the visitors who took the lead in West Yorkshire, through Frenchman Mathys Tel. The former Bayern Munich prodigy got slightly fortunate with his effort from outside of the area, after a deflection took it over Karl Darlow into the back of the net.

Daniel Farke’s side hit back soon after, with new signing Noah Okafor once again getting on the scoresheet. Quick reactions meant the Swiss attacker could get on the end of a parry from Spurs’ goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, who deflected Brenden Aaronson’s effort into his path.

Just before the hour mark, Spurs scored their second through one of their summer signings, Mohammed Kudus. The Ghanaian forward pounced on a loose ball, driving inside and firing a shot goalwards. Again, it took a deflection, leaving Darlow for dead and nestling into the bottom corner.

Kudus’ goal proved to be the difference-maker in a game where a few Leeds players struggled. One of those was Gabriel Gudmundsson.

Gudmundsson’s stats vs. Spurs

It has, generally speaking, been a good start to the season for Gudmundsson. The new Leeds left-back, who is a full international with Sweden, has started every game under Farke so far this season.

Whilst he has been impressive for the most part, as he was against the Lilywhites, Gudmundsson made an error which allowed Kudus the opportunity to score.

He got in a tangle looking to clear the ball, instead letting it bounce awkwardly off his torso and into the path of Kudus.

The stats from Gudmundsson’s efforts against the North London giants don’t cover him in glory. He made one error, which led to a goal, and he only won three out of five tackles. On the ball, he had 46 touches and lost possession 12 times.

Indeed, Graham Smyth, journalist for The Yorkshire Evening Post, gave him a 6/10 for his efforts at Elland Road. He said Gudmundsson had a ‘couple of nice moments’ on and off the ball, but did criticise him for a lack of contact on the ball, which led to Spurs’ winner.

It was certainly a tough day at the office for the left-back, but there was a fellow defender who struggled even more.

The Leeds player who was worse than Gudmundsson

It was certainly not the result Leeds would have wanted at Elland Road, given the fortress they have turned it into under Farke. They had more shots and possession than the visitors on Saturday lunchtime, but a couple of moments meant they didn’t even earn a point.

One of the players who struggled was 26-year-old centre-back Pascal Struijk. The former Ajax youth defender has been crucial for Leeds this season, playing 90 minutes in every Premier League game and skippering the side twice.

Yet, his efforts against Spurs were underwhelming.

There were two “unfortunate” deflections off the Leeds number five for each of the goals, as per The Athletic’s Beren Cross, which took the ball past Darlow to see his side go behind on both occasions.

He received a 5/10 rating for his performances by Smyth. The journalist said Struijk had ‘ropey moments at the back’ and pointed out the fact that he was ‘beaten in the air’ when Spurs struck the woodwork themselves.

The stats reflect how poor the 26-year-old was against the Lilywhites. He had 74 touches and, on the ball, was generally quite good. He completed 94% of his passes. Yet, he only won 40% of his duels and didn’t attempt a tackle.

Struijk stats vs. Spurs

Stat

Number

Touches

74

Pass accuracy

95%

Pass accuracy

61/64

Long balls completed

1/3

Aerial duels won

2/4

Ground duels won

0/1

Stats from Sofascore

With summer addition Jaka Bijol knocking on the door for a spot in the starting lineup, perhaps Farke will decide to drop Struijk.

It is certainly disappointing that he struggled, especially in the air, against Spurs, and he certainly could have done more to prevent the goals.

Bijol has been an unused substitute in the Premier League this season, but perhaps this poor performance from Struijk will be enough to convince Farke to rotate the side ahead of the clash with Burnley.

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Leeds must regret cashing in on this star who was the original Gabriel Gudmundsson at Elland Road.

Posts ByDan Emery Oct 2, 2025

Harris stuns with 16-ball fifty as Bears triumph, despite Suzie Bates’ best allround efforts

ECB Reporters Network31-May-2025

Bears 193 for 6 (Perrin 87, Harris 55, Bates 2-23) beat Durham 151 (Bates 65, Davis 3-27) by 42 runsLaura Harris introduced herself to Edgbaston with an explosive 16-ball half-century as Warwickshire beat Durham by 42 runs in the women’s Vitality Blast at Edgbaston.Australian new signing Harris smashed 55 from 21 balls to support Davina Perrin’s classy 87 from 61 as the home side piled up 193 for 6.Durham replied with 151 all out in 19 overs, their Blast campaign destined to start with defeat after their reply rapidly declined to 15 for 3. Suzie Bates (65) and Bess Heath (45) assured respectability for their side but Georgia Davis took 3 for 27 to seal Warwickshire’s first win of the tournament following their opening-game tie with The Blaze at Trent Bridge.After choosing to bat, Warwickshire were given an excellent platform by Perrin and Abi Freeborn. Restricted to just a single from the first over from Lauren Filer, they worked the ball around intelligently to add 70 from 57 balls.Freeborn departed after Filer turned in her follow-through and threw down the stumps as the batter sought a single. It was excellent work from the bowler but she soon wished she hadn’t bothered. Nineteen minutes later the new batter had 50.Harris got off the mark with a straight six off Katie Levick, followed that with successive fours and then swung a Filer full toss over the long leg rope to thunder to 25 from eight balls. Her third six, smote straight off Levick, raised her half-century from 16.Even after Harris was slickly stumped by Heath off Bates, there was little respite for Durham as Perrin took three fours and a six off a Mady Villiers over. A deserved century beckoned for Perrin but she spent much of the closing overs at the non-striker’s end before, having hit 12 fours and two sixes, she fell to a stinging return catch by Bates in the final over.Durham’s reply started badly when Katherine Fraser edged the third ball, from Issy Wong, to wicketkeeper Freeborn. Wong struck again with her seventh ball when Hollie Armitage missed an attempted scoop off middle stump and was lbw. It was 15 for 3 after Mady Villiers drove Charis Pavely straight to extra cover.There was no way back from there. Bates and Heath added 80 from 64 balls but the required rate hit 11 runs per over and Warwickshire captain Davis exploited the pressure with two wickets in four balls. Heath and Mia Rogers were bowled and stumped respectively after missing slogs.Bates accelerated boldly but when she missed a scoop and was lbw to Hannah Baker, the tail was left to find 51 from the last three overs. It couldn’t.

Tom Latham scored a debut century as Warwickshire reached 364 for four against Surrey on the opening day of their Rothesay County Championship Division One match at Edgbaston.New Zealand batter Latham struck an unbeaten 139 (244 balls) after Surrey chose to bowl on another belter of a batting pitch at Edgbaston. Rob Yates scored 86 (151) against the champions’ much-changed team with Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson having departed on England duty.Surrey are also without Dan Worrall whom they decided to spare the hard labour on a pitch which appears so good for batting that the best chance of victory lies in a fourth day run-chase. Warwickshire, meanwhile, are without young seamer Michael Booth who will be sidelined for two to three months by a stress fracture of the fibula. Barbados-born Che Simmons has come into the team for his home championship debut.Against a Surrey attack including debutant Nathan Smith. Warwickshire started serenely in the Second City sunshine as Yates and Alex Davies (45, 58) gathered an untroubled 70 in 19 overs. Davies twice hoisted Jordan Clark for six over the short Hollies Stand boundary but departed in angst after swinging and missing at a full toss from Dan Lawrence.Yates and Latham added 112 before the former departed in a different type of angst to this captain. With a century beckoning, he tickled an unthreatening leg-side delivery from Tom Lawes to the wicketkeeper.A Latham century looked likely from the moment he took guard. He moved sweetly into the 40s, took a breather and spent 35 balls there, then pulled Clark for six to reach his half-century and galloped from 50 to 80 in another 18 balls. It was batting of simple, solid, unhurried class.Surrey’s rejigged bowling attack, with Smith on his debut and Lawes and Cameron Steel each playing their first game of the season, persevered nobly. Sam Hain flicked Clark straight to backward square leg and Lawrence bowled Beau Webster with a beauty through the gate.But Ed Barnard (38, 63) joined the implacable Latham to add an unbroken 83 in the last 24 overs of the day. Latham reached his 27th first class century from 161 balls to emulate his countryman Jeetan Patel in making a ton on his Warwickshire debut. Whether Latham matches Patel’s subsequent haul of 742 wickets for the club remains to be seen, but he has immediately provided the top order ballast they badly need.It was a gruelling day in the field for Surrey but they will expect similar plunder from their batters, including Jason Roy who will be looking to make it back-to-back championship centuries spanning six years eight months, having scored 128 against Essex at The Oval in his last Championship game, in September 2018.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are still waiting for their first victory of the Premier League season and have suffered an injury blow as they look to get off the canvas.

Wolves prepare to face Brighton in crunch clash

Over the last couple of matches, Wolves have shown small improvements after an EFL Cup victory over Everton and an impressive draw away to Tottenham Hotspur, though there is still a long way to go for Vitor Pereira in his hunt for survival.

Sam Johnstone has emerged as a competent option between the sticks, helping to spark a mini-revival, and Express & Star reporter Liam Keen stated on the outlet’s podcast that he can see the England international growing in stature as he strikes up a fruitful relationship with the Old Gold backline.

He said: “I love the fact he was loud against Spurs. I think it’s really important to pick up on that. And actually, he did it a fair bit against Everton as well. I’m really pleased Johnstone has been able to show – even to a small extent if you will – how good a goalkeeper he can be.”

Jhon Arias has been a revelation behind the scenes at Wolves and is a sign of better things to come. However, they simply have to get off the mark with a first Premier League win of the season at home to Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday.

Sitting four points adrift, home matches at Molineux are pivotal if Pereira’s men want to climb the table, and there is a feeling that will need to happen sooner rather than later to avoid an unwanted scenario of staring down the barrel.

Three points would breed a new sense of optimism among a support who have had to deal with their fair share of frustration in recent times, though they will need to try and achieve that mission without one of their first-team regulars.

Wolves man Matt Doherty set for over a month on sidelines

Speaking after announcing his Republic of Ireland squad for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers, Heimir Hallgrimsson has confirmed Wolves man Matt Doherty is out for four to five weeks after fracturing his wrist.

He stated: “Jason Knight has a groin injury and is most likely out for four to five weeks. Matt Doherty has a fracture in his wrist and had an operation on it two days ago and is going to miss probably the same amount of time.”

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Featuring frequently for the Old Gold, Doherty has made five appearances across all competitions this season, coming in at right-back and deputising in a central defensive role when needed.

Nevertheless, news of his injury will come as a substantial blow for Pereira, who now finds himself short on numbers on the right-hand side of his backline amid Ki-Jana Hoever’s knee problems.

Celtic head coach Brendan Rodgers handed out two full debuts in the 2-1 win over Kilmarnock away from home in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

Colby Donovan, an academy graduate, started for the first time at right-back. Summer signing Sebastian Tounekti also started the match on the left wing after his deadline day move from the Swedish side.

Both players caught the eye in different ways. The full-back showcased his defensive skills, winning seven of his ten duels, whilst the winger created four chances and completed five dribbles, per Sofascore.

As well as handing full debuts to Tounekti and Donovan from the start, Rodgers brought Kelechi Iheanacho off the bench to make his debut for the Scottish giants against Kilmarnock.

The former Sevilla marksman, who arrived at Parkhead on a free transfer on the day after deadline day, stepped up from the spot to score the winning goal from the penalty spot in the 96th minute.

Celtic will now be hoping that Iheanacho and Tounekti, two of their summer signings, can kick on from here and prove that they are worth the wage for the Hoops.

How much Celtic's new signings earn

Per Salary Leaks, Kieran Tierney is said to be the highest-earning player among the summer signings made by the Scottish Premiership champions, on £50k-per-week.

This is not a surprise because the Scotland international has spent the last six years in England with Arsenal, one of the biggest clubs in the world, after a £25m move from Celtic in 2019.

Iheanacho, interestingly, is the next highest earner alongside Benjamin Nygren, on £25k-per-week, after he moved to Glasgow on a free transfer from Sevilla, after the Spanish side ripped up his contract on deadline day.

The left-footed forward spent many seasons in the Premier League with Manchester City and Leicester City, though, and was previously at a LaLiga club, so it was unlikely that he was going to be on cheap wages.

As you can see in the table above, most of the club’s 11 signings are reportedly on fairly low wages, as only three of them earn more than £13k-per-week.

Per Salary Leaks, only three of the club’s summer signings, Tierney, Nygren, and Iheanacho, are in the top 13 earners at Parkhead this season, which shows that the Hoops have not splashed significant money across the board on their new additions.

That may be a reaction to last summer’s signings and how poorly some of them went down. Adam Idah, for example, joined for an initial fee of £8.5m and left a year later to sign for Swansea for an initial fee of £6m on deadline day.

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Another one of last summer’s recruits who should be in danger of following Idah out of the door at Parkhead is Auston Trusty, who has not provided value for money since his move to the club.

The USA international joined from Sheffield United in the summer of 2024 for a fee of £5m and, per Salary Leaks, earns more than all of this summer’s signings aside from Tierney.

Why Celtic must part ways with Auston Trusty

Unless there is a drastic switch-up in form, the Scottish giants should be looking to finally part ways with the USMNT star when the January transfer window opens for business at the start of next year.

Per Salary Leaks, Trusty earns £32k-per-week, which is more than new signings Iheanacho and Tounekti, and the fifth-highest wage within the first-team squad, only behind Callum McGregor, Jota, Cameron Carter-Vickers, and Tierney.

Unfortunately, the former Arsenal central defender’s performances on the pitch for the Hoops since the start of last season have failed to justify the outlay that the club have paid, and continue to pay, for his services.

At the start of 2025, Rodgers said that the left-footed flop had to do better against Dundee. The boss noted that the team was “a bit soft” with Trusty at centre-back, as he was beaten too easily in the air for Dundee’s third goal in the game.

Defensive mistakes, like the one in the clip above, were too commonplace for the former Sheffield United star for a player who was signed for big money on big wages last year.

Trusty has not provided the quality that was expected from a signing of his calibre, unfortunately, and has found himself as the back-up to Liam Scales in the left-sided centre-back role at the start of this season.

As you can see in the table above, the American flop was outperformed by Scales in the Premiership last season, as the £5m signing made four more errors that led to shots or goals, was dribbled past more than twice as much, and won a lower percentage of his physical duels.

These statistics show that Trusty has been too much of a liability at the heart of the defence for Celtic, because of his costly errors and how easy opposition forwards find it to dribble past him with the ball.

He should be in the prime years of his career, at the age of 27, but finds himself as a second-choice in his position, despite being one of the highest earners at the club.

The Daily Record reported in the summer that European and English clubs were interested in signing Trusty, which suggests that there could be enough interest for Celtic to cash in on him when the January window opens.

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Whilst the Hoops must ditch Trusty because of his underperformances, the Scottish giants will be hoping the likes of Tounekti and Iheanacho will do enough to justify their wage this season, after a strong start from both of them against Kilmarnock.

أعلن نادي ريال مدريد خضوع لاعبه لإجراء عملية جراحية دقيقة بعد الإصابة التي تعرض لها في مباراة برشلونة ضمن منافسات الدوري الإسباني.

واستضاف ملعب “سانتياجو برنابيو” مباراة الكلاسيكو بين ريال مدريد وبرشلونة، ضمن منافسات الجولة العاشرة من بطولة الدوري الإسباني “لا ليجا”، يوم الأحد الماضي.

وتمكن ريال مدريد من حسم نتيجة المباراة بثنائية مقابل هدف، في المباراة التي جمعتهما ضمن منافسات الدوري الإسباني.

وأعلن ريال مدريد في بيان رسمي عبر موقعه: “خضع قائدنا، داني كارفاخال، اليوم لجراحة تنظيرية ناجحة في ركبته اليمنى، بإشراف الخدمات الطبية لنادي ريال مدريد، ومن المقرر أن يبدأ كارفاخال عملية التعافي في الأيام المقبلة”.

اقرأ أيضًا | قرارات مُحتملة من برشلونة لحماية لامين يامال بعد أزمة الكلاسيكو

ولم يكشف ريال مدريد عن مدة الغياب المتوقعة لـ كارفاخال، ولكن صحيفة “آس” الإسبانية ذكرت أن الأمر قد يستغرق ما بين 6 إلى 10 أسابيع.

أما صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية فقد ذكرت أن الغياب المتوقع يتراوح بين شهرين إلى 3 أشهر، مما يمثل ضربة قوية لـ ريال مدريد.

كارفاخال كان قد شعر بوجود مشكلة في مفصله بعد الكلاسيكو، وشعر بانزعاج كبير وأبلغ أطباء النادي وبعد الفحص اتضحت طبيعة إصابته.

يُذكر أنه بعد انتصار ريال مدريد أمام برشلونة في بطولة الدوري الإسباني، وصل كارفاخال إلى فوزه رقم 200 مع الملكي في الدوري الإسباني “لا ليجا”.

Ahead of the German Clasico against Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany praised Harry Kane’s mindset, saying the striker’s long wait for silverware has only fuelled his hunger for success. The Englishman, now in his third season with the Bundesliga champions, is in red-hot form with 18 goals in 10 games as Bayern remain unbeaten across Europe.

Kane thriving after finally breaking his trophy curse

Kane’s long wait for a trophy finally ended last season when Bayern lifted their 34th Bundesliga title, ending years of mockery after failing to claim silverware with both Tottenham and England throughout his career. 

During his 11-year spell at Tottenham, Kane set record after record. He became Spurs’ all-time top scorer with 280 goals in all competitions, won three Golden Boots, and in the 2020-21 season became the first player to lead the league in both goals and assists since Andy Cole in 1993-94. On the international stage, Kane has been equally outstanding. He is England’s all-time leading goalscorer, having captained the team to the Euro 2024 final and a fourth-place finish at the 2018 World Cup, where he also won the Golden Boot.

However, failure to win a trophy resulted in the search for a new challenge, and the Englishman joined Bayern from Spurs in 2023. His first season in Germany ended in disappointment, though, as as Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen ended the Bavarians’ decade-long dominance. Despite his 44 goals in all competitions, the team failed to win any silverware, which further sparked 'trophy curse' memes among fans. But those whispers have been silenced, with the striker setting several Bundesliga records.

AdvertisementGetty Kane’s hunger paying off at Bayern

Speaking before the clash against rivals Dortmund, Kompany said Kane’s long wait for the trophy has given him a special kind of drive that is now benefiting the entire team. "It may have helped that he didn't win many titles, because it kept him hungry, Kompany explained. "He's developed, and he has to want to. I can't develop a player of that quality on my own. We hope things continue to go as well as they have so far."

Bayern have also rediscovered their ruthless form under Kompany, setting a Bundesliga record with 25 goals in their first six league matches and winning all 10 games across competitions. 

Bayern boss downplays Kane's workload concerns

The Englishman has featured in all 10 games for Bayern so far this season and was also on target for England against Latvia in Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier, scoring twice. When asked about his workload, Kompany downplayed any concerns.

"I'm not the national coach of England, Germany, or anyone else. Everyone can decide for themselves what to do with their players," the Belgian added. "We all want them to be fit for the club and also for the World Cup. No one wins if the player isn't healthy. And we mustn't forget that Kane didn't even play the first game, so he has had plenty of time to recover."

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GettyBayern's focus turns to the German Clasico

Kompany and Bayern now turn their attention to Dortmund, who have started the season strongly under Nico Kovac. "We're motivated for this classic. Both teams are still undefeated, Kovac has already won the Bundesliga as a coach, and we're looking forward to it," Kompany said. 

Dortmund have enjoyed recent success in Munich, with a win and a draw in their last two Bundesliga visits to the Allianz Arena.

"They have dangerous attacking players who are always dangerous and can always score. They have defenders with a lot of experience. Overall, it's a tough opponent. But we're at home! Hopefully, it will be a good game for the fans," the Bayern boss added.

With Bayern firing on all cylinders, and Kane hungrier than ever, the defending champions will enter the Clasico as clear favourites.

Wayne Rooney is backing Harry Maguire for a World Cup recall with England after seeing the Manchester United defender come through “bullying” that saw him become a “meme” at one stage. The commanding centre-half has not enjoyed the easiest of times at Old Trafford, but he was given plenty to smile about when netting a dramatic winner against Liverpool last time out.

• Stripped of captaincy & benched: Maguire's challenges

  Maguire, who became the most expensive defender in world football when joining the Red Devils in 2019, appeared to have little future with United after being stripped of captaincy duties and demoted to the bench. He has, however, played his way back into favour.

  The 32-year-old has never been the type to back down from a challenge and has taken on an important role for Ruben Amorim during more struggles for consistency under the Portuguese coach. A position in the Red Devils’ much-maligned back three was found for Maguire for the high-stakes trip to Anfield.

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  Crucial contribution in dramatic victory at Anfield

  Rooney admits to being concerned about Amorim’s selection for that clash, with the likes of Leny Yoro and Benjamin Sesko being dropped to the bench. He did, however, see Maguire head home an 84th-minute winner on Merseyside.

  United’s all-time leading goal-scorer said on podcast: “I was worried, to be honest. But you know what? I thought fair play to the manager because I think he got his tactics absolutely spot on. And I think bringing Harry Maguire in, I don’t know whether that was through injury or he had to, and I said a few weeks ago on here he’s such an important player for Manchester United.”

• Figure of fun: How Maguire reacted to 'bullying'

  Rooney went on to say of the troubles that Maguire has had to work his way through, with the experienced defender becoming a figure of fun at times: “I think with Harry, I would really struggle to have dealt with what he’s been through. You know, he was a meme for years. I think I’ve seen him in parliament, over in Africa somewhere where he’s getting brought up in that and they’re laughing at him. So for him to have dealt with so much of what he’s dealt with, he’s incredibly strong-minded to have gone through that.

  “Then, getting the armband taken off him and people laughing at him and you’re like, this guy has been in World Cup teams of the tournament and been incredible for England, been really good for Man Utd and it’s completely unfair, and it was bullying. He was getting bullied from all over the place and for him to have dealt with that and got through it and stuck with it, you’d have to say ‘you know what, that’s a strong human being’. And for him to get through that and his family to get through that and come out the other side and show his ability, quality and strength, I couldn’t be happier for him.”

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  England recall & new contract: What does 2026 hold for Maguire?

  Rooney is now of the opinion that Maguire should be recalled by England ahead of the 2026 World Cup, having failed to make any of the squads pieced together by Thomas Tuchel so far. Ex-Three Lions skipper Rooney added: “Harry Maguire for me shows why he should be in the World Cup squad and I really mean that I think he’s so important. I heard Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink speaking about him in that England squad and how much of a leader he is and players look up to him and it’s the same at Man Utd.

  “He could have completely downed tools and wanted to leave the football club when he had the armband taken off him and that’s not easy for any player. Your self pride takes a massive hit when that happens and he’s having to stick there and support Bruno [Fernandes] as captain and not play every game and come on for the last 10 minutes of games. [Against Liverpool] coming in and playing really well again and showing that leadership and he’s a threat as well, set-pieces are so important.”

  Maguire has 64 England caps to his name, having made his senior international debut in 2017. He will be hoping to play his way into Tuchel’s thoughts, while also staking a claim to a contract extension at Old Trafford – with his current deal set to expire in the summer of 2026.