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Journalist Liam Keen has revealed a Wolves concern over the availability of Ruben Neves, as he is not fully fit and at risk of suspension amid their relegation fight.

What's going on with Neves and Wolves?

The Portugal international has been a standout player for Julen Lopetegui's side this season, scoring five times as Wolves aim to surivive the drop.

However, they could lose their captain ahead of a crucial few weeks as he struggles with a calf knock that is being carefully managed. He has been withdrawn in each of his side's last two games, having played the full 90 minutes in every previous league start this season.

He has also accumulated nine yellow cards this season, and one more will see him pick up a two-match suspension.

Speaking on the Express and Star podcast, Keen bemoaned the situation, which means Wolves either have to gamble on the availability of their talisman or purposefully rest him in crucial matches.

He said: "I think Neves is difficult. I think they probably are trying to save him, but you can't do that for the next four games, you can't take him off every single game.

"At the same time, Lopetegui has said that he was at the limits with a calf injury and they've been managing it, so it's a difficult one.

"If they are trying to save him for games, I don't think you can do that, I think you have to just play him and hope that he gets through.

"Of course, he did it last season where he got through eight games without a booking, so it's something he's capable of doing, albeit it's difficult."

Who could Wolves play in his absence?

Rio Ferdinand once referred to Neves as "fantastic", and he will be difficult to replace if he picks up an injury or a suspension.

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The £50k-per-week captain has missed just one game this season, which was the 3-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea, and Wolves will be eager to avoid a similar disaster should they have to play without him.

One option could be to bring Matheus Nunes back into the starting XI. The summer signing has been benched for the last two games, and could return having been made available after the club won their appeal against a three-match ban for the midfielder.

Joao Moutinho and Joao Gomes could come in alongside Nunes to fill the three-man midfield, and this could be a taste of what is to come next season. With one year left on his deal, Neves looks likely to depart the club as it stands, and Lopetegui could trial his internal solutions in his absence now before turning to the transfer market.

Cricket Kenya is set to announce the launch of a national elite league with matches starting this November.In the aftermath of Kenya’s performances at the ICC World Twenty20 there was widespread media criticism of the fact that there was no such competition, but it emerges that the board’s plans were already at an advanced stage.The proposals are for a four-side zonal league in which teams will play in three formats – three-day, one-day and Twenty20. The zonal sides will be geographically based, with it appearing likely that two will come from Nairobi, one from the Coast and one from the other regions.Players in the centrally-contracted national squad will be divided between the four sides to ensure there is balance between the teams and to ensure that the standard of all matches is as high as possible. In practice, that will probably mean that each team has seven local players supplemented with four members of the national side.”This will give ample opportunity for people to play for the zones who will be able to show us what they can do in each type of format,” Samir Inamdar, CK’s chairman, told Cricinfo. “The selectors will then be able to distinguish between players who are good at one format but not at another, rather than have the same squad throughout.”Inamdar admitted that getting sides out for three-day matches could pose the biggest problem. Most non-contracted players are unavailable in the week, and five players who were invited to join the national squad as they prepared for the ICC World Twenty20 all declined because of work commitments. To work round this Inamdar said that three-day matches might be played over long weekends or scheduled to coincide with public holidays.CK is seeking corporate sponsors for each region to help offset travel costs, and also an overall tournament sponsor. It is likely to receive a US$20,000 grant from the Africa Cricket Association to help cover costs.

England expects: the squad prepares to leave for Australia © Getty Images

At 9.30pm tonight, England’s cricketers depart from Heathrow Airport to embark on the biggest challenge of their sporting lives – the Ashes series in Australia. Already, their ignominious exit from the Champions Trophy has been consigned to the dustbin of history, as Andrew Flintoff and his squad prepare to focus on the five Test matches that could make or break their reputations.”It’s going to be incredible,” Flintoff told The Sun on the eve of his side’s departure. “Our win last summer was the first time I’d experienced The Ashes and it was an amazing, emotional roller-coaster. But this series it is likely to be even bigger and tougher because we’re in Australia. It’s a fantastic prospect for everyone on the trip.”Flintoff was England’s leviathan in last summer’s epic triumph, scoring 402 runs and taking 24 wickets to secure the narrowest of 2-1 victories. He is now the captain of the side as well, taking over where Michael Vaughan left off, and is relishing the challenge of leading the team out at Brisbane on the morning of November 23, a date that has been etched on his brain for months.”I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about what it will be like leading out England in those matches. There’ll be all the attention, all the spotlight, all the rivalry and all the history. Of course I’ve thought about it — and it gives me a tingle. I’m chomping at the bit to get started.”It has been a race against time to get Flintoff fit for this tour, after his 2006 season was disrupted by a long-standing ankle problem that required further surgery. But he had a decent work-out during England’s Champions Trophy campaign, spending some time out in the middle in the final match against West Indies and bowling five decent, if rusty, overs to boot.Even so, he will remember only too well his traumatic experience on the last Ashes tour in 2002-03, when he arrived unfit after undergoing a hernia operation, and was forced to fly home without playing a single Test. “It was a pretty miserable time for me,” he conceded. “But I’m fortunate to have another chance and I’m going to relish that rather than thinking what might have been.”I’m not one for making big statements or predictions but we’re going down there in a confident frame of mind. We’ll have to play well to succeed, probably even better than we did in 2005. But we have lads who can perform at the highest level. I believe we have a good chance.”England arrive in Sydney, via Hong Kong, on Sunday afternoon, where they will enter into a maelstrom of publicity as the Australian public gear themselves up for a massive contest. “I don’t know if the series can be as good as the one last year,” said Flintoff, “but one thing I know is, it will be very tough and competitive.”England open their tour with a one-day game against an Australian Prime Minister’s XI at Canberra on 10 November, followed by three-day games against New South Wales and South Australia.

England’s tour opener at Rawalpindi may be switched to Lahore © Getty Images

The opening match of England’s forthcoming tour to Pakistan could be switched from Rawalpindi to Lahore, following the devastating earthquake that struck in the north of the country on Saturday.In the aftermath of the disaster, which has so far claimed upwards of 30,000 lives, the neighbouring city of Islamabad has been made a centre for the relief efforts, and there is the possibility that hotel rooms allocated to the cricket teams and entourage may be needed to house the homeless or provide a base for aid workers.Richard Bevan, the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, was confident that the tour would go ahead as planned, but would wait for an update from security officials. “The situation … is very much monitored and managed by the security firm appointed by the ECB and the PCA,” Bevan told Sportinglife. “So in terms of what happened at the weekend, our security people have already written to us advising us that they are monitoring and liaising with the relevant authorities in Pakistan.”I would imagine [the earthquake] is probably not going to have an effect on the tour,” he added. “It may have some impact on the logistics, but again we won’t know what our advice is on that for a few days. It may be something that can assist in the feelgood factor and helping Pakistan get back to normality.”Bevan added that he had spoken to the players, all of whom were happy about the procedures being put in place, while according to the Pakistan Cricket Board, the Rawalpindi stadium had suffered no structural damage during the tremors.

Not a whole lot for the American fans to cheer© Getty Images

Injury-hit and inexperienced, the USA may not be thanking the International Cricket Council for the charming experience they have had at the Champions Trophy. New Zealand may have flattened them, but at least that occasion bore some passing resemblance to a cricket match.This, on the other hand, was something else entirely. Australia, ruthless as ever, stuck USA in on a damp pitch under cloudy skies with a stiff Southampton breeze blowing across the Rose Bowl. Rohan Alexander and Mark Johnson walked out to ironic cheers from a crowd of a couple of hundred. Then and there, they had no chance whatsoever.But there was one team at the ground that could have given the Aussies a decent run for their money. All you needed to do is nip up to the commentary box, and you could have put together a team on which you could wager the odd pound. An early bird into the commentary boxes was Nasser Hussain, and he’d get onto the list just for the manner in which he got up Australian noses for his entire career. Once Nasser had picked up his coffee and settled in to work, the others began to trickle in.Ian Chappell arrived soon after, and you can pencil him in to your teamsheet. For orthodoxy and some limpet-like batting in tough conditions, there was Sanjay Manjrekar. India had a second representative in Arun Lal, and his opening partner would have to be the irrepressible Michael Slater.For sheer elegance and batting excellence Greg Chappell joins his brother in the team. The media squad on the day was Australia-heavy, but then again who better to dish it out to the Aussies than a few of their own. Dean Jones, that old master of the shorter game, shoehorns into a packed top order. Sri Lanka’s Ranjit Fernando, safe yet unspectacular, has to keep wicket.The problem for this broadcasters’ XI is the bowling department. Whispering Death himself, Michael Holding, leads it magnificently, but there isn’t any back-up. This would force the team to dip into the press box and persuade Angus Fraser to start that seemingly endless uphill trudge one more time. While we’re sneaking bowlers into the side we’ll have to drag in Ravi Shastri for his left-arm spin, though he had just left the Rose Bowl to do another game elsewhere.Ian Chappell wins the captaincy, ahead of his brother, mostly on his ability to spin a yarn and slug a beer or five. And that is just what Richard Staple and his team needed soon after they were blown to smithereens by Australia. Brett Lee gave them a vigorous shake at the top of the innings and Michael Kasprowicz, whose international career was as good as over not a year ago, tucked in. Kasprowicz bagged 4 for 14 – including a scything period in the middle overs when he snagged four wickets in just 15 balls – and sent America crashing to 65 all out, a total that was padded generously by 14 extras. Steve Massiah made 23, including a pull and a pleasing on-drive, but none of his colleagues reached double figures.The Australian batting, aka Murder Part 2, was a joyous romp, and the game was done and dusted before it was time for lunch. Australia knocked off the runs in under eight overs, for the loss of one wicket. As one fan put it: “Twenty20 matches last longer than this.” And they’re easier on the eye, for no cricket fan likes to see a group of players outclassed in such embarrassing fashion.Broadcasters’ XI
1 Michael Slater, 2 Arun Lal, 3 Greg Chappell, 4 Ian Chappell (capt), 5 Dean Jones, 6 Sanjay Manjrekar, 7 Nasser Hussain, 8 Ravi Shastri, 9 Ranjit Fernando (wk), 10 Michael Holding, 11 Angus Fraser.

Fixed term contract Attractive package inc. car(31 December 2005)

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is the national governing body for cricket from playground to Test arena.As County Development Officer you will support the Hertfordshire Cricket Board in the achievement of its development plan, particularly where it relates to the promotion and development of cricket in schools and clubs for both children and young adults.For this role you must have experience of cricket development at grass roots level and have a sound knowledge, appreciation and understanding of cricket. A self-starter with energy and enthusiasm, you will need to have proven administration skills and be an excellent communicator. A valid, current driving licence is essential.For an information pack and application form please contact Natasha Mason, E-mail: [email protected] or telephone 020 74321 171. (All applicants must fill in an application form)Closing date for completed applications is Wednesday 3 September. Interviews will be held on Wednesday 10 September at ECB Offices, Lord’s Cricket Ground.

KARACHI, Sept 30: `Joyride’ fast bowler Mohammad Akram faces a threeyear suspension after he deserted the Pakistan team for the Asian TestChampionship match against Bangladesh played at Multan last month.According to sources in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) cricketoperations, the suspension was recommended by a four-memberdisciplinary committee which met Thursday. The committee is headed byKhalid Hassan with Sirajul Islam Bukhari, Maazullah Khan and AbdurRaqeeb as other members.Ironically, Akram’s case was referred to the disciplinary committee bythe PCB officials despite the fact that Pakistan team manager YawarSaeed had claimed that the paceman had left for England after securingpermission from the chairman of the board.Akram, who has played nine Tests in six years, was named in a 16-mansquad for the Multan match. But the Allied Bank bowler proceeded toEngland just two days before the team was to assemble at the venue.The director of the PCB, Brig Munawar Rana, as always refused toconfirm or deny the report. “I can’t confirm the story,” he toldreporters.Interestingly, Akram’s case was forwarded to the disciplinarycommittee though Shoaib Akhtar had been let off the hook despitecommitting the same offence in England in June.Shoaib had preferred England Club Lashings over Pakistan team whichhad led to a strong reaction from Yawar Saeed who was also the manageron the tour to England.Akram, who has yet to return to appear in the Patron’s Trophy for hisparent organization, is said to have joined British MetropolitanPolice. However, Allied Bank officials refused to confirm the report.

Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, praised the way Ben Stokes has reacted to the furore surrounding his obstructing the field dismissal at Lord’s on Saturday. While Stokes was clearly shocked by the decision, he did not attempt to linger at the crease once the decision was made and, when he spoke on Sunday night for the first time about it, was quick to say it was time to move on.Stokes’ emotions have previously got the better of him after a dismissal, most famously when he punched a locker in Barbados and broke his hand after falling for a duck in a T20 amid a low run of scores last year, after which he had anger management classes with England’s sports psychologist, Mark Bawden. There were signs of his more mature outlook earlier this year when he managed to smile his way through being saluted off the field by Marlon Samuels in Grenada.Speaking before the Ashes, Stokes admitted that there was a chance an incident could occur again although more likely when he was bowling – “I’m not sure cool and calculated is the right way to describe my batting, but my emotions certainly do come out when I’m bowling” – and in the recent Ashes he had been “filthy” after being run out while jumping to avoid a throw in the Lord’s Test.”I thought Stokesy handled it very well,” Bayliss said. “In the changing room after the game he was very philosophical about it – ‘that’s the game, I’ve got to get on with it.’ From what I have heard of Stokesy before, it could have been worse, but he is certainly making strides. He is growing up, not just as a cricketer but as a person.”Bayliss suggested that someone of Stokes’ match-winning capabilities was likely to find themselves in difficult situations.”With guys like that, there is special attention from the opposition to try to get those emotions out of them – and certainly that is something he is beginning to learn. I said to him as we were leaving, ‘Well done, I thought you handled that very well.'”Steven Smith, the Australia captain, has been criticised from various current and former players – including Brendon McCullum in his column, who said Smith’s decision not to withdraw the appeal showed “immaturity” – and while Bayliss did not mind seeing the opposition captain under pressure he expected Smith, who he coached at New South Wales, to be unfazed.”Whether it was the right decision or not to call him back or keep the appeal, he’s a big boy. He’ll be able to handle that. My advice to him would be to go with your gut instinct. Not everyone’s going to like what you do 100%, no matter what decision you make. You’re always going to have enemies and friends.”

Celtic moved three points clear at the top of the Premiership table on Sunday as they won 3-2 at home against Dundee FC.

The Hoops went 1-0 down early on in the match but came from behind to lead 2-1 at half-time thanks to a quickfire double from Giorgos Giakoumakis.

Dundee pulled the score back to 2-2 in the 60th minute and looked set to weather the Celtic storm heading towards the end of the match. That was until the Greek striker completed his hat-trick to seal the three points in the 86th minute.

The likes of Giakoumakis and Jota may get the praise of their flashy attacking play and an unsung hero from the match may come in the form of Anthony Ralston. He was sublime from start to finish and played a key role in the result, although he may not get the plaudits that the exciting forward players get for terrorising the Dundee defence.

Defensively, he was outstanding for Celtic. As per SofaScore, he won 80% (8/10) of his individual duels and made two tackles, truly living up the “warrior” tag given to him by Postecoglou. This shows that he was strong in physical battles and did not allow himself to be bullied by any Dundee players, which the manager will surely be delighted with as he will not want his players to be lightweights on the pitch.

Ralston, the £7.5k-per-week battler, also offered quality in possession of the ball. Via SofaScore, he had 116 touches of the ball and completed 106 passes, whilst completing 100% of his dribbles (1/1) and creating one chance – resulting in the winner for Giakoumakis in the 86th minute as his cross met the forward on the head from close range.

The opening he created for the Greek striker to win the game was registered as a ‘big chance’ and this shows that he delivered a superb cross at a crucial point in the game. He was, therefore, key to Celtic picking up all three points instead of dropping two and remaining just one point clear of their arch-rivals Rangers as he provided quality in defence and offence.

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Postecoglou will be buzzing with the player’s performance at both ends of the pitch and hoping that he can continue to deliver displays of a similar vein for the rest of the campaign. The Hoops are battling for multiple trophies and having a number of players producing week-in-week-out like Ralston, Jota and Giakoumakis will surely be a huge help to their chances.

AND in other news, Ange must brutally axe “really selfish” Celtic liability who left Lennon “appalled”…

‘Are you sure we’re at Edgbaston?’ © Getty Images

The most impressive part of England’s performance today was that they overcame a home disadvantage. Edgbaston, a ground renowned for its partisan English supporters, transformed itself into little India with large sections of blue dominating the stands. Conches, bugles, flags, banners … this was an away game for England in every sense.Ian Bell, a Warwickshire local, might have felt out of place. Here he was, striking the dangerous legspin of Piyush Chawla for a sensational straight hit – only to be greeted by lukewarm applause. Imagine his mortification when the Eric Hollies stand, a bastion of the Barmy Army, was resonating with . As if two Indian spinners causing problems wasn’t enough, England were made to feel as if they were in Mohali.Did it feel like a home away from home? “Possibly at times,” said Bell in what must go down as the under-statement of the series. “It was a great atmosphere to play cricket, in front of a packed house. Good Indian side and a full house it was really a nice feeling to get a Man of the Match at the home ground.” Bell is a soft-spoken chap but that must roughly translate to: ‘I was shocked’. But it felt great to knock the stuffing out of them. And his 79, two catches and a run-out was a big factor.England’s captain Paul Collingwood couldn’t have had it easy at the start. The medical staff had decided to “err on the side of caution” with respect to Andrew Flintoff and Dimitri Mascarenhas, the star of the show at Bristol, injured his thumb while warming up. Further, he lost the toss. But England have been inserted at Edgbaston before (remember the Ashes in 2005?) and responded in style. He ended the day comparing the performance to the one they had put in at the Rose Bowl, an effort which he termed “near perfect”.”The openers came in and gave us a good start and then the bowlers also delivered,” he said. “It did get difficult against spinners with the ball stopping a bit, but to get 280 [sic] was in itself incredible. We’ve scored almost 300 every time, which proves that we are improving.”

Ramesh Powar must have broken a new barrier today when one of his deliveries clocked 42mph. It’s a surprise that India got through their overs in quick time, what with Powar’s lobs taking an age to get to the other end

Chris Tremlett’s comeback illustrated England’s tenacious performance. After being pounded at Bristol (0 for 73) and carted around in his first spell here – leaking 20 in his first two overs – he returned to remove Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, the two most important wickets of the day.”You’ve seen today that he’s got the character to bounce back,” said Collingwood. “We have a lot of faith in him. He’s quite relaxed to be honest. He is quite laid-back and he showed it in the Test matches. He’s a huge guy bowling with a lot of aggression at times but got the important wickets.”Facing spin in the middle overs is a bugbear. Chawla arrived with his quiver of legbreaks, googlies and top-spinners and engineered the dismissal of the series, bamboozling Kevin Pietersen for the second match in a row. On a ground that has a stand named after Eric Hollies, and on a day when Donald Bradman was born, Chawla’s googlies did a lot of talking.Ramesh Powar must have broken a new barrier today when one of his deliveries clocked 42mph. It’s a surprise that India got through their overs in quick time, what with Powar’s lobs taking an age to get to the other end, but he troubled them with variation.So Bell is maturing with every match – Dravid spoke about how England’s decision to persevere with him at No. 3 was paying off – Chawla is growing in confidence and Collingwood is growing as a leader. Powar is no doubt growing. England are talking about injecting fearlessness into their bloodstream and India are talking of positives. Someone should tell them that using words like “inject” and “positives” in a span of a few minutes is not advisable.