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With Fabian Delph’s career slowly winding down, it’s easy to forget that the midfielder actually came through the academy system at Leeds United, and that it was at Elland Road where he really made his breakthrough into senior football.

All in all, he played 58 times for the Whites, before earning a high-profile £6m move to Villa in the summer of 2009.

His time at Villa Park saw him establish himself as a really Premier League quality midfielder, and it was no surprise that he eventually earned a call-up to the England squad, earning the first of his 20 senior caps back in September 2014 under Roy Hodgson.

But perhaps just like he might have seen Leeds, Delph used Villa as a stepping stone to bigger and betting things, with the club captain making a £8m move to Manchester City in the summer 0f 2015 – just a week after insisting he would stay put in the Midlands.

In his time at the Etihad, he won the Premier League twice in 2018 and 2019, and won four domestic cups too (one FA Cup and three League Cups).

It was no surprise to hear Pep Guardiola rave about him whilst the pair were both at the Etihad, hailing his role and influence behind-the-scenes.

The City boss said: “He gives us character. He is a real leader in the locker room, Fabian Delph. That’s why I always give credit to the players for what they do.”

He added: “Some guys, they only want to play in one position, ‘in the other one I am not comfortable’, so he’s a guy who always tries to help. Last season we didn’t play always with his voice in our locker room, so I am so satisfied, so happy for him. Especially for him.”

After slowly being phased out of the City first-team picture, Delph eventually made his way to Everton, where injuries have continued to blight him – he’s played just 36 times for the Toffees since arriving at Goodison Park.

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And, with his contract coming to an end in the summer, he looks set for an exit, and there may be doubts over whether another Premier League club chooses to pick him up on a free transfer.

But with a total of seven trophies to his name – all achieved at City – it’s fair to say Delph has enjoyed a fine career since leaving Elland Road.

AND in other news – Leeds must finally offload £15k-p/w outcast who last played at Elland Road in 2018

ScorecardA splendid spell of bowling by Avinash Yadav and an unbeaten 66 from Raviraj Patil helped the Champs to their first win after three matches of the current Indian Cricket League tournament.The Rockets’ openers, whose powerful stand knocked the wind out of Chandigarh Lions in the first game of the tournament, gave their team a steady start after Damien Martyn decided to bat against the Champs. Sachin Dholpure was trapped by Michael Kasprowicz for 29 after he and Wavell Hinds had put on 61 off 9.1 overs, and although they were slightly off the pace, the platform given was ideal for a run-fest in the remaining overs.However, Avinash Yadav wrecked any such hopes with his 4-0-14-4. He first removed Hinds in the 12th over. Saman Jayantha effected a run-out of Sridharan Sriram in the 14th; in the same over he caught Martyn off Yadav’s bowling. The left-arm spinner went on to make it four for the match by dismissing Reetinder Sodhi and Rakesh Patel in the 18th.The Rockets struggled to 131 for 9, and though it was an improvement on their 107 for 6 against the Delhi Giants, the score was not likely to be enough.Subhojit Paul fell early during the Champs’ chase, and Jayantha wasn’t too impressive in his 22-ball 13, but Raviraj Patil went at a brisk pace to keep the Champs on course.His 66 off 46 balls contained six fours and three sixes. Patil’s fiery 52 against the Kolkata Tigers in their previous match had all but sealed victory, but this time he stayed till the end as the Champs reached their target with two balls to spare.

Inzamam-ul-Haq: ‘Is this what I deserved?’ © AFP

In his first press conference since arriving back in Pakistan, Inzamam-ul-Haq has reacted angrily to the way his team has been treated by the media. He again apologised for their early exit from the World Cup but said the constant criticism the players received made life very difficult.”If the media and people keep on criticising the team, I am sure we can’t win any big tournaments,” Inzamam said. “Fear of losing always follow our players and it puts them under lot of pressure.”Pakistan crashed out of the World Cup after defeats to West Indies and the shock three-wicket loss against Ireland in Jamaica. It had been widely expected that Inzamam would stand down from the one-day team following the tournament but the manner of abuse he has suffered has left him feeling shocked.The press conference at the Gaddafi Stadium was a heated, fractious affair as Inzamam defended his years of service to Pakistan cricket. “Wasn’t I a citizen of Pakistan? Didn’t I serve this country for 17 years? Is this what I deserved?” he said, visibly upset at some of the questions.He also hit back at the match-fixing claims which have circulated following the defeats and subsequent murder of Bob Woolmer. Inzamam said it was “unfair” to talk about match-fixing after the defeat to Ireland and added: “The team over the past three-and-a-half years had been playing and winning matches. There were no such comments. Now they are spreading such rumours.”He went on to question the quality of the Sabina Park pitch for the Irish game. “The wicket was very difficult for batting. It was a green-top pitch. I had never seen such a wicket in the World Cup. The match became dependent on the toss. Unfortunately we lost the toss and Ireland used it to their full benefit.”However, despite all the recent traumas Inzamam reiterated his desire to extend playing Tests even though Pakistan’s next commitments are six months away. “If the selectors give me a chance, I am willing to play Test matches because I think age is no barrier in Pakistan cricket,” he said. “All I wish is that my Test career ends on a happier note than my one-day career.”

India A 269 for 6 (Rohit Sharma 62, Uthappa 52, Dhawan 52) beat Pakistan A 235 (Bazid Khan 87, Umar 51) by 34 runs
Scorecard

Robin Uthappa prepares to drive on his way to 52 © AFP

India A outplayed Pakistan A in all departments of the game to secure a convincing 34-run win in the EurAsia Series in Abu Dhabi.After producing a powerful batting performance to post a challenging 269 for 6, the Indians dismissed Pakistan for 235 in the day-night encounter at the Sheikh Zayed stadium. The win meant India topped Group A after the first phase of the league stage with two wins from as many matches. They will now play the second and third placed teams of Group B – hosts UAE and Ireland – in the second phase.Bazid Khan stood tall among the ruins with 87 for Pakistan, who had the consolation of gaining a bonus point from the match.Earlier, India A’s top order batsmen fired in unison to to prop up the Indian total.After Robin Uthappa and Shikhar Dhawan put up a century opening stand, captain Venugopala Rao (45) and Rohit Sharma (62) consolidated with another strong partnership. Uthappa and Dhawan each made 52, but the latter at a quicker rate.Their left-right combination kept the Pakistani attack at bay while stitching 100 runs for the first wicket from inside 17 overs. The stand was broken when Dhawan tried to step out to offspinner Mohammad Hafeez (2 for 46) and was beaten by a wide delivery to be stumped in the 17th over.Uthappa went back five overs later, the umpire belatedly upholding a leg before appeal by leg spinner Mansoor Amjad (2 for 49).Rao and Sharma added 86 runs for the third wicket with the captain making a composed 45 off 74 balls.

Brad Hodge: possible move to New South Wales © Getty Images

Brad Hodge has been the target of a bold approach by New South Wales, the Pura Cup champions, in an attempt to get the Victoria batsman to move to Sydney. Hodge, who is due to arrive in England for his county stint with Lancashire early next week, had a meeting with a NSW delegation in Melbourne.Brad Haddin, the NSW captain, David Gilbert, the chief executive and Matthew Mott, the assistant coach, met with Hodge at the end of the last week to discuss options. It is understood that extra leadership responsibilities would be part of the package, after Hodge was overlooked for the Victoria captaincy in favour of Cameron White.Although Hodge has yet to make a decision he told that he has to consider his options. “As a professional sportsman, I have to look at all my options, take in those options, then work out where is the best place for me to get a game in the Test or one-day side. There are also considerations for life further on in my career.”Hodge has won a place in the Ashes squad after another prolific domestic season in the Pura Cup, scoring 891 runs at 63. He was also part of the Australian squads that toured India and New Zealand.He has become the latest Victoria batsman to look at a move to a rival state in recent weeks. Matthew Elliott is currently appealing against Victoria’s attempts to try and block his proposed move to South Australia, while there are also question marks over the future of Jon Moss, Matthew Inness and Ian Harvey in Melbourne.

New Zealand’s selectors have named a full-strength WhiteFerns side to play the first three matches in the six-matchRosebowl Series against Australia in February. Emily Drumm, a batsman, and Rebecca Rolls, a wicketkeeper-batsman,return to the side after being unavailable for the tour toIndia late last year. Their return has intensified thepressure on all positions in the team.The only new cap is the 21-year-old all-rounder, Beth McNeill,who has performed consistently for the State CanterburyMagicians in this season’s State League competition, taking16 wickets to date.Her fellow State Canterbury Magician, Maria Fahey, will open thebatting with Rolls. She had an outstanding tour of India,averaging 52.25 in the one-day internationals. Faheyclaims the opening slot ahead of former White Fern, Kate Pulford.Also returning to the side is pace bowler, Sarah Burke (StateCanterbury Magicians), who previously played one match forthe White Ferns – as a replacement player in last season’sWorld Series quadrangular tournament. Burke has so farclaimed 15 State League wickets.Drumm and Rolls return to the side bolstered by impressivebatting performances for the State Auckland Hearts in theState League. Rolls was top scorer in the League round-robin,with 439 runs, and Drumm was third, with 299 runs.Other players missing from the White Ferns team to India areAnna Corbin, Natalie Scripps, Katey Martin and SaraMcGlashan. All four, plus Pulford, have been named in the NewZealand A side.Another Indian tourist, Michelle Lynch, was unavailable foreither side.Mike Shrimpton, the coach and convenor of selectors, said that thepressure on all players to hold their positions was anencouraging sign for the women’s game. “With top-line playersall working to consolidate their places, and those in the Aside all pushing hard to make the step up, the intensity hasgone up a notch. It should make for an exciting season ofwomen’s cricket.”This season’s Rosebowl Series comprises three home games and three games in Australia. All three matches in the New Zealand leg of the series will be played at North Island venues.The selectors will re-name the side following the home leg ofthe Rosebowl and the completion of the New Zealand A series, a seven-match series for which the selectors named 13 players. In addition to the former White Ferns, the A side featuresthree New Zealand Cricket Academy graduates from 2003 – KateyMartin, Ros Kember and Sarah Tsukigawa.The side has a mix of youth and experience, with three formerinternationals – Helen Daly (State Canterbury Magicians),Paula Flannery (State Otago Sparks) and Helen Watson (StateAuckland Hearts) – all pushing to make a comeback at the toplevel. Watson will be remembered for her matchwinningfielding during the 2000 women’s world cup tournament, won byNew Zealand.Squads
White Ferns Maia Lewis (capt), Haidee Tiffen, Nicola Browne, Sarah Burke, Emily Drumm, Maria Fahey, Amanda Green, Beth McNeill, Aimee Mason, Louise Milliken, Rebecca Rolls (wk), Rebecca Steele.New Zealand A Anna Corbin (capt), Paula Flannery, Amanda Cooper, Helen Daly, Sarah Hill, Ros Kember, Amber Little, Sara McGlashan, Katey Martin, Kate Pulford, Natalee Scripps, Sarah Tsukigawa, Helen Watson.

MELBOURNE, Dec 27 AAP – A packed MCG erupted into a chorus of boos after grim-faced England captain Nasser Hussain refused to walk when Australia claimed a catch late on day two of the Boxing Day Test.In reply to Australia’s 6(dec)-551, England was 3-97 at stumps, staring at defeat with Hussain on 17 and tentative nightwatchman Richard Dawson yet to score.Australia’s mammoth total was founded on 250 from Justin Langer, 102 from Matthew Hayden, 77 from captain Steve Waugh and an unbeaten 62 from polished debutant Martin Love.Hussain, who 24 hours earlier appealed for the dismissal of Australia skipper Steve Waugh despite doubts from the fieldsman Mark Butcher, clipped a full toss from leg spinner Stuart MacGill to Jason Gillespie at mid-on.It was 2-94.Gillespie dived to his left and juggled the ball which popped up, hit his chest and fell back into his hands. Gillespie jumped to his feet and threw the ball high, claiming the catch.He had unanimous support from team-mates.Hussain stayed put, however, unsure whether the ball had kissed the grass after Gillespie’s initial juggle. Zimbabwean umpire Russell Tiffin sent the matter to video umpire Darrell Hair who, after numerous replays, gave Hussain the benefit of the doubt.Hussain was booed and jeered by a huge proportion of the boisterous crowd of 50,451.Gillespie entered the attack immediately and, in his second over, he trapped Butcher lbw for 25. Gillespie was lucky on this occasion, with the ball appearing to come off Butcher’s inside edge.Meanwhile, Brett Lee equalled his record for the fastest delivery recorded in Australia when he sent down a 156.2km/h scorcher during a lively burst.Lee, whose 156.2km/h delivery in a limited overs game against Sri Lanka in Perth last weekend set a new Australian benchmark, reached the same speed in his second over today.Even hovering around the high 140 mark, Lee had Butcher hopping around like a cat on a hot tin roof, provoking a genuine buzz among the masses.When he started consistently hitting 150km/h, Lee made a deserved breakthrough when a cracking ball brushed Marcus Trescothick’s gloves and flew to wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, sending the England opener on his way for 37.With his tail up, Lee thought he had Hussain out twice from catches behind. Both balls were a tick under 154km/h, both times Lee celebrated like Hussain was gone, but both times Tiffin turned him down.Hussain, who revels in facing Lee even if he’s not entirely comfortable, took up the challenge and drove and pulled the 26-year-old for two boundaries.MacGill, described by Waugh as the second best spinner in the world behind the injured Shane Warne, was introduced to the attack at 1-27. Trescothick belted him ten rows back into the Great Southern Stand.MacGill’s first four overs cost 28 runs, but he recovered to finish with 0-36 from 11 overs. McGrath took 1-18 from seven, Gillespie 1-8 from eight and Lee 1-31 from eight.

Sussex’s Cricinfo Championship match with Worcestershire is perfectly poised after a day of fluctuating fortunes at Horsham.The home side were bowled out for 372 in their second innings, which left the visitors to score 327 in four and a half sessions.By the close they had reached 173-3 from 59 overs and their hopes largely rest with Vikram Solanki and David Leatherdale who have so far put on 71 for the fourth wicket.Sussex seemed to have taken control when off-spinner Mark Davis had Anurag Singh caught at silly point and Graeme Hick superbly taken by wicket-keeper Matt Prior as he swept with the spin.Those wickets, in successive overs, reduced Worcestershire to 103-3 but Solanki and Leatherdale batted with increasing assurance in the final session to raise their side’s hopes of victory.Earlier Davis had made 43 not out, his highest score for the county, as Sussex’s lower order batsmen chiselled out valuable runs.Umer Rashid scored 38 as the last four wickets put on 77, Alamgir Sheriyar finishing with 4-83 to give him a match haul of 8-136.Worcestershire got their victory chase off to a good start with Singh and Phil Weston putting on 66 before Mark Robinson trapped Weston leg before for 21.

Tottenham correspondent Alasdair Gold has made a claim regarding young forward Dane Scarlett.

The Lowdown: Conte a fan

Scarlett has progressed through the youth system in north London, scoring 27 goals for the U18s and U23s and has now established himself in the senior squad.

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He made his Premier League debut from the bench in last month’s 4-0 win over Leeds United and has missed just two Premier League matchday squads since New Year’s Day.

Conte was full of praise for the youngster following the win over West Ham prior to the international break, believing Scarlett has a ‘brilliant future’ in the game.

The Latest: Gold’s comments

Gold ran a Q&A on football.london on Thursday lunchtime and was asked by one Spurs supporter about the possibility of Scarlett getting a real shot under Conte next season.

He expects Scarlett to remain in north London next season and added that a full pre-season under the Italian would ‘be a big deal’.

“I think they’ll make a decision over Dane Scarlett’s next steps in the summer but, at this point, I’d expect them to keep him at the club next season to continue to learn and get more chances to play. That Conte spoke about him, unprompted, on Sunday was a great sign and suggests he’s making big strides behind the scenes.

“A pre-season with Conte would be a big deal for the teenager and could really help him continue to develop. Spurs will likely bring in another striker during the transfer window and that would see the three strikers used for all the competitions and perhaps the club look at a loan for Dane in January if post-Christmas he’s going to get less game time.

“Who knows, he might just have made a big splash by that point if he continues to move towards that “brilliant future” Conte says he has ahead.”

The Verdict: Good news

Scarlett has made the most of Spurs failing to sign an out and out centre-forward to rival Harry Kane, catching Conte’s eye in recent months.

As Gold mentions, a loan at the beginning of 2023 could be a smart idea for the 18-year-old, providing the club add to their attacking ranks in the summer.

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It appears as if Tottenham have high hopes for the teenager, so you’d expect a new contract could be in the pipeline as well, with his current deal set to expire in just over 12 months’ time.

In other news: Sky Sports man now reveals big Tottenham injury update before Newcastle. 

	Turuwar Kohli’s promotion up the order has worked wonders, and with 207 runs at 69 from four matches, he is now the top scorer in the World Cup © Getty Images

At the start of the Under-19 World Cup, not many people would have put money on New Zealand being among the final four contenders for the trophy. But they’ve made it and their penultimate challenge could prove to be their most gruelling as they aim for a spot in the finals.The challenges facing New Zealand ahead of their showdown against India are several because, apart from the clinical discipline with which India have brushed away their previous opponents, there are circumstantial factors that could pose a few hurdles: it will be the first time New Zealand are playing at the Kinrara Oval, giving them no time to get used to ground conditions in a match situation, and apart from Tim Southee, none of their boys have played under lights before at any level of cricket.India, on the other hand, have a ‘home advantage’, having played all of their matches at the Kinrara Oval. Undoubtedly their cricket skills have been vastly superior to those of their opponents in the tournament so far but they’ve also had several opportunities to master the conditions while their opponents – England in the quarter-final for instance – had none. Most of their players have also played under lights: Tanmay Srivastava, the No 3 batsman, says he’s played day-night matches during the Challenger Series, domestic Twenty20 games, Ranji Trophy one-dayers and on an Under-19 tour to England in 2006.New Zealand’s group, which included Pakistan, Zimbabwe and Malaysia, was based in Johor where the pitches, according to New Zealand coach Dipak Patel, “started off damp and assisted the seam bowlers. A lot of teams were three-four wickets down in the first ten overs. The winning of the toss was also very critical too. We were fortunate that we won two out of three tosses, which made a difference in terms of results.” He conceded that India had a head start because of their familiarity with the Kinrara Oval.”I suppose India have a huge advantage over most teams,” Patel said. “I’m not sure not how it [the schedule] was worked out but it’s almost like a home advantage. I wasn’t aware of it until a couple of days ago but we’re going into the game with an open mind.”New Zealand’s performance in this World Cup has been a tremendous improvement from 2006 when they were eliminated in the first round. The results, Patel said, were not accidental but an outcome of careful preparation. “The planning compared to the previous World Cup has been ten times better,” said Patel.”In 2006, we only had three days to prepare the guys. This time we started preparations eight months ago. Bearing in mind the tournament, we brought India out to New Zealand for three [youth] Tests and three one-dayers. We made a conscious effort and selected seven boys who were going to be eligible for this World Cup and, out of the seven, six – George Worker, Kane Williamson, Corey Anderson, Greg Morgan, Tim Southee and Trent Boult – have been selected.”New Zealand lost that one-day series 1-2 and drew the Tests but Patel said that series and the warm-up game before the World Cup had given New Zealand an insight into India’s playing style.That playing style – to sum it up succinctly – has been unbelievably consistent and the India coach Dav Whatmore acknowledged as much. “There are some sides that play unbelievable cricket one game and don’t play as well the next game,” he said. “India do their jobs consistently better than most teams and that’s why they’ve got a good result.”Their bowlers haven’t given the batsmen a tough target to chase yet, dismissing South Africa and England for below 200 and the batting, which has been the weakness of most sides including the other three semi-finalists, has been methodical and patient. A couple of punts – promoting Turuwar Kohli to open and giving Ajitesh Argal the new ball have worked superbly as well.A conversation with Srivastava, perhaps India’s best batsman, illustrated how organised India’s batsmen were. “Before the game we take a stock of the opposition’s bowling attacks,” he said. “At the under-19 level every team has about two good bowlers. So the plan is to bat cautiously against them and think of accelerating when the first change bowlers come. You get about one bad ball an over; I try to score off that ball and attempt to take a single the next ball to rotate strike”It sounds so simple when it’s on paper but India’s near-perfect execution of the basics is the reason why they have emerged as the toughest team in the tournament. New Zealand start the game as underdogs and will have to display remarkable adaptability to end India’s campaign tomorrow.