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Turning their attention towards the future, Newcastle United are reportedly plotting a move to win the race to sign an in-demand attacking midfielder after sending scouts to watch their target in action.

Newcastle transfer news

The Magpies, of course, have plenty of making up to do after a difficult summer transfer window led to a lack of reinforcements for Eddie Howe’s side. Paul Mitchell, in particular, must ensure that Newcastle welcome their targets in 2025 in what will be his second transfer window as the sporting director at St James’ Park.

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Mitchell recently spoke about his first transfer window at the club, saying via Chronicle Live: “I can’t speak to the past because I wasn’t here. I can only speak for this window. Like I said, we have spoken every single evening if we haven’t face to face during the day.

“I think there has been a lot of communication. My idea, rightly or wrongly, was to over communicate. My wife doesn’t get that! I felt that was necessary at this stage of the relationship. He was kept very updated on the transfer window.”

Taking harsh lessons from the summer, the Magpies have now seemingly turned their focus towards the future. According to Caught Offside, Mitchell is now plotting to win the race to sign Andrija Maksimovic after sending Newcastle scouts to watch the Red Star Belgrade teenager in a 4-0 defeat against Inter Milan in the Champions League.

The sporting director faces plenty of competition for the 17-year-old’s signature, however, with both Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion also reportedly interested in signing Maksimovic in 2025.

The young attacking midfielder looks set to have quite the decision to make when the time comes to choose his next destination. Those at St James’ Park will simply be hoping not to miss out on yet another target.

"Confident" Maksimovic is one for the future

Of course, whilst Newcastle’s first aim is to get back into the Champions League or at least some form of European football this season, they’ll also have a long-term aim in mind that includes players of Maksimovic’s potential. Already making an impact at Red Star despite being just 17 years old, Maksimovic has four goals and three assists to his name in a campaign which may only get even better.

Unsurprisingly, the teenager has earned plenty of praise from those in his home country, with Serbian Football Scout dubbing Maksimovic “confident” in a detailed profile of his ability and potential.

It would be the small statement that Mitchell needs to get back on track at Newcastle if he managed to beat a plethora of European clubs all chasing the signature of a future star. Maksimovic, meanwhile, has the chance to simply take his pick, it seems.

Marcus Rashford is reportedly in line for a shock reunion with ex-Manchester United team-mate Mason Greenwood, as Marseille ask transfer questions.

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Rashford out of favour under AmorimSeeing January move speculated onCould join familiar face at Ligue 1 giantsFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?

England international Rashford has fallen out of favour at Old Trafford under Portuguese coach Ruben Amorim. He is tied to a lucrative long-term contract, but United are open to offers for the 27-year-old forward as they look to raise funds and free up space in their squad for new additions.

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Rashford has been linked with Paris Saint-Germain on a regular basis, but he could end up in a different Ligue 1 destination. reports that Marseille have expressed interest in reaching another agreement with Premier League giants United.

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They have found considerable value in the £27 million ($33m) deal that saw Greenwood swap Manchester for Marseille in 2024. Rashford may be offered the opportunity to tread a similar path as he looks to get his stagnating career back on track.

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WHAT NEXT?

Marseille are also said to be monitoring Bayern Munich forward Mathys Tel, who is registering on Chelsea’s January transfer radar, with the 19-year-old expected to leave the Allianz Arena in search of the regular game time that he is being denied while sitting behind Harry Kane in Germany.

Guptill was slated to return to international action on that tour after he was rested for the Bangladesh tour

Deivarayan Muthu08-Oct-2021Martin Guptill has expressed his disappointment at New Zealand abruptly calling off their Pakistan tour last month. Guptill was slated to return to international action on that tour as he was among a host of first-choice players who were rested for the Bangladesh tour that preceded the Pakistan trip.Related

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“I guess it was disappointing for everyone involved,” Guptill said during a virtual media interaction. “We were all looking forward to playing some cricket and getting a bit of game-time before the World Cup and that wasn’t to be. I know Pakistan are really looking forward to having some cricket back in their home country. We’re all hoping that there’s going to be cricket there again soon.”New Zealand abandoned the tour minutes before the first ODI was scheduled to start in Rawalpindi, acting on a security threat from their government. After the tour was called off amid chaos, Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan’s federal minister for information and broadcasting, revealed that a threatening email about Guptill’s life had been sent to his wife, broadcaster Laura McGoldrick, before the start of the tour. The pre-tour threat to Laura was separate from the security threat that ultimately prompted New Zealand to cancel the tour.”It never is [good when the family receives threats],” Guptill said. “We sent it to the right people to sort of deal with it. Obviously, nothing came of it. It is what it is, and we just had to go through the right channels to get it dealt with properly. Laura [McGoldrick] never actually told me what the email said, so I had no idea what was going on. As I said, we sent it to the proper authorities to get it sorted.”Speaking to Mike Hesson and Ian Smith on Sky Sport NZ after the tour was abandoned, Laura had pointed out that the uncertainty in Pakistan left the players’ families worried back home in New Zealand.”He [Guptill] was really excited to be in Pakistan,” Laura said. “He felt very safe and they took good care of them, but New Zealand Cricket did the only thing that they could do – that is to get them out of there and it was a very scary time for the families back here as we were waiting and wondering what was going on. It was really sad – sad for all cricket fans, particularly those in Pakistan, and I can’t imagine how long it’s going to take to get back to a point where international teams now tour there.”New Zealand will open their T20 World Cup campaign against Pakistan in Sharjah on October 26. Guptill was wary of Pakistan’s strength in the slow, low UAE conditions but backed his team to come good.”I think [it’s] like any game against Pakistan, they’re a tough opponent and in these conditions, it’s going to be pretty tough again,” he said. “We’re going to have to be on our A-game and bring it to them and not take a backward step, just like every other game that we play. It’s going to be a tough game, I’m not going to lie, but we’re going to prepare well and look forward to that game.”Guptill’s most recent assignment was the second chunk of the PSL, where he turned out for Karachi Kings. Slotting in at No. 3 behind Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan, Guptill managed only 69 runs in six innings at an average of 11.50 and strike rate of 104.54. While his PSL form was patchy overall, he did get some game-time, facing up to the likes of Shaheen Afridi and Rashid Khan in Abu Dhabi. The UAE pitches are now tiring further at the IPL, and Guptill isn’t sure how they will behave at the forthcoming T20 World Cup.”So, the wickets were pretty good then [at PSL] and I’ve seen some of the scores in the IPL now; the wickets are looking pretty tired, and it could be a low-scoring [tournament]. Again, we won’t know until we assess the conditions and what’s happening with it.”Guptill doesn’t have recent form under his belt and had also suffered a hamstring injury last home summer, but is ready for his 12th ICC senior event.”It has been a bit of a ride, isn’t it? Twelve years with the team and this is my 12th ICC tournament,” Guptill said. “It’s pretty exciting – the opportunity to represent your country is a massive thing and you know, I just want to do the best that I can.”

The 33-year-old defender and the legendary attacker ply their trade for Orlando’s MLS and NWSL sides respectively

Marta and Robin Jansson spotted hanging out during preseason trainingOrlando Pride and Orlando City are under the same ownership groupOrlando City face Philadelphia Union in first game of MLS seasonGet the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowWHAT HAPPENED

With preseason in full swing, players are preparing for the season ahead, with many enduring gruelling training sessions and a fully packed preseason schedule. That includes Orlando City SC and Orlando Pride, with both sides currently hard at work. However, that doesn’t mean that players don’t get time away from the pitch, with many spotted enjoying some down time in the midst of training.

That includes both Pride superstar Marta and City defender Robin Jansson, as the duo were spotted hanging out in the midst of a training session this past week. The social media post across X and Instagram saw the two clubs come together, as the NWSL champions crossed over with the 2024 MLS Cup Eastern Conference finalists.

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Both Marta and Jansson are considered to be fan favorite stars at Orlando Pride and Orlando City.

The Swedish defender signed for the MLS club in 2019 and has since made over 150 appearances for them in the process, even named the club captain following the departure of Mauricio Pereyra in 2024. Marta, on the other hand, signed for the Pride in 2017 and has spent the last seven years at the club, and was named captain ahead of the 2022 season. She led them to an NWSL title in 2024.

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Getty Images SportWHAT LIES AHEAD FOR ORLANDO CITY?

Orlando City are currently enjoying their preseason after a hard fought 1-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls in the MLS Eastern Conference finals. However, they’ve bounced back well since then, with a win over Atletico Mineiro on penalties and a draw against Forge in late January. The club face CF Montreal next, with games against Rhode Island FC and Inter Miami before their MLS opener against Philadelphia Union on Feb. 22.

Everton are reportedly interested in bringing a “very fast” young defensive talent to Merseyside, but his club are demanding a huge increase on what they paid for him.

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Blues supporters will not only be boosted by Sean Dyche’s side’s improved run of form in the Premier League either side of the international break, but also some of the transfer rumours coming the club’s way. For example, Everton are thought to be keen on signing Besiktas attacking ace Semih Kilicsoy, with a £16.5m offer for him even being prepared. Still only 19, he already has two assists in three Turkish Super Lig starts this season, and is a young player with a high ceiling.

Meanwhile, AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze has also emerged as a reported target for the Merseysiders, as they look to strike a deal during the January transfer window. Dyche clearly wants more attacking threat added to his squad and the 25-year-old could provide just that, having scored five goals in 38 caps for Nigeria.

In terms of a potential big off-field development at Everton, Lina Souloukou has been linked with becoming the club’s new CEO, despite being sacked by The Friedkin Group from her same role at Roma last month. That was more to do with fan unrest, however, due to the firing of manager Daniele De Rossi.

Everton keen on signing defensive "monster"

According to a new claim from Jeunes Footeux [via Sport Witness], Everton are lining up a move for exciting Lens centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov, who is considered a “monster” by his teammates.

The Ligue 1 side only signed him for €100,000 (£83,000) but are demanding as much as €30m (£25m) for his services, meaning they would be earning 300 times the amount they paid for him, an astonishing 30,000% markup. Newcastle are also seen as suitors for the 20-year-old, who is described in Sport Witness‘ update as “one of the greatest talents in European football this season”.

Khusanov looks like a player with an immense amount of potential, so the idea of Everton snapping him up and making him Jarrad Branthwate’s long-term centre-back partner is a mouthwatering prospect. These are the calibre of young players that the Merseysiders should always be looking to sign, with Lens head coach Will Still heaping praise on him, saying: “Kodir is very, very fast. He’s an athlete. We joked that when he went to the Olympics, he could have done all sports with Uzbekistan he’s so complete!”

At just 20, Khusanov is a fixture for both club and country, making eight appearances in Ligue 1 so far this season and enjoying an 89.1% pass completion rate, and not only has he won 16 caps for Uzbekistan, but he also represented them three times at the 2024 Olympics.

Everton have found a star who's even better than Gordon was at Goodison

Everton have a player in their squad who might be even better than Anthony Gordon was for the club…

1 ByRoss Kilvington Oct 22, 2024

Granted, Newcastle will provide stern competition for Everton, and other clubs could also come in for him, but Friedkin should do all they can to bring him to Goodison.

The allrounder bagged 6 for 38 as Victoria were bowled out for 199

Andrew McGlashan27-Oct-2021Sean Abbott pressed his case for a place in Australia’s Ashes squad with a six-wicket haul and 19-year-old legspinner Tanveer Sangha enjoyed an impressive debut as New South Wales took control on the opening day against Victoria.It has been a long wait for both these teams to get their season underway after numerous attempts were thwarted by border closures. Abbott wasted no time in making an impression with four wickets in the first session before Sangha, who has been part of Australia’s T20I squad this year, shone in the middle of the day.Abbott was part of the Australia bubble last season and is likely to be included in the enlarged squad this season especially after the retirement of James Pattinson. However, he told the that he would leave the squad to be at the birth of his first child due at Christmas.”It’s an Ashes summer and I was in the Test tour to South Africa that didn’t happen and the one here against India as well so I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking about it,” Abbott said after play. “I’ll be honest I was very nervous today, didn’t quite know where the first ball was going to go, but a few of us mentioned that we were quite nervous this morning having to wait so long to play some cricket.”Nic Maddinson was the mainstay for Victoria before he was last-man out for 87 after managing to add 53 for the last two wickets.Related

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Abbott, who has been working to put on some pace pre-season, had got the better of the mini Test battle with Marcus Harris when the left hander was caught behind in the sixth over. Close to lunch he then cleaned up Peter Handscomb and made it clearly New South Wales’ session when James Seymour, who had fought hard for two hours, was trapped in front.Abbott’s fourth came shortly after the break when Matt Short edged to slip before the innings was rebuilt by a 62-run stand between Maddinson and Jonathan Merlo.Then Sangha was introduced on a pitch offering turn and bounce and only had to wait until his third over to strike as he lured Merlo out of his crease, found the edge as the batter tried to adjust with Peter Nevill taking a sharp catch.Sangha’s second was another excellent delivery as he found Sam Harper’s edge with a leg-break and shortly before tea he had Mitch Perry caught at bat-pad with Victoria losing 4 for 20.Senior spinner Nathan Lyon claimed one wicket in his 22 overs and was briefly taken to by Maddinson who sent him for two sixes. Maddinson also latched on to Sangha as he cut loose with the last two wickets for company but the return of Abbott wrapped up the innings.Victoria were able to make inroads in the final 18 overs when Scott Boland removed Daniel Hughes, who played across a delivery from round the wicket, and Matthew Gilkes gave it away in the last over of the day with a wild drive against Short’s offspin.

Liverpool made it three wins from three in the Champions League last night, beating Bundesliga side RB Leipzig 1-0 in Germany.

The result sees Arne Slot’s side go joint top of the league phase with fellow Premier League side Aston Villa, with returning striker Darwin Núñez’s first-half strike enough to secure all three points.

It was a hard-fought victory for the Reds, often having to spend large periods of the game on the back foot and soak up the pressure applied by Marco Rose’s men.

Caoimhin Kelleher starred throughout, making six saves and undoubtedly helping Slot’s men return to Merseyside with all three points in the bag.

However, despite the goalkeeper’s stellar display, numerous first-team members looked off the pace throughout, often being caught out or looking careless in possession.

Trent Alexander-Arnold’s stats against Leipzig

The appointment of Slot during the summer has allowed right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold to work on the defensive side of his game – an area which has often been criticised in recent months.

Before last night, he had managed to win 71% of his attempted tackles this season, only being dribbled past eight times in all competitions – showing a huge improvement in such a short space of time.

His performance in the Champions League was average at best, only managing a total of 59 touches during his 75 minutes on the pitch during the victory.

The 26-year-old was wasteful in possession, completing just 74% of his attempted passes, losing possession a whopping 15 times as he was unable to leave a positive impression on the European outing.

The academy graduate also failed to complete any crosses, with his trademark delivery failing to reach any of his intended targets – with the forward trio missing his services in recent matches.

However, despite his below-par outing in Germany, there was another first-team member who was just as poor throughout, with the Reds boss potentially having a big decision to make ahead of Sunday’s huge match with Arsenal.

The Liverpool star who was just as bad as Trent vs Leipzig

Midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai has been a phenomenal addition since his big-money move from RB Leipzig last summer.

However, in the first few months of the Slot era at Anfield, the Hungarian talent is yet to find his golden touch, often being a tad off the pace and missing that final pass which he so often nailed under Jürgen Klopp during his final season in 2023/24.

The 23-year-old star has only registered one goal in all competitions this campaign, coming against AC Milan in the first Champions League game week, but he’s since been unable to match such feats – as demonstrated last night.

Szoboszlai only won three of his nine duels, often coming out second best against his former employers, managing just one interception as he struggled in breaking up Leipzig’s large spells of possession.

The midfielder also lost possession 13 times during the victory and mirrored Alexander-Arnold in producing a sluggish display, misplacing numerous attempts to find a teammate, leading to the host’s large spells of possession.

Minutes played

90

Touches

72

Passes completed

51/60 (85%)

Dribbles completed

1/3

Possession lost

13x

Duels won

3/9

Fouls committed

1

As a result of his display, Szoboszlai was handed a 6/10 match rating by The Express’ Archie Griggs – an indication as to how he struggled to make his own mark on the win.

Slot now has a huge call to make over starting the 23-year-old when they travel to face Arsenal at the Emirates in what will undoubtedly be a huge game in their hunt for the Premier League title.

After his display last night, the Hungarian international will be fearing for his place, with Curtis Jones certainly champing at the bit to return to the starting lineup after his match-winning goal against Chelsea last weekend.

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India’s outgoing bowling coach looks back at his stint

Varun Shetty08-Nov-2021Bharat Arun is set to bow out as India’s bowling coach when the team’s T20 World Cup campaign ends on Monday, and he reckons India’s success in overseas Tests over the last two years has been the highlight of his work with the team. The end of Arun’s tenure marks the end of one of Indian cricket’s most successful projects – beginning during Ravi Shastri’s second stint as India’s head coach in August 2017 – which helped elevate India’s fast-bowling talent to a consistently world-class level in Tests.Through a diligent workload-management system and through innovative bowling plans, among them the “leg trap” employed against Australia earlier this year, India’s fast bowlers became the bedrock of famous victories overseas apart from having a significant impact even at home.Related

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'Fearlessness is the guiding principle of this Indian team'

“There have been ups and downs but I think the team is in a much better position than when we started. Pretty happy about it,” Arun said before India’s last match at the T20 World Cup. “The highest point of the career would be the kind of bowling that we have – we set about winning a lot of Tests overseas. That is what we strived hard to achieve as a team and we went about achieving that.”I think the highest point would be the two back-to-back wins in Australia and also us, more or less, winning the series in England. Of course, there’s one more Test to go, but I think the performance of the team during this English series was outstanding.”Arun’s playing career ended when he was 29, and his foray into coaching came with a determination to understand the science and biomechanics of bowling, and to not propagate the “myths we were handed down through generations”. The increased fitness of India’s fast bowlers during his time, and the presence of a solid second string in the main bowlers’ absence speak to that.”All of us came together and said we have enough fast bowlers, but we need to create a lot more discipline in their attack and also to make sure they remain fresh throughout,” he explained. “That is the only chance of us winning. And also the team management and captain took a very bold step of always playing five bowlers at any given point of time.

“We can afford to field different teams for different formats. That way it’s not only we understanding the different talent that is available, but it also keeps our bowlers mentally and physically very fresh”Bharat Arun

“Earlier we went in with only four bowlers and somebody who can also bowl. But right now we are going with five regular bowlers in any team that we have. So I think that is a first fearless step. Because we said that the batting group needs to step up, we need to take added responsibility if we need to win matches abroad, and we need to take 20 wickets all the time. So that went into us playing this combination of at least five bowlers in every match. The wicketkeeper being a very good batter also helps the cause.”India have pushed a number of bowlers up to the senior team, particularly over the last ten months or so. The likes of Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar have all stepped in with varying degrees of success as backups for the core of Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav and the two frontline spinners, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Arun mentioned Prasidh Krishna as one that sparks confidence as well, and said India’s next generation was in good shape.With the volume of cricket ever increasing, however, he hinted that it was time for India to use their reserves to make sure everyone continued to stay “fresh”, even if it meant playing different bowlers across formats.”Not only the volume of cricket that our country is playing but also remaining in the bubble and playing – I can guarantee that it’s not easy to be in the bubble and keep playing throughout the year,” he said. “They do need some breaks because I think even the mental health is going to be very important going forward. This is going to be the norm for us, at least for the next one year or two years. So it is important.”In our country we have a very good pool of fast bowlers, there is enough talent in our country. So we can afford to field different teams for different formats. That way it’s not only we understanding the different talent that is available, but it also keeps our bowlers mentally and physically very fresh.”

Borussia Dortmund have completed the signing of Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka on loan until the end of the season.

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Dortmund land ChukwuemekaHad identified youngster as dream January signingMidfielder will spend rest of season in BundesligaFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Dortmund have confirmed the arrival of Chukwuemeka before the close of the transfer window. The Bundesliga side had identified the 21-year-old as the perfect candidate to play as a No.8 and he will now spend the rest of the season with the Bundesliga side.

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The move offers Chukwuemeka the chance to enjoy some regular football. He has made just 32 first-team appearances for Chelsea since joining in August 2022, and Dortmund do have the option to make the transfer permanent at the end of the season.

WHAT CHUKWUEMEKA SAID

He told Dortmund's website: "It is very exciting for me and I am truly honoured to be part of this great club. I can't wait to play in front of the fans at Signal Iduna Park and help us all to be successful together."

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WHAT DORTMUND SAID

BVB sporting director Sebastian Kehl added: "Carney is an extremely talented box-to-box player who caused a sensation in the Premier League at a young age. His dynamism, his drive to the goal and his assertiveness coupled with great footballing class make him an exciting player who has not for nothing been through all of England's youth national teams since the U17s. This development has recently stalled somewhat in London. Despite the lack of rhythm, we see a great opportunity in this constellation and hope that Carney will find his old strength again with us."

Bangladesh add uncapped Saif Hassan, Shahidul Islam, Yasir Ali and Akbar Ali for the T20Is

Mohammad Isam16-Nov-2021Mushfiqur Rahim has become the biggest casualty of Bangladesh’s fallout from the T20 World Cup after being dropped for the three-match T20I series against Pakistan starting Friday. This is the first time Mushfiqur is excluded from a senior side since 2008, when Dhiman Ghosh replaced him for an extended period before going to the ICL.Mushfiqur, who has played 99 T20Is, made 95 runs in five matches in the Super 12s including a half-century against Sri Lanka. Some of his dismissals however, especially his missed scoop and reverse-sweeps, became topic of intense discussion back in Bangladesh.Although chief selector Minhajul Abedin insisted that Mushfiqur was rested for the T20I series keeping in mind Bangladesh’s scheduling for the next two months, Mushfiqur was reportedly willing to play in these three matches.”We have four back-to-back Test matches against Pakistan and New Zealand,” Minhajul said. “He is a key player. He is one of our best players. Tamim Iqbal is already injured. He is in doubt for the Test series. We want our best player to give his best during the Test series, so after consulting extensively with the team management, we have decided to rest him. It is only for the Pakistan series. He will be available later.”Including Shakib Al Hasan’s hamstring injury, Bangladesh only have captain Mahmudullah as one of their much vaunted experienced cricketers left in the 16-man squad announced on Tuesday. Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das and Rubel Hossain are also ousted from the side too.Bangladesh squad for the Pakistan T20Is•Getty ImagesThe national selectors have instead gone for a youth-heavy side by including Saif Hassan, Shahidul Islam, Yasir Ali and Akbar Ali among the six inclusions. Najmul Hossain Shanto and legspinner Aminul Islam are also in the side.There are first-time call-ups for fast bowler Shahidul and top-order batter Akbar, Bangladesh’s captain when they won the Under-19 World Cup last year. Saif has played Tests but it is his first inclusion in T20Is. Yasir has been in Test squads this year, but hasn’t played international cricket yet.Afif Hossain, however, has kept his place in the squad despite making just 14 runs in five matches in the Super 12s.Liton and Soumya were already playing for Rangpur Division and Khulna Division respectively in the National Cricket League. But they can still make it back into Bangladesh’s T20I plans, according to Minhajul.”We have just come from a disappointing T20 World Cup. It was unexpected,” he said. “We didn’t have a bad team. We won both the T20I series at home this year. Still, we are trying to start afresh. Our planning for the next T20 World Cup begins after this season’s BPL, but we want to start well in this series.”Those who are dropped, they have to do well in the domestic competitions. The BPL is coming up. Nobody will be forgotten. We have to keep them in the system. We have the A team programme. We also have the High Performance Unit. We will keep everyone we need, in these squads.”IN: Saif Hassan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Aminul Islam, Shahidul Islam, Yasir Ali, Akbar AliOUT: Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan (hamstring injury), Mushfiqur Rahim, Rubel Hossain