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Leicester City kick off their 2023/24 Championship campaign with a game against Coventry City at the King Power on Sunday and supporters could see a number of fresh faces in action.

Who have Leicester City signed this summer?

The Foxes have reacted to their relegation from the Premier League by making five new signings to refresh the squad during the summer transfer window.

Enzo Maresca, who replaced interim head coach Dean Smith, has brought in Harry Winks, Stephy Mavididi, Conor Coady, and Mads Hermasen on permanent deals, whilst central defender Callum Doyle has arrived on loan from Manchester City.

These additions have been funded by the sales of James Maddison and Harvey Barnes, who have returned to the top-flight with Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United respectively.

This means that the Foxes have lost their two top scorers from last season as the departed pair – who both hit double figures in the Premier League – were the only players with more than five strikes to their name.

Maresca could now add some much-needed firepower to partner Mavididi in attack by securing a swoop to sign reported transfer target Joel Piroe from Swansea, who have valued the centre-forward at around £15m.

How good is Joel Piroe?

The Dutch marksman is a proven Championship goalscorer who could be the focal point of the head coach's forward line and a dream ace for the ex-Arsenal winger to play alongside.

Mavididi is a wide forward who has the potential to be an excellent scorer for the Foxes and he could be lethal alongside Piroe this season if the club can bring the Swans star to the King Power.

The English wizard only found the back of the net four times in 26 Ligue 1 games last season but that came after the 25-year-old gem produced 17 goals in the French top-flight across the previous two campaigns combined.

None of Leicester's current players, now that Maddison and Barnes have moved on, scored more than five league goals last term and Mavididi, who registered at least eight in two of his three years with Montpellier, could be Maresca's outstanding goalscoring option out wide if he rediscovers his best form.

Piroe, meanwhile, is coming off the back of two sublime seasons in the Championship with Swansea and could be the Foxes' main man for goals if he can translate his performances over to the King Power.

The 24-year-old dynamo, who was once hailed as a "danger man" by journalist Josh Bunting, scored 19 times in 43 league outings last season, which came after 22 in 45 during the previous term.

This means that the £15m-rated sensation has scored at least 14 more goals than any current Leicester player managed in the 2022/23 campaign in both of the last two years.

Piroe could, therefore, be a phenomenal signing for Maresca as his statistics indicate that he has the quality to be the club's top-scorer this season in the Championship, as the prolific Dutchman has proven himself to be a clinical finisher at this level.

The current Swans star and Mavididi could be a lethal pairing at the top end of the pitch if they click together as they are both capable of being terrific scorers for their respective positions and could strike fear into opposition defences week-in-week-out.

Burnley are ready to make a €20m (£17m) move for Feyenoord defender Quilindschy Hartman, with Vincent Kompany personally driving the move, but it may be a difficult deal to complete according to a recent report.

What's the latest Burnley transfer news?

Kompany is clearly still keen to bring in additional options in defence, and former Leicester City defender Jonny Evans has recently emerged as a potential signing, following the Northern Irishman's short stint at Manchester United.

Transfer insider Dean Jones has also confirmed the Clarets are keen on signing Ian Maatsen, after his loan spell at Turf Moor last season, however they may face competition for his signature:

"There is interest obviously from Burnley because he was on loan there last season, but talks a few weeks back between Burnley and Chelsea were honing in around the £20 million mark and Burnley saw that as too high. West Ham are also looking at the player too."

According to a report from 1908.nl (via Sport Witness), Kompany and co are now looking at alternative options to Maatsen, perhaps in light of Chelsea's huge asking price, and they are now ready to pursue a move for Hartman.

Kompany watched the defender in action for Feyenoord last week, and Burnley are now ready to pay more than €20m (£17m) to secure his signature following the manager's recommendation, which may be enough to satisfy the Dutch club.

Feyenoord do not intend on letting the 21-year-old leave on the cheap, and they feel it is impossible to enter talks unless an offer of less than £17m is tabled, however they do not want to let him leave either way.

The Eredivisie side are planning to try and convince the youngster to stay by offering him a contract extension, so it may be difficult for the Clarets to get a deal over the line.

Who is Quilindschy Hartman?

The Netherlands U21 international had a breakthrough year with Feyenoord last season, making 23 Eredivisie appearances, primarily featuring as a left-back, and he could be a like-for-like replacement for Maatsen.

Much like the former Burnley loanee, the Feyenoord ace poses a real threat on the front foot, ranking in the 94th percentile for assists per 90 over the past year, when compared to his positional peers, and the 87th percentile for non-penalty goals.

Not only that, the starlet is also very solid defensively, as indicated by the fact he ranks in the 92nd percentile for aerials won, and the 80th percentile for interceptions, placing higher than Maatsen on both metrics.

The Clarets have clearly focussed on bringing in talented up-and-coming players this summer, with the vast majority of their arrivals in the under-25 bracket, and Hartman fits that criteria.

Lauded as a "revelation" by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, Hartman is still in the very early stages of his career, but his performances in the Eredivisie have been very promising.

That said, the left-back is contracted at De Kuip until 2025, meaning Feyenoord remain in a strong negotiating position, and Burnley should not go any higher than £17m, given that he is still relatively unproven.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly interested in Brazilian defender Lucas Beraldo, as the Old Gold prepare for a squad rebuild this summer.

Julen Lopetegui has bid farewell to seven players already this transfer window, in both sales and expirations of contracts at Molineux.

With almost £80m accumulated in sales, the Spaniard can set his focus to replenishing his squad ahead of the 2023/24 campaign, as Wolves hope for an improvement on last term.

Could Wolves sign Lucas Beraldo?

As reported by GOAL Brazil earlier this week, Wolves have Sao Paulo centre-back Beraldo in their sights.

The report claimed that the Midlands club are interested in the Brazilian, with it noted that they could offer Sao Paulo a fee in the region of €7m (£6m) despite no formal proposal sent as of yet.

Contracted until 2026 with the Brazilian side, Wolves’ valuation of the defender could be deemed too low, with his release clause reported to be set between €40m and €50m (£34m-£43m).

How good is Lucas Beraldo?

Lopetegui could snatch a bargain for the 19-year-old at a critical time at Molineux.

Having just sold centre-back Nathan Collins to Brentford, and Max Kilman’s future uncertain, it’s integral that the Spaniard hires in the central defence department this summer.

In 10 Brazilian Serie A appearances this year, the teenager has asserted his dominance on the back line in winning a monstrous 67% of his total duels, via Sofascore.

At just 19, the "gem" has been lauded as being a "superb ball-playing" centre-back by Kulig, signifying that he could be just the player that Lopetegui requires to rejuvenate the defence at Wolves.

Such praise is supported by his numbers, with FBref revealing the extent of the luxury Molineux could add to their ranks, with Beraldo averaging an impressive 5.85 progressive passes per 90 over the past year.

To highlight what the Brazilian could offer to Lopetegui, fellow centre-back Max Kilman averaged 3.46 progressive passes per 90 in the Premier League last term, suggesting that the Spaniard could unlock a new dimension of play from the back.

While filling numbers are integral this summer ahead of the new season, Wolves must introduce added quality to make up for those lost in the transfer market.

Nathan Collins fell out of favour with the manager which subsequently paved the way for his departure to Brentford, however, Lopetegui could land himself a player of the Irishman’s calibre in his replacement.

As per FBref, the 22-year-old averaged 3.18 progressive passes per 90, as well as averaging 1.34 tackles and 4.17 clearances per 90 in the Premier League last term.

While the teenager’s progressive outlet was an improvement on Collins’, his defensive stability over the past year suggests that he could be a talent of similar force to the Brentford man at Molineux.

As told by FBref, the Piracicaba-born gem averaged 1.75 tackles and 4.72 clearances per 90 for Sao Paulo, as well as making an average of 1.14 blocks and winning 1.75 aerials per 90.

At just 19, Lopetegui could integrate an influential talent to his back line, in a player that has the numbers to suggest he could adequately fill the boots of the departed Collins this summer.

Sam Hain was in fine form as defending champions Warwickshire got their Royal London Cup campaign started with a win on a wet day at Wantage Road

ECB Reporters Network27-Apr-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Sam Hain made an unbeaten 89 to lead Warwickshire to victory•Getty ImagesSam Hain was in fine form as defending champions Warwickshire got their Royal London Cup campaign started with a win on a wet day at Wantage Road. Hain made an unbeaten 89 as he and Will Porterfield knocked off a DLS-adjusted target of 159 without loss.Warwickshire have had a difficult start to the season in the Championship, with a draw and two defeats, but they shrugged off those difficulties with a strong collective display at the start of white-ball competition. Northamptonshire’s innings was interrupted several times by rain and only Rob Keogh made a score of note as they were dismissed for 151 in a game reduced to 30 overs a side.Hain, the leading run-scorer in last year’s Royal London Cup, removed any doubt that it was a below-par total as he raced to a 30-ball fifty before reining in. The hundred stand came up in the 16th over and Porterfield also recorded a half-century, from a rather more sedate 63 balls, before hitting the winning runs with four overs to spare.It was a welcome return to form for Hain who lost his place in Warwickshire’s Championship side for their last match. He and Porterfield, who shared 180 for the opening wicket to help their side beat Northants at Edgbaston last season, ground their opponents down again with the home side finding nothing in response to a poor effort with the bat.Northants, having been sent in on a cold gloomy day, were certainly not helped by three delays due to varying amounts of drizzle, but failed to develop any significant partnerships. Ben Duckett fell for just 7 in a fine opening spell from Rikki Clarke, slapping straight to extra cover. Alex Wakely then chipped a catch back to the bowler, smartly taken down low by Clarke, who took 2 for 18 in his seven overs, either side of rain delays.Cobb settled well after driving Chris Wright down the ground for his opening boundary. He muscled debutant Grant Thornton over the midwicket fence but to the final ball of an Oliver Hannon-Dalby over in which he had already taken two boundaries, holed out to long-on for 33.Thereafter, Keogh played smartly in a 64-ball half-century but received no support. Adam Rossington mistimed a drive down the ground and was caught by Hain running round from long-on for just 13, Steven Crook rocked back to cut Jeetan Patel, missed and lost his off bail for just 2, two excellent run-outs were effected by Porterfield from backward point before Hannon-Dalby cleaned up the tail with two caught-and-bowled dismissals.

A round-up of the Momentum Cup matches played on February 24, 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2017Massive hundreds from openers Jonathan Vandiar and Henry Davids blasted Titans to a total of 400 and a 158-run win against Cape Cobras in Cape Town. Only two Cobras batsmen scored more than 30 as legspinner Shaun von Berg’s 4 for 65 helped bowl them out for 242.After opting to bat, Titans had a gargantuan opening stand of 313 between Vandiar and Davids, both struck five sixes each and ended with a similar strike rate of just over 123. The partnership passed 50 and 150 at a run rate of exactly six per over before they launched into the Cobras attack. Davids reached his century first, off 93 balls in the 31st over, and Vandiar registered his off 100 balls soon after. Davids was the more attacking of the two from then on but it was Vandiar who teed the score past 300 with consecutive sixes off Dane Piedt in the 41st over. The partnership was broken when he was caught behind for 153, his sixth List A hundred, that was studded with 15 fours.Davids was also dismissed by Lizaad Williams, for 163 off 132 balls that featured 14 fours. Albie Morkel’s 32 off 18 helped the score past 350 before Titans collected 27 runs off the last three overs to reach 400.Cobras’ chase was dented early when von Berg dismissed Richard Levi in the fourth over and Stiaan van Zyl was run out eight balls later. Omphile Ramela and Dane Vilas joined forces in the eighth over for a solid stand of 131 in only 15.2 overs to steer them past 150. But Ramela was run out too, for 63, and Cobras slipped from 174 for 3 to 206 for 8. Vilas’ 88 off 60 balls also went in vain as Cobras lasted 34.5 overs. Morne Morkel, who was picked in the Test side earlier on Friday, finished with 2 for 52.File photo – Keshav Maharaj took his second five-wicket haul in List A matches•BCCILeft-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj and medium-pacer Robbie Frylinck shared nine wickets between them to help Dolphins to a 27-run win over Lions in Durban. The victory was built on a 145-run fifth-wicket partnership between Khaya Zondo (74 off 98 balls) and Sibonelo Makhanya (82 off 83 balls) that revived Dolphins to 245 for 7 from a position of 48 for 4.Lions were 213 for 6 at the beginning of the 46th over – with the set pair of Nono Pongolo – 31 off 36 balls – and Temba Bavuma – 74 off 94 balls – at the crease – when Frylinck struck three times in one over to derail the Lions chase. He dismissed both set batsmen and removed Aaron Phangiso for a duck to finish with figures of 4 for 43. Maharaj chipped in with regular wickets through the innings, including that of opener Reeza Hendricks and last-man Beuran Hendricks to return figures of 5 for 40, his second five-wicket haul in List A games, as Lions lost their first game of the tournament.Earlier, two wickets from Bjorn Fortuin and a run-out meant Dolphins had lost four wickets by the 16th over, before Zondo and Makhanya struck half-centuries . Their 162-ball partnership took Dolphins close to the 200-run mark, after which useful knocks from Maharaj and Calvin Savage took the total close to 250.

Sri Lanka chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya has expressed dismay in the batsmen on tour, and called top order to read match situations better in the third Test in Johannesburg. Sri Lanka have failed to reach 300 in their four innings in South Africa so far, and were dismissed for 110 and 224 in the Newlands Test.”We selected a side which is a blend of youth and experience,” Jayasuriya told . “Besides, even the younger ones have had their own share of exposure in the recent past. Maybe we can excuse misreading the game in the first Test because for most of the players it was their first time out in South Africa. But, I can’t understand why they failed in the same way in the second Test also.”I feel that at least one batsman should have risen to occasion and held on to it, but, sadly that did not happen.”Jayasuriya was especially critical of Sri Lanka’s failure in the second innings in Port Elizabeth, after the openers had put on 87, and other promising top-order partnerships had begun to take root. The last seven wickets had fallen for 88 runs, however, and Sri Lanka were all out for 281.”In that innings most of the top-order batsmen failed to come up with a commanding innings in spite of four batsmen getting in to positions that they could have capitalised on,” Jayasuriya said. “Now, at least, in the final Test, it’s up to the batters to come up with the much-anticipated satisfactory performance.”More had been expected of the batsmen in this series following their encouraging performances against Australia at home, and in Zimbabwe over October and November. This is in contrast to what was expected of the attack, which appeared by a distance Sri Lanka’s weaker suit on pitches expected to neutralise Rangana Herath’s spin to some extent.”The same can’t be said about the bowlers,” Jayasuriya said. “They’ve bowled with a lot of purpose and never let the totals rise up to unmanageable levels. The batsmen they have let the side down”.

Celtic former manager Brendan Rodgers has been lined up for a sensational return to Parkhead and it would be 'interesting' to see if the 50-year-old could 'get things back on track' at the club following his controversial exit in 2019 to Leicester City, according to journalist Dean Jones.

What's the latest news involving Celtic and Brendan Rodgers?

According to The Daily Mail, Celtic chiefs Michael Nicholson and Chris McKay flew to Majorca by private jet to hold 'face-to-face' discussions with Rodgers over a sensational return to Parkhead as the Scottish giants hunt for a new manager to replace Ange Postecoglou.

The report states that the 50-year-old has 'reservations' about taking on the role for a second spell in charge; however, Celtic's major shareholder Dermot Desmond has thrown his support behind Rodgers and the former Leicester City coach is now said to be weighing up a move with further talks expected later this week.

As per The Daily Record, Rodgers has not dismissed the possibility of coming back to Glasgow despite initially planning to take a break from football before returning to either a Premier League club or a stint abroad.

Manchester City coach Enzo Maresca, out-of-work manager Daniel Farke, Bodo/Glimt's Kjetil Knutsen and former Alanyaspor boss Francesco Farioli have also been linked with the managerial vacancy at Celtic.

Speaking to Football FanCast, journalist Jones thinks that despite the sour ending when Rodgers left Celtic for Leicester City back in 2019, the Hoops may look to 'rekindle' their relationship with their ex-manager ahead of 2023/24.

Jones told FFC: "Rodgers himself has always said he would be open-minded to this, but you think about the way it played out after he left. It wasn't pretty the way it ended and it wasn't that long ago. It'd be interesting to see how open he really was to a situation like this and if he's the man they want. He's obviously at the moment getting his head around the fact that things went sour at Leicester and he's got to find his feet again and get back into a challenge. I'm not sure, to be honest, that it's a great idea to go back and I think that if Brendan Rodgers bides his time, there are going to be some other really exciting opportunities for him, but if they can put their little trouble behind them that they did have at the end there, then, who knows? Celtic and Rodgers could look to rekindle and see if they can get things back on track again."

Would Brendan Rodgers be the right fit for Celtic?

When he was at Celtic last time, Rodgers, who was hailed as a "genius", had an unblemished domestic record and won seven domestic trophies from seven available and established himself as a serial winner in Scotland, as per Transfermarkt.

His European achievements at the Hoops can be quantified in different ways depending on what the general public deem as successful. However, he did manage to achieve qualification to the Champions League group phase twice from the qualifying route and took Celtic to a third-place finish in 2017/18 at the expense of Anderlecht on goal difference and a subsequent passage to the knockout rounds of the Europa League.

In terms of recruitment, Rodgers did make some excellent signings at Celtic, especially the likes of Moussa Dembele and Scott Sinclair in his first season at the club, who both went on to be major players in the Scottish giants' invincible treble in 2016/17.

To summarise, Rodgers being appointed as Celtic boss probably wouldn't yield the same fanfare as he did in 2016; however, he is about as safe a bet as you can get to continue delivering domestic dominance in Glasgow's east end.

Manchester United are clear on who they want to add this summer, with Sky Sports reporting that Harry Kane is their number one top transfer priority this summer transfer window.

Who are Manchester United hoping to sign this summer?

The striker has been imperious as ever in the Premier League this season in spite of Tottenham's struggles. Even with Spurs currently sat in eighth in the league, Kane has continued to score goals on a regular basis.

Having played nearly every single top-flight game for the side this year – he has 37 appearances in total – the attacker has bagged 28 goals and has managed three assists. It's his best total since 2017/18 and shows that despite being 29 years of age, he is still at the very top of his game.

It means that Kane has now become one of the highest-scoring Premier League players of all time with 211 to his name – he currently stands second in the rankings. Only Alan Shearer stands above him but with plenty of time left to add to his total, it isn't out of the realms of possibility that he could overtake the amount the former Magpies man managed (260).

Having impressed for so long, Man United have now made it their number one priority to add the player to their ranks this summer.

According to Sky Sports, the Red Devils have put the Spurs man at the very top of their wanted list in their search for another forward option. A deal won't be easy, with Tottenham as determined as ever to keep the England international as the club it seems. However, it hasn't stopped Erik ten Hag's side from making him one of their most wanted men during the transfer window.

They have also registered an interest in both Declan Rice and Mason Mount, but the report adds that they are unlikely to sign all three players.

Will Harry Kane join Man United?

The striker has once more been one of the best players in the entire Premier League, which is shown by his WhoScored rating of 7.47. Only Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne rank above him and when you consider the difference in terms of the two team's positioning this campaign, it is good going by the England international.

In fact, City boss Pep Guardiola has also heaped praise on the player, which is a big compliment coming from the former Barcelona man. He said that Kane is an "exceptional player" and that he may also be "one of the best strikers" that the manager has ever seen.

If United did sign him then, their goalscoring worries could be over, and he would be exactly the kind of upgrade to their strikeforce that they need after scoring the fewest number of goals out of the top seven sides this season.

Daniel Worrall, Joe Mennie and Chris Tremain have been chosen for Australia’s limited-overs tour of South Africa after the selectors were compelled to dig deep into the nation’s pace reserves to cover for the resting Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.For a series that will be played in conditions more suited to pacemen than the just completed bout with Sri Lanka, Worrall, Mennie and Tremain have been rewarded for breakout domestic seasons for South Australia and Victoria, the two sides that contested last season’s Sheffield Shield final.National selector Rod Marsh said the seam and swing bowling trio will be needed to support John Hastings and Scott Boland against South Africa and also the opening match against Ireland. Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Pattinson, Pat Cummins and Peter Siddle were among the bowlers not able to be considered due to injury. Usman Khawaja, who played two ODIs against Sri Lanka with scores of 6 and 0, was left out of the squad. Adam Zampa is the frontline spinner in the squad with Nathan Lyon also omitted.

Ins and Outs

Ins: Joe Mennie, Chris Tremain, Daniel Worrall
Outs: Mitchell Starc, Usman Khawaja, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Nathan Lyon, Nathan Coulter-Nile

“Chris, Joe and Daniel all had terrific summers last year and have also impressed us during the recent Australia A series with consistent performances,” Marsh said. “They are young players with a bright future who thoroughly deserve their selection and we look forward to seeing them work with John Hastings and Scott Boland, who have both performed well for Australia since returning from injury.”Mennie and Worrall formed a potent seam and swing combination alongside Chadd Sayers for the Redbacks last season, while Tremain moved from New South Wales to Victoria and soon found himself spearheading the bowling attack for the team that eventually lifted the Shield.”I think consistently playing has been a big help,” Tremain said in Melbourne. “People keep saying I got starved for opportunity in NSW but I don’t think that was the case. It was a matter of not doing the right things at the right time to give yourself an opportunity to play there. Coming down to Victoria I got a few good opportunities early, did ok and rolled with the punches early.”Then, rather than worrying about whether I was going to play the next game I worried about the next ball or how I was going to stay in the moment rather than worry about what had gone or what was going to happen. If there was any big change in my game it would be more upstairs in my head than anything else. Playing consistently and not worrying too much about whether I was going to play the next game, was a big step.”Tremain’s first Australian tour will coincide with that of the new assistant coach David Saker, who took up the role as Darren Lehmann’s deputy after helping guide the Bushrangers to the Shield. A plain speaker, Saker has ensured Tremain stays level in mindset, neither seduced by success nor downtrodden by failure.”He just called and said what are the odds that my first tour is your first tour?” Tremain said. “He’s good and he’s no punches pulled, so I’m sure regardless or playing for the Renegades or Victoria or Australia coming up, if I’ve done something wrong you get scolded for it and rightly so.”If you do something right it’s not a big pump up, it’s a pat on the back and congratulations for doing your job. He’s really good at keeping people level, keeping people concentrated on what they need to do and not getting too far ahead or behind what they’re doing.”While South African pitches should provide more assistance than Sri Lanka, Tremain said that the high benchmark being set by the likes of Hastings gave him a level of consistency to aim for. “I’ve been watching the ODIs in Sri Lanka at the moment and they look like they’re very difficult to bowl on,” he said. “Watching John Hastings and Scotty Boland work over there, [James] Faulkner, the way they go about their business on flat wickets is a really good viewing point for wickets that might offer a little bit more.”Doing the hard work on these flat wickets just makes it that little bit easier on a wicket that might offer a bit more. Rather than looking at what we might get in South Africa I’ve been looking at what it’s like when it is really hard and flat and you can’t get the ball up around their ears or get it to swing. Viewing that sort of stuff has put me into a mainframe that things are going to be difficult, they might not be as difficult as Sri Lanka, but if I prepare for something really difficult and get a pleasant surprise, then grab it with both hands.”Travis Head retained his place in the ODI squad following a series of cameo performances in Sri Lanka, but there was no room for Glenn Maxwell. Mitchell Marsh returned to the squad after being rested from the Sri Lanka ODIs, while the captain Steven Smith also returned to the ranks.Australia will play Ireland in Benoni on September 27 followed by the five ODIs against South Africa starting September 30 in Centurion.ODI squad: Steven Smith (capt), David Warner, George Bailey, Scott Boland, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Joe Mennie, Chris Tremain, Matthew Wade (wk), Daniel Worrall, Adam Zampa.

ScorecardImran Tahir enjoyed a fine debut [file picture]•BCCI

Imran Tahir enjoyed a dream T20 debut for Nottinghamshire to inflict a first home defeat on Northamptonshire in this season’s NatWest T20 Blast.Tahir’s 3 for 13 in four overs, and 3 for 12 in 14 balls from Steven Mullaney saw Northants bowled out for just 122 in 18.2 overs, a target Notts took 17 overs overs to knock off to win by six wickets with a fine captain’s innings from Dan Christian who made a 28-ball fifty.Richard Gleeson caused the Notts chase a few early nerves trapping Riki Wessels lbw in his first over and running out Greg Smith in his second to leave the visitors 22 for 2 in the fourth over but there was little to stop Notts picking up a fourth win of the season.With little pressure in the second innings, Christian broke the back of the chase with some fine hitting in his 56 from 32 balls – his second fifty of the season. The pick of his strokes a thunderous drive through cover point. He shared 79 in 9.3 overs with Michael Lumb as Notts extended their unbeaten run in all competitions against Northants to 15 matches.The win kept up Notts’ pursuit of a home quarter-final with Northants made to wait before confirming their place in the knockout stages.Victory was lead by Tahir in the first innings after Notts won the toss. He appeared to have a mesmeric hold on the Northants batsmen as first Steven Crook, lbw trying to sweep, Alex Wakely, lbw playing back, and then Richard Gleeson, tamely chipping to midwicket, all fell in a superb spell.In partnership with Samit Patel – whose own 2 for 27 in four overs was excellent – the spinners helped collapse the Northants innings from a strong Powerplay of 59 for 1.The innings had lurched to 107 for 5 before Mullaney was introduced in the 15th over – his second ball brought a return catch from Ben Duckett – the left-hander falling for 29 in 23 balls ended any chance of Northants posting a competitive total. The lower order then fell away as Northants left 10 balls unused having lost 9 for 62 in 12 overs.It was a remarkable turnaround after Richard Levi and Adam Rossington had given the home side a bright start having lost the toss. Levi lifted two sixes over square leg to ruin Harry Gurney’s second over, another followed in the sixth over but the reintroduction of spin brought his undoing with Patel winning an lbw decision with Levi well placed 35 from 20 balls.Rossington began with a carved drive over point for four and added a second boundary with a sweetly timed straight drive. But he fell in the final over of the Powerplay, swinging at Jake Ball and losing his middle stump for 22 from 15 balls. It was a sign of things to come from the hosts’ batting.