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Wolverhampton Wanderers are in a dire state of affairs and could now be set to replace Rob Edwards with a manager who has found a winning formula this campaign.

Wolves look to reverse dismal Premier League form

There is no secret about Wolves’ dire state of affairs on and off the pitch, though there were some small slivers of encouragement within the Old Gold’s 2-1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield last time out.

Ultimately, yet another defeat in a campaign that has offered up two draws in the Premier League isn’t a cause for celebration. Either way, there seemed to be at least a bit more togetherness on the field than in some recent results and performances.

Eventually, some points will fall Wolves’ way if they continue to run teams close, as they did against Liverpool. It won’t be likely near enough to keep them up, but at least there is hope of some pride being restored in the West Midlands.

Barring a miracle, Edwards will be preparing his side for the Sky Bet Championship next season. Wherever they end up, the Old Gold have started planning for the future and want to bring Nashville striker Sam Surridge to Molineux in January.

Union Berlin’s Diogo Leite is also on Wolves’ radar, signifying that they are being proactive in search of new reinforcements to offer fresh ideas and energy to a side that has fallen on hard times.

Edwards has a tough remit, and nobody is saying otherwise, albeit he may not be entirely safe himself and could now be set to be replaced by a manager who has achieved great heights this season.

Derek McInnes in frame to take over at Wolves

According to TEAMtalk, Heart of Midlothian manager Derek McInnes has been earmarked to succeed Edwards at Wolves after leading his side to the top of the Scottish Premiership table this term.

Brian Barry-Murphy of Cardiff City and former Old Gold boss Gary O’Neil are also candidates if Wolves part company with their current boss.

Related Wolves now enter race to sign "superb" defender who could join on free transfer

The Old Gold need some inspiration from somewhere if they are to avoid the drop…

Posts ByDominic Lund

Unrest among supporters towards the Molineux hierarchy is unlikely to be quelled if another manager is shown the door, leaving Nathan Shi in a tough situation as the club weighs up whether to sack Edwards, who has a 0% win percentage.

Get the newsletter for Wolves manager and transfer insight Subscribe to the newsletter to follow expert analysis of Wolves’ managerial options, transfer targets and how decisions could shape the club’s future — informed context and clear explanations focused on this team’s next steps.

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In the case of McInnes, he has led Hearts to an average of 2.16 points per match this campaign and has earned plaudits for his recruitment and style of play, keeping things simplistic with a robust 4-4-2.

With his Jambos side earning plaudits for their attempts to split Glasgow’s big two, he may find it difficult to relinquish a shot at lifting the Scottish Premiership title.

Nevertheless, Wolves are a big draw and could offer the biggest project of his managerial career to date after spells at St Johnstone, Bristol City, Aberdeen, Kilmarnock and Tynecastle.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	Tanmay Srivastava held India’s innings together with a fine 83 © Getty Images

India Under-19s’ victory against their counterparts from Papua New Guinea may not have been as emphatic as the other three matches on the opening day of the World Cup but their performance was efficient, steady, if notspectacular, and thoroughly satisfactory.Their batsmen paced the innings sensibly after being put in. The openers- Shreevats Goswami and Taruwar Kohli, laid a strong foundation with apartnership of 100, the middle-order maintained a steady run-rate, keepingrisks to a minimum in order to preserve wickets for the final overs andTanmay Srivatsava provided the acceleration towards the end to spur Indiatoward 280 for 5. They did not decimate the bowling like Michael Hill didagainst Namibia but all of the top-order batsmen spent considerable timein the middle.The bowlers, too, did not scythe through Papua New Guinea like Adil Raza’sred-hot attack against Malaysia but they were disciplined and rarelystrayed off line. The Papua New Guinea batsmen like to hit across the lineand the rarity of such shots was an indication of the lengths bowled bythe Indians. All the bowlers had a work out and apart from Ravindra Jadejaand Taruwar, who went for 11 off two overs of medium-pace, everyone pickedup wickets. Pradeep Sangwan was the pick of the lot, striking twice earlyin his first spell while Abdulla scalped 3 for 2 off three overs towardsthe end as Papua New Guinea folded for 85.”We wanted to play as well as we can early in the game, withoutunderestimating the opposition,” Dav Whatmore, India’s coach, said. “We felt that if we didthat well, the margin would be big at the end of the game.”The margin of victory was huge – 195 runs – and it was built onperformances by players who made people take notice during the 2007-08Ranji Trophy and on the U-19 circuit. Srivatsava scored his maidenfirst-class hundred in the Ranji final against Delhi and made 466 runs inthe season, Virat Kohli scored 373 at an average of 53 while Sangwan took33 wickets at 19.42 apiece. Goswami, hasn’t played first-class cricket yetbut he’s been among the runs on the U-19 tour to South Africa.Goswami played his drives fluently, getting to the pitch of fulldeliveries and placing them through the covers with more timing than power. Hegot to his half-century, his second in Malaysia after scoring 91 in thewarm-up against New Zealand, with a cover-drive against ColinAmini’s offspin. However, he suffered a bout of cramps soon after – thehot and humid weather in Kuala Lumpur is energy sapping – and was dismissedfor 58.India had lost both their openers in the space of five overs and Virat andSrivatsava continued to build the momentum steadily rather than playingattacking shots. Whatmore said that Srivatsava’s role at No 3 was vital.”He just reassures everyone and adds calmness because we’ve got somereally good strikers like Virat. Tanmay is able to bat long and involvehimself in partnerships.”Srivatsava displayed patience as he started slowly, scoring 21 off hisfirst 40 deliveries. However, as India entered the 40th over he began tostep on it. The Kinrara Oval is a large ground but he muscled three largesixes over the leg side – one each over square leg, midwicket and long-on- to finish with 83 off 76 deliveries.Sangwan’s radar went missing for his first ball, which went forfive wides, but he made up by pitching his fourth ball bang on target andtrapping Heini Saika plumb in front. He made the ball move away from theright-handers and brought the odd one back in to trap the batsman – it washow he got his second wicket as well.A 195-run victory indicates a massive thrashing but Papua New Guinea didcreditably in the field. Their ground fielding was sharp, their catchingsafe – apart from one drop in the 49th over – and their bowling, leavingaside the tendency to bowl wides, was satisfactory. Jason Kila was thepick of them, taking 1 for 37 off ten overs of restrictive left-arm spin,while Joel Tom bowled a tight line and length at medium-pace and concededonly 16 off six overs. Whatmore said that he had been impressed by their”defensive game” on the field.It was Papua New Guinea’s batting that disappointed but the collapsewasn’t entirely unexpected. Today’s game was the first time that most ofthem were playing on turf and their inexperienced showed. Several batsmenplayed down the wrong line, John Reva edged one that bounced sharply onhim from Siddarth Kaul, and most of the lower-middle order lost theirstumps as they tried hit across the line.Papua New Guinea have two more tough gamesagainst West Indies and South Africa. For them, the tournament is allabout learning and an improved performance in the last two group matcheswill be a tremendous source of encouragement.

Andrew Flintoff has allayed fears over his fitness ahead of England’s Super Eights match against Sri Lanka on Wednesday by taking part in a full training session at Antigua Recreation Ground.Flintoff was forced off the field for treatment on his left ankle during England’s win against Ireland in Guyana.Flintoff batted and bowled during practice and was expected to face Sri Lanka at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. England need to win at least one of their two matches against Sri Lanka and Australia to have a realistic chance of reaching the semi-finals for the first time since 1992.

Rahul Dravid thanked his opening partner for getting India off to a flier © Getty Images

Rahul Dravid said Virender Sehwag “eased the pressure off” him and helped India set up a match-winning total against Pakistan in India’s series-levelling win at Abu Dhabi. Sehwag bounced back from his poor run with an 83-ball 73, inclusive of ten fours and a six, in a 138-run opening stand with his captain.”Sehwag batted beautifuly today and it is good to see him back (among the runs),” Dravid said in the post-match press conference. “The key was to get runs at the top of order and Sehwag eased the pressure off me.”Dravid, opening the innings, hit a patient 92 while Sehwag broke his run drought with a cavalier innings that helped India put up 269 for 5. Dravid was quick to mention that India had looked to bounce back from a six-wicket defeat yesterday: “We learnt from our yesterday’s mistake and it was a good all around performance by the boys. They responded well after the defeat.”Inzamam-ul Haq, his opposite number, conceded that the opening partnership of Sehwag and Dravid was the deciding factor in the match. “The opening partnership was very good and they batted very well today,” he said. “Though it (the target) was chaseable we lost wickets at regular intervals and could not built parnerships.”India and Pakistan shared the DLF Cup. Proceeds from Tuesday’s match were donated to the survivors of the massive earthquake that hit Kashmir last October killing more than 73,000 people in Pakistan and 1,300 in India. Revenue today’s match would be be shared by the Indian and Pakistan cricket boards after USD 1 million would be donated to the hosts.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball
How they were out

Graeme Smith celebrates his ninth Test hundred© Getty Images

Graeme Smith’s ninth Test hundred helped put South Africa, who finished on 370 for 6, a lead of 23, in a strong position at the end of the third day at Port of Spain.It was another day of attrition which offered little out-and-out entertainment – 188 runs and three wickets came from 90 overs – but it was one which belonged entirely to South Africa. By the close, the balance of the game had noticeably shifted away from West Indies. The unbeaten seventh-wicket stand of 67 between Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher was psychologically vital.The hero of the day was Smith, whose innings was crucial and whose determined concentration never wavered until his dismissal the ball after the afternoon drinks break. He patiently ground down the bowlers, with only the occasional cracking drive or pull to emphasise that he could attack if he wanted. His only wobbly moments came when West Indies took the second new ball before lunch and he wafted at a few balls slanted across him. But the pitch was not conducive to flamboyance, and Smith realised the importance of not being asked to do too much in the fourth innings on a surface which would only deteriorate.Even when he was finally dismissed, West Indies failed to capitalise. That has been their failing with the ball in this match. Breakthroughs have not been exploited. As the day wore on, Herschelle Gibbs, Prince and Boucher all chipped away, frustrating a West Indies attack that contributed considerably to its own difficulties.

Ashwell Prince ducks into a bouncer from Dwayne Bravo© Getty Images

The morning produced 56 runs from 24 overs. Even the purists struggled for positives, but West Indies’ bowlers looked listless and never really appeared to get out of second gear. None of the seamers managed to apply any sustained pressure and there was more aggression in evidence in the queues at the bars. Most worrying was that Shivnarine Chanderpaul seemed unable to rally his troops and often looked more lost than those he was supposed to be leading.Smith and Monde Zondeki, the nightwatchman, added 41 for the fourth wicket. In truth, Zondeki was rarely troubled and the ease with which he survived probably contributed to his demise and he played round a good inswinger from Pedro Collins for 14.That brought in Gibbs who was subdued by any standards, comatose by his own. The post-lunch period continued the pattern of the morning with South Africa making slow progress and West Indies looking bereft of ideas. The crowd slumbered and even the usually boisterous Carib Beer girls gave up trying to get the spectators enthused.But the drinks interval proved to be Smith’s undoing as his seven-and-a bit-hour vigil was ended by the combination of an unconventional bowling change and a straight ball. Chanderpaul, in his one inspired moment, brought Wavell Hinds on to bowl. His first ball was medium-paced and straight, Smith played all round it and was trapped plumb in front. Smith departed openly muttering and tutting, but that was probably more to do with the manner of the dismissal than the decision. He made a gutsy 148.

A rare moment of aggression from Herschelle Gibbs© Getty Images

But again South Africa stood firm. Gibbs defensive intention finally cracked and he lofted Chris Gayle for a straight six. It caught Aleem Dar on the hop and he briefly seemed to have forgotten how to signal that rarity. But Gibbs was eventually undone by the pitch, Collins producing a ball which barely rose above shin height and which shot under Gibbs’s bat and into his off stump. That was a sign that the surface was beginning to go, and soon after Ashwell Prince ducked a bouncer which clattered into his helmet after barely rising above waist height.With West Indies’ bowlers struggling, every chance had to be taken, and it was harder for Donovan Pagon at midwicket to drop a mistimed hook from Prince off King than it was for him to catch it, but he managed. That seemed to finally deflate the already punctured West Indies, and Prince and Boucher had enough confidence to crack a few sublime drives as the shadows lengthened.As West Indies left the field their bowlers had to hope that Bennett King had not taken a leaf out of Ray Jennings’s book or it would have been cold baths all round.How they were outSouth Africa
Drove uppishly to cover
Flashed faintest of outside edges
Defeated by inswinger and trapped plumb
Played round an inswinger and lost middle stump
Plumb leg-before to gentle, straight ball straight after drinks
No chance of keeping out a shooter which took off stump

7.30GMT Start delayed due to heavy rain
Scorecard

Heath Streak: a giant among pygmies

“Basement battle.” Zimbabwe hate the term, but they cannot honestly aspire to anything better at present, after the decimation of the experienced team that represented them between 1998 and 2000. The best they can hope for is to put the young upstarts of Bangladesh firmly in their place.For their part, Bangladesh have made great strides during the past year, for which credit is widely given to their coach Dav Whatmore. They came within one wicket of a maiden Test victory against Pakistan last year, and Zimbabwe – the weakest of their seniors among the Test-playing teams – are firmly in their sights.But playing away from home is to their disadvantage, although their hard-earned victory over Zimbabwe A earlier this week will give them a small degree of confidence. It was actually their second-string seam bowlers that won them the match, so they will be hopeful that their first-choice men will do an even better job.Bangladesh’s batting will give them less confidence, though. Only the opener Shahriar Hossain and Mohammad Ashraful looked in any sort of form on a none-too-ideal batting pitch.Zimbabwe are boosted by the return of Grant Flower, although his injured hand is not yet fully comfortable. Craig Wishart, the scourge of Bangladesh bowling in the past, is battling to be fit for the one-day series after his leg injury six weeks ago, while Mark Vermeulen is still out of action after his head injury in Australia.Both sides, despite their lowly positions in Test cricket, have one player who is a giant among pygmies, a man of genuine international quality. These are the respective captains, Heath Streak and HabibulBashar. Their performances will have a vital influence on this series.Both teams have younger players coming through, though, who are on the way up and some of them are likely to make names for themselves against less formidable opposition.Overall, though, the odds lie with Zimbabwe on their home soil. They tend to be overawed by the senior Test teams, but are not afraid of Bangladesh; however, it is but a small step from confidence to complacency. Their biggest enemy could be rain. The weather around Harare is very unsettled, as is usual in February, and the start of the match was delayed, probably until lunch at the very least.Zimbabwe 1 Dion Ebrahim, 2 Trevor Gripper, 3 Stuart Carlisle, 4 Grant Flower, 5 Tatenda Taibu (wk), 6 Sean Ervine, 7 Heath Streak (capt), 8 Andy Blignaut, 9 Gavin Ewing, 10 Raymond Price, 11 Douglas Hondo.Bangladesh 1 Shahriar Hossain, 2 Hannan Sarkar, 3 Habibul Bashar (capt), 4 Rajin Saleh, 5 Mohammad Ashraful, 6 Khaled Mashud (wk), 7 Mohammad Rafique, 8 Manjural Islam Rana, 9 Mushfiqur Rahman, 10 Tapash Baisya, 11 Manjural Islam.

Michael Vaughan scored his third hundred of the Ashes series to put the tourists into a commanding position on the third day of the final Test. The Yorkshire opener made an unbeaten 113 as England reached an impressive 218 for two in their second innings. Earlier a typically flamboyant century from Adam Gilchrist had enabled Australia to take a first-innings lead of just one run, but the fact that Australia have to bat last on a wearing SCG pitch makes England favourites to avoid a 5-0 series whitewash.After his wonderful run in 2002 Vaughan had seen the New Year in with a duck, but he bounced back at the first opportunity with another sublime innings, studded with a six and 16 fours, to give England a 217-run lead. It was his seventh ton in the last 12 Tests and took his Ashes tally to 563 runs – the highest by an England batsman in Australia since Geoff Boycott scored 657 and John Edrich 648 on the victorious 1970-71 tour.England lost Marcus Trescothick early, chopping on to his stumps to give Brett Lee his 100th Test wicket. Vaughan then played the starring role in an 87-run partnership with Mark Butcher (34), before the Surrey left-hander was caught by Matthew Hayden at short leg, getting a glove to a spinning delivery from Stuart MacGill.Vaughan then shared an unbroken third-wicket partnership of 94 with his captain Nasser Hussain, who ended the day unbeaten on 34. Vaughan’s innings was not without good fortune; he twice edged MacGill just short of slip, and was dropped on 102 when he pulled Damien Martyn to Justin Langer at mid-wicket.After being 150 for five yesterday, Australia did remarkably well to overhaul England’s first-innings total, albeit by only one run. Resuming on 237 for five, their innings this morning was dominated by Gilchrist. He hit a brilliant 133 off just 121 balls, dominating a stand of 82 runs for the ninth wicket with Jason Gillespie.Matthew Hoggard took three wickets to give England the initiative first thing. Steve Waugh fell almost immediately, failing to add to his overnight 102 before edging a widish ball to Mark Butcher at second slip. To the delight of the Barmy Army Hoggard then took two wickets off successive balls, and almost repeated Darren Gough’s achievement in claiming a hat-trick in the corresponding Test here four years ago.Andy Bichel, who had been lucky not to be sent on his way by Russell Tiffin when he gloved Hoggard to Alec Stewart behind the stumps in the Yorkshireman’s previous over, was the first of the two to go, caught by John Crawley in the gully as he tried to cut. Lee fell to the next ball, edging a full-length delivery to Stewart, and Gillespie was within a whisker of departing to his first ball in like manner.Gilchrist rarely wastes time at the crease, so it was no surprise to see him grasp the situation by the scruff. He took 24 off his next 15 balls to put Australia within reach of England’s total, before edging Steve Harmison to Stewart. Gillespie (31*) then took his side into a one-run lead before last man Stuart MacGill holed out to Hussain at mid-on, giving Hoggard his fourth wicket of the innings.

Ed: Maria Naureen is our correspondent from Karachi, a FM 101 radio talk-show host, cricket radio commentator and sports journalist

Sunderland are currently battling for a place in the play-offs in their attempt to get out of League One and back up to the Championship.

Alex Neil’s side are sixth in the table as it stands and have seven games left to make sure that they are in with a shot of returning to the second tier.

It is a grim reality for Black Cats fans as their team scrap for a play-off place in the third tier after many years of competing in the Premier League in recent history.

Some supporters may look back on decisions that the club made over the years and pick out moments which led to where they are now, and one of those could be the departure of John Egan.

The current Sheffield United defender came up through the youth ranks at the Stadium of Light and went out on loan to a number of Football League clubs before being released in 2014, duly signing for Gillingham on a free transfer.

This decision ended up being a huge howler by the Wearside, club as he has since gone on to forge an impressive career, joining the Blades in 2018 after spending two years with Brentford after leaving Gillingham.

He has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.98 or higher in all four of his Championship campaigns for the Bees and United combined to date. The Republic of Ireland international is an outstanding player in the second tier and his market value represents that, as shown in the graphic below.

Transfermarkt currently value him at £6.3m and he has proven that he can play in the top two divisions in England, whilst Sunderland remain in the third tier for now.

In his debut season in the Premier League for the Blades in 2019/20, he averaged a sublime SofaScore rating of 6.96 across 36 matches. He made 2.8 tackles and interceptions per game and won 61% of his overall duels in the top flight as he flexed his defensive strength.

Although his side ended up being relegated in the following campaign, he still averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 6.75 as he played 31 times. This shows that he is capable of producing quality at the top level and being a reliable defender.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

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Earlier this season, Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny claimed that Egan could “play in the Champions League” after helping his team to keep a clean sheet against Portugal. His strong statistics in his first top-flight campaign suggest that he has the potential to do so, with his international boss – who sees him in the flesh in matches and in training – believing that the 29-year-old is Champions League quality.

Therefore, the Black Cats had a howler with Egan, as they were unable to tap into his potential and gained nothing from his success as they lost him on a free transfer, and they have had to watch on as he caught the eye in the Premier League and at international level.

AND in other news, Huge boost as Neil handed big Sunderland injury lift which will leave supporters delighted…

South Africa 176 for 4 (Duminy 79*) beat West Indies 175 (Sammy 51, Morton 41) by six wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	JP Duminy kept his cool with 79, his highest ODI score © Cricinfo Ltd

A bustling unbeaten 79 from JP Duminy helped South Africa to a six-wicket win in the opening game of this five-ODI series at Centurion. They strolled home with two overs in the bank but that hides the fact that they had more than a few uneasy moments during their chase.The match, reduced to 36 overs a side after heavy overnight rain, followed a similar pattern to Friday’s Twenty20. South Africa’s bowlers took an early stranglehold, West Indies battled back, South Africa’s batsmen wobbled before their strength in depth enabled them to secure victory. Two days ago Shaun Pollock was the hero; today it was JP Duminy.Chasing a modest 176, South Africa got off to a shocking start, losing both openers inside four overs. Jacques Kallis and Duminy were building a good recovery when light rain started to fall. All eyes turned to the Duckworth-Lewis calculations, something that still tends to cause nightmares in these parts, and the possibility of an artificial finish appeared to rattle the batsmen. Kallis fell to add to dressing-room jitters, but as the weather eased Duminy and Justin Ontong regained their composure and took charge. West Indies, hampered by a wet outfield and a soggy ball, were not helped by the conditions, although their cause was further hindered by some dreadful fielding as the match slipped from their grasp.That it was Duminy, one of their new boys, that anchored the chase was the icing on the cake for South Africa. Too often it has been left to the old guard to dig them out of trouble, but his innings was measured, his shot selection sound, and more importantly he did not panic even when the rain was falling.West Indies again looked at least one bowler light and Bravo, who had said before the start he could not bowl, felt the need to bring himself on. It almost worked as he removed Ontong with a brilliant diving caught-and-bowled in his first over, but thereafter he looked like a man uneasy with his body. That he felt that he had no option but to haul himself into the attack underlined the lack of faith in some of the other options.In fairness to West Indies, it was to their credit that they made a match of it at all after they were stuck in in seamer-friendly conditions and then slid to 81 for 6. The rain juiced up the pitch and South Africa’s impressive all-seam attack did the rest. It took a solid seventh-wicket stand of 69 between Darren Sammy and Runako Morton and then some old-fashioned hitting late on to boost them to 175.The seamers bowled a nagging length which prevented the batsmen from getting onto the front foot, and the middle order came and went in a flurry of shots born out of frustration.What will concern South Africa is the way that once again they failed to finish the job after doing all the hard work. There was some excellent fielding, none better than Pollock’s pinpoint return to the keeper from long-on to run out Morton, but there was too much sloppy stuff in among it.Had the match gone to the wire then South Africa would also have had some justification to gripe about the umpires who twice in as many overs declined to refer run-out appeals when replays showed the batsmen to be short of their ground. It was either incompetence or a show of solidarity with Steve Bucknor, but there would have been far more of a stink had West Indies won by the odd run or two.The two sides now head to Cape Town for the second match on Friday. West Indies have lost four on the trot and despite twice hauling themselves back into games after poor starts, they have nothing to show for all their efforts. They need to get a win or their morale could start to drain away rapidly.