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Nottingham Forest’s season took a worrying turn recently after the devastating news that Chris Wood faces further months on the sidelines.

The New Zealand international underwent knee surgery over the Christmas period and his lengthy absence has forced Sean Dyche into immediate action in the January transfer window.

Wood’s injury could not have come at a worse time for Forest, even if they’ve just put serious ground between them and the bottom three with a stunning 2-1 win at West Ham.

The 34-year-old was the club’s top scorer last season with 20 Premier League goals and provided the perfect focal point for Dyche’s direct style of play, but he is yet to feature under him.

Wood’s physical presence and ability to hold up play created space for attacking midfielders Morgan Gibbs-White and Anthony Elanga to exploit.

Without Wood, Forest’s attacking options look alarmingly thin. Dyche has been left relying on Igor Jesus and Arnaud Kalimuendo, but the latter could be heading for the exit door with Eintracht Frankfurt still closing in on a loan deal.

Forest were reportedly not planning significant January business before Wood’s injury forced their hand.

The club had stabilized under Dyche following Ange Postecoglou’s brief and unsuccessful spell in charge earlier in the season. However, the loss of their main goal threat has transformed the window from optional to essential, with recruitment now viewed as a risk assessment rather than a luxury.

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As such, the City Ground hierarchy moved quickly to identify potential replacements for Wood.

Nottingham Forest approach Jorgen Strand Larsen over January move

Indeed, according to a report from Pete O’Rourke on X in the last hour, Forest have sounded out Wolves striker Jorgen Strand Larsen over a potential move this month.

As well as this, while the Premier League’s bottom side aren’t exactly itching to do a deal, they are in fact open to selling for the right offer.

The Old Gold striker seems to have emerged as Forest’s number one target to solve their attacking crisis.

Dyche requires a specific profile up front and Strand Larsen could fit the physical requirements perfectly. The Norwegian offers Premier League experience and the necessary strength to occupy defenders, exactly what Forest need to maintain their direct approach.

Forest now sit seven points above the drop zone while Wolves lie at the foot of the table with just one win from 20 matches.

Selling a key asset to a direct competitor makes little sense for Rob Edwards’ side, but their increasingly desperate financial situation could force their hand if the right price arrives.

Strand Larsen’s struggles this season have been remarkable given his excellent debut campaign.

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The forward scored 14 Premier League goals last season after joining initially on loan from Celta Vigo before the move was made permanent last summer.

However, he has managed just one league goal this term, coming from the penalty spot, and his form has nosedived alongside Wolves’ catastrophic campaign.

That being said, the 25-year-old has showcased he can cut it in England based off last season’s heroics, and he’s been called a centre-forward of ‘tremendous’ potential.

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The January transfer window is now officially open for business and Celtic are not wasting any time in their pursuit of additions to Wilfried Nancy’s squad.

Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph claims that the Hoops have made an approach to Bournemouth in an attempt to sign right-back Julian Araujo on loan for the second half of the season.

However, the reporter adds that the Cherries already have their maximum number of international loans, which means that the Scottish Premiership giants will need to wait for them to recall one of them before they can seal a deal for the Mexico international.

Football FanCast recently published an article explaining how a move for Araujo could end Anthony Ralston’s career at Parkhead, as it could leave him short of game time and left to consider his future at the club.

Celtic showing interest in signing new winger

However, the reigning Scottish Premiership champions are now reportedly keen on a player who could be an even better signing than Araujo this month.

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According to journalist Martin Charquero, Celtic are “interested” in a deal to sign Red Bull Bragantino winger Ignacio Laquintana in the January transfer window.

The reporter claims that the Hoops want to bring the Uruguayan attacker to Parkhead this month, and that a transfer could take place before the European window slams shut.

Charquero, however, does not reveal how much money it would take to convince Bragantino to part ways with the 26-year-old forward in the coming weeks.

Laquintina’s current contract with the Brazilian side is due to expire at the end of this year. This means that the Serie A outfit do not have many more chances to cash in on him if he does not put pen to paper on an extension, possibly giving Celtic an advantage in negotiations.

Why Celtic should sign Laquintana

The Hoops should look to get a deal over the line for the Uruguay international because he could be what they have been missing on the right flank, and be an even better signing than Araujo.

Whilst the Bournemouth defender would be a shrewd short-term loan signing to replace Anthony Ralston, Alistair Johnston is set to return from injury in March, which could make Araujo the second-choice right-sided centre-back option at that point.

Laquintana, meanwhile, could come in as the bona fide first-choice option as the right wing-back, which is essentially a right winger role, in Nancy’s 3-4-2-1 system, as the Hoops are still looking for their Nicolas Kuhn replacement.

The German forward, as shown in the graphic above, provided plenty of goals and assists on the right flank during his time at Parkhead, before a £16.5m move to Como in the summer.

Hyun-jun Yang and James Forrest have scored two goals and provided zero assists in 26 combined appearances in the Premiership this season, per WhoScored, after the club opted not to sign a natural right wing replacement for Kuhn.

2025 Brasileirao

Laquintana

Appearances

23

Starts

13

xG

1.66

Goals

4

Key passes

16

Big chances created

4

Assists

3

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, Laquintana scored four goals and provided three assists in just 13 starts for Bragantino during the 2025 Brasileirao campaign, which shows that he can offer far more of a threat than Yang and Forrest from a right wing position.

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The 26-year-old star, who has scored one goal in two caps for Uruguay this season, has shown that he can be more productive in the final third than Nancy’s current right wing or wing-back options with his form in 2025.

Laquintana, therefore, could be an excellent and much-needed signing to provide the manager with a genuine threat on the right side of the attack, as opposed to Yang and Forrest, who have failed to deliver consistent quality on that flank.

This means that the international forward would fill a bigger hole than the one that Araujo would, as Johnston is due to return as the first-choice in the right-sided centre-back role, and would be a more important signing for the club.

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On top of that, Laquintana would be a permanent signing who could provide quality over the course of several years, instead of being a short-term loan addition like Araujo, which is another reason why he would be a better signing for the Hoops overall than the Bournemouth defender.

Things are looking up for Zaheer Khan, but not for Andrew Strauss © Getty Images

On a day when their new-ball bowlers were smattered in the first session, their third seamer over-stepped on 15 occasions and their fielders let slip three catches, the Indians could take heart from Zaheer Khan’s spell in the middle session, one that read: 7-3-10-2. It was an effort that both Andrew Strauss, captain of the England Lions, and Venkatesh Prasad, India’s bowling coach, spoke highly of and would serve as a consolation at the end of a tough opening day.A year back Zaheer was uttering phrases like “all I want to do is be back in the side” and “I’m desperate to return”. He was at Worcestershire, troubling batsmen in the second division of the County Championship, and doing his best away from the spotlight. It was an experience that got him fitter, gave him a chance to bowl long spells and enabled him to return to England as India’s spearhead. He ended as the highest wicket-taker in the division (78 wickets in 16 games) and helped Worcestershire gain promotion.He wasn’t at his best on the opening day at Chelmsford. He struggled with his length in the first spell, though he got rid of the out-of-form Andrew Strauss, struggled with his line in the second, when he strayed down leg, before turning up for an inspired seven-over burst in the middle.He showed the value of experience – keeping it on and around off – and mixed his length well. Jonathan Trott, who recently made his England one-day debut, was forced to edge to first slip in a sequence that read yorker, slash and miss, leading edge, outside edge. Tim Ambrose, the Lions’ wicketkeeper, was taunted from over-the-wicket before he quickly changed to round the stumps and induced the edge. The bowlers had discussed a specific plan at the lunch break, as Prasad was to reveal later, and decided to avoid the trap of keeping it too full or too short. Bowling back of a length and mixing up the angles worked just fine.”Being a left-armer adds something to your armoury, something most batsman aren’t used to and he can swing it both ways,” said Strauss of Zaheer. “He knows what he’s doing with the ball and is someone to watch out for from the Indian side.”The fact that Sharma sent down 15 no-balls, on a day when he hardly threatened, didn’t seem to worry Prasad. “He’s just 18, he’s bowling well in the nets and this is a chance for him to learn. He’s shown signs of improvement and will be better off after this experience.”But were India anywhere close to deciding their third seamer for the first Test at Lord’s? “RP Singh has been the most impressive,” said Prasad providing a clear indication but quickly added, “Ranadeb Bose and Ishant have done well too. It’s upto the team management to finally decide.”Strauss said he was happy with the total but cautioned that they’d get an indication of how good a total it was only when they bowled on the pitch tomorrow. “Bresnan batted exceptionally well and both he and Broad saved us today,” he said. “Broad showed what talent he has with the bat and Bresnan we all knew had a lot of capability anyway. At 380-odd at the end of the day we’re pretty happy with that, a few guys have shown what they can do.”Strauss himself didn’t make much of an impact though, and couldn’t get much practice before the first Test at Lord’s, starting on July 19. “I was looking forward to getting a big one but there is a second innings to come and hopefully things will turn around. I was feeling pretty jaded at the end of the last Test at Durham [against West Indies] and felt I needed some time away. It was a case of getting myself ready for the Tests and part of it involved technical work indoors before hitting the ground running with Middlesex. Hopefully I can get a good score in the second dig, before the first Test.”

Sachin Tendulkar: advised further rehabilitation © Getty Images

Sachin Tendulkar, who recently ruled himself out of India’s tour to West Indies, has been advised to wait at least another six weeks before returning to competitive cricket. Tendulkar met with the same doctors in London who conducted surgery on his shoulder in March, and it has been decided that he will continue with “a structured rehabilitation programme” of his right shoulder.The medical team at the Hospital of St John and Elizabeth reached the conclusion that Tendulkar, though recovering “well and as expected” was not fit for international competition yet. In a statement released by the hospital, it was reported that his shoulder was now stable and had regained “a full range of motions although strength remains slightly weak”. Though the doctors said that his biceps repair was good, there was still some discomfort in stressing a “weak” tendon.Though the expected timeframe for a recovery from a major tendon stress would be 10 to 12 weeks, the doctors said that in Tendulkar’s case the priority was to regain strength over the next four to six weeks. Tendulkar will be reassessed after a fortnight but will continue his rehabilitation during this time.Meanwhile, Tendulkar has dismissed all suggestions of retirement and insisted that he would continue to compete in both forms of the game.

Bangladesh are planning to stage a one-day tournament in December in a bid to improve their one-day ranking. At the moment, Bangladesh are 11th in the ICC’s rankings, but this will improve to 10th in the coming weeks as some of Kenya’s wins are expunged from the calculations.Under the ICC’s new rules for Champions Trophy qualification, Bangladesh need to be in the top 10 to be part of the play-off between countries ranked from No. 7 to 10 to decide one of two places in the competition.To help do this, Ali Ashgar Lobi, the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s president, told reporters that the board would be looking to stage a triangular one-day series involving Kenya and Zimbabwe, two sides immediately above them in the rankings. Although sources in Kenya indicated that this series would take place in the second week of November, Lobi said that it would be in December or January.Lobi hinted that Chittagong might get the chance of hosting the tournament as there will be no venue in Dhaka at that time.

Chris Read has been named as Nottinghamshire’s captain for this season’s Twenty20 Cup, which comes as some consolation after the harsh manner in which he has been removed from England’s Test and one-day plans.It was Read’s perceived batting weaknesses that led the England selectors to opt for Geraint Jones in both roles, but so far this season, Read had made two centuries in the County Championship, and averages more than 50 in both forms of the game. In addition, his ability to pull out big shots at the latter stages of an innings will stand his team in good stead in the Twenty20 format.”It’s going to be an interesting few weeks for me," admitted Read, whose first match in charge will be against Durham at Trent Bridge on July 2. "I’ll need to learn quickly, but I’m really looking forward to leading out the lads.”

The Board of Control for Cricket (BCCSL) has organized three limited-overpractice games prior to the selection of the Sri Lankan squad to tour the West Indies. The matches will be played on May 25, 26 and 27. Sri Lanka are due toplay three one-day internationals and two Tests in the Caribbean, starting from June 7.Practice match squad: Avishka Gunawardene, Ian Daniel, T.M. Dilshan (wk), Russel Arnold, Upul Chandana, Kaushalya Weereratne, Anushka Polonowita, Chamila Gamage, Michael Vandort, Jehan Mubarak, Dharshana Gamage, Naveed Nawaz, Chamara Silva, Thilan Samaraweera, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Hasantha Fernando, Lanka de Silva, Ravindu Pushpakumara, Taranga Laksitha, Nuwan Zoysa, Ranga Dias, Sujeewa de Silva, Tilan Tushara Mirando, Mudalige Pushpakumara, Malintha Gajanayake, Sahan Wijeratne, Buddhika Fernando, Dinusha Fernando, GayanWeerakoon, Dilhara Fernando

In their final Championship match of the season at Hinkley, Somerset Seconds closed the day 328 behind Leicestershire with nine wickets in hand.The home side batted first and scored 378 for 6 declared with Furnival top scoring with 103. For Somerset Ian Jones took 3 for 88, and Joe Tucker 2 for 55.By close of play on the first day Somerset had moved on to 50 for 1, with Mark Lathwell unbeaten on 27, and David Roberst, a trialist from Northants on 20 not out. The game continues tomorrow.

Usman Khawaja wondered if this moment would ever arrive. When he made his Test debut 1768 days ago, Ricky Ponting was still officially captain (though he did not play that match), Tim Nielsen was coach and Julia Gillard was prime minister. Michael Clarke came and went, then Steven Smith took over. Mickey Arthur came and went, now it’s Darren Lehmann. The prime ministers since then are too numerous to list.Through it all Khawaja kept dreaming, and hoping, and finally his first Test century arrived, late in the afternoon on the first day of the 2015-16 home summer, on his adopted home ground. The release of emotion was obvious in his celebration, a running leap and wave of his bat, before his batting partner and captain, Smith, gave him a hug.”It was just elation, the biggest amount of emotional relief,” Khawaja said. “I’ve wanted to get a Test hundred for Australia my whole life. There were times over the last three or four years I thought it might not happen. When it did happen the build-up of a lot of emotions came out because it’s what I always dreamt about.”The first one is always the hardest, I’ve said, so it’s massive for me. I scored my first first-class century here and now my first Test century. I’m just really excited about the day we’ve had as a team, that’s as good a day as you get. We’ve got a lot of hard work coming up but I’m very excited at the moment. And I like to live in the now, so I’m just enjoying this at the moment.”Khawaja’s hundred came with a swivelled pull for four, and it came from 123 deliveries, an innings in which he showed the kind of positive intent that had sometimes been lacking in his earlier stints as a Test batsman. He lifted the spinner Mark Craig for two classy sixes and never looked like getting bogged down, which had been a problem earlier in his career.”The hard work was done at the top by Davey and Burnsy, they batted beautifully,” Khawaja said of the 161-run opening stand between David Warner and Joe Burns. “It allows us at No. 3 and No. 4 to come out and play a few more shots because the ball is a bit older and the bowlers are a bit tired… It’s a real nice wicket out there and it was easy to play positive for that reason.”I just kept looking to score runs. It makes it easier when you have Davey at the other end, it takes a bit of pressure off you when he’s going, you don’t feel like you have to score very fast. I kept looking for runs, as you do when you’re playing well. Fortunately I got a few in my area and I got off to a flyer, which doesn’t always happen, and kept the momentum going.”There was a moment of concern for Khawaja when he collided with a New Zealand fieldsman while completing a run, and immediately hobbled around in discomfort. Khawaja had surgery on his left knee after suffering a serious injury last summer, but he was able to bat on and complete his hundred without any further problems.”I got a little jar on my left knee, the one I had surgery on,” he said. “It hurt like crap. I was making sure I was all right. It was sore for 10 overs but by the end of it, it was pretty good.”

Darrell Hair will make his return to top-level international umpiring in the second Test between England and New Zealand at Old Trafford on May 23.It will be the first Test he has stood in since the 2006 match between England and Pakistan at The Oval. That became the first game in history to be forfeited after Pakistan refused to take the field following Hair’s ruling that they had tampered with the ball.Hair was subsequently stood down from any matches involved full-member nations, although never officially removed from the Elite panel, but continued to stand in associate games. He took the ICC to court claiming racial discrimination, but withdrew his claims seven days into a tribunal in London last October.He moved back to Australia and went on a six-month rehabilitation course before being reinstated at the ICC’s March meeting in Dubai. Hair will stand alongside fellow Australian Simon Taufel at Old Trafford and will remain for the third Test at Trent Bridge when he’ll be joined by Steve Bucknor.It is still unclear where his long-term future lies as Pakistan have made it clear they don’t want him standing in any of their matches. His current contract runs out in March 2009.