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FIFA says several upcoming matches will have more than 50,000 fans, including Real Madrid vs CF Pachuca, Al Hilal and FC Salzburg

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Some 1.5 million tickets sold to Club World Cup matchesFans from 130 countries are attendingStill some concern over matches in Orlando and Atlanta
Watch every FIFA Club World Cup game free on DAZNStream nowAFPWHAT HAPPENED?

More than 1.5 million tickets have been sold to fans from more than 130 countries for the 2025 Club World Cup that kicked off last weekend with a newly expanded format, FIFA said on Tuesday.

More than 340,000 fans attended the first eight matches across the United States, which according to FIFA, is a tournament record. The highest-attended match was PSG vs. Atletico Madrid, with 80,619 fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Inter Miami's tournament debut against Al Ahly drew 60,927 to Hard Rock Stadium in Florida.

Still, it wasn't all positive for FIFA.

Chelsea, a two-time Champions League winner, only drew an estimated 22,000 in their match against LAFC to Atlanta's Mercedes Benz Stadium, which has a capacity of 71,000. There was some speculation that attendance was depressed because tickets were originally purchased by fans of Club Leon, the Liga MX side that was expelled from the CWC because of multi-club ownership violations, and replaced three weeks ago by LAFC.

There was a similar showing for Dortmund's 0-0 draw against Fluminense, with roughly half of MetLife stadium filled in New Jersey. Attendance was especially sparse in Orlando. While neither team is a global soccer heavyweight, the Mamelodi Sundowns' 1-0 win over Ulsan was played in front of just 3,412 fans at the 25,000 Inter&Co Stadium.

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According to FIFA, the following group stage matches are expected to have more than 50,000 fans in attendance: Real Madrid's games against CF Pachuca, Al Hilal, and FC Salzburg; FC Bayern Munich's clash against Boca Juniors in Miami; and Flamengo against Chelsea FC in Philadelphia.

The 63-match competition will conclude with July 13 final at MetLife Stadium.

AFPWHAT GIANNI INFANTINO SAID

"This is exactly what the FIFA Club World Cup was created for: a world-class stage where new stories are told, new heroes emerge, and club football fans feel part of something bigger," FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement. "FIFA is proud of the unique and multicultural atmosphere and support this new competition has already generated – and thanks every fan who has brought their voice, passion, and presence as the FIFA Club World Cup continues to grow into the undisputed pinnacle of global club football."

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DID YOU KNOW?

The tournament features teams from 20 countries and players from 81, which FIFA says is its most inclusive competition in the organization's history.

Former England manager Fabio Capello has urged Juventus to sign struggling Manchester United forward Joshua Zirkzee.

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Capello makes series of transfer verdictsHeaps praise on ZirkzeeSuggests potential Juventus moveFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

In his latest column for La Gazzetta dello Sport, the highly decorated Italian coach commented on several key European football transfer rumours. As well as saying Kevin De Bruyne had a huge amount to offer his new club Napoli, Capello also made a more surprising tip, claiming that out-of-form United striker Zirkzee could potentially be a very successful signing for Serie A titans Juventus.

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With Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic widely expected to leave Juventus this summer, the pressure is on for the Old Lady to sign a replacement, and according to the former England boss, they could do worse than Zirkzee. He may not have shined in the Premier League for United yet, but Capello reckons he's got serious potential.

WHAT CAPELLO SAID

Capello wrote: “Let me get straight to Joshua Zirkzee, who has shown flashes of real class in Serie A. He has had troubles at Manchester United, and it might already be time to bring the Dutchman back to Italy. He would cost less than someone like Gyokeres, who has been linked with Juventus, as I see. Although the Swede has been a prolific goal scorer at Sporting CP, he has never played in a top-tier league like ours. I think it’s wiser to opt for a more proven option, such as the former Bologna man.”

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Getty WHAT NEXT FOR JUVENTUS?

Zirkzee's fate is very much dependent on the movement of other players, with Gyokeres continuing to push for a move away from Sporting and Juventus one of the front runners to sign the Swede. If another club beat them to it, Zirkzee could become an alternative, although he may not even be on Juve's radar. At this stage, the hectic transfer domino effect that takes place each summer is yet to fully kick into gear.

كشفت تقارير صحفية عن موقف البرازيلي جورجي جيسوس، من تدريب الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي النصر السعودي الموسم المقبل.

ورحل الإيطالي ستيفانو بيولي، عن تدريب النصر بسبب سوء النتائج التي عانى منها الفريق الموسم الماضي.

وقال فابريزيو رومانو، الصحفي الموثوق في أخبار الانتقالات والتعاقدات، أن جورجي جيسوس وافق على تدريب النصر بدءًا من الموسم المقبل وسيتقاضى نصف الأجر الذي كان يتقاضاه مع الهلال.

اقرأ أيضًا | مقابل نصف راتبه مع الهلال.. النصر ينتظر رد المدرب البرتغالي جيسوس

وفقًا لـ رومانو، فإن كريستيانو رونالدو أيضًا قد وافق على جيسوس لتدريب النصر الموسم المقبل ورحب بالفكرة وفقًا للنتائج الإيجابية التي حققها مع الهلال.

وأنهى جيسوس مشواره مع الهلال بعد الخروج من دوري أبطال آسيا للنخبة أمام نظيره أهلي جدة، حيث قاد الفريق في 99 مباراة حقق خلالهم 80 فوزًا، و10 تعادلات، وتعرض لـ 9 هزائم فقط.

واستطاع جيسوس حصد 4 ألقاب محلية وهي لقب الدوري، كأس الملك ولقبين في السوبر السعودي، مما جعله يحظى بتقدير فني كبير.

🚨 Jorge Jesus has agreed to become new Al Nassr head coach 💛💙🇵🇹

Former Al Hilal manager will be unveiled soon as deal has been agreed for Jesus to become Al Nassr coach, as per @Santi_J_FM.

Cristiano Ronaldo also approved him as coach. ✅🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/Z29WWusIk0 — Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 28, 2025

West Ham United being in the hunt for a striker this summer is no secret and sporting director Mark Noble is continuing to spearhead talks over the potential arrival of an exciting talent, per a report.

West Ham United's desperate hunt for a striker

Unfortunately, Michael Antonio and Niclas Fullkrug’s bad luck with injuries has left the Hammers short in attack this campaign, leading the likes of Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen and even Lucas Paqueta to feature as auxiliary strikers.

Danny Ings has featured from the bench at times while Evan Ferguson has offered further support, but nobody has really grasped the nettle for West Ham in their time of need.

Graham Potter will be grateful that his side have done enough to stave off Premier League relegation barring an unmitigated disaster. Nevertheless, the need for a new spearhead in the forward line couldn’t be any more abundant at the London Stadium.

Exploring rumoured names, Lille’s Jonathan David is said to be high on West Ham’s wishlist amid his availability on a free transfer. Arsenal and Barcelona are also in the mix for his signature, though the former Chelsea boss is looking to push through a deal.

Strasbourg’s Emanuel Emegha is another on the Hammers’ radar and there are murmurs that more than one attacker could join the Potter revolution in light of their frustrations in front of goal.

West Ham make offer for 104-career goal forward with £83m release clause

He’s been on the radar for some time.

ByCharlie Smith Mar 21, 2025

Only five teams have scored less than the Irons in the 2024/25 top-flight, signifying that assets for now and the future are necessary to evade their recent profligacy in years to come.

Noble will already feel he is being put through his paces to try and identify potential reinforcements, and he may be about to strike lucky in pursuit of a talented young forward.

West Ham continue talks to sign Celtic forward Daniel Cummings

Per Claret and Hugh, West Ham remain in talks to sign Celtic forward Daniel Cummings, who is out of contract at the end of the season. The Irons initially tryied to prize him away from the Glasgow giants in January and are still trying to do so.

Noble is said to be a central feature in discussions and the Hammers are aware that the Scotland youth international wants guarantees that he will be there or thereabouts in the first-team picture next season.

Daniel Cummings’ tally for Celtic first-team and Celtic B – 2024/25

Appearances

33

Goals

29

Assists

0

Dubbed “sensational” by Celtic B professional player pathway manager Darren O’Dea, he is someone who the Bhoys have tried and failed to tie down for several months despite his appearance in their Champions League defeat away to Aston Villa during the league phase.

The Hoops have their eye on Dundee United’s Owen Stirton as a potential replacement, indicating they are at the point of setting contingency plans in place should the young talent depart for cross-border compensation.

West Ham are in pole position to take advantage of his availability, but talks are yet to reach a conclusion, meaning there is still work to be done on that front.

Jofra Archer was absent from Mumbai Indians’ line-up for their seven-wicket defeat to Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday evening. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Archer experienced discomfort in his right elbow immediately after his first game of the season against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 2.Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai captain, when asked by Ravi Shastri at the toss about injuries replied, “one injury.” He then quickly corrected himself to say, “not an injury actually, more of a precaution” before confirming that Archer was sitting out.It is understood that Archer has not bowled since that match although he did turn up for one of Mumbai’s training sessions this week. He travelled to the Wankhede with the rest of the squad but warmed up away from his team-mates, undergoing short running and throwing drills.”He’s picked up a little niggle,” Mark Boucher, Mumbai’s head coach, said after the match. “We’ve got a fantastic medical team that are looking after him. He’s obviously a massive player for us, so hopefully they can pass him fit sometime soon.”We will always look after the player, so if he’s not ready to put his hand up to play then we’ll look after him as well, but we’re following medical advice from our team at the moment. Hopefully he’s up for selection pretty soon.”Related

• Deepak Chahar to undergo scans to determine extent of hamstring injury

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• As it happened: MI vs CSK

Mumbai bought Archer for INR 8 crore (£800,000 approx) last year, even though they knew he wouldn’t be able to play IPL 2022. Saturday’s game was his debut for the franchise, having previously represented Rajasthan Royals. He went wicketless, giving away 33 runs in his four-overs spell as Royal Challengers cruised to victory.Having broken onto the scene as a generational talent, Archer suffered a major injury setback in 2021 when he began to have trouble with the same right elbow that is causing concern now. The England fast bowler had to undergo two operations for it, and missed nearly two years of international cricket after suffering a lower-back stress fracture during his rehabilitation.He had only just returned to cricket in January this year, playing for another Mumbai franchise – MI Cape Town – in the SA20. In total, Archer has played 10 T20s and four ODIs since his comeback. The 28 year-old has been careful about doing too much too soon and is already seeing the possibility of playing anything more than one Ashes Test – the five-match series begins on June 16 – as a bonus.

Super Kings without Stokes and Moeen

Ben Stokes, Archer’s England captain, was also ruled out of Saturday night’s fixture. Stokes said earlier this week that he had bowled “pain-free” during Super Kings’ victory over Lucknow Super Giants on Monday night, but reports emerged on Friday night that he had a sore heel after training. Stokes has been clear that he wants to be fit and ready for the new English summer, which begins with a Test against Ireland on June 1 and leads into the Ashes.Archer, Stokes travelled to the Wankede on Saturday night but took minimal part in the team’s warm-ups. The franchise clarified on Sunday afternoon that Stokes was “nursing a minor toe injury” which he had sustained in training.A third England player, Moeen Ali, was also ruled out of the game due to illness. Moeen played in both of Super Kings’ first two matches of the 2023 season and addressed a press conference on Friday evening, but Dhoni said he was “not well” at the toss.Deepak Chahar was added to this list when the game began, the fast bowler only able to complete one over before leaving the field with his left hamstring causing problems. He’s already had a difficult time with injuries to his back and quadricep in 2022.

Ipswich Town have been busy this transfer window to date as the Tractor Boys attempt everything in their power to save their skin in the Premier League.

Three new signings have joined the building in the form of Jaden Philogene-Bidace, Ben Godfrey and Julio Enciso, with some more fresh faces expected in through the door before Monday’s deadline.

Ipswich could look to boost their numbers in the striker position between now and then, with the Suffolk side lacking in depth up top away from main man Liam Delap.

Ipswich's other striker options

The relegation-threatened outfit only really have George Hirst in reserve in case Delap is having a rare off-day, owing to the fact Ali Al-Hamadi is now out on loan at Stoke City until the end of the campaign.

Hirst isn’t exactly firing on all cylinders either away from Al-Hamadi’s January exit, with the 25-year-old’s bad luck with injuries also a big worry for McKenna.

He did fire home seven goals last season as a reliable source of strikes in tense moments, but the 25-year-old only has one goal next to his name this time around up a league, with 12 clashes already missed through injury.

Therefore, he can’t be the only other option up top away from Delap who does have a stunning eight strikes on his Premier League resume, but has shown in recent games that he can’t be deadly machine all of the time particularly when facing off against some of the division’s elite clubs.

Off the back of this, McKenna could be eyeing up some fresh blood in the striker department with Ipswich now sniffing around for his former top-flight ace.

Ipswich could land dream Hirst upgrade

As reported earlier this week by Turkish outlet Milliyet, Ipswich seemingly made an attempt to land Galatasaray centre-forward Michy Batshuayi.

The ex-Chelsea man is also being looked at by West Ham United according to the report, with a further detail revealing that bids around the £4.1m mark have been fielded by the top-flight clubs to try and land the Belgian.

Whilst Batshuayi would obviously find it difficult to displace Delap as the leading marksman, he would no doubt give the ex-Manchester City star greater competition than Hirst is currently offering up when taking a quick glance at his Super Lig numbers.

The Galatasaray number 44 has bagged a reasonable seven goals in all competitions this season, which is just one off Delap’s Premier League tally, with the 31-year-old an impressive watch in the past when situated on English shores.

Looking at the table above, the nomadic attacker has often proven himself to be “deadly” – as he was once labelled by football journalist Josh Bunting – wherever he’s jumped ship to, with a promising 15 goals coming his way in the English top-flight previously.

McKenna could, therefore, utilise Batshuayi as an impact option off the bench when Delap is tiring or misfiring with the Ipswich boss perhaps more confident that the former Blues man can cut it at such a high level when compared next to Hirst.

The £80k-per-week forward will also feel there’s unfinished business for him in the Premier League having once been touted for greatness at Stamford Bridge, with the Belgian becoming an instant hero at Portman Road if he can chip in with a key goal or two to help his new team stave off relegation.

Hutchinson 2.0: Ipswich lodge enquiry to sign a "superstar in the making"

Ipswich Town could land this exciting youngster before the transfer window slams shut.

By
Kelan Sarson

Jan 28, 2025

South Australia lost their last five wickets for 21 runs on the second morning

AAP12-Nov-2022Sam Whiteman and Cameron Bancroft scored unbeaten centuries to put Western Australia in the box seat for their Sheffield Shield clash with South Australia at the WACA Ground.On a dream day for Western Australia, Lance Morris woke from his slumber as the Warriors team claimed 5 for 21 to dismiss South Australia for 299.In reply, Whiteman (131*) and Bancroft (117*) put the Redbacks’ attack to the sword as Western Australia finished day two at a commanding none for 256.Whiteman entered the match on the back of a pair of ducks in the recent Shield win over Queensland. But it was a different story for on Saturday as the 30-year-old cashed in to post his tenth first-class century.Bancroft, who scored 141 in last summer’s Shield final, was just as dominant in posting his second ton of the season.The unbeaten opening stand put Western Australia in prime position to build a big first-innings lead and snare a win that will help them retake top spot from Queensland.The Redbacks resumed play on day two well placed at 5 for 276, but they lost their last five wickets cheaply to be all out for 299. Paceman Matthew Kelly finished with 5 for 34 off 27 overs to be Western Australia’s best bowler, but it was Morris (4-93) who caused the bulk of the destruction on day two.Morris, who can bowl in excess of 150kmh, returned figures of 1 for 75 off 18 overs on Friday. But he came out breathing fire on Saturday on the way to figures of 3 for 18 during the morning session.South Australia lost three wickets for no run during a horror start to the day, with Morris the one who sparked the downfall.Harry Nielsen (38) was the first to fall when his attempt to fend off a fierce Morris bouncer resulted in a catch to a diving Teague Wyllie at short leg. Two balls later Nathan McSweeney (67) fell to Kelly, and Morris continued the destruction with the scalp of Ben Manenti for a duck.Kelly and Morris claimed one more wicket each to wrap up the innings, before Bancroft and Whiteman took the game away from the Redbacks.

أعلن روبن أموريم، المدير الفني لفريق مانشستر يونايتد، تشكيل اللاعبين لخوض مباراة توتنهام هوتسبير في منافسات الدوري الأوروبي لموسم 2024/2025.

ويلاقي مانشستر يونايتد نظيره توتنهام هوتسبير في نهائي بطولة الدوري الأوروبي، في نظامها الجديد على ملعب “سان ماميس”، في تمام الساعة العاشرة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة.

اقرأ ايضاً.. موعد والقناة الناقلة لمباراة مانشستر يونايتد وتوتنهام اليوم في نهائي الدوري الأوروبي.. والمعلق

وتأهل مانشستر يونايتد إلى منافسات نهائي الدوري الأوروبي، عقب تخطي أتلتيك بلباو، بينما نجح توتنهام في العبور إلى الدور ذاته عقب فوزه على بودو جليمت.

ويدخل كلا الفريقين سعياً لتحقيق اللقب الأوروبي لإنقاذ الموسم، أملاً في المشاركة بدوري أبطال أوروبا في العام المقبل 2025/26.

حيث شهد هذا الموسم تراجعا كبيرا في مستوى مانشستر يونايتد وتوتنهام في مسابقة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، حيث يتواجدان في المركزي السادس عشر والسابع عشر في ترتيب البطولة المحلية. تشكيل مانشستر يونايتد أمام توتنهام في الدوري الأوروبي

حراسة المرمى: أونانا.

خط الدفاع: نصير مزراوي، هاري ماجواير، ليني يورو، لوك شو، دورجو.

خط الوسط: كاسيميرو، ماسون ماونت، برونو فيرنانديز.

خط الهجوم: أماد ديالو، راسموس هويلوند.

It’s all led to this.

Do us proud, Reds ✊#MUFC || #UELfinal — Manchester United (@ManUtd) May 21, 2025

Throughout the 2024/25 Championship campaign, Leeds United have possessed the most potent attack in the division, scoring 48 times in 26 outings – with no side scoring more to date.

Joel Piroe has been the leading lad for Daniel Farke’s side, scoring ten times in his opening 26 matches, with the Dutchman the only man into double figures so far.

Such a record in the final third has been all the more impressive considering the club lost two of their biggest stars in the form of Georginio Rutter and Crysencio Summerville over the summer after failing to secure promotion.

The German has been superb since arriving at Elland Road back in the summer of 2023, trying to add yet another second-division promotion to his already impressive CV.

However, he’s been unable to rely on one player who’s been unable to produce the goods in front of goals for the Whites over the last couple of months.

The latest on Patrick Bamford's future at Leeds

Striker Patrick Bamford was for a long time the club’s main man within the final third, but over the last few months, his performance levels have significantly dropped – resulting in him losing his starting role.

The Englishman has failed to find the back of the net since the victory against Middlesbrough back in April, currently enduring a nine month spell without a goal.

Such a run is made even more crazy when knowing that the 31-year-old is currently the club’s highest earner, pocketing a mammoth £70k-per-week, completely overpaying for a player who has struggled in recent times.

However, despite the lack of form, Bamford has attracted big interest from various sides across the EFL including Blackburn Rovers and Wrexham – with Farke desperately needing to cash in on the first team ace given the interest.

Undoubtedly, the lack of options at the top end of the pitch could see Bamford have to wait for a move to materialise elsewhere, but it’s crucial that the hierarchy move him on before the end of the month.

Such a transfer away from Elland Road could allow the boss to reignite a move for a player who was touted with a move to Yorkshire over the last couple of weeks.

Farke could end Bamford’s Leeds career with £8.5m talisman

Just prior to Christmas, it was reported that Leeds were monitoring Hammarby IF striker Jusef Erabi over a potential move during the January window.

The interest came after previously following the 21-year-old during the summer, with this month presenting another opportunity for Farke’s side to secure a move for the youngster.

The previous report stated that Erabi’s current side wanted a fee in the region of £8.5m for his services, but it’s unclear if the Whites would pay such a fee in January for the talent.

However, should they decide to move for the “prolific” Swede, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, he would provide the added ammunition to the current squad to bolster their promotion ambitions.

Erabi has scored nine times in this calendar year for Hammarby, massively outscoring current Leeds ace Bamford, with a move allowing him to provide needed competition to Piroe in attacking areas.

He’s also achieved a much higher shot-on-target accuracy rate, highlighting his clinical edge in front of goal, allowing Farke’s side to increase their already potent record in 2024/25.

Games played

23

10

Minutes played

1670

133

Goals & assists

10

0

Shot-on-target accuracy

43%

10%

Fouls won

1.8

0.7

Times caught offside

0.7

1.3

The youngsters’ stats demonstrate the quality he possesses, with the £8.5m fee potentially seeming like a huge price tag, but one that could turn out to be a shrewd investment should he improve further as a result of any move.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

It may seem harsh that Bamford has been pushed ever closer to the exit door in Yorkshire over recent weeks, but it’s a surprise to no one given his lack of form with a move away from Elland Road desperately needed to reignite his confidence in attacking areas.

The hole vacated by the 31-year-old could make Erabi the perfect option to fill the void, allowing the club to make a huge leap in their ambitions of returning to the Premier League come the end of May.

Farke eyeing big January signing in "tremendous" Rutter repeat for Leeds

Leeds United appear to be targeting reinforcements all over the pitch this January.

1 ByEthan Lamb Jan 16, 2025

Simon Harmer’s 50 another fine effort as Essex rally after Worrall’s 3 for 0 in five balls

ECB Reporters Network19-Jul-2022

Adam Rossington and Dan Worrall were the first-day heroes at the Kia Oval, with No. 7 Rossington scoring an extraordinary 100 and Worrall bowling brilliantly to take 6 for 56 as Surrey and Essex traded fierce blows in blistering conditions.Rossington rushed to his century with an exhilarating assault on the second new ball, in Essex’s 271 all out, clubbing Kemar Roach for three leg-side sixes before wearily skying the same bowler to long on in the 83rd over.Simon Harmer’s 50 was another fine effort as Essex rallied hard after Worrall had earlier taken 3 for 0 in five balls as the LV= Insurance County Championship leaders initially reduced their opponents to 91 for 6 by lunch.In 9.1 overs’ batting before stumps, Surrey replied with 24 for 1 with Ryan Patel, pushing forward, caught at second slip for 4 off Sam Cook from what proved to be the final ball of the day. Rory Burns remained 18 not out.The determined seventh-wicket stand of 113 in 41 overs between Rossington and Harmer held up Surrey for more than two-and-a-half hours and blunted an attack that had looked unstoppable in the morning session.Worrall, Roach and Jamie Overton were all highly impressive in a sustained, top-class exhibition of pacy swing bowling, with only Alastair Cook resisting for long in the opening session as Surrey’s battery of fast and fast-medium bowlers exerted an early stranglehold every bit as oppressive as the near-40 degree temperatures.Kemar Roach celebrates taking the wicket of Matt Critchley•Getty Images for Surrey CCC

Nick Browne got to 10 with a couple of flowing off-side strokes before Roach shaped one away from the left-hander from around the wicket to force him to thin-edge to keeper Ben Foakes in the fifth over.And although Tom Westley did well to dig out a searing Roach yorker early on as he reached 11, helping Cook to take Essex to 50, the Essex captain became the first of three strikes in quick succession by Worrall when he played around a straight ball and was bowled by the Australian’s third ball back into the attack.Worrall then pinned Dan Lawrence leg-before for 0 with his next ball and, with the first ball of his next over, made one climb steeply at Paul Walter to have the tall left-hander caught at leg slip off the glove.Matt Critchley narrowly survived two confident lbw appeals by Worrall, who was combining sharp outswing and inswing with exemplary control, and Essex did well almost to reach the sanctuary of the lunch interval before Surrey’s quicker bowlers intervened again.Overton, reintroduced five minutes before the break by Surrey captain Burns for a second spell – this time from the Vauxhall End – angled his second ball across Cook to have England’s record Test run-getter well held by Ollie Pope at second slip for a 75-ball 29.Roach then bowled Critchley for 21 off an inside edge and both Rossington and Harmer had to negotiate a number of leg-before appeals in the afternoon session before reaching tea at 194 for 6.Rossington, on 16, also edged a brute of a ball from Overton just out of third slip’s reach for four and, on 28, was close to being lbw to Tom Lawes. Harmer, for his part, narrowly avoided the umpire’s raised finger against Overton on 6 and Roach on 26. The West Indian paceman, in particular, looked distraught at the not out decision.Fourth-placed Essex, starting this game on the back of three successive championship wins but still 47 points adrift of Surrey, albeit with a game in hand, had chosen to bat on a well-grassed surface and Rossington’s heroics made sure they reached a competitive total.Harmer, having faced 147 balls, was finally lbw to Worrall, who then trapped Shane Snater in front two balls later to leave Essex 204 for 8.But tailender Sam Cook’s unbeaten 21 was a more than useful hand as 58 more runs were added with Rossington for the ninth wicket. After Rossington had gone to Roach (3 for 63) for his superb 151-ball and 227-minute effort, featuring those three late sixes and nine fours besides, Worrall finished the innings by having last man Jamie Porter leg-before for a duck.