United States forward Ricardo Pepi continued his excellent run of form with a goal that helped PSV Eindhoven beat Utrecht 2-1 on Sunday.

Pepi scored the equaliser for his side to bring his scoring run to four consecutive Eredivisie matches — and furthered his case to start for the USMNT at the World Cup next summer.

PSV found themselves behind in the first half, with hosts Utrecht taking the lead through Mike van der Hoorn. The centre-back got on the end of a pinpoint cross from Siebe Horemans to nod home. While the linesman’s flag was initially raised, a VAR review found van der Hoorn to be onside.

The visitors came out fighting in the second half, and it was the U.S. duo of Sergiño Dest and Pepi who linked up cleverly for the equaliser. Dest got the ball in space on the right of the penalty area, and rolled it with pace — beating two defenders — into the six-yard box to Pepi, who finished first time in the bottom left corner.

Ivan Perišić delivered the winner for PSV 15 minutes before time, finishing off a perfectly executed corner routine. Joey Veerman whipped the ball to the near post, where the Croatian winger had timed his run, allowing him to head past the keeper on his side.

Pepi and Eindhoven’s win extended their lead at the top of the table to 12 points by full time. It was their 15th league win of the season, having only dropped points in two matches.

DUBAI: Asian cricket’s governing body has approved plans to establish state-of-the-art high-performance centres across the region, aiming to strengthen player development in countries lacking modern training facilities, officials said on Tuesday.

The decision was taken at a special meeting of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) held at its headquarters in Dubai and chaired by ACC President Mohsin Naqvi. The centres will be developed in phases and prioritised for Asian member nations that do not currently have access to advanced cricketing infrastructure.

Naqvi said the initiative would play a key role in the long-term growth of the game in the region, adding that the scope of the ACC’s high-performance centres would be expanded gradually.

The meeting also reviewed organisational matters and the successful staging of the Asia Cup Under-19 tournament. Participants expressed appreciation to the ACC for making effective arrangements for the event.

“The successful conduct of the Asia Cup Under-19 is a testament to the collective efforts of the ACC team, which deserves congratulations,” Naqvi said.

The meeting was attended by Bangladesh Cricket Board President Aminul Islam, Afghanistan Cricket Board Chairman Mirwais Ashraf, Emirates Cricket Board General Secretary Mubashir Usmani, ACC official Thushara Perera, along with other senior representatives.

The ACC said the new high-performance centres would provide modern training facilities and technical support to help raise cricketing standards across Asia.

PCB chairman draws rare fan acclaim in Dubai

In a separate development, the PCB chairman was greeted with loud chants and an unusually enthusiastic reception from Pakistani supporters at the ICC Academy in Dubai, underlining his growing popularity among fans following recent developments in Asian cricket.

Naqvi arrived at the venue as Pakistan’s Under-19 side closed in on victory. Supporters positioned nearly two kilometres away recognised him and began chanting “Pakistan Zindabad” and “Mohsin Naqvi Zindabad”, drawing attention across the ground.

Pakistan and India have played international and tournament matches in the United Arab Emirates for nearly 40 years, but such a public and vocal reception for a cricket board official is considered rare in Dubai.

The ACC head acknowledged the supporters by walking towards the crowd, greeting fans individually and shaking hands. He congratulated them on Pakistan’s performance and thanked them for their continued support of the team during challenging periods.

Among Pakistani fans, Naqvi is increasingly associated with a firm leadership style, particularly after taking a resolute stance during recent disagreements involving the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over Asia Cup-related matters.

His position has resonated with supporters, many of whom view him as having defended Pakistan as well as cricket’s interests at the international level.

Video assistant referee causes controversy every week in the Premier League, but how are decisions made and are they correct?

This season, we take a look at the major incidents to examine and explain the process both in terms of VAR protocol and the Laws of the Game.

Andy Davies (@andydaviesref) is a former Select Group referee, with over 12 seasons on the elite list, working across the Premier League and Championship. With extensive experience at the elite level, he has operated within the VAR space in the Premier League and offers a unique insight into the processes, rationale and protocols that are delivered on a Premier League matchday.

Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Liverpool

Referee: John Brooks
VAR: Stuart Attwell
Incident: Possible red card
Time: 30th minute

What happened: Tottenham’s Xavi Simons was late with a challenge on Virgil van Dijk. Referee John Brooks’ original decision was a yellow card for a reckless challenge.

VAR decision: After VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of yellow card to Simons and issued a red card for serious foul play.

VAR review: A relatively straightforward process for VAR Stuart Attwell to recommend an on-field review to the referee, once the replays had been reviewed.

The characteristics of a reckless challenge, originally identified by the on-field referee, were not evident in the footage presented to the VAR team when reviewing the incident. Attwell would have been very uncomfortable with Simons’ action, feeling the force and speed of the contact on the back of Van Dijk’s calf endangered the safety of the center back and met the threshold for a possible red card.

Having viewed the challenge from three different angles, at various speeds and paused at point of contact, Attwell had no doubt that an on-field review was required.

Verdict: A correct and positive intervention by VAR in this situation, with Brooks also correct in overturning his original decision of a yellow card once reviewed.

Some will comment that Simons was unfortunate, with no intent and highlighting that these types of challenges can look worse in slow motion. I don’t disagree, but the nature of the contact in this challenge, on the back of the calf and with a level of force and speed, make this a dangerous one regardless.

These types of challenges are difficult to recognize as red card offenses in real time. Processing the point of contact, force and speed when two players are running in the same direction presents a challenge for the referee, and the original decision by Brooks of a yellow card was an understandable one.

Newcastle United 2-2 Chelsea

Referee: Andrew Madley
VAR: Peter Bankes
Incident: Penalty appeal for Newcastle United
Time: 55th minute

What happened: As the ball was played into the Chelsea penalty area, Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah challenged Anthony Gordon, seemingly making no contact with the ball and catching the left leg of Gordon. Referee Andrew Madley deemed it a fair challenge in real time.

VAR decision: The referee’s call of no penalty to Newcastle was checked and confirmed by VAR, with the contact from Chalobah on Gordon deemed to be side-to-side in a shielding action and the ball within playing distance.

VAR review: As with all subjective calls, the starting point for the VAR is the on-field decision and the live communication.

Madley would have seen the contact from Chalobah as normal contact, describing the ball as running out of play. In his opinion, Gordon placed his body in a position to draw and create contact from Chalobah; therefore, Gordon was trying to win a penalty as opposed to it being a foul by the Chelsea defender.

Bankes, having viewed the footage, backed the on-field decision of no penalty, and cleared the decision as correct.

Verdict: This was a foul challenge by Chalobah, and an on-field review and a penalty kick should have been the outcome.

I have some sympathy with Madley on-field, as he would have had some doubt that the level of contact, with the ball running out of play, met the threshold of a foul from his on-field position.

However, the review process by VAR would have highlighted that, despite the direction and destination of the loose ball, Chalobah made a clear, careless foul challenge on Gordon, making no contact on the ball.

It’s difficult to understand why Bankes did not recommend an on-field review to the referee in this event.

Referees are always reluctant to award fouls against defenders in these types of situations — certainly when a defender is adjudged to be guiding the ball out of play and the ball is in playing distance. However, this situation was different. All the evidence from the replays clearly indicate that this was a careless foul challenge by Chalobah, regardless of where the ball was, and an understanding that the defender was not in control of the ball at any point. A clear error had been made on-field and an OFR should have been the outcome.