Cucurella should snub Manchester City and stay at Brighton - at least for now

First and foremost it is very much the ‘silly season’ when it comes to transfer gossip - probably more than 80% of what we read regarding the transfer window in the media or on the internet is either made up or probably won't happen due to alleged size of the transfer fee or the players wage demands.

From sources very close to the Amex, while clearly a player of Cucurella’s quality is bound to attract attention from the best clubs in the country, as yet there has been no approach or formal offer, despite what may or may not have been reported in certain quarters.

Move to the Amex is a dream come true.

Where Bloom ranks in the rich list.

In addition to this with the player only being one year into his contract, there is no real urgency for the Albion to let another one of their better players leave the club, unless the offer was, and I quote, ‘Out of this World’.

As for the player himself, while clearly knocking on the door of the Spanish World Cup squad for November in Qatar, surely he would be better served being one of the first names on the teamsheet at Brighton rather than being part of an expansive and rotated squad at the Etihad?

He was a quality acquisition last summer, and there is no doubt in my mind he will play for either City or another one of the Big Six at some point, there’s still plenty of time, maybe a great start to the EPL season pre World Cup then a great showing for the Spaniards in the desert and it might be a different matter when the window reopens on January 1, 2023?

FAREWELL TO A CRICKET GREAT

They said a fond farewell to Jim Parks at Worthing Crematorium on Saturday,. Jim, 90, who died earlier this month at Worthing Hospital was the oldest living English Test cricketer.

And in one of those unique sporting ironies, his long-standing England Test cricket 7th wicket record with the late Mike Smith of197 against the West Indies in 1960 was finally broken just 24 hours before his funeral by Johnny Bairstow and Jamie Overton at the Headingley Test v New Zealand.

Let's hope a blue plaque in Worthing for the Sussex CC Cand England legend is not that far away.