Today’s back pages: Eoin Morgan stars as England win thrilling T20 series and Pep Guardiola is ‘destined’ for Juventus

England seal T20 series win

“Magnificent Morgan” is the headline in The Guardian as the paper lauds the heroics of England’s captain in blasting his side to victory in a thrilling Twenty20 encounter with South Africa at the Wanderers.

Skipper Eoin Morgan smashed an astonishing (and unbeaten) 57 runs from just 22 balls as he chased down South Africa’s daunting total of 222 in what The Daily Telegraph describes as a “stunning victory”.

It was a fitting climax to a wonderful T20 series in which all three matches went down to the wire.

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The BBC points out that the 1,207 runs accumulated across the games are the most in any three-match series in the history of T20 internationals.

i Sport believes that England’s performances have laid down a marker for the T20 World Cup which begins in October in Australia.

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Nice one, Son

Several papers have the smiling face of Tottenham marksman Son Heung-min on their back pages after the South Korean’s two goals helped his side see off Aston Villa with a 3-2 win to move into fifth spot in the Premier League.

The Daily Star sings his praises, as do The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph, while Metro’s main focus is the comments of Spurs boss Jose Mourinho.

Asked in the post-match interview about Manchester City’s two-season Champions League ban, Mourinho cheekily mooted the idea that the Sky Blues should also be stripped of their 2018 league title, which would mean his then Manchester United side would be crowned retrospective champions.

Pep to Turin?

With the Sky Blues in turmoil, several papers continue to analyse what the Champions League ban may mean for the Man City players and head coach Pep Guardiola.

The Daily Star and Daily Express both claim that the City gaffer is being eyed up by Italian giants Juventus, a club he was first linked to last year.

“Juve made for you” screams the back page of the Star, which also carries comments from club legend Alessandro Del Piero declaring that it is Guardiola’s “destiny” to take the reins of the Italian champions.

Speaking at the Laureus Sports Awards in Germany, Del Piero added: “Every club in the world would love him as a coach and I would love to see Pep in Italy.”

Meanwhile, the Daily Mail reports that City chiefs believe Guardiola and his stars will remain loyal to the club despite the ban from European football.

Today’s sport headlines

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