Unai Emery has praised "special" Jhon Duran after his late brace secured Aston Villa a point in a thrilling 3-3 draw with Liverpool in the Premier League on Monday.

The Reds looked to be on their way to a 3-1 despite Youri Tielemans’ strike after Cody Gakpo and Jarell Quansah added to Emiliano Martinez’s early own goal.

However, Duran's 79th-minute introduction changed the game as the Colombian scored twice in three minutes to salvage a draw.

Villa needed a win to secure a Champions League spot, but a point keeps their fate in their own hands despite Tottenham having a game in hand against Manchester City on Tuesday.

Emery was full of praise for his forward, acknowledging how important his goals could be by Sunday.

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: "Jhon Duran is a special player. We have to try and help him. He is a good guy, and he needs a team behind him. He is getting our demands better. He was very clinical and today was important for him.

"Today we are celebrating with our supporters, we have to push it and keep working and be consistent. We were consistent all the season. The team was being mature and always consistent in our mind. Inch by inch we did it.

"We are very proud of the season. It is not enough at the moment to get fourth. Even after we scored the two goals, we had chances. We are celebrating the season here with our supporters in Villa Park.

"We are only thinking of us. We will prepare for our match on Sunday, everything is in our hands."

Villa were on a three-game losing run going into the Liverpool contest, and John McGinn highlighted the team’s strong mentality to avoid another defeat.

"It's a brilliant effort towards the end. We got a bit of luck. It's been a tough few weeks with lads coming back and playing through the pain barrier. This place got us going," he told Sky Sports after the game.

"There's some of us that have never been close to the Champions League in our life. The manager has a no-excuse mentality. People have written us off and we've floated under the radar. We'll have our Man City tops on tomorrow.

"Big Jhon [Duran] is a bit nuts and is a nightmare to have in your team, but he's got quality. We need to keep his feet on the ground over the next couple of days."

Daniil Medvedev had to dig deep to overcome Hamad Medjedovic at the Italian Open on Monday and stay in with a chance of retaining his title.

Medvedev came out on top with a 7-6 (7-5), 2-6, 7-5 victory, but was made to work hard to avoid a third-round upset.

After enduring an up-and-down opening two sets in which he hit 10 double faults, Medvedev rallied into a lead before holding off Medjedovic’s fight-back.

The second seed remained composed to break in the match’s final game to advance after two hours and 50 minutes.

Medvedev will now play Tommy Paul in the next round on Tuesday, with the American seeing off Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 6-3.

Data Debrief: Reigning champion fights on

Medvedev has reached the last 16 at all 5 Masters 1000 events this season, with only Alexander Zverev able to match that distinction.

It was not an easy ride for him though, as Medjedovic wanted to prove a point against his first Top 10 opponent in what was his first Masters 1000 third round.

Barcelona reclaimed second place in LaLiga with a 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad on Monday courtesy of a Lamine Yamal first-half strike and a late Raphinha penalty.

Yamal put Barcelona ahead in the 40th minute when he coolly slotted home from Ilkay Gundogan's pass after a quick breakaway for his fifth LaLiga goal this season.

Raphinha's penalty in stoppage time sealed victory for the hosts after a VAR review for handball, leaving the Basque side in seventh place with 54 points, one behind Real Betis in the last Europa League spot.

Xavi's side leapfrogged Girona to move on to 76 points, one clear of their Catalan rivals who dropped points in Friday's 2-2 draw at Alaves.

Real Madrid have already secured the league title, sitting on 90 points with three games left.

Data Debrief: 

Gundogan got a vital assist for Barcelona's opener, and has been involved in 193 open-play shot-ending sequences in LaLiga this season, more than any other player in the competition.

Barcelona have kept a clean sheet in both games against Real Sociedad in LaLiga 2023-24 (W2), achieving this in a single season of the competition for the first time since 2006-07, when they also beat them twice. 

Jhon Duran's dramatic late double earned Aston Villa a thrilling 3-3 draw with Liverpool at Villa Park, but the hosts will still have to wait before they can be sure of sealing a top-four Premier League finish.

Duran came off the bench to score in the 85th and 88th minutes to help Villa avoid what had looked set to be a fourth straight defeat in all competitions.

Emiliano Martinez's own goal gifted Liverpool the lead two minutes in on Monday and Cody Gakpo restored that advantage for the visitors after Youri Tielemans had Unai Emery’s side level.

It looked like Jarell Quansah's first goal for the Reds early in the second half had sealed the victory, but Duran’s late intervention ensured Villa emerged from the game with a valuable point.

Villa remain in fourth place, now five points clear of Tottenham, their rivals for a Champions League spot. Spurs have a game in hand but must beat title-chasing Manchester City on Tuesday to take the battle to the final day. Liverpool stay third on 79 points.

Emery’s men found themselves behind just 61 seconds into the game with a moment to forget for Martinez as he failed to hold onto Harvey Elliott’s cross, letting it roll over the line.

Despite Liverpool’s bright start, Villa equalised against the run of play – Ollie Watkins pulled it back to Tielemans, who drilled a first-time shot into the bottom-left corner.

Gakpo restored the Reds’ lead in the 23rd minute, meeting Joe Gomez’s low cross to fire into an empty net, with the on-field decision confirmed after a VAR review for an offside in the build-up.

Diego Carlos should have dragged Villa level again before the break, but with an open net to aim for at close range, he could only guide his shot wide of the far post.

Liverpool started the second half brightly, with Quansah netting his first goal for the club with a towering, unmarked header into the top-left corner before offside decisions denied both sides more goals.

Watkins thought he had scored his 20th Premier League goal of the season when he guided it past Alisson, but it was disallowed following a VAR review as Leon Bailey set off too early in the build-up.

Minutes later, Elliott skipped in front of Mohamed Salah to poke Luis Diaz’s cross past a stranded Martinez, but the flag was up against the Colombian.

Duran’s introduction flipped the momentum back in Villa’s favour, as the substitute scored twice in three minutes to salvage a draw – he drilled the first into the bottom-corner after dispossessing Alexis Mac Allister before perhaps fortuitously flicking Moussa Diaby’s pass over Alisson and into the net.

Home comforts for Villa

Villa knew a win here would confirm fourth spot and Champions League football, and while they did not quite achieve that, this was a small and significant step towards securing it.

Though they were not helped by Martinez's mistake in the second minute, with the goalkeeper scoring the earliest own goal since Antolin Alcaraz (54 seconds) for Everton against Southampton in April 2014, Villa kept fighting to get a result.

The Villans are now unbeaten in their final home game of the season in each of the last five campaigns since their promotion back to the top-flight in 2019, winning three and drawing two. They have Duran to thank for that record extending, and they will now watch Spurs’ match against City with great interest.

Quick starts boost Reds

In Jurgen Klopp's penultimate game in charge of Liverpool, his side showed signs of their free-scoring best once more.

Quansah's header was the 140th goal across all competitions for Liverpool this season - it is their second-highest scoring campaign in the club's history after 2021-22 (147).

They made bright starts to both halves and were rewarded with goals inside the opening three minutes each time to put themselves in control.

However, another defensive lapse at the back, similar to the one they had against Tottenham, ultimately cost them two points. The Reds finish their season at home to Wolves on Sunday.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have signed safety Antoine Winfield Jr. to a four-year, $84.1million contract extension, Winfield’s agent announced Monday.

The contract makes Winfield the NFL’s highest-paid defensive back and the first safety to ever hold that distinction.

Winfield’s contract includes $45million in guaranteed money.

Winfield had been scheduled to make about $17million next season under the franchise tag.

Winfield’s agent, David Mulugheta posted the news on social media with a screen capture of the moment he informed Winfield that the deal was done.

“Couldn't be happier to make this call and let @antoinewinfieldjr know he just made HISTORY! The first time that a safety is the highest paid defensive back in the NFL. In a year where the value of safeties has been questioned, the Buccaneer Organization, the Glazer Family and GM Jason Licht have stepped up and taken care of one of their most valuable family members,” Mulugheta wrote in the post.

“Congratulations Antoine, you have accomplished something that has never been done before. You will forever be etched in history as the first. I appreciate your trust and cannot wait to see you back on the field.”

Winfield, 25, is the son of retired defensive back Antoine Winfield Sr. and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the second round in 2020.

The 2023 All-Pro has become one of the best and most versatile defensive backs in the league and is coming off his best season.

In 17 games last season, Winfield set career bests with six sacks, three interceptions, 12 pass deflections, six forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

Winfield is the latest key contributor to be signed to an extension by the Buccaneers this offseason. Quarterback Baker Mayfield, wide receiver Mike Evans and linebacker Lavonte David all signed deals this spring to remain with Tampa Bay.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have signed safety Antoine Winfield Jr. to a four-year, $84.1million contract extension, Winfield’s agent announced Monday.

The contract makes Winfield the NFL’s highest-paid defensive back and the first safety to ever hold that distinction.

Winfield’s contract includes $45m in guaranteed money. He had been scheduled to make about $17m next season under the franchise tag.

Winfield’s agent David Mulugheta posted the news on social media with a screen capture of the moment he informed Winfield that the deal was done.

"Couldn't be happier to make this call and let Antoine know he just made HISTORY! The first time that a safety is the highest-paid defensive back in the NFL," Mulugheta wrote.

"In a year where the value of safeties has been questioned, the Buccaneer Organization, the Glazer Family and GM Jason Licht have stepped up and taken care of one of their most valuable family members.

"Congratulations Antoine, you have accomplished something that has never been done before. You will forever be etched in history as the first. I appreciate your trust and cannot wait to see you back on the field."

Winfield, 25, is the son of retired defensive back Antoine Winfield Sr. and was drafted by the Buccaneers in the second round in 2020.

The 2023 All-Pro has become one of the best and most versatile defensive backs in the league and is coming off his best season.

In 17 games last season, Winfield set career bests with six sacks, three interceptions, 12 pass deflections, six forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

Winfield is the latest key contributor to be signed to an extension by the Buccaneers this offseason. Quarterback Baker Mayfield, wide receiver Mike Evans and linebacker Lavonte David all signed deals this spring to remain with Tampa Bay.

The first abandoned game of the Indian Premier League ensures Kolkata Knight Riders will finish in the top two and Gujarat Titans’ elimination from playoff contention.

A combination of lightning and rain meant there was not even a toss, with the intense storm ripping banners from the stands, which later wrapped around the floodlights.

KKR had all but ensured a place in the top two due to their dominating net run-rate, but a 19th point of the season confirmed it, leaving them with one game to try and clinch top spot for the first time.

The Titans needed to win their final two games to give themselves any hope of reaching the playoffs, though it would have proven tough for the side with the lowest net run-rate in the league.

It is the first time GT have failed to make the playoffs since they joined the competition before the 2022 season.

Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente has urged the national side to concentrate on their football at Euro 2024 and block out the noise surrounding the RFEF.

Former RFEF president Luis Rubiales was dismissed following his unsolicited kiss on Jenni Hermoso during the Women's World Cup trophy ceremony in 2023 and was then arrested in early April as part of a corruption investigation.

Pedro Rocha, who was initially named as Rubiales’ replacement, is also under investigation amid the corruption probe.

The RFEF then created a special committee at the end of April, led by former Spain manager Vicente del Bosque, to oversee the federation until there is an official election for their next president.

However, De la Fuente told Reuters that he wants his squad’s full attention on the tournament itself. 

He said: "We have to concern ourselves with purely, strictly sporting matters - which we have enough of.

"We have to focus on what we can control. This is very, very basic, but it's very real. Stick to football.

"I'm concerned about how the facilities are going to be, the training camp, the pitches, the travel. And on the pitch, because the players know that we are going to be judged for what we do on the pitch.

"Everything else, all the media noise that exists around us, is not going to help us. So then we have to be totally and absolutely focused on what is, for us, the most important thing: the competition."

Spain will begin their Euro 2024 campaign against Croatia in Group B on June 15. Their pool also includes Italy and Albania.

LeBron James may have moved one step closer to making his dream of playing with his son a reality Monday after Bronny James was cleared to play in the NBA.

According to reports, teams were notified by the league that Bronny was cleared by a fitness-to-play panel that consists of three doctors who review medical records.

The clearance comes nearly a year after Bronny suffered cardiac arrest in practice with USC last July and underwent a procedure to repair a congenital heart defect.

He missed USC’s first eight games of the season before making his collegiate debut on December 10. Bronny played in the Trojans’ final 25 contests (including six starts) and averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.2 minutes per game.

LeBron, who just completed his 21st season in the NBA and is the league’s all-time leading scorer with 40,474 points, has said many times that he would love to play on the same NBA team with Bronny.

He can opt out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer, possibly setting him up to sign with whatever team drafts Bronny.

After the Lakers were eliminated in five games by the defending champion Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs on April 29, LeBron discussed Bronny’s future.

“The kid has to do what he wants to do - and I don’t even want to say kid no more - the young man will decide what he wants to do and how he wants his career to go," LeBron said.

“I just think the fact that we’re even having the conversation is pretty cool in the sense of that. Obviously, we'll see what happens.”

Bronny is expected to take part in the NBA Draft combine this week in Chicago and undergo medical examinations.