Mikel Arteta has committed his future to Arsenal by penning a new long-term contract with the club.

Arteta took charge of the Gunners in December 2019 following Unai Emery's exit and has led them to successive second-placed Premier League finishes in the last two seasons.

The Spaniard, who made 150 appearances for Arsenal as a player between 2011 and 2016, also oversaw an FA Cup final victory over Chelsea in 2020 and has lifted the Community Shield on two occasions as the Gunners' head coach.

Arteta had entered the final 12 months of his contract at the Emirates Stadium, but reports earlier this week claimed he had agreed a new deal to run until 2027.

Arsenal confirmed he had put pen to paper on Thursday, with co-chairman Josh Kroenke telling the club's website: "We're delighted to have extended Mikel's contract.

"Mikel is a dynamic and passionate manager, who is relentless in the pursuit of excellence. 

"He has a deep understanding of Arsenal's values, and since joining us as head coach in December 2019, he has taken the team to another level in an Arsenal way.

"There is a great collective team spirit at the club, and with the strong relationships we hold between us and belief in what we do, we look forward with excitement and confidence, as we continue our aim – to win together."

Arteta has overseen 235 competitive games in charge of Arsenal, recording 139 victories for a 59.15% win ratio, with the Gunners scoring 437 goals and conceding 233 during that time.

The Gunners have improved their Premier League points tally in each of his four full seasons at the helm, going from eighth-placed finishers with 61 points in 2020-21 to runners-up to Manchester City with 89 points last term.

He has won 105 of his 175 Premier League matches in charge. Of Arsenal managers in the competition's history, excluding Pat Rice, who only oversaw three matches, Arteta has the best win percentage (60%).

Arteta told Arsenal's website: "I feel extremely proud, very excited and am looking forward to what is coming next. 

"I'm proud to be where I am and have the relationships that I have with everyone at the club. I feel extremely lucky to work every single day with good people and the ambition we have here. 

"I feel very inspired, I feel challenged, I feel supported and I want to do much more than what we’ve already done together."

Arsenal have taken seven points from their first three games of the Premier League season and face Tottenham in the first north London derby of the campaign on Sunday.

Joe Burrow insists the wrist injury that ended his 2023 season is not preventing him from making downfield throws after struggling in the Cincinnati Bengals' Week 1 loss.

The Bengals' 2024 campaign got off to a miserable start as they were beaten 16-10 by the New England Patriots, who had the joint-second worst record in the league last year at 4-13.

Burrow threw for 164 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions, being sacked three times. He did complete 21 of his 29 attempted passes, but only six of those completed passes travelled more than 10 yards in the air.

Burrow – who was recently surpassed as the NFL's highest-paid player by Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott – was repeatedly seen flexing his wrist during the game.

He suffered a wrist ligament injury versus the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11 last season, leading him to undergo reconstructive surgery.

However, he is adamant he is no longer feeling the effects of that issue, saying: "It feels better this week than it did last week, than it did the week before, so it's continually getting better.

"That's part of ligament injuries. If you don't move it, you're going to lose it. 

"I'm always moving it around, keeping it loose, keeping my mobility the way it's supposed to be, so it's going to continue to happen."

Having sat out the final seven games of 2023 as the Bengals missed the playoffs for the first time since 2020, Burrow is simply grateful to be back out on the field.

"It's a luxury right now to be criticised by you guys about how we played on Sunday, because I was sitting in the wings for seven weeks last year," he said. "I'm just excited to be out there."

The Bengals face the Kansas City Chiefs in a rematch of the AFC Championship games from the 2021 and 2022 seasons on Sunday, before taking on the Washington Commanders in Week 3.

Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh is confident the Wallabies will be ready to compete with the British and Irish Lions next year, despite suffering the heaviest defeat in their Test history last time out.

Australia were crushed 67-27 by Argentina in the Rugby Championship last time out, their third defeat in four games in this year's tournament.

They were also dumped out of last year's Rugby World Cup in the pool stage following losses to Fiji and Wales, and they are down to ninth in the World Rugby Rankings.

The British and Irish Lions will face Australia in three Tests when they tour down under between June and August next year, with many fearing Joe Schmidt's team will be blown away.

Waugh, however, says there is plenty of time for the Wallabies to get things right before then, telling the Sydney Morning Herald: "You can see the progress is there.

"It is not nearly where we need it to be, but if we keep progressing at the speed with which we have moved things in the last six months, then there is plenty of time.

"It is a team that is, and I hate using the word 're-building', but it is a team that is re-setting, and it takes experience in big moments to get better. 

"Obviously, the enormity of the scoreline in that second half was disappointing.

"But there is context that is important... we are not the most experienced team in world rugby, and we are building that experience."

Australia conclude their Rugby Championship campaign with two fixtures against New Zealand before the end of September, then face England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland in their Autumn International Tests in November.

The international window is over, as Premier League football returns this weekend, but the two-week break had supporters reminiscing. 

From 2004 to 2016, Barclays was the Premier League's sponsor.

And in a trend that has taken over social media, "Barclaysmen" have been picked out as players synonymous with that 12-year period. 

Here, we take a deep dive into Opta data to find out which players were the actual hallmarks of the Barclays Premier League. 

410 - Gareth Barry led the way with 410 matches played for Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton between 2004 and 2016 – he is, of course, also the Premier League's all-time record holder for appearances too, with a whopping 653 to his name.

James Milner is set to overtake Barry this season, though, and 369 of his 637 matches came in this 12-year span.

178 - Bursting onto the scene as a 16-year-old, Wayne Rooney would go on to become one of the greatest goalscorers the division has ever seen. 

Starting his career with Everton, Rooney joined Manchester United in 2004, where he won five league titles during the Barclays era. 

In that 12-year span, no player scored more goals than the mercurial forward, who netted 178 times, with his former United club-mate Robin van Persie (144) second, ahead of Chelsea's Frank Lampard (132).

Rooney wasn't just a goalscorer. He also provided 88 assists in this era, taking his total goal contributions tally to 266, 54 more than the next-best, Lampard (212).

1,430 - Naturally, being the top goalscorer from 2004 and 2016, Rooney also tops the rankings for the most shots taken during that period, with 1,430.

Rooney's most prolific season came during the 2011-12 campaign, when he netted 27 Premier League goals, but it wasn't enough to stop rivals Manchester City from lifting their first top-flight title since 1968. 

Midfielder Lampard (1,118) is next on the list for shots, with Van Persie (963), Jermain Defoe (939) and Steven Gerrard (919) next.

95 - What about creativity?

When it comes to assists, there were no better in this time span than Cesc Fabregas, who laid on 95 goals across spells at Arsenal and Chelsea.

Interestingly, though, Gerrard (767) led the way for chances created, with Lampard (759) also coming in ahead of Fabregas, though it is worth noting the Spaniard spent time away from the Premier League after leaving Arsenal for Barcelona.

43 - When it comes to headed goals, you won't be surprised to see that six-foot-seven-inch Peter Crouch led the way, with 43.

Crouch represented Aston Villa, Southampton, Liverpool, Portsmouth, Spurs and Stoke during the Barclays era, becoming well-known for his lanky frame and ability in the air. 

He 'heads' the list by 12 goals to former Everton forward Tim Cahill, who scored 31 goals with his head despite being three inches under six foot.

30 - Having come close to having the most goals in the Barclays era, Lampard tops the list for the most goals scored from outside the box across its 12-year timeframe. 

Known for his incredible knack of being in the right place at the right time, Lampard's ability both in and outside the box made him one of the deadliest midfielders the division has ever seen. 

Strikes against Norwich City, Fulham and away at Goodison Park are standouts, with the Englishman often finding the back of the net when pulling back his cultured right foot. 

11 - While James Ward-Prowse leads the way for the most free-kick goals scored in the Premier League, Sebastian Larsson might just be the true embodiment of a Barclaysman.

The former Arsenal, Birmingham City and Sunderland midfielder scored 11 direct free-kick goals between 2004-05 and 2015-16, one more than five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Morten Gamst Pederson, who must be another candidate for the ultimate Barclaysman.

That being said, who had the most direct free-kick shots? It wasn't any of the above. Instead, it was Lampard, who tried his luck 173 times, scoring on nine occasions.

486 - Charles N'Zogbia. Remember him?

A star for Wigan Athletic, N'Zogbia completed 486 dribbles during his time in the division. Surprisingly, Glen Johnson, a full-back, was the next best with 481, ahead of Eden Hazard (463).

Remarkably, though, Ronaldo comes in at fifth, and that is despite only playing in five of the Barclays seasons. He completed 449 dribbles in total, an average of 2.7 per game.

1,107 - Jussi Jaaskelainen, the baby-faced Finn, made 1,107 saves in the Barclays era, which puts him ahead of Mark Schwarzer (1,018) and Tim Howard (1,014).

Petr Cech, meanwhile, was the goalkeeper to keep the most clean sheets (178).

48 - Now time for the unlucky statistics during the Barclays era. During his spells with Arsenal and Man United, no one struck the woodwork more than Robin van Persie. 

Despite netting 144 goals in his 280 Premier League appearances, ranking 14th on the all-time list, the Dutchman could have been among the top 10 scorers to play in the division had it not been for the crossbar and posts.

Van Persie also squandered the most big chances (80), though Sergio Aguero (78) was hot on his heels.

910- Out on his own by three, former Aston Villa, Man City and QPR defender Richard Dunne is the unfortunate man to have scored the most own goals between 2001-02 and 2012-13, with 10.

Across his time in the Premier League, the Republic of Ireland did manage to score more goals at the right end, finishing his career in 2015 with 11 top-flight strikes. 

Matt O'Riley is in good spirits and could come back "quite fast" as he recovers from ankle surgery, so says Brighton coach Fabian Hurzeler.

Brighton signed Denmark international O'Riley from Celtic last month, but the midfielder sustained an injury on his debut.

O'Riley was on the end of a poor challenge from Crawley Town's Jay Williams, and subsequently had to undergo surgery.

Ahead of Brighton's meeting with Ipswich Town on Saturday, Hurzeler said O'Riley could return ahead of schedule.

"He's in very good spirits. He has a great character, a great attitude, so immediately after the surgery he was very, very positive," Hurzeler said of the 23-year-old.

"He is around us in the training ground, he is doing his rehab already and I think he will be coming back quite fast."

Brighton have made a strong start to the season, going unbeaten in their opening three Premier League matches.

And for new boss Hurzeler, the international break provided an opportunity to reflect on the first weeks of the campaign.

"For me it was time to reflect, to re-analyse the first few weeks," said the 31-year-old, who is the youngest coach in Premier League history.

"I think it is very important to reflect on what is going good so far and where we can improve. That was the first thing I did.

"The second thing was to plan the next phase and the next week because now we have a lot of games in the next period of time. We have a lot of home games so we want to use this chance.

"For me it was more reflection and planning. Of course, I also had one or two minutes for myself."

Brighton v Ipswich will be the 936th different fixture to be played in the Premier League. They met eight times in the top flight between 1979 and 1983 (four Ipswich wins, two Brighton wins, two draws), with the Tractor Boys winning 2-0 in the most recent thanks to goals from John Wark and Alan Brazil.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Brighton - Simon Adingra

Excluding own goals, Adingra has scored five of Brighton's last eight Premier League goals against newly promoted opponents. This accounts for 71% of the Ivorian's Premier League goals (5/7).

Ipswich Town - Leif Davis

Davis was a star for Ipswich in the Championship last season, and he leads the way for the Tractor Boys for chances created (three).

That being said, he will be tested defensively on Saturday, with Yankuba Minteh likely to start down Brighton's right flank.

MATCH PREDICTION: BRIGHTON WIN

Ipswich have had the fewest shots (19), shots on target (seven) and the lowest expected goals total (1.2) of any side in the Premier League so far this season. 

And in a run stretching back to March 2002, Ipswich have lost each of their last five Premier League away games by an aggregate score of 18-3. They are winless in their last eight on the road in the top-flight (D1 L7) since a 2-1 win at Everton in February 2002.

Meanwhile, Brighton have won six of their last eight Premier League matches in September (D1 L1), scoring 3+ goals in each of their last four such victories. However, their last September match ended in a 6-1 defeat at Aston Villa.

Brighton have lost just one of their last 13 Premier League home games against promoted sides (W5 D7), going down 1-0 against Fulham in February 2023.

Ipswich have won two of their last four away league games against Brighton (D1 L1), with those wins coming in March 2014 (2-0) and December 2015 (1-0). They had been winless in their previous eight league visits to the Seagulls before this (D5 L3).

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Brighton - 65.7%

Ipswich - 15.3%

Draw - 19%

Jon Rahm has no intention of paying the fines dealt his way by the DP World Tour, as he reiterated his desire to play at the Ryder Cup.

Rahm, who starred as Europe beat the United States in Rome last year to regain the Ryder Cup, moved to LIV Golf in February.

The Spaniard's participation in next year's Ryder Cup, which will be held in New York, remains in doubt.

Rahm was slapped with fines for playing in LIV tournaments that clashed with DP World Tour events without having requested permission.

If he does not play in three more DP World Tour tournaments before the end of the season in November, he will not be eligible to play at the Ryder Cup.

However, despite Rahm entering the Spanish Open, Dunhill Links Championship and Andalucia Masters, he will be unable to play until he pays his fines, something the 29-year-old does not plan on doing.

"I'm not a big fan of the fines. I don't intend to pay the fines and we keep trying to have a discussion with them about how we can make this happen," he said.

"I intend to play in Spain. Whether they let me play or not is a different thing."

Former European captain Padraig Harrington has limited sympathy for Rahm.

"I'm a stickler for the rules," he said.

"I'm friends with Jon but if the rules are written down, that's just the way it is. The Ryder Cup is bigger than just the match. It is the backbone of the European Tour.

"The European Tour doesn't have a lot of leverage to get players to come back across and play here. The Ryder Cup is the carrot that we use to get people to come back.

"It is a very tough situation for Luke Donald and the Ryder Cup but if the 12th guy who qualifies by sticking to the rules gets bumped out, he's not going to be happy if somebody else has not stuck to the rules. We can't forget that person."

England's stand-in captain Phil Salt took plenty of positives from Wednesday's defeat to Australia, claiming "everything was good bar the result".

Travis Head's superb knock of 59 from just 23 balls, which included plundering 30 from a single over, set Australia on their way.

England fought back with the ball, though, and were ultimately set a target of 180.

But big hitters Salt (20), Sam Curran (18) and Liam Livingstone (37) all went in quick succession as England failed to get going and lost by 28 runs.

"Everything was good apart from the result," said Salt, who was standing in for the absent Jos Buttler.

"They played well. Heady came out swinging in the powerplay and gave them a head start.

"We were a couple of wickets too far down. Heady's done that for a couple of years, it's about how do we shut that down?

"[But] good signs. They played well, we dragged it back, we should have chased it realistically. At times we could have taken partnerships deeper. But we've had a good look at them now."

Australia have won back-to-back T20Is against England for the first time since February 2018, as the hosts failed to win a third straight T20I at The Rose Bowl.

"It was a nice start. Nice to get under way," said Head.

"To set a platform like that with the hitters we had behind us, it was nice to do the job."

Australia captain Mitchell Marsh added: "We certainly looked on course for 200 but did our best to stuff it up, so it's nice to start the series with a win."

Francisco Lindor broke up Bowden Francis’ no-hitter with a tying homer leading off the ninth and ignited a six-run inning to lift the New York Mets to a 6-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.

With the crowd of 29,399 on their feet to start the ninth, Francis got ahead of Lindor 0-2 before the four-time All-Star drilled a 92 mph fastball 398 feet to right field for his 31st home run and a 1-1 tie.

It was the second time in four starts Francis lost a no-hitter on a leadoff homer in the ninth - Taylor Ward connected off the right-hander for the Los Angeles Angels on Aug. 24.

Francis became the first pitcher to lose two no-hit bids in the ninth inning during one season since Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan with Texas in 1989.

With the crowd of 29,399 on their feet to start the ninth, Francis got ahead of Lindor 0-2 before the four-time All-Star drilled a 92 mph fastball 398 feet to right field for his 31st home run.

Lindor's drive was New York’s first home run in the last four games, and the first by either team in the series.

Chad Green relieved Francis and gave up Jose Iglesias’ infield single and walked Mark Vientos and Brandon Nimmo before Pete Alonso lifted a sacrifice fly. After J.D. Martinez walked, Starling Marte delivered another sacrifice fly.

Genesis Cabrera replaced Green and was greeted by Francisco Alvarez’s three-run homer that gave New York a 6-1 lead.

Dodgers hit 4 home runs in 1st in win over Cubs

Tommy Edman hit one of the Dodgers’ four home runs in the 1st inning and went deep again in the eighth as Los Angeles avoided a sweep with a 10-8 win over the Chicago Cubs.

Gavin Lux singled in the go-ahead run with two outs in the seventh after the Cubs scored four runs in the fifth to erase a 7-3 deficit.

Shohei Ohtani hit his 47th home run and stole his 48th base, while Edman, Will Smith and Max Muncy also went deep in the first for the Dodgers, whose magic number to clinch the division dropped to 11 after San Diego lost at Seattle.

Edman’s two-out, two-run shot off Trey Wingenter in the eighth extended the Dodgers' lead to 10-7. The switch-hitter went deep in the first from the right side and then from the left.

Trailing by three, the Cubs threatened in the ninth. Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech loaded the bases on consecutive walks to Dansby Swanson, Seiya Suzuki and former Dodger Cody Bellinger.

Kopech was called for a pitch-clock violation, giving an automatic ball to Isaac Paredes, whose sacrifice fly cut Chicago's deficit to 10-8. Suzuki was thrown out trying to steal third and former Dodger Michael Busch struck out swinging to end the game as Kopech eked out his 13th save.

Tigers continue surge

Kerry Carpenter matched a career-high with four hits and the Detroit Tigers kept their improbable wild-card hopes alive with a 7-4 win over the Colorado Rockies.

Carpenter came up in the seventh needing a homer for the cycle - the first for a Tiger since Carlos Guillen in 2006 - but hit an infield single.

Riley Greene and Trey Sweeney homered for Detroit, which won its fourth straight and improved to 20-8 since Aug. 11. They are three games behind the Minnesota Twins for the last American League wild-card spot after both teams won on Tuesday.

The 2023 Tigers finished second in the AL Central - they are currently fourth - but their 78-84 record left them out of the wildcard race.

One night after beating the Rockies 11-0, the Tigers got off to another flying start with six runs in the first. Greene hit his 21st homer, Carpenter had an RBI triple and scored, and Sweeney hit a three-run homer.

A'ja Wilson now stands alone as the WNBA's leader for points scored in a single season.

The Las Vegas Aces star scored her 941st point late in the first half of Wednesday's game against the Indiana Fever to establish a new WNBA single-season scoring record.

Wilson arrived in Indiana 11 points shy of the record, and broke the mark of 939 points set by Jewell Lloyd in 2023 with a jumper from the free throw line with 26.4 seconds left in the second quarter.

The two-time league MVP came into the game averaging 27.3 points and 11.9 rebounds and went into half-time with 12 points and eight boards.

Wilson has plenty of opportunities to add to her scoring mark, as Las Vegas still has four regular-season games scheduled.

Carlos Alcaraz got a stroke of luck as he helped Spain make a winning start to the Davis Cup Finals group-stage campaign against Czechia as Tomas Machac retired through injury.

The French Open and Wimbledon champion dropped the first set 6-7 (3-7), but rallied to finish the second 6-1, forcing a decider after getting two vital breaks.

However, Machac pulled up in the opening game of the third set with cramp and was unable to carry on after one hour and 41 minutes on the court.

It followed Roberto Bautista's flying start in their opening singles match in Group B as he cruised past Jiri Lehecka 7-6 (7-1) 6-4, with the Czech making 27 unforced errors as he failed to find an edge.

In the doubles, Alcaraz and Marcel Granollers then had to dig deep, coming from behind to beat Adam Pavlasek and Jakub Mensik in three sets to give Spain a 3-0 victory and take them top of the group. 

Meanwhile, Great Britain also made a bright start to their campaign in Group D, despite US Open semi-finalist Jack Draper sitting out.

Dan Evans got them started in Manchester with a hard-earned 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 victory over Eero Vasa of Finland, converting both of his break points in the second set.

Billy Harris followed that up with an impressive tournament debut, looking unflappable as he earned the hosts an unattainable lead with his 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win over Otto Virtanen.

Finland got themselves on the board in the doubles though, with Evans and Neal Skupski unable to get the better of Harri Heliovaara and Virtanen ensuring it was only a 2-1 loss. 

Elsewhere, the United States joined Germany at the top of Group C with their 3-0 win over Chile and Italy's Matteo Arnaldi held off a spirited Thiago Monteiro to put them in control against Brazil in Group A after Matteo Berrettini's earlier victory.

Travis Head led the way for Australia, setting them on their way to a comfortable 28-run victory over England in their first of three T20Is on Wednesday.

England had salvaged some pride during Australia's late collapse, only to fumble their chance with the bat as they failed to reach their target of 180.

Australia got off to a flying start, with Head hitting 59 off 23 balls, including 30 off Sam Curran in a single over with three fours and three sixes.

Liam Livingstone helped to slow the tide with 3-22, including taking opener Matt Short (41), before the tourists collapsed, losing their last five wickets for 14 runs, with Jofra Archer taking two in two (2-31), to finish 179 all out.

The hosts just could not get going though, as Phil Salt was caught for 20 before Curran (18) and Livingstone (37) both departed in the space of four deliveries to stunt any England progress.

Jordan Cox (17), one of three debutants, had already been dismissed, thanks to Tim David's stunning catch at full stretch, before the lower order slumped to 151 in the final over. 

The second T20I takes place on Friday in Cardiff, where England will attempt to force a decider for the final contest on Sunday.

Data Debrief: Unhappy homecoming

Australia have won back-to-back T20Is against England for the first time since February 2018, but the hosts would have expected much better when they saw the target set for them.

Instead, they failed to win a third consecutive T20 match at The Rose Bowl, their longest outright losing streak at the venue in the history of the format.

Gareth Southgate says he is keeping an open mind about what comes next in his career but is in no hurry to rush back into football.

Southgate stepped down as England manager in July, shortly after England's second consecutive European Championship final defeat.

The 54-year-old was in charge of the Three Lions for eight years, leading the team through four major tournaments, while only Walter Winterbottom (139) and Alf Ramsey (113) managed more games for the national team than Southgate (102).

England are still searching for a new permanent manager, with interim head coach Lee Carsley impressing in his first two matches, leading the team to consecutive 2-0 wins over the Republic of Ireland and Finland in the Nations League.

Southgate has been linked with a move to Manchester United as the pressure piles on Erik ten Hag and with a position at UEFA.

However, the former England manager says he is not expecting to step back into football any time soon.

"I've got lots of opportunities, I'm very open-minded to what's next," he told Sky News.

"That might be in football, that might be outside of football. I'm just going to take some time, refresh, recharge and go from there.

"I think at the moment people know that I need to get my energy back."

Southgate led England to their first major tournament final since 1966 at Euro 2020 and helped the team reach their first final on foreign soil in Germany over the summer.

England also became the first team in history to lose consecutive Euros finals, with Southgate the only manager to ever lose two such matches.

However, his 14 wins at major tournaments are the most of any manager in England's history, and he is proud of the work he did during his time in charge.

"I think it was probably the right time for change," he added.

"I don't think you can have regrets. We made decisions with the information we had at the time to try and produce a winning team. I gave the job everything I had.

"We raised expectations and that was important. We needed to put English football back on the map."