Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a serious knee injury.

The Belgium international is believed to have suffered the anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee in training and will undergo surgery in the coming days.

A statement on Real’s official club website read: “Following tests carried out on Thibaut Courtois, the player has been diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. The player will undergo surgery in the coming days.”

The 31-year-old has made over 200 appearances for the club since joining from Chelsea in August 2018 and has been a near ever-present in the Spanish capital.

Courtois produced a man-of-the-match performance in the 2022 Champions League final when Los Blancos beat Liverpool 1-0 in Paris.

Spain international David De Gea, who was previously linked with a big-money move to the Santiago Bernabeu, could be an option for Carlo Ancelotti’s side after his contract at Manchester United expired earlier this summer.

Netherlands boss Andries Jonker had admitted Danielle van de Donk will be a “big” miss as she sits out the World Cup quarter-final clash with Spain through suspension.

The 32-year-old Lyon midfielder will not be involved in Wellington on Friday having picked up her second yellow card of the tournament in Sunday’s 2-0 last-16 victory over South Africa in Sydney.

Van de Donk has started all four games to date and Jonker is acutely aware of the impact her absence could have on his team.

Asked how significant a loss she will be, he told FIFA.com: “Big. Danielle is an extremely experienced player. She has over 140 caps, is a European champion, World Cup finalist.

“Not playing in this match, with her specific qualities that are really useful to the team, is a real shame for her but also for the team.”

Jonker, who has worked previously as an assistant to Louis van Gaal at the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich and was also academy director at Arsenal, was appointed Netherlands boss last year and is hoping to guide the nation to a second successive World Cup final after they were beaten by the United States four years ago.

He said: “This is one of the matches in your career that you will never forget because when you win, you are one of the final four, so it’s important.

“It’s my first World Cup as head coach, so it’s a special match, as I’ve seen many in my career. You are not going to forget that, so it is rather special, yes.”

The Dutch squad has been together for almost eight weeks and there is no intention within the camp to head back to the northern hemisphere just yet.

Jonker said: “It’s a real joy to work with these girls. I love working with people who try and get the best out of themselves and each other. And that’s what this group does, so yes, I’m doing this with great pleasure.

“We’re not going home yet.”

Pep Guardiola feels it is “almost impossible” for Manchester City to repeat last season’s treble-winning heroics.

City will begin the 2023-24 campaign as favourites in all competitions but Guardiola is not expecting a repeat of last term, when his side claimed Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup success.

“It feels like it finished yesterday but we start again,” said the City manager, whose side travel to Burnley for their Premier League opener on Friday.

“I don’t think it will be possible to do what we did last season, it’s once in a lifetime. I said to the players forget about it.

“We climbed the highest mountain last season but we have come down that mountain now. We start from the same as everyone else, with the same intention and there will be a lot of difficulties to climb the mountain again.

“What we have done remains in our hearts and minds but it’s over.

“The history speaks for itself but it is almost impossible to repeat.”

Guardiola, speaking at a press conference, was unwilling to comment on speculation linking the club with a move for West Ham midfielder Lucas Paqueta.

He said: “I will not answer about Paqueta. He is a West Ham player.”

The City boss also offered no updates on the situation concerning full-back Kyle Walker, who has been linked with Bayern Munich throughout the summer.

“We are wishing he stays but there is no news,” Guardiola said.

Another player who has been the subject of speculation is youngster Cole Palmer, who scored City’s goal in their Community Shield loss to Arsenal last weekend.

The 21-year-old is reportedly the subject of a loan bid from West Ham.

Guardiola said: “Cole is with us. Today he is with us. What is going to happen, I don’t know.

“I understand completely that he wants to be more active than the previous season, but Riyad (Mahrez) has gone, so we have one more place there.

“We will see. I cannot say anything because the last decisions belong to the club. The club have to decide what is best.”

Friday’s trip to Turf Moor will see Guardiola come up against his former captain Vincent Kompany, who has guided the Clarets back to the top flight at the first attempt.

Guardiola said: “Normally the first games are difficult, especially against newly-promoted teams because they have nothing to lose and the energy, the dream to do a good season.

“Apart from that, Vinny knows us well and he is doing an incredible job.

“He has changed the way Burnley play completely and they destroyed the Championship. It will be a tough, tough game.”

Bournemouth are closing in on the signing of Bristol City midfielder Alex Scott, the PA news agency understands.

Robins boss Nigel Pearson confirmed on Wednesday evening that Scott had been given permission to talk to the Premier League Cherries.

The 19-year-old, who was named the Sky Bet Championship’s young player of the season for 2022-23, has attracted plenty of attention from top-flight clubs for his standout performances.

Bournemouth appear to have won the race for his signature and remain in discussions with Scott, who missed City’s opening two matches of the new season due to a swollen knee.

The value of the transfer is believed to be in excess of £20million.

Guernsey-born Scott made his senior debut in April 2021 and has scored five Championship goals in 83 appearances during his time at Ashton Gate.

He has also represented England at youth level, including making three appearances at this year’s Under-20 World Cup.

Bournemouth, who appointed Spaniard Andoni Iraola as manager in June after sacking Gary O’Neil, are set to begin a new era at home to West Ham on Saturday.

Saturday’s improbable Betfred Challenge Cup final at Wembley pits Willie Peters’ exciting and expansive Hull KR against a Leigh side led by Adrian Lam who have taken this season by storm.

For Rovers it means a chance to erase the memories of their last final appearance in 2015 when they were hammered 50-0 by Leeds – whilst Leigh’s last involvement in the sport’s showpiece event came way back in 1971.

Here, the PA news agency picks out the four key areas which could determine whether Peters’ men or Lam’s in-form Leopards emerge with the trophy.

A revelation in Leigh’s promotion-winning 2022 campaign, Ipape has extended his explosive brand of running and tackling into the top-flight, relishing his role in a settled spine and proceeding to cement his place as one of the best number nines in the business. Litten’s role at Rovers – which he often splits with the more experienced Matt Parcell – may be more understated but is deceptively effective. Litten’s ability to speed up the ruck in the later stages of gruelling games could prove a pivotal factor against Leigh’s bulky pack.

The 22-year-old Schneider has reignited Rovers’ season since his arrival on a short-term deal from Canberra. The Australian kicked two consecutive golden point winners in his first two games, including last month’s semi-final win over Wigan, when his his kicking accuracy and strong running game was plain to see. Alongside Ipape, Lam has effectively orchestrated his side’s surge towards the summit this season, a cool-headed distributor whose 20 assists so far are testament to his status as one of 2023’s stand-out performers.

Out wide most eyes will be on Rovers winger Ryan Hall, who looks set to start for the first time since limping off in the semi-final warm-up. But Rovers’ fate may rest with talismanic skipper Kenny-Dowall, not only for his swashbuckling forward forays but the inspiration he is giving team-mates who wish to send him into retirement on a high. Leigh are a little lighter in the threequarters department but boast a potentially match-winning card in arrow-like winger Charnley, second only in tries scored (22) and metres gained to Catalans’ Tom Johnstone so far this season.

Leigh captain Asiata may be best known for his uncompromising tackle technique but it is his leadership qualities and skills with the ball – he has made more carries than any other forward this season – that might provide the crucial components at Wembley. Rovers’ key forward threat arrives in the shape of their free-ranging 13 Minchella, the Bradford man whose constant driving of his side’s line speed is key.

Spencer Johnson was a phonecall away from gatecrashing this summer’s Ashes and underlined his credentials as one of Australia’s next big things with a record-breaking debut for Oval Invincibles.

The left-arm quick produced sensational figures of three wickets for one run in Wednesday’s victory over Manchester Originals – the cheapest 20-ball spell ever recorded in The Hundred.

Even more remarkable was the fact that the 27-year-old had never set foot on English soil before and only arrived in the country on Monday, having played in the final of Canada’s Global T20 the day before.

“I don’t know when it will sink in really, I’m not even sure it will. I’m pretty speechless,” he told the PA news agency.

“You never come into a game expecting to concede one run, especially bowling at players like Jos Buttler and Phil Salt first up. I was trying to remember where the one came from and I couldn’t picture it. I’m enjoying it now because it will probably never happen again, but was quite cool to be a part of.

“It was raining when I arrived in England so I didn’t have a chance to have a roll out in the middle the day before, and I didn’t know how I was going to feel out on the pitch. But playing out there at the Oval felt awesome.”

Johnson’s whirlwind week also saw him called up by Australia for the first time, for the T20 series against South Africa at the end of the month.

Had things been different he could have found himself thrown into this summer’s unforgettable Test series against England, which finished 2-2 after gripping the cricket world for seven weeks.

He was on another franchise assignment with Los Angeles Knight Riders when Cricket Australia told him he may be needed for the fourth and fifth Tests, though left-armer Mitchell Starc eventually played through despite some injury niggles.

“I reckon I watched every ball of that series,” he said.

“I was placed on standby for the last couple of Tests so I had to be following things pretty closely.

“I grew up admiring Starcy my whole life, ever since he came on the scene. He’s the ultimate athlete, durable, fast, takes crucial wickets.

“I like the way he goes about things, I’d love to be anywhere near him to be honest. Test cricket is number one at the forefront of my mind, hopefully in a couple of years I’m still bowling well and I get a chance (to face England), but we’ve got another six games here with Invincibles and that’s as far ahead as I’m thinking now.”

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The first of those comes against Northern Superchargers at Headingley on Friday, where compatriot Matthew Short will be looking to do more damage to Johnson’s figures than the Originals managed.

“I know I’ll go for more than one next time, it’s one of those things that will probably never happen again,” he admitted.

“Cricket is pretty fickle game, but if it’s swinging and I’m hitting the right length, we’ve seen it can be tough to score. Shorty has got me a couple of times back in Australia and I’m looking to level the playing field!”

Donnacha O’Brien is confident his Royal Ascot heroine Porta Fortuna can give the colts a run for their money in Saturday’s Keeneland Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh.

Having won a Curragh maiden and a Group Three at Naas in the spring, the daughter of Caravaggio completed her hat-trick in the Albany Stakes at the Royal meeting under Frankie Dettori.

Connections had the option of keeping Porta Fortuna against her own sex in the Lowther at York later this month, but O’Brien is happy to roll the dice against the boys in a bid for Group One glory.

He said: “She’s won two Group races now, two Group Threes, so I suppose the next step now is to let her have a go at a Group One.

“The Lowther is a Group Two and we said we’d let her take her chance in a Group One.

“She’s in good form and working well, so we’re looking forward to it.”

Oisin Murphy takes over in the saddle aboard Porta Fortuna, who is one of seven juveniles declared for the six-furlong contest.

Aidan O’Brien, Donnacha’s father, will rely on Railway Stakes second and third Unquestionable and His Majesty in his bid for a remarkable 18th Phoenix Stakes success, having decided against running his unbeaten Coventry Stakes winner River Tiber.

Other leading contenders include Adrian Murray’s Coventry third and Railway winner Bucanero Fuerte and Jessica Harrington’s Coventry fourth Givemethebeatboys.

“It looks like he (River Tiber) is going to go for the Prix Morny, but it’s still a very competitive field,” Donnacha O’Brien added.

“There’s three or four there that are very close on ratings, there’s a few that could win it. It’s a very open race and it should be good.”

England have selected a host of big guns led by Owen Farrell for Saturday’s clash with Wales as they look to ignite their World Cup preparations in the wake of a tame defeat in Cardiff.

Farrell captains a side that sees Billy Vunipola make his first Test appearance since the autumn, having missed out on the Six Nations on form grounds and then undergone successive knee operations.

Vunipola is the only specialist number eight to have been picked in England’s World Cup squad, making the Twickenham showdown a key moment in his comeback having been sidelined since April.

Following a 20-9 loss in the first of four warm-up matches, head coach Steve Borthwick has picked a team close to his strongest XV that also features Jamie George, Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes.

One of England’s shortcomings at the Principality Stadium was their inability to capitalise on the chances created in the first half but in Elliot Daly and Henry Arundell there will be two quality finishers present on Saturday.

Daly is making his first England appearance since the 2022 Six Nations, having fallen out of favour under Eddie Jones and then seen his recall for this year’s Championship scuppered by a torn hamstring.

Zak Hardaker will strain every sinew to win the Betfred Challenge Cup this weekend for Adrian Lam after thriving under the care and attention of the Leigh head coach.

The Leopards defied pre-season predictions that they would struggle on their Super League comeback and, with just half a dozen matches of the regular campaign left, Lam’s side are currently joint second.

Leigh could cap a remarkable return to the big time by beating Hull KR at Wembley on Saturday and Hardaker has attributed the club being the breakout story of the year to former Wigan boss Lam.

Hardaker, who worked under the Papua New Guinean at the Warriors, has had a string of disciplinary issues throughout his career but believes he has matured under Lam at Leigh.

“I’ve just settled,” he told the PA news agency. “When I signed at Leigh, the big factor was Lammy wanting me, wanting to settle me down and get the old head switched on.

“I think he knows me better than me, to be fair. He just makes sure that I’m happy, not that I want that much. He makes sure everyone’s home life is pretty good and wants that to be in order first.

“As a coach, if everyone’s happy outside of rugby then the on-the-field stuff takes care of itself. He makes sure I’m alright and it’s lovely that he’s so caring and looks out for me like that.

“I try to repay him by training hard and playing well for him on the pitch. If I can do that on Saturday and get him a win, it would be pretty special.”

Leigh won 28 of their 29 fixtures in last year’s Championship, including brushing aside Batley in the Million Pound Game, but their three past promotions to the top table ended with immediate relegation.

They bolstered their ranks by bringing in players with proven Super League pedigree, with Hardaker joined by former Leeds team-mate Tom Briscoe and experienced forwards Oliver Holmes and Jack Hughes.

“We knew we had a chance to do something,” Hardaker said. “Bringing in many people from different clubs and trying to get them to gel so quickly might have been the biggest issue but everyone’s so close.

“It’s weird in a way because friendships and bonds sometimes take a couple of years and you get that bond over a long period of time, but we’ve got it in a short period of time.

“We enjoy coming to training, we all have a laugh and a joke but when it’s time to get serious, we train hard. Every game’s been great. Even when we’ve lost, we’ve had big learning curves.”

Hardaker bagged a try as Leigh toppled St Helens – the winners of the past four Grand Finals who triumphed in the World Club Challenge earlier this year – last month to reach the Wembley showpiece.

Leigh’s last visit to the famous stadium was 52 years ago while this latest trip will just be their second overall, so the magnitude of the occasion is not lost on Hardaker.

He said: “We’ve seen pictures from then – what they did and the parade they had and all the fans in the street. It gives you that buzz of what it means and we’re going to try our hardest to recreate that.”

Hardaker has only had to wait eight years for another crack at cup-final glory. Back then, his Leeds side demolished Hull KR 50-0 and he ended the season as the Super League’s Man of Steel.

But in that same year, he was arrested for assault while in 2018 he was sacked by Castleford for failing a drugs test for cocaine before serving a driving ban shortly after being signed by Wigan.

Last year, he was released by the Warriors just days after coach Matt Peet said Hardaker had “dipped below the standards” expected of a Wigan player, but the 31-year-old has redeemed himself at Leigh.

“Winning the cup this weekend would mean everything,” he added. “It would definitely be up there with one of the best achievements I’ve got so far.”

Premier League referees’ chief Howard Webb says the change in approach on added time is here to stay, despite early criticism from top-flight players and managers.

Referees in competitions worldwide have been instructed by the game’s lawmakers to measure time lost to stoppages more accurately, an approach first adopted at the World Cup in Qatar last year where an additional 11 minutes and six seconds were played on average in the group stage.

Webb said the change was necessary as football gets to grips with the “dark arts” of time-wasting, with a a more robust approach set to be taken to dealing with players who delay restarts in play.

Sunday’s Community Shield lasted over 105 minutes, with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola saying the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which sets the game’s laws, had not consulted with managers and players over the change in approach.

Manchester United defender Raphael Varane echoed those criticisms on Monday, saying the change, allied to a congested calendar, was “damaging” to the game.

Whereas ‘rule of thumb’ approaches had been used in the Premier League for certain stoppages last season – 30 seconds per goal celebration and substitution for example – referees and their wider team will now be asked to be more exact.

The Premier League anticipates the change in approach will increase the length of the average match in the coming season by three minutes and 23 seconds compared to last season – going up to 101 minutes and 49 seconds.

Webb, the chief refereeing officer at Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), said: “As far as I’m aware and concerned (the change in approach on added time) is here to stay.

“I appreciate we’re hearing two sides of a coin here, but there was also a lot of noise around the need to do something around increasing effective playing time and getting more game for people who are paying good money to go and watch football.

“IFAB have acted undoubtedly with good intentions to try to deal with this. Last season a quarter of the games in the Premier League went above 100 minutes. I am expecting it to settle down.

“For sure there’s more dark arts in the game than previously. Everybody tells me that, and I see that myself as well. One of the things that will hurt us here is if we’re not consistent with this in the way that we play it. We have to be. It can’t be a flash in the pan. It can’t be a short-term campaign.”

In response to Guardiola’s assertion around a lack of consultation, Webb said: “Certain things change each year in terms of the laws of the game. IFAB is the organisation that ratifies changes.

“There is a consultation process that goes into that. There is a way people can feed into the process.

“Obviously, when something is ratified at (IFAB’s) AGM, it comes our way to deliver. By the end of this week I will have done at least 17 pre-season briefings, so people are aware what is coming. I am really keen to keep engaging, consulting and getting feedback and embracing the feedback and comparing it against other feedback we get.

“We have to find where the benefit is with any changes we want to apply. Is it frustrating? No. I know consultation does exist from our side, that is what we can control and we will keep engaging.”

The other major initiative from a refereeing perspective is a clampdown on poor behaviour from players and managers as part of a wider move to improve conduct, including among fans.

Webb said: “For too long our officials have not necessarily been able to make that differentiation (between passion and unacceptable behaviour) or have chosen for whatever reason to turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to certain things.

“But the power of example is so strong and we are seeing a lot of examples (of bad behaviour) and all the numbers are tracking in the wrong direction around what’s happening in the game in this area.

“We’re seeing grassroots officials have a bad experience too often and this has got to change in our sport and we’re determined collectively within the game to do this.”

Webb also confirmed audio from VAR decisions – including some clips where errors were made – would be aired on a monthly basis.

It follows on from Webb appearing on Monday Night Football towards the end of last season to talk through some incidents from earlier in the season in a bid to provide greater transparency around VAR.

Justin Kluivert has "great memories" from his time at Roma, but believes he made the right decision by leaving the Italian giants in search of first-team football.

Kluivert joined Bournemouth earlier this transfer window for a reported £9.6million, ending a five-year stint as a Roma player.

However, the winger had spent the last three seasons out on loan, at RB Leipzig, Nice and Valencia respectively. Kluivert had been close to joining Fulham prior to his switch to Spain.

The 24-year-old joined Roma from Ajax in 2018, but never quite managed to live up to his potential in Serie A.

Asked if he was disappointed at how his move to Roma played out, Kluivert told Stats Perform: "I came from Ajax as a young kid, very young.

"I came to a new environment that was very different, I came from Amsterdam where I lived with my mother, my brothers and to move to a big city like Rome, [to play] in a big team that now plays Champions League – that is very difficult.

"Also, the coach and [technical staff] that brought me there, they left in six months. So there was a new coach, a new director, who have their own plan, and that was also something I had never been through in my football career.

"At Ajax everything was good there, everything was nice. I played, I felt good and then, woah, you sit on the bench four or five games, how do you recover from that?

"That was something I had to learn, but I have a lot of great memories from Roma, and [I had] some great games.

"Especially in the second season, I ended it with seven goals. That was not bad, but just the end of the season - it was not how I hoped [it would be], and I think [for Roma] also.

"It was also in the coronavirus time. And that was not a good time for me, because I was doing well and I was selected for the national team [for Euro 2020], but that got cancelled because of coronavirus, and after that it was not so good.

"I just want to play. I love the sport, so if I don't play four games in a row, or I come in for 50 minutes, I'm not happy with that and I'm still young, so I want to play I want to show my qualities and that's why I chose to go on loan."

One of those loan spells saw Kluivert play alongside Edinson Cavani at Valencia.

"Of course, you learn a lot from somebody like that because the career he has had is unbelievable," Kluivert said of the former Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United striker.

"The goals he scored - it's unbelievable how many - and I learned a lot. It's just the small details, or how he works in the gym.

"It's the small things that make you think 'This is what a top player does', and it's good to learn from these people that have achieved things that you want to achieve.

"So I'm very happy that I've played with him and I learned some great stuff from him."