Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been fined but is set to avoid a touchline ban following an outburst during his team's Premier League win over Manchester City.
The German was dismissed for a rant towards assistant referee Gary Beswick in the October 16 match that saw Mohamed Salah's strike hand the Reds a morale-boosting win over the champions.
Klopp subsequently apologised for his actions and accepted the initial Football Association charge, for which he has now been served his punishment.
"Jurgen Klopp has been fined £30,000 for breaching FA rule E3 during Liverpool FC's Premier League match against Manchester City FC on Sunday 16th October 2022," read an FA statement.
"The manager accepted that his behaviour during the 86th minute was improper, and an independent regulatory commission imposed his sanction during a hearing.
"This sanction is subject to appeal by either Jurgen Klopp or the FA following receipt of the independent regulatory commission's written reasons."
Chelsea have appointed Joe Shields as co-director of recruitment and talent, as chairman Todd Boehly looks to build a "world-class" management team at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues have been targeting appointments in key roles since Boehly's consortium took control in May, and revealed Laurence Stewart is to become technical director at the end of his tenure with Monaco earlier this week.
Shields – who most recently worked as Southampton's head of recruitment following a nine-year spell with Manchester City's academy – will now join him in a new-look management team.
Boehly and co-owner Behdad Eghbali expressed their excitement at the prospect of working with Shields, telling Chelsea's website: "Joe is another great addition to Chelsea, and we're thrilled to have him on board.
"We have a clear plan and will adopt a modern and data-driven philosophy, focused on elite emerging talent.
"We're assembling a deep and collaborative management team who are eager to build a continued sustained winner at Chelsea.
"Joe has a great track record and understanding of the game and emerging talent.
"We know we have another strong leader and a team player who will help us continue to build our world-class football organisation."
Didier Deschamps wants Raphael Varane and Paul Pogba to prove they can contribute at Qatar 2022 after announcing he will not be taking any injured players to the World Cup.
The France boss said everyone who travels to the finals, where Les Bleus will be defending the title they won in Russia, must be able to contribute immediately.
Manchester United centre-back Varane is not expected to play any club football until the Qatar 2022 finals get under way, after suffering a leg injury, while Pogba is back in training with Juventus after knee surgery but will not be rushed back to action.
"It's absolutely clear," Deschamps said in an interview with French website Brut. "I've never embarked on a big competition with an injured player, even if there are some who can come up with examples from 2018 with our full-backs who were Benjamin Mendy and Djibril Sidibe.
"They were healed. After that, it's about athletic condition. And between the time I made the list and what should have happened, that didn't happen… there you go.
"But leaving for a big competition with players who are not ready, already it occupies too much attention, and for those who have to play, it also monopolises the medical staff. I consider that we must leave with valid and capable players."
Pogba is still waiting to make an impact on the pitch in his second spell at Juventus, having rejoined the Serie A giants from Manchester United.
There is a strong will from Deschamps for the midfielder to be on the plane to Qatar, and Pogba may well return to club action in the coming weeks.
The coach has plenty of sympathy for the 29-year-old who has had a tough time away from football lately.
An investigation was opened in August into allegations Pogba was the target of an extortion plot by his brother Mathias and childhood friends demanding a €13million sum.
Mathias Pogba and four others were charged in relation to the matter and Deschamps regards Paul Pogba as "a victim".
"That it's been a very difficult moment for him, yes," Deschamps said.
"I talk to him regularly. He's someone who has a big mentality. Obviously, relating to his injury, it's not easy to manage. But psychologically, he's fine."
Matthew Mott says England will not "throw the baby out with the bath water" for a monumental T20 World Cup showdown with Australia following their stunning defeat to Ireland.
England's hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals suffered a shock blow when they were consigned to a five-run Duckworth-Lewis-Stern loss at the hands of the Irish, with rain cutting short Wednesday's contest at the MCG.
Jos Buttler's side are third in Group 1 and must respond when they face a fifth-placed Australia side who are level on points with them.
Mott, England's Australian white-ball head coach, ruled out ringing the changes for a huge clash in Melbourne on Friday.
He said: "We have played really solid cricket for the last month…we are not going throw the baby out with the bath water. It's just business as usual. We'll go through the sessions, see who's pulled up well and make changes.
"But it is very unlikely to change the structure of the team. It might be a change here or two depending on how the bowlers pulled up."
Ben Stokes has failed to reach double figures in both World Cup knocks so far, but Mott expects the Test skipper to come good with the bat.
"He's an incredible player for our team," Mott said of the all-rounder. "He's a real leader in our group as well, apart from the official leaders.
"I thought his bowling has been a real bonus for us. I think a lot of people probably underestimate his bowling coming into this tournament.
"And he's been key for us. I think he's bowled some big overs particularly in the powerplay. With the bat, he hasn't come off yet. But his career would suggest that at some point someone's going to pay a price and hopefully that's Australia in a day's time."
Manchester United rejected suggestions to pursue the likes of Erling Haaland, Dusan Vlahovic and Christopher Nkunku, claims former interim manager Ralf Rangnick.
Rangnick endured a torrid six-month spell at Old Trafford last season, leading United to their lowest points tally in Premier League history (58) after succeeding Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
United's woes were exacerbated by a lack of attacking firepower during his final few months in charge, with Anthony Martial being loaned out to Sevilla and Mason Greenwood suspended by the club.
Rangnick has now revealed he suggested several big-name transfer targets to United's hierarchy – including now-Manchester City talisman Haaland, but was overruled.
"One Sunday, they informed me of Greenwood's troubles, and Martial was already gone," Rangnick recalled when speaking to BILD.
"We needed strikers to play three competitions, I told the board that we should figure out whether to sign some players, but I was told no.
"I had made realistic names, such as [Josko] Gvardiol and [Christopher] Nkunku of RB Leipzig.
"Or even [Alvaro] Morata, Luis Diaz, [Dusan] Vlahovic and even Erling Haaland, when he was still on the market. The club decided to rebuild the squad with another coach."
While United have made a decent start to life under Rangnick's successor Erik ten Hag, they will likely be ruing their failure to land Haaland, who has scored 17 goals in 11 league games for City.
Meanwhile, Vlahovic has six goals in 10 Serie A outings for Juventus this season, and Leipzig's versatile attacker Nkunku is reportedly a target for Chelsea after recording 55 goal involvements in all competitions last campaign.
Lewis Hamilton has revealed he will sign a new contract to remain with his "family" Mercedes.
Hamilton ended speculation that he could quit Formula One last year by agreeing a new deal until the end of the 2023 season.
The Brit, who turns 38 in January, is set to continue driving for the Silver Arrows in his 40s.
He said ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix this weekend: "We are going to do another deal. We are going to sit down and discuss it in these next couple of months."
The seven-time F1 world champion added: "I want to keep racing. I love what I do. I've been doing it for 30 years, and I don't feel that I should have to stop. I think I am currently still earning my keep. I still want to do better.
"I could stop now and I have lots of other things in the pipeline that I will be super-focused and super-busy with. I'm here for the sheer love of working in the organisation that I'm in.
"So you are stuck with me for quite a bit longer."
Hamilton suffered the agony of missing out on a record eighth world title when Max Verstappen dramatically overtook him on the last lap of the final race of the 2021 season in Abu Dhabi.
Following the controversy of the climax to last season, Hamilton could finish the current campaign without winning a race for the first time in his illustrious F1 career.
Despite a difficult year, he has not lost his hunger and wants to repay the faith Mercedes have shown in him.
"My goal is to continue to be with Mercedes. I've been with Mercedes since I was 13. It really is my family.
"Mercedes-Benz have stuck with me through thick and thin. They stuck with me through being expelled at school. They stuck with me through everything that was going on through 2020.
"They've stuck with me through my mistakes and through the ups and downs."
PSV have been fined €40,000 by UEFA and banned from selling tickets for their next Europa League away game after fans ripped out seats and hurled items after the match at Arsenal.
The Dutch club discovered their punishment just hours ahead of the Group A return game between the teams in Eindhoven on Thursday.
UEFA has also ordered PSV to reimburse Arsenal for the cost of repairing the damaged seats, giving them 30 days in which to address the matter with the Gunners.
Trouble broke out at the end of last Thursday's game, which Arsenal won 1-0 at Emirates Stadium to guarantee a place in the knockout stage.
As well as seats being damaged and thrown, a flare was also tossed from the PSV section towards Arsenal supporters.
UEFA confirmed the punishments in a statement to media, saying they were imposed "for throwing of objects, crowd disturbances and acts of damages".
PSV's next away game in the Europa League is a trip to face Bodo/Glimt next week, on November 3, in Norway.
Depending on results this Thursday, that game could decide who joins Arsenal in progressing from the group stage.
Emma Raducanu has been urged to slow down the churn of coaches by her side as Russian Dmitry Tursunov claimed he walked away from the British player because of "red flags".
Tursunov, a former top-20 player and seven-time title winner on the men's tour, said Raducanu needs to listen to "one voice" and see where that takes her, after he became the latest coach to part ways with the former US Open winner.
It emerged in early October that Tursunov had called a halt to working with Raducanu, and he has taken up a role with Swiss player Belinda Bencic instead.
Tursunov told tennismajors.com how "emotionally" he had wanted his trial period with Raducanu to become permanent, insisting he saw rich potential in the 19-year-old, but he suspected there would "be problems later".
Former Davis Cup winner Tursunov did not specify who or what he saw as being a stumbling block to working with Raducanu on a permanent basis.
"I was walking away from Emma regardless of whether there was another [player] available or not," Tursunov said. "We didn't agree on the terms and there were some red flags that just couldn't be ignored."
Raducanu turns 20 in November. As well as Tursunov, in the past 18 months she has worked with Nigel Sears, Andrew Richardson, Torben Beltz and the Lawn Tennis Association's Iain Bates.
Her growing list of former coaches is notable and the focus on that factor could influence those Raducanu wishes to work with in the future.
Tursunov said Raducanu was "minimum a one-year project but... probably a two-and-a-half-year project to be on the safe side", and reasoned that her game remained "very raw".
"It’s going to take some time, but as I said to her and to pretty much everyone on her team: I think you just need to have one voice and just try that for a bit," Tursunov said
He said he "stuck around" after a trial around the US Open and was looking for assurance that, if taken on, he would be given time to work towards long-term goals.
"But of course, with her coaching situation, there's now a thought going through every coach's mind," Tursunov added.
Raducanu has not reached a final since her dazzling Flushing Meadows victory, but Tursunov has no doubt about the talent of a player he describes as "absolutely great" and "hungry to improve".
There have been just four quarter-final runs in the wake of her September 2021 triumph in New York, with Raducanu only converting one into a semi-final appearance
Tursunov, 39, says Raducanu "has a tremendous upside", but he also issued a warning, adding: "The ingredients are very good, but you can still mess it up."
Virat Kohli made another half-century as India took another step towards the T20 World Cup semi-finals with a 56-run victory over Netherlands at the SCG.
Kohli's magnificent unbeaten 82 gave India a dramatic win over Pakistan on Sunday and he followed that up with 62 from 44 balls as India posted 179-2 in Sydney on Thursday.
Captain Rohit Sharma struck 53 from 39 deliveries after being dropped by Tim Pringle on 13 and Suryakumar Yadav (51 not out off 25) also made a half-century to leave the Dutch facing a substantial run chase.
Netherlands never looked like pulling off a huge upset, falling short on 123-9 as they suffered defeat in as many Super 12 matches.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2-9) took the wicket of Vikramjit Singh and did not conceded a run in his first two overs, while Axar Patel (2-18), Ravichandran Ashwin (2-21) and Arshdeep Singh (2-37) also impressed with the ball.
Victory for India moved them a point ahead of South Africa, who hammered Bangladesh by 104 runs earlier in the day, at the top of Group 2.
Kohli goes back-to-back, Suryakumar shows his class
A Kohli masterclass gave India a sensational victory over Pakistan at the MCG and the former captain carried on where he left off in another classy knock.
He reached his half-century in 37 balls, hitting two sixes and finding the rope three times in another high-quality innings.
Suryakumar, number three in the T20I batting rankings, hit seven fours and reached his half-century by launching the final ball of the innings from Logan van Beek for six.
The brilliance of Bhuvneshwar
India also demonstrated the potency of their bowling attack and it was Bhuvneshwar who set the tone.
He bowled back-to-back maidens and cleaned up before returning to get rid of captain Scott Edwards in his second spell.
Adam Wainwright is returning to the St Louis Cardinals for one last hurrah in 2023 but says he wants no fuss to surround his farewell season.
The 41-year-old pitcher, who made his debut for the team in 2005, will be entering a 19th season with the Cardinals and looking to make up for a disappointing end to the 2022 campaign.
He struggled in the team's closing regular season games and cited a "dead arm", saying he was feeling "no explosiveness" when pitching.
Wainwright wants to go out on a high, so he is playing on with that in mind, but wary of being caught up in hoopla.
"I have so many distractions as it is, and I don't need any more," said Wainwright. "If I tell you it's the last one, then I've got to go through a bunch of stuff.
"My main focus of playing next year is to go out and win and help this team win.
"Long story short: Yes, this will be the last one. Everybody relax and let me pitch. Let me go out and perform and not freak out about it every single day, and let's see what happens."
Wainwright has 195 career wins and 117 losses. An early target will be to pass 200 wins, and then Wainwright will be looking to go second on the team's all-time list among pitchers, with Jesse Haines currently occupying that position with 210 wins. Bob Gibson heads the list with 251 wins.
To go past Haines would require an upturn in Wainwright's former, after he endured an 11-12 win-loss record in 2022.
Cardinals president John Mozeliak was glad to agree a deal to keep Wainwright on for one more year.
Mozeliak, quoted on MLB.com, said: "We really do feel like there's something left in that tank.
"We all know how competitive [Wainwright] is, we know how special he is in that clubhouse and what he means to this organisation. So we're just glad we could get it done."
Matthew Wade has tested positive for coronavirus but is expected to play in Australia's huge T20 World Cup showdown with England on Friday.
The wicketkeeper-batter returned a positive test on Wednesday evening, but only has minor symptoms.
Wade is set to feature at the MCG, provided his symptoms remain only minor, while spinner Adam Zampa is poised to play his first match of the tournament after he was sidelined by COVID-19.
Australia do not have a recognised back-up keeper in their squad after Josh Inglis suffered a hand injury prior to the tournament and was replaced by all-rounder Cameron Green.
Glenn Maxwell took the gloves in training on Thursday, but it would seem he will not be required to step in behind the stumps in a crucial Group 1 showdown.
The hosts are fifth in Group 1, two places behind England after they suffered a stunning five-run loss to Ireland by the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in a rainy Melbourne on Wednesday.
LeBron James has vowed to take a more aggressive approach after the Los Angeles Lakers slumped to 0-4 with a defeat to the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday.
Denver kept the Lakers waiting for their first win of the season with a 110-99 victory at Ball Arena, improving to 3-2.
Los Angeles are languishing at the bottom of the Western Conference but will get another chance to get up and running when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.
Lakers superstar James was 8-for-21 shooting, finishing with 19 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
The four-time NBA champion and MVP is not concerned by posting such low numbers by his high standards.
"I wasn't aggressive enough in a lot of my turnovers," James said. "I was coming off a lot of screens, looking to pass, get guys involved, and I wasn't aggressive enough."
He added: "That's an easy fix for me. I'll be much better on Friday with that. I've done it over and over the course of my career. That's an easy fix. I'm not worried about that."
Lakers head coach Darvin Ham is confident the Los Angeles Lakers will turn the corner.
"We're four games in, it sucks to lose, but having 78 games left, there's plenty of time for us to right the ship, and it starts now," Ham said. "It starts yesterday."
Anthony Davis top scored for the Lakers with 22 points in a game that Russell Westbrook missed due to left-hamstring soreness.
James said of Westbrook's absence: "Russ, definitely dealing with a hamstring. I played with [Dwyane] Wade. And I don't know how, but you just have to be cool with all that.
"You can't force it until that thing is ready to go. You've got to be very conscious of that."
Napoli have dismissed the idea they could offer Cristiano Ronaldo refuge in January as the Serie A leaders insist they "don't have to fix anything".
Sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli indicated the prospect of any major incomings or outgoings was remote, given Napoli are confident they have a strong group with the right balance.
He added that to "fly with the fantasy" would not be Napoli's style this season, as they seek a first Scudetto since the 1989-90 season, when Diego Maradona was at the club.
Ronaldo could leave Manchester United in mid-season if a deal can be found that suits all parties.
His refusal to play as a substitute and early exit from the stadium last week against Tottenham led to United briefly banishing him from first-team duties, although the 37-year-old has since returned to the squad and looked set to play some part on Thursday against Sheriff in the Europa League.
However, Ronaldo's former team Sporting CP have ruled out a move, and now Napoli, having been linked with Ronaldo in the last transfer window, are distancing themselves from a possible deal for the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
Giuntoli told Mediaset: "We are very far from the market. At the moment we are thinking only of everyday life, trying to improve continuously."
Regarding Ronaldo, he said: "The January transfer market is one of repair and we don't have to fix anything, so I really think we won't do anything."
That stance covers how Napoli are thinking regarding their exciting, young Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, as well as striker Victor Osimhen.
Both have admirers in the Premier League, but Napoli are not minded to sell, at least for now.
Luciano Spalletti's team head Serie A with 29 points from 11 games, and they have also won five out of five Champions League group games, beating Rangers 3-0 on Wednesday.
Giuntoli said: "Kvaratskhelia is doing well, like many others, and is absolutely non-transferable."
According to Giuntoli, club president Aurelio De Laurentiis is firmly behind the football staff's plans for shaping the team to deliver success.
"The president is very happy with what we are doing, but like all of us he keeps his feet on the ground," Giuntoli said.
"Football is made up of balance, we must not fly with the fantasy. We are curious to discover our limits.
"Our prerogative has always been to move using our heads, both outgoing and incoming, and I think that, sometimes more, sometimes less, we have always managed to set up a competitive team. We do nothing without first having heard the coach."
Andy Dalton will retain the starting quarterback berth for the New Orleans Saints despite the return to practice of Jameis Winston, head coach Dennis Allen has confirmed.
Winston injured his back in the Week 1 win over the Atlanta Falcons and initially played through the pain barrier in the following two games.
He was eventually sidelined to allow him to recover, with Dalton, signed as a backup to Winston, starting under center after the Saints' attempts to bring in Deshaun Watson were unsuccessful.
Allen explained his reasoning for sticking with Dalton, telling reporters: "Andy's gonna get the start again this week [against the Las Vegas Raiders.
"I feel like he's played well. Offensively, I feel like we're in a little bit of a rhythm. We've been moving the ball effectively, we've scored points. And so we're gonna continue down that road with Andy as the quarterback."
This season, Dalton has completed on 63.4 per cent of his passes for 946 yards and seven touchdowns, while he has been sacked four times and been intercepted four times.
Last time out against the Arizona Cardinals, a game the Saints lost, Dalton threw for 361 yards and four touchdowns but also conceded three interceptions – two of which were returned for touchdowns.
However, Allen said he was looking for offensive continuity in the coming weeks.
"What I mean by that is in the last four weeks, we're one of the top offenses in terms of moving the ball, we're one of the top offenses in terms of scoring points," he added. "And that's really the name of the game. So, we're gonna continue doing what we've been doing.
"We've gotta do a better job of protecting the football. And if we do that, I think we can be highly effective offensively."
Allen said Dalton will keep his position over a fully fit Winston as long as the team remain coherent with the ball in hand.
"Well, look, Jameis is back healthy right now. We're gonna go with Andy as we sit here right now. And if we continue to play well offensively and move the ball offensively, Andy will stay in there," Allen said.
"There's a lot of things that we're doing really well offensively. And I didn't feel like there was any need to upset the apple cart there. We'll keep going how we are. And if we continue to do that, then we'll stay the course."
The Saints (2-5) sit bottom of the NFC South and will look to ignite life into their season against the Raiders on Sunday.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
