Thomas Tuchel regretted not substituting Mateo Kovacic earlier in Chelsea's win over Lille but hopes the midfielder and Hakim Ziyech will be fit for the EFL Cup final. 

Kovacic sustained an injury early in the second half of the Blues' 2-0 last-16 first-leg victory at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek replacing him in the 51st minute. 

Ziyech also hobbled off before the hour mark after appearing to hurt his ankle, casting doubt over whether the pair will be available for Sunday's meeting with Liverpool at Wembley. 

Chelsea took the lead through Kai Havertz in the eighth minute and added to their tally through Christian Pulisic in the 63rd minute, making them the first English team to win five straight home matches without conceding in Europe's premier club competition.

However, Tuchel was frustrated he did not keep Kovacic out of harm's way by taking him off earlier. 

"I should've substituted Kova earlier at half-time so we could've saved one more change. I didn't see Hakim's injury and did not speak to the doctor yet. I hope it's not too bad," Tuchel told BT Sport. 

"It's a little bit the story of the season, that almost every game or every other game we do substitutions only because of injuries and not tactical reasons. It's following us. 

"Sunday is good because it's a lot of days for us to recover and be ready. In general, we don't like to have as many injuries and would like to have more impact from the bench in a tactical matter. But it is what it is. I hope the guys will be ready for Sunday." 

N'Golo Kante impressed at the heart of Chelsea's midfield and claimed an assist for Pulisic's goal following a lung-busting surge through the middle of the pitch. 

Tuchel was pleased to see Kante showing signs of his best form after a difficult run with injuries. His three assists in all competitions in 2022 are the joint-most at Chelsea and it is the same amount he managed across 75 appearances for the club in 2020 and 2021 combined.

"I was very pleased. It took him a while, I have to say. It was not the real N'Golo in the last matches. He struggled a bit with belief and intensity in his game in general," said Tuchel. 

"It was good he stepped up today. You can instantly see how big the impact is if he's in good shape – he's our game changer. He had a huge impact. I'm very happy for him and the team." 

Dusan Vlahovic was left with mixed feelings about his Champions League debut after Juventus' 1-1 draw with Villarreal. 

The former Fiorentina striker found the back of the net just 32 seconds into the first leg of the last-16 tie in Spain – the fastest goal in the competition by a full debutant. 

Vlahovic demonstrated tremendous instincts as he controlled Danilo's lofted ball on his chest and slotted into the far corner past a flat-footed Geronimo Rulli. 

Juventus were unable to preserve their advantage, though. Dani Parejo equalised in the 66th minute to leave the contest finely poised ahead of the second leg on March 16. 

While the Serbia international was thrilled to be on target, he admitted the result took the shine off his achievement. 

"It was huge to score on my debut; it was very emotional. However, I cannot be 100 per cent satisfied because we have not won the game," he said. 

"We have to keep working hard. We played a good game and we could have won.  

"We tried to play well also in the second half but sometimes the opposition do not allow you to do what you want to do. So, congratulations to them for equalising.  

"There are some regrets, but we must just focus on the next game." 

Meanwhile, head coach Massimiliano Allegri was left frustrated by the manner of Villarreal's equaliser. 

An unmarked Parejo was allowed to drift into the penalty area and sweep Etienne Capoue's lofted pass beyond Wojciech Szczesny. 

"We made a bad mistake on their equaliser," Allegri said. "We perfectly knew that they were trying that move and we still allowed them to score. However, the team played a good game in general.  

"We made a few mistakes also in attack; straying offside when we had good chances on the counter-attack.  

"In general, I'm quite satisfied with the performance." 

Zion Williamson's failure to welcome CJ McCollum to the New Orleans Pelicans added to a "pattern of behaviour" that shows the former first overall pick to be "a detached team-mate".

That is the view of JJ Redick, a former Pelicans team-mate.

Injuries have limited Williamson to just 85 games in the NBA since he was drafted in 2019, meaning the discussion around the forward has instead centred on his commitment to the Pelicans.

The team have made moves to try to build a competitive team in the absence of a potential superstar, who averages 25.7 points for his career.

But McCollum, the latest recruit from the Portland Trail Blazers, said at the weekend he was yet to speak with Williamson directly.

And Redick, speaking on Tuesday, was able to offer an insight into life alongside the 21-year-old, whose status remains unclear as he waits to play his first game this season following a foot injury.

"This just shows a complete lack of investment in your team, in the organisation, in the city," Redick told First Take.

"I get that he's hurt and away from the team, but you just traded for one of the 50 best players in the league – a guy that's supposed to be paired with you. Reach out and say, 'hello'.

"This is a pattern of behaviour with Zion that we are seeing again and again. I was his team-mate; I can describe him as a detached team-mate – that is an accurate statement."

Redick, who joined the Pelicans at the same time as Williamson and left in March 2021, said: "Yes, he's been amazing when he's been on the court – 100 per cent.

"He's amazing to watch. There's no one that can do what he does on a basketball court.

"But as a team-mate, there is a pattern of behaviour; as a fully invested individual in New Orleans, there's a pattern of behaviour. This is worrisome."

Phil Mickelson has apologised for his "reckless" comments promoting the possible Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League, while he announced he will also take a break from the sport.

A number of high-profile golf stars were reportedly targeted by organisers of a lucrative alternative to the PGA Tour, including Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau.

But most of the leading names – the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Collin Morikawa – denounced the league, instead pledging their allegiance to the PGA Tour.

However, Mickelson was a vocal supporter of the new potential competition, claiming it could provide players with "leverage" as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to "reshape how the PGA Tour operates".

The American golfer went as far as suggesting he and several other golfers paid their lawyers to construct the proposed breakaway competition's agreement, even though he stated Saudi Arabia has "a horrible record on human rights."

Mickelson's comments prompted further backlash from McIlroy, who slated the claims, and the 51-year-old has now apologised for any offence caused by his antics.

In a statement on Tuesday, Mickelson said: "Although it doesn't look this way now given my recent comments, my actions throughout this process have always been with the best interest of golf, my peers, sponsors, and fans.

"There is the problem of off-record comments being shared out of context and without my consent, but the bigger issue is that I used words I sincerely regret that do not reflect my true feelings or intentions. 

"It was reckless, I offended people, and I am deeply sorry for my choice of words. I'm beyond disappointed and will make every effort to self-reflect and learn from this.

"Golf desperately needs change, and real change is always preceded by disruption. I have always known that criticism would come with exploring anything new. 

"I still chose to put myself at the forefront of this to inspire change, taking the hits publicly to do the work behind the scenes.

"Despite my belief that some changes have already been made within the overall discourse, I know I need to be accountable. 

"For the past 31 years, I have lived a very public life and I have strived to live up to my own expectations, be the role model the fans deserve, and be someone that inspires others."

Mickelson also suggested he would take a break from golf to focus on himself.

"I've worked to compete at the highest level, be available to media, represent my sponsors with integrity, engage with volunteers and sign every autograph for my incredible fans," he continued.

"I have experienced many successful and rewarding moments that I will always cherish, but I have often failed myself and others too.

"The past 10 years, I have felt the pressure and stress slowly affecting me at a deeper level. I know I have not been my best and desperately need some time away to prioritise the ones I love most and work on being the man I want to be."

Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic put Chelsea in control of their Champions League last-16 tie against Lille with a 2-0 win, but Mateo Kovacic and Hakim Ziyech went off injured. 

Despite Romelu Lukaku being dropped to the bench after a dismal showing against Crystal Palace on Saturday, Chelsea needed just eight minutes to find the net through Havertz. 

The reigning champions saw in-form duo Kovacic and Ziyech hobble off before the hour mark, casting doubt over their chances of featuring in the EFL Cup final against Liverpool on Sunday. 

Pulisic finished off a quick break after 63 minutes to secure a strong first-leg lead for Thomas Tuchel's side, with the return leg to come in France next month.

Havertz wasted little time in making his mark as the central striker, nodding home from Ziyech's corner after failing to take a couple of early chances. 

Antonio Rudiger almost turned a Renato Sanches cross into his own net and Lille threatened with a flurry of chances from the resulting corner as they started to get a foothold in the game. 

Chelsea were dealt a blow when they lost Kovacic and Ziyech in quick succession early in the second half, but they doubled their advantage in the 63rd minute. 

N'Golo Kante surged forward from inside the Chelsea half and fed Pulisic for a delightful dink over the onrushing Leo Jardim and into the bottom-right corner. 

Lille tried to reduce the arrears with a push for a late goal, but Edouard Mendy was never really tested and Chelsea remained in charge of the tie. 

What does it mean? Advantage Chelsea 

The Blues were always going to be the favourites in this match-up and they got the win that was expected of them despite being far from dominant. 

Chelsea have a good record when winning the first leg of a Champions League tie; in the 11 occasions they have won the opening encounter, they have reached the next round nine times. 

However, the two exits followed first-leg victories at Stamford Bridge against Barcelona in 1999-2000 and Liverpool in 2006-07. 

No room for Romelu 

Lukaku was dropped after having just seven touches across 90 minutes at the weekend. Havertz needed just five to have three attempts on goal and find the net with the last of them, showing he is more than capable of being a potent threat through the middle. 

Sanches shines in defeat 

Sanches proved he has come a long way as he returned to the ground where he infamously passed to a logo on an advertising board, which he had mistaken for a team-mate during an underwhelming loan spell at Swansea City in 2017. He bossed the midfield in the first half and played some lovely passes.  

What's next? 

Chelsea face Liverpool in the EFL Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, when Lille travel to Lyon in Ligue 1. 

Dusan Vlahovic scored on his Champions League debut as Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw by Villarreal in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The former Fiorentina striker broke the deadlock after just 32 seconds at El Madrigal, netting the fastest goal in the competition by a Bianconeri debutant.

But Juve were pegged back when Dani Parejo capitalised on sloppy defending by equalising in the 66th minute.

Neither side could then find a winner, leaving the tie finely poised ahead of the return leg in Turin on March 16.

Leading the line in the Champions League for the first time since his move from Fiorentina, Vlahovic wasted no time in making his mark. 

Latching onto Danilo's long ball, he brilliantly slotted into the far corner past Geronimo Rulli, becoming only the second Juventus player to find the net in the opening minute of a match in the competition.

Villarreal looked to respond in the 13th minute; Alfonso Pedraza embarked on a driving run into the box before feeding Giovani Lo Celso, who was denied by the post.

Wojciech Szczesny was then called into action as he produced smart reflexes to block Arnaut Danjuma's clever flick towards goal.

The hosts turned up the pressure after the break and were rewarded with an equaliser midway through the second half.

Completely unmarked, Parejo collected Etienne Capoue's lofted ball into the area before neatly sweeping past Szczesny.

Adrien Rabiot was fortunate to avoid further punishment when booked for his rash challenge on Samuel Chukwueze, and Juve held on as Villarreal enjoyed a greater share of possession as the clock ticked down.

Hakim Ziyech and Mateo Kovacic could be doubts for the EFL Cup final this weekend after hobbling out of Chelsea's Champions League meeting with Lille. 

Kovacic sustained an injury shortly after the restart in the last 16 first leg at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday and was replaced by Ruben Loftus-Cheek in the 51st minute.

Ziyech, who has scored in each of his past three Premier League appearances and set up Kai Havertz for the opener against Lille, appeared to sustain an ankle injury. Saul Niguez was sent on in his place in the 60th minute. 

Thomas Tuchel will no doubt hope the pair are able to recover in time to feature against Liverpool at Wembley on Sunday, with Chelsea chasing more silverware after their Club World Cup triumph earlier this month.

Dusan Vlahovic made Juventus history by striking inside the opening minute of their Champions League clash with Villarreal on Tuesday.

The Serbia international, who was making his debut in the competition after moving from Fiorentina last month, put the Bianconeri ahead after just 32 seconds at El Madrigal.

Controlling Danilo's long ball before slotting past Geronimo Rulli, Vlahovic became only the third player to score inside the opening minute of his first Champions League start.

Following in the footsteps of Andreas Moller (for Borussia Dortmund against Juventus in 1995) and Ishak Belfodil (for Hoffenheim against Manchester City in 2018), Vlahovic's was the fastest Champions League goal by a debutant playing for Juve.

Only the second Juve player to score in the first minute of any match in this competition – after Alessandro Del Piero against Manchester United in 1997 – the 22-year-old also became the first to net on his Bianconeri debut in the modern knockout-stage format.

It was the earliest goal in a Champions League knockout game since David Alaba struck against Juve after just 24 seconds for Bayern Munich in 2013.

Jannik Sinner saved three match points to avoid a shock defeat to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

After losing the first set, the world number 10 staved off defeat in a nerve-wracking second-set tie-break.

The fourth seed clung on as Davidovich Fokina saw a trio of opportunities to clinch a shock win go begging, the Spaniard made to pay as his Italian counterpart fought back to prevail 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-3.

Sinner, who will next face former world number one Andy Murray, said: "It was a very tough match. I know him, but we've never played against each other.

"It was the first time for both of us and it was a tricky one, saving three match points. On the first one I got lucky because it was out, but not so far [out]."

Second favourite Andrey Rublev won both the singles and doubles titles in Marseille last week and continued his fine form with a 6-4 7-5 win over Daniel Evans that saw the Russian send down 28 winners.

Sixth seed Denis Shapovalov had to recover from a set down to see off Marton Fucsovics, though fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz enjoyed a more routine straight-sets triumph over Alexander Bublik.

Eighth seed Roberto Bautista Agut made relatively light work of Arthur Rinderknech but defending champion and seventh seed Aslan Karatsev was stunned 7-5 6-3 by Mackenzie McDonald.

Karen Khachanov needed a little shy of three hours to beat Alex de Minaur, his dubious reward a second-round clash with Novak Djokovic as the world number one continues his return to the Tour following his controversial Australian Open absence.

Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone called for his side to produce a spirited performance against "one of the best teams in the world" Manchester United.

United head into the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday having lost just one of their 14 Premier League games since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked as manager in November.

By contrast, Simeone's men – who have home advantage this week – have somewhat struggled in their LaLiga title defence this season.

However, Atletico secured a 3-0 victory over Osasuna on Saturday, and Simeone wants to see another battling showing against United, who he believes have transformed since the Ralf Rangnick's appointment in place of Solskjaer on an interim basis.

"We are facing one of the best teams in the world. In the last 14 games, they have only lost one," Simeone told reporters at Tuesday's pre-match news conference. 

"Since the arrival of the new coach, he has given them solidity, teamwork, commitment and shows how Manchester United always was.

"The new coach has made his mark, because you can see it is an intense, dynamic, courageous team with very good individuals. 

"The game will be tough, difficult, like all Champions League games, but we have the hope of being in our stadium and with our supporters."

He added: "The other day there was a great spirit in the team, you could see it. Hopefully it will be there again against Manchester United because then we will be able to compete better."

Atletico have lost each of their past four Champions League games against English sides, double the number of losses they suffered across their first 12 such matches in the competition (W4 D6 L2).

The LaLiga outfit have also won just four of their last 14 in the competition, despite progressing from the group stages in consecutive campaigns, while also losing more of their past four home games (three) than they did in their previous 37 (two) in Europe's premier club tournament.

Simeone's task at the Wanda Metropolitano was also made more difficult on Tuesday, after it was confirmed Atletico would be without their captain Koke for the United clash.

The midfielder suffered a muscle injury in the win over Osasuna, but Simeone insisted it would be an opportunity for others to step up.

"We have [Thomas] Lemar returning after COVID-19, which is important for us," he added. "[Yannick] Carrasco is also suspended...

"But there are team-mates who are very eager, waiting to show their ability."

Bruno Fernandes has become the latest player to dismiss reports of a divide in the Manchester United dressing room, insisting the team are sticking together.

A rift between captain Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo was reported ahead of Sunday's clash with Leeds United.

But Marcus Rashford and Maguire each responded on social media, while interim manager Ralf Rangnick described the claims as "absolute nonsense," before saying the 4-2 victory was the "perfect response" from his players.

Fernandes has also now denied the story, saying the togetherness and camaraderie of the group was evident in their goal celebrations at Elland Road.

"It is honestly people trying to complain and making stories about this club," said the Portugal midfielder ahead of Wednesday's game against Atletico Madrid.

"I don't know what people mean. I saw the goal of H [Maguire] and saw Paul [Pogba] running behind, sliding on his knees, happy for him. I was slapping his head and saying finally he had scored with that big head.

"We know when someone talks about this club or players at this club, it goes around the world with their voice. That is something that they want.

"For us, it is nothing. If we stick to the plan and stick together, that is the main thing: losing together and winning together." 

Romelu Lukaku was dropped to the bench by Thomas Tuchel for Chelsea's Champions League last-16 meeting with Lille on Tuesday. 

Belgium international Lukaku was a peripheral figure during Saturday's 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park and was named among the substitutes for the first leg against Lille at Stamford Bridge. 

He was replaced in the line-up by Cesar Azpilicueta, with Kai Havertz handed the central striking role and flanked by Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic. 

Lukaku paid the price for a historically quiet game display against Palace, which saw him manage just seven touches – one of which was from kick-off. It was the fewest touches by a player who featured for 90+ minutes in a single Premier League game since 2003-04, when Opta has the data available from.  

Tuchel made two other changes to his team, with Marcos Alonso replacing Malang Sarr and Mateo Kovacic chosen ahead of Jorginho. 

Luka Doncic took criticism of his weight at the start of this NBA season to heart and has since been "unstoppable", according to Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

For the second season running, Doncic was the preseason MVP favourite; for the second season running, the Mavs superstar was accused of turning up for work out of shape.

Doncic himself acknowledged he "maybe" relaxed "too much" after leading Slovenia in a sensational deep run at the Tokyo Olympics.

The 22-year-old vowed to "trim down" and "do better" and has done exactly that – reportedly now at a similar weight to his rookie year.

The Mavs were 17-18 up until the end of December, with Doncic featuring in only 21 games and averaging 25.6 points, 8.5 assists, 8.0 rebounds and a plus/minus of -4.0.

In 2022, the team are 18-6, carried by their main man's 29.3 points, 9.4 assists and 10.3 rebounds per game, along with a plus/minus of 9.1. He has not missed a game since January 7.

This calendar year, Doncic ranks third for total points (674), second for total assists (217) and sixth for total rebounds (236) – a response, Cuban suggests, to early-season criticism.

"I think he was humbled a little bit," Cuban told The Ticket. "I think he didn't like being called out for his weight and other things, and it finally clicked that there's a level of discipline that's required.

"All athletes at his level go through it at some level, where things are just easy and you're always used to being the best and you're always used to getting all the accolades.

"Then when something doesn't go according to expected, it makes you reconsider.

"He knows what he needs to do, and it finally clicked that if he's going to be the best – and I know he wants to be the best – there's certain things he has to control.

"Once he got a handle on those things, it's just been 'Katie, bar the door'. He's just been unstoppable."