Trent Alexander-Arnold scored a stunner and sparkled in midfield as England continued their march to Euro 2024 with a comprehensive victory against minnows Malta.

The talented full-back has rarely looked like the player that shines for Liverpool when donning a Three Lions shirt, with the immense competition at right-back also restricting his opportunities.

Alexander-Arnold won just his 19th England cap on Friday night against Malta and impressed in a midfield role, helping to inspire Gareth Southgate’s side to a straightforward 4-0 victory.

The 24-year-old made an impact from outset at the sold-out Ta’ Qali National Stadium, with this exceptional early pass putting Bukayo Saka behind to produce a cross that Ferdinando Apap turned into his own goal.

Alexander-Arnold continued to star and produced a moment of magic in the 28th minute, taking aim from 23 yards as he curled home just his second England goal.

The midfielder also had a hand in England’s third goal, winning the ball high up the pitch at the start of a move that ended with Harry Kane scoring a penalty.

There was a far better mood in the away section than the last trip to Malta in 2017, when Southgate’s side were jeered off after a scoreless first half as many travelling fans made an early exit.

Large numbers of England fans again departed at half-time this time around, but it was to toast a job well done rather than to grumble over beers like six years ago.

In truth, they missed little aside from substitute Callum Wilson converting a late penalty as Southgate’s men continued their 100 per cent start in Group C.

Defending champion Matt Fitzpatrick enjoyed another memorable moment in the US Open as Rory McIlroy remained in touch with the leaders at Los Angeles Country Club.

Fitzpatrick recorded the third hole-in-one of the week on the 115-yard 15th in the second round, his tee shot spinning back into the hole just as those of Matthieu Pavon and Sam Burns had done on Thursday.

However, Fitzpatrick could not see where the ball had landed and was walking off the tee before the roar from the crowd sparked some enthusiastic, if rather belated, celebrations.

The eagle lifted Fitzpatrick from one over par to one under, but he had slipped back to one over by the time American Wyndham Clark set the early clubhouse target on nine under.

Clark added a 67 to his opening 64 to take over at the top of the leaderboard from Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele, who were among the later starters.

Fowler and Schauffele had both shot 62 in the first round to record the lowest score in US Open history and equal the lowest in any men’s major, while the scoring average of 71.38 was another tournament record.

Tournament officials insisted they would not respond by making conditions “stupid hard”, although the par-three 11th was playing 297 yards on Friday and water had only been applied to “isolated spots on the putting greens for turf health”.

John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer of the USGA, told NBC: “[On Friday], as planned, we will play the golf course longer.

“We’re not going to force anything. We could do things that could make it stupid hard. We’re not going to do that.”

Dustin Johnson found the going hard enough on his own early on, the 2016 champion running up an eight on the second after tangling with a fairway bunker, thick rough and the barranca which runs down the left of the hole.

McIlroy was also among the early starters and dropped a shot on the 11th, but bounced back in style by holing a 32ft birdie putt on the 12th which had several feet of break from left to right.

Dropped shots on the 13th and 17th took McIlroy to the turn in 37, but the four-time major winner covered the first six holes of the front nine in three under to improve to six under overall.

It had, however, taken McIlroy’s group four hours to complete 13 holes as the pace of play began to prove the problem which had been feared.

Josh Hazlewood admitted Australia were still trying to come to terms with a “new Ashes” after England came out firing to score at five an over on day one of the first LV= Insurance Test.

The tourists employed defensive fields for long periods, posting a host of boundary riders but could not find a way to stem the scoring as their rivals raced to 393 for eight before a surprise declaration late in the evening session.

While Australia would probably have taken the total after losing the toss and bowling in serene batting conditions, the speed at which England made their runs may have bruised some egos along the way.

The typically miserly Scott Boland went at more than a run-a-ball, Pat Cummins was blasted for two sixes and Nathan Lyon bought his four wickets at a steep price of 149.

Hazlewood fared best of all with two for 61 from 15 overs but admitted England’s attempts to force the game represented uncharted territory.

“We’ve got to start to look at things differently, not so much at strike-rates and economies and things like that. It’s just about wicket and the score,” he said.

“We’ve taken eight for just under 400 and you’d take that on this wicket, whether it takes 80 overs or 160. It’s the same score. If we can keep it as simple as that it will go a long way to wrap our heads around the new Ashes. We’ll keep learning but it’s a good start.”

Hazlewood at one stage hinted Australia were content with England’s scoring rate, suggesting they feared something even more dramatic had they kept the field up.

“There was a lot more ones out there probably but if we shut down the boundaries, then the score doesn’t really go through the roof at seven or eight (an over),” he said. “If we can keep it at five an over and keep taking wickets throughout the day, that somewhat keeps things in check.

“We had different fields at different stages and some worked, some probably didn’t. It’s a good fun challenge to have, although I don’t think we got dragged into it as much as we could have if things went really south. I thought we held our guns pretty well.”

Hazlewood was happy with his side’s standing in the game, with David Warner and Usman Khawaja negating England captain Ben Stokes’ declaration gambit by safely reaching 14 without loss at the close.

“They’re at 390 and we’re none-for, so it’s pretty even I’d say,” he said.

“If you’re none down, you’re pretty happy obviously. That’s a tick.”

England have moved the needle in unprecedented fashion in a whirlwind past year but how a buccaneering approach would fare against a relentless Australia was the big talking point amid all the Ashes hype.

The debate will linger, for while England landed telling blows and left Australia reeling at times, the world Test champions kept dragging the hosts back on an a fluctuating opening day of the LV= Insurance series.

What is undeniable is how compelling this England team are under head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes, who promised supporters entertainment in these five eagerly-anticipated Tests.

They delivered that in abundance at Edgbaston.

The sold-out crowd lapped up Zak Crawley drilling Pat Cummins’ first ball of the series for four, marvelled at Joe Root’s enduring class as he compiled a majestic 118 not out while the vocal Hollies Stand delighted in serenading Nathan Lyon about being an inferior Moeen Ali – or words to that effect.

Just two maidens were bowled in England’s 393 for eight declared, where none of Australia’s bowlers offered any kind of containment as all of them leaked upwards of four an over.

Scott Boland experienced his first tough day at the office. Having arrived in the midlands with a bowling average in the mid-teens after nine Tests, he leaked an eye-watering 86 runs in 14 overs here.

This was not ‘Bazball’ at its most extreme, though, with England and Root in particular dashing between the wickets after Australia curiously spread the field – there was a deep point in the first over while boundary riders piled up in an ill-fated attempt to stifle the home side’s run-rate.

The tourists’ charitable fielding – they also dropped a couple of chances and failed to appeal when Crawley nicked off on 40 – led a “shocked” Eoin Morgan to remark on Sky Sports commentary: “Australia have been the first to blink.”

However, just as England looked to properly cut loose, they were frequently pegged back. Crawley may have temporarily silenced his doubters with 61 but his dismissal on the stroke of lunch meant Australia had three wickets in the first session – having been asked to bowl first on a surface with few demons.

A position of 175 for three became 176 for five following Harry Brook’s bizarre dismissal and Ben Stokes’ misguided waft but Root and Jonny Bairstow changed the tone with a 121-run stand – their 11th century partnership – in just 140 balls.

Bairstow picked up from where he left off last summer in his first international innings since his horrific leg break with a dashing run-a-ball 78 before he then Moeen were stumped attempting to take down Lyon.

Australia’s chief spinner will point out he took four wickets but he was also alarmingly expensive, clattered for sixes by Root, who also audaciously reverse ramped Boland and Cummins in a show of bravado.

Just as England seemed poised to emulate the class of 2005 in racking up in excess of 400 in a day at this venue, Stokes threw a ‘Bazball’ curve ball for a chance to have a crack at Australia’s openers.

The declaration came as a surprise but the decision was rooted in logic given David Warner’s struggles against Stuart Broad. There was no reward as Australia closed on 14 for none but the four overs were a marvellous spectacle as a cacophony of noise greeted Broad opening the bowling to his adversary.

And perhaps this is the point. None of the 25,000 fans who turned up on Friday can claim to have been short-changed in an era where the supremacy of Test cricket is being challenged by the proliferation of domestic T20 franchise leagues.

England may yet rue not landing a knockout punch to Australia on a flat pitch, where Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith could really make hay against the one-paced fast bowling line-up of Broad, James Anderson, Ollie Robinson and Stokes.

But winning is not the only source of enjoyment and if Test cricket is to thrive in the years ahead then bottling what transpired over 82 gripping overs in Birmingham might be just the tonic.

Andy Murray completed a clean sweep of British victories on Nottingham’s Centre Court to make it through to the semi-finals of the Rothesay Open.

After Jodie Burrage, Katie Boulter and Heather Watson all reached the last four of the women’s event, Murray defeated Dominic Stricker 7-6 (2) 7-5 for his eighth-successive victory.

The 36-year-old is bidding to win a second-successive title on the second-tier Challenger Tour having triumphed in Surbiton last week and is yet to drop a set in Nottingham.

He said of the home success in his on-court interview: “Obviously this week’s been great. A couple of weeks ago we were hearing British tennis wasn’t doing well. Things change a lot on a week-to-week basis.

“You just want all of the players to reach their potential, make sure everyone’s working hard.

“Not everyone is going to win Wimbledon and grand slams but you just want to make sure everyone is making the most of this amazing opportunity to play tennis for a living.

“This week has obviously been brilliant, the women have done extremely well and hopefully that continues through the year. It should be a fun weekend for the British tennis fans.”

He did not have things all his own way against 20-year-old Swiss Stricker, with neither man able to create a break point in the opening set.

Murray played a fine tie-break to move in front, clenching his fist as he sat down in his chair, but it was Stricker who made the first move in the second set.

The eighth seed took his third chance to break for 3-1 only for Murray to respond straight away and Stricker then took a medical time-out for treatment to his back.

With the clock ticking past 8pm, Murray pushed for another break and finally got it, a Stricker backhand dropping wide to give his opponent the chance to serve for the match – and the Scot made no mistake.

Murray, who next faces Portugal’s Nuno Borges, feels he is heading firmly in the right direction, saying: “It was a really, really tight match today against one of the best young players in the world.

“He has a really good game, huge shots from the back of the court but also really nice touch up at the net.

“I’m really glad to get through that one because it was really close. That’s the best I’ve played across the last two weeks in terms of how I hit the ball and everything. It was really positive.”

Monchi has been appointed as Aston Villa’s president of football operations, the club have announced.

The 54-year-old Spaniard arrives from Sevilla, where he was director of football.

Monchi’s time as sporting director at the LaLiga outfit, after playing for them as a goalkeeper, included seven UEFA Cup/Europa League wins, the first coming in 2005-06 and the most recent last season.

Three of those were achieved with Sevilla being managed by current Villa boss Unai Emery, in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Monchi, who left Sevilla in 2017 and became sporting director at Roma before returning to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium two years later, said on Villa’s official website: “I am very excited to join Aston Villa, a great project which is striving for excellence from the Under-9s to the top level, and I completely share the vision of Mr Sawiris and Mr Edens (owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens).

“I am also delighted and can’t wait to work with Unai Emery again, one of the best managers in football.

“After enjoying so many years with Sevilla and winning several European trophies with my life-long club, I look forward to building on the recent successes at Aston Villa and ensuring this colossal club continues to grow and improve.”

Villa chairman Sawiris said: “We are delighted to have Monchi joining us in this new position that consolidates all football responsibilities at the group.

“Alongside Unai and his staff, Monchi’s arrival will add to the world class team we are assembling both on and off the pitch. He is, like Unai Emery, a serial winner.

“With the appointment of Chris Heck on the business side, this new structure will ensure that the club is firing on all cylinders on the commercial side in addition to the football side to ensure that the club’s model is sustainable and positioned well to meet our growing ambitions.”

Villa also said Damian Vidagany is to assume the role of director of football operations, while Johan Lange will be global director of football development and international academies.

Monchi will assume his duties from July subject to receiving his work permit.

Emery was appointed Villa boss in October, succeeding Steven Gerrard, and took the team from just above the Premier League relegation zone to a seventh-placed finish, securing Europa Conference League qualification.

Next season will be the first time Villa have played in Europe since 2010.

Scotland manager Steve Clarke stressed the need to focus on “Norway the team” rather than become obsessed with trying to stop Erling Haaland.

Haaland goes into Saturday’s Euro 2024 qualifier in Oslo on the back of a 52-goal, treble-winning season with Manchester City and is set to make his first international appearance since September in front of an expectant crowd at the Ullevaal Stadium.

Much of the build-up to the game has been dominated by talk of the 22-year-old striker’s threat, but Clarke and defender Liam Cooper were careful not to overlook the rest of the Norway team – or give them any cause to feel under-appreciated.

Asked about trying stop Haaland, Clarke said: “As we always do, we concentrate on ourselves. We prepare properly for the game, we respect our opponents. We play Norway the team, and hopefully Scotland the team are a little bit better on the night.”

Leeds defender Cooper provided a similar response, saying: “With Erling, his goals and achievements speak for themselves. He has had an unbelievable season at club level, but I don’t like to disrespect the Norway team, they have a lot of good players and to put all our focus on one player, I think that would be wrong of us.

“We obviously know what Erling brings, he is an unbelievable player and unbelievable goalscorer, but we have to pay a lot of respect to the rest of the team as well.

“Obviously (Martin) Odegaard is a very good player, he has also been in a title challenge this year. They have got amazing players. We have to keep Erling and Odegaard in check, but there’s a lot of other players to worry about as well.”

Cooper played as Haaland netted twice at Elland Road earlier this season and, asked what made the forward such a difficult opponent, the 31-year-old said: “For one, he doesn’t need many chances. So you can almost guarantee if he does get a chance it will go away.

“He is strong, he is powerful and he is always on your shoulder, always looking to get in behind. Obviously if we are not on top of our game and we are not cautious of that, he can damage us and he can hurt us.

“But I don’t want to disrespect the rest of the team. We have got to look after the whole of the Norway team and that’s the way it will be.

“We are going to need a big performance, especially a defensive performance. Hopefully we can get that, the boys are dialled in, and get a positive result.”

Scotland go into the game on the back of beating Group A favourites Spain 2-0 at Hampden in March to make it a perfect start to the campaign, while Norway sit on one point from their two matches.

Asked if his Scotland side now expect to win these types of games, Clarke said: “I think we should come with confidence. Obviously we had a good March and we have had a good run of wins in competitive fixtures.

“But we know we are coming to a difficult place. We always respect our opponents, we try and play as well as we can, and hopefully we can add to the points tally.

“It’s a different challenge, it’s an away game. Norway are a different team from Spain, they play a different way.

“They put you under a little bit more pressure maybe. Spain will pass the ball and pass the ball and try to win the game with possession. Norway can play with the ball because they have good ball players, but they can also be quite direct as well.”

Clarke reported a healthy squad following a Spanish training camp and this week’s work at Lesser Hampden.

“Full squad’s here, 25 players have travelled,” he said. “I have got a big decision, I have got to leave two out of the 23, so that’s my next job.”

Jonny Bairstow applauded an adventurous declaration from Ben Stokes after the England captain rolled the dice on the first day of the LV= Insurance Ashes.

Stokes threw caution to wind on day one of the first Test, waving his side in at 393 for eight in the hope of snapping up a late wicket at Edgbaston.

Joe Root was batting beautifully on 118 when the signal came from the balcony and would surely have kept the scoreboard ticking had he been left to his own devices, but Stokes swapped the promise of extra runs for four late overs at the Australia openers.

That meant a quick skirmish between long-time sparring partners Stuart Broad and David Warner, but England were unable to generate a breakthrough that would have capped a thrilling day of action.

It was the fifth time Stokes has declared in the first innings in his 14th Test as full-time captain and Bairstow praised the intent of forcing the change where others might have let the game drift to a natural close.

“I’m sure there’s many decisions Ben has made that have taken commentators and other people by surprise, but it was no surprise to us,” said the wicketkeeper.

“We didn’t know anything about it, it was a scramble to get the tape on, the pads on and all the rest. But when it’s something that’s not expected, it can be the best form of attack.

“Having played the game for as long as we have, we’re aware a 20-minute slot for an opening pair is something that’s not very nice. It can be a bit niggly.

“It’s a bit of a shot to nothing – there might be an unbelievable ball in there, or a loose shot in there.

“We’ll come back tomorrow with a ball that’s four overs old, a fresh bowling attack and team that is really looking forward to the challenge.”

Bairstow, who contributed a punchy run-a-ball 78 in first Test innings back after a 10-month lay-off, was part of a vital 121-run stand with his long-time friend and foil, Root.

The Yorkshire duo have shared some memorable partnerships across the years and Bairstow beamed as he reflected on Root’s outstanding century.

It was his 30th in Test cricket but a first against Australia since 2015, ending a sequence of 12 unconverted Ashes fifties.

“It was brilliant. There are some special traits that he’s got and he does special things,” he said.

“As someone who has known him for a really long time, been through thick and thin, ups and downs and lots of different things together, it was an absolute pleasure to be out there with him.

“He’s a fantastic player and talent. He loves batting, loves being out there, loves the occasion, loves representing his country. It takes a lot of skill, a lot of endeavour and patience.”

Bairstow also savoured his own contribution. A freak golfing accident last August left him with three separate fractures in his left leg, a dislocated ankle and ligament damage and he revealed recently he feared for his career.

After 12 boundaries and a seemingly-endless supply of hard-run ones and twos, it was like he had never been away.

“I’m delighted to be back out there on the big stage, during the big dance. It’s something you want to be part of and it didn’t disappoint,” he said.

“There were a few nerves kicking about as you can probably imagine, but when I found my flow and got into the battle, it was really enjoyable to be out there again.”

Formula One first practice at the Canadian Grand Prix was embarrassingly cancelled after a CCTV failure at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The opening one-hour running of the weekend was red-flagged after just four minutes when Pierre Gasly broke down in his Alpine.

Only a handful of drivers had posted a lap with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and George Russell among those who had not taken to the track.

The running had been expected to restart as usual following the removal of Gasly’s Alpine, but F1’s governing body, the FIA, blamed “issues with local CCTV infrastructure” for the initial delay.

The suspension in play then became temporary with the FIA confirming at 14:20 local time (19:20 BST) that the session would not be resumed leaving an estimated 90,000 spectators short-changed.

The FIA said that the concluding running of the day, which was due to start at 17:00 local time (22:00 BST), would be brought forward to 16:30 to allow for 30 minutes more running.

An FIA spokesperson said: “The delay will be longer as the CCTV is not synced correctly and until the issue has been fixed we cannot run on track.

“This system is a local installation and they are continuing to work to resolve the problem.

“The clock will continue to run down on FP1 and the session will not be extended as there must be two hours between FP1 and FP2.”

Former driver Karun Chandhok, who competed in 11 grands prix and now works as a pundit for Sky Sports, was critical of the FIA’s decision to abandon the running.

“I feel we needed to get on track,” said Chandhok.

“I would argue that there’s races around the world where they haven’t got CCTV cameras and they rely on marshal posts to radio incidents in – then you can use the TV cameras to look at it.”

A group representing victims’ families and survivors of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States has welcomed the news that golf’s controversial peace deal will be investigated.

The PGA Tour announced last week it was creating a new commercial entity with the DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which bankrolls the breakaway LIV Golf League.

The United States Senate has already opened an investigation into the shock agreement, with Senator Richard Blumenthal writing to PGA Tour chief executive Jay Monahan to say that the PGA Tour’s “sudden and drastic reversal of position concerning LIV Golf” raised “serious questions”.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, a PGA Tour official informed employees that the US Justice Department also plans to review the agreement for antitrust concerns.

Terry Strada, the national chair of 9/11 Families United, said: “We are pleased to see and welcome these investigations into the circumstances surrounding the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s attempted acquisition of one of America’s cherished institutions – the PGA Tour.

“9/11 Families United has long called into question the Saudi’s use of sportswashing with the LIV Golf Tour and this announcement proves that we are not alone in our fight for truth and accountability with the Kingdom, which has relied on an ‘army’ of paid consultants and lobbyists spanning several years to evade any responsibility for the brutal attack on our country and murder of our loved ones.

“As previous court documents made clear, LIV Golf was never about economics for the Saudis and there has never been a rational economic reason for spending billions on golf.

“As even the PGA Tour’s commissioner agreed only months ago, the Kingdom is using LIV Golf to improve the Kingdom’s standing in the world, and now the the Kingdom is leveraging LIV to take over the PGA Tour, giving it an even larger sportswashing enterprise.”

It is understood that the PGA Tour views the Justice Department’s reported investigation as an extension of the existing probe prompted by the litigation with LIV, litigation which was ended by the proposed deal.

The Golden State Warriors didn’t have to look far to find their next general manager.

Mike Dunleavy Jr. will take over as GM and successor to Bob Myers, the team announced Friday.

Dunleavy, who had been serving as the team’s vice president of basketball operations, is now tasked with following Myers’ 11-year run as president and GM that produced four NBA championships. Myers previously announced that he is stepping down on June 30.

“[Dunleavy] has a wealth of basketball knowledge, stemming from his family upbringing, a 15-year NBA playing career and five seasons serving under Bob Myers in our front office,” Warriors owner Joe Lacob said in a statement.

“He's young and energetic, has established numerous relationships around the league and communicates well with players and coaches -- all important traits in this business. Mike's ready for this challenge and responsibility.”

Dunleavy will share decision-making power with executive vice president of basketball operations Kirk Lacob, ESPN reported.

Dunleavy was drafted by the Warriors and played for six NBA franchises over the course of his career.

He joined the Warriors’ staff as a scout in 2018 and was promoted to assistant general manager the following season.

The Warriors face a pivotal offseason after being eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Los Angeles Lakers.

Draymond Green has a $27.6 million player option for next season, and Klay Thompson is entering the final season of his contract.

Tiger Woods will not contest next month’s Open Championship at Royal Liverpool as he continues to recovery from surgery.

Woods pulled out of the Masters during the third round in April, saying at the time it was due to plantar fasciitis.

However, the 47-year-old then had a subtalar fusion procedure in New York to address the problem caused by a previous fracture of his talus, a bone in the ankle joint.

The 15-time major winner did not contest May’s US PGA Championship at Oak Hill or this week’s US Open at Los Angeles Country Club.

Woods had hoped to defy the odds to compete at Hoylake, where he won a third Open title in 2006 in his first tournament since the death of his father Earl two months earlier.

However, an R&A spokesman told the PA news agency: “We have been advised that Tiger won’t be playing at Royal Liverpool.

“We wish him all the best with his recovery.”

Woods feared his leg would have to be amputated due to the serious injuries he suffered in a car accident in Los Angeles in February 2021.

He made a remarkable return to action 14 months later and finished 47th in the Masters, but withdrew from the US PGA following a third-round 79 and skipped the US Open before missing the cut in the 150th Open at St Andrews.