Christian Eriksen has tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of his long-awaited return to the Danish national team next week.

The 30-year-old, who suffered a cardiac arrest during Denmark's Euro 2020 clash with Finland last June, has impressed since joining Brentford on a free transfer in January.

He registered an assist during the Bees' 2-0 win over Burnley this month with what was his first goal involvement since his return to football.

Eriksen's strong club form led him to receive a call-up for his country's upcoming friendly matches, but the positive test will delay the midfielder's journey to meet up with the squad.

Although, Denmark boss Kasper Hjulmand hopes the Brentford man will still be available to feature in clashes against the Netherlands – to be played at the home of Eriksen's former club Ajax – and against Serbia in Copenhagen. 

"We've been running dialogue with Christian and Brentford on the situation," Hjulmand said.

"We expect to see Christian as soon as possible, later in the week. 

"We are happy to get him in the team and expect to have him with us for the exciting friendly matches against Holland and Serbia."

The creative midfielder's positive test ruled him out of Brentford' Premier League clash with Leicester City on Sunday, despite Bees boss Thomas Frank claiming during his pre-match media duties that Eriksen had since returned a negative test result.

Eriksen has earned 109 caps for Denmark – putting him 20 appearances short of Peter Schmeichel's record of 129 outings for his country – and has scored 36 international goals.

Crystal Palace joined Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-finals as they thrashed Everton 4-0 on Sunday.

Frank Lampard's Everton headed to Selhurst Park on the back of a morale-boosting and much-needed league win over Newcastle United yet despite a bright start they crashed out of the cup.

Palace's 3-1 win over Everton in December in the Premier League was their first against the Toffees in 14 matches and they were well on their way to another thanks to first-half goals from Marc Guehi and Jean-Philippe Mateta.

Patrick Vieira's team were hardly troubled after the break, and they capped off progression in style thanks to late goals from Wilfried Zaha and Will Hughes.

Everton might have been ahead inside the opening minute, but Ben Godfrey just failed to meet Michael Keane's scuffed shot.

Guehi survived a penalty claim after his sloppiness allowed Richarlison to pounce, though Everton's bright start was punctured when former Palace winger Andros Townsend suffered an apparent knee injury.

Palace made that break count, with the unmarked Guehi heading in from Olise's inswinging corner.

Zaha missed a great chance teed up by Mateta, yet the latter made no mistake when Palace's talisman returned the favour, drilling home first-time from a brilliant cutback, and only a last-ditch Seamus Coleman tackle prevented the striker doubling his tally before the break.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin was introduced at half-time, yet he had managed just eight touches by the time Demarai Gray went close in the 66th minute.

There was precious little quality to the visitors' play despite their precarious position and their FA Cup exit was confirmed in fittingly humbling fashion as a sliced Olise strike hit the post and fell for Zaha to nudge home.

Hughes similarly tapped into an empty net for Palace's fourth to the delight of a jubilant home crowd.

England head coach Eddie Jones has called upon fans to maintain faith in the team's development after a disappointing Six Nations campaign ended with a 25-13 loss to France.

Saturday's defeat to the Grand Slam champions ensured England finished third in the 2022 standings, after Wales suffered a shock loss to Italy and Ireland beat Scotland in the final round of fixtures.

England have now lost three games in three separate editions of the Six Nations under the Australian, having done so just twice in 16 campaigns prior to his 2015 appointment.

But Jones has called upon supporters to maintain faith in the team, which he says is going through a "rebuilding" process ahead of next year's World Cup in France. 

"They [England fans] have got to have some faith," Jones said on Sunday. "I think I have done a reasonable job for England over the past seven years.

"We are going through a period now where we are rebuilding the team and it takes time. Look at the French team, it took them three years to win the [Six Nations] Championship [after appointing head coach Fabien Galthie in 2019].

"We have rebuilt the side from the last Six Nations [after finishing fifth in 2021]. I think the progress is very positive, [but] the results aren't the results we would like.

"We would all like to be winning tournaments and be top of the table, but we are not quite good enough to do that now.

"But within the next 12 to 14 months when we prepare for the World Cup, we will be."

Paris Saint-Germain lost their fourth straight away game in all competitions as they fell 3-0 to Monaco at Stade Louis II on Sunday.

Two goals from Wissam Ben Yedder and another from Kevin Volland were enough to seal victory for Philippe Clement's side in a game in which PSG were second best for large periods.

Mauricio Pochettino was without Lionel Messi (flu) and so started Georginio Wijnaldum on the right of the front three alongside Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.

It was a deserved win for the Monegasques, who responded perfectly to going out of the Europa League in midweek, while PSG remain 15 points clear at the top of the table.

The hosts made a strong start, and took a deserved lead on 25 minutes when Youssouf Fofana's low cross from the right found Ben Yedder, who arrived ahead of Presnel Kimpembe to flick the ball high into Gianluigi Donnarumma's net at the near post.

The Parisians started the second half brighter and Mbappe had a good chance to equalise after a mistake from Axel Disasi, but the France international was denied as he tried to round Alexander Nubel.

Clement somewhat surprisingly subbed off the dangerous-looking Gelson Martins for Volland on the hour, but the German striker justified that decision when he slid in Monaco's second after good work from Ben Yedder and Ruben Aguilar down the right.

The game was done and dusted with six minutes left when Ben Yedder won the ball from Marco Verratti before feeding Volland, who was brought down by Kimpembe in the box.

That allowed Ben Yedder to fortuitously score his second of the game as Donnarumma somehow pushed the ball into the far corner of the net after guessing the right way.

England intend to use the World Cup in Qatar to highlight concerns around the host country, but Gareth Southgate says they must be "realistic" as any demonstration will be "complicated" and "different to taking the knee".

Qatar's poor human rights record has been a concern during the build-up to the 2022 finals.

The nation's stance towards women and the LGBTQ+ community was widely raised as an issue before FIFA awarded it the 2022 tournament. Since then, during preparation for the finals, the deaths of thousands of migrant workers have been reported, although Qatar's organising committee disputed what it called "inaccurate claims" around the number of fatalities.

England – semi-finalists in Russia in 2018 – have qualified for the World Cup and plan to make the most of their platform.

However, manager Southgate suggested it was unlikely the Three Lions would follow the example of Norway, who wore T-shirts in qualifying calling for "human rights on and off the pitch".

Indeed, Southgate explained it was difficult to come up with the right response after learning of female and LGBTQ+ fans who were staying away.

Describing that as "a great shame", Southgate said: "We stand for inclusivity as a team, and it would be horrible to think some of our fans feel they can't go because they feel threatened, or they're worried about their safety."

Detailing England's thought process, he continued: "I don't think it's something where we're just going to be able to come out with a statement that will satisfy everything.

"This is different to taking the knee and the importance we felt on that. We're not saying this is any less important.

"We feel the World Cup is an opportunity to highlight some of these issues and we have a platform to be able to do that. We've also got to do that in a responsible way.

"I'm not sure that just wearing a T-shirt makes a difference. I don't totally know what we can do in every aspect to make a difference.

"I think we have to be realistic about what that might be. We're going to a country that FIFA decided where this tournament was going to be played: it's culturally different and religiously different.

"So, there are some things we're not going to be able to affect. Maybe there are some things that we can affect.

"If we can and we think they're worthwhile, then we'll try to do that. Without a doubt, one of the priorities in my mind is our own fans and how they're going to be dealt with in particular, but there may be other issues.

"I don't think any of us are complacent about any of it. I'm certainly taking it very seriously. I want to make sure the players are protected, I want to make sure they are able to use their voice in the right way, but I also don't want them to be used with broader agendas at play, perhaps.

"So, it's going to be complicated. And I think we're going to get some criticism whatever we do, but we're going to try to do the best that we can."

Conor McGregor could make his comeback to the Octagon later this year, UFC president Dana White has said.

McGregor has not competed since his TKO loss to Dustin Poirier last July, when he broke the tibia and fibula bones in his left leg.

The 33-year-old Irish fighter has an MMA record of 22-6-0, losing three of his past four bouts in UFC including two in a row to Poirier.

White was speaking after the UFC Fight Night event at London's O2 Arena on Saturday, saying: "Conor's not cleared by the doctor yet.

"When he's cleared, some of these fights are going to happen this summer, we'll see what the landscape looks like, and we'll see where his head's at, at that time, and we'll pick a fight for him."

British heavyweight Tom Aspinall secured victory in the main event in London with a dominant showing against Alexander Volkov, while featherweight Arnold Allen knocked out Dan Hooker.

Liverpool pair and long-time friends Molly McCann and Paddy Pimblett both earned wins against Luana Carolina and Rodrigo Vargas respectively.

Less than a year after she shattered the outdoor world record of 15.67m at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas shattered the world indoor record in the triple jump with a massive 15.74m on Sunday’s final day of the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.

Ukraine’s Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk produced a lifetime best of 14.74m to bump Jamaica’s Kimberly Williams, who jumped a season-best 14.62, down to third.

Williams medal means Jamaica now has two medals from the championships following Stephenie-Ann McPherson’s bronze medal in the 400m on Saturday.

However, it was Rojas, who stole the spotlight when on her final jump, she flew beyond her own world record of 15.43m, to establish a new mark and become the first woman to win three world indoor titles.

She also shattered the previous championship record of 15.36 set by Tatyana Lebedeva in 2004. She has equalled that mark on her penultimate jump of the competition.

Rojas already owned the world-leading mark indoors with 15.41m she set in Spain on March 2.

 

Frank Vogel was keen to take the time to acknowledge LeBron James' achievement in passing Karl Malone despite the Los Angeles Lakers' 127-119 defeat to the Washington Wizards.

With 38 points against the Wizards, James moved ahead of Malone (36,928) onto 36,947 for his career, now trailing only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) all-time.

For James, who has played 197 games fewer than Abdul-Jabbar, this was a 31st 30-point game of the season – behind only Joel Embiid (33).

Lakers team-mate Russell Westbrook described this latest accomplishment as "an amazing feat to witness", while Carmelo Anthony said he was "still in awe" of James.

James insisted he could not "separate" his own performance from the defeat – "all I care about is wins and losses," he explained – but that was not a stance Vogel agreed with.

"It's bittersweet, but I think it's important to separate it," the coach said.

"This is a moment of time that we can't get caught up in the pain of this loss and [must] recognise what an incredible feat this is for LeBron, doing it in the fashion that he did it.

"He just attacked the game tonight. He came in and was aggressive on both sides of the ball, the second night of a back-to-back, really playing with incredible energy after playing 45 minutes last night.

"It was just a signature performance in a game where he passes one of the greats and becomes the second all-time leading scorer in the history of the game.

"It's really impressive, and I'm super happy for him. It's awesome."

For a player so focused on results, this has been a tough season for James, with the loss leaving the Lakers just half a game ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans in ninth in the West at 30-41.

This is despite James' 29.8 points per game – the third-highest mark of his career and highest since 2007-08.

"It's just an incredible game, an incredible season, and I don't know where we'd be without him," Vogel said.

Happily for the Lakers, as they look set for the play-in game, Vogel believes James is still getting better.

"This year's no different. The fact that it's later in his career and he's still doing it at this level is different," he added.

"Obviously, the way he's continuing to evolve his game with the deep shooting, with the turnaround, fadeaway jump shot that Kobe [Bryant] and Michael [Jordan] had later in his career... He's growing as a receiver. That part is special."

Chelsea legend John Terry will join the True Blues consortium in their attempt to buy a 10 per cent stake in the Stamford Bridge club.

The 41-year-old said his involvement came with the goal of "building the best football club in the world" and establishing a "fan connection" with Chelsea, who remain up for sale after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government.

The True Blues group is comprised of ex-players, including Terry, as well as entrepreneurs and fans, and its plans have been backed in principle by both the Chelsea Supporters' Trust and Chelsea Pitch Owners.

The consortium has made contact with Raine Group, the bank overseeing the sale of the club, in the hope of becoming involved alongside new owners, electing one representative to sit on the board.

Revealing his support for the True Blues on Twitter, Terry wrote: "Chelsea has been such an important part of my life for 22 years.

Four bids for Chelsea were confirmed before Friday's deadline.

Daniel Ricciardo qualified in 18th on Saturday as McLaren endured a tough start to the Bahrain Grand Prix, but the Australian vowed to "get on with it".

McLaren were fighting with Ferrari at the front of the Formula One midfield in 2021, yet the first weekend of the new season suggests the Scuderia have left their rivals behind.

Ferrari had Charles Leclerc on pole and Carlos Sainz in the top three, with all teams using their engines performing well in qualifying.

By contrast, Ricciardo failed to make Q2, and McLaren team-mate Lando Norris was little better in 13th.

A challenge in Sunday's race appears highly unlikely, but McLaren will continue to work to get their young campaign back on track as soon as possible.

"The only way we're going to move forward is if we put our eyes forward and get on with it," said Ricciardo, who missed the end of pre-season due to coronavirus. "And I think that's important as well for team morale.

"If we just sit and moan and cry... Of course, in qualifying, I'm not happy with 18th, but there's no good being upset about it and not doing anything.

"It's going to require action and effort from all of us, but I think that should motivate us to do better and want to do better. 

"I know we believe that we can be obviously a lot further up the grid, so it's fuel for the fire. It might be a slow burn for now, but that's all we can do to make things better."

Norris is certainly not expecting sudden improvement on Sunday, while he added a turnaround in time for next week's Saudi Arabian GP is also asking a lot.

"There are still a lot of positives – just sadly more negatives than positives," he said. "It's just about time and working on them. I think now we understand them more than ever; it's simply about putting them into action.

"But it's not an overnight job, it's not something that we're going to turn up [on Sunday] and be amazing, or turn up to Saudi and be amazing.

"It will take time, and [the team] are going to be working hard to try to make those improvements."

Miguel Oliveira described his victory in Indonesia as an emotional rollercoaster as the Red Bull KTM rider triumphed in tricky conditions.

Oliveira finished more than two seconds clear of world champion Fabio Quartararo in a curtailed race at the Mandalika International Street Circuit, which started over an hour late due to torrential rain.

Quartararo qualified in pole position but was passed by Oliveira and Jack Miller, who held the early lead before the Portuguese made the most of superior pace.

The 27-year-old then navigated the wet track superbly to claim a fourth race win in MotoGP and back up his claims in the build-up that he can compete for the title.

"Emotionally, it was a rollercoaster," he said in parc ferme. "The start was perfect and in wet conditions, it is so difficult to find the limit.

"I followed Jack and knew I could be faster. I opened [a gap] and then it was a matter of managing it to the end.

"It hasn't been easy, the last few months haven't been easy for me. I promised my daughter I'd get a trophy in Indonesia – this one's for you.

"Let's go to Argentina, let's see what we can do, but now I'm really happy to be here."

Quartararo dropped to fifth before a supreme ride in the second half of the race saw him end a run of four consecutive non-podium finishes.

The Monster Energy Yamaha star felt the points could prove valuable come the business end of the season.

"I didn't expect it," he said. "Honestly, since the warm-up, I felt that we had something more than usual because we know that with wet conditions we always have more difficulties.

"When it's completely wet and with traction, I know my potential, but today I was better than I expected. I saw an opportunity and took it.

"These are super important points. It was my first podium with a full wet floor."

Robert Woods is set to move to the Tennessee Titans after the team agreed a trade with Super Bowl champions the Los Angeles Rams.

According to widespread reports, wide receiver Woods will join the Titans in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick in 2023.

The Titans were looking for a new complement for number one wide receiver A.J. Brown after releasing Julio Jones following his injury-hit season with the AFC South winners in 2021.

Woods, who spent five seasons with the Rams, also suffered injury frustration last season, tearing his ACL in November and missing the Super Bowl run.

Prior to that, though, Woods had been consistently productive for the Rams, most notably racking up 266 catches for 3,289 yards in remarkable three-year run from 2018 to 2020. 

The 29-year-old had a $3.5million roster bonus due on Sunday and the Rams recently made a big move at the receiver position.

They signed top free agent Allen Robinson to partner with All-Pro Cooper Kupp, who won the receiving triple crown as he topped the NFL for receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns last year.

Odell Beckham Jr. helped to fill the void left by Woods' injury towards the end of last season and the Rams are still reportedly keen to bring him back as well.

The Rams' situation gave the Titans, who won the AFC South last season and went into the playoffs as number one seeds in the conference, a window to strike a deal for Woods.

After a stunning regular season, the Titans promptly lost to the Cincinnati Bengals, who went on to face the Rams in the Super Bowl, in the Divisional Round when the postseason began.

Tennessee have made the playoffs in three straight seasons and hope Woods can help a roster that also contains quarterback Ryan Tannehill, star wideout Brown and running back Derrick Henry to make the next step.

Miguel Oliveira won a delayed Indonesian Grand Prix on Sunday as he held off a late surge from world champion Fabio Quartararo.

Quartararo had qualified in pole position but dropped to fifth in the difficult conditions as Oliveira built what proved to be an unassailable lead.

Champion Quartararo was on a run of four consecutive races without a podium finish but produced a brilliant ride in the second half of the race to take second ahead of Johann Zarco.

Jack Miller, who led in the early stages, finished fourth and Alex Rins fifth, with Enea Bastianini, winner in Qatar's season opener, down in 12th.

Six-time world champion Marc Marquez was forced to miss the race after a heavy crash during the warm-up left him with concussion.

The action got underway after more than an hour's delay, during which torrential rain fell and lightning struck the edge of the track, with the race shortened to 20 laps.

Miller and Oliveira pulled away from Quartararo after adjusting more quickly to the conditions and the latter surged into the lead as his pace became too much for the Australian.

Jorge Martin crashed at Turn 1 after catching a puddle with his front wheel, highlighting just how treacherous the track remained even after the rain had ceased and the surface began to dry.

Quartararo overtook Rins with eight laps to go before passing Miller and Zarco in a gripping battle for a podium place, the French rider eventually pulling away.

There was not enough time to catch Oliveira, though, the Red Bull KTM man claiming his fourth career win in exemplary fashion.


TOP 10

1. Miguel OIiveira (Red Bull KTM)
2. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) +2.205 seconds
3. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) +3.158s
4. Jack Miller (Ducati) +5.663s
5. Alex Rins (Suzuki Ecstar) +7.044s
6. Joan Mir (Suzuki Ecstar) +7.832s
7. Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha) +21.115s
8. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) +32.413s
9. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) +32.586s
10. Darryn Binder (RNF Racing) +32.901s

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

Riders

1. Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing) 30
2. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) 28
3. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) 27
4. Miguel OIiveira (Red Bull KTM) 25
5. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) 24

Teams

1. Red Bull KTM 53
2. Monster Energy Yamaha 41
3. Suzuki Ecstar 40
4. Repsol Honda 31
5. Gresini Racing 30

Marc Marquez was forced to miss the Indonesian Grand Prix on Sunday after a crash during the warm-up.

The six-time world champion suffered a huge highside at Turn 7 and was left dazed on the ground after a heavy landing. He was taken to hospital for a check-up.

Race organisers later confirmed Marquez had suffered concussion and was not fit to start the first grand prix in Indonesia since 1997.

MotoGP medical director Dr. Angel Charte said: "Marc is fine. He had a high energy crash in the warm-up, which resulted in a head injury.

"Initially, we examined him here and then referred him to the hospital in Lombok. He underwent several radiological tests, which were negative.

"In agreement with the rider and the team, and due to the fact that this type of pathology requires a period of observation between 12 and 24 hours, the rider, the team and the MotoGP medical staff have decided to declare him as unfit."

The 29-year-old crashed twice during Saturday's qualifying session and had been due to start in 14th place, Franco Morbidelli's grid penalty pushing him up one spot.

The race at the Mandalika circuit was delayed by over an hour due to torrential rain, with television cameras capturing the dramatic moment that lightning struck the side of the track.

It had previously been decided to shorten the race to 20 laps as extreme heat had prompted concerns over tyre safety.

Reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo qualified in pole position ahead of Jorge Martin, with Enea Bastianini – who won the season opener in Qatar – starting in fifth.

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