Martin Odegaard says "something special" is happening at Arsenal after they extended their winning run to five matches at the expense of Leicester City.

The Gunners regained fourth place in the Premier League by beating Brendan Rodgers' side 2-0 at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, courtesy of Thomas Partey's header and an Alexandre Lacazette penalty.

Arsenal are a point better off than fifth-placed Manchester United with three games in hand as they strive to secure a Champions League spot.

Norway midfielder Odegaard is excited by the progress the London club are making under Mikel Arteta.

He told TV2: "There is clearly something special going on here now. You feel it in the whole club.

"We are building something special. It's a group of players who like each other, and who enjoy playing football together.”

He added "It's fun to play on that team here. We are a group that knows each other well.

"We are getting better and better and the system is getting better and better. It's flowing very well now. It's fun to play.

"We understand each other better, and the team works very well. Then it's easier to look good for me too."

Germany head coach Hansi Flick is confident Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz can return just as strong after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury.

The 18-year-old sustained the damage in Saturday's 1-0 Bundesliga loss to Cologne when twisting awkwardly on the turf 28 minutes into the contest.

Wirtz has earned four senior caps for Germany, having made his debut last September, but is now in a battle to be fit and ready for the World Cup in November.

The news is a big blow for Flick ahead of his first tournament in charge of Germany, but the ex-Bayern Munich boss has faith that Wirtz will make a full recovery.

"He is one of the greatest talents that German football has produced in recent years," Flick told the DFB's official website. 

"That's why we were all shocked when we found out about his cruciate ligament rupture. I've already phoned him and tried to encourage him. 

"He's still young, he'll come back at least as strong, I'm sure of it. He gets our full support. 

"We wish him all the best and keep our fingers crossed that the healing process goes as optimally as possible."

Wirtz is considered to be one of the highest-rated young players in European football and has been linked with the likes of Bayern Munich and Liverpool.

With 10 goals and 14 assists, Wirtz has the most direct goal involvements among players under the age of 21 in 2021-22 across Europe's top five leagues.

The 19 big chances created by Wirtz is bettered only by Kylian Mbappe, Thomas Muller (both 20), Bruno Fernandes and Trent Alexander-Arnold (both 22).

Emma Raducanu knows she must "get stronger" after losing to Petra Martic in the third round of the Indian Wells Open.

Martic came from a set down to beat US Open champion Raducanu 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 7-5 on Sunday.

Teenager Raducanu has been troubled by a back injury and an issue with her hip.

The Brit says she was hampered at Indian Wells, but is confident she will be fit for the Miami Open next week.

"I think it's just part of not playing and having so much stop start and having five, six days to prepare for matches and then playing at that intensity,” she said.

"It was a tough one not being able to serve full out so I was having to work so hard just to hold.

"I've just got to get stronger. I've had it for the last few days, just a product of training hard and probably the last match was pretty intense too and it didn't settle down.

"When you are crossing your fingers to hold serve every time, it's tough. I couldn't really drive up and I was kind of struggling to turn and reach.

"The margins were so small. I should be good for Miami, for sure."

Barcelona head coach Xavi says Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is like "a gift from heaven" after the striker hit the ground running following his arrival from Arsenal.

The Gabon international was on target in Barca's 4-0 win over Osasuna on Sunday to make it six goals in nine appearances for the Catalan giants in all competitions.

That is two more goals than next-best Ferran Torres has managed among Barca players since Aubameyang's first outing on February 6 in a 4-2 win over Atletico Madrid.

He is averaging 0.96 goals per 90 minutes in all competitions for the LaLiga club, compared to 0.57 across his 15 games with Arsenal prior to officially swapping clubs last month.

And with Barca enjoying their best run of league form since April 2021, Xavi has been impressed by Aubameyang's contribution in front of goal so far.

"Aubameyang is a gift from heaven," Xavi said following his side's fourth successive LaLiga victory.

"He is a positive player who always enters the room in good condition and adapts very quickly to new environments. 

"Aubameyang scores goals, creates opportunities, keeps moving. It's a privilege to lead him, he's an example for other players to follow."

Aubameyang's strike against Osasuna came after Ferran Torres had scored twice, one of those goals coming from the penalty spot, before Riqui Puig rounded off the scoring.

That was Puig's second goal for Barcelona, and a first on home soil, on what was just his third outing this calendar year.

"It's a big day for me," he told Barca TV. "It's one of the most important days of my life for scoring my first goal at the Camp Nou and I will celebrate it with my family and friends.

"The team has an idea that we didn't have before. We have some games that we have to win and we're really looking forward to them."

Andy Murray has expressed his sympathy for Naomi Osaka over the abuse she was subjected to at Indian Wells but says athletes must deal with it.

Osaka was reduced to tears as she crashed out of the Indian Wells Open with a 6-0 6-4 third-round defeat to 21st seed Veronika Kudermetova on Saturday.

A member of the crowd could be heard shouting "Naomi, you suck" after the four-time grand slam champion had been broken in the first game of the match.

Osaka approached the chair umpire to report the incident and held further discussions with the court supervisor after being insulted again.

Murray says there is no place for such conduct, but believes players must be able to ignore it.

He said: “It's a difficult one. I've often thought watching certain sports, I wouldn't say I've often seen it loads in tennis … but if I watch a football or a soccer match and a player's going to take throw-in or a corner kick and the crowd are just hurling insults at those individuals.

"I always think, how is that allowed? Like, you can't do that. If you're doing that to someone when you're walking down the street or in any other sort of work environment, that's obviously not tolerated.

"I've played in certain atmospheres as well myself in tennis, like Davis Cup atmospheres, away from home, especially where the atmosphere's intense, and sometimes things are said and it's not that comfortable.

"The people that come to watch, you want them to be there and supporting the players and not making it more difficult for them. I don't know, but it's also something that's always just kind of been part of sports as well."

He added: "If you go and watch a basketball match, for example, and a player's taking free throws, I would say like almost every basketball match I've been to one of the players has been heckled by the crowd as well

"While it's wrong for those individuals to be doing it, the athletes obviously have to kind of be used to that as well or be able to deal with that too, even though it's not pleasant.

"I feel for Naomi, that obviously it upset her a lot, but it’s always been something that's been part of sport, I guess, as well.

"You have to be prepared for that in some ways and be able to tolerate it because it does happen regularly across all sports."

LeBron James was lost for words after becoming the first player in NBA history to surpass 10,000 points, rebounds and assists.

Four-time MVP James achieved the feat with his six assists in the Los Angeles Lakers' 140-111 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

The second of those assists against the NBA-leading Suns, alongside his 31 points and seven rebounds, saw James reach five figures in that category.

After managing something nobody else has come close to, the 37-year-old was left to revel in another historic achievement.

"I get lost for words anytime things like this are happening to me because of where I come from," he said. 

"I start thinking to my hometown of Akron [Ohio] and my upbringing and where I come from and the dreams that I had of being in this league and playing at the highest level.

"To now sit alone at a statistical category in this league that I've really modelled my game after: being able to score, rebound and assist...

"To sit alone at a stat is pretty, I'd say, 'cool,' but it doesn't quite make sense to me."

James' 10,000th assist arrived in another defeat for the Lakers, who are now 29-38 for the season and down in ninth in the Western Conference.

"It's an honour to be a part of this league. No matter what's going on, you try to take the victories that happen throughout the course of a long marathon," James added.

"Tonight is one that happened not only for myself but for my family and friends."

James now has 1,457 points this season, tied with Luka Doncic for the 11th most, while his average of 29.7 across his 49 games is bettered only by Joel Embiid (29.8).

Only in two previous seasons – 30 in 2007-08 and 31.4 in 2005-06 – has James averaged more points than he is this season for the Lakers.

Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen's long-standing rift has been mended on the day the Boston Celtics raised the All-Star center's number five jersey to the rafters in tribute.

The Celtics celebrated Garnett's career after Sunday's 95-92 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, with the 2004 NBA MVP's jersey officially retired by the franchise.

Allen was among those in attendance, which was significant given the rift that emerged between the pair when he opted to move to the Miami Heat as a free agent in 2012.

"It's good to see Ray Allen here," Garnett said during the ceremony. "Real s***. It's good to see you, man. You next, dog."

The Celtics had won the 2008 NBA title with the pair alongside Paul Pierce, while they were Eastern Conference champions in 2010 during a dominant five-year period before Allen's exit prompted the side to drop off.

"Just because I moved away doesn't mean that relationship, that friendship, ends," Allen said.

"It did center around Kevin and myself because I did get the sense that the people here felt how Kevin felt. Once he accepted me, then the people accepted me. That was the sense.

"I was glad we could do that and people could see, 'We won with this guy in 2008, and that's what matters most'."

Former Celtics head coach Doc Rivers, now with the Philadelphia 76ers, weighed in on the reunion.

"Yeah, that's a big one because that's been a problem, obviously, and the fact that it looks like the fence is finally coming down is really cool," Rivers said. "I'm very, very happy for Kevin, and really cool that Ray came today."

Garnett, who won the 2004 NBA MVP with the Minnesota Timberwolves, finished his 22-year NBA career averaging 17.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

The power forward/center was a 15-time NBA All-Star, one-time NBA champion and one-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year (both 2008).

Third seed Alexander Zverev has been knocked out of the Indian Wells Masters by Tommy Paul in his first game since his expulsion from last month's Mexican Open for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Unseeded American Paul triumphed over the German 6-2 4-6 7-6 (7-2) in two hours and 17 minutes, rallying back from a break down in the final set.

Paul hit less winners, 26-21 to Zverev but made less unforced errors 25-19, while his serve and volley game was a key feature.

"I played a really high level today," Paul said during his on-court post-game interview. "The last time I played him, I played well, I put pressure on him so I knew how i wanted to play so I came out and executed him well.

"I played well when it came down to the breaker, so I'm pretty happy with my performance."

Zverev had not played since being expelled in Acapulco after a stunning outburst where he struck his racquet on the umpire chair several times after a doubles defeat.

Ninth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime was a major casualty, going down to Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 in three hours and 15 minutes.

The Canadian had 36-27 winners but was let down by 43-26 unforced errors, along with converting only two of his 10 break points.

Van de Zandschulp had failed to take three match points in the second set but showed composure to finish the job in the third.

Wild card Andy Murray was also eliminated in the second round, blowing three set points in the first set before going down to 31st seed Alexander Bublik 7-6 (11-9) 6-3 in two hours and one minute.

Last year's Wimbledon runner-up and Italian sixth seed Matteo Berrettini needed more than two hours to get past world number 86 Holger Rune 6-3 4-6 6-4.

Seventh seed Andrey Rublev defeated Dominik Koepfer 7-5 6-4 to extend his win streak to 10 matches, while 11th seed Hubert Hurkacz beat Oscar Otte 6-3 3-6 6-3.

Other seeds to be eliminated were 22nd seed Aslan Karatsev who went down 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 to American Steve Johnson, while 24th seed Marin Cilic lost 6-7 (7-9) 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to Miomir Kecmanovic.

All-Star forward Anthony Davis is not 100 percent sure he will return for the Los Angeles Lakers this season.

The 29-year-old has not played for the Lakers since sustaining a mid-foot sprain in his right foot on February 16.

Davis has endured another injury-cursed seasons for the Lakers, who are struggling to make the playoffs with a 29-38 record leaving them ninth in the west.

"I'm very optimistic about it," Davis told reporters before the Lakers' 140-111 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

"I'm trying to get back on the court as soon as possible. As far as a number or something, I would love to say 100 but with only a certain amount of games yet, not 100 percent sure."

The 28-year-old power forward has only played 37 of the Lakers' 67 games this season, averaging 23.1 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game.

Davis only managed 36 appearances for the Lakers last season and has a long history of missing time in season due to injuries.

The 2012 NBA Draft top pick has had a mix of thumb, knee, wrist and foot/ankle injuries disrupt his 2021-22 season.

"The first thing I thought was, 'Not again,'" Davis said when he recalled the incident from February 16. "I just got off of [being sidelined] four-to-six [weeks]. Now I got another four-to-six.

"That's where the anger came from. ... It was a little bit of relief that it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but more so anger of, 'Here we go again.'"

Two-time major winner Simona Halep secured a spot in the Indian Wells Open last 16 with a strong 6-3 6-4 victory over 16th seed Cori Gauff on Sunday.

Halep, who is aiming to rebuild her ranking in 2022 after an injury-hit second half of last year, was excellent with her return, particularly on Gauff's second serve to gain the edge.

The Romanian saved all four break points generated by Gauff, while she converted three of the nine break points that she created.

Halep, who started the year with victory at the Melbourne Summer Set 1 before a last-16 loss to Alize Cornet at the Australian Open, needed only one hour and 16 minutes to seal her progress.

She will next play Romanian compatriot Sorana Cirstea after the 26th seed won 5-7 6-1 6-0 against lucky loser Anna Kalinskaya.

Last year's US Open champion and British 11th seed Emma Raducanu was bundled out by Croatian world number 79 Petra Martic 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 7-5.

Raducanu had served for the match in the final set but the Croatian won the final three games. Martic triumphed in two hours and 46 minutes, reaching the last 16 at Indian Wells for the second time in her career.

Martic will face 28th seed Liudmila Samsonova who triumphed 6-4 7-6 (7-4) over Danka Kovinic.

Third seed Iga Swiatek came from a set down to win 6-7 (3-7) 6-2 6-1 over Clara Tauson in two hours and 18 minutes.

Swiatek has won seven straight matches and is unbeaten at WTA 1000 events this season, having triumphed in Doha last month.

The Pole will take on three-time major winner Angelique Kerber in the last 16 after the German won comfortably over Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-1.

American 25th seed Madison Keys got past countrywoman Alison Riske 7-6 (7-4) 6-1, setting up a fourth-round meeting with British qualifier Harriet Dart who beat Kaia Kanepi in straight sets.

LeBron James became the first player in NBA history to reach 10,000 points, rebounds and assists respectively, in the Los Angeles Lakers' 140-111 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

James notched up his 10,000th assist during the second quarter, with a cross-court pass to Carmelo Anthony for an open three.

The Suns were dominant at home to the Lakers, though, putting up 48 points in the first quarter alone on their way to a commanding win.

Having already secured a playoff berth, despite losing at home to the Toronto Raptors on Saturday, Phoenix faced conveniently light work heading into a road back-to-back this week.

Devin Booker continued to shoulder the burden without Chris Paul, putting up 30 points and 10 assists.

With the loss, meanwhile, the Lakers move to 29-38 and teeter dangerously close to touching distance for the San Antonio Spurs and Portland Trailblazers, in the race for the final two Western Conference play-in spots.

Durant leads Nets with Irving in the building

Kevin Durant put up an individual season-high 53 points, including a game-breaking three to give the Brooklyn Nets a 110-107 win over the New York Knicks.

The shorthanded Nets were at least able to have Kyrie Irving in the building for the win, with New York mandates now enabling those unvaccinated for Covid-19 to spectate. However, the mandate still requires the vaccination for people who work there, meaning Irving is still unable to suit up.

At the end of the game, Irving walked off the Barclays Center floor arm-in-arm with Durant, who finished with nine assists and six rebounds to go with the 53 points - one point off his career-high.

Joel Embiid had his 30th 30-point game of the season as the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Orlando Magic 116-114 in over-time. Embiid finished with 35 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists, while Tobias Harris came up with a crucial late three-pointer to finish with 26 points.

Ja Morant had a quiet game by his standards with 17 points, five rebounds and 10 assists as the Memphis Grizzlies improved to 47-22 with a 125-118 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Doncic dagger propels Mavs to road win

The Dallas Mavericks claimed an impressive win on the road, edging the Boston Celtics 95-92 at the TD Garden. Despite leaving the floor with a hamstring scare in the first half, Luka Doncic’s fingerprints were all over the game’s dying moments - he hit the game-tying three-pointer with 1:21, before being called for fouling Marcus Smart on the potential tying three.

It was overturned on review however, and along with the win, Doncic put up 26 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. On a night where Kevin Garnett's No. 5 jersey was to be retired by the Celtics post-match, the Mavs moved to 42-26 for the year, half a game behind the Western Conference’s fourth-placed Utah Jazz.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has hailed 21-goal winger Riyad Mahrez, whom he says "reads the game perfectly".

The Algerian has been a key part of City's Premier League title push, netting eight goals in their past 10 league games, for a season total of 10.

Mahrez has been influential in Europe as well with six Champions League goals for City, who are into the quarter-finals. Across all competitions this season, he already has 21 goals to his name.

The 31-year-old contributed 14, 13 and 12 goals over the previous three seasons, with his increase in production prompting praise from Guardiola – 21 is already a personal best.

"He's an exceptional player,” Guardiola said at the news conference prior to Monday's league game with Crystal Palace. "He's a player that many teams would like to have.

"He's scored a lot of goals, penalties, assists and everything and part of that is the quality. He reads the game perfectly when he has to attack or give an extra pass."

The Spaniard added: "I try to push him a lot. We struggle together because I know the quality he has and he's a player I admire for the fact he handles the pressure.

"He likes to play on the biggest stages. It's difficult to find that and players like him. Not just me, the whole club has an incredibly high opinion of him and his quality, no doubt about that."

Despite never before scoring as many goals as in 2021-22, Guardiola refused to label it a career-best season.

"I will not say it’s his best season or not because he’s played in the Premier League for many seasons at a high level. Last season, for example, he was exceptional," Guardiola said.

"The final quarter of the season until the end he was so important and playing really well."

Mahrez's 10 Premier League goals mean he is the club's joint-top scorer in the top flight this term along with Raheem Sterling. Kevin De Bruyne is just behind them on nine.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht says they will "reload" their roster for another championship run following Tom Brady's decision to return from retirement.

The 44-year-old quarterback announced on Sunday that he had made a remarkable U-turn and will play on with the Bucs only 41 days after declaring his retirement from the NFL after 22 seasons.

The Bucs, who won Super Bowl LV, bowed out in the 2021-22 divisional playoffs to eventual champions the Los Angeles Rams.

Licht said he and head coach Bruce Arians had spoken with Brady and felt a return was a "realistic chance" with the Bucs, who used their franchise tag on Chris Godwin last week, ready to chase another Super Bowl title.

"We are thrilled that Tom has decided to come back this season," Licht said. "We said we would leave all options open for him should he reconsider his retirement and today's announcement is something we have been preparing for in recent days.

"Bruce and I have had plenty of conversations with Tom recently that led us to believe there was a realistic chance he would want to come back.

"Tom is the greatest quarterback of all time who is still playing at an elite level. With this decision now made, we will continue to move forward with our offseason plans to reload this roster for another championship run."

Arians reaffirmed Licht's comments around the Bucs being in championship contention and welcomed Brady's decision.

"Tom Brady loves to play football as much as anyone I have ever been around," Arians said. "As Tom said, his place right now is on the football field.

"He is still playing at a championship level and was as productive as anyone in the league last season. We are ecstatic that he decided to continue playing and working toward winning another championship."

Across his career, Brady holds the NFL record for most career quarterback wins (243), passing touchdowns (624) and passing yards (84,520).

Brady is the only player to have won seven Super Bowl titles and will go for an eighth with the Bucs next season.

Several of Brady's Bucs teammates took to social media to celebrate the QB's return, including Nick Leverett, Tristan Werfs and Mike Evans.