Arsenal midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga has been loaned to Crystal Palace for the remainder of the 2022-23 season.

The 23-year-old has made 15 appearances for Arsenal in all competitions this campaign, although just two of those have been Premier League starts.

He has not appeared for Mikel Arteta's side in the league since coming on as a substitute in the 3-1 win over Tottenham on October 1.

Belgium international Lokonga will now spend the next four months with Palace, who are managed by former Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira. 

Palace confirmed the news on their official website on Tuesday, shortly after Arsenal completed the signing of Jorginho from Chelsea to provide adequate midfield cover.

"I'm really excited – I can't wait to get started. I'm really happy to join Crystal Palace," Lokonga told the club's official website. 

"I want to go as far as possible with the team. I will try to push for me and the team to do the maximum to reach the top."

Lokonga, who has played 39 times for Arsenal in total since joining from Anderlecht in July 2021, is in line to make his Palace debut away at Manchester United on Saturday.

Erik ten Hag wants greater protection for players after Manchester United midfielder Christian Eriksen was injured by an Andy Carroll tackle during their FA Cup fourth round victory on Saturday.

The Denmark international is set to miss the majority of the rest of the season after he was caught by the Reading forward during the Red Devils' 3-1 win at Old Trafford.

Eriksen's layoff is a major blow for the resurgent United, with the former Tottenham and Inter playmaker a central figure in their revival under Ten Hag.

Speaking ahead of his side's EFL Cup semi-final second leg with Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, the Dutchman was critical of Carroll, but also stressed the need to police such challenges more stringently.

"I'm disappointed about that," he said. "I think football has to set limits [and] restrictions to protect the players, What football wants is the best players being available on the pitch.

"This is a tackle, and the two tackles after, that doesn't belong on the football pitch, because it's a high risk [it will] injure your colleague."

Carroll was dismissed during the Royals' defeat after consecutive yellow cards during the latter stages of the game, with Eriksen subsequently departing Old Trafford on crutches.

Asked if he felt the Reading man was trying to deliberately injure his players, Ten Hag added: "I think I made my view about it. I think it was quite clear what I think, what my thoughts were."

While several of United's Premier League rivals bolstered their January transfer window with high-profile deals, the club took a more low-key approach owing to financial frameworks, though were attempting to add Bayern Munich midfielder Marcel Sabitzer on loan on transfer deadline day.

Ten Hag previously acknowledged he had hoped for greater recruitment, but stressed he understands why United have operated the way they have in the market.

"I think as a manager, you're always trying to find a way to make your team better," he added. "I wouldn't be a good manager, if I didn't make the request.

"If there are opportunities, it is my job in the club to tell the club that there are opportunities to strengthen our squad and our time

"But it's about financial frameworks, [with] what is acceptable, what is reasonable and what we need to fulfil our ambitions. We have to follow it though."

Erik ten Hag wants greater protection for players after Manchester United midfielder Christian Eriksen was injured by an Andy Carroll tackle during their FA Cup fourth round victory on Saturday.

The Denmark international is set to miss the majority of the rest of the season after he was caught by the Reading forward during the Red Devils' 3-1 win at Old Trafford.

Eriksen's lay-off is a major blow for the resurgent United, with the former Tottenham and Inter playmaker a central figure in their revival under Ten Hag.

Speaking ahead of his side's EFL Cup semi-final second leg with Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, the Dutchman was critical of Carroll, but also stressed the need to police such challenges more stringently.

"I'm disappointed about that," he said. "I think football has to set limits [and] restrictions to protect the players, What football wants is the best players being available on the pitch.

"This is a tackle, and the two tackles after, that doesn't belong on the football pitch, because it's a high risk [it will] injure your colleague."

Carroll was dismissed during the Royals' defeat after consecutive yellow cards during the latter stages of the game, with Eriksen subsequently departing Old Trafford on crutches.

Asked if he felt the Reading man was trying to deliberately injure his players, Ten Hag added: "I think I made my view about it. I think it was quite clear what I think, what my thoughts were."

While several of United's Premier League rivals bolstered their January transfer window with high-profile deals, the club took a more low-key approach owing to financial frameworks, though were attempting to add Bayern Munich midfielder Marcel Sabitzer on loan on transfer deadline day.

Ten Hag previously acknowledged he had hoped for greater recruitment, but stressed he understands why United have operated the way they have in the market.

"I think as a manager, you're always trying to find a way to make your team better," he added. "I wouldn't be a good manager, if I didn't make the request.

"If there are opportunities, it is my job in the club to tell the club that there are opportunities to strengthen our squad and our time

"But it's about financial frameworks, [with] what is acceptable, what is reasonable and what we need to fulfil our ambitions. We have to follow it though."

Sean Longstaff scored twice as Newcastle United booked their EFL Cup final place after wrapping up a 3-1 aggregate victory over Southampton.

Magpies academy graduate Longstaff was the local hero at St James' Park, where his boyhood club were 2-1 winners in the second leg to seal a first cup final appearance since 1999.

The midfielder's first-half brace – and his first home goals in nearly four years – sent Eddie Howe's side to Wembley, though they finished the contest with 10 men after Bruno Guimaraes' late red card.

Che Adams scored a brilliant consolation for Southampton, who were denied a third final appearance in the competition.

The typically buoyant Toon Army were on their feet in the fifth minute when Longstaff exchanged passes with Kieran Trippier before sweeping the ball past Gavin Bazunu.

Longstaff went close again when he drilled just wide, but made no mistake in the 21st minute. A clever one-two with Joelinton released Joe Willock with the latter subsequently finding Miguel Almiron, whose inviting square ball was clinically tucked away by the midfielder.

Shell-shocked Southampton replied against the run of play eight minutes later. Willock's loose pass went straight to Adams, who denied the Magpies a ninth successive home clean sheet when he fired a stunning 25-yard effort into the bottom corner.

Saints almost clawed another goal back in the 73rd minute as Nick Pope denied former Newcastle striker Adam Armstrong.

Longstaff and Guimaraes went close to sealing it at the other end before the Brazil international received a straight red card following a VAR review for a late challenge on Samuel Edozie seven minutes from time.

But the numerical disadvantage could not deny the Magpies a long-awaited return to a Wembley final.

What does it mean? Newcastle seal Wembley return

Newcastle have reached their first EFL Cup final in 47 years – in what is the biggest gap between appearances – and will hope they are less than a month away from landing a first major trophy since the 1969 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.

Southampton's hopes of becoming only the third team to recover from a semi-final first-leg defeat on home soil effectively ended after their slow start at St James' Park, where they have now won just once in 19 visits.

Longstaff the local hero

You wait 13 appearances for your first EFL Cup goal, and then two come along at once.

Indeed, Longstaff, who was just one-and-a-half years old when the Magpies were runners-up to Manchester United in the 1999 FA Cup, picked the perfect moment to help his boyhood club seal their return to a final with two brilliantly taken goals from a game-high four shots.

Adams matches Le Tissier

It proved a consolation but Adams made Southampton history with his fine strike; becoming the first Saints player since Matt Le Tissier (1994-95) to score five goals in a single EFL Cup campaign.

The striker is also the first player to score against Newcastle at St James' Park since Brentford's Ivan Toney in October, and the second to net against them in this season's competition after Elliott Nevitt of Tranmere Rovers.

What's next?

Newcastle resume their Champions League qualification surge at home to Bournemouth, while Southampton continue their battle for survival away at Brentford, both on Saturday.

Matteo Darmian fired holders Inter into the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia as the Nerazzurri ground out a 1-0 victory over Atalanta at San Siro on Tuesday.

Inter lifted the Supercoppa Italiana by thumping rivals Milan in Saudi Arabia earlier in January, but their chances of retaining the Coppa Italia trophy were put to the test by an Atalanta side previously unbeaten in six games in all competitions.

Unlikely hero Darmian popped up with a well-taken winner in the 57th minute to see Inter through to the final four for a fourth successive campaign.

With the likes of Milan and Napoli already out of the competition, Inter will fancy their chances of lifting the trophy for a ninth time.

The first half lacked clear-cut chances, though Hakan Calhanoglu nearly put Inter ahead when his dipping long-range effort crashed off the post with Juan Musso beaten.

Duvan Zapata then missed a golden opportunity for Atalanta just before the break, heading over after Joakim Maehle's excellent delivery picked him out.

Maehle nearly turned from provider to finisher after the break, but his sidefooted effort flew over after Andre Onana failed to deal with a cross.

Atalanta were made to pay for that miss shortly after, as Darmian stroked a left-footed shot into the bottom right-corner when Lautaro Martinez deftly set him up.

Jeremie Boga fizzed a shot just wide as the visitors searched for an equaliser, while substitute Ademola Lookman saw a low effort saved by Onana.

Atalanta pressed late on, but Inter held firm to see out the remaining minutes and edge a step nearer to another final.

Jorginho is relishing the chance to play under Mikel Arteta at Arsenal after his "surprising" move from Premier League rivals Chelsea went through on deadline day.

Arsenal are reported to have paid £12million to Chelsea to get a deal over the line in time, having failed in their attempt to bring in Moises Caicedo from Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Italy international provides another option for the Premier League leaders in central midfield after losing Mohamed Elneny to a "significant" knee injury.

And Jorginho revealed in his first interview as an Arsenal player that it was a transfer a long time in the making, with manager Arteta having tried previously to sign him.

"[Arteta] was a big influence. I know he tried a few times to get me before and it didn't happen due to other reasons, not because of my wishes," he told Arsenal's website.

"So of course, he had a big influence. Now I'm very excited for this new challenge, and I just can't wait to be on the pitch to be honest."

Jorginho boasts plenty of experience, having made more than 500 club appearances in his career and represented Italy 46 times.

Arsenal's interest in the Brazil-born midfielder only became public on Monday and he signed an 18-month contract at Emirates Stadium the following day.

"Everything has happened so fast. I was a bit surprised, but I took the opportunity of this amazing challenge," he added.

"It's an important shirt. It's an amazing club, a big one, and I'm really excited and happy to be here.

"I'll try to just bring positive energy, hard work and my experience to help the team. It's what I always bring with me. 

"I try just to help with the experience I've had in my time with the other clubs and anything I can do just to help the team to achieve more and more, that's my target.

"All I can promise is that I'm going to give my all to represent this club."

Jorginho has been handed the number 20 shirt and is in line to make his debut for Arsenal in Saturday's Premier League trip to Everton.

Paris Saint-Germain forward Neymar has been ruled out of Wednesday's Ligue 1 match against Montpellier.

The 30-year-old has been in fine form for the reigning French champions this season, scoring 17 goals and assisting 14 more in 25 appearances.

Those 31 direct goal involvements put Neymar level with team-mate Kylian Mbappe and behind only Manchester City's Erling Haaland (34) among players across Europe's top five leagues.

However, the Brazil international will not play any part against Montpellier in midweek as he is suffering from muscular fatigue.

PSG announced the news on their official website on Tuesday, with no timeframe given for Neymar's return to action.

Mbappe and Lionel Messi have been included in Christophe Galtier's 21-man squad for the trip to 14th-place Montpellier, as PSG look for their first win in three league games.

After losing to Rennes and drawing with Reims in their past two matches, the Parisians' lead at the top of Ligue 1 has been cut to three points by Lens.

Heather Watson stunned second seed Yulia Putintseva at the Thailand Open as the British player scored an impressive first-round win.

The 30-year-old Watson lost in qualifying for the recent Australian Open, having made the singles main draw for 11 consecutive years, but she is already beginning to make up for the Melbourne disappointment.

Kazakh Putintseva is ranked 44th in the world, while Watson has slipped to 160th, but the Guernsey native has been as high as 38th in her career and won four titles on the WTA Tour.

She showed there is still a hunger to succeed, edging a tight contest 5-7 6-4 7-5 (7-5) to make Putintseva the biggest early casualty.

Top seed Bianca Andreescu had no such trouble against Watson's compatriot Harriet Dart, as the Canadian went through a 6-3 6-4 winner.

Czech 17-year-old Linda Fruhvirtova, seeded eighth and at a career-high 51st in the WTA rankings, overwhelmed American veteran Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-3 6-1.

Fellow seeds Marta Kostyuk, Anna Kalinskaya and Tatjana Maria also came through their opening tests at the tournament in Hua Hin.

At the Lyon Open, French top seed Caroline Garcia fended off Czech Tereza Martincova 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in round one, delighting a home crowd.

Champion at the WTA Finals at the end of last season, Garcia surprisingly lost in round four of the Australian Open to unseeded Pole Magda Linette, who went on a fairy tale run to the semi-finals.

Garcia said of Tuesday's win over Martincova: "It was a tough match. She's a great player. She's already played great battles against top players, and it's a first round, so you really never know what is going to happen."

Second seed Zhang Shuai beat American Madison Brengle 6-3 6-2, but eighth seed Anna Blinkova bowed out, retiring when 4-0 behind in a deciding set against fellow Russian Erika Andreeva.

Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs plan to "blank out the hype" ahead of Super Bowl LVII, as the coach prepares to face former team the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Chiefs booked their place at State Farm Stadium in Glendale with a 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday.

With their third conference title in four seasons, they will face their head coach's former employers in Arizona, with Reid having led the Eagles between 1999 and 2012.

Asked whether the emotional connection to his former team makes his work more challenging, Reid insisted his focus is squarely on the task at hand.

"When you really cut to the chase, they're a really good football team," he said. "So I think that's where [my] energy goes.

"That's where the major focus goes. It doesn't matter who you're playing, you try to blank out all the hype that goes with the game. It's a pretty big game for everybody.

"It's a big, big deal. It's the Super Bowl. But you try to blank that out and make sure that you're getting the game plan, [and] what really matters, together."

Reid reached one Super Bowl during his time in charge of the Eagles, though did not get his hands on the Vince Lombardi trophy until 2020 with the Chiefs.

Still, he remains an admirer of the Pennsylvania outfit while stressing he shares the love for his current home as well.

"I love Philadelphia, love the city," he added. "I've been blessed, blessed to be in [these] phenomenal places in the NFL. I'm loving every minute in Kansas City [too]."

Milan have denied any issues in ongoing negotiations with Rafael Leao regarding a new contract following reports on Tuesday.

It was reported in Italy that discussions between the Portugal international and the club on a new deal had broken down.

Leao's deal at San Siro is due to expire in 2024 and it was claimed the player's entourage wanted to significantly reduce his release clause.

Milan have denied that any breakdown has occurred, though, and insist discussions will continue.

"With regard to the article published today by the newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport titled: 'Leao Milan total break', Milan would like to clarify that the negotiation with Rafael Leao has not suffered any interruption," a club statement read.

"The journalistic narrative of an alleged frost between the parties is not only totally unfounded but also harmful to the club and its player.

"AC Milan continues, in fact, the dialogue with Leao and his entourage in a serene and professional atmosphere."

Several clubs have been attributed with an interest in Leao, including Premier League trio Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Isco will not be joining Union Berlin after a planned move for the former Real Madrid attacking midfielder collapsed on transfer deadline day.

Reports in Germany said Isco had completed a medical and was poised to sign for the team who sit second in the Bundesliga, one point behind Bayern Munich.

The 30-year-old was released by Sevilla after just four months at the club in December and looked set for a new challenge in Berlin.

However, the anticipated switch broke down just hours before the deadline, which in Germany falls at 18:00 local time (17:00 GMT).

Both parties blamed the other, with Union sporting director Oliver Ruhnert saying in a statement posted on Twitter by the club: "We would have liked to see Isco play for us, but we have our limits.

"Today these were exceeded, despite our previous agreement, which is why the transfer will not take place."

Isco's management company, Gestifute, was quoted in German newspaper Bild as stating: "In the course of the talks, we had to realise that our negotiating partner was no longer willing to move within the framework originally discussed."

Union, who face Wolfsburg in a DFB-Pokal game on Tuesday, have won their three Bundesliga games since the World Cup and winter break in their surprise title challenge.

Isco began his career with spells at Valencia and Malaga, before spending nine years with Madrid, leaving the Santiago Bernabeu at the end of last season.

Leigh Halfpenny is set to start for Wales in the Six Nations opener against Ireland on Saturday as Liam Williams missed out.

Halfpenny has been given the nod at full-back for the first match of Warren Gatland's second spell as Wales head coach at the Principality Stadium.

The 35-year-old will be monitored after sitting out training on Tuesday morning due to a hip issue, but is in line to make his first international start since 2021.

Williams will play no part in Cardiff this weekend as he builds up his fitness after being sidelined by injuries.

Centre Joe Hawkins will make his Six Nations debut at inside centre partnering George North in midfield after making his Test bow against Australia last year.

Dan Biggar returns at fly-half, with Tomos Williams starting at scrum-half against the top-ranked side in the world. 

Asked about Halfpenny's selection and the absence of Liam Williams, Gatland said: "He [Williams] trained today.

"Leigh Halfpenny has a little bit of a tight hip, so we kept him out of this morning's session. He'll train this afternoon so just making sure he didn't double up on that.

"Liam hasn't had a lot of rugby. He had the knock and then the finger injury, so he didn't take part in training last week. We just want to give him some more training time with the team.

"Obviously, if something does happen to Leigh, we'll make a decision with what happens to that. We had everyone fit and available for selection, but we had some players with bumps and knocks who didn't take part in training last week.

"That was some of our thinking there. We just want some more training time under his belt. There's no doubt Liam will feature at some point."

Wales team: Leigh Halfpenny, Josh Adams, George North, Joe Hawkins, Rio Dyer, Dan Biggar, Tomos Williams; Gareth Thomas, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis, Adam Beard, Alun Wyn Jones, Jac Morgan, Justin Tipuric, Taulupe Faletau.

Replacements: Scott Baldwin, Rhys Carre, Dillon Lewis, Dafydd Jenkins, Tommy Reffell, Rhys Webb, Owen Williams, Alex Cuthbert.

Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Elneny is set for an indefinite layoff after undergoing surgery for a knee injury, as the club reportedly close in on the signing of Jorginho from Chelsea.

Egypt international Elneny, who has made five Premier League appearances this season for Mikel Arteta's side, suffered the problem in training.

Though he has undergone a successful operation, the 30-year-old will spend a significant period on the sidelines as he begins his road to recovery.

"Following an injury sustained in a recent training session, subsequent assessments have confirmed that Mohamed Elneny has a significant injury to his right knee," read a club statement.

"Mo has had successful surgery in London and will be ruled out for an extended period of time.

"A more detailed timescale will be established once the early stages of rehabilitation have been completed."

The Gunners have also confirmed a loan exit for Marquinhos.

The Brazilian teenager, who has made six appearances this term, has joined Championship outfit Norwich City until the end of the season.