Chelsea forward Armando Broja is expected to miss the rest of the season after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a friendly against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Broja, who spent the 2021-22 season on loan at Southampton, has made 18 appearances for Chelsea this term, scoring his first Blues goal in October's Premier League win over Wolves.
The Albania international was chosen to lead the line against Villa in Abu Dhabi, with Graham Potter looking to get his squad up to full speed ahead of the Premier League's resumption later this month.
However, Broja was carried from the field after going down clutching his left knee, having fallen awkwardly when appearing to catch his studs in the turf.
A Blues statement read: "Having sustained a knee injury during the first half of Sunday’s friendly against Aston Villa, Armando underwent further assessment following the club’s return to England.
"Scan results from those assessments have unfortunately confirmed an anterior cruciate ligament rupture and that surgery will be required.
"Following the operation, Armando will work closely with the club’s medical department during his rehabilitation and is expected to miss the remainder of the 2022-23 campaign."
A youthful Chelsea side fell to a 1-0 defeat against Unai Emery's men, with John McGinn sweeping home the only goal of the game after seven minutes.
Chelsea will resume their Premier League campaign against Bournemouth on December 27 at Stamford Bridge, having dropped to eighth in the table following a poor run ahead of the World Cup.
Radja Nainggolan has accused former Roma sporting director Monchi of ruining the club, laying the blame for their struggles at his feet.
The Spaniard, who is now back with former club Sevilla, arrived at Stadio Olimpico in 2017, amid a period where the club were frequent rivals to Juventus in the Serie A title race.
Although they finished third in his first season, an exodus of key players – including Nainggolan, and now-Liverpool duo Mohamed Salah and Alisson – saw them finish sixth in 2018-19.
The club have struggled to recover their top-four status since, even after Monchi's own exit in 2019, and Nainggolan has suggested it was the Spaniard's calls that sunk their once-promising credentials.
"He ruined the team," he told Tradizione Romanista. "He sold all the players. I can't even name him. If I'd known he was leaving soon after I went, I would have stayed.
"We had very strong players, and then we sold them. If you want to win, you have to keep strong players. If you always change, you will never have a solid base to work off."
At 34, Nainggolan shows no sign of slowing down, but the midfielder says a return to Roma will not be on the cards if he looks to depart Antwerp.
"If I went back to Roma now, I would run the risk of ruining all of the wonderful memories I have there," he added.
"Roma was the place, in terms of football, where I felt loved and respected. I'm too old to go back now. I live for football in my own way."
Cheteshwar Pujara and Shreyas Iyer steered India to an opening-day recovery against Bangladesh in the first Test in Chattogram.
The tourists won the toss at Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium and opted to bat first, with opener KL Rahul deputising as captain in place of the injured Rohit Sharma.
Impressive knocks from Pujara (90) and Iyer (82 not out) helped them steadily build a total they hope will offer a defence against their hosts, ending the day on 278-6.
But sturdy figures from Taijul Islam (3-84) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (2-71) helped Bangladesh keep their opponents on something of a leash.
The early momentum appeared to favour them, with a three-wicket flurry taking Shubman Gill, Rahul and Virat Kohli - the latter for a solitary single - at the cost of just seven runs as India were swiftly reduced to 48-3.
A hard-hitting cameo from Rishabh Pant, with 46 off 45 balls and eight boundaries to boot, saw India wrestle back control.
When he fell to make it 112-4, Iyer - in just his sixth Test match - joined Pujara at the crease to mount a controlled partnership, putting together 149 for the fifth wicket.
It was Bangladesh who served up the final sting of the game however, following the latter's dismissal, with Axar Patel trapped lbw off the final ball of the day to keep this encounter hanging in the balance.
Iyer showcases middle-order strength
Having nabbed a century on debut against New Zealand last year, the India batter has posted another four half-centuries since at the Test crease for his country.
His latest however was an assured knock - that included 10 fours - to bring some needed momentum back to the tourists, and will return to the crease in a bid to reach three figures and push India beyond 300 on Thursday.
Seamers struggle for Bangladesh
Ebadot Hossain and Khaled Ahmed led the hosts' bowling attack out of the gates in Chattogram, but both failed to really cause problems the longer the first day wound on.
With just one wicket between them - that of Rahul, early on - they looked lacking in threat compared to the rest of their team-mates, with few full balls between them.
Cristiano Ronaldo would be easy to coach and the "soap opera" surrounding his links to Al Nassr have been "important promotion" for the club, says boss Rudi Garcia.
Portugal great Ronaldo remains a free agent after his contract with Manchester United was ended by mutual consent following his incendiary interview with Piers Morgan in which he criticised the club's hierarchy and manager Erik ten Hag.
Reports surfaced earlier this month suggesting the Real Madrid legend had agreed an eye-watering two-and-a-half-year contract with Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr.
Ronaldo later denied any decision regarding his future had been decided, but Portugal exiting the World Cup at the quarter-final stage means he is free to focus on his next move.
Al Nassr coach Garcia would be more than happy to have the 37-year-old in his ranks, saying the situation would be similar to when he had Francesco Totti working under his tutelage at Roma.
"I can't say anything about Cristiano because otherwise it would immediately appear in the headlines," he told AS.
"What I see is that it has been a soap opera and it has been a very important promotion for Al Nassr.
"I think that any coach would be delighted to train a great star like Cristiano. I have always thought that the great players are the easiest to manage because they are very intelligent, I verified this with Francesco Totti at Roma."
According to Garcia, if circumstances had played out differently he would already have experienced what it is like to coach Ronaldo.
The Frenchman claimed to have been in discussions about taking over United on a temporary basis following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's dismissal before the Red Devils plumped for Ralf Rangnick instead.
"In November 2021, I was very close to going to United," he added.
"They chose Ralf Rangnick, but I met twice with John Murtough and Darren Fletcher [United's director of football and technical director].
"I came very close to coaching this club and was very motivated to go, who wouldn't be motivated to coach United?
"United's simple interest has allowed me to be sure of my ambitions in the future."
Lionel Messi deserves to lift the World Cup and will lead Argentina to glory in Sunday's final, according to Brazil's 2002 champion Rivaldo.
Messi produced another remarkable performance as Argentina beat Croatia 3-0 in Tuesday's semi-final, opening the scoring from the penalty spot before laying on a goal for Julian Alvarez after a fine solo run.
On the day he equalled Lothar Matthaus' all-time record of 25 World Cup appearances, Messi became the first player to score and assist in four games at the competition.
Messi's 11th World Cup goal also made him the Albiceleste's record goalscorer at the tournament, and with Brazil having fallen at the quarter-final stage, Rivaldo hopes Messi captures the trophy.
"We no longer have Brazil or Neymar in this cup final, so I'll stay with Argentina. No words for you Leo Messi," Rivaldo wrote on Instagram.
"You already deserved to be world champion before, but God knows all things and will crown you this Sunday.
"You deserve this title for the person you are and for the wonderful football you always played. Hats off to you. God bless you."
Messi's penalty on Tuesday also made him the first Argentina player to score in five games at a single World Cup, with Poland the only side to prevent him from netting in Qatar.
Taking to Instagram after the win, Messi wrote: "We came back to gain strength to play another great match.
"Thank you very much to everyone who trusted this group! Come on Argentina!"
Dutch cyclist Mathieu van der Poel has had his convictions for common assault overturned by a judge at Sydney's Downing Centre District Court.
The 27-year-old pleaded guilty to the common assault of two teenage girls in Sydney on the eve of the UCI Road World Championships finale in September.
Van der Poel was subsequently charged on two counts after an altercation with the pair, aged 13 and 14, whom he alleges to have been knocking on his hotel room door.
He was also fined 1,500 AUD, though he appealed both the conviction and fine, and Judge Ian Bourke SC ruled in the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider's favour in Tuesday's hearing.
The judge said Van der Poel's action had been in "response to annoying and invasive conduct" by the girls.
Van de Poel's lawyer Michael Bowe told NCA NewsWire: "He didn't need a conviction. He's a dedicated sportsman and cyclist. It's important these matters were dismissed."
Tour de France and Giro d'Italia stage winner Van der Poel had been among the favourites to win the World Championship prior to dropping out with 230 kilometres to go.
Belgium's Remco Evenepoel went on to win the competition.
"I ran the argument on the basis of loss to Mathieu – he had one opportunity in his life to win the world championships and he's lost that opportunity," Bowe added.
"He'd trained for that opportunity. He'd let his country down, he'd let his team down."
Van der Poel has two wins in three cyclo-cross races so far this season, prevailing at the UCI World Cup rounds in Hulst and Antwerp.
Leicester Tigers head coach Steve Borthwick says he would love to offer some clarity over his future amid reports he is in line to lead England.
The Rugby Football Union are attempting to secure the Premiership Rugby winner to succeed Eddie Jones following the Australian's dismissal earlier this month.
With less than a year until the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, the search for a new head coach appears to have centred itself upon Borthwick.
But speaking ahead of his side's European Rugby Champions Cup clash with Clermont this weekend, the 43-year-old acknowledged he was unable to offer any information over his future.
"I know I'm coaching here this weekend against Clermont on Saturday," he said.
"That's what I am working towards. I'd love to give you clarity [around] everything going forward [but] unfortunately, I can't.
"For me, all I do is try to concentrate on giving the best for this team and these players that I care for very deeply.
"I will try and coach them to the best level I possibly can."
Borthwick was assistant coach under Jones with Japan, before linking up with the Australian in the England camp in 2015, with the pair reaching the 2019 Rugby World Cup final together.
He stayed there until 2020, when he departed the national set-up to take charge at Welford Road, winning the top-flight title last season with the Tigers.
Any move to take Borthwick to England would leave Leicester potentially looking for two replacements, with defence coach Kevin Sinfield having been linked to follow him to Twickenham.
Oleksandr Usyk goaded Tyson Fury by calling him "Luke" and said their face-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was pre-planned.
The two heavyweights are expected to do battle at some point in 2023 in a huge unification bout and came face to face after Fury defeated Derek Chisora earlier this month.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Usyk called Fury by his middle name – a reference to a 2020 claim by Dillian Whyte, who said Fury had switched his first and middle names.
"When [the] cameras are off he's a different person," Usyk said.
"When cameras are on he's Tyson Fury, when they're off he's Luke Fury.
"Luke, I'm coming for you. I've been coming for him for a long time. I wish him a lot of health, happiness, love, patience and warm wind."
The unification bout is still fraught with complications, with the WBA ordering Usyk to defend his WBA Super belt against its regular champion Daniel Dubois.
But with Dubois and Fury both represented by Frank Warren that issue could still be resolved.
The anticipation of Fury-Usyk built after the former's win over Chisora when the latter came to the ring apron to get in his opponent's face.
"We negotiated it. If he agreed to fight, I would step onto the ring," Usyk said of the showdown.
"A lot of things were said since then, like he would slap me in my face. But apparently he changed his mind after having his buttocks burned."
"I look up, and we're throwing it to Penei, and I'm like, 'What the f*** are we doing?' They said, 'Coach, you said it was fine.' But it worked out great. It was unbelievable."
With back-to-back wins for just the second time this season, the Lions have overseen a dramatic turnaround in recent weeks, winning five of their last six games to bolster their playoff hopes.
They next make the trip to face the New York Jets on Sunday, before a Christmas Eve clash with the Carolina Panthers.
Lionel Messi will be fit and raring to go for Argentina in Sunday's World Cup final, team-mate Emiliano Martinez has said.
Paris Saint-Germain superstar Messi was in sensational form as La Albiceleste defeated Croatia 3-0 in Tuesday's semi-final in Qatar, scoring the opener from the penalty spot and assisting Julian Alvarez's second after a dizzying run.
There were some concerns for Argentina supporters when Messi clutched at his hamstring during the early stages of the contest.
But goalkeeper Martinez is confident it was just the toll of accumulated minutes, with Argentina having required extra time and penalties to defeat the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.
"No, no [he's not injured]," Martinez said.
"We played 120 minutes against Holland, it was a hard game for him, but you can see he wants to finish every game. Physically he's really good and he's man of the match every game."
Argentina's run to the final was fraught with difficulty after they were stunningly beaten by Saudi Arabia in their opening group game.
Indeed, it needed some genius from Messi to inspire a 2-0 win over Mexico in their following match, a result that sparked Lionel Scaloni's men into life in Qatar.
Martinez is of the opinion everyone outside of Argentina wanted to see them fail in that fixture.
"I can't believe it we lost the first game all of sudden everything was upside down we lost the 36-game unbeaten run," the Aston Villa keeper added.
"Mexico the first half was a bit sloppy everyone wanted us to lose, everyone wanted us to lose. We're all fighters and we've got 45million Argentinians all behind us.
"We feel the crowd on the streets every time we play we feel like we are at home we are so happy to have them."
Argentina will face the victor of the semi-final, which pits defending champions France against surprise package Morocco.
Martinez has no preference over who they face in the showpiece fixture.
"They both had an incredible run they both different teams both really whoever comes it's a World Cup final and know it's going to be hard," he said.
Marnus Labuschagne is ready to use every trick in the book to get the better of South Africa as Australia prepare for the first Test.
The top-order batsman is set to face the country of his birth for the first time in red-ball cricket, having been born in Klerksdorp before moving to Brisbane as a child.
Though he scored an ODI century in South Africa in 2020, the chance to face off against the Proteas at The Gabba is an opportunity Labuschagne is relishing.
Dean Elgar revealed the Australian spoke to him in Afrikaans in a bid to throw him off during an English county match in 2019, and the Queensland man would not rule out doing so again on the biggest stage.
"We'll have to wait and see," he said. "I've got no doubt that they're going to throw some curveballs and hopefully the responses can be either funny or none at all.
"I certainly think it's always exciting what this Test holds because it is a little bit closer to my heart, because it's the country where I grew up and where I spent 10 years of my life."
With 927 runs in 16 innings this year, Labuschagne has only been outscored in Test cricket by three other men – team-mate Usman Khawaja and the England pair of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow.
His form sees him ranked as the top Test batsman by the ICC, and he credits his achievements to his drive to keep bettering himself.
"I am who I am because I am obsessed, and I am obsessive," he added. "I love to try and get better each time and each day.
"I think that part, hopefully it never stops for me because I think that's what makes me who I am."
Draymond Green revealed a fan said "threatening stuff to my life" leading to him asking officials to have him thrown out of the Fiserv Forum during Tuesday's 128-111 Milwaukee Bucks win over the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors power forward was involved in a heated exchange with a fan who had heckled him courtside while Giannis Antetokounmpo shot free-throws with 6:30 remaining in the third quarter of the game with the Bucks up 81-59.
The situation threatened to boil over, but Green walked away before asking the referees to get security staff to eject the fan amid boos from the home crowd.
"Some threatening stuff to my life," Green told reporters when asked what was said to set him off from the exchange, having been fined $25,000 last week after a verbal altercation with a Dallas Mavericks fan.
"I was this close to really going back and diving on him. I just went back and told the official. When I told the official, he said, 'he's gotta get out of here'. You gotta get out of here."
Green added that he feels there needs to be consequences for fans who step over the line with such comments.
"There are no real consequences," Green said. "Yeah, you can't come back to the game, or even if you get arrested, nothing really happens.
"You just hope it gets to a point where these leagues can work with legislators to implement laws, because that's the only thing that's really going to correct the issue."
Home team Milwaukee said in a statement that the fan's ejection was "under the referee's digression" and that they would investigate the situation alongside the NBA.
Jayson Tatum says he feels like "the best player" in the NBA when he steps out for games after firing the Boston Celtics to a dramatic 122-118 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
The small forward drained 44 points in a breathtaking performance as the visitors surrendered a 20-point lead before fighting back to force an overtime victory at Crypto.com Arena.
Tatum, a three-time All-Star, is hunting a first NBA championship this term, having won gold with the United States at Tokyo 2020 last year, and has seen his game push him into MVP consideration.
The 24-year-old acknowledged the noise around the accolade and suggested he feels a cut above when he hits his stride.
"I feel like I'm the best player when I step onto the court," he said. "But there are some great players in this league, and I know I've got my work cut out.
"I just try to go one game at a time.We were down 12 with three minutes left, but we found a way. We needed that [after] losing two in a row.
"We haven't been playing the best, individually or as a team, but we've found a way to get back on track. That feels good. It showed the true character of our team."
Victory for the Celtics moved them to 22-7 for the season, furthering their lead atop the Western Conference and strengthening their best-in-show record in the NBA.
They next return to Boston for a seven-game home-stand through the rest of the year, wrapping up 2022 against the Los Angeles Clippers before a new year trip to the Denver Nuggets.
Argentina captain Lionel Messi confirmed that Sunday's final against Morocco or France will be his last World Cup appearance as he seeks to bow out in style.
The 35-year-old played a leading role in Argentina's 3-0 semi-final win over Croatia with a goal and an assist.
Messi, a seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, had previously indicated this would be his last World Cup finals, which he reinforced after Tuesday's triumph.
"I am proud to be able to finish my World Cup journey playing this final," Messi told reporters. "What I'm experiencing is exciting. Sunday will be my last game in a World Cup.
"It will be many years before the next one [2026] and I don't think I'll be able to make it, so I hope I can finish in the best way."
Messi's goal against Croatia meant he became his country's all-time leading scorer at World Cups, with his 11th strike seeing him move past Gabriel Batistuta.
The goal was also Messi's 16th for Argentina in 2022, the most international strikes of any calendar year across his entire career.
"I'm enjoying it all very much," Messi said about the 2022 World Cup. "I feel good. I feel strong to face every game. We have been making a big sacrifice.
"The last game we played was with extra time. That was not easy at all. We were tired, but the group got strength. We played a very important game. We knew it was going to be the match it was.
"I'm very happy. Throughout this World Cup I've been having a lot of fun and, luckily, I was able to help the group to get things done."
Messi will be gunning for the ultimate crowning glory with his maiden World Cup title on Sunday, having played in 2014 when La Albiceleste were runners-up.
Argentina are into their sixth World Cup final, with only Germany (eight) having reached more in the competition.
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