Number two seed Anhelina Kalinina cruised through to the last eight of the Transylvania Open on Thursday thanks to a straight sets victory over Ysaline Bonaventure.

The Ukrainian barely had to break sweat on her way to a 6-3 6-2 triumph to set up a quarter-final meeting with Anna Blinkova, who beat Xinyu Wang 6-4 2-6 6-1.

Fourth seed Anastasia Potapova had an equally comfortable time in her last-16 match against Viktorija Golubic in Cluj, strolling to a 6-2 6-3 win.

Xiyu Wang, seeded seventh, had a tougher time in her meeting with Elena-Gabriela Ruse, the Chinese player ultimately overcoming her Romanian opponent 6-1 6-7 (8-10) 7-6 (8-6).

In Thursday's other match, Nuria Parrizas Diaz beat Dalma Galfi 6-1 6-4.

Mikel Arteta wants to see further improvement from Arsenal despite making it six wins on the trot with a hard-fought 1-0 away victory over Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League.

Bukayo Saka's deflected 24th-minute goal gave the Gunners the lead, but they faced serious pressure in the second half as their hosts pushed for an equaliser.

Tthe Norwegian champions' attempts to maintain their run of 14 straight home victories in European competition was ultimately ended however as their visitors clung on for 11 wins across 12 games this season.

Speaking afterwards however, Arteta acknowledged his side needed to up their game on the whole, despite professing his satisfaction with another taut triumph.

"I'm really happy with the win against a team that has won the last 14 here at home," the Spaniard told BT Sport.

"We were expecting a really tough night here, and we made a lot of changes again, but I’m delighted to find a way to win. To do that under any circumstances is a real positive for me and the team.

"They are really fast and the turnovers and giving away of the ball that you don’t usually expect. The ball was leaping, and it was out of your feet, and you give it away and the game becomes so fast.

"I'm happy, but at the same time we have to improve a lot."

Saka made it four goals for the season with his winner, but Arteta wants more from the 21-year-old.

"He can become much better," Arteta added. "He had moments in the game where he was really good and then moments he can improve and demand more of himself, especially defensively.

"There were moments where we allowed their left full-back to progress the play and break our press too easily. There are a lot of things to improve."

Arsenal were victorious despite making seven changes from the weekend's victory over Liverpool, and Arteta was delighted with the mentality of those he brought into the starting line-up.

"Today there were moments where we had to suffer, and we lost too many duels in the middle of the park," he said. "But the way the boys are trying and their hunger to win is there, and you can notice that."

Scott McTominay's stoppage-time strike spared Marcus Rashford's blushes as Manchester United toiled to a 1-0 Europa League win over Omonia Nicosia at Old Trafford on Thursday.

Rashford, who is United's top scorer this season, had a whopping 10 shots, but a combination of wasteful finishing and fine goalkeeping from Francis Uzoho denied the Red Devils forward.

Substitute McTominay stepped up three minutes into added time to get his team-mate out of jail, though, as United sealed a third consecutive Group E win despite a listless performance in front of goal.

The result means Erik ten Hag's side only need a point from their final two group games against Sheriff and Real Sociedad to book their spot in the knockout stages.

Rashford saw a whipped effort tipped over by Uzoho inside two minutes, while the Omonia goalkeeper raced off his line to again deny the United forward midway through the first half.

Uzoho tipped a long-range Rashford strike wide as United continued to dominate, before Casemiro thundered a 25-yard effort against the crossbar.

United went in at the break having had a whopping 14 shots, yet they could have been behind had Bruno squared to Andronikos Kakoullis instead of blazing over from a tight angle following a swift counter-attack.   

Uzoho picked up where he left off after the interval, producing a double save to deny Antony and Rashford, before the latter wastefully steered wide when clean through. 

The Omonia goalkeeper produced further smart stops to keep out Ronaldo and McTominay, but the Scotland international powered home from close range at the death to deny the Cypriot side a famous point.

Bukayo Saka was thrilled his fortuitous goal gave Arsenal a hard-fought 1-0 away win at Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League to continue their strong start to the season.

A lovely move in the 24th minute gave Saka the ball in the box and, though his initial shot was deflected, it came back off the 21-year-old and nestled into the back of the net to put the Gunners ahead.

Though they underwent spells of sustained pressure in the second period as the hosts pushed for an equaliser, Arsenal held on to make it 11 wins from 12 in all competitions to start the campaign and put them on nine points at the top of Group A.

Bodo had won 14 consecutive home games in European competition prior to the defeat and Saka knew it would be hard work putting an end to that run.

"It was very difficult, and we knew that before," Saka told BT Sport. "There's no way they can win their last 14 games in Europe here and we'll come here and it will be easy."

Asked about his unorthodox winner, the England international added: "I think it came off my lips!"

Bodo had multiple chances to level the game, with Amahl Pellegrino spurning a couple of great opportunities while Runar Espejord and Ola Solbakken also went close.

But Saka had little sympathy for the Norwegian champions after the match, recounting previous experiences of being on the end of unjust results.

"This is football, if you don't score you get punished," Saka added. "We've had games like that and we've left the game feeling quite hard done by, but you quickly learn this is football.

"It was quite end-to-end, it was quite difficult. I feel like they were on us for quite a big period, especially in the second half.

"They did well. That's why it's extra nice for us to leave here with three points because we know how difficult it was out there."

Arsenal return to London with another three points, but Saka wants his team-mates to re-sharpen their focus ahead of Sunday's Premier League trip to Leeds United, who are yet to lose at Elland Road this season.

"We have to be happy with the three points and focus on Sunday," he added.

"Like I always say, we have to keep focus on each game because each game is coming every three days and it's getting more and more difficult, so we have to keep our focus as high as ever and try and win each game."

When questioned on his own personal goals, Saka replied: "To win.

"It's the most important thing for me. I'm a big believer in being a team player first, so if the team wins, I leave the pitch happy."

Arsenal continued their excellent start to the campaign as a fortuitous first-half Bukayo Saka goal gave them a 1-0 away win over Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League, marking a sixth win in a row across all competitions.

A clever move gave the England international the ball in a good shooting position, and his deflected shot came back off the 21-year-old and into the net to give the Gunners the lead.

Bodo pressed for an equaliser in the second half, but a combination of Matt Turner and poor finishing allowed the Gunners to hold on for all three points.

Mikel Arteta's men made it 11 wins from 12 in all competitions to start the season as they consolidate their position at the top of Group A.

Arsenal went in front after 24 minutes, Saka playing a lovely one-two with Albert Sambi Lokonga before getting a huge slice of luck, as his shot rebounded off a defender back onto the winger's chest before bouncing in with the goalkeeper completely wrong-footed.

Bodo had a fantastic opportunity to level soon after as Runar Espejord's flick-on put Amahl Pellegrino through on goal, only for the forward to fire horribly wide.

Pellegrino had another big opportunity after the break, but his sidefooted shot was comfortably saved by Turner, before Ola Solbakken smashed just over the crossbar.

Espejord then should have scored when the ball fell to him in the box, but blazed his effort over as Bodo continued to threaten.

The hosts were persistent in their search for an equaliser, but Arsenal saw the game out to record another important victory.

Phil Mickelson says he has on the "winning side" with LIV Golf and believes the PGA Tour is "trending downwards."

Mickelson defected from the PGA Tour to join the Saudi-backed breakaway series on a hugely lucrative contract in June.

Dustin Johnson, Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau are among the other high-profile players who turned their back on the PGA Tour to sign up for LIV Golf.

As he prepares to tee off in Jeddah on Friday, six-time major winner Mickelson is in no doubt he made the right decision.

He said: "Golf is very lucky to have the PIF [Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia] invest in the game… being influxed with billions of dollars.

"Now the US and the UK are not favourable to this, but everywhere else in the world, LIV Golf is loved. It is very negatively viewed currently [in the US and UK], but that has been changing and evolving already and in a few years LIV will be not only accepted but appreciated, because of the involvement and the influx of capital and what it is doing."

He added: "I've spoken with people who have had dealings that have not been positive with the [PGA] Tour and have had nothing but positive experiences with LIV.

"For a long, long time, my 30 years on the PGA Tour, pretty much all the best players played on the PGA Tour. That will never be the case again.

"I think going forward you have to pick the side you think is going to be successful. And I firmly believe that I'm on the winning side of how things are going to evolve and shape in the coming years for professional golf.

"I see LIV Golf trending upwards, I see the PGA Tour trending downwards. And I love the side that I'm on."

Sergio Garcia admits it was "a hard decision" to eschew next year's Ryder Cup, stating he does not feel as if he would be "very welcome" amid the bitter PGA Tour-LIV Golf Invitational Series split.

The Spaniard, a six-time tournament winner, will not represent Team Europe next year at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Italy after failing to enter his name by last Friday's deadline.

While Team USA-eligible defectors are barred from inclusion following PGA Tour membership suspension, no call has been made on their opponents.

But even if he was to get a sponsor's invite, Garcia says he will not feature next year, acknowledging he is sad to feel ostracised amid the fallout of his defection to the Saudi-backed tour.

"It was a hard decision," he said. "But unfortunately, it doesn't feel like I'm very welcome there, so I don't want to be a bother to anyone.

"I've always said I love the Ryder Cup too much. I obviously would love to keep being a part of it. [But] when I see that so many people are against [me playing], if the team is better without me, I'd rather be out of it.

"There's obviously several guys who feel strongly that way. The [DP World] Tour is of that same thought. So I don't want to be something that might hurt the team.

"Obviously it's sad for me, how much I love the Ryder Cup and everything I've been able to do with Europe. That's the way they want it. I'm just helping out."

The Freedom Skate Park in Bull Bay, St Andrew in Kingston, Jamaica, was officially opened on Wednesday.

Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa will exercise an opt-out clause in his contract and test the free agent market for a second straight year.

Correa signed a three-year, $105 million deal with the Twins in March that included player options for both 2022 and 2023.

The 28-year-old, who spent his first seven MLB seasons with the Houston Astros, will enter a potentially stellar free-agent class after a strong first season in Minnesota in which he batted .291 with 22 home runs, 64 RBIs and a .366 on base percentage in 136 games.

"With the year that I have had, my health and my being at the best moment of my career at 28, that is the right decision," Correa told El Nuevo Dia newspaper.

Correa's decision was expected after the 2015 American League Rookie of the Year was unable to secure a longer-term contract during an uncertain 2021-22 offseason impacted by a labour dispute between MLB owners and players that lasted into March. 

He agreed to join the Twins shortly after the end of the lockout after the team offered the attractive opt-out clauses.

"I have been in this business for a long time, and I know that things do not always go the way one wants them to," Correa said about his previous experience with free agency.

The two-time All-Star figures to have plenty of competition in an offseason market headlined by New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, and that is also expected to include frontline starting pitchers Jacob deGrom and Justin Verlander.

Correa will also be one of a number of high-calibre available shortstops, with the Los Angeles Dodgers' Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts of the Boston Red Sox and the Atlanta Braves' Dansby Swanson also set to hit free agency.

In addition to his relatively young age, Correa will also have the benefit of not being eligible to receive a qualifying offer from the Twins that would have required other teams to surrender draft pick compensation to sign him.

Correa said he would certainly consider returning to the Twins, who were tied for the AL Central lead on September 4 before struggling down the stretch and finishing 78-84.

"I have a good relationship with Minnesota," he said. "I am very interested in being able to return."

Manchester United's Antony is "really grateful" to Cristiano Ronaldo for taking him under his wing since his arrival at Old Trafford.

With his goal in last Sunday's 2-1 win at Everton, Antony became the first player to score in his first three Premier League appearances for United.

Ronaldo also scored his 700th career club goal in that contest at Goodison Park, as Erik ten Hag's side made it seven victories in their past nine fixtures in all competitions.

Antony has impressed since signing from Ajax in September and says he is very thankful for the help Ronaldo has given him and his fellow young players.

"Since I arrived here, Cristiano Ronaldo has really helped me feel at ease," Antony told United's official website. "He speaks to me a lot, on matchdays as well.

"He always tells me to be calm and confident. He's achieved so much in football and I learn from him every day.

"I'm really grateful to have such an experienced person teaching us young players every day."

Antony, who joined from Ajax in the close season for a deal potentially rising to €98.6million (£85m), has three goals in six appearances overall for United.

When asked what he found most impressive about Ronaldo, Antony replied: "His mentality, it's so strong. He's very intelligent.

"This mentality of his, looking to the next day, everything still to play for, it's what I'm trying to take on board and keep for the rest of my life."

Barcelona defender Jules Kounde has returned to training in a huge fitness boost for Xavi's side ahead of this weekend's showdown with Real Madrid

The 23-year-old has not played for Barca since their 3-0 win over Elche on September 17 after sustaining a thigh injury while on international duty with France.

Barca did not give a timeline for Kounde's comeback, but head coach Xavi indicated earlier this week the centre-back had a chance of featuring against Madrid on Sunday.

And the former Sevilla man was involved in training at Ciutat Esportiva on Thursday to somewhat ease the Catalan giants' injury issues.

As well as being without Kounde, who has started five times for Barca since being officially registered in late August, the likes of Memphis Depay, Franck Kessie, Andreas Christensen, Hector Bellerin and Ronald Araujo have also been sidelined.

Xavi's side drew 3-3 draw with Inter on Wednesday to leave their Champions League hopes hanging by a threat, but they are level on points with Madrid at the LaLiga summit after winning seven league games in a row, keeping a clean sheet in six of those.

Reims became the fourth Ligue 1 club since Sunday to ditch their head coach when Oscar Garcia was ousted – to be replaced by former video gamer William Still.

Just one win in 10 games in the French top flight cost Garcia, with assistant Still stepping up to become interim boss.

It represents the latest remarkable step in the career of Still, who turns 30 on Friday.

Still was obsessed with the Football Manager and Championship Manager series as a teenager and has said such games gave him the "impetus" to go into coaching as a profession, without having played any football at a full-time level.

He told Sport Bible in May: "I wanted to be able to talk to players. I wanted to have that relationship. I mean, I was alright at football but FM allowed me to have that glimpse of what it actually was like to manage a team.

"I actually think people that play Football Manager understand the game a bit more. You've got to go into a lot of detail to actually win things and be successful in the game, especially nowadays with it becoming more and more complicated."

Still took a degree at Myerscough College in Preston, England, going on to work with Preston's under-14 team before moving to Belgium, where his parents lived, and finding work with Sint-Truiden, Lierse and Beerschot.

Still is in a second stint with Reims, having briefly left to be assistant boss of Standard Liege. He has spoken of ambitions to manage in the Premier League and Champions League.

Reims announced he would take over for now in a statement that read: "In view of results below the expected objectives and in order to protect the best interests of the institution, Stade de Reims announces the temporary suspension of Oscar Garcia. The interim will be provided by William Still, current assistant coach."

Garcia is not expected to return to the role he held for 16 months, with Reims reportedly beginning their search for a permanent successor.

Reims have drawn five games this season, so Still is not stepping into the spotlight amid a full-blown crisis, with the team sitting 15th in Ligue 1, albeit just two points above bottom side Brest. They play Lorient in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

Lyon set the ball rolling for sackings when Peter Bosz was dismissed on Sunday and Laurent Blanc named as his successor. Brest and Auxerre announced the departure of their coaches, Michel Der Zakarian and Jean-Marc Furlan, on Tuesday.

Oliver Kahn says Bayern Munich "absolutely have to stop" allowing opposing teams back into games after they nearly squandered another lead in the 4-2 Champions League win at Viktoria Plzen.

Goals from Sadio Mane and Thomas Muller, as well as a Leon Goretzka double had Bayern four goals up and cruising at half-time against the Czech champions.

But two second-half strikes from Plzen led to worries Bayern would let another advantage slip, after conceding a 95th-minute Anthony Modeste equaliser in the 2-2 Bundesliga draw with Borussia Dortmund at the weekend having led 2-0.

Julian Nagelsmann's side held on this time for three points to secure their place in the knockout stages, but Bayern CEO Kahn remains worried over their ability to see out games.

"Four games, four wins and into the round of 16," Kahn posted on Twitter. "A compliment to the team, in this group that was not a matter of course.

"After a furious first half, we let the opponent come back into the game.

"We absolutely have to stop this!"

Ravi Shastri believes India's Twenty20 side is as strong as it has ever been ahead of the T20 World Cup in Australia.

India failed to qualify from their group at the World Cup in the United Arab Emirates last year following heavy defeats to arch-rivals Pakistan and New Zealand.

Rahul Dravid replaced Shastri as head coach following that tournament and Rohit Sharma took over as captain after Virat Kohli stepped down.

India head into the 2022 World Cup at the top of the rankings, with expectations of being strong contenders to dethrone the hosts.

They will be without injured paceman Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, but Shastri fancies their chances.

He said: "I have been part of the system for the last six-seven years, first as a coach and now I am watching from the outside, and I think this is as good a line-up as India has ever had in T20 cricket.

"With Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] at number four, Hardik [Pandya] at number five, and Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik at number six, it makes a massive difference as it allows the top order to play the way they are playing."

However, there is one area of concern for legendary former all-rounder Shastri as India prepare for their opening match against Pakistan at the MCG on October 23.

"One area that India will have to pick up and start right from the beginning is fielding," Shastri said.

"They need to work hard and get their A-game on the field when they step out against Pakistan.

"Those 15-20 runs that you save can make all the difference because otherwise every time you get out to bat, you need to get 15-20 runs extra."

India will also face South Africa, Bangladesh and two qualifiers in Group 2.

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