South Korea forward Son Heung-min says he would not miss the Qatar 2022 World Cup "for the world", confirming he will be available for the tournament.
The Tottenham attacker's participation had been in doubt after suffering a fracture near his left eye during a Champions League clash with Marseille at the start of this month.
Club boss Antonio Conte had previously stated it would be "impossible" for the player to feature for Spurs before the mid-season break, sparking fears he could miss out on the World Cup entirely.
Now however, Son - who has 35 goals in 104 senior appearances for South Korea - has revealed he will be fit to feature, and that he is expected to join his country in Qatar.
"I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you all for the messages of support I have received over the last week," the forward wrote on Instagram.
"I have read so many of them and truly, truly appreciate you all.
"In a tough time I received a lot of strength from you. Playing for your country at the World Cup is the dream of so many children growing up, just as it was one of mine too.
"I won’t miss this for the world. I can’t wait to represent our beautiful country. See you soon."
News of Son's availability for the South Korea team will come as a major boost, with the 30-year-old - a member of their Brazil 2014 and Russia 2018 squads - now set for his third World Cup.
The Spurs forward needs to make just one more appearance to sit 10th on the country's all-time capped list in men's international football, jointly with Kim Tae-young and Lee Dong-gook on 105.
South Korea kick off their campaign against Uruguay on November 24.
Bayern Munich have confirmed Sadio Mane sustained an injury to his right fibula head, though did not rule the Senegal star out of the FIFA World Cup.
Mane went off injured during Bayern's rout of Werder Bremen on Tuesday.
Julian Nagelsmann subsequently revealed Mane had suffered a suspected shin issue and would be assessed further on Wednesday, though reports in France and Germany claimed the 30-year-old former Liverpool attacker would not return to fitness in time to feature for Senegal in Qatar.
On Wednesday, Bayern confirmed the nature of Mane's injury, with the problem sustained at the top of his right fibula, with the Bundesliga champions ruling him out of their clash with Schalke on Saturday.
Bayern stated: "Mane suffered an injury to his right fibula head. He is out for the game against Schalke.
"Further examinations will follow in the next few days, FC Bayern will be in contact with the medical side of the Senegalese Football Association."
The Africa Cup of Nations winners name their squad on Friday, and it remains to be seen whether Mane will be risked, given his importance to Senegal's chances of progressing from Group A, which includes the Netherlands, Ecuador and hosts Qatar.
Reece James has confirmed his hopes of competing for England at the World Cup are over.
The Chelsea defender suffered a knee injury in October and always looked unlikely to recover in time to make the cut for Qatar, with Gareth Southgate set to name his Three Lions squad on Thursday.
James refused to give up hope, insisting he would do everything in his power to feature, but on Wednesday the 22-year-old conceded he will not return to fitness in time.
"Devastated," James posted on social media.
"The minute I injured my knee, I knew the turnaround to make the World Cup would be tight, but I always felt it was possible.
"I've worked harder than I ever thought I could to give myself the best chance of going and truly believed I could help the team.
"I appreciate there was risk on both sides but it was one I was willing to take.
"Good luck to the boys. I'll be back soon. Stay safe and sending love."
James has been joined on the absentee list by his Chelsea club-mate and fellow full-back Ben Chilwell, who has suffered a serious hamstring injury.
Kyle Walker is also a doubt due to an abdominal problem.
England are not the only team to be hit by injuries to potentially crucial players just before the tournament.
France, whose squad will be confirmed on Wednesday, are without Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante, while Timo Werner will be absent for Germany.
Sadio Mane, meanwhile, is reportedly a major doubt after sustaining a fibula injury while playing for Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson says defeat to Pakistan is "a tough pill to swallow" following his side's seven-wicket loss in the T20 World Cup semi-finals in Sydney.
The Black Caps suffered another piece of knockout stage heartbreak in a major tournament after they were chased down at the Sydney Cricket Ground with five balls to spare.
Following defeat in last year's T20 World Cup final to Australia, it marks the latest shortfall for New Zealand in competition cricket, having also been edged in the 2019 World Cup final by England in the 50-over format.
Williamson had no qualms in saying their opponents were the better side on the day, Pakistan reaching a target of 153, but after another missed opportunity he acknowledged it was a hard loss to take.
"I thought Pakistan played nicely and then we managed to wrestle back some momentum," he said after Mohammad Rizwan (57) and Babar Azam (53) ended his side's chances.
"We were put under pressure early, they bowled really well.
"It was thanks to an unbelievable knock from Daryl Mitchell we got some momentum back. At halfway, we thought it [152-4] was a competitive total because we knew the pitch was a used surface - it was tough.
"But it's really disappointing to not make Pakistan work harder for those runs. They were absolutely outstanding and credit has to go to them.
"It is a tough pill to swallow. Babar and Rizwan put us under pressure but if we are honest with ourselves, we should have been more disciplined.
"They deserved to be the winners of that game.
"We have played a lot of good cricket, we have stuck to what has given us a lot of success, but today we weren't at our best. We know the fickle nature of T20 cricket."
Pakistan captain Babar Azam urged his side to relish the moment after reaching their first T20 World Cup final in 13 years with victory over New Zealand.
A wonderful opening stand of 105 from the skipper and Mohammad Rizwan (57) guided them to a seven-wicket victory over the Black Caps in the first semi-final in Sydney, as they successfully chased down 153.
It sends Pakistan into the tournament's showpiece game for the first time since 2009, when they defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets at Lord's to lift the trophy for the first and only time in their history.
Having sneaked into the semi-finals thanks to a shock South Africa collapse against the Netherlands in Group 2, Babar's side could now go all the way - and he says they will celebrate their achievement justly.
"We will enjoy this moment, but at the same time we will focus on the final," Babar said after scoring 53 from 42 balls.
"The way the team performed in the last three matches [has been incredible]. Thanks to the crowd, it feels like we are playing at home.
"We had a really good start with the first six overs, we knew our spinners could then come on later. We were happy to chase around 150.
"Then we had a plan before the chase to attack the first six overs, so we could get the momentum. We knew later on the other players could chip in.
"We don't know who we've got yet, so we will be watching tomorrow, but we have got a few days to get together and discuss that game."
Pakistan will await either India or England, who meet on Thursday in the second semi-final in Adelaide.
Erling Haaland may struggle to score as many goals over the rest of the season as opponents figure him out, says former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha.
The Norway international has enjoyed a blistering start to life at the Etihad Stadium, with 23 goals across all competitions since arriving from Borussia Dortmund.
That includes 18 in the Premier League alone, putting him firmly on course to smash the competition's record single-season tally of 34 with not even half the campaign gone.
But while Onuoha, who played for City between 2004 and 2012, thinks it likely he could rack up an all-time feat, he warns the Leeds-born attacker will likely face sterner opposition following the mid-season break.
"It's very possible," he told Stats Perform. "But I think it gets harder the more time that passes in terms of being in the league, because people know how you operate.
"They know they have to have get a better idea of how to stop you, because City with a six-foot four striker is a different look for most teams that played against them for the last six or seven years under [Pep] Guardiola.
"It's possible if he stays available and City stay dominant. But football is very difficult, especially in the second half of [a] season, where you start to run out of time.
"The moment you start running out of time, the desperation kicks in, and things which maybe would have been easier in the first half of the season [are] a bit more difficult."
Onuoha feels Haaland has shown he can cope with the pressure amid a lightning start, firing City into the thick of another title race, though the ex-defender also praised Arsenal amid their own surprise charge
"There's going to be so many more eyes on him because he [is] one of the biggest players in world football, not necessarily the Premier League," he added. "He's a talent who's going to bring eyeballs. He's been exceptional.
"But I have to give credit to Arsenal, I think Arsenal has been incredible. They've dropped five points up to this moment. And in those games, they've looked really good.
"It's very entertaining. Whatever we see now, there's no guarantee this is how it will finish. I think that's what makes it so special."
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti has quelled suggestions that Karim Benzema is unavailable for club action in order to keep him fit for the World Cup.
The France international is set to represent the defending champions in Qatar but enters the tournament with a lack of minutes, having last appeared domestically against Elche on October 19.
Those fitness issues will once again keep Benzema absent from Thursday's trip to Cadiz, the final game before Qatar 2022, where Madrid are looking to bounce back after a surprise defeat to Rayo Vallecano on Monday.
Benzema's recent absence has not resulted in any concerns that he could be missing for France, leading to suggestions that he may just be being rested to ensure he does not get injured ahead of the tournament.
But Ancelotti denied that was the case.
"It has bothered me that he has not been able to help us with his quality - he has tried but he has not been able to come back from this small thing, so he is not available," Ancelotti said in Wednesday's press conference.
"I don't have to say anything to anyone. The first disappointed person is Karim, who arrives at the World Cup without the necessary minutes to be in good condition.
"To think that he has been rested, I do not believe it, it is silly. He has not stopped; he has trained alone, but the feelings he had were not good.
"It means he arrives at the World Cup with few minutes in his legs."
Asked whether Benzema ever felt his World Cup involvement was in doubt, Ancelotti added: "No, apart from that big injury against Celtic, it's been two small things."
Madrid's defeat last time out leaves the defending LaLiga champions five points adrift of leaders Barcelona, albeit with a game in hand, and Ancelotti highlighted a drop in intensity as the reason for his side's decline.
He added: "If you lower intensity against teams that do not play in Europe, such as Rayo, they can be at a higher level than the rest.
"It's less noticeable when you're playing against teams that do play in Europe."
Pakistan's opening batters returned to form at the ideal moment as they propelled their side into the T20 World Cup final at New Zealand's expense.
Set a competitive target of 153 at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday, Pakistan claimed a seven-wicket triumph to tee up a meeting with England or sub-continental rivals India.
Their victory owed much to the work of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam, who scored 57 and 53 respectively, with both openers finding form just when Pakistan needed them most.
Kane Williamson's 46 and an unbeaten 53 from Daryl Mitchell ensured New Zealand – runners-up to Australia in the United Arab Emirates last year – were in with a chance, as they reached 152-4 in their 20 overs, with Shaheen Shah Afridi (2-24) the pick of Pakistan's bowlers.
Matters might have been much different had Devon Conway taken the chance to send Babar packing with the first ball Pakistan's captain faced, only to drop the catch.
Babar took full advantage, and it was the 13th over – with Pakistan having reached 105 – before he fell to Trent Boult (2-33), though Rizwan chipped his way to a half-century.
Boult claimed another vital wicket when Rizwan picked out Glenn Phillips in the deep, though the damage was already done - the stage set for Mohammad Haris (30) to lash Lockie Ferguson for two boundaries, the second of which was a huge six that put Pakistan well ahead of the required run rate.
Haris clipped to Finn Allen at the end of the penultimate over, yet Shan Masood had no nerves in the first ball of the final over as he sent Pakistan into their first World Cup final since 2007, when they were beaten by India.
Captain's knock from Babar
Pakistan looked to be staring down the barrel of an early exit from the tournament last weekend, but South Africa's shock defeat to the Netherlands handed them a chance. Now, they will go for glory in the tournament's showpiece match.
While Rizwan had started to find his form again in the later Group 2 matches, Babar had accumulated only 39 runs across the tournament prior to Wednesday, but he delivered when it mattered this time out, hitting seven fours in his 42-ball knock.
Fielding lets New Zealand down
What might have been for the Black Caps, who will have to lick their wounds again after also coming so close in 2021.
They put down three great opportunities throughout Pakistan's innings, including Ish Sodhi's late drop of Haris. New Zealand have now lost three of their T20 World Cup semi-finals, while they have lost five of their last six meetings with Pakistan in the format.
Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric is set to compete in his fourth World Cup finals, having been named in Croatia's squad for the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
Zlatko Dalic's side – beaten by France in the final of the 2018 edition in Russia – begin their campaign on November 23 against Morocco, then tackling Canada and Belgium in Group F, standing as favourites to advance as group winners.
Croatia boast an experienced squad, with captain Modric included alongside Chelsea's Mateo Kovacic, Inter's Marcelo Brozovic and Tottenham's Ivan Perisic, though key players from the 2018 campaign such as Ivan Rakitic and Danijel Subasic have bowed out of international football, while Mario Mandzukic has retired altogether and will instead be on Dalic's bench as an assistant coach.
Bayern Munich defender Josip Stanisic and RB Leipzig's highly rated Josko Gvardiol have been selected alongside experienced duo Domagoj Vida and Dejan Lovren, but there is no place for Southampton's Duje Caleta-Car, who has been capped 23 times by Croatia and was named in Dalic's preliminary selection.
Wolfsburg forward Josip Brekalo, who has represented his country 33 times, is another high-profile name to miss out. Mislav Orsic, the Dinamo Zagreb forward who has impressed in the Champions League and Europa League in recent seasons, has made the cut.
Speaking about his selection, Dalic said: "These are the players that my staff and I believe in. There will be no pressure, we will take it one game at a time.
"The first match for us is the most important and all our focus is on Morocco. We are optimistic but need to be realistic. It is a big deal for Croatia to be at the World Cup, we will take it step by step and do the best we can."
Croatia will also face Canada and Belgium in Group F in Qatar.
Croatia squad: Dominik Livakovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivica Ivusic (Osijek), Ivo Grbic (Atletico Madrid); Domagoj Vida (AEK Athens), Dejan Lovren (Zenit), Borna Barisic (Rangers), Josip Juranovic (Celtic), Josko Gvardiol (RB Leipzig), Borna Sosa (Stuttgart), Josip Stanisic (Bayern Munich), Martin Erlic (Sassuolo), Josip Sutalo (Dinamo Zagreb); Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Mateo Kovacic (Chelsea), Marcelo Brozovic (Inter), Mario Pasalic (Atalanta), Nikola Vlasic (Torino), Lovro Majer (Rennes), Kristijan Jakic (Eintracht Frankfurt), Luka Sucic (Salzburg), Ivan Perisic (Tottenham); Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim), Bruno Petkovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Mislav Orsic (Dinamo Zagreb), Ante Budimir (Osasuna), Marko Livaja (Hajduk Split).
EA Sports has used FIFA 23 to predict the outcome of the 2022 World Cup, with Argentina backed to beat Brazil in an all-South American final.
The tournament gets underway on November 20 and Brazil and reigning Copa America champions Argentina will have high hopes, as they look to end a 20-year dominant streak by European nations.
Argentina, defeated by Germany in the 2014 final, are predicted by FIFA 23 to end that streak.
Lionel Messi is also forecasted to win the Golden Boot with a return of seven goals in eight matches.
Interestingly, EA Sports has correctly picked the winners from each of the last three World Cup finals and are looking to make it four on the spin – while they also predicted the outcome for the team of the tournament.
Victors Argentina unsurprisingly dominate, with Emiliano Martinez, Marcos Acuna, Leandro Paredes, and Rodrigo de Paul joining Messi in the side for this year's competition, according to the video game.
Defeated finalists Brazil have Marquinhos, Vinicius Junior and Richarlison in the XI, with the team completed by France duo Kylian Mbappe and Raphael Varane, as well as Portugal's Joao Cancelo.
Xavi has revealed he was planning to call on Gerard Pique from the bench, had the retiring defender not seen red at half-time in Barcelona's clash with Osasuna.
Pique's glittering career ended on a low note on Tuesday, with the 35-year-old receiving his marching orders from referee Jesus Gil Manzano without even leaving the bench.
With Barca 1-0 down and a man down at half-time, having seen star striker Robert Lewandowski sent off, substitute Pique was shown a red card for dissent during the interval.
After an emotional send-off at Camp Nou at the weekend, an eighth LaLiga dismissal brought an end to his career.
Xavi was hoping to rely on his former team-mate, but instead had to struggle through with a makeshift backline after Andreas Christensen went off midway through the second half, with youngster Chadi Riad coming on as a late substitute.
"I was going to use Gerard," Xavi said at his post-match press conference.
"We knew that Chad was going to come in, Andreas was struggling with an injury. Eric [García] had some discomfort in the warm-up, and we were forced to not have him start.
"We did think about bringing in Gerard, but he was sent off at half-time when things got tense."
Even with their defensive issues and numerical disadvantage, Barca came away with a 2-1 win that saw them move five points clear of Real Madrid at the top of LaLiga, with Raphinha netting a late winner.
"We felt that wasn’t just, we felt they were against us and that’s why we reacted so strongly," Xavi said.
"We celebrated this win as if everything was against us. The goal we conceded was a foul, then Lewandowski was sent off.
"All the decisions by the referee went against us and we thought we grabbed a win in a game we might tie."
Cristian Volpato's decision on his international allegiance is a personal one that "should not be sped up", Roma head coach Jose Mourinho has said.
With the 18-year-old scoring two goals and contributing one assist in just 106 minutes of Serie A football for Roma, a fierce battle for Volpato's services at international level has emerged.
Born in New South Wales, Volpato is also eligible to represent Italy and has featured at youth level for the European side.
Australia had hoped the lure of World Cup football, with the Socceroos tackling France, Tunisia and Denmark in Group D in Qatar, would persuade Volpato to select his country of birth – with European champions Italy not qualifying for the tournament.
However, Volpato rejected the call-up, not wishing to rush into a decision, and Mourinho believes it was the right call.
"I think it is a personal decision and the club has not been involved. As a coach, for example, I would refuse to call up a player, even a young one, in a situation like that," he said in a press conference.
"What I understand is that he is at the beginning of his career and that he's growing with Roma by getting more minutes in consecutive matches.
"It's not like last year where he played just one game against Verona and then he didn't play again, I think he has now played four games in a row.
"He is in a development phase where I think he has to focus on building his future and not on certain decisions where maybe someone else wants to accelerate a process that should not be sped up."
Volpato used social media on Wednesday to issue a comment on the matter.
"I've seen lots of speculation about decisions I have supposedly taken at international level: the truth is I am just at the start of my professional career and I am totally focused on continuing that process at Roma," he posted on Instagram.
"Making any sort of rushed decision about my international future at this early stage risks being extremely premature.
"There will be plenty of time for me to make the decision that feels right for me, but right now I know my focus needs to be continuing to work hard each and every day in order to continue improving as a player."
Jeff Saturday has never coached above the high school level, and the new Indianapolis Colts head coach is trusting assistant quarterback coach Parks Frazier to be his offensive playcaller.
First reported by NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Frazier, 30, has never performed the role of playcaller before at any level, rising through the ranks with the Colts after playing quarterback at Murray State University.
He graduated with a degree in computer science and is considered one of the leaders among the staff in the areas of technology in data.
It continues a meteoric rise for Frazier, who was former head coach Frank Reich's assistant in the 2018 and 2019 seasons, before being promoted to quality control coach in 2020, and promoted again to assistant quarterback coach in 2021. Reich was also the officiant at Frazier's wedding.
Head coach Saturday reportedly spent Monday interviewing members of the staff for the role of offensive playcaller, and after considering quarterback coach Scott Milanovich, opted to instead appoint Milanovich's assistant.
Another factor that was said to play into the decision was that Frazier has worked closely with young quarterback Sam Ehlinger since he was drafted last year, and with Ehlinger set to start the remainder of the season, their chemistry was viewed as a plus.
New York Mets general manager Billy Eppler hopes, and believes, ace pitcher Jacob deGrom will choose to re-sign with the team after opting to enter free agency.
DeGrom, 34, signed a five-year, $137.5million extension with the Mets back in 2019, which included an option to void the final two years of the deal to enter free agency early.
After starting 32 games in the year he signed that deal, deGrom has battled a string of serious injuries, only starting a combined 38 games across the past three seasons.
At his age, with his injury history, he is likely looking at his last massive payday, so it should be no red flag for the Mets that he decided to opt out and cash-in for what will likely be a higher salary with extra years on top.
Eppler told the media on Tuesday that he is optimistic about his club's chances of bringing back the former Rookie of the Year and back-to-back Cy Young Award winner in 2018 and 2019.
"We had another conversation, or a couple of conversations actually leading up to the decision date," he said. "We just kind of made a pact to stay in touch.
"I think there's a good deal of interest there on his part, so that was articulated a number of times through the season and reiterated in our most recent conversation."
The Mets struck the first big deal of the offseason when they agreed to a five-year, $102m extension for closer Edwin Diaz the day free agency opened, making him the highest-paid relief pitcher in history.
SNY's Andy Martino is reporting the two teams most aggressively looking to lure deGrom out of New York are the Atlanta Braves and the Texas Rangers, and he adds that if either of those teams decide to pay a top-of-the-market price on a deal spanning at least four years, the Mets would be hesitant to match it.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
