Scott Piercy's putter was on fire for the second round in a row, setting up a seven-under 64 to follow his opening 65, and at 13 under he is three strokes clear of the chasing field.
Piercy – who this week changed his coach, swing, caddie, driver and putter – seems to be reaping the benefits of his bold moves, going bogey-free on Friday in a round that included four consecutive birdies to open his round on the back-nine.
He trailed only first-round co-leader Im Sung-jae in strokes gained with the putter on Thursday, and he was again second in that category in his second trip around the course, finishing with 3.96 strokes gained on the greens. Only Danny Willett (5.46 strokes gained) performed better with the flat stick.
In outright second place at 10 under is Argentina's Emiliano Grillo, with a strong 65 that included an eagle. He did not excel in any one area in his first round, but on Friday he was top-10 in both strokes gained putting (3.12 strokes, seventh-best) and in approach shots (2.57, ninth-best).
Grillo is two strokes ahead of England's Callum Taren, who is alone in third place at eight under, and he worked his way there after an even-par opening round.
He shot Friday's round of the day with his eight-under 63, going bogey-free with eight birdies, finishing fifth on the day in strokes gained putting (3.36), second in strokes gained off the tee (2.07) and second in strokes gained tee-to-green (4.92).
There is a five-way tie for fourth at seven under, with American quartet Tony Finau, Robert Streb, Tom Hoge and Doug Ghim, as well as Im after the South Korean followed his six-under opening round with a disappointing 70.
The group tied for ninth are a further two strokes back at five under, which includes Patton Kizzire and Jared Wolfe, while Australia's Cam Davis and England's Willett headlining the group at four under.
Canada's Adam Hadwin finished right on the cut-line at one over, while Davis Riley missed out on the weekend by one stroke, with Beau Hossler at three over and Cameron Tringale at four over.
Patrick Mahomes is not fazed by no longer being the NFL's highest-paid quarterback because his contract still means he is "set for life".
When he put pen to paper on a 10-year, $450million extension with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020, Mahomes became the best-paid player in the league with an average annual salary of $45m.
However, deals signed by Aaron Rodgers, Kyler Murray and Deshaun Watson this offseason have bumped the Chiefs signal caller down to fourth on the list.
It is not something that matters to Mahomes, who expects he will slip further away from the top spot in the coming years.
"When I signed my deal, I knew I was going to be pretty set for life regardless of how the market happens,'' Mahomes said.
"You just keep playing. Money is one thing, but when you get those Super Bowl rings at the end of your career, I think that's going to be the thing that you look back upon. I think I've made enough money from the football field and off of it as well that it won't matter at the end of the day.
"Especially at the quarterback position, the next guy is the top-paid guy. Any of these top-tier quarterbacks, they make such a difference on NFL football teams that [older contracts are] going to get passed up.
"They'll keep setting the bar even higher. You always want to get paid and take care of your family, but I want to have a great team around me as well. Whatever way that is, I'm going to make sure I have a great team around me for the rest of my career."
The Chiefs placed the franchise tag on Orlando Brown last March but were unable to sign him to a long-term deal before last week's deadline, and it is unclear whether the left tackle will report for training camp next week.
"He's a great team player. He has a high IQ," Mahomes said. "You want him to be here just because of the guy he is, and he's a leader on this football team.
"But at the same time when it comes to money and contracts and stuff like that, I never force anyone to do anything because I know they're trying to provide for their family long term. But as a team-mate and as a friend, you want him to be here and be a part of this.
"It didn't work out for him this offseason the way that he wanted it to, but whenever he gets here I'm sure he will be ready to go and he'll go out there and show what calibre of player he is again."
Stand-in captain Shikhar Dhawan helped India snatch a nervy three-run victory against West Indies in Port of Spain as the hosts suffered another home ODI defeat.
Looking to overhaul India's 308-7 at Queen's Park Oval, West Indies were 133-1 at one stage, ideally placed to bounce back from their recent 3-0 drubbing by Bangladesh.
Yet they could not keep up the strong early running, finishing on 305-6 to lose the opener in the three-match series, a seventh consecutive ODI defeat to India at this ground.
Opener Dhawan, captaining India in the absence of the resting Rohit Sharma and a host of senior stars, was named man of the match. He provided the backbone of the tourists' innings but fell frustratingly short of a century when he was caught by Shamarh Brooks for 97 as he looked to cut away Gudakesh Motie to the ropes.
Shubman Gill had made 64 in a first-wicket stand of 119 before he was run out by a direct hit from home captain Nicholas Pooran, and it was Pooran who took a fine catch at cover off Motie's bowling to send Shreyas Iyer (54) on his way.
In the hosts' reply, Brooks made 46 and Kyle Mayers scored a sharp 75 before falling when he reached outside off stump at a wide-ish ball and got a nick through to wicketkeeper Sanju Samson.
Pooran cracked Prasidh Krishna for two consecutive sixes in the 32nd over to raise a slowing tempo, but he fell for 25 soon after. When Brandon King was caught in the deep for 54 in the 45th over, with 57 still required, that looked to be West Indies' hopes at an end.
There was a flourish though, and they were left needing 15 from the final over, with Akeal Hosein (32 not out) and Romario Shepherd (38no) narrowly failing to delivery the necessary heroics.
IYER LANDMARK
Iyer's 54 took him to 1,001 runs in ODIs, making him the equal-third fastest India batter to reach the 1,000-run milestone, alongside Navjot Singh Sidhu who also got there in 25 innings. Only Virat Kohli and Dhawan (24 innings each) reached four figures in fewer innings.
INDIA EXTEND DOMINANCE
India have now won 11 of their 12 most recent ODIs against West Indies, with the only loss coming in Chennai in December 2019. They have won the last four bilateral ODI series they have contested against West Indies in the Caribbean, and can seal a fifth in a row when game two takes place at the same ground on Sunday.
Jos Buttler urged England to back themselves and take risks after they hammered South Africa by 118 runs to set up a one-day international series decider.
The Proteas beat Buttler's side by 62 runs in a high-scoring match at Chester-le-Street on Tuesday, but they were brought back down to earth in a rain-affected contest at Old Trafford three days later.
England posted 201 all out in a game reduced to 29 overs per side due to rain, Liam Livingstone top-scoring with 38 and man of the match Sam Curran making 35 off only 18 balls.
The tourists were then skittled out for only 83 – their joint-second lowest ODI total – in reply after slumping to 6-4, Reece Topley (2-17) and David Willey (1-9) setting the tone with the new ball.
Spinners Adil Rashid (3-29) and Moeen Ali (2-22) then came to the fore as England gave themselves an opportunity to win the series at Headingley on Sunday.
It has been a disappointing start to his reign as captain for Buttler, but the wicketkeeper-batter is confident England can build on a commanding performance in Manchester.
He said during the post-match presentation: "I'm delighted with the win, the guys played in the fashion we want to play with as a team. Can we do it better? Absolutely.
"I tell the guys to back themselves, take the risks, impose themselves on the opposition. Me and Liam tried to get a rebuild going, Liam and Sam Curran had the bravery to take on the options.
"The guys are bowling brilliantly, Topley and Dave with the early wickets. Jonny [Bairstow] said batting in the powerplay wouldn't be easy if we held our lengths. We haven't fired with the bat in white-ball cricket, but we know how dangerous we can be when we do."
South Africa captain Keshav Maharaj said his side must learn from a poor display with the bat.
The spinner said: "It was a score that could be chaseable, but we never adapted. We needed a good foundation, some questions about some dismissals, but it's back to the drawing board.
"I enjoy the captaincy, but [dealing with defeat] it's part and parcel of the job."
Reece Topley made a big impact once again as England thrashed South Africa by 118 runs in a rain-affected second one-day international to level the series.
The Proteas won the opener on a sweltering Tuesday at Chester-le-Street, but it was a very different story on a gloomy Friday at Old Trafford.
Liam Livingstone top-scored with 38 on his home ground and Sam Curran made a quickfire 35 from 18 balls as England were all out for 201 in a match reduced to 29 overs per side, Dwaine Pretorius taking 4-36.
Topley (2-17) and David Willey (1-9) were then outstanding with the new ball before spinners Adil Rashid (3-29) and Moeen Ali (2-22) did damage as South Africa were skittled out for 83 in 24.3 overs, setting up a decider at Headingley on Sunday.
Anrich Nortje removed Jason Roy in the third over after Keshav Maharaj won the toss and put England in. A delayed start occurred due to the miserable weather, but England were going well on 49-1 at the end of the powerplay.
The excellent Pretorius (4-36) then came into the attack to dismiss Phil Salt before getting Joe Root caught behind for only one and bowling a well-set Jonny Bairstow (28) in the same over.
Tabraiz Shamsi (2-39) ended a scratchy knock from Jos Buttler to reduce the world champions to 101-6, but Livingstone and Curran cut loose before Willey chipped in with a run-a-ball 21.
The Proteas made a nightmare start to their run chase, Topley sending Janneman Malan and Rassie van der Dussen on their way without scoring in a brilliant third over.
Willey got in on the act by getting Quinton de Kock caught by Livingstone and the tourists were in disarray on 6-4 when Aiden Markram was superbly run out by Buttler without facing a ball.
Heinrich Klaasen (33) was starting to motor before he was stumped when charging Moeen, and Rashid tormented South Africa as they were bowled out for their joint-second lowest ODI total, having also been skittled out for 83 by England at Trent Bridge in 2008.
Pretorius takes his chance
All-rounder Pretorius was a concussion replacement for Andile Phehlukwayo in the first match of the series on Tuesday and was given the nod to play in Manchester.
The 33-year-old took his opportunity with both hands by recording his best ODI bowling figures, settling on a good line and length as he dismissed the clean-striking Salt before claiming the big scalps of Root and Bairstow.
Paceman becoming England's Top man
Topley almost retired due to injury, but the left-arm paceman is very much making up for so much lost time.
After claiming the best bowling figures by an Englishman in the 50-over format with 6-24 against India at Lord's, he returned to the side after missing out in Durham and set the tone with the ball along with Willey.
Karl-Anthony Towns believes it is "championship or bust" for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Rudy Gobert will be a huge part of the team achieving their goals.
The Timberwolves acquired center Gobert from the Utah Jazz in a blockbuster trade after falling to the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs this year.
It was only the second time Minnesota had made the postseason since drafting Towns first overall in 2015.
The arrival of three-time Defensive Player of the Year Gobert will see Towns spent a lot more time at the power forward position, but he feels the pair will complement each other well and hopes it can push the team into championship contention.
"I expect a lot of winning for sure. I wanna win. I'm not up here blowing smoke, I really wanna try to bring a championship run to Minnesota and Rudy adds a huge component to that," said Towns, who recently signed a four-year, $224million super max contract extension.
"He's gonna be a massive part of us being a championship team and my job is to help him as much as he's gonna help me.
"His strengths are my weaknesses and his weaknesses are my strengths, so we'll be able to play off of each other.
"It's go time. There's no more excuses. We've gotta get it done now. It's championship now or bust."
Last season saw the Timberwolves end a run of three straight years with a losing record, and it was the momentum Towns felt that had been built that convinced him to extend his deal in Minnesota.
"I wanted to keep this going. Last year, after me talking to a bunch of NBA players and front office people and us, the NBA is aware of who we are now," said Towns.
"We set out to go out there and make noise and show everyone this isn't the Timberwolves they're used to, and we've done that. Why not keep that momentum going and bring back a championship or that basketball that the fans and everyone here has been yearning for so much?
"Let's bring it back, and not for just one year. Let's do it for consecutive years and make a run."
Carlos Alcaraz outclassed Karen Khachanov to reach the semi-finals of the Hamburg European Open, while Matteo Berrettini will face Dominic Thiem in the last four at the Swiss Open.
Top seed Alcaraz only needed an hour and nine minutes to beat Russian Khachanov 6-0 6-2 in a clay-court masterclass on Friday.
The 19-year-old Spaniard moved a step closer to winning a fifth title this year with a dominant performance, breaking the Russian five times in a one-sided contest.
Alcaraz hit 21 winners as Khachanov was given a harsh lesson and the teenager will next face Alex Molcan, who was 2-0 up in the second set after winning the first on a tie-break when Borna Coric retired due to injury.
"I played unbelievable today, probably one of my best matches this year," Alcaraz said of his win against Khachanov. "I'm pretty happy with the performance that I'm playing in this tournament. Yesterday [a victory over Filip Krajinovic] was amazing as well.
"I'm training every day to be solid and at the same time to be aggressive. That is my game."
Francisco Cerundolo and Lorenzo Musetti will contest the other semi-final in Hamburg after beating Aslan Karatsev and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina respectively.
A rejuvenated Thiem is enjoying another hugely encouraging week and will take on Berrettini in his first semi-final of the year following a 6-4 6-3 defeat of Peruvian qualifier Juan Pablo Varillas in Gstaad.
Austrian Thiem has not played in a final since winning his only grand slam at the 2020 US Open, but he claimed his first ATP-level victory for 14 months in Bastad last week and is through to his first semi-final since May 2021 after bossing the baseline battle with Varillas.
It was not all plain sailing for Berrettini, who roared back to beat Pedro Martinez 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-1 after the Spaniard was in command of a second-set tie-break at 5-1, but the second seed extended his winning run to 11 matches.
Top seed Casper Ruud got the better of Jaume Munar 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-4), booking a showdown with Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who came through a three-set battle with Nicolas Jarry.
Oleksandr Zincheko has labelled Mikel Arteta as "the most important role" in his decision to join Arsenal from Manchester City.
The versatile left-back, who regularly plays in midfield when captaining Ukraine, travelled to meet up with the Gunners on their pre-season tour of the United States earlier in the week.
Zinchenko was present as Arsenal defeated Orlando City 3-1 on Wednesday, before his move to the Gunners became official on Friday.
The 25-year-old is thought to have signed a contract at the Emirates Stadium until the end of the 2025-26 season, with Arsenal reportedly paying an initial £30million, and £2m in potential add-ons.
Zinchenko worked with Arteta during the Spaniard's time at City as an assistant coach to Pep Guardiola, and says the former Arsenal and Everton midfielder was a big draw to moving to north London.
"I would say it's the most important role in my decision because I've known [Mikel] for a while, I used to work with him at Manchester City," Zinchenko told Arsenal's official website.
"The way we were working together, I was so impressed because I remember how many times we were working hard in the training sessions and then straight after with individual stuff and I took a lot from the manager and I hope I can take even more.
"Since the first day at City I knew that he's going to be a very good manager. The way he can see football, especially I was watching the last season of Arsenal's games and I was really enjoying it.
"You can see in the style, the picture of the game, so I would love to see it [while] playing and being involved."
Zinchenko leaves City as a four-time Premier League champion, insisting he is eager for another test.
"I'm ready for another challenge. I'm not here just to waste my time and the time of Arsenal because the club is always in front of everyone," he added.
"I am here to achieve big things and I hope we can win some titles, and I hope we are going to fight for every title in which we are going to be involved.
"Even from the last season, I was watching Arsenal's games and I could smell it's coming, you know? The team is growing up so quickly and I think it's time. It's time to do our best and to achieve something big."
It remains to be seen whether Zinchenko will be utilised in defence or further forward, though the Ukraine international will hope to emulate one of his childhood heroes Cesc Fabregas by playing in midfield.
"This is a boyhood dream come true, because I was a massive fan when I was a kid," he continued.
"Since Thierry Henry and young Cesc Fabregas was playing here, I was just enjoying watching those games, that Arsenal. And obviously I started to love this club, so I am so excited and I cannot wait to play for this amazing club."
Brooke Henderson produced a second successive 64 to surge into the lead at the Evian Championship.
The Canadian world number 10 had been one shot behind overnight leader Ayaka Furue going into the second round.
But Henderson, who won her first major at the Women's PGA Championship aged 18 in 2016, maintained her momentum with another seven-under-par effort.
She made the turn in 33 before going five under for the back nine, carding three consecutive birdies to close an outstanding round.
At 14 under par, Henderson went three strokes clear of world number three Nelly Korda, the American carding a 67 to improve to 11 under through 36 holes.
South Koreans Kim Sei-young and Ryu So-yeon sat tied fourth on nine under, while a group of six players were eight under par at the halfway stage.
Furue, meanwhile, slipped seven shots back after failing to build on her superb eight-under first round, the Japanese posting a one-over 72.
Defending champion Minjee Lee made it through to the weekend after a two-under 69 put her three shots inside the cut line.
After leading the NFL in touches during a strong rookie season, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris is ready for another heavy workload – even a historic one - if it leads to another trip to the playoffs.
"I can get 500," Harris said in an interview on The Rich Eisen Show. "If I get 500 carries, as long as we're winning, it doesn't really matter."
Harris accumulated 381 touches during the 2021 regular season, the most by a rookie since Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson's 398 in 2001. The Pro Bowler said he's prepared to increase that total if again called upon to be the focal point of an offense that will be breaking in a new starting quarterback following the offseason retirement of franchise icon Ben Roethlisberger.
"The more carries you get, the better you are," Harris said. "You get more of a feel for the game, you get an understanding of how the defense is playing. Obviously, you wear them down."
Harris' quick transition to the NFL game indeed played a big part in the Steelers reaching the postseason for the sixth time in eight years. Pittsburgh went 6-0-1 when the former Alabama star had 20 or more rushing attempts in a game and was 3-7 when he was under that mark.
The 2021 first-round pick accounted for 29.8 per cent of the Steelers' yards from scrimmage. Only Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor (35.4 per cent) and Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (29.9 per cent) had a higher share of their team's scrimmage yards last season.
Harris takes great pride in being able to contribute on all three downs in an era where skill players are becoming more specialised, and disputed any notion his heavy usage made him less effective.
"I didn't have an issue with it, it was the media that had an issue with it," he told Eisen. "I told them every game, I was like, 'Man, if this is the way to winning, I can carry the load'. I train to carry loads. It's not something I hadn't done before. I did it in college, high school."
A further increase in responsibility would put Harris in some very select company, as only five players in NFL history have recorded 450 or more touches in a season. Tampa Bay's James Wilder holds the league record of 492, set for the Buccaneers in 1984, while the last to eclipse that threshold was Larry Johnson for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006.
"This is our identity right here," Harris said of the Steelers' run-based approach. "So, let's keep this going on."
David de Gea has taken pride in winning individual trophies at Manchester United but hopes he never collects another personal accolade because it will mean the Red Devils have failed again.
Jose Mourinho became increasingly frustrated during his time at Old Trafford as goalkeeper De Gea won the Player of the Year award for United, amounting to failure from his outfield stars in the Portuguese's eyes.
The Spain international may have felt hard done by to not win another of those awards last season, with Cristiano Ronaldo pipping him to the honour after scoring 24 goals across all competitions.
De Gea made 128 saves in the 2021-22 Premier League, the third most in the English top flight, as United limped to a sixth-place finish and their lowest points tally in the competition's history.
New manager Erik ten Hag has made a promising start to his tenure with United, though, with the Red Devils winning three pre-season friendlies, including a 4-0 thrashing of Liverpool in Bangkok. They face Aston Villa on Saturday as the season build-up continues.
De Gea has been a vocal critic during United's downfall in recent years, and has insisted he no longer wants to win individual awards as that would represent more failure.
"It's good for me individually, of course, I love to win trophies, but I totally agree with what [Mourinho] said," said De Gea, who has won the Player of the Year award at United on four occasions.
"It must be a striker, a midfielder [who wins that award], that's what needs to happen, but this season it's going to be another player or striker, for sure."
Ten Hag has begun his sizeable rebuilding task with the Premier League side by bringing in Tyrell Malacia and Christian Eriksen, while striking a deal for Lisandro Martinez.
Jadon Sancho, Luke Shaw and Bruno Fernandes have spoken approvingly of Ten Hag, and De Gea hopes the Dutchman will help United respond to an abject campaign last season.
"For me, for everyone, it was a very tough season, embarrassing sometimes," De Gea said, quoted in several British newspapers. "Some games were a mess, a disaster.
"So we should learn from last season that cannot happen again because it was tough, it was painful to be there – not capable to win games, losing games 4-0 or 5-0. It was unacceptable.
"Sometimes you have to feel pain to go up and keep going."
A notable feature of United's early pre-season games has been Ten Hag's insistence for his side to build from the back and play possession-based football.
For this to be successful, as seen with Ederson at Manchester City, De Gea as a goalkeeper must be confident with the ball at his feet, and the 31-year-old backs his own abilities.
"I think I showed it already," he said. "If you watch my games with the national team or when we played with Sir Alex Ferguson at the beginning, you could see it.
"I don't need to show anyone. I've been playing for many years. I will try my best. I'm going to stay quiet, calm and try to show that to the team and play out from the back.
"Obviously with different managers you have to adapt to the way they want you to play, but I used to play like this in the national team for many years so I'm comfortable with it."
Shanieka Ricketts could not contain her joy when the reality set in that she was a World Championships triple jump silver medalist once again.
“I was overjoyed when I realized that I won the silver medal. It felt like redemption from missing the podium in Tokyo by a mere three centimetres,” she recalled while speaking with Sportsmax.TV earlier this week.
“When I remember the journey to the podium, the days that we could not train when the distances were not forthcoming, and all the times when we wondered if we would be ready, it really felt like a dream come true, and it would not be possible without the help of God, my coach Kerrylee Ricketts and my agent Norman Peart.”
After winning silver in Doha in 2019 behind the virtually invincible Venezuelan, Yulimar Rojas, Ricketts, as she pointed out, was unable to replicate the performance at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics where her best effort of 14.84m was only good enough for fourth.
Fast forward to 2022 when armed with the lessons learnt from Tokyo, Ricketts encountered an unexpected new challenge early in the season.
“I started experiencing some tension in my knee in January. We had to take a break from doing technical sessions and it also restricted me from doing explosive lifts and sprints for some time,” she recounted.
Those early struggles manifested in the form of a few relatively off-colour performances -13.94m at the John Wolmer Speed Fest at the National Stadium in Kingston in March; 14.27m at the Velocity Fest 10 also in Kingston on April 2 and 14.15m seven days later at the USATF Bermuda Games.
She capped off the string of underwhelming performances with a 13.95m performance at Velocity Fest 11 at the National Stadium on April 23.
Notwithstanding, the underwhelming outings, Ricketts ended up a winner in each competition but she knew she had to be much better if she was to contend for a medal in Oregon.
In fact, she admits that her confidence began to wane as the marks were nowhere close to what she needed to be able to take on the world’s best come July.
“It did to some extent, especially when things were not going as planned,” she conceded, “but, I know that every season is different and sometimes challenges occur that you have to overcome in order to reach the goals that you have. So I did my best to focus on the things that I could control, trust my coach, trust the program and trust the process and hoped for the best.”
Sure enough, things began to change.
“Things began to improve in May and there were times when I wondered if I would be able to perform at my best at the world championships because I knew that in order to be on the podium I have to jump at least 14.70 and I have not seen that result all year,” she explained.
On May 13, she produced a season-best 14.82 for yet another victory in Doha and then reeled off marks of 14.35 and 14.52 before winning at Jamaica’s National Championships with a less than stellar 14.27m.
She isn’t clear on when things finally came together but what is certain is that they did and at just the right time.
“I know that a lot of persons were ahead of me on the performance list for this season, so I had to bring my ‘A’ game in order to medal,” said Ricketts who qualified for the finals in Oregon with 14.45m but with the intention of jumping much farther once the final began on Monday night.
“The goal for the final was to produce a big jump in the first round to take the pressure off me and put the pressure on the field. Then do my best to keep improving as the rounds progressed.”
She did exactly that. 14.89m on her first jump, a mark only surpassed by Rojas, who would subsequently win her third world title in as many championships.
For Ricketts, it all came down to what happened in Tokyo last year. That was where the rebound started and ended nicely for the four-time national champion.
“Not winning a medal in Tokyo really motivated me to work harder, and to never underestimate any of my opponents. The experience also helped me become fearless because I know how to navigate both winning and losing,” she said.
“Winning feels much better and yields the best outcomes so I always strive to win but I am not afraid to lose.”
At the conclusion of the world championships, Ricketts returns home for a few days before flying off to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England where she hopes of a golden conclusion to a season that did not begin with much promise.
Oleksandr Zinchenko has completed his transfer from Manchester City to Arsenal, with the Ukraine international signing a long-term deal at Emirates Stadium.
The versatile 25-year-old follows former City team-mate Gabriel Jesus in making the move from Pep Guardiola's Premier League champions to join former City assistant boss Mikel Arteta in north London.
Zinchenko's arrival is the latest major piece of business for Arsenal, as the club look to find the missing pieces of the puzzle following a resurgent 2021-22 campaign. He is thought to have signed up until the end of the 2025-26 season, with Arsenal reportedly paying an initial £30million, and £2million in potential add-ons.
The Gunners fell painfully short of a top-four finish and Champions League football last season, as Tottenham pipped them at the post, and they are making efforts to bolster prospects of an improved new campaign.
In Zinchenko, they have acquired a player who will provide strong options at left-back – his regular position for City – or in the midfield for manager Arteta.
Arteta said: "We're so happy Alex has joined us. He's a player that I personally know really well and continued to follow him after my time at Manchester City.
"Alex is a high-quality player who will give us options and versatility. It's not only about the positions he can play but as well, the versatility he will give us in attack and defence.
"Alex is a person with great human qualities and character, and I'm delighted that everyone has made this huge effort to bring Alex to the club."
Zinchenko closes his time in Manchester as a four-time Premier League champion.
City are hoping Zinchenko's replacement will be Brighton and Hove Albion left-back Marc Cucurella, with the Spain international having emerged as a key target for Guardiola.
Two major close-season targets – former Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland and ex-Leeds United defensive midfielder Kalvin Phillips – joined City earlier in the window.
Christophe Laporte became the first Frenchman to win on this year's Tour de France after sprinting to victory on stage 19, while Jonas Vingegaard edged closer to general classification glory.
Laporte had largely played a supporting role for his excellent Jumbo-Visma team-mate Vingegaard, the yellow jersey holder and King of the Mountains victor.
But Laporte came to the fore on the 188.3-kilometre route from Castelnau-Magnoac to Cahors, overtaking Fred Wright to sprint to victory and secure Jumbo-Visma's fifth stage win of the Tour.
Wright headed the leading group, alongside Jasper Stuyven and Alexis Gougeard, with just under 30km to go, but Laporte produced a perfectly timed attack to leave the trio in his wake in Cahors.
Laporte was indebted to the work of his team-mates to support his late charge and revealed Wout van Aert's message of encouragement before the race had spurred him to glory.
"I am super happy. I find it hard to realise. Wout said to me, 'Today is for you'. The last time he said that to me was at Paris-Nice, so here it brings me luck," Laporte told broadcaster RMC after his victory.
"One and a half kilometres from the finish, I made the jump to catch up with those who were in front. I threw it from afar so that they wouldn't come back, and it worked.
"It's incredible. It's more than just a reward, it's huge!"
Vingegaard finished safely behind the leading riders in 13th, with his lead over defending champion Tadej Pogacar staying at three minutes and 26 seconds.
LAPORTE SPARES FRENCH BLUSHES
Laporte made the bold call to move away through the streets of Cohors and, helped by his Jumbo-Visma team-mates, was duly rewarded.
The 29-year-old ensured France will not end Le Tour without a stage winner, as they did in 1926 and 1999, while he secured his first stage win in his eighth appearance.
STAGE RESULTS
1. Christophe Laporte (Jumbo-Visma) 3:52:04
2. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) +0:01
3. Alberto Dainese (Team DSM) +0:01
4. Florian Senechal (Quick-Step-Alpha Vinyl Team) +0:01
5. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) +0:01
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) 75:45:39
2. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) +3:26
3. Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers) +8:00
Points Classification
1. Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) 460
2. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) 236
3. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) 235
King of the Mountains
1. Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) 72
2. Simon Geschke (Cofidis) 64
3. Giulio Ciccone (Trek–Segafredo) 61
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