The World Cup in Qatar is now just two months away and the first international break of the season is the final opportunity for squads to convene before coming together for the tournament.

In Europe, the Nations League offers competitive action in the build-up to Qatar, while teams elsewhere will face friendlies.

With a mid-season window and just one break before the action commences in November, it presents a challenge for any new faces to establish themselves in their international side before the squad for the World Cup is selected.

Some have been handed glorious opportunities though and Stats Perform has assessed some of the newcomers.

Ivan Toney

England's main striker role is nailed down by skipper Harry Kane but the role of understudy is a competitive one with the likes of Callum Wilson, Tammy Abraham and Ollie Watkins having earned opportunities – and Ivan Toney is the latest to join that list.

Quickly settling into life in the Premier League, Toney netted 12 goals for Brentford in their inaugural campaign last season but has hit new heights in 2022, scoring 13 goals this calendar year.

Toney doesn't just offer goals, though, as he has also contributed seven assists since August 2021, totalling 24 goal involvements (17 goals, 7 assists) in that period, with Kane (31) the only English player to have more in the Premier League.

This season, Toney has five goals and two assists for Brentford, with a tally of seven goal involvements only bettered by Erling Haaland (12) in the Premier League.

Nico Williams

Brother of Inaki Williams, capped once by Spain in a friendly before switching allegiances to Ghana, 20-year-old Nico Williams has been handed a chance by Luis Enrique, who insists the decision is not to ensure he doesn't follow in the footsteps of his sibling.

The right-winger has established himself in Athletic Bilbao's first-team and has made a firm impact this season, scoring twice – including in the recent 3-2 victory over Rayo Vallecano, which marked the first time both he and Inaki had scored in the same match.

Williams' role with Athletic will continue to grow, having only recently become a regular starter for the Basque side towards the end of last season and now starting five of Athletic's six LaLiga matches.

Securing a spot on the plane for Qatar will not be easy considering the vast competition, but Williams may get his opportunity due to his age, with a forward line of the future potentially being created alongside Yeremy Pino and Ferran Torres.

Kenneth Taylor

Only earning his first start for Ajax in the Eredivisie last season, Kenneth Taylor has become a mainstay in the side this term with five starts across six league appearances for the Dutch champions, following Ryan Gravenberch's move to Bayern Munich.

The 20-year-old has grabbed his opportunity with both hands, scoring three goals and contributing two assists in the league. His control on the ball has also been impressive, misplacing 41 of 352 passing attempts in the Eredivisie for an accuracy of 88 per cent.

In the Champions League, Taylor has yet find the net or contribute an assist, but he has caught the eye. In the 2-1 defeat to Liverpool, he won three tackles, the joint-most in the Ajax side, and completed 92 per cent of his passes.

Those performances have earned Taylor a call-up to Louis van Gaal's squad ahead of Gravenberch, who has been capped 10 times by the Netherlands but has found playing time difficult to come by since moving to Bayern.

Enzo Fernandez

Only arriving at Benfica from River Plate ahead of the current season, Enzo Fernandez has quickly made an impression in Portugal, where he was named the Primeira Liga's Midfielder of the Month.

In the third qualifying round of the Champions League, the Argentine struck in both legs against Midtjylland and made a significant impression in the 2-1 group stage win against Juventus – with the most touches (92), pass attempts (71) and accurate passes (68) of his team, as well as the highest pass completion percentage (96%).

He also won 12 duels and won possession on 12 occasions, both tallies that were bettered by none of his team-mates.

His form has already seen him linked with Liverpool, just months after his arrival in European football, and the 21-year-old could be once to watch in Qatar if he secures a seat on the plane.

Borja Iglesias

At the age of 29, Borja Iglesias is finally poised to make his international bow with Spain after a sensational calendar year in which he has scored 18 LaLiga goals – with only Real Madrid's Karim Benzema (28) scoring more.

Six of those goals have come in the opening six matches of the 2022-23 season, from which Real Betis have won 15 points to sit behind only Barcelona and Real Madrid in the early-season standings.

Robert Lewandowski (8) is the sole player to score more LaLiga goals than Iglesias this season and he has averaged a goal every 103 minutes, though he is yet to feature in the club's Europa League campaign thus far.

Spain's lack of central striking options may well play into Iglesias' hands in his bid to make the World Cup squad, with the 28-man party for September's Nations League fixtures having only Alvaro Morata as the other natural option through the middle.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone credited Aaron Judge for "igniting" a stunning ninth-inning turnaround with his 60th home run of the season.

Judge is now one shy of the American League record after yet another homer in the Yankees' 9-8 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Yankees were 8-4 down heading to the bottom of the ninth, but the team's superstar outfielder turned the game on its head with a homer on a 3-1 count.

That set the stage for a stunning revival, which was complete with Giancarlo Stanton's walkoff grand slam.

The Yankees became the first team in MLB history to have a player reach 60 home runs and a player hit a walkoff grand slam in the same season – and Judge and Stanton achieved the feat in the same inning.

"I think there's something to be said for that kind of igniting," Boone said of Judge's hit.

"In a game we're down four runs, igniting some kind of magical spark that kind of went tonight in that inning. That was a special one."

But Judge, who already held the AL record for the most homers by a right-hander, is staying focused with further milestones and a pennant to chase.

"I don't think about the numbers," he said.

"When you talk about [Babe] Ruth and [Roger] Maris and [Mickey] Mantle and all these Yankees greats that did so many great things in this game, you never imagine as a kid being mentioned with them.

"It's an incredible honour. It's something I don't take lightly at all. But we're not done.

"We still have a couple games left in this season and hopefully a couple of more wins come with them.

"I'm trying to enjoy it all, soak it all in, but I know I still have a job to do out on the field every single day, and I just have to keep my head down, keep preparing and stay mentally focused."

This approach has amazed Stanton, who added: "He hit 60 tonight, and it's like nothing happened.

"He's got more work to do, and that's the mindset, and that's how it will always be. It's fun to be a part of."

Pep Guardiola is "happy to help" Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton and Hove Albion, according to the Premier League's newest coach, although the idea of matching the Manchester City manager's football is "unreachable".

Guardiola and De Zerbi have long shared a mutual admiration due to their sides' respective styles of play.

And the Italian, after impressing as Sassuolo coach and then seeing his stay at Shakhtar Donetsk cut short, has now joined the City great in England.

Speaking following his appointment at Brighton, De Zerbi disclosed a conversation he had with Guardiola about his new high-flying club, who lost previous coach Graham Potter to Chelsea.

"For me, it's very easy to start working here at Brighton, because I know the work that has been done by Potter before," De Zerbi said.

"There are a lot of players that are close to my idea of football. They have the right characteristics, especially mentally.

"I want to play my football and be as brave as I want. It's clear that now I take a team that is fourth in the table, but this is giving me much more motivation.

"I think Guardiola's football is unreachable – he has shown a superb kind of football in the UK, similarly to his time in Spain and Germany.

"[Guardiola] is very happy I am on board here. He told me very good things about the club. He told me if I need he will be happy to help me – of course not in the match we are playing against them."

Brighton are yet to face City this season, travelling to the Etihad Stadium next month.

Everything appeared to be heading towards Barcelona and Ousmane Dembele parting on poor terms after a largely unsatisfactory association.

"Either he renews, or we look for an exit," Xavi said in January, fielding the latest in a series of questions about the winger.

With Dembele failing to agree to a new Barcelona contract at the start of 2022, director of football Mateu Alemany was even more forthright, declaring: "He must leave the club immediately."

Fast forward eight months, and the unpredictable attacker has emerged as a key cog in a revitalised Barca side, one tipped to compete with Real Madrid after making an unbeaten start in LaLiga.

Having been in the cold since Euro 2020, Dembele is also back in the France squad for their upcoming Nations League matches, with his sights set on claiming a spot in Didier Deschamps' party for the World Cup in Qatar.

Football loves a redemption arc, and that of Dembele in 2022 is up there with the very best in recent memory.

On the eve of his France return, Stats Perform looks at Dembele's journey from €105million flop to the creative hub of Xavi's side, asking whether a World Cup flourish is next for the winger.

Injury woes and the long shadow of Neymar

Barcelona's failings following Neymar's 2017 move to Paris Saint-Germain have been well-documented, with Dembele long viewed as the ultimate personification of the shambolic recruitment policy during Josep Maria Bartomeu's tenure.

The Blaugrana parted with an initial €105m for Dembele, who recorded 30 goal contributions (10 goals, 20 assists) and created 100 chances in his lone season with Borussia Dortmund.

That substantial fee saw Dembele, a talented yet raw 20-year-old, touted as a replacement for Neymar, a pressure that appeared to weigh heavily on the Frenchman; he needed over seven months to score his first goal in LaLiga, finally finding the net at Celta Vigo in April 2018.

While Ernesto Valverde led Barca to a domestic double in 2017-18, Dembele's own contribution was limited by a series of injury setbacks, which represented a sign of things to come.

Dembele made just 17 league appearances and 12 starts in his debut campaign, having been ruled out until January 2018 after suffering a serious hamstring injury within a month of his arrival.

In three of Dembele's first five campaigns at Barca, injuries ruled him out for 100 days or more. Between the beginning of 2017-18 and the end of 2020-21, meanwhile, he started just 36 per cent of the club's league games.

On the rare occasions Dembele did stay fit, meanwhile, his output was negligible in a side increasingly reliant on Lionel Messi's brilliance. Dembele's tally of 17 league goals and 14 assists in his first four seasons hardly represented value for Barcelona's mammoth investment, meaning the winger was considered ripe for a sale as the club's economic position worsened.

From contract rebel to key man: Spearheading the Xavi revival 

Even LaLiga's casual observers must have grown tired of discussions over the economic "levers" being pulled by Joan Laporta's regime. But before the sales of future TV rights and production companies, shifting Dembele was touted as a means by which to balance the books after the January arrival of Ferran Torres.

With a loan move for Adama Traore leaving Barcelona's forward line well-stocked, the message could not have been clearer; if Dembele would not agree to fresh terms, he was surplus to requirements.

But with Traore struggling on his return to Spain and Torres regularly deployed centrally, Xavi decided to utilise Dembele once the January transfer window closed. He was richly rewarded after reinstating him on the right of Barca's attack.

Since Xavi took charge in November 2021, Dembele's 17 assists in all competitions is bettered only by Messi (22) and Kevin De Bruyne (21) among players in Europe's top five leagues, while his 15 LaLiga assists during that time is a team-high.

Dembele also leads Barca's charts for chances created (63), chances created from open play (52) and touches in the opposing box (126) under Xavi in LaLiga, finally combining his menacing dribbling ability with genuine threat and creativity.

And Dembele's 68 dribbles completed in that time – also a team-high – show he has not sacrificed the individual skill that attracted Barcelona's attentions five years ago. 

Three months on from Dembele being booed by his own supporters during a Europa League clash with Napoli, Xavi said: "When he has not been involved, we have noticed."

The former midfield maestro was right. Barcelona won two-thirds of the league games Dembele started last season, and 47.8 per cent of those he didn't.

That impact meant Dembele's belated contract renewal, finalised in July, was received with enthusiasm by everyone at Camp Nou, with the winger subsequently going from strength to strength.

The tonic to Deschamps' blues?

If some thought the arrival of Raphinha might threaten Dembele's place in Xavi's side, he has made them eat their words at the start of the new campaign.

Having tallied the most assists (13) and expected assists (9.2 xA) in LaLiga last season, Dembele has recorded four league goal contributions since the August restart (two goals, two assists), forcing his way back into Deschamps' thoughts.

By the end of August, Dembele had been involved in more shots (15) as a consequence of ball carries than any other player in LaLiga, and his dynamic, unpredictable style may be just what Les Bleus require.

Dembele was used sparingly at Euro 2020, with Antoine Griezmann preferred alongside Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe as France won just once in four outings. However, it's easy to see why Dembele's ability to hug either touchline might appeal to Deschamps, offering him tactical flexibility when several other options appear compromised. 

Griezmann's lack of game-time at Atletico Madrid has been subject to much debate in recent weeks, while Kingsley Coman is out of France's latest squad through injury. Benzema's own injury scare, meanwhile, will no doubt have sharpened Deschamps' mind on the need for a plan B.

With France failing to win any of their first four Nations League games this time around, Dembele's Barcelona revival may have come at the perfect time.

Should Dembele carry his club form onto the international stage, potentially contributing to the first successful World Cup defence since Brazil's 1962 win, his 2022 will surely go down as one of football's most emphatic comebacks. 

Rio Ferdinand is calling 15-year-old Arsenal debutant Ethan Nwaneri a rare talent after he broke the record for the youngest Premier League player in history during his side's 3-0 win against Brentford on Sunday.

Nwaneri came on in stoppage time and had no effect on the outcome, but it was the next step in a rapid rise for the England under-17 representative, who is still classified as a schoolboy until he turns 16 in March.

Since his debut, a report from The Times has claimed Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool all have a strong interest in the impressive youngster, and Ferdinand believes it is not out of the blue.

Speaking on his Youtube channel FIVE, the United legend said he has heard from sources within the game that Nwaneri could be a once-in-a-generation prospect for the Gunners.

"There's no doubting this kid's ability," he said. 

"I've heard from coaches that are at the club and from various different people in the game at that level that there aren't many 15-year-olds in the last 10-or-so years that have got the ability that this guy's shown on a consistent basis.

"We are talking the [Phil] Fodens of this world. At 15, he's at a similar level they're talking."

Foden debuted for City at 17, and went on to become the youngest ever Premier League winner, while also being named PFA Young Player of the Year on two separate occasions.

At 22 years old, Foden has already earned 16 international caps, and is set for his first World Cup campaign in Qatar.

Taro Daniel has booked a matchup against top overall seed at the San Diego Open Daniel Evans after defeating Emilio Nava 6-4 6-3 in the opening round on Tuesday.

Daniel started beautifully, securing a break in the first game of the match, and his superior returning ability would carry him through the first set, winning 51 per cent (21-of-41) of his return points in the opening frame.

It was Daniel's serve which controlled the second set, winning 80 per cent (16-of-20) of his service points while allowing no break point opportunities for Nava, finishing the job in 94 minutes.

He will play world number 25 Evans next, who he has beaten in two of their past three meetings, although they have only gone head-to-head once since 2015 – in 2019, when Daniel won in straight sets.

Meanwhile, Mitchell Krueger ended a three-match losing streak against American compatriot Christopher Eubanks with a 6-4 6-4 triumph.

Eubanks had the power advantage, winning the ace count nine-to-four and the winner count 25-to-18, but he was also far sloppier, committing all four of the match's double faults as well as totalling 20 unforced errors to Kreuger's four.

In a clash between two veterans, 30-year-old Denis Kudla proved to be too much for 38-year-old Fernando Versaco, winning 6-3 6-3 to relegate the Spaniard to four losses from his past five matches.

In the final match of the night, Brandon Nakashima overcame Zachary Svajda 7-5 7-6 (7-5) after a gruelling 69-minute second set, contesting 96 points in the second frame after 66 in the first.

Aaron Judge hit his 60th home run of the season to kick-start an incredible last-inning 9-8 comeback win for the New York Yankees against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.

Judge, who has 20 more home runs than any other player this campaign, is now one away from tying the Yankees and American League record for home runs in a single season, set by Roger Maris in 1961.

Against the Pirates, the Yankees found themselves trailing 8-4 entering the final inning after Pittsburgh's Rodolfo Castro's three-run homer in the eighth frame, with Bryan Reynolds and Jason Delay each driving home a pair of runs earlier in the contest.

Judge finished the game one-for-four at the plate, but his one hit was emphatic, leading off the ninth inning with a 430-foot launch over the left-field wall to trim the margin to 8-5.

An Anthony Rizzo double, followed by a walk to Gleyber Torres and a single to Josh Donaldson loaded the bases, allowing Giancarlo Stanton a chance to be the hero.

On a 2-2 count, Stanton connected with a changeup on the outer-half of the plate and pulled it 410 feet into the New York sky to end the game, sending the Yankees fans wild.

With the win, the Yankees remain five-and-a-half games clear of the Toronto Blue Jays atop the AL East, and they trail only the Houston Astros for the best record in the American League.

Lindor's grand slam delivers a Mets win

Two big home runs were the key for the New York Mets in their 7-5 win against the Milwaukee Brewers, highlighted by Francisco Lindor's grand slam.

The Mets trailed 4-0 heading into the sixth inning, where Pete Alonso blasted a three-run home run. An inning later, it was Lindor's turn for a big bomb, launching his grand slam 413 feet to left-field to grab the lead.

After a late RBI single to Willy Adames, Mets closer Edwin Diaz came in to finish the job, striking out three of the four batters he faced for his 31st save of the season – the seventh most in the majors.

Blue Jays win a 29-run shootout

A combined 14 runs were scored in just the last two innings of the Toronto Blue Jays' 18-11 win against the Philadelphia Phillies, with the teams combining for 36 hits.

Despite being on the losing side, Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto had a memorable day at the plate as he finished five-for-five with a home run and a double. 

For the Blue Jays, Teoscar Hernandez went four-for-five with two doubles, while All-Star catcher Alejandro Kirk went three-for-five, and Danny Jansen was three-for-six.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are expected to sign veteran wide receiver Cole Beasley to their practice squad, according to sources.

With Mike Evans facing a one-game suspension, and the duo of Chris Godwin (hamstring) and Julio Jones (knee) dealing with injuries, Tampa Bay will add Beasley, a 10-year veteran who spent the past three seasons with the Buffalo Bills. It is expected that he will be elevated to the active roster in the near future.

Beasley was released by the Bills in March despite matching a career high with 82 receptions in 16 games last season. He had been granted permission to seek a trade before he was released but was eventually let go in a move that created roughly $6.1million in salary-cap space.

Tampa Bay will likely enter this Sunday’s Week 3 showdown against the Green Bay Packers without Evans, unless the suspension for his role in a brawl with the New Orleans Saints on Sunday is overturned. Godwin and Jones, meanwhile, both missed the 20-10 victory and are questionable to face the Packers.

Evans’ appeal of his suspension was heard Tuesday, sources told ESPN, and a ruling is expected possibly as soon as Wednesday.

Beasley has been a reliable slot receiver during his career with the Bills and Dallas Cowboys, accumulating 550 catches for 5,709 yards with 34 touchdowns in 149 games.

Tottenham centre-back Eric Dier heaped praise on coach Antonio Conte for helping to resurrect his international career ahead of the World Cup.

Dier, 28, has 45 senior caps for England since debuting in 2015, but it has been almost two years since he last represented his country in a UEFA Nations League win against Iceland in November 2020.

However, after tallying 35 Premier League appearances this past campaign, Dier has become a crucial part of Conte's three centre-back lineup, playing every minute of Tottenham's seven unbeaten matches this season (5W, 2D).

Speaking to the media about how he feels he has evolved since his last national call-up, Dier gave plenty of credit to Conte for changing the way he approaches his game.

"I don’t want to sound like a teacher’s pet but [Conte] has done a lot for me," he said. "In every way he has done a lot for me. 

"He has had a great effect on me in every aspect. Tactically, physically, mentally. My approach.

"Not just the manager but all his staff. He is very demanding, but I really enjoy that. Ever since he arrived, I have never learnt so much in this year. I don’t think I have learnt as much before as I have now with him.

"He is the godfather of that system so I feel like with him you’re constantly learning and evolving within that system, constantly adding new things – once we learn one thing we’re onto the next. 

"I think he probably gave me my belief back a little bit as well."

Dier took things a step further and said he does not just feel he has recaptured his previous form, but he has now reached a new level.

"I think it was my most difficult season when I did miss out on the Euros, [but] I don’t think it was as bad a season as it is made out to be," he said. "Nowhere near.

"But now I think I’ve reached my best level in my career, not just this season but last season as well. I think I’m getting better and I think I can get better."

With five matches required to bring up his half-century in an England shirt, Dier said he would be lying if it was not on his mind.

"I’ve seen they’ve got a board up now in the reception of the hotel of all the people who have made 50 and 100," he said. "It’s a dream to be able to reach that.

"It would mean a lot. It’s something that when I wasn’t in the squad it was playing on my mind that I was so close to it. That did annoy me. I would love to be able to get to that kind of milestone.

"I’m very happy… I’m very proud of making it back, I just don’t like dramatising it too much. I play football, you know?"

With the Cleveland Browns still reeling from their 31-30 loss to the New York Jets in Week 2, star running back Nick Chubb stepped forward to take his share of the blame for the blown lead.  

Chubb scored a touchdown with 1:55 remaining from 12 yards out, putting the Browns up 30-17. The Jets, however, were out of timeouts, and if Chubb had gone down voluntarily, Cleveland could have knelt to bleed the rest of the clock.  

Instead, Chubb’s third touchdown of the day left the Browns up 13 points, and the Jets pulled off a historic comeback.  

"Yeah, I probably shouldn't have scored right there," Chubb said Tuesday. "Honestly, looking back at it, it cost us the game.  

"A lot of things went wrong, not just one thing. But collectively as a unit, as a team, we could've all done things different. But it's only a problem because we didn't win. So, I probably should've went down."

Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski also took his share of the blame for failing to instruct his players on the appropriate strategy.  

"That's something that's my responsibility to communicate to that huddle," Stefanski said. "Putting yourself up potentially 14 points inside of two minutes, you should close out that game.  

"Yes, I wish I had said that to Nick, and Nick would've done it. But it does not change the fact that we had plenty of opportunities to win that game." 

Among the other factors that led to the Browns’ collapse were a missed PAT after Chubb’s ill-timed touchdown, Cleveland’s defense allowing two touchdowns in the span of a minute and the Jets recovering an onside kick, a play with just a 16.1 per cent success rate last season.   

The loss dropped the Browns to 1-1 on the season. The Pittsburgh Steelers visit Cleveland on Thursday night to kick off Week 3.  

Pedri revealed Luis Enrique's Spain view themselves among the favourites to win the upcoming World Cup in Qatar. 

La Roja have endured two disappointing World Cup campaigns since winning the trophy in 2010, being dumped out in 2014's group stage before suffering a last-16 penalty shoot-out loss to hosts Russia four years later.

However, the emergence of several young talents – including Pedri and fellow Barcelona midfielder Gavi – has enabled Luis Enrique to reintroduce a possession-based style of play Spain became renowned for under Vicente del Bosque.

With Spain set to begin their World Cup campaign against Costa Rica in just over two months' time, Pedri sees no reason why the class of 2022 cannot deliver a second World Cup win.

"Perhaps people don't expect so much from us, they don't see us as favourites, but inside we do see ourselves as favourites," he told Sport.

"We will not wear the medal without doing anything. If we work as we should, the opportunity will come.

"There is always pressure at Barca and the national team. You have to try to escape, be calm and enjoy. 

"Here and at Barca we have a team for everything. We work so that at the end of the season we can win everything we play."

Pedri, who does not turn 20 until November, has already won 12 senior international caps and established himself as a key player for Barcelona.

Now, he is setting his sights on competing for football's greatest individual honour.  

Asked whether he saw himself as a future Ballon d'Or winner, Pedri said: "I hope I have the opportunity to be, it is a very complicated prize. 

"You must be the best in the world, I have a lot to learn and improve so that this day can come.

"I worked a lot on the physical side, I still have to improve, but little by little I am adding small things. You can't put so much day by day because of the busy schedule, but you can always improve."

At club level, Pedri has struck up a fine understanding with Barcelona's new signing Robert Lewandowski, whose return of eight goals in six matches has helped Xavi's side to an unbeaten start in LaLiga. 

"It's crazy, he contributes a lot of goals, assists, he's a machine in the area," Pedri said of the Poland international.

"It is spectacular to work with him, he helps young players, those who enter now or have been there for more years. He suits us very well."

Spain face Switzerland and Portugal in their final two matches in Group A2 of the Nations League this month, having built a one-point lead over Fernando Santos' men ahead of those fixtures.

Anthony Edwards has been fined by the NBA after the Minnesota Timberwolves guard used homophobic language in a social media post.

The 21-year-old shared a video on his Instagram account in which he could be heard passing comment on a group of men gathered near the car he was sat in.

Edwards deleted the video in question and issued an apology on Twitter, saying: "What I said was immature, hurtful, and disrespectful, and I'm incredibly sorry.

"It's unacceptable for me or anyone to use that language in such a hurtful way, there's no excuse for it, at all. I was raised better than that!"

He has now been hit with a $40,000 fine by the NBA for using "offensive and derogatory language".

A statement issued by the NBA added Edwards has "acknowledged that his actions were inappropriate".

The Timberwolves previously issued an apology last week, attributed to president of basketball operations Tim Connelly.

"We are disappointed in the language and actions Anthony Edwards displayed on social media," it read.

"The Timberwolves are committed to being an inclusive and welcoming organisation for all and apologise for the offense this has caused to so many."

Poland captain Robert Lewandowski will wear the colours of Ukraine at the World Cup in Qatar, after receiving a special armband from Andriy Shevchenko.

The Barcelona forward met Shevchenko at Warsaw's national stadium to collect the yellow and blue armband, which he will wear at the World Cup to represent Ukraine, who did not qualify.

Ukraine has been ravaged by Russia following February's invasion, with millions of citizens forced to flee the country and many have travelled to Poland, which has also hosted the Champions League matches of Shakhtar Donetsk this season.

While Ukraine will not play in Qatar, Lewandowski has pledged to display their colours when he takes to the field in a show of solidarity with those who are suffering, having met Shevchenko with Laureus Sport For Good.

"I will carry the colours of Ukraine to the World Cup. As a player and a man, I support peace and I believe such symbolic gestures matter," he said.

"I believe that as athletes we should use the power of sport for good. I'm going to take Andriy’s armband with me to the World Cup in November as a reminder that Ukrainian people are not alone and are not forgotten.

"It means a lot to me to stand here with Andriy, a footballer and a man who has used his voice and platform to influence positive change."

Shevchenko thanked Lewandowski for his pledge, saying: "For me, the captain’s armband is a symbol of leadership, strength and passion for your country. I want to pass this armband to Robert to thank him for his support, voice and platform in supporting my country and calling for peace."

Poland begin their World Cup campaign on November 18 against Mexico, then tackling Argentina and Saudi Arabia in Group C.