Diogo Jota has become the latest Liverpool forward to sign a new long-term contract at Anfield.

The Reds headed into the close-season with their superstar front three of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino entering the final 12 months of their respective deals.

Salah agreed new terms, while Mane left for Bayern Munich. Firmino has made clear his desire to stay but is yet to put pen to paper.

Now, in the week before the start of the new Premier League season, Jota has ensured he will remain a key part of this Liverpool team.

The Portugal international signed from Wolves in September 2020 and quickly established himself ahead of Firmino in the pecking order, although Mane often played through the centre last season.

This term, Jota will have further competition in the form of new signing Darwin Nunez, but the 25-year-old – who has scored 34 goals in 85 games for Liverpool – is up for the fight.

Reportedly now under contract until 2027, Jota told Liverpool's official website: "Well, [I'm] really proud, I have to say.

"Obviously, since I arrived two years ago, I established myself as an important player in this team – that's what I wanted from the beginning.

"Now, signing a new long-term deal, it's obviously from the club's perspective proof of the belief in myself as a player. For me, obviously it's really good to establish I'll be here for a while.

"So, the beginning of a new season, let's do it."

In his time at Liverpool, only Salah (60 goals, 22 assists) and Mane (39 goals, 10 assists) have scored more goals or registered more goal involvements (41 for Jota) than the striker.

Jota has impressively averaged a goal every 157 minutes in all competitions. He ranks fourth among Liverpool players over this period in that regard, behind Nunez (31), who netted on his debut on Saturday, the departed Takumi Minamino (133) and Salah (135).

Baker Mayfield's focus is solely on the Carolina Panthers and his "transparent" battle with fellow quarterback Sam Darnold, despite developments in the Deshaun Watson saga at former team the Cleveland Browns.

Mayfield – the Browns' first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft – was traded to the Panthers last month after Cleveland had moved for Watson.

But when the Panthers play the Browns in Week 1, Watson will be absent, following news of his suspension by the league on Monday.

Former US district judge Sue L. Robinson advised the NFL that Watson should be banned for six games with no additional fine following a disciplinary hearing.

Watson faced 24 civil lawsuits following sexual assault and misconduct allegations. He was not charged by two grand juries and has strenuously denied any wrongdoing.

The NFL could yet appeal that decision and pursue a longer suspension, but both the Browns and the NFLPA have accepted the punishment.

Jacoby Brissett will instead fill in until late October, but that is of no interest to Mayfield, who told reporters: "Honestly, it's none of my business.

"I don't play against the other quarterback. I know that's the most cliched thing to say, but that's just the truth.

"When it comes down to it, I'm game-planning against their defense, and if I'm playing or not, I'm trying to help this team win. That's my mindset going into it, so I've got to keep getting better.

"But I'm not focused about Week 1 right now. We'll handle that when it comes, but for now it's about getting the Panthers better and our offense continuing to get better as well."

Indeed, there is no guarantee Mayfield will be starting either, as he faces competition from Darnold – the third overall pick in the same 2018 draft – for the starting spot.

Mayfield is happy with how that tussle has been treated by his new team, though.

"Everything has been extremely transparent," he said. "They're telling us exactly how they're handling it.

"It's not being said to one person and Sam hears another thing; it's right there in front of us and clear and concise."

Tiger Woods was offered a package worth between $700million and $800m to compete in the LIV Golf Invitational Series, according to the competition's chief executive Greg Norman.

Woods, a 15-time major winner, has been an advocate for the PGA Tour, which has been embroiled in a tussle with the Saudi Arabia-backed breakaway league.

LIV Golf held its latest event last weekend in Bedminster, New Jersey, with Henrik Stenson – who was removed as Ryder Cup captain after deciding to join the new tour – claiming victory in his first outing.

Norman previously said that Woods had been offered a "high nine digits" sum to join LIV Golf, which has so far been unable to attract many of the world's best, though has snagged big names such as Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia and Dustin Johnson.

In an interview with Fox News with Tucker Carlson that was broadcast on Monday in the United States, Norman confirmed that Woods had been offered in the region of $700m to $800m.

"That number was out there before I became CEO. So that number has been out there, yes," Norman said.

"And, look, Tiger is a needle-mover and of course you have to look at the best of the best.

"So they had originally approached Tiger before I became CEO. So, yes, that number was somewhere in that neighbourhood."

Two-time major winner Norman has become a controversial figure within the sport, and was barred from attending the Celebration of Champions or the Champions' Dinner prior to The 150th Open Championship at St Andrews last month.

Woods failed to make the cut at that tournament, but backed the decision to disinvite Norman from the celebrations, saying: "Greg has done some things that I don't think are in the best interest of our game, and we're coming back to probably the most historic and traditional place in our sport. I believe it's the right thing."

Yet the Australian is unperturbed by any possible damage to his reputation.

"I really don't care," said Norman, who claimed he is unaware why LIV Golf has caused such uproar.

"I just love the game so much and I want to grow the game of golf and we at LIV see that opportunity not just for the men but for the women."

Roman Abramovich's tenure as Chelsea owner means the Premier League might have to implement tougher testing for potential owners, according to the competition's chief executive Richard Masters.

Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003 and oversaw a transformative period for the club, who have since won five Premier League titles and triumphed five times in the FA Cup, three times in the EFL Cup and the Champions League twice.

However, Abramovich was forced to put the Blues up for sale earlier this year when, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the UK government sanctioned the Russian oligarch.

Todd Boehly, who also co-owns the Los Angeles Dodgers, led a consortium that eventually bought the club in May, bringing an end to Abramovich's spell at the helm after 19 years.

"It's difficult to say now, with hindsight, that it's all been good, given what has transpired over the last six and a half months," Masters said when asked for his thoughts on Abramovich's time as a club owner.

"I think if you ask Chelsea fans, they would give you a different answer."

Masters suggested that English football, and in particular the top flight, must now improve on the controls and safeguards they have in place when granting would-be owners permission to purchase clubs.

"I think the situation we ended with has given the sport some challenges we've got to meet," he added.

"Ultimately, there wasn't an owners' and directors' test when Abramovich took ownership of Chelsea, so I suppose the answer to the question is, had there been that in place what would have happened and what safeguards we need to build in for the future?

"[There is] a rolling test, yes. Prevention is better than cure, isn't it? There wasn't then, there is now, it's going to change and part of that actually is probably going to be the strengthening of the annual test."

Boehly's purchase of Chelsea went through just before the UK government's deadline of May 31, and Masters explained there was genuine concern over the club's status.

"You're in unique circumstances, nothing like this has happened before," he said.

"There was obviously a genuine concern the sale wouldn't take place in the timeframe that was available.

"That didn't happen thankfully. A lot of people worked extremely hard on it at the club's end, the government's end and [the] Premier League's end to make sure things were running as smoothly as possible. We're very pleased that it happened, obviously."

Masters' comments come on the eve of the new Premier League season, with Chelsea in action against Everton on Saturday.

Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto remains none the wiser about his future despite the franchise's fans giving him a warm farewell in Monday's 7-3 loss to the New York Mets.

The 23-year-old slugger, who won last month's Home Run Derby, has been the subject of plenty of speculation ahead of Tuesday's MLB Trade Deadline.

The Nationals have the worst record, 35-69, in the majors and are looking to sell players.

Soto homered with three walks in Monday's defeat as Nats fans were heard chanting 'we love Soto'.

"It means a lot,'' Soto said about the fans. "It kind of feels weird, too, because nothing's happened yet. We're still waiting.

"It's kind of cool at the same time, but it's kind of weird, too."

The Los Angeles Dodgers are one of the franchises who have been linked with Soto, while the player himself has not ruled out staying put.

"I feel good where I'm at,'' Soto said. "I understand it's a business and they need to do whatever they need to do.

"I'm just another player, another employee here like [former team-mate Ryan Zimmerman] used to say."

Nats manager Dave Martinez insisted they would not give up Soto for anything less than a good deal.

"You’re not going to give away these players and not get something in return that we feel like, 'Hey, this is what our future’s going to be, and this is going to be really good for us'," Martinez said.

"Those guys up there [in the front office] are working diligently to get those players that we need, if we can get it. If not, we have arguably one of the youngest best players in the game, and I love the kid."

Soto is batting at .246 with 21 home runs, 62 runs, 84 hits and 46 RBIs this season, with the third-best 2022 majors on-base percentage of .415.

Timo Werner has only managed 23 goals in his first two seasons with Chelsea after joining from Leipzig in mid-2020.

The new Blues owners are open to allowing Werner, who signed on a five-year contract, to depart on loan.

The 26-year-old scored 95 goals in 159 appearances with Leipzig from 2016 to 2020.

TOP STORY – LEIPZIG LEAD RACE FOR CHELSEA'S WERNER

Leipzig are leading the race to sign Chelsea striker Werner ahead of Juventus, claims Fabrizio Romano.

The Bundesliga club met with Chelsea on Sunday, proposing a swap deal for Werner, who is Leipzig's main target.

Juventus and Newcastle United have also shown an interest in the Germany international. 

ROUND-UP

– Barcelona are considering a move for Leipzig defender Angelino should they miss out on Chelsea full-back Marcos Alonso, claims Diario Sport.

– Everton could make a move for forgotten Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi, according to talkSPORT. The Toffees lost Richarlison to Tottenham last month and will turn to Batshuayi, who scored 14 goals on loan at Besiktas last season.

– Portuguese forward Diogo Jota is set to be rewarded for his strong second season at Anfield, with Liverpool to offer him a lucrative pay rise as part of a new deal, despite having three years to run on his contract, claims The Telegraph.

– Napoli and Chelsea are in talks on a loan deal for Spanish goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, according to Sky Sports.

– Football Insider reports that Leicester City have informed Newcastle that midfielder James Maddison will cost them £60million as they circle for his signature.

– Leicester City are set to farewell goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel,  who is on the cusp of joining French Ligue 1 club Nice, reports the Mail.

League leader Aaron Judge continued his remarkable form after the All-Star Game with his 43rd home run of the season as the New York Yankees flexed with a 7-2 win over the Seattle Mariners on Monday.

Judge made majors history with his 10th home run since the All-Star Game, joining Albert Belle in achieving that feat in only 12 games after the break.

The Yankees outfielder had hit a first-inning double, before Anthony Rizzo's three-run blast – his 26th home run of the season – opened up an early 3-0 lead.

Judge took center stage in the second inning with his home run putting the Yankees up 5-1, marking 12 blasts in his past 14 games.

Jose Trevino got in on the act, after a lean month, with home runs in the fourth and eighth innings for his first career multi-homer game.

The result keeps the Yankees top of the American League (AL) East with a 70-34 record, while the Mariners are second in the AL West with a 55-49 record.

Judge leads the majors for home runs this season with 43 with a league-high .680 slugging percentage, batting at .299 with 89 runs, 115 hits and 93 RBIs.

Hot property Soto stars as Mets see off Nats

Amid trade speculation, Juan Soto underlined his value with the Washington Nationals with a fine all-round performance in their 7-3 loss to the New York Mets.

Soto showed off his speed around the bases to score for 1-0 in the first inning, before some brilliance from the outfield saw him throw out runner Tomas Nido on the home plate.

After Pete Alonso's 27th blast of the season put the Mets 4-1 up, Soto returned fire with his own home run in the fourth inning, his 21st of the year.

Francisco Lindor's sixth inning homer rounded out the win for the Mets who improve to 65-37.

Dodgers too strong for Giants

Max Muncy and Trea Turner both homered as the Los Angeles Dodgers proved too good for National League (NL) West rivals San Francisco Giants 8-2.

Muncy's second-inning two-run blast put the Dodgers ahead after Darin Ruf scored in the first, with Freddie Freeman driving in Mookie Betts in the fourth to open up a 4-1 lead.

Turner unleashed his 17th home run of the season at the top of the seventh inning with a fly ball to center field to settle the contest, helping the Dodgers move to 69-33 at the top of the NL West.

Elena Rybakina has been bundled out of the first round of the Silicon Valley Classic by Daria Kasatkina in her first game since her Wimbledon triumph last month.

Rybakina won the first set comfortably before the Russian hit back for a remarkable turnaround win, 1-6 6-2 6-0 in one hour and 40 minutes.

Seventh seed Kasatkina was the runner-up at last year's Silicon Valley Classic and found her groove to break her Rybakina six times in the second and third sets.

Rybakina sent down three of her four aces for the match in the first set, but Kasatkina adjusted to her serve and won 52.1 per cent return points for the match.

Eighth seed Karolina Pliskova fought back from a slow start to get past Katie Boulter 1-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-3, despite 16 double faults.

American Amanda Anisimova overcame compatriot Ashlyn Krueger 6-2 7-6 (7-5). US pair Madison Keys and Taylor Townsend were also winners.

Third seed Simona Halep and top seed Jessica Pegula were both among the winners in the first round at the Citi Open in Washington DC.

Two-time major winner Halep cruised past Spanish qualifier Cristina Bucsa 6-3 7-5 in one hour and 20 minutes.

Halep, playing her first match since her Wimbledon semi-final loss to Rybakina, fired 19 winners but also 33 unforced errors.

Defending champion Pegula made light work of countrywoman Hailey Baptiste 6-2 6-2 in 73 minutes.

Pegula will face unseeded Australian Daria Saville, who won in three sets over Mirjam Bjorklund, while sixth seed Kaia Kanepi will meet China's Zhu Lin after both won on Monday.

Fifth seed Elise Mertens was a first-round casualty, going down 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to Ludmilla Samsonova, while Croatian Donna Vekic knocked off seventh seed Mayar Sherif 6-4 6-1.

Six-time major champion Venus Williams played her first singles match in nearly a year but bowed out 4-6 6-1 6-4 to Rebecca Marino. 

Former world number one Andy Murray was left frustrated after physically fading on his way to a first-round exit at the Citi Open with a 7-6 (10-8) 4-6 6-1 loss to Mikael Ymer on Tuesday.

The three-time Grand Slam winner failed to convert four set points in the first set before the Swede triumphed in two hours and 50 minutes.

The match was full of momentum swings, with the 35-year-old capitalising on Ymer's own physical issues, appearing to cramp in the second set, to level it up after winning five of the final six games of the set.

But 23-year-old Ymer regained his composure and physical state to race away with the third set for victory, rounding out 37 winners for the match, leaving Murray frustrated.

"It was disappointing obviously," Murray told reporters. "I thought there was some good tennis in the first set. After that, both of us were struggling a bit physically. The level of the tennis was not great.

 "Obviously [I] had chances in the first set to close that out. I had set point at 6-5, then... three in the tie-break and didn't get it.

"I think he seemed like maybe he was cramping a little bit in the second set, but recovered absolutely fine after the break at the end of the [second] set.

"Went off to change and cool off a little bit, and he recovered well for the third, whereas I didn't really. Yeah, just frustrating."

The first-round exit comes after Murray lost in the Hall of Fame Open quarter-finals in Newport to Alexander Bublik when he cramped up in hot and humid conditions.

"Struggled a little bit the past two tournaments with that," he said. "I need to have a little look at that with my team and maybe see why that is, make a few changes."

French veteran Adrian Mannarino took care of Bradley Klahn 6-2 6-4, while Jack Draper beat Stefan Kozlov 7-5 6-2 to set up a second-round date with top seed Andrey Rublev.

World number 112 Benoit Paire also triumphed in the first round on Tuesday, getting past Peter Gojowczyk 7-5 6-4.

Kyle Edmund, Jack Draper, Borna Gojo, Dominik Koepfer, J.J Wolf and Denis Kudla also were victorious, with Alexei Popyrin progressing after a walkover against Wu Tung-lin.

Four-time major winner Naomi Osaka wants to simply get back to having fun upon her return to tennis at the Silicon Valley Classic this week.

The Japanese 24-year-old has not played since her first-round loss to Amanda Anisimova at the French Open in May and sits 41st in the world rankings. 

Osaka, who missed Wimbledon due to a left Achilles issue, parted ways with coach Wim Fissette last month after two and a half years.

The injury is one of many that have plagued Osaka over the past difficult 15 months, during which she withdrew from last year's French Open citing "mental health reasons" after boycotting her mandatory post-match media conferences.

She also announced a hiatus following her third-round US Open exit last year but appears in a better place now, with her father, Leonard Francois, stepping in as her coach.

"I just would like to have fun and I know I say that very often, basically every tournament for the last year now, but to genuinely have fun," Osaka told reporters.

"I was telling my dad literally this morning when we were practicing in the rain, years ago we would have to fight to practice on public courts. It was just me and my sister and my dad alone.

"Now I've gotten to the point where people pay to watch me play, and for that I am very grateful. I would have never imagined that as a child.

"Just having fun and being grateful in the moment and trying to engage with everyone to the best of my abilities."

Osaka moved to clarify there was nothing sinister behind her split with Fissette, having won the 2020 US Open and 2021 Australian Open titles alongside him.

"It was really good times with Wim and he's a really amazing coach," Osaka said.

"We didn't part on bad terms. I just felt I needed different energy, and at the same time, he's a very ambitious guy. I was getting injured and I'm sure he would have wanted to go to Wimbledon.

"It was two different mindsets, I would say. But he's a really cool guy still. So confirming that there were no bad things happening."

Osaka is due to face Qinwen Zheng in the first round at the Silicon Valley Classic on Tuesday.

The San Diego Padres have made a key addition after trading in All-Star closer Josh Hader from the Milwaukee Brewers ahead of Tuesday's MLB Trade Deadline.

The addition of 28-year-old left-hander Hader is a major boost for the Padres, who have struggled in late-inning situations this season.

Hader is the 2022 league leader in saves, with 29 from 31 save opportunities this season, although he has career-worst 4.24 ERA which dipped to 12 during July.

The deal sees left-handed reliever Taylor Rogers, left-handed pitching prospect Robert Gasser, right-hander Dinelson Lamet and outfielder Esteury Ruiz sent to the Brewers.

"Josh Hader is one of the best closers in the league," Padres general manager A.J. Preller said.

"He's been there, done that, pitched in big spots, big playoff games. He's got elite stuff."

Hader, who has been with the Brewers since 2017, joins the Padres who have a 57-46 record to sit second in the National League West this season.

"Thank you for the support throughout my career," Hader wrote on Instagram. "Y'all have been great to me. The people, the energy, the love! There will always be a special place in my heart for MKE."

In other moves, the New York Yankees added right-handed starting pitcher Frankie Montas and closer Lou Trivino from the Oakland Athletics, along with reliever Scott Effross from the Chicago Cubs.

The Yankees, who have a 69-34 record, had previously brought in All-Star outfielder Andrew Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals.

The Houston Astros acquired first baseman Trey Mancini from the Baltimore Orioles along with catcher Christian Vazquez from the Boston Red Sox.

According to reports, outfielder Tommy Pham is set to join the Red Sox from the Cincinnati Reds.

The Atlanta Braves have announced they have re-signed All-Star third baseman Austin Riley on a 10-year, $212 million contract.

Riley, who appeared in his first All-Star Game last month, is hitting .301 with 29 home runs and 68 RBIs this season. He is leading the league with 61 extra-base hits.

The 25-year-old's deal runs through the 2032 season, with the option for 2033 for $20 million.

Riley is among the top contenders for this season's National League MVP, along with St Louis Cardinals star Paul Goldschmidt.

The third baseman's 26 extra-base hits in July broke Hank Aaron's previous franchise record from 1961 by one.

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is set to miss a minimum of five days of his side's training camp after testing positive to COVID-19.

Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury confirmed the news on Monday, revealing Murray's symptoms were "minor".

The Arizona quarterback, who had missed practice on Saturday due to a sore wrist, is the only Cardinals player to test positive currently.

The news comes in light of a busy few weeks for Murray, who agreed terms on a bumper five-year extension with the Cardinals last month. The deal made Murray the NFL's second-highest paid player in terms of average annual salary.

Murray stayed in the spotlight after an "independent study" clause was inserted into the contract, mandating four hours of study each game week, which was later removed.

Murray, a former standout baseball player at Oklahoma as well who was taken ninth overall in the 2018 MLB draft, led the Cardinals to their first playoff appearance in six years with an 11-6 finish to the 2021 season.

The 24-year-old began last season as an MVP candidate as Arizona got off to a 7-0 start, with Murray producing a 116.8 passer rating with a 73.5 per cent completion rate and 17 touchdown passes during that stretch.

However, his play dropped off over the season's second half, as Arizona went 2-5 over his next seven starts, and he struggled with a no-touchdown, two-interception performance in the Cardinals' 34-11 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the opening round of the playoffs.