Jose Mourinho said Roma deserved to pay for a "horrible" first-half performance in Wednesday's surprise 2-1 Coppa Italia quarter-final defeat against Cremonese.
Cremonese – who are without a win in Serie A this season – took a two-goal lead in Rome through Cyriel Dessers' penalty and Zeki Celik's own goal, before holding on after Andrea Belotti pulled one back late on.
Having also stunned Napoli in the previous round, Cremonese became the first promoted Serie A side to reach the Coppa Italia's final four since Cagliari in the 2004-05 campaign.
Mourinho made a remarkable quadruple substitution at half-time after storming down the tunnel early, and he said the Giallorossi could have no complaints following their dire start.
"Congratulations to Cremonese. They have achieved two great victories against Napoli and Roma, it's a strange cup that favours small teams, they have even more merit for this," he said.
"They are deservedly in the semi-final, we pay for a horrible first half, of a low level.
"I can say that this squad struggles with rotation, with three matches in a week, but let's think about this single match, and in the first half we deserved to pay the price.
"Football is like this, this happens with the top teams and with the smaller teams. In Naples [in Sunday's 2-1 loss at Napoli] we deserved more and for this I was proud, even after the defeat.
"Today I can't say, others can comment. My job is to think about the next game.
"After more than a thousand games as a coach, I prefer to be objective and say that we played badly and we paid. We are a team and I don't want to make a single person responsible."
Mourinho was also asked about Nicolo Zaniolo, who asked to be welcomed back into the fold via an open letter on Wednesday after requesting a move during the January transfer window.
Having described the likelihood of Zaniolo remaining at the Stadio Olimpico as "unfortunate" last week, Mourinho was unwilling to discuss the 23-year-old's future, saying: "The ownership was very clear and I won't make any kind of comment."
Xavi singled out Pedri for praise after Barcelona went eight points clear at the top of LaLiga by beating Real Betis, comparing the midfielder to Spain's "greatest talent" Andres Iniesta.
Goals from Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski boosted Barca's title bid as they clinched a 2-1 win at the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Wednesday, with the Blaugrana hanging on after Jules Kounde's late own goal.
While Pedri missed two decent opportunities before Raphinha's opener, the 20-year-old created two chances and managed a game-high 30 passes in the final third during an impressive display.
Speaking after Barca piled more pressure on title rivals Real Madrid – who host Valencia on Thursday – Xavi heaped praise on the diminutive midfielder.
"He is a player who is on another level, I have seen very few like him," Xavi said. "He is talented, he is at the level of Iniesta, but Andres had a continuity to the point that he is still playing.
"Andres is the greatest talent I've seen in Spanish football but Pedri is very similar to him. He can make a difference, he is already doing it."
Pedri was not the only young player to shine for Barca, as Alejandro Balde recorded his fourth assist of the season from left-back to tee up Raphinha's goal.
Bayern Munich's Jamal Musiala (six) is the only player aged under 20 to create more goals for team-mates in Europe's top-five leagues this term, leaving Xavi excited by the teenage full-back's potential.
"I'm very happy for Balde, he has tremendous potential both in defence and in attack," Xavi said. "He gives us superiority by driving and that is very difficult to see in football.
"He has to exploit his potential even more, we encourage him to be transcendent, he is both a full-back and a winger at times.
"Luckily we have three spectacular full-backs in Marcos [Alonso], [Jordi] Alba and Balde. He's so young and has this capacity, it is a joy to see him play."
Barca's victory took them to 50 points after 19 games of the campaign. The Blaugrana have brought up a half-century of points by the season's midway mark on five previous occasions (in 2008-09, 2010-11, 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2017-18), only failing to win the title once when doing so (in 2013-14).
However, Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini felt his side matched the leaders and had been undone by a free-kick being taken from the wrong position in the build-up to the opener.
"It was a balanced game that anyone could win and it was decided by two set-pieces. The first goal is controversial," the former Manchester City boss said.
"First it was a foul on Aitor Ruibal and it was not given, then they took the foul 20 metres further forward than they should have and caught us off guard."
Jofra Archer reflected on a "surreal" feeling after a "long road" back from injury following his six-wicket haul for England in Wednesday's ODI victory over South Africa.
The fast bowler has endured a torrid time with injuries across the last three years and had not featured for England in any format since March 2021, before the white-ball series against the Proteas.
Archer managed just one wicket for 81 runs on his long-awaited return as England succumbed to a 27-run opening defeat on Friday in Bloemfontein.
The 27-year-old was rested as South Africa wrapped up the ODI series with a five-wicket win in the second encounter, but helped England avoid a 3-0 whitewash in the last clash.
He took 6-40, the third-best bowling figures for England in an ODI, as England cruised to a 59-run victory after Jos Buttler paved the way with a dominant 131 in the first innings.
"It is good being back. It has been a long road," Archer said after his maiden five-wicket haul in 50-over international cricket.
"This is a small tick but I want to see how I am in April, June, July and September.
"Being back after however many weeks, months it is kind of surreal. This is just the first series, there is loads of time to get the fine-tuning done."
A fearsome pace-bowling display reinvigorated memories of the 2019 Cricket World Cup victory and the Ashes series in the same year when Archer caused Australia problems with his aggressive style.
"He is like gold dust," former England captain Nasser Hussain told Sky Sports. "He is so valuable for English cricket and world cricket.
"What I took today, was not just his class and wicket-taking potential, but what I've missed is just the effortless grace he has."
Archer will head to the Indian Premier League to test his T20 credentials before returning to train for the upcoming Ashes series with Australia, which starts on June 16.
Former England captain Michael Atherton wants the star bowler to be managed carefully, though, with his previous injuries remaining a concern.
"Back and elbow are absolutely critical so there would have been some doubt there about whether he would get back," Atherton told Sky Sports.
"He's got some way to go yet to show he can do it across formats and then cope with an ever-demanding schedule but it was a wonderful day for him."
Kylian Mbappe's injury "does not seem very serious", Paris Saint-Germain head coach Christophe Galtier has revealed after the forward limped off against Montpellier.
With Neymar already ruled out of the Ligue 1 match because of muscle fatigue, Mbappe was forced off in the 21st minute of PSG's 3-1 victory on Tuesday and clutched his hamstring as he went straight down the tunnel.
The forward's injury came after he had missed a penalty, as well as its retake for a Montpellier encroachment, though his team went on to win the game through goals from Lionel Messi, Fabian Ruiz and 16-year-old Warren Zaire-Emery.
But after Sergio Ramos also came off with injury in the first half, there was much concern after the game over some players' availabilities with less than two weeks until the first leg of PSG's Champions League last-16 tie with Bayern Munich.
Galtier eased fears over the injuries to Mbappe and Ramos, though, telling reporters at his post-match news conference: "It doesn't seem very serious, for one as for the other.
"We will see. Obviously they are two important players. On what we saw at half-time and what we said to each other, there is not too much worry.
"Kylian took a blow behind the knee and on the muscle. Is it a contusion, a hematoma. We don't know yet. With the sequence of matches, we prefer not to take any risks.
"Sergio, when falling, hurt his adductor. We think it's not serious. He preferred to come off and not take any risks regarding the discomfort."
Despite PSG winning Ligue 1 last season, head coach Mauricio Pochettino was relieved of his duties after failing to deliver the club's first Champions League.
Galtier is bidding to avoid the same fate, though he says he expected the pressure before he came into the job.
"Yes, automatically when you sign for PSG, there is an obligation to win," he said.
"The Champions League requires you to be ready. We have players coming back, and we've just had a World Cup. I knew before coming that there was pressure."
PSG missed out on a deadline day move for Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech due to the Premier League club reportedly making an error with the necessary paperwork.
When he was asked whether he was disappointed not to have brought Ziyech in, Galtier responded: "You know it. We wanted to replace the departure of Pablo Sarabia.
"Unfortunately, it didn't happen but it's the quirks of the transfer window – you have to accept it."
Julian Nagelsmann had no doubts Joao Cancelo would settle in on his Bayern Munich debut at Mainz after playing under "one of the best managers in the world" in Pep Guardiola.
Bayern have been held to three consecutive 1-1 draws in the Bundesliga, but they ended their winless run with an emphatic 4-0 crushing of Mainz on Wednesday to reach the DFB-Pokal quarter-final.
Manchester City loanee Cancelo started the game, just a day after joining the German champions, and assisted Eric Choupo-Moting's 17th-minute opener with a pinpoint right-wing cross.
Nagelsmann was unsurprised to see wing-back Cancelo flourish on his first start after working under former Bayern head coach Guardiola.
"Joao played a very good game. He was very creative, played some great passes and crosses and also made very good deep runs," he told reporters.
"He was playing under one of the best managers in the world. I just told him to play his game and not to think too much."
Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sane added first-half goals soon after Choupo-Moting's header, before substitute Alphonso Davies secured victory in the latter stages.
Victory marked a significant improvement to Bayern's post-World Cup form, as Nagelsmann hailed an "important" first win in 2023.
He added: "I'm very satisfied with the result and the way we played. Games against Mainz and Bo Svensson's teams are extremely difficult.
"We were more aggressive with the ball going forward than in recent games. We defended well and kept a clean sheet which was important.
"It was a deserved and important win, not only in this competition but also after we failed to win our games since the start of the year. We want more of the same against Wolfsburg on Sunday."
Erik ten Hag hopes Manchester United can continue to call upon their full quota of attacking talents after the returns of Jadon Sancho and Antony Martial.
The two attackers were second-half substitutes in Wednesday's 2-0 EFL Cup semi-final second-leg victory against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford, with Martial marking his return from injury with a goal.
With the aforementioned duo, Marcus Rashford, Antony, Bruno Fernandes and Wout Weghorst among those for Ten Hag in the attacking third, United have a number of options to call upon.
However, any selection headache it may present is of relief to Ten Hag, who has seen his squad have to cope with several absences so far this season.
"The problem is they were not always available until now. We did a lot of compromises during the season so far," he told Sky Sports.
"I hope we come to a point where they are available. If you want to win trophies, they need to be available because we have so many games.
"You saw today, you can do something from the bench, bring in a different dynamic."
United's triple change on the hour mark resulted in the breakthrough against Forest, with Sancho among them in his first appearance for the club since October.
The England international played a different role than was expected, occupying a more central position than one on the wing, with versatility something Ten Hag is keen to capitalise on.
"I think we've done it before. It's a different dynamic, it's what we intended to do," he explained.
"I know he can play as a number ten as well, he can play as a winger. We mix it up and around.
"That's what I like, but the position has to be occupied and the player has to keep the discipline because otherwise it's going to be a mess."
With a spot in the EFL Cup final secure, where Newcastle United await on February 26, the Red Devils can look ahead to a packed fixture schedule that includes a double-header against Leeds United in the Premier League and a two-legged tie with Barcelona in the Europa League.
However, such a congested fixture list is not of concern to Ten Hag, who welcomed the challenge it presents.
"It's a luxury problem, it's how we want it. It's normal for Manchester United to play every third day, so we're looking forward to that," he added.
"Most players are looking forward to playing games more than training. For us, we must make every game better than the previous one.
"We're looking forward to the final. It's great to go to Wembley, to play Newcastle United, who are a great team, but it's far away for us now.
"We're looking forward to the Premier League on Saturday against Crystal Palace."
Hussein El-Shahat matched the exploits of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale by scoring at a third Club World Cup as Al Ahly beat Auckland City 3-0 in the first round.
El-Shahat opened the scoring with a low 25-yard drive on the stroke of half-time in Tangier on Wednesday, before neat one-on-one finishes from Mohamed Sherif and Percy Tau made Al Ahly's victory safe.
The winger's effort took him to three goals in three editions of the tournament, having also found the net for Al Ain in 2018 and with his current club in 2021.
Ronaldo, Messi and Bale are the only other players to net at three separate Club World Cups, while Ronaldo is the competition's all-time top scorer with seven goals.
Ronaldo is also the only player to score for two separate champions at the tournament, doing so for Manchester United in 2008 and Real Madrid in 2016 and 2017, while Messi found the net during Barcelona's triumphant 2009, 2011 and 2015 campaigns.
Wednesday's game was also notable for referee Ma Ning announcing the rationale for his decision to send off Auckland's Adam Mitchell to the crowd after being sent to the VAR monitor, as part of a 12-month trial across FIFA tournaments.
Al Ahly's reward for their comprehensive win is a second-round tie against the Seattle Sounders on Saturday, the winners of which will face European champions Real Madrid in the semi-finals.
Morocco's Wydad Casablanca will face Al Hilal in the other second-round fixture, with the victors going on to face Copa Libertadores champions Flamengo for a spot in the final.
Luke Shaw insisted reaching the EFL Cup final means nothing for Manchester United if they do not go on to win the trophy.
A 2-0 victory at Old Trafford on Wednesday resulted in a comfortable 5-0 aggregate scoreline in the semi-final against Nottingham Forest, booking a date at Wembley against Newcastle United on February 26.
It hands United the chance to end a six-year trophy drought, having not celebrated success since an EFL Cup and Europa League double in the 2016-17 season.
The victory, secured thanks to second-half goals from Anthony Martial and Fred, also continues United's resurgence under the guidance of Erik ten Hag, but Shaw believes it is a meaningless accomplishment unless the trophy is lifted.
"There's no point going to a final if you don't win it," he told Sky Sports.
"It's a massive opportunity for us, it's where we want to be, playing in big games, in big finals, getting this club back to where it should be, challenging for trophies.
"We've now got a big one against Newcastle. They're an extremely good team and it's going to be a very tough game, but it's a big moment for us in where we want to go."
United have come close to success during recent years, including losing in the Europa League final to Villarreal in the 2020-21 campaign.
Bruno Fernandes, who captained United and played a full part in the second leg against Forest, is hoping for a better return this time.
"It's obviously really good. For me, it's been three years at the club, we reached one final and, unfortunately, we didn't win that one," he said.
"But now we have another chance. Before that, there are a lot of games coming so we have to focus on that.
"I'm really happy for the performance of the team, for the goals we created.
"We had more chances and we could have scored more but I think they defended very well. It was tough to get into their defence but we did it, we won and we've got into the final."
Philadelphia Eagles reserve offensive linesman Josh Sills has been indicted on rape and kidnapping charges from an alleged 2019 incident in Ohio, authorities said on Wednesday.
Sills engaged in alleged sexual activity that was not consensual and held a victim against her will in December 2019, Ohio attorney general Dave Yost of Guernsey County said in a news release.
The case, which was immediately reported and investigated, was presented to the grand jury on Tuesday and is being prosecuted by the attorney general's office.
Sills, an undrafted free agent who has played just once this season, was ordered to appear in court in Ohio on February 16, four days after the Eagles' Super Bowl LVII clash against the Kansas City Chiefs.
"Sills may not participate in practices and games or travel with the team while on the Commissioner Exempt List," the NFL said in a statement.
"The matter will be reviewed under the NFL's personal conduct policy."
The Eagles added in a statement: "The organisation is aware of the legal matter involving Josh Sills.
"We have been in communication with the league office and are in the process of gathering more information. We have no further comment at this time."
Sills, who played for West Virginia and Oklahoma State, was signed by the Eagles as an undrafted free agent in April.
It was a bad day for seeds at the Lyon Open, with Petra Martic and Mayar Sherif both crashing out in the round of 16 in France.
Fourth seed Martic made a good start against American opponent Alycia Parks on Wednesday, only to lose 2-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-2.
Sixth seed Sherif was more convincingly beaten as she fell to Czech teenager Linda Noskova 6-3 6-2.
Noskova will face Camila Osorio in the quarter-finals after the Colombian came out on top in a tight clash with Jule Niemeier 7-6 (7-5) 7-5
In the two remaining first-round matches, Jasmine Paolini defeated Rebeka Masarova 6-3 6-2, while Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck will face top seed Caroline Garcia in the last 16 after beating Tamara Korpatsch 6-2 6-4.
At the Thailand Open, it was not much better for seeded players as Anna Kalinskaya and Linda Fruhvirtova both exited on Wednesday.
Fourth seed Kalinskaya was overwhelmed 6-0 in the opening set against Lesia Tsurenko, only to win a tie-break in the second.
The unseeded Ukrainian ultimately won out, though, sealing a 6-0 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 victory to reach the quarter-finals.
Eighth seed Fruhvirtova also managed to level after falling a set behind, and also could not find the win as the 17-year-old was beaten by Tamara Zidansek 6-3 4-6 6-4.
The Slovenian will face Zhu Lin in the last eight after her straight-sets win over Jang Su-jeong, but there was one win for a seed as Xinyu Wang (seventh seed) beat Mirjam Bjorklund 6-3 6-3.
Paris Saint-Germain overcame an injury to Kylian Mbappe as goals from Fabian Ruiz, Lionel Messi and 16-year-old Warren Zaire Emery saw them beat Montpellier 3-1 in Ligue 1 at the Parc-des Princes on Wednesday.
Mbappe had already missed a penalty, and its subsequent retake for a Montpellier encroachment, before coming off in the 21st minute with a worrying-looking injury, clutching his hamstring as he went straight down the tunnel.
But after Messi and Achraf Hakimi both saw goals chalked off for offside, Fabian poked home in the 55th minute before Messi added a second to put Christophe Galtier's men in control.
Arnaud Nordin pulled one back only for Zaire Emery to come off the bench to score his first senior goal, sealing a victory that is PSG's first in three league games and puts their hopes of lifting a ninth title in 11 seasons back on track.
PSG were awarded a penalty after just seven minutes when Christopher Jullien hauled down Sergio Ramos from a free-kick into Montpellier's box.
Mbappe's initial spot-kick was saved by Benjamin Lecomte, but a Montpellier encroachment prompted a retake, only for the France international to see his second attempt tipped onto the post by Lecomte before sending the rebound over the bar.
After Mbappe and Sergio Ramos (head) were both forced off with injury, Messi thought he had put PSG in front with a clever chipped finish, though a VAR review ruled him offside to send the game into the break goalless.
Messi blasted into the side-netting following half-time before Hakimi saw a wonderful strike from distance ruled out, again for offside in the build-up.
But PSG's wait to break the deadlock ended shortly after, Hugo Ekitike nodding across for Fabian to stab home from close-range.
Messi added a second with 18 minutes to play as he coolly dinked into the bottom corner from Fabian's perfectly weighted throughball, though Nordin caused some anxiety for the visitors by finding the bottom corner in the 89th minute.
Substitute Zaire Emery ended any hopes of a Montpellier comeback though by blasting home a third in the dying seconds.
Kyle Shanahan has not yet decided which of Brock Purdy or Trey Lance will be the San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback moving forward – but it will certainly be one of them.
Purdy was one of the surprise stars of this 2022 NFL season, coming to the fore in his rookie year having been the final pick in the draft.
He led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game, only to sustain an elbow injury against the Philadelphia Eagles that significantly hindered San Francisco in a one-sided loss.
Purdy only got his opportunity after Lance, selected third overall in 2021, and backup Jimmy Garoppolo were both injured.
When Purdy's own backup Josh Johnson suffered a concussion against the Eagles, the luckless 49ers had lost four QBs, leaving Purdy to play out the rest of the game without throwing the ball.
Coach Shanahan confirmed on Wednesday there was unlikely to be a return in 2023 for free agent Garoppolo, and the 49ers do not see the need for an alternative veteran starter.
But where that leaves Purdy and Lance remains unclear. Both men are injured with the aim of returning before next season; Purdy tore elbow ligaments, while Lance broke his ankle.
"I know we have two starters on our team right now that I believe we can win with," Shanahan said. "So, when you have that situation, you're not that eager to go looking around."
Purdy and Lance, speaking earlier in the week, each described their excitement to return to fitness and "compete".
Lance added to reporters: "I'm sure it will be a whole story again this year for you guys."
Enzo Fernandez declared his gratitude to Chelsea after his move to the Premier League club was finally formally announced on Wednesday.
World Cup winner Fernandez emerged as a key target for big-spending Chelsea early in January, but it appeared the player would be staying at Benfica after the two clubs failed to agree a deal.
Chelsea did not give up on their man, however, and Tuesday's deadline day saw an agreement reached with Benfica to pay Fernandez's £106.8million (€121m) release clause.
The transfer, which Benfica announced before Chelsea officially unveiled their latest buy on Wednesday, is the most expensive ever by a British club.
Fernandez acknowledged the Blues' long and determined pursuit of his services as he said upon signing: "I am grateful to Chelsea and its ownership for doing everything they could to make me a part of this project.
"I'm happy and excited to join the Pride of London, to play in the best league in the world and to compete for the biggest trophies.
"I can't wait to play in front of our fans and help my team-mates on and off the pitch."
Chelsea owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali added: "In Enzo, we are signing a World Cup winner and one of the brightest talents in global football.
"We are excited to add him to Graham [Potter]'s squad, and we are sure he will form an important part of our team going forward.
"Enzo has demonstrated his ability at the very highest levels, so we're looking forward to seeing what he will do in Chelsea blue."
Kylian Mbappe limped off injured in Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 clash against Montpellier on Wednesday, raising concerns over his fitness for the upcoming Champions League encounter against Bayern Munich.
The France international was forced off in the 21st minute and went down the tunnel clutching his hamstring, a worrying sight for PSG fans with less than two weeks until they meet Bayern in the Champions League last 16.
Mbappe came off with his team drawing 0-0 away at Montpellier, though he had already endured a tough start to the match having missed two penalties to open the scoring at Stade de la Mosson.
After Sergio Ramos was brought down by Christopher Jullien, referee Jeremie Pignard pointed to the spot, and it appeared a Montpellier's player encroachment would give Mbappe the chance to redeem himself after his initial penalty was saved by Benjamin Lecomte.
But Mbappe saw his second attempt come back off the right post before he fired the rebound over to keep the game goalless.
Mbappe's injury was not PSG's only injury concern in the first half of the match as Ramos then limped off in the 32nd minute, casting yet more doubt over who Christophe Galtier will have to pick from as his side look to get past Bayern and reach the Champions League quarter-finals.
The first leg is set to be played at the Parc des Princes on February 14, before the return fixture at the Allianz Arena on March 8.
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