After years of fighting for yards in the NFL, former running back Le’Veon Bell is scheduled to make his professional boxing debut against ex-UFC fighter Uriah Hall on the Jake Paul-Anderson Silva undercard on October 29. 

Bell, a two-time first-team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowl selection who ran for 6,554 yards in 96 games over an eight-year NFL career, will enter the four-round bout in Glendale, Arizona after recording a knockout of fellow former NFL running back Adrian Peterson in the fifth round of an exhibition on September 10. 

"As soon as Most Valuable Promotions approached me about joining the Paul-Silva pay-per-view, I told them I want in and didn't care who the opponent was," the 30-year-old Bell said. 

"Uriah Hall is going to feel my punching power and tap out like he's getting submitted. He is not built like me." 

Hall, 38, spent nine years in the UFC before announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts in August after his second straight loss. This will also be his professional boxing debut. 

Hall finished with a 17-11 record in MMA, and his eight knockouts/technical knockouts matched Anderson Silva and Thiago Silva for the most in UFC middleweight history. 

"Le'Veon Bell, I hope you bring your best," Hall said. "I know I will." 

Substitutes Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial fired Manchester United to a 3-2 Europa League victory against Omonia Nicosia.

The hosts took the lead after 34 minutes in Cyprus on Thursday when a quick counter-attack ended with Karim Ansarifard rifling into the roof of the net.

But Erik ten Hag rang the changes for the second half and Rashford helped himself to a double either side of a Martial strike to give the Red Devils all three points, with Nikolas Panagiotou scoring a late consolation.

United have now won six of their last seven Europa League away games and remain second in Group E, three points behind leaders Real Sociedad.

Cristiano Ronaldo came close to scoring his 700th club goal with a fierce drive in the first half and Bruno Fernandes hit the crossbar. Fabiano made a great stop to tip Antony's effort wide at full stretch, before Omonia punished United for their profligacy.

Tyrell Malacia was caught in possession and the hosts steamed forward on the break. Bruno perfectly played in Ansarifard, who fired past David de Gea.

Rashford was introduced at half-time and levelled for United within eight minutes of coming on, latching onto a sublime Fernandes diagonal before cutting onto his right foot and smashing home.

Martial put the visitors in front just a minute after making his way onto the pitch, as a clever Rashford flick teed him up to lash into the bottom corner.

Ronaldo hit the woodwork late on, but provided an assist as his cross-shot picked out Rashford at the back post to tap in for his second.

Omonia grabbed a goal back through Panagiotou, but United saw the game out to earn an important victory.

South Africa claimed a fourth successive ODI victory over India as they kick-started their three-match series with a nine-run win in Lucknow, despite Sanju Samson's efforts.

With rain reducing the match to 40 overs per innings, India won the toss and put the tourists into bat on Thursday.

Despite a flurry of wickets between the 13th and 16th overs, with Shardul Thakur (2-35) the pick of India's bowlers, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller remained unbeaten on 74 and 75 respectively to guide the Proteas to 249-4.

Quinton de Kock scored 48 from 54 deliveries before being dismissed by Ravi Bishnoi, but Miller and Klaasen combined for a 139-run partnership to see out the innings.

Wayne Parnell and Kagiso Rabada set about damaging India's response, with Shubman Gill and Shikhar Dhawan falling inside the opening six overs.

More quickfire losses followed for India in the 17th and 18th overs – Ruturaj Gaikwad stumped and Ishan Kishan caught out – but the hosts had won their last seven ODIs and had resistance in them.

Shreyas Iyer's 50 included eight fours, before he was dismissed by Lungi Ngidi (3-52), yet with Samson, India had hope.

The wicketkeeper struck an unbeaten 86, leading a team flurry of 63 runs off the final five overs. The onslaught ultimately came too late, though.

Samson's stand not enough

India's wicketkeeper batted superbly, striking 12 boundaries in a career-best innings and holding firm against South Africa's deadly attack. He had decent support from Shardul Thakur (33), though in the end could not carry the tail through. 

South Africa have not lost to India in a bilateral ODI series since February 2018, and the rest of the hosts batters must show similar levels to Samson if they are to end that run.

Klaasen and Miller the difference

With India's bowlers failing to perform at their best – Mohammed Siraj failed to take a wicket and Bishnoi was particularly expensive, conceding 69 runs – it still took some fine batting from South Africa's sixth-wicket pair to clinch victory.

Between them, Klaasen and Miller hit 16 boundaries, including five sixes, to ultimately take the game away from India.

Lothar Matthaus has urged England to start Jude Bellingham in every match at the World Cup in Qatar.

The Three Lions head to the tournament in poor form, failing to win any of their past six competitive matches, their worst sequence of results ever before a major tournament.

Questions regarding Gareth Southgate's first-choice XI remain, with the manager staying loyal to those who performed well in the 2018 World Cup and last year's European Championship.

However, Borussia Dortmund star Bellingham has worked his way into the side and started England's last three matches, with Bayern Munich and West Germany great Matthaus believing that streak should continue in the upcoming tournament.

"He's someone English football fans need to be hugely excited about," the 61-year-old Bundesliga television pundit told FourFourTwo.

"With his mentality, he's not somebody that needs to be treated as a young player who hopes for a few minutes here and there, he's a player who should be starting every match.

"He's becoming an important part of the national team and, in my opinion, he has the potential to be one of the best midfielders England have ever produced.

"I played against some pretty good ones myself and I see those qualities in him."

England begin their group stage campaign against Iran on November 21, then tackling the United States and Wales in Group B.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi has confirmed Qatar 2022 will be his last World Cup.

The mercurial Paris Saint-Germain forward will attempt to lift the trophy for the first time after helping his country win the Copa America last year.

Messi, 35, says he will not play in another World Cup following the showpiece in Qatar, which starts on November 20.

He told Star+: "This is my last World Cup, surely, yes."

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner does not believe Argentina go into the tournament as the favourites to be crowned champions.

He added: "We are not the top favourites. I think there are other teams that are above us today.

"We arrived at a good moment because of how things turned out and with a very strong group. Afterwards, in a World Cup anything can happen, it's very difficult. The favourites are not always the ones who end up winning.

"I see similar things from the group with the one from 2014. We can't wait to get together."

The 2014 World Cup was the closest Messi has come to winning the tournament, with Argentina beaten by Germany in the final.

Novak Djokovic is feeling "physically fresh and mentally motivated" after maintaining his positive form with victory over Botic Van De Zandschulp in round two of the Astana Open.

The Serbian brushed aside Cristian Garin in his opener and did likewise in Thursday's match with Van De Zandschulp, prevailing in just 71 minutes in the Kazakh capital.

Djokovic has now won six matches in a row and is seeking back-to-back titles after triumphing at the Tel Aviv Open last week – his 89th ATP singles crown.

He reeled off five games in a row in the second set to advance 6-3 6-1, with that his 30th tour-level victory of the year.

And as Djokovic nears the end of a rather mixed season, the 21-time grand slam winner is in the mood to add further titles to his collection.

"My season is different from any other so don't look at my season in comparison to others," he said in his post-match interview.

"I haven't played for over three months before Israel so I definitely am physically and mentally motivated to do well."

Awaiting Djokovic in the quarter-final is Karen Khachanov, who eliminated Marin Cilic with a 2-6 6-3 6-3 comeback victory.

World number four Daniil Medvedev also advanced thanks to a 6-3 6-2 win over Emil Ruusuvuori, while Hubert Hurkacz beat Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-4.

At the Japan Open, third seed Taylor Fritz defeated Hiroki Moriya in three sets and will now face fifth seed Nick Kyrgios, who recovered to beat Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 6-2 6-2.

Denis Shapovalov, looking to build on his run to the Seoul Open final, got the better of home hope Rio Noguchi with a 6-3 6-1 win to advance to the quarter-finals.

Chris Eubank Jr's scheduled bout with Conor Benn has been postponed after the latter returned a positive drugs test.

On Wednesday, it emerged 26-year-old Benn had tested positive for the banned substance clomifene last month.

The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) subsequently prohibited the fight from taking place, though promoters on both sides attempted to force a U-turn.

However, their efforts were unsuccessful, with the fight now officially postponed.

"After discussions with various parties, we have taken the decision to formally postpone the bout between Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn," a joint statement from the promoters read on Thursday.

"It is undeniable that the BBBofC's decision to withdraw their sanctioning was procedurally flawed and without due process. That remains a legal issue between the promoters and the board which we intend to pursue.

"However, whilst there are legal routes to facilitate the fight taking place as planned, we do not believe that it is in the fighters' interests for those to be pursued at such a late stage, or in the wider interests of the sport.

"As promoters, we take our obligations and duties very seriously, and a full investigation will now need to take place. We will be making no further comment at this time and news for ticket holder refunds will follow."

Former Inter and Lazio midfielder Dejan Stankovic has been appointed head coach of Sampdoria, the Serie A club announced on Thursday.

The 44-year-old Serbian succeeds Marco Giampaolo who was sacked on Sunday following a poor start to the season, with Sampdoria bottom of Serie A after picking up just two points from their opening eight matches.

Sampdoria announced Stankovic has signed a contract running until June 2023, with an option to extend the deal for another season.

Capped over 100 times by Yugoslavia and Serbia, Stankovic won Serie A with Lazio in 1999-2000 as well as the European Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup in 1999 during a six-year stint with the club.

He enjoyed further success with Inter where he won five Serie A titles, as well as the Champions League in 2009-10, before retiring in 2013.

Stankovic began his managerial career with Red Star Belgrade, guiding the club to three league titles and two triumphs in the Serbian Cup before resigning in August following a Champions League qualifying defeat to Maccabi Haifa.

LIV Golf players will not be able to secure world ranking points in the next two events despite a new alliance with the MENA Tour 

The Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) on Thursday revealed that no rankings points will be up for grabs in Bangkok this week or Jeddah next week.

That decision comes a day after union between MENA, a Dubai-based tour that has been recognised by OWGR since 2016, and LIV Golf was announced.

MENA explained the alliance would "immediately qualify LIV Golf for OWGR points, starting with the LIV Golf Thailand this week", but that will not be the case.

OWGR said in a statement: "Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) received a communication from the MENA Tour on October 5th, 2022, at 13:05 BST.

"The communication detailed significant changes to the MENA Tour's membership structure along with an outline of the initial series of tournaments in the 2022-23 MENA Tour season.

"OWGR notes that the first two tournaments in this series appeared to be the same as the LIV Golf Invitational Series tournaments in Bangkok and Jeddah. The communication from the MENA Tour included a starting field data file for the Bangkok tournament, confirming that to be the case.

"A review of the changes to the MENA Tour is now under way by the OWGR.

"Notice of these changes given by the MENA Tour is insufficient to allow OWGR to conduct the customary necessary review ahead of the LIV Golf Invitational Bangkok (7-9 October) and LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah (14-16 October).

"Only after the review is complete will a decision be made on awarding points to the MENA Tour's new "Limited Field Tournaments", defined by the MENA Tour in its Regulations as 'any MENA Tour-approved tournament, which comprises of a player field of less than 80 players'.

"Regular official MENA Tour events conducted over 54 or 72 holes with a cut after 36 holes, and its Tour Championship, typically conducted over 54 holes with no cut, remain eligible for inclusion in the OWGR."

All 48 LIV Golf players – including the likes of Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson – last month wrote an open letter to OWGR chairman Peter Dawson requesting points be awarded for both past and future events on the breakaway tour.

They stated that an OWGR without LIV "would be incomplete and inaccurate."

Jorge Sampaoli has been appointed as Sevilla coach for the second time, with the former Argentina boss succeeding Julen Lopetegui.

The 62-year-old, who was in charge of Marseille last season, was originally handed the top job at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in June 2016, succeeding Unai Emery.

During his lone year at the club, he took them to a fourth-place finish in LaLiga, and the round of 16 in the Champions League.

Now, he returns following Lopetegui's exit amid a dismal start to the 2022-23 season for Sevilla, with the club 17th in LaLiga and similarly adrift in Europe following a 4-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.

Sampaoli's immediate remit will be ensuring a swift turnaround in fortunes for the club, starting with this weekend's clash with Athletic Club. He has signed a deal running until the end of June 2024.

A return trip to Dortmund will present an opportunity for Sevilla to potentially turn around their flagging fortunes in the Champions League.

South Africa all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius has been ruled out of the T20 World Cup with a fractured left thumb.

Pretorius sustained the injury during the Proteas' victory over India in the final match of the T20I series on Tuesday.

The 33-year-old will play no part in the three-match ODI series against India or the upcoming World Cup in Australia.

"The nature of the injury requires surgical intervention and Dwaine will consult the Cricket South Africa designated hand surgeon on arrival in South Africa," Cricket South Africa chief medical officer Dr Shuaib Manjra said.

"Normal rehabilitation procedures will follow to ensure he speedily returns to playing cricket."

Pretorius was the joint-highest wicket-taker for South Africa in the T20 World Cup last year.

He is set to be replaced by Marco Jansen or Andile Phehlukwayo, who were named as reserves along with Bjorn Fortuin.

South Africa had already lost batter Rassie van der Dussen due to a fractured finger.

Harry Kane has paid his respects to "truly remarkable man" Gian Piero Ventrone following the Tottenham fitness coach's death.

Tottenham confirmed on Thursday that Ventrone, who joined the club last November as part of Antonio Conte's backroom staff, had passed away.

Ventrone was nicknamed 'The Marine' because of his tough training sessions, yet he was well respected by Tottenham's players.

Kane was among those to pay tribute to Ventrone on social media, saying he will forever be grateful for the advice received from the Italian.

"A truly remarkable man. I'm devastated by the passing of our coach Gian Piero," Kane posted. "My love and strength is with his family at this time. 

"His words and wisdom will live on with me for the rest of my life and I'm just grateful I had the opportunity to spend time with him. RIP Prof."

Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Ventrone died on Thursday in Naples at the age of 62 after a battle with leukaemia.

Ventrone spent a decade at Juventus and also worked for Catania, JS Suning, GZ Evergrande and Ajaccio, prior to reuniting with Conte in north London.

He was credited with helping to drive a radical improvement in the Tottenham players' fitness, with forward Richarlison among those to benefit following his arrival from Everton.

"Since I arrived at Tottenham, Gian has been a huge inspiration to me," the Brazil international said. "He always said that I would help him a lot during the season.

"But who helped me was him... much more than he can imagine. Today we woke up to the terrible news of his passing and we are all devastated.

"We will continue to play for you, my friend, who taught us to never give up! Thank you so much and rest in peace!"

Ventrone had two stints at Juventus between 1996 and 1999 and 2001 and 2004, helping to shape the side that won the Champions League in the first of those spells.

The Italian giants paid their own tribute on Thursday in a statement on their official website.

The statement read: "We will always remember his attention to detail, his work philosophy, and perhaps his greatest talent, the understanding that football – and especially the fundamental components of conditioning and athleticism – was gradually entering a new era.

"A new era that, in part, he helped write."