Two-time All-Star centre Nikola Vucevic is returning to the Chicago Bulls after agreeing to a three-year, $60 million contract extension, his agents told ESPN on Wednesday.

The new deal keeps Vucevic from hitting the open market when the NBA free agency period begins Friday. The 32-year-old would have been among the top available big men after averaging 17.6 points, 11 rebounds and 3.2 assists while playing in all 82 games in 2022-23, the final season of a four-year, $100 million contract he signed in 2019.

“I’m excited to continue my journey as a Chicago Bull,” Vucevic said in a team release. "Since I have arrived in Chicago, everyone in the organisation has been incredibly welcoming to my family and me. I am motivated more than ever to achieve our mutual goals as a team."

Vucevic will be entering his third full season with Chicago after the Bulls acquired him from the Orlando Magic at the trade deadline in March 2021. He put together his best season that year by averaging a career-high 23.4 points along with 11.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 70 games.

The 12-year veteran, along with star scorers Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, helped the Bulls end a four-year playoff drought the following season. Though Chicago missed the playoffs this past season, Vucevic put up identical numbers to his 2021-22 per-game averages in points, rebounds and assists while shooting 52 per cent from the field, his highest rate since 2014-15.

Vucevic has averaged a points-rebounds double-double in five consecutive seasons and owns a solid 34.8 per cent career average on 3-point attempts. The 2011 first-round pick has averaged 17 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 823 career regular-season games. 

“During his time in Chicago, Nikola has proven that he is a special player both on and off the court,” Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnsiovas said. “He has produced at an elite level since we acquired him and will remain an integral part of our foundation moving forward.

"Nikola’s willingness to do whatever is asked of him to help us win, while also being an established veteran leader for our group, makes him a valuable component of the culture of our organisation. He is a consummate professional and tremendous teammate, which plays a big role in making us an attractive destination for other players. We are excited to have him continue to be part of our journey."

Retaining Vucevic was considered a top offseason priority for Karnisovas, who paid a high price to acquire the Montenegro native two years ago. Chicago sent talented young centre Wendell Carter Jr. to Orlando in the trade along with two first-round picks, one of which was used on rising star Franz Wagner. 

While bringing back Vucevic solidifies Chicago's frontcourt, Karnisovas still has big decisions to make regarding the backcourt with point guard Lonzo Ball expected to miss a second straight season with a career-threatening knee injury. Fellow guard Coby White, the Bulls' top bench scorer last season, will be a restricted free agent.

England Under-21s boss Lee Carsley hailed the cutting edge shown by his side in the opening minutes of their 2-0 victory over Germany in the European Under-21 Championship.

The Young Lions hit the front after just four minutes when Cameron Archer latched onto a threaded pass from Jacob Ramsey before slotting the ball past Noah Atubolu, and they made it 2-0 with 21 minutes on the clock as Harvey Elliott scored a superb solo effort.

England secured a quarter-final date with Portugal on Sunday by topping the group with three straight 2-0 wins over their group-stage opponents, while holders Germany were sent crashing out.

Carsley told UEFA.com: “We were fortunate to take our chances. Germany had some really good chances but didn’t take them. We’re really happy with the result but more importantly the performance.

“We thought it was a really difficult game. We knew preparing for the game that it was going to be a tough one.

“We were lucky enough to play Germany in one of the international windows in a friendly. We knew the quality that they had. Tactically they’re very difficult to break down and you’ve seen that in the game today.”

England have yet to concede a goal in the tournament having kept three straight clean sheets, and Carsley praised the performance of his defensive unit.

He continued: “We talk about the whole team defending, as opposed to just the defence.

“I thought Levi (Colwill) and Taylor (Harwood-Bellis) as well as Jarrad (Branthwaite) and Charlie (Cresswell) have done outstandingly at centre-back, and obviously James (Trafford) in goal.

“As a whole, we’ve defended really well from full-back areas, with midfielders and forwards. It was really pleasing to see, right at the end of the game, players making blocks on the edge of the box and blocking crosses. It’s good to see.”

Kevin Pietersen accused England of an “absolutely shambolic” opening day at Lord’s after Australia’s batters took control of the second Ashes Test.

Pietersen, who was given the honour of ringing the bell before the start of play, offered a stinging assessment of England’s efforts with the ball after the tourists reached the close on 339 for five.

Only two late wickets in four balls from part-time spinner Joe Root prevented the end-of-play scorecard looking even worse, Travis Head and Cameron Green both falling to unforced errors.

A scattering of live green grass and overhead clouds that were gloomy enough to warrant floodlights throughout the day appeared to hint at ideal conditions for England’s five-strong seam attack, but it was the tourists who dictated the tone as half-centuries from David Warner (66), Travis Head (77) and Steve Smith (85no) left them well placed.

“Not a lot’s caught my eye from an English perspective, it’s been shambolic. Absolutely shambolic,” the 104-cap veteran told Sky Sports.

“You have overhead conditions, you have wickets that suit your bowlers and you’ve got bowlers running in at 78, 79, 80 miles an hour.

“Now it’s one thing walking here, swanning around, saying ‘this is a wonderful team to play in, we’re creating the best environment’. But this is not Ashes cricket.”

Pietersen also took issue with an apparent lack of edge on the field – just a week on from Australian criticism over Ollie Robinson’s expletive-filled send-off of Usman Khawaja at Edgbaston.

“It’s all too easy, too nice. Are you telling me Ricky Ponting in 2005 is going to be talking to Geraint Jones? You think Michael Vaughan is going to be stood next to Justin Langer saying ‘hey mate, what a cool day, it’s overcast, it’s beautiful, what an awesome day, environment here at Lord’s – what do you think of the wicket’?

“Are you joking? Are you absolutely joking? I just hope they’re in their dressing room now and the England coach is giving them the biggest hammering and saying it’s absolutely not good enough.”

Josh Tongue was the pick of the five English quicks on his first Ashes outing, topping the pace charts and snapping up the wickets of Khawaja and David Warner either side of the lunch break.

The 25-year-old saw his first three overs smacked for 24 but revealed a word of advice from Ollie Robinson about utilising the famous Lord’s slope helped him open his account against Australia.

“I spoke to Robbo just before lunch about trying to use the slope a bit more,” said Tongue.

“I was trying to wobble it away from the bat and he said ‘why don’t you try and get the ball coming back into him’. Getting Khawaja just before lunch was crucial and then, obviously, I was trying to do the same to David.

“He’s a very hard batter to bowl at. If you miss your length you’re going to the boundary, that’s how I felt, so the wicket came at a very good time for the team.”

Invited to rate the Warner dismissal, which skidded between bat and pad and lifted the bails with precision to cap an outstanding over, Tongue added: “I haven’t properly looked back yet, but listening to the lads it was a very good ball.”

Warner opted to shine a light on Head’s performance after the latter hit 14 boundaries to pile the pressure on England in the evening session.

“Trav is Trav, that’s the way he plays,” he said.

“It’s exciting and we’re just lucky he’s on our team. He can take it away from you. Striking at over a hundred is exceptional. He just finds a way.”

County Championship holders Surrey suffered their first home defeat in 19 first-class matches as Lancashire completed a 123-run victory in just 45 minutes on day four at the Kia Oval.

Will Williams picked up four for 13 in just 4.3 overs on the final morning as Surrey were routed for 84, while Tom Bailey finished with five for 48.

The pair took only 9.3 overs to claim Surrey’s last five second-innings wickets to end a run of first-class games at the Oval in which the Division One leaders have won 12 and drawn the other six.

Kent’s spinners finally overcame a late flourish from the Northamptonshire tail to wrap up an innings victory at Wantage Road and climb to eighth in the table.

Joe Denly claimed four wickets and Hamid Qadri three as the home side were bowled out for 369 despite an entertaining ninth-wicket stand of 70 between Ben Sanderson and Jack White.

In Division Two, a magnificent unbeaten century by Peter Handscomb led a successful rearguard action as Leicestershire secured a draw with leaders Durham.

The Australian wicketkeeper-batter finished on 136 not out before bad light ended the contest with the visitors two wickets away from victory with 10 overs left in the match.

Leicestershire, who moved up to second, ended the match on 259 for eight chasing 439, with Durham having earlier declared at 343 for four after Alex Lees (145) and David Bedingham (145 not out) had shared a 243-run stand for the third wicket.

Sussex’s last-wicket pairing of Oli Carter and Henry Shipley survived over 20 overs to frustrate Glamorgan and eke out a draw in Cardiff.

The visitors finished on 273 for nine, 85 runs behind, with Carter on 55 not out after being dropped from two difficult chances, and number 11 Shipley unbeaten on eight.

Worcestershire centurion Gareth Roderick and Ed Pollock batted through sizeable chunks of the final day to thwart Derbyshire’s push for their first victory of the campaign.

Roderick battled away for five-and-a-quarter hours to make 123, while Pollock played a knock based on determined defence to register 56 off 189 balls spanning nearly four hours.

Their efforts were largely responsible for defying the Derbyshire attack as only four wickets fell in the entire day, which started with the hosts resuming on 70 for two needing another 271 just to make their opponents bat again.

Gloucestershire all-rounder Ollie Price completed an excellent maiden first-team century during an otherwise low-key final day at Headingley as their clash with Yorkshire finished in a draw.

Price moved from 97 not out overnight to reach three figures in the day’s first over as the visitors were bowled out for 464 in reply to a first-innings 550 for nine.

He was last man out for 113 off 162 balls to loanee left-arm spinner Dan Moriarty, who finished with five for 139 on his Yorkshire debut.

The home side started their second innings with a lead of 86 and reached 200 for six in the 48th over when rain stopped play at 4.30pm.

Andy Murray branded a contentious poster of past and present Wimbledon greats a “disaster” as he highlighted the lack of prominence given to female players.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Murray was a notable absentee from the official All England Club artwork which features 15 famous players walking down a staircase.

Young pair Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz – neither of whom have made an impact at the Championships yet – stand in the foreground of the painting, followed by a selection of “epic” rivalries, beginning with Murray’s long-time competitors Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

Of the six women depicted, only Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova are among the front 11 players, with the other four, including Serena and Venus Williams, at the back.

While Murray’s uncle and brother criticised his exclusion, the Scot insisted that is not the issue as he spoke about the poster for the first time since its release.

With a smile, he initially said: “It was a disaster, wasn’t it? I don’t need to elaborate any more on it, it’s pretty obvious if you see the poster.”

Asked about four of the front five groups of rivals being men, he continued: “That was what was slightly strange.

“I guess the players that are on the poster are ones that have had incredible careers and have been unbelievably successful at Wimbledon.

“But elsewhere are some of the greatest players of all time.

“For me, Alcaraz and Sinner are unbelievable players but it just seems strange that they were all sort of behind them.

“I personally don’t really care that much about it. But I can see when you look at it’s like, ‘that does look a bit strange’.

“Me not being on it is certainly not a problem.”

Murray’s final warm-up ahead of Wimbledon ended in a 6-4 6-4 loss to world number six world number six Holger Rune at the Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic.

The 36-year-old, who is ranked 39th, goes into his home slam unseeded and awaiting his fate in Friday’s draw.

While he would relish another meeting with reigning champion Djokovic before the end of his career, Murray is keen to avoid star names in the early rounds, albeit he is ready for that scenario.

“Ideally that wouldn’t happen right at the beginning,” he said of facing a top seed. “I would obviously want that to happen probably later in the tournament.

“But at the same time, because of the situation, I need to be prepared for that. I need to be ready to play against anyone right from the start.

“I’ve had some pretty tough first-round draws in the slams over the last couple of years so I need to to be ready for that and I think I am.

“Obviously, I would love to play against Novak again. I can’t remember the last time we played. It’s a long time ago.”

Murray moved well on court against 20-year-old Dane Rune at the Hurlingham Club but could not capitalise on his chances as he slipped to defeat.

Prior to last week’s first-round exit at Queen’s Club, he had won 10 successive matches in claiming back-to-back grass-court titles in Surbiton and Nottingham.

“Form-wise, I think has been good,” he said of his recent displays. “There are some positive signs there.

“Maybe the other players would see it differently but I don’t think there are loads of guys that would want to draw me in the first round. That’s a good place to be.”

Tom Pidcock believes the racing at this year’s Tour de France will be different as a result of Gino Mader’s death at the Tour de Suisse less than two weeks ago.

Mader, who was 26, died on June 16 as a result of injuries suffered when he crashed into a ravine on a high-speed descent, and rider safety has been a hot topic in the build up to Saturday’s opening stage.

Pidcock, who was also racing in Switzerland, lit up the Tour de France on debut last year with an incredible descent off the Galibier setting up his victory on the Alpe d’Huez.

But asked if he expected the approach to racing to be impacted by what happened in Switzerland, the 23-year-old said: “I think so. I think especially for everyone who was at the race, that was pretty hard hitting.

“I didn’t see a single rider take any risks after that incident on the last two stages. Personally I think one of the things that hit me was it happened descending which is something that I love.

“It kind of showed me what the consequences can be when it goes wrong. I never take uncalculated risks when I’m descending, I don’t take unnecessary risks but things can happen when we’re riding down a descent at 100 kilometres an hour in lycra.”

Pidcock heads into this year’s Tour aiming to better last year’s debut. For him, that means being more consistent in the general classification so there will be no deliberately losing time to get in a breakaway. If he is to win another stage, he wants it to be from the group of favourites.

England Under-21s made it three wins from three and dumped Germany out of the European Under-21 Championship with a 2-0 win in their final group game in Batumi.

Two goals in the opening 21 minutes from Cameron Archer and Harvey Elliott were enough to secure another three points as England topped Group C with maximum points while holders Germany were sent crashing out without a win to their name.

England made an explosive start and hit the front after just four minutes when Jacob Ramsey’s clever through ball found Archer and he calmly tucked the ball past Noah Atubolu to make it 1-0.

The Young Lions nearly doubled their advantage six minutes later when the ball fell to Ramsey inside the area but his low drive went wide of the far post.

Lee Carsley’s side did make it two in the 21st minute thanks to a wonderful solo effort from Elliott. The Liverpool midfielder collected the ball inside his own half, drove at the German defence into the penalty area before coolly slotting home to make it 2-0.

Germany needed to win to have any chance of qualifying and their first chance came on the half-hour mark but Brentford forward Kevin Schade’s shot from inside the area found the hands of James Trafford.

Schade was Germany’s main threat and he had another chance to pull one back just before half-time when he sprinted down the right-hand side but saw his effort tipped away by the keeper.

Germany may have been facing an early exit but they posed little threat in the second half as England continued to probe, with half-chances falling to Cole Palmer after Elliott had forced a great save from Atubolu.

James Garner came close to a third with 15 minutes to go after some neat link-up play but the Everton midfielder could not steer his effort on target from close range.

Germany’s best chance of the game came three minutes from time when Finn Ole Becker’s powerful deflected effort was palmed away by Trafford, who secured another clean sheet alongside three straight 2-0 wins.

England bowled themselves into trouble on day one of the second Ashes Test at Lord’s, before two wickets in an over from part-timer Joe Root offered a late morale boost.

Desperate to produce a statement of intent after their tense two-wicket defeat at Edgbaston, the hosts failed to make the most of Ben Stokes winning the toss in helpful conditions as Australia reached the close on 339 for five.

It could have been much worse for the hosts but Root, asked to carry the spin burden alone due to concerns over Moeen Ali’s injured index finger, halted the tide just as it threatened to carry England away.

Travis Head had clattered 77 at better than a run-a-ball when he was stumped racing down the track at a delivery that started wide and turned even further from the bat, then all-rounder Cameron Green threw his wicket away for a duck in a vain attempt to slog Root down the ground.

Two cheap wickets in four balls did not completely mitigate two-and-a-half sessions of deeply uninspired work from a lethargic seam attack, but it did halt a 122-run stand between Head and Steve Smith that was quickly heading towards game-changing territory.

Smith remains at large on 85 not out and with the chance to bat England out of the match on day two.

Prior to Root’s unexpected intervention, England had relied on rookie seamer Josh Tongue for two of their three wickets as James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Ollie Robinson and Stokes himself all toiled without success.

Tongue produced two fine deliveries to clean bowl both openers, Usman Khawaja offering no stroke on the cusp of lunch and David Warner (66) cut in two by a gem, but even he was not exempt from the travails which swamped his team-mates.

The 25-year-old went at 4.88 over the course of the day, with Broad wicketless and Robinson visibly down on pace as he returned one for 86.

Stokes’ three-over cameo cost him 21 and although Anderson kept a lid on the scoring, he was worrying subdued for the third innings in a row.

Stokes could hardly disguise his grin when Pat Cummins called incorrectly at the toss, eagerly sending the tourists in under cloudy skies on a green-tinged pitch.

When the floodlights came on just before the start of play, the scene seemed set for the home attack to have some fun, but the anticipated clatter of wickets failed to materialise.

The game was interrupted after a solitary Anderson over when two Just Stop Oil protesters invaded the pitch brandishing orange paint powder, an incursion that ended with wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow lifting one of the activists off his feet and carrying him off the pitch while Stokes shepherded the other into the arms of security.

Warner and Khawaja did not allow the break to disrupt their concentration, although the latter offered a low half-chance off Broad that Root would have done outstandingly to hold.

The bowling looked laboured at times, with Robinson struggling to crack 80mph, but Broad should have picked up Warner on 20 when Ollie Pope put down a regulation edge at fourth slip, an echo of missed opportunities in the first Test.

Pope spent the latter half of the day off the field receiving ice treatment for a shoulder injury and England will hope their vice-captain’s batting is not affected by the issue.

Warner sought to impose himself, bending the knee to sweep Broad and Robinson and hooking Tongue for six as his first three overs leaked 24 runs. But he showed plenty of character to get his side up and running either side of lunch.

He dismissed Khawaja moments before the break, nipping one down the slope and into the off stump, and saved something even better for Warner after the restart.

He put together a deliciously difficult over to the left-hander and capped it in style with one that speared between bat and pad as it flicked the bails.

That brought Smith and Marnus Labuschagne together, fresh from the pair’s double failure at Lord’s. Smith was busy immediately but Labuschagne was shaky until a sequence of five boundaries from eight legal deliveries warmed him up.

Both were well settled as they took tea at 190 for two, but Robinson finally got himself into the contest in the evening session when he got one to stand up off the seam and take Labuschagne’s outside edge for 47.

England briefly had an opening, but a whirlwind knock from Head closed it emphatically. He laid into a tiring attack with gusto, hitting 14 boundaries as weariness and sloppy fielding began to take a toll.

With Smith showing signs of tunnel vision and a couple of DRS decisions correctly going against England, it took unforced error to lift Stokes’ side.

Root was apparently biding time until the second new ball but found a some bite from the rough and tempted Head into a rash charge.

Bairstow did the rest with a smart take and stumping, before Green hacked his third ball high to mid-off to take some of the shine off a strong day for Australia.

The New Jersey Devils and star forward Timo Meier have agreed to an eight-year, $70.4 million extension through the 2030-31 season, the team announced hours before Wednesday's NHL draft.

Acquired from the San Jose Sharks in February, Meier was a restricted free agent who scored a career-high 40 goals this past season. The 26-year-old was an All-Star for the Sharks in 2021-22 and finished that season with 35 goals and a career-high 76 points in 77 games.

"We were excited to acquire Timo at the (trade) deadline, but it's an even greater feeling knowing that he'll be here for the next eight seasons," Devils executive vice president/general manager Tom Fitzgerald said in a statement. "Timo's unique blend of style of play, goal-scoring ability, and physical presence will prove valuable for us."

Meier is the second key player the Devils have locked up on a long contract this offseason. The team previously signed forward Jesper Bratt to an eight-year, $63 million deal earlier this month.

"In talking with him, Timo realised, and I always believed, that this is the right place for him as a player and a person," Fitzgerald said. "We've locked up another piece of our young core that is looking to take that next step together for greater success."

New Jersey also acquired 34-goal scorer Tyler Toffoli from the Calgary Flames on Tuesday to add another proven forward to one of the NHL's up-and-coming teams. After missing the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, the Devils won a franchise-record 52 games in 2022-23 and reached the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The ninth overall pick of the 2015 draft, Meier has recorded 163 goals and 167 assists in 472 career regular-season games and has reached the 30-goal mark in three of his seven NHL seasons. The Swiss native posted nine goals and five assists in 21 regular-season games for New Jersey following the trade, though he managed only two goals in 11 playoff games.

Polish full-back Mateusz Zukowski has left Rangers to join Slask Wroclaw.

The 21-year-old moved to Ibrox on a three-and-a-half-year contract from Lechia Gdansk in January 2022.

However, the Poland Under-21 international made only one first-team appearance, in a Scottish Cup win away to Annan just weeks after his arrival.

Zukowski has been allowed to leave Rangers and return to his homeland for an undisclosed fee.

“Everyone at the club wishes Mateusz Zukowski the very best of luck for the future,” Rangers tweeted as they confirmed his departure.

Meanwhile, Rangers appear to be close to finalising a fifth new signing of the summer, with Brighton forward Abdallah Sima reportedly undergoing a medical on Wednesday ahead of a proposed season-long loan at Ibrox.

The 22-year-old Senegalese played against the Gers for Slavia Prague in the Europa League in March 2021, just months before earning a £7million move to Brighton.

Sima has struggled to establish himself with the Seagulls so far, however. He spent part of his first season in England on loan at Stoke before being farmed out to French Ligue 1 side Angers last term, scoring five goals in 34 appearances as they finished bottom of the table.

Rangers have already signed Kieran Dowell, Dujon Sterling, Jack Butland and Sam Lammers this summer as manager Michael Beale continues reshaping his squad following the departure of high-profile players like Allan McGregor, Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos.

Edouard Mendy has become the third player to leave Chelsea for Saudi Arabia this summer after the club confirmed he has joined Al-Ahli.

A fee of £16million is understood to have been agreed for the goalkeeper, who lost his place in the team to Kepa Arrizabalaga during the second half of last season.

The 31-year-old had risen to become one of the most highly-rated keepers in the world after helping Chelsea to win the Champions League in 2021, but played only once for the club after returning from the World Cup in Qatar, costing his side a goal after a mistake in a 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest in May.

The PA news agency understands that new manager Mauricio Pochettino decided weeks ago that Arrizabalaga would be his first choice to start next season in goal, rendering Senegal international Mendy surplus.

He joins N’Golo Kante and Kalidou Koulibaly in having swapped Stamford Bridge for clubs in the Saudi Professional League, with the pair having joined Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal respectively.

Another Chelsea outcast, Hakim Ziyech, is understood to be on the brink of moving to the Gulf state after a deal was struck for him to join Al-Nassr, where Cristiano Ronaldo also plays.

The club are eager to clear as many of their unwanted players out as possible before June 30 so that the sales can be included in financial accounts for 2022/23.

PA understands confirmation will come this week of Kai Havertz’s £65m move to Premier League rivals Arsenal, after Mateo Kovacic joined champions Manchester City on Tuesday. Ruben Loftus-Cheek has agreed a £15m move to AC Milan.

A £55m bid from Manchester United to sign Mason Mount remains on the table after the England international told Chelsea he wants to leave, but on Wednesday the clubs remained apart in their valuation of the player.

St Mirren have signed Middlesbrough goalkeeper Zach Hemming on a season-long loan

The 23-year-old Englishman has returned for another stint in Scotland after spending the last two campaigns on loan at Kilmarnock, where he made 54 appearances.

Hemming, who is yet to make a first-team appearance for Boro, has also spent time on loan at Darlington and Blyth Spartans.

“I’m delighted to be here,” he told the St Mirren website.

“I remember seeing the team when I was at Kilmarnock and it seems very structured and everyone knows their role in the team.

“The manager knows how capable I am and what I can do so I just want to impress. I can’t wait to get going.”

Hemming arrives at St Mirren at a time when last season’s number one Trevor Carson is being linked with a move away from the Paisley club.

“Zach is someone that we have been looking at for a while,” said manager Stephen Robinson. “We watched him at Kilmarnock and I know the goalkeeping coach at Middlesborough.

“We’ve had really good reports on Zach and we’ve seen him at close hand so I’m very confident that he will come in and do well.

“He’s a young, enthusiastic goalkeeper and we’re delighted to have him in.”

Roma head coach Jose Mourinho has been hit with a 10-day suspension for the start of the Serie A season over comments he made about a referee.

Mourinho has been sanctioned by the national federal court of Italy’s football federation, the FIGC, after describing official Daniele Chiffi as “the worst referee (he) had ever seen” after Roma’s match against Monza on May 3.

The Portuguese, who has also managed Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham, will not be allowed to appear on the touchline or in the club’s dressing room on matchdays during the first 10 days of the new domestic campaign.

He has also been fined 50,000 euros (just over £43,000).

Last week Mourinho was banned for four matches by UEFA for abusing English referee Anthony Taylor at the Europa League final on May 31.