Sean Payton gave his first interview as head coach of the Denver Broncos on Friday, with the focus clearly on building a winning culture.

The Broncos are coming off a disappointing 5-12 season after a tumultuous campaign with first-time head coach Nathaniel Hackett.

They are hopeful Payton will be able to turn things around in a hurry, since he never went worse than 7-9 during his 15-year run as head coach of the New Orleans Saints, with an overall record of 152-89.

He finished his tenure in New Orleans with five consecutive winning seasons, and after a year off, Payton said he feels "recharged and challenged again".

"It's certainly exciting," he said. "I'm looking forward to the challenge, the tradition here is amazing.

"It's going to take a lot of hard work, but our plan is to win, and that's really begun today. We're in the midst of hiring staff – the process was outstanding… it's exciting, it's what I love to do.

"I think we were fortunate enough for a long period of time to [have a winning culture] in New Orleans, and I think it begins with the details – it really begins with the people.

"It's about finding not only the coaches, but all the people involved in this process to be successful. It's really an organisational goal.

"We're planning to win, but then 'here's how'. That involves a lot of details, and it involves a lot of hard work, and that's the exciting part about it.

"When you do this long enough, and all of a sudden you're away for a year, it's not like you jump straight back into it again, you actually start over again from the beginning.

"I'm on the grease board with coach's names up, and you're organising interviews, it can feel overwhelming, but I certainly feel recharged and challenged again."

In a statement, Broncos owner and CEO Greg Penner said he appreciates the rare opportunity to hire such a decorated head coach.

The statement read: "Sean Payton is an outstanding leader and Super Bowl champion with a brilliant offensive mind. He shares our commitment to winning championships for Broncos Country and we're excited to welcome him as our new head coach.

"It is rare in any sport to hire a head coach with Sean's credentials and we appreciate the first-class manner in which the Saints approached this process. We also appreciated the opportunity to meet and learn from other highly qualified, outstanding coaches we interviewed.

"Our goal was to identify a strong leader for the Denver Broncos who is focused on winning, and we found him in coach Payton."

Payton will be tasked with getting production out of franchise quarterback Russell Wilson, who struggled with the worst season of his career after being acquired in a blockbuster trade from the Seattle Seahawks.

Kurt Kitayama sits alone atop the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am leaderboard after Friday's second round with a score of nine under.

Kitayama enjoyed a strong seven-under 64 on his opening round at Monterey Peninsula Country Club – the easiest of the three courses being used – and backed it up with a two-under 70 at the flagship Pebble Beach Golf Links.

He shot three birdies and one bogey on the championship course, which has hosted six U.S. Open tournaments, and will also be the site of Sunday's final round this weekend.

Kitayama will look to remain in pole position after playing the Spyglass Hill course in his third round, with the cut to take place after all players have played all three courses.

First-round leader Hank Lebioda found the Pebble Beach track far more difficult than Monterey Peninsula, opening the week with an eight-under 63 before following it with an even par 72 to remain at eight under, tied for second.

He is joined by fellow Americans Brandon Wu, Keith Mitchell and Joseph Bramlett – who all played at Monterey Peninsula on Friday. Of the five players to shoot rounds of five under or better, all took place at Monterey Peninsula.

Ireland's Seamus Power is one further back at seven under, and he is joined in a five-man group that includes Japan's Satoshi Kodaira and the USA's Scott Stallings, who both sit in a strong position.

Both Kodaira and Stallings have already got the two difficult courses out of the way, and will have a chance to slingshot to the top when they tee up at Monterey Peninsula on Saturday.

Of the big names, world number 11 Viktor Hovland pulled to within three strokes of the lead at six under, while three-time major champion Jordan Spieth is two further back at four under.

The Dallas Mavericks will be without franchise centrepiece Luka Doncic for their five-game road trip due to a heel injury.

Doncic damaged his right heel when he fell during a 111-106 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.

The four-time NBA All-Star was unable to return after leaving the court in the third quarter, and he did not make the journey west with his team-mates on Friday.

Doncic will miss an encounter with the Golden State Warriors on Saturday and will also be absent for a game against the Utah Jazz and a meeting with the Los Angeles Clippers next week.

He will also sit out back-to-back showdowns with the Sacramento Kings along with Davis Bertans (calf).

Dallas are 0-6 without Doncic this season, although he played only four minutes of a win over the Phoenix Suns due to a sprained left ankle on January 26.

Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said of Doncic's injury: "We'll see how that turns out, then we'll be able to give an update. No participation, nor will those two go on the trip.

"As we get the MRI [results], I think we'll be able to give an update on their status."

Dallas are seeded fourth in the Western Conference standings.

The Las Vegas Raiders have granted quarterback Derek Carr permission to speak with teams who have agreed to their trade demands.

Carr, 31, has spent his entire nine-season career with the Raiders, but he found himself benched for the final two weeks of a disappointing 6-11 campaign.

Something had to give in Vegas, and previous reports had indicated head coach Josh McDaniels would not be fired after the first season of his four-year contract, in part because the franchise can not afford another massive contract buy-out.

NBC Sports reported in November that the Raiders were still feeling the effects of their fallout with former head coach Jon Gruden, who signed a 10-year, $100million contract in 2018. He only completed three-and-a-half years before resigning when racist and misogynistic emails were unearthed, with the franchise settling the rest of his contract for an undisclosed figure.

With McDaniels sticking around, the other franchise-altering move the team can make is at the quarterback position, and to get Carr out of the way they have allowed the veteran to speak to clubs who have already met their demands for a potential trade.

Crucially, Carr's current contract includes a no-trade clause, which he said he would enforce if he deemed it necessary. This means the Raiders can not simply send him to the team with the strongest offer, as Carr will need to sign off on it.

Things could move quickly in the next 10 days, as his $40million guaranteed for this season will become triggered on February 15, or they could cut him and eat a relatively minor cap hit of $5.6m, while getting nothing in return.

Carr already bid farewell to Raiders fans in emotional social media post on January 13, making it exceedingly unlikely he remains on the roster beyond February 15.

Sean Payton has signed his contract to become the Denver Broncos' head coach until the end of the 2027 season, according to reports.

ESPN said the deal was officially signed on Friday.

Reports earlier in the week had revealed the Broncos had agreed a trade package with the New Orleans Saints for Payton, including a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Payton, who described the move as "the opportunity I was looking for", quit the Saints after the 2021 season.

But there was understandable interest at the start of this year in a coach who won the Super Bowl in New Orleans.

Following interviews with a number of teams, Payton headed for Denver, whose 2022 season was underwhelming to say the least.

The Broncos traded for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and appointed Aaron Rodgers' Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as coach.

The result was a 5-12 season in which Wilson struggled badly and Hackett was eventually fired.

Payton faces a sizeable task to turn around the fortunes of the worst team in the highly competitive AFC West.

Jurgen Klopp has no doubts about Mohamed Salah's quality and believes the forward can play a key role in Liverpool achieving "something special" this season.

Liverpool will head into Saturday's match at Wolves 10th in the Premier League, 10 points behind fourth-placed Manchester United in the battle for Champions League places.

The Reds, who are also out of both domestic cups and face Real Madrid in the Champions League, have not had Salah at his brilliant best this season.

Although Salah is Liverpool's joint-top scorer in the league this season, he has netted only seven times in 19 matches. Across his first five campaigns at Anfield, he tallied 118 top-flight goals.

This comes after a close-season in which Salah signed a lucrative new Liverpool contract as team-mate Sadio Mane was allowed to leave.

But Klopp came to the defence of his star man ahead of the Wolves game, telling reporters: "That attitude and these kind of things are not Mo's problem.

"Mo's a world-class athlete, so he's the first in, last out, trains hard. Now he's not scoring, but there's people out there that think, 'why did they give Klopp a contract?', so that's how it is in our world.

"It's completely fine. If we don't deliver in the moments, if there's criticism, it's no problem. 

"You can question character, knowledge, ability, everything. You have the right to do everything, but you cannot score the amount of goals Mo scored if you are not an outstanding, world-class football player."

He added: "There are moments when Mo of course would have scored last year. You think that had something to do with the new contract or whatever?

"That's just not right. Things are like they are and the only way we can stop all these questions and discussions is by performing to our top, top level and that's what we have to do and what we will work on.

"We are really on it, and we are still straight, positive, we want to play in the games and we believe in our chances to reach something special even this year.

"It's not great to be not leader of the pack, but we are in a position where we can improve a lot the situation in the table and we have to start tomorrow and continue from there."

Graham Potter called for patience as he warned it will not be "straightforward" getting a new-look Chelsea side to gel after they were held to a goalless derby draw by Fulham on Friday.

Enzo Fernandez started at Stamford Bridge three days after making a Premier League record £106.8million (€121m) move from Benfica, while Mykhaylo Mudryk was replaced by fellow new boy Noni Madueke at half-time on a frustrating evening for the Blues.

Kai Havertz hit the post in the first half and David Datro Fofana – another of a raft of new Chelsea signings – had an effort cleared off the line by Tim Ream.

Fulham were good value for a point that keeps them above their ninth-placed neighbours in sixth spot.

Chelsea were disjointed, understandably lacking fluency following the arrival of so many new players, and head coach Potter says they will need time to build an understanding.

He told BBC Sport: "There was a lot of excitement and positivity from the start, a good atmosphere. The spirit of the players was really good. They worked hard for each other against an organised team.

"They've been together a while. We're a different stage of that – players coming back from injury and new players. We needed time to settle everything down. We were missing the connection, fluidity and confidence that comes from knowing each other.

"The decision we took in the window, you can see the profile in terms of age. We feel we have a very strong group of players. We have to gel and become a really good team. That's where the work is.

"It's working together. When players have been injured, they have not been on the training pitch. We have new players with us. It's about getting ideas across and working with the group.

"Sometimes you have to look at the whole package. Young players, nice mix of them both. For us, it's about improving.

"New players are adapting to a new country and a new league. It's not straightforward. When the price tag is what it is, questions will be asked, it's the nature of the business."

The return from injury of Reece James and Ben Chilwell was a big plus for Chelsea, while Potter revealed winger Mudryk was withdrawn after struggling with a cold this week.

Jadon Sancho was flooded with support from team-mates and Premier League rivals after declaring he was "so happy" to be back in action for Manchester United.

The former Borussia Dortmund winger had been absent due to what manager Erik ten Hag described as "circumstances with fitness and mood".

He played his first game since October 22 when he came off the bench in Wednesday's EFL Cup win against Nottingham Forest.

Ten Hag said Sancho's issues had been physical and mental, and the club have been careful not to rush him back. After three months out of action, however, Sancho will be hoping to repay United's patience on the pitch.

He wrote on Instagram: "Wow! Just want to say a massive thank you to everyone for the support I've received over the past few weeks especially to the fans. My focus is to give my all to my team and the club, I'm so happy to be back out on the pitch, see you soon."

Sancho played the last 27 minutes against Forest, receiving a huge ovation from the Old Trafford crowd, and Ten Hag spoke afterwards of the England international's "really high standards" and "great capabilities".

United team-mates Lisandro Martinez, Diogo Dalot and Christian Eriksen sent messages of approval in emoji form, the modern footballer's conversational currency.

There was also backing from Sancho from rivals Manchester City, with Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland sending emojis signalling thankfulness and congratulations as he welcomed his former Dortmund team-mate back to the field.

City's Jack Grealish also sent emojis of applause and love to Sancho, while Aymeric Laporte posted a similar message, and Riyad Mahrez sent a heart and the message: "Welcome back bro."

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior noted his approval with applauding hands and a white heart.

Liverpool's Jordan Henderson, Dortmund's Jude Bellingham, Forest's former United man Jesse Lingard and Roma striker Tammy Abraham added to the groundswell of goodwill, while Sancho's good friend, Newcastle United's Joe Willock, wrote: "Love you bro."

There was no dream debut for Enzo Fernandez as Fulham held toothless Chelsea to a goalless west London derby draw on Friday.

Three days after joining the Blues for a staggering £106.8million (€121m) Premier League record fee on transfer deadline day, Fernandez made a tidy first appearance for his new club but was unable to celebrate with a win.

Big-spending Chelsea lacked a cutting edge, with Kai Havertz hitting the post in the first half of a stalemate at Stamford Bridge.

A point keeps Fulham above the Blues in the table and struck another blow to their neighbours' hopes of securing a top-four finish.

Chelsea were disjointed in the first half with a new-look side needing time to gel and Andreas Pereira almost put Fulham in front with a powerful right-footed drive that was tipped around the post by Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Tim Ream got a slight touch on Mason Mount's pass to prevent Havertz from converting at full stretch and the Germany international endured more frustration just before the break.

Hakim Ziyech, who saw a deadline-day move to Paris Saint-Germain fall through, picked Havertz out with a brilliant pass and his lob over Bernd Leno came back off the post.

Mykhaylo Mudryk was replaced by fellow new boy Noni Madueke at half-time after a disappointing first start, but Chelsea continued to lack fluency.

Fernandez was just off target with a long-range right-footed strike after an audacious attempted lob from Aleksandar Mitrovic had Kepa scrambling back to claim on his line.

Conor Gallagher fired wide and Ream cleared David Datro Fofana's shot off the line after he rounded a stranded Leno on a frustrating evening for Chelsea.

Bianca Andreescu survived a wobble near the finish line to reach the Thailand Open semi-finals and edge a step closer to a long-awaited title.

The Canadian had a stellar campaign on hard courts in 2019, winning tournaments at Indian Wells and Toronto before topping those with a US Open triumph, denying Serena Williams a 24th singles grand slam in what would be the American's last major final.

Injuries and inconsistency have blighted progress since then, and there have been no more trophy celebrations, but Andreescu is still only 22 and believes she has a lot of winning still to do.

She was cruising at 6-0 5-1 against Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk in Friday's quarter-final, before her opponent found inspiration and took the second set to a tie-break.

Andreescu was not to be denied, though, closing out a 6-0 7-6 (7-3) victory, and it will be another player from Ukraine next, with Lesia Tsurenko earning a shot at the top seed after a 6-1 6-1 drubbing of German sixth seed Tatjana Maria.

Addressing the fightback from Kostyuk, Andreescu said: "I don't think I started playing bad in the second set, I think she just raised her level a little bit. She's always a tough opponent. I definitely wasn't expecting anything easy."

On her own ambitions, Andreescu said: "I'm hoping to win the tournament, I really believe in myself."

The other semi-final in Hua Hin will be an all-Chinese battle between Zhu Lin and Wang Xinyu after they saw off Slovenia's Tamara Zidansek and Britain's Heather Watson respectively.

At the Lyon Open, French top seed and home favourite Caroline Garcia fended off Italian Jasmine Paolini 7-5 7-5 and faces a semi-final against Colombian Camila Osorio, who had a 6-4 7-6 (7-3) victory against 18-year-old Czech Linda Noskova.

American Alycia Parks, who won two WTA 125 tournaments in December while many players were enjoying an off-season, has brought that form to this week's event. The 22-year-old, ranked 79th in the world, scored a 7-5 6-2 win against seventh seed Danka Kovinic and will face Maryna Zanevska next after the Belgian had a 3-6 6-1 6-2 win against Russian fifth seed Anastasia Potapova. 

Moises Caicedo deserves to be supported rather than shunned by Brighton and Hove Albion supporters after his failed attempt to force through a move to Arsenal.

That was the message on Friday from head coach Roberto De Zerbi, who said the 21-year-old midfielder was "a fantastic guy" who could still play a big role for Brighton in the second half of the season.

Caicedo went public with his desire to leave for what he described as a "magnificent opportunity" in an Instagram post that explicitly signalled his intentions.

Yet Brighton chairman Tony Bloom baulked at the idea of budging on his valuation of a star player after already losing Leandro Trossard to the Premier League leaders.

Brighton turned down two bids – reportedly of £60million and £70m, with £90m said to be the asking price – before the January transfer window closed, and De Zerbi was delighted the Seagulls kept Caicedo.

Arsenal instead spent relative pocket change on Jorginho, a £12m buy from Chelsea. It remains to be seen whether they return in the close season for Ecuador international Caicedo, who has been back in training with Brighton since Wednesday.

Brighton sit sixth in the Premier League at the midway point of their season and host lowly Bournemouth on Saturday.

De Zerbi said of the Caicedo saga: "I am very happy Moises stays with us until the end of the season. I want to speak to our fans because I want them to support him. I don't want them to criticise him. I love Moises, the people who work inside Brighton love Moises.

"I don’t know if he made a mistake or not, but the transfer market is closed, and the fans must follow me because I take the responsibility of him. If I say something so clear about Moises, they have to believe in me."

Caicedo is one of just three midfielders to have managed 50 tackles and 250 forward passes in the Premier League this season, along with Manchester United's Casemiro and Leeds United's Tyler Adams.

Arsenal would have found his numbers attractive, with manager Mikel Arteta looking to bolster a team who have shot to the top of the league and continued to win, keeping Manchester City at bay for now.

Surprisingly, perhaps, Caicedo did not delete his Instagram message once it became clear he would not get his dream move. It remained up on Friday, three days after the transfer window closed.

De Zerbi added: "I don't know the situation in the future, but he's a good guy and I want to defend him now. In other times I spoke a different way for the other players, but for Moises it's different.

"We need the performance of Moises. He's a fantastic guy, and so I don't want to listen to any criticism."

Eight-time All-Star Kyrie Irving wants to be traded by the Brooklyn Nets before the February 9 deadline, it was reported on Friday.

The 30-year-old point guard has told the Nets of his intentions, with Irving looking for a change after four years with the team.

According to The Athletic's Shams Charania, Irving has told the Nets he wants to leave now in a trade, otherwise he will depart in free agency in July.

The Nets were destroyed 139-96 by the Boston Celtics on Wednesday, with Irving on the team, and they sit fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 31-20 record.

They have lost seven of their last 11 games during Kevin Durant's injury absence.

Irving has averaged 27.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists this season, in keeping with his form from recent campaigns.

Reports have said the Nets have seen no need to rush talks over a contract extension for Irving, who scored a season-high 48 points in a win over the Utah Jazz on January 20.

The first overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft spent his formative years with the Cleveland Cavaliers, winning a championship in 2016 and becoming a near lock-in for All-Star recognition.

He then spent two years with the Celtics before arriving in Brooklyn in free agency in July 2019, signing a four-year contract.

Now it remains to be seen whether teams are in a position to move for Irving, and whether those that are keen figure in Irving's own plans, with time at a premium.

The Nets are next in action on Saturday when they face the 24-26 Washington Wizards.

Anthony Joshua will make a "statement" when he returns to the ring against Jermaine Franklin in April knowing he has a "major problem" if he suffers another defeat.

So says the two-time world heavyweight champion's promoter, Eddie Hearn, who revealed Joshua is set to fight American Franklin at the O2 Arena in London on April 1.

The Briton is on a mission to reignite his career after losing his WBA, IBF and WBO belts to Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021 and failing to regain them in a rematch in Jeddah last August.

Official confirmation is expected next week for Franklin to be Joshua's next opponent, and Hearn expects the 33-year-old to put on a show.

He told BBC Sport: "It's a really tough fight with loads of pressure to come back, because if AJ doesn't win this fight, then we've got a major problem.

"I believe you'll see a statement from a guy who is very dangerous, very motivated to become a three-time heavyweight world champion."

Franklin was beaten by Dillian White in his last fight in November, and Hearn expects him to suffer another loss on his return to England.

Hearn added: "There's so much contradiction: 'Anthony Joshua is finished, mentally he's shot. But he'll knock out Jermaine Franklin inside three rounds.'

"The same people that say Jermaine Franklin beat Dillian Whyte, but he's a terrible opponent for Anthony Joshua in a comeback fight after two defeats to the pound-for-pound number one.

"What this guy has done from a resume perspective is unbelievable. And I'm telling you now, this guy [is] still top-three heavyweight, capable of regaining his heavyweight world title."