Fabio Quartararo will be "aggressive but intelligent" when he attempts to snatch the MotoGP title from Francesco Bagnaia at the Valencia Grand Prix.

Defending champion Quartararo will start the decisive final race of the season at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in fourth place, with Bagnaia eighth on the grid.

Monster Energy Yamaha rider Quartararo must win and hope Bagnaia finishes 15th or lower to retain his crown, as he trails the Italian by 23 points.

Jorge Martin took a third consecutive pole position on Saturday courtesy of a lap of one minute, 29.621 seconds, with Marc Marquez second and Jack Miller third.

Quartararo will not be giving up his title without a fight in Spain.

Asked if he needs a miracle, the Frenchman replied: "I am not thinking about that. I am thinking about the race - if I win, maybe something will happen.

"My main objective will be to fight for victory. It is the only thing I can do by myself. We will start in a good position, the pace is good, so I am confident.

"Tomorrow is a day to do whatever I want! I am 23 points behind so it’s the only positive I can find. My situation is to go all-in.

"I don't need to prove anything. But I want to win. I need to be aggressive but intelligent. Of course, I have to go aggressively from the beginning."

Quartararo says he will not be giving any thought to where Bagnaia is positioned during the race.

He added: "I don't care. On TV it looks like it's only him and me. But I need to focus on myself.

"It's not like we have a five-point difference and are fighting closely. There is a massive difference. What he does is not my problem. When the plan is so clear, I give no energy to anything else."

CLASSIFICATION

1. Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) 1:29.621
2. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) + 0.205
3. Jack Miller (Ducati) + 0.213
4. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) + 0.279
5. Alex Rins (Suzuki Ecstar) + 0.319
6. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia Racing) + 0.334
7. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) + 0.418
8. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) + 0.428
9. Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing) + 0.481
10. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) + 0.503
11. Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing) + 0.522
12. Joan Mir (Suzuki Ecstar) 0.620

England made light work of Papua New Guinea, cruising to a 46-6 quarter-final victory in the Rugby League World Cup on Saturday.

Australia became the first team to make the final four with a 48-4 defeat of Lebanon on Friday and the tournament hosts also had little trouble in casting aside their last-eight opponents in Wigan.

Tommy Makinson was the star man, going over five times, matching Josh Adda-Carr's haul for Australia against Lebanon, while also adding 10 points with the boot.

With the Princess of Wales watching from the stands, England scored four tries in the first 27 minutes – Tom Burgess, Dom Young, Kallum Watkins and George Williams also going over.

Jimmy Ngutlik grabbed a consolation for Papua New Guinea midway through the second half, but the day belong to Makinson, and he fittingly crossed for his record-setting try late on, becoming the first England player to score five times in a World Cup match.

Emirates Stadium will be the venue for England's semi-final, with Tonga or Samoa their opponents.

Youssoufa Moukoko chalked up a Bundesliga record as he became the youngest player in the competition's history to reach 10 career goals – and number 10 was something special.

At the age of 17 years and 350 days, Moukoko showed why he is so highly regarded as his dazzling double helped Borussia Dortmund win 3-0 against visitors Bochum on Saturday.

Moukoko hit the opener in the eighth minute, fending off a challenge outside the penalty area before crashing a 22-yard strike with his left foot that arrowed just beneath the crossbar.

That took him to double figures, and an 11th Bundesliga goal for Moukoko followed shortly before half-time when he caught goalkeeper Manuel Riemann well off his line and lobbed in from close to 35 yards.

Between those goals, Giovanni Reyna scored a penalty for Dortmund, who allowed Moukoko a rest late on, substituting the star of the show.

The double for the teenager made him the third-youngest player to hit two goals in a Bundesliga game, with Opta confirming only Kai Havertz (17y 343d) and Timo Werner (17y 249d) have done so at a younger age.

Bayern Munich moved to the top of the Bundesliga table as Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting hit a brace in a thrilling 3-2 win at Hertha Berlin on Saturday.

Choupo-Moting scored twice in as many first-half minutes after Jamal Musiala opened the scoring, but Hertha clawed their way back into contention in an incredible opening period.

Goals from Dodi Lukebakio and Davie Selke, the latter from the spot, reignited the contest before the break, but Hertha never came close to equalising in a quieter second half.

Julian Nagelsmann's men consequently claimed their fourth consecutive Bundesliga win, moving two points clear of Union Berlin ahead of their trip to Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday.

Manuel Neuer, returning to the side, saved from Lukebakio early on, but Bayern took the lead with their first attack as Musiala collected Sadio Mane's pass before firing into the bottom-left corner after 12 minutes.

Choupo-Moting looked to have taken the game away from Hertha with his quickfire double, responding to Leon Goretzka's blocked shot to finish below Oliver Christensen before prodding home following a goalmouth scramble one minute later.

But Hertha responded in excellent fashion as Lukebakio volleyed Marco Richter's cross beyond Neuer and they reduced the deficit further when Benjamin Pavard pushed Selke in the area, the forward then converting from the spot on the stroke of half-time.

Bayern were denied a fourth as Alphonso Davies was found to have been offside when Marc-Oliver Kempf put through his own net after the break, before the Bayern left-back limped from the field after appearing to sustain a hamstring injury.

The second half was played out at a far slower pace than the first, with Nagelsmann's side holding on to their slender advantage after producing a controlled performance.

Alphonso Davies could face an agonising wait to see if he will be able to feature at the World Cup after sustaining an apparent hamstring injury.

Bayern Munich full-back Davies, who along with Lille striker Jonathan David is one of Canada's leading lights heading to Qatar, was forced off in the 64th minute of Saturday's Bundesliga clash with Hertha Berlin.

The 22-year-old was holding his right hamstring as he walked gingerly off the field to be replaced by Lucas Hernandez.

Canada, who will be co-hosts in 2026, have qualified for just their second World Cup, having last appeared at the tournament in 1986. They have been drawn in Group F alongside Belgium, Morocco and Croatia.

Romelu Lukaku will not play again for Inter before going to the World Cup with Belgium, Simone Inzaghi has confirmed.

Lukaku's return to San Siro on loan this season has been disrupted by injury.

The Chelsea striker has been limited to just 255 minutes of action across five appearances in all competitions, starting three matches and scoring once.

Lukaku made his comeback from a thigh problem against Viktoria Plzen late last month but was quickly ruled out again.

Coach Inzaghi was initially hopeful Inter would see Lukaku before the Serie A season breaks for the World Cup, but he has now accepted defeat.

The Nerazzurri play Juventus on Sunday, then both Bologna and Atalanta next week.

Lukaku will hope to feature when Belgium begin their Qatar 2022 campaign against Canada on November 23.

Speaking ahead of the Derby d'Italia, Inzaghi said: "We will be without him, without [Danilo] D'Ambrosio and with [Alessandro] Bastoni to evaluate because he had a fever.

"It is normal for a coach to want to have all his weapons, but we know that playing so much there are difficulties in organising with all the team.

"Lukaku will do another test next week; unlike last time, I can say that I don't think he will be there for the last game.

"I'm sorry, because he worked so hard to be there. We will wait for him after the break, because we know he can give us a great hand."

Inter are sixth in Serie A and Juve eighth heading into Sunday's game, but Inzaghi does not believe their title hopes are on the line.

"We know how much it matters, but we also know that there are 25 games to go," he said. "In a week, there will be a break for the World Cup, and then there will be more than one round.

"We know how important it is, but also how long there is until the end. Tomorrow is very important for both [teams], yes."

Wayne Parnell explained the motivation he takes from Cristiano Ronaldo as the bowler looked towards South Africa's T20 World Cup clash with the Netherlands.

Ronaldo has altered his goal celebration as of late, replacing his famous "Siu" with a "peace of mind" gesture, seemingly in response to his trouble at Manchester United this season.

It is a celebration that has been copied at the T20 World Cup by South Africa paceman Parnell, standing with his eyes closed, fingers crossed in front of his chest and his head rolled back.

Parnell has taken five wickets so far in Australia, helping South Africa to two victories in Group 2. Ahead of their final match of the pool stage against the Netherlands on Sunday, the Proteas sit in second place, and a victory over the Dutch would guarantee their place in the last four.

And in his pre-match press conference, Parnell explained how he takes inspiration from one of the world's finest footballers.

He said: "It's the Ronaldo celebration. He has always been one of my favourite footballers, and I've obviously followed his career quite closely.

"And I think I've kind of taken on some stuff that he has been going through, you know, as a professional athlete and someone that's very competitive and passionate about doing well.

"That's something that I've always wanted to do as well is contribute to the team's success."

It is not all about emulating an idol, though. For Parnell, it is also about enjoying playing in front of crowds again following the coronavirus pandemic.

"It's just about having fun as well," Parnell added, "I think, you know, we're very lucky to be playing this sport and to be able to do it on this world stage.

"Obviously, there's no COVID, so we have fans back, and it's just about entertaining everyone."

Looking ahead to South Africa's must-win game on Sunday, Parnell said: "I think now it's just really simple. If you actually look at it, tomorrow is basically a quarter-final. Then obviously if we win that, we go to a semi-final. If we win that, we go to the final.

"In a way it's actually worked out well where we are under a certain amount of pressure to obviously get through, but I always like to look at it from a positive point of view where it's basically a quarter-final. It's just about winning it really."

Ben Chilwell said his "dream" was in tatters after the Chelsea left-back was knocked out of contention for England's World Cup trip.

The former Leicester City defender suffered a hamstring injury in the closing seconds of Chelsea's Champions League game against Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday.

He underwent scans on Friday, and the results showed a "significant" problem, Chelsea announced.

It comes after Chilwell recovered from a cruciate knee ligament injury to reclaim his place in the Blues team and show he could have been an asset for England.

While his club said only that 25-year-old Chilwell was "expected" to miss the tournament in Qatar, the player himself added the finality by conceding there was no chance he would make Gareth Southgate's squad.

He wrote on Twitter: "Following my ACL injury I worked so hard to make sure I was ready for the World Cup. It has always been a dream of mine.

"Unfortunately, this won't be possible following my scan results. I'll do all I can to get back playing for Chelsea ASAP. Thanks for the messages of support."

Chilwell's Chelsea and England team-mate Raheem Sterling sent a message of sympathy, posting: "Prayers up for my guy Chilly. Minor setback, major comeback."

Alisson says Liverpool must rediscover their consistency to turn around their poor season, calling on the Reds to draw on the experience of recovering from a disappointing 2020-21 campaign.

Having won both domestic cups and finished as runners-up in the Premier League and Champions League last term, Jurgen Klopp's team have endured a dire start to this season.

Liverpool sit eight points adrift of the Premier League's top four ahead of Sunday's trip to Tottenham, and Alisson says Klopp's men must bounce back in the same manner they did two seasons ago – when they finished an injury-disrupted campaign in third.

"We always have belief," Alisson told Sky Sports. "We have the understanding that things are not going so well for us so far. 

"We have to be realistic. We have to be humble as well, to accept it, to fight more and to recognise what is going wrong and to change it.

"That is part of our team, being humble, fighting. We know that sometimes we cannot be the best on the pitch, but we will be the ones who fight the most. This is what we have done so far, and it worked out in other seasons for us.

"We can't forget the season we had before the last one, when we had to fight a lot. We struggled in the competition because of injuries, because of outside circumstances, but we came back.

"Something we all have in common, something we all agree on, [is] that we have to find our consistency again.

"Everybody is used to seeing it in our team. We, the players, and the people as well. A consistent Liverpool, conceding only a few goals, keeping clean sheets, scoring, winning games."

Liverpool are still yet to win an away Premier League game this season, their worst such run from the start of a campaign since 2006-07 (a sequence of seven), and would slip 13 points behind third-placed opponents Tottenham with a defeat on Sunday. 

Klopp's side are therefore under huge pressure to claim a result in north London, but Alisson says they must shut out the noise as they bid to change their fortunes.

"It [pressure] is part of football," he added. "It is not something that is easy to deal with. But we have all played football for a while now, and I understand that this is part of it.

"You are going to have pressure from the outside world, from the supporters, from the media. Only playing for a big club are you going to have this kind of pressure.

"I see it as normal, but we have to fight back, and our response has to be on the pitch with performances. What we can't do is let the criticism affect us and bring us down more."

Edinson Cavani is set to miss Valencia's match against Real Sociedad on Sunday as he battles an ankle injury just two weeks out from the World Cup.

The Uruguay forward joined Valencia at the start of this season after his Manchester United contract expired and has scored four goals in seven LaLiga games.

However, the 35-year-old's hopes of having an impact at his fourth and likely final World Cup have been hit by a recurring ankle problem.

Valencia have tried to protect Cavani, who has completed 90 minutes only once this season.

But that full shift against Mallorca last month was followed by an early withdrawal against Barcelona, with the striker replaced after just 18 minutes.

Cavani missed training on Saturday, and Valencia coach Gennaro Gattuso accepted it was "difficult" to see how he could face La Real.

"He's not right," Gattuso said. "He has had problems in the ankle for a long time."

Cavani at least has a little time to get fit to feature for Uruguay, whose Qatar 2022 opener is not until November 24 against South Korea.

But Gattuso insisted the player's primary focus was featuring for Valencia, dismissing the idea he was sitting out only due to the spectre of the World Cup.

"I've played three World Cups, none of them in December," the coach said. "I've always been a little scared, but I didn't think about whether I was going to get injured.

"Cavani's problem is his ankle. He's playing with great responsibility, but it's something that he's carried for a long time."

Lionel Messi will miss Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 trip to Lorient after suffering from inflammation in his Achilles tendon, but Christophe Galtier expects him to return before the World Cup. 

Messi has been in spectacular form during his second season with PSG, recording 26 goal contributions (12 goals, 14 assists) in all competitions this campaign.

With just over two weeks to go until Argentina's World Cup opener against Saudi Arabia, however, a PSG medical update sparked fears over Messi's condition by ruling him out of Sunday's match.

The club said Messi would miss that fixture as a precautionary measure before returning to training next week, and Galtier expects him to be available against Auxerre on November 13.

"Messi has inflammation in his tendon," Galtier said at Saturday's pre-match news conference. "I think he will be available for our next game, just like Presnel Kimpembe, who is still in rehabilitation.

"He should be back for the Auxerre game."

The packed pre-World Cup schedule has been heavily criticised amid a swathe of injuries to big-name players including Paul Pogba, Son Heung-min and Reece James, leading some onlookers to suggest players may play with caution ahead of the tournament.

While some coaches, including Real Madrid's Carlo Ancelotti and Tottenham's Antonio Conte, have said their players will not be thinking about the World Cup, Galtier revealed he regularly discusses such considerations with his own squad.

"We have played a lot, it is a very intense season, and that is the case for everyone, and we must not hide from that, of course, it generates fatigue," Galtier said.

"Usually, our last Champions League group game is in mid-December. Having so many weeks with Champions League games has taken up a lot of energy.

"There are no excuses, that's how it is. Of course, we are a bit tired, we are worn out. 

"Of course, every player that may be involved at the World Cup has that fear in their heads, even more so when the Champions League group stage has finished, with all those fixtures.

"You might have that in your head as a player. I often speak to the players and listen to them. We have to listen to them and they can tell us anything. 

"If someone is apprehensive, I tell them to have faith in what we put forward here in training. If a player comes to me and says they don't want to play, he won't play."

Jos Buttler believes Ben Stokes will "grow and grow" as England aim for T20 World Cup glory in Australia.

Stokes' unbeaten 42 helped guide England to a four-wicket win over Sri Lanka on Saturday at the Sydney Cricket Ground, ensuring they progressed from Group 1 alongside New Zealand, last year's runners up.

It means the reigning champions and hosts Australia failed to reach the last four, with England set to face the winner of Group 2 in Adelaide for a place in the final.

England appeared to be cruising towards victory when, having limited Sri Lanka to 141-8, Buttler and opening partner Alex Hales plundered their way to 75 without loss.

Yet the loss of five wickets for 36 runs in the space of seven overs resulted in a nervy finish for England, and Stokes had to step up late on to set the stage for Chris Woakes to strike the winning boundary with two balls to spare.

"Not a great watch, to be honest – didn't enjoy that much," Buttler said at the post-match presentation.

"We knew, coming here, we had to find a way to win the game, thankfully we did that."

Asked if Stokes was the ideal player for the scenario, Buttler replied: "Absolutely, it's the kind of situation he's made for, I'm delighted for him and when he's at the crease, that gives you a sense of calm.

"He can play a lot of roles, he effects the game in all facets, he's a proper competitor and it's getting to the stage of the competition where you'll just see him grow and grow."

Stokes missed last year's T20 World Cup, and only returned to action in the format in a warm-up series against Australia ahead of this edition of the tournament, with his score on Saturday his best since he managed 46 against India in March 2021.

Another key player for England against Sri Lanka was Adil Rashid, whose figures of 1-16 saw him named the Player of the Match.

When asked if he was worried by the fast start Sri Lanka made with the bat, Buttler said: "Yeah, a little bit, they got off to a really good start and having lost the toss we knew the wicket would probably slow up as we went along.

"I thought it was a fantastic over from Adil Rashid at the back end of the powerplay to change the momentum. He's been someone we've always turned to and I was really pleased with his performance.

"I think a lot of people always look at the end column, maybe he hasn't picked up the wickets he usually does. I don't think he's bowled with much luck, to be honest. He's had a few chances that were missed, I think he's still bowling well, and on surfaces like this he's a really tough bowler to face."

Rashid took the wicket of opener Pathum Nissanka, whose 67 had anchored Sri Lanka's innings. 

Pathum has now accumulated over 1,000 T20I runs, becoming the 10th player from his nation to reach the milestone.

Ben Chilwell is expected to miss England's World Cup campaign after sustaining a "significant" hamstring injury, Chelsea have confirmed.

Chilwell limped out of the Blues' 2-1 Champions League win over Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday, leaving head coach Graham Potter concerned.

Potter said the injury represented a "blow" for Chelsea, adding: "Fingers crossed, when we get it scanned it isn't as bad, it can be not as severe, but clearly we are disappointed."

Chilwell's England team-mate Mason Mount said it was "tough to watch" the left-back suffer the injury less than three weeks before the World Cup gets under way, and Gareth Southgate's fears have been realised with the news that his hamstring problem is "significant".

A statement released by Chelsea on Saturday read: "Following the injury sustained in our recent game against Dinamo Zagreb, Ben has undergone a scan on his hamstring.

"Results show that Ben has suffered a significant injury and the defender is unfortunately expected to miss the World Cup.

"Ben will now begin a rehabilitation programme with the club's medical department."

Chilwell's absence for the trip to Qatar deepens a defensive crisis for England, with fellow full-backs Reece James and Kyle Walker doubtful for the tournament.

Southgate only named two recognised left-backs in his squad for the Three Lions' most recent Nations League fixtures in September, and the likes of Bukayo Saka and Kieran Trippier may now be expected to deputise for Manchester United's Luke Shaw.

England begin their Group B campaign against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium on November 21.