Mohamed Salah has "a year to prove" himself worthy of the new bumper deal handed to him by Liverpool, believes former Netherlands international Nigel de Jong.
The Egypt international put an end to long-running speculation about his future in July by signing a fresh three-year contract to take him through to 2025 at Anfield.
With Sadio Mane having departed for Bayern Munich, the move represented a major part of Liverpool's off-season transfer business to keep one of the key figures of the Jurgen Klopp era on Merseyside.
But a slow start to the season for Liverpool has seen Salah among others come in for criticism, with the forwatd's second goal of the new Premier League campaign on Monday against Manchester United not enough to stave off a 2-1 defeat for the Reds.
With just two points from their first three games, Liverpool are already arguably facing an uphill battle in the title race with Manchester City, and now De Jong has opined that Salah is on limited time to justify the faith shown in him.
"If I was the sporting director and I'd just extended the contract of probably the best player in my squad, I'll give you a year to prove yourself," he told beIN SPORTS.
"Are you worth another [three] years? You need to produce the same numbers, especially on the wages he's on.
"I think it's really important for Salah, and also for Liverpool, to find a way to be successful together in order to strive for him to stay at Liverpool for a long time. If not, they have to make a decision as well.
"I've said it many times over the past couple of years: Mane is the soul of the team. He is a complete player in his energy, in producing numbers, in the way he strides forward.
"Of course, I'm not saying Salah isn't a great player, but he's staggering when it comes down to the numbers."
Dries Mertens says his time at Napoli "could have ended differently" after he departed the club at the end of last season following a breakdown in contract negotiations.
The Belgium international ended a nine-year spell in Naples ahead of the new campaign after failing to agree fresh terms with the Serie A side, subsequently moving to Super Lig outfit Galatasaray on a free transfer.
The 35-year-old was an integral presence for the club over the best part of a decade, helping them to two Coppa Italia triumphs and a further Supercoppa Italia crown during his tenure.
Reflecting on his exit, Mertens revealed he has kept his family home in the region, while acknowledging that had discussions started earlier, he may well have stayed on Napoli's books.
"It's been a wonderful nine years," Mertens told DAZN. "Of course, it could've ended differently. I think the club could've talked about [the contract] earlier. I hope I can learn from this experience to become even greater.
"Today I'm very happy because my family and I have embarked on a new adventure. I'm in a great city and a great club.
"[But] of course leaving Napoli was hard. My wife cried at the thought of leaving home, so we decided to keep it and try to spend as much time there as possible."
Mertens, a Belgium centurion, will have his eyes likely set on securing a place in the national team squad for the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
John McEnroe has called Novak Djokovic's potential absence from the US Open over his vaccination status a "joke".
The United States does not currently allow those who have not received the COVID-19 jab into the country, putting the unvaccinated Djokovic in real danger of missing this year's edition of the tournament he has won three times.
The Serb has already missed the Australian Open this year because of his lack of vaccination, while also missing tournaments at Indian Wells in California, as well as the Rogers Cup in Canada.
He did however win his 21st Grand Slam at Wimbledon earlier this year, and McEnroe believes Djokovic should be allowed to play at Flushing Meadows as he chases down Rafael Nadal for the most Grand Slam titles in history.
Ahead of the tournament in New York, McEnroe told reporters: "No, I don't think it's fair. I think it's a joke.
"I would have had the vaccine and gone and played but he's got very strong beliefs and you have to respect that.
"At this point, in the pandemic, we're two and a half years in, I think people in all parts of the world know more about it, and the idea that he can’t travel here to play, to me is a joke."
On whether Djokovic's decision not to get the vaccine could affect his competition with Nadal and Roger Federer to become the most decorated male player ever, McEnroe replied: "That's the question that we all want to know the answer to.
"Obviously, Rafa Nadal has benefited from that. These three guys are already above everyone else. So, it makes it extremely interesting to see these two go at it and then you think of Roger Federer but he's been hurt for a while."
However, McEnroe believes Djokovic can overcome his vaccination status to win more titles, adding: "Who's to say [Djokovic] can't do it for another couple of years?
"Let's say that he wins three or four more. That's not impossible, by any means. Despite this, he can still get to 25. I think it's made it more complicated to do it because that has to wear on you mentally.
"Training this past month or six weeks not knowing whether he's going to play, that's going to put a strain on you mentally just as it was when he got thrown out of Australia. I think it took him three, four months to get his head right."
Toni Kroos intends to finish his career at Real Madrid, while the former Germany international says he will not reverse his decision to retire from the national team ahead of Qatar 2022.
The veteran playmaker has completed a clean sweep of major honours with the LaLiga giants since arriving from Bayern Munich in 2014, shortly after helping Die Mannschaft to World Cup glory in Brazil.
Yet having hung up his boots for the national side following last year's Euro 2020 last-16 exit at the hands of England, Kroos admits he may well follow suit at domestic level sooner rather than later.
However, he will not be looking to wrap up his time on the pitch anywhere other than Santiago Bernabeu, regardless of time frame.
"I believe that the year 2023 is appropriate [to retire]," Kroos told Bild. "I will be 33 years old.
"I will decide whether I will renew for a season or two. That is still open for discussion, but I am completely sure that I will retire at Real Madrid."
Kroos will not walk back his decision to depart the national team, however, with the 106-cap veteran having no intention of making himself available for Hansi Flick's squad.
"The decision I made at that time stands," he added.
West Ham have completed the signing of defender Emerson Palmieri from Chelsea for a fee in the region of £15million.
The Italy international has penned a four-year deal with the Hammers, with the option of a further 12 months, and will wear the number 33 shirt at the London Stadium.
Emerson becomes David Moyes' seventh signing of the transfer window, following the arrivals of Nayef Aguerd, Alphonse Areola, Flynn Downes, Gianluca Scamacca, Maxwel Cornet and Thilo Kehrer.
The 28-year-old struggled to establish his place in Chelsea's starting line-up after moving from Roma in January 2018, spending last season on loan at Ligue 1 side Lyon.
Nevertheless, the left-back brings plenty of experience to the West Ham ranks, having started for Italy in their Euro 2020 final victory over England last year.
"I'm very happy to be here and to arrive here. It's a big challenge for me, it's a big team, so I'm very happy to be here and I'm ready," Emerson told the club's official website.
"Personally, since the first day I arrived here in England, I always saw the big clubs and I always watched the big games, and I knew the history about West Ham.
"The history is so, so big for this team and so when I knew about the interest, for sure I said 'Yes, let's go, I want to go there' and I'm here now! I can't wait to get started in a West Ham shirt."
Hammers boss David Moyes added: "We are very pleased to welcome Emerson to West Ham United.
"He is an experienced player with a good pedigree, who has enjoyed great success at both club and international level in recent years.
"He will give us strong competition in defensive areas and brings a winning mentality that we are looking to build here at West Ham."
West Ham have started their league campaign with three defeats and no goals scored for the first time since 1971-72.
The Hammers take on Viborg in the second leg of their Europa Conference League play-off on Thursday, leading 3-1 from the first leg, before facing Aston Villa in the Premier League three days later.
Oleksandr Usyk's promoter Alex Krassyuk has said a much-anticipated fight with Tyson Fury for all four of the world heavyweight titles is "in the making".
Usyk was a split-decision victor in his rematch against Anthony Joshua on Saturday in Jeddah, retaining the WBA, IBF and WBO belts that he took off the same opponent at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last year.
It means that the Ukrainian would now just need the WBC belt to make him only the second fighter in the four-belt era behind Claressa Shields to become undisputed in two different weight classes, having already held all four titles in the cruiserweight division.
That WBC belt belongs to Fury, who has not been in the ring since April when he defended his strap by stopping Dillian Whyte with a brutal uppercut in the sixth round at Wembley.
Fury has since claimed to be retired, but it appears that he could be tempted back into the ring to face Usyk and crown an undisputed champion in the heavyweight division, after telling his Instagram followers he would "annihilate" both Usyk and Joshua following the conclusion of their rematch.
And Usyk's promoter Krassyuk is confident the fight between the two undefeated titleholders will happen, telling Sky Sports on Tuesday: "It's in the making."
Speaking on Monday, meanwhile, Fury's co-promoter Frank Warren also indicated he is confident of the Briton getting in the ring with Usyk.
"[Fury] and Usyk would be a really good fight," Warren told BBC Radio 5 Live. "It's a fight that I think will be made because both teams would like to see that happen.
"Usyk said after the fight that it's the only fight he's interested in, and it's certainly the same case with Tyson. It's just a matter of where it will generate the most income because it's a unique fight, a historic fight."
Chelsea and Germany goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger has revealed she has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer for a second time and will begin treatment this week.
Berger was initially diagnosed in November 2017 during her time with Birmingham City, but made a full recovery and was subsequently named in the PFA Team of the Year.
However, the 31-year-old said on Tuesday that after four years being cancer-free, a recurrence has been detected in her thyroid.
"I've said before that as a sportsperson, you have to fight every day to be the best you can be and that's something I will continue to do," she said in a statement.
"I hope by sharing my journey I can help others that find themselves in a similar situation.
"I am working closely with my club doctor and specialist in London, and my treatment will start this week.
"I remain positive that my treatment will be as effective as last time, and I'm looking forward to returning to the pitch and seeing you all at Kingsmeadow and Stamford Bridge."
Berger has played a key role between the sticks for Chelsea in their Women's Super League triumphs of the past three seasons.
The former Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper, who won the WSL's golden glove in 2020-21, was also part of the Germany squad that reached the Euro 2022 final last month.
Defending champion Primoz Roglic roared to the top of the Vuelta a Espana standings with a first stage win of this year's competition on day four in the Basque Country.
With the race resuming on Tuesday after a break to transfer from the Netherlands, the Slovenian moved up from third to take the red jersey with victory from Vitoria-Gasteiz to Laguardia.
Despite no other team members making the top 10 for the day, Roglic was ably supported by his fellow Team Jumbo–Visma riders, who helped him command the final uphill sprint to take victory.
After back-to-back stage wins for Ireland's Sam Bennett, it means Roglic has now reinforced his title defence, dethroning team-mate Edoardo Affini at the top.
Roglic edged Mads Pedersen, whose strong Vuelta continues apace with his third consecutive second-place finish, moving him up to ninth in the General Classification and second in points.
The former's team-mate Sepp Kuss lies second, 13 seconds off the overall lead, though the rest of their fellow Jumbo-Visma riders have slipped down the ranks ahead of Wednesday's leg from Irun to Bilbao.
Roglic happy to build early advantage
For the first time this year, Roglic has built a double-digit lead, and says he is happy to take the early advantage.
"It's really just the beginning of La Vuelta but it's always better to be 10 seconds ahead rather than behind," he stated.
"It was already a hard pace the whole day, with a super fast and hard stage. The finale was an opportunity to fight for the stage win. I had the legs so I gave it a go."
STAGE RESULT
1. Primoz Roglic (Team Jumbo-Visma) 3:31:05
2. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) same time
3. Enric Mas (Movistar Team) same time
4. Quentin Pacher (Groupama-FDJ) same time
5. Pavel Sivakov (INEOS Grenadiers) same time
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 11:50:59
2. Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) +13 seconds
3. Ethan Hayter (INEOS Grenadiers) +26 seconds
Points Classification
1. Sam Bennett (BORA-Hansgrohe) 127
2. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 118
3. Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) 34
King of the Mountains
1. Joan Bou (Euskaltel-Euskadi) 5
2. Primoz Roglic (Team Jumbo-Visma) 3
3. Julius van den Berg (EF Education-EasyPost) 3
Fabio Capello does not understand why Juventus would want to sign Marseille forward Arkadiusz Milik before the transfer window closes.
Juve are reported to be keen to land Poland international Milik rather than Barcelona's Memphis Depay.
Milik scored 20 goals in 37 games for Ligue 1 side Marseille in all competitions last season, and the Bianconeri are said to have lined up a loan move for the former Napoli man, with the option to sign him permanently.
Former Juve boss Capello is not enthused over reports that Milik could be on his way to Turin.
"We need a player who has more quality. I hear about Milik, but he is not a player that makes the difference," Capello told Sky Sport Italia
"It's not what the fans dream of seeing at Juve – he's a good player, who can be part of the squad, but nothing more."
Vice president Pavel Nedved confirmed that Depay is a target for Juve ahead of Monday's goalless Serie A draw at Sampdoria.
He told DAZN: "There is no need to speed up the process, that is never a good idea. We are evaluating; we are vigilant about what the market offers.
"We must evaluate well, looking at training and injuries; we are considering entering the market.
"Depay can play with with Dusan [Vlahovic] or in his place. He can play with [Moise] Kean and play as a winger, but he is only one of the names we are evaluating."
Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera had said all along the team would not rush defensive end Chase Young back from last November's ACL tear.
Now the earliest Young can suit up for the Commanders is Week 5 after officially placing the star pass-rusher on the reserve/physically unable to perform (PUP) list on Tuesday.
Young is still recovering from a torn ACL in his right knee sustained in Week 10 of last season and Rivera had already ruled him out for the 2022 opener against the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars on September 11, while also hinting he could wind up on the PUP list.
Under the new rules for the PUP list, a player must sit out at least four games, meaning the first game Young will be eligible to play is against the Tennessee Titans on October 9.
After capturing Defensive Rookie of the Year honours and earning a Pro Bowl selection in 2020 with 7.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries to help Washington win the NFC East, Young's production dipped last year before his season-ending injury.
In nine games in 2021, Young finished with just 1.5 sacks and two forced fumbles without recovering a fumble as Washington ended the season in third place in the division.
Placing Young on the PUP list was a necessary move as all teams must trim their rosters to 80 players by Tuesday's deadline.
Organiser of the P.H.A.S.E 1 Elite 1 Caribbean Basketball League Wayne Dawkins says he’s looking at expanding the league to the rest of the Caribbean in the future.
The P.H.A.S.E 1 E1 CBL was held from August 13-20 at the National Arena in Kingston, Jamaica. It featured four teams comprised of professionals from Jamaica, Barbados, USA and Canada and saw excellent crowd support throughout.
“We want to do big things for basketball in Jamaica and the Caribbean,” said Dawkins in an interview with Sportsmax.TV on Saturday.
“Absolutely. We still have to perfect this and then, as that happens, we can expand it to the rest of the Caribbean but it really starts with the product that we’re able to perfect right here in Jamaica,” he added.
With this in mind, Dawkins also outlined the amount of work that goes into putting on a basketball league.
“It’s an immense amount of work. You have to recruit players, think about player management, finding and developing staff. Identify venues, all the different production partners, sales, marketing and everything. All those divisions require a lot of coordination and a lot of work,” he said.
Kevin Durant is set to stay with the Brooklyn Nets after franchise and the 12-time NBA All-Star "agreed to move forward with our partnership".
Durant's future has been shrouded in doubt after the 33-year-old superstar reportedly asked for a trade at the end of June.
Nets general manager Sean Marks on Tuesday released a statement making it clear Durant is going nowhere after a meeting in which team owners Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, and head coach Steve Kerr, were present.
"Steve Nash and I, together with Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles yesterday," the statement said.
"We have agreed to move forward with our partnership. We are focusing on basketball, with one collective goal in mind: build a lasting franchise to bring a championship to Brooklyn."
Kevin Durant is set to stay with the Brooklyn Nets after franchise and the 12-time NBA All-Star "agreed to move forward with our partnership".
Durant's future has been shrouded in doubt after the 33-year-old superstar reportedly asked for a trade at the end of June.
Nets general manager Sean Marks on Tuesday released a statement making it clear Durant is going nowhere after a meeting in which team owners Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, and head coach Steve Kerr, were present.
"Steve Nash and I, together with Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles yesterday," the statement said.
"We have agreed to move forward with our partnership. We are focusing on basketball, with one collective goal in mind: build a lasting franchise to bring a championship to Brooklyn."
It was reported this month that Durant had given the Nets an ultimatum over his future, stating that he would only stay if Marks and Nash were fired.
Tsai threw his support behind Marks and Nash, tweeting: "Our front office and coaching staff have my support. We will make decisions in the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets."
Forward Durant is about to enter the first year of his four-year, $198million contract extension with the Nets.
The two-time NBA champion joined Brooklyn in a sign-and-trade deal in 2019 and penned a contract extension with the Nets 12 months ago.
Ex-Golden State Warrior Durant averaged 29.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists from 55 games last season for a Nets team that was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics.
Will Zalatoris' bid to win the FedExCup is over after he withdrew from the Tour Championship due to a back injury.
The 26-year-old suffered two herniated discs during the third round of the BMW Championship last weekend and pulled out after the fourth hole.
Zalatoris had given himself a great chance of winning the FedExCup with his maiden PGA Tour triumph at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, but he will not be fit for the Tour Championship at East Lake this week.
The world number nine, who is third behind Scottie Scheffler and Patrick Cantlay in the FedExCup standings, will also miss the Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow next month.
If all 29 players complete 72 holes in Atlanta this weekend, Zalatoris will finish 30th in the FedExCup and pick up bonus money of $500,000, with the winner pocketing $18million
Allen Hobbs, Zalatoris' agent, said in a statement on Tuesday: "After Will’s withdrawal from the BMW Championship on Saturday, his medical team determined that the source of his back pain is two herniated discs.
"Unfortunately, this means that Will is unable to play this week at the TOUR Championship. He is also very disappointed that he will not have the opportunity to play in next month's Presidents Cup, where he was hoping to play for Captain Love [Davis III] and represent the United States.
"Will would like to thank his fans, sponsors, the TOUR, and his team for all of their support. He is fully focused on getting healthy and back onto the course as soon as he is able."
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