Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca hopes the Premier League will alter their financial rules so clubs are not encouraged to sell their academy players.
When clubs sell players from the academy, the entirety of the transfer fee goes down as ‘pure profit’ and this can be beneficial to those who are battling against the league’s profit and sustainability rules.
Chelsea have already shown this in the past, selling the likes of Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek to Manchester United and AC Milan respectively.
The Blues have also done so during the current transfer window, with Lewis Hall and Omari Hutchinson completing moves away from Stamford Bridge for a reported combined total of £46m.
Nevertheless, Maresca said the rules acted against the romance of the game, with supporters wanting to see their academy products remain at the club for their whole careers, also reiterating that it was not just an issue for his side.
“It’s not only us, it’s all the Premier League clubs. It’s a shame because in Italy, we have Totti with Roma, 20 years with the same club – one club man," Maresca said.
"We love that in football, the fans want to see that. But with the rules now it is different than the past.”
The sale of academy players has helped Chelsea to spend a lavish £1bn in the past four transfer windows, but Maresca believes these rules have benefitted all the big sides in the Premier League.
He said: “It is not only Chelsea spending money on players. It’s all the big clubs to try and buy players.
“Some of the clubs spend more, some spend less. My personal opinion is it’s a shame because we like to see a one club man but the rules are different.”
When asked whether he thinks the rules should change, he said: “If they want to protect academy players, then probably yes.”
Thierry Henry was delighted to guarantee France a first Olympic medal in the men's football since 1984 after their comeback victory over 10-man Egypt.
Les Bleus were minutes away from a semi-final exit against the Pharaohs until Jean-Philippe Mateta's 83rd minute equaliser.
Mateta would grab his fourth of the tournament in the ninth minute of extra-time, with former Crystal Palace teammate Michael Olise confirming the 3-1 win soon after.
Henry had been preparing for this event since taking over in August 2023 and felt the weight of responsibility, having seen his nation perform brilliantly in other events as the hosts.
“I’m living a dream. I don’t want to wake up," Henry said.
"I’ll be honest with you, what’s nice is for Team France because when you see everyone winning medals here and there, you think it’s up to us not to let the guys down.”
Henry endured a torrid time in charge of Monaco over five years ago, winning five of his 20 games in charge (D4, L11), but has since rebuilt his career.
Firstly, in the MLS with Montreal Impact, leading Montreal to their first playoff berth in four seasons, before returning for a second stint with the Belgium national side as an assistant manager.
This tournament has seen Henry possibly stake a claim for the France job further down the line, with Didier Deschamps’ contract expiring after the 2026 World Cup.
However, Philippe Diallo, president of the French Football Federation, did not want to entertain the idea just yet.
Diallo told RMC: “Let’s not rush things. Thierry Henry, when I appointed him to the position, there were some who had doubts given what he had done previously. I had confidence in him and he is proving it.”
France will play Spain at the Parc des Princes on Friday in the showpiece final.
Thierry Henry was delighted to guarantee France a first Olympic medal in the men's football since 1984 after their comeback victory over 10-man Egypt.
Les Bleus were minutes away from a semi-final exit against the Pharaohs until Jean-Philippe Mateta's 83rd minute equaliser.
Mateta would grab his fourth of the tournament and second of the match in the ninth minute of extra-time, with former Crystal Palace team-mate Michael Olise confirming the 3-1 win soon after.
Henry had been preparing for this event since taking over in August 2023 and felt the weight of responsibility, having seen his nation perform brilliantly in other events as the hosts.
“I’m living a dream. I don’t want to wake up," Henry said.
"I’ll be honest with you, what’s nice is for Team France because when you see everyone winning medals here and there, you think it’s up to us not to let the guys down.”
Henry endured a torrid time in charge of Monaco over five years ago, winning five of his 20 games in charge (D4, L11), but has since rebuilt his career.
Firstly, in the MLS with Montreal Impact, leading Montreal to their first playoff berth in four seasons, before returning for a second stint with the Belgium national side as an assistant manager.
This tournament has seen Henry possibly stake a claim for the France job further down the line, with Didier Deschamps’ contract expiring after the 2026 World Cup.
However, Philippe Diallo, president of the French Football Federation, did not want to entertain the idea just yet.
Diallo told RMC: “Let’s not rush things. Thierry Henry, when I appointed him to the position, there were some who had doubts given what he had done previously. I had confidence in him and he is proving it.”
France will play Spain at the Parc des Princes on Friday in the showpiece final.
The United States' players must be prepared to take their moment when it comes as they go for Olympic gold, so says Stephen Curry.
A star-studded USA side have won all their games in Paris so far, but now the pressure is on in the knockout stage.
Brazil are their quarter-final opponents on Tuesday, and while Curry is confident the USA's attack is good enough to beat any team, he knows each player has to be 100% ready for clutch moments.
"That's how we can overwhelm teams," he said.
"It's just everybody has to be ready for your moment whenever it is."
For coach Steve Kerr, meanwhile, it is a case of the USA sticking to an identity and gameplan.
"It's important to focus on keeping that identity now that you're playing the best teams," Kerr said.
"We know what wins a FIBA game.
"We are just completely focused on our defense and then the beauty of our team and the talent, the depth of our talent is that from one game to the next, we've got lots of guys who have the ability to get rolling."
Harrison Butker's contract extension with the Kansas City Chiefs makes him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL, according to reports.
Butker has penned a new, four-year deal with the Chiefs, who have won back-to-back Super Bowls.
Indeed, the 29-year-old has won three rings while with Kansas City, and converted the crucial field goal in their Super Bowl LVII victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in early 2023.
The Chiefs have now tied Butker down until 2028, with the deal reportedly worth $25.6million, with $17.75m guaranteed, more than any other NFL kicker.
"There's no place I'd rather be than with the Chiefs, excited to finalize a [four] year extension," Butker said in a post on social media. "To the Heights!"
Butker has a field goal percentage of 89.1 across his career, while he has been on the Chiefs' roster since 2017.
The Chicago White Sox tied an American League record with their 21st consecutive loss after being handed a 5-1 defeat by the Oakland Athletics on Monday.
Chicago mustered just one run and three hits through seven innings against A's starter JP Sears to match the 1988 Baltimore Orioles for the second-longest losing streak in Major League Baseball since 1900. The 1961 Philadelphia Phillies own the longest skid in the modern era with 23 straight losses.
Max Schuemann snapped a 1-1 tie with a two-run single in the fourth inning to help support Sears (9-8), who retired the final 10 batters he faced after surrendering Andrew Benintendi's run-scoring single in the top of the fourth to improve to 5-1 over his last six starts.
Benintendi's hit brought home Andrew Vaughn, who doubled earlier in the inning, to knot the score at 1-1 before the A's answered with two runs in their half of the fourth.
Oakland loaded the bases when White Sox starter Ky Bush hit Darrell Hernaiz with a pitch after giving up a double to JJ Bleday and walking Zack Gelof. Schuemann then delivered a single to left to drive in two runners and provide Sears with a 3-1 advantage.
Oakland increased its lead on Lawrence Butler's solo homer in the sixth inning, then tacked on another run in the eighth when Gelof scored from third on a pitch that got past White Sox catcher Korey Lee as Schuemann struck out.
Bush, called up from Triple-A Charlotte earlier in the day, allowed just two hits over four innings in his MLB debut, but issued five walks and permitted three runs.
The rookie left-hander walked three batters to load the bases in the first inning, which led to the A's first run when Tyler Nevin plated Daz Cameron with a sacrifice fly.
Ohtani's homer helps Dodgers down Phillies in Freeman's return
Shohei Ohtani hit his National League-leading 34th home run of the season as the Los Angeles Dodgers made Freddie Freeman's return to the lineup a winning one with Monday's 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Teoscar Hernandez added a two-run homer in Freeman's first game since July 25. The All-Star first baseman had been away from the Dodgers for 10 days to attend to his 3-year-old son, who had been hospitalized with an autoimmune condition before being released Sunday.
Ohtani also drove in a pair of runs while finishing 2 for 3 to help Los Angeles win the opener of this marquee three-game series between the NL's top two teams.
The Dodgers also received a solid start from Tyler Glasnow (9-6), who struck out nine over six innings while allowing three runs. Three Los Angeles relievers then finished off the victory, with Daniel Hudson tossing a scoreless ninth to earn his eighth save.
Aaron Nola (11-5) worked six innings for the slumping Phillies but was touched for four runs, all of which came in the third inning as Los Angeles erased an early 2-0 deficit.
Philadelphia has now lost seven of its last eight games and is just a half-game ahead of the Dodgers in the race for the NL's best record.
Nola cruised through the first two innings but quickly ran into trouble in the third, as Jason Heyward and Andy Pages delivered back-to-back doubles to get the Dodgers on the board. After Pages advanced to third on Nick Ahmed's infield single, Ohtani lifted a long sacrifice fly to right field that tied the contest at 2-2.
Hernandez followed with a line drive into the seats in left to put Los Angeles ahead with his 24th homer of the season.
Glasnow kept it a 4-2 lead until the sixth, when Kyle Schwarber singled and reached third on Bryce Harper's one-out double before scoring on a groundout off the bat of Alec Bohm.
Ohtani restored the Dodgers' two-run advantage, however, with a solo homer off Tanner Banks to open the bottom of the eighth.
The Phillies reached Glasnow for two second-inning runs with the help of a misplay by Pages, who couldn't come down with Nick Castellanos' long fly ball to center field that resulted in a two-out triple.
Bryson Stott then plated Castellanos with an infield single, and Austin Hays followed with a base hit to advance Stott to third. Stott would score on a wild pitch uncorked by Glasnow to give the Phillies a 2-0 edge.
Rangers shock Astros on Smith's homer in 10th
Josh Smith came through with a game-winning two-run homer with two outs in the 10th inning, lifting the Texas Rangers to a stunning 4-3 victory over the Houston Astros in the opener of a key three-game series between AL West contenders.
Smith's blast off Caleb Ferguson sent slumping Houston to a third straight loss and prevented the Astros from moving within a half-game of the first-place Seattle Mariners in the division standings.
The defending World Series champion Rangers are now five games behind Seattle after winning for just the third time in 10 games.
After the Astros took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 10th when Texas closer Kirby Yates hit consecutive batters with pitches to force in a run, Ferguson entered the game and struck out the first two men he faced with a designated runner on second base.
Ferguson fell behind in the count to Smith, however, and the utility player sent a 3-1 fastball deep into the right field seats to end the game.
The Rangers opted to intentionally walk Houston slugger Yordan Alvarez in the top of the 10th to put two runners on base, but the strategy backfired when Yates hit Yainer Diaz in the hand and then plunked Jeremy Pena with the bases loaded to put the Astros ahead.
Texas had tied the game on Corey Seager's solo homer off Ryan Pressly in the bottom of the eighth, erasing a 2-1 lead the Astros had taken in the top of the inning when Jose Altuve singled, took second on a wild pitch from Rangers reliever David Robertson and later scored on Pena's infield single.
Alex Bregman gave Houston an early 1-0 advantage with a solo homer in the third inning off Andrew Heaney, the only hit the Rangers' starter allowed in six innings of work.
Texas pulled even in the fifth when Nathaniel Lowe drew a walk against Houston starter Hunter Brown, advanced to third on Adolis Garcia's single and scored on a sacrifice fly by Leody Taveras.
Brown yielded just one run and three hits over six innings.
Sweden's Armand Duplantis successfully defended his Olympic title in the men's pole vault, setting another world record in the process.
The 24-year-old broke his own record of 6.24m from April by one centimetre, launching himself over the 6.25m on his third and final attempt on Monday.
His second consecutive gold medal was already secured long before that point, having cleared 6.00m, beating America's Sam Kendricks.
After celebrating his victory, Duplantis then beat the Olympic record of 6.03m set by Brazil's Thiago Braz in 2016 and continued his run.
The two-time world champion has now broken the world record on nine occasions.
He also became the first athlete to retain the pole vault title since America's Bob Richards in 1952 and 1956.
"I don't know how to put into words what I'm feeling," Duplantis said. "I feel so grateful for how tonight played out. I didn't let myself believe that I was Olympic champion until it was all done.
"I think it's been such a fight to show up and to be at our best and do it when it matters.
"I feel so grateful for having this come together, a little bit of luck on our side, and being able to walk away on top. It's just so special."
France came from behind to beat 10-man Egypt 3-1 after extra time and reach the Olympic Games final thanks to a brace from Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Mahmoud Saber's goal looked to be sending Egypt through, but Mateta and Michael Olise ensured that would not happen with help from Omar Fayed's sending off in extra time.
Despite Egypt slightly edging the first half, the hosts almost took the lead when Loic Bade's header struck the foot of the post just before half-time.
On the hour mark, Alexandre Lacazette squandered a glorious chance, and just moments later Shehata profited at the other end, rifling his powerful effort into the roof of the net.
France rallied soon after, with Lacazette and Bade hitting the woodwork in quick succession before Hamza Alaa made two brilliant saves to keep out the Les Bleus' captain.
The hosts' pressure finally paid off in the 83rd minute though – Olise raced through midfield before picking out his former Crystal Palace team-mate Mateta, who fired them level.
A lengthy VAR check deep in second-half stoppage time then proved fruitless as the referee stuck with the onfield decision to now award a penalty to France for a handball by Omar Fayed, who received a booking for dissent.
His game then went from bad to worse as he received his marching orders two minutes into extra time for a late tackle on Desire Doue.
Mateta thumped France in front with a close-range free header seven minutes later, and Olise made sure of their progress in the 108th minute, curling a low shot past Alaa before he could react.
Data Debrief: Les Bleus march on
At one point, Thierry Henry had his head in his hands as France wasted chance after chance in front of goal. In the first half they only created an expected goals (xG) of 0.2, but improved that to 2.33 from 17 shots in the second as Egypt eventually caved to the onslaught.
Mateta proved the difference-maker once more, having scored the goal to send them into the semi-finals, he added two more to his tally.
France will play in the final at the Olympics for the first time in 40 years, and they will face Spain in the gold-medal match on Friday.
Fermin Lopez was proud of how Spain managed a "difficult" Olympic Games semi-final against Morocco as they came from behind to beat them 2-1.
Soufiane Rahimi had given Morocco the lead from the penalty spot in the first half, but an inspired second-half performance from Fermin saw him score before assisting Juanlu Sanchez to earn the victory.
In the process, he became the youngest player (21 years and 86 days) to both score and assist in a men's Olympic tournament knockout match since Neymar against Honduras in 2012.
La Roja are into the Olympics final for the second consecutive tournament, having claimed the silver medal in Tokyo after a 2-1 defeat to Brazil in the final.
And Fermin believes Spain deserved to reach the showpiece after their resilient performance in the second half.
"I'm very happy to be in the final of the Olympics. The team deserved it, now we're thinking about the final," Fermin told AS.
"The game was difficult for us, they were putting a lot of pressure on their fans, it was a nice game and I think we deserved the victory.
"I hope I can play in every game. The most important thing is that we have taken a step forward, and we have achieved victory.
"After the break we were ourselves. I always try to help the team, whatever the manager asks of me. I'm very happy with our football and I hope we can win all the medals possible."
Spain will play either France or Egypt in the gold-medal match at the Parc des Princes on Friday.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines can be proud of the performance of their national record holder Shafiqua Maloney in the final of the Women’s 800m at the Paris Olympics on Monday.
The 25-year-old ran a brilliant 1:57.66 to narrowly miss out on a medal after finishing fourth at the Stade de France.
Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson, the fastest woman in the world this season, produced 1:56.72 to finally win a global gold medal after silver medals at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, 2022 World Championships in Eugene and the 2023 World Championships in Budapest.
African Games champion Tsige Duguma of Ethiopia took silver in 1:57.15 while reigning World and Commonwealth champion, Mary Moraa of Kenya, took bronze in 1:57.42.
Karim Adeyemi says he has no intention of leaving Borussia Dortmund in the transfer window amid speculation over his future.
The German has been linked with a move away from Signal Iduna Park, with both Juventus and Chelsea reportedly interested in his signature.
Adeyemi signed for Dortmund in May 2022 and has since made 66 appearances for them in all competitions, scoring 14 goals and providing eight assists.
He also played a key role in helping the team to the Champions League final last season, playing in all but one of those games, though missed big chances in the showpiece as they lost 2-0 to Real Madrid.
Dortmund were reportedly willing to sell him, but have now backtracked, and Adeyemi confirmed that he is keen to stay at the club.
"My focus is solely on Borussia Dortmund, as it was before these rumours started circulating," Adeyemi told German newspaper BILD.
"I am happy at Borussia Dortmund. I want to stay at this club and my plans have not changed.
"A lot of things were written, but it's not true [that his father directly spoke to Juventus]."
Dortmund have already seen some of their big names leave this transfer window, with Niklas Fullkrug confirming his move to West Ham on Monday, while Marco Reus and Mats Hummels both departed after the Champions League final.
Youssoufa Moukoko is also reportedly set to leave the club to join Marseille.
St. Lucia’s Julien Alfred, the reigning 100m Olympic champion, continues her stellar performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics by winning her heat in the semifinals of the Women’s 200m. Alfred clocked an impressive time of 21.98 seconds, securing her place in the final with the second fastest overall time. With USA’s Gabrielle Thomas clocking the fastest time, winning her heat in 21.86 seconds.
Meanwhile, in heat two, Jamaica's Niesha Burgher finished seventh in 22.64 seconds and received a penalty for a first-lane infringement. Adaejah Hodge of the British Virgin Islands finished eighth heat one, clocking 22.70 seconds. In heat three, Jamaica's Lanae-Tava Thomas finished seventh in 22.77 seconds.
Despite their incredible efforts, Burgher, Hodge, and Thomas did not make it to the finals ranking 12th,17th,18th respectively.
The women's 200m final is scheduled for August 6, with Julien Alfred representing the Caribbean and looking to add another Olympic medal to her haul. Fans and supporters eagerly await what promises to be an exciting race.
The Olympic Games track cycling events got off to an unforgettable start as Great Britain broke the world record three times on their way to claiming gold in the women's team sprint.
In total, the world record was beaten five times throughout the event, with Emma Finucane, Sophie Capewell and Katy Merchant continually upping their level in a dominant performance.
They started the record-breaking in their opening qualifier at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yveslines velodrome on Monday, taking 0.15 seconds off the previous record.
In an astonishing 10 minutes, it was soon taken away from them by Germany, with New Zealand then eclipsing it as they booked a place in the final race.
However, Team GB took it back once more in their heat against Canada, shaving it down to 45.338 seconds.
And they pulled off something special in the final, breaking the record for a third time as Finucane got them across the line in 45.186, earning Great Britain their first-ever women's team sprint medal, of any colour, at the Olympics.
New Zealand finished 0.473 seconds behind them to claim silver, while Germany took the bronze medal.
Wanya McCoy of the Bahamas and Alexander Ogando of the Dominican Republic were the only two Caribbean athletes to secure automatic qualification to the semifinals of the men’s 200m at the Paris Olympics at the Stade de France on Monday.
McCoy, running out of lane nine, produced an excellent last 50m to finish second in heat two in 20.35 behind Uganda’s Tarsis Orogot who won in a comfortable 20.32.
Brazil’s Renan Correa ran 20.41 to secure the third automatic spot relegating Jamaica’s Andrew Hudson, who ran 20.53 for fourth, to Tuesday’s repechage round.
Ogando was the third fastest qualifier to the semis after running 20.04 to finish second in heat four behind American Kenny Bednarek who’s winning time of 19.96 was the fastest in the heats. Germany’s Joshua Hartmann took the third automatic spot in that race with 20.30.
Jamaica’s Bryan Levell and Bahamian Ian Kerr will both have to come back to tomorrow’s repechage round if they are to make it to the semifinals after fourth and fifth place finishes in their respective heats.
Levell ran 20.47 to finish fourth in heat six behind 100m champion Noah Lyles (20.19), defending Olympic champion Andre De Grasse (20.30) and Japan’s Towa Uzawa (20.33).
Kerr ran 20.53 for fifth in heat five won by American Erriyon Knighton in 19.99. Zimbabwe’s Tapiwanashe Makarawu ran 20.07 for second while South Africa’s Shaun Maswanganyi ran 20.20 for third.
Medal contenders Letsile Tebogo of Botswana (20.10) and Joseph Fahnbulleh of Liberia (20.20) both advanced as heat winners.
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