Cristiano Ronaldo is set for a sensational return to Manchester United after the Old Trafford giants confirmed a deal had been agreed with Juventus, beating Manchester City to his signature.
Benjamin Mendy has been remanded in custody after the Manchester City defender was charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
Mendy was charged by Cheshire Constabulary on Thursday in relation to alleged attacks between October 2020 and August 2021.
The 27-year-old France international appeared in Chester Magistrates' Court on Friday, where he spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth.
Mendy was remanded in custody and is due to appear at Chester Crown Court on September 10.
The left-back was suspended by City pending an investigation after being charged.
City said in a statement released on Thursday: "Manchester City can confirm that following his being charged by police today, Benjamin Mendy has been suspended pending an investigation.
"The matter is subject to a legal process and the club is therefore unable to make further comment until that process is complete."
It was a clean sweep for Team Puerto winning all team divisions at the CGA’s 64th Caribbean Amateur Golf Championships (CAGC). Six Caribbean countries sent their best 47 golfers to compete August 24-26 at the Country Club at Grand Reserve, Rio Grande, in Puerto Rico.
Chris Sale joined Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax as the only pitchers in MLB history with three immaculate innings after helping the Boston Red Sox past the Minnesota Twins 12-2.
Red Sox ace Sale pitched 5.2 innings, striking out eight batters while allowing two runs on two hits in Boston on Thursday.
Sale stole the headlines with his nine-pitch third inning after striking out Twins trio Nick Gordon, Andrelton Simmons and Rob Refsnyder on three pitches each.
"Today was probably the best my mechanics have been start-to-finish. I really felt like I was staying on top of the baseball. I really kind of found it out in the bullpen before the game," Sale said.
Boston team-mate Bobby Dalbec homered twice for the Red Sox, driving in seven runs.
Judge lifts Yankees to 12th straight win
The New York Yankees extended their winning streak thanks to Aaron Judge's tie-breaking single with two outs in the ninth inning as they edged the Oakland Athletics 7-6. The Yankees have won 12 games in a row – their best run since 1961.
Another day and another win for World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers, who beat the San Diego Padres 4-0 for a three-game sweep behind Max Scherzer. Dodgers star Scherzer gave up just two hits and one walk while striking out 10. The Dodgers have now gone 11 consecutive seasons without a losing record – their longest streak since the team moved to Los Angeles.
Salvador Perez became the first American League (AL) catcher with 35-plus homers in a season since 1999. Perez's grand slam run helped the Kansas City Royals to a 6-4 victory at the Seattle Mariners.
The Washington Nationals lost 7-5 to the Miami Marlins but Juan Soto joined an exclusive club. The Nationals star recorded his second season of 100-plus walks – becoming only the third player to do so through their age-22 season along with Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Mel Ott.
Angels grounded again
Despite Shohei Ohtani's lead-off homer, the Los Angeles Angels were humbled 13-1 by the resurgent Baltimore Orioles, who snapped a 19-game losing streak 24 hours earlier. Elvis Peguero was charged with five of the six runs the Angels allowed in the fifth inning.
Grand slam!
Struggling for form before Wednesday, the Orioles celebrated back-to-back wins on Thursday. Pedro Severino fuelled Baltimore with a grand slam and six RBIs.
Thursday's results
Baltimore Orioles 13-1 Los Angeles Angels
Cincinnati Reds 5-1 Milwaukee Brewers
Chicago White Sox 10-7 Toronto Blue Jays
Arizona Diamondbacks 8-7 Philadelphia Phillies
Pittsburgh Pirates 11-7 St Louis Cardinals
Boston Red Sox 12-2 Minnesota Twins
San Francisco Giants 3-2 New York Mets
Cleveland Indians 10-6 Texas Rangers
Miami Marlins 7-5 Washington Nationals
Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 San Diego Padres
New York Yankees 7-6 Oakland Athletics
Kansas City Royals 6-4 Seattle Mariners
Cubs at White Sox
Bragging rights will be on the line when the White Sox (74-55) host city rivals the Cubs (56-73) on Friday. Dallas Keuchel will toe the mound for the White Sox as the Cubs counter with Keegan Thompson.
Pablo Carreno Busta headlined the casualties at the Winston-Salem Open, where the top seed was shocked in straight sets by Ilya Ivashka.
The 2016 champion, Carreno Busta had his sights set on the semi-finals of the ATP 250 tournament but he suffered a surprise 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 loss on Thursday.
"Of course it's a great feeling. I had a great match today. These conditions suit me," Ivashka said. "I think he had more pressure because he's the top seed so for me it was a good challenge to see what my level is and to compete with these guys, so for me it was a great match."
Carreno Busta – who trumped world number one and 20-time grand slam champion Novak Djokovic to win bronze at the Olympic Games – was not the only seed to fall.
Richard Gasquet and Frances Tiafoe also crashed out in the quarter-finals following defeats to Emil Ruusuvuori and Mikael Ymer.
The only seed to advance to the semis was 15th seed Carlos Alcaraz, who saw off Marcos Giron.
Australian Open chief Craig Tiley is confident the season-opening grand slam will be held in Melbourne next year, despite coronavirus concerns.
COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc around much of Australia, with Victoria and New South Wales both locked down due to outbreaks in the states.
The 2021 Australian Open went ahead, albeit in February instead of January, amid the coronavirus pandemic and without fans for most of the tournament following a snap lockdown of Melbourne.
Novak Djokovic was among the players critical of the conditions athletes endured prior to this year's Australian Open, with strict quarantine measures introduced.
Players, however, as set to spend two weeks in a biosecure bubble prior to the 2022 event, according to Tiley.
"There's a lot of time between now and when we get going but, at this point in time, we're planning on having a two-week bubble, where the players will be able to move freely between the hotel and the courts," Tiley said.
"They're protected, they're kept safe among themselves and safe from the community as well.
"And after those two weeks, they'll come out and be able to compete in the Australian Open in front of crowds."
Stefanos Tsitsipas faces Andy Murray and Ash Barty will take on 2010 finalist Vera Zvonareva in the first round of the US Open.
French Open runner-up Tsitsipas and 2012 champion Murray is one of the standout matches in the opening round at Flushing Meadows.
Top seed Novak Djokovic will start his quest for a calendar Grand Slam against a qualifier in New York and could face a repeat of the Wimbledon final versus Matteo Berrettini in the last eight.
World number one Djokovic, a strong favourite for a record 21st major title with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer absent due to injury, could do battle with Alexander Zverev at the semi-final stage.
Daniil Medvedev, the second seed, is in the bottom half with Tsitsipas, who he could come up against in the semi-final. Medvedev's first test will come against Frenchman Richard Gasquet.
Barty could come up against Iga Swiatek in the last eight and Karolina Pliskova if she makes it through to the semi-finals.
Simona Halep's encounter with Camila Giorgi is a mouthwatering first-round match, while defending champion Naomi Osaka returns to grand slam action against former US Open junior champion Marie Bouzkova.
Angelique Kerber could be a tough fourth round opponent for Osaka. Close friends Madison Keys and Sloane Stephens meet in another eye-catching first-round match.
There will be no Serena or Venus Williams at the final major of the year due to injuries.
The Jamaican duo of Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson-Herah continue to push the boundaries of women’s sprinting with yet another blistering performance at the Lausanne Diamond League meet on Thursday.
Thompson-Herah became the second female sprinter to legally dip below the 10.7 seconds barrier on three occasions, joining American world record holder Florence Griffith-Joyner.
On Thursday, Thompson-Herah finished in second place behind Fraser-Pryce, but still clocked the joint seventh fastest time ever recorded over the distance with 10.64. Fraser-Pryce took the event in a new personal best 10.60, the third-fastest ever run over the distance.
Thompson-Herah’s time adds to an impressive collection this season, which also saw her claim Olympic gold in 10.61 and run the second fastest time ever recorded over the distance, 10.54, set at the Prefontaine Classic last week.
Griffith-Joyner legally cracked the 10.7s barrier thrice in 1988, clocking 10.49 to set the current world record and clocking 10.62 and 10.61 at the Seoul Olympics. Fraser-Pryce’s time sees her now achieving the feat twice, having clocked 10.63 earlier this season.
American Carmelita Jeter also broke the 10.7s barrier twice, registering times of 10.67 and 10.64 in 2009. Marion Jones, who clocked 10.65 in 1998 is the only other athlete in history to be represented on the list.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce ran a new lifetime best to turn the tables on Elaine Thompson-Herah and win the 100m dash at the Diamond League meeting in Lausanne on Thursday.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) could be breathing a sigh of relief as the country remained on the amber list in the latest update of the United Kingdom’s Traffic Light System, which applies to travel to and from the country.
Earlier this week, the Premier League announced that, based on the current quarantine rules, it would not release players for the upcoming round of World Cup qualifiers to countries on the UK’s red list. It was later joined by the La Liga and Serie A competitions and yesterday, England’s second tier, the EFL also joined the list of clubs.
The concerns stem from the fact that players returning from red-listed destinations would, based on the rules, be forced to quarantine for 10 days. The leagues argue that those conditions would lead to players missing games, in addition to having to make up for fitness requirements.
Unless an agreement can be worked out the decision will impact the availability of several teams competing in the final round of the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers, which kick off on September 2.
At current, Mexico, Panama, and Costa Rica are the teams that have been placed on the red list. The USA, Jamaica, El Salvador, and Honduras are all on the amber list, while Canada has been moved to the green list.
Individuals returning from red list countries are required to quarantine in a managed hotel for 10 days and are subject to at least two COVID-19 tests.
Fully vaccinated individuals travelling to countries on the amber list would be subject to taking a COVID-19 test two days after arriving or before. Non-vaccinated individuals returning from countries on the amber list would have to undergo the mandatory 10-day quarantine period.
Based on the interpretation of the rules and the club’s specific stipulation of not allowing players to travel to red list countries, the CONCACAF countries on the amber and green list could potentially have their players available. Baring a change of circumstances, affected countries on the red list would be left short-handed. However, vaccine stipulations, which it seems are required to exempt individuals from mandatory quarantine, could complicate things.
Jamaica has at least 10 players who ply their trade between the Premier League and England Football League (EFL). Among the EPL players are Andre Gray (Watford), Leon Bailey (Aston Villa), and potentially Michail Antonio (West Ham) who recently received official documentation after switching from England. It is currently not known how many of the team's overseas players are vaccinated.
Rangers are through to the Europa League group stage for a fourth successive season after drawing 0-0 away at 10-man Alashkert on Thursday to progress 1-0 on aggregate.
Alfredo Morelos missed a hat-trick of big chances against Alashkert – who played more than 45 minutes with 10 men after James was dismissed – though the Colombian's goal in last week's first leg ultimately proved the difference.
The Gers were without manager Steven Gerrard, skipper James Tavernier and five others due to a coronavirus outbreak in their camp, but they were on top in the first half at Nairi Marzadasht.
Joe Aribo's curling drive was touched on to the post by Ognjen Cancarevic, either side of Morelos firing over when played through and being denied by the Alashkert goalkeeper from another one-on-one.
Despite losing attacker James to two yellow cards in the space of two minutes shortly before half-time, the hosts started to grow into the game and nearly levelled when Aleksandar Glisic headed over the bar from close range.
The best of the remaining opportunities fell Rangers' way, though, with Morelos volleying off target from 10 yards with his latest chance and Aribo being denied by the woodwork for a second time late on.
Gerrard's side will discover their group-stage opponents in Friday's draw, while Alashkert will now compete in the inaugural Europa Conference League competition.
Pep Guardiola and Lionel Messi will go up against each other in the Champions League after Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain were drawn into the same group.
Messi and Guardiola enjoyed a close relationship during their time together at Barcelona, but for the first time they will meet with neither of them representing the Catalans.
Six-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi left Barca at the end of June when his contract expired, and while he was expected to sign on with them again, the Blaugrana's hands were tied due to financial restrictions.
As such, Messi was swiftly snapped up by PSG despite previous links with City and a potential Guardiola reunion.
Another narrative could yet enter the conversation with respect to City versus PSG, as Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo – Messi's long-time rival – has been strongly with a move to the Etihad Stadium.
If Ronaldo does not leave Juve, he will go up against the holders Chelsea – who beat City in last season's final – in Group H.
There will be a repeat of the 2020-21 Europa League final in Group F as Manchester United have been offered the opportunity for revenge against Villarreal, who defeated Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men in a remarkable penalty shoot-out in Belfast at the end of May.
Three of Spain's other representatives have tough groups to contend with: Barcelona were drawn with Bayern Munich, Benfica and Dynamo Kiev; Real Madrid will again face Inter and Shakhtar Donetsk as they did in 2020-21; and Atletico Madrid must go up against Liverpool, Porto and Milan.
Sevilla, on the other hand, are in the seemingly even Group G with Ligue 1 winners Lille, Salzburg and Wolfsburg, the latter of whom are back in the competition for only the third time.
First-time qualifiers Sheriff of Moldova joined Madrid, Inter and Shakhtar in Group D.
Group A: Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, RB Leipzig, Club Brugge
Group B: Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, Porto, Milan
Group C: Sporting CP, Borussia Dortmund, Ajax, Besiktas
Group D: Inter, Real Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk, Sheriff
Group E: Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Benfica, Dynamo Kiev
Group F: Villarreal, Manchester United, Atalanta, Young Boys
Group G: Lille, Sevilla, Salzburg, Wolfsburg
Group H: Chelsea, Juventus, Zenit, Malmo
Valtteri Bottas and George Russell on Thursday stated there was "no news" of who will partner Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year.
Silver Arrows boss Toto Wolff this week affirmed his desire to finalise his driver line-up for 2022 in September.
Williams driver Russell stepped in for Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix last year after the seven-time Formula One world champion tested positive for coronavirus.
The 23-year-old Brit also conducted a Pirelli tyre test for Mercedes ahead of the mid-season break, adding further fuel to suggestions he could take Bottas' seat.
Bottas and Russell were paired for media conference duties ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix this weekend, with neither driving giving much away over their futures.
"There's no news to share yet,” said Bottas. "Maybe I know something, maybe I don't but like I said there's no news to share."
Russell said: "No news to share at this stage.
"There's obviously been discussions over the summer break, but there's nothing to announce one way or another this weekend, and probably not next weekend either to be honest, which I think is no problem. Do things right, rather than quickly, let's say.
"I think we're both fortunate that we're both looked after in ways by Mercedes and we both trust them to look after our futures, one way or another.
"From my side, speaking for myself, there's no real problems and whether it's tomorrow, whether it's after Abu Dhabi, I guess you have to trust the people that are looking out for you."
Manchester City have suspended Benjamin Mendy pending an investigation after Cheshire Constabulary charged the player with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
Charges against the 27-year-old left-back relate to three complainants over the age of 16, with the incidents alleged to have occurred between October 2020 and August 21, police said.
"The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has authorised Cheshire Constabulary to charge a man in connection with allegations of sexual assault," a police statement confirmed on Thursday.
"Benjamin Mendy, aged 27, has been charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
"The charges relate to three complainants over the age of 16 and are alleged to have taken place between October 2020 and August 2021.
"Mendy, of Withinlee Road, Prestbury, has been remanded in police custody and is set to appear at Chester Magistrates' Court on Friday 27 August.
"Cheshire Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service would like to remind everyone that criminal proceedings against Mendy are live and that he has a right to a fair trial.
"It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice ongoing proceedings."
Following the charges, City released a statement saying: "Manchester City can confirm that following his being charged by police today, Benjamin Mendy has been suspended pending an investigation.
"The matter is subject to a legal process and the club is therefore unable to make further comment until that process is complete."
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