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• Maresca named Pochettino's successor at Chelsea

  Chelsea have announced the appointment of Enzo Maresca as the club's new head coach.

  The former Leicester City boss has put pen to paper on a five-year deal, with the option for the club to extend his stay for another year.

  Maresca replaces Mauricio Pochettino, who left Chelsea by mutual consent last month after just one season in charge.

  The Italian oversaw Leicester's promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt in 2023-24, the Foxes topping the Championship table with 98 points.

  In a statement, Chelsea's co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: "We are delighted to welcome Enzo to Chelsea. 

  "He has proven himself to be an excellent coach capable of delivering impressive results with an exciting and identifiable style.

  "Enzo has deeply impressed us in our discussions leading up to his appointment. His ambitions and work ethic align with those of the club. We thoroughly look forward to working with him."

  Former midfielder Maresca, who was a two-time UEFA Cup winner with Sevilla, began his coaching career on the staff at Ascoli – then of Serie B – in 2017.

  He then joined Manchester City in August 2020 as manager of their Elite Development Side, who he guided to the Premier League 2 title in his first season, before a six-month stint in charge of Parma.

  Maresca returned to City in June 2022 as an assistant to Pep Guardiola, before replacing Dean Smith at Leicester 12 months later and subsequently guiding the former Premier League champions back into the top flight.

  The 44-year-old, who becomes the eighth different Italian to manage Chelsea, will enjoy his first taste of European football as a coach next season. 

  Although the Blues initially qualified for the Europa League having finished sixth in the Premier League, they dropped into the Europa Conference League following Manchester United's FA Cup final victory over Manchester City.

• Scaloni to remain Argentina boss beyond Copa America

  Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni insists he is fully committed to managing the side for as long as he is wanted ahead of their Copa America campaign.  

  Last year, the 46-year-old shocked world football when he revealed he was considering stepping down less than 12 months after leading his country to World Cup glory in Qatar. 

  It was reported by local media at the start of this year that Scaloni had agreed to remain in charge until the conclusion of the upcoming tournament in the United States, which sees the Albiceleste kickstart the month-long action against Canada on June 20. 

  Speaking ahead of warm-up friendlies against Ecuador and Guatemala, Scaloni said he expects to stay in charge until the Argentine Football Association President, Claudio Tapia, decides otherwise.

  "I was not having a good year and I felt it was time to stop the ball," Scaloni said, recalling his previous comments. 

  "Today I'm here with all my energy, which, to be honest, was not the case in November. As long as the president of the AFA wants me to be here, I'll be here."

  Scaloni was able to provide an update on the fitness of Lionel Messi while also explaining his decision to leave Paulo Dybala out of his preliminary 29-man squad for the tournament.

  Messi has scored 12 goals in his first 12 games of the MLS season with Inter Miami, last netting more in his first 12 outings of a league campaign with Barcelona in 2012-13 (17). 

  "The good thing is that Messi has had continuity in his team, especially after his injury," Scaloni said. 

  "It's important that he gets more minutes. We see him at full fitness. He will join the squad for training tomorrow."

  On Dybala, he added: "We have a special affection for him, but we always say that the team comes first. Given the circumstances and the fact that we had problems in some positions, we decided not to include him.

  "We know what he has given us. With all the pain in the world, this is the decision we have taken."

  A series of minor injuries limited Dybala to 25 Serie A starts in 2023-24, though he still scored 13 goals for Roma to improve on his return of 12 from 2022-23. 

  Argentina face Ecuador on June 9 at Soldier Field in Chicago and Guatemala at Commanders Field in Washington five days later, as preparations intensify ahead of their Copa America title defence. 

• Vinicius named Player of the Season as Real Madrid sweep Champions League awards

  Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior was named the Champions League's Player of the Season by UEFA's technical observer panel on Monday.

  Vinicius played 10 matches in the 2023-24 competition for champions Madrid, scoring six goals and assisting five.

  He was on the scoresheet as Carlo Ancelotti's side beat Borussia Dortmund in the final on Saturday, earning his second Champions League medal with the club.

  The Brazilian has 22 direct goal involvements in the knockout stages of Europe's premier club competition (11 goals, 11 assists), the joint-most recorded by any player before turning 24, alongside Lionel Messi.

  The UEFA panel also named Vinicius' team-mate Jude Bellingham the Best Young Player of the 2023-24 tournament.

  The 20-year-old England international scored four goals and provided five assists in 11 Champions League appearances.

  The Goal of the Season award also went to a Madrid player, with Federico Valverde's late volley against Manchester City in a 3-3 quarter-final draw at the Santiago Bernabeu taking the honours.