England were pegged back following a scintillating start to the decisive third Test against South Africa on Saturday, ending an emotional day at The Oval with a 36-run lead. 

Ollie Robinson claimed a five-wicket haul as the tourists were bowled out for just 118, though Marco Jansen responded with four of his own to keep the match, and the series, in the balance.

The third and final Test began two days later than planned, with rain preventing play on Thursday before the death of Queen Elizabeth II saw Friday's action also suspended.

A capacity crowd at The Oval observed a faultless minutes' silence ahead of the national anthem being sung, after which the home seamers took control in an action-packed morning session.

Robinson and James Anderson dismissed South Africa's openers within the first three overs, the former beating Dean Elgar (1) with a ferocious delivery to make the breakthrough. 

Robinson's dream start continued as Keegan Petersen (12) made the dire decision to leave a routine ball, before the 28-year-old paceman also had Kyle Verreynne (0) and Wiaan Mulder (3) caught behind.

Things did not get much better for the Proteas after lunch, with Joe Root handing Robinson his fifth wicket with a simple catch to dismiss Jansen, before Stuart Broad finished them off by bringing up four wickets of his own when Ben Stokes caught Anrich Nortje (7).

But England made a slow start with the bat as Alex Lees (13) fell within four overs, while Zak Crawley (5) followed lbw as Jansen doubled up early on.

That was a sign of things to come as Jansen added the wickets of Root (23) and debutant Harry Brook (12), before Kagiso Rabada felled Broad (6) and England dangerman Ollie Pope, whose 67 had dragged them into the lead.

Much to England's relief, however, bad light stopped play just as the visiting attack were hitting their stride, leaving Stokes' men to resume on 154-7 on Sunday.

Seamers make quick work of Proteas

A total of 17 wickets fell on an exciting day of action, with South Africa putting on the shortest first innings ever recorded in a Test match at The Oval.  

The tourists were dismissed for 118 runs in just 36.2 overs, beating the previous record of 42.1 overs (England v Australia in August 1948) by some distance.

Five-star Robinson on top

Robinson was the star of the show as England tore through South Africa's line-up early on, recording his third Test five-for as the hosts seized the initiative.

While Jansen's response dragged his team back into the match, Robinson's efforts will be key if England go on to register a fourth consecutive series success against the Proteas.

Bayern Munich must "take a good look at ourselves" if they are to get their Bundesliga season back on track after being held to a third straight draw, so says Thomas Muller.

Julian Nagelsmann's side followed up 1-1 draws against Borussia Monchengladbach and Union Berlin with a 2-2 draw against Stuttgart at Allianz Arena on Saturday.

Mathys Tel struck in the first half to put Bayern ahead on home soil, the 17-year-old becoming the club's youngest league goalscorer in the process.

Chris Fuhrich equalised in the second half for Stuttgart, who are winless in six games this season, but Jamal Musiala's strike had Bayern on course for all three points.

However, having had two goals ruled out and hit the crossbar, Serhou Guirassy was fouled by Matthijs de Ligt in the box and stepped up to convert the 92nd-minute penalty.

And Muller believes the latest of the stalemates has left him the most disappointed he has felt after a game this season.

"Today I'm angry for the first time," he told Sky Sport. "I'm mad at ourselves. If we want to win every game, and that's our aim, then you have to play until the very last minute.

"If we are going to stay top of the table, we have to take a look at ourselves."

Nagelsmann made six changes on the back of the midweek win over Inter in the Champions League, with another tough European test against Barcelona to come on Tuesday.

The 35-year-old guided Bayern to a 10th successive Bundesliga title last season, but his side have won only three of their past nine league matches stretching into last season.

Asked if he is feeling under additional pressure, Nagelsmann told reporters: "I don't know if the pressure got higher. Pressure is always subjective and comes from the outside. 

"We'll continue to work, train tomorrow and Monday, analyse the opponent and try to come up with good ideas for the Barcelona game.

"We didn't play well in the first 30 minutes today, which is a bit normal after a Champions League game. Then we had a good 15 minutes and deservedly took the lead. 

"In the second half, we had chances to score the third and kill off the game, but we didn't. So in the end we only got a point."

Bayern had won 67 of their previous 106 Bundesliga encounters with Stuttgart – no Bundesliga side has beaten another as many times.

Stuttgart were good value for their equaliser when it arrived, though, having put Bayern under intense pressure.

De Ligt was penalised for catching Guirassy in the box, with referee Christian Dingert awarding the spot-kick after being instructed by VAR to check the pitchside monitor.

"That was the correct decision," Nagelsmann said. "Matthijs played a good game. It's a pity he conceded the penalty, but it happens. We move on."

Marco Rose insisted he took no extra satisfaction from beating Borussia Dortmund after he began his RB Leipzig tenure with a 3-0 thrashing of his former employers.

Goals from Willi Orban, Dominik Szoboszlai and Amadou Haidara got Rose's Leipzig reign off to the ideal start on Saturday, as they moved to within four points of Dortmund in the Bundesliga table.

Rose led Dortmund to a second-placed finish in his single season in charge last term, but was dismissed in May.

His exit allowed Edin Terzic, who performed the role of technical director during Rose's reign, to step back into the Dortmund dugout, and some had suggested the duo were set for an awkward reunion at the Red Bull Arena.

Speaking to Sky Sports, however, Rose said he took "zero point zero" satisfaction from beating his former colleague. 

"I really enjoyed being with the club. This is a great club," he said.

"I've met great people. In the end, it didn't fit any more, I had to go. I have a very good relationship with Edin. I wish BVB and the boys personally all the best."

Rose was later full of praise for his side's performance, declaring: "We were very present from the first minute. It wasn't perfect in terms of content, but we were intense, showed something and took the whole stadium with us.

"But I'm very happy with how we performed today. One of the keys to our success was definitely that we were able to use our pace and bring the quality of play onto the pitch.

"Leipzig is my home, with which I identify strongly. I feel very comfortable, I really like the people, and you saw that you can spark something together here."

Leipzig's clean sheet was just the second they have ever kept against Dortmund, with the other coming in their first competitive meeting in September 2016. Die Roten Bullen had conceded at least once in each of the teams' subsequent 12 meetings. 

Rose, meanwhile, has claimed just his second victory in his last seven games against BVB (five losses).

Goalscorer Szoboszlai worked with Rose at Salzburg between 2017 and 2019, and says he owes his career to the 45-year-old.

"I've known Marco since my time in Salzburg," he said. "We had both good and bad times together. But it's very clear, if he hadn't been there in my career, I wouldn't be where I am now."

Rose will face another of his former clubs when Leipzig go to Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga next Saturday, though he must first navigate a Champions League trip to reigning champions Real Madrid on Wednesday.  

Neymar scored the only goal of the game as Paris Saint-Germain returned to the top of Ligue 1 with a 1-0 win over Brest, though the French champions were indebted to Gianluigi Donnarumma following his penalty save.

The Brazilian volleyed home his eighth strike of the campaign after half an hour to settle a scrappy affair, maintaining the hosts' unbeaten start.

However, Christophe Galtier's side survived a scare in the final 20 minutes as Donnarumma kept out Islam Slimani's spot-kick to preserve their led.

PSG have now won each of their last 10 league matches against Brest, and appear strong favourites for yet another title after extending their unbeaten home league run in to 25 games.

Brest came under intense pressure inside the opening 20 minutes with Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi all going close for the Parisians. 

The visitors' struggles appeared set to worsen when Christophe Herelle received a red card for fouling Neymar, but they were reprieved after a VAR check revealed the PSG forward had strayed offside before the challenge occurred.

The Brazil international broke the deadlock on the half-hour mark, however, controlling Messi's wonderful lofted ball before firing past Marco Bizot.

The Brest goalkeeper did well to thwart Messi and Mbappe before the break, while the latter was also denied by the offside flag.

The woodwork then came to the visitors' rescue within five minutes of the restart; Messi heading against the post from Mbappe's cross.

Despite registering 12 shots on goal, PSG were almost made to pay for their lacking of cutting edge in the 70th minute when Presnel Kimpembe fouled Noah Fadiga in the box.

However, Donnarumma guessed correctly to keep out Slimani from 12 yards and ensure his side's return to the Ligue 1 summit.

Remco Evenepoel said it felt "amazing" to effectively clinch Vuelta a Espana general classification glory and answer his critics in style.

The 22-year-old will be garlanded on Sunday as Belgium's first Grand Tour winner since Johan De Muynck took the 1978 Giro d'Italia title.

The Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl rider safely navigated Saturday's 181-kilometre stage from Moralzarzal to Puerto de Navacerrada, considered the last serious test for the riders.

On Sunday, it will be an essentially processional 96.7km ride from Las Rozas to the finish in Madrid, with a sprint in store once the riders reach the capital.

Richard Carapaz won Saturday's stage, his third victory of the 2022 edition of La Vuelta, attacking decisively as the summit of the Puerto de Cotos closing ascent approached. He has taken King of the Mountains honours too, in a highly successful Vuelta performance.

Evenepoel crossed the line in sixth place, with his overall lead of two minutes and five seconds over Enric Mas meaning he can prepare to stand on top of the podium at the Plaza de Cibeles on Sunday.

"I don't know what going through my head and my body right now, but it's amazing," Evenepoel said, after crying tears of happiness.

Evenepoel faced criticism during and after the World Championships last year, when he questioned Belgium's race tactics and suggested he might have won a gold medal if the team had chosen him as a leader.

Wout van Aert and Jasper Stuyven were the leaders instead and Belgium finished empty-handed, but on Sunday the country will have a confirmed Grand Tour champion.

"All the bad comments I got from last year, I think I answered everybody with my pedals," Evenepoel said on Eurosport. "I've been working so hard to come here in the best shape possible, and to now win this Vuelta is amazing."

He said the victory was "for Belgium, for my team-mates, for my parents, for my fiancee", adding: "I was really stressed this morning. I didn't sleep too much last night because you just know what's coming to you, and it was a super tough stage, but I'm just super happy that I won La Vuelta.

"I didn't even think about winning a stage. I just wanted to win the general classification. It's an amazing year. It's the best year I can imagine and wish for."

Carapaz at the summit

INEOS Grenadiers' Carapaz has enjoyed a superb Vuelta. He is one of only two riders, along with Mads Pedersen, to win three stages at this year's race, doubling his career total of Grand Tour stage wins, while the Ecuadorian is the first South American to win the mountains classification at La Vuelta since 2004.

STAGE RESULT 

1. Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) 04:41:34
2. Thymen Arensman (Team DSM) +0:08 
3. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) +0:13
4. Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) same time
5. Enric Mas (Movistar) same time

CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS

General Classification

1. Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) 78:00:12
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) +2:05
3. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) +5:08

Points Classification

1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 379
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) 174
3. Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) 133

King of the Mountains

1. Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) 73
2. Robert Stannard (Alpecin-Deceuninck) 36
3. Enric Mas (Movistar) 28

Scottie Scheffler received an overwhelming majority of the votes as he was named PGA Tour Player of the Year for 2022.

Scheffler, the world number one, has enjoyed a brilliant year, winning his first major title at The Masters in April.

The 26-year-old won in four of his first six starts this year, becoming the first player since Jason Day in the 2014-15 season to do so, and finished T2 at the US Open alongside Will Zalatoris, one shot back from champion Matt Fitzpatrick.

Other than his triumph at Augusta, Scheffler won the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play, the Phoenix Open and the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Only the great Tiger Woods (eight victories) has previously won four tournaments, including a major and a WGC competition, in the same season.

Scheffler was presented with the Jack Nicklaus Award live on ESPN's College GameDay ahead of the college football meeting between the Texas Longhorns and the Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday.

A Dallas native, Scheffler received 89 per cent of the votes to clinch the award ahead of Rory McIlroy and Cameron Smith. He is the first player to win the Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year, PGA Tour Rookie of the Year and PGA Tour Player of the Year.

"On behalf of the PGA Tour, congratulations to Scottie on his remarkable season and his unprecedented achievements," said PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan in a statement.

"Undoubtedly, one of the highest compliments a player can receive is the endorsement from his peers, and the fact that Scottie's season was both dominant and consistent spoke volumes to the membership. 

"As gratifying as it has been to see his development on the course over the last several years, we are equally thankful that Scottie has embraced the role as an ambassador of the PGA Tour and the game of golf. With young stars like Scottie leading the way, the PGA Tour is in great hands for many years to come."

Scheffler finished the 2021-22 season with 11 top-10 finishes in 25 starts, though he was just pipped to the FedEx Cup title by McIlroy.

The Northern Irishman won three tournaments over the course of the season, and became a de facto spokesperson for the PGA Tour amid the LIV Golf Invitational Series breakaway.

Smith - who like McIlroy recorded three victories, though unlike the world number three clinched a major title at The Open Championship - is one of the biggest names LIV Golf have lured away from the PGA Tour.

Mathys Tel made history by becoming Bayern Munich's youngest Bundesliga starter and goalscorer, but the home side were left disappointed after being held for a third league game running in their 2-2 draw with Stuttgart.

Bayern were on course to snap their winless league run when Jamal Musiala restored their lead in Saturday's contest after Chris Fuhrich had cancelled out Tel's history-making strike.

But Serhou Guirassy, having already had two goals ruled out and hit the crossbar, converted a 92nd-minute penalty awarded for Matthijs de Ligt's foul on the visiting forward.

Julian Nagelsmann's side have now drawn three Bundesliga matches in a row and have won only three of their past nine matches in the competition stretching back into last season.

Mathys Tel became both Bayern Munich's youngest ever starter in the Bundesliga and their youngest scorer in the competition in Saturday's meeting with Stuttgart.

The former Rennes forward turned in Alphonso Davies' left-sided cross with 36 minutes played at the Allianz Arena to make some more history for the German giants.

Aged 17 years and 136 days, Tel overtook Jamal Musiala as Bayern's youngest goalscorer in the league, with the latter 69 days older when scoring against Schalke two years ago.

Tel was already Bayern's youngest scorer in all competitions following his goal against Viktoria Koln in last month's DFB-Pokal cup victory.

Luka Modric believes Real Madrid are well-equipped to thrive in the aftermath of Casemiro's move to Manchester United, as he praised Los Blancos' midfield options.

Casemiro left Madrid to join United in a £60million (€70m) move last month, but his departure has not stopped Carlo Ancelotti's men from making a strong start to the new season.

Ahead of Sunday's home clash with Mallorca, Madrid have won all four of their games in LaLiga and began their Champions League defence with a 3-0 thrashing of Celtic on Tuesday.

Madrid are the only team with a 100 per cent record in the top five European leagues this season, and are now bidding to win their opening five league matches for just the second time in the 21st century, having also done so in 2009-10.

The likes of Aurelien Tchouameni, Eduardo Camavinga and Federico Valverde have stepped up in Casemiro's absence. 

Of Madrid's midfielders, new signing Tchouameni leads the way for minutes played in LaLiga this season (328), followed by Valverde (265), Modric (260) and Camavinga (222). All four have made more starts than the two managed by Toni Kroos, who has played 173 minutes.

Modric believes the strength of Madrid's options means Casemiro will not be missed, telling the club's website: "We've started really well this year and we have a strong team. 

"In midfield, we lost an important player in Casemiro, but we've got a lot of other good players to replace him and do a good job. 

"Tchouameni has adapted really well. This is Camavinga's second year and he had a great first year.

"Kroos has been here for a long time. Valverde is also doing really well in any position. [Dani] Ceballos is helping the team a lot, so we're well-equipped in this position."

Meanwhile, Eden Hazard capped Madrid's trip to Celtic by finishing off a 33-pass move for their third goal. Since Opta data began in 2003-04, that is the longest uninterrupted build-up to any of Madrid's 434 goals in the competition.

But speaking on Saturday, Ancelotti insisted the Belgium forward's strike was not representative of a change in Madrid's style of play.

"Madrid deserves the credit it gets but scoring a goal from a 33-pass play doesn't mean that's our whole identity," the Madrid boss said.

"The game was almost over and we wanted to finish it out with a long spell of possession, but the stats say it's easier to score in under 10 passes. The numbers show very few goals come from over 10 passes.

"You could say that playing a possession-based game has been fashionable and has seen success in recent years, but football is changing and it's more direct.

"Possession football is less popular than it has been recently in every country."

For the past three seasons, the top four in LaLiga has been somewhat predictable.

Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have made up the top three, while Sevilla have claimed sole possession of fourth place and the final Champions League qualification spot.

While that could still ultimately be the case in 2022-23, a wobbly start for Julen Lopetegui's men has seen them claim just one point from their first four games as they sit in 17th place.

Predictably, the early running in Spain has seen Madrid and Barca set the pace, though two other teams who have made promising starts meet at Estadio Benito Villamarin on Sunday.

Ahead of Real Betis v Villarreal, Stats Perform has taken a look at whether Sevilla's city rivals and the Yellow Submarine can challenge for a place in this season's top four.

Betis have shown steady progress in recent seasons, having finished 15th in 2019-20. Then Manuel Pellegrini arrived, seeing them climb up to sixth the following year, and fifth last season, as well as winning the Copa del Rey.

Pellegrini's impact has been impressive at Los Verdiblancos, taking them from flirting with relegation to fighting for European spots and winning a trophy, and they have made a promising start to this campaign as well.

Wins against Elche, Mallorca and Osasuna gave them nine points from nine, before a narrow defeat away at domestic and European champions Real Madrid.

They also got off to a winning start in their Europa League campaign on Thursday, winning 2-0 at HJK.

Betis have not finished ahead of rivals Sevilla since 2017-18, but with the platform they have given themselves in the early weeks of this season, perhaps it is time for their fans to dream again.

As for Villarreal, they have made an even more impressive start, winning three and drawing one of their first four league games.

Unai Emery's men are also yet to concede a goal in LaLiga, with flawless victories against Real Valladolid, Atletico and Elche accompanied by a 0-0 draw at Getafe.

In fact, Villarreal are the fourth team to keep a clean sheet in each of their opening four games of a LaLiga season in the 21st century, after Celta Vigo in 2001-02, Barcelona in 2014-15 and Real Madrid in 2015-16.

Like Betis, Villarreal have also enjoyed a good start in Europe, though oddly they have been a little more gung-ho than in the league, beating Hajduk Split 6-2 on aggregate to qualify for the Europa Conference League, before edging a 4-3 thriller at home to Lech Poznan on Thursday in their first group stage game.

The club from Castellon has had a similar trajectory to Betis, finishing 14th in LaLiga in 2018-19, before advancing to fifth (2019-20), seventh (2020-21) and seventh (2021-22).

Villarreal actually had the third-best goal difference in the league last season behind Madrid and Barca (+26), though finished 12 points and four places behind Atletico in third despite having a better GD by four.

Under the guidance of Emery, they even added an impressive European campaign to their CV last season, beating Bayern Munich to reach the Champions League semi-finals, where they gave Liverpool a scare in the second leg before losing 5-2 on aggregate.

This suggests the components are all there for an effective and dangerous team, they just need to spread their goals out across games and avoid the sort of collapse at key moments that saw them submit control of the tie against Liverpool in the second half at El Madrigal in May.

Emery will have to break through a barrier to ensure success at home and abroad, though.

His record of four Europa League wins with Sevilla (three) and Villarreal is remarkable, but in each year he has lifted the trophy, his teams have never finished higher than fifth in the league, which is also where his Arsenal team finished in the Premier League when they were beaten by Chelsea in the 2018-19 Europa League final.

His opposite number on Sunday, Pellegrini, has had less success in European competition, but does have a Premier League title to his name from his time at Manchester City, as well as league titles from Ecuador and Argentina from much earlier in his career.

The goals of Borja Iglesias will be important, especially with Juanmi injured, with the former already hitting four in four games, while keeping Nabil Fekir in the transfer window will also feel like a new signing. There is also, of course, the experience of the evergreen, in more senses than one, Joaquin at 41 years young.

Villarreal can look to build their success on the solid defence of Raul Albiol and Pau Torres, while Dani Parejo continues to run things in midfield, and similarly to Fekir for Betis, keeping Samuel Chukwueze should be a big boost, especially after his delightful goal against Lech Poznan.

Of course, Sunday's clash is only the fifth game of the season, and there is plenty of time for either team to fall away, or to push on even further, while other sharks are likely to circle as the campaign progresses.

It will be an interesting marking-post though, and perhaps an early indicator of who could be the team for everyone outside the usual top three to chase.

Or who knows? Maybe the one Madrid, Barca and Atletico have to worry about.

Sandro Tonali has become the latest player to sign a new deal with Serie A champions Milan.

The 22-year-old, who joined from Brescia in September 2020 on an initial loan basis, has agreed a new five-year contract at San Siro.

Milan head coach Stefano Pioli recently confirmed the club were in talks over extending the stay of Tonali, who is reported to have doubled his salary with his fresh terms.

Tonali has played 84 times for the Rossoneri since arriving, a tally bettered only by Franck Kessie (86), Rafael Leao (87), Theo Hernandez and Alexis Saelemaekers (both 89).

The 22-year-old has made exactly 100 appearances in Serie A. Among players with 100 or more appearances in the competition, Tonali is the youngest of them.

Milan announced the new contract on their official website on Friday, a day after fellow midfielder Rade Krunic extended his stay with the club until 2025.

Forward Leao is also in discussions over a new deal with Milan, who have started their Scudetto defence with three wins and two draws in their opening five games.

Mads Pedersen brought up a hat-trick of stage wins across the 2022 Vuelta a Espana, claiming stage 19 with a powerful sprint in Talavera de la Reina.

Pedersen, who was also victorious over stages 13 and 16, saw off challenges from Fred Wright and Gianni Vermeersch over a 138.3-kilometre stretch on Friday, adding to his lead in the Points Classification.

Remco Evenepoel, meanwhile, retained La Roja and is closing in on an overall victory after a long downhill ride to the line prevented any challengers from gaining time on the race leader.

Brandon McNulty, Jonathan Caicedo and Ander Okamika led a three-man breakaway at the outset of the twin-mountain stage, comprising two laps of a circuit containing the Puerto del Pielago climb, but they were hauled back with 49 kilometres remaining.

Pedersen's Trek-Segafredo team then fended off several attacks as the stage built towards a bunch sprint, in which Pedersen turned on the style to beat Wright to another important triumph. 

"It was definitely really hard to control the bunch today but man, the team did so impressive. Everybody was so dedicated and working really hard," Pedersen said after crossing the line.

"It's never easy in a final like this, it's a lot of good guys in the peloton in the end. I was really happy with the speed the boys could keep at the end. 

"Three wins is of course super, super nice. Tomorrow we have to finish the day and then in Madrid we'll see how it goes. But I think no matter what, we can be really happy with these three weeks in Spain."

Pedersen secures treble

As well as extending his commanding lead in the Points Classification standings, Pedersen's win made him the first rider to bring up three stage victories in this year's race. The Dane moves clear of Sam Bennett, Jay Vine, Evenepoel and Richard Carapaz, who have two wins apiece this year.

Pedersen had managed just one stage victory at Grand Tours ahead of the Vuelta, taking stage 13 at the Tour de France in July.

STAGE RESULT 

1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 3:19:11
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) same time
3. Gianni Vermeersch (Alpecin-Deceuninck) same time
4. Ben Turner (INEOS Grenadiers) same time
5. Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma) same time

CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS

General Classification

1. Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) 73:18:23
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) +2:07
3. Juan Ayuso Pesquera (UAE Team Emirates) +5:14

Points Classification

1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 379
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) 174
3. Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) 133

King of the Mountains

1. Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) 50
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) 26
3. Thymen Arensman (Team DSM) 23

Football is, indeed, a funny old game.

Given the regular twists of fate the football calendar can throw up, it should perhaps be little surprise to see the start Marco Rose has been handed after being appointed RB Leipzig head coach this week.

The first two Bundesliga games for Rose will be against his former clubs, Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Monchengladbach, either side of a trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to play Real Madrid in the Champions League.

"We all play in the same league so we'll face every team at some point," he said after he was announced by Leipzig. "It's definitely special and exciting, but I have a lot of work to do here so the scheduling isn't very important. We'll take it as it comes."

And he's right. Domenico Tedesco's replacement must get off to a good start to get Leipzig's season back on track, and who better to do it against than a Dortmund side that has already opened up a seven-point gap on them?

Opposing starts

After winning just five points from their first five games, Leipzig are experiencing their second-worst start to a Bundesliga season, though they have beaten last season's effort by a point.

Following their 4-0 humbling at Eintracht Frankfurt last time out, they have conceded nine Bundesliga goals already for the first time ever, and have never scored fewer goals at this stage (also six last season).

Dortmund, on the other hand, have collected 12 points from their first five games for the third successive season, sitting second in the table, ahead of Bayern Munich in third.

Edin Terzic's men also won their first two away games for the first time since 2015-16, meaning they could win their first three on the road in a top-flight season for only the third time (also in 2000-01 and 2010-11).

Kiss from a Rose

Marco Rose was in charge of 46 competitive matches as coach of Dortmund last season, but now that he is set to take on his former club in his first match as coach of Leipzig, it must be noted that he has lost five of his last six competitive games against BVB (W1).

New boss Terzic has won all three of his competitive games as head coach against Leipzig, including a 4-1 victory in the 2021 DFB-Pokal final.

In fact, Terzic has recorded more wins and scored more goals (10) against Leipzig than versus any other team, so will be confident of piling more misery on them on Saturday.

Importance of Reus and Nkunku

Marco Reus made it 1-0 to Dortmund for the 45th time in the Bundesliga when he scored against Hoffenheim last week. In doing so, he drew level with Manfred Burgsmuller's club record.

Reus has had a hand in 17 goals in the top flight in 2022 (seven goals, 10 assists) – of current Bundesliga players, only Leipzig's Christopher Nkunku has been directly involved in more (25 – 17 goals, eight assists).

Nkunku will make his 100th Bundesliga appearance on Saturday, should he play, and is the only player since his debut in August 2019 to score at least 30 goals (35) and set up 30 (32).

He was directly involved in five goals against Dortmund last season (two goals, three assists) – a record he did not better against anyone else (four goals, one assist against Hertha Berlin).

Keeping those sheets clean

Leipzig have only ever kept one clean sheet against Dortmund, which came in their first ever competitive meeting, a 1-0 home win in September 2016. They have since conceded at least once in all 12 meetings. Leipzig have never endured such a long wait for a clean sheet against any other side.

Despite losing Erling Haaland to Manchester City, BVB have continued to score goals, and have found the net in each of their last 33 Bundesliga games, the second-longest run in club history (37 games from 2020 to 2021).

No side has kept more clean sheets in the Bundesliga this season than Dortmund (three, level with leaders Freiburg), and only Union Berlin (three) have allowed opponents fewer clear-cut chances than BVB (five, and none over the last two matchdays).

Gianluigi Donnarumma remains the clear first-choice goalkeeper at Paris Saint-Germain, coach Christophe Galtier indicated on Friday as he defended the error-prone Italian.

On the eve of a Ligue 1 clash with Brest, Galtier was asked whether he might consider rotating his keepers and give veteran Keylor Navas a fresh chance to stake a claim.

Donnarumma was exposed in PSG's Champions League game against Juventus on Tuesday, when Galtier said it was forgetfulness that led to the visitors pulling back to 2-1 early in the second half.

From a short corner routine on the left, Filip Kostic crossed into the heart of the penalty area and Donnarumma came for the ball but failed to get close, allowing Weston McKennie the chance to head into a near-unguarded net.

The goal came just moments after Kylian Mbappe threatened to put PSG 3-0 up but shot into the side-netting, with strike partner Neymar crying out for a pass.

PSG did not concede again, so it was an error that did not prove too costly on the night, and Galtier is determined to back the 23-year-old Donnarumma.

"There will not be rotation in the goalkeeping position," said the former Lille, Nice and Saint-Etienne boss.

"We often forget that Gianluigi Donnarumma is still a young goalkeeper, even if he has been playing for quite a while. He often forgets that things can happen from a corner, and he misjudged it the other day, but he also made two brilliant saves. Of course, I've spoken to him about it.

"I always hope to have a goalkeeper who comes out for set-pieces and is very present in the box. He has the physique, technical quality, the jumping ability, so I don't want that mistake from a corner to stop him doing what I want to see from him."

Donnarumma was a European Championship winner with Italy last year, but he has a howler in him. Since joining PSG as a free agent in July 2021, the former Milan keeper has played 32 games and committed four errors leading to shots, two of which have cost his team a goal.

That is certainly not the worst record among goalkeepers from Europe's top five leagues, with 13 making more errors resulting in shots and 21 conceding more goals through mistakes since August 1, 2021.

However, it is far from the very elite level, with Manchester City's Ederson one of six goalkeepers with 30 or more appearances across all competitions to make no errors leading to a shot or goal.

Navas, the 35-year-old now serving as deputy, has made just one error, which led to a goal, across 26 appearances during Donnarumma's time in Paris.

The goalkeepers were rotated last season by Mauricio Pochettino, but that policy has been shelved by new boss Galtier.

It is seemingly only the goalkeeping role that Galtier is not inclined to switch around from game to game, as he said on Friday that others will be coming in and out of the team in the coming weeks, as PSG contend with Ligue 1 and Champions League commitments.

"I don't like the work rotation, but we need freshness," Galtier said. "That will happen automatically because I have a squad that is ready and available with quality. We will need freshness, so the team can continue to perform well."

Stefano Pioli hinted Divock Origi could make his first Serie A start when Milan go to Sampdoria on Saturday, as he emphasised the importance of competition in his Rossoneri squad.

Origi joined Milan in July after leaving Liverpool on a free transfer, but has been a peripheral figure during their promising start to the new campaign. 

With the likes of Rafael Leao, Junior Messias and Olivier Giroud preferred by Pioli, Origi has made just three substitute appearances in the league, playing a total of 47 minutes.

But speaking ahead of the trip to Sampdoria, Pioli said the Belgium international is ready to make his full debut.

Asked whether it was time for Origi to feature more heavily, Pioli said: "I think so, because he is better and has had time to pick up the pace.

"We have various solutions. Charles [De Ketelaere] is doing everything I am asking of him, he is inserting himself more and more and better and better, I am happy with his performance. 

"Brahim [Diaz] has certain characteristics to give us numerical superiority. It is inevitable that you always ask me about who does not play, but I always choose based on the game.

"We have to play with energy for 95 minutes. At the end of the game we must have no more energy."

Milan have only been beaten once in Serie A this year, with Spezia prevailing in January). No other team has lost fewer games than the Rossoneri across the top five European leagues in 2022.

The Rossoneri have also averaged 2.29 points per game this calendar year, a figure bettered only by Liverpool (2.4) and Manchester City (2.38) across the continent's biggest leagues.

Milan enjoyed a busy transfer window after ending their 11-year wait for the Scudetto in May, bringing in the likes of Origi, De Ketelaere and Sergino Dest. Pioli, however, insists a renewal of his squad was not necessary, highlighting the need for competition in every position.

"I don't like the term turnover. It's not only the first 11 who are chosen," he added.

"I know that I have strong players, a very specific identity and I am sure that everyone, when called upon, will give their all. 

"Tomorrow I will field what, in my opinion, is the best formation: I go ahead for what I see and for what I feel. It is not that if I rotate, I do it as a bias. I put players on the field to win games."

Meanwhile, Milan have been forced to recover from a series of slow starts this season; each of Udinese, Atalanta, Inter and Salzburg (the latter in the Champions League) have opened the scoring against the Rossoneri in recent weeks.

But Pioli is impressed with the character the Serie A champions have shown when overcoming those deficits, adding: "As an approach, we only made a mistake with Udinese, but it is clear that it is a fact that we want to reverse. 

"Then, however, the great awareness of the team is confirmed. Despite the disadvantage, they continue to believe in themselves to change the game."