Manchester United must start being active in the transfer market amid links to the likes of Frenkie de Jong and Christopher Nkunku, otherwise they risk failing to rebuild under Erik ten Hag.

That is the message from United great and television pundit Gary Neville, who warned that late transfer activity will only make Ten Hag's task tougher.

Ten Hag faces a sizeable rebuilding job after inhering a United side that finished with their lowest ever points tally in the 2021-22 Premier League campaign.

The Red Devils also failed to end a league campaign with a positive goal difference (zero) for the first time since the 1989-90 season.

Paul Pogba is heading for the exit door at the end of June when his contract expires, along with Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata, as Ten Hag looks to leave his mark at Old Trafford.

Reports have linked United to numerous players, such as Nkunku, De Jong and Christian Eriksen, while Ten Hag's former Ajax players Jurrien Timber and Antony have also been floated as options.

West Ham midfielder Declan Rice and Villarreal centre-back Pau Torres may appear more far-fetched options, but Neville says United must get to business otherwise their already difficult task will become even harder.

"The others seem set and ready, yet United can't get moving," Neville wrote on Twitter on Thursday.

"[Ten Hag] needs his group together [as soon as possible] to mould them. Bringing them in late will only make it harder for him. [Fingers crossed] it happens soon!"

Ten Hag will hope to have a busy transfer window ahead of the first Premier League game of the 2022-23 season when United will host Brighton and Hove Albion on August 7.

It will be the Dutchman's first competitive game in charge of the Red Devils, who will play their opening top-flight match at home for a sixth straight season – the longest current run of any Premier League side.

Romelu Lukaku has a "great desire" to return to Inter, according to the Nerazzurri's managing director Alessandro Antonello.

Having helped Inter win their first Serie A title in over a decade in the 2020-21 season, Lukaku returned to Chelsea for a club record fee of £97.5million last August.

But the Belgium striker has struggled in his first campaign back in England, scoring just eight goals in 26 Premier League appearances after falling out of favour under Thomas Tuchel.

Lukaku's stock remains high in Italy after he scored 30 goals in all competitions in his final campaign with the Nerazzurri and the 29-year-old has been strongly linked with a San Siro return.

Antonello confirmed the club are interested in bringing the striker back to the club, and the former Manchester United frontman wants to make the move.

But Antonello said the finances had to be right for any transfer to take place amid talk that Lukaku could make a loan switch.

"There is a great desire on the part of the player to return," he said. "But the economic-financial feasibility and the resolution of some technical problems must be analysed.

"We should talk about this with [Inter chief executive Giuseppe] Marotta. [Could he join] by June 30th? We will try to do it in the right time.

"At this moment it is essential to combine two words: competitiveness on the field but also economic and financial sustainability. 

"This is the work we are doing. All the choices that the club will make on the transfer market will always be inspired by these two words.

"UEFA is fixing financial fair play, with the new rules taking effect from 2024-25. Everything can be done, taking financial sustainability into consideration."

Harry Maguire has defended under-fire England boss Gareth Southgate after a 4-0 defeat to Hungary, claiming he remains one of the best managers in international football.

Maguire, who came on as a late substitute with England 3-0 down at Molineux on Tuesday, says the loss was "unacceptable" but insisted the Three Lions can make a big impact at the World Cup this year.

England are facing the threat of Nations League relegation after taking just two points from four Group A3 games, following up draws against Germany and Italy with their heaviest home defeat since a 5-1 hammering by Scotland in 1928.

A failure to win any of their four games this month also leaves England on their worst run since June 2014, when they went without a victory in five games during a month which saw them finish bottom of their group at the 2014 World Cup under Roy Hodgson.

Hungary also became the first team to score four goals in an away match against England since their historic 6-3 triumph at Wembley in 1953, leading Southgate to come under fire from supporters.

Chants of "you don't know what you're doing" were aimed at Southgate by home fans during the hammering, but Maguire says he remains the right man to lead the team in Qatar later this year.

"Gareth is the most successful England manager since Sir Alf Ramsey in 1966," the defender told the Sun. "We all can't wait to work with him and the backroom team again at the World Cup.

"His managerial record is as good as anyone currently out there in international football.

"There's no reason why we can't do really well and our goal is to improve on our previous tournaments and make the country proud.

"We deserved more from the first three [Nations League] games, but against Hungary on Tuesday it wasn't acceptable.

"We all know that. Everyone needs a break now and a recharge. The spirit in the camp has been great, despite the results."

England face just two more Nations League contests – versus Germany and Italy in September – before they open their World Cup campaign against Iran on November 21.

Mattia De Sciglio has signed a new contract to keep him at Juventus until June 2025.

The Italy international came through the Milan academy before joining Juve for €12million on a five-year contract in 2017.

De Sciglio has had to settle for a rotational role with the Bianconeri, with wing-back options Alex Sandro and Juan Cuadrado preferred on either flank.

The 29-year-old was sent to Lyon for the 2020-21 season and impressed before returning to Juve, who finished fourth in Serie A the following campaign with Massimiliano Allegri back at the helm.

De Sciglio has made 91 appearances for the Bianconeri, scoring twice and providing four assists, while also contributing to 30 clean sheets.

The versatile full-back was set to see his contract at the Allianz Stadium expire at the end of this month, but has agreed a three-year extension.

Paul Pogba wants to prove Manchester United made a "mistake" by allowing the midfielder to leave at the end of his contract.

The World Cup winner is out of contract at the end of June, ending a six-year stay at Old Trafford after re-signing for United from Juventus for a then-world record £89million fee.

Juve are widely expected to sign Pogba as Massimiliano Allegri attempts to bring the France international back to Turin.

Pogba, speaking in his new Amazon Prime documentary 'The Pogmentary' that comes out on Friday, expressed his desire to show United what they are missing.

"My thought process is to show Manchester [United] that they made a mistake in waiting to give me a contract," he said, as quoted by The Athletic.

"And to show other clubs that Manchester had made a mistake in not offering me a contract."

Reports suggest United made two advances to extend the contract of Pogba, but the 29-year-old claims the club offered him "nothing".

"How can you tell a player you absolutely want him and offer him nothing?" he added. "Never seen that."

Pogba will leave United with just the Europa League and EFL Cup successes to his name as Erik ten Hag prepares to build a new era with the Red Devils.

Still, with 67 goals and assists in the Premier League since the start of 2016-17, United are waving goodbye to a player who has been involved in 17.5 per cent of their goals across that period – only Marcus Rashford (21.9 per cent) has directly contributed to more.

Colorado Avalanche star Cale Makar reflected on a thrilling Game 1 win of the Stanley Cup Final in front of his home fans, but said he is wary of the adjustments coming from the reigning back-to-back champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In a see-sawing contest, the Avalanche jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the first period, before two Lightning goals in under a minute levelled it at 3-3 halfway through the second period.

The third frame was a hard-fought, scoreless battle, setting up a next-goal-wins finish less than 90 seconds into overtime by Andre Burakovsky.

Makar, who has 22 points in 15 playoff games as a defenseman and spent a game-high 28 minutes on the ice in Wednesday's series opener, told ESPN that the atmosphere in the building was like nothing he had experienced.

"It's incredible," he said. "Obviously the fans tonight were insane – I didn't think they could up the level from the past few rounds, but they were able to do that. 

"It was definitely electric in that building, and it's incredible playing with a great group of guys in the Final like this."

While he was thrilled with the result, his attention quickly turned to the championship pedigree of the Lightning, and why the Avalanche need to be near-perfect to deny them a three-peat.

"Obviously great teams like them are going to find ways to exploit us defensively," he said.

"You look at their one goal where [Nikita] Kucherov goes around [Devon] Toews, and feeds [Ondrej] Palat backdoor.

"I mean I knew he was going backdoor the whole time, I just wasn't there, so overall it's about staying more mentally prepared and giving them a few less chances than they had."

He added: "They're a great team, they're going to come out with a different game plan, which I'm sure will be beneficial for them.

"We just have to be prepared for that, and obviously we're going to come up with a game plan with what they came at us with tonight. You have to adjust, and that's just the way the playoffs go. 

"In order to beat great teams you have to do it, and [Tampa Bay have] been successful in that in years prior, so hopefully we can limit those improvements they make game-to-game."

The Avalanche are now 13-2 this postseason – winners of six games in a row – and have comfortably been the most potent offensive side in their run to the Final. 

Averaging 4.6 goals per game, Colorado are well clear of the Pittsburgh Penguins (4.14) and the Edmonton Oilers (4.06), with another big gap to the fourth-placed Toronto Maple Leafs (3.43). The Lightning are eighth this postseason at 3.06.

Tampa Bay have instead been getting it done defensively, conceding just 2.5 goals per game, trailing only the Dallas Stars (2.14) who were eliminated in the first round. Crucially, the Avalanche have also excelled in their defensive end, conceding 2.87 per game.

When asked if the red-hot Avalanche have started to think about lifting the Stanley Cup, Makar said it is far too early for that.

"Not yet – I feel like, overall, this team has been so great at staying in the moment, especially success-wise, not looking too far ahead," he said.

"I feel if we start looking too far ahead then this is a team that's going to exploit those little mental lapses, like they did tonight.

"For us it's just staying mentally locked in on each game, and not focusing on the future, just focusing on what we can control in the present."

Eder Militao believes his displays last season demonstrated why he is the most expensive defender in Real Madrid's history.

The Brazil international was signed from Porto in July 2019 for a fee of €50million just a year after joining the Portuguese side from Sao Paulo.

He struggled to make an impact in his first two campaigns at the Santiago Bernabeu, though, making just a combined 23 starts in LaLiga.

However, the departures of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane ahead of the 2021-22 season provided the 24-year-old with the perfect opportunity to cement his place at the heart of the Los Blancos backline.

He did that, making 50 appearances across all competitions as Carlo Ancelotti's side swept to a LaLiga and Champions League double.

Militao outshone the club's other defenders across most metrics, making 18 more interceptions than anyone else (52) and 204 recoveries – 63 more than his fellow defenders.

He also made the most blocks (20) and clearances (105), while he took part in 291 duels – a whopping 133 more than any other Madrid defender.

Militao says he did not feel the pressure of having to fill the boots of Varane and Ramos, and believes he has more than shown why Madrid bought him in the first place.  

"When they both left, people pointed out that they had made history at the club," he told Marca.

"I thought that my time to do things had come, to show the fans and everyone that they could count on me. I have shown what I can do and I have shown why I am at Real Madrid."

Asked if he had justified his price tag, Militao said: "Yes. When I arrived things didn't go well because I had two central defenders like that ahead of me. They had been together for a long time, but I have shown why I was signed.

"I didn't stop doing the things I did before and I remained confident. I knew I wasn't doing well, but work and family helped me on a daily basis."

Militao also spoke highly of Ancelotti, who became the first coach to win the Champions League four times after Madrid overcame Liverpool in the final last month. 

"He is a great coach," the defender added. "He helps us a lot and respects the decisions of the players.

"On a day-to-day basis he talks a lot in training. He is a very funny person, he connects with us."

NFL fans have been spoiled by the standard of quarterback play in the 21st century.

A golden age led by Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers is seemingly running right into another, though one largely dominated by quarterbacks with very different skill sets.

Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson have heralded the start of a fascinating new era. The success of Mahomes, Allen and Co. has in part been a product of their ability to make an impact with their legs as well as through the air.

Still, the ultimate test of a quarterback remains his ability to deliver in situations where the defense knows a pass is coming.

The confluence of the final years of the great pocket quarterbacks and the beginning of potential Hall of Fame careers of several dual-threat superstars can make a discussion about which modern-day signal-callers perform best in these scenarios a difficult one to settle.

However, Stats Perform has developed a metric to rank the top quarterbacks since 2008 in expected passing situations called spread value.

Spread value is calculated using our efficiency versus expected (EVE) metric. For quarterbacks, EVE measures performance in terms of yards added in expected passing situations.

The spread value is generated using the EVE baselines for each season since 2008. In essence, spread value is how far a quarterback is above or below the cumulative baseline in that period, with significantly more weight given to recent results.

That weighting has undoubtedly influenced the quarterback at the top of the standings, though his consistently spectacular play has also played a substantial role.

Mahomes Magic

With the historic pace Mahomes has set since entering the NFL, it's no surprise the man leading the charge for 'the new generation' is atop the rankings.

Mahomes has racked up 18,707 passing yards over his first four seasons as a starter, comfortably surpassing the likes of Manning and Rodgers and putting him on track to go down as an all-time great.

His spread value of 6.429 is a product of Mahomes leading the NFL in EVE in three of his four seasons as a starting quarterback, including in a 2021 campaign that saw questions about his and the Kansas City Chiefs' ability to excel against two-high safety defenses.

Mahomes' task going forward will be to maintain his superiority with a receiving corps absent Tyreek Hill following his trade to the Miami Dolphins.

He will not lack for in-conference challengers, with a further six active AFC quarterbacks inside the top 20 for spread value since 2008. Half of those QBs reside inside his own division, encapsulating the arms race that is the AFC West.

Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers is 11th after finishing fourth in EVE last season, Derek Carr of the Oakland Raiders is 17th and new Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson 18th. 

The man regarded as Mahomes' chief rival, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, is 12th behind Herbert. His position below Herbert can be attributed to his early struggles after entering the NFL and a 2020 season regarded to this point as his vintage year only being good enough for 13th in EVE.

Allen did improve to eighth in 2021 and, though some may wonder how much better he can get following his stupendous playoff duel with Mahomes, he will look to take the next step and help the Bills finally overhaul the Chiefs.

Yet for all the talk of the AFC being the deeper conference, there are seven active NFC quarterbacks in the top 20, with Rodgers (third), Dak Prescott (fourth), Matthew Stafford (seventh) and Kirk Cousins (eighth) all residing in the top 10.

A 2021 season in which he was 10th in EVE ensured Kyler Murray of 16th in spread value and, despite the disappointing end to the campaign, underscored the Arizona Cardinals' need to sign him to an extension. His NFC West rival Jimmy Garoppolo is three spots higher, above even his former New England Patriots mentor in an indication of the level of efficiency successor Trey Lance will need to at least match for the San Francisco 49ers to succeed in 2022 and beyond.

Breesy Does It

Despite a glorious career in which he compiled a plethora of records, some of which Brady has since broken, Drew Brees perhaps does not receive the same level of acclaim as his contemporaries in the NFL’s 'old guard' of quarterbacks.

But the New Orleans Saints' legend is second behind Mahomes in spread value. Immediately trailing him among that veteran group are Rodgers and Philip Rivers in fifth.

Brees' position is a consequence of him leading the NFL in EVE in expected passing situations for five straight seasons between 2008-12. He regained that spot in 2017 and the final season of his career in 2020 was the only year in which he finished outside the top five.

Those remarkable numbers are a tribute not just to Brees' accuracy – he was first in well-thrown percentage (min. 100 attempts) in 2019 and fourth in 2020 – but also to the longevity of the connection between him and former Saints coach Sean Payton.

But what of the man who ended Brees' career and stunned the NFL world by reversing his decision to conclude his own?

Tom Not Terrific?

Brady's career was over for all of 40 days and it will now continue for as long as the greatest of all time sees fit, even if he appears to have nothing left to prove.

While Brady's legacy is secure, the extra season(s) could help him climb the ladder in spread value, in which he is a – by his standards – lowly 19th.

His standing is impacted by a 2008 campaign in which he suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1 and his final year with the New England Patriots in 2019, which marked his worst EVE performance in expected passing situations over the 14-season span.

Brady's zenith in that regard came in the spectacular 2016 season in which he led the league in EVE despite playing only 12 games. He subsequently guided the Patriots to Super Bowl glory with a historic comeback against the Atlanta Falcons.

The latest act of his incredible two-plus decades in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has not seen him return to those heights even as he has lifted the Bucs to the league's elite.

He was 12th in EVE in 2020 as he guided the Bucs to Super Bowl glory and 13th in 2021 in what appeared to be his final season in the league.

Brady will want to go out on top of the mountain and the Bucs will hope he is not about to hit the cliff, with two of his greatest rivals having carried on long past their peak.

Quit While You're Ahead

Given the four Super Bowls they share evenly between them and the prominent role they have played in football in this century, it is quite remarkable to see Ben Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning so low in the spread value rankings.

Roethlisberger is 37th while Manning is way down in 67th, spots that belie their first-ballot Hall of Fame resumes.

But it's the weighting towards recent seasons that goes against Roethlisberger and Manning, both bowing out from pro football on the back of dreadful individual campaigns.

No quarterback with at least 300 attempts in expected passing situations had a worse EVE than Manning in 2015, when he was briefly benched for Brock Osweiler. In his defence, the end came extremely quickly for Manning following an MVP season in 2013 and a Pro Bowl campaign in 2014 and he still managed to do enough to go out by winning a Lombardi Trophy with the Broncos.

Roethlisberger's awful 2021 was easier to forecast, his mobility and ability to push the ball downfield already having waned before he posted the worst EVE of his career in his final season.

By contrast, Tony Romo called it a career in 2017, but his last full season as a starter was in 2014 when he was seventh in EVE. The former Dallas Cowboy stands sixth in spread value as a result.

Brady's play and his efficiency numbers from his two seasons with the Buccaneers suggest he is more likely to replicate Romo, who may well be his inspiration when he heads into his post-playing career.

When the Tampa Bay Lightning begin their quest for a third straight Stanley Cup championship on Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche, they will have the NHL's leading goalscorer from each of the last two playoffs on the ice as center Brayden Point is set to return from a lower-body injury.

"Pointer looks like he's a go," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said after Wednesday's morning skate in Denver.

Point, who was second on the Lightning with 28 goals during the regular season, has been out since getting hurt early in Game 7 of the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Point recorded two goals in the opening round after leading the NHL with 14 goals in each of the last two postseasons for the two-time defending champion Lightning.

His 60 points in 53 games over the past three playoffs rank second in the league behind teammate Nikita Kucherov, who has racked up 89 points in 65 contests.

Tampa Bay is looking to become the first team to win three straight Stanley Cup championships since the New York Islanders captured four titles in a row from 1979-83.

The Lightning are 12-5 this postseason after finishing as the third seed in the Eastern Conference.

Colorado is searching for its first title since 2000-01 after its 119 points this season led the Western Conference and set a franchise record. The top-seeded Avalanche are 12-2 in these playoffs.

Arsenal and Manchester United target Vitinha will only be sold if his release clause is met, according to Porto president Pinto da Costa.

Mikel Arteta's side have been heavily linked with Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans in recent weeks.

But Porto star Vitinha has emerged as a potential alternative as Arteta looks to bolster his midfield, which already includes Granit Xhaka, Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard.

Reports in Portugal suggested Arsenal are the only club willing to meet the Portugal international's £35million release clause.

United are also said to be interested, with Barcelona among those attempting to secure the midfielder's services should they be able to ease financial difficulties.

Da Costa, speaking to reporters on Wednesday, revealed Porto have received an unsatisfactory bid for Vitinha, who will only be allowed to leave should his release clause be met.

"There was a concrete offer, of considerable value, for Vitinha that we did not accept," he said.

"And we referred them to the release clause, which is the only way to take our player."

Arteta is also in the market for a striker, with Gabriel Jesus and Victor Osimhen among the names being linked to the Emirates Stadium.

That is after Arsenal lost Alexander Lacazette to Lyon on a free transfer and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Barcelona in January, while Eddie Nketiah is yet to agree to a new contract.

Whoever the talisman is that Arteta manages to capture, Vitinha will provide capable creative support from midfield.

The 22-year-old played 30 games in the Portuguese Primeira Liga this season, ranking second among Porto players for successful passes (1,680) and third for chances created (42).

Jonny Bairstow admits he feels vindication in choosing the Indian Premier League over County Championship cricket after his match-winning performance for England against New Zealand.

The Yorkshireman's blitz of a century, with 136 runs off 92 balls, was the centrepiece in a superb five-wicket win for the hosts on the final day at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.

It marked Bairstow's ninth Test hundred and third in 2022, to hand the hosts a 2-0 series advantage with one match to go on his home ground of Headingley, starting June 23.

But having faced criticism for his decision to duck out on the start of the domestic season to play IPL, the 32-year-old acknowledged he feels his call remained the right pick.

"A lot of people were saying I shouldn't be at the IPL and I should be playing county cricket," Bairstow said. "But you are playing against the best in the world at the IPL.

"Being able to have those gears, to be able to switch them up and switch them down, is important. People say it would be fantastic if you had four games of red-ball cricket under your belt.

"Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen in the current scheduling of everything and we're very fortunate to be able to play in some of the best competitions against the best players in the world.

"When it comes to pressure situations, the more you're able to put yourself under pressure, the better.

"Because it's those situations that you've gone through in the past, whether that be in the IPL, in one-day cricket or in red-ball cricket, that you're able to call upon on evenings like that.

"Those opportunities and environments, whether they be for good or bad, are the things that [mean] you're able to produce performances like we as a group have done in this game, in the last game, and hopefully will do going forward."

Bairstow further reinforced he remains a passionate devotee of the long-form version of the game, adding: "The amount of pride that it gives me to play Test cricket for England, first and foremost, is huge.

"I'm hugely proud of the fact that sometimes when the chips are down, you have to stand up.

"That might be something that you're born with, it might be something that you have deep down that springs out of you at those moments. But as a cricketer, that's something I'm very proud of."

England will hope they can wrap up a clean sweep in their three-Test series when they meet New Zealand again at Headingley next week.

Their visitors will be facing a nervy wait on Michael Bracewell, however, after the all-rounder tested positive for COVID-19, meaning he will require five days of isolation beforehand.

Raheem Sterling insisted "there is no panic" as he called on England players to respond after a humiliating defeat to Hungary, while he backed Gareth Southgate.

England are in serious danger of relegation from the Nations League top tier after going winless in June's internationals, losing twice to Hungary either side of draws with Germany and Italy.

The Three Lions have scored just once, through a Harry Kane penalty in Germany, but the most recent 4-0 thrashing at home to Hungary caused the greatest concern.

Hungary became the first team to score four goals in an away match against England since the Hungarians themselves won 6-3 at Wembley in November 1953.

It was also the first time England have lost a home match by four or more goals since March 1928, when they lost 5-1 to Scotland.

That led to questions over Southgate, with boos audibly ringing around Molineux on Tuesday, but Sterling placed his backing in the England manager.

When suggested Southgate has been a good manager for England after leading them to the World Cup semi-finals and Euro 2020 final, Sterling added to BBC Radio 5 Live: "And the country.

"I keep saying after these last couple of games - you can't be judged on that. If you look at the steps that he's made over the last couple of tournaments, semi-final and a final, I think a Nations League couple of bad results is not something that we can judge him on.

"He's led us incredibly well. And he's showed us the way, he's helped us mature from young men to senior pros, a lot of us in the dressing room.

"He's doing that now with a lot of the young lads and he's trying to make sure that everyone's got enough experience for when we do hit the big time that we're all ready."

The Manchester City star was sent on at half-time with England 1-0 down, before three further Hungary goals followed in the second half.

Sterling believes there is no reason to be concerned as England look to bounce back in September, before heading to the World Cup in Qatar two months later.

"I think it's one that there is no panic for me," he added. "Of course, yes, it's really difficult to take that result.

"It's a game that we should win, but it's been a long old season and, again, we'll go away, readjust ourselves and come back even better.

"No one was expecting it. I think it's been a disappointing camp overall in the sense that there have been games that we should have won.

"Of course it's disappointing, there's going to be question marks, there's going to be doubts. But I'm more than confident in the group that we have. It's solely down to us as players.

"We put good enough sides on for each and every match that we've played and we just haven't got the results.

"We haven't been competitive enough, we haven't been ruthless enough – myself also.

"So, it's one that we just look at ourselves as a collective and I know once we have that well-deserved break that we need and we come back, we'll be ready again."

Napoli star Victor Osimhen has left the door open for a move to Arsenal after declaring "anything can happen" amid continued transfer speculation.

Arsenal have reportedly had advances turned down for Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus as Mikel Arteta looks to add firepower to his attack.

A talisman appears the main priority in the transfer window for Arsenal, with Alexandre Lacazette moving to Lyon and Eddie Nketiah yet to sign a new contract after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang previously joined Barcelona.

Osimhen has emerged as a target for the Premier League side, who have reportedly already had a sizeable bid turned down for the Nigeria international.

The Napoli striker would add a much-needed reference point for Arteta's side up top, with Osimhen scoring 14 times in 27 Serie A appearances for Luciano Spalletti's side last season.

His 14-goal tally was the 23-year-old's best in a single season in Europe's top-five leagues, surpassing the 13 Ligue 1 strikes he recorded in 2019-20 for Lille.

That also made Osimhen the first Nigerian to achieve double figures in two straight Serie A terms, while he became just the fourth African player to achieve the feat in the Italian top flight, after George Weah for Milan, Samuel Eto'o for Inter and Mohamed Salah for Roma.

Osimhen, speaking while away on international duty with the Super Eagles, is aware of the transfer reports and admitted he does not know where his future lies.

"I don't know my future, I know anything can happen, but now I just want to go on vacation with my family, clear my head and recharge my batteries. Then we'll take care of the rest," he told reporters.

"I know there are many rumours that they would like me in Spain or in England, but I don't think it's the right time to talk about it now that I'm with the national team."

Arsenal finished fifth in the Premier League behind fierce rivals Tottenham, leaving Arteta's team playing Europa League football next season.

England star Joe Root has returned to the top of the ICC men's Test batting rankings, displacing Australia's Marnus Labuschagne.

Root has enjoyed a brilliant 2022, posting his fourth red-ball international century of the year against New Zealand in the second Test.

It took Root just 116 balls to reach three figures at Trent Bridge, the fewest he has ever scored a century in his Test career, and he has now converted 10 of his last 14 fifties into 100s (71 per cent).

The Yorkshire batter would go on to make 176 in the first innings, hitting 26 fours – the most recorded in an innings by an English batter since Zak Crawley hit 34 in his 267 versus Pakistan in 2020.

That helped England to an unassailable 2-0 series lead over the World Test champions New Zealand, after Jonny Bairstow scored the second-fastest red-ball century for his country on Tuesday.

Root's second century of the series came after his heroics at Lord's, in which he passed 10,000 Test runs with a majestic unbeaten 115, his first fourth-innings international hundred.

The 31-year-old, who stepped down from captaining England in April, has been rewarded with top spot in the world Test batting rankings as he reached the summit for the first time since December 2021.

Labuschagne has dropped down to second, with Australia team-mate Steve Smith in third, while Pakistan captain Babar Azam and New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson make up the top five.

Black Caps number five Daryl Mitchell has also enjoyed a big rise up the rankings after his 190 and 69 not out in the second Test against England, jumping from 50th to 17th.

Meanwhile, in the bowling ratings Australia captain Pat Cummins remains top ahead of India's Ravichandran Ashwin, whose team-mate Jasprit Bumrah is in third.

That is due to Kyle Jamieson dropping three places down to sixth, with Pakistan quick Shaheen Afridi and South Africa star Kagiso Rabada moving up a place to fourth and fifth respectively.

Ferrari's recent issues with reliability have put a major dent in their driver's and constructor's title hopes, but they will need to quickly bounce back at this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix.

It was a painful day for the Scuderia at the Azerbaijan GP on Sunday, with both cars retiring due to technical issues.

For Charles Leclerc, it was the second time in three races he was forced out because of a power unit problem while leading, and the fourth consecutive race where he failed to convert pole position into a race win.

Sergio Perez took full advantage in Baku, moving ahead of Leclerc in the driver's standings with his win, with Max Verstappen opening up a 34-point gap to the Ferrari driver.

With two retirements sandwiching Ferrari's strategic blunder at his home race in Monaco, the Monegasque moves to four wins from 15 pole positions, with only Jarno Trulli holding a lower conversion rate (25 per cent) among winning drivers in the history F1.

Meanwhile, only Michael Schumacher (+23) and Alain Prost (+18) have a higher differential between race wins and pole positions than Max Verstappen, who has claimed 25 and 14 respectively.

Verstappen will already be making his 150th GP appearance at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, looking for his sixth win of the season out of nine starts.

It would provide little solace to the 24-year-old but he has been in supreme form on the Saturday, claiming six poles out of eight this season, and could match his highest tally in a single season from 2019.

Pole position is not essential but it has proved to be convenient in recent years, with each of the past five winners in Montreal coming from the front of grid on the Saturday, the longest such streak in F1.

Since the opening race of the season in Bahrain, Ferrari remain one more one-two finish away from surpassing Mercedes for the most all-time in F1, with both on 82.

Ferrari customers facing similar strife

Problems have persisted for the factory team and Ferrari power unit customers since the first upgrade at the Miami Grand Prix, where Zhou Guanyu retired.

Both he and Leclerc then retired from the Spanish GP, after Valtteri Bottas was forced out of FP2 in the other Alfa Romeo due to an engine failure.

Both Mick Schumacher and Kevin Magnussen experienced MGU-K failures in Monaco, before Leclerc, Magnussen and Zhou had power unit-related DNFs in Baku.

Red Bull in control

After rectifying their own reliability issues at the start of the season, Red Bull have picked up the pieces and are now in control of both championships.

Red Bull drivers have finished on the podium in 11 of their 13 finished races, securing the one-two in three of the last five Grands Prix and are one more from securing the highest tally in a single season.

The last time the team had six wins in the opening eight races of the season was when Sebastian Vettel coasted his way to the driver's title in 2011.

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

Drivers

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 150
2. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 129
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 116
4. George Russell (Mercedes) 99
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 83

Constructors

1. Red Bull 279
2. Ferrari 199
3. Mercedes 161
4. McLaren 65
5. Alpine 47