Captain Siya Kolisi was among 12 Springboks who left South Africa for New Zealand on Tuesday, even though a knee injury will prevent him facing...

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has praised Harry Maguire for "taking his chance" to get back into the team and put the onus onto Raphael Varane to reclaim his place.

Mad Max is a very appropriate nickname for the Rangers star pitcher.

The PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia-backed challenger LIV Golf avoided calling their proposed partnership a merger. But their

Michael Beale looked back on a “horrible day” after a 3-1 defeat by Aberdeen left the Rangers boss admitting his future is in the hands of the Ibrox board. The home side missed several chances before defender Stefan Gartenmann scored his first Dons goal after 38 minutes and the Light Blues left the pitch at half-time with the boos of the Gers supporters ringing in their ears Dons midfielder Jamie McGrath added a second in the 68th minute before Rangers’ half-time substitute Scott Wright was sent off for picking up a second yellow card for a foul on Gartenmann. Abdallah Sima reduced the deficit in the 75th minute but Pittodrie defender Jack MacKenzie scored a third with five minutes left and the home fans stayed behind to vent their frustration at the final whistle as pressure piled on Beale, whose side already lie seven points behind league leaders Celtic. The Gers boss said: “It was a horrible day obviously, a terrible result. “We actually started really well. I thought Aberdeen were very compact and quite negative early on but we created three or four big chances. “You don’t take them and we defend a set-play as poorly as we did and go in 1-0 at half-time. “At that moment we could have done without Ridvan Yilmaz and Ryan Jack being injured because it compounds a light bench. “We reshuffled, started the second half OK and conceded from a set-play so we don’t deserve anything from the game.” Asked if he thought he will be given time, Beale said: “That’s somebody else’s decision. All I can do is continue with the job the best I can. “We felt we prepared well enough tactically. We went over and around them first half and created the chances. The way we played in the first half and the chances we made, I thought it was harsh to boo them off at half-time Michael Beale “It’s a really bad result and I feel the frustration and despair from the fans because we share it inside as staff and players, because first-half we had enough chances to win that game.” While understanding the frustration of the fans, Beale claimed their reaction at half-time was “harsh”. He said: “Listen, it’s a situation that’s escalated much faster than I thought. “The way we played in the first half and the chances we made, I thought it was harsh to boo them off at half-time. “We conceded from a set-play but we had played well enough to be 2-0 or 3-0 up. “I get the frustration, they follow this club all around the world. “It’s the fourth home game in 10 days and pretty much all of them have been sold out. “Sometimes the supporters could help the players but one or two could help themselves.” It was a well-deserved three points for Barry Robson’s side, who have now won three games in a row after a poor start to the season. The Dons boss was pleased for the travelling supporters who enjoyed the victory. He said: “It’s three points. That’s what we are in the game for. I thought in the game we were structurally very good. “We tried to frustrate them for the first 25 minutes then grow into the game and try and bring the things we are good at to the game and I think we did that well. “It’s a good feeling and it’s great for the fans. They deserve it. “They came here in numbers, they sell out when we are on the road, record season ticket sales and since I’ve come in as manager it’s been amazing how they have backed us. “That’s a brilliant performance for them. That’s what we are in it for.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Mikel Arteta delighted to see Arsenal’s ‘human qualities’ after Kai Havertz goal Rob Edwards ‘very, very proud’ of Luton after landmark Premier League win Eddie Howe worried over growing injury list as Newcastle prepare for PSG clash

Why Liverpool's Ibrahima Konate wasn't sent off for a second bookable offence in the Premier League Merseyside derby against Everton.

Kevin Ginkel allowed a sacrifice fly to Estevan Florial in the eighth inning as the Arizona Diamondbacks blew three leads in a 6-4 loss to the New York Yankees that dropped them into a tie with the Chicago Cubs for the National League’s second wild card

Pakistan pace ace Shaheen Shah Afridi has warned his devastating spell against arch-rivals India that set the Asia Cup alight is just the start, with the...

Lionel Messi has confirmed he will complete a free transfer move to American side Inter Miami, ending rumours he would join former rival Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia. The Argentinian World Cup-winner leaves Paris Saint-Germain after two years in Ligue 1 and now heads to MLS, his first senior club outside of Europe having spent his entire career at Barcelona prior to joining PSG. Speaking in an exclusive interview to Sport and Mundo Deportivo, Messi confirmed: “I’m going to join Inter Miami. The decision is 100% confirmed. “If it had been a matter of money, I’d have gone to Saudi Arabia or elsewhere. It seemed like a lot of money to me. The truth is that my final decision goes elsewhere and not because of money”. With the deal yet to officially go through, exact details of length of contract and how much he will earn are still to be confirmed Inter Miami is owned by David Beckham and Jorge Mas, an American businessman, and are currently competing in just their fourth-ever season as an MLS club. They currently sit bottom of the Eastern Conference and fired former England defender and Lionesses manager Phil Neville as head coach at the start of June. Messi has won 174 caps with the Argentina national team, scoring 102 goals along the way – both national team records by an enormous distance. After going close to success with the Albiceleste on more than one occasion, he finally tasted glory with his nation when they won the 2021 Copa America, before following that up last year and triumphing at the 2022 World Cup. More to follow... Read More First golf, now football? Saudi Arabia’s plan after 72 hours that changed everything Messi agrees ‘in principle’ on next move after PSG exit Why has Saudi Arabia become big player in world sport and what does future hold?

Eddie Howe has spent a season not mentioning the Champions League. “I actually can’t pronounce it, it goes funny against my lips,” he said. He may soon have to expand his vocabulary to include the phrase. Newcastle United’s fixture list seems set to take on an extra dimension next season. Which, it is safe to say, will be greeted with glee on Tyneside. Newcastle was a club mired in depression and which is now engulfed in euphoria. Optimism has returned, and at a ground with the size, centrality and presence to feel still more integral to a city’s identity than most. There may be more of a mixed reception elsewhere, and not merely if Newcastle eject Manchester United or, more probably, Liverpool from next season’s Champions League. For those of a certain age and with a nostalgic bent, their return to such a stage may stir memories of Tino Asprilla’s hat-trick against Barcelona. For others, there might be a distaste about Newcastle’s owners, at the sense that it is an endorsement of the Saudi Arabian government or a triumphant sportswashing project. And, in some quarters, there will probably be the suggestion a top-four finish was the inevitable consequence of spending. Which it isn’t. Or not this season, anyway. The provenance of Newcastle’s funds can remain an issue but the moral and the financial are very separate situations. Their rise has an ominous element for some of their new peers and there may be a time in the future when Newcastle can fairly be accused of buying success, when their expenditure dwarves everyone else’s, with the possible exception of Manchester City and, depending on a possible Qatari takeover, Manchester United. But not yet. For now, this is overachievement; relative to talent, to the salaries and even the transfer outlay. It is what will render a top-four finish a genuine footballing feat. When Leicester visit St James’ Park on Monday, in a game that could send one team down and another into the Champions League, it is a moot point which club has the higher wage bill: possibly Leicester, unless Newcastle’s players are on hefty bonuses for Champions League qualification. At around £250m over three transfer windows, progress has not come cheap; Newcastle have spent far more than they could in the past, but not as much as some of their peers and from the lower base of a club who were in danger of relegation when they started to buy. Tottenham have spent similar sums over the last 18 months, Manchester United paid out more last summer and Chelsea, ludicrously, have contrived to burn through £600m to get what will almost certainly be a bottom-half finish. Newcastle have proved the anti-Chelsea, faring better than anticipated with astute recruitment, finding value for money when a windfall could have led to wild spending. The starring role against Brighton, in the win that took Newcastle to the brink of a top-four spot, came from Kieran Trippier, who cost £12m. The second goal came from Dan Burn, who arrived for £13m. The goalkeeper – along with Alisson, the best in the Premier League this season – is Nick Pope, who was priced at £10m. They are different cases, but each is a bargain. Bruno Guimaraes and Sven Botman belong in the next bracket up, of signings in the region of £35-40m. But the Brazilian has established himself among the division’s classiest holding midfielders; the Dutchman has ranked among the best centre-backs this season. Each is worth rather more than he cost. The club record fee of £63m went on Alexander Isak; when he was injured in autumn, Newcastle had a negligible return on it. But the Swede was instrumental in a spring surge; a summer beckons in which there will be too few top-quality strikers on the market for the number of clubs who want one. United can sit it out, enjoying the prospect of Isak’s potential. Anthony Gordon’s has scarcely been an auspicious start; a fringe figure may be overpriced or prove another who kicks on. Newcastle certainly paid over the odds last January for Chris Wood, though they did well to recoup much of that £25m fee a year later. Matt Targett excelled on loan but has lost his place since signing permanently. But bring in enough players and no record is unblemished: Newcastle’s strike rate is higher than most, with six hits out of nine already. Go back 15 years and City’s initial business was rather more erratic. Perhaps it always needed a combination of Newcastle’s overperformance, in both the transfer market and on the pitch, and unexpected frailties elsewhere to propel them so far and so fast. Chelsea are having a historically terrible season; Tottenham and Liverpool have been below par, even if Jurgen Klopp’s team can still eye salvation. Yet their fate is out of their hands. Newcastle have had the billing of the world’s richest club for the last 18 months, but as they are headed for the riches of the Champions League, it is not because they spent more money than everyone else but they spent better than virtually everyone else. Read More Eddie Howe knows Newcastle will have to carefully manage European football Manager of the season contender Unai Emery ‘trying to improve every day’ Eddie Howe says Newcastle win ‘huge’ but warns still work to do in top-four hunt Football rumours: Arsenal preparing £90million swoop for West Ham’s Declan Rice Sam Allardyce refuses to criticise Leeds’ Patrick Bamford despite penalty miss Police charge Leeds fan with assault over Eddie Howe confrontation

The Braves could completely derail the Mets season, a broken star is back in the minors, and the Red Sox made a move before tonight's Yankees game.Today's MLB rumors roundup looks at a pair of minor league moves made by the Seattle Mariners and Boston Red Sox, as well as the state of t...

Man Utd have opened talks with Chelsea over a loan deal for Marc Cucurella.