Friday's roundup of transfer rumours includes news on Man Utd's stance on Raphael Varane heading to the Saudi Pro League, Arsenal's continued interest in Douglas Luiz, Erling Haaland, Alphonso Davies, Florian Wirtz, Ibrahima Konate and more.

One of the state agencies involved in the ongoing investigation of alleged sports wagering violations by Iowa and Iowa State athletes announced there is no evidence suggesting the outcome of any contest involving the schools was affected by gambling interests

Donald Trump golf shot video emerges.

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

FIFA has sent its “support and prayers” to Liverpool forward Luis Diaz following the kidnapping of his parents in Colombia. It has been confirmed that Diaz’s mother has been rescued and after the player returned home to be with family members, the Colombian authorities have stepped up their search for his father. FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Instagram: “On behalf of FIFA and the global football community, I would like to extend our support and prayers to Luis Diaz, his family and his friends in these difficult times.” The Colombia football federation (FCF) has also issued a further statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, demanding that those holding Diaz’s father release him immediately without conditions. The FCF said: “We ask the captors of Luis Manuel Díaz, father of @LuisFDiaz19, to release him now, without conditions. Football is peace. Lucho, we are with you. Colombia is with you.” Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said after Sunday’s 3-0 home win against Nottingham Forest that preparing for the game had been “the most difficult I’ve ever had in my life”. Klopp added: “I didn’t expect that, I wasn’t prepared for it. “I don’t want to make the game bigger than it was, but definitely, we tried to help Luis with the fight we put in because obviously we want to help and we cannot really help. “So the only thing we can do is fight for him and that’s what the boys did.” Liverpool secured their fifth straight home Premier League win to move three points behind leaders Tottenham. But Klopp said: “How can you make a football game really important on a day like this? It’s really difficult. I’ve never struggled with that in my life. “We heard late last night about it. We spoke to Luis, he wanted to go home…Then we got the news with his mum, which is fantastic, and since then nothing really. “We are obviously the first people to get involved and we try to have knowledge of everything as much as we can, but we don’t want to disturb in any way the important people there, we just want to support, that’s it.” Liverpool said in a statement: “Liverpool Football Club can confirm it is aware of an ongoing situation involving the family of Luis Diaz in Colombia. “It is our fervent hope that the matter is resolved safely and at the earliest possible opportunity. In the meantime, the player’s welfare will continue to be our immediate priority.” Colombia’s president Gustavo Petro said on X: “In an operation in Barrancas, Luis Diaz’s mother has been rescued, we continue the search for the father.” Liverpool signed Diaz from Porto in January 2022 in an initial £37.5million deal that included a potential extra £12.5million in add-ons. The 26-year-old winger has made 11 appearances this season and scored three goals. Diaz was an unused substitute for Thursday’s 5-1 Europa League win against Toulouse after starting the Premier League victory over Everton last weekend, but was not in the 18-strong squad for Forest’s visit to Anfield. Read More Manchester United ‘have got to move on’ from humbling derby experience Bukayo Saka does not fear burnout and is keen to feature in every Arsenal match Early exit puts Champions Trophy at risk – England’s dismal World Cup defence A Premier League winner and ex-England international – Danny Drinkwater retires On this day in 2008: David Beckham heads to Milan to boost England hopes The sporting weekend in pictures

There's a lot of gear that goes into a day on the water. At minimum,

England boss Gareth Southgate says he understands the criticism Jordan Henderson has received for joining Saudi Arabian club Al-Ettifaq but feels the midfielder’s beliefs have not changed. Henderson’s move to the fast-growing Saudi Pro League came under scrutiny due to his long-time support for the LGBT+ community and the Premier League’s Rainbow Laces campaign. Homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death in Saudi Arabia, while the state stands accused of a host of other abuses including placing harsh restrictions on women’s rights and the right to political protest. Pride in Football, a network of LGBT+ fan groups, said the England midfielder had “lost the respect of so many people who valued and trusted” him but Southgate says it is not a black and white matter. “It’s not for me to judge any individual whether they’re in football or in any other industry,” Southgate told talkSPORT. “I don’t think he’s changing his view on what he believes in. So now we’re in a really complex world where, what are we saying, nobody should go to Newcastle? Should nobody work for companies that the Saudis own in London or should nobody buy oil from the Saudis? “I think it’s very complicated, I completely understand the argument of, you know, you’ve supported the LGBTQ community and I can understand why they would have a really strong view on it. “I think it’s so difficult to say, you know, is Henderson saying he doesn’t support that community anymore? Well no, he isn’t, but of course people are going to say his actions are the reverse of that.” Henderson will be making more money than he ever has before, with a reported £700,000 per week salary, but the standard of football in the league may affect whether his England career continues. Southgate revealed the 33-year-old sought assurances about the prospect of being overlooked if he were to move. The England boss added: “I spoke to him in the summer, the question he wanted to know was, ‘If I move here, are you going to automatically rule me out?’. “We would be stupid to do that. Why would we rule anyone out based on where they are playing? We have got to see how they are playing. “We have an idea of what that league will look like but we won’t know until we actually start to see the games. “If you asked me three months ago what that league would look like, I’d have a very different idea to what it is looking like as more and more players decide to go there. “Big-name players but not so many that are in the prime of their careers but not players past their sell-by date. “I think that whole project is fascinating for where it is going to head and what that might look like over the next few years. “But Henderson won’t be playing in the Premier League. He won’t play in the Champions League, which is the easiest assessment for the level he is playing at.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Iain Henderson backs Ireland wing Jacob Stockdale to fight for World Cup spot Ewan Ashman sets sights on Scotland starting spot at World Cup England hoping Tom Curry will feature in World Cup build-up despite ankle issue

Friday's Chelsea transfer rumours, with updates on Moises Caicedo, Conor Gallagher, Nicolas Jackson, Romelu Lukaku & more.

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco is under investigation in the Dominican Republic for very serious allegations made on social media.Per the Associated Press, Wander Franco is under investigation in the Dominican Republic regarding some disturbing social media allegations:"The invest...

After receiving the distressing news of the fan-favorite manager Buck Showalter's firing, Pete Alonso was on the brink of a furious charge toward Mets' owner Steve Cohen's office in a fit of rage.

The Suns should trade Deandre Ayton as fast as they can while he still has value.

Rory McIlroy and Wyndham Clark shared the lead early in the final round of the US Open on Sunday as overnight co-leader Ricky Fowler fell...