Anthony Joshua is confident a potential fight with Deontay Wilder will happen soon and insists he continues to carry the heavyweight division. Joshua claimed the 26th victory of his professional career on Saturday with a thunderous seventh-round stoppage of last-minute opponent Robert Helenius at London’s O2 Arena. While it was a spectacular finish, Joshua faced boos during the third round before jeers returned by the halfway mark following another pedestrian round. The sold-out crowd were up on their feet after one minute and 27 seconds of round seven, but this contest was always a stepping stone to an eagerly-anticipated clash with ex-WBC belt-holder Wilder. I don't feel pressure any more. Remember I am not a heavyweight champion, I leave that to the other guys. I am just a contender trying to make my way. Anthony Joshua Discussions between the camps of Joshua and Wilder continue to take place with Saudi Arabia’s promotional company Skills Challenge looking to host the bout between former champions in January or February. “Any time is a good time to fight. It could have been Wilder eight years ago or Wilder now. It don’t matter,” Joshua insisted. “It is only a fight and boxing wins so roll on really. There is no worry to me when it is. “I am just happy we can get the fight going and I think people appreciate that I am doing my best to keep heavyweight boxing on the map. “Yeah, we’re carrying heavyweight boxing. I have believed that for years I have played my part in bringing entertainment to heavyweight boxing. “That is why you are asking about the Wilder fight. I am not comparing what it could have been, I’m just happy that we’re getting this fight under way potentially soon because it does great for boxing I think. “We’ll look back in years to come and think, ‘look at that era, that guy fought everyone,’ and that’s what is important. Not protecting you zero. It is about fighting the best and giving your best.” There is no guessing who Joshua’s final sentence was aimed at with fellow Briton Tyson Fury set to take on UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in Riyadh on October 28. Joshua would have celebrated a decade in the pro ranks that month and despite not holding any belts for nearly two years, he is confident his team can strike a deal with Wilder’s camp. He said: “I don’t feel pressure any more. Remember I am not a heavyweight champion, I leave that to the other guys. I am just a contender trying to make my way. “It is not easy to get these fights over the line, he (Wilder) didn’t fight Andy Ruiz Jr. It is not easy to get these fights over but I have got full trust in my team. “They’ve taken me a long way to become unified two-time heavyweight champion of the world. We collected belt after belt. Four of the five major belts. IBO, IBF, WBO, WBA. “We collected all them belts, defended them multiply times, done great business, stadium fights, fought in American, Saudi. “My team are amazing so I put all my faith in them to deliver. We’ve just got to hope the other team play ball.” Joshua was quick to credit trainer Derrick James for his first knock-out victory in three years. In only their second fight together and after dealing with Dillian Whyte’s late withdrawal, James reiterated to his tutelage to keep “shooting the right” and it helped to produce the money shot before midnight in England’s capital. While frustration had started to grow over Joshua failing to consistently engage with Helenius, who had suffered a vicious first-round loss to Wilder in New York last October, the Finchley boxer was comfortable with his tactics. He questioned: “Are they booing me or booing Helenius? That is the question. “I think they don’t understand it is competitive boxing. We are trying to shut each others passes down. “It is a game of chest. When you are playing, it is the most interesting and thinking man’s sport but from the outside chest is a boring game. “Why am I going to go in there and trade from round one? “We are building confidence in myself, which is important and I have confidence in my team. “It was a late replacement and Helenius’ reputation was damaged due to the fact he was knocked out in a round, but he’s a very good operator. “He was presenting certain obstacles for me to get over and Derrick guided me to that knock-out. “I am just happy to get the win because I always know after one win it can lead onto something spectacular and I believe we’re onto something big.” Read More Anthony Joshua eyes Deontay Wilder fight after Helenius knock out Conor McGregor calls out KSI for bare-knuckle fight after Anthony Joshua wins by KO Anthony Joshua takes swig of Conor McGregor’s Irish stout after Helenius knockout Anthony Joshua shares ringside footage of brutal Robert Helenius knockout Joshua vs Helenius LIVE: Boxing result and reaction after brutal KO Anthony Joshua is back and reveals defiant edge needed to take down Deontay Wilder

Vera Pauw has called on the Football Association of Ireland to reach a decision on her future as Republic of Ireland coach ahead of the team’s final World Cup match against Nigeria. Pauw’s contract is up at the end of the tournament, with Ireland having already been eliminated following defeats to Australia and Canada in their first two games. That means Monday’s final Group B fixture in Brisbane could be her last game in charge if a decision is made not to keep her on. She has repeatedly stated that she hopes to continue in the role to try to lead them to the European Championship finals in Switzerland in 2015. The 60-year-old, who was appointed in 2019 and has led the Republic to their first major tournament finals in Australia and New Zealand, has been the subject of allegations of misconduct dating back to her time managing Houston Dash in the National Women’s Soccer League. “Yes,” she replied when asked whether the players deserved to know whether their coach would be staying. “My situation has not changed. “I think we have a fantastic bond in our team. That has been shown all over the four years.” Opponents Nigeria were conquerors of co-hosts Australia in their previous game and will advance to the last-16 if they avoid defeat against Pauw’s side. Ireland need to win and hope that Australia lose to Canada if they are to have any hope of finishing their debut tournament off the bottom of the group. “We have a fantastic game tomorrow to play,” she added. “Nigeria are ranked 52 (by FIFA) but we all agree now that they are so, so strong. “They are physically strong, they are skilful and extremely fast so there is a huge task on our plate. I want to concentrate on the game. “That game is crucial for us, for our feeling, our pride and for the tournament.” What we have achieved in the past two or three years under Vera has been amazing defender Megan Connolly Defender Megan Connolly praised the strides made by the team during Pauw’s four-year tenure, but said ultimately the decision on whether or not she remained in the job was outside of the players’ control. “Obviously, it’s not my decision,” she said. “What we have achieved in the past two or three years under Vera has been amazing. “I think she helped us get to this point and I can only speak from my own personal experience and Vera has been great for me, but it’s not my decision.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Saudi Arabia’s spending not a problem for Premier League, says Erik ten Hag Erik ten Hag: Manchester United must leap forward in coming year Former Wales captain and coach Clive Rowlands dies aged 85

Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott hopes Sunday's World Cup win over England will "encourage boys and girls" to take up cricket even though the country's Taliban...

Tanner Mordecai ran for two scores and Braelon Allen rushed for 116 yards and two more scores, giving Wisconsin a 38-17 victory at Purdue

Ange Postecoglou has scoffed at talk Tottenham are a better team without Harry Kane, but admitted the departure of the club’s record goalscorer has allowed other individuals to flourish. Kane left Spurs on the eve of the season to join Bayern Munich in a deal that could rise to £120million in add-ons and which had been expected to derail a club that only managed to finish eighth in the Premier League last term. The opposite has occurred with Postecoglou able to mastermind an unbeaten start in the top flight that has sent Tottenham to the summit and posed the question are the north London club better without their ex-talisman Kane, who scored 278 times in 430 appearances for his boyhood team. Postecoglou cited Kane’s final outing in Lilywhite – a four-goal salvo in a friendly against Shakhtar Donetsk on August 6 – as evidence against the aforementioned rhetoric, although acknowledged the sale of the England captain has changed the dynamic of his attack, which is now led by the likes of Son Heung-min, Richarlison, Dejan Kulusevski and new signing Brennan Johnson. “What I’ve been trying to explain is that individuals change the way you play,” the Spurs boss said ahead of a Friday night clash at Crystal Palace. “I’m not into this commentary that we’re a better team without Harry because the last game Harry played for us, he did alright in our system when he scored four goals. “It’s fair to say we would have been able to squeeze him in somewhere – and I’m being sarcastic there – but him not being there just allows us to bring different individuals into the team and they change the dynamic. Not having Harry there does change us as a team because we're using different individuals, but if Harry was still here the structure would be the same and we'd have the same fundamentals. Ange Postecoglou “Again, while the way I want my teams to play has a really clear structure, what I try to do is create a balanced squad where individuals can change the dynamics of it. “Having Sonny as our nine is different from having Harry or even Richy as our nine. Having Deki as a winger or having Brennan Johnson as a winger changes it even if the structure is the same. “Not having Harry there does change us as a team because we’re using different individuals, but if Harry was still here the structure would be the same and we’d have the same fundamentals of trying to dominate opposition, press the opposition, all those kind of things would still be there. “Ultimately, I don’t want to suppress the qualities they have, I want to bring out the best of them within the structure we have.” Tottenham captain Son has shouldered the burden in Kane’s absence with seven goals, while new number 10 James Maddison has immediately hit the ground running in N17. Maddison scored for the third time on Monday night against Fulham and has also provided five assists to quickly become the team’s fulcrum. Postecoglou said of the former Leicester playmaker: “He’s very intuitive around the game and at understanding the game. “For all the players we try to provide a framework of education where we give them information to improve them as individuals, but some of them take them in a more broader concept of the team aspect and Madders is one of those. “He takes the information but not just from an individual aspect but how it can help the team. The goal he scored the other night came not from his individual ability but just from him working hard. “He pressed two or three times. That’s a conscious thing he has to do. That’s not just about him being a good footballer, that’s him as an individual saying I need to do this because I think the team will benefit and ultimately, he benefitted from it because he scored the goal. “But if he didn’t someone else would have, like we did for Sonny’s goal, so I think he’s one of these players that looks at it from a broader perspective, not just how it can help him as an individual but how it can help the team evolve into the team we want to be.”

Jets running back Breece Hall was not happy about the offensive script in Week 2's loss to the Cowboys.

Sam Allardyce says Leeds must use the fear of relegation to "drive them on" as he prepares for his first home match in charge...

Charles Leclerc praised his Ferrari team and offered some rare optimism on Sunday after securing the team’s 800th podium finish when he came second behind Max...

Virat Kohli and KL Rahul hit unbeaten centuries as India posted a mammoth 356-2 against Pakistan in a rain-hit Super Four match of...

Jackie Young and Kelsey Plum both scored 23 points, and the Las Vegas Aces opened defense of their WNBA championship with a 105-64 win over the Seattle Storm

Jake Paul and Conor McGregor have reignited their feud, with the YouTuber claiming that he will ‘beat up’ the former UFC champion if they go head to head. Paul has gone 6-1 as a professional boxer in recent years, while McGregor is due to return to the Octagon later this year to fight Michael Chandler. Paul and McGregor have long traded barbs, however, and the latter called the American a ‘donkey’ this week. Paul, 26, was quick to respond to the Irishman, addressing McGregor’s comment while speaking on Impaulsive – a podcast hosted by his brother Logan Paul – on Wednesday (31 May). “I think Conor McGregor is funny as f***,” Paul said, “but when I watch him talk s*** about me, I’m like: ‘Guess what, Conor? I’ll beat the f*** out of you.’” Paul went on to mention his upcoming boxing match with Nate Diaz, with whom McGregor traded wins in the UFC in 2017. “You can’t box as good as me, and I’m gonna do to Nate what you couldn’t, which is knock him out,” Paul said. “You’re gonna be sitting there with your new beer company, which is failing, realising that you p****d your life away. You’re gonna say, ‘Damn, I really thought no one was gonna do what I did in this sport, I really thought no one was gonna be as big of a name, I really thought I was gonna be the biggest forever.’ “But you can’t have both lives; you can’t have the fun, party life and be the greatest fighter in the world, and you chose the wrong path. But that money fight will always be there, and when I knock Nate Diaz the f*** out and you realise I’m the biggest fight for you, call me.” While Paul vs Diaz is set for 5 August in Dallas, McGregor vs Chandler is still without a date, location and weight class. McGregor, 34, and Chandler are serving as opposing coaches on the new season of The Ultimate Fighter, which began airing on Tuesday (30 May). At the end of the first episode, one of McGregor’s team members was knocked out within eight seconds. In May, a new documentary about McGregor’s career was released on Netflix. McGregor Forever is a four-part series covering the former champion’s fights with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Donald Cerrone, and his back-to-back bouts with Dustin Poirier in 2021. You can read The Independent’s review of the documentary here. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Conor McGregor mentee loses in eight seconds on The Ultimate Fighter How to watch The Ultimate Fighter 31 in the UK McGregor Forever: The problem with the new Conor McGregor documentary UFC star Dustin Poirier makes surprising Paul vs Diaz prediction What is an exhibition fight and how is it different to a professional bout? The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings

Four players were ejected and the match was cut short by the referee after repeated homophobic chants