A day after signing an $11 million, one-year contract, Saquon Barkley was on the field as the New York Giants opened training camp

The CME Group Tour Championship already offers the biggest payoff in women's golf

ESPN Soccer Analyst Shaka Hislop collapses on-air

Gary Maddison was not a Tottenham supporter. Not until the last few weeks, anyway. But there was a time when he paid particular attention to Spurs, and a reason. “My dad’s favourite player when I was growing up was Gazza,” said his son, James, who has inherited the mantle Paul Gascoigne had more than three decades ago, of Tottenham’s resident creator and entertainer, part technical talent, part bubbly character. If some summer signings require time and explanation, Maddison and Tottenham seemed a synergy of player and club, a perfect match. It was the impression the £40m buy forged. “That was one of the reasons I wanted to go to Tottenham, purely because I could just see myself playing for Tottenham. I’m not even 100 percent sure what I mean by that, so don’t ask me. But I could just see myself in that team, in that kit, in that stadium. It just fitted well for me.” Even as Maddison struggled to define what a Tottenham player he is, he nevertheless appears to belong in a tradition. For a club without a league title in 62 years, Spurs have had a disproportionate number of flair players, many of them attack-minded midfielders or wingers. The club of Glenn Hoddle and Chris Waddle, Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa, Gascoigne and David Ginola, Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart tended to offer excitement. “And they’ve always had that type of player,” Maddison added. “And that sort of midfielder who wants to be creative and entertain the fans and be a personality. Christian Eriksen in more recent years but since him they probably haven’t had that type of player. I’d put myself in that category, I’m not putting myself on the same level. But I’m that type of player.” As he indicated, it is one they have lacked of late, under a trio of managerial puritans, in Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte. Maddison, appointed vice-captain before he debuted, can look the face of ‘Angeball’, the more attacking ethos of Ange Postecoglou. It helps that Eriksen was a player he admired during his rise. David Silva and the Liverpool version of Philippe Coutinho were other inspirations. But if his father idolised Gazza, the young Maddison also looked up to Wazza. “I would probably say Wayne Rooney was the big one in my childhood,” he said. “I used to love Wazza. He was a bit more feisty than me – a bit harder into a tackle – but his personality and the way he came through in the way he played. That childhood was videoed by his father, producing YouTube montages of an emerging talent. Maddison jokes that Premier League copyright rules prevent him from carrying on. Perhaps that explains why he has long seemed comfortable on camera, gravitating towards the limelight. “I loved watching players who had a little bit of cheekiness about them; Gazza was a perfect example,” he said, chuckling at the thought of the midfielder sticking his tongue out during the national anthem in the 1990 World Cup. Maddison’s exuberant streak is reflected in his style of play. It is an outgoing attitude, rather than arrogance. “It’s not a conscious effort to try and be the showman,” he said. “That’s just how I play football. That’s just how I am as a person, [when] I go for a roast dinner with my family, I like to be the main man.” That confidence can equip him for the most daunting tasks. Tottenham’s record scorer and, Maddison said, arguably their greatest ever player vacated the No 10 shirt this summer when Harry Kane joined Bayern Munich. He took it. “I wasn’t naive enough to go in there thinking there wasn’t a chance Harry Kane could leave Tottenham,” he said. “The club asked me, then of course I wanted to wear it. It’s my favourite number. I’ve got it tattooed on me, I loved that number growing up as a kid so I was never going to say no.” Thus far, four games in the shirt have brought a Kane-esque return of two goals and two assists, plus a place in the England squad. Once on the outside looking in, he is now becoming a regular choice. “I think I’m probably too intelligent to think that I’m in and cemented,” he nevertheless said. He only has three caps; perhaps the absences of Jack Grealish and Raheem Sterling will afford him the chance to add to that against Ukraine and Scotland. That tally might be higher but for a knee injury that meant he was unavailable for the group games at the World Cup; by the time he was fit again, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford were all in form. “I think a younger version of myself would have been a bit more sulky, a bit more moody, a bit more moany,” Maddison admitted, but, more mature now, he tried to be supportive and highlighted the empathetic man-management of Gareth Southgate. “Gareth gave me a massive compliment as we were leaving,” he said. “He said he knew it has been tough with the injury and not featuring, but he was really impressed with the way I had carried myself round the group. Him putting his arm around me and saying that as we were leaving stuck with me.” It gives Maddison an extra motivation to play at Euro 2024 but, as he looks for further opportunities with England, he is looking a natural fit for a white shirt at his new club. Read More Bukayo Saka keen to improve after winning England men’s player of the year again Reinvented at new-age Brighton, Lewis Dunk has a second chance with England James Maddison grew up loving Gascoigne ‘cheekiness’ and ‘feisty’ Wayne Rooney James Maddison, Julian Alvarez and 5 players to target for FPL Gameweek 5 Ange Postecoglou expects Brennan Johnson to ‘fit in really well’ at Tottenham

Beth Goetz wasn’t around for most of the lawsuits, settlement payouts and football controversy that shed a negative light on the Iowa athletic department in recent years

Max Verstappen cruised to another majestic victory on Sunday, reeling off a record 12th straight win for Red Bull as he dominated the Hungarian Grand Prix with a textbook...

With so much still unsaid around this Spain team, three statements over the last 48 hours stood out all the more, that illustrate much of the story of their Women’s World Cup run. One was Tere Abelleira immediately after the semi-final victory over Sweden in Auckland. “Now we can talk about a ferocious team spirit,” she said. It was as the midfielder was saying this in the Eden Park mixed zone that Jenni Hermoso was striding behind and shouting: “Come on! We’re in the final of the f***ing World Cup!” That is now the most important fact of all. It was amid this mood of jubilation, however, that the abrasive Spanish federation boss Luis Rubiales came out with something that was much more open to dispute. “What we have endured is a lot,” said Rubiales. “That questions have been asked of Jorge Vilda, who is a hard-working man, a world-class coach, who has turned down other federations that have offered more money and stayed with Spain. We have stuck with those who have always wanted to be here, that have valued the great work that he has done to grow, and we have forgotten the people with resentments. He has continued working with his people and not paid attention to those who wanted to destroy him.” It was the first time at this World Cup that anyone in the camp has publicly raised the squad mutiny that has shaped Spain’s entire run, since most of it has been set aside in an uneasy truce. The description of “people with resentments” sounds like the most cavalier way to blow all this up, especially as the biggest game of all remains. While that “ferocious team spirit” should be more than enough to keep Spain together through the build-up, there is still the possibility for a huge fall-out if this team is defeated by England on Sunday. Rubiales’ words only add another edge to a situation that is already hugely complicated, both in terms of how it came to this and how everyone is dealing with it. It is not just about Vilda, although he is the most public face, visibly ignored by some players in victory but embraced by others. The 15 players who last year sent the email resigning from the national team – with the tacit support of Alexia Putellas, Jenni and Irene Paredes – had several complaints. Most focused on how oppressively disciplinarian Vilda’s managerial regime was but they were also unhappy about how outdated the entire international set-up seemed. Some of the arrangements, like travelling long distances on bus or not having staff in certain key roles, fell well below their club standards. They did not feel any of this gave them the best possible chance of fulfilling a generation of talent. Unsaid but undeniably perceived by so many around the situation is that some of the players do not think Vilda is a good enough manager. There is at least a fair argument to this, even as Rubiales protested he is “a world-class coach”. Many would certainly dispute that. That Vilda has such a strong relationship with Rubiales is just another complication. With the federation risking the chance of a generation, and some players realising the same, overtures were made. Hermoso and Paredes returned, opening a way back. The federation’s director of women’s soccer, Ana Alvarez, met with every single player individually over May and June. All complaints were heard. Only some players were accepted back, and that involved having to send an email declaring their willingness to be called up again. They were Ona Batlle, Mariona Caldentey and – above all – Aitana Bonmati, perhaps the best player in the world right now. Vilda decided to stick with the players involved in preparation for this World Cup, just as Rubiales decided to stick with him. It has resulted in a squad that is partly made up of rebels and replacements. Some have set aside grievances for the greater good. Others are grateful to Vilda for persisting with them. All have overlooked this for the time being, which was why Rubiales so abrasively addressing it before the final is such a risk. It has only complicated already conflicted feelings around this Spain team. A growing view at this World Cup and back home in Spain has been that most support the players but do not want the national team to win because that is a vindication for the federation and Vilda. It doesn’t help Rubiales that he is not a popular figure, commonly seen as one of the most divisive in Spanish sport. There is also some inevitable backlash against the players, since there is the constant threat of the issue getting subsumed into the usual culture wars, but this is where the general public parking of the mutiny has at least offered something like a positive. One figure with insight into the situation spoke of how there can be internal conflict for some players, too. They want to do the best for themselves, but know that every success makes the federation and the manager look good. For the moment, at least, it has been a more unusual example of the classic dynamic of adversity creating success. There has also been compromises and common ground. Vilda’s staff have softened some approaches. The federation has listened and acted on other concerns, such as the willingness to move camp when the players were bored out of their minds in Palmerstown North. Some of Vilda’s calls have worked, such as bringing teenage sensation Salma Paralluelo on as a substitute to break games. Others would say that’s just an obvious move. There is also a more obvious fact here. In a historic football shift that long preceded Rubiales, and greatly influenced the English Football Association, Spain were one of the first wealthy western European football cultures to implement the kind of coaching revolutions that has characterised the modern game. The country industrialised talent production, while going further than most similar federations in underpinning it with a defined football identity. While that has almost come back on itself in the men’s game, creating this self-repeating and now almost self-defeating cycle of the ball endlessly getting circulated, the more developmental stage of women’s football means it can be much more effective. Spain are one of the few teams at this World Cup with such an ingrained style, made in Barcelona, that goes much deeper than any coaching decision. The wider national coaching structure has meanwhile honed the natural talent of stars like Putellas and Bonmati, producing elite athletes that also have that resilience that has been so apparent at this World Cup. The likelihood is that this supersedes any of Vilda's decisions. The squad’s mentality has helped, which is why they didn’t buckle after the collapse against Japan during the group stage. In a strange way, that 4-0 defeat might even have served them, helping to solve further tactical issues. Bonmati even said at the time “this is going to unite us more than ever”. It could mean Spain become the only world champions in either men’s or women’s football to have also lost by more than three goals in the same competition, other than West Germany 1954. Japan 2011 are the only previous Women’s World Cup winners to have even lost a game, adding one other little twist. There is then one final layer. It was the frustration at a defeat to England in the Euro 2022 quarter-finals that brought all this to a head. It is now an even bigger game against England that might fully illustrate how they have adapted. A lot may remain unsaid after Sunday but, to use an old Spanish football saying, some of the truth will be on the pitch. Read More Gustaf Lagerbielke set for Celtic bow after Stephen Welsh sustains knock Theo Walcott shares career highlights as he announces retirement from football Ange Postecoglou insists Tottenham have to be ‘united on and off the field’ Gustaf Lagerbielke set for Celtic bow after Stephen Welsh sustains knock Theo Walcott shares career highlights as he announces retirement from football Ange Postecoglou insists Tottenham have to be ‘united on and off the field’

Cole Irvin earned his first victory with Baltimore, Gunnar Henderson and Adam Frazier homered and the Baltimore Orioles stretched the Kansas City Royals’ losing streak to five with a 6-1 victory

Leeds boss Sam Allardyce says he wants the “police to do a lot more” to help protect footballers from abuse on social media. The Yorkshire club this week condemned the threats directed at Patrick Bamford and his family after the striker’s penalty miss in last week’s Premier League draw with Newcastle. Allardyce urged Bamford to respond by scoring the winner in Sunday’s game at West Ham and said: “He’s been OK, he’s obviously extremely upset about the situation. It’s something that’s left a very, very bad taste indeed. “I’d like the police to do a lot more, but it appears with social media they rule the world and can say and do what they want unfortunately, which is why the world’s in such a big mess, isn’t it? “But he’s handled it pretty well. I think the club gave him as much support as he needed, particularly security-wise. It wasn’t just about him, it was about his family. “The best way for him to respond is to go out on Sunday, play to his highest level and try and score. It would be great if he scored the winner. Hopefully it won’t affect his performance.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Ryan O’Hearn had a pinch-hit RBI single in the ninth inning and the AL East-leading Baltimore Orioles rebounded after blowing a five-run lead to beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second time in three days, 6-5 on Saturday.

Travis Head's dashing century put Australia in a strong position against India on Wednesday's opening day of the World Test...

Chicago White Sox management on Monday refuted claims by former reliever Keynan Middleton that the downtrodden team had a culture with “no rules,” allowing a rookie reliever to regularly fall asleep during games and other players to miss meetings and practices