Pakistan spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has become cricket's top-ranked bowler but his prime concern is keeping his country in...

Derrick White saved the Boston Celtics' season on Saturday with a buzzer-beater to force a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Finals. Take a listen to the Celtics radio call.What a roller coaster ride Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals was on Saturday. The Boston Celtics looked to be cru...

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Bronny James, the older son of NBA superstar LeBron James, has been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect and should fully recover from his cardiac arrest last month, his family said Friday.

Sir Alex Ferguson has described Sir Bobby Charlton as a “tower of strength” for him in a heartfelt tribute to the Manchester United great. Charlton, one of the finest players the English game has ever produced, died last weekend at the age of 86. After an illustrious career in which he won the World Cup with England and helped United win the European Cup, Charlton went on to serve the club as a director and ambassador. He remained a prominent figure at Old Trafford throughout Ferguson’s glittering 26-year reign as manager, which began in 1986. In a eulogy to be published in the matchday programme for Sunday’s derby fixture against Manchester City, Ferguson reflected on his appointment and the “personal connection” he had with Charlton. He wrote: “The directors came to meet me in Glasgow and asked what my vision was for the job. I said I would take the same approach I had at Aberdeen, by looking to build up the whole club, not just the team, and that I would do that by developing young players. “As I was explaining this, I saw Bobby nudge one of the other directors and he said, ‘that’s what we want’. He’d made his mind up. From that moment on he was a tower of strength for me. “It’s no surprise to me that we’ve seen tributes to Sir Bobby from everywhere in the world, on every TV channel and in every newspaper, because he was without question the greatest English player of all time. “People loved him because of all those thunderbolt goals, but it was more than that. My dad used to say that humility in success is a sign of greatness, and that was Bobby. “He never used to boast about his own achievements; it was always about the team and the club.” Charlton’s death came soon after that of Ferguson’s wife, Lady Cathy. He added: “I am so sorry for Lady Norma (Charlton), who was always by Bobby’s side, especially as his health declined, and my thoughts have been with the whole family these past few days. “Unfortunately, I have also suffered the painful loss of my beloved wife, Cathy, this month, and I want to thank the club, the fans, and everyone who has sent me their condolences.” Read More We have a way to go – Erik ten Hag sure Man Utd on right track despite criticism Jude Bellingham brace helps Real Madrid to comeback El Clasico win at Barcelona Pep Guardiola accepts Man City gatecrashing party was ‘uncomfortable’ for elite South Africa edge New Zealand to win Rugby World Cup for record fourth time Jamie George demands ‘clarity’ over hybrid contracts for England players Gary O’Neil labels Newcastle penalty ‘scandalous decision’

Kevin Kiermaier and Bo Bichette homered in a three-run third, Kevin Gausman won for the first time in more than month and the slumping Toronto Blue Jays beat the Minnesota Twins 3-1 on Friday night

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Aston Villa are hoping to finalise a deal to bring highly-rated Sevilla sporting director Monchi to the club.

Instead of the third most expensive footballer in history, Liverpool have unveiled the third most expensive midfielder they have signed this summer and the third they targeted in swift succession. A dizzying week that began with a British record bid for Moises Caicedo ended with Romeo Lavia joining the Ecuadorian at Stamford Bridge and the arrival of Wataru Endo at Anfield, almost £100m cheaper than one of the men who preferred Chelsea to Liverpool and seemingly out of the blue. This, Jurgen Klopp accepted, was not how many supporters hoped their search for a No 6 would go. “It is a transfer that is not in the public eye,” he said. “It’s not ‘Oh my God!’ and probably nobody at this moment is texting a new song for him.” That said, though, Klopp did get a text from an influential figure in German football, congratulating him on the signing of the former VfB Stuttgart captain. If Caicedo can be billed as the new N’Golo Kante, and not merely because of the Ecuadorian’s choice of club, Klopp looked into Liverpool’s recent past for a comparison for his latest buy. He settled on perhaps the most unglamorous figure of their recent glory years, James Milner. He urged fans to look beyond the bare facts about Endo – a 30-year-old relegation firefighter in the Bundesliga – and embrace an unlikely addition. “I know how football fans are, they would prefer to bring in a player who is £110m,” he said. Normally when a manager pleads that a player should not be judged on his price tag, it is because he is costly, not cheap. “But wait: he has something that Liverpool supporters will love, definitely,” added Klopp. “He is already used to red a little bit [from Stuttgart], so that’s good, and when he puts that shirt on he will throw everything on the pitch and the people will love that, I know that. We had this with James Milner a little bit. Obviously a slightly different profile but could you respect James Milner more for playing 15 minutes at the end and just closing a game down?” Milner, Klopp added, was “one of the biggest Liverpool legends of my time and arrived here he was 29”. The German came to Anfield a few months later and since then he had only signed one outfield player in their thirties: defender Ragnar Klavan in 2016, also from a bottom-half Bundesliga club. But if Klopp has to convince the Anfield public Endo is not too near the end, he also had to persuade his employers. “The way our owners see it he was already too old when he joined Stuttgart,” he said. “The owners really want 200 games at 20 years old. That is pretty difficult. I didn’t need any kind of convincing. I know that the best time for a football player is from 27 to 33 in a normal career.” If Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai conform to the usual model for Liverpool signings in the Fenway Sports Group era, Endo is an anomaly. His new manager’s view is that the Japan captain is a young 30. “When you see him, you think ‘is he allowed to drive a car?’” Klopp asked. Certainly, a four-year contract reflects Liverpool’s belief that, like Milner before him, Endo will retain his running power deep into his thirties. His age, he feels, is a reason his new recruit was overlooked; why he is the exception to FSG’s rule. “He is a late bloomer and he improved every year since he was on the proper football screen,” he said. Klopp has always savoured an underdog tale; for him, there is much to enjoy in the way Endo took a long and winding road to Liverpool, via Shonan Bellmare, Urawa Red Diamonds, Sint-Truiden and then Stuttgart. “I am really happy these kind of stories are still possible in this crazy world of football,” he said. “It feels just right.” And Liverpool definitely feels right for Endo. “A dream come true,” said a player for whom such a move would long have seemed utterly unrealistic. After Caicedo and Lavia showed rather less enthusiasm to sign, Klopp grinned as he stressed Liverpool finally reached an agreement with “the club and the player”. There can be no pretence Endo was Liverpool’s first choice but he sought to address the perception that desperation ruled. “He was on my list from the beginning,” he said. He had watched Endo since he joined Stuttgart in 2019. He moved for him after Liverpool had just 35 per cent possession against Chelsea – “crazy,” Klopp said – when, in the absence of a specialist defensive midfielder, Mac Allister had to impersonate one. But it was such a shock that even Endo pronounced himself surprised. He is the £15m man, not the £115m midfielder. “But in the end the pitch is the same size,” Klopp said. “The player will not grow with the money he costs, it’s rather the other way around.” But even Endo has grown into a Liverpool player late in his career, Klopp is hoping he has a Milner-esque impact for a price a fraction of Caicedo’s. Read More Wataru Endo: Liverpool strengthen midfield by signing Bundesliga ‘machine’ Moises Caicedo completes Chelsea’s dream midfield — but £115m deal could haunt them Chelsea and Liverpool serve up entertaining glimpse of football without defensive midfielders

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Barcelona sporting director Deco has revealed how the club plan to replace the injured Gavi amid speculation they could turn to the transfer market for a big-money replacement.