The Guardian

Brentford’s Mali midfielder stood out when he was six and has shone in the Premier League since £39m transfer “When I first saw him, I thought to myself: ‘Who on earth is this player?’ laughs Youness Bengelloun as he remembers Mamadou Sangaré. With the transfer window in full swing in July 2025, the former Manchester City scout and agent was not expecting to come face to face with a “footballing …

⚽️ Premier League updates from the 12.30pm GMT kick-off ⚽️ Live scores | Top scorers | Follow us on TikTok | Mail Scott Leeds can leap to eighth place with a win today. Technically they can make seventh, but they’d need to win this game by seven goals, so come off it and come on. Meanwhile should Spurs win a fourth consecutive Premier League game for the first time in over three years, they can m…

New Zealand 34-10 Tonga Kiwis come from behind and will face Australia or Samoa What had been billed as one of the most intriguing Rugby League World Cup semi-finals in history was, in the end, a brutal exposé of the standards the world’s chasing nations must rise to in order to match Australia and New Zealand. Few nations have as close a connection to the rise of international rugby league quite…

Roméo Lavia’s resurgence is not enough as injuries to other key players such as Moisés Caicedo are proving disruptive Xabi Alonso played for Pep Guardiola at Bayern Munich and was a key figure for Spain when their midfield dominated international football between 2008 and 2012. He does not need to be educated about the importance of control, but there has been a clear distinction between his iden…

Kiwi Ferns defeat Fetu Samoa 32-0 in semi-final in Newcastle Centre Stacey Waaka scores three of Kiwi Ferns’ seven tries A Stacey Waaka hat-trick has helped secure New Zealand their place in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup final. The Kiwi Ferns were rarely threatened in their 32-0 victory over an inexperienced Fetu Samoa in Newcastle, running away with it late with four tries in the final 12 m…

Maro Itoje must make sure his side’s emotions do not boil over and the breakdown battle will be pivotal England are riled up, they feel backed into a corner and if history shows us anything, it is that they tend to perform when their backs are against the wall. It’s a very English trait and Steve Borthwick’s tenure has been punctuated with performances when his side feel as though they have a poi…

Trump Exposed Reactor Core Syndrome very much in play after Democrat landslide – and Fifa’s president may pay a price Oh baby, clamp me in your repulsive mouthparts. Sink your unusually large and venomous fangs into my abdomen. And yes, we are doing this in the White House cabinet rooms, out there in plain sight of the watching world, just a gleaming golden ball between us. But it’s fine. Probabl…

Teenage ultras are increasingly causing disorder and communities fear it will not be long before it becomes something more dangerous It is five past three on Saturday afternoon and the teenage ultras of Hednesford Town are running late. They have arrived in Chester for their team’s National League North fixture and have hailed taxis, determined to make their presence felt at the ground. But word …

Warriors center, 31, announces decision on social media Latvian big man does not disclose nature of health issue Porziņģis leaves door open to return after long absence Golden State Warriors center Kristaps Porziņģis announced he is stepping away from basketball to prioritize his health due to an undisclosed matter in a social media post on Friday. Porziņģis did not reveal the nature of the issue…

Kolek calls singer’s courtside appearances ‘performative’ McBride agrees as teammates question celebrity fandom Knicks give statement saying Swift is longtime supporter Taylor Swift’s love story with the New York Knicks caught an unexpected stray after two players from last season’s NBA champions accused the singer of being a fair-weather fan. The Knicks released a statement on Friday defending S…

Former Test opener says object also used on cricket ball in Port Elizabeth CA remains ‘comfortable’ with bans only for Bancroft, Warner and Smith Usman Khawaja has claimed “all” of the Australia touring party knew about the plot to tamper with the ball against South Africa in Cape Town in 2018 and the team also used sandpaper during the second Test at Port Elizabeth. The former Australia batter s…

Ireland 42-12 Argentina Carreras scores twice in Nations Championship defeat If taking each game as it comes is the North Star for every sportsman then it wasn’t easily visible approaching this opener to November’s international window. There has never been a time when Ireland and Argentina liked each other. Not in the era when their collisions were uncapped affairs – by Ireland – and certainly n…

Manchester United host Aston Villa seeking a first league win in eight games to ease pressure on Michael Carrick Saturday 12.30pm TNT Sports 1 Venue Elland Road Continue reading...

The most optimistic Evertonian – if that is not an oxymoron – could not have envisaged David Moyes’s team sitting fifth in the Premier League and Thierno Barry just behind Erling Haaland in the goalscoring chart at the end of the club’s calamitous transfer window. Yet there they are, team and striker defying all expectations, following a rousing if fortuitous comeback against luckless Coventry. F…

Pointless after eight games, Karen Hills’ team are struggling to compete against clubs with chunkier wallets Played eight, lost eight. Welcome to the Women’s Super League, Charlton Athletic, a club in danger of being chewed up, toyed with and spat straight back out by the top tier. Bruised by their 6-0 defeat against Chelsea on Sunday, last season’s playoff winners are finding WSL life tough, con…