BBC Sport
Alexis Sanchez: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says 'nothing calculated' about selection
SPFL 'cannot take forward' Rangers EBT review
The Scottish Professional Football League says it cannot take forward an "effective independent review" into the handling of Rangers' EBT use.
It expressed disappointment over the SFA's decision not to participate and said a review would have resulted in "a better understanding" of procedures.
The SPFL had called for a review in July, but the SFA had written to member clubs advising that it would not do so.
Both governing bodies had to be in agreement over a review, the SPFL said.
SPFL chairman Murdoch MacLennan said: "The SPFL board has been clear that any meaningful review would have had to be carried out in association with the Scottish FA and with the full and active co-operation of both organisations.
"The SPFL board has therefore concluded that it cannot, by itself, take forward an effective independent review."
More to follow.
Rangers' Lee Wallace sidelined for up to two months through injury
Rangers captain Lee Wallace could be out for two months with a groin injury, manager Pedro Caixinha has admitted.
The injury problems are mounting for the Ibrox club ahead of Saturday's visit by league leaders Celtic.
The fitness of fellow defenders Bruno Alves and Declan John is still being assessed.
"He needs three weeks to rest and then three to five weeks to get totally recovered, so it's six to eight weeks in total," Caixinha said of Wallace.
Alves limped off with a thigh injury during Rangers' 3-1 extra-time League Cup victory over Partick Thistle on Tuesday while John, Wallace's replacement at left-back, also went off with a thigh problem having recovered from an ankle knock to start the match.
"After extra-time you need even longer to recover," said the Portuguese manager. "So we are still assessing Declan, Bruno and all the others who finished the game.
"I'm always positive, always confident but I need to assess. As soon as we have the information we will take a decision."
Looking ahead to the game against Celtic, Caixinha said he had "a clear idea" of what he wanted from the match and insisted his team can win the match whoever plays.
Alfredo Morelos has scored eight goals in 10 games for RangersHe said: "Of course the actors may be different and if the actors are different we may have to change a bit of the script - but not too much."
Caixinha, whose side lost 5-1 to Celtic at Ibrox at the end of last season, says they will not be using the diamond midfield formation used then against their Glasgow rivals.
And he stresses that it is his job to work out whether the reigning champions will use the formation deployed against Paris St-Germain or opt for a back three.
The Rangers boss has also called on his top scorer, Alfredo Morelos, to stay calm under provocation.
Caixinha believes the Colombian striker will be antagonised in the match but urges the player to control his emotional side. However, he admits that, if he were the opposition manager, he would urge his team to provoke Morelos.
Alexis Sanchez: Arsenal striker told Arsene Wenger has no hierarchy
Arsene Wenger says Alexis Sanchez is close to full fitness but the striker will have to earn his place because there is "no hierarchy" at Arsenal.
Sanchez was close to joining Manchester City this summer and has yet to play 90 minutes in the league this season.
The Chilean sat out Sunday's draw at Chelsea but played all of Wednesday's Carabao Cup win over Doncaster.
Sanchez missed the start of the season through injury but manager Wenger said: "You could see he's coming back sharp."
The Frenchman added: "He came back not really fit and then he got injured.
"If you add the injury plus the rest time it was a bit long, but on Wednesday night I left him on the pitch for 90 minutes because I wanted him to have a real go."
Asked if Sanchez was central to his plans, Wenger said: "Not more than any other. There is no real hierarchy.
"I used the team at Chelsea who could be strong on the counter-attack and fight very hard. Sanchez could have played if he was 100% fit from the start.
"I have six or seven strikers but if I go in one game with three strikers, the three who have not played will play in mid-week no matter what game that is. But that is nothing calculated.
"There is no disguised attitude on my side."
Wenger substitutes Sanchez during Arsenal's 4-0 defeat by Liverpool at Anfield in AugustThe Gunners, who are 12th in the Premier League, face West Bromwich Albion at Emirates Stadium on Monday night, but will be without Danny Welbeck who has been sidelined for at least three weeks with a groin injury.
Wenger will, however, be able to select his record £50m signing Alexandre Lacazette, who he believes has settled in well, even if he must still adjust to the Premier League's physicality.
He said: "'He connects well with the other players, he's disciplined, he works hard for the team. On the tactical and technical aspects I'm very pleased.
"He still needs to adapt to the physical aspects of the Premier League and that will take maybe a little bit of time."
Monday's game will see defender Kieran Gibbs face his former club for the first time since leaving north London to join the Baggies last month in a £7m move.
Wenger confirmed that Arsenal did not offer the 27-year-old a new deal in the summer but said: "It will be strange to see him in a different shirt because he is a player who has been educated here from a very young age.
"I am sure that he will have great motivation and will have a huge influence at West Brom, and it can give another push to his career."
Man Utd report record revenue of £581m
- 21 September 2017
- From the section Business
Image copyright
Getty Images
Manchester United has reported record revenues of £581m for the 2017 financial year, as TV cash soared.
In a year when it won the Europa League and EFL Cup, the club also signed 12 sponsorship deals, and saw commercial and matchday revenues increase.
The club benefitted from a huge rise in domestic TV revenues during 2016-17, the first season in the current three-year UK broadcasting deal.
The Old Trafford club is currently second in the Premier League.
It has the same number of points and goal record as leaders Manchester City.
In the year to 30 June, broadcast income jumped to £194.1m from £140.4m the year before, a rise of 38%.
This season the club is back in the Champions League thanks to its Europa League final victory over Ajax in Stockholm in May. The journey to that final also helped to boost TV revenues during the season.
It is the second successive year they have accrued revenues of more than £500m, recording a figure of £515.3m last year.
It comes after the club returned to the top of the Deloitte money list in January.
Higher wages"We concluded a successful 2016-17 season with a total of three trophies and a return to Champions League football," said executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, referring to them also winning the Community Shield during the season.
"We are pleased with the investment in our squad and look forward to an exciting season."
Employee wages - including those of players - increased by 13%, "primarily due to an increase in first team salaries".
Operating expenses for the year were £511.3m, an increase of £74.7m, or 17.1%, on the previous year.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The club is competing again in the Champions League this seasonHowever, net debt fell by £47.8m to £213.1m.
The club also posted record operating profits of £80.8m, up from £68.9m the previous year.
Commercial revenue rose 2.7% to £275.5m. Money from sponsorship, retail, and licensing was up, but the club said it lost 15% over the year on its digital output.
Match-day revenue climbed 4.7% to £111.6m, but the club said this was "primarily due to playing two more home games in the year".
Meanwhile, German player Bastian Schweinsteiger's return to Jose Mourinho's first-team squad during the year saw him reinstated as an "exceptional credit" item on the annual balance sheet, at a value of £4.8m.
Anders Lindegaard: Burnley sign goalkeeper on deal until end of season
Burnley have signed former Manchester United goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard on a deal until the end of the season.
The 33-year-old, capped five times by Denmark, was a free agent after leaving Preston at the end of last season.
Burnley's first-choice goalkeeper Tom Heaton is recovering from surgery on a dislocated shoulder, so Nick Pope has started their past two matches.
"I am here to try and sharpen up the competition in the goalkeepers' department," said Lindegaard.
"It seems like an honest place and a very hard-working place and I appreciate being a part of it."
Lindegaard spent a week training with the Clarets before signing.
He played 10 times for Preston last season, conceding 18 goals.
Conor Shaughnessy: Leeds United defender signs new four-year deal
Leeds United defender Conor Shaughnessy has signed a new four-year deal.
The 21-year-old has played six times this season after making his debut in the opening-day win over Bolton.
The former Republic of Ireland youth international joined Leeds from Reading in September 2016.
Academy boss Adam Underwood told the club website: "I'm delighted for Conor, he is a hard-working, talented and versatile footballer who has an excellent attitude and work ethic."
Mark Sampson: England manager sacked - MP says FA systems 'flawed'
The Football Association has been heavily criticised after the sacking of England women's manager Mark Sampson.
MP Damian Collins has questioned why it took so long to look into evidence of Sampson's "inappropriate and unacceptable" behaviour with female players in a previous role.
"The system is flawed," said Collins, who chairs the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee.
Ex-England captain Karen Walker said: "They have made a right mess of it."
The FA says it was made aware last week of the full details of safeguarding allegations made against Sampson in 2014 relating to his time as Bristol Academy manager.
A 2015 FA assessment found Sampson did not pose a risk.
The 34-year-old Welshman was also cleared this year of wrongdoing following discrimination allegations made by England players, including Chelsea and England striker Eniola Aluko.
Sampson was appointed England head coach in December 2013Call for independent reviewSenior FA executives were already set to face questions next month from the committee headed by Collins, after Aluko initially raised a "bullying and harassment" grievance against Sampson in response to an internal cultural review.
Sampson, who denied Aluko's claims, became England head coach in December 2013 after leaving top-flight side Bristol Academy, now renamed Bristol City Women.
The FA statement said: "The full report of that [2014] investigation was only brought to the attention of the current FA leadership last week.
"It is our judgement that it revealed clear evidence of inappropriate and unacceptable behaviour by a coach. It is on this basis that we have acted quickly to agree a termination of Mark's contract."
Collins told BBC Radio 5 live: "Why was it only last week this came to light? You have to look at the Football Association and say its systems are not working.
"The system is flawed and I think it needs a wider, independent assessment not just of who knew what and when in the Mark Sampson case and why it took people so long to come forward and action to be taken."
Former centre-forward Walker, who was capped 83 times between 1988 and 2003, said the treatment of Sampson had been unfair.
"It does seem like a bit of a witchhunt to bring up something from how many years ago that's already been looked at. It doesn't seem right," she said.
Women In Sport announced Sampson had been removed as patron of the charity following the FA decision.
What the FA chief saidFA chief executive Martin Glenn, speaking to BBC Sport's Richard Conway
Why have you taken this decision today?
In 2014 there were concerns raised about Mark's time at Bristol Academy. These were investigated by the FA's safeguarding unit and Mark was cleared in terms of his suitability to continue in football in early 2015.
Let's be clear, Mark is not deemed to be a safeguarding threat in football. The problem is that when I read the full report of that just last week, the issue became one of Mark's conduct and it's really around the boundaries between a player and a coach.
On reading that report, I felt that what I saw was incompatible with the standards that we'd expect for someone to work at the FA.
Many people will look at this and perhaps think this is a convenient way to get rid of Mark Sampson given the ongoing scrutiny he is under over Eni Aluko's allegations - what do you say to that?
I can understand why people would say that but they are two very different things.
The concerns Eni Aluko raised were about perceived bullying and perceived racism. We have investigated those properly, there have been two separate investigations actually which have broadly concluded there's no systematic evidence for that.
This is a different issue, this is about his conduct before his time at the FA which we judge just isn't consistent with the standards that an FA employee needs to show.
Is Mark Sampson fit to work as a coach in football generally in your opinion?
Mark Sampson is absolutely clear to work as a coach in football.
But you don't think it's appropriate to work as the England coach when he can work elsewhere?
I think that's for other people to make their mind up. In terms of the standards we set at the FA and what we know about what happened, we are very clear about our decision.
Reaction to Sampson's sackingA spokesman for Bristol Academy said: "In 2014 the club was made aware of the FA's investigation into allegations surrounding Mark Sampson.
"Bristol Academy Women co-operated fully with that investigation, which found that Mark Sampson did not pose a safeguarding risk working in the game. The club has had no further contact from the FA on this subject in the intervening years."
Minister for Sport Tracey Crouch said: "This situation is a mess and raises very serious questions about whether the historic processes that the FA had in place around the recruitment of coaches were appropriate, for something like this to have been missed.
"The FA are right to have taken action but reassurance is needed to make sure this does not happen again at any level of coaching."
Sampson's England side beat Russia 6-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday and he led the Lionesses to successive semi-finals at major tournaments.
Last year Sampson signed a new contract to remain in charge until 2019. He has had his contract paid up in full by the FA.
I'm not a racist - SampsonHow we did we get here?December 2013: Sampson becomes England manager having left Bristol Academy
Early 2014: Complaint against Sampson made relating to his time at Bristol
March 2015: FA safeguarding review panel concludes investigation and in October 2015 he is cleared to continue working in football.
May 2016: England forward Eniola Aluko is asked to participate in a cultural review of all England teams by the FA's technical director Dan Ashworth.
December 2016: An independent investigation, led by barrister Katharine Newton, hears Aluko's claims that during a meeting in 2015, Sampson made a "highly inappropriate remark".
March 2017: The independent review clears Sampson and his staff of wrongdoing but it is understood that Aluko was paid £80,000 in a confidentiality agreement.
13 September 2017: FA says it received the full safeguarding review panel report on the allegations against Sampson.
14 September 2017: The FA says it could re-open its investigation into racism claims against Sampson after further evidence is submitted.
20 September 2017: Sampson sacked by FA
FA investigationLast week, the FA announced it was to re-open its investigation into separate discrimination claims against Sampson, first made in 2016.
Sampson was alleged to have asked mixed race England midfielder Drew Spence whether she had been arrested during a tournament in 2015, a claim which he denied.
Eniola Aluko speaks to BBC sports editor Dan RoanThe claim was first made by Spence's England and Chelsea team-mate Aluko, and Spence has now submitted written evidence to support it.
In a further separate allegation, Aluko said Sampson told her to make sure her Nigerian relatives did not "bring Ebola" to an England game at Wembley in 2014.
Two investigations - one internal FA inquiry and one independent review led by barrister Katharine Newton - cleared Sampson of any wrongdoing.
Aluko, who has 102 caps and is a qualified lawyer, and fellow England forward Lianne Sanderson have been invited to give evidence to the select committee hearing planned for mid-October.
Celebration was a statement - Nikita Parris Aluko, who scored 33 goals in 102 games, said she was content to be out of the England set-upSupport for ousted managerEngland captain Steph Houghton came out in support of her head coach earlier in September but said the allegations had "hit the squad very hard".
"Since Mark has been in charge I've enjoyed every moment," Houghton, 29, told BBC Sport.
Meanwhile, on the eve of England's opening World Cup qualifier against Russia, striker Jodie Taylor said the squad had been brought "together" by the allegations.
Former England women defender Alex Scott told BBC Radio 5 live that Sampson had "the most open-door policy" she has ever experienced.
Scott, who is of mixed race and played 140 times for England, added: "If anyone ever had a problem he was open to new ideas."
Who's next to coach England?Tom Garry, BBC Sport
Not only for his recent success at Manchester City, but for his desire to bring through English players, Nick Cushing will be a strong candidate, having won the WSL title in 2016 and the Women's FA Cup in May with a squad built largely with Lionesses.
Chelsea Ladies boss Emma Hayes is the most successful current female boss in the WSL, winning the double in 2015 and the Spring Series in June, but she can be outspoken and may not see eye-to-eye with all at the FA.
Reading boss Kelly Chambers is popular with many current Lionesses, while former Arsenal boss Laura Harvey - currently head coach of Seattle Reign - would be viable, along with ex-Leeds boss Gemma Grainger - part of Sampson's coaching team.
Alternatives include the current Canada women national team boss John Herdman - from County Durham - who has earned good credit for lifting Canada up to fifth in the world, while Englishman Colin Bell won the 2014-15 Champions League with Frankfurt.
You can now add WSL 1 alerts for goals and results in the BBC Sport app.
FA covered up Tranmere 'Super White Army' banner before England game
- 21 September 2017
- From the section Liverpool
Image copyright
Mark Bartley
Image caption
The wording had been shared by England's Lucy Bronze before the game
A "Super White Army" banner was covered up during an England football match after a picture of it was shared online by one of the team's top players.
The sign at Tranmere Rovers' ground was obscured by the FA for the Lionesses' World Cup qualifier on Tuesday, hours after Lucy Bronze shared it online.
Her post received criticism and praise.
Tranmere Rovers Supporters' Club said it did not know why it was covered, adding it was "not remotely racist" and referred to their team's shirts.
England's Lionesses had been embroiled in an ongoing row before the match over discrimination allegations made against the team's manager Mark Sampson, who has since been sacked over an unconnected matter.
The FA confirmed it took down the banner at Prenton Park but said it would be making no further comment.
Image copyright InstagramSupporters' club chairman Mark Bartley said the banner had been on display at the ground since the summer, but the words had "been our motto for years" and the decision to cover it "was a one-off [which] will have no impact on us".
"We are proud of our club colours, as are all fans up and down the country... and will continue to use the chant at our games going forward," he said.
"It is not remotely racist - it is simply a reference to the white shirts that our team wear."
Tranmere Rovers FC declined to comment.
Fifa investigates Man City and Chelsea over youth signings
Chelsea and Manchester City are being investigated by Fifa over their recruitment of young players.
This is the third time football's world governing body has looked at Chelsea, and in 2009 they were banned from making signings for two years.
In May, the Premier League fined City £300,000 and banned them from signing academy players for two years.
Fifa has stringent rules in place for signing players under the age of 18 to prevent exploitation and trafficking.
When asked by BBC Sport about Chelsea and Manchester City, it confirmed an investigation was "ongoing".
City are adamant they have done nothing wrong, while Chelsea insist they "comply with all Fifa statutes and regulations when recruiting players".
In 2009, Chelsea were banned from signing players after being found guilty of inducing Gael Kakuta to break his contract with Lens, though the sanction was lifted on appeal.
They were also scrutinised last year for the 2014 signing of Bertrand Traore from Association Jeunes Espoirs De Bobo-Dioulasso.
City's punishment, meanwhile, came after they were found to have approached the family of two young players who were registered with other clubs.
In January last year both Real Madrid and city rivals Atletico were banned from signing players for two transfer windows after breaching Fifa rules relating to the signing of minors.
Real had the sanction halved on appeal but Atletico had theirs upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Fifa's rules on the transfer of under-18sFifa bans the transfer of under-18s to different countries unless they meet strict criteria. It brought in the rules to help protect children from exploitation and trafficking.
Under-18s can only be transferred abroad if:
- The player's parents move to the country in which the new club is located for non-footballing reasons.
- Both clubs are in the European Union or European Economic Area and the player is aged between 16 and 18. Even then, the buying club must meet more criteria relating to education, training, living conditions and support.
- They live within 100km of the club.
BBC Sport's Simon Stone
Chelsea and Manchester City are adamant they have done nothing wrong, but in merely admitting investigations are ongoing, Fifa is again shining a light on the recruitment of young players.
Chelsea and City have established themselves as having the best young players in England. Chelsea have won the past four FA Youth Cups, beating City in the past three finals.
But it would be naive to think outstanding young players arrive at those clubs by chance.
Huge amounts of time and resource are put into recruitment, both at home and abroad.
As the cases of City and Liverpool proved when they were fined by the Premier League last season, clubs do not always play by the rules. And English clubs are not operating in a vacuum.
As the professional desire and financial incentives for winning increase, even if Fifa's latest probe unearths nothing, it is fair to assume it won't be the last time they will feel the need to make sure regulations are not being broken.
Santos fans locked inside stadium during violence after Copa Libertadores loss
Santos fans were locked inside their own stadium for 20 minutes following violence from supporters after their elimination from the Copa Libertadores.
Fans of the Brazilian club battled outside the Vila Belmiro ground after Ecuadorean side Barcelona's 1-0 win, forcing police to lock the gates.
TV station Globo said supporters inside the stadium tried to get into the Santos dressing room.
Barcelona won the two-legged tie 2-1 after last week's 1-1 draw in Ecuador.
Jonatan Alvez scored the crucial goal for Barcelona in the 68th minute but was sent off two minutes later and his team was reduced to nine men in the final minute when Gabriel Marques was dismissed.
The Ecuador outfit face another Brazilian side, Gremio, in the semi-finals of the South American equivalent of the Champions League next month.
'Could English football survive without Carabao Cup? Maybe'
English clubs in Europe could benefit by not playing in the Carabao Cup, says Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho.
The Portuguese manager made nine changes but still fielded a strong side as the holders beat Championship side Burton 4-1 on Wednesday night.
Mourinho told BBC Radio 5 live: "If you ask me 'could English football survive or be even be better without this competition?' Maybe.
"Maybe we would be fresher for European competition."
United beat Southampton to win the League Cup last season for the fifth time - Mourinho's fourth success - and the former Chelsea boss wants to win it again this season.
'We have to respect the opponents' Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure was also handed his first minutes of the season on Wednesday nightMourinho's much-changed side still contained 11 internationals, as club captain and England midfielder Michael Carrick made his first appearance of the season.
Rivals Manchester City gave first starts of the season to Yaya Toure and Ilkay Gundogan, while Eden Hazard used the competition to make his first start of the campaign for Chelsea.
"If the competition is an official competition then it is important for Manchester United and for me as a manager," Mourinho added.
"I want the players to think the same way. We have this competition, we have to respect the sponsors, we have to respect the opponents and a lot of us are trying to do our best.
"If we can win it, we win it. If we don't win it it's because the opponents are better than us."
'Our fans have wonderful memories'For Wednesday night's League Cup games, Arsenal made 11 changes against League One Doncaster, Chelsea made nine to face Championship side Nottingham Forest, and Manchester City and Everton both made eight.
Championship side Burton made nine changes, but manager Nigel Clough said that the competition is extremely relevant to the club - financially, and for the travelling fans who saw Lloyd Dyer's late consolation goal.
Championship side Burton are the first visiting team to score at Old Trafford this season"Our fans will go home with wonderful memories tonight," he said.
"We have now played at Old Trafford twice in 11 years and nobody would have expected that. Nobody comes here expecting us to pull off a result but we gave a good account of ourselves and we scored a goal.
"It will help us in our bid to stay in the Championship. The chairman is happy, there was a good crowd in. It's a big part of our budget.
"The main thing was to reward the lads who got us here, they were the freshest players available to me. The League Cup is not a nuisance, we have an even squad and every one of those lads who played tonight thinks they should be in the first team."
BBC Sport pundit Danny Mills, who won the League Cup in 2004 with Middlesbrough, does not think that fans are short-changed by teams making sweeping changes to their line-ups.
He told BBC Radio 5 live: "If you buy a ticket for the third round you know all teams are going to make changes. You don't have to buy one, it's not part of your season ticket.
"The pathways for younger players at top clubs are blocked, and this competition is an opportunity. It's competitive, it still means something, it qualifies you for Europe. These cup competitions for the big clubs are opportunities to rotate their squads."
Real Betis' late winner stuns Real Madrid
Antonio Sanabria scored a 94th-minute winner as Real Betis shocked Real Madrid to win at the Bernabeu in La Liga for the first time in 19 years.
The 21-year-old dived onto Antonio Barragan's cross to head past Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas.
Zinedine Zidane's side dominated for large spells, but Cristiano Ronaldo was among the home players to waste chances as Real produced 27 efforts on goal.
It leaves the European champions seven points adrift of leaders Barcelona.
Ronaldo, returning from a five-game ban, was making his first La Liga appearance of the season, but saw a back heel cleared off the line before Antonio Adan saved a long-range effort from the Portugal forward.
Wales forward Gareth Bale gave Ronaldo arguably the best opportunity to open the scoring with a low ball across the area, but the 32-year-old sliced over.
Luka Modric had earlier hit the side netting after a driving run from inside his own half, while Bale was denied from a clever flicked effort.
But for all the hosts' dominance, they were left open at the back and were handed a warning when Sanabria saw his tap-in ruled out for offside late on.
Moments later the former Barcelona youngster made no mistake as Real were again caught short, scoring the winner to send Betis above their hosts to sixth in the table.
It was the first time Betis have won at the Bernabeu since Finidi George scored in a 1-0 win in October 1998 and brought to an end Real's all-time Spanish record of scoring in 73 successive games.
Los Blancos are yet to win at home in La Liga this season, having drawn with Levante and Valencia.
Hazard rules out PSG move - gossip
For completed deals, check our transfers page.
Chelsea's Belgian midfielder Eden Hazard, 26, has ruled out big-money move to French club Paris St-Germain. (SFR Sport via Express)
PSG have offered striker Edinson Cavani to Real Madrid after the 30-year-old Uruguayan was involved in a bust-up with team-mate Neymar. (Sport via Star)
Chelsea and Everton are also interested in Cavani but face competition from Napoli. (Mail)
Manchester City could look to swap English winger Raheem Sterling, 22, with Arsenal's 28-year-old Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez in the January transfer window. (Mirror)
Manchester United and Arsenal are among the clubs keen to sign Schalke star Leon Goretzka, but the 22-year-old German midfielder only wants to join Barcelona or Bayern Munich. (Bild via Express)
Arsenal are interested in Marseille's French defender Christopher Rocchia, 19, but face competition from Borussia Dortmund for the 19-year-old's signature. (FootMarcato via Sun)
Tottenham and Liverpool will go head to head in a battle to land German midfielder David Philipp, 17, from Werder Bremen. (Sky Deutschland via Mirror)
Former Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood has warned the club that they must win a title or risk losing 24-year-old forward Harry Kane. (Mirror)
Manchester City and Arsenal are keeping tabs on Fulham's 16-year-old midfielder Matt O'Riley. (Mirror)
Liverpool are interested in RB Leipzig's 18-year-old French defender Dayot Upamecano. (Star)
An away match in North Korea...What's it like to be a footballer and travel to the world's most secretive state while it is in the midst of a tense stand-off with a world superpower featuring the rhetoric of nuclear war?
The back pagesMeanwhile...Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has not let a hamstring injury stop him from showing his best dance moves. (Instagram)
Harry Kane's rise at Tottenham has been detailed on the new Fifa console game, with his latest rating up there with the world's best. (Express)
Members of Manchester United's famous Class of 92 have unveiled plans to open a university near Old Trafford. (Guardian)
The best of Wednesday's gossip...Neymar, 25, has demanded PSG sell fellow forward Edinson Cavani, 30, after their on-pitch dispute on Saturday. (Sport via Daily Mail)
Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus is set for a new deal, with the club preparing to double the 20-year-old's wages to £150,000 a week. (Daily Mirror)
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho wants to sign Arsenal striker Alexis Sanchez, 28. The Chilean also interests Manchester City. (Sun)
Barcelona failed with a £124m move for Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann, 26, in the summer. Manchester United also wanted the France international. (Mundo Deportivo via Talksport)
Napoli maintain perfect start to Serie A season
Napoli came from behind to beat Lazio to maintain their winning start to the Serie A season and go top of the table.
Netherlands defender Stefan de Vrij had given Lazio the lead before Maurizio Sarri's side roared back.
Kalidou Koulibaly, Jose Callejon and Dries Mertens turned the match on its head before Jorginho's stoppage-time penalty sealed a fine win.
Napoli have a maximum 15 points from five games, the same as champions Juventus.
It is 27 years since Napoli last won the Serie A title, when Diego Maradona played for the Naples club.
Mario Mandzukic scored as Juve won 1-0 again Fiorentina, who had Milan Badelj sent off.
Inter Milan, who were held by Bologna on Tuesday, trail the top two by two points while AC Milan are fourth after beating SPAL 2-0.
Both Milan's goals came from the penalty spot by Ricardo Rodriguez and Franck Kessie.
Former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko scored twice for Roma in a 4-0 win against bottom club Benevento - their ninth consecutive away victory in Serie A.
Dzeko, top scorer in Serie A last season, has five goals in four games this term.
Roma are seventh in the table but have a game in hand over the teams above them.
Torino are up to fifth after a 3-2 win at Udinese.
Borussia Dortmund keep another clean sheet to stay top
Peter Bosz became the first manager in Bundesliga history to guide his side to a clean sheet in his first five games as Borussia Dortmund beat Hamburg 3-0 to remain top of the table.
Goals from Shinji Kagawa, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Christian Pulisic took them to 13 points.
This leaves them a point better off than Bayern Munich, who beat Schalke 3-0 on Tuesday.
The victory was also Dortmund's 750th in the history of the competition.
Aubameyang, last season's top Bundesliga scorer, headed against the post from an Andriy Yarmolenko cross before Japan midfielder Kagawa slotted in from close range in the 25th minute.
Aubameyang got on the scoresheet in the 63rd minute, finishing off a quick Dortmund break and he should have scored another when he had only keeper Christian Mathenia to beat soon after.
Pulisic made sure of the three points with his shot going in off the post
Hoffenheim climbed to third, on 11, after recovering from a two-goal deficit to snatch a 3-2 stoppage-time win at Mainz thanks to Mark Uth's late winner
Hanover 96 failed to keep pace and dropped to fourth after their 1-1 draw at Freiburg.
Cologne made it five losses in a row, their worst Bundesliga start in the club's history, after their 1-0 defeat by Eintracht Frankfurt.
Holders Man Utd to visit Swansea in Carabao Cup
Manchester United will play away at Swansea City in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, while Chelsea will be at home against Everton.
Manchester City have been drawn against Championship Wolves, with Tottenham hosting West Ham in a London derby.
Arsenal play Norwich City, while Leicester City, who knocked out Liverpool, face Leeds United at home.
Bournemouth host Middlesbrough and Bristol City take on Crystal Palace in the other fourth-round ties.
Jose Mourinho's United, who beat Southampton in the Wembley final in February, moved into the last 16 with a comfortable 4-1 win over Championship side Burton Albion and meet 2013 League Cup winners Swansea.
Chelsea beat Everton 2-0 in the Premier League in August and the two sides will meet at Stamford Bridge after comfortable third-round wins over Nottingham Forest and Sunderland respectively.
Norwich, 12th in the Championship, are the lowest ranked side left in the competition and travel to Emirates Stadium to play Arsenal, who edged out League One Doncaster Rovers.
Championship Bristol City have knocked out Premier League teams Watford and Stoke City and entertain Roy Hodgson's Crystal Palace in round four.
Manchester City beat West Brom 2-1 on Wednesday and will next play a Wolves side who are second in the Championship.
City needed a replay to get past then-Championship side Huddersfield in the fifth round of the FA Cup last season and boss Pep Guardiola said he will not under-estimate the second-tier side.
"We will respect Wolves and we know from experience against Huddersfield last season so we will be ready," said Guardiola.
League Cup fourth-round drawArsenal v Norwich City
Bournemouth v Middlesbrough
Bristol City v Crystal Palace
Chelsea v Everton
Leicester City v Leeds United
Manchester City v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Swansea City v Manchester United
Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United
Ties to be played in the week commencing 23 October, 2017
Rashford scores twice as Man Utd ease past Burton
Marcus Rashford scored twice as holders Manchester United overpowered Burton Albion at Old Trafford to reach the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.
Championship Burton made nine changes and were 1-0 down when Rashford dinked the ball over keeper Connor Ripley.
England forward Rashford made it 2-0 with a 20-yard finish before Jesse Lingard's deflected shot found the net.
Anthony Martial added the fourth from a Rashford assist, Lloyd Dyer scoring a stoppage-time consolation.
Elsewhere, it was a night devoid of shocks Chelsea put five past Championship Nottingham Forest, Everton eased past Sunderland and Arsenal beat Doncaster Rovers 1-0.
The closest to a shock came at the Hawthorns as West Brom scored a 72nd-minute equaliser against Manchester City before losing to Leroy Sane's second of the night.
United's strength in depth shines throughKeeper Sergio Romero made his first start since United's Europa League final triumph against Ajax in May, while Michael Carrick captained the team on his first appearance of the season.
Rashford and Juan Mata were the only two players who started the 4-0 win over Everton last Sunday to make the team, but there was still no starting place for Luke Shaw.
Since returning from injury in last season's Community Shield, the former Southampton defender has started just 17 of 72 games.
Shaw came on at the start of the second half by which time United were 3-0 ahead.
It was a night of positives for Jose Mourinho, although the United boss is likely to have been unimpressed when 21-year-old substitute keeper Joel Castro Pereira dropped the ball allowing Dyer to score with a few seconds to play.
Burton's changes puzzle MillsBurton, 19th in the Championship table, face QPR in the league on Saturday, yet Nigel Clough's decision to make nine changes left fans and pundits puzzled.
"The manager is probably thinking 'do my players need an extra game?'," former England defender Danny Mills told BBC Radio 5 live.
"However, those Burton players who have been rested are missing out on the one opportunity to play against a Jose Mourinho side at Old Trafford. It's a once in the lifetime moment for some of them."
More to follow.
Sane double helps Man City to hard-fought win over West Brom
Leroy Sane scored twice as Manchester City continued their fine recent form with a hard-fought Carabao Cup third-round win at West Brom.
The German gave his side the lead in just the third minute and then struck with 13 to go, shortly after Claudio Yacob had drawn the home side level.
Albion's Hal Robson-Kanu struck the post with a shot in injury time.
Ilkay Gundogan made a first City start since injuring his knee in December but went off after a heavy Yacob tackle.
The German was able to walk from the pitch, but this was also the case when he suffered the ligament damage that kept him sidelined for much of the past nine months.
Prior to that he had put in a tidy display, and it was his saved shot which Sane followed up to side-foot City in front.
Carabao Cup fourth-round drawTies to be played week commencing 23 OctoberTottenham v West HamBristol City v Crystal PalaceSwansea v Manchester UnitedArsenal v NorwichChelsea v EvertonManchester City v WolvesLeicester v LeedsBournemouth v MiddlesbroughHaving scored 15 goals in their past three games, there would have been fears among the Baggies support of another big scoreline in favour of the still unbeaten City, but this did not materialise.
This is largely down to home keeper Ben Foster, who produced a string of saves to keep the visitors at bay, palming away a header from Eliaquim Mangala following a short corner and twice denying shots from Raheem Sterling.
This kept Albion within touching distance, which they capitalised on when Yacob fired past Claudio Bravo in the 72nd minute.
But five minutes later, Sane struck again, this time decisively courtesy of a superb left-footed finish in a counter-attacking move that began straight after Bravo had saved well from James Morrison.
Robson-Kanu could, and probably should have taken the game to an extra 30 minutes, but after pulling one shot wide he struck the outside of the upright with just the keeper to beat in added time.
Celtic hit four to dump Dundee out of cup
Celtic swept Dundee aside to surge into the Scottish League Cup semi-finals with a resounding win.
The hosts were initially lively, but lost their way after Scott Sinclair won and converted a first-half penalty.
The second goal by James Forrest, just before half-time, established an unassailable lead.
Callum McGregor and Forrest again completed the scoring as Celtic extended their run of unbeaten domestic games to 56.
Dundee will rue Faissal El Bakhtaoui missing the chance to level the scores at 1-1 during the first half, but ultimately they could not live with Celtic's pace and attacking threat.
Celtic made six changes to their starting line-up, with defender Dedryck Boyata making his first start this season after recovering from injury.
The Belgium international played two-thirds of the game, as he continues to seek full match sharpness, and manager Brendan Rodgers can shuffle his side again for Saturday's Old Firm meeting at Ibrox.
Celtic winger Scott Sinclair opened the scoring against Dundee from the penalty spotDundee manager Neil McCann had said his side would not go toe-to-toe with the cup holders, but they certainly kept Rodgers' side pretty quiet at the start of the match with a real dogged determination.
The Dark Blues were not afraid to pour forward in numbers either, when given the chance, and the Dutchman Randy Wolters saw an early effort deflected just wide.
But the composure and patience that had allowed Celtic to notch up 55 domestic games unbeaten was once again on show and after 24 minutes a burst of brilliance brought them the lead.
Sinclair picked up the ball on the right and danced past two players before being tripped by Jack Hendry inside the area. It was a straightforward decision for referee John Beaton, and Sinclair made it look easy from the spot as he coolly slipped the ball past goalkeeper Scott Bain.
Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata made his first appearance of the season after returning from injuryEl Bakhtaoui should have levelled shortly afterwards, though, as the home side refused to buckle. Wolters delivered an inch perfect cross from the right, but the Moroccan kicked fresh air on six yards and the chance was gone.
Sinclair continued to terrorise the home side down the right - the Englishman looking very much in the mood - but a few decent deliveries into the box went unanswered.
It was evidence that Celtic were turning the screw and the second goal never looked far away. It came just minutes before the interval.
Kieran Tierney, who looks more like a winger than a defender these days, swept a fabulous low ball into the box and Forrest stretched from eight yards to guide the ball into the net.
The visitors emerged after the interval like a side desperate to put the result beyond doubt. Leigh Griffiths was shooting on sight but the third refused to come.
Dundee midfielder Randy Wolters had to receive lengthy treatment after an accidental clash with Olivier NtchamThe momentum was broken when Wolters received what looked like a worrying throat injury after an accidental clash with Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham. The medical staff from both benches rushed on but after a five-minute delay the midfielder staggered to his feet and played on.
The tempo dropped, as Celtic strolled around with the home side happy to sit off and invite them on. It looked at times that Celtic would burst into the box simply to amuse themselves and on one such occasion Forrest almost doubled his tally from close range.
The third did come and so did a fourth just before the end, and it was no more than Celtic deserved.
Dundee were caught in possession in Celtic's half and Sinclair motored away. When he looked up, he found substitute McGregor, who drilled the ball low past Bain on the angle from the left. Moments later, Forrest struck from the edge of the box to ice the cake.
The superlatives just keep coming for this Celtic side under Rodgers. Another game and another team blown away with ease. They swagger into the League Cup semi finals, looking simply unstoppable.