Manchester United will turn to Thomas Tuchel if the club decide to sack manager Erik ten Hag, while Real Madrid are interested in Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran.

Manchester United will revive talks with former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel if they sack Ten Hag. (ipaper), external

United’s hierarchy will meet on Tuesday to discuss the club’s plight after co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe watches them play Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi has rejected an offer to succeed Ten Hag at Old Trafford (Sportitalia – in Italian), external

Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen says he would be open to a return if Ruud van Nistelrooy, currently assistant manager at the club, was to become manager. (No Tippy Tappy Football Podcast, via Mirror), external

Real Madrid are closely monitoring Aston Villa’s 20-year-old Colombia striker Jhon Duran. (Football Insider), external

Arsenal are interested in Barcelona’s 18-year-old Spain Under-19 forward Arnau Pradas. (Mundo Deportivo – in Spanish), external

Manchester City have discussed Crystal Palace’s England midfielder Adam Wharton, 20, as a replacement for the injured Rodri. (Football Insider), external

Everton will attempt to revive new contract talks with England striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, 27, if the proposed takeover by the Friedkin Group is approved. (ipaper), external

Liverpool are keen on signing England forward Eberechi Eze, 26, from Crystal Palace. (Football Insider), external

Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are both plotting a move for Arsenal’s Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey, 31. (Fichajes, via TeamTalk), external

Wojciech Szczesny is in line to make his Barcelona debut against Alaves in La Liga on Sunday – just over a month since he had announced his retirement.

Former Poland international Szczesny, 34, announced that he was hanging up his gloves after his contract with Juventus was terminated, but has now reversed that decision after Barca lost first-choice goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen to a serious knee injury in their 5-1 win against Villarreal last month.

“He is not going for the money at Barcelona, I can tell you that much,” Spanish football expert Guillem Balague said on the Euro Leagues podcast.

“They needed something after the injury to Marc-Andre ter Stegen. I get the impression he is coming to be the number one and play in the big games, and have an experience that will run until next summer.”

Barca go into the game looking to bounce back from their 4-2 defeat by Osasuna, as reigning champions Real Madrid look to do the same after their 36-match unbeaten run in all competitions ended against Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side play Villarreal at the Bernabeu and trail Hansi Flick’s Barca side by three points.

“Defeat is an opportunity, if we take it and react well,” Ancelotti said.

“We are self-critical. There are times when you have to reconnect and you need to do it quickly.

“Sometimes a good run makes you think you’re invincible, but a defeat brings you back to reality. We are still not at our level, we have players who are not at their best.

Kylian Mbappe returned as a substitute at Lille after a thigh injury and the France striker may start this weekend, with Andriy Lunin set to deputise in goal again for the injured Thibaut Courtois.

Girona and Atletico Madrid also suffered Champions League defeats on Wednesday and both are in action on Sunday, against Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad respectively.

BBC Scotland will broadcast live television coverage of Threave Rovers against fellow Dumfries and Galloway side Stranraer in the second round of the Scottish Cup.

The match on Friday, 25 October will kick-off in Castle Douglas at 19:45 BST, with coverage beginning on BBC Scotland, iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app from 19:30.

West of Scotland League Third Division side Threave beat hosts Glenafton Athletic 4-2 in the preliminary round and thrashed visitors Vale of Leithen 6-1 in round one.

Stranraer enter at the second-round stage as one of the clubs in League 2.

There are 19 more ties scheduled for Saturday, 26 October, with the third round – featuring League 1 and Championship sides – taking place over the last weekend in November.

Paul Pogba’s four-year ban for a doping offence has been reduced to 18 months after winning his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).

Sources close to the 31-year-old Juventus midfielder told BBC Sport he can resume training in January 2025 and will be eligible to play again from March.

France international Pogba was suspended by Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal (Nado) in February after a drugs test found elevated levels of testosterone – a hormone that increases endurance – in his system.

Cas director general Matthieu Reeb confirmed to Reuters the ban had been reduced to 18 months from 11 September, 2023.

Former Manchester United midfielder Pogba took his case to Cas and gave evidence in person at a hearing earlier this summer.

He previously said he would “never knowingly or deliberately” dope and believed the verdict was “incorrect”.

Had the original ban stood, 2018 World Cup winner Pogba would have been unable to play until 2027, when he will be 34.

Amandine Miquel is used to developing young talent and she is eager to do the same with Leicester City.

The Frenchwoman was appointed the club’s manager in July after seven seasons with Reims in her native France.

A 1-1 draw with Bristol City in the Women’s League Cup on Wednesday gave her an opportunity to test the club’s brightest young talent and it is clear she is pleased with what she saw.

Among them was 19-year-old winger Shana Chossenotte, who got on the scoresheet, as well as highly rated England youth international Ruby Mace, 21.

“Four or five from the academy could definitely start for the first team,” said Miquel, when asked on Friday about the squad depth she has available at Leicester.

On the same day, four of the club’s youngsters were called up to England’s Under-17 Women’s World Cup squad, with the tournament taking place this month.

Miquel will be without goalkeeper Rebekah Dowsett, defenders Nelly Las and Simone Sherwood, as well as forward Denny Draper.

But while Miquel is sad to lose them for a month, she is excited to see the talent pool being created within the club’s academy.

“It’s very good. I’m happy to share with England and wish that they go as far as they can in that competition,” added Miquel.

“For me, [developing young players is] the most important thing. I was a bit surprised when I saw the age of my team here, but I saw that I still have the youngest squad out of the 12 [WSL] clubs.

“I think that bigger teams, or ones higher up the table, tend to forget that they need to play. If you want to have a very good player at 18 or 19, she has to start playing at this level at 16. She should be around the team much more.

“We have four or five that can be in this group. When there are opportunities like this [in the League Cup], we will use them.”

Ten Hag has won two trophies in two years at Old Trafford, but an impressive 2-1 victory against Manchester City in May’s FA Cup final proved vital to the Dutchman keeping his job.

Ten Hag ended the club’s six-year wait for silverware with victory against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final in his first season at the club, also achieving a third-place finish in the Premier League.

But his second season proved far more difficult as United, having been knocked out in the group stage of the Champions League, finished eighth in the league before ending on a high against City at Wembley.

The initial deal Ten Hag signed when he was appointed in 2022 was due to expire at the end of the current season, in 2025.

Following a review of the team’s performance across the 2023-24 season, which included speaking to potential replacements for Ten Hag, the club – led by Ratcliffe – decided to trigger an extension to keep the manager at Old Trafford until 2026.

But just 10 games into the campaign, with United 13th in the Premier League table and winless in Europe, speculation over his future is mounting – with a trip to high-flying Villa to come before October’s international break.