Ajax and Real Betis have made contact with AZ Alkmaar about Troy Parrott, in a deal that could go beyond £25m. All of Fulham, Como and PSV Eindhoven are meanwhile surveying how it develops, with a view to potentially trying to hijack any deal.

Parrott has had another sensational season with AZ, with one of many peaks the five goals against Portugal and Hungary in November’s international break, that took Ireland into a World Cup play-off.

That has seen a series of clubs take interest in his progress, with the five above – from four different countries – currently the most keen. Parrott himself is open to another transfer abroad, given how beneficial the move to the Netherlands has been for his career.

Betis are especially keen but the challenge is about securing the right deal.

AZ have long wanted a package that comes to around £25m, with many in football seeing that as a great price for a 24-year-old with a high ceiling and still considerable potential to grow.

Parrott joined AZ from Tottenham Hotspur in July 2024 having been sent out on loan spells to five different clubs during his time with Spurs including Millwall and Preston North End.

He made the switch to the Eredivise in a £6.7m move scoring 14 goals in 30 league appearances in his first season with AZ. He bettered that last year with 16 goals from 28 league appearances and has netted 33 times from 61 games for the club.

Roberto de Zerbi says Tottenham “don’t know” whether forward Richarlison will stay at the club as he “sometimes” wants to leave.

The Brazil international, 29, scored a last-minute winner as 10-man Spurs beat Chelsea 2-1 in a high-profile friendly in Sydney.

After the match, De Zerbi was asked whether Richarlison – who has entered the final year of his contract – would leave this summer.

“I don’t know because I like him as a player and as a guy,” De Zerbi said at Accor Stadium. “He’s unbelievable in terms of attitude and behaviour. But, in the end, we have to respect what he wants to do.”

When pressed on whether Richarlison wants to leave, he added: “I don’t know. I didn’t understand well because sometimes he says he wants to stay, sometimes he wants to leave. We have to speak anyway. There is not any problem. He’s a lovely guy.”

The Italian coach was keen to point out Richarlison’s professionalism and impact in a chaotic campaign that saw Spurs battle relegation, scoring 12 goals.

“For me, he’s still an important player because it’s not easy to find another striker like Richarlison,” he said. “Richarlison scores goals. He knows the way. With any new striker, we don’t know.

“He scored 12 goals last season, not because of luck but because he knows how to score.

“All of us love him, the team-mates, the club and the staff because he works hard every day, seriously every day, and we can’t say anything about him on the pitch.”

The situation comes in the context of Spurs’ record-breaking £237m transfer window, which is set to continue with the pursuit of two more attackers.

One is understood to be Manchester City‘s Savinho, while Liverpool‘s Cody Gakpo has also been linked.

Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk is set to return to action after his doping case was resolved, bringing an end to a chapter that has kept him out of competitive football since late 2024.

The Football Association (FA), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and Mudryk reached an agreement during his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), allowing the Ukrainian international to resume his career with immediate effect.

Mudryk had initially received a four-year ban after testing positive for meldonium in October 2024. However, the sanction was effectively reduced to the period he had already served following changes to WADA’s technical guidance.

Under the current standards, the concentration of meldonium found in his sample would no longer be considered a doping violation.

Although the settlement allows him to return, Mudryk accepted that he had committed anti-doping rule violations as part of the agreement. Throughout the process, however, he maintained that he had never knowingly taken a banned substance.

Reacting to the decision, the 25-year-old expressed relief that the case had finally come to an end.

“After a long battle, the four-year ban that was imposed on me has been rescinded, and I am free to resume my career with immediate effect.”

He added:

“This has been the most difficult period of my career. As I have always maintained from the outset of this case, I have never knowingly or intentionally taken any banned substance.”

Chelsea also welcomed the outcome, reaffirming their support for the winger.

“Chelsea Football Club is pleased that this matter has now reached a conclusion which allows Mykhailo to return to football with immediate effect.”

Mudryk is now expected to rejoin Chelsea’s first-team squad as preparations continue for the new Premier League season. His return also gives manager Xabi Alonso another attacking option after nearly two years away from competitive football.

Few things are more frustrating than walking off the green with a three-putt. But you don’t need to rebuild your stroke or spend hundreds on the latest training aid to avoid these scorecard killers. More often than not, becoming a better putter comes down to building better habits.

That’s exactly what GOLF Top 100 Teacher David Armitage says more amateurs need to focus on if they want to cut these score-killers out of their rounds. According to Armitage, the best putters all share three simple habits that improve distance control, produce a more reliable stroke and reduce their chances of three-putting. 

Want to start taking strokes off your score? Below are the three habits you can use to never three-putt again. 

1. Slow down before setting up

According to Armitage, one of the biggest mistakes amateurs make on the greens is rushing through the process — or not having a process at all.

“We’ve got to try and educate ourselves,” Armitage says. “I think a lot of people skip that step.”

That doesn’t mean spending minutes dissecting every putt. Armitage notes that some golfers fall into the opposite trap, overanalyzing the read and second-guessing themselves.

The goal is to find the middle ground: a consistent pre-putt routine that helps you read the green, commit to your line and step over the ball with confidence.

2. Let your stroke control distance

One of the biggest mistakes amateurs make is creating speed with their hands and accelerating through impact. Instead, Armitage wants golfers to maintain a consistent tempo and control distance by changing the length of their stroke.

He compares the putting motion to a pendulum: the rhythm stays the same, but the length of the stroke changes depending on the putt. On slower greens, make a longer stroke. On faster greens, shorten it — but avoid the instinct to accelerate or decelerate.

That consistency gives you a repeatable system for distance control, no matter the length of the putt.

3. Practice the putts that save strokes

Most golfers spend their time on the practice green trying to make short putts. While those are important, Armitage believes long-range putts are where amateurs have a bigger opportunity to improve.

“Amateurs … definitely don’t practice their long putting enough,” he says. “And I think it’s a place where they could definitely get better very quickly.”

To improve distance control, Armitage recommends trying ladder drills or hitting putts toward the fringe. Both of those drills are designed to help golfers develop a feel for speed while maintaining the same tempo and adjusting only the length of their stroke.

Remember, the goal isn’t to make every long putt — it’s to leave yourself a manageable second putt and eliminate costly three-putts.

Three-putts don’t have to be a part of your game. By slowing down your routine, developing a consistent tempo and practicing longer putts, you can eliminate costly mistakes and lower your scores.

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Terence Crawford has offered Lamont Roach some words of wisdom ahead of his vacant WBC world title clash with William Zepeda.

The sanctioning body’s two leading lightweight contenders will collide this evening, headlining a Golden Boy card in Las Vegas.

Zepeda has therefore been presented with a second stab at the WBC 135lb strap, despite coming off a unanimous decision defeat to Shakur Stevenson in July 2025.

Even against Stevenson, though, the Mexican fought at a relentless pace and proved that he represents a hard night’s work for any fighter.

Roach, on the other hand, has been accused of lacking a degree of urgency, or rather believing he is comfortably ahead on the judges’ scorecards when, really, the fight remains in the balance.

This appeared to be the case in his last outing, against Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, whose sheer aggression and work rate saw him come away with a 12-round draw in December.

Prior to that, Roach boxed to a far more contentious draw against Gervonta Davis, who should have suffered a knockdown when he touched the canvas in round nine.

The fact remains, however, that Roach must elevate his punch output and intensity if he is to emerge victorious against Zepeda.

Speaking with FightHype, former three-division undisputed champion Crawford outlined this as an area of improvement for the 30-year-old.

“It’s going to be a good fight. If Roach don’t pick up his punch count, it’s going to be a bad one [for him].”

While seemingly needing to increase his volume, Roach does have the footwork and fluidity to cause Zepeda serious problems.

Manchester United continue their pre-season tour of Scandinavia as they take on fellow European heavyweights Atletico Madrid in Stockholm.

United bounced back from their surprise opening defeat to Wrexham with a rampant 5-0 win over Norwegian outfit Rosenborg.

They now face their biggest test of pre-season so far, with Atletico coming into the clash off their 4-1 triumph of their LaLiga rivals Getafe, which saw Ademola Lookman bag a brace.

It kicks off a run of exciting friendlies for Michael Carrick’s side, who will also face Paris Saint-Germain, fierce rivals Leeds and AC Milan before their Premier League curtain-raiser at Hull City.

Here’s everything you need to know.

When is Man United vs Atletico Madrid?

Manchester United’s pre-season friendly against Atletico Madrid kicks off at 2pm BST on Saturday 1 August at the Strawberry Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.

How can I watch it?

Fans can watch the match on MUTV, with an annual subscription costing £29.99.

Team news

Man United are without Benjamin Sesko along with Manuel Ugarte and Matthijs de Ligt due to injury, but there is a boost in the form of Amad Diallo’s return. New boy Andrey Santos starts again but there is no debut yet for Youri Tielemans, who has finally arrived at Carrington off the back of the World Cup.

Atletico are without their Argentine and Spanish stars that featured in the World Cup final – all those other than Marcos Llorente, who is already back for the squad despite his involvement for La Roja.

Confirmed line-ups

Man United XI: Heaton; Yoro, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw; Mount, Santos; Amad, Lacey, Dorgu; Mbeumo

Atletico Madrid XI: Oblak; Dominguez, Le Normand, Hancko, Ruggeri; Koke, Vargas, Castillo, Ortiz; Lookman, Martin.

With its superstar striker Erling Haaland and its fans doing the Viking Row in the stands, Norway was one of the better storylines at the 2026 World Cup.

The team reached the quarterfinals after last appearing at the tournament in 1998. Spurred by Haaland’s goalscoring prowess, Norway finished second in Group I with wins over Iraq (3-1) and Senegal (3-2) before losing to France 4-1. In the round of 32, a 1-0 win over the Ivory Coast was followed by a 2-1 win over five-time champions Brazil in the round of 16. England would defeat the Norwegians in a sweltering quarterfinals match in Miami, 2-1. 

So what’s next for Norway’s top players after the 2026 World Cup?

He became the breakout star at the tournament, scoring seven goals in five appearances and carrying Norway to the first World Cup quarterfinal in the nation’s history. Haaland put the team on his back throughout its remarkable run, firmly announcing himself on the biggest stage in international football.

He’s already considered one of the best players in the world, having scored 162 goals across all competitions in his four seasons at Manchester City. He’s won the Champions League and multiple Premier League titles already. Don’t expect him to slow down anytime soon. 
 

At the World Cup,  served as Norway’s main creative outlet during its historic run to the quarterfinals. Odegaard provided the perfect complement to Haaland, growing into the tournament and becoming increasingly influential as Norway progressed. He finished the competition with three assists.

The summer capped off a memorable first part of the year for Odegaard, who serves as captain for Arsenal. He helped the Gunners win the Premier League and reach the Champions League final, narrowly losing to Paris Saint-Germain on penalties. Arsenal should be squarely in the mix for more silverware this season.

Nusa is the future of Norway’s left flank and impressed during the summer with his creativity and flair on the wing. He scored in the win over the Ivory Coast in the round of 32. And while he was benched for the game against England in the quarterfinal, his spark nearly won it coming on as a substitute. 

He is a rising star in the German Bundesliga with RB Leipzig but expect teams in the Premier League to keep tabs on him moving forward.  

Another reason why the future is bright for Norway. He took Antonio Nusa’s starting spot, scored the opener against England, set up both of Haaland’s goals against Brazil in the round of 16 win. He is a super-sub no more. 

Currently at Portuguese powerhouse Benfica, it fees like a Premier League move is almost a formality.