EVERTON’S new stadium is under consideration to host an Ashes Test, according to reports.

The Toffees’ new ground, located on Bramley-Moore Dock, is due to be open ready for next season.

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However, in a stunning twist, the £760million stadium could be in line to host an Ashes series, as well as football.

According to the Daily Mail, Australia’s all-conquering rugby league team are eyeing a tour of the UK for the first time in 20 years.

A three-match series is set to take place in autumn.

One of the matches will be played in London, likely at Wembley or the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Leeds and Hull will battle it out for the Yorkshire slot.

And league bosses are considering a shock placement of one game in the north-west.

That has placed Everton‘s new ground which can seat almost 53,000 in line for the hosting rights.

It would be an ambitious move, but it is believed it could prove to be popular.

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Another option is Manchester City‘s Etihad Stadium.

Meanwhile, grounds in Bolton and Wigan are also under consideration but have smaller capacities.

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If Jon Jones sticks around beyond his upcoming matchup against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, then he’s got designs on a potential fight against a reigning champion but not the one you might think.

With rumors of retirement swirling around his return on Nov. 16, the now 37-year-old heavyweight champion doesn’t have anything left to prove when it comes to his accomplishments in the sport. That’s why Jones isn’t interested in just fighting anybody at this stage of his career but there is a certain Brazilian knockout artist who’s captured his attention lately.

“If there were to be a fight of a guy that’s still on our UFC roster that would be not only financially worth it but legacy worth it, it would be Alex Pereira,” Jones told Kevin Iole ahead of UFC 309. “Alex Pereira and I, we’re both 37 years old. Right now I weigh about 235 [pounds]. I’m an incredibly light heavyweight. I think Pereira walks around at 240.

“I think that fight would go much farther on my legacy than a young man who’s cool today and maybe gone tomorrow.”

In his short time since joining the UFC roster, Pereira already claimed titles across two different weight classes and he’s scored wins over five former UFC champions. He’s currently riding a five-fight win streak with four knockouts along the way while becoming arguably one of the biggest stars in teh sport.

Meanwhile, the “young man” in question is UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall, who is expected to be in attendance at Madison Square Garden in New York when Jones defends his belt against Miocic in the main event.

Aspinall has asked numerous times for the chance to face Jones since defeating Sergei Pavlovich to claim the interim title but his calls have largely fallen on deaf ears.

While he’s said recently that he hopes that the winner in the UFC 309 main event sticks around long enough to unify the titles, Aspinall probably won’t be thrilled to hear what Jones had to say about that potential matchup.

“More than likely not [fighting Tom Aspinall],” Jones revealed. “I feel like Tom Aspinall is, I don’t want to say nobody, but he just hasn’t proven anything. He hasn’t done anything. I understand that he won his belt against Sergei [Pavlovich]. Sergei just got slaughtered by [Alexander Volkov]. I’m not here to gamble someone else making a name off of me.

“I’m here to compete against the guys when we look back 10 years from now like ‘Jon Jones fought this guy and that guy and this legend and this champion and this champion.’”

As impressive as Aspinall has been during his UFC campaign with an 8-1 record overall and all of his wins coming by knockout or submission inside the first two rounds, Jones just doesn’t see a big enough body of work to make it worth his time to seek out that fight.

Throughout his 16-year UFC career, Jones has witnessed plenty of highly touted prospects come and go and he’s just not interested in sticking around to face the next big thing.

“I remember a time when the whole world thought Johnny Walker was going to be the guy to beat me,” Jones said. “No disrespect for Johnny Walker but we’ve all see the way his career has played out.

“I’ve just been here too long to get all excited about someone who’s hot today. I’m here for legacy. I’ve been gambling for too long to just take random fights.”

Majority owners Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan are in the process of selling their stake in Swansea City to fellow shareholders Andy Coleman, Brett Cravatt and Nigel Morris as well as businessman Jason Cohen.

American duo Levien and Kaplan bought a 68% stake in the Championship club – then in the Premier League – in the summer of 2016 in a deal that valued Swansea at around £100m to £110m.

They later increased their majority stake in the club.

But they are now in the process of selling their controlling share to current chairman Coleman, Cravatt and Morris as well as Cohen, a business associate of Cravatt’s.

Coleman became Swansea’s chairman in May 2023, when he also bought a “significant shareholding” in the Welsh club.

Coleman’s fellow American businessman Cravatt and British businessman Morris both invested in the club last year.

The agreement is subject to English Football League (EFL) approval.

BBC Sport Wales understands Levien and Kaplan will make a significant loss on their initial investment in the club.

Speaking to The Athletic, external, Cravatt said he, Coleman, Morris and Cohen were buying the outstanding shares of Levien, Kaplan and their investors.

Coleman added that the move could see £20m brought into the club.

“It is critically important for Swansea City to move on from the previous owners,” Coleman said in a statement initially issued to The Athletic.

“I want to thank Brett Cravatt, Jason Cohen, Nigel Morris and our partners for coming together to make that happen.

“Together we are bringing more than £20m directly into the club. This gives us a great foundation to drive Swansea City forward.”

At present, Kaplan, Levien, Coleman and another American businessman, Jake Silverstein, own 74.95% of the club while Morris owns 12.59%.

The Swansea Supporters’ Trust hold a 9.42% stake, which includes its protected 5% share.

DAVID MOYES accused Manchester United’s flops of hiding behind sacked boss Erik ten Hag.

The former Red Devils manager also slammed the players for refusing to accept responsibility for their poor form.

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Sporting Lisbon chief Ruben Amorim takes over on Monday following the end of Ten Hag’s two-and-a-half-year reign last week.

David Moyes was speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet when he claimed the players were willing to let Ten Hag “take the hit.

He said: “I think the players are quite happy to hide behind managers at the moment — let the managers take the hit.

“I could do with some of them coming out and saying, ‘By the way, I know I’m not quite at it at the moment. I’m not playing well enough just now’.

“We’re not getting much of that and I actually think Manchester United have got really, really talented players.”

The Scot, who has not managed since leaving West Ham at the end of last season, feels Amorim is coming into a totally different club from when Moyes himself arrived at Old Trafford to succeed 13-time Prem title-winner Sir Alex Ferguson.

United are currently 13th in the Premier League ahead of hosting Leicester on Sunday.

And Moyes told the Stick to Football podcast: “He’s in a completely different situation.

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“I was really fortunate to take over the champions of England at the time — and probably coming into a dressing room which had great respect for Alex and what he’d done.

“At the moment, players might be looking now and saying, ‘Hey, by the way, if we don’t step up…’

“The manager might be coming from a stronger position because these players are going to have to actually step up.”

Moyes, 61, also felt United lost touch with the way they used to treat managers when he arrived.

He added: “They didn’t sack managers. When Alex wasn’t doing so well, they didn’t do it. They stood for something which was really admirable. 

“A bit of class and actually that dropped away, probably, at that time.”

Dricus Du Plessis wouldn’t shy away from standing with Alex Pereira if they fought.

Middleweight champion Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) hopes to get a crack at light heavyweight champion Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) down the line, and he likes his chances against him. Du Plessis insists strength would not be an issue, but acknowledges range likely would.

Du Plessis overcame that range in his most recent outing against Israel Adesanya, where he was able to hurt him on the feet then submit him to retain his title at UFC 305.

“If I’m talking about just the stand up exchanges, I’m not fighting a kickboxing fight,” Du Plessis told Submission Radio. “I’m fighting an MMA fight, and a kickboxing fight, you need to be able to land combos. You need to land massive punches the whole time. Get a guy rocked, you get an eight-count – you have all those variables. Where in MMA, I don’t care who you are: If I catch you clean with those small gloves, you’re going to go down, and I am going to catch you eventually.

“Now, I said it with Izzy. He said I’m too slow. I wouldn’t be able to catch him. Well, yeah. Like, I made a post yesterday saying maybe it’s not pretty, but damn, it’s effective because I will catch you eventually, and then it’s a whole different story because I’m not engaging in a kickboxing fight. I’m punching, and I’m kicking, but it’s not a kickboxing fight. It’s an MMA fight, and when I put those together, it’s a different fight.”

Du Plessis paid Pereira plenty of respect, and wouldn’t even fault him if he decided to retire before he gets a chance to fight him. But after watching Pereira’s most recent title defense against Khalil Rountree – a violent Round 4 TKO at UFC 307, the South African fighter thinks Pereira is hittable.

“I honestly believe that with a guy like Alex Pereira, he has power,” Du Plessis said. “I have a lot of power, too. Yes, he has crisp striking. His striking is incredible. That’s why he has the kickboxing resume he has. But we saw with the Khalil Rountree fight – we saw a lot of things. Khalil had  success in those first two rounds. He really did.”

The captain, who was also benched for the league win over St Mirren last month, came off on the 67th minute at Hampden and was then dropped for Thursday’s game in Greece.

It is impossible to say whether the result would have been different or not had Tavernier started, but what is clear is both Sterling and Kasanwirjo can be pleased with their defensive displays against a disappointing Olympiakos attack.

Clement hailed his “really solid” defence and heaped praise on his midfield for playing their parts in the draw, which meant Rangers are now unbeaten in their last five away Europa League matches – equalling their longest such run in the competition’s history.

The clearest sign on where Clement ranks Tavernier in his pecking order will now come on Sunday when Hearts visit Ibrox, but the Belgian insisted he wanted to see leadership coming from more than just one player.

“It’s never an easy decision, but I want more than one captain in the group,” the Rangers boss said of his call to bench Tavernier.

“If you [get to] a certain age you can’t play 60 games at the same level. We knew that before the season and we spoke about that.

“It’s about competition for spots. It’s about one team, winning together. That’s Rangers – one team, one family, going for one goal.”