CHELSEA winger Mykhailo Mudryk was at the Emirates Stadium this evening to watch Arsenal’s Champions League clash with Shakhtar Donetsk.

The 23-year-old spent five years with Shakhtar before completing his £88million transfer to Chelsea last January.

1

During that period he scored 12 goals and provided 17 assists in 44 appearances for the Ukrainian side.

His impressive form attracted interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs – including Arsenal.

The Gunners pushed to sign him at the start of 2023 before Chelsea swooped in to hijack the deal.

Almost two years on from his failed move to north London, Mudryk has been spotted at the Emirates Stadium.

The winger watched Arsenal face his former side in the Champions League from a box.

Mudryk has endured an underwhelming time at Chelsea since joining.

In 66 appearances for the Blues, the Ukraine international has scored just seven goals.

Enzo Maresca cast doubts on his potential during a press conference last month.

FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS

He said: “I don’t think it’s a lack of confidence. Misha is Misha.

“You have to accept the way he is. Hopefully he can get minutes and do better.”

Maresca’s comments sparked uncertainty about Mudryk’s future at Stamford Bridge.

ABU DHABI – Yes, Caio Borralho is on Fight Island for UFC 308 fight week. But, no, he’s not there to weigh in as a backup for the co-headliner between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev.

However, Borralho could soon be fighting another former UFC middleweight champion.

On Tuesday, Borralho revealed to MMA Junkie that discussions are ongoing for him to fight Israel Adesanya this coming February at UFC 312 in Sydney.

“I want to fight Izzy. We are in talks with UFC, but nothing confirmed yet,” Borralho said. “But that’s the fight we want. I think that’s the fight that makes sense. Adesanya already fought all the guys from (the) top five. Just me and (Nassourdine) Imavov he didn’t fight, but Imavov didn’t (have) a good fight last time, so I think they’re thinking about me. Let’s see what the UFC wants.”

The pairing does seem to make sense. Borralho, who’s No. 6 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings at 185 pounds, seemingly is in line for a major opportunity after winning a five-round unanimous decision against former title challenger Jared Cannonier. The result, which earned the 2021 Dana White’s Contender Series alum a Fight of the Night bonus this past August, pushed Borralho’s overall winning streak to 16 fights, which includes a 7-0 start in the UFC.

The idea of fighting Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) excites Borralho more than anything.

“A lot of respect for Izzy, you know. I want to fight the best in the world, and I think he’s a legend, one of the best in the world. I want to test myself against him,” Borralho said.

Adesanya, 35, who ruled the middleweight division for nearly three years, has hit a rough patch in his career, having lost three of his past four bouts. That includes a one-sided decision against Sean Strickland and most recently a submission loss to champion Dricus Du Plessis.

While some might view Adesanya on the decline, Borralho would not take the opportunity for granted.

“He was a great champion. He always has good points,” Borralho said. “I don’t know if he’s vulnerable or anything like that. I don’t have anything with it. If we fought, I’m going with a hundred percent power. I’m going with a hundred percent trying to finish him, and I will do it.”

UFC Fight Night 245 takes place Saturday, and you can join us for live round-by-round coverage and official results beginning at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT). UFC Fight Night 245 (ESPN+) takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Ranked middleweights Anthony Hernandez (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) and Michel Pereira (31-11 MMA, 9-2 UFC) meet in the main event. In the co-feature, Rob Font (20-8 MMA, 10-7 UFC) takes on Kyler Phillips (12-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) at bantamweight.

Follow along with our round-by-round updates and official results beginning at approximately 4 p.m. ET for the prelims on ESPN+ and 7 p.m. ET for the main card on ESPN+.

Enjoy the fights, everyone.

UFC Fight Night 245 lineup

MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)

• Anthony Hernandez vs. Michel Pereira
• Rob Font vs. Kyler Phillips
• Charles Johnson vs. Su Mudaerji
• Jake Hadley vs. Cameron Smotherman
• Darren Elkins vs. Daniel Pineda

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 4 p.m. ET)

• Asu Almabayev vs. Matheus Nicolau
• Brad Katona vs. Jean Matsumoto
• Joselyne Edwards vs. Tamires Vidal
• Jessica Penne vs. Elise Reed
• Alice Ardelean vs. Melissa Martinez
• Robelis Despaigne vs. Austen Lane

PFL: Battle of the Giants takes place Saturday, and you can join us for live round-by-round coverage and official results beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PT). PFL: Battle of the Giants (ESPN+) takes place at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou (17-3) is back in MMA for the first time since January 2022 to take on PFL champ Renan Ferreira (12-3) for the promotion’s heavyweight superfight title. In the co-feature, Bellator women’s featherweight champ Cris Cyborg (27-2) takes on PFL champ Larissa Pacheco (23-4) for that division’s superfight belt. And in a third title fight, Bellator middleweight titleholder Johnny Eblen (15-0) meets Fabian Edwards (13-3) in a rematch.

Follow along with our round-by-round updates and official results beginning at approximately 12:30 p.m. ET for the prelims on ESPN+ and 3 p.m. ET for the main card on pay-per-view via DAZN.

Enjoy the fights, everyone.

PFL: Battle of the Giants lineup

MAIN CARD (DAZN pay-per-view, 4 p.m. ET)

• Francis Ngannou vs. Renan Ferreira – for heavyweight superfights title
• Cris Cyborg vs. Larissa Pacheco – for women’s featherweight superfights title
• Champ Johnny Eblen vs. Fabian Edwards – for Bellator middleweight title
• Husein Kadimagomaev vs. Zafar Mohsen
• A.J. McKee vs. Paul Hughes

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 1:30 p.m. ET)

• Marcos Breno vs. Raufeon Stots
• Dedrek Sanders vs. Makkasharip Zaynukov
• Nacho Campos vs. Ibragim Ibragimov
• Taha Bendaoud vs. Tariq Ismail

World Rally Championship title favourite Thierry Neuville went off the road in stage 11 twice to hand Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier the lead at the Central European Rally.

The Hyundai driver’s lead came under pressure on Saturday morning from team-mate Ott Tanak before Neuville relieved the pressure.

However, two mistakes in the final stage of the loop dropped the championship leader to fourth, 33.6s behind new rally leader Ogier. 

Tanak, whom Neuville needs to outscore by two points to seal the world title this weekend, moved to second, 4.6s adrift, with Toyota’s Elfyn Evans fourth [+8.3s]. Takamoto Katsuta [+1m02.4s], Sami Pahari [+1m49.9s] and Gregoire Munster [+2m51.0s] rounded out the top seven.    

M-Sport’s Adrien Fourmaux retired from the day’s action after stage 10.

Challenging wet and foggy conditions welcomed the crews for Saturday’s first stage in Germany (Grant und Wald, 20.0km), which triggered plenty of drama.

Andreas Mikkelsen was the first to tackle the conditions after rejoining the rally having crashed out on stage five yesterday. The Hyundai driver suffered a slow speed spin on his way through the test he described as “very tricky”. 

Andreas Mikkelsen, Torstein Eriksen, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Advertisement

M-Sport’s Fourmaux, who felt there was something wrong with his car on Friday, was fortunate to continue after a wild moment when he ran wide onto a large grass run-off that resulted in his Puma sliding into trees. 

Luckily, he was able to continue, reporting that an intermittent front differential issue was to blame for the off.

“We have a huge issue on the front differential that we realised on the road section, I have no drive on the front, it is like driving a rear wheel drive all the time. As soon as there is dirt [on the road] it is hard to get it to go straight. It is undrivable,” said Fourmaux, who now had the use of his hybrid unit following yesterday’s failure. 

WRC2 driver Oliver Solberg suffered a similar moment at the same corner moments later but was able to avoid running into the trees. 

The tricky conditions were however tamed by Tanak, who produced a blistering effort to win the stage by 3.9s from Ogier to move ahead of the Toyota driver into second overall. 

“The car feels better today than yesterday but it is extremely demanding conditions out there,” said Tanak.

Rally leader Neuville opted for a steady approach in the slippery conditions that resulted in a time seven seconds slower than team-mate Tanak. Neuville’s rally lead had been cut to 0.8s over Tanak. 

The pressure on Neuville’s was slightly relieved in stage 10 (Beyond Borders 24.33km) as Tanak surprisingly dropped time through the test that straddled the Austrian and German border.

Tanak was 7.2s slower than the pace set by Elfyn Evans, who hauled himself back into the victory fight thanks to an impressive drive in difficult-to-judge damp conditions. Evans’ effort left the Toyota driver 10.1s behind rally leader Neuville. 

Neuville continued to stick to his plan in the challenging conditions, completing the stage without issue, 2.3s slower than Evans. Neuville was 1.1s slower than Ogier, who jumped ahead of Tanak back into second overall. At the end of the stage, Neuville actually increased his rally lead to 2.2s over Ogier.

There was further drama for Fourmaux who endured two off-road excursions. The Ford driver survived a first run onto grass but the second resulted in an impact to the rear of his Puma that necessitated a wheel change.

Fourmaux was able to reach the stage end but the damage to the rear of the car was too severe to continue. 

Team-mate Munster was also fortunate to continue without a stoppage after clipping a kerb with his left rear wheel. On the next test, he endured a brief run into a field that cost him valuable seconds. 

Munster wasn’t the only driver to find the grass in stage 11 (Schardinger Innviertel, 17.35 km) as Katsuta ran wide at right hander that left his Toyota sliding onto the run-off, before returning to the asphalt.

Grégoire Munster, Louis Louka, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Ford Puma Rally1

Photo by: McKlein / Motorsport Images

Rally leader Neuville was the next to find the grass as the drama ramped up another level. The Hyundai driver ran wide at a left-hander and ran onto the grass and into a 360 spin. 

After recovering from the mistake an optimistic pacenote led to another off that cost the championship leader even more time. Neuville was able to spin the car on the grass but became briefly stuck in a ditch while trying to get back onto the road.

Ogier inherited the rally lead while winning the stage in the process by 0.1s from Evans.

In WRC2, Yohan Rossel’s title hopes evaporated after a mistake on stage nine cost him more than 14 minutes. Rossel’s team-mate Nikolay Gryazin maintained his rally lead of the class ahead of the afternoon’s stages.

Williams Formula 1 boss James Vowles is so convinced that Franco Colapinto deserves a drive next season he does not mind the Argentinian returns to take points off of his current team.

Colapinto has caught the eye since he was promoted into an F1 seat from the Italian Grand Prix onwards after Vowles took the decision to ditch Logan Sargeant following a string of poor performances and costly crashes.

Eyebrows were raised over the decision to put F2 prospect Colapinto on board rather than a more experienced driver such as Mick Schumacher, but after just three races Vowles’ call appear to have been vindicated.

Colapinto has impressed in his three F1 grands prix so far, recovering from a poor qualifying to finish 12th in Monza before outqualifying team-mate Alex Albon at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and going on to take his first points as he came home eighth.

He then tussled with Sergio Perez before finishing 11th in Singapore and heads into this weekend’s United States Grand Prix with the praise from the Red Bull driver ringing in his ears.

However, with Williams having Albon paired up with Carlos Sainz from next year, there is no room for Colapinto to land a full-time drive. But Vowles wants to see him race in 2025, with seats at Sauber and RB still up for grabs.

“It’s definitely not out of the question,” Vowles replied when asked at an Autosport Business panel event in Austin if Colapinto could be on the grid next year.

“It’s more down to one or two other teams, not giving it away too much but, from my perspective, he absolutely has earned his place on the grid within a few races.

Franco Colapinto, Williams Racing

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“He hasn’t finished growing, he’s going to get quicker and quicker, and I think other teams know that on the grid. So even if he’s taking points away from us, he’s a professional racing driver and should be racing in Formula 1. Simple as that.”

Colapinto’s first taste of F1 came when he took the wheel for FP1 at the British Grand Prix earlier this year.
Vowles knew instantly that the 21-year-old was fast, but has been excited by how he has maintained such speed when the chips are down.

“Taking a step back, I knew he was immensely quick,” he added.

“The first time we put him in the car at Silverstone, you sort of looked at it and went, ‘jeez, this is that quick’.

“But there’s no pressure on your shoulders [in FP1]. How does that translate when there’s pressure?

“Since then he’s been…Singapore is probably the toughest race to throw someone in at the deep end and he basically delivered an absolute near-perfect result the first time out.”