“His athleticism and skill level are through the roof, but so is his conscientiousness, his professionalism, and his desire to achieve great things.”

The club say that Pearson, who won his first, and so far only, England cap in a World Cup warm-up game against Wales last year, will now remain with them “beyond the current campaign”.

“Last season was a whirlwind, but Saints is a place I feel I can really push on and develop,” said Pearson. “It’s a place I’ve learnt loads already and somewhere I’ve really been enjoying playing rugby.

“The obvious ambition for us is to go all the way again and repeat our successes of last year, we want to put our name in the hat to win the Premiership again and I’m really excited to be a part of that.”

Northampton are next in action on Saturday when they travel to Leicester Tigers for the latest East Midlands derby.

FANS are up in arms after Atletico Madrid announced their new stadium sponsor.

The Spanish giants moved into the 68,456-capacity Metropolitano Stadium in 2017 after leaving the iconic Vicente Calderon Stadium.

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The state-of-the-art venue hosted the 2019 Champions League final, when Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-1.

Now Atletico’s stadium will undergo a rebrand after the club agreed a deal with Saudi company Riyadh Air, according to AS via Expansion.

The sponsorship means the venue will be renamed the Riyadh Air Metropolitano until at least 2033.

The deal is reported to be worth in the region of £210-250million, and will see Riyadh Air increase their involvement in Atletico, having already sponsored their shirts.

Chinese company Wanda group sponsored the ground for the first five years before Civitas took over in 2022 in a deal worth £7m a year to Atletico.

Fans are unhappy at the switch with some declaring the “game has gone”.

One supporter reacted to the news saying: “Riyadh Air Metropolitano” not even remotely feels like their home ground name 🤮”

Another added: “Woke nonsense.”

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What we know about the ‘new’ Old Trafford

MANCHESTER UNITED plan to build a new stadium rather than redevelop Old Trafford.

The decision was made after a number of fact-finding missions to other stadiums including the Bernabeu and Nou Camp.

The cost of the project is expected to be a staggering £2billion.

A capacity of 100,000 is expected.

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It is felt that a club of United’s standing should have a new state-of-the-art facility.

The new stadium will be built on land adjacent to the Red Devils’ current home.

United are looking to not only build a stadium but regenerate the area of Trafford where the ground will stand.

There had been plans to KEEP Old Trafford rather than demolish it, and use it as a scaled down second venue.

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However, it’s looking increasing likely that it will in fact be entirely demolished.

The club consulted with 30,000 fans about what to do and believe there is roughly a 50-50 split on staying or moving.

The club have appointed the architects Foster + Partners to come up with a “masterplan”. The company were behind Wembley Stadium.

Old Trafford has been United’s home since 1910.

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The target is for completion by 2030.

A third wrote: “They’re coming for absolutely EVERYTHING.”

And another commented: “Atletico and Barcelona are selling their souls for money it’s embarrassing.”

When interim boss Lee Carsley oversaw the wins against the Republic of Ireland and Finland, he did so without arguably some of his most important players.

As well as Palmer, Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham were also absent.

While Palmer has made a blistering start to the season, Foden and Bellingham are yet to really get going.

Manchester City forward Foden scored 27 goals in all competitions last season and won the PFA Player of the Year award, but he has started just two Premier League games so far for Pep Guardiola’s side this time around.

Meanwhile, Bellingham began this season with a leg injury and has just one assist and no goals in the five La Liga games he has played for Real Madrid so far.

Then, of course, there is Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka. He featured in all of England’s games at Euro 2024, scoring one goal and providing one assist.

He has once again been a key player for the Gunners so far this season and was brilliant in the Champions League win against Paris St-Germain last week, and again in the weekend win against Southampton.

To make life even more difficult for Carsley, Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon has also been impressing and is another strong option to start for the Three Lions.

Carsley has suggested it is important to find a way to get all his best players in, and he selected Palmer as a central midfielder at England Under-21 level.

“Carsley has got to find a way of getting him into the team, but it doesn’t have to be as the number 10 ahead of Foden or Bellingham because he can play off the right as well,” former Premier League striker Chris Sutton said.

“With the talent Palmer has, and his goals and his numbers, this season his form has been better than Bukayo Saka’s, and in fact it has been better than anyone’s.

“I have always believed that if someone’s form is good, get them in. So, whether it is the right or in the middle, Carsley has to fit him in. He must start for England against Greece.”

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been appointed global head of soccer at Red Bull.

The 57-year-old German will begin the role on 1 January 2025.

“After almost 25 years on the sideline, I could not be more excited to get involved in a project like this,” said Klopp.

“The role may have changed but my passion for football and the people who make the game what it is has not.”

Energy drinks brand Red Bull owns RB Leipzig in Germany’s Bundesliga, Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg and Major League Soccer side New York Red Bulls, as well as Brazilian side Red Bull Bragantino.

It also took a minority stake in Championship side Leeds and became the club’s front-of-shirt sponsor earlier this year.

Red Bull says Klopp will not be involved in day-to-day operations but will advise teams on playing philosophy, transfer strategy and coaching development.

JOE ROOT has broken Sir Alastair Cook’s record to become England’s highest ever Test run scorer.

The 33-year-old surpassed the record of 12,472 runs with yet another sumptuous innings in Pakistan.

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He reached 50 for the 64th time in his Test career on his way to usurping Cook – while he also has 34 hundreds.

Root is now fifth on the all-time list as India legend Sachin Tendulkar leads the way with 15,921.

Australia’s Ricky Ponting, South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and India’s Rahul Dravid are also ahead of Root.

The Yorkshireman gave a reserved reaction after eclipsing Cook as he remained focused on getting England back into the Test against Pakistan.

The hosts posted a huge 556 in their first innings, but Root and Ben Duckett steered England past 200-2 in reply.

At lunch, they were 232-2.

According to BBC Sport, Root broke the run record on the day of his brother Billy’s record.

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Joe Root has overtaken Sir Alastair Cook to become England’s highest Test run-scorer of all time.

Root eclipsed Cook’s tally of 12,472 Test runs when he hit an elegant straight drive back past Aamer Jamal to reach 71 against Pakistan on day three of the first Test in Multan.

The 33-year-old, who is playing in his 147th Test, has done it in 14 Tests fewer than Cook, and now sits fifth on the all-time list.

He made his Test debut against India in Nagpur in 2012 and since then has hit 34 Test centuries, with a top score of 254 against Pakistan.

Sheffield-born Root, who captained England in a record 64 Tests, is now only behind India’s Rahul Dravid, South Africa’s Jacques Kallis, Australia’s Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar, also of India.

The legendary Tendulkar, who played in 200 Tests, tops the list with 15,921 runs, but Root could eclipse that mark if he continues in the same vein of form over the next few years.

The Yorkshire right-hander is in some of the best form of his career – averaging 61 since the beginning of 2023.