Nottingham Forest are working on a deal to sign Chelsea striker Liam Delap.

The 23-year-old has been made available for sale by Chelsea for £50m and is training separately from the first-team squad.

It remains unclear whether the talks are over a permanent transfer or a loan move, but the two clubs are known to have a positive working relationship.

Delap was left out of Chelsea‘s squad for Monday’s Premier League match against Fulham and lost the number nine shirt to fellow forward Joao Pedro last week.

His potential departure comes just over 12 months after moving to Stamford Bridge for £30m from Ipswich Town, but he ended the season with just one league goal after shoulder and hamstring injuries.

Forest have signed defender Ousmane Diomande from Sporting for £34m, alongside free agents, midfielder Xaver Schlager and keeper Steve Benda, so far this summer.

However, they have sold England midfielder Elliot Anderson to Manchester City for a club-record £116m and striker Taiwo Awoniyi to Coventry City for £9m.

Delap’s arrival would provide competition for Chris Wood and Igor Jesus at the City Ground.

Chelsea, meanwhile, are looking to sanction a number of sales and loan departures before the transfer deadline on 1 September, and currently have 39 senior players on their books.

Some familiar names are returning to the U.S. Solheim Cup team. U.S. captain Angela Stanford announced her three captain’s picks to complete her team of 12 on Monday, a trio that included stalwarts Megan Khang and Rose Zhang as well as Solheim rookie Lindy Duncan.

Zhang and Khang combined for a 7-0 record at the 2024 Solheim Cup, though both have struggled this season; Zhang has just one top-10 finish since April and Khang has made one cut in her last eight starts and dropped to 85th in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings.

Filling out the U.S. side, which will square off with Europe at Bernadus Golf Club in The Netherlands from Sept. 11-13, are Nelly Korda, Angel Yin, Jennifer Kupcho, Yealimi Noh, Auston Kim, Lauren Coughlin and Allisen Corpuz, who had already qualified for the team via points, and Andrea Lee and Alison Lee, who qualified through the world rankings.

Khang, 28, will make her fifth consecutive Solheim Cup appearance. Besides being one of the Americans’ most dominant players — 7-3-3 in her career and 7-0-1 in her last eight matches — she also brings a dynamic energy crucial to these events.

“I’m excited to see Megan in that environment again,” Stanford said. “She does a great job when we play in America but she’s the energy we need when we go over there.”

Rose, 23, will make her third Solheim Cup appearance and is coming off a 4-0 record in 2024 where she never even had a match reach the 17th hole.

At 35, Duncan will make her Solheim Cup debut and be the oldest member of the team. She has 14 top-25 finishes over the last two years.

“I think ultimately it came down to Lindy’s a great putter,” Stanford said. “From the beginning I said the make-up of this team, two of the things we needed to have are putting and chemistry. She’s a rookie, but a very mature rookie, so I think she can handle it.”

Duncan was ranked 9th in the Solheim Cup standings, Khang 11th and Zhang 13th. The only players inside the top 12 of the standings not on the team are Lucy Li (10th) and Jenny Bae (12th).

The U.S. won the 2024 event in Virginia, which was the first victory by the Americans in the last four meetings.

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Aston Villa are working to sign Club Brugge central defender Joel Ordonez after failing to agree a deal with Southampton for Taylor Harwood-Bellis.

The Premier League side, who sold England defender Ezri Konsa to Arsenal last week, are accelerating their interest in Ordonez, with discussions ongoing and his Belgian Pro League club wanting a minimum £40m fee for the Ecuador international.

The 22-year-old centre-back, who played for his country at this summer’s World Cup, has made 124 appearances for Club Brugge since joining in 2022 from Independiente del Valle.

Villa had targeted Harwood-Bellis, but there is understood to be a significant gap in valuation between them and Southampton after an offer worth £18m was rejected.

It remains to be seen whether a transfer for the 24-year-old can still be revived but, as things stand, Unai Emery’s side have moved on to other targets.

Villa lost their opening game of the season 4-0 to Brighton on Sunday and are working to strengthen their squad before the transfer deadline on 1 September.

They have lost a host of key players this season with Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne and Konsa all departing.

There are also questions over Ollie Watkins’ future with the striker a target for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

Super Eagles winger Samuel Chukwueze has made a strong start to his new chapter at AC Milan, with his new role as a wing-back already showing promising signs.

The Nigeria international was named Man of the Match after helping Milan beat Torino 2-1 in their opening Serie A game on Sunday.

Chukwueze provided the assist for Adrien Rabiot’s winning goal and also worked hard defensively in a position that requires more than his usual attacking duties as a winger.

Chukwueze responds to Amorim’s trust

Milan head coach Ruben Amorim has shown faith in Chukwueze by moving him further back and giving him the responsibility of helping the team both defensively and in attack.

Chukwueze believes the coach’s trust has given him an opportunity he must make the most of after returning to Milan from his loan spell at Fulham.

“He simply showed faith in me, and I think I need to make the most of it,” Chukwueze said in an interview with Gazzetta IT.

“I can’t waste this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity – to return to Milan after the loan spell.”

The new role comes with challenges, as Chukwueze is naturally more comfortable attacking than defending. However, his performance against Torino showed that he is ready to learn and adapt.

The Nigerian had previously revealed that Amorim has been demanding more from him whenever he makes mistakes.

“Every time I make a mistake, he tells me: ‘Oh, Chukwueze, this is what you need to do.’ So, I think I’ll improve before the start of the season,” he said.

Against Torino, Chukwueze showed clear improvement in his defensive work while still using his pace and attacking ability to help Milan move forward.

Chukwueze ready for the challenge

After the win, Chukwueze was pleased with Milan’s result but quickly turned his attention to the work ahead.

“Now we have to look forward, but I’m very satisfied,” the 27-year-old said in quotes reported by TuttoMercato.

Asked if he was ready to continue playing as a wing-back, the former Villarreal star made it clear that he has accepted the challenge.

“I’m ready, I can’t wait, and I’ll do it all season,” he said.

“I know it’s a difficult task, but I believe in myself. I know I can do it; I can do anything,” Chukwueze added.

His Man of the Match performance against Torino offers an early sign that Amorim’s decision to change his position could pay off.

Chukwueze has shown his quality throughout his career but has struggled for consistency, especially during his previous spell at Milan.

However, his strong start suggests the Nigerian is determined to prove his doubters wrong and make his return to the club a successful one.

File photo of Medhavi Bidhuri© X (Twitter)

Nico Gonzalez is getting closer to joining Newcastle as the north-east club are growing more likely to sign a replacement for Bruno Guimaraes.

While Newcastle are yet to agree a fee with Manchester City for the Spaniard, there is a growing expectation they will.

Gonzalez is set to join City’s midfield exodus this summer after Bernardo Silva, Tijjani Reijnders and Rodri have already left the Etihad Stadium.

The former Barcelona player joined City from Porto in January 2025 for £49m and has gone on to make 59 appearances, scoring four goals.

But he was left an unused substitute for Sunday’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth, when centre-back Marc Guehi instead played in midfield.

While Gonzalez is likely to leave, City are continuing their midfield revamp after agreeing a deal with Lille for Ayyoub Bouaddi that could entail paying £85m for the Morocco midfielder.

Selling Gonzalez as well as Savinho, who is set to join Tottenham for £85m, would mean City have made almost £300m in the transfer market this summer, while they have also been in talks with Spurs about Omar Marmoush.

Newcastle turned to Gonzalez in their search for a more experienced midfielder after considering Joao Palhinha and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

They have bought two younger midfielders, in 18-year-old Sean Steur and 20-year-old Aladji Bamba, who both debuted against Liverpool on Sunday.

But after Guimaraes’ £75m move to Arsenal and Sandro Tonali’s £100m transfer to Tottenham, they have also looked for further midfield reinforcements.

New manager Matthias Jaissle also wants another forward but does not believe he needs to buy a centre-back, even though new captain Dan Burn is injured.

“I look at it very differently. I look at the fact that Australia in club competition rugby league is one of the great successes in world sport.

“But it’s reached a stage where Australia by its definition is a prisoner of its own geography, it’s a prisoner of its own economy.

“Its broadcast deal has just reached incredible levels of value, but where is the growth there?”

McManus said rugby league in Europe is the “antithesis” of what Australia has achieved with the sport but that change was possible.

“We’re a sport that hasn’t necessarily been run very well for too long, but there is incredible growth potential here,” he said.

“This is not a matter of picking at a carcass, taking over a weak sport.

“Both sides should be looking at this as how do we combine to make rugby league as a sport globally one that can really grow and strengthen.

“Certainly in terms of growth in Europe, it’s got unlimited potential, so how do we work together to exploit that?”

In a statement, Rhodri Jones, managing director of the Rugby Football League (RFL), said: “We are genuinely interested in exploring a mutually beneficial and financially fair partnership with the NRL, which we firmly believe would unlock the significant added value benefit of creating a single global entity for the sport.”

BBC Sport has contacted the NRL for comment.

The 64th season of the Bundesliga is here. The tiny team from Elversberg will become the 59th club to play in the league, Ismael Saibari is Harry Kane’s new back-up at Bayern Munich, Schalke return after three years away, and Kathleen Krüger is Head of Sport at Hamburg. 

Coming off an XXL World Cup and a new broadcasting deal in the US, the Bundesliga is looking to step forward into a new era. But beyond the loyal support of club fans both domestic and abroad, has the international appeal of the league, particulary in the key US market, worn off?

“It would be hard to argue that the Bundesliga has not suffered some back-sliding in their standing. When Bayern and Dortmund met in the Champions League final [in 2013], I believed it was just the league announcing its superiority with intent to stay at the pinnacle of club football in Europe. I couldn’t have imagined that might have been the brief apex,” Randall, a US-based Cologne fan who has been watching the league for 16 years, told DW.

“Frankly, the Bundesliga has likely already seen its popularity at its peak. It is only downward from here.”

Dominik Schreyer, a professor of sports economics at Germany’s Otto Beisheim School of Management, doesn’t believe that is the case though.

“I would be cautious about declaring the Bundesliga’s golden era over,” Schreyer told DW.

“The league still has full stadiums, strong clubs, excellent players and coaches, and a distinctive football culture.”

Schreyer does admit though, despite the league’s great reputation of player and coach development, failing to retain players like Erling Haaland or Florian Wirtz makes it more difficult to increase the reach of the league.

“Bayern’s prolonged dominance has reduced uncertainty at the top, while the Premier League has developed a major financial and distribution advantage. The problem is therefore not simply a lack of talent or stories, but the Bundesliga’s limited success in turning those strengths into regular international viewing habits.”

Club support strong, but league lacking luster

Robin Austermann, Bundesliga Americas executive vice president, said in the statement about the new Bundesliga broadcasting deal in the US that Bundesliga fans in America had grown by “43% over the past five years.”

This is obviously a positive, although it would be intriguing to know how much growth had been made per year. For some fans though, beyond supporting their team, the league is lacking.

“Honestly, for pure viewing I prefer the Premier League since in their league at least three or four teams can win the title,” Dave, a US-based Schalke fan since 1974, told DW.

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“There is no doubt that both the Bundesliga and the second division are the envy of other countries from the attendance and management perspectives but I feel that the overall competitive sporting quality has declined. I absolutely believe that the Bundesliga has lost some of it’s luster and reputation.”

Cologne fan Randall agrees.

“You get a little drama around the border between the last Champions League slot and Europa League, but that doesn’t really get the blood pumping how, does it? I still love watching the league, but I still have days on which I wonder if a Super League would really have been such a bad thing if it returned some competitive balance to the Bundesliga.”

How can the Bundesliga change its course?

Much of the desire for change has to do with the lack of competition at the top. Bayern have won 13 of the last 14 titles. Some believe a more equitable distribution of TV revenue is a possible way forward.

“The market has become more fragmented, abundant, and competitive,” Schreyer said. 

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“Availability no longer guarantees attention. Viewers increasingly encounter football through individual players, creators, highlights, short-form content, and major tournaments before deciding whether to watch full matches. The Bundesliga therefore needs a clear path from initial discovery to repeated viewing and, eventually, fandom.”

Whatever the choice, the change needs to be made without losing what sets the league apart, namely the competitive ticket prices and passionate fan base. German football fans offered a vision for football in the country back in 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic, but the gap between the rich and the poor in European football continues to widen.

“I think throwing out what makes German club football great in pursuit of competing in the market with the Premier League would be folly,” Randall said.

Schreyer believes the major clubs and established stars are the strongest way to capture audiences’ attention.

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“Once viewers are engaged, the league’s wider strengths, including supporter culture, historic clubs, player development, Schalke’s return, and Elversberg’s rise, can deepen that interest,” he said.

This Bundesliga season a pivotal moment for the league

Clearly, the US view is only one slice of the Bundesliga’s market. Fan numbers doubled in Brazil between 2018 and 2024 to 24 million, and community initiatives through Bundesliga Common Ground have helped build interest in countries all over the world such as Thailand and Vietnam.

But the new deal in the US is perhaps revealing when it comes to the challenge the Bundesliga currently faces to position itself globally.

“A lot of fans were disappointed by the league’s move to go with Fandango this next season,” said Jody, who has been watching German football since 2006. 

“If the Bundesliga wants to grow in the US, they need to look at what NBC did when it won Premier League broadcast rights. It needs a more mainstream distribution in the US and more publicity of the league to draw new viewers in.”

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Schreyer argues that this is not the entire story. 

“The new deal should ultimately be judged by whether it helps rebuild demand, not by potential reach alone,” he said.

Criticism is something the Bundesliga has become familiar with in recent years. But off the back of a World Cup in the US, a key target country where a new broadcast deal was recently agreed, this feels like a pivotal moment for the league’s development.

Edited by: Chuck Penfold

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The Cleveland Browns have named Deshaun Watson the starter for the team’s season opener at the Jaguars, beating out Shedeur Sanders for the starting role, per CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz. It will be Watson’s first game since Oct. 10, 2024, when he tore his Achilles. He re-tore his Achilles in early January 2025, causing him to miss all of last year.

The decision comes just two days after Watson took several shots at Browns fans following his poor performance in preseason Week 2 against the Bills. Watson was just 5 of 12 passing for 35 yards and an interception, playing with (and against) backups in the third and fourth quarters while boos rained down.

“I think the whole world knows it has nothing to do about the performance,” Watson said. “It’s a little bit more personal than that. So, I think it’s a disrespectful thing.”

Browns coach Todd Monken insisted Sunday that the comments wouldn’t affect his quarterback choice, and they didn’t.

“Deshaun is going to start against Jacksonville,” Monken told reporters on Monday. “(I) took in the full body of work over the course of offseason to training camp to the games, the joint practice, and ultimately felt like to start the season on the road Deshaun gave us the best chance to move the ball and score points — I mean that’s really what it’s about. I felt that way going into last game but wasn’t sure, and after we talked as a staff and after we relooked at everything, we’re gonna go that direction.”

Watson issued an opening-statement apology when he met with the media, shortly after the starting announcement had been made.

“First off, I want to address the comments from Saturday after the game,” Watson said. “I think just human nature, just myself being very emotional, putting a lot of time these last two years to get back and spend time in this facility, in the city, meeting a lot of people in the community, I thought I was gonna get a little different response.

“But I think my emotions got the best of me, and my comments wasn’t intending to go at any of the fans around in the city, because there’s been a lot of great fans that have been supporting me, and I know the frustration. This organization has put a lot of investment in coming to get me back in ’22, and things haven’t been going the right direction that we thought it was, you know, a lot of injuries, a lot of time off and not putting the best football and my foot forward. Again, I understand the frustration, I understand everything that kind of goes into that, and moving forward, I just want to focus on football, making sure that I’m putting the best product out there, having the best ability.”

Monken said he doesn’t anticipate the question of starting quarterback being a week-to-week issue, and while Watson won the job, the coach praised Sanders for closing the gap on the veteran through the preseason. 

“I think Shedeur has done a great job, come a long ways and we are excited about his future,” Monken said.

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Watson was regarded as a slight leader for much of the quarterback battle, often earning the first reps with the first team, even if the overall reps with the starters ended up somewhat evenly split. Watson started in preseason Week 1 alongside starters, while Sanders started in preseason Week 2 with mostly backups. Even so, Monken, in his first year as a head coach, said the competition played out in “the best way I thought we could go about it.”

Watson, who turns 31 the day after the Browns’ season opener, has been a monumental disappointment in Cleveland, and his acquisition has been regarded as one of the worst in major professional sports history. In 2022, the Browns traded 2022, 2023 and 2024 first-round picks, a third-round pick and two fourth-round picks to the Houston Texans for Watson and a sixth-round pick. The Browns then gave Watson an unprecedented, fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract.

At the time, Watson faced 22 civil lawsuits related to allegations of sexual misconduct at massage therapy sessions. The number eventually grew to 27. All 27 have been resolved, with at least 24 ending in confidential settlements. The last two were dismissed — at least one with a settlement — earlier this year. The Texans also previously reached confidential settlements with 30 women over claims regarding Watson.

Watson did not play at all in his final season in Houston (2021) and was suspended for the first 11 games of 2022 after being traded to Cleveland. In total, he has appeared in just 19 games since the trade, and he was among the NFL’s worst quarterbacks when on the field.

The Browns hope an improved supporting cast helps lift Watson. Cleveland overhauled its offensive line, bringing in four new starters, and drafted wide receiver KC Concepcion in the first round and wide receiver Denzel Boston in the second round. Both have impressed in training camp and are expected to start right away. The Browns also return tight end Harold Fannin Jr. and running back Quinshon Judkins after both had impressive rookie years.

This is the final year of Watson’s contract.

NFL preseason Week 2 winners and losers: Bo Nix shines in return, Deshaun Watson takes shot at Browns fans

Garrett Podell

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Why Deshaun Watson won Browns’ quarterback battle

As Monken said Saturday, the second preseason game was just another data point in a set of hundreds, ranging far past games and even practices. And as he said Sunday, Watson’s comments about the fans wouldn’t impact his decision. He appears to have held true to both.

Watson had been the front-runner, even if ever so slightly, for quite a bit, according to various reports. His chance to start in the first preseason game, alongside the starters, was an indication of that, even if Monken said both Watson and Sanders would each get a preseason start (something he held true to as well). For as poorly as Watson played Saturday, he held up decently — nothing special, but nothing disastrous — the previous week, and Monken described his return to playing football as “awesome.”

Watson’s experience and ability to function in the offense were also keys; after all, he has been in far more NFL offenses, including those with more parallels to Monken’s. Furthermore, Watson impressed this offseason with his approach and work ethic, per “NFL on CBS” sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala.

“In all the years I have been around Deshaun Watson, this is the best that he is mentally,” Kinkhabwala told 92.3 The Fan last week. “The space that he is in right now, his focus, the way that he stayed in Cleveland all summer, went to work quietly every day, didn’t ask anything of any of the staff in the building at all, was simply focused on living with his wife and working on football and his rehab. Just the conversations I have with him on the side — different.”

It is also worth noting, in light of Watson’s most recent comments, that the Browns’ first two games — Week 1 at the Jaguars and Week 2 at the Buccaneers — are on the road.

“I feel like I get more love on road games than I do home games,” Watson said. “If it is my spot and he does makes me the [starter], maybe it’s 17 away games then. I don’t know.”

San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York was arrested in Ohio over the weekend for allegedly trying to pay a prostitute $140, according to police.

York was taken into custody Sunday in East Palestine, Ohio, and was initially charged with engaging in prostitution but prosecutors amended the charge to disorderly conduct.

He ended up pleading no contest to misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and possessing criminal tools.

York’s arrest came after he answered an ad on a known prostitution website in Columbiana County and “arranged to have sexual activity with the female in exchange for $140.00,” The California Post reported.

He was released after posting a $5,000 bond and was sentenced to one day in jail for disorderly conduct and possessing criminal tools. York was credited with one day served when he pleaded no contest Monday morning and he was also fined $1,150.

Records showed that York had a cellphone returned to him and that $160 that was seized was to be given to the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force as part of the plea agreement. York also completed on online course.

The 49ers and the NFL didn’t immediately comment on his arrest.

York, 46, took over day-to-day control of the 49ers from his parents in 2008 and he became the team’s principal owner in 2024. After some initial struggles under York’s leadership, the team has been a consistent contender since hiring coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch in 2017.

The Niners have made the Super Bowl three times under York’s leadership, losing in the 2012 season under coach Jim Harbaugh and the 2019 and ’23 seasons under Shanahan and Lynch.

York also oversaw the building of Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The team moved from San Francisco to the new stadium in 2014. The stadium has hosted two Super Bowls, a World Cup and a College Football Playoff title game.