Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai says he has “cleared” the situation with team-mates Curtis Jones and Kostas Tsimikas after a video emerged last week showing the trio seemingly arguing over the captain’s armband.

The incident came after the 1-0 pre-season win against Wrexham at Yankee Stadium in New York.

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Following the full-time whistle Jones, Szoboszlai and later Tsimikas argued with each other as the team walked across the pitch to applaud supporters.

During the match Szoboszlai gave the captain’s armband to Tsimikas rather than Jones when he was subbed off, and during the argument the Greece left-back was filmed throwing it to the floor.

In the 4-2 defeat by Leeds on Sunday, Szoboszlai gave the armband to Jones.

“It was never a debate between us three,” said the Hungary captain. “We just discussed something on the pitch. Which actually, after, you guys [the media] make it very big. But next time we will manage to do it in the changing room. Nobody was angry at no-one. It’s all cleared – we are cool.”

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With regular captain Virgil van Dijk absent for the United States tour and Joe Gomez injured in the first game, Szoboszlai led the side for the majority of their trip.

Meanwhile, Szoboszlai revealed that new manager Andoni Iraola is yet to discuss the vice-captaincy, with the vacancy open following the departure of Andy Robertson to Tottenham Hotspur.

“No, there hasn’t been any conversation. Obviously we have Virgil as the captain. We have Ali [Alisson]. We have Joe Gomez. So there was no conversation at all. Obviously Ali is not here and Joe is injured. It was a very proud moment to have it and let’s see. It’s not my choice. It’s not fixed,” the 25-year-old said.

“If you get offered the vice-captain at Liverpool, you’re going to take it. It would be a proud moment for me. But I respect everybody, so either way, whoever it’s going to be we’re going to follow them.”

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Speaking to the media in Chicago shortly before the Reds travelled back to the UK, Szoboszlai said he “can’t wait” for the new season.

“I feel we are ready to go again and take motivation from the last season, because it was not the best,” he said. “We didn’t end up where we wanted to, so now we’re going to go for it again.

“It’s not my job to tell you who we have to sign or if we have to sign someone. If the guys above and the manager decide to sign someone, we are very happy and will welcome them. If they decide not to, then we have to do something special with this squad.”

‘Mac Allister definitely coming back’

The Liverpool players return to training from Wednesday before taking on Monaco in a friendly at Anfield on Sunday (14:30 BST).

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Szoboszlai was full of praise for 19-year-old Trey Nyoni, who has been one of the standouts of pre-season so far. The midfielder only managed 229 minutes under former boss Arne Slot last season but has put himself in line to play a more prominent role under Iraola.

“I always knew that he’s a good player. In training, he showed his quality many times,” said Szoboszlai. “Also when he had the chance to play in some cup games or even in the Premier League. He’s a very good player. The squad is short, so we need everybody.”

And Szoboszlai agreed it is a clean slate for everyone in the squad before Liverpool begin their Premier League season at Newcastle United on 23 August.

“It’s a new manager. Everyone is motivated. I think I see in everybody’s eyes that he wants to play – and if you want to play, you have to give your best,” he said.

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“And from there on, the manager is going to decide who is going to play. But everybody is on zero right now.”

Szoboszlai also clarified he did not mean to cause confusion when he said “if Alexis (Mac Allister) comes back” in a media conference on Thursday.

“That’s my English, guys. It’s not ‘if’ – it’s ‘when’ he comes back. So now I make it clear. He’s coming back and he’s going to be part of the team as much as I know.”

May 29, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays infielder Yandy Diaz (2) celebrates after a home run during the seventh inning against Los Angeles Angels at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Pablo Robles-Imagn Images

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Following a tenacious performance at Sandown, Andy Win is now being considered for the Grand National Steeplechase.

The gelding, Andy Win, claimed the $250,000 Grand National Hurdle (4200m) at Sandown on Sunday and has secured qualification for the more demanding steeplechase event.

Trainer Shane Jackson has indicated that if Andy Win recovers well from his recent success, he will be aimed at the $350,000 Grand National Steeplechase (4500m) on August 16, part of the all-jumps program at Ballarat.

Andy Win, a $3 chance under jockey Tom Ryan, won by 1-¼ lengths from Ardakan ($5.50), with Embezzler ($10) a further 13 lengths behind in third.

Jackson suggested that Andy Win’s earlier qualification for the bigger jumps at Coleraine on July 20 might have contributed to the horse being tentative over some fences early in the race.

“We’ll let the horse tell us, but that was the plan coming here,” Jackson said regarding the potential start at Ballarat.

“We ran today with the option of the Grand National Steeplechase at the end of the season.”

“That’s why he had a trial over them and that’s why he probably jumped a few like fences early on in the race, he jumped them a bit careful.”

“After jumping two flights, I thought we were in trouble.”

“He wasn’t travelling at all and he’s had a long hard season, but I do believe if the track was softer, and a slower tempo, he would be more comfortable.”

“I’m glad we’ve qualified him over fences because, the slower tempo in a steeplechase might be right up his alley.”

Jackson was quick to praise jockey Tom Ryan for his efforts in getting Andy Win across the line.

“I don’t think there’s any jockey, apart from Tom Ryan that would have won on him today,” Jackson stated.

“He looked gone up the back and he had to keep him up to the job.”

“Maybe the ground wasn’t quite soft enough for him and there was a lot of speed, but he toughed it out.”

“What a thrill.”

This victory marks Jackson’s second Grand National Hurdle triumph, following Highland Blaze’s win last year.

Highland Blaze had been preparing for a return to Sandown but suffered an injury to a suspensory tendon in a narrow defeat at Flemington last month.

“He did a suspensory, but he’ll be back,” Jackson confirmed. “It’s not career ending and we’ve started the rehab process already.”

With the Grand National Steeplechase approaching, consider checking out betting sites for competitive racing betting markets.

NLEX Road Warriors’ DeQuan Jones during a game vs TNT Tropang 5G in the 2026 PBA Governors’ Cup. –PBA IMAGES

MANILA, Philippines—NLEX kept its record unblemished in the 2026 PBA Governors’ Cup after turning back a depleted TNT side, 88-83, at Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Tuesday night.

The Road Warriors improved to a league-best 6-0 in Group A, completing a first-round sweep of the double-round robin eliminations.

“He (Jimmy Alapag) just preached patience. We just had to weather the storm. We didn’t like how they started with their rebounds so we had to keep them off the glass to weather the storm,” import DeQuan Jones said.

JIMMY GETS ONE UP OVER CHOT ☝️

NLEX coach Jimmy Alapag talks about his win over TNT and former coach Chot Reyes.

Reyes mentored Alapag for a long time during their Talk N’ Text days in the 2010’s. #PBA50 | @MeloFuertesINQ pic.twitter.com/hX5YkmRYge

— INQUIRER Sports (@inquirersports) August 4, 2026

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“We knew coming in that they would throw different looks at us and take away our plays and slow us down a little bit. It was just a matter of initiating our offensive sets on the half court.”

NLEX had to fend off one final push from TNT,  which was down by as much as 17 but trimmed the deficit to 85-83 on a Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson basket with 2:12 remaining.

Try as they might, the Tropang 5G never got any closer as Schonny Winston calmly knocked down two free throws with 17 seconds left to stretch their lead to 87-83.

Jones dominated anew for NLEX with 27 points and seven rebounds. LJ Gonzales and Robert Bolick chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Hollis-Jefferson tallied a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Tropang 5G, who dropped to 3-3 playing without its core players due to injuries.

The troika of Rey Nambatac, Glenn Khobuntin and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, meanwhile, all had 13 points each.

KOCHI: S Murali gave an unusual analogy to describe the struggles his son, long jumper Sreeshankar Murali, undertook to regain full fitness after a career-threatening knee injury he sustained two years ago.“Sreeshankar’s comeback was as difficult as preparing for the IIT and Civil Services simultaneously,” he told TOI.Murali is currently near Prague, where he is closely monitoring his son’s training ahead of a busy stretch that begins with the World Athletics Continental Tour (silver level) meet in Bhubaneswar on Aug 22, followed by next month’s Asian Games in Japan.“Sreeshankar’s training now revolves around strength and conditioning, along with the prehab and rehab programme designed by coach Wayne Lombard. There is very little time to work on technique. The priority is to protect the knee on his take-off leg,” Murali said.His IIT-UPSC analogy aptly captures the magnitude of the challenge Sreeshankar faced after suffering the devastating injury just months before the 2024 Paris Olympics.Two years later, the journey came full circle when the 27-year-old clinched the silver medal at last week’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.“Of all the medals Sreeshankar has won, this one gives me the greatest satisfaction because of the circumstances under which he achieved it. It reflects his mental toughness and hunger,” Murali said.The conditions in Glasgow were anything but favourable.“It was around 12 degrees Celsius with drizzle and strong winds, making the runway tricky,” Murali said. Despite the difficult conditions, Sreeshankar produced a best jump of 8.09m to finish second.The performance inevitably brought back painful memories of 2024, when the family received a grim diagnosis after Sreeshankar tore the patellar tendon in his take-off leg.“The doctors in Mumbai had not seen an injury like this. I thought he would never be able to walk again,” Murali recalled.“They told us it wasn’t a common sports injury but the kind usually seen after a serious car accident. His knee was completely ruptured.”Determined to find the best treatment, Murali travelled nearly 1,900 miles with his son to Doha’s Aspetar Hospital. “The surgeons reconstructed his knee using four screws.”The Palakkad athlete spent more than eight months away from competition before beginning the long rehabilitation process.The painstaking recovery paid rich dividends. Since returning to elite competition, Sreeshankar has consistently cleared the eight-metre mark, including a season’s best of 8.38m at the Inter-State Championships in Bhubaneswar in June.“There is no time to bask in the Commonwealth Games glory,” Murali said, pointing to the demanding schedule ahead.Sreeshankar will now turn his attention to the Asian Games in Japan, where he hopes to upgrade the silver medal he won at the previous edition in Hangzhou.“With everything Sreeshankar has gone through, he has every reason to believe he can stand on top of the podium at the Asian Games,” Murali concluded.

Pakistan’s Olympic gold medallist javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem has come in for criticism after his disappointing in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Nadeem finished ninth with a sub-80 effort in Glasgow with Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Pathirage winning gold and India’s Neeraj Chopra and Yashvir Singh finishing second and third respectively.

The outcome was not unexpected keeping in mind Arshad took part in only one preparatory event in Switzerland in 2026 for the CWG and that he spent all his time training in the hot weather in Lahore without working with any foreign coaches or trainers in person.

Arshad, who has previously trained under South African caoch, Terseus Liebengberg trained with his local coach, Salman Butt and local trainers.

Ironically the weather conditions in Lahore and Glasgow were the opposite.

Now compare this with how Arshad’s arch rival, Neeraj Chopra and other Indian javelin throwers trained for the CWG.

While Neeraj had his final preparation and rehabilitation camp at his training camp ion Biene in Switzerland his teammates like Rohit Yadav and Yashvir Singh trained in Spala, Poland with foreign coaches and trainers.

The result India won the silver and bronze medals in the CWG Javelin throw events.

Arshad, who was the defending champion in the Commonwealth Games after winning the gold in the last CWG in Birmingham in 2022 with a best of 90.12 metres was unable to even cross the 80 metres mark in the finals in Glasgow.

He failed to qualify for the final round of eight due to his poor performance dashing Pakistan’s hopes of another medal in the games.

For his fans it was a big letdown to see him struggling to even get past the 80 metres mark as he had also won the Olympic Gold Medal with a record throw of 92.97.

Arshad’s long serving coach, Salman Butt admitted that Arshad was nowhere his best in the CWG and was under prepared.

While Arshad is also to partially blame for his fall from grace as he clearly didn’t look 100 percent fit in the finals, he has also had to battle many issues off the track.

The biggest one being the Pakistan Amateur Athletics Federation totally disowned him after a feud over the retention of Salman Butt as coach last year.

A reliable source close to Arshad said that since late last year the PAAF and even the Pakistan Sports Board have not made life easy for the Javelin thrower as he prepared for the CWG.

The PAAF the source said totally distanced itself from Arshad’s preparations and left him on his own and when he made a few request pertaining to his training they were not entertained.

Similarly the PSB also didn’t release any funds for foreign coaches trainers to help Arshad train even in Lahore.

“This is an athlete who is self made and comes from a village and belonged to a low income family. But he brought so much glory to Pakistan with his gold medals. And yet he couldn’t prepare properly for the CWG. It is a sad reflection on our sports structure,” former Olympic boxing bronze medallist Hussain Shah said.

Even Pakistan’s first female to win any medal in the Commonwealth Games, boxer Fatima Zehra has rued that if she had got better training and exposure she could have won the gold medal in her weight category.

Fatima still managed to bag a bronze in the boxing event until now Pakistan’s only medal in the CWG after sending a 36 member contingent.

Linebacker Sione Takitaki was in the Twin Cities last season, mostly serving in a depth role. The tackler played in just a trio of games for Minnesota, spending the rest of his time on the practice squad.

He’s now joining some former Vikings in Houston.

The news arrives courtesy of Aaron Wilson of KPRC2: “New #Texans linebacker Sione Takitaki arrived in town today after agreeing to terms Saturday following successful workout.” Getting grafted into the Texans’ front seven means operating in perhaps the most ferocious unit in the NFL. Seeing the 6’1″ and 245-pound ‘backer crack the final roster will mean being able to feast on tackles since the defensive line is so dominant.

Former Vikings Defender Sione Takitaki is in a Good Spot

Right now, the Vikings are pretty loaded at linebacker.

When healthy, Blake Cashman is a great LB1. Not elite, but very good. He’s somebody who can cover, blitz, and erase runners. Most teams would be well served by having a ‘backer as smart and competitive as Mr. Cashman. Only injury slows him down. When his body allows, he’s a difference maker.

Next up are a combination of Eric Wilson, Jake Golday, and Ivan Pace Jr. There’s a good chance that those three end up being the LB2, LB3, and LB4 for the duration of the 2026 season, provided health cooperates. After those three, there are some standard depth pieces looking to surprise people.

Last year, the Vikings had a pretty similar linebacker setup. What was missing was full health for Cashman and the presence of Golday. Part of the fix could be found in Takitaki.

The 3rd-Round selection spent most of the season on the practice squad. Doing so gave the Vikings some peace of mind since he could get called up at a moment’s notice if a veteran was needed. Minnesota did burn up the three freebie elevations from the practice squad but didn’t give him a full contract for the 53-man roster.

The final tally shows that Takitaki offered the Vikings 3 tackles. He played 45 snaps on specials but none on defense.

Originally, the linebacker got into the NFL in the 2019 NFL Draft. He did so as a Brown, a spot where he stayed until 2023. Since then, the linebacker has put in time with the Patriots and Vikings before getting his latest gig with the Texans.

Houston operates in the AFC. Minnesota, obviously, is in the NFC. The teams aren’t scheduled to play each other in the upcoming season but could meet in the Super Bowl, though the odds of the Vikings holding up their end of the bargain appear exceedingly small.

Other former Vikings players to pickup work with the Texans are edge rusher Danielle Hunter and right guard Ed Ingram.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.

Mauricio Pochettino is staying with the U.S. soccer team, agreeing Monday to a four-year contract to coach the Americans through the 2030 World Cup.

The 54-year-old Pochettino, who took over the national team in October 2024, led the U.S. to the round of 16 at this year’s World Cup, where the tournament co-hosts were eliminated in a 4-1 loss to Belgium.

Still, he helped the seeded U.S. team to a pair of firsts in the expanded 48-nation tournament, clinching advancement from the group stage with a game to spare and winning three games in a single World Cup. The team captivated American fans with excited audiences in stadiums and record television viewers.

“The magic thing that happened during the World Cup, the connection with the people, of course with the whole organization and everything was a key point,” Pochettino said during a Zoom news conference from his home in Barcelona, Spain.

Since reaching the quarterfinals at the 2002 World Cup, the U.S. has lost four round-of-16 games.

“What we learn(ed) is that we can compete, that we have the quality and we have the talent,” Pochettino said. “We were so close. That gap with the best teams in the world is not too big.” 
Pochettino said there is potential to make soccer in the U.S. “grow and grow and grow and be one of the important sport(s) in America, like it is in the rest of the world.” 
“We have players and organization that can compete with the best organization in the world in that sport,” he said. “We learned that the fans are amazing and when they were so excited to discover a sport that made our fans become crazy, no? The connection was amazing.” 
Pochettino views the next cycle as a new start for a program lacking quality depth at goalkeeper and central defender.

“It is going to be important to provide the young kids that we really believe (in) that they have the potential to arrive in 2030, in four years,” he said.

Before taking the U.S. job, Pochettino coached Espanyol (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-19), Paris Saint-Germain (2021-22) and Chelsea (2023-24).

When Pochettino replaced Gregg Berhalter two years ago, he signed an initial contract through the 2026 World Cup. Pochettino said ahead of the tournament that he had discussed a possible new deal with the USSF. He also said in May that his agent had spoken with AC Milan, a club that then hired Ruben Amorim.

Pochettino, who has homes in Spain and London, said he may move to the U.S. He intends to stay with the American team until 2030 but left himself an out.

“Four years time is a really long period. You never know what can happen in soccer,” he said. “Today people really love you. In eight weeks time, maybe that change(s), that feeling.” 
He has led the U.S. to 17 wins (including a penalty-kick victory), 13 losses and one draw. Twenty-three of 62 players to appear under Pochettino have accounted for the team’s 57 goals.

“We know we have a lot of work to do to achieve our clear ambitions, including competing to win Men’s World Cups and having soccer become the most played sport in every community,” USSF CEO JT Batson said in a statement.

Hedge fund manager Ken Griffin is again the lead philanthropic funder supporting Pochettino’s contract with additional support by Scott Goodwin, Adam Freede and commercial partners. Pochettino earned just over $5 million in his first seven months as coach, according to the U.S. Soccer Federation tax return.

U.S. coaches have not been successful when they remained for a second World Cup cycle.

After leading the Americans to the 2002 quarterfinals, Bruce Arena was unable to get his team past the group stage in 2006.

Bob Bradley helped the U.S. reach the round of 16 in 2010, then was fired a year later after the team lost the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.

Jurgen Klinsmann took over and in December 2013 was given an extension through the 2018 World Cup. The Americans reached the round of 16 in 2014 but Klinsmann was fired in late 2016 after the U.S. lost its first two games in the final round of qualifying. Arena returned but the U.S. failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

Berhalter was hired in late 2018 and led the Americans to the round of 16 in 2022. Given a new contract in 2023, he was fired a year later after the U.S. failed to advance past the group stage at Copa America.

“We are going to demand more from them,” he said of the players. “We are not going to be in some situation(s) not flexible like we were because before it was (for) the benefit of players, benefit of structures that were already built. But now it’s about to start the house from zero.

Commonwealth Games silver medallist weightlifter Gyaneshwari Yadav on Monday recalled that overcoming menstrual cramps was the biggest challenge for her at the event, with her firm commitment to achieving the goal acting as her motivation.

Yadav said her next target is the Asian Games for which she had about a month to prepare.

She recalled the struggles of the years and kept reminding herself of the dream of her father, who pursued bodybuilding as a hobby, to bring glory to the country.

The 23-year-old from Rajnandgaon district in Chhattisgarh won the silver medal in the women’s 53 kg weightlifting in the just-concluded event in Glasgow.

On Monday, Yadav and her parents met Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai at his official residence, where she was felicitated for bringing laurels to the country and her home state, 
Speaking to PTI Videos, Yadav said her biggest challenge during the Commonwealth Games was that it was the first day of her period (menstruation).

“I had trained under such conditions before, but had never competed on the first day of my periods. I kept telling myself to stay focused, and my family and coaches also kept assuring me that everything would be fine,” she said.

Yadav said she performed with a calm mind, and after successfully completing her first lift, her confidence grew.

“I told myself that the pain was nothing compared to my goal, and that motivated me to clear all my lifts,” she added.

Yadav noted that her success was the culmination of years of struggle shared by her family, coaches and the people of Rajnandgaon.

“There is a lot of struggle behind every success. My parents struggled alongside me. I still remember my father pushing me on his bicycle to the gym every day. He had once told me that he could never make it to the national or international stage, but wanted me to achieve that dream and bring glory to the country,” she said.

Earlier, the Chief Minister announced a reward of Rs 30 lakh for Yadav and granted her an out-of-turn promotion to the rank of deputy superintendent of police (DSP).

Reacting to the honour, the weightlifter said it would help her immensely to prepare for future competitions.

“Joining the police as an ASI (assistant sub-inspector) came as a great support. This promotion to DSP will motivate me further and help me prepare better so that I can bring more glory to India and Chhattisgarh on bigger stages. My next target is the Asian Games, and I have one month left to prepare,” she said.

Yadav also urged young weightlifters to remain patient and work hard.

“There are many competitions that offer cash prizes, which provide financial support and motivate athletes. Success takes time, but if you keep working hard, the rewards eventually come,” she said.

Her father, Deepak Yadav, said the silver medal was a proud achievement for Chhattisgarh and expressed confidence that his daughter would win more medals with everyone’s blessings.

“We came from a financially weak family. I used to do bodybuilding as a hobby and would take her to Jai Bhavani Vyayam Shala, where she was given training in weightlifting. I never imagined she would reach this level,” he said.

Describing the cash reward and promotion as a major motivation, Deepak Yadav said they would encourage more children to take up sports and pursue excellence.