Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris has provided an update on several players ahead of the Black Cats’ upcoming fixture against Ipswich Town.

On Nordi Mukiele, Le Bris played down the severity of the defender’s issue but stressed the need to manage his recovery carefully.

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“No, it’s not too serious, it’s a shame because I think his precision was really good, good standards, and he gave in goals on his right side, so just minor, but we need to take care of him,” he said.

Omar Alderete is also expected to be available for selection soon, although Le Bris suggested he may have to settle for a place on the bench against Ipswich.

“With Omar, it was an injury during the last game, just before the last game, so it’s just about stiffness,” he said.

“It’s not major, but it’s important to build his condition, so probably both of them should be on the bench for Ipswich, I think.”

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There was also positive news regarding Romaine Mundle, who has picked up an ankle problem.

“Romaine is injured as well, he’s got a kick on his ankle so that one is minor,” Le Bris added.

However, Simon Adingra could be absent for longer, with Sunderland continuing to monitor his ankle injury.

“Simon might be a bit longer, so we are still monitoring his ankle and we need to wait,” Le Bris said.

Goals from Trai Hume and Wilson Isidor gave Sunderland a 2-0 win over Lens in their latest pre-season friendly ahead of the new campaign.

Folks, it wasn’t that long ago that Kirk Cousins was strutting around in beige denim and New Balance sneakers in the Twin Cities. Much has changed since he walked away in March of 2024.

The perpetually well-paid passer flopped with the Falcons, opening the door to getting scooped up by the Las Vegas Raiders. Going to Sin City means being able to join forces with Klint Kubiak, who was the OC for the Vikings back in 2021. Apparently, the veteran quarterback didn’t appreciate some of the extra attention from a Las Vegas defender.

Kirk Cousins Gets Physical with Maxx Crosby

In fairness, Maxx Crosby has a reputation for being a monstrous presence, largely due to effort that doesn’t stop. Still, there’s a golden rule in practice: nobody touches the quarterback.

Cousins had good reason to be upset.

Check out what Ryan McFadden said of the “scuffle” in a piece for ESPN: “Defensive end Maxx Crosby hit quarterback Kirk Cousins twice during the team period. And when Crosby hit Cousins’ arm a second time, the 15-year veteran had had enough. Cousins got into Crosby’s face, grabbing the All-Pro’s jersey, while both exchanged words before it was broken up.”

There’s a key word in the above McFadden quote: twice.

Hitting a passer a single time might be forgivable. Crosby has given a ton to the Raiders, so he could get away with a single infraction when most others would get an earful from coaches. Doing it a second time, though? No wonder Cousins wasn’t pleased.

— READ MORE: Where Vikings Offensive Lineman Rank for PFF —
— READ MORE: Kevin O’Connell Responds to Cris Carter on QB Quip —

More background on Crosby from the article: “Ahead of training camp, Crosby said the coaching staff warned him about touching the quarterback. They are fully aware of the passion and intensity that Crosby brings to practice, and know he can occasionally cross the line. Crosby has been that way since college. He mentioned there were times when Eastern Michigan coach Chris Creighton had to kick him out of practice for being too aggressive.”

Kirk Cousins has many flaws as a football player. His level of intensity and compete aren’t among the problems. Nor, for that matter, has he ever lacked for toughness.

Normally, he’s an in-control guy who is deliberate with his words, but he did allow a few bad words slip out in a joint practice against the 49ers once upon a time. Getting physical with an edge rusher is an escalation of that intensity but comes from the same place.

Or, perhaps, think back to when Cousins and Mike Zimmer put hands on each other. A touch older now, Cousins hasn’t lost his fire. He’s an intense guy when he’s not looking to get a deal at Costco or turn down the extended warranty on a minivan (that’s how they get you, folks).

Kirk Cousins, 37, is looking like the top option in Sin City for 2026. He’ll be tossing the ball to Jalen Nailor, who left Minnesota behind for a nice payday with the AFC team.

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

Ajinkya Rahane‘s innings as a player with Indian and Mumbai cricket came to an end. The veteran was one of India’s most trusted performers. “His calm presence, resilience and ability to deliver in the toughest situations earned him the respect of teammates, opponents and cricket lovers alike,” the BCCI stated after his retirement. While he played for India for a long time, he also led Mumbai with pride for many years. One of the most iconic moments of his domestic career as captain came during the Duleep Trophy final between West Zone and South Zone in 2022.

West Zone captain Ajinkya Rahane sent a young Yashasvi Jaiswal off the field due to disciplinary issues. The entire episode unfolded as Jaiswal was repeatedly sledging South Zone batter T Ravi Teja. Both players kept exchanging words, and finally the umpires decided to have a word with Rahane. During the 50th over of the final innings, Jaiswal and Ravi Teja engaged in a verbal exchange.

Rahane quickly stepped in to pacify the situation. The experienced player was seen having a word with Jaiswal. However, Jaiswal continued to exchange words with Teja, and Rahane then decided to send him off the field. Jaiswal was seen murmuring something to himself as he walked away.

“Sledging happens in the game, and it should happen. It adds a bit of fun,” he said in an interview with The Indian Express. “I read the situation. I sensed at that point in time that it probably would have gone out of hand. Yes, at that point Yashasvi must have felt bad. But I sensed what could happen going ahead. I have seen many situations where players have been banned, and you never know how times change. You lose one opportunity and your time is up. You never know. I sensed the situation and realised it was going out of hand. Both the players were losing control. And it was my responsibility to stop my teammate.”

Ajinkya Rahane sends Yashasvi Jaiswal off the field after consistently sledging the batsman…

Good to see Jaiswal back in the field, after knowing his mistake, good from Captain Rahane.#rahane #Cricket #Trending pic.twitter.com/GvnIgBpaZW

— Ankit | AI , Tech & News (@Ankityadav_360) September 25, 2022

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Rahane then revealed what match referee Vengalil Narayanan Kutty told him after the incident.

“The match referee did not expect that. They didn’t realise I would do such a thing. The match referee was ready with a four-match ban. The letter was written. He came up to me and said, ‘This is the letter, but because you did this, I’m tearing it up.’ He tore the letter up in front of me. In the end, I was happy that Jaiswal didn’t get a match ban, and now he’s playing for India. What could have happened? Maybe he wouldn’t have played after that, or maybe not. He’s a quality player. I’m not taking any credit away from him. But you never know,” he said.

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Manchester United have just two weeks and two games left to prepare for the new season and if Michael Carrick had arrived in Gothenburg with a good idea of how his team were shaping up, he will head to Ireland for a training camp with a couple of unwanted concerns back on the agenda.

Carrick’s team selection against Paris Saint-Germain felt like it gave us a few clues ahead of the Premier League campaign. Ayden Heaven and Harry Maguire continued at centre-back, despite Leny Yoro no longer being needed on right-back duty, while Andrey Santos and Mason Mount continued their own partnership in midfield, with Youri Tielemans forced to wait for his first appearance.

The decision to continue with those partnerships looked like the strongest evidence yet of Carrick’s thinking for the trip to Hull City, but in pre-season, the best-laid plans can soon change, and midway through the first half in Gothenburg, they were, if not in tatters, then at least subject to a rethink.

Heaven, 19, had looked assured so far this summer, but he was caught out for Ibrahim Mbaye’s goal and then showed his inexperience with a poor pass to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and a rash attempt to make up for it. Worse was to follow when Mount took a knock to the foot and decided he couldn’t continue.

The former Chelsea midfielder has been the standout star of pre-season and he’s been so impressive that plans to sign a third midfielder this summer have been reconsidered. But Mount’s fitness record is always a concern and two weeks out from the start of the season, this was a worry Carrick could have done without.

Tielemans only made his first appearance for the club later in the second half, and one sharp pass to Bruno Fernandes caught the eye, while Kobbie Mainoo will return to training next week. Any absence for Mount would leave United short in midfield and contemplating entering the market again.

His early departure felt like a reminder of the need to strengthen further. United will be back in the Champions League this season and eyeing up a 60-game campaign. They arguably need five midfielders anyway, and Mount’s early withdrawal here should sharpen minds in the recruitment department at Old Trafford.

But on the pitch, United have made progress and they were the better side against PSG, although the obvious caveat is that they are further along in pre-season. One area of concern will be how they start games and for the second week in a row, they fell behind early in Sweden.

PSG only played their first friendly on Wednesday, losing 3-0 to Mallorca, and only arrived in Gothenburg on Saturday morning. It took just 101 seconds to shake off the rust.

Noussair Mazraoui was sucked up the pitch by Kvaratskhelia and left space in behind down the left, which Dro Fernandez darted into. His low cross caught Heaven out and gave Mbaye a tap-in. Kvaratskhelia then forced Tom Heaton into a low save straight from kick-off.

But United gradually settled and ended the half strongly. Bryan Mbeumo scored twice in Stockholm last week and continued to look the part as a No.9 here after a slow start.

He twice tested Matvey Safonov with free-kicks and then equalised after sharp work from Amad. The quality of the Ivorian’s pressing has been a feature of the last two weeks and he won possession high up the pitch again before finding Mbeumo, who drilled a low finish across Safonov.

More smart link-up play between Mbeumo and Amad ended with the latter testing Safonov as the attack began to click into gear. Mbeumo was suddenly at the centre of everything, bringing another save out of Safonov after a brilliant pass from Maguire.

United looked the likelier to win it. Tyler Fletcher had two close-range efforts blocked in the final moments and Fernandes fired an effort just wide.

The captain will be a certain starter at Hull, as will Maguire, who was a major positive here. At one point in the second half he strode through the PSG midfield before firing a shot at Safonov and he ended the game making runs into the centre-forward position to try and win it. His passing was excellent throughout.

Around him, there are debates still to settle, and some have been reopened by events in Gothenburg. United have two games and two weeks to go until the real business begins.

Bangladesh suffered a major setback ahead of their Test series against Australia after they were dismissed for just 54 in their second innings, handing the Cricket Australia XI an innings-and-38-run victory in a three-day warm-up game on Saturday. Left-arm pacer Campbell Thompson was the chief destroyer for the hosts, finishing with 8/25 as Bangladesh’s batting collapsed in just 17 overs on the third morning. Bangladesh had resumed their second innings with two wickets already down and needed to produce a strong response after conceding a 92-run first-innings lead. However, they failed to withstand the CA XI attack and were bowled out before lunch. Tanzid Hasan was the only Bangladesh batter to cross the 10-run mark, scoring 22.

Thompson, a 22-year-old South Australian who had played only one first-class match before this game, took the first five wickets to fall in the second innings after beginning the damage late on the previous day.

Off-spinner Corey Rocchiccioli briefly interrupted Thompson’s run by taking a wicket, adding to the six wickets he had claimed in Bangladesh’s first innings.

Thompson then returned to finish the job. He dismissed Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto for a duck after trapping him lbw and ended the match by taking the final two wickets with successive deliveries.

“Sometimes you get lucky. It fell my way today, which was nice. It’s always a good experience and opportunity to come and play against a Test side a few days out from a series. Then to play alongside experienced Aussie guys as well, like Kurtis Patterson and Corey Rocchiccioli and stuff like that. So, just involving myself around these guys has been awesome,” Thompson said after the match.

The CA XI had earlier posted 355 in their first innings, with opener Sam Wyllie leading the way with 130. Kurtis Patterson contributed 53, while Doran scored 76. Hasan Mahmud was Bangladesh’s most successful bowler with 4/42.

Bangladesh managed 263 in their first innings, largely because of an unbeaten 109 from Mehidy Hasan Miraz. The visitors had struggled at the top of the order before Mehidy’s innings helped them reach a competitive total.

Rocchiccioli claimed 6/83 in that innings, while Thompson’s second-innings burst ensured Bangladesh could not force the CA XI to bat again.

For Bangladesh, the defeat comes at an important stage of their preparations. They now have four days to regroup before facing Australia in the first Test.

The series will be Bangladesh’s first Test tour of Australia in 23 years, with the visitors set to face a formidable pace attack featuring Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood. Bangladesh will need a significant improvement with the bat after their collapse in Darwin if they are to compete against Australia’s Test attack.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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One of the best offensive tackles in recent NFL history is likely to hang up his spikes after the 2026 season. Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson told reporters Saturday that the upcoming season will likely be his last in the NFL. Johnson missed a few practices in recent days for personal reasons and told reporters that he feels the pull of off-field responsibilities. Johnson also said he felt it was important to go public with his retirement plan, “to put [his] mind at ease,” per the Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Looking like this is probably, potentially going to be, probably my last year, just because I had gotten to that point of those priorities away from football are starting to merge,” Johnson said, according to The Athletic. “Not that I don’t enjoy (it) — I love everything about this game and preparing for it — but that’s where I’m at in my career. Looking forward to this year, playing the best I can, stay healthy, and that’s about it.”  

Johnson is a 13-year veteran who has made six Pro Bowls, two All-Pro First Teams and three All-Pro Second Teams. He’s also a two-time Super Bowl champion, having won with the Eagles in both 2017 and 2024. 

He’s still widely considered one of the small handful of best offensive linemen in the NFL, even at age 36. He checked in ninth in the recent CBS Sports poll, which ranked the top 10 players at every position, and he ranked even higher (third) in ESPN’s annual poll of league executives and coaches. 

His impact on Philadelphia’s offense is dramatic, as the Eagles have experienced a huge drop-off in efficiency with Johnson off the field both in recent seasons and throughout his decorated career. The Eagles have averaged 0.04 EPA per play with Johnson on the field since 2013, and -0.05 EPA per play with him on the sidelines, according to TruMedia. That’s equivalent to the difference between the third-best offense in the NFL during that time and the 27th-best. 

Given his resume, Johnson is a potential future Hall-of-Famer. Our Bryan DeArdo recently named him the most likely Eagle to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, for example. If Johnson can put together one last season at an extremely high level, as we should expect given his recent track record, it would only improve his chances.

The Eagles, meanwhile, were seemingly prepared for this to be Johnson’s last NFL season, having drafted a potential successor in the third round in former Miami Hurricanes tackle Markel Bell. The monster-sized Bell (6-foot-9, 345 pounds) would give Philadelphia one of the largest tackle duos in the NFL, though he obviously will have big shoes to fill in the event that Johnson decides to step away after the 2026 campaign.

The Hundred women’s competition, The Oval

MI London 121-5 (100 balls): Chathli 31 (27); Bates 3-13

Trent Rockets 125-1 (82 balls): Sciver-Brunt 67* (36); Norris 1-26

Trent Rockets won by nine wickets

Scorecard. Table

Nat Sciver-Brunt made a stylish unbeaten 67 as Trent Rockets booked their spot in the knockout stage of The Hundred with an emphatic nine-wicket win over MI London.

Sciver-Brunt hit nine fours and one six in her knock off 36 balls, which helped the Rockets chase down 122 for victory at The Oval.

It was the England captain’s first 50 in this year’s tournament and her 11th in The Hundred overall.

Sciver-Brunt shared a tournament record second-wicket stand of 118 with Australian Beth Mooney, who finished on 54 not out off 44 balls, as the Rockets breezed past the target with 18 balls to spare.

Victory for the Rockets puts them four points above second-placed Southern Brave, who face Manchester Super Giants later in the day.

The Rockets face Brave in their final group match in a game which could well decide who progresses directly to the final.

Earlier, Samantha Bates had taken 3-13 to help restrict MI to a modest 121-5.

Bates had the dangerous Hayley Matthews lbw for 10 early on then the left-arm spinner claimed two wickets in two balls to leave MI struggling at 49-4.

Bates trapped top scorer Kira Chathli lbw for 31 before Nicola Carey was stumped next ball following a smart piece of glovework by Beth Mooney.

The 30-year-old Aussie thought she had a hat-trick when Alice Monaghan was given out lbw, only for the decision to be overturned on review with the ball sliding down leg.

Monaghan and Chinelle Henry led the fightback – both players finishing unbeaten on 27 off 21 balls – as they helped MI recover to post a respectable if not especially challenging total as Rockets cruised to victory with plenty to spare.