Football

Everton are in advanced discussions with defender Hannah Blundell about a permanent deal following her successful loan spell last season. The 32-year-old made 12 appearances for Everton last term on loan from Manchester United. The defender is a free agent after her contract at United ended in June. The experienced …

Republic of Ireland international Emily Murphy is on the verge of joining Women’s Super League club Brighton. The 23-year-old was Newcastle’s top-scorer in the second division last season with six goals and four assists in 15 starts and has a year remaining on her contract. It is understood she is …

London City Lionesses captain Kosovare Asllani is set to sign a one-year contract extension despite suffering a serious injury. The club confirmed in March that the Sweden international suffered a “complex multi-ligament injury”, including an anterior cruciate ligament rupture. The 36-year-old faces a battle to return next season and her …

Contains adult humour and some scenes of a sexual nature. Available for over a year Ian Dennis was the very first guest on the podcast before the World Cup began, giving Rick and Lloyd some important advice before six weeks together in Los Angeles. Now he’s back to find out …

Youssef Chermiti says he has no intention of leaving Rangers, but Celtic’s Daizen Maeda repeats his ambition to play in England’s Premier League as Heart of Midlothian are told one of their targets is not for sale. Youssef Chermiti has dismissed talk of a big money move this summer, the …

Guillem Balague, Spanish journalist: Spain – the best team. France – the best player and the most frightening attack. Argentina – the best idea: doing more with less than anyone else. England – two world-class players on form. All four semi-finalists have what is needed to win the tournament. If …

Available for 29 days Mark Chapman, Chris Sutton, Conor Coady and Rory Smith look ahead to England’s World Cup semi-final with Argentina. They discuss: Thomas Tuchel’s criticism of the performance against Norway, the rivalry with Argentina and how the Three Lions should set up to stop Messi. Plus Nico O’Reilly …

Alonso is Chelsea‘s sixth permanent manager in four years under the club’s American owners BlueCo, led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. His predecessors Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior held the title of head coach rather than manager. Alonso arrives with the loftier title of manager, which insiders say is …

Available for 29 days After a solid but ultimately unspectacular seventh-place finish, Dundee United head into the new season determined to kick on. Andrew Petrie is joined by Courier columnist Jim Spence and The Dode Fox Podcast’s Ronny Costello to discuss a summer of change at Tannadice. The panel assess …

Hearts’ focus should be staying clear of the rest by remaining in the Scottish Premiership’s top three, former Tynecastle defender Ryan McGowan says. The Edinburgh side came within 90 minutes of winning the league last season but lost at Celtic Park on the final day of the campaign and ultimately …

Dutch football referee Rob Dieperink has died weeks after he was dropped from officiating at the World Cup because of a police investigation in the UK. Dieperink had been selected to be a video assistant referee (VAR) official at this summer’s tournament, but was removed from Fifa’s list of World …

New Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso was unveiled at Stamford Bridge on Monday and said he wants to keep Enzo Fernandez at the club. The 25-year-old Argentina midfielder, who is preparing to face England in the World Cup semi-finals, is open to leaving and was recently linked with Real Madrid. However, …

Croatia have reappointed former defender Slaven Bilic as the manager of their men’s national team. Bilic, whose first spell in charge of his country was from 2006 to 2012, replaces Zlatko Dalic. Dalic stepped down from the role, which he held for nearly nine years, following Croatia’s World Cup last-32 …

Roberts previously praised England fans in the US for their conduct and has called for that to be mirrored domestically when the side take on Argentina in a World Cup semi-final at the Atlanta Stadium on Wednesday (20:00), in a game that will be shown live across the BBC. Speaking …

Manchester City top the Premier League workload chart with 5,027 World Cup minutes played by their squad. Rodri alone has played 537 minutes, centre-back Marc Guehi 483 and defender Nico O’Reilly 454. Elliot Anderson, who is moving from Nottingham Forest to the Etihad, has added a further 533 minutes for …

Andoni Iraola has said he wants to give Liverpool fans “a team they can be proud of” and that he is ready for the responsibility of such a high-profile job. The 44-year-old signed a two-year deal with Liverpool last month after three successful seasons at Bournemouth. Liverpool finished fifth in …

Manchester United are in advanced talks to sign Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans. United have prioritised strengthening their midfield positions this summer, but have so far met with frustration after failing to sign first choice Elliot Anderson, who is joining Manchester City, and Mateus Fernandes, who opted to move to …

Available for over a year Nestory Irankunda, Antonio Rudiger and Alphonso Davies represented Australia, Germany and Canada respectively at the World Cup – and all have links to Africa as refugees. Germany defender Antonio Rudiger tells the podcast how his brother was close to being forced into becoming a child …

Fernandez played youth football in his home city of Guadalajara, but stepped away from the game at the age of 15 because of a knee injury. Having moved to London, he was cast in the award-winning Ted Lasso, the story of an American football coach who is hired to manage …

Compared to those who have vainly chased his tournament record for the past 68 years, Fontaine is a relative unknown to modern audiences. While Pele, Messi et al are rightly regarded as the best male players ever, Fontaine is now a piece of trivia. But that is to play down …