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Austin FC announced the acquisition Friday of Albania forward Myrto Uzuni for a club-record transfer fee.
Multiple reports put the price tag at $12.3 million to acquire the 29-year-old from Spain's second-division Granada CF.
Uzuni joins Austin as a designated player on a guaranteed three-year contract with an option for 2028.
"One of the main reasons I want to join Austin FC is the ambition that Anthony Precourt and Rodolfo Borrell have for this team, which matches my own ambition always to succeed with a winning mentality," said Uzuni, who will wear the No. 10 jersey.
"I can tell Austin fans that I will do everything in my power to score goals and help the team push toward achieving our objectives. I'm coming here to break records."
Uzuni tallied 49 goals and eight assists in 106 matches with Granada over the past three seasons, including 14 goals in 18 league matches this season.
"Myrto has shown himself to be a prolific goalscorer in every team and league where he has previously played," said Austin FC sporting director Rodolfo Borrell.
"His high work rate during games, finishing ability, ambition, determination, and versatility to be able to play both centrally and in the wide areas will all be big assets. We're very excited to have him join."
Since turning pro in 2013, Uzuni has accumulated 126 goals and 42 assists over 322 matches in Albania, Croatia, Hungary and Spain. Internationally, he has five goals and seven assists in 38 caps with Albania.
The transfer fee breaks the previous club record of a reported $10 million set earlier this offseason to acquire Brandon Vasquez from Mexico's CF Monterrey.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has compared forward Cole Palmer's influence on the team to that of Premier League top scorer Mohamed Salah's on Liverpool.
Palmer joined the west London club from Manchester City in September 2023 and has been their standout performer since, scoring 22 league goals last term under Mauricio Pochettino and adding 14 more to that tally this season, along with six assists.
Salah, meanwhile, sits atop the league's scoring chart this campaign having contributed 18 goals and 13 assists to help Arne Slot's Liverpool establish a six-point gap at the top of the league with a game in hand.
Maresca said, however, that it was not just Palmer's efficiency in the final third that make comparisons to the Egypt international pertinent, but his willingness to compete in challenging situations.
"He [Palmer] is improving a lot but not just in terms of numbers of goals and assists," Maresca said in his news conference on Friday. "The second half against Wolves for me was one of the best moments since I arrived here. He was showing personality, he was asking for the ball in any moment that the team needed it.
"Liverpool when they have some [tough] moments, Salah is asking for the ball. Arsenal when they have some problem, [Martin] Ødegaard is asking for the ball.
"We need that kind of player when we are in some difficult moments, who is turning to his teammates and saying: 'Give me the ball, don't worry, I will be in charge.'
"This kind of personality that we have to show in a difficult moments. Against Wolves in the second half he was top."
Chelsea take on City at Etihad Stadium on Saturday in a rematch of both teams' opening game of the season -- a game that Pep Guardiola's team won 2-0 -- and Maresca said that despite Palmer's irrepressible form since moving to the capital, his former club will have few regrets.
"Having so many options there I think it was difficult for Pep to give Cole minutes," Maresca said.
"No one at City was thinking that Cole was not good enough. Everyone was sure that he is a top player.
"The problem was that if Cole played then Phil Foden has not to play, or [Kevin] De Bruyne. It's a matter of balance and a matter of decisions."
Chelsea head into the clash in fourth place in the Premier League, two points ahead of City in fifth.
Manchester United have asked to be kept informed of developments regarding Christopher Nkunku's future, a source has told ESPN, while Chelsea continue to weigh-up a formal move for Alejandro Garnacho.
Garnacho's future at Old Trafford is in doubt amid interest from Chelsea and Napoli. United's financial position means that, although they've been clear that they are not trying to force Garnacho out, they are willing to listen to offers.
A source has told ESPN that the 20-year-old's preference is to join Chelsea if he has to leave United.
Nkunku is open to leaving Stamford Bridge this month and has been the subject of interest from Bayern Munich. Chelsea would likely need a replacement if the Frenchman does leave and have been linked with Bayern striker Mathys Tel.
United looked at Nkunku during his spell at RB Leipzig. He moved to Chelsea in 2023 but has struggled with injuries.
He has scored 16 goals in 42 games for the Premier League side and has often been used as an understudy to Nicolas Jackson this season.
Most of Nkunku's minutes this season have come in the UEFA Conference League and he has started just three league games this term.
United have drawn up lists of targets for a number of positions, but their limited budget has meant viable options are restricted.
Signing a left wing-back is seen as a priority, sources have told ESPN, and discussions are ongoing around a deal for Lecce's Patrick Dorgu.
Antony, meanwhile, is set to seal a loan move to Real Betis until the end of the season. The Spanish side have indicated they will cover the majority of the Brazilian's wage, a source has told ESPN, which should give United greater flexibility with their finances in the final days of the January window
Hasan, 30, has not played since suffering an elbow injury during his stint at Edgbaston last season, which ruled him out after taking 10 wickets in five Vitality Blast appearances. Surgery followed and he has been undergoing rehab overseen by both Warwickshire and Pakistan's medical staff.
"I said last year that Edgbaston felt like a second home to mebut it's becoming more like a first home now," he said. "I love playing for Warwickshire, playing for the Bears fans. And I hope they see by the way I play how much I want to win for this club.
"Being awarded my White Bear Cap in 2023 was among the proudest moments in my career and I want to make lots more special memories with the Bears next season.
"Last year was unlucky with the injury. I felt I was bowling well and taking plenty of wickets in the Blast. But I'm back bowling 100 percent in training and focused on joining up with Warwickshire next season."
Hasan has taken 27 wickets in nine County Championship appearances for Warwickshire across the 2023 and 2024 seasons, as well as 19 in the Blast.
His availability was restricted last summer after a surprise late recall to Pakistan's squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup, but Warwickshire's head coach, Mark Robinson, said they had been in contact with the PCB about securing the player, who is no longer centrally contracted, for an unbroken spell.
Robinson said: "His call-up last May came out of the blue and took Hasan away from our County Championship start. We've had reassurances this year from the PCB that Hasan will be able to focus on the Bears which is great news.
"Obviously the contract comes with the caveat that Hasan continues making good progress on his post-op rehab and arrives to us fully fit.
"Hasan is a heart-on-the-sleeve performer who always gives his all to the cause. He's a proven wicket-taker at the highest level and was flying with us last season before the injury. He brings a real energy to the place, the dressing room and on the pitch and inspires everyone around him with his enthusiasm. I'm looking forward to welcoming him back into the Bears fold."
Jon Lewis: Culture, not fitness, at root of Australia's dominance of Women's Ashes
Despite their best performance of the tour, England's rain-affected loss in a closely fought second T20I in Canberra continued Australia's dominance of a series in which they have now claimed the Ashes for a sixth consecutive series dating back to 2015. And with just two matches to come, including the one-off Test at the MCG next week, the prospect of a whitewash is looming large over the squad.
Though Lewis said he disapproved of Ecclestone's reasons for turning the interview down, and that he would have encouraged her to do it had he known about the incident at the time, he was adamant that the squad could not realistically be expected to work harder on their fitness levels than they already do.
"You guys need to come watch them. I promise you. I cannot defend them more around how hard they work on their physicality," he said. "They are incredibly dedicated to what they do. I've never seen a cricket team work like this cricket team, and I've worked in professional cricket for 31 years."
Instead, he suggested the outdoors lifestyle in Australia was more conducive to producing natural athletes, and cited a recent trip to Bondi Beach in Sydney as an example.
"On Sunday morning, pretty much every Australian in the eastern suburbs was in the water," he said. "There's about a million kids down there, and they were doing Surf Lifesaving, or playing touch rugby.
"For me, that's a cultural difference. I definitely think Australia have an advantage in terms of athleticism, and also our talent pool at the moment is small, so it's important for us to grow the game."
However, Lewis also insisted that the gulf between the two teams was not as wide as the current 10-0 scoreline suggested, and that Australia's seizure of key moments in each of the five matches to date had been the difference between the teams.
"The space on the tour we didn't get right was around the first two games," he said. "Australia are a really strong team, obviously on their own patch. We knew that when we got on the plane. But in every game, there's been moments where we feel that we've been in the game and had a good opportunity to try and push home a strong advantage. And we haven't quite got those moments in the game right, and the opposition have.
"Whilst it is 10-0, and whilst the margins of victory in the game have been at times large, I think the difference is isn't as big as the margin suggests in terms of results, in terms of the performance."
"Like any selection, we make those decisions after the tour," he said. "We will spend some time reflecting and make some rational decisions, and think about what the right thing is for the team further down the road. I don't think now is the right time to consider that, to be honest,
"We've got a game to play tomorrow, Heather's in charge, and we've got Test match next week, which we need to get our heads round. And then after the tour, we'll sit down, we'll think about what the what the right thing is for team, and how we know we move forward, like we would do with every other selection."
On his own future, Lewis - who has been in the position since 2022 - was more forthright. "I'm really comfortable with the job that I'm doing," he said. "I'll continue to work to develop this cricket team as best as I can until someone tells me that it's not the right time for you to do this anymore. I'm really excited about what the future holds for this team, and I feel like I'm the right person to coach it."
"I think Grace probably did my job for me," Lewis said. "I'll give her a pat on the back when I see her. The players are really aware that they need to win some cricket matches. They're working incredibly hard to do that."
Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket
Harry Brook blames Kolkata smog for England's spin difficulties
Chakravarthy was the pick of the attack with 3 for 23 in his four overs, although his fellow legspinner Ravi Bishnoi proved every bit as tough to get away as he returned figures of 0 for 22. And speaking on the eve of the second T20I in Chennai, Brook suggested there had been an atmospheric reason for England's struggles to pick their variations.
"I didn't face Bishnoi but Chakravarthy is an exceptionally good bowler," he said. "He's tough to pick. I think actually with the smog the other night, it was a lot harder to pick as well. Hopefully, the air is a bit clearer here and we can see the ball a bit easier.
"He's an exceptional bowler and has got a lot of skills with extreme accuracy as well. Their spinners are their key threat, so we will look to put pressure on them, take them down, put as much pressure as we can on them, and hopefully they crumble from there."
It's a familiar refrain from England touring sides. On their 1992-93 visit to India, England's then-chairman of selectors, Ted Dexter, famously attributed his team's emphatic defeat in the first Test, also at Eden Gardens, to smog. Though he was widely lampooned for his remarks, the issue has taken on a more serious aspect in recent years, with India's Test against Sri Lanka at Delhi in 2017 having to be stopped after several players vomited due to the pollution.
England are set to make at least one change to the XI in Chennai, with Brydon Carse included as a pace option in place of Gus Atkinson, who endured a night to forget with bat and ball at Kolkata. Jamie Smith has also been included in a 12-man squad, and could step in for Jacob Bethell, who missed training on Friday with illness.
Nevertheless, his appointment of Brook as Jos Buttler's vice-captain is further proof of his desire to unite the red- and white-ball squads under a single philosophy, and with as many cross-over performers as possible. And the informal attitude that has powered the Test team's displays in recent seasons was in evidence in the manner with which Brook was offered the deputy's role.
"We were sat in the bar the other night and Baz texted me from across the other side of the room," he said. "He just said 'Congrats, you're the vice-captain' and I just put: 'Beautiful, thanks.' There wasn't really much conversation.
"Obviously, I captained the ODIs in the summer so I kind of knew that it was going to happen. You don't have to do too much as a vice-captain; Jos is extremely experienced, I'll give him a few suggestions here and there and if he comes to me, I'll give him my opinion but it's up to him whether he takes it or not."
The questions Australia will need to answer in Sri Lanka
Australia previously played in Sri Lanka in 2022 and last toured the subcontinent in early 2023, when they visited India. There are echoes of that tour coming up in Sri Lanka with captain Pat Cummins unavailable and Steven Smith standing in again. Australia's selectors showed a willingness to pick an unconventional XI in India in a bid to select the best team for the conditions after learning some lessons from the 1-1 series draw in Sri Lanka. The selectors have some intriguing decisions to make ahead of the first Test in Galle with the shape of the XI potentially looking very different to the recent Border-Gavaskar series.
Will Travis Head open and how will the top-order shape up?
Head was being discussed as an option to open in this series from a long way out, given he made 23 runs in three innings batting at Nos. 5 and 6 in Sri Lanka in 2022, and averages 18.90 in 11 innings on the subcontinent in the middle-order. He was dropped at the start of the India series in 2023, such were the selectors fears about his ability to start against spin. He was recalled as an opener when David Warner was injured in the second Test and made 223 runs at 55.75 in five innings.
Who partners Lyon and how many spinners play?
While the selectors would prefer to have Kuhnemann partner Lyon for match-up purposes, there is a case to be made that Murphy is the better option full stop. The want for a left-arm orthodox, as was the case with Ashton Agar in India in 2023, comes from a belief that having two right-arm offspinners, plus a third part-timer, against a right-hand heavy batting line-up is too one-dimensional. But Murphy's record against right-handers is excellent. He's taken 13 wickets at 27.61 in Tests against right-handers, having knocked over Virat Kohli four times, Cheteshwar Pujara twice, Joe Root and KL Rahul once each among others. In first-class cricket, his strike-rate against right-handers is better than Kuhnemann's.
Is the allrounder needed?
If significant spin is expected, Australia might not need an allrounder. Or they could bat the allrounder at No. 8 to lengthen the order and back the two main spinners, Head and one quick to take 20 wickets. If Kuhnemann is unavailable, such a scenario would open the door for Connolly to play at No. 8.
If the wicket is flatter, as it was in the second Test in Galle in 2022, then Webster's bowling will make him a more attractive option at No. 6. On top of his medium pace, he can bowl offspin and could provide a different trajectory from 200cm even if he would potentially be fourth choice behind Lyon, Murphy and Head. He can also swing the new ball and bowl stump-to-stump medium pace with the keeper up, if the bounce gets inconsistent.
Which quicks and how many?
Starc does not get nearly enough credit for his durability and his skill across a variety of different conditions. With Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood unavailable, Starc will lead the pace attack and might do it on his own. He did so in the final two Tests in India and could do so again if conditions allow it.
S.C. earns 'necessary' win, hands LSU first loss
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- South Carolina showed once more who's in charge of the SEC.
The No. 2 Gamecocks (19-1, 7-0 SEC) got 14 points from Joyce Edwards and used their trademark lockdown defense to end No. 5 LSU's perfect start to the season with a 66-56 victory on Friday night.
"I don't know that I've ever coached against a team that has 10 McDonald's All-Americans on the roster." Tigers coach Kim Mulkey said. "How do you even keep 10 on the roster?"
Having a run like this certainly helps. South Carolina continued its domination of the league -- it has won four of the past five SEC tournament titles -- with its 54th straight regular-season win in conference play.
Against LSU (20-1, 5-1), eight Gamecocks players logged at least 15 minutes. Sania Feagin, a two-time national champion, had 12 points, seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals.
South Carolina has won 13 straight since its lone loss back in November, 77-62 to No. 1 UCLA. Seven of those victories have come against ranked opponents. It has also won 69 straight games at home, tied with Tennessee (1991-96) for the longest streak in SEC history and tied for the fourth longest in Division I history.
Bree Hall, a senior recruited in Feagin's class before the 2021-22 season, said she and her teammates heard plenty on social media doubting the Gamecocks and whether they could hold up against the undefeated Tigers.
"Stuff like that fuels us," Hall said.
The victory was the 17th straight over LSU and fifth in a row since Mulkey became Tigers coach four seasons ago.
All those matchups have been filled with drama, the last time especially in South Carolina's 79-72 victory over LSU to win the SEC tournament in March 2024.
An altercation marred the final quarter of that game when Flau'jae Johnson got knocked to the floor by South Carolina's 6-foot-7 Kamilla Cardoso. Johnson's brother, Trayron Milton, was arrested after jumping to the court and charged with assault and battery and disorderly conduct.
His trial, according to a spokeswoman at the Greenville Police Department, is still pending.
There was no such bad blood in this one, only some loud boos when Mulkey took the court.
Staley said beating LSU was essential for South Carolina in its try for a second straight national title and third in four seasons. Beating the Tigers gives the Gamecocks any tiebreaker edge in the SEC and improves their chances of another high seed in the NCAA tournament in two months.
"It was necessary for us to win this game," she said.
South Carolina took control in the third quarter when it held LSU to 5-for-20 shooting and turned a close contest into a double-digit lead. LSU was held to 23-of-77 shooting (29.9%) overall. It was the first time in 126 games under Mulkey that LSU shot below 30% from the field.
Raven Johnson, a fourth-year junior, said the team kicked things into gear when one of the expected stars in Ashlyn Watkins was lost for the year after a January knee injury. That UCLA defeat, Johnson continued, was a wake-up call, too.
"We knew we couldn't come back the same as last year, we've got to bring something else to the table because teams are coming at us," she said. "I think that loss helped up."
Aneesah Morrow had 15 points and 16 rebounds for the Tigers (20-1, 5-1). It was her 93rd career double-double, breaking a tie with Oregon's Jillian Alleyne for the second most in Division I history.
Information from ESPN Research and The Associated Press was used in this report.
Sources: Carroll agrees to deal to coach Raiders
HENDERSON, Nev. -- The Las Vegas Raiders have reached an agreement with Pete Carroll to became the franchise's head coach on a three-year deal with a fourth-year team option, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Carroll, who turns 74 on Sept. 15, is one of four head coaches to have led teams to both a college football national championship and the Super Bowl. The others are Barry Switzer, Jimmy Johnson and Jim Harbaugh.
Carroll will also be the Raiders' fifth coach, including interim coaches, since the franchise moved to Las Vegas from Oakland in 2020. The others were Jon Gruden, Rich Bisaccia, Josh McDaniels and Antonio Pierce.
Carroll will be the team's ninth coach, including interims, since Raiders owner Mark Davis took over upon the death of his father, Al Davis, in 2011. The others were Hue Jackson, Dennis Allen, Tony Sparano, Jack Del Rio, Gruden, Bisaccia, McDaniels and Pierce.
As such, Carroll represents stability and experience for a team needing both, especially since Gruden was forced to resign amid his email controversy in October 2021.
Carroll's veteran presence is expected to mesh well with first-time general manager John Spytek, whose hire was officially announced Friday, as well as compete in an AFC West division that already boasts coaching heavyweights in Kansas City (Andy Reid), Denver (Sean Payton) and Los Angeles Chargers (Harbaugh).
With the Seattle Seahawks, Carroll won Super Bowl XLVIII and a pair of NFC titles, and made 10 playoff appearances in 14 years while going 137-89-1 in the regular season, 10-9 in the postseason to become the winningest coach in Seahawks history. Including his head coaching stints with the New York Jets, with whom he went 6-10 in 1994, and the New England Patriots, where he went 27-21 in three seasons with a playoff appearance from 1997 to '99, his career record is 181-131-1.
After spending the 2000 season out of football and reshaping his coaching philosophy, Carroll was hired by USC, beginning a dominant nine-year run that included seven consecutive Pac-10 titles, a pair of national championships and a 97-19 record in nine years, from 2001 to '09, though NCAA sanctions followed.
The Seahawks lured him away from USC in 2010 with the promise of final say in personnel moves, something he didn't have in either of his two previous head coaching stops.
Carroll is a defensive-minded coach who, along with Spytek, will have to address the large number of pending free agents on that side of the ball for Las Vegas. Among them: defensive ends Malcolm Koonce and K'Lavon Chaisson, linebackers Robert Spillane and Divine Deablo, cornerback Nate Hobbs and safeties Tre'von Moehrig and Marcus Epps.
Plus, the Raiders, who hold the No. 6 overall draft pick as well as more than $108 million in salary cap space, need an upgrade at quarterback, but return first-team All-Pro tight end Brock Bowers.
The Raiders fired Pierce as coach and Tom Telesco as GM after one season together.
Pierce had been initially promoted from linebackers coach to interim coach upon the firing on Halloween night 2023 of McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler after less than two full seasons.
Las Vegas finished last in the AFC West with a 4-13 record that included a 10-game losing streak, the franchise's longest such skid in 10 years.
Canes add Rantanen as part of 3-team blockbuster
The Carolina Hurricanes stunned the NHL on Friday night by acquiring Colorado Avalanche star right winger Mikko Rantanen in a blockbuster three-way trade, the teams announced.
The Hurricanes acquired Rantanen and Chicago Blackhawks left winger Taylor Hall in the deal. Colorado got back winger Martin Necas, Carolina's leading scorer this season, and Hurricanes center Jack Drury, as well as a 2025 second-round pick and a 2026 fourth-rounder from Carolina.
Chicago acquired its own 2025 third-round pick that it had traded to Carolina previously. The Blackhawks also are retaining half of Rantanen's $9.25 million salary cap hit to facilitate the trade.
Rantanen is sixth in the NHL this season with 64 points in 49 games, including 25 goals. Since the 2021-22 season, he is fifth among NHL players with 365 points in 286 games. He's also fifth in goals scored (160) in that span. He's been an integral part of a Colorado team that's been an annual Stanley Cup contender, winning the championship in 2021-22.
But the 28-year-old is an unrestricted free agent this summer and his contract demands created a significant impasse with the Avalanche, with whom he's played for 10 seasons.
Rantanen was seeking a contract in the neighborhood of the 8-year extension Leon Draisaitl signed with the Edmonton Oilers in September. That deal carries an average annual value of $14 million.
Both Rantanen and Draisaitl are represented by agent Andy Scott.
Contract talks between Rantanen and the Avalanche had stalled, with a significant gap between the two sides. Colorado hoped to get Rantanen in under star center Nathan MacKinnon's $12.6 million AAV, which was an 8-year contract he signed in September 2022.
Hall, 33, will play for the seventh NHL franchise in a 15-year career that included a Hart Trophy win as NHL MVP in 2017-18 with the New Jersey Devils. He was traded to the Blackhawks in 2023 by the Boston Bruins but missed all but 10 games of the 2023-24 season after right knee surgery. He had 28 points in 56 games with Chicago over two seasons. Hall was a healthy scratch earlier this season under former coach Luke Richardson.
Both wingers address an offensive need for the Hurricanes, who have been trying to break through and win the Stanley Cup for several seasons under coach Rod Brind'Amour only to have their goal-scoring stall in the playoffs. Since 2020-21, the Hurricanes average 3.28 goals per game in the regular season but 2.98 in the postseason. Carolina has made the conference finals twice since 2018 under Brind'amour.
This trade is also a signature moment for Eric Tulsky, who took over as general manager of the Hurricanes in 2024.
The trade saw the Hurricanes go from a +375 co-favorite to win the Eastern Conference to a +325 favorite to win it, per ESPN BET.
Carolina signed Necas to a two-year, $13 million contract last July, avoiding salary arbitration with the 25-year-old forward. He responded with a scoring surge to start the season, with 44 points in his first 30 games. But his pace dropped considerably after that, with 11 points in his next 19 games, including just two goals.
Drury, 24, is in his fourth NHL season. He has 46 points in 153 games. Drury has played 39 games this season with three goals and six assists, skating 12:53 per game. He makes $1.725 million against the salary cap before becoming a restricted free agent in 2027.
The trade gives the Avalanche more draft pick capital and cap space to work with, as the NHL anticipates the Western Conference contender isn't done making deals ahead of the March 7 trade deadline.
ESPN's Emily Kaplan contributed to this report.
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