Neymar will not start for Paris Saint-Germain against Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday evening, sources have told ESPN FC.

PSG coach Thomas Tuchel has all his forwards available for the group stage game at the Bernabeu stadium, and has decided that Neymar, alongside Edinson Cavani, will sit on the bench. Instead, Kylian Mbappe, Mauro Icardi and Angel Di Maria will start up front.

Tuchel is yet to tell his players and he will only do so in the team meeting just before leaving the hotel to travel to the stadium, sources told ESPN FC, but he has already made his mind up.

The main reason is that Neymar -- ranked the No. 8 forward in ESPN FC 100 -- is only just back from an injury that sidelined him for a few weeks.

The Brazil international only played 65 minutes at home in the 2-0 win against Lille on Friday, but struggled to make an impact on the game. He is short of match fitness and Tuchel does not want to take the risk of starting him in a game of this calibre.

Tuchel also does not want to abandon his 4-3-3 formation, which means that only three of his five star players can start.

Cavani is way below Icardi in the pecking order now and Di Maria has been PSG's best player so far this season -- notching nine goals and nine assists in 19 games in all competitions -- and cannot be dropped.

The last spot was therefore between Neymar and Mbappe.

France international Mbappe is also not at his best physically after suffering two injuries and a virus since the start of the season. He will unlikely be able to play the full 90 minutes on Tuesday night, but Tuchel has judged him more ready than Neymar.

Patrick Moroney, the current convenor of selectors of the Jozi Stars in the MSL and a long-time administrator at the Gauteng Cricket Board (GCB), has emerged as the frontrunner to be appointed South Africa's new convenor of selectors. Moroney was interviewed alongside former international Monde Zondeki and former convenor of selectors Linda Zondi, whose tenure ended after the 2019 World Cup.

ESPNcricinfo understands that Cricket South Africa (CSA) is close to giving Moroney the job, despite postponing the appointment of the director of cricket. Last Thursday, CSA CEO Thabang Moroe said the board would make a statement regarding the director of cricket on Friday but CSA is yet to do so.

Sources have confirmed that CSA will not make the appointment this year and will restart their search for a director of cricket after their preferred candidate for the job, Graeme Smith, withdrew from the race earlier this month. Suspended interim director of cricket Corrie van Zyl and former national selector Hussein Manack, were also in contention for the position of director of cricket but CSA has decided to start their search afresh in 2020. Until then, interim team director Enoch Nkwe will remain in charge of the national team.

That means South Africa will go into their home series against England, which starts in exactly a month's time, under Nkwe. Moroe indicated on a radio interview with SAFM that Nkwe would be provided with additional support staff. The extent of the new convenor of selectors' involvement is not yet known and will depend on when he officially begins work.

Moroney has no first-class or international playing experience but has spent a significant amount of time at Gauteng, where Moroe's administrative career began. As GCB chairman, Moroney was also a key player during a time of strife at the organisation, in particular when they were in dispute with CSA over bonuses paid from the 2009 IPL, which was played in South Africa. The GCB was put under administration by CSA, amid claims of racial disharmony and their constitution and operating procedures were reviewed.

Since then, Moroney has worked on the selection panel of the Lions and is currently convenor of selectors for the Stars, who have not won any of their six matches in the ongoing MSL. Still, Moroney's administrative experience is likely to see him preferred over Zondeki, who had played six Tests, 13 ODIs and a solitary T20I between 2002 and 2008 and now works in commentary, and Zondi, who was in the job for just over four years.

IPL 2020 is starting to look pretty important for Indian cricket with the head coach Ravi Shastri saying it could help finalise the squad for the T20 World Cup later that year - and whether MS Dhoni would be part of it.

Speculation around Dhoni's future has been endless ever since the 50-over World Cup ended in July. He is 38 years old now and hasn't played any of India's matches since that semi-final defeat to New Zealand.

Having earlier said he found all the talk about Dhoni's future "downright disrespectful", Shastri touched on the subject again in Kolkata after India beat Bangladesh in the day-night Test match.

"It all depends on when he starts playing and how he is playing during the IPL," Shastri told IANS. "What are the other people doing with the wicketkeeping gloves or what is the form of those players as opposed to Dhoni's form. The IPL becomes a massive tournament because that could be the last tournament after which more or less your 15 is decided."

India have been grooming Rishabh Pant for a while now. He was even released from the Test squad that was playing against Bangladesh to take part in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament earlier this week so that he can stay in limited-overs mode.

Since the end of the World Cup, India have played three T20I series and one ODI series and Dhoni has not been a part of any of them. The chief selector MSK Prasad even went so far as to say that they were "moving on" when asked about the Dhoni question in October. However, both the BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and Shastri himself have thrown their weight behind absent wicketkeeper-batsman saying he should be the only one who should decide when he wants his career to end.

It still hasn't stopped the speculation around Dhoni, who was seen in practicing at the nets with the Jharkhand team recently. Shastri suggested that with the IPL, which starts in March, set to be the final T20 tournament for India players before the World Cup in October, performances there could help firm up the squad that will go to Australia.

"There might be one player who might be there and thereabouts in case of an injury or whatever. But your team I would say would be known after the IPL. What I would say is rather than speculating of who is where, wait for the IPL to get over and then you are in a position to take a call on who are the best 17 in the country."

Neymar will not start for Paris Saint-Germain against Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday evening, sources have told ESPN FC.

PSG coach Thomas Tuchel has all his forwards available for the group stage game at the Bernabeu stadium, and has decided that Neymar, alongside Edinson Cavani, will sit on the bench. Instead, Kylian Mbappe, Mauro Icardi and Angel Di Maria will start up front.

Tuchel is yet to tell his players and he will only do so in the team meeting just before leaving the hotel to travel to the stadium, sources told ESPN FC, but he has already made his mind up.

The main reason is that Neymar -- ranked the No. 8 forward in ESPN FC 100 -- is only just back from an injury that sidelined him for a few weeks.

The Brazil international only played 65 minutes at home in the 2-0 win against Lille on Friday, but struggled to make an impact on the game. He is short of match fitness and Tuchel does not want to take the risk of starting him in a game of this calibre.

Tuchel also does not want to abandon his 4-3-3 formation, which means that only three of his five star players can start.

Cavani is way below Icardi in the pecking order now and Di Maria has been PSG's best player so far this season -- notching nine goals and nine assists in 19 games in all competitions -- and cannot be dropped.

The last spot was therefore between Neymar and Mbappe.

France international Mbappe is also not at his best physically after suffering two injuries and a virus since the start of the season. He will unlikely be able to play the full 90 minutes on Tuesday night, but Tuchel has judged him more ready than Neymar.

KEMBA WALKER IS watching Boston Celtics teammates Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown get up jump shots after practice, and he's asked about what drives him to be so vocally supportive.

A perplexed Walker takes a beat to answer.

"I'm really just being myself," he says. "I'm really just genuinely happy for guys and my teammates. I love when guys have success. I've had a lot of success in my career, and I want guys to have great success."

It's an obvious answer, but not one to be taken for granted. Last season the Celtics struggled to maintain cohesion, a problem that was -- fairly or not -- usually attributed to the leadership of Kyrie Irving, the man Walker replaced as Boston's star point guard.

On Wednesday, the Celtics welcome the Brooklyn Nets to Boston (Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN) for what was supposed to be a reunion with Irving, who'll miss the trip with an injured shoulder. Still, as the two teams meet for the first time this season, the contrast in the tone set by the two point guards is telling.

Boston's Embiid-sized problem | Power Rankings: Celtics No. 5

THAT CONTRAST IS encapsulated in a pair of moments -- one last season, and one this -- with striking similarities.

On a Saturday in January, the Celtics trailed the Orlando Magic by two points with 2.9 seconds left. Jayson Tatum curled to the corner, took an inbounds pass from Gordon Hayward and missed a game-tying shot.

Irving was furious. He had words for Celtics coach Brad Stevens in the huddle, then for Hayward on the court after the final buzzer had sounded. In his postgame interview in the locker room, he proceeded to take his latest round of veiled shots at the team's young players.

Ten months later, a different-looking Celtics team found itself in a similar position: 4.7 seconds left, with the ball, this time tied at home against the New York Knicks.

Tatum again curled to the baseline, and received the inbounds pass -- this time from Marcus Smart. The third-year forward rose and buried the jumper, putting Boston ahead with 1.3 seconds to go. It was Tatum's first career go-ahead basket in the final five seconds, and continued both Boston's hot start and the positive vibes that emanate from the team.

"Jayson had that opportunity to get that last shot, and he made it," Walker said. "What more can I want? He won, he made a last-second shot, it was an amazing game, and I'm just happy. I'm just happy for my teammate."

It was an early lesson in why Walker was so beloved elsewhere.

"Not surprised," former Hornets teammate Marvin Williams said, when asked about Boston's hot start. "Not even a little bit. He fits right in.

"His personality is so infectious, man. He's somebody that you want to be around. He's somebody that you always want to go play with."

Those feelings were not felt frequently in Boston last season. The Celtics entered the year as favorites to make the NBA Finals. They ended it with a demoralizing second-round playoff exit to the Bucks in five games, following an uneven regular season that saw Boston never live up to its preseason hype.

It would be unfair to say Irving was the cause of all of Boston's woes. Stevens had to distribute minutes, touches and shots among a number of overlapping guards and wings -- including Irving, Smart, Tatum, Brown, Hayward and pending free agents Marcus Morris and Terry Rozier. Returning from a devastating leg injury, Hayward never looked comfortable, and his immediate insertion into the starting lineup -- and subsequent removal -- caused friction. So, too, did the specter of Irving's free agency and the potential for an Anthony Davis trade -- both of which hung over the team like an anvil all season.

Individually, Irving had possibly his best season as a pro. He was a second-team All-NBA selection for the first time, and he was inside the top 20 in ESPN's real plus-minus and posted a positive defensive real plus-minus for the first time in his career.

A panel of seven executives asked recently whether Irving or Walker is the more talented player all chose Irving. However, six of those same seven executives said, if they had to choose to have one of them on their team, they'd rather have Walker.

Irving said last season he was trying to learn how to be a leader on the fly. His approach was to -- repeatedly -- administer public tough love to his teammates, something he'd routinely do while citing the influence LeBron James had on him during their time together in Cleveland.

Walker, though, has -- repeatedly -- said his goal is a very different one: to try to ensure everyone is happy.

"For me, it's just the nature of this sport, like a team sport," he said. "You don't want nobody to be unhappy. You want everybody to play with joy, play with freedom, and have fun."

DESPITE WALKER'S OWN stellar play, the Charlotte Hornets were never more than an NBA footnote during his eight years there. They made the playoffs just twice, with two first-round exits, and rarely played on national television.

Yet Walker never complained. He never took shots at his teammates or the organization. He talked openly about wanting to stay in Charlotte. He still has a home there. His mom still lives there. And he still is beloved within the organization, and by the fan base -- even after leaving as a free agent this summer.

"I told Kemba, I want what's best for him," former teammate Cody Zeller said. "They have a great, great franchise, a great opportunity to win there. It was great while he was here in Charlotte, but I think he made the right decision for what was best for him."

Walker openly wept when the Hornets honored him with a video tribute before his first game back in Charlotte on Nov. 7. Zeller wore shoes honoring Walker's work with Charlotte's "Big Brothers Big Sisters" program. And, from top to bottom, the Hornets unequivocally praised what Walker did during his time with the team.

"He'd have a great game, but just like [Tim] Duncan he'd always deflect the attention somewhere else," Hornets coach James Borrego said. "He never wanted the attention. He'd always deflect it to someone else who made a big defensive play or made the right pass. He never wanted more, never wanted more attention, wanted his teammates to be embraced for what they were doing, as well, and I think he understands what that does for a team, and at the end of the day, he's really selfless."

Jeremy Lamb knows that well. The Indiana Pacers guard played alongside Walker at the University of Connecticut, where he and Walker won an NCAA championship together in 2011, and then for the past four seasons with the Hornets.

In a game against the Detroit Pistons last December, Lamb was struggling. He had shot just 3-of-12 on the night, and missed a critical free throw that allowed Detroit to tie the game in the final 30 seconds.

But when the game was on the line, Walker -- who had 31 points -- trusted Lamb to take the final shot and fed him the ball. When Lamb hit the buzzer-beater, Walker and his teammates mobbed him, and Walker later was emphatic during Lamb's postgame interview about why he trusted Lamb to make the play.

"Of course!" he shouted. "That's my son! I raised him!"

To Lamb, that was just par for the course for Walker, given the years of support his teammate had shown him.

"I would just say that as great as he is on the court, he's just as great off the court," Lamb said. "In terms of just leadership and as a friend, he's always looking to make people better."

Walker demonstrated that again last week, after the Celtics blew a fourth-quarter lead and lost to the LA Clippers in overtime. He went 4-for-17 from the field and committed a season-high six turnovers.

And while there were plenty of culprits for Boston's collapse, Walker put the blame squarely on himself.

"I just have to be better," he said.

BOSTON WAS POUNDED by the Philadelphia 76ers in this season's opener, and was losing to the Toronto Raptors entering the fourth quarter of its home opener two nights later. Through his first seven quarters as a Celtic, Walker had shot 8-for-31 from the field and 2-for-11 from 3-point range -- not exactly the kind of production he or the Celtics expected after he signed a four-year max contract in July.

Walker was pressing.

"I just wanted to play well," Walker said. "I wanted to make every shot, and you've got to understand that's not going to happen. I wanted to show the guys that I am a good player. Which I think they already knew."

If they had forgotten, Walker reminded them by scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter against the Raptors, leading the Celtics to the first win in a 10-game win streak that put Boston atop the NBA earlier this month.

Walker is clearly enjoying himself. After eight years in relative obscurity, he's adjusting to playing for one of the league's marquee franchises, and on a roster with plenty of talent. He marvels at the fan support Boston receives on the road ("Even in Charlotte we were getting Celtics chants, which is crazy," he says), and already has fallen in love with playing at TD Garden.

"I had no doubt while I was coaching him this summer that he'd be great for the Celtics given not only his ability on the court but the chemistry he generates with a group," said Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who was an assistant with Team USA this summer, where he coached Walker, Tatum, Brown and Smart. "Everybody loves playing with him. He moves the ball, he plays hard, he's fun to be around."

And while the three-time All-Star is the new face of the franchise -- he is introduced last before each home game, and is the only player who speaks at the podium in the team's news conference room afterward -- he's more than happy to allow others, like Smart and Brown, to take on leadership roles alongside him.

"I don't have to say anything because they're the ones [doing it]," Walker said. "And it's so fun, you know what I mean? I've been the one throughout my career speaking and saying stuff, pregame speeches. Now I don't have to do that stuff because Smart is doing it. If you're not going hard enough in practice, he's speaking up like, 'You've got to pick it up.' Which I love. I love seeing young guys communicating and seeing their leadership skills improve."

Last season, the Celtics revolved around Irving. His play on the court, and words off of it, dictated how things went, and overwhelmed everything else.

This season's more comfortable vibe might have a variety of causes, but it's clear Walker's encouraging approach toward Brown and Tatum is one of them.

For example, when Tatum struggled through a 1-for-18 night against the Dallas Mavericks on Nov. 11, Walker continually picked him up throughout the game, then openly praised him for bouncing back with a 23-point performance two days later against the Washington Wizards.

"I told him that before the game, 'Every night's not going to be the best night. It's all about the bounce-back.' And he bounced back tonight," Walker said. "It was a huge game, it was a big game from home, and that's important -- especially a guy of his age and his caliber, man. He's a special talent, and I'm really excited with the way he handled tonight's game."

All of that filters back to how Walker hopes to guide his teammates through this 82-game campaign.

"There's going to be times this season when things get pretty rough," Walker said. "We're going to hit some adversity, just like every team in this league. So when we hit that period of time, we want to be able to still be together, and not kind of break apart, which can happen."

Last season's Celtics, as talented as they were, did exactly that.

This season's team has new challenges. There are question marks at center. The bench is young and unproven. There is a general lack of size. Overcoming those challenges, though, is easier when a team enjoys playing together. So far, that is true about this season's Celtics.

The Hot Stove season is upon us, and thus far, we have seen promising signs of moving past the free-agent freeze of the past two winters in the multiple early signings of major free agents by the Braves and White Sox, two teams not known for spending big. Even so, with competitive imbalance at an expansion-era high -- at least in terms of the standard deviation of team winning percentage, a fancy way of saying the spread between the good teams and bad -- it's not hard to imagine who will be competing for playoff spots in 2020. Primarily, it will be the same teams who did so in 2019.

That at least lends itself to a fun exercise as we consider what the top teams that missed out on this past postseason could do to secure a playoff spot next year, in the form of One Big Move. Granted, no team is going to limit itself to just one offseason transaction, and nobody secures a playoff spot without lucking into more best-case scenarios (and fewer worst-case ones) in terms of injuries and player development than its competition. But as we look out across the baseball landscape, here are a handful of potential moves -- by teams that won at least 81 games last year but wound up on the outside looking in -- which could shake up the 2020 playoff picture.

It's that time of year when players sign contracts with lots of zeroes on them and executives wheel and deal for holiday bargains.

The general manager's meetings are over, with the winter meetings just around the corner. That means the hot stove season is percolating -- though several deals have already been consummated.

Before a slew of more moves go down, we asked a panel of experts for their opinion on what's to come. Who will go where and what teams will be most active?

Our 15 team executives and baseball insiders answer those questions and more.

1. Which team will make the biggest splash of the offseason?

Survey says: Angels 7; Padres 2; Rangers 2; White Sox 2; Cubs 1; Yankees 1

Not everyone could agree on what the biggest splash will look like, but signing Joe Maddon is a good start to a potentially big offseason for the Angels, who are desperate for pitching. Maddon represents Mike Trout's best chance to go deep into a postseason. They won't get there without help on the mound, and they just might reel in the biggest fish in Gerrit Cole.

Since we sent out this survey, we've already seen the White Sox -- who got a pair of votes to tie for second place here -- hit the free-agent market, giving catcher Yasmani Grandal the biggest contract in team history and re-signing Jose Abreu.

"If any team signs two of the bigger names, then that's the biggest splash," one voter said. "The Angels are the easy answer here, but they can't win the winter via trade. It has to come by signing some pitchers."

2. Which of these three players is most likely to start next season with a new team: Mookie Betts, Francisco Lindor or Kris Bryant?

Survey says: Lindor 8; Bryant 7; Betts 0

Most interesting is that Betts didn't receive even a single vote despite being the closest to free agency among the three. He can walk after next year. New Red Sox GM, Chaim Bloom is facing a dilemma: Keep Betts, hoping to sign him to a long-term deal after next season, or trade him as the executive's first big move in his new job.

Bryant's situation is murky as well. His service-time grievance should be decided soon, meaning if he wins, he'll be a free agent next winter along with Betts. In any case, insiders believe he or Lindor -- both are currently slated to become free agents after the 2021 season -- are most likely to move teams this offseason.

"Bryant's grievance would seem to complicate matters [for the Cubs]," said one executive who voted for Lindor.

But, said another exec who voted for Bryant: "The Cubs aren't afraid to make a big move."

3. Anthony Rendon is the clear top hitter on this market. Where will he land and for how much?

Where he'll land: Nationals 13; Rangers 1; Cardinals 1

For how much: Highest response: Eight years, $280 million (Texas); Lowest response: Six years, $200 million (Washington); Average response: Seven years, $227 million

One executive referred to Rendon as "juiced-ball proof" because of his ability to lay off borderline pitches while driving the ball into the gaps (88 doubles over the past two years) when he does swing. Rendon can play on any team in any ballpark -- with any kind of ball.

As evidenced by answers to the question below, most simply believe he'll stay in Washington, where agent Scott Boras already has a cozy relationship with ownership.

And their answers to question No. 8 indicate how much they believe Rendon will be worth whatever contract he signs: His name never came up as someone who will be overpaid. It says a lot in the era of mega-deals for star players that no one polled thinks he brings the risk that often comes with a player about to turn 30.

4. Who's more likely to return to the Nats, Stephen Strasburg or Rendon?

Survey says: Rendon 12; Strasburg 3

The team that "loses out" on Cole will be plenty happy if they ink Strasburg. His 209 innings pitched led the National League, but most believe he's less likely to return to Washington than Rendon simply because he opted out of his contract there.

While Clayton Kershaw did return to Los Angeles after opting out, it's no sure thing that Strasburg will do the same. Either way, the timing of his MVP performance in the World Series made his opt out a no-brainer and, while he likely won't get Cole money, he could also make some history this winter (see below) -- in Washington or elsewhere.

5. Will Gerrit Cole get a $300 million deal: Definitely, no chance or it'll be close but under?

Survey says: Close but under 9; no chance 6; definitely 0

Cole had one of the best free-agent seasons in recent memory, perhaps among the best of all time, as one executive put it. Will he be as good on another team not named the Astros?

The fact that no one polled thought he would get $300 million is less about him having only two out-of-this world seasons under his belt and more about the nature of giving a pitcher that kind of deal. Besides, he doesn't need to reach the $300 million figure to set a record for a pitcher. That belongs to David Price at $217 million.

Everyone polled believes he'll still blow that number away, and most predicted it'll happen in a deal with the Angels.

"It would be hard to choose Cole over Rendon as the player to live up to his paycheck just based on positions," one executive said, "but if he takes his last two years and keeps on that path with whoever he pitches for, he'll be worth every penny."

6. Of the second-tier guys, which of these free-agent starting pitchers would you most want your team to sign this winter: Madison Bumgarner, Zack Wheeler or Dallas Keuchel?

Survey says: Wheeler 8; Bumgarner 4; Keuchel 2; Three-way tie 1

It wasn't long ago that Wheeler would have finished far behind the two more accomplished pitchers, but now, a couple years past his arm issues and coming off a solid 195-inning campaign, the majority polled here believe he's the best bet of the three.

Even though they're roughly the same age, Bumgarner has pitched more than 1,000 more innings than Wheeler, and, as we've learned over the past couple of winters, teams are paying for the future over the past more than ever. Bumgarner is coming off a 34-start, 207-inning season, but some wonder how he'll fare in a ballpark other than Oracle Park.

This was no slam dunk vote, though, as Keuchel got support as well.

"Don't sleep on him," one Keuchel voter said. "He bet on himself by sitting out half a year and was a big help in Atlanta with solid numbers. Plus, the guy has a lot of heart."

7. How much does the 2019 baseball -- and what the ball will be like going forward -- impact your offseason decision making: A lot, some or not at all?

Survey says: Some 9; not at all 3, a lot 0; 3 respondents declined to answer

There's a big assumption that the 2020 baseball won't look like the 2019 one. Perhaps it'll resemble the postseason ball, which didn't carry as much. The bottom line for executives: While they aren't going to spend a lot of time thinking about it, that doesn't mean they won't spend any time thinking about it.

There's a chasing-their-tail kind of feeling to this topic.

"I think it's important to try to identify hitters [or pitchers] you think were impacted most by the apparent 2019 baseball," one exec said, "but what if it never changes? What if it changes drastically? I think there are other factors at play when evaluating players that are much more important ... because all 30 teams will be using the same balls."

8. Who is the one player most likely to be overpaid on a big contract this winter?

Survey says: Wheeler 4; Grandal 2 (Grandal signed with the White Sox after our survey was complete); Nicholas Castellanos 1; Daniel Hudson 1; 7 respondents declined to answer

What makes Wheeler so attractive -- the lack of mileage on his arm -- could make him a dangerous signing as well.

"What's on his resume?" one insider asked.

Wheeler has made 30-plus starts in just two seasons, but he's not the only free agent who elicits doubt. It's the nature of the game at that point in a player's career. For example, Castellanos is coming off a huge year, with an OPS+ 23 points higher than he's ever produced. Will that continue into a new contract or will he regress to the mean? It's the kind of question every executive faces with every free agent they sign.

9. Which of these hitters will produce more over the length of their next contract: Didi Gregorius, Marcell Ozuna or Nicholas Castellanos?

Survey says: Castellanos 7; Ozuna 6; Gregorius 2

As you can see, the uncertain nature of free agency, combined with the hard task of predicting production in baseball, allows for overlap on several questions.

Where Castellanos can make the overpaid list, he can also be one of the most reliable hitters among what's available.

"He's a gap-doubles machine," one executive who voted for him said. "That should play in any ballpark."

Nearly as many chose Ozuna, whose numbers have dropped since leaving a pitchers' ballpark in Miami. But the question is about performing over the length of a deal. So while Castellanos is coming off a monster year, he's bound to get the bigger deal, hence the neck-and-neck voting when it comes to value and production for their upcoming contracts.

Northampton and Scotland centre Rory Hutchinson has agreed to extend his contract with the Premiership club.

The length of the deal is undisclosed, but the 23-year-old has been at the club since joining the academy in 2016.

Hutchinson made his international debut against France in August, but missed out on selection for the World Cup.

"I feel like I've been living out my dream over the past six months," he said. "I've no doubt that this is the best place for me to develop further."

Hutchinson was named Saints breakthrough player of the season last season as his performances helped the club to a top-four Premiership finish.

He was rewarded with a first Scotland call-up in the summer before scoring two tries on his first international start against Georgia in Tbilisi.

"Rory is a high-skill player who has made a significant step up in his performances over the past 12 months," Northampton director of rugby Chris Boyd said.

"Crucially, he has not taken his foot off the accelerator and has picked up where he left off so far this season."

Former England centre Ben Te'o will join Japanese side Sunwolves for the 2020 Super Rugby season.

The 32-year-old joined French side Toulon in August after being left out of Eddie Jones' World Cup squad.

Te'o's England omission came shortly after an altercation with full-back Mike Brown during a team bonding session in Italy when Brown was also left out of Jones' squad.

Te'o is one of 14 foreign-born players in the Sunwolves' initial 15-man squad.

Australian number eight Jake Schatz, who has played in 92 Super Rugby matches, mostly for the Brisbane Reds, and Georgia hooker Jaba Bregvadze are also included for the 2020 season that begins in February.

This season is set to the be the Sunwolves' final Super Rugby campaign after the Japanese Rugby Football Union and the tournament organisers failed to reach an agreement on their continued involvement.

The team have won only eight of their 62 games in the competition since they joined in 2016, but national team coach Jamie Joseph has praised the opportunity it has provided for Japanese players to play with and against overseas stars.

New Zealand-born Te'o, who has previously represented Samoa at rugby league and has 20 England caps, left Worcester at the end of last season after three injury-blighted years at Sixways.

His decision to move overseas again makes him unavailable to England under the Rugby Football Union's international selection policy.