LaLiga president Javier Tebas said on Thursday that he is concerned about the reputational damage suffered by the league over racist abuse aimed at Vinicius, and said he would support points deductions as a punishment to deal with the problem.

Tebas has faced widespread criticism for his initial response to Vinicius when engaging in a social media debate with the forward -- who had said that "racism is normal in LaLiga" -- after Vinicius was racially abused in Real Madrid's league match at Valencia on Sunday.

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Police made three arrests this week over the incident at Mestalla, while the Spanish football federation (RFEF)'s Competition Committee hit Valencia with a five-match closure of the stand where the abuse occurred, which the club have said they will appeal.

A day after apologising for the offence caused by his interaction with Vinicius -- in an interview with ESPN Brasil -- Tebas held a 90-minute long news conference at LaLiga's headquarters in Madrid in which he set out the action the league has taken on racism.

"Of course I'm worried [about LaLiga's image]," Tebas said. "If I wasn't, I'd be crazy. LaLiga has worked to fight against racist insults. But obviously it worries me... It's a blow, but we'll work to recover the reputation we may have lost. We think it doesn't reflect the reality."

LaLiga has said it would like to be granted further powers to deal with the issue, arguing that it is limited to filing complaints with criminal prosecutors and the RFEF.

"The punishment of taking away points only exists currently in the case of fielding an ineligible player," Tebas said, when asked about alternative sanctions. "Would it be good? I think so. Although with the current regime, and the powers we're asking for, I think that would be enough."

Tebas said that his Twitter discussion with Vinicius had given the wrong impression.

LaLiga has filed 10 criminal complaints over racist abuse aimed at Vinicius over the last two seasons, although on several occasions, prosecutors decided not to pursue a case.

- Racist abuse to Vinicius must lead to change in LaLiga

"I didn't want to criticise Vinicius," he said. "Maybe that was my mistake, I didn't mean to criticise him but rather to give him the information that we're doing a lot of things. It was frustration. I think Vinicius is frustrated too. It was a mistake."

Tebas said that he had not yet spoken to Vinicius directly to apologise, and that he would support the player if he chose to walk off the field in response to racist abuse.

The Brazil international missed Madrid's league game with Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday with a knee problem, although he was present at the Bernabeu, with teammates and fans showing their support with applause before the game and in the 20th minute, reflecting his shirt number.

"I think it's best to let this calm down," Tebas said. "But when it's convenient, when it's the right time, I'll talk to him, and his representatives. I want Vinicius to stay in Spanish football and I want to show him that with more powers, we can deal with racism."

"If he feels affected, of course [I would support leaving the field]. He'd have the support of the league and my personal support... These have been some of my worst days as president and as a person. I'm not a racist."

AS Roma boss Jose Mourinho has opened up on his disappointing spell in charge of Tottenham Hotspur, saying they are the only one of his former clubs that he doesn't still have a "deep feeling for."

The 60-year-old, who has managed 10 teams in a career that began in 2000, is on the verge of leading Roma to back-to-back European titles in next week's Europa League final against Sevilla.

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Mourinho underlined the importance of enjoying the final amid reports that he could leave the Italian side, adding that he "will forever be tied to Roma," but acknowledged the feelings are not the same when it comes to his former club Tottenham.

The former FC Porto, Inter Milan, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United boss, who led Roma to their first European title by winning the Conference League last season, said he feels no connection with Spurs.

Mourinho was sacked by Spurs in April 2021 after 17 months in charge and six days before the League Cup final -- which they lost under interim manager Ryan Mason.

"I hope the Tottenham fans don't get me wrong but the only club in my career where I don't have still a deep feeling for is Tottenham," Mourinho said.

"Probably because the stadium was empty, COVID time. Probably because Mr Levy [Spurs chairman Daniel Levy] didn't let me win a final and win a trophy.

"But it's the only one, so after that -- Porto, Chelsea, Inter, Real Madrid, Manchester United -- all the clubs I feel a connection. Maybe people [will say] you cannot love every club -- yes, I love every club!"

Mourinho's comments come after Feyenoord manager Arne Slot ended speculation over a possible move to the Premier League club, saying he was in discussions with the Dutch champions over a contract extension.

Also on Thursday, Mourinho said that forward Paulo Dybala could miss Roma's clash with six-time champions Sevilla next Wednesday in Budapest.

The 29-year-old Argentine, who has scored 16 goals and has eight assists across all competitions this season, is yet to recover full fitness after picking up an ankle injury at the end of last month.

"I don't think he can play. Honestly, I hope he can make it for the bench. It's the last game of the season even if after that we have Spezia," Mourinho told reporters.

"But for Paulo, it would be the last game. I'd be happy if Paulo could go on the bench and play 15 or 20 minutes. Dybala is still with the doctors."

Roma will travel to 11th-placed Fiorentina on Saturday before taking on the Spanish side in the Europa League final.

The Portuguese coach said midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini would return for the final after missing two games with an injury, but he is out for the Fiorentina clash.

Information from Reuters was used in this report.

BRIGHTON -- Roberto De Zerbi has always been a dreamer. When he was managing at Sassuolo, he used to keep a notepad and pen by his bed. Even when sleeping, he'd dream football and something would click, so he'd wake up and make a note of it.

Those visions naturally change with time and experience. For all the praise levelled in his direction since he took over Brighton in late September, and the teams left in their wake after being exposed by De Zerbi's tactical acumen, he still dreams, reluctant to put a limit on expectations.

"I like to keep the ball, to enjoy the ball, to try every game to be protagonists on the pitch, working with passion, working with ambition and working towards a dream," De Zerbi tells ESPN.

De Zerbi's impact at Brighton has been one of the stories of the 2022-23 Premier League season. Footballing history will note Manchester City's title win -- their fifth in six seasons -- and the trio of clubs relegated. But for those who have watched every weekend, memories of De Zerbi's Brighton will endure. Eight months since replacing Graham Potter, Brighton have secured European football for the first time in the club's history.

"The dream is to do every day one step more," De Zerbi says. "It's one step you didn't expect to make at the start of the day."

For a man who moves quickly, De Zerbi got off to a slow start on the south coast. His tenure started with two draws and three defeats, but then they hammered Chelsea 4-1 and his vision for this team seemed to click. There have been some remarkable results, including their recent 3-0 trouncing of Arsenal at the Emirates that spelled the end of the Gunners' title challenge. At one stage, Brighton were involved in the race for a Champions League place next season, but with one league game left this weekend, they have their spot in the Europa League all but secure. And all this after losing a host of key players last summer.

"The Premier League is a great competition," De Zerbi says. "It's a tough, tough competition. Every game is very difficult to make points, to win the game. I'm lucky to be coach of Brighton and it's a great experience."

His peers have taken notice. The praise proffered to De Zerbi has been fulsome, though laced with cautionary admiration. In March, Man City's Pep Guardiola said "We've an Italian coach in Premier League, De Zerbi ... he's changing many things in the English football. He's producing wonderful football." (Brighton held City to a 1-1 draw Wednesday in a pulsating game either side could have won.) Julen Lopetegui said in late April that Brighton were playing the best football in the world; two days later, Lopetegui's Wolves lost 6-0 at the AMEX.

Having watched that obliteration, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said "Mr. De Zerbi: wow! That was incredible. They played one of the best games I have ever seen in my life." Brentford's Thomas Frank said De Zerbi is doing a "top job," while Arsenal's Mikel Arteta said before their 3-0 defeat in May, Brighton are a "joy to watch."

"One quality is to accept the praise and I'm honoured to receive these congratulations from very important coaches, bigger coaches," De Zerbi says. "But I don't change my passion, my attitude.

"Maybe it's an honour and it's right to work more after these words." After that comes clarification and deflection.

"When the people speak about our style of play, they are not speaking about De Zerbi," he adds. "De Zerbi doesn't play on the pitch. The people speak because I have very great players, but I was a player and understand very well the good words I receive ... but I know the credit is with my players."

As a player, De Zerbi, 43, was a promising attacking midfielder who began on AC Milan's books before embarking on a nomadic career across 10 clubs up and down the Italian football landscape -- including Monza, Napoli and Salernitana -- and CFR Cluj in Romania. He'd play just three Serie A matches across a 15-year career, all of them for Napoli in the 2007-08 season.

After retiring from playing in 2013, De Zerbi started his coaching career at Darfo Boario in Serie D. He then switched to Foggia and won Coppa Italia Serie C, which earned him a leap up to Serie A club Palermo in September 2016. But it was a poor fit, and he lasted just 13 matches. Later he'd say he jumped at the opportunity too soon, nervous that it might be his only shot at managing in the topflight. He rebuilt himself at Benevento, where he failed to save the club from Serie A relegation and garnered a standing for playing attractive, attacking football.

Sassuolo came calling in 2018 and it was soon clear that players wanted to be part of his project.

"I've always wanted to work with De Zerbi, and I think he is a genius in his vision of football," Kevin-Prince Boateng told ESPN in 2018. "Everybody speaks very highly of him, which is not normal: usually, 50 people talk highly of me and 50 people talk really badly, so to have 100 percent of people talking so well of him is really something."

Over three seasons at Sassuolo, he honed his philosophy to switching between a 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 formations with plenty of attacking football, leading them to eighth-place finishes in his second and third term. He switched to Shakhtar Donetsk in 2021 and steered the team to the top of the league before Russia's invasion of Ukraine halted everything. He'd spend his final five days in the country waiting for his players to be evacuated to safety until he made his passage back home to Italy, where he waited for his next challenge.

After officially leaving Shakhtar in July 2022, he turned down a job offer from Bologna out of respect for Sinisa Mihajlovic. The late Mihajlovic was sacked in September 2022 but was battling leukaemia at the time, and De Zerbi, out of respect, did not want to be the man who replaced him. (This story was corroborated by Mihajlovic's wife, Arianna, in an Instagram post. Mihajlovic died in December 2022).

It was the Brighton project that tempted him back into management and to the Premier League. Before taking on the role, he hadn't any crystalised expectations of the task awaiting him.

"When you're working in other countries, you're only focused on your team and players," De Zerbi says. "It's an honour for me, working here. I have to understand the league better. I would like to speak proper English to understand everything, no? Different country, different players, different style of play, different coaches. You need one or two years, or 100 games to understand it all well."

De Zerbi had just finished a 40-minute news conference when he sat down with ESPN in early May. He started the media duties with an assessment of his ability to speak English -- he says speaking Italian is "like drinking water," while English is tougher -- and De Zerbi's interpreter and assistant coach Enrico Venturelli is nearby as we talk. De Zerbi occasionally turns to him for clarification over questions, but through his answers, there's one recurring word, anchoring how he sees both the world and himself.

"Passion? If you work in football without passion, I think you can't work," he says. "The fans understand and know if you are working with passion or not."

It's true that De Zerbi's passion on the sidelines has perhaps gone too far at times this season, with two red cards and four yellows to his name. "I was worse in the past! I'm better now. I understand that to stay at the right level, you have to stay more relaxed." Then comes the clarification: "Sometimes I'm back like the past, though. No?"

His second red came after their controversial defeat to Tottenham on April 8, a match after which the PGMOL apologised for a referee error. After that game, De Zerbi stood in the changing room and saw a group of angry, disgruntled players. He told them that they'd lost nothing -- yes they hadn't got three points, but as a group, they'd lost nothing at all. "Normally, I'm stronger with the players when we are winning," he says.

Midfielder Mac Allister told ESPN about the half-time team talk De Zerbi delivered in their FA Cup quarterfinal against Grimsby. They were up 1-0, but De Zerbi was furious. He wanted them to finish as 5-0 or 6-0 winners. They'd go on and win 5-0.

"Straight away from day one he's been impressive with his charisma and his passion for the game," Danny Welbeck tells ESPN. "He's got an eye for fine detail, with every single pass and movement. He's really improved a lot of players -- he gives everybody the opportunity to get on the pitch and show what they can do."

However, it all comes back to his identity and who he is. De Zerbi says his best friends would describe him as "Crazy, honest..." He pauses. "Crazy, honest and with passion, no?"

Staying true to himself is the most important thing "not only as a manager, but in my life," he says. "I believe in this value; I want to be always clear and honest. I want to be myself in every situation: when we win, when we lose, when we are in a good time, when we are in a bad time."

The fans have grown to love him too; so do the former pros. "I just love his relentlessness, his energy on the touch line. I think he's everything that a football club wants [in] a manager," Brighton legend Glenn Murray (103 goals in 259 appearances) tells ESPN. "I would've loved to play under Roberto. I think even though the way and the brand of football they play is incredibly impressive, I think it simplifies the game and as a striker it would've been perfect to have all those opportunities to try and gobble up. It would've been very nice to play up front for him."

Before our interview, De Zerbi is presented with a bespoke scarf one of the fans has made for him. It's black with gold lettering reading "Goalfather" embroidered across the centre of it. He lets out a small laugh, eyebrows raised in approval and then switches to the next task.

Just like the praise from other managers, he's keen to keep himself out of Brighton's improvement. Talk to others at the club, though, and they put the praise at De Zerbi's door.

"The difference has been Roberto," Mac Allister tells ESPN.

"He's had a huge impact," Welbeck says. "It's not easy as we had a good manager before. But Roberto's been unbelievable with the lads, with the dressing room and everybody around the club -- his charisma and passion -- you only get to see 20 percent of what we see. We see it in everything he does: it's a joy to be working for this manager right now."

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

Above all else, Brighton's playing style has been lauded. Sometimes it resembles football's equivalent of rope-a-dope, with all 11 players waiting for the opposition to swarm and then unpick their scrambled defence by shifting the ball quickly from back to front. "Everybody has to be in sync," Welbeck says. "He doesn't want us to make too many mistakes, but he does allow it to happen -- he knows we're human so there's a margin for error. But every single player knows what each player needs to be doing in each role. If we're dropping deep, we're still looking to attack quickly from goal kicks.

"It's an amazing, beautiful style of football and everybody loves it. But there are a few more elements we haven't showcased yet, and we're looking to get better at those on the training pitch and show that in the games."

Brighton have one match left in their 2022-23 campaign, away to Aston Villa on Sunday. After European qualification was secured thanks to their 3-1 win over Southampton at the weekend, De Zerbi addressed the crowd. "You have been fantastic," he says. "We need another point for the Europa League, we want to play there, not in [the Europa Conference League]." (They got that point against the league champions on Wednesday night. Mission accomplished, then.)

This is where dreams intermingle. De Zerbi has his own idealistic hopes, based around the footballing equivalent of a surfer's perfect wave -- "Perfection is still close here," he says -- but he is aware of the bigger vision. The first part, European football, has been realised, but there's still time for more, with or without him.

"The dream is that when I leave, I left the club higher than when I started."

DETROIT -- Claressa Shields has a new opponent for her marquee fight in the Motor City.

The two-time Olympic gold medalist and women's middleweight champion is now scheduled to face contender Maricela Cornejo on June 3 at Little Caesars Arena.

Shields was scheduled to box Hanna Gabriels, but the Costa Rican boxer was removed from the card Thursday because of results from a Voluntary Anti-Doping Association test earlier this month.

Gabriels (21-2-1, 12 KOs) put Shields (13-0, 2 KOs) on the mat before losing to her in a 2018 match at the Masonic Temple in Detroit.

The 36-year-old Cornejo, who is from Prosser, Washington, is ranked No. 3 by ESPN among contenders in the 160-pound division after winning three straight fights that improved her record to 16-5 with six knockouts.

"I told my team to get me the best," the 28-year-old Shields said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

HENDERSON, Nev. -- Las Vegas Raiders coach Josh McDaniels said Thursday that he had no issue with All-Pro receiver Davante Adams venting recently by saying he and the team did not see "eye-to-eye" on the direction of the franchise.

McDaniels said Adams, entering his 10th NFL season, has "an opinion and a voice because [he's] earned it" over the course of his career.

"And I respect the hell out of anything that [he] would say or suggest or anything like that," McDaniels said. "During the course of the process of trying to improve our team, which, I know where Davante comes from, he's a competitor. He wants to win, and that's really his sole focus and that's what he does here every day. He's here pushing himself, pushing his teammates. He's been a tremendous leader again this spring for our football team."

Adams, a six-time Pro Bowler who has also been named first-team All-Pro the past three seasons, was acquired in a blockbuster trade from the Green Bay Packers last spring and reunited with his college quarterback from Fresno State in Derek Carr.

Carr, though, was benched and left the team with two games remaining in the season and was released in February before signing with the New Orleans Saints.

The Raiders signed Jimmy Garoppolo to a three-year, $72.75 million free agent contract with $45 million guaranteed this offseason. Garoppolo, though, is coming off a right foot injury and has not been on the field for the start of OTAs. McDaniels would not say whether Garoppolo had offseason surgery -- a source confirmed a report by The Athletic that he did -- but said there were no surprises in the quarterback's rehab.

Adams made his comments about the Las Vegas front office to The Ringer in an article published last week but posted a photo of himself with general manager Dave Ziegler the next day, his arm around Ziegler with a caption reading: The man.

"Those things happen, I'd say, all the time where somebody may have a question or a comment or a discussion is had, and those are the right things to do, and those players have earned it," McDaniels said. "And so, I have nothing but respect for anybody like that, that has a comment or an opinion like that.

"It's not really my concern that anybody necessarily adopts every vision that Dave or I have for the decisions that we have to make. Sometimes those are difficult."

Adams is scheduled to meet the media after OTA practice later Thursday.

HENDERSON, Nev. -- Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo underwent surgery on his injured left foot after signing a free agent contract with the team in March, a league source confirmed to ESPN.

"All trending great," a source said.

Garoppolo signed a three-year, $72.75 million deal with Las Vegas on March 17, though his introductory news conference was delayed a day.

Raiders coach Josh McDaniels on Thursday would not get into the specifics of whether Garoppolo underwent a procedure, only saying there were no surprises and that the QB would not be on the field for the start of OTA practices. McDaniels did allow that he might be out until the start of training camp, though.

Garoppolo suffered the injury in Week 13 with the San Francisco 49ers last season and did not return.

The Athletic was first to report the surgery.

ESPN's Adam Schefter contributed to this report.

British number one Cameron Norrie reached his third successive semi-final at the clay-court Lyon Open but compatriot Jack Draper was knocked out.

"I tried to reset and come out with a lot of energy," Norrie said.

The 27-year-old now faces Argentine fourth seed Francisco Cerundolo, who came back from a set and a break down to beat Draper 4-6 6-4 6-3.

Norrie's progress in Lyon is a boost for British hopes on clay before the start of the French Open on Sunday, with a much-reduced contingent from the nation competing at the Grand Slam.

This was Norrie's 13th win in 14 matches in Lyon, having reached the final in 2021 before claiming the title last year.

In a repeat of last year's quarter-final, when Norrie also dropped the second set to Argentina's Baez, the Briton got off to a quick start on Thursday, winning the first three games to take control of the first set.

But he was broken at the start of the second and again for 5-2 before Baez put behind him the distraction of a nosebleed to serve out the set. Norrie then raced through the third set, sealing victory on his first match point with an unreturnable serve that put him into his fourth Lyon semi-final.

"It was a solid match," Norrie said in his on-court interview. "It's the perfect kind of match I need before the French Open to get a lot of long points in the legs, running a lot and having to defend a lot."

Norrie's continuation of his success at the venue provides a timely confidence boost after early exits on clay in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid in recent weeks, and a tetchy encounter with Serbia's Novak Djokovic in an Italian Open last-16 defeat last week.

Norrie will be leading the British challenge at the French Open, but is now one of only three from the nation to be in the main singles draw after Kyle Edmund withdrew on Thursday with a wrist injury.

Norrie is joined by Dan Evans and Draper in the main draw for the men's singles at Roland Garros, but there are no British women in the singles for the first time since 2009.

The trio discovered their first-round opponents in Thursday's draw, with Norrie starting against France's Benoit Paire, Evans playing Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis, and Draper taking on Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

Long-serving Harlequins forwards Chloe Edwards and Davinia Catlin will retire at the end of the season.

Former England prop Edwards, 31, became the first woman to play more than 100 times for the club.

Hooker Catlin, 34, has played 68 times for Quins, having previously also played for Wasps.

"When I first picked up a rugby ball, I never could have imagined that I would have such an amazing career," Edwards told the Harlequins website.

"The rugby community is like no other and I feel really privileged to have been a part of it."

Catlin added: "It's with great sadness I will be hanging up my boots after 16 seasons in formerly the Premiership and now the Premier 15s.

"I have forged lifelong friends, made timeless memories, and won three Premiership titles.

"I still remember arriving at Wasps for my first training session at 17 and itching to play rugby. To this day I still have the same feeling, but the time is right to close this chapter and focus on my family and business."