The LA Galaxy announced the signing Tuesday of winger Gabriel Pec from Brazilian top-flight club Vasco da Gama.

The 22-year-old Brazil youth international is signed through the 2028 MLS season and will occupy a designated player spot.

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The reported $10 million transfer fee surpasses the previous Galaxy record of $9.4 million paid to Spain's Sevilla in 2020 for striker Javier "Chicharito" Hernández.

"Gabriel has been a key contributor for one of the biggest clubs in Brazil's Serie A and we are beyond excited that he is choosing to join the Galaxy as the next step in his burgeoning career," Galaxy general manager Will Kuntz said in a release.

"In addition to his work rate and attacking prowess, he will also be bringing the experience of representing his native Brazil in the qualification tournament for the 2024 Paris Olympics when he joins our group. We are thrilled to announce Gabriel as the newest member of the LA Galaxy."

Pec has spent his entire career at Vasco da Gama, tallying 26 goals and 14 assists in 178 matches since 2019.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has insisted he "loved" the row between teammates Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White at the end of Tuesday's 2-1 win at Nottingham Forest.

The pair had to be separated by set-piece coach Nicolas Jover and Arteta after the final whistle as the Gunners narrowly avoided allowing a two-goal lead to slip at the City Ground.

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Gabriel Jesus and Bukayo Saka gave the visitors a second-half lead which was cut in half by substitute Taiwo Awoniyi's 89th-minute strike.

Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya was forced into a stoppage-time save to deny Awoniyi but the Gunners hung on for a win that takes them up to second place in the Premier League.

Asked about the argument between Zinchenko and White, Arteta said: "I love it. They are demanding more from each other. They are not happy with the way they conceded and they are just trying to resolve it.

"It got a bit heated. But that means that it's enough. Playing the way we played the result has to be bigger and the clean sheet has to be there."

Arteta revealed Jesus faced Forest despite suffering a kick that left fluid on his knee.

"Gabi started to win the game two days ago," said the Spaniard. "He had an issue with his knee and everyone was trying to protect him and saying 'don't go outside.'

"But he was saying [matchday] -2, [matchday] -1, I want to be there I want to help the team to win the game. When you have that mentality, good things are going to happen. I'm really pleased with him."

Asked if Jesus could be a doubt for Sunday's visit of Liverpool, Arteta added: "I don't know. He got hit big time in the last game. His knee reacted and it's the knee he had [surgery on] before.

"He was super positive, he's feeling good and he was so sharp in training. I'm not surprised with the way he played tonight."

In 2018, Rodolfo Borrell's vision of what he could accomplish in U.S. soccer came into focus.

The Barcelona-born coach had already been following Major League Soccer for seven years, even as he concentrated on his day job at the time with Manchester City, assisting Pep Guardiola. He was intrigued by the potential of the sport in North America, and its top league in particular.

As such, Borrell was giving a clinic in New York City to a group of 13-year-olds. By his own admission, clinics are not exactly Borrell's favorite activity, but over the course of four days, he was blown away by what he saw, especially in term of the players' capacity to learn. "It was unbelievable," he told ESPN. "I know it can sound crazy, but in four days of the clinic you're taking a bunch of kids that are 13 years old -- all American kids -- and you could see that they could take on the information and [execute] the information, and it was amazing."

The experience made Borrell think that if the U.S. soccer ecosystem could improve in a few key areas, then "the [U.S.] would be unstoppable soccer wise, as the country has shown it's unstoppable in many other sports." Last June, he took the next step in making that vision a reality, taking over as sporting director at Austin FC.

The job opening came at an opportune time. Man City had just won the treble of Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League titles, and unlike past opportunities in MLS, the offer came in the summer, when he could make a clean break. In the ensuing months, he's made note of what's encouraging as well as frustrating, but he remains energized about the challenge ahead.

Flaws in the system, but also opportunities

As Borrell sat down with ESPN on a gray November day, it's clear the club is in offseason mode. The team's training facility is relatively quiet, though work was being done. Manager Josh Wolff was spotted in the building, plotting his strategy for next season after missing the playoffs in 2023.

Borrell is hard at work as well, although he admits his willingness to discuss soccer-related matters is unlimited. "I like to talk," he said. That is true for the aspects of the American game that he likes, as well as the ones he thinks need improving.

In terms of the former, he chafes at the notion that MLS is a retirement league, especially given the opportunities young players have both to break through and establish themselves. He feels there is immense potential in what is a vast and varied player pool, one rich with athleticism as well as the aforementioned ability to take on new concepts.

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Talk of the flaws elicits a frown. Borrell isn't quite a "stranger in a strange land" any more -- he'd been in the U.S. for five months at the time of this interview -- but he's new enough to the country that he doesn't want to come off as an insufferable know-it-all.

However, Borrell's experience is so vast and deep that when he speaks, one is advised to listen. This is a man who coached at youth level for Barcelona during the time of Lionel Messi's arrival. He also worked in Liverpool's academy for five years, the last two of which were as the club's academy director. That was followed by his nine-year stint with Manchester City, the last seven of which were spent at Guardiola's side.

When asked where the U.S. needs to improve in terms of player development, he points to two areas: the quality of coaching at youth level, and the age when players begin specializing in soccer.

Currently, the youngest Austin FC academy side is U12 -- most top European sides start at U6. Borrell is aware he's up against some cultural hurdles. There is a desire for kids in the U.S. to start out playing several different sports and begin specializing later, but he still feels this needs to change.

"Technique is acquired at a very young age and the earlier you specialize, the better," he said. "In some ways I understand this multicultural idea and multisport idea, but on the other hand, I think [it's a disadvantage] against some other cultures."

The six-year head start the U.S. is giving to its international rivals in terms of specialization amounts to "a huge difference," he added.

Borrell said that the size of the U.S. works against it in some ways. He's a big proponent of "the best playing against the best." That was one of the mantras of the now-shuttered U.S. Soccer Federation Development Academy, and continues with MLS Next, but that is much easier to implement at all age levels in the U.K. -- which is a third the size of Texas -- than it is in the United States. Spain, where he was born and raised, is even smaller.

He admits that the idea of making 8-year-olds hop on a plane for a game is impractical for both financial and health reasons, so that means finding the best competition closer to home. Fortunately for Austin FC, there are two other academies with FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo already in the state. He still feels that's suboptimal.

Of greater concern is the level of coaching, which Borrell said "has to improve massively." Increasing the quality will require a collaborative effort from the U.S. Soccer Federation, state associations and individual clubs, he said. The major pain point is the ability to communicate ideas and concepts to the players, while taking into account the ages with which a coach is dealing.

"Nowadays you can search on Google and find 10 million presentations. I'm not saying anybody can, but many people would be able to speak very well about the sport, or how to deliver a technical program or whatever," he said. "The most important thing to me is not what you talk about, but what you're going to deliver on the pitch."

He's also working against the idea that a good coach can handle any age group, because a coach adept at coaching U12s might not be as successful with a U-15 team. Borrell stressed that doesn't mean the person isn't a good coach -- just that his or her relative strengths might work better for a particular age group.

"I think fitting the right profile of coach for each one of the age groups is key," he said.

All of which has brought him to Austin FC. Borrell feels that there is plenty of knowledge that he picked up at La Masia, Barcelona's famed academy, and elsewhere that can be applied in Austin. There is scouting and recruitment areas to bolster, coaches to be hired and spelling out the way the technical program will be delivered. But it starts with a game model that defines roles and players' profiles.

When asked if that was missing before his arrival in Austin, he said, "I would say so."

Borrell also stresses that the game model needs to reflect the city. He recalls that in Barcelona, it wasn't enough to win, the team had to win well, playing an attractive style.

"If you win, but you don't play the right way, you are bad. They're going to boo you. They don't care," he said. "If you are thinking that you're going to watch Barcelona to play long balls and kicking [opponents], 'But no, but I'm winning,' you're going to be out of there. You're going to get sacked because this doesn't engage the people over there."

To hear Borrell describe his preferred game model, it's one that veers closer to Barcelona's, and not just because he spent 14 years there. It has more to do with where he's working and what appeals to fans in the area. Granted, this approach is espoused all over the world. The academy director who advocates for long-ball tactics has yet to be hired, but with Borrell, the words carry a bit more weight.

"This is a creative city -- this is a city also with a lot of Latino influence," he said about Austin. "Latinos are used to watching creative ways of playing. When you are looking at these kinds of things, you need to understand that a creative model, a creative way of playing is important. You need to take into consideration all these kinds of things."

Given the way MLS academies have been increasing their exports to Europe, there is a sense that what Borrell is trying to create can be accomplished relatively quickly, though he stressed patience: Austin is just now entering its third season. "I think obviously from me there has to be a very clear direction on that, but it takes time," he said. "It takes time and it takes finding the right professionals for each one of the areas and it takes coaching, education and development."

'I am the one who has to adapt'

As much as Borrell's background is in youth development, there is also the first team to consider, and he admitted that his first months in Austin have been something of an education. That is especially true with regards to the arcane roster rules of MLS that govern the salary cap.

Those rules have long been viewed as punishing success and rewarding mediocrity, in that successful teams are often forced to move players that they very much would like to keep. Borrell acknowledged the tough choices that come with having a successful team in MLS, but noted that teams are also punished for making mistakes. It's not necessarily easy to move players that don't work out, and this prevents a team from making moves that would improve the roster.

Between the two, Borrell feels that the mistakes clubs make with players are punished more severely than success.

"At least when you get rid of the [successful] players you are able to increment your amount of General Allocation Money (GAM), and if you are incrementing your amount of GAM, then it's when you become competitive within the national market," he said. "So in the end you need to get it right with the Designated Players because the DPs, in theory, are the ones who are going to make the biggest difference. So first is this, and second you need to get it right with the national players as well, to be able to at some point trade them or sell them abroad and then to be able to reinvest."

That ability to reinvest is a sore point with Borrell at the moment, in that Austin FC is a bit hampered in terms of salary budget space. Before Borrell even arrived, Austin was penalized for bringing in youth players from outside the team's homegrown territory. The club remains weighed down by some contracts for departed players that still impact the cap, with Austin also bringing forward some allocation money from future seasons. Now that has to be dealt with.

"Since I landed, we are working with the scouting department and we have identified lots and lots of players that would be very interesting for our organization and it's frustrating that we are not able to bring them in," he said. "Having said that, this is me coming and understanding that I am the one who has to adapt to the country and not the country to me."

Borrell remains a backer of Wolff, despite the fact that Austin failed to make the postseason in 2023, this after finishing second in the Western Conference the year before. Borrell noted that Wolff is a young coach who has "a lot of room for improvement," but also one who is continually learning, and is "very passionate, very dedicated, very much identified with what we're trying to do at the club."

He feels that in 2022 the team overachieved, which is borne out by the degree to which Austin overperformed in terms of expected goals (xG), scoring 69 times compared to an xG of 57.58. In 2023, the Verde cooled off to a degree, scoring 49 times compared to an xG of 43.47. In league as parity driven as MLS, such changes can have a greater effect on the standings than in other leagues.

"This is a funny sport. This is a sport where you can be the best during 99% of the time and suddenly the ball doesn't get in and the opponent in a lucky action gets a goal in the last minute and it's completely unfair," he said. "Sometimes it's very unfair and sometimes in some seasons these kinds of things work more this way and sometimes less your way. And when sometimes you have this little bit of extra luck in certain moments, it helps you gather momentum. When you don't have it, it doesn't help you gather momentum. And sometimes seasons are very much affected by this kind of things."

That reality is what forms Borrell's definition of success. A stellar season here or there isn't the end goal. Sustaining that form year after year is.

"When one team consistently is winning, or it's getting close to winning, to me is the real success," he said.

And the ultimate validation of a vision that crystallized all those years ago.

DETROIT -- A couple of days after the Detroit Lions lost in the NFC Championship Game, a key member of the team's coaching staff has decided to stay put.

Ben Johnson is opting to remain with the Lions as their offensive coordinator rather than pursue the head-coaching vacancies with the Washington Commanders and the Seattle Seahawks, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Sources told Schefter that some teams balked at Johnson's asking price to be a head coach.

Commanders officials were en route to Detroit for a meeting with Johnson and Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn when they got word that Johnson was staying with the Lions, sources told Schefter. While the abrupt pivot by Johnson was considered "surprising" by several league sources, he was not considered a lock for the Washington job, despite his strong reputation as a coordinator and a loyal coach, the sources said. The Commanders' leadership team remains eager to meet with the respected Glenn, who is one of several candidates the team is expected to consider for its head-coach vacancy, the sources said.

Johnson had also interviewed for the head-coaching vacancies with the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Chargers before those jobs were filled by Raheem Morris, Dave Canales and Jim Harbaugh, respectively.

For the second straight offseason, Johnson was viewed as one of the hottest names among NFL head-coaching candidates, and despite receiving serious interest elsewhere, he has returned to the Lions.

Last year, Johnson also interviewed for the top jobs with the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts, and he was scheduled to meet with the Panthers in Charlotte before informing the Lions that he would be coming back. This season, he helped the Lions match their most wins in a single season in franchise history (12) and earn their first postseason victories in more than three decades.

Johnson, 37, has been the Lions' offensive coordinator the past two seasons. He is a finalist for The Associated Press' Assistant Coach of the Year Award.

Head coach Dan Campbell fielded many questions in recent weeks about his plans to replace Johnson, if he took a head-coaching opportunity, but won't have to answer those anytime soon.

"Yeah, if it comes to that, that's, obviously, very important. I mean, he was a critical piece for us. He's a critical piece. And I'm not worrying about that just yet," Campbell said Monday. "I need to at least get two hours of sleep and then I'll begin. But I'm not going to rush, I can promise you that. I'm not in some mad rush. I'm going to make sure it's right."

This season, the Lions finished third in total yards (6,712) and fifth in points scored (461). In addition, Jared Goff has experienced a career revival under Johnson, which is something the veteran quarterback views as unique and special.

"I think how much input he allows me to have and whether he takes it or he doesn't, he allows me to say it and uses some of it. It's fun for me, it really is," Goff said of Johnson last week ahead of the NFC title game. "It allows me to really be a part of the plan in some ways. And he's a great listener and listens to not only me, but all the players of what they want, what they see. And that's not only through the week, but on game day the same way."

Johnson has been with the Lions since 2019 when he was an offensive quality control coach. He was the team's tight ends coach in 2020 and 2021, also adding passing game coordinator duties in 2021 before being promoted to offensive coordinator in 2022.

The University of Tennessee is under NCAA investigation for violations related to name, image and likeness, sources confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.

The investigation puts the Volunteers in the crosshairs for potential sanctions as repeat violators. Tennessee is fresh off an NCAA ruling in summer 2023 in which it was charged with 18 Level 1 violations and fined a record $8 million.

The scope and breadth of the current allegations, according to sources, include the potential for the enforcement staff to charge multiple Level 1 and Level 2 violations. The case revolves around activity related to the Spyre Sports Group, which is Tennessee's primary NIL collective, sources told ESPN.

The case is fundamentally tied to football, but the Spyre Sports Group sponsors athletes in other sports.

The NCAA's investigation into Tennessee was first reported by Sports Illustrated.

Tennessee has pushed back against the allegations. A document obtained by ESPN shows Tennessee chancellor Donde Plowman told NCAA president Charlie Baker the allegations are "factually untrue and procedurally flawed."

In the letter, obtained by ESPN through an open records request, Plowman called the NCAA rules regarding NIL "intellectually dishonest" in how they are written.

This tension comes at a time when the NCAA appears to be focusing on rules tied to name, image and likeness. Recent cases that emerged at both Florida and Florida State were tied to NIL allegations.

Tennessee declined comment when reached by ESPN. The school has yet to receive a formal notice of allegations from the NCAA, sources said.

"I'd say there's a real uptick in NIL cases, portal issues," a source familiar with the NCAA space told ESPN. "They are the two main areas of enforcement staff inquiry. And those go hand-in-hand a lot of times. The NIL money is being used as transfer bait."

Tennessee's defense appears to be laid out in the scathing letter from Plowman to Baker.

"The NCAA's allegations are factually untrue and procedurally flawed," Plowman wrote in the letter. "Moreover, it is intellectually dishonest for the NCAA enforcement staff to pursue infractions cases as if student-athletes have no NIL rights and as if institutions all have been functioning post-Alston with a clear and unchanging set of rules and willfully violating them."

Plowman hinted at the scope of the charges by defending Tennessee from a perceived "lack of institutional control."

"It is inconceivable that our institution's leadership would be cited as an example of exemplary leadership in July 2023, then as a cautionary example of a lack of institutional control only six months later," Plowman wrote to Baker.

Lack of institutional control -- one of the most serious charges that a school can face -- could be tied to the potential of Tennessee falling under repeat violator status, which is an issue of contention for the university. Per NCAA bylaws, a repeat violator happens within a five-year window of the "starting date of a Level 1 or Level II penalty stemming from a previous case."

Simply put, a repeat violator is at risk for significant additional penalties, as "a heading panel may depart upward from the core penalties."

"The University of Tennessee complied with the interim NIL policy and guidance as it was put into place by the NCAA," Plowman wrote in her letter to Baker. "No member institution could follow future guidance prior to it being given, let alone interpreted."

Plowman added that no Tennessee employee has been named, nor have any athletes or the collective broken "any rule or guidance document as they existed at the time any actions were taken."

"The NCAA enforcement staff's intended processing of the proposed allegations is replete with legal and procedural defects, including unsettled and outstanding interpretive questions that require further attention and input from the NCAA membership, particularly given the novel nature of the issue and the gravity of such determinations," Plowman wrote in the letter. "Further, some of the allegations are simply factually untrue.

"It is intellectually dishonest for the NCAA staff to issue guidelines that say a third-party collective/business may meet with prospective student-athletes, discuss NIL, even enter into a contract with prospective student-athletes, but at the same time say that the collective may not engage in conversations that would be of a recruiting nature. Any discussion about NIL might factor into a prospective student-athlete's decision to attend an institution. This creates an inherently unworkable situation, and everyone knows it."

ESPN's Mark Schlabach contributed to this report.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said Ravens kicker Justin Tucker was trying to "get under our skin'' by interfering with his routine before Sunday's AFC Championship Game in Baltimore.

"I've had seven years of doing that same warmup routine and there's only been like three occasions where there's been a kicker that wasn't ... moving out of the way,'' Mahomes said Tuesday on 610 Sports Radio in Kansas City.

"It was in Baltimore all three times.''

Tucker stretched and had equipment and footballs in an area where Mahomes was getting loose before the game. Video shows Mahomes throwing Tucker's kicking tee and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce kicking Tucker's footballs and throwing his helmet away from where Mahomes was warming up.

"He does that to get under our skin.'' Mahomes said of Tucker. "I asked him to move his stuff and he got up and moved it I think two inches but didn't move it out of the way. I was going to let it slide but Travis moved it for me and after that I wasn't going to let him put it back down.

"I have a lot of respect for him as a player and as a kicker. He's one of the best kickers of all time, probably the best kicker of all time. At the same time, you've got to have respect for each team. We all share the field and we try to do that in a respectful way.''

Tucker said a day after the Chiefs' 17-10 victory, "I just thought it was all some gamesmanship, all in good fun. But it seemed to be taken a little more seriously.''

New Jersey Devils center Michael McLeod and Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart were charged with sexual assault in London, Ontario, on Tuesday, their respective legal teams told ESPN, the same day a report surfaced that four NHL players were directed to surrender to police in the same case.

In a correspondence with ESPN, McLeod's lawyers -- David Humphrey and Seth Weinstein of Greenspan Humphrey Weinstein LLP in Toronto -- added that "McLeod denies any criminal wrongdoing. He will be pleading not guilty and will vigorously defend the case. None of the evidence has been presented, let alone tested in court."

Later Tuesday, speaking for Hart, Megan Savard and Riaz Sayani, from Savard Foy LLP in Toronto, emailed ESPN to "confirm he has been charged with one count of sexual assault. He is innocent and will provide a full response to this false allegation in the proper forum, a court of law."

Cal Foote, McLeod's teammate with the Devils, and Dillon Dube of the Calgary Flames are the other two ordered to surrender to London Police, TSN reported earlier Tuesday. The police department has scheduled a news conference for Monday to address the situation.

Former NHL player Alex Formenton, who was playing professionally in Switzerland, turned himself in to London Police on Sunday. Formenton's lawyer declined to state the exact charges his client was facing but said in a statement: "Alex will vigorously defend his innocence and asks that people not rush to judgment without hearing all of the evidence."

All five players were members of Canada's 2018 World Juniors team. The London Police department launched an investigation in 2022 after TSN reported that Hockey Canada had settled a lawsuit with a woman who said she was sexually assaulted by eight members of that team after a gala celebrating their gold medal win at the World Junior Championship. That incident allegedly occurred in 2018.

The Globe and Mail was first to report on the pending charges last week, which prompted the players to step away from their teams. The four NHL players have been on paid leave, according to sources. However, league sources said the players' statuses with their respective teams will likely change if charges are pressed -- they could face suspension, by their teams or by the NHL, or see their contracts terminated. The players are all 25 years old.

Flyers general manager Danny Briere told reporters last week that he wasn't sure what was going to happen with Hart.

"We are aware of this morning's press reports on a very serious matter. We will respond appropriately when the outcomes of the investigations are made public," Briere said. "The NHL has been very clear that teams should refer all investigation-related questions to them. In the meantime, members of the organization, including Flyers players, will not be commenting any further."

The NHL completed its own investigation of the incident but has not made the results public. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league has been in contact with London Police but will refrain from commenting until "when it is appropriate."

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid will be listed as questionable for Tuesday night's game at Golden State, a source told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Embiid is expected to go through pregame warmups and then make a decision on playing, the source said.

He's missed the Sixers' past two games with a knee injury, sitting out losses to the Trail Blazers and Nuggets.

Embiid was a late scratch from Saturday's showdown with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic in Denver, which has prompted the league to investigate the circumstances of the team's injury reporting, multiple sources told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

Embiid was not listed on any pregame injury reports leading into Saturday's game. Sources close to the situation told Shelburne that Embiid was determined to play in Denver for the first time since 2019 but was pulled from the game by the team's medical staff after it watched him warm up before the game. As one source put it, he "could barely jump" as he warmed up.

Embiid has missed 12 games on the season. If he misses five more, he would become ineligible for postseason NBA awards.

Sixers guard guard Tyrese Maxey also missed Monday night's game because of a sprained left ankle and is expected to be out against the Warriors, according to a source.

Information from ESPN's Ramona Shelburne was used in this report.

NBA all-time 3-point leader Stephen Curry and WNBA single-season 3-point record holder Sabrina Ionescu will compete in a 3-point contest at All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis on Feb. 17.

This is the first time an NBA and WNBA player will go head-to-head in this kind of competition, which the NBA announced Tuesday.

The Warriors' Curry will shoot from the NBA 3-point line with NBA basketballs while the Liberty's Ionescu will shoot from the WNBA 3-point line with WNBA basketballs.

Curry hinted at the possibility of the competition on Jan. 25, when he was heard talking to teammate Brandin Podziemski, saying he and Ionescu should compete.

It didn't take long for Ionescu to take to social media and accept the challenge.

Ionescu won the 2023 WNBA All-Star 3-point shootout, scoring 37 points on 25-of-27 shooting -- the most in WNBA or NBA history.

Curry holds the previous record at 31.