Sunderland can keep up their impressive record against arch rivals Newcastle United when Sunday rolls around.

Indeed, looking back at the more recent iterations of the fierce Tyne-Wear Derby, the Black Cats have some memorable victories to their name, with a 3-0 win in Sunderland’s favour being the last scoreline when the two rivals faced off at the Stadium of Light in Premier League action back in 2015.

Since then, there has been only one meeting on Wearside soil in early 2024, when the then Championship strugglers were trounced by the Magpies 3-0 in the FA Cup.

Now, however, Regis Le Bris’ men will hope to collect another memorable league victory against their sworn enemy, with one figure in his talented camp now standing out as a modern-day version of Kevin Ball, who featured in various Tyne-Wear derbies himself as a legend of the club.

Kevin Ball's legend status at Sunderland

Noted as being a Sunderland legend in “the truest sense of the word” by current chairman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus in 2022, Ball really did embody the fighting spirit the Black Cats will need to show against Newcastle on the weekend throughout his long-standing stay on Wearside.

Lauded for always being “a warrior on the pitch”, by former Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson, Ball would go on to make a staggering 388 appearances for his beloved team, with many a memorable showdown with Newcastle popping up.

Ball’s consistent brilliance from the middle of the park would further see him chip in with 27 goals, which included this diving header being expertly put away.

On top of often being in the right place at the right time to put his neck on the line, the Black Cats hall-of-famer would also go on to collect two Player of the Year accolades at the end of the 1990/91 season and the close of the 1996/97 campaign, while also even temporarily being handed the reins as Sunderland’s caretaker boss in 2013.

To put it simply, Ball is synonymous with the famous red and white stripes of Sunderland, with Le Bris hoping he can see the same verve and determination Ball had in spades coursing through his team’s veins on Sunday, as one key individual – in particular – continues to stick out as a Ball-style figure.

The £110k-per-week star who is Le Bris' own Ball

Unfortunately, the Frenchman will be without Luke O’Nien for the showdown with the Magpies after his red card against Manchester City.

The no-nonsense 31-year-old would have loved to feature against Sunderland’s Tyneside enemies if he hadn’t been dismissed, with O’Nien recently being branded as a “remarkable” icon of the club by EFL pundit George Elek.

He’s worthy of such adoration, as well, as the full-blooded defender has notched up a crazy 316 appearances for his team now. His mammoth journey started way back in League One, with his dedication to the cause undoubtedly similar to that of Ball’s.

Yet, even with these substantial numbers next to O’Nien’s name, Granit Xhaka is managing to stand out even more as a figure made in the same mould as the ex-Sunderland captain

The Swiss international is not afraid to launch himself into a tackle or a battle if necessary, as seen in him being branded a “monster” centrally by Arsenal-based writer Connor Humm, when he was still at the Emirates.

Xhaka’s PL numbers this season

Stat – per 90 mins*

Xhaka

Games played

15

Goals scored

1

Assists

4

Touches*

66.5

Accurate passes*

42.3 (83%)

Key passes*

1.2

Big chances created

5

Ball recoveries*

4.5

Total duels won*

5.4

Stats by Sofascore

But, much like Ball, too, as seen when looking at his mightily impressive statistics at Sunderland so far this season, Xhaka is more than capable of popping up with a crucial goal and assist, with his one goal and four assists this campaign sitting pretty next to his 5.4 duels won on average.

Managing to collect six wins in the North London Derby when on the books of the Gunners, Xhaka’s know-how under pressure has already seen him be handed the Sunderland captain’s armband, amid shouts that he is the club’s “signing of the season” by Wayne Rooney.

Of course, he still has some time to go before he will be considered a Hall-of-Fame-worthy recipient like Ball, but it’s clear from his past exploits at Arsenal and his battling nature with the Black Cats so far that the £110k-per-week star will leave everything out on the pitch against Newcastle, just like Ball would have done.

The nerves will be there from Sunderland’s perspective, with the Premier League not hosting this tense contest since 2016.

But, with Xhaka present, Le Bris will be optimistic that his side can reign supreme, to continue their fine start to the season.

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أعلن الألماني هانز فليك، المدير الفني للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي برشلونة، قائمة فريقه لمواجهة أتلتيكو مدريد ضمن منافسات الدوري الإسباني.

ويخوض برشلونة مباراة قوية ومرتقبة أمام أتلتيكو مدريد مساء اليوم، الثلاثاء، في إطار منافسات الجولة الـ19 المقدمة من بطولة الدوري الإسباني.

ويدخل برشلونة اللقاء بعد فوز على ألافيس في الجولة الماضية، ليتصدر جدول ترتيب الدوري الإسباني بقيادة مدربه هانز فليك، برصيد 34 نقطة، وبفارق نقطة واحدة عن ريال مدريد الوصيف.

أما أتلتيكو مدريد، فيحتل المركز الرابع في جدول ترتيب الدوري الإسباني، ولديه في رصيده 31 نقطة، وإذا تمكن من الفوز سيتساوى في النقاط مع برشلونة ويشعل المنافسة.

اقرأ أيضًا | تشكيل برشلونة المتوقع أمام أتلتيكو مدريد اليوم في الدوري الإسباني

ويستضيف ملعب “سبوتيفاي كامب نو” المباراة بين برشلونة وأتلتيكو مدريد مساء اليوم، الثلاثاء، في تمام الساعة العاشرة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، الحادية عشر بتوقيت مكة المكرمة.

ويغيب عن برشلونة جافي ومارك تير شتيجن وفيرمين لوبيز، واستعاد الفريق خدمات بيدري ورافينها وخوان جارسيا.

كما يغيب رونالد أراوخو عن برشلونة لأسباب شخصية بحسب ما أفاد المدرب هانز فليك في مؤتمره الصحفي قبل اللقاء، فيما ذكرت تقارير أن اللاعب يعاني من ضغط نفسي وأوضح لناديه أنه غير قادر على المشاركة في التدريبات واللعب وهو ما تفهمه النادي. قائمة برشلونة لمباراة أتلتيكو مدريد في الدوري الإسباني

في حراسة المرمى: خوان جارسيا – فوتشيك تشيزني – كوشين.

في خط الدفاع: بالدي – باو كوبارسي – أندرياس كريستنسن – جيرارد مارتن – خوفري – جول كوندي – إريك جارسيا.

في خط الوسط: بيدري – داني أولمو – كاسادو – بيرنال – درو فرنانديز – تومي.

في خط الهجوم: لامين يامال – روبرت ليفاندوفسكي – فيران توريس – رافينها – روني باردجي – ماركوس راشفورد.

📋 𝗦𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗗 𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗧 #BarçaAtleti pic.twitter.com/zID0WqpZNH — FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) December 2, 2025

Crystal Palace are now battling Arsenal for the signature of a new forward, who is regarded as “the best” player in his league.

Palace looking to sign new attacker amid Mateta uncertainty

With Jean-Philippe Mateta yet to sign a new contract to extend his stay at Selhurst Park beyond 2027, his future as a Palace player is up in the air, and the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Liverpool have been named as potential suitors.

It would, of course, be a real blow to lose Mateta, given that the striker is the Eagles’ top scorer this season, amassing 11 goal contributions across all competitions.

The South Londoners are determined to keep hold of the Frenchman, and there is still plenty of time to agree a new deal, but with his future still not secured, a new attacker has been identified as a target ahead of the January transfer window.

That is according to a report from TEAMtalk, which states Crystal Palace are now rivalling Arsenal for the signature of HNK Rijeka attacking midfielder Toni Fruk, alongside Benfica, Atletico Madrid and a number of other top European clubs.

Rijeka president, Damir Miskovic, has set an asking price of around £13m, with Fruk’s new agency, Niagara Sports, recently holding talks in London, although it is unclear whether Palace were involved in any negotiations.

The Eagles have scouted the 24-year-old on a number of occasions, such is their level of interest, and there is a belief he would be a perfect fit for Oliver Glasner’s style of play.

Fruk named as "the best player" in Croatia

Agent Andy Bara recently described the Croatian as “the best player” in the HNL, and it is clear to see why, given that he has amassed ten goals and two assists in all competitions this season, outscoring Mateta.

At the end of November, the Rijeka star put in a particularly impressive performance against Hajduk Split in the HNL, scoring a hat-trick within just over half-an-hour, while also grabbing one assist, which earned him a SofaScore match rating of 10.

On that day, the five-time Croatia international featured at left-wing, but he is very versatile, having also featured in attacking midfield and at centre-forward regularly throughout his career to date.

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Fruk is clearly ready to take the next step in his career by moving to one of Europe’s major leagues, and it would be a real coup if Palace were able to get a deal done, given the interest from some top clubs.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Cruzeiro negocia a contratação do meia Thiago Mendes, que está no Al-Rayyan, do Qatar. Segundo o “ge”, o volante vê a possibilidade de voltar ao Brasil com 32 anos de forma positiva.

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➡️ A boa do Lance! Betting: vamos dobrar seu primeiro depósito, até R$200! Basta abrir sua conta e tá na mão!

Novo CEO da Raposa, Alexandre Mattos está à frente das negociações pela contratação do jogador. O clube não vê a negociação de forma simples por conta do interesse de outras equipes pelo atleta.

Além disso, o Cruzeiro precisaria comprar Thiago Mendes em definitivo, uma vez que o meia tem apenas mais um ano de contrato com o Al-Rayyan. No entanto, não há informações sobre tempo de contrato que os mineiros estariam dispostos a oferecer.

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Revelado pelo Goiás, o volante se destacou com o Esmeraldino e foi contratado pelo São Paulo em 2015. Após dois anos no Tricolor, o atleta se transferiu para o Lille e, posteriormente, foi para o Lyon.

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CruzeiroThiago Mendes

England went from a position of strength to a calamitous eight-wicket defeat on day two

Tristan Lavalette22-Nov-2025

Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne embrace after Head’s thrilling 69-ball hundred•Getty Images

In the span of five madcap hours at Perth Stadium, England went from a position of strength to crashing to a calamitous eight-wicket defeat as the first Ashes Test remarkably finished inside two days.Somehow topping a 19-wicket opening day, Australia turned the series-opener on its head with quicks Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc, who finished with 10 wickets for the match, tearing through a ham-fisted England batting effort in the middle session.Needing 205 runs for victory, makeshift opener Travis Head plundered 123 off 83 balls as Australia chased down the total in just 28.2 overs. They scored at more than seven runs an over, with recalled No. 3 Marnus Labuschagne finishing unbeaten on 51 from 49 balls.Skipper Steven Smith hit the winning run to trigger scenes of jubilation for an Australian team that was staring down the barrel earlier in the day.Related

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Smith stalls talk on Head's permanent role as Ashes opener

Head’s cavalier batting gave England a taste of their own medicine, as he reached his ton off 69 balls – the equal third fastest by an Australian in Tests. England’s all-out pace attack, so ferocious just 24 hours earlier, appeared shell-shocked as Head continually flayed wayward bowling through the off-side much to the delight of many in the 49,983 crowd.Head opened the batting after Usman Khawaja had been continually off the ground in England’s innings due to back spasms. He had previously opened the innings for Australia eight times, but all had been in South Asia.Head clearly enjoyed his promotion and helped ease the pressure on debutant Jake Weatherald, who fell for a second-ball duck in the first innings. Weatherald was able to play himself in and unfurled several attractive strokes of his own before falling on 23 to a short ball from Brydon Carse.Head was unstoppable and fearless, taking on the short-pitched bowling from Mark Wood, while he also bludgeoned Ben Stokes for four boundaries off an over. Head’s century was met with mighty applause from the Australian fans, but his own celebration was fairly low-key although punctuated by several steely fistbumps.He finally holed out with Australia needing just 13 runs to win, but the result had long been a formality.Scott Boland picked up three wickets in the space of 11 balls•Getty Images

It was an astonishing turn of events after England were 65 for 1 in their second innings, with a lead of 105, before Boland triggered a collapse with the tourists losing 4-11 in 19 balls.England lost 9-99 during the second session that may ultimately haunt them in their quest to regain the Ashes. Four of England’s top six nicked off, while Joe Root completed a double failure after inside edging Starc, having attempted an extravagant drive.The pressure had been on Boland after he was collared in England’s first innings, finishing with 0-62 from 10 overs. He pulled back his length in the second innings and had Ben Duckett caught at second slip to end his 65-run stand with Ollie Pope – the biggest partnership to that point of the match.Boland then had Pope and Harry Brook edging behind the wicket in his next over as he displayed the type of inimitable rhythm that has propelled him to scythe through numerous batting line-ups over the years.Starc had been unable to consistently summon his top speed, backing up so quickly after recording his career best figures of 7-58 in England’s first innings. Sensing the shift in momentum, Smith wisely brought Starc back on and he responded by knocking over Root before continuing his domination of Stokes.Starc decked a menacing delivery away from Stokes, whose outside edge flew to second slip as he fell to his nemesis for the 11th time in Tests. Jamie Smith, who had been dropped by Khawaja at slip early in his innings, fell caught behind off a short ball from Brendan Doggett after an interminable review overturned the original not out decision.Mitchell Starc roars after claiming Ben Stokes for his 10th wicket of the match•Getty Images

There was little resistance from England, evoking many such collapses on Australian soil over the years, until Carse and Gus Atkinson counterattacked for a 47-run partnership. They took advantage of Australia resorting to a short-ball tactic in the only bright spot for England in a miserable session.But the short-ball strategy finally paid off as Doggett wrapped up the innings and finished with five wickets in his Test debut.In what felt like an eternity ago, England had started the second day in the ascendency. Under overcast skies, Australia resumed on 123 for 9 and were still reeling from England’s sustained pressure that blew them away on day one. But Doggett and Nathan Lyon did manage to hang around for 26 minutes, whittling the deficit by nine runs.Wood bowled too short and was unable to muster the same hostility he produced on day one marked by a ferocious delivery that battered the helmet of Cameron Green.Stokes turned to Carse who claimed his third wicket by dismissing Lyon in the gully as England claimed a 40-run advantage on the first innings even though Australia batted 12.3 overs longer.After tearing through England’s tail in the first innings, Starc entered on a hat-trick and charged into Zak Crawley who he dismissed for a duck on the sixth ball of the match.Crawley could only last five balls after spooning an attempted drive to Starc, who showcased extraordinary athleticism to stick out his left-hand and pluck a return catch.Sharfuddoula, the third umpire, had a long look but Starc’s fingers were underneath the ball as Crawley walked off having made a pair. There will be much focus on Crawley’s haste in driving on the up, a risky proposition against the new ball in Perth.Crawley’s wicket meant that for the first time in Test cricket the opening partnership did not score a run in each of the first three innings.Starc was on a roll and conjuring menacing swing with the new ball, but Duckett and Pope survived the onslaught, frustrating Australia with proactive running between the wickets. Much like England’s first innings, Starc was playing a lone hand with Boland continuing to be expensive with 15 runs off his first three overs.Boland started to get his tail up in his second spell and beat the bat of Pope on numerous occasions as England ended the session well placed. But Boland’s luck soon changed as the series-opener dramatically turned on its head.

Former England seamer extends commitment to long-term club as he takes over four-day reins

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-2025James Anderson will be taking on a new responsibility in his 44th year next summer, after being appointed as Lancashire’s full-time captain for their County Championship campaign.Anderson, 43, stepped in as an interim captain on two occasions during Lancashire’s 2025 campaign, but has now been named as their permanent four-day captain, following the resignation of Keaton Jennings in May last year.Despite retiring from Test cricket in July 2024 with an England record 704 Test wickets to his name, and subsequently being conferred a knighthood, Anderson has shown no sign of winding up a Lancashire career that began as a teenager in 2002. In last year’s Championship campaign, he claimed 17 first-class wickets at 25.94 in six appearances.Jennings will stay on as captain for the Vitality Blast – a format in which Anderson excelled in 2025, claiming 20 wickets at 16.10 in the club’s progression to Finals Day – while Josh Bohannon will remain as the club vice-captain following his appointment to the role in 2024.”Captaining Lancashire for the first time last season was a huge privilege, and I’m honoured to take on the role full-time heading into the new season,” Anderson said.”We’ve got a fantastic group of players, a great blend of youth and experience, and I’m excited about what we can achieve together with promotion back to Division One our number one priority.”Lancashire’s disappointing Championship season in 2025 created significant upheaval within the club, with head coach Dale Benkenstein also paying the price for their failure to push for a return to the top flight.Steven Croft, the Lancashire veteran who retired at the end of 2024, was subsequently appointed as head coach, and has invested his faith in his long-term former team-mate.”I’m grateful for the support from Crofty, and from my teammates,” Anderson added, “and I’m looking forward to leading the side into the new County Championship season in April.”Croft added: “Jimmy is an outstanding leader whose influence on the squad is immense. His experience in cricket is second to none, and the way he stepped into the captaincy during the second half of last season showed exactly why he’s the right person for the job.”He also leads the way with his performances on the field and his commitment and dedication to training and living the right lifestyle sets the perfect standard for the rest of the dressing room.”With Jimmy as captain and Josh continuing as vice-captain, we have a strong, stable leadership team that will drive our ambitions in the County Championship next season.”Lancashire open their Championship campaign away to Northamptonshire on Friday, April 3, before facing Derbyshire at Emirates Old Trafford the following week.

Sydney Thunder have breathed life back into their WBBL season, recording their first win of the summer with a convincing nine-wicket victory over Perth.Set 151 to win at Sydney’s Drummoyne Oval, Tahlia Wilson’s unbeaten 55 from 44 balls helped Thunder cruise to victory with ten balls to spare.Phoebe Litchfield then finished the game with a big six to bring up her 35-ball half-century, while Georgia Voll hit 43 from 31 at the top.Beaten in their first three games, Thunder remain seventh on the table but are now back in the hunt ahead of their clash with last-placed Brisbane on Friday.After being given a life early when Freya Kemp put down a sitter when on five, Thunder opener Wilson was clinical from there on.She sat at the other end while Voll was the main aggressor, before taking over the innings when the right-hander was caught behind.Leading run-scorer in the 50-over WNCL last summer, Wednesday’s knock marked only Wilson’s third half-century in 80 WBBL games.Earlier Katie Mack threatened to make the Thunder pay for a missed chance of their own, when the opener was dropped first ball at slip by Heather Knight before reaching 79.She hit Voll for three straight boundaries a few overs later, kicking off an innings where she drove through the covers at will and pulled the ball to the boundary regularly.Signed by Scorchers to offer more support to Beth Mooney, it was Mack that was the lead act on Wednesday night.But no other Scorcher passed 20, with the innings stagnating when Kemp was run out and Paige Schofield trapped lbw in the space of two balls in the 12th over.That ultimately proved decisive with the Scorchers’ 150 for 7 never looking like enough once Thunder got going.

There was good enough reason for everyone at Chelsea to feel positive about their prospects this season as November rolled into December. Enzo Maresca had just led his young side to a seismic 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League, while they held Premier League leaders Arsenal to a credible 1-1 draw days later despite playing much of the match with one fewer player after Moises Caicedo's red card.

Fast-forward a couple of weeks, however, and the mood in west London has considerably soured. The Blues have taken one point from the six available to them in the Premier League since clamping the title-favourite Gunners, drawing away to an out-of-form Bournemouth after losing to Leeds United. They were heading towards redemption in Europe away at Atalanta on Tuesday, but were beaten 2-1 in Bergamo and lost control of a place in the top eight of the league phase in the process.

Once again, there is the prospect of a harsh winter hurrying over the horizon. Chelsea, however, had ample warning time and ought to have prepared better. Instead, their stubborn attitude towards their 'project' has set them up for a transitional season rather than one of glory.

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Similar drop-off

  Maresca's Chelsea have prior form when it comes to suffering through the festive period. Though they began December 2024 with six successive wins across all competitions, they embarked on a run of five Premier League matches without a win afterwards, with their only respite in that period coming in an FA Cup tie against Morecambe.

  When the Blues beat Brentford 2-1 before that rot set in, they moved to within two points of Liverpool at the top of the table. Yet the message coming out from the club was clear – they didn't want to be considered title contenders. It was the overriding narrative that may as well have been printed above the Stamford Bridge tunnel in the same way Anfield's is adorned with 'You'll Never Walk Alone'.

  "I don't even know what that is," then-Chelsea winger Noni Madueke responded when asked about winning the league before his side dropped points at Everton to begin their winless run. They may have become the first team in history to talk themselves out of contention.

  That streak without a Premier League victory ended on January 20 with a 3-1 triumph at home to Wolves, but Chelsea then lost three of their next four matches to plummet them back into a top-five fight. They only just about recovered and finished fourth on the final day of the season after beating fellow European contenders Nottingham Forest.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  Different reasons for new slump?

  The first half of 2024-25 went swimmingly for Chelsea for a couple of key reasons. Maresca, perhaps most importantly, built on the foundations laid by predecessor Mauricio Pochettino, whose own iteration of the Blues ended up finishing only five points off a Champions League spot despite the mixed reviews of his one-season tenure. The west Londoners lost only twice in the Premier League before Boxing Day – at home to champions Manchester City on the opening weekend, and then away at eventual title-winners Liverpool in October.

  But Chelsea were also boosted by playing in the six-match league phase of the Conference League, rather than the eight-match gauntlet of the Champions League this term. While their domestic contemporaries were away battling the continent's best, Maresca was able to rotate en masse to face the likes of FC Noah, Astana and Shamrock Rovers. His first-teamers were fitter and fresher than the others at the top of the Premier League, while Cole Palmer wasn't even registered in Europe until the knockout stages.

  This term, Maresca has found it tough juggling with the increased importance of fixtures every three or four days as opposed to splitting his squad into two for different competitions. That's before we even begin to think of the repercussions of their lengthy Club World Cup campaign over the summer, which left them without much of a pre-season to build up fitness and sharpness again.

  have calculated that Maresca has already made a whopping 119 changes to his starting line-ups in 23 games to date this season, which is a high among Premier League clubs, and the squad is already wilting physically.

  "I think tonight, first XI, we had inside the pitch eight, nine players that they play against Tottenham, they play against Barcelona, they play against Wolves, Arsenal," the Italian said after Tuesday's defeat to Atalanta. "So if you see the five changes that we did compared to Bournemouth, it's different. The ones that play tonight are the ones that are playing almost all the games."

• Getty Images Sport
  

  Mess of their own making

  Chelsea knew this sort of problem would be awaiting them this season. The club and its decision-makers were aware of how many matches the team would be playing off the back of a gruelling and extended 2024-25 campaign. They brought in eight players over the summer who have gone into Maresca's squad right away (Dario Essugo, Liam Delap, Joao Pedro, Jamie Gittens, Jorrel Hato, Estevao Willian, Alejandro Garnacho and Facundo Buanonotte), but sold off six who played significant minutes last term (Madueke, Joao Felix, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Renato Veiga, Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson). They didn't add enough bodies ready to compete at the highest level.

  Of their most recent acquisitions, you could only make cases for one of Pedro and Delap being in their strongest starting line up. Even then, they aren't players who particularly move the needle when compared to last season's team. Add in that Chelsea have again plundered away millions on prospects who may or may not even play a competitive minute for the club and it leaves you wondering how many more, top-line reinforcements they could have added instead.

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  Reliance on Palmer and Caicedo

  For all of the millions and billions that Chelsea have spent in the BlueCo era, only two of their signings are bonafide 'world-class', with Caicedo and Palmer well clear of their peers. The Blues have been up-and-down without their 'cold' superstar, but are winless since the Ecuadorian was sent off against Arsenal (though even his return against Atalanta was marked with a loss).

  That is an absurdly low hit rate for a club that has boasted of its 'trading model'. At £105 million ($140m), World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez should be more than a good-not-great stalwart. Options in either box are mostly middling at best. Their rotating cast of wingers are all of a similar standard without a standout option, bar the moments the incredibly raw Estevao decides to go Super Saiyan.

  The only saving grace in this regard is Chelsea have managed the return of Reece James well, with the injury-prone captain now regularly fit and able to play in their most important matches. Nevertheless, they still lack the star power which should be requisite for a club of this size and outlay.

Wayne Rooney has revealed the lengths that he went to as a youngster in order to express his "love" for Everton idol Duncan Ferguson, with the ex-England captain admitting that he "used to write to him in jail". Rooney grew up as a passionate Toffees supporter, with no-nonsense Scottish striker Ferguson becoming a cult hero at Goodison Park across two spells.

Why Ferguson became a hero to Rooney

Ferguson first linked up with the Toffees, initially on loan from Glasgow-based giants Rangers, in 1994. He played over 100 times for the club, scoring 42 goals, before moving to Newcastle. The enigmatic frontman returned to Merseyside in 2000 and found the target on 30 occasions through 140 matches before hanging up his boots in 2006.

Rooney had broken through by then, with his senior bow being taken in at the age of 16 in 2002. He got the chance to play alongside Ferguson before becoming the most expensive teenager in world football when Manchester United came calling in 2004 – with the Merseyside native, who won Premier League and Champions League titles at Old Trafford, going on to become the Red Devils’ all-time leading scorer.

AdvertisementGettyJail time: Rooney wrote to incarcerated Ferguson

Rooney was always a passionate performer on the pitch, with inspiration being taken from Ferguson – who spent time behind bars in 1994 after headbutting an opponent during his spell at Rangers.

Young Rooney overlooked that misdemeanour, telling when asked about his boyhood heroes: "There was a guy who played for Everton and he actually went to jail. And I was a young boy who supports Everton, so I used to write to him in jail and then he’d write back. And then, four years later, I played alongside him. So for me that was the biggest thing. It was just me telling him how much I love him." Rooney added on the other stars that he looked up to: "There’s so many and like Ronaldo, R9, for me as well. Just watching him play was incredible. He was like my favourite player, really."

Everton family: Ferguson welcomed support

Ferguson has previously addressed his surprising communication with Rooney, with the future all-time great an unknown youngster when contact was first made.

In , the Toffees icon said: “What got me through the long, lonely nights in Barlinnie was that I must have received 10,000 letters. Incredible. I killed time reading them all. Fans wishing me well and, yes, some expressing rather different sentiments.

"A young boy called Wayne Rooney wrote. He must have been only nine or 10. I wrote him back, without a clue who this passionate football fan would turn out to become. (Apparently, Wayne still has the letter today.)

"Some people sent me books – books about pigeons, books about football, books about breaking out of prison. They sent me a blow-up sex doll, which got confiscated! But the letters I treasured most were from Evertonians like Wayne.

"Looking back now, I still can’t believe the top brass of Everton – my manager Joe Royle, Club Chairman Peter Johnson and Director Clifford Finch – came to see me. It was really nice of them, brave as well. They came into the waiting room at Barlinnie, and it’s like Beirut in there. A total war zone – people bringing drugs, and misery and menace in the air. Having that support from the high-ups at Everton and the fans meant the world."

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AFPManagement & documentary: Rooney since retiring

Rooney made his own return to Everton in 2017 following a glittering 13-year stint with Manchester United. He spent just one season at Goodison – scoring 11 goals, including one memorable effort from the halfway line against West Ham.

Rooney spent time in management after hanging up his boots, but struggled across spells with Derby, D.C. United, Birmingham and Plymouth. He is now back on punditry duty and preparing to star in a Disney+ documentary series alongside wife Coleen and their four sons – with eldest, Kai, looking to forge his own career as a professional footballer after catching the eye in United’s fabled academy system.

Shohei Ohtani is back on the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers, having made his first pitching appearance since 2023 earlier in the week. He only went one inning in his Dodgers debut on the mound, but he was toeing the rubber again on Sunday against the Washington Nationals.

After failing to record a strikeout in his season pitching debut against the San Diego Padres, he fanned two Nationals batters in the top of the first inning on Sunday, and as such, recorded the first two strikeouts of his pitching career with the Dodgers.

Here's a look at his first punch-out, in which he sat down Luis Garcia Jr. with a nasty breaking pitch:

Garcia wasn't able to check his swing as the pitch from Ohtani dropped down and in on the left-handed batter. Ohtani then ended the inning by striking out Washington first baseman Nathaniel Lowe.

The first strikeout of his career with the Dodgers was a long time coming. Ohtani served exclusively as the team's DH in 2024 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He continued as the DH for the first two months of the season and is now in the process of being stretched out on the mound in order to fully return to his duties as a two-way star.

His first inning on Sunday was certainly an encouraging sign for what's to come.