Wrexham’s historic FA Cup third-round home tie against Premier League side Nottingham Forest has been chosen for live broadcast on TNT Sports, marking another major moment in the Red Dragons' rapid rise. Phil Parkinson’s Championship outfit will host the top-flight visitors at the SToK Cae Ras on Friday, January 9, in a nationally televised showdown.

Wrexham-Forest FA Cup clash to be telecasted nationwide

Wrexham’s FA Cup third-round clash with Nottingham Forest has officially been selected for live coverage on TNT Sports, confirming significant national interest in the match. The tie will be staged at the SToK Cae Ras (Racecourse Ground) on Friday, January 9, with the kick-off time set for 7:30 pm GMT to accommodate the broadcast schedule. The fixture continues a historic run for the Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac-owned side, who enter the competition at this stage for the first time in 43 years.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportThe historical intrigue to the Wrexham-Nottingham clash

This selection places Wrexham under a national spotlight again, reflecting their remarkable transformation during the so-called Hollywood era and their climb to the Championship. The Red Dragons last faced Forest at this stage in 1982, when they were beaten 3–1, adding historical intrigue to this year’s meeting. With Wrexham currently mid-table in the second tier of English football, the Championship, the FA Cup offers both financial reward and an opportunity to showcase their progress to a broader audience.

Wrexham's symbolic FA Cup Round 3 entry

Wrexham’s automatic entry into the third round comes as a direct result of their third straight promotion, marking a symbolic return to the upper levels of the English pyramid. The draw also delivers multiple compelling narratives, including Parkinson facing Premier League opposition and Wrexham summer signing Lewis O’Brien meeting his former club. Added to that is the possibility of local interest if Forest include Wrexham-born Wales international Neco Williams in their travelling squad.

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Getty Images SportWrexham and Nottingham Forest set to face off on January 9

Wrexham will now prepare for one of their most high-profile fixtures of the season, balancing Championship commitments while eyeing a potential cup upset against Premier League opposition. A televised win would not only carry substantial prize money but further strengthen the club’s growing global profile. As January 9 approaches, anticipation will build around whether Parkinson’s side can extend their FA Cup run beyond the fourth round for the first time under his leadership.

Chicaog Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg died on Monday. He was 65.

The Hall of Fame second baseman played 16 seasons in the majors, 15 of them in Chicago. Throughout the course of his career, Sandberg won nine Gold Gloves, seven Silver Slugger awards, and was named NL MVP of the 1984 season.

Tributes poured in for Sandberg from across the baseball world. MLB Network put together a video package celebrating the life and playing career of Sandberg, highlighting some of the brightest moments of his career. You can watch that below.

The Cubs will wear a patch in honor of Sandberg on their uniforms for the remainder of the season.

RIP to a Cubs legend.

The success of GT’s top three this season has left others precious little time to impress, so this was a vital opportunity ahead of the playoffs

Karthik Krishnaswamy23-May-20251:07

Moody: Getting a fifty leading into the playoffs perfect for Shahrukh

They suffered their joint-second-worst defeat by runs in their history as an IPL team, but Thursday night was still an encouraging one for Gujarat Titans (GT).There’s no such thing as a good defeat, of course, and this 33-run loss to Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) put a dent in GT’s hopes of a top-two finish in the IPL 2025 league phase. On the way to that result, however, they ticked off at least one significant box ahead of the playoffs.Coming into Thursday’s match, GT had been the most top-heavy line-up of the tournament, with their top three scoring nearly 77% of all their runs. Their openers were the top two run-getters in the tournament, and their No. 3 wasn’t far behind, sitting at No. 7 on the run charts.Related

• Rashid and fourth seamer remain concerns but GT 'not massively off' ahead of playoffs

• Gill and Sai Sudharsan 'have learnt how to move through the gears'

• Marsh ton, O'Rourke three-for headline LSG's big win against table-toppers

All that top-order success had limited GT’s middle-order batters to bit-part roles. Their No. 4 had batted only twice inside the first ten overs in 12 matches, and their No. 5 not even once.Coming into this game against LSG, GT had the worst average of any middle order (Nos. 4 to 7) this season. On the flip side, they had the best strike rate for those positions. You could say they were doing rather well given the constraints they were operating under, but those constraints had left too small a sample size to draw meaningful conclusions from.With the playoffs looming, GT’s middle order was in serious need of time at the crease. As well as Shubman Gill, B Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler were doing, GT may almost have been hoping for all three of them to get dismissed early in one of their last two league games – particularly with Buttler to play no part in the playoffs.M Shahrukh Khan had a rare opportunity for more substantial time in the middle•AFP/Getty ImagesAs it happened, that unspoken but probably not uncontemplated hope took material form on Thursday. Chasing 236, GT were three down in 9.3 overs, which meant that their No. 5 made his earliest entry of the season by far, beating the previous record by 22 balls.Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Buttler had done their bit before that, scoring quickly enough but getting out of the way early enough to leave their successors an equation that was steep but not outside the realms of possibility. When M Shahrukh Khan joined Sherfane Rutherford at the crease, GT needed 140 in 63 balls.Shahrukh has enjoyed a curious career in the IPL. The promise of his domestic T20 record, and the flashes of six-hitting power he has shown over time, have earned him INR 34.65 crore over five seasons of auctions and retentions. That’s a lot of money for an uncapped player, but coming into Thursday, he had only crossed 30 five times in 46 innings.That’s partly down to the thankless role he plays; seldom does he get any time at the crease before he has to swing at everything.Jos Buttler won’t be part of the playoffs•Associated PressShahrukh had that time on Thursday, even if a required rate nearing 14 meant there wasn’t much of it. But even this limited window allowed him to give the world a glimpse of the player he had been in his teenage years, when he hadn’t yet grown into this 6’4″ powerhouse, and when his technique rather than his power was the talk of Chennai’s cricketing circles – he’s referred to as “almost Laxmanesque” in this feature from 2014. You could kind of see it now. A back-foot defensive shot against Akash Singh. A flicked single off Will O’Rourke. A front-foot drive through the covers, with one knee on the ground, off Avesh Khan.GT needed more than that, of course, and Shahrukh obliged. When Akash Deep missed his length on a wide yorker, Shahrukh sliced him with astonishing power over the backward-point boundary. When the same bowler went for a yorker at the stumps and missed his length only marginally, Shahrukh created elevation with minimal room with a bottom-handed shovel that whistled back over the bowler’s head. In between, he stepped out to Shahbaz Ahmed and mowed him between long-on and deep midwicket, clearing the boundary despite connecting only with the inside half of his bat. This is the raw six-hitting power that makes him so sought-after.Rutherford brought the big hits too – an effortless flick off Avesh, a reverse-sweep off Shahbaz – and suddenly, GT were in with a chance. At the 16-over mark, when they needed 54 off 24, ESPNcricinfo gave them a 42% win probability. When Buttler had been dismissed in the 10th over, it had fallen to below 4%.2:18

Aaron: ‘GT have a problem with their third seamer pick’

“After the first three wickets, our middle order batted really well and brought the game on course,” Sai Sudharsan said at his post-match press conference. “From there, having four overs, 54 runs on the board, I think any other day we would have got those runs for the team.”It didn’t happen on this day, but GT still became the first team to breach 200 seven times in an IPL season. And this time, the middle order played a key role in taking them there.”I feel [the] middle order has done pretty well [through the season],” Sai Sudharsan said. “Even in the first six, seven, eight games, Sherfane stepped up and got so many runs in the middle order and changed games for us. Even in Mumbai he changed the course of the game for us.”Even Shahrukh got an opportunity today to showcase his talent. So I feel the middle order is on course as well. I don’t think there is some gap or something in the middle order. I feel, touch wood, things went well for all the three batters at the top so they didn’t get more opportunity to play in the first half of the tournament.”Thursday brought defeat for GT, and a worrying one if it puts them out of the top two. But it also brought them significant positives going into the business end of IPL 2025.

MLB's Speedway Classic at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tn., is going to be quite the spectacle.

When the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves take the field on Saturday, they'll be the first MLB teams to stage a game at a NASCAR track—and will also be setting a new attendance record for MLB, as the venue will seat an astonishing number of fans: over 85,000.

Naturally, one would expect to see some seats in quirky areas, given that most MLB stadiums don't exceed 50,000 fans—Dodger Stadium, at 56,000 fans, is the biggest stadium in MLB.

But some seats at the Speedway Classic are so far away from the action, you have to see them to believe them.

Here's one such section, courtesy of Joe Danneman of Fox 19.

There's something to be said for the mindset of Though that logic may not apply here, given that this is such an odd and unique angle to watch a baseball game from.

Can one even watch a baseball game from this angle? Nobody knows.

At a venue such as SeatGeek, for example, one could procure a seat in this section in the $90-$100 range, albeit with the label that the view is "limited."

The Reds and Braves will start their engines for the Speedway Classic at 7:15 p.m. ET on Saturday.

أبدى إيهاب أبو جزر، المدير الفني لـ منتخب فلسطين، سعادته بالتأهل إلى دور ربع النهائي من بطولة كأس العرب، المقامة حاليًا بدولة قطر 2025.

واستطاع منتخب فلسطين أن يتأهل في صدارة المجموعة الأولى، بعدما حقق فوزًا وتعادلين خلال الـ3 جولات في دور المجموعات لبطولة كأس العرب.

وفاز منتخب فلسطين على قطر 1-0 وتعادل مع تونس 2-2 وتعادل سلبيًا مع سوريا بالجولة الأخيرة.

طالع.. ترتيب المجموعة الأولى من كأس العرب 2025 بعد تعادل فلسطين وسوريا

وقال أبو جزر خلال تصريحات عبر قناة “الكأس”: “مباراة صعبة ومجموعة صعبة، في البداية نهدي هذا الفوز للشعب الفلسطيني ولأهلنا في غزة والخيام، نهديه لكل فلسطين حر وكان يشجع المنتخب بكل حرارة وانتماء، يحق لكم أن تسعدوا بهذا الجيل”.

وأضاف: “فوز مهم وتأهل تاريخي بالنسبة لنا، الهدف من هذه البطولة أن يتجمع العرب، أي منتخب نلعب ضده يشجعنا”.

ومن المقرر أن يلتقي منتخب فلسطين مع ثاني المجموعة الثانية التي تضم السعودية والمغرب وعمان وجزر القمر، في دور ربع النهائي من بطولة كأس العرب.

The New York Mets on Wednesday continued to upgrade their bullpen, as the club acquired submarine-throwing reliever Tyler Rogers from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for outfield prospect Drew Gilbert, pitching prospect Blade Tidwell and reliever José Butto, according to multiple reports.

Fans immediately took to X to react to what they perceived as quite the prospect haul for the acquisition of a 34-year-old pending free agent relief pitcher, albeit one sporting a sparkling 1.80 ERA this season.

And it wasn't just fans.

Mets play-by-play announcer Gary Cohen reacted live to the hefty trade haul during the SNY broadcast of the club's game against the San Diego Padres.

"So we're getting reports on the return that the Mets are sending the Giants for Tyler Rogers," Cohen said. "And it seems like a hefty package for a rental reliever… Rogers will help, but that's a lot to give up."

Rogers, 34, uses a quirky delivery and one of the game's best sinkers to induce weak contact and a bevy of balls in the dirt by opposing hitters. He ranks in the 100th percentile in opponent barrel rate, the 94th percentile in hard-hit rate and the 99th percentile in walk rate. He also ranks third among all relievers with a 64.4 percent groundball rate.

In other words, Rogers is a strike-thrower, incredibly hard to square up and when hitters make contact, they rarely do damage with his offerings. And he's remarkably effective. Since 2021, Rogers's 2.74 ERA ranks eighth among all relievers.

He'll undoubtedly help provide reinforcements for a Mets bullpen that has been taxed with a heavy innings load at times this season.

Whether or not Rogers, who could very well pitch a half-season in New York and then leave via free agency this winter, is worth the haul the Mets coughed up remains to be seen.

But it's clear that the Mets, in a tight race with the Philadelphia Phillies for the National League East crown, are being aggressive.

MatériaMais Notícias

Internacional e Real Tomayapo, da Bolívia, se enfrentam pela segunda rodada da fase de grupos da Copa Sul-Americana nesta quarta-feira (10), às 21h (de Brasília). A partida serpa disputada no Beira-Rio e terá tranmissão de ESPN 4 Star+ (streaming).

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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!

Confira abaixo todas as informações que você precisa saber sobre o confronto (onde assistir, horário, escalações e local).

✅FICHA TÉCNICA
Internacional x Real Tomayapo
2ª rodada – Grupo C – Copa Sul-Americana

Data e horário: quarta-feira, 10 de abril de 2024, às 21h (de Brasília)
Local: Estádio do Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre (RS)
Onde assistir: ESPN e Star+
Árbitro: Christian Ferreyra (URU)
VAR: Joel Alarcon (PER)

⚽ PROVÁVEIS ESCALAÇÕES

INTERNACIONAL (Técnico: Eduardo Coudet)
Sergio Rochet; Fabricio Bustos, Vitão, Fernando (Robert Renan) e Renê; Bruno Gomes, Thiago Maia, Maurício e Wanderson (Alan Patrick); Enner Valencia (Lucas Alario) e Rafael Borré.

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REAL TOMAYAPO (Técnico: Cristian Aran)
Pedro Galindo; Santiago Cuiza, Juan Rioja, Leonardo Justiniano e Matías Noble; Mijaíl Avilés, Agustín Alcaraz e Leandro Maygua; Miguel Graneros; Mirko Tomianovic e Vladimir Castellón (Jorge Ortega).

➡️ Siga o Lance! no WhatsApp e acompanhe em tempo real as principais notícias do esporte

Tudo sobre

InternacionalOnde assistirSul-Americana

Despite beating Brentford away over the weekend, Manchester City got some bad news on the injury front. Key midfielder Rodri had to be taken off with just 20 minutes gone due to a suspected hamstring issue.

Of course, the 29-year-old has struggled with injury issues since rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament last season.

Thankfully for City fans, the former Atletico Madrid star gave an encouraging update, explaining that the injury “seems like it’s not that much,” and suggesting he could even be fit for the first game after the international break against Everton. Surely Pep Guardiola will want to make sure his first-choice number six is 100% fit before playing him again.

Frustratingly, one of City’s former academy stars, Romeo Lavia, could have softened the blow of Rodri’s absence.

Why Lavia could have replaced Rodri

As they have tended to do with academy stars over the past few years, City did an excellent job of selling Lavia. He joined Southampton back in 2022 for a fee of up to £14m, despite only playing once for the first team at the Etihad Stadium.

He impressed so much on the South Coast that the former Anderlecht academy star got a big move to Chelsea the summer after. At Stamford Bridge, opportunities have been scarce for Lavia due to injury problems of his own.

However, he’s worked hard to build back to full fitness and is now looking to cement himself as a key part of Enzo Maresca’s midfield.

In total, the Belgian has only made 25 appearances for the Blues, with just two coming this season. The majority of them have come at the base of Maresca’s midfield, where he’s been able to screen the back four and show his excellent progressive carrying skills.

Lavia showed what he is all about in Chelsea’s recent 2-1 win over Liverpool. He came off the bench at Stamford Bridge last weekend, and his cameo was enough to earn him a 7/10 rating from The Standard journalist Dom Smith. He said the 21-year-old put in a ‘good display’ against the Reds.

Yet, with the amount the injury-prone starlet has featured for Chelsea, he may not have been the right player to operate as Rodri’s understudy. They recently let the perfect backup slip through the cracks.

Man City sold the perfect Rodri understudy

Standing in for Rodri in the City squad is certainly no easy task. Lavia has the quality, but his injury issues mean his availability might not have been what City needed. At the club, the likes of Nico Gonzalez and Kalvin Phillips are at Guardiola’s disposal.

However, the man who could have seamlessly slotted into the starting lineup in Rodri’s absence, which is a regular occurrence these days, was sold in the summer for just £13m. Maximo Perrone made the permanent move to Serie A side Como after a season-long loan in Italy.

After joining City in 2023 from Argentine side Velez Sarsfield, Perrone never really managed to nail down a place in the side. He only made two appearances for the first team at the Etihad Stadium in the treble-winning season of 2022/23, before moving on loan to Las Palmas and then Como, where he now plies his trade.

So far, the 22-year-old has made 33 appearances for Cesc Fabregas’ side. The defensive midfielder has cemented his spot in the starting lineup, playing 90 minutes in each of the last three games and scoring his first goal for the club last weekend.

Perrone would have been “an ideal Rodri back-up,” according to football analyst Ben Mattinson.

Well, his underlying numbers from last season show just why. For example, the midfielder averaged 2.81 tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes, ranking him in the 63rd percentile of Serie A midfielders.

Perrone – 24/25 vs. Serie A midfielders
Stat (per 90)	Record	Percentile
Passes completed	58.84	92nd
Key passes	1.45	84th
Tackles won	1.31	75th
Interceptions	0.97	71st
Clearnaces	2.08	88th
Stats from FBref

Perrone certainly feels like one that got away from this City squad. With his profile, a progressive ball-winner in the middle of the park, he could have seamlessly fitted into the City side in Rodri’s absence.

Letting him go for such a cheap fee in the summer could be a big error by City, especially with Rodri’s persistent injury issues.

Man City goal machine who's out on loan could be Pep's next Erling Haaland

As Haaland rediscovers his best form, Man City’s striking future looks secure.

By
Will Miller

Oct 7, 2025

Arsenal legend Ray Parlour has named his two players of the season so far, and they’re not who you would expect.

Arsenal looking to make it 10 games unbeaten against Crystal Palace

After putting Atlético Madrid to the sword on Tuesday night, Mikel Arteta is now looking to extend Arsenal’s impressive unbeaten run in all competitions to 10 games against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest

Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 1-1 Man City

Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal

Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

Fulham 0-1 Arsenal

Arsenal 4-0 Atlético Madrid

Palace, who recently saw their own 19-game unbeaten streak come to an end against Everton before the international break, will be tricky customers for an Arsenal side who need every point they can muster.

Arteta’s side are in high spirits right now and look absolutely rock solid, having conceded just three goals in the Premier League so far this season, and they have plenty of stars to thank for their imperiousness.

Gabriel and William Saliba continue to cement their places among world football’s best centre-backs, with the former majorly contributing going forward as well. His threat from set plays has been a constant thorn in the opposition’s side since the very start of last season, and Gabriel’s carried this trend into 25/26 as teams struggle to find an answer.

Bukayo Saka, now that he’s returned from a hamstring problem, is back to his imperious best and caused Atlético all sorts of problems on the right-hand side, with Paul Merson saying he had the La Liga side “on toast”.

Bukayo Saka

5

Gabriel Magalhaes

3

Viktor Gyokeres

3

Julian Alvarez

3

Eberechi Eze

2

via WhoScored

Before his knee injury, Noni Madueke was seriously impressing too, while goalkeeper David Raya was rewarded with new and improved terms recently amid his continued contribution to the team.

Declan Rice has also stood out as the linchpin of Arsenal’s midfield, with Martin Zubimendi doing a stellar job alongside the England international.

However, according to Parlour, two completely different names have shone above the rest.

Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori named Arsenal's players of the season so far

Speaking to EPL Index, Parlour claimed that Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber are quietly outshining everyone, even with Saliba and Gabriel at the heart of Arsenal’s rise to the Premier League summit.

Timber has been a rock at the back, showcasing defensive brilliance with more tackles on average per 90 in the Premier League than any other Arsenal player, according to WhoScored.

The Dutchman is also their best-performing player by average match rating (WhoScored), so the numbers absolutely support Parlour’s theory.

Timber really needs to start getting even more credit from pundits who arguably don’t mention him enough, but Arsenal recognise his stellar contribution amid reports they’re speaking to the right-back about a new and improved deal.

Calafiori, meanwhile, has kept budding teenage star Myles Lewis-Skelly out of the team with his very impressive performances at left-back so far, with the Italian averaging more tackles on average than any other defender in the team, including both Saliba and Gabriel.

The Cubs were the third MLB team to clinch a playoff spot this season. Chicago won their 88th game of the year on Wednesday, a 8–4 victory over the Pirates.

It was extremely fitting that Ian Happ, the longest tenured player on the Cubs roster, caught the final out on Wednesday. He's also from Pittsburgh originally, so it was the perfect location for him to help his team clinch a playoff spot.

Understandably, Happ was pretty emotional after the game when giving a post-game interview on Marquee Sports Network. He described why the Cubs earning their first playoff spot since 2020 is so special to him.

"It's special. Just hitting me a little bit," Happ said while holding back tears. "It's going to be great to be back in the postseason. The fanbase, the organization, the group of guys here… Through some tough years, through some really close calls in the last couple years. I know all the work they put in, I know all the work we put in since Day 1. Players, coaching staff, means a lot.

"It's a long season. You get really close to these guys, you spend a lot of time. For the guys that are getting back, it's always special. To give these young guys a taste of it, it's going to be really, really cool."

It's unknown who the Cubs will face in the wild-card round of the postseason here in just a few short weeks. Regardless, this postseason will be very special for the Cubbies, who have high hopes for a deep run into the playoffs, nearly a decade removed from the team's magical World Series run in 2016.