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Arsenal agree £75m fee with Newcastle for Bruno Guimarães as clubs reach compromise
Arsenal have agreed a £75m fee with Newcastle United for Brazil midfielder Bruno Guimarães, ending a tense negotiation between the two clubs. The Newcastle captain is set to leave the club’s pre-season training camp in southern Spain to fly to London for a medical, with the move marking a significant blow for Newcastle, who had…
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Ted Lasso’s fourth season splits critics with soft reboot approach
Ted Lasso’s fourth season landed on Apple TV+ after a three-year gap, adopting a soft-reboot approach that opens with Ted working a modest grocery store job in Kansas City before circumstances draw him back to football and London. New showrunner Jack Burditt sought to tighten the show’s pacing and trim its previous excesses, but critical…
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Riders’ clothing checked at women’s Tour over bra padding concerns
Officials at the Tour de France Femmes have begun checking riders’ clothing and bikes before stages amid concerns that some competitors have used padded bras or similar inserts as “body fairings” to gain an unfair aerodynamic advantage. Race organiser ASO issued a statement confirming the checks after Dutch media reported that padding could be smoothing…
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Football transfer rumours: Folarin Balogun to Spurs? Pedro Neto to Manchester City?
The Guardian’s daily transfer gossip round-up features Tottenham Hotspur linked with a move for Monaco striker Folarin Balogun, whose agents are said to have offered him to Roberto De Zerbi’s club as they seek a reliable goalscorer. Manchester City also feature heavily, with speculation that Enzo Maresca wants Pedro Neto to replace Savinho, while City…
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Chelsea nearing £16.3m deal for Rayo defender Chavarria
Chelsea are close to completing a £16.3m deal, plus add-ons, for Rayo Vallecano left-back Pep Chavarria, a key target for new manager Xabi Alonso. The 28-year-old, who has agreed personal terms with the club, faced Alonso last season while the Spaniard was in charge of Real Madrid, and negotiations have progressed after an initial £15m…
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Elite climber Falconer chasing 2028 Olympic dream
Mary Falconer, a 15-year-old climber from Haverfordwest, is setting her sights on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics after taking up the sport just three years ago as a way of coping with the death of her mother, Anca, from a rare cancer. Despite being naturally shy, she has become one of the UK’s top youth…
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Mumbai, Mie, Madrid – GB part-time stars’ search for sevens
Great Britain’s rugby sevens programme has struggled internationally after being made part-time in July, when full-time funding was cut to save money. Both the men’s and women’s GB teams finished last in the top-tier World Sevens Series this year and will drop into the second-tier competition next season, alongside nations such as Belgium, Brazil and…
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Héctor Bellerín: ‘When you leave a club like Arsenal, it’s scary. It hurts’
Héctor Bellerín, now 31 and playing for Real Betis, has spoken warmly about his decade at Arsenal ahead of facing his former club for the first time, in a pre-season friendly at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. The Spanish full-back described leaving the club as painful but said his affection for Arsenal remains undimmed, crediting manager Mikel…
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Which footballer made the biggest leap in competitive levels between games? | The Knowledge
This instalment of the Guardian’s long-running Knowledge column answers a reader’s question about which footballer has made the biggest jump in competitive standard between two consecutive club matches, prompted by Malachi Fagan-Walcott’s move from National League football to Champions League qualifying action within days. Readers respond with the story of Gary Plumley, a retired goalkeeper…
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‘Ted Lasso’ Review: Season 4 of Apple’s Hit Soccer Dramedy Struggles to Find Anywhere Interesting Left to Go
Apple TV’s “Ted Lasso” has returned for a fourth season, with critic Angie Han of The Hollywood Reporter giving it a lukewarm reception, describing it as “sweet but empty.” While new showrunner Jack Burditt has trimmed the show’s previous excesses, such as bloated running times and sprawling subplots, the review argues the series has struggled…