Sport

Updated: 19:07 EST

Jack Wilshere has put pedal to the metal in order to get back in the England squad

SAMI MOKBEL: Jack Wilshere feels like he has travelled the longest journey ever on a bike that goes nowhere. The midfielder is back in the England squad after a year-long fight for fitness and believes he owes his recall to hours spent pedaling his trusty Wattbike - a state-of-the-art ‘professional training machine’. Developed in 2008 when British Cycling wanted an indoor training machine that could record extensive data, the Wattbike has been central to Wilshere’s rehabilitation since he suffered a cracked bone in his lower leg at the start of last season.

Manchester United defensive duo Luke Shaw and Chris Smalling face axe after Jose Mourinho

MIKE KEEGAN and SAMI MOKBEL: Luke Shaw and Chris Smalling are fighting for their Manchester United futures following Jose Mourinho's furious accusation that some of his players lack the toughness to play through pain. The England pair missed the club's 3-1 Premier League victory at Swansea City on Sunday after telling the United manager they were unable to play.

Nobody needs to tell Alastair Cook how to lead in India. He won here four years ago — the first England captain to do so since David Gower in 1984-85.

SAMI MOKBEL: Aaron Cresswell has been handed his first England call-up after Leicester midfielder Danny Drinkwater withdrew due to injury.

CHARLES SALE: The FA are facing the embarrassment of negative publicity in international week surrounding England assistant Sammy Lee.

Scotland's 59-year-old manager Gordon Strachan held a discussion with fans at Elland Road on Friday, November 4, and was back to his hilarious best. Sportsmail was there for the best anecdotes.

SAMI MOKBEL and ADAM CRAFTON: Andy Murray, the new tennis world No 1, has been invited to watch England against Scotland at Wembley Stadium on Friday.

England fly-half George Ford heads back to Twickenham ready to lead from the front 

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY CHRIS FOY: Dinner has long since gone cold by the time George Ford has dealt with the endless questions and, finally, is able to eat, after a long drive up from Bath to Cheshire. There are no complaints. He remains courteous and engaging and light-hearted, at the end of a tiring day. This is no sporting diva. The 23-year-old wears his status lightly, almost reluctantly. His is the box-office role; conductor, general, ringmaster, but it has not changed the character of the country’s premier exponent of the art.

Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Arsenal, Tottenham or Manchester United - who is looking the

OLIVER TODD: Having initially watched Manchester City threaten to streak away at the summit, the top ranks of the Premier League table now have a real chop-and-change feel. Here, Sportsmail looks at how the title contenders are shaping up and the mood around the camps before the Premier League gets back underway after the last international break of the year.

CHRIS FOY: George Ford has admitted for the first time how he was left unhappy and unsettled by the abrupt sacking earlier this year of his father, Mike, from his role as Bath’s head coach.

MIKE DICKSON: Andy Murray admits that there have been times when he has felt 'fried' coming into the last event of the tennis season. His relatively average record at the ATP Finals backs that up.

IAN LADYMAN: England's interim manager Gareth Southgate, for all that he still looks about 35, has seen enough international football over the years to understand what it is about.

Jess Varnish was vilified for the Shane Sutton sexism claims to Sportsmail that rocked

INTERVIEW BY MARTHA KELNER: Jess Varnish holds yapping sausage dog Hugo on her lap in the kitchen of her Cheshire home and discusses for the first time the decision to speak out about what has now been confirmed as sexism within British Cycling. Her whistleblowing seemingly freed others to reveal their own experiences, leading to the resignation of Shane Sutton as technical director and two investigations into both her specific allegations and the wider culture of the organisation.

Manchester United and Chelsea fans would not recognise Falcao now... he is firing again

JULIEN LAURENS: After two-and-a-half terrible years and disastrous loan spells at Manchester United and Chelsea, Radamel Falcao is finally seeing the light at the end of a long tunnel. There is still some way to go but he is on the right path towards redemption.

NEW JEFF POWELL IN LAS VEGAS: Two boxing websites of repute in America have restored Manny Pacquiao to No 1 in their pound-for-pound-greatest rankings following his world title victory.

PAUL NEWMAN IN RAJKOT: Nothing seemed more certain than a 4-0 India series whitewash after they defeated England in the first Test in Ahmedabad on their last visit in 2012.

England lock Courtney Lawes has returned to training and will be fit to face South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday in their first Autumn game, defence coach Paul Gustard said on Monday.

Cristiano Ronaldo pens new five-year £365,000-a-week contract with Real Madrid

Cristiano Ronaldo signed his new five-year contract at Real Madrid on Monday and declared – I've got ten years left at the top. The 31-year-old has signed until 2021 but hinted in the presentation at the Santiago Bernabeu that he wanted to finish playing aged 41 declaring his latest deal his 'penultimate' contract and said 500 career goals for the club was not beyond him. Ronaldo remains the club's top earner with his extended deal although his £365,000-a-week wage is not set to change substantially. He is already the club's all time top scorer and if he sees out his new deal he will have spent 12 seasons at the Bernabeu – one season more than the club's all-time greatest Alfredo Di Stefano.

Cristiano Ronaldo recalls whirlwind move from Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United

It's a much-told story - the impressive performance against United in pre-season for Sporting Lisbon which convinced Sir Alex Ferguson he could simply not leave town without him - but the process of moving to England was almost a blur for a then-18-year-old Ronaldo.

Mesut Ozil spent three years with Real Madrid before joining Arsenal, in which time he learnt to 'enjoy' pressure and met some lifelong friends, including Cristiano Ronaldo.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has apologised to Manchester United fans after his fifth booking of the season yielded a one-match ban, ruling him out of the clash against Arsenal on November 19.

Jordan Henderson has sounded a warning for Liverpool's rivals by confidently predicting their new attacking trident of Coutinho, Firmino and Mane is just getting started.

RB Leipzig, one of the most hated teams in Europe, lead Bundesliga alongside Bayern

KIT HOLDEN IN GERMANY: On the fences surrounding RB Leipzig's training pitch, there are inspirational quotes from great sportsmen. Among them is one from Usain Bolt: 'Never set limits for yourself. Nothing is impossible.' It may seem corny, but the players seem to be taking those words to heart. Promoted to the top flight just last spring, RB have made a beeline for the very top of German football. After ten games, the Bundesliga newcomers are unbeaten on 24 points. That puts them second in the table but equal on points with leaders Bayern Munich.

Manchester United golden oldie Michael Carrick is the key to unleashing Paul Pogba

Jose Mourinho wishes Michael Carrick was 10 years younger but age matters not for those desperate to see him given a run in the Manchester United side. United are undoubtedly a better team with their old timer sitting in midfield. Mourinho knows it, the supporters know it. Crucially, Paul Pogba knows it too and flourishes with Carrick next to him. While the statistic doing the rounds after Sunday's victory at Swansea - that United have won all six games Carrick has played in - can be misleading, there is no doubt he still offers so much.

NEW Barcelona have said they will appeal against a ruling by a Spanish judge that star forward Neymar and members of the club's hierarchy should face trial on corruption charges.

Manchester United star Paul Pogba has hailed his strike at Swansea as one of his best to date - adding that he intends to see his name on the scoresheet more often.

Bolton Wanderers and Sheffield United will take a break from their League One promotion bids to take on one another in the FA Cup second round on the first weekend of December.

Freeze! Borussia Dortmund join NFL sides taking on the Mannequin Challenge craze that is sweeping across America

The Mannequin Challenge, where groups stay completely still to film an intricate scene, has become the latest social media craze to take over the internet. People are uploading videos using the hashtag #MannequinChallenge where they appear frozen in time as if someone has randomly hit the pause button. Now Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund have had their go at the phenomenon, which kick-started in America at high schools, as the sporting world takes notice. 

Alastair Cook set for his greatest test as England take on rampant India

LAWRENCE BOOTH IN RAJKOT: The personalised mugs that have greeted England’s cricketers at their hotel in Rajkot may well be the last time they are made to feel welcome ahead of a series that will test their skill, nous, grit and spirit like never before.

England and Saracens trio Maro Itoje, Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola feature on a six-strong shortlist for World Rugby men's player of the year. Jamie Heaslip, Dane Coles and Beauden Barrett complete the list.

EXCLUSIVE BY NIK SIMON: South African World Cup winner Bryan Habana is set to snub a big-money move to England after receiving an offer to end his career with Bristol.

The girl was left badly injured following the attack which she claims happened at one of jockey's homes near Swindon. Three jockeys have been arrested and bailed by police.

Brazil hope to conquer demons from 2014 World Cup humiliation when they face Argentina at

Playing at the stadium where they were humiliated 7-1 by Germany two years ago, Brazil can wipe away some of the lingering pain from that defeat with a convincing performance against Argentina in a World Cup qualifier on Thursday. The match is being held at the Mineirao Stadium, where hosts Brazil were utterly crushed by Germany in the semi-final of the 2014 World Cup. 'Of course returning here still touches all of us, even those that didn't play,' Brazil manager Tite said. 'But we have to know how to work in all situations. Two years have passed and we are in a different moment.'

Scotland's Gordon Strachan plays it cool ahead of crunch England clash

A heavy 3-0 defeat to Slovakia in Trnava last month prompted questions about the Scotland manager's future, but his mind seemed more focused on perfecting his golf swing than devising a plan to overcome the Auld Enemy as his squad trained at Mar Hall.

Ajinkya Rahane admits the hosts must adapt quickly, and give careful consideration to how best to use the system they are about to adopt for the first time after years of resistance.

It’s 40 years since England last won the first Test of a series in India, thanks to 179 from Dennis Amiss and 10 wickets for John Lever in Delhi. Sportsmail charts eight first Test flops since 1981.

The war of words continues to rumble on ahead of Conor McGregor's highly-anticipated bout with Eddie Alvarez at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.

Marco Verratti and Ciro Immobile among those working hard on training pitch as Italy

Italy's players have been pictured working hard in training ahead of two fixtures over the next week. Giampiero Ventura's side are unbeaten in their World Cup 2018 qualifying group after three matches. Victory over Liechtenstein on Saturday at the Rheinpark Stadium in Vaduz could put them top of the table in Group G if Spain fail to beat Macedonia.

Wayne Bridge and Sam Quek set for I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!

Wayne Bridge is set to follow in the footsteps of several former Premier League stars by heading down under to take part in ITV’s show ‘I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!’ Bridge retired from life on the pitch in 2014 whilst at Reading following spells at Southampton, Chelsea and Manchester City, alongside several other loan moves. The former England international, who accumulated 36 caps during his career, will be joined in the jungle by Great Britain’s Olympic gold medallist Sam Quek. 

Across a glittering club career, the undoubted highlights for Graeme Souness were three European Cups and five English titles won with a majestic Liverpool side.

Phil Jones has revealed his delight at making his return to the Manchester United starting XI after 11 months of injury hell. Jones last played for United in January.

Michael Bolingbroke has resigned as CEO of Inter Milan and been replaced by the Suning Sports group's vice president Liu Jun on an interim basis.

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National League Southport earn FA Cup replay in dour 0-0 with League One Fleetwood Town

SOUTHPORT 0-0 FLEETWOOD TOWN - JACK GAUGHAN AT THE MERSEYRAIL COMMUNITY STADIUM: A drab draw threatened to descend into farce at Southport as mindless home supporters hurled lit flares at Fleetwood Town’s goalkeeper Chris Neal, missing his head by inches. With 10 minutes to go of this FA Cup first round clash, a number of objects were lobbed in the direction of Neal, with stewards wading in behind one goal. Defender Nathan Pond was almost struck as well. Referee Darren England stopped play for a number of minutes as smoke billowed from the Jack Carr Stand and had a decision to make as to whether to abandon the fixture. 

Germany reveal new 1990-inspired home kit as Arsenal star Mesut Ozil models design

Premier League stars Mesut Ozil and Ilkay Gundogan led the way as Germany unveiled their new home shirt, one inspired by their 1990 World Cup-winning side. Joachim Low's men will wear the new but still traditional white jersey for the first time when they face San Marino in a World Cup qualifier on Friday, November 11.

Gerard Pique watches Barcelona's basketball side beat rivals Real Madrid

Gerard Pique might be out injured at the moment, but the Spanish defender is using his time off to take in a sport of a different kind. The 29-year-old, who is currently nursing an ankle knock, took in the basketball version of El Clasico when he watched Barcelona face Real Madrid on Sunday.

Kurt Zouma will appear for Chelsea's Under 23s again on Tuesday night with the centre-back approaching a first-team return after the international break.

Inter Milan are close to finalising Stefano Pioli as their new manager. The struggling Italian side had held talks with Gianfranco Zola, Guus Hiddink and Villarreal coach Marcelino over the weeken.

Luis Suarez revealed he was relieved to have been shown a booking in the final few minutes of Barcelona's 2-1 win over Sevilla, as the striker will now not be suspended against Real Madrid.

Ilkay Gundogan is confident that compatriot Leroy Sane will become a vital player for Manchester City once he has fully adapted to English football.

Everton did their best to back Koeman in the summer window but despite coming up with the cash - helped by John Stones' sale - they found it difficult to bring in top-class stars.

Ilkay Gundogan is 'extremely impressed' by the facilities at Manchester City. The midfielder thinks even Bayern Munich's base cannot compare to the world class training centre of his side.

Antonio Conte’s switch to 3-4-3 has seen Chelsea score 16 goals without reply

OLIVER TODD: Nobody has found a way to stop Chelsea since Antonio Conte's tactical switch to a 3-4-3 formation. In five games the Blues have scored 16 goals and conceded none. Conte's new-look Chelsea have steamrollered every opponent comfortably in the Premier League so far. Here, Sportsmail looks at just how he has got it to work.

New Wolves manager Paul Lambert hoping to harness club's 'fantastic' fan base

Wolves' new manager Paul Lambert believes good times lie ahead for the Sky Bet Championship strugglers if he can harness the club's big fan base. The Midlands team sacked Walter Zenga last month and Lambert, 47, wants to quickly lift the mood at Molineux after a seven-match winless run which has seen them slip to within three points of the relegation zone.

Robin van Persie confirms 'eye is all good!' after gruesome injury in Fenerbahce win

Robin van Persie says he is 'all good!' and on the road to recovery after receiving a cut eye while playing for Fenerbahce on Sunday evening. The former Manchester United and Arsenal was carried off on a stretcher in the first half of their 3-1 win at Akhisar following an accidental clash with Abdulwahid Sissoko. Television pictures showed blood coming through a bandage on his left eye.

Darren Fletcher has told Leicester City they will find it 'virtually impossible' to compete in the Premier League unless they learn to juggle their domestic and European commitments.

Borussia Dortmund wing back Raphael Guerreiro claims he has turned down transfer offers from two of Europe’s biggest clubs in the past two years. Guerreiro joined Dortmund from Lorient last summer.

Sakho has not played for the Premier League leaders this season after falling out with manager Jurgen Klopp and subsequently being sent home early from the club's pre-season tour of the US.

Bundesliga side Ingolstadt want a new coach in place this week and have identified highly-rated Wagner who has led Huddersfield into promotion contention this season.

NEW Chris Coleman prepares for his reunion with Serbia this week admitting he is still haunted by the infamous night in Novi Sad four years ago when they beat Wales 6-1 and left him hanging on to his job.

The midfielder, who has found himself at the centre of a war of words between Ireland boss Martin O'Neill and club manager Ronald Koeman, will miss Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier in Austria.

South Africa gear up for England clash as Roelof Smit suffers suspected tour-ending bicep

Roelof Smit has become the latest casualty for South Africa after the flanker suffered a suspected torn bicep in training. He is likely to miss the rest of the tour with the Springboks. Head coach Allister Coetzee is already without Jesse Kriel who was ruled out of three matches after injuring his leg in the 31-31 draw against the Barbarians. Coetzee's side were preparing to take on England this Saturday with a training session at The Upper Latymer school playing fields.

Kagiso Rabada takes five wickets as South Africa storm to 177-run victory over Australia

South Africa capped a remarkable turnaround in the first Test against Australia. The visitors claimed victory on the final day with the help of a five-wicket haul from Kagiso Rabada. South Africa are now 1-0 up in the three match series and coped well with the absence of Dale Steyn as their 21-year-old pace bowler performed impressively.

Pittsburgh Steelers kicker Boswell fluffs 'rabona' in embarrassing fashion to hand Baltimore Ravens victory in NFL

The Steelers kicker was tasked with getting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger the ball back after the signal-caller had got his side within a score as he ran in for a four-yard score.

Bristol chairman Chris Booy says a 'very interesting group of people' have put themselves forward to replace Andy Robinson, but insists they won't rush into naming a new coach.

Ireland with be without Murphy for the remainder of their autumn internationals after the flanker was ruled out for up to nine months with a knee injury sustained in the win over New Zealand.

Consecutive victories for Lewis Hamilton in America and Mexico have enabled the Stevenage-born racer to close the gap to his Mercedes team-mate to 19 points with just two races remaining this year.

Broad is set to join his fellow frontline seamer James Anderson and captain Alastair Cook in England's current '100 club' when the tourists begin the five-match series at Rajkot on Wednesday.

JEFF POWELL IN LAS VEGAS: Manny Pacquiao is seeking a rematch with Floyd Mayweather of the richest fight of all time so they can restore the public's faith in boxing.

MIKE DICKSON: A few days after Andy Murray won his first Wimbledon in 2013, when the world wanted to know his name, he made a private visit back to the All England Club.

Sportsmail's racing expert Robin Goodfellow gives his best tips ahead of Tuesday's meetings at Huntingdon, Newcastle, Lingfield and Sedgefield.

Vautour, one of jump racing's most talented performers and a three-time Cheltenham Festival winner, has been put down after fracturing a leg in a freak accident in his paddock.

Liverpool FC's goal machines: Jurgen Klopp has most devastating attack in Premier League

OLIVER TODD: Liverpool have twice as many goalscorers as at this stage of the last campaign: Jurgen Klopp’s attacking style creating a team that can score from anywhere, through anyone. Eleven games in, their record of 10 scorers is a league high. Opponents find defending against Liverpool to be intense from all over and, hence, it has become near-impossible to blunt Klopp’s side. Only Manchester United have managed to hold them goalless so far.

CHIEF SPORTS WRITER: A year ago, a senior club executive reckoned United could afford one more year without a title or out of the Champions League, before it had an impact. And that is now this year.

As we head into the final international break of the year, the Premier League is starting to take shape. Sportsmail's RALPH ELLIS looks at the 10 things we learned from the weekend's action.

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: Ireland’s win was inspirational, brilliantly executed and the result of positive, clever, calculated rugby. It was a masterclass and exhilarating to watch.