Sport News

PETE JENSON IN SPAIN: There have been some impressive pitch graphics in the pages of the Barcelona sports papers this week. Under the headline 'Neymar and Griezmann would fit' Diario Sport had Luis Suarez at centre-forward, in front of a line of three, reading from right to left Griezmann, Messi, Neymar. There was no sign of Ousmane Dembele, who cost Barcelona £135.5million two summers ago. And there was no sign of Philippe Coutinho, who set them back a further £142m six months later. More than an oversight, the exclusion of those two felt more like a home truth - both would probably have to be sold if Neymar really is to be re-signed.

David Silva will bring the curtain down on his Premier League career next summer and English football will say farewell to one of the greatest midfielders to grace the top division.  But where does he rank compared to some of the other leading midfielders to feature in the Premier League? Adrian Kajumba attempted to make a top 10 of Premier League central midfielders.

Crystal Palace star Aaron Wan-Bissaka is closing in on a £50million move to Manchester United - the club he supported as a young boy. Wan-Bissaka came through the Eagles' south London academy, but a throwback family photo has emerged which reveals his first love to be United.  Sitting on his mother Elizabeth's knee, the 21-year-old right back is alongside his brother Kevin and his dad Ambroise, with the young boys both wearing United's famous red colours.

Pakistan swung the World Cup wide open on Wednesday with a stunning six-wicket victory over New Zealand at Edgbaston. It keeps them in the hunt for a semi-final spot ahead of their final two group stage games against Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The win also keeps up the spooky parallels between their record in England this summer and their success in 1992. Just as Imran Khan's side did, they have lost their first game, won their second, had a third rained off before two successive losses, then bounced back with two straight wins (table pictured).

UGANDA 1-1 ZIMBABWE: Uganda and Zimbabwe played out a 1-1 draw at the Africa Cup of Nations, but both teams will walk away very disappointed not to take all three points. After beating DR Congo in their opening game, Uganda broke the deadlock through Emmanuel Owki's 13th-minute strike. However, Khama Billiat pegged Uganda back in the 40th minute.  But both teams could have snatched victory during the clash as Knowledge Musona missed an open goal from a few yards out for Zimbabwe (above) before Uganda's Patrick Kaddu remarkable did the same up the other end.

England's rugby stars enjoyed a game of dodgeball as their World Cup preparations kicked off in fun fashion on Wednesday. Eddie Jones has gathered 28 players at their Pennyhill Park base as attention turns to this year's showpiece in Japan. The Red Rose will aim to be in peak physical shape when they begin their World Cup campaign in September.

Captain Steph Houghton took part in England training on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the Women's World Cup quarter-final clash against Norway. Houghton picked up an ankle injury late on in England's 3-0 win over Cameroon during the last-16 stage last Sunday. And manager Phil Neville confirmed earlier in the day that Houghton could miss out on the quarter-final on Thursday night.

Frank Lampard was given permission by Derby on Tuesday to speak to Chelsea about the vacant manager role, but it turns out he's had his eye on the role for a lot longer. The former England international spent 13 years at Stamford Bridge as a player and looks set for a return to his spiritual home. As an old interview has revealed, though, Lampard has had designs on the job for quite some time.

AMITAI WINEHOUSE: While Anfield rocked and Liverpool blitzed Barcelona to reach the Champions League final, another sports team on the other side of the world stopped and watched. The Boston Red Sox were in the middle of batting practice ahead of their game against the Baltimore Orioles. Bats and gloves went down. Their sister side were pulling off something spectacular and it had to be seen. After Divock Origi sent Liverpool to Madrid, manager Alex Cora told his players to take inspiration from what the Reds had just achieved. The reigning World Series winners and the now kings of Europe, based 3,000 miles apart, have one key link. That is, barring the colour that gives the Boston side their name. 

Stars from the football world have been making the most of their summer holidays after a long and gruelling season. With the return to pre-season still a few weeks away players are enjoying their freedom while they can. Fresh from meeting in the Nations League semi-finals earlier this month, Memphis Depay and Jadon Sancho enjoyed hanging out in Los Angeles. 

Ashley Young has stuck to his 'summer tradition' by getting more ink as the Manchester United star got a full back tattoo across a two-day sitting. The 33-year-old, who signed a one-year contract extension at Old Trafford back in February, has documented his latest body artwork on his Instagram page. Young kept his 2.2million followers up to date with the progress of his back tattoo this week.

A man in Iran has denied conning 23 women into sleeping with him after apparently using the identity of Lionel Messi (right). Reza Parastesh (left), who is known as the Iranian Messi, moved to deny the allegations on social media on Wednesday. In a video post on Instagram, Parastesh said: 'The news is spreading in the Muslim countries and it has been a disaster. I was severely harassed because it released the whole world on me. My family also harassed me, but the people's attack was more influential.'