U.S. international Walker Zimmerman, a cornerstone of Nashville SC since its inaugural MLS season, is set to leave the club this winter when his contract expires, according to The Athletic. The two-time MLS Defender of the Year and team captain’s departure will close a six-year chapter in Nashville as he heads into free agency.
While things might not have ended as well as they could have, there are few figures more legendary in the history of The Arsenal than Arsène Wenger.
The Frenchman ushered in a period of immense success in the late 1990s and early 2000s that the club have not even come close to matching since.
However, with how things are going this season, that could soon be about to change.
Moreover, it would be fair to say that Mikel Arteta now has a star in his squad who’s undoubtedly the best player Arsenal have had since Wenger retired.
When looking at the best players signed by, or developed by, Arsenal since Wenger stepped away from management, there are more than a handful of names you could pick out.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
For example, for everything he did wrong, Unai Emery signed off on William Saliba’s move in the summer of 2019, and then just a year later, Arteta made his best defensive acquisition by bringing in Gabriel Magalhães from LOSC Lille.
Together, the centre-back pairing have been nothing short of exceptional over the last few years, and as things stand this season, have conceded just three goals in all competitions and should they win it, could go down as the best defensive partnership in Premier League history.
|
PL’s Best CB Pairings |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Players |
Games |
Goals Against |
|
Ferdinand & Vidic |
120 |
0.71 |
|
Keown & Adams |
97 |
0.73 |
|
Campbell & Toure |
59 |
0.73 |
|
Terry & Carvalho |
85 |
0.76 |
|
Lescott & Kompany |
58 |
0.76 |
|
Gabriel & Saliba |
93 |
0.78 |
|
Van Dijk & Matip |
72 |
0.81 |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt (Pre Palace) |
||
Moving into the middle of the park, and, in this conversation, it’s impossible to ignore club-record signing Declan Rice.
The former West Ham United captain made his way to the Emirates under a tremendous amount of pressure, but from his first game to today, he’s proven to be worth every penny.
From his ability to break up play, carry the ball from deep, score important goals and deliver the ball with pinpoint accuracy from set-pieces, he, without a shadow of a doubt, is a “world-class” midfielder.
Staying in midfield, and while he had a down season last year, and has had some terrible luck with injuries this term, Martin Odegaard deserves to be in this conversation.
The Norwegian international was made club captain in the summer of 2023, won back-to-back Player of the Season awards, and, at his best, can be utterly mesmerising to watch on the ball.
However, with all that said, when it comes to the club’s best player since Wenger left, there is one star who stands head and shoulders above the rest.
While fans will have their own favourite players, it would be hard to deny that, as things stand, Bukayo Saka is the best player Arsenal have had since Wenger retired.
The Hale End icon made his first team debut under Emery in a Europa League game away to Vorskla Poltava in November 2018, and then earned his first start at home against Qarabağ FK a month later.
However, it’s been under Arteta that the Englishman has transformed from a versatile utility player who often popped up at left-back, into one of the best right-wingers in world football.
Not only that, though, but the 24-year-old game-changer has become the club’s talisman and the face of its rejuvenation over the last few years.
It shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise then that, following his hamstring injury and surgery last season, the Gunners became far less potent in attack.
|
Saka’s Arsenal record |
|
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
274 |
|
Minutes |
20713′ |
|
Goals |
74 |
|
Assists |
72 |
|
Goal involvements per match |
0.53 |
|
Minutes per goal involvement |
141.86′ |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt |
|
In his career to date, the North Londoners’ “legend in the making” as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has scored 74 goals and provided 72 assists in 274 first-team appearances, totalling 20713 minutes.
That comes out to a sensational average of a goal involvement every 1.87 games, or every 141.86 minutes, which is made all the more impressive by the fact he’s made 21 appearances at left-back.
As if his record at club level wasn’t enough, he has also won 46 senior caps for England, in which he’s scored 13 goals, provided nine assists and been named Player of the Year twice.
Ultimately, there is still much to come from Saka, but based on his already astounding record and the fact that he has become the club’s poster boy, it’s clear that he has been Arsenal’s best player since Wenger left the dugout.
Arteta's "foul magnet" is now looking like Arsenal's next Alexis Sanchez
The incredibly exciting talent could end up being as good as Alexis Sanchez for Arsenal.
By
Jack Salveson Holmes
Oct 31, 2025
After 13 seasons in MLB, starting pitcher Kyle Gibson announced his retirement from baseball on Thursday on the podcast
The 2021 All-Star has the second-most starts for a pitcher since 2013 with 328, only one behind Max Scherzer's 329.
Gibson was drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Twins in the 2009 MLB draft, but he didn't make his major league debut until 2013 after he underwent Tommy John surgery as a Triple A prospect in '11. Gibson spent seven seasons in Minnesota as a starting pitcher, finishing his tenure there in 2019 with a 67–68 record and 4.52 ERA.
After his time with the Twins, Gibson played for four more teams: the Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles (twice) and St. Louis Cardinals. His second stint in Baltimore this season is where Gibson's career officially came to an end. He went 0–3 in four starts for the Orioles, and was released by the team on May 20.
The pitcher did sign a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays and started in four games for the Triple A Durham Bulls, but he opted out of his contract last month.
Gibson's overall career record finishes at 112–111. He threw for a total of 1,878 innings to post 1,520 strikeouts while surrendering 1,937 hits and 1,021 runs.
Arun will also be responsible for scouting and the development of young fast bowlers
Shashank Kishore30-Jul-2025Bharat Arun is the new bowling coach of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of IPL 2026, the franchise confirmed on Wednesday. Arun’s new role brings an end to his four-year tenure as a bowling consultant with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).Arun is likely to have an expanded role within the LSG set-up – responsible for scouting and overseeing the year-round development of their young quicks.”It’s an honour to join the Lucknow Super Giants, a franchise that reflects professionalism, ambition, and vision at every level,” Arun said in a statement. “My conversations with Dr. Sanjiv Goenka and the management were incredibly energizing – there is a clear intent to invest in young Indian talent and build a long-term legacy.”What excites me most is the vision for long-term development. LSG has invested in a young, talented, and dynamic group of Indian fast bowlers – Akash deep, Avesh Khan, Mayank Yadav, Prince Yadav, Mohsin Khan, and Akash Singh – and I see immense potential in each of them. My mission is to help shape them into a cohesive, fearless, and tactically sharp pace unit that can challenge the best batting line-ups in the world.”LSG are also set to bring in Carl Crowe as spin consultant. Crowe is credited to have helped Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine in their bowling reinvention during his time at KKR. LSG are likely to make a formal announcement soon.Arun’s role was previously managed by former India pacer Zaheer Khan, their team mentor in IPL 2025. LSG failed to make the playoffs and finished seventh.Related
KKR and head coach Chandrakant Pandit part ways after three seasons
At KKR, Arun was originally contracted for three years, before he was offered an extension for another season that took him up to the end of IPL 2025, where KKR finished eighth.Arun’s exit is part of a wider support-staff overhaul at KKR. On Tuesday, the franchise had announced that head coach Chandrakant Pandit had chosen to part ways with the team. At the time, there was no formal announcement of Arun’s exit.Arun comes with a solid body of work, having had two fruitful stints with the Indian team, first from 2014-2015 and, more recently, from 2017 to 2021. In between, he was also part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) backroom between 2015 and 2017.
Well, the New York Yankees aren't done yet, and they've actually shot up in the latest odds to win the World Series after a thrilling Game 3 win in the ALDS on Tuesday night.
The Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays have played an offense-heavy series so far in the ALDS, with New York putting up nine runs in Game 3, rallying from a 6-1 deficit to extend the series in Game 4 on Wednesday night.
As a result, the Yankees have seen their World Series odds skyrocket, going from +1600 to +950 at DraftKings Sportsbook.
New York isn't the only team that made a major move in the odds on Tuesday night, as the Seattle Mariners (+390) stole Game 3 of the ALDS on the road against the Detroit Tigers. After those teams were +600 (Seattle) and +850 (Detroit) entering Game 3, Seattle has jumped up to second in the odds to win it all while Detroit has fallen back to +1700.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, who have a chance to sweep the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night, remain the clear favorite at +160 to win the World Series this season, but the American League matchups have a ton of intrigue ahead of Wednesday's Game 4 matchups.
Here's a look at the latest odds and some storylines to watch on Wednesday.
Both the Dodgers and Brewers are up 2-0 and looking to close out their respective matchups on Wednesday night, so it makes sense that they're both shorter than 5/1 to win the World Series this season.
However, the American League seems to be totally up for grabs after New York and Seattle won on Tuesday. The Yankees have done this before — they came back from an 0-2 deficit in the ALDS in 2017 against the Cleveland Guardians — and things are setting up well for the Yanks in Game 4.
Not only did New York finally get something going on offense against the Toronto pitching staff, but it is favored (-186 on the moneyline) at DraftKings to win Game 4. The Yankeesh have wild card hero Cam Schlittler on the mound for his second postseason start while the Jays are expected to go with a bullpen game.
That's a major concern for Toronto since the team had to deploy several bullpen arms in a marathon game on Wednesday. Could the Yankees force a winner-take-all Game 5? Based on the latest odds, it seems like it.
Toronto fell from +475 to +600 to win the World Series after Game 3, a sign that oddsmakers expect this series to head back to Toronto for a decisive Game 5 on Friday night.
Meanwhile, Seattle is a sight underdogs in Game 4 against the Tigers with Casey Mize on the hill for Detroit against Seattle's Bryce Miller. While oddsmakers clearly expect Seattle to win this series (Detroit is now +1700 to win the World Series), a win by the Tigers on Wednesday could change things drastically if Detroit tries to come back with Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal in Game 5 on Friday.
There's no doubt that these World Series odds will shift on Wednesday night, so bettors may want to get a bet in on their team — especially if they're at a favorable price — before first pitch.
Former U.S. international Stuart Holden believes Matt Turner’s 2026 World Cup hopes could be in jeopardy after the goalkeeper was left out of Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT roster for November 2025. Holden pointed to Turner’s lack of competitive minutes as a growing concern, warning it may be damaging his standing within the national team setup.
Bruce could be seen in his new team colours at the Cricket World Cup League 2 matches in the Canada leg starting August 27
ESPNcricinfo staff12-Aug-2025Tom Bruce has shifted his loyalties from New Zealand to Scotland, and will be seen in action for his new team later this month, when Scotland take part in the Cricket World Cup League 2 matches in the Canada leg, starting August 27.Bruce, who qualified to play for Scotland because of his Edinburgh-born father, represented a Scotland Development side in 2016, before moving to New Zealand. A top-order batter, Bruce played domestic cricket for Central Districts since 2014, and represented New Zealand in 17 T20Is between 2017 and 2020. He was most recently in action for Central Districts at the Global Super League in Providence, Guyana.In a Cricket Scotland statement, Bruce said, “There’s a long Scottish history within my family and I know they will be incredibly proud that I am representing Scotland on the world stage. I’ve been fortunate enough to play for New Zealand five years ago, and I want to continue to showcase my skills on the world stage, and help the Scotland team achieve success, as I know the group is capable of achieving success and continuing to grow as a team.Related
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“I was involved briefly in the set-up back in 2016, and it was an awesome experience. I played alongside and against a lot of the current group of Scotland players, and it’s been great following their development through the years and I’m looking forward to linking up with them again.”For me, I want to help the team in any way shape or form to play some consistent quality cricket and ultimately help get us to a World Cup.”Now 34, Bruce made a name for himself first when he hit 223 runs at a strike rate of 140.25 for Central Districts in the 2015-16 Super Smash. An innovative hitter, he had another good run at the following Super Smash, and that earned him a call-up to the New Zealand squad for a T20I series against Bangladesh. Success was elusive at that level, though, as Bruce scored a total of 279 runs at a strike rate of 122.36 from his 17 T20I innings with two half-centuries.”I’m very excited about Tom joining the group, not only is he a world-class cricketer, he brings a whole range of experience, he’s played a lot of 50-over and T20 cricket,” Doug Watson, the Scotland men’s head coach, said. “He’s going to add massive value both on the field and off the field in the years ahead, and I’m looking forward to getting him amongst the group, and I’m sure he’ll fit in perfectly well.”
Richie Berrington (capt), Tom Bruce, Matthew Cross, Brad Currie, Josh Davey, Jasper Davidson, Chris Greaves, Jack Jarvis, Michael Leask, Finlay McCreath, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Charlie Tear, Mark Watt
It wasn’t easy, but Chelsea managed to get over the line against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday night.
Enzo Maresca’s side managed to get themselves ahead of the Old Gold just five minutes into the game, and looked completely out of sight by half-time.
However, the West Londoners found themselves in a real scrap halfway through the second 45, and were it not for a wonder goal from Jamie Gittens, they might not still be in the League Cup.
However, while there were a few players who let themselves down in the second period, the biggest disappointment for the Blues was Liam Delap, and if he’s not careful, the Englishman could see himself replaced next season.
After spending the last two months out with a hamstring injury, Delap finally made his return to first-team action against Wolves.
Chalkboard
The former Ipswich Town star came on for Estevao in the 61st minute, and it would be fair to say he more than made his mark, just not in the way he would have wanted.
In the 79th minute, he received a yellow card for pushing a Wolves player and arguing with the referee, which at the time was a foolish thing to do.
However, just seven minutes later, the Englishman did something even stupider and elbowed Emmanuel Agbadou in the head, which unsurprisingly saw him receive a second yellow and get sent off.
It was a true horror show from the striker, as he wasn’t even able to have a single shot before being sent off.
Speaking after the match, Maresca didn’t hold back, describing the incident as “embarrassing” and “very stupid.”
Such a response might sound harsh, but given the state of the game and the nature of the cards, it is hard to disagree with the Italian.
Delap will surely be desperate to make amends when he returns, although he might have to do more than that, as come next season, Maresca will have another forward in the squad who could be a significant upgrade on the Englishman.
With Nicolas Jackson at Bayern Munich and Joao Pedro playing better behind a striker, there aren’t too many options for replacing Delap this season.
However, that will not be the case next year, as Strasbourg star Emanuel Emegha will be making his way to Chelsea in the summer.
The Dutchman might not be a particularly well-known name in England at the moment, but he’s been playing well in France for a couple of years now and looks like he could make a real impact at Stamford Bridge.
For example, in his first season with the Ligue 1 outfit, the 22-year-old managed to rack up a tally of nine goals and two assists in 31 appearances, totalling 2226 minutes.
However, last season he did even better, ending the campaign with an impressive haul of 14 goals and three assists in 29 appearances, totalling just 2408 minutes.
In comparison, Delap managed to score 12 goals and provide two assists in 40 appearances, totalling 2670 minutes, for the Tractor Boys.
Unfortunately, the “simply phenomenal” centre-forward, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, is currently injured. However, before his injury, he looked set for his best season to date, scoring four goals and providing two assists in just six appearances, totalling 384 minutes.
|
Emegha’s Strasbourg record |
|
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
66 |
|
Starts |
56 |
|
Minutes |
5018′ |
|
Goals |
27 |
|
Assists |
7 |
|
Goal Involvements per Match |
0.51 |
|
Minutes per Goal Involvement |
147.58′ |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt |
|
Ultimately, not only does Emegha have a better record than Delap, but he has also never received a red card; therefore, he could be a real upgrade for Chelsea next year.
Not Estevao: Chelsea star looks like Palmer 2.0 after Wolves "masterclass"
The exciting ace made all the difference for Maresca and Chelsea vs Wolves.
By
Jack Salveson Holmes
Oct 30, 2025
The 2025 Home Run Derby is underway Monday night, eliciting plenty of excitement from MLB fans. What rubbed some fans the wrong way, however, was the fact that Pat McAfee was doing player introductions before the event in his signature, rowdy and occasionally crass style.
When it was Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh's turn to be introduced, McAfee may have taken Raleigh's "Big Dumper" nickname a little too far.
"Hailing from Cullowhee, North Carolina, a man who's doing something that no catch has ever done in the history of the sport, with the fattest ass in all of professional sports… Ladies and gentlemen, Big Dumper! Cal Raleigh!" McAfee said.
Just another day at the office for the ever-colorful color commentator.
Raleigh, who's the first catcher to start an All-Star game in Mariners history, entered the All-Star break with 38 homers and 82 RBIs in just 94 games and is still chasing MLB history—regardless of what anyone says about his behind.
The Sun Group’s first payments for the Northern Superchargers franchise will be made on Thursday after which Yorkshire will clear their debts
Matt Roller31-Jul-2025Yorkshire will start to clear debts of £25 million on Thursday when the first payments from the sale of Northern Superchargers are made by the Sun Group. Yorkshire were the only host county to sell the whole of their 51% interest in their Hundred team onto external investors due to the club’s perilous financial position, and the deal is one of six that has now been completed.The Sun Group, an Indian media conglomerate who also own Sunrisers Hyderabad (IPL) and Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SA20), bid just over £100 million to buy the Superchargers earlier this year. Their first payments, worth around £50m, will be made on Thursday, with the remainder due later this year once they have assumed operational control of the franchise.Yorkshire’s accounts state that the club received loans worth a combined £5.8m from “a group of committed individuals” – including chairman Colin Graves – in the last financial year, while loans worth a combined £14.9m from the Graves Trusts are due to be repaid by October. Sanjay Patel, the club chief executive, said that clearing those debts is Yorkshire’s “first priority”.Related
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Sun Group secures 100% stake in Northern Superchargers
“The deal puts the club in a strong financial position, which has been far from the case for many years here, and we can start looking towards a very bright future,” Patel said on Wednesday. “The first priority is clearing our debts. We will then be looking at how we can invest the surplus funds to not only safeguard the future, but enable us to flourish.”Yorkshire last month incorporated a new subsidiary called Headingley Investment Limited, which is intended to generate profits that will then be reinvested. Patel added: “Yorkshire Cricket now has an opportunity to thrive, from the recreational game all the way through to our professional teams, and we will be focused on planning the next chapter in the club’s long history over the coming months.”The Sun Group have already told the ECB that they intend to change the name of the franchise next year and ESPNcricinfo has learned that ‘Sunrisers Leeds’ and ‘Northern Super Sunrisers’ are being considered. Two other teams are also likely to be renamed, with Manchester Originals becoming ‘Manchester Super Giants’ and Oval Invincibles becoming either ‘MI Oval’ or ‘MI London’.Yorkshire will receive 80% of the money raised from their decision to sell their 51% stake in the franchise, with the rest shared between the other first-class counties (10%) and the recreational game (10%). They will also receive their share of the funds raised from the sale of the ECB’s minority stakes in the other seven franchises.Lancashire (21%) and Glamorgan (1%) also opted to sell part of their shares in their franchises – Manchester Originals and Welsh Fire respectively – and each county will receive around £400,000 on Thursday of “unfettered” funds linked to those sales. The ECB will control the way in which funds from the sale of their stakes are spent with “guardrails” designed to ensure “sustainability”.The ECB held a board meeting on Wednesday to clear the first payments to counties, and chief executive Richard Gould said that Yorkshire would receive a “very significant” sum this week. “Often when something is sold, the money gets taken and it’s put into a yacht that’s parked off the Bahamas,” Gould said. “Here, all of this – every single penny – is going back into the game.”Gould also attempted to dissuade non-host counties from expanding their stadiums specifically in the hope of hosting a franchise if the Hundred expands, saying that minimum capacity requirements would be around 7-8,000. “We’re not looking to see investment going into creating white elephants,” he said. “What we don’t want is a load of empty plastic seats.”Vikram Banerjee, the Hundred’s managing director, also revealed that there are still minor details to resolve in Surrey’s deal with Reliance Industries Limited for Oval Invincibles, though all parties are confident that it will be signed by early October. Nottinghamshire’s deal with Cain International and Ares Management is the other that is yet to be completed, but Banerjee said the deal is “fully there”.”We offered all the investors the opportunity to sign and close immediately, whenever the legals were all done… or close formally at the end of the season,” Banerjee said. “Those two chose that months ago.”Trent Rockets, they’re all there bar the singing (sic). The documents are all signed and all the rest of it is fully there. With the Oval Invincibles, there are, I think, three things left on their venue-hire stuff that they’re working through. They’re small things. It’ll be a matter of weeks, and that’ll get signed out.”Banerjee will lead a meeting on Thursday afternoon to discuss the Hundred’s regulations around player recruitment for 2026, with some teams pushing for a shift to an auction rather than the existing draft. Rashid Khan and Steven Smith have already signed for teams where they have affiliations with incoming investors for the 2025 season, which starts on August 5.