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Lazio head coach Maurizio Sarri has demanded the recruitment of foreign referees in Serie A to elevate the officiating standard in the Italian top flight. The 66-year-old was furious about a few decisions taken by the officials during his side's clash against Inter game, but stressed the issues are prevalent in the league.

Sarri furious after Lazio loss

Lazio suffered a 2-0 defeat against Inter, with Lautaro Martinez and Ange-Yoan Bonny scoring in either half to hand a defeat to the visitors. Sarri, who fumed after Martinez's challenge on his pupil Mattia Zaccagni, was shown a yellow card by the match official. The Italian winger was also forced off the pitch, and Sarri was annoyed by the risk of Lazio conceding a goal as a result.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportSarri slams Serie A officials

Sarri took a dig at the refereeing in Serie A, calling it below par. He said after the Inter game: "Why did I get angry? For one simple reason: Lautaro's foul on Zaccagni deserved a yellow card. If it had, Zaccagni shouldn't have left the pitch. Not only did he not issue a yellow card, he forced Zaccagni off the pitch, and we almost conceded a goal from that side. Even Padre Pio would have gotten angry."

Instead of booking the Argentine forward, the referee showed a yellow card to Sarri for expressing his frustration at the sequence of events. "I don't see any referees up to the task, including tonight's. I hope Serie A can get the help of referees from abroad; they need to be 'rented' there," he said.

He added: "We're paying for something inside the box. We had a few chances, but it's not easy. What positives do I take away? This is a team that's improving. After the first goal, the team recovered and stayed in the game until the end. Let's start again with this mentality."

Sarri stops short of blaming referee for Inter loss

Sarri admitted that Inter were the better side in the game as he held off of blaming the officials for his team's defeat, saying: "The referee didn't influence the result. Inter played better than us and would have won regardless of who officiated. When you enter San Siro and concede a goal after two minutes, it becomes tough. We wobbled but got back into the game. We had our chances. It wasn't a disastrous match. It's frustrating because the two goals came from two simple turnovers: the first near the box, the second right after we regained the ball. Perhaps these errors favour the more technical team, but it leaves a bitter taste. The performance was decent.

"We pay for the technical gap; we'll see if we can close it as much as possible. We don't have a traditional striker. Our forwards have other characteristics. The only one could be Castellanos, who can handle himself well in the box; the others play the role differently. Right now, we're paying for that in the area, yet coming to San Siro we still had two or three scoring chances, which isn't easy."

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Getty Images SportTwo successive Milan games await Lazio

Lazio currently sit ninth in the Serie A standings, having accumulated four wins and three draws in 11 games so far. The defeat to Inter was also their first loss since September, when they went down to Roma. With no continental football this season, Lazio are solely focused on Serie A, trying their best to utilise this season to head back to the European competitions. They will resume action on November 23 against Lecce and then take on Milan in successive games across the domestic league and the Coppa Italia on November 29 and December 4, respectively.

Sarri is hoping that he will be able to enhance his squad in the January transfer window, saying: "They haven't told me yet whether the transfer market is open or not. I think the market is open, but I'm waiting for the official announcement and then we'll make the various decisions as necessary."

Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper reportedly engaged in a heated exchange with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred in a recent visit between the commissioner and the ball club, according to a report from ESPN's Jeff Passan.

The meeting between Manfred and the Phillies was part of the commissioner's visit list with all 30 clubs as he tries to improve relations between players and the league at-large.

Things grew contentious during the clubhouse meeting when Manfred began discussing the economics of MLB. The two-time MVP in Harper told Manfred to "get the f— out of our clubhouse" if Manfred wanted to talk about the implementation of a salary cap as part of the next collective bargaining agreement. The current CBA is set to expire in January of 2026, with multiple owners voicing support for the implementation of a salary cap. Major League Baseball is the only American professional sport without a salary cap. The MLB Players Association has long opposed a salary cap, arguing that a cap would increase franchise values more than lessen the disparity between high-spending and low-spending teams.

Harper was reportedly quiet during much of the meeting with Manfred and the team, which lasted more than an hour. However, Harper stood up in the middle of the locker room during the economics discussion and said, "If you want to speak about [the salary cap], you can get the f— out of our clubhouse."

Harper and Manfred eventually shook hands before Manfred left, but Harper would not take the commissioner's calls the following day.

Manfred has not committed to pursuing a salary cap, but pressure from multiple owners around the potential for one in the new CBA is intensifying.

On the flip side, players from opposing clubs have reportedly voiced frustration to Manfred in other clubhouse meetings about some teams' lack of payroll spend.

Expect this to be a hot-button topic in negotiations as they intensify leading up the Dec. 1, 2026 CBA expiration date.

India have not yet received the Asia Cup trophy after refusing to accept it from Mohsin Naqvi during the presentation ceremony following the final on September 28

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-2025BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia is hopeful of a resolution with PCB and Asian Cricket Concil (ACC) chairman Mohsin Naqvi over the Asia Cup trophy dispute after the “ice has been broken” between the two boards during the recent ICC meeting in Dubai.”I was a part of both the informal and formal meeting of the ICC. PCB chairperson Mohsin Naqvi was also present. During the course of a formal meeting, it was not on agenda but ICC facilitated a meeting between myself and the PCB chief separately in the presence of a senior ICC office-bearer and another senior official,” Saikia told PTI. “It was really good to start the process of negotiation.”Both sides will work out something to solve the issue at the earliest. The ice has been broken now, so various options will be worked out. There will be options from the other side as well and we will also give options on how to settle this issue and come to an amicable solution.”Related

Rauf gets two-match ban; Suryakumar, Bumrah sanctioned after Asia Cup drama

India refuse to accept Asia Cup trophy from Mohsin Naqvi

India have not yet received the Asia Cup trophy after beating Pakistan in the final on September 28. There was a standoff at the presentation ceremony with India refusing to accept the trophy from Naqvi, the ACC and PCB chair who is also Pakistan’s Interior Minister, following the cross-border skirmish between the two countries in the wake of the terror attack in Pahalgam in April.India and Pakistan played each other three times during the Asia Cup – in the group stage, the Super Fours, and the final – with all the fixtures fraught with tension that began with India’s decision not to shake hands with the Pakistan players in their first meeting on September 14. The matches were ill-tempered with Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan all receiving penalties of varying severity from the ICC for their comments or on-field actions.After the final, the presentation ceremony was delayed by more than 90 minutes while Naqvi remained insistent that he be the person handing over the trophy to India, who did not budge from their stance. Eventually the trophy was taken away from the stage and the team has not received it to date.

Manchester United and Sir Jim Ratcliffe are now ready to take drastic action to move Jadon Sancho on from the club in 2026.

Sancho struggling on loan at Aston Villa

The Red Devils winger is under contract until the end of the season, although there is an option to extend that by a further 12 months to protect his value after joining for £70m.

Sancho has not played in the Premier League for Man Utd since 2023 and has had loan spells at Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea and now Aston Villa, where he is for the 2025/26 season.

However, the 25-year-old has struggled to make an impact at Villa Park, playing just 69 minutes of top flight football in the current campaign.

Sancho did come on for Villa in the first half in the recent 1-0 win against Man City, although he was then substituted in the closing stages by Unai Emery, who said it was “embarrassing” for the attacker.

Yet to start for Villa in the Premier League, Man Utd will soon have a decision to make, extend Sancho’s contract until 2027 or allow him to leave for free.

Man Utd ready to let Sancho leave for £0

As reported by talkSPORT, Man Utd and Ratcliffe are resigned to losing Sancho for free in 2026 instead of triggering the clause in his contract to protect his transfer value.

The Red Devils are willing to cut their losses on Sancho one year ahead of schedule, saving £200,000-a-week in wages which works out at more than £10m for the 2026/27 season.

Of course, that means United won’t receive a transfer fee next year for the “crazy talent”, bringing to an end what has been a woeful Old Trafford stint.

Sancho has scored 12 goals in 83 appearances for Man Utd, registering six assists and playing just over 5,000 minutes in a Red Devils shirt.

Earlier in 2025, Ratcliffe called Sancho a “thing from the past” alongside the likes of Antony, Andre Onana and Rasmus Hojlund, players who INEOS were still “buying” after their transfers under the Glazers.

“If you look at the players we are buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony, we’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying Onana, we’re buying Hojlund, we’re buying Sancho. These are all things from the past, whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.

“For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17m to buy him in the summer. It takes time for us to move away from the past into a new place in the future.”

Fergie said Man Utd flop would reach Neville's level but he left for £2.5m

Real Madrid endured a miserable afternoon against Rayo Vallecano on Sunday as they offered little attacking threat on their way to settling for a frustrating 0-0 draw. The high-powered attacking corps of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham were kept quiet in a frustrating contest for manager Xabi Alonso as Los Blancos failed to bounce back from their midweek defeat to Liverpool.

Madrid offered little in the way of attacking threat in the first half., but there were a few chances. Arda Guler, who looked much improved after a dull performance at Anfield, stung the goalkeeper's palms early while Raul Asencio failed to convert from a diving header. Rayo, meanwhile, weren't afraid to hit on the break, and drew a duo of signature stops out of Thibaut Courtois as the half wore on. 

Mbappe had a good effort on the hour mark, but skewed wide, while Bellingham went close after, but saw his poke denied by a late sliding challenge. The home side, in fact, looked more likely to score after the break as they peppered the Madrid goal and created opportunities on the break. At the other end, Mbappe lost his positional disclipline and Bellingham tried to do too much through the middle.

There will, admittedly, be games like this for Madrid – especially away from home – but with the title race poised to be as tight as ever, it could be costly. 

GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from Vallecas…

GettyGoalkeeper & Defence

Thibaut Courtois (7/10):

Made a few important saves, as per usual. Didn't put a foot wrong. 

Federico Valverde (7/10):

Motored up and down the right. His side was mostly quiet and he had little to do. 

Raul Asencio (6/10):

Had a good chance denied. Kept things tidy otherwise. 

Dean Huijsen (6/10):

A pretty poor first half. Got himself booked and looked a little unsteady. Hooked at the break. 

Alvaro Carreras (7/10):

Another mightily composed showing at left back. Tried to smash one into the top corner and put it comically wide. 

AdvertisementGettyMidfield

Eduardo Camavinga (6/10):

Snapped into tackles, circulated the ball effectively. 

Jude Bellingham (7/10):

Full of creativity in the middle, and was a couple of tidy blocks away from a goal. 

Arda Guler (6/10):

Much more lively in the first half after a tepid midweek showing. Put one narrowly wide in the second. Saw his influence wane as the game wore on. 

GettyAttack

Brahim Diaz (6/10):

Lively on the wing, but could have released the ball more effectively. Replaced after 70 minutes. 

Kylian Mbappe (5/10):

Rather shut down in the middle, and started to lose his positional discipline. A rare off day. 

Vinicius Jr (6/10):

Relatively quiet, and saw his wing crowded by the impatient Mbappe. 

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GettySubs & Manager

Eder Militao (5/10):

His side of the pitch looked very vulnerable in the second half.

Dani Ceballos (5/10):

Brought on for a little more midfield control, which he didn't really offer.

Rodrygo (5/10):

Chucked on late, and didn't provide much. 

Trent Alexander-Arnold (N/A):

No time to make an impact.

Xabi Alonso (5/10):

Went for an attacking setup against an opponent that figured to dig in a bit. Questionable to bring Ceballos on when needing a goal. His side didn't deserve more than a draw.

Newcastle United fans have felt equal levels of excitement and bewilderment at how their up-and-down team has fared so far this season.

In the Champions League, the Toon have looked energetic and vibrant, with eight goals coming their way across two wins in the illustrious competition.

Yet, back in the big time of the Premier League, Newcastle have looked lost and lethargic, instead of potential world-beaters, with a 3-1 defeat at the hands of a relegation-threatened West Ham last time out, seeing the Magpies sink to new lows.

Unfortunately, many of the old guard Eddie Howe has favoured since taking on the Newcastle job post are beginning to show very visible signs of decay, with Dan Burn a declining presence who is hard to defend at this point, heading into the Toon’s latest European clash with Athletic Club.

Burn's decline at Newcastle

Before delving further into the number 33’s out-of-sorts form in the here and now, it should be said that Burn is definitely viewed as a modern-day hero at St James’ Park.

After all, the 6-foot-7 colossus was the man who headed home the all-important opener earlier this year to help Newcastle triumphantly lift the EFL Cup, as Howe continues to regularly wax lyrical about how “incredible” a servant the Blyth-born defender has been over the years on Tyneside.

But, Burn could now be overstaying his welcome, with the likes of Malick Thiaw – who joined in the summer from AC Milan – a shinier new model who will stay in the heart of Newcastle defence, you imagine, for the foreseeable future.

With Sven Botman rock-solid, too, as his consistent centre-back partner, Burn has had to make do with minutes as a makeshift left-back as of late, with the position not playing to his commanding strengths whatsoever.

Away at West Ham, Burn failed to register a single successful dribble, which then limited Newcastle’s attacking options down the left flank, with the 33-year-old also giving possession away a high 14 times.

With Lewis Hall edging back to full fitness, he could be in for a starting space against Ernesto Valverde’s challengers in midweek as Burn is perhaps given a rest after a shaky couple of games in a row.

Howe will also have to push his sentiment to one side, again, with another possible alteration on Wednesday.

Newcastle star who's "nowhere near his best" faces the chop

Thankfully, some of the 47-year-old’s long-standing servants continue to excel, so deep into their stays in the North.

Bruno Guimaraes – who has lined up for 168 games under Howe to date – finds himself three goals down this season in the Premier League already, which has led to pundit Michael Carrick hailing him as the club’s ever-dependable “talisman.”

1. Bruno Guimaraes

168

= 2. Fabian Schar

163

= 2. Dan Burn

163

4. Jacob Murphy

148

5. Joelinton

143

But, his fellow compatriot and midfield partner Joelinton isn’t receiving similar praise right now, despite boasting a colossal 143 games under Howe’s management.

Indeed, Joelinton – much like Burn – will be viewed as a modern-great amongst the hardened St James’ Park masses long after he departs the building, with teammate Kieran Trippier branding him as a “machine” when he’s at his high-octane peak.

With 31 goals and 21 assists up his sleeve too for Newcastle, Joelinton is clearly fondly respected and admired.

But, in the words of journalist Mark Douglas in mid-October, he has been “nowhere near his best” in recent times, as Newcastle continue to struggle to spark into life in the Premier League this season.

Only a sorry two strikes have come Joelinton’s way this season, with both of those efforts coming against lowly Bradford City in EFL Cup action.

Moreover, the number 7 was one of Newcastle’s worst culprits for looking lethargic against the Hammers, with just three of his seven duels being successfully won, as Lucas Paqueta and Freddie Potts controlled the game from the middle of the park for the hosts instead.

Last time out in Europe’s top competition, both Lewis Miley and Jacob Ramsey were given run-outs in the middle, as Joelinton then came on against Benfica in the latter stages.

A similar refreshed look could be on display against the visitors from Bilbao, with Hall possibly given some crucial minutes back in the first team fold, too, in place of Burn.

Newcastle's £100m star in the making is "all over the place" without Isak

This Newcastle United star is seriously struggling at the moment, having once been touted to be worth £100m.

ByKelan Sarson Nov 4, 2025