Luke Bosher

Arsenal midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga has joined La Liga side Sevilla on a season-long loan. The Athletic reported last week that Lokonga was to undergo a medical ahead of the move, which has now been confirmed with Sevilla holding an option to buy for a fee in the region of €12million (£10m). If Sevilla activate the purchase option, Arsenal will keep a 25 per cent sell-on clause of any future move Lokonga makes. Lokonga had been keen to move to Spain, which gave Sevilla an advantage over other interested parties such as Serie A’s Fiorentina. The 24-year-old spent last season on loan at...

The 2024 European Championship Golden Boot has been shared six ways after six players finished level on three goals following Sunday’s final between Spain and England. Heading into the final in Berlin, England’s Harry Kane, Spain’s Dani Olmo, Slovakia’s Ivan Schranz, Georgia’s Georges Mikautadze, Germany’s Jamal Musiala and Netherlands’ Cody Gakpo were all tied on three goals. There were also two active players with two goals playing in the final, England’s Jude Bellingham and Spain’s Fabian Ruiz. Neither Kane nor Olmo could add to their...

Erling Haaland will be the most expensive Fantasy Premier League asset ever after his price rose for the 2024-25 season. The Manchester City striker has been priced at £15million for the upcoming campaign, a £1m increase on his starting price for the 2023-24 season. No player has ever been priced above £14m at the beginning of an FPL season, with Robin van Persie, Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo the only other players to have started at that value. Other big hitters include Mohamed Salah and Frank Lampard, who were priced at £13m. Haaland scored 27 goals in 31 Premier League...

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk said he will consider his club and international future following the Netherlands’ Euro 2024 semi-final defeat by England. Van Dijk, 33, saw his side concede a last-minute goal against England in Dortmund on Wednesday night as Netherlands lost 2-1. The centre-back is captain of his club and country but only has one year left on his contract at Liverpool. Asked about his future following the England loss, Van Dijk, via the Reuters news agency, said he “hasn’t the slightest idea right now”. “I will think carefully this summer about what I want at club...

Slavko Vincic has been appointed as the match referee for the European Championship semi-final between Spain and France. The Slovenian official will be joined by compatriots Tomaz Klancnik, Andraz Kovacic and Nejc Kajtazovic, the former two acting as his assistants and the latter the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). Slovakia’s Ivan Kruzliak will be the fourth official. Vincic has previously overseen two Euro 2024 fixtures, including one of Spain’s group games. The 44-year-old’s first match at the competition was Switzerland’s 3-1 win over Hungary on June 15, where he...

Adidas has renamed its 11pro boots after Germany midfielder Toni Kroos. Kroos played what is set to be his final game in professional football on Friday evening as his Germany side lost 2-1 against Spain in the quarter-finals of the European Championship. The 34-year-old has worn the same pair of boots — the 11pros — since their release in 2013. That includes his entire time at Real Madrid, which saw him win four La Liga titles and five Champions Leagues, and his 2014 World Cup win with Germany. Kroos announced his retirement in May, with Madrid’s Champions League final win over Borussia...

Spain midfielder Pedri had to be withdrawn only minutes into his country’s European Championship quarter-final due to a left knee injury. Pedri, 21, was on the end of a heavy challenge from Germany’s Toni Kroos in the opening five minutes of the game in Stuttgart. The Barcelona man had to receive treatment on the pitch before being substituted off and replaced by Dani Olmo in the eighth minute. Pedri appeared visibly upset as he left the pitch and at half-time, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed their medics were evaluating an internal-lateral sprain on his left knee. On...

Jude Bellingham has been given a suspended one-game ban following a UEFA investigation into the lewd gesture he appeared to make towards the Slovakia bench in the European Championship last 16. Bellingham will be available for England’s quarter-final tie against Switzerland in Dusseldorf on Saturday. He has also been fined €30,000, while the English FA has been fined €11,000 for the lighting of fireworks and crowd disturbances by supporters during the Slovakia match. UEFA released a statement on Monday which said Bellingham would be investigated “regarding a potential violation of...

Jan Vertonghen has retired from international football following Belgium’s exit at the European Championship. Vertonghen played 90 minutes as Belgium suffered defeat against France in their last-16 game on Monday, deflecting Randal Kolo Muani’s shot into his own net in the 1-0 loss. The 37-year-old did not feature in Belgium’s opening Euro 2024 game as they lost 1-0 against Slovakia but was restored by head coach Domenico Tedesco for their following group games as they beat Romania 2-0 and then drew 0-0 with Ukraine. “From the training ground to the pitch, you’ve shown us what it...

Atletico Madrid have extended the contract of defender Cesar Azpilicueta. The Spanish side have also confirmed the exits of Memphis Depay, Gabriel Paulista and Mario Hermoso. Azpilicueta joined Atletico last summer from Chelsea, having made 508 appearances and won the Champions League with the Premier League side. The 34-year-old made 34 appearances for Atletico last season, featuring at centre-back and right-back. On Azpilicueta’s contract extension, Atletico said: “His experience and hierarchy soon made him a fundamental cornerstone in the dressing room, as well as one of the most...

Barcelona have confirmed the departure of Marcos Alonso. Alonso, 33, leaves Barcelona after joining from Chelsea in the summer of 2022. He initially signed a one-year deal that was extended in January 2023. Alonso made only eight appearances for Barcelona last season, although did spend several months out with a back injury. Initially, Barcelona had announced the exits of Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix alongside Alonso. However, the Catalan club later updated their media release and deleted posts on social media that had confirmed the departures of the Portuguese pair. This story has since been...

Hungary’s Barnabas Varga has been released from hospital following his accidental collision with Scotland goalkeeper Angus Gunn that left the striker unconscious and with multiple cheekbone fractures. The Hungarian FA (MLSZ) has confirmed that Varga is now recovering at home in Hungary after being discharged. The incident occurred during Hungary’s final group game at the European Championship in Germany. Varga collided with Gunn in the 70th minute of Sunday’s game when both players were challenging for a high ball. That led to a lengthy delay while Varga received treatment...

Five England fans were arrested at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne on Tuesday ahead of their team’s goalless draw with Slovenia. Two supporters were arrested for assault, two for trying to enter the stadium without a ticket and one for criminal damage. The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) confirmed the arrests in a statement on Wednesday, adding that the majority of the approximately 15,000 England fans in Cologne were “extremely well-behaved with no disorder reported”. Eight England fans were arrested in Frankfurt following their 1-1 draw with Denmark last week, while one was...

Wrexham will begin their 2024-25 League One campaign in 19 years with a home game against Wycombe Wanderers on August 10. The Welsh side won promotion — their second in consecutive seasons under the ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney — to League One in April and ended the season with a second-place finish in League Two, English football’s fourth tier. Their opening match will likely see Wrexham’s Paul Mullin come up against Nathan Bishop, the goalkeeper who was involved in the incident which saw the striker suffer a punctured lung during a pre-season friendly against...

Luke Shaw trained today with his England team-mates but will not feature in their final European Championship group game against Slovenia tomorrow. Shaw had been training individually as he works his way back to fitness following a hamstring injury sustained in February. The 28-year-old was included in Gareth Southgate’s England squad despite having not played since then and did not feature in their first two group games at the Euros, the 1-0 win over Serbia and last Thursday’s 1-1 draw against Denmark. But England confirmed all 26 players in Southgate’s squad — including...