������Ƶ

LONDON: Premier League champions Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United for a British record transfer fee, media reports said Monday.
The Swedish forward is set to join the Reds in a deal worth about £130 million ($176 million), according to reports by The Athletic and The Telegraph, among other outlets.
The Athletic reported that Isak will undergo a medical on Monday before completing a six-year deal with the Merseyside club.
The fee will set a new Premier League transfer record, exceeding the £106 million that Chelsea paid Benfica for Enzo Fernandez in 2023, the reports said.
Isak, 25, scored 23 goals in the Premier League last season — behind only Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah — as Newcastle qualified for the Champions League.
He has been the subject of a protracted and acrimonious transfer saga this summer, training away from the rest of the Newcastle squad after making clear his desire to move to Liverpool.
Newcastle reportedly rejected an initial £110 million bid for Isak earlier this summer.
But the deal edged closer after the Magpies signed German international striker Nick Woltemade on Saturday for a club-record fee reported to be worth up to £69 million.
Isak will become the latest blockbuster acquisition in a lavish summer spending spree by Liverpool, who also brought in German midfielder Florian Wirtz in another massive deal.
The Reds have also signed French attacker Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt, Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen and Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth.
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe had hinted for the first time on Friday he might be open to allowing Isak to leave because of the impact a sale would have on Newcastle’s profit and sustainability calculations.
The northeast club were forced to sell Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh last year in order to avoid a points deduction, and a sizeable return on their investment in Isak would ease any Profit and Sustainability Regulations concerns.
Despite the influx of new talent Liverpool have not so far looked like the relentless team that strolled to the Premier League title last season with four games to spare.
But they still top the table with three wins from three after dispatching last year’s runners-up, Arsenal, 1-0 at Anfield on Sunday.
Newcastle sit 17th in the early running after a 0-0 stalemate against Leeds United.

NEW YORK: Daniil Medvedev has split with longtime coach Gilles Cervara after a disappointing year in the Grand Slam tournaments ended with his meltdown in a first-round loss at the US Open.
Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, and Cervara both posted messages Sunday on Instagram, thanking each other for a successful partnership that included the Russian reaching No. 1 in the ATP rankings.
“I am grateful to you for guiding me through all these years and let’s see what life brings us in the future,” Medvedev wrote about their “amazing 8-10 years together” in the caption of a photo of them holding their US Open trophies.
Medvedev has won 20 titles but has fallen to No. 13 in the rankings and lost in the first round of the last three major tournaments, including twice to Benjamin Bonzi.
It was during his loss to Bonzi last week that he had a tirade after the chair umpire allowed Bonzi another first serve after a photographer came onto the court during the match, eventually getting fined $42,500 by the US Open for unsportsmanlike conduct and racket abuse.
Cervara wrote that he loved coaching and supporting Medvedev “(even when it was difficult), and finding solutions with you and the team to help you perform.”
“I will keep in mind your unconventional magic as a player, which is your strength,” he added. “It will return, I’m sure.”