Mauricio Pochettino signed a new four-year contract with the USA in the summer. On Friday he was in tears at his first news conference as Manchester United head coach, with a release clause of about £7.4m paid and two games against Haiti still to manage before he goes. The chance to manage at Old Trafford, he said, was too good to reject.
He will not join United until after the second Haiti game, on Wednesday, and inherits a side 18th in the Premier League, one point above bottom-placed Sunderland, with one win in 10 league games: United's worst start to a domestic season in 40 years. Michael Carrick was sacked on Thursday. Pochettino's first game is at Liverpool on 22 November.
Nobody should blame a coach for taking a job this big, but a four-year deal signed in the summer turned out to be worth very little to the USA. United, for their part, now owe Pochettino the patience that Carrick never got.
Scotland have seven points from five games in Group B1, one behind Slovenia in second, after Slovenia's goalless draw at home to Switzerland on Friday. Second place would keep their promotion hopes alive. To get it, Scotland have to win in St Gallen on Monday and hope North Macedonia, who have no points, take something off Slovenia.
Friday did not suggest a side ready to win in Switzerland. Scotland created plenty, with Stole Dimitrievski making three good saves and Billy Gilmour missing an open goal, but they dropped off after scoring, conceded from a corner within three minutes and were under pressure in the last five. Sebastien Pocognoli's wing-backs and lone striker are still being learned, and the players asked for patience.
There were positives. McGinn has two more goals, Luke Graham handled a first international start, and Scotland won a game they had to win. Andy Robertson should win his 103rd cap on Monday to become his country's most-capped player outright.
Monday is about more than the table. Win in St Gallen, and the new way of playing has its first real reward before the qualifiers for the Euros. Lose, and the questions asked at Hampden on Friday will get louder.
Ronaldinho, 46, is set to make his first competitive appearance since September 2015 when Ravenna face local rivals Forli in Serie C on Sunday. "He will play from the start, there's no doubt," said manager Andrea Mandorlini. The Brazilian joined the club as an investor in August and hopes to score one last goal to take his career total to 300.
The EFL has written to club chairs and executives advising them to avoid social media posts that could harm their reputation. It follows Wrexham's Spygate-themed video aimed at Southampton in September, featuring owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney before Wrexham won the game 2-1, Southampton's reply after Wrexham were fined for fielding two ineligible players, and a Birmingham City graphic on the same theme.
Walsall co-chairman Leigh Pomlett says some EFL clubs "beggar belief" in the way they are run, after the Independent Football Regulator found that 94% of clubs made losses in 2025-26. "Some clubs would still lose money even if they paid their players nothing," he told BBC Radio WM. Walsall will still have to cut spending to qualify for a licence.
Non-league Hendon play today at Bedfont Sports, their first game since midfielder Ezekiel Williams died in hospital on 2 November from head injuries after an incident in Milton Keynes. He was 26. "I think there are going to be a lot of tears," chairman Cyrus Cooper told BBC Sport. Williams, who had played for Hastings United, Kettering Town and St Ives Town, joined the Isthmian League club in September.
Mohamed Salah scored twice late on as Egypt beat Malawi 5-0 in Ali Maher's first match in charge in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying. Tolu Arokodare scored twice off the bench as Nigeria beat co-hosts Tanzania 3-1, and Achraf Hakimi got two in Morocco's 5-1 win over Niger. Tunisia lost 2-0 at home to Libya and are in danger of missing the finals for the first time since 1992.
Duncan Ferguson has his first win as Glentoran manager at the third attempt, after two draws. Jordan Stewart, fresh from a contract extension, put the Glens ahead against Bangor at the Oval and, after Ben Cushnie equalised on 83 minutes, 18-year-old Cal Weatherup ran onto a long ball to score the winner with three minutes left. "I'm absolutely made up," said the former Everton striker.
David Beckham will be inducted into the US National Soccer Hall of Fame in its 2027 class. He joined LA Galaxy from Real Madrid in 2007 and scored 20 goals in 124 games, twice winning both MLS Cup and the Supporters' Shield, before becoming co-owner of Inter Miami. The ceremony is on 16 April 2027 in Frisco, Texas. Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz are also going in.
Manchester United are tracking Como's Argentina midfielder Nico Paz, 22, ahead of a possible move next summer, reports The Sun, in an item relayed by BBC Sport's Saturday gossip column. Paz scored twice for Como against United in the Champions League last month.
New Manchester United head coach Mauricio Pochettino is expected to be backed in the January transfer window, with a defender and a striker the likely targets, reports the Telegraph, in an item relayed by BBC Sport's Saturday gossip column.
US Soccer is expected to make Pep Guardiola a top target to replace Mauricio Pochettino as head coach of the national team, reports The Athletic, in an item relayed by Sky Sports' Saturday Paper Talk round-up of the newspapers.
RB Leipzig winger Antonio Nusa is distancing himself from transfer speculation as Arsenal keep up their interest, reports talkSPORT, in an item relayed by Sky Sports' Saturday Paper Talk round-up of the newspapers.
The BBC will show two non-league FA Cup second-round ties next month: Dover Athletic v Leicester City on Saturday 5 December (17:15) and Salisbury v Blackpool on Sunday 6 December (12:15), both on BBC Two. Salisbury have not conceded in three ties this season. Every club in a televised tie receives £60,000. The third-round draw comes before Guiseley v Notts County on Monday 7 December.
Max Dowman, aged 16 years, 10 months and 13 days, broke Jude Bellingham's record as England's youngest Under-21 player when he came off the bench with about half an hour left against Portugal. He could not stop a 1-0 friendly defeat: Afonso Moreira's 38th-minute shot squeezed under Tommy Setford. Lee Carsley's side have lost two in a row for the first time since March 2021.
Rochdale and York City meet in League Two today for the first time since their final-day National League decider on 25 April, when the pair had 212 points between them. Rochdale fans invaded the pitch after Emmanuel Dieseruvwe's 95th-minute header, but Josh Stones equalised in the 13th minute of stoppage time to win York the title in a 1-1 draw. Rochdale followed them up through the play-offs.
England, already through to the Nations League quarter-finals, must win in Madrid tomorrow to top Group A3 ahead of Spain, who lead them by three points. Group winners are seeded for the draw on 20 November, face a runner-up and play the second leg at home. If England draw or lose, they will face a group winner. The two-leg ties are between 25 and 30 March.