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McCarthy, 23, signed for Everton last summer for £16 million as Roberto Martinez brought him to Goodison from Wigan Athletic, after winning the FA Cup. The Irishman has been a star in the Blues’ midfield this season, earning high praise from many sections of the media and supporters. However, those good performances throughout the season have led to interest sparking up from Man United, who apparently see McCarthy as an ideal midfielder in their system....

So here is where it gets tricky for Ol’ Roy. He has a problem for which there really is no solution, aside from losing, which certainly is less desirable and does not appear to be in the plans. Williams is about to snatch the pebble from his master’s hand. MORE: 10 greatest Tar Heels players of all time As the only No. 1 seed still remaining, North Carolina is the obvious favorite to win the 2016 NCAA championship, and that would be the third of Williams’ 13-year tenure with the Heels....

The reason? To honor Badger coach Bo Ryan’s late father, Butch. MORE: Must-see photos | Duke’s awesome hype video | Bald eagle at big game Butch died in 2013 but his son revealed this week that he always wanted to see him coach in the title game against Duke. Pretty moving thing for Williams to do. (Sources: Twitter, SB Nation)

As Williams endeavored to explain how no media member could know his team as well as he does, he asked if anyone attending the press conference who followed North Carolina’s Final Four victory over Syracuse had observed any of the Tar Heels’ practices. MORE: Final Four forgotten heroes | Syracuse’s Cinderella run smashed I had, back on Oct. 21. So I raised my hand. “How many of you guys came to any of our practices?...

Essex have won five of their eight games and lost two, with one being tied with Lancashire. Simon Harmer smashed three sixes in the last over in that thrilling contest and pulled off a stupendous run-chase for his team. The batsmen have been very good for Essex so far. Former England captain Alastair Cook is in prime form and so is skipper Tom Westley. Both have scored over 350 runs and have been sensational so far....

But did they do that? And was this the best Royal Rumble PPV of all-time? To be honest, the PPV as a whole was way too long, stretching to 7 hours including the pre show which made it one of the longest PPVs in history. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t exciting. Despite a couple of matches being predictable, WWE threw in an element of surprise every now and then which caught fans off guard....

Every year on Father’s Day, MLB players don blue in honor of dads and prostate cancer awareness. This year, Royals catcher Martín Maldonado took the Father’s Day honors a step further by wearing a clip-on tie over his chest protector. MORE: Watch ‘ChangeUp,’ a new MLB live whiparound show on DAZN A closer look reveals the tie features names of several assumed fathers, along with the logo of “All-Star,” the manufacturer of catcher’s gear....

Perez’s big moment came in the fifth inning in Game 1 of a doubleheader vs. the Indians. His record-breaker, Kansas City’s third two-run homer of the game, gave the Royals a 7-0 lead in an eventual 7-2 victory: MORE: MLB standings 2021: Updated playoff bracket, magic numbers as of Sept. 19 Bench, who set the record in 1970 — in just his fourth season in the majors — was happy to congratulate Perez on his accomplishment:...

With breaks like that, it's no wonder the Kansas City Royals have won 10 in a row. MORE: Royals pace AL Central | MLB scoreboard Omar Infante added a solo homer and Jeremy Guthrie pitched impressively into the seventh inning, helping the Royals extend their longest winning streak in 20 years with a 2-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday. Kansas City has outpitched, outhit and outfielded the Tigers in taking the first three games of this series — so the Royals have no reason to apologize for a little luck along the way....

What’s new Full disclosure: I’m a Royals fan. My wife’s favorite player is Bruce Chen. My son often wears a Zack Greinke T-shirt, which probably has another few years to go before it transitions from “outdated” to “throwback.” I have a vested interest in this team beyond how it looks on a fantasy roster. Following an 86-win season, the franchise’s first winning record since 2003, general manager Dayton Moore took a “go medium or go home” approach to the hot stove, an odd move considering that this season will act as a referendum on the Wil Myers trade and Moore’s beloved “Process” as a whole....

The fee sees the Germany international become the seventh most expensive signing in the club’s history and marks the highest fee they have paid for a defender. But how have the six players who cost more than him fared? Their big-money acquisitions have not always gone to plan, so here we take a look at the hits and misses among their six costliest players. Fernando Torres (£50m) - MISS Chelsea’s club-record swoop for Torres in January 2011 provoked anger on Merseyside, but Liverpool never really missed him as the Spaniard failed to fire in his four-year spell at Stamford Bridge....

There may be many reasons for the colossal success of New Horizons, including the game’s calm, cute, and wonderful demeanor, the fact the franchise seems to have been building up in popularity over the past for years, and/or the idea that it may be a perfect game during this odd COVID-19 quarantine time. RELATED: Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Where is Zipper? It is also true that Animal Crossing is jam-packed with seemingly endless content, in fact, one Grandma played New Leaf for 4,000 hours and is set to begin her New Horizons journey soon....

The Brazilian icon of days gone by earned the nickname ‘O Fenomeno’ on the back of goalscoring exploits which delivered two World Cup winners’ medals and three World Player of the Year awards. His namesake from the modern era has managed to scale similar heights, with Cristiano Ronaldo sending records tumbling on his way to collecting five Ballons d’Or. Both men have been able to achieve icon status, with a man who played against and alongside two of the finest performers to have ever graced the game admitting that there is little to choose between the pair....

Rooney returned to Goodison Park last July following a trophy-laden 13-year stint at Manchester United, and went on to net 11 goals for the Toffees, finishing 2017-18 as their top scorer. The 32-year-old failed to find consistency in an often-struggling side, though, and new manager Marco Silva and director of football Marcel Brands confirmed in June that the former England captain was in talks with MLS club DC. The forward finally completed the move on 28 June, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract, suggesting at the time that the decision to leave Merseyside was not just down to him....

The England captain set up both of Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s goals in a one-sided first half, as United entered the break 3-0 up at the Liberty Stadium. Those assists took him past the century mark in league football, a feat that only two other players have managed. Only Ryan Giggs and Frank Lampard have recorded more than 100 assists since the Premier League began in 1992, marking Rooney out as one of the finest creators around....

Surely only rain can save the hosts now, with a mixed forecast for the final day in Port Elizabeth, where England need only four wickets to take a 2-1 lead with one match to play. Root had never taken more than two wickets in a Test, but the captain snagged 4-31 in 19 overs on Sunday after Mark Wood struck twice to leave South Africa 102-6 in their second innings, still trailing by 188 runs....

The star batsman made 113 as England posted 322-7 at Lord’s, before a combination of Liam Plunkett’s 4-46 and disciplined bowling from spinners Moeen Ali (1-42) and Adil Rashid (2-38) helped bowl India for 236. England’s 86-run win sets up a series decider in Leeds and Root wants more of the same at Headingley after welcoming a return to form following an eight-wicket loss in the first encounter. “That ruthless side of the ODI team really came out today and we’re seeing it more and more,” Root said....

He also had a lot of success at major tournaments in the early stages of his career. But recently, he has experienced a dry spell. McIlroy has been in contention at plenty of major tournaments, but he hasn’t won one since 2014. He will look to change that at the 2022 U.S. Open, a tournament at which he has performed well in recent years with three consecutive top-10 finishes....

Rose started the final round three shots adrift of overnight leader Li but quickly cut that deficit and found himself favourite with four holes to play. Li had struggled to match his form from earlier in the week but an eagle at 15 drew him level, the Chinese even having a putt for the title at the last. But he missed that and Rose also erred to send the tournament to a play-off hole, where Li’s putter failed him again, handing the Ryder Cup winner the trophy and a return to the rankings summit ahead of Brooks Koepka....

On Thursday night, Rose was back on the court for Christmas Day for the first time since suffering that ACL tear, against the Lakers once again. Rose walked away with another win, leading his team to a 113-93 victory at the United Center. Rose produced 20 points on 7-of-14 from the field with the same shot he used to against the Lakers years ago. He pulled out to an early start on floaters from all angles, the most impressive of which came on a left-side drive that ended with a quick flip over the defense and into the rim....