Tottenham have completed the signing of key target Micky van de Ven on a six-year deal from Wolfsburg. The addition of the left-footed centre-back is a major coup for the club and helps satisfy the demand of new boss Ange Postecoglou to bring in defensive reinforcements. Spurs have secured the services of Van de Ven on a contract running to 2029 in a deal worth an initial 40million euros (£34.5million), but with the final fee able to rise to around 50m euros (£43.1m) in add-ons. The Netherlands Under-21 international has been tracked by the club all summer and, after weighing up a move for him or Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba, Tottenham pressed ahead with their pursuit of the 22-year-old. Van de Ven started his career with Volendam before leaving his homeland to join Wolfsburg in summer 2021. An encouraging 2022-23 season, in which Van de Ven featured 36 times for the Bundesliga club, brought him to the attention of several teams across Europe, with Liverpool also reportedly interested. Spurs won the race for the Dutchman and he was in attendance for Sunday’s pre-season win over Shakhtar Donetsk after an agreement was reached with Wolfsburg over his transfer last week. Van de Ven completed his medical at the club’s Enfield training base on Monday and is likely to be part of the travelling party to Barcelona for Tuesday’s friendly against the Catalan club. Postecoglou refused to directly discuss the defender after the 5-1 victory over Shakhtar but has been open about the need for new centre-backs throughout pre-season. Ben Davies has played the majority of minutes on the left side of the back four system used by the Australian head coach, but Van de Ven’s pace will be a welcome addition to a team that will also use a high defensive line this season. Spurs retain an interest in former loanee Clement Lenglet and Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo, who only has one year left on his deal. Tottenham continue to work on incomings but will listen to offers for centre-backs Davinson Sanchez, Japhet Tanganga and Joe Rodon. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live It’s done – Millie Bright says England have moved on from Lauren James red card Newcastle sign Southampton defender Tino Livramento on five-year deal PFA chief says new approach to added time ‘changing game we fell in love with’

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Ukraine’s military has said troops were seeing battlefield success after recapturing another village at a time Western nations indicated that a major warfare – likely a phase of counteroffensive – is taking place in the besieged country War-time president Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed success on one of the front lines in southeast Ukraine. Mr Zelensky confirmed Ukrainian troops had taken the village of Staromaiorske. “I thank everyone who is fighting for Ukraine! Thank you for the liberation of Staromaiorske. Congratulations again, guys!” he said in his nightly address. Ukraine’s military had earlier said it was “solidifying positions” it had reached in the same area, east of the city of Zaporizhzhia. This comes as Vladimir Putin admitted that Ukrainian attacks have intensified in recent days, as Kyiv ramps up the counteroffensive against Russian troops. Speaking in St Petersburg at a summit of African leaders, the Russian president admitted that attacks by Ukrainian forces have “intensified significantly”, primarily in the Zaporizhzhia region. Battles in recent weeks have taken place on multiple points along the 1,500-kilometer front line as Ukraine wages its counteroffensive. Read More Even Putin admits Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russia’s forces – but progress will be slow Putin promises grain aid to Africa despite withdrawing from Ukraine deal Ukrainian fencer disqualified from world championships for refusing handshake with Russian opponent Russian defence minister meets Kim Jong-un during visit to arms exhibition in North Korea

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Vladimir Putin wants the Ukrainian counteroffensive halted by early October and has instructed Russia’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu to improve the situation, according to a Kremlin insider cited by a US-based think-tank monitoring the war. “Putin reportedly gave Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu a deadline of one month until early October 2023 to improve the situation on the frontlines, stop Ukrainian counteroffensives, and have Russian forces regain the initiative to launch an offensive operation against a larger city,” the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said in an intelligence update on Sunday. It said the Russian military command is likely ordering relentless attacks with the hope of forcing the Ukrainian counteroffensive to culminate, even at a high cost to Russian military capabilities, if the claims are true. The ISW said it has previously seen situations wherein the Russian defence ministry, “fearing the imminent loss of Putin’s favour”, has amped up its efforts to purge commanders offering honest but negative views. Russia launched what it called a “special military operation” in Ukraine in February last year, bringing its neighbour under a full-scale invasion and causing thousands of deaths and displacing millions. Mr Putin had first acknowledged the Ukrainian counteroffensive in June this year and claimed that the war-hit nation’s troops will not make significant gains against the strong Russian defences. He had also claimed Ukrainian troops would suffer heavy losses of personnel and western military equipment. But the initiative in which Kyiv is looking to push back all Russian forces from Ukraine’s territory, including the occupied areas, is now well into its fourth month and has registered some important territorial gains this month. President Volodymyr Zelensky has acknowledged the counteroffensive was slow, but added that is was “important that we are moving forward every day and liberating territory”. A study by the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based think-tank, found Ukrainian forces average 700-1,200m of progress every five days. That gives Russian forces time to dig in and especially to mine territory as they pull back. The 3rd Assault Brigade, composed entirely of volunteers and considered one of Ukraine’s best and most experienced corps, has been fighting almost nonstop in the east since January, while less-experienced units received new training and modern weapons to fight in the south. Read More ‘Panic’ grips Putin’s military and milbloggers over Ukraine’s advances on battlefield Ukraine-Russia war – live: ‘Panic’ among Putin’s troops as they ‘face threat of encirclement’ in Verbove Drones attack Black Sea, Crimea and parts of Russia where thousands suffered power cuts Russia ‘weaponised food and deliberately caused starvation’ in Ukraine Ukraine is building an advanced army of drones. For now, pilots improvise with duct tape and bombs

DENVER — Let's dive right into the latest round of MLB rumors and news, including some anxious moments for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw.Despite the future Hall of Famer throwing 5.2 innings of no-hit baseball as the Dodgers posted a 5-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies...