The number of people not working in the UK due to chronic illnesses has soared since the pandemic, putting pressure on the British...

Chelsea are negotiating a fee of £50m with add-ons for Romeo Lavia, after the midfielder signalled his intention to leave Southampton for Stamford Bridge rather than Liverpool. The Anfield club had earlier on Monday had a £60m bid accepted for the 19-year-old and, while he was interested in going north, moving to London has proved a more favourable option. There was some frustration given that it was felt Liverpool could have had a deal done last week, but Southampton absolutely refused to drop their asking price from £50m, in what has proved a seller's market. The signing will take Chelsea's expenditure to over £900m gross since the takeover in May 2022, and raised questions over how they will meet Financial Fair Play requirements. While the spending has inevitably been the subject of a lot of discussion at the top levels of clubs, just as it has been in the wider game, there has been no contact with the Premier League about it. Chelsea are likely to still have a number of outgoings in the two weeks left of the window - although that does raise the issue of clubs knowing they need to sell. The Premier League are expected to change their rules to bring them in line with Uefa's, closing a loophole that allows transfer fees to be spread over a longer-period and setting a limit at five years, but that will not affect the last year's spending. The regulations are also dependent on the year-end date for signings and which year the transactions go into. Chelsea completed the signing of Moises Caicedo for an initial £100m from Brighton earlier on Monday. Read More Chelsea end Caicedo saga by signing Brighton midfielder for initial £100m Chelsea’s £1bn spending spree still isn’t enough Chelsea and Liverpool trial football without defensive midfielders

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England host Italy at Wembley on Tuesday night knowing victory over the Azzurri will ensure qualification to Euro 2024. Gareth Southgate’s side won 2-1 in Naples in March and now could wrap up qualification with another success against the defending champions. Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the main talking points ahead of the clash. Arch rivals This will be the first clash between the two nations at Wembley since the Euro 2020 final – which Italy won on penalties. Since then the sides have met on three occasions, twice in the Nations League before the fixture in Italy earlier this year. England will be keen to exact a level of revenge on Tuesday night in a match which will have an impact on the outcome of the group. Regular faces to return After making 10 changes for Friday’s 1-0 friendly win over Australia, Southgate will no doubt bring back his big-hitters for the one competitive game of the October international break. The team performance in the narrow victory will not have seen many of the rotated side push to replace the more established order. Captain Harry Kane was an unused substitute against the Socceroos and will lead the line with the likes of Jordan Pickford, Kyle Walker, Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham, who were not involved on Friday, returning. Jordan jeered off again? Friday’s friendly against Australia saw Jordan Henderson line-up on home soil for the first time since his controversial summer switch from Liverpool to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq. Henderson has been a high-profile supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and last month apologised for any hurt he caused by moving to a country where homosexuality is illegal. The stand-in skipper’s name was met by murmurs before kick-off and the midfielder ended up being booed when substituted, with Southgate left angry by a reaction he felt “defies logic”. It remains to be seen, however, if the 33-year-old features against Italy, whether fans will respond in the same way. Pressure off in November Victory over Italy would seal England’s berth at Euro 2024 with two games of qualification still to play. Those fixtures see Southgate’s side host minnows Malta at Wembley next month before travelling to face North Macedonia, who could still have an outside chance of reaching the finals themselves. Going into those two games with the ability to experiment and look at players without the pressure of needing the points would be a handy outcome for Southgate, who has so little time to do so leading up to the finals. Unsure Azzurri Southgate said Italy have been “revitalised” under new head coach Luciano Spalletti, but defeat in London could cost the visitors dear. They may have lifted the European Championship at Wembley two years ago but they went on to miss out on the 2022 World Cup and have Ukraine – and to a lesser extent North Macedonia – to keep at bay. Ukraine travel to Malta on Tuesday and will leapfrog Italy into second place if they better the result of Spalletti’s men, meaning their showdown meeting in Leverkusen in the final round of fixtures could essentially be a play-off to make it to Euro 2024. Read More England fight off early Rahmanullah Gurbaz threat to limit Afghanistan to 284 Josh Adams believes Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake are ‘massive figureheads’ for Wales Sam Tomkins ready for family time after ‘selfish’ season ends in heartbreak Jordan Pickford insists England are not looking for revenge against Italy Andy Farrell believes spirit of outgoing Johnny Sexton can spur Ireland on Rangers appoint former Club Brugge boss Philippe Clement as new manager

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