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Chelsea have completed the signing of France football international Christopher Nkunku from RB Leipzig, landing the versatile attacker for around a reported £52million. He becomes the first signing for the club since Mauricio Pochettino was confirmed as the new manager, with both men set to officially join the Stamford Bridge club on 1 July. Nkunku, age 25, came through the ranks at PSG before heading to Leipzig where he scored 23 goals last season. He has won ten caps for the French national team, though missed out on a place at the World Cup in November and December due to a knee injury. “I am incredibly happy to be joining Chelsea,' said Nkunku upon signing. “A big effort was made to bring me to the club and I am looking forward to meeting my new coach and teammates and showing the Chelsea supporters what I can do on the pitch. “Having played in Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga, I now want to play in the Premier League, one of the strongest leagues in the world. I am very excited for this challenge and will be proud to wear the Chelsea shirt.” Chelsea co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley added: “Christopher has proved himself one of the standout attacking players in European football over the past two seasons and will add quality, creativity and versatility to our squad. “He has demonstrated his ability at the highest level with RB Leipzig and France and we look forward to him joining up with his new teammates ahead of the new season.” Nkunku, who has signed a six-year contract, can play anywhere in the forward lines. Initially a wide attacking midfielder, he has been a regular both as a roving centre-forward and an advanced midfielder for Leipzig, while also playing in support of a striker in the flexible systems of Jesse Marsch and Julian Nagelsmann at the club.

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Conor Gallagher rose up through the international ranks alongside Bukayo Saka and has backed England’s latest hat-trick hero to get even better. Saka took home the match ball after hitting three in Monday’s 7-0 thrashing of North Macedonia at Old Trafford on Monday night, a result which leaves England on the cusp of securing Euro 2024 qualification. The 21-year-old’s second strike was the pick of the bunch as a brace for captain Harry Kane, a Marcus Rashford finish and Kalvin Phillips’ first England goal wrapped up a fine win in the last game of a long season. It was a campaign which also saw Saka score three goals at the World Cup, with the progression of the Arsenal ace coming as no shock to Gallagher. “I played with Bukayo since, I think, the Under-19s,” the Chelsea midfielder said. “Even then you could see that he would become a top player and to see how he has progressed until now has been amazing and I am sure he is going to get even better. “He is a special player and to get a hat-trick was amazing for him. He had an amazing performance. He is right up there (with the best) and he is only getting better. “I think he is a very exciting talent with an exciting future and we are looking forward to seeing where it takes him.” While Saka flourished over the course of a season in which he starred for club and country, Gallagher endured a difficult year at Stamford Bridge. The 23-year-old featured in all-but three of Chelsea’s Premier League games but it was a season to forget for the Blues as they finished a lowly 12th. Gallagher – who has been linked with a move away with the likes of Brighton reportedly interested – insists he is looking forward to working under new Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino and retaining his place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad. “I love Chelsea,” he added. “It has been a tough season for me and the whole team so I think we will just be working hard to get us back to where we belong. “I am always grateful to be here and for Gareth to have that trust in me despite it being a tough season for both me and Chelsea. I am really happy he has shown that trust in me still and Ithink he knows I will work as hard as I can no matter what to give my best. “I just need to keep working hard and get a bit of my confidence back in a way, I didn’t lose it but I need to get a rhythm of playing more games, score more goals and I am trying to reach that stage. “(Pochettino) is a top manager, everyone at Chelsea is happy he’s here and we’re looking forward to working with him.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live FIFA urged to ensure equality with qualification for Women’s World Cup Chelsea complete signing of France forward Christopher Nkunku for reported £63m Khaldoon Al Mubarak insists Manchester City will not stop growing

FIFA must make sure equal conditions are in place for all players involved in qualification for the next Women’s World Cup, world players’ union FIFPRO has said. A FIFPRO report published on Tuesday found huge variance in conditions across the qualification events run by each of the six global confederations, with some found to be “not up to the standards of elite international football”. World Cup qualification should also be a standalone event across all confederations, rather than being achieved via performance in other tournaments such as the Copa America, FIFPRO said. FIFPRO has praised FIFA for “listening to the voice of players” in ensuring that players at the finals in Australia and New Zealand this summer will benefit from the same playing and preparation conditions as their male counterparts did in Qatar last year. However, it believes it is now vital that conditions are equalised for all female players involved in qualification. “During qualification the conditions that the players are exposed to and expected to deliver in, during some of the biggest competitive moments of their lives, are not up to the standards of elite international football, putting both the players and the sport at risk,” the foreword to the Qualifying Conditions Report co-signed by FIFPRO president David Aganzo and general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann read. “In highlighting these conditions and the status of players across the globe, FIFPRO firmly calls on the industry to take a closer look at the qualification processes in each of the six confederations. “This is so we all can commit to meaningful changes that look at the overall opportunities the FIFA Women’s World Cup can deliver to a greater number of players than those that just appear at the final tournament in July and August this year.” A survey of 362 players hailing from all six FIFA confederations found 29 per cent were not paid at all for participating in their qualification events. Fifty four per cent did not receive a pre-tournament medical examination, 70 per cent did not receive a pre-tournament ECG and 39 per cent did not have access to mental health support. Two-thirds of the players surveyed had to take leave or unpaid leave from another form of employment to participate in these tournaments, the report found. Thirty-one per cent said training pitches were not of an elite standard, while 32 per cent said match day pitches and stadia were not of an elite standard. Two-thirds said recovery facilities were either not of an elite standard or not provided at all, while 70 per cent reported that the gym facilities were not of an appropriate level. “Any stat that’s below 100 per cent in terms of access to important medical checks and things like that is completely unacceptable,” FIFPRO director of global policy and strategic relations for women’s football Sarah Gregorius said. “We just want to work with whoever wants to work with us, particularly FIFA and the confederations, to understand why that is the case and how that can be prevented (from happening again) because that is certainly not something that should be acceptable to anybody.” The PA news agency understands the report has been shared with FIFA and the confederations. FIFA has declined to comment on it directly, but would point to the steps it has taken to close some of the gaps which exist in the women’s game, both in enlarging the World Cup to 32 teams and increasing compensation to players and national associations. The women’s international calendar was agreed on by all confederations on the FIFA Council after an extensive consultation process, while qualification criteria and tournaments are defined by the confederations rather than FIFA. FIFA has also sought to improve investment in the women’s game by challenging broadcasters and sponsors, with president Gianni Infantino threatening a World Cup blackout in some countries if broadcasters did not increase their offers for the rights. A deal with some major European markets, including the United Kingdom, was agreed last week. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Conor Gallagher backs Bukayo Saka to get even better for England Chelsea complete signing of France forward Christopher Nkunku for reported £63m Khaldoon Al Mubarak insists Manchester City will not stop growing

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Chelsea have completed the signing of France international Christopher Nkunku from RB Leipzig. The 25-year-old made a pre-contract agreement to join the club in December but has now completed the move for a reported £63million. He scored 23 goals in 36 games for the Bundesliga side last season and becomes the first major arrival at Stamford Bridge since Mauricio Pochettino was confirmed as the club’s new manager. “I am incredibly happy to be joining Chelsea,” Nkunku told the club’s website. “A big effort was made to bring me to the club and I am looking forward to meeting my new coach and team-mates and showing the Chelsea supporters what I can do on the pitch.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak insists there will be no stopping as the club continue to grow their global influence. The Premier League and European champions sit at the heart of a worldwide network of 13 clubs known as the City Football Group. As well as City, the CFG operates clubs in locations including New York, Melbourne and Yokohama, and this year brought Brazilian outfit Bahia into the fold. CFG intends to invest considerably in all of those operations, including players, coaches, facilities and academies. Khaldoon told the club’s media channels: “It’s always about growth. You grow, you pause, you get things in order, and then you start the next step, one step at a time. We’re not going to stop. “We’re going to keep going and we’re going to keep investing and we’re going to keep growing value, and we’re going to keep bringing happiness to every community and every club we have in the world, and hopefully we’ll keep bringing success in every club and team we have around the world. “It’s been a great journey over the last 15 years but I’m excited about the future and it’s about now, the next 10, 15 years too.” Manchester City have been the greatest success story having won seven Premier League titles since 2012 and this year they became only the second English side to win the treble. The club’s latest new infrastructure project is now in the pipeline with plans recently submitted to increase capacity at the Etihad Stadium to more than 60,000. The expansion is part of a £300million development which also includes the construction of a hotel, shops and food and drink outlets as well as a new 3,000-capacity covered fan zone. Khaldoon says it will also not be the last improvement at the stadium. “It’s very exciting,” he said. “Every year there’s always something new, every year, because there’s always a need to improve and evolve and grow. We don’t stand still. We never stood still. “Every couple of years we will do something, whether it’s the Tunnel Club, whether it’s the new stands, whether it’s the seating. “And now we’re going to have a wonderful, wonderful development around it that’s going to just enhance the whole area, is going to be great for the fans and it’s going to bring, I think, positive revenue for the club. “We’re always in growth mode, we’re never in contentment and pause and ‘let’s just milk the asset’. “This is about building value and growing value, and it’s about reinvesting consistently into this club.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Heavy rain set to delay start of final day of first Ashes Test England’s Lauren Bell raring to go in Ashes opener after ‘special’ Test debut Alice Capsey and Alice Davidson-Richards released from England Test squad

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Egypt hiked the minimum wage for private-sector workers for the second time in six months, as a series