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Match of the Day’s Ashley Williams and Alan Shearer look at the performance of Manchester United’s Amad Diallo and the challenge of fitting him into Ruben Amorim’s system after the Red Devils’ 2-2 draw at Nottingham Forest.

WATCH MORE: Late Amad volley earns Man Utd point in thriller at Forest

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Cummins’ injury concerns heading into this winter’s Ashes could be a case of a career about to come full circle – but not in the way Australia’s captain will have wanted.

He made his Test debut as an 18-year-old in 2011 against South Africa, becoming the second-youngest player to take a five-wicket haul in an innings at that time, despite sustaining a heel injury during the match.

But his explosive debut proved to be something of a false dawn. Cummins had to wait six years to make his second Test appearance as a young body failed to withstand the load of fast bowling, suffering repeated stress fractures to his lower back.

Fast-forward 14 years, to the upcoming winter of 2025, and back problems have once again resurfaced, albeit this time as “lumbar bone stress” rather than a fracture. He has not bowled a ball since July.

If back injuries have plagued Cummins’ Test career, periods of fitness have been filled with ebullient excellence as a thoroughbred quick.

The 32-year-old, who was made Test captain in the wake of Tim Paine’s resignation shortly before the 2021-22 Ashes, has taken 309 Test wickets at an average of 22.10.

He is even more formidable in Australia, taking 177 wickets at 19.92, while he has also taken 91 wickets against England in just 19 matches.

In the most recent Ashes series in 2023, Cummins played in all five Tests, one of only two bowlers to do so along with Stuart Broad, taking 18 wickets.

A talismanic leader, Cummins enjoyed a glorious 2023 as captain, taking six wickets in Australia’s triumphant World Test Championship final and starring in their 50-over World Cup final victory in Ahmedabad – both against India.

He is the only captain in Test history to win the World Test Championship, World Cup and an Ashes series.

BRITAIN’S smallest castle, a charming 19th century Gothic turret in the heart of Hertfordshire, has gone up for sale.

The Gazebo Tower is a glorious Grade II listed landmark which dates back to 1833 and is packed with royal-looking features inside its 645sqft of living space.

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Described as a “local icon”, this three-storey tower in Ross-on-Wye looks out over the River Wye and the Hertfordshire countryside.

Inside, each of its circular rooms – roughly 16ft across – has been transformed into a kitchen, a bedroom and a living room.

It also comes with a picturesque roof-top terrace, described as offering 360-degree views of the Black Mountains of Southeast Wales, the spire of Saint Mary’s Church, Chase Wood and Ross-on-Wye’s vibrant architecture.

It’s currently available to buy for £330,000.

Estate agents Hamilton Stiller described it “an opportunity to own a landmark and one of Ross-on-Wye’s most striking features.”

One of the most whimsical touches to the property is how the double bed hides a bath underneath – making the most of the space.

The top floor also includes an en-suite wet room and a spiral staircase leading to a battery-operated roof hatch.

Athletes from the Ross Rowing Club can even often be seen sailing down the River Wye from the windows.

The quintessential market town of Ledbury is only 13 miles away, while trains to London Paddington take two hours.

This tower, once owned by Herefordshire Council, was sold in 2001 when its only floor was accessible by ladder.

Tony Billingham, who won the bid by post, lovingly restored the tower into a cozy, functional home and later opened it to visitors, donating proceeds to local charities.

This isn’t the only house that has caught widespread attention recently.

A seemingly ordinary home has gone up for sale at £400,000, but there’s one very unexpected twist that’s caught people’s attention.

Photos of the property reveal that one of its two bathrooms has been transformed into a home office – giving workers the chance to “do their business” without ever leaving the room.

A three-bedroom home in Walton, Chesterfield, has hit the market for £150,000, appearing perfectly normal from the street – but step inside, and things take a decidedly unexpected turn.

Baffled house hunters have branded the interior “bonkers”, with photos revealing a quirky layout and eccentric design choices that are anything but ordinary.

A charming seaside property with a fascinating backstory has caught the attention of locals and house hunters alike.

Listed for £235,000 in February, the home was purchased by a couple in July after making several visits over the summer.

Nicknamed “the Dolls House” by locals, the petite property is cleverly built in an alleyway between two neighbouring homes and offers breathtaking views of the coast.

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Australia remain hopeful that captain Pat Cummins will be fit for the first Ashes Test against England in November but coach Andrew McDonald says it is getting “tight”.

The 32-year-old pace bowler has not played since suffering a back injury against the West Indies in July. Australian media reported on Wednesday that he will miss the first Test in Perth on 21 November and is doubtful for the whole series.

On Friday McDonald said there was “a lot more positivity” surrounding the skipper’s chances of playing in the opening Test but he would need at least “four, four-and-a-half weeks” of bowling practice to condition his body for the rigours of Ashes cricket. The first Test is six weeks away.

“The reality is, we’re starting to get tight in terms of the times,” McDonald said.

“We’re still optimistic, hopeful, but this time next week, I think we’ll be in a position to get a better gauge on where he’s at.”

McDonald said he would weigh up whether Cummins could be included in the side even if he was a “little bit underdone”.

Cummins has taken 309 Test wickets at an average of 22.10 runs per dismissal.

He is even more formidable in Australia, taking 177 wickets at 19.92, while he has also taken 91 wickets against England in 19 matches.

England vice-captain Harry Brook said it would be a “bonus” if Cummins was to miss out but warned that they could not take any replacement lightly.

“Pat Cummins is a phenomenal bowler and has been for so many years now,” said Brook on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“He’s got incredible skill at high pace and if he’s not there it’s a bonus for us.

“But they have got lots of amazing bowlers so I’m sure they’ll draft someone in who is very skillful. We can’t take anyone lightly.”

‘Is there anything worth seeing in Latvia?” asked a bemused friend when I explained my destination. “Other than Riga?” Latvia’s capital is certainly worth a visit: a wonderland of perfectly preserved art nouveau architecture with a medieval centre of narrow cobbled streets and enough quirky museums to satisfy the most curious of visitors – most of whom just come for a weekend.

But a short drive or bus ride east of Riga lies another, more expansive and completely empty, wonderland: a wild, post-Soviet landscape of untouched forests, ecologically renowned wetlands, windblown beaches and crumbling castles. Not to mention the newly restored baronial estates where you can stay for the price of an average British B&B. This region, known as Kurzeme, is almost the size of Yorkshire (population: 5.5 million) but with a mere 240,000 inhabitants.

Kurzeme (also known by its German name, Courland) has 180 miles of undeveloped coastline and a good proportion of Latvia’s 1,200 castles and mansions, as well as the ancient valley of the Abava River, listed by World Monuments Watch as one of “100 endangered unique cultural monuments”.

It also boasts Kuldīga, a Unesco world heritage town, and Liepāja an upcoming European capital of culture (2027) – full of languishing art nouveau architecture, and enough former Soviet collective farms, KGB watch towers and military barracks to remind us that history really is just a breath away.

The Latvian bus system is excellent and extremely cheap but I rented a car for a few days to maximise my time. My tour began in Sabile, a town on the River Abava – whose crystalline, beaver-filled waters flow from Kandava to Kuldīga (Sabile is also home to several vineyards where Latvian wine can be tasted). Here, one misty cacophonous morning, I casually flipped open my Merlin birding app. Within minutes it had identified 25 birds including sedge warblers, golden orioles and spotted fly catchers and I had seen marsh harriers. Apparently such a wide variety is perfectly normal: Latvia’s bogs, wetlands, coastal lagoons and ancient forests (53% of the country is woodland while 5% is wetlands) make it one of northern Europe’s best birding sites.

Just a few minutes’ drive outside town is the Pedvāle Art Park, a 100-hectare nature reserve where storks pick their way through swathes of wild lupins and 195 contemporary sculptures from across the world. Founder Ojārs Feldbergs told me the Abava valley is home to 800 species of plant and animal, as well as crusader castles and Viking graves. “It was once a trading route for amber,” he tells me. “The Baltic Sea is the world’s richest source of Baltic gold, which was transported to St Petersburg and the east through this valley for centuries.”

Later, the bucolic beauty and clean waters of the Abava valley, along with its therapeutic sulphur springs, attracted hundreds of German aristocracy, giving the region a disproportionate number of baronial estates. Though these fell into disrepair during the Soviet era when they became collective farms, tractor houses and pig farms, in the past decade many have been painstakingly restored as boutique hotels.

At Kukšu Manor (guided tour €5), I gawped at lavishly painted ceilings and jaw-dropping frescoes. Here, for €185 for a double room, anyone can live, fleetingly, as a Baltic baron. Just north of the valley, I strolled in the walled gardens, vineyards and frescoed state rooms of Nurmuiža Castle and Spa, an elegantly restored estate where you can dip in a wild swimming lake as cranes and storks fly overhead, and double rooms cost from €80. Alternatively, at Padure Manor near Kuldīga, a reconstruction-in-progress often used for film sets, €40 will buy you a bedroom and access to the musty Soviet library that came with the house.

Kuldīga itself, a charmingly dusty town, became Unesco-protected in 2023, thanks to its 17th-century wooden architecture and striking location above Europe’s widest waterfall, the Venta Rapid – crossed via Europe’s longest brick road bridge. The high street – not a single chain store in sight – includes a needle museum, a renovated merchant’s house, and craft shops where I splashed out on handknitted socks for my kids.

At Pagrabiņš, which locals assured me served some of the best Latvian food in Kurzeme, I slurped delicious salty sour soup known as solyanka with a slice of Latvia’s famously dense, chewy rye bread. Afterwards, a 30-minute drive – including a stop-off at the pink, fairytale Ēdole Castle – took me to Jūrkalne, a pretty and utterly deserted beach of bluffs, dunes and pine trees. Pāvilosta, the latest hotspot beloved of Rigan hipsters, lies to the south: an old fishing village where you can grab a flat white (try Cafe Laiva) and watch the rolling Baltic surf or cycle the EuroVelo 13 coastal track to Liepāja.

It’s here, in Latvia’s third largest city that I end my trip. With its lush parks, sandy white beaches and strollable streets of gently decaying baroque and art nouveau buildings, Liepāja makes a great base for exploring the south-west corner of Kurzeme. I stayed in the historic Art Hotel Roma (doubles from €80 a night which includes access to the hotel’s art collection) and ate as often as I could at an exquisitely restored lodgings once frequented by Peter the Great: Madame Hoyer’s Guest House. Although it’s now a museum, the dining room operates much as it did in 1697.

But Liepāja’s greatest attraction must surely be Karosta, once one of the USSR’s largest submarine bases, and a closed military zone for nearly 50 years. Today, it’s a ghostly swill of pristine coastline, brutalist architecture and graffitied Soviet watch towers, with the gold-encrusted domes of the Russian Orthodox St Nicholas Naval Cathedral gleaming, surreally and extravagantly, from its midst.

To fully grasp Latvia’s extraordinary, violent history, I took a guided tour of Karosta prison, one of only a few former military jails in Europe open to visitors. Here, windowless cells once housed revolutionaries, miscreant soldiers and officers of the tsarist army, the Soviet army, the Latvian army, as well as deserters of the German Wehrmacht and “enemies” of Stalin – many of whom had used their metal buttons to scratch their initials into the concrete walls. A little unusually, Karosta prison offers all-night stays (ranging from €15-60 a night) for anyone not averse to paranormal activities – it’s been voted the most haunted place in the world by Ghost Hunters International. I opted, instead, for a recuperative beer from one of Liepāja’s burgeoning microbreweries, mulling over an intriguing part of the world, far from the usual tourist haunts.

The writer travelled independently using the extensive network of Kurzeme’s tourist information offices and with help from latvia.travel. For information on castle and manor house stays visit latvia.travel

Zohran Mamdani, born in Uganda and raised in New York, is in the lead to become the city’s next mayor. His complex identity has sparked debate in the United States. From questions about race to immigrant experiences, his story is challenging the way Americans think about identity, politics, and who gets power.

It is tempting for a dividend investor to simply select the highest yielding stocks. The problem with that approach is that it exposes you to the risk of dividend cuts if the yield is too high for the company to support.

Which is why dividend lovers also need to consider dividend history as they look at a company. And, when you do that, you’ll find that companies like Pfizer (PFE -0.50%), which has a huge 7.2% yield, don’t match up to companies like Johnson & Johnson (JNJ 1.03%), Omega Healthcare (OHI -0.50%), and Merck (MRK -0.03%).

Here’s what you need to know about these three healthcare dividend stocks.

Image source: Getty Images.

1. If you need the money to live, dividend reliability is key

Pfizer is actually a well-run company. Sure, it is facing hard times right now, but it has dealt with difficult periods before and survived. It is highly likely that it will do so again, noting that some of the issues it is dealing with are a natural part of the pharmaceutical industry. For example, patent expirations are on the horizon, and it needs to find new drugs to replace older ones. Investors rightly worry about such patent cliffs, but they aren’t the least bit unusual for drug makers.

That said, Pfizer’s huge 7.2% dividend yield is also a reflection of the downbeat view among regulators and consumers around vaccines. So there’s more to watch here than the normal industry swings. But the same things could, largely, be said of Merck, one of Pfizer’s competitors. The drugs and vaccines in question are different, but the worries are basically the same. You could easily buy either one if you wanted exposure to the pharma sector. Why pick Merck and its less impressive, though still high, 4% yield?

The answer is simple. Merck has a long history of supporting its dividend even through difficult periods. Pfizer cut its dividend in 2009 when it bought Wyeth. The acquisition was good for Pfizer, but the dividend cut was terrible for income investors. If dividend consistency matters to you, Merck wins here.

Data by YCharts.

2. Omega Healthcare has survived the hardest of times

If Merck’s dividend resilience over time impresses you, you’ll probably find Omega Healthcare even more exciting. The company owns senior housing facilities, which were hard hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. To put it simply, older people in group settings were at severe risk of dying from the pandemic. That had the exact negative impact you would expect on nursing homes and similar properties. And yet Omega Healthcare, a senior housing-focused real estate investment trust (REIT), didn’t cut its dividend like many of its competitors.

It didn’t raise the dividend, either, but it did stand behind the payment, realizing that investors were relying on that quarterly check. That should make Omega’s nearly 6.4% yield look a lot more attractive, even for more conservative dividend investors.

Data by YCharts.

And don’t forget that the pandemic is now mostly in the rearview mirror. The second quarter of 2025 saw Omega invest in new assets, which should help spur growth and post an 8% year-over-year increase in adjusted funds from operations (FFO). With the business looking like it is on the mend, the dividend is likely more secure now than it has been in years.

3. The Dividend King approach

If you are looking to stick to only the most reliable of dividend companies, however, then you’ll want to buy a Dividend King. These are stocks that have raised their dividends for over 50 years. Johnson & Johnson’s string of over 60 annual dividend increases makes it the healthcare stock to beat when it comes to dividend reliability. Of course, investors know how reliable this drug and medical device maker is, so the stock is usually afforded a premium valuation. Right now, the yield is around 3% or so, the lowest on this list. However, it is still higher than the 1.7% yield of the average healthcare stock, making J&J a good pick for investors who place a high value on dividend consistency.

Clearly, Johnson & Johnson has its own warts to consider. For example, it faces all of the same issues in the pharma space as Merck and Pfizer. It is also dealing with a lingering class action lawsuit around talcum powder that it once sold. So even this Dividend King isn’t risk-free. But if history is any guide, you can count on the dividend continuing to be paid through thick and thin.

Don’t just jump at the highest yield

Although there’s nothing particularly wrong with Pfizer, a comparison to Merck, Omega, and J&J shows that a high yield isn’t the only factor you should consider if you are looking for a good dividend stock. If reliable dividend stocks are what you want populating your dividend portfolio, you will clearly want to look past Pfizer’s yield. And when you do that, you’ll likely find that Merck, Omega, and Johnson & Johnson all offer a more compelling combination of income reliability and yield.

England flanker Tom Curry has undergone wrist surgery and will miss the start of the new Premiership season with Sale, but could be fit for the Autumn Nations Series in November.

Curry had an operation on a long-standing wrist ligament injury after returning from the British and Irish Lions’ series victory in Australia and will be absent for the start of Sale’s campaign, which begins against Gloucester on Thursday, 25 September.

But he has an outside chance of being fit for England’s autumn fixtures against Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Argentina.

“You are more likely to see him in an England shirt than you are a Sale shirt,” said Sale’s director of rugby Alex Sanderson.

“His return to play sits him somewhere around the Autumn Internationals.

“But you never know. He has a habit of defying comeback dates and what surgeons say. He’s on good form, healing well, dead positive.”

Curry navigated his way through six matches for the Lions despite his wrist injury.

He revealed he had a new cast fitted in Australia following the Lions’ shock defeat by Argentina in Dublin.

“We had this cast which we had to change in Sydney, because we realised that I wasn’t actually catching many balls,” he said.

“We had this thick one that covered my palm and it was really tough because I had to catch [the ball] with my fingertips. I remember playing in the Argentina game and I kept dropping it.”

England begin their campaign against Australia at Allianz Stadium on Saturday, 1 November.

Ronan Keating had to rush to help Rick after he suffered a coughing fit during an appearance on The One Show

Rick Astley has opened up about his coughing episode on The One Show, confessing he feared he might have to “walk off” during the live broadcast.

The 80s icon left viewers concerned when he began choking and spluttering whilst being interviewed on the BBC programme on Friday (September 5), with fellow musician Ronan Keating rushing to his aid by patting his back.

The incident was discussed during Rick’s appearance on BBC Breakfast on Monday (September 8), reports the Express. Presenter Jon Kay joked, “Rick joins us, and you’ve got some water, because you had a bit of a cough, didn’t you, on The One Show?”

“Yeah, I did indeed,” Rick replied. “So exciting to be about to cough your head off on live TV, sat next to Ronan Keating!”

“We do it all the time, so for people who didn’t see it, what happened?” presenter Sally Nugent asked.

The performer revealed: “The show had started and they had done a shot where the two of us are on the couch, so Ronan’s being interviewed and chatting, and I know Ronan a bit, he’s lovely, he’s great.

“And then I just started to feel I had a tickle, and then, so I’m trying to suppress it, you know, having some water and stuff, and I’m clutching my knees, and I’m thinking, I’m about to walk off live television, even though they’ve just introduced me as being on the couch! But we’re all good this morning. I hope so!”

“I don’t know what it was; it was just a tickle,” he continued.

The star went on: “I’ve only cancelled one gig in the whole of my life, and that was because of food poisoning, nothing to do with singing.”

“So, yeah, so hopefully we’re good.”

Jon suggested that even if the singer ever encountered a problem with his voice, the “show must go on”.

“Yeah, but also I think adrenaline kicks in,” Rick responded. “The amount of times that I’ve not been fully match fit, let’s say, a bit of a cold or something, but I think your adrenaline just takes over. The excitement of doing it still feels like the most exciting thing in the world to me.”

“Well, we’ve got Ronan on standby, just in case you need it,” Jon joked, causing Rick to chuckle.

Rick, 59, also opened up about how taking a hiatus from his career had made him appreciate it more.

“I’ve kind of got away from how kind of ridiculous it is and how full of nonsense it is to just view it as a purely beautiful, lovely thing to do,” he shared. “I don’t really ever get wrapped up in the fame side of it, all the this, that, and the other.”

The star admitted that he was “not really famous” most of the time, as he could visit places like the supermarket without being recognised.

“And that’s amazing because I can go and play an arena and then literally be going on the way home or on the way to the hotel and be completely ignored by people,” he added. “Even sometimes the same people who are in the arena.”

BBC Breakfast is broadcast daily at 6am on BBC One.

KAI HAVERTZ has undergone knee surgery – leaving Arsenal with just ONE fit recognised striker.

The 26-year-old has been out since picking up an injury in training – days after a 30-minute cameo off the bench in a 1-0 opening-day win over Manchester United on August 17.

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SunSport understands that Havertz has shared his time between London Colney and his native Germany, being assessed by doctors to determine the severity of the issue.

And the Gunners have since decided to take precautionary measures with Havertz going under the knife for the second time in six months.

A club statement read: “Further to sustaining a knee injury after our recent game against Manchester United on 17 August, subsequent assessments and specialist reviews with Kai confirmed that surgery would be required.

“Today, Kai underwent a successful minor surgical procedure.

“He will shortly begin his recovery and rehabilitation programme, with everyone fully focused on supporting Kai to ensure he is back to full fitness as soon as possible.”

It means Havertz will miss crunch Prem clashes against Liverpool, Manchester City and Newcastle, as well as the start to Arsenal’s Champions League campaign next month.

Havertz had a hamstring operation back in February that saw him only return for the final two games of last term, but this minor procedure is not expected to keep him out for a similar period.

It now leaves boss Mikel Arteta relying on summer signing Viktor Gyokeres to lead the line without any back-up for at least the next few weeks.

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Gabriel Jesus – Arsenal’s third-choice No.9 – is also still on the recovery table, expected to return towards the end of 2025 after an ACL reconstruction in January.

However, Arsenal are confident that they have the squad to deal with the absence, hijacking Tottenham’s £68m deal for Eberechi Eze last week 24 hours after Havertz’s injury news.

Arteta does have options – playing midfielder Mikel Merino and winger Leandro Trossard down the middle for large parts of last season.

The Gunners are also set to be without Bukayo Saka for a number of weeks following the injury he sustained during their 5-0 thrashing of Leeds on Saturday.

While there remains uncertainty around whether Martin Odegaard will be fit to face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.

The Gunners captain was forced off with a shoulder injury in the 38th minute and replaced by Ethan Nwaneri.

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