sign

“I want to be part of that new story, and I look forward to bringing my energy and attacking mindset to a club that deserves to be shaking up the old rugby order for the fans in the north east.”

Both of Quirke’s two England caps to date came in 2021 but he was part of the squad for last year’s autumn internationals and was also at a January get-together earlier this month.

Newcastle were taken over by energy drink company Red Bull in the summer and have already started rebuilding their squad, with their arrivals for this season including Wales and British and Irish Lions full-back Liam Williams, former Wasps and Gloucester wing Christian Wade and Argentina scrum-half Simon Benitez Cruz.

And, after a losing start to the campaign, their form has picked up in recent weeks, with the Red Bulls winning four of their past six games in all competitions.

The results have helped the club progress to the knockout stages of the European Challenge Cup and they also claimed a first win in The Prem since 2024 when they beat Gloucester 25-19 in their first league match of the new year.

Aston Villa have signed Chelsea midfielder Oriane Jean-Francois on a permanent deal for £450,000.

The 24-year-old joined Chelsea from Paris St-Germain in 2024 and the fee is a club record sale for the Blues.

The France midfielder struggled to get regular game time at Chelsea, making 28 appearances, but will hope to play a key role for Villa.

“This is another signing that strongly supports our ambitions as a club,” said Villa director of women’s football Marisa Ewers.

“Oriane impressed throughout the European Championships as a starter for France, consistently performing at the highest level.

“We believe she will add immediate quality and further raise standards within the group.”

Villa have shown ambition this season, bringing in Arsenal’s Jenna Nighswonger on loan until the end of the season on Saturday.

Natalia Arroyo’s side sit sixth in the Women’s Super League with four wins and four draws from their opening 12 matches.

They have an option to make the move permanent for defender Nighswonger.

The 25-year-old, who was part of the USA squad that won Olympic gold at Paris 2024, has played only 16 minutes in the WSL this season.

“We have been tracking her for some time and are delighted that she has bought into our exciting project,” added Ewers.

“This signing forms part of our growing ambitions as we continue to build an exciting and competitive squad, and we believe Jenna will add real quality to the group.”

The decision by Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. to enter the transfer portal shocked and angered the Huskies because only days earlier the sophomore breakout star had signed a lucrative name, image and likeness deal to remain in Seattle.

Legal action by Washington would be no surprise two weeks after similar events prompted an exchange of lawsuits involving Damon Wilson II, an edge rusher who transferred from Georgia to Missouri in January 2025, days after signing an NIL contract.

With recruiting strategy reduced to shoveling stacks of NIL dollars at players who jump through the transfer portal seemingly at will, it’s no wonder loyalty and etiquette have given way to opportunity and greed.

And it should surprise no one that the implementation of rules might be done by judges, not NCAA officials or conference commissioners.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Washington is “prepared to pursue all legal avenues to enforce Williams’ signed contract,” and the quarterback’s situation has also “drawn the attention of the Big Ten.” Already, Washington has declined to enter Williams’ name into the portal, citing language in the NIL contract that states the school is not obligated to do so.

It appears Washington wants to play hardball, much the way Georgia is attempting to do with Wilson, whose countersuit against the Bulldogs claims he was one of several players pressured into signing his NIL contract on Dec. 21, 2024. Georgia is seeking $390,000 in damages, pointing to a liquidated damage fee clause in the NIL contract that may or may not hold up in court.

Washington officials suspect that another school contacted Williams after he had signed his Huskies deal, and submitted evidence of tampering to the Big Ten. Tony Petitti, the conference commissioner, happened to be in Seattle on Tuesday for a Celebration of Life service for Washington goalkeeper Mia Hamant, who died on Nov. 6 from an rare form of kidney cancer.

Many Huskies football players and coaches also were in attendance when Williams posted his official announcement about entering the transfer portal on Instagram.

“To post his decision to enter the portal during the service was, at best, the result of horrible advice from his PR team, and at worst, a stunning lack of self-awareness,” wrote Matt Calkins in the Seattle Times.

Williams’ NIL deal with Washington for 2026 was estimated at $4 million, a reasonable number for a quarterback who was among the top 15 nationally in passing efficiency, passing yards and yards per attempt. He attempted to enter the portal with a “do not contact” tag, an indication he has a destination in mind.

A chronology of top quarterback movement in recent days provides circumstantial evidence that Louisiana State and Williams have mutual interest. LSU, of course, has a new coach in Lane Kiffin, and a need at quarterback. Turns out Williams and Kiffin aren’t strangers.

Kiffin’s first target was Brendan Sorsby, who had left Cincinnati, but he committed to Texas Tech. Sam Leavitt of Arizona State is considered the best quarterback left in the portal, and he visited Baton Rouge this week before heading to Tennessee for another visit.

However, Kiffin easily could shift his attention to Williams, a dual-threat signal-caller who while in high school committed to Ole Miss when Kiffin was coach. He eventually signed with Arizona, and when coach Jedd Fisch took the job at Washington, Williams followed him.

Williams blossomed as a sophomore in 2025, passing for 3,065 yards and 25 touchdowns with eight interceptions while adding 611 yards and six touchdowns on the ground.

In his lengthy Instagram post, Williams thanked everyone associated with Washington before revealing the news: “I have to do what is best for me and my future. After much thought and prayer, I will be entering the transfer portal.”

He’s not there yet.

Rangers are working round the clock to recruit players now that the January window is open, says head coach Danny Rohl.

With Rohl having been appointed in October, this winter period is the German’s first opportunity to make changes to his squad.

“We work at the moment 24/7 for players,” he said,

“It’s about decision making, it’s about negotiations, it’s about timing. We have some players in our mind but you have to be a little bit patient.

“You always hope as a manager, as a head coach to get very early the players in.

“January window you have to be patient, you have to be demanding, I think this is also important and you have to take the opportunities and there are opportunities in the market.”

Semenyo’s profile is a unique one and at the reported price point, it feels like a no-brainer.

Stylistically we have seen City lean into attacking in transition with more pace this season than previously under Guardiola, who has played on the strengths of Haaland, Foden, Tijjani Reijnders and Doku – attacking quickly over big distances.

As a result, City have scored from more fast breaks this season than during the entire 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons combined.

Bournemouth‘s direct style of attack means Semenyo’s pace, good hold-up play, smart decision-making and two-footed ball-striking are more easily transferred to this City side.

These are dangerous traits, especially when going long against teams that attempt to press high up the pitch.

Guardiola likes versatile players too, given they provide solutions to injury crises.

With Doku out injured, Reijnders has come in and shifted Foden out to the left. Semenyo would provide Premier League proven quality on both wings.

“The years we were successful, not just the strikers [were scoring], especially the wingers, attacking midfielders. We need that,” said Guardiola earlier this month.

City’s over-reliance on Haaland’s 19 goals will be something he wants to address. Foden has scored the second most with seven but has been moved away from the number 10 position, where he scores often from distance.

The signing of Semenyo would help get Foden back in the areas Guardiola feels he is most dangerous.

Semenyo has the added benefit of providing goals himself while starting as a winger. With eight in the league this season, only Igor Thiago and Haaland have more.

If City want to overtake Arsenal and win the league, getting scorers behind Haaland would be a smart move.

Dec. 18 (UPI) — Paraguay signed a security cooperation agreement with the United States to strengthen efforts against organized crime, drug trafficking and other transnational threats, as Asuncion seeks to reinforce its role as a strategic partner of Washington in central South America.

The agreement was signed this week by Paraguayan Foreign Minister Ruben Ramirez Lezcano and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The document sets out general guidelines for joint work and must be sent to Paraguay’s Congress for review and approval.

Paraguay is a landlocked country between Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia. Its location has made it a key transit point for drug trafficking and smuggling routes across South America, which has led the government of President Santiago Pena to strengthen international security cooperation.

The agreement covers actions against transnational crime, training of military personnel, information sharing, humanitarian assistance and coordination in response to emergencies and natural disasters.

At the signing ceremony, Ramirez Lezcano highlighted the Paraguayan government’s commitment to shared goals with the United States.

“President Santiago Pena is deeply committed to continuing to work strongly on the relationship between our countries and on shared objectives such as fighting transnational organized crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking and corruption,” the foreign minister said.

He added that what is at stake “is not only security, but the freedom of people,” and said the agreement represents an important step to protect both values.

Rubio said the agreement also creates “the opportunity to train together, cooperate, exchange information directly and quickly, and respond to any humanitarian situation that may arise in the future, not only in Paraguay, but in the region.”

“It is a security agreement, but what also exists here is the opportunity to cooperate at the economic level, where there are many opportunities to use Paraguay’s potential so that it becomes a wealthier country,” Rubio said.

He added that Paraguayans are expected to have greater economic opportunities through cooperation with U.S. companies and interests “that are willing to invest responsibly and effectively in the economy and also help create jobs, work and sources of income for the citizens of your country.”

The United States and Paraguay have maintained decades of cooperation in areas such as security, counter-narcotics efforts, institutional strengthening and humanitarian assistance, according to official records from both governments.

Paraguay’s Foreign Ministry has said the relationship with the United States is strategic and has deepened in recent years amid a regional context marked by the advance of transnational organized crime.

The agreement signed in Washington adds to other bilateral instruments already in force and seeks to update cooperation mechanisms in response to emerging threats in South America.