Leicester know what is on the line - Parling — and more

Leicester Tigers head coach Geoff Parling says being two wins away from claiming the first piece of silverware this season is all the motivation his players need for their Prem Cup semi-final.

Inter Milan superstar Lautaro Martinez has reportedly resumed partial training as he aims to return to the pitch by the end of the month.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport via FCInterNews, El Toro has set his sights on recovering for Inter’s Serie A clash against Fiorentina on March 22.

Head coach Cristian Chivu will be without his talismanic goal-getter for Sunday’s blockbuster showdown against AC Milan.

On the bright side, Ange-Yoan Bonny will be at the 45-year-old’s disposal, with the Frenchman expected to resume training tomorrow.

Inter Milan Stalwart Lautaro Martinez Returns to Partial Training

UDINE, ITALY – JANUARY 17: Lautaro Martinez of FC Internazionale during the pre-match warm up at the Serie A match between Udinese Calcio and FC Internazionale at Stadio Friuli on January 17, 2026 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Timothy Rogers/Getty Images)

Inter lost Lautaro Martinez to a calf injury in the first leg of their fateful UEFA Champions League knockout playoff tie against Bodo/Glimt.

As a result of the injury sustained in Norway, the 28-year-old missed the return fixture, as well as Inter’s last two Serie A matches.

Furthermore, the Argentine center-forward was unavailable as Inter shared the spoils with Como in a tepid 0-0 Coppa Italia draw on Tuesday.

However, he has now returned to partial training and could appear in Inter’s away game against Fiorentina later this month.

Inter Milan starlet Francesco Pio Esposito could make his inaugural Derby della Madonnina start when the Nerazzurri take on AC Milan on Sunday.

According to Tuttosport via FCInterNews, the 20-year-old is no stranger to scoring against the Rossoneri, though he has yet to do so at senior level.

With ten points separating the sides ahead of Sunday’s kickoff, Inter could land a knockout blow on Milan’s Scudetto hopes this weekend.

However, the Nerazzurri will have to achieve that without Lautaro Martinez, who remains in the pits with a calf injury.

Inter Milan Ace Pio Esposito Set to Make First Derby Start vs AC Milan

MILAN, ITALY – JANUARY 23: Francesco Pio Esposito of FC Internazionale Milano celebrates scoring his team’s third goal during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Pisa SC at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on January 23, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Lautaro’s absence leaves a significant hole in Inter’s attack, handing Pio Esposito a golden opportunity to shine on the grandest stage.

Indeed, the Italian prodigy is likely to get the nod in attack ahead of French star Ange-Yoan Bonny, who has just recovered from injury.

Esposito has been in far better form than Marcus Thuram lately, and he will shoulder the burden of expectations on Sunday.

However, if there’s anyone capable of scoring against the Rossoneri, it’s Esposito, who had frequently found the net against them at youth level.

Shane Lowry’s collapse at the Cognizant Classic is one that can change the entire trajectory of his season.

With three holes to go, Lowry looked to be cruising to his first individual PGA Tour victory since 2019. He had a three-shot lead and had played all weekend impeccably. Then, disaster struck.

He hit the water with a three iron on 16 on his way to a double bogey, then sliced his tee shot into the water again on the par three 17. The Bear Trap, designed by Jack Nicklaus at PGA National, had claimed another victim.

Lowry lost the tournament by two shots, a five-shot swing over three holes. And how he responds to that will define his season.

No one knows how to rebound from bad results better than his good friend, Rory McIlroy, and the grand slam winner gave Lowry some key advice this week to help the Irishman bounce back.

Rory McIlroy reminded Shane Lowry about his 2014 season

Until last year, 2014 was undoubtedly the best season of McIlroy’s career. He won two majors, had three PGA Tour wins, and won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. But it could have gone very differently.

At the then-called Honda Classic at PGA National, McIlroy also fell into the Bear Trap. He blew a two-shot lead on the back nine before losing in a playoff to Russell Henley.

McIlroy rebounded to have an all-time great season, and he reminded Lowry of that in the week. Speaking before the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the Northern Irishman said, “I played golf with him on Monday morning. He was fine. He was in good spirits.

“I reminded him, I double-bogeyed the 16th at PGA National in 2014 to lose the tournament. And I went on to win two majors that year. So I was trying to, yeah, like, look, it’s one event, it was two bad holes, two bad swings.

“It doesn’t mean that the rest of the year’s going to be bad. Again, I had a horrible finish there in 2014 and ended up going on to have one of the best years of my career. So I just reminded him of that.”

It’s exactly what you’d want to hear if you were Lowry, so hopefully it gives him confidence heading into one of the most difficult events of the season at Bay Hill.

Shane Lowry learning from other sportspeople after Cognizant Classic

Lowry spoke about the Cognizant Classic before the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and revealed that he has been getting calls from other sportspeople who have given their own experiences to him.

He said to Chantel McCabe, “It’s been tough, I’m not going to lie. Sunday night, I didn’t sleep at all, really. You go through all the scenarios in your head and the regrets you have, but you know, I’m very fortunate, I’ve got a great support network around me and I had some amazing people reach out to me after the 24 hours after that.

“People I look up to. I got one particular phone call off an Irish sportsperson who I really admire. He was very, very kind to me. I’m friendly with him and I know him pretty well, but to hear other people who have been in that situation, to hear their thoughts on it and learn from it is the biggest thing.

“Obviously, it’s very disappointing. It’s so hard to win on the PGA Tour, and I had a tournament in my hands, and I let it go. I’m going to have regrets over it in the days after that, but that’s where we put ourselves on the PGA Tour, playing on the best tour in the world on the toughest golf courses. I put myself out there, and unfortunately, I didn’t deliver.

“Hopefully, I can keep putting myself out there. I think that’s all I can do. If I keep putting myself there and try to focus on the positives out there. I think I played for a lot of the tournament, some of the best golf my whole career. I felt so in control out there, and one bad swing took it all away from me.

“But it is what it is, and we move on onwards and upwards.”

It’s extraordinary that Lowry has been able to recover mentally from the loss in less than a week, and hopefully, that puts him in good standing for a good result this week.

The conflict in the Middle East is impacting Iraq's preparation for an upcoming World Cup play-off in Mexico as embassies and air spaces are closed in the region.

Iraq's FA said on Instagram on Wednesday that coach Graham Arnold is stranded in the United Arab Emirates.

The delegation also appears to have trouble obtaining visas for the March 31 match in Monterrey, Mexico, where Iraq face the winner of a tie between Bolivia and Suriname for a place at the June 11-July 19 finals in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Iraq are bidding to play at the World Cup for a second time, the first being in 1986.

“Because of airspace closures, our head coach, Graham Arnold, is unable to leave the United Arab Emirates. In addition, several embassies remain closed at the present time, preventing several professional players, technical and medical staff members from obtaining entry visas to Mexico,” the statement said.

Mexico has no embassy in Iraq but its foreign ministry said that its embassy in the UAE is dealing with the matter and has asked the Iraq FA to submit all names to speed up procedures. It said that visas could also be obtained at its embassies in Europe.

The Iraq statement said they are "in constant communication" with FIFA and that the world governing body as well as the Asian Confederation AFC "are fully aware of every development regarding our team's situation."