1. #TRANSFER SWOOP Liverpool have rejected a Chelsea bid of £35million for striker Fernando Torres, according to a report today.
“Chelsea have made a bid for Fernando, which has been turned down. The player is not for sale,” a Liverpool spokesman told BBC Sport.
2. #SIX NATIONS Stephen Ferris and Rory Best are facing a fitness battle ahead of tomorrow week’s clash with Italy in Rome.
The injury problems continued to pile up for Declan Kidney yesterday with Tommy Bowe and Jamie Heaslip confirmed as absentees.
Ferris is resting a knee injury, while his provincial colleague Best is recovering from a rib problem.
3. #NFL We reported last night that talks had taken place at Government level aimed at bringing the Pittsburgh Steelers to Croke Park for a regular-season game.
This morning however, Croke Park director has dealt a blow to grid-iron fans’ hopes of seeing the Superbowl finalists at GAA HQ.
Peter McKenna tells the Irish Examiner’s John Fogarty that they association had spoken to the Department of Sport about the possibility but it ‘can’t happen this year’. Colm Keys also reports that McKenna sees the game as ‘an aspiration’.
4. #AUSTRALIAN OPEN Andy Murray is currently on court in his semi-final against Spain’s David Ferrer.
The winner will face Novak Djokovic in the Melbourne finale on Sunday. Follow the scores here.
5. #SKY SEXISM Some 56% of you think the station was right to sack high-profile pundit Andy Gray.
But he, and former colleague Richard Keys, may be set for a new role with Al Jazeera.
The Mirror reports that Keys is in Qatar today for talks about a lucrative deal.
6. #TRANSFER WINDOW Spurs will offer Robbie Keane plus £2m for Scott Parker. it was reported yesterday that the Ireland skipper was off to Upton Park on loan anyway.
Boys in Green goalkeeper Keiren Westwood, meanwhile, is the subject of mounting speculation as deadline day looms this Monday.
The Coventry shot-stopper has attracted a bid from Spurs. We’ll host a liveblog on Monday.
7. #RACING The Red Mills Thyestes Chase card will get off at the third time of at Gowran Park today. There’s a tasty looking card and should be a great turn-out.
8. #SNOOKER LOOPY Barry Hearn’s new innovation World Snooker Shoot-out kicks off tonight in Blackpool.
The top 64 players will face off in one-frame matches that last a maximum of 10 minutes. It should make good TV.
9. UFC We’ll post our regular MMA column tomorrow morning. In the meantime, Deadspin brought us this video of a guy in a Tap-Out t-shirt getting knocked out. Boom.
