With Diego Costa s fitness ruling him out of Spain s friendly against Costa Rica, a clutch of strikers have the chance to stake their claim for a place in Vicente del Bosque s side.

Costa has been left out of Del Bosque s squad for the friendly in Leon and the subsequent Euro 2016 qualifier against Belarus due to fitness concerns.

The Chelsea forward has been hampered by hamstring troubles during his debut Premier League campaign with Nolito, Alvaro Morata and Paco Alcacer likely to have opportunities up front in his absence.

Alcacer and Morata have both made solid attempts to replace the goals scored by former international David Villa, although Nolito will rarely get better opportunities to showcase his Celta Vigo form at international level.

Sevilla…

Thierry Henry wants to take charge at Ligue 1 club Bordeaux, according to Arsene Wenger.

Bordeaux suspended Gustavo Poyet after the head coach described the decision to sell Gaetan Laborde to Montpellier as  a disgrace .

Henry, part of Belgium s coaching staff at the World Cup, was linked with taking over at Championship club Aston Villa ahead of the 2018-19 season before their new owners opted to retain manager Steve Bruce.

Arsenal s record goalscorer also reportedly held talks with Egypt over the prospect of becoming their next head coach, according to an agent involved in the discussions, although Henry has since dismissed the claim.

But former Arsenal boss Wenger says Henry, who has quit his role as a television pundit to focus on his managerial …

Liverpool striker Fernando Torres will start for Spain against Honduras in their Group H match at Ellis Park on Monday as the Euro 2008 champions look to get their World Cup back on track.

Spain were humbled 1-0 by Switzerland in their opening match and coach Vicente Del Bosque has made two changes with Barcelona s Andres Iniesta dropping out for Torres and Jesus Navas taking over from David Silva.

Navas comes in on the right wing, while Torres is upfront alongside Valencia s David Villa.

Arsenal s Cesc Fabregas starts on the bench.

Honduras coach Reinaldo Rueda has made three changes to the side which was beaten 1-0 by Chile, forwards David Suazo and Walter Martinez start alongside midfielder Danilo Turcios on the right wing.

Teams

Spain…

Paris Saint-Germain winger Jeremy Menez expects to leave the Ligue 1 leaders after failing to agree terms for a contract extension.

Menez joined PSG from Roma in July 2011 and scored the goal that secured the league title for the capital club in last season s 1-0 win at Lyon in May 2013.

However, the France international has found opportunities limited under coach Laurent Blanc in 2013-14, making just nine starts in all competitions.

Juventus, Liverpool and Arsenal have all been linked with a move for Menez, whose contract with PSG expires in June.

And the former Monaco and Sochaux man, who underwent back surgery before the start of the season, admitted that he is unlikely to remain at the Parc des Princes beyond this term.

I m at the end of my contract, an…

Substitute Maycon scored an 81st-minute equaliser as Shakhtar Donetsk rallied to secure a 2-2 draw against Hoffenheim in a see-saw Group F opener.

Havard Nordtveit appeared set to be the unlikely hero as Hoffenheim making their debut in the Champions League group stages twice held the lead at the Metalist Stadium.

Julian Nagelsmann s side wasted little time in making an impact on Europe s top club competition, Florian Grillitsch giving them a sixth-minute lead when he delicately lifted Leonardo Bittencourt s throughball over the advancing Andriy Pyatov.

His neat finish was cancelled out before the half-hour mark by Ismaily, who benefited from Nordtveit selling himself early, the Hoffenheim defender unnecessarily sliding in, to cut inside and curl home a low shot …

Gareth Bale has been given a rave review by Ryan Mason – but Tottenham s interim boss cannot say if the Wales winger will return to north London next season.

After losing his place at Real Madrid, Bale rejoined Tottenham last September on a season-long loan, but he is due to return to the Spanish capital once the Premier League campaign ends.

Asked whether Bale could stay with Spurs for 2021-22, Mason said: I am not sure, I have not had those conversations.

The club will have those conversations at the end of the season. After this game at the weekend he goes back to his parent club. He is a Real Madrid player.

These conversations, these situations, I am not sure of. I just know hopefully he s going to help us at the weekend.

A report in …

Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has been included in Sir Alex Ferguson s 25-man Premier League squad despite his continuing injury woes.

Hargreaves has made just one substitute appearance for United in the last two years as he struggles with knee tendinitis.

There is still no date set for the former Bayern Munich star to return from injury and it had been suggested the England international would not make the cut when Ferguson selected his mandatory squad.

But United confirmed on Wednesday that all of their senior players, including Hargreaves, have been registered to play in the domestic league.

Premier League rules now state that each club must submit a squad, with a maximum 25 players, containing eight home-grown players by September 1.

Gary Cahill has signed a new four-year contract with Chelsea that will keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2019.

The England centre-back arrived at Stamford Bridge from Bolton Wanderers in January 2012 and has gone on to win Champions League, Premier League, Europa League, FA Cup and League Cup medals.

Cahill, 29, was thrilled with the show of faith from Chelsea after finalising his new deal.

I am really pleased to commit my future to Chelsea and it is great the club has put their faith in me, he told the club s official website.

I have achieved a lot here and I hope I can keep on learning, helping the team and lifting trophies over the next four years.

Cahill has made 18 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea this season.

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Inter s director of football Walter Sabatini says there is plenty of interest in striker Stevan Jovetic, claiming that Sevilla will have to pay a high price to re-sign the Montenegro international.

Having joined Inter from Manchester City in 2015, Jovetic spent the second half of the 2016-17 season on loan at Sevilla netting seven goals and adding five assists as Sevilla secured Champions League qualification.

Sevilla reportedly have an option to purchase the 27-year-old for €13.5million, although it is said that clause expires on June 15.

And Sabatini insists that there will be no negotiation on that fee if the Andalusian club are to sign Jovetic, whose reportedly lofty wages could prove a stumbling block in any deal.

We are evaluating the situation,…

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has been fined €602 for storming into the referee s changing room after his team s 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico on Sunday.

First-half goals from Karim Benzema and Federico Valverde left Barcelona facing a 2-0 deficit at the break, but a Ferran Torres strike with seven minutes to play gave the visitors hope.

That was soon extinguished though as a VAR review led to the award of a Madrid penalty after Eric Garcia tripped Rodrygo, who scored from the spot to secure three points for his side and condemn Xavi s men to defeat.

The result sparked a furious reaction from Laporta, who confronted referee Jose Maria Sanchez Martinez in the official s changing room after the match.

The Competition Committee fined him on We…