Coco Gauff secured a maiden grand slam final appearance with a 6-3 6-1 victory over Martina Trevisan at the French Open on Thursday.

Gauff had not dropped a set in Paris en route to the last four, but Trevisan had only surrendered one to Leylah Fernandez in her last match, teeing up a mouthwatering clash on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Neither player could maintain control in the first set, with the pair exchanging four consecutive breaks, but Gauff seized things from that point onwards.

The world number 23 profited from creating some smart angles to avert the danger of the heavy hitting Trevisan, who had powered 113 winners through the first five rounds at the tournament.

The 18-year-old Gauff eventually claimed the first set after Trevisan sent the ball long, with the American in clinical form as she converted four of six break points.

Gauff was not as ruthless in the second set but still gained the early advantage, breaking the Italian at the fourth time of asking to go 3-1 up after a mammoth 19-point game that lasted 14 minutes.

Trevisan, struggling with a right thigh issue sustained earlier in the match, was buoyed on by the vociferous crowd but ultimately failed to fight back as Gauff eased to victory in just an hour and 26 minutes.

The in-form number one seed Iga Swiatek, who has remarkably won her last 34 matches after defeating Daria Kasatkina in the semi-final earlier on Thursday, awaits Gauff in the final on Saturday.

Data slam: Trevisan streak ends

Trevisan became the first Italian player to win 10 matches in a row since Flavia Pennetta in 2009, but Gauff proved a step too far. The American was a junior champion at Roland Garros just four years ago, and will now look to add the women's title to her name.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Trevisan – 13/36
Gauff – 14/20

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Trevisan – 0/4
Gauff – 1/2

BREAK POINTS WON

Trevisan – 2/5
Gauff – 6/11

Iga Swiatek ticked off a whole host of accomplishments as her 34-match winning streak carried her into the French Open final on Thursday.

The world number one was in sensational form heading to Roland Garros after winning five consecutive tournaments.

And there has appeared little prospect of Swiatek slowing in Paris, with her 6-2 6-1 defeat of Daria Kasatkina securing a sixth WTA Tour final appearance in a row.

Swiatek is the first player to make six finals in the first six months of the year since Serena Williams reached seven before the halfway mark in 2013.

She has also now matched Williams' best winning run this century, with only Novak Djokovic in 2011 (43), Roger Federer in 2006 (42) and Venus Williams in 2000 (35) enjoying longer sequences across both the ATP and WTA Tours since 2000.

Swiatek's feats are all the more impressive given her age, as she turned 21 just this week.

Now with 20 wins at Roland Garros, the 2020 champion is the youngest female player to that mark since Martina Hingis in 1999.

Only eight women – Evonne Goolagong, Chris Evert, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Hingis, Kim Clijsters and Ana Ivanovic – have reached their second French Open final at a younger age.

Mohamed Salah says he would sacrifice all the personal awards he has won this season to have another attempt at the Champions League final with Real Madrid.

Vinicius Junior's second-half strike proved the difference as Madrid secured a 1-0 victory in Paris on Saturday, defeating Liverpool to lift their 14th European Cup.

Liverpool were repeatedly thwarted by Thibaut Courtois at the Stade de France, the goalkeeper making nine saves – a record in a Champions League final since Opta began recording data in 2003-04.

That ended Liverpool's season, which saw the Reds come close to an unprecedented quadruple, with a whimper and just the EFL Cup and FA Cup to their name.

Manchester City pipped Jurgen Klopp's side to the Premier League title, but Salah still claimed individual accolades for joint-most English top-flight goals, assists, goal of the season, and both the FWA and PFA Fans' Player of the Year awards.

No Premier League player could match the Egypt international's 36 goal involvements (23 goals, 13 assists), setting him a class above his competitors.

But the 29-year-old insists he will look back on the 2021-22 campaign with regret after failing again to beat Madrid, who also lifted the 2017-18 Champions League trophy with 3-1 victory over Liverpool.

"Being recognised by the fans and by the sports journalists in the same season is something special that I will never forget," Salah posted on Twitter. 

"I would however give all those personal awards up for a chance at replaying that final, but that is not how football works.

"I cannot express in words how much we wanted to bring that trophy back to Liverpool but in the end we couldn't. I cannot thank the fans enough for your support.

"It has been a very long season but a part of me wishes the next one starts again tomorrow."

Hugo Ekitike appears to be nearing a move to Newcastle United after Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot confirmed the club had received a "very concrete" offer from an English club.

Ekitike was one of the breakout stars of the 2021-22 season across Europe's top five leagues.

The 19-year-old scored 10 goals and assisted three more in Ligue 1, contributing a goal involvement every 98 minutes on average.

Attempting only 31 shots, Ekitike's conversion rate of 32.3 per cent was the second-best among players with 20 or more attempts across Europe, far outperforming his expected goals total of 7.0.

This sensational form has attracted attention from a host of clubs, with Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund both linked.

But big-spending Newcastle have long been seen as Ekitike's most likely destination, with the player even turning down a move to Tyneside in January.

Reports this week have suggested the forward is now more open to a move with a fee almost agreed; a figure in the region of £30million (€35m) has been mooted in France.

And Caillot hinted at an agreement in an interview with France Bleu, explaining a deal could only be held up by Ekitike again rejecting an unnamed club's advances.

"[The offer] is very concrete," the Reims chief said. "And on the table, there is one that suits us very well.

"[It is] an offer that, in my opinion, is interesting sportingly for the player, and it is now up to him to make his choice; it is not up to me to do it.

"From now on, it is his advisers who must make progress on this issue. And if at the time of speaking it is not done, it is because his advisors have not yet wished to move forward with this club."

Pressed on the identity of the club, with an apparent reference to Newcastle, Caillot added: "We remain discreet but good. It is an English club, so we understood which club we are talking about."

English reports have been less firm on the price Newcastle would pay, but Caillot said: "Let it be clear: for €20m, Hugo Ekitike will not leave."

Reims are set to receive a significant fee for a player who had not started a single Ligue 1 match just a year ago, with the president confident they will cope with his departure.

"[Reims general director] Mathieu Lacour has been telling me for years that we had a nugget in reserve," Caillot said. "Where I was surprised, like all the fans, was the speed with which he stood out.

"It's true, he was helped by the context, because in fact he was the fourth striker in the hierarchy and then injuries made him able to show all his qualities.

"It also makes me smile today, because we sometimes have the impression that it would be the end of Stade de Reims if he were to leave us, when a year ago there were 90 per cent of people who did not know him."

Lautaro Martinez has reiterated his desire to stay at Inter amid speculation of a transfer to Chelsea, stating "my plan is clear".

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport confirmed on Monday that Chelsea are no longer subject to UK government sanctions following the club's sale to a consortium led by Todd Boehly.

The new owners are expected invest heavily in the upcoming transfer window to strengthen Thomas Tuchel's squad to be able to compete with Manchester City and Liverpool.

Martinez has been repeatedly linked with a move to Chelsea, with Tuchel attempting to reunite the Inter talisman with Romelu Lukaku after the pair fired the Nerazzurri to Scudetto success last season.

However, Martinez has made his intentions clear as he expressed his hopes to stay at Inter.

"My plan is clear," he told reporters. "I really want to stay at Inter next season.

"I've not received communications from the club as of today, I want to continue at Inter next season."

Inter have already lost Ivan Perisic to former coach Antonio Conte at Tottenham, while Alessandro Bastoni could follow the Croatia international to north London.

Simone Inzaghi's side are expected to bring in Juventus striker Paulo Dybala when his contract expires, offering Martinez the opportunity to link-up with an international team-mate up top.

Martinez was in fine scoring form in Serie A this season, finding the net 21 times in 35 games – only Lazio's Ciro Immobile (27) and Dusan Vlahovic (34) managed more Italian top-flight goals.

Inzaghi will hope to keep his key man with Inter next season as they aim to snatch back the title won by rivals Milan in the 2021-22 campaign.

Iga Swiatek charged past Daria Kasatkina to reach the French Open final with a devastating display of excellence.

The surprise 2020 Roland Garros champion is this year's hot favourite for the title, and she extended her astonishing winning run to 34 matches with a 6-2 6-1 victory on Friday.

It was magnificent from top seed Swiatek, who from 2-2 in the first set won 10 of the next 11 games, sealing victory with an ace.

Kasatkina is a former French Open girls' champion and this was her first grand slam semi-final at the age of 25, with the Russian having largely breezed through to this round.

A former world number 10, now ranked at 20 by the WTA, Barcelona-based Kasatkina would have returned to the top 10 had she reached the final in Paris. However, she had lost three times to Swiatek already in 2022, winning only 11 games in those matches, and so this landslide result was perhaps inevitable.

Kasatkina's start was bright enough, recovering an early break, but Swiatek soon began to take control, moving well and finding her range, crucially keeping her winners count higher than the unforced errors.

Picking off Kasatkina's soft second serve was helping Swiatek's cause, and a stunning forehand clean winner from one such scenario sealed a 5-1 lead as Swiatek closed in on the title match.

She wrapped it up in just an hour and four minutes, the potential of the match-up never materialising as Swiatek, who spent time listening to Led Zeppelin before coming on court, left Kasatkina dazed and confused.

Data slam: Swiatek exploits Kasatkina weakness

Swiatek, who was ranked at number 54 when she took the title as a teenager, was still a work in progress at the time. She is fast becoming the finished article and Kasatkina found the 21-year-old's power and precision overwhelming. Here, Kasatkina dropped sets for the first time in the tournament, and her second serve was made to look ridiculously meek. Kasatkina won only three of 14 points on her second serve, and that is a recipe for defeat.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Swiatek – 22/13
Kasatkina – 10/24

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Swiatek – 1/2
Kasatkina – 2/2

BREAK POINTS WON

Swiatek – 5/10
Kasatkina – 1/1

Ben Stokes' first major selection calls all looked to have gone to plan by lunch on day one of the first Test against New Zealand, who stumbled through to the end of the first session on 39-6.

In England's first Test since naming Stokes as captain and appointing Black Caps great Brendon McCullum as coach, New Zealand won the toss and had the opportunity to apply early pressure.

Instead, recalled veterans James Anderson and Stuart Broad ripped through the top order with the help of Jonny Bairstow.

Bairstow, stationed in a slip cordon that was for so long an issue under Joe Root and Chris Silverwood, took the first three catches, including a sensational effort for the breakthrough wicket of Will Young off the bowling of Anderson.

His impeccable handling, even stooping to catch after juggling Tom Latham off Anderson, stood in stark contrast to what had gone before – England have dropped 70 catches in Tests since the start of 2021, the most of any side.

Bairstow's take from Devon Conway off Broad was far more straightforward between his legs, but New Zealand captain Kane Williamson remained in the middle as Matthew Potts – Stokes' Durham team-mate – took the ball for the first time in his Test debut.

Potts is the leading wicket taker in the County Championship this season, counting 15 top-four batters among his 35 scalps, and he required only five balls to make his mark.

New Zealand came into this match with the best batting strike rate against pace in Test cricket since the start of 2021 (55.3), but Potts' seam delivery teased an outside edge from Williamson, who was caught behind by Ben Foakes.

Potts (3-8) was not done there either, bowling through Daryl Mitchell to scatter his stumps and removing Tom Blundell, too, after earlier being denied by a successful lbw review in a sensational start for the rookie bowler, Stokes and England.

That positivity was only dampened by news of Jack Leach's withdrawal from the Test with concussion symptoms after an awkward fall while chasing a ball in the field.

The NBA Finals are here with a mouth-watering matchup between the Golden State Warriors and the Boston Celtics.

This Warriors team are used to this stage, playing their sixth Finals in eight years, but this is the first trip for the 17-time champion Celtics since 2010.

Ahead of Thursday's highly anticipated Game 1, Stats Perform delves into the best STATS numbers going into an intriguing series...

HISTORY SIDES WITH CELTICS

Only the Los Angeles Lakers (32) have been to more NBA Finals than the Celtics (now 22) and the Warriors (now 12), yet this is only the second time they have met at this stage of the season.

The Celtics beat the Warriors in five in the 1964 Finals, the sixth in a run of eight straight Boston titles.

But that is not their only postseason encounter to date, with the Warriors based in Philadelphia until 1962. They fared no better against the Celtics in the Eastern Conference playoffs, however, losing all three series, as the Warriors have never beaten Boston in the postseason.

More recently, the teams split the two-game series this year, but the Celtics have won six of the past seven meetings between the sides by an average of 14.0 points.

THE THREAT FROM THREE

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson will have played in half of the Warriors' Finals appearances, although neither of them have yet won a Finals MVP award.

They will certainly be key to any Golden State success this year and head into the series in form, having again displayed their outstanding ability from three-point range.

Curry has made multiple threes in every game in this playoff campaign and in 34 straight postseason games dating back to 2019. It is the longest streak of games with two or more made threes in playoff history.

In fact, with runs of 27 games between 2014 and 2016 and 20 games between 2016 and 2017, the point guard owns three of the four best such sequences.

Thompson's longest run of playoff games with multiple made threes was 14 in 2016, but he passed team-mate Curry in another regard while scoring 32 points in the closeout Game 5 against the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.

Thompson knocked down eight shots from deep for his fifth playoff game with eight or more made threes – now the outright most ahead of Curry, Ray Allen and Damian Lillard (four each).

DEFENSE TO BE DECISIVE?

The Celtics have their own scorers, with Jayson Tatum (27.0) on course to average at least 25.0 points in the playoffs for a third straight year.

He would become only the third Celtic to achieve that feat, following in the footsteps of Larry Bird and John Havlicek, who each scored at that rate in four consecutive postseason campaigns.

But what Boston do on the other end of the floor will likely be decisive, as it has been so far in their run to the Finals.

The Celtics beat the Miami Heat 100-96 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals for their 31st win across the regular season and postseason in 2021-22 while holding their opponents to fewer than 100 points. That is the most in the NBA.

If Tatum drives the offense, Al Horford is the key man on defense, and the Celtics have outscored opponents by 10.7 points per 100 possessions with him on the court. They have been outscored by 2.2 points per 100 possessions with Horford off the court.

In Game 7 against the Heat, Horford had 14 rebounds, two blocks and a team-high plus/minus of 10.

Giorgio Chiellini bowed out of international football and warned a "difficult period" awaited Italy as Roberto Mancini bids to get the Azzurri back on track.

The joy of winning last year's delayed Euro 2020 tournament has been replaced by rapid deflation after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup.

Having also missed out on the Russia 2018 finals, falling short of a place at Qatar 2022 represented crushing disappointment for the four-time winners.

Chiellini, the 37-year-old defensive titan who is leaving Juventus and expected to join Los Angeles FC, has called time on his Italy career.

He played the first half on Wednesday in a 3-0 defeat to Argentina at Wembley, in a match tagged as the Finalissima, a clash of the champions of Europe and South America.

"We were hoping to win the match and the trophy," Chiellini told Italian broadcaster RAI. "We knew it would be tough, but the defeat does not cancel what has gone before.

"Now I expect a difficult period. We need everyone to support this group."

Chiellini lasted just 45 minutes in his farewell game, with Italy 2-0 up by the time he departed.

This was the first staging of the CONMEBOL/UEFA 'Cup of Champions' since 1993. Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals as Lionel Messi pulled the strings

It was a sorry way for Chiellini to go out, and he said: "It's a shame because in the first half we made a lot of mistakes and we ruined the match by ourselves."

Turning his attention to Argentina, he added: "Above all, at this moment they are too strong, they have confidence and they are a team. They look like us a year ago."

Italy, without Chiellini, will switch their focus to the Nations League. They face Germany on Saturday and again on June 14 – matches against Hungary and England are sandwiched in between.

Writing on his Instagram page, Chiellini reflected on the end of a 117-cap career.

He wrote: "Thanks to everyone, it's been a beautiful journey."

Casper Ruud became the first Norwegian man to make a grand slam semi-final after seeing off teenager Holger Rune in four sets at the French Open.

Wednesday's encounter was already a history maker, with Ruud having become the first male player from Norway to have reached a major quarter-final, while Rune was the first from Denmark to make the last eight at Roland Garros.

Yet while Rune at times showed the volatility of youth – albeit with flashes of the quality that makes the world number 40 one of the brightest prospects on the ATP Tour – Ruud's composure got him through in the end as the 23-year-old prevailed 6-1 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-3.

Ruud breezed through the first set, striking four aces and 14 winners on his way to claiming the opener 6-1 with a little over 30 minutes on court.

Yet any chances of Rune rolling over were dispelled when the youngster broke Ruud straight back after conceding serve to go 3-2 down in the second set.

Having fended off a break point, the crucial double break came Rune's way to seal the 55-minute second set 6-4.

Rune endured a nervy hold of serve to start the third set, and once again the Dane – vocal in his frustration throughout – showed great resilience to hit back and break immediately after Ruud had nosed ahead at 4-3.

A second break point of the set went missing for Ruud, but the Norwegian was clinical in the tie-break, getting on top of Rune with some aggressive shots to regain the momentum.

With the match edging over three hours, Ruud upped the tempo, easily holding on each of his serves but making Rune work hard on his own.

Three unforced Rune errors handed Ruud three breakpoints, with the chance to serve for the match begging, yet the 19-year-old's resolve came to the fore again as he clawed his way to deuce with a wonderful cross-court forehand.

But this time, Rune could not swing the pendulum in his favour as Ruud broke at the fourth attempt, with a supreme forehand winner down the line sealing his victory.

Data slam: Maiden grand slam semi for Ruud

The world number eight is enjoying a fine season. He already has two titles under his belt, including a triumph in Geneva prior to the French Open, which followed on from reaching the semi-finals in the Internazionali d'Italia.

But for the first time in his career, he is into the final four of a major, with Marin Cilic (the fourth Croatian male player to reach the Roland Garros semi-finals in the Open Era) standing in his way of a place in the final.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Ruud – 55/24
Rune – 54/46

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Ruud – 13/1
Rune – 1/4

BREAK POINTS WON
Ruud – 5/17
Rune – 3/6

Andrew Robertson conceded Scotland "didn't really show up" after their 3-1 defeat to Ukraine in Wednesday's World Cup qualifying play-off semi-final.

The tie at Hampden Park was delayed from March due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and it was an emotional evening for all concerned in Glasgow.

Yet Steve Clarke's team ultimately failed to match not only the visitors' intensity, but also their quality, with only some poor goalkeeping from Georgi Bushchan allowing Scotland a way back into the game.

Indeed, Scotland were fortunate not to have conceded more, with Craig Gordon pulling off fine stops early on and making five saves in total, while Artem Dovbyk spurned two golden chances to put the result beyond doubt before finally doing so in stoppage time.

While Ukraine will now switch focus to playing Wales in Cardiff on Sunday, with a place in Qatar the prize on offer, Scotland must lick their wounds before taking on Armenia in their opening Nations League game on June 8.

"Hugely disappointing. We've waited a long time for this game," Liverpool full-back Robertson told Sky Sports after another big game failed to go his way after the Reds' Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid last week.

"Our performances beforehand had been really good and to be honest we didn't really show up.

"Ukraine settled into the game a lot quicker than us and then it kind of continued really. We knew they were probably going to get tired and that was the case but we gave ourselves too much of an uphill battle.

"We didn't play the way we wanted to play, that's the most disappointing thing. It's passed us by now. After a positive campaign, we've let ourselves down.

"We have to hurt, have to reflect, tomorrow's a new day. We've got the Nations League, we have to try and push.

"That's the World Cup gone for us for another four years, that's really hard for us because we all have dreams of trying to play in that big tournament and we didn't put in a performance that justified that."

Scotland were unbeaten in 12 home games at Hampden Park coming into this match (W8 D4), meaning Ukraine have ended their longest unbeaten run on home soil since the 1970s, when they went 16 such matches without defeat.

"We have to stick together, we know there'll be scrutiny coming our way and we know we'll be under fire, but inside we have to stick together," Robertson added.

"As a group we've made massive strides in a couple of years, there'll be a time to take perspective of that, but tonight's not that night. We have to dust ourselves down, go again."

Scotland have failed to qualify for any of the last six World Cup tournaments since appearing at the 1998 edition. Between 1974 and 1998 they missed only one of seven tournaments.

The NBA got a two-season break from the Golden State Warriors.

Now, the Warriors are back in extremely familiar territory – the NBA Finals, where they will face the Boston Celtics in a mouth-watering series.

Golden State saw off the Dallas Mavericks in five games in the Western Conference Finals, reaching the NBA Finals for the sixth time in eight seasons.

And, thanks to what Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob described as a "two-tiered strategy", the Warriors may well be competing to remain on this stage in both the short and the long term.

The Warriors' success in returning to the Finals this season is down primarily to the three players that powered the start of their dynasty: Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

Curry has seven games of 30 points or more this postseason and is averaging 3.8 made threes per game, the most among players to have featured in at least 10 games in these playoffs.

Tied second on that list is Thompson (3.6), whose return after two years on the sideline has been a critical feel-good story for the Warriors. Despite his lengthy absence, Thompson has retained his ability to come through with clutch shooting, converting eight three-pointers in closeout games against both the Memphis Grizzlies and the Mavericks.

Meanwhile, Green, the undisputed heartbeat of the Warriors, has illustrated his all-round value in superb fashion. He is averaging 13.7 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists per 48 minutes in the playoffs, with his influence on both ends of the floor encapsulated by an average plus-minus of plus-6.1 that is seventh for players with a minimum of 10 postseason games under their belt.

Andrew Wiggins (+6.9) sits two spots above Green, the 2014 first overall pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers taking a belated chance to blossom on the big stages in emphatic fashion. Wiggins has produced a series of strong showings and delivered one of the defining moments of the postseason with his monster dunk over Luka Doncic in the Conference Finals.

"I think the Wiggins trade is the key to all of this," head coach Steve Kerr said recently, referencing the trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves that took 2022 All-Star Wiggins to Golden State.

"I don't know where we'd be without him. He's just been brilliant."

A substantial part of the Warriors' ability to brush aside the Mavericks was Kevon Looney's dominance on the boards. Looney had double-digit rebounds in three of the five games, including 18 in the decisive Game 5 meeting, having also racked up 22 in Game 6 against Memphis as the Warriors closed out the Grizzlies.

While the Warriors are back in the Finals in large part through the play of four members of the core who helped them establish a stranglehold over the league and the success of the Wiggins reclamation project, perhaps the most exciting aspect of Golden State's surge to this point has been the glimpse of the future.

That glimpse has come primarily from Jordan Poole, the Warriors' first-round pick in 2019, who after starting for much of the regular season has served as a hugely important sixth man in the playoffs, offering Golden State another shooter alongside Curry and Thompson whose remarkable athleticism also makes him a substantial threat attacking the rim.

Poole is third in effective field goal percentage and second in true shooting percentage for the playoffs (min. 10 games), his composure belying the 22-year-old's inexperience in the pressure cooker of the playoffs in a postseason campaign in which he has demonstrated why he is a strong candidate to be the centrepiece of the next Warriors era that does not feature their big three.

Also expected to be a part of that future are Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, selected seventh and 14th overall in last year's draft, the build-up to which was dominated by calls for the Warriors to package those picks to land another star after an underwhelming 2020-21 campaign ended with defeat in the play-In tournament.

Both Kuminga and Moody have played sparingly in the postseason, each averaging just over 10 minutes per game, but neither 19-year-old has appeared overawed when thrown into the fire.

The return to prominence with Curry, Thompson and Green, combined with the signs of progress from their proteges led Lacob to express a feeling of vindication in the Warriors' strategy.

Asked about rejecting the external pressure to trade their 2021 picks, Lacob told reporters: "I think the 19-year-olds that have played in the playoffs, the number of minutes over the history of the NBA or even in the Finals. I mean [Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody] haven't played very much and yet they're up there.

"Kobe [Bryant] I think was number one in terms of minutes for a 19-year-old. So the 19-year-olds just don't play deep into the playoffs or certainly in the Finals historically in the NBA.

"So the fact that we are where we are, and these guys have both contributed, maybe not as much as they would like to, they want to play more. Everyone wants to play more when you're a good player. But what they've done is great and what our coaches have done to get them ready for this level of play is great.

"I know we took, I, Bob [Myers, general manager], the organisation took some criticism from people that we should trade all our draft choices, that we had to get one more great player or whatever. I was very adamant about it. So was Bob. But that was not the path we were going down.

"We want to be good for a long time. We want to be great for a long time. And we felt that we already had our investment in our core great players. And they're still young enough to perform.

"Our success this year was always going to depend primarily on Steph, Klay when he came back, Draymond and Wiggins, you could argue. That was always fundamentally what the issue is. They're either going to be good enough or they're not, and we'll find out in the Finals too."

"I love what we've been able to do. We've been able to do this, call it a two-tiered strategy, call it whatever you want. But you've got your core guys that are going to get you this year. Meanwhile, you're going to develop these young guys. And I think we've done that."

Regardless of whether the Warriors overwhelm the Celtics to return to the NBA mountain top, Golden State's plan for this season has been an unequivocal success, and their next steps will be fascinating to watch as they continue to try to achieve the dual aims of setting themselves up to compete now and in a post-Curry and Co. future.

The trade winds may once again blow. With Wiggins having just one year left on his deal, there has already been some mention of him and James Wiseman, the 2020 second overall pick who has been kept off the court by injury, being packaged in a trade to land another star.

For now, such speculation can wait until after the confetti has fallen, and if it lands on Golden State, the Warriors will receive the ultimate reward for faith in both experience and youth that has quickly propelled them back to the league's elite and given them more potential options through which to stay there.

The Warriors are back. If they continue to execute the vision of Lacob and Myers, it could be a long time before they leave.

Italy coach Roberto Mancini promised changes after a difficult few months for the Azzurri was compounded by a crushing defeat to Argentina in Wednesday's Finalissima.

Argentina were comprehensive 3-0 winners at Wembley, as the CONMEBOL/UEFA 'Cup of Champions' was revived for the first time since 1993.

Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals as Lionel Messi pulled the strings, but in truth Italy were fortunate to only lose 3-0 against a hugely impressive Albiceleste.

It was only Italy's second match since their shock World Cup qualifying defeat to North Macedonia in March, with that loss preventing them from reaching Qatar 2022.

Despite the Azzurri winning Euro 2020 less than a year ago, Mancini is already looking to instigate something of a rebuild.

But he was keen to pay tribute to those who have played a key role over the past four years.

"In the first half we made two mistakes on their two goals, then they were better at keeping the ball," Mancini is quoted as saying by Sky Italia.

"They were better than us, but I must say thanks to these guys who have played in these four years.

"There is regret for the lack of qualification for the World Cup, and tonight's match was initially balanced, then they had superior quality to us.

"After this match we had in mind to change several things and we will do it. We need to find the players, put together a team that will suffer at the beginning and that in the future will be able to give us joy."

Clearly, the attack will be Mancini's primary focus in any rebuild as he rued a lack of threat going forward.

"We have great difficulty scoring at the moment, and we have to work a lot knowing that it will not be so simple and it will take time [to overcome their issues]," he continued.

"After the European Championship we struggled to score and we have to find solutions in this sense and try to be fast, but it will not be easy to put together a team that gives us short-term satisfaction even if there are good guys. We will have to make as few mistakes as possible.

"I have optimism. I like to work and train. It's true that we lost against a great Argentina team, but we must know that there will also be these moments and we must make sure that the youngest players learn quickly."

Italy now turn their attention to the Nations League. They face Germany on Saturday and again on June 14 – matches against Hungary and England are sandwiched in between.

Argentina's impressive 3-0 Finalissima win over Italy saw La Albiceleste set a national new record of 32 matches unbeaten.

Lionel Scaloni's men were sensational at Wembley, producing a dominant and rampant performance that could have seen them claim an even more one-sided victory.

Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals, while Lionel Messi pulled the strings as Argentina made something of a statement less than six months before the World Cup.

Argentina's last defeat was a 2-0 loss to bitter rivals Brazil in the semi-finals of the 2019 Copa America, but they got their revenge in the final last year, beating the Selecao 1-0 at the Maracana to clinch their first title in 28 years.

Their 32 games unbeaten is a new record for official games, though Argentina did go 33 matches without defeat under Alfio Basile – that run included two fixtures not recognised by FIFA as they were against the Rest of America and the Rest of World in 1991.

Argentina's streak is the longest currently intact in international football and leaves them just five adrift of the all-time record set by Italy themselves last year.

Ukraine claimed an emotional win on their return to competitive football as they moved to within one victory of the Qatar World Cup by beating Scotland 3-1.

The World Cup qualifying play-off semi-final was delayed following Russia's invasion of Ukraine earlier in 2022, but Oleksandr Petrakov's side were deserved victors at Hampden Park despite Georgi Bushchan's blunder setting up a grandstand finish.

Scotland boss Steve Clarke said he was "desperate" to reach the World Cup despite Ukraine's hardship, yet his team could not match the intensity shown by the visitors until late in the match, after Bushchan had fumbled Callum McGregor's shot over the line.

But Ukraine held onto their lead – given to them either side of half-time by Andriy Yarmolenko and Roman Yaremchuk – with Artem Dovbyk adding a third in stoppage time, and now only Wales stand in their way of a place in Qatar.

Craig Gordon twice came to Scotland's rescue early on, first tipping over Viktor Tsygankov's strike before smothering Yarmolenko's close-range effort, but Ukraine made a deserved breakthrough in the 33rd minute 

Having beat Scotland's offside trap, Yarmolenko controlled Ruslan Malinovskiy's lofted pass brilliantly before lofting a neat finish over the onrushing Gordon.

It was 2-0 four minutes after the restart – Yaremchuk heading home from Oleksandr Karavaev's right-wing cross after Scotland failed to clear their lines from a free-kick.

Ukraine almost gifted Scotland a way back into proceedings by overplaying at the back, with Bushchan's clearance slicing wide off McGregor.

John McGinn headed wide to let Bushchan off the hook for another error, but Ukraine's goalkeeper was punished when he failed to catch McGregor's poor shot.

Despite Scotland's pressure, Ukraine finished things off in injury time - Dovbyk, who had missed two glorious chances, making it third time lucky to ensure victory.