Fernando Alonso got the all-clear from medics to compete in the Chinese Grand Prix on Friday after recovering from a horrific crash at the season-opening race last month.

Karim Benzema was axed from France's Euro 2016 squad so as not to "disrupt the spirit" in the national squad, French football chief Noel Le Graet told sports daily L'Equipe on Thursday.

The French Football Federation (FFF) president added that the Real Madrid striker had "done something really stupid" over the Mathieu Valbuena sextape affair.

The referee for Tottenham's game at Stoke on Monday has been switched because he lives in Leicester.

With leaders Leicester City leading Spurs by seven points with five Premier League matches remaining officials felt it was best that Kevin Friend did not take charge of the game.

Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant delivered a Hollywood ending as the curtain came down on his glittering 20-year NBA career on Wednesday in a blockbuster finale.

On a night of searing emotion at a packed Staples Center, the 37-year-old signed off with a mammoth 60 points, including a final burst of scoring to inspire a 101-96 comeback victory over the Utah Jazz.

The Golden State Warriors blazed to a record 73rd victory of the NBA season on Wednesday, thrashing the Memphis Grizzlies 125-104 to eclipse the 72-win campaign of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.

NBA Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry scored 46 points as the reigning champions broke the mark that seemed unassailable when it was set two decades earlier by that Michael Jordan-led Bulls team.

Kobe Bryant by the numbers after the Los Angeles Lakers superstar brought down the curtain on his 20-year NBA career on Wednesday:

1: NBA Most Valuable Player award, in the 2007-08 season

World champion Lewis Hamilton has been hit with a five-place grid penalty for Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix because of a gearbox change, Mercedes said Thursday.

Already trailing team-mate Nico Rosberg by 17 points after the German won the season's first two races in Australia and Bahrain, Hamilton will now face a battle to prevent that gap from widening in China.

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique admitted his side are suffering a slump in form after a third defeat in four games saw them dumped out of the Champions League by Atletico Madrid.

Antoine Griezmann struck twice for Atletico in a 2-0 win Wednesday to seal their passage to the last four at Barcelona's expense for the second time in three years, 3-2 on aggregate.

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal hailed Marcus Rashford's startling self-awareness after the 18-year-old striker's memorable goal inspired his side to FA Cup victory at West Ham United.

Rashford broke the deadlock in the 54th minute of Wednesday's quarter-final replay, shimmying inside James Tomkins and arcing an unstoppable shot into the top-right corner.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended his controversial plan to expand the World Cup to 40 teams on Wednesday, rejecting criticism the move would dilute the quality of football's showpiece event.

In an interview with Fox Sports 1, the chief of world football's governing body pointed to the expansion of teams at Euro 2016 as evidence that the 32-team World Cup could successfully accommodate more sides.