Celtic drawn against LASK as other Scottish sides discover opponents

Celtic have been drawn against Austrian champions LASK in the Champions League play-off round.

Meanwhile, Rangers will face either Northern Irish champions Larne or Iberia Tbilisi of Georgia in the Europa League play-offs should they defeat Jagiellonia Bialystok of Poland.

And Heart of Midlothian, who dropped down to the Europa League after losing to Sturm Graz in Champions League qualifying, will take on either AGF Aarhus of Denmark or Sabah of Azerbaijan should they defeat Benfica.

Should they lose, the Edinburgh side will face Paide Linnameeskond of Estonia or Rapid Vienna of Austria in the Conference League play-off round.

If Rangers lose in Europa League qualifying, they will meet Jablonec of Czech Republic or RFS of Latvia.

Motherwell will take on German Bundesliga side Freiburg, who were beaten by Aston Villa in last season’s Europa League final, should they defeat Finland’s HJK Helsinki.

Meanwhile, Hibernian will take on IFK Gothenburg of Sweden or Gent of Belgium if they oust Shkendija of North Macedonia.

Celtic are at home to LASK in the first leg on 18 and 19 August, with the return game the following week.

LASK won their domestic title for the second time last season - their first since 1965 - and, like Martin O’Neill’s side, qualified directly for the play-off round.

Given they could have faced Viking Stavanger, Celje, Ararat-Armenia, Kairat Almaty, Levski Sofia, AGF Aarhus or Sabah instead, it is probably the toughest draw Celtic could have been given.

Dietmar Kuhbauer’s side have a lower coefficient than Celje, but the Austrian league is ranked much higher than Slovenia’s.

Rangers will be at home for the first leg of their Europa League play-off on 20 August, as will Hearts should they defeat Benfica.

Both will also be at home on that date should they lose and play in the Conference League play-offs.

Motherwell will also have a home tie first should they progress, but Hibs’ first leg would be away from home.

Ex-Man City striker Dzeko, 40, pens new Schalke deal

The 2026-27 campaign will be Edin Dzeko’s 23rd season of professional football

Bosnia and Herzegovina captain Edin Dzeko, 40, has signed a one-year contract extension at Bundesliga side, Schalke.

The former Manchester City forward joined the German club on a free transfer in January 2026 from Italian side Fiorentina and helped them regain promotion back to the Bundesliga.

“Winning promotion to the Bundesliga ranks among the highlights of my career. It was unbelievable. Football has made me happy and driven me throughout my life. I am still hungry, and I want to help our team in the Bundesliga too,” said Dzeko.

Dzeko scored six goals in 11 Bundesliga 2 matches and captained his nation at the 2026 World Cup.

The veteran forward last played in the Bundesliga during the 2010-11 campaign with Wolfsburg, leaving for a fee of £27m to join Manchester City.

Former Schalke defender Klaus Fichtel holds the Bundesliga record as the oldest player to feature in a competitive game in the German top tier aged 43 years and 184 days.

Claudio Pizarro is the oldest ever goalscorer in the Bundesliga - he was 40 years and 227 days old when he scored for Werder Bremen against Borussia Dortmund.

Schalke director of football Youri Mulder said: “Our conversations over the past few weeks made it clear that Edin is still as hungry as ever. We therefore believe that he can help us in the Bundesliga too.”

Fulham sign Garcia and Palacios from Real Madrid

Fulham have signed Gonzalo Garcia and Cesar Palacios from Real Madrid on five-year deals.

Garcia, 22, made 39 appearances for the Spanish giants last term, scoring eight goals in all competitions.

The forward, who won his first cap for Spain in June, will reunite with new Fulham manager Alvaro Arbeloa, for a reported fee of around £34m, with the pair having worked together at the Bernabeu.

“I’m very grateful, very happy to be here,” Garcia said.

“I have to thank the board and Arbeloa for the trust they’ve put in me, and I’m very, very excited to start.”

The highly rated striker, joint-top scorer at the Club World Cup last summer, will be joined at Craven Cottage by former Real team-mate Palacios.

The 21-year-old attacking midfielder also arrives on a contract that runs until the summer of 2031, although the club has the option to extend the agreements for both players by a further 12 months.

Palacios made five appearances for Real’s senior side - all from the substitutes bench - and has played for Spain at under-20 level.

Newcastle sign Braga keeper Hornicek for £25.7m

Lukas Hornicek has made one senior appearance for the Czech Republic

Newcastle United have signed goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek from Braga for £25.7m.

Although Newcastle had already brought in 20-year-old Ewen Jaouen from Reims this summer, the club had also been in the market for a more established number one.

Hornicek, 24, flew out to Newcastle’s training camp in Spain at the weekend to finalise his move and sign a five-year contract after the club activated his release clause.

“The last few days have been an emotional rollercoaster from when I first heard about the move and now I’m so happy to be here,” the Czech Republic international said.

“It’s a brilliant opportunity in a new league, which I’m very excited about. From the very first moment I arrived here, I received a fantastic welcome and really felt the warmth of the club. Everyone has been brilliant in helping me settle in.

“I know Newcastle is a huge football city, with 52,000 fans at St James’ Park creating an incredible atmosphere and pushing the team every game. I can’t wait to play in front of them.”

Newcastle had tracked Hornicek’s progress as he kept seven clean sheets during Braga’s run to the Europa League semi-finals last season, which was the most of any goalkeeper in the competition.

As well as attempting to keep the ball out of the net, Opta data revealed Hornicek ranked second for successful passes (846) and fourth for passing accuracy (75%) of goalkeepers in Portugal’s top-flight last season.

Newcastle sporting director Ross Wilson said the 24-year-old’s “progress in recent years has been remarkable”.

“He has firmly established himself as one of Europe’s top young goalkeepers,” Wilson said.

“We knew there would be no shortage of clubs interested in acquiring Lukas this summer after everything he achieved last season, but it quickly became evident how keen he was to be a part of what we are building here.”

A rebuild was always on the cards on Tyneside this summer, not least in the goalkeeping department.

Leaky Newcastle kept just eight clean sheets in the Premier League last season and conceded 55 goals, 15th overall with only relegated Burnley, West Ham and Wolves plus Leeds and Tottenham below them.

Newcastle’s outfield players clearly did not offer enough protection, but goalkeeper Nick Pope made a handful of significant errors leading to goals while Aaron Ramsdale never fully convinced during his loan spell and has since returned to Southampton.

A new number one was therefore a priority and Newcastle have once again looked to the continent.

The club have mainly targeted players aged 20 and under from abroad, having already recruited Jaouen, Sean Steur, Bazoumana Toure and Aladji Bamba, so Hornicek will feel like something of an elder statesman in comparison.

But the Czech only made his breakthrough as a regular starter at Braga 18 months ago and will not have much time to prepare for the physicality of the Premier League.

Hornicek’s stature will certainly help - he’s 6ft 6in tall - and his ability to play out from the back will give this side something different as a new cycle begins under head coach Mattias Jaissle, whose appointment will soon be formally announced.

Real Madrid to resume talks with Arsenal target Vinicius Jr

Vinicius Jr returned to Real Madrid on Monday to undergo his pre-season medical following Brazil’s World Cup campaign.

Vinicius Jr is set to resume contract talks with Real Madrid this week as Premier League champions Arsenal maintain a key interest in the forward.

The Gunners have identified the Brazilian as their priority left-wing target should his contract situation remain unresolved.

But, while the prospect of one of the world’s best attackers moving to north London has captured supporters’ imagination, there remains a lot of uncertainty about whether the forward is actually available this summer.

That’s because Real Madrid and Vinicius Jr’s representatives have been in talks over a new contract for the past 18 months. His current deal runs until 2027.

So, with talks set to resume, where do things stand?

Vinicius returned to the club for his first pre-season training session and medical assessment on Monday following his World Cup campaign with Brazil.

The forward is training under Jose Mourinho for the first time this week, with sources close to the Portuguese manager saying he is keen for the winger to commit his future to Real.

Vinicius also wants to remain at the Bernabeu but with his contract expiring next summer, Real risk losing him on a free transfer if no agreement is reached.

That has increased the urgency for the club to resolve his future before the end of the transfer window, with talks set to resume in earnest in the next few days.

There was a similar situation in 2023 when, with his previous contract entering its final year, Vinicius signed a new deal extending his stay until 2027.

Renewal talks have taken place over the past 18 months, but slowed because of disagreements over wages and status within the club.

The 26-year-old is believed to want recognition as Los Blancos’ top star financially, especially after carrying the team for years before the arrival of Kylian Mbappe.

Real, however, are traditionally strict about maintaining their salary structure under president Florentino Perez, with Mbappe currently top of the club’s high earners.

Despite this tension, Vinicius has described Real as “the club of my dreams” and said he hopes to remain there “for many years”.

The club are hopeful of concluding talks this week. If a new contract can’t be agreed - that’s when Arsenal come in.

Mikel Arteta has already made clear that this transfer window is one where he can take Arsenal to another level, and the Gunners boss has become enamoured with the idea of signing Vinicius.

If he did join, it would be a real sign that Arsenal are looking to build on their Premier League title win last season, bringing in one of the best players in the world in the peak years of his career.

Those close to the winger have always played down the immediacy of any move.

Arsenal are also aware that even though their target is in the last year of his deal there is no guarantee they will get their man, and the power lies with the player at this point.