EXCLUSIVE: BeIN Sports have written to the Premier League urging chief executive Richard Masters to block the £300million deal for Newcastle, citing illegal streaming of matches in Saudi Arabia.

Newcastle's Valentino Lazaro has slammed the Premier League and club executives over their plan to introduce blanket 30 per cent cuts to players' wages amid the coronavirus crisis.

It appears that current owner Mike Ashley is edging forever closer to selling the club to a bid led by Amanda Staveley which is backed by the wealth of the Saudi Public Investment Fund.

The Premier League asked the United States government to keep Saudi Arabia on its piracy watch list before beginning checks on Newcastle United's Saudi-led takeover.

First-team players are expected to return to training next week, providing Government's formal review and Premier League shareholders' meeting agree to finish the current campaign.

The £300m deal is awaiting the League's approval but that process is understood to have been held up given the complexity of broadcast piracy allegations against the Saudi state.

Haseeb Hameed and Joe Root's admirable resistance proved too little too late as England lost the third Test by eight wickets. Here, Sportsmail's Lawrence Booth takes a look at the talking points.

TOP SPIN AT THE TEST: England’s win here means Pakistan still haven’t won a series in this country since 1996. But this was their third draw out of five in that time, including a thrilling 2-2 in 2016.

CRAIG HOPE IN COPENHAGEN: Christian Eriksen will find himself a marked man against Republic of Ireland on Friday night after angering his opponents last year.

Belgium stars Michy Batshuayi and Thorgan Hazard had a go at playing the bagpipes ahead of their clash with Scotland on Tuesday. The duo also dressed in kilts ahead of their Euro 2020 qualifier.

The Liverpool left-back was in the side which were brushed aside 4-0 by the Red Devils in a friendly at Hampden Park in September last year.

Romelu Lukaku last night apologised to former manager Steve Clarke after putting Scotland to the sword in Brussels. The Manchester United superstar struck twice in a 3-0 win.

The 33-year-old made his managerial bow for Anderlecht, but his tenure got off to a rocky start. Kompany was still afforded a rapturous response, although his team were jeered at full time.

Former Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku has hit back at those who racially abused him during Inter Milan's Serie A clash with Cagliari on Sunday night.

The former Ayr player has been selected for next month's European Championship qualifiers against Russia and San Marino after netting 15 goals in his first 12 games for his new club.

Former Manchester City defender Omar Elabdellaoui is being lined up for a return to England by a string of Premier League clubs. Leicester and Watford are among the sides monitoring him.

Russia have confirmed they will play their upcoming Euro 2020 Group I qualification matches in their old kit as their new strip inverts the country's flag.

Troy Parrott is keeping his fingers crossed that he did enough on his Republic of Ireland debut to be involved in Monday night's Euro 2020 showdown with Denmark.

If there is an edge to the game, then it comes from recent unflattering comments by the Danes about the Irish style of play. Now the manager intends to use those words as a motivational tool.

Prince Harry and Meghan have been in the UK performing their last royal duties before starting their new lives in Canada. The Duke stayed in Britain while Meghan returned to their new home.

Diamond rock samples that have been uncovered from deep underground in Baffin Island, Canada, form part of the puzzle of Earth's ancient continent, the 2.7 billion-year-old North Atlantic Craton.

William Dufris, the voice-actor behind Bob the Builder in the US and Canada, has died from cancer at the age of 62, it was confirmed Wednesday.

The emergency wage payments - similar to those introduced by the UK, Canada and Denmark - are expected to be announced as early as Sunday.

SEBASTIAN SHAKESPEARE: He's been married three times, imprisoned in both the U.S. and Australia, deported from Canada and exposed as a bigamist in the High Court in London.

For over 20 years, Leah Hennel, a photographer and Calgary native, has been chronicling the longtime cowboy and cattle culture in the southern part of the province.

Larah Bross, who runs the Bross Bagels shop in Edinburgh, asked landlord Mario Aydemir Demirezen for alternative rent arrangements, a request he branded 'typical Jewish behaviour'.

Arnold Pultra, an Instagram 'rich kid', claims that his eerie product is 'ethically sourced' from medical surplus in Canada.

Dancing On Ice stars Alexander Demetriou and Carlotta Edwards have reportedly  taken 'a break from their marriage' amid his alleged closeness with skate partner Higgins.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY CRAIG HOPE: There are just two guests left in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Downtown Montreal amid Canada's coronavirus lockdown - Thierry Henry and Luis Binks.

Owen Rooney from Ulladulla on the New South Wales south coast disappeared without a trace in August 2010 after abruptly leaving Boundary Hospital in Grand Forks without his backpack and wallet.

Making an appearance on Stephen Colbert's A Late Show With Stephen At Home on Thursday, the award-winning writer, 34, warned that the production was 'a little bit darker' than the TV show.

Russia-born Valeria Lipovetsky is regularly asked if she's a teenager, and she's told she's doesn't look old enough to have three children, she revealed in a video posted to TikTok .

Gunman Gabriel Wortman, 51, was shot dead by police after a 12-hour slaughter across the eastern province of Nova Scotia where he killed 16 people.

Mikaël Theimer, who was born in Paris and now lives in Montreal, Canada, used Zoom, FaceTime and Facebook messenger to snap shots of people in their opulent homes amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Justin Bieber has been enduring a tranquil lockdown with wife Hailey, 23, at their mansion in Canada.

Carlotta Edwards, 30, and Alex Demetriou, 28, are taking a break after he became very close with Love Island's Maura Higgins, 29, when she appeared on Dancing on Ice.

An animal charity mission to save around 70 dogs from the meat farm in Hongseong finally got underway after Humane Society International worked with the farmer.

She's the glamorous AFL WAG known for her impeccable fashion sense. And on Tuesday, Jessie Murphy didn't disappoint when she stepped out for a skincare launch at David Jones in Melbourne.

Price criticised the quality of the women's game while speaking with Eddie McGuire and Luke Darcy on Triple M's Hot Breakfast on Tuesday morning.

A criminal gang, in Queensland, with members as young as 12 bragged about the police being powerless to stop them stealing cars and joyriding. 

She's the glamorous wife of AFL star Marc Murphy. But on Tuesday, Jessie Murphy revealed she had a rare eye growth and two melanomas removed in recent years.

Frawley, AFL great turned media personality, died after his car slammed into a tree near Ballarat, Victoria, just one day after his 56th birthday on September 9, 2019.

The 37-year-old AFL WAG turned heads at Melbourne Fashion Festival on Thursday.

The Richmond Tigers defender, 30, who was going through a marriage breakdown, announced he was retiring to focus on his 'family and faith' in December last year.

Scott Eagar was devastated after his beloved GWS Giants number plates were stolen from his car in Kogarah in Sydney's south on Friday.

Australian football codes, the AFL and NRL, stepped up measures to combat coronavirus by having teams play to empty stadiums.

Footy WAG Rebecca Judd has admitted that it 'feels weird' to watch the AFL on TV, with no crowd in attendance. 

Comedian Dave 'Hughesy' Hughes has condemned the AFL's decision to continue matches during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mummy blogger and ex-AFL WAG Sophie Cachia appears to have confirmed her new romance with Australian soccer player Alanna Kennedy, 25. 

The images taken at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney on Saturday saw just 25 cheeky fans watch the Sea Eagles take home the win against the Roosters.