OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Ravens kicker Justin Tucker faces more allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior, as three additional massage therapists have accused him of misconduct, The Baltimore Banner reported Saturday.

In total, nine massage therapists in the Baltimore area have accused Tucker of inappropriate behavior. All the incidents reportedly occurred from 2012 to 2016, which were Tucker's first five seasons in the NFL.

In the latest accusations, one woman produced what she said was an internal report from 2015 about her experiences with Tucker. She told the Banner that Tucker stroked her inner thigh during a massage, would expose himself, and left what she believed to be ejaculate on the table.

She had reached out to a reporter about her allegations in 2015 but didn't continue over fears of retaliation.

The latest allegations come from three massage therapists who worked at the same downtown Baltimore men's spa. Through an attorney, the owner of the spa told the Banner that he was unaware of any complaints against Tucker.

In response to the new accusations, Tucker's lawyers told the Banner to refer to the kicker's social media post Thursday, when Tucker called the allegations "unequivocally false."

Tucker wrote that the Banner article "takes innocuous or ambiguous interactions and skews them so out of proportion that they are no longer recognizable. ... This is desperate tabloid fodder."

The Banner first reported allegations of misconduct against Tucker on Thursday after it spoke to six massage therapists about Tucker's behavior. Tucker's conduct, according to the article, caused some therapists to refuse to work with him again and resulted in two spas banning him from returning.

Tucker could be subject to discipline under the NFL's personal conduct policy.

"We first became aware of the allegations from the reporter investigating this story as they were not previously shared with the NFL," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Thursday. "We take any allegation seriously and will look into the matter."

On Thursday, the Ravens issued a statement saying, "We take any allegations of this nature seriously and will continue to monitor the situation." Three years ago, Ravens coach John Harbaugh referred to the team's zero tolerance policy for domestic violence when asked about Deshaun Watson's six-game suspension following accusations of sexual misconduct with massage therapists.

Tucker, 35, is a seven-time Pro Bowler who is the most accurate kicker in NFL history. He is the longest-tenured player on the Ravens and the last remaining player from their Super Bowl championship team in 2012.

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- Albert Pujols grew up not 30 minutes from Estadio Quisqueya, a quaint, shaded stadium that has housed Santo Domingo's two baseball teams, the Tigres del Licey and the Leones del Escogido, for 70 years. When he was 10, and the right-field corner was composed of benches instead of seats, he roamed the aisles selling sandwiches with his mother to earn extra money. His cousins rooted for Licey, by far the nation's most popular team, and so Pujols took on Escogido, at least in part to spite them.

That was the team he cheered for every winter -- the team he promised to play with before his major league playing career ended, the team that gave him his first chance to manage last February, and the team with which he won the most improbable, most thrilling of championships earlier this week, knocking off the Licey team that split his and so many other Dominican families for decades.

"Wow," he said from an interview room late Monday night, his left arm wrapped around the massive Copa Banreservas trophy after Escogido's nail-biting 6-5 victory over Licey in Game 7. "It still hasn't hit me."

Pujols, now 45 years old, and 28 months removed from his last major league game, aspires to someday manage in the big leagues and decided to cut his teeth in the hotbed that is the Dominican Professional Baseball League, commonly known as LIDOM. The championship round against Licey -- the team with a record 24 LIDOM titles, including each of the last two -- was regarded as one of the best this island had ever seen.

Two of the games lasted at least 13 innings, and another was undecided until the eighth. In Game 4, Pujols' best player, promising Tampa Bay Rays prospect Junior Caminero, charged at the opposing dugout. In Game 6, Pujols inserted himself into the middle of controversy by asking umpires to ensure the bat that produced Gustavo Núñez's two-out, ninth-inning, game-tying home run was not corked. It wasn't, LIDOM officials determined the following morning, setting the stage for a grand finale.

In a winner-take-all Game 7, Escogido pulled ahead with a 454-foot moon shot by Caminero in the top of the ninth. But Licey threatened in the bottom half, placing runners on second and third with two outs against reeling closer Rafael Montero. Francisco Mejía then sent a sinking liner to shallow right field that seemed primed for a championship-clinching walk-off, but Socrates Brito secured it with a diving catch, sending half of Estadio Quisqueya into a frenzy.

Tying run on 3B. Winning run at 2B. Escogido wins the LIDOM championship, its first in nine years, on a sliding catch. Licey is denied a three-peat. Half of Estadio Quisqueya is going bonkers. The other half, dejected. pic.twitter.com/hAfCEOy5s0

Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) January 28, 2025

"It's been a long journey," said Pujols, whose team will now represent the nation in the Caribbean Series in Mexico. "It wasn't easy to get here."

Pujols' Escogido team got off to a 16-5 start, then won just two games over the first 22 days of December, dropping from first place to fourth in a six-team league. Within weeks, fans went from considering Pujols the logical choice for manager of the year to angrily second-guessing his every move. They criticized his lineup choices, clamored for him to be more animated in the dugout, poked fun at his defensiveness with the media and claimed that if his name didn't carry so much weight on the island, he would have been fired.

"The fans here, they're brutal," Pujols said. "When things are going well, they love you. When things are going bad, they want to hang you."

But Pujols found himself too busy to worry. His roster was in constant flux, as is often the case in this league. His starting catchers went from Martin Maldonado to Reese McGuire to Gary Sanchez to Pedro Severino. For six weeks, from the middle of November to the end of December, not a single Escogido starting pitcher lasted more than four innings. When the regular season ended, his team led the league in errors. But too many of those errors, Pujols said, were mental ones -- ill-timed baserunning mistakes, errant throws and so many missed signs.

In this job, as much as anything else, Pujols has learned patience.

"That's been the biggest challenge," he said. "I've seen some things here you wouldn't believe."

Since Pujols' playing career began in 2001, there have been only five men selected to the Hall of Fame as players who also managed in the big leagues. Only one, Frank Robinson, had a sustained career on the bench. None of the other four -- Paul Molitor, Ryne Sandberg, Tony Pérez and Alan Trammell -- lasted longer than four seasons, according to ESPN Research.

Every circumstance is different, but a popular notion throughout sports has been that the greatest players tend to struggle as coaches because they also struggle to relate with players who aren't as advanced in their craft. The game came relatively easy to them. Often, they can't understand how it doesn't come as easily for others, and so they find it difficult to teach at what to them are rudimentary levels.

Pujols, all but certain to be voted into the Hall of Fame when eligible in 2028, admits he, too, struggled with that initially. But he had what he described as an epiphany one morning in September, while driving to the facility for the second week of preseason workouts, thinking about what he and his coaches would need to reemphasize to players later that afternoon. He found himself getting angry. Too many of his players weren't disciplined enough, focused enough, to play at the highest level. He didn't know how to make that clear to them. He felt hopeless.

"And then I felt that God really stopped me," he said, placing his right hand over his chest. "I paused and I'm like, 'Hey, you can't expect these guys to make the play. You have to teach them. You have to be patient.' And I think that's something that has been huge, to be able to be patient. To be able to understand."

When the Leones slid in December, Pujols reminded them how good they were. When they snuck into the four-team round-robin tournament, requiring three consecutive season-ending victories, he told players their best baseball was approaching. And in the aftermath of a gut-wrenching loss late in Game 6 on Sunday night, his team an out from a championship until Núñez's home run, he walked into the clubhouse with a smile and declared they had nothing to fear.

"I learned a lot from him," said Plácido Polanco, Pujols' bench coach and beloved ex-teammate. "I learned to trust your instincts and to stay calm."

With the score tied at 5 in Monday's top of the ninth, and Escogido's first title in nine years once again hanging in the balance, Caminero launched a Jairo Asencio offering to deep center field -- over an 18-foot-high fence commonly referred to as this country's "Green Monster" and off the scoreboard stationed beyond it. Caminero flung his bat so high it took four seconds to hit the ground. He celebrated with teammates who had spilled out of the first-base dugout, pranced around the infield, stopped for a hug at third base, riled up the fans on his way to home plate and stomped on it twice for effect.

When Caminero was granted permission to play winter ball, Pujols promised Rays coaches they would witness a newer, better version of him when he arrived at spring training in mid-February. Caminero carried Escogido through the round-robin tournament, batting .448 through 15 games, then became a target of Licey fans in the final round, many of whom chanted "MVP" sarcastically when he didn't come through.

Caminero is 21 and brimming with talent, but often the emotions of LIDOM seemed to overwhelm him. Pujols spent these past seven weeks focusing his attention on Caminero. After their time together was over, he promised to keep in touch.

"He's going to be a superstar," Pujols said. "It's special."

Pujols -- he of 703 home runs, 2,218 RBIs, 3,384 hits, two World Series titles and hundreds of millions of dollars in career earnings -- certainly doesn't need to subject himself to the grind and the second-guessing of a baseball manager. But he wants to. And when many wonder why, Pujols will point to the challenge of helping someone like Caminero -- and to the type of moment his swing produced.

"I feel that I can offer so much to players and to teams," said Pujols, who has yet to interview for a managerial opening in the majors. "And it's about growing and helping. It's not about me. It's about helping others, and having that passion. I have that love and that passion for the game. This was my job, this was my life. For me, that's why I want to do it. If the opportunity comes, why not?"

Ireland: Keenan; Hansen, Ringrose, Aki, Lowe; Prendergast, Gibson-Park; Porter, Kelleher, Bealham, Ryan, Beirne, Baird, Van der Flier, Doris (capt).

Replacements: Sheehan, Healy, Clarkson, Henderson, Conan, Murray, Crowley, Henshaw.

England: Steward; Freeman, Lawrence, Slade, Murley; M Smith, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Stuart, Itoje (capt), Martin, T Curry, B Curry, Earl.

Replacements: Dan, Baxter, Heyes, Chessum, Cunningham-South, Willis, Randall, F Smith.

Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)

Wales will travel to Nice on Saturday to spend the week preparing for the Italian test.

"The players have worked hard over the last couple of weeks and the players are aware of how important next week is," said Gatland.

"We go to Nice tomorrow for the week and that's going to be important for this group."

Wales have also suffered notable injuries, losing number eight Aaron Wainwright and centre Owen Watkin in the first half.

A bloodied Wainwright took a blow to his head, while Watkin suffered a suspected serious knee injury that will require further assessment.

"They are not looking great," said Gatland.

"Owen is in a brace with his knee, and it looks like it could be an ACL [anterior cruciate ligament] and Aaron needs another HIA [head injury assessment] and has quite a nasty gash in his face down through his lip."

The Vancouver Canucks continued reshaping their roster by acquiring defenseman Marcus Pettersson and forward Drew O'Connor from the Pittsburgh Penguins for a package that included the first-round pick the Canucks acquired in trading J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers earlier Friday night.

In addition to the Rangers' 2025 first-round pick, the Penguins received forward Danton Heinen, defenseman Vincent Desharnais and the rights to forward Melvin Fernstrom in the trade. The Rangers' pick is conditional. If New York picks within the top 13 selections in the 2025 draft, it becomes an unprotected 2026 first-round pick in what's expected to be a deeper draft pool.

Pettersson and O'Connor are unrestricted free agents after the season.

"We wish both Danton and Vinny all the best in Pittsburgh and thank them for their contributions this season," Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said. "We are really happy to add to the depth of our team with the acquisitions of Marcus and Drew. Marcus has good size, reach, and makes solid decisions with the puck while Drew is an intelligent player with versatility and a bigger frame."

Pettersson, 28, was widely expected to be moved out of Pittsburgh after seven years with the team due to his expiring contract and the Penguins' retooling. He has 18 points in 47 games this season, averaging 22:03 per game, and is a strong two-way defenseman who spent time with Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang on the Pittsburgh blue line this season. Pettersson's contract has an average annual value of $4,025,175. He had limited trade protection.

O'Connor, 26, plays both wings. He has 6 goals and 10 assists in 53 games this season, his fifth in the NHL with the Penguins. A tenacious forechecker, he didn't stick with star centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin due to a lack of goal production. He spent the majority of his time recently in their bottom six forwards. O'Connor's contract has an average annual value of $925,000.

Heinen, 29, is a known commodity in Pittsburgh, having played for the Penguins from 2021 to 2023. The journeyman forward had 6 goals and 12 assists in 51 games for Vancouver this season, averaging 13:57 per game. Heinen is signed through the 2025-26 season with a $2.25 million cap hit.

Desharnais, 28, is a 6-foot-7 defenseman who signed with Vancouver as a free agent after two seasons in Edmonton. He had three assists in 34 games with 34 penalty minutes, playing 15:58 per game. A penalty-killing defenseman, he's also signed through the 2025-26 season with a $2 million cap hit.

The trade follows an early evening blockbuster that featured the Canucks sending Miller to the Rangers for forward Filip Chytil, defenseman Victor Mancini and their 2025 first-round draft pick.

Miller is expected to play for the Rangers at the Boston Bruins on Saturday afternoon.

Vancouver lost its first game after the Miller trade, 5-3, to the Dallas Stars.

Arsenal and Manchester City's fiery rivalry is a natural byproduct of both teams' desire to be the best, the north London club's captain Martin Ødegaard said ahead of their Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

Arsenal finished runners-up to City in 2022-23 and took the Premier League title race to the final day last season before once again finishing second behind Pep Guardiola's side.

Tempers flared during their last meeting in September as Ødegaard's Norwegian compatriot Erling Haaland threw the ball at Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães and directed heated words at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, asking him to "stay humble."

"I think in football, games like this, the emotions are so high and the adrenaline is there and everything. That's something that can happen on the pitch and then when you walk off the pitch, then you are done with it," Ødegaard said.

"It is not something I think too much about. I think it is normal when you play these big games that there is a big rivalry. You are competing and you want to be the best. So, that's how it should be and there should be a little bit of heat sometimes.

"But then, I think a lot of the players know each other from the national team -- England, Brazil, me with Erling -- so on the pitch and off the pitch it is a bit different. When we are on the pitch, then it's a good battle."

City are fourth in the league standings with 41 points while second-placed Arsenal, with 47 points, are six points behind leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

Neymar has suggested that the move to Santos was a "rescue" for him and said that he hopes to regain his confidence at the Brazilian side.

The 32-year-old sealed his return to his boyhood club in style after being unveiled in front of 20,000 fans at the Vila Belmiro stadium on Friday night.

The move brought an end to Neymar's forgettable 18 month stint at Al Hilal, with injuries restricting him to just seven appearances and one goal.

Just a few months on from joining Al Hilal in the summer of 2023, the forward suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) while on international duty with Brazil in October 2023.

It kept him sidelined for over a year and two games into his return, he picked up a hamstring injury against Esteghlal in the AFC Champions League Elite in November 2024. It turned out to be his last game for the club.

While admitting that his family and him were happy in Saudi Arabia, he spoke of wanting to rediscover his joy for the game with Santos.

"It's a rescue for me, of happiness, of soccer. It's been a long time since I've played, since I've done the thing I love most in the world, which is playing soccer," Neymar told a news conference on Friday.

"So today it's more of a rescue for me, I'm seeing it in a personal sense. I'm happy that everyone is saying that it's a rescue of Brazilian soccer, I'm happy for the affection, not just from the Santos fans, but from fans of other teams, who cheer for me. I'm very happy to be back. I need to regain my confidence to play, my happiness which is to be on the pitch. That's what I came looking for."

The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward, who will wear Pele's iconic No. 10 jersey for Santos, also spoke of his ambition to return to the Brazil national team.

Since the Seleção's quarterfinal exit from the 2022 World Cup, Neymar has made just four appearances for Brazil. The last of his 128 caps came in a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay in October 2023, the fateful game in which he injured his ACL.

"Obviously, the Brazilian national team is something I want to return to. I have something to achieve, I have a mission that I think is my last and I'm going to go after it in any way I can. So I have targets and objectives to pursue," he said.

Information from ESPN Brasil contributed to this report.

PHILADELPHIA -- Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook left Denver's 137-134 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night because of left hamstring tightness and did not return.

Westbrook, who had 4 points, 7 assists and 6 turnovers in 25 minutes, exited 50 seconds into the fourth quarter after a quick timeout by Nuggets coach Michael Malone, and though the team listed him as questionable, he never returned.

Malone didn't give an update on Westbrook's status, though he noted Westbrook had "a big smile on his face" after Denver's victory. And though Westbrook didn't speak to the media postgame, he left the arena without a limp.

The Nuggets will close a five-game road trip across eight days Saturday night in Charlotte, North Carolina, the second of a back-to-back set.

After losing the first three games of the road trip in Minnesota, Chicago and New York, Denver appeared headed for another loss. The Nuggets were trailing 123-122 after reigning MVP Nikola Jokic committed a travel with 2:39 remaining.

But then, over the final 2:30, Jokic went 4-for-4 from the field for 11 points and assisted on Christian Braun's layup -- the only shot attempt by another Nugget during that stretch -- to close out the game and snap Denver's three-game losing streak.

"That's just what he does," Braun, who will return to the starting lineup if Westbrook has to miss time, said of Jokic. "He made some big plays for us, and that's who he is."

Since Westbrook entered Denver's starting lineup Dec. 27, he has averaged 14.2 points, 6.6 assists and 6.4 rebounds while shooting 53.8% from the field. It was unclear whether Westbrook would remain in the starting lineup over Braun as Denver has slowly been working Aaron Gordon back into the lineup after a calf injury. On Wednesday, Gordon returned to the starting five and Braun went to the bench as the Nuggets lost to the Knicks.

"Never an easy decision," Malone said Wednesday. "Christian Braun has been great for us this year. Not good -- he's been great. And he's done everything that's been asked of him. But I just like keeping Russell out there.

"I think the Russ-and-Nikola dynamic is the best two-man combination in the NBA right now, and I didn't want to disrupt their rhythm."