Elena Rybakina says she will need some "magic" if she is to go deep at the Australian Open after struggling with a back problem in her third-round win.

Sixth seed Rybakina, runner-up at Melbourne Park two years ago, beat Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska 6-3 6-4 but needed a medical timeout after just three games.

The 25-year-old Kazakh was visibly struggling to move and needed seven match points to close out victory.

Asked afterwards if her back was OK, Rybakina replied: "Not really. I will see my physio and hopefully he does some magic.

"It's not so good since it's [my] lower back. Hopefully we can do everything possible.

"But for now it doesn't seem too good, to be honest."

Former Wimbledon champion Rybakina had a number of injury problems in 2024, struggling at various points with fatigue, illness and a back issue.

Against Yastremska, Rybakina tried to shorten the rallies and hit winners in an attempt to speed up the match - helped in part by 37 unforced errors from her opponent.

"I needed to stay there and try to hold my serve," Rybakina said.

"I knew that it would be very difficult for me to stay long in the rally so I was trying sometimes risk a little bit more."

Rybakina will face either Danielle Collins or Madison Keys, who play later on Saturday, in the fourth round on Monday.

Gael Monfils rolled back the years with a fabulous performance to oust fourth seed Taylor Fritz and reach the Australian Open fourth round.

The 38-year-old Frenchman, known as a showman on the court, thrilled the crowd in a 3-6 7-5 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 win over his 27-year-old opponent.

After serving an ace to see out victory - his 24th of the match - Monfils danced in celebration before pumping his chest and roaring to each stand inside the Margaret Court Arena.

It continues a rich vein of form for Monfils, who became the oldest winner of an ATP Tour singles title with victory at the ASB Classic in Auckland earlier this month.

Victory over US Open runner-up Fritz means Monfils is the second oldest man since 1988 to reach the Australian Open fourth round.

Roger Federer is the oldest, having reached the semi-finals at Melbourne Park in 2020 aged 38 years and five months.

"I have a strong belief I can still do some damage," Monfils said.

"He started strong but I felt I could move great today."

Monfils' victory came before his wife Elina Svitolina's third-round tie against Jasmine Paolini on the same court.

"I think I warmed up the court for her," Monfils joked to the crowd.

"She plays the world number four so it will be tough for her but I hope she will smash this one."

Monfils will play either American 21st seed Ben Shelton or Italian 16th seed Lorenzo Musetti in the fourth round on Monday.

While Raducanu and Swiatek both won Grand Slam titles as teenagers, their careers have followed very different paths since.

Raducanu famously won the 2021 US Open title as an 18-year-old qualifier but struggled with the spotlight on her afterwards.

The rigours of playing full-time on the WTA Tour also took its toll.

A series of injuries culminated in wrist and ankle surgeries in 2023, with Raducanu still finding her way back after dropping out of the world's top 300.

Swiatek, however, continued to thrive after winning the 2020 French Open.

She has become dominant at Roland Garros, having won the title there for the past three years, and also claimed the US Open trophy in 2022.

Swiatek has won all four of her meetings with Raducanu - and the gulf between the pair is stark.

Raducanu was unable to cope with Swiatek's top spin-heavy groundstrokes and athleticism, making a host of errors from the baseline as the pressure told on her backhand in particular.

Losing serve early was a fatal blow against a superb front-runner like Swiatek, who went on to secure the 78th 'bagel' of her tour-level career.

"The scoreline was obviously quite harsh," said Raducanu.

"I'm very clear on what happened out there. If I'm not necessarily able to hold my service games or dictate, I feel like it seeps into the rest of my game.

"On my second serves, how the point is structured from then on, and in the return games, you feel a lot more pressure.

"That was probably a big aspect today."

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Alex Nedeljkovic remembers admiring the way Marty Turco and Martin Brodeur handled the puck during his childhood.

On Friday night, he accomplished something neither of them -- nor any other goalie -- had done.

Nedeljkovic became the first goalie in NHL history to have a goal and an assist in a game during the Pittsburgh Penguins' 5-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres.

"I've always enjoyed playing the puck," he said. "Growing up, I watched some of the best guys do it, like Marty Turco, Marty Brodeur were two guys that I watched a lot and really learned a lot from in terms of puck handling. It's been part of my game as long as I can remember.

"Started from just conversations with my dad in the car telling me, like, 'Don't just throw the puck around the boards every time you get it. Try to make a smart play with it, put it on guys' tape. Don't just do it; if you're going to do it, at least try to do something with it.' It's really exciting right now."

Nedeljkovic, who also had 40 saves, had a secondary assist on Glass' goal with 8:17 left in the second period that gave the Penguins a 3-1 lead. His goal came with 2:42 to play after the Sabres pulled goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for an extra skater. Nedeljkovic gathered the puck behind his own net, fired from behind the goal line and buried the shot from about 180 feet away into the open goal to cap the scoring.

"I'm out there and I see a relatively soft rim," Penguins forward Bryan Rust said. "I'm like, 'He's getting it. We're up by two. I know he's probably shooting it.' So, I kind of just stood there and watched the rest of however many seconds it was. You see him take off for the bench and everyone just mauled him. It was cool."

Nedeljkovic also made history by being the first goalie to score a goal in the ECHL, AHL, and NHL.

The goal was the 19th scored by a goalie in NHL history and Nedeljkovic became the 16th goalie to accomplish the feat. Minnesota's Filip Gustavsson was the last to do it Oct. 15 against St. Louis.

Nedeljkovic is the second Penguins goalie to score after Tristan Jarry -- who was sent to the AHL on Thursday -- was the first to do it Nov. 30, 2023. The only other franchise in NHL history to feature multiple netminders with a goal is Nashville (Pekka Rinne on Jan. 9, 2020, and Chris Mason on April 15, 2006).

Nedeljkovic also became just the fourth goaltender in Penguins history to record two points in a game, joining Tom Barrasso, Wendell Young and Michel Dion, according to ESPN Research.

"It was great," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "The guys were joking with him. They said all he was missing was a fight for the Gordie Howe hat trick."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Former Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Ander Herrera has joined Argentinian giants Boca Juniors, the club announced on Friday.

Herrera, 35, left Athletic Club as a free agent and signed a contract with Boca through the end of 2026.

"As a fan, I've already enjoyed the passion of this club. Soon, I'll have the honor of playing on this very pitch," Herrera said in a video posted on Boca's social media accounts.

Herrera will reunite with several former teammates in Buenos Aires. He played with Marcos Rojo and Sergio Romero at United and with Edinson Cavani in Paris.

Hincha Jugador pic.twitter.com/jKLTLngxv9

Boca Juniors (@BocaJrsOficial) January 17, 2025

The Torneo Apertura begins on Jan. 26, with Boca hosting Argentinos Juniors.

The Spaniard described Boca as "giant, special, with a unique history and passion."

"My father worked here [in Argentina] for a long time, he told me a lot about Boca and I have maintained that passion since I was a child," Herrera said.

The footballer's father, Pedro Herrera Sancristóbal, was a former player and sports director who frequently traveled to Argentina for scouting.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Erling Haaland has signed a record-breaking 9-year contract at Manchester City, the club announced on Friday.

The striker was under contract at the Etihad Stadium until 2027, but has extended his deal until 2034.

The exact numbers involved have not been made public by City, but sources have told ESPN that it is among the most lucrative contracts in sports history.

The 24-year-old's new deal has also removed buyout clauses that were included in his contract when he arrived from Borussia Dortmund in 2022.

The 9 year contract is the longest signed by a player in Premier League history, eclipsing the nine-year deal Cole Palmer penned with Chelsea in August 2024.

Haaland has been heavily linked with a move to Spain in the future, with both Real Madrid and Barcelona expressing interest in the past.

However, the Norwegian's new deal is now set to keep him at City beyond his 33rd birthday.

"I am really happy to have signed my new contract and to be able to look forward to spending even more time at this great club," Haaland said.

"Manchester City is a special club, full of fantastic people with amazing supporters and it's the type of environment that helps bring the best out of everybody.

"I also want to thank Pep [Guardiola], his coaching staff, my teammates and everyone at the club as they have all helped me so much in the past couple of years.

"They have made this such a special place to be and now I am City no matter what. Now I want to keep developing, keep working to get better and look to do my best to try and help us achieve more success going forward."

Haaland is 61st in the all-time Premier League scoring list with 79 goals in 87 matches. The Premier League record stands at 260, held by Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer. At his current pace, Haaland would break that record in 2029-30.

Shearer poked fun at the length of Haaland's new deal and his efforts to overhaul his goal-scoring record in a post on X.

"Congratulations @ErlingHaaland ... Nine and a half years? It surely shouldn't take you that long?" Shearer said.

News of Haaland's deal is another boost for City after Guardiola agreed terms on a new contract in November. His contract is set to keep him at the Etihad until 2027.

Haaland has enjoyed phenomenal success since joining City 2 years ago. He has scored 111 goals in 126 games for the club and won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the Champions League.

Information provided by ESPN's Global Research Group contributed to this report

United States men's national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino insists American players can compete with the likes of Spain and Argentina in terms of talent, but must be "a little more arrogant" with their mentality when approaching the game.

"There is still a gap between Argentina and Spain, but we are reducing it every day. I think there is a question of belief and I think that being a little more arrogant in our ability to believe that we can do it well and that we have the quality enough to compete at the same level," Pochettino said.

"I think that's where we are and I think we're going to get to 2026 at that level."

Since joining US Soccer in September 2024, Pochettino has emphasized the group's need for a stronger mentality when approaching the road to the 2026 World Cup. Though the United States will not participate in any qualifiers as a host nation of the 2026 tournament, Pochettino demands his players to treat every game with a level of aggressiveness.

"Our principal objective is to have the ball in position and then evolve and develop all the ways to keep the ball in position and to, of course, be aggressive and to score a goal because, in the end, the sport is about scoring and not conceding," Pochettino said.

"In this moment, we need to react and we need to be explosive, we need to have power, we need to have, you know, the capacity, the focus and the concentration and the aggressivity to go and the organization to go and recover as soon as possible. Why are we very demanding?

"I think it's a combination of all the things that I think if you want to have a very balanced team in possession and out of possession you need to be very demanding on both sides and of course we are very demanding ... yes, we are coaching the staff that we try to push the player to deliver the best show as possible."

The new manager later emphasized that his players could emulate the way Argentines live the game of soccer in order to improve. He insisted the talent is not lacking, but a different approach could bridge the gap with some of the world's best teams.

"It's the way that the Argentine players compete, the mentality. When you lose a ball, you cry. When you lose a game, you cry, spend maybe one week in your room. It's how to defend your badge, your flag, how to defend your identity, your culture. I think that is what we want to translate," he said.

"Because when you play for your national team and you've listened to your anthem, you need to feel something in your skin, inside yourself ... If we are capable of feeling that, we have the quality and the capacity, we are professional, so professional discipline we have, I think we can find or we can build a very competitive team."

Players participating in the USMNT January camp have begun to feel the effects of Pochettino's coaching style after just 10 days, with Zack Steffen defining the coach as "demanding" and "intense."

"Pochettino, he's very demanding, very intense on the field. He's somebody you can go and ask questions and talk to. And he manages the guys well," Steffen said in a mixed zone.

"It's been intense, but it's really good. It's been really good. You've got to be laser focused. It's going to be tough work. And then when training is done, just do whatever you want to do and enjoy."

The USMNT prepares to face Venezuela on Saturday at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in the first of two friendlies during the January window. The team will then travel to Orlando to confront Miguel Herrera's Costa Rica to allow Pochettino the opportunity to judge all players on the roster.