Athletic Bilbao have announced that the buy-out clause in Aymeric Laporte's contract has been paid, with the defender now seemingly on the verge of joining Manchester City.

THE confessed assassin of populist Pim Fortuyn was jailed for 18 years yesterday for the first Dutch political killing in more than three centuries.

The Dutch government collapsed today, undermined by friction among the coalition partners and a power struggle within one of the three parties.