Lamar Jackson has said he wants to be a Baltimore Raven for the rest of his career, but the 2019 NFL MVP was less definitive when asked if he will be present for the start of training camp in July.

As expected, Jackson's contract status was a main topic of conversation when he met with reporters following Thursday's final day of mandatory minicamp.

The dynamic quarterback is entering the final season of the five-year, $32.5million deal he signed as a rookie in 2018.

Jackson, who is representing himself in negotiations, said he and the Ravens have had discussions about an extension, but stopped short of saying for certain if he will attend training camp or play Week 1 without a new deal.

"We're having a conversation about it," he said. "I don’t know."

Jackson still remained optimistic he will remain a Raven past this season and beyond, though, adding when asked: "I expect so. Yes, I do."

Jackson did attend mandatory minicamp after skipping Baltimore's voluntary offseason training activities last month, though said his absence was not contract-related.

"I just wanted to stay away and just grind. I just wanted to come back and just see how it felt. [And] I feel good," he added.

Extension talks between Jackson and the Ravens have moved slowly, with general manager Eric DeCosta saying in March negotiations had gone on "at Lamar's urgency."

With a league MVP to his credit and being the only quarterback in NFL history with two 1,000-yard rushing seasons, the 25-year-old is in position for a big second contract – perhaps one that could exceed the record $230m in guaranteed money the Cleveland Browns gave quarterback Deshaun Watson on a five-year deal agreed to in March.

Jackson insisted the Watson contract would have no bearing on his situation, saying: "I'm a man of my own. I don't worry about what those guys get."

Jackson also responded to comments made by Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti earlier this offseason, which suggested the star signal-caller may not think he was worthy of such a lucrative long-term contract until he wins a Super Bowl.

"I still want my Super Bowl, though, but I think I'm worthy," Jackson stated. "Yes, sir, I do."

Egypt's team doctor has stated Mohamed Salah was still suffering with an injury when he played for Liverpool in the Champions League final.

Liverpool talisman Salah suffered an adductor injury in the FA Cup final win over Chelsea on May 14, and was unavailable for the Reds' next Premier League fixture.

The forward came off the bench to score in a 3-1 win over Wolves on the final day before playing the full match against Real Madrid in Paris on May 28, though he was unable to inspire Liverpool to a seventh European crown as Vinicius Junior's second-half goal gave Los Blancos a 1-0 victory.

Salah then captained Egypt in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Guinea on June 5.

After that match, Egypt coach Ehab Galal claimed Liverpool had asked Salah to have an X-ray prior to featuring for his country, but he refused.

Egypt's team doctor Mohamed Abou El Ela said Salah, who turned 30 on Wednesday, had stated Galal had to prioritise the Guinea match for the skipper to feature in due to the injury he was carrying.

"Salah's injury occurred during the FA Cup final in the adductor muscles, then he played against Wolves and in the Champions League final, and all of this in just 14 days," he told On Time Sports.

"We send and receive players with medical reports, and Liverpool's said that he had pain and should get an X-ray, there's not a 100 per cent fit player, but there's the question of whether he can push himself and play without risk.

"The club thought that one game is enough and we chose the Guinea game because the second against Ethiopia would be hard for him to travel in a long flight. He couldn't play another game after three days."

Across all competitions, Salah played 4,013 minutes for Liverpool in the 2021-22 season – the fourth-highest total in Jurgen Klopp's squad, behind Alisson (4,890), Virgil van Dijk (4,620) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (4,233).

Of his 51 appearances, 45 were starts, with Salah scoring 31 goals and providing 15 assists as Liverpool won the FA Cup and EFL Cup and finished second in the Premier League along with their run to the Champions League final.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez thinks Kylian Mbappe will already be regretting staying at Paris Saint-Germain.

Mbappe was widely expected to move to Madrid when his PSG contract expired in June, but agreed to a three-year extension in the French capital.

Perez previously stated the Mbappe who snubbed the LaLiga and European champions is not the same character he wanted to bring to Los Blancos.

The Madrid chief, speaking during a meeting with the club's fans, again commented on Mbappe's decision as he declared the World Cup winner will be wishing he had moved to Los Blancos.

"The poor guy, Mbappe must already be sorry," Perez said when signing autographs after a fan had asked him about the France international.

Mbappe was in scintillating form in the 2021-22 campaign as he scored 28 league goals, a tally only bettered by Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski (35) across Europe's top five divisions.

The 23-year-old also added 17 assists, with no player in Europe's biggest leagues managing more direct goal involvements (45) – France team-mate Karim Benzema ranked second with 39.

Mbappe will hope to deliver further success for PSG in the 2022-23 season as the French giants bid for their ninth Ligue 1 title in the last 11 seasons.

Romelu Lukaku has always felt he was still an Inter player despite his exit last year to join Chelsea, Gigi Di Biagio believes.

The Belgium international left the Serie A side to return to the Premier League to join Thomas Tuchel's side but has endured difficulties in west London, expressing his frustrations during a mid-season interview.

Lukaku is expected to be on the move once ahead of the 2022-23 season, with Inter pushing to re-sign the striker from Chelsea – with reports indicating discussions regarding a loan deal are underway.

According to Di Biagio, Lukaku never quite left the San Siro spiritually and it was clear he regretted his exit as he remained an Inter player "in his heart".

"It's really quite romantic that we all got the feeling from the first day that Lukaku wanted to return to Inter straight away," the former midfielder told Sky Sport Italia.

"You could tell from the way he spoke, the look on his face, he still felt in his heart that he was still an Inter player. Then there was that interview he gave too."

Lukaku scored 15 goals in 44 appearances for Chelsea in all competitions, half of the tally he netted in the 2020-21 season to help propel Inter to the Serie A title.

During the 29-year-old's previous two-year spell with Inter, no Nerazzurri player scored more goals (64), provided more assists (17) or created as many chances (133) in all competitions.

Di Biagio believes Lukaku can achieve similar success if the striker returns to Inter.

"Lukaku can still make the difference in Serie A, for his motivation, his desire to wear the jersey, he wants to give something more," he added.

"He felt like he was the king at Inter, whereas something at Chelsea just wasn't working."

Inter are expected to significantly rejuvenate their attacking ranks as they seek to knock San Siro rivals Milan off top-spot next season, with Paulo Dybala also reportedly arriving on a free transfer from Juventus.

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