COLUMBUS, Ind. — When Daison Pursley joined Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports two years ago, he was a fresh-faced, 14-year-old youngster who hoped to begin making his name in racing.

Fast-forward two years and not only is Pursley’s name starting to become recognizable, but he’s also gained another title within the KKM stable — veteran.

Odd as it may seem, Pursley is the most-tenured driver within the Keith Kunz-owned stable this year, in the midst of his third season with the venerable midget team as part of the Toyota driver development program.

His older teammates — 19-year-old Buddy Kofoid and 20-year-old Kaylee Bryson — are each in their second years with KKM, while fellow teenagers Brenham Crouch, Bryant Wiedeman and Cade Lewis are all running full seasons with the organization for the first time.

That leaves Pursley as the driver on the team with the most experience working with the Columbus, Ind., stable at only 16 years of age.

Pursley admitted it’s a unique position for him to be in, as well as an odd one to think about at times, but the Locust Grove, Okla., native also appreciates the chance he has to guide some of his teammates. It’s an opportunity hebelieves can help mold him into a leader within KKM.

“It’s weird, isn’t it? I’m pretty much the veteran at KKM now, even though it’s only my third full-time year,” Pursley told Sprint Car & Midget. “When I’m only 16 years old, it almost trips you out a little bit, but it’s very true that I am the one there with the most experience working around the guys in the shop. I’ve enjoyed it, but we’ve also started to change things up just a little bit to keep things fresh as well. I think, after a while, you kind of have to do that just to see what else you can get going that works.

“Buddy and I have had the same crew chief (Jarrett Martin) since last year and always parked beside each other and leaned on each other pretty hard, but last month in Texas (during the POWRi opener at Monarch Motor Speedway), we switched it up and I switched over to Kaz (Townsend) as my crew chief, so that was a little bit different,” Pursley added. “But I think different can also be good. I felt like I could be a leader of the team [in that position], and Buddy and I still have a good friendship off the track.

“I think going forward, it’s going to be even more competitive between us every time we hit the track.”

Six months ago, the idea of Pursley stepping up as one of the main players for veteran car owner Keith Kunz might have seemed somewhat far-fetched, as Pursley had yet to capture a national midget victory and seemed somewhat snakebitten within the discipline.

His confidence was, admittedly, somewhat lacking and Pursley wasn’t sure if the breakthrough win would come. However, after he captured last season’s POWRi finale, all of those doubts were washed away.

That, Pursley said, was the moment he felt a coming of age as part of Kunz’s midget operation.

“That win last year got the monkey off my back, I feel like,” Pursley tipped. “The first one, like everyone said, was the hardest to get. It took us a full season or two of POWRi, basically, to get the win … and then a full USAC season. It was pretty cool, but I did wonder sometimes what it would take for us to actually get one knocked down. Now, I feel like my confidence is there and the whole team is really, really strong right now. Everyone’s in a good mood and we’re hitting on all cylinders, so that kind of makes it easier to run up front and have fun with everybody.

“When you’re having fun, the wins seem to come easier,” he continued. “I think a lot of Keith’s [well-known] drivers have proven that through the years. We know Buddy’s going to be hard to beat every time he’s in the car and I know that right now, he’s kind of the guy to beat [in midget racing]. I’m honestly tired of running second to him, it seems like, every time we race with him. Hopefully, we can change that up and start rattling off a few more wins here soon because all the guys working on my race cars deserve that.”

As he looks ahead toward the later stages of the year, Pursley admitted a possible transition toward pavement is on his mind. How could it not be? After all, the young gun has watched Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell and more use KKM as a springboard to successful NASCAR careers since he was young.

With Kofoid now doing the same after recently dipping his toe into the waters of late model racing, Pursley knows his time is now to make a statement for the future.

He believes he can do that, not just by winning midget races, but by growing his footprint with KKM.

“You want to prove you can take that next step, right?” Pursley said. “It’s not only about winning races, but by learning the skills you need to be successful in the sport beyond just midget racing. I feel like Keith, Pete [Willoughby, KKM co-owner], everyone with Toyota and TRD and all our partners have done a lot to help get me ready for whatever is in my future and I’m excited for any opportunity that could come my way.

“I’m excited to, hopefully, make a statement this season and then see what the future holds after that.”

Pursley ranks second in POWRi points to Kofoid and eighth in the USAC standings through April 15.

He’ll return to action with the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series April 30-May 1 at Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway. An outing the week prior with POWRi in Missouri is possible as well.

TORONTO -- Toronto Maple Leafs star center Auston Matthews will miss Thursday night's game against the visiting Winnipeg Jets with an injury and is listed day to day.

When asked if it was a recurrence of a wrist injury from earlier in the season, Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said: "It's similar, but not the same."

Keefe said the injury is not expected to keep Matthews out for long.

Matthews stepped on the ice for the morning skate, but left before the session began.

Matthews leads the NHL with 32 goals and is tied for fourth in league scoring with 53 points.

The North Division-leading Leafs are five points ahead of the second-place Jets.

Toronto has lost two in a row.

Arsenal are into the Europa League semifinals after a runaway 4-0 win over Slavia Prague in their quarterfinal second leg on Thursday night saw them advance 5-1 on aggregate.

The Gunners were without the injured Martin Odegaard and striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who revealed shortly before the game that he had been in hospital recovering from a case of Malaria contracted while on international duty with Gabon.

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Emile Smith-Rowe looked to have put Arsenal in front just before the 15-minute mark, but his tap in from a Bukayo Saka shot that came back off the post was disallowed after a VAR check.

Soon after, Arsenal would go two up in the span of minutes after Nicolas Pepe smashed his shot into the roof of the net and Alexandre Lacazette converted from the penalty spot following a foul on Saka by Slavia's Jakub Hromada in the area.

Saka then got on the scoresheet shortly after Lacazette's penalty when he picked up the ball on the right flank, cut inside to his left foot and beat Slavia keeper Ondrej Kolar at his near post with a clever finish.

"I feel like in the first leg we played really well but didn't take our chances," Saka said after the match. "The way we pressed, they couldn't get out and the control we had over the game, the movement, the rotations, they couldn't stop us."

The opening 45 minutes ended with Arsenal up 3-0, marking the first time Mikel Arteta's side had scored three goals in the first half since a Premier League match against Leeds on Feb. 14.

The second half produced far less fireworks with Lacazette netting his second of the night from a quick-hitting Arsenal counter in the 77th minute to put his side up 4-0 with the tie already done and dusted.

The result means Arsenal will face Villarreal, who beat Dinamo Zagreb in their quarterfinal, on April 29 in a match that sees the Gunners go head-to-head with former manager Unai Emery.

The home side, who beat Leicester City as well as Rangers en route to the quarterfinals, reached the end of the road against an Arsenal side that pressured the Czechs all over the pitch.

"They were better today by every measure," Slavia coach Jindrich Trpisovsky told reporters. "They scored with their chances and we lacked better movement to be more successful in the attack."

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- David Beckham stepped out of a Cadillac SUV and into the dust of a construction site. It was December 2019. In front of him was the shell of a new 18,000-seat stadium in deepest Broward County, where Inter Miami would play its first two seasons before moving, if everything fell into place, to a $1 billion venue near Miami Airport. Behind him, a training complex and team offices were beginning to emerge.

After nearly seven years of battling to get an MLS expansion franchise on the field somewhere in South Florida, Beckham was eager to implement his vision for a club that would start big and get bigger. "I don't think there's another club anywhere that has the opportunity we have globally," he told ESPN.

MLS 2021 Kickoff Weekend LIVE on ABC/ESPN Deportes:
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Since then, almost nothing has gone as planned. One afternoon not long ago, Beckham and Jorge Mas, one of his co-owners, stood on a second-floor terrace of the office building and surveyed the scene. Across the street, the stadium parking lot had been transformed into a drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination site; cars were queued up into the distance.

The stadium had been rented for the day to the local Boys & Girls Club, income that helps pay for running an MLS team during a pandemic. So did the showcase that Brandon Marshall, the former Miami Dolphins wide receiver, was staging on a practice field for potential NFL draft picks, and the decision to lease the stadium to Club de Foot Montreal for its 2021 MLS home games.

"You have to adapt to the situation," said Mas, whose title is managing owner. (Former Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure and tech entrepreneur Masayoshi Son also have ownership shares.) "With the short season, with the lack of fans, with the restrictions we faced, last year was a challenge."

On the field, Inter Miami became the first team in the history of the league to lose its first five games. It ended with seven wins, three draws and 13 losses, good for 10th place in the 14-team Eastern Conference -- and the worst record Beckham has been associated with as a professional. Miami finished three places behind last year's other MLS expansion team, Nashville SC, which came into the league with minimal expectations and an owner whose distinctly unromantic business interests include transport barges and print-on-demand books. Nashville won more games than it lost in the regular season, then eliminated Inter Miami from the playoffs 3-0.

As a player, Beckham was drawn to successful clubs, and they were drawn to him. He played for four of the biggest in Europe -- Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and PSG -- and won championships with three, as well with the LA Galaxy in MLS. Since negotiating a future option on an expansion franchise as part of his original MLS player contract, Beckham, 45, has had plenty of time to imagine what owning a team would be like. Failing, even temporarily, never crossed his mind. "We set high standards," he said. "As individuals, Jorge and I set high standards in our businesses, and that's how we want to run the club."

So Beckham, who takes the lead on all things football, fired manager Diego Alonso in January and hired Phil Neville, his former Manchester United teammate. He replaced the sporting director, Paul McDonough, who had been plucked with much fanfare from Atlanta United, with Seattle's Chris Henderson. He also supervised the acquisition of 13 new players, an overhaul of basically half the team. A year after Inter Miami's inaugural game in Los Angeles, seeing so many new faces in the workout room was almost as unexpected as the vaccination line.

Beckham spent the first 10 months of the pandemic in England. He returned to the complex for the first time at the end of December and hasn't left the area. Of all the changes at Inter Miami, his presence there may be the most profound. The club has been sculpted in Beckham's image, from the emphasis on a strong academy and intense training sessions to the unique great white herons logo that he helped design. With him out of sight, Inter Miami seemed like any other expansion team, struggling to find an identity.

Though he remains one of the world's most famous people, Beckham is surprisingly accessible. If he sees someone he doesn't know, he'll step up and greet them, look them in the eye. "He's David Beckham from Essex," said Neville. "The guy who shows the same respect to the chef upstairs as he does to the kit man downstairs, as he does to Gonzalo Higuain," the Argentine international and Inter Miami forward.

As an owner, Beckham seems equally comfortable on the football side of the building, where the gym and changing rooms are located, as the business side. "His presence on-site every day, even if he's just up there in his office, means there is now a connection between everybody in the club," Neville said.

And at least until Lionel Messi decides to buy a team, no other football owner has his cachet. "Having David here is just inspirational," Henderson said.

Previously, Henderson had engineered much of the Sounders' success, from their inaugural season in 2009 through two MLS Cups. He was drawn to Miami, like so many others, by the chance to work with Beckham. Merely catching a glimpse of Beckham in the parking lot is enough to remind his players that what's happening in Miami is no ordinary project. "Just that can make guys give an extra 5 or 10%," said the Scottish striker Lewis Morgan, Inter Miami's MVP in 2020.

With characteristic thoroughness, Beckham has immersed himself in every aspect of ownership. It helps that his frequent trips to China and around Europe for endorsements and his wife Victoria's fashion business have paused during the pandemic. "I like to physically be here, watching the training sessions, seeing what drills they're doing," Beckham said. "I'm talking to our physios, our doctors, our fitness trainers, our chefs, the parents of our under-13s and under-14s. I've been very lucky to have played with the biggest clubs, for the biggest managers, with the biggest players, on the biggest stage. I'd like to think that my involvement, even if the players just see me sitting here while they're working out, has made a big difference."

That involvement carries a huge potential upside, especially at a time when MLS' biggest names of the past decade -- Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Beckham himself -- are no longer on the field. "We've got an owner who is arguably one of the most famous people on the planet," said David Bruce, a senior vice president with the league. "He transcends the worlds of sport, culture and lifestyle in a way that not many people can." Factor in the glamour of Miami and you have the potential for a flagship American team for the first time since the 1970s New York Cosmos. "Miami can be a great franchise and a great market," said Bill Manning, the president of Toronto FC. "I'm incredibly excited about it." But, Manning cautions, "they have to win."

If not, the risk is public embarrassment for someone who has spent a career studiously avoiding it. The Beckham brand is on the line. No wonder he wants to be around to supervise.

The routine played out week after week at the Beckhams' country home at Chipping Norton, in the Cotswolds, where the family spent last summer and fall waiting out the pandemic. At midnight or 1 a.m., Beckham would settle on the couch with a son or two, his longtime friend and business partner Dave Gardner and high expectations for the team's game. Soon enough, the frustration would begin.

Inter Miami's stretches of inspired play often included a near-goal by Morgan or attacking midfielder Rodolfo Pizarro, but they would inevitably end with a successful counterattack in the other direction, or a conceded penalty, or a red card. "It was bewildering and unfathomable," said Ray Hudson, Inter Miami's play-by-play announcer. An English-born midfielder who played more than 300 games for North American teams between 1977 and 1991, Hudson later managed the Miami Fusion, the area's failed attempt at an MLS franchise, and D.C. United. Over a career of playing, coaching and broadcasting soccer, he insists he'd never seen a season like it. "Every week there'd be a different thing," he said. "You'd just slap your head with your hand. 'What's next?'"

For Beckham, watching loss after loss from a distant time zone was excruciating. He'd never wanted to be an owner who'd call his manager and, as he says, "demand that the left back be replaced." But there in the stillness of the night, Beckham could see that his club wasn't right. "It wasn't just 'Why are we playing 4-4-2?'" he said. "It was about the small details, which are actually the important ones because they become bigger problems.

"Being an ex-player, you can pick up things going wrong in certain positions, or in the way we're playing, or just the way we're stepping out onto the field. You get to know the signs."

To be fair, few clubs anywhere were affected by the pandemic as much as Inter Miami. Unlike clubs like Nashville, which graduated to MLS after time in the United Soccer League (USL), it was constructed out of whole cloth. The players hardly knew one another. Several arrived days before the opener. "We couldn't do any team bonding sessions," Morgan said. "And then we couldn't jeopardize our season by going out for team meals."

Not having fans in the stadium dissipated much of the excitement of an inaugural season. Reinforcements arrived in September in the form of the world-class striker Higuain -- whose older brother, Federico, also plays for the club -- and the stylish midfielder Blaise Matuidi. But they came from Italy's Juventus, a club accustomed to overrunning most opponents, and adapting to an expansion mentality during a season was predictably difficult. Fans finally were allowed in limited numbers in October, but by then, Inter Miami was irredeemably bad.

Or was it? "When you really analyze their games, they were incredibly unfortunate," said Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin. The Union beat Inter Miami twice, in July and in September, by a combined 5-1. "But they dominated us for long stretches," Curtin said. He describes the club as a sleeping giant. "In the key positions up the spine of the field, I think they got it right," he said. Curtin had himself coveted Pizarro, the most expensive transfer in Liga MX history. With a full training camp behind him, the 32-year-old Higuain is "ready to break out," Curtin said. And he voted for Morgan on his leaguewide best XI.

That leaves the coaching. Before hiring Alonso, Beckham and Mas held discussions with a list of candidates that seemed more appropriate for a club with the history and reputation of an AS Monaco or Aston Villa than an MLS franchise that hadn't played a game. Roberto Martinez, who won the FA Cup with Wigan, finished fifth in the Premier League with Everton and manages the Belgian national team, was a distinct possibility. So were Gennaro Gattuso, who managed AC Milan and is at Napoli, and Santiago Solari, a teammate of Beckham's at Real Madrid who now coaches Mexico's Club America. Patrick Vieira, a standout midfielder of Beckham's generation who spent three seasons as head coach of NYCFC, was "close, extremely close," Mas said. Marcelo Gallardo of Argentina's River Plate agreed to come, then couldn't agree on terms.

Alonso, the eventual choice, couldn't help but feel like a consolation prize. He'd managed six clubs -- two in Uruguay, two in Paraguay, two in Mexico -- and the Uruguayan national team. Once upon a time, in 2001-02, he scored 22 goals for Atletico Madrid, but his was hardly a name the average South Florida soccer fan would know. He also wasn't hired until after Christmas, and beyond a brief intersection in La Liga, he had no history with Beckham. That wouldn't have mattered if the season had progressed normally. But last summer, as Beckham tried desperately to communicate telepathically with his manager from an ocean away, he couldn't help feeling that he had no idea what Alonso was thinking.

Much has been made of the fact that Beckham has hired one of his oldest friends to run his football club. From a distance, it seems desperate. Neville's history as a manager is short, and at the club level, it is nonexistent. He took charge of the England women's team in 2018 and did well enough, including a fourth-place finish at the Women's World Cup the following year, before ending with seven losses in his last 11 games. Before that, he coached for a single season, 2013-14, under David Moyes at Manchester United, and then at Valencia during the tumultuous 2015-16 season under Nuno Espirito Santo and then his brother, Gary. It's hard to imagine his résumé in the same pile as Gattuso's and Vieira's if Beckham didn't know him.

But Beckham does know him. "Since we were about 14, 15 years old," Beckham said. Neville, a year younger than Beckham, believes they first met when he was 11. They came up together at Manchester United in the early 1990s as the "Class of '92," along with Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Gary Neville, under the management of Sir Alex Ferguson. By 1996, they were winning the double, the Premier League and the FA Cup. Beckham, who was gifted with talent, honed it with an extraordinary work ethic. The Nevilles, whose talent was less evident, worked even harder. They put in so much time that, Beckham admits, "we used to laugh at them."

It's precisely that devotion that Beckham believes was missing from last year's team. "I'd be watching games and thinking, what had they done during the week in the lead-up?" Beckham said. "Had they prepared right? Had the players seen videos of the team that we're playing against? Are the coaches watching the academy kids at the weekend? And why are we dropping off in the 60th minute? Why are we not pressing?" He doesn't have to convey his expectations to his new manager; Neville's come from the same place. "Phil already has said to me, 'If a player isn't reaching a certain fitness level, he won't be on the field,'" Beckham said. "It doesn't matter who."

Neville arrives around 6 a.m. most days. "He's still there at 7 o'clock at night," Beckham said approvingly. What he's doing all that time is adapting Ferguson's football philosophy to today's North America. "A lot of the values that David wants to implement into the football club come from the values that were implemented at Manchester United," Neville said. It goes far beyond what happens during the games, or even training. "Humbleness," he said. "To do the right thing every minute of every single day. The way you dress. The way you speak to each other. And just basic values that our parents probably taught us. If there's a bottle on the field, you go over and pick it up."

Whether Ferguson's approach will work in MLS is an open question. For one thing, European managers have typically tended to underestimate the league's difficulty, not to mention the byzantine complexity of its player-procurement regulations. Notable disappointments include Ruud Gullit, Frank De Boer and Thierry Henry. "You've had European coaches come into this league and they've not really understood the rules, not really anticipated the travel or the weather," Beckham said. He's referring, among others, to Gullit, who managed the Galaxy when Beckham was there. Expressing astonishment that he couldn't simply sign players for any amount he wanted to, Gullit lasted less than a season before returning to Europe.

"It's a unique league in a lot of ways," said the Union's Curtin. "There are lots of different playing styles. It takes certain elements from the Argentine league, the fight and the intensity, but other games can look and have the feel of a Premier League game. The travel is hard, and the hot weather means you can't always play the way you want to. You have to adapt, not only month to month but week to week."

Neville thinks he's ready. Fifteen years ago, when Beckham first went to Los Angeles, Neville started watching MLS games on television. "After David, there was Robbie Keane and Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard," he said. He insists that he watched every Inter Miami game last season, long before he had any inkling that he'd be managing the club. He watched again through different eyes once he arrived. "Last year was a disappointment, but there were many factors," he said. "This year, we've got a fresh start."

Determined not to be caught unprepared, Neville has surrounded himself with MLS veterans such as Henderson and former NYCFC head coach Jason Kreis, who is an assistant. "I know there haven't been many foreign managers who have succeeded," Neville said. "That's my own personal, individual motivation. When I go back to my apartment and I'm thinking about Philip Neville and not the team, there's a bit of 'I'll show you lot that a foreign manager can make it here.' You know, a bit of 'I'll show you lot that it can be done.'"

It's a sunny Saturday morning in March, a month before the start of the 2021 season. Beckham has ownership meetings inside the facility. Neville has first-team duties. But the lure of live football is too strong.

Inter Miami's affiliated USL team, Fort Lauderdale FC, is holding a scrimmage for semipro trialists on a back field. By 11 o'clock, the longtime friends have joined Henderson and assistant coach Anthony Pulis, son of itinerant English manager Tony Pulis, at the near corner. Beckham looks immaculate as usual in a black Inter Miami training shirt adorned with those aspirationally iconic herons. Neville is wearing a generic Adidas shirt of Manchester United red. The quality of play is brisk, if ragged. Beckham thinks several of the hopefuls have pro potential -- he can tell, he says, "after two minutes of seeing them play."

For someone with such a glamorous reputation, Beckham spends a lot of time immersed in Inter Miami's youth program. He believes that the way to construct a world-class club is with a recruitment system that identifies and attracts talent during adolescence, then nurtures it into adulthood. "I've said from the start that it's not just about the team that's playing in the stadium," he said. "It's about the 13s, the 14s, the 15s, the 17s, the 23s. Because we're a club, at the end of the day. Yes, we have a team that plays in MLS. But more than that, we are a club. All of our coaches from every age have to be aligned with what these players are doing on these two pitches here. If they aren't, we're getting it wrong."

Fortuitously, the MLS system rewards player development. Players who come from a team academy aren't subject to the league's draft, and they don't count against salary restrictions. Teams that have invested their resources in their youth teams, such as Philadelphia and Dallas, have been rewarded with a steady flow of first-team talent. "If he can bring even just a few young players through who become top players, it really helps," said Bryan Robson, who was the captain at Manchester United for Beckham's first two seasons with the senior team. "And David knows that buying success is very difficult. Players can get mercenary at the end of their career. You have to be careful of that."

The problem is, the world is watching now. Building slowly isn't a luxury that's afforded David Beckham by the podcasters or the Twitter posters when he decides to own a football club, especially when he insists that Inter Miami can eventually "be the biggest in the world." Just about every major player over 30 has been proposed as a splash signing for the coming year or two, often by their own agents. Neville gets calls daily. "Players of brilliant, brilliant standing in world football," he said.

One of them was Higuain, who at 32 doesn't seem to have lost a step. Matuidi, whose signing by McDonough is being investigated by the league as a possible salary-cap violation, is now 34. Mas acknowledges that many of the bigger names that were circulating as potential targets last year at this time -- Edinson Cavani, Dries Mertens -- wanted to come. The pandemic spoiled that.

The club's biggest acquisitions last winter, Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross and Bahia defensive midfielder Gregore, won't sell many season tickets. Gregore hasn't played outside Brazil. The gritty Shawcross did it for years on a cold, rainy night in Stoke, as the saying goes, but he'll have to adapt to the more languid ambience of South Florida, not to mention the sweltering temperatures. Inter Miami is still targeting some of the world's top stars, Beckham insists, but he doesn't want them to use the club as an off-ramp to retirement, the way aging stars from Pele to Chicharito have done with American soccer over the decades. "They have to be hungry," Beckham said. "Not to come as a holiday destination but to win championships."

It's clearly easier to convince a major international star to take his talents to South Beach than to Sacramento. But the main draw, of course, is Beckham. "He actually is quite a special person," said Ivan Gazidis, a former MLS deputy commissioner who spent 2009-18 running Arsenal and is now at AC Milan. "People sort of underestimate David a little bit. There's a reason he only played with the top clubs: He fought his way there. There will be doubters and skepticism, but that's nothing new to him. He's thoughtful in what he says, and when he makes a commitment, he does it wholeheartedly. So when he says Inter Miami will be a world-class club, I wouldn't underestimate him."

But if it doesn't happen, if Inter Miami continues to falter this season, Beckham's meticulously manicured image is likely to suffer. "He'll want to win in Miami," said MLS' Bruce. "That's going to be really important to him, to mark success as owner of that club." What he's selling now, with his Adidas clothing line and his upscale endorsements and even Inter Miami, is the David Beckham brand. And as he did while playing, he leaves as little as possible to chance.

Back on the terrace, Beckham sits for a photo session. Watching him get photographed is like watching him take a free kick. He has choreographed the outcome in his head, and he works backward from there to achieve it. On this afternoon, the wind is rummaging his hair. Beckham won't have it. He finesses it with his hands to get it just a certain way. The moment the photographer pauses, he does it again. He pulls down the zipper on the pink training top he's wearing maybe an eighth of an inch. Then he pulls it up one-sixteenth of an inch. The wind gusts. With a look, a gesture, a polite word, he makes his discomfort known. As nearly always happens, Beckham achieves what he sets out to do. The photo shoot moves inside.

Manchester United reached the Europa League semifinals after Edinson Cavani's early strike and a Jesus Vallejo own goal secured a 2-0 home win over Granada on Thursday and completed a 4-0 aggregate rout of the Spanish side.

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United will face AS Roma for a place in the May 26 final in Gdansk after the Italian side ground out a 3-2 aggregate win over Ajax Amsterdam with a 1-1 home draw in the second leg of their quarterfinal.

"We are looking forward to it. We're in the semis. It feels like a proper European tie because Roma is a club with lots of history," United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said. "We've done well against Italian sides before.

"We're going into it hoping to get to the final. If we can finish the season with a trophy that'd be great."

Cavani netted his 50th goal in European competition with a clinical sixth-minute finish as United made a bright start.

Granada came to life after falling behind and their forward Yangel Herrera twice headed inches wide as the home side appeared content to sit back.

Bruno Fernandes fired narrowly over the bar for United with a rasping first-time volley in the 34th minute and Cavani headed wide of the far post before Vallejo scored at the wrong end of the pitch in the 90th minute.

Vallejo scored at the wrong end of the pitch in the 90th minute as Alex Telles swung in a cross from the left and the centre back gave Silva no chance with a misdirected header which ended up in the bottom corner.

Fernandes said he was confident United, beaten by eventual winners Sevilla FC in last season's semifinals, could overcome Roma.

"Every team will give you problems," the Portugal midfielder told BT Sport.

"They have a good organisation defensively, they can create problems offensively. Some of their players have played in England. We know what we have to do. If we do the right things, we will have our chances to win the game."

The last four opens up the prospect of an all-English final as Villarreal face Arsenal in the other semi after the Gunners thrashed Slavia Prague 4-0 away to complete a 5-1 aggregate victory.

Arsenal cruised into the Europa League semifinals with a remarkable 4-0 win against Slavia Prague in the Czech capital.

The clinical Gunners took the lead when Nicolas Pepe blasted in from close range after Emile Smith Rowe's tap-in had earlier been chalked off by VAR. Within just six minutes 1-0 became 3-0 as Alexandre Lacazette stroked home from the penalty spot before Bukayo Saka's fine finish effectively finished the tie with just 24 minutes in the clock.

Lacazette later helped himself to a second with a composed finish in the 77th minute to cap a fine victory for Mikel Arteta's side, who will now play Villarreal and former boss Unai Emery in the semifinals.

Positives

It was a night that required a professional display and Arsenal delivered one, but they were emphatic too, and once Arteta's men found their groove there was no stopping them as they blew their opponents away to book a semifinal place in style.

Negatives

The Gunners were without Pierre-Emerick Aubemeyang after the Gabon international contracted malaria while on international duty, so best wishes to him. The visitors also took their foot off the gas after the break, but it was already job done.

Manager rating out of 10

7 -- If you can find any criticism of that Arsenal performance feel free to point it out to me. It was a fantastic effort from Gunners who are now just three games away from silverware and securing an all-important Champions League place.

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Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best, players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK Bernd Leno, 6 -- Minus one punched clearance he didn't have a single save to make in a contest where the hosts were expected to bring the fight to Arsenal, but instead failed to register a single shot on target.

DF Calum Chambers, 7 -- Almost set up an Arsenal goal with a teasing cross from the right that was desperately close to picking out Emile Smith Rowe. Continued to enjoy attacking success on the right as the Slavia forwards failed to pin him back.

DF Rob Holding, 7 -- Stuck to his guns well to hold off a first Slavia attack on the break before the Gunners won a free-kick to relieve the pressure. Beyond that, he was rarely called upon.

DF Pablo Mari, 6 -- Like Holding, he won a couple of important challenges but he was never really out of his depth on a night that was as quiet as any he'll ever have.

DF Granit Xhaka, 7 -- Once again deployed at left-back in the absence of Kieran Tierney, he produced a battling yet disciplined performance as his side recorded a well-deserved clean sheet.

MF Dani Ceballos, 7 -- Nothing out of the ordinary this time around following Sunday's exquisite assist, although his reaction to a slight shove from Peter Olayinka was a little overzealous. A comfortable night's work and he tidied up anything that broke loose in the middle.

MF Thomas Partey, 7 -- Provided plenty of protection for the back four. Fortunate to avoid a booking when he wiped out Lukas Provod on the break, but he applied himself much better to block Nicolae Stanciu's clean strike late in the first half.

MF Bukayo Saka, 9 -- Switched to the right-hand side from his preferred left but boy did he relish it. He was inches away from a spectacular opener when he cut in and unleashed a pile driver that stung the post, but another charging run moments later drew the foul that allowed Lacazette to double his side's advantage. To cap his night, he grabbed a deserved goal to put the game to bed.

MF Emile Smith Rowe, 8 -- No Aubameyang, no Gabriel Martinelli, but it looked like no problem for the exuberant midfielder who was on hand to bundle home after Saka's superb strike hit the woodwork, only for VAR to intervene. Another excellent display nonetheless.

MF Nicolas Pepe, 9 -- Virtually unplayable. The winger looked in the mood from the first whistle and helped produce some immediate pressure his manager will have been looking for when his squeezed pass was turned behind for an early corner. His next chance ended up in the roof of the net after another penetrating burst forward.

FW Alexandre Lacazette, 10 -- You just can't stop this man from scoring at the moment. You'd always fancy the France international from 12 yards, but his cool head was exactly what was needed on what threatened to be a cagey night before kick-off. Scored Arsenal's fourth in the second half for a richly deserved brace.

Substitutes

DF Cedric Soares, N/R -- Replaced Thomas Partey in the 79th minute with the midfielder saved for another day.

MF Mohamed Elneny, 6 -- Came on for Smith Rowe in the 67th minute with the impressive midfielder unsurprisingly treated to a well-earned rest.

MF Eddie Nketiah, N/R -- Part of a triple change for the final 10 minutes or so.

FW Gabriel Martinelli, N/R -- On for the closing stages and nearly made it five, but he placed his effort just beyond the far post after an eye-catching run that had Slavia defenders scampering.

FW Folarin Balogun, N/R -- Made a late cameo appearance after signing a contract extension this week.

What will happen in the key NBA standings races in the final weeks of the regular season? What are the biggest storylines and teams to watch?

We polled the ESPN Forecast panel of experts -- including NBA writers, editors and analysts -- for their predictions now that we are two-thirds of the way through the 2020-21 NBA season. The topics include the likely No. 1 seeds in each conference, the most likely guaranteed playoff teams and the franchises that will miss the play-in on their way to the lottery.

As a reminder: The teams that finish Nos. 1-6 in each conference will be guaranteed playoff spots, while teams Nos. 7-10 in the standings will enter the play-in. Any team that finishes worse than No. 10 will be in the lottery. Because there is a chance for teams to finish with an uneven number of games played due to COVID-19 complications, the NBA will use winning percentage to determine the standings. Get more details on how everything works here.

Here are the forecast results for both the Eastern and Western conferences.

Which team will earn No. 1 in the East?

The Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets are the only three teams with a real shot to claim the top seed in the East, per ESPN's Basketball Power Index (BPI). They also are widely considered the top tier of Finals contenders in the conference. Earning the top overall seed means likely avoiding the other two giants until the conference finals.

Both our panel and BPI like Philly, with BPI giving the Sixers a 64.9% chance at No. 1. Their easy schedule and relative health will certainly help their case.

• Philadelphia 76ers: 81.3%

• Brooklyn Nets: 12.5%

• Milwaukee Bucks: 6.3%

MORE: Goldsberry projects the playoff race

Which East team is most likely to avoid the play-in?

Assuming Brooklyn, Philly and Milwaukee stay on top of the standings, that leaves three guaranteed playoff spots in the East. The Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks were runaway choices here, with the New York Knicks being the only other team to receive a vote.

Voters picked their top two choices

• Miami Heat: 59.4%

• Boston Celtics: 53.1%

• Atlanta Hawks: 34.4%

MORE: NBA expert debate on the East

Fact or fiction: Toronto or Washington will make the play-in

A majority of our panel has the East playoff and play-in participants set as is, with neither the Toronto Raptors nor the Washington Wizards crashing the party. But with about 18 games left, both squads are close enough to sneak up on the Chicago Bulls and steal one of the top-10 spots.

• Fiction: 68.8%

• Fact: 31.3%

MORE: Latest NBA Power Rankings

Which team will earn No. 1 in the West?

Only a few games separate the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns and LA Clippers atop the West standings, but our panel is trusting Utah to hold on to this one.

Home-court advantage certainly matters to some degree in the postseason, but the No. 1 seed could also be stuck facing the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in the second round. Ending up as No. 2 or No. 3 might not be the worst thing.

• Utah Jazz: 75.0%

• Phoenix Suns: 18.7%

• LA Clippers: 6.3%

MORE: Pelton's NBA mailbag

Which West team is most likely to avoid the play-in?

Despite a string of unfortunate injuries -- Jamal Murray for the Denver Nuggets, LeBron James and Anthony Davis for the Lakers -- both Denver and L.A. are the favorites to secure guaranteed playoff spots in the West.

A number of teams are in the mix for that sixth and final spot, but our panel likes the Portland Trail Blazers to grab it.

Voters picked their top two choices

• Denver Nuggets: 68.8%

• Los Angeles Lakers: 56.3%

• Portland Trail Blazers: 18.8%

• Dallas Mavericks: 6.2%

MORE: What Murray's injury means for Denver

Which West team is most likely to fall short of the play-in?

For now, it looks like there are three teams fighting for the final two play-in spots in the West: The San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans and Golden State Warriors.

Our panel has the Pelicans as the most likely team to fall out of the race and enter the lottery, though the Spurs weren't far behind in the voting.

Voters picked their top two choices

• New Orleans Pelicans: 68.8%

• San Antonio Spurs: 56.3%

• Golden State Warriors: 25.0%

MORE: How lockdown defenders would stop Doncic

Fact or fiction: The Lakers will finish in the top six

LeBron James hasn't played since March 20, and Anthony Davis has been inactive since Feb. 14. Still, the Lakers have a comfortable cushion on No. 7 Dallas, so our panel isn't too concerned about the champs falling into a risky play-in scenario.

• Fact: 93.8%

• Fiction: 6.2%

MORE: Drummond still figuring out Lakers fit

San Diego Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. took live batting practice in Pittsburgh on Thursday morning, and manager Jayce Tingler said the team is "optimistic" he'll be available for Friday's game against the rival Los Angeles Dodgers.

Friday marks the first day Tatis is eligible to be activated off the injured list since suffering a subluxation of his left shoulder during a violent swing on April 5, his third reported issue with that shoulder in a span of 23 days. Subluxations (in which the shoulder essentially slips out of its position in the socket but doesn't fully dislocate) often lead to surgery. But there are also cases when players can manage the ailment for a prolonged period of time.

Tingler cautioned that he still needs to meet with the Padres' medical department but added that Thursday was Tatis' "best day" in terms of hitting since suffering the injury.

"We're optimistic that he has a good chance to be ready to play tomorrow," Tingler said.

Tatis, 22, batted .301/.374/.582 with 39 home runs, 27 stolen bases and eight triples in his first 143 games from 2019 to 2020, compiling 6.5 FanGraphs wins above replacement. Before the 2021 season began, he had already secured major marketing deals with Gatorade and Adidas, graced the cover of MLB The Show and obtained a 14-year, $340 million extension.

But Tatis amassed only three hits in 16 at-bats over his first four regular-season games this year, striking out six times and committing five errors. A couple of scouts who watched him closely believe he was favoring his left shoulder, which caused him trouble a couple of times during spring training. Tatis revealed prior to Opening Day that he has been managing the shoulder "since rookie ball."

Tatis was in noticeable pain immediately after suffering the subluxation, but Padres general manager A.J. Preller said he felt much better shortly thereafter and was pining to return to the starting lineup the following day. His MRI, Preller said, showed a slight labral tear that was consistent with a subluxation but not much different from what had shown up on his prior physical, adding that Tatis had regained full range of motion and he would attempt to manage the injury after a short IL stint.

"This is not something that we feel like long term we're putting him at risk if he goes out there and continues playing this season," Preller said on April 6. "There's always the chance that he can have another episode, another incident, where there's another subluxation, and at that point in time, we'll evaluate from there. But this is not a situation where our doctors -- knowing the player, seeing him, examining him, looking at the images -- feel like we're putting him in an issue to have any kind of long-term, more damage or anything like that if he goes out there and plays."

Even Billie Jean King herself has not got used to the title of the tournament that now bears her name.

British number one Konta is missing the two-day tie as she continues to manage a long-standing knee problem by avoiding switching between surfaces. This indoor hard-court tie falls during a period of preparations for the clay-court season.

In her absence, Great Britain captain Anne Keothavong will rely on the experienced Heather Watson to inspire the team who are heavy favourites to win at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton.

Victory would put Great Britain one win away from qualifying for the 2022 Finals.

What is the Billie Jean King Cup?

The Fed Cup was renamed the Billie Jean King Cup last year after the tennis great and founder of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA).

The new name is not tripping off everyone's tongue yet.

"I had the opportunity to chat to Billie Jean the other day and she was slipping back and calling it the Fed Cup and Federation Cup as well even though the event is named after her," Keothavong told BBC Sport. "So I try not to feel too bad when I make that mistake given that she does the same thing."

The women's international team competition has been revamped to feature a 12-nation Finals event.

The Fed Cup was launched in 1963, with the United States its most successful team with 18 titles. Great Britain have never won it but have been runners-up four times.

Who is playing for Great Britain?

While Konta may be missing the tie, she will be very close to the action because she has been training at the National Tennis Centre on the outdoor clay courts this week.

"She is part of the training facility that we can't access and she can't come anywhere near our bubble," Keothavong said.

In her absence, world number 68 Watson is the highest ranked player in the British team.

An experienced Fed Cup player, who has won 29 and lost 13 of her 42 Fed Cup matches, the 28-year-old is also the top-ranked player in the tie with Mexico's Marcela Zacarias the visitors' highest ranked at 285.

"On paper, on rankings, we are the favourites, there is no skirting around that," Keothavong said.

"We've got a home tie. Although we won't be playing in front of a supportive crowd, we still have that home advantage. The players are aware of what is expected of them and they have prepared as best as possible."

Katie Swan and Katie Boulter are on comebacks from injury spells, while Jodie Burrage has been included in the squad for the first time.

Team-building preparations for the tie have been different to previous years because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Despite not being able to take part in some of the fun games - whether it's karaoke or cornhole or whatever in the evening - we are still able to sit socially distanced from each other and talk and catch up," Keothavong said.

"Being together, sharing stories, having company, it's really nice in these times."

What is the format?

The best-of-five-match tie takes place across two days with two singles rubbers on Friday and the reverse singles and a doubles rubber on Saturday.

Play starts at 14:00 BST on Friday and at 11.30 on Saturday. There will be a pause in the schedule between 15:00 and 16:15 on Saturday to avoid a clash with Prince Philip's funeral.

Victory would put Great Britain into a qualifier next year where a win would send them into the Finals, while defeat would consign them to the Europe/Africa zone Group I event in 2022.

British number one Dan Evans claimed the biggest win of his career by beating Novak Djokovic in the last 16 of the Monte Carlo Masters.

He was able to wrap up the opening set before Djokovic fought back at the start of the second.

But Evans recovered and held his nerve to wrap up a 6-4 7-5 win.

It was Djokovic's first defeat of 2021 and Evans will face world number 15 David Goffin of Belgium in his first Masters Series quarter-final.

"He gave away some cheap ones today, which he never normally does. But I'm just really happy," said Evans.

"He kept me waiting a little bit in the changing room at the start of the match. That got me a bit extra fired up.

"My game plan was to try to bring him forward and have him hit the ball low in the court.

"It was difficult to get to the net and I felt sometimes I was doing too much running.

"But I also thought I did a good job to get out of my service games. He had so many break points and didn't take them, so I was a little lucky there."

In the first meeting between the pair, Evans started aggressively and took advantage of some sloppy play from the 18-time Grand Slam winner.

He led 3-0 before Djokovic made it 3-2, but a lengthy sixth game put Evans 4-2 up.

His chance in the set looked to have gone when a Djokovic break levelled it at 4-4 but another careless service game from the Serb gave the Briton hope and he held serve to take the set on his third set point.

Djokovic raced into a 3-0 lead in the second set but Evans showed great determination to level it at 3-3.

Evans saved a set point in the 10th game; then a dramatic double fault gave the Briton the chance to serve out for the win and he made no mistake.

"To be honest, this has been one of the worst matches from my side I can recall in the last few years," said Djokovic, who finished with 45 unforced errors.

"I felt awful on the court overall. Nothing worked. Just one of those days.

"It was just an awful performance. I can't take any positives away from this match. It definitely leaves a bitter feeling exiting the court this way.

"He deserved to win. He was a better player. He was just more focused I guess and played with a better quality in the decisive moments.

"He's really a nice player to watch, not a great player to play against. Lots of talent. He's very unpredictable with his shots. He dismantled my game."

Analysis

BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller

Djokovic started and finished very poorly, but this was a sublime clay court performance by a player who had previously won just four clay court matches at tour level in his entire career.

Evans is the first man to beat the world number one and Australian Open champion this year.

His unpredictable style was underpinned by some fine serving. Djokovic says he has not been feeling great for the past 24 hours, but also conceded Evans "dismantled his game".

The British number one's surprising run in Monte Carlo has come at just the right time, as Evans had lost five of his six matches since winning a first ATP title in Melbourne in February.