Frederic Vasseur expects Renault will announce its 2017 line-up in early September and says the drivers it chooses must be capable of leading a team.Renault looks set to play a key role in the driver market for next season, with Kevin Magnussen or Jolyon Palmer unsure whether they will be retained for another year. The team, which returned to the grid as a manufacturer this season, has been linked with Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas in recent weeks.Team principal Vasseur says the drivers chosen must be able to lead Renault and the long-term project it hopes will take it back to the front of the grid.If you look at the success stories of the past, success was always built around a driver: [Michael] Schumacher and Ferrari, [Sebastian] Vettel and Red Bull, Lewis [Hamilton] and Mercedes, and also [Fernando] Alonso and Renault in the past -- so the driver is important, Vasseur told the official F1 website. A driver is not only about performance, but about being capable of leading a team.Right now we have more or less a thousand people in the team, if you take Viry and Enstone together, and that needs some sort of emotional leadership -- and that is the job for a driver! We need a driver who is super-motivated and able to super-motivate everybody else.When asked if Magnussen and Palmer fit the bill as team leaders, he replied: They are improving! We know we are on the grid, so improving is written in capital letters for us. It is too early to make any decision right here and now. We will probably do it at the beginning of September.Though Renault has only finished in the points once this season - Magnussens seventh position in Russia - Vasseur is happy with how both his drivers have been performing.Its not easy for them either. They have been used to winning in the past [in junior categories] -- and now they are cut off from that. I see both of them improving. Keep in mind that Jo is rookie and Kevin did only one season [of F1] before -- and that was two years ago.Jo has been improving a lot -- true he spun in Hungary, but so far he did a good job. And that also goes for Kevin. Both have a very optimistic approach. They are a good support for the team. Vans Shoes Sale Uk . Walcott is available for Saturdays home match against Southampton as Arsenal looks to extend its two-point lead at the top of the Premier League. The Gunners are currently the second highest scorers in the league but Wenger insists Walcott will add something extra to his team. Cheap Vans Shoes Uk .R. Smith realized how easily basketball can be taken from him, and he wasnt going to take his place in the NBA for granted anymore. http://www.wholesalevansuk.com/ . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Vans Shoes Clearance Sale Uk . Dusautoir, the former World Player of the Year, sustained a torn bicep playing for Toulouse in the Heineken Cup on Saturday. The flanker, who has played 65 times for France, is expected to be out for up to four months. Vans Shoes Clearance Uk . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. Some of the sports stories The Associated Press is covering Friday. A full Sports Digest will be sent by about 3 p.m. All times EST:- NASSAU, Bahamas -- Tiger Woods starts the second round of the Hero World Challenge nine shots behind leader J.B. Holmes. Woods is playing alone because Justin Rose has a back injury and withdrew.- VIENNA -- Formula One champion Nico Rosberg retires from racing at age 31, a startling decision that comes five days after winning his first world championship.- The College Football Playoff is the only thing that really matters this weekend. Championship weekend is all about putting the playoff puzzle together.- SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- No. 4 Washington, led by quarterback Jake Browning, can help solidify its place in the College Football Playoff by beating No. 9 Colorado in the Pac-12 title game. Game starts 9 p.m.- ATLANTA -- Talk about a mismatch. No. 1 Alabamas defense is the best in the nation. No. 15 Floridas offense looks like one of the worst. Theyll face off Saturday in the SEC championships game.- INDIANAPOLIS -- For most of this season, the Big Ten contended it was the nations best conference. No. 6 Wisconsin and No. 8 Penn State get a chance to prove it in league championship.- ORLANDO, Fla. -- Deshaun Watson and No. 3 Clemsons nearly yearlong quest to get back to the College Football Playoff comes down to one game, the Tigers ACC title matchup against No. 19 Virginia Tech.- Quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Carson Palmer understand it all too well. Patchwork offensive lines can carve into a teams efficiency, confidence andd, ultimately, its win total.dddddddddddd- ARLINGTON, Texas -- With a less than artful victory over the Vikings out of the way, Dallas takes an 11-game winning streak into an extended break.- NEW YORK -- Major league teams face midnight deadline to offer contracts to unsigned players on 40-man rosters.- CHICAGO -- LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers visit Dwyane Wade and the Chicago Bulls. James and Wade played together for four seasons in Miami, leading the Heat to two titles. Game starts 8 p.m.- STORRS, Conn. -- The No. 2 UConn women were supposed to be vulnerable this year after losing their three best players to graduation. But the Huskies have yet to lose this season and have won 81 in a row.- LAS VEGAS -- Jimmie Johnson is honored for his record-tying seventh NASCAR Sprint Cup title and Tony Stewart is seen off into retirement at the sports season-ending awards banquet. Show starts 8 p.m.- LONDON -- A former Chelsea player says he was paid more than $77,500 by the Premier League club to keep a lid on the sexual abuse he was subjected to by the teams former chief scout.- RIO DE JANEIRO -- The family of one Brazilian soccer player is joyful its son survived the Colombia plane crash that left 71 dead. But the family is also struggling with losses of others on the flight.- KIVAL DISERE, France -- Norwegians Kjetil Jansrud and Aksel Lund Svindal finish 1-2 in a World Cup super-G, the first mens speed race of the season. ' ' '