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⚽ Champions League updates from the 8pm BST kick-off⚽ PSG v Liverpool – live | Latest scores | And mail LukeI’d also take a sparkling attacking masterclass from Flick’s side as well of course. I’m pretty flexible on the issue.Barça may be favourites and deservedly so but personally I’d like to see a classic European smash-and-grab by Simeone’s side tonight, with a healthy dose of naughty defending and shithousery in the mix. Continue reading...

⚽ Champions League updates from the 8pm BST kick-off⚽ Barcelona v Atlético Madrid – live | Latest scores“I am beset by dread,” writes Joe Pearson, “and not in the ‘I am the law’ kind of way. Although admittedly PSG are giving off ‘You’re next, punk!’ vibes. IYKYK.”While Arsenal were busy Arsenaling their way to a worthy but dull Bigger Cup quarter-final first leg win at Sporting on Tuesday, the players of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich released the collective handbrake and performed many high-speed donuts, wheel spins and Rockfords as a pleasing counterpoint to the careful mirror-signal-manoeuvring on display at Lisbon’s Estádio José Alvalade.Like a couple of stolen supercars racing each other around a shopping mall in The Fast and the Furious: Bicester Village, these two European heavyweights massively committed to the bit, not unlike a daily football email bogged down in a laboured motoring metaphor. Continue reading...

As talks begin over fixing the controversial regulations, the FIA’s Nikolas Tombazis says changes to ‘specific aspects’ are needed, not a total overhaulFormula One has endured a somewhat turbulent opening this season under the sport’s new regulations. Amid the sound and fury of some driver dissatisfaction with the new formula and safety concerns brought sharply into focus by a huge accident at the Japanese Grand Prix, three races in there is now an opportunity to propose changes, with the man who has been at the heart of the process since it began quietly confident that F1 can adapt successfully.Nikolas Tombazis is the single-seater director for F1’s governing body, the FIA, and has been with the organisation since 2018. He was there when the very first discussions of the 2026 regulations took place in January 2021 and has been central to their evolution since. In his calm and articulate fashion, Tombazis says the noise around the new regulations is overstated. Continue reading...

Northampton struggle to meet offerSmith and Mitchell fit for Saints quarter-finalUnderperforming Harlequins have confirmed the signing of England’s full-back George Furbank as they seek to rebuild their squad for next season.The 29-year-old Furbank has been an influential figure at Northampton, the league leaders, but a lucrative contract offer has persuaded him to try his luck in south-west London. Continue reading...

Internal secrecy appears to stretch to Augusta chairman‘It’s not a trivial question … they won’t tell me the answer’The Masters gnome drama has taken another twist after the chair of Augusta National admitted he is in the dark as to the must-have items’ future. Fred Ridley has repeatedly asked whether 2026 will be the final year ­for gnomes being on sale – as has been widely speculated – but revealed there is internal secrecy even towards him.Ridley’s annual Masters media address took an amusing turn when a questioner put what was ­suggested as a “trivial” poser towards him: are reports of the gnomes’ demise ­correct? “Number one, the question is not trivial,” he said. “Number two: I’ve been asking that question for ­several years and they won’t tell me the answer. So I can’t help you.” Continue reading...

Win over Sporting comes after back-to-back cup defeats‘It’s been tough but that’s the beauty of football’After everything Riccardo Calafiori has been through over the past couple of weeks, Tuesday night was exactly what he needed. The Italy defender was still buzzing from Kai Havertz’s late winning goal against Sporting in the first leg of Arsenal’s Champions League quarter-final when he reflected on a fortnight during which his club suffered successive defeats either side of the Azzurri again failing to qualify for the World Cup.“It’s been tough, but that is the beauty of football: it is 100% better now,” Calafiori said, before reflecting first on Saturday’s shock FA Cup loss at Southampton, then on the wider pain of the period. “This chance to play three days later rather than just stay home and think about it [was welcome]. Of course I’m really disappointed, but I’ve got a lot to play for with Arsenal.” Continue reading...

Sanction for financial breach has led to a relegation fightLeicester now ‘fully focused’ on final five games of seasonLeicester have announced defeat in their appeal against a six-point deduction for breaching English Football League financial rules. An independent commission imposed the sanction on Leicester in February, which dropped the club from 17th to 20th in the Championship.They appealed against the decision and have subsequently fallen to 22nd, a point adrift of safety with five fixtures remaining. It is very possible the club, currently managed by Gary Rowett, could be relegated to League One a decade after winning the Premier League. Continue reading...

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!While Arsenal were busy Arsenaling their way to a worthy but dull Bigger Cup quarter-final first leg win at Sporting on Tuesday, the players of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich released the collective handbrake and performed many high-speed donuts, wheel spins and Rockfords as a pleasing counterpoint to the careful mirror-signal-manoeuvring on display at Lisbon’s Estádio José Alvalade. Like a couple of stolen supercars racing each other around a shopping mall in The Fast and the Furious: Bicester Village, these two European heavyweights massively committed to the bit, not unlike a daily football email bogged down in a laboured motoring metaphor. “When I see the chances we had, that has to give us confidence that we can score more goals,” whooped Vincent Kompany following a hi-octane Bernabéu white-knuckle ride from which his team emerged deserving winners, even if it was their 40-year-old goalkeeper who took home the gong for player of the match.A doff of the Romanian cap to the great Mircea Lucescu. As a player, he captained his national team against World Cup holders England and eventual World Cup winners Brazil at the tournament in 1970, after which Pelé wanted to exchange shirts with him. And, as a manager, apart from all his domestic success, he was the first manager to get Romania to qualify for the Euros in 1984 and nearly led a poor Romania team to the World Cup in 2026, a couple of weeks ago, while very sick. What a football man, what a tremendous football man …” – Noble Francis.Interesting to see the report about Nike’s new Geopolitics World Cup kits bunching up ridiculously at the shoulder seams. You never got problems like that back in my day, principally because, on the massively oversized kits of the 90s, the shoulder seam was positioned halfway down the arm. The tendency of these kits to make even professional athletes look like Sunday pub league players is exemplified by the photo of Blackburn’s relegated 1999 team in today’s edition of The Knowledge – an effect amplified by the fact one of them seems to have been playing in tracksuit bottoms, and another in sliders” – Phil Taverner.After being emotionally blackmailed into running the LLHM by my friend and broadcasting colleague Max Rushden, I began training in late October. Having done little or no exercise beyond nimbly climbing on and off bar stools for almost 30 years, I was heroically unfit and literally couldn’t jog 100 metres without stopping to catch my breath. Reader – I had bitten off more than I could chew. At the start line I will be 53 years old and I remain overweight despite all my training. I still drink too much and have resigned myself to the fact that I won’t win the race, but I plan to enjoy a unique day. If you’d like to add to the already huge sum raised, every little helps. It would be absolutely magic to hit the £60,000 mark before race day. With that in mind, please give anything you can, safe in the knowledge that I’ll be enduring a world of pain to try to alleviate that of that experienced by so many wonderful and brave kids.” Donate here. Continue reading...

Atlanta’s Reynaldo López, LA’s Jorge Soler throw punchesBenches and bullpens clear in fifth inningThe two had played together on the 2024 BravesAtlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo López and Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Jorge Soler were ejected after getting into a brawl Tuesday night.Soler homered off López in the first inning, then was hit by a 96-mph fastball from the right-hander his next time up. In the fifth, Soler charged the mound after López threw a high-and-inside wild pitch that tipped off catcher Jonah Heim’s mitt. Continue reading...

I Am Maximus, the 2024 winner, heads to Aintree on Saturday as favourite to triumph again. Here is a look at the chances of all 34 contendersOne of two previous winners at the top of the weights and he backed up his 2024 success by pressing Nick Rockett all the way to the Elbow 12 months ago before finally crying enough. He had shown precious few hints of his National-winning form in two runs before that exceptional performance under top weight and has more to recommend him this year, having finished second in a Grade One in December and fifth in the Irish Gold Cup. In strict handicapping terms, he should probably find one or two too good, but Aintree aptitude is a serious weapon and another podium place is no forlorn hope.Verdict: each-way hope on Aintree form, but no top-weight winner since 70s Continue reading...