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Daily Record
28 minutes ago
- Daily Record
No need for Celtic transfer panic yet as Rangers get unanimous Jury verdict with Panathinaikos predictions
Our Record Sport quartet debate four big questions in Scottish football from European action to transfers ahead of the big kick-off Do you fancy Rangers to come through against Panathinaikos? KEITH JACKSON: A two goal start from the first leg certainly gives Russell Martin and his men a bit of breathing space in scorching Athens but the job is only half done. It could be a long night on Wednesday and especially if the Greeks score early. But if Rangers strike first they could take the sting out of a potentially tricky tie. CRAIG SWAN: The two-goal cushion earned at Ibrox is priceless and, provided they can see off an expected early thrust from the Greeks, it should be a big enough buffer. GRAEME YOUNG: Yes. Their current fragility is cancelled out by their willingness to go for the jugular. Russell Martin won't camp in and they are a threat on the break and that will see them through. MICHAEL GANNON: Rangers can finish the job but it won't be a comfortable night. The Greeks have to go for it and there will be opportunities on the break. Where are Celtic placed heading into the new campaign? KEITH: With some serious work still to do in the transfer market. Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn have gone without being adequately replaced and Jota will be on a treatment table for the rest of this year. As things stand Brendan Rodgers has every right to make demands of his board. CRAIG: The start of the season and the end of the transfer window are two different places. The squad will be stronger by August 31. But it's not fully equipped yet and getting through the Champions League qualifier is vital. GRAEME: The mood music over transfers has been brooding but the product on the pitch has been harmonious bar the gaffe-filled second half against Ajax. Benjamin Nygren appears capable of a Matt O'Riley impact. If they get their marquee signs right then all will be well. MICHAEL: With a strong squad in a lot of places and gaps in others. Brendan Rodgers knows he's short of attackers but there's time to fill in the blanks. Can Hearts make a genuine push to split the Old Firm under Derek McInnes? KEITH: That's precisely what Derek McInnes will be hoping to achieve. With Rangers going through another summer of transition and Celtic slow off the blocks in the market he'll believe there is an opportunity for Hearts to lay down a meaningful early marker. With no European football to distract them and Tony Bloom's financial muscle, why can't they get involved in the argument? CRAIG: They can make a push towards it, but it's a tall order for the new manager to actually do it in his first season at the club. It's a building job. Derek McInnes should be afforded patience on that front. GRAEME: It will be tough. Odds of 16/1 for title glory appear bookie bait but Hearts boast a criminally underrated manager who is embracing a brave new dawn. The computer says yes in the coming years but finishing third has to be the main target. MICHAEL: Hearts should be ambitious but it's tough to take on the big two. It the Jambos finish third it's a good achievement. Who is best equipped to make a splash in the Premiership of the promoted sides, Falkirk or Livingston? KEITH: Falkirk have been catching the eye for some time on their journey up through the leagues. Fingers crossed they'll be a breath of fresh air now they're finally back in the top flight. CRAIG: Tough call. John McGlynn has a vibrant young team and David Martindale is a maestro at Livi. Perhaps both can, but it's going to be some scrap again at the bottom. GRAEME: Falkirk, John McGlynn has the air of an accidental hero about him but there's nothing lucky about his success with the Bairns. Their willingness to play their own daring way will once again yield results. MICHAEL: Livingston will be back like they were never away and as tough as ever, especially at home. Falkirk will surprise a few teams and don't bet against them staying up.
Telegraph
29 minutes ago
- Telegraph
ITV beat the BBC, but all TV coverage of women's football needs to grow up
It was, you have to say, excellent TV, skilful and provocative, and it hit Carney right in the feels. Karen told us she was welling up and 'I am not going to lie, I found it quite triggering. There is now a little girl and little boy that now knows it is OK to want to be a footballer.' Pace yourself, Karen, there's still half an hour until kick-off. Wright and Hayes also did appropriate amounts of Her Game Too-ing and fair enough. Over on the BBC, a pop singer called Self-Esteem did a song called Focus is Power and it doesn't get more earnest than that. Maybe because the game itself is younger at this level of mainstream interest, or because some of these Lionesses were able to play very long careers, but it feels like the pundits are generally a lot closer both in age and personally to the women they are commenting on. For instance on the BBC: White, only 36 and a team-mate of many of these, whereas a men's game will have Alan Shearer or whoever, guys who belong to a different generation who can, sometimes, put the boot in where needed. This is partly why the coverage of England women players and manager is largely uncritical. For example, it was put to ITV's Anita Asante before the match that maybe Lauren James wasn't fit. Firmly, Asante said: 'If Lauren James is in the starting line-up she is 100 per cent.' That did not really seem to be the case, though, and it symptomatic of a general reluctance to criticise that the men's game has largely moved beyond. Hard to see Gabby Logan saying that the England women's team had played s---, isn't it, as Gary Lineker did about Harry Kane and co? Not that yesterday called for anything beyond cheerleading. Women's football is, as yet, still part elite sport and part feelgood story and social project and the coverage reflects that but it will be really interesting to see if there's room for a Roy Keane or Alan Hansen type in a few years as the TV coverage matures.
BBC News
29 minutes ago
- BBC News
Nathan Heaney eyes one more fight after Stoke-on-Trent victory
Boxer Nathan Heaney has said he is still focused on a further fight in his native Stoke-on-Trent, after victory in the former British middleweight champion beat Grant Dennis on points in their eight-round non-title fight at the King's Hall on Saturday. Heaney told BBC Radio Stoke he would have retired had the bout not gone his way, and that his wife Louise "would love it if I didn't get punched any more".But he confirmed he wanted to fight again, at Stoke City Football Club's ground, in about a year's time. "I think the only thing we deserve... is [a fight at] the ground. Just for that final once-in-a-lifetime event for the city," he of the match against Dennis, Heaney said he was determined to "win and it will remind Frank Warren why he signed me all those years ago." Reacting to the points win over Dennis, Heaney said he felt "relief, more than anything when they said 'Nathan Heaney.. the winner'"."There were times when I was thinking 'am I letting him hit me with too many shots?'"They only have to catch you with one hook and the judges will sway to them."He expressed disappointment in not achieving a knockout in the final Heaney thanked his home crowd for an "incredible" reaction to the victory."That's why now I'm just saying the only fight now is Stoke [City FC]. I've given my all throughout my career, and I think the only thing we deserve as a city, and myself, is [a match at] the ground." Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
