Stop blaming loophole-users Man United, Nottingham Forest and Chelsea - getting kicked out of the Europa League is Crystal Palace's fault, writes IAN LADYMAN
Yes, there are too many shades of grey in UEFA's rules about multi-club ownership. European football's governing body have allowed subjectivity and interpretation to play too great role in this embarrassing shambles.
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Scotsman
19 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Rangers vs Panathinaikos injury news: 9 out and 1 doubt as Russell Martin sweats on key player for Ibrox clash
Rangers will aim to make home advantage count when they host Panathinaikos in the first leg of the Champions League second qualifying round at Ibrox on Tuesday night (kick-off: 7.45pm). Russell Martin's side will looking to produce a positive performance on the new manager's first competitive game in charge, with several new signings expected to play a part against the Greek giants in Govan. The likes of Nasser Djiga, Max Aarons and Joe Rothwell are all in line to make their debuts for the club, as the club enter their new era under the ownership of Andrew Cavenagh and 49ers Enterprises. However, both sides have their injury problems heading into the game, with Rangers sweating on a key midfielder ahead of the game. Ahead of the game at Ibrox, The Scotsman brings you all the latest team news: 1 . Ridvan Yilmaz - Rangers - INELIGIBLE The Turkish defender is said to be 'highly likely' to leave Rangers this summer, and has not been included in the club's Champions League squad. | SNS Group Photo: SNS Group Photo Sales 2 . Ross McCausland - Rangers - INELIGIBLE The Northern Ireland international has interest from the EFL Championship, according to reports, and is another that has not been included in Rangers' squad for the competition. | SNS Group Photo: SNS Group Photo Sales 3 . Dujon Sterling - Rangers - OUT The versatile defender is expected to be out for several months with an Achilles injury that he picked up last season in the Europa League quarter-final draw with Atletico Bilbao. | SNS Group Photo: SNS Group Photo Sales 4 . Giorgos Kyriakopoulos - Panathinaikos - OUT In a big blow for the Greek side, Kyriakopoulos suffered a bad knee injury last week in training, which will require surgery. The left-back definitely out of the clash at Ibrox. | Getty Images Photo Sales
Daily Mail
20 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
How Jofra Archer became the scourge of left-handers by the person who knows him best - and the Aussies have loads of them!
It is not only express pace Jofra Archer has injected into England's Test series against India. He is also the scourge of left-handers. All of Archer's five victims on his comeback at Lord's last week were lefties and after twice dismissing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal cheaply, he has changed the dynamic at the start of India's innings. How Jaiswal — who had got India racing out of the blocks with big first-innings scores at Headingley and Edgbaston — responds will be one of the intriguing subplots when the series resumes in Manchester on Wednesday. Archer, 30, took his Test haul to 47 wickets in 14 appearances in last week's 22-run win, but his true value is revealed in the breakdown of those statistics. 28 of the 47 scalps are right-handers and have come at an average of 35.85, but his menace increases considerably against left-handers, with the other 19 costing just 21.42. The respective strike rates of a wicket every 72 balls compared to one every 43 are also telling. So, what are the characteristics that will encourage England captain Ben Stokes to turn to Archer to combat Jaiswal with the new ball and Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar when they come to the crease later in the innings? 'Firstly, it's the shape he gets on the ball,' explains long-term training partner and ex-England colleague Chris Jordan. 'His stock delivery predominantly tends to go into the right-hander and away from the left-hander. 'The biggest thing, though, whether he goes over the wicket or round the wicket, is that he gets tight to the stumps, pitching the ball within the tramlines more often than not as a result. 'If you're pitching the ball on the stumps, you are forcing people to play, and with left-handers the angle opens up their left shoulders, squaring them up, and when you are able to move the ball like Jofra, it creates a lot of uncertainty. 'He has the natural shape away but he can nip the ball off the seam both ways and that's what makes him dangerous.' Stuart Broad terrorised Australia's David Warner late in their careers with a round-the-wicket policy, but whereas Broad went wider on the crease, Archer's point of difference is operating in straighter lines. And intriguingly, with the Ashes on the horizon, five of the Aussie XI in their most recent Test were left-handed. Jordan believes Archer's all-round craft, such as being able to nip the ball both ways with a minimal change of action, is overlooked because of the fixation on his pace. 'All the top bowlers around the world, whether you're talking about Pat Cummins, Kagiso Rabada or Jasprit Bumrah, operate somewhere between 84-87mph as a rule and then slip themselves to 90 when they feel the time is right,' Jordan tells Mail Sport. 'Jofra was up at an average of 88-89 at Lord's, but although so many people get caught up with his pace, his main attributes are his ability and skill levels.' England team-mate Harry Brook agrees that Archer's tendency to go 'tight on the crease' draws opponents into playing shots they wouldn't otherwise. 'Jaiswal tried to pull one with the ball going away, a fairly tough shot,' said the batsman. 'I have done that a few times. He is bowling 94 or 95mph and you have a split second to react, so if you are not quite right then you are walking back to the shed.' Archer's speed naturally dipped in the second spell of his first Test for four-and-a-half years, but being instructed by the umpires to remove the sleeve from his bowling arm — due to it bearing the name of a non-affiliated sponsor — roused him during the later overs of the first innings. 'He always bowls a little bit quicker when he is angry,' Brook said. 'We have probably got a bit of a job this week to try to get him angry and try to blow them away.' However, the faster bowlers will have their work cut out at Old Trafford, a ground that has lost its traditional pace and bounce over recent years. Lancashire's four County Championship fixtures in Manchester have all ended in draws. In a bid to generate some life, groundsman Matt Merchant will leave untouched the generous covering of grass that greeted the England players when they arrived for practice on Monday. His team were also drenching the adjacent pitches in the hope that some of the moisture finds its way beneath the surface.
The Sun
20 minutes ago
- The Sun
‘I'm not doing this' – Sir Alex Ferguson gatecrashes Rio Ferdinand's podcast… but refuses to make an appearance
SIR ALEX FERGUSON brilliantly gatecrashed an episode of Rio Ferdinand's podcast. But the legendary former Manchester United boss didn't want to get too involved. 5 5 5 As part of his Rio Meets series, Ferdinand sat down with former United and West Ham team-mate Michael Carrick. The pair sat down in a seemingly deserted bar to reminisce over Carrick's career. Around 48 minutes into their chat, they were incredibly interrupted by Ferguson. Wearing a white shirt and smart grey trousers, Ferguson walked straight up to his former star men, seemingly not realising that they were recording. The 83-year-old asked "What's this?" to which Ferdinand stopped what he had been saying and replied: "Alright boss?" Ferguson had Ferdinand in stitches as he wagged his finger and vowed: "I'm not doing this podcast." The former United and England defender said: "No, no, no - we're going to talk after. You go and get a coffee boss." Carrick chimed in: "We're just finishing now. Don't worry this is not for you." BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK 5 Ferdinand then dared to joke: "You've not dressed for the camera boss have you?" As he walked away, Ferguson joked: "I just wanted to listen to the nonsense you talk." Yaya Toure talks to Rio Ferdinand about his desires to become a coach The iconic Scot went and sat on the next table off camera, but had one more interruption for the show. Around five minutes after his dramatic entrance, Ferguson's phone loudly went off as Ferdinand and Carrick were still chatting. The feed then panned over to Ferguson answering the call, with Ferdinand and Carrick again in stitches. Nostalgic Man Utd fans on social media loved seeing the interaction. One called it a "Classic Sir Alex moment". While a second wrote: "See the fear and respect till now wow." A third admitted: "I miss Sir Alex so much." And another added: "This is so amazing to watch. The amount of respect the ex-players still have for Sir Alex Ferguson is a testament to his impact on not only their sports journey but also their personal lives." 5
