Novak Djokovic scooped his 89th career title with victory over Marin Cilic in Sunday’s Tel Aviv Open final.
Playing his first singles event since winning Wimbledon in July, Djokovic landed a 6-3 6-4 victory, improving his career head-to-head winning record to 19-2 against former US Open champion Cilic.
He broke serve to lead 3-1 in the opening set, and then struck immediately in the second set to tighten his grip on the contest, completing the task with a service winner on his first championship point.
This indoor hard-court success goes down as a third title of the year for Djokovic, who won the Internazionali d’Italia on clay before triumphing on the Wimbledon grass. He is the first man to win a title on all three surfaces in 2022 at ATP Tour level.
Prevented from playing the North American hard-court stretch of the season, due to his refusal to accept a COVID-19 vaccination, Djokovic sat out the US Open.
He made his first post-Wimbledon appearance at the invitational Laver Cup team event in London last week, which doubled up as Roger Federer’s retirement party.
At the age of 35, Djokovic hopes to be a presence on tour for a good while to come, and Sunday’s straight-sets picking apart of Cilic was a fresh demonstration of his enduring prowess.
Ghana assistant coach, Mas-Ud Didi Dramani has assured the Black Stars will put up a better performance against Switzerland next month before their first game against Portugal.
The Black Stars have come under intense pressure following their unimpressive performance against Nicaragua in their September friendly games.
The West African country struggled to pick up a 1-0 narrow win after suffering a 3-0 defeat against Brazil in their first game at the Le Harve in France.
With the team set to play Switzerland before their first game against Portugal, the former Asante Kotoko gaffer has assured that the team will improve and put up an improved performance.
“There is nothing much to do but to continue with the process and get the players and staff to integrate even more to adapt to the process shortly before the first group game against Portugal, and this will be eminent in the game against Switzerland,” the former FC Nordsjaelland coach told Graphic Sports.
Mackenzie Hughes held his nerve in a playoff against Sepp Straka to secure the Sanderson Farms Championship with a score of 17 under.
It is the second PGA Tour win of the 31-year-old Canadian’s career, with nearly six years passed since his first win back at the RSM Classic in 2016.
This win was all the more unlikely after shooting a 71 on Thursday, but he followed it with a 63 on Friday for the lowest round of the week, before finishing with 68 and 69 on the weekend.
Straka rose to a share of the lead after four birdies over the space of five holes on his front-nine, and another pair of back-to-back birdies on the 14th and 15th to tie things up for the last few holes.
Hughes had a makeable birdie putt on the 17th to take the lead, but he narrowly missed it, before hooking his drive on the 18th into a position where salvaging a par was the best-case scenario.
From deep in the rough, he sent his second shot on the par-four over the back of the green, requiring an up-and-down to force a playoff. His long putt from off the green was excellent, leaving him a four-footer for par and he made no mistake.
Hughes again failed to make the green in regulation as they replayed the 18th, but he again saved par as Straka missed a 10-footer for birdie. On the second playoff hole, replaying the 18th one more time, Hughes figured it out, landing his approach within 10 feet and converting the birdie for the win.
Speaking to NBC in the moments after his win, he called being greeted by his wife and young son to celebrate a victory “something I’ve dreamed about since I had my first boy”.
“I kept telling myself the whole week that I was going to do it, and that was the only thing I saw in my mind,” he said. “Those par-saves down the stretch… I’d say that kind of describes my game a bit, that grit and perseverance.”
There was strong South African representation at the top of the leaderboard, with Garrick Higgo alone in third at 16 under while Dean Burmester took sole possession of fourth at 15 under.
Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo was joined by Americans Nick Hardy, Keegan Bradley and Mark Hubbard in a tie for fifth at 13 under, and defending champion Sam Burns finished nine shots off the pace at eight under in a tie for 30th.
Jurgen Klopp says there are no “instant” solutions in football as Liverpool look to bounce back ahead of their Champions League clash with Rangers.
The Reds failed to turn their rough form around upon their return to Premier League action this weekend when they were held to a 3-3 draw by Brighton and Hove Albion.
With just one win in their last four games across all competitions, Klopp’s side – FA Cup and EFL Cup winners last term as well as Champions Leaguefinalists – risk falling short on multiple fronts this term.
But the German feels his side will be able to work out their problems, stating they must “go back to the basics” and that they cannot expect an immediate revival of fortunes.
“We realised after Napoli it was a real low point, and we had to change things quickly,” he stated. “We didn’t play Wolves, played Ajax, then didn’t play Chelsea and couldn’t keep up any momentum from the Ajax win.”
“When you spot a problem and think you have the solution, you expect the solution to be instant and influential, that’s never the case in football.
“When it doesn’t work out, you realise step by step that you have to go back to the basics. We have to be patient again to do the right thing, and then we will be fine again.”
Liverpool’s mixed form has made it hard for new signing Darwin Nunez to have the desired impact after an early season red card, but Klopp is unconcerned over the forward’s personal attributes.
“He is still adapting,” he added. “New players come in and everybody talks about them and wants them to shine immediately and that happens from time to time.
“We had a long talk yesterday and we told him we are completely calm. It’s really important in our situation that he isn’t worrying. The three-game suspension didn’t help him to settle, that’s clear.
“The team isn’t flying and that doesn’t make it easier for a striker, especially a finisher. It’s not that everything is clicking, that is not our situation at the moment.”
Officials in Chad have extended the transition period towards democratic elections and say they will keep Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno on as head of state in the interim.
Delegates also agreed for the military leader to be eligible to run for the presidency when elections are held.
The decisions were made by a national reconciliation dialogue forum.
In announcing the move Ahmat Barchire, Rapporteur of the National Sovereign Inclusive Dialogue (DNIS) said: “On the transition, the commission noted that there was a broad consensus to set it at a maximum of 24 months.”
“The second point concerns ineligibility or eligibility. A consensus was reached that any Chadian who fulfils the conditions set by the law should be eligible to vote and be elected.”
The national reconciliation dialogue forum has been boycotted by most opposition members, two out of three key armed rebel groups and civil society organisations.
These decisions will face “resistance from political parties, civil society and the African Union,” said Chadian political scientist Evariste Ngarlem.
“Neither the European Union nor the United States would accept Deby’s eligibility to run or the extended transition period,” he added.
“These partners will take sanctions against Chad and the Transitional Military Council’s back will be up against a wall.”
Chad, one of the world’s poorest countries, has endured repeated uprisings and unrest since gaining independence from France in 1960.
Sadio Manesays he “will never forget” his time with Liverpool having made a move to Bayern Munich in the recent transfer window.
Mane joined the Reds from Southampton in 2016 and spent six successful years at the club, winning both the Premier League and the Champions League.
And while the 30-year-old now plies his trade in the Bundesliga, he says he will always have fond memories of playing for Liverpool.
“Honestly, I will never forget my time there,” Mane told UEFA.com.
“I learned a lot – as a man and as a football player. The supporters were amazing, the people from the city were amazing. It is a club that will stay in my heart forever.
“It is also a legendary club – they have won everything. And also, it is the club that had all the best Champions League nights.”
Mane cited the 2019 Champions League finalwin against Tottenham in Madrid as a particular highlight, adding: “I remember the second goal that Divock Origi scored very well. I was over the moon at that moment. I couldn’t believe it.
“I just thought back to my childhood, when I was watching the Champions League. I found myself playing a final and, more importantly, winning it.
“It was amazing – 2019 was an outstanding year. The celebrations, the club, you just had to be there to understand. I think over half a million people were out in the streets waiting for us to parade our trophy. It was just beautiful.”
The Senegal international has endured a mixed start to his Bayern career, scoring three in three league games to start the season but then going on a run of five appearances without a goal in all competitions before finally finding the net again in Friday’s 4-0 thumping of Bayer Leverkusen.
And he admitted his move to Germany had not all been plain sailing so far, saying: “Switching from one club to another is not easy.
“I spent eight very nice years in England, six years at Liverpool [after] two at Southampton, and now I am in a new country. It is not easy because everything changes so suddenly, people, training, everything.
“Everything is changing so it is not easy at all. I need to adapt. I knew that and it came as no surprise. It is happening just the way I imagined it.
“People here are welcoming, and they’re real players. People around the club are amazing so I am very happy.
“We have a very, very young squad. It’s the first time in my career that I have been part of such a young group. What really stands out to me is that they’re all hungry. They all want to develop and they’re attentive too.
“Training sessions are as intense as the games. It’s important as I think it makes a real difference and it shows. It’s so easy to play alongside these youngsters, who are massively talented and promising.”
EthiopianYalemzerf Yehualaw became the youngest winner of the London Marathon on Sunday recording the third fastest time in the women’s competition’s history.
The 23-year old beat last year’s winner, Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei and fellow Ethiopian Alemu Megertu, second and third, respectively.
With a blistering turn of pace in the last few miles, Yalemzerf Yehualaw 🇪🇹 wins the @LondonMarathon women’s race in 2:17:26.
“I’m so happy to win the London Marathon. This is the first time I come. The London people are very shouting, that’s inspiring me. Thank you London Marathon and London people. I’m so happy to win the London Marathon”, said London Marathon champion, Yelamzerf Yehualaw, after the race.
The Ethiopian runner appeared to trip on a speed bump with 10 km remaining, banging her head and hurting her hip and knee.
But she somehow recovered to re-join the leading pack and crossing the line in 2:17.25, the third fastest time at the event.
The rebel authorities in Tigraysay they have withdrawn their troops from areas they occupied in the neighbouring Amhara region to the south to face a joint offensive by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces further north.
After a five-month truce, fighting resumed at the end of August between the Ethiopian federal government – backed by forces and militias from the Amhara region – and the Tigrayan rebels.
The Asmara regime, a sworn enemy of the Tigray rebel leaders, is also lending a hand to the Ethiopian troops, as it did during the first phase of the conflict, which began in November 2020, during which Eritrean troops were accused of multiple cases of abuse.
“A change in the location and direction (of our forces) was deemed necessary to deal with the joint invasion forces… On the southern front, we have therefore evacuated the areas of the Amhara region where we had entered,” said the “central command” of the rebel forces in Tigray in a statement issued late Sunday.
The decision was implemented over the past three days, it said, assuring that “although the enemy has multiplied attempts to control this front, it has not succeeded in changing the situation and has only aggravated its defeat.
The fighting areas are closed to journalists and it was not immediately possible to independently verify the claims of the Tigrayan rebels.
At least 125 people have died in a crush at an Indonesian football match that has become one of the world’s worst stadium disasters.
Hundreds were also hurt in aftermath of home team Arema FC’s loss to bitter rivals at the overcrowded stadium late on Saturday in Malang, East Java.
The crush took place after police tear-gassed fans who invaded the pitch.
As panic spread, thousands surged towards Kanjuruhan stadium’s exits, where many suffocated.
Fifa, the world’s governing football body, states that no “crowd control gas” should be carried or used by stewards or police at matches.
The organisation’s president Gianni Infantino said it was “a dark day for all involved in football and a tragedy beyond comprehension”.
One eyewitness told the BBC that police had fired numerous tear gas rounds “continuously and fast” after the situation with fans became “tense”.
Next to one exit gate a hole smashed through the wall testifies to the desperation to escape the crush that developed.
Image caption, A hole next to the exit gates that were closed testifies to the desperation of those inside
There are candles next to the gate, put there by supporters to remember the victims.
The doors themselves are slanted outwards, a sign of the sheer level of force from the inside.
‘It had gotten anarchic’ – Police
Indonesian officials at one stage put the death toll in the disaster as high at 174 people, but this was later revised downwards.
President Joko Widodo has ordered that all matches in Indonesia’s top league must be stopped until an investigation has been carried out.
IMAGE SOURCE,AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Image caption, Police fired tear gas, leading to a crowd crush and cases of suffocation
Videos from the stadium show fans running on to the pitch after the final whistle marked the home team’s 2-3 defeat, and police firing tear gas in response.
“It had gotten anarchic. They started attacking officers, they damaged cars,” said Nico Afinta, police chief in East Java, adding that two police officers were among the dead.
“We would like to convey that… not all of them were anarchic. Only about 3,000 who entered the pitch,” he said.
Fleeing fans “went out to one point at the exit. Then there was a build-up, in the process of accumulation there was shortness of breath, lack of oxygen”, the officer added.
Videos on social media show fans clambering over fences to escape. Separate videos appear to show lifeless bodies on the floor.
IMAGE SOURCE,EPA
Image caption, Damaged police vehicles lay on the pitch inside Kanjuruhan stadium
The Indonesian football association (PSSI) said it had launched an investigation, adding that the incident had “tarnished the face of Indonesian football”.
Violence at football matches is not new in Indonesia, and Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya are long-time rivals.
However Persebaya Surabaya fans were banned from buying tickets for the game because of fears of clashes.
Chief Security Minister Mahfud MD posted on Instagram that 42,000 tickets had been sold for the match at Kanjuruhan stadium, which has a stated capacity of 38,000.
President Widodo called for this to be the “last soccer tragedy in the nation” after ordering that all Liga 1 games should be paused pending an investigation.
‘It was bang, bang, bang’ – Eyewitness
Muhamad Dipo Maulana, 21, who was at the match, told BBC Indonesian that after the game had ended a few Arema fans went on the pitch to remonstrate with the home team players but were immediately intercepted by police and “beaten”.
More spectators then took to the pitch in protest, the supporter said, adding that the situation became “tense”.
“Police with dogs, shields, and soldiers came forward,” Mr Dipo told the BBC.
He said he had heard more than 20 tear gas shots towards spectators at the stadium.
IMAGE SOURCE,BBC INDONESIAN
Image caption, Muhamad Dipo Maulana said he saw people suffocating while trying to get out of the stadium
“There was a lot, like bang, bang, bang! The sound was continuous and fast. The sound was really loud and directed to all the stands,” he added.
Mr Dipo said he saw people in disarray, panicking and suffocating while trying to get out of the stadium. There were many children and old people who were affected by the tear gas, the eyewitness added.
One of worst football disasters
The stampede is one of the worst of a tragically long line of stadium disasters.
In 1964, a total of 320 people were killed and more than 1,000 injured during a stampede at a Peru-Argentina Olympic qualifier in Lima.
In 1985, 39 people died and 600 were hurt at the Heysel stadium in Brussels, Belgium, when fans were crushed against a wall that then collapsed during the European Cup final between Liverpool (England) and Juventus (Italy).
In the UK, a crush developed at the Hillsborough stadium in Sheffield in 1989, resulting in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans attending the club’s FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal defender William Saliba has revealed he is in talks over a new contract at the Emirates Stadium after making a fine start to the season.
Having returned from a loan spell at Marseille ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, Saliba has started all eight of Arsenal’s Premier League games this season, seven of which have ended in victory.
Saliba has formed a fearsome defensive partnership with Gabriel Magalhaes during Arsenal’s best start to a Premier League campaign since 2007-08 – when they went on to finish third after taking 22 points from their first eight matches.
The France international’s current deal runs until 2024, and he is hopeful of reaching an agreement to extend his stay.
Asked whether he could agree fresh terms after impressing in Saturday’s 3-1 derby win over Tottenham, Saliba said: “Yeah, we will see. They [the club and his representatives] talk a little bit.”
Saliba believes Arsenal are growing in confidence with each victory, adding: “You have to wait every time and I waited a long time for my first North London Derby. I enjoyed it from the first minute to the end, and now I am so happy.
“We are so happy to win at home against Tottenham. It was a hard game, but we were focused all the game. We deserve this win.
“We play against the best players in the world. It is good for young players like me, and I learn a lot.
“The more we win, the more we are confident. We want every week to win, to win, to win — and that’s it.”
Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has watched Saliba’s development from close quarters in the season’s early weeks, and has described him as a “Rolls-Royce” of a defender.
“He has fit in really well,” Ramsdale said. “It is a credit to him that he has been put straight into the team. He is a bit of a Rolls-Royce with the way he moves, and he has never seemed fazed.
Penguin colonies in South Africa are being closely monitored.
The H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza was detected at a Cape Town colony and South African officials have now raised concerns about the spread of the disease.
The black and white birds are one of the attractions in Western Cape, South Africa’s most developed tourism region. Veterinarians at the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds are on the alert.
“At the moment we are talking about the Avian influenza which is a disease that affects a lot of birds but we have an outbreak of a more dangerous variant of the disease and that is the H5N1 high pathogenicity strain”, clinical veterinarian David Roberts says.
“It has been affecting sea birds in South Africa and other countries all over the world for the last year and we have had thousands of birds die. The penguins are not that badly affected but we have had a recent outbreak at the Boulders penguin colony and a few penguins have died there and that’s what we are concerned about”, he adds.
South Africa: Preliminary investigation shows penguins killed by bee swarm https://t.co/22OlcQjC9D
Environmental authorities said on September 16 that the H5N1 strain was similar to that detected last year among wild seabirds. If the outbreak is smaller, the protocol remains the same: identify, isolate and perfom tests on birds.
“For the last year we have lost over 20,000 birds, but just recently at the Boulders (Beach) National Park we have only lost 28 penguins”, Roberts details.
“It is a small outbreak in a community of about 3,000 penguins that live at this colony. Its not terrible there but we are monitoring the situation in case it gets worse.”
Once sick birds are identified, they are euthanised and cremated in an attempt to reduce the spread of the disease. Another concern is if the influenza spreads to commercial poultry.
Europe is facing the largest bird flu outbreak ever. In the Netherlands for example, more than 3,5 million chickens, ducks and other birds had to be culled. A lot of work is being done on a vaccine against the current, highly contagious, variant.
Carlo Ancelotti believes Real Madrid “deserved” to beat Osasuna in Sunday’s draw, but called for a reaction from his players as he defended his decision to keep Eden Hazard benched.
The Belgium international was a spectator as Los Blancos slipped to a 1-1 draw against their visitors, with Karim Benzema fluffing a potential match-winning penalty to ensure the spoils were shared.
The club’s first dropped points of the domestic season saw them surrender top spot to rivals Barcelona, with the pair’s Clasico encounter – which takes place in just under a fortnight – set to represent a huge moment in the title race.
Speaking after Sunday’s stalemate, Ancelotti acknowledged his team’s frustrations after they dominated for long periods, but added that he anticipates a response.
“This team is upset when it doesn’t win,” he stated. “The game was under our control and we deserved to win.
“We’re not happy and that’s the reason why this side won a lot last year. We’re not happy with the draw and we will react soon.
“We shouldn’t be making excuses about the [international] break. We need to manage the break. We’ve got a very good squad.”
Mariano Diaz was preferred to Hazard when Ancelotti required attacking reinforcements in the second half, and the Italian was succinct in his reasoning for the Belgian’s absence.
“It was a game that needed a strong centre forward who was good in the air like Mariano, who had chances to score with his head,” he added. “It wasn’t the right match for Hazard’s qualities.”
Meanwhile, Thibaut Courtois missed the game through a case of sciatica, but Ancelotti is hopeful he could return as soon as the club’s midweek Champions League encounter with Shakhtar Donetsk.
“He’s got some tests and we’ll see if he can get back,” he stated. “It’s a muscular issue, I think it’s with the sciatic nerve. We’ll find out if he can play on Wednesday.”
The transformation of Cote d’Ivoire’s cocoa industry was the focus of the 8th edition of the National Cocoa and Chocolate Day which took place in Abidjan this weekend under the theme, ‘Local cocoa processing: opportunities for chocolate artisans’.
With more than 2 million tonnes produced per year, Ivoirian cocoa beans are estimated to account for 45 per cent of world production, generating 40 per cent of the country’s export earnings, and accounting for 15 per cent of national GDP.
‘We are at about 600,000 tonnes in the first phase of cocoa processing, what we call grinding or milling, but we must manage to make finished products that are consumable by the population,’ says Sonore Konan Kouassi, president of the fair’s organising committee.
This was one of the main themes of panel discussions at the event, and the conclusion was that the consumer market does exist.
Chocolate maker, Sonore Yenou Olga, from the brand Tafissa, says increasing the added value to cocoa beans is essential.
‘Our short-term project is to increase the processing capacity. Today, we are up to 500 tonnes of products that we can put on the market, but after that we intend to multiply by 4 or 10,’ she says.
Increase in earnings for farmers
There was some good for planters at the fair with the announcement of a guaranteed increase in remuneration for their beans for the 2022 to 2023 season, from last year’s $1.24 to $1.35.
‘Thanks to the state which has made efforts, but we still tell them to continue because we need to be more autonomous,’ says cocoa farmer Sawadogo Moussa.
While this year’s harvest has been good, a recent World Bank report found that while cocoa plays a central role in the lives of many Ivorian families, more than half of producers live below the poverty line.
Certified origin
While cocoa is a pillar of the local economy, it is subject to the rules of the world market, and is facing increasing pressure to be able to certify the origin of its beans and that the cocoa is produced under ethical conditions.
And the industry is making efforts in this direction, with the development of a multifunctional producer’s card, with a QR code that generates information about the farmer and their land, which includes a visa bank chip that allows them to carry out their commercial operations.
‘Want to trace the product, we want to know exactly which cocoa comes from which plantation in which region. The objective is to know who produces what, and who it passes through before being exported, so that we can reassure the final consumer that our cocoa is produced under ethical conditions,’ says Jérémie Kouassi, Director of Agricultural Development at the Coffee and Cocoa Council.
With the importance of cocoa to the Ivorian economy and society at large, the stakes are high for the industry to make sure it reaches its full potential as an engine of economic development.
Erling Haaland shares many of the same qualities as Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, according to Peter Schmeichel, who has described the Manchester City man as several top strikers “put into one player”.
Haaland produced an incredible display as City swatted aside Manchester United for a 6-3 derby win on Sunday, scoring a treble and teeing up two goals for fellow hat-trick hero Phil Foden.
The Norwegian – who has scored 14 goals in his first eight Premier League appearances – has now scored a hat-trick in three successive home league games, becoming the first player to do so in the competition’s history.
After watching Haaland tear United apart at the Etihad Stadium, Schmeichel picked out similarities between the 22-year-old and several striking legends.
“The biggest part of a good striker is patience. I played against some of the best strikers, and when they go missing is when you really have to concentrate,” the former United and City goalkeeper told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“The Cristiano Ronaldos, the Filippo Inzaghis of this world – they disappear then all of a sudden they get the chance.
“When you look at Haaland, you see different players. That Zlatan-like goal, and Ronaldo is in there too. You see top, top strikers in one.
“That is why he is so dangerous. He has the luxury of seeing many top strikers and they are all put into one player.”
Haaland’s dominant display on Sunday saw him become just the 25th player to record five goal involvements in a Premier League game – and the youngest to ever do so (22 years, 73 days).
In Haaland and team-mate Kevin De Bruyne, meanwhile, City have the highest goalscorer and top assist-maker in Europe’s top five leagues this season (in all competitions).
Haaland has already found the net 17 times this season, with five of those strikes being laid on by De Bruyne, who has a total of 10 assists in 2022-23.
King Charles III will welcome South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to the U.K. for three days of high-level talks next month.
This is to celebrate the first state visit of his reign with the leader of a Commonwealth member with close ties to the royal family.
Ramaphosa has accepted Charles’s invitation for a state visit from Nov. 22-24, Buckingham Palace said Monday. The South African leader will be accompanied by his wife, Dr. Tshepo Motsepe.
Charles has visited South Africa on several occasions since 1997. At Nelson Mandela’s funeral in 2013, he said the world would be a “poorer place” without the man who led South Africa’s transition from apartheid to multi-ethnic democracy, adding that Mandela was owed “an enormous debt of gratitude” for his achievements.
The King and Camilla, the queen consort then the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall welcomed former South African President Jacob Zuma to the U.K. at the start of a state visit in 2010.
Charles’ sons, Princes William and Harry, have also visited South Africa a number of times.
Fourteen civilians were killed on Saturday in a new attack attributed to ADF rebels in the volatile eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) region of Ituri, local officials said on Sunday.
According to Jacques Anayey Bandingama, president of the youth of the Banyali Tchabi chiefdom, where the attack took place, machete-wielding rebels burst into the village of Kymata at around 7.30pm.
In addition to the 14 people “killed with machetes”, two people were injured and two children are missing, “certainly kidnapped” by the attackers who also set fire to the village, he added.
The president of the Nyali Tchabi community, Faustin Mboma Babanilau, deplored the lack of military presence in this region where many armed groups are active: “At the chiefdom office, there are only two soldiers, go figure.
Presented by the jihadist organisation Islamic State (EI) as its branch in Central Africa (ISCAP in English), the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) group is accused of being responsible for the massacre of thousands of civilians in eastern Congo and of having committed attacks in Uganda.
Since November 2021, DR Congo and Uganda, where the ADF was founded, have been fighting together against this armed group. But the attacks attributed to it have increased in recent months in the eastern DRC.
The Congolese government placed Ituri province and its neighbour North Kivu under a state of siege in May 2021 but has failed to curb the violence since.
Libyanauthorities have discovered 42 unknown bodies in a mass grave in the northern coastal city of Sirte.
The General Authority for Research and Identification of Missing Persons said in a statement on Sunday that it received a notification from the office of the local prosecutor on a mass grave found in Ibn Khaldoun school in the Jiza al-Bahriya area.
It said 42 unknown bodies were exhumed over two weeks of work in the school.
The bodies were taken to a hospital to take samples from the bones and were buried later, the statement said.
“Samples were taken from the bones for DNA analysis, in coordination with the forensics office,” the same source said.
The radical jihadistshad fiercely defended the city for months, using urban guerrilla tactics, before being defeated by pro-government forces in late 2016.
The bodies are believed to be belonging to people killed by the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group which seized the city for more than a year from August 2015 to December 2016.
Discoveries of mass graves are common in war-torn Libya, especially in Tarhuna city, a former stronghold for warlord Khalifa Haftar.
More recently, two mass graves of seven and eight bodies respectively were discovered in the courtyard of a hospital in Sirte in late August.
According to Libyan official sources, Haftar’s forces and affiliated militias committed war crimes and acts of genocide in the period between April 2019 and June 2020.
Angry demonstrators in Burkina Fasoattacked the French embassy in the capital, Ouagadougou on Saturday, 1 October.
They were protesting in support of the country’s new military leader, Ibrahim Traore and accused France of harbouring interim president Lt Col Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who was ousted on Friday.
Uncertainty continued in Ouagadougou on Saturday evening after a statement by the army said it did not recognise the seizure of power the previous day by soldiers.
The whereabout of Damiba is unclear but French authorities have denied any involvement and condemned the violence.
In a statement, France said the security of its compatriots was its priority following the military coup.
Meanwhile, protesters shouted angry, anti-France slogans including: “We don’t want France anymore. We no longer want France to be in Africa” and “Down with France.”
Some added: “We call on Russia” and suggested Russian intervention was preferable to any involvement by their former colonisers.
One demonstrator said: “We want frank cooperation with Russia. That’s why we hold the three flags. The Russian, Malian and Burkinabe flags.”
Another explained: “Damiba has failed and the people are not happy. And we are indeed going out today to show the whole world that we do not want this man anymore.
“At the moment, we have very seasoned soldiers who have taken power and we will support them until terrorism is driven out of our country.”
Damiba had promised to tackle jihadist violence but critics accused him of being too close to France which maintains a military presence in the region.
French spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre said condemned the violence against the embassy and said the protests were “the work of hostile demonstrators, manipulated by a campaign of disinformation against us.”
She added: “Our nationals have been instructed to exercise the utmost vigilance and to remain at home.”
“We really need to change the pace. We need to change the pace. We need to go fast. The whole country is in a state of emergency. So everyone at this level must be able to move faster and abandon the unnecessary red tape.
I can’t even name one point, one point where it is necessary to be fast — it is all the points. In Burkina, everything is urgent. From security to defence, to health, to social action, to infrastructure, everything is urgent”, said junta chief and new self-proclaimed leader of Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Traore.
A few hours before events unfolded last Friday, hundreds of people rallied in the capital, Ouagadougou, seeking Damiba’s departure, the end of France’s military presence in the Sahel and military cooperation with Russia.
This is the second time in less than one year that Burkina Faso has had a change in leadership.
More than 40% of Burkina Faso remains outside government control.
“For years, we’ve suffered a lot, we don’t want to suffer again. Peter Obi has come to save the Nigerians. We don’t want bribes, no more bribes. Things are expensive. We want a man, a governor, a president that will hear the voice of the masses”, said Felicity Okorocha, therapist and Labour party organiser.
Peter Obi, a former state governor and banking executive, is challenging the long dominance of the ruling APC and main opposition PDP parties to succeed President Muhammadu Buhariat the end of February next year.
“Peter Obi is different from the other politicians. Because we have seen a track record of how he spends money because the problem in Nigeria is because people loot our collective patrimony. So Peter Obi is different and the whole of Nigeria now knows that he is going to rescue Nigeria”, claims tech consultant Chijioke Chuwunyere.
High inflation, lack of jobs and insecurity have left many younger Nigerians frustrated with politics and apathetic about change at the ballot box.
Electoral authorities say 70% of newly registered voters for 2023 are aged between 18-34.
Pep Guardiola described Erling Haaland as a born goalscorer after he claimed another hat-trick in Manchester City’s derby rout of Manchester United, declaring: “what he is doing, I didn’t teach him”.
Haalandcontinued his fine start to life in England by playing a central role in City’s 6-3 win over United, clinching a treble and adding two assists for fellow hat-trick hero Phil Foden.
The Norwegian – who has already hit 17 goals in all competitions this season – became the first player in Premier League history to score hat-tricks in three successive home games on Sunday.
His tally of five goal contributions at the Etihad Stadium, meanwhile, is the most recorded by a player in a single Premier League Manchester Derby.
Guardiola refused to take credit for the striker’s form after the win, saying: “I said it many times and I will say again – what Erling is doing, he did in Norway, Austria and Germany.
“The quality we have alongside him helps him score, but what he is doing, I didn’t teach him.
“He has incredible instincts. It comes from his mum and dad. He was born with that.”
As well as laying on two goals for Foden, Haaland created a game-high four chances on Sunday, and Guardiola was delighted by the quality of his link-up play.
“I have had incredible centre-forwards in my career,” Guardiola continued. “What I liked was in the last period of the game, he was involved. I want him to be involved.
“He became a player to score goals, but I want him in contact with the ball. I like him being part of those situations.
“But of course, he has to put the ball in the net, and he is a fantastic striker.”
Haaland has started all 11 of City’s competitive games this term, and Guardiola plans to offer him the opportunity to rest at some point.
“He will take a break. There will be games he is not going to play,” he said.
“We are lucky, last season he could not play many games in a row – here we have incredible physios and thanks to them, he can play every 90 minutes.
“They are so important – with their hands, they allow players to play.”
Bruno Fernandes admitted Manchester United were destined to lose the derby from the opening minutes because they did not trust themselves.
The midfielder was part of a team over-run by a vibrant Manchester City, who tore to a 6-3 victory thanks to hat-tricks from Erling Haaland and Phil Foden.
City led 4-0 at half-time and later held a 6-1 cushion, before United grabbed a pair of late replies from substitute Anthony Martial.
It was gruesome watching for anyone on the red side of Manchester, particularly as United had been on a four-game winning run in the Premier League going into the game.
“The belief from the beginning was not the best and I think that caused us many problems and made us concede early goals,” said Fernandes.
Fernandes captained United in the absence of the injured Harry Maguire, but he could not imbue the side with the confidence to shake off a rocky start.
“I think the second half was much better,” Fernandes said. “We kept control more, we controlled the game whenever we had the ball. We were down on the result, so we had to take some risks.
“And obviously, when we took that risk, we scored straight away. We tried to [go forward] a little bit more, but then we conceded more goals. You can’t give that much space to City.”
United ‘won’ the second half 3-2, but it was emphatically City’s day.
Fernandes has just one goal and one assist in seven Premier League games this season, after 10 goals and six assists last term.
In the previous campaign he managed 18 goals and 12 assists, so new boss Erik ten Hag will be hoping to draw that mercurial level of form from the Portuguese playmaker, rather than the watered-down version that has been served up of late.
“Obviously, we are really disappointed,” said Fernandes, speaking to MUTV. “But now it is time to focus on the next game and understand we have to get back the performances we did before [the international break], and the belief and togetherness, and understand that this cannot get us down. It has to make us improve for the future.”
The next game for United is a Europa League meeting with Omonia in Cyprus on Thursday, while they return to Premier League duty at Everton on Sunday.
Haalandused his social media accounts to gloat after his and City’s sublime performance, declaring: “Manchester is blue!”
Fernandes and United are in no position to question City’s superiority at present, and it is a rebuilding job again, just as it was after the early season losses to Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford.
United followed those setbacks by beating Liverpool, Southampton, Leicester City and Arsenal.
Everton, Newcastle United, Tottenham and Chelsea present their opposition over the next four games, with Fernandes eager to banish the derby blues.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game, but we’ve had tough games before and won them,” he said, “so I think it’s about mentality, attitude, togetherness and belief in the process.”
Carlo Ancelotti refused to single Karim Benzema out for criticism after the striker’s penalty miss saw Real Madrid drop points in LaLiga for the first time this season against Osasuna.
Despite Benzema’s return from a three-week injury lay-off, Madrid produced a disjointed performance on Sunday, squandering a first-half lead when Kike Garcia cancelled out Vinicius Junior’s fortunate opener.
Benzema had the chance to fire Madrid to a seventh consecutive league victory when David Garcia was sent off for a push on the striker six yards out, but the France star crashed his spot-kick against the crossbar.
Osasuna’s 10 men held on for a point in comfortable fashion thereafter, and Benzema has now missed three penalties against Jagoba Arrasate’s team in LaLiga this year.
Ancelotti refused to blame Benzema for the result, however, and insisted Madrid had not performed badly, telling DAZN: “Karim usually scores.
“The match wasn’t spectacular, but after the goal we conceded, the team played as it had to play.
“Karim had no problems starting to play 90 minutes. He has to get in the best shape by playing.
“It’s a footballing accident that can sometimes happen. We’ve been quite solid at the back, we had a good balance, we hardly conceded any counter-attacks.”
Osasuna have now claimed three draws against Madrid since the start of the 2020-21 campaign, more than any other team in LaLiga.
Madrid’s failure to find a winning goal means they remain behind Barcelona on goal difference at the summit, and midfielder Dani Ceballos says they lacked dynamism in Sunday’s draw.
“We wanted the three points, we tried until the end, but we have lost two points,” he said. “We improved in the last minutes, but we have not been able to get the victory.
“We were not good facing the goal, nor with the ball, we lacked a bit of dynamism. We have another game on Wednesday [against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League] to face in a good way.”
Robert Lewandowskihas been blown away by Barcelona’s flood of teenage talent and believes there is no better place for young footballers to blossom.
The 34-year-old Poland captain was brought in from Bayern Munich to provide a quick fix and give Barcelona a reliable goalscorer in the short term.
But there is long-term vision at Barcelona too, with the likes of Pedri, Gavi, Ansu Fati and Alejandro Balde all emerging as first-team players while still in their teens.
Pedri arrived from Las Palmas in 2020 and was quickly assimilated into the senior set-up, bypassing the system at La Masia, the Barcelona academy, because he was considered so advanced already.
Most have come through years of training in the academy system, however, which is churning out top-class footballers at a rapid rate.
Lewandowski counts on such players as team-mates now, and says their style of play, having been training to follow Barcelona principles, is “noticeably distinct” to other youngsters in the game.
“I’m impressed by the fact of how at that age one could be so mature in football,” Lewandowski said, speaking to Polish online sport channel Kanal Sportowy.
“I don’t mean mature mentally. I meant if they thought differently about football. I wouldn’t even compare it, if there are any differences there.
“A man can’t change his age. People abroad who are 18 years old can’t think as it they were 26. People here live and grow in the same way. However, thanks to these academies it’s much easier for them.
“Being well trained at the age of 18 and really talented, they may reach a higher level. Additionally, they’re really familiar with the world of football which Polish players miss.”
3 – Ansu Fati 🇪🇸 (two assists) and Robert Lewandowski 🇵🇱 (one) have combined for more goals than any other duo in LaLiga this season. Connection. pic.twitter.com/fBR1NgfUuV
Lewandowski opened up on a host of themes in the interview, and said he intended to stay involved in sport once his playing days are over.
He might find a coaching role one day, and his experiences in Barcelona should stand him in good stead.
“It’s the best possibility for a young player, to be able to observe experienced football players in order to become one of them in the future,” said Lewandowski.
Such players also point to a bright future for the Spain national team, with the emergence of a possible new golden generation.
At first-team level, Barcelona are attempting to knock Real Madrid off their perch.
Madrid won last season’s LaLiga title and added the Champions League to boot, while Xavi’s mid-season arrival began to turn around a Barcelona team who made a rocky start under former head coach Ronald Koeman.
Xavi’s Barcelona are level on 19 points with Madrid through the first seven rounds of this campaign, and the two current co-leaders will face off at the Santiago Bernabeu on October 16 in the season’s first Clasico.
Lewandowski hit the only goal at Real Mallorca on Saturday, with a hard-fought 1-0 win showing Barcelona have tenacity to complement their more obvious flair.
The close-season recruit said he was “positively astonished” with how intense his early training experiences had been at Barcelona, after last season’s “tough” experience for the club.
Lewandowski is confident Xavi has a firm grip on what needs to be done to turn Barcelona into trophy winners again.
“He’s aware of what went wrong in the last season, in contrary to what he dreamed of, and I see that he wants to make it better,” Lewandowski said.
“Mentally they were really focused, but their bodies couldn’t manage. I think that with every week and every match, we’ll be growing, and I strongly believe that with time it’ll get better.”
Sampdoria have parted ways with head coach Marco Giampaolo after Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat to Monza.
It brings an end to Giampaolo’s second spell at the club, having also been in charge between 2016 and 2019, but after recording just two points from their first eight games of the Serie A season, the 55-year-old has departed again.
After returning in January to replace Roberto D’Aversa, Giampaolo took charge of 24 Serie A games, winning five, drawing three and losing 16.
The former Milan and Torino coach was finally relieved of his duties after goals from Matteo Pessina, Gianluca Caprari and Stefano Sensi condemned Samp to a hefty loss to newly-promoted Monza at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium.
A statement on the club’s website read: “U.C. Sampdoria have announced that they have relieved coach Marco Giampaolo of his duties.
“The club would like to thank Marco and his staff for the dedication and professionalism they showed while working for Sampdoria.”
Juventusboss Massimiliano Allegri says his side must take matters “one step at a time” after breaking a month-long winless streak against Bologna on Sunday.
The Bianconeri ran out 3-0 winners at the Allianz Stadium, clinching their first victory in all competitions since the end of August thanks to goals from Filip Kostic, Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik.
The result arrested Juventus’ slide into mid-table mediocrity in Serie A, although they remain four points adrift of the top four and seven shy of early-season leaders Napoli.
The difficulty of the challenge facing Juve is not lost on Allegri, who says his team need to avoid getting ahead of themselves in the coming weeks.
“We need to take it one step at a time, and hopefully, we can close the gap,” he told DAZN. “We closed it last season, so [we know] we can do it again.
“We needed patience and focus to build the performance and get the result. I almost felt like we couldn’t believe it when we got back to the locker room.
“It needs to be one small step at a time. We can’t make up that difference all in one go. At this moment, we need clear and cool heads.”
Kostic netted his first goal in club colours to round off a superb run from Vlahovic, who arguably delivered his best performance of the season in Turin.
Kostic said he would look to repay the favour by teeing up his fellow Serbia international in the future, stating: “I do a good job with Dusan, I thanked him for the assist and I hope I can give one back next time.”
Conor Gallagher’s sublime last-minute strike earned Chelsea a 2-1 win against his former club Crystal Palaceto give Graham Potter a winning start in the Premier League.
Second-half substitute Gallagher, who spent last season on loan at Selhurst Park, curled home in the 90th minute to win a game that Chelsea trailed early on.
Odsonne Edouard had given Palace the lead on home soil in Saturday’s contest, only for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to net his first goal for Chelsea before half-time.
Palace felt Thiago Silva should have been sent off before assisting that Aubameyang equaliser, and their mood was not helped by former player Gallagher’s late winner.
Wesley Fofana was drafted back into Chelsea’s line-up but gave the ball away and then failed to cut out a cross that was clinically converted by Edouard inside seven minutes.
Last man Silva was fortunate to stay on the field when using his hand to stop Jordan Ayew from running through on goal, referee Chris Kavanagh electing to issue only a yellow.
To rub salt in the Palace wounds, Silva nodded down a long ball into the path of Aubameyang, who let it bounce across his body and half-volleyed into the bottom left-corner.
Just when the sides appeared to be heading for a first league draw in 23 meetings, Gallagher – on the field for just 14 minutes – found the top-right corner from range to snatch the win.
What does it mean? Chelsea extend winning Palace run
Potter’s only game in charge since being appointed Chelsea boss on September 8 was a 1-1 Champions League draw against Salzburg.
This contest was heading the same frustrating way as that match, with Chelsea managing plenty of shots (13 come full-time) without truly troubling the opposition goalkeeper.
But Gallagher’s superb strike gave Potter lift-off in south London and stretched Chelsea’s winning league run against Palace to 10 in a row.
Conor comes back to haunt Palace
Gallagher’s goal was a particularly cruel one for Palace to take as it was the Eagles who gave him a platform to impress in the Premier League on a regular basis last season.
Now back at Chelsea, the 2022-23 campaign had started rather slowly for the midfielder, but this first league goal for the club will no doubt boost his confidence.
Palace left fuming
Silva denied Ayew a likely scoring chance and, by the rule of the book, Palace boss Patrick Vieira – booked for his protestations – will rightly argue the defender should have gone.
Not only did Silva stay on the pitch, he also set up Aubameyang’s maiden goal for Chelsea, with that his second league assist this term – no Chelsea player has more.
What’s next?
Chelsea host Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday before facing Wolves in their next league outing in a week’s time. Palace welcome Leeds United to Selhurst Park next weekend.
Goals from Filip Kostic, Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik helped Juventus snap their month-long winless streak as they returned to Serie A action with a 3-0 victory over Bologna.
Heading into Sunday’s encounter, Massimiliano Allegri’s side had not won across all competitions since the end of August, to leave the head coach’s future at the club in serious doubt.
But an assured display from the Bianconeri against Thiago Motta’s embattled side has likely assuaged immediate fears at Allianz Stadium, while the scope of the Bologna boss’ task is becoming readily apparent.
Aside from an off-target Manuel Locatelli effort in the first minute, the early exchanges provided scant entertainment in Turin as both sides sought to settle into the game.
But it was Juventus who looked the livelier of the two and when Vlahovic picked off a loose ball in midfield, the crowd rose to roar on his blazing run.
Kostic ran crafty support along the left flank, and when the ball came wide to him, his low strike beyond Lukasz Skorupski back across the box was a worthy opener.
Bologna seldom looked like they would disturb that lead and the visitors were made to pay again just before the hour mark when Vlahovic powered Weston McKennie’s cross home with a header.
Merely three minutes later, Milik took advantage of a defensive lapse to rifle a vicious volley into the roof of the net, and from there the hosts cruised to full-time for a morale-boosting result.
What does it mean? Juventus steady ship
Having last tasted victory at the end of August with a 2-0 win over Spezia, the Bianconeri had since gone five without victory until this weekend.
With serious questions looming over whether they would be able to force their way back into the top four again, even at this early juncture, this result offers a much-needed optimism.
Vlahovic maintains happy streak
After an opening-day brace, it all went a little bit quiet for Dusan Vlahovic, but the Serbian got back to goalscoring ways with a fine bit of work here.
Bologna are one of his favourites to face too – he has scored in each of his last four league games against them, having only achieved a similar feat against Sampdoria.
Motta facing fight to survive
If the new Bologna boss was in any doubt as to the difficulty of the task he has inherited, Thiago Motta will be significantly more aware now, with Sinisa Mihajlovic’s successor overseeing a chastening trip to Turin.
He will be more frustrated by the fact his side actually had more possession (52 per cent) but were particularly ineffective with the ball at their feet.
Key Opta Facts
– Juventus scored three goals for the first time since the opening-day win over Sassuolo.
– This was Manuel Locatelli’s 50th appearance with Juventus in all competitions.
– Dusan Vlahovic has scored in each of his last four league games against Bologna.
– Arkadiusz Milik has scored five goals against Bologna in Serie A – his best return against any team in the division.
What’s next?
Juventus return to Champions League action with a match against Maccabi Haifa on October 5. Bologna, meanwhile, will wait for the next Serie A round, when they face Sampdoria on October 8.
Real Madrid saw their perfect start in LaLiga halted by 10-man Osasuna on Sunday, as Karim Benzema missed a late penalty on his return from injury in a dramatic 1-1 draw.
Injuries to Luka Modric and Thibaut Courtois left Madrid depleted at the Santiago Bernabeu, but they took the lead in fortunate fashion when Vinicius Junior’s cross beat Sergio Herrera.
Courtois’ replacement Andriy Lunin was caught out by Kike Garcia’s header as Osasuna equalised shortly after half-time, but the hosts were awarded a penalty when David Garcia pushed Benzema, earning himself a red card.
However, Benzema hammered his spot-kick against the crossbar as Osasuna clung on, ending Madrid’s 100 per cent winning record and keeping them below Barcelona at the summit.
Osasuna gave as good as they got during a frantic opening, twice going close through tricky winger Abde Ezzalzouli on the break.
Benzema almost opened the scoring in spectacular fashion from Vinicius’ cross after 37 minutes, clipping the left-hand post with an acrobatic volley, but Madrid did not have to wait long for their opener.
Vinicius’ in-swinging cross evaded Benzema before nestling in the bottom-right corner after 41 minutes, with a VAR review awarding the goal after ruling Benzema was not interfering with play from an offside position.
Osasuna needed just five minutes to level after the break, however, as Kike’s glancing header looped beyond Lunin to find the top-left corner, stunning the Bernabeu into silence.
Just as Madrid appeared to be running out of ideas, Garcia’s clumsy foul on Benzema saw the defender dismissed and handed the France striker the chance to win the match with 11 minutes remaining.
However, the Ballon d’Or favourite stuck the bar with a poor effort before heading Rodrygo Goes’ stoppage-time cross wide as Osasuna held on.
What does it mean? Madrid lose perfect record
Carlo Ancelotti’s team entered Sunday’s match as the only side in Europe’s top five leagues to boast a 100 per cent winning record this season, but they never truly convinced as Osasuna ended their perfect run.
The result means Madrid have fallen short of winning their first seven games of the season for just the fourth time in LaLigahistory, and saw them surrender top spot to bitter rivals Barcelona.
Benzema pays the penalty… again
Madrid coped well while Benzema was sidelined with a knee injury in September, but the France international had the chance to prove decisive on his return after being presented with a 79th-minute penalty.
However, Benzema fluffed his lines, not for the first time against Osasuna. Remarkably, he has been unsuccessful with three penalties against them in LaLiga this year, having had two spot-kicks saved by Herrera in April.
Kike lifts in-form visitors
Osasuna approached this match having claimed 12 points from their first six matches of the season in LaLiga (W4 D0 L2) – matching their start to the memorable 2005-06 campaign, when they went on to finish fourth.
The visitors carried a genuine threat on the break throughout the first half, and it ultimately came as little surprise when Kike scored his second goal of the season to level the match shortly after the break.
What’s next?
Real Madrid welcome Shakhtar Donetsk to Spain for a Champions League contest on Wednesday, while Osasuna are next in action when they host Valencia in LaLiga on Friday.
A hat-trick each for Erling Haaland and Phil Foden gave Manchester City a 6-3 win against Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
It was a ruthless performance from the Premier League champions, who were four goals up at half-time after tearing United apart time and again with their pass and move football.
Antony scored with an excellent strike early in the second half and Anthony Martial came off the bench to score a late double that made the score a bit more respectable, but it was an otherwise dominant showing from City against Erik ten Hag’s men.
Pep Guardiola saw his team go back to within a point of leaders Arsenal at the top of the league, and remain the only unbeaten team in England’s top flight this season.
Foden gave the hosts the lead after just eight minutes, with Joao Cancelo playing a pass to Bernardo Silva on the left, and his low cross found the England international completely free to sweep the ball inside David de Gea’s near post.
Haaland then rose highest from a Kevin De Bruyne corner just after the hour-hour mark to force a header across the line, despite Tyrell Malacia’s best efforts to keep it out.
The Belgian provided for the Norwegian again just three minutes later as he whipped a cross from the inside right position towards the back post, with Haaland there to divert the ball past De Gea again.
Former Borussia Dortmund star Haaland turned provider just before half-time as he was again played in by De Bruyne, before aiming a perfect low cross to the far post for Foden to steer in his 50th goal for City in all competitions to make it 4-0 at the break.
Some pride was restored for the visitors 11 minutes into the second half as Antony scored with an outstanding long-range effort after cutting onto his left foot and bending a shot into the far corner, only for Haaland to complete his treble after guiding in a Sergio Gomez cross.
Foden finished well when played in by Haaland to make it six, and although substitute Martial forced the ball home following Ederson pushing out a Fred shot, and then won and scored a penalty in stoppage time, it was comfortably City’s day in Manchester.
What does it mean? Hat-trick hero Haaland… again
It is now 17 goals in 11 games for Haaland at City as the imposing striker looks to break as many scoring records as he can.
His treble here made him the first player in Premier League history to score a hat-trick in three consecutive home games in the competition.
Haaland, who also had two assists, only made his Premier League debut 56 days ago, but he already has as many hat-tricks in the competition as Cristiano Ronaldo (three), who sat moody-faced on the bench as he was an unused substitute for the visitors.
Foden also fires on derby day
It seems a bit strange to think Foden could be overshadowed after scoring a hat-trick in a Manchester derby, but when you’re playing with a machine like Haaland, it’s easy to see why.
The local lad was outstanding again, though, with three neat finishes and recording a total passing accuracy of 95 per cent, as well as completing 89 per cent of his passes in the final third, more than any other City player to make four or more.
Another four-ful start from United
Going in at half-time on the end of a hammering has become a familiar feeling for the Red Devils.
Since the start of 2020-21, United have conceded four or more first-half goals in four Premier League games (also versus Spurs in 2020, Liverpool in 2021 and Brentford this season), twice as often as any other side in this time.
Key Opta Stats:
– This was the highest ever scoring Manchester derby in any competition in what was the two sides’ 187th competitive meeting.
– It was the first time City scored six goals in a home game against United in all competitions – the previous two instances came away from home (6-1 in January 1926 and 6-1 in October 2011).
– United conceded six goals in a Premier League game for only the fourth time, with two of these coming against City (also October 2011).
– Foden scored his 49th, 50th and 51st goals for City in all competitions – his first ever senior hat-trick. Aged 22 years and 127 days, he became the youngest player to reach 50 under Pep Guardiola, surpassing Lionel Messi (22y 164d).
– Haaland and Foden became the third and fourth City players respectively to score a hat-trick versus United after Francis Lee in December 1970 and Horace Barnes in October 1921.
– City were only the third side to have two hat-trick scorers in a single Premier League game, after Arsenal v Southampton in 2003 (Jermaine Pennant, Robert Pires) and Leicester v Southampton in 2019 (Ayoze Perez, Jamie Vardy).
What’s next?
It’s back to European action for both teams as City host FC Copenhagen in the Champions League on Wednesday, while United need a morale-boosting result as they travel to Omonia Nicosia in the Europa League.
Ukraine has submitted an application for accession to NATOunder an accelerated procedure, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an address on September 30.
The announcement came after meetings of Ukraine’s top military and security councils and after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decrees to formally seize four Ukrainian territories partially occupied by Moscow.
Commenting on Putin‘s statements about occupied or partially occupied regions of Ukraine “joining Russia,” Zelensky said Russia is “trying to steal what does not belong to it.”
“We have a solution. First, only the path of strengthening Ukraine and expelling the occupiers from our entire territory will restore peace. We will go this way,” he said.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says Russia’s recent actions on the war in Ukraine represent “the most serious escalation” since Moscow launched its invasion in February.
Stoltenberg cited Russian President Vladimir Putin’s partial military mobilization, his “irresponsible nuclear saber-rattling,” and decrees signed on September 30 illegally annexing more Ukrainian territory.
Speaking at a news conference in Brussels, Stoltenberg condemned the Russian “land grab” of four Ukrainian provinces in decrees signed by Putin earlier at a Kremlin ceremony. He said the move was “illegal and illegitimate,” calling it the “largest attempted annexation of European territory by force since World War II.”
NATO allies “do not, and will not, recognize any of this territory as part of Russia,” he said.
Putin’s move is a sign of weakness, Stoltenberg said, adding that the Russian leader has “utterly failed” in his strategic objectives.
He also said that Russia faces “severe consequences” if it uses nuclear arms in Ukraine, and reaffirmed NATO’s “unwavering support” for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
He said Ukraine has the right to retake Ukrainian territory, and NATO allies support Ukraine’s right to choose its own path.
If Russia were to win in Ukraine, he said it would be catastrophic for the country and dangerous for NATO.
But he remained noncommittal on Ukrainian membership in NATO, which President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine will immediately seek on an expedited basis. Stoltenberg said it is a decision that requires a consensus of all 30 allies, and the focus should remain on helping Kyiv’s war effort.
Source: Radio Free Europe via Reuters, AFP and dpa
Chicago Bulls head coach Billy Donovan is optimistic Lonzo Ball’s latest knee surgery will address his ongoing discomfort but refused to put a timeframe on his return.
Bulls guard Ball on Wednesday underwent a second arthroscopic surgery on the knee which has seen him sidelined since January.
Ball revealed on Tuesday that he is still unable to run or jump due to the pain in his left knee.
Donovan said Ball’s operation “went well”, although he was cautious to commit to any timeline on a return to practice or playing.
“You always try to stay optimistic that this will get resolved and he’ll be fine,” he said.
“But until he gets back and gets into the situations that were causing him pain, to see how he responds in being back in those situations, we’ll find out more.
“I don’t know how long it will take before he can actually start the rehab process.”
Prior to Wednesday’s procedure, the Bulls had announced they would re-evaluate Ball’s status in four to six weeks, meaning he is unlikely to play in the NBA until November at the earliest, given he has not played since January 14.
“You’ve also got a player that’s been out for nine months,” Donovan said. “It’s not like in three weeks, the surgery is a success, you can just throw him back out there and play.
“We haven’t even gotten to the point if this all goes well with the rhythm, timing, the flow, catching up.
“He’s had no competitive play since [January]. So that’s a whole other scenario of when he could actually get back.”
The Bulls are due to open their NBA campaign against the Miami Heat on October 19.
Ball, who was taken with the second pick overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, moved to the Bulls from the New Orleans Pelicans in August last year, averaging 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists across 35 games in the 2021-22 season.
It would mean the Thunder will have dropped roughly $10million below the luxury tax threshold, and both teams will have 18 guaranteed contracts on their rosters, which need to be reduced to 15 by October 17.
ESPN Sources: The Oklahoma City Thunder are trading Derrick Favors, Ty Jerome, Moe Harkless, Theo Maledon and a 2025 second-round pick via Atlanta to the Houston Rockets for David Nwaba, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke and Marquese Chriss.
OKC only acquired Harkless and the 2025 draft pick in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks for Vit Krejci earlier this week, presumably with this deal in mind.
Of the players traded, only Maledon and Nwaba are under contract for the 2023-24 season, both with team options.
The Rockets get their pre-season under way on Sunday with a game against the San Antonio Spurs, while the Thunder face the Denver Nuggets on Monday.
WBC champion Tyson Fury believes fellow Brit Joe Joyce is “the second-best heavyweight in the world” and suggested the two could meet in the ring in the future.
Joyce’s stunning 11th-round knockout victory over Joseph Parker at the weekend led to talk of him fighting the likes of Fury and Anthony Joshua.
Parker had not been stopped in his 32 previous bouts, despite defeats to heavy-handed fighters such as Joshua and Dillian Whyte, and Joyce’s win certainly impressed Fury.
“I’ve had a lovely day of watching boxing and watching all the big fights and studying all the heavyweights,” Fury said in a video on Twitter.
“And I’ve got to say that big Joe Joyce is the second-best heavyweight in the world, behind myself.
“I’ve just looked at these prospects who are mandatory for the world title, Zhang [Zhilei] and [Filip] Hrgovic and everybody else. I’ve changed my mind and I think big Joe Joyce is number two heavyweight in the world.”
Fury initially claimed to be retired after stopping Whyte inside six rounds at Wembley in April, but has since been rumoured to be in talks to fight the likes of Dereck Chisora and Manuel Charr.
The undisputed fight with Oleksandr Usyk is on hold until 2023, with the IBF, WBA and WBO champion needing time to recover from injuries after beating Joshua in their rematch in Saudi Arabia.
Fury himself has been involved in a public spat with Joshua, but it appears any plans for those two to fight later in 2022 are over after Joshua failed to meet Fury’s deadline for signing the contracts.
And Fury has not ruled out facing Joyce in future, adding: “Who knows if he’s number one? One day we’ll have to find out who’s better out of me and him.
“But at the moment I’m ruling the roost because I’m world heavyweight champion and he’s not.”
India will stage a MotoGP race for the first time in 2023 as top-tier international motorsport returns to the Buddh International Circuit.
It was confirmed on Friday that the venue in Uttar Pradesh that staged three Formula One races from 2011 to 2013 would host the world’s fastest riders on two wheels at the Grand Prix of Bharat.
According to organisers, India is a country where there are over 200 million motorcycles on the roads, making it a prime location to stage world-class racing.
The race weekend is provisionally scheduled for September 22-24 2023.
Dorna, the commercial rights holder for MotoGP, said it was “very proud” to be taking the sport to India, describing the country as “a key market for the motorcycle industry” and “the pinnacle of the two-wheeled world” for motorsport.
Speaking to Stats Perform, Dorna chief sporting officer Carlos Ezpeleta described India as “one of our key targets that we have had for quite some time”.
He said the experience of other championships in India had been “quite challenging”, with F1 having notably pulled out after its brief dalliance with holding races in the country.
Ezpeleta added: “We’re now excited that this opportunity has come and it’s a huge market for the motorcycle industry, and also for MotoGP as a sport, as a property with a huge potential to grow the fan base of the sport over there, which is already strong.”
Although Formula One did not stay long, Ezpeleta sees MotoGP as having greater potential for sustained success.
He said: “I think that on the championship side, MotoGP is something which is probably a better fit for the Indian market, in terms of how the bigger part of the population can relate to itself and see the motorbike as something which is aspirational to them.”
Fernando Alonso will make a record 351st start when he competes in Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix – and his first Formula One boss believes there are many more to come.
Gian Carlo Minardi was managing director of the Minardi team when a young Alonso made his F1 debut in 2001, on the road to becoming a double world champion.
Those titles came in 2005 and 2006 at Renault, whom Alonso joined after only one year with Minardi, and he has missed only two seasons since, sitting out 2019 and 2020 when scratching an itch to compete in other motorsport events.
Minardi told Stats Perform he is confident the 41-year-old Alonso will remain a strong presence on the grid for years to come.
“I recently met him in Monza, and he was very excited,” Minardi said. “I would say he doesn’t look 41 from an athletic point of view, so I guess he is very fit and keen to prove who he is, and with his new contract he will beat other records not easily reachable for other drivers.”
Alonso can also beat the record of the most F1 races finished this weekend, another mark he shares with Raikkonen on 278.
Minardi recalled first getting to know Alonso in 1999, with F1 tests for the youngster soon following in Jerez, where his performance levels were “jaw-dropping”.
According to Minardi, Alonso had the ability to win “more than five world titles” and ranks as “one of the drivers who made the difference in the last two generations”.
Ahead of another move, as the drive with Aston Martin awaits, Minardi said: “Let’s hope that this change – because one of Fernando’s weaknesses is that he has always been unlucky when changing the team – is beneficial to him and Aston Martin can equip him with what Aston Martin had at their debut.
“Today, without a reason and despite their Mercedes engine, they struggle to get the results they did some years ago.
“So I wish him the best to watch him entertain us. That is what I told him… I still have fun watching you drive, so keep it up.”
British number one Cameron Norrie pulled out of the Korea Open less than an hour before his quarter-final against American Jenson Brooksby.
The ATP confirmed the second seed was unable to play because of illness.
Norrie, 27, said he was suffering from jet lag after beating Japan’s Kaichi Uchida 6-2 6-2 in the previous round.
Compatriot Liam Broady, 28, withdrew from the Tel Aviv Open before his quarter-final against second seed Croatian Marin Cilic.
Broady, the British number five, beat Dutch fifth seed Botic van de Zandschulpin three sets to reach the second ATP quarter-final of his career and first since 2017.
No reason has yet been given for his withdrawal.
Serbian top seed Novak Djokovic will play Canada’s Vasek Pospisil on Friday in the pick of the other quarter-finals.
Norrie’s ATP Finals hopes hit
Norrie has won two titles this year and reached the top 10 for the first time.
He is eighth in the world and chasing a place at the season-ending ATP finals in Turin in November.
Norrie had earmarked the Korea Open and Japan Open, which starts on 3 October, as an opportunity to pick up points in the Race to Turin rankings. Currently 11th, he needs to finish in the top eight to qualify.
He became the third seeded player to withdraw from the Korea Open after sixth seed Borna Coric dropped out on Monday and third seed Taylor Fritz withdrew on Thursday.
Top seed Casper Ruud, of Norway, is also out after losing 6-2 3-6 6-2 to Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Rafael Nadal will move above Ruud in the world rankings as a result of the defeat, with the US Open and French Open runner-up falling from second to third.
Nishioka will play United States’ Aleksander Kovacevic in the last four, while eighth seed Brooksby will play Canada’s Denis Shapovalov in the other semi-final.
Erik ten Hag will look to do something no Manchester United manager has since Alex Ferguson when he heads to Manchester City on Sunday for a derby he is hugely looking forward to.
Ten Hag has recovered from a rocky start at Old Trafford to lead United to four straight wins in the Premier League.
But in order to extend that run, he will have to end a miserable sequences of results for United managers in their first Manchester derbies.
United great Ferguson won his first such clash in March 1987, but each of his successors – David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick – have lost their league derby debuts.
Only Chelsea and Liverpool (both 18) have celebrated more Premier League wins against United than their nearest neighbours (17), who have come out on top in their past three meetings.
Yet Ten Hag is relishing the challenge, as he told reporters on Friday: “I played many derbies. I know what they are, what rivals are doing to each other.
“I know it’s the most important game here in the Manchester area for the fans. It excites me. I want to be involved in these games.
“It’s a good fight that gives so much energy. You do everything to win that game.”
City have won their past seven home league games, scoring at least three times in each of them, but Ten Hag is determined to focus on his own side’s merits.
“The approach is for us to look to ourselves,” he said.
“The approach at Man United is we want to win every game, and that message I’ve already told several times here. For Sunday, it’s nothing else.
“We have to perform our best; with our way of playing, our rules, our principles, we have to do our best.
“We have made a good game plan, then it’s about execution. We have to do it. We want to get the result, and we know if we want to get the result, we have to do it 100 per cent well.”
Similarly, Ten Hag was keen not to spend too much time worrying about Erling Haaland, the City sensation who has scored a hat-trick in each of his past two home league matches. No Premier League player has ever scored three home trebles in a row.
“We don’t play against Haaland; we play against Man City,” Ten Hag added. “They have a team of more than 11 players, but we have also.
“We are confident of our capabilities, and if we act as a team, in and out of possession, then we can beat our opponents. That is the belief we have to take with us when we start the game.”
Manchester City will be without John Stones for Sunday’s derby against Manchester United, Pep Guardiola has confirmed.
The centre-back was taken off during England’s 3-3 draw with Germany on Monday with a hamstring issue.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Guardiola said Stones will likely be out for up to two weeks, meaning he will miss the clash with United as well as potentially another three games.
“He will be back when he will be ready,” he said, later clarifying: “I think it will not be four, five, six weeks, it will be less. I don’t know when he will come back but I think maybe 10 days, two weeks.”
There was better news for another City defender though, with Aymeric Laporte back in training.
“Training really well,” his manager said. “Training alone because everyone was with national teams, but yesterday and today he feels good.”
City welcome an in-form United to the Etihad Stadium, with Erik ten Hag’s men winning their last four Premier League games, leading to the Dutchman securing September’s manager of the month award.
“I always expect the best,” Guardiola said. “They come with good results against tough sides, with Southampton it’s not easy but especially Liverpool and Arsenal at home, and yeah, good momentum for them.”
The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss also compared the Manchester derby to El Clasico and Der Klassiker, suggesting it has been easier to manage derbies in Germany and England since his time in LaLiga.
“In Spain, Barcelona and [Real] Madrid is more noisy the days before, more media, everything. The rest, in Germany, here, perfect. You can work, people expecting, enjoy to watch the derby, that’s all.
“It’s important, big rival in the city. We will try to figure out what we’re going to do and what we can do to beat them. No more than that.
“In these kind of games you don’t have to make extra emotion, everyone knows it. The stadium will be full… I’m looking forward to it.”
Nottinghamshire needed just over two hours to take the seven Durham wickets they needed to be confirmed as Division Two champions on the final day of the County Championship season at Trent Bridge.
England’s Stuart Broad, in his first appearance for his county since May, finished with 3-36, left-arm spinner Liam Patterson-White took 3-41 and South African seamer Dane Paterson 2-27.
Nottinghamshire had already won promotion after taking seven bonus points but they had wanted to end on a winning note – and gave spectators free admission to witness their triumph.
Resuming on 14-2 after Nottinghamshire had declared their second innings on 121-2, Durham suffered their first loss in the fourth over of the day when Broad angled one in to have Scott Borthwick leg before.
Skipper Steven Mullaney, one of four first-innings centurions, sprang a surprise when he did not enforce the follow-on after Durham were dismissed 455 behind on first innings, yet his decision seemed to be justified as a rested attack made life difficult for their opponents in conditions freshened up by overnight rain.
Patterson-White claimed the second scalp of the morning in his first over when Liam Trevaskis’s top-edged sweep looped gently to slip.
On-loan Warwickshire wicketkeeper Chris Benjamin took a positive approach, hitting five boundaries in his 33, but came a cropper when Broad returned for his second spell, edging to second slip.
Patterson-White bowled Ben Raine, Paterson had Matty Potts edging to second slip, where Matt Montgomery took his second catch of the innings before Patterson-White enjoyed the decisive moment as Jonathan Bushnell, sweeping off balance, was leg before.
How did Notts do it?
Notts began the season as title favourites not on the basis of their form the last time the Championship was played in two divisions, pre-Covid, in 2019, when they were relegated without a win, but on their performance in 2021, when they were in contention for the title right up to the last round.
They felt slightly miffed that this year’s divisions were configured on the basis of what happened three years ago, but the ECB quite reasonably felt they had to maintain the integrity of their competition.
In any event, they have clearly justified their short odds, winning more matches and more bonus points than any of their rivals.
The only defeats suffered were against Glamorgan in their first home match in April, and at Worcester last week, a shock that left them with something to do in this fixture.
Stand-out performer with the bat has been Haseeb Hameed, who has bounced back from the low point of a chastening Ashes winter to enjoy his most productive season, amassing 1,235 runs at 58.80, including four hundreds and seven other fifties.
Ben Duckett also topped 1,000 runs in the Championship, while skipper Mullaney missed that mark by seven runs, but had his best campaign with the bat since 2016.
Among the bowlers, Luke Fletcher was unable to scale the heights of 2021, when he chalked up 67 first-class wickets, but Paterson improved in his debut-season haul of 51 wickets by adding a further 56. Patterson-White, the 23-year-old who has been tipped for a big future in the game, confirmed the promise of his first two seasons by finishing on 41 wickets as the most successful spinner in the division.
Nottinghamshire skipper Steven Mullaney:
“I’m relieved, emotional and very proud. After the adversity we went through in not winning a red ball game for almost three years and then the disappointment of starting this year in Division Two after finishing third in last year’s format, it feels all worthwhile.
“The way we’ve gone about it this year, we’ve had probably only four or five bad sessions, which cost us two games against Glamorgan, and again at Worcester last week. But, apart from that, we’ve been there or thereabouts. That’s not saying that we’ll win every game.
“It’s just the intensity that we bring and the right attitude. Even when we’ve not won, if you ask any fan or member who comes to watch, they’d be proud of the Nottinghamshire team again.
“It epitomises the club that, when Stuart Broad has got some time off, and had booked some time away with his fiancee, who is heavily pregnant, he wanted to play in this game. It wasn’t a question of asking him – he texted me and said he wanted to play. Obviously we are very thankful to him for that.”
Durham interim head coach Neil Killeen:
“Congratulations to Nottinghamshire on winning the Second Division title. They are certainly the best team we’ve come across this year. They’ve handsomely beaten us twice and deserve to be in Division One.
“We came here in a good vein of form and a good mindset. In the last four weeks we played well against Derby and had two good wins against Sussex and Leicestershire, but we’re very disappointed with our performance.
“It has been a disappointing season. There is a lot of work to be done in the off season, and people need to have a look at what is going to improve them.
“We’ve had a lot of players absent, with injuries and international call-ups. That hits you hard, but we have to be strong enough to accommodate that.”
Jurgen Kloppwould pick “exceptional” Trent Alexander-Arnold in any team after the full-back was overlooked by England manager Gareth Southgate.
The Liverpool defender, 23, did not figure against Italy and was dropped from the squad thatdrew with Germany.
Reds boss Klopp says there is “space for improvement” in Alexander-Arnold’s defensive game, but his offensive ability is “so extreme”.
“I’d decide obviously differently, but I’m not in charge,” said Klopp.
“My point of view, it’s an easy pick. Whichever team I would coach in the moment, I would sign him because he is exceptional.”
Southgate has said he feels Alexander-Arnold’s “all-round game” is behind that of right-back rival Kieran Trippier.
Alexander-Arnold, who missed last year’s European Championship through injury, has made just one international appearance this year.
He has been a key player for a Liverpool side that has won the Premier League and Champions League in recent years, but he has struggled to transfer that form to international football and has won just 17 caps since his 2018 debut.
“You really want to open this box?” said Klopp.
“We are fine here because it’s completely different because I see him differently. It’s obvious.
“There are stories out there all the time that talk about him and say he’s not a good defender, but that’s not true.
“He is a good defender. He doesn’t always defend good, that is true as well, but that is what we’re working on – he is a young player, he is 23.
“There is space for improvement, definitely, but we only discuss it on the level we discuss it because his offensive impact is so extreme for us. It could be for each team in the world.”
‘Alexander-Arnold was not in party mood on return’
Southgate prefers to start with Chelsea’s Reece James, who can also play as part of a back three, with Trippier as back-up, making Alexander-Arnold’s chances of being in England’s World Cup squad increasingly slim.
But Klopp believes Alexander-Arnold could still find a way to prosper in the current squad, and has no concerns about his player’s response to his latest England setback.
He added: “Trent came back and was not in a party mood, but he just accepts the decision of the manager as well because he understands football pretty well.
“He is an extremely smart boy and in football you cannot offer more than you can offer.
“For me he is a world-class player, and not playing for your country is difficult, but it is only because there are other world-class players as well.
“England is obviously blessed with a lot of really talented players in a similar position and it’s difficult to line them all up together.
“In this case, it could work. Reece James can play in a three in the back, and that would be interesting to see how they could interchange positions.”
Leclerc and Verstappen had delayed starts to the session as their teams made changes to their cars.
Ferrari were changing parts and managed to get Leclerc out for the final half of the session, but it meant he could do only two runs and no race-simulation laps.
Red Bull – at the centre of a controversy over allegations they breached Formula 1’s budget cap last year – have not provided an explanation as to the delays in Verstappen’s session.
Not only did he not get out until about half an hour in, but he then did only one flying lap before spending another long period in the pits, emerging only for two more relevant laps.
Hamilton was quickest in the morning session from just ahead of Verstappen but appeared to struggle to put a representative lap together on the fastest ‘soft’ tyres in the second session.
Behind Ocon and Bottas, Alpine’s Fernando Alonso, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll completed the top 10.
Alex Albon, returning to F1 after missing the Italian Grand Prix because of a medical emergency, completed the session which he had said would be the biggest test of his fitness.
Chelsea head coach Graham Potter is raring to go against Crystal Palace, having had to endure an unusually long wait for his first Premier League game in charge.
Potter is set for a domestic debut on the bench after succeeding Thomas Tuchel, with clashes against Fulham and Liverpool prior to the international break postponed.
That has given the former Brighton and Hove Albion boss, appointed on September 8, a 23-day wait for his first domestic engagement, and Potter says his team are “itching to play” at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
“We used a bit of time to get to know people, but at the same time we’re itching to play,” Potter said at Friday’s press conference. “We couldn’t control anything in terms of how things have panned out, we’ve had to make the most of it.
“I’m sure it will be a nice one. It’s a proper football stadium. The boys are ready and waiting to play.
“You’ve got to start somewhere and there are a lot of games to come. The group are looking forward to playing.”
Potter oversaw Chelsea’s 1-1 with Salzburg in the Champions League, but the death of Queen Elizabeth II meant domestic duties were put on hold.
The Blues boss gave an insight into how he will approach squad management at Stamford Bridge, promising opportunities for young players if they prove their worth – particularly in the frantic run-up to the World Cup.
“All young players have to hope they get an opportunity. They put themselves in there in training and games. If the quality is there, age is no barrier,” Potter said.
“We’ve got six weeks and 13 matches, using the players the right way and winning matches in the toughest league in the world. That’s the challenge in the short term.”
A slow start to the season has seen Chelsea fall adrift of the early pacesetters in the Premier League, already sitting eight points behind leaders Arsenal, albeit with a game in hand.
Potter is clear there is plenty of work to do but is only focusing on the short term as he looks to get Chelsea back in the hunt.
“The first thing to say is change is good, bad and challenging, it’s how you deal with it and work for it,” he said. “It’s well documented what has happened. It’s part of life sometimes.
“It’s a bit more than a short-term challenge. The resources, or history, doesn’t guarantee you anything in this league. It’s about getting everything lined up and everyone working together and the strategy clear.”
As for whether a top-four finish is vital for Chelsea, Potter preferred to leave that for nearer the end of the campaign.
“Vital sounds a bit life-or-death and a bit dramatic,” he said. “I only focus on the next game or next session.”
It’s not just the US that has been thrown into disarray by Hurricane Ian.
Last night, Cubans took to the streets to bang pots and protest across several neighbourhoods in the capital Havana as the country entered its third day of blackouts following the seismic storm.
The massive storm caused Cuba’s grid to collapse earlier this week, knocking out power to the entire island of 11 million people, flattening homes and obliterating fields.
For some Cubans – already reeling from shortages of food, fuel and medicine – the prolonged blackout was the last straw.
Jorge Luis Cruz, of Havana’s El Cerro neighborhood, stood in his doorway on Thursday evening banging a metal pot and shouting in anger.
Dozens of others on side streets around his home could be heard banging pots from terraces and rooftops in the dark. “This isn’t working, enough of this,” Cruz told Reuters. “All my food is rotten. Why? Because we don’t have electricity.”
Cruz said his family did not want him to take to the street out of fear he would be hauled off to jail. “Let them take me,” he said.
Hurricane Ian is projected to reach the coast of South Carolina later on Friday, move over the east of the state and then travel up to North Carolina.
According to the National Hurricane Center’s latest advisory, Ian is currently about 105 miles southeast of Charleston, the largest city in South Carolina with some 800,000 people.
Ian’s maximum sustained winds have remained around 85 mph (140kmph) and NHC forecasts say winds of tropical storm intensity are ongoing across much of the coast of the Carolinas.
Life-threatening storm surge and hurricane conditions are expected in the region by afternoon.
Ian is however expected to rapidly weaken after it makes landfall, become a so-called extratropical low – a cyclone with a low pressure centre – by the time it moves over North Carolina and dissipate by Saturday night.
Ian was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall in Florida on Wednesday and Thursday.
But as it moved into the Atlantic Ocean it regained its hurricane strength and is now heading for South Carolina and Georgia.
South Carolina braces for life-threatening storm surges
As Hurricane Ian heads towards the coast of South Carolina, meterorologists are warning of life-threatening storm surges and winds of 140km per hour (87mph).
Tens of thousands of residents have moved away from low-lying land.
In Florida, the focus has now turned to a massive search and rescue operation after Ian caused widespread damage across the state on Wednesday and Thursday.
Nearly two million still without power in Florida
Just under two million homes and businesses in Florida are still without power after the state was battered by Hurricane Ian.
That’s down from more than 3.3 million power customers who have been affected by the storm since it hit Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday.
Emergency workers have been trying to reach stranded Florida residents as Ian heads on towards North and South Carolina, leaving behind deadly floodwaters, downed power lines and widespread damage.
Duke Energy Corp said it was readying crews to respond to potential power outages across the Carolinas, according to Reuters.
More than 100 international non-governmental organisation (NGOs) have already signed a petition organised by the Egyptian Human Rights Coalition, which consists of 12 groups.
“We emphasise that effective climate action is not possible without open civic space,” a petition launched by the coalition says. “As host of COP27, Egypt risks compromising the success of the summit if it does not urgently address ongoing arbitrary restrictions on civil society.
“Moreover, we stress the importance of the right to freedom of expression and independent reporting to foster efforts to address the climate crisis.”
In a joint statement in July, three dozen groups expressed concern that Egypt would largely maintain its prohibition on protests during the conference aimed at slowing climate change.
Under Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sissi, there has been a widespread crackdown on dissent. Rights groups estimate the country has had as many as 60,000 political prisoners, many detained without trial.
They say that activists are routinely intimidated and that new laws make it practically impossible for many civil society groups to function.
“You will have activists from everywhere in the world coming to COP, but Egyptian activists are either blocked from going or they’re in jail,” a leading human rights campaigner in Cairo told the BBC, asking not to be named for fear of reprisal.
“Basically, nobody is safe in Egypt,” the campaigner said.
The Egyptian authorities says they hope to use their presidency of COP27 to urge the international community to act on pledges of support for developing countries to cope with the devastating impacts of climate change.
“They are the most deserving of our support,” Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told the UN General Assembly this month.
After a tumultuous decade since the 2011 uprising that overthrew then-President Hosni Mubarak, the country is also looking to boost its standing on the world stage.
‘PR tool’
However, critics, such as the Egyptian human rights campaigner, say the government sees the event as a way of “whitewashing its reputation”.
A few hundred less high-profile prisoners have been released in recent months since Mr Sisi unveiled a new pardon committee, in a move that many link to Egypt’s hosting of COP.
Amnesty’s new report focused on how Egyptian authorities have used a National Human Rights strategy launched a year ago “as a PR tool to deflect attention from its real human rights record”.
Meanwhile, HRW researched instances of repression against environmental groups.
Following interviews with academics, scientists and activists, it said that government restrictions amounted to human rights violations and left in doubt Egypt’s ability to meet basic climate commitments.
A spokesperson for the Egyptian foreign ministry dismissed the report as “deplorable and counterproductive” saying it contained “inaccuracies”, and questioned the use of unnamed sources.
Sameh Shoukry, who will act as president of COP, has said that space will be set aside in Sharm el-Sheikh for protests to take place.
This week, Ambassador Wael Abul-Magd, assisting him, told journalists that civil society environmental groups would be represented at the talks.
“We don’t believe in tokenism,” he said in a virtual briefing. “We are involving these stakeholders across the board in every step of the way.”
However, Egyptian activists told the BBC that many local groups had been unable to register for the conference.
They questioned the independence of those who had been given access in a special process overseen by the government and facilitated by the UN. One called the lack of transparency “a scandal”.
Harry Maguire will not play for Manchester United against Manchester City due to injury, but Erik ten Hag is confident he can rediscover his best form when he returns.
The United captain has endured a torrid season, losing his place at club level and then performing poorly for England despite Gareth Southgate’s backing, with individual errors contributing to Germany’s 2-0 lead in Monday’s 3-3 Nations League draw.
There have been calls for Maguire to be dropped by Southgate, too, but he first faces a tough task to get past Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez back into Ten Hag’s winning United side.
That will not happen in Sunday’s derby, as Ten Hag revealed the centre-back was the only fresh injury concern, set to miss the game while Anthony Martial and Premier League Player of the Month Marcus Rashford return.
However, the United manager was quizzed on what he can do to help Maguire get back to his best.
“First of all, I have to coach him,” Ten Hag said. “I have to back him, but I back him because I believe in him. In the period I was working with him in pre-season, he was good, I would say really good, training and games.
“But then it’s also to do with the good performances of the centre-backs who are playing now.
“I can see qualities. Even after he was not in the team, he trained really well. More importantly, the quality was really there.
“You see his career: he has almost 50 caps for England, already with Leicester and Man United he’s performed really well. What you see is high potential.
“Then it’s about him. The players in the dressing room, the coaches, the manager, we all believe in him. Now it’s about him. That’s what I told him. I am sure he can do it, and he will turn around this. I am really convinced of that.”
Maguire has been the subject of abuse due to his performances, and while Ten Hag suggested criticism was part of the sport, he recognised a lack of belief was the defender’s biggest problem.
“It’s an aspect of football. It’s an aspect of our work,” he said. “We set conditions for that, as a manager, and we also have experts around to help, to coach the players and the team in the right direction.
“I think he is doing quite well, but for every player there is room for improvement. If he believes in his skills, he will be quickly back on the level even more than he did.
“Once again, I’m convinced of that, because I see his capabilities are really high.”
Fit-again captain Temba Bavuma is not interested in “sideshows” as he prepares to lead South Africa in a three-match Twenty20 International series against India.
Bavuma has not played for his country since suffering an elbow injury during a T20I series in India three months ago which ended 2-2.
The batter has since spoken of feeling “let down” after he was not selected for the inaugural SA20 auction this month.
Questions have been asked over Bavuma’s credentials in the shortest format less than a month before the T20 World Cup in Australia begins.
The Proteas skipper is ignoring such “distractions” ahead of the opening T20I against the top-ranked side in the world at Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
He said: “I’ve tried to put all those things behind me. My biggest focus is on the role that I have, which is to lead and serve the team as best as I can, make sure that the guys are in the best place possible going into that big World Cup tournament.
“All other distractions, all other sideshows, that’s stuff that I’ll deal with on a personal level, but now, here, being within the team, as long as I’m still wearing that shirt, it will be to lead and serve the team as best as I can.”
Bavuma added: “This is our last series before the World Cup. Obviously we will be looking for this series to fill whatever gaps we feel there are in the team. We have guys who have been playing a lot of cricket and I guess we will be managing their intensity.
“We also have guys who need some cricket under their belts. It will be to give those guys some game time because this is our last preparation in different conditions compared to Australia but still match time nevertheless.
“The last time we were here, we were tested in all departments of our game and I think we answered well.”
South Africa have beaten England and Ireland since drawing with India, who come into this series on the back of a 2-1 triumph over Australia.
The two sides will also meet in Group 2 at the World Cup in Perth on October 30.
Kohli to reach another landmark
Virat Kohli finally ended his long wait for an international hundred against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup this month.
The former skipper is set to bring up another century, as his next T20I innings will be his 100th. Kohli will be only the 10th player to be at the crease 100 times in the shortest format on the international stage.
Kohli has scored 3,660 runs from 99 innings, 684 more than the next best aggregate for any batter in their first 100 innings in men’s T20Is (Martin Guptill – 2,976 runs).
Proteas enjoying life on the road
South Africa have won each of their past four completed T20I games away from home.
The Proteas have been victorious six times on tour in 2022. Only in 2021, when they won 14 times away from home, have they bettered that tally in a calendar year.
