Archive August 29, 2025

The week Scottish football had its heart broken four times over

By in News, Sports News
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Herrall, Jack
BBC Sport Scotland

This week, Scottish football’s heart was broken four times, each more cruel and unusual than the previous.

Just a few weeks prior, the nation was awarded the accolades Scott McTominay and Caroline Weir received as recipients of the Ballon d’Or nominations for impressive away victories on the continent thanks to Dundee United and Hibernian.

The events of this week are far beyond that. Scottish teams lost 12-3 overall in Europe in three heartbreaking days as neither Celtic, Rangers, Aberdeen, or Hibs were able to claim victory in the highest-available European competition.

four different ways to lose a football game

The week started out enthusiastic and eager.

Rangers were down but determined not to be out, Celtic were facing a decidedly inferior team, and Hibs was on the verge of making history.

Best-laid plans and everything …

Kazakh side Kairat Almaty had Celtic huffed and puffed, but Celtic couldn’t even close the end of the net in a brutal display.

The penalties were remarkably unremarkable, extra-time was turgid, and regulation time was crammed.

One of their worst defeats in history saw the inclusion of Adam Idah, Luke McCowan, and Daizen Maeda all miss out on the spot.

Russell Martin’s Rangers are next.

After a devastating slog from the first game at Ibrox, they were outsiders but still had a chance to win if they could find their footing. They were 3-1 winners to Club Brugge.

Instead, Brugge repeatedly hit the back of the net without a response as many traveling punters decided it was time for the head coach to step down.

Fans criticized Martin as a “coward” with some hastily crafted banners, and the scoreline for the tie was 9-1 overall.

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Dons dejected as Hibs maneuvers through the process.

Right Aberdeen and Hibs, hello.

The former, who lost to Romanian champions FCSB last week after going 2-0 up in the first leg, rallied to win the second leg with the aggregate score tied at 2-2.

They were prepared to reorganize ahead of a significant second half as they approached the Arena Nationala level.

The ref was then given a pitch-side jog by VAR.

In the end, he gave FCSB a penalty and handed Alexander Jensen a second yellow card for handball.

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So far, there have been three boxes in the box: controversy over refereeing, and humbling.

However, the wildest game was ultimately saved.

After their qualifying campaign, Hibs do not deserve to play in Europe for the remainder of the season.

Midtjylland, Partizan Belgrade, and Legia Warsaw did not disappoint. The big boys were well and truly integrated by David Gray’s side.

They were agonisingly close to becoming the first Hibs side to reach the semi-finals of a European competition after 120 breathless Warsaw minutes of trailing 1-0, 3-1 overall.

A diving volley from all 40 yards by Martin Boyle would have lifted Leith’s spirits, never mind the spirit of a footballing nation. In the other end, it might have raised the roof.

It was all they could muster to scrape, claw, and dig in with all their might, but ultimately, this season’s domestic duties came to an end.

Is there any hope for the tunnel’s final destination?

Competitively, yes.

Celtic may need to adjust this perspective before they can start playing in the Europa League.

However, the Champions League’s financial gap is undoubtedly going to be painful.

Rangers fans would go as far as to claim that the team could have received a number of humble tasks.

They’ve managed to get some impressive results on their Europa League Thursdays in the past, and they’ve also had fair enjoyment of them.

What does this now mean?

BBC Sport Scotland Clive Lindsay

Scotland’s co-efficient has dropped so much that it begins the new campaign in 17th place after placing ninth in Europe in 2022-23 for a second successive year, which is the nation’s best since 1988.

Scottish clubs would enter subsequent campaigns in their worst position since 2012 unless that can be raised to 14th, which seems highly unlikely.

In two years, representation would drop from five to four clubs.

Future champions would receive three Champions League qualifiers instead of just one, runners-up would receive three Conference League qualifiers, and third-place finishers would receive three, as well as Scottish Cup winners would receive four Europa League qualifiers instead of just one.

The elimination of the top 12 already leaves the Scottish Cup winners with the chance to enter the third qualifying round of the Europa League rather than the play-offs and not be guaranteed group stage football.

related subjects

  • Aberdeen
  • Celtic
  • Rangers
  • Dundee United
  • Scottish Football
  • Football
  • Hibernian

Travis Scott music video filming halted after man ‘threatened to stab’ staff

By in Entertainment News, News

When production of a music video in London came to a standstill after a man allegedly “threatening to stab” a member of the crew, Travis Scott and Tyla were filming it.

Assistant Celebrity and Entertainment Editor, Daniel Bird

A Travis Scott music video was reportedly brought to a halt (Image: Getty Images)

After allegedly making threats to stab a staff member, Travis Scott’s most recent music video production came to an end. When things were halted for safety reasons on Wednesday, the American musician and Tyla were filming in Tottenham, north London.

In recent days, the 34-year-old has been in the UK, having performed headline sets at Reading and Leeds Festivals over the weekend. But just days after his performance, Travis, who shares two children with American billionaire Kylie Jenner, headed to the notorious Broadwater Farm Estate, famous for the 1985 riot, which saw the death of PC Keith Blakelock.

The presence of the two famous musicians immediately attracted the attention of onlookers, but security personnel had to work very closely to secure the location where the filming took place.

A man is said to have walked onto the set while Tyla, 23, was filming a scene for their upcoming video, causing a disturbance. The person is alleged to have been asked to leave before removing a bladed object, which raises questions in the production industry.

Tyla was reportedly filming scenes when a man allegedly kept walking onto the set
Tyla was reportedly filming scenes when a man allegedly kept walking onto the set(Image: Getty Images)

When this man kept walking onto the set, Tyla claimed, “She was filming some scenes about 40 yards away.” They continued to say to The Sun that “a member of the crew approached him and asked him to leave, and that was when he began to be threatening and pulled what appeared to be a knife.”

Everyone found it terrifying. Tyla was taken off set before Travis could be shut away. The police were called after the situation turned into lockdown. The Metropolitan Police’s spokesperson has since confirmed that an investigation is being conducted.

On Wednesday, August 27, they reported a man toll-indicted by a man who had threatened to stab him in Willan Road, N17. A 29-year-old man who matched the description of the suspect was stopped by police in the area.

The man was placed in handcuffs because he opposed the search. Class B drugs and cash were recovered by the officers. There was no knife discovered. He was detained on suspicion of breaking the Public Order Act’s section 4A and a class B drug. He is still being detained at a north London police station, where he was taken.

The duo had been filming at the Broadwater Farm estate in Tottenham, north London
The duo had been filming at the Broadwater Farm estate in Tottenham, north London(Image: Getty Images)

“The inquiries continue. Travis and Tyla have since been shaken, according to a source, but the pair eventually continued to film the music video after the suspect had been detained. Fans in the audience were perplexed when Travis left the Leeds Festival stage just a few days later.

The musician used pyrotechnics throughout his set at Bramham Park, but he told the audience, “I love you so much, I love you.” Bye . The “crowd was left speechless, and many left taking to social media to express their confusion.”

A number of videos of the incident were shared online. On TikTok, fan said: “Travis Scott cuts his Leeds Fest set short by 35 minutes.” In the clip, people can be heard booing as a sign on the big screen read: “Respect our neighbours and leave quietly.”

What! they added: “What! insane . What a terrible failure for less than an hour he was on. Oh my god, all that production and fireworks just didn’t go off until the time was right. I’m shocked by that, he continued.

The fan added that “the crowd was a little dead.” He advised people who were attending the Reading Festival to “prepare themselves” for Travis Scott’s performance. In the comments, a number of people shared their theories about the quick exit. Someone made the claim that “people were getting hurt in the crowd due to both technical issues and people.”

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Another joker said, “It’s because the crowd was dead.” There is no way for people to believe that leaving simply because of a bad crowd is acceptable. Rappers must stop being booked at festivals. It’s unfortunate that Leeds Fest and Reading don’t care as much because they aren’t televised, so it’s a shame.

A festival-goer explained in another video what they thought happened, “Texas Scott left early because he wasn’t happy with the tech crew because they didn’t fix the rising platform, so he stormed off and left.” There were many people getting hurt and being “shared another” among the barriers, which apparently wasn’t just technical issues.

Corrie’s Jennie McAlpine’s restaurant hit with staggering debts amid closure

By in Entertainment News, News

Jennie McAlpine, best known for playing Fiz Brown on Coronation Street, and her husband Chris Farr made the announcement that Annies in Manchester would be shut down last month.

Jennie McAlpine had announced the closure of her restaurant Annies in Manchester last month(Image: MEN MEDIA)

A restaurant owned by Coronation Street star Jennie McAlpine and her husband Chris Farr is said to have closed with debts of almost £500,000. The couple had announced the closure of Annies in Manchester earlier this year.

Jennie, 41, who is best known for playing Fiz Brown on the ITV show, explained that the business, which opened in 2012, had closed last month. The actor had thanked both staff and customers, whom she described as “wonderful,” in a message issued by herself and her husband at the time.

Customers were said to have been devastated. Annies had been well-known since opening more than ten years ago, including being named one of Tripadvisor’s Best of the Best restaurants in the UK last year as part of the annual Travellers’ Choice Awards.

Jennie McAlpine and her husband Chris Farr stood in their restaurant Annies in Manchester.
Jennie McAlpine (left) and her husband Chris Farr (right) had announced the closure of their restaurant Annies in Manchester last month(Image: MEN MEDIA)

Now it appears that Annies has closed with debts. In documents obtained by the Mirror, a list of creditors reveals debts of £498,764, including £28,000 to staff in holiday and redundancy pay. It also appears that Jennie and Chris are set to lose £411,941 that they put into it through director’s loans.

The couple were Fifth Floor Limited T/A Annies directors, the couple claimed to Companies House. According to a statement of affairs for the business, the company’s estimated total assets, which included £8, 722.49, were available for preferential creditors at the time of liquidation.

According to the document, those assets could be used to pay off employees’ £8,000 in arrears and vacation funds. The $ 6, 911.83 in debts owed to HMRC for PAYE/NIC could be used to pay the remaining $ 722.49 in assets.

The company appears to have a debt of £498, 764.51, based on the estimated total deficiency/surplus for members. The document includes unsecured non-preferential claims totaling £20,000 in employee claims involving redundancy and a PILON, £11, 125.32 to the landlord, and £411, 941.34 in directors’ loan accounts (aside from any shortfall to floating charge holders).

The inside of Jennie McAlpine and her husband Chris Farr's restaurant Annies in Manchester.
The acclaimed business closed with debts(Image: MEN MEDIA)

Annie’s closure was made public last month by Jennie and Chris on social media. They stated in a statement to customers that they were “sharing the news with a heavy heart” and thanked the community for its support over the years.

We’ve had to close the doors to Annies this week, according to the statement in July. We want to thank all the wonderful individuals, businesses, and clients who have helped us along the way. We will miss all of our wonderful customers, who we have since called friends, from our entire team.

Thank you for your ongoing assistance to us throughout these years, it continued. The couple ended the conversation by closing the restaurant by saying, “With love and thanks, Chris and Jennie,” in a letter to customers.

Continue reading the article.

Fans took to the comments section at the time to express their disappointment. One wrote on Instagram following the news last month: “So sorry to hear about this! Me and my family loved our time when we went here.”

Another person remarked, “I am absolutely devastated because this was my favorite place to have afternoon tea.” While another user wrote, “So gutted. We visit Annies every time we travel to Manchester. There isn’t another place like it.

Cowboys trade Parsons to Packers in $188m deal

By in News, Sports News
Images courtesy of Getty

One week before the start of a new NFL season, Micah Parsons was traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers in a major deal.

According to NFL Network, the defensive end will agree to a four-year, $ 138 million (£139 million) contract with the Packers, making him the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback with $47 million (£35 million) per year.

The agreement also includes the Cowboys’ two first-round draft picks and three-time Pro Bowlers’ Choices.

The move brings an end to a tense contract dispute between Parsons and Dallas that started over the summer.

Parsons stated in a statement on X that he never wanted this chapter to end, confirming his decision to the Packers.

“My heart has always been here,” he continues. I never made any demands despite everything. I’ve never been more than satisfied with fairness. I only requested that the party I trust to negotiate my contract be involved in the negotiation process.

“This is not a bitter day, but one that is sad.” I’ll never forget the excitement of watching a draft night, the adrenaline of leaving the tunnel, or the brotherhood I experienced with my team-mates, coaches, and other players who had prepared me for each and every game. I will always have those memories.

Parsons, 26, has played for the Cowboys for five years and two All-Pro titles since signing with them in 2021. He was also in his fifth and final year of his rookie contract this year.

He removed all references to the Dallas Cowboys from his social media accounts and said in a statement earlier this month that he no longer wanted to play for the team.

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  • American Football

Israel’s Smotrich calls for phased Gaza annexation if Hamas does not disarm

By in News, World News
In response to an Israeli official’s latest push to forcibly flee Palestinians and regain complete control of the coastal enclave, far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has demanded that Israel annex the Gaza Strip if Hamas refuses to disarm.

Israel should annex a section of Gaza every week for four weeks, according to Smotrich during a press conference on Thursday.

He claimed that Israel would first place a siege on Gaza’s north and center regions before annexing the area and then instructing Palestinians to move south in the area.

Smotrich praised the measures as part of a “win in Gaza by the end of the year” and said that “these can be achieved in three to four months.”

The far-right minister’s call to annex Gaza City comes as the Israeli army enlists even more to seize the city and forcefully reinstall its residents, according to the far-right minister.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last week that the campaign would result in “massive death and destruction” for Israel’s continued attacks on Gaza City.

Gaza City and the surrounding areas are still suffering from famine as a result of Israel’s continued blockade of humanitarian aid.

According to Guterres, “famine is no longer a looming possibility; it is a present-day catastrophe.”

“Famine is killing people,” says the statement. Displacement and despair are tearing apart families. The systems that sustain life, such as food, water, and healthcare, have been systematically destroyed, and pregnant women are exposed to unimaginable risks.

Israel and its Western allies have long urged Hamas to stop using its weapons, saying that any future Gaza-governance will be decided by the Palestinian group.

Smotrich’s comments on Thursday were disregarded by Hamas, saying they were “an official call to exterminate our people” and “an official acknowledgement of the use of starvation and siege against innocent civilians as a weapon.”

Hamas claimed in a statement that “Smotrich’s statement is not an isolated extremist opinion, but rather a declared government policy that has been in effect since the enclave’s war against Palestinians.”

The group further urged the international community to hold Israeli leaders accountable and stated that these statements confirm the reality of the occupation and that what is happening in Gaza is not a “military battle” but a “project of genocide and mass displacement.

Smotrich demanded that Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, “adopt his annexation plan in full immediately” during his press conference.

Netanyahu did not directly address Smotrich’s remarks. However, the Israeli leader has made reference to a strategy by which Israel would “take control of all Gaza” and dispatch troops to retake control of the region.

For weeks, Israel’s military has been issuing forcible evacuation orders to Palestinians who are residing in so-called “combat zones” to relocate to southern Gaza.

Smotrich, a major supporter of Israel’s settler movement and resident of an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank, has backed re-establishing illegal settlements in the Gaza Strip, which were shut down in 2005.

Hunter Bell, Asher-Smith & Burgin impress in Zurich

By in News, Sports News

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Poole, Harry
journalist for BBC Sport

Georgia Hunter Bell, Dina Asher-Smith, and Max Burgin, all of whom finished their preparations for the World Championships in March, put together impressive performances in the Diamond League Final.

With only 16 days until the action in Tokyo on September 13th, the trio, who were all named in the British squad for Tokyo earlier this week, finished in second place in Zurich.

Olympic 1500m bronze medalist Hunter Bell finished runner-up in a thrilling finish against Switzerland’s Audrey Werro (1: 55.91), having last week chosen to target the 800m in search of another global podium.

Hunter Bell placed third on the British record for all time, ahead of Dame Kelly Holmes, whose switch to 800m might see her compete alongside Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson in the world championship.

Hunter Bell told BBC World Service Sport, “It would be amazing to be on the podium.”

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Asher-Smith placed third in the 100-meter race and placed second in the 200-meter race as she continued to build momentum before Tokyo.

The 29-year-old made the decision to alter her training regimen mid-season after spending some time in the United States.

Julien Alfred, St Lucia’s Olympic champion, won the 100-meter race in 10.76 seconds, while Asher-Smith ran 10.94.

The Briton ran out of breath in the 200-meter race less than 90 minutes later, clocking 22.18 and finishing in second place behind American Brittany Brown (22.13), while fellow Briton Amy Hunt finished fifth in 22.61.

“I’m really proud of myself,” I said. It’s a testament to the amazing people I’ve got around me and my own resilience, Asher-Smith said, with a significant coaching change and continent shifts halfway through the season.

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In the night’s final competition of the night, American Noah Lyles overcame Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo to win the men’s 200-meter race.

Lyles, the 100-meter Olympic champion, made it through the first week of this year’s season without an injury, but he showed that he is peaking at the right moment by winning in 19.74, ahead of Tebogo, Botswana’s top finisher, in 19.76.

World indoor 60-meter champion Christian Coleman (10.03), who was previously the country’s champion, won the men’s 100-meter final in 9.97 against Germany.

By pushing Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi to the line in the men’s 800-meter final, Burgin showed his readiness to compete for a global medal.

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Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser won the women’s 400-meter race in 48.70 seconds, beating world indoor champion Amber Anning, 24, who finished in fifth place overall.

George Mills resumed action after suffering a wrist fracture in a fall at the London Diamond League in July. He dominated the men’s 3, 000m race but sputtered in the home straight.

Mills broke Mo Farah’s British record in that event in June, allowing him to concentrate on the 5, 000m in Tokyo.

Femke Bol and Karsten Warholm, both reigning world champions, set new records in the 400-meter hurdles finals.

For the fifth consecutive year in a row, Bol won the Diamond League Final while Warholm won his third title with a 46.70 run.

Alastair Chalmers of Great Britain won the men’s final in 48.88.

Before the Letzigrund Stadium’s final 26 trophies were decided, six field competitions took place on Wednesday in a temporary arena in the city center.

The athletes who had the most points in each of the 14 regular series meetings this year competed in the two-day winner-takes all Diamond League Final.

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  • Athletics