Category Sports News

A moment of madness has cost Liverpool’s other top-notch forward a fortune on a night when they celebrated the record signing Alexander Isak’s arrival.

In the Carabao Cup’s fourth round, Hugo Ekitike scored the winner in Tuesday’s 2-1 victory over Southampton.

However, Ekitike removed his shirt and held it up in celebration as he was caught up in the 85th-minute goal.

He had probably known that he would be booked for that, and he was glad to pay the price, but it appeared as though he had forgotten that he had already received a yellow card.

He will be suspended for Saturday’s Premier League game at Crystal Palace, which is unacceptable when the player he is potentially competing with is back to full fitness.

Ekitike apologized on social media on Tuesday night, saying: “I was so happy to help the team win another victory here in our home for my first Carabao Cup game.

“I got upset with the emotion,” I said. I’m sorry to everyone in the Red family. Thank you to the fans who continue to cheer us on and to my teammates for winning!

However, his manager Arne Slot was perplexed by the incident when he spoke shortly after the game.

Even if you haven’t received a yellow card yet, he said, “It’s not stupid because it was his second yellow.”

Maybe you can say, “This is all about me,” but I did score a few goals (not at his level), and if I put one in the top corner after three other players, it was probably too late.

However, if I scored like he did tonight, I would turn to Chiesa and say, “I didn’t have to do a lot,” “it’s about you Federico.” Perhaps it’s because I’m old-fashioned.

Ekitike, a £69 million signing from Eintracht Frankfurt, has been excellent this season so far.

He has three Premier League goals and one assist in the first five games that the Reds have won since signing Isak, taking their time to work the Sweden forward until they are fully fit.

That underscores Liverpool’s significance to the team, despite his unnecessarily dismissal on Tuesday, and has helped them win every game they have played since their Community Shield defeat by Crystal Palace on August 10.

In fact, he picked two unnecessary cards. Isak was replaced at the start of the second half, but soon after receiving a foul he threw the ball in the air.

Former Premier League striker Chris Sutton claimed on BBC Radio 5 Live that “for Ekitike to receive a second yellow card for taking his shirt off is just pure stupidity.”

He has been a significant player for Liverpool this season, including his important goal against Southampton, but Arne Slot won’t be happy if he sits out the weekend game.

Important learning experiences are likely to be the main takeaway for Ekitike from this.

I’d be surprised if he repeats the phrase, “added Slot.”

He probably misplaced his yellow card. He will grow from it because he is young. He won’t do it again, I assure you.

Since joining Liverpool, Isak has been carefully managed in terms of playing time.

His previous two starts included a cup match against Southampton on September 17 with a 58-minute start against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League and a second-half start against Atletico Madrid.

He made just one Premier League appearance, coming off the bench in the team’s 2-1 win over Everton at the weekend, when he came off the bench in the 67th minute.

Slot may have planned to give Isak more game time at Crystal Palace, so he likely did because he likely had one eye on the weekend.

He also had a big chance early in the game but fired straight at goalkeeper Alex McCarthy.

Isak told ITV, “I feel good.” Every game I play is very beneficial and helps me get in better shape.

It is difficult to say, he continued, “On if he feels ready to start.” It combines football and fitness into one.

Arsenal interested in Takefusa Kubo, and Liverpool prepared to offer midfielder Ryan Gravenberch a new deal, while Crystal Palace is not interested in selling Adam Wharton.

Ryan Gravenberch, a 23-year-old Netherlands midfielder, will be offered a new long-term contract by Liverpool. (Talksport)

Takefusa Kubo, 24, from Real Sociedad, is a transfer target for Arsenal in January. (Fichajes – Spanish)

In the January transfer window, Liverpool were informed that they had no way of convincing Crystal Palace to sell England international Adam Wharton, 21. (Teamtalk)

Frenkie de Jong, 28, a 28-year-old Netherlands midfielder, has agreed to extend his stay until 2029 on reduced wages, making it possible for Barcelona to make a breakthrough. (Mundo Deportivo, Spanish)

Former Leeds United and Chelsea striker Patrick Bamford, 32, is a free agent after seven years at the club, according to Getafe. (Football Espana)

Both Liverpool and Arsenal have been informed that Vinicius Junior, a 25-year-old Brazilian winger, is uncertain about his future at Real Madrid. (TBR Football)

Harry Wilson, 28, who was targeted by Leeds over the summer, will hold talks with Fulham manager Marco Silva regarding a contract extension. (Sky Sports)

After a vote, proposed changes to the County Championship will remain a two-division structure with only 14 matches per team.

Eighteen first-class counties were given the option of choosing between the current system, which featured a 12-team top flight, six bottom tier teams, and 13-game games between each team.

One day before the final round of this year’s County Championship games begin, the ballot returned a result on Tuesday.

To pass the reform, a majority of the 12 counties needed to vote for it, a requirement that was not met.

The County Championship’s current structure, which has 10 teams in Division One and eight in Division Two, is preserved thanks to the results of the vote, with two teams promoted and relegated between each.

It puts an extensive examination of the counties’ domestic schedule to an end.

In August, a change to the Twenty20 Blast was approved, reducing the number of group games from 14 to 12 and introducing the season’s finals day.

However, the counties’ differing viewpoints on how the Championship should proceed have kept the current configuration.

There were several suggestions made, including reducing the number of first-class matches to 12, as recommended by the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA).

The 12-team top flight with a 13-match structure was suggested when it became clear the shift from 14 to 12 was dead in the water.

To make up the 13 games, a county would need to play two more teams twice and three more times in order to top the six teams.

The changes, according to supporters, will give more teams more opportunities to play over the summer and eliminate dead games at the end of the season. The PCA would have benefited from the reduced number of matches in some way.

However, a number of counties made it known that they wanted to stay in the two-division structure. The proposed system’s opponents felt it was too difficult to follow and lacked enough “best v best” appeal.

The counties’ counties are clear about a number of issues that are still unresolved as the championship matches near their final round of matches come to an end after the domestic consultation’s conclusion.

The relegation battle would have effectively been ended if there had been a reform vote, but Sussex, Essex, Yorkshire, Hampshire, and Durham are now forced to compete to avoid joining Worcestershire in Division Two. Both Glamorgan and Leicestershire have already secured promotion.

With a 4-1 victory over Jiang Jun from China, Mark Allen made it to the second round of the British Open.

Allen jumped out in the Cheltenham final to win his first ranking title in 19 months with a victory in the Sunday English Open final.

Jun was out of the lead after the first two frames, but the Northern Irish player rallied to claim the third frame.

Jun did hold on for the final frame of the fourth round, but former world no. 1 Allen completed the feat in the fifth to advance to the next round.

Aston Villa president of football operations Monchi is stepping down with former Real Sociedad sporting director Roberto Olabe replacing him.

Olabe, 57, spent seven years at Sociedad before leaving at the end of last season.

Monchi’s exit was confirmed by Villa on Tuesday with the club 18th in the Premier League after a winless start to the season.

The Spaniard will remain in an advisory role, the club added.

“Firstly, I would like to thank Monchi for his hard work and invaluable contribution as president of football operations during an exciting period at Aston Villa,” chairman Nassef Sawiris said.

“His commitment and vision has directly contributed to the club’s recent successes, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League as well as qualifying for Europe for three consecutive seasons.

“We are delighted that Roberto is joining Aston Villa. He has built a reputation as someone who can spot talent that can be developed and we look forward to supporting him to achieve the ambitions we have for V Sports and Aston Villa.”

Monchi joined Villa in 2023 from Spanish side Sevilla, where he had been sporting director, having previously worked with Villa boss Unai Emery at the La Liga club.

Monchi and Emery helped take Villa to the Europa Conference League semi-finals in 2024 and secured a Champions League place as they finished fourth in the Premier League that season.

They went on to reach the Champions League quarter-finals last term, being knocked out by eventual winners Paris St-Germain.

“We have enjoyed so many special moments together and I look forward to continuing to support V Sports in an advisory role,” Monchi said.

Villa have started poorly this season, failing to win any of their opening five league games and scoring just once.

Villa boss Emery was involved in choosing Olabe as Monchi’s replacement.

Olabe is from Vitoria, part of the Basque Country in northern Spain, which is about 100 miles from Emery’s hometown of Hondarribia.

He managed Real Union between 2011 and 2012, the team which Emery holds a controlling stake in and where his brother Igor is president.

While Monchi’s departure comes at a time of poor results, it does not impact Emery’s position and his influence on Olabe’s arrival underlines that his position remains strong at Villa.

During Olabe’s time at Sociedad they won the 2020 Copa del Rey, their first major silverware in 33 years.

They also bought Alexander Isak from Willem II and sold him to Newcastle for £63m in 2022, while Martin Zubimendi came through the club’s academy before his £60m departure to Arsenal this summer.

The Gunners also signed Mikel Merino from Sociedad, while Olabe brought in Martin Odegaard on loan from Real Madrid the season before he moved to Emirates Stadium.

Monchi and Emery have tried to reshape Villa, spending big on defensive midfielder Amadou Onana, signed for £50m in 2024, and attacker Moussa Diaby, who arrived in 2023 for £43m.

But Diaby was sold to Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad after just one season while Onana has struggled with injury.

The imposing Belgium defensive midfielder made just 22 league starts last season after his club record move from Everton, and he is currently out with a hamstring injury having played just twice this term.

In the past 18 months Villa’s spending has been restricted because of profit and sustainability rules (PSR) imposed by both the Premier League and Uefa.

In July, Villa were fined £9.5m by European football’s governing body for breaching financial rules.

They needed to sell Douglas Luiz in 2024 to balance the books, with the midfielder joining Juventus for £42m. He made just three Serie A starts last season and joined Nottingham Forest on loan last month.

The sales of Omari Kellyman to Chelsea for £19m and Tim Iroegbunam to Everton for £9m last year also generated important profit, while Jacob Ramsey was sold to Newcastle for £40m last month, with all three having come through the club’s academy.

Just two of the starting XI in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Sunderland – Rogers and striker Evann Guessand – were signed by Emery and Monchi.

This summer Villa signed goalkeeper Marco Bizot from Brest and Guessand from Nice for £30m, before the deadline day arrivals of Harvey Elliott, Jadon Sancho and Victor Lindelof.

England Under-21s midfielder Elliott joined on loan from Liverpool with a £35m obligation to buy, while Sancho moved on loan from Manchester United and his former Old Trafford team-mate Lindelof joined on a free transfer.

Every weekend, hundreds of golfers load up the boot and head to Bethpage.

Clubs and shoes are not the only essential items stuck in the trunk of the car. Sleeping bags and food supplies are also required.

Bethpage Black, based in a sprawling park 40 miles east of New York City, is the first municipal course to host the Ryder Cup in its storied 98-year history.

Having the opportunity to tread the same fairways as the 2025 stars can be a long waiting game, though, particularly in the run-up to this year’s hallmark event.

“This summer was the craziest. We had people waiting for more than 48 hours in our parking lot,” Andrew Wilson, who is responsible for leading the Bethpage course set-up, told BBC Sport.

“They would get there on Friday morning but were not able to play until Saturday. The line would sell out and they had to wait until Sunday to play.

Getting on to Bethpage is not for the faint-hearted and the patience required acts as a precursor for when the golfers step on to the first tee.

Perhaps the stoicism should be considered a filtering out process, because only the toughest club players can survive 18 holes of what is often considered pure pain in both a physical and mental sense.

The latter is triggered by the course’s formidable reputation.

Seconds before players step out on to the first tee, there is a ‘welcome’ sign which intends to strike further fear into their hearts and minds.

The message reads, ‘WARNING. The Black Course Is An Extremely Difficult Course Which We Recommend Only For Highly Skilled Golfers’.

Spanning 7,100 yards from the championship markers where the Ryder Cup players will tee off, Bethpage Black is characterised by jungle rough, cavernous bunkers and tight fairways.

Is the course really as tough as the sign makes out? Or is it hyperbole designed to attract infamy?

Wilson is adamant the reality is as daunting as the illusion.

“Oh, definitely. By the fourth hole if you’ve missed by 10 feet and you’re in a bunker 12 feet below the green, it can already feel a little tiring,” said Bethpage director of agronomy Wilson, who has been working on the greens staff for almost 37 years.

“Then you start to get frustrated and have to play the mental game in your head.

“I think the Black can test your patience – and that’s why it is so hard.”

The undulating terrain sees holes weave around the natural landscape of the parkland and makes the course feel even longer than it already is.

Dense woodland separates many of the opening nine holes, with gravel trails darting between trees to offer routes for non-golfing walkers.

Elevated tees offer expansive views of the challenges ahead, swooping down into the underbelly of the fairways, climbing back up to the putting surfaces perched under the sky like infinity greens.

The exhilarating golf-scapes reel in the day tripper, many of whom make potentially once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimages to what Bethpage chiefs describe as a ‘Mecca for public golf’.

“How many times do you want to try to make the heroic shot? It’s like gambling,” added Wilson.

“You think you’re going to win all that money back and you think you’re going to hit that shot – and then you don’t and you don’t again.

Around 250,000 golfers play Bethpage Black each year, with rounds costing $75 (£55) for New York residents and $150 (£110) for non-state US citizens and international guests.

In comparison to other Ryder Cup host courses, that is considered a snip.

Normally, around three-quarters of tee-time bookings are reserved, with the rest available for walk-ups.

In the months leading up to a major tournament – Bethpage has also notably held the 2002 and 2009 US Opens and 2019 PGA Championship – there are no reservations.

Course chiefs prefer to only offer walk-ups in order to have more control over how many people – who travel from far and wide – can play in case of adverse weather.

Bethpage Black closed to the public in mid-August as the makeover for the Ryder Cup began and will reopen on 9 October.

Remarkably, just several hours after the winning putt is sunk by an American or European player, a handful of lucky amateurs will be able to recreate the scenes.

The PGA of America invites members from their key sponsors to play the course in two shotgun starts – the first starting at 7:15am on the Monday morning after one of the jewels in golf’s crown concludes.

But there is a stipulation to players wanting to try their luck – usually only single handicappers are allowed to tackle Bethpage Black.

“A lot of people want to play from the blue tees because they want the chance to play off the championship tees at a major venue,” said Wilson.

“Some people just want to beat themselves up and test themselves.

“I’ve watched people getting off the course sweating buckets and looking like they’re exhausted. Then they say, ‘I can’t wait to play it again next summer’.

Bethpage Black is one of five courses across the park, which is accessible by train from Manhattan and Brooklyn, although golf is not the sole purpose of the 1,500-acre site.

Around 250,000 non-golfers flock to the site each year to make use of a range of sporting activities, including tennis, football and polo.

Bridle paths, hiking, biking and cross-county skiing trails cater for other recreational pursuits, while the picnic areas offer a more leisurely option in the summer.

The vast space at Bethpage’s disposal, which will welcome 50,000 fans each day of the Ryder Cup, is one of the key reasons why it was picked as an historic host.

“We have the infrastructure to own the event, we’re close to New York City, we’re close to train stations and we’re close to a few highways, so the accessibility of getting in here is a big draw,” explained Wilson.

“The Black course itself is a big property, about 175 acres, so there is a lot of room on the course to build the infrastructure.

“It’s not like there are some fairways that are up and down, it is a long route which has a lot of expansive rough which, if they want to fill it, they’ll build it and have the space to do it.”

The park is funded by the New York state government, meaning it receives a portion of the Parks and Recreation department’s budget every year and the upkeep of the course comes out of that pot.

Corporate golf events, as well as the standard green fees, boost the coffers.

“The budgeting has always been pretty good for us because the revenue is always there – people will play golf in the winter time,” added Wilson.