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David Kogan, the government’s preferred choice for chair of the new independent regulator for English football, has been chosen as the government’s preferred choice.

Kogan was referred to as the “outstanding candidate” for the position by Lisa Nandy, the secretary of state for culture, media, and sport.

“This will be a crucial public role to ensure reasonable, light-touch regulation helps to strengthen financial viability and put fans back at the center of the game,” Nandy said.

Kogan says he will work with clubs and supporters to create a “dynamic framework” for English football and will now face MPs on the Culture, Media, and Sport committee for “pre-appointment scrutiny.”

Whatever the size of our professional clubs, Kogan remarked. “Our professional clubs are a source of both local and national pride.

They “engender economic growth and investment, unite communities, and provide shared experiences and memories that transcend generations.”

The regulator’s job is to collaborate with those clubs, their owners, and their supporters to create a dynamic framework that will enable the game to continue to prosper and grow. I’m eager to start.

The first independent regulator for the professional men’s game in England will be created by the Football Governance Bill, which is currently passing through Parliament after the Labour government reintroduced it in October.

Kogan, a former BBC journalist and director, helped negotiate the rights to the Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship last year.

Kogan will have the task of resolving a long-standing dispute between the Premier League and the EFL regarding controversial parachute payments to relegated clubs and financial redistribution if he is given one of the most powerful roles in English football.

The fact that he served as the Premier League’s media rights advisor between 1998 and 2015 may cause concern for the EFL. He has also made a number of donations to the party’s candidates and has close ties to the Labour party. He has two books written about them.

Although Premier League officials have long advocated for an independent regulator, Rick Parry, the English Football League chairman, fears that it will have an impact on investment and competitiveness.

Kogan was first approached about the regulator position by a source close to him, according to a source close to Kogan.

However, the appointment of a Labour donor has drawn criticism from the Tory party.

Shadow sports minister Louie French charged the government with “putting one of their key cronies in charge of what ought to be an independent regulator.”

He continued, “This deeply political appointment raises questions about the regulator’s ability to conduct itself with the impartiality that fans deserve.”

The Tories are “smearing a” highly qualified, respected candidate,” according to Labour sources who refute the claim.

Eddie Howe, the manager of Newcastle, thanked Paul Catterson for responding to his illness two weeks ago by quickly treating him with pneumonia.

The 47-year-old has missed three Magpies games and has been feeling unwell for a while since being admitted to a hospital on April 11.

After spending time in the hospital, he returned to work on Thursday.

He said on Friday that he “possibly could have had a different outcome” without that quick action.

In the weeks leading up to his diagnosis, Howe characterized how he “felt really bad, but I didn’t know how bad” he “felt really bad.”

I’m one of those people who, like most men, sort of goes through everything and doesn’t always say to doctors, “Oh, I’ll be okay in a few days, I’ll fight through it.”

The most crucial aspect of my life is that I’m not entirely in my body, but I like to believe that I’m almost entirely in my mind.

“I’ve gone through a lot of emotions, but I feel like I’m on the verge of recovery.”

Ipswich host Newcastle, who are fifth in the Premier League, on Saturday at St James’ Park.

Howe compared the strain of the illness to his own personal experience, saying he tries to “leave a positive out of every experience.”

He continued, “Your health you take for granted – I certainly do – and it can be very difficult when you don’t have the luxury of feeling normal.”

In Howe’s absence, assistant manager Jason Tindall and fellow coach Graeme Jones won the Premier League twice and one lost.

The Newcastle manager claimed that while away from home, he had “no” involvement with the games.

When I wasn’t feeling well enough to concentrate on the football, he said, “I made a conscious decision to give Jason and the coaches full responsibility.”

You’re either in or out, and I couldn’t contribute, for me. So I immediately said to Jason, “It’s over to you.” And how did he not succeed?

Parading in luxury designer finery, rubbing shoulders with A-list celebrities and playing poker with filthy-rich footballers – Chris Eubank Jr has never really marketed himself as a man of the people.

But, deep down, everybody wants to be liked, and the 35-year-old is no different.

“People say that ‘he’s been happy to play the bad guy’. I wasn’t happy about it,” Eubank says.

“I didn’t like getting booed into arenas for all these years. I don’t like waking up and going on my Instagram and seeing people saying ‘you’re going to get knocked out’ and ‘you’re not as good as your old man’.”

The Brighton boxer says he has learned to accept, even “relish”, the villain tag. In the build-up to Saturday’s fight with Conor Benn, however, the lines between the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ guys have blurred.

Eubank will face his fellow Briton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in boxing’s latest grudge match – two and a half years after their cancelled bout because of Benn’s failed drugs tests.

Benn has since been cleared to fight and denies intentionally doping, but the scandal has tarnished his reputation. Consequently, it’s morphed Eubank into British boxing’s unlikely antihero.

“I don’t know what to expect. This could be the first fight in history where both guys in a mega fight get booed into an arena,” Eubank says.

“[But] however much of a bad guy I am, I didn’t cheat. I walked the hard path being that bad guy.”

While his public image may be improving, Eubank’s fractured relationship with his father, Chris Eubank Sr, has threatened to overshadow the fight.

“I’ve told him I want him there [on Saturday]. I’ve told him what it means to me, the public, to the fight fans,” Eubank says. “He doesn’t seem to care or he doesn’t seem to understand.”

As each day passes in fight week, it is becoming increasingly unlikely that Eubank Sr will attend Saturday’s fight.

He had been an ever-present at the start of his son’s career, but their relationship has become strained.

“It got to a stage where I realised for the public to be able to see who I was as a man and as a fighter, I had to step away from that huge figure,” Eubank says.

Barry Hearn said Eubank Sr, who he promoted for a number of years, was a “very strict disciplinarian as a father”.

“He said to me once ‘Bazza, how do you let your boy talk to you like that?” Hearn said.

“I said to him ‘your son has to be your friend as well, Chris’. I don’t think he ever bought into that.”

Eubank acknowledges the public interest in his life and is open to discussing issues far more important than boxing.

While he has forged a reputation of being a composed fighter, outside of the ring he has shown his emotions and vulnerability to the public, with his personal life tinged with tragedy over the past four years.

In 2021, his 29-year-old brother Sebastian died of a heart attack in Dubai. Eubank has become a father figure to his nephew, who was just a month old at the time.

Eubank Sr has labelled the Benn bout a “circus” because of the weight disparity; Benn is going up two divisions and Eubank is prohibited from rehydrating more than 10lb after the weigh-in.

“I think this fight once it’s over, there’s a possibility that things may be able to reconcile or there’s a possibility it will make our relationship even harder to rebuild,” Eubank Jr says.

As Eubank has stepped out of his father’s shadow, more of him as a man and fighter has emerged.

Eubank is quite the maverick, a boxer who never pinned himself down to one promoter or trainer for a significant length of time.

Recent outbursts have even landed him in legal bother and subsequent retractions.

“So many boxers and fighters get caught up in the treachery of the people that are in the industry,” he says, describing the sport as “shady”.

While he may have burnt bridges with influential boxing people down to a crisp, Eubank is perfectly capable of single-handedly promoting a fight.

Just like Chris Eubank Sr did with Nigel Benn during their rivalry in the 1990s, Jr – minus his father’s monocle and jodhpurs – seems to know which buttons will inflame an opponent.

He says that targeting Benn’s emotions is not a deliberate ploy, though.

“I’ve never thought I need to think of something that’s really going to get to Conor. I don’t care about Conor. I only care about me,” Eubank says.

Referencing the now-infamous incident when he slapped Benn across the face with an egg – which resulted in a £100,000 fine – Eubank feels he kept his composure.

“I had Nigel Benn’s hand wrapped around my neck at one point, but if you see my face, it’s like I’m walking down the street,” he says.

Eubank has proven his quality with wins over former world champions Arthur Abraham, James DeGale and Liam Smith. He has a lot to be proud of.

He is fully aware, however, that a defeat to Benn could end up defining his 14-year career.

“There’s so much at stake – respect, family, pride, money and my career. I said it, if I lose I retire. That is a horrible thing to say and to know but it’s the truth,” he says.

Evaluating Eubank’s boxing career depends on how you measure success.

In 37 fights, he is yet to capture a world title. He lost his only challenge for world honours to George Groves in 2018.

If he never becomes a world champion, is it a case of unfulfilled potential? Eubank has certainly shown he is capable enough.

As a commodity, though, Eubank remains one of British boxing’s biggest draws. He has sold out arenas and earned seven-figure paydays.

And he is not ready to give it all up just yet.

“I love being a fighter. I love training. I love competing. I love testing myself mentally and physically,” he says.

Liverpool’s manager Arne Slot claims that his side has a “big responsibility” to win the club’s 20th top flight title against Tottenham on Sunday.

With only four games left, the Reds need just a point against Spurs to win the Premier League, as a result of their draw with Crystal Palace on Wednesday.

Jurgen Klopp’s reign as Liverpool’s manager came in 2019-20 when the Covid pandemic prevented fans from entering stadiums.

Everyone is anticipating Sunday, but we know there is still work to be done, and that’s at least one point, said Slot, “because we are aware that the last time this club won the league was Covid time.”

“That’s what we know, and hopefully our fans also do the same,” he said, “and they support us in the best way possible, like they have all season, and are aware that we still need a point.”

We are undoubtedly aware of that. We have a lot to look forward to, but we also have a responsibility for Sunday.

Tottenham, who have lost 18 league games this season and have their main focus set on a Europa League semi-final first-leg against Bodo/Glimt on Thursday, have lost without winning at Anfield since 2011.

After taking Klopp’s place at Liverpool last summer, Slot is in his first season as manager. He has previously won the Dutch title with Feyenoord.

His team are 12 points clear of second-placed Arsenal.

Although it has been suggested that the top flight hasn’t been as competitive as it has in recent years, Slot believes it’s a “difficult league to win.”

He said, “I’ve only been here for a year, so I can only tell you what I’ve been through this season.”

It’s never been as exciting to achieve a top-four or top-five finish. In previous years, it was quite clear which clubs would likely hold the top three or four positions.

There has never been an easy game in my opinion, which makes it a really challenging league. Wining a football game has always been very difficult.

Not just the other teams in this league find it challenging to win a game by three or four goals. That may have been simpler two, three, four, or five years ago.