Manchester United’s worrying start to the season hit another bump as they suffered a second successive Premier League defeat at Old Trafford, going down 1-0 to Crystal Palace. Four days after they beat Palace in the Carabao Cup, United were unable to repeat the trick in the league as the visitors got revenge in style thanks to Joachim Andersen’s first-half strike. Erik ten Hag’s men piled the pressure on in the second half, with Bruno Fernandes, Rasmus Hojlund and Mason Mount all going close, but could not find a way through and suffered a fourth defeat from the opening seven league games. That makes it their worst start to a Premier League season in terms of games lost at this stage. It had looked like United were turning their season around after that League Cup win on Tuesday followed victory at Burnley last weekend, but they are having problems on home soil this season, with the pressure beginning to mount on Ten Hag. They were fortunate to beat Wolves and Nottingham Forest, where they had to come from 2-0 down, but were soundly beaten by Brighton and now lost to Andersen’s goal. The defender spanked a first-time effort into the top corner from a set-piece as his side scored in the opening 45 minutes for the first time this season. He then defended resolutely as United launched a second-half assault in search of the equaliser, but Palace stood up to the test to make boss Roy Hodgson the first manager to go five successive Premier League games unbeaten at Old Trafford. The game burst into life after 10 minutes with quickfire chances at both ends. First Marc Guehi glanced a header from Andersen’s cross just wide and then straight from the goal-kick, Hojlund was through on goal and prodded past Palace goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, but Tyrick Mitchell was able to clear off the line. Marcus Rashford almost scored a wonder goal as he danced into the penalty area but his goalbound shot was blocked by Joel Ward. But Palace drew first blood in the 25th minute and in some style. Eberechi Eze’s cross made it through to the far post where Andersen sent a scorching first-time effort back across goal and into the roof of the net. It took a nick off Diogo Dalot but Andre Onana probably would not have saved it anyway. United, still striving for a really domineering home performance in the league, tried to respond and Casemiro flashed a 20-yard effort just wide before sending a header from a corner over. There was a deluge at the start of the second half as the rain poured down and Palace also had to weather a storm. The hosts came out flying after the restart and Johnstone, who came through the youth set-up at Old Trafford, needed to be on top form. First he did well to tip Bruno Fernandes’ 20-yard shot over and then, following a series of corners, palmed away Hojlund ‘s powerful header. Palace did carry a threat on the counter attack as Will Hughes stung Onana’s palms with a shot from distance while Eze rolled just wide after bursting forward. But the chances kept coming at the other end as Mount put a free header from Dalot’s cross over when he should have buried it and then Alejandro Garnacho’s cross was almost turned into his own net by Mitchell. Forgotten men Harry Maguire and Donny van de Beek were thrown on in a desperate attempt to get something out of the game. United almost did as the near-misses kept coming until the end as Dalot’s deflected cross was cleared off the line before Garnacho’s shot was deflected just wide. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Wolves stun Manchester City to end the champions’ winning run at Molineux Luton celebrate landmark Premier League win to turn up heat on Everton Kai Havertz off the mark for Arsenal before Bukayo Saka goes off injured

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As Sam Kerr declared herself “ready to go”, it was a warning for England that her World Cup has only just begun. With the Matildas enjoying their moment as Australia is gripped by World Cup fever ahead of Wednesday’s semi-final against the Lionesses, it will not have gone unnoticed in the England camp that Kerr has yet to have hers. Without a goal and without a start in the World Cup, the Australia captain has been building towards the stage where she can make her most important contribution. Indeed, if there was ever a team who knows that you don’t keep the striker quiet for long, it would be Australia’s next opponents. When it comes to the big occasions, Kerr often proves to be inevitable. Kerr’s goals have strengthened Chelsea’s domestic dominance since she signed for the club in 2019 but it is the timing of them that has led to her fearsome reputation. Before last season’s FA Cup final, she confidently pointed out that every time she had played at Wembley, she had won a trophy. When she scored the winner against Manchester United, she extended her remarkable record in domestic cup finals to 10 goals in seven appearances, including the last six in a row. But at the World Cup, Kerr’s tournament has not gone to plan. As Australia have hit great heights, reaching their first-ever World Cup semi-final in front of record-breaking attendances and viewing figures, Kerr has often been on the periphery. This was supposed to be her tournament – the striker’s face is everywhere and on everything, billboards, banks, TV adverts – but after being ruled out of the group stages due to a calf injury, Kerr was prevented from making her first appearance until the closing stages of Australia’s last-16 win against Denmark. Kerr’s return to the pitch remained one of the loudest moments of the World Cup so far, taking the noise and atmosphere inside Stadium Australia to another level, but with the Matildas “smashing it” in her absence she remained on the bench against France in the quarter-finals. Australia’s play sharpened when Kerr arrived, but she did not get a clear chance and the opportunity to be the hero in the shootout fell to others in the Matildas team. Although Kerr scored her penalty, so did six of her teammates. Cortnee Vine converted the winning kick, while goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was electric with three saves. Not that Kerr would mind, though, as Australia’s win in the quarter-finals set up the most important match in their football history against England. But the bigger the game, the bigger the moment, and the unavoidable concern for the Lionesses is Kerr finally gets hers against them. Everyone in the England team will be aware of Kerr’s powers, none more so than those who will mark her. Should Kerr start she will be directly opposed by Chelsea teammates Millie Bright and Jess Carter, who will start alongside Alex Greenwood in a defence that has only conceded once from open play all tournament. Bright will no doubt relish the opportunity to face her clubmate and close friend in battle, in what would also be the ultimate test of the England captain and a chance to show how far she has come since England’s last World Cup semi-final in 2019. Sent off then against the USA, Bright has been one of the best centre-backs in the world since, as key to Chelsea’s success under Emma Hayes as Kerr’s goals. Bright has impressively returned to form after being rushed back from injury to make the World Cup and has been pivotal to England’s defensive resilience in the knockout wins against Nigeria and Colombia. Kerr, though, is crafty, the ultimate poacher who can sniff out a chance from nowhere and who does not need to be in a game to change one. Outside of Bright, Carter, and Chelsea’s Niamh Charles, there won’t be a player in the England squad who hasn’t at some stage experienced the crushing blow of Kerr striking against them. Mary Earps, in particular, will know that feeling only too well; Kerr has scored nine goals against the England and Manchester United goalkeeper – in FA Cup finals, WSL title deciders, and in Australia’s 2-0 win over the Lionesses in April. That was England’s first defeat under Sarina Wiegman – the only time they have been beaten in the Dutch manager’s 37 matches at the helm. Tony Gustavsson’s side arrived with a plan and shut down England’s Keira Walsh, counter-attacking to perfection through Kerr. There isn’t too much that can be read into that, though, as England have been forced to become something different under Wiegman. A result of the challenges the Lionesses have faced since being at the World Cup is that Wiegman adapted her plans to a 3-5-2 system, which takes some of the pressure off Walsh in England’s build-up play. “We’ve changed a lot since then,” Walsh confirmed on Monday. Yet, Australia themselves have also become a different team since the start of the World Cup. Kerr’s injury led to other players stepping up in her absence; Caitlin Foord’s confidence has seen the winger become Australia’s biggest threat on the left, Hayley Raso has been their deadly finisher, while Mary Fowler’s ability to drop and create from deep has added a degree of unpredictability. The decision that Gustavsson faces is whether to break up the partnership between Fowler and Emily van Egmond at the head of the Matildas’ counter-attacking 4-4-2, with the impressive midfield duo of Katrina Gorry and Kyra Cooney-Cross providing balance and tying it all together. “They are aggressive, direct,” Walsh said. “They don’t look like they feel pressure.” But Australia’s quarter-final was also a fraught, nervy affair. Had the Matildas swept past France, then perhaps Kerr would have been unable to find a way back into the line-up, but Australia lacked a spark until their talisman was brought on. Fitness is potentially still an issue – after 11 minutes against Denmark and 66 against France, Kerr is confident she can last a full 90, but the possibility of lengthy stoppage time and even extra time means Australia’s captain may need to play a lot more. “With everything that’s been going on, the best thing was the plan we followed,” Kerr said this week. “When I hurt my calf, the plan was always to try to be ready for a semi-final, the final. We’ve had a plan this whole tournament and we just had to stick to it.” England won’t need to be told that at their home World Cup, Kerr and Australia’s plan will include a goal as well. Read More England and Australia’s old rivalry on a new stage for World Cup semi-final The Lionesses will need to beat an entire nation in the grip of World Cup fever How Georgia Stanway found World Cup ‘discipline’ for England thanks to surprise mentor Old rivalry has new stage as World Cup arrives at its biggest moment ‘This will change everything’: How World Cup fever took over Australia The key questions ahead of England’s World Cup semi-final against Australia

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On Saturday night, two fighters who embody the word heavyweight – every sense of it – will clash in Saudi Arabia. In one corner will be the reigning WBC champion, one of the biggest names in boxing, Tyson Fury. In the other will be the former UFC champion, a man deemed the hardest hitter in combat-sports history, Francis Ngannou. This crossover bout has its detractors yet still holds an air of intrigue, all based on the ‘what if’: What if Ngannou can land on Fury? What if one of those monstrous hands touches the Briton’s chin with the velocity and malicious intent that have come to define Ngannou’s fighting career, and which carried the Cameroonian to the UFC heavyweight title? For all his evasive guile, Fury, 35, has been put down numerous times, but he has never been beaten – not even by fighters with much greater boxing pedigree than the 37-year-old Ngannou. The experiential gap understandably has most viewers doubting Ngannou’s chances in Riyadh, where he faces Fury in a proper, professional boxing match; but what if? And if Ngannou is to win, how will he? Attacking Fury to the body? Battering him in the clinch? Backing him into a corner? Alex Pattle asked former two-weight world-champion boxer Carl Frampton, and Dan Hardy, an ex-UFC title challenger who now works with the Professional Fighters League – the MMA promotion where Ngannou will fight in 2024. Here’s what they had to say... AP: What was your initial reaction to the fight being announced? DH: “I was shocked. I expected Ngannou to have another fight before Tyson Fury, but I think it’s the wise thing to do to step straight in and keep the element of surprise on your side. If he’d have gone in there and fought someone else, Tyson would’ve been able to get reads before the fight even started. Jumping in at the deep end, even though it’s a bit crazy, increases his chances of winning. That was my first thought: It’s a surprise that it’s happening, but relief that Ngannou is getting it on his first shot.” CF: “Initially I was disappointed, and that’s kind of taming it down a bit. Obviously we were hoping for Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk and that fell through, but now I’ve come round to the idea that this is a huge event. And we’ve got Fury vs Usyk off the back of it. I was always hopeful that fight would come about at some point, and I don’t wanna be talking as if Ngannou is gonna be a complete walkover for Fury, but I’m okay about it [because] the Fury vs Usyk fight has been made for some point in the future. Also, the money the guys are making with this event...” AP: Do fans need to be more understanding of fighters taking ‘money fights’? CF: “Maybe a little bit. Boxing fans in particular are very opinionated, and I understand that they’re frustrated. But if you’re Tyson Fury and someone’s offering you a fight of this magnitude against a boxing debutant, and there are talks of $30m – and $10m for Ngannou – how do you turn that down? It’s almost too good to be true.” DH: “I think it's a bit different for MMA fans, because we’re still in new ground; the changes that Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor made in fighters’ purses and expectations for purses... as a matchmaker, I’m still dealing with the repercussions of that! Fighters want ridiculous amounts of money, but the money is out there to be made by certain superstars. I honestly think it’s easier for a layman fan to understand why fighters would take these fights, because they focus so much more on the money. I think it’s more the purists who go, ‘I’m not interested in these fights!’ [To the layman], the money and pay-per-view buys almost represent the value of the fighter; to the purists, the value of the fighter is based on their technical ability and achievements.” CF: “I hate to use the term ‘casual fan’, but there’s a big difference between the purists and just the casual fan. I think you’ll win back [the purists] with Fury vs Usyk, but it’s all a bit trivial almost, because [most] fans are fickle. I’m expecting Fury to beat Ngannou and then fight Usyk, and it’ll almost be like the talk and criticism of the Ngannou fight will go away.” AP: Do crossover events like Tommy Fury vs KSI and Logan Paul vs Dillon Danis risk putting fans off fights like Fury vs Ngannou? DH: “I personally think it’s all on the same spectrum – just at different points on the spectrum. That Misfits Boxing card... I’ll be honest, I was able to make peace with that whole genre of combat sports much easier after that event, because it’s more like pro wrestling. The audience there, they’re not gonna buy a ticket to see ‘Canelo’ Alvarez; they’re not there for that, they’re there for the drama – for the security getting involved, for the plexiglass cages they put them in at the face-offs. It’s theatre with a combat-sports flavour.” AP: What is Ngannou’s chance of winning – as a percentage – in your opinion? CF: “There’s a lot of boxers who are almost anti-MMA, and I’m not. I understand what this is: I understand that Fury is a lifelong boxer, fighting a guy who’s had to perfect many different styles in MMA, so in that sense Ngnannou doesn’t have much of a chance. But to say that he has zero chance, I think, would be very, very wrong – because he’s a big, athletic man who can punch hard. He has a chance, but it’s very small. I hope I’m not being disrespectful to Francis; if you flip it on its head and do it in a cage, then it’s the same odds but reversed [in his favour]. It’s just, when you try to rationalise it, it’s his boxing debut – and it’s against maybe the best heavyweight boxer on the planet.” DH: “We’re definitely in single digits when it comes to percentages, but it’s the ‘what if’ that we’re tuning in for, right? Even if it’s a 0.1 per cent chance that Ngannou is gonna land that shot, we’re all gonna sit and watch in case that happens. If it does, then he’s got the power to knock Fury out. The reason I feel this is an intriguing fight is because... if you look at Ngannou against the likes of Jairzinho Rozenstruik, who’s got over 80 kickboxing matches and moves with very traditional patterns, Rozenstruik was taken out very, very quickly – and ferociously – because Ngannou flew at him, coming from all kinds of different angles. You just can’t predict those things. “Against Deontay Wilder, Fury was dealing with someone who’s got ferocious punching power but who’s got some basic fundamentals that make him a little bit predictable. If Ngannou starts patient and then starts winging those big shots from weird angles, which Tyson’s probably not anticipating, that elevates his chances – but they’re still incredibly slim." CF: “That’s the thing. High-end boxers often talk about when they spar novice guys, it’s all really unorthodox; they’re not taught to defend against shots that are coming from [certain angles], and it can be a bit awkward at times.” AP: We know that Ngannou needs to knock out Fury to win. But how does he knock out Fury? DH: “If I was trying to solve this problem for Ngannou, I’d say: We’re working with 90-degree corners in a boxing ring, so that’s something I’d like to work towards. It’s gonna be difficult to back Tyson up, of course, and he’s very good at standing on his back foot and making his head feel like it’s a long way away. So, Ngannou has to work to the body and vary his target to potentially bring Fury’s hands down. Ngannou has thunderous punching, so if he lands to the ribs, he might open up an opportunity. If he’s just head-hunting, it’s not gonna happen. Play a little bit of boxing, but when it comes to uncorking those big shots, really commit to them. And ideally put Tyson in a corner, up against the ropes.” CF: “With Ngannou’s MMA background and knowledge of wrestling and grappling, he will have success when they’re in really close quarters and Tyson’s trying to hold on. This might be something that Tyson’s never experienced before, where someone can get out of a clinch rather easily and land a shot. Ngannou can’t stand off and outbox Tyson, that’s not gonna happen.” AP: Ngannou last fought in MMA in January 2022 and has largely been in boxing training since. What kind of MMA fighter will he be when he makes his PFL debut in 2024? DH: “I think we’re gonna see improvements in his footwork and his fundamental boxing. I think that’ll be a byproduct of him doing all these rounds on the pads with Mike Tyson, Dewey Cooper and others. But I don’t think he’s necessarily going to neglect his grappling game, because it was never really the prominent skillset for him anyway. I think he’ll return to working on those things when necessary, because everyone who fights Francis knows that they need to take him down – you don’t wanna be dealing with that power. He knows that whoever he’s fighting is most likely gonna be the one to force the grappling exchanges. Then it’s about who the opponent is gonna be. $2m is a lot of money in MMA, even if you have to fight Francis for it!” Fury v Ngannou will be exclusively live from Riyadh Season, Saudi Arabia on TNT Sports Box Office, Saturday 28 October. For more info: tntsports.co.uk/boxoffice Read More Tyson Fury ‘unhappy’ with Oleksandr Usyk fight announcement Tyson Fury reveals December date for Oleksandr Usyk heavyweight title fight Deontay Wilder calls out Anthony Joshua with update over super-fight Francis Ngannou drops hint over Tyson Fury rematch and Anthony Joshua fight How much money are Fury and Ngannou earning for fight this weekend? How many rounds is Fury vs Ngannou and do knockouts count?

Despite taking a lead over the Penn State Nittany Lions, more and more Ohio State football fans are completely out on the Buckeyes. From Kyle McCord, to Ryan Day, to even Miyan Williams, just a bunch of stiffs and walking trash cans.

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