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Ryan Porteous watched his Scotland team-mates gearing up for their summer holidays after Tuesday’s win over Georgia while preparing to start his next campaign the following day. The defender was due back at Watford for a team meeting and day three of pre-season training hours after helping Scotland to victory in difficult conditions. The former Hibernian player is happy to get back to England, though, and get to work under new head coach Valerien Ismael, who was appointed on May 10. “All the boys are jetting off on holiday but I’m back in,” Porteous said. “There will be a big rebuild probably at Watford so I’m looking forward to getting started there. “I had a holiday before. We finished up on the 10th (of May) so I got away for a couple of weeks. “Listen, I will be in good shape going back. That’s what you want as a player. Pre-season is hard enough but if you are in good physical state, as you need to be in this day and age, then it will be of benefit to me.” The defender’s return to club duty might have been delayed at one point as the Euro 2024 qualifier looked in severe doubt because of a waterlogged pitch, with rules stating any abandoned game continues the next day. Porteous got away from Hampden after midnight but the fans were not far in front of him after a near two-hour delay while water was swept off the pitch following a torrential downpour. Speaking after a 2-0 win for the Group A leaders, the 24-year-old said: “We wanted the game to go on because there were 50,000 fans there. For them to come to the game, spend all that money on travel and tickets and then go home very disappointed that the game was the next day, wasn’t what we wanted. “We wanted to play the game. We understand why they (Georgia) wouldn’t because they were 1-0 down, that’s completely understandable, but most of the fans stayed to the end. “The fans were brilliant, because it was a late night for a lot of kids and working people as well.” The victory made it four wins from four in Group A, Scotland’s best start to any qualifying campaign, and sent them eight points clear halfway through their schedule. Porteous said: “It’s exactly where we want to be, but the manager keeps reiterating to us and the press that we have done nothing yet. “We have put ourselves in a fantastic position but it’s one game at a time that will get us there. We need to stay grounded. “Four wins probably doesn’t get you there, you have to keep going.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Almost two thirds of football fans oppose VAR, survey finds Leicester and Sale to face holders La Rochelle in Heineken Champions Cup pool Range of armband options for Women’s World Cup as FIFA aims to avoid repeat row

Bruno Fernandes believes Manchester United are building something special under Erik ten Hag, who the skipper feels a debt of gratitude to having stood by him amid intense criticism following the Liverpool debacle. The meticulous Dutchman has helped drag the Old Trafford giants up from a low ebb, leading them back into the Champions League having won the Carabao Cup in his first season at the helm. Ten Hag now has the chance to end a positive campaign by completing a domestic cup double with a statement victory at Wembley, where United take on treble-chasing Manchester City on Saturday. The first all-Manchester FA Cup final promises to be a special occasion and one that Fernandes, set to skipper the side, believes can provide the catalyst for further success. “It is important for us, even to build,” the Portugal international told the PA news agency. “We are now building something we see can be special in the future. “Obviously I think if we win the FA Cup, it will give a little bit more belief that we can go into the next season and aim for bigger targets.” Fernandes, who signed a new deal at United towards the end of last season, said: “I want to win trophies at the club. “I spoke with the club before I signed that contract and said ‘I want to be successful with the club, but I need to make sure the club is going to be the right things and do things in a successful way’. “I think those steps are being done. We still need some things and I think we will have that. Not only with transfers but also in the dressing room with us stepping up more in moments that we needed it this season, but we didn’t. “Next season we will have learned so we need to do it better.” Fernandes’ drive and fiercely ambitious nature matches that of Ten Hag, who he credits for overseeing a “big improvement on the team mentality wise and quality wise”. “I said since the beginning of the season he demands a lot,” the playmaker said. “He wants to win. He wants to be in the position to win everything. “He doesn’t hide that, he shows that, he passes the message through the players, so it makes you be always aware that you have to be at the best level as possible to play with him, to be part of the club. “He has made high demands for everyone to understand that we are in a big club and to be here we have to deserve to be here, we have to show that we deserve to be here. “And I think that he has been changing the mentality of everyone to not be relaxed, not be thinking that your place is guaranteed here.” Ten Hag has overseen a largely positive campaign, but there have been some ugly bumps in the road – no more so than March’s club record-equalling 7-0 defeat at arch-rivals Liverpool. That shellacking saw skipper Fernandes face scathing criticism from the likes of United greats Roy Keane and Gary Neville – a stinging assessment that led to a staunch defence by his manager. “I’m aware that he’s really happy with the way I train, the way I play, the way I show my emotions, the way I show my passion for the game,” the Portuguese said of Ten Hag. “He knows I care, that’s why probably sometimes it makes you do some things that you should not do. “But he knows that I will never do nothing to make the team look bad, my team-mates look bad, or making something that is not good for the team. “He knows that, so that’s why it protects me. That’s why he did that in that interview and many other times. “Whenever he thinks that he has to say something that he didn’t like to me, he has called me two or three times in his office and he said ‘look, we have to change this, we have to change this, I think you could do it in a different way’. “We had many conversations this season. He always called the players to talk with them, he has a lot of individual meetings with the players. “I think that’s good because he shows you the respect, he shows you the protection. But always with the demands behind that because obviously when you protect someone you want him to give you some back, so he can have his reasons to protect you.” Captaining United to their first domestic cup double will certainly help repay Ten Hag’s backing and would mean a huge amount to the fans. Sir Alex Ferguson’s 1999 heroes are the only team to have won the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same campaign, adding extra incentive – if any was needed – to Saturday’s encounter under the arch. “We are aware of this,” Fernandes said. “We know this. We know the story of our club and that the fans don’t want City to do that. “But for ourselves it is about lifting a trophy. The importance of this for us is winning another trophy, making sure we end the season in the best way possible. “We know if we win the trophy, the consequence of that is Man City cannot do the treble anymore. “But from the players’ side, it is just about winning the game because we want to win a trophy for ourselves, the club, the fans. That is it.”

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West Ham welcomed Declan Rice back to the London Stadium and then promptly sent him and Arsenal packing on the end of a 3-1 Carabao Cup defeat. Rice, who lifted the Europa Conference League trophy as Hammers captain last season, was back at his old club for the first time since his £105million switch to the Gunners. But he will not be getting his hands on the Carabao Cup this season after strikes from Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen, following an early own goal by Ben White, sent the north Londoners crashing out. Rice started on the bench as Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta made six changes to his line-up for the fourth-round clash and the most of the damage was done by the time he was called upon. West Ham took the lead after 15 minutes when Bowen’s corner was inadvertently headed past Aaron Ramsdale by White at the near post. Gunners keeper Ramsdale, making his first appearance since the win at Brentford in the previous round, complained that Tomas Soucek had a hold of his shirt as the ball came over and he probably had a case but, with no VAR in operation, the goal stood. White attempted to make amends but unfortunately for Arsenal his header at the other end was not quite as accurate and Lukasz Fabianski tipped it over the crossbar, with Eddie Nketiah heading the resulting corner wide. After the break, Ramsdale made a fine save to deny Bowen, who was sent through by Lucas Paqueta, with White completing the clearance on the goal-line. But the second goal arrived in the 50th minute when Ghana winger Kudus collected a long ball into the box from Nayef Aguerd, skipped past Oleksandr Zinchenko and rifled a low shot through the legs of Gabriel and into the net. Rice was the only goalscorer the last time West Ham beat Arsenal, in the Premier League in 2019. “You should have signed for a big club” was the mischievous chant aimed at the 24-year-old when he came out to warm up. Much of the build-up to the match centred around the reception the England midfielder would receive and when he was sent on in the 56th minute the boos were quickly drowned out by a standing ovation from most of the home fans. But, before Rice had a chance to get into the game, West Ham had a third after Bowen collected White’s headed clearance and lashed it past Ramsdale via a deflection off Jakub Kiwior. Martin Odegaard scored a consolation goal with the last kick but it was West Ham’s night as they marched into the quarter-finals. Read More James Harden joins LA Clippers from Philadelphia 76ers Eddie Jones: Marcus Smith is a very good player – but he is not a full-back Mark Wood insists contract talks were not distraction for England at World Cup Eniola Aluko believes England can still clinch Great Britain an Olympic place Football fan convicted of racially abusing Rio Ferdinand Welsh rugby still has deep-rooted issues that need to be sorted – Alun Wyn Jones

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Manchester City legend Francis Lee has died at the age of 79, the club has confirmed. Lee is widely regarded as one of City’s greatest players of all time, having scored 148 goals in 330 appearances for the club in a trophy-laden eight-year spell between 1967 and 1974 that saw them claim one First Division title, one FA Cup, one League Cup, a European Cup Winners’ Cup and two Charity Shields. He also earned 27 caps for England, scoring 10 goals, and enjoyed further trophy success at Derby County after leaving City, helping the Rams to the league title in 1975. Man City confirmed his passing in a club statement: “It is with the deepest sadness and heaviest of hearts we announce the passing of former Manchester City player and chairman Francis Lee, aged 79. “Franny passed away in the early hours of this [Monday] morning after a long battle with cancer. His wife Gill and children Charlotte, Jonny and Nik say he will be sorely missed and would like to thank everyone for their kind words. “Everyone at Manchester City would like to send their condolences to the friends and family of Francis at this very difficult time. As a mark of respect, flags around the Etihad Stadium and City Football Academy are flying at half-mast.” Lee had begun his career with Bolton Wanderers before Manchester City manager Joe Mercer signed him for a club-record transfer fee of £60,000 in 1967. He also made history at Mexico in 1970 where he became the first England player to receive a card at a World Cup. After his playing career finished Lee ran a successful toilet roll business, becoming a millionaire, and returned to Man City as club chairman in 1994, spending four years at the helm. In the 2016 New Year Honours list, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to football and charity. Lee’s first club Bolton posted their condolences on X, formerly Twitter, stating: “All at Bolton Wanderers are saddened to learn of the passing of former forward, Francis Lee. The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Francis’ family, friends and loved ones at this difficult time.” Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, who is a big Man City fan, also posted on X: “FRANNY LEE RIP”. “Former Liverpool, Nottingham Forest and England striker Stan Collymore – who now works as a football pundit – also expressed his sorrow at Lee’s passing. He wrote: “Sending sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Franny Lee. Had some lovely chats over the years on here and at City where he rightly had his status acknowledged by the club over the years. Another legend gone too soon. Rest in peace, Franny.” Recent City captain Vincent Kompany wrote on X that he was “Saddened to hear of the passing of Francis Lee today, aged 79. I had the honour of meeting him and speaking to him on more than a few occasions and will cherish these moments”. Another City stalwart Paul Dickov wrote: “A gentleman, proper football man with a great sense of humour. The main reason I signed for @ManCity with his sheer love for the club & will be forever grateful.” Read More Chelsea finally catch a break as Mykhailo Mudryk gets his moment Sir Jim Ratcliffe reportedly considering minority stake bid for Manchester United Premier League now faces a credibility ‘crisis’ after latest VAR farce Chelsea finally catch a break as Mykhailo Mudryk gets his moment Sir Jim Ratcliffe reportedly considering minority stake bid for Manchester United Premier League now faces a credibility ‘crisis’ after latest VAR farce