Crystal Palace cancelled a press conference to preview Monday’s Premier League game against Everton after under-pressure manager Roy Hodgson was taken ill during training.

The 76-year-old former England boss was due to speak at 1.30pm on Thursday but members of the media waiting outside the club’s New Beckenham training ground were informed the briefing would not take place.

According to reports, Palace are set to sack Hodgson, with ex-Eintracht Frankfurt boss Oliver Glasner a strong favourite to take the job.

An update from the club read: “Unfortunately, today’s press conference will no longer take place as scheduled as Roy Hodgson was taken ill during this morning’s training session.”

Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth appears to be a man in demand as new Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe attempts to establish a new era at Old Trafford.

Reports claim Ratcliffe has identified Ashworth as the man he wants to oversee a reboot after his purchase of a 25 per cent stake in the club was approved by the Football Association.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at Ashworth’s credentials and career to date.

Who is Dan Ashworth?

Ashworth, 52, is a renowned football administrator who was head-hunted by Newcastle’s new Saudi-backed owners to take up the role of sporting director, which he did in June 2022 after serving a period of notice with former club Brighton. Handed responsibility for the club’s “overarching sporting strategy, football development and recruitment at all ages”, he oversaw the Magpies’ surge to a fourth-place Premier League finish and the return of Champions League football to Tyneside after an absence of two decades in his first season in the role.

What is his background?

Having been released by Norwich’s Academy as a 17-year-old full-back, Ashworth worked as a PE teacher while studying for his coaching badges – including the UEFA Pro Licence – and playing semi-professionally for St Leonards and Wisbech Town before a spell in the United States with West Florida Fury.

Where has he worked?

He was handed his first full-time role by Peterborough, where he began life as the club’s education and welfare officer and worked his way up to Academy director during Barry Fry’s reign as manager. He spent three years as director of Cambridge’s Centre of Excellence before joining forces with Aidy Boothroyd to establish West Brom’s Academy. However, it was in his role with the FA, which he took up in 2012, that his stock rose sharply. He was the man responsible for instilling an “England DNA”, an ethos encompassing the entire international set-up at St George’s Park, which has been cited as a major factor in the senior team’s progression to the latter stages of the last three major tournaments as well as success at age group level. In 2018, he joined Brighton and helped to establish the club as an emerging Premier League force.

What are his strengths?

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Ashworth is far more than a transfer guru. A man credited with an eye for undiscovered talent, his involvement on that front in recent years – and certainly at Newcastle – has been to get the deal done when a target has been identified and agreed upon. However, he sees himself largely as the hub of a wheel, linking the various activities of a club’s football operations strategically and ensuring all are functioning to the benefit of the whole. His breadth of experience in different aspects of the business and his personable manner allow him to interact effectively with staff from top to bottom.

How easy will it be to prise him away from St James’ Park?

Given their determination to get him in the first place – he resigned from his job Brighton in February 2022 and had to wait around four months to get to work at St James’ – Newcastle will be understandably reluctant to allow Ashworth to leave. However, they are equally aware that should United adopt a similar approach to theirs having persuaded their man his future lies elsewhere – after another suitable spell of gardening leave – they may simply be better off biting the bullet and negotiating his departure. Asked about his exit from the AMEX Stadium in October 2022, Ashworth said: “Sometimes in life an opportunity comes along where you just go, ‘Blimey, it’s just too good to turn down’.” That time may have arrived once again.

Manchester United are hoping to bring in Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth, the PA news agency understands.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s deal to acquire a 25 per cent stake of the Old Trafford giants and take control of football operations is expected to be completed next week.

The Ineos chairman’s determination to hit the ground running has seen his team move to strengthen United’s football leadership team, with recruitment a particular area of focus.

Manchester City’s Omar Berrada is coming in as chief executive and the Red Devils are hoping Newcastle sporting director Ashworth will form part of their new-look hierarchy.

United want to bring in the former Football Association technical director, but a deal is not necessarily straightforward given negotiations with the Magpies over cost and timeframes.

The PA news agency understands poor player trading has been a key area targeted for improvement by Ineos as they prepare to take control of football operations.

Sales have been pinpointed as a concern on top of United’s missteps making signings.

Cheltenham Festival-winning jockey Jamie Moore has announced his retirement from the saddle on medical advice following a fall last year.

Moore is the son of trainer Gary and the brother of Josh, Ryan and Hayley – all of whom are well-known faces in the racing industry.

After starting out in 2001, Moore was the champion conditional rider at the end of the 2003-04 season when based in Somerset with Martin Pipe, for whom he rode his first significant winners in graded events.

Naturally much of his riding was on behalf of his father and it was the popular chestnut Sire De Grugy who became the horse of a lifetime for both when winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2014 – one of 17 victories, with Moore in the saddle each time.

Moore rode 968 winners across his career and took the 2014 Scottish Grand National on Al Co for trainer Peter Bowen in the same season that Sire De Grugy was on the Grade One-winning streak that saw him named British Jumps Horse of the Year.

A heavy fall at Lingfield in late November last year left the rider with a fractured vertebra as well as broken ribs and a broken nose, with doctors advising him not return to the saddle as a result of the injuries he sustained.

In a statement issued via the Professional Jockeys Association, he said: “It is with huge regret that, following my last fall in November 2023, I will not be returning to race riding.

“After being checked by top neurologists and spinal specialists, and taking advice from Dr Jerry Hill and the doctors who’ve seen me the most in my career – Dr Rizwan Ghani and Dr Lucy Free – I have been medically advised not to race ride again.

“I would like to thank everyone who has stuck by me and supported me throughout my 22-year career. Obviously I have been very lucky to have such a good trainer in my father Gary, who’s always supported me, along with his brilliant, faithful owners. My mother Jayne and my wife Lucie have also always been there for me.

“Back to the start and my first boss, Mr Pipe, who helped me become champion conditional. To every other trainer and every owner I’ve ridden for; my agent Dave Roberts; my sponsors; all the brilliant stable staff and the PJA and the Injured Jockeys Fund, who have always been so supportive.

“Finally, to the best place you could wish to work – the weighing room. To all the physios, tea boys and ladies, nurses and weighing room staff who have made each day of going to work much more enjoyable.

“And to all the brilliant jockeys and valets past and present who I’ve made lifelong friends with. I will hugely miss the weighing room. There have been some ups and plenty of downs but everyone is always there for you. You’ve all been top class.

“It’s impossible to put into words how thankful I am to each and every one of you.”

Dale Gibson, executive director of the PJA, added: “Jamie unfortunately suffered more than his fair share of long-term injuries and missed the equivalent of four years race riding during his career as a result, but his remarkable fortitude and appetite for race riding shone like a beacon throughout his career.

“Jamie was and will remain universally popular within the weighing room and wider racing industry. His down to earth, no-nonsense approach alongside his genuine love of the horse (should) be wholeheartedly applauded.

“He also served his colleagues and the PJA exceptionally well as southern-based National Hunt safety officer since December 2019, as well as being (a_ dependable source for general advice to the PJA and younger jockeys both on and off the racecourse.

“Jamie has been a pleasure to represent and will be sorely missed in the weighing room. We wish him, his wife Lucie and their family all the very best and we look forward to seeing him on a racecourse soon in his second career.”

Stephen Curry labelled the Golden State Warriors as "very average" after they gave up a big lead against the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Warriors looked set to claim a sixth straight win after a strong first three quarters against the Clippers on Wednesday.

However, despite at one stage holding a 15-point lead, and a 13-point advantage heading into the final quarter, the Warriors could not hold on.

It is the sixth time this season that Golden State have lost after holding a 15-point lead - only the San Antonio Spurs have a poorer record.

And Curry, who finished with 41 points, bluntly said: "We're very average. 

"Very average doesn't get it done in this league. We need to make a run, hopefully, we bounce back tomorrow and after the All-Star break hit a stride where we win every game [at home] and steal a few on the road.

"We've been very average so far, so we have to regain that home-court fear that we have grown accustomed to in the past."

The Warriors blew a 22-point lead against the Clippers earlier in the season, and held an 11-point lead when their coach Tyronn Lue was ejected midway through the fourth quarter.

Yet the Clippers then went on a 36-22 streak, and Curry acknowledged the Warriors came up against an in-form side.

"They're a really good team that has some confidence, and we're still trying to prove that we're that type of team," Curry said.

While the Clippers are third in the Western Conference, the Warriors are 10th, just above the playoff line.

"Either way, how tonight would have gone, we would say the same thing about tomorrow, we're trying to keep the streak going and not have any missteps," added Curry.

"Now, it's the same mission but a different mindset of bounding back and just feeling good going into a six-day break. It's a very, very, very, very important game, to say the least."

Jamie Snowden’s You Wear It Well will head for the relocated Ashton Mares’ Hurdle at Haydock on Saturday after a campaign disrupted by adverse weather.

The seven-year-old was the winner of the Jack De Bromhead Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival last season and made a good start to this term when taking the Listed bet365 Mares’ Hurdle at Wetherby on debut.

In Grade One company she was third home in the Fighting Fifth when it was relocated to Sandown, the first of several occasions when her plans were interrupted by the ramifications of the British weather in winter.

Outings to Sandown, Lingfield and Ascot were all scuppered due to conditions, and the Warwick meeting that originally included the Ashton Mares’ Hurdle was also abandoned last weekend.

Haydock will now host that contest this weekend, with the two-mile-three-furlong Listed event attracting five runners.

Snowden said: “She’s in great order, she’s done some work on the grass and she’ll hopefully be heading to Haydock on Saturday.

“She was meant to go to Sandown, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Lingfield, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Ascot, that was cancelled, she was meant to go to Warwick and that was cancelled!

“Finally we’re going to be able to get the run, let’s hope Haydock survives the weather as well.”

You Wear It Well holds an entry for the Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and the race remains the likely target, though Snowden may also give her an entry in the Coral Cup.

He said: “As ever each race determines the next race, that’s the nature of racing, but the Mares’ Hurdle is probably the obvious race to go for, though I might give her an entry in the Coral Cup as well.”

Detroit Pistons coach Monty Williams was left unimpressed by the Phoenix Suns issuing a statement following Isaiah Stewart's arrest.

Pistons center Stewart was arrested after he punched Phoenix's Drew Eubanks before Wednesday's meeting between the Suns and Detroit.

Stewart, who was already out of the game due to an ankle injury, was issued with a citation and released, reported ESPN, citing Phoenix police.

Eubanks, meanwhile, helped the Suns win 116-100. The Phoenix center said the altercation with Stewart took place as he was coming into the arena, explaining an argument sparked before security intervened.

In a statement, the Suns said: "The attack on Drew Eubanks was unprovoked, and acts of violence such as this are unacceptable.

"We unequivocally support Drew, and will continue to work with local law enforcement and the NBA."

Williams, who was sacked by the Suns last season, questioned his former team, however.

"The thing is to get all of the information. The NBA will do an investigation," Williams said.

"For me to come here and make a statement would be a bit irresponsible. I know the Suns said it was unprovoked; I think that is irresponsible for sure. You really don't know.

"That did not need to happen. There is a time for the information to be gathered, and then you can make a statement."

A Pistons statement added: "We are in the process of gathering information about what happened and what provoked it, and responding to the NBA and local authorities."

Suns talisman Kevin Durant, who finished with 25 points, said: "Keep the game first. There's a lot of noise. 

"It's unfortunate what happened before the game, it's supposed to be a brotherhood. But I also understand, dudes get into stuff. We try to avoid that in this league, hopefully we can move on from it. We all support Drew."

Cole Palmer admits it will be “weird” going back to Manchester City on Saturday as a Chelsea player.

Palmer makes a first return to the Etihad Stadium since moving to west London in a surprise switch at the end of the summer transfer window.

The 21-year-old cost Chelsea an initial £40million with an additional £2.5m in possible add-ons, but the deal has proved value for money as Palmer tops the Blues’ scoring charts with 12 goals.

“I have been surprised by how well it’s gone here so quickly, but I always back myself to succeed,” Palmer told the club’s official website.

“I’m looking forward to going back to the Etihad. It will be strange, a weird feeling, but I’m looking forward to it and the team’s looking forward to it.

“I’m very excited to be honest, even though it will be strange.

“Obviously I played against them at Stamford Bridge, but I think going back to the Etihad will be even stranger.”

The two teams produced a remarkable 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge in November when Palmer equalised from the penalty spot in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

Ten of Palmer’s Chelsea goals have come in the Premier League and his form has catapulted him into contention for a place in England’s Euro 2024 squad this summer.

“When I made the decision to come down here with my family it was a really tough decision to leave,” said Palmer, who joined City at the age of eight and began the season by scoring for them in the Community Shield and Super Cup final.

“But I felt like I was ready to play week in, week out and showcase my ability.

“So thank you to the club and everyone who has supported me.

“It’s down to the manager (Mauricio Pochettino) giving me the freedom, the club giving me the opportunity and the lads, who have been great with me since I came in.

“I’ve settled fast so I’m enjoying it here.”

Chelsea have had an inconsistent season under Pochettino and are currently 10th in the Premier League, 20 points behind leaders Liverpool and 18 adrift of City.

But successive 3-1 wins at Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, the former coming in the FA Cup, have ensured that Chelsea take on Pep Guardiola’s English, European and FIFA World Club champions with growing confidence.

Palmer said: “The manager helps us all every day. Little conversations telling us what to do.

“We have meetings and he believes in us and we believe in ourselves.

“Everyone’s going to talk when you’re not doing well, but we just need to try and block it out and focus on ourselves.”

Mark Wood shone on his recall but hundreds from India captain Rohit Sharma and hometown hero Ravindra Jadeja blunted England’s charge on the opening day of the third Test.

Left out in Visakhapatnam, where the hosts levelled the series at 1-1, Wood rewarded England’s gamble to select two seamers for the first time this tour by finding the edges of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill as India stumbled to 33 for three.

But Joe Root’s drop to reprieve Rohit on 27 was a sliding doors moment as the opener added another 104 before falling to Wood, who finished with three for 69 and ran out the lively Sarfaraz Khan on debut.

Jadeja made a princely 110 not out on his return from a hamstring injury but England might have snared both centurions had they reviewed shortly before they reached three figures on a chastening day which finished with India on 326 for five.

Despite Ben Stokes calling incorrectly at the toss on his 100th Test, the early morning moisture aided England’s bowlers and they capitalised by leaving India three down inside the first nine overs.

As temperatures rose in Gujarat and the pitch gradually flattened out, Rohit, Jadeja then Sarfaraz, who contributed 62 off just 66 balls, helped India wrestle control as they added 151 in the last session.

England’s quicks shared new-ball duties and were punished for overpitching but Wood adjusted and gained some extra bounce and a hint of movement as he angled across Jaiswal, a double centurion in Vizag who made 10 as a tentative poke caught the edge and was gobbled up by Root at first slip.

Gill looked ill-at-ease and departed for a nine-ball duck in Wood’s next over after playing inside the line and nicking off, having been beaten through the gate by the previous delivery.

When Tom Hartley found grip and turn from an innocuous length in his first over, Rajat Patidar miscued to cover on five.

Jadeja was shuffled up one place to spare Sarfaraz a baptism of fire but the debutant might have walked in with India on 47 for four had a diving Root held on when Rohit edged an attempted flick off Hartley.

Root’s drop seemed inconsequential when Rohit was given lbw off James Anderson three balls later but an inside edge saw the decision overturned. Having been sconed on the grill by a spiteful Wood lifter and left needing treatment after inside edging on to his thigh, Rohit was struggling but hanging in there.

As the surface became more docile under the beating hot sun, he and Jadeja made hay either side of lunch, with Rohit surviving a tight lbw call on 49 to move to his first Test 50 in nine innings.

He cast off the shackles by depositing both Hartley and Root over long-on as England toiled without reward in a wicketless middle session.

A sinking feeling may have pervaded for the tourists after they failed to review a muted lbw appeal when Rohit missed a sweep on 87. While the ball might have brushed Rohit’s glove, it definitely thudded into his forearm and would have gone on to crash into leg stump.

Third umpire Rod Tucker was spared a tricky decision and Rohit brought up his century after tea before looking to turn the screw, perishing when a full-blooded heave took a top-edge and was caught by Stokes. The Durham pair celebrated wildly after ending a 204-run union but it was brief respite.

Jadeja was strong all around the wicket and especially off his hips, getting a short-arm pull off Wood to go the distance, before offering his first chance on 93. Hartley seemed to beat the inside edge with one that skidded on and the ball would have gone on to clatter middle stump.

Sarfaraz, who was drafted in for his international bow with a lofty first-class average of 69.85, poured salt into the wound as India moved through the gears. The 26-year-old was not overawed by the occasion, handling England’s spinners with ease and driving superbly.

He moved briskly to a 48-ball 50 but he was left high and dry when his partner was on 99. Setting off for a single which would have taken Jadeja to three figures, Sarfaraz was sent back and left well short of his crease following Wood’s direct hit.

There were muted celebrations when Jadeja reached his hundred just before stumps but his contribution helped India gain control.

Ferny Hollow will not make his long-awaited return to action in the Red Mills Chase at Gowran on Saturday due to the going.

The Willie Mullins-trained gelding was at one stage amongst the most exciting horses in training, winning the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham by two and half lengths in 2020.

He ran just the once over hurdles, winning a maiden ahead of Bob Olinger, and over a year later he returned to the track to start his chasing career in December 2021.

His debut over fences was a four-length Punchestown victory, after which he landed the Grade One Racing Post Novice Chase at Leopardstown before injury intervened.

Now a nine-year-old, Ferny Hollow was entered to make his comeback at the weekend –  some 783 days after his last start.

The ground at Gowran is heavy, however, and connections have therefore decided this weekend will not be right opportunity to reintroduce the horse to the racecourse.

Chris Richardson, managing director of owners Cheveley Park Stud, said: “He’s not running because of the ground.

“I know that Willie was hoping to run him but obviously he’s been off a while, he has had a lot of issues over the last year or two.

“We’re just creeping back towards a run so we’ll see what happens, but at this point in time it’s not quite going to happen.”

Emma Lavelle says it would be “pretty cool” if Paisley Park manages to get his head in front in the Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle next month.

The popular 12-year-old will be running in the race for an incredible sixth time, and it will be his seventh appearance in all at the Festival. He won the race back in 2019 and finished third behind Flooring Porter in both 2021 and 2022.

While his career looked to be coming to an end when unplaced last year, he has been beaten in three tight finishes this term, including when narrowly denied by Crambo, one of the favourites for the Stayers’, in bidding for a remarkable fourth win in Ascot’s Long Walk Hurdle.

“Touch wood he’s in great form, he had an easy week after the Cleeve and he’s back cantering away now,” said Lavelle.

“He’s had a little stride along the last couple of days and he thinks he’s King Kong, which I suppose is a good thing!

“There’s been nothing between him and Crambo or him and Noble Yeats who we had to give 6lb to (in the Cleeve Hurdle), and they are much shorter than him in the betting.

“There’s a lot of horses we’ve come up against already that are in the race and there are a few new ones, but if he brings his A-game, you’d have to hope he’d be in the shake up anyway.

“We love him to bits, but he doesn’t half put you through the ringer! He builds you up then sometimes he thinks ‘OK’, then sometimes he just thinks ‘nah, it’s not working for me today’. He’s extraordinary.”

She went on: “People say to me ‘will this be his last run at Cheltenham?’, but at the end of the day only he will decide. Look at where we were after the Stayers’ last year, it’s hard to believe he’s had three runs in two Grade Twos and a Grade One and and the combined distance he’s been beaten is less than a neck.

“Some of the horses he’s running against weren’t even born when he won his first Long Walk, like Paul Nicholls’ (Blueking D’Oroux), it’s ridiculous.

“If he was to win it would be pretty cool, but that’s his problem at the moment, he’s going racing and everyone is cheering him and telling him they love him so he thinks he’s won, we have to remind him he’s finished second!”

Tiger Woods believes the PGA Tour does not need to strike a deal with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) in a move which could end golf’s civil war.

PGA Tour players will benefit from equity of more than £1.1billion after the US-based circuit secured an investment deal with Strategic Sports Group (SSG).

The deal also allows for a future “co-investment” from the PIF, which bankrolls the breakaway LIV Golf league, but Woods has joined Jordan Spieth in suggesting that may no longer be necessary.

An initial “framework agreement” between the PIF, PGA Tour and DP World Tour was announced on June 6 last year and had a deadline of December 31, but that was subsequently extended.

“Ultimately we would like to have PIF be a part of our tour and a part of our product,” Woods said in a press conference ahead of the Genesis Invitational, his first tournament of 2024.

“Financially, we don’t right now, and the monies that they have come to the table with and what we initially had agreed to in the framework agreement, those are all the same numbers.

“Anything beyond this is going to be obviously over and above.”

Asked if he had a sense of what PIF’s ultimate goal was, Woods added: “From what their representatives have discussed with us, yes and no, because that changes and that evolves from a few months ago to what it is currently now.

“I don’t know if it’s good or bad, it’s an ongoing, fluid process.”

Woods was one of six PGA Tour player-directors who voted unanimously in favour of the deal with SSG, a consortium of US-based investors which includes Boston Red Sox and Liverpool owner John Henry.

“The consortium that they have at SSG, the partners that have come together to be a part of this group is quite remarkable to be honest with you in the sports industry,” the 15-time major winner said.

“They’re unbelievable leaders. At the time that we need great leadership going forward, I think this elicits that.”

Nico de Boinville knows Constitution Hill’s electrifying jumping leaves “no margin for error” – particularly in the white-hot cauldron of the Unibet Champion Hurdle.

Nicky Henderson’s star is chasing a second successive win in the race having demolished State Man by nine lengths last year.

There are those who feel State Man has enjoyed a better preparation this term, and he has won four Grade Ones since that reverse while Constitution Hill has only been seen once since April.

However, De Boinville has full faith that Henderson is the right man for getting a horse to peak on the big day.

“I couldn’t have been happier with him at Kempton. State Man has gone and done what he does on that side of the Irish Sea, but there are still four weeks to go and you are just keeping all fingers crossed,” De Boinville told talkSPORT2.

“I’ve been going there before with the likes of Altior and at the last minute things go wrong, so you are just hoping everything goes right and we have a very good prep.”

Regarding his mount’s incredible jumping technique he went on: “You really do feel like there’s no margin for error because you are going so fast, you are literally just clipping the top bar. You are going very, very quick and there will be no exception in the Champion Hurdle, it’s going to be run at a very good pace and hopefully the right horse wins.

“He’s (Henderson) definitely not one to doubt. If the weather hadn’t stopped us, he would have had two runs and no one would be saying anything as he’d have gone to the Fighting Fifth and Christmas Hurdle, so ultimately we were stopped because of the weather.

“Hopefully he’ll be busy enough in the spring, you can go to Aintree and Punchestown after Cheltenham if he comes through it well.”

Henderson and De Boinville enjoyed a good day at Newbury on Saturday when Iberico Lord won the feature Betfair Hurdle, but perhaps more importantly Shishkin booked his Gold Cup ticket with a straightforward win after an interrupted season.

De Boinville said: “It was very encouraging. I heard someone refer to him as an inconsistent horse, but I tend to disagree with that. Once he sets off he tends to put up really good runs and more often than not he’s somewhere near the winner’s enclosure.

“I had no doubts on Saturday, from the point I got on him in the paddock he was raring to go and wanted to get on with it. As soon as I lined up he was happy, the tapes went up and away he went.

“I was happy with him, he took a good blow as well so it was a really good prep race for him going towards the Gold Cup.

“One thing that Shishkin does do is finish strong, over three miles or two. He’s quirky in a sense that he can race behind the bridle, race lazily and the suddenly pick it up again, you just have to keep encouraging him forward.

“I think he’s best of the British. I’m looking forward to seeing what L’Homme Presse does at Ascot, but Galopin Des Champs definitely sets the standard, I’d like to think we’d definitely serve it up to him.”