David Egan has been announced as the new retained jockey for Amo Racing, signing a two-year contract with Kia Joorabchian’s racing operation.

Rossa Ryan and most recently Kevin Stott have previously held the position of first jockey for the ambitious Amo team who enjoyed their first Royal Ascot and Group One victories in 2023.

The position has been vacant since Stott was released shortly after the Irish Champions Festival where star performer King Of Steel could only finish fourth to Auguste Rodin with Amo electing to book the ‘best available’ jockey for the final months of the 2023 campaign.

That allowed Frankie Dettori to link up with King Of Steel on British Champions Day where Roger Varian’s colt helped provide a thrilling swansong to the Italian’s career in the UK and now it is the opportunity of Varian’s primary rider Egan to get first call on Amo’s wealth of talent.

“I’m very pleased to announce David as our first jockey,” said Joorabchian in a statement from Amo.

“We have had a brilliant ongoing relationship over the years and used David consistently on our horses, going back to Mojo Star’s brilliant second in the Derby.

“We now feel it’s the perfect time to consolidate our team and having David on board will be a valuable addition.”

He went on: “David is a talented, ambitious jockey with experience at the top of the sport having won races of the highest calibre all over the world, and growing up as Roger Varian’s stable jockey has given him invaluable experience and maturity.

“Aware of the size of our organisation, we must implement systems to ensure longevity and I have tremendous confidence in this decision. Having David on board for the next two years will help us develop long-term stability as a team.

“I would also like to thank Roger Varian for his tremendous support, confidence and blessing in this decision.”

Egan was crowned champion apprentice in 2017 and got his first taste of top-level success when riding as retained jockey to Prince Faisal, winning the Saudi Cup, Dubai Sheema Classic and Juddmonte International Stakes aboard Mishriff.

He has since claimed a first Classic aboard Varian’s Eldar Eldarov in the St Leger, with the combination also striking at the Curragh in the Irish equivalent in September.

Egan said: “I’m delighted to have signed a two-year contract with Amo Racing. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Roger and Hanako Varian, and all the Varian Stable team.

“They have been like family to me since I first started in racing, and I’d just like to thank them for their friendship and support over the last seven years.

“I am very excited about the new challenge ahead and I look forward to being part of the Amo Racing team.”

Ange Postecoglou has written a list and checked it twice, but is still patiently waiting to discover if Father Christmas has deemed his work naughty or nice this year.

While all Tottenham and Celtic supporters’ would put the Australian in the latter category for 2023, the fanbases of Arsenal or Rangers may have differing opinions.

Yet regardless of what side of the list Postecoglou ends up on, he knows his wish for Christmas will be difficult to achieve.

With eight players already out injured and Pape Sarr, Yves Bissouma and captain Son Heung-min set to be absent for at least some of January due to international commitments, the Spurs boss would dearly love to get new signings through the door at the beginning of next month.

“I wrote my letter to Santa. Like my kids, now I’ve just got to see whether I’ve been naughty or nice and see what I get mate,” Postecoglou joked when asked about progress on additions ahead of Friday’s trip to Nottingham Forest.

In a more serious tone, he continued: “Obviously with where we’re at injury-wise, the players we’re going to miss, we’ve got some significant games in January and signing somebody late in January could mean they haven’t been able to make an impact in those other games.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Premier League (@premierleague)

“We’re pushing hard but you need all parties to agree to that.

“Other clubs, particularly if it’s players they want, will be wanting to hold on them for as long as possible for their own reasons through January.

“It is a challenge, I get that, but everyone at the club is working hard to get the best outcomes for us and we’ll see how it goes.”

Spurs boss Postecoglou has made clear his desire to sign a new centre-back in January and a versatile attacking player is also top of the club’s wishlist.

JP McManus’ racing manager Frank Berry admitted Mark Walsh found it tough to choose between top-weight Fakir D’oudairies and So Scottish in the Virgin Bet December Gold Cup, before coming down on the side of the latter.

Perhaps not appropriately named given he is owned, trained and will be ridden by an Irishman, So Scottish is only six and followed a very typical softly-softly campaign favoured by his trainer Emmet Mullins last season.

He won a maiden hurdle at Kilbeggan, a novice chase at Tipperary and a three-runner event at Carlisle, before finishing second to Boothill in a £100,000 race at Ascot.

The winner is now rated 18lb higher, while So Scottish went on to finish unplaced at Cheltenham and Aintree before a quiet comeback at Gowran.

Joseph O’Brien’s Fakir D’oudairies, on the other hand, has provided Walsh with Grade One wins at Ascot, Aintree and Fairyhouse.

Berry said: “It was a difficult choice for Mark, as he’s had some great days on Fakir, and he’s in great form and Joseph is happy with him, but he decided to go with Emmet’s.

“It’s hard to choose a top-weight when you’ve got the option of one younger with less weight. Fakir has been very good to Mark and it was hard, but he’s gone with So Scottish.

“I certainly wouldn’t rule out the top-weight, his last run was in a Grade One and now he’s in a handicap. Joseph is happy and he goes there in good order.

“With the other one, we’ll learn a little bit more on Saturday, hopefully he puts in a good round and runs well. His run with Boothill looks good form now.”

Jonjo O’Neill jnr rides Fakir D’oudairies.

Olly Murphy’s Thunder Rock has been favourite all week and the trainer feels he has enjoyed the perfect preparation.

“He ticks a lot of boxes, but that being said, it is still a very competitive handicap worth a lot of money,” said the Wilmcote handler.

“This is his first run in a handicap, he’s very well in himself and schooled well on Thursday morning and I’m looking forward to running him. Hopefully, we get a bit of luck in running, and hopefully he’ll run very well.

“You’d maybe think the handicapper wouldn’t let him run off 146 given how his Carlisle run has worked out.

“He’s in good form, I’m really glad he’s got a run under his belt, he’s coming into it a relatively fresh horse and I really think this outer track will suit him really well, it’s more of a staying track.

“He ran well in the Dipper there last year and stayed on strongly, so hopefully he can get into a rhythm early and we’ll see how he gets on.”

Paul Nicholls runs two in Il Ridoto and Monmiral, with Harry Cobden choosing the latter.

“He’s a Grade One winner over hurdles and ran very well over fences last season against some top horses like Jonbon and The Real Whacker,” Nicholls told Betfair of Monmiral.

“But he probably wasn’t quite right last winter, so we gave him a wind op in the summer because we felt he was struggling with his breathing. His homework this autumn has been really good and he also pleased us in a recent away day.

“I’m going down the handicap route and targeting this race because he is a class horse on an attractive mark of 145. Harry Cobden was keen to ride Monmiral after partnering him in a piece of work.”

On Il Ridoto, Nicholls said: “He is consistent and always runs well, but the task is a bit harder now running off a 5lb higher mark.

“Il Ridoto again ran a solid race in finishing third behind Stage Star in the Paddy Power Gold Cup last month. He might improve plenty from that first run of the season, but will need to if he is to win this.”

Lower down the weights is Alan King’s Grandeur D’Ame, a wide-margin winner at Wetherby last time out.

“I would have liked the weights to have gone up,” said King.

“It’s a big step up for him, but we’ll let him have a crack and see where we are.”

Grandeur D’Ame is 1lb out of the handicap, with Gavin Cromwell’s Railway Hurricane is even further out of the weights.

“Unfortunately, he’s 5lb out of the handicap, but we have a 5lb claimer (Connor Stone-Walsh),” said Cromwell.

“He’s pretty consistent and runs well without winning. It’s a nice pot and he’ll take his chance.”

Jack Jones’ An Bradan Feasa will look to add another good Cheltenham run to his CV in the JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle on Saturday.

The Camelot three-year-old was formerly trained in Ireland by Joseph O’Brien and ran twice for prior connections, once on the Flat and once when winning a Ballinrobe maiden hurdle in September.

He then swapped stables to join Jones in Newmarket, making his debut at Cheltenham in November under Tom Bellamy.

The race was won by the impressive Burdett Road, now highly fancied for the Triumph itself, but there was a great deal to like about An Bradan Feasa’s performance in second.

He returns to Prestbury Park, with Jones hopeful he will take another step en route to the Festival in March.

“He came out of Cheltenham great, he’s a bonny little lad and not a lot bothers him,” said Jones.

“He ran a cracker, having jumped and travelled well, and bumped into a horse who is clearly a good one in Burdett Road.

“The owners were over the moon with that run, we were toying with a few options and it made sense to go back to Cheltenham, having run well over course and distance.

“It’s the owner’s dream and my dream to have a winner there.

“He’s come out of the race great and he’s schooled twice in between, he goes there in really good order.

“We had it in our minds that we’d work back from the Fred Winter and I’d like to think we’d be going there with two good runs (at the track), which will do him no harm at all.”

As he was last time out, Jones’ charge will be ridden by Bellamy, who said: “An Bradan Feasa is a nice horse for a trainer that is going places.

“He did everything right bar win last time, but the right one was in front of us that day, as Burdett Road looks exceptional.

“Although this is on the New course as opposed to the Old one, any form around Cheltenham is a massive plus. He seemed to stay well the last day and he goes there with a live chance.”

An Bradan Feasa is set to meet seven rivals, including Paul Nicholls’ Kabral Du Mathan, who makes his first start on British turf after winning at Clairefontaine in July.

Dan Skelton’s Kourosh also comes into the race in winning form after a 21-length maiden hurdle success at Wetherby in November and so too does Anthony Charlton’s Balboa, who makes his debut for this stable after winning at Chepstow on his final start for Milton Harris.

Eddie Howe will look back on his first Champions League campaign and agonise over the “if only” moments which cost Newcastle a place in the last 16.

The 46-year-old head coach steered the Magpies to within touching distance of the knockout stage only for their qualification hopes to be dashed by Wednesday night’s 2-1 home defeat by AC Milan, during which they were in pole position to progress when they led 1-0.

Instead of looking forward to the draw for the next round, Howe is instead preparing his injury-hit squad for Saturday’s Premier League clash against Fulham, with the controversial penalty decision which cost them victory at Paris St Germain and their failure to deal with the set-piece which led to Milan’s equaliser prominent in his thoughts.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by UEFA Champions League (@championsleague)

He said: “We were so close, so, so close while being really stretched with our resources, and that’s why I have to compliment the players on what they’ve given.

“It could have been very different and I just think we should take confidence from the fact that the hardest group, we were so close to achieving it.”

Newcastle secured a Champions League berth for the first time in 20 years courtesy of their fourth-place finish last season, an achievement which arrived barely 18 months into the tenure of their Saudi-backed owners and significantly ahead of schedule.

Asked if he had spoken to the ownership group and what had been said in the wake of Wednesday night’s disappointment, Howe replied: “ I think they see the work that goes on behind closed doors and they have close relationships with the players. We are like a family, we’re very close.

“That’s not just me with them, it’s everybody connected with the club. There’s just that feeling that they’re very supportive of the players and understanding of how much they’ve given. They can see the efforts on the pitch, and I think that’s the most important thing.

“That’s why I have no regrets over what the players have given over this Champions League campaign. I might have regrets over a couple of other things, but not at all over what the players have given. That’s always the biggest judgement for me.

“If you’re looking at it analytically, the players did incredibly well last year to finish where they did. It was miles ahead of schedule because, in pre-season, no one was talking about top four or Champions League football.

“You have to give the players a lot of credit, so what you can’t then do is give them a lot of credit and then hammer them at the same time because we couldn’t then follow that up.”

Howe did, however, admit that the exit from Europe could have financial implications for his January transfer budget.

He said: “Of course, going out of Europe will have repercussions financially for us because we’re going to lose revenue on games that we could have had, but that’s all been budgeted for and we’ll see where we stand.”

Influential full-back Kieran Trippier will miss Saturday’s game through suspension, while midfielder Joe Willock and striker Harvey Barnes, who has suffered a setback in his recovery from a toe injury, are unlikely to figure before the turn of the year.

Rebecca Welch’s historic appointment to officiate a Premier League match has been welcomed by Newcastle boss Eddie Howe.

The 40-year-old Welch will become the first female referee in top-flight history when she takes charge of the Fulham v Burnley match on December 23.

Welch was also fourth official for the Cottagers’ home game against Manchester United last month.

Howe applauded the decision to appoint Welch and said: “I think it’s a great moment.

“For me, it’s got to be based on ability, not gender, ability to referee and I fully support it.”

Sam Allison will become the first black man to referee a top-flight match in 15 years when he takes charge of the Sheffield United v Luton game on Boxing Day.

Kick It Out also welcomed the news of Welch and Allison’s appointments.

“Referees up and down the land are waking up this morning and thinking there are no barriers to get to the top,” the anti-discrimination charity posted on X.

“Visibility matters. Well done to @FA_PGMOL and organisations like @BAMERef for helping to create those journeys. There are many more inspirational stories to be told.”

England captain Harry Kane has enlisted the help of Google’s AI tool Bard to help his family get ready to settle into their new life in Munich.

Kane left boyhood club Tottenham in August to join Bayern Munich in a £100million transfer and has already scored 22 goals in 20 appearances for the German outfit.

While Kane has hit the ground running with Bayern, he has been living in Munich on his own after his wife Kate gave birth to their fourth child Henry a week after his big-money move.

However, Kane’s family are set to permanently join him in Germany shortly and the 30-year-old has joined forces with Google to showcase how Bard can help with every day situations on and off the pitch.

“I am excited to be teaming up with Google, especially on a product as impressive as Bard,” Kane said.

“I recognise how the potential of AI can help me in all sorts of ways with my move to Germany and to get my kids settled into a new life in Munich.

“Bard even suggested some new goal celebrations – we’ll have to see if I use them on the pitch!”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Kane (@harrykane)

During a series of short video clips, Kane asked Bard to help his children adjust to life in Munich by coming up with a bedtime story to explain why they should be excited about moving to Germany.

He also used Google’s AI tool to plan a treasure hunt through Munich’s most famous sights and got Bard to translate his most commonly used English phrases in post-match interviews to German.

Google UKI’s Eileen Mannion added: “We’re thrilled to be teaming up with Harry Kane on our latest campaign, which shows how Google’s conversational AI Bard can help anyone, even the England’s football captain, in everyday situations.”

What the papers say

The potential ins and outs at Manchester United continue to keep the rumour mill turning with Brazil midfielder Casemiro at the heart of the speculation. According to The Sun, via French outlet Sports Zone, Paris St Germain are keen on the 31-year-old with Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal also interested.

There appears less interest among clubs in ending Jadon Sancho’s time at Old Trafford. The Sun says Manchester United are finding it hard to find a buyer willing to match the 23-year-old’s wages.

One former United player has teased a potential playing return on social media after leaving in the summer. The Daily Mirror reports David De Gea, 33, posted an Instagram message saying “Work, work, work” having been linked with Newcastle or even a shock return to Old Trafford.

Defender Tosin Adarabioyo’s return from injury at Fulham is attracting potential suitors. The Daily Mail says the 26-year-old is catching the eye having almost left for Monaco or Tottenham in the summer.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Cedric Soares: Arsenal’s Portuguese defender, 32, is catching the of Villarreal, says ESPN.

Kendry Paez: The 16-year-old Ecuador midfielder has trained with Chelsea according to The Daily Telegraph, having signed from Independiente del Valle in the summer ahead of a move on his 18th birthday.

James Harden had 28 points and 15 assists and Kawhi Leonard added 27 points to send the Los Angeles Clippers to their sixth straight victory, 121-113 over the slumping Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

Harden, who also had seven rebounds, became the 24th player in NBA history to score 25,000 points on a driving layup late in the third quarter.

Norman Powell scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter for the Clippers, who played without Paul George but won for the 11th time in 14 games.

Klay Thompson scored a season-high 30 points with eight 3-pointers as Golden State went 0-3 on its road trip and has lost 12 of 16.

Reid, Towns lead Wolves past Mavericks

Naz Reid scored 19 of his season-high 27 points in the first half and the Minnesota Timberwolves overcame an early 15-point deficit in a 119-101 win over the Dallas Mavericks in a matchup of division leaders.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and a season-best 17 rebounds for the Wolves, who have won seven of eight to tie Boston for the NBA’s best record (18-5).

Luka Dončić tallied 39 points and 13 assists, but Dallas had a four-game winning streak stopped. He scored at least 30 points for the ninth consecutive game, averaging 35.1 during that span.

Celtics continue home dominance

Jayson Tatum scored 27 points and Jaylen Brown added 22 as the Boston Celtics remained unbeaten at home with a 116-107 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Kristaps Porzingis had 18 points and Jrue Holiday contributed 14 to help the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics move to 12-0 at home this season.

The Cavaliers got 31 points from Donovan Mitchell and 26 from Caris LeVert in their third straight loss.

Boston’s lead was cut to three entering the fourth quarter, but Tatum sparked a quick spurt with a fadeaway and a 3-pointer to make it 101-91 with 8 ½ minutes left.

Steven Stamkos notched his first career four-goal game and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 53 shots as the Tampa Bay Lightning snapped the Edmonton Oilers’ eight-game winning streak, 7-4 on Thursday.

Nikita Kucherov had a goal and two assists to increase his league-leading points total to 50. Tyler Motte and Anthony Cirelli also scored as the Lightning improved to 2-2 on a five-game road trip.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and two assists for the Oilers, who fell a win shy of matching the longest win streak in franchise history.

Vasilevskiy’s 53 saves were one short of his career high, set in a 5-4 win at Washington on March 20, 2019.

Evan Bouchard had two assists to extend his point streak to 13 games, the second-longest by an Oilers defenseman behind only current assistant coach Paul Coffey’s 28-game run in 1985-86.   

Tampa Bay scored the only two goals in the first period before Edmonton answered with three goals of its own in the second.

Stamkos tallied the equaliser with his second of the game at 6:48 of the third and Kucherov made it 4-3 six minutes later. Stamkos struck again with 5:58 remaining before Nugent-Hopkins made it a one-goal game with 2:22 to play.

Cirelli and Stamkos added empty-net goals to officially end the Oilers’ run.

Blue Jackets blow 5-goal lead in 3rd but win in OT

Kent Johnson scored his second goal of the game in overtime and the Columbus Blue Jackets came away with a 6-5 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs after blowing a 5-goal lead in the third period.

William Nylander started Toronto’s comeback just 38 seconds into the third period and Mitch Marner made it 5-2 three minutes later.

Jake McCabe scored a power-play goal with 5:39 left in regulation and Auston Matthews scored twice in 30 seconds, his second coming with 45 seconds to go in the third period.

Matthews’ two goals gave him a league-leading 23 this season.

Toronto has points in eight straight games (5-0-3).

Canucks’ Demko shuts out Panthers

Thatcher Demko made 36 saves and Dakota Joshua scored twice to lead the Vancouver Canucks to their fourth straight win, 4-0 over the Florida Panthers.

Demko turned away 15 shots in the first period, six in the second and 15 more in the third for this third shutout of the season.

Brock Boeser and Andrei Kuzmenko also had goals and the Canucks joined Vegas as the only teams to reach 20 victories this season.

Florida suffered a second consecutive 4-0 loss following Tuesday’s defeat at Seattle.

Celtic completed the signing of Roy Keane on a free transfer on this day in 2005.

A month earlier, Keane had abruptly left Manchester United by mutual consent after his relationship with manager Sir Alex Ferguson deteriorated during a spell on the sidelines through injury.

Keane had been hurt in a challenge with Liverpool’s Luis Garcia in September of that year and grew frustrated while out.

He had already clashed with Ferguson during the club’s pre-season training camp in Portugal, and then angered the manager with an MUTV interview in which he said he was open to finishing his career elsewhere as his contract ran down.

A further MUTV appearance in early November did even more damage as the United skipper gave a damning assessment of some of his team-mates’ performances in a 4-1 defeat to Middlesbrough.

In 12 full seasons with United, Keane had won seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League, but Ferguson was his usual ruthless self and, as tensions mounted, he cut ties as Keane’s contract was cancelled.

Gordon Strachan’s Celtic pounced as Keane joined the club he had supported as a boy – the midfielder signing an 18-month deal.

He would have to wait until January to make his debut, but it came in a shock 2-1 defeat to First Division Clyde in the Scottish Cup.

A month later, Keane scored in a Scottish Premier League win over Falkirk, which proved to be his only goal for the club.

After helping Celtic to win both the league title and Scottish League Cup, Keane retired that summer on medical advice.

The announcement came a month after he had returned to Old Trafford for his United testimonial, a friendly against Celtic in which Keane played 45 minutes for each side.

Las Vegas Raiders chalked up six touchdowns before half-time as they cruised to a 63-21 win over AFC West rivals the Los Angeles Chargers.

Having lost 3-0 to the Minnesota Vikings in their last match, the Raiders offence clicked back into gear to set a franchise record for points scored.

Aiden O’Connell threw for four touchdown passes in the first half, Zamir White and Brandon Bolden running for two more as they opened a 42-0 lead.

Wide receiver Jakobi Meyers added insult to injury with a touchdown pass to Davante Adams at the start of the third quarter.

Easton Stick, starting in place of injured quarterback Justin Herbert, finally took the Chargers over halfway for the first time as he hooked up with Joshua Palmer from 79 yards.

The Raiders added two more defensive touchdowns – John Jenkins running a fumble return in from 44 yards before Jack Jones followed suit from an interception – before Stick passed for two late scores.

The win ends a three-game losing streak and lifts the Raiders to 6-8 and off the foot of the division, above the Chargers who have lost five of their last six games.

On the same day they introduced Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired frontline starter Tyler Glasnow from the Tampa Bay Rays, according to multiple reports.

There is an agreement in place for the Dodgers to get Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot from Tampa Bay for right-hander Ryan Pepiot and outfield prospect Jonny Deluca.

The teams have not confirmed the deal because it is contingent on Glasnow signing a contract extension with the Dodgers, which could happen as early as Friday, according to sources.

Glasnow, 30, was among the top pitchers available in the trade market and gives the Dodgers ace potential. He went 10-7 with a 3.53 ERA and 162 strikeouts in 21 starts last season and posted a 3.20 ERA in six seasons with Tampa Bay.

Glasnow, though, has had trouble staying healthy and his 120 innings last season were a career high. In his five years as a full-time starting pitcher, the right-hander has undergone Tommy John surgery and spent separate time on the injured list due to a forearm strain, an elbow sprain and an oblique strain.

Margot is a highly regarded defender and joins a Dodgers' outfield that already includes James Outman, Chris Taylor and Jason Heyward.

Margot batted .264 with four home runs and 38 RBIs in 99 games last season and is a career .255 hitter in 788 games.

Pepiot is the key to the deal for the Rays after he entered the 2023 season ranked No. 70 on MLB’s top-100 prospect list. The 26-year-old was expected to be part of the Dodgers’ rotation after he was called up in August and had a 2.14 ERA in 42 innings with 38 strikeouts and five walks.

Pepiot enters the season with just one year of service time, giving Tampa Bay five years of control before he reaches free agency.

Deluca, 25, broke into the majors last season and hit .262 with two homers and six RBIs in 45 plate appearances. He can play anywhere in the outfield.