Kyle Walker will continue wearing the Manchester City captain’s armband for now – but has refused to reveal who the long-term skipper will be.

The England right-back has led City so far this term after previous incumbent Ilkay Gundogan left the club following last season’s treble success.

As in previous campaigns, the squad have held a vote to determine the make-up of the players’ leadership group, from which a senior figure usually emerges as captain.

Walker has revealed that this season the group comprises of himself, Kevin De Bruyne, Ruben Dias, Rodri and Bernardo Silva but has given no further information.

That could suggest De Bruyne, who is currently sidelined through injury, is the player who will ultimately take up the mantle but Walker insists it does not matter who it is.

“There is a captain but I just feel out of respect to everyone that’s involved in it, there’s no numbers,” said the England international.

“We’re a team and we (the leadership group) are a team inside a team, and whoever wears the armband or has the armband on the day, is going to wear the armband until the time is right, until certain members in that captaincy group feel it’s right to announce the number or the order.

“That’s what we’ll do but, until then, I’m wearing the armband because I was the third captain last season and I’ll continue to wear it for the rest of the season until the time’s right.

“I don’t even think it’s really necessary. We’re a team inside a team.”

City, after winning their opening five Premier League games, continued their strong start to the season with a comfortable 3-1 win over Red Star Belgrade in their Champions League opener on Tuesday.

Walker feels City are constantly evolving as manager Pep Guardiola bids to keep his side ahead of their rivals.

He said: “I think that’s Pep being Pep. I think teams work us out, teams find the strategy of how they feel that they’re going to play or defend against us.

“When we can build up in different ways, I think that puts another tool in our toolbox where we can change it mid-game and it seems to be working for us.

“He’s got the key ingredient. He knows when’s right to let certain players go, bring players in, freshen things up here, give people challenges here and there.

“He’s got a fine balance and how to do it and it seems to work, not just here but at the number of teams that he’s been at because he’s been very successful.”

David Ribbans accepts that his decision to join Toulon means he could be making his final appearances for England at this World Cup.

Former Northampton second-row Ribbans switches to the Top 14 club at the end of the tournament after signing a three-year contract that sees him join the exodus of English players heading across the Channel.

While there are greater riches available in the French league, they come a cost because Rugby Football Union eligibility rules state only those competing in the Gallagher Premiership are available for selection by Steve Borthwick.

It means that Saturday’s clash with Chile in Lille has the potential to become Ribbans’ ninth and final cap for England – a prospect with which he has made peace given the RFU will not soften its stance.

“When I signed for Toulon, the rules were in place and the rules will remain in place. So it was a decision I had to make,” Ribbans said.

“Unfortunately England will no longer be available so this will be the end of the road for now.

“I’m really looking forward to that challenge at Toulon, but for now I’m fully focused on England and being part of this World Cup and seeing how far we can go as a team.”

Of Borthwick’s 33-man World Cup squad, Jack Willis, Joe Marchant and Henry Arundell will also be playing for French clubs next season.

Ribbans knows that their availability for the Six Nations lies in hands of the RFU, which wants to keep England’s stars in the Premiership.

“That’s up to the RFU,” the 28-year-old said. “There would have to be some conversations had, but for now the rules are the way they are.”

Ribbans is set to start in the second row for England’s third Pool D encounter as Borthwick takes the opportunity to rest his front-line stars in the wake of emphatic victories over Argentina and Japan.

It will be Ribbans’ World Cup debut as he takes the next step on a professional career that began at Western Province in 2015.

“I never expected this a couple of years ago, so to come out of a small town called West Somerset in South Africa and to be playing for England has been amazing,” said Ribbans, who qualifies on ancestry grounds.

“My journey to the World Cup has been full of ups and downs but it’s exciting to be here. To be part of this England set-up is really special and I’ve loved every moment of it.”

While eager to make his first appearance in the tournament, Ribbans also appreciates the break from the arduous training sessions for non-playing squad members that are overseen by head of strength and conditioning Aled Walters.

“It’s been a tough two weeks on the sidelines for the fitness sessions! Aled puts us through our paces because we’ve got to keep up with the team,” he said.

“The players bring the hard yards on the Saturday so we’re busy chasing them and want to get our opportunity.

“We’re training hard and training has been good, but there’s always time for some downtime afterwards. But it will be good to get a run-out this weekend.”

Emily Campbell’s rapidly-expanding medal collection bears testament to the realisation of the “crazy and bonkers” dream she once shared only with her family and a few market traders in her home town of Bulwell, who fuelled her Olympic ambitions with a regular supply of free fruit and veg.

Handsomely repaid for their faith when Campbell returned from Tokyo with an historic silver medal and copious bottles of bubbly, the 29-year-old’s staunchest supporters are now accustomed to news of her trailblazing success in weightlifting competitions across the globe.

Campbell was the first British woman to win an Olympic medal in the sport, an achievement that almost single-handedly shifted its perception, leading to packed stands and back-page headlines when she went on to win Commonwealth Games gold in a raucous National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham last year.

“I always believed that I could do amazing things in the sport, even though people kept telling me that it wasn’t possible,” Campbell, whose hopes of adding another World Championship medal to her collection in Saudi Arabia last week were scuppered by a back injury, told the PA news agency.

“The Olympic medal was me proving that I wasn’t crazy and bonkers, that I could back up the things I’d been saying, that I believed in myself and my team, and it hadn’t been just some sort of pipe dream that we’d been throwing in the air.

“The Olympics was about saying to the world, ‘This is me and this is what I do’. The Commonwealths were about cementing it, proving it wasn’t a fluke that I’d got an Olympic medal, that I won it because I went out there and was good enough to win it.”

Competing in the +87kg super-heavyweight category, Campbell has never sought to disguise the significance of her success in the context of ongoing body image issues among young girls, stressing its importance even before she had her silver medal wrapped around her neck in Tokyo.

She admits she is still moved close to tears by frequent reminders from young girls and their mothers of the impact she has had on shifting those perceptions, and highlighting the opportunities for those who wish to follow less conventional paths to fitness and potential sporting glory.

“My message has always been about changing that narrative that says as women it’s all about our appearance, and that sport and lifting can empower you and help you make decisions in life that are more important than how we look and what we wear and how our hair is and what weight we are,” added Campbell.

“I appreciate that I can do some good in terms of using my position to inspire people to do whatever makes them happy. I am a private person and I sometimes find the whole celebrity thing a little overwhelming, but I know it is a privilege to be in the position I am in, and I feel like I am helping to make a change.”

Campbell won a silver medal at last year’s World Championships in Colombia and, despite having made a return from planned knee surgery in January, a minor back injury prompted her decision to withdraw from Riyadh and focus on what she calls the “bigger picture” of Paris 2024.

An upgrade to gold will almost certainly prove a lift too far for Campbell, given the dominance in the category of China’s remarkable Li Wenwen, a softly-spoken 23-year-old who routinely totals over 30kg more than her super-heavyweight rivals and is acknowledged, even by the likes of the defiant Campbell, as a class apart.

“She (Li) has a very good aura and energy about her and we are all in awe of her because of what she has managed to achieve at her age,” admitted Campbell. “But it has always been about me and not everybody else.

“I’ve always had a tick-list of things I wanted to do in the sport and my long-term plan was always to get a medal in Paris. I’d only been in the sport for five years when I went to Tokyo, so it did seem unrealistic to plan to win a medal at the first attempt.

“Obviously a few things have changed. I’m accustomed to bringing home some bling now, and I’ve got a bit of a target on my back because the other girls want to beat me.

“But when I come home I still pop down to the market to keep them updated because they were there when I really needed help and support and people to believe in me.

“I still take my boots to the same guy to get mended, and they still look after me with the fruit and veg. (In May) I cut the ribbon to open the new bus station, where I used to get my buses to school or athletics practice. I’m just happy that I’ve helped bring something positive to the place I’m from.”

Former Masters champion Danny Willett is set to be sidelined for six months by the shoulder injury which ruined his bid for a second BMW PGA Championship title.

The PA news agency understands that Willett will undergo surgery next week and hopes to be back in action in time for the first major of 2024 at Augusta National, where he won a Green Jacket in 2016.

Willett looked set to challenge for the the lead on day one at Wentworth when he covered his first 12 holes in six under par, only to aggravate a shoulder tear after hitting his tee shot on the 15th.

That led to a double bogey and the 2019 winner dropped three more shots on the last two holes and had to settle for a one-under-par 71.

“I hit balls for half an hour on Tuesday, half an hour yesterday and then the warm-up today and actually in fairness I felt pretty strong,” Willett said at the time. “But when it goes it goes.”

Willett went on to add rounds of 71, 70 and 76 to finish in a tie for 64th.

The eight-time DP World Tour winner, who pulled out of the Irish Open after an opening 76, visited a surgeon in Manchester on Monday to determine the best course of action.

Julian Alvarez is revelling in his partnership with Erling Haaland in Manchester City’s attack.

The Argentinian World Cup winner continued his strong start to the season with two goals as the holders began their Champions League title defence with a comfortable 3-1 win over Red Star Belgrade on Tuesday.

An injury for Kevin De Bruyne has seen Alvarez handed a run of games in support of prolific centre forward Haaland and it is a role he is relishing.

“I am very happy with the goals, to help the team,” the 23-year-old said. “We are doing well, we are winning – which is the most important thing – and playing good games.

“I am trying to adapt and I continue growing in this position, where I am moving freely, to give the team another option and add to the attack.”

Alavarez was the dominant figure in City’s forward line as they threatened to overwhelm Red Star in their opening Group G game at the Etihad Stadium.

Yet despite creating a plethora of chances – with Haaland hitting the bar and goalkeeper Omri Glazer making several saves – City fell behind to an Osman Bukari strike just before half-time.

Alvarez began the fightback with a fine dinked finish after the restart and then put Pep Guardiola’s side ahead when his free-kick was inadvertently punched into the goal by Glazer.

Rodri wrapped up a thoroughly deserved victory with a typically composed finish 17 minutes from time but, again, City could have had several more. Haaland went the closest when he hit the goal frame for a second time.

“We played a good game,” said Alvarez. “It was important to start with a win and three points at home in this difficult competition. We are very happy.

“We had many chances we could not convert but Pep told us to keep doing what we were doing and the goals would come.

“It was the same in the previous game where we were losing and came back, so it was fine. We always try to stay calm, play well in the second half and win.”

Alvarez was not a regular starter last season, despite his starring role in his country’s World Cup triumph, but Guardiola believes he can do an important job in easing the goalscoring burden on Haaland.

Guardiola said: “It’s the same player as last season but being a World Cup winner doesn’t mean you have to play all the time.

“Last season we had Kevin and (Ilkay) Gundogan in that position. Kevin was in top form and Gundo was incredible.

“In that moment sometimes it was difficult to find spaces but I never had a doubt.

“Now Gundo has gone and Kevin unfortunately is injured. We need players to be close to Erling, don’t put all the responsibilities just on the shoulders of Erling to score all the goals.

“That’s why when Phil (Foden) has played there, when Julian plays there, we have the feeling that we create a lot of chances.”

Military March, fourth to Kameko in the 2000 Guineas three years ago but only seen once since, is on the comeback trail.

Trainer Saeed bin Suroor is hoping to get the six-year-old back on track next month, with a view to bigger targets if all goes well.

While he could head out to Dubai, the scene of his last run in January 2021, Bin Suroor also mentioned the Bahrain International Trophy, run in November, as a possible option.

He said: “He worked on Monday and he worked well. He still needs time but he’s getting there now.

“We will find a race for him in early October I think, before we start thinking big. Maybe we could take him out to Bahrain, if he’s good enough.

“It’s been a shame he hasn’t been able to run that much but he’s a nice horse.

“We could have run some nice races with him but he’s coming back and I’m happy with him.”

The disgraced former president of the Spanish Football Federation [RFEF] Luis Rubiales was not worthy of representing his country, according to Sevilla vice president Jose Maria del Nido.

Rubiales was widely condemned for his behaviour as Spain celebrated their victory over England in last month's Women's World Cup final, having grabbed forward Jenni Hermoso before kissing her on the lips.

Hermoso repeatedly stated the kiss was not consensual and has since filed a criminal complaint against Rubiales, accusing him of sexual assault.

Though Rubiales initially refused to resign, the pressure eventually told as he announced his departure ahead of an interview with Piers Morgan, which aired last week.

Sevilla became one of the first clubs to demand Rubiales' resignation on August 25, and Del Nido believes the events have left a stain on the reputation of Spanish football. 

Speaking at the Thinking Football Summit, Del Nido told Stats Perform: "Instead of everyone talking about the success of being world champions, being the best in your sport at a global level, it's a complete failure that we should be talking about events that are totally unacceptable, of a person who should not represent the Spanish Football Federation. 

"Instead of paying attention to the damage that the attitude of the president of the federation has done, I would stay with the attitude that the Spanish people have had. 

"I think it is true that this hurts the reputation of Spain, but Spain is not Luis Rubiales. 

"Spain is everything we have manifested against the behaviour of Rubiales, everything we have done to support Jenni. 

"This type of conduct cannot be accepted under any concept, and even less if it is a person who occupies a status or a position of that magnitude. 

"He is not worthy of representing the Spanish Football Federation. Spain has spoken out against this event in a very good way. 

"I will finish as I started. What we have to do is congratulate the Spanish women's team for becoming World Cup champions, which is the only thing that should be discussed."

Despite the exits of Rubiales and World Cup-winning coach Jorge Vilda – who was sacked earlier this month having been the subject of player revolts – the storm surrounding the RFEF is far from over.

A group of 81 Spanish players announced their intention to boycott international duty and 39 said they would continue to strike for further changes on Friday, with Hermoso claiming "nothing has changed" at the governing body on social media.

However, six of the players who agreed to strike reported at Spain's training camp on Tuesday, with goalkeeper Misa Rodriguez telling reporters she was not glad to join up with the squad as she arrived. 

With the relationship between women's rights and Spanish football under the microscope, Getafe completed the controversial loan signing of Manchester United's Mason Greenwood this month.

Greenwood was arrested and charged with attempted rape, assault and controlling and coercive behaviour last year, with the charges dropped in February after the withdrawal of key witnesses.

While Del Nido was not prepared to comment on Getafe's decision to sign Greenwood, he said Sevilla never considered a move for the forward.

"I read about it in the press and it was never among the options that the sporting director of Sevilla [Victor Orta] managed," Del Nido asserted.

"With it not being within the options of the sporting director of Sevilla, I don't dare to speak about a signing for another club, Getafe, for whom we have a lot of respect. 

"They have made some signings but we have never valued the option of that footballer at a sporting level, so I have nothing to say about that."

Greenwood made his Getafe debut as a substitute on Sunday as they beat Osasuna 3-2 in LaLiga.

The majority of Spain’s World Cup-winning squad have agreed to end their boycott after “profound changes” to the Spanish football federation were promised, according to National Sports Council president Victor Francos.

A decision was reached in the early hours of Wednesday morning following a lengthy meeting between the players, RFEF officials and CSD in a hotel in Oliva.

Fifteen players of the group from this summer’s tournament were on Monday named in new head coach Montse Tome’s squad for the Nations League encounters with Sweden and Switzerland.

But 21 of the 23-player contingent had already stated they would not play for their country again until major changes had occurred within the RFEF, in the wake of former president Luis Rubiales kissing Spain forward Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the medal ceremony in Australia.

The threat of sanctions to the squad for potentially refusing to play for their country had been raised, but an agreement was finally reached with Francos confirming the news after the meeting.

“We’ve had several meetings that were conducted in an extremely cordial atmosphere in which people were able to speak freely,” Francos said, according to Spanish sports newspaper AS.

“We covered all issues. In terms of conclusions: firstly, we’ve reached a series of agreements that will be signed tomorrow by the RFEF and the CSD.

“Furthermore, a mixed commission will be created involving three parties – the federation, the CSD and the players – to monitor the (implementation) of those agreements, which are related to the development of Spain’s sports law in terms of gender policies, pay equality and furthering the infrastructure of women’s sport.

“The players also conveyed to us the need to make profound changes (in personnel at the RFEF). These changes are to happen immediately, and will be announced by the RFEF.”

Amanda Gutierrez, president of players’ union FUTPRO, was also present at the meeting, and was quoted by AS as saying: “It is considered a rapprochement of positions. It is the beginning of a long road that lies ahead of us.

“(The players), once again, have shown themselves to be coherent and the vast majority have decided to make the decision to stay for the sake of this agreement.”

The players had reluctantly turned up for duty on Tuesday amid talk of fines or suspension under Spanish sports law for “unjustified lack of attendance”, with Hermoso accusing RFEF of intimidation in her own statement on Tuesday.

Goalkeeper Misa Rodriguez also answered “no” when asked by reporters if she was happy to be part of Tome’s squad when a group of Madrid-based players met at a hotel in the Spanish capital before they travelled to their nation’s training base near Valencia.

However, lengthy talks between the players, RFEF and CSD officials resulted in the boycott ending, although two players will leave the camp ahead of Friday’s match in Sweden.

Francos added: “Two players have said they aren’t in the right frame of mind and have asked to leave the squad. Twenty-one players have expressed their desire to stay.”

Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart will take confidence from their display with 11 men against Feyenoord as he and his team-mates seek to change their Champions League narrative.

The Dutch champions triumphed 2-0 in Rotterdam but Celtic’s hopes of a second-half comeback were dashed by red cards for Gustaf Lagerbielke and Odin Thiago Holm.

Hart saved a penalty in the five minutes between the red cards before being beaten again in the 76th minute.

The former England goalkeeper let in the opener from Calvin Stengs’ 30-yard free-kick in first-half stoppage-time after Celtic had more than held their own during the opening 45 minutes.

Celtic have now won just once in 22 Champions League group games and fans came away with similar frustrations to much of last season’s campaign, when their team’s two-point total was scant reward for some of their play.

When asked if it felt like the same old story, Hart said: “At the moment it feels like that but we are at the start of a new adventure. That’s the great thing about football, it always gives you a chance. This is a brand new season, whatever has been, has been.

“It’s a tournament of six games for us and we believe we put ourselves in a good position to play Feyenoord at home.

“Obviously we have got four other games that we need to take care of compete in. Now we know one of our rivals in this tournament, we feel like we can definitely compete with them.

“We had plenty of character, desire and buying into the messages that we are being given.

“We were in a good game, a close, close game and obviously a few things went against us, some of them self-inflicted, and you fall on the wrong side in this competition.

“But overall, 11 v 11, I felt like we could have given it a right good go.

“An avoidable goal just before half-time and two red cards makes it difficult.”

Hart described the opening goal as a “perfect storm” after the wall failed to do its job and then the ball curled just out of his grasp after skidding off the wet surface in Rotterdam.

“The guy running across Kyogo, causing Kyogo to move,” Hart said.

“”I have obviously got to hold my ground. As a goalkeeper you have got to hold your ground, especially when it’s very close to people’s shoulders, you’ve got to wait ’til it goes past them because you can’t over-commit.

“Once it went past Kyogo, I couldn’t get across quickly enough with the skip and the curl on the ball.

“It’s disappointing, obviously disappointing on my behalf, I’ve got high standards.

“But that doesn’t define the game, there was plenty more to come, and we were going toe to toe with a good team and it felt like we could have achieved something.”

Rangers take on Real Betis in their Europa League opener on Thursday night.

The Light Blues have had a difficult start to the season and are under pressure to turn in a positive performances at Ibrox.

Here is the lowdown on the Gers’ opponents ahead of the Group C encounter.

Form

The Spanish side have started the season in patchy form with just two wins in five La Liga matches to leave them 10th in the table, eight points behind leaders Real Madrid. Real Betis have beaten Villarreal and Rayo Vallecano, drawn against Atletico Madrid and lost to Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. The 5-0 loss to Barca at the weekend could mean confidence has taken a dent but their fans will hope their side can exploit any anxiety at Ibrox. Betis finished sixth last season, 28 points behind Barcelona.

Manager

Manuel Pellegrini is one of the most experienced managers in the game. The 70-year-old Chilean has been a boss since 1988 when he took over at Universidad de Chile in his homeland. A globetrotting career has followed and he has been in the  hot seat at clubs like River Plate, Real Madrid, Manchester City and West Ham, among others.  Pellegrini joined Manchester City in 2013 and won the Premier League and League Cup double in his first season, winning the League Cup again in 2015/16. Most recently, he won the Copa del Rey in 2022 with Los Verdiblancos, who he joined in 2020.

Players

There has been a lot of recent speculation around which players Pellegrini will have at his disposal for the trip to Glasgow, with reports suggesting four key players will be back in contention. Former Manchester City and Barcelona keeper Claudio Bravo – aged 40 – is recovering from a calf injury and could make his first start of the season after Portugal goalkeeper Rui Silva had to come off against Barcelona with a thigh injury to be replaced by debutant Fran Vieites, who usually plays for Betis B. Captain and Mexico international Andres Guardado had been missing with an ankle injury but could return along with William Carvalho, who has won 80 caps for Portugal, and right-back Aitor Ruibal. Brazilian striker Willian Jose has scored four of Betis’s five goals this season. Spain internationals Hector Bellerin and Borja Iglesias are also in the Betis squad.

European pedigree

Real Betis have never won a European trophy and have taken part in the Champions League on only one occasion, in 2005/06. Betis finished third behind Liverpool and Chelsea and above Anderlecht in Group G with seven points, dropping down to the UEFA Cup where they were knocked out in the last 16 by Steaua Bucharest. In the 2021/22 season they were drawn in the same group as Celtic in the Europa League, winning 4-3 at home and losing 3-2 at Celtic Park. Last season they were knocked out of the Europa League at the last-16 stage by Manchester United 5-1 on aggregate.

Eddie Howe is confident there is more to come from Newcastle after they took a point from their Champions League baptism of fire in Milan.

The Magpies found themselves under the cosh at the San Siro on Tuesday evening as they opened their Group F campaign with a tough trip to AC Milan and ultimately emerged with a creditable 0-0 draw.

Howe’s team will have to be significantly more progressive than they were in Italy if they are to bank the points they will need to progress, with Paris St Germain and Borussia Dortmund waiting in the wings, but the 45-year-old believes they will be.

Asked after the game if the overriding emotion in the dressing room on the final whistle had been exhaustion, disappointment or pride, he said: “It was a mixture of all of those things, definitely pride in the result and the performance, the mentality shown.

“Not internally in the squad, the result wasn’t overestimated. They are very honest payers and they acknowledge we can perform better. Yes, a bit of fatigue as well, but we’re now looking forward to our next match.

“For us to stand up strong and come back fighting in that second half – because I thought that was a good second half display from us – bodes well for the future. All we can try and do is try and win every game.”

But for goalkeeper Nick Pope and a glaring miss from Milan’s Portugal star Rafael Leao, Newcastle could have been in deep trouble by half-time, although having got there on level terms they produced a fine defensive display after the break to plug the gaps through which the Rossoneri had poured during the opening 45 minutes.

Indeed, they might even have picked the Serie A club’s pocket in stoppage-time when Sean Longstaff forced a fingertip save from substitute goalkeeper Marco Sportiello.

Howe said: “There were a few things we changed at half-time. We were looking to tweak a few things.

“The mindset was the most important thing. The blocking of the shots, recovery sprints when we are caught out of position was all out of the top drawer, especially when it needed to be in that second half.

“We had our moments in transitions going the other way and that’s where the quality was missing, and I’m a little bit frustrated with that. As I say, we will look to improve.”

Howe will now turn his attention to Sunday’s Premier League trip to Sheffield United, with opposite number Stefano Pioli, whose side lost 5-1 to derby rivals Inter last weekend, also able to take positives from a display which promised much but did not deliver the outcome he craved.

Pioli, who also lost goalkeeper Mike Maignan and midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek to injury, said: “I liked the performance, I liked the attitude. We attacked very well, we defended well, we showed that we were full of energy through the whole 90 minutes.

“We were as intense as they were – actually, we were more intense than they were – but we couldn’t win, and that’s a pity.

“Now we have to move on. There are very important games in Serie A and then we will have to play against Borussia Dortmund.”