Edward O’Grady believes he has found a horse to send him back into the big time after No Flies On Him made an impressive debut under rules in the opening race of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival.
While no stranger to top-level success having trained the likes of Golden Cygnet, Sound Man and Back In Front, the veteran trainer has not saddled a Grade One winner since 2011.
Having won his sole start in the point-to-point field, when he beat the Formby Novices’ Hurdle winner Jango Baie, the JP McManus-owned No Flies On Him was prominent in the market at 3-1 for the TRI Equestrian Maiden Hurdle.
Ridden positively from the outset by Mark Walsh, the Westerner gelding found plenty in the straight to score by a length and three-quarters.
“We’re absolutely thrilled with him,” said O’Grady.
“I chose him as a three-year-old at the Derby Sale, JP very kindly let me pick one out. He in turn then sent him for a proper education, to boarding school with Derek O’Connor, who did a fantastic job with him. Then he came back to me this autumn.
“He has a wonderful pedigree – his great grandmother is the dam of Makybe Diva, who won three Melbourne Cups.
“He looks like a very promising horse. I’ve had a lot of swans in the last few years and they’ve all turned out to be geese, but I think this fella might stay a swan.
“He’ll have to be entered in a Grade One anyway and, fingers crossed, I think he might just get there.
“Hopefully he stays lucky, stays right and healthy. I’ve been waiting for one like this for too long, thank God the number six bus has arrived and I’d love if a second one would arrive in a hurry!”
McManus and Walsh were widely expected to complete a quickfire double in the following Thorntons Recycling Maiden Hurdle, with the highly-touted Naas bumper winner Mirazur West already prominent in ante-post lists for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival ahead of his hurdling bow.
However, after racing keenly on the front end, the 5-6 shot was unable to fend off the challenge of Gordon Elliott’s King Of Kingsfield (15-8), who was opening his account over timber after three successive runner-up finishes, including when chasing home stablemate Farren Glory in the Grade One Royal Bond at Fairyhouse three weeks ago.
Elliott said: “That was great. We were riding him all wrong and the last day we changed our minds in the Grade One.
“Jack (Kennedy) was delighted with the way he settled and he jumped well, so we’re very happy.
“He’s not a bad horse and to be honest he had disappointed me up until now as I always thought he was a proper horse. He might just come good now, I’d say the ground could be key to him as well.”
When asked if he could return to Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival, he added: “I’d imagine he’ll head for a Grade One there all being well.”
Steven Naismith expects his buoyant Hearts players to embrace the hostility of Easter Road on Wednesday evening as they bid to maintain their impressive recent form with an away win over city rivals Hibernian.
The Jambos go into the second Edinburgh derby of the season two points clear in third place in the cinch Premiership with a game in hand after winning six of their last eight league matches.
Hibs are unbeaten in the last three meetings between the teams but Naismith feels his Hearts team has enough big characters to deal with the size of the occasion and the “abuse” that is set to come their way from the home support.
“Derby games are always good,” said the Hearts boss. “As players you always enjoy them. I certainly went into them seeing them as an opportunity as an individual.
“But for us as a team it’s another good opportunity to get three more points and continue the consistency in results. It’s also against your rivals, so it’s easy to get up for it and be ready for it, and we will definitely be ready
“I liked playing at Easter Road as a Hearts player, I enjoyed the abuse I got and tried to use it to my advantage, and I would imagine it will be the same on Wednesday night.
“We have got characters in our changing room, guys who are brave on the ball and guys who know how to play the game, so we are going there with loads of confidence.”
Former Rangers, Everton and Scotland forward Naismith, who also played in the Old Firm and Merseyside derbies, believes the Edinburgh equivalent is also among Britain’s “proper” derby matches. He enjoyed hearing the Hearts supporters singing “bring on the Hibees” during their 2-0 win over St Mirren at Tynecastle on Saturday.
“Not every player gets to play in a proper derby, and this is a proper derby,” said the Hearts boss. “Against St Mirren, the Gorgie Ultras (Hearts fans) carried the crowd towards the end and really kept it going. It was a good atmosphere and it all added into the mix of the derby.
“We are in a good run of form , we are confident and we have a good, healthy squad. We are in a good place.”
Much of the feelgood factor around Hearts at present stems from the form of captain Lawrence Shankland, who has already struck 15 goals this term after notching 28 last season.
“I came off the back of a season last year when I scored a lot of goals,” he said. “I then had a wee dry spell after the European games earlier this season but I always believed I would be back scoring goals and I’m glad to see them going in.”
Shankland feels his team are in good fettle ahead of the derby after back-to-back 2-0 wins over Celtic and St Mirren.
“We’ve had two very good results,” he said. “Obviously Parkhead was a a big one for us and it was important to back it up against St Mirren.”
Sam Thomas hailed Iwilldoit as “the horse of a lifetime” as he goes in search of a second win in the Coral Welsh National at Chepstow.
Gold Cup-winning rider Thomas has been training since 2015 and Iwilldoit has provided him with two of his biggest wins to date.
Not content with winning this marathon contest in 2021, some 383 days later without the aid of another run he landed the Classic Chase at Warwick.
His comeback this year was over hurdles at Aintree, a pleasing effort in a Pertemps qualifier where he finished two lengths behind the useful Gentleman At Arms.
The 10-year-old will now return to fences and Thomas is hoping he will be in his element when partnered by 7lb claimer Dylan Johnston.
“We’re absolutely over the moon with him and he’s in great form,” said Thomas.
“He had a prep run at Aintree a little while ago now and has had plenty of time to recover from that. He’s since had a couple of away days and is in a really good place, we’re really happy with him.
“He will want it as soft as possible and we have decided to claim off him as well, taking 7lb off his back. We just feel if we’re ever going to go and win it again – he’s not getting any younger – we just want to do everything we can to give him every chance.
“Dylan was put to me by Olly Murphy a while ago and I’ve since used him on another horse. He’s a very good young lad and has a wise head on young shoulders. It’s a lot of responsibility for a 7lb claimer in a big race and the last thing we want to do is put any pressure on a young lad, but he looks like he will be fine.
“He’s been amazing for us and he would be a horse of a lifetime for any yard really. We’ve won some nice, big races with him and fingers crossed we can keep him in one piece and this might not be his last Welsh National yet.”
Joe Tizzard will saddle The Big Breakaway, an eight-year-old who finished second in the race last year and is regular in these staying chases.
His most recent outing was in the Becher Chase at Aintree earlier in the month, where he was pulled up when not taking to the task over the Grand National fences.
The chestnut has had a day’s hunting to reignite his enthusiasm and Tizzard would love to see him go one better than last year to take the trophy run in memory of his late sister Kim Gingell.
“He let us down a bit in the Becher Chase, he just didn’t take to it – simple as that – but he didn’t have a hard race,” he said.
“He went hunting on Saturday and he proved last year that he’s capable of running a massive race.
“It’s the last year of the race being run in memory of Kim, so we will have the blinkers back on him and hope he runs a massive race. I think he has a big one in him, but he has let me down and we left the blinkers off over the big fences and now they are back on.
“He proved last year with a lot of weight he is capable of doing it, it just all needs to click.”
Fergal O’Brien’s team is in good form and he runs Autonomous Cloud in the race, a seven-year-old who made a winning start to the term when taking a Uttoxeter chase by six and a half lengths in November.
“He had his prep run at Uttoxeter a few weeks ago and if you could have planned a prep run, you couldn’t have planned it any better because there were three of them in a line and unfortunately one fell at the third-last and brought down the other one, so he had a gallop round for three miles but didn’t have a hard race,” O’Brien explained.
“That was ideal and he’s been training really well and we’re very happy with him.
“I think he had five or six runs as a novice over fences and he’s a lovely horse. If he’s not one for this Welsh National, he could be for another Welsh National or another National, he’s a beautiful horse.”
Gavin Sheehan is also in good from and he looks to extend a fine run with a ride on Jamie Snowden’s Super Survivor.
“I’m looking forward to him, he’s a lovely horse and had a great prep run,” he said.
“He ticks a lot of boxes for the race and hopefully it goes well on the day.”
Other notable contenders include Gary Moore’s Nassalam, winner of the Welsh National Trial earlier in the month, and the Paul Nicholls duo of Complete Unknown and Truckers Lodge.
Everton boss Sean Dyche has played down the potential impact of Manchester City’s successful expedition to Jeddah.
Man City return to Premier League action on Wednesday with a trip to Goodison Park after they spent the past week in Saudi Arabia competing and subsequently winning the Club World Cup.
It was a welcome distraction for Pep Guardiola’s champions, who have endured recent domestic struggles with only one win from their last six league fixtures, but Dyche will tell his squad to ignore such talk.
“Sides like that, they are so used to it,” Dyche said of City’s trip halfway across the world.
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“You think of the last five or six years under Pep and all the travelling they’ve done, all the things they’ve won, all the competitions, I’m not saying they are used to everything and this is probably slightly different, but at the end of the day I don’t think, I might be wrong, that they are travelling economy!
“I think they’ll be well looked after, so I won’t over-egg the physical side of it and they have so many good players, I still think they will put out a side that is a very strong side.
“And if it does help, then great and we’ll take all the help we can get but the main focus will be on us performing and not too much focus on them and what they have to do.
“In my experience of Man City, whenever you think of moments like that (poor form), they put out a side and deliver a performance.
“I will certainly make sure the players are ready and forget all of that, all the noise, all the news saying they are not doing this or that.
“Trust me, I’ve seen them a number of times and when you’re on the pitch with them, even when they make changes or they are stretched, they find a very strong side and a way of playing.”
Everton’s hopes of taking points off Man City have been dented by a growing injury list during a busy December schedule.
Key midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure recently picked up a muscle injury and Idrissa Gueye was forced off during Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Tottenham.
Both are unlikely to feature against City, which would result in Andre Gomes’ earning his first start of the season and Dele Alli is still building up his fitness after a recent returning to training.
Dyche said of Dele: “No, not yet. No, he’s not close yet.
“We knew when we skimmed down the squad in the summer, obviously trying to balance things financially and the money, there is a challenge with that.
“You can’t have people everywhere so you try to fill the slots the best you can and use what money is available to get a more balanced squad.
“When there are runs like this and these games, they often put pressure on the squad and that’s the way it goes, but we’ll deal with it the best we can.”
Michael O’Sullivan is looking to end a brilliant 2023 on a high when Marine Nationale makes his eagerly-awaited chasing debut at Leopardstown.
It has been a stellar year for the young Irishman who turned professional in September 2022 and on joining forces with burgeoning handler Barry Connell, struck gold on the big stage numerous times.
Connell’s Good Land and Espanito Bello provided notable triumphs, but the ace in the pack was Marine Nationale, who gave O’Sullivan a taste of the big-time when winning the Royal Bond before following up in style at the Cheltenham Festival.
The classy Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winner now embarks on a novice chase campaign, with the Paddy Power From The Horses Mouth Podcast Beginners Chase on December 27 the first port of call for the unbeaten six-year-old.
“He didn’t put a foot wrong and so far he is unbeaten in his career and obviously I am very lucky to be involved with him,” said O’Sullivan.
“He’s ran five times and won two Grade Ones, so it’s going to be hard to top last season, but we are very much looking forward to getting him over fences.
“It’s going to be a tougher ask and the horse is going to have to train on again, but we’re looking forward to it. It will be great to get him back on the racecourse and hopefully it goes well.
“All has gone well (so far), he’s very straightforward and hasn’t put a foot wrong. We just keep our fingers crossed all goes to plan.”
The belated chasing debut could be the first step on a journey connections hope takes them back to the Festival in March, where a rematch with Supreme runner-up Facile Vega in the Arkle could be on the cards.
“If he is as good as last year and hopefully we can get to March and get him to Cheltenham in the form he was last year, then you would be very much looking forward to that,” continued O’Sullivan.
“If it was a carbon copy (of the Supreme) that would be great, but that is going to be very hard to do. We’ll be trying our best.”
It was Marine Nationale that kick-started O’Sullivan and Connell’s association when they combined to claim a Punchestown bumper in May 2022.
Few could predict the success the duo would enjoy over the next 18 months, as O’Sullivan turned professional and repaid his loyal boss in spades as he swiftly became one of the weighing room’s brightest stars.
“After turning professional last September, I couldn’t have asked for it to have gone much better than it did,” added O’Sullivan.
“I was very lucky to come across some very nice horses for good people and got lots of support.”
O’Sullivan’s claim would quickly evaporate as he became one of the go-to men in the riding ranks and finished the season picking up rides for the likes of Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott, scoring aboard the latter’s Jazzy Matty at the Cheltenham Festival.
However, he saved his best performances in the saddle for those trained by Connell with the duo striking at Grade One level three times – twice with Marine Nationale and once with the talented Good Land.
“To win three Grade Ones in my first season as a professional, I’m under no illusion how lucky I am to come across those horses,” said O’Sullivan.
“Some people will go through their whole career looking for a Grade One horse and to find horses of that ability and for Barry to put his faith in me and for things to have gone so well, I will always be very grateful.
“It was a case of right place, right time for me and in racing you need a lot of luck and I was lucky I got a break and thanks to him, other trainers and owners have had the faith to put me up as well.”
The culmination of O’Sullivan’s terrific breakthrough season came at the Cheltenham Festival when an opening day double was highlighted by an ice-cool display in the saddle aboard Marine Nationale, a statement performance from man and horse at the very beginning of racing’s biggest week.
“It was the stuff dreams are made of and it is what you have been getting up as a kid to do,” reflected the rider.
“For that dream to come true was amazing and that whole week was magical. I was going there with some nice chances and high hopes of getting a winner, so to win the first race, the Supreme, in front of the crowd and with the atmosphere was amazing and then the other winner was a bonus.”
In a Christmas Day slate full of noteworthy performances, Luka Doncic was the star atop the Christmas tree.
Doncic scored 50 points, eclipsing 10,000 for his career, and added six rebounds and 14 assists as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Phoenix Suns 128-114 in the NBA’s Christmas night cap.
Doncic went 8 of 16 from 3-point range and made all 12 of his free throw attempts as he reached the 10,000-point milestone in 358 career games, the seventh-fastest in NBA history.
Rookie center Dereck Lively II added 20 points and 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double, while Derrick Jones Jr. contributed 23 points.
Grayson Allen led the Suns with 32 points while Kevin Durant (4 for 11) and Devin Booker (6 for 14) had poor shooting nights.
Celtics get first Christmas win over Lakers
Kristaps Porzingis had 28 points and 11 rebounds, Jayson Tatum scored 25 despite an off shooting night and the Boston Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers 126-115.
The Celtics’ win was their first ever against the Lakers on Christmas Day, overcoming a 40-point, 13-rebound performance from Anthony Davis.
LeBron James had 16 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Lakers dropped to 2-6 since winning the NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament.
Jokic shines in win over Warriors
Nikola Jokic flirted with a triple-double and made all 18 of his free throw attempts, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 120-114 win over the Golden State Warriors.
Jokic had 26 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists for the defending champions as the Nuggets won a season-high fifth consecutive game and improved to 12-2 at Ball Arena this season.
Jamal Murray led Denver with 28 points.
The Warriors’ leading scorer was Andrew Wiggins, who netted 22 off the bench.
What the papers say
Chelsea are looking at a double January raid on Lisbon side Sporting, according to the Evening Standard. Ivory Coast defender Ousmane Diomande, 20, and Sweden striker Viktor Gyokeres, 25, are in the Blues’ sights.
Manchester City are in talks with River Plate midfielder Claudio Echeverri. The Times reports City plan to loan the 17-year-old back to the Argentinian side, who have a £21.4million release clause in his contract.
Sunderland midfielder Pierre Ekwah, 21, is catching the eye of several Premier League clubs, reports the Evening Standard. Sunderland are keen to keep the French youngster but Crystal Palace, Fulham and Nottingham Forest are all circling.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is close to making a return to management, according to the Daily Mirror. The former Manchester United manager, 50, is the front runner to take over at Turkish club Besiktas.
Social media round-upPlayers to watch
Said Benrahma: West Ham’s 28-year-old Algeria winger is interesting Lyon, according to talkSPORT.
Roberto Firmino: Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq could takes the former Liverpool forward, 32, from Saudi Pro League rivals Al-Ahli.
Baltimore’s defense had five interceptions and four sacks, Lamar Jackson had another strong game to help his MVP candidacy and the Ravens beat the San Francisco 49ers 33-19 in a Christmas Days showdown between conference leaders.
Brock Purdy, who entered the game as an MVP candidate, had the worst game of his career, throwing four interceptions and no touchdowns before he was replaced by Sam Darnold after the game was out of hand.
Kyle Hamilton intercepted two of Purdy’s passes, while Marlon Humphrey, Patrick Queen and Marcus Williams also came up with picks.
Baltimore led just 16-12 at halftime but outscored the 49ers 17-0 in the third quarter to put the game out of reach.
Jackson threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns, and the dual-threat quarterback was the Ravens’ leading rusher with 45 yards as the Ravens (12-3) extended their winning streak to five games.
Christian McCaffrey was the lone bright spot for the 49ers, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown and adding six catches for 28 yards. He tied the Miami Dolphins’ Raheem Mostert for the NFL lead with 21 total touchdowns this season in the losing effort.
The loss dropped the 49ers (11-4) into a tie with the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles for the best record in the NFC with two weeks to play in the regular season.
Hurts, Swift help Eagles end 3-game skid
Jalen Hurts set a single-season quarterback record by scoring his 15th rushing touchdown and added 300 yards through the air as the Philadelphia Eagles rediscovered their early-season form with a 33-25 win over the New York Giants.
Hurts scored on a “tush push” sneak play in the first quarter and added a second-quarter passing touchdown to help the Eagles end a three-game losing streak and keep their hopes of an NFC East title alive.
D’Andre Swift had 92 of Philadelphia’s 170 rushing yards and scored from five yards out in his best performance since Week 3.
The Eagles led 20-3 at halftime, and the Giants benched former Cinderella story quarterback Tommy DeVito at the break for Tyrod Taylor. DeVito was 9 of 16 for 55 yards.
A 7-yard Saquon Barkley touchdown run and Adoree’ Jackson’s 76-yard interception return – and subsequent 2-point conversion – pulled the Giants to 20-18 at the end of the third.
New York never led, however, as Philadelphia rebounded with a 13-point fourth quarter.
The Eagles (11-4) stayed a full game ahead of Dallas in the NFC East after the Cowboys’ 22-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.
Raiders fluster Mahomes as Chiefs’ slump continues
Las Vegas scored defensive touchdowns on consecutive plays from scrimmage, Zamir White rushed for a career high 145 yards and the Raiders beat the slumping Kansas City Chiefs 20-14.
The Chiefs led 7-3 with five minutes remaining in the first half before Bilal Nichols returned an Isiah Pacheco fumble eight yards for a touchdown.
After the ensuing kickoff, Patrick Mahomes’ first-down pass was intercepted by Jack Jones and returned 33 for another score, giving the Raiders a 17-7 halftime lead.
Mahomes has struggled this month, going 1-3 in December and throwing five touchdowns to five interceptions.
Mahomes’ only touchdown of the day came on a 7-yard pass to Justin Watson with 2:42 remaining, but the Chiefs never got the ball back as White gained 43 and 15 yards on consecutive carries to clinch the game for Las Vegas.
The Raiders (7-8) snapped a six-game losing streak to the Chiefs (9-6), who failed to clinch an eighth consecutive AFC West title.
Shane Warne became the first bowler in Test history to claim 700 wickets when he dismissed England’s Andrew Strauss in Melbourne on this day in 2006.
The Australia leg-spinner went into the fourth Test of the Ashes at his beloved Melbourne Cricket Ground on 699 wickets, having revealed in the build-up that he would be retiring from international cricket at the end of the series.
Warne fittingly reached yet another milestone in front of a Boxing Day crowd of 89,155 with a sharply turning leg-break which spun into the stumps of England opener Strauss.
He went on to dismiss another four batters that day, claiming what would be the 37th and final five-wicket haul of his illustrious Test career, as the tourists collapsed to 159 all out.
“As it turned out, whoever writes my scripts is doing an unbelievable job,” said Warne.
“I’ve just been sitting there since we started batting just shaking my head – I can’t believe it happened to be honest. It was a pretty amazing day.”
Warne would go on to finish with 708 wickets in 145 Tests as Australia sealed a 5-0 whitewash over England.
He died aged 52 in March last year from a suspected heart attack in Thailand.
Baltimore Ravens intercepted Brock Purdy four times as they beat the San Francisco 49ers 33-19 in a Christmas Day showdown of the NFL teams with the best records.
Lamar Jackson threw two touchdown passes in 18 seconds during the third quarter as the Ravens moved to within one win of the AFC North title.
They are also one game ahead of the Miami Dolphins in the race for the top seed in the AFC with two matches remaining.
Purdy was intercepted on three of his first four drives as the 49ers slipped into a tie with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Miami Dolphins for the best record in the NFC.
The defeat ended San Francisco’s six-match winning streak.
The Eagles reignited their push for the NFL East title as they beat the New York Giants 33-25, ending a three-match losing run.
Jalen Hurts threw for one touchdown and broke the NFL record for most rushing scores in a season by a quarterback as he went over from a yard for his 15th of the season.
The win lifts the Eagle to 11-4 with a one-game lead over the Dallas Cowboys, who need to win their remaining games to ensure the divisional crown.
Taylor Swift watched on at the Arrowhead Stadium as boyfriend Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs failed to clinch the AFC West title after a shock 20-14 Christmas Day defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Chiefs were bidding to put the seal on an eighth successive AFC West crown but a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter from Bilal Nichols and Jack Jones gave the Raiders a lead that the hosts could not overturn.
Justin Watson’s fourth-quarter touchdown gave the Chiefs hope but Raiders’ defence triumphed as they sealed back-to-back wins to move up to second in the division.
Todd Cantwell has no doubt Kieran Dowell will go on to show his qualities at Rangers.
Both players were team-mates at Norwich and after Cantwell joined the Light Blues last January, his fellow midfielder followed him north in the summer.
The 26-year-old, however, has struggled to make an impact, albeit injury has played a part in his absence.
Dowell made his first appearance since November 1 when he played his part in the 2-0 cinch Premiership win over St Johnstone at Ibrox and his early opener against Motherwell at Fir Park on Christmas Eve after keeping his place helped the Light Blues to a 2-0 win.
Cantwell, who scored the second goal which took Philippe Clement’s side two points behind cinch Premiership leaders Celtic with a game in hand, said: “I feel sorry for Kieran. He had a tough injury not long after he signed which is difficult because it changes what it looks like for him.
“He came in, looked good, scored a good goal and has been injured since.
“Fair play to him for his consistency in training.
“Every single day he has been consistent. He is a top footballer, there is no secret to that.
“I’ve had the joy of playing with him at Norwich and we were successful there. That’s the plan here too.”
The driving rain and wind at Fir Park made playing football difficult but Cantwell was just pleased to keep the winning run going, with Clement now unbeaten in 16 games since taking over as Gers boss in October.
He said: “It was tough, about as windy a game as I’ve played in to be honest.
“It was quite hard to get out of our half in the second half.
“But we came to win and it’s not always going to be as pretty as you might like.
“It affects the game massively when it’s like that.
“It’s a challenge for some people to be standing at that corner where it was windiest, let alone playing football.
“But, listen, we went there to win the game and got two early goals which I think really helped us because we didn’t have to chase the game at that point.
“We had to show a bit of resilience and, yeah, get the win.
“It wouldn’t have been, I don’t think, a particularly enjoyable game to watch.
“But sometimes the best teams have to find a way to win in all sorts of conditions.
“Things are not always going to go your way and today we made sure that we got the win and kept the clean sheet again.”
Jamaal Lascelles has played himself into Eddie Howe’s long-term plans at Newcastle after stepping back into the firing line amid an injury crisis.
The 30-year-old defender found himself part of the supporting cast as head coach Howe, armed with the spending power of the club’s new Saudi-backed owners, embarked upon a spending spree which has to date seen them invest around £400million in the squad.
Sven Botman’s £32million arrival from Lille in particular left the Magpies’ club captain largely sitting on the bench, but the injury which saw the Dutchman miss almost three months of football handed the former Nottingham Forest man a chance he grasped with both hands in the final year of his existing contract.
Asked if he wanted Lascelles to stay, Howe said: “I’m sure contract talks with Jamaal… I’m just trying to wrack my brain as to where his contract is at, but I think he is part of our long-term future, for sure.”
Botman’s misfortune struck when he suffered a knee injury in September which sidelined him until he came on as a late substitute in a 3-0 Premier League win over Fulham on December 16.
In his absence, Howe turned to Lascelles and got exactly the response for which he had hoped as he stepped in alongside Fabian Schar and played his part in a Carabao Cup victory over European champions Manchester City and a 4-1 Champions League demolition of Paris St Germain.
In doing so, he demonstrated just how hard he had worked in training to be able to deliver the kind of football Howe demands of his central defenders and produce his best form to date for the club.
Howe said: “Jamaal has done really, really well this season and his game has come on in lots of ways.
“Firstly, defensively, he has always been very strong aerially and you saw that recently against Fulham. His defensive understanding of what we want him to do has been very good from day one.
“His use of the ball has improved, he looks really comfortable in the team at the moment, and he’s playing some really good football.”
However, Lascelles is facing a race against time to face former club Forest on Boxing Day after limping out of Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Luton before half-time.
Howe remained coy over his skipper’s injury after the game and he will be assessed with Botman, who replaced him at Kenilworth Road, standing by to start a league fixture for the first time since the 8-0 win at Sheffield United on September 24.
Erik ten Hag admits Manchester United need to get Old Trafford rocking in a bid to put their season back on track.
United host high-flying Aston Villa on Boxing Day, three days after slumping to a 2-0 defeat at West Ham, in what will be their first game since it was announced that Sir Jim Ratcliffe has agreed to buy a 25 per cent stake in the club.
The Hammers defeat was their 13th loss in 26 matches this term, and a 20th defeat in 2023 – their worst tally in a calendar year since 1989.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp criticised the atmosphere at Anfield following their Carabao Cup win over the Hammers last week, and Ten Hag knows he needs to give the Old Trafford faithful something to shout about.
“I am sure they are very disappointed in us and we have to put things right and do things different,” said the United chief.
“We appreciate all the time they are supporting us. With all the setbacks this season, they are all the time behind us and we really appreciate that. Of course we need any help but first of all I and the team have to do it.”
United have suffered their most defeats before Christmas since 1931, and need to bounce back against a Villa side threatening an unlikely title challenge.
“Villa is a different side in very good form, a very good team,” added Ten Hag.
“If you are creating the chances you have to take them, otherwise you don’t win games. That’s clear.
“I am not disappointed by the attitude, but of course we know what the standard is at Manchester United.
“We have to win as a team therefore responsibility we have to take as a team and every individual has to contribute 100 per cent in that responsibility.”
Ten Hag hopes to be able to call on centre-half Raphael Varane, who missed the defeat at West Ham through illness, while winger Amad Diallo could also be involved having returned to training after a knee injury.
United fans will be heading to Old Trafford in the wake of the Christmas Eve announcement that Ineos Group chairman Ratcliffe has agreed a £1.25billion deal with the Glazer family, the club’s American owners.
Ratcliffe, 71, a boyhood United fan, will inject around £236million, with Ineos set to take over the management of the club’s football operations.
Taylor Swift watched on at the Arrowhead Stadium as boyfriend Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs failed to clinch the AFC West title after a shock 20-14 Christmas Day defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Chiefs were bidding to put the seal on an eighth successive AFC West crown but a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter from Bilal Nichols and Jack Jones gave the Raiders a lead that the hosts could not overturn.
Justin Watson’s fourth-quarter touchdown gave the Chiefs hope but Raiders’ defence triumphed as they sealed back-to-back wins to move up to second in the division.
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