Cole Palmer is a doubt for Chelsea’s visit to Arsenal on Tuesday with Mauricio Pochettino confirming the Premier League’s joint-top scorer is likely to miss the game at the Emirates Stadium with illness.

The 21-year-old did not train on Monday following his side’s FA Cup semi-final defeat to Manchester City on Saturday, a loss that left them needing to secure a top-seven finish in the league if they are to end their year-long absence from European competition.

The England international has been the standout player of an indifferent season for Chelsea, with seven goals in the team’s last two home games having rocketed him to the top of the scoring charts alongside City striker Erling Haaland.

He has frequently been the decisive factor when the team have performed well, helping Pochettino’s side throw off the creative inertia that blunted their attack last season and in the early weeks of the current campaign.

A win against Mikel Arteta’s title-chasers would put the Argentinian’s side level on points with sixth-placed Newcastle, with a top-six finish likely to be enough for a Europa League berth.

However, the size of their task – already a daunting one with Arsenal on a run of 11 league wins in their last 13 – grew on Monday with the fear that Palmer will likely miss out, while full-backs Ben Chilwell and Malo Gusto are also doubts.

“We need to assess (Tuesday) morning,” said Pochettino of Palmer’s chances. “Today, no, I don’t believe he can be involved. Even if he will be good tomorrow, he may not be in a condition to play.

“With and without him, we believe that we can win. The most important thing is the collective. Of course he’s an important part of the team. He’s doing fantastic for us. But we have plenty of players that can perform and do the job.”

Pochettino defended the contributions of striker Nicolas Jackson on his debut season for the club, after he missed multiple opportunities against City to put Chelsea in the final.

The 22-year-old has improved significantly in recent weeks after struggling in the aftermath of his £32million summer move from Villarreal but three times at Wembley he failed to make the most of clear openings.

Pochettino has been forced to rely on the player – who has scored 10 goals in the league – far more than the club had intended, with fellow signing Christopher Nkunku having been limited by injury to a handful of appearances since joining from RB Leipzig.

“First season is always difficult but more when you are a striker and you have to perform and score goals. Everyone expects with every single touch to score,” Pochettino added. “He’s our main striker, the only striker we have fit.

“He’s doing fantastic. He’s doing an amazing job for the team; running, scoring goals, giving assists. His first season, a young guy, came in from Spain, even with not too much experience there.

“If we want the player to match the iconic players here, if we compare him with Drogba, obviously he’s going to lose.

“But he’s going to have all my support. Even if he doesn’t score, the way that he’s fighting for the club and his team-mates, he’s producing chances. He needs time to improve. He’ll be better next season for sure, no doubt about that.”

Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal will “give it a real go” as they look to win a first Premier League title since 2003.

The Gunners celebrated a 2-0 victory over Wolves on Saturday night as they bounced back from their Champions League exit to Bayern Munich and last week’s 2-0 league defeat to Aston Villa.

Arteta talked up the importance of the leaders’ final five Premier League matches, with Arsenal top on goal difference from Liverpool and one point ahead of Manchester City who have a game in hand.

Arsenal face Chelsea on Tuesday night, with the Blues going into the game on the back of an FA Cup semi-final exit to Manchester City on Saturday.

“I have the same message that we need to keep doing what we’re doing, focus on the game and the task, prepare the game well and the boys look ready to go again,” Arteta told a press conference on Monday.

“It meant a lot for us (to win against Wolves). We are in a great position and we have been for nine months. We really want to give it a real go and we are really determined to do what is in our hands to lift the trophy.”

Chelsea, who have been a mixed bag in Mauricio Pochettino’s first season, are undefeated in the Premier League since February’s 4-2 home loss to Wolves.

Arteta reiterated that he thinks Chelsea will “come good” under the Argentinian, and added: “I have a huge admiration for Mauricio because I have known him for 23 years and I wish him nothing but the best.

“He’s an incredible manager and a huge leader, he’ll inspire that club to get them where they want to get to, that’s for sure.

“Whatever team they put out, with the quality in their squad, will be great. They are doing much better than what people talk about and it will be a tough match.”

Chelsea are still bidding for a European spot next season, with the Blues three points behind sixth-placed Newcastle with a game in hand on the Magpies.

Arteta believes their London rivals have undergone a “huge improvement” in recent months and “deserve to be in a higher position”.

He added: “They have been in a final, a semi-final. I think what Mauricio is doing is really impressive and I’m sure he’s going to get them there.”

Patrick Mullins has warned Britain’s leading yards that his father Willie may well aim for back-to-back victories in the jump trainers’ championship if topping the table this term.

The Closutton camp added a rather modest £4,356.80 to their tally when Patrick partnered 2-9 favourite Rath Gaul Boy to an easy success in the Dragonbet Best Odds On Welsh Sport Novices’ Hurdle at Ffos Las.

But that win showed that having already passed the £3million mark with Grand National victories at Aintree and Ayr to build up a sizeable lead over Dan Skelton and Paul Nicholls, Mullins is clearly keen to take nothing for granted.

And if he becomes only the second trainer based in Ireland to claim the UK title, the inspiration is there to push on for a second straight success.

“Myself, Ruby (Walsh) and David (Casey) would love it to be the plan from the start of the season, but Willie is always very much like mind your own garden and don’t let anyone get a foothold at home and do your best there,” Patrick Mullins told Sky Sports Racing.

“The only reason this became possible is because I Am Maximus won the National, if he hadn’t won the National, we wouldn’t be here and we wouldn’t have been at Ayr. It’s half a million, so we’d be fourth.

“So that changed things and we’ve been blown away by the support. People have been saying if you want to send a horse to Ffos Las or Ludlow or wherever, then do that. We’re very grateful for that.

“But Vincent O’Brien did it in the 1950s and he did it two years in a row, so if we do win it, maybe we’ll have to come back next year and emulate him! Although to emulate anything Vincent O’Brien did would be very special, because he is the legend.”

Manchester United fan Mullins was at Wembley on Saturday to watch the Red Devils reach the FA Cup final by getting past Coventry, but he took note of how they blew a 3-0 lead and came within a whisker of being knocked out in extra-time before prevailing on penalties.

Nicholls famously overturned a big deficit on the final day at Sandown when the Closutton team were last in pole position to top the table back in 2016.

“We went to Sandown before on the last day and we’ve been here before and we didn’t win, but hopefully this time we can,” added Patrick.

“The bid for the English title has really livened everything up for us at Closutton as well and we’re really enjoying it. I’m delighted to be in Ffos Las, I was delighted to be in Ayr and I can’t wait to be going to Ludlow on Wednesday.

“I haven’t seen a lot of these tracks, so it’s exciting and hopefully we can get it over the line.

“People have been very kind, we were up in Ayr and the crowd were so welcoming and very supportive of us.

“I remember when Man United used to win everything and everyone wanted to beat them, so there is that side of things when you’re successful, but Willie’s always said you take nothing for granted and you don’t know when things can change, so enjoy it while you can.

“We got the bounce of the ball in Ayr, where we got two photo-finishes. Macdermott could have been second and Chosen Witness could have been second, so that would have changed the whole thing again.”

Owen Burrows’ Alflaila is pencilled in for a summer comeback after a setback cut short his brief campaign last season.

The entire son of Dark Angel has done plenty to prove his ability in the past, enjoying a successful three-year-old season which yielded four victories.

Amongst them was the Strensall Stakes at York, an eight-furlong Group Three, and the Masar Darley Stakes at the same level at Newmarket.

Those runs were due to lead into a bid for the Bahrain International Trophy, but the bay met with a setback and could not take his chance in the Middle East.

He made a late return to action in June last year to take the York Stakes on the Knavesmire by half a length, and although luck did not favour him in his subsequent start in the Irish Champion Stakes he was not disgraced when coming home fifth.

Alflaila has not been seen since after meeting with another issue, but he has now returned to work and Burrows is hopeful he will make an early summer comeback.

“He’s back with me, he probably won’t be out for another month’s time,” said Burrows.

“In the last couple of weeks he’s started fast work and it’ll be good to get him back.

“He obviously didn’t have the longest of seasons last year, but he won well at York on King George day and then it’d didn’t go to plan in the Irish Champion Stakes.

“That was the case for a lot of the English horses, and then unfortunately he had a little setback and that finished him for the season.

“Touch wood we can get him back soon, I was hoping to start him in the Brigadier Gerard, but that may just come a fraction too soon.

“It all depends how the next few weeks go, but he looks as well as ever, he’s filled out and strengthened up again.

“I’m not going to rush him to try and get to Sandown, if it comes around then it comes around but if not we’ll look to June time, there’s plenty of races for a nice horse like him.

“He was only just over three lengths behind Auguste Rodin (in the Irish Champion Stakes) and so he doesn’t have a huge amount to find to step up into these Group One races.”

Willie Mullins has entered both El Fabiolo and Gaelic Warrior at Sandown on Saturday, as he leaves no stone unturned in his attempt to be crowned champion trainer in the UK for the first time.

With £170,000 up for grabs in the bet365 Celebration Chase, Mullins has every base covered with the winners of the last two renewals of the Arkle at Cheltenham.

Appreciate It, Dysart Dynamo and Saint Sam could all run for Mullins, who has made 25 entries on the card overall, while current champion chaser Captain Guinness holds an entry for Henry de Bromhead.

In what could potentially be one of the races of the season, Jonbon, Editeur Du Gite and Edwardstone are among the 14 possibles, in which Mullins’ nearest rival Dan Skelton has entered Nube Negra and his new recruit from Ben Pauling, Harper’s Brook.

A late decision is expected on Gaelic Warrior, with Joe Chambers, racing manager for his owners Susannah and Rich Ricci, explaining he is unlikely to be supplemented for the Champion Chase at Punchestown.

“We’re crawling forward day by day and fully expected him to be entered. We’ll see how things are looking on Thursday morning,” Chambers told the Nick Luck Daily podcast

“We’re not in the Champion Chase at Punchestown, only the novice race, and it’s 30,000 euros to supplement, which doesn’t appeal.

“Willie has always kept novices to novices, unless there has been the odd exception. I would have thought winning the Scottish National would make him run less rather than more, but I could be absolutely wrong, I haven’t a clue what they are thinking.

“He’d be a fair sight, I’d love to see him personally going two miles there, it’s right-handed but whether he goes there or not, it’s going to be very much later in the week.”

Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon is in at Punchestown but Sandown is his preferred destination.

“We are thinking we’re going to Sandown, that’s the plan at the moment, we’re just a little concerned he’s had to start watering quite early. As long as it is safe,” said Henderson.

“We did the two (Aintree and Sandown) last year, so it pricked our ears to it again. Punchestown is an option but I’d rather not be travelling, as it would be safer to stay in England, to be honest.”

In the bet365 Oaksey Chase, Ahoy Senor is among 17 entries, along with Henry de Bromhead’s Journey With Me and Patrick Neville’s The Real Whacker.

Paul Nicholls’ Threeunderthrufive is left at the top of the weights for the bet365 Gold Cup, as the current champion retains a slim hope of retaining his title.

Last year’s winner Kitty’s Light remains in contention after his brave run in the Grand National, with Le Milos carrying the flag for Skelton.

Mullins has left in four, with Nick Rockett and Minella Cocooner his main hopes.

Impaire Et Passe and Langer Dan could meet again in the bet365 Select Hurdle, in which Skelton has also entered My Drogo.

Shaun Murphy began his quest for a second world title in style as he cruised his way into the second round of the World Snooker Championship with a 10-5 victory over Lyu Haotian at the Crucible.

Murphy started the session with a 6-3 lead and was looking to carry on where he left off when he punished China’s Haotian from 38 points behind to pinch the opening frame to extend his advantage to four.

Murphy secured the next to make it five consecutive frames but Haotian won two out of the next three to extend the tie slightly.

A relaxed Murphy did not sweat and – with the 2005 world champion just needing a solitary frame for the win – he wrapped it up in style with a break of 81 to put himself into the second round of the tournament for the first time since 2021.

Murphy told the BBC: “I haven’t won a match since I beat Kyren Wilson here in 2021.

“It’s such a relief, it’s so rewarding and pleasing, I haven’t won a match here for a few seasons. I’m delighted to have got that win and in the second round of the tournament.”

Stuart Bingham stormed into an impressive three-frame lead to give him a healthy advantage at the end of the first session as he leads Gary Wilson 6-3 at the halfway point.

Bingham started in tremendous fashion, falling just two points short of an opening-frame century break to put his first point on the board and he rattled off the next three before Wilson made his mark on the scoreboard.

Bingham responded straight away with a 117 break to go 5-1 up and already put daylight between himself and and Wilson, who many expected to challenge for the title.

Staring down the barrel of an early exit, Wilson’s session-high 60 break of the match came in the final frame but a missed black pot helped Bingham swoop in and almost clear the table until he himself missed a routine black on the last and his opponent sunk the remaining ball to reduce the deficit to three.

Jurgen Klopp is hopeful fortune is on Liverpool’s side for the Premier League run-in after their 3-1 victory at Fulham moved them joint top of the table with Arsenal.

The Reds scored through Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ryan Gravenberch and Diogo Jota as they bounced back from Thursday’s Europa League exit to Atalanta and their Anfield defeat to Crystal Palace.

Klopp admitted the title race excites him, citing rivals Manchester City and Arsenal, much like Liverpool, will need luck during an intense period.

Liverpool have five games remaining and Klopp said: “Maybe if we can keep it as exciting then in the end fortune is maybe then on our side. We don’t know. We have to try to win as many games as somehow possible, to win as many points as somehow possible.

“It is an intense season for all of us; everybody needs luck in moments, each of the three teams need that. So, it will be an interesting race and so I am happy that we are in and that part I enjoy.”

Cody Gakpo slipped Jota through in the 72nd minute before the Portugal attacker finished with a drilled first-time strike into the bottom right-hand corner.

Klopp lauded the pair’s availability ahead of their final fixtures.

“It is just super-cool to have Diogo back,” Klopp added.

“He can play all three positions up front. It is as important that Cody Gakpo is back. He wasn’t injured, but he was a little bit struggling.

“He is now fully back since three or four games. He is physically there, is extremely strong, keeps the ball and stuff like this, so that’s really helpful as well.”

Fulham manager Marco Silva admitted his side’s reaction after Liverpool’s second goal was not good enough.

He said: “From that moment, I agree the reaction was not so good. It was not good enough, not like the first half reaction, and it was more difficult for us to create chances to equalise.”

Paul Nicholls has admitted he feels a pang of sympathy for Dan Skelton if, as looks likely, Willie Mullins goes on to beat the pair to become champion trainer.

Nicholls needs one more title to draw level with Martin Pipe on 15, while Skelton is chasing his first crown.

However, having won the Grand National at Aintree with I Am Maximus and the Scottish version with Macdermott, Mullins now has a cushion of almost £180,000 with a week to go.

Nicholls told Betfair: “All credit to him, he’s got a big team of people and horses, particularly horses, and it’s become a bit of a numbers game. The numbers they can produce to run across the board is immense really. It’s a job to compete with that.

“I remember back in the years I had all those good ones and you’d win the trainers’ championship just by winning those big races. The last few years, it has just been about getting the best out of your team.

“Now it’s very difficult. If you win all those big races, like Champion Hurdles and Gold Cups and Grand Nationals, you are going to be champion trainer with a small number of runners. It’s not going to get any easier with the number of horses and the class of horses they have at their disposal.

“It’s an amazing feat to do but with the ammunition they’ve got, and the numbers, we’re up against it.

“I feel a bit for Dan because he said to me on Saturday that he thought the first time he’d beat me in the trainers’ championship, he’d be champion – well he hasn’t yet, because we’ve got Saturday and I’m not too far behind him, so I’m not going to let him rest on his laurels – but in a normal year, he’d be champion trainer.

“He could end up finishing second having beaten me and I know he’s mortified, but he’s had a good season and he’ll get his chance another day.”

Nottingham Forest did not ask for Stuart Attwell to be taken off VAR duties for their match against Everton, sources have told the PA news agency.

Forest issued an extraordinary statement on social media on Sunday after their 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park, saying they had “warned” referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that Attwell “was a Luton fan” but that “they did not change him”.

The statement also complained about three penalty appeals which were turned down. Forest said they were now “considering their options”, while the Football Association is understood to be investigating the post.

PA understands Forest’s referee analyst Mark Clattenburg contacted PGMOL’s chief refereeing officer Howard Webb on Friday to share that manager Nuno Espirito Santo might be asked about Attwell’s appointment at his pre-match press conference, but ultimately no such questions were asked.

However, the PA news agency has been told Forest, and Clattenburg, did not request for the appointment of Attwell to be changed and nor did the club express that they had any problem with the appointment.

Forest have been contacted for comment.

The Reds were furious not to be awarded spot-kicks by referee Anthony Taylor for challenges on Giovanni Reyna and Callum Hudson-Odoi by Ashley Young, who also escaped a handball decision. Attwell backed the referee’s on-field decision in each case.

The club’s social media post on X read: “Three extremely poor decisions – three penalties not given – which we simply cannot accept.

“We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times. NFFC will now consider its options.”

Clattenburg later wrote in a Daily Mail column: “One of these errors would have been bad enough. Three was a joke, and that is why Nottingham Forest were left feeling victimised after another defeat in which zero big decisions went their way.

“In a season where they have had to endure some egregious refereeing, this trip to Everton was as grim a game as they have encountered since returning to the Premier League.”

He added: “You will have seen the statement released by the club — how the PGMOL was contacted to warn that it was not appropriate for a Luton fan such as Attwell to play such a pivotal role in a massive match that would impact the relegation race.

“Certainly, I would not have risked this situation if I were the head of the referees and all of this could have been avoided had the PGMOL simply made smarter appointments.

“Referees do not make mistakes deliberately but this was mind-boggling to watch. Why Attwell did not send Taylor to his screen, only he will know.”

Clattenburg also spoke out last month after Forest’s defeat to Liverpool, when he highlighted that referee Paul Tierney had made an error in law by mistakenly handing possession back to Liverpool for a drop ball late in the game.

On that occasion, the club were fined £75,000 for failing to control their players while first-team coach Steven Reid was fined and given a two-match touchline ban for his abusive behaviour towards Tierney.

Nottingham Forest did not ask for Stuart Attwell to be taken off VAR duties for their match against Everton, sources have told the PA news agency.

Forest issued an extraordinary statement on social media on Sunday after their 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park, saying they had “warned” referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that Attwell “was a Luton fan” but that “they did not change him”.

The statement also complained about three penalty appeals which were turned down. Forest said they were now “considering their options”, while the Football Association is understood to be investigating the post.

PA understands Forest’s referee analyst Mark Clattenburg contacted PGMOL’s chief refereeing officer Howard Webb on Friday to share that manager Nuno Espirito Santo might be asked about Attwell’s appointment at his pre-match press conference, but ultimately no such questions were asked.

However, the PA news agency has been told Forest, and Clattenburg, did not request for the appointment of Attwell to be changed and nor did the club express that they had any problem with the appointment.

Forest have been contacted for comment.

The Reds were furious not to be awarded spot-kicks by referee Anthony Taylor for challenges on Giovanni Reyna and Callum Hudson-Odoi by Ashley Young, who also escaped a handball decision. Attwell backed the referee’s on-field decision in each case.

The club’s social media post on X read: “Three extremely poor decisions – three penalties not given – which we simply cannot accept.

“We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times. NFFC will now consider its options.”

Clattenburg later wrote in a Daily Mail column: “One of these errors would have been bad enough. Three was a joke, and that is why Nottingham Forest were left feeling victimised after another defeat in which zero big decisions went their way.

“In a season where they have had to endure some egregious refereeing, this trip to Everton was as grim a game as they have encountered since returning to the Premier League.”

He added: “You will have seen the statement released by the club — how the PGMOL was contacted to warn that it was not appropriate for a Luton fan such as Attwell to play such a pivotal role in a massive match that would impact the relegation race.

“Certainly, I would not have risked this situation if I were the head of the referees and all of this could have been avoided had the PGMOL simply made smarter appointments.

“Referees do not make mistakes deliberately but this was mind-boggling to watch. Why Attwell did not send Taylor to his screen, only he will know.”

Clattenburg also spoke out last month after Forest’s defeat to Liverpool, when he highlighted that referee Paul Tierney had made an error in law by mistakenly handing possession back to Liverpool for a drop ball late in the game.

On that occasion, the club were fined £75,000 for failing to control their players while first-team coach Steven Reid was fined and given a two-match touchline ban for his abusive behaviour towards Tierney.

Manchester City and Manchester United will meet in the FA Cup final for the second year in a row after City beat Chelsea and United survived a thrilling semi-final against Coventry.

Here, the PA news agency looks at their head-to-head record in the competition and the historical significance of next month’s clash.

Previous meetings

Ilkay Gundogan’s goal after 12 seconds – the fastest FA Cup final goal in history – is the abiding memory of City’s 2-1 win last year.

Bruno Fernandes equalised from a penalty but a second Gundogan strike sealed City’s fourth and most significant victory in nine FA Cup derbies dating back almost a century.

City won the 1926 semi-final 3-0, Tommy Browell scoring twice, but went on to lose the final 1-0 to Bolton. The Manchester rivals did not meet in the competition again until a 1955 fourth-round clash also won by City, 2-0.

United won the next four ties against City, starting with another fourth-round meeting in 1970 when Brian Kidd – a future assistant manager of both clubs – scored twice in a 3-0 win.

Norman Whiteside scored the only goal in 1987’s third-round tie and Eric Cantona’s penalty proved decisive in a 2-1 fifth-round win in 1996. They met at that stage again in 2004, Ruud van Nistelrooy scoring twice as United won 4-2 despite Gary Neville’s first-half dismissal.

A solitary Yaya Toure goal settled the 2011 semi-final in City’s favour before United’s Paul Scholes was sent off – this time City went on to win the competition, beating Stoke in the final.

United held off a second-half fightback from 10-man City in the following season’s third round, Wayne Rooney’s brace setting up a 3-2 win, before Gundogan’s Wembley heroics last year.

Deja vu

This will be the first time in 129 years that the same two clubs have met in the final in consecutive seasons. Queen’s Park, the only Scottish side to play in an FA Cup final, were beaten by Blackburn in both 1884 and 1885 at the Oval.

The nearest in the intervening years has been the same two teams meeting three years apart, most recently Arsenal beating Chelsea 2-1 in both 2017 and 2020. City and United will become the 17th pair of teams to meet in multiple finals.

United rank second all time for FA Cup wins, two behind Arsenal on 12, and will remain there regardless of the outcome this time around. Victory for City would be their eighth, lifting them to joint third alongside Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham.

Jayson Tatum showed he was unfazed by the Miami Heat's physicality as he logged his first career playoff triple-double in the Boston Celtics' 114-94 Game 1 victory on Sunday.

Top-seeded Boston seized the initiative in their first-round series against Miami at TD Garden, with Tatum adding 10 rebounds and 10 assists to his 23 points, leading six Celtics in double figures.

Tatum's fine performance came despite some rough treatment from the Heat, taking one huge hit from Caleb Martin while going up for a rebound in the last minute of the fourth quarter.

Martin immediately went to help Tatum up but was pushed by Boston's Jaylen Brown, with both players awarded technicals. The Miami forward later said the incident was accidental, as he received a slight nudge from Jrue Holiday before crashing into Tatum.

The five-star All-Star was soon back to his feet, though, and he later said getting hit was just part of the game. 

"It's playoff basketball, and it's a physical game against a physical team. ***'s going to happen," Tatum said. "It's probably not the last time I'm going to get hit like that in this series.

The Celtics led by as many as 34 points in the fourth quarter, with a late run from the Heat only ever bringing them as close as 14. 

Tatum hailed Boston for staying focused throughout, adding: "It's supposed to be tough. In the playoffs no game is easy. 

"There are no guaranteed wins regardless of the score, or how much time is left. We just had to respond and we did that."

Miami struggled in the absence of Jimmy Butler, and coach Erik Spoelstra accepted they were second-best, saying: "Boston controlled this game from the tip. 

"They won the big muscle areas. They definitely won the 3-point line and the majority of the areas in between."

Elsewhere on Sunday, Milwaukee Bucks star Damian Lillard scored 35 first-half points – a franchise playoff record – as they claimed a 109-94 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of their own first-round series.

Lillard didn't score after halftime, but his lightning start ensured the Bucks were untroubled despite the absence of two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who missed out with a calf strain. 

Milwaukee built a commanding 69-42 lead by the interval and never saw their advantage drop to single digits as Khris Middleton tacked on 23 points – 15 of them in the second half.

Looking ahead to Tuesday's second game, which will also be held at the home of the third-seeded Bucks, Lillard said: "In the playoffs, it's about setting the tone.

"We're going to see this team a lot of times, and you want to establish yourself, especially on your home floor. That was my mentality, to come out and try and set the tone in that way."

Remarking on Lillard's incredible first-half performance, Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said: "He carried us. He was unbelievable."

Over the course of four quarters, Lillard was upstaged by Indiana's Pascal Siakam, who finished with 36 points and 13 rebounds in 40 minutes on the court.

Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle, however, was unable to look beyond their miserable start to the game.

"The first half was embarrassing," Carlisle said. "We have no excuses. We've simply got to come out better. It was ugly, and we all own it."

Porta Fortuna is on course for the Qipco 1000 Guineas having pleased trainer Donnacha O’Brien in a recent racecourse gallop.

The Caravaggio filly won the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot in June but showed she was far from just a precocious type when winning the Cheveley Park at the end of September.

Stepped up to a mile for the first time at the Breeders’ Cup, she went down by just half a length to Chad Brown’s Hard To Justify in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.

“She’s done well over the winter and we had her at Leopardstown for a day away on the Guineas Trials day and she went very well,” said O’Brien.

“We’re very happy with her and aiming for Newmarket.

“She barely won a maiden on heavy but all her best form is on quick ground, so I’d say the better the ground the better for her.

“She ran well over a mile at the Breeders’ Cup, but a Newmarket mile is different than around Santa Anita.

“We are happy to give it a go and if it doesn’t work we can always come back (in trip).”