Four months ago, Mel Rowley’s dreams were being washed away by the chaos caused by Storm Babet, but now the Shropshire handler is eyeing Pertemps Final glory with Kyntara at Cheltenham.

Rowley is not a stranger to Festival success at Prestbury Park, as her husband Philip saddled Hazel Hill to win the St James’s Place Foxhunter Challenge Cup in 2019.

But Kyntara – who is as short as 12-1 with Sky Bet for Thursday’s three-mile handicap hurdle – represents the best chance of striking in her own name since becoming a professional licence holder at the family’s Poplar Cottage Farm.

Kyntara could be joined in the Cotswolds by recent Doncaster scorer Raffle Ticket, who holds an entry in the Trustatrader Plate, but soft ground would see hopes fully resting on the stable’s consistent hurdler, who began the season by winning at Lingfield and Aintree and has hit the crossbar in a couple of competitive events since.

“We’ve confirmed both of them but sadly, if the ground is right for one, it won’t be right for the other. But we’re very happy with them and we’ll just have to see how the week unfolds,” said Rowley.

“Kyntara is a definite to get in, so he would be favourite in regards to making the journey, but things could change dependent on ground.

“The softer the ground, the better for him and we’ve been absolutely delighted with him this season. He definitely has earned his place there and it would just be lovely to see him come up that hill.”

One of the many strings to the Rowley family’s bow is their renowned pre-training operation, with Sprinter Sacre perhaps the most famous alumni.

Kyntara himself was a Poplar Cottage graduate before joining Kim Bailey at the beginning of his rules career and his move back to Bridgnorth represents the Lady Dulverton-owned eight-year-old returning home ahead of arguably his biggest assignment to date.

“Who knows what will happen, it’s fairytale stuff and we’ve had horses for the owners for years,” continued Rowley.

“In fact, we had Kyntara when he was a three-year-old, then he went off elsewhere and now he’s gone full circle and come back to us.

“It would just be the most fantastic thing (if he could win) and we can all but dream. He’s come such a long way since we’ve had him back anyway, that for him to be going to Cheltenham is just fantastic on every level.”

She went on: “We’re a small team who work very hard and they are special days when you have a runner at Cheltenham.

“When you have a runner going, who one would hope would be competitive, it is just fantastic and very exciting. As we all know, anything can happen between now and then, but if all goes well, we will be loading up the lorry next Thursday.”

It was back in October when Rowley saw her yard washed away as Storm Babet wreaked havoc across the country.

Poplar Cottage felt the full force of the flooding caused by water coming into the yard meeting with a nearby stream, with the result being that parts of the gallop and schooling grounds ended up under water.

A timely repair job by a local company helped the Rowley team remain up and running and after surviving the worst weather the husband and wife duo have experienced in over 20 years at Poplar Cottage, they are taking plenty of positives from a trying winter.

Rowley said: “They always say something good comes out of bad and it was an unmitigated nightmare – it was just carnage, I’m not going to lie.

“We got in touch with a local chap whose business is groundworks and he came along with a little army of very, very helpful people and between them they put us back together again and got us back up and running.

“On the back of all that, he liked what he saw and the whole ethos of the yard and the team. We were short of a sponsor and he has now sponsored us.

“So, out of bad a good thing has happened and we’re proud to be able to say the chap who got us back on the road is now sponsoring us.”

The New England Patriots are moving on from former first-round draft pick Mac Jones at quarterback.

The Patriots are finalising a trade which will send Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The trade, which was first reported Sunday by Adam Schefter of ESPN, cannot be made official until the new league year begins on Wednesday, and he passes a physical.

The terms of the trade are still being finalised, but Schefter reported the Jaguars would send a sixth-round draft pick to the Patriots in exchange for Jones.

New England selected Jones 15th overall in the 2021 NFL draft, and he put together an encouraging rookie season, throwing for 3,801 yards with 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions for a 92.5 passer rating in leading the Patriots to a 10-6 record and a play-off berth.

The 25-year-old has been unable to build upon that Pro Bowl season, however, throwing 24 TDs with 23 interceptions in the last two years combined.

Among quarterbacks with at least 300 pass attempts in 2023, Jones' 77.0 QB rating was the second worst. 

His poor play led Patriots coach Bill Belichick to pull Jones from four games in favour of backup Bailey Zappe, until he ultimately benched Jones for good in Week 13.

In Jacksonville, Jones will serve as a backup to Trevor Lawrence, who was selected with the first overall pick in the 2021 draft.

Jones, who went 2-9 as a starter last season, was born in Jacksonville.

Tottenham inflicted a chastening 4-0 home defeat on 10-man Aston Villa as Ange Postecoglou’s men emphatically won this key battle in the race for Champions League qualification.

Sunday’s crunch clash between fourth and fifth was described in the build-up by Villa skipper John McGinn as “the most important game in the club’s recent history”.

Unai Emery’s men had the chance to move eight points clear of Spurs in the final guaranteed Champions League spot, but instead the hosts’ captain saw red in an embarrassing second-half collapse.

Tottenham moved within two points of Villa with a win that started with James Maddison turning home a brilliant Pape Matar Sarr cross in the 50th minute.

Brennan Johnson scored a fantastic second three minutes later and McGinn’s rash, frustrated challenge on Destiny Udogie led to a straight red card that ended Villa hopes of a comeback.

Son Heung-min and substitute Timo Werner struck in stoppage time as Spurs secured a statement win in the Midlands, ending Villa’s run of three straight Premier League wins in this fixture.

The players emerged to smoke and pyrotechnics at Villa Park but there were no first-half fireworks to write about.

Ollie Watkins threatened to punish Spurs’ high line early on, with Micky van de Ven’s recovery pace bailing out Cristian Romero after the in-form striker burst past beyond him.

Another example of that approach saw Watkins slipped through before the offside flag saved the Villa striker’s blushes after his undercooked pass to Leon Bailey was cut out by Pedro Porro.

Guglielmo Vicario punched away a testing McGinn free-kick and Matty Cash prodded wide after a cutback was blocked, while at the other end Villa’s five-man defence was keeping Spurs’ attack quiet.

Villa went close to taking the lead on the stroke of half-time from a short corner. The ball was laid back for McGinn to hit a well-struck cross and Lucas Digne’s flicked header looped narrowly wide.

Postecoglou’s men escaped that threat and came back from the break with a pep in their step, and not even Van de Ven’s early withdrawal could throw them off kilter.

The injured Tottenham defender had to be replaced by Radu Dragusin and headed down the tunnel just as his team-mates and the away end burst into celebration behind him.

Sarr hit an outstanding cross from the right that Maddison met ahead of a pair of Villa defenders to turn home in the 50th minute.

The Spurs man wheeled off to celebrate with the away end, then turned to the home fans when bringing out his darts celebration.

The visiting hordes were on their feet again three minutes later as Ezri Konsa’s poor pass to Tielemans was cut out brilliantly by Dejan Kulusevski, with Son collecting the ball and playing on to Johnson to brilliantly bend beyond Emiliano Martinez.

Emery responded by changing personnel and shape, only to be derailed by McGinn’s dismissal in the 65th minute.

The frustrated Villa skipper wiped out Udogie with a stupid tackle, leading to a clash involving both teams as referee Chris Kavanagh brandished a straight red card.

“2-0 in your cup final” bellowed the gleeful travelling fans, who saw Kulusevski try to add a third as they cruised against the 10-man hosts.

Vicario spread himself to stop substitute Nicolo Zaniolo but Tottenham were in control and struck twice more late on.

Son lashed home from Kulusevski’s pass in the 91st minute and substitute Werner completed the rout four minutes into the additional 10 as the home fans cleared out.

Tottenham inflicted a chastening 4-0 home defeat on 10-man Aston Villa as Ange Postecoglou’s men emphatically won this key battle in the race for Champions League qualification.

Sunday’s crunch clash between fourth and fifth was described in the build-up by Villa skipper John McGinn as “the most important game in the club’s recent history”.

Unai Emery’s men had the chance to move eight points clear of Spurs in the final guaranteed Champions League spot, but instead the hosts’ captain saw red in an embarrassing second-half collapse.

Tottenham moved within two points of Villa with a win that started with James Maddison turning home a brilliant Pape Matar Sarr cross in the 50th minute.

Brennan Johnson scored a fantastic second three minutes later and McGinn’s rash, frustrated challenge on Destiny Udogie led to a straight red card that ended Villa hopes of a comeback.

Son Heung-min and substitute Timo Werner struck in stoppage time as Spurs secured a statement win in the Midlands, ending Villa’s run of three straight Premier League wins in this fixture.

The players emerged to smoke and pyrotechnics at Villa Park but there were no first-half fireworks to write about.

Ollie Watkins threatened to punish Spurs’ high line early on, with Micky van de Ven’s recovery pace bailing out Cristian Romero after the in-form striker burst past beyond him.

Another example of that approach saw Watkins slipped through before the offside flag saved the Villa striker’s blushes after his undercooked pass to Leon Bailey was cut out by Pedro Porro.

Guglielmo Vicario punched away a testing McGinn free-kick and Matty Cash prodded wide after a cutback was blocked, while at the other end Villa’s five-man defence was keeping Spurs’ attack quiet.

Villa went close to taking the lead on the stroke of half-time from a short corner. The ball was laid back for McGinn to hit a well-struck cross and Lucas Digne’s flicked header looped narrowly wide.

Postecoglou’s men escaped that threat and came back from the break with a pep in their step, and not even Van de Ven’s early withdrawal could throw them off kilter.

The injured Tottenham defender had to be replaced by Radu Dragusin and headed down the tunnel just as his team-mates and the away end burst into celebration behind him.

Sarr hit an outstanding cross from the right that Maddison met ahead of a pair of Villa defenders to turn home in the 50th minute.

The Spurs man wheeled off to celebrate with the away end, then turned to the home fans when bringing out his darts celebration.

The visiting hordes were on their feet again three minutes later as Ezri Konsa’s poor pass to Tielemans was cut out brilliantly by Dejan Kulusevski, with Son collecting the ball and playing on to Johnson to brilliantly bend beyond Emiliano Martinez.

Emery responded by changing personnel and shape, only to be derailed by McGinn’s dismissal in the 65th minute.

The frustrated Villa skipper wiped out Udogie with a stupid tackle, leading to a clash involving both teams as referee Chris Kavanagh brandished a straight red card.

“2-0 in your cup final” bellowed the gleeful travelling fans, who saw Kulusevski try to add a third as they cruised against the 10-man hosts.

Vicario spread himself to stop substitute Nicolo Zaniolo but Tottenham were in control and struck twice more late on.

Son lashed home from Kulusevski’s pass in the 91st minute and substitute Werner completed the rout four minutes into the additional 10 as the home fans cleared out.

Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine hopes to be fit for the start of the next NBA campaign after his season-ending injury to his right foot.

LaVine, who has not played since mid-January due to an ankle sprain, elected for surgery and will have been out for between four and six months by the time he returns to the court.

The Bulls man joined his teammates in Los Angeles before Saturday's 112-102 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, who overturned a 14-point deficit for victory.

Speaking on his personal decision for surgery, LaVine insisted the operation was the best way to progress in his rehabilitation.

"You never want to have surgery," he said. "But I got to a conclusion, especially with what the doctor was telling me, your pain level, this thing isn't going to heal on its own."

Having met up with his Bulls teammates before the Clippers defeat, LaVine sees no issue with settling back into the Chicago group.

"Same way it always has been," he said about the idea of fitting back in with the team. "It's not hard to fit back in, especially with the way I play the game and want to go out there and help."

Lonzo Ball, who has not played since January 2022 because of knee injuries, is also having rehabilitation treatment in Los Angeles.

Chicago coach Billy Donovan suggested Ball is recovering well, saying: "There's a lot of time for where he's at right now to get himself back hopefully where he gets cleared to play 5-on-5 and contact. 

"That's going to be the biggest thing. Whenever he gets to that place."

The Bulls dropped to 31-33 for the season after losing in Los Angeles but LaVine expects Chicago to bounce back.

"I talk to these guys pretty much every day, every game," he added. "It's been great, they've been winning a lot of games, a lot of games that come down to the wire."

Carlos Corberan expressed his delight as West Brom came from behind to thump Huddersfield 4-1.

Marking his first return to the Terriers since departing in 2022, Corberan oversaw a rampant Baggies display as they tightened their grip on the play-offs.

It was not plain sailing for the visitors, who failed to register a shot in the first half as they fell behind to Delano Burgzorg’s opener.

But a double courtesy of the in-form Mikey Johnston – his fifth and sixth goals since a January loan move from Celtic – inspired a second-half comeback.

And a poacher’s finish from Kyle Bartley twinned with an Okay Yokuslu thunderbolt topped off a rampaging second half showing.

“We knew that today was important and that it was going to be a tough game,” said Corberan, whose side stretched their unbeaten run to five games.

“In one week, we’ve had three games and two away. Playing away is tough, especially when you play against a team that are fighting to survive.

“I like the fact that I saw the right mentality of my team, especially in the second half.

“It was important after the first half to understand the type of game that we were playing.

“In the second half, we wanted to move fast from their press in our pitch and tried to launch attacks in their half.

“Sometimes it takes us some time to understand the game, but I think the players in the second half had the right character and understanding to win the three points.

“What’s important is that we’re starting to find the right stability because we’re having a lot of mistakes but what’s important is how you stop it after.”

Meanwhile, Huddersfield remain entrenched in the relegation zone as they were punished for letting their first-half advantage slip.

“Their first two goals were really unlucky, and this changed the game,” said boss Andre Breitenreiter.

“We were fantastic in the first half and controlled the game; we wanted to play the same style in the second half.

“We should score again after the equaliser and we had a big chance, but that was the difference today – they scored from 30 metres and we didn’t from 10.

“We had a lot of chances and we didn’t use them; West Brom were good in the second half and we have to congratulate them.

“We tried until the end and created some more chances but we have to learn from this; we needed too many chances for only one goal.

“I spoke to the team and we have to concentrate on what we can do really well.

“It was a fantastic first half against a big team with high quality and we controlled them, but we need this performance now over 90 minutes.”

French superstar Il Est Francais is thrilling connections as he steps up his workload ahead of his next outing.

Trained by Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm, the six-year-old is becoming a household name in his native France where he has built up a formidable reputation. But it was at Kempton Park on Boxing Day when producing an imperious display in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase where he cemented his position as one of the leading chasers around.

His training team resisted the temptation to take in one of the graded novice events at the Cheltenham Festival en route to their main target of the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris, and Il Est Francais – who is a 6-1 chance with Paddy Power for next year’s Gold Cup – will tune up for his outing in the Auteuil showpiece on May 19 by running in the Prix Muray in early April.

With that event a little under a month away, George and Zetterholm have begun tightening the screws on the eight-time winner in eager anticipation of his spring campaign on home soil.

“He’s absolutely flying and actually schooled Wednesday morning for the first time since his little break which went really nicely,” said George.

“We started riding him back out from the beginning of February, but we’ve really started stepping up his work again now and he will be spot on for April 6.

“He’s very much on target for that race which is a Grade Two and then it will be the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris on May 19. He’s a horse who likes to run fresh so it gives him a month and a bit to get over it and he should be in great form.”

Luka Doncic became the first NBA player to record six consecutive 30-point triple-doubles in a dominant showing against the Detroit Pistons that Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd lauded.

Doncic finished with 39 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds, surpassing Russell Westbrook's record of five straight 30-point triple-doubles, as the Mavericks beat Detroit 142-124 on Saturday.

The Slovenian also extended his own record with a fifth straight 35-point triple-double as the Dallas star continues to run his own NBA MVP competition.

"That just shows what level he's playing on right now," coach Kidd said. "He knows he can score the ball, and he's also able to find his teammates, and lastly, he's able to rebound the ball."

Doncic was somewhat goaded by the Pistons fans, suggesting his ability is not as impressive as some think, but that noise did not bother the Dallas man or Kidd.

"Well, we know he doesn't suck," Kidd said. "I think we know he enjoys when people talk to him. If that's what sparked him, we would like for that to happen a lot more."

Doncic also became the fourth player with 10 35-point triple-doubles in a season, joining Westbrook, James Harden and Oscar Robertson.

Tim Hardaway Jr. hit three 3-pointers in the final two minutes or so of the third period, while Kyrie Irving added 21 points for Dallas, who have now won two in a row after a three-game losing streak.

"It's huge for us when [Hardaway] can come in and hit 3-pointers like that," Kidd said. "Not only did he make four, he had two chances at a four-point play."

Cade Cunningham was a rare bright spark for Detroit, making 33 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds. Simone Fontecchio added a career-high 27 points as the Pistons fell to a 10th defeat in 12.

Classic dreams are very much alive for Rosallion, with Richard Hannon reaffirming his confidence in his high-class Qipco 2000 Guineas hope.

The son of Blue Point has always been held in high regard and has previously been described as “right up there with the best we’ve ever had” by his handler.

He was last seen putting a Doncaster disappointment behind him when scooping Group One honours in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere – a victory that made him Britain’s best hope of overcoming Aidan O’Brien’s City Of Troy in the opening Classic of the season.

Hannon has been pleased with what he has seen from Rosallion since returning to work for his three-year-old campaign, but is still to decide if he will take part in any of the Guineas trials in the spring.

Concerned about running the talented colt on soft ground before his big date at Newmarket on May 4, he could instead head straight for the 2000 Guineas itself – a race for which he is a best price of 8-1.

“Rosallion is in great form and he’s had a canter upsides Haatem on the grass,” said Hannon.

“Timmy Murphy rides him every day and was delighted with him. It wasn’t a massively informative piece of work but it was just one of those where we thought we would give him a little bit while it was a nice morning and the grass is nice.”

He went on: “I would like to give him a trial, but I won’t run him anywhere where there is soft ground. He could just go straight to the 2000 Guineas.

“I’m going to take him to either Kempton or Newbury two or three weeks before the trials, so if he does go straight to the Guineas, he will be plenty quick enough.

“My view of him hasn’t changed, there is not a horse I would rather have other than him.”

Carlos Corberan enjoyed a happy return to Huddersfield as West Brom came from behind to clinch a thumping 4-1 victory.

The Baggies failed to register a single shot in a dismal first-half display as Delano Burgzorg gave the hosts a deserved lead at the break.

However, a rampant away side turned on the style in an impressive second half to stretch their unbeaten run to five games and tighten their grip on a play-off place.

A double courtesy of the in-form Mikey Johnston, a goal on Kyle Bartley’s return and a thunderbolt from Okay Yokuslu set the Baggies on their way to an important win.

Andre Breitenreiter – Huddersfield’s fifth boss since Corberan left the club in July 2022 – oversaw another bright start in his fourth game in charge.

The hosts, who dropped into the relegation zone following Stoke’s victory at Preston on Saturday, dominated the early stages and were eventually rewarded.

On the cusp of the half hour mark, Burgzorg opened the scoring against the Baggies – just as he did in the reverse fixture back in September.

The Dutch forward twisted beyond Darnell Furlong before unleashing a fierce strike that wriggled under stopper Alex Palmer – his seventh goal of the campaign.

And a rocked West Brom nearly found themselves further behind moments later, but they were indebted to Bartley’s heroic last-ditch challenge to thwart Jack Rudoni.

Despite a dreadful first half, the Baggies only found themselves one goal behind and Corberan’s instructions at the interval proved decisive.

A transformed side returned for the restart and they soon found their leveller to open the floodgates.

Jed Wallace dashed to the byline and teed up Celtic loanee Johnston for a simple tap-in, with the latter continuing his hot goalscoring streak since a January switch.

Burgzorg was gifted a golden chance to restore Huddersfield’s lead by Yokuslu, but Palmer raced out crucially to deny a Town second.

And that miss would prove pivotal for the course of the fixture as the visitors completed their quickfire comeback on the hour mark.

A Wallace strike prompted pinball in the hosts’ box with a poaching Bartley on hand to poke home – marking his first start in seven games with a goal.

Turkish international Yokuslu, who turned 30 on Saturday, then marked his birthday weekend in style as his piledriver from range arrowed beyond a helpless Nicholls.

The rampant Baggies soon added a fourth through Johnston’s second of the afternoon.

The dazzling winger skipped beyond Matty Pearson and slotted coolly beyond Nicholls for his sixth goal in seven games.

And to compound a miserable afternoon for the Terriers, a heroic Palmer double save denied both Rudoni and Danny Ward as they remain in the drop zone.

Meanwhile, West Brom secured a first win this season after conceding first and a first league victory at Huddersfield since 2000.

Centre-back Rob Dickie headed his fifth Championship goal of the season to give Bristol City a precious 1-0 victory over Swansea at Ashton Gate.

The tall defender glanced home Joe Williams’ chip into a crowded penalty area on 73 minutes to give the Robins bragging rights over the Swans in a forgettable game of few chances.

Swansea dominated possession for long periods without forcing a save from home goalkeeper Max O’Leary and could have no complaints.

The result left them just five points above the Championship relegation zone, while Bristol City now have a nine-point cushion to the bottom three.

Head coach Liam Manning made one change from the Robins side who suffered a fourth successive defeat at Ipswich in midweek, preferring Tommy Conway to Nahki Wells up front, while Swansea’s starting line-up included former Ashton Gate midfielder Jamie Paterson.

The vast number of empty seats spoke volumes for the damage done to fan morale by that recent run and the first half saw Manning’s men fail register a single attempt on goal.

They were booed off at the interval, having lacked any conviction in their attacking play and been largely outplayed by a Swansea team who went into the game a point behind them in the table.

The visitors themselves failed to get an effort on target but looked the more threatening side.

Paterson had a seventh-minute shot blocked for a corner by Zak Vyner while Liam Cullen was wide with a 29th-minute header and fired over from distance 10 minutes later.

All the while, the massed ranks of Swans supporters behind one goal made the atmosphere more like a home game for their team, who attacked with promise without finding a killer final ball.

The start of the second half was delayed because one of the water sprinklers remained on in the Swansea half. It brought a moment of light relief amid a grim battle.

By the 55th minute Manning had seen enough and sent on winger Mark Sykes for Harry Cornick. Still it was Swansea who looked the more likely scorers and Przemyslaw Placheta wasted a glorious chance on 57 minutes, shooting wildly wide when unmarked from a right-wing cross.

Dickie sent an effort wide from a free-kick into the box as the hosts at last put an effort in on goal on 64 minutes. They had a much better chance five minutes later but Ross McCrorie fired wide of the near post, with Conway waiting in the middle for a cross.

Dickie’s goal rewarded the first real spell of pressure from Manning’s side, who improved for Sykes taking over on the right flank.

It should have been 2-0 on 79 minutes when Jason Knight headed wide from a Conway cross, but one goal proved sufficient.

Paris St Germain drew for a third successive Ligue 1 game as the leaders were held 2-2 by Reims at the Parc des Princes.

Having seen Marshall Munetsi’s seventh-minute finish give the visitors a surprise lead, a much-changed PSG equalised 10 minutes later through a Yunis Abdelhamid own goal before Goncalo Ramos put them in front another two minutes on from that.

But Will Still’s Reims were back on level terms late in the first half thanks to Oumar Diakite, and with Kylian Mbappe’s attempts to produce a winner after coming off the bench proving unsuccessful, a point was the outcome for Luis Enrique’s side once again, having drawn 1-1 with Rennes and 0-0 at Monaco in their previous two league outings.

It sees PSG go 10 points clear at the top of the table with 11 games remaining, with second-placed Brest having been beaten 1-0 at Lens on Saturday.

Mbappe – scorer of a brace in Tuesday’s 2-1 Champions League win at Real Sociedad – dropping to the bench, along with the likes Ousmane Dembele and Gianluigi Donnarumma, was among six changes Enrique opted to make to his starting line-up from that game.

After Danilo headed into Reims’ side-netting, there was an early jolt for the champions as Achraf Hakimi was punished for a mistake, being dispossessed in his own area by Diakite, who teed up a simple finish for Munetsi.

PSG responded with Ramos bringing a save out of Yehvann Diouf and Hakimi and the Portugal forward seeing efforts deflect wide, before drawing level when Reims captain Abdelhamid, under pressure from Ramos, diverted a corner into his own net.

Ramos then swiftly put them ahead with a deflected shot after the ball fell to him in the box when Valentin Atangana attempted to intercept a cross.

Reims did not look disheartened by the quick turnaround and after Munetsi and Teddy Teuma struck off-target for the visitors, either side of Diouf saving a Hakimi shot, they were level again on 45 minutes when Diakite latched on to Emmanuel Agbadou’s through-ball and sent a sidefooted effort past Keylor Navas and in off the post.

Further chances for the away side after the break saw Agbadou head over from close range and a Mohamed Daramy shot saved by Navas, before Diouf parried Lee Kang-in’s effort at the other end.

With 17 minutes of normal time remaining, Enrique brought on Mbappe and Dembele, and the former saw a low shot from outside the box comfortably saved by Diouf soon after.

Mbappe subsequently put a curler just wide of the top corner, and had another strike dealt with by Diouf in the closing stages as PSG’s sequence of draws extended.

Classic dreams are very much alive for Rosallion, with Richard Hannon reaffirming his confidence in his high-class Qipco 2000 Guineas hope.

The son of Blue Point has always been held in high regard and has previously been described as “right up there with the best we’ve ever had” by his handler.

He was last seen putting a Doncaster disappointment behind him when scooping Group One honours in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere – a victory that made him Britain’s best hope of overcoming Aidan O’Brien’s City Of Troy in the opening Classic of the season.

Hannon has been pleased with what he has seen from Rosallion since returning to work for his three-year-old campaign, but is still to decide if he will take part in any of the Guineas trials in the spring.

Concerned about running the talented colt on soft ground before his big date at Newmarket on May 4, he could instead head straight for the 2000 Guineas itself – a race for which he is a best price of 8-1.

“Rosallion is in great form and he’s had a canter upsides Haatem on the grass,” said Hannon.

“Timmy Murphy rides him every day and was delighted with him. It wasn’t a massively informative piece of work but it was just one of those where we thought we would give him a little bit while it was a nice morning and the grass is nice.”

He went on: “I would like to give him a trial, but I won’t run him anywhere where there is soft ground. He could just go straight to the 2000 Guineas.

“I’m going to take him to either Kempton or Newbury two or three weeks before the trials, so if he does go straight to the Guineas, he will be plenty quick enough.

“My view of him hasn’t changed, there is not a horse I would rather have other than him.”