Giorgio Chiellini has discovered a new love for football with Los Angeles FC as the Italian centre-back aims to guide his side to a second straight MLS Cup triumph.

The Columbus Crew will prove the final obstacle on Saturday in LAFC's quest to go back-to-back with MLS Cup successes, having defeated the Philadelphia Union on penalties in last season's final.

Chiellini has lifted nine Serie A titles and helped Italy win Euro 2020, but the hunger remains for the 39-year-old to add another success in the United States to his trophy-filled cabinet.

"I'm enjoying every day I spend here – training and everything," the former Juventus defender, who joined LAFC in 2022, told Stats Perform.

"It's my life. I love what I do. I've watched more MLS games this year and a half than most of my team-mates in their career and I love that.

"But it's not something I do for me. It's something normal. It's my way of life, this job, I live this life. I'm enjoying it a lot and there's no heavy situation for me about this stuff, I just enjoy it and it's very fun."

Chiellini created the opening goal as Los Angeles booked their place in the MLS Cup Final with a 2-0 win over Houston Dynamo, with his flick-on from a corner-kick finding Ryan Hollingshead.

Their final challenge comes against the Crew in what will be the 53rd game of the season for Steve Cherundolo's LAFC, who were knocked out of the Leagues Cup in the quarter-final and suffered CONCACAF Champions League final heartbreak against Mexico's Club Leon.

Columbus' Lower.com Field hosts the MLS Cup showpiece, offering Wilfried Nancy's men an edge of home advantage, but Chiellini fancies Los Angeles' chances after two hard-fought campaigns.

"We are so happy because last year was a different journey," the veteran centre-back continued. "We were top of the league all season, playoffs for just three games before the World Cup. That was easier.

"We skipped the first round. We played all the games at home and it was very different. This year we pushed harder until June because of the CONCACAF Champions League where we lost the final.

"We spent a lot of energy on that, we had some injuries, some periods where we were not so focused.

"But we arrived in good condition for the playoff in the third game [against Houston]. We fought till the end for the second [goal] that I think we deserved for what we showed during the season.

"We won in Vancouver, we won in Seattle, and now to lift the cup, we have to win in Columbus, and we know how hard it will be, but we are very happy to be here.

"We respect that team a lot and the way they play, that style of play, the players, but for sure we want to go there and try to go as far as possible to win."

Gavin Sheehan could be set for another Saturday in the spotlight having successfully appealed the 14-day ban he received at Huntingdon last month.

The 31-year-old was riding Lucy Wadham’s Zain Nights when the raceday stewards deemed the jockey failed to ask his mount for a “timely, real and substantial effort to obtain the best possible placing”.

Zain Nights and Wadham also incurred the wrath of the stewards with the gelding receiving a 40-day ban and his handler fined £3,000 for schooling and conditioning the horse on a racecourse.

However, at a hearing on Thursday an independent panel ruled in favour of both Sheehan and Wadham with their respective punishments quashed.

“It was something I didn’t think was ever going to happen, I felt the ride was good on the day and everything,” said Sheehan.

“But, it’s come this far and I’m delighted that we got the right result.”

The result of the hearing allows Sheehan the chance to build on the brilliant season he is enjoying alongside trainer Jamie Snowden and having partnered the Folly House handler’s Datsalrightgino to a famous Coral Gold Cup victory last weekend, has another pair of high-class operators waiting in the wings at Sandown.

The Irishman can now look forward to linking up with his Cheltenham Festival heroine You Wear It Well as she challenges Constitution Hill in the rearranged Fighting Fifth Hurdle, while he will also take the reins aboard highly-touted novice chaser Colonel Harry in the Betfair Henry VIII Novices’ Chase.

“Obviously I had a brilliant weekend last weekend and I’m now hoping for another one this weekend,” continued Sheehan.

“Things are going great and Jamie is definitely a trainer that is progressing and all it is is getting better horses. Better horses make life easier and he’s got them.

“It’s exciting that we’ve got Datsalrightgino who has just come out and won the Coral Gold Cup, but now we’ve got a contender for the Fighting Fifth and the Henry VIII.

“Things are going well and I know better than anyone that this game is a rollercoaster and things are going great now, but you can get put back down pretty quick.

“I’m just enjoying it at the moment, that’s what I’m trying to do, and trying to keep the ball rolling. You can’t take the foot off the gas now. Last week was brilliant, but that’s in the past now and I have got to look forward to my one ride tomorrow and doing my best on that and then look forward to Saturday.”

Oisin Murphy still hopes to “one day” ride over hurdles – but following the abandonment of Wincanton on Thursday he has nothing lined up in the foreseeable future.

The three-times champion Flat jockey was due to have his first spin over obstacles aboard the Cian Collins-trained Lets Do This in the Danny McNab Bookmakers “National Hunt” Novices’ Handicap Hurdle at the Somerset track.

However, the fixture was called off following significant rain, with clerk of the course Daniel Cooper able to make a decision well ahead of the planned 8am inspection.

As part of his Flat commitments, Murphy is due to head for a stint in America on December 22.

“Unfortunately I don’t have any plans to ride over jumps after today. It will be difficult now with my schedule. One day!” said Murphy.

Cooper is also clerk at Exeter, where Friday’s planned card fell victim to a waterlogged track.

Sunday’s card at Huntingdon, which is scheduled to feature the Grade Two Peterborough Chase, is subject to a further precautionary inspection at 7.30am on Friday after passing an initial check on Thursday.

Friday’s Sedgefield card and Saturday’s meeting at Wetherby have both been lost to waterlogging, with the British Horseracing Authority adding an additional all-weather card at Wolverhampton on Sunday.

A festive outing at Ascot is next on the agenda for Hansard following his coming-of-age victory at Newbury.

A bumper winner in Ireland for Charles O’Brien, the five-year-old was subsequently snapped up for 48,000 to join Noel Fehily Racing Syndicates and was sent to Gary Moore.

He won his first two starts over hurdles for his new connections last winter, finished fourth in a Grade One at Aintree in the spring and finished second to a race-fit Rubaud on his seasonal reappearance in the Elite Hurdle at Wincanton last month.

Making his handicap debut in the Gerry Feilden at Newbury, Hansard showed his class to get back on the winning trail and is now being readied for the £150,000 Betfair Exchange Trophy on December 23.

Fehily said: “We were delighted with Hansard in Newbury the other day. I think riding him for speed in a fast-run handicap suited him.

“We were probably a bit disappointed after Wincanton, but he hasn’t had that much racing and I think he’s just learning to settle and learning to do his job properly, hopefully.

“We’re looking towards Ascot with him just before Christmas.”

Another horse who will look to carry the colours of the successful ownership group to big-race honours over the Christmas period is the Fergal O’Brien-trained Kamsinas.

Having landed the Grade Two Newton Novices’ Hurdle on his latest start, the six-year-old is poised for a Grade One bid in the newly-named Formby Novices’ Hurdle – formerly the Tolworth – which for the first time will take place at Aintree on Boxing Day.

“That is probably the plan. He’s come out of the race at Haydock really well, so we’re probably looking at going to Aintree with him,” Fehily added.

“We were delighted with him the other day and Aintree should suit him well, I’d say.

“He’s an improving horse, so hopefully there’s more to come from him.”

Insurrection bids to provide trainer Paul Nicholls with back-to-back victories in the Betfair Beacons Winter Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown on Friday.

The champion trainer plundered the Grade Two prize with Henri The Second 12 months ago and will have high hopes of striking gold once more with a horse who looked an exciting prospect when making a successful hurdling debut at Exeter last month.

The six-year-old won in the Irish point-to-point field before being snapped up to join the Noel Fehily Racing ownership group – and the former jockey is looking forward to seeing how he fares at a higher level.

“He won well at Exeter, we were very happy with him there, so we’ll step him up in class at Sandown and see how we get on,” said Fehily.

“We liked him a lot going to Exeter. We probably didn’t expect him to win in the fashion he did, but we were very happy to see him go and do what he did.

“The step up in trip (to two and a half miles) won’t do him any harm, I think. I’m not sure about the slower ground, but we won’t know until we run him in it.”

Insurrection is opposed by four rivals, all of whom also won on their most recent starts.

Dan and Harry Skelton team up with Deafening Silence, who like the Nicholls runner impressed at Exeter four weeks ago, while the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained Josh The Boss is two from two over timber following victories at Warwick and Aintree.

Southoftheborder was bought for £145,000 after winning an Irish point-to-point and has since struck gold in a Ffos Las bumper and a maiden hurdle at Sandown for Nicky Henderson.

“He’s already won around Sandown and it was pretty soft that day,” said Henderson.

“He’s a lovely horse – he’s won a point-to-point, a bumper and his maiden hurdle but this might be very soft ground, it’s going to be horrible but we may as well find out if he handles it.”

Completing the small but select field is Personal Ambition, who won on his introduction at Warwick for Ben Pauling.

Nicky Henderson will be monitoring the situation at Sandown ahead of the rearranged Betfair Fighting Fifth Hurdle in which Constitution Hill is set to make his seasonal reappearance.

The race was frozen off last weekend at its usual home of Newcastle but swiftly rescheduled for Saturday’s Tingle Creek card.

With Jonbon already odds-on for that Grade One, Henderson then added another of his stable stars to the Esher cast when confirming that Shishkin, not long ago the number one attraction at Seven Barrows, would have his prep for the King George in the Fighting Fifth after refusing to start at Ascot last month.

However, as ever the British weather is doing its bit to put a spanner in the works and while the meeting at Sandown is not in any apparent doubt, the going on the hurdles track is already soft, heavy in places with plenty more rain forecast over the next 48 hours.

“It’s going to be horrible ground and it’s going to make everything very tricky,” said Henderson.

“We’ll just have to wait and see how it all pans out tomorrow and we’ll be monitoring the situation closely.

“He’s declared so obviously we want to run him but it is close to the Christmas Hurdle, so it just might not be in his best interests.

“We all want to run, I just want to warn people that we will be assessing the conditions and I cannot guarantee that everything will take part on Saturday.

“The others are intended runners at this stage. Willmount is in the first race (Claremont Novices’ Hurdle) and he’s never run on heavy, so we need to find out if he handles this ground.

“As for Jonbon, we’ve always felt he was at his best on better ground, but he has won on soft and I’m pretty sure we’ve got stamina in our pocket.”

At present Nico de Boinville will be riding Constitution Hill leaving his understudy at Henderson’s yard, James Bowen, to come in for the ride on Shishkin.

The multiple Grade One winner was last seen planting himself at the start in the 1965 Chase at Ascot, and was denied a subsequent outing in the Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle on the Fighting Fifth card.

“I’m really excited to be riding Shishkin and it is an honour to ride him,” said Bowen.

“I didn’t know I was definitely on him until the declarations today as there was a chance I could have gone to Aintree, but it has ended up working out well for me.

“I’ve ridden a few nice horses, but he would be by far the best horse that I’ve ever ridden in a race. It is great they have rescheduled the race, and it is great to be part of it.

“I’m not saying he is going to go and win, but hopefully he can run a good race to get his season up and running after what happened at Ascot.

“This was not Plan A or Plan B. It is a case of it being Plan C, but it is a good stepping stone for him and his targets later on in the season.”

Jonbon is odds-on for the Tingle Creek in which he will face four rivals – Boothill, Edwardstone, Haddex Des Obeaux and Nube Negra.

Also on the Esher menu is the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase, where the Joe Tizzard-trained JPR One bids to atone for an unfortunate mishap at Cheltenham last month.

Henry de Bromhead had a change of heart with Captain Guinness and his two-miler will now run at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting instead of in Saturday’s Tingle Creek.

The eight-year-old made a winning return to action in the Fortria Chase at Navan and looked set to be the main challenger to Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon at Sandown.

However, with the Navan race only being three weeks ago, De Bromhead felt his charge would be better served with a longer break and he will instead remain closer to home for the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase on December 27.

“We changed our minds with Captain Guinness and decided to go to Leopardstown over Christmas instead. He is great and not a bother on him, but we went that route last year and said we’d stick to that,” said De Bromhead.

“The Leopardstown race is always good but with travelling and everything and it being just three weeks since the Fortria, we said we’d wait until Christmas.

“He was brilliant in the Fortria and we were delighted with him.”

Returning to the Cheltenham Festival winner’s enclosure is the aim for Henrietta Knight as she prepares to rejoin the training ranks in the new year.

The 76-year-old is best known for the magnificent Cheltenham Gold Cup hat-trick of Best Mate between 2002-2004 and also the exploits of Champion Chase hero Edredon Bleu.

But she retired from training in 2012 and has since been involved in the pre-training of horses as well as being an active figure at the sales.

However, Knight announced in November she had reapplied for her trainer’s licence after joining forces with Brendan Powell for a shock comeback.

That process is well under way and she is eager to get the show on the road in her new venture, hoping to saddle her first runners early in 2024.

“It’s coming along well and I’ve applied for the licence so I’m just waiting for that coming through,” said Knight.

“They say it will take two months, but I’m hoping it will come through sooner. We’re hoping to have runners the first week of January.

“I’m very excited and Brendan is my assistant. Between us we have had over 1,500 (winners) as trainers so we’re quite excited.”

Knight is anticipating a maximum of 35 horses in training and dreams of unearthing a rare gem among her small but select string of young stock which will take her back into the spotlight at the racecourse she holds most dear.

“I’d like to get some older horses in, but it just depends what owners we attract,” continued Knight.

“We’ve got some lovely young ones waiting in the wings, but it might take a year or so to have them at their best as some are only three-year-olds. They would all be unheard of to you, but hopefully they become household names.

“We’ve got to get some Grade Ones and my ambition is to be back in the unsaddling enclosure with a winner at the Cheltenham Festival. I don’t mind which race, I’m not fussy, as long as it’s a winner.

“It might be a bit optimistic this year, but hopefully it will be in 2025. I like to have a goal in life, you have got to have an aim.”

Knight was assisted by her late husband and former champion jump jockey Terry Biddlecombe during the halcyon days of Best Mate and Edredon Bleu, with the duo’s joyous celebrations after various Cheltenham Festival victories a popular sight with the racing public.

Knight remembers fondly the adoration she received during those great days and hopes that support will be rekindled on the resumption of her training career as she seeks to attract new owners to her bespoke West Lockinge operation.

She added: “Hopefully the appeal to people is we’re only going to be a small yard with a maximum of 35 horses and a lot of owners like the idea of sending their horses to a small yard as they get more involved and a bit more of a personal touch.

“I think some of the horses benefit by being in a smaller yard as they don’t get so stressed.

“Terry was always a great man with the public, he loved his public and they were fantastic when we trained those great horses.

“We hope they will come back to support us because we have some fantastic people out there, and Brendan has too – we’re really looking forward to getting into the spirit of it.”

Constitution Hill, Shishkin and Jonbon headline a star-studded card at Sandown on Saturday.

The rearranged Fighting Fifth Hurdle will see Nicky Henderson saddle both Constitution Hill (Nico de Boinville) and Shishkin (James Bowen).

Taking on the Seven Barrows duo are Goshen, Not So Sleepy and top-notch mares Love Envoi and You Wear It Well.

On an important afternoon for Henderson, Jonbon is odds-on for the Betfair Tingle Creek Chase in which he will face four rivals – Boothill, Edwardstone, Haddex Des Obeaux and Nube Negra.

Willmount is another leading contender for the team as the impressive Newbury winner moves up to Listed level in the Betfair Claremont Novices’ Hurdle.

Also on the Esher menu is the Betfair-sponsored Henry VIII Novices’ Chase, where the Joe Tizzard-trained JPR One bids to atone for an unfortunate mishap at Cheltenham last month.

Springwell Bay could take a shot at the Dornan Engineering Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day following his taking victory at the track last month.

Jonjo O’Neill’s six-year-old was a progressive performer over timber last term, winning on three occasions before finishing his campaign in Grade One company at Aintree.

He made his first outing in the handicap ranks on his return to action at the November Meeting, but having obliged favourite backers with a good deal up his sleeve, could be set for an immediate return to a higher calibre of contest.

“He might go to the Relkeel,” said O’Neill.

“He’s in good form at home and ran a nice race there at Cheltenham last time, so hopefully he can improve on that.

“He has had plenty of problems, so you are always just biting your lip a little bit with him. But he has the ability if everything goes according to plan for him, so fingers crossed.”

The Jackdaws Castle handler has always held the Gay Smith-owned gelding in high regard and believes the Prestbury Park Grade Two would give a good indication as to Springwell Bay’s credentials in deeper waters.

When asked about him developing into a Graded-level operator, O’Neill added: “That’s what you would hope for and the Relkeel would probably tell you a lot, so that would be one of his options, anyway.”