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• Ange Postecoglou not letting speculation distract him from Celtic’s treble bid

  Ange Postecoglou has stressed that the chance to join the treble-winning Celtic managers is far too important to allow talk of his future to disturb his focus on Saturday’s Scottish Cup final.

  Beating cinch Championship side Inverness at Hampden will give Postecoglou’s team a clean sweep of domestic trophies and make it five out of six available since he arrived from Yokohama F Marinos in Japan in June 2021.

  But much of the build-up to the game has been dominated by increased speculation over Postecoglou’s future amid reports the former Australia head coach is Tottenham’s preferred managerial candidate.

  The 57-year-old said: “Somebody else was favourite last week, wasn’t he? So, it doesn’t register.

  “I get all the interest and why people love to speculate on these things. But we have worked really, really hard to get ourselves into this position and, for me to let my mind wander about anything else than getting our team prepared for a big day on Saturday, is just not who I am.”

  Postecoglou has been linked with numerous Premier League clubs this season including Leeds, Everton, Brighton, Crystal Palace and Chelsea so he feels no need to address his players on the matter.

  “You are making it sound as if it’s the first time this has happened to me,” he said. “We have done this dance a few times this year. The players are well aware of where my thoughts lie.

  “The players have been really good at focusing on what’s important. What’s important is being ready for a big game on Saturday.

  “I have handled it before and I’ll handle it the same way. It doesn’t enter my sphere of thinking because my role is to make sure the team is absolutely prepared for what the next challenge is.

  “If a cup final isn’t enough to draw all my attention to that, then nothing will be.”

  The former Australia head coach, who is on a 12-month rolling contract, also dismissed questions over whether he had talks planned with the club hierarchy.

  “No, because again that would mean me planning, organising, thinking about things other than Saturday,” he said.

  “Look, I understand that’s your job to ask these questions because that’s the role you are in, but you are not invested in this football club like I am, like the players are, like our supporters are.

  “I woke up this morning thinking about one thing, the same thing I have been thinking about for the last five days. I really want to make sure that we play well in this cup final and make it a truly special season.

  “I know this football club has had a lot of success recently including trebles but over the history of time there aren’t too many that can claim to that. Not just for myself but for some of these players, it might be the only one they get. So we need to focus on that.

  “It’s a massive role to be manager of this football club and for me to be dismissive of potentially our biggest game of the year is just not going to happen.”

  Postecoglou could emulate Jock Stein, Martin O’Neill, Brendan Rodgers and Neil Lennon in winning the treble and is relishing the experience of Scottish Cup final day, after losing to eventual winners Rangers in last year’s semi-finals.

  “Obviously it was the one trophy that escaped us last year and just the whole day, the occasion, it’s the last game on the calendar and just to be part of it was the first thing we were excited about,” he said.

  “Back home the English FA Cup final followed by the Scottish FA Cup was kind of tradition – that was our Saturday night in May. We would religiously watch that, it was a bit of an event for us to sit around and watch those two games.

  “It’s not just that it’s a cup final, it’s the occasion, the last game, there is always more about it, just the ceremony of the day. You would love to be a part of it.

  “I didn’t watch it last year, so that goes to show that we were still hurting from the fact we weren’t there.

  “Now we are there and that’s why we want to make the most of it.”

  Postecoglou is also well aware of the history between the two finalists. Inverness have beaten Celtic in three of their seven Scottish Cup meetings, including the only one at Hampden, in the 2015 semi-finals, and in the first one, when then First Division Caley Thistle caused a huge upset which cost John Barnes his job.

  “It’s a cautionary tale, put it that way,” Postecoglou said. “It has been mentioned to me a few times, I was aware of it anyway of course.

  “But that’s what I am talking about. When people think that I’ve got other things on my mind, that I’d allow anything to enter the sphere where we are not preparing ourselves for that occasion… I don’t want to be that story.

  “I want it to have a different ending this time. I want us to be the winners and us to claim the Scottish FA Cup, so that’s where my head’s at.”

• Young players taking their life should not become a norm – Tareiq Holmes-Dennis

  Players could harm themselves if not given enough support during times of crisis, according to former Huddersfield youngster Tareiq Holmes-Dennis.

  The defender was forced to retire in 2020, aged just 24, after a serious knee injury.

  Holmes-Dennis needed counselling when his career was cut short and while he feels concern for player welfare has improved, claims there needs to be a prolonged push to aid those in need.

  Former Manchester City youngster Jeremy Wisten took his own life in 2020 after being released following a battle with a knee injury and Holmes-Dennis worries about the mental health of others.

  “When you see young boys that have taken their life because they can’t cope – coping with the stresses of being released – it should never get there,” he told the PA news agency.

  “You don’t want it to become a norm. There are so many people going through situations where they are mentally struggling.

  “It is starting to be highlighted a bit more. Some clubs in particular are putting time and effort into giving the resources to players and, ultimately, it’s players who make the club perform.

  “Their welfare should be at the forefront but it’s relatively new, mental health and player welfare and making sure players are in a good physical and mental space.

  “There is a magnifying glass on that now which is good because it is easy to look from the outside and say ‘you’re paid to do X, Y, Z’. There’s a lot more that goes into that and there’s a lot of repercussions for players off the pitch if their mental health isn’t in the right place.

  “It’s clear an effort is being made to understand what players go through and what can be done to best aid them.”

  The 27-year-old, now working at agency Wasserman, suffered a serious knee injury on his Portsmouth debut in 2017 while on loan at Fratton Park from Huddersfield.

  He slipped on the artificial surface around the pitch and, after three years of injury battles and aborted comebacks, was forced to retire prematurely.

  Other players have returned from a similar injury, including Jack Whatmough and Jack Robinson, who played with Holmes-Dennis at Pompey.

  However, being forced to quit left the former England Under-18 international feeling bereft.

  “I saw a counsellor to get over it. I learned speaking about it was the biggest thing. I didn’t want to hold it in,” said Holmes-Dennis, who was part of the Huddersfield squad promoted to the Premier League in 2017.

  “I also didn’t want to be annoying people but I know my family loved me and understood what I was going through was difficult because they’d seen my journey.

  “It was just a dark, dark time. Losing that routine, losing that drive to wake up and do something. You’re used to preparing in a certain way, being an elite athlete and living the elite lifestyle to then feeling irrelevant.”

  Holmes-Dennis’ situation is not unique and left a promising young player facing up to the reality of having his career and life torn away.

  After starting his career at Charlton, joining Huddersfield in 2016, Holmes-Dennis made 107 senior appearances – including 30 for Bristol Rovers – before the injury he suffered against Rochdale on August 5, 2017.

  To aid players like him, the Professional Footballers’ Association has joined with a law firm, Stewarts, to offer current and former players a legal dispute management service.

  The PFA already offers club workshops, a 24/7 helpline, a national network of 250 counsellors and residential support via the Sporting Chance Clinic.

  Also available to members is a wellbeing network and, in 2021-22, 600 accessed the service, resulting in more than 7,000 therapy sessions.

  In the last 10 months, the PFA has also appointed former Arsenal executive James King as its general counsel.

  Sports disputes lawyer at Stewarts, Barrington Atkins, added: “We know player wellbeing is very much at the heart of what the PFA does, and we aim to help players tackle any issues before they start to impact their wellbeing.”

  Players will be provided with advice on problems relating to injuries, employment, divorce and family issues, tax disputes and media-related issues – a service which Holmes-Dennis feels is much needed.

  “It’s massive because it’s a stress you wouldn’t want to take on your own,” he said. “You might not understand how to navigate the situation.

  “As long as there’s an awareness and the culture is shifting to actually caring about players – physically and mentally – and not just for tonight’s game or tomorrow’s game, then there’s progress.

  “Players want to play but whether they are capable, able or physically and mentally ready to do so is another thing.”

  Bristol Rovers declined to comment when contacted by the PA news agency.

• Lauren James commits her future to Chelsea until 2027

  Chelsea striker Lauren James has signed a new contract which will keep her at the club until the summer of 2027, the Blues have announced.

  The 21-year-old, who was named in Sarina Wiegman’s England squad for this summer’s World Cup finals on Wednesday, was part of Emma Hayes’ side as they completed a second consecutive Women’s Super League and FA Cup double during the season which has just ended.

  James told the club’s official website: “It’s an amazing feeling to extend my stay at the club I love and where I feel most at home. I’m looking forward to the future and I want to reach my full potential.

  “I want to be the best version of me as a player and as a person, helping to inspire the next generation. It definitely feels like home and it’s always been the place I’ve wanted to be.”

  Schooled in Chelsea’s academy, James made her senior debut for Arsenal as a 16-year-old and signed her first professional deal with Manchester United before returning to the Blues on a four-year contract in July 2021.

  General manager Paul Green said: “We’re delighted that Lauren has signed an extended deal. She has built on last season and taken another step forward in her development.

  “She is one of the best young players in the world, who is blue through and through. We look forward to seeing her continue to progress and we believe she will go on to achieve big things at the club.”