Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Real Sociedad all booked their places in the knockout stages of the Champions League with two games to spare on a dramatic night of European action.

Bayern made it four wins out of four in Group A but only after a frantic finish in their 2-1 win over Galatasaray.

The visitors had the ball in the net just after the hour but Lucas Torreira was offside, and Bayern took the lead when Harry Kane flicked in Joshua Kimmich’s free-kick with 10 minutes to go, with the goal awarded following a VAR check after initially being ruled offside.

Kane then doubled the lead with his 25th career Champions League goal, turning in Mathys Tel’s cross in the 86th minute, and they needed the cushion as Cedric Bakambu scored for Galatasaray in stoppage time.

Despite defeat Galatasaray remain second in the group after Manchester United suffered a costly 4-3 defeat in Copenhagen, blowing a 2-0 lead after Marcus Rashford was sent off.

Rasmus Hojlund’s early brace against his former club put United in control despite the loss of Jonny Evans to injury, but the night changed when Rashford saw red for a challenge on Elias Jelert following a VAR intervention in the 42nd minute.

Ex-Southampton forward Mohamed Elyounoussi pulled one back before Diogo Goncalves levelled from the penalty spot after a Harry Maguire handball deep into first-half stoppage time.

Bruno Fernandes restored United’s lead with a 69th-minute penalty after Lukas Lerager handled, but the Copenhagen midfielder made amends with an 83rd minute equaliser before Roony Bardghji won it four minutes later, leaving United bottom of the group before their trip to Istanbul.

Real Madrid cruised through with a 3-0 win over Braga. They overcame an early scare when Alvaro Djalo missed a penalty for the visitors after Lucas Vazquez fouled Cristian Borja just four minutes in, but once Brahim Diaz put them in front in the 27th minute there was no looking back.

Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo added to the scoreline with two goals in five minutes early in the second half, and there was no way back for the visitors.

The other Group C game between Napoli and Union Berlin ended 1-1 as David Fofana’s first Union goal – and the club’s first away from home in the Champions League – cancelled out Matteo Politano’s opener.

Inter edged out RB Salzburg 1-0 in Austria to secure their progress, with the game decided by Lautaro Martinez’s 84th-minute penalty after Mads Bidstrup handled in the area.

And that result also saw Real Sociedad go through from Group D after their 3-1 win over Benfica earlier in the evening.

Early goals from Mikel Merino and Mikel Oyarzabal had Sociedad in control after just 11 minutes and it was 3-0 10 minutes later as Ander Barrenetxea fired into the roof of the net.

Brais Mendez hit the post with a penalty just before the half hour and Rafa Silva pulled one back for Benfica early in the second half, but Sociedad comfortably took the points.

Arsenal are in control of Group B after goals from Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka earned a 2-0 win over Sevilla.

The Gunners top the group with nine points, four clear of PSV Eindhoven and Lens, who are level on five after Luuk de Jong’s 12th-minute header was enough for 1-0 win over Lens, who had substitute Morgan Guilavogui sent off late on.

Harry Kane’s late brace earned Bayern Munich a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League after beating Galatasaray 2-1.

A frustrating first half saw Bayern have the better chances, with Kane and Leroy Sane testing Fernando Muslera, but Galatasaray began to grow into the game after the break and had a goal ruled out for offside.

The hosts earned their reward with Kane scoring twice in the final 10 minutes and they saw out the victory despite Cedric Bakambu’s stoppage-time strike.

Bayern progress to the knock-out stages having won all four of their matches in Group A so far, while defeat leaves Galatasaray third in the table.

Bayern had chances early on when Sane cut inside and had his attempted cross deflected out for a corner before Kane fired from outside of the box, but Muslera did well to tip the powerful strike over the crossbar.

The goalkeeper was called into action again, smothering Sane’s effort in a one-on-one and another Bayern attack saw the winger slice the ball wide.

A good move on the right flank saw Kingsley Coman cut inside to find Jamal Musiala, but his shot just whistled past the bottom left corner. Sane came close again, but was denied following pressure from Sacha Boey.

Bayern were forced into an early change when Musiala was taken off in the 40th minute through injury, with Thomas Muller coming on to replace him, before a rare break forward just before half-time resulted in Mauro Icardi being denied by Manuel Neuer.

The hosts had a great chance to take the lead seven minutes into the second half when a great cross from Coman was deflected by Leon Goretzka and Kane came flying in at the far post, but smashed the ball off the woodwork.

Substitute Baris Alper Yilmaz came close with his header going over the bar and the visitors had the ball in the net after Lucas Torreira poked home, but the goal was ruled offside.

Kane eventually broke the deadlock in the 80th minute after a great free-kick from Kimmich picked out the England captain, who rose highest to nod the ball home and despite initially being ruled out for offside, the goal stood following a VAR check.

He earned his second six minutes later after a brilliant move saw Muller thread the ball to Mathys Tel on the left and his low pass across goal allowed Kane to slot home his 19th Bayern goal on just his 15th club appearance.

Bayern nearly added a third when a neat ball from Serge Gnabry found Muller, but his shot trickled past a post.

The visitors pulled one back three minutes into stoppage time after an excellent pass from Sergio Oliveira picked out Bakambu, who made a great run cutting into the right and fired the ball into the bottom corner.

Inter Milan booked their place in the Champions League knockout stages with a dramatic 1-0 win away at RB Salzburg.

The in-form Lautaro Martinez came off the bench to secure the victory, netting from the penalty spot in the 85th minute to put the Italian side on 10 points in Group D, seven above their opponents.

Salzburg relied on the heroics of goalkeeper Alexander Schlager but they finally succumbed to Serie A leading scorer Martinez.

The hosts started strong and enjoyed touches in dangerous areas where they produced half chances through Roko Simic and Mads Bidstrup, whose 12th-minute shot failed to hit the target.

Inter were fortunate not to concede a penalty when Carlos Augusto appeared to bundle Simic to the ground from a corner but the referee did not award the hosts the spot-kick they searched for.

Inter went close after 35 minutes.

Set-piece specialist Hakan Calhanoglu stood over a free-kick and his whipped pass found the head of Alessandro Bastoni whose effort narrowly went wide.

Inter should have taken the lead on the stroke of half-time.

Marcus Thuram went forward and played a testing ball to Alexis Sanchez who acted quick and opted to pick out Davide Frattesi, but he blazed his effort over the bar.

Manager Simone Inzaghi cut a frustrated figure and must have motivated his men at half-time because they came out looking stronger in the second half.

In the 73rd minute they threatened again from a set-piece.

Federico Dimarco lined up the ball from a corner and delivered a perfect cross to Thuram who somehow failed to throw his head onto the ball inside the six-yard box.

Moments later Schlager saved Kristjan Asllani’s dipping long-range effort.

Inter’s players were up in arms when Thuram was denied a penalty in the 80th minute.

Substitute Martinez, who has 12 league goals to his name this term, glided with the ball and played in Thuram who took it around his marker before being brought down.

Inter’s appeals were waved off before Martinez’s header was sensationally tipped onto the bar by Schlager.

But Salzburg’s defence was finally breached when they conceded a penalty with five minutes remaining.

Nicolo Barella’s shot struck the arm of Bidstrup and Martinez stepped up to send Schlager the wrong way.

Manchester United’s Champions League hopes received a huge blow as Erik ten Hag’s side twice blew a lead following Marcus Rashford’s red card before super sub Roony Bardghji sealed a bonkers 4-3 win for Copenhagen.

A fortnight on from injecting hope into a faltering continent campaign by narrowly beating the Danish champions, Parken witnessed a scarcely believable comeback that leaves the Red Devils bottom of Group A.

Rasmus Hojlund’s brace had put United in control against his former club, but Rashford’s red card sparked an incredible turnaround as Copenhagen’s pre-match tifo reading “your theatre of nightmares” proved prescient.

This first half was as dramatic as it was action-packed. Hojlund’s third minute opener at the end of a fine team move was followed by several breaks in play, before the Copenhagen native scored his second and was denied a hat-trick.

Things soon spectacularly unravelled for United. Rashford was sent off for catching Elias Jelert after a VAR review, with Mohamed Elyounoussi scoring before Diogo Goncalves levelled from the spot after a Harry Maguire handball.

A wild first half was followed by a pulsating second period. Skipper Bruno Fernandes’ penalty put United back ahead, only for Lukas Lerager to level again and substitute Bardghji to seal an incredible Copenhagen victory.

Arsenal took a huge step towards qualifying for the knock-out stages of the Champions League as Bukayo Saka starred in victory over Sevilla before limping off late on.

Saka set up the opening goal for Leandro Trossard before scoring the second himself as the Gunners secured a straightforward 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium that leaves them on the cusp of the last 16.

Mikel Arteta opted to play Trossard through the middle as his central striker with Eddie Nketiah joining Gabriel Jesus in the treatment room, with the Belgium forward the only change from Saturday’s contentious defeat at Newcastle.

There was not such drama here although four early fouls on Saka went unpunished as both Nemanja Gudelj and Kike Salas left their mark on the England international.

Kai Havertz, without a goal from open play since his £65million summer move from Chelsea, fluffed his lines with an early headed chance, but Arsenal set out their intent from the off.

Saka went down again under close contact from Salas, but this time Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs was unmoved as the hosts wanted a penalty.

Just moments later, however, and the deadlock was broken. The lively Saka unsurprisingly laying on the assist for Trossard to tap home – but Jorginho was the architect with a slide-rule pass to start the move.

It proved to be the only shot on target of a forgettable first half as Sevilla, without a LaLiga or Champions League win under head coach Diego Alonso since his appointment last month.

Havertz bent an effort inches wide as Arsenal went in search of a second after the break and Trossard should have done better soon after, but curled his strike the wrong side of the post.

It was Saka, though, who made the difference once again, beating the offside trap to race onto a Gabriel Martinelli pass before cutting inside Adria Pedrosa and tucking home with aplomb.

Gabriel Jesus had provided the goal and assist that ultimately saw off Sevilla in Spain a fortnight ago, but he was injured during the game and has not played since.

The same went for Saka here, who fell awkwardly and limped off with five minutes to go, with England manager Gareth Southgate – who announces his next squad on Thursday – watching from the stands.

Arteta had said on the eve of the game that Arsenal should “put to bed” qualification for the last 16 with two games to spare and his players did their bit.

But PSV Eindhoven’s win over Lens leaves Group B open, although a draw against the Ligue 1 side at the Emirates Stadium in three weeks time would be enough for Arteta’s side to advance.

Real Madrid cruised into the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-0 win over Braga.

After overcoming an early scare when Alvaro Djalo missed a penalty for the visitors, the 14-time European champions took the lead through Brahim Diaz in the 27th minute and then seized control early in the second half as Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo added to the score line.

A fourth win out of four in Group C, and ninth straight game at home without defeat in the Champions League, saw Real book their place in the last-16 with two games to spare.

With the hosts needing only a point to be sure of progression, Carlo Ancelotti took the opportunity to rest a number of regulars.

Jude Bellingham was on the bench after suffering a blow to the shoulder at the weekend, while David Alaba and Dani Carvajal were also among the substitutes.

It was a dramatic start to the match as Braga were awarded a penalty just four minutes in, with Lucas Vazquez pulling Cristian Borja back by the shirt and earning a yellow card for his troubles.

But Real avoided further punishment with goalkeeper Andriy Lunin equal to a weak spot-kick from Djalo.

The home side wanted a penalty of their own moments later when Rodrygo went down under a challenge from Sikou Niakate but the referee waved play on.

Diaz, who replaced Bellingham in the side, thought he had scored in the 12th minute following a mistake from Niakate, sweeping home Rodrygo’s pass, but the Brazilian was deemed guilty of a foul in the build-up.

Braga were appealing for another penalty in the 20th minute when Vazquez barged into Bruma, but the winger had already lost control of the ball as he tried to punish a wayward header from the defender.

The hosts went straight to the other end where Federico Valverde blazed over but the goal was coming and arrived in the 27th minute when Rodrygo pulled the ball back for Diaz to lift into the roof of the net.

Rodrygo had a chance to double the lead before half-time but shot straight at Matheus from the left.

Diaz was close to a second 10 minutes into the second half after Vinicius cut the ball back, but his first effort was stopped by the goalkeeper and his follow-up shot blocked by Jose Fonte.

Real were turning up the heat, and the second goal came in the 58th minute as Vinicius finished off a neat move, cutting past Fonte and finding the bottom corner.

And they killed the game off three minutes later, hitting Braga on the break as Rodrygo exchanged passes with Vinicius before lifting the ball over the goalkeeper.

Braga dropped back in numbers to ensure there was no fourth on the night and almost got a goal of their own in stoppage time through Abel Ruiz’s header, which was well saved by Lunin.

Lewis Jamieson’s stoppage-time strike earned St Mirren a battling 2-2 draw at home to Hibernian in the cinch Premiership.

Joe Newell’s second-half goal looked to have earned Hibs a first win in seven games after Josh Campbell’s opener had been cancelled out by a Mark O’Hara penalty.

Jamieson, though, grabbed his first goal for Saints, who remain in third but have now won just one of their last six games.

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson made just one change from the team beaten by Celtic a week earlier, with Mikael Mandron coming in for Toyosi Olusanya.

Hibs were looking to bounce back from the disappointment of their Viaplay Cup semi-final loss to Aberdeen and made two changes to their line-up.

Martin Boyle and Lewis Miller both dropped to the bench, their places taken by Rory Whittaker and Campbell, the former making his first league start at the age of 17.

The home side had the first chance when Scott Tanser shot well wide from just outside the box but it was Hibs who moved in front after 12 minutes.

Alex Gogic misjudged Jordan Obita’s ball forward and allowed it to run under his foot. Dylan Vente took advantage to play in Campbell who finished well.

St Mirren rallied from the setback but it was Hibs who looked more likely to score again.

Richard Taylor did well to block an Elie Youan goalbound effort before Vente tried his luck from a tight angle, his shot only narrowly off target.

Saints responded with a hopeful O’Hara long-range header that was easily held by David Marshall, before Youan was twice denied at the other end, the second by a smart Zach Hemming save. The winger then thrashed a shot wide of the far post when he ought to have hit the target.

At the other end, Caolan Boyd-Munce tried his luck from distance but failed to hit the target to leave Saints trailing at the break.

They started the second half again on top and Marcus Fraser’s volley went just wide.

Hibs nearly doubled their lead after another Gogic mistake. The defender was weak with a back pass allowing Campbell to nip in but Hemming did brilliantly to save the forward’s shot.

That save became even more significant when St Mirren were awarded a penalty after a VAR intervention. Obita fouled Taylor at a corner and, after referee Steven McLean confirmed the decision, O’Hara stroked home the spot-kick.

Hibs responded with a Youan strike that Hemming did well to tip around the post before forging back in front after 69 minutes.

Youan spun away from Taylor to send Vente clear and the Dutchman’s cross was finished at the back post by Newell.

That looked like being the winner until Jamieson’s finish from close range earned his team a point.

Former Portmore United striker Maalique Foster and Tyreek Magee make a long-awaited return to international football, as they join newcomer Jonathan Bell in the senior Reggae Boyz squad to face Guatemala on Saturday.

The friendly international is scheduled to take place at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.

Foster, who currently represents Colorado Springs Switchbacks in the USL, last represented Jamaica in 2019 in Concacaf Nations League B action when he scored twice in their 6-0 beating of Aruba in Willemstad, Curacao.

Prior to that, the now 24-year-old Foster scored a late equalizer in the Boyz 2-2 stalemate with South Korea in a friendly contest in Turkey.

Now back, the nippy attacker, who is also known for his pace up front, will be hoping to impress Head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson and company, especially with the Nations League quarterfinals against Canada, and possibly an appearance in next year’s Copa America, to come.

Magee, 24, who also plies his trade in the USL with the Switchbacks, made a solitary appearance for the Boyz last year, and like Foster, will be aiming to make this opportunity count.

Bell, 26, is an American-born defender, who currently represents Major League Soccer (MLS) outfit St Louis City.

Meanwhile, Lamonth Rochester is making his transition from the national youth setup, while Shaneil Thomas and Shaqeil Bradford, would have been called up to the senior setup at some point or another without making the final cut.

Squad: Amal Knight, Jahmali Waite, Richard King, Kyle Ming, Jamoi Topey, Lamonth Rochester, Damani Osei, Jonathan Bell,  Javain Brown, Shaneil Thomas, Lamonth Rochester, Trayvone Reid, Shaqeil Bradford, Devon Williams, Demario Phillips, Ramone Howell, Romario Williams, Deshane Beckford, Maalique Foster

Napoli still have work to do to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages after Union Berlin ended 12 consecutive defeats by securing a 1-1 draw at Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.

Chelsea loanee David Datro Fofana cancelled out Matteo Politano’s earlier strike as Union, bottom of Group C, picked up their first Champions League point.

Serie A champions Napoli, who knew a win would leave them needing one point from their final two games to guarantee a last-16 spot, had two chances to go in front after 15 minutes.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia did well to beat his marker before playing in Piotr Zielinski who was denied from close range by Union keeper Frederik Ronnow.

Ronnow kept his side in it again when he saved Giacomo Raspadori’s chance moments later.

Napoli, still without injured star striker Victor Osimhen, also came agonisingly close after 23 minutes.

The creative Zielinski produced a wonderful whipped cross with his left foot which found the head of Natan whose header cannoned off the post.

Napoli also had a goal ruled out when VAR deemed Giovanni Di Lorenzo to have put two hands on Jerome Roussillon’s back before his header found Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa at the back post.

However, Napoli did go ahead in the 39th minute.

Full-back Mario Rui’s powered cross took a heavy deflection off team-mate Politano’s chest.

The goal, Politano’s second Champions League strike, was his sixth in all competitions this season.

The visitors, third bottom in the Bundesliga, came out fast and they snatched an unexpected equaliser in the 52nd minute.

Sheraldo Becker glided past his marker before goalkeeper Alex Meret parried into the path of Fofana who drew the visitors level.

Napoli were made to pay for their lethargic start to the second half and Union threw men forward in numbers to grab a second.

Kvaratskhelia had two chances to score a winner, but he could not beat Ronnow.

Napoli travel to Real Madrid next with Union heading to Braga.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk will miss the Europa League tie in Toulouse due to illness but his place could be filled by a youngster whose rapid rise this season initially took manager Jurgen Klopp by surprise.

When 20-year-old Jarell Quansah joined the squad for pre-season training there was not a lot of consideration given to him playing much of a role in the current campaign and there were even discussions about sending him out on loan.

Klopp decided against that and after making his debut in the 10-man win at Newcastle in August, the academy graduate has made seven appearances, including a Premier League start at Wolves and back-to-back appearances in Europe, and will be looking to add to that in Toulouse, whom Liverpool thrashed 5-1 last time out.

“Virgil is a little bit ill, it will not be a big thing but we didn’t want him on the plane and maybe others have it a little bit as well,” said Klopp.

“That’s why we left him at home. It should be all right for the weekend.”

Asked about Quansah’s prospects, the German added: “If you would have asked me pre-season (if) he would be that good I would have been surprised but since then I saw him every day and I am not surprised any more.

“It’s great to have a boy from our own academy with that potential and quality. We will see where he ends up but it is extremely promising. There was talk about him going on loan and we said ‘no’, that was obviously a very good decision.”

Klopp’s biggest selection problem appears to be in midfield as he has also had to leave Ryan Gravenberch and Curtis Jones behind.

“Ryan got a little niggle in the knee. He was running already today but there was no chance for this game,” he added.

“We hope there is a chance for Brentford and he will definitely be back after the international break.”

Jones missed Sunday’s draw at Luton with a “low-grade” hamstring problem which Klopp said would keep him out for a couple of weeks but with Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic long-term absentees, it means midfield resources are being stretched.

Wataru Endo and Harvey Elliott look certain to start as Liverpool look to book qualification to the knockout stages with two matches to spare and Alexis Mac Allister could be favourite for the third spot as he is suspended for Sunday’s game against Brentford, although Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo and 19-year-old James McConnell could also play there.

Sunday’s goalscorer Luis Diaz has also travelled as he awaits further news on the status of his father after his kidnapping in Colombia.

“Always positive signs but not real news. He decided (to rejoin the squad) last week because he cannot go to Colombia – that will not be the case in the moment – and when he is here training and around matches it is a safe place,” said Klopp.

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“He wants to be with us, he has travelled and is available.”

After their hammering at Anfield last time out, Toulouse coach Carles Martinez is looking for a degree of improvement.

“It’s true that 5-1 is a pretty heavy score. The result is severe but we have gained experience,” he said.

“We don’t keep this match in mind. We think about what we can improve. It is mainly the mental qualities that will be the most important.”

John Stones’ injury has given England manager Gareth Southgate the chance to explore his centre-back options in the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia.

The City defender was forced off with a problem in Tuesday’s Champions League win over Young Boys with boss Pep Guardiola admitting it is “deep bad news”.

Stones only returned to action in October after a two-month absence with hamstring and hip problems but Southgate had no hesitation in starting him in the important qualifying win over Italy.

But with qualification for the summer’s tournament in Germany already secured, Southgate – who names his squad on Thursday – can afford to look at his back-up options.

Brighton captain Lewis Dunk and AC Milan’s Fikayo Tomori started together in last month’s friendly win over Australia but Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi was the man Southgate opted to replace Stones for the final 27 minutes against Italy and has the most caps of the trio.

Injuries to Ben Chilwell and Luke Shaw meant Kieran Trippier filled in at left-back against Italy but Chelsea’s Levi Colwill started against Australia and could be another one to benefit from any experimentation.

Colwill’s club captain Reece James could be in for a recall having returned from injury while Chelsea team-mate Raheem Sterling will be hoping two goals and some improved form in his last five matches will earn him a call-up for the first time since the World Cup.

Those chances could be enhanced depending on the extent of the ankle injury sustained by James Maddison during Tottenham’s loss to Chelsea on Monday and how significant the hamstring problem which forced off Callum Wilson in Newcastle’s Champions League defeat against Borussia Dortmund.

But Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka should return after withdrawing from the squad in October.

Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips’ 49 minutes of action since his international start against Italy is unlikely to count against him, but James Ward-Prowse is knocking on the door of a first call-up in 14 months after a number of good performances for West Ham.

Michael O’Neill is bracing himself for another challenging international window as Northern Ireland’s bruising Euro 2024 qualifying campaign comes to an end this month.

Any hope of reaching next summer’s tournament was virtually extinguished as long ago as June, and with only two wins – both against San Marino – and six defeats in Group H, Northern Ireland would have been forgiven for wanting to fast forward to the end of a campaign ruined by an ongoing injury crisis.

But two games remain and with a trip to Finland, the pot two team in last October’s draw, to come before top seeds Denmark visit Windsor Park on October 20, they are two of the hardest on paper.

O’Neill on Wednesday welcomed back Ciaron Brown and Jordan Jones into his squad but the 26-strong group was another one largely dictated by who is and who is not available due to injury, and the headwinds remain firmly against Northern Ireland.

Finland blew their chance to qualify with back-to-back defeats to Slovenia and Kazakhstan last month, but Denmark are level on points with Slovenia at the top of the standings, looking to finish the job off.

“They will be difficult games but all the games have been difficult,” O’Neill told the PA news agency.

“When I look at the team and I take the results out of it and look at where we are, how we are in possession and a number of other areas, there’s not a lot of difference between all the teams in the group bar Denmark who have been the most dominant.

“We have to look at the positives. We’re not that far behind these teams but we’ve come out on the wrong side of narrow scorelines. We have to learn from that.

“We have been more dominant in possession than some of my previous teams but we’ve not carried the same threat, and obviously we’ve gone behind in games so we’ve not had the opportunity to defend a lead and I think that’s when you’ve seen the best of Northern Ireland, in that situation.”

Although Brown and Jones return, Conor Bradley, Ali McCann and Shayne Lavery all remain unavailable, as do the senior players – Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans and Shane Ferguson – who have missed the entire campaign.

“It’s a blow not to have young Conor back and to have Ali McCann and Shayne Lavery still out as well,” O’Neill said.

“We’re trying to pick a consistent squad and with the injuries there are still up to seven or eight players who could be involved that aren’t.

“It’s not like there’s a number of players on the periphery we could select ahead of those we have selected. The lads we’ve picked are the ones playing more regular football at their clubs and who merit their place at this moment in time.

“We’re trying to grow a team, to develop a team and we have to continue to do that. With the older players we don’t know what involvement they will have going forward, that’s a decision they have to make.

“The backbone of the squad is very, very young and we have to get as much international experience into them as possible and hopefully that experience is as positive as possible as well.”

Daniel Ballard is fit again after a calf injury, while Shea Charles retains his place in the group although the Southampton player will miss the trip to Helsinki through suspension, having been sent off in last month’s 1-0 home defeat to Slovenia.

Eighteen-year-old striker Callum Marshall is in the squad again after some excellent form for West Ham Under-21s, and will hope for another chance after being denied a debut goal away to Denmark in June when his late equaliser was disallowed.

Jack Butland says Rangers players have bought into the new attitude to fitness at Ibrox under Philippe Clement.

Immediately after taking over as Gers boss from Michael Beale, the Belgian emphasised his desire for a much fitter and more robust squad.

Clement is unbeaten in five games and, ahead of the Europa League clash with Sparta Prague at Ibrox on Thursday night, Butland spoke openly about the changes he has witnessed.

The 30-year-old goalkeeper said: “He’s bringing everybody in. Sometimes the old ideas of running stupid distances can be a punishment to people, or feel that way.

“He’s made it clear, if people are doing extra running, it’s not as a punishment, it’s to get you up to the standard of the lads who are getting those numbers in week in week out, so when the opportunity comes he will call on those people, because we will need to over the course of the season – they are not a yard off, they’re up to standard.

“When he articulated it in that way, it’s not as if you’re running because you’re not playing or fit enough, you’re doing extra work to get to the levels we need.

“The lads are on board because that works in everyone’s favour. Those guys, it means they are ready and for the rest of the team and club, every player is ready to go when called upon.”

Butland believes Clement’s new fitness methods are part of his aspiration to simplify football at Ibrox.

The former Stoke and Crystal Palace keeper said:  “He’s simplified things, he’s made his demands obvious and not clouded.

“There’s been occasions where he wants to improve certain things and aspects, whether it be fitness or whatever, there’s been things that he’s touched on and been sure to come back and give us reasons as to why and backed up his reasons as to why he’s making us do certain things or play a certain way.

“There’s no grey area, I think the lads know what’s expected and he’s included everybody.

“It’s sort of coming together and I guess we’ve seen that in a short space of time. But the way that the manager is and the way that we are with not stopping at anything, we’ve got things that we want to achieve, a lot of work to do and that’s a conscious effort every single day to keep getting better and improve.

“We’ve come a long way I think, still a way to go, but we’re getting towards the team we want to be.”

EFL chairman Rick Parry has defended football’s right to benefit from responsible betting sponsorship and accepts there are no “magic answers” to eradicating addiction issues among players.

The sport’s relationship with gambling has been in the spotlight again recently after a 10-month ban was imposed on Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali by the Italian Football Federation late last month.

The player, who is suffering from a gambling addiction according to his agent, is also being investigated over possible breaches of betting rules in England by the Football Association.

The Big Step campaign, part of the Gambling With Lives charity, said the player deserved “empathy and support” rather than a heavy sanction, adding: “Sending someone addicted to gambling into this environment is like sending an alcoholic to work in a pub. If you force young footballers to endorse addictive products then don’t be surprised if they use them.”

Parry, whose organisation signed a new deal with Sky Bet as its title sponsor in June through to 2029, told the PA news agency that betting companies had made “billions” of pounds out of sport since the introduction of the Gambling Act in 2005 and added: “It’s only fair that there is a way of channelling some of that revenue into sport.

“So enabling sport to negotiate marketing agreements to get a share of the billions that are flowing in is something I have no difficulty with whatsoever as a concept.

“We’ve commissioned research, we’ve looked extensively and we haven’t seen any evidence that sponsorship leads to an increase in gambling or gambling harm.

“The values of gambling in England have been fairly steady across the decades and there is no direct correlation between sponsorship and gambling harm.

“Nobody wants gambling harm, nobody wants players to become addicted, or indeed non-players. But it is two different issues that tend to get conflated in terms of what we are doing with players and indeed with the non players.”

The EFL’s partnership with Sky Bet was singled out for praise in the Government’s white paper on gambling reform published in April as an example of the sort of socially responsible agreement sports should strive for.

Since 2018, Sky Bet funding has supported the EPIC Risk Awareness programme which has provided education to players and staff at all 72 EFL clubs. The programme has reached 2,200 players and staff over the past two years.

Sky Bet’s parent company Flutter will also put £20million into wider research, education and treatment this year alone.

“Behaving responsibly is incredibly important,” Parry added.

“Educating players is something that we’ve been doing for at least the last five years and we’ll continue to do more of that.

“(But) that frankly is never going to stop individuals from wanting to gamble. Ten per cent of people gamble – they always will.

“It is a fact of life, prohibition doesn’t work, so what you have to do is have a framework, that you educate, you behave responsibly, you do everything you can to minimise harm, but eliminating it is incredibly difficult.

“If we didn’t have Sky Bet sponsorship we would still have players betting – they always have, they always will.

“Our responsibility is to try to make sure that we support and that we educate – it’s not just about punishment. As we’ve seen pretty graphically in Italy recently, it’s not just been about identifying punishment, it’s identifying that some of the players have genuine addiction problems. It’s how you assist in rehabilitation as well as punishment, and there are no magic answers.

“It’s a problem that will continue to exist. We have to try to tackle it and address it, without in any way pretending it’s not there.

“But that said, that absolutely shouldn’t preclude us from entering into responsible and sensible marketing arrangements when gambling operators are making a huge amount of money out of sport, and have been encouraged to do so by successive governments.”

Sky Bet will also commit £1million a year to the Building Foundations Fund which will support the community organisations linked to the 72 EFL clubs.

This week is a designated ‘EFL Week of Action’ to highlight the social benefit provided by club community organisations in the towns and cities they serve.

Former Tottenham and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Pat Jennings appeared fit and well as he unveiled a statue of himself in Newry on Wednesday, two days after being taken into hospital.

The 78-year-old was taken ill at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Monday night ahead of Spurs’ match against Chelsea, but was released later than evening and travelled back to his home city for Wednesday’s unveiling.

Jennings, accompanied by his wife and children, took part in the ceremony to reveal a new bronze likeness of him on Kildare Street in the centre of his hometown.

Former Northern Ireland players Billy Hamilton and Gerry Armstrong, ex-Tottenham captain Ledley King, and former Arsenal and Republic of Ireland midfielder Liam Brady were among those in attendance.

During the unveiling Jennings, who played more than 550 times for Spurs and earned 119 caps for Northern Ireland, said he “couldn’t believe” he was having a statue dedicated to him.

“I’d have seen people who are getting statues unveiled of them and never thought it would ever happen to me,” he said.

“Having said that, I’ve had an unbelievable career in football from leaving here as a 17-year-old to join Watford I never dreamt that I’d be back 60 years later, over 60 years, unveiling a statue…

“This is basically my home city, where I wouldn’t want it anywhere else.”

Jennings played for Newry Town before joining Watford in 1963. He signed for Tottenham in 1964 and won the FA Cup, UEFA Cup and League Cup twice at White Hart Lane before switching to rivals Arsenal, again lifting the FA Cup in 1979.

Jennings’ former Arsenal team-mate Brady said Jennings was a “very special person”.

“He’s been a great friend down through the years, he is probably the best goalkeeper in the world at one time, without any doubt,” he said.

“As you say when he left Tottenham, he came to Arsenal and I wanted to be here today to tell everybody that he is an Arsenal player as well. And it’s just unique because he’s loved by both Tottenham and Arsenal supporters and I think he’s the only one in the world that can say that.”

King said he had been able to get to know Jennings personally since his own retirement 12 years ago.

“First of all, what a gentleman and also an icon and a legend of the football club. I love hearing his stories about the great players that he’s played with and against.

“One of my favourites was when he represented his country at 41 years old at a World Cup in his last cap against Brazil, which is amazing to hear.

“It’s a pleasure to be here and what this statue will hopefully do is inspire young people that no matter where you come from in the world that you can achieve anything and go on to be the best.”