Ivory Coast interim coach Emerse Fae has warned his players it is not their “destiny” to win the Africa Cup of Nations, despite their remarkable run to a semi-final showdown with DR Congo.

Fae’s side fought back to claim a remarkable last-gasp win over Mali in the quarter-finals after being reduced to 10 men just before half-time following Odilon Kossounou’s dismissal.

Nene Dorgeles had fired Mali in front in the 71st minute, but Simon Adingra’s 90th-minute equaliser took the tie to extra time before Oumar Diakite grabbed the winner with almost the last kick of the match.

The Elephants also came from behind against Senegal in the last 16 after scraping out of their group as the last of the four best third-placed teams.

“We are aware that we have made a spectacular recovery, that when you look at the Mali game we survived miraculously,” Fae said in a pre-match press conference in Abidjan.

“It is that mindset which allows us to pull off miracles like that, but we are not going to relax and say that because we won miraculously it means it is our destiny that we are going to win the trophy.

“The miracle against Mali did not fall out of the sky, it did not just happen like that, it happened because the players kept on fighting and believing until the end.”

Fae was appointed following the sacking of Jean-Louis Gasset after a 4-0 loss to Equatorial Guinea in their final group game looked to have sealed an early exit.

However, Morocco’s 1-0 win over Zambia two days later kept them in the competition and they have continued to ride their luck ever since.

“It would be a lie to say we have nothing to lose but we have come a long way,” Fae added.

“We have come from very far, we have made every effort to get our heads above water, so we are not going to give up now and we are not going to fail for fear of not reaching the final.

“We will therefore manage it by telling ourselves that it would be a shame to put pressure on ourselves.”

Diakite, who was sent off after celebrating his winner against Mali, is one of four players suspended for the semi-final, with Kossounou, Serge Aurier and Christian Kouame also banned.

Burton’s League One game with fellow strugglers Cheltenham has been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.

The Pirelli Stadium surface failed an inspection after heavy rain on Tuesday afternoon.

A Burton statement read: “Tonight’s game against Cheltenham FC has been called off due to a waterlogged pitch.

“The match referee inspected the pitch, which has been hit by a large deluge of rain this afternoon, and informed both clubs that the game could not go ahead.”

Burton are 18th in the table, four points above the relegation zone, with Cheltenham third bottom and seven points from safety.

Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen has been passed fit to play in his side’s Africa Cup of Nations semi-final against South Africa.

Osimhen was carried off on a stretcher during Nigeria’s 1-0 victory over Angola with abdominal pain and was a doubt for Wednesday’s last-four clash.

But having not travelled to Bouake on Monday, the Napoli forward arrived a day later and managed to train.

A tweet from the Super Eagles’ X account read: “Victor Osimhen has been declared fit and available for selection in the semi-final clash against South Africa on Wednesday. He has joined the team in Bouake and has trained with the squad today.”

South Africa come into the match after last week’s penalty shoot-out victory over Cape Verde.

Nigeria boss Jose Peseiro offered a reminder that his team need to play at a high level if they are to book their place in Sunday’s final against either DR Congo or hosts Ivory Coast.

He told a press conference: “We’ve done a good job now getting to the semi-finals. We’ve showed good spirit and organisation.

“We play like a team together. We must play a high level match, we know the capacity of our opponent. We must play at 100 per cent or more to beat a very good team.”

Nigeria have not lifted the trophy since 2013 but Peseiro remained hopeful his side can triumph.

The Portuguese said: “My belief is that we can win this competition. But they (South Africa) also want to win AFCON, just like us.”

AFCON semi-finals will be live on SportsMax and the SportsMax App.

Jordan reached the Asian Cup final for the first time in their history thanks to a richly deserved 2-0 win over South Korea in Qatar.

Second-half strikes from Yazan Al Naimat and Mousa Al-Taamari ended the hopes of Son Heung-min and his team-mates at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium on Tuesday.

Jordan had dominated from the off, with near misses from Hwang In-beom and Lee Jae-sung – and a penalty that was rightly overturned after a VAR check – all that pre-tournament favourites South Korea mustered. Son did not even have a shot.

Al Naimat and Al-Taamari's quality shone through, and Jordan, who were backed by a vociferous support, will now face Iran or the holders and hosts Qatar in Saturday's final.

Mauricio Pochettino has rejected suggestions he said Chelsea’s players are not good enough, claiming his words following Sunday’s defeat by Wolves were taken out of context.

Immediately after the 4-2 loss at Stamford Bridge that left his team in the bottom half of the Premier League table, the Argentinian appeared to say he did not have the squad to significantly remedy the club’s plight.

Chelsea were booed off at half-time and again at the final whistle, with audible anger directed against both the players and Pochettino personally, while the name of former owner Roman Abramovich could also be heard being sung.

A visibly emotional Pochettino said at the time he understood supporters’ fury in the aftermath of a 10th league defeat in the 23 games of his tenure, and intimated neither he nor the team have been good enough this season.

He has now, before Wednesday’s FA Cup replay at Aston Villa, moved to clarify his position, criticising reports which he felt deliberately took his words not in the spirit in which they were meant.

“Now (when) I’m watching TV and media, some guys take advantage of some situations to take my words out of context,” he said. “That question came from my post-match press conference – are the players good enough to be in the top four or top six? I said, ‘today, we were not good enough, and me the first’.

“Then they said, ‘Pochettino said the players aren’t good enough’. What? It’s taking it out of context, my words. In that game, we were not good enough. I don’t want to hide the reality.

“Be careful. Some people take advantage, when we lose a game, to say things that never appeared in my mouth. That upset me a little bit.

“The most difficult thing is to explain to my wife. ‘Why did you say the players are not good enough?’ I never said that. You know what I had to do last time? To show her the press conference. That is not a joke. It is the reality we live in.”

Pochettino also defended Ben Chilwell, who captained the side in Sunday’s defeat, after he appeared to suggest in a post-match interview that Wolves had shown more desire for the victory than Chelsea.

The defender told Sky Sports: “I think they probably showed that they wanted it more than us.”

However, Pochettino contested that Chilwell intended to question his team-mates’ will to win.

“He said, ‘we didn’t win the 50-50 duels’. That was my interpretation. The result we suffered against Wolves, we are Chelsea and everything is bigger than normal. I was talking with him and it was never his intention to say we didn’t show desire.”

Pochettino added that Thiago Silva had met with him privately to discuss a post sent by the defender’s wife on social media on Sunday that appeared to call for the manager to be sacked.

“He came today to talk with me. I’m not going to talk about (what we said). He came and wanted to talk with me.

“That was private. That’s it.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers believes Daizen Maeda has come back from the Asian Cup in better shape than he left.

The forward has declared himself ready to start in Wednesday’s cinch Premiership contest against Hibernian at Easter Road.

Maeda made two substitute appearances for Japan before starting in Saturday’s quarter-final defeat by Iran, playing the first 67 minutes.

The 26-year-old had played the last five games before the Premiership winter break after recovering from a knee injury, and Rodgers feels the attacker is up to speed after his international duties.

“Daizen Maeda is back, which is great news, and fit and healthy,” Rodgers said.

“He is actually in a better place now than he was when he left because he was still trying to get up to speed.

“He has gone away, trained, played some games. I spoke to him when he did come back and he feels ready to start if we need him.”

Celtic will otherwise have an unchanged squad for the trip to Edinburgh following Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Aberdeen, with Greg Taylor still working his way back from a calf problem.

However, the left-back might return against St Mirren in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup on Sunday.

“We will see how he is for the weekend but he is out on the pitch,” Rodgers said.

“He is moving really well, it will just be getting the sign-off from the medical team. If it’s not the weekend, he will be ready for the next game.”

Paris St Germain boss Luis Enrique has no doubts his players can cover enough hard yards as they prepare to face Brest for a place in the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France.

After Brest fought back from 2-0 down at half-time to draw their recent Ligue 1 match at Parc des Princes, Enrique faced questions over the squad’s fitness levels.

In the Champions League group stages, PSG were one of the lowest ranked teams for distance covered per match on average, at 113.84 kilometres.

Many of the PSG players are reported to have hired personal trainers to add extra fitness work on top of their sessions at club training.

Enrique, though, rejected suggestions his players needed to build up some additional stamina.

“My teams play with possession to make the opponent run, so we do it less – not a single of my teams in my career has not run enough miles to win games,” the PSG coach said.

“In the Champions League, behind Manchester City, we are the team with the most ball possession – and we are much stronger when we have the ball.

“That doesn’t mean an opponent can’t have the ball more than us, the team which creates the most chances and takes the fewest is us.”

Enrique told a press conference: “For several years now, players have been calling on physical trainers, physiotherapists, osteopaths and nutritionists.

“If there is co-ordination and there are good balances (of training), that seems good to me.

“The players are becoming more and more professional and the club has a clear line on what it means to live the life of a professional and to have the best professionals to help the players.

“The vast majority have a chef at home, they have all the advantages – I would have liked to have a chef and a physiotherapist just for me (as a player), but it was a different time.”

Enrique hopes PSG can learn from their last meeting with Brest to secure a place in the quarter-finals of the French Cup.

“The advantage of playing two matches against Brest in a row is that we know our difficulties,” said Enrique, who will be without forward Randal Kolo Muani because of a viral infection.

“It is hard to press them, so we have to be better with and without the ball.

“We expect a difficult match, but it will also be a different match, since it is the Coupe de France.”

Enrique added: “In the championship, it is a lot of consistency. In the cup, it is knockout – if we have a bad match, we can be eliminated.

“It is a different approach and you have to be very strong mentally.”

Embattled former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner, of Trinidad and Tobago, believes his “nightmare is over,” after the United States Supreme Court and a lower court threw out the convictions of two defendants linked to football corruption in September last year.

According to a January 27, 2024 New York Times article, these rulings “cast doubt on the legal basis for a host of prosecutions” surrounding those involved in scandals coming out of the December 2015 raids on FIFA officials in Zurich, Switzerland.

In June 2011, Warner, who was then provisionally suspended by the world football governing body for alleged corruption, resigned from all his international football posts. Warner was one of 14 top FIFA officials and corporate executives to be accused of corruption, fraud and money laundering while he was FIFA vice-president.

Warner was later indicted in 29 charges of corruption in the US in 2015. Extradition proceedings against him remain on hold.

In an interview with i95.5FM last Thursday, Warner said the court’s ruling to toss the convictions of an ex-21st Century Fox executive and sports marketing company on corruption charges in a case involving FIFA has him feeling relieved.

That September case, according to the New York Times, is one in which “the two defendants benefited from two recent Supreme Court rulings that had rejected federal prosecutors’ application of the law at play in the soccer cases and offered rare guidance on what is known as honest services fraud.

“The defendants in the soccer trial had been found to have engaged in bribery that deprived organizations outside the US of their employees’ honest services, which constituted fraud at the time. But the judge ruled that the court’s new guidance meant that those actions were no longer prohibited under American law.”

On this decision, Warner declared his agreement.

“I am in firm agreement with the US Supreme Court statement on the matter. I always knew the US were wrong to attack and destroy FIFA and destroy people’s lives just because they didn’t get a World Cup venue,” Warner said, referring to the US' failed 2022 World Cup bid.

That World Cup bid was won by Qatar, but several FIFA officials, including Warner, were accused of accepting bribes.

“It is utterly ridiculous for people to be imprisoned and to be charged for being a member of a private organisation as FIFA, and to be charged by the US government on what they did or did not do during their stay in FIFA,” Warner argued.

“I am feeling relieved. My life has been destroyed, my family’s life has been destroyed and I have spent tonnes of money on this matter. All I did was to tell FIFA that it is time to change the paradigm of giving the World Cup to Europe and South America. I said to them, ‘just go to the Middle East’.

“It is this that has caused me to be where I am today. The irony is that people in the Middle East, thanks to my efforts and others, Qatar (which hosted the World Cup in 2022) has produced one of the best World Cups this world has ever seen. So, I feel vindicated in a sense for what I have done, but the price that I have paid for that is overbearing,” he added.

Sevilla have conveyed their “disgust” after winger Lucas Ocampos appeared to be touched in what the club described as an “obscene act” by a home supporter in their victory at Rayo Vallecano.

The Argentina international, who has called for LaLiga to take the incident seriously, appeared to be poked in the backside by a fan as he was preparing to take a throw-in in the 32nd minute of Monday’s contest.

His club released a statement expressing their support for the player and calling for LaLiga to take “appropriate measures” in response to the incident, while Rayo have condemned the act and are in the process of identifying the fan in question.

A statement on Sevilla’s official website read: “On the obscene and completely inappropriate act suffered by Lucas Ocampos at the Estadio de Vallecas:

“We would like to place on record our disgust at the incident that occurred on Monday during our match against Rayo Vallecano, in which our player Lucas Ocampos was subjected to an obscene and completely inappropriate act by a home fan.

“We hope that the appropriate measures outlined in the regulations will be taken to prevent such behaviour from happening again on a football field and we have expressed this to LaLiga directly.

“These gestures and behaviours should not be allowed in our competition if we aspire to be the best league in the world.

“We send our full support to Lucas Ocampos, who showed composure and immense professionalism, despite the unacceptable behaviour of the fan who harassed him.”

Ocampos, 29, who turned around to confront the fan, also demanded action after his side’s 2-1 victory, telling DAZN: “I hope the league takes it seriously, like it takes racism, like it takes those things .

“I don’t think all the Rayo people are like that, because the truth is that they always treat us with respect.

“There is always a fool and I hope it doesn’t happen in other areas, because if it happens in women’s football, we know what can happen.

“I restrained myself because I have two daughters and I hope that tomorrow it doesn’t happen to them. Let’s hope they make the decision they have to make and I hope that a fool like this doesn’t stain the fans, because the truth is they behaved very well.”

Rayo released a statement saying they “condemned” the behaviour of the fan.

The statement added: “This isolated action is solely the individual responsibility of the fan who carried it out, with neither Rayo Vallecano nor any of the other almost 15,000 spectators who filled the Estadio de Vallecas for the match against Sevilla having any responsibility for it and who had exemplary behaviour.

“Rayo Vallecano at this time is working to identify the fan so that, if he is a season ticket holder, it can adopt the appropriate disciplinary measures according to the internal regulations.

“Rayo Vallecano has always promoted the maximum respect towards referees, footballers and coaches. Individual actions like this are opposite to the values ​​that Rayo Vallecano promotes.”

The PA news agency has contacted LaLiga for comment.

Sevilla have conveyed their “disgust” after winger Lucas Ocampos appeared to be touched in what the club described as an “obscene act” by a home supporter in their victory at Rayo Vallecano.

The Argentina international, who has called for LaLiga to take the incident seriously, appeared to be poked in the backside by a fan as he was preparing to take a throw-in in the 32nd minute of Monday’s contest.

His club released a statement expressing their support for the player and calling for LaLiga to take “appropriate measures” in response to the incident, while Rayo have condemned the act and are in the process of identifying the fan in question.

A statement on Sevilla’s official website read: “On the obscene and completely inappropriate act suffered by Lucas Ocampos at the Estadio de Vallecas:

“We would like to place on record our disgust at the incident that occurred on Monday during our match against Rayo Vallecano, in which our player Lucas Ocampos was subjected to an obscene and completely inappropriate act by a home fan.

“We hope that the appropriate measures outlined in the regulations will be taken to prevent such behaviour from happening again on a football field and we have expressed this to LaLiga directly.

“These gestures and behaviours should not be allowed in our competition if we aspire to be the best league in the world.

“We send our full support to Lucas Ocampos, who showed composure and immense professionalism, despite the unacceptable behaviour of the fan who harassed him.”

Ocampos, 29, who turned around to confront the fan, also demanded action after his side’s 2-1 victory, telling DAZN: “I hope the league takes it seriously, like it takes racism, like it takes those things .

“I don’t think all the Rayo people are like that, because the truth is that they always treat us with respect.

“There is always a fool and I hope it doesn’t happen in other areas, because if it happens in women’s football, we know what can happen.

“I restrained myself because I have two daughters and I hope that tomorrow it doesn’t happen to them. Let’s hope they make the decision they have to make and I hope that a fool like this doesn’t stain the fans, because the truth is they behaved very well.”

Rayo released a statement saying they “condemned” the behaviour of the fan.

The statement added: “This isolated action is solely the individual responsibility of the fan who carried it out, with neither Rayo Vallecano nor any of the other almost 15,000 spectators who filled the Estadio de Vallecas for the match against Sevilla having any responsibility for it and who had exemplary behaviour.

“Rayo Vallecano at this time is working to identify the fan so that, if he is a season ticket holder, it can adopt the appropriate disciplinary measures according to the internal regulations.

“Rayo Vallecano has always promoted the maximum respect towards referees, footballers and coaches. Individual actions like this are opposite to the values ​​that Rayo Vallecano promotes.”

The PA news agency has contacted LaLiga for comment.

Chelsea will play Ajax in the Women’s Champions League quarter-finals, with defending champions Barcelona potential opponents in the semis.

Emma Hayes’ side will play the first leg of the last-eight tie in the Netherlands on March 19 or 20 before hosting the second the following week.

The winner will then over two legs in April face the victors of the quarter-final between Barca – 3-2 winners against Wolfsburg in the 2022-23 final for their second title – and Norwegian outfit Brann.

Chelsea, whose best run in the competition came when they were runners-up in 2021, losing 4-0 to Barca in the final, are aiming for glory in what is the final season of Hayes’ lengthy tenure before she steps down as boss to take charge of the United States national team.

The Blues were unbeaten as they topped Group D, which also featured Hacken, Paris FC and Real Madrid, while Ajax were second in Group C.

The other quarter-finals see record eight-time champions Lyon face Benfica and Paris St Germain take on Hacken.

The final is set to take place at Athletic Bilbao’s San Mames on May 25.

Tivoli Gardens, for the second time this season, downed neighbours Arnett Gardens 3-1, but the manner in which they did it on this occasion would certainly have sent a message to their other rivals in the Wray and Nephew Jamaica Premier League (WNJPL).

Not only did Tivoli Gardens have to come from behind in the marquee Monday night encounter at the Stadium East Field, but they did so at a numerical disadvantage in tough underfoot conditions caused by evening showers.

The West Kingston team was spurred by a brace from former Arnett Gardens winger Steve Clarke (76th and 80th), and a long overdue strike from the league's joint leading scorer Justin Dunn (73rd), after they lost substitute Howard Morris to a straight red card in the 61st. Fabian Reid had earlier put Arnett Gardens in front in the 57th minute.

With the win, which extended their unbeaten run across four matches, Tivoli's Gardens inched up to fourth on 34 points, while Arnett Gardens, who had their three-match unbeaten run snapped, slipped to fourth on 33 points.

Winning coach Jerome Waite welcomed Clarke's impact on his return to the league.

"Despite the fact that we weren't prepared where the proper footing is concerned, the result ended in our favour. I spoke about the players who came in through the transfer market and today you saw what those players basically have to offer," Waite said, adding that losing Morris didn't affect their game plan much.

"The only change was that we had a three-pronged attack, and we asked one of those players to sit in the midfield. These players, the worked that they put in leading up to this game, showed here and it can only can better as the season progresses," he noted.

Arnett Gardens dominated proceedings for most of the first half and had a few openings from which they should have opened the scoring but failed to make them count. After Warner Brown skied a left-footed effort from deep inside the 18-yard box, Keheim Dixon, had a clear 12th-minute opportunity in a one-on-one situation with Tivoli Gardens goalkeeper Diego Haughton, but fired his effort into the crossbar.

With very little going Tivoli Gardens way, Dunn tried his luck from a distance, but Asher Hutchinson in goal for Arnett Gardens, got down well to his right to parry.

Reid also had a grand opportunity to break the deadlock in the 27th minute when he went on a break and dismissed Haughton, who strayed off his line, but the Arnett Gardens captain was undone by the conditions, as the score remained goalless at the break.

However, Reid made amends for his earlier slip up and sent the ‘Junglists’ in front 12 minutes into the resumption, as he got on the end of a Jamone Shepherd pass and fired past Haughton, who again strayed off his line and was caught in no man's land.

Along with the lead, Arnett Gardens also had a numerical advantage when Morris was sent for an early shower by referee Oshane Nation, but seemingly got complacent, and were punished for it. This, as Tivoli Gardens went rampant in the final 20 minutes of the contest and were assisted by some shoddy defending by their opponents.

The West Kingston team’s fortunes turned when a well-struck 71st-minute freekick by substitute Vishinul Harris, was kept out parried by Hutchinson and Shepherd senselessly felled Alton Lewis inside the danger area.

Dunn, who endured a lengthy goal drought after his blistering start to the season, stepped up and converted from the 12-yard spot to pull Tivoli Gardens level with his 10th goal of the season.

From there, it was the Steve Clarke show, as the former Arnett Gardens man doubled the lead three minutes later when he got on the end of Harris’s delightful through-pass and fired past Hutchinson on a second attempt.

Clarke then completed his brace and the victory for Tivoli Gardens when he finished a right-footer with aplomb, after Arnett Gardens failed to clear their lines from Shaquille Jones’s cross.

Arnett Gardens' Head coach Xavier Gilbert believed they were undone by a lack of proper game management. 

"I think we made some poor decisions around the back, but credit to Tivoli Gardens for the way they came at us because I think we managed the game poorly and we have to be smarter than that. We were a goal up and a man up and I just don't think we made good decisions, so it's just unfortunate and we just have move on...bounce back quickly and a move on," Gilbert said.

Matchweek 17 Results

Lime Hall Academy 1, Treasure Beach FC 0

Montego Bay United 2, Vere United 0

Portmore United 1, Dunbeholden 1

Mount Pleasant FA 1, Molynes United 1

Waterhouse 0, Cavalier FC 1

Humble Lion 2, Harbour View 4

Tivoli Gardens 3, Arnett Gardens 1

St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson has stressed the importance of Wednesday night’s home clash with Dundee to his players.

The fifth-placed Buddies are bristling with confidence following their convincing 3-0 cinch Premiership win over Hibernian at Easter Road on Saturday.

Next up are Tony Docherty’s Taysiders who, along with Hibs, are also competing with Saints for a top-six finish, but Robinson is looking for more league joy before St Mirren host Celtic in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup on Sunday.

The Northern Irishman said: “We established ourselves as a top-six side last season.

“The hardest bit is trying to repeat that. So far we are doing that.

“These two games against teams directly below us means it gives you a little bit of a cushion if you can win the game.

“Sometimes you try to play that down to players, but we have done the opposite, we have played it up and made the level of importance of the game really high and it is the same on Wednesday night.

“We created numerous chances against Hibs, but that comes from a solid base and we need that tomorrow night and we need it again on Sunday.”

Robinson insists lessons were learned in the 4-0 defeat by Dundee in November, the Buddies’ biggest defeat of the season.

He said: “We had a lot of possession, 60 per cent, and we had more than 30 crosses into the box, but we played in front of Dundee a lot, we didn’t go in behind them, turn them around and make them go towards their own goal. So there’s lessons in that.

“We conceded from two set-plays. Dundee are a high threat in set-plays, very well-organised and very pro-active in their set-plays.

“We have to be well versed in that. No matter how bad we played up until half-time, we were 2-0 down due to set-plays.

“It is a critical part of the game now and we have to be on top of that tomorrow night.”

Phil Foden believes the Premier League title race will go to the wire this season.

The England midfielder scored a hat-trick in Manchester City’s 3-1 win at Brentford on Monday night.

It was a potentially pivotal victory which lifted City above Arsenal into second place, two points behind leaders Liverpool with a game in hand.

“It’s going to be tight one. Liverpool and Arsenal are two top teams doing really well,” said Foden.

“They are going to push us until the end so we have to try and not drop points and try to win all of our games really.”

City fell behind against the run of play when Neal Maupay fired Brentford into the lead.

But Foden finally beat inspired Bees goalkeeper Mark Flekken to haul his side level before the interval.

The 23-year-old headed them in front early in the second half from Kevin De Bruyne’s cross, and then completed a stylish treble to ensure City’s title destiny is firmly in their own hands.

The treble winners also trailed in away matches against Everton and Newcastle recently, but Foden says they are beginning to show their mettle by coming back to win each time.

“Resilience. We keep proving it season after season,” he told the club website.

“We keep surprising everyone by keeping our standards high and it’s down to the manager and this fantastic group of players.

“It’s the togetherness, when things aren’t going right, to bounce back.”

Nerves are starting to jangle at Brentford, who have lost seven of their last eight matches and lie just three points above the relegation zone.

The fixture list does not offer much respite with City – again – Liverpool and Arsenal all on the schedule in the next few weeks.

But boss Thomas Frank is looking no further ahead than Saturday’s trip to Wolves.

“I’m always looking just one game ahead; that’s where our maximum focus is,” he said.

“It’s the same top focus on the next game. Every game we will have a very good chance to win it and that will be the same on Saturday.”

David Carson accepted Livingston’s perilous position in the cinch Premiership with confidence when he opted for a move to the top-flight.

The 28-year-old midfielder departed cinch Championship side Inverness for the Lions on an 18-month contract last week after five years at the Highland club.

The Newcastle-born player made his debut in the 3-0 defeat by Rangers at Ibrox on Saturday which left David Martindale’s side without a league win in their last 16 attempts and six points behind second-bottom Ross County having played two games more.

Ahead of Wednesday night’s game against fourth-placed Kilmarnock at Rugby Park, where the in-form home team have lost only once in 10 games in all competitions, Carson conceded that some people may have questioned his decision to join a club whose Premiership future is fraught.

He said: “I agree, people will look at it like that but I am a player, I know the situation we are in and there is still a lot of football to play.

“I am coming in with the aim, like everyone else at this club, to keep us in the Premiership. That’s what I have come to do.

“As a player you always want to play at the highest level you can and there was an opportunity for me to do that.

“First and foremost it was that, I wanted to test myself and when I spoke to the manager it was a positive chat.

“I know the situation that we are in but we can affect that and hopefully we can start to pick up points.

“There is absolutely a lot of confidence. There are a lot of games that we can go and attack and try to pick up points.

“Saturday was difficult but we have to let that pass, it is done. We were well in the game before the first game.

“We have to move on to Wednesday night which is a big game for us.

“We can’t concentrate too much on what other people are doing, we have to go in there with a game plan and see if that gets us some points.

“We are confident. There is a good group of lads, I have seen that in training already. There is some real quality in there so why not start a good run on Wednesday?”