What the papers say

Chelsea have joined the race for English defender Archie Brown at Belgian club Gent. The Sun, via HITC, reports a number of Premier League clubs, Juventus and AC Milan are watching the 21-year-old, who left Derby three years ago in search of first-team football.

Manchester United have opened talks on a contract extension with Kobbie Mainoo, according to the Manchester Evening News. The England Under-19 international midfielder, 18, has impressed since forcing his way into the first team at Old Trafford.

Mason Greenwood will be stopped from joining United on a pre-season tour of the United States by club bosses, reports the Daily Star. The English forward, 22, is currently on loan in Spain with Getafe.

Defender Ben White, 26, is the next player expected to sign a new deal at Arsenal. The Sun says the new deal could be signed this month after fellow defender Takehiro Tomiyasu agreed a fresh contract.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Oleksandr Zinchenko: Newcastle and Bayern Munich are keen on Arsenal’s 27-year-old Ukraine international, according to Football Transfers.

Crysencio Summerville: Leeds’ Dutch Under-21 international, 22, is high on Chelsea’s list in their search for a winger, reports Teamtalk.

Women’s Super League attendances are up 43 per cent on last season as Arsenal lead the charge to show the league “belongs” in larger venues.

From an average crowd of 5,222 last term, a move to play more games at Premier League stadia coupled with an overall upturn in interest has seen this season’s figure jump to 7,478.

Arsenal have played five games at the Emirates Stadium this season and only three at their “regular” venue Meadow Park – home of men’s National League side Boreham Wood – and have sold out the 60,000-plus tickets for their last two home games against Manchester United and north London rivals Tottenham.

The club have sold 279,974 tickets for their eight home matches this season, already 63 per cent up on last season’s 11 games with a further Emirates date remaining against Leicester. Their average ticket sales per game are up 125 per cent across the board, from 15,572 to 34,997, and from 46,877 to 53,871 considering only games at the Emirates.

A mural at the stadium is entitled “Found a place where we belong”, inspired by a quote from ex-Gunners striker Dennis Bergkamp which boss Jonas Eidevall referenced after the 1-0 derby victory.

“I was thinking about that quote from Dennis Bergkamp… that is what makes me extremely proud of being able to say we have found a place where more than 60,000 people feel that they belong,” he said.

“They feel this is their home, this is where they want to come and support their football team and that is very special and is something we need to keep very much alive and keep building on.”

A game away to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge is next up, with over 25,000 tickets already sold to continue the momentum, but it is not just at the top end of the table where progress is apparent.

Bristol City – one of two teams, along with Leicester, who ground-share full-time with their affiliated men’s team – have averaged crowds of 7,687 at Ashton Gate while the visits of the title challengers have pulled in significantly larger crowds.

Despite propping up the table the Robins have broken their record women’s attendance twice this season, with 12,008 against Arsenal and then 14,138 against Manchester United, while over 9,000 watched them take on Chelsea, and Manchester City are still to visit.

Seven of the 12 clubs have had at least one five-figure home crowd this season, with 43,615 at Old Trafford for the Manchester derby while Liverpool (23,088 against Everton) and Chelsea (20,473 against Manchester United) have also broken the 20,000 barrier.

A surprising exception is Manchester City, level on points at the top of the table with Chelsea. Their facilities at the Joie Stadium, sharing the Etihad Campus with the men’s team, are impressive but capacity is only 7,000 and their average crowd this season is 3,306.

The 4,599 who watched them against Liverpool is so far their biggest crowd this term, though an imminent return date with United in the main Etihad Stadium is sure to change that.

Laura McAllister’s football journey has taken her from modest beginnings on the playing fields of South Wales to sitting at the top table of the European game.

From being excluded by football’s law-makers and having nowhere to play her “first love” to being the only woman on UEFA’s 20-strong executive committee (ExCo) and in a position to implement real change for women in the sport.

Last month UEFA agreed a new statute to protect two places for women on ExCo, while the body’s president Aleksander Ceferin has asked McAllister to head up a new Gender Equality Committee.

It is a start in the quest for greater equality in a sport emerging from the fallout of Luis Rubiales’ three-year ban after the former Spanish football federation president kissed Spain player Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the World Cup final medal ceremony in August.

“The Rubiales incident showed there’s a huge underbelly of misogyny in football – in most sports, quite frankly – and we have to think how we change that,” McAllister told the PA news agency ahead of International Women’s Day.

“An obvious way is to get more women’s voices heard, normalise women in the boardroom and the committee room, on the coaching field and in the classroom – and to accept that men don’t have a monopoly on football.

“There are still some men who think that because they’ve been in the game a long time they deserve to be in charge, but the game’s moved on.

“We’ve spoken about this at UEFA and we need more women on ExCo. Not because men are not good, but because we are missing experience and knowledge, not just of the women’s game but of women in football.

“Until we get that right, we’ll miss opportunities for our sport as well.”

McAllister’s own playing career in Bridgend and the nearby Llynfi Valley was put on hold at the age of 12 when, like scores of other girls, she was told she could not play with boys any more.

The fact there was no organised girls’ football beyond that age left a sense of “burning injustice”.

It would be a cause taken up in the 1990s after university days in London, to help organise a national women’s team recognised by the Football Association of Wales and one that she would captain.

“We were using the men’s cast-offs, extra large or large kits, and for those who were not as big it was not fit for purpose,” said McAllister, who went on to become chairperson of Sport Wales.

“At the same time, we recognised this was the first step, and we knew we had to suck up some of the disadvantages for the next generation.

“Now we’ve got equal pay (playing for Wales), similar conditions to what the men receive, and the women’s games are covered live on S4C and BBC.

“I don’t think any of us would have anticipated the growth as being as fast as it has been.”

McAllister, however, appreciates there is a long way to go for women throughout the game, especially in football’s corridors of power.

Women occupied just 74 seats (18.1 per cent) of the 409 positions available on UEFA committees in the last year. UEFA plans to raise that number to 25 per cent for the period to 2027.

“The Gender Equality Committee is a working group with a very broad remit to look at the culture of football,” said McAllister, who is deputy chairperson of UEFA women’s football committee and was appointed on a four-year term last April.

“What can be done in terms of role models and good practice, but also possibly quotas and encouragement and incentives to federations in UEFA to promote more women.

“I don’t have a problem with quotas for the very obvious reason that if there was a simple meritocracy in operation where you weighed up the respective CVs and skill sets and the best candidate won, then great.

“There would be plenty of women coming through that system, but that’s not how it works and everyone knows that.

“It’s based on status, profile, deals and bargaining, so women can’t always penetrate that world and, if they do, it’s a very slow process.”

Baroness Sue Campbell says developments in English women’s football in recent years have inspired females to “feel that they can” – both within the game and beyond.

Campbell is this year retiring from her role as the Football Association’s director of women’s football, having been at the helm since 2016.

The past eight years have seen considerable progress, including England achieving firsts of winning a major tournament – the 2022 Euros on home soil – and reaching a World Cup final in 2023 under boss Sarina Wiegman, and access to football for girls in schools being boosted.

Speaking ahead of International Women’s Day, Campbell told the PA news agency: “The reason I took the job was I have been passionate all my life about the power of sport to change people’s lives.

“And that’s not just in sport – yes, for some people, like our elite players, you can help make their dreams come true, or support them on that journey to that special moment. But for many people, it isn’t the sport itself, it’s the way it gives people confidence, self-esteem, self-worth.

“So when we wrote our strategy, the team and I (in 2020), we called it Inspiring Positive Change, and we meant not just in football – we meant bigger than football, because we believe for the women’s game it is bigger than football.

“It is about inspiring women to recognise they can play at the highest level, coach, referee, sit in the boardroom, and I do think, just listening to people talk generally, we’ve inspired, the players, the Lionesses particularly.

“But I think the strategy and what we’ve done has really inspired girls and women to feel that they can, it’s possible. Do you want to be an astronaut? You can be an astronaut. You want to be an engineer? You can be an engineer. And I think that’s really, really important.

“I feel we’ve taken a big step on that journey, and whoever I hand the baton to I’m sure will be someone with the same passion to really drive that wider societal change.”

The FA’s update on its four-year strategy published in December reported a target for 75 per cent of schools to be offering equal access to football in PE lessons had been met.

On International Women’s Day last year, the Government announced a package to support equal opportunities in school sport after England’s players called for change following their Euros win.

Asked what she was most proud of from her tenure, Campbell said: “I feel we’ve built a really good equal-access programme for girls in schools, I think we’ve done a terrific job there.

“You’ve got to put on my list winning the Euros, a special moment. But I think the thing I’m most proud of is the team I’ve built in the FA to continue the journey – they are, like me, missionaries.”

The FA’s December update reported increases in terms of female players, youth teams, coaches and referees, and there has been a rise in average attendance in the Women’s Super League, which went fully professional in 2018, was the subject of a major broadcast deal in 2021, and from next season will be overseen by a new organisation currently known as ‘NewCo’, with Nikki Doucet as chief executive.

A big talking point has been a lack of diversity in the women’s game in terms of ethnic minority representation, an area in which Campbell says “there’s a lot of work to do but we are addressing it”, pointing to changes that have been made to the talent pathway.

On former England midfielder Karen Carney’s women’s football review, Campbell said: “I think we recognise it as being a series of recommendations which all of us are signed up to and want to make happen – it’s just how.”

Campbell stressed the importance of finance for the future of the women’s game, saying: “I think we’re all very proud of the journey we’ve been on. We all recognise there’s still a lot to do. But I think it’s investment that’s going to drive us now.

“I think we have real clarity in the vision, we know where we’re trying to go.”

The 75-year-old says a conclusion to the process of appointing her successor is “fairly close”, and added: “I haven’t finished. I have a massive desire still to change the world we live in. I want to continue while I can, if I can make a difference – where and what I don’t know yet.”

West Ham boss David Moyes felt his side were wrongly denied a late penalty as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 meeting with Freiburg.

The Hammers were denied what looked a clear spot-kick for handball in stoppage time after the referee refused to change his decision despite checking the pitchside monitor.

The ball struck the arm of Freiburg youngster Noah Weisshaupt in a crowded penalty area, but after a long VAR check, referee Alejandro Hernandez stuck to his guns.

“If we’d had it given against us, we’d probably think it was harsh, but ultimately I have to say what are you doing with your hands above your head?” Moyes said.

“They are trying to claim there might have been a slight push and that’s why it wasn’t given – but they should have restarted the game with a free-kick if they said it was a push.

“It certainly wasn’t enough of a push to warrant a free-kick, so that shouldn’t mean that it should even come into consideration. The boy has two arms above his head.

“In the Premier League, I am not sure that would be given, but in UEFA competitions in Europe they’re normally given by the referees. I watch Spanish football and German football and nearly every handball is seen.

“If you think of the one we had against Kurt (Zouma) (at Everton) the other day, but we just have to take it and move on.”

West Ham only had themselves to blame for the defeat, however, after drawing a blank in the Black Forest.

Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta missed golden opportunities and Konstantinos Mavropanos hit a post before they were hit by a late sucker punch from Freiburg substitute Michael Gregoritsch.

A poor pass from Edson Alvarez allowed Roland Sallai to take aim from the edge of the area and his wayward shot was tapped in by Gregoritsch.

“I was really surprised we didn’t reach the standards and some of the players were below where we would expect them to be,” Moyes said, quoted on the West Ham website.

“We gave the ball away far too much and in Europe it’s more difficult (to get it back).

“In the second half we played much better and created some opportunities and found things, but the goal was a sickener, to be honest.”

It means West Ham, last season’s Europa Conference League winners, need to overturn a 1-0 deficit at the London Stadium next week to prolong this season’s continental campaign.

Moyes, though, insists all is not yet lost as West Ham look to regroup for the return leg.

“I’m not worried about turning the tie around, but I am worried about us getting back into right good form and at the levels they need to be to make the difference,” the Irons boss said.

“I’m looking forward to the game next week and bring it on and let’s see how we go.”

Philippe Clement insists Rangers came close to a “miracle” win over Benfica in their thrilling Europa League last-16 tie which ended 2-2 in Lisbon.

Midfielder Tom Lawrence gave the Light Blues the lead in the seventh minute of the first leg with a header before Argentina World Cup winner Angel Di Maria levelled with a penalty in added time after VAR intervened to highlight that Gers defender John Souttar had used his arm inside the box.

Dujon Sterling restored the visitors’ lead in added time with his first career goal only for Gers defender Connor Goldson to head into his own goal in the 67th minute and the tie is now set up nicely for next Thursday in Govan.

With a nod to Benfica’s huge budget in comparison to that of Rangers, the Light Blues boss said: “We were really close to making this miracle, the first team ever in the Europa League to win here.

“It is a pity to get a penalty against us like that, it is really an unlucky situation, the ball drops and John doesn’t see it and it drops on his arm. That is really unlucky.

“We were really close, we had two opportunities with Fabio (Silva) and Cyriel (Dessers) to make it 3-1, it would have changed a lot in this game but I am really proud of my team.

“They showed character, personality and solidarity also with the ball we scored two really good goals.

“I am really someone who is demanding but I cannot give more than what they gave today. They gave their all and also, the guys who came in.

“We missed a lot of players in the offensive position so other players had to do the job. I am very happy with Fabio and Dujon.

“We need to continue like this. If we keep this mentality that they have been showing in the last couple of months it could be an amazing season.”

Asked if Rangers now have the advantage in the tie, the Belgian boss said: “It’s only an advantage that it’s at Ibrox. If our fans are on top of it from the first second until the last second then they can give a lot of energy to the team.

“But we stay realistic about the qualities of Benfica. You guys wrote this week about the difference in the transfer budgets and that’s the reality. If we could eliminate this team I think it would be a huge, huge thing.

“I can only ask for my players to give their best and to show that they have shown tonight again on Thursday.”

Clement went on to describe the penalty as “very harsh”, saying: “I have said it already a few times that I don’t agree where the game has gone to with handball situations. I know those are the rules.

“I had more problems with some situations in the last couple of weeks.

“With the rules and how they are now, you can give this penalty. But as somebody who loves football, I have difficulty with those rules.

“And I think all the managers and all the players think the same.

“It is too harsh now that a ball that is clearly not intended to go against your arm, the moment it touches you it’s a penalty.

“Too many games all over the world are  decided in this way with these handballs and these penalties.”

Rangers twice surrendered the lead to draw the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie against Benfica 2-2.

Philippe Clement’s squad was hit by injuries but returning midfielder Tom Lawrence gave the visitors a dramatic early lead with a header before Angel Di Maria levelled with a penalty kick in first-half added time after VAR intervened to highlight that Gers defender John Souttar had used his arm inside the box.

Light Blues’ utility player Dujon Sterling restored the lead in the fifth of five minutes of added time with his first career goal only for Gers defender Connor Goldson to head into his own goal midway through the second half to take the tie back to Glasgow next Thursday night level.

Much of the pre-match talk was around Clement’s limited options in attack. He was without the services of four injured wingers – Abdallah Sima, Scott Wright, Rabbi Matondo and Oscar Cortes – albeit the latter is not in the European squad. With Ross McCausland only fit to start on the bench, it meant no natural width in attack.

Portuguese attacker Fabio Silva, who spent two seasons with Benfica as a youth player, supported main striker Cyriel Dessers from the left with Sterling working off the right.

Under-pressure home boss Roger Schmidt was looking for his side to bounce back from their 5-0 thrashing by title rivals Porto at the weekend and he had a host of big names in the starting line-up including Argentina World Cup winners Nicolas Otamendi and Di Maria.

Around 3,500 Rangers fans were in position to see Gers goalkeeper Jack Butland make an early save at his near post from David Neres’ drive.

And moments later they were off their seats cheering when Silva sent Mohamed Diomande free inside the box and he lifted the ball for the in-rushing Lawrence to head down past diving keeper Anatoliy Trubin.

Butland then made a double save, first from Neres and then from striker Arthur Cabral from the loose ball, albeit his effort had been partially blocked by Souttar.

However, after VAR Marco Fritz intervened following another Benfica corner, the Gers defender was adjudged by referee German referee Tobias Stieler to have hit the ball with his arm as he defended the delivery and Di María sent Butland the wrong way with his assured penalty.

There was more first-half drama to come in the final minute of the five added when Sterling, signed from Chelsea in the summer, stole in to convert a deflected Silva cross from close range, with a VAR check confirming his landmark goal.

Both sides went for more goals from the start of the second half, with Cabral heading wide at the back post from a Rafa Silva cross before Trubin blocked a Silva effort at the other end.

However, Benfica were level again in the 67th minute when Di Maria floated in a free-kick from 35 yards and Goldson stretched to clear but only sent it past Butland.

The home side sensed a winner was there for them and Di Maria somehow missed the target from 12 yards.

In the 77th minute Kemar Roofe, Ryan Jack and Cole McKinnon took over from Dessers, Lawrence and Sterling but Benfica’s steady pressure continued to the final whistle.

The return game promises more thrills and spills but Rangers will look to complete the job in Govan.

West Ham drew a blank in the Black Forest as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 meeting with Freiburg.

Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta missed golden opportunities to give the Hammers a lead to take back to the London Stadium next week.

But instead they will have to come from behind after they were hit by a late sucker punch from Freiburg substitute Michael Gregoritsch.

They were also denied what looked a clear penalty for handball in stoppage time after the referee refused to change his decision despite checking the pitchside monitor.

Nine months to the day since they lifted the Europa Conference League trophy in Prague, West Ham were back on their continental travels, and against familiar opponents.

Freiburg were the visitors to east London for the final group game just 84 days ago when a 2-0 win secured top spot for the Hammers.

West Ham also won 2-1 on their previous visit to south-west Germany in October, and travelled buoyed by back-to-back Premier League wins following a below-par start to the year.

Boss David Moyes, keen on another strong run in Europe, named his strongest line-up with cup goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski replacing Alphonse Areola in the only change from Saturday’s victory at Everton.

West Ham were, as usual, happy to let their opponents have the ball but Freiburg gave them a scare when Roland Sallai’s through-ball split their defence.

Fortunately, Lucas Holer hit his shot into the ground and straight at Fabianski.

Moments later Bowen made a horrible mess of West Ham’s only chance of the first half.

The forward, who has not scored in Europe since his famous last-minute winner against Fiorentina in the Czech capital, peeled away at the far post to meet a Mohammed Kudus cross but badly fluffed his volley.

At the start of the second half Ghana winger Kudus cut inside Freiburg full-back only to curl his shot straight at keeper Noah Atubolu.

Bowen then scampered down the right wing and crossed for Paqueta, who also scuffed a volley wide.

A James Ward-Prowse corner should have been converted by Konstantinos Mavropanos but the centre-half’s header grazed the far post.

Paqueta then met another superb cross from Kudus but the finish, a simple header, again did not match the quality of the delivery, before Atubolu did well to tip Bowen’s curler wide.

Tomas Soucek also fired straight at Atubolu and Bowen just missed Aaron Cresswell’s cross before Freiburg struck.

A sloppy pass from Edson Alvarez gifted them possession and when Sallai took aim from the edge of the area, his wayward shot was tapped in by Gregoritsch.

Four minutes into stoppage time the ball struck the arm of Freiburg youngster Noah Weisshaupt in the area but after a long VAR check, referee Alejandro Hernandez checked the replay and stuck to his guns.

AC Milan saw off 10-man Slavia Prague 4-2 at San Siro in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.

After Slavia defender El Hadji Malick Diouf was shown a straight red card in the 26th minute, the Rossoneri made the most of their advantage with first-half goals from Olivier Giroud, Tijjani Reijnders and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

David Doudera had earlier given the Czech side hope with an fine strike to make it 1-1 and Ivan Schranz reduced the deficit midway through the second half before Christian Pulisic’s close-range effort late on gave Milan breathing space heading into the return leg.

Having dropped out of the Champions League, Stefano Pioli’s men came through the play-off round, beating Rennes 5-3 on aggregate, while Slavia had finished first in Group G ahead of Roma.

It had been a bright start by the home side, with right-back Alessandro Florenzi clipping a free-kick from the edge of the penalty area just over the crossbar.

Slavia Prague, though, created the clearest opening of the early exchanges when an angled ball picked out Diouf in the left side of the penalty area, but the defender completely missed his kick.

The Czech visitors continued to offer a threat on the counter attack, and in the 15th minute Doudera sliced his shot wide after breaking into the right side of the box.

Slavia Prague found themselves down to 10 men after just 26 minutes when Diouf was shown a straight red card for catching Pulisic on the ankle with his late sliding challenge.

Milan broke the deadlock in the 34th minute when Giroud headed in at the far post from Rafael Leao’s deflected curling cross out on the left.

Slavia, however, hit back straight away as Doudera fired a superb right-footed volley in off the post when the ball dropped to him at the edge of the penalty area following a corner.

Giroud saw his effort saved by Slavia keeper Jindrich Stanek, who then got down to palm away Matteo Gabbia’s header.

Milan’s pressure finally told just before the break when Reijnders drove in a low shot from 20 yards after a quick corner was pushed out to the left side of the penalty area.

It was 3-1 in first-half stoppage time when England midfielder Loftus-Cheek powered in a header from a corner.

Soon after the restart, Leao flashed a low drive across the face of goal and Slavia continued to sit deep looking to limit further damage.

The Czechs, though, reduced the deficit in the 65th minute when Schranz fired in an angled strike after Milan again failed to clear a free-kick.

Frustration started to creep in from the home crowd as the Rossoneri failed to break down Slavia’s resolute backline.

Milan eventually restored some breathing space with five minutes left when Leao’s angled chip across goal was touched over the line by Pulisic.

Roberto De Zerbi acknowledged Brighton’s 4-0 hammering at Roma was a reality check for his Europa League novices.

The Seagulls’ adventure in Europe turned into a nightmare at Stadio Olimpico after they conceded twice in each half to lose heavily in the club’s first ever European knockout tie.

First-half goals by Paulo Dybala and Chelsea loanee Romelu Lukaku put the visitors on the ropes, but worse was to follow with Gianluca Mancini and Bryan Cristante able to score in quick succession to essentially kill the last-16 tie ahead of next week’s second leg.

This defeat made it three in a row for injury-hit Brighton, who were without a number of key individuals, which has contributed towards their season derailing in recent weeks with poor Premier League form coupled with an FA Cup exit leaving the Europa League as the club’s main focus.

“We played our game. We gave our best. Maybe our best now is this performance,” De Zerbi admitted.

“I think Roma is much better in terms of experience to play this type of game and we suffer a lot. Too much I think. We are not used to playing this competition and today we paid everything.

“We paid (for) a squad not so long, we paid to play away in this stadium, we paid with too many injured players and for us, it is the first time so we have to improve.

“We have to progress and if we want to compete in this level, from the owner to the coach to the players we have to progress to reach one level higher.

“We are proud we reach this game. We know very well the situation. I know very well the situation.

“I spoke with the owner a lot of times before February on the transfer market and I told him the problems we are finding, but it is the first time Brighton plays this competition. Europa League final eight is a big level for us so we have to improve to progress.”

Roma broke the deadlock after 12 minutes when Leandro Paredes’ superb through ball found Dybala, who rounded Jason Steele and fired into the empty net with VAR subsequently awarding the goal.

Brighton did respond with Simon Adingra, who had an early cross deflected onto a post by Roma’s Evan Ndicka, able to pick out Danny Welbeck, but Mile Svilar denied the former England international’s header with his feet.

Welbeck would be thwarted again by Svilar before half-time, although by this point the hosts had extended their advantage.

A poor touch by Lewis Dunk from Paredes’ long ball allowed Lukaku the opportunity to dribble into the area where he slotted beyond Steele for his 18th goal of the campaign.

More Adingra magic created another opening early into the second period, but Welbeck scooped over and Roma hit Brighton with a double sucker-punch.

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First, a Stephan El Shaarawy cross was poked home by Mancini, who had looked marginally offside but VAR awarded the 64th-minute goal before four minutes later another El Shaarawy centre was headed home by Cristante to ensure De Zerbi endured a night to forget on his return to Italy.

He told TNT Sports: “Yes, we create a lot of chance and maybe the same in terms of numbers, but if you watch the game, you can understand Roma played with different power, with different speed and with different habits I think. Habits to play this game.

“We are not used to playing at this level and so we showed our problems, but I love this club, I love these players and I know we played 20 per cent of our potential.”

Meanwhile, Brighton supporters’ were alleged to have had objects thrown at them inside Stadio Olimpico.

“We are aware of the bottles, coins and lighters being thrown by home supporters into the away end. We have reported to UEFA and Italian police and requested immediate action be taken,” a Brighton statement read.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp praised Darwin Nunez’s attitude after the striker scored twice – including the 1,000th goal of the manager’s reign – in a comfortable 5-1 Europa League victory over Sparta Prague.

The Uruguay international took his tally for the season to 16 – just two behind Mohamed Salah who had a goal disallowed by VAR on his return from injury – with a performance which was a perfect warm-up for Sunday’s visit of Premier League title rivals Manchester City.

After an up-and-down first season following his potential club-record move from Benfica the 24-year-old has found more consistency this season and but for a touch more luck would have been pushing Salah as leading scorer.

“He had absolutely more than (an) OK first season but he had to adapt, that’s done, and he is settled in the middle of the team,” said Klopp after the last-16 first leg which has put them within touching distance of the quarter-finals of the only trophy he has not won in his career.

“Wonderful guy, wonderful boy. He loves to play for this team together with these boys and has quality coming out of his ears, to be honest.

“It’s like strikers are, they score and then they don’t score. Is he at his absolute peak in general? Not now for us. But can he develop? Yes. Is he a threat all the time? Yes.

“He has the most important attitude a striker needs to have; he missed chances but all strikers are doing that but he is not bothered by it and just keeps going.

“That’s why he now has a nice number of goals, games to come, opportunities to come.

“When he’s not scoring he for us is incredibly important as he is a constant threat and gives us spaces in areas and options.”

The only blemish on the night appeared to be an injury to centre-back Ibrahima Konate but Klopp played down the concerns over the defender and said his substitution minutes into the second half was precautionary.

“We don’t know (yet). Ibou said to me when he passed me in that moment ‘I thought if I do another sprint then it could be bad.’ So, he said he should be fine, but we don’t know,” added the manager.

Klopp was afforded the chance to rest a number of players – Virgil van Dijk started on the bench alongside Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai, a late goalscorer, but all got minutes after the break – while also easing back Salah with a gentle quarter-of-an-hour at the end.

He was also able to manage the minutes of some of his more over-worked players with utility man Joe Gomez coming off at half-time, Nunez after 51 minutes and the increasingly important Alexis Mac Allister, who opened the scoring with a sixth-minute penalty, with a quarter of the game to go after Luis Diaz had made the game safe with a fourth goal.

“Joey is fine. We took him off. He played a lot of games so that was more rotation, precaution. Now let’s see what (it) is with Ibou,” said Klopp.

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery knows his side survived a scare in their goalless draw at Ajax in their last-16 Europa Conference League first-leg tie.

Villa were second best throughout the night at the Johan Cruijff ArenA but the Dutch giants, led by England international Jordan Henderson, could not make their advantage count as it ended 0-0.

But Emery’s men will now be confident of winning next week’s second leg at Villa Park, where they are so strong, and booking their spot in the quarter-finals.

“It is always difficult to play away in Europe, here you see the atmosphere they have,” he said.

“It was a very high level match, we are taking experiences in Europe and we can feel favourites but it’s very difficult and if you’re showing in other matches in Europa League or the Europa Conference League you can see some big surprises.

“I’m happy, we didn’t play well, we didn’t control the game like we prepared and like we usually do but I accept that as well.

“They worked and they were very intense in the tactical play. They were winning more than us in some moments in the field and they deserve more.

“I’m happy because I knew before the difficulties we were going to face, the players are a little bit upset because they were not feeling comfortable but to compete is the most important.

“For me now it’s very important this result is open for next week and now we will try to do something different and try to respect them, because now we know them better.

“My message before was the same. At Villa Park we need our moment next week and try to play and be more successful than today in our idea.

“We didn’t deserve more than we got tonight.”

Villa were reliant on goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez to produce an important save in the second half and were unable to produce their dynamic attacking football at the other end.

Both sides were reduced to 10 men in the final 10 minutes as Ezri Konsa was harshly sent off for two yellow cards, with Tristan Gooijer following for the hosts moments later.

Ajax are nothing like the side that reached the semi-finals of the Champions League five years ago and are labouring in fifth in the Eredivisie.

They signed Henderson in the January transfer window to try and provide some experience and coach John van ‘t Schip says he is already delivering and could still do a job for England.

“He is a real professional, he is a leader, I think you can see it on the pitch, the boys around him feel that and expect that.

“He had a difficult start because he came out of Saudi Arabia and didn’t play for a month and he wasn’t happy. He immediately found his pleasure back in training and playing games.

“At first he maybe didn’t get the results he wanted but now clearly you can see he is very important, not only on the pitch but also off the pitch, talking about things that can improve the whole environment.

“We have seen him play today and against PSV, two big games, then for sure and I think Southgate knows very well what he can get from Jordan.”

Celtic have allowed winger Liel Abada to leave the club for a fresh start in Major League Soccer.

The Israel international has signed for Charlotte FC in North Carolina, having not featured for the past five weeks due to personal reasons. Manager Brendan Rodgers had previously admitted he was struggling to focus as the conflict in Gaza continued.

Abada, 22, had faced pressure in his home country because of the support for Palestine among the club’s fanbase.

The situation first flared up the day after the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel, which led to more than 1,100 deaths plus the taking of hostages, when two banners among Celtic fans at Parkhead read: “Free Palestine” and “Victory to the Resistance”.

Palestine flags have continued to be flown among Celtic supporters amid Israel’s ongoing military assault, which has left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead or wounded according to the Gaza health ministry.

Abada returned to the side on December 30 but was unable to recreate his previous good form in six subsequent appearances, which proved to be his last for Celtic.

His signing was announced by Charlotte, whose general manager Zoran Krneta focused on football rather than politics.

“Liel has been one of the most exciting young wingers in Europe and we’re delighted to welcome him to Charlotte,” he said.

“He’s an elite goalscorer and chance creator who is a proven winner that is determined to bring trophies home to the club and our supporters,” said General Manager Zoran Krneta. “To bring a player of his calibre to Major League Soccer speaks to the strength of the league, but also that Charlotte FC is an attractive destination for top foreign talent.”

Speaking last month after Abada opted to step away, Rodgers offered his understanding as he opened the exit door to the player.

“I have had lots of conversations with Liel and I am really empathetic towards the issue he has. It’s more than football. It’s at a human level, so I have to respect that.

“There’s many situations I have had to deal with as a manager over time, and lots of them you don’t get on the coaching courses. You have to understand and sit in his shoes. When he’s ready, if he ever is ready, then he will be able to give us everything.”

Abada was the second player to leave Celtic Park on Thursday, with left-back Alexandro Bernabei joining Brazilian side Internacional on loan for the rest of 2024.

The Porto Allegre-based club confirmed the deal for the Argentinian, who has only made 16 starts since arriving at Celtic Park in the summer of 2022.

Four of those starts came under Brendan Rodgers, all of them since the winter break when Greg Taylor was missing with a calf problem.

The 23-year-old came off the bench in the subsequent game but was culpable as Celtic conceded a stoppage-time equaliser against Kilmarnock.

That could prove to be his final appearance for the club if the loan move is made more permanent, although Bernabei is under contract at Celtic Park until the summer of 2027.

Substitute Patrick Schick glanced home an injury-time equaliser to preserve Bayer Leverkusen’s remarkable unbeaten record and hand his side control of their Europa League last-16 tie against FC Qarabag.

The Bundesliga leaders looked like giving up their run of 34 matches unbeaten in all competitions when they went in 2-0 down at half-time in Baku, Juninho setting up the first and scoring the second with a silky piece of skill.

But Alonso, who had made eight changes to his starting XI, turned to his bench for inspiration and was rewarded as Florian Wirtz scored a delicate chip and Schick nodded in from close range in added-time.

It was a cruel finish for the Azerbaijani side, who lost twice to the same opponents in the group stages, but a further reminder of the resolve that Leverkusen have developed during a revelatory campaign.

Only Jonathan Tah, Robert Andrich and Alex Grimaldo survived the weekend win over Cologne and Qarabag took their chance to assert themselves in a lively start.

After forging three good chances in quick succession they deservedly took the lead in the 26th minute, Juninho robbing Tah on the press before cutting back across the box for Yassine Benzia. His powerful finish thudded into the roof of the net as the hosts turned up the heat.

The Germans were slow to respond, allowing Leandro Andrade a free header at the far post, and could have no complaints when they conceded again. This time it was brilliance from Juninho, who collected a beauty of a pass to spring the offside trap and race through one on one with Matej Kovar. With the deftest of touches he dragged the ball across the keeper, bouncing it over him with a kick off the pitch and leaving an open net to tap into.

Jeremie Frimpong, Granit Xhaka, Wirtz and Schick were all summoned for the rescue job and it was a much improved Leverkusen who hit back when Wirtz produced an inch-perfect lob in the 70th minute.

Kovar made a strong save from Juninho to keep the scoreline down and the ruthless visiting side hit their sucker punch just as time was running out, Schick planting Andrich’s cross into the bottom corner.

Leverkusen almost turned a draw into a win when Frimpong put a last-gasp header wide and will fancy themselves to finish the job on home soil.

Brighton’s European adventure turned into a nightmare after they were blown away by Roma to suffer a 4-0 defeat at the Stadio Olimpico.

Roberto De Zerbi had guided the Seagulls through to the Europa League last-16 with a four-match winning run in the competition, but first-half goals by Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku put the visitors on the ropes in Rome.

Worse was to follow after the break with Gianluca Mancini and Bryan Cristante able to score in quick succession to essentially kill the tie.

The Premier League outfit did have their chances with Danny Welbeck denied on several occasions, but injury-hit Brighton need a miracle to overturn a four-goal deficit in next week’s second leg.

De Zerbi and opposite number Daniele De Rossi exchanged a number of pleasantries on Wednesday with the Seagulls boss labelled a “genius”, but it was a different story out in the streets of the Italian capital with two Brighton fans stabbed the day before the match.

Both fortunately only suffered minor wounds ahead of the club’s first ever European knockout tie and a hostile atmosphere greeted the away players onto the pitch.

It was almost 1-0 inside three minutes when Leonardo Spinazzola was given too much time on the left and picked out Chelsea loanee Lukaku, whose header was brilliantly tipped over by Jason Steele.

Steele was at fault for Roma’s next opportunity after a wayward pass gifted possession to the hosts, although Lukaku could only drag his effort wide.

It had largely been one-way traffic but Brighton provided a reminder of their threat when Simon Adingra – one of six changes from Saturday’s 3-0 loss at Fulham – saw his cross deflected onto the post by Roma’s Evan Ndicka.

That chanced settled Brighton, who had just started to dictate possession when they were cut open for the opener after 12 minutes.

Leandro Paredes threaded a superb through ball from inside his own half, which Lewis Dunk was unable to intercept and Dybala rounded Steele before he fired into the empty net.

Dybala’s joy was initially cut short when the offside flag was raised but a VAR check deemed the Argentina attacker had been onside and the goal stood.

Brighton did respond well to going behind and more joy for Adingra down the left created a chance for Welbeck after 26 minutes, but Mile Svilar brilliantly saved with his feet.

Lukaku headed another opportunity off target soon after before Paul van Hecke deflected a Lorenzo Pellegrini shot wide as Roma retained their dominance and that turned into a second goal with 43 minutes on the clock.

Another Paredes ball forward caused Brighton problems and captain Dunk’s poor touch allowed Lukaku to race through and slot beyond Steele for his 18th goal of the season.

The visitors almost responded instantly after Adingra crossed in for Welbeck, but Svilar produced a flying save to thwart the header.

De Zerbi introduced Ansu Fati at half-time, but Roma should have made it 3-0 early into the second period only for Steele to deny Lukaku’s latest header.

The next goal felt crucial and more Adingra magic created another opening for Welbeck, who could only scoop over from inside the area.

It was a pivotal miss with Roma able to grab their third and fourth goals in quick succession to all but kill the tie.

Mancini poked home from Stephan El Shaarawy’s cross after 64 minutes and although the defender appeared marginally offside, a VAR check awarded the goal.

Four minutes later it was 4-0 as El Shaarawy again burst down the left and found Cristante, who headed home to ensure De Zerbi endured a night to forget on his return to Italy.