Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola believes it is crucial the team and the fans continue to feed off each other’s energy. Guardiola feels that after his players provided the initial spark last season, it was the power of supporters that propelled City towards their treble success. “The stadium is all the time full and we have to play as best as possible and create as much as possible to energise and make our people with us,” said Guardiola at a press conference. “I have the feeling the team is playing really good and these guys – what they have done for many, many years, we love doing it together. “The games last season – semi-finals, quarter-finals, important games like against Arsenal when we played for the Premier League, they were there like animals and we need that. “In my humble opinion, to be successful we need our fans, all the time, being here. Thank you for coming, because without that it is impossible. Together we are stronger. “It is much better for ourselves to feel that they are there. We play better but we have to do the first steps, the first gesture. We have to do it.” City host German side RB Leipzig on Tuesday needing just a draw to wrap up top spot in Champions League Group G. The games last season – semi-finals, quarter-finals, important games like against Arsenal when we played for the Premier League, they were there like animals and we need that Pep Guardiola The holders have won the first four matches of their title defence and have already secured a place in the knockout stages, as have Leipzig – a side they thrashed 7-0 at home last season. Guardiola said: “Of course the first step is done for both sides – so congratulations to Leipzig – to qualify for the next round in February. “But it is important to finish first for prestige, for everything. We believe that when we play the last 16, having the second leg at home is not decisive but is a little bit of an advantage and we have to take it.” Midfielder Jack Grealish is unlikely to return after illness while Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes are nursing knocks. Guardiola said: “I’m not much optimistic about good news about some people coming back but we will see. I think it will be the same people who played against Liverpool.” Defender John Stones was an unused substitute at the weekend but while Guardiola said he was “really, really close” he was “not ready for playing”. Kevin De Bruyne, who has been out since undergoing hamstring surgery in August, said over the weekend he hopes to return to action early in the new year. Guardiola said: “If he said January, it will be January. I would have loved to have him all season but now he has had a tough injury and surgery. He has to recover well. “He’s said end of December, new year, so it will be a happy new year for everyone.” Read More Bruno Fernandes talks up Alejandro Garnacho after stunning goal at Everton Son Heung-min hurt by defeats but ‘very pleased’ with way Tottenham are playing David Seaman pays tribute to ‘great guy’ Terry Venables Football rumours: Victor Osimhen keen on making Chelsea move On this day in 2007: Christine Ohuruogu wins appeal against Olympic ban The sporting weekend in pictures

By Hyunsu Yim and Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has left Pyongyang for Russia on

Ukraine is already stockpiling fuel ahead of another challenging winter under siege from Russia, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said on Thursday. The ministry said in its intelligence report that “despite the consistent pressures of war, Ukrainian efforts to build up fuel stockpiles will likely be successful in ensuring that it will have sufficient fuel reserves during the approaching winter period.” It also noted that “Ukraine has been effective in mobilising its mining sector to maintain output, ensuring a continuous supply of coal is available for thermal power and heating plants in the winter, with substantial gas stocks providing a further reserve”. “Despite Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure likely continuing this winter, Ukraine demonstrated last winter that it has the skilled workforce and expertise needed to operate and maintain the power network, even in wartime conditions,” it further noted in the defence intelligence report. Even as British analysts acknowledged the likelihood of Russia resuming attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in winter, they highlighted the country’s ability to sustain its power network in the face of wartime challenges, the Kyiv Independent reported. In the winter of 2022-2023, Russian forces attempted to severely damage Ukraine’s power network through extensive attacks. Despite this, prime minister Denys Shmyhal reported that substantial repairs have been carried out, restoring 80 per cent of the primary power grids and high-voltage stations affected by the assaults. On 15 November last year, Mr Shmyhal pointed out that Moscow had launched approximately 100 missiles, primarily targeting the country’s energy infrastructure. Energy minister Herman Haluschenko labelled the attack the “most massive” bombardment of power infrastructure since the beginning of the war. In July this year, infrastructure minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said that nearly 100 per cent of thermal power stations, which had suffered damage from Russian attacks in late 2022 and early 2023, have been successfully repaired. “In general, as of today, the preparation level of utility networks for stable operation in the autumn-winter period of 2023-2024 is roughly 60 per cent,” the minister wrote on social media, adding that Ukraine will be 100 per cent ready in technical terms before the start of the next heating season on 1 October. “We must be prepared for the worst-case scenario, which includes repeated missile and drone attacks on energy infrastructure,” Ukraine’s state energy operator Ukrenergo’s head, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi said in Kharkiv on 27 July, according to Ukrainska Pravda. He continued: “We at Ukrenergo are absolutely certain that our main network will be ready to function without restrictions during the heating season.” However, he also added: “We don’t want to help the enemy understand the power system in detail.” Read More Ukraine’s intelligence service claims responsibility for Crimean Bridge drone attack Staff at Ukraine's experimental nuclear site pick up pieces from Russian strikes A camp teaches Ukrainian soldiers who were blinded in combat to navigate the world again UK inflation falls 1.1% in just one month as Ukraine war energy price crisis starts to ease Wagner mercenaries issue a chilling message on Poland’s doorstep: ‘We are here’

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Stephen Kenny will not allow speculation over his future to become a distraction as the Republic of Ireland attempt to end a dismal Euro 2024 qualifying campaign on a positive note. Ireland face Group B minnows Gibraltar in Faro on Monday evening in their penultimate fixture, having won only one of the six which have preceded it with automatic qualification now beyond them and retaining only a slim chance of reaching the play-offs after Friday night’s 2-0 defeat by Greece. That has inevitably led to calls for the manager’s head, with the Republic having missed out on the finals of every major tournament since Euro 2016. However, asked if that noise might prove a distraction, Kenny, who last week received assurances from Football Association of Ireland chief executive Jonathan Hill, said: “No. “I have to be realistic. Jonathan Hill perfectly clarified it when he said that ‘Stephen would be the manager until the games in November’, and they’ll have a review and assess that. “At the moment, that’s out of my control. In this camp, it was important to try and win against Greece. We haven’t managed to do that, I understand that, that it’s not a good result for us. “But from my point of view, I am contracted to the end of the campaign so I just want to finish the campaign strong. If there is a play-off, we can assess that, but finish the campaign strong and take it from there.” Ireland’s only win so far came against Gibraltar in June, when goals from Mikey Johnston, Evan Ferguson and Adam Idah secured a 3-0 victory which was less comfortable than the scoreline suggests. Anything other than a repeat against a team which has lost all of its 43 European and World Cup qualifiers to date would represent fresh humiliation for an Ireland side which went down 1-0 at home to Luxembourg in a World Cup qualifier in March 2021. However for Kenny, even that would do little to quell the tide of discontent which has swamped the positivity he had managed to establish after a shaky start in the job by convincing Ireland fans his new-look team would both excite them and get results. While they have at times done the former – but sadly, not recently – the have been largely unable to achieve the latter and have the Netherlands awaiting in next month’s final qualifier. He said: “We all have to get results, we understand that. I came into this camp thinking if we can get six points, we possibly have a chance to take it to Amsterdam, going into the last game. “We are hugely disappointed – we are, no doubt – to lose the game. What we have to do now is to perform tomorrow and win the game, and take that into November.” For Ireland’s players, the game represents an opportunity to take out their frustration on one of European football’s smaller nations. Midfielder Josh Cullen said: “Obviously the campaign hasn’t gone how we wanted it to. As players, the motivation is the same in every game. “The chance to play for your country is something that should never be taken for granted. Whether that’s against France or Gibraltar, you approach it with the same mindset, and we are itching to get back out there tomorrow night and get a win for our country.”

Ukraine has said that a Russian missile strike in the northern city of Cherniv has killed seven people and injured 90 others. Children and police officers were among the dead following the strike, which hit a central square in the history city, about 92 miles northeast of the capital, Kyiv, as locals walked to church to celebrate a religious holiday. Mr Zelensky confirmed the news while on a visit to Sweden on Saturday. “An ordinary Saturday, which Russia turned into a day of pain and loss,” he wrote on the Telegram messaging service. Earlier, Kyiv said it shot down 15 Russian drones overnight as the Kremlin targeted sites across Ukraine. Ukraine’s Air Force said Vladimir Putin’s troops used Iranian-made Shahed drones to attack targets in the country’s central, northern and western regions. Seventeen drones were launched in total, Ukraine said, and it was not immediately clear what happened to the other two. Read More Ukraine war troop deaths and wounded nearing 500,000, say US officials Russia shuts down human rights group that preserved the legacy of Nobel laureate Andrei Sakharov Footage appears to show moment drone attack hits building in central Moscow

During mandatory minicamp on Monday, New England Patriots first-round pick and cornerback Christian Gonzalez is already living up to the hype.The New England Patriots had an eventful first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. They were able to trade down to the No. 17 overall pick in a trade with the Pi...