Mercedes have parted company with technical chief Mike Elliott following the team’s failure to win a single race this season. James Allison returned as Mercedes’ technical director just three races into the new season – with Elliott moving into the chief technical officer role. Although Mercedes said the job swap was Elliott’s decision, the announcement arrived after Lewis Hamilton and team principal Toto Wolff criticised the design philosophy of this year’s car on the eve of the curtain raiser in Bahrain on March 5. The Silver Arrows, who claimed a record eight consecutive constructors’ championships and carried Hamilton to six world titles, have won only one race in the past two years. And ahead of this weekend’s round in Brazil – with only races in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi to follow this year – Mercedes said Elliott is departing the team. “Mike has been one of the pillars of the team’s achievements over the past decade,” said Wolff. “It’s with truly mixed feelings that we say goodbye to him today. “Mike is a fiercely intelligent technical brain and a great team player. He has made a strong contribution not just to winning racing cars but also to building the culture of our team. “But on the other side, it’s clear that he’s ready for new adventures beyond Mercedes – so I know this is the right step for him to take, too. “He leaves the team today with our thanks for the effort, commitment and expertise he has brought to the team over the past 11 years and our very best wishes for the future.” Hamilton finished a distant runner-up to Verstappen in Mexico last weekend, with the Dutchman winning a record 16 of the 19 races so far in his all-conquering Red Bull machine. It is nearly two years since Hamilton, who will remain alongside George Russell at Mercedes until at least the end of 2025, won a race. Elliott, who is now set for a period of gardening leave, said: “Although the last two seasons have not seen us winning races in the manner we aspire to, they have tested us in many other ways – and forced us to question our fundamental assumptions about how we deliver performance. “During the past six months, I have enjoyed developing the technical strategy that we hope can provide the foundations of the team’s next cycle of success. “I have decided that now is the right time to make my next step beyond Mercedes – first to pause and take stock, after 23 years of working flat-out in this sport, and then to find my next challenge.” Read More Charles Leclerc secures pole position for the Mexican Grand Prix Charles Leclerc leads Ferrari front row at Mexican Grand Prix Essex boy with Italian twang – History-maker Ollie Bearman impresses in Mexico Max Verstappen sets fastest time in Mexican Grand Prix practice Max Verstappen urges fans to show him respect ahead of feisty Mexican Grand Prix Lewis Hamilton claims many more cars were illegal at United States Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton said he was “disappointed” after his shock disqualification from the United States Grand Prix – while Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted “we got it wrong.” Hamilton finished the race in second, behind race winner Max Verstappen, but was later disqualified alongside Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc for breaching the rules governing the floor of their cars. Hamilton therefore loses the 18 points earned from his second-place finish, while Leclerc loses eight points. It is thought Mercedes won’t be appealing the decision. In a Mercedes press release, Wolff explained how Mercedes fell foul of the rules. “Turning to the race result and the disqualification, set-up choices on a sprint weekend are always a challenge with just one hour of free practice - and even more so at a bumpy circuit like COTA and running a new package,” he said. “In the end, all of that doesn’t matter; others got it right where we got it wrong and there’s no wiggle room in the rules. “We need to take it on the chin, do the learning, and come back stronger next weekend.” Hamilton said: “It is of course disappointing to be disqualified post-race but that doesn’t take away from the progress we’ve made this weekend.” Mercedes chief Andrew Shovlin admitted the team need to “go away and learn from this.” “We are of course naturally very disappointed to lose our podium finish,” he said. “Unfortunately, it is one of the pitfalls of the sprint format where we have a solitary hour of running before parc fermé. “Without running at a race fuel load in FP1, combined with a circuit as bumpy as this and the parts of the track where the drivers have to put the car during the Grand Prix, have contributed to the higher than expected wear levels. “We will go away and learn from this but also take the positives from our experience as a whole.” Read More Logan Sargeant earns first F1 point in bizarre circumstances Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc disqualified from United States GP Lando Norris reflects on 2023 win prospects after another near-miss in Austin Lewis Hamilton rues Mercedes error which cost him victory at US Grand Prix Max Verstappen booed by American fans on podium after victory Max Verstappen defies Lewis Hamilton to edge United States Grand Prix victory

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Aston Villa return to Europa Conference League action as they try to get their qualification hopes back on track against Bosnian champions Zrinjski Mostar. Playing European football for the first time in 13 years and having successfully negotiated Hibernian in the play-off round, Villa’s group stage started in disappointing fashion as they twice came from behind to equalise through Jhon Duran and Lucas Digne away to Legia Warsaw but eventually went down 3-2 in the Polish capital. That means victory over eight-time Bosnian title winners Zrinjski, who have climbed back to the top of the domestic game since Krunoslav Rendulic took over as manager last November, is a must and Unai Emery’s men are in good form since that defeat in Warsaw. They have beaten Chelsea and Brighton in the Premier League – the latter in a shock 6-1 thumping at the weekend – and will be heavy favourites to triumph on home turf, although Zrinjski are currently top of Group E after stunningly coming from 3-0 down at half-time to beat AZ Alkmaar 4-3 in their Europa Conference League opener. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the fixture; see all the latest Europa League odds and tips for tonight here. When is Aston Villa vs Zrinjski Mostar? The match kicks off at 8pm BST on Thursday 5 October at Villa Park in Aston, Birmingham. How can I watch it? Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on TNT Sports 2, with coverage on the channel from 7:45pm BST. Subscribers can stream the action via discovery+, which is also available via Amazon Prime. If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch major sporting events then you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN roundup is here to help: get great deals on the best VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are and also with the terms of their service provider. What is the team news? Villa were hit by the news that Boubacar Kamara, Moussa Diaby and Jacob Ramsey would all miss the match earlier this week, while Alex Moreno is out until after the international break and both Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendia are long-term absentees. Leon Bailey should be back in contention after a thigh strain, however. Krunoslav Rendulic normally favours a 4-3-3 formation with Tomislav Kis and Nemanja Bilbija in contention to lead the line and Zvonimir Kozulj pushing for a start after scoring twice in Zrinjski’s remarkable comeback against AZ last month. Predicted line-ups Aston Villa: Olsen; Cash, Konsa, Lenglet, Digne; Luiz, Tielemans; Traore, McGinn, Zaniolo; Duran Zrinjski Mostar: Maric; Corluka, Jakovljevic, Radic, Memija; Ivancic, Balic, Kozulj; Cuze, Kis, Ticinovic Odds Aston Villa win 1/10 Draw 10/1 Zrinjski Mostar win 30/1 Get the latest football odds here Prediction Villa to build on their impressive Premier League form and get their qualification hopes back on track. Aston Villa 4-1 Zrinjski Mostar Read More Unai Emery urges Aston Villa to adapt quickly to demands of European football Ollie Watkins scores hat-trick as rampant Aston Villa hit Brighton for six Unai Emery savours ‘special’ Villa Park atmosphere in rout of Brighton England boss Gareth Southgate hoping for positive news over Bukayo Saka fitness Arsenal renew Pedro Neto interest but face competition from two Premier League rivals Consistency the key for Vincent Kompany as he bids to lift Burnley

Frank Lampard could be about to fail upwards after being linked with a major European manager job, and fans are in disbelief. The former Chelsea and England midfielder is reportedly being considered for the vacant manager position at Olympique Lyonnais. The move would mark his first role since leaving his caretaker job at Chelsea, having previously endured a pretty disastrous few months in charge of Everton. He’s been out of a job since the end of the 2022/23 season, but 90min is now reporting that a shock move to Lyon could be on the cards. Laurent Blanc left the struggling French side by mutual consent earlier this week with the club in trouble in Ligue 1. Lyon are bottom of the league after being thrashed 4-1 at home by Paris Saint-Germain – with fans even calling out the players for showing disrespect to the shirt on the field at Groupama Stadium recently. Lampard might have had an illustrious career as a player, but his time as a manager has left a lot to be desired – even if he has brought us one of the best memes in football over the last few years during his time in the dugout. Still, it’s safe to say the latest rumours didn’t go down all that well on Twitter/X. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings

More than 50 officials will go on trial in Vietnam on Tuesday for alleged corruption over repatriation flights during the Covid-19 pandemic, a scandal that...