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Lawrence Shankland is hoping to end his “really strong season” by helping Scotland take another big stride towards Euro 2024. The 27-year-old has enjoyed arguably the best campaign of his career as he scored 28 goals and earned the captaincy in his first year at Hearts, whom he joined last summer from Belgian club Beerschot. Shankland’s form at Tynecastle earned him a first Scotland cap for two and a half years in the victory over Spain in March, and he has retained his place in the squad for this month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers away to Norway and at home to Georgia. “When you get to the end of a season you get the chance to look back and assess it,” Shankland told the Scottish Football Association. “For me, it was a really strong season. My performances throughout the season were to a really high standard and I was really happy with them. “The number of goals I managed to chip in with was great. It was my first season at Hearts as well so it was good to get off to a good start. The captaincy was an opportunity that I probably didn’t expect when I first went to Hearts but when it was offered to me I was keen to take on that role. “I felt it was something that would improve my all-round game, improve me as a person, and I felt I took it in my stride and handled it really well. It’s been a huge learning opportunity for me and hopefully it stands me in good stead for the future.” Shankland has won five Scotland caps but he admits such a scenario would have been a pipe dream when he found himself without a club and pondering getting a job away from football when he was released by Aberdeen in 2017. He eventually joined Ayr and set about rebuilding his career. “There’s been a lot of rejections along the way but it comes down to hard work and determination really,” he said, reflecting on his rise. “You have your end goals and what you want to achieve in your career. “There have been times when I couldn’t have dreamed of getting a Scotland cap. But you just need to knuckle down and if you keep working hard, things pay off and you get these opportunities. “I’ve taken most of them first time and did well at most of the clubs I’ve been at. It has been a bit of an up-and-down journey but I’ve worked hard and I feel like I deserve what’s come my way.” The Scotland squad are currently at a training camp in Spain gearing up for their showdown with Norway in Oslo a week on Saturday. Steve Clarke’s side sit top of their qualifying section after winning their opening two matches and know that a good share of points from their two outings this month will leave them firmly on course for the finals in Germany next summer. “It’s been good to meet up and get everybody back together,” said Shankland. “The wee break in between (the end of the club season) gives us a bit of time to do a training camp and I think that’s important for us before we go into the game week next week. “The training’s been good and the weather’s been nice. The last two games we had really good results and we’ve given ourselves a really good opportunity going into these two games. If we get positive results we could be in a really good position.”

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New ick unlocked: People are paying for blue ticks on Instagram. Avid Instagrammers will have noticed the surge of blue ticks taking over the platform, leaving people confused as to how their friend become an overnight internet sensation. As exciting as that would be, it's sadly not the case. Instead, people are using their hard-earned money for a blue badge. For the blissfully unaware, Instagram followed in the footsteps of Twitter recently by offering a monthly subscription service from £9.99 a month. Let's break this down: Public figures Instagram offer free blue tick verification to public figures including professionals, journalists, influencers, celebrities and brands who meet the platform's account and eligibility requirements. Their accounts must be authentic, unique, complete and notable, meaning they "must represent a well-known, highly searched for person, brand or entity". "We review accounts that are featured in multiple news sources, and we don't consider paid or sponsored media content as sources for review," Instagram said. Once verified, public figures, celebrities and brands that meet certain account and eligibility requirements may not change their username on their account – nor can it be transferred to a different account. On the flip side, there's 'Meta Verified', the new subscription model that allows any Instagram user to pay monthly for a tick. As it stands, Instagram has used the same colour and design for both paying users and notable figures, making it difficult for users to set the two apart. Whether or not they will make the two more identifiable in the future is unclear. Meta Verified / paying subscribers Now, anyone can apply to be verified using their ID and a spare £10 a month. Meta suggests it's to help people have more protection from impersonation and give them access to a "real person" if they encounter any issues. Indy100 reached out to Instagram for comment. 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.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan named Hafize Gaye Erkan, a former co-chief executive officer of First Republic Bank,

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General Motors Co. will adapt its electric vehicles to Tesla Inc.’s Superchargers, following Ford Motor Co.’s lead and

From goalkeeper of the year to out for a year. From elite to club exile, from No.1 to drugs ban, from sought-after to released on a free. And all the way back again. Andre Onana is bidding to hit the pinnacle of the sport and become a European champion, 855 days on from first being handed a ban for a doping violation. It’s a journey which would make some shrink from the challenge or play havoc with their mindset, yet setbacks - which feels too understated of a word - seem part and parcel of the Cameroonian’s career. Indeed, it’s less that Onana’s story is one of a rise-fall-rise, and more of a non-stop, chaotic rollercoaster which travels an upward trajectory even as the stomach still feels like it’s heading the opposite direction. And all of this is even before he gets to attempt stopping Erling Haaland and co. For starters, the many months spent not being allowed to train or play with Ajax wasn’t the first time he had suffered such a fate. Back after he joined his first club in Europe, Barcelona, Onana was one of the group of youngsters unable to play after the Spanish club were found to have breached recruitment laws, effectively banning him until 18 years of age. Coming back from that and then seeing Marc-Andre ter Stegen signed meant an exit was a certainty if he wanted first-team football. The Eredivisie came calling and Onana signed for Ajax in 2015, then still a teenager. After a season and a half with the second string team, he was straight into the senior line-up and barely missed a game for four-and-a-half years. Despite not signing for Inter Milan until this term, 2022/23, Onana’s last full season for Ajax was 18/19. The following year the Dutch top flight was curtailed early due to the Covid pandemic, while 20/21 saw him hit by a Uefa doping ban for accidentally ingesting his wife’s tablets, which contained a prohibited substance. The ban was originally 12 months, brought down to nine, but it meant he missed the rest of that campaign and much of the next, only featuring in six league games in 21/22. All that, and still he had picked up a league and cup double and reached the Europa League final before matters started to go awry once more. And so to a new comeback, a new attempt to scale one of his own mountains. “I can’t say anything but thanks to [Simone] Inzaghi for giving me the chance to play for Inter. “Being here is a source of pride for me, and I hope that we can go on and win everything,” Onana said ahead of the Champions League final. “Without any fear, as I always say.” And why would he have any? For someone who has been forced by others to miss so much football, getting to actually play a game - even one of the biggest matches - certainly won’t be a situation to back down from. Inter certainly rely on him, the man to finally take over the gloves from the seemingly eternal Samir Handanovic. That said, the club laughably glossed over the reason for his most recent enforced absence when he signed: “There have been wonderful moments and particularly onerous ones [in Onana’s career], too, such as having to train on his own before returning to the action in between the sticks.” Yes, train on his own he effectively did, taking a mini team with him to Spain to keep him in shape for months and preparing for his return. Again it has paid off, with a move to Italy secured and this latest run in Europe offering a second shot at continental glory. Yet, even as Onana’s club situation has spiralled wildly from one extreme to the other through misfortune or misjudgement, there cannot be doubt he has one way or another contributed to it too. He absolutely acknowledges that the error with his wife’s medicin was his own responsibility. Onana had no intention of cheating - the tablet he took offers no athletic advantage and Uefa accepted his explanation - but, as he said at the time, the “human error” doesn’t ultimately matter when “you’re responsible for everything in your body”. That instance would have led to Onana missing the Africa Cup of Nations, had the sentence not been reduced. Ten months later, he did miss the World Cup after a more direct confrontation: a disagreement with Cameroon head coach Rigobert Song and a dismissal from the squad. After playing the first game, the pair argued over tactics and Onana subsequently retired from international duty, just 34 caps to his name. Samuel Eto’o has been asked to play the peacemaker to lure the goalkeeper back by former captain Stephane Mbia, but at present it seems the Indomitable Lions squad will continue with stoppers playing in Latvia, Saudi Arabia and on home soil, rather than one ready to feature in the Champions League final. It’s likely he’ll have a crucial role to play there with his side very much second favourites against Manchester City. Onana already has one club record wrapped up, becoming the first Inter Milan No.1 to keep seven Champions League clean sheets in the same season. One more feels like an extraordinary ask, but given the mountains he has already scaled to reach this point in his career, it would be remarkably on-brand if he did so to complete his most dramatic and unexpected turnaround yet. Read More The trick that made Erling Haaland the ultimate finisher — in more ways than one Inter and the impossible task of the Champions League final A World Cup-winning striker and mean defence – Inter’s strengths and weaknesses Bastoni at the back with Martinez in attack – Inter Milan’s key players The trick that made Erling Haaland the ultimate finisher — in more ways than one