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Scotland took another step towards next summer’s European Championship with a 2-0 win over Georgia in their rain-interrupted qualifier at Hampden Park. A heavy rainstorm in the lead-up to the Group A fixture had rendered the match farcical in the opening stages, before midfielder Callum McGregor scored in the sixth minute with a drive through the puddles. Hungarian referee Istvan Vad immediately halted the game, with an announcement confirming an initial 20-minute delay for the pitch to be cleared of water before an inspection. Supporters kicked their heels in the stands until the pitch was declared playable, with the players warming up again before restarting at the 10th minute mark – over 90 minutes after it had been halted. On resumption, midfielder Scott McTominay added a second goal two minutes after the restart – his fifth in four qualifiers – before Georgia star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia missed a VAR-awarded penalty in added time. Scotland cemented top spot in the group having now taken 12 points from their opening four fixtures ahead of September’s trip to Cyprus. Steve Clarke’s side are eight points clear of Georgia, unbeaten in eight competitive games and are on course for an appearance in the finals in Germany, although on this occasion the weather almost beat them on their own patch. A long and rather bizarre night had begun amid a mood of Scottish optimism. After a late 2-1 comeback win against Norway in Oslo on Saturday night – which followed victories over Cyprus and top seeds Spain – the Tartan Army’s spirits could hardly have been higher. However, Hampden Park was sodden by the time Scotland kicked off and the state of the pitch drew gasps from supporters as passes stopped in puddles, with players leaving the ball behind as they tried to drive forward. Scotland’s opening goal came when John McGinn’s corner from the right was partially cleared to McGregor and the Celtic captain’s drive from 12 yards was parried into the net by Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili. Referee Vad did not restart the game, instead stepping off the pitch to speak to an official before returning to inform the players that the game was to be stopped while groundsmen – and then some of the ball boys – brushed water from the pitch. Fans had booed the initial announcement of a 20-minute delay and that of a pitch inspection 10 minutes later and there was relief when the game eventually got under way again just after 9.30pm following a few more delays. The pitch was still far from perfect but the Scots adapted slightly better, albeit the delay appeared to have dampened the enthusiasm of the home support. Five minutes from the break McGinn came close with a header from a Kieran Tierney cross before completely missing the ball eight yards from goal. Then McTominay’s angled-drive was tipped around a post by Mamardashvili but the visitors held out. The second half had barely begun when McTominay pounced on a loose ball on the edge of the box and fired a low drive past Mamardashvili to re-energise the flailing Tartan Army. Georgia’s Otar Kiteishvili thundered a shot from distance just over the crossbar on the hour but there was no real sign of a comeback. Scotland defender Ryan Porteous headed a Gilmour cross over from close range in the 72nd minute, before Georges Mikautadze hit the side-netting with an effort at the other end. In the second minute of four added on, referee Vad consulted the pitchside monitor before declaring the ball had hit the arm of Aaron Hickey, but Napoli’s Kvaratskhelia hammered the spot-kick over the bar. Ultimately, Scotland will be glad that a match that looked more than in doubt at one point was completed as qualification for a second successive Euros draws ever closer.

Jack Grealish has made no apologies for his high-profile celebrations at the end of a mammoth season as he claimed any “party boy” image is misplaced. The England international helped Manchester City to an historic treble, culminating in a Champions League final win over Inter Milan. After the match, Grealish was the centre of attention for City’s celebrations as he drank and partied with his team-mates. Much was made of his approach but he still reported for England duty and came off the bench in Monday’s 7-0 win over North Macedonia. “I don’t think it is a party boy thing,” he said when asked about the response to his revelry. “I would never sit here and lie to you and say ‘Yeah, I don’t drink and I don’t party’ because I do but then there’s so many people that will come here and say to you ‘I don’t do this, I don’t do that’ when they do. “I’m just truthful because when you see me doing anything, you’d be like: ‘Oh, hold on. He said a few weeks ago in an interview that he didn’t do that’. “But listen, I just enjoy myself, I’m living my dream of playing for the best club in the world in my opinion, we’ve just won the treble so I’m going to obviously have a break now with my family and my friends and then I’ll be raring to go again in four weeks. “I knew (what) I was doing, that’s just the way I am, I’m like that when I party usually. Actually, I’m not like that usually but we’ve won the treble and it’s something that (may) never happen again. “So I went and enjoyed myself and I wasn’t the only one – I think a lot of the time you’ll see everyone recording me, I could show you all this stuff of other people where they were the same. “Listen, we all enjoyed ourselves, other people enjoy themselves where the cameras weren’t but that was just me enjoying myself, I’d had the most successful season of my life. “It is now June 19, I came into training last year on July 13. Years ago, you’d have a season for nine months, I’ve just laid out a 12-month season. I’ve been into a World Cup, I’ve won three trophies and then I’m going to be back training now in four weeks or so, why not enjoy myself?” Grealish said he had not been spoken to by England manager Gareth Southgate as he met up with the squad and felt he contributed as normal. England won both games to take a massive step to Euro 2024 qualification and Grealish reported for duty as expected. “I don’t know what you guys read and think sometimes. I have a great relationship with him (Southgate), honestly. A brilliant relationship,” he added. “I kind of knew in the back of my head that I wouldn’t play on the Friday (against Malta). But even so I came into camp on Tuesday night, I was a bit hungover but I wasn’t drunk or anything. “I came into camp with the other guys, we slept then woke up and trained on Wednesday. We trained on Thursday and, like I said, in the back of my mind, I knew I wasn’t going to play on the Friday. “Then on the Saturday, I trained and trained well. Then on the Sunday. I thought it was going to be a toss up with who plays. “I came on (against Macedonia) and I’m just happy. I’ve had a brilliant season, the most successful season of my life and I think there is a time now I can just sit and relax. “My emotions have been so high. When I was sitting in the camp on Thursday, it was the biggest high I’d been on in my whole life at the weekend. “You come into the camp, you sit on your own in your room and think ‘Will I ever feel that high again?’.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Isaac Price targets improvements after Northern Ireland suffer Kazakhstan defeat Tommy Doyle inspired by Man City treble ahead of England Under-21s’ Euros bid Cristiano Ronaldo snatches last-gasp winner for Portugal on landmark appearance

An amazing moment in "Get Up" history.

West Ham United are insisting the total value of Arsenal's bid for Declan Rice must meet £100 million, as a second bid was rejected on Tuesday afternoon. The latest offer was £75m up front, with £15m in add-ons but West Ham did not see those as achievable. Arsenal will go back in with another bid and the feeling is they are getting closer as Mikel Arteta wants business done and his squad set before the summer tour. There is the possibility that Manchester City come in but their business is currently dependent on what players leave, allowing Arsenal an opening. Should they be successful, Arteta could well oversee over £200m of expenditure, as the club aims to bring in Rice, Chelsea's Kai Havertz, Southampton's Romeo Lavia and Ajax's Jurrien Timber. Some of that will be offset by sales, as Arsenal are prepared to listen to offers for a few players, including Kieran Tierney, Thomas Partey, Eddie Nketiah and Folarin Balogun. Should Rice join the Gunners, the England midfielder would become the club’s record signing, beating the £72m Arsenal paid for Nicolas Pepe in 2019. The 24-year-old lifted the Europa Conference League trophy in Prague on 8 June before owner David Sullivan said he believed that was the skipper’s last outing for the Hammers. Arsenal finished second in the Premier League last season, with manager Mikel Arteta and football director Edu having identified the players they want to add to once again challenge Manchester City. Read More Romeo Lavia: Arsenal face four-way battle with Premier League rivals for £45m midfielder

Perhaps it was the most successful unsuccessful season ever. Kalvin Phillips has ended his first year at Manchester City with a historic haul of medals. Yet his three trophies outnumbered his two league starts. In all competitions, he only began four games, City lost two of them and the first of those defeats – to Nathan Jones’ Southampton – ended up costing them the quadruple. A year like no other at least ended on a personal high, Phillips scoring his first England goal in the 7-0 thrashing of North Macedonia. Then he reflected: “I came to Manchester City to win trophies and we won the trophies but I didn’t play as much as I wanted to do.” If the last part is an understatement, it has only stiffened his resolve. Phillips is adamant he does not want to quit City. To walk away now, he believes, would be to admit defeat. He could attract interest – maybe from Newcastle or West Ham – but he hopes to sit out the summer transfer market. “My intention is to stay there,” he said. “We have just won the treble, so there is no reason for me to leave other than if I am not playing. I will obviously have to think about it. I cannot give it 12 months and say, ‘I am not playing so I am going to leave’. As you have seen with many players at City, it can take quite a while to cement yourself into the team.” The decision is not just his. Pep Guardiola made it public that Phillips came back from the World Cup overweight. While the former Leeds man was understudying one of the world’s best defensive midfielders, in Rodri, it was damning that Guardiola also preferred Ilkay Gundogan in the holding role. Some of Phillips’ cameos were so brief – his last four substitute appearances in the Premier League lasted a grand total of 17 minutes – to suggest he was not trusted. City’s £42 million outlay to Leeds bought them an expensive fringe player. “I will definitely speak to Pep,” Phillips said. “I don’t know whether it will be in the summer because everyone enjoys their downtime and everyone wants their space away from football so I’ll probably leave it until I go back for pre-season.” Guardiola can exile some players but persevere with others. City have their own version of second-season syndrome, where players improve after a year to get used to his methods and tactics. Rodri is a case in point; so are Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish. Nathan Ake’s breakthrough year was his third. Phillips has been consulting some of those who did not enjoy an immediate impact. “I just know how difficult it is to understand the way Pep wants to play and how quickly you need to adapt to play in his system,” he said. “I spoke to quite a few of the players about it. Nathan Ake being one, Jack [another]. They all said the same, they all said the first 12 months were the hardest of their City careers but after that it… it doesn’t become easy, but easier.” A fundamental difference is that, without necessarily flourishing, Phillips’ predecessors featured far more in their debut campaigns than he has; each commanded more of their manager’s faith. Guardiola’s history as a holding midfielder adds intrigue: there are some he feels are naturals for his demands – like Sergio Busquets and Philipp Lahm – and others, such as Rodri, who are grooved into the role. Phillips’ time under Marcelo Bielsa, one of Guardiola’s managerial heroes, was expected to stand him in good stead. Instead, he has required another vast learning curve. “I am on the brink of almost getting it,” he said. “Obviously there is a little bit of work in pre-season and hopefully [I will] be alright.” His has been an ill-fated first year in one respect – sidelined at the end of his Leeds career with a hamstring problem, then requiring shoulder surgery when he went to City – and a fortunate one in another, with three medals from minimal contributions. If staying at City comes with some risks, particularly to his place in Gareth Southgate’s plans, leaving may seem like giving up. A player who worked his way up from being a Championship midfielder to one bought by Pep Guardiola has made his decision. “I’m just going to go away for the off-season and enjoy myself with my family and girlfriend and friends,” he said. “And then come back fighting.” Read More The no-impact substitute: Kalvin Phillips’ ongoing humiliation gives Man City a problem Pep Guardiola: It’s up to Kalvin Phillips to show he deserves a Man City future Man City’s Premier League coronation shows how far their rivals have fallen

England’s Rachel Daly says happiness has been a key factor in her form as she prepares for this summer’s World Cup on the back of a superb 2022-23 season. Following a move from the Houston Dash to Aston Villa last summer shortly after helping England win the Euros, Daly went on to score 30 goals in all competitions for her new club. That included a haul of 22 in the Women’s Super League which gave her the Golden Boot as Villa achieved a fifth-placed finish, while she also netted five times for her country across the season. The 31-year-old said: “I’ve had a pretty good year, it’s been a good year for me. “I think I can put it down to my happiness, the way Carla (Ward, the Villa boss) has given me freedom at the club to play my own sort of game, the team around me has been brilliant and Sarina (Wiegman, the England manager) again at international level. I’d say it’s probably the best season I’ve had in my career.” Daly joined Villa having spent a decade playing for teams in the United States, apart from a loan spell in the WSL with West Ham in 2020-21. She added: “A lot has changed for me personally since the last tournament. I'd say it's probably the best season I've had in my career Rachel Daly “Moving home – I’ve been away for 10 years, so I think mentally I’m in a way better place. I needed to be home and playing in this league was something I wanted to do and revisit again. “A different position for me in terms of internationally to club level. A lot has changed for me, but I think you can all tell that I’m playing with a smile on my face and enjoying my football, so long may that continue.” Daly, Wiegman’s starting left-back throughout the triumphant Euros campaign but recently used in attack by the Dutchwoman, was listed as a forward when England’s 23-player squad for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which gets under way on July 20, was announced last month. Regarding positions, Daly said: “That’s Sarina’s decision, and I’ll respect whatever she chooses and I’m ready to play wherever I’m needed.” Daly said there was a “complete healthy competition” between her and fellow England strikers Alessia Russo and Bethany England, adding: “There’s no ‘I’m the best’, we’re all great friends. The competition is we’re pushing each other and we’ll continue to push each other.” Asked if she felt the England number nine position was up for grabs, Daly said: “I think every position is. Nothing’s set until July 22 (when England play their opening group game against Haiti in Brisbane). “But I don’t think anyone is really focusing on that, it’s just, ‘How can we push each other to be the best?’ And whatever Sarina chooses is what she chooses and we all support it.” Daly was speaking at St George’s Park after England trained in front of the media for the first time in their pre-World Cup camp, which got started on Monday, three weeks after the conclusion of the WSL season. Daly said: “For me, it’s perfect and I think the girls agreed on that. We’ve had enough time to have a rest and a holiday and completely switch off mentally and physically. I feel like we’re in a great spot.” Defender Millie Bright, skipper for the World Cup in the absence of ruled-out ACL injury victim Leah Williamson, trained separately from the group on Tuesday, working on an individual programme, as did midfielder Jordan Nobbs. The Lionesses face Portugal in a warm-up match at Milton Keynes on July 1 before flying to Australia four days later.

Swansea City are close to appointing Barnsley’s Michael Duff as new manager. Although the Swans will have to activate a £500,000 release clause to secure the signing. The move would likely see Duff replace Russell Martin, who has been strongly linked with a move away to Southampton. Duff, 45, is seen as a highly progressive upcoming manager who the Welsh club feel completely fits their profile. Duff took Barnsley to the brink of promotion last season, narrowly missing out after defeat to a much wealthier Sheffield Wednesday in the last minute of the League One play-off final at Wembley. The move is seen as at an “advanced stage” with Swansea just needing to activate the release clause.

Matt Rhule has landed a three-star recruit from just outside of Charlotte in Evan Taylor to come play for his Nebraska Cornhuskers.Apparently, people will actually follow Matt Rhule to Lincoln from Charlotte these days, as three-star defensive back Evan Taylor just committed to Nebraska over the...

Northern Ireland must accept there will be setbacks along the way as they nurture a new generation of players, according to midfielder Ali McCann. Michael O’Neill’s players left Windsor Park dejected on Monday night after Abat Aimbetov hit an 88th-minute breakaway goal to give Kazakhstan a 1-0 Euro 2024 qualifying victory that was greeted with boos by sections of the home support. Northern Ireland had far more of the ball and created more chances but were punished for their inability to take them as they fell to a third straight 1-0 defeat in Group H. It was another night where the long list of senior players missing through injury told, but the youngsters once again pressed into action largely impressed, with 19-year-old Shea Charles named player of the match. The 23-year-old McCann counted among the more experienced players available as he earned his 18th cap and, although this result might be enough to already put qualification for Euro 2024 out of reach, he said the squad should not get too downhearted. “Obviously the manner of the goal, it’s not ideal and the result is really disappointing obviously, but there are lots of positives, we always look at the positives,” the Preston midfielder said. “I thought we were the better side for the majority of the game, but we’ve got to be a bit more clinical and cut out mistakes at the other end. “There’s lots of transition and there’s still a few of the older lads who have loads of experience and that’s great for the group, and the quality of the younger lads coming through. “There are always going to be hiccups in the road, we’ve just got to take it. The signs are bright going forward and some of the lads you can see playing, it’s brilliant.” There are always going to be hiccups in the road, we've just got to take it Ali McCann McCann said the defeat was the biggest low of his still young international career. Northern Ireland must now regroup and hope some big players return in time for September’s fixtures, when they are away to Slovenia and Kazakhstan. “These types of losses at home are really hard to take, everyone is hurting in there,” McCann added. “It’s a case of not dwelling on it, come back in September, wipe it clean and go from there. “We’ve got two hard games away from home, but if we can pick up two good results then we’ll see where we are after that. “In the main we can’t be too down, things like this happen in football so really we’ve just got to forget about it and try to put it right next time.” After the match, O’Neill said qualifying would now be “extremely difficult”, having taken only three points from four games, but McCann is not writing off Northern Ireland’s chances yet. “I wouldn’t say it ends, there’s still plenty of games, we’ve got six left,” he said. “If we start September with two good results we’ll see how we are. “It’s an open group with teams taking points off each other. We’re going into September with two tough away games, we’ll go there trying to get three points in both games and then we’ll see where we are.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Final day of first Ashes Test under way after morning rain at Edgbaston French anti-corruption police raid HQ of Paris 2024 Olympic organising committee Community Shield kick-off brought forward by 90 minutes following fan complaints

Arsenal have submitted a club-record offer for West Ham captain Declan Rice. The England midfielder has emerged as a target for the Gunners in recent months and a first bid was rejected earlier in June. However, the PA news agency understands a second offer has been lodged that eclipses the £72million Arsenal paid for Nicolas Pepe in 2019. It is believed the new bid, including add-ons, could total £90million and will test the resolve of Europa Conference League winners West Ham. Rice, 24, lifted the trophy in Prague on June 8 before owner David Sullivan said he believed that was the skipper’s last outing for the Hammers. Arsenal finished second in the Premier League last season, with manager Mikel Arteta and football director Edu having identified the players they want to add to once again challenge Manchester City. As well as the record move for Rice, it is understood Arsenal are in talks to land Kai Havertz from London rivals Chelsea and have reportedly launched bids to Southampton’s Romeo Lavia and Jurrien Timber of Ajax. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Gareth Southgate believes England have “hit a sweet spot” a year out from the European Championship but says there can be no let-up as his talented, ever-improving group hunt silverware. Monday’s 7-0 annihilation of North Macedonia means it is a case of when rather than if their place at next summer’s finals in Germany is rubber-stamped. Bukayo Saka sparkled with a hat-trick at Old Trafford as England headed on the road for a home match for the first time since last June’s humbling at the hands of Hungary. The 4-0 Molineux mauling in the Nations League led fans to turn on Southgate, who took that in mind when considering his future after the World Cup. But that low, combined with the frustration of bowing out in the quarter-finals in Qatar, has helped sharpen England’s focus as they look to win next year’s Euros, having lost in the final of the previous edition on penalties. “I think when you look back at last summer, four matches, a couple of them behind closed doors, the need to rotate the squad, need to look at new players, there were a lot of circumstances as we knew at the time around those performances and results,” Southgate said of their Nations League struggles last June. “Post World Cup, I think we’ve hit a sweet spot where there’s a hunger to go further than we’ve been and a desire to keep pushing forward. “But a confidence from the matches that we’ve played and the big nights we’ve been involved with, and the ability that they know they have, so that’s a good place to be. “We have to keep pushing them now because they’ve set a standard in the last four games against different sorts of opponents, different environments, where anything can be possible. “I think they’ve been really good to watch, they’ve been exciting to watch, there’s competition for individual places, there’s competition to get in the squad. “But around all of that there’s a brilliant feel with them as a group and that is what creates a strong team. “I think the crowd have connected with that, the crowd was brilliant from before kick-off tonight.” Saka’s first career hat-trick, a Harry Kane brace and goals from Marcus Rashford and Kalvin Phillips wowed the Old Trafford crowd on Monday night. It was England’s fourth win from four Group C matches – a pool that started with an impressive 2-1 victory against Euro 2020 final foes Italy in Naples. That result set the tone for a side that has steadily built the kind of mentality that means they head into matches expecting, rather than hoping, to win. “100 per cent,” Southgate said. “That’s experiences with their club, but also as a collective because we’ve always had moments where clubs have done well. “But then how do you match that in when Declan (Rice) first played with us. I remember the Nations League semi-final with Holland, it’s the biggest game of his life, he’s still learning his trade and still learning the position. “Now he’s played a European final for us, European final for his club, big nights for us. “The experiences they have together are more important, but you can’t take out the confidence that, if you’re a European champion, as the Manchester City boys arrive here (as), then they’re carrying that into the camp as well. “But what they did, they didn’t come like a load of big shots and say, ‘We’re European champions’. “They got straight on to the training pitch, mucked in, supported the group from the side in Malta, and then they perform (against North Macedonia).” The shared experiences across multiple tournaments and qualification campaigns have also seen players’ caps quietly stack up. Despite not having any centurions, England’s starting line-up against Macedonia was their second-most experienced ever, with the combined 590 caps only beaten by 595 against Algeria in 2010. “We’ve known that accumulating caps is one thing, but accumulating big game experience is another,” said Southgate, whose most-capped player is 84-cap skipper Kane. “And also, the really pleasing thing is that we’ve got a lot of young players with a lot of caps as well. “So, it’s not that this team is just this next summer and nothing else. We want it to be sustainable for England, we want England to be challenging for as long as we can see. “That’s also an important part of what we need to do, so we have to keep bringing young players into the squad, give them a feel of what it means to play in this group and evolve the team as we go. “There’s that competition now and that drives the players. “They’ll listen to what you say as a coach, but if there are other players in your position that you know are hunting you down and after your spot, then that drives your performance.”

Manchester City were often described as the best team in the world, even before the Champions League that had long eluded them gave them a greater claim to that title. It was more contentious when their chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, called them “the No 1 football brand in the world”. The alternative argument is that City are not even the leading football brand in Manchester. But at a point when Manchester United is up for sale and the Glazers want $6 billion, it was notable that Al Mubarak described the value of the City Football Group as over $6 billion. The picture he painted in his end-of-season address was of financial and footballing success with some of the world’s best executives, scouts and sporting staff. Certainly that description applies to Pep Guardiola. And yet this could not simply be the celebration of a transformation, a 15-year journey from a team who were in the relegation zone at Christmas a few months after Sheikh Mansour’s takeover to one who demolished Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, to the situation where Erling Haaland signed a contract and told Al Mubarak he would win him the Champions League. “To show you where Erling is going, this is the beginning,” Al Mubarak said. “And the scary part, this is just the beginning for him.” In a way, it is just the beginning for City, too: just not quite in the same respect. Al Mubarak said it was “very frustrating” the treble has come against the backdrop of 115 charges by the Premier League. The Emirati promised a “very blunt” response, but only when the legal process has happened. The question if these are tainted, tarnished titles will linger; perhaps forever, certainly until a case is finally heard. Some might argue there is an irony there. Al Mubarak had claimed Sheikh Mansour has given “passion to the club”; that the Champions League final was just the second game the owner had seen in the flesh might suggest he has a different way of showing it but, with his billions, he has been the architect of a rise. But if sportswashing is intended to launder reputations, City instead find their achievements and character impugned. The issues, however, do not surround the all-conquering 2022-23 season as much as how City got here; how they constructed the platform that took them to such heights and whether the financing that allowed them to build to this point amounted to repeated and deliberate breaches of regulations. On the pitch, City attract admiring glances. Al Mubarak claimed that, at a Uefa dinner the night before the Champions League final, he was asked what was special about City. “The winning mentality,” he replied, and that is not something that can simply be bought. He reflected on the hunger of Haaland, who reacted to his five-goal salvo against RB Leipzig by thinking he should have scored seven or eight, and the humility of the World Cup winner Julian Alvarez. He talked about how City have executives that rival clubs are trying to hire and the excellence of their medical staff. “Unheralded heroes,” he said. There was a point to the praise. There is a misconception that City can call upon a vast pool of players. “We have a high-quality small squad,” Al Mubarak countered. “But it’s not what I think is the perception, which is that we operate with a huge squad; that is not the case.” It is partly Guardiola’s preference but they are operating with around 18 top-class options, some of them very expensive, not a cast of thousands, like Chelsea. “People will throw at us, ‘the biggest spenders’, ‘you have the biggest squad,’” he said. Yet City should have few problems with Financial Fair Play now. “Look at our net spend figures,” Al Mubarak added. In a summer when they signed Haaland, they made a transfer-market profit, partly because of the departures of Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko, partly because they banked around £50 million by selling four youth-team products to Southampton. There were years of vast outlay. Now City has become a business with revenue streams. “We have a commercial machine that is one of the best in the world,” Al Mubarak said; some may disagree – many of their sponsorships come from the United Arab Emirates, some from companies connected to Sheikh Mansour – but City’s problem is not the present or the future, but the past and how they got here. For now, they have Guardiola tied up for another two years – Al Mubarak said he was “never concerned” before the Catalan extended his contract – an outstanding team and the opportunity to strengthen it. The outlook should be sunny but there are still clouds on the landscape. Read More Man City chairman vows to give ‘very blunt views’ on FFP charges once concluded Saudi Arabia can help Chelsea solve headache — but talks raise more questions than answers Sportswashing is about to change football beyond anything you can imagine