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No. 1 Georgia will be going for its 30th straight victory and a likely top seed in the College Football Playoff when the Bulldogs face No. 8 Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship game

PARIS Organisers of Italy's Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics should be prepared to host the sliding competitions abroad to

England complete their group games in the inaugural Women’s Nations League over the next few days, playing the Netherlands at Wembley on Friday and then Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the talking points ahead of the double-header. Must-win This competition provides England with the chance to secure Paris 2024 Olympic qualification for Great Britain, should they first finish top of Group A1 – something they are in considerable danger of failing to do. Lying third with six points from four games, three points behind the Dutch and one behind Belgium, they have to win on Friday to stay in contention. They lost 2-1 in the Netherlands in September, and were also beaten in their most recent outing, 3-2 away against Belgium. Relegation threat If England are defeated again by Wiegman’s old side, and Belgium beat Scotland at home the same night, as well as the Olympic bid being over, the Lionesses will be confirmed as entering the Nations League relegation play-offs. After the highs of the last two years under her management, that scenario would represent some come down for the European champions and World Cup runners-up. The Scotland situation While it remains to be seen what the state of play is come Tuesday, a talking point from the word go as England headed into this competition as the one home nation able to claim Olympic qualification for GB has been that their group includes a Scotland outfit with players also holding Paris hopes. England midfielder Keira Walsh has described the situation as “a little bit strange”, but said of Tuesday: “If I’m putting myself in their shoes, it’s a big game against England. They’re going to want to win.” Wiegman’s team beat Scotland 2-1 in Sunderland in their group opener in September. No Bright England, already without Leah Williamson, also for these two games have the player who has skippered the team in her absence, fellow defender Millie Bright, out injured due to a knee issue. Wiegman has confirmed goalkeeper Mary Earps will wear the armband. Mead’s return England also have a big-name player back in the fold, with the fit-again Beth Mead – like Williamson, absent from the summer’s World Cup as she recovered from an ACL injury – having been recalled. Wiegman said it was as if Mead “hasn’t been away” without confirming whether the forward would start or not on Friday. Any appearance would be her first at international level in just over a year for the Euro 2022 Golden Boot winner. Read More Wales call on Chris Coleman in bid to boost Women’s Nations League hopes Shameful and not right – Saracens boss condemns Owen Farrell treatment Kevin Sinfield vows to keep raising funds to combat MND ahead of new challenge Andre Onana – Do the numbers back up the criticism? On This Day in 2004 – Sir Matthew Pinsent announces retirement from rowing Arsenal through to last 16 as Manchester United squander lead again

Wales have enlisted the support of former manager Chris Coleman to help them avoid relegation from the Women’s Nations League. Coleman memorably led Wales to the semi-finals of Euro 2016 and spoke to boss Gemma Grainger and her squad before Friday’s relegation decider against Iceland in Cardiff. Wales need to probably win by a two-goal margin to stay in League A, as well as boost their Euro 2025 qualifying hopes, and Coleman gave the lowdown on his time as men’s team manager between 2012 and 2017 during a 20-minute Zoom call on Wednesday. “One of the things we have done in terms of the mindset and mentality is being fortunate enough to spend some time with Chris Coleman,” Grainger said at her pre-match press conference. “We spoke to Chris around some of the work he did with the men’s team because that journey is so similar to us. “We are two years into a journey that was similar to the one Chris had with our men’s team. It was great for him to speak to the girls about that. “It was interesting to hear him talk about when the team suffered and what that allowed them to do in terms of ‘Together Stronger’ (the national team’s motto) – the real togetherness of the team and what it takes. “He talked about the criticism that team had, and to me that’s a natural part of when a team is successful. “It was a pleasure to speak to him for me as a coach and also for the players.” Wales remain without a point after four games and are bottom of Nations League Group A3 heading into their final two fixtures. Grainger’s side finish their campaign against two-time World Cup winners Germany in Swansea on Tuesday. So overcoming Iceland, who beat them 1-0 in September, represents Wales’ best chance of securing the third spot they need to avoid dropping into League B and head into the relegation play-offs instead. If Wales win by a one-goal margin, bottom spot could end up being determined by goal difference – and Iceland currently have a superior advantage of four in that department. Grainger said: “We are focused on winning. If we win by one goal then we know what we’ve got to do in the second game. “Two goals would mean that we would likely go through on head-to-head. “It’s an ideal game for us because when we qualify for the Euros we’ll go through stages where one-off games will matter. So it’s a great rehearsal against a top team in Europe.” Wales have lost to Denmark twice and Germany away since losing their opening game in Iceland. But Grainger was encouraged by the narrow 2-1 defeat in Denmark last time out, saying: “We finished that game stronger than they did. We scored in the 72nd minute and we really pushed for the equaliser. “The first game against Iceland was one of our best performances since I’ve been here. “The challenge now is to replicate that because the plan is to stay in League A.” Read More Shameful and not right – Saracens boss condemns Owen Farrell treatment The key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League double-header Kevin Sinfield vows to keep raising funds to combat MND ahead of new challenge Andre Onana – Do the numbers back up the criticism? On This Day in 2004 – Sir Matthew Pinsent announces retirement from rowing Arsenal through to last 16 as Manchester United squander lead again

Nominess for The Big Lead's 2023 Sports Media Awards

Ryan Garcia is out to bounce back from his first professional loss this weekend, as he takes on Oscar Duarte in Texas. Garcia was stopped by Gervonta “Tank” Davis in April after suffering a body shot in Round 7, leading the 25-year-old to come under criticism for failing to continue. He will look to silence his doubters on Saturday, as he returns to the ring but at a higher weight class, to face heavy-hitter Duarte. American Garcia is a former interim lightweight champion whose standout win so far came against Luke Campbell, and he is moving up to super-lightweight here, where Duarte awaits. The Mexican, 27, is on an 11-fight streak of stoppage wins, following the sole loss of his pro career in 2019. Here’s all you need to know. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. When is the fight? Garcia vs Duarte will take place on Saturday 2 December at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The main card is set to start at 1am GMT on Sunday 3 December (5pm PT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET on Saturday), with ring walks for the main event due at around 4am GMT on Sunday (8pm PT, 10pm CT, 11pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The fight will air live on Dazn in over 200 countries, including the UK and US. A subscription to the streaming service is available here, with monthly costs starting from £9.99. Dazn works on web browsers as well as the TVs and devices listed here. Odds Garcia – 2/9 Duarte – 7/2 Draw – 16/1 Via Betway. • Get all the latest boxing betting sites’ offers Full card (subject to change) Ryan Garcia vs Oscar Duarte (super-lightweight) Floyd Schofield vs Ricardo Lopez (lightweight) Shane Mosley Jr vs Joshua Conley (middleweight) Darius Fulghum vs Pachino Hill (light-heavyweight) Asa Stevens vs Dominique Griffin (super-bantamweight) Gael Cabrera vs Alejandro Dominguez (bantamweight) Sean Garcia vs Joseph Johnson (lightweight) Danilo Diez vs Jorge Lopez (super-lightweight) Read More What is an exhibition fight and how is it different to a professional bout? The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings Eddie Hearn rejects BBBofC stance on Benn and Eubank Jr fighting in London What is an exhibition fight and how is it different to a professional bout? The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings Eddie Hearn rejects BBBofC stance on Benn and Eubank Jr fighting in London

Sarina Wiegman is confident England are ready for the task ahead of them as they prepare for Friday’s must-win Nations League clash with the Netherlands at Wembley. The Lionesses are third in Group A1 after four games, having been beaten 2-1 in September by the Dutch and 3-2 last month by Belgium, who they trail by three and one point respectively. Failure to beat the Netherlands in their penultimate group fixture will end their hopes of the first-placed finish they require to have a chance of securing a Paris 2024 Olympics qualifying spot for Great Britain, and boss Wiegman told a press conference: “I think the team is ready. “We’re really excited to play at Wembley tomorrow. I think the camp so far from Monday to now has gone really well. “We’re very clear on how we want to play and what we want to do; I see good things on and off pitch, and that gives me confidence that we’re really ready for tomorrow, and of course we all know what we have to do.” She added: “If you look at the games I don’t think we played really poor, just in moments we didn’t get it over the line and then we got some losses – which is not good, we want to do better. “In football, just as in life, you have ups and downs, and what we want to do is get to the high again, and that is what we are going to try to do.” With Millie Bright having withdrawn from the squad last week due to a knee injury, goalkeeper Mary Earps is set to captain the side. There are a number of defenders in the squad with only a few caps between them, and when asked about a lack of experience at the back, Wiegman said: “With the World Cup, you played the team you think are going to win, and then you change to win the game. “That has also been the case in the Nations League, so we didn’t have that many opportunities at international level to try out things. Of course we do that in training sessions, and we see the players in the Women’s Super League. “I think if it’s needed, they’re ready, and they know what is being asked of them. I hope in the future of course they get the opportunity to play. “Last year around this time we had friendlies, we played lots of players. We are not in that situation right now. “ An experienced player Wiegman has back in the fold is Beth Mead, the Golden Boot winner when England won the Euros in 2022 who, having missed their run to the World Cup final during the summer, has been recalled after recovering from an ACL injury. Wiegman said it was as if Mead “hasn’t been away” without confirming whether she would start or not on Friday. Mead has 50 caps – a landmark fellow forward Lauren Hemp will reach if she plays a part against the Dutch. And the 23-year-old said: “It would be a surreal feeling. To do it at Wembley – there’s no better place. It would be an incredible feeling. “Looking back, a lot of the big games I’ve had have come at Wembley. There’s a lot at stake (on Friday). We know as a group what’s expected of us. I feel like when we’re put under pressure, a lot of the time, we do the job. “I’ve been to an Olympics before so I’ve experienced it once. I want to experience it again.” After Friday’s contest against Wiegman’s former side, England conclude their group games by playing Scotland at Hampden Park next Tuesday. Read More Andre Onana – Do the numbers back up the criticism? On This Day in 2004 – Sir Matthew Pinsent announces retirement from rowing Arsenal through to last 16 as Manchester United squander lead again Erik ten Hag says Manchester United ‘have to learn’ from Galatasaray draw Man Utd set to face Galatasaray in Champions League despite bad weather Luke Donald humbled by players’ support for his return as Ryder Cup captain

There’s been discriminatory chanting in the stands, a team bus pelted with stones, a game called off because of crowd trouble, and precious few goals on the field

Borussia Dortmund’s success in the Champions League is giving it confidence it can recover its faltering Bundesliga campaign

Scotland are safely through to Euro 2024 after finishing second in qualifying Group A. Steve Clarke’s side were beaten only once across their campaign and secured a famous victory over Spain to help book their place at next summer’s tournament. Their 17-point tally sees them go into Pot 3 for the draw for the Euros. They will not face any of the other five nations in that pot in the group stages of the competition. With three play-off qualifiers still to be confirmed, the pots look like this: Pot 1: Germany (hosts), Portugal, France, Spain, Belgium, England Pot 2: Hungary, Turkey, Romania, Denmark, Albania, Austria Pot 3: Netherlands, Scotland, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Czech Republic Pot 4: Italy, Serbia, Switzerland, Play-off winner A, Play-off winner B, Play-off winner C So what is the toughest possible draw for Scotland? While the pots are based on qualifying form, and thus a useful gauge of team quality, we will go by Fifa’s world rankings to determine the best and worst case scenarios for Clarke and his team. The toughest possible draw for Scotland (current world ranking 36th) would be: France (2nd), Denmark (19th), Italy (9th). On paper, the easiest draw would be: Germany (16th), Albania (62nd), Kazakhstan* (100th). *Kazakhstan are part of qualifying play-off Path C When is Euro 2024? The 17th edition of the men’s Euros will be held in Germany between 14 June and 14 July. Which cities are hosting fixtures? Berlin Munich Hamburg Dusseldorf Frankfurt Cologne Stuttgart Gelsenkirchen Leipzig Dortmund Read More When is the Euro 2024 draw and what are the pots? Who has qualified for Euro 2024 - and which nations still could? Scotland sign off on successful Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with six-goal thriller Is Scotland vs Norway on TV? Channel, time and how to watch Erling Haaland ruled out of Norway match – only a week before Man City v Liverpool Steve Clarke praises Scotland for keeping their heads after late draw in Georgia

Gabriel Jesus is unconcerned about Arsenal reportedly coveting other strikers as he seeks to stay fit and translate his prolific Champions League form into the Premier League. Brazil international Jesus took his European tally to four goals in as many appearances by claiming the Gunners’ second in Wednesday evening’s 6-0 demolition of French side Lens. Yet the former Manchester City forward has found the net just once in the top-flight this term amid absences due to knee and hamstring injuries. Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been linked with potential moves for Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Brentford’s Ivan Toney, in addition to an audacious bid to sign Paris St Germain star Kylian Mbappe. Jesus dismissed the significance of the transfer speculation and insisted he offers more than just goals as he defended his scoring record. “This happens you know, maybe it can be agents talking about a lot of things,” he said. “I’m not the most experienced, but I think I have seen a lot of things in football. “Sometimes it is like this, it happened when I was at City even with (Sergio) Aguero and me scoring. I was scoring a lot and people was linking everyone. So here, I don’t care about this. “I know my qualities and I know what I can bring to the team. I can score and I can also help with other things, like opening spaces. But the only people who can see it are those who watch the game and understand. “Those who don’t understand we will say that: ‘Oh he didn’t score today’. But maybe I run and open space for someone and, let’s be honest, I don’t miss a lot of chances. “I think it is not about ‘he doesn’t know how to score’. Sometimes I have to be more in the box, that is the one thing I am working on.” Premier League leaders Arsenal booked a Champions League last-16 spot as Group B winners with a thumping midweek win at Emirates Stadium. Jesus assisted Kai Havertz’s opener and then doubled the advantage with a composed finish before Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard added further first-half finishes, prior to Jorginho’s late penalty. The 26-year-old feels comments he made last week regarding his goal-scoring ability in the aftermath of his country’s World Cup qualifying defeat to rivals Argentina were misinterpreted. “I spoke after the game against Argentina – and people don’t understand sometimes and people took it out of context and said ‘Gabi, his strong point isn’t scoring’,” he said. “I said this, but not in that way. I have other qualities as well, but I can score guys! “Obviously I want to score every game, if it’s possible a hat-trick. But that’s not the reality. “Now my main target is to keep fit because I know I can help everyone here. I’m sleeping better, I’m eating better.” Jesus was a Champions League runner-up with City in 2021 and says the Gunners – beaten finalists in 2006 – must believe they can go all the way in the tournament. “If you talk about experience in this competition, Arsenal have reached the final in their history,” he said. “They didn’t win but Arsenal is big. Arsenal can go and face strong teams, playing good. That is enough to believe. “First we have to believe and then go there and try to win the games.” Read More Andre Onana – Do the numbers back up the criticism? Lancashire sign Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon for 2024 season We have to own it – Scott McTominay urges Man Utd to atone for Galatasaray draw Keira Walsh ‘feeling fresh’ before latest round of Women’s Nations League games He’s amazing – Martin Odegaard hails ‘brilliant’ Declan Rice impact at Arsenal On This Day in 2004 – Sir Matthew Pinsent announces retirement from rowing

Najmul Hossain Shanto became the first Bangladeshi cricket to hit a century on his debut as captain as the hosts tightened its grip on the first test against New Zealand