Sports
Andros Townsend criticises uncertainty over Everton & Nottingham Forest points deductions
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![Luton Town winger Andros Townsend](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/624/cpsprodpb/177CA/production/_133020269_gettyimages-2082241868.jpg)
Luton winger Andros Townsend says the uncertainty created by other Premier League teams’ points deductions for breaching financial rules “makes a mockery” of the top flight.
Everton have been docked six points – down from 10 after an appeal – while Nottingham Forest have appealed against their own four-point deduction.
Forest’s points loss meant they replaced Luton in the relegation zone.
Townsend said clubs battling the drop “don’t know what’s going to happen”.
Luton are now 17th in the table – one point and one place above Forest who dropped into the bottom three because of their points deduction.
However, the league table is potentially still subject to change given Forest’s decision to appeal, while a hearing into a second alleged breach by Everton is taking place this week.
The league’s rules state any appeals process should “conclude no later than and if possible some time before 24 May” – five days after the season finishes – although Forest’s case is set to be concluded before then.
Townsend said: “We don’t know what’s going to happen. Everton have got points back, Forest are appealing and may get points back, Everton may get more points [deducted] – who knows…
“It all may get wrapped up the week before the end of the season. It’s all nonsense to be honest.
“Psychologically, if you’re above the relegation zone, you’re thinking a point is enough to keep you above the relegation zone.
“Then a week later you’re back in the relegation zone because teams have got their points back.
“For me, it makes a mockery of the Premier League [and] what is the best league in the world.”
Everton were initially deducted 10 points in November – the biggest punishment in Premier League history – dropping from 14th to 19th in the table.
However, their sanction was reduced to six points on appeal, which lifted them up to 15th.
![The Premier League table before (-10 points) and after Everton's appeal (-6 points)](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/624/cpsprodpb/F1C3/production/_133019816_image.png)
Luton drew 1-1 with relegation rivals Forest two days before the latter’s four-point deduction was announced.
Forest said they were “extremely disappointed” with the decision, which “raises issues of concern for all aspirant clubs”.
An independent commission found the club’s losses to 2022-23 had breached the threshold of £61m by £34.5m.
![The Premier League table before and after Forest's points deduction (-4 points)](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/624/cpsprodpb/596B/production/_133019822_foresttables.png)
Timeline guide to ongoing Forest and Everton cases
15 January: Everton and Nottingham Forest are charged for breaches of the league’s profit and sustainability rules. The hearing has to be concluded within 12 weeks of this date, which is 8 April
8 March (approximate): Forest’s hearing takes place
18 March: Forest are docked four points and drop into relegation zone
25 March: Forest appeal is submitted
25 March: Everton’s hearing is taking place this week
1 April (UK Bank Holiday): The seven-day deadline for a response to Forest’s appeal
8 April (approximate): ‘Directions hearing’ to set a date for an appeal hearing, which will last between one and three days and conclude no later than 24 May. It is likely to be much earlier in Forest’s case
19 May: The final day of the Premier League season, when Forest travel to Burnley and Everton visit Arsenal (16:00 BST)
24 May: The latest possible date for an appeal hearing into either the Everton or Forest cases to be concluded
Sports
US Open women’s final 2024: Aryna Sabalenka holds off Jessica Pegula to win third Grand Slam title
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After losing to Gauff in last year’s final, a tearful Sabalenka admitted she had struggled to deal with the crowd, later saying the noise was so loud it “blocked my ears”.
The atmosphere was no different this time around, with Pegula receiving the majority of the support from the packed 23,000-seater stadium.
There were times when Sabalenka looked like the occasion would again get the better of her as she hit 34 unforced errors and five double faults.
Once the type of player who failed to keep her emotions in check, she has taken active steps to strengthen her mentality, including working with a psychologist, to become one of the most consistent competitors on the WTA Tour.
With injuries disrupting her season – she struggled with a stomach problem at the French Open before a shoulder issue ruled her out of Wimbledon – Sabalenka has got back on track with successive titles after beating Pegula in the final of last month’s Cincinnati Open.
“I wish she would have at least let me get one set. We had a tough match in Cincinnati a few weeks ago and she’s one of the best in the world,” Pegula said.
“She’s super powerful and isn’t going to give you anything, she can take the racquet out of your hand.”
Sabalenka’s victory in New York sees her become the first player to win both hard-court Slams in the same year since Angelique Kerber in 2016.
Sports
Republic of Ireland 0-2 England: What BBC Radio 5 Live saw in Lee Carsley’s first game
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Ian Dennis
Even before we had gone live on air for 5 Live, it was noticeable how involved Lee Carsley was with the warm-up.
The interim head coach even placed the red and white cones out in the England half of the field.
He was waiting on the pitch as a solitary figure before the players came out to warm up.
Carsley was actively involved along with his assistants Ashley Cole and Joleon Lescott. It’s a significant change in approach to that of Gareth Southgate or previous managers.
I even remember Fabio Capello, when he was England head coach, watching intently from the sidelines along with his assistant Franco Baldini – but they would study and monitor the opposition.
Carsley was purely focused on his England players and looked comfortable as a tracksuit manager.
John Murray
If you were looking for a different approach from Lee Carsley, it was there right from the start. There was an initial mis-step when he turned right to the home dugout when he first walked down the tunnel, but it was a tracksuited Carsley who laid out the balls and the cones and oversaw the whole of the warm-up.
It served to underline how he wishes to be seen very much as the head coach. And if England replicate the first-half performance, he will not be interim for too much longer.
Sports
Paris 2024 Paralympics: Finlay Graham, Emma Wiggs and Charlotte Henshaw win trio of golds for GB
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Finlay Graham, Emma Wiggs and Charlotte Henshaw won gold medals on Saturday morning at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, taking Great Britain’s tally to 45.
Graham, 24, won the men’s C1-3 road race, while Wiggs, 44, was victorious in the women’s VL2 200m Va’a Single final.
Henshaw, 37, continued GB’s Para-canoe success, winning the women’s VL3 Single final, where there was also a silver medal for Hope Gordon. David Phillipson took silver in the men’s KL2 Single final.
Daniel Powell has guaranteed himself at least a silver medal in the men’s -90kg men’s J1 judo.
In Para-equestrian, Sophie Wells won the bronze medal in the Grade V individual freestyle event.
Great Britain now have a total of 106 medals at the Paralympics, including those 45 golds. Only China, with 85 golds and 195 total medals, have more.
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