31/08/2023 Football

31/08/2023 Football – Plenty of football is being played today. Three games are being played in the Europa League, including Aberdeen v Hacken.

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 The Champions League group stage draw for the upcoming season took place in Monaco, featuring several British and international teams.

Facts

• 🇲🇨 After being held in Istanbul last year, the Champions League draw returns to its traditional venue in Monaco.
• 🇬🇧 Five British teams – Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Newcastle United, and Celtic – await their group stage fate.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Manchester City, the holders, are among the top seeds.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Manchester United, Arsenal, and Newcastle are the other representatives from England.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Newcastle last appeared in the group stage in 2002-03, while Arsenal’s last appearance was in 2016-17.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scottish champions Celtic could face Arsenal or one of the Manchester teams.
• 🌍 Teams are divided into four pots based on seeding, with one team from each pot placed in eight groups.
• ❌ Teams from the same country cannot be drawn into the same group.
• 🇪🇸 Spain has five teams due to Sevilla’s qualification as Europa League winners, not through their league position.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England does not have a fifth team in the competition because City qualified through league position.
• 🇩🇪 German side Union Berlin will make their Champions League debut this season.
• 🇺🇦 Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk will play in Hamburg due to the ongoing conflict in their country.
• ⚽ The group stages will run from September 19 to December 13, with the final set for June 1 at Wembley.
• 🔁 This is the final Champions League season in the current format; next season will feature 36 teams playing eight matches each.
• 📊 The top eight ranked teams will advance directly to the last 16, while teams ranked 9th to 24th will compete in play-offs.
• 🏆 The draw placed teams in the following pots:
  • Pot 1: MANCHESTER CITY, Sevilla, Barcelona, Napoli, Bayern Munich, Paris St-Germain, Benfica, Feyenoord
  • Pot 2: Real Madrid, MANCHESTER UNITED, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid, RB Leipzig, Porto, ARSENAL
  • Pot 3: Shakhtar Donetsk, Salzburg, Milan, Braga, PSV Eindhoven, Lazio, Red Star Belgrade, FC Copenhagen
  • Pot 4: Young Boys, Real Sociedad, Galatasaray, CELTIC, NEWCASTLE UNITED, Union Berlin, Royal Antwerp, RC Lens

31/08/2023 Football – Europa Conference League – PAOL v Hearts

Hearts of Midlothian face a pivotal Europa Conference League play-off against PAOK Salonika, aiming for a comeback victory after trailing 2-1 in the first leg.

Facts

• ⚽ Hearts of Midlothian are preparing for a crucial Europa Conference League play-off against PAOK Salonika.
• 💼 Head coach Frankie McAvoy urges his team to treat the match as a “cup final” and believes they can overcome the odds.
• 🏟️ The second leg will take place at Toumba Stadium, Thessaloniki, on Thursday, 31 August, with a kick-off time of 18:30 BST.
• 📻 The game will be covered on BBC Radio Scotland Extra/DAB/810MW, with live text commentary on the BBC Sport website & app.
• 💬 McAvoy emphasizes the significance of the match and highlights the opportunity for a historic victory.
• 📈 Hearts are behind 2-1 from the first leg and need a two-goal victory to progress.
• 🔍 Despite causing problems for PAOK in the first leg, Hearts acknowledge the need to be more clinical in front of goal.
• 🔐 PAOK’s head coach, Radvan Lucescu, warns against complacency and expresses confidence in his team’s determination.
• 🔄 Hearts’ Alex Cochrane is available after suspension, while PAOK’s Abdul Baba returns from suspension, and Ally Samatta may recover from injury.
• 🗣️ PAOK’s Andrija Zivkovic emphasizes the importance of their home crowd and expects a challenging match.

31/08/2023 Football – Europa Conference League – Aston Villa v Hibernian

Hibernian faces a challenging moment after a heavy defeat in the Europa Conference League play-off first leg against Aston Villa, as they prepare for the second leg under temporary manager David Gray.

Facts

• 🏟️ Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
• 📅 Date: Thursday, 31 August
• ⏰ Kick-off: 20:00 BST
• 📺 Coverage: Live text commentary on BBC Sport website & app
• Hibernian aims to restore pride after a 5-0 aggregate loss to Aston Villa.
• David Gray leads Hibs temporarily after Johnson’s departure.
• Gray emphasizes quick recovery and improvement.
• Hibs’ board seeks potential managers, aiming to start interviews soon.
• Villa nears loan deal for Barcelona’s Lenglet.
• Lennon expresses interest in discussing potential return to Hibs.
• Gray faces a familiar challenge as he takes temporary charge for the third time.
• Gray encourages players to embrace the opportunity despite the odds.
• Unai Emery likely to make changes for the return leg.
• Team news: Multiple players injured for both teams.

Players unavailable:

• Villa: Buendia, Coutinho, Iroegbunam, Moreno, Mings, Ramsey. Martinez and Dendoncker doubtful. Zaniolo ineligible.
• Hibs: Assessing David Marshall’s fitness after a knock.

Potential features and changes:

• Villa: Omari Kellyman, Travis Patterson, Tommi O’Reilly, Seb Revan, Kadan Young might feature.
• Hibs: Jhon Duran appeared from the bench at Easter Road.

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31/08/2023 Football – Other Football

OTHER FOOTBALL – THURSDAY 31 AUGUST

1:30am UK THU / 8:30pm ET WED
COPA LIBERTADORES – Palmeiras v Deportivo Pereira
Australia – beIN Sports 2
Canada – beIN Sports 4
Indonesia – Mola TV
MENA – beIN Sports 3 English
USA – beIN Sports 4

1:30am UK THU / 8:30pm ET WED
COPA LIBERTADORES – Racing Club v Boca Juniors
Australia – beIN Sports 3
Canada – beIN Sports
Indonesia – Mola TV
MENA – beIN Sports 1 English
USA – beIN Sports

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11:00pm UK / 6:00pm ET
COPA SUDAMERICANA – Fortaleza v America MG
Australia – beIN Sports 2
Canada – beIN Sports 3
Indonesia – Mola TV
USA – beIN Sports 3

11:00pm UK / 6:00pm ET
COPA SUDAMERICANA – Sao Paulo v LDU de Quito
Australia – beIN Sports 3
Canada – beIN Sports
Indonesia – Mola TV
MENA – beIN Sports 3 English
USA – beIN Sports

31/08/2023 Football Gossip & News

Al-Ittihad’s Big Move for Salah

• Al-Ittihad is gearing up to place a £118 million offer for Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
• Despite Liverpool’s firm stance that Salah is off-limits, Al-Ittihad is pushing ahead.
• Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool’s manager, would be irate if the club considers the offer.

Tottenham’s Search for Talent

• Tottenham Hotspur is eyeing Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze as an alternative to Brennan Johnson from Nottingham Forest.

Manchester United’s Midfield Quest

• Manchester United is keen on Fiorentina’s Sofyan Amrabat.
• An initial loan offer of £1.7 million was turned down by Fiorentina.

Bayern Munich’s Plans

• Bayern Munich is interested in Fulham’s Joao Palhinha, valued at £77 million.
• The club might offer up to £50 million for Palhinha as an alternative to Chelsea’s Trevoh Chalobah.

Other Notable Transfers

• Borussia Dortmund is close to securing a loan deal for Southampton’s Armel Bella-Kotchap.
• Inter Milan is considering a move for Tottenham’s Tanguy Ndombele.
• Wolves have bid £21.5 million for Strasbourg’s Habib Diarra.
• Luton Town is set to sign Manchester United’s Teden Mengi.
• Nottingham Forest is nearing a deal for Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi.
• Sheffield United is leading the race to sign Manchester City’s James McAtee for a second loan term.

Additional Tidbits

• Al-Ittihad is also exploring a move for Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate.
• Arsenal has a 17.5% sell-on clause in the deal that sent Folarin Balogun to Monaco.

Thursday’s gossip: Salah, Eze, Amrabat, Palhinha, Chalobah, Hudson-Odoi – BBC Sport

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