Holders Celtic host Falkirk in Premier Sports Cup last 16
Premier Sports Cup, second round draw
Celtic v FalkirkGreenock Morton v AberdeenKilmarnock v Dundee UnitedLivingston v HibernianPartick Thistle v Ayr UnitedRangers v Alloa AthleticSt Johnstone v MotherwellSt Mirren v Heart of Midlothian
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BBC News
13 minutes ago
- BBC News
What are our pundits' Premiership predictions?
With the shadow boxing of pre-season well and truly over, who has emerged stronger or weaker?We have already had the League Cup group stage and the first European qualifiers, but now the Scottish football season truly gets into full swing with the first domestic league fixtures this some of BBC Scotland's football pundits were asked to give us their preditions for the top-flight was no surprise with their unanimous view on who would finish Premiership champions and runners-up - and one team stood out as likely relegation who did they think will finish third - and who do they reckon will be the surprise guys? Read on. Willie Miller, former Aberdeen centre-half 1st: CelticThe reigning champions still have the strongest squad, with a top-class, proven manager.2nd: RangersWith a new head coach, new owners and new investment, the Ibrox side quite simply have to be at runners-up at worst.3rd: AberdeenIf they can cope with European football, the Dons have a cup-winning squad, a proven, successful, experienced manager and a chairman who will back him Dundee With a whole host of players departing, a new coach in the form of Steven Presley who was not the most popular choice as far as their fans are concerned, and a poor start to the League Cup, the pressure could come on early at Dens package: Falkirk They have a coach in John McGlynn who likes to play the game in a cultured fashion, which he won't change, so they will be easy on the eye and successfull with it. Julie Fleeting, former Scotland striker 1st: CelticThe strength of their squad is superior to the rest and, financially, they can add quality when needed. They also have players who are Celtic through and through and play with passion and desire.2nd: RangersWith lots of changes behind the scenes at Ibrox, it may take a bit of time to bed in and get them back to really competing at Celtic's level.3rd: HibernianDavid Gray had a tough start as head coach, but then things started to click and, based on their strong second half of last season, they have a good foundation to build on. Their first five games of the season - Dundee, Kilmarnock, Livingston, Falkirk and St Mirren - are all games they can go into confident they can get early points on the DundeeThis is always a really tough to answer as teams work really hard to prepare their squads for the new season. I've based my answer on a couple of poor League Cup results and also, with a new head coach coming in, it may take time for them to hit the ground package: FalkirkAfter back-to-back promotions, it's exciting to see how the Bairns can compete at the highest level. Michael Stewart, former Hearts & Hibs midfielder 1st: CelticThey're the strongest team with the biggest budget and a top-level manager as well. They're still looking to bring in a main striker too, which I can only see strengthening their grip on the Premiership. As long as these facts remain, Celtic are going to continue to be the force to reckon with here.2nd: RangersThey're the next biggest club in the country and clearly, with all the new people moving into positions in their hierarchy, they'll be desperate to close the gap on Celtic, but I'm not sure that will be achievable just now. I think there's scope for those behind to potentially get closer to the Ibrox side.3rd: Heart of MidlothianFor the first time in years, Hearts have made a serious managerial appointment and, with some of the Jamestown signings looking like they may have an impact offensively, it could be a positive partnership for all concerned at Tynecastle. I see a really interesting battle for third between the two Edinburgh sides, as Hibs have transformed into a club who really have their house in ?Impossible to say until we get a chance to see all the sides in action. However, I think it could be a challenging season for Dundee, given the self-enforced changes and the loss of key players. Along with the likes of Kilmarnock, Livingston and Falkirk, I see them potentially fighting it package: MotherwellIf the Steelmen make a relatively bright start to the campaign then the style Jens Berthel Askou is implementing could be really enjoyable for the fans to watch - and ultimately rewarding too - with a chance to challenge for the top six. Rory Loy, former Falkirk striker 1st: CelticThe champions have work to do on the squad as it stands, but I think they will address this with some more eye-catching signings towards the end of the window and, with Brendan Rodgers being the best manager in the league, I don't see any other winner.2nd: RangersI think the Ibrox side may be closer to Celtic come May than last season, but I think it will take a few months to hit top form, which will leave them points behind. Always difficult to chase such a dominant Celtic.3rd: Heart of Midlothian Derek McInnes arriving as head coach and actually playing Lawrence Shankland in his favoured position up top equals best of the rest. Simple. Not playing in Europe will be a huge advantage versus the other teams expected to challenge for DundeeEasily the toughest one to predict. Poor League Cup group-stage campaigns don't always mean much, but Falkirk and Livingston look good, so I will say Dundee. Very much guess work at this stage with this one package: LivingstonDavid Martindale is determined to try and lose the long ball, physicality tag. Whilst they may not be top six, I think they will be comfortable this season, finishing best of the rest. Stephen Craigan, former Motherwell defender 1st: Celtic The reigning champions have the best players and the deepest squad, as well as Brendan Rodgers as manager.2nd: RangersStill a lot of questions around the new signings and their ability to win a title in a two-horse race. Time will tell if they're good enough.3rd: Heart of Midlothian Not having group stage European football as a distraction is a huge bonus for the Edinburgh side. The players underperformed last season and, with the additions over the summer, they have a better balance to the DundeeI'm judging this as we stand and not at the end of the transfer window remember. They have lost a lot of their reliable players who had good Scottish Premiership experience and haven't yet managed to replace them and I'm not sure they can. A bit into the package: LivingstonI'm not sure they'll be a surprise, but David Martindale has recruited well. He got his business done early and his squad has a lot of players with a point to prove and I think they'll prove it. A downside for them, though, is that teams won't dread going to Almondvale (or whatever it's called now) because of the new artificial pitch. I think they will stay well clear of trouble but won't have enough for top six.
BBC News
13 minutes ago
- BBC News
Isak transfer situation 'far from ideal'
Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe says the transfer situation surrounding striker Alexander Isak is "complex" and "far from ideal".Newcastle turned down a £110m bid from Liverpool for Isak on Friday, with the Magpies valuing him at about £ 25-year-old was left out of Newcastle's pre-season tour of Asia with what the club described as a "minor" thigh Swede has since been training alone at former club Real Sociedad - something Howe said he found out about through the media."I think from my situation, I am very much removed from everything that is happening back home," Howe told a news conference, external on Saturday. "I was made aware there was a bid yesterday. That bid was turned down before I heard about it. There are people back in England dealing with the situation. "I really don't know what is going to happen next but, from our perspective, we still support Alex in every way and my wish is still that we see him in a Newcastle shirt again."Isak joined Newcastle in a £60m move from La Liga side Sociedad in was the Magpies' top scorer last season as the club won the Carabao Cup and ended their 70-year wait for domestic said he is not in direct contact with the forward, adding: "I know where he is through the media, so I think from that perspective it's difficult for me to go into any detail."The situation is far from ideal. It is quite complex. I think that is all I have got to say."Newcastle face Tottenham in Seoul on Sunday before returning home, with their first Premier League fixture on 16 August against Aston Villa. Timeline of Isak transfer saga 25 May 2025 - Alexander Isak finishes 2024-25 season as Newcastle's top scorer with 27 goals in 42 appearances19 July 2025 - Newcastle boss Eddie Howe says Isak will "absolutely" be on the club's pre-season tour of the far-east after the Swede missed a 4-0 friendly defeat by Celtic with a thigh injury23 July 2025 - Liverpool sign striker Hugo Ekitike in £69m deal from Eintracht Frankfurt24 July 2025 - Isak is left out of Newcastle's squad for their pre-season tour with a "minor thigh injury"24 July 2025 - Isak expresses desire to explore move away from Newcastle28 July 2025 - Sources tell BBC Sport that Liverpool remain keen on signing Isak, despite the arrival of Ekitike29 July 2025 - Howe says Newcastle are yet to receive any offers for Isak31 July 2025 - Isak trains alone at former club Real Sociedad1 August 2025 - Newcastle reject Liverpool's opening offer for the Sweden international and the Reds may not continue their interest2 August 2025 - Howe says he "really doesn't know what is going to happen next" and describes the situation as "far from ideal"
BBC News
14 minutes ago
- BBC News
How Hungarian Grand Prix practice unfolded
Update: Date: 17:17 BST 1 August Title: Norris tops Hungarian GP practice as Verstappen investigated Content: Andrew BensonBBC F1 correspondent at the Hungaroring Lando Norris headed team-mate Oscar Piastri to a McLaren one-two in Friday practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Norris was 0.291 seconds quicker than the Australian, who leads the Briton by 16 points in the world championship heading into the last race before Formula 1's summer break. But neither driver had an ideal run in the second session - Norris had to abort his first flying lap after a mistake at Turn Two, while Piastri had heavy traffic on his fastest. Norris went again and beat the benchmark time set by Piastri, but his tyres would have not been in optimum condition. Red Bull's Max Verstappen was in 14th, and said over the radio: "I don't know what's going on. It's undrivable. I just can't get any balance." The four-time champion is also under investigation from race stewards after appearing to throw an item out of his cockpit whilst on track. Read the full report here Update: Date: 17:15 BST 1 August Title: FP3 build-up from 11:15 BST on Saturday Content: Friday in Budapest belongs to McLaren, and more specifically, Lando Norris, who has topped both session ahead of his team-mate Oscar Piastri. But the Australian has the upperhand in the drivers' championship, leading the Briton by 16 points, so Saturday's qualifying looks set to be a fascinating battle between the two drivers. Can anyone beat them? Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari has been the closest driver so far. We'll be back tomorrow from 11:15 BST to build up to third practice. And then it's full steam ahead for the fight for pole position, the final one before the summer break, which begins at 15:00. See you on Saturday! Update: Date: 17:13 BST 1 August Title: Andrew Benson Q&A: Send us your questions Content: What will be the main talking point after this weekend's race? Will it be something that can keep us satisfied throughout the summer break? Who knows. What I do know is Andrew Benson is ready to answer any of your questions, big or small, so send them through via the link here. Update: Date: 17:10 BST 1 August Title: And the rest Content: 11. Oliver Bearman (Haas) 12. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) 13. Esteban Ocon (Haas) 14. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 15. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) 16. Carlos Sainz (Williams) 17. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) 18. Alex Albon (Williams) 19. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 20. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) Update: Date: 17:07 BST 1 August Title: Top 10 Content: 1, Lando Norris (McLaren) - 1:15.624 2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.291 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.399 4. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +0.495 5. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.609 6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.705 7. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.793 8. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) +0.803 9. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull) +0.861 10. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.896 Update: Date: 17:04 BST 1 August Title: Chequered flag Content: That towel Max Verstappen lashed out of the cockpit is still on the track, and the stewards are going to investigate the incident after the session. A bit of drama at the end of the session. Lando Norris comes out of the pits but he locks up as team-mate Oscar Piastri goes round the outside of him at Turn One. Repeat that move on Sunday, lads. It's another McLaren one-two, with Norris the quicker driver once again. His top time was a 1:15.624 on the softs, over two tenths better than Piastri. Update: Date: 17:00 BST 1 August Title: Long-run corner Content: Andrew BensonBBC F1 correspondent at the Hungaroring Slightly compromised race data because of traffic. Hard to compare, but Ferrari look about half a second slower than McLaren. Aston Martin look pretty descent. I can't see many cars getting to that lap time apart from the McLarens. So maybe it'll be a good weekend for the Aston Martin. Update: Date: 16:59 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: Isack Hadjar is completing his long run preparation but a fiesty radio message comes in to Racing Bulls. "Is this guy doing this on purpose?!" he asks, as the Mercedes of George Russell is just ahead ploughing on with his own programme, slowly, in the eyes of Hadjar. Update: Date: 16:59 BST 1 August Title: Vasseur 'has an incredible vision' - Leclerc Content: When asked about Fred Vasseur's multi-year deal in the driver's news conference yesterday, Charles Leclerc said he was "really happy" the news was out in the open, especially as recent whispers had suggested the Frenchman's position as boss could be in doubt. "Fred has an incredible vision," said Leclerc "and I think what is difficult within Ferrari is, the emotion is very much part of the daily job because Italian people are extremenly passionate about Ferrari. "But Fred really knows how to leave his emotions aside and have a clear vivsion of where we are at, no matter how much noise there is around the team." Update: Date: 16:56 BST 1 August Title: Team principal Vasseur signs new Ferrari deal Content: Andrew BensonBBC F1 correspondent at the Hungaroring Frederic Vasseur has signed a new contract to continue as Ferrari team principal beyond the end of this year. The 57-year-old Frenchman's deal was due to run out at the end of 2025, but he has agreed what the team have called a "multi-year contract for the coming Formula 1 seasons". Vasseur joined the team at the start of 2023 on what was then a three-year deal. "I'm grateful for the trust Ferrari continues to place in me. This renewal is not just a confirmation - it's a challenge to keep progressing, to stay focused, and to deliver," he said. "Over the past 30 months we've laid strong foundations, and now we must build on them with consistency and determination." Update: Date: 16:53 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: What is going on at Red Bull? Even Max Verstappen is clueless as to why the car is, in his words, "undriveable" today. Balance has been mentioned again, so note that down for the Friday debrief. Update: Date: 16:52 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: Telemetry is back at Williams! The message to Carlos Sainz was quite frantic: "Box, box... no, stay out, it's back!" cried his engineer. Liam Lawson wasn't too happy with the Spaniard's positioning on track, but he was quickly informed Sainz was dealing with an issue, so no need for any complaints. Update: Date: 16:49 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: The medium tyres are on for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri - the top two so far in second practice - but Carlos Sainz and Williams are in a spot of bother. The team are trying to tell the Spaniard they've lost telemetry, but can he actually receive their messages? He's still out on track, so maybe not. Update: Date: 16:44 BST 1 August Title: Alonso moves to P5 Content: Fernando Alonso's sore back isn't hindering the 44-year-old in this session. He pops up with a 1:16.233 on the softs to go fifth behind team-mate Lance Stroll. Amazingly, Aston Martin were the only team not to score any points during last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix, which was also a sprint event. Even bottom side Alpine picked up one point. Update: Date: 16:42 BST 1 August Title: Leclerc goes P3 Content: Charles Leclerc, on a track he says is his worst of the lot, finds some extra pace on the soft tyre to go back to third spot on the timesheets. The Ferrari man is 0.399 seconds away from the McLaren of Lando Norris. Speaking of Norris, George Russell had the best view of the Briton running wide on to the grass after dipping a wheel at the final corner. Russell is on the radio to his Mercedes pit wall to express his surprise. Update: Date: 16:39 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: Max Verstappen throws a rogue item out of his cockpit. It doesn't look like a visor tear-off, maybe it's a towel? Whatever it is, it shouldn't really be in there. And where did it land? Who knows. The Dutchman is down in 13th place, in a Red Bull that has already been flagged with balance issues this session. Update: Date: 16:36 BST 1 August Title: Stroll improves Content: These are encouraging push laps by Lance Stroll. Charles Leclerc briefly went P3 ahead of the Canadian but Stroll improves on his next soft run to return to the top three. The Aston martin has pulled out a 1:16.119, which is now 0.495 seconds away from Lando Norris best time. Update: Date: 16:34 BST 1 August Title: Norris beats Piastri's time Content: That's a rapid time by Lando Norris. The Briton places his McLaren above team-mate Oscar Piastri by 0.291 seconds. The papaya cars are way ahead of the field; Lance Stroll's marker in third, which is a great effort, is still nearly six tenths off the pace of Norris. Update: Date: 16:32 BST 1 August Title: Post Content: Andrew BensonBBC F1 correspondent at the Hungaroring We expect Aston Martin to have a better weekend. Expect Alonso to qualify closer to the top 10. Update: Date: 16:31 BST 1 August Title: Piastri quickest Content: The track is packed with red tyres. Kimi Antonelli slips into third place with a 1:16.520 in the Mercedes but that McLaren rocket ship is on thte prowl, lifting Oscar Piastri to the top of the leaderboard with a 1:15.915, which is three tenths faster than Lance Stroll's time in the Aston Martin.
