Latest news with #EuropaLeague
Scotsman
29 minutes ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Former Hibs midfielder lined up for Scottish football return after impressive trialist performance
A former Hibs midfielder looks set to secure a deal after an impressive trial performance. Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Hibs could see a familiar face return to Scottish football ahead of the upcoming season after a former midfielder impressed on trial with a club looking to bounce back into the top flight. David Gray and his players are currently preparing for another exciting campaign after last season's third place finish ensured European football will return to Easter Road once again. A Europa League second qualifying round tie against FC Midtjylland comes over the next fortnight as Hibs look to take another step towards the league phase of UEFA's secondary club competition. Progress is also being targeted in the league and cups and Hibs have been busy in the transfer market with the likes of Thibault Klidje, Raphael Salinger, Jamie McGrath and Josh Mulligan all moving to Easter Road in recent weeks and months. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It has already been a hectic summer across the Scottish and St Johnstone manager Simo Valakari is aiming to boost his own ranks as he looks to guide St Johnstone back into the Premiership at the first attempt after the Saints ended last season at the bottom of the table with just nine wins from 38 games across the campaign. The Finnish boss has already added eight new faces to his squad ahead of the season and that figure could increase with the signing of former Hibs and St Mirren midfielder Stevie Mallan after he impressed during a trial spell with the second tier newcomers. The 29-year-old, who made almost a century of appearances during a three-year stay with Hibs, has been without a club since leaving English League Two side Salford City last summer - but he impressed Valakari during a friendly draw with Dundee United at the weekend and could now be handed a deal with the Saints as he reaches the final stages of a long-awaited comeback from a foot injury. St Johnstone boss says he 'really admires' former Hibs midfielder SNS Group He told The Courier: 'I really admire the boy coming in to play the game. He showed more than enough. I'd like to talk with him about staying here. Now it's a matter of seeing what Stevie thinks. He's a good footballer. I know he wanted to play as much as possible, he looked very good and did very well to play 90 minutes after one training session. 'He wasn't that much involved in the first half but the things he did off the ball were very good. He was keeping our team structure much better. I was very happy with that. We then started to see the high-class balls behind the line and, of course, the set pieces are a big weapon.'
BreakingNews.ie
29 minutes ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Crystal Palace fans protest against Europa League ejection
Crystal Palace fans staged a protest outside Selhurst Park on Tuesday evening following Uefa's ruling to demote the club to the Conference League. Hundreds of supporters marched from Norwood Clocktower to Palace's stadium carrying banners, with one at the front declaring 'UEFA: MORALLY BANKRUPT. REVOKE THE RULING NOW'. Advertisement Palace qualified for this season's Europa League courtesy of their shock win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final in May, which secured a historic first major trophy. Crystal Palace fans during a protest march against UEFA's decision to demote them to the Conference League (Yui Mok/PA) But they missed a March 1st deadline to demonstrate that American co-owner John Textor, also a part-owner at Lyon, had no control or influence over more than one club in the same competition. Uefa's Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) decided Textor's interest in both clubs meant only one could enter the Europa League, with Lyon's higher league position edging out Palace. Palace are weighing up their options in response and admitted they could appeal Uefa's verdict at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Advertisement Textor has agreed to sell his shareholding in Palace to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson. He has also stepped down as Lyon president, but remains co-owner. Crystal Palace won the FA Cup in May (Nick Potts/PA) Nottingham Forest are expected to replace the Eagles in the Europa League after finishing seventh in the Premier League last season although this has not yet been confirmed by Uefa. Palace chairman Steve Parish declared it 'a bad day for football' and 'a terrible injustice' after the club were demoted to the Conference League having fallen foul of Uefa's rules on multi-club ownership. A petition urging Uefa to reconsider and reinstate Palace back in the Europa League has been signed by more than 3,000 people since being created on Friday. Advertisement
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UEFA Conference League 2025/26: Key dates, match schedule & final
In 2025/26, the UEFA Conference League returns for its fifth edition and its second under the new format following a resounding success in 2024/25. Building on a successful debut, Europe's newest club competition kicks off on July 10 and continues until the final in Leipzig on May 27, 2026. Advertisement Here's a look at all the key dates for the upcoming season of Europe's third-tier club competition, along with details on how to watch the matches live. How to watch the 2025/26 Conference League season? All games in Europe's newest club competition during the 2025/26 season will be available to watch online via Conference League live streams. When do Conference League qualifying fixtures start? A total of 155 teams will compete in the 2025/26 Conference League qualifying cycle – significantly more than those contesting in the UEFA Champions League (53) or UEFA Europa League (53). Like in the other two competitions, the structure includes the qualifying phase and the play-off round, with 21 teams in the Champions Path and 134 in the Main Path. Advertisement Twenty-four clubs to win their play-off ties will advance to the league phase, where they'll join 12 teams eliminated from the Europa League play-offs. Qualification began on July 10 and will run until August 25. When is the Conference League group stage draw? The 2025/26 UEFA Conference League group stage draw will take place on August 29, the day after the conclusion of the play-offs. When does the Conference League opening phase start? While the Champions League and Europa League newly formatted league phase gets underway in September, Europe's tertiary club tournament kicks off the following month. Advertisement The 2025/26 Conference League opening stage begins at the start of October, with the first matches set for October 2. Last season's winners, Chelsea, qualified automatically for the Europa League but will have a seat at Europe's top table due to their domestic league finish. Beaten finalists Real Betis locked down a Europa League berth by finishing sixth in the 2024/25 La Liga season, leaving Fiorentina as the only former finalists in the competition. When does the knockout stage of the Conference League start? Like last season, the newly formatted knockout phase gets underway with a play-off round in late February. Advertisement The play-off round runs from February 19-26, after which the 32 remaining teams face off in the round of 16 on March 12 and 19. Teams compete in the quarter-final first legs on April 9, then play the return fixtures on April 16. The semi-finals commence on April 30, with second-leg clashes scheduled for May 7. When and where is the Conference League final in 2026? The 2025/26 Conference League showpiece, scheduled to take place at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig on May 27, will be the first final held at the home of Bundesliga giants RB Leipzig. Despite never hosting a major European final, this 47,000-capacity stadium staged five matches during the 2006 FIFA World Cup and four games at the 2024 European Championship. Advertisement Winning the trophy guarantees a spot in next season's Europa League, if the champions haven't already qualified through their domestic league. 2025/26 Conference League Schedule – In Summary Conference League Qualifying Fixtures First qualifying round: July 10 & 17, 2025 Second qualifying round: July 24 & 31, 2025 Third qualifying round: August 7 & 14, 2025 Play-offs: August 21 & 28, 2025 Conference League Opening Phase Matchday 1: October 2, 2025 Matchday 2: October 23, 2025 Matchday 3: November 6, 2025 Matchday 4: November 27, 2025 Matchday 5: December 11, 2025 Matchday 6: December 18, 2026 Knockout Stage Knockout phase play-offs: February 19 & 26, 2026 Round of 16: March 12 & 19, 2026 Quarter-finals: April 9 & 16, 2026 Semi-finals: April 30 & May 7, 2026 Final: May 27, 2026 (Leipzig) Conference League Draws First qualifying round: June 17, 2025 Second qualifying round: June 18, 2025 Third qualifying round: July 21, 2025 Play-offs: August 4, 2025 League phase: August 29, 2025 Knockout phase play-offs: TBC Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final: February 27, 2026 Conference League Final Venue: Red Bull Arena in Leipzig, Germany.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Crystal Palace supporters protest at demotion from Europa League
Crystal Palace supporters have staged a protest march outside Selhurst Park against Uefa's decision to ban the club from the Europa League. Hundreds of Palace fans marched to the club's home ground on Tuesday carrying banners and chanting against the decision to demote their team to the Conference League, per BBC Sport. Advertisement The Eagles earned a place in the Europa League by winning the FA Cup last season, beating Manchester City in the final. But they were demoted to the Conference League after Uefa found them to have breached the multi-club ownership rules. American businessman John Textor owns a stake in Palace as well as a controlling interest in Lyon, who have also qualified for the Europa League. As per Uefa rules, two clubs owned by the same person or entity cannot compete in the same European tournament to protect competition integrity. Textor is currently close to selling his stake in Palace to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, who has reportedly passed the Premier League's owners and directors test. Advertisement However, with the South London club missing the deadline of 1 March 2025, the move came too late to save them from punishment. They are still expected to appeal to the court of arbitration for sport against Uefa's decision, which their chairman Steve Parish described as 'one of the greatest injustices that has ever happened in European football'. Nottingham Forest, who finished seventh last season, are set to take Palace's spot in the Europa League in 2025-26.
Metro
3 hours ago
- Sport
- Metro
Manchester United hold talks over shock move for Premier League full-back
Manchester United are looking at a number of deals this summer, but even as they cast their net wide, a move for Brighton's Pervis Estupinan appears to have come out of left field. The Red Devils only made one major signing in the January transfer window, which saw left-back Patrick Dorgu arrive from Lecce. While they are looking to sell Tyrell Malacia this summer and Luke Shaw always has fitness doubts hanging over him, left-back was not thought to be an area of focus in the transfer market. However, talkSPORT report that Manchester United are not only interested in Estupinan but have held talks with the player's representatives over a possible deal. The 27-year-old has been at Brighton since signing from Villarreal in 2022, playing 104 times for the Seagulls in all competitions and scoring five goals. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link so we can send you football news tailored to you. The Ecuador international is an attacking threat from left-back, with nine assists to his name in 84 Premier League appearances. The report states that AC Milan are also interested in the Ecuadorian and Brighton could listen to offers as they have signed Maxim De Cuyper in the same position this summer. Estupinan has two years left on his contract at the Amex, still on the five-year deal he signed in 2022. Former Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke actually suggested the Red Devils make this very move earlier this year. Yorke named two players that would be good additions to Ruben Amorim's squad, the first being Eberchi Eze and the second being the Ecuadorian. 'The second player would be Pervis Estupinan from Brighton,' Yorke told FastSlots, having already touted Eze as a good signing. 'He is a great athlete and gets up and down the pitch, he really understands the position and is so mobile. 'He's a versatile player and I think United need that energy down the left. Luke Shaw is not the player he used to be with all his injuries and it's time to move on, United are struggling and maybe it's down to not moving players on when they should've done.' Shaw is still only 30 years old but has struggled badly with injuries over his career and the last two seasons have been badly hampered by fitness issues. More Trending He made just 12 appearances in all competitions over the last campaign and 15 in the 2023-24 season. Apps: 258Goals: 3 Assists: 17 Over the last two seasons Apps: 19Goals: 0 Assists: 0 The England international did play the whole Europa League final at the end of last season as one of the three centre-backs, with Dorgu at left wing-back, but then missed the final game of the Premier League campaign as he was 'managing a foot problem.' Shaw is still under contract at Old Trafford until 2027, having signed a new deal in 2023. MORE: Arsenal plot one more major transfer after completing Viktor Gyokeres and Cristhian Mosquera deals MORE: Arsenal star Mikel Arteta sold for £21m linked with shock Premier League return MORE: Man Utd open talks to sign £40m star after Andre Onana injury
