Latest news with #Florentina
Daily Mail
7 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Former Man United star has contract TERMINATED by Ligue 1 side - months after being linked with shock Premier League return
A former Manchester United star has seen his contract terminated by Ligue 1 heavyweights on the eve of the season. The Ligue 1 campaign kicks off on Friday night with PSG once again the heavy title favourites after winning the last four editions and adding the Champions League and UEFA Super Cup to their trophy cabinet. But one star will not be taking part after seeing his deal cut short just months before it was due to end. And while he is 37 years old, it opens a world of possibilities for his next move after he was linked with a return to the Premier League last season - albeit with now-relegated Ipswich Town. Florian Plettenberg reported that Ipswich were battling Napoli, Florentina and Como for his signature. Former United midfielder Nemanja Matic finds himself a free agent after Lyon pulled the plug on Thursday. Lyon posted a curt statement, writing: 'Nemanja Matic and OL end their collaboration. Thank you for all the great moments, Nemanja. Best of luck for the future.' Matic joined Lyon in January last year from Rennes and he made 55 appearances for them. No reason has been given for why Lyon have ended their time together. In June, Lyon were relegated to Ligue 2 because of their financial plight, having announced debts of £422million last October. However, Les Gones appealed against their demotion and won, meaning they will play a 37th consecutive season in the top tier. That decision also led to Crystal Palace ultimately losing their place in the Europa League as the two clubs had both shared John Textor as an owner. Matic also found himself in hot water last season after being banned for two games for taping over a LGBTQ + logo during a match. He covered the rainbow-coloured Ligue 1 logo on his shirt against Angers on the final day of the season - part of the league's annual anti-homophobia campaign. Matic also hit the headlines for a high-profile spat with United goalkeeper Andre Onana, calling him 'one of the worst goalkeepers in Man United history' ahead of their Europa League clash, after the custodian claimed the Red Devils were 'better than' the Ligue 1 outfit. The Serbian spent five seasons at Old Trafford, accumulating 189 appearances, although he was unable to build on the two Premier League titles, FA Cup, and Carabao Cup that he won with Chelsea. Midfielder Matic was an instrumental part of the Chelsea side which won the title under Jose Mourinho in 2014-15, then again under Antonio Conte in 2016-17.
The Herald Scotland
17-05-2025
- General
- The Herald Scotland
How to encourage swallows and house martins to your garden
Some migrants still build mud nests in caves and under cliff overhangs, but many are now attracted to our villages and towns. Our houses and outbuildings offer safe spots and there's often a goodly insect population for their chicks. We can help by providing an artificial nest from a garden centre. This is usually very popular with potential occupants as it saves time and energy spent on constructing their own. A nest must be placed at the correct distance from an overhang and where it will be sheltered from hot sun, wind and driving rain. A successful artificial nest is very worthwhile. There's evidence that birds using one or a previous year's nest actually raise more chicks, both because it gives them the time to have more than one brood and because the nest is less likely to collapse, causing an all-too-common brood failure. And House Martins find it impossible to make mud stick firmly to our modern, plastic soffits. Read more An easily-accessible outbuilding is great but if you need to shut or lock a shed overnight, be sure to keep it shut all the time. For security reasons, I have to lock the workshop at night, so must always remember to keep it shut all the time to keep out exploring birds. For hygiene, we have to regularly clean bird feeders but since both Swallows and House Martins reuse nests from the previous year, a build up of nest parasites doesn't seem to be a significant problem. As well as providing accommodation for these migrants, we can also ensure our gardens have a steady supply of insects. Swallows and House Martins feed on small flies, aphids, flying ants and beetles. And to my delight they'll help reduce the dragoons of blood-sucking clegs and mosquitoes. Swallows often skim low over short grassland and burns but House Martins tend to feed higher in the air. Since they need fairly small insects, especially for feeding to their chicks, it's important to grow lots of open, flat topped flowers like Achilleas and umbellifers which attract small flying insects. Let herbs like dill, fennel and coriander flower and later in the summer the flowering stems of mint are also useful. Check out which flowers attract small flies, not just the larger bees, and see if you can grow more of them next year. Sadly we have no control of the effect of climate change on all of this. Unusually dry springs like this one and wet summers like last year reduce insect populations and warmer early springs bring migrants before insect populations have built up. So all we can do is provide the best conditions possible. Plant of the week Plant of the Week (Image: unknown) Iris germanica 'Florentina' is an early flowering bearded iris with silvery white falls and standards and yellow beards. The sharply pointed buds are tipped grey/blue. It is scented and the rhizomes are a source of orris used in perfumery. Hardy and long-lived, my slowly growing clump has been flowering for decades, it will thrive with good drainage and a sunny spot. The leaves persist in to the winter but become rather tatty and it best to trim them up in early spring.
