Latest news with #TonyCascarino
Daily Record
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Russell Martin warned over Rangers mistake as Celtic flop tells him challenge could be 'over before it even starts'
The new Light Blues boss gets up and running in pre-season on Monday with a big Champions League tie on the horizon Russell Martin has been handed a 'over before it even starts' Rangers warning if he overplays at Ibrox. The new Light Blues gaffer is in position and gets on the grass with his players on Monday as they begin pre-season. The ex-Southampton boss will be going all out to implement his style and brand of football on his troops from the off with a huge Champions League clash with Panathinaikos on the horizon. Speaking on talkSPORT, former Celtic attacker Tony Cascarino spoke about the new man in the dugout at Ibrox. And he made his views very clear on his philosophy and principles. He said: 'I understand that you can stick to your principles and your ideas. But if you're playing for Rangers and you're getting beaten 3-0 against Celtic, you're overplaying and they're demanding that you go for blood - because they do, whether we like it or not - that's what the Old Firm derby's like and you have to be matching that. 'If you're playing tippy-tappy football and you're winning, you won't have a problem. I'm being a bit disrespectful saying tippy-tappy but basically I mean overplaying in dangerous areas. 'If they do that against Celtic and come off second best again, it will be over before it even starts, it really will.' It's all systems go at Ibrox with the players back at Auchenhowie tomorrow and the club holding an EGM. Fans are now desperate to see new faces with a host of names linked including Conor Coady and Max Aarons. Follow Record Sport on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all of the up-to-the minute breaking news, video and audio on the SPFL, the Scotland national team and beyond. You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Rangers and Celtic pages, and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We're also WhatsApp where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to you phone. Join our Rangers community here and our Celtic community here. Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
Irish Times
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
TV View: Katie McCabe wins one for Ireland, sort of, as Arsenal topple Barcelona
Crikey, what a week for two of our footballing legends, Katie McCabe and Tony Cascarino. Regarding the former luminary of Irish sport, those of us who are expert in these matters forecast that she would be left in floods by a humiliating Barcelona triumph by at least four goals in the Champions League final. And not through any fault of her own – Barcelona are, after all, unbeatable. Apart from on Saturday in Lisbon when, well, Arsenal beat them. And Katie was close enough to being in floods, a winner's medal and a tricolour draped around her neck when she joined the TNT Sports people for a chat in the immediate aftermath of the game. Incidentally, if any of you are asked 'who was the last Irish player to win the Champions League?' and you answer Caoimhín Kelleher, you should be tarred, feathered and made to wear a skort. 'I'm just in disbelief, to be honest,' she said to our TNT presenter Becky Ives after hugging the bejaysus out of former Gooner Fara Williams. 'Well, no, actually I can believe it ... Barcelona threw absolutely everything at us and we f***ing ... sorry! We kept together, we rode out the storm.' READ MORE Becky, of course, had to apologise to the viewers for the industrial language, otherwise her gaffers would have been given a hefty fine by the regulatory folk, but you sensed from her chuckle that she was thinking, 'F***ing go for it, Katie!' It wasn't the most thrilling of games, as Champions League finals tend not to be, but those of us who might have fretted about our Katie's ability to contain the footballing royalty that is Caroline Graham Hansen ended up asking, 'Is Caroline Graham Hansen on the pitch?' If Caroline never meets Katie again, it'll still be too soon. Put it this way. Barcelona beat Chelsea, England's domestic treble winners, 8-2 on aggregate in the Champions League semi-finals. Chelsea finished 12 points clear of Arsenal in the league. So Arsenal should have been pulverised by half-time. But football, as we know, is a gas old game. 'Where's the party?' asked Becky. 'In an undisclosed location,' said Katie. 'I'll probably fly out to Ibiza in the morning.' As if the FAI hasn't had enough emergency meetings of late. 'Lads, top of today's agenda is the Irish women's captain having a shindig on a Spanish island when we're playing Turkey in the Nations League this feckin' Friday.' You suspect she'll be there. [ Katie McCabe tastes Champions League glory as Arsenal stun Barcelona to clinch title Opens in new window ] If Katie McCabe was a dog, she'd probably be an XL Bully, although, in fairness, XL Bullies pick up fewer yellow cards. She certainly wouldn't be a small, white, exceedingly fluffy and groomed-to-within-an-inch-of-its-life pooch called Pixie. The couple who arrived at Channel 4's Bad Dog Academy were stressed out. Pixie was off her food, barking constantly at her bowl. 'I'm sure you've dealt with worse problems,' said the husband, a touch embarrassed by the situation, but the trainer reassured him that they were experiencing bigger issues. Next door, for example, was Ronny the bulldog who humps everything and everyone, and has eaten 'solid concrete, garden statues, gym equipment, a treadmill and a trampoline'. That seemed to bring some relief to Pixie's human Dad. But. 'I imagine there aren't that many ex-Millwall players walking Pomeranians,' said presenter Nick Grimshaw. 'Nah,' said Tony Cascarino, for it is he who is Pixie's Da. 'I avoid walking her around on my own, I get some stick. I was a no-nonsense centre forward, I am not walking that ball of fluff.' Anyway, the trainer got to work on Pixie, and in no time at all she was a new dog. Not an XL Bully as Tony might have hoped, just to ward off the Millwall fans, but a non-barking, all-eating Pomeranian ball of fluff. 'I am thinking about getting another dog,' beamed Tony's wife, Jo, when the programme caught up with them for a progress report. Not since he discovered he was never actually eligible to play for Ireland has Tony's face fallen so far. Still, Pixie's stopped barking, Katie has a Champions League medal and, as weeks go for our footballing icons, we'll take it.
Irish Daily Mirror
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Ireland could be set for shock Eurovision final appearance
Bookmakers have given Ireland's Eurovision entry Emmy a chance at making the grand final on Saturday, with odds of 10/11 of her song 'Laika Party' making it through the fiercely contested round. Currently, Finland and Austria stand the best chance of making it through, with both countries boasting odds of 1/100. Israel runs a close third at 1/80. Further down the running, both Georgia and Montenegro stand a 7/1 chance of beating the other contenders, needing more than an ounce of luck spared their way. Outright, Sweden looks to have a locked up a place in the grand final well in advance. The seven-time champions are as well-placed as ever to surpass Ireland by winning a record eighth Eurovision crown, with 5/6 odds of taking the title on Saturday. Austria seem likeliest to challenge Sweden with odds of 3/1, while Ireland lags behind the frontrunning pack, with 100/1 odds of winning the contest outright. 'Emmy may be singing about a party in the skies but it remains to be seen whether they'll be partying in Switzerland with Ireland's qualification firmly in coin-toss territory," said Tonybet brand ambassador and former Ireland international Tony Cascarino. "As for the outright, Sweden remains the song to beat which would unfortunately see Ireland lose its place atop the winners table.' Sweden's last Eurovision triumph came in 2023, with Loreen's electropop single 'Tattoo' making her the second artist since Johnny Logan to win the competition twice. Ireland's most recent win dates back to Oslo 1996, when Eimear Quinn delivered the isle its fourth Eurovision crown of the 1990s, and its seventh overall. The decades since have seen Ireland mired in the Eurovision wilderness, failing to reach the final 11 times since the semis were introduced in 2004. Recent years have seen a slight return to form for Ireland - with Bambie Thug's 'Doomsday' scoring a sixth-place finish in 2024's Malmö final. It remains to be seen if Emmy can reach the same heights this week.
