Chianti Classico was the toast of Ascot having successfully continued his chasing education in the Royal Ascot Racing Club Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase.

A winner of all but one of his outings as a novice hurdler, Kim Bailey’s six-year-old made a successful transition to the larger obstacles at Chepstow last month.

However, he faced a tough task when sent off the 4-5 favourite for this three-runner assignment, having to concede over a stone in weight on the quickest ground he has encountered so far.

Although not at his slickest over his obstacles at points in the three-mile event, his class came to the fore when it mattered as he pulled three-quarters of a length clear of Scrum Diddly after the last.

“That ground was probably quick enough for him and he was not enjoying the ground at all,” said Bailey.

“He has only run on softer ground so fingers crossed he is OK tomorrow.

“It’s a tough performance as he has given lumps of weight away on a day it hasn’t gone right for him. He can see he was landing and not very happy with it.

“His class got him through, definitely, he’s a decent animal. It was a big experience, last time we wanted to drop him right out and get his jumping right and today he couldn’t do it and couldn’t afford to get any further behind.

“He’s won well and at the end of the day he has won, that’s all that matters.”

Chianti Classico is part-owned by Sir Francis Brooke, His Majesty’s Representative and chairman of Ascot and a return to the track for the Reynoldstown Novices’ Chase in the early part of next year could be the ideal opportunity for the gelding to test himself at Graded level.

“We’ll see how he is over the next week and he takes a lot out of himself in his races,” continued Bailey.

“He’s not a horse he can run in a hurry and it will be two months before he runs again whatever happens.

“That would be the ideal race for him and timewise that (the Reynoldstown) fits in very well.”

Another exciting prospect enhancing his reputation was Paul Nicholls’ Farnoge (4-1) who beat some smart opponents to win the Bet With Ascot Donation Box Scheme Novices’ Hurdle.

Second to Gordon Elliott’s Better Days Ahead in a point-to-point before switching to Ditcheat, he is now unbeaten in three starts under rules with his rider Harry Cobden expecting bigger and better things later in the year.

“I can see him being a Graded horse,” said Cobden after the two-and-a-quarter-length success.

“We will have to get home and speak to the boss and see what he thinks, but he’s very smart.

“He went to Newton Abbot when he was probably 75-80 per cent fit and had a nice canter round there and he’s done the same again here against some useful horses behind him, it’s exciting.

“He would be right up there in the top five (novices at Ditcheat). 100 per cent. He will definitely be in Graded races and he’s had a 5lb penalty today as well.”

Kamsinas built on the promise of his previous outing when landing the Betfair Racing Podcasts Newton Novices’ Hurdle at Haydock.

Trained by Fergal O’Brien, the six-year-old had gone close in Grade Two company at Cheltenham behind Neil King’s Lookaway and when the winner ran a big race in the Greatwood Hurdle afterwards, O’Brien knew he had a nice youngster on his hands.

He was taking on a couple of well-regarded types in Henry Daly’s Bowenspark and the Lucinda Russell-trained Primoz, but they could not live with Kamsinas (16-5) in the straight.

Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero’s Making Headway tried to make a race of it, but still went down by a length and a quarter behind Paddy Brennan on the winner.

O’Brien said: “We were very hopeful – I’m never confident – as he’d been working well and was very unlucky at Cheltenham when he got stopped in his run.

“That form was franked by the winner and what I loved about him there was he threw himself over the last showing a great will to win.

“I’m delighted with him, he’s a super little horse. We’ll all sit and have a chat about what next but we thought something like this was in him. We need these days.

“It’s a long road to Cheltenham in March and hopefully there’ll be a lot of races before then. I think he’ll get further and he’s already shown he handles Cheltenham.”

Dan Skelton hopes the handicapper does not get too carried away after Real Stone coasted to victory in the betting.betfair.com Handicap Chase.

When his two main market rivals, Cheddleton and Pay The Piper, dropped away, the 15-8 favourite coasted to a 20-length win under Harry Skelton.

Skelton said: “The first thing I have to say is that I hope the other two are OK because they clearly haven’t given their true running, they are good horses on their day.

“When you’ve been having a bit of a run like we have, when there’s nothing wrong with them but winners are not exactly flowing, it’s nice to enjoy one like that.

“We’ll go quietly with him, he’s not had loads of racing and he probably has to go left-handed which rules out those Ascot races, but we hope to end up in something like the Red Rum (at Aintree).”

Arsenal announced they would become the first Premier League club to welcome fans in for a competitive fixture since March following the coronavirus pandemic, on this day in 2020.

The north London club confirmed 2,000 spectators were to be allowed in for their Europa League match against Rapid Vienna the following week.

The Gunners learned Emirates Stadium was to be in tier two of the Government’s new regionalised approach to tackling the coronavirus pandemic, and were able to welcome fans in for the clash with the Austrian side.

A club statement read: “It’s been almost nine long months since we had fans in attendance at Emirates Stadium and our matches have simply not been the same without you.

“While we appreciate that reduced capacity matches will be far from being ‘back to normal’, we can’t wait to welcome our fans back home for what will be a historic moment for the club.”

This was the first time fans have been able to watch a Premier League side in action since the first coronavirus lockdown saw the 2019-20 season pause in March.

In the match itself, Arsenal eased to a 4-1 victory.

The Gunners had already booked their place in the knockout stages, but a comfortable win meant they finished at the top of Group B.

Alexandre Lacazette opened the scoring with an impressive long-range strike before Pablo Mari, returning to the team for the first time since suffering an ankle injury in June, headed in a second, with academy graduates Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe adding the gloss either side of Kohya Kitagawa’s consolation.

Erik ten Hag believes his Manchester United team have reached a “turning point” as they head into a crucial week of fixtures.

The Dutchman’s future at Old Trafford was under immense scrutiny at the start of the month, with United’s record of eight defeats in their first 15 matches in all competitions amounting to their worst start to a season since 1962.

United won their two Premier League fixtures prior to the international break – away to Fulham and at home to Luton – to ease the pressure and leave them with a record of four wins from their last five league matches.

They resume after the break with three away days in hostile atmospheres – first at Everton on Sunday against a team fuelled by a sense of injustice following the imposition of a 10-point penalty for breaching Premier League financial rules, followed by a visit to Istanbul to take on Galatasaray on Wednesday before a trip to St James’ Park to face Newcastle.

But Ten Hag insists morale is good among his players heading into a hectic period of matches which could define United’s season.

“We have seen a turning point,” the former Ajax boss said.

“Now we have to build on. We go into a massive month and we are really looking forward with confidence.

“There are no easy games for anyone – everyone will drop points. But the last five games we won four and that gives us confidence going into the next games.”

On the tests of character about to face his side, Ten Hag added: “We play three games in six days and as a group we have to deal with that.

“We have a plan, we have studied for it. We made the players aware that they have to take responsibility, but especially it’s about co-operation.”

United are boosted by the return of England international Luke Shaw from a thigh muscle injury which has sidelined him since August.

Goalkeeper Andre Onana has overcome a knock suffered on international duty with Cameroon, but a late call will be taken on whether Rasmus Hojlund can feature.

The Dane suffered a muscle strain in the second half of the win over Luton just before the November international break.

Hojlund’s international team-mate Christian Eriksen will not be available due to a knee injury, while central defender Jonny Evans is not ready to return yet from a thigh problem.

Betfair have launched a charity fund which will see them donate £5,000 for every winner Rachael Blackmore rides between Betfair Chase day and the Randox Grand National.

The bookmaker has initiated the launch of the ‘Rachael Blackmore’s Serial Winners Fund’ by donating £100,000, and it is estimated that around £250,000 will be raised for the Injured Jockeys Fund and the Irish Injured Jockeys.

Blackmore, a Grand National and Gold Cup-winning jockey, has averaged around 30 winners in the period between the Betfair Chase meeting at Haydock and the Grand National, which this year takes place on April 13.

Blackmore, a Betfair ambassador, said: “This is a very generous initiative from Betfair and one that I am excited to be a part of over the coming season.

“The work of IIJ and IJF is vital in providing support services for jockeys past and present. It’s great to have Betfair supporting not only me, but two organisations that are so important to us as jockeys.”

Lisa Hancock, CEO of the Injured Jockeys Fund, said: “We are very grateful to Betfair who have been great supporters of the Injured Jockeys Fund for many years. Rachael of course is an inspiration to all aspiring jockeys, and we will be hoping she kicks home plenty of winners over the coming months.”

Michael Higgins of the Irish Injured Jockeys said: “We are very grateful to Betfair for this generous initiative and are delighted to be joint beneficiaries with our friends in the IJF.

“Rachael is a committed supporter of IIJ and a fantastic role model for our sport and hope her current run of success continues. We have major plans in 2024 and a project which will involve significant investment on our part which will transform facilities and services available to our riders. This, along with our existing support programs, will benefit hugely from the fund.”

Ange Postecoglou has promised Giovani Lo Celso there will be opportunities for him to turn around his Tottenham career over the coming weeks.

Spurs are without at least nine first-teamers for the visit of Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.

Yves Bissouma (suspended) and James Maddison (ankle) will definitely miss out and the prolonged absence of the latter has resulted in calls for Lo Celso to be given a first league start for Spurs since 2021.

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Signed four years ago towards the end of Mauricio Pochettino’s tenure, the Argentina international worked with current Villa boss Unai Emery at Villarreal last season, but could get the chance to haunt his old manager this weekend.

“I looked at Gio really well before I got here, both here at Tottenham and his spells at other clubs,” Postecoglou said.

“You can see he has certain qualities. He’s had a disruptive season for us. He’s had a few injuries, he hasn’t really had a clean run at it.

“He’s one of a number of players that has happened to, but you can see technically, he’s a very creative player, he works hard for the team.

“He’ll get an opportunity over the next few weeks to hopefully come in and make an impact.”

While Lo Celso has struggled to make his mark in England, the 27-year-old remains a key figure for his country and started Argentina’s 1-0 win in Brazil on Tuesday.

But Postecoglou admitted: “I don’t think his national-team form is a direct correlation to here. Just like anyone else’s.

“Gio will get an opportunity, particularly over the next few weeks because we are down on numbers and have a fair few games between now and the new year.

“If they’re here, they’ll get an opportunity. That’s all you can offer.”

Lo Celso was heavily linked with a move away in the summer, but Postecoglou made clear from the outset his desire to keep him at Spurs.

Barcelona remain interested in the midfielder and while Tottenham’s injury list makes departures unlikely in January, the Australian conceded now is his chance to cast an eye over the squad.

Postecoglou added: “From my perspective, this is the time when I am getting an opportunity to make all these assessments because if you lump it all into one and look at previous exposure here at the club, that’s not really relevant to me.

“It’s what I see from now on and how the players feel themselves about playing the football that I want and whether they see themselves fitting into that.

“It hasn’t happened by design but I am certainly going to get a good look at everyone.”

Meanwhile, Postecoglou heaped praise on opposite number Emery for turning Villa into top-four contenders inside 12 months.

“I haven’t come across him, but I have been a great admirer of his coaching,” Postecoglou revealed.

“He came over here and the experience (with Arsenal) didn’t deter him in any way. He didn’t lose any belief in who he is as a manager.

“He has turned Villa around very, very quickly and you have got to remember what position they were in.

“I have looked at his teams and they have always been very well organised and structured, with a clear identity.

“And he has transferred that across three different countries. He is a quality manager.”

Philippe Clement is taking nothing from the best and worst of Aberdeen as he readies his Rangers side for the trip to Pittodrie on Sunday.

The Dons, who will face off against the Ibrox men in the Viaplay Cup final at Hampden Park next month, were thrashed 6-0 at Celtic Park in the cinch Premiership immediately before the international break.

However, a comprehensive 3-1 league win against Rangers at Ibrox in September signalled the end for former Gers boss Michael Beale, with Steven Davis taking over on an interim basis before Clement arrived from Belgium.

The 49-year-old former Genk, Club Brugge and Monaco boss denied there would be extra motivation for the Ibrox side following their most recent meeting with the Granite City side.

He said:  “I don’t think it works that way. I’ve never worked that way. The past is the past and every game has its own story.

“There are other players available now on both sides. It’s an away game.

“We need to focus on ourselves. If we’d won that game 6-0 it would not have been different preparation this time.”

As for the Dons’ dismal performance at Parkhead, Clement said: “It wasn’t their best day so I think it’s not an advantage for us because you know that after a game like that, you always have a team and players who want to react to show they’re better.

“And they are better because they’ve shown these last couple of few months.”

Clement is glad to see winger Rabbi Matondo available again after being out since September with a knee injury.

The Belgian said: “He can also play central and his best period in Belgium (on loan at Cercle Brugge from Schalke 04) was as a second striker where he had a lot of freedom.

“He’s an electric player, he can eliminate fast one versus one with his dribbles, with his actions and his speed.

“So it’s someone really interesting to break open walls but of course, he comes out of an injury, he was a long time out, so we can’t expect him to get his highest level from the first minute he plays so it’ll be building with him and he can give something to the team.”

Andrei Vasilevskiy received plenty of support in his season debut, as Brayden Point had a hat trick and two assists in an 8-2 drubbing of the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday.

Vasilevskiy, a winner of the Vezina Trophy and Conn Smythe Trophy, appeared in his first game since April following offseason surgery. He stopped 22 shots and improved to 13-5-3 all-time against Carolina.

Nikita Kucherov had two goals and four assists and Brandon Hagel added a goal and two assists for the Lightning, who are 4-0-1 in their past five games.

Tampa Bay scored three power-play goals in the first six minutes of the second period for a 3-1 lead.

Carolina made it a one-goal game later in the frame, but the Lightning scored five times in the third period, two by Point.

Stefan Noesen and Michael Bunting had goals for the Hurricanes, who lost for just the second time in eight home games this season.

Surging Kings stay unbeaten on road

Kevin Fiala scored twice and Anze Kopitar added a goal and an assist as the Los Angeles Kings remained perfect on the road with a 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks.

Arthur Kaliyev and Quinton Byfield also scored for the Kings, who won their fourth straight overall and improved to 9-0-0 on the road this season.

That’s the second-longest such streak in NHL history, trailing only the Buffalo Sabres’ 10 consecutive wins to open the 2006-07 season.

Alex Killorn and Radko Gudas had goals for Anaheim, which has lost five straight after winning eight of its previous 10.

Red Wings notch second win over NHL-best Bruins

Alex DeBrincat and J.T. Compher each scored one goal and set up another and the Detroit Red Wings defeated the NHL-leading Boston Bruins for the second time this season, 5-2.

Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen tallied for the Bruins, who had been 5-0-2 since losing at Detroit on Nov. 4.

Both of Boston’s regulation losses (14-2-3) have come against Detroit.

Robby Fabbri, Dylan Larkin and David Perron had the other goals as the Red Wings won their second straight following a 0-1-1 trip to Sweden.

Devon Holland’s 99-yard interception touchdown stole the show in one of the plays of the year as the Miami Dolphins beat the New York Jets 34-13.

Holland’s stunning run came after Jets quarterback Tim Boyle launched a hail Mary pass on the stroke of half-time, the Dolphins safety snatching the ball on his own one-yard line.

There was barely a finger laid on Holland as he went went the length of the pitch, evading the Jets defence and giving the Dolphins an 11-point lead following a second quarter touchdown from Tyreek Hill.

The touchdown came just after Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was intercepted by Brandin Echols and the Dolphins pulled away in the second half.

Two fourth quarter touchdowns from running back Raheem Mostert, including a 34-yard run, gave the Dolphins an unassailable lead and back-to-back wins.

Tagovailoa threw for 243 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions, moving the Dolphins to their eighth win in 11 games and a two-game cushion over the Buffalo Bills at the top of the AFC East.

Rotherham interim manager Wayne Carlisle feels confidence will grow within the squad after his team battled to secure a 1-1 draw with Leeds.

Crysencio Summerville fired Leeds in front early on but Rotherham got level through Hakeem Odoffin and arguably had the better chances to win the game in the second half.

Carlisle, who is in the hotseat following the dismissal of Matt Taylor, said: “The boys worked their socks off.

“I think in the first half, when we look back at it, there will be parts we were disappointed with. But we were more than good enough for a point in the second half.

“The momentum shifted from them being on top, to us getting a foothold in the game in the second half. The goal gave us hope going into the second half.

“It was always going to be a bit sticky for the players because Matt was popular. Once they got some confidence they started going about their business well.”

Leeds stormed ahead on six minutes with Summerville slipped in by Georginio Rutter. He arrowed his strike into the bottom corner beyond Viktor Johansson.

The visitors were launching menacing counter-attacks and one really should have led to a second when Summerville scampered clear and found Glen Kamara who lashed into the side netting.

Rotherham took their first big sniff of a chance in stoppage time at the end of the first half when the ball broke kindly to Odoffin and he duly smashed low into the net.

The Millers’ second half display largely stifled Leeds and almost led to a winner of their own.

It took a tremendous block from Liam Cooper to stop Rotherham going ahead early in the second period when Sam Nombe’s shot looked destined to go in.

Leeds substitute Wilfried Gnonto smashed just off target after being found by Dan James.

Fred Onyedinma had to be denied at the other end by Illan Meslier after breaking clear down the right.

Leeds were denied a late winner through an offside flag when Jaidon Anthony tapped in from close range.

Leeds manager Daniel Farke said: “The first emotion is definitely disappointment. That dominance should normally be enough to win all three points.

“It’s football and we had the chances to bury the game.

“I was very happy with our performance in the first half.

“We enjoyed our dominance a bit too much and we lacked the last few per cent to really bury the game. If you don’t do that it can happen in this league.

“In the last 20 minutes we created more than enough opportunities to win the game.

“Although the major feeling is disappointment. It’s a draw on the road and in this league that is never a bad result.”

Ange Postecoglou insists he has too much on his plate to worry about an investigation by the Football Association into a potential breach of agent rules during a 2008 transfer which involves Tottenham.

The Times reported this week that an unlicensed agent may have been used during the negotiations of Jermain Defoe’s transfer from Spurs to Portsmouth in the winter transfer window of 2008.

The FA has confirmed to the PA news agency that they are looking at the case, which did go to an arbitration hearing at the time of Defoe’s move to Fratton Park in the 2007-08 campaign. PA has contacted Tottenham for comment.

No action was taken against any party involved in the transfer, but with Spurs dealing with a growing injury list ahead of Sunday’s visit of Aston Villa in the Premier League, any potential punishment is far from Postecoglou’s mind.

“In 2008? I think I was maybe coaching Brisbane Roar mate, so fair to say I wasn’t around then,” he said.

“And really, if you think that’s coming across my desk? People are keeping a fair bit away from me at the moment because of what’s really important and that is we’ve got a big game on Sunday.

“With the issues we’ve got around the team, that’s where my focus is.

“It’s not across my desk, mate. For me to give you an answer would mean me sitting down with whoever is doing the investigation, whoever has all the information here, you know how many hours?

“I don’t know if you’ve spent any hours doing that but I don’t have that time in my day to be assessing those kinds of issues.

“With those kinds of things, any of those issues, there are those responsible, maybe I’m the spokesman, but I’m the spokesman for the football club in terms of the football.

“I would hate it absolutely if you got a lawyer out here and he started talking about what sort of formation we should play at the weekend.

“I’ll keep my mouth shut with those things, not for any other reason, but I respect the space that other people are in and that I’m in.

“If you’ve got real questions about that, there are probably better people to ask than me.”

Meanwhile, an FA spokesperson told PA: “We are looking at the case, and as part of that we will be reviewing the arbitration panel award.”

Mauricio Pochettino believes Premier League managers should be invited to play a more active role in helping shape refereeing guidelines.

Chelsea have been involved in a number of controversial fixtures this season, most notably the frenetic 4-1 win away at Tottenham earlier in November in which Spurs had two players sent off, five goals were disallowed and VAR made nine interventions across a match that lasted over 110 minutes.

Pochettino has previously complained that the league’s request to meet with coaches in the week before the beginning of the season to discuss changes allowed little room for constructive input from managers and their clubs.

The current campaign has seen a barrage of complaints directed at on-field and VAR officials, with referees coming under almost unprecedented scrutiny following a string of errors, particularly relating to the influence of the video referee on the decision-making process.

“We all have full respect for the referees, we understand perfectly that their job is really tough,” said Pochettino, whose team face Newcastle at St James’s Park on Saturday.

“But the problem is you get frustrated sometimes during the game because of the VAR. The referee is not responsible sometimes. You cannot complain to the VAR. That is a problem.

“I’m going to try and control more my emotions. I think all the coaches respect the referees because they’re in a really difficult situation.

“I think sometimes we are frustrated. I think coaches need to be more involved in the decisions, and to work together during the season.

“It is not (ideal) to arrive the week before the start of the Premier League season and say, ‘OK, the new rules are this. What do you think?’. Nothing, because you have already made the decision. Like the rule that there can only be one coach (in the technical area). Why?

“England was always different about the relationship with the referee. You can talk, you can (previously) have four people in the dugout. Which way do we want to evolve in the Premier League?

“England is different. Not only because you drive on the right (of the car), but because of the relationship in football. It is the gentleman’s game.”

Despite those frustrations, and the ongoing confusion surrounding the proper implementation of VAR and its interpretation of the game’s rules, Pochettino acknowledged that the emotional side of football is ultimately what props up the business side of the sport.

“I think people look at football and understand that it is a big business,” he said. “The sport is very honest, with rules. But around that it is a business that we cannot stop.

“If the sport doesn’t produce that emotion it is producing, it is difficult to talk about it in this way, to have the chance to have good salaries, to give also to society.

“Football provides people with happiness and that is the most important thing. We are all part of this business.”