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Mbappe No Longer Untouchable as PSG Prepare Champions League Return

Kylian Mbappe was replaced by Goncalo Ramos in the second half of PSG's draw with Rennes in Ligue 1 last weekend. FRANCK FIFE / AFP/File
Kylian Mbappe was replaced by Goncalo Ramos in the second half of PSG's draw with Rennes in Ligue 1 last weekend. FRANCK FIFE / AFP/File
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Mbappe No Longer Untouchable as PSG Prepare Champions League Return

Kylian Mbappe was replaced by Goncalo Ramos in the second half of PSG's draw with Rennes in Ligue 1 last weekend. FRANCK FIFE / AFP/File
Kylian Mbappe was replaced by Goncalo Ramos in the second half of PSG's draw with Rennes in Ligue 1 last weekend. FRANCK FIFE / AFP/File

Kylian Mbappe will face former club Monaco for the final time as a Paris Saint-Germain player on Friday, provided coach Luis Enrique selects his star player.
The France captain's relationship with the PSG boss has come under the spotlight with Mbappe discovering he is no longer assured of a place in the line-up since telling the Qatar-owned club he would leave at the end of this season, AFP said.
Mbappe informed PSG in mid-February that he intended to depart when his contract expires in June, after seven years at the Parc des Princes, with Real Madrid his likely next destination.
Luis Enrique responded to that by leaving the 25-year-old on the bench for their next game at Nantes, although Mbappe came on to score a penalty in a 2-0 win.
More surprisingly, Mbappe started last week's home meeting with Rennes and wore the captain's armband in the absence of Marquinhos, but was substituted on 65 minutes.
Trailing 1-0 at the time, PSG came back to draw thanks to a penalty won and converted by his replacement, Goncalo Ramos.
PSG's all-time top scorer with 244 goals, Mbappe has rarely started on the bench in 292 appearances since signing from Monaco in 2017.
He has occasionally been substituted earlier than was the case last weekend, but always either due to injury or with PSG already winning.
"It's very simple. Sooner or later, when it happens, we are going to have to get used to playing without Kylian," Luis Enrique said when asked to explain why he had taken Mbappe off.
"When I want to play him I will do so, and if I don't want to, the same thing."
PSG have to prepare for the future, and their position of strength in Ligue 1 allows them to do so -- despite drawing against Rennes, Luis Enrique's team are 11 points clear of second-placed Brest with 11 games remaining.
Perhaps there could even be a temptation to rest Mbappe in Monaco, given that Paris go to Spain defending a 2-0 lead into the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Real Sociedad next Tuesday.
They have been knocked out in the last 16 in five of the last seven seasons and reaching the quarter-finals this year is the minimum objective in Europe for the French champions.
Yet Mbappe will want to play in Monaco, who are themselves chasing Champions League qualification and are third in the table.
It was in the principality where he emerged as such a thrilling talent and starred as Monaco won the title in 2016/17.
His impending move abroad means he may not get a chance to return to the Stade Louis II again any time soon.
One to watch: Said Benrahma
The Algerian international joined Lyon on loan from West Ham United at the end of the January transfer window, despite the necessary paperwork not being approved before the deadline. Special dispensation was given by FIFA to complete the deal, and Benrahma has quickly shown his value to his new team.
Last weekend the 28-year-old left-winger came on and scored the winner as Lyon won 2-1 at Metz, a seventh success in nine league games for a resurgent team. In midweek he started and was the main threat, hitting the post direct from a corner, as Lyon beat Strasbourg on penalties to reach the French Cup semi-finals.
He should have a key role to play against Lens, where another win would have the once-struggling side believing they can yet snatch European qualification.

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Pressure Builds on Milano Cortina Organizers Amid Climate Concerns and Funding Issues

A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Pressure Builds on Milano Cortina Organizers Amid Climate Concerns and Funding Issues

A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)
A general view shows the Olympic rings on the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, which will host the curling, wheelchair curling, and Paralympic closing ceremony during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026, in Cortina, Italy, January 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Pressure is mounting on Italian authorities to accelerate preparations for the Milano Cortina Olympics amid funding gaps and unusually warm temperatures, even as the head of world skiing openly advocates a fundamental overhaul of how future Winter Games are hosted.

With the Games due to start in February, International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) president Johan Eliasch said Italy’s challenges were symptomatic of deeper structural issues facing winter sport, as rising costs, climate pressure and under-used infrastructure fuel calls for a rotating model of permanent Olympic hosts.

Growing concern over climate pressure, escalating costs and the waste of Olympic infrastructure after the Games is strengthening support within international sport for a rotation system, under which a small pool of established venues would host the Winter Olympics on a recurring basis.

Proponents argue that such a model would allow long-term planning, reduce spending and ensure consistent conditions for athletes and spectators, rather than forcing hosts to build or upgrade facilities that are rarely used once the Games end.

Eliasch said several Olympic venues were facing technical difficulties not because of shortcomings by local organizers, but because of funding issues at government level.

Games ‌organizers have said the ‌venues will be ready on time.

"We see here that there are some venues that have ‌technical ⁠difficulties. It’s not the ‌organizing committees. It’s just simply a lack of funding from the Italian government," he told Reuters in an interview.

"It’s really important that every effort is now made to make sure that everything is ready on time."

Eliasch warned that readiness alone was not enough.

"We know that we will get everything somehow ready on time," he said. "But the question is, of course, what? And that what needs to meet a certain quality threshold and also experience threshold for the spectators, the fans, the athletes, first and foremost, to make this a success."

He warned that funding constraints could push preparations beyond critical tipping points.

SNOWMAKING CONCERNS

"We shouldn’t be penny wise and pound foolish," Eliasch said. "And there are certain tipping points here in the process beyond which there is no return."

"So from a quality perspective, for ⁠what we’re trying to do here, it’s really important that funding doesn’t become an impediment to delivering the best of the best for those two and a half weeks in February," he added.

Snowmaking has emerged as a key concern as organizers prepare venues across northern Italy, and ‍Eliasch noted that parts of the downhill course in Bormio had ‍no snow on them.

"We know right now that the snowmaking equipment is working, but we have an additional problem, and that is that ‍the temperatures are very warm," Eliasch said. "Which means we can only produce snow during the night, not during the daytime because it’s too warm."

"So the theoretical capacity simply can’t be met," he added.

Alessandro Morelli, Italian Undersecretary of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, said he was happy with the situation.

"In Livigno, 53 additional snow cannons are in operation, ensuring the production of the snow needed for the smooth running of the competitions, ahead of the Olympics," he told Italian news agency ANSA.

"The situation satisfies us, and we are confident that we can achieve an even better result than we had imagined."

Eliasch contrasted the situation with regular international competitions.

"If this was a World Cup race or a World Championship race, it would be easy," Eliasch ⁠said. "We’d know exactly what plan B, plan C, plan D is. We wouldn't start making snow this late. We would have plans to bring in snow from other areas, track it in. We would have all sorts of contingency planning."

Olympic events are far more complex, making financial certainty essential.

"Without clarity on and transparency for the organizing committee that we’re trying to support in every possible way — and they are doing their best, they’re working incredibly hard — but without resources, no one is going to step forward and deliver without knowing that they will get paid," Eliasch, an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, said.

IOC HAT ON

"It is a very logical step to take," Eliasch said of a rotation model. "And I have advocated for it with my IOC hat on. Without long-term planning, people are not going to invest. And the Games are getting more and more expensive."

"Huge investments, billions of dollars, are being invested in infrastructure," Eliasch added. "Which becomes wasted after the Olympic Games have been held."

"For Olympic Winter Games, to pull all that together, they need at least five- or six-years’ notice," Eliasch said.

"I think we’re looking at maybe six to eight venues to start with," Eliasch said.

Climate pressure is accelerating the debate.

"Climate change could become an ‌existential threat," Eliasch said. "The only logical way to bring costs down to reasonable levels is to have a rotation scheme."

The stakes extend far beyond winter sport.

"We are competing with Formula One, NFL, NBA, football — we have to be at the forefront," he said. "The five rings are magical. And that’s something we must protect at ‌all costs."

Sports

Jackson at the Double as Senegal Defeat Botswana 3-0

Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
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Jackson at the Double as Senegal Defeat Botswana 3-0

Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)
Senegal's Nicolas Jackson celebrates after scoring during the Africa Cup of Nations group D soccer match between Senegal and Botswana in Tangier, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (AP)

Striker Nicolas Jackson scored twice as Senegal got their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign off to a winning start with a comfortable 3-0 Group D victory over Botswana in Tangier on Tuesday.

Jackson ‌converted Ismail ‌Jakobs’ low ‌cross ⁠to give ‌his side the lead after 40 minutes as they broke the resistance of a stubborn Botswana, before showing quick feet from Ismaila ⁠Sarr’s pass to finish from ‌close range just before ‍the hour-mark.

Senegal, ‍who won the Cup ‍of Nations title in 2021 and are among the favorites again, overwhelmed their opponents with waves of attacks and added a third late ⁠on from Cherif Ndiaye, one of 28 efforts on the Botswana goal.

Senegal head Group D on goal difference from the Democratic Republic of Congo after the opening round of games. The latter defeated ‌Benin 1-0 on Tuesday.

Sports

Real Madrid’s Endrick Joins Lyon on Loan

Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
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Real Madrid’s Endrick Joins Lyon on Loan

Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)
Real Madrid’s 19-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick gestures during a match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. (AFP)

Real Madrid's Brazilian starlet Endrick has joined Lyon on loan, the Ligue 1 club announced on Tuesday.

The 19-year-old joined the Spanish giants to much fanfare in summer 2024, arriving from Palmeiras where he had led the side to back-to-back Brazilian league titles.

Endrick has scored seven goals in 40 appearances for Real Madrid but has seen his playing time at the Bernabeu limited this season under new coach Xabi Alonso.

In 14 appearances with the Brazil national team, the left-footed attacker has netted three times but his last strike for the Selecao came in June last year and he has only earned one cap in 2025.

Endrick joins French side Lyon on loan until the end of the season, with a fee agreed between the clubs of one million euros ($1.2 million).