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PSG May Be Spared from Facing Rashford and Watkins Double Act in the Champions League

Football - Premier League - Southampton v Aston Villa - St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Britain - April 12, 2025 Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford shoots at goal. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Southampton v Aston Villa - St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Britain - April 12, 2025 Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford shoots at goal. (Reuters)
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PSG May Be Spared from Facing Rashford and Watkins Double Act in the Champions League

Football - Premier League - Southampton v Aston Villa - St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Britain - April 12, 2025 Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford shoots at goal. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Southampton v Aston Villa - St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Britain - April 12, 2025 Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford shoots at goal. (Reuters)

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery suggested he is not ready to unleash Marcus Rashford and Ollie Watkins as a strike partnership against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Villa needs to overturn a 3-1 deficit from the first leg when the teams meet at Villa Park.

But Emery does not think England internationals Rashford and Watkins can play as a front two yet.

“The next step, if I have time, is to play them together,” he told a news conference Monday. “We did with Rashford playing left side, but now we are choosing more with both playing as strikers. That’s the next step. I want to practice. I want to test, but not now, with enough time.”

Rashford has impressed during a loan spell from Manchester United, with three goals in recent weeks. Watkins has scored 15 this season, including one to set up a 3-0 win against Southampton on Saturday after coming on as a substitute.

Emery said Watkins feels “fantastic,” but he is still to decide what team to play against French champion PSG.

“I don’t have my idea in my mind for the starting 11, I have my idea, a plan, overall 90 minutes or extra-time or penalty shootout for the match tomorrow,” he said. “Every player has to know their task on the field, and they have to understand as well, how we manage the match emotionally and tactically as well, in case they are on the field to do their task.”

Emery said his players have to believe they can produce an epic comeback to book their place in the semifinals.

“We want to write here the history with Aston Villa,” he said.

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Case Closed but Doping Still in Focus as Sinner Nears End of Ban

FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 26, 2025 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates winning the final against Germany's Alexander Zverev REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 26, 2025 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates winning the final against Germany's Alexander Zverev REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo
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Case Closed but Doping Still in Focus as Sinner Nears End of Ban

FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 26, 2025 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates winning the final against Germany's Alexander Zverev REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 26, 2025 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates winning the final against Germany's Alexander Zverev REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo

As Jannik Sinner nears the end of a three-month doping ban that shook the tennis world, players are flocking to anti-doping authorities seeking advice on how to avoid positive tests due to contamination.
The Italian agreed a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency in February and began an immediate three-month suspension after authorities accepted that the anabolic agent clostebol had entered his system via massages from his physiotherapist.
His case and that of Iga Swiatek left many players concerned about inadvertently being caught up in the doping net, and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said it will step up efforts to help them safely navigate the path ahead.
"We have seen an increase of players asking for advice and assistance since the high-profile cases, and we are working on ways to make that easier," the ITIA told Reuters.
"There are lots of resources that are available to assist with checking supplements and medications. If players, coaches and medical staff have questions, they can contact us.
"We are not trying to trip people up, our role is to protect the sport and maintain a level playing field."
While Sinner's case has led to heightened vigilance within the tennis fraternity, some players remain unhappy with how it was handled in the belief that the 23-year-old received favorable treatment.
Novak Djokovic expressed frustration earlier this year at being "kept in the dark" about the case, while the outspoken Nick Kyrgios said that it was "disgusting" for the sport.
American great Serena Williams reignited the debate ahead of Sinner's return in Rome next week, saying she would have received a 20-year ban and had her Grand Slam titles taken away had she tested positive in a similar manner.
The ITIA has remained firm that all its cases are dealt with based on facts and evidence and not a player's name, nationality or ranking.
BUILD MOMENTUM
Apart from his enforced period of idleness, Sinner has largely been unaffected by the uproar, winning the US Open last year before successfully defending his Australian Open title in January.
In Rome, the world number one will aim to leave the doping saga behind him and build momentum for the French Open in late May.
He is all but assured of remaining at the top of the world rankings until Roland Garros after Alexander Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz failed to exploit his absence during the claycourt swing, but he does not expect a smooth road on his return.
"It certainly won't be easy for me. The first games will be really difficult," Sinner said.
"Hopefully I'll be able to get back into the rhythm and then we'll see how it goes."
Spanish great Rafa Nadal believes Sinner should now be allowed to focus on his tennis, while acknowledging the case had not been positive for the sport.
"In the end, if I'm not mistaken, he came out of the ruling as innocent," Nadal told Britain's Daily Telegraph.
"But these things happen sometimes, accidents happen, and that's how I see this because I believe in Jannik. I'm convinced from what I know of Jannik that he never tried to cheat or get an advantage over the rest.
"I'm sure that Jannik is an innocent and moral person ... I believe in the ruling. Jannik has accepted these three months of sanction and so: case closed."