hello and welcome along to sports day. i'm sarah mccammon. advantage middlesbrough in the english league cup — they'll take a slender lead into the second leg of their advantage middlesbrough in the english league cup — semi final clash with chelsea we'll have the latest from the snooker masters alexandra palace where the defending champion edged through his first round match and we'll find out how yorkshire county cricket club's

takeover offer by a consortium headed up by its former chairman colin graves is causing controversy welcome to the programme... the cup football is continuing around europe and in england, chelsea have suffered a blow in the league cup. the premier league side were been beaten 1—0 by championship side middlesbrough in the first leg of their semifinal at the riverside stadium. mauricio pochettino�*s side missed a host of chances, with hayden hackney giving middlesbrough the advantage heading into the second leg. our senior football reporter ian dennis was there. a riverside roar greeted the final whistle as middlesbrough achieved a crucial first leg advantage, both sides depleted by injury. but the championship side were dealt with a double setback as late latham bangoura were forced off. undeterred, middlesbrough took the lead with a highly rated hayden hackney, staring in a 37th minute goal from close range. chelsea should have scored in the first half. morawiecki was causing problems. palmer was presented with two presents. he placed one wide and popped another over in front of a gaping goal. in the second half,

chelsea were restricted to few opportunities because middlesbrough were resilient and disciplined as they now have a lead to protect for the return leg. liverpool have won the league cup on nine occasions; more than any other english side. they host fulham in the first leg of the other semifinal on wednesday. when we are young, you want to play in the most iconic stadiums in the world, and wembley is one of them, has so much history and so many memories we already made there. so you want to go there. that's i think the team has this hunger. it's the closest final we can reach, but we have to respect fulham and they have a very clear way, a good offensive idea, really creative. we have this belief in ourselves. we know we really trust in the process. the players understand really well. of course, at this level, you you face always great, great sides. and if you are not at your best level, of course it's going to be really difficult to you if you are in this stage.

you want to aim more. you want to to have the ambition to to be at wembley and release the ambition that you are going to play, understanding the quality of liverpool and the use and the great challenge that we have ahead of us. to the cup action in italy now, where fiorentina are into the semi finals of the coppa italia. they beat bologna 5—4 on penalties after the game finished 0—0. they will play the winners of atalanta and milan.

there's also a rome derby on wednesday between lazio and roma. they beat bologna 5—4 on penalties after the game finished 0—0. they will play the winners of atalanta and milan. there's also a rome derby on wednesday between lazio and roma. the former president of a turkish top division team told a court in ankara on tuesday, that he regretted attacking a referee at the end of a league game but denied having threatened him with death. faruk koca, who has resigned as president of mke ankaragucu after punching referee halil umut meler, has been charged with causing

wilful injury to a public official, threatening an official and violating a law relating to the prevention of violence in sports. koca — who said he regrets his actions — faces up to 13 years in prison if found guilty of the charges. and to the spanish super cup next, and the first of three madrid derbies that will take place in the next month.

real travel to saudi arabia in confident mood having won each of their last five games, including a 3—1 success in saturday's copa del rey clash with fourth—tier arandina, and they are currently on a 19—match unbeaten run across all competitions, but real boss carlo ancelotti isn't looking forward to facing atletico. the personal commitment was there, and i personally did not enjoy playing

against athletico madrid because they're one of the best teams and playing against them is always difficult, but we have to do it. i'm sure they feel

the same about us. we are two very strong teams and it is hard to face each other, but it is what it is and i'm sure the fans will enjoy it. well, there are a few real madrid players who couldn't play at the time, but they'll be here tomorrow, making it harderfor us

to play against them. we don't just want to look back to that game because it's been months. the game was different, the time was different and we play with some players who won't be playing tomorrow. barcelona women's treble winning coachjonatan giraldez is on the move to the usa to coach the washington spirit. the nwsl club announced the news on tuesday that the 32—year—old willjoin

at the end of the spanish season injune, as their new head coach. he has been with barcelona since 2021 where he led the side to one queen's cup,

two supercopas, two primera division titles, the champions league title

welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore. i'm mariko oi. the headlines: armed men storm a live tv program in ecuador, a day after the president declared a state of emergency to tackle prison riots.

america's top diplomat antony blinken says the daily toll on civilians in gaza, particularly on children, it's far too high. records �*tumble like dominoes�* as european scientists confirm that 2023 was the warmest year on record. south korea passes a band to ban the eating and selling of animal meat. thank you for being with us. we begin in ecuador where police have detained a group of armed men who interrupted a live television program, a day after the president declared a nationwide state of emergency. the men, wearing balaclavas, burst into the studio

of a public television station in the port city of guayaquil,