tweets a game of donald trump tweets a game of thrones meme. facebook bans 12 far right individuals and organisations in britain saying they have no place on this platform. as climate change protests continue for a fourth day, police are urged to use the full force of the law. in a moment it will be time for sports day —— sportsday. at 7pm beyond 100 days will be bringing you live reaction from washington after the publication of the long—awaited mueller report into possible collusion between russian and the trump campaign. at 8:40pm, we will be speaking to an environmental scientist to find out what individual and government can be doing to tackle climate change. at 10:a0pm we will take a first look at the papers. that is all the head on

it bbc news. now it is time to sportsday. hello. welcome to sportsday with me hugh ferris. our headlines this evening: sacked by scotland. alex mcleish loses his job after their poor start to the euro qualifying campaign. exciting. exhilarating. exhausting. a champions league game for the ages sends spurs through to their first semi final. we didn't realise because we still are in like in a dream, still in a bubble. and which of these women are the best? we reveal the shortlist for this year's bbc womens footballer of the year award. also coming up in the programme: jarell miller insists he's done nothing wrong and will appeal the decision to deny him a licence to face anthonyjoshua.

and spot the difference... why the new england patriots' sixth lombardi trophy has been in the wars. thanks for joining us. scotland are looking for a new manager after alex mcleish was sacked today. it brings to an end his second spell in charge of the national team, one that lasted only just over a year. but ended with a series of poor results. alistair lamont reports. a humiliation for the scotland national side, beaten 3—0 by the side ranked 117th in the world. kazakhstan, alex mcleish‘s waterloo. that crushing, demoralising defeat ended scotland's chances

of a successful qualification campaign before it had begun. some people would say that this kind of result is a sacking offence. i willjust continue to do myjob, and suffice to say, i'm not going to get drawn into that question. the question a little over a year ago, was whether the scottish fa had the right man. i can understand that opinion can be divided but it is up to me to try and get those guys on side. i am hoping the tartan army can cometo... i wouldn't say forgive me, but i hope they can come around and say mcleish is right, he is the man for the job. but he got off to an inauspicious start, losing a friendly to scotland's old adversary, costa rica. five defeats followed in the next seven, the low point being a defeat in israel. and then, of course,

came the calamity in kazakhstan. i think the knives were out for him after that kazakhstan result, which was a disgraceful performance. i think he has been dealt a difficult hand in terms of friendlies that he had initially. he wasn't my first choice, second choice manager, but eventually he was given the job. but now the same people that have offered it have taken it away from him. there has to be accountability from the sfa. maybe it is time they were on two—year contracts and we will see how their performance is. the sfa president, alan mcrae, was pivotal to mcleish‘s appointment. now he and the board must decide on how to replace him. so that's the background to the deicsion that's been made to sack mcleish. today the sfa have been explaining why they acted now. our sports news correspondent chris mclaughlin explains. there was a meeting here, a scottish fa board meeting here this morning. after a couple of hours, that statement came out. we were expecting what they said was they we re expecting what they said was they were sad to see him go, it was a tough decision but they highlighted

performances, highlighted results, and in particular that game against kazakhstan. what they said was, given what happened in kazakhstan, they couldn't quite see the progress that they wanted to see given that scotla nd that they wanted to see given that scotland and glasgow will be hosting games for euro 2020. the scottish fa are absolutely desperate. there is extra significant on euro 2020. the search was the successor starts now. former scotland winger. pat, we have heard about how nicholas's career ended, but if that it wasn't a popular appointment. no, it wasn't a popular appointment. no, it wasn't a popular appointment. no, it wasn't with the fans. some people, myself included, a good job was being done. if there is a

problem, just sack the manager. i think many of us have begun to believe that it doesn't really matter who the manager is, it is a bigger problem than that. however, alex had to come in, do what was a toughjob. when alex had to come in, do what was a tough job. when the alex had to come in, do what was a toughjob. when the kazakhstan result happened, the negativity that had been with the tartan army, it came raining down on them and it was just a matter of time after that that he would eventually get sacked. but it is a deeper problem than that. it is quite simple, we are not producing anywhere near enough top quality players. if it was anything other than that, like northern ireland, like wales, now and again you will get through to a championships. scotland, this is generations now. it is not the manager, it is something deeper. we are excited to find out what their next manageress. it will take on that challenge? stephen clarke. he

has had a fabulous season. david moyes has been chatted about. there is quite a few. quite a few that would do a decentjob. anyone better than stephen clarke? not that i can see. pat nevin there. now then, spurs fans... have you got your breath back yet? manchester city supporters are still trying to pick their chins up from the floor. for the rest of us, a chance to revel in what was one of the most absorbing games of football. five goals in the first 21 minutes, one more given with the help of var, and what looked to be another chalked off because of technology. spurs lost 11—3 to city at the etihad in their champions league quarter final second leg, but go through on away goals on a night of indelible drama from minute one to 95. it was a nice game for everybody.” looked at the clock and it had been

27 minutes. so much happened stop in the end, we got what we needed, so we are delighted. it was unbelievable. the second was a difficult one. everybody was watching. from one angle it is handball, from another it is not. we sell the rest going back and he said it was offside. we gave absolutely everything. football is like this. it is predictable and u nfortu nately we a re like this. it is predictable and unfortunately we are not... that happened, they deserve a lot of

praise. a ame ever one's been talking aobut. a ame ever one's been talking about. we have been talking about it here. emotions that travelled far and wide. austin halewood is with me. austin it wasn't just the 55,000 people at the stadium who went through the emotional wringer. what a night it was, hugh, and what a game. social media went into meltdown last night after the drama at the etihad. manchester city posted this after that dramatic finish. i'm not going to try and read it out, but essentially they were lost for words, just like the rest of us. well, we heard from some of the big names involved in the match just before. but there was one major absentee in tottenham's harry kane. he had to watch from home because of injury but he still managed to cheer his team on on social media. take a look. let's go! come on! short and sweet from harry. well plenty of fans and former

players alike have suggested it was one of the best games in champions league history, if not all time... gary lineker said one of the greatest, most enthralling, dramatic and emotional games of football i've ever been at. congratulations, spurs, and well played, manchester city. you were both a credit to our wonderful sport. now var played a huge part in the madness last night. both managers even lost their jackets at different points because of it. now when the technology was brought in, it wasn't to everyone's taste, however, after last night, the reaction has largely been positive... we've been asking you at home for your thoughts on the bbc sport website... voting for whether it ruins the sport or if it's a great idea. well, with more than a0 %, that's more than 35,000 votes, the overriding winner was — what an ending, thank you var. there must‘ve been plenty of spurs fans voting on that page hugh....

the outcome was producing a nice sky—blue colour. spurs' first champions league semi final will be against ajax. taking on a resurgent ajax, hugh. giant killers of the competition so far, having already beaten champions real madrid and cristiano ronaldo'sjuventus. well, earlier we spoke to european footballjournalist mina rzouki and despite the scalps ajax already have, she beleives that spurs could have enough to beat them. despite how good they have been and how glorious spurs have been, they we re how glorious spurs have been, they were still the underdogs compared to the many —— make money spent at manchester. this goes to show how far spurs have really grown. i think ajax is the most appealing because they are a team that went through qualification. it has been 13 years

since they find themselves back in the knockout stages of the champions league. we have to talk about a great generation that they have created. as beautiful as ajax are, they are still a side that aren't they are still a side that aren't the most efficient when it comes into the final third, so if spurs have their chances and they know how to convert, it spurs mightjust be the team that wins it. well, liverpool's route to the semi—finals was much easier last night. they arrived in porto with a 2—0 lead and never looked like giving it up. jurgen klopp said his side made a big statment to the rest of europe by thrashing the portugese 4—1 in their own backyard. but things get much tougher now for the men in red beacuse they face the mighty barcelona in the last four. now, we know liverpool have the attacking capabilities to take on any team, but, as is always the case, the key to stopping barca is stopping lionel messi. we saw barcelona suffer against manchester united. they won't necessarily glorious. they have

suffered that sometimes they're not the most offensively capable. they need great tackles. barcelona have messi. there are still problems at times in the sense that you can penetrate them if you overwhelm them but what i can say is that why liverpool suffered in the early stages of the champions league away from home, they seem to be finding their rhythm and just the right time. they look like a side that played the kind of football with the kind of courage you need to win these types of games. so here's the semifinal line—up. tottenham will face ajax on tuesday 30th april, the liverpool travelling to barcelona the day after, before the fixtures are reveresed the following week. thank you very much. though semifinals have a lot to live up to. so premier league teams provide half of the champions league semi finalists, and it could be the same in the europa league. we will find out later tonight. arsenal's 2—0 quarter final first

leg win over napoli has them in a strong position. while chelsea have a 1—0 lead ahead of their second leg against slavia prague. this year a lot of times i heard that it has been a bad season. but if we can reach the final and may when the uefa cup and ended up fourth, it would be remarkable. it could be a remarkable season. that is where the focus has to be. footballers across england and wales will go on a 24—hour social media strike from 9 o'clock tomorrow morning, in protest at how recent incidents of racism have been dealth with by football authorities and social media companies. the professional footballers' association is using the boycott to launch its anti—racism campaign entitled #enough. among those taking part is tottenham defender danny rose, who was subject to abuse during england's euro 2020 qualifier in montenegro in march. he said... "football has a problem with racism.

collectively, we are simply not willing to stand by while too little is done to protect players." let's bring you up to date with some of the other stories we've been covering today. the ireland captain, rory best, has confirmed that he will retire from rugby after this year's world cup in japan. the 36—year—old is also ulster skipper and has won 116 caps so far after making his debut in 2005. the fleetwood managerjoey barton says he emphatically denies allegations that he assaulted the barnsley boss daniel stendel. police are investigating an alleged altercation which took place at 0akwell when the two sides met last weekend. seattle sea hawks quarterback russell wilson is a lot richer today after signing the most lucrative deal in nfl history. his new four—year contract extension is worth £107 million and comes with a 50 million signing bonus on top. the women's world cup is just 50 days away,

but it's not the only significant event in the sport today, because the bbc have revealed the nominees for the women's footballer of the year award. won last year by england's lucy bronze. the winner is voted for by you, the public, so here's your chance to decide which of these five players should take the title this year. hello, iam pernille hello, i am pernille harder and hello, iam pernille harder and i place the dws —— i place are wolfsburg in germany. i always dreamt about it. i wrote an essay when i was ten years old that i wa nted when i was ten years old that i wanted to be the best player in the world. i have always been working ha rd world. i have always been working hard for it but i am not sure i thought it really would happen.

iama i am a strikerfor 0lympique lyonnais. i have a mum who gave me that voice, my dad as well, equal rights, i never looked at myself as different from a man's footballer.” ama different from a man's footballer.” am a lindsey horan, a plate midfield, i play for the portland thorns and women's national team. football is everything to me. sometimes i would miss class so that i could go watch champions league. i wanted to watch games, train extra and do all these things. sam kerr, chicago red stars, person striker.

my best attribute is my pace. it is something i am gifted with, having quick instincts and being a dollar sneak. translation: i take pleasure from football. it is life and it is my passion. if football doesn't exist, i cannot express myself. without football, life is less interesting and too serious. extraordinary performances. a lot of good goals there as well. another fantastic year for women's football. there's representatives of the game. let's talk about the nominees and competition. first of all, perhaps the most list of those nominees that we have had over the five years of

the competition. what does that tell you about how other parts of the world that haven't been represented before our very much represented this time? ijust before our very much represented this time? i just think it hints at the growing popularity of women's football and a growing awareness of the talents all over the world. in the talents all over the world. in the winning's game, this year we have the first japanese player who makes the shortlist in saki kumagai. but we also have players representing from five different countries and playing across five different leagues. when you look at five years ago when we first started out, definitely the strength and depth is growing in the winning's game, the focus and attention is on the women's game and that is why we have pernille harder from the women's game and that is why we have pernille harderfrom denmark, ada hegerberg, lindsey horan and sam kerr, it is a global shortlist this year. when in from all over the world and playing four different clu bs world and playing four different clubs as well. no surprise that lyon

has more than one nominee on the left. they really have been sensational, particularly in europe over the last four years. yes, leanne arguably the most dominant force in women's football all around the world. two nominees from the clu b the world. two nominees from the club this year. the winner last year as well, lucy bronze. they are a clu b as well, lucy bronze. they are a club who invest a lot in the winning's game but a dominant force in europe last year. there are phenomenal outfit. with the world cup coming along, club level football is where it is really starting to grow and leon lead the way. we look forward to the competition and people buzzing about. thank you very much indeed. the vote is now open. go to bbc.co.uk/womensfootball and make your choice for who you think should win the bbc women's footballer of the year award. heavyweight boxer jarell miller has denied taking a banned substance