Lions on home soil this summer would be heavenly, not heresy
Gunners saved by double
The roadmap to a recognisable summer of sport – one with real people watching rather than cardboard cutouts – is an uplifting vision of a brighter future. If it does not turn out to be a mirage, with a fair wind, an ocean of vaccine and orderly behaviour from the variants, this may be the place to be.
To the usual glorious UK staples will be added a large chunk of the Euros, a World Test Championship final and the inaugural Hundred.
To that list should be added one more big occasion – a unique event for a unique period – a home Lions tour.
The idea might have set Willie John McBride’s pipe revolving in anger but this week’s announcements have settled the argument.
Crowds are the key. They provide the atmosphere and bring in the bucks.
The planned tour to South Africa is not going to happen. The idea of sizeable numbers at games in a country which, by June, will have received doses to vaccinate just 10 per cent of its population, is fanciful.
It will be the southern hemisphere winter, the most dangerous time for a virus. If it went ahead, the Lions squad would almost certainly have to spend the entire tour in a bubble.
Australia have offered to be neutral hosts for the series against the world champions, promising packed grounds full of ex-pats. But as we saw at the
Australian Open tennis, one whiff of Covid-19 and the wary Government there will shut out fans in an instant.
So, with the home unions unwilling to countenance a postponement that would impinge onWorld Cup warm-up tours, a summer road trip round the UK emerges as the best option.
It is almost as if the roadmap was drawn up with the staycation Lions in mind. The gradual reopening culminates – in England at least – with a total end to restrictions on June 21.
Five days later the Lions are due to play a warm-up Test against Japan at Murrayfield. That was already in the itinerary, so much for the heresy of them playing on home soil.
The Lions are slated to play three Tests against South Africa, so take one each to the Principality Stadium, Twickenham and Murrayfield – then add another.
Four Tests would be a mouthwatering addition to the summer menu. If Ireland’s vaccination programme gathers pace the Aviva Stadium could take a game outside the UK; if not, then why not Wembley?
The tour lasts eight matches – that is what Sky have paid for – so the Lions will need to find other fixtures to avoid paying back any of the broadcast fee.
Again, this should be viewed as an opportunity, not a problem. The South Africans are thought to be willing to bring their A team – that’s one game.
Who else might be around? France and Italy before they tour? Georgia maybe? Or the Barbarians? It would be different but, played out in huge stadia in front of healthy crowds, it would also be box office.
For the Lions squad, it would not be the immersion in a far-flung land on a band-of-brothers journey they might have dreamed of.
But enjoying the freedoms the rest of us will hopefully be doing would surely be preferable to bubble life?
For the players, the Lions is a sociable throwback to the amateur era. Maro Itoje admitted after his first tour to New Zealand in 2017 that the one thing that took him by surprise was the amount of drinking that went on.
When the Lions board makes the call early next month, they should bear in mind the pubs will be open again by then.
LEICESTER suffered Europa League agony as Slavia Prague pulled off a well-planned raid.
Brendan Rodgers’ Europa League curse struck again as Leicester crashed out at the first knockout stage.
It’s the fifth time the Foxes boss has failed to make the last 16 having suffered the same fate twice with both Liverpool and Celtic.
Lukas Provod’s goal minutes into the second was a crippling blow.
Provod was given time and space to volley home as Leicester were caught napping.
They just didn’t deal with Nico Stanciu’s sweeping cross from the left and there was Provod lurking at the far post to crash the ball home.
And then the visitors cashed in on Leicester’s desperation when Abdallah Sima fired a low shot home from 25 yards to put the game beyond reach.
Leicester can have few complaints – they did not create much and had been given a couple of warning shots just before the visitors struck.
The Foxes huffed and puffed but uncharacteristically failed to penetrate the visitors’ back line with any real effect.
Rodgers made a triple substitution shortly after the goal to try and claw it back but their opposition were well organised and managed to keep them at arm’s length.
Both sides came out for the second half with good reason to think a place in the next round was there for the taking.
The opening 45 minutes had been shadow boxing. With a goalless first leg, all the signs were that it might be tight and that’s the way it proved.
The Foxes had made a bright enough start and 90 seconds in it was the Czech side’s goalkeeper Ondrej Kolar who had their first touch. He stuck a leg out to stop Cengiz Under’s four half angled shot from creeping in at his near post and when the ball flew out to Caglar Soyuncu only managed to slice the ball over.
The visitors so nearly pounced on the counter after the back-peddling Soyuncu could only head the ball into Sima’s path. It went unpunished, but Prague landed the blows when it mattered.
Schmeichel 6; Amartey 6(Ricardo 61, 6), Evans 6, Soyuncu 5, Thomas 6; Ndidi 6, Tielemans 6 ; Choudhury 6( Barnes 61, 6), Albrighton 6 (Castagne 61, 6), Under 6 (Tavares 80) ; Vardy 6.
Kolar 7 , Bah 7 , Kudela 7 , Zima 7, Boril 7 ; Hromada 6( Lingr 75) , Provod 7 , Sima 8, Stanciu 7( Dorley 69, 6) , Olayinka 7 ; Kuchta 7 (Masopust 84). Provod 49, Sima 79
PIERRE-EMERICK Aubameyang saved Arsenal from a Greek tragedy by bringing them back from their lowest moment in 26 years.
Stewart Houston was the manager the last time they failed to qualify for Europe and, with the Gunners languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League, their main hope of being involved next season lies in winning this competition.
And boy, 87 minutes in, did the players – and manager Mikel Arteta – have a problem.
Neither side played their home matches within 1,500 miles of their own grounds. A 1-1 draw in Rome, Benfica’s temporary home, was trumped by a 2-2 scoreline in Athens, until Aubameyang sealed a Herculean comeback late on.
There was a nervy VAR check on his far-post header from Bukayo Saka’s pinpoint cross but, when the verdict became clear, you could almost hear the sigh of relief all the way back in north London. Arsenal were the better team over both legs and they almost shot themselves in the foot after taking the lead with such elegant precision as Saka’s clever pass was clipped into the net by Aubameyang – VAR confirming he had timed his run to perfection.
But they were by no means in control of the tie and former Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen headed over in the 33rd minute.
Half-time was approaching when Diogo Goncalves – middle name Cupido – drew back his bow and arrowed an unstoppable free-kick into the top corner.The needless foul had been committed by Dani Ceballos, but worse was to follow.
A long punt from goalkeeper Helton Leite was headed back by the Real Madrid loanee with so little weight that Rafa Silva nipped in, side-stepped Bernd Leno and walked the ball home.
Six minutes later, Kieran Tierney stepped in from the corner of the penalty area and drove a low shot inside the far post.
Still, Arsenal were behind on that ludicrously inappropriate away goals rule. They continued to dominate possession but were not exactly knocking on the door. Thankfully, one of their few match-winners was back on his game.
Aubameyang chased down Leite to half-block his clearance, only for Saka to hit the loose ball high and wide.
When creator and finisher reversed roles, the result was spectacularly different.
Silva hit the post in injury time but the flag was up and Arsenal survived. ARSENAL (4-2-3-1): Leno 6; Bellerin 6 (Lacazette 78, 5), Luiz 6, Gabriel 6, Tierney 7; Ceballos 4 (Partey 63, 6), Xhaka 6; Saka 8 (Chambers 90), Odegaard 6 (Elneny 90), Smith Rowe 6 (Willian 63, 5); Aubameyang 8. Aubameyang 21, 87, Tierney 67.
BENFICA (3-5-2): Leite 6; V da Silva 6, Otamendi 6, Vertonghen 7; Goncalves 7, Pizzi 5 (Everton 58, 6), Weigl 6, Taarabt 5 (Pires 58, 6), Grimaldo 6 (Tavares 85); F Silva 7, Seferovic 5 (Gabriel 58, 6). Goncalves 43, Silva 61.