Wilkinson added: “They are building a legacy in Wales and are trying to put this game on the map for women and to change the game for women in Wales.

“This is the latest opportunity and I think you can do a lot with that kind of freedom, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Wales are returning to Nations League A for the first time since being relegated from that level in 2023.

The matches are scheduled to take place between February and June 2025, so could be ideal preparation for Euro 2025 in July should Wales get there.

“We’ll look at it as some of our preparation for the Euros,” Wilkinson added.

“There’s no easy group and this is the goal, to be in League A and to be competing and improving as a nation.

“I didn’t care which group because it’s about building the game at home and giving exposure to our players against some of the best nations in the world.”

Wales’ three Nations League opponents all qualified for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

World Cup semi-finalists and former European Champions Sweden are ranked fifth in the world.

Italy finished as European Championship runners up in 1993 and 1997 while Denmark achieved the same feat in 2017.

“I was looking at these groups and Fara [Williams], who did a great job as part of the draw, said, ‘I’m sure Wales and Scotland are happy they avoided England’. Not at all,” said Wilkinson.

“I think that group would have been so much fun. Why would we want to be in League A if it’s not to play the most exciting games where we are going to be challenged as best as possible?

“I know the coach for Denmark very well [Andrée Jeglertz], we were both assistants for Canada together. Sweden as a country, I know a lot about and I have huge respect for Italy, a country I lived in and played in.

“So it’s great to be back in the top league and being challenged by these top teams and any one of those pots would’ve done that for Wales.”

LAS VEGAS – Although he’s had 21 fights in the UFC, Gerald Meerschaert didn’t hesitate when he got the call to fight promotional newcomer Reinier de Ridder at UFC Fight Night 247.

De Ridder (17-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) isn’t any ordinary debuting fight. He’s a former two-division titleholder with ONE Championship, and was a celebrated free agent signing by the matchmakers, who wasted no time throwing him in the deep end against middleweight finishes record holder Meerschaert (37-17 MMA, 12-9 UFC) on Saturday’s card at the UFC Apex (ESPN+).

“I think it’s a good thing,” Meerschaert told MMA Junkie at Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 247 media day. “I think a lot more people know about de Ridder than maybe some of the people who only follow UFC give him credit for. He’s tough. Had a lot of belts in ONE FC, so that’s nothing to shake your head at. It’s fun to be the one to welcome in somebody who was a double champ in a different organization because I think it says a lot about me if I can go out and get that finish on Saturday.”

With back-to-back wins on his resume, Meerschaert is enjoying the current state of his career. Like most fighters, his goal is to move up the rankings and into more relevant matchups. He’s not sure how much beating de Ridder will help with the former, but he said he will be demanding the latter if he gets his hand raised.

“I think a win over de Ridder, if I win impressively enough, I think it could put me at No. 15 (in UFC’s official rankings), but it definitely puts me in the conversation for fighting ranked guys,” Meerschaert said. “Absolutely. That’s what I’m looking forward to. Win on Saturday, I would like to fight someone ranked or just give me somebody that has a decent name on a big card. Fighting somebody high in the ranking is important, but getting eyeballs on you having great performances is just as, if not more so important.”

Meerschaert admitted he’s as curious as anyone to see what de Ridder is capable of at the UFC level, especially given his strong grappling skills. Meerschaert owns the most submission victories in the history of UFC’s 185-pound weight class, so the matchup on the mat is one he is keen to dive into.

“I expect him to be at his best and he’s a very, very good grappler,” Meerschaert said. “Especially straight jiu-jitsu style grappling, he’s one of the last guys that really goes out there and implements that in his game plan. He’s definitely more in the style of a Gunnar Nelson or Demian Maia, and he’s just as dangerous as either one of those guys.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 247.

REAL MADRID were supposed to be world beaters this year.

Ending last season as Spanish and European champions they – finally – added Kylian Mbappe, the star who had been in their sights for the past three years.

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But after back-to-back Bernabeu thumpings, first at the hands of Barcelona and then AC Milan, even Carlo Ancelotti appears to be scratching his head.

Speaking after the Milan humbling, their second defeat in four Champions League games, Ancelotti said: “What’s not so normal is that this team had a very good run and has fallen so fast.

“But that is part of football too: when you think everything is perfect, you fall.

“The reality is what was seen on the pitch. We have to be worried. We’re lacking something.”

On recent performances, lacking something appears to be quite the understatement – Don Carlo has a lot on his plate.

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MBAPPE

After years of flirting the French superstar finally arrived in the Spanish capital this summer, albeit off the back of a deflating Euro 2024.

He was supposed to be the final piece in an already impressive jigsaw but his arrival has caused more problems than it has solved.

Mbappe has eight goals in all competitions, six of which came in an impressive run of five games, but the forward has unsettled Ancelotti’s plan.

And his shot conversion rate as plummeted down from an average of 21 at Paris Saint-Germain to just 11.42 at Madrid.

Against Barcelona, his first taste of a fixture he will have played over in his head time and again over the years, things went badly wrong.

The forward was caught offside a shocking eight times – more than any player in one game across Europe’s top league for eight years.

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But merely pinning the problems on his arrival could be misleading.

Spanish football expert and pundit, Terry Gibson, told SunSport: “People couldn’t be more wrong.

“He is an easy target, there are loads of reasons why they are faltering.

“He suffered at the start before he scored a goal, but got going and his goalscoring record is good.

“He has moved to a new club, league and position but he is working hard and is a constant threat.

“There are other reasons Real Madrid are struggling.

“It has made it complicated for Ancelotti to find a way of playing but he has failed so far this year to find a system.”

Madrid already trail LaLiga leaders Barcelona by nine points and are in the bottom half of the Champions League table.

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BELLINGHAM

Another who looks a touch lost is last season’s boy wonder, Jude Bellingham.

By this time last year, 14 games into his debut season at Madrid, Bellingham had 13 goals.

The England star is still waiting for his first of the campaign.

Fatigue over the summer with the Three Lions spilled into injury at the start of this season, with the 21-year-old missing four games.

But even when fit he looks well off his best, shunted around by Ancelotti as the Italian struggles to find a role for last season’s talisman.

During the summer Ancelotti insisted Mbappe and Bellingham would gel just fine, stating the best players can adapt to any situation.

But neither look happy and the Englishman booted a water bottle after being hooked against Milan midweek.

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Thierry Henry leaped to his defence, detailing just how Mbappe’s languid form was hurting Bellingham.

Speaking on CBS, he said: “It’s always Bellingham trying to make the run, trying to make the team play, running in behind, trying to break the line.

“I think there is a little frustration. Your nine isn’t going, and your 10-ish is going. I know it can happen sometimes but not all the time. Every single time.

“He’ll do it because he has to do it, because his desire speaks, his will speaks.

“You don’t win games like that. You don’t win games with your 10 breaking the line, coming back, trying to bend his run, trying to defend, trying to go the other side. And then after, he gets substituted?

“I would have been upset too.”

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MIDFIELD MESS

Due to injuries and absences, with Luka Modric also on the wane, Ancelotti has failed to settle on any sort of structure in the middle.

Dani Carvajal’s injury at right-back means the likes of Bellingham are having to be re-shuffled to cover rather than played in his best position.

Aurelien Tchouameni, part of the succession plan to replace Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro, was whistled off in midweek and is fast becoming a scapegoat.

Gibson said: “There is enough there for Ancelotti. It should be Tchouameni, Camavinga and Valverde and Bellingham at the tip of the diamond and then Vini and Mbappe.

“They have to go and get a right-back in January, they won’t win things this year without a right-back.

“They got away with this last year because they had Nacho. He has left and no one else came in.”

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ANCELOTTI QUESTIONED

He may be the best of the best when it comes to managers in Europe in recent years, but at Real Madrid no one is above criticism.

There are already rumours swirling of a return for Zinedine Zidane, while fans will cast eyes towards Xabi Alonso working wonders at Bayer Leverkusen.

Gibson said: “I am looking at him and thinking he is changing players and formations. It looks really untidy at the moment. It looks like a group of players making it up as they go along.

“Zidane coming back would be a popular choice. It would be classic Real Madrid.

“I am not saying he should get the sack or leave but there is a big clamour now for Ancelotti to go.

“They have got a weird squad. There are superstars all over the place but they lack depth. They got away with it last season.”

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BEHIND THE SCENES

It is not just on the pitch where things look askew.

The hierarchy’s tantrum over Rodri‘s Ballon d’Or win, with the club boycotting the ceremony in Paris once it became clear Vinicius would not walk away with the prize, exposed an unhappy camp.

That petulance is seeping down to the dressing room too. Ancelotti has insisted there is a “healthy” atmosphere within the squad.

But the wife of midfielder Fede Valverde recently broke cover, ranting on social media and asking: “When are they going to understand once and for all that Fede is not a winger?”

She then claimed the account had been hacked.

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SUMMER

Like all big clubs in Europe, Real Madrid spent most of the summer without their key players.

Madrid went on tour to America, where by the end some of the senior players who did travel out were completely fed up – ready to go home.

Ancelotti’s squad was packed with youth but those talents have hardly been seen yet.

Endrick,18, and Arda Guler, 19, have had limited time on the pitch which, in comparison to rivals Barcelona, is a touch embarrassing.

Hansi Flick took a flock of La Masia graduates on their summer tour and has embedded them into the team rather than dropping them back down.

Gibson said: “One of the criticisms of Ancelotti is he doesn’t use young players.

“Endrick could play centre-forward but that is not being done apart from when he is off the bench, which isn’t often enough.

“Guler had a fantastic Euros but hasn’t had a look in.”

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It was in Brandon Royval’s best interest for Brandon Moreno to beat Amir Albazi.

Former champion Moreno (22-8-2 MMA, 10-5-2 UFC) returned in peak form when he battered a tough Albazi (17-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) for five rounds in this past Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 246 main event in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Considering that Royval’s past two wins have come against Moreno then formerly unbeaten Tatsuro Taira in a Fight of the Night effort, the 32-year-old thinks he just became the clear-cut No. 1 contender.

“I think the only thing that it cleared up completely was that I’m next for the title shot,” Royval told MMA Junkie. “I think that’s what it did. It just cleared the way for me and keep everything going. I thought he (Moreno) looked sick. I had such a good time watching him. I liked the look in his eye when he walked out. The moment he walked out, I was like, ‘All right, cool, this is what I want to see: a pissed-off Brandon Moreno ready to go.’

“And he fought with a f*cking attitude and chip on his shoulder, and I loved that. I really, in my head, just think the flyweight division – I feel we get a lot of criticism of because the top three, top four guys are just clearing out everybody and just kind of staying in the top three, top four, but I feel like the flyweight division has been more exciting than it’s ever been.”

Royval (17-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) won’t immediately get his wish. He has to wait for flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja to defend his title against ex-RIZIN champion Kai Asakura on Dec. 7 at UFC 310 – but he expects to face the winner.

“If they’re not going to bring anybody in, and it’s between me, Moreno and Kai Kara-France, it’s definitely me,” Royval said. “I feel like that’s the only thing that makes sense. Moreno and Kai Kara-France have some sick wins against some sick opponents, and they did a great job. But that being said, I have a win over both those guys, and I think if it’s between us three, it’s me.”

Royval has no issue with newcomer Asakura getting a title shot in his UFC debut. In fact, after fighting both Moreno and Pantoja twice, he could use a new face.

“I’m a fan of it,” Royval said on Asakura’s addition. “I want fresh blood, too. We’re talking about three rematches as a possibility. Like, I could fight Kai Kara-France next, Brandon Moreno, and Pantoja next, and the only one I’m ready to go do is fight Pantoja next. If Kai Asakura wins that belt, I think that’s going to be one of the better fights of the year. Me and Kai Asakura are both guys who bring fights.”

England interim manager Lee Carsley has handed first call-ups to Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Newcastle United full-back Lewis Hall for this month’s Nations League fixtures.

The pair could make their national debuts for the Three Lions as they prepare to face Greece on 14 November and Republic of Ireland on 17 November.

Manchester City defender John Stones is a notable absentee, while Jack Grealish is included despite missing City’s last five matches through injury.

Chelsea winger Cole Palmer has been selected, despite being an injury doubt for Sunday’s Premier League match against Arsenal.

Southampton’s Aaron Ramsdale has been included ahead of Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope, while Manchester United duo Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire miss out through injury.

It is Carsley’s final England squad as interim manager before Thomas Tuchel takes charge on a full-time basis.

Jones represented Team GB at Paris Olympics during the summer and was due to link up with England side ahead of their WXV campaign when her father passed away.

An ankle injury, which required surgery, ruled her out of international action and sidelined her for the start of the league season with Tigers.

“It’s always tough missing out on games, but personally it came at a really good time for me,” she added.

“I’d just finished at the Olympics and my dad sadly passed away four days before I went back into the Red Roses camp.

“It came at a good time for me because it meant I could really process the grief and I could have time to myself and be home with family.”

Jones said she came to “value the rugby community” around her more than ever as she grieved, and said the loss has given her a new perspective.

“As sports people our results define us, how we perform defines us, but truth be told our health, our friendships and connections are more important than the game itself,” Jones said.