Greater Manchester Police said a man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker, possession of a bladed article and possession of class B drugs. Police say an officer was also assaulted when they attended the scene.

Police rushed to the scene near a sports centre in Manchester this afternoon after reports emerged of a man ‘brandishing a knife’.

Greater Manchester Police confirmed that a man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker, possession of a bladed article and possession of class B drugs. The force also revealed that an officer was attacked when police arrived at the scene.

A significant police presence remains outside Denmark Road Sports Centre this evening, with both Denmark Road and nearby Cecil Street cordoned off.

Greater Manchester Police stated: “At around 4.55pm we were called to reports of a man brandishing a knife on Demark Road in Manchester. Police attended the scene [and] an officer was assaulted.

“A man has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker, possession of a bladed article and possession of class B drugs. He remains in custody for questioning.”, reports the Mirror.

Eyewitness Simon Bailey told the Manchester Evening News: “The injured officer was pulled away and got treated. There were about 30 officers there and they cordoned off the road.”

Photographs from the scene show no fewer than eight squad cars in attendance. Members of the public are urged to steer clear of the area, while motorists are advised to seek alternative routes where possible.

Southampton and Middlesbrough play the second leg of their play-off semi-final tonight amid the ‘Spygate’ scandal which has surrounded the tie

Southampton and Middlesbrough meet in the second leg of their Championship play-off semi-final tonight, but much of the build-up has been dominated by a major ‘Spygate’ controversy.

Saints have been charged by the EFL following allegations that someone connected to the club filmed a private Middlesbrough training session ahead of Saturday’s first leg at the Riverside Stadium, which ended 0-0.

Now, with a place at Wembley against Hull City on the line, there are growing questions over what exactly happened, what punishment Southampton could face and whether the south coast side could even be thrown out of the play-offs.

Here is everything we know so far.

What are Southampton accused of?

Middlesbrough lodged an official complaint with the EFL after alleging that a person connected to Southampton carried out unauthorised filming of one of their private training sessions before the first leg.

The EFL subsequently charged Southampton with alleged breaches of regulations relating to observing another club’s training sessions and acting in “good faith”.

An EFL statement read: “Southampton have been charged with a breach of EFL regulations, and the matter will be referred to an Independent Disciplinary Commission.”

What punishment could Southampton face?

The big question is whether Southampton could actually be expelled from the Championship play-offs.

Reports claim Middlesbrough are pushing for a sporting punishment rather than a financial penalty, with comparisons being made to the infamous Marcelo Bielsa ‘Spygate’ incident at Leeds United in 2019.

Back then, Leeds were fined £200,000 after Bielsa admitted sending a staff member to spy on Derby County training sessions.

However, Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg believes a fine alone would not be enough.

He said: “I know Bielsa paid £200,000, but that was not the law then. I think a lot of clubs will pay that amount to try to get an advantage by seeing you in the two sessions before a game.

“If it’s a game of this magnitude, clubs would pay that, but it’s not legal, so they should not do it.”

Because the matter has been referred to an Independent Disciplinary Commission, the panel would have the power to impose sporting sanctions if Southampton are found guilty.

That could theoretically include points deductions, expulsion from the play-offs or Middlesbrough being reinstated even if they lose tonight’s second leg.

According to reports, Boro are planning to continue training even if they are knocked out because they could yet replace Southampton in the final should sanctions follow.

What have Middlesbrough said?

Hellberg has been outspoken throughout the controversy and accused Southampton of trying to “cheat”.

He said: “We have watched every Southampton game there is, trying to find different solutions to beat them, how they press, how they build up, working hard with that.

“Putting every hour of the day to try to do what you should do, to get the advantage to win in the right way.

“But if someone makes decisions to go and try to cheat, that’s clear and it will be interesting to see what happens with that.”

The Middlesbrough head coach added: “Who will get the fine? Should they just pay it to the EFL? So, they see everything we do, and that’s OK? I just think it’s weird.”

What have Southampton said?

Southampton have largely remained tight-lipped throughout the saga.

The club initially released a short statement saying they would be “fully cooperating with the league throughout this process”.

But on the morning of the second leg, Saints CEO Phil Parsons issued a fresh statement.

He said: “The club is fully cooperating with the EFL and the Disciplinary Commission, whilst also undertaking an internal review to ensure that all facts and context are properly understood.

“We understand the discussion and speculation that has followed over recent days, but we also believe it is important that the full context is established before conclusions are drawn.”

Parsons also urged supporters to get behind the team ahead of tonight’s decisive clash at St Mary’s.

Other clubs raise suspicion

Part of the intrigue comes from the timing and the stakes involved.

A place in the Premier League — and the huge financial rewards that come with it — is on the line.

The allegations also emerged against the backdrop of Southampton’s remarkable 19-match unbeaten run which propelled them into the top six.

According to The Guardian, other clubs are understood to have contacted Middlesbrough to voice suspicions that Southampton may have observed training sessions previously.

Meanwhile, Southampton boss Tonda Eckert has repeatedly refused to discuss the allegations publicly.

After Saturday’s first leg, the German coach walked out of his press conference after repeatedly referring journalists back to the club’s official statement.

What happens next?

The second leg goes ahead as planned tonight at St Mary’s, with the tie level at 0-0.

But regardless of the result, the EFL investigation will continue.

Any disciplinary hearing is not expected to take place until after the semi-final, leaving only 11 days before the Championship play-off final at Wembley.

That means the outcome on the pitch tonight may not necessarily be the final chapter in one of the most explosive Championship controversies in recent years.

Following his conviction, Detective Constable Lewis Whitlock, from Scotland Yard, said: “Our investigation left us with no doubt that Ram intended to kill those he targeted, and we are pleased the jury has reached the same verdict based on the evidence we presented at court.

McIlroy’s priorities are all about the majors and as is always the case for the Masters winner, he is the only man now able to complete an unprecedented feat of completing a calendar year Grand Slam.

Tiger Woods is the only player to hold all four of the modern majors at the same time, but his winning run began with the 2000 US Open, took in The Open and PGA – when it was played in August – and ended at the following year’s Masters.

So is winning all four majors in the same year achievable? “I think it’s possible,” McIlroy told me. “But it’s incredibly difficult to achieve.

“There’s a reason that no one’s been able to do it before in the history of the game.

“The best thing that you can do is give yourself a chance in each one and then just see where the chips fall on the Sunday.

“There’s quite a lot of randomness at times to winning golf tournaments. You have to have a lot of things go your way along with playing well yourself.

“So, in 100 years time if one person has done it, I would say, yeah, I could see that happening, but it’s so difficult.”

Nevertheless, the world number two has overcome demons that led to a near 11-year wait for his fifth major title which came at last year’s Masters.

“If you look at my game and my results and my consistency from 2022 through to now, I’ve been on a nice run,” McIlroy said. “And that run has culminated with the last couple of Masters, which has been really nice.

“Major championships aren’t won with statistics or previous results. They are won with grit and determination and hitting the shots under pressure when you need to.

“And there are no real statistics to show you how good you are at that. That’s just something that you have to learn and be.”

McIlroy endured a string of near misses at majors before claiming last year’s Masters. “Once you start to get over that hump and you get a win, you get another win, it sort of breeds confidence from there,” he said.

“Form gives you confidence leading into events, but I would say that the way I won at Augusta a few weeks ago gives me more confidence about where I’m at and what I can do in these big weeks, than say winning two or three events leading up to a major.”

McIlroy’s biggest challenge this week will come from world number one and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, who skipped Quail Hollow to hone his skills for the Aronimink test.

Players champion Cameron Young and England’s Matt Fitzpatrick are the other form players while McIlroy’s Ryder Cup partner Tommy Fleetwood showed encouraging signs by finishing fifth in Charlotte last week.

A teacher accused of sexually abusing and murdering his adopted baby son told detectives ‘one day you guys will be in trouble’ as he angrily denied the allegations, jurors heard today.

Jamie Varley, 37, vowed to ‘fight you to the day I die’ while being questioned over the death of 13-month-old Preston Davey.

‘I don’t know how to prove it, but you are wrong because I haven’t done it,’ Varley told officers in the video interview with detectives shown to the jury at Preston Crown Court.

Varley, at the time a high school teacher, is accused of Preston’s murder, while his partner John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, is accused of allowing the death of the child, with both accused of sexual abuse.

During the four months Preston was under their adoption at their home in Blackpool, jurors have heard he was routinely ill-treated, sexually abused and physically assaulted, suffering dozens of injuries.

Both men deny all charges.

The couple had rushed the unconscious baby from their home, after an alleged final sexual assault by Varley, to Blackpool hospital at around 6.20pm on July 27, 2023.
Medics worked for nearly an hour to resuscitate the toddler but could not save him.

Varley said he had left Preston alone in the bath for three or four minutes before he returned to discover he had drowned.

But in his final police interview detectives confronted him with the post-mortem examination findings of Home Office pathologist Dr Alison Armour.

Jurors were shown a video of the interview, in which Varley was told Dr Armour concluded Preston had not drowned but was the victim of ‘abusive trauma, non-accidental injuries and sexual abuse’.

One of the detectives told him Preston ‘just hasn’t drowned’ before adding: ‘The post-mortem identified no evidence of natural disease to account for the death of baby Preston – how do you explain that?’

Varley replied: ‘No comment.’

Challenged about findings suggesting Preston was ‘very recently’ the victim of sexual abuse involving ‘the forcible penetration of his anus’ by a penis-shaped object, he said: ‘It’s bullshit.’

Jurors saw him give the same answer to questions in a previous interview about ‘tear’ injuries to Preston’s bottom.

The court heard Dr Armour concluded the cause of Preston’s collapse and subsequent death to have been an upper airway obstruction, either by ‘a deliberate act of smothering’ or ‘by inserting an object or objects into his mouth’.

‘You are wrong,’ Varley replied.

The officer then asked: ‘Is that what you did to Preston on July 27?’

‘No,’ Varley replied.

The officer added: ‘Preston lived for one year, one month and 11 days.

‘He was only in your care just less than four months before he was killed.

‘There is no evidence of natural disease.

‘I’m going to suggest you have killed Preston.’

Varley, raising his voice and clearly angry, replied: ‘I have not done it. I will fight you ’til the day I die. I know you are wrong. I have not done it.’

Earlier, the officer put to Varley the series of images and videos taken of Preston which were evidence of alleged cruelty or indecency.

They include one video where Preston is left alone in a bath for more than 14 minutes.

Varley said he set his phone up to record and was on the landing out of sight ‘to see how he reacts to his own company’.

The officer asked Varley: ‘How do you explain that, Jamie? He’s slipped, whimpering, I would describe him as distressed. Why not go to comfort him?

‘Have you left him in the bath because you are fed up with him?’

Varley replied: ‘I was keeping an eye on him. He’s not distressed. There was no intent to hurt him.’

He was also asked about intimate videos and photos of the child found on his phone, prosecutors allege are indecent images.

Varley told the officers they were attempts at ‘capturing’ his child’s life.

Angrily, the defendant told officers: ‘Unlike you, I don’t think about his genitals 24/7.

‘You are making a mountain out of a molehill. It’s totally innocent, it’s ridiculous.

‘You have got it now as if I’m a bloody pervert.

‘That’s your job I guess.’

Varley denies murder, manslaughter, two counts of assault by penetration, five counts of cruelty to a child, grievous bodily harm, sexual assault of a child, 13 counts of taking indecent photos or videos of a child, one of distributing an indecent photo of a child, to his co-accused, and one of making an indecent photo.

McGowan-Fazakerley denies allowing the death of a child, three counts of child cruelty and one count of the sexual assault of a child.

The trial continues on Wednesday morning.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

It will be intriguing to see whether Alexander-Arnold makes the final cut, particularly because of the injury concerns Tuchel currently has at right-back.

The former Liverpool man appeared to be facing an uphill battle to make the squad, with Tuchel preferring Chelsea’s Reece James, Newcastle’s Tino Livramento and Arsenal’s Ben White in the position.

Last year Tuchel said Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarrell Quansah, whose natural position is centre-back, was ahead of Alexander-Arnold in the race for a right-back berth.

But Arsenal defender White is a major doubt for the World Cup with a knee injury suffered in Sunday’s win at West Ham, while Livramento is currently unavailable – though there is hope the Newcastle defender will be fit for the World Cup.

James, who is Tuchel’s first-choice right-back, has also only recently returned from injury.

Elsewhere, Manchester United left-back Shaw could yet earn an international recall in time for the tournament.

Shaw hasn’t played for England since the Euro 2024 final defeat against Spain, mainly due to injury.

But the full-back, who has played 34 times for England, is playing regularly for United, making 36 appearances for his club this season.

Welbeck has been a regular scorer for Brighton this season, with 14 goals for Fabian Hurzeler’s team – but the veteran is yet to break into one of Tuchel’s squads.

Bournemouth midfielder Scott was called up into the senior England squad for the first time in November but was omitted from Tuchel’s previous party.

The first Eurovision Song Contest semi-final kicks off in Vienna tonight, and it will also be the first to not feature Scott Mills, who had previously been at the helm of the show

Scott Mills’ replacement for the Eurovision Song Contest has been unveiled. Mills had been at the helm of Eurovision and never shied away from sharing his love for the contest, which brings countries across the world together through the power of music.

However, earlier this year, the broadcaster was dismissed from all duties at the BBC after the Mirror revealed that Scott had been sacked with immediate effect by bosses after not disclosing the age of the teenager to the BBC at the time the scandal was first investigated by the police, in

Current management at the BBC became aware in recent weeks, although the corporation had known in 2017 of a historic police investigation into Mills. Scott said in a statement via his lawyers that he “fully cooperated and responded” to the investigation at the time. The Crown Prosecution Service didn’t issue charges against Mills due to insufficient evidence.

READ MORE: Eurovision controversy over new ban hitting fans as they enter arena in ViennaREAD MORE: Scott Mills pictured after ‘heir’ to Radio 2 show revealed by insiders

Tonight, former Strictly Come Dancing star Angela Scanlon will be stepping up to the mark, alongside Rylan Clark. The pair will be live at the Wiener Stadthalle arena in Vienna to guide viewers through the semi-finals of the competition.

Speaking about landing the job, Angela said: “It feels like joining the greatest party on earth – equal parts thrilling and terrifying! I grew up watching the Eurovision Song Contest with my three sisters, making very serious (and wildly biased) scorecards from the couch, so to now be part of it – especially in its 70th year – is genuinely surreal.

“It’s one of those shows that’s always been there, evolving but never losing its magic or madness. I’ve been lucky enough to dip my toe into the Eurovision world before, so it feels great to be doing it again, just with higher heels and a few more sequins!”

Meanwhile, Rylan commented: “It’s the 70th Eurovision Song Contest and the biggest show on the planet. Being part of anything this big is something younger me could never have imagined.”

Fifteen entrants, including Israel, are set to take part in the first Eurovision Song Contest semi-finals tonight as five countries boycott the competition. In 2025, it was announced that five countries, including Ireland, would boycott Eurovision in protest of Israel’s participation. Israel’s participation has sparked controversy since its government launched extensive military operations in Gaza in October 2023.

The acts performing in the semi-finals, held tonight and on Thursday, will be competing for a place in Saturday’s grand final of the 70th edition of the contest. The UK, France, Germany, Italy and last year’s winner, Austria, automatically qualify for the final but will still perform during the semi-finals.

Tuesday’s show in Vienna will open with a film titled 70 Years of Love, which portrays the seven-decade history of the song contest and follows the life of a couple set against the backdrop of Eurovision.

After deciding to boycott the Eurovision Song Contest last year, Ireland’s national broadcaster RTÉ has decided to show the 20-year-old Eurovision-themed episode of Father Ted instead of the contest. With the 70th contest taking place in Vienna this week, with a finale culminating on Saturday, it has been announced that, as a further boycott of the show, RTÉ will show the Eurovision-themed episode of Father Ted titled A Song For Europe, which sees Ted and Dougal perform My Lovely Horse at Eurovision.

The semi-finals of the Eurovision Song Contest will air on Tuesday May 12 and Thursday May 14 at 8pm on BBC iPlayer and BBC One.

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