Author: Andrew Rogers

Mikel Arteta says Arsenal’s improved squad depth will help them cope after confirming Kai Havertz will be out for a few more weeks. The Germany forward, sidelined since August following knee surgery, suffered a setback when he attempted to increase his training load. Arteta must now decide whether to continue using Mikel Merino as a makeshift striker for Wednesday’s match against Brentford or recall Viktor Gyökeres, who recently returned from injury. Gabriel Jesus is also pushing for a comeback after 11 months out. Arsenal may again be without William Saliba and Leandro Trossard, meaning summer signings Cristhian Mosquera and Piero…

The rare Marsh Fritillary butterfly has had an excellent year in Northern Ireland, thanks to warm weather and long-term habitat restoration. Once widespread, the species declined sharply as farming practices changed and its only food plant, Devil’s-bit Scabious, became scarce. Butterfly Conservation’s latest survey shows big increases in caterpillar nest numbers on managed sites. One location rose from 24 to 53 nests, another from 24 to 139, and a third from five to 27. Conservation manager Rose Cremin said the success highlights the importance of proper land management by farmers, as good weather alone cannot reverse decades of decline. The…

A government health panel has advised against introducing widespread prostate cancer screening in the UK, arguing that the harms would outweigh the benefits. The UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC) said screening all men—or even those with a family history—would lead to high rates of overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment. Instead, the committee recommended targeted screening for men with confirmed BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene variants, who are at higher risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer. These men could be screened every two years between ages 45 and 61. Evidence was deemed too limited to recommend screening for Black men, despite their higher…

Premier League clubs are bracing for increased wage costs after the UK government announced that players’ image rights payments will be taxed as income from April 2027. Currently, many players receive part of their earnings through image rights paid to limited companies, taxed at the 25% corporate rate. Under the new rules, these payments will instead be subject to the top income tax rate of 45%, meaning significantly higher tax bills for players. Agents say many players will expect clubs to cover the difference, particularly those negotiating new contracts before the rule takes effect. Some foreign players have clauses that…

Archaeologists say they now have strong evidence that a vast ring of huge pits near Stonehenge was deliberately dug by Neolithic people over 4,000 years ago. The structure, known as the Durrington pit circle, is thought to be more than a mile wide and made up of around 20 enormous pits, some measuring up to 10 metres wide and 5 metres deep, centred around the ancient sites of Durrington Walls and Woodhenge. Although the feature was first identified in 2020, some experts suggested the pits could be natural. New research, published in Internet Archaeology, used a combination of advanced techniques…

Scientists say the human brain develops through five distinct “eras” across a lifetime, with full adult brain organisation not beginning until the early 30s. In a large study analysing brain scans from nearly 4,000 people aged from infancy to 90, researchers found that brain development follows broad phases separated by four key turning points, occurring at around the ages of nine, 32, 66 and 83. The first phase, childhood, lasts from birth to about age nine. During this time, the brain rapidly grows and refines itself by trimming unused neural connections, while grey and white matter grow and the brain’s…

Idrissa Gueye was met with applause from his Everton teammates after issuing an emotional apology following his red card for striking teammate Michael Keane during Monday’s win over Manchester United. The midfielder was sent off for slapping Keane, becoming the first Premier League player in 17 years to be dismissed for attacking a teammate. Despite playing with 10 men for over 85 minutes, Everton secured a 1–0 victory at Old Trafford, handing David Moyes his first ever away win there. After the match, Gueye asked to address the squad and apologised directly to Keane and the team for putting them…

People who stop using the weight-loss drug Mounjaro (tirzepatide) not only tend to regain lost weight but also lose key health improvements, according to new research. The Surmount-4 clinical trial found that participants who stopped taking the drug commonly saw their blood pressure, “bad” cholesterol, blood sugar levels and waist circumference worsen again, particularly if they regained a large amount of weight. Among those who had lost at least 10% of their body weight and then stopped treatment, 82% regained at least a quarter of their lost weight within a year. Experts say the findings are not surprising, as excess…

Virgil van Dijk has launched a furious critique of Liverpool’s form, admitting the reigning champions are “in a mess” after their 3-0 home loss to Nottingham Forest. Speaking after the defeat, which left Liverpool in the bottom half of the Premier League table, the captain said the team had let down new manager Arne Slot and questioned whether everyone in the squad was taking responsibility for the slump. Van Dijk described the team’s start to the second half as “unacceptable” and said “panic kicked in” after Forest scored. He highlighted Liverpool’s poor defending from set pieces, with the side having…

A person in Washington state is believed to be the first human to die from the rare H5N5 strain of bird flu, though health officials say the risk to the general public remains low. The patient, an older adult with underlying health conditions from Grays Harbor County, was hospitalized in early November after developing a high fever, confusion and breathing problems. They were treated for H5N5, a strain not previously known to have infected humans. Health officials said the person had a backyard flock of domestic poultry that had been exposed to wild birds. No other people who were in…